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How Can You Find the Right
Church?
Whether to attend church, and which one, are among the most important decisions
we can make. What are key factors we should consider?
by John Ross Schroeder
The choice of churches and denominations
of churches has never been greater. A dizzying supermarket of brands awaits the potential
churchgoer, particularly in the United States.
To put the puzzling choices in secular terminology, supply and demand drives the
religious marketplace. According to The Southern California Christian Times,
"more than one out of seven adults change(s) their church each year, and another
one out of six attends a carefully chosen handful of selected churches on a rotating
basis rather than sticking with the same church week after week" (December 1998).
Brand loyalty doesn't carry much weight.
If you were looking for a church, what would you look for? In America, where churchgoers
are more fickle about their affiliation than in any other country, what do people
look for in a place of worship?
Last year the George Barna research company surveyed American churchgoers about their
preferences in a church. In the resulting report the top three factors were:
- Beliefs and doctrines.
- Mutual comfort and care among the members.
- The quality of the sermons.
Mentioned first were beliefs and doctrines. That is a good place to begin. From a
biblical standpoint, certainly few if any other points could be as important. But
we are getting a little ahead of ourselves. The first question to ask is, Should
we attend church at all?
What the Bible Says
Most of our readers presumably have a great deal of respect for the Scriptures or
they wouldn't be reading this magazine. But, if you are not yet quite sure about
the authority of the Bible over our individual and collective lives, we invite you
to request our two free booklets Is the Bible True? and How to Understand
the Bible.
The New Testament admonishes Christians to assemble together regularly. One epistle
specifically tells us: ". . . Let us consider one another in order to stir
up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is
the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the
Day approaching" (Hebrews 10:24-25).
The Old Testament expresses the same thought in the form of a command: "Six days
shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation
(or 'commanded assembly,' New International Version). You shall do no work on it;
it is the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings" (Leviticus 23:3; emphasis added
throughout).
In terms of choosing a church based on fundamental beliefs, observing God's Sabbath
is one of the most basic--so basic that it is enshrined as one of the Ten Commandments.
(If you do not understand which day is the Christian Sabbath or are unclear on its
purpose and intent, please call or write for our free booklet Sunset to Sunset:
God's Sabbath Rest.)
To sum up the importance of beliefs and doctrines, the Bible makes it clear that
God's Church keeps His law. It is described prophetically as a group of people "who
keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ" (Revelation 12:17).
Its members do not try to get around or do away with the requirements of the biblical
way of life. They follow the difficult, narrow and often unpopular way mentioned
by Jesus Christ, not the broad, easy path that eventually leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13). Those who really want eternal life are pictured as living God's way (verse 14).
What is the Church?
Early in our study we should understand what the Church is and is not. We must
first understand that the church is not a building. The glossary of the Translator's
New Testament plainly tells us: " 'Church' in NT never means 'building.' It
always represents either a group of committed Christians in any given locality (who)
met to practice their religion, or the totality of these groups scattered throughout
the world" (pp. 557-558).
The apostle Paul defines the Church as simply "the body of Christ" (1Corinthians 12:12,27). It is a spiritual organism, not a physical edifice or organization.
Members of the Church go to the building where they meet, or a congregation meets
in someone's house if the numbers are small (Romans 16:5; 1Corinthians 1:19), but
the Church is still the spiritual Body of Christ.
By way of an analogy, Paul likens the Church to the parts of the human body (1Corinthians 12:12-27). He shows how each part is dependent on the others. Yet "by one Spirit
(the Holy Spirit) we were all baptized into one body . . . and have been
made to drink into one Spirit" (verse 13). It doesn't make much sense for some of
the membership to be separated from the rest of the Body, sitting alone at home while
the rest of the Body worships together with other members of the Body.
The Same Care One for Another
The apostle Paul urged the Corinthian members to "have the same care one for another"
(1Corinthians 12:25). This is the second point mentioned by the Barna survey: mutual
comfort and care.
This mutual care for one another is biblical. But it should always be remembered
that our relationships with other members of the Church begin and end in our fellowship
with God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ (1John 1:3,7).
We have fellowship with each other only in and through our spiritual relationship
with the Father and Jesus Christ. The first four of the Ten Commandments express
our love for God, the last six our love for humankind. The apostle John points out
the folly of trying to have one without the other (1John 4:20).
The Ten Commandments embody a basic spiritual law. If you break one, spiritually
speaking you have broken them all (James 2:10). We express the love of God by keeping
every one of the Ten Commandments (1John 5:3).
Expressing proper love for the membership of the Church is an awesome responsibility
on the shoulders of each member. After all, Jesus Christ, the founder of the Christian
Church (Matthew 16:18), did say, "By this shall all men know that you are My disciples,
that you have love one for another" (John 13:35). It is of utmost importance that
we extend warmth and friendliness to other members of the spiritual Body that is
the Church, especially to visitors and new members.
Quality of the Sermons
The quality of the sermons is mentioned as the third most-looked-for quality in the
George Barna survey.
In the broadest sense this is also a supremely important point. The membership of
the Church has a right to expect certain fundamental qualities from the elders' leadership.
First and foremost is loyalty to the Bible and to the teachings and practices of
Jesus that He taught the apostles--"the apostles' doctrine and fellowship" (Acts 2:42).
In his preaching each elder must be "rightly dividing the word of truth" (2Timothy 2:15). Most other versions say "rightly handling" or "rightly explaining," which
is a better rendering, but perhaps the Revised English Bible has best grasped the
basic sense of this passage when it expresses the need to "keep strictly to the true
gospel."
The world's teachers expound many false gospels (Galatians 1:6-7; 2Corinthians 11:4;
Matthew 24:4-5). A British novelist made this comment about many 20th-century clerics:
"The modern clergyman has acquired in his study of the science which I believe is
called exegesis an astonishing facility for explaining things away."
Explaining things away is not a part of the preaching of a true servant of
God. The ministry of the Word and prayer are his true priorities (Acts 6:4).
The apostle Paul urged Timothy: "Preach the Word; . . . correct, rebuke
and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction." Why? "For the time will
come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires,
they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching
ears want to hear" (2Timothy 4:2-3, New International Version).
A faithful pastor will preach the truth of God's Word, not his own ideas. A true
servant of God and His people "has a boundary set for him," explained one long-time
teacher. "When he enters the pulpit, he is not an entirely free man . . .
He is not at liberty to invent or choose his message: it has been committed to him,
and it is for him to declare, expound and commend it to his hearers."
The importance of faithfulness to the Word of God cannot be overemphasized. Much
less important is the preacher's particular style of speaking or even his basic ability
as an orator or teacher. Most who have received a genuine call to the ministry strive
to improve their effectiveness as the years go by.
Yet Another Important Factor
One more factor is simply the ability of one's church to make a difference. Said
George Barna: "They want substance from their church; they want to make a difference
in the world through their church."
Broadly speaking, this is another way of saying the Church is commissioned to take
the good news of the Kingdom of God to the world and faithfully teach others God's
way of life as Jesus commanded (Matthew 24:14; 28:18-20). Any church that is not
dedicated to performing this task is seriously falling down on the job. Jesus Christ
said, "You shall know them by their fruits" (Matthew 7:20).
According to Mr. Barna, the sad truth is that "the Christian Church has stagnated,
largely due to its comfort with routines and rituals that are neither challenging
nor relevant for millions of people."
Many prospective churchgoers do desire to do a work in the world. They would like
to find a church actively fulfilling Christ's command to spread the gospel in our
age. But they may need some vital background knowledge to rightly evaluate which
groups and organizations are obediently following Christ's command.
Of course, there is a great deal more to the overall story. The Church is a big subject
well worth studying in much greater detail than can be done in any single Good
News article. That is why the United Church of God has published an extensively
researched booklet simply titled The Church Jesus Built. This is one of the
most important booklets we have ever published.
Also, to understand the message Jesus taught, and which He commanded His Church
to proclaim, please request your free copy of The Gospel of the Kingdom. Both
booklets are available free of charge by contacting our office nearest you or through
the literature library of our Web site at www.ucg.org.
How to find the right church will entail some serious Bible study on your part. It
is not a decision you should make quickly or lightly. You should search out a church
that fits the true biblical model.
© 1999 United Church of God, an International Association
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