The Awakening Church meets in homes for several reasons. We believe the home is ideal for authenticity. There is no religious feel to a living room and dining room. It has a more comfortable and casual feel for people, so guards can be let down more easily.

 The home is also ideal for connection because it is small. It is great for developing strong and intimate relationships because people get to really know one another. Having a meal together is a great way to connect in fellowship!

Homes are also ideal for church discipline. When a local church is small, people can’t live a hidden life of sin for long. Sin will eventually be exposed, and it can be dealt with and repented of quickly, so the church is not polluted and compromised. Accountability flourishes in a small church.

Homes are also ideal for participation. Our house church services allow everyone to participate in their spiritual gifts to edify one another (1 Corinthians 14:26). Everyone can participate instead of just a few people. Everyone gets to play!

Homes are also ideal because the money collected doesn’t go toward a building, its utilities, or its upkeep. The money can go directly to the people (who are the church) to help meet needs and to missions.

The church meeting in homes is also biblical. The church regularly met in homes throughout the New Testament (buildings weren’t used for local churches until the third century AD). The Bible does not command us to meet in homes, but that’s what the early church practiced (it’s descriptive and not prescriptive in the Scriptures).

We believe the house church model is effective in reaching the lost. House churches multiply fast because they are easy to start without overhead costs and simple in their structure. Homes become missionary hubs, making Gospel declaration and discipleship part of daily neighborhood life.

House churches are also a great blessing for elders. Normally, churches that meet in buildings are led by senior pastors who shepherd large numbers of people (sometimes hundreds or even thousands). It’s a great challenge to shepherd a large church! House churches, on the other hand, typically range from 5 to 20 people. Therefore, it’s much easier for elders to know the sheep and minister to, serve, and shepherd them.

Meeting in homes is also ideal for Bible teaching. When you have a small church, you can discuss the Scriptures together and ask questions for understanding and application. Instead of a monologue with only one person doing all the speaking, you get a dialogue where everyone can participate and discuss the Scriptures together. Even though there is typically one teacher leading the Bible teaching, everyone can contribute by asking questions and making comments about the texts of Scripture.

Finally, meeting in homes is ideal in a persecuted environment. When churches are persecuted, house churches typically still flourish.

These are some of the main reasons we have gone to a house church model rather than a traditional church model. We are not legalistic about it nor do we divide over it, however, and we do not judge any other local churches that have a traditional church model. God is bigger than any one church model and structure and He uses many different models and structures! We believe the house church structure is ideal in many ways, but it is not commanded in Scripture. The local church comprises of set apart followers of Jesus who regularly assemble in a given location, regardless of where they meet. The house church structure is just what we sense God has called us to do personally, and we seek to unite with all other Bible believing Gospel centered local churches who seek to know God and make God known. As Christians, we are the one universal church of Jesus at the end of the day.

“So, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart.” – Acts 2:46