Tim Chester offers a great diagnostic list to determine whether our communities are communities of performance or grace:
| Communities of Performance | Communities of Grace |
| the leaders appear sorted | the leaders are vulnerable |
| the community appears respectable | the community is messy |
| meetings must be a polished performance | meetings are just one part of community life |
| identity is found in ministry | identity is found in Christ |
| failure is devastating | failure is disappointing, but not devastating |
| actions are driven by duty | actions are driven by joy |
| conflict is suppressed or ignored | conflict is addressed in the open |
| the focus is on orthodoxy and behaviour (allowing people to think they’re sorted) | the focus is on the affections of the heart (with a strong view of sin and grace) |