"Marketing strategies for growing the church is thinking like the world."
Paul had a marketing strategy. He went to major radiating cities. He went to the synagogues where he knew people were. He went only to cities that had not been evangelized. He tailored his message and method to his audience. He went back to the churches he started to make sure they were using the Word properly. That is a marketing strategy that is still in use today.
I like to think that Paul went where God sent him and when. God's strategy, not Paul's.
No he didn't.
On Cyprus Paul (Acts 13):
"proclaimed the Word of God"
Also said, "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right...Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?"
In Pisidian Antioch Paul (Acts 13):
"Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the Law of Moses. Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you: "Look you scoffers, wonder and perish..."
In Iconium Paul (Acts 14):
"...Spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed."
"...speaking boldly for the Lord..."
"There was a plot afoot...to mistreat them and stone them".
They "fled"...and "continued to preach."
"In Lystra and Derbe Paul (Acts 14):
"We are bringing the good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the Living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them."
"Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead."
In Antioch and Syria Paul (Acts 14):
"...preached the good news in that city and won a large number."
In Perga (Acts 14):
"...and when they had preached the Word..."
In Macedonia:
"...concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them."
In Phillipi (Acts 16):
"The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message."
"These men [Paul and Silas] are advocating customs unlawful for us Romans to accept or practice. The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten. After they had been severly flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was ordered to guard them carefully....Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him."
In Thessalonica:
"...he reasoned with them from Scriptures, explaining and proving that Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead..."
Of Paul's message the Jews said, "They are all defying Ceasar's decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus."
In Berea:
"...Paul was preaching the word of God..."
In Athens:
"...he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews...Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection [and Paul said] In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.
In Corinth, Ephesus, Greece and Jerusalem Paul's message and methods were the same as noted above!
You are just parroting a purpose driven myth that is used to justify unbiblical messages and methods.
Please read the book of Acts for yourself...As you can see from the above citations, Paul's ministry is in direct opposition to the purpose driven model.
Paul just preached the Word/doctrine with boldness...no felt needs; no culturally adapted method or message...Paul had an anti-cultural method/message that he was reviled for by both Jews and Greeks...to the point that they tried to kill him.
And note that Paul was not concerned about offending anyone and that his evangelizing was done outside of the church. When he was at churches, he reported on what God was doing and edified the believers.
Not accurate.
yep, and told them the truth even when it got him in chains. How much flack from the world is Rick Warren getting? The flack he's getting is just from us little people who have a passion for the WORD (and then the world, not the other way around) who have gotten stepped on, and we're not important.