Yup, you heard me correctly. Stop going to church!
It’s actually impossible to go to church. Church is not something we attend, it is something we are.
Jesus came to birth the church. He came to call forth a people who would be the body of Christ, the people of God, a Kingdom of priests to God, ambassadors of the Kingdom, the family of God, the army of God – the Church.
The church is not a building. Where the church gathers can be called a church building, but it’s completely unbiblical language to refer to the building as the church. Equally as unbiblical is referring to the gathering of God’s people as church.
“Go to church.”, is a phrase you will never see in scripture because it is unbiblical.
We gather together as the church, we don’t go to church. Our language betrays our belief and also informs our belief. If we’re going to truly get hold of God’s heart for us and for the world though us we need to choose biblical language.
The church is an organism. It is not an organization. The church is the body of believers who have chosen to surrender to the Lordship of Christ and carry His call as ambassadors of His government to this world.
The church is the hope of the world. The church carries the word of God to this world. We’re sons and daughters of our God, His family, partnering with Him in the work of His kingdom coming and His will being done on earth as it is in Heaven.
The church has been given the glory of God on earth. We are commissioned to bring the constitution of the Kingdom in the authority of Christ to a fallen, broken and imprisoned world to see them set free and born again as beloved children of our Heavenly Father – living in His righteous, peace and joy.
As Peter told us in 1 Peter 2:9,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
We need to stop attending church and start being the church. We need to recognize who we are and who we’re called to be. We have to understand our spiritual DNA and the purpose for which Jesus died and rose from the dead.
Our North American mindset is so individualistic. We read scripture through the lens of “me” instead of “us”, “I” instead of “we”. God’s heart is for a body of believers who will be the body of Christ on earth – it’s about us, not me.
It’s about us being the church. We’re born again to be the family of God. You can’t attend ‘family’. You have a family, you’re part of a family. Your family gets together, and sometimes your family has meetings. Your family does life together.
The church is no different: we do life together. We’re all part of the church. The church gets together. The church cares for each other. The church cares for others. The church has meetings.
Following Jesus is a team game, not an individual sport. Jesus came to launch a team called the church. To follow Him is to be part of the team, and we all have a unique position of the team.
Jesus didn’t come to call spectators – He called players. We’re not called to sit in the stands and watch someone else play the game. We’re born again to be on the field playing the game as part of God’s team.
It’s time for us to understand we can’t attend church, we must be the church. Let’s get out of the stands and get on the field. Let’s gather together as the church in the church building to encourage and equip one another to magnificently “…declare the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. “ Let’s come together to give, not just receive. Let’s be the church for each other.
Stop going to church, but rather let’s gather together as the church so we can be equipped to be the church.
Matthew 16:18b
“…I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.”
Revelation 5:10
“You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”
2 Corinthians 6:16
“For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.’”
Ephesians 4:11, 12
“So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up”
Hebrews 10: 24, 25
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”