Find me in Church on Sunday morning

Hebrews 10:24 (New International Version)

24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

This is a powerful passage of scripture.  This is one of the scriptures that we should consider when we speak to someone who professes to be a Christian but does not go to church because they do not like “organized religion”.

I heard a great sermon on Sunday on this very topic.  In fact, I had never considered this particular verse before. It makes sense to me, though. 

Can you be a part of the church without going to church?  If you don’t go to church, at a very minimum you are robbing the Body of Christ of your talents, your energies, your exhortation.  In my humble opinion, I doubt you can rob God.  He will simply raise someone else up to complete His will. The victim of the robbery is the person who will not answer the call.  If one is not in church, one might not even hear the call.

I struggle daily with my weaknesses.  I long for the time I spend with my brothers and sisters in Christ, that I may draw encouragement from them for the battle.  If I had my way, I would spend a lot more time than I do in the protective arms of the Body of Christ, the church.  However, also in my humble opinion, that is every bit as bad as not going to church at all.

Church, then, is a part of the Christian life for me.  It plays a vital role, but it is not the end game.  I love it, I crave it, but my will needs to be to do the Lord’s will.  As with a child, I can stay close for a time, then I must venture out, and Speak the Name of Jesus Boldly.  And I thank God for Church, for fellowship with the Body of Christ, and for the re-charge my batteries get on a weekly basis.

Cliff