The regular gathering of Jesus’ people to sing, pray, and preeminently sit under God’s Word is the most important means of grace in a Christian’s life (Heb. 10:24-25). The word for church in Greek literally means “assembly” or “congregation.” In Christ, we now belong to Jesus’ people, universal and local. That means Sunday is the one time during the week when we get to physically live out this shared identity. Therefore, gathering on the Lord’s Day, Sunday, has been integral to Jesus’ people from the very beginning. The church is not a commodity to be consumed or a spiritual service to be provided, it is a people to whom we belong. The church is not a flat one-dimensional pixelated reality, but a multidimensional spiritual reality experienced as individuals knit together by the Spirit of God in a local setting. For more on why we value regularly gathering in person for worship, please read our recent Elder Memo on The Importance of Sunday Gatherings. This Gospel Coalition article is also helpful.
Of course, following the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve become accustomed to accessing almost everything online and “on-demand.” Yet, not all things that are technologically possible are spiritually beneficial (cf. 1 Cor 6:12). We want to be mindful of how we’re being formed, for better or worse, by our environment and where and how we spend our time. The regular physical gathering of Jesus’ people for worship is a divinely ordained means of grace, that helps to form us more into Christ’s image, individually and collectively as his body.
Our modern lives offer travel and technology unlike any generation before us – presenting us with unique opportunities and challenges. We encourage our members and regular attendees who are traveling on a Sunday to prioritize gathering with another biblically faithful church, even over joining DCC via livestream, for the same reasons we encourage physical participation when in Seattle. If you’re unsure of what churches are in an area, ask your shepherding pastor for a recommendation, or check out our network churches: Acts 29, TGC, 9Marks.
Yet, even with those considerations, there are times when health or other extenuating circumstances prevent someone from gathering on a particular Sunday morning. While we consider the livestream not a substitute to our physical gathering, it can still be a blessing to those who cannot attend on occasion – and that is why we have continued to provide the livestream as an option.
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