Some Useful Technologies for Church Ministry (Part 3)

Read the series.

Technologies for Discipleship

Churches are not merely called to evangelize the lost, but their mission also includes educating and equipping the saints (Eph 4:12-14). While the church’s pastoral teaching ministry (public and private) is and should remain its central means for accomplishing this task (Acts 2:42; Eph 4:11; 2 Tim 3:17-4:2), the church may employ other secondary means.

Historically, solid biblical literature has been one of the primary mediums for this complementary mode of cultivating disciples. Now, with the advent of the Internet, pastors can self-publish helpful teaching by means of a pastor’s blog that’s structured into or linked to their church’s website. And as more of your people acquire e-book reading devices like Kindles or iPads, you can provide them with self-published materials in electronic format.²²

Twitter is an Internet-based social network platform you can use to send brief messages called “tweets” (a maximum of 140 characters) to subscribers on a daily, weekly, or periodic basis.²³ True, many people use Twitter in silly ways, as a means to publicize trivial information-bites.²⁴ On the other hand, I’ve followed the tweets of some Christian leaders who craft well-worded messages that prompt the readers to set their “minds on things above” (Col 3:2) and that “stir up [others] to love and good works” (Heb 10:24).²⁵

In addition to your audio sermons, written literature, and well-crafted tweets, there’s a plethora of discipleship resources available on the Internet in written, audio, or video format. For example, there are a number of Christian bloggers who provide helpful articles on various biblical and/or practical topics. Moreover, many gifted teachers and/or ministries provide free audio and/or video media of sermons and lectures. A few resources I’ve personally found helpful include media from Ligonier Ministries, The Gospel Coalition, Desiring God Ministries, Third Millennium Ministries, Reformed Theological Seminary, and Covenant Seminary Worldwide.²⁶ Another helpful online resource is the New City Catechism.²⁷

There are potential dangers and drawbacks to using the Internet as a tool for discipleship. To begin with, there are many really bad resources on the Web as, for example, websites featuring pornographic media. Pastors should warn their people about these dangerous sites and encourage them to consider Internet filtering and accountability measures.²⁸ Additionally, sub-biblical or even heretical teaching can be found on the Internet, just as it can be found in Christian bookstores. Once again, pastors should caution their people. It may be helpful to provide a list of sites you consider orthodox and basically in line with the doctrinal position of your church. Of course, even the best teaching available on the Internet isn’t infallible. The key is to teach your people to be discerning.

Yet even the best Internet resources present potential temptations for Christians. Not surprisingly, good audio and video resources often feature some of the most gifted preachers and teachers in the nation (or world). If your members expose themselves to the best communicators, they may be tempted to compare these preachers and teachers critically with that of their local church pastors. Worse, believers can be tempted to treat listening to and/or watching a sermon on the Internet as a substitute for corporate worship.

I don’t think the best approach in seeking to protect your people is to ban their use of good resources. Nor should you criticize these teachers or resources unfairly in an attempt to dissuade your people from using them. For one, it’s not loving or righteous to misrepresent your neighbor. Moreover, imbalanced criticism of another preacher or author can actually backfire. The more mature members in your church can tell if you’re criticizing another ministry unfairly and may begin to distrust your discernment and motives. Furthermore, you may post blogs and upload your sermons not only for the sake of your members, but also for the edification of Christians in other places. If so, your objection to your people accessing the sound teaching of other pastors online will come across as an inconsistency.

A more balanced approach, in my view, is to commend good preachers and authors to your people, making qualifications or offering caveats when necessary.²⁹ Remember that God has given some pastor-teachers to serve the universal church (Eph 4:11-14). “All things are yours,” writes Paul, “whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas” (1 Cor 3:21-22). And we might add, “Whether Martin Luther, Jonathan Edwards, C. H. Spurgeon, as well as R. C. Sproul, John MacArthur, or John Piper.”

At the same time don’t feel ashamed to remind your people that God has provided local churches with resident pastor-teachers (Acts 14:23; 20:28; Titus 1:5). What’s more, God commands church members “to respect those who labor among [them] and are over [them] in the Lord and admonish [them] and to esteem [their pastors] very highly in love because of their work” (1 Thess 5:12-13; cf. Heb 13:7, 17). Consequently, Christians should view their local church pastors as their primary shepherds and the ones God has ordained for their growth and maturation.³⁰

Finally, I should mention software and Internet platforms like Community Church Builder and Ministry Grid. These technologies enable churches to keep track of their various discipleship ministries as well as to organize and network various kinds of training for ministry leaders, Sunday School teachers, child-care workers, and so on.³¹

Technologies for Community

We’ve already discussed the usefulness of a good website. Many church website designs offer an “events” page or calendar in order to facilitate fellowship and ministry among the members. Some websites feature a private page for members only, which requires a password for access. Prayer requests and more “in-family” news can be posted here.³²

Facebook is currently a popular and widely used social network platform. It allows users to share information, photos, and links with others whom they designate as “friends.” Churches can create their own Facebook page. It can be configured so that every member of the page can post. Or, if you prefer, you can set up the page so that only designated administrators can post. In this case, members can still “like” or comment. A church Facebook page can be useful to share prayer requests, important news, upcoming events, or links to helpful media on the Internet. You can set up the page to be visible only to members or visible to the public.³³ In addition, community groups within a church can create their own pages.

When used wisely, Facebook, like Twitter, can be used to encourage one another in the faith. Moreover, church and community group Facebook pages can facilitate fellowship and mobilize members for ministry. Furthermore, it’s a great way to keep your high school and college age young people connected with the church’s ministry.³⁴