Sweden's free churches have been shrinking for decades, and the newly released Frikyrkoundersökningen 2026 (Free Church Survey 2026) confirms that the trend continues — with one previously bright spot now also dimming. Writing in the Christian newspaper Sändaren, Marcus Lind, General Secretary of Equmenia (the youth wing of Equmeniakyrkan), acknowledges that the statistics make for sobering reading: the number of congregations being closed now exceeds the number of new church plants, and international congregations in major cities — long a sign of vitality — also appear to have stopped growing.
Rather than respond with alarm or a programme of institutional fixes, Lind offers a theological reflection that questions whether numbers should carry the weight the church so often assigns them. He warns that an excessive focus on statistics can be harmful in either direction: when the trend is downward, discouragement sets in; when it is upward, pride and complacency can follow. Growth alone, he notes, is not a reliable indicator that God is behind a movement — nor is decline proof of God's absence.
Lind anchors his argument in two New Testament passages. From 1 Corinthians 3:6 — "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth" — he draws the reminder that the church's task is faithful planting and watering, while the outcome rests in God's hands. From John 21, where Peter asks Jesus about the fate of the beloved disciple and receives the reply "What is that to you? You must follow me," Lind finds a corrective to the anxious comparison between churches and the restless search for the one right method. The singular call, he writes, is to fix one's eyes on Jesus and follow him.
Lind's conclusion is pastoral rather than programmatic. As the Swedish summer brings a season of worship services and church conferences, he commits himself to holding these truths close — embracing both the joy of the gospel shared among believers and what he calls "the liberating feeling that the growth does not depend on me." In a time when free church statistics in one of Europe's most secularised societies can feel discouraging, that posture of faithful dependence is, he suggests, the real ground of hope.
(Originally published in Swedish. Summary translated by CC / Connexion.)
For free church formation resources including reflection on church health and decline, visit Worldwide Evangelical Seminary.
Source: Equmeniakyrkan / Sändaren — sandaren.se
