{"id":31402,"date":"2022-09-10T15:28:56","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:28:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-scattered-church-and-covid-19-why-sound-ecclesiology-is-crucial-in-a-pandemic\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:28:56","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:28:56","slug":"the-scattered-church-and-covid-19-why-sound-ecclesiology-is-crucial-in-a-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-scattered-church-and-covid-19-why-sound-ecclesiology-is-crucial-in-a-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"The Scattered Church and COVID-19: Why Sound Ecclesiology is Crucial in a Pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Sandro Gonzalez photo – Unsplash<\/div>\n

By Joy Allmond and Y Bonesteele<\/em><\/p>\n

Ecclesiology is the study of the church, including the purpose, leadership structure, and practices. Why does this matter\u2014particularly now, during a season when the church is scattered?<\/p>\n

Lifeway Research\u00a0recently discussed this topic with Trevin Wax, vice president of communications and theology at Lifeway Christian Resources.<\/p>\n

Why is it important for church leaders (well, all believers, for that matter) to have a right understanding of ecclesiology during this season when we’re scattered?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wax:<\/strong> We need to have a right understanding of ecclesiology all the time<\/em>, not just for this season. The reality is when you can\u2019t meet in a building, it reinforces the statement we say: The church is not a building<\/em>.<\/p>\n

That said, sometimes people try to overcorrect the idea that the worship gathering is central to the church, and they\u2019ll say, \u201cYou are the church wherever you are, wherever you go<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s true we’re the church scattered, but we’re certainly called to gather. Right now, we feel the need<\/em> to gather because we were made<\/em> to gather.<\/p>\n

The gathering of the church is essential for a local congregation to be what it\u2019s called to be and to fulfill its mission.<\/p>\n

So, what is this pandemic teaching us about being the church?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wax:<\/strong> We’re being taught through this experience that the church is not a building, that the church gathering is not all there is about the church.<\/p>\n

But we’re also being taught through this experience just how important gathering is in the life of the church.<\/p>\n

So yes, it\u2019s true that we are still the church when we\u2019re scattered, but like a family, we still long to be together.<\/p>\n

My brother lives in South Korea right now, serving in the military with his family. They\u2019re still my family. His kids are still my kids\u2019 cousins. He\u2019s still my brother.<\/p>\n

But we\u2019re not together, and one of the things you feel when families are scattered is the sense of distance because you know you were made to come together and to gather.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s true of the family, and that\u2019s true of the church.<\/p>\n

How, then, does biblical ecclesiology inform our transition back into normal church life?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wax:<\/strong> I hope the instructions we find in Hebrews, that we not \u201cneglect to gather together,\u201d will lead to an increased involvement and an increased commitment to consistent church attendance.<\/p>\n

One the things we’ve seen over the last 20 years is the decline in church attendance.<\/p>\n

To be clear, the percentage of people who attend church regularly is still what it was in the 1940s. We haven\u2019t seen this massive decline in the percentage of people who say they go to church regularly.<\/p>\n

Where we see the decline, though, is fewer and fewer people are attending church with the same level of consistency they did just 20 years ago.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been said the definition of a faithful churchgoer in the 1990s was someone who was at church maybe three times a week.<\/p>\n

Today, a faithful churchgoer might be someone who goes to church maybe three times a month<\/em>, if that.<\/p>\n

The deprioritizing of consistent regular gathering has led us to a situation in which we\u2019ve seen a decline in church attendance, not because fewer people are there, but that they\u2019re there less often.<\/p>\n

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See also  The Group Most Likely to Still Be Missing From Your Church<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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What would you say to those who prefer small groups over corporate gatherings?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wax:<\/strong> Small groups are very important for the life of the church. We will probably see more small groups meeting and less larger gatherings during these pandemic times for everyone\u2019s safety.<\/p>\n

And we know a lot of the personal connection comes about through small groups, but small groups are generally divided into life stages at some level and don\u2019t fully express the breadth of the body.<\/p>\n

As wonderful as small groups are, there’s something about the larger gathering of all believers coming together in worship that’s irreplaceable.<\/p>\n

In that moment, you have people from different stages of life, you have older women who can teach younger women, you have people who are now welcoming new children into the world, people who are burying their mother or father. You have both weddings and funerals.<\/p>\n

The larger church gathering has something about and for all of life.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s something amazing when a senior adult and a senior in high school are standing shoulder to shoulder singing the same song to the same Lord. There\u2019s something irreplaceable in that.<\/p>\n

Small groups and larger gatherings are not in competition with each other; they work together to see discipleship happen. But we need both.<\/p>\n

It may be, however, for a time, that the only <\/em>gatherings that will take place will be in smaller groups of 10 or 20 people in the near future.<\/p>\n

What is your hope for the church in this pandemic?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wax:<\/strong> My hope is that people will realize one of the core gifts we have as believers is to encourage other people with our presence.<\/p>\n

Our presence is an encouragement to the rest of the body of believers. When we sing together and hear each other\u2019s voices, we’re reinforcing each other\u2019s faith. We’re pointing each other to God.<\/p>\n

Horizontally, we\u2019re side by side, looking together, worshipping together. That’s vital not only for ourselves (because we don\u2019t go to church just looking for something for ourselves), but it’s vital for others as well.<\/p>\n

After a church service people might say, \u201cWhat did you like most about the sermon?\u201d or \u201cWhat did you get most out of church today?\u201d and those are fine questions.<\/p>\n

But those aren\u2019t the essential questions a Christian should be thinking.<\/p>\n

The bigger question should be not what you can get out of something but what you have given<\/em> to something.<\/p>\n

My hope during this pandemic is that people in the church will fully relish and long for gathering together, knowing that it’s more profound when you give than when you receive, and you’re giving something when you give of your time and your attention to other believers in community when gathered as the family of God.<\/p>\n

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Joy Allmond<\/h2>\n

@joyallmond<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Joy is the executive communications manager at Lifeway.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n