Rethinking the Church | The Business We're Really In

²⁰ For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.

Matthew 18:20 (NRSVUE)

Remember when we used to think that success meant having the right buildings in the right locations? Blockbuster built their entire business model around this idea. They focused on having more stores, more inventory, and more convenient locations than their competitors. And for a while, it worked brilliantly.

But Netflix understood something Blockbuster missed: they weren't really in the video rental business. They were in the personal entertainment business. People didn't care about visiting impressive stores—they wanted convenient access to movies when and where they wanted them. When streaming became possible, Netflix pivoted immediately while Blockbuster kept focusing on their buildings.

This same dynamic can happen in the church. We can become so focused on what happens inside our buildings that we forget what business we're really in. We can obsess over our worship services, our programs, our facilities, and our events while missing the bigger picture.

Jesus reminds us that he's present wherever believers gather in his name. This promise isn't limited to church buildings or formal worship services. Jesus is with us when we gather around a hospital bed to pray for a friend. He's with us when we meet at a coffee shop to encourage someone who's struggling. He's with us when we come together to serve our community or to study the Bible in someone's living room.

The church isn't defined by our buildings—it's defined by our relationships with Jesus and with each other. Our gatherings matter, our worship matters, our programs matter, but they matter because they equip us to be Jesus's presence in the world. We gather so we can scatter. We worship together so we can serve together. We learn in community so we can love in community.

When we understand that we're in the people business, not the building business, everything changes. We start measuring success not by how many people come to our events but by how many people we're equipping to be salt and light in their workplaces, neighborhoods, and families. We start focusing less on getting people to come to church and more on helping church people go into the world as Jesus's representatives.

This doesn't diminish the importance of our gatherings—it gives them purpose. Every time we gather, we're being prepared for our real mission field: our everyday lives.

Prayer: Jesus, thank you for your promise to be with us wherever we gather in your name. Help us remember that church isn't just a place we go—it's who we are. Use our times of gathering to prepare us for our times of scattering. Make us your presence in every workplace, every neighborhood, every family, and every relationship. We want to be the church everywhere we go. Amen.