Dear CHBC,
Hebrews 10:23-25 says, “23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” There are two statements there which I hold as sacred for the church. “Let us hold fast” and “let us consider”. Church, these are indeed troubling times. It is hard to know what is being wise, what is being alarmist, what is being loving, and what is encouraging fear.
I do not pretend to have the wisdom to navigate such waters. But I do know the One who is all wise, and I do know to ask for His wisdom, according to James 1. And I do know that we must do as Hebrews 10 commands. We must hold fast the confession of our hope, without wavering. God, who promised, is faithful. And we must consider how to stir one another to love and good deeds. And that stirring seems to occur most effectively in the assembly of the saints. The question we are dealing with for this moment is how to do that while heeding the counsel to limit group gatherings to 10 or fewer people.
Your pastors have met and consulted with others, and have determined that at this time it is not sin for us to heed the counsel of our President, our Governor, and the CDC, and therefore to postpone the public gathering of worship for at least Sunday March 22, probably March 29, and perhaps beyond that. We believe we can heed these commands and hold them precious in this season and be responsible stewards to other citizens of our community. We believe we can be faithful to gather by family for Sunday School, and virtually during the sermon, and it still encourage one another to love and good deeds.
So, how we will CHBC gather this week? Your pastors and others have been working tirelessly over the last few days to determine the best way in short notice to provide the church with its on going excellence in Sunday School and worship. The solutions we have are not ideal, and they cannot replace what we normally do. In fact, we do not think there is a substitute for the public and corporate gathering of the body of Christ. We hope to provide a meaningful experience for Bible study and worship, and we hope that gathering via virtual means will cause a greater longing and treasuring of being able to corporately gather with the body in the coming days.
What do you need to do?
- We have attached a Bible Study from Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington DC for use as a Sunday School Lesson for you to use at home this week. Whether you may be alone, or be able to gather a few people with you, take this lesson and use it as a time for Sunday School at 9 AM. There is a manuscript which we have edited. You can see our edits marked out in red. There is also a handout which you can use as a discussion guide or as a way to take notes. Those of you with smaller children can take this information and adapt it to teaching and conversation for them.
- Our worship team, AVL team, Pastor Tyler and myself will gather at the Worship Center to lead in worship via Facebook Live. You can livestream our service by getting onto your Facebook account and watching the service from your computer, tablet, or even cell phone. If you do not have a Facebook account it is easy to create one, so I would do that now, and then find the CHBC Facebook @chbcokc. Once you are on Facebook you can watch as CHBC goes live at 10:15 AM. We use this service weekly for all who travel, are homebound, or miss for sickness. There are usually 200+ views to our Facebook Live feed each week. The link again is here: https://www.facebook.com/chbcokc/
- You will still be able to participate in giving tithes and offerings in one of three ways. You can mail in your tithe or offering to the church office. You can drop off your tithe or offering during regular office hours. Or you can give online before or after the service. The online giving link at our website is https://my.e360giving.com/App/Giving/chbchurch.
- At 5 PM on Sunday evening rejoin Pastor Mark for a family devotion time through Facebook Live. He will be broadcasting from his home, and all you need to do is go to the CHBC Facebook page to join him in an evening devotion time, that will last approximately 20 minutes. The CHBC Facebook link again is here: https://www.facebook.com/chbcokc/
- As one of our seminary presidents advised: Prepare for Worship the Same:
- Awake on time, and get your Bible
- Have Sunday School with material provided
- Give online during the service
- Read the sermon passage along with the pastor
- Sing together
- Reflect on who you miss seeing
There will be more information in coming days regarding midweek opportunities to spend time in God’s Word. I will be posting some videos for you along the way as well. Reach out to one another. Make phone calls, send text messages, use Facetime, send cards, and safely invite another family into your home for a meal or fellowship. Do not let social distancing keep you from ministering to one another, or sharing the gospel with a lonely and frightened neighbor.
Mark D. DeMoss, Senior Pastor
