Sunday Worship And Covid-19

The Covid-19 pandemic presents the worshiper of Jesus Christ with a number of challenges and no shortage of questions about church life, Sunday worship, and the gathering of the people of God. How is the Christian to think and act during this current pandemic? How does one approach Sunday Worship in a world of social distancing? What do we make of the priority of the gathering of the church and the fellowship of believers? Since Sunday is a special day for the blood bought believer of Jesus Christ, let’s consider five strategies as to how we might approach Sunday worship and Covid-19.

1.) Continue to make Sunday a day of worship

I would encourage you to gather the family, or if you are single, gather yourself and prepare your heart for the preached Word of God. Though everything is abnormal and most likely you are watching your church from a live-stream, treat it as normally as possible. Meaning, stand and worship, take notes, give in the offering (via online giving) and do all the things that you would do if you were with your church family. Simply put, in the midst of all that has changed… nothing has changed. Sunday is still the day when the church worships God. So… let there be worship in the midst of all that is not normal. Let God be glorified and exalted – He is still Creator and Redeemer. He is unchanging – Worship God this Sunday!

2.) Think like a worshiper not a consumer

I want to challenge you. Though we live in a consumer driven society and though consumerism is very alive and well in our churches, fight against your own consumer tendencies. Come to God as a worshiper not a consumer. You might be wondering, “what’s the difference?”

The difference between a worshiper and a consumer has much to do with how one thinks. A worshiper gathers for God but a consumer gathers for himself or herself. This leads a person to begin to think, I will watch the super star preacher or I will tune into another church. Or, I will watch the music over there and the preaching over here and the… Or perhaps we might think, “I will put off watching the livestream and will watch it later at my convenience.” Let’s not make consumer decisions, let’s make worshiper decisions. Let’s not simply roll out of bed and lazily sit in front of the TV screen in our PJ’s. Be careful – subtly, we have the ability to turn church into another tv channel and reduce it to another way to consume rather than worship.

Live-streaming your church service is not like watching another movie. We shouldn’t be making runs to the refrigerator or texting a friend, we should be seeking to be fully engaged because we are worshipers and He is worthy of our worship!

3.) Hunger for the day when we can all be together again

I want to encourage you to leverage these days. I actually want us all to feel hunger pangs for the day when we will once again gather together in our home church. I don’t like it when we are unable to meet, but I am also hopeful that it will stir our affections even more for that one time of the week when His people gather. It is easy to be too casual towards that one day of our week. Some have a “take it or leave it” attitude. I pray that Covid-19 would stir our hearts for the Sunday gathering when we will be together again. I hope that you miss your church so much that it hurts and I hope it changes how we approach future Sundays.

4.) Know that this is not a substitute for “church”

While I am grateful for the technology to be able to live-stream services, I think we should all be reminded that it’s no substitute for the church. A church is the called out, gathered, people of God. It is not a scattering of people who have no relational connections with one another.

5.) Maintain connections with your brothers and sisters in the Lord.

For those who are a part of Trinity Community Church, please be sure that your information is updated on myTCC. It is here that we will continue to send out emails and text updates. MyTCC is also your source for the myTCC church directory.

In the coming days there will be invitations to video conference leadership meetings, prayer meetings, and community group meetings – I would ask you to participate in church life when these opportunities arise.

I could have never imagined a day where I would encourage the people of Trinity Community Church to stay at home and watch the sermon from the safety and comforts of your living room. Let’s make it clear that live-streaming a sermon is not “church.” I would urge you to consider when this is all finally over to not find Youtube to be your new church! Youtube or Facebook live is not church. Streaming a service falls woefully short of gathering together in worship to our God! When this does finally end, let’s not “neglect to meet together as is the habit of some…” Hebrews 10:25

It seems that right now we are sovereignly restricted from meeting. What will we do? Trust God, hunger for the day when we can meet again, and worship our great God!

Follow along this week as we consider: “Loving your neighbor in a day of viral madness.”