What is a healthy biblical church?

Jared Wilson helpfully says:

‘1. A Growing Esteem for Jesus Christ

‘How do you measure this? How do you know if a church is focused on the glory of Jesus Christ? Well, I think you start with the most visible communications. In sermon and song, is Jesus the focal point?…

‘2. A Discernible Spirit of Repentance

‘Is the church, first, preaching the dangers and horrors of sin? And then, in its preaching of the gospel, are people responding to the Spirit’s conviction and comfort with repentance? Do people own and confess their sin?…

‘3. A Dogged Devotion to the Word of God

‘A lot of churches say they are “Bible-based,” by which they mean they will quote some Bible verses in the sermon…

‘4. An Interest in Theology and Doctrine

‘Yes, knowledge apart from grace simply puffs up, but this does not make knowledge disposable…

‘5. An Evident Love for God and Love for Neighbor

‘Exactly as it sounds. True fruitfulness is evidenced chiefly in obedience to the commands of God, the greatest of which is loving God and loving our neighbor as ourselves….’

‘Here are some good diagnostic questions to help us go deeper in our church measurements. I have adapted them from my book The Prodigal Church:

‘1. Are those being baptized continuing to walk in the faith a year later? Two years? Three years?

‘2. How many of our people are being trained to personally disciple others?

‘3. What percentage of our weekend attendees are engaged in community groups? Evangelism? Community service?…’

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