To Church Or Not To Church, What Is The Question?
The various forms of Christianity ( and the plethora of other religions ) have quite the demand on their adherents. There are 'services' to regularly attend, alms to give, events to participate in, ritual practices to perform and 'leaders' to honor.… yet many organizations touting themselves to be led by the Divine seem to do less and ask more. Less in terms of actual service to the community and more in always asking for more $$ from their congregation in order to do "God's work."
You have meetings which you are compelled to partake in, but little time is made to build with others. When the organization has an event, the activity is already predetermined and 'organized'... so little is left other than to follow the program. And for some organizations, they have a day once a year reserved to give to the poor or to feeding the hungry... and let the poor and hungry figure it out for themselves for the rest of the year.
But what is the teaching revealed by the living Christ?
What is the Way in which He taught His disciples?
What was it He actually built on the Rock of proclaiming, in faith, Yeshua is Lord?
To the believer, fear could prevent them from exploring 'by faith' what is actually stated in scripture to do for others. Reform is rarely the course when generations have repeated the mundane task of religion established by those before you. To concede to the correction of another is an attack on one's pride and an attack to what they have believed for so long, whether it has been things taught by men ( doctrine and dogma ) or things they have concluded for themselves and on their own. To concede to correction in terms of 'worship' is akin to doubting one's faithful view of on scripture. To the believer, it could also be the elimination of doctrines taught by men and being left with faith alone ( yet, what is it that Christ taught and established if it wasn't a lifestyle based on faith? ).
The elimination of religions and the notion that any single group / people / man has the monopoly on the knowledge of God is quite a stretch to ask of others, yet isn't this what Christ has established? Today we see a landscape of all nations of peoples becoming brothers and sisters according to faith, not heritage, alliance, affiliation or political group ( what is marketed as religion but is far from concrete when one looks at the Life of Christ ).
What is it truly to 'worship' God?
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform 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.
- Romans 12:1-2
So, what is the purpose of believers meeting together?
Is it to perform a religious ritual?
Is it to keep track of the misdeeds of others?
Is it to gather that week’s monies to keep supporting a class of clergy who may not always personally break bread with you or most likely never will?
Let’s find out what it means to meet together:
“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.”
- Hebrews 10:24-25
It says “spur one another on toward love” and “good deeds” and “encouraging one another.”
Here’s a more profound reason and explanation about meeting together:
“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Yeshua, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
We can read for ourselves in scripture how Yeshua made it a point to break bread with others. Breaking bread is sharing a meal. He was invited to eat at people’s houses and He would gladly go and there was always a lesson to be learned or an insight realized by those who attended. Notice it says “new covenant” in reference to the cup and to His blood. The prior ( old ) covenant had tenets in which the blood of animals was necessary for sin to be forgiven. Yet Today, instead of shedding animals blood or doing some other ritual which doesn't lead to righteousness or a loving relationship with God and others, Christ calls you to break bread together in memory of Him and become family with people you would otherwise not associate.
Does your religious congregation / gathering actually break bread ( have a meal ) with others or do you pass around a token piece of unleavened bread ‘signifying’ or 'symbolizing' the physical body as if something mystical comes about by eating a small wafer? Was the example Christ set forth a ‘symbol’ or was it an actual meal?
What happens when you sit down and break bread ( have a meal ) with someone? Do you just sit there in silence or do you actually have a conversation with the people you’re sharing a meal with? Isn’t this how relationships are built, strengthened and solidified? When you break bread with others, don't you actually have a conversation with one another? Doesn't it say to "do this in memory of me"?? If this is so, why is it then that during a typical ‘church service,’ people are quiet and they perform a repeated ritual by passing around a wafer and some juice and are preached to feel guilty or something weird? It seems like the remnants of a druid ritual from the ‘medieval’ days which has usurped the place of actually having a meal with loved ones and remembering what God has done for you.
Have you noticed that for most of the congregation, when the ‘service’ is over, so is the communing with others? Some folks can’t get out of there fast enough and who knows if most have a meal waiting for them or if they go back to their lives without actually having a moment to really commune with a fellow believer or enjoy a meal with like-hearted people. Is this repetitive ritual what Christ established?
Let's see:
Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
- Acts 2:46-47
What do you suppose is the spirit in the command to remember Yeshua when breaking bread with fellow believers?
I illustrate and stress the point of breaking bread ( actually having a meal ) because some believe instead believe that the 'communion' portion of what is called 'service' is a mystical thing with the piece of bread and the grape juice at church, but is that truly what was established by Christ?
Did He have meals and spent time with others or did He create a quick ritual to be processed at a certain time like done today in many ‘churches’ and looked at as a symbolism of sorts?
Did He not create a family atmosphere among otherwise common enemies and people of different social classes who would not otherwise speak to one another, let alone eat with one another?
Is this not the purpose of what activity is called ‘church?’ ( church meaning the body of Christ )
Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body - whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
- 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
Does not the calling beckon us to be family, breaking bread and enjoying the company of one another?
Why is it then a staged event holding a place between the welcoming prayer and main sermon or otherwise?
Why don’t those who profess themselves to be part of the kingdom of God actually break bread with each other instead of repeating a useless ritual in which no conversation / communion actually takes place?
When did the real food become a symbol?
“So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:20-21
Sounds like something which came about at a time when those who believed themselves to be the only ‘church’ was being dictated by a hierarchy and was imposed onto others… the same organization that was killing those who did not convert and excommunicating those who didn’t meet their religious expectations… and we see this same ignorant and unloving doctrine Today among so many 'churches' who profess Christ yet cannot see past their empty rituals and empty religion.
Eating together is a major break in people’s ego and pride… it is when people let their guard down and their etiquette is most quickly expressed… you know who is in your company by how they act at the dinner table and how they give thanks for the food, life and all good things. Thus why the believer thanks the Lord prior to partaking in the meal, for in doing so, they are remembering and honoring the Lord as He commanded them as found in the scripture.
Here is one example of the meeting of the body of Christ / the church:
“In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
- Acts 6:1-4
Looks like part of the job was feeding the people, yes, literally feeding them food. How many poor do we have in the church ( believers ) who struggle to keep up with the demands of living in the city while trying to meet the expectation to support a minister, pay the rent of a ‘church’ building and so forth? How often does the minister or leadership actually break bread with their congregation? The worker is deserving of his wages but when did food and clothing become a position akin to a board member of a fortune 500 company?
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
- 1 Timothy 6:6-10
I think people cannot be blamed when they leave an unsavory organized religion that neglects the basics put forth in scripture and instead focuses on an administration of a religion. The administration of religion forgoes the down and dirty job of feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and housing the homeless. It is that simple. When you read Peter asking for a room and witness today’s ministers living in rented houses, with their cars, their airline flights to meeting after meeting, their accommodations at hotels for some event… you see a vast divide in the reality of the first century ‘pillars’ and the expectations of today’s peddlers of the Word of God. You see a departure of the Way and a glimpse of man's religion dominating the view of service to makind.
It is difficult to judge a believer who is supporting an organization and are living in the real world and dealing with the poor on a daily basis ( and many of them being poor themselves )… it is also very difficult to judge that person who desires to walk away from a religious organization in search of a family.
“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Yeshua, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment. Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
So then, my brothers and sisters, when you gather to eat, you should all eat together. Anyone who is hungry should eat something at home, so that when you meet together it may not result in judgment.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:23-34
Be worthy to participate in the remembrance of the risen Christ... do so by believing the Way according to how it is described in scripture and 'do' what it says. Those who profess faith in Christ have the road map in their hands... if only they were to believe it enough to actually perform it... then they will see God move in a mighty way.
Blessed are you who have faith in God and pursue His calling aside from the faithlessness of the religious among you.
You have meetings which you are compelled to partake in, but little time is made to build with others. When the organization has an event, the activity is already predetermined and 'organized'... so little is left other than to follow the program. And for some organizations, they have a day once a year reserved to give to the poor or to feeding the hungry... and let the poor and hungry figure it out for themselves for the rest of the year.
But what is the teaching revealed by the living Christ?
What is the Way in which He taught His disciples?
What was it He actually built on the Rock of proclaiming, in faith, Yeshua is Lord?
To the believer, fear could prevent them from exploring 'by faith' what is actually stated in scripture to do for others. Reform is rarely the course when generations have repeated the mundane task of religion established by those before you. To concede to the correction of another is an attack on one's pride and an attack to what they have believed for so long, whether it has been things taught by men ( doctrine and dogma ) or things they have concluded for themselves and on their own. To concede to correction in terms of 'worship' is akin to doubting one's faithful view of on scripture. To the believer, it could also be the elimination of doctrines taught by men and being left with faith alone ( yet, what is it that Christ taught and established if it wasn't a lifestyle based on faith? ).
The elimination of religions and the notion that any single group / people / man has the monopoly on the knowledge of God is quite a stretch to ask of others, yet isn't this what Christ has established? Today we see a landscape of all nations of peoples becoming brothers and sisters according to faith, not heritage, alliance, affiliation or political group ( what is marketed as religion but is far from concrete when one looks at the Life of Christ ).
What is it truly to 'worship' God?
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform 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.
- Romans 12:1-2
So, what is the purpose of believers meeting together?
Is it to perform a religious ritual?
Is it to keep track of the misdeeds of others?
Is it to gather that week’s monies to keep supporting a class of clergy who may not always personally break bread with you or most likely never will?
Let’s find out what it means to meet together:
“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.”
- Hebrews 10:24-25
It says “spur one another on toward love” and “good deeds” and “encouraging one another.”
Here’s a more profound reason and explanation about meeting together:
“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Yeshua, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
We can read for ourselves in scripture how Yeshua made it a point to break bread with others. Breaking bread is sharing a meal. He was invited to eat at people’s houses and He would gladly go and there was always a lesson to be learned or an insight realized by those who attended. Notice it says “new covenant” in reference to the cup and to His blood. The prior ( old ) covenant had tenets in which the blood of animals was necessary for sin to be forgiven. Yet Today, instead of shedding animals blood or doing some other ritual which doesn't lead to righteousness or a loving relationship with God and others, Christ calls you to break bread together in memory of Him and become family with people you would otherwise not associate.
Does your religious congregation / gathering actually break bread ( have a meal ) with others or do you pass around a token piece of unleavened bread ‘signifying’ or 'symbolizing' the physical body as if something mystical comes about by eating a small wafer? Was the example Christ set forth a ‘symbol’ or was it an actual meal?
What happens when you sit down and break bread ( have a meal ) with someone? Do you just sit there in silence or do you actually have a conversation with the people you’re sharing a meal with? Isn’t this how relationships are built, strengthened and solidified? When you break bread with others, don't you actually have a conversation with one another? Doesn't it say to "do this in memory of me"?? If this is so, why is it then that during a typical ‘church service,’ people are quiet and they perform a repeated ritual by passing around a wafer and some juice and are preached to feel guilty or something weird? It seems like the remnants of a druid ritual from the ‘medieval’ days which has usurped the place of actually having a meal with loved ones and remembering what God has done for you.
Have you noticed that for most of the congregation, when the ‘service’ is over, so is the communing with others? Some folks can’t get out of there fast enough and who knows if most have a meal waiting for them or if they go back to their lives without actually having a moment to really commune with a fellow believer or enjoy a meal with like-hearted people. Is this repetitive ritual what Christ established?
Let's see:
Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
- Acts 2:46-47
What do you suppose is the spirit in the command to remember Yeshua when breaking bread with fellow believers?
I illustrate and stress the point of breaking bread ( actually having a meal ) because some believe instead believe that the 'communion' portion of what is called 'service' is a mystical thing with the piece of bread and the grape juice at church, but is that truly what was established by Christ?
Did He have meals and spent time with others or did He create a quick ritual to be processed at a certain time like done today in many ‘churches’ and looked at as a symbolism of sorts?
Did He not create a family atmosphere among otherwise common enemies and people of different social classes who would not otherwise speak to one another, let alone eat with one another?
Is this not the purpose of what activity is called ‘church?’ ( church meaning the body of Christ )
Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body - whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
- 1 Corinthians 12:12-27
Does not the calling beckon us to be family, breaking bread and enjoying the company of one another?
Why is it then a staged event holding a place between the welcoming prayer and main sermon or otherwise?
Why don’t those who profess themselves to be part of the kingdom of God actually break bread with each other instead of repeating a useless ritual in which no conversation / communion actually takes place?
When did the real food become a symbol?
“So then, when you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper you eat, for when you are eating, some of you go ahead with your own private suppers. As a result, one person remains hungry and another gets drunk.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:20-21
Sounds like something which came about at a time when those who believed themselves to be the only ‘church’ was being dictated by a hierarchy and was imposed onto others… the same organization that was killing those who did not convert and excommunicating those who didn’t meet their religious expectations… and we see this same ignorant and unloving doctrine Today among so many 'churches' who profess Christ yet cannot see past their empty rituals and empty religion.
Eating together is a major break in people’s ego and pride… it is when people let their guard down and their etiquette is most quickly expressed… you know who is in your company by how they act at the dinner table and how they give thanks for the food, life and all good things. Thus why the believer thanks the Lord prior to partaking in the meal, for in doing so, they are remembering and honoring the Lord as He commanded them as found in the scripture.
Here is one example of the meeting of the body of Christ / the church:
“In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
- Acts 6:1-4
Looks like part of the job was feeding the people, yes, literally feeding them food. How many poor do we have in the church ( believers ) who struggle to keep up with the demands of living in the city while trying to meet the expectation to support a minister, pay the rent of a ‘church’ building and so forth? How often does the minister or leadership actually break bread with their congregation? The worker is deserving of his wages but when did food and clothing become a position akin to a board member of a fortune 500 company?
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
- 1 Timothy 6:6-10
I think people cannot be blamed when they leave an unsavory organized religion that neglects the basics put forth in scripture and instead focuses on an administration of a religion. The administration of religion forgoes the down and dirty job of feeding the hungry, clothing the naked and housing the homeless. It is that simple. When you read Peter asking for a room and witness today’s ministers living in rented houses, with their cars, their airline flights to meeting after meeting, their accommodations at hotels for some event… you see a vast divide in the reality of the first century ‘pillars’ and the expectations of today’s peddlers of the Word of God. You see a departure of the Way and a glimpse of man's religion dominating the view of service to makind.
It is difficult to judge a believer who is supporting an organization and are living in the real world and dealing with the poor on a daily basis ( and many of them being poor themselves )… it is also very difficult to judge that person who desires to walk away from a religious organization in search of a family.
“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Yeshua, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves. That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we were more discerning with regard to ourselves, we would not come under such judgment. Nevertheless, when we are judged in this way by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be finally condemned with the world.
So then, my brothers and sisters, when you gather to eat, you should all eat together. Anyone who is hungry should eat something at home, so that when you meet together it may not result in judgment.”
- 1 Corinthians 11:23-34
Be worthy to participate in the remembrance of the risen Christ... do so by believing the Way according to how it is described in scripture and 'do' what it says. Those who profess faith in Christ have the road map in their hands... if only they were to believe it enough to actually perform it... then they will see God move in a mighty way.
Blessed are you who have faith in God and pursue His calling aside from the faithlessness of the religious among you.
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