The development of church members serves as a crucial foundation for strengthening Christian ministry. This effort aims to nurture a congregation that is mature in faith, character, and service, enabling them to actively introduce Christ to the world. The church faces significant challenges in increasing congregational participation, particularly among the younger generation, who are often more focused on digital life. Therefore, continuous training is essential to fortify the faith of the congregation and prepare them to engage in Christian ministry. Effective training methods include fellowship, Bible teaching, mentoring, and social service. This development not only strengthens relationships among congregation members but also equips them to serve in various aspects of life. Through ongoing development, the church will produce a congregation that is strong in faith, active in ministry, and ready to face the challenges of the times.

The nurturing of church members plays a vital role in maintaining the relevance and sustainability of the church amidst various challenges in the modern world. Through proper nurturing, the foundation of faith is strengthened, Christian character is shaped, leadership is developed, and members’ participation in ministry is enhanced. In addressing the realities faced by the contemporary church, effective nurturing becomes a key solution to tackle issues such as individualism, secularism, cultural diversity, and moral crises. With a nurturing approach that is contextual and grounded in the Word of God, church members are equipped to be Christ’s witnesses who live with integrity in society. Therefore, the nurturing of church members not only supports spiritual growth but also ensures the church remains strong, relevant, and impactful in the world.
 

This study aims to determine the relationship between youth worship systems and faith growth in GKO Pematang Tembesu and to explain how youth worship systems can increase youth faith in GKO. This study is based on the youth worship system carried out by the church, it can be seen that faith is not growing well in adolescents, as seen from poor behavior and lack of responsiveness in following every worship service carried out by GKO. Of course, this is something that really needs to be considered in order to create a strong and God-fearing youth faith. In this study, the researcher used a descriptive inferential method with a quantitative approach, the data obtained through observation, interviews, questionnaires (questionnaires) and documentation. Data is obtained and data processing is carried out in order to obtain the desired results. The population of this study was all GKO adolescents totaling 30 people. This study was carried out by the author at the Oikumene Christian Church, Pematang Tembesu, Jambi and was carried out from November 2023 to January 2024.The results of the questionnaire from the respondents were processed and compiled and tabulated in a table according to the items submitted. To find out the Pearson Product Moment, the rxy value is obtained = 0.666. And with r table 0.308308, it can be said that there is a positive and significant relationship between worship order and faith growth in GKO Pematang Tembesu. With a significant p = 0.000 <0.050, the hypothesis of the study is that there is a positive relationship between worship order and faith growth. This means that based on the research, the hypothesis in this study is accepted. The determinant coefficient (r2) of the relationship between variable x and variable y is r2 = 0.443, this shows that worship order is related to faith growth by 44.3%.

This study aims to compare the concept of leaving father and mother in Matthew 19:5-6 with the practice of Menjae in Pakpak Tribal Culture. In addition, this study will also analyze the meaning of leaving father and mother in Matthew 19:5-6 and explore the meaning of Menjae in the Pakpak Family Cultural Tradition. Through this research, it will see the parallels between leaving father and mother in Matthew 19:5-6 and Menjae in the Pakpak Family Cultural Tradition. The author also wants to mean whether culture and the Bible sometimes disagree or become harmonized and see the positive value of the implementation of Menjae Culture in Pakpak family traditions.

The level of attendance of young people attending worship services at GEPKIN Tarutung City has increased. According to the author's observations, this is influenced by several factors such as: music, interesting sermons, welcoming guests, and variations in service. The method used by researchers is a qualitative descriptive approach. The research implementation uses procedures that produce descriptive data in the form of written and spoken words from people whose behavior is observed through interviews or observations using a qualitative approach. This research aims to determine the factors that influence the high level of attendance of young people in worship at GEPKIN Tarutung City. From the research results, it can be seen that the factors of music, interesting sermons, welcoming guests, variety of services can increase the high attendance of young people in worship at GEPKIN Tarutung city. With the factors that influence the high level of attendance of young people, it can increase the presence of young people in worship at GEPKIN Tarutung city.

The aim of this research is to find out the meaning of respect for ancestors contained in the mangongkal holi ritual of the Christian Batak community. The research method used is qualitative research with a socio-theological approach. The current understanding of the Christian Batak community regarding the mangongkal holi ritual is very different, especially after the arrival of Christianity to Batak land, some think that this ritual contains animism or something else and there are also those who think that this ritual is contrary to Christianity. This ritual cannot be said to be in conflict with Christianity, but on condition that in the ritual there is no hasipelebeguon or things related to ancestor worship because in essence, as a Christian Batak society, they must be able to balance ritual and religion. This research explains what the meaning and purpose of the mangongkal holi ritual is for the Batak people, how the ritual and things related to mangongkal holi are carried out and their relationship with Christianity, and this research also explains how ancestors are respected biblically and also in Toba Batak ways. The result of this research is to examine socio-theologically the mangongkal Holi ritual by taking the example of moving Joseph's bones, which is about how respect for ancestors is depicted.
 

Abstract. The Koinonia ministry is one of the tri-duties of the church's vocation which at this time seems to have begun to weaken quite a number of churches due to the development of the times which requires that the koinonia strategy must be improved or in other words quality. Therefore, a quality Koinonia ministry is able to protect the congregation to remain faithful in fellowship. A good Koinonia is to divide certain categories to improve the quality of the congregation in its growth in quality and quantity. In this paper, I provide Koinonia services by dividing into five categories, namely: Child Category (Age 0-2, 2-5, 6-12), Youth Category (Age 15-35 years), Early Adult Category (Age 17- 22, 22-28, 28-33, 40-45 years), Middle Adult Category (45-65 years old), and Advanced Adult Category (over 60 years old). Each category has its own portion and needs according to their psychological condition and situation, which should be seen from the point of view of their age. This will make it easier for the church to improve or even improve the quality of Koinonia's service to the congregation, especially in today's churches that require an increase in their Koinonia.