Why churches that are struggling should join with churches that are doing well

The benefits of combining weaker congregations with stronger ones

Since COVID-19 began, many religious organizations have not fully recovered. Some of them closed and never came back. The worst part is that some of the churches that are shutting have solid biblical teachings but are struggling financially and numerically and so must close. Leaders in the Christian community who refuse to renounce their faith because of the difficulties they face see their numbers dwindle and sometimes even decline because of exhaustion.

Sometimes God permits bad things to happen so we’ll learn our lesson, do what He wants, and accept His order. That “we” may be united is one of these hopes (John 17:21). For sure, if hundreds smaller churches had merged or been accepted by larger congregations, they would have made it.

Sadder still is the fact that many of these failing churches are sincere, Bible-believing ones that simply can’t expand in a post-COVID world due to financial constraints. Even though Christ has promised to always be among His followers, the leaders of such churches sometimes have trouble believing this (Mathew 18:20).

Can churches become more powerful and resilient in the face of challenges, persecution, and adversity if they band together and draw strength from one another? Consolidating churches or having larger churches accept smaller ones might aid the body of Christ right now. The question, “What other churches share the same vision and purpose as us?” is an important one for genuine congregations on the brink of closure to begin asking.

Similarly, established churches that want to grow might look for smaller congregations who share their values and mission and take them under their wing. This kind of church partnership benefits both the mother church and the adopted church. Although this takes significant sacrifice on the part of the adopted church, it helps the mother church save money and easily adapt its mission to the local culture.

Antioch Christian Centre in Abuja, Nigeria, was recently adopted by Ignited Church in Lavonia, Georgia. Antioch Christian Centre is working hard to spread the Gospel and the love of Christ to the unreached and unengaged people groups in Nigeria, in line with the mission of Ignited Church to bring five million individuals to the saving knowledge of Christ before Christ returns. There is little question that the joining of these two churches will propel the gospel forward.

By partnering with smaller local churches that are eager to spread the Gospel but lack the resources to do so, larger churches are able to advance God’s Kingdom to the ends of the globe. Consolidating the Christian community is facilitated through adoptions and mergers of churches. Association with larger churches, which often have greater resources, may help smaller congregations survive.

It’s crucial to remember that every every church is unique. Such a merger is analogous to the union of a man and a woman, who despite their differences, choose to have a family together because of their love for one another. Having a common understanding of Christian tenets and a desire to spread the faith is usually all that’s required for successful mission work. I’m certain that when churches work together, they can prevent the death of isolated congregations and speed up the spread of the Gospel over the globe.