McLean Bible Church

Attended the church once and that was it. Felt like the service didn’t speak to you on a personal level. Essentially they did not correlate the teachings of the bible to the use of everyday life. In addition, the traffic is horrible and causes anywhere from 10 to 20 min backups on route 7. Lastly, too big of a church.

This is a very big church, a mega church. Thousands of people come here for church every weekend.
I have been coming to Mclean Bible Church for 8 years now. The best thing about this church is that it has biblically sound teachings. The senior Pastor, Lon Solomon, does a great job in teaching and helping the congregation understand and apply the teachings.
The church also focuses on reaching out to the community and serving those in need in the DC area. The Bible teaches us that we need to do good in our community, so the church is incredibly focused on that to ensure that we can reach others with the story of salvation.
Lastly, I want to mention that the church is focused on discipleship. They want believers to dive deeper into their relationship with God and make it real. The church doesn’t want armchair Christians, they want Christians who call themselves disciples of Jesus Christ and are out there representing God in action.
This church is not for everyone for many reasons, but it has been great for my family. We are invested in the people and the various ministries. If you come to this church to visit, you will not be disappointed.

This week will be our fifth week at MBC and we plan to keep coming back. Every one is friendly and welcoming. Our favorite part is that political matters are never preached. We are looking forward to learning more about MBC!

I have been attending the services for over a year together with my children and I have met truly dedicated, caring and passionate people there. My children went to the summer camp at the Herndon Campus organized in the evening for a week and I volunteered to help with the arts projects. My children had a great time there and learned a lot.
Will continue to go there…

I’ve gone to this church for many years. I love that Lon is very careful to preach God’s word and not add a bunch of his personal thoughts or opinions. Good sound doctrine! There is really something for everyone at this church. They help you meet new people and get connected. There is so much love and support to be found there. I also love all the different ministries and seeing and hearing all the people they have blessed! From the Career Network to the Clothing ministry, so many free resources led by volunteers for people in need. Plus they are clear and open about where every dime goes. No secrets! I highly recommend!

TL;DR I came to Christ because of many factors in my personal life but Mclean Bible Church had a huge part in that process, and for that alone they should get 5+ stars. However after two years of weekly attendance I realized they’re not Biblically sound. No communion every week, they teach that faith alone will save you, and they teach that Baptism is not required for Salvation.
Outreach: To elaborate, the lead pastor Lon Solomon here has radio bits (because they have an amazing amount of money) called «Not a Sermon Just a Thought» that I would hear often before coming to Christ, then when I did want to join a Church I discovered that all of his sermons are available on their church app «Mclean Bible Church» and that was amazing! I could study the Bible within the comfort of my own home.
App: I recommend listening to his Genesis sermon series in particular first, it teaches you how to answer the tough scientific questions (the ones that I had which originally led me to not believe in anything) and really defend your faith.
Sermons: I was moved during his sermon on homosexuality (outside of the Genesis series), something near and dear to my heart. In this regard the sermon was tough to hear but truthful, McLean Bible Church never lied and said that being gay is okay with God– it’s a sin like any other. Matthew 7:13−23 makes it clear that our transgressions on Earth are not guaranteed to be forgiven and it’s scary when churches preach otherwise.
Attire: I came every Sunday, when I dressed up I would attend the mega church in the mornings and when I wanted to dress down I would go to the evening Edge service (loud music, dim lights, light show, etc).
Giving/​Money: I gave my 10% online, automatic withdrawal from my bank account which was so convenient, although I still felt a twinge when they passed around the collection plate and I didn’t contribute in person. I like that online you can choose which part of the church you support, I. e I chose «online resources» because I used the website live streaming and application so much.
Volunteering: I volunteered for two consecutive New Years Eve all nighters here, great experiences teaching kids about Christ while they have fun in a safe environment.
Baptism: I also went to their Baptism class! I was baptized catholic as a baby but now I really wanted to follow Christ and isn’t that what the Bible says? There were no conversions in the Bible that didn’t immediately have baptism occur afterwards! However, I learned then after two years of attendance and Bible study that this church, while rich, opulent, full of great people, and a powerful pastor, was not Biblically sound. They teach that Baptism is a nice gesture (even commanded by Jesus) but not necessary for salvation. Completely contrary to John 3:5.
Also, to really follow the original (and only) Church of Christ from the Bible in Acts we would do communion every Sunday, which does not happen here. I have yet to figure out how Lon decides when communion will happen– it seems random.
I ultimately did not feel that this was the place to nourish my soul with Godly advice, so I don’t call it my church home. I do return when I miss other Sunday morning services because McLean Bible Church offers so many different service times at many different «campuses».

OK, so I’ve been a member of MBC since the early nineties. I’ve seen it grow from about two thousand to over fifteen thousand. I’ve seen the mistakes we’ve made over the years, but I’ve also seen amazing things occur as well. The good far outweigh the bad.
But first, let’s remember, the church is just a group of imperfect human beings, so no church will be perfect (hence four stars). Secondly, MBC is a ‘BIBLE’ church. I don’t understand why people expect bible churches to teach anything that isn’t based in the bible. This means if we accept the bible as it is, rather than revise it to adjust to our current social mores, we get labeled as a cult of haters. The real message of the bible is that all people fall short of a perfect God, i.e., we are all sinful, and thus cannot be in a relationship with a perfect God. The good news is that God has made a provision for that, i.e., the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. All we have to do is confess and turn from our sins and invite Christ to be Lord of our life.
MBC has consistently done a good job of teaching this. We have people from all walks of life — race, religion (even atheists), political party (MBC does NOT endorse any political party), sexual orientation, etc.; all still struggling with sin on a daily basis. No one sin is better or worse than another. In contrast to a perfect sinless God, we all fall short.
Hate of any group of people has never been taught at MBC. As a non-​white person, I have to say that it’s very encouraging to see an ever-​growing diverse congregation that seeks to put God first and teach from the bible. Funny thing is people that dislike MBC tend to be extremists on both the left and the right. That should speak volumes…
BTW, the church leadership has been very intentional about making sure that MBC does NOT become a country-​club church. As a long-​standing member, I can say that we have had biker types show up in jeans and leathers (and not just during the Jill’s Ride promotions). In fact, in over twenty years, I can count on two hands the number of times that I’ve worn a suit or khakis to a church service, though there are a fair number of people that do. I’ve never received anything but warm welcomes, even though I’m dressed down. God cares about our heart condition, not our outward appearance and most folks at MBC get this…

This review is a bit old a few years old… but I didnt have good experiences here and definetely rang off some crazy alarms.
1. First service I went to they made some guy confess to the church that he cheated on his spouse. You could tell that the guy looked like it was in the spot and was uncomfortable.
2. Many years later… went back there. Now they give you pamphlets and presentations on how to be an evangelist and convert people O. o
So… yeah… I couldn’t drink the kool aid on this place and I tried twice.
Looks like there is a whole forum thread that discusses the oddities of this church.

I come here almost every Sunday for worship with my family. I love this place. Every single one of the staff members here are always so welcoming and friendly, it warms my heart.
During service, the worship team is awesome and the message always hits the spot. One thing I really love about this place is that they are very good with their time. They start right on the dot as promised and end promptly, not delaying anyone.
I decided to write a review because I went to their Christmas Eve service today and it was such a blessing to be there. It was packed even when my family and I got there 15 minutes before service, so going early is a must.
I really think that Christian should try out Mclean for at least one service.

I’ve been attending this church for a few months now. To me, this is what the church was intended to be. They are service-​orientated and help the local community and the world in missions. Lon Solomon is a very good teacher. The worship is beautiful. It’s been life-​changing for me.

Great Church. Great Sermon. When you leave you actually remember what was being preached and the message that was given. I heard Pastor Lon’s sermon on the radio years ago. I’m so glad we have taken the time to connect at McLean Bible Church in Tyson’s. I’m happy to say it’s one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. We love it :)

This is a very well rounded church. With an anointed ministry. Everything about it serves a purpose and fulfills it’s calling as a beacon to the NCR.

It’s beyond me that churches can be rated (there are just so many factors involved, I find it hard to quantify), but I will get over it to applaud McLean Bible Church’s amazing ministry. There is something for everyone here. Whether you’re old, young, single, married, with or without kids, there will be a niche for you. There are so many amazing resources here, including a Career Network Ministry that you can find via Meetup, a housing dashboard for people looking for a place, roommates, etc.
Along with the amazing resources, this church is very modern in that sermons make sense to us in our day-​to-​day today. The messages are very applicable to now, and reach a variety of audiences (hence the multiple campuses and ministries). The Senior Pastor Lon is amazing and actually pretty famous!
I highly recommend visiting for the traditional or contemporary Sunday Service and checking out the many other activities, events, and programs!

This is a biblically sound church with a great core of senior leadership. If big churches are not your thing you may not like MCB due to the size, but I would at least recommend giving the MCB podcast a try and see for yourself. You can easily attend church online if that is something better for your lifestyle.
This church teaches the bare bones of Christianity without putting a denominational spin on any topic. So glad I found this church.

Locally it is known as a mega-​church. The size of the facility and amount of people at any of the multiple in-​house services provided throughout Sat and Sun. There’s just no excuse for you to not be a part of a church service on the weekend :) and for those times you can’t physically make it out there are live and downloadable podcasts available.
McLean Bible Church just offers great messages, worship, and LOTS of resources & ministries to those who are seeking healing or opportunities to serve others within the church or out in the DC/​MD/​VA communities.

We came from a way different church — a smaller edgier one locally known as the Rock-​and-​Roll church or The Biker Church. So McLean was a bit of a shock… its big, wealthy, and more formal.
Ok that said its a come-​as-​you-​are place but the norm isnt «sandals and biker jacket» the norm is more dockers with more than a few suit and ties. No big deal just a change for us.
Ok so bigness. We drove up and went «holy schnikies thats big» but its good to have covered parking when raining/​snowing (didn’t do much of either back in TX) and thats half of the sense of big. So having ended our steeplechase to stay at MBC we noticed that once plugged into a parents of teens group, our normal service, and the kids in the Rock/AWANA…it doesn’t seem big because you focus on the people you are in community with not the rest who you DON’T know.
Programs. Wow. Multi-​language programs — Mandarin, Korean, Spanish, Afghan/​Persian (Farsi I think) and of course Southern. Kid programs are off the charts. I am told young adult/​singles are amazing, and every group from Creative Arts, Sexual Addiction recovery, divorce support group, financial assistance, food/​clothes to the poor, its pretty much all there. Resources they got. Either traditional service, Edge, or Frontline (Edgier service for the Unilocal-​ish age crowd).
We got over the bigness and love it now. HIGHLY recommend it.
FRONTLINE:
McLean Central Homepage:

Church reviews, what’ll they think of next…
I’ve been going to McLean for a long time and seen it go through a lot of changes. It can be a bit intimidating when you first get here, in fact it feels more like a small airport concourse sometimes than it does a church, but thats because of the shear size of the facility.
Its easy to get lost in a place this large, but they want to make sure you don’t stay lost. There are a lot of wonderful opportunities to meet people through things like Frontline athletics or any of the other ministries.
If you feel like theres no way God could love you because of something in your past, you’ll find a ministry here where other people have been through the same thing.
If you reach out just a little bit, you can find a place for you. Unfortunately, its also big enough that you do have to make a bit of effort, albeit only a small amount, to fit in.

Been coming here for a long time now. Meant to update this a long time ago but just forgot.
This place just has a ton of programs and resources. There’s a little bit of everything for everyone here.

God is good. All the time. God is good!
And so for that, as my gratitude to Him, I would like to share my experience of worship and learning the Word of God at one of the biggest and the busiest House of God among DC, VA, MD area.
Located in Vienna, Alexandria, branch out to other part in Arlington, and also on some part of area in MD.
But the one that I more often to visit for Sunday sermon is the one at Leesburg Pike, near Tyson’s mall.
As a Church goer, I love McLean Bible Church.
Mega church with their different time of service, two times in the morning, one in the afternoon and one at late afternoon which will be done at the early evening.
So if in case we miss the first sermon will be another next one, and if we can not make it in the morning or in the afternoon, the 5:30 pm service will be the best bets.
The attendees is usually from the different layer of ages.
They also have Sunday school for little kids, in the different room, and if we like to attend bible class after the morning service, will be available as well.
The morning services and the early afternoon, is usually attended by family, more mature crowd but also attended by young professionals. The evening service, which what the Church name as the Frontline service is usually attended by young adult and youth.
I am so glad to finally found this Church. Good sermon, good teaching from all the pastors, and excellent praise and worship.
When I live overseas I have a similar type of church, the place I can learn more of the word of God and growth in my faith and spirituality.
Perhaps for some of the people who use to with the smaller scale of Church, this Church can be a little bit intimidating because of the big size of it, that we can consider as a mega church, with their big flat screen all around on the main worship room.
But for me, it is actually quite what I am looking for.
As petite self as I am, I have learn to think Big as my Mighty God is Bigger than life. :)
The other part of the church that has become my favorite place to stop after the sermon is the book store. :)
I found several of interesting book from this book store. About life, helping others, dating, and even the book that not hesitate to discussing from Christian point of view and giving some good insights of what the world has put it in the wrong context of what God has plan to be for human that has been overrated.
Another good thing about this mega church, they have parking available, come early is always a good way to go, since the parking can be busy traffic and full easily in the morning. But thank God it will always be a space in the higher open air area if you keep driving up.
Also, since coffee is always been my favorite thing in the morning, I am so happy that McLean bible have their own coffee shop inside.
Definitely save time and efforts without making the church attendee leave the place and find another coffee shop.
McLean Bible also have a Cafeteria with different selections of breakfast options. No time for lunch for the next service or bible class? No problem. They serve the food at the Cafeteria. Definitely save the day!
Coming to this Church and attending the service, has giving me more understanding of how to live, help me to progress and lead me for what to do and not to do as His follower. What beneficial and what not useful and beneficial in live, on my journey to God given opportunity and destiny.
As a human being, who is not perfect, maybe we experience stumble in our walk of life, but the learning experience from listening the Word of God, for the sermon I attended, I have learn to be able stand up again from falling down with the strength from God, to be resilience from all the trial and tribulations in life.
For all the good things that happen in my life, from all the talent and all my blessings, I know God has everything to do with it. :)
And so for that, I am coming back to the heart of of worship.
And tell Him it’s all about Him. My Lord and Savior.
Above all powers, above all kings.
Above all nature and all created things
Above all wisdom and all the ways of man
You were there before the world begin
Above all kingdoms, above all thrones
Above all wonders the world has ever known
Above all wealth and treasures of the earth
There’s no way to measure what you’re worth

I’m not sure how one should review a church, but I really enjoy McLean Bible. The first thing you notice when you arrive here is that it’s huge. During services there are about a dozen volunteers directing traffic just inside the parking garage. Inside, McLean Bible is like a bee hive and every corner is buzzing. Because this church was really designed to be a destination for many this buzz of activity is nearly as pronounced during the week as it in on the weekend.
The strength of leadership is what holds a church of this size together. There isn’t one monolithic, micromanaging executive pastor running this show but rather a very strong hierarchy of leaders and a constant effort to build small groups and to lift active members into larger leadership positions. It’s a fantastic model and it clearly works and gets results.
The stated mission of this church «is to make an impact on secular Washington with the message of Jesus Christ.» That mission has clearly showered them with blessings as they have grown this church and are actively building 5 satellite churches as well. Some people find the congregation to be a little too secular at times and again, look at their clearly stated mission. This place is a bridge. However, I have also met many people at this church who have clearly grown beyond what McLean has to offer them and continue to go here to share back and help others cross that bridge as someone once helped them.
At the top of all this is Lon Solomon who is a powerfully anointed speaker. If you’ve ever been confused by pastors who seem to ramble on and leave you more confused than when you came in, you need to listen to Lon. Not only is his speaking skill in the top 1% out there, the structure of his talks is also quite amazing.
On their web site you can find podcasts and an audio library of Lon Speaking from the past 10 years or so. It’s worth checking out.