Rooted in Worshipنموونە

Worshiping Together

"I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” Our feet are standing in your gates, O Jerusalem."

Psalm 122:1-2

When I was a child of 5 years of age, I rejoiced every Sunday night when my parents took me to church! Because every Sunday night my parents and I negotiated. They offered to stop at the drug store down the street from the church and buy me a pack of cherry cough drops—if I would sit quietly in the church pew for the entire service. I was allowed to eat the whole pack of cough drops—quietly.

Deal!

Today, I can sit quietly in a church service with my mouth full of fillings from all the cavities that occurred due to my parents’ bribery. I grew up loving to go to church but not the dentist!!

The Psalmist loved to go to church. When someone said to him, “Hey David, we are headed to church. Do you want to go?” He was all in. When his buds said let us go to church, he got excited. Now, you might be wondering whether they really had churches back then. That is a fair question!

When we use the word church we are often talking about a place or a location. We think of “the church” as the building with the sign out front. The interesting thing is that the Greek word often translated as “church” has nothing to do with a building. The Greek word ekklésia (ek-klay-see'-ah) can literally mean “the people called out from the world and to God.” The word describes the people- not a building! When David talks about joining with the people of God to worship, he is talking about being the church!

The author of the book of Hebrews was also a big believer in joining together as the church. He wrote this exhortation: “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25).

Why is coming together as the church so important? Why do I join with my brothers and sisters in Christ almost every Sunday of the year?

Here are a few reasons:

• We will hear God’s Word taught in ways that will inspire us in areas that need inspiration.
• We will experience support from those whom God has gifted to support others.
• We will be encouraged in ways that will help us move forward.
• We will be a source of encouragement to each other.
• We will use our gifts as a part of the body of Christ.
• We will raise our voices, our hearts, and our hands together in songs of praise and worship to the Lord.
• We will engage in life-sustaining spiritual practices that are more encouraging together than alone. (communion, baptism, giving, serving, etc.)
• We will meet with others who share our values and worldview and understand our choices.
• We will experience the presence of God in a different way than when we are alone.

Take a moment and rephrase the above statements in a way that represents what we will miss if we do not gather with fellow Christ-followers. Start several of these statements with, “We will NOT...” Those are big misses. Gathering together is a big deal.

I believe the value and importance of gathering as the family of God is increasing every year. The writer of Hebrews thought the same. Even in his day, he said, “…and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” Much of our society, our world, and the culture we live in have been headed south for a long time. As the days go by, the enemy furthers his influence on those who do not value the ways of God. This is our spiritual warfare. We must fight with every spiritual weapon available to us in the world in which we live.

I need you. You need me.

I am a huge fan of going to church. While I have attended many large gatherings for other reasons, I have never experienced what I have experienced when the people of God gather. The presence of God is contagious when we gather for worship. His presence is verifiable when we gather to pray. The Scriptures are explained in life-giving ways. The influence of a Sunday service lifts me up when the rest of the week can press me down. Let us truly be the people called out from the world and to God.

I am thankful for Sunday church services and cherry cough drops. The cough drops were a big part of my church life. As a side note, I do not remember coughing much when I was a child!

See you Sunday.