Maybe the cause of the decline of the American church is the way we try to grow the church.

Is it possible that the decline we are seeing in the church is the result of the way the church is conducting its ministry?

For the most part our approach to how we should do church is to produce great services or programs and then attempt to attract a crowd.  Sometimes that crowd is made up of non-believers, but more often than not the crowd we attract is made up of believers from other congregations.  Attendees of congregations that offer less in terms of services or programs are “ripe for the picking”.   So, we try to find that right combination of music, speakers, video, humor or experience so that those who visit will want to return. 

While this may offend folks on each end of the spectrum the contemporary church and the traditional church are in this way almost identical, they cater to those they want to have in their pews or chairs.  They both have their niche that they want to attract so they design their services and programs to appeal to that niche.   For some, that niche is the casual, cool, young adults that are pretty hip, laid back and appreciate a good concert.  For others the target is the person who likes a tie with their coat and admires the glory of the KJV.   Build the building, plan the service and implement the program, then let your niche know that you are there and they will, hopefully, come.  

My comments are not to target one group or the other.  It is happening across all boundaries of American Christianity.  “We are doing what you want so if you come and see it and like it, then you will join us” is the near universal creed.  I recently read of a very liberal congregation that was hoping to stem their decline with outreach ministry to LBGT, illegal aliens, and other ‘disenfranchised’ people.  I know of another church whose claim to fame is its declaration of the 1611 KJV, the only Bible.

I remember when the buzz was “felt-need, focused” ministry.  We were told to find out where people felt a need, fill that need with a program or ministry and these people would fill our churches.  One church plant went to an area where there was a perceived lack of adult sports and recreation activities so they built their ministry on a church softball team.  When softball season was over the church fizzled.  In Leadership Journal there was a cartoon of people taking the VCRs to church.   The sign out front read, “Meeting our community needs, we’ll program your VCR”.

The problem is a consumer mentality is insatiable.  It never says, “You have spoiled me now please stop.”  The result is that we have to dumb down content so that those who do not know anything about the gospel or want to can engage.  At the same time believers do not grow deeper in their faith because the church is consistently doing the latest, faddish thing to keep attracting larger and larger crowds.

Paul prophesied about it this way: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires,” (2 Tim 4.3 NASB) There is always a teacher that will say what people want to hear.

The attraction model is based on giving people what they want.  We pattern around their wishes in order to achieve attendance, in hopes that they will see that Christianity fits their lives (contemporary) and needs (relevancy).  “Christianity fits your life and makes your life better” is the theme.  Which, by the way, is almost the perfect opposite of Jesus’ call to come and die with Him. 

As a result, we have a church that has become more and more secular, at times indistinguishable from the world. Shallow, knowing less and less about the Word of God and the practice of holy living.  Bored instead of standing in wonder at the God of the universe those in attendance become to the church what a food critic is to a restaurant.  The church finds itself on a treadmill desperately trying and failing to compete with Internet preachers, the latest Christian artist release, and with the allurement of the carnal world.  As I have said time and again, “We can’t out Disney, Disney World.”

Is there an alternative?  Yes, it is to return to the command of the Lord and as we go make disciples.   But that begins with the most difficult and painful step of dying to self that includes our agenda and wishes.