6 Reasons Why the Local Church Really Matters

"As we prepare to worship God tomorrow, it may do us good to pause for just a few moments to consider the local church. What is the church? Why has God called us into these little communities? Does the local church really matter? It does! The local church is foundational to God’s plan for his people. In their book Church in Hard Places, Mez McConnell and Mike McKinley offer 6 reasons that the local church matters.

The local church is the way God intends to accomplish his mission in the world. “It is primarily though the local church that God wants to make himself known.” Of all the evangelism strategies in the world, of all the ministries in the world, none is more central than the local church. It’s interesting to note that Paul considered his ministry in an area fulfilled not when every person was reached, but when churches had been planted (see Romans 15:19-20). “Paul knew that the churches there were how the gospel would spread into all of the individual neighborhoods. Local churches do local evangelism.” The church is God’s plan, it is God’s mission.

The local church should matter to us because it matters to God. The church is Jesus’ body on earth (see Ephesians 1:22-23) and it is made up of all kinds of people from all walks of life. “Together we represent Christ here on earth through our local body of believers. Therefore, the church is central to the purposes of God and is of benefit to the world around us—even today in our increasingly hostile culture.” The church exists for God’s glory and showcases it in a unique way. “The church is built for Jesus, by Jesus, and on Jesus. It is simply unthinkable then to separate Jesus from the local church. If the gospel is the diamond in the great salvific plan of God, then the church is the clasp that supports it, holds it up, and shows it in its greatest light for the world to see.” If it matters so much to God, it needs to matter to us just as much.

The local church is the place where believers must submit themselves to spiritual authority. Many people from many walks of life struggle with issues of authority, though this problem is especially prevalent in the schemes of Scotland. Mez says, “they will not accept criticism or input from anybody they regard as an authority figure.” This attitude needs to be dealt with immediately. God calls Christians to submit to spiritual authority within the local church (see Hebrews 13:17). All believers are called by God to put themselves under the care and oversight of elders. “A culture that despises any kind of authority needs to see healthy models of leadership and submission. And the place for people to see this modeled is in the local church.”

Joining and Being a Member of a Church

"From the promises to Abraham (Gen. 12:1–3) to the ultimate fulfillment of those same promises pictured in the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven (Rev. 21), Scripture is clear—God is saving for Himself a people.

Notice, I said people, not persons. In saying it that way, I don’t mean to suggest that salvation is not a personal matter or that God has no interest in individuals. He clearly does (Rom. 10:9–10). No, I chose people over persons to emphasize Scripture’s emphasis—that Christian identity is necessarily communal (1 Peter 2:9).

As our physical birth includes a network of family relationships, so too does our spiritual birth. This is why, when Scripture speaks of the church, it employs metaphors that call to mind profound connection.

Jesus is the Vine, and we are the branches (John 15:1–17).
Jesus is the cornerstone, and we are living stones being built into a temple (Eph. 2:20; 1 Peter 2:5).
Jesus is the Head, and we are members of His body (Eph. 4:1–16; 1 Cor. 12:1–27).

There’s not a hint of individualism or independence anywhere in those images. Nowhere does Scripture describe, much less prescribe, the Christian life as something that can be lived alone. In Christ, each Christian is related to every other Christian, and together we are the family of God (Rom. 8:14–16; Eph. 2:19–22). Deep commitment to and active participation in the church are nonnegotiable.

All this raises a question, though: How can we build and maintain real, vital, life-giving connection to the church over the long haul? Let me offer four suggestions.

First, we must become active members of a church. When we hear the word “member,” we might think of paying our dues and fulfilling the requirements, and then we’ll get the benefits of the club. Church membership, though, is a reflection of Scripture’s language concerning the nature of the church. Paul writes in Romans 12:4–5, “For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” Paul is saying that in the same way your hand is a member of your body, so every Christian is membered with Jesus Christ and other Christians. We are literally a part of one another. When we realize this, placing membership in a local church becomes a natural extension of what it means to be and live as a Christian.

We need the church. And the church needs us.   The marks of a faithful church member can be reduced to three commitments: Attending/Belonging, Serving, and Giving (2 Cor. 8-10; 1 Cor. 16:2)

Gathered Worship: Make It a Top Priority

It is God's will that every believer belong to a local church (1 Pet. 4:10-11).  By "belong" we mean faithful attendance (Heb. 10:24), service (1 Peter 4:10-11), and giving (Prov. 3:9).  This is so, in part, because the church is central in the purpose/plan of God for this present age (Matt. 16:18; Acts 20:28).  Despite the church's many spots, blemishes, and wrinkles- Jesus loves the Church dearly- and so must we!

By God's design the ministries of a Word-centered assembly help believers grow and mature in the faith (Col. 1:28-29; Eph. 4:11-16).  In this regard the local church is like a spiritual umbilical cord.  

It is sinful for a professing believer to forsake the regular assembly of the gathered church (Heb. 10:24).  The Holy Spirit would never led a Spirit-filled saint to act in a manner contrary to the Word He inspired.  Family bible study or a home care group is no substitute for full fledged involvement in the life of the local church.  Anyone who suggests otherwise is reading a different New Testament.

"Preparing for corporate worship means making time and making choices. Worship, especially corporate worship, takes time. It takes commitment. We must set aside time to come. We need to guard our schedules and consider times of corporate worship a priority.

Listen to what the Word of God tells us about gathering together:  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 writer of Hebrews highlights the importance of regularly meeting together with the church. He also acknowledges that “neglecting to meet together” was a problem in the early church, and had even become a habit of some. The word used here in the Greek for meeting is episunagogen. We are not to neglect the “coming together,” “assembly” or “gathering” [synagogue].

Though we should daily encourage and pray for one another as we have opportunity to invest in each other’s lives, there is a measure of encouragement, participation and life in the church that cannot be attained or replicated apart from the regular assembly of God’s people in corporate worship. We need to hear God’s Word read and proclaimed together. We need to pray and sing God’s praise together. Listening to sermon recordings or broadcasts can’t replicate it. Singing worship songs along with your iPod can’t match it. We need to see and hear and know and feel the testimony of lives changed by the power of the Gospel, covenanted, unified and gathered together all in one place, in the same room, for His glory.

Do You Have to Go to Church to Be a Good Christian?

Photo Credit: Christian Courier

"From time to time, someone objects to the need to attend church regularly. They say they can be good Christians without participating in church. I don't agree.  The Bible encourages church attendance/involvement (1 Cor. 12-14). The letter to the Hebrews states: "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching" (Hebrews 10:24-25).

We see in the Bible the example of the apostles and disciples meeting together in worship and fellowship regularly (Acts 2:42).  But why do people (professing Christians) skip church?  I read recently an interesting anecdote at sermonillustrations.com, where a pastor asked in effect, What if we treated going to church like going to sports events? With tongue-in-check, the pastor declared he's had it with sports:

"Want to know why? ....

"Every time I went, they asked me for money.

"The people with whom I had to sit didn't seem very friendly.

"The seats were too hard and not at all comfortable.

"I went to many games, but the coach never came to call on me.

"The referee made a decision with which I could not agree.

"I suspected that I was sitting with some hypocrites---they came to see their friends and what others were wearing rather than to see the game.

"Some games went into overtime, and I was late getting home.

"The band played some numbers that I had never heard before.

"It seems that the games are scheduled when I want to do other things.

"I was taken to too many games by my parents when I was growing up.

"I don't want to take my children to any games, because I want them to choose for themselves what sport they like best."

In short, if you're looking for an excuse to miss church, virtually anything will do.