March 13
Many prefer to attend the Church of Bedside Communion or the Cathedral of the Glorious Golf Course. Their contention is that worship can be done apart from the gathering together of those of like precious faith. They believe that they are capable of touching the hem of the garment of Christ apart from the fellowship of other believers.
Because God looks at hearts rather than at locality, there is an element of truth in that conviction. We have heard the glorious stories of prisoners of war, denied any trappings of their faith who maintained a viable relationship with the Lord in their captivity. Because He transcends time and circumstances, faith-maintaining exercises are possible apart from the church.
But there is a vast difference between the person on the battlefield or the individual in a sick bed who cannot attend a worship service and the Christian who says he’s committed to the Lord but has a thousand other things that compel him to defer church attendance in order to catch up on needed rest or to improve his golf game. These intrusions into a Sunday morning drag down the spirit of the one who forsakes the House of the Lord and his communion with fellow believers.
Indeed, they fly in the face of the Word of God which says, “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another to gather together—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” Hebrews 10:25. So, let us consider ourselves encouraged! Let us avail ourselves of every opportunity to gather in His name, for we certainly see the signs of His soon return more clearly every day!
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