I want to preface the beginning of this post by saying that the church I serve does not expect me to visit every single sick person in the church, so this post is not a “vague-post” to make a disgruntled point. Yet, this quote from Carey Nieuwhof (shared on the clergy coaching network Facebook page) makes some excellent points of issues we are running into as the church. This image/quote resonated with me this morning because last night I finished reading the book called, “Deep Roots Wild Branches: Revitalizing the Church in the Blended Ecology” by Michael Beck and there were similar connections that were made and the issues we are encountering.

To clarify some terminology when Michael Beck speaks of a “Blended Ecology” it refers to a new form of local church congregation that arises from fresh expressions (new forms of church) of church in symbiotic relationship with inherited forms of church (the traditional church). So, this is NOT get rid of all inherited/traditional churches, it is finding ways for the inherited/traditional church to branch off in new forms of Church. A Fresh Expression is a form of church for our changing culture, established primarily for the benefit of those who are not yet part of any church. According to the Pew Research Center, “28% of Americans classify themselves as “nones,” 17% of whom identify as atheist, 20% as agnostic and 63% as “nothing in particular.” Most “nones” said they were raised to be religious, and the majority were raised in Christian households.” This means more than 1/4 of people have no religious affiliation at all in the United States which is the most ever recorded. As the statistics share many grew up in Christian households, the majority of Nones said they still believe either in God (though not necessarily God “as described in the Bible”) or another higher power.

So, where is the disconnect? What I have encountered many times when someone says to me, “Yeah I used to go to church, but not anymore. I don’t really believe in God anymore.” I will often say to them, “Tell me about this God you don’t believe in anymore, I might not believe in them either.” This often surprises them to hear me as a pastor say this. A lot of times they will go on to describe an angry God that is just waiting to send people to Hell because they don’t believe the right way, or a God that hates all LGBT people, etc… It is then that I tell them that I don’t believe in that type of God either. I explain that Jesus said if you have seen me you have seen the Father. So, when I want to know what God is like I look to Jesus who I believe is fully God and fully human. When I look at Jesus I see someone who often was reaching out to the outcasts, the forgotten, the widows, the orphans, the destitute, while quite often ruffling the feathers of those who were a part of the religious establishment. When I look to Jesus I see someone whose grace, mercy, and love are so great they are beyond my ability to fathom. That is who God is and what God is like.

Now, some people do genuinely grow up in loving Christian homes, and in Churches that preach this type of message about Jesus and still choose to walk away from the faith because of differences in beliefs and I understand that and respect that. However, many are considered “Nones” who grew up in churches who heard some pretty horrific things about God, or how God viewed them; or they grew up in homes where they may have gone to church regularly but saw no daily difference in their family’s lives. Compound this with all of the abuse we have seen happen throughout the church, or incredibly petty/selfish battles that happen in the church, and many people my age (45) and younger have decided to walk away from the church.

Where the Church was then and now…

As Michael Beck shared, “The dominant North American version of the church goes back to Emperor Constantine in AD 313 when Christianity became the state religion. Up until then, Christians were a rogue- and periodically illegal religious movement that experienced several rounds of imperial persecution.” Beck goes on to share, “The blending of religion and state power had both positive and negative effects. Not being arrested, punished, or having your property confiscated was certainly a plus. Yet, adversely, vast church building projects were launched of unparalleled grandeur. This created a need for professional full-time priests to care for the growing masses. This led to the attractional model: build it and they will come.”

This type of thinking worked for a time, but younger generations are seeing the disconnect between the message of Jesus and this combination of empire and faith. I can attest to many conversations I have had with clergy my age and younger who are disillusioned with this way of Church, but it is extremely difficult to turn the ship in such a large denomination and even in long-established local churches. Some congregations used the time of Covid to re-evaluate and examine what they were doing as a church and why, while others tried to frantically return to “business as usual” even if “business as usual” was no longer working because it was what they were comfortable with and knew.

As Revelation 21:5 says, “God is making all things new” and I truly believe God can reshape and recreate who we are as the church to reach people with the message of Jesus, YET that will require us to die to ourselves! If we want there to be resurrection then there has to be a death! Please hear what I am saying I am not saying that all inherited/traditional churches need to close, BUT we do need to die. We have to be willing to seek God to do a new thing through us!

Once again Michael Beck said in his book, “The Church is not in the self-preservation business, the church is in the self-donation business. The very eucharistic nature of the body of Christ is to break pieces of ourselves off and give them away to a hungry world. Unfortunately, when our church is caught in a decline cycle {which many are}, we clench our fists, desperately grasping at what’s left. Yet, if we open our hands and give what we are away through our own self-death, we release God to catalyze resurrection.”

Many churches have fallen asleep. They got accustomed to the ways of Christendom, where they hired a professional clergyperson (and staff) to do the heavy spiritual lifting, providing programs and events for the church to come to and attend. As I shared before this worked for a while when the pews were full, and the church had enough finances to hire full-time clergy and other staff members for specialized areas like children and youth ministries while church members filled in roles like trustees, finance, church councils. The church did not have to work that hard to reach outward because often the church was a community hub, so the focus of many churches was primarily inward (taking care of those already there). We subconsciously adopted a mindset that acted like the great commission was, “build a nice building and invite people to join you at certain times on Sundays”. When, in reality, we have been given a mission from Jesus to go!

A challenge we face in many churches is the aging of the congregation, even the clergy. I am 45 years old and I am one of the “younger adults” at my church. Yet, even as a clergy member when I go to various gatherings I am viewed as a younger clergy member even though I am 45 and have 21 years of ministerial experience. Our denomination is beginning to take notice that there are not many people in their 20s, 30s, and younger who are considering going into the ministry. For the church to be renewed it will take more than a solo leader with a deep faith, and lots of determination for things to change. Often Churches in the past when they were encountering decline would believe, “We just need to get a younger pastor who is married and has kids and that will help us to attract young people in our community again”. When this doesn’t happen (because that is not how things work anymore) it usually causes disillusionment and frustration. If the church is going to experience new life it will require an all church effort! As Michael Beck said, “Individuals don’t revitalize churches; Spirit-filled communities of Jesus followers do”.

Once again, for this to happen we have to be willing to let some things die so new things can be born. This new life will not happen due to a re-energized version of the inherited church with a new coat of paint on it, but it will happen due to letting the Holy Spirit guide our steps and be faithful to our calling of sent-ness. For myself, when I have preached, taught, and shared about the need for Fresh Expressions (new ways of being the Church for people not connected to the church) often these are the questions/comments will arise…

• How will we eventually get those people to come to church? (which insinuates a new FX church isn’t a “real church”)
• How will those new Fresh Expressions be funded? (because often churches are not willing to fund things they don’t see how they will personally benefit from, or if it will cause them to have to let old things go, to fund new ways of doing ministry)
• That won’t increase our Sunday morning worship numbers so why should we do it?
• That will increase our normal church operating budget so why should we do it?

Until we realize the old way of doing things and its effectiveness is not going to happen, that the 1950s 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s way of functioning is no longer going to work, local churches will continue to grow inward, becoming older and older, with buildings that are no longer able to be cared for, to eventually the doors closing for good. BUT! I do not believe this has to happen! If we are willing to die to ourselves, to the ways we are familiar with, and see how God can use the inherited church alongside new ways of doing ministry such as Fresh Expressions then I believe God can do some amazing things through the church. The question for us as the church will be, “Do you want to be made well?” “Do you want to be filled with life?” “Do you want to be resurrected?”