DIGITAL CHURCH IN A LONELY WORLD
(Windle, Benjamin, and David Kinnaman. Barna Group, 2022.)
The Seven Ingredients of Biblical Community
What were the essential ingredients for church community in the New Testament? (Windle and Kinnaman)
1. Spiritual engagement (Colossians 3:16)
2. Preaching the Word (Hebrews 13:7)
3. Worship and prayer (1 Timothy 2:8)
4. Evangelism (Acts 1:8)
5. Interpersonal responsibility (Romans 12)
6. Inconvenient hospitality (Acts 4)
7. Institutional physicality (Matthew 26:26)
These seven attributes are consistent elements of local church communities in the New Testament. I am sure there are more, but they give us a good framework to engage with. Can we achieve all seven of these by doing church online? (Windle and Kinnaman) If we can, sign me up for the digital church. Or the hybrid church. I’ll gladly lay on the beach and eat my Portuguese custard tarts, and maybe attend a small group every now and then. (Windle and Kinnaman) Sounds pretty good.
Unless, of course, not every one of these seven expressions can be achieved through a screen. When I think of spiritual engagement, preaching the word, worship, prayer and evangelism, I have seen examples of all of these being achieved through online church experiences. Sometimes, that is where the conversation ends. People engaged. People worshiped. People responded to the salvation prayer. These are all crucial elements of a church experience, but I am not so sure they fulfill the full spectrum of church community (Windle and Kinnaman)
It leads me to this crucial statement: In the midst of the digital revolution, we should boldly innovate in all areas, but we should be slow to forever replace in-person community for something on a screen. Perhaps a new technology will arise that changes that. But, in the meantime, in a culture that is lonely and isolated, the local church has the opportunity to provide for what is one of the greatest needs, not only of Millennials and Gen Z but all generations: biblical community. For pastors, we are entering an exciting era of creativity and change.
When assessing new ideas, the object shouldn’t be to try and make everything look like it did in previous generations. A better guiding question would be: If we are using an innovative approach, how will we be intensely intentional about building community that achieves interpersonal responsibility, inconvenient hospitality and institutional physicality?
My central thesis is that we need a new approach that embraces in-person community as the ideal, while boldly pursuing digital innovation
It leads me to this crucial statement: During the digital revolution, we should boldly innovate in all areas, but we should be slow to forever replace in-person community for something on a screen. Perhaps a new technology will arise that changes that. But, in the meantime, in a culture that is lonely and isolated, the local church can provide for what is one of the greatest needs, not only of Millennials, but all generations:
Biblical community. For pastors, we are entering an exciting era of creativity and change. When assessing new ideas, the object shouldn’t be to try and make everything look like it did in previous generations. A better guiding question would be: If we are using an innovative approach, how will we be intensely intentional about building community that achieves interpersonal responsibility, inconvenient hospitality, and institutional physicality? I’ve heard pastor Rick Warren say that instead of trying to keep up with every new fad, wise leaders build churches on what doesn’t change. He says, “When you focus on what’s eternal, you are always relevant.” What timely wisdom for pastors in an age of accelerated disruption!
My central thesis is that we need a new approach that embraces in-person community as the ideal, while boldly pursuing digital innovation. In-person community is not just limited to looking like a weekend service. It could be micro gatherings, small groups and home meetings. It’s not the form or model that matters as much as the ethos of what that community values
Questions act as both a stimulus for creative thought and a set of boundaries to focus our idea
• How do we reimagine community in the digital age?
• With everything going electronic and being stored on the cloud, will there be a reaction the other way?
• A desire to be in a village?
• A need for high-touch physicality?
• A longing for simple things such as sharing a meal
Asking the right questions is essential to ensuring that our innovation is accelerating us down the right path, instead of steering us toward the wrong destination. If innovation is not managed and disciplined, it can easily become antithetical to our actual mission.
Questions act as both a stimulus for creative thought and a set of boundaries to focus our ideas.
Here are the wrong questions to ask:
• What serves the consumeristic Christian market?
• Will Christians prefer a digital service over attending a physical gathering?
• If so, how do we cater to that segment of the preference-driven market?
Haven’t we seen enough consumer-driven Christianity over recent decades to realize that, in the long run, this does not develop resilient disciples, nor build depth in spiritual maturity?
The creation story as it relates to God’s original design of family and community.
God first created Adam without Eve. We know from the Genesis account that Adam was lonely, and this was not good in the eyes of God. So, we know that God left something out in this first stanza of creation. Have you ever asked why? Why did God give the animals mates, but not Adam? Why wasn’t Eve created on the same day, in the same hour, as Adam? It makes me wonder: Did God want Adam to go without physical community for a time so that he would never take it for granted when he got it? Maybe God wanted to teach Adam a life lesson about the need for others. For family. For warmth. For intimacy. For the sound of laughter. For the feel of a clasped hand. Real. Human. Interaction
KEY IDEAS
1. We should not allow consumeristic Christian preference to be the value that informs our models of the future church.
2. Digital tech should supplement, not replace, in-person community.
3. We need a biblical framework of church community that goes beyond digital vs. hybrid vs. in-person.
4. We should radically innovate in the digital world, within boundaries that reflect our purpose and mission.
5. We should harness online tools to extend our reach and deepen our discipleship.
6. We should identify, and then elevate, the aspects of an in-person church service that cannot be replaced online.
7. We should lean into new ways to use our physical spaces to provide relational elements that people cannot get online.
8. We should be intentional about value-adds for people when they are already physically on-site, instead of asking them to come back a second time during the week. Are we able to provide options for on-site small groups, support and care groups, age-distinctive ministries, deeper Bible training, and leadership development courses that start before or after the primary weekend service?
9. We should rediscover the ancient practices of physicality, such as the laying on of hands with prayer, communion and baptism—moments where the congregation can sing and feel the wonder of God at work with his people in a physical place and time.
10. We should embrace hospitality at a higher level—coffee, food, sitting areas. Foyers and cafés need to become as important as auditoriums in our facility design.
11. We should make room for new and innovative expressions of church that transcend geography and use a curated mix of both online and in-person elements to build a healthy church that is global in reach
With everything going electronic and being stored on the cloud, will there be a reaction the other way? A desire to be in a village? A need for high-touch physicality? A longing for simple things such as sharing a meal.
C O M U N I C A T I O N L I N E S FOR PASTORS
Online ministry has proven itself as an incredible tool for preaching, worship, discipleship and evangelism. It works. And we have only just begun! Imagine another 10 years of innovation in this space. We have got to show people the components of biblical community they are missing out on in the online-only church experience. If our narrative to church folks is, make sure you are “in the room” this Sunday for such and such preacher, or for the worship experience, remember—they can all get first-class content online. They know it. You know it. We all know it! We can no longer compel people to come to church for content alone (though, hopefully, the content is compelling and high-quality).
We have to show people that attending in-person church in some form is the keystone habit that helps build resilient, meaningful, biblical community. And it’s an inconvenience. It’s sacrificial. It takes time. Yet it is worth it. In fact, it is at the very heart of the Christian faith that we would form and build community. Here are some examples of communication phrases that pastors can use within their church:
• We want people in our church (who are able) to aspire to be a part of in-person connection. We believe that is where you will grow most in your faith. This could be through a small group, weekend service or other form of social gathering.
• Our goal as a church is biblical community. We believe that is best achieved when we aspire to make the time to come and meet every week in-person.
• We are going to boldly embrace online tools. These enhance (not replace) who we are as a community.
• Church is not just content delivery—a sermon, some songs, some encouragement. We are an interdependent community where we encourage each other in Jesus.
• We are spending more time on screens than ever before, and yet we also have a loneliness epidemic. God’s solution for this is real-life community, and that’s why building community matters!
Online ministry can help us reach more people and disciple people in their faith. However, we have found that community is best built when we inconvenience our lifestyles and gather and meet at some point throughout the week.
It’s a new world, and our online ministry can help you grow in your faith. Let’s keep dreaming about reaching more people online and, at the same time, let’s keep aspiring to value real-life, in person
If we only see the in-person / digital dilemma as a choice between two opposing approaches, we will lose the unique benefits of both.
A new approach that makes the ideal of an in-person gathering a priority, and then supports it with digital reach and discipleship, provides both the freedom and the boundaries for audacious innovation. It means we can pursue experimentation and new ideas of online technology without the underlying fear that we aren’t moving in the right direction. Digital is the right direction when it supports the biblical priority of community.
Most of us can be called Millennial. We can attest that our generation greatly values community. This doesn’t mean we are good at achieving it. Ironically, we are statistically much poorer at doing this than previous generations. In some ways, we are the guinea pigs of the first digital civilization. We have reaped the enormous benefits of online tools, but we have also suffered the downside of social media, information overload and an “always-on” work life. We are wrestling with a clash of two competing ideals in our worldview. (Windle and Kinnaman) Yes, we want community. We long for rich and meaningful friendships. But we are also ensnared by consumerism, a transactional approach to life that puts our individual needs, desires and pleasure at the center of our lives. The desire for community is a yearning for a value that is largely unfulfilled. (Windle and Kinnaman) Instead, there is an ache of loneliness and isolation. Technology has not solved this. Arguably, it has contributed to the problem. This creates an interesting tension for us. On the one hand, we desire community and friendship. On the other hand, the path we have chosen to take us there has left us lonely, divided and disconnected. To change this, we must simultaneously celebrate our yearning for community, while confronting the faulty playbook we are operating from. (Windle and Kinnaman) Genuine community is created, not stumble
Genuine community is created, not stumbled upon We want community—great!
However, the way we think it happens is flawed and dysfunctional. It has broken the relational fabric of our generation. We are lonelier and more isolated than previous generations. The way out will require us to make some real-life changes. The kind of community we are searching for is harder, more costly and more time-intensive than we realize—and there are no shortcuts. It is also so much more beautiful, enriching and fulfilling than we could imagine. If we truly want our local church to be a life-giving spiritual community, we must entangle ourselves with the people around us. (Windle and Kinnaman)
There is this myth out there of “finding the right church.” It’s kind of like spotting a unicorn in the wild. (Windle and Kinnaman) It is this mythical place, this beautiful community, that one day we will find. Obviously, we need to find a church we resonate with. Yet the reality is that genuine community is created, not stumbled upon. In Acts 2, it says they devoted themselves to fellowship and the Apostles’ teaching. The commitment to share life with others in Christian community must come from the individual. We can’t have someone else devote themselves on our behalf and we reap the benefits. (Windle and Kinnaman)
I like to say it this way: “Family is built, not discovered.” In other words, if you are looking for community and friendship, no number of programs, events or conferences can ever substitute for each person’s responsibility to build a family. We need to be a part of the solution. Here are a few practical suggestions I give to people in my local church to help them build community.
Cite:
Windle, Benjamin, and David Kinnaman. “D I G I T A L C H U R C H I N A L O N E L Y W O R L D.” Barna Group, 2022.