Questions & Answers

Q. Isn’t my church enough Christianity for me and my family?

A. Hopefully not, if by “church” you mean merely attending a worship service and a few social activities without significant interaction among a few friends, doing all the things God commanded us to do for and with one together.

Our first consideration should be to give God what He asks for in light of all He has done for us in Christ. 

The second consideration should be that God has given you certain birthrights as a member of His kingdom, just as you have rights as a citizen of your country.

For example, in Galatians 6:2 the Lord tells us to carry one another’s burdens. We might prefer to hear Him say, “Pretty please, if you have the time, do you suppose you might carry one another’s burdens?” Instead, He orders it to be done. That is because in His kingdom having your burdens shared is a privilege of citizenship. 

As we explain in the Togethers, this command to carry one another’s burdens means to help pay the consequences of one another’s sins. Galatians 6:2 comes in the middle of a paragraph talking about sin! Isn’t that great! Where else can someone live in a society in which others are commanded to help you out when you dig a hole and fall into it? (And that society, the church, is also commanded to do much to help you not make those sinful mistakes in the first place.)

Even a group of just eight people, not to mention a church of a hundred or more, is too big for the kind of transparency and trust necessary for admitting sin and having others help carry the burden of that sin. I (Dick) am not going to stand up in a church service, as I did years ago in a small group, and say, “Jean and I have not spoken to each other for four days, and we need you to get us out of the stalemate we have created by our own sinful selfishness.” 

So, going to church and even a small group Bible study are not enough, either for God or for you.