Did you know that Crossroads Bible Church has a back door? It's the best-kept secret at the church. In fact, if we ever open the back door, holler out the screen and say to the community around us, "Come on in" we will not have enough room to hold all of those who will come to be part of our church.
So far we have kept the back door closed. Most of us don't even know it's there. But when I tell you where it's located you will find yourself saying, "Oh, yeah, of course, I knew that!"
Here is the situation we face—we each live in homes located in neighborhoods. In those neighborhoods are hundreds of families that do not go to church anywhere. Most of them are unsaved, and if they have ever been to church in the past, it has often been a bad experience. So inviting most of our neighbors to come to church will not always work. Some will say, "Oh, I tried that and hated it." or "Church? That's where they keep all the hypocrites isn't it?" or "I've been to church and no one said a word to me. It's the most unfriendly place I have ever been, the bars treat you better than the churches do."
The front door is great for most Christians and "church shoppers", but many non-Christians will not use the front door. They would rather just "sleep in."
But, what would happen if we open the back door? Do you know that most people don't know it's the back door to a church? In fact, they will be most willing to come into the church through the back door, but reluctant to start by coming in the front door.
What is the back door? And how do we get it open? (I know that you are asking these and other questions.) Ok, are you ready?
Here's the content of a call I got from one of our minichurch leaders today- Leader: "Would it be ok to invite some of my neighbors, who don't go to church, to our minichurch?" Mike: "YES! That's exactly what I want to happen." Leader: "Well, I thought it would be ok, but I wanted to check. They probably wouldn't come to church, but I think they would come to a minichurch."
Wow, what a call. This was an eye opening experience for me. My mind began to race as I thought about all of the Minichurches who have come to me to express their need for more people in their group. My response is always, "Go invite some", but in that comment is the assumed idea of inviting those in our church body, and of course that is our first goal. We want our body to be part of the Minichurches, it's where we do life together and one of the best places to plug into the church. But it had never flashed in my thinking before that another most desirable "target" for our invitations are those who live next door. "What would happen if?" draws me into a very interesting vision of the small groups of our church opening their doors to "the neighbors" (imagine that?) and inviting them to our groups. They don't have to be saved, members of our church, or even believers in God. All they need is the willingness to come to your group, enjoy the fellowship and food, and be part of the discussion. Talk about a great time, and a challenge to your faith! That will do it.
The more I think about this the more excited I get. Imagine, lost neighbors, in our homes in fellowship with Christians who love them, and draw them to Christ without them once entering the doors of a traditional church building. When they do come to church, they already have friends, relationships, community, and the move to the larger body seems almost natural. This would be quite a different experience from the normal lost man coming to church, without knowing anyone, and attempting to "fit in".
So, what can happen if we open the "back door"? Who knows, but wouldn't it be fun to find out? In fact, I wonder if the back door might get used so much it would become the front door?
