“And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”Acts 2:46-47
“You definitely should try that church,” I overheard a woman tell her customer. “You can come as you are, and you can dress however you like!” she exclaimed. There was no mention of God and the Bible, or of the pastor and his teaching. Days before, a young woman not long before released from prison was sharing with me her excitement about getting on the right track with God. When I asked whether she was attending a church, and offered to help her discern if it was a rock solid biblically grounded church, she was joyful in sharing with me why she believed she had found the right church for her and her child. “I feel totally comfortable there!” she proclaimed. “The people are so loving. I feel so welcome!”
In reflecting on this, I remembered years ago when I was a believer in Christ but not yet a committed follower and heard for the first time the term, “seeker-friendly.” The handsome young man ebulliently sharing about his church was thrilled to tell me it was “seeker-friendly.” People seeking a church, or seeking to learn about God, would feel secure as they currently were, and enjoy the ease, warmth, and feel of the place while they decided whether to stick around and maybe even believe in God.
God in His Word is clear Christ followers are to assemble to worship and serve Him and fellowship with Him and one another, but never does He say what I consider the top 5 reasons NOT to choose a church: feeling comfortable, how people dress, feeling welcome and loved, feeling secure as one currently is, and enjoying the ease and warmth and feel of the place. Every God-ordained church should be filled with His love, warmth, and welcome, BUT the highest priority in choosing a church should be God has sent you there and that it is rock solid in teaching and upholding the pure, wholesome, accurate, and complete Truth of the Word of God. There is NOTHING comfortable to the flesh about repenting of our sins, believing Christ died for our sins and rose again, and devoting our lives to the Lord and His ways, turning from the way we have always lived and learning to live utterly for Him! The ideal church is one in which God is glorified, His Word upheld, and we are lovingly taught and encouraged to forsake the world’s ways and to live to magnify God! Living for Christ is not “seeker-friendly”, but oh the unsurpassable joy of being in fellowship with God forever!
Are you a born-again Christ follower? Are you assembling with His followers to love and worship God? Feel free to reach out for help at love@walkbyfaithministry.com or 843-338-2219.