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The Best Way to Promote Church Growth? Support Small Churches

The Best Way To Promote Church Growth? Support Small Churches

By SermonCentral .com on Jan 28, 2021

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I want as many people as possible, all over the world, to know Jesus. The good news of the gospel can’t be confined within the walls of my church, the distinctives of my denomination, the borders of my country, or the customs of my culture.

Scripture: None

Tags: Support, Preaching, Church Growth, Small Church

I want my church to grow.

I want your church to grow.

But more than anything, I want The Church to grow.

I want as many people as possible, all over the world, to know Jesus.

The good news of the gospel can’t be confined within the walls of my church, the distinctives of my denomination, the borders of my country, or the customs of my culture.

And it’s precisely because I want the gospel of Jesus to reach the greatest number of people, that I am an avid supporter, promoter and encourager of healthy small churches.

Big and megachurches are great. And they get almost all the press, both positive and negative. They deserve our prayers and support, not jealousy and ridicule. But, as valuable as they are, large congregations are not where most people receive the bulk of their spiritual nourishment and discipleship. Most of that is happening in millions of small congregations all over the world.

For some insight into this phenomenon, check out Is Bigger Really Better? The Statistics actually Say “No”!, by Neil Cole, based on well-researched stats from Ed Stetzer and Christian Schwarz. Cole’s post includes this stunning sentence. “The stats tell us that ten smaller churches of 100 people will accomplish much more than one church of 1000.” Yes, you read that right. Go ahead and re-read it if you need to. I’ll wait.

If you could choose to do just one thing to support and strengthen the growth of the church around the world, it’s hard to imagine a better investment than multiplying, encouraging and equipping healthy small churches.

Small Churches are the Little Engine that Could

In the business world, massive companies like Google, Facebook and Coca-Cola get all the attention.

But small businesses are what drive the economy.

The same is true for the church. Big and megachurches get almost all the attention, but small churches drive the growth of the global church.

When was the last time you heard that truth stated? Have you ever?

Church leaders and denominational officials often talk about how many small congregations there are. But those stats are almost universally seen as a problem to be fixed, instead of an asset we should support and strengthen.

I support small churches, not because numbers don’t matter, but because they do. I’m not settling for less, I’m striving for greater. More people are led to Jesus, discipled and sent into ministry from small churches than by any other means.

Despite our prejudice towards bigness, church growth does not mean that these healthy, missional small churches will become big churches. Some will. Most won’t. In most of the world, church growth means the planting and nurturing of small churches, not the building of bigger ones.

Given these facts, it’s a mystery why we talk so much about building bigger churches, but we have so little teaching, support and resources dedicated to doing small church well.

As I mention in The Grasshopper Myth, the only reason I wrote a book to support small churches is because I couldn’t find the help I needed anywhere else.

How Have We Missed This?

If healthy small churches are exploding all over the world, leading some of the greatest revivals in history – which they are – why isn’t every church leader in the world celebrating, supporting and promoting more healthy small churches?

Is it because of a western (mostly American) bias for bigness? I think so.

Bigger churches may be the way the American church is growing. (Even that’s debatable, though). But they’re not the primary cause for the growth of the church globally. That’s happening almost exclusively due to the multiplication – in some places, the explosion – of small churches.

If you’re a small church pastor, take heart. You’re not a failure. Quite the opposite.

You and you church are an indispensable asset in the eternally valuable task of reaching the world for Jesus.

And if you’re a denominational official or church leader/influencer, please take the premise of this post seriously.

Small churches may be Christianity’s most overlooked, underutilized asset. And they aren’t going away, they’re multiplying.

If small churches have been reaching the world while we’ve been underusing, under-resourcing and often ignoring them, imagine what they could do with our support.

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Talk about it...

Michael Wright

commented on Mar 22, 2016

Glad to see this article on SermonCentral! I agree with the author and embrace the small Church I pastor.

Ronald Babel

commented on Mar 22, 2016

Good article. I am always encouraged by pastor Karl's articles because he has a heart for the small churches and his opened to the big ones, too. ,

Thomas Mathew

commented on Mar 22, 2016

Excellent article. I have planted a church in Mississauga, ON, Canada last July. It is such a daunting task doing all the initial work of the Church and very little support from anyone. I am also teaching Acts of the Apostles from last April, I am more convinced that small churches cater to the needs of the people to meet Jesus.

Elias De Oliveira Junior

commented on Mar 23, 2016

Hello Karl. I loved your text. I am a pastor of a small church in Brazil. It has not been easy. One reason is that, in fact, we have been encouraged to dream of explosive growth ... I think we should put our focus on working for a healthy church, living, spiritual, missionary, loving, helpful. And let growth to God. Please let us know more about their perceptions in this area. God bless you.

Pastor Warren Mcdowell

commented on Mar 23, 2016

Wonderful article, "His eyes are on the sparrow...and I know He watches small churches" too. Much love my brother ... thank you Karl...greatly appreciated by this pastor.

Niyi Beecroft

commented on Mar 24, 2016

If we have a living small church, then it should grow! Growth is one of the basic characteristics of living things and it should be manifested in all things living , whether physical or spiritual. As a child, in the fifties and sixties, churches all seemed to be seriously size-limited; the 200-300 congregation size was the order for a fully matured parish; sometimes even for so-called Cathedrals. Then came the Pentecostal Movement where churches became solution centers; people went there to have their needs met. The numbers ballooned and we haven't seen the end of it yet; these churches are breaking their own records by the day. It may be true that in totality, there are yet more people in small churches, all summed up, than there are in the mega churches. But this is not what defines the future. The future is defined by the forum that is making fresh disciples. In this area, I venture to say the mega churches trump the little ones several times over. And rather than growth, a lot of small churches in Europe, for example, are actually dying. There are cases of Muslims buying church properties and turning them to Mosques because the congregation fell to a number that could not maintain the facility. If the Christian Church must survive, it is to its engine of growth that it must look. And that engine, at the moment, is strongly and stoutly domiciled in the living and growing mega churches. So much for observation; what saith the scriptures. John 15:1-8, 16 - growth and fruitfulness all the way for the living branches. And the church of the New Testament was nothing but a thriving growth engine. Acts 2:41; 4:4; 5:14; 6:7; 13:42-44. If the job of evangelizing the world is to be taken seriously, then we must look to the mega-churches. That process is being played out before our very eyes in many places. My permanent concern is that by the time the more conventional congregations realize what is happening, rather than commendation and a desire to see the same thing replicated in their midst, some very negative reactions may emerge. May the Lord save us from that day.

Samuel Kitaka

commented on Jan 28, 2021

I absolutely agree with pastor Karl, small Churches seem unrecognized by anyone, especially in African countries, everyone seems to be attracted to big so called Mega churches. God told me to plant a Church in a Moslem stronghold-semi urban areas of Uganda but it has been a real hustle for 2 years now! Sustainability for me and my family, renting the place where we are operating from etc, have all been burdensome. Indeed I can say that if never heard the voice of God on this matter, like Peter I should have resigned and gone back to fishing! Ps. Samuel Kitaka of (paradiseofworship2020@gmail.com)