What if outdated delivery methods are quietly keeping people from growing in Christ? Here's why churches must rethink how they teach and disciple before no one shows up to learn.



When is the last time you thought about delivery systems? If you are in the world of commerce, you probably answered, “Today.” It’s one of the most pressing concerns facing the marketplace.

A delivery system is simply the way you deliver a product or a message. Leadership has been described as getting from “here to there.” But a delivery system is how you get “this to there.” One might assume delivery systems don’t require much thought, but that would be wrong and for one simple reason: the way people want and need things to be delivered has changed.

Think about training. In just a handful of years, the entire world of training (at least in the corporate world) has evolved from a “one-size-fits-all approach driven by instructor-led training, to more personalized learning that happens in the flow of work, accessible 24/7,” according to Stephanie Morgan.

Think about traditional education. A report from Education Design Lab found that if universities and colleges want to stay relevant, they will need to move online. They will “adopt new ways to deliver academic materials, focusing on customizable courses and experiences outside of the classroom.” They’ll move to a Netflix-style distribution of course materials. The report’s authors note, “Rather than simply change the delivery model or launch new programs and supports, we wanted to help institutions understand the pace of labor market changes and student needs as we stand on the precipice of artificial intelligence–enabled, full-on digital competency-based learning.”

I’ll admit that quote’s a bit too techie. So let’s translate it. Think about seminaries. They can deliver theological education through a three-year residential program at a bricks-and-mortar school, as they have for almost all of their history, or they can offer online education and degrees. There is little doubt that the three-year residential program has many benefits, but it’s not necessarily the best model to suit people’s educational needs.

Today, graduate students are often older, and because of family and economic responsibilities, many need to pursue graduate degrees on a part-time basis and probably are not able to uproot and relocate to another city. Yes, a seminary can go multisite, but as Fuller, Moody, and other seminaries have learned, multisite is just an extension of the residential bricks-and-mortar model, not a truly new delivery system. (They’ve now closed many of the physical sites they had opened.) Online is simply how and where most people want to learn. It dominates every other educational tributary in their lives, from TED Talks to Google searches, online DIY tutorials to YouTube instructional videos. If seminaries don’t rethink their delivery systems, they might not have anyone to deliver their education to.

The same is true for churches. Increasing numbers of people are downloading and listening to podcasts, watching online services, and taking online courses. Are you delivering discipleship and instruction solely in antiquated ways? There’s no need to remind me of the importance of touch in a high-tech world or that spiritual formation can never be fully achieved virtually; I agree there is much that should remain life on life—doing life with others. But is there no role at all for digital learning or digital discipleship?

Let’s dig deeper into what changes in education might mean for the church.

In 2018, the New York Times reported how the newest students—Generation Z—are transforming the way schools serve and educate. Bottom line? Generation Z is “super connected. But on their terms.”

They do not tend to read books. They rarely read emails. They are a generation that “breathes through social media… sending presidents and deans to Instagram and Twitter.” Further, students today want to navigate campus life on their own, getting food or help “when it is convenient for them. And, yes, on their mobile devices or phones.” As the associate director of learning programs at Ohio State University notes, “It’s not really technology to them.” He’s right. The iPhone came out when most students were in grade school, so to them, technology is just the natural way to live. So now schools such as Ohio State issue iPads, have courses designated “iPad required,” and are building an app that “in addition to maps and bus routes has a course planner, grades, schedules and a Get Involved feature displaying student organizations.”

But higher education is experiencing not simply a communication revolution. Generation Z is forcing course makeovers, “pushing academics to be more hands-on and job-relevant.”


Millennials may have wanted climbing walls and en-suite kitchens; Generation Z wants all things career development. Generation Z is even changing office hours.

Another dynamic, new to mainstream academia, is how individualistic Generation Z students are and how individualistically they expect to be treated. They have been raised in a world of “tailored analytics” that instantly customizes their online experience. This leads them to expect that everything put in front of them will be customized. They do not like to learn in groups. They “like to think about information, then be walked through it to be certain they have it right.” They want a model, and then to practice it. And while they very much favor videos over static content, they still want visual, face-to-face communication over texting. They are not always good at live social interaction, but they crave it. “They want authenticity and transparency,” says Corey Seemiller, professor at Wright State University. “They like the idea of human beings being behind things.”

What might this mean for the church? This may sound repetitive, but perhaps that is good:

Embrace social media and the technology that facilitates it, and then use it as much as you can to communicate, inform, and serve as you encourage people to take next steps in spiritual formation.

As much as you can, customize what you offer.

Be practical in your content. Consider foundational offerings on subjects such as how to read the Bible, how to pray, how to have a quiet time (or a time of devotion), and what it means to become a Christian.

Adjust to the schedule of the person you are trying to serve. This may involve offering on-demand courses.

Get visual in every way you can, particularly using video, but facilitate the delivery of the content and debrief in person.

Here’s an example: We developed an online systematic theology course. I wrote and taught the course, which was filmed over several weeks. The course ended up being seven installments of around 45 minutes each. A workbook was created to go along with the course. Students enrolled and for seven weeks participated in the class during lunch hour. Though the teaching was a recording, I joined the class live to answer questions.

Whatever you do, it’s time to rethink delivery systems, especially when it comes to discipleship within the life of the church.

Source