I understand the idea of ‘first steps’ but we have to be careful that we don’t equate spending an hour or so in church (or watching online) and being a nice person = a faithful follower of Jesus. I believe that Jesus asks more of our lives than that.

I do like the idea of meeting people where they are but I think deep relationships really require more. I also think there are different dynamics between a pastor of a church of 200 worshipers bringing a sermon and a pastor of a megachurch bringing one. I agree that usually the megachurch pastor is a better communicator, yet the worshipers in the smaller church _know_ the life of the pastor. They see him/her in their community. They know their pastors good points and bad points.

I’m sure online groups help to make this about more than watching an event (in the same way that getting involved in a local church is better than just coming on Sundays), but I wonder how many people join those groups, and about about the authenticity of those relationships. After ~13 years experience of online community (really, I’m not exaggerating by saying that!) I’ve known way too many people who hide online behind a made-up persona. Even those who reveal more of themselves online still seem very different when you meet them in person. Sure, you can hide in a face-to-face group, too - but I find it’s more common online when there’s little chance you’ll see me the next day.

Online church experiences can be a life-line for those with unique work schedules or in distant locations without a good local church to belong to. They can also be fantastic for those wanting to check out a church for the first time who otherwise might be scared to come. (Serving both of those crowds could be a challenge, though!) I wonder if (based on today’s type of online church, at least) we’re encouraging people who are actually Christians who could be part of a vibrant local community to do something that’s second-best. What are online church leaders doing to get people off their computers and into the world around them?

I think of a friend who attended church services online for several years (admittedly it was before services integrated chat, which could have changed things). I don’t doubt that she got something out of those services — thought she belonged, etc. But, I can’t wonder if the best thing would have been to actually be involved in a local church, where she would have needed to learn to get along in community, reveal her junk, and everything that goes along with that.

Online church definitely is a step up from the radio broadcasts my childhood church did. At least it adds the opportunity for some interaction, but I think it’s still not the best option for most people. Could that be changed? Probably & hopefully, since this seems like a trend that’s here to stay.

Thank you Mack. Good Point. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LifeChurch.tv! Love their heart, Love the things they’re doing for the Kingdom. They all seem to be really great, humble, godly folks.

However, I’m very skeptical of church online. And I’m really disappointed in this list b/c I feel like it’s just not an honest look at the limitations of church online - why even do this post? It’s almost deceptive in how limited the list is - it’s clearly a token list, not a serious look at the real limitations and ramifications of church online, which is a big disappointment - I guess I expected more. More honesty, transparency. Instead, this. =(

Love LifeChurch, but the whole world is going after this church online thing, I would like to see some truly balanced discussion on the pros and cons. And for someone to put these two blogposts forward as balanced discussion just doesn’t seem genuine to me.

another thought…does your Christian fellowship have to come from the same source as your teaching….having recently read Barna’s Revolution, I’m thinking that fellowship can be as simple as meeting with a couple of other belivers and having God conversations…i think that perhaps whether or not that is linked to a specific church is somewhat irrelevant………what do you think?

On the plus side, it is going to be very popular with those who are accustomed to the idea of community being what you experience online. If you treat your experiences on FB, MySpace, Twitter, etc., as close community and fellowship with your friends, then you will see online church as the same.

On the other hand, I think we have plenty of people who go to the physical, or offline, church with no intention of forming community. They show up, they sing, they listen to the message, they go home, and that’s their church. Whether they are afraid, intimidated, etc. by the idea of forming genuine fellowship, or if they simply don’t want to fellowship with other Christians, that is all they get out of church. Online church will only amplify that feeling: now they have a license to have even less contact with fellow Christians. And that does nothing to advance the Kingdom in any way, shape, form.

That said, I appreciate being able to watch church online when I’m not able to be there in person. I just also recognize the value of having fellowship in person.

It’s supposed to be about community where you, yes, learn the apostles teaching. But also pray together, commune together, keep each other accountable. You can’t actually obey the apostles’ teaching by simply listening to it - you need the Church around you to help you. That’s why we should “not give-up the habit of meeting together.”

You simply cannot have that kind of community online - I don’t think. Perhaps you can, but if you can it’s exceedingly rare, no doubt.

I think to call church online “church” is a misnomer. But, sadly, I think it is a good substitute for what we call “church” in the US. Neither of which are what God describes the church like in the bible, in my humble opinion.

I’m disappointed with this list of limitations. It feels like an insincere list, like a “token” list of limitations. Are you really committed to analyzing what you do and doing things that are good for advancing God’s kingdom, or are you in love with the idea of church online so much that you don’t care if it’s really good for the body or not? I wouldn’t have questioned this before, but this list of limitations seems pretty limited.

I think that is the question that if anyone truly knew the answer to it…we’d have this thing completely solved. The problem is, there is no ideal formula to how a christian community is going to look. Simply put, if the people are loving God with everything they have, loving people with no strings attached and meeting their needs where they are and spreading the gospel, they are an authentic christian community.

We get ourselves in a trap by labeling things as this or that or us and them. People make the mistake of associating the word Church with a physical building somewhere. A church is a local body of believers, it’s not a building. There are limitations to what you can do online in that regards, for sure. But you can see lives changed in an online church setting, I think LC and others are proving that on a regular basis and in the end, I think that’s what matters here.

Every generation faces the challenge of changing methods. The development of technology has definitely enhanced the level of change for us to grapple with. I suspect the only limitation that we have to what God can do with us & through us IS US! Always remember both he who says he can & he who says he cannot are both correct! Friends lets follow the Holy Spirit to take us places in Him that so far we have not even dreamed about! Let’s our pray for God remove the shackles of preconceived ideas & methods from our minds to see what is on your heart, & then give us the courage to step up even in the midst of opposition! Its great being on the journey with you all. Bless ya heaps Ps Kev

1. The whole concept of online lifegroups. I have done church online, and the entire concept of a lifegroup is to go to a place, eat, get to know each other, and share what is going on in our lives. I have been on online chat for many years, and I do not see how an online lifegroup is an adequate replacement for a real life one. The anonymity of this medium means that the person you are talking to could be someone totally different than who they are presenting themselves to be. I think having true community online is not possible, unless a deliberate effort was made to get together globally or regionally every few months so that people could see each other face to face.

2. the concept of Pastor. How could you possibly have the kind of pastoral counselor type services using online church? I mean…who would do a funeral of a family member for example? or..see people in hospitals. Other people have suggested local groups of users could do such things. But I think it is important to have a pastor, a leader to be doing these things.

Now, as for a solution. Firstly, I think there needs to be more live video interaction during the church services…the interaction seems taped, so it is less real. Also, I think there needs to be a deliberate attempt at physically getting together as an internet church body, on a regional, national, or global basis led by someone from lifechurch.tv.

As an aside, I think that this church model as a whole, the lifechurch.tv model does not place as much emphasis on discipleship as is needed.

I have some questions regarding effectiveness. Who is being reached? What is the cost in comparison to the effectiveness of this ministry? Do you find it is meeting your expectations? Do you have a specific plan for integrating online and offline ministries?

I have been researching and experimenting (not on this scale) on how to combine online ministry with offline ministry within the context of our house church network. I would be interested in knowing the answers to these questions. Blessings.

The greatest advantage I see is its convenience, anonymity (for those who desire this), and the breath of its reach, connecting people all over the world. Ironically, its disadvantages may be the same that we experience in our campus churches; the inability to build interpersonal relationships, discipleship, and intimacy with other believers. Whether online or on campus, this will still be our challenge because ultimately the solution to this problem is predicated on the choices of the individual. However, online church is still an effective way to evolve the church experience to meet the way people communicate and socialize in our modern times.

Bobby is there a way to download the expereince for use at home? Its quite difficult to log on at a suitable time here in Australia, not to mention our countrie’s bad net speeds… it would be extremely useful if we could download the service and use that at an appropriate time for us?