Christ, the Church, and Community

In the book of 1st Timothy, chapter 3, we find that Paul is sending a written message, but his desire
was to actually see his protege face-to-face. He writes:
14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly;
15 but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

When Jesus asked the disciples who they said that He was, Peter boldly proclaimed that Jesus was the "Christ, the Son of the Living God."  Jesus said that upon that rock He would build His...Church.  The Church is designed to be the reflection of the "living God" to a dying world.  And, the local church, as subsets of the Church He has established, is called and empowered to bring life - to its members and to its communities.  Fortunately, God has given us wonderful tools to strengthen the local church...it is incumbent for each of us to examine our connection to Christ and the Church and allow His life to flow through us.

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The Bible, in Hebrews 10, address the potential effectiveness of the local church and how God
desires for His people to come together:
23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.
24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,
25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

You may not agree with the premise, but there's something to be said for the practice, and there's a new trend, a new entity, that can really send a message to the culture.

For some time, you have seen technology fuel the growth of the church.  Some churches will now use technology and various campus locations to simulcast a sermon to multiple venues.  Website and social media will help local churches to transmit their messages, to keep regular congregants informed and even attract new attendees.   Churches stream their churches online to reach people who are either unable to attend or even will not enter into a church building.

In this midst of this technological explosion that God is using to strengthen His church, I believe, there is another entry into the concept of how to do "church."  And, while I am not necessarily endorsing this particular product, I do believe that the premise has some merit.

John Erbele was a pastor at a church in Minnesota when back in 2009 he was arrested in a prostitution ring, according to a story on the Bismarck Tribune website.  The article says that "He pleaded guilty, served a year’s probation and the offense was removed from his record."  It goes on to tell the story:

He eventually moved to Streeter, where his dad lived, divorced, a single dad of three, and in 2015 married Hannah Andrusky, whom he’d known 20 years earlier. She’d written a book “Living the Invisible Disability” about a brain injury she’d suffered, and its aftermath, including suicidal episodes, a DUI charge and weaning herself from anti-depressants.

Streeter is in North Dakota, by the way.  Erbele is quoted as saying, "I was here in Streeter struggling and she was in California struggling, too, and we connected, talking mostly. In essence, this 5 Minute Church came out of struggle, pain and failure. I lost everything,” he said. “It’s a comeback story.”

The article says that:

John and Hannah Erbele are founders of 5MinChurch, a free download app for phones or smart Apple TVs, so young people and others can experience God and the Bible, blogs, sermons and songs on their favorite device.

The content - well, here is a sampling:

The Erbeles continually upload new content, videos of sermons and blogs, recordings of original music and entertainment-based interviews with Bible-believing celebrities under a 5MCE! tab. There’s also a “Get Help” tab where people can put in prayer requests and a “You Share” tab for personal stories, that may eventually, through the app, become a format for interaction. It’s mobile, so uploads can be done from anywhere, including their base in Beverly Hills, Calif.

Now, here's the premise - that the traditional church is in decline. Erbele contends, "Sixty percent of millennials are hostile to church and believe that church is a dangerous institution. Churches are dying, and they can’t afford to keep the lights on. We’re the last generation that’s even giving a little. The baby boomers, people aged 60 and older, still give to churches, but, once we lose the boomers, churches will be closing like you wouldn’t believe."

Hannah says, "Our ultimate goal is to reach millennials," adding, "Why spend all our time and money trying to get people to come to church, when we live with this thing (phone) on the end of our hands. They could be at Starbucks with this and have a little quiet time together.”

The story notes that they, "promote the small church concept, where a few people gather in a home as in earlier Christian times, tune in to the app and have their own faith-based interactions."

What do I like about this concept?  Christian content at your fingertips wherever you are. Now, this does not constitute an endorsement of 5 Minute Church, but it can cause us to think about ways we consume content.  A significant number of people, including listeners to Faith Radio, are engaging with content on mobile devices.  Google Analytics data for the Faith Radio website show that over 4-in-10 users of our website each week use it on a mobile device or tablet.  I believe there is an enormous need for heart-ready content that encourages believers.  

A concern would be the relationship to the local church.  It appears that 5 Minute Church wants to be a church, not to necessarily build up the local church.  Now, there is the promotion of small group interaction through the app, and if that were to occur, that would be a positive step.  But, the Scriptural model, I believe, is that God does His work through the church in communities - in their communities.

Faith Radio, obviously, is using technology to teach and encourage God's Word - through 8 terrestrial facilities, our online stream at FaithRadio.org, audio and video content that can be accessed through that site, as well as blog content, and the ability to hear Faith Radio anywhere through our app.  But, there is one distinctive that we have....we are here to help build up the local church.  We do not wish to be a substitute for the local church.  

Now, I made a pronouncement, really an observation, at one of our staff meetings recently.  We were discussing how there is a group of men who have formed a group to listen to David Jeremiah every morning and text their comments to one another.  What an amazing idea!  A text group or even a prayer conference call are ways through which people can interact using technology.  Now, think about this - what if you gathered a group of friends together at a local establishment or a home on a regular basis and actually had a discussion about one of the programs that you commonly hear on Faith Radio?  Perhaps you can order some curriculum to coincide with the radio series and use it as the basis of a small group study through your local church.

I think you could make the case that the local church is in decline - as a whole.  But, there are churches that are growing, and not just what you may call megachurches.  There is plenty to say about that matter, but the key for the Church today is sensitivity - to the Holy Spirit as He shapes the mission of the Church, to the people the Church is called to serve, and to the tools that are available in order to connect with people in unique ways, and that includes the technology component.