Hebrews 10:25 ‘…. not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.’
In recent church history there has never been a period quite like the present time. At different times and in different places, the church has found itself under persecution or oppression and has been forced to close the doors of its buildings and find other ways to meet, worship and proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. The disciples met in a ‘locked room’ for fear of the Jews after the resurrection of Jesus – but they still met! Often under the most intense pressure, the early church found ways and places to meet -even when the risks were high.
But the present Coronavirus crisis is like no other, affecting large parts of the world and having a unique impact on the Church of the Lord Jesus. The very things that make meeting so important – communal singing, close fellowship and sharing communion, are the things that increase the risk of spreading the virus.
Whilst much of life seems to be heading back to a kind of normal, that is far from the case in the local church. Many congregations will have felt a kind of bereavement over the last few months, being forced to reflect on what is really important as far as the local church is concerned. Physical meetings and activities were suspended completely for several months and, although the Government has allowed churches to start meeting again, the restrictions and conditions placed upon them are onerous, potentially rendering the time there somewhat joyless and sterile. I am sure many a pastor will acknowledge how hard it is to preach to a largely empty church, where the people who are present are wearing face masks, and no-one sings! In fact, I personally found it is harder to preach in these circumstances than to a camera lens alone. In addition, it has been hard to balance the zeal of some for returning to physical meetings against the genuine fears and concerns of those who are reluctant to do so.
However, we are grateful for the modern technology available to us – many previously technologically illiterate congregations found themselves with a Youtube channel and even broadcasting live on Sunday mornings, evenings and midweek. These meetings, though far from being the best that ‘meeting together’ can offer, gave us a way of being together when we were forced to be apart. There is something delightful in the thought that all over the world, hundreds of thousands of households of believers gathered round their tablets, TVs, smartphones and computers to worship, praise and hear God’s word. Many sang along with the songs and hymns in their homes and there were opportunities to pray together and fellowship together online. As the weeks rolled by, it became possible to engage others in the time of worship, bringing mission reports and testimonies as well as reading the scriptures and leading worship, with real creativity and imagination, making the distant gathering a meaningful experience. We remember of course, that there are many of our brothers and sisters who have no such access to this technology and who have found the period of enforced separation even harder as a result. At a recent online Bible study, one of our folk said, “You can’t close the Church” and that is very true. You can close buildings and place such restrictions on meeting that it becomes onerous, but the Church is never ‘closed’ – or as Paul said from his prison cell, “The Gospel is not chained”. It is true for our present predicament. Many churches report being contacted by people seeking to engage with the church during lockdown, listening to services and Bible studies online when they would never have entered a church building, fearful of trampling on the protocols of church gatherings.
One fear is that the initial ‘excitement’ of the crisis will quickly pass and people on the fringes of church life will establish other patterns of behaviour which will tend to draw them away from the impulse to ‘meet together’. If no-one knows they are ‘there’, they can absent themselves with little accountability. It is imperative that church leaders have a co-ordinated plan to keep that vital contact with the whole church during this time – an opportunity to show a love and care that is new and crucial in the crisis. A few straying sheep will need to be pursued when all this comes to a close.
Another concern is that many will conclude that watching a service from home is more convenient than having to attend a building – the kids can play and we can lie-in even more on a Sunday! Whilst the new technologies will continue to be a valuable resource for those who are unable to attend church – parents of young children or the housebound for example – it must never be allowed to become the norm, or even a substitute for true fellowship. We were saved for fellowship with one another, with the Lord Jesus and with the Father – and He reserves the most precious of blessings for those who gather together in His Name. There is also a danger that faithful friends who have previously given time and energy to lead meetings, outreaches and activities will find themselves less inclined to do so. The pace of daily life and the demands of ministry have grown in recent times – who will be ready to take up the challenge when this is all over? Some fellowships will find it impossible to reconvene under the restrictions currently in place – perhaps some will never open again?
It is well known that people behind Facebook posts and camera lenses behave in a way that is not ‘real’, and this online fellowship will only reinforce the distance between believers rather than draw us closer together when it is used over a long period. There is no substitute for the countless little conversations over coffee after morning worship – where we detect the struggles and challenges of daily life for our folk and can follow up or simply uphold them in prayer. One of the many reasons the writer of Hebrews commanded us to meet together is that the physical distance between us gives space and opportunity for the evil one to divide and discourage. How important the face-to-face interaction of believers is in preventing division and resentment from growing in Christian communities (Matt 18). It’s hard to hold a grudge against someone who is stood in front of you – but much easier when you have not seen them for some time.
There is little doubt that the Lord will use this time to sift and refine His church. When we finally make our way up to the house of the Lord without masks, signs, sanitiser and can fill all the seats – what will the church look like then? There will certainly be good things we have discovered during this time, and new practices that we will carry into the future, but at the moment we simply long to be found together among the Lord’s People, treasuring the joys of true fellowship all the more now that they have been taken from us.
…we simply long to be found together among the Lord’s People, treasuring the joys of true fellowship all the more now that they have been taken from us.
Until then we may echo the words of Psalm 137: “By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we remembered Zion… How can we sing the songs of the Lord while in a foreign land? If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill, may my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem my highest joy.” (v:1,4 – 6)