Posted by C.J.
In spite of a tremendous amount of hard work and energy expended, some things will never fully achieve what their creators want them to be. The airline industry, American auto companies, and the television show Cop Rock come to mind. Best intentions can’t make up for a bad concept. In my mind, megachurches fall into this category as well.
There seems to be a growing trend for churches to strive to reach megachurch status. Churches like Willow 
Creek Community Church and Lakewood Church have set the trend, and many smaller Christian churches are beginning to follow it. But I believe there are certain hurdles that megachurches face that are not easily overcome. Some of these stem from sheer size; others come from human weakness. Specifically, I am concerned about:
- Lack of community. God designed His church for fellowship and community. I’m not convinced that it’s really possible in a church of thousands. Even those who are plugged in prior to rapid growth find that they no longer see their friends and family on Sundays; they’re lost in the crowd, literally. Some churches use life groups/care groups led by laymen to try and create community. It can be effective, but the challenge is finding qualified leaders for the groups. If, as some churches contend, every person in the church should be involved in a life group, then a church of 5,000 people needs a minimum of 500 people who have the knowledge, ability, and willingness to lead a group. And group leadership requires more than a basic knowledge of scripture. Inevitably, those group leaders become teachers, counselors and prayer partners. If there are 500 groups with a minimum of 500 leaders, but only, say, 5 or 6 pastors involved in overseeing the program (and I believe that’s generous), how can the church ensure that the leadership of the life groups is effective? Answer: they can’t, and it puts the body at risk.
- Anonymity. This issue spins out of issue #1 and has two sides to it. First, newcomers can attend the church for weeks or months and never be noticed. They become part of the nameless masses–hardly conducive to becoming connected in a community. Second, regular attendees and members can coast, giving nothing back to the community, and no one will be the wiser. The most obvious repercussion is that the work of building the community is distributed across fewer people, creating more work for those who do participate fully. The less obvious, but more significant downside is that the coasters do not fully experience the fellowship God intends for his church. It’s like the guy who doesn’t pull his weight in a group project in school. The work is carried on by the rest of the team, but the slacker doesn’t learn what he was supposed to learn. He loses out.
- Disconnection from pastors. No matter how dedicated the pastoral staff of a megachurch is, they can only have meaningful relationships with a small percentage of the people who attend. Think about it, a church the size of Willow Creek Community Church has twice the population of Sarah Palin’s hometown of Wasilla, Alaska. Even pastors of smaller megachurches have an impossible task. How can they effectively shepherd multiple thousands of people? In all fairness, the pastors I’ve known from megachurches are sincerely trying to know as many people as they can from their churches, but it’s overwhelming.
- Celebrity. With the exception of a few who have become enamored with their own greatness, I sincerely believe that pastors at megachurches try to keep their egos in check and work to minister to the people in their church and greater community. They are not the problem. The problem arises from church-goers who become so fond of a pastor and his teaching that they elevate him to star status. So what? When so much attention is focused on the man in front of the room, it detracts from the real reason we’re involved in the church in the first place–communal worship of God. If a man or woman is the centerpiece, then where is God’s place? Just something to consider.
- Navel gazing (i.e. we have it so good here): As I see it, when a church reaches a certain healthy size, the leaders of the church should coordinate a church plant, spinning off a smaller congregation from the larger church, thereby reaching a greater community than a single church can do alone. Church plants like this help prune back the larger congregation, keeping it a healthy size and allowing the leadership to continue to shepherd in a personal way. Unfortunately, church plants don’t happen very much anymore. Why? I believe that some churches become so enamored with what they’ve become and what the status quo offers that they don’t want to leave to plant another church. While this doesn’t necessarily weaken the body, it doesn’t strengthen it either. Think of the number of neighborhoods that could be ministered to if churches took the planting process seriously.
Another concern is that growing the attendance of individual churches is beginning to feel to me more like a competition than a mission. Outreach Magazine even publishes annual ”100 Largest U.S. Churches” and “100 Fastest-Growing U.S. Churches” lists. Something doesn’t feel quite right about that. It’s like a “who’s who” list. Why should such lists matter if we’re not trying to stroke our own egos? Makes me wonder.
Ultimately, I believe most of the pastors of these churches are doing the best they can to minister the their churches and teach the Gospel and biblical truths. Nevertheless, I firmly believe that the megachurch model is flawed. Can God work through these behemoths for His good? Absolutely. (One of the many benefits of being omnipotent, eh?) But how much more rewarding is it for Christians to be involved in a community that is built on the premise of interdependence and fellowship rather than sheer size? I contend much more.
These are my thoughts. What are yours?
