The church our family has been attending just finished a sermon series called, First Things First, named after that famous quote by the renowned author C.S. Lewis.
The woman who makes a dog the centre of her life loses, in the end, not only her human usefulness and dignity but even the proper pleasure of dog-keeping. The man who makes alcohol his chief good loses not only his job but his palate and all power of enjoying the earlier (and only pleasurable) levels of intoxication. It is a glorious thing to feel for a moment or two that the whole meaning of the universe is summed up in one woman — glorious so long as other duties and pleasures keep tearing you away from her. But clear the decks and so arrange your life (it is sometimes feasible) that you will have nothing to do but contemplate her, and what happens? Of course this law has been discovered before, but it will stand re-discovery. It may be stated as follows: every preference of a small good to a great, or partial good to a total good, involves the loss of the small or partial good for which the sacrifice is made.
Apparently the world is made that way… You can’t get second things by putting them first; you can get second things only by putting first things first.
—C.S. Lewis, “First and Second Things,” God in the Dock
One of the main applications from this short, month long series has been to remind those gathered and those visiting that God calls his people to come to church for his glory and our good. This is an important truth, but it’s also important to understand the why behind this truth.
Have you ever wondered why it is that Christians feel the need to wake up early most Sunday mornings to go to church? Or maybe they don’t need to wake up super early because there is a later service to go to, but they still carve out an hour or two weekly to go to church.
Why do Christians do that?
Why make this sacrifice, giving up time and attention to meet with some invisible diety?
People like to say, “The church is a people, not a place.” But it’s more biblical to say, “The church is a people who gather together in a place.” That place could be in a building, but it could also be in a home or down by the river. Christians throughout history have gathered in all sorts of places—from synagogues to strip malls—but the key thing here is that the church gathers.
Defining The Church
The translation for church used in the Bible is “assembly.” Christians assemble together, or gather together regularly and when they do they are a church. Now, this is where the popular phrase, “The church is a people, not a place,” sounds like it’s right at first because when church is over and people leave the church still exists, it’s not like it appears and then disappears until the next Sunday. So assuming this, someone might say I don’t have to go to church to be a Christian any more than going to Taco Bell makes me a taco (I think it was Justin Bieber who said that once).
To that I would say the church doesn’t stop being a church any more than the Avengers stopped being the Avengers after they fought and defeated Loki in the battle of New York. The Avengers assembled, and they were forever known as the Avengers who protect and save the world. When fat Thor sat on the couch eating chicken wings and drinking beer, he was still an Avenger. Once he gathered together again with the others, he proved he was an Avenger.
Christians go to church regularly because that’s what Christians are called by Jesus to do (Mt 18:20; Acts 2:42-47, 20:7; 1 Cor 14:26; Col 3:16; Heb 10:25). When we gather together, we grow together and we encourage one another.
But church is more than just being with other Christians. It’s encouraging to be around others who can pray for you and who are interested in coming alongside you to help you, but that’s not enough to get me out of bed in the morning on a Sunday.
The Best Part About Going to Church
When Jesus founded his church, he made it all about gathering together in his name to hear from him, pray to him, sing to him, eat a meal together remembering him, and yes, love one another too.
Going to church regularly matters because the church is the only place on this earth where we receive something that we don’t get anywhere else. I go to a coffee shop to get energized, I workout at CrossFit for health reasons, I see my psychiatrist to get prescription medication, I go to the gas station to fill up my empty tank (ouch, that hurts these days), and I go to the movies or stream Netflix to be entertained. All of these places are good for general health, wellness, and they meet different needs and wants that I have, but the only place I can go to hear that my sins have been forgiven by Christ’s life and death for me is by going to church. The church shares a message that is unique and different from everything else.
The world expects me to perform. My parents certainly did growing up. Teachers had expectations too. Fraternity life was also by merit—if you do the work and serve the time you get in. Then you grow up and you’re expected to get a job and work hard. What you put in is what you get out. And then I go to church and I hear a message from the Bible that tells me Jesus performed for me so I don’t have to perform anymore. God accepts me and loves me because Jesus was perfect for me.
I hear this news, and for the first time and second time and thousandth time I’m reminded of grace.
Grace is what makes going to church different from going to Taco Bell, or whatever else. Yeah sure, food is great but you generally have to always pay for it. You don’t pay for grace. Grace is given, it’s not earned.
A Glimpse of Going to Church
When you go to church, the church is God’s embassy of grace. It’s the place where we hear the King address his people offering faith, hope, and love. He clothes us with his good works and he feeds us with his banquet meal (delicious bread and fine wine). It’s a place where people embrace one another as equals, as sinners in need of the same Savior who offers forgiveness in his name. It’s a place where children, women, and men are valued and appreciated for who God has created them to be. As we gather in his presence, we are changed from the inside out.
Now, no church on this earth is perfect. Sometimes we go to church and we hear an insensitive comment. Sometimes we go to church and someone ends up backstabbing us and that really hurts and sucks. We get sinned against, and we sin against others even though we are Christians in this embassy of grace. But this gathering, this assembly, the church is a signpost of the future kingdom that is coming. There are moments when the church is pretty glorious and most of all, when other Christians or when the pastor points us to Jesus—the One who gave up everything for us—church is pretty awesome. Jesus always treats us with respect, love, and he never lets us down.
