Church growth and discipleship
As I narrate from my story at South Melbourne Restoration Community (now simply called Red), one of the paradigm changes I/we had to undergo was to be to break the hegemony that church growth thinking held over our imaginations and practices. I say this not because God has not and does not use church growth principles in extending his church (clearly He does), but because to become truly missional we need to operate on very different assumptions about church and mission than the profoundly institutional conception of things inextricably bound up in church growth theory. This is also the case because I believe church growth theory creates passivity in the participants and this caters to the rampant consumerism of our day. And consumerism works directly against discipleship and and our calling to follow Jesus. So I offer this critique as someone who is both a friend and an insider of church growth theory and practice (I led the church growth department in my denomination for many years!) but also as someone who has come to the conclusion is that this imagination/conception of church is now the primary means of holding us back from becoming a dynamic movement again in the West.
If one could put the God dynamics aside (or to say it another way, to test church growth practice from a purely sociological perspective) we can say the following: If you wish to grow a contemporary church following good church growth principles, there are several areas which you must constantly focus on and improve:
- Expand the building to allow for growth and redesign it as an open semi circle not unlike that of a good theatre.
- Ensure excellent preaching in contemporary style dealing with subjects that relate to the life of the hearers
- Develop an inspiring worship experience (here limited to ‘praise and worship’) by having an excellent band and positive worship leaders.
- An absolutely critical area is children’s and youth ministry. Ensure excellent programs here and people will put up with less elsewhere in the mix.
- Develop a good program of cell groups built around a Christian education model to ensure pastoral care and a sense of community.
- Make certain you have excellent car parking facilities, with friendly car park attendants, to ensure minimum inconvenience in finding a car park
- Make sure that next week is better than last week to keep the people coming.
This is what church growth practitioners call the ‘ministry mix’. Improvement in one area benefits the whole and constant attention to elements of the mix will ensure growth and maximize impact. The problem with all this caters right into consumerism. And the church with the best programs and the sexiest appeal tends to get more customers.
Let’s test this: what do you think will happen if elements of the mix deteriorate or another new church with better programming locates itself within your region? Statistics right across the western world where this model holds sway indicate that the vast majority of the church’s growth comes from ‘switchers’—people who move from one church to another based on the perception and experience of the programming. There is precious little conversion growth in it at all. The problem is that no-one really gets to see the problem because it ‘feels so right’ and it ‘works for me’. In fact, the church is on the decline right across the western world and we have had at least 40 years of church growth principles and practice.
We can’t seem to make disciples based on a consumerist approach to the faith. We plainly cannot consume our way into discipleship. All of us must become much more active in the equation of becoming lifelong followers of Jesus than what consumption can produce. Here’s the problem at least as I see it; consumerism is detrimental to discipleship and church growth in its conteporary form is almost completely built on a consumeristic model. That’s just one of the reasons why we must move from it to a more missional model that values the centrality of discipleship in the central element in the equation of church.
[By the way, I will be in Norway and Denmark freezing my butt off for the next two weeks. This little Aussie has never been in such weather. Well at least the fellowship with the DAWN Europe mob will be warm as I connect with friends and comrades Reinhold Scharnowski, Andrew Jones, Martin Robinson, Oivind Augland and others. I will try and blog and respond while there.]
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Well said. We agree! We agree.
Oh Mattie, you make my day! We agree on something.
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Great observations and insights! Having just come off staff of a typical church-growth church for several years, I can only whole-heartedly concur. Your observations are balanced and right on. We wonder why the churches in the Global South are running circles around us in terms of mission and discipleship, are out-growing churches in the West by leaps and bounds, and yet the majority implicitly or explicity reject much of the church-growth paradigm. We in the West have much to learn from our brothers and sisters in the Global South.
You’re right, the “come and see” model attracts “sit and soak” people by and large. The entry point for a church-growth church is anonymity and comfort. What was Jesus’ entry point, though? “Anyone who would follow me…” You can finish the rest of the statement.
I’m reading your book, “The Shaping of Things to Come” and it’s really scratching where I’m itching. Thanks for your hard work and labor!
“Sit and soak”
Actually church growth theory uses the phrse “attract and amuse” as a way of describing its own dynamics. Here again we see its innately consumerist approach to evangelism and church growth.
Well said Al. However you missed out one key point…,they usually only work in large cities where there is a large enough population to sustain them and to keep new people coming in the front door to replace those leaving out the back!
it is also not limited to large churches. The same situation ‘grips’ many mission organisations. You know my story in this area!
One of the other problems of church grwoth practice over the years is competition for a slice of the ‘religious market’. We effectively compete with each other to attract customers…er worshippers. I don’t mean to be cynical here, far from it, I do believe God uses it, but it simply isn’t going to be enough in the currect cultural context.
Alan, you did more than hit the ball out of the park. This is one of the best if not the best.
The church growth movement gave way to the church health movement and both continue to control the way we do church in America at the expense of being the church in Missional and Incarnational transformation.
We do not need the growth strategies of past or present nor do we need the health strategies of past or present. Bold statements?, not really.
I think both extremes leave us without the Holy Spirit’s leading and with more of our own programs that make us look successful or healthy. Both disguise the real problems and put a bandage that covers the gangrene.
Let’s amputate the limbs of gangrene (that which we can do and let God do what only He can do).
Whatcha say? Is there a surgeon in the house.
Alan, get a butt warmer like the hunters use.
Let’s just de-consumerize the church and watch consumers jump the ship or will they not? Maybe consumers are interested in making a personal difference. Wow, we may be missing the opportunity to enlist an army.
On the other hand, try to do what I suggest and watch the survival bomb go off. Stay back and way back!
good to see you today passing through london. hope norway is fun… you should chat with ryan bolger on this stuff as he is now picking up the church growth course and having to re-think how to teach that stuff!
Poor Ryan. I would be very conflicted about it myself. I suspect he is even more so. I am teaching with his department Fuller in July. Shuld be fun again.
Likewise Jonny B, always a please to meet with you.
Won’t we always be consumers at some level? When I buy your new book, (which I certainly intend to do), or attend an engaging seminar that denounces consumerist churches, (which I always seem to enjoy), I’m engaging in the act of consumption. When I download a song or a message or benefit from someone’s teaching gift at my church, I’m consuming the gifts God has given them to give away. So I find myself wondering, what is it that we’re actually condemning? Is it the simple consumerism we all traffic in, or is it something more nuanced that we find ourselves chaffing against?
Rob, good t see you here.
Mate, I think there is a diffrence between cnnsmption and being defined by what we consume… namey consumerism. I will post more directly on this later, but I think consumerism as we experience it has reached religious significance and must be challenged as an alteranative religious claim to our loyalties and allegiances.
I think if our starting point is the question: “How do we make disciples of all nations”? we’re likely to be on the right track. If our first question is: “How can we grow this church?” we can try all sorts of program ideas that were never in Jesus’ mind. The true church will grow if we’re about making disciples.
Rob,
I believe the issue of consumerism has to do with the definition:
con·sum·er (kən-sōō’mər) 1. One that consumes, especially one that acquires goods or services for direct use or ownership rather than for resale or use in production and manufacturing.
2. A heterotrophic organism that ingests other organisms or organic matter in a food chain.
Consumption is a one way street… in the sense of the current conversation at least. At issue is the brand of Christianity that seeks goods and services for self use as opposed to “…blessed to be a blessing.” Face it–at least in the Western context–most Christians view/search for/ a church based on “what I/my family gets out of it.” If you buy Alan’s (or any other) book, or attend a conference, hopefully you are not doing it to consume on yourself. You are buying and reading it in order to develop your own life/ministry in a deeper sense of Jesus-following. The issue of consumerism is nothing new. When Jesus spoke of the “thorny soil” he was speaking of consumerism. It chokes out the word in peoples hearts and they become unfruitful (Mt.13:22). In my opinion the spirit of consumerism is THE main enemy of Western Christianity.
Hi Alan,
I think what you have posted are some very valuable insights into what elements we find in a consumerist church environment. I have come through the Sydney Anglican circles and as I read your post I can’t help but think that even though we claim to be “Bible focused” really we are just playing to the consumeristic demands of the WASP’s who come wanting a sermon which is so dry and nonpersonal that we think it is very biblical and it is the only right way to read the Bible.
You have listed 7 areas in which the church growth movement is consumeristic, would you say that it is the actions of putting on a better band, presnetation, sermon ect.. that is wrong or is it the mentality behind it??
Is it possible to have community of faith which is devoted to a “Jesus Style Discipleship” and yet wants to do the best they can in the areas of preaching, parking, presentation, worship, experience ect..?
Do you see conflicts in the 2 models (discipleship which leads into some aspects of trying to do the best possible that they can for the glory of God)working hand in hand??
I think Lance nailed the issue squarely… Jesus message is to deny yourself and take up your cross daily… and that those who lose their life for His sake will find it. A consumer is dominated by “what they get out of it”.
It’s impossible to function in the Western world without consuming goods and services… but it’s possible for one’s primary allegiance to be to Yahweh. (although difficult!)
If the majority of attendees in a church are there for what they can get out of it… including appeasing their own sense of religious duty… there’s something wrong with the model.
Gaah… the problem with this discussion is pointing the finger at the church, and then realising the finger is pointing right back at me. There’s an awful lot of “consumer of religious goods and services” lurking in me.
Alan,
I’ll be at Fuller as well in July with my global cohort. I’d love to take you out for coffee, or whatever you Australian’s like to drink…
Alan - sorry, whatever you South Africans like to drink…
Lance, you’ve obviously got a better dictionary than I do. ☺ If consumption is defined as a purely self-serving act, well, then case closed. I’m with you. But not all definitions of consumption are quite so dark, and I’ve found myself sometimes needing to distinguish between a natural form of consumption which can actually fuel an other-centered response, and the self-serving kind of consumption which essentially amounts to an acquisitional cul-de-sac.
Stew I’m all yours. I come cheap!
Josh, it seems to me that the problem is in the culture itself. We are bred as inveterate consumers (the culture disciples us everyday!) and the problem for us occurs that the better you do the elements of worship (sermon, music, etc. ) the more it caters to the alredy innate consumerism of the ‘people in the pews’. The other problem of course is that it creates a terrble amount of ‘passivity’ in the recivers of the religious goods and services. Its the very thing Jesus won’t allow!
Yeah i get your point that we live in a consumers society, i would tend to go further and say that it is actually part of our sinful nature to always want bigger, better, more pleasing to the eye adam and eve style.
i see and agree with your point on the fact that the better we do the elemets of worship, the more we cater to the consumerism of some of the “pew warmers”.
I don’t know but there is something in me that makes me want to develop all aspects of worship because i know that we are serving the king of kings, and we should give to him the best we can.
Is that catering for the consumerists among us or is it developing a respect and reverance for who God is? I don’t know, maybe i am just sitting on the fence and i should get my act together and fall to one side.
Josh, but that’s the problem. I have no issue with the God-orientation of our worship. I think the problem is with us. God does not need bands and ‘excellence’ to be worshipped truly. He only needs a heart directed properly toward him. Why do we think we need to impress him? who are we impressing?
ok, now i get it, sorry just took me a while
Its kinda sad, beause we all like a good worship session, don’t we?
it is becasue there are certain elements of worship which i really do appreciate, and certain elements that do help me conncet with God.
but they have become corrupt through our focus on consumeristic religion so in some ways we need to throw out a lot of how we “do church” to go back to the basics of the Jesus discipleship.
Just finished reading through “the Great Omission”by Dallas Willard, he has some good insights into discipleship. hope your having fun in Europe and not freezzing too much
I’ve just finished reading through Kings and Chronicles (as you do) and am tempted to go devil’s advocate once more. It seems to me that God was pleased when there was dedicated worship… not only in festivals and sacrifices but also the music and singing coordinated by Asaph and his descendents.
I’m not suggesting we be formulaic about it with every “contemporary” church belting out Darlene Zchech numbers… but I do see a role for the arts in worship… music, poetry, visual art, etc. etc…. that doing this as an offering to the Lord who made us will please Him if done with the right heart.
I’m all for changing our imagination about how to make disciples and build the church of Jesus Christ… I’m just reflecting on the possibility of throwing out the baby with the bathwater… that we so react against the contemporary church model we almost puritanically prohibit worship in song, or small groups, or appropriate Christian education of young children, or teaching about relevant life issues!
I agree that passive spiritual consumerism as the core issue and that the contemporary church model described so often feeds this… just flagging yet again that it’s more important to be characterised by what we are for than what we are against.
Well articulated Jan. Its hard to argue with that. I think aesthetics are important. Our problem with all sorts of beauty, including, and especially artistic beauty, is that they contain a seed of the eternal. Something in art beckons us. But for that very reason they also awaken covetousness. I always find it amazing how people are willing to spend 50 million dollors or more for a painting!! So in the end that which is meant to direct us to God becomes an idol that eventually ensalves us (echoes of Rom.1:18ff here ‘having exchanged the glory of immmortal God for images…’.)
but I have to say that the standard Darlene and co songs can hardly be called ‘art’ in any meaningful sense of the term. In the same way that middle-of-the-road Christia Aguiliera cannot be called art.
Another problem is that the art so easily overwhlems the message. the cathedrals of Europe are filled with great art, but people don’t go there to worship anymore. But to consume art.
Everything turns to dust in our hands doesn’t it! Sad part of the human condition.
Love your post Al.
Israel is the one who “wrestles with God” and I think we need to wrestle with this stuff. There seems to be the danger of idolatory and feeding consumerism on one side… but on the other side, becoming puritanical, even militant about simplicity. I’d hope that those Christians who have artistic gifts can be encouraged to use these for the glory of God in authentic responses of discipleship and in response to the communities in which they live.
It seems the only way forward is to keep testing ourselves… to keep wrestling… to keep asking the questions.
Again I find myself, sitting in the sand, trying to build a new house, after the old one collapsed in the latest shifting sand. Why do I feel like I need to build something with the same old building blocks my grandfather used… maybe give them a fresh lick of paint. I’m unable to figure why I should be using a block called “church growth” at all, if I truly believe that Jesus Christ said “I will build my church!”
Here’s a thirty second church growth course:
Church Growth 101 = Jesus will do it
Church Growth 201 = Jesus has done it
Church Growth 301 = join with Jesus
Because we are created in the image of a fruitful and multiplying communal God, we are meant to be fruitful and multiply, as part of a living breathing community… Lance wrote, earlier in this thread, that consumerism “chokes out the word in people’s hearts and they become UNFRUITFUL” Jesus comes to release captives from the bondages that prevent them from being FRUITFUL!
Because we are created in the image of a missional God we are designed to be missional… IT’S WHO WE ARE. We bear fruit, not because someone makes us do it, but because it’s what happens… it is a natural result of being who we are. We are each shaped to be a part of the body that only you can be, and yeah sure we’re each intended to be the best you that you can be…
To worship is to live a life that continually, 24/7 says to God “you’re worth everything to me…” To worship is to ascribe worth, not just, or even necessarily, to sing. Feeding poor people ascribes worth to God… Doing the right thing ascribes worth to God. Not taking the office stationery home ascribes worth to God. Not being rude to people because you feel tired, ascribes worth to God… being the you that God created you to be ascribes worth to God… and sometimes singing silly love songs ascribes worth to God.
One of the problems I see is that we’ve transposed the OT concept of sacrifice and we see our “worship” as sacrifice. Jesus paid the price, there is no other sacrifice, our worship is our RESPONSE to the Grace we’ve already received and is part of our LIFE in Christ. Romans 12
is not addressing a church service, it’s about a way of living… living as humanity was always meant to live - now restored in Christ.
However, I also think we need to be careful as we throw out the Church growth bathwater… check we haven’t left Leadership 101, the Apostolic mandate and Pastoral Care in there too!
It’s all about what’s at the heart of the matter - settling for just attracting a bunch of religious groupies to a mediocre version of a Spice Girls concert is not “church…” BUT also that doesn’t mean that we don’t have a heart to see the needs of people met - even in preaching - it doesn’t excuse us from looking after young people and kids… or from building a sense of community etc… What is does mean is that those things happen as a response to God’s grace and what He’s doing… NOT as a means to satisfy some egomaniacs need for approval…
a celtic son
Janet, i like the whole idea of continuing to wrestle. continually fine tuning what we are doing and going back to basics and reasessing I think is a healthy way to be
A couple of thoughts here. Maybe it doesn’t apply to what we are talking about. Can you imagine Bartholomew being asked “why do you follow Jesus.” It’s because of the awesome hymn we sing every once in a while. It just connects me with God the Father. As a matter of fact I am going to suggest to Jesus that we do 9 or 10 songs before we start out each day. I have my brand new ukulele and Peter plays a mean harp.” Now I cannot imagine Jesus ever agreeing to that but lets say he did. You know what would happen…… The focus would begin to change. Bartholomew’s thoughts would change from bringing healing, comfort, helping the poor, to what songs are we going to sing tomorrow morning. After a while he would say that the call of Jesus is way too costly. It is much easier to sit in the background and prepare some songs. Four or five others would break ranks and want to join the worship team. They would argue amongst each other what kind of songs they should sing. Should they light candles? Should the arts be more involved? What can we do to connect with the Father……… Within a year Jesus only has Peter and John ready to give their lives. The rest are doing worship ministry.
The point I am making is with the invention of the church service (and it is surely an invention of man) our focus has changed. We are no longer interested in giving our lives to reach a suffering and lost world but “going to church because we like the singing or the speaker.” The church service and programs have become the work.
The second point is that I just got back from Peru (I live in central Canada) with a team. We worked in an orphanage. In Manchay (a suburb of Lima) (pronounced Manchi [the last i sounding like an i]) the needs are overwhelming. The poverty is vast. Energized I had thoughts of coming back to share and hope to change things but it is slowly creeping in that people in the west here are “church” focused. But it is also in Peru. The director told me that they were considering hiring a local Peruvian to direct one of the orphan homes. This fellow said that he had a vision to reach out AIDS victims. The director said it wouldn’t fly in evangelical circles in Peru because they are not interested in that work. They want to start churches. I said to myself “HOW BACKWARDS WE HAVE IT.” If we reach the needy, the Aids victims and so on we’ll start more churches than we know what to do with……..
Alan I wouldn’t complain too much about going to Finland. We left Canada (-7) and went to Peru (+27) and had to return to (-12). You are returning to a + 25 to +30. Somehow I don’t feel very sorry for you.
Some great thoughts Frank. Thanks!
Alan’s identification of the church growth problem seems right on–at least from my experience. But sometimes we need to take a step back to get a better view of the scene/core issue.
It seems to me that the entitlement/comsumer problem that thwarts discipleship comes down to a fairly simple issue. I’ve heard it talked around some, with some great discussion, but here’s where I’m going to dive in: I feel it really comes down to defining “need” and “want”. Essentials versus non-essentials. In essentials we must have unity, while in non-essentials we are to allow liberty and treasure diversity.
If all the true needs are being met — people are coming to a saving knowledge and authentic experience of Christ and are being discipled toward growing maturity so that they are well grounded and fruitful and reproduce more disciples, and our neighbors (those we can influence–inside and outside the community of faith) are being truly loved and their physical needs are being met — then we have been faithful and unified in the essentials. Frankly, I see way too little of this need-meeting unity.
From this point (if we can get there), we have a certain amount of freedom (things must edify, etc.) to engage in those things that really are “wants” or “non-essentials”. In these areas there is to be allowed great freedom of expression — and the glory of the diversity of the Body of Christ can be shown and attract the widely diverse people God has created and wants to bring back to himself.
The trouble comes when we confuse need and want, either in our basic understanding or our active priorities. We step out onto sand when we move to focus on wants when needs go unmet. Think of the meeting of fundamental needs as the laying of a firm foundation. Build whatever structure you want on that foundation…but don’t build on the sinking sand of want.
God has said that the forms of our worship cannot take precedence over the content of our hearts. He doesn’t want sacrifice, but obedience. Alan said it right: God doesn’t need our fancy worship forms–those are our expressions to him. He needs us to love and obey him–and he is pleased when we do that in as creative a manner as we are inspired to bring.
Just don’t tell someone that your form is better than their form–or that we must all have the same form. We are all equally children of God–and God’s refrigerator is big enough for all of our precious art projects!
So that’s the simple part of it…we must go on to struggle with the complex end of it now. It is difficult; but we must butch up to the task at hand. We just don’t have freedom to restructure the task to our convenience.
So, how do we consider appropriate ways to spur on exponential church growth with and without slick programs and buildings and books and other tools? With a steady eye on need, a touch of appropriate want here and there and, of course, with as much humility, justice and mercy as we can muster, is my prayer.
You all are awesome! I am grateful for your labor on behalf of the Kingdom.
I’m not sure I properly understand what “centrality of discipleship in the central element in the equation of church” means? Are there any articles on this Blog that expand on that?
The article made me think of the story about Mary (or Martha??) being too busy preparing for people to consume that she missed out on fellowship with Christ and got cranky.
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