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When Christ centered expository preaching is not enough to “grow” a church, what is? Tune in to find out why the key to your church might be calling “visitors,” “guests.”
Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry coming to you from Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. No Compromise Radio is a program dedicated to the ongoing proclamation of Jesus Christ, based on the theme in Galatians 2, verse 5, where the Apostle Paul said, �But we did not yield in subjection to them for even an hour, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.
In short, if you like smooth, watered-down words to make you simply feel good, this show isn�t for you. By purpose, we are first biblical, but we can also be controversial. Stay tuned for the next 25 minutes as we�re called by the Divine Trumpet to summon the troops for the honor and glory of her King.
Here�s our host, Pastor Mike Abendroth. Welcome to No Compromise Radio, a ministry.
My name is Mike Abendroth. And yes, Fred, this is a new show. I�m recording this show, I don�t know, September 20th, 21st-ish, and so it will probably play early October. How about that? Octoberfest here with No Compromise Radio.
Well, my name is Mike Abendroth, and I am pleased to pastor Bethlehem Bible Church. We have had some no-co-visitors as of late. Make sure if you�re going to visit us that you just write us at info at nocompromiseradio .com before you come so I can make sure I greet you.
I�ve been known to give a free t-shirt away to some of the visitors� special tour of the studio, the two microphones, the recorder, the innkeeper, and the com-rex for Wretched. By the way, speaking of Wretched, you need to start flooding Wretched with the request for guest hosts again.
I got a text this morning from Todd about a different subject, and I thought, �Well, at least he still knows who I am. I haven�t shut down the place. So, what is going on today? Oh, you know what I�d like to do?
I�d like to give away a free copy of Things That Go Bump in the Church, Abendroth, Archer, Yawn. These are scary doctrines for Christians, church discipline, what about homosexuality, what about church membership, elder rule, that type of thing.
I will give a copy away to someone in the United States. I have to say that now because shipping in Canada or to Kofi in England or something is pretty outrageously expensive, and I�ll give a free copy away for the first person that can either tweet me or, yeah, let�s do Twitter.
Twitter me the name of the NoCo mascot. So, if you give me a Twitter and you properly spell the name, then offline you can give me your address and I�ll send you a free copy in the continental United States, any place in the United States, because it�s just as cheap to ship to Hawaii for post office.
Things That Go Bump in the Church, that came out on Harvest House a while ago, and I think, and it�s hard to talk about your own book, so let me talk about the two other authors, Clint and Byron. Excellent material, written in, might I say, a no-compromise style with some humor.
A couple chapters don�t have humor because of the subject matter of those said chapters, i .e. hell. But these guys are really excellent writers and ministers for the gospel, faithfully preaching for years, and I think you�d really enjoy the book.
I think if you�ve got a young teenager, college student, a younger crowd, they�re going to like the style of the book, and you, as the older senile grandparent, you will like the content. Did I just say that?
I mean, my demographic, I don�t think, is senile grandparents. Maybe a few, Tuesday guy, maybe that. And also, the new book, Sexual Fidelity, No Compromise, should be out in about a month or so. I have finished getting everything, like ISBN numbers, Library of Congress numbers, talked to the publisher, NoCo Media will publish it, brand new company, I think I know the person who�s the officiating director there, and it will behoove you to get a copy, there�ll be a porthole on the No Compromise website, and you can order a copy.
Easy read, 140 pages, 30 chapters that talk about this topic in a very proper fashion. Written in NoCo style, but there�s no weird emergent, you know, weird dream kind of things in there that have been in the news as of late, and of late, along those subject lines, this is a topic that needs to be addressed, and I wrote the book a few years ago and just needed to put that out so you could read through a chapter a day to think rightly about this topic.
Well, speaking of books, oh, by the way, at NoCo Radio, that�s the Twitter handle, so if you want to, you have to tweet the No Compromise mascot�s name, okay? And then we�ll send you a free book, Things to Go Bump in the Church, if you live in the United States.
If you live overseas, I�ll send you a free book if you want to chip in for shipping. How�s that? Now, in the summer, I�m often in California, Santa Cruz, not Puerto Rico, but Santa Cruz, California, and I pick up books at the Mount Hermon bookstore that sometimes I wouldn�t normally buy.
Maybe I�ll buy a leadership book once a summer and then repent because it�s so lacking. There�s a, I think the pastors that are local there in the Santa Cruz area get 20 off the books, and if you�re a pastor but you�re not local, you get 10%.
So if you drive a really long way and spend a lot of money to get there, you get just only 10 off, but I�m thankful for the 10 off. So I bought a book that I normally wouldn�t buy, and it�s called What Every Pastor Should Know.
What Every Pastor Should Know, actually published by a reputable, a publishing house, no, co-media newspaper, Baker. And the subtitle in this Gary McIntosh and Charles Arnn book, What Every Pastor Should Know, 101 Indispensable Rules of Thumb for Leading Your Church.
So it�s almost like a Puritan where you have to have really long titles. McIntosh got his Ph .D. from Fuller, he�s the president of Church Growth Network. Charles Arnn went to University of Southern California, professor of outreach at Wesley Seminary, Indiana Wesleyan University, and president of Church Growth Inc.
Okay? What Every Pastor Should Know. Now I have lots to learn. I have much that I could learn. I�m just trying to think of a synonym for �learn. I need instruction, I need education, I need tutelage.
When you think you begin to realize, �Oh, I�m understanding this pastorate a little bit more. Something happens, right? It�s impossible, in one sense, to fully shepherd the flock. And that is why you need a plurality of elders, that is why you need to be prayerful, and that is why you need the Holy Spirit.
Because it�s an impossible job. Now the Spirit of God is pleased to work through fallible men at the leadership level, to tend His sheep, to feed His sheep, to make sure every sheep gets to heaven, right?
He will not lose one. The Book of Life has been written, the decree of God is final, and all His sheep will make it. Good thing, because if it was dependent upon pastors like me to guarantee safe arrival, who would have a chance?
Who would stand any opportunity to get there? But the book, while it probably can teach me things, I haven�t read through the whole thing. I just thought I would go through a few of these, because this is what every pastor needs to know.
And if the pastor needs to know it, of course the congregation needs to know it, either implicitly or explicitly. Here we have number one. Now I don�t remember the intro, because I haven�t, I probably read the first, let�s see, 75 pages.
And it might say in the intro, these are in order of importance. You know how on Amazon or on websites you can change the little button on the top right-hand side or another area, list from least expensive to most popular, new, what wears out the fastest, that type of thing.
So I don�t know how these are arranged. Number one, what every pastor should know. Some of these I didn�t know, now I know. Now I want you to know. At least three of every five elected church officers should have a Great Commission conscience.
Now already I read that and I thought, okay, church officers. Well, let�s assume those in modern-day churches, I don�t like to call them officers. But I think they�re talking about elders and deacons and maybe trustees.
Where�s that trustees chapter, Tobit? When�s the last time you read Tobit? Matter of fact, it is a book that is not canonical. It is a pographer. It is in the Roman Catholic canon, of course. And when you read what happened to Saul and his eyes upon his conversion, you can hear the faint echo of something that happened in Tobit.
Whether that is intentionally linked or not, you�re going to have to study that. But I will just throw that out for your higher educational perusal. When the flock of God is called to be shepherded, of course, 1 Peter 5, shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you, not for shameful gain, but eagerly, not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.
When the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another.
For God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Now I understand the 1 Peter 5 passage. It�s difficult to live out, of course, but I don�t know what this is. So already, what every pastor should know, maybe that�s the point.
I need to know what a Great Commission conscience might be. Of course, here on No Compromise Radio, we believe the Great Commission is when the Father in eternity past had the Son go rescue the elect by having the Son add human nature to himself.
Okay, number two, isn�t this fun? What every pastor should know. For the most effective outreach, focus on receptive people. Well, I think there is something to be said for 2 Timothy 2, and elders and leaders should train other leaders.
And if you�re always focusing on people that aren�t that, that aren�t that, that are not leadership material, then you�re going to need somebody to hold up your arms a different way, i .e., Moses. Receptive people.
There�s a receptivity resistance axis. I guess what they�re saying is if there�s resistant people, don�t focus on them. Okay. It even has the Holmes-Rahe stress scale. I don�t know what that�s doing there.
Number three, we got to speed this up when I think something�s bombing, then we got to go forward. Offer at least nine entry events per year for effective community outreach. So what are some of those?
Because I need help for these things that I didn�t learn in seminary that every pastor should know. Valentine�s Day Father-Daughter Banquet, that�s not bad. Christmas Pageant, I don�t know what that means, Miss America Pageant.
Halloween Festival, oh, it says Harvest Slash, Fourth of July Festival, Memorial Day Picnic and Parade, Super Bowl Sunday, trip to the local sports game, local Christian sports celebrity speaker. Now, see, we need that.
I am 45 miles outside of Boston, 70 clicks outside of Boston, and I cannot get Tom Brady to come here. Are there any Christians on the New England Patriots? Although all the ownership is Christian, well, maybe one of them would like to come out here.
Handling Divorce Seminar, Guest Speaker on Relative Topics, Relevant Topics, Getting Started in Your Marriage Seminar, Visit to Local Points of Interest, Tax Planning. That really pulls them in, we�ve got to get to the church for tax planning.
Now, these kids� events, this might really get them into the church. When Faithful Christ-Centered Exposition, Verse-by-Verse Authorial Intent, Proper Exegesis, when that doesn�t work, we could try the Taffy Poll with the kids� events.
Now, the Taffy Poll might really work because if you�ve got dentists in the congregation, they need help. Years ago, my children were making something, and Kim has done a great job over the years helping the kids bake and know how to make things.
When I met Kim, she� not when I met Kim, she� that would be Korean cabbage that�s very spicy, although I like that, low-carb too, low-calorie too, but real picey. She couldn�t hardly cook at all, and we�d always go out, and then we got kids, and she has developed into a great cook.
I have to watch it because I�m on the Auschwitz diet, as Tuesday Guy says, so I have to be careful. Kim is a great cook, so I just have to have smaller portions. It�s the push and control. You got it?
So then the kids were making homemade taffy, saltwater taffy. What about saltwater taffy makes it so good? I particularly like peanut butter saltwater taffy, that�s good. Maybe some Vassar melon, some watermelon, that would be good.
You don�t have to send anything. I get plenty of peach coffee in the mail, you don�t have to send any watermelon. I even sometimes get maple syrup in the mail, and I have to check it, I have to do a titration analysis on it with some precipitates to make sure there�s no bad things in there.
I have to make the cup bear taste some before I taste it. And the kids made the taffy, and they said, �Be careful, Daddy, it�s really� I don�t know what word they say, �sticky, gooey, and you don�t want it to pull any cavity out.
And I remember so pridefully saying, �You can tell where all this is going, can�t you I�m not going to pull my cavities out. But I�ve eaten taffy before, you get it at the airport or something, down at the carnival area, the boardwalk.
I�ve eaten taffy before. I started chewing the taffy, and man, it was good. And sometimes if you buy taffy, there�s nothing in it except the taffy, and other times there�s little pieces of things, chunks of things, maybe part of a little piece of the fruit or a flick of chocolate or something, I don�t know, it�s something that�s got a different consistency.
It was my filling. Off to the dentist the next day. That was awful. So now when I eat taffy, I want it to be very, very warm so that it�s not so chewy. You can do pet shows and races too for kids� events, by the way, pet races.
Why do the Ramones song �I don�t want to get buried in a pet cemetery� start coming to my mind right now. All right, number four, the fourth thing that every pastor should know. Churches should build a minimum of two side doors every year.
Front doors? Side doors? What�s a side door? A church-sponsored program, group, or activity in which a nonmember can come comfortably involved on a regular basis. So the goats can come and feel good about their goatishness.
It is an ongoing function in which a nonmember can develop meaningful and valued relationships with people in the church. We want side doors that have been created for people who� and then it gives a list of all the things that they like to do.
Ride motorcycles, have children in the military, have husbands in jail, are nominal Jews, enjoy scrapbooking. Now, what do those, do those have anything to, have right next to each other, have husbands in jail and enjoy scrapbooking?
What if you just are one of those two, not both of those? Enjoy scuba diving, enjoy camping. Okay, dropped my phone here, so I better pick it up. No compromise radio. It�s almost time for a wonder word from the great Joe Osteen.
Here�s your best life now game, wonder word. I pull out a card. This is the card. It�s right here. Energy. That�s, that�s the wonder word for the day. Energy. Energy. Don�t ever believe your pastor if he said the word for energy here is dynamic and it means dynamite.
Dunamis. Dan Dumas. Where�s Dan Dumas? He�s at Southern Seminary where he is. Have him call me. Have him call my agent and do some. If you have Dan Dumas, call me or email me, I�ll have him on the radio show, all right?
I know who he is, but I don�t think he knows who I am. Number five, for the church to grow, we�re looking at what every pastor should know. For the church to grow, each worshiper should have an average of nine or more unchurched friends or family members.
Yeah, but hey, what if I turn them all off with the gospel? Usually I don�t turn them off with the gospel, I turn them off with me. Number six, churches that are effective in reaching their community train at least 10 of their people in friendship evangelism each year.
All right. Did you know there�s a teacher-student approach to evangelism, a salesperson-customer approach, and a friend-friend approach? Number seven, churches that train members to reach out to unchurched friends and relatives see about 12 of these contacts come to Christ.
Where do you go? Average non-churched family friends per member, 8%. Total number of people on prayer list, 96. What does this have to do with anything? I don�t know. Good numbers, though. Now, we have some ministry rules for visitors.
If you want to really have your church grow, I guess, and you want to be hip, who sang the song, �It�s Hip to be Square Who did that? Was that Huey Lewis and the News? I don�t think it was. Who was it?
It�s hip to be square. I think Elvis Costello, though, was hip even though he came across as a square. Don�t call your visitors visitors. That makes them uncertain, curious, unfamiliar, anxious, uncomfortable.
They don�t want to be known as a visitor. Guest is better. The visitor is defined as, quote, �a person who resides temporarily, one who goes or comes to inspect, one who makes a short stay at a place for a particular purpose.
End quote. Guest, though, defined as, �a person welcomed into one�s house, a person to whom hospitality is extended, a person held in honor who is due special courtesies. Okay. You know what? I actually like that.
Let�s call them guests instead of visitors. I like that. See? I can learn. That�s something that you need to know. The visitor label rules got to go. That�s number eight. On a side note, may I encourage you, if you�re not a pastor, that when your pastor is busy talking to the visitors, i .e., guests, on Sunday, if you have an emergency, of course you can talk to your pastor.
You can wait for him or you can interrupt because it�s so emergent. See? Or you can talk to a deacon or an elder, but remember, probably the pastor is going to focus on the visitors, i .e., the guests, because I have to change my whole mindset now.
My whole paradigm�s got to be shifted. He wants to reach out to them. I personally think to myself, and I often try to instruct the people at the church, the members, when visitors come, when guests come.
I like to talk to them and say, �Hello and my style of preaching is fairly direct, so I want to be extra kind outside the pulpit, and there�s a way to talk in the pulpit as a herald, and there�s a way to talk as a friend, as a fellow Christian, brother, sister in Christ, or a visitor.
So, if you want to always glom on to the pastor after the service and talk to him, would you reconsider that as he is trying to minister to other folks? And if you want to walk by and shake his hand or say something like that, that�s certainly appropriate.
I�m not saying avoid him, but I can think throughout the years there are certain people that hovered around and always had to talk to me after the service who are members of the church, and it wasn�t about an emergency.
They just felt obliged to talk to me, and several of them wanted to tell me things that I should do. �Have you called that particular school to see if they�ll rent out their building Or �Why haven�t you done such and such or such and such
�Why didn�t you organize that March Against Planned Parenthood A variety of those things. So they�re helpful in that way. Actually, I usually just say to them, �Thanks for thinking about that. I�m glad you did.
I�ve got these other things on my radar and have been visiting so-and-so in the hospital. Just run with it. Go for it. Make it happen. I would much rather tell somebody, �You�ve got to back off and slow down versus get a move on.
So we will start trying to call people at the church �guests� or �welcome guests. Number nine, �The 10 minutes immediately following the worship service are the most important minutes in your guest�s visit.
Why are they saying �visit� there? Guest visits or guesting? It doesn�t make sense. But what doesn�t even make sense even more, to quote John Gerstner, �That�s the most important part besides preaching the Word.
See how upside down this is? Paul writes in 2 Timothy 4, �Preach the Word. Doesn�t he? Do you think that�s the most important part? Scripture reading? Do you think that�s the most important part? When you look at 2 Timothy 3, what does he say?
He says, �And how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ. All scriptures breathe out by God and is profitable.
Chapter 4, �Preach the Word. Now, he�s called the scriptures �sacred writings� �scripture� and now he says, �herald the Word. Why wouldn�t he just say, �herald the sacred scriptures, herald the sacred writings, herald scripture
Well, he could, but I think there�s a Christological focus there herald the Word. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Herald that Word Christologically.
That is the most important thing on No Compromise Radio and in your church.
No Compromise Radio with Pastor Mike Abendroth is a production of Bethlehem Bible Church in West Boylston. Bethlehem Bible Church is a Bible teaching church firmly committed to unleashing the life-transforming power of God�s Word through verse-by-verse exposition of the sacred text.
Please come and join us. Our service times are Sunday morning at 1015 and in the evening at 6. We�re right on Route 110 in West Boylston. You can check us out online at bbchurch .org or by phone at 508 -835 -3400.
The thoughts and opinions expressed on No Compromise Radio do not necessarily reflect those of WVNE, its staff or management.