Why You Need The Church And The Church Needs You

Remember when you accepted Christ as your Savior... What has being a Christian meant to you?

· A great deal?

· Not very much?

· Should have meant more?

· Used to be very active!

Suppose you had to stand before God today and give an account of your life to Him, what do you think you would say about the way you have lived your life up to now? Most of us do not feel we have done everything we could.

Jesus knew you would need help. He personally established the church to unite Christians into a spiritual family to help one another. "... He loved the church and gave Himself for Her”. (Ephesians 5:25)

If Jesus loved the church, shouldn't you?

Some people think they don't need the church...

· I don't get anything out of it

· I've been disappointed by so many hypocritical Christians

· The church is unfriendly

· I was not treated fairly

· I can worship God just as well at home

· I can be just as happy without the church

But. . .

It is impossible to be a genuinely happy and fulfilled Christian if you are not active and involved in the Lord's church. God placed you in a family for your care, protection, encouragement, fellowship and development. You need the church for all the reasons you need a family.

Our excuses are at best pathetic. The story of the woman who told her husband that she was going to bring a chimpanzee home illustrates my point.. He hated animals and would never allow one in the house.

He said, “What will he eat?” She said, “He will eat at the table and eat with us.”

“Well, where will he sleep?” he queried. She said, “He will sleep in the bed with us.

He complained, “What about the smell?” She replied, “I got used to it and so will he!”

You heard about the golfer named Jones who was twenty minutes late at the first tee one Sunday morning, and the three other members of the regular four-some were almost ready to drive off without him. ‘I agreed with my wife,” explained Jones, “that this Sunday I would toss a coin to see whether I played golf or went to church, Heads, I played golf. Tails, I went to church. And you know, fellows, I had to toss that coin 43 times before it came up heads.

In Cherokee, Alabama a true saint came under conviction for playing golf on Sunday morning. He put up his putter and did not finish the hole. He said this is the last time I will ever play golf on Sunday. You will have to get a new player. I am a Christian and I am going to be at God’s house. The result was that all three of his friends were converted to Christ because of his testimony and witness. They found a different time to play golf.

God's Command

"And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another and all the more, as you see the day of Christ's coming drawing near" (Hebrews 10:24,25).

Here are four vital facts you need to know . . .

FACT 1 God created you as a unique individual and has a SPECIAL PURPOSE for you.

God has given you the gift of Eternal life. . . "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life" (John 3:16).

THE BIBLE SAYS

1. He wants you to experience a full and meaningful life here on the earth (John 10:10"I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly").

2. He wants you to be an active, responsible member of His church (Romans 12:5"...we who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another").

3. He wants you to live with Him and all Christians in heaven forever (I Thessalonians 4:17).

"...we shall be caught up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. and thus we shall always be with the Lord" (I Thess. 4:17).

If we're going to live together in heaven forever shouldn't we learn to live and work together for such a little time here on the earth?

FACT 2 JESUS FOUNDED THE CHURCH WITH A SPECIFIC PLAN FOR EVERY MEMBER.

Why did Jesus establish the church? Why does it exist? Jesus founded the church to achieve two major purposes: to witness to the lost world; and to build up one another in love (Matt. 28:19,20; Eph. 4:11-16) As the early Christians formed together into a fellowship they soon discovered they had two basic responsibilities - "to the world" and "to each other."

1. God's plan is for every member to be a witness to the lost.

The following anecdote illustrates what can happen.

Dwight Moody once said, “When I went to Chicago I hired four pews in a church, and used to go out on the street and pick up young men and fill these pews. I never spoke to the young men about their souls; that was the work of the elders, I thought. After working for some time like that, I started a mission Sunday-school. I thought numbers were everything, and so I worked for numbers. When the attendance ran below one thousand it troubled me, and when it ran to twelve or fifteen hundred I was elated. Still none were converted; there was no harvest.

" Then God opened my eyes.

" There was a class of young ladies in the school who were, without exception, the most frivolous set of girls I ever met. One Sunday the teacher was ill, and I took that class. They laughed in my face, and I felt like opening the door and telling them all to go out and never come back.

" That week the teacher of the class came into the store where I worked. He was pale and looked very ill.

" ' What is the trouble? ' I asked.

''I have had another hemorrhage from the lungs. The doctor says I cannot live on Lake Michigan, so I am going back to New York State. I suppose I am going to die.'

" He seemed greatly troubled, and when I asked the reason he replied:

" ' Well, I have never led any of my class to Christ. I really believe I have done the girls more harm than good.'

" I had never heard any one talk like that before, and it set me thinking.

" After a while I said: 'Suppose you go and tell them how you feel. I will go with you in a carriage, if you want to go.'

" He consented, and we started out together. It was one of the best journeys I ever had on earth. We went to the house of one of the girls, called for her, and the teacher talked to her about her soul. There was no laughing then. Tears stood in her eyes before long. After he had explained the way of life, he suggested that we have a word of prayer. He asked me to pray. True, I had never done such a thing in my life as to pray God to convert a young lady there and then. But we prayed, and God answered our prayer.

" We went to other houses. He would go upstairs and be all out of breath, and he would tell the girls what he had come for. It wasn't long before they broke down and sought for salvation.

" When his strength gave out I took him back to his lodgings. The next day we went out again. At the end of ten days he came to the store with his face literally shining.

"'Mr. Moody,' he said, 'the last one of my class has yielded herself to Christ.'

" I tell you we had a time of rejoicing.

" He had to leave the next night, so I called his class together that night for a prayer-meeting, and there God kindled a fire in my soul that has never gone out. The height of my ambition had been to be a successful merchant, and if I had known that meeting was going to take that ambition out of me, I might not have gone. But how many times I have thanked God since for that meeting!

" The dying teacher sat in the midst of his class, and talked with them, and read the fourteenth chapter of John. We tried to sing 'Blest be the tie that binds,' after which we knelt to pray. I was just rising from my knees when one of the class began to pray for her dying teacher. Another prayed, and another, and before we rose the whole class had prayed. As I went out I said to myself: " ' Oh, God, let me die rather than lose the blessing I have received to-night!’ "

Most of the harvest in over thirty years in evangelism have come from people who are on the Sunday School roll and not on the church roll. These people need a personal witness at least once every two years in a stagnant community and church field. In a thriving growing area this should be done between one and two times a year. If you do not know how to lead someone to Christ, (as was the case of D.L. Moody), then get someone who can and take them with you. Do not allow the people in your class to go to hell without a personal, impassioned plea from you to receive Christ.

You will find that many of those on your roll who are not on the church membership roll will join the church. Usually one out of every three who are lost will be saved when you personally plead with them. Who knows, you may have an even higher percentage. When you go to them with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, they will come.

Last week I saw several people lovingly speak to a young man about his soul. At the end of the church service I asked several young men and ladies at the back door of the church if they had received Christ and where they went to church. He was among them. He bowed up his neck when I asked him if he would like to receive Christ. He had been under heavy conviction.

The next night the young man who had answered the call to preach brought another of his lost fiends to church and I asked him on the way out the back door if he had ever received Christ as his personal Savior. I asked him if he had been thinking about it. He said he had. In the rush of the people I could not speak with him further at the moment. However he had to hang around waiting for his ride home. I told him I had a Steps to Peace with God tract by Billy Graham that told you how you could have a personal relationship with Christ. I called for my son Sam, aged 14 to come and share this tract with Ben. He went into the church and sat on a pew as I said my farewells to the congregation for this was the last night of the meeting and Sam introduced that young man to Christ and then to the pastor.

2. God's plan is for every member to work to build up one another.

God gave apostles, prophets, Evangelists, pastors, teachers to prepare God’s people for works of service that the body of Christ may be built up.

 

THE BIBLE SAYS

"You shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth" (Acts 1:8).

The safest rule to follow is:” Talk to God about your neighbors, and talk to your neighbors about God."

"Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others" (Phil. 2:4);

Keeping One's Soul Out of the Dust

Lovest thou me? There is a quiet, little man, a vendor of fruits and vegetables, who passes my door every day. One day I picked up a small notebook near the spot where his wagon stood. On the first page I was much surprised to find these words: "For his body's sake, which is the church." Throughout the book were scriptural quotations and many notations like these: "The following were absent from Bible School last Sunday be sure to visit them." "Ask about tie sick baby." "Leave fruit for the blind lady." "Speak a word of cheer to the old cripple man." "Invite the new family to church services." The next day I handed the book to the humble fruit peddler, with the query: "I wonder if you dropped this yesterday?" "Yes, indeed," was the answer. "It is my book of reminders, as I call it. I thank you." I told him I had glanced at the contents and expressed my surprise at their unusual character. "Well," he answered, pointing to the first page text, "this is my motive, my reason, for doing things, 'For his body's sake, which is the church."' Then with an illuminating smile he added, "You see, it keeps my soul out of the dust."—Alliance Weekly.

'We are . . . members one of another" (Rom. 12:5); "Honor one another above yourselves" (Rom. 12:10); "Be of the same mind with one another" (Rom. 15:5); "Accept one another" (Rom. 15:7); "Admonish one another" (Rom. 15:14); "Serve one another in love" (Gal. 5:13); "Bear one another's burdens" (Gal. 6:2); "Submit to one another" (Eph. 5:21), "Encourage one another" (I Thess. 5: 11); "Stimulate one another to love and good deeds" (Heb. 10:24).

God has no other method. . .if you fail to fulfill your responsibility to other Christians and to the lost world you fail to fulfill life's highest purposes. . .

FACT 3 You are needed to FULFILL GOD'S PLAN for His church.

". . .the proper working of each individual. . ., causes the growth of the body (the church) for the building up of itself in love" (Eph. 4:16).

1. You are responsible to worship God regularly. (Luke 4:8)

2. You are responsible to work together with other Christians. (Heb. 10:24).

3. You are responsible to witness to the world (Acts 1: 8).

THE BIBLE SAYS:

RESPECT THE LEADERSHIP- God has placed over the church men who are responsible to keep the members in the center of His will. They are responsible to rebuke, to restrain God's people from sin, to restore them to fellowship and to help them resist false doctrine and teachings.

"Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work here among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you. Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work' (I Thessalonians 5:12,13).

RESPOND TO THE LEADERSHIP- Because of the work leaders do in the church, God challenges us to respect and regard them highly.

"Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you" (Hebrews 13:1 7).

God Demands each of us be responsible to Him and one another.

FACT 4 JESUS IS COMING AGAIN, AND WE MUST ALL GIVE AN ACCOUNTING OF OUR PARTICINATION

Jesus said, "I know your deeds...! I would that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I will spit you out of my mouth" (Revelation 3:15,16).

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad" (II Corinthians 5:10)

The Eternal Record

A youthful dandy was about to write something on the mirror in a railroad waiting room with the diamond in his ring when a boy called out, "Don't write it there, mister. Don't write it there."

"Why not?" the dandy asked.

"Because you'll never be able to rub it out," was the boy's answer.

And so it is that we by our daily deeds and attitudes are writing an irremovable record that we must face eternally.

Thank God, when you etch with the accountable diamond of a faithful life on the window of life you lay up treasures in heaven.

1. We are ACCOUNTABLE to the church and its leaders now.

A traveler in a European village discovered a beautiful custom. At night she saw the people going to the church, each carrying a little bronze lamp. These lamps they placed in sockets by their pews. The soft light of the lamps was the only illumination for the service. If a member was absent, there was a dark space!

We do not carry lamps to church, but we do send forth light. When we are absent there is darkness in our stead. The more people at church, the greater the inspiration. Many small lamps together make a great and beautiful light.

The first Christian church in Jerusalem had no building. It had a small membership; it had no officers; it had no pastor; it had no choir or pipe organ; it had no wealth; and, most startling of all, it had no New Testament.

What made it a successful church? Just this: It had the total attendance of its membership. Pentecost was possible because they were all together in one place. Its results lasted because they were continuing steadfastly with one accord in the Temple.—

2. We will be ACCOUNTABLE to Christ at His coming.

THE BIBLE SAYS ....

"As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God" (I Peter4:10).

"So then each of us shall give to God an account about himself " (Romans 14: 12).

"And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do" (Hebrews 4:13).

You cannot escape the overwhelming fact of the Scriptures that the church is to be united together to do the works of God.

LET'S REVIEW:

FACT 1 - God's Special Purpose for you is Etemal Life.

FACT 2 - God has a Specific Plan for you as a church member.

FACT 3 - You are needed and necessary to help fulfill God's Plan.

The old story of the British chieftain is to the point here. The Romans had invaded Britain and the chiefs of the tribes were gathered in council. Each had a different plan, and each was determined to go his own way. At last an old chieftain arose. Picking up a bunch of fagots, he handed each man a stick. "Break them!" he directed. Each broke his stick with ease.

Then he took an equal number of sticks and tied them together into a bundle. "Now try to break them!" he told them. Not even the strongest man could do it. "That," he pointed out, "is the difference between working separately and working together as one!"

What has this to do with religion? Religion is derived from the Latin word "re" and "ligo," meaning—"To bind together." That is one purpose of the church—to bind people together in fellowship and service. Jesus prayed that we might be "one."

You want happiness, contentment, and spiritual blessings. You cannot have these alone. You get them only as you help those around you to win them, too! So why not join with your neighbors in praying as well as in working for them. It is a joy to labor together in a task which will be blessed of the Lord. Remember what the Master promised: "Where two or three are gathered together in My Name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt. 18:20).

Get the weight of a common aim, a common purpose, behind both your prayers and your work. Go to church!

FACT 4 - We must all give an accounting.

THINK SERIOUSLY:

· · Does what you have been hearing make sense to you?

· · Is there any good reason why you would not be willing to do your part in fulfilling God's plan for His church?

· · Are you willing to humble yourself before the Lord and allow Him to use you? ". . . God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble" (I Peter 5:5).

HERE'S WHAT YOU MUST DO

1. Realize you are wanted, needed and necessary.

2. Renew your relationship with God and His people.

Our relationship with God is directly related to our relationship with each other.

If you have any unconfessed sin in your life, confess it to the Lord and accept His promise of forgiveness. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (l John 1:9).

If you have unresolved conflicts with anyone, humble yourself and resolve the problem. "Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (I Peter 5:5).

Transfer your church letter or join by statement of faith.

You have been converted but never joined the church and been baptized. Set up a time for baptism now.

3. Respond by being...

(1) Faithful

A little old man was seen every Sunday morning walking to church. He was deaf, so he could not hear a word of the sermon or the music of the choir, or the hymns sung by the congregation.

A scoffer asked, “Why do you spend your Sundays in that church when you can’t hear a word?”

He replied, “I want my neighbors to know which side I’m on!”

(2) Available

Christ Wants Our Fellowship- Where two or three are gathered, there am I in the midst Jesus said.

A man and wife who had lived together in loving devotion for many years were separated by her untimely death. They had an only child, a 19-year-old daughter, who after they came back from laying the mother away, sat with her father beside the fire that evening, sharing his loneliness. Afterward he went to bed but not to sleep, haunted by the memories of the one he had lost. The next morning when he came downstairs his daughter was busying herself in the kitchen getting breakfast, and as he looked at her he was reminded how much she looked like her mother. As the days passed this realization grew upon him. When she sang he heard her mother's voice; when she laughed he was listening to the lilting laughter of the one he had lost.

Each evening he would say, "Daughter, come and sit with me by the fire." On nice days it was, "Daughter, come with me for a walk in the park."

Then winter was on, and she was always busy evenings with some task that took her from his sight, and he was very lonely. His birthday came, and she presented him with a pair of beautiful hand-worked slippers, saying, "You have wondered why I haven't had time to sit with you by the fire, or to go walking with you. It is because I wanted to have these ready for your birthday."

"Daughter," he said, "the next time you want to do something like this, please come to me and get the money, for I need you far more than I need the things you take time out to make for me."

Christ can never be satisfied with merely the things we give Him or do for His cause; He wants our love and fellowship.

(3) Teachable

There are some people who sincerely care about what happens to you! You need to step out in the aisle and come to the front to show your commitment, join this church, trust Christ and become a part of God’s forever family. Renew  your fellowship to God and His church.