Let me guess why you quit going to church. “You weren’t getting anything out of it.” Right? There was nothing relevant to your life. You “weren’t being fed.” You tried in earnest to make church a habit but you got tired of pantomiming your way through worship services.
I don’t blame you for quitting. It’s silly to keep showing up for events that don’t make a difference in your life. Allow me to suggest an alternative activity to going to church. Go to a real church.
By “real” church, I mean a church that does stuff like what is described in the New Testament.
“All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.”
– Acts 2:44
The church described in Acts was not a judgement free zone. The early church was made up of people who sold their stuff in order to meet the needs of other believers. You can’t know what I need until you judge me. You need to get right up close, break some bread, and fellowship with me. You need to know what’s going on in my personal life if you’re going to be of any help.
You quit attending church because you weren’t actually going to a church. You were going to a Sunday morning concert. Concert attendees don’t have everything in common. They don’t sell stuff to meet each others needs. They don’t regularly eat together in each others homes. They don’t even know the names of the people sitting behind them. When you show up at a concert expecting fellowship, prepare to be disappointed.
If you continue to participate in the Sunday morning concert experience, you should repent. The Bible tells us that the believers had everything in common. They were ALL active participants in the church. You can’t blame all the church problems on the failings of church leaders. You can’t blame the other church members because you feel “disconnected.” You are part of the body. You are partially responsible for the problems. And you should be part of the solution.
I fully support the decision to quit attending Sunday morning concerts. Rather than staying home and complaining about your brethren, ask God to show you how to have everything in common with them. You don’t fix relationships by abandoning people.
