A publication of Evangelism Ministries  Church of  the Nazarene May 2008 The American Church in Crisis According to the research findings from an extensive study for more than 200,000 individual Christian churches in the USA, “the church in America is not booming. It is in crisis. On any given Sunday, the vast majority of Americans are absent from church…if trends continue, by 2050 the percentage of Americans attending church will be half the 1990 figure.” In the recent release of this research project The American Church in Crisis, David Olson reviews the Catholic Church, mainline Protestants denominations and evangelical churches, including the Church of the Nazarene. His findings and insights provide a new understanding of the missional complexities facing churches and pastors today. He offers the following suggestions for a meaningful missional mandate: 1. The First Message and Mission of the Church The church is to proclaim the message of forgiveness in Christ, which produces reconciliation with God. This is called evangelism. Evangelism happens publicly and personally when people encounter the love and truth of Jesus. 2. The Second Message and Mission of the Church The church is to help people break the bonds that hold and oppress them, helping restore in them God’s original creation. This is called ministry. This happens through prayer, healing and practical help that leads to a restored image of God. 3. The Third Message and Mission of the Church The church is to help people live a new, resurrected life in Christ, through the filling and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. This is called spiritual formation. Spiritual formation happens through teaching, Bible study, the spiritual disciplines and mentoring. 4. The Fourth Message and Mission of the Church The church is to be compassionate countercultural force in the community, nation, and world. This is called love. Love happens locally, regionally, and globally through compassion, mercy, righteousness and justice. 5. The Fifth Message and Mission of the Church The church is to be God’s community of broken yet healing people that provides love, support, and accountability for each other. This is called true community. True community happens through love, worship, fellowship, feasting, Holy Communion and multiplies through church planting. The author concludes that each of these five messages and missions are at the heart of the gospel. They were all central to Jesus’ message, and all were enacted by our Lord in dramatic ways in His earthly ministry. When churches begin to decline in missional impact, they have emphasized only one or two of these points rather than embracing all of them. Olson observes “These five messages and missions are akin to the five senses. A person can survive with four senses, or even three or two, but fullness of life is best experienced when all five senses are fully engaged… In the same way, living out all five messages and missions of Jesus allows Christians and churches to express authentically and completely the good news of God.” Win One Seminar Schedule Edmond, OK - May 12, 2008 For further information or to register at on-line at www.NazEvangelism.org or call toll free at 1-800-306-8294. Download Printable PDF copy of May 2008 One-on-One newsletter (64 KB) Print and pass out to local church leaders and parishioners! (Will need Adobe Reader 7.0 to view) One on One is an electronic newsletter helping local churches gather and grow holy people for God by providing the following: Relevant research Tips on Witnessing Pertinent articles Training materials Local church programming To unsubscribe, click here To subscribe, click here Evangelism Ministries - USA/Canada Mission/Evangelism Department 6401 The Paseo · Kansas City, MO 64131-1213 Toll Free (800) 306-8294, Fax (816) 523-1872 E-mail: evangelism@nazarene.org ©2007, Evangelism Ministries. All rights reserved.