If forced to make the decision, our church from day one has decided that we will offend the self-seeking Christian before the spiritually seeking non-Christian. I personally believe you can only strategically choose to offend one of those groups. What to do with Christian complaints?
Some churches are purposely designed to offend the spiritually seeking non-Christian, whether they describe it that way or not. The music they sing, the way they dress, the decorum of their buildings, the vibe they create on Sunday morning—and most important, what they define as a “win” missionally—all combine to create an atmosphere that repels the very people Jesus came to die for.
Other churches believe it’s absolutely critical to nurture the believers in the church into radically sold-out world-changing followers of Jesus, but also believe Christ-followers are called to serve. Jesus taught in Mark 10:43-44,
“Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.”
