Warren’s diagnosis is blunt: “The honest reason many churches do not have a crowd is because they don’t want one! They don’t like having to relate to unbelievers and feel that attracting a crowd would disturb their comfortable routine.”
This reframes a common narrative. Small, stagnant churches sometimes understand their lack of growth as evidence of doctrinal purity — they’re not compromising for the sake of numbers. Warren’s alternative: the more likely explanation is self-protection, not faithfulness. A congregation that genuinely loves the lost will find ways to bring them in. A congregation that prefers its own comfort will find theological language to justify staying closed.
This is uncomfortable in any tradition, including Unificationist contexts where MNFC may face the same temptation. The tribal messiah calling is outward by definition — but calling it that doesn’t mean the interior disposition is there. If members consistently don’t bring friends and don’t create welcoming environments, the question isn’t “what program do we need?” It’s “do we actually want people here?”
The correction isn’t guilt — it’s learning to love the way Jesus loved. He was called “friend of sinners” because he sought sinners out. A church that reflects his character will do the same, not as a strategy, but because the love is real.