Being The Church When The Doors Are Closed
The coffee bar is closed.
The stage is gone.
Our sanctuaries are empty.
Can the silence in our sanctuaries reveal idols in our hearts? Could God be stripping away all of the lights and extras to leave us with what matters – knowing Christ and making Him known.
The Church – A Called Out People
Ephesians 1:4 – “...even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him.”
Ephesians 3:10 & 11 – “…so that through the Church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was according to the eternal purpose that He has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
In eternity past, before the creation of all things, the Lord had a beautiful plan in His heart. He would create a people for Himself – to know Him and to make Him known. Those people would choose to disobey Him, leaving them separated from their Creator.
This didn’t surprise God. He knew this would happen and would not leave them in their sin. In love, He set forth His plan to pursue us through the substitutionary death, burial, and resurrection of His Perfect Son. From within lost mankind, God would call out a people to know Him and to make Him known throughout all of eternity – this redeemed people is called the Church.
When was the Church formed?
We see marks of the church all throughout Scripture. Even in the Old Testament, you see gatherings of God’s people. Old Testament believers showed their faith in God through obedience to the law. They trusted that the sacrificial system put in place by God was sufficient for the covering of their sin. This obedience was credited to them as righteousness and these people made up the Church.
The New Testament Church was formed about fifty days after the resurrection of Christ. Jesus had come, lived a perfect life, offered Himself on the cross, risen again, and ascended to heaven.
At Pentecost, the Spirit of God came upon the disciples. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, Peter immediately preached the Gospel to a group of Jews that had witnessed what happened. On that day, 3000 believers were added to those who believed – the Church. From that moment in Biblical history, we now see the term Church used in Scripture as a reference to the people of God.
What did the NT church look like?
This early Church didn’t meet in large buildings, have spectacular curriculum, and put on worship experiences. They were a biblical community, meeting mainly in homes, living out the Great Commission. This passage of Scripture describes the early church well.
Acts 2:42-47 – “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”
From this passage, we see that the New Testament Church was marked by a few things:
Worship
Solid Doctrinal Teaching
Fellowship
Prayer
Ministry
Baptism
Communion
What’s all this have to do with the church today?
Our churches look very different today than they did 2000 years ago. In fact, our churches look very different today than they did a few weeks ago.
I cannot tell you the number of times that I have seen someone post, “They can’t take away church” on social media since the COVID-19 pandemic started. Being the Church is not something that can ever be taken from us. We are the Church – scattered or gathered – we are one body, on mission, united under Christ.
Believers, our mission stays the same. Our mission is the Great Commission.
Matthew 28:18-20 – “Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’”
Honestly, if anything, a lot of our churches look more like the New Testament church today, than we did a few weeks earlier.
We are (virtually) meeting in our homes for worship and teaching.
Parents are discipling their children.
Small groups are connecting using video chat and phone.
The Body of Christ is relearning how to be a good neighbor.
We are sharing with those around us in need.
5 Practical Tips for Being the Church During this Season
In this season of ministry, we want to offer you some practical tips for being the church and doing student ministry.
Mission First
Yes, our churches look very different than they did before, but our DNA is the same. We are the people of God, seeking to know Him and make Him known. As a local church, ask yourself how you can live out the Great Commission during this season.
How can you best reach your students and families with the Gospel and equip them to live out their faith?
People over Programs
Many churches and individuals will be struggling financially over the next few months. I want to encourage you to put people over programs. Don’t pour money into preserving the production of your “worship experience” while the people around you are in need. God calls us to build people, not programs.
How can you use your student ministry budget to make an impact and meet needs in the lives of people?
Worship and Teaching
Find some way to get into the homes of your students. This will look so different for every church. Go live teaching God’s Word. You could even send your students some snail mail. Imagine how encouraging it would be for a student to open a letter with Psalm 121 handwritten inside. Be creative.
How can you continue teaching your students from the Word and encouraging them to set their eyes on Christ?
Fellowship
This can be very hard to do when we are social distancing. However, student ministry is set up for success. I have never seen social media as a gift before, but I do now. Thankfully, this generation thrives on connecting via social media.
How can you use social media to create and maintain community with your students?
Prayer
Pray with and for your students. Send them a text letting them know how you are praying for them. Pray with them over the phone. This is a great chance to show them reliance upon the Lord during this time.
How can you best gather prayer requests and pray with your students?