This article is from the September/October 2023 issue of Outreach magazine. Subscribe today!
Each year when we publish our annual 100 Largest Churches list, we receive feedback from our readers. For some, the list of largest churches is the best thing that ever happened––demonstrating the continued growth of the kingdom. For others, it’s the worst thing that ever happened––seeming to glorify numeric growth over other metrics that may give a better snapshot of vitality and gospel-centeredness. Sometimes these contradictory bits of feedback arrive almost simultaneously, like the worship pastor who hears that the music was too soft and too loud during the same service.
But megachurches, which is the group represented by the largest churches list, are neither the answer to the problems in the church in America nor are they the sole source of them. Are there unhealthy, even ungodly, ways to grow a church? Certainly. But are all growing churches inherently unhealthy? Hardly. We all know better.
Here’s where I mention that I am a scholar-in-residence and teaching pastor at one of the largest churches in America: Mariners Church (No. 37 on this year’s list). We have about 14,000 people attending in person on any given weekend. If you’ve been to one of our campuses in Southern California, you’ve seen everything that’s beautiful about a megachurch, but also much of what people typically criticize about a megachurch. I am on the Mariners team not because of the beautiful campuses or production value of its services, but because of the gospel impact that it makes, and because the leadership works toward that gospel impact with both health and integrity.
I also preach regularly at smaller churches. Actually, if you follow me on Twitter, you know that I will post, “Hey small church pastor, I’m free this Sunday if you need a break and a guest preacher. You can’t pay me, but I’d love to come encourage your church.” I did it the first Sunday when I moved to Wheaton, Illinois, and I did it my last Sunday there in July—and I love the blessing it brings me, personally, to see how God is at work in churches of all sizes.
I love churches, big ones and small ones, because I love gospel impact. But let’s get back to the megachurch question.
A Legacy of Gospel Impact
Megachurches have been around for a long time. I was privileged to serve for several years as the interim pastor of Moody Church in Chicago, which was at the time the oldest extant megachurch in the world. But since the 1980s, what was once an anomaly has become something of a movement. A recent study suggests that pre-COVID-19 there were roughly 1,750 megachurches in the United States as measured by an average attendance of over 2,000. While the share of Americans who regularly go to church has decreased, more and more Americans continue to join these larger churches. Despite the fact that according to Barna Group only 17% of American adults who go to church report having a positive view of the megachurch phenomenon, this view does not appear to halt the continued growth of the megachurch.
While it is often overlooked in popular-level discourse, megachurches do indeed provide the church in the United States with incredible capacity for concentrated gospel impact. Katelyn Beaty, author of Celebrities for Jesus, notes that “megachurches can be wonderful places for families looking for creative children’s and youth programming. They can rally resources to serve their cities in times of crisis. Many have been on the front lines of tackling global poverty and providing clean water and education worldwide.”
Often in times of natural disasters, such as a hurricane hitting the East Coast, or man-made disasters such as the Flint water crisis, megachurches are able to mobilize both their own people and smaller churches with whom they are relationally connected to provide relief with greater speed than federal or local governments.
So, when we publish the Outreach 100 Largest Churches list, we are unapologetically thankful for how God is working through megachurches, many of which provide substantial blessings that cannot be overlooked. Put another way, we believe that countless Christians have chosen to gather in megachurches, for a variety of reasons, and we can join them in celebrating what God is doing in their churches too.
A Church of Many Sizes
If all you know us for is the Outreach 100, you might assume we only care about megachurches. But this could not be further from the truth. It’s not just me encouraging small churches on the weekend, it’s our team—some who go to megachurches and others who go to small (even tiny) churches.
Those who regularly engage with Outreach’s content can tell you that we care deeply about elevating the influence of small and medium-size churches and highlighting their impact. (In fact, our previous issue was focused on small church ministry.) A church certainly does not have to be a megachurch in order to do incredible things for the kingdom and, at times, smaller churches have the advantage of more easily fostering deeply meaningful community and cultivating rich environments for discipleship.
We often focus on church plants and others who are doing great things for the kingdom of God but are often overlooked because they don’t have large platforms. In other words, we love the totality of the body of Christ. In that spirit of love, we don’t exclude highlighting megachurches simply because they’re megachurches.
While the Outreach 100 Largest Churches list exclusively highlights megachurches, it’s worth noting that the average church in America remains under one hundred in attendance on a typical Sunday morning. This is one of the reasons why I am very intentional about cultivating relationships with those who aren’t in the megachurch “bubble.” This is true in my new work as dean of the Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, where the vast majority of our graduates go to “normal” churches—and normal churches are what most people consider small churches.
While the Outreach 100 data highlights the growth of megachurches, we should keep in mind and honor the hard work that pastors are doing in churches of every size. These church leaders are heroes in every sense of the word, especially for their perseverance during and in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Are megachurches used by God? Absolutely. But is the megachurch––or the pursuit of becoming a megachurch––the answer to everything? Absolutely not. We celebrate all kinds of churches because God is working in all kinds of churches in all kinds of places.
Health Over Growth
The megachurch phenomenon has its upsides and downsides. For us at Outreach, this means that we don’t put all our eggs in the growth-at-any-cost basket. Instead, we want to help all churches thrive, not simply to grow.
For us, thriving has several characteristics:
- A thriving church grows like an oak, not a mushroom. If you study American church culture, you can see the parable of the wise and foolish builders (Matt. 7:24–27; Luke 6:47–49). Some churches pursue growth by remaining trendy, springing up only to be washed away when the storm comes. Others endure faithfully through generations, even centuries. The difference lies in faithful longevity that builds a community more than a brand.
- A thriving church isn’t obsessed with numbers. Numbers certainly matter because they represent people, and people matter to God. But ultimately, it is the individual people––not the reported sum total—that matter. Thriving churches focus on building disciples and trust God to bring the increase.
- A thriving church prioritizes health more than size. This doesn’t mean that big churches can’t be healthy churches (or that small churches inherently are healthier). What it does mean is that health and size don’t always go hand in hand. Prioritizing health ensures a church culture that is equitable, avoids abuse and scandal, and treats each person as someone who reflects the image of God.
- A thriving church is on mission with God. If we are not careful, churches of all sizes can become obsessed with building their own little kingdoms, and we can deviate from our call to participate in building God’s kingdom. We need churches that are thriving by reaching people––growing, regardless of their size, by adding to the kingdom.
At Outreach, we want to talk about churches that are reaching people. That’s why in magazine issues and this website you’ll also read our particular emphasis on fastest-growing churches. Certainly, some fast-growing churches make the headlines simply because they’re growing quickly. But we want to highlight those churches that are growing through evangelistic conversion. We want to celebrate those churches that are doing exceptionally well at reaching the communities in which God has planted them with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Throughout these articles, you’ll see that focus shine through—a focus that is ultimately the reason Outreach magazine exists.