Why Should I Go to Church?

Many people refuse to get near a church unless their nephew is playing the role of a sheep in the Christmas pageant! They claim they can get more out of a walk in the woods than from the typical sermon.

Can a Christian survive apart from a church?
Some Christians have no choice. They are trapped in a hospital bed, or working in an isolated area where no church exists. And God is certainly sufficient to care for their needs. You can still get to heaven if you can't go to church. But even though it's technically possible to live the Christian life in isolation, it's certainly not the norm.

You are Called into a Relationship with God
When you become a Christian, you are called into a relationship with God (1 Corinthians 1:9). But I John 1:3 makes it clear that we enter a fellowship that goes two ways: with God and with other Christians.

The New Testament never divides Christians into the church members and the non-church members. All the way through, it assumes that everybody participates in their local assembly. It gives no samples of Christians who belong to the "universal church" but have no link with a local church. One scholar has said that "any idea...of enjoying salvation or being a Christian in isolation is foreign to the New Testament writings" (Alan Stibbs, God's Church, p. 92). Wherever Christians are within range of each other in the New Testament, they meet. Every time the apostle Paul comes to a town in the book of Acts where there are no Christians, he wins a few converts and immediately organizes them into a small group - a little church.

• Acts 20:7 reveals the practice of the early church: "And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached to them." For Christians in every location, regular gathering was a part of life.

It's illogical to say that you are merely part of the worldwide, universal church, yet refuse to gather with the segment of that universal church that exists in your geographical area. It would be like claiming you have a car, when the right fender is in Phoenix, the engine is in Tucson, and the wheels are in Paradise Valley! You don't have a car; you have the beginning of the inventory for a junkyard. It just won't function until the pieces are put together.

The church must be together to carry out many of its purposes.
Here are some irreplaceable pieces of the Christian that cannot happen when you live in isolation from the church:

• Use of Spiritual Gifts
  Every Christian is a member of the body of Christ, and every member has unique talents and insights. Sharing these gifts with each other as a unified body strengthens us in our common task of glorifying God.
  

I Corinthians 12 makes it clear that God has given spiritual gifts to every Christian. And verse 7 states unmistakably that these abilities are not provided to make you feel good; they are abilities to minister that should be used for the common good! I Peter 4:10 commands us to use spiritual gifts to help each other.

The same passage makes it clear that we meet with other Christians so they can use their gifts to strengthen us. God's gift of a preacher or teacher is wasted if no one comes to hear them speak.

In the joy of true community you will experience:

• Fellowship
  Regular church attendance allows a Christian to become part of a church family—a community of brothers and sisters in Christ who share true concern for one another. Paul described this kind of fellowship in his letter to the Corinthians: “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together” (1 Cor. 12:26). When we care for our fellow Christians in this way, not only do we enjoy the security of belonging to a spiritual family, but we glorify God by revealing His character to the world.
  

• Corporate Worship.
  When God rescued King David from his enemies, David couldn’t keep his praise to himself. He cried out,

Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!”
(Psa. 34:3).

For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them”
(Matt. 18:20).

While private devotion pleases God, at times nothing will do except to join with fellow Christians in praise of our great God. God is glorified when Christians speak of His greatness with each other, and He is pleased to be in our midst.

• Personal Growth.
  Just as individual Bible study and prayer are vital to a Christian’s spiritual growth, so is consistent contact with other Christians. God commands us to

consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together . . .”
(Heb. 10:24-25).

Meeting regularly with other Christians is an opportunity to be encouraged in your daily walk with Christ, to receive godly advice in areas of difficulty in your life, and to be challenged by the example of more mature Christians.

• Ministry.
  Paul tells us that God gave

pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ”
(Eph. 4:11-12).

Attending church allows us to receive the instruction of trained pastors and teachers, helping us minister both to the world and within the Church.

1. Along with communicating the gospel to the unsaved through actions and words, Christians have a responsibility to minister to other members of the body of Christ: “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up . . .” (1 Thess. 5:11). Being in regular contact with other Christians in church gives you numerous opportunities to offer a word of encouragement, a listening ear, a helping hand, or to receive these things in your moment of need.
   
   http://www.christiananswers.net/bible/1cor12.html