Grace Church-Burlington

“Indifference and neglect often do much more damage than outright dislike.”                                                                                                                    J. K. Rowling

                Have you ever noticed that when we become overly busy, preoccupied or just distracted, one of the very first things that we set aside is corporate worship and church attendance? It seems as though we will even set aside worshiping with other believers before we stop reading our Bibles or prayer. I’m not sure why that’s the case. Partially, it’s due to the fact that worship services have a set day and time, whereas personal devotions can be controlled by our schedule.
                The price for neglecting corporate worship and spiritual community is incredibly high. Essentially, Christians too quickly become “practical atheists.” That makes a lot of sense when you think about it. If you are not spending time with other believers (other, than your family), you quickly become unaccountable. Your worldview and philosophy of life quickly becomes skewed and influenced by where you are spending your time. The greatest influences in your life quickly become the media, your co-workers, your friends and family.
                The fact is that we all tend to hang out with those who make us feel comfortable, not those who stretch us. In a church family, though, there are folk with various personalities, spiritual maturity levels and perspectives. This forces us to break out of our comfort zones.
                Additionally, parents who do not “force” their own children to go to church are just asking for future heartbreak. Oftentimes, they do not realize the high cost until it is too late.
                Someone has suggested that the real “American Idols” are work, money, family, sports, leisure, school and things. Exodus 20:3 is as much for today as it was for ancient Jews, “You shall have no other gods before Me.” God will not settle for being #2 in the lives of His children.
                The cost of cultural Christianity is powerfully illustrated in the American Church. While the vast majority of Americans claim to be Christian, most of those making that claim would have real difficulty explaining what that means. Little wonder that the comically vicious Bill Maher had such a field day filming a “mockumentary” in which he accosted Christians about their faith. Not knowing what we believe makes it awfully hard to answer why we believe it. And it shouldn’t surprise us if Christians who can't articulate what they believe have children and grandchildren who don't bother to try. This is exactly what we are seeing, as large numbers of young people stop attending church altogether upon leaving home. Practical atheism is not considered an embrace of godlessness; instead it’s the slow slide into lives where God is irrelevant. Those who walk away from churches likely haven't pondered Christian theology and rejected it; they simply haven't been exposed to it in the first place.
                Absent knowledge of—and communion with—the living God, why would anyone in his right mind keep coming back?
                While work will help your bank account, it will do little for your soul. There are some benefits from athletics (1 Timothy 4:8) but most of us would be hard pressed to name one athlete that we admire for their character but the thousands that we don’t. In America we nearly worship a good education. But aren’t the very ones who have gotten us into our current economic crisis some of the most educated individuals in our country? A great education did not curb their insatiable greed. Most American Christians, rather than having a “family altar,” make an altar to the family. Family events or situations (birthday parties, anniversaries, even just family time) trump over worship. Jesus was addressing that very issue in Luke 14:26, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be My disciple.” His point was not literal hatred but that He must be Lord of all or He is not Lord at all!
                When anything takes priority in our lives, when Jesus Christ is not #1, there is a terrible price to pay. Corporate worship helps us keep our priorities correct. It helps us not buy into the empty philosophies and value systems of this world. Making time with the Body a priority helps us live out Rom. 12:1-2, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Is worship of God...is time with your brothers and sisters in Christ, a priority with you? Those who neglect worship find that the price of starving a soul is too high. May each of us pray with the hymn writer, “The dearest idol I have known. Whate’er that idol be. Help me to tear it from the throne and worship only Thee.”