Church and MLM: what’s the difference?

Vadim Khurin on selling salvation

oday many people suggest starting a network business. The idea is quite simple. You start by selling something to somebody. Then you find a person who also wants to sell your goods and agrees to do it for a small percentage of the profits. Gradually, your network grows and eventually includes enough people to turn a large profit. Every dealer dreams of growing a network big enough just to get his own profit. There are loads of books on how to start and develop your own business, how to sell your goods even if nobody wants them. All means are used: from charm and smiles, according to Dale Carnegie, to advanced manipulation techniques.

Beginners dream of reaching the top of the pyramid. You meet such people everywhere. Some of them sell books and tapes at railway stations or bus stops; others sell cosmetics or domestic goods. But the main initiative of network marketing - or MLM (multi-level marketing) - is always the same. Many sellers’ manuals advise entrepreneurs to make a good impression on a buyer. He has to be made to believe you, to love your goods and buy them. The goal is to make people buy what you sell.

Lately, the theme of church growth often brought to the forefront. We speak about it, read books about it and pray for it. And it seems to us that this is exactly what we need. We have to discover the technology of church-filling, and then we will do a great deed for the Kingdom of God by filling the church with new people. We read about leadership development, attend seminars, organize courses and give lessons. We hope that if people grasp the 21 laws of leadership, 17 laws of teamwork or 26 principles of corps growth, all our problems will be solved.

By no means do I try to lessen the respect due to the authors of all these books. And I do not try to detract from the importance of the information they contain. But at the same time, I don’t think that this direction will bring growth to our churches. If we look back at all the church awakenings, we’ll see that none of them started from a leadership seminar. Instead, the awakenings started when people united in their prayers and were ready to give everything to God for saving their families and cities.

Jesus builds His Church not on technology but on relationships - particularly the relationship between people and God. If we don’t have relationships, we don’t differ from the sellers aspiring to sell their goods and succeed in their careers. Somehow the cart has been put before the horse. Technology goes before relationship. Strategies go before prayers, conferences before Bible studies. Coming out after our meetings, we try to “sell” our strategy, to make a reality of our vision and to deliver our revelations. Of course, we believe that it comes from God and want all our ideas to serve for the expansion of His Kingdom.

But let us open the Book of Acts:

Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:44-47)

What could keep people together? Not the rules and regulations, not the corps discipline or corps council decisions, not the fear of punishment or excommunication. They could be kept together only by relationship - open, filled with love and care, supporting and encouraging.

Only relationship with God can keep us from temptation, and only relationship with people can keep us in the church. God doesn’t treat us like potential buyers, to whom He can sell a good life. He treats us as His beloved children, with whom He can communicate, share joy and sorrow, and go through difficulties. As children who He finally can bring to eternity.

No seller can ever offer you something like this. He won’t offer to stay with you, because he has to move on and sell. But Jesus comes and stays with us. He doesn’t wander from one to another. He is always with us.

Unfortunately, sometimes we see people only as potential parishioners, who may eventually attend our church. They may take part in our activities, tithe and if we are lucky one day they’ll become soldiers and leaders. They may lead our activities and programs - and then what? They will bring more people to the corps. It looks like MLM. In other cases, we see people as potential clients of our centres, projects and delivery centers. They are no more than statistics, showing what has been delivered, presented and carried out. We try different ideas and write different missions and strategies, but often it looks like children’s games while real life goes by and has nothing to do with gaming.

The growth of church is God’s action. He created His church, and He will plant it. God added saved souls to the church, and He is doing it now. What do we have to do, then? We have to be with people. We have to develop relationships, spend our time with them, rejoice and grieve. We have to stay close to them when they face pain, sorrow and death. This is exactly what Jesus did. Programs and projects are simply instruments that can help us to build relationships with many people. But if they don’t help to build relationships, it is pointless to continue such programs and projects. After all, there are social services, ambulances and hospitals; there are other services to help people, rescue and protect them. But only fellowship of those who believe in Christ brings relationship to the lonely, hope and consolation to the despaired. Then people will come to the corps. They will serve and praise God. They will help the needy. The Church will be filled with life and love. It will be a city standing on the mountaintop.

Undoubtedly, we must develop leadership. We need educated people capable of leading, explaining vision and developing strategies. We need professionals in social spheres able to serve people with different addictions, affected by sins and vices of this world. We need high-quality workers for our service to be at its most effective and reach as many people as possible. We need preachers and teachers able to explain the truth of the Gospel to different groups of people. Today’s Salvation Army desperately needs all of this. But first of all, we need relationship. Otherwise we’ll be no more than sellers offering their goods to people who are already tired of obtrusive advertising and persistent sellers trying to peddle them what they don’t need.

Writer: Vadim is from a Russian circus family and came to The Salvation Army in 1995 as a university student to play in a heavy metal/worship band (”Third Cross”) in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don. He stayed, became a believer, the leader of “Third Cross”, and joined the Army. He married his longtime girlfriend Inna in a Sunday morning service and eventually they entered training to become Salvation Army officers. They were ordained and commissioned in 2002. Vadim, Inna and their children are presently serving in their second appointment in “Velikiy Novgorod”. Vadim’s interests include music, sports and reading.