...IT'S ESSENTIAL! Like breathing and water, these things aren't merely important for the body, they are essential. There is no life without it.
Do we think of church the same way. I think for almost everyone, the answer is no. Many Christians think church is important or church has its place, but they would not list it as essential or think of it in those terms. After all, I can be a Christian at home in my living room. Yes, but you cannot be part of the body of Christ that way, at least not the way God designed the body.
Watching church on TV, listening on the Internet can give you teaching and allow you to hear great sermons, but they do not mean that you have connected to the church.
Consider this. In the New Testament, the number of times "one another" occurs 101x; "church" 59x (not counting Acts).
God designed not a loose collection of beleivers, but a body that relied on each other and was put together to work together and take care of each other.
Last Sunday in "The Power of Trees" we talked about the fact that the only place that you can experience in human ways the love of Christ is within the context of the church and the relationships therein. Too many Christians have reduced church to a ritual, tradition, rite or regulation. It is not that, it is part of what it means to be a Christian.
I think one example of how people may look at church is like exercise. You know you should do it more and you know it is good for you. You will try to get to it more and you do do it when you have time. But if you miss it, while not ideal, its not that big of a deal.
Perhaps a better way to look at it is breathing. How many breaths can you miss before you start weakening?
Now I'm not saying that church means going to Sunday morning service. You can do that and still not be in church. And you can miss a Sunday here and there and still be in church. Being in church is about being a part of the life of the body and connected to the family through a local assembly. Making sure you are giving and receiving the life of the body of Christ.
It's not important that you do it. If you are a Christian, it is essential. You cannot be strong and healthy as a Christian without the body of Christ. That's what Scripture teaches, its just that simple.
