I don’t know John Mark Comer or Solid Rock Church where he pastors. But I resonate with what he says in this interview about their move away from a multi-site mega church model to a family of independent churches. This is what I have been urging so I am heartened to see this being done.

Here is a brief excerpt:

With multi-site models and video-venue preaching, large churches have changed how we’ve done ecclesiology for 2,000 years. That doesn’t necessarily mean it is wrong, but I think there should be more of a conversation about it. People bought into it really fast. Maybe it is the next best thing since the pew and the sound system. But I don’t know. The broader community needs to wrestle and critique it.

What does it mean for a pastor to live in one city and be the primary preacher for people in another state? Should we think about that a little bit before we adopt this model? It might be wise. The model is very American—and not in a good way. In the UK, for example, they don’t have the celebrity thing like we do. They loathe branding. They have much more respect for tradition and homegrown. So if we swallow a cultural hook without thinking about it, is that really going to produce solid ecclesiology?

Indeed.