Do I Need to “Go to Church” to Be a Christian?

Introduction:

One of the reasons I love this church is that we have people here from all over the world…

- North America

- South America

- Africa

- Asia

- Europe

Differences don’t have to mean divisions, they can bring strength.

[Story]

I bring that up because the question we’re discussing this week is…

Do I need to go to church to be a Christian?

In other words…

I love Jesus

I read my Bible.

I pray.

But I’m not interested in going to church.

What I want to ask is…what do you mean by “church”?

here are FIVE things the church is NOT and ONE thing the church IS…

5 Things “Church” is NOT…

…an activity to attend.

We tend to think of THIS gathering

The church is so much more than THIS gathering

…an organization to support.

there are all kinds of great non-profit organizations

the church has similarities with other organizations

The church is so much more than a non-profit organization

…a building for religious rituals.

this building is not the church

if something happened to this building, the church would still exist

…what makes someone a Christian.

being church member is not what makes someone a Christian.

Sadly, there are Church-ians who are NOT Christians

…perfect.

the church is filled with imperfect people

sometimes “church hurt” is what keeps people away

I’m sorry for the pain the church has caused

And ONE thing the church is…

Ephesians 3:7 NLT

7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News.

The Gospel

the Good News

Jesus is King

He has offered himself as a sacrifice

He offers pardon and forgiveness

He is uniting the world with God

He is coming back

Paul gets to be

an ambassador

a herald of that Good News

Ephesians 3:8–9 NLT

8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. 9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.

the least deserving

Paul imprisoned them and even participated in their execution

Jesus appeared to him

Changed him forever

Recruited him to spread the Good News

Paul’s ministry was specifically to the Gentiles

Gentiles = The ethnos / The Non-Jewish Ethnic Groups of the World

This was God’s secret

That he was going to create a multiethnic nation through Jesus

here is where we get to the CHURCH…

Ephesians 3:10–11 NLT

10 God’s purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord.

unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places

this sinful and broken world

is ruled by powers and authorities

human ones, but behind them are demonic powers and authorities

they have a vested interest in keeping the world divided

nations

ethnic groups

“us” and “them”

the church is God’s chosen way of displaying his wisdom

This was his plan

that he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord

how does God display his wisdom through the church?

Ephesians 2:14 NLT

14 For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.

The cross wasn’t just about uniting you with God

it was also about uniting you with…

Christians all over the world

Right here in locally

it was about breaking down the

walls of hostility

separation

Ephesians 2:15 NLT

15 He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups.

Church isn’t

an activity

a non-profit organization

building

Church is a “people”

“one new man”

a body

we form a body

Church is a BODY every believer BELONGS TO

Ephesians 2:16 ESV

16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

We are reconciled to God

TOGETHER

or NOT AT ALL

The body is the point

what do we do with this?

If this is true, what’s the application?

come on Sundays?

Soooo MUCH BETTER than that!

Ephesians 4:1–3 ESV

1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

This isn’t just spend time with

Christians you like

Christians who agree with you on everything

“bearing with one another in love”

Loving people who are hard for you to love, changes YOU for the better

Back to our original question: Do I need to go to church to be a Christian?

That’s like an arm or leg asking, “Do I need to go to body?”

The church isn’t something you GO TO, it’s something you BELONG to

because…

Being a Christian is about believing AND belonging.

A body part can’t just believe in the heart and mind

it has to be connected to the heart and mind

through the rest of the body

in order to live and function

It’s great that you

believe

love Jesus

read your Bible

pray

But it’s also about belonging

unity

loving one another

taking care of each other

The church isn’t a PLACE we GO TO, but a BODY and a FAMILY we belong to

Belonging to the body changes us…

In Mexico, there is a man named Sexto

- He was a member of a drug cartel

- His life of crime led to him being paralyzed from the waist down

- He became a Christian

Young couple in the church took him into their home and cared for him

- She developed cancer

- Passed away

The preacher, Alejandro, took him in

- Church decided to build him a small house

- Jerry came to McDermott Road and mentioned that $4,000 was needed to finish that house

- Member here wrote a check to cover it

To this day, Sexto is helping young men and boys get out of the cartel and come to Christ.

The church is the display of God’s wisdom

Invitation:

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