In case you don’t read any further, please remember, none of that really matters since the “church” didn’t die to save your soul. Jesus did.
My guess is, you aren’t happy with how Washington DC is run, regardless of your political position or party affiliation. I’ll take another guess, even though you aren’t happy with our government, you still vote, still pay your taxes, still obey the law. I’ll even go a step further, I’m guessing you haven’t relinquished your US citizenship. Here’s where my analogy probably breaks down, because you can break the law and you don’t really have to participate much in your country to remain a citizen. But then again, we have a different view of citizens who disregard our laws, take advantage of our nation, and never contribute to the greater good.
Flawed systems do not give us an excuse to quit. Jesus is, was, and always will be perfect. The church? She is a work in progress. When we confuse the two, then there are problems.
Some of our actions as Christians have tarnished the image of the church -- the reputation of the church suffers from our poor choices and bad behavior. There are plenty of good reasons why so many unbelievers have a tainted view of the church. On the flipside, there are a lot of good and healthy churches out there, and, some people might just be looking for an excuse to discard the entire notion of church participation no matter how good or bad their local churches are.
On top of that, faithful attendance in a local church is not the equivalent of faithful allegiance to Christ. Even though I think a lack of participation in the Body which He died for might show a lack of faith in the Jesus who shed His blood for the church.
So, do you have to “go” to church and participate to “get into” heaven? After all, Hebrews 10:24-25 seems to indicate we shouldn’t neglect gathering together: “Consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” The word in that passage for “meeting together” in the Greek is different from the typical Greek word for “church” or “assembly.” The word in Hebrews 10:25 isn’t the word for the assembly, it is more aligned with the idea for being synchronized and bonded together in commonality. I like that a lot. Gathering together, not just for a worship service, but to be joined together and living in christian community. It’s a beautiful notion. It’s easier said than done.
On the note of “not forsaking the assembly” we need to keep in mind, we don’t “go” to church. We, the people, we are the church. Jesus didn’t die for a building, or for a denomination. He died for the souls of sinful people. Church is when we gather together, wherever, and we celebrate the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, church is when we gather with the purpose of making disciples and sharing the Gospel with a lost world. Maybe if we hadn’t lost sight of the Great commission, maybe we wouldn't be in the mess we are in now.
It’s not my place to say your soul is in jeopardy if you don’t belong to a local church. It is my responsibility to encourage you. I want to encourage you, please don’t give up on the Body of Christ. She fights over stupid issues. She makes a mess of things. She doesn’t always get along. She’s probably similar to a few of our family reunions through the years... She’s still the Bride of Christ. And, at times she needs you probably more than you need her.
My guess is, you aren’t happy with how Washington DC is run, regardless of your political position or party affiliation. I’ll take another guess, even though you aren’t happy with our government, you still vote, still pay your taxes, still obey the law. I’ll even go a step further, I’m guessing you haven’t relinquished your US citizenship. Here’s where my analogy probably breaks down, because you can break the law and you don’t really have to participate much in your country to remain a citizen. But then again, we have a different view of citizens who disregard our laws, take advantage of our nation, and never contribute to the greater good.
Flawed systems do not give us an excuse to quit. Jesus is, was, and always will be perfect. The church? She is a work in progress. When we confuse the two, then there are problems.
Some of our actions as Christians have tarnished the image of the church -- the reputation of the church suffers from our poor choices and bad behavior. There are plenty of good reasons why so many unbelievers have a tainted view of the church. On the flipside, there are a lot of good and healthy churches out there, and, some people might just be looking for an excuse to discard the entire notion of church participation no matter how good or bad their local churches are.
On top of that, faithful attendance in a local church is not the equivalent of faithful allegiance to Christ. Even though I think a lack of participation in the Body which He died for might show a lack of faith in the Jesus who shed His blood for the church.
So, do you have to “go” to church and participate to “get into” heaven? After all, Hebrews 10:24-25 seems to indicate we shouldn’t neglect gathering together: “Consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” The word in that passage for “meeting together” in the Greek is different from the typical Greek word for “church” or “assembly.” The word in Hebrews 10:25 isn’t the word for the assembly, it is more aligned with the idea for being synchronized and bonded together in commonality. I like that a lot. Gathering together, not just for a worship service, but to be joined together and living in christian community. It’s a beautiful notion. It’s easier said than done.
On the note of “not forsaking the assembly” we need to keep in mind, we don’t “go” to church. We, the people, we are the church. Jesus didn’t die for a building, or for a denomination. He died for the souls of sinful people. Church is when we gather together, wherever, and we celebrate the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, church is when we gather with the purpose of making disciples and sharing the Gospel with a lost world. Maybe if we hadn’t lost sight of the Great commission, maybe we wouldn't be in the mess we are in now.
It’s not my place to say your soul is in jeopardy if you don’t belong to a local church. It is my responsibility to encourage you. I want to encourage you, please don’t give up on the Body of Christ. She fights over stupid issues. She makes a mess of things. She doesn’t always get along. She’s probably similar to a few of our family reunions through the years... She’s still the Bride of Christ. And, at times she needs you probably more than you need her.
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