As I finished my chapter-by-chapter re-read of the book of Acts, I see believers and non-believers appearing together in many different settings:
- Hearing the Word of God proclaimed
- Witnessing gifts of the Spirit
- Choosing elders
- Watching people come to faith
The biblical description of what happened in the early church includes all of these elements. Yet it gets confusing to say things like:
- “That’s not a church meeting, but this one is.”
- “That’s not church, but this is.”
- “Paul’s preaching in the synagogue is outreach, but teaching in a house is church.”
What is obvious is that people were being saved daily. Scripture doesn’t specify whether those conversions happened inside or outside a formal gathering.
Acts simply records what took place—it doesn’t prescribe how the church must function in every era.
The Church as a Gathering Place
In Acts, the “church” as a place was still forming.
Groups met in synagogues, public spaces, and homes. Today, most of us gather in a building designed for worship, which changes the dynamics. Others choose to meet as house churches, in open fields, public parks, or rented spaces.
The places may differ, but the mission of proclaiming the gospel remains the same.
The Church as a Gathered People
The people of God were also still forming into what we later understand as the Body of Christ. Paul’s letters expand this theology.
The earliest believers met to worship, pray, learn, and serve together. Those gatherings didn’t look like today’s Sunday services, yet the heart of worship, meeting in the name of Jesus, and blessing the community, was present.
The Church Gathered for a Purpose
The church gathered for specific purposes: worship, prayer, teaching, and fellowship.
Those expressions evolved over time. What we see in Acts does not look like the weekly worship gathering most of us know today.
Asking Acts to define modern practice—such as whether to invite non-believers to a Sunday service—is asking the text to answer a question it wasn’t written to address.
As the gospel spread through new cities, “churches” were forming, not yet established. The apostles were pioneering new communities of faith. Looking for a rule about invitations in those passages is unlikely to bear fruit.
Objections I Have Encountered
As I’ve discussed this topic through the years, I’ve met sincere people who believe we should not invite non-believers to church. Below are a few of the common points raised and how I respond.
1. Don’t Be Unequally Yoked
“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” — 2 Corinthians 6:14
I’m not convinced this passage applies to inviting an unsaved person to church to hear the gospel. An invitation to worship is not a spiritual partnership. It doesn’t grant leadership or membership; it’s simply an act of welcome so that a person can evaluate the message for themselves.
Paul’s warning speaks to partnerships (such as marriage, business, or leadership) where two people walk together in shared authority. Each congregation should apply its own theological guidelines to matters such as baptism, membership or communion. For questions of practice, always look to your pastor and denominational teaching.
In terms of my own church life, I’d see it applying to membership, church leadership positions, pastoral authority.
They are the leaders of the church. Members who have joined a church should profess faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. We do not have atheists as church members, nor unsaved visitors as elders, etc.
I don’t think this “yoking” or spiritual mixing occurs when we invite a non-believer to hear the word of God proclaimed in our worship services. If I invite a non-believer into a leadership position – to help me lead the church in some way – THEN that line is crossed.
2. Were Unsaved Visitors Rare?
“If an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin … and will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, ‘God is really among you!’” — 1 Corinthians 14:24–25
Paul challenges the Corinthian church to be sensitive to visitors. He assumes that unbelievers could “come in” to a Christian gathering. The text doesn’t tell us how they arrived—by invitation, curiosity, or reputation—and that’s not Paul’s concern.
Some argue that unbelievers were rare in early worship. But the passage offers no evidence for rarity or frequency. Paul’s emphasis is that when they do come, the church should behave in ways that help them encounter God’s presence.
This awareness should be part of every congregation’s DNA. Whether your church meets in a sanctuary or a rented space, you want your unsaved visitors to be able to say, “God is truly among you.”
See also This Belongs in Your Church’s DNA.
3. Jesus as an Example
Some claim that because Jesus didn’t include non-believers among the Twelve, the church shouldn’t include them in worship. That comparison doesn’t hold up.
Jesus lived before the organized church existed. There was no “Sunday service” to invite people to. Yet He consistently welcomed those who sought Him, spent time with sinners, and offered truth and grace in personal encounters.
His example encourages openness, not exclusion. The question is not should non-believers come, but how we treat them when they do.
Is Inviting Someone to Church the Same as Evangelism?
Inviting someone to church can be an act of evangelism. It’s often one step in a longer process of introducing a person to Christ.
The invitation itself isn’t the full gospel, but it can lead to hearing it.
For a deeper look at this question, read Does an Invitation to Church Equal Evangelism?
Practical Ways to Invite Non-Believers
While this article focuses on the biblical study, I’ve written other posts exploring practical ways to pray for and invite those who might attend your church:
- When to Invite Someone to Church (and Not Get Rejected)
- Inviting People to Church – A Core Value
- 6 Steps to Organize an Invite a Friend Day
- Get More Church Invitations through Prayer
- Pray for Inviting Visitors to Church
Explore the Series: Inviting Non-Believers to Church
This article concludes a seven-part study through the book of Acts exploring whether unbelievers were present in the early assemblies. Continue the journey here:
Coaching Corner
Let me ask you this:
For what reasons should we invite our non-Christian friends to church?
Share your thoughts in the comments. What has your congregation learned about welcoming seekers while staying faithful to its mission?
Editor’s Note: First written in 2013, updated in 2015, and again in 2025 to fill out some further thoughts on inviting non-believers to church.
Right Hospitality but a Welcome Fail
I’ve pondered and prayed about this question for years. I think scripture is clear that the “Church” is the Body of Christ–not a brick and mortar building. Even though there are no NT scriptures that describe the early church inviting non-Believers to their gatherings, I believe they probably did even though THAT was not the main purpose for their regular meetings.
Here’s why– Remember, the early church did not have the New Testament scriptures in one place yet, so it makes sense that while the new converts were spreading the Good News, they might encounter seekers with questions. Naturally, the new Believer would invite a seeker with questions to come hear Paul speak or to join them at a gathering where the latest letter from an Apostle would be read–and where elders were available to answer questions.
Plus, Here are a couple of NT scriptures that lead me to believe that non-believers were in fact mixed in with Believers at the early church’s gatherings:
“With one accord they continued to meet daily in the temple courts and to break bread from house to house, sharing their meals with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. ” (Acts 2:46-47) [who WERE BEING saved]
And in Jesus’s parable about the wheat and tares (Matthew 13:24-30) He specifically says, “Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.”
I think the main points in this discussion are the answers to two questions:
1. What is the purpose of Church?
Ephesians 3:10: so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.
2. What is her chief function “when gathered?”
Ephesians 4:11-16: And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pshepherds3 and teachers,4 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,5 to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
I don’t see a role for unbelievers in either the purpose or her function when gathered. Inviting unbelievers en masse eventually weakens the body and blurs the lines between Christians and non-Christians. Evangelism is the work of the Church when not gathered.
Have a great day, all. Grace and peace to you.
Hi Chris,
I would have to more agree with Nigel on this one but do agree that we do “not” see the Apostles as you said excluding non believers. As we see in 1 Corinthians 14, that it is possible for unbelievers or outsiders to have wandered into a church gathering. “23If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds?” “If” doesn’t mean necessarily that they were invited. Nor in my opinion should it be used to make presidence now to invite the unbelieving and or outsiders into our Church gatherings. There are a plethora of scriptures to point to being separate from the world. Yes, in the world, not of the world… Also the warning of Paul to keep things orderly was for the protection of the Church’s reputation as well as not to cause the unbelieving “if” they were present, not to be freaked out if you will by what was taking place in that gathering. Again, not presidence in my opinion to support inviting the world into the Church gathering as we are called by Jesus in Matthew 28 verse 19-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
I think Chris if you take the whole point Paul is making in 2 Corinthians 6 verse 1-18, you’ll see that he is being very clear about his intentions of not intermixing with the world. In addition for our friend above Esther, Paul is including and quoting an “OLD” Testament passage in keeping with his point of being separate. I’d be careful in making that statement Esther, as Jesus quoted many times from the Old Testament as some of His commands are still in force… So here’s the whole passage and you be the judge. “14Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,
“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
17Therefore go out from their midst,
and be separate from them, says the Lord,
and touch no unclean thing;
then I will welcome you,
18and I will be a father to you,
and you shall be sons and daughters to me,
says the Lord Almighty.”
Now the unequally yoked if you look at Deuteronomy 22:10 which states,
“You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together.” This passage if taken in context, is speaking of not intermixing which is the same point the Apostle Paul is making.
If the Church did what it was supposed to do by loving one another within the Body of Christ as the whole New Testament reiterates, then we’d see people drawn to the ways of God and the churches would burst at their seams. But instead of loving as we ought, we look for worldly ways to entice unbelievers to come to church to hear a message that may or may not include the actual Gospel of Jesus and we think we did our part. Actually our part as I see it, is to share the Gospel with them ourselves and let our lives after that be a testimony of the Jesus that dwells in us. Now if our friends desire to repent of their sins and be baptized into the family of God, well then I say, invite them in. Read Acts 2 as I think it gives a good picture of how it is to be done. Just one mans opinion. Blessings all.
Niki You experienced the right answer: where would you be if a church didn’t welcome you as you were?
That story is probably the greatest argument about why invite and welcome unbelievers into your church – it is where they can hear the word, encounter the Lord, and experience the Holy Spirit draw them to a relationship with Christ.
I actually had this same discussion with a friend today. I believed that unbelievers should not be allowed ‘in the gathering of the saints’… but so nicely Holy Spirit reminded me, that I was going to church as a drug addict looking for Christ. If I was told to leave or where not welcome… I dread where I would be today.
Sometimes we miss the elephant in the room. We as individuals are the Church, the bride of Christ, the ekklesia, the called out ones. . Strongs 1577 ekklēsía (from 1537 /ek, “out from and to” and 2564 /kaléō, “to call”) – properly, people called out from the world and to God, the outcome being the Church (the mystical body of Christ) – i.e. the universal (total) body of believers whom God calls out from the world and into His eternal kingdom. As a general rule, the building where the called out ones meet is not open to unbelievers. The evangelist brings the lost to Christ and sends them to the Pastor for discipleship.
Thank you for your reply. I will have to think on that and read more scripture. At least if Pastor says something like if anyone has questions I will be here after service. We know that all church goers are not always saved. Thank you
@Lawrence
When I do workshops on a person’s testimony and invite people to share their story to faith, an invitation to church is one of the many stepping stones in many stories that God has used to bring a person to faith.
I remember one class with 8 students in it. Every single one mentioned a friend’s invitation to church that helped them to discover the grace of Jesus Christ.
Chris
@ Claudette While “Altar Call” is not a biblical term, the idea of calling for a response is approrpriate. This is an appropriate response when preaching evangelistically in a church setting. I do it every now and then.
But if you as the preacher know that you are preaching to believers, the altar call should be something to invite believers to respond in some way. No point in giving an evangelistic altar call if there are no unsaved people there, generally speaking.
Preachers have different ways to allow people to respond to an altar call: raise hand, come forward, talk with me after the service, etc. . .the form is not important as much as calling for a response in a non-manipulative way.
I agree with you on this subject. I have known several people even friends of mine who are saved today as a result of having been invited to church. Also I am amazed at the people I meet who say that you should not invite unbelievers in and they are not out winning souls.
If we invite non believers to our church and they come, shouldn’t there be an alter call (can’t find alter call in bible) so if the non believer wants to know anything about JESUS he could go forward if he chose to. Without an alter call maybe the unbeliever would just go away And forget about the whole thing.
Well said Esther
Nigel,
We are in a different covenant. Thankfully, a new, better covenant. The old mosaic covenant is obsolete and does not apply to us nor has it ever. It was made between God and the nation of Israel at that time.
http://www.padfield.com/2004/covenants.html
I have considered it, and don’t think it applies.
I simply don’t see the apostles or the disciples excluding non-believers from their assemblies.
Hi Chris
Just skimmed your info on church and if we should invite unbelievers etc
Have you ever read Ezek 44 You will notice in verse 6-10 “Now say to the rebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “O house of Israel, let Us have no more of all your abominations. “When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it–My house–and when you offered My food, the fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of all your abominations.
“And you have not kept charge of My holy things, but you have set [others] to keep charge of My sanctuary for you.” ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter My sanctuary, including any foreigner who [is] among the children of Israel.
Chris how should we as the temple of God (the church) allow the uncircumcised into to have fellowship with us?
Answer we can’t and should not.
Our work is to Go into all the world. God’s work to to the church those being saved. Period.
Then we are to disciple the babies until they are mature.
That’s it
Nigel
“And the Levites who went far from Me, when Israel went astray, who strayed away from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity.