10 Reasons to go to church.
To some, it may seem odd that a para-church organization would write an article advocating for the local church. But, nearly every para-church organization is designed to work alongside the local congregation and most have their goal to funnel people into a local church. We purposefully designed Our True Legacy to not be a church. We count on people in our ministry being nourished and built up in a local congregation, we just come alongside them to equip them to take what they are receiving in their local church more effectively into the lives of people who are not yet in a local church.
So why is the local church so important? I visited a small group a couple of weeks ago that included two pastors in it and one of them said that the small group was actually a church. We then had a robust discussion about what is a local church and why would someone need to attend one. I thought I would share those talking points for all to see. Because one thing that has become clear post-COVID is that people who profess faith in Christ are increasingly seeing partnership with a local church as something that is optional.
Here are ten reasons why I believe one should attend a local church.
Part 1: Going to church is the model put forth in the scriptures and beyond. The Christian religion is steeped in history. The fastest road to starting a cult or becoming heretical is to disregard history, especially biblical history, and do things your own way. So, the first question one should ask is simply, “Is being a part of a local church something essential to followers of Jesus from the beginning, and has it carried on since then?”
#1) Jesus went to church every week. The word Christian means “little Christ”, it is the Christian’s goal to learn from Christ and follow His teachings and His example. The scriptures tell us that Christ was in His church every Sabbath. In Luke chapter 4 we learn that “As He (Jesus) always did on the Sabbath, he went to the meeting place.” For Jesus, this meant every Saturday and it meant a local synagogue. These gatherings would include things we are familiar with like prayer, teachings, and fellowship. And in Jesus’ day the teachers were misguided and in some cases corrupt. They were so off course that the actions and teachings of the very God they instructed people about (Jesus) were a source of great issue with them. Yet, Jesus believed in going to church so much he kept going every week!
#2) The disciples gathered together every Sabbath. The disciples did the same, even after the resurrection. They did not leave the synagogues until they were excommunicated. They were excommunicated for their beliefs that Jesus was the Christ that the leaders of the Israelite community were talking about. After they were excommunicated they continued to gather every Sabbath and by some recordings actually gathered much more often, some communities actually gathered every day together. In the fifth century, the Sabbath was shifted to Sunday, mostly to be in line with the resurrected life offered by Christ. But, throughout church history, the majority of the church has understood the Sabbath as something to be upheld as it is holy to God.
#3) Converts were expected to join the gatherings. In the book of Acts, every convert to Christianity was immediately enfolded into the church and was expected to be an active participant in a local congregation. The Apostle Paul would be the most vivid example. The Lord blinded Him and forced Him to go to a man from a local church so that the local church could teach Paul about Jesus. God could have instructed Paul personally because the book of Galatians tells us after his conversion that Paul learned directly from Christ Jesus. But instead, God wanted Paul to be connected to local believers. You will not see one example in the book of Acts of a person converting to Christianity and then going it alone, they always joined a local congregation. Throughout the centuries being connected with a local church has been seen as essential to living the Christian life.
Part 2: Going to church is different than just being in a small group. Unique things happen in a local church that do not happen in a small group. I would like to note that I am not speaking here of a cell church that aims to follow the early New Testament model of weekly gatherings in smaller numbers but still satisfying all of the duties of a local church. I am speaking of people who are in learning or support groups and think that is the same as being in a church.
#4) The church uniquely brings everyone together to worship God. Though some small groups do worship, most reserve worship for a time when everyone is gathered together. Worshipping together with everyone is powerful, one could easily say that the first four commandments of the Ten Commandments call for us to set aside ourselves, and humbly worship God together on the Sabbath. The Bible also tells us that God inhabits the praises of His people. When we are in worship Christians believe that we are actually entering the very throne room of God together.
Prayer is a centerpiece for every healthy church and in worship, these prayers include thanksgiving, requests, and confession. God uniquely is present and answers the prayers of His people when they offer their requests together in agreement with one another. Worship also includes exalting God together, usually done through song. Music is a powerful way to blend the head and the heart. God’s prayer book, the Psalms, was mostly sung and people have gathered together to sing the Psalms to God since the book was written. Other songs that reflect the truth of God’s word and seek to exalt God and His deliverance for His people in Christ, bring His people together in unity and remind them of their connection to God and each other.
In worship, we also celebrate God’s sacraments, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper. These sacraments are designed for the whole church to partake of together, to remind them of their unity with Christ and each other. The Spirit of Jesus is uniquely present and powerful when they are celebrated, they themselves are a means of grace. They unlock God’s power in our lives.
Worship should be a central lifeblood for every believer. Yes, it is true that in our modern world, we can listen to worship music all day long, but this is not a new phenomenon, the church has had music memorized from the beginning and people could sing on their own anytime. But, throughout history worshipping together has been understood to be different and necessary, even if we also worship privately.
#5) People in the local church uniquely hear God’s word for them. From well before the time of Christ the scriptures have been a centerpiece of the worship experience for a believer. In Acts 6, when we learn about the call of the early leaders of the church, we see that “The ministry of the Word” was one of the two things (along with prayer) that they were to devote their time to as they set their schedules. When a preacher enters the pulpit or a podium in a local congregation they are in that moment presenting the word of God to the people. The Bible says there is great power in hearing God’s word. Christians believe that preaching isn’t simply a Bible study, but that it is a moment where the divine speaks through His word and through His vessel to His people. When we are a part of a local congregation God will give us His word every week. When we gather together and the word is present, the Spirit uniquely applies God’s word to our hearts. Again you can say that people can read their bibles at home, something that wasn’t available until a few centuries ago, or one can listen to sermons online or even watch them on TV, but I would contend there is something powerful about God’s people gathering in person to hear His word that is different and transformational.
Additionally, one of the ways God speaks to us is through other believers in the church. Sometimes it is the pastor, sometimes another leader and sometimes it is another member. But, God will often speak to His children through His church.
#6) The local church provides oversight for the life of a believer. God has designed a system for His people to be nourished, led, and built up into. When His people go outside of the bounds of scripture, the church is supposed to provide correction and discipline to help lead them back to faithfulness. Christ is the head of the church and He has given the church His word, the scriptures, to lead and guide them in faithfulness to Him. Elders are called by God and elected in local congregations to oversee and regulate the practices of the church and the lives of the people so that they will be fully obedient to God’s word as it is revealed in the scripture.
#7) Every believer has something that God intends for a local congregation. The Bible describes a local congregation as a body. Each person brings a part that is necessary for the church to blossom into everything it was intended to become. Each has different gifts, different personalities, and different life experiences, but all of these things work together to build up the body of Christ. If you are just “doing your own thing” then the church is missing out on what God wants to bring to them through His work in you.
#8) The local church is the place to exercise stewardship and giving. Jesus paid the offering in his local synagogue. In one instance, he actually had them catch a fish and grab a coin out of it for his temple tax! In another instance he commended a widow who gave everything she had to live on to the church, he didn’t tell her to not give it but encouraged others to follow her lead. Jesus understood that God’s provision for His workers and His work to be done was to come through the tithes and offerings of the local church.
The local “storehouse” as the book of Malachi calls it is the place for Christians to show that God is not just their personal Lord, but He is Lord of their checkbook also. The elders are responsible for how that money should be spent, but congregants are responsible for giving it. Too often I hear Christians say that one of the main reasons they don’t go to church is that they don’t want to give. They say things like “they talk about money too much” or “all they care about is money.” This may be true and if so, you should pray about this being the right place for you to connect. But, just know Jesus talked about money more than heaven and hell combined, it was in about one-fifth of his teachings. So, if your pastor speaks for 25 minutes, if he is following Christ’s example, he should probably spend 4-5 minutes of that time on money. Money can uniquely keep us from the presence and power of God. I believe tithes and offerings are a spiritual discipline in and of themselves. God releases something in us when we release His money for His purposes in a local congregation.
#9) In the church we do God’s mission together. Most small groups do not have a missional component to them. People get together and get what they need and give to others who have needs in the group as well. These include emotional, spiritual, and sometimes physical needs.
But, the church is to be a place of mission, where God’s kingdom not only flows to other believers but into the world as well. The greatest mission is to “Go and make disciples.” But, the church is also there to help the poor and those in need. We know that Jesus Himself did both of these things. He sent His disciples out on numerous occasions to share the good news and renewed this charge at the end of His life when he gave them the great commission. Jesus and His disciples also had a common treasury that the scriptures say was designated to help the poor. Christians combining resources has always been a way that God is able to do more with what they are entrusted to steward.
Another part of this mission is bringing God’s goodness to the world. Though God is working in the world for good, there is evil working against God’s kingdom. In the church, God gives believers the power to overcome evil and bring His goodness into the world. If we are on our own, we are more vulnerable to the persuasion of evil. Like a sheep that wanders off, if we do not have others around us to help us stay on track, we can be much more easily deceived and go astray.
#10) Being in a church forces us to get beyond ourselves. This is seen so clearly in the above points, but I wanted to make sure it was mentioned plainly. If we are only willing to gather on our own or with people we like, in a setting where we will hear what we like, and do what we like, we have created our own church in our likeness. One of the recurring themes of Jesus in scripture is learning to die to ourselves so that we might live to God. Being in a local congregation with people who are both like us and not like us, doing things we like and things we don’t like, helps us do that. Yes, it is true that Churches are full of sinners and sinners do hurt people. But, God is so good He even uses these hurts to drive us toward Him if we let Him.
As we learn to submit to Godly scriptural leadership, and generously give of our time, talents, and our treasures in a local congregation we get the unbelievable joy of seeing God do things that we, on our own, could not do and it is amazing.
Conclusion
God intends for all of us to become more like Christ. He established the local church to be the place for that to occur. Through our participation in a local congregation, God uses us to change lives, both lives in the church and lives in our community. He also changes us! Jesus loved His church so much that He died for it to be birthed. The scriptures call the church the bride of Christ! One famous pastor said that he is very suspicious of anyone who says they love him, but can’t stand the bride that he has devoted his life to love, serve, and lead. We should all be careful of insulting Christ’s bride in a similar fashion. I honestly don’t know how a person can profess to be a Christian and not be in a local church. I fear that he or she has developed a new form of Christianity that suits his or her desires.
I also understand that sometimes we drift away, it happens. If for some reason you have drifted away from a local church, can I humbly suggest you pray about returning and then go find one? You will be surprised at what God will do!
