I love churches of all sizes. I serve as a teaching pastor at one of the largest churches in the nation. I also regularly visit and preach in small local churches all over the U.S. and all over the world. Many churches of all sizes are growing, but many churches of all sizes have plateaued and gotten stuck.
Students of church growth have identified several logjams where churches tend to get stuck. These sticking points are commonly called “church growth barriers.” When a church reaches a certain size, it struggles to grow beyond that size, whether 75, 200, 400, or beyond. Studying these barriers, we can find built-in dynamics of human relationships and communities that contribute to them. And we can discover helpful and biblical principles for breaking through them.
Specifically, one of the most powerful barriers in church growth is the “200 barrier.” The dynamics, leadership, and strategies required beyond 200 people in a church are dramatically different than leading a church under 200 people. So many churches get stuck below 200 and never grow beyond it. Thankfully, we can all grow in our leadership, so that we can prepare to break through barriers and reach people with the good news.
In this series, I want to walk through some best practices and principles for leading your church to grow. This first article will address two of the most powerful barriers that prevent churches from growing beyond 200. That said, the principles apply to churches of all sizes, and they start with church leaders and pastors.
The Purpose Barrier
Perhaps the biggest barrier to church growth is the heart of leaders and specifically of pastors. Years ago, John Maxwell said, “Everything rises and falls on leadership,” and nowhere is this more true than in evangelism and mission. If a pastor doesn’t lead the way in evangelism and mission, the church will struggle to reach people with the gospel. A pastor who is not actively showing and sharing the love of Jesus shouldn’t be surprised if church members are not actively showing and sharing the love of Jesus, either.
Pastors, we must remember our mission and our purpose. Jesus came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10), and he has sent us as the Father sent him (John 20:21). It’s not wrong for a church to be small. Churches under 200 people aren’t bad churches. Many good, faithful churches—most good and faithful churches—don’t break 200. It isn’t wrong to be a small church, but it is wrong not to care about people. When pastors lose their passion for reaching people with the love of Jesus, they have gone off track.
This misalignment happens to pastors of churches from 20 to 20,000. It’s not a size problem. It’s a purpose problem.
The Personal Barrier
The purpose barrier often connects directly to personal barriers in the life of a pastor or leader. Sometimes hidden sin cools the pastor’s heart toward God and his mission. The pastor’s character doesn’t align with the pastoral calling. In such cases, pastors are hindered by sins of “commission”—sinful activities, thoughts, and words.
