The Healthy Church

by Rev. Dr. Andrew WG Matthews

I was asked recently by a group of Christian men, “What makes for a healthy church?” Off the cuff I gave a few answers like having enough people, teaching and practicing good theology, and good relationships among the people. Since that conversation I felt a need to expand more on the subject. I have been in full-time ministry for about twenty-five years in fourteen different churches, across four continents, in diverse theological, ethnic, and socio-economic denominations. What I offer below is based upon years of hard-fought experience not just from reading a handbook. As the adage goes, “There is no such thing as a perfect church,” but we should strive to advance the cause of healthy churches and diagnose church sickness wherever it appears. So here are a few critical characteristics of healthy churches. 

Sufficient Members: Call me simple, but a church ought to actually have people in it—and not only “two or three gathered in my name” (Matt. 18:20). Just as a human body must have certain critical organs in order to stay alive, a church needs to have enough functioning people to maintain the necessary work of the church body. Though it sounds ludicrous, I have seen churches with one or two people ferociously fight to retain their designation as a “congregation.” How few is too few? A church under fifty people will struggle to survive. Dropping under a hundred people may be the threshold where long-term viability begins to be questioned. Small churches struggle to meet budget and staff the ongoing ministries. Small churches overwhelm the people with responsibilities, or the minister and his wife and a couple of hard-workers do everything. The demographics of the congregation ought to be spread over all the stages of life. Churches unbalanced to either the older ages or the younger ages are often a sign of unhealthiness. A multi-generational congregation is a sign of a robust church that cares for people cradle to grave. Three or four generations from the same family in the church demonstrate the covenant faithfulness of the Lord and the previous generation of family heads. Having quality people is another key to viability. Churches with lots of “pew-sitters,” needy people, and the infirm may have respectable attendance figures but not the right kind of people to make the church run effectively. Churches are driven by mature, energetic, and responsible people who want to see the kingdom come and there must be a sufficient number of them. 

Spiritual People: The church needs to be full of Christians, not just attendees. A very high percentage of the members on the roll need to be born-again, Sprit-filled believers. Now having a “pure” church of only saved people is an unrealistic and unwise goal, however if the percentages are skewed too heavily to mere nominal Christians the church will lose spiritual vitality. The church is not merely a natural organisation, but a supernatural organism. The God who said “not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit” (Zech. 4:6) dwells within his body and is the effective power that causes growth to occur. A critical spiritual mass must exist otherwise the church will give way to theological drift, cold worship, and unwilling service and mission. Wolves are more likely to thrive among non-Christians and the spiritual and practical lives of the sheep will be in danger. Spiritually unhealthy congregations require either genuine revival of the existing people, expulsion of the unrepentant, or a migration of new genuine believers from outside the church. A small seed-group of genuine believers can turn into a mighty army if the Holy Spirit lives and moves within them.

Sound Theology: Churches become sick under poor doctrine and practice. Due to laxity, laziness, and liberalism churches tend to slide in keeping their theological statements of faith and practice. The most critical factor in the life of an individual Christian and a congregation is regular engagement with and transformation by the word of God. When a church no longer upholds the Bible as the authoritative word of God it is in a terminal condition. A healthy church will contend for the faith and maintain its commitments to accurate theology based upon the Scriptures. Healthy churches will adhere to the historical creeds, Reformation doctrines, and time-tested ecclesiology and polity. These doctrines teach a true knowledge of God and have proven effectiveness in training up believers in godliness. Wise polity in the church ensures that transgressions and disputes can be resolved in a manner pleasing to God and beneficial to the whole church. When church leadership no longer practice the steps of discipline (Matt 18:15-20) you can be sure that conflict and sin will be rife in the church. In a society where truth is denied, the church can be the needed sanctuary where souls can be nourished with sound theology and biblical truth.

Solid Leaders: Churches need solid leaders or they will fail. Every congregation of God’s people needs to have spiritual leaders that have oversight over the people, usually with a man acting as the main pastor who preaches the word of God. Churches need godly, wise pastors who are effective expositors and communicators of God’s word. Poor preachers are the bane of the church. Churches will struggle under weak leadership, and an inept or immoral pastor can cause much damage. Spiritual leadership can be a source of much good, but also much harm, whether the leadership is abusive and controlling or fearful and negligent. Likewise, in a healthy church the people do not resist or undermine their leaders, but honour and obey them. A church is unhealthy when the pastor and elders are not actually leading but instead some influential people in the church who wield financial or relational power are pulling the strings behind the scenes. Outside of the church offices, a church needs to have mature men and women lay leaders who can teach and serve in various ways. An effective discipleship and leadership training program will invest in the development of future leaders, elders, and pastors. 

Sweet Relationships: A healthy church will have sweet relationships. Christ taught that loving other believers is the key sign of spiritual life (John 13:35), so a church full of loving Christians is a mark of a healthy church. Church relationships should reflect the exhortations of the apostles who taught Christians to clothe themselves with tender mercies, forgiveness, generosity, hospitality, and brotherly affection. It is pretty obvious and attractive when church members actually like to be around each other and get involved in one another’s lives. Conversely, when hostility, rivalries, and strife are rampant a kind of death hangs over the church. No amount of external programming is able to cover up and reverse the sickness, and it will rot away the life of the church. Once a deacon and youth leader of a church once voiced his reluctance to inviting outsiders to his church, “I don’t want to bring anyone into this snake-pit.” I served in a community where non church-going Christians were more than happy to have dinner and fellowship with my wife and I, but they would never attend our church because of its past reputation and present members. Maintaining sweet relationships is a delicate and vital task, and Satan can easily sow “bitter roots” in the church that poison the people. In unhealthy churches the leaders are often consumed with putting out the fires of congregational conflicts. The ultimate litmus test of a healthy church is found in the gracious love exhibited by its members, so church leaders must make every effort to maintain "the peace and purity" of the church.

Seek the Kingdom: Healthy churches see that they have a mission to seek the kingdom that extends beyond themselves. When churches simply aim to maintain they begin their decline. Unhealthy churches are content with their own members and do not welcome outsiders into the mix. New people disrupt the power and popularity equilibriums and are often marginalised. Instead of staying stagnant, churches should see themselves as dynamic groups that are always changing as God brings new people into the mix, or sends them out somewhere else. In addition to reaching out and welcoming people from their own communities, churches who seek the kingdom know that they are one small part of God’s huge plan and are willing to be used to make an impact anywhere in the world. A global vision of Christ’s kingdom can open up vistas of mission and service way “above all that we ask or imagine.” (Eph. 3:20) 

These seven categories address key elements of a healthy church. Using these diagnostic tools, it is not hard to identify the spiritual health of a church. Churches reside “on the spectrum” within each of the categories, but it is evident when they have slid down the scale into sickness. “Fixing” a church is a difficult endeavour and can take much time and many hands. Many churches cannot recover from their sickness, and many of them will limp along for decades injuring the testimony of the gospel. Ultimately, unless the Lord builds his house the workers will labor in vain (Psalm 127:1), but our conviction is that the Lord wills that his church to be sanctified and, at least in the long-term, increase. Pastors usually aim to make their churches big, but they should really aim to make their churches healthy.