Studies have shown that being part of the church is good for your health both physically and spiritually. A February 2018 Time magazine article cites a comprehensive study that found "regular service attendance was linked to reductions in the body's stress responses and even in mortality." The article went on to say, "If a long life is what you're after, going to church may be the answer to your prayers."
Some people claim they love Jesus, but they just don't love Christians. Yet how can they love God, whom they can't see, when they can't love his people, whom they can see? If you love God, then you will love his people. In fact, 1 John 3:14 says, "If we love our brothers and sisters who are believers, it proves that we have passed from death to life. But a person who has no love is still dead" (NLT). God gives us a love for the people who are a part of the church.
And frankly, not going to church is proof that something is wrong with us spiritually. We're told in 1 John 2:19, "These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us" (NLT).
The closer we are to God, the closer we'll want to be to his people. The further we are from God, the further we'll want to distance ourselves from his people. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable around Christians, then maybe there's something wrong with you spiritually.
I think the problem is that we sometimes treat church like a movie theater. When you're going to a movie, you know about how long the trailers will roll. Even if you get there late, you'll still be able to see your film. Then, if you're like me (and I have to admit that I do this), at the end of the movie I'm out of there. I don't want to deal with traffic. When the credits are rolling, I walk out of the theater.
People can bring that same mentality to church. They think they don't have to get there on time, so they come in late for worship. Then, as the service is coming to an end, they will get up and walk out. This drives me crazy as a pastor. If you want to get on my bad side, then get up and walk out while people are going forward to accept Christ. As people are walking down an aisle to put their faith in Christ, they have to go around someone who wants to beat the traffic!
Church is not a movie theater; church is a family. Church is a gathering of the people of God. Sometimes people have a consumer mentality when it comes to church. They pick and choose churches according to their tastes, likes, or dislikes. But when we figure out that church is not all about us, it's a whole lot better. You will know you're entering into a state of spiritual maturity when you walk into church saying, "I don't want to be the person who is served. I want to be a person who serves. I want to be a person who helps." It will make your entire church experience so much richer and deeper.
The church exists for three reasons: 1) The glorification of God, bringing honor and glory to the Lord as a church and as individuals, 2) the edification of the saints, building up and encouraging one another, and 3) the evangelization of the world.
See all 28 Greg Laurie books and movies in the WND Superstore
Here's a simpler way to remember it: upward, inward, outward. We want to be a part of that. We need the church, and the church needs us. The church is an oasis of hope in a desert of hopelessness.
When the Lord called our son Christopher home to Heaven, it happened on a Thursday. Sunday came, and we thought, "What else are we going to do? We're going to church." I asked a friend to speak for me that day, and there wasn't any place I wanted to be other than in church. People said to us, "You're so strong in your faith to be at church." So strong? I was there because I was so weak. I need the church. I need the Word of God. I need to worship the Lord. I am not someone who is above that just because I preach or teach. On that day I was a grieving father missing his son. I needed a biblical perspective. I needed to bring honor to the Lord.
We all need that. Think about the role the church has probably played in your life over the years. When a loved one died, where did you turn? You probably turned to the church. The hospital tried to do what they could. The funeral home offered their condolences. But where did you find help? You probably found it at church.
When your spouse walked out on you and you didn't know what to do, where did you find help? Probably at church with your Christian friends.
What about when you were having problems with your kids? Where did you seek help? Probably at church. You probably thank God for that youth pastor who took an interest in your child.
Remember when you desperately needed direction in life? Where did you find it? Perhaps it was sitting in church, hearing a sermon through which God was speaking to you.
Where did you find your mate? Maybe you found him or her at church. (This is the best place to look, by the way.)
Many times we get what we need from the church. We get married in the church or have a loved one buried in the church. But once we get what we need, we simply move on and forget about it.
It has been said that people go to church three times in their lives: when they are hatched, when they are matched and when they are dispatched. That is sad. Let the church be a part of your life.