A Successful Gospel Meeting
What Is A Successful Meeting?
A gospel meeting is a protracted series of religious services in which the gospel of Christ is preached. But what constitutes a successful gospel meeting? A great number of baptisms? Overflowing crowds? Beautiful singing? A popular preacher? A meeting with which the brethren are pleased? Glowing write-ups in the religious periodicals? Any one, or all of these, would not necessarily constitute a successful gospel meeting. A meeting with which God is pleased is a successful meeting! This covers the whole ground; no other can be thought of. If and when a meeting is conducted with any other purpose in view, the purpose is wrong and God is displeased.
What Constitutes A God-Pleasing Meeting?
The gospel must be preached. Pau] said, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek." (Rom. 1:16.) In the next verse, Rom. 1:17, he teaches that the righteousness of God — God's plan for making men righteous — is revealed in that gospel. To the Corinthians, he said, "Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain." (1 Cor. 15:1, 2.) Surely, God's power unto salvation, God's plan for making men righteous, that by which men are saved, must be preached in order for God to be pleased. In every case of conversion recorded in the book of Acts, the book of conversions, the gospel was preached. Apart from the gospel of Christ conversion to God is impossible. It is no wonder, then, that Paul said, "For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: For necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!" (1 Cor. 9:16.)
Not only must the gospel be preached, but the PURE gospel must be preached! To the Galatians, Paul said, "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." (Gal. 1:6-8.) A perverted gospel leads to damnation; error will not and cannot save! Jesus said, "And ye shall know the truth, and the TRUTH shall make you free." (John 8:32.) Peter said, ".... ye have purified your souls in obeying the TRUTH. . . ." (1 Pet. 1:22.) When men wrest the scriptures, they do it to their own destruction. (2 Pet. 3:16.) Thus, there is a great responsibility resting upon the shoulders of every man who proposes to preach — the responsibility of preaching the gospel of Christ in its purity.
Some men who propose to be gospel preachers spend much of their time in the pulpit talking about things other than the gospel. That is definitely wrong and contrary to the example set by the apostle Paul. To the church at Corinth, he said, 'And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ and Him crucified." (1 Cor. 2:1, 2.) One night last summer, I attended a service of what was supposed to be a gospel meeting. The preacher spent about the first several minutes of his speech talking about how old that particular congregation was, what a glorious past it had enjoyed, and naming many of the great pioneer preachers who had preached in that pulpit. He even talked about how old the congregation was from whence the preacher who led the prayer had come, and referred to the fact that Alexander Campbell had preached there. As I sat there, wondering if he was ever going to start preaching, I also wondered what place all of that had in a gospel meeting. As far as the lost souls of alien sinners and erring children of God were concerned, what difference did it make as to how old that congregation was and how many great giants of the faith had stood in that pulpit in the past? It made no difference at all, for the gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation, not such tomfoolery as that! Talking about the age of the congregation and its illustrious past may have built up the ego of its members, and talking about the great preachers who had stood in that pulpit may have given the preacher's ego a little boost (after all, wasn't he standing where they stood?), but such talk is not the power of God to save the souls of men.
Again, in order for God to be pleased, each member of the congregation must have the proper attitude toward the meeting. Many members have come to look upon a series of meetings as a matter of custom — just one of those things a congregation customarily does. They view other assemblies of the church practically the same way. That attitude accounts for much of the indifference that is evidenced by so many members toward the meeting and other works of the church. Every member of the congregation should consider the gospel meeting a concentrated partnership effort to save as many lost souls as possible! "It's the church's little red wagon, so why should I be concerned?" is the attitude which has killed the effectiveness of many gospel meetings. Is that your attitude? Is it mine? If so we need to learn some very basic facts concerning the church. We need to learn that the church is made up of its members. Paul said, "Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular." (1 Cor. 12:27.) Every member of the human body has a work to perform, and in order for the body to function properly each member must do its work. The same principle is true in the body of Christ, the church. There must be the "effectual working" of "every part." (Eph. 4:16.) The church is not an organization onto which Christians can cast their individual responsibility! In proportion to his ability and opportunity, each member is responsible in the performance of the work of the church. Not until church members learn that basic fact will they have the proper attitude toward the gospel meeting or any other work of the church.
The wrong attitude toward the meeting indicates a wrong attitude toward God, Christ, the church, the gospel and lost souls. When all members of the congregation have the right attitude toward the above, they will be present for every service possible; they will invite and bring as many lost souls as possible; they will take part in the singing; they will welcome visitors and urge them to return; they will listen attentively to every word of the sermon instead of going to sleep or carrying on a conversation with the person sitting next by; in a word, they will do all they can to promote and as little as they can to hinder the salvation of lost souls! This, connected with the fervent and earnest preaching of the pure gospel, will add up to a successful — A GOD-PLEASING — meeting. Let us all strive to that end!