Monday, January 9, 2017

3 PROBLEMS WITH MISSING CHURCH


It first begins as an occasional habit and it soon degenerates into a way of living. I am talking about Christians missing church! It may seem innocent and excusable but it is actually very dangerous for one’s spiritual well-being and I can at least think of four problems with a Christian habitually missing church.  

You disobey God
The Lord exhorts us through the writer of Hebrews when he says “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24-25). Here the Lord commands us to stir and encourage one another as we meet corporately. Meeting together will look different from church to church, however that looks like in your church? Be sure to attend. Missing church is refusing to obey God’s word and that is both unwise and dangerous.

You set yourself up for a fall
Despite our best efforts to appear strong and independent we all need people in our lives. Two are better than one the bible says (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). Whenever you chose to neglect meetings of the church, you isolate yourself and remove yourself from the safeguard of brothers and sisters. You invariably open yourself up to all kinds of company, temptations and sin. There is some kind correlation between missing church and falling in sin. In the jungle the lion always pounces on animals that isolate themselves from the herd. Remember the devil is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1 peter 5:8).


You are saying to people your God is not worthy of worship
We give our dedication to the things we value and think are essential to our lives and the people around us know what we consider to be of utter most importance. I.e. our jobs, school and favorite sports team. The Christian’s devotion to been in the house of the Lord and worshipping him is a great testimony to the watching world. It is a way of saying God is first in my life and I will dedicate time and energy to worship him by regularly meeting with other believers. Inconsistent church attendance on the other hand is saying God is not that important and meeting with others to worship him is not such a big deal.

Clarifying thoughts  

I am not in any way saying every person who goes to church is spiritual or a Christian for that matter. Church attendance in itself does not make you a Christian nor transform you in the likeness of Christ. Neither may I saying there are no legitimate reasons for someone missing church i.e. sickness, bereavement and others. I am however saying the church is God’s primary agent of carrying out his purposes including spiritual growth and habitually missing church is both dangerous and problematic in many ways.    

5 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing Pastor Chopo Mwanza. Much appreciated. Its a good piece to read at the start of the year. 2016 was a busy year for me and I missed church regularly because of work. I am hopeful that God will enable me to be in fellowship often this year.

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    1. You are welcome Lusungu and thanks for the feedback.I will try to check on you and make sure you are not missing this year.

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  2. A timely reminder, especially at the time of year when we must be making resolutions and be resolved in carrying them out. We have reached a point where saying "exams" or "work" counts as an excuse for frequently missing church and not that all such excuses are unfounded but the bible over and over portrays how the believer must value that time with God above all other appointments and do everything to keep that time in place. I'm very encouraged by believers who despite their busy lives and schedules have painstakingly made time to avail themselves to the means of grace and not just for Sunday church but midweek meetings aswell

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  3. A timely reminder, especially at the time of year when we must be making resolutions and be resolved in carrying them out. We have reached a point where saying "exams" or "work" counts as an excuse for frequently missing church and not that all such excuses are unfounded but the bible over and over portrays how the believer must value that time with God above all other appointments and do everything to keep that time in place. I'm very encouraged by believers who despite their busy lives and schedules have painstakingly made time to avail themselves to the means of grace and not just for Sunday church but midweek meetings aswell

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    1. Ndemi you are spot on! almost anything counts as an excuse for missing fellowship and amen to the "busy" brethren who value worship. Thanks for the feedback

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