Christ is not a beggar. A Church should not beg for its members to stay or to serve. It's a shameful image. For those who love to beg, learn F.B. Meyer's prayer:
"When F.B. Meyer started to pray for Spurgeon's church and Campbell Morgan's church on each side of his own church, instead of asking God to just fill his own pews, God blessed Meyer's church: For the overflow of their cups fills my little bucket."
The Wycliffe Handbook of Preaching & Preachers, W. Wiersbe, p. 193
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