播道會教會增長講座蘇穎智指出危害教會之毒素（10月23日消息）

播道會教會增長講座
蘇穎智指出危害教會之毒素
（10月23日消息）

蔡聖龍 / 2007年10月23日

播道會總會於今明兩日（十月廿二及廿三日）主辦「再闖高峰．教會增長實錄」講座，由播道會恩福堂主任牧師蘇穎智及恩福堂隊工主講，吸引了約一千二百位來自香港甚至澳門的教牧和信徒領袖參加。

蘇穎智在首日下午的分享中坦言，在近三十年的牧會生涯中無時無刻都有掙扎，例如人手、地方、靈恩、行政財政等；即使恩福堂現已發展成相當規模，他亦常掙扎於如何協調事工、照顧同工，以至堂會的時間空間安排等。

「其實我不喜歡使用『增長』一詞，我較喜歡分享如何成為一所『健康』的堂會。」他分享教會健康的元素，首要是以大使命為依歸，信徒以宣教為己任，在生活中活出信仰。教會亦要同心合意興旺福音，傳道人更要以身作則：「過去我每年也帶領五十人信主，不是指佈道會呼召出來的人，而是參加福音性研經的人，我真認識他們每一位。」教會亦要有活潑的敬拜，敬拜本身應已有信息流露。而牧者的釋經講道，則要針對到信徒工作和生活的壓力，讓弟兄姊妹口服心服。信徒間要有埋身關顧，一個組員出事其他人願意為他「煲湯、湊仔」。小組、團契、教會環環相扣，全民皆兵，人人也有服事崗位：「恩福堂的教牧信徒比例從未少於一比二百，靠的是眾多委身的義工。」弟兄姊妹願意委身，緣於全面的栽培系統，受洗時他們已能清楚講出所信的是甚麼，能分享生命的改變，並繼續參與課程重整價值觀：「看過不少信徒婚姻出現問題，原因就是他們的信仰本身也有問題！」

蘇穎智接著分享一些影響教會健康的毒素，首項就是傳道人「狗咬狗骨」，其次就是教牧與信徒領袖相爭：「牧養最重要的只有一個字──關係。」蘇穎知坦言牧者應學效食客三千的孟嘗君廣納人才：「即使是『頂心杉』，放對位置的話他也會成為資源；若把一個人錯放位置，資源也會變成垃圾！」他亦鄭重勸戒教牧們：「信的人，你才用；用的人，你便要信！若你信不過一個人，便千萬不要用他，不然你和他也受害；若你真要用一個人，便應放手讓他幹，不要事事管制。」而信徒領袖其身不正、屬靈短樁亦是另一毒素：「有些教會習慣選一些奉獻多的人入執事會，但若這些人只願開會而不願傳福音，這樣對教會有害無益。」他指教會的使命是照顧人，因此選執事應計算其事奉而非金錢。他列出執事的條件是：個人品格、家庭見證、自我形象、恩賜、價值觀。「恩福堂的執事會每次也很暢順，因為我和每位執事都有生命關係，大家有相同異象，很多東西不用怎樣討論已打通。」

（www.christiantimes.org.hk，時代論壇每日快拍，2007.10.23）

舊回應1則

佚名Anonymous / 2007-11-02 08:22:15

Success Factors of Yan Fook

Rev. So’s practical wisdom is right on!

1. On relationships in the church, I can not agree more with his statement that “the most important word in pastoral care is relationship.” Relationship will either make or break a pastor’s (or a church’s) ministry. If the relations are poor or shattered, unity is lost. On the other hand, when the relationship is cordial, there is unity and joy is service. And the effect can be infectious and is almost immediately felt. However, it takes more than strategic placement – hiring or firing - of people to safeguard a church’s human relations.

In this age when results and efficiency are regarded as god for whom human relations are often sacrificed, I plea for a return to the more significant. To me, harmonious relationship in the church is more important than numbers and programs, because without the former, the latter can not be guaranteed. In fact, harmonious relationship is something that goes back to the core of true spirituality. When clergy and lay humble themselves in the face of the Lord, and when they let Jesus be the Head and serve God with trembling hearts, the Lord will be sure to personally preserve the church’s human relations.

2. On the element of trust in Christian service, Rev. So reminds us that we must use only trust-worthy (proven and tested?) individuals. And once identified, we should empower and entrust them to do their job. I believe this is more than just common sense. However, the problem we face in our typical Chinese church is that we have no mechanism to identify, much less train and test/prove, a qualified worker. Furthermore, mentoring in our Chinese church is painfully lacking. Many seminary in-terns often pass through our churches as "migrant workers" and/or cheap laborers. And many faithful lay workers are often burnt out in a few short years. In our hectic routines, we are often only too pleased to identify a helper - any helper - and only too willing to leave him/her alone to fend for himself/herself.

Yan Fook, with close to 10,000 members, has easily become the largest Chinese church ever in existence. Her success factors, as mentioned by Rev. So in paragraph 3, are not unique to this church. However, one must in all fairness give credit also to Rev. So himself. Since I have lived and worked overseas for more than 45 years (a half gwai lo?), I will beg to indulge a bit in my straight-shooting: To me, Yan Fook’s success is largely due to a fiercely loyal (to the Lord and His Church) pastor, who is both talented and humble – a rare combination for Chinese indeed! His preaching is always Scriptural, relevant, dynamic and satisfying. And he believes in organization AND team work! His uncompromising commitment to the Gospel has prompted him to focus the entire church’s energy and programs on saving souls and nurturing the saints. When Rev. So leads the rest of the church in aggressive soul-winning himself, is there any wonder why Yan Fook is constantly growing?

I earnestly pray that God will keep Yan Fook and Rev. So humble for many, many years to come. May this pastor and his church continue to be a blessing to the rest of the Chinese churches.

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