Is Your Church's Culture Healthy or Toxic?

WJ de Kock

Education Consultant to Partner in Ministry

Professor of Practical Theology at Palmer Theological Seminary

This is part two of our seven part series “Building a Culture of Collective Confidence”.

Why should we consider church culture when we have the Holy Spirit and the Bible? Isn't that enough?  While the Holy Spirit and the Bible are irreplaceable in the church's life, we mustn't forget that the church is made up of people—quirky, fallible, wonderfully human people. Each church has its unique culture, which can help us grow or make us wish we had not bothered.

Culture Matters

Culture is essential for a community to work together and achieve its goals. It's like the invisible glue that holds us all together. It encompasses the shared values, beliefs, practices, and behaviours that shape how people interact within a group. If our mission is to help people mature in their walk with Christ, but our communal dynamics are as dysfunctional as a reality TV show, we will not only be stifled in our efforts, but the disciples we make will also inherit our unhealthiness.

Paul’s Take on Church Culture

The Apostle Paul knew a thing or two about managing people. His letters consistently highlight the importance of spiritual well-being and moral integrity within Christian communities. He provides numerous examples demonstrating the significance of culture in relation to worship practices, spiritual growth, and the proclamation of the gospel.

Paul deals extensively with issues of unhealthy church culture in his letters to the Corinthians. He addresses divisions within the church, sexual immorality, lawsuits among believers, and improper conduct during the Lord's Supper. It's like a first-century soap opera. His exhortations emphasise the community's need for unity, purity, and love.

In Galatians 5:13-26, Paul contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit. He warns against behaviours such as jealousy, fits of rage, and selfish ambition, which can damage the church's health. Instead, he urges believers to live by the Spirit, highlighting virtues like love, joy, peace, patience, and kindness. Basically, be nice and stop the drama.

Paul emphasises the importance of unity and maturity in the body of Christ. In Ephesians 4:1-16, he encourages believers to live a life worthy of their calling, characterised by humility, gentleness, patience, and bearing with one another in love. He underscores the need for the church to grow in maturity, attaining the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.

In Colossians 3:12-17, Paul exhorts the believers to clothe themselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. He emphasises forgiveness and love as vital to maintaining a healthy community. The passage also highlights the importance of letting the peace of Christ rule in their hearts and being thankful. So, basically, don't be a bully.

Paul commends the Thessalonian church for their faith, love, and hope. However, he also advises them to avoid idleness and to encourage and build each other up. He stresses the importance of living in peace and admonishes disruptive behaviour. In other words, don't just sit around; be helpful and nice to each other.

In his letter to the church in Philippi, Paul encourages the believers to emulate Christ's humility and selflessness, highlighting how essential these traits are for fostering a healthy church culture. He urges the Philippians to be unified in spirit and purpose. In Philippians 2:1-11, he writes:

"Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."

A Framework for Church Culture

Samuel Chand's book Cracking Your Church’s Culture Code provides an insightful framework for assessing church culture, even if the title sounds like it belongs in a spy novel. Chand suggests that we should continually assess our church culture, much like evaluating the water quality for fish. He uses the acronym CULTURE to discuss the indicators of health and unhealthy aspects of culture.

Control

•           Unhealthy indicators: Toxic leadership, fear, micromanagement

•           Healthy indicators: Empowering leadership, commitment to vision, mission, and member growth

Understanding

•           Unhealthy indicators: Lack of vision and direction, lack of transparency and trust

•           Healthy indicators: Effective communication, collaboration, clear vision, and member buy-in

Leadership

•           Unhealthy indicators: Lack of accountability, entitlement, poor work-life balance

•           Healthy indicators: Accountability, commitment to excellence, shared vision, empowering leadership

Trust

•           Unhealthy indicators: Cliques, exclusion, lack of resources, unrealistic demands

•           Healthy indicators: Diversity, inclusion, generosity, and trustworthiness

Unafraid

•           Unhealthy indicators: Fear of failure, lack of courage to try and innovate

•           Healthy indicators: Encouragement to try and learn from failures

Responsiveness

•           Unhealthy indicators: Reactive culture, blame culture

•           Healthy indicators: Collaboration, proactive preparation, developing good habits

Execution

•           Unhealthy indicators: Failure to follow through on plans, over-promising and under-delivering

•           Healthy indicators: Consistency in delivering promises, effective delegation

So, what does all of this mean?

While reliance on the Holy Spirit and adherence to biblical teachings are fundamental to our faith, we must not overlook the significant impact of church culture on our spiritual journey and community life. The Holy Spirit guides us, and the Bible provides our blueprint, but the way we live out these truths within our communal context shapes our witness and growth.

Paul's letters vividly illustrate that unhealthy church dynamics can severely hinder our mission. The issues he addressed, from division and immorality to selfishness and lack of unity, are not relics of the past but ever-present challenges in our communities. His exhortations to the Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Colossians, Thessalonians, and Philippians emphasise the necessity of a healthy, Christ-centred culture marked by unity, humility, love, and spiritual maturity.

Samuel Chand's framework further underscores the importance of continually assessing and nurturing our church culture. By examining areas such as control, understanding, leadership, trust, courage, responsiveness, and execution, we can identify both strengths and weaknesses within our community. A healthy church culture is not a static achievement but a dynamic process of growth and refinement.

As we strive to help people mature in their walk with Christ, let us remember that our communal health profoundly influences our effectiveness. A vibrant, supportive, and Christ-like culture will not only foster spiritual growth and robust discipleship but also amplify our witness to the world. In this way, we honour the teachings of Paul and, ultimately, the example of Christ, ensuring that our communities reflect the love, unity, and humility to which we are called.

Consider

•           Registering for the full course: "Creating a Culture of Collective Confidence"

•           Contact Partners in Ministry to learn more about our coaching, leadership development, and consulting services

For more information and to get started, visit our website or reach out to us directly. Let’s create a culture of collective confidence that transforms lives and glorifies God.