Beyond The Brand
A Biblical Look at ARC and the Church We’re Called to Build
Over the last two decades, the Association of Related Churches (ARC) has become one of the most influential church-planting networks in North America. Through coaching, financial assistance, leadership training, and other resources, ARC has helped launch more than a thousand churches in the United States and around the world.
There is much about that work worth recognizing. People have encountered the gospel through ARC-affiliated churches, pastors have received support in planting new congregations, and churches have served communities in meaningful ways. Whenever Christ is faithfully proclaimed and lives are transformed by the gospel, God deserves the glory.
But influence and effectiveness should never place a ministry beyond biblical examination.
As ARC has grown, questions have emerged surrounding church governance, pastoral accountability, leadership culture, preaching, discipleship, and the influence of modern church-growth strategies.
Those questions ultimately lead to a larger one:
Does the ministry philosophy commonly associated with ARC reflect the priorities of the New Testament church?
This article is not an indictment of every ARC pastor or congregation. ARC churches are independently governed, and practices can differ significantly from one church to another. Nor are the concerns discussed here unique to ARC. Many of them reflect broader trends throughout contemporary evangelicalism.
The purpose is biblical evaluation, not condemnation.
The Bereans were commended because they received teaching eagerly while still examining the Scriptures to determine whether what they heard was true (Acts 17:11). That same standard should apply to every church, denomination, network, pastor, and ministry philosophy.
Our ultimate allegiance is not to a ministry organization, church network, denomination, or influential leader.
It belongs to Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church (Colossians 1:18).
With that standard in mind, let's consider what ARC is, what it does well, and where its ministry philosophy raises important biblical questions.
A Note on Fairness and Biblical Evaluation
It is important to distinguish between documented facts about ARC and theological conclusions drawn from those facts.
When discussing ARC's history, organizational structure, mission, and practices, this article relies primarily on publicly available information, including ARC's own materials. Reports involving individual ARC-associated churches or leaders should not automatically be applied to every church within the network.
The theological evaluation is broader.
Rather than attempting to judge every congregation individually, the goal is to examine ministry philosophies commonly associated with ARC and the larger church-growth movement against the teachings of Scripture.
Every church, including churches we admire, should be willing to do the same.
What Is ARC?
Founded in 2000, the Association of Related Churches (ARC) is a cooperative church-planting network focused on launching what it describes as "life-giving churches."
ARC is not a denomination. Churches associated with the network remain legally autonomous and independently governed while participating in ARC for church-planting support, coaching, leadership development, relationships, and resources.
ARC was founded by a group of pastors that included Greg Surratt, Billy Hornsby, Rick Bezet, Dino Rizzo, and others who shared a commitment to church planting.
Since then, the network has helped launch more than one thousand churches.
ARC places significant emphasis on creating churches that are accessible to people with little or no church background. Church planters are trained to think intentionally about hospitality, children's ministry, worship, communication, leadership development, outreach, and the overall experience of people entering the church.
Much of this approach reflects principles associated with the modern church-growth movement: strategic leadership, intentional communication, organizational excellence, community engagement, and removing unnecessary barriers for people who may be unfamiliar with church.
None of those things are inherently unbiblical.
Church planting itself is deeply rooted in the New Testament. The book of Acts records the gospel spreading into new communities and local churches being established throughout the Roman world. Paul devoted much of his ministry to preaching the gospel, establishing congregations, appointing elders, and strengthening believers.
Therefore, ARC's commitment to planting churches deserves recognition.
But a ministry can accomplish meaningful things and still benefit from biblical examination.
The question is not simply whether ARC plants churches or whether those churches have experienced growth.
The deeper question is:
What kind of churches are we building, and how closely do their priorities resemble those given to us in Scripture?
Want to know if your church is affiliated with ARC?
ARC maintains an official Find a Church directory containing churches planted through ARC as well as network churches participating in its mission. According to ARC, listed churches are legally autonomous, independently led, and reviewed annually for inclusion.
What ARC Does Well
Any fair evaluation should acknowledge ARC's genuine strengths.
Church Planting
ARC has invested substantial resources into helping pastors establish new churches. At a time when many congregations are declining or closing, ARC continues to emphasize multiplication and the establishment of new local churches.
That commitment reflects an important pattern found throughout Acts.
Evangelism and Community Engagement
Many ARC churches intentionally seek to reach people who are disconnected from church. Hospitality, children's ministries, community outreach, and accessible environments are often designed around helping people encounter the gospel without unnecessary cultural barriers.
Many congregations also participate in food distribution, disaster relief, foster-care initiatives, addiction recovery, partnerships with schools, and other forms of community service.
Those expressions of compassion can provide meaningful opportunities to love our neighbors and demonstrate the gospel through both words and actions.
Leadership Development
ARC provides assessment, coaching, mentoring, conferences, and practical training for church planters.
Planting and leading a church is difficult work, and pastors can benefit greatly from wise counsel, relationships, and practical preparation.
Organizational Stewardship
Many ARC churches are intentional about communication, volunteer development, hospitality, children's ministry, and operational excellence.
Organization is not the enemy of spiritual ministry. Good stewardship can strengthen ministry when organizational systems remain servants of the Church's mission rather than becoming its definition of success.
And that distinction is important.
The very strengths that help a church grow can become weaknesses when they begin replacing deeper biblical priorities.
Growth can overshadow discipleship.
Leadership skill can become more valued than character.
Excellence can become image management.
Strategy can slowly replace dependence upon the Holy Spirit.
That brings us to several areas that deserve closer biblical examination.
Five Biblical Concerns
1. From Making Converts to Making Disciples
Jesus' Great Commission was not simply a command to gather crowds or produce conversions.
He commanded His followers to "make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19–20).
That distinction matters.
The early church devoted itself to the apostles' teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer (Acts 2:42). Paul described the goal of his ministry as presenting "everyone mature in Christ" (Colossians 1:28).
Modern churches naturally measure things such as attendance, baptisms, giving, volunteer participation, and campus growth. Those numbers can tell us something useful about a ministry, and numbers represent real people.
But they cannot tell us everything.
A church can become larger without necessarily becoming spiritually deeper.
The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes maturity, holiness, sound doctrine, perseverance, love, and Christlike character.
Therefore, the question should not merely be:
How many people are attending?
We must also ask:
What kind of disciples are being formed?
2. From Expository Preaching to Practical Messages
Paul's instruction to Timothy was clear:
"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching."
— 2 Timothy 4:2
Topical preaching is not inherently wrong. Scripture speaks directly to relationships, money, suffering, leadership, family, emotional struggles, purpose, and countless other practical areas of life.
The concern is not whether churches address practical subjects.
The concern is what governs the message.
There is an important difference between beginning with Scripture and allowing the text to determine the message, and beginning with a message we want to communicate and finding verses that support it.
Faithful biblical preaching asks first:
What does this passage actually mean?
Only then should we ask:
How should we live because of it?
Application should flow from interpretation.
When that order is reversed, sermons can become inspirational and even biblically flavored while failing to communicate the full meaning and authority of God's Word.
3. From Shepherds to CEOs
One of Scripture's most consistent pictures of pastoral leadership is the shepherd.
Jesus described Himself as the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11).
Peter instructed elders:
"Shepherd the flock of God that is among you... not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock."
— 1 Peter 5:2–3
Modern ministry often celebrates vision, organizational growth, strategy, innovation, communication ability, and executive leadership.
Those skills can certainly be useful.
But they are not the primary qualifications Scripture gives for pastors.
When Paul describes church leaders in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, his emphasis falls overwhelmingly on character: self-control, faithfulness, hospitality, maturity, sound doctrine, and integrity within the home.
The pastor's fundamental responsibility is not building an organization.
It is shepherding people.
When charisma, vision, platform, or organizational success becomes more important than character and pastoral care, our definition of leadership has drifted from the biblical model.
4. From the Local Church to a Ministry Brand
There is nothing inherently wrong with branding.
Churches need websites. They need signs. They communicate through social media. Clear and consistent communication can help people understand who a church is and how to connect.
The concern begins when the brand starts shaping the church more than Scripture does.
The churches of the New Testament shared one gospel but were not identical organizations.
Corinth faced division. Galatia wrestled with legalism. Ephesus confronted false teaching. Thessalonica endured persecution. Each congregation existed within a particular context and faced particular spiritual needs.
Today, ministry networks can unintentionally reproduce the same leadership language, communication strategies, organizational systems, aesthetics, and ministry philosophies across numerous churches.
Learning from other churches is wise.
But replication can become dangerous when churches begin functioning more like franchises than local bodies of believers.
Scripture calls the Church a body, family, temple, bride, and flock.
Its identity is ultimately found in Christ, not in the strength or recognizability of a ministry brand.
5. Accountability Must Be Stronger Than Influence
Every church should be able to answer a basic question:
Who oversees the shepherds?
Scripture places an extraordinarily high standard on spiritual leaders.
James warns that teachers will be judged more strictly (James 3:1). Paul tells Timothy not to appoint leaders hastily. First Timothy 3 and Titus 1 emphasize character, maturity, integrity, and sound doctrine.
Recent conversations throughout evangelical Christianity—including controversies involving some churches and leaders associated with ARC—have raised important questions about governance, pastoral accountability, elder independence, restoration, and the concentration of authority.
Individual situations should always be evaluated on their own evidence.
But the broader principle remains:
Giftedness can never replace godliness.
Accountability cannot merely mean relationships with trusted friends or influential ministry peers.
Healthy accountability requires structures in which leaders can genuinely be questioned, corrected, and, when necessary, removed.
Church governance should protect the flock—not the reputation of the organization or the platform of the leader.
The greater someone's influence becomes, the more important meaningful accountability becomes.
What Does the New Testament Church Look Like?
If modern ministry models are going to be evaluated biblically, we need a positive picture of what Scripture actually describes.
Acts 2 gives us one of the clearest:
"And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers..."
— Acts 2:42
Luke later tells us:
"And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved."
— Acts 2:47
The order is worth noticing.
The early church was devoted to God's truth, fellowship, worship, prayer, generosity, and gospel witness—and God produced the growth.
Throughout the rest of the New Testament, several priorities repeatedly emerge.
God's Word Governs the Church
Scripture is not merely content used to support the church's vision. God's Word defines the Church's theology, worship, leadership, discipleship, ethics, and mission.
The Church must continually allow Scripture to correct its assumptions, even when doing so challenges methods that appear successful.
Discipleship Produces Maturity
The goal of ministry is not simply attendance.
Churches exist to help form people into mature followers of Jesus who know God's Word, pursue holiness, love one another, serve their neighbors, and faithfully proclaim the gospel.
Leaders Shepherd Rather Than Dominate
Pastors are entrusted with people who belong to Christ.
Biblical leadership therefore requires humility, character, sacrifice, accountability, and genuine care for the flock.
Administrative competence matters, but it can never substitute for shepherding.
Christian Community Goes Beyond an Event
The New Testament church was not built around weekly attendance alone.
Believers prayed together, practiced hospitality, cared for those in need, encouraged one another, confessed sin, carried burdens, and lived in meaningful relationship.
Programs can facilitate community.
They cannot manufacture it.
The Church Pursues Holiness
Grace does not merely forgive us.
Grace transforms us.
The apostles repeatedly call believers toward sanctification and lives worthy of the gospel (Philippians 1:27; 1 Thessalonians 4:3).
A healthy church therefore welcomes sinners while also calling every believer, including its leaders, to repentance and increasing Christlikeness.
The Church Depends Upon the Holy Spirit
Acts repeatedly attributes the Church's growth and effectiveness to the work of the Holy Spirit.
Strategies can organize ministry.
Technology can distribute it.
Leadership systems can coordinate it.
But none of those things can create spiritual life.
Only God can do that.
Christ Remains the Head
Ultimately, everything comes back to this:
Christ "is the head of the body, the church."
— Colossians 1:18
The Church belongs to Him.
That means every sermon, strategy, leadership structure, ministry model, budget, program, and definition of success must remain subordinate to His authority.
Final Thoughts
ARC has made significant contributions to church planting, evangelism, leadership development, and community outreach. Those contributions should be acknowledged fairly.
But ARC also provides an opportunity to examine a much larger issue within contemporary evangelical Christianity:
How do we define a successful church?
That question matters because success and faithfulness are not always the same thing.
A church can grow rapidly and still have unhealthy leadership.
A church can produce an excellent Sunday experience while struggling to make mature disciples.
A pastor can be gifted, charismatic, and influential while lacking the character Scripture requires.
A ministry can become widely recognized while slowly allowing its brand to overshadow the ordinary work of shepherding people.
None of those possibilities prove that a particular church is unhealthy.
They simply remind us why Scripture, not success, must remain our standard.
The Church has always faced the temptation to adopt the values of the culture surrounding it. In our generation, that temptation can appear through celebrity, platform, influence, organizational expansion, branding, and measurable growth.
Those things are not automatically wrong.
But they become dangerous when they begin defining what we believe a healthy church looks like.
The Reformers used the phrase Ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda—the church reformed and always being reformed according to the Word of God.
That principle remains desperately important.
No denomination, network, independent church, pastor, or ministry philosophy should ever become too successful, influential, or familiar to be examined by Scripture.
That includes ARC.
It also includes our own churches.
So rather than finishing this discussion by simply pointing at another organization, perhaps we should allow these questions to turn toward us:
Are we making disciples?
Are we faithfully preaching God's Word?
Are our leaders shepherding people with humility and integrity?
Is meaningful accountability actually present?
Are we depending upon the Holy Spirit or primarily upon our strategies?
And above everything else:
Is Jesus truly functioning as the Head of His Church?
Jesus promised:
"I will build my church."
— Matthew 16:18
That promise does not depend upon a network, denomination, celebrity pastor, marketing strategy, or church-growth model.
It rests upon Christ.
Our calling, therefore, is not to build the most impressive church.
It is to faithfully steward the Church that belongs to Him.
May we never confuse growth with maturity, influence with authority, giftedness with godliness, or success with faithfulness.
And may every church, ARC or otherwise, remain humble enough to continually return to Scripture and ask:
Are we building Christ's Church according to Christ's design?
Footnotes and Recommended Resources
Primary Sources
Association of Related Churches (ARC)
Association of Related Churches. About ARC.
Association of Related Churches. Our Story.
Association of Related Churches. Statement of Faith.
Association of Related Churches. Find a Church.
Biblical Passages Referenced
Matthew 16:18
Matthew 28:18–20
John 10:1–18
Acts 2:42–47
Acts 17:11
Colossians 1:18, 28
Ephesians 4:11–16
Philippians 1:27
1 Thessalonians 4:3
1 Timothy 3:1–7
2 Timothy 4:1–5
Titus 1:5–9
James 3:1
1 Peter 5:1–4
Recommended Books on the Church
Allison, Gregg R. Sojourners and Strangers: The Doctrine of the Church. Crossway, 2012.
Dever, Mark. Nine Marks of a Healthy Church. Crossway, 4th Edition, 2021.
Leeman, Jonathan. One Assembly: Rethinking the Multisite and Multiservice Church Models. Crossway, 2020.
Stott, John R. W. The Living Church: Convictions of a Lifelong Pastor. IVP, 2007.
Strauch, Alexander. Biblical Eldership: An Urgent Call to Restore Biblical Church Leadership. Lewis and Roth, Revised Edition, 2017.
Recommended Books on Biblical Interpretation
Klein, William W., Craig L. Blomberg, and Robert L. Hubbard Jr. Introduction to Biblical Interpretation. Zondervan.
Fee, Gordon D., and Douglas Stuart. How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth. Zondervan.
Kaiser, Walter C., Jr., and Moisés Silva. An Introduction to Biblical Hermeneutics. Zondervan.
Church History
González, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. 2 vols. HarperOne.
Bruce, F. F. Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free. Eerdmans.
Articles and Research
Readers interested in studying both praise and criticism of ARC and the broader church-growth movement may also consult investigative journalism and theological resources from a range of perspectives, including:
The Roys Report
Christianity Today
9Marks
The Gospel Coalition
Ligonier Ministries
Investigative reports and opinion pieces should be compared with primary documentation whenever possible, and every theological conclusion should ultimately be evaluated through Scripture.
Editorial Note
This article is intended to encourage thoughtful biblical evaluation, not to suggest that every ARC-affiliated church or pastor operates in the same way. ARC churches are independently governed, and practices may vary significantly from one congregation to another. References to broader ministry trends or leadership concerns should not be interpreted as allegations against any individual church or leader unless specifically documented. Readers are encouraged to examine primary sources, consider relevant evidence in context, and ultimately evaluate every ministry, including the conclusions presented here, in light of Scripture.
