Why Where You Assemble Matters I. Introduction A. We live in a religiously pluralistic society 1. We have plenty of people in this country who believe in almost every religion man has ever come up with 2. There are many people who don't believe in much of anything! 3. Likewise, there are a multitude of different versions of Christianity within our society B. There is now a strong relativizing trend in religious matters 1. The toleration of plurality has indirectly lead to the embracing of plurality 2. As time has gone on here in America, denominations have become not only tolerant of but also embracing one another 3. Likewise, as America learned more of eastern religions, concepts from entirely different religions have likewise been tolerated and accepted 4. This has led to an attitude that would say that it does not really matter where you go, or really, that it does not matter if you go anywhere! C. Is this the way that it should be? 1. Does it really matter if we assemble with others for religious purposes? 2. Are there really any differences between churches? 3. Why can't we just go to the church of our choice? 4. Isn't what I need from the church service the most important thing? D. Let us explore these matters and see whether it does matter where you assemble II. Is Assembling Necessary? A. An idea gaining great prominence today is the idea that one can be a good Christian and not be a part of any church 1. There is great disillusionment out there regarding "church" and all its trappings 2. As opposed to seeking the Christianity of the New Testament and removing the institutional trappings of denominations, however, many opt to just not be a part of any form of church B. So it is good for us to ask: is assembling necessary? C. To see if this is the case, we must determine why we assemble D. We assemble because God commanded it 1. Hebrews 10:25 2. God commands us to assemble! E. We assemble to encourage and be encouraged 1. Hebrews 10:24-26, 1 Corinthians 14:12, 26 2. The primary purpose of the assembly is to encourage the saints F. Parallel concept: the Sabbath 1. Mark 2:23-28 2. The Pharisees were attempting to condemn Jesus and His disciples for "working on the Sabbath" 3. Jesus establishes, however, that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath G. While such is never directly applied to the assemblies of Christians, the principle is certainly appropriate 1. Man was not made for the assembly: the assembly is there for man! 2. God did not have to establish local assemblies for Christians to have association...He could have left us out on our own 3. Yet for our good, in His wisdom, He established local assemblies of His people H. Therefore, we can see that the assembly is there for our benefit, and we deprive ourselves of spiritual gain and we deprive others of spiritual gain by not assembling 1. We can certainly sympathize with people being disillusioned by denominations... 2. ...yet the response ought to be to remove the trappings of denominationalism and return to pure Christianity, and not brazenly attempt to establish one's own trail 3. In the end, the biggest loser when you do not attend assemblies is you! I. Therefore, let us strive to assemble so as to receive the benefits and to bestow benefits on others! III. Are All Churches the Same? A. There are many people who agree that we should assemble as Christians, but they believe that all churches are essentially the same 1. It is easy to understand this belief system when you look at the current denominational landscape 2. Most denominations, while having distinctive belief systems, have worked hard to "agree to disagree" and to not only tolerate one another but also accept one another 3. There is also such a reduced emphasis on doctrine that most of the time there is essentially no distinction between most Protestant denominations! 4. The evangelical movement and similar "conservative Protestant" trends have also led to blurred lines between religious organizations B. So we must ask: are all churches the same? C. While, as we have seen, many churches are similar, it is not true that all churches are the same 1. Ephesians 4:4: there is one faith and one Body 2. Colossians 1:18: the Body of Christ is the church 3. 1 Timothy 3:15: the church is the pillar and support of the truth 4. Revelation 2: the church is not to tolerate false teachings or immorality D. From these Scriptures we can speak regarding the church that Christ recognizes 1. It will be one 2. It will accept and perpetuate the truth 3. It will reject error E. When we look at the denominational world, we see that most churches do not meet these criteria! 1. How many denominations are content to "agree to disagree", and be unified in name only? 2. How often do denominations compromise God's truth? F. We can see that while there are perhaps not too many distinctions between many churches in denominations, there are certainly differences between churches 1. The difference lay in whether they are recognized by Christ or not 2. Christ will not recognize those who do not do the will of the Father (Matthew 7:21-23) 3. Churches who seek to do the will of the Father, upholding His truth, not accepting error, and being one will be pleasing to God and loved by Him G. Let us strive to be such a church IV. Go to the Church of Your Choice? A. If you have spent much time at all on our interstate system, you will surely have seen semis with a sign on their back exhorting you to "go to the church of your choice" 1. These signs, of course, are so written as to not offend anyone 2. The sentiment is the desire for people to have some religion B. Such signs, however, represent the attitudes of plenty of people today 1. Modern America has seen the popularization of a "cafeteria-style" Christianity 2. You can go and "shop around" for churches, looking for a church like you would look for a car, and try to find the best "fit" 3. More often than not, the preferences are more about how entertaining the worship happens to be, or how good the youth services are, or how big it is, and less about its standards and what God has said C. Should we be going to the church of our choice? D. As we have already seen, God has standards for churches which He recognizes 1. Religion should be less about what man wants and more about what God wants 2. Colossians 3:17: all should be done in the name of Jesus; according to His authority, glorifying Him according to His purposes E. In the end, the true criteria ought to be whether we are going to the church of God's choice! 1. We should be seeking to associate with Christians who will help us in our walk with God 2. We should be seeking to associate with Christians who accept and love God's truth as we accept and love it 3. The focus is not to be on ourselves, but on God! F. Let us strive to focus on what God deems important and desirable, and associate with God's choice of church! V. What Do I Get Out of It? A. An extremely prevalent attitude in the religious world today is, "what do I get out of it?" 1. More often than not, the question more often asked is, "what can the church do for me?" 2. Many times Christians will seek to leave one congregation and go to another because they're "not getting anything" out of their congregation! B. Is this the type of attitude that God seeks from His people? C. While it is our desire to be saved that leads us to God and the church, and while perhaps at the start we give more consideration to our own needs, is that the way we should remain? D. 1 Corinthians 10:24, Romans 15:1, Philippians 2:1-4 1. A highly important concept of Christianity is the need to no longer seek your own desires, but to work for the betterment of others 2. It certainly takes maturity to have this attitude and to grow into it E. Many, however, never reach this point of maturity; many never even seek it 1. For years and years some always seek what they want 2. They always have complaints about the way things are going, but don't do that much to help make it better 3. Many times such persons will leave congregations, acting as if the problem was within the congregation, when the opposite was really the case F. The question ought not be, "what can the church do for me" as much as, "what can I do for the church?" 1. The servant, not the complainer, will find happiness in the assembly 2. Those who seek to build others up will receive encouragement 3. Why? Because they have the right attitude; a proper mindset G. While there are many legitimate reasons that prompt people to leave congregations, it is sad that far too often those who need the most encouragement and maturity are the ones to leave H. Let us strive to grow in the faith and be good servants to one another VI. Why Where You Assemble Matters A. We have seen, then, that many of the ideas that are prevalent in our society and in the religious world today are not acceptable B. It certainly does matter where you assemble! C. If you assemble with a group of people who love the Lord and love one another, pleasing in His sight, you can build up as you are built up and can work as a part of God's Kingdom and receive your reward D. If you assemble with other groups, who do not hold to God's truth, or whose focuses are not God's focuses, then you certainly run the risk of losing your own soul and/or becoming disillusioned with religion E. Yet primarily God should be the one who directs us in our lives, and in the humility of obedient faith we ought to strive to please Him in all things, including in where we assemble F. Yet if our only focus is ourselves, what we want, where we want to go, believe what we want to believe, we will not be able to please Him G. That is why we assemble, and we choose the church of God's choice, and we grow in the faith and seek the good of others: to be pleasing to Him and be saved H. Invitation/songbook Scripture, Meditation, and Application 1: Now in giving the following instruction I do not praise you, because you come together not for the better but for the worse. For in the first place, when you come together as a church I hear there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it (1 Corinthians 11:17-18). We live in a time of religious pluralism and a strong spirit of ecumenism among organizations professing Christ. To that end less importance has been placed on where one assembles. In our individualist society even the importance of assembling has been discounted. Nevertheless, those who are in the body of Christ ought to come together and maintain unity in Jesus. They should not reflect the divisions of the world but should come together and uphold God's truth in Christ. Why does it matter where we assemble? 2: There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism (Ephesians 4:4-5). The Church of Christ is one: Jesus has only one body. There is one faith in Christ. Christians ought to dedicate themselves to joint participation in that body according to all that God has made known in Christ and in Scripture. Everything we do in the assembly ought to be done to this end. How do we glorify God in Christ in the assembly? 3: Therefore, remember from what high state you have fallen and repent! Do the deeds you did at the first; if not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place – that is, if you do not repent (Revelation 2:5). Christians do well to stand for the truth in their participation in the assembly. But Christians must also continue to maintain the love, passion, and zeal for Christ. It is possible for a church to lose its place before Jesus, especially if the church has lost its passion for its Lord. How can we maintain our love for the Lord Jesus? 4: But practicing the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ, who is the head (Ephesians 4:15). The assembly has an important role in our faith as a consistent opportunity to build one another up in Jesus. We must practice the truth; it will not benefit us if we are not living and acting according to the truth. God is love, and Jesus has loved us; if we are not living in love, what we do benefits no one and nothing. We ought to assemble with fellow Christians who strive to practice the truth in love and grow up into Christ Jesus. Why does God care whether we go to a church, and which church we attend?