Do I have to go to church?

Teen Our Daily Bread

DO I HAVE TO GO TO CHURCH?

INTRODUCTION T

he sermons send us to sleep. The songs are oldfashioned and a bit awkward. The prayers last longer than eternity itself. And on Sunday mornings, time just seems to freeze . . . Is this familiar at all? Sometimes church can be great, but sometimes it’s just a boring chore. Why do we do it? Do we have to do it? Couldn’t we just go to youth group meetings and skip Sunday mornings? Or even just do our Christianity by ourselves, in our own time and in our own way?

Church is actually a really important part of our life with God. That’s how it’s described in the Bible. Not as some boring duty, but an exciting place to grow, change and find the strength and real-life guidance we need for handling life! Church isn’t just meant to be Sunday morning, but our support network throughout the week. Have a read through this booklet and see how inspiring, exciting and important church is meant to be. We pray it’ll explain the purpose and mission of church, so you can think more about what local church you might want to be part of, and how you can get involved.

Come and check it out for yourself . . .

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1 Thessalonians 3:6-13 6 But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you. 7 Therefore, brothers and sisters, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith. 8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord. 9 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you? 10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith.

Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you. 12 May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. 13 May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.

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GOOD CHURCH May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you (1 THESSALONIANS 3:12).

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hat makes a good church? A big music band? Youth services? A lot of people on a Sunday morning? Short sermons . . . ?

We all have different things that we enjoy about church. And there are things that bore us. But these are not the things God wants to draw our attention to when it comes to being part of a good church. His first concern isn’t what songs the music group play or how many young people turn up to the evening meeting.

He’s more focused on our love for one another and our growth as His people.

Paul started a church in Thessalonica, the capital city of Macedonia. He showed what was important when he wrote to them: “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else . . . so that you will be blameless and holy” (1 THESSALONIANS 3:12-13). Love and holiness: these are the things that make a church good!

Churches come in different sizes (in terms of the buildings and the amount of people). What really makes the difference is when church families are committed to each other and to becoming more and more like Jesus. As we’re told by Micah, “What does the L ord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (MICAH 6:8).

CHK

Thinking it over . . .

How do you feel about your church? What is it good at? And where do you struggle with it? What can you be doing to help encourage others in your church stick close to Jesus?

HIS INTENT WAS THAT NOW, THROUGH THE CHURCH, THE MANIFOLD WISDOM OF GOD SHOULD BE MADE KNOWN TO THE RULERS AND AUTHORITIES IN THE HEAVENLY REALMS. EPHESIANS 3:10

Titus 2:1-8 1

You, however, must teach what is appropriate to sound doctrine.

2 Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, selfcontrolled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance.

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. 4 Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God. 3

6 Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled.

In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness 8 and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.

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HANDS-ON LEARNING Imitate me, as I imitate Christ (1 CORINTHIANS 11:1).

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wen was really excited to get a new board game for his birthday. But after reading the rules for half an hour, he was frustrated. He couldn’t quite figure out how it worked. It wasn’t until later, when a friend came over who already knew how to play, that Owen finally got to enjoy his present.

When I was told this, I was reminded of how much easier it is to learn something new if you have an experienced teacher. When we’re learning something new, reading the instructions helps, but having a friend who can actually show us makes a huge difference.

Paul understood this too. Writing to Titus about how he could help his church grow, Paul talked about how important it was to have more experienced Christians who could show what it meant to live each day with Jesus. Of course teaching “sound doctrine” from the Bible was important, but it didn’t just need to be talked about— it needed to be lived out. Paul wrote that older men and women ought to be selfcontrolled, kind and loving (TITUS 2:2-6). “In everything,” he said, “set them an example by doing what is good” (V.7).

I’m thankful for the solid teaching of the Bible, but I’m also thankful for the many people in my church who are hands-on teachers for me. They show me by their lives what it looks like to follow Jesus, and they make it easier for me to see how I can walk that path too.

AP

What I’m thankful for . . .

God, thank You for giving us people to look up to who can show us by example how to live for You. Thank You for giving us Your Son, the only perfect example of faith.

DON’T LET ANYONE LOOK DOWN ON YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE YOUNG, BUT SET AN EXAMPLE FOR THE BELIEVERS IN SPEECH, IN CONDUCT, IN LOVE, IN FAITH AND IN PURITY. 1 TIMOTHY 4:12

Colossians 1:24-29 Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. 25 I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—26 the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord’s people. 27 To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

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He is the one we proclaim, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone fully mature in Christ. 29 To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me.

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GET IN THE GAME I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me (COLOSSIANS 1:29 NLT).

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love going to football matches—sitting in the stands, cheering my team on, singing the chants!

But Christianity can become a lot like a football game if we’re not careful. As a friend of mine once said, there are eleven guys on the field doing all the work and everyone else in the stands just watching. That’s not God’s game plan for His people.

He wants us to climb out of the stands, get out on the field and join the team.

If you are wondering what good you can do on the field, then ask God. God has given each of us gifts that can help in the work He’s doing. But you don’t need to be able to preach, lead a study or play an instrument to serve at church. If you have time to give, you yourself are a great gift (just as you are). Jesus can take us, and whatever we have, and use us in ways we’d never imagined. The important thing is that we don’t just sit on the sidelines. We are part of God’s family, so let’s live it and work with each other in any way we can.

Let’s follow the example of Paul, who never stopped playing a part on God’s field

(COLOSSIANS 1:28-29). It’s much better to be on the field than sat in the stands.

JS

Thinking it over . . .

How has meeting with others in your church encouraged you? Who can you meet up with—friends, youth group, family—so you can help each other through hard times?

What needs are there in your church that you could try and help with?

YOU, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS, WERE CALLED TO BE FREE. BUT DO NOT USE YOUR FREEDOM TO INDULGE THE FLESH; RATHER, SERVE ONE ANOTHER HUMBLY IN LOVE. GALATIANS 5:13

1 Corinthians 12:14-26 14

And so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

15 Now if the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body.

The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’ 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honourable we treat with special honour. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honour to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it.

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WHEN ONE HURTS, ALL HURT If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honoured, every part rejoices with it (1 CORINTHIANS 12:26).

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hen a teacher missed school for a week because he was sick, everyone started to get worried. After going to the hospital for a few days, he returned to school and showed us what the problem had been—a kidney stone. He’d asked his doctor to give him the stone so he could show us all! Looking at that stone grossed me out, but I was also sympathetic. It must have been very painful!

Isn’t it weird how something so small can cause so much pain? But in a way, that’s what Paul talks about in 1 Corinthians 12:26: “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it.” All the way through chapter 12, Paul used the idea of a body to describe Christians around the world. When Paul said, “God has put the body together” (V.24), he was talking about the whole church—all Christians. We all have different gifts and jobs to do. But since we’re all part of the same body, if one person hurts, we all hurt.

When another Christian is suffering through a tough time, grief or attacks because of what they believe, we hurt with them as if we’re experiencing the pain too.

My teacher’s pain forced him to get the help he needed. In the body of Jesus, we should also find ourselves wanting to help out when we see others are suffering in some way. We might pray, just spend some time with them or do whatever it takes to show them that we’re ready to go through it with them. That’s how the body works together.

LW

To pray about . . .

Father, please give peace to those I know who are struggling or in pain.

Your family is my family too.

FROM HIM THE WHOLE BODY, JOINED AND HELD TOGETHER BY EVERY SUPPORTING LIGAMENT, GROWS AND BUILDS ITSELF UP IN LOVE, AS EACH PART DOES ITS WORK. EPHESIANS 4:16

Philippians 1:3-11 3

I thank my God every time I remember you. 4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me.

8 God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

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9 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, 10 so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

FRIENDS ON A MISSION In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now (PHILIPPIANS 1:4-5).

W

hen I was visiting an old couple from my church, the man (a retired soldier) told me with a smile, “Sometimes I get along better with my army mates than my own wife!” While his love for his wife is obvious, he was explaining that the friendships fellow soldiers have are very meaningful to them. Retired soldiers are more than just friends; they’re friends who have been on missions together. They’ve gone through life-threatening dangers side by side, creating a very strong type of bond between them.

This idea comes up in the book of Philippians. Paul clearly loved the church in Philippi, writing that he longed to be with them (PHILIPPIANS 1:8). But at the same time, his love for this church wasn’t just a result of a good friendship, but because of their “partnership in the gospel” (V.5). Paul and the Philippian church weren’t just friends— they were friends on a mission together to share the good news about Jesus.

We’re often quick to separate the different relationships of our lives from one another: perhaps placing friends on one side and church family on the other. But all the Christians we know are on the same mission as us—facing the same troubles, dangers and problems. This gives us even more reason to pray for one another with love and concern, as Paul did for the Philippian church!

PC

To pray about . . .

Heavenly Father, help me see that my relationships with other Christians are not about just who I get on with. We are all in the same family, working together to make You known. Help me to make strong bonds with the people in my church.

JOIN WITH ME IN SUFFERING, LIKE A GOOD SOLDIER OF CHRIST JESUS. 2 TIMOTHY 2:3

FOCUS ARTICLE

WHO OR WHAT IS THE CHURCH?

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ow do you think of church? Boring? Disorganised? Petty? Old fashioned? How does your view match up to the apostle Paul’s?

[God’s] intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. —Ephesians 3:10-12

Apparently church shows God’s wisdom! How can that be right? Churches are full of hurting, imperfect people. How can they show the “wisdom of God”? The church is full of broken, disappointed and messed up people. Yet they may, without fear of judgement or rejection, “approach God with freedom and confidence”. The church is the wisdom of God because it shows His salvation plan: anyone in the world, even the worst, can be made right with God “in [Jesus] and through faith”. That’s how amazing the church really is! People in the church are not defined by what they do or how good they are, but by their total need for God.

Church in the Bible

In the Bible, the church is often called Jesus’ “body”, with Jesus being the “head” (EPHESIANS 1:7,22-23; COLOSSIANS 1:18). Being Jesus’ body means we belong to Him and represent Him on this earth. His priorities should be our priorities; His love, our love. So what does it mean for churches to be Jesus-centred places of love?

Church welcomes broken, imperfect people: If churches are places of love, then we shouldn’t have to cover up our weaknesses and pretend we are doing fine all the time. Every Christian struggles with their old ways of self-centredness every day.

Yet the church is not a place of judgement, but of support, discipline, teaching and strengthening. The church is driven by a genuine love and concern that wants to see each person, through the power of the Holy Spirit, become more and more like Jesus, living a “full” life in Him (JOHN 10:10).

The church was never meant to be for well-rounded people who’ve ‘got it all together’. It should be a place where ordinary, struggling people can feel safe to share their problems and get prayerful support and encouragement. It’s not always easy to accept people who initially seem different to us. Yet knowing our own struggles, we should humbly offer genuine friendship and patience to whoever we meet in our churches. They are no worse than we are!

Live in peace with each other . . . warn those who are idle and disruptive, encourage the disheartened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for each other and for everyone else. —1 Thessalonians 5:13-15 Church is a place of Jesus-centred unity: God wants us to realise: I’m not mature until I get just how much I need others. The idea of ‘going it alone’ should be totally alien to Christians. In 1 Corinthians 12:12-31, Paul asked how much sense it would make if different parts of a body decided they didn’t need other parts. His point is that God doesn’t just put body parts together, but a church body!

In this body God mixes rich and poor, locals and foreigners, introverts and extroverts, young and old, singers and speakers. It is such a varied group that it should never work! And yet this is exactly why it shows the “wisdom of God”. The unity of this group can only come from His Spirit (1 CORINTHIANS 12:13) and the one hope we share in Jesus. And it shows His church is for anyone who trusts Jesus.

Church is a place to grow in: The church is a place of instruction and teaching about who God is and the life He wants us to live, where “we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ” (EPHESIANS 4:15).

Our need in the church is not for strict traditions or for the ‘latest’ Christians fads. Our purpose within the church is to help one another see the difference that biblical thinking can make in the disappointments of home life, in the insecurities of school and social media, in our anxieties and in all our daily struggles. We need teaching that will help us “become in every respect the mature body of [Christ]”.

Church should help us focus our attention back on Jesus and His promises to us, so that we can have real hope and confidence in Him, even on our darkest day.

This may not mean our church services, youth group meetings, prayer groups and one-to-ones are full of new teaching. Instead they will be full of reminders of the truth. We often forget the essentials; that Jesus has made us God’s children and we rely on His Spirit for how we should live. We grow as Christians as we remind each other of these truths, God’s love and His promise to lead us through any situations whilst bringing glory to His name.

The rescue mission of the church

The church also continues the rescue mission of Jesus: “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (JOHN 3:17).

As people who know what it means to be broken, yet forgiven and brought into God’s kingdom (COLOSSIANS 1:13-14), we are now to be His ‘mouth’, ‘hands’ and ‘feet’ in this world, inviting others to join us under the rule and protection of our King (V.28).

Most of the people in our schools and neighbourhoods don’t know there is a real heaven and also a real hell. They may look like they’re living their best lives. But as Christians we must always have a God-centred view of others: those without Jesus are in terrible danger (JOHN 3:18) while their sins are still “count[ed] against them” (2 CORINTHIANS 5:19). This should give us a real sense of urgency to talk about Jesus and His rescue with our friends and classmates. But we’ll need the support and encouragement of our church family. They can be praying for us and reminding us of God’s promises to use us to impact the people around us with His love.

Scripture taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved. © 2019 by Our Daily Bread Ministries. All rights reserved.

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