Is it wrong of a believer today , not to go to church ?

[Vendtre]

1 hour ago, Bible_Gazer said:

Jesus loves the church so much he died for it, so I should love the church also and belong to it, not be separate.

I read a saying not to long ago - not exact same wording, but the statement is the same.

If don't want to go to church, why do you want to go to heaven.

Maybe because there are better, more useful, and more fullfilling ways to fellowship with other believers than sitting in a pew listening to a preacher 

[The_Patriot21]

1 hour ago, Vendtre said:

Where do you get the idea that it is God's will to be an "active member" of a particular church?  

The Bible. Do you not read it? If so, I posted the verse above in big bold blue letters.

[The_Patriot21]

1 hour ago, Vendtre said:

Maybe because there are better, more useful, and more fullfilling ways to fellowship with other believers than sitting in a pew listening to a preacher 

And if all your doing is listening to the preacher then you've missed the point of the church anyway, its not much better then just not going.

[Vendtre]

10 minutes ago, The_Patriot2016 said:

The Bible. Do you not read it? If so, I posted the verse above in big bold blue letters.

I saw the big blue letters, but they do not claim what you seem to think they do.

The passage does not say my gathering together needs to be in a church or even with the same group all the time. 

There are many ways to gather and assemble that do not involve a church

[Vendtre]

12 minutes ago, The_Patriot2016 said:

And if all your doing is listening to the preacher then you've missed the point of the church anyway, its not much better then just not going.

And what do you do in a church service..

some singing, some praying, some more singing, some guy telling me what the bible says, some more singing and prayer and then everyone goes home. 

[Guest Teditis]

12 minutes ago, Vendtre said:

And what do you do in a church service..

some singing, some praying, some more singing, some guy telling me what the bible says, some more singing and prayer and then everyone goes home. 

I think that while this experience is very, very common, it's a shame if that's all you get from going to church.

I'd suggest that you try some other churches in hopes of finding one where you can truly bond with other believers

and the priest/pastor/whatever actually feeds your soul and deepens your reverence for God Himself. Growth.

 

[Vendtre]

43 minutes ago, Teditis said:

I think that while this experience is very, very common, it's a shame if that's all you get from going to church.

I'd suggest that you try some other churches in hopes of finding one where you can truly bond with other believers

and the priest/pastor/whatever actually feeds your soul and deepens your reverence for God Himself. Growth.

 

The very way church is set up and ran in this country is almost set up for people not to bond, very little interaction between individuals while at the church itself. 

Most of the social aspect and bonding comes in the extra curricular activities.  

Couple this with moving every 3-6 months and people are even less likely to include you in the group.

I still go to services, but tend to try different ones almost every week. 

[Guest Teditis]

6 minutes ago, Vendtre said:

The very way church is set up and ran in this country is almost set up for people not to bond, very little interaction between individuals while at the church itself. 

Most of the social aspect and bonding comes in the extra curricular activities.  

Couple this with moving every 3-6 months and people are even less likely to include you in the group.

I still go to services, but tend to try different ones almost every week. 

Understood... that's where some of the larger denominations have an edge over the smaller ones.

Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Episcopal churches (for example) have expanded ministries within the "Church".

That is, the catholic (small c) churches have groups that you can belong to regardless of which parish

you're currently in... they have offices in many dioceses. Therefore you can belong to a group that you're

always following no matter where you move to and fitting into the local chapter is just a matter of getting

used to new faces rather than getting used to whole new belief systems and mind-sets.

[1to3]

The sad thing about churches today that come under a "christian church" denomination,  is that a lot has changed in their views of biblical understanding and application.

Some churches that have been under the "christian" banner, are no more than social gatherings with not much Christian values truly lived by the pastor or its congregation.

For sure, finding a christian church were you see the Word of God preached as well as see a congregation with Spirit of God filled Christ Like Christians loving and sharing in His word,

 is a true blessing, if you can find such a church.

 

But if you cannot find a church in your area, that teaches and exemplifies Gods Word,

Today, you can find many truly good Christian sites that broadcast their services on the internet.

Basically your relationship with God and your body should become a holy temple within in you with the Holy spirit of God residing in you, once you become saved in Christ Jesus.

Gods Holy Spirit is not defined or confined to four walls.

But as Christians we are called to love one another and share the Good News of Gods plan of Mercy and Grace for all mankind.

Your desire as a true christian living by Gods Word, should be to live everyday in a relationship with God in or outside of a church building.

and live everyday a Christ-like lifestyle, and share the Gospel of salvation to all .

 

Finding a Christian church where you can become a member is a blessing, but it is not an obligation to be an active christian.

 

An active christian lives a Christian lifestyle always, anywhere and everywhere not only between four walls on a Sunday morning, evening or Wednesday evening or other.

 

I was glad that when I was younger, I partook in a family christian church.

I learned a lot from the sound biblical teachings, I received.

I was blessed to have been in a Spirit of God filled church where there was still old fashioned gospel songs sung.  These songs, come back to mind even today and I sing them on my

own as I give praise and rejoice in the Lord.

 

Today much has changed, also I don't live in the city anymore, and the few churches that exist in my area, are not truly Spirit of God filled churches but more places where people gather and meet socially and not necessarily in a Spirit of God,Christ-like manner.

After living far away from the city for now close to 11 years, I would have to say, that my personal relationship with God has grown, not diminished.

But I have if I want to a christian radio station that I can listen to, the bible to go to, my prayer time that can be anytime I want to speak to Him, and the internet christian web sites where I can also partake with others in His Word.

I think it is very important to have Christian churches that preach the Word of God, and Christian ministries that also share the message of Christ through His Word found in the Holy Bible.

If no one got together to bring the Word of God out and into the world, this world would remain very lost.

God gave us a way to grow in Him, by living and sharing in His word, in or outside of a building termed christian church.

For sure the necessity of a Christian church is important to bring the Word of God to everyone.

 

 

 

[missmuffet]

On 3/7/2016 at 9:01 AM, 1to3 said:

The sad thing about churches today that come under a "christian church" denomination,  is that a lot has changed in their views of biblical understanding and application.

Some churches that have been under the "christian" banner, are no more than social gatherings with not much Christian values truly lived by the pastor or its congregation.

For sure, finding a christian church were you see the Word of God preached as well as see a congregation with spirit filled Christ Like Christians loving and sharing in His word,

 is a true blessing, if you can find such a church.

 

But if you cannot find a church in your area, that teaches and exemplifies Gods Word,

Today, you can find many truly good Christian sites that broadcast their services on the internet.

Basically your relationship with God and your body should become a holy temple within in you with the Holy spirit of God residing in you, once you become saved in Christ Jesus.

Your desire as a true christian living by Gods Word, should be to live everyday in a relationship with God in or outside of a church building.

and live everyday a Christ-like lifestyle, and share the Gospel of salvation to all .

 

Finding a Christian church were you can become a member is a blessing, but it is not an obligation to be an active christian.

 

An active christian lives a Christian lifestyle always, anywhere and everywhere not only between four walls on a Sunday morning, evening or Wednesday evening or other.

 

I was glad that when I was younger, I partook in a family christian church.

I learned a lot from the sound biblical teachings, I received.

I was blessed to have been in a Spirit of God filled church where there was still old fashioned gospel songs sung.  These songs, come back to mind even today and I sing them on my

own as I give praise and rejoice in the Lord.

 

Today much has changed, also I don't live in the city anymore, and the few churches that exist in my area, are not truly Spirit of God filled churches but more places where people gather and meet socially and not necessarily in a Spirit of God,Christ-like manner.

After living far away from the city for now close to 11 years, I would have to say, that my personal relationship with God has grown, not diminished.

But I have if I want to a christian radio station that I can listen to, the bible to go to, my prayer time that can be anytime I want to speak to Him, and the internet christian web sites where i can also partake with others in his word.

I think it is very important to have Christian churches that preach the Word of God, and Christian ministries that also share the message of Christ through His Word found in the Holy Bible.

If no one got together to bring the Word of God out and into the world, this world would remain very lost.

God gave us a way to grow in Him, by living and sharing in His word, in or outside of a building termed christian church.

For sure the necessity of a Christian church is important to bring the Word of God to everyone.

 

 

 

I had found that a major percentage of those attending were more interested in the social aspect of it. When the actual service started people would come crawling in very late. There were many cliques and I hate cliques.

I found that I had to sit and listen to some pretty bad stuff in order to weed out which Church I actually wanted to attend and then it was iffy... I tried to get involved and become active with a particular Church and they pretty much snubbed me.

Also I would give my tithe but they were always asking for more money for this and for that all the time. I could not give that much and they did not like that.