Home Pastors Articles for Pastors 5 Reasons Why People Won't Join a Church (and What to Say...

5 Reasons Why People Won't Join a Church (and What to Say to Them)

Joe has attended your church for about a year. He says he’s a Christian. But he has not joined. Should you encourage him to join? How?

If you don’t think church membership is biblical, then you should say nothing. If you do, then keep reading.

First off, I do think you should address Joe. It’s easier to say nothing, but it may be self-protection that’s motivating you to keep quiet. It’s not love for Joe.

HOW WELL DO I KNOW THEM?

When I find out someone has not joined, I usually begin by asking if he or she plans on joining. Where I go from there partly depends on how well I know the person.

Don’t Miss

  • Just met: If Joe and I are shaking hands for the first time over bad coffee in a Styrofoam cup in the church foyer, I probably won’t say anything.
  • Fifteen minutes: If Joe and I have been talking for fifteen minutes, and there’s an easy rapport between us, and we’re on a second cup of bad coffee,  I just might, in the most affable manner I can muster, say, “You should think about joining!” And yes, I’ll say it with an exclamation point—a wagging-tail Labrador-like exclamation point.
  • Relationship: If Joe and I have known each other for any length of time, then I will probably push toward a more deliberate conversation.

REASONS TO JOIN THE CHURCH

These more deliberate conversations veer back and forth between the biblical and the practical. Typically, I generally encourage a person to join the church:

1. For the sake of the pastors. It lets the pastors know who you are and makes them responsible for you (see Acts 20:28; Heb. 13:17).

2. For the sake of obedience to Jesus. Jesus did not give you the keys of the kingdom for binding and loosing. He gave the keys to the apostolic local church (Matt. 16:13-20).