ONLINE TO OFFLINE RELATIONSHIPS: CREATING COMMUNITY FOR THE CHURCH ONLINE
One of the largest arguments against church online is that of isolation. I had a pastor once tell me that "church doesn't happen when avatars meet together." Know what? He wasn't wrong... but he wasn't necessarily right either.
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. - Hebrews 10:24-25
Church Online, without some form of discipleship (online small groups, etc) your Online Church isn't a church. We have to have Biblical community. The encouraging and spurring on of one another, as suggested in Hebrews 10, does not happen in isolation. If our attenders stare at laptop screens or smartphones on couches and never engage in a small group or spiritual formation group, then we, the Church, have done a huge disservice to the those God entrusted to us.
Technology has come a long way. Just recently I taught a small group session online, connecting people from four time zones literally on three different continents! Praise God for the ministry impact! I'll never downplay the impact of Online relationships, but we do need physical interaction/physical community. If a Christian never has physical community with other Christians, per Hebrews 10, this person will struggle to find joy... Tech isn't the endgame. It's not the goal. Community and discipleship are the goals. Tech is the means to get there.
Church, virtual community should always lead to physical community... Online relationships should always lead to offline relationships. What does this look like? What if virtual small groups led to physical small groups, which led to house churches or microsites, or even multisite campuses launches? Your online campus could lead to the beginning of physical churches! How exciting is that?
{{cta('64b6f700-7331-47f8-ad47-3cfa1a5b2e4d','justifyright')}}So, ask yourself this question: How is your church moving people from Online Environments to Offline Relationships? Don't know the answer? Click the button and let us help.
What do you think? Share your ideas on Discord or on social media.
Through the.Church.digital, we are helping physical and digital churches better understand the discipleship process, and helping churches and church planters understand this and other decentralized mindset shifts. By taking this quick assessment we can get you connect with a coach, resources and more. Also, check out our Discord Group where we are encouraging people daily.
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