Short Take #2: Andy Stanley and Churches Meeting In Person

Here is another sort taken from the Christian worldview with David Eric, I want to read a comment by a well-known evangelical leader named Andy Stanley he said recently the thing that has been concerning to me about the local church is how quickly so many churches felt like we've got to get back into our building shoulder to shoulder, doing what we've always done it was the exact wrong response to co-vivid because we had an opportunity of a lifetime to do new things try new things.

Experiment with new things because we couldn't do the old things and instead of focusing at will on what we can't do. We should have been 100% focused on what we can do. I thought again Andy Stanley, wait a minute, where the body of Christ were not in it to win it as you're in it to win it.

You abandon our New Testament mandate oriented to serve and there is more need than there's ever been. He said I'm so proud of our staff and our churches. Northpoint is a group of churches he leads in the adults in our church. You put up with me saying no were not going to meet. I know the church down the streets meeting, but we are intentionally redeploying and refocusing our attention at this time because this is a unique opportunity is going to come to an end, but we need to take full advantage of that opportunity. He said you inspire people to follow Jesus. That's our mission.

You date the model knickers, play on words there, shoulder to shoulder in a building, singing songs and worshiping listening to sermons. All that is is a model and during the season. He concludes you abandon the model of meeting in person for the sake of the mission. You inspire people to follow Jesus. What he says the mission is, but the local churches that abandon the mission for the sake of the model and rush back into the model.

I feel like we in some cases miss an extraordinary opportunity, especially the churches I got in a spitting match with local and state governments. That was just embarrassing to me as a Christian. Again that's Andy Stanley, one of the most influential and well-known evangelicals in this country. Eric what is your response to Andy Stanley's perspective on meeting in person for churches on. Encouraging to me. I wonder if we would stay that you churches in China or the churches across the Roman Empire for the first three centuries in which Christianity was legal and they so desperately love to gather together to worship. Granted they did it in different ways that go underground. But you know the idea that well we don't need to gather for worship. Forget it due to the mission that's misunderstanding of the Christian life worship is always the top priority and if you don't have without worship, you're not going to be able to do anything else without you worship. You don't have anything else all things in the Christian life flow out of worship.

Well, I can worship God in a mountain or in my neighborhood on a hike. You certainly can then praise God for the great joy. But the New Testament commands us that restrictively and descriptively we are to gather with the local body of Christ for worship. It's not God is not given the government the right the authority to dictate Christian worship is given the authority to do other things from 13 first Peter 213 to 17 right to collect taxes to bear the sword upon evil, with the actual evil and reward the righteous. That's a misnomer at the misunderstanding of the Christian life all things flow out of worship once worsened to look like. Among other things, gathering with God's people. Hebrews 1024 to 25. Among other things, and good and God's people desperately need need to be said in the context and in the way of corporate worship, especially in times like these where where we've seen studies of the past 12 months David that have shown how depression and mental illness in all suicide all the things it's skyrocketed. The lies that will because human beings generally speaking, are meant to be together to have face-to-face interaction and biblically speaking that is meant to take place preeminently in the context of a local church with a local pastor Bennett brain affirmed by existing quality: qualified elders to to raise up this individual and pour into and preach the word and music in the one another's prayer and God's decided that is the preeminent way that I have decided to love and care and shepherd my people through my under shepherds as a regular way of life and hardship in world pandemic.

Though there difficult are the real suffering to shell this essential way. Great shepherd the Lord Jesus is to care for us through these means of breaking and time ever average time is needed to gather it is now. This is been a sort taken. The Christian will be with David. We find out more about the Christian worldview resources make a donation, monthly partner or contact us visit the Christian worldview.org you can also call us toll-free 1-888-646-2233 right to us at Box 401, Excelsior, MN 55331 that's Box 401, Excelsior, MN 551