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Must Christians Go To Church? Oct 09 2008
"...let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another ..." - Hebrews 10:23-25
I love what Billy Graham says: "Being in church no more makes you a Christian than being in a garage makes you a car." No, you do not have to go to church to be a Christian, but attending church serves a three-fold purpose to help us to grow in our faith.
1. To worship with other believers.
2. Church is a place of Christian fellowship, and lone ranger Christians don't do well in the journey of faith.
3. Church is a place where we can use our gifts in service and ministry.
While you don't have to come to church to be a Christian, failure to attend retards your spiritual growth. But not only that, not attending your church is just plain selfish, because it denies your spiritual gifts to fellow believers. And when we're not in church, we miss out on the rich fellowship of other meaningful relationships with believers.
Yes, you can worship God out on the lake, or on the golf course. But doing so only takes from the creation of God. We miss out on the encouragement of others and we miss out on them being encouraged by us. While you do not have to be in church to be a Christian, it is certainly the place where you are needed and where the committed Christian wants to be.
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6 Comments
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Yes, report it NevermindI have found that sometimes people can be in a church setting where they are involved but they are not growing spiritually. It is like a spiritual stagnation. The church becomes a chore because there is no fruit in such an instance. So then it is time to move on and find a better situation but that is hard to do because change is hard. I took some time off from church between churches and continued to read my Bible, pray and read Christian books. I did experience growth on my own but it was like a lopsided growth which was not very fruitful with the lack of a group with which to work on kingdom opportunities. So from my experience I encourage everyone to find a church where they can have spiritual growth and let God enable you to do His kingdom work beside brothers and sisters in Christ. You will feel truly blessed!
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Yes, report it NevermindHebrews 10: 24,25 mentions specifically not to forsake the assembling of yourselves together - thus doing so leaves us not to share love etc. Thanks for a good take on this. Auge
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Yes, report it NevermindA Christian does not have to go to church, but when they neglect going to church it is too easy to backslide. I found that when I got into the habit of not going to church regularly that I drifted farther and farther from God. There is a saying that says, "if God seems far away, guess who moved." When we do not go to cchurch, we are the ones that have moved away from God.
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Yes, report it NevermindKoinonia. It's the Greek for the kind of fellowship we are talking about. When I go to church on Sunday, it is primarilly to worship and glorify God. He is the audience. Yes, there is fellowship before or after the service, but true Koinonia occurs in Sunday School, small group Bible study, prayer group, wednesday nite suppers, and all those groups that form to 'make things happen' in the church you attend. I think this is why small group study has caused so many churches to grow, both in size and in the quality of discipleship. That was certainly true for me personally, and I encourage everyone to get more involved. I know that you don't think you have the time, but I'll bet you find that whatever activity you choose becomes one of the top priorities in your week before very long. Besides, it's so rewarding!
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Yes, report it NevermindSince to be a "Christian" is to be "Christ-like" I think you will definitely want to assemble with other believers. So I think perhaps the correct answer is - you don't have to go to church to be saved, but you do have to go to church to be a Christian....
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Yes, report it NevermindYou definitely don't need to go to church to be saved, but it is really difficult to serve in Christ's name without doing it through a church so that others will know that your good deeds are done in His name and not your own.