Why Church
For a few Christians, the explanation behind maintaining a strategic distance from church is spiritual, spilling out of an absence of understanding the significance of church for spiritual essentialness and public witness. Recurrence of church participation is likewise in decay among week after week attenders and people who go to yearly, probably on Easter Sunday and Christmas.
Others assert that they needn't bother with religion to be "spiritual" or have been so harmed by the church that they swear it off altogether. The hurt might be genuine, however maintaining a strategic distance from church will just bring more torment.
Seeing the smugness of numerous Christians profoundly disheartens me when I consider siblings and sisters abroad who forfeit much to assemble with God's people.
Shockingly, for some in more agreeable settings, church isn't a need. Rest, your child's soccer match, Netflix, football, or the lake house take need, pushing church to the edges of life—if not out through and through. When we drive God's motivation and people out of our lives, we procure the outcomes.
On the off chance that you are as of now engaged with a church, may the Lord help you to remember the greater part of the endowments given to you through his people. In the event that you require a church, look down for a few online church catalogs.
At the point when Jesus appeared to Saul making a course for Damascus, he didn't state, "Why are you aggrieving my church?" He stated, "Why are you mistreating me?" (Acts 9:4, ). He so relates to the church that an assault on his people is an assault on him.
Could Jesus say to you, "Why are you keeping away from my church?" as well as, "Why are you keeping away from me?"
My want isn't to constrain legalistic runs on anyone. Or maybe, I trust and implore the Lord will stir those passing up a great opportunity for church to ache for a wealthier association with him as experienced through an energetic association with his body.
Study Scripture for a scriptural perspective of the church. I suggest beginning in Ephesians. Ephesians completes an astounding activity unfolding God's heavenly purposes for the church in Christ (Hebrews 10:24-25).
I know literally hundreds of people who have stopped attending church, myself included, because of the bullshit or because we no longer get more good out of it than bullshit, and we love our time on Sunday morning to do life without having to get dressed and sit with a bunch of people listening to some guy ramble on about stuff that's no longer relevant for our lives because we are already living everything he's talking about and could probably preach it better than the preacher, and we actually get a chance to help others ourselves the way we do things.
We get more fellowship than those people who go to church every week, we mature in the Lord faster and more completely than them, we have deeper fellowship with each other, God does more things in our lives, we are more dedicated to the Body of Christ, get built up in the faith more.... wow, I could go on. You get the picture?
Your elders are probably sitting in church pews not exercising their spiritual gifts because your system doesn't allow them to or need them to. You and they probably don't even know what those gifts are. You probably have elders in your body who aren't being allowed to be elders because in so doing they might rub the pastors or the board the wrong way. The institutional church has emasculated more men than you can imagine. We, on the other hand, have apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, elders, overseers, teachers, deacons, etc. because we are not in an environment where spiritual gifts are used only for what an institutional church does, which doesn't require everyone in the body contributing what God has gifted them to do.
When people ask me what church I go to I tell them I don't go to church. We are the church. We live it. We don't go to it. We don't "play church" on Sunday morning like everyone else. We don't need your music productions, your pastors who take 45 minutes to say something that can be said in 2 minutes because he's getting paid to fill a 45 minute slot in the program. We don't need to spend time hearing about the building program because we are not encumbered by a building. God works through all that stuff for all those who need it, but we get what we need through other means, and more adequately, thank you very much. Some of you folks in Nigeria just might want to follow the Lord outside of the institution we call church. It ain't as bad as you make it sound.
If you love going to your church that's great for you but please don't lay this bullshit on those of us who don't. You're not drawing anyone in to church by doing so. If anything, you're confirming why we don't go there in the first place. Granted, not everyone I'm involved with is getting out of it what I'm talking about, but by the same token not everyone sitting in your church pews gets the benefits you think we should all be getting by being in a church.
No, it just brings more freedom. Don't knock it if you don't know it.
Seeing your smugness disheartens me. I see beauty in the Body of Christ but you can't see it because it doesn't look like what you know and understand.
Hey thanks Bro. for letting me vent on you post :0
God bless.
Hi KirbyHopper.
I am not really sure what to make of this comment. You appear to be a man of Christ, who has chosen not to attend physical congregations. This is your decision.
Personally I don't appreciate the lack of respect for Brother Tikhub. Brother Tikhub spreads the word of God daily here at SteemChurch, along with his own opinions - and we appreciate his tremendos efforts.
The commercial reality is - when individuals stop attending church, the church is unable to fund further growth and eventually there is no one to spread the word.
We here at the SteemChurch are working together to spread the word of God - right here on the blockchain. But again, we do not fool ourselves - it is an expensive and time consuming venture.
So my question to you - sitting at home on a Sunday morning, with all your freedom - what are you doing to spread Christian values?
SirKnight
Wow I've have never witnessed anyone have another person's back like this, you really stick out for us @sirknight we appreciate these
Thank you for your time and interest @sirknight. I think you and I can be great allies in the work of Christ because we both want what's best for the Bride of Christ. I meant no disrespect for brother kithub, just expressed the same disappointment he felt with those of us who do not attend an institutional church and directed it back at him. As a Christian leader he should expect to not be exempt from criticism, especially the same criticism he expresses about others, and be open to the Holy Spirit speaking to him through any vessel without expecting any less honesty than what he allows for himself toward others. Agreed?
Brother sirknight could you do me a favor and read my comment again? I think you are missing the distinction I am making between gathering as brothers (informally) and an institutional church, aka, "going to church".
As for spreading Christian values, thank you for asking. Among other things, I am a professional web designer and SEO who knows what Google is looking for in content creation and so with my blog probably reach an audience greater than all the Steemians and local Nigerians you and steemchurch reach - combined. Steemit is not my first forum for content creation. In addition, my audience includes many pastors and others who influence many others. The primary Christian value that I am spreading is a return to the faith as originally expressed by Jesus and his Apostles before 2000 years of doctrinal evolution took place. If you are familiar with church history you will know that Martin Luther began a process in 1517 of steering the church back to its foundation. After 500 years much has been accomplished, I hope by God's grace to be a part of and contribute something to that holy process as Jesus becomes Lord of his church more and more saliently. I'd be honored to serve men such as yourself in finding the "faith once and for all delivered to the saints." (Jude 1:3)
How can I serve you? Let's work together brother!
God bless you!
God will not turn away from you if you turn to him.. Seek ye the kingdom of God and His righteousness.
👍 @tikhub
The church is a place we all go to worship our maker ,but remember that we individuals are the church .We all make up the church ,,the bible says our body is the temple of God that is we should keep ourselves holy.
Wow great post apostle @tikhub, God would never abandon us
We get ourselves involved in church so that will be active in church
I trust and implore the Lord will stir those passing up a great opportunity for church to ache for a wealthier association with him as experienced through an energetic association with his body.