Don't go to church.

I have a confession to make:  I didn’t go to church last week.

Neither did most of us.  It was Christmas Sunday.  It isn’t often that Christmas falls on a Sunday.  In fact, between 2000 and 2100, Christmas will be on a Sunday only 14 times.  Because of the Leap Year, the day on which Christmas falls doesn’t repeat every seven years.  The next time Christmas falls on a Sunday will be in 2033.  

Here is my hope for 2023:  that fewer of us will go to church each Sunday.  Did you just raise your eyebrows?  Are you wondering, “What’s the catch?”  Yes, there is one.  And it is much more than just a question of language.  There is an important truth here.

The church is not a “thing” to which we “go.”  It is a “body” which gathers.  The metaphor of church as a body is not a creative marketing strategy.  It is a word picture taught by the Apostle Paul throughout the New Testament.  At the heart of this picture is our interconnectedness and unity with one another and the headship of Christ.  The church is an organic and living thing.  This is true not only of the “universal” church (the global community of faith of all people of all time since Pentecost) but also of the local church (the communities of faith that dot the landscape all over the world).  Each little church shares these characteristics with the Big Church.  Each local community of faith is a body that is part of The Body.  Despite the differences in how we may express our faith, if we are reconciled to God by His grace through faith in Christ alone, then we are part of The Body.  And we need to be part of a body.

That’s why we don’t “go” to church.  We don’t step into and out of the body like we step into and out of a building.  We don’t turn on and off our connectedness with other parts of the body.  Every day of the week we are part of a body that is part of The Body.  And (generally) once a week, our body gathers together as a body to worship God together.  We spend time chatting with each other - a form of worship, we sing together - a form of worship, we pray together - a form of worship, we learn together from God’s Word - a form of worship, we celebrate the Lord’s Table together - a form of worship.  The key idea here is “together.”

Just like people, a local body of Christ can have many different shapes and dynamics.  That’s a good thing.  It means we can find unique opportunities to serve others based on the gifts the Holy Spirit has given us.  It means we can express our faith with authenticity.  

You can see why “gathering” is so much more important than “going.”  When we “gather,” we are being intentional to participate in the well-being of a body.  When we “go,” we may be nothing more than spiritual consumers looking for a weekly dose of Vitamin God in order to survive another week.

Here is another confession:  I want to stop “going” to church.  I want to commit myself to gathering with my fellow body members so we can serve, encourage, learn, be transformed, and mature in our faith together.  None of us has it perfected.  All of us are in process.  And we need one another.

May I leave a challenge for 2023?  Ok, two challenges.  First, that we change our mindset from “going” to “gathering.”  We come together not to receive but to worship God and serve one another.  Second, if we aren’t in the habit of “gathering,” that we begin again.  Online church may be convenient, but it isn’t conducive to body well-being.

This is not a marketing email to promote Q50 as “the place to gather.”  There is a place somewhere for all of us who have faith in Christ.  Find a body and renew connections with The Body.  Maybe we’ll see you with us on Sunday.  More importantly, gather with someone.