Sermon Outlines
Soul-Winning and Its Importance
By: Bro. Junas Sagurit
I- Introduction:
Greetings and thanks.
Tell the story of Three Friends and One Egg.
According to Bro. Don Humphrey in his book "Hearts on Fire" the average member of the church of Christ...
...has sung 20,000 songs,
...has prayed 24,000 prayers,
...has heard 8,000 sermons,
...but converted ZERO sinners!!! How close are you to the average?
II- Discussion:
A) What is soul-winning?
Read the song - "I want to be a soul-winner"
There is a battle for man's soul between God and the Devil
Soul-the real man(eternal)
Win- according to the Webster Dictionary means:
1) to come first in a contest;
2) to achieve a victory;
3) to succeed after a struggle;
4) to obtain by effort.
B) Importance of soul-winning
The importance of Soul-winning can not be underestimated (Parables of the lost coin, lost son, lost sheep, etc.)
1) It is commanded- Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16;15:16
2) God is glorified- John 15:8; Prov. 14:28
3) We are considered wise- Proverbs 11:30;
4) It is urgent - Jude 23; Matthew 9:37-38;
5) We are expected to multiply - John 15:16;
6) There is punishment for failing to win souls - Ezekiel 3;18-19; and
7) There is glory and joy - I Thess. 2;19-20.
III- Conclusion:
Soul-winning is the greatest job on earth, because it involves eternal consequences. Do you think you can enter the gates of heaven without winning a soul?
Sermon Outlines
LEADING THE LEADERS TO LEAD THE CHURCH
Bro. Junas T. Sagurit
Delivered on December 30, 2006, at Dagupan church of Christ, Dagupan City, Pangasinan
I- Introduction
a) Greetings and thanks for the audience and the Dagupan C o C
b) Importance and timeliness of the topic
1) A rapidly changing world calls for bold leadership
2) Our past failures demand for daring leadership now
3) A disillusioned world needs leadership
4) Christians need leaders
5) Others seek to lead
c) Lack of experience and feeling of inadequacy and inferiority-therefore the need for understanding, cooperation and participation from the audience.
II- Discussion
a) Define a Christian leader- is a person with a God-given capacity and the God-given responsibility to influence a specific group of God’s people toward God’s purpose for the group.
b) What kind of church leader are you?
1) The figure head leader
2) The dictator
3) The forced leader
4) The “they could not get anyone else” leader
5) The “yes man” leader
6) The mediocre leader
7) The pseudo-dynamic leader
8) The negative leader
9) The financial leader
10) The self appointed leader
11) The “past reputation” leader
12) The ignorant leader
13) The average leader
14) The dynamic leader
c) Becoming a dynamic leader involves paying a price. The most important thing that we can learn is the secret of growth according to Solomon-read Proverbs 23:7
1) Leadership desire—I Tim. 3:1 (motives in serving)
1-a) lust for power (lord it over) every man has a natural and essential ego
1-b) material compensation
1-c) habit
1-d) Leadership desire can be cultivated
Ex. Moses
d) Characteristics of a dynamic leader
1) Enthusiastic- call it faith, call it drive, call it zeal, call it inspiration
2) Self-confident- self confidence is needed during emergencies, in calm deliberation. It is actually a mark of Christian maturity.
3) Humble-true humility wins confidence and loyalty. Philippians 2:3,4. Sense of humor is closely connected with humility.
4) Habitually grows-- Rev. 3:15-17(f. I Cor. 4:8), Rev. 3:1; Hebrews 5:12-14
5) Visionary- Proverbs 29:18
6) Knowledgeable- Hosea (study habits, bible first, library, knowledge of men, church history, general knowledge, experience)
7) Sharing spirit-(building others, shares responsibility, train new leaders)
8) Imagination-(flexibility—Three types of leadership approach, autocratic, democratic and free-rein)
9) Decisive— man of action (James 1:25)
E) Organize to efficiently lead- I Cor. 14:40
Functions of Organization
1. To meet the needs of the soul
2. To nurture unity
3. To insure proper balance of emphasis
4. To recognize the priesthood of all believers- I Pet. 2:5-9; Rev. 1:6
5. To diffuse power- centralization is vulnerable to corruption
6. To remain flexible
F) Delegate to effectively lead- the case of Moses. Moses tried to do everything and he became discouraged. Jethro’s advice. Wise delegation of responsibility by the leader will help him to keep others in work which is meaningful to them. Another example is that of Jesus(Matthew 28:18-20) Paul to Timothy(2 Tim. 2:1-2).
1. Delegate authority thru individual assignment
2. Delegate through committee formation
3. Abuses of delegation
a. Don’t select someone who is not qualified or capable of sharing responsibility.
b. Don’t delegate to someone else a responsibility which you have purposely evaded.
c. Don’t force a responsibility upon an unwilling member who has no motivating desire to perform the task.
G) How to gain cooperation of others-
-the ultimate test of leadership is its ability to influence people to cooperate in realizing their common goals. All things indicate that it is in the church leadership where this is most wanting.
-not pressure, we will not talk about how to get Christians to work more by putting them under greater pressure. Too often threat, imposition, and fear are used to secure cooperation.
Various suggestions in order to gain the cooperation of others:
1) Emphasize group goals-
-they give purpose and meaning to activity
-goals bring unity and cohesion
-goals measure progress and give a sense of accomplishment when reached.
a) guide the group to select its own goals- this emphasizes group responsibility. This process also acknowledges the worth of individuals by making use of their ideas. When a failure appears, one does not hear the complaint, “it’s the leaders fault. He is responsible; so let him worry about the problem.”
b) goals should be clearly defined- it should be specific and practical
c) one goal at a time
d) be optimistic- we should approach our goal with optimism, assurance, and faith in the power of God at work in our fellow-members. There is no excuse for a public display of discouragement to infect the whole church with gloom.
2) We must have a sincere interest in individuals—the growth of a group is largely a matter of the growth of individuals. We need to remember that the church was made for man and not man for the church. When man is relegated to a secondary position in favor of emphasizing an institution or a program, we have lost a distinctive feature of Christ’s church(which is, after all, made up of these important individuals.)
a) cultivate interest in others-make them feel important to you.
b) smile- be friendly
c) be personally acquainted to every individual members
3) Express appreciation. Man is not, primarily a creature of logic but of emotion. Leaders often fail because they assume that reason and logic will accomplish their ends. But God made man so that he hungers for a feeling of worth and value. Starved egos are like starved stomachs.
HOW???????
a) Through our attitudes- action speaks louder than words
b) Giving praise- one should praise an act or an attitude instead of a person.
c) Share the blame
d) When corrections should be made?
-In private. They have no place in the pulpit or in any public communication. Criticize an act not a person.
-make a correction once and then drop it. Always ask for cooperation and never demand it.
There is no example on record where a leader was a failure because he praised others too much. If you don’t use praise, then you are not leading them.
4) Handle Hostility
-different forms of hostility, both active and passive forms.
Active forms may include open criticism, efforts to sabotage a program or work, or in extreme cases, actual division.
Passive forms include boredom, apathy, absenteeism, carelessness, inattention, and similar signs.
Leaders are probably overly sensitive to the direct expression of hostility, but are likely to ignore or depreciate the importance of hostility that is expressed passively or indirectly.
A certain amount of hostility is normal as an outlet for frustration and discouragement. The leader’s task is to identify this frustration and give it opportunities for constructive expression. Some hostility from group members should be expected since the leader is not perfect and will make mistakes.
WHAT TO DO? Romans 12:20f
5) Appeal to Motives
A) Recognize basic human needs- people usually do what they want to do. Group membership is a means of satisfying personal needs.
(1) the need to survive
(2) the need to feel that we “belong” that we are accepted, loved and appreciated
(3) “esteem needs”- we need to maintain our self-respect and feeling of value and adequacy as well.
(4) the need to feel a sense of accomplishment and commitment- where we feel that our talents, capacities, and potentialities are being fully used and are in accord with our social, moral, and spiritual surroundings.
6) Improve communication
-inform the congregation
-encourage free response
-receiving criticism-one of the functions of leadership is the absorption of members’ frustrations. The leader should express appreciation for the interest and suggestions of the one criticizing and ask for his continued prayers and counsel.
7) Finally, guide; don’t drive.
III-CONCLUSION:
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.” This is our first step. Read Paul’s last charged to Timothy. (II Tim. 4:1-2, 6-8)
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