Page 28 - Digital Church in a Lonely World

In Hearers and Doers: A Pastor’s Guide to Making Disciples Through Scripture and Doctrine, Kevin
Vanhoozer writes, “One false picture of Christianity is that it is primarily about an individual’s
relationship to God. While it is true that we relate to God as individuals, modern individualism has
distorted and blown this out of all proportion, eclipsing God’s concern for the Church as a gathered
community. The story of scripture is about God’s purpose to form a holy nation, which means the
disciple is a member of a company.”

Consumer church, cool church and convenient church are failed models. We need the interpersonal
responsibility of the New Testament Church.

Discipleship is not an academic journey. It has to involve real human beings in real community.

If church is simply a service that people are provided, it is transactional. If church is an interpersonal
family of people I am responsible to contribute to, it becomes a community.

Inconvenient Hospitality

Christian hospitality is what the first Church was known for. Take a look at one example from Romans
12:13: “When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.”
In this context, hospitality was an “always-on” posture of being ready to help God’s people. It went well
beyond our modern concept of socializing. Hospitality was an opening of worshipers’ lives and hearts to
those who had needs. Hospitality is friendship to the stranger. It is kindness to the broken.

True hospitality is inconvenient, not just on a practical level, but on an emotional level. I’m not sure true
community begins until we are willing to inconvenience ourselves for each other.

The challenge with engaging with people beyond a church service is, well, people! The emotional
inconvenience we embrace in community is parceled with the understanding that the very people to
whom we are opening our lives will hurt us, let us down and challenge us.

Consumer church, cool church and convenient church are failed models.
We need the interpersonal responsibility of the New Testament Church.

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