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Church Attendance and Membership
1. All Hands On Deck
Nehemiah 3:1-2ff: Then Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. They consecrated the wall to the Tower of the Hundred and the Tower of Hananel. And next to him the men of Jericho built, and next to them Zaccur the son of Imri built.
The work was divided, so that every one knew what they had to do. The work of the Church requires everyone's participation in order to be effective. Find a place to be effective and contribute whatever you have. Who in the church can you get "next to” in order to tackle some project bigger than any one person?
2. Who’s The Flappy Skin Under the Neck?
I Corinthians 12:12-14: Just as the body is one, although it has many members, and just as all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by the one Spirit we have all been baptized in such a way as to become one body, whether we be Jews or Greeks, whether we be slaves or free men; and we have all been watered by the one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many.
We ought to realize that we need each other. We ought to respect each other. We ought to sympathize with each other.
3. Lone Rangers Need Not Apply
Hebrews 10:19-25: Since then, brothers, in virtue of what the blood of Jesus has done for us, we can confidently enter into the Holy Place by the new and living way which Jesus inaugurated for us through the veil-- that is, through his flesh--and since we have a great High Priest who is over the house of God, let us approach the presence of God with a heart wherein the truth dwells and with the full conviction of faith, with our hearts so sprinkled that they are cleansed from all consciousness of evil and with our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast to the undeviating hope of our creed, for we can rely absolutely on him who made the promises; and let us put our minds to the task of spurring each other on in love and fine deeds. Let us not abandon our meeting together--as some habitually do—but let us encourage one another, and all the more so as we see the Day approaching.
Our privileges as a Christian include personal access to God, the ability to grow in our faith, encouragement from other Christians, and corporate worship.
Our responsibilities as a Christian include approaching the presence of God, holding fast to what we believe, thinking about others, setting an example for others, worshipping together, and encouraging one another.
When we don't worship together, we give up the encouragement and help of other Christians. This is our opportunity to share our faith and strength. Difficulties, instead of keeping us FROM church, should make us make a greater effort to be in service.
4. This Is Who We Are and What We Do
Acts 5:12-16: Many signs and wonders were done among the people through the hands of the apostles; and they were all together in Solomon's colonnade. Of the others no one dared to meddle with them. But the people held them in the highest esteem; nay more, crowds of men and women believed in the Lord and attached themselves to them. The result was that they brought the sick to the streets and laid them on beds and pallets, so that, when Peter came, even his shadow might fall on some of them; and a crowd assembled from the cities round about Jerusalem carrying the sick and those who were troubled by unclean spirits; and all of them were healed.
The early church was consistent in their attendance at the House of God. They wanted to know God better and to draw upon his strength for life and living. They met where everyone could see them. They were determined to show everyone whose they were and where they stood. And they saw things happen. People want to go to a Church where lives are changed.
People are attracted to a church because of God's power at work, the generosity, sincerity, honesty, and unity of the members (Acts 2:42-47)
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