WHY YOU SHOULD CHOOSE TO ATTEND CHURCH?

“And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near..” – Hebrew2s 10:25.

Church attendance is necessary for your growth as a believer in Christ. Every Christian should gather together to hear the Scriptures and worship Jesus together with other believers weekly: “On the first day of the week, we gathered with the local believers to share in the Lord’s Supper. Paul was preaching to them, and since he was leaving the next day, he kept talking until midnight” (see (Acts 20:7). Acts 2:42 says, “All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.” Romans 16:5 adds, “Also give my greetings to the church that meets in their home….”

A popular Christian catchphrase today is, “You don’t go to church, you are the church.” While that sentiment is fundamentally true it should not pit “being the church” and “going to church” against each other. If we are truly “the Church,” then we will surely get together with other believers regularly. We cannot “be” the church if we don’t “go” to church.

The “Church” is not a single, individual Christian just going about his or her Christian duties, and never gathering together to worship with other believers. The “Church” by its very nature means multiple believers. The first followers of Jesus would get together weekly to worship God together, and at times even daily. They would also share community together in each other’s homes.

Paul and the other Apostle’s letters were actually sent to these church communities that gathered in various cities to be read aloud together. Church means getting together with other believers to worship Jesus Christ, hear the Scriptures together, and encourage one another in the faith. Church is more than a podcast. It’s community. It’s worshiping with others, praying for others, hurting with others, serving others, and being involved in the lives of others.

If you attend church, you may hear something that will motivate and convict you to make changes in your life. Each service is tailored and designed to maximize your Sunday worship so that you can leave with the best possible spiritual experience. You can praise and worship God and you can learn things that you didn’t know before. You will be challenged and motivated. Church is where you will be inspired to go higher than you’ve gone and to sync your life up with Jesus and His purpose and plan for your life

So is church attendance still important? Nothing does more for your spiritual health than regularly being in church.

Discussion Questions:

Do you really need to attend church? Why or why not?
Do you believe being part of a church satisfies our need for belonging and acceptance?
Does church give you the ability to minister to others? Is church one of the ways to exercise the ministry gift God has given you to be a blessing to someone else?