Essentials for Church Growth    by Harold Comer

From an analysis of church growth literature and an examination of hundreds of churches that are growing and not growing there seems to be seven essentials that are required for growth today. Most conservative churches do most of these well, but there are two or three that we must wisely work on.

Strong Bible Teaching. All groups that are growing today are groups with a strong emphasis on Bible teaching. Christians should not be fearful to proclaim the distinctive, unique positions we hold as long as we can turn to the Bible passage behind it.

Totally Committed Disciples. Conservative churches have a better percentage of deeply committed disciples than most groups do. We have a head start here if we put our commitment to work in the correct areas.

Happy Moral Lives. The churches that are growing today make the sound of maintaining a strong moral stand. Good moral examples motivate people today, as they always have in very sinful societies.

Close, Caring “Family” Love. Urbanization has brought coldness into our society and distance between people. In TV, movies, and magazine articles closeness, family, and caring are being reintroduced. We need to recognize the mood of our society.

Every Member Committed to Growth.  The most important essential is where most conservative congregations fail. Growth needs to be the concern of each element in the Lord’s church; teacher, student, babe, mature; all have an important part to play.

Great, Enthusiastic Bible Classes. We may teach more Biblical content than any church in town, but we do it with so little effort and intensity that what our children hear is that the Bible is not as important as school. We must build the enthusiasm for our classes to the point that all our members are talking about them and telling neighbors.

Calm, Steady Leadership. People demand this type of leadership today. Members are around far more organizations then they were four decades ago and therefore they have learned a higher standard of leadership and they expect that higher standard in their spiritual associations.