"Change of seasons - fall, winter, spring, Gospel Meeting" - Joey Ferrell
In the area of which I live and work, we have a variety of seasons it seems. Most of the world sees Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter. We are no different…or are we? In Tennessee, specifically, it may seem like we can have three of these seasons combined into one day or weekend. Much like this cold and rainy day that is keeping me inside this morning. We have about 10 different named winters even during the spring season of vegetation growth, and we have to be very careful of what we plant or uncover due to this…if we want those things to grow and live. But…we have a very interesting season in our area of the world that some do not, or maybe they don’t understand it…here it is:
Gospel meeting season!
You may be laughing at that…especially if you are in my area since beginning this past week starts a host of Gospel Meetings that will not stop until late fall. It seems we have at least one every single week, if not more. Some would say we are extremely blessed, some would say that even though this is the case, that the area has more complacency due to this wide offering. Either way, we have them, and we are proud of them, and sometimes we even get to eat a big ole potluck dinner because of them. But, that isn’t really what this article is focussed on. So, you have read this far…let me identify what it is.
What is the purpose of a gospel meeting/revival?
Over time, the true purpose of a gospel meeting (or “revival” as some may want to identify since the prior is more of a southern term and, let me mention that revival is not a bad word, even though the denominational idea of revival has dampened the nature of this word) seems to have lost its meaning and focus. So, what should we consider is the purpose of a gospel meeting? Well, quite honestly, I think the key word is “focus.” What are we focussed on?
Don’t get me wrong…I believe that there is a great need for gospel preaching in every way possible; however, our modern day idea of a gospel meeting has been hampered as such that it has become just a way to invite like-minded people to an event at our location, sometimes with a fellowship meal, to hear a sometimes “famed” speaker and to talk about how we aren’t reaching people in….you ready for this…our evangelism efforts. I even read a website of a congregation that says that “a gospel meeting is for a group of Christians to come together to meet.” Is that truly what the definition should be?
So, let’s look at what a gospel meeting should focus on to be successful. It is imperative that we put some scripture behind this as well, so let’s see how we can balance this idea with what Paul says in Ephesians 4:11-16:
“And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”
Equipping
Equipping the saints is a key element to spreading the gospel message as well as keeping our “saved” “saved.” Notice that Paul identifies this in verse 12, when he says ““for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry…"
This part is imperative! Not that the rest is not; however, too many times, we may lose sight of this idea of a gospel meeting. Our elders and the speakers of the meeting would do well to have this in the forefront of the entire idea of having a gospel meeting. These meetings should offer plenty of opportunity of equipping “for the work of ministry.” That means that we are providing significant ideas and ways for members of the Lord’s body to be able to “reach out and touch someone” so to speak. A gospel meeting that is absent of the encouragement to go out beyond the walls of the church building is a half-hearted effort at best.
Edifying
As equally important, Paul says in that same verse, “for the edifying of the body of Christ.” We seem to most times get this one right. We are extremely focussed on edifying the saints and that is wonderful. Every gospel meeting should have an element of “lifting” or “refreshing” the members of the congregation and her surrounding brethren that may come to participate as well. But, we also must keep the edification of the saints in the spirit of faith and growth. Many times, I have sat at the feet of good men in gospel meetings in which a hobby horse has been the subject of the edification. A “we are right in this and can I get an amen” attitude is there, and the edification is extremely unbalanced. This hobby horse may come from the speaker, or sometimes it may come from the leadership of the congregation in asking the speaker to address a particular topic. Some examples of what I am referring would include a particular translation of the Bible being the only one to use, a sort of “petition” against a local congregation that may be in error in part, or a particular denomination that has seen growth, etc. There are many more, but these are just a few examples. Our edification should not be to “equip” the saints to engage in war against others, but rather to engage in war against satan and his divisive ways in which these ideas would fall into. In turn, the light that is shown will prove the process of pointing these things out (see Ephesians 5:11).
evangelism
“till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”
Well, honestly, this is the part that we are missing in many gospel meetings. We print up a flyer and mail it to all of the area congregations. We put it on social media to advertise the special times and speaker. We publish it in the newspaper (sometimes) with a picture of the speaker and maybe his subject. And…this list could also go on and on, but let’s think about something…
Some years ago, I was tasked with preaching a gospel meeting in an area that the church is a desert, meaning that there are not a lot of Christians there, and a significant area of travel to the next congregation. The congregation allowed me to choose my theme. I chose these lessons: Who is the church of Christ; What does the church of Christ look like; What is ‘wrong’ with the church of Christ; and What is RIGHT with the church of Christ. I asked the congregation of less than 20 if I could send some postcards to them for distribution with these titles and theme along with the times, etc. They agreed. So, after sending them a few weeks ahead and then after driving 7 hours to the church building on Wednesday for the meeting to start on Thursday night, you can imagine how disappointed it was to see the stack of postcards - unopened - sitting on the front pew. The digital sign out front had nothing about the meeting advertised…matter of fact, what was advertised was months old. To make something clear that may seem quite important as well - this was a domestic mission effort with no expected financial support or travel expenses.
On to the meeting, the first night of the meeting was Thursday. I personally went out to several public areas and hung up postcards and gave some out to people on the street walking, in the stores in the area and so on. That night, I was excited to start this meeting. In came the first member. It was about 10 minutes before the service was to start. Then a couple more came in. Then one more family. There were 6 people to start the service that night. I figured that it was just because it was a work and school night, so I shrugged it off, preached the truth and then went back upstairs to the apartment they had allowed me to stay to study for the next day. Friday night comes. Same first member comes in about the same time. Second and third, then a couple that had not been there the night before. 7 people were present that night. I stopped in the middle of the lesson and asked if there was a problem that was causing the members to not be there. It was suggested that I reach out to a few of them…so I did. I called some of the members that I had gotten to know very well. One had a fishing tournament that he said he wanted to go to and he would be there Sunday. Another said that his child had something at school that night (he and his wife have 5 children, but just the 1 was involved in the activity.). The next family I called was my host family when I would go to the area. I talked to them on the way up, let them know when I got there, and expected to see them early. They were not there. The first two nights of the meeting were gone. When I asked them to come and meet with me, they did that night after the meeting. I asked them if something was wrong and they said that they had some challenges right now with some other members…BUT, that was not the reason that they were not there. The answer I got was “well, your lessons are about the church of Christ and we don’t feel that we need that.” I responded that maybe they should go back and listen to the recording because the lesson was actually aimed at members of the Lord’s church and not necessarily visitors; however, I could have changed that perspective had there been a house full of visitors. After they understood that the meeting was designed to strengthen them to do more evangelism in the area as much as it was to invite people to “come and see” what the church of Christ was all about, the family did not miss any more services. Sunday morning came and went. Attendance that morning was 18. We had a meal together and I left that small town to never return. Most of the members that I knew from there are either deceased, or have moved away. I am not totally sure that the church there is even meeting any longer. What a disappointment. A meeting was scheduled, materials furnished to invite the community, the lessons were very fitting for the current situation of the congregation, yet nobody did anything to make that meeting successful…except the small efforts of me - the unknown visiting preacher. My only hope is that someone benefitted from those lessons.
Many of our gospel meetings are not much different from this scenario. Consider these things:
People visiting that are not members of the church or members of sister and area congregations will most likely NOT know the speaker, regardless of the picture, his name, or his credentials that we post…and frankly, they probably aren’t even considering attending because of the speaker.
Visitors will be reluctant to fellowship at a meal after the services because they did not bring anything. IF we do have visitors, we need to make sure they are fully informed that they are welcome and that they can sit by someone that will keep them company (instead of over in the corner by themselves)
Oftentimes, the meetings will NOT be the same times as regular services. If nothing is advertised outside of the church building, when people show up - if they are visitors or even sometimes the members that aren’t in tune with each announcement and just don’t know, they may just leave and not come back.
Efforts are spent in majority to “swell” the congregation from area congregations, and not so much on the members of the community who may not even know that there is a meeting…and its purpose.
Visitors that do come are expecting to hear the Good News of Jesus and how He can change their lives. Sometimes, our themes of meetings don’t even begin to touch the surface of that. We tend to be too concerned at times with doctrinal differences being discussed and loud amens being heard that may just be what can turn that visitor away thinking that they are being ridiculed or unwelcome.
What can we do better?
Focus on the community. Those people that live next door to the church building are as important as the member of the sister congregation in the next town.
Make sure that the emphasis is on the gospel message and not so much on the speaker. Some speakers are very well known from the congregations that they have labored with, maybe (in our case at The Gospel of Christ) from a television, internet, or radio program; however, those that are visiting that are not members of the church probably do not know the speaker unless it is by chance.
Advertise with purpose. Use social media. If you have the ability, put a pop-up or a meeting announcement on the front page of your website. Use your tools. If you send out House to House, Heart to Heart, you can use the back corner to advertise meetings…and since these are mailed to the area around the church building typically, what an audience to advertise to!
Keep announcements at a minimum and focus more on the messages being preached.
Don’t expect everyone that comes to know what sometimes cryptic statements mean, or the “normal order” of worship, where classes meet, expected attire, customary practices, and so on. Someone visiting the church for the first time on a Sunday may have never seen anyone partake of the Lord’s supper and do not realize that this is not for those outside of the body.
Make sure your property is inviting. Clean up around the outside. Take old announcements down that are expired. Don’t have piles of items just sitting around. Freshen up the air, clean the windows, and maybe even put some paint on the walls if needed.
Realize that the building may be a strange place for visitors and for sister congregations. The fellowship hall in the old auditorium down the road and across the street is foreign to the visitor.
Pray for success of the meeting…and follow through. If you pray for rain, you better have an umbrella. If you pray for visitors that are not members of the church to be there, then be prepared to do something to capture that moment.
When seasons change, we typically change things to match the needs. We unpack clothing to wear that is more fitting, we “spring clean” our homes, we prepare for different weather, and most importantly, we thank God for the season we have finished and the one that is to come.
Gospel meeting season is upon my area…and maybe yours too. May each meeting be blessed with great results, great love for one another, growth in the body, and fulfillment of edification, equipping, and evangelizing!
At The Gospel of Christ, our motto is to take the Whole Gospel to the Whole World. We work hard to help your congregation evangelize to the lost and to edify the saints. If you have an opportunity for a gospel meeting/revival in your area and would be interested in having Joey Ferrell or Scott Furniss coming, we would be happy to discuss schedules and availability.