On Wednesday, April 17th, SENDAS invited Rev. Elias Betanzos, lead pastor of Center of Worship and Proclamation Church of the Nazarene in Oaxaca Mexico, and Rev. Josue Barrera, founding pastor of the growing Etla Church of the Nazarene in Oaxaca Mexico, to share their insights on the theme “The Empowered Church: Creating a Culture of Multiplication” via a webinar that was offered at no cost and reached hundreds of people in Latin America and beyond. The broadcast has been viewed over 6,000 times on Facebook Live.
The theme of empowering the church is relevant especially now that congregations are returning to regular on-site services after many months of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both presenters offered personal insights based on their own experiences to re-energize their local strategies for restarting in-person activities with a renewed sense of God’s call on the Church to evangelize and disciple those in their spheres of influence.
Rev. Barrera first provided the foundation of the Great Commission – that the Church is to make disciples and reproduce (John 15 and Acts 16). He observed that many churches, while they may be growing in numbers, are not multiplying. He emphasized the importance of collaborating with the Holy Spirit to create an environment of consistent and strong holistic growth.
Based on the summary of the theological and biblical foundation for evangelism and growth, Rev. Elias Betanzos added some practical steps for pastors who want to begin a local emphasis of evangelism and growth: 1) Choose a starting date; 2) Dream big but start small; 3) Sharpen your “axe” by studying, reading, and preparing; 4) Do not give up, be persistent, look for a mentor and ask the right questions.
Rev. Betanzos observed that a church’s failure to grow and multiply is multifaceted. He pointed out that one mistake churches make is that they try to implement models or formulas rather than principles. Following formulas will not lead to success, he added. He articulated some key principles for the church to consider in establishing a solid foundation for creating an atmosphere of growth and multiplication including pastoral leadership, worship services, evangelism, discipleship, spiritual foundation, administration, social media, and preaching. Through evaluating and committing to developing these areas, the church is in the position to fulfill the Great Commission as God intended.
Finally, Rev. Betanzos encouraged pastors with some lessons he has learned over the past year. He said, “It does not take a pandemic for God to show us that we are unfocused and don’t know what to do.” He added, “Now is the time to hit the restart button” because “every day there are more people who are lost.” The Church offers the hope of the gospel. “If we fall asleep or become paralyzed because of panic or fear the church is not completing its purpose – and the church will be held accountable before God for that,” he said.
Rev. Felipe Flores, moderator of the webinar said, “The church is going to be empowered according to the way it is developing ministries. In this webinar our presenters shared basic principles we should put into practice if we want to see exponential growth in our congregations. We can learn from different growth models that are found in various contexts, but if we want to foster the culture of multiplication in our churches, the basic principles of growth shared today are fundamental to achieving it.”
This webinar along with all other free webinars shared over the past year are available on the SENDAS Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SeminarioNazarenoCR.