I wrote this a few years back. It’s about how many churches may be lying about what they put on their mission statement. I thought it would be worth pulling out of the archives for a fresh look. So here ya go…
“You shall not bear false witness….” The 9th Commandment
I’ve always been interested in church mission statements. They can range from typical (“to know him and make him known”) to transformational (“We strive to proclaim the Good News of Christ through worship, ministry, and their outreach missions.”) As I think about it I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a church’s mission statement that doesn’t make evangelism a central priority in one way or another.
But, when it comes to evangelism, a mission statement can turn from big black letters on a church marquee to a little, white lie that the church is telling the community. Strike that … it’s a big lie. If a church claims to be making evangelism a central priority and the people in that church are not actively sharing their faith then the mission statement of that church is not just a joke, it’s a lie.
I know. I know. These are bold words. But they are not meant to make you angry but to get you thinking. Think about it. If we are proclaiming to the members of our congregation and community that evangelism is a primary purpose via our church’s mission statement and we are not making it a central priority of our church’s program and budgets then that mission statement is a lie.
If evangelism is a central priority in a church then it would seem to me that evangelism training should be central as well. The people in that congregation should be consistently challenged and equipped to proclaim the good news of Jesus. If Continue reading…
