Is The Assembly Important?

What Is The Assembly Of The Church?

Lexham Research Lexicon of the Septuagint ἐκκλησία

ἐκκλησία -ας, ἡ; (ekklēsia), N. assembly; assembly of the citizens regularly summoned. Heb. equiv. fr. LXX: קָהָל (57), מַקְהֵל (2), קְהִלָּה (1).

Ekklesia (church, general, universal) 1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 1:22–23; Hebrews 12:23

1 Corinthians 12:28 And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.

Ephesians 1:22–23 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

Hebrews 12:23 to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect,

Ekklesia (church, specific, local) Acts 9:31; 11:22

Acts 9:31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.

Acts 11:22 Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch.

Ekklesia (gathering, general) Acts 19:32,41

Acts 19:32 Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together.

Acts 19:41 And when he had said these things, he dismissed the assembly.

Ekklesia (gathering, congregation) Acts 7:38

Acts 7:38 “This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us,

Ekklesia (church, specific, house) 1 Corinthians 16:19

1 Corinthians 16:19 The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.

Christ and the Church - Ephesians 5:23-24, 28-29; Colossians 1:18, 24-29

Ephesians 5:23–24 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.

Ephesians 5:28–29 So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.

Colossians 1:18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.

Colossians 1:24–29 I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.

Is The Assembly Physical?

1 Corinthians 11:17–20 Now in giving these instructions I do not praise you, since you come together not for the better but for the worse. For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it. For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you. Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper.

Lexham Research Lexicon of the Greek New Testament συνέρχομαι

συνέρχομαι (synerchomai), VB. come together; assemble. aor.act. συνελθόν; perf.act. συνελήλυθα. Hebrew equivalent: בוא (1), חבק (1), קבץ (1).

Assembling is associated with coming together. 1 Cor. 14:23,26

1 Corinthians 14:23 Therefore if the whole church comes together in one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those who are uninformed or unbelievers, will they not say that you are out of your mind?

1 Corinthians 14:26 How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.

Same in marriage.

1 Corinthians 7:5 Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that Satan does not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.

Assembling is associated with accompanying one another. Acts 1:21; 10:23

Acts 1:21 “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

Acts 10:23 Then he invited them in and lodged them. On the next day Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa accompanied him.

The nature of our assembling is important. Acts 20:7; Exodus 32:26; Zechariah 8:20-22

“when you come together as a church...”

When we “come together” for another reason than worship, teaching, exhorting, etc., we are not coming together as a church.

We can split hairs any way we want, but there is an intention to our assemblies on Sunday morning and Wednesday nights. We come together as a church.

Note that there is no set standard of time or day, other than the examples in Acts.

Acts 20:7 Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.

Exodus 32:26 then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Whoever is on the Lord’s side—come to me!” And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.

Zechariah 8:20–22 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Peoples shall yet come, Inhabitants of many cities; The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, “Let us continue to go and pray before the Lord, And seek the Lord of hosts. I myself will go also.” Yes, many peoples and strong nations Shall come to seek the Lord of hosts in Jerusalem, And to pray before the Lord.’

In one location - not multiple locations. Acts 2:1

Acts 2:1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

Personal conclusion: Zoom meetings, streaming church services, etc. do not fall under the definition of “in one place”.

Should We Forsake The Assembly?

Remember that assembly is not a magic “cure-all”! Ezekiel 33:30-33

Ezekiel 33:30–33 “As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, ‘Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord.’ So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them. And when this comes to pass—surely it will come—then they will know that a prophet has been among them.”

Some think that we just need to take our loved ones who are lost and “get ‘em to the church house!” - but assembly alone does not heal the damages to the heart caused by sin. It can help, but it is not the only thing. The heart must change.

That said, forsaking the assembly carries severe consequences.

If we forsake the assembly, we forsake the closeness of God and His People. Hebrews 10:19-25

Hebrews 10:19–25 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Note: Even before assembly is mentioned in this passage, we are meant to DRAW NEAR to God, HOLD FAST the confession, and CONSIDER ONE ANOTHER.

Look at what we miss by just picking out verse 25! Every aspect of this passage is so critical to our walk in Christ!

Different word for assembling in this passage.

Lexham Research Lexicon of the Septuagint ἐπισυναγωγή

ἐπισυναγωγή -ῆς, ἡ; (episynagōgē), N. gathering together.

2 Thessalonians 2:1–2 Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.

If we forsake the assembly, we forsake the awesome power that God can work in our lives through teaching, admonishing, and edifying. Deut. 4:9-10; Heb. 12:22-24

Deuteronomy 4:9–10 Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren, especially concerning the day you stood before the Lord your God in Horeb, when the Lord said to me, ‘Gather the people to Me, and I will let them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.’

Hebrews 12:22–24 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.

Is There Any Replacement For The Assembly?

Jesus spoke of the closeness he wanted for His disciples. John 17:11-26

John 17:11–26 Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth. “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

We get this closeness nowhere else. Psalm 22:22; 35:18; 2 John 12

Psalm 22:22 I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.

Psalm 35:18 I will give You thanks in the great assembly; I will praise You among many people.

2 John 12 Having many things to write to you, I did not wish to do so with paper and ink; but I hope to come to you and speak face to face, that our joy may be full.