"It is Time to Zoom from the Zoom" - What the Lord said in 2020 during COVID (and is still saying in 2022 BTW)

I am all for the best use of technology. And clearly, during Covid, the online 'Zoom Meeting' became the way much of the world was forced to function for a time. I was teaching at a university at the time and we were entirely online using Zoom for classes and faculty meetings for over a year. 

Most churches also shifted all of their gatherings to virtual ones using Zoom (or a similar type of online platform). 

But our church NEVER met virtually on Zoom - we met in person. Even when it was illegal to do so. We gathered - for a couple of weeks, we even gathered in small groups of 3-4 in our cars (we called it, "Church on Wheels"). After a couple of weeks of that, we shifted into meeting in houses, in person, and NEVER looked back after that. There were a few weeks when the entire country wasn't allowed to leave their homes with a strict curfew in place and because there was no other way, during those weeks we did meet virtually.  

And as far as we know, we were the only church that met in person in the Middle Eastern country we were living in all throughout Covid. I am sure there were a few others, but again, as far as I know, our little church met in person, without masks, with no social distancing, etc. 

It was illegal to do what we were doing and yet our Muslim landlord, knowing that a $35,000 fine was possible, still allowed us to meet in our home (we'd have around 20 people in those meetings).

We were able to travel at one point and came back to the United States for a few months, and I was shocked to discover how many churches were unwilling to meet in person (even when allowed to by the government). How many of them simply complied (by misusing/misinterpreting Romans 13) to whatever the government said. 

Thankfully we saw other fearless pastors and leaders that found creative ways to meet in person - some in public places (like parking lots) and others who put up tents on their church property. These faithful shepherds heard from God and refused to allow godless governmental mandates to cause them to abandon their responsibility to GATHER God's people together IN PERSON.

Full disclosure - I have no respect for those who shut down, went online, and refused to find ways to meet people in person. It could have been house groups, meetings in parks, in outdoor restaurants/cafes - whatever! But to disenable their churches (and even discouraging their people) from gathering, was not just a bad idea - it was SIN! And God awaits many of them to repent for their failure to discern God's voice in that hour, to rightly understand our Scriptural mandate to gather as Christians in person whenever and however we can. 

But wait?? Haven't we "gathered" by all getting online on Zoom? Isn't this God's gift to us (our technological capabilities) in the 21st Century to be the church?? You will hear many make that argument. And I will respond by saying that 1. They didn't hear from God if they came to that conclusion. 2. They are actually violating the Scriptural mandate that we have to gather IN PERSON as the Body of Christ whenever we can, however we can.

I heard the Lord say to me in May of 2020 (just a couple of months into Covid) - "It is time to Zoom from the Zoom". I had never stopped gathering but I was involved with other Christians and other ministries that were carrying on with Zoom and knew that the Lord was telling me that I needed to refuse any Zoom invitation for ministry. If it was possible to meet in person, then I was mandated by God to meet in person. In one case, there was a men's Bible study that went virtual during Covid and literally remains so to this day (July 2022). When they asked me if I would speak, I would only do so when they were ready/willing to meet in person! We finally did that a couple of months ago. 

I decided to write this blog post today after reading some thoughts by Pastor John MacArthur (who is as different from me theologically as one could get BTW!)

In response to a caller on his radio program last year about online church and Zoom meetings for Christians, he said this, 

"Look, Zoom church is not church. It’s not church; it’s watching TV. There’s nothing, there’s nothing about that that fulfills the biblical definition of coming together: stimulating one another to love and good works, coming together, singing, speaking to yourselves in psalms, hymns, spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord, sitting under the Word of God, praying together, being led by those who preach the Word and open the Scripture.

The definition of a church is crystal clear in the New Testament; we see the picture of it. They came together on the first day of the week. They worshiped the Lord. They prayed; we know it was the apostles’ doctrine, prayer. It was fellowship, and it was the breaking of bread in the Lord’s Supper.

So the church is defined clearly, and it’s the communion of the saints, it’s fellowship, it’s partnership. And the term koinōnia means “a coming together,” “a unifying together.” It doesn’t even function unless people are mutually—as we were saying this morning—mutually using their spiritual gifts for one another, and meeting the wonderful fulfillment of all the one anothers.

How many times in the New Testament—edify one another, pray for one another, rebuke one another, build up one another. On and on, one anothers, one anothers. We’re only the church when we are together; and the church is the church when it corporately worships, when it corporately prays, when it corporately hears the preaching of the Word of God. Those are the things that define the church.

I was listening to the latest in the podcast that Austin Duncan’s been doing at the MacArthur Center, and it just reminded me from the discussions that he was having with regard to this particular church, how the church is this communion of people, this fellowship of people whose lives are all blended together in a profound expression of love and unity. And that does not happen in any kind of video environment. I don’t think it even happens in a “church” where you’re watching a video of a pastor, because it’s very important that that man’s life be exposed and visible and known to everyone." John MacArthur (Oct 2021)

Far too many got disconnected from their churches during Covid when it was all Zoom and guess what? A huge percentage of people never went back to their churches even after they started gathering again in person. 

Zoom Church, as much as people want to try and justify its usefulness, ended up being a disaster for millions of Christians around the world. I've been constantly ministering to them ever since. They got isolated, they tried to stay engaged "online", but in the end, the enemy was really able to mess with their Christian lives. Even now, I am thinking of Christians I know who have never recovered. They aren't even going to church at all anymore. 

A few final thoughts about why Biblically, a pastor could never justify "online" Church as fulfilling the Biblical commandments that we have been given to gather. 

1. There is NO WAY to have communion together (you can't break bread and drink wine online)

2. There is no way to lay hands on people to pray for them 

3. It violates the doctrine of the incarnation of Christ. (Namely that God came to the planet IN PERSON. He didn't continue to "shout down" revelation through angels and prophets like He did in the Old Testament). 

4. God's grace is especially given "when two or three are gathered TOGETHER".

5. People can't 'hide' as easily in person as they can in a virtual environment. We simply can't really know how people are doing as people log into Zoom 'church' (which we are maintaining is NOT Church!) - and especially when they turn off their cameras!!

And yes, I know there are those that argue they were doing all of the above somehow "virtually" - and I would say that the fruit of such attempts proves that they were doing nothing of the sort.

I don't care what pandemic comes next, or what the governmental authorities where I live will dictate in the weeks, the months to come - I will ALWAYS find a way to gather with God's people IN PERSON. God will make a way, He will ALWAYS make a way for His Bride to gather in person.