PHILADELPHIA (BRN) – The pandemic changed churches, most notably revealing a lack of disciple making, asserted Larry Anderson, at the F.U.E.L (Fellowship Unity Empowerment Leadership) Conference held November 18 at Ezekiel Baptist Church in Philadelphia. In his keynote address, following several other pastors and church leaders who highlighted the importance of making disciples who make disciples, Anderson shared ten inconvenient truths for the post-pandemic church. In particular, he noted how churches have an unprecedented opportunity to start over and set the stage for making actual disciples, instead of just church members.
Inconvenient Truth #1: “We have more members in our churches than disciples.”
The pandemic revealed many churches were focused more on producing Sunday services and acquiring members than they were on making disciples, said Anderson, Baptist Resource Network Director of Church Health and Evangelism and senior pastor of Great Commission Church in Philadelphia.
This was evidenced by those who have yet to return to the buildings post-pandemic, he said. “Those who were interested in discipleship returned to church, while many others have chosen merely to watch services online,” he said. But he cautioned, it isn’t just the uncommitted Christians who are staying home.
“Many members were relieved to take a break,” Anderson asserted, noting it was the first time for many of the church volunteers to stop and rest. They were so exhausted from going from one church activity to another, he said, pointing to the lack of leadership development in churches.
This lack has noticeably affected those who relied on the churches to do the work of discipleship. During the pandemic, without family discipleship, many teenagers got pregnant, and others “lost their minds,” Anderson explained. The first disciples should be those at home, he stressed.
Churches who were plateaued before pandemic are now dying and those who were dying are now dead, he said, pointing to the lack of true discipleship.
Inconvenient Truth #2: “Discipleship is hard; it’s easier to grow a crowd than it is a person.”
Which would you rather have, asked Anderson, “a packed church with members or a half-filled church with disciples?”
He noted how sermons “seldom help you grow,” and how there are more “activities” than “accountability” in the churches. Anderson said leaders worry more about attendance and finances, than discipling people in their marriages, parenting, and stewardship of the Holy Spirit in their lives.
We also seek to have friendlier churches—“if we are nicer, we can invite more people!”—but we don’t take the time to help attendees grow in Christ! He warned, some will leave because of the responsibility and accountability, but lean into those who are willing to show up. Look for those like the apostle Peter, who told Jesus in John 6:68 NKJV, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”
Inconvenient Truth #3: “We have immature leaders not practicing the spiritual disciplines themselves, and therefore they cannot reproduce what they are not.”
Churches are unable to disciple other leaders because they have not been discipled correctly themselves, Anderson said, resulting in leaders who lack passion and the ability to create discipling opportunities for someone else.
He urged his listeners to assess where they are spiritually. Are they prioritizing forward “action” in the Lord or just busy “activity”; spending time with Jesus or working for Him; or relationships or religion?
“We think other things are more important–TV, Facebook, texts–than to hear from the Lord!” he decried. “Do we think God made a mistake in only giving us 24 hours a day?”
He offered, “What would it look like if we spent the same amount of time in reading the Bible and praying?”
In discipling others, he urged leaders to wisely use the time and to follow the pattern of “communication, demonstration, and replication” to teach others in the spiritual disciplines.
Inconvenient Truth #4: “We are reliving the times of the Judges where ‘everyone does what is right in their own eyes.’”
Noting the rise of the “nones,” a name for religiously unaffiliated Americans, and the growing difference of opinions between Christians, Anderson said, today’s generation is turning more to Google than the gospel for their truth.
They don’t believe in “absolute truth,” but whatever is relevant to themselves. Therefore, “tickling ears” (2 Timothy 4:3) is not an option, he said, pointing to Jesus’ own words in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Although it is not popular, we must emphasize Jesus’ truth, he said.
Inconvenient Truth #5: “Today’s connections are more quantitative than qualitative.”
The new virtual environments produced by the pandemic have lessened the ability to have authentic relationships, Anderson said, noting some may have many social media “friends,” but are otherwise friendless. Texting, he said, has replaced talking, and virtual meetings have supplanted in-person communications.
But “iron sharpens iron (Proverbs 27:17),” he said, adding Christians need to help carry each other’s burdens.
“If all we can talk about is the football game, we’re not brothers and sisters in Christ!” he said, urging Christians to be intentional about not giving up meeting in person. “We need to help our brothers grow up in the admonition of the Lord!”
Inconvenient Truth #6: “Discipleship is not going to just happen organically.”
We must elevate discipleship as a priority and not a secondary matter, he continued, urging churches to develop discipleship pathways. “How can a gym evaluate and design a personal training plan for you, but a church just tells you, ‘Good luck!’” he challenged, noting many churches have “old babies in Christ” and that age itself does not make one mature.
He added, “It’s not great sermons that make great Christians.” Rather, discipleship—a life-on-life commitment to one another—makes great Christians. We try to make Christianity light by minimizing it to get people into the church’s door, but Jesus gave it everything He had!
Churches, instead, should consider developing “apprentices” and not just members, he challenged.
Inconvenient Truth #7: “We are too busy trying to do God’s job, that we have neglected our own.”
“We spend 90% of our time building the church and 10% discipling,” Anderson stated. Instead of putting all our energy into an annual conference, what if we put all our time in discipling another person? Jesus was the greatest discipler, as was the apostle Paul, whose testified the early Christians knew Christ because they walked with him, not because of what he preached (1 Thessalonians 1:4-6).
“You learn when you look at the individual with whom you are walking,” he said.
Inconvenient Truth #8: “Deconstructionism is not just questioning the doctrines of our faith but the practices as well.”
Anderson also spoke of the prevalent movement in America to deconstruct Christianity, or to rethink one’s faith and jettison previously held beliefs. Many question whether they have to attend church anymore, to which Anderson responds, “You can’t like God and not like His Bride!”
“If you have a problem with church, you have a problem with God,” he said.
Notwithstanding, churches need to be safe places for new believers and unbelievers to ask questions, he continued, urging churches to have humility. “Allow people to be like the Bereans, who examined the scriptures presented to them,” he said.
Inconvenient Truth #9: “Church in-person attendance may never return to what it once was.”
Digital media will stay, and people will continue attending multiple churches, Anderson asserted. Our worship services can no longer be centered on our buildings.
“Bedside Baptist – that’s the delivery many want,” he said. The remedy, he said, is to figure out how to do discipleship well.
Sometimes being displaced is a good thing, especially for those of us who were worshipping our church building as an idol. Too many of us have adopted the “come to us” rather than “go to them” mentality.
“We’ve been given the gift of wiping the slate clean and starting again,” he said.
Inconvenient Truth #10: “Getting Old Comes Naturally.”
“Would someone want a church in 2022 based on 1999?” Anderson asked. With our newfound opportunities to start over, he suggests churches choose what NOT to do any more and instead focus on “where the people are.” We need to “put on the table” conversations about politics, gender, mental illness, and other topics.
We also need to be more transparent about how God is working in our own lives. “I’m fallen, I’m broken, I’m grieving, I’m sick…. But God! Let me tell you what He has done!”
Churches need to help Christians build a more robust biblical worldview (like the people of Issachar in 1 Chronicles 12:32) who understood the times.
“Stop giving Kool-Aid answers to complicated questions,” he said. “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
Five other special speakers, Pastor Paul James from Careview Community Church; Dr. Brian King of Ezekiel Baptist Church; Pastor Victor Kirk from Sharon Bible Fellowship Church, Lanham, Md.; BRN Next Gen Director Rev. Stan Williams; and Sis. Renee Bell of Christian Stronghold, examined several ways churches can be intentional about discipling like Jesus, ensuring succession with the next generation, and discipling women, among other topics.
Anderson also received recognition from Missio Seminary for his church’s impact on his alma mater. As part of the seminary’s 50th anniversary celebration, Frank James, president of Missio Seminary, recognized Anderson and Great Commission Church for their decision to move their church into the city, a move the seminary itself later made. “We followed Larry into the city, as he set an extraordinary example to Missio,” James said.
