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Introduction:
Have you ever heard someone discussing a friend, family member or
co-worker and all the sin in which they have been involved, all
the error they believe and all the problems in their life but they
end by saying, “But at least they’re going to church”? This
may even be accompanied with all the things the person finds wrong
with the church being attended, “But at least they’re going to
church.” Let’s wave aside the problems generated by the phrase
“going to church.” Aside from that, I recognize there is a
valid point made by this statement sometimes. Certainly we should
be pleased with baby steps. When dealing with someone who has been
totally out in the world, the fact that they are even giving
consideration to anything spiritual is a great step in which we
should rejoice. I do not wish to minimize that. Further, if Paul
can speak of those who preach the gospel out of envy and rivalry
saying he will rejoice that “whether in pretense or in truth,
Christ is proclaimed” (Philippians
1:18, ESV), then I recognize at times we can also rejoice
that someone is merely attending the assemblies of a congregation,
no matter which one. However, I fear that sometimes this statement
goes way beyond these points. I fear that at times, we want to
comfort ourselves so much what we end up meaning is “Despite all
the wrong they are doing and despite all the wrong being done in
that particular church, they’re really alright, because at least
they’re going to church.” That is not the right attitude to
have. No doubt, for some we should be thankful for the baby steps
in the right direction, but we must never become satisfied when
someone is stalled out even if their last steps have been in the
right direction. Like a child, we may rejoice when a 14 month old
starts to pull up on the furniture, but falls when he tries to
walk. But we are not satisfied for it to stay there. Consider some
biblical principles that need to make us stop and think before we
say, “But at least they’re going to church.” Discussion: I.
Attending assemblies doesn’t equal faithful Christianity. A.
Sadly, I fear for many “going to church” equals
Christianity. They think if they check assembly attendance off
their to-do list, they are doing all they need to serve the Lord.
That simply isn’t true. Yes, assembling with a congregation is
part of faithful Christianity. Hebrews
10:25 drives that home. It is not, however, the sum of what it
means to be Christian. If I am living the rest of my life in sin,
attending the assemblies doesn’t help me. Hebrews
10:26-27 drives that home. Consider Romans
6:15-23. The wages of sin is death. Paul wrote that to people
who were “going to church.” If they continued to live in sin,
they would receive their wages of death. B.
Do not misunderstand. I am not saying unless you live
perfectly, assembling with a congregation does you no good. I am
speaking of those who lead double lives, not those who are
struggling to grow in Christ. Let us not be happy when people are
“going to church.” Let us be happy when they are adding to
their faith, virtue and to their virtue knowledge…(II
Peter 1:5-8). Let us be happy when they are seeking first
God’s kingdom and righteousness (Matthew
6:33). Let us be happy when they are crucifying themselves
with Christ and living by faith (Galatians
2:20). Let us be happy when they are making themselves a
living sacrifice (Romans 12:1-2). C.
Let’s not just think about other people. What about us?
What about me? Do I ever think I’m ok, because I assemble
regularly? Let me not be satisfied with mere attendance. Let me
strive for continual growth and victory in Christ. II.
Their worship is vain if they are teaching manmade
doctrines. A.
When you look at the landscape of modern supposed
Christianity, you find a hodgepodge of faiths. I have a book in my
library called The Handbook of Denominations
that describes almost 250 different kinds of churches (and this
was the seventh edition from 1981). These churches do not teach
the same things. They vary widely even on fundamental issues like
salvation and worship. Logic alone tells us something is wrong
with this picture. B.
Jesus really addresses this issue in Matthew
15:8-9. When people teach manmade doctrines, their worship is
in vain. That means all their worship, whether with a congregation
or on a personal level. The reality is if someone is teaching
man’s doctrines instead of God’s or they are merely attending
a congregation that is teaching man’s doctrines instead of
God’s, then “going to church” is not helping them at all. C.
Consider Matthew
7:21-23. Here were some very religious people. They believed
they had done many wonders in the name of Jesus. They had
supposedly prophesied and cast out demons. Is there any doubt
these people were “going to church”? Yet, they were working
lawlessness. They were neither doing, nor teaching the will of
God. They called Jesus Lord, but they did not do what He said (cf.
Luke 6:46). “Going to
church” did not help them. D.
Again, we can’t simply talk about everyone else “out
there.” What about us? From where does our teaching come? We
have to make sure what we teach always comes from the word of God.
We must make sure what we teach and practice is authorized in
Scripture or we may find our worship is vain. We may find it
doesn’t do us any good to assemble. III.
Lukewarm churches benefit no one who attends. A.
In Revelation
3:14-22, Jesus wrote a letter to the church of Laodicea. He
had absolutely nothing good to say about them. Their main problem
was being lukewarm. They were neither cold nor hot, so Jesus said
He would spew them out of His mouth. I believe we could all
recognize that “going to church” in Laodicea didn’t do
anyone any good. B.
What does lukewarm mean? The common explanation is hot
means on fire for the Lord and cold means totally opposed to God
with lukewarm in the middle. With this picture, some suggest God
would rather us be completely cold to Him than only halfway there.
Frankly, that interpretation has always bothered me. I would like
to suggest a different picture. Hot drinks provide warmth and
comfort on cold days. Cold drinks provide refreshment and
satisfaction on hot days. What happens, however, when I set my
coffee or iced tea on the counter for a while and forget about it?
When I come back later, I take a swig and find it tepid, lukewarm
and, frankly, disgusting. I immediately spit it out. What was once
a hot drink that provided warmth and comfort does nothing. What
was once a cold drink that provided refreshment and satisfaction
does nothing. But what was really wrong? How did that which was
once cold or hot become lukewarm? They were affected by their
surroundings. The cool air makes the hot drink lukewarm and the
warm air makes a cold drink lukewarm. Once the drink reaches the
same temperature as its surroundings, it will cease to change
temperature. What does it mean to be lukewarm? It means to be
governed by the surroundings. That was Laodicea’s problem.
Instead of being the influencer in Laodicea, the church had been
influenced. Essentially at this point, being a member of that
congregation didn’t really make a person different than not
being a member. C.
Sadly, that is happening with too many churches today.
Churches today are allowing the truth on marriage and divorce to
slide. They are allowing the truth on abortion to slide. They are
allowing the truth on drinking, gambling and morality to slide.
They are even allowing the truth on homosexuality to slide. The
fact is, being a member of some churches really doesn’t say
anything about the member other than they are a member. The church
looks like the world. They even use worldly methods of
entertainment to draw people in. Don’t misunderstand me. I’m
not speaking against churches that try to draw in the most sinful
people to help them overcome their sins. I think we should be that
church. I’m talking about churches that draw people in by simply
not expecting much out of them. They may even try to provide some
kind of biblical excuse for this teaching saying it is all about
God’s grace and mercy. When churches simply allow members to be
like the world, they have become lukewarm and “going to
church” doesn’t help. D.
One point I find interesting is that in the seven letters,
every church except this one has something good said about them.
Even in Sardis, the church with a reputation for life while it was
dead, still had people in it that had not soiled their garments (Revelation
3:4). But not Laodicea. When a church has become lukewarm, it
doesn’t do a bit of good to assemble there. E.
Finally, we look to ourselves again. How different from the
world are we as a congregation (Romans
12:1-2)? Are we influencers or are we the influenced. Does
being a member of this congregation mean anything? Can people tell
we are different from the world? If we are only lukewarm, then
nothing we are doing matters. Conclusion: Again, I do not wish to minimize the positive steps anyone in the world has taken in the direction of serving the Lord. However, I do want to make sure we never think that everything is alright just because we are “going to church.” Let us never just “go to church.” Let us serve the Lord.
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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