The Shack; A Microcosm of Evangelicalisms' Immaturity: A Brief Analysis of Where This Problem Stems From.

American evangelicals today often flock to churches that offer "relevant, creative, and practical" Bible teaching. On the surface this sounds like a good thing, right? Many of these same "church growth" gurus promote "seeker-friendly" series such as "Finding God in the movies" and other topical messages in hopes of attracting large crowds and holding the interest of the audiences entertainment orientated minds. When books of the Bible are actually "exposited" in worship services it is generally done in a very surfacy manner. I often refer to this as "shallow, evangelical principlizing."  What's wrong with any of this Mr. blogger dude?  To which I say this...if the primary goal of a local church is to fill auditoriums and establish multi-site campuses under the banner of ministry success then this consumer-driven, market-savvy approach makes complete sense.  However, if the goal of Christian ministry is to make "mature disciples" of all the nations, as Jesus' states in the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20), then the American church is in serious crisis.

One of the problems with "church growth" methodology is that it often promotes a kind of topical (surfacey) preaching, which by definition, lacks theological depth and precision (see 2 Timothy 4:1-5). It is "evangelical lite" (see Heb. 5:12-14; 2 Tim. 4:3-4). Over time congregations that are regularly fed milk fail to truly grow up; which is no small problem (see Colossians 1:28-29). Without a solid understanding of the orthodox faith (i.e. doctrine and theology) the flock of God will not learn how to discern.  Paul put it this way in Ephesians 4:11-16; And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

Given enough time this unbiblical approach to preaching and ministry always come back to haunt the Christian church.

IS Bigger ALWAYS Better? 5 Simple Steps To Maximize the Growth Potential of Your Church.

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If pastoring a large evangelical church was the main goal of my ministry what would I do differently? 

That's a very good question.  

My short answer is I'd heed the counsel of the "church growth" experts and marketing gurus as closely as I could.  In order to attract more people I would pay much closer attention to the trends of the culture, especially to the mainstream Christian subculture, and I would adapt my ministry practices accordingly (I'd become a Christian pragmatist).  That means my pulpit ministry would need to complement "the Juvenilization of the church." 

Here are a few things I would specifically do IF pastoring a large church was one of my chief goals (please view this as a pastoral parody):

1) I would Preach Shorter Sermons

We live and minister in a "sound bite" culture that is increasingly technology-orientated.  As such, people have shorter attention spans (or so we're told).  Did you know that on average people check their phones 110 times a day?  Many, if not most Americans, take their entertainment, their recreation, and their hobbies very seriously (our Daytimers and credit card statements often reveal what our heart treasures the most-per Jesus' words in Mt. 6:21).  Suffice it to say, lengthy expositions of Scripture are quite passé.    

Besides, modern churchgoers have busy schedules to maintain.  Worship services need to be crafted in such a way so as to not interfere too much with the activities listed above (which partially explains why some evangelicals offer Saturday & Monday night services and even "church online").  At the end of the day since "1 Peter 2:2-3 Christians" are often few and far between one should tailor their messages accordingly.  The shorter the better!