Let’s be honest! Pastors and everyone else. - Take an honest look at ourselves and our churches.
✨ Let's be honest: True church success isn't about big buildings or large crowds, it's about genuine spiritual growth and holiness. 🌿❤️
Hey, welcome to this video. I am so excited to be with you. It has been a very long time since I actually did a video like this and just came out with some teaching and shared something with you like this. I think it's maybe one and a half months ago since the last time I did a video like this. I have been in Brazil and Colombia, and I have been busy with many things. A few days ago, I did a Zoom call with a lot of ministers and pastors in America. Yesterday, I was in Cancun, Mexico, where I spoke at a leader conference—first to a lot of pastors, and then I spoke at an outdoor event. Here, you can see a little video from yesterday where you can see there was a lot of people at the outdoor meeting. It was beautiful; it was amazing.
I want to talk about something. I have seen a shift happen in my ministry and what I’ve been doing, especially after jail and now being in Mexico. I'm working a lot with pastors and ministers to help see them reform and transform their churches. That was also what the Zoom call was about the other day, and hopefully, we will publish it next week so you have the opportunity to see the Zoom call and join next time.
One of the things I started with, and this is why I want to do this video, is the concept of "Let's Be Honest." We need to start there. We need to be honest about our lives and the churches we attend today. When I recorded this video, it was a Sunday. Millions of people are going to church every Sunday; maybe you are one of them. The way and place we go to celebrate Christ and be together is very different from place to place. Some would go to small churches, some to house churches, larger churches, or mega churches. Every place is different, and it’s important we come together. It’s very important we have fellowship. We are not called to be disciples alone; we cannot walk this life alone. We are part of a body.
What I want to talk about is the church and what comes out of coming together. There are good things everywhere, and I’m not here to point fingers and say everything is bad everywhere. There are good things, but we need to be honest with ourselves. We need to ask ourselves if we are really doing what God has called us to do, or are we just becoming a social club? Are we just having a good time, coming together, singing Kumbaya, and saying we are the church? Are we really doing what Christ has called us to do?
There are many things to consider when talking about being honest. Let's take a little time to look at our churches. That was what I started with in the Zoom call the other day, and I always start with this when we talk about being honest and looking at our churches. Let's look in the right place. Let’s not just look at the church building and think, "Oh, we are a good church because we have a big building." Jesus did not have a building. His disciples and the early church transformed the world without buildings like that. So, having a big building is not the right metric.
Let's look at how many people we have. If we have many people in our church, we are doing good, right? No, it’s not about the numbers. Jesus did not gather big crowds like today, but he still transformed the world the way he did it. What about the economy? Having a good economy doesn't mean we are doing good. Jesus did without that, and the early church did without that, yet they still transformed the world. What about activities? Having a good program, Sunday school, kids' programs, and many activities during the week does not, in itself, make us a good church.
I don’t say it’s wrong to have a building, many people, activities, or a good economy. That is not what we should look at. We should look at the people and how they are living and transforming within the church. We should instead focus on the people and their spiritual growth—how they grow up to Christ and obey Him in their everyday lives. This assessment extends beyond Sunday mornings to what the youth do on Friday evenings, the conversations over coffee on Wednesday afternoons, and their overall obedience to Christ.
A critical aspect we should examine is holiness within our fellowship. Are people becoming holy as our Father is holy? Are they being sanctified and transforming into the pure bride of Christ? This transformation involves putting off the old life, taking on a new one, and being divorced from worldly desires to be married to Christ. Are they becoming free from sin, living the new life described in Romans 6, or are they remaining as sinners who repeatedly confess the same sins? We need to assess if the fruit of the Spirit is evident in their lives or if they are still exhibiting the deeds of the flesh as outlined in Galatians.
As a church, if we do not see the process of sanctification and holiness, we need to change our approach. It's essential to start with our own lives before examining the church. As a church leader and ministry planner, I recall a time when I believed we had a truly holy congregation. However, years later, I learned from a former member that the holiness I perceived was superficial, driven more by the fear of my judgment rather than genuine fear of God. This realization was painful but necessary for change.
By adjusting the way I preached and conducted church activities, we have since seen a significant shift. Now, we see real fruit and a new standard among our members. For instance, young couples now often wait until marriage for their first kiss, showing a higher level of commitment to purity. This change demonstrates the positive impact of focusing on genuine spiritual growth and obedience to Christ.
✨ Real church success is measured by spiritual growth, not by the size of the congregation. 🌿❤️
Tuesday and Wednesday were very different and challenging days for me. It was hard and shocking to realize that what I thought I had, I did not. However, it was a good place to start because that is where change can happen. I began to change the way I was preaching and conducting my ministry. Now, years later, we are seeing much more fruit and very different fruit. We see a new standard of people that I am very proud of. Many young couples are getting married, and when they do, it’s the first time they kiss each other. During the ceremony, "Now you may kiss your bride" is a significant moment.
These couples do not engage in kissing, touching, or other intimate acts before they are married because that person they are engaged with is not theirs yet; they are still a sister or brother in the Lord. They belong to the same Father, God in heaven, and we are not allowed to touch and do all things with them because we are not one yet. But once they are married, they are allowed to kiss their bride and do more things that belong to the marriage covenant. This behavior stems from a desire for purity; it comes from the heart, not as a law or something superficial. It reflects a new standard of holiness where people want to be like their Father.
Another area to consider is sound doctrine, which leads to the fear of God. Do people have a holy fear of God in their lives? This is crucial. How do people view God? If He is seen only as "Abba Father" without any sense of holiness, or conversely, only as a consuming fire without the loving aspect of "Abba Father," there is an imbalance. The teaching we provide should bring a good balance in our lives.
Additionally, we need to look at ministry. We are all called to ministry and to grow up to maturity. The Bible says we should all be teachers by now, but some need to be taught the elementary truths again. People should not remain as babes in the church, constantly needing to be fed Sunday after Sunday. There is a time for milk, but it should be a short period, after which individuals should grow up and begin teaching others.
If people have been in a church for many years and are still dependent on being taught, it might be time to question their growth. Just like in real life, where a 40-year-old living with their parents needs to grow up, in the spiritual life, individuals should mature, take responsibility, and potentially lead their own ministries. The goal is for people to grow up, become mature, and not remain dependent on their earthly spiritual leaders but become dependent on Our Father in heaven.
We need to ensure our churches foster an environment where people grow to maturity and do not remain as spiritual babies. This is a critical aspect to examine and improve. When you are years old and still live with Mom and Dad, you should look at them and decide to take responsibility for your life. You are not a young man or baby anymore; you should be an adult now. Why? Because when we have kids in the natural world, the whole purpose is for them to grow up, become mature, and not be dependent on our earthly parents but instead be dependent on our Father in Heaven. They should leave Mom and Dad, get a spouse, have children, and then the cycle repeats itself.
We need to be honest about this. Do we make Church a place where we let people remain as babies in the faith, or do they truly learn to grow up to maturity? This is an area that needs looking into. There was a time when I did church differently. I kept making people depend on me instead of truly depending on God. After a short time with me, they were released into their own Ministry. By doing this, we don't have a big church like others, but we have raised up many ministers and leaders. This is what we need to do.
Another critical area is Ministry. We are all called to do Ministries. Do people learn to preach the gospel, heal the sick, cast out demons, and find the person of peace as we read in Luke 10? Do they lead people to God, baptize them in water, lay hands on them so they receive the Holy Spirit, and make disciples to grow them up? Do we teach people to do this, or is Ministry only for the few? Sadly, in many places, we have created a culture where a few do the ministry, and many watch.
What I shared here is just a few questions that are good to ask. There are many more. I have worked with many churches, and there are many good things happening. I'm not saying everything is bad, but we can do better. I can do better. We need to be honest, starting with our lives. Do I have a healthy fear of God? Do I live holy and become sanctified so I can be glorified one day? Do I grow up and become mature in Christ? Do I do Ministry or remain as a sinner, going to church and confessing the same sin week after week without being free from sin? Do I just sit passively and need someone to feed me, or do I step into Ministry?
If you find yourself in this position, do something about it. Change. Start by being honest and ask yourself what you need to do to change. If you are not honest and don't decide to change, you will remain where you are, deceiving yourself. This is not the life God has called us to. Are you a minister or a pastor? Look at yourself. There was a time in my life when I realized I needed to change. I fasted, prayed, and did what was necessary. Change happened in my life, and then I did the Ministry. After years of doing Ministry, I re-evaluated my work and noticed the lack of lasting fruit. I decided I could do better, surrendered to God, and saw transformation.
Recently, I met people who had transformed after my last visit. One woman, who had been in church for years, got set free, filled with the Holy Spirit, and baptized. She is now back in Canada, doing Ministry, and seeing lives changed. This is what we need to see. Use this Sunday when you go to church to be honest with yourself and evaluate your life. If you are a pastor, look at your churches and what you are building. Change what needs to be changed.
I've worked with several churches, and one pastor recently said he had seen more baptisms in the last month than in the previous five years. That is a good place to start. God bless you. Evaluate yourself, your Ministry, and your church to see the transformation Christ has for all of us. God bless you and have a good day.