Embrace a Local Church

Millions of believers have abandoned the local church today. Usually, they see the people attending the local church as beneath themselves spiritually. These absentee people do not understand that they will never be complete in the Lord until they forgive the local church members. Every Christian should learn to think of other church members as necessary to their own maturity. Many absentee people tell us that they belong to the universal church. They are talking about the Kingdom of God but only the Spirit knows who its members are. All the Scriptures are addressed to the members of a physical church. The lessons of maturity are all learned in the give and take world of physical people. 

Every born-again believer should embrace a local group of Christians. If they are strong in the Lord then they must begin to help the weaker people. The Lord has many lessons that can only be learned in a group. Paul described our new life as a part of something greater. He said: This makes for harmony among the members, so that all the members care for each other. If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad. All of you together are Christ’s body, and each of you is a part of it. (1 Cor 12:25-27 NLT). We must support each other. The Christian life is all about being an active part of Christ’s body and we need other people to care for. 

Christian maturity can only be reached through a commitment to living as part of a community. All of our interaction with brothers and sisters is part of our preparation for eternity. Our souls are going to live together forever. Some people are so involved in the church that they begin to think that they are functioning with human creativity. This is a mistake because our lives in the Christian community are only made worthwhile by the grace of God. The Bible says: We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. (Romans 12:5-6 NLT). Every mature Christian is in the body for a special reason. Grace allows us into the church for a purpose.  

It is vital that we learn God’s ways so our new lives will become normal to us. A new believer is embarking on a life that loves other people and we must grow into our new ways. This new life is a family life that gives to others. A Christian cannot live the selfish, individualistic life that we were naturally born to. Human beings need a steady input of spiritual information. This is because we were born into a natural life which is anti-Christian. We usually revolt at the idea of putting other people ahead of ourselves. We must constantly be reminded of the Lord’s ways in order to maintain the proper spiritual ideals. This is why God has ordained His Spirit to do His work inside of each Christian. 

We need a faithful pastor who will present the Word to us, so that weary believers can be encouraged to continue serving the Lord. There are times the pastor reaches out to give directions for those that have lost their way. He must always give us the truth because God’s workers will be held accountable. The pastor has the wonderful responsibility of actually adding souls to the body of Christ. The Bible says: And all who have been united with Christ in baptism… (Gal 3:27 NLT). Every time the pastor lowers a person into the water he has originated the possibility of a functioning part of the body of Christ that might change our town. Both a pastor and the church are ordained by the grace of God. 

In order to say that we are obeying Christ we must be giving to others. In this selfish world few people want to share anything. People will feel the need to share something that belongs to them when they love another person. The lack of love keeps people from ever knowing our Savior in a personal way. The Scripture says: …when we break the bread, aren’t we sharing in the body of Christ? And though we are many, we all eat from one loaf of bread, showing that we are one body. (1 Cor 10:16-17 NLT). Jesus is sharing everything He has with us. The people that refuse to join a church and share with others cannot possibly be identified with Christ. God’s grace calls us to share with others.

Pride is the mortal enemy of the church. Many times new people will come into the church and some of our old pride begins to come back to life. One of the biggest reasons we need a revival in the church is to fight against our old natural ways of pride. In order to embrace our church properly, every bit of our pride must be put to death. Our fellowship is intended to draw us closer to Christ. It is impossible to bring our pride into fellowship with the One who gave His entire life for sinful people. The Bible warns us: Their sinful minds have made them proud, and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. (Col 2:18 NLT). Any time a person has ideas that do not embrace God’s love for the church; they are violating the unity of fellowship. Every Christian should pray for the  revival of humility. 

Individuals must embrace the local church because there is only one Spirit. The Spirit of Jesus is working to unite us into a peaceful group. There is no way for him to unite us if we refuse to assemble with others. Paul tells us to: Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit… (Eph 4:2-4 NLT). We like to say that we have been called to one glorious hope but some of us don’t want to bind ourselves with others. The truth is that every church is supposed to be united into the body of Christ. 

Every Christian must be motivated by the Spirit to embrace others. This motivation can be so powerful that some people have given their actual life for another person. Often when Christians are separated for years and then come back together, they immediately resume their great relationship. We may not relate the same way with everyone in our church but we can love them. The peace in our group will grow when we make an effort to work through our differences with other people. Embracing our church is the way we are trained to live in eternity with all of God’s new family. There are great rewards if we will be obedient to Christ. 

When we gather with other Christians to worship the Lord, the Spirit is present and will draw us closer to Christ. Paul said: …you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. (Col 3:12-14 NLT). We should try to make our church a place of God’s love. The church should always be a place of refuge for the hurting. 

There are millions that have found their salvation in a church and had their lives turned completely around. The church has a heritage of faith within its walls. Our church is the home of prayers, hymns, and sermons. It is a collective fellowship where people can meet and become friends forever. Christians should share everything they possess with others and the local church is the place to do it. This is what a real family does for one another. A Christian will embrace the Church and give all Glory to God. The Bible says: Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! (Eph 3:18-21 NLT).