Why does God want you faithful to your local church?
|
I love coming to church and I enjoy seeing each of you every Sunday morning. The handshakes and smiles and greetings encourage me. The music lifts my spirits. The prayers,
testimonies, and Bible teaching educate and motivate me.
There are other reasons also I come to church. I come because in me is a longing to know the Lord better. I love the word of God which is the strength of my live. David expressed this in Psalm.42:1-2, "As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?"
For that reason, he also said in Psalm 122:1, "I was glad when they said to me, Let us go into the house of the LORD."
My purpose in attending church is much more than the handshakes, music, or knowledge, I attend church because I believe in Jesus Christ and He is my Savior and I want to obey Him. I take no pride in this, because there was a time when attending church or even God meant nothing to me. But that changed, as it should for all believers, when I believed and accept Jesus Christ as my Savior. He put His Spirit in me and that Spirit draws me to Him. Yes, I am ashamed that I fail at times, but He never forsakes me.
I. God explains to us the importance of assembling ourselves together in Hebrews 10:19-25. He clearly tells us God wants us in church and gives us reasons why.
Only the high priest, once a year, on the Day of Atonement could enter the Holy of Holies (Separated of Separated). The high priest had to go through a detailed ritual of cleaning himself before he could enter the Holy of Holies. There were two veils or curtains in the temple. One was in the entrance to the tabernacle and the other was between the Holy of Holies and the Holy place.
If he entered through the veil and was in any way unclean God would instantly kill him. He would bring the blood of a fresh killed spotless lamb and sprinkle it on the Ark of the covenant between the cherubim which were on the top of the Ark.
The ark, when transported, was enveloped in the "veil" of the dismantled tabernacle, in the curtain of badgers' skins and in a blue cloth over all, and was therefore not seen.
2. Understanding this we can see the wonderful significance of this verse in the New Testament that says that all Christians can boldly enter into the very presence of the Lord. Matthew 27:51 tells us: "And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent" (Matthew 27:51).
What a foolish and uninformed statement of a man who is supposed to know God's word and preach it to others. Believers are always and eternally in God's presence. That false idea is purely pagan. You do not come to church to meet God! You come to church to worship and glorify our Savior with your brothers and sisters in Christ. You come to fellowship and be encouragement to each other. You come hear the word of God preached and taught and by it grow stronger in the Lord.
Paul explained to the pagan Greeks on Mars Hill, "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands." (Acts 17:24)
"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it" (Ephesians 5:25)
1. This verse shows us an important truth. When God saves a person it is only through Jesus Christ who died for us, in our stead on the cross. He suffered for our sins and paid the penalty for our sins against Himself.
2. Note what Paul wrote to the Ephesians "May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God." (Ephesians 3:18-19)
3. When we think of the greatness and power of our God and Creator who is Jesus Christ as Colossians 1:16 says, should we not want to spend time with Him every day and meet with other believers who are our brothers and sisters in Christ.
There is something special about meeting God with other believers. We come from all walks of life, we are vastly different in many ways, yet our common bond is our salvation in Christ Jesus.
There is great power when we meet together in God's name to worship Him. There is great power when you experience worshiping with your fellow brothers and sister. Worshiping the Lord together is something special for the believers and we should cherish it.
It binds us closer together when we have a common goal in honoring our Savior and worshiping Him. We have a common bond in Christ and that bond is manifested when we meet together. It is a special blessing that we cannot experience by ourselves. The Lord gave us the local church so we could be a strength and comfort to each other. God's power in our lives to overcome sin, worldliness and the constant assault of our old natures and Satan is found in assembling ourselves together. The greatness of God and His power is when you and I worship God together!
Never have I ever believed for a moment, those who refused to attend or be a part of church, who said they worshiped God in their own way. They are lying. We worship God in obedience to His way, which is the only way.
4. We know we ought to experience the presence and power of God in church, but many times we don't. Honestly, there are times when I don't. My mind is on my message, the those who are not presence, the number in attendance, offering, visitors, problems of fellow believers, etc...
The question we need to ask is "How can we consistently truly worship the Lord and honor Him and receive the blessing in our church?" How can God's will for our lives be accomplished if we do not want our church to be a place of worship? From our text, let's examine God instructions that we can follow that will ensure God's blessing among His people.
If we do not truly come in a spirit of worship and to serve our fellow church members then God cannot bless us and He will not meet with us. That goes for each individual and our congregation collectively.
ILLUS: I was fortunate that when I returned from serving in Vietnam that the anti-war sentiments had not grown to what the later became when Americans curses, spat on and ridiculed returning soldiers who were now only hours away from the horrors of war. These men were heros, one and all, who honorably served in that hell hold, suffered things you cannot imagine, saw their friends and fellow soldier shot, maned and killed. Yet, they did not return as the heros they were, but many of their fellow Americans openly showed not gratitude for their sacrifice for their freedom but rather showed open hatred and contempt. I hope none who hear this message or read it were among those ungrateful Americans. If you were...you should get on your knees and confess you sin to the Lord. You cannot retract what you did, but you can try to make amends to those who treated so cruelly. What a calloused and ungrateful people these were.
Another example of sacrifice being shunned is one I recently read.
"Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)" (Hebrews 10:22-23)
In Christ each has been made a believer priest. We do not need to go through anyone or church to boldly enter the throne room of our God and Father.
How many of us would be honest enough to admit we sin against Christ? Do you realize that this verse says? Although we sin and dishonor Him, He still says for us to draw near to Him, with full loyalty having our "hearts sprinkled with from and evil conscience." That phrase refers to the blood that was sprinkled on the mercy seat for the sins of the people, the shedding of Christ's blood for the cleansing of our consciences.
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)
"For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." (2 Timothy 1:12)
Is Christ faithful to us? Has He let us down or forsaken us? The answer is a definite No! Why then do we forsake Him.
"For the LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance." (Psalms 94:14)
2. Second we are to consider, which means to perceive one another. The word "consider" means to perceive or be aware of others. How can you show that you love your brothers and sisters in Christ? Are you aware that they too are bearing burdens, many times, great burdens and they need the love of their fellow Christians. You cannot serve God without serving other people. o you come to church with this on your heart? Do you make yourself available to others in your church. Do look to see if they need encouragement. Do you know what is going on in their lives. As you pastor, I may not know all that is going on, but I know a great deal about you and the things in your life. I know the burdens that some of you are carrying. Folks that is not just the pastor's job, but the responsibility that comes with love to everyone in our congregation.
Jesus in Matthew 21 said we are to love the Lord our God with all our hearts which was the first commandment "And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." (Matthew 22:39)
The Jews asked Jesus who was their neighbor. He replied with the parable of the Good Samaritan. This man, a Jew was attracted and beaten by thieves. Note who did not help the injured man. Jesus said a priest and a Levite came by, saw him and avoided the destitute man. Yet, the Samaritan, who was looked upon as unclean and worthless, stopped and generously helped him. Would not you think the first two in their position as being religious leaders should have shown compassion and helped the man? Should we as fellow believers also love the brethren and help one another.
Note God's words, "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death." (1 John 3:14)
3. Lastly, the Lord sums all this up and says to us.
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25)
Dear friends can we not see how important our supporting and attending our local church is to the Lord and how it benefits us and all our church family?
I think the message is clear and springs from God's love for us and His desire to support us, direct us and use us to see other souls saved. A weak church, that is not fully supported by its members will not me much of a witness for Christ. We need to in practice, by our faithfulness show the Love of Christ to this lost and dying world. We cannot do it unless we are faithful.
Do you remember what God says to us. (Matthew 18:20)
We cannot fully worship and bring glory to our Savior unless we gather and in unity obey and worship Him.
Introduction:
God saved me the afternoon of January 27, 1972. That was 38 years ago. That evening I went to church of the third time in over ten years. I have been regularly attending church ever since that evening. I really love going to church. I can't help it because when God saved me he changed my live. For over ten years I had not attended because it meant nothing to me. As a boy I began attending church when my parents moved to a little rural town in eastern NC called Pinetops. My Mom took us to church every Sunday so I grew up in church.
A. As believers we become the children of God and also priests in the sense that we can boldly enter into the present of God. We do that by prayer. (Heb. 25:19-22)
II. It was Jesus Christ who instituted the local church and created it for His people. I knows our needs and created the local church to meet that need. (Ephesians 5:25)
1. God's presence with Israel in the Old Testament was seen in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle. It had two rooms. The first room was called the Holy place. The word holy in the Bible means to be separated sin and the world. Only men who were of the tribe of Levi could be priests and carried out the duties of serve the Lord in the tabernacle and later the Temple.
B. What a privilege we have in Christ as to have instantly access to our God and Savior in prayer. I read a sermon of a well know Baptist preacher and in the sermon he said he came to church "to meet God." In fact that was the title of His message.
A. How important is the local church to Jesus our Savior?.
III. What is it that binds believers together. (Heb. 25:21-22)
B. Jesus said in Matt.18:20, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." We need to worship our Savior and God both privately and publicly. It does not mean that ONLY when we gather together that God is with us, but rather when we collectively gather with a common purpose He honors our faith, hears our prayers. He is "with" us in the sense that we are doing His will and therefore is supporting us.
A. Often we do not fully appreciate what Christ did for us in making our salvation possible. I suppose the greatest heart ache of most pastors is seeing professing Christians who are missing when their church meets. I think if we realized what He did we would appreciate the great gift He has given us.
Conclusion:
Can you imagine the sufferings that Jesus went through for you? Have you fully considered that fact. Every sin you or I have committed or will commit He suffered intense pain.
ILLUS: Can you also see the callousness of the many sons and daughters who shun their parents love and care for them? I read the story told by a missionary working in the Congo. He said years ago a mother left her son in a hut with a dirt floor to get some water. She left a kerosene lamp on the floor. She was away only a few minutes, but somehow the lantern set some straw on fire and she returned to see the hut in flames. One wall was collapsed and the whole hut in flames. She rushed in, pulled burning material and wood which was over her son and carried him to safety. He was not hurt seriously, but she was badly burned and disfigured. The people then began shun her because of her grotesque appearance. Although the boys parents were destitute and poor, the boy was very intelligent and excelled in school. He became a successful business man and became the CEO of a large company. His mother was so proud of him, though she had not seen him since a boy, she went to the city and to her son's company. She went in and told the receptionist she wanted to see her son who as the CEO of the company. The receptionist went in and told the son a horribly disfigured woman who said she was his mother wanted to see him. He replied that he had no mother and said to send her away. The woman left and said in she was so proud of her son who as so successful to run a company with so many people. She never expressed any resentment or bitterness toward her son. Clearly she deeply loved the one she had sacrificed so much for. How cold and selfish was her sons evil heart to reject the one that had sacrificed so much for him.
2. I doubt that many church members would think that themselves as being so calloused as to not appreciate Christ's sacrifice for us. I wonder though.
B. Jesus Christ is our high priest who intercedes for us before the Father. Because of His love for us the verse says,
C. Because of this God compels us to do three things. (Heb. 10:23-250
1. First to hold fast our profession of faith without wavering. Why because Jesus is faithful to us.
8-22-2010
It is always encouraging to receive email from those who find the messages helpful, or who have comments.