The Church and the Future

Paul wrote to Timothy in 1st Timothy 3 about the glory and authority of the Church.  We can read
this:
14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;
15 but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.

We are, in essence, the custodians of God's truth.  The Church is built on the firm foundation of the principles and promises of God's Word.  And, He is faithful to His people.  So, we can possess a degree of optimism about the future of the Church, because we know that He is with us and His Spirit goes before us.  Even though there are attempts to divide from within and persecute from without, we know that God is strong and will empower us to bring Him glory.

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The Church has incredible potential as we remain faithful to Christ and walk in who we are, who He has made us. Ephesians 2 states:
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone,
21 in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord...

I think we can be confident in the Lord that even though the Church has its struggles, and there are attempts to marginalize Christianity by those outside it and even to redefine it by some inside it, the future is bright, primarily because God is on the throne and because Jesus is risen, His Church is alive - I would submit the Church is His primary vehicle for demonstrating His love and truth on this earth.  Yes, He will work supernaturally to bring people to Himself, but He uses His people as His representatives.

And, there are pastors surveyed recently by LifeWay Research who share an optimistic view of the Church's future.  And, of their own local church's future.  For instance, according to the survey summary...

...79 percent of pastors say weekly worship attendance at their church will increase in the next five years. But looking at the last five years, only 36 percent of pastors say worship attendance growth increased, while two-thirds say attendance stayed the same or declined (27 percent decreased, 37 percent stayed the same).

72 percent of those surveyed believe that attendance among young adults, ages 18-29, will increase during the next five years.  In the past five years, only 32 percent said that young adult attendance had increased.  Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research said: “Similar to overall worship attendance, we see more than twice as many pastors thinking they are going to increase worship attendance of young adults than have actually seen that in the last five years,” adding, “Again, there is a huge amount of optimism there. And yet, you have to ask what needs to change to actually see that increase happen?”

So why the optimism?   Almost two-thirds of pastors surveyed said they saw an increase in community involvement over the past five years and 85% expect it to increase in the next 5.  So, perhaps that is an encouraging factor.  The survey also indicated that a number of pastors related an increase in ethnic diversity, with a third saying that it was up the last five years, with almost double thinking it will increase in the next five.  There was also a reported increase in the role of women in leadership, with about half reporting an increase over the last half-decade; and a slightly smaller percentage expect that to increase.

But, it is inconclusive from the survey what could be the contributing factors to growth in the future.
Optimism is good and anticipation in the Lord can have tremendous effects.  But, two factors: the Spirit and strategy are key in seeing greater numbers in the Church.  We can first and foremost trust the Spirit to work in the hearts of His people to give direction and power so that more people can come into the Kingdom; and if any organization wants to grow, a Spirit-infused strategy is important.

But, a concentration on numbers can be a distraction.  An emphasis on faithfulness should be a key focus.   We should want to see more people come to Christ and engage with the Church; more growing Christians means a stronger body of Christ.  And, we have to make sure we see people as people and not numbers.  Statistics are great, I enjoy statistics; but if our thirst for souls is superseded by our thirst for stats, then we become out of balance.

But, we can be convinced that God will continue to place His hand upon His Church - Jesus said the very gates of Hell would not prevail against the Church.  2nd Timothy 3 talks about a moral and spiritual decline in the last days, but we can also know that Jesus is the head of the body and He will continue to empower us to live Godly lives even in the midst of departure from the ways of God.