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And I bowed my head and worshiped
the Lord -- Genesis 24:48
In the last article, I made the statement that we should never equate church attendance with righteousness or godly character. Judas was a consistent follower of Jesus but was really serving the devil; he was present when they gathered for the last supper. Going to church doesn't make anyone into a good, moral, God-fearing Christian.
If you were to think of a person in the Bible that impressed you with a godly character and lifestyle, who would it be? Some of us would choose individuals from the Old Testament like Noah, Abraham, Isaac, or Joshua. I have always been impressed with Enoch the son of Jared. One of the things I like about Enoch is the fact that he was God-like, he reflected the character of God to those around him. He was so righteous, God took him to paradise without Enoch having to experience death. That is kind of appealing to me!
Genesis 5:24 says, "And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him." Isaac is another person I appreciate; it appears that he was truly a man who sought after peace. He would go out into the field in the evening to meditate (to contemplate in a sober, thoughtful manner).
So let's consider those great men of faith like Enoch, Noah, and Abraham. Were they faithful in attending the stated meetings of the church? We would all confess that they didn't even have a local church back then; worship was different in that period. This was a time in history when men were seeking after righteousness as they worshiped the Great I Am, Genesis 4:26.
There is something else here we should think about. If we are judging ourselves and others according to church attendance, what will we do when we cannot attend church anymore? Most people come to a point in their lives when their health is poor and they are confined in their house or in a nursing home. Will we then be considered ungodly if we do not go to church? Will we doubt our faith in God and the work of His Son?
Many of us have an unscriptural view of the Christian life and the priorities we should have. Within God's Word, He has given us an order of obligation (priority) which seems to be in this fashion.
1 – An individual's responsibility to God.
2 – To the family.
3 – To the church.
4 – To others.
In his book, "My Utmost for His Highest," Oswald Chambers makes this statement: "A person who has the vision of God is not devoted to a cause or to any particular issue, he is devoted to God Himself."
Being devoted to God is not the same as being devoted to the King James Version of the Bible, the local church, or the Reformed Faith. Are we devoted to a man-made institution and the agenda they have, or to God Himself?
Contact the author at thoughtsonword@gmail.com if you have any comments or questions.
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Lyndon Stimeling, of Richfield, has been writing about faith and family for many years. He has self-published four books, Common Thoughts on The Word in 2016, Eye of a Needle in 2017, Common Thoughts on The Word II in 2019 and A Bridge Between in 2023. He has also had articles published in The Coming Home Journal and local newspapers and has written a children's book.