The purpose

Focus on the unsaved	Focus on making disciples
The local church is primarily a SOUL-WINNING STATION.	The local church is primarily a SOUL-BUILDING STATION (Acts 20:28-32).
We rejoice at every soul that is saved through the preaching ministry of a local church, and we certainly do not want to minimize the importance of making the most of every opportunity to win a soul for Christ, but the primary purpose of the local assembly is to build up the believers in the most holy faith and to equip them for the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:12).

The local church is here primarily to

GET PEOPLE SAVED (Reaching them).

The local church is here primarily to

GET PEOPLE TAUGHT (Teaching them).

See Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 2:42.

If the main thrust of the local assembly is to reach the lost, then evangelism will be unduly stressed and given priority and the edification and equipping of believers will not be given its proper place. If God’s Word is properly taught, the unsaved who are in attendance will certainly hear the gospel, and the believers who need to be taught will not be neglected.

The local church is to
PREACH THE GOSPEL

(by "gospel" we mean that truth which unsaved people need to know in order to be saved, the good news of salvation).

The local church is to

PREACH THE WORD (2 Tim. 4:2)

which would include the gospel but which would not neglect "ALL SCRIPTURE" (2 Tim. 3:16).

If a faithful pastor is preaching through the Bible, verse by verse, book by book, he is going to be constantly pointing his listeners to Christ and to His so-great salvation. At the same time he will be feeding the saints the kind of spiritual food that will nurture them and strengthen them to be good soldiers of Jesus Christ.

The local church is here primarily for

EVANGELISM (Win them!).

The local church is here primarily for

INDOCTRINATION (Feed them!).

See John 21:15-17; Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 5:2.

The key word here is "primarily." We are not opposed to the gospel message going forth in the regular services of the local church, and we certainly rejoice over every sinner who repents. The problem comes when evangelism becomes the main focus and the believers do not get the spiritual nourishment that they need to be effective servants (and soul-winners!) for Christ throughout the week.

BRING THE UNSAVED

TO THE GOSPEL.

BRING THE GOSPEL
TO THE UNSAVED

(Mark 16:15; 2 Cor. 5:20).

God does not say, "Go into all the world and invite everyone to come to church." We are not to bring them to the gospel but we are to bring the gospel to them. All believers are to be gospel preachers, not just the pastor on Sunday morning or Sunday evening. Our gospel emphasis should be every day of the week, as we go into the world seeking the lost to win. But the hours that we spend with God’s people should be rich times of being built up in the Word of God so that we can be more effective witnesses for Christ at work, at home or at school.

The regular services of the local church have a ministry primarily for SINNERS.

The regular services of the local church have a ministry primarily for SAINTS

(Eph. 4:12; Col. 1:28).

Again the key word is "primarily." We are certainly glad if unsaved people can come into a local church and find it a place that ministers to their spiritual needs, especially their greatest need which is salvation from sin. But the primary purpose of the local assembly is to proclaim the whole counsel of God so that believers are well-equipped to go forth and do the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:12).

Primary goal of the local church:
THAT PEOPLE MIGHT BE SAVED!

(Salvation is the final goal)

Primary goal of the local church:
THAT SAVED PEOPLE MIGHT BE CHRIST-LIKE!

(Salvation is just the first step)

Col. 1:28; Eph. 4:13-15

Again, we are certainly not opposed to people being saved in church, but we are grieved when God’s people are undernourished, spiritually sick, and ineffective witnesses for Christ. A church that is faithfully teaching the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, will not neglect the lost who come through the doors. What happens when an unbeliever comes into a soul-building station where believers are being edified and where God’s Word is being rightly taught?

See 1 Corinthians 14:24-25.

The Pastor should

PREACH SALVATION MESSAGES.

John 3:16, etc.

The Pastor should

PREACH THE ENTIRE BIBLE from Genesis to Revelation

(Acts 20:27; Matt. 28:20; 2 Tim. 3:16).

It is impossible to preach through the Bible systematically and not touch upon the gospel repeatedly. There is a scarlet cord that runs throughout the Scriptures. But there are also rich gems of truth that believers need to hear and understand. John 3:16 is one of the most wonderful verses in the Bible, but a steady diet of John 3:16 type messages is not what a hungry believer needs. If we aim the Sword only at the unsaved, then we are going to fail to meet the spiritual needs of God’s flock (John 21:15-17).

The Pastor should give the people

INFORMATION ON HOW TO BE SAVED.

(How to become a Christian)

The Pastor should give the people
INFORMATION ON HOW TO LIVE.

(How to be a Christian) See 2 Tim. 3:17

Believers need to be well-versed on how to be saved and how to have full assurance of salvation based on God’s Word. But salvation is only the beginning. It is but the first step of a life-long process of growing to be more like Christ (2 Pet. 3:18; 2 Cor. 3:18). What would we think of a person who is admitted into medical school but receives no further medical training because all the medical school cares about is getting more and more people admitted into their school? I would not want to be a patient in the hospital staffed by such people! The prospective doctor needs to receive the best training possible so that he might be able to treat people properly and save lives. So also the pastor’s job is to give the saints the best possible training from the Word so that they might be able to minister effectively and represent Christ rightly in the world, bringing others to the Saviour.

source: http://www.middletownbiblechurch.org/lochurch/eph412.htm