There is a stage in many churches where – even when diversity is present – there is no meaningful interaction between cultures, and we don’t reap the benefits of these diverse perspectives.

So how do we help our churches take meaningful steps towards being intercultural – not simply coexisting, but growing together?

1. Seeing God’s design for unity in diversity

Before we talk about practice, we must talk about theology.

Intercultural engagement is not a modern trend. It is woven into the biblical story. When I look at Genesis 1 and 2, I see a blueprint for unity in diversity – one humanity, created by God, and expressed in different physical features and cultural expressions. That is part of the biodiversity of creation.

And when we turn to Pentecost, we see God intentionally chose a moment when people from ‘from every nation under heaven’ were gathered – and that’s when he birthed the church. The church was born multilingual and multiethnic. People expected God to speak in Hebrew, but instead they heard him in their own languages. (Acts 2:4-11)

Amazed they said: “we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” That tells us something profound about who God is. He is not a tribal God; he is the God of the nations.

Helping our churches see this Biblical foundation will help them get on board with the vision of intercultural church – from a place of desire, not duty. Teaching through passages like Acts 2, Acts 6, Ephesians 2-3 or Revelation 7 with this lens can be a good start.

When people see God’s heart for people of all nations and cultures to worship in unity, they begin to long to see that happen in their own church.

2. Learning to listen and unlearn

One of the biggest barriers to intercultural growth is not hostility, but false assumptions. We assume our way of doing church is the normal way, or even the biblical way, when often it is simply our cultural way. In the episode I said, “If we are going to do intercultural church well, we must learn and unlearn.” And that learning begins with listening.

Listening is a core part of discipleship. It is how we learn to love. When people from different backgrounds share their experiences – what feels like home, what feels unfamiliar, what they wish others understood – we begin to know our church family more deeply. We begin to see one another more generously. Our eyes are opened to how our own cultural assumptions impact others, and this helps us to build a church that builds up all believers.

‘The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” If one part suffers every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.’ (1 Corinthians 12: 21-26).

3. Count the cost

Intercultural church is beautiful, but it is not neat. As we discussed in the podcast, “Everybody’s going to be inconvenienced. Everybody will be changed. No one is left unchanged.” That is the reality.

Before we commit to going on a journey as a cross-cultural church, we must first ask ourselves: Have I counted the cost?

The blessing – a broader and deeper view of God’s kingdom – is often proceeded by sacrifice.

It may mean adjusting the way we preach, the examples we use, the assumptions we make about money or family or time. It may mean songs we do not know, accents we struggle with, leadership styles that feel unfamiliar. It may mean moments of discomfort – for everyone.

If we fail to count the cost, we can easily become discouraged by the growing pains, or the time it takes for change to occur. Being soberminded about the time and patience it takes to grow cross-cultural churches allows us to remain hopeful and resilient through change.

But this stretching is where the joy lies. Intercultural church is messy ecclesiology, but it is also fruitful. Because as we learn and unlearn together, as we allow ourselves to be changed by one another, we begin to see more of the fullness of God’s kingdom.

4. Allowing new voices to shape our imagination

In the episode I ask church leaders, “Which books are you reading? Who wrote those books? Are you only reading Western scholars and preachers?”

In the West, those in church leadership can often only read Western theologians and pastors. This is often completely unintentional. However, if all our theological influences come from one cultural stream, we will struggle to lead a church that reflects the nations God has brought to our doorstep.

Many of the things that we believe are ‘biblical’ perspectives on leading a church, are actually cultural.

Growing interculturally means broadening the voices that shape us. It means recognising that no one culture has a monopoly on Christian wisdom. When we allow African, Asian, Latin American, and other diaspora voices to shape our preaching, our worship, and our leadership, we begin to see the gospel with fresh eyes. We begin to see the church as a global body.

This is not about being tokenistic, it’s about being discipled by others, and allowing the whole body of Christ teach us.

A final encouragement

You may feel overwhelmed. You may wonder where to begin. But it’s comforting to remember that God is already doing something in his church. Migration, demographic change, and the movement of global Christianity are not accidents — they are invitations.

Our role is not to manufacture diversity, but to mirror the diversity of our communities. The same Spirit who birthed a multilingual church at Pentecost and broke down the dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles is still at work today.

Perhaps what we are doing now is a kind of wedding rehearsal; a rehearsal for the day when people from every tribe, nation, and language will worship the Lamb together.

For more in depth and practical examples of how to grow an intercultural church, listen to my latest episode with John Stevens of FIEC of the Everyday Evangelism podcast Why Cross-Cultural Church is Central to the Gospel here, or watch below.

You can also access LCM’s leaders guide Growing a Cross-Cultural Church, which provides practical wisdom for leaders shaping communities of welcome and belonging.