Can you be faithful if you do not go to the church?

Question:

Where is it written in the Scriptures that you can not be faithful if you do not go to any church? Do you think the Scripture in the original says “church”.

The believer is a member of the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Church of the living God, the pillar and the support of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15). Every believer is one with Christ (Galatians 3:28). The new-born Christian was brought into this unity with God and with one another by faith in the perfect sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us to forgive our sins. Thus, the believer’s faithfulness and obedience is manifested to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Head of the Church and who instituted His Church.
The unity of the Church was always threatened by the sinful nature of the man who has a constant tendency to be separated from the others, so it must be maintained and expressed in fellowship with each other. The Lord Jesus Christ called us to the unity and prayed for the unity of his church (John 17: 20-21).

What is the church and what its goal on Earth has already been addressed in another article that you can find on our site. Also in this article you will find the answer if the Scriptures uses the word “church” in the original.

The unity in the church is expressed in fellowship. Apostle John writes to the Christians from middle Asia as it follows:

“If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:6-7) (NASB)

The fellowship of the members of the Church of Jesus shows me if they live in truth or walk in the darkness. The true fellowship with God will be expressed in fellowship with other believers in the Church of Christ. In the Book of Acts, the Christians were told that they were continuing with one mind in the temple day by day and continually devoting themselves to fellowship.

One of the primary church problems was that some Christians left the church of Jesus Christ. Thus, the author of the book Hebrews urges us “not forsaking our own assembling 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 practice was a dangerous one. Forsaking the assembly of believers expresses unbelief and apostasy to the Lord Jesus. For some the abandonment of the church has become a habit. The reason for abandoning might be laziness or fatigue, or you have been disappointed in the people from church, or for fear of being associated with Christians and persecuted, you abandon the church. The abandonment of the church is equal to abandoning spiritual help from the Christian community. Instead, fellowship in faith in the church of Christ in love brings encouragement.

In conclusion, we can say that the newborn believer will seek to have fellowship with the Father and one another in the Savior’s Church, seeking to persevere in studying the Word of God, in the fellowship, in the breaking of bread and prayer.

Translated by Nicoleta Vicliuc