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| Why Should I
Attend |
| Marshall Reid |
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This
world offers an abundance of activities in which to involve
ourselves. Some of us enjoy various kinds of sports and
sometimes participate either in recreational leagues or
compete in school: sports such as baseball, racquetball,
tennis, soccer, football, volleyball, golf, or softball. We
all have an assortment of hobbies and interests that we make
time for in our schedules, such as sewing, scrapbooking,
woodworking, fishing, birdwatching, reading, gardening,
painting, video games, or playing music. Some teenagers even
view sleeping as a hobby.
Whenever something is especially enjoyable to us, we make time
to engage in those pursuits, even postponing other things that
need to be done because these interests are more captivating
and more fun. However, there are many Christians who will make
time for fulfilling their own desires of pleasurable
activities but will make excuses when it’s time to attend
the Bible classes and worship services. Or maybe they will
commit to working during these times instead of attending the
services. After all, it’s work and work is important.
Supporting ourselves and our family is commanded by God, is it
not? The point is that often times Christians find something
else to do that is more important to them at the time than
assembling with the saints. But what could be more important
than assembling with the saints?
Granted, there are times in which unforeseen or unavoidable
circumstances keep us from attending the services. But when we
make a conscious decision to do something else rather than be
at services, then that may betray a need for an adjustment in
our priorities. God’s design for the local church includes
regularly meeting together, and he had very good reasons for
this plan. If we let other things get in the way of attending
the services, we miss out on so much that God has planned for
us to experience as a local body and as a family. There are
many reasons to attend, but I want to offer two for your
consideration.
Attending services helps us stay on the straight and narrow
path. Just like a misaligned vehicle will pull either
to the left or the right instead of going straight, when we
have our priorities misaligned, we find ourselves straying to
the left or the right instead of staying on the path that
leads to righteousness. We miss out on the instruction we
receive from the Bible classes and the preaching. We miss out
on the discussion of God’s will for us and the insights into
his word that others can supply. We miss out on the
admonishments contained within the psalms, hymns, and
spiritual songs that we sing. We miss out on the prayers that
help us stay focused on our relationship to God. We miss out
on the Lord’s Supper that reminds us of the precious blood
that was shed to cleanse our souls of our sins.
These blessings that we enjoy when we are at services help us
in our daily fight against the pull of the world. We can take
the instruction, the admonishments, the prayers, and the
reminders and use them to stay strong each week as temptations
come upon us. But we don’t have that advantage if we’re
not at services.
Attending services helps us keep our faith strong.
When Elijah was running for his life from Ahab and Jezebel, he
hid in a cave and was very depressed because of Israel’s
condition and unfaithfulness. He said to God, “I alone am
left; and they seek to take my life.” However, God’s
answer to him was, “Yet I have reserved seven thousand in
Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every
mouth that has not kissed him” (1 Kings 19:10, 18). Elijah
felt all alone, that there was no one else who wanted to serve
God.
Those Israelites faithful to Jehovah in Elijah’s day were
certainly in the minority, just as Christians are in the
minority today. But we don’t have to feel the despair that
Elijah felt, for we know we are not alone. We have an
abundance of brethren who are trying to please God and remain
faithful to him. That should bolster our confidence and faith
and encourage us to continue pressing toward the goal. If we
choose to do something other than attend services, we are
chipping away at our own fortress of faith. We’re weakening
the walls of defense that can be made stronger through our
attendance and fellowship with our fellow warriors. That
leaves us open to the attacks the world will no doubt assail
upon us relentlessly.
God knew that we needed each other, that we can’t make it on
our own. Therefore, He designed the local church to be a
source of encouragement to us, to help make us stalwarts in
the faith. By drawing upon the faith of our brethren, our own
faith grows. By leaning upon them when we are weak, we become
strong.
Why let inconsequential matters come between us and attending
the services? We have everything to gain by attending and
everything to lose by not attending. In Matthew 6, Jesus
explained the importance of having a priority alignment. He
said we can’t let the things of this world get in our way,
and we can’t let the worry of providing for ourselves get in
the way. Rather, we need to “seek first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to
you” (Matt. 6:33). Part of that seeking includes attending
services and assembling with the saints.
Marshall Reid |
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Copyright (C)
2008
Southside Church of Christ
All rights reserved.
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