How can I recognize a healthy church?

Answer

God established the church to be the primary agent for carrying out His purposes on earth. The church is the body of Christ—God’s heart, hands, feet, and voice reaching out to people in the world. Healthy churches come in every shape and size. While numerical growth may be an indicator of health (Acts 2:47; Acts 5:14; Acts 16:5), it does not guarantee the well-being of a church. The healthiness of a church is measured in spiritual and biblical terms rather than numerical.

While no denomination or congregation is perfect, the Bible does present several characteristics to help us recognize a church that corresponds with God’s standard:

A healthy church teaches sound doctrine based on the whole counsel of God’s Word (Titus 1:9; Titus 2:1; 1 Timothy 6:3-4; 2 Timothy 2:2). When believers meet together, both for corporate worship and small group study, the Bible ought to be the center of the teaching. Faithful interpretation and everyday application of sound biblical doctrine will produce wholesome Christian living (1 Timothy 1:10; 1 Timothy 4:6; 2 Timothy 3:15-17). The centrality of scriptural truth preserves the well-being of the local church as well as its leadership (2 Timothy 1:13-14; Titus 1:6-9). And when biblical truth and sound doctrine are prioritized, safeguarded, and taught without compromise, then all other traits of a healthy church will naturally follow.

A healthy church recognizes the biblical qualifications of spiritual leaders. For example, godly leaders

One should not be arrogant, quick-tempered, violent, greedy, or dishonest, but instead should be hospitable, wise, just, upright, disciplined, and devout (Titus 1:6-9;1 Timothy 3:1-7).

A thriving church will develop leaders following the example of Jesus Christ, who is the head of the church (Ephesians 1:22-23;4:15;5:23 Colossians 1:18). Jesus led through servanthood (Matthew 20:25-28;John 13:12-17). Jesus also spent most of His three years in ministry closely interacting with the twelve disciples, teaching and training them, and allowing them to observe His life. Good leaders recognize and train other leaders (Acts 6:1-7).

Biblical leaders are good stewards of the ministry and the resources entrusted to them by God (1 Corinthians 4:1-3;9:17;1 Peter 4:10). While we should not expect the overseers of a thriving church to be flawless, they should be servant leaders who engage in training disciples, preparing believers for ministry, and assisting other servants of God in becoming mature and godly leaders (Ephesians 4:11-16).

A thriving church emphasizes discipleship, which results in faithful followers who, once again, are not perfect, but who know and love God and strive to obey His Word (John 8:31-32;14:15;1 John 2:3-6). Discipleship involves engaging in the church’s life, forming genuine relationships with other believers (Acts 2:42-47; 1 Corinthians 10:17), exercising gifts of ministry and service (Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:7), growing in sanctification (1 Thessalonians 4:3-4; 5:23), and bearing fruit (John 15:5-8).

A healthy church fulfills its role in obeying the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20) by spreading the good news that Jesus Christ died for our sins, was raised from death to life, and now reigns to offer forgiveness of sins, new life in the Spirit, and eternal life to all who repent and believe. Evangelism includes local outreach, world missions, and simply sharing the gospel with people in our daily lives. As ambassadors for Christ on this earth, believers are called to be “the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life” (2 Corinthians 2:15-16).

Other characteristics of a healthy church can be seen in the newly emerging church in the book of Acts (Acts 2:42-47). The early church was committed to biblical doctrine, gathering for prayer, worship, and communion. These early Christians wholeheartedly devoted themselves to one another, creating a loving, generous environment where members looked after one another. A healthy church today will demonstrate similar passion for genuine Christian living and engage in the purposes and work of God’s kingdom on this earth.