Leader's Insight: Who Really Needs Church?

As a pastor’s wife and ministry leader, I’m used to getting all sorts of weird questions and comments about the ministry lifestyle and being married to a pastor. (Most recent: “Shouldn’t you be making a casserole right now?”) But one of the more intriguing comments I’ve heard occurred during a conversation with a woman last summer at a VBS picnic.

The woman, a member of another church, started with the usual “What’s-it-like-to-be-married-to-a-pastor?” line of inquiry, but then remarked that she didn’t really know her own pastor except for his sermons on Sundays. She imagined it would be different to get to know a pastor in another context such as pastoral care or counseling, rather than just Sundays. But then came the kicker: “I forget that some people really need church.”

Her comment has stuck with me for months. This woman obviously went to church regularly and even served in leadership roles, but didn’t feel like she really needed church. As a ministry leader, I’ve generally assumed people, especially Christ-followers, of course, “need” church. More selfishly, I’ve wanted them to need my church. But this woman’s observation made me question my own beliefs about the nature and purpose of the church, both universal (“capital C”) and local (“little c”), and how those beliefs and practices are reflected back by the people in my sphere of influence.

“Ecclesiology” is fancy, seminary-speak for the theological doctrine pertaining to the Christian church. It asks questions such as: Who or what is the church? How did the church start? Is it necessary to join a church, and how is this done? What is the authority of the Christian church, and where does that authority originate? What are its primary roles and responsibilities, both in society and to its members? How should the church be governed, and by whom?

Here’s my question: What has happened to ecclesiology in our churches today? As church leaders, what do we truly believe about the Church, and what are we teaching our churches about the Church?

A past president of my seminary alma mater once issued this stern challenge to students at the annual Fall Convocation: “If a person—whether it’s another student, a pastor, or even a professor—if a person does not love the church, accord them no weight.”

Do we as ministry leaders love the church, with all its warts and dysfunctions? And more than just our church, do we love the Church? Or are we so busy deconstructing the church that we forget it was established by Jesus himself, who promised that “the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it” (Matt. 16:18, KJV)?

Next, how are we modeling accountability, community, charity, and responsibility as a part of God’s body? How do we help instill those values in others? Too often, preaching about the role of the church can turn into a marketing spiel for our particular church.

The shift to a postmodern culture has revealed (not caused) the individual mind-set prevalent in too many churches today, a mind-set that is revealed in uneven attendance, turf wars among churches, distrust of any kind of spiritual authority, and an unwillingness to make the personal sacrifices that true community requires. As Sam Torode wrote in Christianity Today, “The evangelical focus on a ‘personal relationship’ with Christ tends to obscure our corporate identity as members of the church”.

My husband, a pastor, once met with a young couple who had decided to leave our church. Dave asked if they had settled on another church in the area. He was surprised to learn that the husband felt they didn’t need to be part of a church, per se; rather, he and some friends were in a Bible study, and he thought that studying the Bible was most important and subrogated his need for involvement in a church.

Conversations like this are revealing and discouraging; unfortunately, they are not limited to those “out there” in the pews. I know several worship leaders who view their churches as just another “gig.” They are great worship leaders and musicians, but if another offer comes along, they’ll always consider.

Similarly, there are a lot of church leaders who talk about commitment to the local church with their “own” people, but then don’t hesitate to recruit people away from other churches. What do these attitudes and actions communicate about our view of our church’s position compared to others in the Kingdom?

Again, as leaders, what are we teaching and modeling to our church communities? Do we truly need the church—beyond the paycheck, the platform, or the prestige—or do we just need our churches to need us?

If we don’t need the church, then no one else will, either.

Author, leader, and ministry coach Angie Ward lives in Durham, North Carolina. She is a frequent contributor to Leadership who also needs the church.

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