Should Christians Attend Church?預覽

Point #5: Jesus goes to church.

Did Jesus really attend church? There’s substantial evidence in Scripture that Jesus attended synagogue (one Jewish version of church at that time), to do things like pray, read the Word, and teach. However, I’m not simply using that as a reason for us to attend church today.

Jesus replaced the old covenant with a new covenant, and He gave us the blueprints for what His church would look like when He said “Upon this rock I will build My church.”

We see Jesus clearly define this transition in John 2 when He says, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” Jesus is alluding to the destruction of Herod’s Temple, a place of prayer, praise, and sacrifice. Directly relating it to the death and resurrection of His own body, Jesus gives us the key: His body is the church.

The church is Jesus’ body—that’s us! I know I covered this in point #1, but there’s a fundamental truth I don’t want you to miss. Ephesians 4 tells us that the body of Christ—God’s temple on earth—is held together by what every individual believer supplies. The church grows when each member of the body is working properly, the way we were designed to work. Here’s my question to you: where are the members of the body? Most of them meet together in a church. Some meet in house churches, and some meet in other ways, but the entire body functions when the individual parts are working together.

Jesus used the image of His body to represent the people of God for a reason. He was letting us know that where His people are, that’s where He is. If the body is meeting together, Jesus is there too.

During this reading plan, I haven’t been simply trying to argue a side. My hope has been to express the Biblical version of what church is meant to be and to give you a chance to open your heart to the Holy Spirit. If you’ve been reading this, and you know God is saying, “It’s time to find a home church,” or maybe “It’s time to get involved in serving,” I encourage you to respond in faith. If God is leading you somewhere, you can trust that He’s leading you for your good. It might not be your first choice, but God knows better than we do. Let Him lead you as you respond in faith today.

We hope this Plan encouraged you.
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