Where do church buildings fit in?

Jerry Hill, on his perspective on church buildings and what they did in Guatemala:

Where do church buildings fit in? They are not mentioned in the New Testament. With “all creation” as the goal, God’s army moved swiftly over the earth, leaving behind Christ’s church meeting in homes. Financial resources went to preaching and to helping circumstance-stricken people. World evangelism was accomplished. Since then, our systems have not duplicated that all-important feat. Respectfully speaking, church buildings and the struggle to get the gospel to every human are comparable to a pentagonal, permanent structure in Washington and the invasion of Normandy. I think a better question would be, How fast do you want to move? In our preaching in Guatemala, we opted to leave the decision of a meeting place up to the troops.

From his book on the first years of their work in Guatemala, unavailable on the internet or in print form, as far as we could discover.

Unlikely choice

Felipe was an unlikely choice as a pulpit preacher. In a society where vanity says, “I can’t learn anything from him. I know more than he does,” I have always said, “I can learn from anybody who speaks God’s word. Listen!” He was painfully shy and he had difficulty articulating. His conversion dated back almost to the beginning. His faithfulness and participation in activities had helped to bring him through many personal difficulties. He had something to say. The church needs to hear from such men. He was certainly not eloquent, but neither was any other preacher in the New Testament said to be, besides Apollos (Acts 18:24). Would you expect Galilean fishermen to be orators? Or for a tax collector for the Romans to be? Even Paul’s speech was said to be contemptible (2 Corinthians 10:10). But Felipe’s preaching was not often from a pulpit, but, like most Guatemalans, in conversations, in homes, at work. —Jerry Hill

The workers in the Kingdom are most unlikely candidates.

The sum of it

Jerry Hill on conversions around 1967 in Guatemala: “These exciting times helped us conclude: when the gospel is preached, there are going to be conversions; when the gospel is preached more, there are going to be more conversions.”

What’s the lesson for us?