WHEN IS A CHURCH
TRULY
SUCCESSFUL?
Hundreds and even thousands stream into America's large churches and super churches each Sunday. The animated song leaders or worship teams of these churches skillfully create a worshipful spirit as those who fill up their sanctuaries sing the choruses and hymns they have come to enjoy. There may be a choir that performs a beautiful piece of music. A talented soloist often sings a moving piece of music that sets the tone for the pastor's message. Then, the pastor stands and preaches a well-prepared message from the Bible.
What has just been described is what happens in thousands of churches across our country every Sunday. Sometimes the choruses are sung with lifted hands and even dancing as a worship team leads an active time of praise, while in other churches the atmosphere is more formal and reserved. Whatever the form of worship, there are churches in nearly every large community or city who have reached this presumed level of success and attainment.
Outside of these successful churches, though, the gay rights movement grows stronger, the percentage of divorces and single-parent homes steadily increase, the number of young people becoming involved in gangs and violence multiplies, and the morals of our country continues to degenerate. Our churches appear to be growing larger and more successful, while at the very same time our society is sliding farther away from God.
How can we determine whether or not a church is successful? Should we measure the success of a church in the same way as we measure, for example, the success of a business? Our first thought is that it is the store with the most customers and the largest financial income that is the most successful store in town. Is this the way that we measure which is the most successful and least successful church in town? Are successful churches determined primarily by the number of their customers and their financial income?
When is a church truly successful? We cannot read Jesus' words in the gospels long before we see that He used a different method for measuring success and failure than we use today. The widow's mite or few pennies held more value to Him than the rich gifts of the wealthy (Luke 21:1-4). He said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 5:3). He told us that he who is the greatest is he who is the greatest servant (Matthew 21:25-27). And He said that the last will be first and that the first will be last. Because the church was bought by His blood and because He is the Head of the church, we need to be concerned above all with His standards of success (rather than the world's standards) when we measure the success and failure of a church.
When does Jesus consider a church to be successful? Can we be sure that the churches we consider to be successful are the churches that He considers to be successful? He made it very clear what He desires to take place in His church when He gave His apostles their commissioning and their final instructions. He summed up what He desired for them to do in Matthew 28:18-20: "Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.'" What He made his highest priority, is what we the members of His church should also be making our highest priority. His highest priority was making disciples. It was making disciples who would follow Him in a lifestyle that in many ways is the very opposite of the world's ways. He commissioned them to go out and make disciples of others in the very same way He had discipled them.
Did this commission to make disciples stop with the apostles? No, it is clear that it is His commission to us as well, for He said "to the very end of the age." We are not at the end of the age yet, and it has been a long time since the apostles have been with us. Who, then, are to make disciples today? There is only one possible answer -- the twenty first century church is to be busy at the very same task that the first century church made its highest priority! When is a church successful? We are only truly successful, when we are successful at fulfilling Jesus' commission to the church and are making disciples who will follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ.
How are we doing today? When we compare what is most important in our churches today with what were Jesus' and the apostles' patterns and priorities, will we find that the heartbeat of today's church is the same as the heartbeat of the early church? I believe that if we are willing to take off our American cultural glasses and are willing to look with fresh eyes at our American churches, we will discover that the success that we are often seeking after in our churches is quite different from the type of success that was sought after by Jesus Christ and the apostles.
Are our local churches focused above all on building disciples? Is your local church focused above all on making disciples? It has been my observation that success in an American church is most often measured by how successful that church is in building its attendance, rather than by how successful it is in building disciples (building followers of Jesus Christ). Making disciples, has been too often given a backseat role in the working program of our churches, while increasing church attendance is most often the driving goal in American churches. I once attended a national meeting for my church's association of churches. At the meetings there were a number of elective classes that were offered. One of the many electives was a class that was directed toward giving instructions on how we can be effective in serving and meeting needs within our community. Another class was led by a noted expert on church growth. The class on how to serve our communities was attended by just a handful of people, whereas the elective on church growth was attended by hundreds.
When is a church successful—is it successful when it is effectively reaching out in love and meeting needs in its community or is it successful when it is growing in attendance? The vast majority at that conference obviously believed that church growth is what is most important. I do not believe that our association of churches is the only national church organization that would have had their largest attendance at the elective on church growth.
The primary purpose of our American churches should be to build disciples? Sadly, though, our churches are often content as long as the attendance is doing well, even if there is very little effectiveness at building disciples. As long as the attenders keep attending, the church is all too typically looked upon as being a successful church. But, Jesus' mandate to the apostles was not for them to go and build churches with large attendances, but He commissioned them to go and "make disciples of all nations...teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you."
These churches full of attenders, however, are very ineffectual at penetrating our society with God's love, truth, and righteousness! They are also not very effective in warring with our relentless enemy. Often, they can become little more than weekly meeting places and even entertainment centers for many people who hardly even know each other. Churches are not truly successful until they are discipling centers. Jesus and the apostles reached out to everyone, as we should, but they did not in any way adjust their message or methods to pander to and placate the multitudes. Their focus was clearly on reaching and building disciples who would be able to face Satan's best forces and continue to build God's church in God's way. God desires Christians to be much more than Sunday morning attenders, He desires that we follow in the footsteps of Jesus, Peter, Paul and all those who have had but one primary purpose in life, to further God's kingdom on earth no matter what the cost.
In these pages you will find a contrast between the attendance-focused church and the discipleship-focused church. It is recognized that no church is fully one or the other. It is also recognized that no church in this imperfect, sinful world will ever be perfectly one or the other. But, what should be the goal of each of our churches? What we really believe is the measure of success for a church is what we will seek after. If a pastor and a church believes that a large attendance is the primary measure of a church's success, he and that church will seek above all to expand their church's attendance and their membership. But, if a pastor and a church believes that discipleship is the true measure of success in God's churches, then it will be their very highest priority to make disciples in the same way that Jesus and the apostles made disciples in their time. True success in a church, then, is the success that God alone can enable us to do, and that is the growth in that church of real disciples and real growth in those disciples!
WHEN ARE WE SUCCESSFUL IN GOD'S KINGDOM?
It is easier to answer the question, "When is someone successful in the world's kingdom?" Success in our society is usually measured by that which is outward and easily observable. Who are the successful people in our society? They are typically those who have some type of outward and obvious signs of success such as being in elevated positions in our society, owning expensive cars, and living in lavish houses. We are usually only looked upon as being successful in our society if we have some of these outward signs of success.
Is this the type of success that we should seek after in our churches? Are churches only successful when they have these outward signs of success? Success in God's kingdom may have nothing to do with any of these measuring sticks. In the Beatitudes, Jesus said blessed are the poor, mourning, meek, and hungry. It is obvious that for us to be successful in God's kingdom, we may need to go in the very opposite direction from those who are seeking success in this world system.
Those who are successful in God's kingdom are those who have humbled themselves and become servants. Jesus' disciples thought that following Jesus would result in them being served by many. But, when Jesus washed their feet He was teaching them that success in His kingdom meant that they would need to learn how to become the servants of many. Success in God's kingdom must start with humbling ourselves. But, God does lift up those who humble themselves. He lifts them ever higher in the ways of His kingdom and in His type of success; a success that lasts forever.
Jesus said that the first will be last and the last will be first. He also said that no man can serve two masters. We need to first of all decide, "Which success are we going to seek after—the success that non-believers are rushing after, or the success that we reach through being a disciple and servant of Jesus Christ?" A young man who had the ability and personality to be successful in many areas in our society, gave his life seeking to reach an Indian tribe near the Amazon river. He said, "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." If you desire this type of success, read on.
DIFFERENT VIEWS OF SUCCESS LEAD TO TWO VERY DIFFERENT TYPES OF CHURCHES
If pastors and church leaders believe that success in the Christian world is similar to success in the business world, then they will direct their efforts toward building a church that is much like a successful business franchise. Success will equal more, larger, and richer; more attendance, larger buildings, and richer possessions. The promotion for this type of attendance-focused church (or customer-focused) church will be very similar to the promotion that is developed for a business venture. The message will be generally as follows: "Come to our church and get more of what you want in a church—more exciting speakers, more talented musicians, and more elaborate programs."
There is, of course, nothing necessarily wrong with any of these. But, a church that focuses on worldly success will be seeking above all to entice people to come and attend their church, rather than attend another church. Their goal may even be for people to leave another church and come and attend their church. They will be seeking to gain customers rather than seeking to build disciples. In this type of church you will find the same type of competitiveness with other churches as there is between businesses. Their goal will be to get people to choose their product over what is offered at another church. They will have been successful when people leave other churches to attend their church. They will have reached the ultimate success when their church has become the largest church in town (in the state, etc.).
The discipleship-focused church has very different goals. Their goal is to do all that they can do to promote obedience to Jesus Christ, even if it does not help their own church to grow in attendance. They are successful to the degree that they encourage those outside of the church, inside the church, and even in other churches, to become Christians and to grow in their Christian lives. This type of church does not have as a goal the desire to promote itself or seek to build its church at the expense of other local churches, but its goal is to promote God's work throughout its community. Instead, a church like this often puts its efforts into ventures that may never be measured by growth in their own church. They will share the gospel even when the people who hear its message may end up attending another church in town or even end up in a church in another city. Churches with this priority focus on sharing the gospel message with as many as possible, knowing that for most, seeds are being planted that may not bear fruit until at some unknown time in the future.
For example, they may spend time and money on efforts that further the gospel and further God's kingdom, but may be of little benefit in building the size or success of their own local church. Prayer continually goes up for those inside and outside of the church. The goal is not to be good salespeople trying to get people to come to their church, but to be God's servants seeking to be obedient to Him in anything that assists Him in His work as He builds His kingdom. The goal is not to seek after more attenders, but to seek out those who will become Christ's disciples and to seek after more growth in His ways among those who are already His disciples.
WHO ARE THE "ATTENDERS?"
In short, the term "attenders" is a word that has been chosen to describe those in our churches who are like the "multitudes" who followed Jesus. Your remember that there were large numbers who followed Jesus around, but did not become His disciples. Many of these multitudes of peoples turned away from Him when they learned that He was not offering them an earthly kingdom with earthly wealth, but a heavenly and spiritual kingdom with spiritual wealth. They were those who loved Jesus' miracles, but had no interest in following Him to the cross. It also appears to be true, though, that many of those who were once the disinterested multitudes did later become Jesus' true followers when thousands came to believe in Him after His resurrection from the dead.
It is clear, however, that Jesus did not build His church with the disinterested multitudes who only had a superficial and selfish interest in what He could do for them. Jesus built His church with those who had really became His disciples; those who recognized their sinfulness, genuinely appreciated what He did for them on the cross, and were willing to follow Him on the path to that cross. When we are focused on adding attenders to our churches, we may also be seeking to build our churches with the multitudes and not with disciples.
At this point, some might consider that dividing people who attend our churches into disciples and attenders is being judgmental. But, we need to keep in mind that it was Jesus Himself who turned away the rich young ruler and others who were not willing to pay the cost that was necessary in order to follow Him. We should not shy away from saying to people of our day, "if you are not willing to do what Jesus said we must do to be His disciples, then you are not His disciples, even if you attend church regularly."