Why Go To Church?
(Deut. 31:12-13).

Though our text is found in the Old Testament and was directed specifically at the nation of Israel, I believe that the principles found in this passage may be applied to God's children (Christians) today.

Our God is a gracious and loving Father who knows what is best for His children in every age. God commanded the children of Israel to gather the people together to hear the Word of the Lord and be instructed by it so that they might fear and serve the Lord acceptably, and live a life of consecrated obedience. When He issued this command it was intended to be a help and a blessing to His people, not an unnecessary burden. When we preachers preach about faithful church attendance and the sin of forsaking the assembly we are not doing it to be hateful or hurtful to anyone. Rather we are attempting to be a blessing to God's people by faithfully declaring the whole counsel of God.

I have come to the conclusion that there seems to be a growing indifference and apathy among God's people towards church attendance and public worship. Dave’s statement, "I don't believe you have to go to church to be a Christian", or "I can worship God in my own way at home just as well as I can at church.

Going to church never made anyone a Christian, but if you don't go to church faithfully you will never be a successful Christian. You are disobeying God and robbing yourself of manifold blessings if you refuse to assemble with the Lord's people in public worship.

The excuses that most people come up with for not faithfully going to church are usually just a smokescreen to hide their sin. There are a myriad of excuses for not going to church. The weather is too bad, Sunday is the only day to sleep in, and too busy. For many people church is not a priority. Many would rather pursue a course of worldly pleasure, self-fulfillment, and care-free living than discipline themselves to be faithful to God's house. I realize that there are times when people are going to be really hindered from going to church because of employment, distance, or sickness. I am speaking to those who can go to God's house, but don't.

I want to give you some good reasons why a Christian should go to church. I am going to do this in two parts. "A two part series."

I. BECAUSE WE NEED TO LIVE IN THE NEWNESS OF LIFE

   GIVEN TO US BY JESUS AT SALVATION (II Cort. 5:17)

    1. Saved? Then  have been changed

        A. God has made a change in your life,  an inside out change      

        B. That being the case you ought to want to assemble with the

             Lord's people

       C. Remember when God saves a person He changes their

            attitudes,affections, and actions.

            1. Before I was saved I had little or no interest in the things of

                God, especially in going to church. However, once the Lord

                changed my heart I couldn't get enough of church

II. BECAUSE WE NEED TO BE OBEDIENT (Hebrews 10:25-26)

    1. None of God's commands are to be taken lightly or to be

         considered as optional.

        A. God is our Master, our Owner, our Ruler, and as such we

             ought to respectfully obey His commandments.

             (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

    2. I am afraid that many professing Christians obey and respect

         men more than they do the commands of God.

         A. For instance, How long would you last on your job if you came

              to work only when it was convenient or when you felt like it?

             You go to work faithfully because it is your responsibility to do

             so, not because you feel like going. In like manner you

             should go to church not because you feel like it, but because

            God has commanded it

    3. Obedience to God's commands is a proof that you have truly

         been saved. (I Jh 2:3-5)

    4. We prove our love for Jesus Christ by obeying His holy

         commands. (John 14:15) (John 15:14)

    5. If you can willfully and flagrantly forsake the house of the Lord

       without feeling guilty. Then you need to check out your salvaion.

        A. Notice (Luke 6:46)

   1. One of the choicest and grandest privileges of the Christian life is

        to publicly assemble with the saints in the Lord's church for the

        purpose of worship.

        A. What joy and gladness should flood our hearts each time we

             anticipate going to God's house to worship Him!

    2. After dealing with the world all week, public worship serves to

        revive our spirits and encourage our hearts.

    3. We are to faithfully go to church so that we can lift up our voices

         in praise and song to our gracious Creator and Redeemer!

    4. We ought to rejoice that we have the opportunity of hearing His

        Word faithfully declared and expounded by one of His servants!

    5. By publicly worshipping the Lord we are declaring our allegiance

        and loyalty to Almighty God. We are expressing our love and

       gratitude to God for who He is and what He has done in our lives.

    6. When we engage in public worship we are manifesting to other

         believers as well as the lost world at large that our Lord is

         worthy of our highest praise and dedication.

    7. Our attitude toward public worship ought to be that of the

       Psalmist (Psa. 84:1-2).

IV. BECAUSE WE NEED TO FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE OF CHRIST (Luke 4:16)

    1. During the earthly life of Jesus Christ, He faithfully attended the

       synagogue, which was the place of public worship for the Jews.

       A. They would gather to read the law, and have one of the

            teachers expound the truths of the Old Testament.

    2. If it was customary for our Lord to be found engaging in public

       worship on the Sabbath day, then it ought to be customary for 

      Christians to be found in church on the Lord's day.

    3. He is our example, please hear (I Peter 2:21) (I John 2:6)

Dear Pastor:

You often stress attendance at worship as being very important for a Christian, but I think a person has a right to miss now and then. I think every person ought to be excused for the following reasons and the number of times indicated:

Christmas (Sunday before or after)

New Year (Party lasted too long)

Easter (Get away for holidays)

July 4 (National holiday)

Labor Day (Need to get away)

Memorial Day (Visit hometown)

School Closing (Kids need break)

School Opens (One last fling)

Family Reunions (Mine & wife's)

Sleep late (Saturday night activities)

Deaths in Family

Anniversary (Second honeymoon)

Sickness (One per family member)

Business Trips (A must)

Vacation (Three weeks)

Bad Weather (Ice, snow, rain, clouds)

Ball games

Unexpected Company (Can't walk out)

Time changes (Spring ahead; fall back)

Special on TV (Super Bowl, etc.)

Pastor, that leaves only two Sundays per year. So, you can count on us to be in church on the fourth Sunday in February and the third Sunday in August unless providentially hindered.