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The Marks Of A Healthy Church

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According to Edmund Clowney in his book titled The Church, “The Reformation made the gospel, not ecclesiastical organization, the test of the true church. Three marks were defined in distinguishing a true church of Christ: true preaching of the Word; proper observance of the sacraments; and faithful exercise of church discipline.”

Nine Marks is a Ministry of Mark Dever and Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington D.C. They outline nine different marks or characteristics of what a healthy church must include. You can read the PDF online. Here is a brief summary of the points:

1. Expositional Preaching: “This is preaching whose object is to expound what is said in a particular passage of Scripture, carefully explaining its meaning and applying it to the congregation.”

2. Biblical Theology: “Sound teaching includes a clear commitment to doctrines often neglected yet clearly biblical.”

3. A Biblical Understanding of the Good News: “All of us as Christians should pray that we would care more about the wonderful good news of salvation through Christ than we do about anything else in the church's life.”

4. A Biblical Understanding of Conversion: “If our conversion is basically understood to be some- thing we do ourselves instead of something God does in us, then we misunderstand it.”

5. A Biblical Understanding of Evangelism: “If your mind has been shaped by the Bible on God and the gospel, on human need and conversion, then a right understanding of evangelism will naturally follow.”

6. A Biblical Understanding of  Church Membership: “Churches knew those who com- posed their membership. For example, Paul’s letters to the Corinthian church show that some individuals were to be excluded (e.g., I Cor. 5) and that some were to be included (e.g., II Cor. 2).“

7. Biblical Church Discipline: “A biblical practice of church discipline gives meaning to being a member of the church.”

8. A Concern For Promoting Christian Discipleship and Growth: “…the only certain observable sign is a life of increasing holiness, rooted in Christian self-denial. The church should be marked by a vital concern for this kind of increasing godli- ness in the lives of its members.”

9. Biblical Church Leadership: “All churches have had individuals who performed the functions of elders, even if they’ve called them by other names. The two New Testament names for this office were episcopos (overseer) and presbuteros (elder).”




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