What About Gathering Together?

This is being written during a time like no other in our history. We are over two months into a global pandemic, COVID-19. Part of dealing with this unique situation has been having governmental institutions tell the church how we need to restrict some of our most basic practices. During this time, we have been told not to come together physically to worship, to fellowship, to personally minister to one another’s needs. So many of the practices we do together, like sharing in communion, have been denied. 

It is becoming more prevalent, but from the outset of the restrictions, some churches engaged in “acts of civil disobedience.” Ostensibly leaning on scriptural arguments for their noncompliance, these believers garnered media attention by simply doing what churches otherwise normally do. Unfortunately, the attention was not necessarily beneficial to the reputation of Christ’s body and the furtherance of the Gospel to a watching world. Those already suspect of churchgoers may have been pushed even farther away by such churches who were “doing what churches normally do,” when perhaps they shouldn’t have been doing it. 

As the “coronavirus curve” has flattened, more churches are now pushing to reopen to public services, despite governmental restrictions to the contrary. What is best for a church to do? What about our church?

Most of those churches planning to defy the authorities are taking very thorough precautions to create a safe environment for the relatively few people who will be able to meet. Their motives are no doubt pure. They deeply desire to gather with fellow believers. They believe they are following a biblical mandate to do so. We get it. But what about our church?  

Is this a legitimate restriction on the part of the government? We believe, at least for now, it is. We believe it is reasonable and right. We believe we have biblical support for this. We believe we have to approach this very unique situation with an abundance of balance. It is a balance between our strong desire and longing to see our flock, our beloved fellow believers, with our public testimony and love for the surrounding community.

We are well aware of those who look to scripture for examples of those who defied the authorities when the exercise of their faith was restricted. There are several in both the Old and New Testaments. But a closer look at those passages reveals, this is not that.

Just a couple of examples: Daniel was told by the authorities he could not pray to his God. He defied the edict (Daniel 6:7-10). This is not that. Peter and the Apostles were told they could not speak publicly of Jesus. They defied the command (Acts 4:17-20). This is not that. Some say, “But we’re being told not to gather for worship. Isn’t that making us disobey the command to not forsake ‘the assembling of ourselves together’” (Hebrews 10:25)? Is this that?

While we respect those who see the importance of gathering physically based on the Hebrews passage, we don’t see it as a legalistic mandate that trumps other directives in the New Testament. Taken in its context, that verse is directed at those who willfully make a habit of not gathering. Many to whom the letter was addressed had that problem. Many today have that problem. Is that what we’re doing? No, gathering is of very high value and we will again, hopefully soon, a matter of weeks, not months. In the meantime, this is a biblical act of submission on our part to the governmental authorities (Romans 13:1-2).

A primary part of their job is to preserve health and lives. As long as they are doing their job and not demanding we disobey God, it is OK to submit. I like the way Ken Berding puts it in his online article, “Civil Disobedience in an Age of Coronavirus.”  

…unless we have biblically derived reasons for doing something contrary to what the government has ordered, we should seek to faithfully carry out whatever has been directed, even when doing so makes us uncomfortable or appears unreasonable.

Finally, what about our testimony? How will the community surrounding the church view a mistimed gathering? If we force the issue, is it worth the joy and sense of spiritual fulfillment the relatively few who get to gather may derive from the experience? Are we truly loving our neighbors as ourselves?

Granted, virtual gathering is not optimum. I’d rather see receptive faces, not a boring iPhone, when delivering the Word on Sunday. However, God has allowed us to reach new people, expand certain ministries, and innovate and cultivate for future fruit we didn’t expect. Let’s make the most of the many ministries we are carrying out in ways we didn’t anticipate. Let’s be faithful and reasonable in our response. And please pray for an end to this pandemic.

“…do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus” —Philippians 2:4–5