Good morning!
Welcome to your morning coffee! May our Heavenly Father call us closer to His side, not only I alone, but us together. Father, we are so quick to make much of ourselves and less of you and others. Help us to see you as you are, not as we would like you to be. You owe us no answers, no explanations. You owe us nothing. And we owe you everything. Help us to obey and trust you because of who you are, not mistaking your gracious answers and explanations in the Bible as something you owe us. You don't. We owe you, eternally and without hope of ever being able to repay. That's great! In the powerful name of Jesus, by the guiding comfort of the Spirit, thank you Father! Amen.
Your Morning Song: "Rise Up (Lazarus)" by Cain, ft. Zach Williams
Your Morning Scripture: Hebrews 10:25
...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.
...
Why go to church?
There are many good reasons to go to church. The answer is like a buffet of good things, good reasons. But here in Hebrews 10:25, we find the foundational reasoning upon which all others reasons rest.
It comes in two parts.
God, and humans.
God. Because He says so.
We have a problem when it comes to obeying God. We want Him to explain Himself to us. We will obey, if God give us a good enough reason to. We need to get better at practically, functionally remembering that God owes us nothing, least of all, answers and explanations. The deepest, most abiding intimacy we can have with God, is when we trust Him based on who He is, God. Not based on answers, reasons, justifications.
In His loyal-lovingkindness, His mercy and grace, God does give us answers, reasons, explanations in the Bible, His Word. But He does not owe us any of it. And too easily and too often, our obedience hinges on treating God as if He owes us before we owe Him.
Go to church because God says to go. Do we trust that He knows best?
God, and humans.
Humans. Other people. Our brothers and sisters by the blood of Jesus.
We have a problem when it comes to each other. We treat church like it is about the songs, the buildings, the programs, the (insert preferences or pet peeves here). That's wrong. We do not go to church, we are the church. We gather as the church, not in the church.
As the church, we were made in Christ Jesus to be so unified that "one family" is not a strong enough phrase to describe the type of unity God desires between His children, the church. No. We are called one body.
And we are all looking forward to the day when our Heavenly Father makes all things new, uniting them under the rule of Jesus.
We look ahead to that Day.
As we look ahead with joyful, eager expectation (It will happen), we look ahead together. We meet together to encourage each other to keep looking ahead, to keep confidently hoping, to stand firm in faith and obedience.
Why go to church? Because God said so, and He knows best.
Why go to church? Because we are the church. And our lives are the fullest, most peaceful, more stable, most steady, most flourishing, when we encourage each other to look ahead to that Day. The Day when our future hope becomes our present joy. When faith ceases in lieu of sight.
Church, don't stop gathering together. God says so. And it is the best way to live as we wait together.
May we be known for who we are and who's we are.
Not where we meet.
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