Crouch
The church at Ephesus was birthed out of movement of God’s Spirit that threatened to put idol makers out of business. The silversmith union rioted because the church became a powerful disrupter of evil as it proclaimed Jesus as Lord.
And yet, not too many years later, Jesus said, “But I have this against you: You have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember then how far you have fallen; repent and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent” (Revelation 2:4-5).
In the original language, the word for “repent” is “metanoia.” Jesus called the church at Ephesus to its “metanoia moment,” and now He calls us to ours.
Our Work Together
The work of strengthening Tennessee Baptist churches begins with a call to repentance — personal and corporate repentance. When we lose our first love, we lose our saltiness, the light of the gospel grows dim, and our neighbors remain in spiritual darkness and overwhelming brokenness.
Every church needs God
So, our first work together is to create more opportunities for churches to recognize our need for God, return to Him, and experience spiritual renewal. G. Campbell Morgan said, “We cannot organize revival, but we can set our sails to catch the wind from Heaven when God chooses to blow upon His people once again.”
Over the months ahead, we will invite our churches to return to God by returning to the centrality of prayer and the ministry of the Word. We want to help our pastors and people hear the voice of God and walk in His ways again.
Repentance and renewal also involve “doing the work you did at first.” When God changes our heart, He also changes our habits. That means strengthening churches includes helping churches assess church and community realities, identify unhealthy habits, discover God’s will, and build new muscles of obedience and faithfulness.
Our Path Forward
As the TBMB “serves churches by multiplying gospel leaders who advance God’s kingdom,” our aim is to equip every church to experience the renewal needed to become a force multiplier of gospel leaders, evangelistic disciples, and healthy churches.
That work is possible in the power of the Holy Spirit as we take these steps forward together:
- Pray with a fresh hunger for God and compassion for souls
- Listen and learn to discover what God is already doing to renew churches
- Unite around the gospel deepening our trust in one another
- Expand our capacity for kingdom impact by creating cohorts across the state
- Invest in pastor and spouse health and fruitfulness
- Obey God by implementing practices for church renewal
Our Shared Mission
Collaboration requires proximity, so in the coming weeks we will gather pastors, associational leaders, and others to pray, listen, and learn together as we develop a shared mission of church renewal.
This is our “metanoia moment,” and God has provided everything we need to respond.
In Tennessee, we have a faith-forward political and business environment, warehouses of intellectual and practical resources, and an incredible network of over 3,000 Tennessee Baptist churches.
We have no lack of opportunity. The question is, “Are we willing to seize this moment and share the mission?”
If you would like to explore how you or your church can step into church renewal, our Strengthening Healthy Churches Team would be honored to begin that conversation with you. Call or text me at 423-571-5290 or email dcrouch@tnbaptist.org. B&R
