Megachurches are a modern phenomenon. More specifically, they’re a modern American phenomenon. An article from the University of Washington written nearly a decade ago sums up both the definition of a megachurch and just how effective they have been:

Megachurches, or churches with 2,000 or more congregants, have grown in number, size and popularity in recent years, coming to virtually dominate the American religious landscape. More than half of all American churchgoers now attend the largest 10 percent of churches.

Megachurch services feature a come-as-you-are atmosphere, rock music and what [James] Wellman calls a “multisensory mélange” of visuals and other elements to stimulate the senses, as well as small-group participation and a shared focus on the message from a charismatic pastor.

The researchers hypothesized that such rituals are successful in imparting emotional energy in the megachurch setting – “creating membership feelings and symbols charged with emotional significance, and a heightened sense of spirituality,” they wrote.

Although that is a great summary, there’s much more to examine when it comes to megachurches. A church culture that has been influenced by this movement often features some harmful elements. These “marks” can actually be a hindrance to the Christian priorities of gospel proclamation, theological clarity, and biblical admonishment and encouragement.

To be sure, much of the harmful megachurch culture that people experience stems from unbiblical theology and philosophy, which can vary greatly. An examination of those things is best done on a case-by-case basis. This article is about the culture itself, which seems to be very similar across a variety of churches.

It should be noted from the outset that not every megachurch has a “harmful megachurch culture” and not every church with a “harmful megachurch culture” is, in fact, a megachurch. Some congregations have the attendance numbers to qualify as a megachurch, but have managed to maintain a culture that represents historic Christianity and reflects biblical priorities. Then there are other churches that don’t have 2,000 or more congregants, yet seek to implement some of the harmful elements of more influential, bigger churches as a means of relevance and growth.

It should also be noted that although the five marks listed below show up in nearly every context of the megachurch culture, music is where this is all most obvious. After reading through this article, go find a recording of a megachurch’s service on YouTube and listen to their singing time to see if you can spot all five elements. Here’s an example to get you started.

Self-Focus

Harmful megachurch culture hurts people by encouraging them to continue thinking about themselves. In the flesh, people are already thinking about themselves — they don’t need to be taught how to do so. This is why God gives this command to Christians, who are called to reject the flesh and to walk by the Spirit: “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others,” (Philippians 2:3-4).

Harmful megachurch culture does not call self-proclaimed Christians to primarily focus on the needs of others with humility. Instead, people are led to consider life very individualistically, appraising their own situation and needs as most important. The most pressing matter is always the personal struggle, not the needs of others. This way of living is of the old self, not of the new nature that Christ gives.

When considering the difficult personal circumstances all people go through, the Christian is to look to God who is in absolute control over his or her circumstances. This is a great encouragement for God’s people because the Lord is both sovereign and good. As I’ve stated before, if He had only one of those attributes, life would be quite depressing. However, God is both sovereign and good; therefore, we shall rejoice.

Harmful megachurch culture doesn’t teach such a concept, though. The people are not told to abide in Christ, looking to Him as they endure what He has sovereignly brought about. Rather, they are so often led to look at themselves more and more and view God as the one who is waiting on them to initiate a way of escape from that which bothers them.

The individualistic approach to Christian living is absolutely damaging to those who hear such teaching. Their eyes are taken off of the sovereign God and His people — the two priorities for the Christian as reflected in Jesus’ answer regarding the great commandment — and their focus is placed on themselves, being consumed by their own worries. (See also all of the first-person pronouns in the megachurch culture praise music lyrics.)

Empty Positivity

Much of the instruction spewing out of harmful megachurch cultures is akin to vague self-improvement books rather than clear, biblical instruction. It’s quite obvious that the goal is to be positive and encouraging, regardless of how much sense anything makes. This precedent is so dangerous.

Not all of life is positive. In fact, much of life is disappointing, frustrating, tiresome, or depressing. But the lie of the prosperity gospel, which much of harmful megachurch culture is based on, is that a person’s life can be full of positivity and happiness despite the inescapable effects of sin in the world. This false teaching states that the negative forces in a person’s life can dissolve only if he or she will do x-y-z to dispel it.

Here’s the reality: Creating a life full of positivity is impossible, and any instructions given to help a person achieve it are made-up and foolish. Those people front-and-center on a stage somewhere proclaiming that they are living a completely positive life are lying. They have put up a false front. To those who are encouraged to focus on themselves as their own priority, though, such teaching is deemed inspiring and refreshing.

The result of this teaching is empty positivity — as opposed to genuine, biblical faith and joy — and those who buy into it are consequently unable to actually face the trials of life from a biblical worldview. They’ve been told to speak to their circumstances so that everything will change, but this is an absolutely hollow approach to life that does about as much as one of those “Live, Laugh, Love” signs hanging above a pile of credit card bills in the home of a recently divorced alcoholic.