Five Reasons to be at Church

Participating together with your church is incredibly important. And Hebrews 10:23-25 underscores this by providing at least five compelling reasons to participate with your church as much as possible. What are these five reasons?

1. Participating with your church on a regular basis strengthens your testimony of salvation (Heb. 10:23).

Let us hold fast the profession of our hope without wavering.

In the first century, gathering together with your church included an element of risk. The unbelieving Jewish community threatened to act in hostility toward church gatherings (Acts 17:5-9). And the Roman government grew increasingly suspicious of Christian activity. But nowhere does the New Testament suggest that persecution and hostility provided ample reason to withdraw from church. Instead, church participation in the face of hostility provided a tremendous display of resolve. A professing believer who refrained from assembling with his church due to persecution raised questions about the authenticity of his faith. Those who congregated with their church regardless of persecution made it very clear that they trusted in the Lord - just as Daniel declared his faith by open worship of God in the face of hostility (Dan. 6:10).

2. Assembling faithfully with your church is a legitimate response to God for His faithfulness to you (Heb. 10:23).

For He is faithful that promised.

God is faithful (Lam. 3:23; 1 Cor. 1:9; 1 Cor. 10:13; 1 Thess. 5:24; Heb. 11;11). He is reliable. He is trustworthy in every way. Are you? There are many ways to show appreciation for God's faithfulness to you, to respond with faithfulness to Him. And among them, the Bible clearly teaches that faithful participation with your church is an appropriate, expected response to God's faithfulness to you. Be faithful to participate with your church because God is faithful to you. What does it take to prevent you from assembling with your church?

3. Persistently meeting together with your church provides you with regular opportunities to serve your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ (Heb. 10:24).

Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.

Assembling with your church is a matter of service, not just showing up. When you gather with your church, you should bring with you an expectation of participation. Jesus Christ, our Lord, exemplified perfectly this perspective of being a servant (Mk. 10:44-45). And it is the responsibility of every Christian to follow His example. Every believer is a minister, called and equipped to serve one another through church participation (Eph. 4:11-12). And Hebrews 10:24 outlines three particular ways that you should expect to serve others in your church when you gather together. You should pay careful attention to the needs of fellow believers and endeavor to meet those needs. You should nudge one another to become more loving and more focused on doing good works. And you should encourage one another to persist in doing what is right. To serve your church in these ways, you need to assemble together.

4. Consistent church involvement is a matter of obedience to God (Heb. 10:25).

No forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.

God expects you to assemble together with the people of your church. Apart from any other reasons or motivations, this should be a strong enough reason to assemble. Don't abandon church. Don't leave church participation behind. Don't stop gathering together. That's the ongoing expectation that God clearly provides.

5. Routinely gathering with your church prepares you for the soon return of Jesus Christ (Heb. 10:25).

And so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

As the world spins and time marches forward, the day that Jesus Christ returns grows closer. Challenges to faith, hostility towards Christ, and obstacles to faithful church participation increase. And how should you respond? You should not respond by decreasing your church participation. Instead, you should respond by increasing your level of involvement with your church. Assembling with your church family strengthens your faith in so many positive, powerful ways that cannot be achieved any other way. What does it take to keep you away from church?