This morning I want to address the topic of “doing church.” and I’m going to begin by asking the question, “Where are Christians supposed to assemble together for worship and fellowship?” In Acts 17:24, Paul declared, “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands.” I think it’s important for us to realize that a church building is not the only place where we encounter God’s presence.
In the Old Testament we learn that the Lord abided in the tabernacle and in the temple; but all of that changed when Jesus died to make us holy before God (2 Corinthians 5:21). When the veil of the temple was torn in two (Matthew 27:51) we were granted full access to God’s throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). In fact, believers are now God’s temple, as we are now the temple of the Holy Spirit, according to 1 Corinthians 3:16.
However, this does not exempt us from assembling together for worship and fellowship. Hebrews 10:25 exhorts us not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together as is the manner of some. We are supposed to meet together as brothers and sisters in Christ.; but how many people does it take to constitute a church? In Matthew 18:20, Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” So, based on what Jesus said, any time that fellow believers meet together for fellowship and worship, no matter what the size or number of that gathering, it constitutes a church.
What I’m hoping to show us is that, based on the New Testament understanding of a church, and based on the ministry of some of the early apostles, is that believers did not always gather in a church building or a temple. In fact, we’re going to see that much of the time they met in one another’s homes. So, based on a phrase that we’re going to encounter in the Word this morning, I have entitled our message, “From House to House.” I’m going to begin by sharing Acts 20:17-21!
Paul Taught from House to House (Acts 20:17-21)
17 From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18 And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; 20 how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21 testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
Right here we find the apostle Paul addressing the elders of the church at Ephesus concerning his ministry efforts; and in verses 20-21 he spoke of his declaration of the gospel, and about how he preached both “publicly” and “from house to house” the message of repentance toward God and faith in Christ.
The part I want to emphasize is how Paul said that he preached “from house to house.” In the time of the apostles, or the early church, there were no mega-churches like you see today. Now, some might say that the New Testament church began as a mega-church, based on Acts 2:40-47. First off, I must point out that the assembly of people that we read about at Pentecost was a gathering of multiple nationalities who had come to Jerusalem to celebrate; so, there were a lot of people in town. Secondly, the three thousand souls added to the church, did not continue to meet together as a large gathering of three thousand. The church was broken up into small groups that met at various locations.
New Testament References to Meeting in Houses
The New Testament shares what was apparently the favorite gathering spot for the early church. That location was in believer’s homes, or houses. Allow me to share just four Scriptures as an example:(1)
Acts 5:42 – “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they [Peter and the apostles] did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”
Acts 20:28-31 – “Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house, and received all who came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him.”
1 Corinthians 16:19 – “The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.”
Colossians 4:15 – “Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in his house.”
I actually have references for eight more passages, or sets of verses, just like these; and if you would like to see them, just let me know and I’ll get them to you. I want to invite you to now turn to Acts 2:46-47.
House Church as a Model for Church Growth (Acts 2:46-47)
46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
What we see here is that the people of the New Testament church met in the temple and in one another’s homes; but as they fellowshipped together in houses breaking bread together and praising God, “the Lord added to the church daily” (v. 47). The church grew as a result of fellowshipping and worshipping together, much of which took place in each other’s homes.
This early type of “doing church” is commonly called “house church.” A “house church” is defined as, “A group of Christians gathering regularly or spontaneously in a home instead of a building dedicated to the purpose [of worship].”(2) One article on house church states, “For the first three-hundred years of its existence the church met primarily in the homes of its members, and not in specially designed buildings.”(3)
In another article entitled, “The House Church Movement,” writer Loren Smith shares with us the following words: “Certainly, the writers of the New Testament seem to have had a clearer understanding of what truly constitutes ‘the church,’ something that is foreign to most Christians today. They referred to the ‘people of God’ as God’s building, God’s temple, God’s house, God’s household and Christ’s body. Christians in the New Testament didn’t go to church. They were the church! They were God’s building! They were God’s temple!”(4)
As we read in Hebrews 10:25, we must “not [forsake] the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some,” however we must also come to understand that assembling together does not have to take place in a “church building” or in a “large group.” We can assemble together for fellowship, and worship together, in one another’s homes; and as we see in the New Testament this is also a proven and successful way to grow the Lord’s church; to grow the kingdom.
Believe it or not, house church is actually a model for church growth set forth by Jesus. In Luke 10:5-6, Jesus instructed His disciples, “But whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.” When Jesus’ disciples traveled around sharing the message of the kingdom, they were supposed to stay in the homes of the locals. As they entered these homes, Jesus said that “your peace will rest upon it.” He meant that they should stay in these homes teaching and preaching the gospel. This was to happen only if they encountered a “man of peace,” or one who was receptive to their words. Now, I can preach an entire message on the “man or peace,” or “person of peace,” but I’m going to forgo that for the sake of time.
The Advantages of a House Church
I want to take a moment to discuss some advantages of having house church. In an article published by the Baptist Standard, here’s what’s written about one woman’s experience with house church:
Lori Byerly has been a part of [a house church] congregation for more than a year. When asked why she worshipped there, Byerly said, “Probably for a long time I was sort of dissatisfied with staring at the back of somebody’s head.” She wanted a closer fellowship. “It’s been an incredibly healthy move for our family,” she testified. It’s like we have real friends in this church . . . a real personal knowledge of each other, and a real willingness to do the practical.”(5)
Now, one advantage for having house church is what we just read in this article. The woman testified that she wanted a “closer fellowship.” “The overarching significance of the house-church is found in its underlying theology of community. The church is often depicted by the New Testament in terms which describe a family; we are seen both as ‘the household of faith’ (Galatians 6:10) and as ‘the household of God’ (Ephesians 2:19).”
“The house-church of the New Testament was a conducive setting for developing the kind of interpersonal family relationships demanded by this New Testament theology of community . . . The meetings of the New Testament church were meetings of families . . . [and] their meetings reflected intimacy not only with their heavenly Father, but also with each other – intimacy [and] accountability.”(6)
A second advantage of having house church is freeing up resources for ministry. “Calvin Guy, [who was once] Chairman of the Missions Department of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary . . . writes [of the early house church that] ‘Spared both the expense and concern of erecting and maintaining a building, they were soon involved in expending all available funds in loving service to the widows and orphans. Charity was not the incidental, fractional percentage of the budget. It was the budget’.”(7)
A third advantage of having house church is meeting together during times of persecution. If we ever find ourselves under attack for our faith, then we can meet together as believers in what some would call the underground church, which is basically a covert network of house churches. But something akin to this is what we’re experience right now, as we face a world-wide health crisis, forcing us into isolation.
Over the years I have watched the church grow apart and become fragmented. Coming together as a body does not seem as important as it used to be, perhaps because we’re too busy to give up our time for a worship service; let alone give up our time to serve in the church and be involved in outreach to the community. And when we do meet together, it seems that we want to “be served” rather than “do the serving.”
I believe the modern organized church has created the notion that ministry and serving are for the professionals (i.e. the clergy); and large congregations with big ornate facilities, elaborate programs, and multiple staff members have led us to believe that church exists to serve us; to serve the members and seekers. So, we let others do all that goes along with organizing and leading the church, while we sit back and relax, watch the show, critique the outreach, and then go our separate ways.
Right now, during this world-wide health crisis, there are actually church members who have committed to meeting together for worship and devotion as family units, or as a small gathering of friends. For a small house church to function, everyone has to be involved; doing such things as taking turns teaching, and being involved in member care, benevolence, and other forms of outreach. So, perhaps during this time when we have ceased to meet in a large gathering; perhaps we can get back to truly being the church, where everyone is involved in serving, and teaching, and sharing the love of Christ in practical and meaningful ways.
I have shared this message to let you know that it’s okay to keep on meeting and to even hold a worship service in your home. I’ve also shared this message to encourage you to go and be the church. We can no longer depend on the pastor to bring us the message – though some are trying through live streaming – but not everyone uses the internet or has access to it, especially those who are seniors. Take this time of forced solitude to study the Word, and then apply what you learn and teach your family. Also, reach out to other church members, or neighbors, especially the homebound and the widows, and see if you can do something to help, such as pick up some groceries. Be the hands and feet of Christ.
God can take this time of chaos and tragedy and use it to strengthen and grow His church if we begin seeking His face and following the leading of the Holy Spirit. So, get out there and be the church!
NOTES
(1) I want to encourage you to write these verses down for future reference and study: Acts 10:22; Acts 2:12, Acts 16:31-32; Acts 16:40; Acts 18:7; Romans 16:3-5; Philemon 1-3; 2 John 9-11.
(2) “House Church,” Wikipedia, taken from the Internet in December of 2005 at http://en. wikipedia.org/wiki/House_church.
(3) “The Advantages of the House Church Model,” taken from the Internet in December of 2005 at http://www.patriarch.com/church14.html. Editor’s Note: “This article is taken, with slight editing, from the NT Restoration Newsletter, August, 1991; 2752 Evans Dale Circle, Atlanta, GA 30340.”
(4) Loren Smith, “The House Church Movement,” taken from the Internet in December of 2005 at http://www.housechurch.org/basics/lorin_smith.html. Editor’s Note: “This two part article appeared in Bermuda's daily newspaper, The Royal Gazette.” Scripture references to the church as not a building, but a people: 1 Corinthians 3:9; Ephesians 2:19-22; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 1 Timothy 3:15; Hebrews 3:6, 10:21; 1 Peter 2:17; Ephesians 2:19; Galatians 6:10; Romans 12:4-5; 1 Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 3:6, 5:23, 30.
(5) Ferrell Foster, “Church at Home: Early Church Model Gaining Favor,” Baptist Standard, Texas, March 26, 2001, taken from the Internet in December of 2005 at http: //www.baptiststandard.com/2001/3_26/pages/homechurch.html.
(6) “The Advantages of the House Church Model.”
(7) Loren Smith, “The House Church Movement.”
