Many Christians do not want to admit or acknowledge this but a serious issue of commitment exists in the Church. Not too long ago, I attempted to revamp a local church’s membership process and within the Membership Packet was a “Covenant of Members”. Guess what? it was almost unanimously rejected because of the “Covenant of Members” document.  

It was even said that it would “scare people away”. Truth be told, it scared the current members away, not anyone who would sincerely want to join the church in the future. This document clearly defined 8 commitments and thoroughly explained each one with scripture:

1. I commit myself to pursue a deepening relationship with God and a lifestyle of holiness. Believers are Salt and Light. Matthew 5:13-16.
2. I commit myself to pursue the ongoing filling of the Holy Spirit. Acts 13:52 “And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.”The tense of the verb “were filled” signifies a continuous filling.
3. I commit myself to love all my brothers and sisters, despite imperfections in their lives and mine. Romans 12:10-20
4. I commit myself to praying for this fellowship, asking God to glorify Himself in its members and ministries.
5. I commit myself to the mission of this fellowship and of the Assemblies of God as they are committed to fulfilling a four-fold mission. Its primary reason for being is (Assemblies of God Doctrine #10)
6. I commit myself to honor the decisions of the servant-leaders of this fellowship, proving they are consistent with God’s Word. Matthew 20:27
7. I commit myself to empowering the ministries of this fellowship by means of cheerful and faithful stewardship of the resources God has entrusted to me. The Cheerful Giver; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15
8. I commit myself to the unity of the body and pledge to resist all attitudes or actions that promote division. Unity begins with how we view ourselves within the body and how we view others. The key verse that addresses this is Philippians 2:3: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” Disunity in a church is most often caused when we act selfishly and consider ourselves better than others. Paul goes on to explain further in the following verse: “Each of you should look not only to your own interests but also to the interests of others.”

“All these commitments I gladly make, confessing my total dependence upon the power and the grace of God for their fulfillment. To Him be all the glory.”

Again, this was almost unanimously rejected. Ask yourself why?

Consider how the levels of commitment have changed over the past few decades and then try to tell me that there isn’t a commitment problem.

The fifties decade was unique in that church involvement rose above levels prior to WWII and remained high until the middle of the 1960s. During those years, more people were coming to church, shopping for churches, and committing themselves to church life than had been the case for a long time. A similar growth occurred in church attendance immediately following the terrorist attack on 9-11-2001. However, that growth lasted only a few weeks or months. Now, Churches are still blaming Covid-19 for the decline, the decline in commitment.

There is a commitment problem with the existing church members.

If you still deny that you, yourself, do not have a commitment problem or that there is an overall decline in commitment, then why are so many less willing to automatically become involved in weekly Bible studies, monthly corporate prayer meetings, or programs in youth or children’s ministry, Sunday School Programs, etc.

Commitment to the church is more than just attendance on Sunday. It’s about involvement in the mission of the church. We must quickly recognize and address the critical issue of commitment that the church is facing, this must be done in order to develop congregations that are healthy, spiritually mature, and dynamic in their sensitivity to the Holy Spirit and its outreach to the community.

There are many reasons why people may lack commitment to the church, including:

Failure to adhere to teachings, this suggests that there are obedience problems. People are obedient to what they understand so this alludes to a misunderstanding.

There is a lack of placing priorities in proper order.  

How about double-mindedness?

In the Bible, double-mindedness refers to a lack of commitment or consistency in one’s thoughts, beliefs, and actions. The Bible defines a double-minded man in James 1:6-8: “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double–minded man, unstable in all his ways.”

A double-minded man is a person drawn in two opposite directions. His allegiance is divided and because of his lack of sincerity, he vacillates between belief and disbelief, sometimes thinking that God will help him and at other times giving up hope in Him. Such a person is unstable in all his ways, not only in his prayer life. The lack of consistency in his exercise of faith betrays his general character.

When it comes to ministry, an effective and enduring ministry, be careful with “volunteers” because that is the wrong mentality to have, a mentality that will quickly have you telling a story of a ministry that fizzled out. These “volunteers” are not committed.

Beginning and excited volunteers suddenly become busy elsewhere. Especially when there is no strong leader in place, ministry quickly fizzles out. If you commit to ministry, then you are (committed) to ministry and that means saying no to many other things, even vacations. Many folks, these days, even Christians, have no commitment to anything; they put themselves above everything.

Every ministry starts with an idea and individuals who commit to carrying it forward.  Building a selfless, Christ-centered ministry and seeing it bless your community is tremendously rewarding. Serving others in Christ gives us a sense of significance and purpose and it is something God gives us as a means of fulfillment.

I have heard pastors question why there isn’t Spiritual Maturity or growth among the congregation. You do not have to look any further than the apparent lack of commitment. When you look there, you will easily observe misplaced priorities and misunderstandings that lead to a lack of discipline and disobedience, and a lack of values. Remember this: Values Control Behavior, they really do.

One last thought on why we have a commitment problem in today’s church. It is the responsibility of a pastor to equip God’s people. This is certainly high on God’s list of priorities. The Word of God explicitly teaches (Ephesians 4) that a pastor is to spend time equipping and developing His people. Much more so than “nurturing” them, if you will. This is not to discount the occasions for showing compassion and such towards those with whom he serves individually, but it is to emphasize the idea that developing leaders in a church setting and healthy, spiritually mature congregations is one of the most important, nurturing, and compassionate things a pastor can do.

Think about it, do you recall a REAL pastor always “nurturing” or “babying” an adult congregation? Iron sharpens iron and that’s not accomplished with “kid” gloves. So many today are “babes in Christ” when they ought to be “Giants in the Faith.” They can’t seem to go beyond the simplest doctrines of Christianity to the weightier matters of holiness and sanctified living. This is evident in their lack of commitment, lack of discernment, and obvious disobedience.

Keep in mind that those who lack spiritual commitment will show a lack of commitment in all Kingdom matters, especially their local church.

In (1 Cor. 3:2) Paul says:

“I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it , and even now you are still not able; to.”

These are Christians who are not sufficiently advanced in the teachings of the Word of God. They are still majoring in the simplest and easiest truths of God’s Word. They see Him as a God of Love but can’t picture Him as a God of wrath and judgment.

They resist any kind of “strong “or “hard” preaching. It simply doesn’t fit into their elementary theology. In their meager understanding of spiritual matters, they totally reject the Biblical concept of the “Fear of God,” for example. They can’t seem to understand how one can “Fear” a God whom they are called to “Love”.