Is This Discipling?

I saw a thought-provoking video today about discipleship and what it means for the church. 

I was curious who produced the video.  It was produced by Foursquare Church, which seems solid on several key doctrinal points, but believes all spiritual gifts are still active today (non-cessationist) and presumably would have no issue with female pastors (egalitarian).  Still, their work might be helpful, so let's consider what was said.

The video primarily criticized the emphasis of programs over people and questioned the value of the church gathered in one building vs. the church scattered to build relationships and evangelize.

True, American churches tend to have many programs, for kids and adults alike.  These programs can easily become the focus rather than the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).   True, it is sometimes easier to hang out in a Christian bubble than to get involved in the complicated and tiring process of meeting lost people and communicating the gospel by both words and actions.

But the Great Commission is not the sole command given to the church, nor is it the entirety of her purpose.  For example, Hebrews 10:24-25 has much to say about assembling together regularly for mutual encouragement.  Based on how this concept is used in the New Testament, it is probably, though not always, more substantial than a couple of believers gathering for coffee. 

My point is simply this: The church has several purposes, of which evangelism and discipleship/ministry are only two or three.  So let's not ignore the other purposes of the church, such as fellowship and worship, some aspects of which can only be fully practiced when the church is assembled.  Jesus said "Go" (make disciples), but he also said "Gather" (once disciples are made).  The church is not complete without both.


I had a few other concerns about the video, like whether soup kitchens and 'liberation' are to be the primary or even any of the activities of a local church, since that seems to confuse what I may/should do as a Christian individually with the church's main focus in how it relates to the world.  But that's a discussion for another time.