The church is not a building, but do buildings matter?

At home, above my desk in my study, hangs a picture of a group of believers gathering together in a forest for worship outside Kyiv, Ukraine, in sub-freezing conditions. The photo was taken in 1985, during the Soviet persecution, and smuggled out through Germany. This scene is certainly not familiar to us who live and worship in relative freedom, but for those believers who live in China, North Korea and other countries where public worship is curtailed, hiding away in a house or forest for worship is commonplace. This begs the question, is a church building necessary?

It is true that the church is not a building. The word “church” comes from the Greek word ekklesia. This is a compound of the Greek works ek (out of) and kaleo (to call), which means “called out ones”. God’s people have been called out of the world to come together as a gathering of His people. Therefore, whether that gathering takes place in secret or in public, in a home or in a building crowned with a cross, it doesn’t ultimately matter. When the people of God gather, and the normal means of grace are practised (ie. the preaching of the Word, the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s supper, prayers and church discipline), there the church is visible. And yet, practically speaking, while the church is not a building, the place of gathering does matter greatly.

As you may be aware, HBC is in the process of looking for a new church home due to space restrictions and a potential change at our current location. We praise God for His abundant blessing on our growing congregation. We praise Him for the freedom to publicly worship without the need to hide in fear. And we praise Him for this opportunity to be stretched in our faith both corporately and individually as we band together to facilitate this potential change. But why the need for a building? Here are three key reasons:

The building is a place of worship

Not only is the church the body of Christ, but it is also the worshipping body of Christ. This means that the people of God need a physical place to worship. In the New Testament, Christians gathered for worship in various locations. They first met corporately at the temple in Jerusalem as well as in homes (Acts 2:46; 8:3; 20:20; Rom 16:5; 1 Cor 16:19; Col 4:15; Philm 1:2). They also met beside rivers (Acts 16:13), while at other times they rented a private space, like the Hall of Tyrannus (Acts 19:9). It was only in the late third century, as persecution began to subside, that the local churches began to purchase property and build specific church buildings.

All that to say, for the church to be the church, the church must meet for worship (Heb 10:24). When the church is small a living room will suffice. But as the church grows so does the demand for a bigger space.

The building is a place of identity

How do people know that there is a local body of believers in a particular area without a clearly defined place of worship? When the Apostle Paul brought the gospel to the city of Phillipi it states that “on the Sabbath day we went outside the gate to the riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer” (Acts 16:13). Paul went to the expected place of worship to find God-fearing people. Certainly, in times of persecution the church is forced underground, and to find any form of gathering requires knowing a friend of a friend of a friend of someone who meets. But in times of peace, where the gospel is freely expressed, the church building, that place of worship, identifies the gathered saints on the Lord’s Day. No wonder denominations bought the most prominent pieces of land when our country towns were built, to identify the church and to be that place of community.

The building is a place of service

Lastly, while the church can serve in many and various ways outside the four walls of a building, the building still serves as a tool for service. This can be a tricky one, because often churches have good intentions to build a building for the ministry of service but find that the building often limits or dictates what service should take place. Instead of the church directing the building use, the building directs the church. It is the classic case of the tail wagging the dog. But when used prayerfully and effectively, the building can be a powerful tool for gospel work where classes are held, counselling is conducted, people mobilised etc.

So, does a building matter? Yes, certainly. The body of Christ is not a building, but the building is the place where God’s church gathers each week for corporate worship and service to our King. And for us, to worship together will mean returning each week to a building. Therefore, HBC family, appreciate God’s provision of our building and pray that He will continue to guide our steps and provide the means as we seek another building where we unite each week as one body, living in oneness with each other and singing praises with one voice to our One God.