Is Worshipping Online, True Worship

With Corona Virus… Pandemic… Social Distancing: Many Churches began to stream online… watching from home or from some other location.

But is this really true Biblical worship?

The traditional way to gather for worship is to gather in the same building, or in the same room… where we are all-together present

We provide online services, not because of the Corona virus, but because of convenience… particularly for the shut-ins.

IT CANNOT REPLACE LIVE IN-PERSON WORSHIP

It may serve as a supplement

It may serve as a reference

But it does NOT serve as a replacement!

There are members, who prefer to worship online, will preach that online worship is okay; using John 4:23 and Matthew 18:20 as a reference to illustrate that it is no longer necessary to physically meet together in a physical building.

Answer:

The ekklesia… the called out. Christians who are called to come worship and serve the Lord

"when you come together as a church" (I Corinthians 11:18).

"when you come together in one place" (I Corinthians 11:20).

"when you come together to eat, wait for one another" (I Corinthians 11:33) -- speaking of eating the Lord's Supper.

"the whole church comes together in one place" (I Corinthians 14:23).

People listening from their homes over the Internet are not gathered in one place.

2 Verses

John 4:19–24 (NASB95)

19 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.

20 “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.

22 “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

23 “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.

24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

The point Jesus makes is: There will come a time in the near future where there would no longer be a place of worship.

This doesn’t imply that worshippers of God would cease to gather. It only mentioned there wouldn’t be a SINGULAR place to gether… ie. Jerusalem

Matthew 18:18–20 (NASB95)

18 “Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.

19 “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven.

20 “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.”

Jesus is NOT saying, that the church has the right to create it’s own laws when 2 or more Christians agree on something.

Jesus IS saying that the Church has the authority to uphold the laws of Christ!

Now…

Scripture says when 2 or 3 are gathered by the authority of Christ… then Christ would be with them.

That is, in essence, the Church, albeit small in your area.

But when Christians watch a worship service from afar, they are PRETENDING to be a part of a congregation when they really arent!!

They don’t contribute anything to the work and service of the church

They don’t encourage fellow Christians by their presence

They don’t sing together side by side with the saints!

Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 “9 Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. 10 For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up.”

Things that cannot be duplicated:

Fellowship

Acts 2:42 “42 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Worship together

Sing together

Pray together

Hug each other

Acts 2:47 “47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

I repeat this all the time, but coming to worship isn’t just for YOU!!

It’s for your brothers and sisters

It’s for your family

It’s for your GOD!

Communion

Acts 2:42 “42 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Response / Accountability

Colossians 3:16 “16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

There’s going to be a time when we can’t make it to church, but it should be the exception, not the rule. The tendency today is to isolate ourselves in front of electronics where we interact with a screen instead of each other. A clicker or mouse replaces a friendly hug, handshake, or face-to-face interaction.

What kind of Role model do you set for you friends / family children… when you put the convenience of your phone over the commitment of your faith?

It doesn’t take any effort to flip on a TV screen.

But it does to wake up on time

It does to get dressed for the day

It does to drive to the building

It does to commit yourself to the times of assembly

God’s house or your house? Which will it be!? Don’t EVER take our worship as Saints as “cheap” or “unprofitable.”

Hebrews 10:25 (NASB95)

25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.

Benefits of Online Worship

Evangelism

Searching for Bible answers

Searching for a Church home

Encouragement

Last Resort

Finally:

As Christians, those who worship God, we should always want to worship according to the NT pattern

Acts 2.