I once heard a church planter tell pastors, “Your culture will eat your philosophy of ministry for lunch.” What did he mean? On paper, your church may have a clear vision, carefully crafted mission, and sweet doctrinal statement. But in practice, it may reek. Church culture is the smell that lingers in the room long after you’re read the doctrinal statement. 

Is your culture toxic? Would your church go to the mat over sound doctrine while largely ignoring its culture? Would your church pass a theology test but flunk a culture test. It’s possible, and common, to champion biblical doctrine while tolerating toxic culture.  

For that reason, it’s wise to consider the culture of your church, to answer the question “How exactly are we doing things around here?” Is your church culture healthy? Here are seven metrics for a check-up: 

1. A Healthy Church Culture WELCOMES ONE ANOTHER: The church should be a place of welcome in a world of exclusion, barricades and limited access. A place where people can finally belong and grow as Jesus changes them. A place where grace, peace, and love permeate the relationships. 

As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God” (Romans 15:7). 

Do you hear the rich doctrine in that verse? “Christ has welcomed you.” What a thought! Sinners, welcomed by Jesus with open arms. Enemies to righteousness offered an olive branch by their Creator. That welcome was costly. Jesus gave His life to bring us back to God. And we can respond by welcoming one another. No conditions. No exclusions. Everyone welcome. That’s a healthy culture.   

2. A Healthy Church Culture WALKS IN THE LIGHT: Every church should examine whether or not their community represents a safe place to confess sin, forgive one another, and ask for help. 

“If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

John’s argument is simple: If you long to connect deeply with others, the cost is honesty. You have to stop pretending and posturing. Step into the light, out of the darkness. If you’re not “doing fine,” then say so. God never intended for His people to “fake it till you make it.” No secrets. Confess your sins, and break their power over you. As Ray Ortlund said, “We don’t kill our sin by heroic will power. We just confess them to death.”

3. A Healthy Church Culture WARS FOR THE GOSPEL: A church that loses its focus on the Gospel will die from a thousand wounds. Legalism, hypocrisy, performance-based growth—they’re all part of Christless Christianity and like an invasive species will destroy the exotic beauty of any church where they take up residence. 

In Galatians, Paul reflects on how the church at Antioch fought to keep the Gospel central. “When I saw that their conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before them all…we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ” (Galatians 2:14–16). 

Feeling pressure from legalists, Peter began acting out-of-step with the Gospel. He introduced an ugly, legalistic infection to an otherwise healthy culture of grace. 

Paul reminded Peter—and us—that we are justified by faith alone. Alone means apart from any other effort, identity, activity, success, pedigree, salary, likes, followers. Jesus alone makes us acceptable to God. Therefore, success can’t go to our head, and failure can’t go to our heart.  

4. A Healthy Church Culture SEEKS GOD: A healthy church culture seeks God during a crisis. Like breathing, it’s the involuntary response of faith. In a time of crisis, a healthy church will respond like King David in Psalm 63:  

“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you” (Psalm 63:1–3). 

 5. A Healthy Church Culture SERVES OTHERS: Before Jesus was arrested and murdered, He did something shocking when sharing a final meal with His disciples. As they argued over who was the greatest. Jesus rose from the table and washed their feet. He said: 

“Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet” (John 13:12–14).

If serving is beneath you, then leading is beyond you, and you’re stinking up the culture. A healthy church has no room for ego or swag. Serving others is our love language.     

6. A Healthy Church Culture SENDS SERVANTS: The kingdom of God is a counter-intuitive kingdom. The way up is down. You gain by losing. You grow by giving away. You live by dying. That’s Christianity. That’s healthy culture. 

We don’t hoard resources. We send them toward need. We don’t measure our success by our seating capacity but by our sending capacity. We make disciples and celebrate when God sends them to hurting people, struggling churches, or hard-to-reach places.

It hurts to lose friends, families, leaders, and resources. But we’re not really losing them. We’re investing them. That’s how God grows His kingdom. If we don’t plant servants, like seeds, the Great Commission will never get fulfilled.   

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:23–25).

7. A Healthy Church Culture SABBATHS REGULARLY: If your church only knows one gear, and that gear is over-drive, you’re headed for a cliff. Ministry is exhausting by nature. But if your culture is one of crazy busy, chronic fatigue, and super-exhausted, something is wrong. A hurried culture will burn-out. 

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates” (Exodus 20:8–10).

 Resist the culture of busyness. Evaluate whether activities are taking you away from the still waters and green pastures of worship and rest. Take measures to mitigate hurry, digital distraction, and over-programming. Make room for meaningful, restful, life-giving relationships—with God and others. Create margin.

Hurry will sabotage your spiritual development. The church should be the most unhurried, happy place on the planet with the most rested, healthy people. Hurry is the enemy of health and longevity. We must ruthlessly eliminate it from our lives. 

My prayer is that our churches fight for healthy culture as much as we fight for healthy doctrine. They both matter to God and should matter to us.