How good and how pleasant it is to dwell together.
We just finished celebrating our Lord’s resurrection from the dead, an act so central to our faith that it cannot be overstated. As Paul said, “if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, and your faith also is vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14). But Christ was raised and ultimately ascended to heaven and sent forth his Spirit at Pentecost. From there we see a new race of people called Christians living in community with one another and ministering to a broken world.
I want to talk about this blessed Christian community, of which we are members. I also want to share my concerns about substituting virtual community for in-person community and its effects on our church body. Some of you might disagree with my views and that’s fine. It is not my intention to offend anyone but to speak honestly about things on my heart in hopes of strengthening our church.
I struggle with the idea of continuing to meet online instead of in person because I think it’s unhealthy for God’s people. During creation God said “It is not good for the man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18) and we know this is true by experience. I wonder if by meeting online we forfeit certain blessings that only come with physical community. As it’s written, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!” It is like oil upon the head and dew upon the mountains (Psalm 133).
In his book Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer talks about the importance of Christian community as a spiritual and physical blessing. He writes “The physical presence of other Christians is a source of incomparable joy and strength to the believer.” He writes about the prisoner, the sick person, the Christian in exile – and I would add the Christian in quarantine – who needs fellow believers as “a physical sign of the gracious presence of the triune God.” We recognize Christ is among us when we meet each other “as one meets the Lord, in reverence, humility, and joy.”
Now this reverent attitude toward Christian community does not come naturally to me. I am not a person who typically longs to be with other Christians or looks forward to church gatherings and functions. In fact, I might try to avoid them when some excuse becomes available. Most of the time I would rather study and pray on my own than join with the community of believers.
That being said, I have noticed recently how much I miss all of you, the people of God. We’ve been able to host a couple dinners at our home this past month, along with small group. We’ve had the opportunity to eat with other Christians, study the Word, share in fellowship and conversation, and pray together. I honestly never realized how much I valued the physical presence of other Christians until now. We are truly God’s blessing to one another, even if we don’t realize it.
Over the past year we have gone to a virtual or hybrid model of Christian community and worship at our church. We’ve all spent time worshipping from home on Sunday mornings via Facebook, and some of us have participated in small groups or staff meetings via Zoom. For me, this has been far less than adequate, though it has given me an excuse to stay home which is probably not a good thing. I would not be surprised if our numbers have slowly dwindled over the past year because of this model we’re using. I also wouldn’t be surprised if some of our brothers and sisters never come back to our church, though I hope I’m wrong.
All this to say, I question if we can really experience the blessing of Christian community on a virtual platform. I know God transcends space and time and I have faith he binds us together in unity though we are physically apart. Yet there is something unique about in-person fellowship and the blessings we experience when we’re together. I think that’s why Paul frequently wrote about his longing and hope to visit the early churches in person. He wrote about his desire to visit Rome so he could impart “some spiritual gift” to the believers and be encouraged by their mutual faith. (Romans 1:11-12). He also wrote to the church at Thessalonica that he was “eager with great desire” to see their faces (1 Thessalonians 2:17) and longed to be with them in person to complete what was lacking in their faith (3:10-11). For Paul, there were certain blessings that could only be experienced through physical community and shared faith.
All through the scripture we see the people of God living life together – celebrating, feasting, mourning, praying, teaching, worshiping, always being strengthened and encouraged by one another. Even the Law given to Israel governed how the people should relate to one another, how they should worship, when and what they should celebrate, what they should eat, when they should rest, etc. The Psalms too proclaim the importance of worshipping together. “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the LORD.’ Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem” (Psalm 122:1-2).
This emphasis on community life is amplified in the New Testament. It says we should stir one another toward good works and not neglect meeting together (Hebrews 10:24-25); we should bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2); we should admonish and encourage one another (1 Thessalonians 5:14); we should suffer and rejoice together (1 Corinthians 12:26); we should avoid division but seek unity (1 Corinthians 1:10); we should forgive one another (Colossians 3:13); we should live in harmony with one another (Romans 12:16); we should look to the interests of others and be humble (Philippians 2:3-4); we should confess our sins and pray for one another (James 5:16); we should share and contribute to the needs of others (Romans 12:13); we should be tender-hearted, loving, and sympathetic toward one another (1 Peter 3:8); we should be hospitable and use our gifts to serve one another (1 Peter 4:9-11); we should welcome one another as Christ welcomed us (Romans 15:7); we should do good to everyone and especially those in the household of faith (Galatians 6:10); we should show hospitality and welcome others without arguing over opinions (Romans 14:1); and we should grow together in Christ and be built up in love (Ephesians 4:15-16).
This list could go on because the call for God’s people to be in community is a very loud and persistent call in the scripture. Now my question is, can we live this kind of life and be faithful to this calling while we’re physically apart, seeing each other through a screen, unable to share in the grace of Christian fellowship in person?
Like any gift of God, it’s easy to take for granted our Christian community. It’s not until the blessing is removed - like it has been this year - that we realize how much we depend on it. And our fellowship is not only in this world but for all eternity. Together we are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and God’s special possession (1 Peter 2:9). “Therefore, let him who until now has had the privilege of living a common Christian life with other Christians praise God’s grace from the bottom of his heart. Let him thank God on his knees and declare: It is grace, nothing but grace that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brethren” (Bonhoeffer).
So I want to encourage the people of God to remember the importance of community. This is not about us as individuals, but about the needs of the body of Christ, the needs of our broken world, and ultimately it’s about the glory of God who is magnified in our shared presence.
Josh Landrus