How To Start A Home Church Course

I was 12 years old when I first heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. I obeyed the word preached, and from that time on, I've tried to follow the Lord as best I could. I was at the church house Sunday mornings, Sunday evenings, and Wednesday nights. I later went to Bible School, served in various ministry positions, and was even president of a Christian Fellowship. But in 2007, when we moved from Oregon to Colorado, everything changed. 

We didn't feel from the Lord to start a church which was odd for a couple of ministers. So we did what most Christians do when they move to a new area. We looked for a local church to be part of. We found some of course, but couldn't agree with most of the teaching we heard. As the weeks rolled on, It became increasingly difficult to just warm a pew listening to doctrine that wasn't biblically sound. Long story short, we didn't feel to join any of the churches we visited. So…now what? This was uncomfortable, uncharted territory for us.

Without exaggeration, I searched the scriptures with fear and trembling. I knew well the command not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, yet here I was, not going to church as I had done and had taught for decades. I wasn't rebelling - far from it. I was wrestling with this dilemma: 

“Does God expect me or anyone to quench the truths we know from the scriptures on one hand in order to obey the command to assemble together on the other?”

This is a fair question and one you might be pondering now, so let's keep going together.

The Home Church Movement Is Growing​

What I didn't know back in 2007, was that thousands of Christians all over the world had already left organized religion and made their way through the same wilderness I was going through. They left for a hundred different reasons ranging from "the kids are grown and gone so we can sleep in on Sundays" to getting a new pastor they don't like to the leadership teaching the congregation to embrace tolerance and "alternative lifestyles."

Those who’d left the denomination but not the Lord had migrated somewhere. Some had just traded one organization for another, but others had opted for a way less traveled in this modern age. A way that some would call "organic" or "simple." In the scriptures, we read interesting things like this:

• Acts 2:46

“And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,”

• Rom 16:5

“Likewise greet the church that is in their house..."

• Col 4:15

“Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the church which is in his house.”

Though some think it strange to assemble as churches in houses today, it was the norm in the early church. Particularly for gentile Christians because they weren't allowed in Jewish temples. 

One of the biggest mental hurdles for people is separating the building from the church. The church isn't a building. It's not an organization or a denomination. It's the people of God. It's the family of God. And that family can be anywhere, anytime. Gathering together in a house is just practical. We can gather in a park, at the beach, a coffee shop, or a football stadium. The location doesn't matter. What happens when we gather is what's important.

How Does Home Church Work?​

According to the scriptures, Jesus Christ came not only to save his people from their sins, but he is also building a holy church. A community of believers so powerful the gates of hell would not prevail against it.

One of the first questions I had about home church was, "What does it look like?" Should I take the typical church service I'm used to and miniaturize it for my living room? 

I returned to the scriptures - our blueprint - for the answer and discovered a loose format for us to follow.  It's very participatory, and everyone plays a part, which is quite different than nearly any Sunday morning service I'd ever experienced. I also discovered other things about the gifts of the Spirit, the role of elders and why assembling together is so important.

How To Start A Church In Your House - A Video Course​

Many years have passed filled with growth, experience, hurts, and victories. Now I feel the best way to help others is to teach what we’ve learned.  So I created a video course to do just that. The course covers five key areas:

• Is Home Church Biblical?​

• Church Leadership​

• How To Avoid Costly Mistakes​

• What Should Happen When We Come Together​

• Maintenance & Growth​

I invite you to check out the How To Start A Dynamic Home Church Course by clicking the link or the picture above. Preview the sections and lessons and see if it's something you're looking for. I put a lot of prayer, study, and work into this video training and tried not to leave anything important out. 

You might not agree with everything presented, and when that occurs, I hope you search the scriptures to confirm why you don't agree. Then I hope you'll leave a comment with your findings and perspective.

Will The Home Church Course Ever Be On YouTube?

There are a few reasons why we chose not to put this on YouTube for the world to see right away. The first is that if the channel ever got banned, all my videos would be lost. YouTube can cancel content at will and without reason. The second is to help viewers to avoid distractions. YouTube is a mecca for distractions and suggested videos that could hinder meaningful engagement. The course might show up on YouTube at some point in the future along with other home church-related content on YouTube and elsewhere, so stay tuned for that!

I chose to use SamCart for the course platform and so far I'm having a good experience with it. SamCart is hosting the videos without any playback issues I'm aware of, and the course interface is clean, uncluttered, and easy to use.

I'm also able to offer a name-your-own-price option. Simply put, if you feel the course is worth $50, you can pay that and help me offset the production and maintenance costs - which are considerable. If you feel the course is worth nothing, pay nothing. Everyone gets access to the entire course, including a money-back guarantee. 

To offset the expenses of maintaining this website, you might see affiliate links to helpful products or services mixed in with the articles. If you make a purchase, we might be compensated in some way at no cost to you. It’s a win-win advertising option for businesses that helps us too!