There's an age old question... "Does one have to go to church in order to be a Christian?" The answer is without question... NO. One does not have to go to church to be a Christian. The word of God is very clear that one thing and one thing only makes one a Christian... the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. The fact is, there are many who go to church on a regular basis who have never surrendered their lives to Christ. Yes indeed, you can go to church every time the doors are opened and still spend eternity in Hell apart from God. Church attendance doesn't make one a Christian anymore than going to a steak house makes one a steak!
Now, with that said let's pose another question. Should a Christian go to church? Well, understanding that Jesus left the comforts of Heaven to walk among those who would hate, persecute and ultimately hang Him on the cross so that we might experience freedom from our sins and become joint heirs to all He owns... how could church involvement even be considerd optional? The word of God instructs those of us who have taken advantage of Christ's sacrifice not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together but to exhort one another as Sunday approaches (Hebrews 10:25)! Church was the vision of Jesus. With the empowering of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the New Testament church was established. It was Christ who said, "Upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it" (Matt. 16:18). For us to believe that church is not an important piece of the equation for every Christian is to believe that Jesus' passion is unimportant!
NO... you don't have to go to church to be a Christian but if you are a Christian you should have a deep desire to, not only attend but, be as active as you can possibly be. One who considers himself a Christian but has no time for the church... I question his or her conversion.
I know it's not pretty but that's why we call it... The Dirty Gospel!
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