By Oyewole O. Sarumi
In recent decades, the global church has witnessed a growing dissonance between what it professes and how it operates. The fact is when the church mirrors the world, then the leader has become the led.
At the heart of this tension lies a subtle but profound deviation: the elevation of Church and religious culture over Kingdom culture. Celebrity pastors, consumer-driven congregations, and an obsession with performance have come to define the spiritual atmosphere in many faith communities.
What we call “Church culture” today often reflects societal trends more than scriptural truths. But Kingdom culture—the culture that Jesus modelled and the early church embodied—calls us to something higher.
It transcends strategies and programs, reaching into the very heart of how we live, lead, and love. As the popular saying goes, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast,” and nowhere is this truer than in the life of the Church. A Kingdom culture is not built on applause or platforms, but on Christlike character and missional living.
The call for church leaders today is clear: to abandon the shallow comforts of celebrity and religiosity and cultivate a community that reflects the values of the Kingdom of God.
Understanding the Cultural Divide: Kingdom vs Church vs Religion
To understand the current state of the Church, we must distinguish among three dominant cultures: Kingdom culture, Church culture, and Religious culture. While these may intersect at points, they are fundamentally different in orientation and outcome.
Feature Kingdom Culture Church Culture Religious Culture
Core Focus God’s rule, mission, and values Institutional growth and visibility Legalism, tradition, and moral superiority
Leadership Style Servant-leadership (Matt. 20:26) Platform leadership, charisma-driven Hierarchical, controlling
Measure of Success Obedience and faithfulness Numbers, applause, influence Rule-keeping, image maintenance
Attitude toward Others Grace-filled, inclusive Exclusive, performance-based inclusion Judgmental, elitist
Driven by The Holy Spirit Strategy and trends Law and appearance.
Response to Failure Restoration and transformation Shame and rebranding Condemnation and ostracism
Ultimate Goal Glory of God and good of others Popularity and institutional survival Upholding traditions and moral appearances
The Rise of Celebrity and Consumerism in Church Culture
The rise of celebrity culture in the Church did not happen overnight. To be relevant and retain younger generations, many churches began to trade substance for style, authenticity for aesthetic.
In this pursuit, the Church slowly but surely adopted secular standards for influence: performance, branding, stage presence, and social media following. This shift is well-intentioned—churches wanted to avoid the rigid religiosity that alienated seekers—but it has created its own set of problems.
Leadership retreats and strategy sessions abound, yet the deeper issue remains unresolved. The systemic problems—division, spiritual burnout, and moral failures—persist despite our best plans. Like antibiotic-resistant bacteria, these issues mutate and reemerge in different forms because we treat symptoms, not the cultural source. Culture, not programs, is what shapes people.
Culture Over Strategy: What We Learn from Scripture
In Scripture, the importance of culture is evident. Jesus was not just a teacher of truths; He cultivated a culture—a Kingdom culture—among His disciples.
He did not build a fanbase but formed a family. His emphasis on love, humility, service, and truth created a culture that outlasted empires and outshone philosophies.
The woman at the well in John 4 is a prime example. Jesus bypassed social norms and religious protocols to engage a Samaritan woman with compassion and truth.
She encountered Kingdom culture—truth without condemnation, grace without compromise. That encounter transformed her, and through her, an entire community. No campaign, no event, no gimmick—just Kingdom culture at work.
Similarly, in Acts 2:42-47, we see a culture of radical generosity, deep fellowship, and spiritual devotion that drew people into the early Church daily. This wasn’t the result of strategic marketing but Spirit-led community building.
Why Kingdom Culture is Countercultural
Kingdom culture does not seek attention. It bends low, serves others, and obeys God even in obscurity. Jesus exemplified this: “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and give His life” (Matthew 20:28). He was not after a trending platform but after eternal transformation. This stands in sharp contrast to today’s cultural pull, which equates visibility with value.
Paul’s rebuke to the Galatian church is instructive here: “Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God?… If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ” (Galatians 1:10). Kingdom culture invites us to anchor our identity in God’s love (1 John 3:1), not in applause or algorithms.
How Culture is Formed in the Church
Culture is formed by what is celebrated, tolerated, repeated, and modelled. These are the tools of cultural formation. When a church celebrates talent over character, it builds a culture of performance. When favouritism is tolerated, it nurtures division.
When certain behaviours are repeated by leaders, they become norms. And when pastors model ambition over humility, it becomes aspirational.
Consider the biblical example of Isaac. In Genesis 27, Isaac intended to bless Esau, his favoured son, despite God’s earlier word regarding Jacob. This favouritism almost fractured his family. Leaders who show partiality today risk forming cultures that are antithetical to the grace of God.
Building a Kingdom Culture: Principles and Practices
To foster a Kingdom culture, churches must go beyond programming and address the spiritual DNA of the community. This involves:
- Embracing Servant Leadership
Leaders must model humility and service. True greatness, as Jesus said, is found in becoming a servant (Matthew 20:26). - Creating Space for Brokenness and Restoration
A Kingdom culture is honest about sin and generous with grace. It welcomes confession, celebrates repentance, and journeys with the broken. - Reframing Success
Rather than counting attendance, churches should measure obedience, discipleship, and community transformation. - Centring the Gospel, Not the Brand
The church must be known for its Gospel witness, not its branding expertise. Paul said, “We do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord” (2 Corinthians 4:5). - Engaging the Community, Not Just the Congregation
Kingdom culture extends beyond the church walls into the streets, schools, and cities. It seeks justice, serves the poor, and proclaims good news to all.
The Fruit of Kingdom Culture
Where Kingdom culture thrives, the Church begins to reflect the values of heaven. There’s a shift from entertainment to engagement, from platform to purpose, from applause to obedience. The Church becomes less about building buildings and more about building people. It becomes a place where grace triumphs over shame, love outshines legalism, and mission overrides maintenance
The Gospel becomes not just a message we preach but a life we embody.
Conclusion
In an age of noise, notoriety, and narcissism, the Church must choose a better way, which is for the glory of God and the good of others. Kingdom culture is not a strategy—it’s a Spirit-led way of life. It is rooted in the self-giving love of Jesus and calls us to do the same. Church leaders must prioritize culture formation, not just strategy execution. They must ask: What are we becoming? What are we creating?
The future of the Church does not lie in its platforms but in its people. And people will become what is celebrated.
Let us therefore return to the culture of the Kingdom—one marked by humility, service, love, and truth. For in doing so, we not only reflect the heart of Jesus but also become the kind of Church that endures, transforms, and glorifies God.
As the Apostle John reminds us: “The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:17). May we be that kind of Church—Kingdom-minded, Christ-centred, culture-transforming.
