Church, What Can $80,000 Buy for the Gospel of Christ?

Church, What Can $80,000 Buy for the Gospel of Christ?

Written by Joseph T. Lee

Most recently, I heard about a mega church who wanted the congregants to pay for an $80,000 coffee shop in the church lobby. I was told that by having a coffee shop at church, people could sit around drinking their favorite coffee and having godly conversations. Then I thought, are you serious? There are people that are suffering in our own community and yet a church wants to spend $80,000 for a coffee shop in order to attract more people and have godly conversations over a cup of coffee.

Certainly, having a nice up of Joe can be inviting, but there are several coffee shops all along the way to any church such as Starbucks and some Mom and Pop shops. If you do serve coffee at your church, I do not have a problem with that. Many churches serve coffee and that is fine, but I am quite sure that they did not spend $80,000 to build a luxury coffee shop inside their church.

Friends, we should not miss what the church was designed to do. It was designed to minister to the lost and the hurting. If you want to attract people through your church doors, you must get out into the community and “be the hands and feet of Christ.” There are people who are legitimately homeless and could use a helping hand. There are people who could be retrained to do another job if someone were willing to teach them. There are people who do not know how to read, and the Church could teach them. There are people who are seeking the “Truth” and we must go to them to meet them where they are. There are hungry orphans in our own nation as well as through out the world whom we could help feed. Those who are sick could use help. The list goes on in how to minister to our community and to the world, yet what does a coffee shop in a church do for the gospel of Christ?

Here is just a short list of what $80,000 could do for the Gospel of Christ:

Purchase 80,000 New Testament Bibles to distribute to people hungry for the Word of God.

Purchase 16000 Bibles with the Old and New Testaments for Believers who cannot afford to buy a Bible.

Feed 1067 families for a month or about 4268 people for a month. This is based on the World Health Organizations Cost of a month’s supply of food for one family of four.

Purchase 800 tents for families to live in after a catastrophic event.

Provide clean water for thousands to drink in third world countries.

Clean clothing for those who have nothing in third world countries.

Provide emergency relief for those effected by wildfires, storms, earthquakes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters. In the aftermath of storms, this money could help in the rebuild process of those who do not have the funds to rebuild their own homes.

$80,000 can mean the difference between someone in the community coming to Christ or not. If we want to make a difference for the cause of Christ, we need to stop thinking about ourselves and our comforts, and start thinking about our neighbors and their needs. Being the Church and getting off the pew and serving our neighbors in the community is that best way to get people to come to your church. It will show them that you truly love Jesus and by doing so, you are showing the love of Jesus to them.

Pastors, I challenge you to be a leader in your church and reach out to your local communities and BE THE CHURCH! Get out of the pulpit and start planting seeds of faith all over the community. If you think you need an $80,000 coffee shop, then instead, save the church’s money, which should be utilized for missions and evangelism, and go to Starbucks for that great cup of coffee.

Jesus gave us a commandment taken from Matthew 28:18-20, “¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

In Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

We are not to sit around and drink coffee and just have godly conversations. We need to BE the CHURCH! If we don’t do it, who will? People are starving for the gospel of Christ. People need the Lord! People need Jesus! They are everywhere. We need to get into action and start praying and then go into our communities and be the hands and feet of Christ. It’s time! The harvest is ripe.

Copyright August 24, 2022. Marketplace Evangelism Ministries Inc. All Rights Reserved.