I’ve spent the last six months doing a deep dive on John Wesley’s class systems. The history and the recovery. The bonus side to this is I’ve been able to read some great books and learned about more than just class meetings.

Today, I want to share one of those pieces of learning with you.

It’s from Steven Manskar’s book Disciples Making Disciples. It was a fantastic read, and honestly, I would recommend it to everyone.

Early on, Manskar writes about the purpose and mission of the local church. If you’ve read my little book on Mission, you’ll know why this section made me excited. Manskar describes four kinds of churches, filtering them based on their purpose and mission.

Church-centered congregations see their purpose as providing for the members and building up the member roster. This is a classic example of an inward-focused church. The church provides services and sees evangelism as a way to enhance the lives of people through the ministry of the church. "Come here and be part of what we have for you", might be the unstated mission. An unspoken value here might be personal comfort

Program center congregations are similar. They are focused on the personal, individual growth of those inside the walls. The staff are responsible for designing and running programs for people to be part of. These churches strive to have a menu of activities people can select from. Each person can build their own path of personal growth. The difference between this and the church-centered congregation is one of personal value, rather than comfort.

Pastor-centered congregations see their biggest strength as the pastor. They preach well and often have a personality that many find attractive. The pastor's preferences shape the overall ministry of the church, and the church often looks like the pastor's theological choice, preference to ministry, and overall vibe. When the pastor leaves, many members leave as well.

Christ-centered congregations keep Jesus Christ at the center of their purpose and mission. These churches focus on equipping every person in the congregation for the work of ministry. The life of the congregation organizes on helping everyone keep their baptismal vows and sees evangelism as necessary. This evangelism isn’t member recruitment. It also isn’t about having enough people in the building to keep the ministry going. It is a witness to the world (and neighborhood) of the life-changing power of Jesus.

When I think of these four classifications of churches, I can get really nerdy. But I think each of them helps congregations name what any sort of unstated value might be.

I also think ideas such as what Manskar offers are bigger than initially imagined. The work is from a previous era, when congregational viability wasn’t nearly the concern it is now. The book is 20 years old. What I find valuable is how thinking through these categories might help a church diagnose where things might have gone off track.

The tough realization is that we all want to say we are Christ-centered congregations, but is that really the truth?

So, where do you feel like your church is? Perhaps, why does this list cause an uncomfortable feeling? Where might it be inviting you to journey?

Chad