“Easy” Church
During the last few months many of us have been relegated to “doing church” at home whether we have the convenience of watching our pastoral staff online or our family puts together our own time of worship and teaching of God’s Word.
In our area we have slowly been able to start back to in-person services with acceptable physical distancing and sanitizing. My church has offered two morning service times to divide up the congregation so we can spread out as deemed necessary.
When you have had to miss gathering with fellow believers for weeks, it has been exciting and revitalizing and brought peace and refreshment to my soul with all the unknown and upheaval this world has been experiencing.
One thing I have been thankful for during all this is technology. We can have a love-hate relationship with it. I know I do. But churches have turned to live streaming and AM radio for drive in services and Zoom calls to reach out to small groups to try to achieve the connection that is needed as a local church body.
As a body of Christ, we are the Church (big letter C), but Jesus taught the importance of the local church. Do NOT let people tell you the local church is not needed. There are two concepts in the Bible of the Church/church.
The Church (big letter C again – watch the capitalization) is not a building. It is not an organization. It is who we are as God’s children who have trusted in Jesus to save us from our sins.
Then there is the local church. It is taught in Ephesians 4:15-16 that Christ is the head and the believers are the body. Paul expounds on this more in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 where he tells us each member is important and needed to make up the body. We are to grow together and work together for the cause of Christ. We need each other, he explains, because we cannot be without an eye when we need to see or without an ear when we need to hear.
With some churches across the country (and world) opening back up, I am sure there are going to be those who will decide they were content with “watching church” from the comforts of their sofa. I will admit it was cozy to lay out on mine with my soft blanket and livestream our pastor each service, but “watching church” is all we are doing if we are not attending. We are not participants. We are not fulfilling Jesus’ purpose for the local church.
I’m just going to flat out say it. If we are not doing what Jesus directs, it is sin. Bottom line. Top line. And everywhere in between.
If we are not attending church faithfully as a believer in Christ – and yes, I know some are at risk and need to continue to stay home, I understand that – then we are not obeying, we are sinning.
Live streaming and television and radio cannot fulfill the need for community. We need to worship together, serve together, give together, and grow together in our faith. We can’t do that sitting in our living rooms week after week. We must be faithful.
This topic has been marinating in my mind for a few weeks, but recently in my Bible reading I read about when Rehoboam took over as king of Judah. He knew if the people continued to worship in the house of the Lord, then they would turn against him. So he made two golden calves for them to worship and to keep them from traveling to the house of the Lord. He told the people, “It’s too much for you to go up to Jerusalem” (1 Kings 12:26-28). He knew he could make it “easy” to keep them from doing God’s will.
Have we let the convenience of technology make attending church “too much”? Do we really want to give in to this “easy church” Christianity? Have our screens become those two golden calves which will keep us from fulfilling Christ’s purpose of the local church?
Our churches are not perfect. They never will be, but it is important to be connected to a local body of believers. If you are at risk, then please stay home, but if you are not and your church is holding in person services again, then don’t let fear or laziness keep you from it.
As the Church, we need the church. My desire to write this article isn’t a way to wag my finger at anyone, but a desire to encourage my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to keep on keeping on. Stay faithful. Don’t give in to “easy.” Remember that one day we will answer for the way we lived our portion in this life. 💕
11 Comments
Katheryn V. Little
So well said! You nailed it……”watching church” is not attending. We are not participants. We are not fulfilling Jesus’ purpose for the local church.
And how timely….. I admit “easy church” is exactly that— easy! And after reading your article, I was convicted. We are semi-back at our church but we had to stay home yesterday and watch online. It was easy. And I realized I liked that. It’s easy not to work up a lesson or not reach out to invite others or not fix a meal and invite someone over afterwards etc! It’s easy to live unto self! But as you say… it is sin! A good and timely word! Because time is short and we must be about the Father’s work!!
Sidenote: I had never heard the big C / little c description put exactly that way! That gave a lot of clarity!!
Leslie
I truly hope my heart is seen in this post that is why I struggled with sharing for a few weeks. I had it written before my last post but put it on the back burner. I truly try to post what I feel the Lord wants and pray a lot about what I’m working on. Yes, our lives here on this earth are so short, and I do want to put up treasures in heaven. We can’t do that when we get there, can we? 😉💙
michalskisgreatadventure
I’m glad you shared this, Leslie! Your post is well-written and your caution is well-needed! There is no place for forsaking the gathering because of our personal desires or comfort or ease…It’s an interesting read for me, because our family doesn’t currently gather with a local church – because the Lord also taught us that we couldn’t gather just for the sake of gathering. Not simply talking about an imperfect church here, but gatherings where there is specifically false teaching, and/or where the church gathering is mixing worldliness with the word, and refusing any attempts at looking at the issues or correcting them…In that case, the Lord taught us quite clearly that we couldn’t continue to gather there, but must leave. Having grown our hearts to desire to be part of a body of believers, He also grew our integrity to refuse to gather with a body of unbelievers, no matter how much they claimed to be christian. So I guess the one thing I would say differently is that I wouldn’t say we need the church, but that we need a heart for the church, as Jesus has a heart for the Church. The reality is, there are some people that simply won’t have a local church, and yet of course they can continue to be very faithful believers, and God has taught us that we may be the church, wherever 2 or 3 or gathered in His name…And yet, He has set in our hearts the constant desire to gather with other believers, so that we are always looking for them and always looking forward to ways that we might gather, and it is essential that we cultivate that heart and not place it second to our own desires. So if we have a heart for church – sometimes that heart will lead us to gather even when it’s not convenient or comfortable – and sometimes that heart will ache because we can’t gather, even though we’d like to, because the gathering that’s available isn’t faithful to the Lord…I feel like it’s one of those truths that is so difficult to pinpoint because of all the different circumstances – and yet is so entirely clear in each circumstance because the desire to faithfully serve God above all makes the individual decisions obvious. Which is what you really captured in this post – to put our faithfulness to God first in guiding our actions in a time when many things have changed for many people!
Leslie
Yes, I certainly realize there are those who do not have a local church in which to gather. It sounds you are doing what is necessary in that situation. Putting aside time to worship and learn is important, and the fact you are searching out other believers to fellowship when they are available is essential. Paul spoke a lot on the importance of the church in his books. I’m sure if you find others in your area searching as you, then you could add them to your “local” church. Being faithful to God is definitely the crucial point in all our steps. 💜
michalskisgreatadventure
Thanks, Leslie! I’m glad you took this time to highlight this important subject, when recent circumstances have really stirred up the temptation to take the easy road…I apologize if I off-roaded too far into my personal journey, and appreciate your great balance of admonishment and exhortation in this post!
Janelle@The Peaceful Haven
Such a good one!
arricahess
This is a great post Leslie. We as the church have to remember our commitment to the Lord’s commands and to our local body. Fear and apathy can so easily set in if we don’t remember the truth of what His word says about gathering. And, loved the truth of how we can set up our own idols like Isreal. Thanks for sharing this timely word.
Leslie
Arrica, I just fear that people will get lax in their faithfulness to the Lord. We need each other which is so evident in Paul’s epistles where he tells the church to work and serve together. I’m continuing to pray for your church and having wisdom about reaching out during this time. Thanks for reading! 💚
Leslie
Thank you, Janelle, for stopping by and commenting!
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Cheryl Grey Bostrom, Author
Yesyesyes. How we need each other ❤️.