MEASURING SUCCESS
The word “success” seems to be frowned upon in ministry circles. I haven’t yet figured out why that is, especially since it is a word found in Scripture. In fact, twice the Lord Himself uses the word when speaking directly to Joshua in Joshua 1:7-8, promising to make Joshua successful.
I imagine that our trepidation with this concept within ministry circles could tie back to the days of the church growth movement, where success could have been synonymous with more people attending a service for one hour a week. And that definitely isn’t what Joshua was told would make him successful.
Or maybe it is a righteous concern to avoid the snares of prosperity teaching (I don’t personally like using the term “prosperity gospel” because quite frankly there is no such thing as a gospel — or good news — that guarantees the kind of prosperity usually associated with this teaching).
However, in this promise to Joshua we find a good thing that if applied to each of us today would simplify our charge as Christ followers and ministers of the true Gospel.
Joshua’s promised success was a conditional promise, one that would be tied to his love for and obedience to the Word of God. His love for the Word would be seen by his daily meditation on it. His obedience to the Word would be seen in his laser-like focus to do exactly what it says. And the result would be a promise of being “successful wherever you go” and, yes, even “prosperous.”
Of course, the challenge then becomes understanding success and prosperity through the eyes of a holy God and not through the eyes of fallible man. So how can we, on this side of history and this side of eternity, begin to understand that and know if we are successful in our efforts to fulfill our calling?
I have recently been brought back to a passage that I’m sure each of us has read and studied numerous times — Acts 2. This fascinating recounting of the day of Pentecost and the first wave of new Christ followers paves the way for us to understand one of the first churches to ever emerge. We see how their lives were changed and how sold-out they became to worshipping Jesus and doing whatever it took to lead others to do the same.
And then we find — dare I say — a measuring stick for success in the New Testament church. A result that seems inevitable if we are doing what Joshua was told to do on top of obeying Jesus’ Great Commission just one chapter earlier in Acts 1.
“…And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47).
This has stirred in me a great number of “what if” questions.
What if this was the bullseye on the target for Christ followers and local churches? What would it look like if we see every one of our church members — and pastors — loving our communities like Jesus loves them and living like missionaries every day of the week? What would happen if our priority was first and foremost obedience to the Word, which would mean the entire Word? Wouldn’t that lead us to obey Acts 1:8, being witness in our own town (Jerusalem), the cities around us (Judea and Samaria), and the rest of the world (ends of the earth)? And if so, won’t we know we are experiencing success when we look back and see that in our day and time, “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved”?
These questions have led me to confess the ways I have focused my time and attention on what I thought would make me or us successful. I have prayed that my goals and aspirations would align with the heart of the Father who desires that no one would perish (2 Peter 3:9).
As we all begin to prepare for the Easter celebration, my prayer is that success will not be measured by that one day or one season of outreach. As we all strive to perfect and clarify doctrine and an understanding of the Word, I pray that we would not neglect the more simple truths laid right before us.
I pray that the success we experience in our partnership together would be the same as those immediately following Pentecost.
“Lord, will you please lead us to experience you adding daily to our number those who are being saved?”
In Jesus’ name, amen.
