Many churches in North America are not drifting away from Christianity; they are surrounded by it. They are fluent in Scripture, practiced in worship, experienced in ministry systems, and deeply familiar with Christian language. Yet, despite decades of effort, many congregations feel stalled, working harder, praying less with expectation, and seeing little lasting fruit. The issue is not proximity to God.
The issue is proximity without trust. This condition of being near the things of God while no longer depending on him has quietly reshaped the church’s imagination. It has lowered expectations, narrowed its mission, and reduced evangelism to just a program rather than a posture. Until this trust deficit is addressed, efforts to revitalize will continue to stabilize institutions without truly impacting communities.
Near the Kingdom, Hesitant to Trust It
Jesus’ sharp lament over a “faithless generation” arises not from hostility, but from disappointment (Matt. 17:17; Mark 9:19).1 The people closest to divine authority struggled to exercise it because trust had not yet developed into obedience. That pattern is painfully familiar.
Churches affirm the Great Commission but hesitate to act on it beyond the walls of the building. Leaders speak of mission but structure their churches around retention rather than reach. Evangelism is affirmed in principle yet avoided in practice because it disrupts routines, exposes fear, and requires faith beyond measurable outcomes.
Proximity without trust leads churches to believe in the gospel but not expect it to spread through them.
The Root Cause Beneath Decline
Decline is often explained by cultural secularization, generational shifts, or social fragmentation. These factors matter, but they are not the root.
The deeper issue is a loss of trust expressed through obedience.
Over time, churches learn to survive without dependence. Prayer becomes ceremonial. Evangelism becomes episodic. Mission becomes a line item rather than the organizing center of congregational life.
Sociologist Christian Smith describes this as institutional self-preservation replacing moral and missional imagination.2 Churches continue functioning, but increasingly for their own continuity rather than gospel advance.
Where trust fades, control takes its place. And control is the enemy of mission.
Evangelism: Not a Program Problem, But a Trust Problem
Most churches do not lack evangelism strategies; they lack evangelistic confidence rooted in trust.
Evangelism requires belief that God is already at work outside the church walls. It assumes that the Spirit precedes the witness, prepares hearts, and brings fruit we cannot manufacture (John 16:8; Acts 1:8).
When trust fades:
- Evangelism is delegated to events
- The lost turn into mere statistics
- The neighborhood becomes a mission field in theory, not in action
Yet Scripture consistently frames evangelism as the normal overflow of a trusting church. The early church did not grow because it perfected methods, but because ordinary believers carried the gospel into homes, workplaces, and public spaces (Acts 8:4).3
1 Matthew 17:14-21; Mark 9:14-29. Jesus’ lament reflects frustration, not desperation, but unbelief among those entrusted with authority.
2 Christian Smith, “Passing the Plate” (Oxford University Press, 2008).
3 Acts 8:4 illustrates decentralized evangelism as normative for the early church.
