Comments on: Can Someone Be a Believer But Not Be Committed to a Local Church? Part II

By: Where the family and the church are concerned, to which error are you more prone? at A Brick in the Valley

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 14:26:34 +0000

[...] also this post on the local church, as well as this one. « Essential qualities to display when caring for others in Christian [...]

By: Paul

Paul — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 14:11:50 +0000

Chris,
Thanks for this second post as it clears up a great deal. Understand you were arguing one side in post 1 and did not intend on engaging “What if” conditionals.

I believe it was Stuart Murray who first introduced the psychographic category of “de-churched” in his Church Planting published in 2001. Much of what he noted there applies to the concerns you raise. Without question there are many believers wandering in secular deserts and in desperate need of nourishment from God’s Word, God’s people, and God’s practices. Without it we risk concocting our own world view made up of our sense of right from wrong, truth from error, good from evil, and constuct a privatized, customized spirituality. Of course we need Christ but, as Hebrews makes clear, we need one another as well and regular fellowship keeps us from the dangers of apostasy (Heb 10:24-25).

Moreover, just as Paul instructed Timothy (pastor of the church in Ephesus), “God’s household, which is the church of the living God, [is] the pillar and foundation of the truth.” This suggests to me that the primary, though not exclusive, means God uses to preserve and proclaim truth is the church, made up of believers who meet regularly as far as is possible.

By: Chris

Chris — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 01:13:37 +0000

I would say that Sunday morning attendance and commitment to the church are not necessarily the same thing. I have been in the position of having to work on Sundays, but I was still committed as much as I could be. Commitment goes beyond mere attendance. I prayed for the church, gave financially and sent my family there while I had to work. I believed in commitment so strongly that I eventually quit my job and changed career because I saw that there would always be conflict. My experience with people who say “I have to work on Sundays” usually means that they refuse to be part of the church on any level for no other reason than that they have to work on Sundays.

By: Tim Smith

Tim Smith — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 01:11:57 +0000

I’m with you 100% on this. Admittedly I’ved always loved the churches I’ve been priviledged to be part of and have never been able to personally comprehend people’s coldness to church and often downright animosity. Maybe I’ve just been particularly blessed.

Recently in seeking to find quotations about the church I was amazed by the quanity of negative assesments of church. I knew that sentiment existed, but it was still striking to see the boldness. I’m tempted to go beyond your statement about people finding it “acceptable” and might argue that a surprising number find it superior.

In my twennties I did an in-depth study of Ephesians and also a study of the books of Chronicles and became utterly convinced about the necessity and glory of local church life as an experession of the glory of God. It was the conviction that ultimately led me to pursue full-time ministry. Since then I’ve only been more and more convinced about the necessity of the church.

I think there is something about real, local relationships structured in authority around the cause of Christ and the gospel that addresses our true attitudes about God and His Christ. Privately and merely in families and relationships of preferences easily harbor and disguise attitudes of rebellion. These get brought out in the open and require continual repentance in the context of a local church where God chooses the people.