~ by Pastor Rob Krause

Quality Community

Have you noticed this to be true?

No matter how hard technology tries to bring people together, inherently, technological devices tend to isolate us from healthy, human interaction.

Oh no. I’m not saying that email, cell phones, TV, News sites & channels, and this blog aren’t great ways to pass information around to each other. What I am saying is that true Christian community demands we go deeper than info sharing. There are bigger needs than email can touch. I can’t develop my spiritual gifts through the TV. Although very helpful with financial reports and worldwide searches, my computer screens (yes, I have screens now) can’t put their arms on my shoulder and pray with me.^{[1] 1}

One brother wrote that his Church was studying and trying to apply "quality community." This is good. I think one "quality factor" of community for our day will be the ability to turn it off. This is really hard because technology floods our world. These days, it’s becoming easier to fast from food than it is from the TV or computer.

The Damnable TV

Television is like novacaine to the Christian life. Early on in our ministry in Italy, we had a small group get into a warm debate. A warm debate means that it was just at the point of being "heated" but not quite there yet. Political correctness would refrain us from ever calling it heated. Their debate was about when to meet together as a LifeTeam. This isn’t a bad argument to have. The problem was the motive of this particular group. Their scheduling trouble was over what night to meet together based on what TV programs were airing. Back in that day, Thursday was must see TV. And apparently Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday were as well.

You might ask, "Why not TiVo the thing?" Horridly & Unimagineably, TiVo didn’t exist. "And the VCR?" you say… Old satellite receivers and VCRs didn’t work together at all out here. Multisystem issues.

Can you feel the pain? People, obligated to Church in the home are without a recording method for Survivor, the Bachelor, and Trump’s Apprentice (who I predict will one day converge and one person will win all three — keep filling out those applications Andrew Maxwell!) Can you hear the elephant in the room? "Other Christians get to see that show - but we have to be together." Here was my first, simple reaction — "What are we? 12?" I was pretty fresh to the ministry back then and maybe that wasn’t the better, kinder, more seasoned reaction that I have now, "What are we! 10?!!" Kidding aside for a brief moment. I want to say, "What are we - Saved?" 

I think we’re paying a bigger price than we realize through our TV-time. I remember listening to a message where Bruce Waltke^{[2] 2} spoke about how we want to become like what we see. And, if we’re watching Hollywood’s Hell as it preaches its deficient values system to us and our kids, then we are basically sitting in the seat of scoffers and resting a while ([3] Psalm 1:1). That kind of life can’t be spiritually blessed. 

But I can also see that the flipside is true. If the Spirit of Jesus ([4] Acts 16:7; [5] Philippians 1:19) is dwelling in my brother or sister and I’m sitting in their presence, then what I see of Jesus working in and through them makes me want to become like HIM. For example, there are a few people in my life that have taught me how to pray. They never taught me in front of the TV or through an email. Occasionally, I learned some pray-er things over the phone. No, we had to be together and we had to be spiritually focused. 

Simply People

This is not a cry for us to go Amish on technology. A number of these devices are our modern-day tools. Just remember that tools are made for the man and not man for the tools. However, I have noticed that true Christian community has a very distinct taste to it; a taste you can never experience around electronics. There’s a rest that comes in the fellowship of the resurrected.

Here’s how I want to end this article. Jesus was all about people; simply people. Today, all who are simple Jesus-followers have a battle on our hands — we crave things. Two major cravings are technology along with entertainment. Like it or not, these are two cravings pounding the Church on today’s battlefield. They compete for the hearts, minds, & wills of the people in our flocks. But, we have a weapon that still wins again and again — True Christian Community with Jesus inside.

1. And, if they did put their arms on my shoulder to pray with me I’d turn 3-CPO into my new satellite dish, if you know what I mean. [[6] back]
2. one of my favorite OT commentators who did a magnificent job on Proverbs and Genesis. [[7] back]