CHARLES: We're just in the midst of coming here, we're in the midst of making plans and
going home, still working through plans.
I just... hearing the question, it just breaks my heart.
The question just... the reality just breaks my heart.
I woke up this morning with Philippians 1 and 3, and Paul saying, "I thank my God upon
every remembrance of you, but I feel that longing and yearning for the people of the
church that God has made me a part of."
Just as a pastor carry a heavy heart of burden and concern that we're not able to meet together.
But I hope that those who call Shiloh Church home feel that same burden.
There is a mark of genuine conversion, I think revealed in it.
We are talking among our elders and our staff about just what it means to be the church
when you can in the vernacular of the tradition I grew up in, how to be the church when you
can't have church.
We're not able to hold our meetings, but what does it mean for us to be the church?
It makes me also grateful for technology.
I've been rejoicing for technology.
Some of the things that I would complain about related to technology I'm now thankful for
because it is the means by which we are able to primarily have contact and connection with
the saints at our church.
We're trying to be good stewards of it and take advantage of every opportunity to connect
through those means.
So we are streaming a service, we will not be meeting, but we will be streaming a service
on the Lord's day.
Just this week, our elders and we're still fleshing it out, we have small groups and
we're trying to, through conference calls, make sure that the sites in those settings
are still connecting to each other through the study of God's word and prayer.
All of our pastors and staff, I said this week, all of us have a new job description,
it's kind of primary for all of us so just pastoral care and just checking on the saints.
We have many senior members in our church and a priority for us is just to check on
them, to see that all is well with them and if there's any way we can be of service to
them.
But for the replacement of our corporate meetings, we're trying to be good stewards and take
advantage of the technology that we have.
Then we're just encouraging just the human connection by whatever means we have to mutually
care for one another, which I think is reminding us of the importance of being the church right
now because of the church and our size.
There are some people who are attracted to a church like ours because it's easy to hide
out and show up to a service and not be required of much and we work on that to a challenge
of participating membership and the connections now relationally really I think and Romans
12 just fleshing out our community of fellowship with one another.
PARSONS: I'm not quite sure how to say this, but I know there are some RBC students here,
Reformation Bible College students who are here, but I would hope that every man who
is training for pastoral ministry and every man who is in seminary or even those who are
in ministry would be able to hear not just what you said H.B. but in some ways, more
importantly how you said it.
As my older brother in the faith, you're an example to me and to many because you're a
true pastor.
Perhaps this goes without saying, but just hearing the tone in which you addressed this
question, we all got to hear the heart of a pastor, not just a pulpiteer, not just a
preacher, but as a shepherd.
That's something that is so often missing in our day, particularly among men that are
known for their preaching ministry, they don't often hear... people don't often hear this
heart of the true shepherd.
That is what we most desperately need and have desperately needed it for some time.
Because too often we have made so much of the charisma and the communication abilities
and of course the look and everything else that goes with the preaching ministry.
We know that preaching is one aspect of what pastors do, it's one aspect of what shepherds
do but we're not in the Bible called fundamentally preachers, we're fundamentally pastors or
shepherds who preach.
One of the things that I heard and we we're discussing even earlier that is in... that
we both have in common among our church or between our churches is that we are doing
all things in accordance with the plurality of the elders.
Right now there is communication going back and forth with our pastors and our elders
talking about the communication that's going to come out, Lord willing tomorrow to our
congregation.
I think that's very vital that we remember the importance of the plurality of elders
that God has appointed to his church and to seek that wisdom and discernment among a multitude
of the counselors that God has appointed and that we strive even as we were talking, that
thankfully there is unanimity, that there's a unity of mind that we are striving for so
that we are making decisions together.
So this is not a time for pastors to be cavalier and independent sort of lone rangers doing
things on their own, and trying to prove to whoever that they're solid leaders.
This is a time for us to rely upon the government of the church that God has given to us, of
the elders.
I'm going to be speaking hopefully in a little while about the importance of the role of
the deacons, the significance.
There's one of the deacons from St. Andrews who's seated here this morning and the importance
of the deacons and the work that they are doing in the church and of course in the community.
But H.B., thank you for reminding us of the care that we need to be taking as we strive
to carefully shepherd the congregation even as they are distributed broadly throughout
our communities.
LARSON: Yes sir.
CHARLES: Hearing that just as a reminder for us as well, to just be prayerful for pastors
in small churches, in rural places where even just what we're talking about, streaming stuff
is something we take for granted that is still an issue for them.
They have... they don't have that to take for granted and some of the resources and
they are going to have to find strategic ways in the midst of this to be with their people,
to care for their people, to serve their people, they just need our prayers.
PARSONS: Absolutely.
I'll just say a couple of things.
We have never live streamed a service before last Sunday and we still had people in attendance,
some in attendance in the morning services and in our evening worship service.
That will likely change drastically this coming Lord's day.
But we didn't know quite what to do and thankfully we have the people who could make it happen
and make it work.
But one thing I want to say that I think is very important that there might be many individuals
in churches throughout the world who are joining other churches, not their own church, but
other churches via live stream.
I think it's important that those pastors of those churches are doing what they can
to emphasize that those people return to their churches in the regular assembly of the saints
on the Lord's day.
I'm assuming that's happening, but I would hope that no pastor would take advantage of
this and be opportunistic about this and striving to steal sheep from other congregations during
this time.
CHARLES: One more thing to add there.
I do want to thank God for Ligonier and going to bed last night I saw the news that during
this period, the teaching resources have been made available for free.
I've just been trying to share that news with as many people as I can where there'll be
sound doctrine available to serve churches that are not going to be able to serve.
So, I do want to just praise God to that heart of generosity to be able to serve the church
these things.