Comments on: Tim Keller Is Not Your Pastor …

By: Hillary Morris

Hillary Morris — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:33:09 +0000

Hey, your post is really interesting. It seems like a lot of churches are making statements about how technology isn't a substitute for becoming a true member of the church. For example, Mars Hill recently had to make a similar statement about their iPhone app. How do you think we should overcome this misinterpretation by the rest of the world and portray technology within the church correctly?

By: Is it Controversial to say this is Controversial? | Living Martyrs

Is it Controversial to say this is Controversial? | Living Martyrs — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 19:52:17 +0000

[...] (and they’re seeing approximately 25,000 downloads a week!), you aren’t a member unless you attend in person. Someone else was riffing on the idea of a new smartphone with an ad them struck him as [...]

By: brad

brad — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 18:51:18 +0000

Barton,

If we continue to view the church in false dichotomies, we are in trouble.

The church in question isn't ignoring the existence of the internet. Rather it is embracing its power. It's just saying that there are limits to how much 'community' can be facilitated through online channels. I fully agree with that.

How is the online community going to help raise my daughter, or provide meals if we suddenly need it? Nearly everything online requires self-disclosure (and whatever doesn't is downright scary!). In my church life I am as I am, and I can't edit or protect myself nearly as much as my online persona. It's a much richer interaction, and a more immediate and demanding experience than participating through a screen, however wondrous that screen may be.

The internet can be leveraged for good, immense good. But it can't provide a surrogate for real human experience. As the church we should be the first to prophetically recognise that!

By: Barton Damer

Barton Damer — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:50:01 +0000

If the church continues to think as you have suggested… We are in trouble.

Online communities provide more interaction now than in the history of mankind. Through sites like Facebook, Flickr, Blogs, etc. I am able to interact with other artists and clients across the globe. We all know that it allows us to reconnect with people from all different time periods of our lives – dating back to elementary school. This interaction is 7 days a week and the church is missing out if they don't embrace it.

There are tons of missional things that can be done online. Promise and I rallied are online friends together to raise a couple thousand dollars for a children's home in Kenya. John Acuff is building an orphanage in Vietnam and it's all from interaction with his online communities.

By: Jeff

Jeff — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:32:46 +0000

Good for them. There's something important communally about connecting with people face-to-face.

By: Ben Simpson

Ben Simpson — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:40:10 +0000

Great commentary, Scott. I think you know what I think about "virtual churches." While I think they have some benefit, I think Redeemer's emphasis on church planting is far more important for our future as Christians. You can do some great things online, but there is more to be gained by embodying the gospel in local contexts.

I'd like to see big churches throwing huge dollars toward expanding their influence technologically do the same in sending missionaries and church planters into the world.

By: Jason

Jason — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:28:07 +0000

I don't think an internet campus is missional. There's no interaction between the members. They won't be able to do missional activities together if one member is in Maine and another is in California. There is no way to engage and be a part of your community if the members aren't even in the same vicinity.

By: matt

matt — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 23:00:15 +0000

Why would Redeemer not just create an internet campus…An internet campus with 25,000 people! That's the missional thing to do isn't it?

By: Stephanie Horn

Stephanie Horn — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:00:17 +0000

They make a good point. As Christians, we're supposed to be reaching out to our communities and joining with other Christians in our area to serve, grow, and make disciples. When we get sucked into a virtual church we become Christians in a vacuum… and that doesn't work. Isolation kills faith. For a while, I was listening to sermons from Mark Driscoll in addition to attending Praxis Church in Phoenix. I found them really helpful as topical issues came up in my life and the lives of my friends, but I had to make a point of only listening for those reasons. My primary focus is the city God has put me in and the people he has placed me near. I think the folks at Redeemer Church understand this and are bringing it up in a pretty non-threatening way. Go ahead and listen, but be an active part of a church in your community.

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