5 Perspectives to Have if You "Go to Church" {#3}

If you missed any posts in this series, 

you can read perspective 1 (the purpose of gathering together) here, 

perspective 2 (the church as a people) here,

perspective 4 (accountability before God) here,

and perspective 5 (servant leadership) here.

"Going to church" is largely viewed as what Christians "do."

In fact, a recent article shared 5 Spiritual Dangers of Skipping Church. According to this article, Christians who skip or do not attend a "church" 

1. "Miss out on God's primary design for your spiritual growth and well being"
2. "Disobey God"
3. "Make a statement to the world that God is not worthy of worship"
4. "Can't minister to anyone"
5. "Skip out on a foretaste of heaven"

Wow. Those are some pretty bold claims-- especially when these claims are only supported by three scriptures in the entire article. I could go point-by-point discussing with Biblical evidence each one. 

I will not do that, however. The point is not to prove or disprove someone's theology. The point is to have the faith of Christ (Galations 2:20), and to cling to His doctrine (Romans 6:17, 16:17, Ephesians 4:14)! My prayer is, "Show me Your ways, O Lord! Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth, and teach me because YOU are the God of my salvation" (Psalm 25:4-5). As Paul stated in 1 Corinthians 2:2, "I am determined to know nothing- save Christ and Him crucified." We can only stand on the rock of Jesus.

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With that in mind, I would like to share with you 5 perspectives one should keep in mind if you "go to church." I will share these perspectives one by one in a series- since they are generally lengthy. This post discusses perspective 3.

3. Who We Are, Not What We Do

As discussed in my last post, the Pharisees resisted the work of the Holy Ghost in their lives (Acts 7:51). They thought that if they went to synagogue, kept the holy days, and followed the law in the most conservative manner possible that they were righteous. Anyone who "broke" the law was unrighteous.

Jesus expressed disapproval of such behavior and attitude in Matthew 15. Jesus quoted the prophets in verses 8-9 when He said, "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men."

We cannot simply 'go to church' and do 'churchy' things, as the Pharisees did. We must BE the church on a DAILY basis, which is a result of a relationship with Christ. Cleaning the church, knocking doors for outreach, teaching Sunday school, and singing on the praise team is not an indication of our relationship with Christ. If we sing on the praise team every service, yet we fail to praise God with our life, then "in vain they do worship" Him. When we are the church, the bride of Christ, we should not "live unto ourselves, but unto Him which died for us, and rose again" (1 Corinthians 5:15).

As a Christian, we are made completely new. Our old nature is covered by the blood of Jesus, and we are a new creation in Christ Jesus. We are transformed.

1 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."

Romans 12:1 says, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

As this new creature, my life will bless the Lord at all times (Psalm 34:1). When I look at my daughter for the first time each morning and such gratitude floods my soul, I bless the Lord. When I work among my garden and see a new bud or notice a plant is a little larger than it initially was, I bless the Lord. When my husband and I are trying to make a decision, and I tell my husband, "Do what you think is best," I bless the Lord. When I am carrying on a normal conversation and the Lord inevitably becomes the topic of discussion, I bless the Lord.

My life- not my church attendance- is a reflection of the nature of Christ within me. We can focus on "doing" what Christians "do," and get into a habit of simply "doing" churchy things. Or- we can instead be changed by God and reflect His nature in our every day life.

Lord, let my heart be near you, not giving you lip service, not just following a cultural expectation or doing my routine. Let me not just "go to church," but teach me to "be the church," Your beautiful, spotless bride.

God bless you and keep you,
~Raquel

P.S. Look for perspective 4 tomorrow! I pray you are being blessed by this series, or at least having some food for thought and personal study.