Author Archives: Tree of Life Church

Hillsong used to have song called “I will never be the same again”.  The refrain was: There are higher heights, there are deeper seas Whatever you want to do Lord, do in me It was a beautiful song and although it’s not been one I’ve sung in a long time, I was thinking about itContinue reading “There are Higher Heights!”

The next qualification for ministry is that an elder should be “given to hospitality”.  The Greek word is xenophile which means a lover of foreigners. Elders should be able to show hospitality, welcome and kindness to people no matter their background. In the Tree of Life Network, all our elders have to open their housesContinue reading “Pastors and Elders IX: The Requirements for an Elder (part VI)”

7.  Start with a good ice-breaker 6.  Ensure that everyone is free to contribute 5.  Ensure that no-one is forced to contribute 4.  Sing together. 3.  Read the Bible together 2.  Pray for each other’s needs 1.  Green tea.  Hot green tea.

5. Local newspaper – take out an ad.  Best to do this for a particular service and not Sundays in general.  People will see an advert for church and intend to go one day.  Invite people for a special service and they will make the effort to come. 4. Radio News Boards.  Both Premier RadioContinue reading “5 Ways to Advertise Your Church”

We continue our study on the requirements of eldership with the phrase “of good behaviour”.  Elders should have good behaviour! The Greek word translated good behaviour is kosmios, which means well ordered.  An elder should have a well ordered life.  I’m not talking about a showroom house, but if you are opening your house toContinue reading “Pastors and Elders VIII: The Requirements for an Elder (part V)”

One of the mistakes that people in your church will make is that because they know that you are their servant, they will assume that they are your master. I’ve had people tell me what songs to sing on Sunday, what sermons to preach, how to preach, how to run the services, how to advertiseContinue reading “Alfred the Butler – a picture of a good pastor?”

We have been taking a bit of time to look at the requirements for eldership; in Biblically based churches elders are appointed by pastors, and pastors should not appoint them quickly but rather look at their lifestyle and make an accurate and wise decision. The list of requirements for an elder is listed in 1Continue reading “Pastors and Elders VII: The Requirements for an Elder (part IV)”

We have been taking a bit of time to look at the requirements for eldership; in Biblically based churches elders are appointed by pastors, and pastors should not appoint them quickly but rather look at their lifestyle and make an accurate and wise decision. The list of requirements for an elder is listed in 1Continue reading “Pastors and Elders VI: The Requirements for an Elder (part III)”

In this message Benjamin explains the process of starting a local church out of nothing and why God puts apostles in the church first and what that actually means.

Every Sunday morning when we release the children I remind the parents that all our children’s workers have DBS’s, that we follow all the Home Office guidelines in caring for children, that they need to ensure they keep the counterpart sticker to their child’s sticker so they can pick them up again at the endContinue reading “Walk, Don’t Run!”