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What We Believe and Why
Written by Dr. Lester Hutson

Copyright - Lester Hutson - 1986
This material is copyrighted and may not be copied or reproduced without the express written permission of Dr. Lester Hutson.

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

JOINING AND ATTENDING THE CHURCH

HEBEWS 10:24-25

The previous lesson shows why we believe every believer should also become a member of the Lord's church. Here we plan to give further evidence of why believers should join a church, plus show why we believe those in a church should actively support and attend it.

I. To be an active member of the Lord's church is to abide in the special favor of God:

A. In and through the church you are provided many privileges:

1. It provides fellowship with other Christians, I Jn. 1:6-7.

2. It provides edification through preaching and teaching, Acts 4:2, Mt. 28:20.

3. The church provides you the place to worship God: Ps. 66:1; sing - I Cor. 16:2; give -; Mt. 6: 1-10; pray - I Cor. 11:23-31; The Lord's Supper and hear preaching - I Cor. 1:21

4. Through the church you are provided the opportunity to participate in God's mission plan, Rom. 10:13-15, Acts 1:8.

5. The church provides you the privilege of uniting with others as the body of Christ to carry on Christ's work. (There is strength in numbers.) I Cor. 12 and Eph. 4:14-16.

6. The church provides you the opportunity to prove your love for Christ by being obedient to His commands, Heb. 10:25.

B. Remember from previous studies that Christ promises to especially watch over His church:

1. The gates of Hell shall not prevail against it, Mt. 16:18.

2. He promises to act as high priest only over those in His church, Heb. 10:21.

3. He acts as Saviour over His church, Eph. 5:23.

4. He is able and prepared to cause all things to work for its well being, Eph. 1:22-23,

5. Consider the awful plight of anyone cast out of the church, I Cor. 5:5.

C. Thus, we believe that all saved persons should become a part of the Lorci's church. They should join it.

II. Those who are a part of the Lord's church should attend it regularly and faithfully:

A. Attendance of just some of the services is not regular, faithful attendance:

1. Mt. 18:18 God holds you accountable for being in every service unless providentially hindered.

2. Rom. 14:11-12. In the day of judgment, you shall answer to God for your failure to do so:

a. Therefore, you can see that your excuses only succeed in hurting you; not fooling God.

b. When you miss, your issue is not just with the preacher or church. It is mostly with God.

B. Attendance is certainly not everything; but there isn't anything without it:

1. You can not even conduct a worship service or have a church if no one attends.

2. Though there are numberous other things important to having a good church, attendance has to be one of, if not the most, rudimentary essentials to it; it is the first step in the right direction.

3. It would appear that the greater your attendance, the greater your potential will be; to reach the lost, to revive hearts, to receive a good offering to finance the Lord's work, and so on.

C. Those who forsake assembling (don't attend) commit at least a sevenfold sin against the church.

1. They rebel against God, Heb. 10:25a.

2. They discourage the hearts of those who are faithful, Heb. 10:25b.

3. They rob God of His substance, I Cor. 16:2, Mal. 3:8-9.

4. They neglect God's word, II Tim. 2:15.

5. They implant in their children a disregard for the church, God, God's word, and obedience to God, Prov. 22:6.

6. They refuse to help the lost find Christ, for this is to be done through the church, Eph. 3:21.

7. They fail to give God the praise which is rightfully His, Heb. 2:12.

III. And, those who are members of the Lord's church should bring other people to it:

A. This is the thing which will bring about growth of the church:

1. If only the members of a church attended, it wouldn't grow.

2. To have an increase others must be reached.

3. To "Enlarge the place of thy tent" Isa. 54:2 should be the aim of every church member.

B. The very purpose of a Christian's pilgrimage on earth boils down to his promoting the cause of Christ on earth:

1. The saved are to open the eyes of others, Acts 26:16-18.

2. Mt. 28:19 and Mk. 16:15 teach us to promote Jesus to others.

3. The Jerusalem church did it, Acts 5:42.

4. Luke 14:23 teaches us to compel them to come in.

C. One of the very best things you can do is to enthusiastically promote your church by bringing people to it, Ps. 126:5-6.

"It Does Make a Difference What You Believe"