Have you ever thought of misunderstandings within the church? Below are a few.
- You don’t need church.
- I have my own God that I can see.
- If you can’t see, then don’t believe.
- Pastors want your money.
- You don’t need a book to tell me anything.
No need for Church
Doctrine and theology has become a huge issue within the church. Every denomination has a different bias within the Christian belief. Reason why the majority who do believe in GOD but do not attend service, rather be on their own. Learning and walking solitarily with no spiritual support and spiritual authority backing them up. The scripture does say to congregate; but many people rather go solo.
“Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Hebrews 10:25
This is a command from the Lord where his people should unite to seek him in faith and obedience. Seeking him to be taught the word of the Lord.
“One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God.” Luke 5:1
You may believe it is simply boring and believe not attending church has no consequence. This is very common. When there are no fruits of the holy spirit, there is no anointing nor revelation. You need revelation to grab the concept of the message that is being preached. Unfortunately, there are leaders whose preaching is based on God being love or being prosperous due to tithing. This is really sad because yes, God is love but that’s not all He is. He is so much more than that. He also is wrath when we disobey.
“Now the people became like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord; and when the Lord heard it, His anger was kindled, and the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp. The people therefore cried out to Moses, and Moses prayed to the Lord and the fire died out.” Numbers 11:1-2
Read: 4 Basic & Ideal Facts About Following Christ
Misunderstandings within the church
There are so many misunderstandings out there. Something you need to keep in mind is that “the church” and “the congregation” are two separate and totally different things. The “church” are the followers of Christ and the “congregation” is the building where the service takes place. Spiritually speaking, the church is filled of injured individuals seeking a response to all their worries.
Other people unfortunately have the concept that the “Bible” has been changed over and over again. However, that is not absolutely true. Yes, it has been rewritten for different people to comprehend it; however, you can give me a bible verse that you believe says different things and I will prove you otherwise. Many bible verses use a specific biblical meaning compared to the ordinary meaning. There are also words that have multiple meanings. For instance: Fear.
“Fear he Lord with all your heart and you shall see the Kingdom of God.” It doesn’t mean to be afraid, but to respect Him.
It’s just a matter of having revelation. (source)
There are quotes you may probably have used as reasons to not attend church. Many people do not believe in GOD because they say “How can you believe in something you cannot see?” Also, a reason why many people believe in idols made of wood and steel such as “Bud-ah” and other statues. It seems easier for you to place their faith in something they can visually see and touch. However, there’s ignorance among that mindset. After Jesus is crucified and leaves the Holy Spirit within you; then you can see him. There are many mysterious ways that he manifests himself within the supernatural world. Something few leaders focus on.
The most common reason why people don’t like to attend church is because of those 5 minutes where one gives money. People hardly understand what this is about. Those who do, take it as:
Money given to the church leaders; used for rent, supplies, maintenance, bills etc. Not all pastors get paid by the way. Some church leaders may use the money in disobedience to the Lord; that’s when you shouldn’t thite there. Or if you know the pastor us under adultery etc. Scripture says:
“Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year.” Deuteronomy 14:22
Tithing is simply a command from the Lord; an act of your own faith and obedience.
2 Perspectives
A young 26 year old guy once said to me, “I’m connected to GOD and I see church as a way to have trouble with a constant connection.” Uh, yeah… My reaction was stunned and had to process it.
After asking him to elaborate, he basically said that he is connected to God because he believes in Him; but sees church as a constant connection of sins. Meaning, everyone who attends church sins and there’s no point of attending it. What he’s not contemplating is that attending church is an act to renew and strengthen your faith.
An older 65 year old male also once said, “I don’t need to go to church because all they want is to butt in my business.”
I understand what he means. Some leaders do meddle into your life as if they have some authority over how you live. However, they don’t. Only you have the authority to live your life according to the decisions you take.
Most who meddle do it with the perspective that if you’re living in sin, then you can’t serve at church. True service is not about good and services, but about being loyal to Him through prayer, faith and obedience. You cab serve by just sharing the gospel outside of church.
My pastors are awesome. They teach us the way to fight the battle we may be in. If I ask for a perspective, they’ll just send me to scripture that’ll confront me with the issue and its up to me to receive the answer from God; which can only be done through my own prayer and His revelation.
Church is only a place to strengthen your faith because the search is individual.
Also read: 2 Basic Tools to Resist Satan
The problem is that the world has become too secular. When you attend the church, it’s about having spiritual nourishment and encouragement for the week. And yes, you give tithes and offerings, but you help the church with your money. People just don’t know but the church survives through donations. The other issue is that there were many fake pastors which disgusted people from going to the church
This was a very interesting article that discusses common misunderstandings about the need to attend church. It touches on issues related to doctrine, theology, and Bible misconceptions. The article presents different perspectives, one highlighting the importance of the church for strengthening faith and the other addressing concerns about church leaders’ interference in personal life.
Ultimately, it encourages a deeper understanding of the church’s role in individual spiritual journeys and the importance of faith, prayer, and scripture. What about the role of organized religion and personal spirituality? How do you balance the benefits of attending a church with the potential challenges it may pose to your individual faith journey?