Historic Reasons
In the first 300 years of America, the number of Protestant churches grew at a much faster rate than the population.

• 1820 - 1 church for every 875 residents
• 1860 - 1 church for every 600 residents (pop. increased 300%, # of churches 500%)
  
• 1906 - 1 church for every 400 residents (pop. increased 275%, # of churches 400%)

By 1906, over a third of the congregations of this country were less than 25 years old, and the percentage of the American population that was involved in local churches steadily increased. For example, in 1860, 37% of Americans were church members byt by 1926, 58% were.

Since 1906, and particularly after WWI, new church planting slowed drastically, for a complex variety of reasons. Since 1906 the population has grown roughly 300%, but the number of Protestant churches has grown no more than 35%. This is no more than one new church planted for every 1,000 new residents now. As a result, mainline Protestant churches have had huge declines in membership since the 1960's, and Catholic church attendance has also fallen. If we want to renew our country spiritually, we will have to plant thousands and thousands of new churches annually.

In light of this research, it is clear why America has become decreasingly influenced by a Christian world and life view. It takes new churches to reach new generations, new ethnic groups-and there are far, far fewer churches being planted. Established churches are like "full sponges". The main reason the mainline churches are declining is not bad theology (directly), but the lack of church planting. (The Mormons are not orthodox, but they plant churches like crazy, and thus they are growing.) It should be noted however, that you plant churches because you believe something crucial for others to have…and therefore the culprit is still bad theology in that it produces apathy, and apathy is not exactly great fuel for church planting.

Application to San Francisco
By an approximate count, San Francisco has 300 churches of any potentially Christian stripe. With a population of 760,000, this means there is approximately 1 church for every 2500 residents. (The national average is 12 churches per 10,000 people. San Francisco is at approximately 4 churches per 10,000.) If we wanted to see the number of active Christians in San Francisco double, there is only one way-to get that ratio down to 1 to 1200 or less. That would take at least another 300 churches, this with the assumption that the original 300 were healthy!

City Church wants to plant a number of churches over the next 20 years. But will that change San Francisco? No. It will happen only if we have such a heart and spirit that attracts and reaches out to other churches and associations who also catch a vision for church planting. The question for our future is "How are we going to foster church planting among churches in our city at large?" Potential answers: Our own church planting center that can assess, train, and supervise urban church planters. Training centers that reach beyond our own denomination. Equipping other churches in San Francisco to begin their own movements of planting church planting churches. That could spark the beginning of a process that would bring widespread revival among already established churches. Exciting questions. For now? We must continue to develop a church planting movement of our own that is an attractive model that really works.