CHURCH GROWTH IN MODERN CHRISTIANITY

Critical Analysis of Church Growth in Modern Christianity

Critical Analysis of Church Growth in Modern Christianity

Introduction

Church growth can be defined as the movement that initiated within the evangelical Christianity mainly with the purpose of merging missionary work with its social aspects for the people who are targeted. It is perhaps the growth of the church, i.e. increase in the followers of Christianity. This movement emphasized on factors regarding the expansion of church, or in other words, Christianity. In Christianity, church growth had always been a significant factor. Church growth can be measured by the number of the individuals who are influenced effectively by its preaching. A church plays a significant role in Christianity. In this essay, we would be discussing the growth of church in some specific context, i.e. in the 21st century. For this purpose, discussions would be made on the topics like biblical and theological basis for missions, early Christian church and strategies developed worldwide for the purpose of church growth.

We would be discussing factors such as models and strategies for the purpose of church growth in the 21st century and whether they are derived from the biblical and theological framework of early Christianity. From Ephesians, 1:22, “And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,”

Body

Biblical Mission

Mission in general means goal or an objective. However, when the word mission is used in context of Christianity, then it means the sending forth of men with authority to preach or spread the gospel. Therefore, the word mission has a specific meaning when it comes to speaking with reference to Christianity. Biblical mission is defined as the meaning of mission according to the bible.

In Christianity, mission means to send groups called missionaries to foreign countries for the purpose of spreading Christianity. Other objectives of mission include performing humanitarian work, especially for the poor. Missionaries preach the Christian faith to the local people of an area (Senior & Stuhlmueller, 1983 pp. 9-12). They also engage in humanitarian activities so as to improve the conditions of the poor from different aspects such as economic development, increase in literacy rate, medical care and education.

Theological Mission

Theology is defined as the in detailed study of religion. It is a systematic study of religion that emphasizes on the influences of religion. It is also considered as a profession, when an individual acquires necessary knowledge and training regarding religious studies.

In view of the above discussion, the meaning of a theological mission is apparent. A theological mission is defined as a mission that is aimed at spreading knowledge of religion to the targeted people or audience. Theological takes a general approach toward spreading knowledge of religion. If a person is Christian, then he or she would accept anything that is included in the teachings of Christianity. However, it happens that someone who is not a Christian does not accept that thing as readily as a Christian ...