If you were to ask most pastors, church leaders or people who attend church, who the target of their church is, this is the answer you will most likely get, “We’re trying to reach everybody.”
This sounds nice, it sounds Christian and loving, but is impossible.
No church is trying to reach everybody.
Here’s how I know: One, it is impossible. Two, it is impractical.
Think about it like this: the way people dress at your church, the style of preaching, the length of a sermon, the style of music, if you have small groups, MC’s or sunday school classes, the age of people on stage, the look of your building, all of these things decide who will come to your church.
One of the problems churches have is they feel like it is wrong or unloving to have a target.
Churches in the New Testament had a target based on who was there and they contextualized the gospel to their culture and target (who they felt called to).
What is incredible to me is that if you ask a company (Starbucks, Old Navy, Google) who their target is, they know. If you ask a church, the organization with the life saving, life altering truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ who their target is, they don’t know.