A Blast from the Past
By Bob Rognlien
Learning to Worship Like the First Churches
Jesus gathered with his followers in the extended family home of Peter and Andrew in Capernaum. He also gathered with larger groups in the synagogues of Galilee and in the great Temple courts in Jerusalem. After Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension the followers of Jesus were gathered in an upstairs room in the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, in Jerusalem when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon them. The Spirit filled them, empowered them, and led them into the streets to share the Good News of Jesus in all the languages spoken by the various pilgrims visiting the Holy City. In a large group gathering, probably in the Temple courts, Peter addressed the crowds and three thousand came to faith!
The first church of Jerusalem continued this Jesus-shaped pattern of gathering in large groups to hear the teaching of the Apostles and in housefuls of disciples for prayer, meals, and fellowship. As the movement of Jesus spread across the Mediterranean world the followers of Jesus still gathered in public places like synagogues and lecture halls, but more and more the church became centered on extended spiritual families who were sharing their lives and carrying out their mission in family homes. When persecution struck and it was not possible to gather in public places, it did not slow down the movement of Jesus because his followers were used to gathering for worship and mission in their homes.
Thank God most of us are not facing persecution, but we have all been thrown into the disorienting turmoil of lives upended by a global pandemic. For many of us this raises challenging questions of how to protect our family, promote our health, and provide for the ones we love. For pastors this raises the question of how are we to function as a church if we can’t even gather at our building on a Sunday?
Over the past week it has been amazing and inspiring to watch churches all over North America and around the world creatively come up with ways to stay connected as a community and even gather virtually for worship on the weekend! Pam and I joined our church’s online service on Sunday and then visited six or seven of our friends’ worship gatherings around the country. Some churches already livestream their services, but others were madly figuring out how to broadcast on YouTube, Zoom, or Facebook—so many that Facebook Live maxed out and untold numbers of churches were locked out on Sunday morning!
It was great to be able to hear a sermon from our pastor and fun to see what some of our other friends were doing for their worship gatherings on Sunday morning, but one thing I didn’t like about it was that I felt like a spectator. That is the drawback of a broadcast worship service: we tend to sit and watch it more than participate in it. Smaller churches are using Zoom to make their online gatherings more interactive. But our friends in Irvine, California were doing something different. They created a simple outline that families or small groups could use to worship together in their homes on Sunday. It went like this:
· PRAY
· SING
· READ
· HEAR
· SING
· DISCUSS
· PRAY
· GIVE
They gave some simple instruction and suggestions for each section that were easy to follow. For the songs they gave links for appropriate worship music or encouraged families to choose their own favorites. One of their pastors had recorded a message and embedded the video clip for people to watch.
· Here is a link to their webpage with this resource if you want to see it: https://goodshepherdirvine.com/at-home-worship-guides/
· Here is an English translation of something similar Mark and Anna Burgess did in Spanish with Oikos Church in Peru over WhatsApp, which includes options for the kids: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XpxTZ5jmoipdMJhyK4DlvoPQBPGvRnp6JaVW1U1g-gU/edit?usp=sharing
Isn’t it wonderful that we have the technology to communicate and stay connected in so many ways, even when we are in quarantine or under lock-down? But maybe for all our modern wizardry we also have something to learn from Jesus and the first church? Maybe this season when we can’t gather together in the same building is an opportunity for us to recapture something the early church did all the time: worship as a family!
Please don’t think I am suggesting you should not broadcast your worship services on Sunday. I think that can be an effective way to minister to your congregation and keep your people connected. But if pulling off an online production every Sunday is stressing out you and your team, you might consider the benefits of simply teaching and equipping your people to worship as families in their homes during this season of isolation.
If you are broadcasting your worship services, you could consider giving people some direction to help them engage in the worship experience more intentionally. Suggest they sit together with the people in their household and have their Bibles with them. Maybe pause after the sermon to give them time to interact? Or give them an opportunity to pray with each other in the room where they are watching? I am sure Holy Spirit will give you and your team ideas that will work best in your context.
I wonder if this is an opportunity for us to get in touch with our roots and experience more of the Way of Jesus and the early church? If so, we might just experience a blast from the past! I am praying for all of you who are doing such an incredible job leading your flocks and empowering your people to serve their communities during these challenging days. I am so proud of you and the church of Jesus in times like these!