Congrats Josh and Monica!!!
The newly-weds Josh and Monica White will be arriving back from their honeymoon today and will be moving into their new home. If available, plan to help move some boxes on Friday from their U-Haul.
Here's your answer;
* Deut 31:12-13 Assemble the people, men, women, and little ones, that they may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God
* Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging
one another.
For a full answer, read also the following reasons below.
-James
Because God (and His Word) command it
"Gather the people together, men, and women, and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law: And that their children, which have not known any thing, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God" (Deut. 31:12-13).
Though our text is found in the Old Testament and was directed specifically at the nation of Israel, I believe that the principles found in this passage may be applied to God's elect today. Our God is a gracious and loving Father who knows what is best for His children in every age. God commanded the children of Israel to gather the people together to hear the Word of the Lord and be instructed by it so that they might fear and serve the Lord acceptably, and live a life of consecrated obedience. When He issued this command it was intended to be a help and a blessing to His people, not an unnecessary burden to be borne.
"Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching."Hebrews 10:25
Faithful, consistent church attendance is required of God's people because God has commanded it. None of God's commands are to be taken lightly or to be considered as optional. God is our Master, our Owner, our Ruler, and as such we ought to respectfully obey His commandments. Ecclesiastes 12:13 declares: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man." I fear that many professing Christians obey and respect men more than they do the commands of God. How long would you last on your job if you came to work only when it was convenient or when you felt like it? You go to work faithfully because it is your responsibility to do so, not because you feel like going. In like manner you should go to church not because you feel like it, but because God has commanded it and you are responsible to obey Him!
Obedience to God's commands is a proof that you have truly been saved. I John 2:3-5 states: "And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whosoever keepeth my word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him."
TO ENGAGE IN PUBLIC WORSHIP
One of the choicest and grandest privileges of the Christian life is to publicly assemble with the saints in the Lord's church for the purpose of worship. What joy and gladness should flood our hearts each time we anticipate going to God's house to worship Him! The Psalmist declared: "I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD" (Psa. 122:1). How refreshing it is to be able to cease from the rat race of the daily grind to worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness in the presence of His saints. After dealing with the world all week, public worship serves to revive our spirits and encourage our hearts.
When we engage in public worship we are manifesting to other believers as well as the lost world at large that our Lord is worthy of our highest praise and dedication.
TO FOLLOW THE EXAMPLE OF CHRIST
During the earthly life of Jesus Christ, He faithfully attended the synagogue, which was the place of public worship for the Jews. They would gather to read the law, and have one of the teachers expound the truths of the Old Testament. Luke 4:16 states: "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, AS HIS CUSTOM WAS, HE WENT INTO THE SYNAGOGUE ON THE SABBATH DAY, and stood up for to read." If it was customary for our Lord to be found engaging in public worship on the Sabbath day, then it ought to be customary for the elect to be found in church on the Lord's day. If we claim affinity with the Lord Jesus Christ we ought to take heed to the admonition of I Peter 2:21 which states: "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow in his steps." I John 2:6 declares: "He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked." If the great Head and Lawgiver of the church faithfully assembled to engage in public worship, as His professed followers should we not heartily strive to follow His example?
TO HEAR GOD'S WORD PREACHED
The Holy Spirit has been pleased to appoint pastors to oversee and feed the churches of the Lord Jesus Christ. Every time the church meets for worship the pastor has the solemn responsibility of nourishing the saints of God with a substantial diet of the Word of God. God-called pastors go to great lengths to prepare messages from God's Word to edify the Lord's people. Much time is spent in earnest study, prayer, and meditation in the preparation of sermons.
Out of respect for God's Holy Word and His ministers, church members ought to anticipate with joy and faithfully attend each service of the church so that they may hear the wondrous truths of the Bible expounded. If every church member fed their bodies like they feed their souls I am afraid many would starve to death! The attitude of every church member ought to be like those in Acts 10:33 which states: "...Now therefore are we all here present before God, to hear all things that are commanded thee of God."
Not only is Christian growth a result of hearing the Word, your faith will also be nourished and strengthened through hearing God's Word. Romans 10:17 states: "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." The best place for any person, whether lost or saved, is to be consistently in attendance upon the preaching of God's Word.
FOR PERSONAL EDIFICATION AND INSTRUCTION
The public worship of God in His house, and all that it entails is aimed at building up and maturing God's people. As we lift up our hearts in united prayer and supplication we ought to anticipate God's blessing upon our congregations. As we fellowship with other believers around the things of God our souls should be encouraged to continue to fight the good fight of faith. Oh that God would give us the same desire as the Psalmist who wrote: "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple."
The church is called "the pillar and ground of the truth" (I Tim. 3:15) because it supports and upholds the faith once delivered to the saints.It is the Divinely appointed place of instruction and edification for the saints of God. The church is like God's school where scholars come to learn their lessons which equip them for service. God's people are instructed and challenged from the Word of God through the preaching of the Word. A person who attends church haphazardly and irregularly cannot expect to grow up to be a mature Christian. The reason why many Christians are immature and easily deceived by error and false doctrine is because they don't attend church like they ought too. Ephesians 4:11-14 declares: "And he gave some apostles: and some, prophets; and some, evangelists, and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive."
AS AN EXAMPLE TO OTHERS
Each time that we prepare our hearts for public worship and faithfully attend the house of the Lord we are providing a proper example to our children, other believers, and the lost world at large. Each time we engage in public worship we are declaring to everyone our allegiance and loyalty to the cause of Christ. Every time we willfully neglect the house of the Lord our actions show that we have little respect for God and His ways. I agree with Milburn Cockrell who wrote: "The indifference of church members to the institution that stands for Christ is the greatest hindrance to the progress of Christ's work. A person has no more interest in the souls of men and Jesus Christ than he has for Christ's church."
What kind of example are we setting for our lost relatives and neighbors when we fail to go to church consistently? Even lost people scoff at a man's religion that doesn't have enough power to take him to church! What kind of example are we setting for our children when ball games, boating, fishing, and other pleasures take a precedence over the Lord's church? These are questions individuals ought to seriously consider the next time they contemplate willfully missing church.
Our failure to attend church regularly will have a corrupting influence on others as II Chronicles 27:2 implies: "And he (Jotham, v. 1) did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah did: HOWBEIT HE ENTERED NOT INTO THE TEMPLE OF THE LORD. AND THE PEOPLE DID YET CORRUPTLY." Jotham's failure to publicly worship the Lord had a damning effect upon Ahaz his son of whom it is written: "For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made also molten images for Baalim. Moreover he burnt incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burnt his children in the fire, after the abominations of the heathen whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel." May God help us to remember that little eyes are watching the examples that we set for others!
TO FELLOWSHIP WITH CHRIST
Jesus Christ is the Head and Lawgiver of His churches, and as such He is in attendance every time the church assembles. He walks in the midst of His churches. He has deposited His glory in His church according to Ephesians 3:21 which states: "Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus through all ages, world without end. Amen." If Christ's glory and presence is found in His churches then should we not make every effort to be faithful to assemble in His name and enjoy His blessed fellowship? Matthew 18:20 declares: "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." Christ has promised to meet with His people when they assemble in His name and we should count that a most glorious privilege. I wonder what our dear Saviour thinks when people stay home to watch television rather than come to worship and fellowship with Him in His church?
People will go to great lengths to converse with and be in the presence of a famous person. Jesus Christ is the most important person in all the universe. He is spiritually present in all of His churches when they meet together for public worship. We ought to never willfully allow one opportunity of fellowship with Him pass by through neglecting God's house. Oh that God will change our attitudes so that we could say with the Psalmist: "LORD, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth" (Psa. 26:8).
21 other than this one thing that I cried out while standing among them: ‘It is with respect to the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you this day.’”
11 The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”
The Secret Exposed
Why Oprah and millions of readers can be wrong.
Mel Lawrenz | posted 6/18/2007 08:47AM
You can gain anything you want in life—wealth, health, the perfect mate, business success, respect from others—literally anything. That is the promise of the No. 1 best-selling book The Secret (Beyond Words). The editor, Rhonda Byrne, explains that "the secret" can be found in everything from Babylonian religion to Buddhism to Albert Einstein. The Secret (available as both a book and a DVD) is no secret now, however. It has become a global video event, a clever cross-promotional marketing plan, and a book touted by Oprah.
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Byrne, an Australian television talk-show producer, discovered the secret just over two years ago. The book's contributors are described on the official website as: a "philosopher" who "developed The Science of Success and Harmonic Wealth® which teach [sic] people how to yield unlimited results in all areas: relationally, intellectually, physically, and spiritually" (James Arthur Ray); a "business building and moneymaking" expert (John Assaraf); a "doctor," "philosopher," and "international speaker" (John DeMartini); a "metaphysician" and "one of the top marketing specialists in the world" (Joe Vitale); and "a nonaligned, trans-religious progressive" (Michael Beckwith). Such titles reveal the new kind of gurus to whom millions of people give credence today.
The secret is simply "the law of attraction." Think about wealth, and you will become wealthy. Think about that new car, and it will come. Think about getting a good parking spot, and one will open up. Think about your ideal weight (really, dwell on that number, write it on your scale), and you will attract that reality to yourself. Byrne reports that since deciding her "perfect weight" was 116 pounds, she has reached it, and nothing has moved her from it, no matter what she does or eats.
"Thoughts are magnetic, and thoughts have a frequency," the book assures us. "As you think, those thoughts are sent out into the universe and they magnetically attract all like things that are on the same frequency. Everything sent out returns to the source. And that source is you."
Now here's the bad news: Whatever happens to you—the good and the bad—was attracted by your thoughts. Appendicitis? Auto accident? Poverty? You brought it on yourself.
Obsessed with the Self
Bible verses are misquoted. Ray, "an expert on many Eastern, indigenous, and mystical traditions," says: "Here's the question I want you to consider—do you treat yourself the way that you want other people to treat you?" Ray's twist on the Golden Rule becomes the ultimate form of self-centeredness. Oh, and you can attend Ray's "harmonic wealth weekend" for only $997. Somebody has figured out how to attract wealth to himself.
The Secret, you see, is all about the self—it's for the self, obsessed with the self. Newsweek offers this critique: "On an ethical level, The Secret appears deplorable. It concerns itself almost entirely with a narrow range of middle-class concerns—houses, cars, and vacations, followed by health and relationships, with the rest of humanity a very distant sixth."
Professor Robert Thompson of Syracuse University says: "The Secret promises this heaven on Earth in one fell swoop by simply desiring something, by simply wanting it. It's amazing how we really are a nation of, at best, great optimists, at worst, real suckers."
What The Secret reveals is that so many people are so desperately unhappy that they will snatch up anything offering hope—or simply offering quick and easy wealth. My question is, who will be there to pick up the pieces when they discover that they bought into a lie? And who will help the people who believe that they brought every misfortune on themselves because they sent negative thoughts and feelings out into the universe like a human radio transmitter?
How different from the message of Jesus: The first will be last, and the last will be first. Lose your life, and you will find it.
Seizing Faith
To illustrate the contrast, consider Pete Greig and his wife, Samie. The Greigs were energetic leaders of a prayer movement called 24-7, which began in England and expanded to dozens of countries. If anyone had the ability to move divine power, it was Pete. One morning six years ago, however, Samie awoke but felt as if her extremities were still asleep. Then, as Pete watched, helpless, Samie's body began to contort and convulse.
Testing revealed a brain tumor the size of an orange. Surgery followed. Successful surgery. But not complete healing. Samie had epilepsy, somewhat controlled by medication. At times, Pete still finds his wife convulsing on the ground where their two young boys go to school.
Pete, who wrote the new book God on Mute: Engaging the Silence of Unanswered Prayer, told me that on two occasions he prayed during a seizure and watched as the episode seemed miraculously to subside. But there have been hundreds of other seizures. Pete and Samie have experienced the kind of faith during which we throw ourselves on the mercy of God. We see such faith in the Thursday prayer of agony in the Garden of Gethsemane. In Jesus' prayer from the cross on Good Friday. In the silence of Saturday. And then, finally, comes Sunday—Resurrection day.
Contrary to the real gospel, The Secret proclaims: "The universe is supporting me in everything I do. The universe meets all my needs immediately."
Byrne says she is most gratified to hear of children discovering The Secret. But having raised two kids, I've always thought that one of the most important lessons young people must realize is that the universe does not revolve around them, that they are not God. When we believe in a God above us, apart from us, beneath us, and for us—then we find help and hope.
Mel Lawrenz, senior pastor of Elmbrook Church in Brookfield, Wisconsin.
22:1 “Brothers and fathers, hear the defense that I now make before you.”
30 Then all the city was stirred up, and the people ran together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and at once the gates were shut.
Corrie Lemberg, Jenna Logue Summer Mace, and Christine Walker are Monuments Showgirls!