God’s Design for the Local Church and the Life of the Believer

Series Feature – September 2025

The word “gospel” is used widely today, but not always rightly. Many churches speak of “gospel-centered” services while simultaneously shaping those services to meet the felt needs of the surrounding culture. The result? A gathering that may be culturally impressive and emotionally stirring—yet spiritually shallow and doctrinally compromised.

There is a critical distinction we must recover: culture-shaped gospel services aim to revive cultural satisfaction, while Bible-shaped gospel services aim to grow the church in Christlikeness. One is centered on the expectations of man; the other on the exaltation of Christ.

“The church does not need more relevance; it needs more reverence.”

1) Culture-Shaped Gospel Services: Popularity Over Purity

Culture-shaped services often build their structure and tone around attracting and retaining the crowd. Sermons are shortened and softened. Music mimics popular trends. Reverence is replaced with relatability. The service becomes a production—entertainment dressed up as worship.

The focus shifts from what God desires to what people want. Biblical convictions give way to strategic branding. The sermon becomes a talk. The pulpit becomes a stage. The message becomes man-centered—crafted to make attendees feel uplifted but rarely convicted or transformed.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.”
—2 Timothy 4:3

These gatherings may boast of being “alive” because of size and energy. But true revival is not measured by attendance; it produces repentance, not just relevance.

2) Bible-Shaped Gospel Services: Christlikeness Over Crowd Appeal

A Bible-shaped service is not crafted around what is appealing to unbelievers but what is honoring to Christ and edifying to the saints. Its goal is not cultural satisfaction but spiritual sanctification. It is structured not by trends, but by truth.

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.”
—Acts 2:42

This kind of service is centered on the Word, saturated with prayer, grounded in reverence, and focused on God’s glory. It may not be flashy, but it feeds the soul, equips the saints, and exalts the Savior.

“…to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ… to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”
—Ephesians 4:11–13

3) The Root Difference: Who Defines Success?

At the heart of the divide between culture-shaped and Bible-shaped services is this question: Who defines what makes a service successful? If man defines it, numbers and innovation will guide the service. If God defines it, faithfulness and biblical fidelity will guide it.

“Woe to you, when all people speak well of you…” —Luke 6:26
“Am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? … If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” —Galatians 1:10

True gospel service does not pander to the culture; it confronts it. It does not entertain the sinner; it calls him to repentance. It does not aim to be liked; it aims to be holy.

4) Recovering a Christ-Shaped Vision for the Church

The gospel is not a product to be marketed but a truth to be proclaimed. Therefore, our services must be designed around what Scripture prescribes—not around what culture applauds. This means:

• Expositional preaching that explains and applies God’s Word.
• Prioritizing corporate prayer and biblical singing, not mere emotional stimulation.
• Calling people to repentance and faith, not vague self-improvement.
• Worship with reverence, clarity, and order—not spectacle.

The church does not need more relevance; it needs more reverence. Not a service that reflects the culture, but one that reflects Christ.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly… singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness.”
—Colossians 3:16