Ephesians 3:21 ‘to God be the glory in the church and in Jesus Christ for all time, forever and ever! Amen’ (GNT)
As we begin 2019, a very good question to ask ourselves is, Are We A Good Church Or A Bad Church?
If the answer is, we are a bad Church, then we need to do all we can to become a good Church
Or, if we are unwilling to do all we can to become a good Church then we need to close the Church down and go and join a good Church
After all, who in their right mind wants to be a member of a bad Church?
If the answer is, yes, we are a good Church, then we need to commit ourselves 100% to our Church and do all we can to support our Church ministries and make 2019 the best year this Church has ever had!
So, how do we know if we are a good Church or a bad Church?
If you ask a hundred Christians what they think makes a Church either good or bad, you will likely get a hundred different answers – that’s called popular opinion
I have prepared a SURVEY FORM that we are going to fill out right now to help us answer the question Are We A Good Church Or A Bad Church?
All the points on the SURVEY FORM are popular opinions that I have heard over 31 years of pastoral ministry, made by people who think they know what makes a Church either good or bad
Let’s go through these points together
At the end of the SURVEY add up your score to see if, according to popular opinion, we are either a good Church or a bad Church
We start the SURVEY FORM with what is for sure the most common, by far, popular opinion on what makes a Church either good or bad
Many Christians would consider this question to be the only way to determine whether a Church is either good or bad
For many Christians who walk into a Church, any Church, for the first time they will decide whether a Church is either good or bad in the first few minutes based on this assessment
Even pastors use this assessment to measure their own success
(The SURVEY FORM is not for publication)
Despite popular opinion, Churches can be either good or bad regardless of their size – a small Church can be a good Church, or it can be a bad Church – a big Church can be a good Church, or it can be a bad Church
This assessment is probably the hardest popular opinion to change amongst many, if not most Christians
That’s because most people like being in a crowd of people; it gives them a sense that something exciting is happening
A big Church is exciting, so that is good – A small Church is not exciting, so that is bad
There is ONLY one thing that determines whether a Church is either good or bad
Over the next few weeks we will do some Messages which I’m hoping will answer the question for all of us
When we filled out the SURVEY FORM, we answered the questions using different reasoning
1/ Emotional reasons. Example: A big Church is good because it makes me feel good when I attend – A small Church is bad because it’s boring!
2/ Self-centered reasons. Example: A Church that entertains my children for an hour and a half using Play Stations in Sunday School keeps my children happy and gives me a break; that’s good – A Church that uses the Bible to teach my children the ways of God is boring my kids, they don’t want that, that’s bad; they want to play on the Play Station
3/ Worldly reasons. Example: A Church with a trendy young Pastor is relevant; that’s good – A Church with an old pastor is irrelevant; that’s bad
4/ Personal reasons. Example: I don’t like a noisy Church; that’s bad – I like a quiet Church; that’s good
5/ Weird reasons. Example: A Church that plays Kenny G instrumentals and sounds of the ocean and has a ministry to transgender unicorns is good
6/ Biblical reasons. Example: hopefully most of you saw the 3 biblical clues I listed in the SURVEY – Evangelism, Discipleship and Worshipping God are all good
These 3 clues all contribute to the ONE thing that determines whether a Church is either good or bad
Over the next few weeks we will put aside popular opinion and instead use Biblical reasons to find out if we are a good Church or a bad Church
revdotdavid 
Hi David, this was a good read on good or bad church. Yesterday I went to Elim church here in Timaru, the 1st time in years where i have worshiped without wondering what or who else is going on, i was able to just disappear with Jesus it was great. The message was about are you being lead or allowing yourself to be lead be the shepherd. It is so important and valuable to be involved in church. It helps to keep you perspective on life heading in the right direction. Bless you all and I am hoping all is well with you all.
Regards and God bless Paul.
Hi Paul, very good brother. Yes, some Churches understand they exist to glorify God, sadly, most in the West don’t.