Are you a member of various organizations? Do you attend meetings regularly? Do you feel like you are part of something much larger than yourself? Are you committed to being an active participant in one or more of those organizations? Is one of them a church?
There are numerous organizations we can be a member of—veterans, professional, and social. Some organizations require us to pay dues, be of a certain status, and participate regularly. We commit time, energy, and money to those organizations. Why? We believe in them.
If we say we believe in God and Jesus Christ, shouldn’t we make the same commitment to a local church? After all, those other organizations cannot have any effect on our eternal life. Why don’t we commit more to the local church? We have been told a lie. We have been told we don’t need the church, that we can believe in God while not being an active member of a church.
Paul tells the church in Ephesus that they are being built into a spiritual dwelling place for God. Each person is joined together in Christ with other believers to create a holy temple. We become part of something much larger than ourselves, something that effects our eternal life. Being an active member of a local church is far more important to our well-being—spiritual and emotional—than any other organization we can be a member of.
As we grow in our knowledge of God and faith in Jesus Christ, we become stronger members of the local church. The more we become like Jesus, the more we desire to bring others to Him. As our eyes are opened to who He is, our view of life and its importance changes. We begin to see every life, every person as a creation of God and love them as Christ loves them. It all begins with a commitment to Christ and continues with a commitment to a local church.
I pray we all seek to know more about God. I pray we see to be more like Jesus Christ. I pray each one of us will be an active member in a local church, grow in our faith, and lead others to Jesus. Seek knowledge. Seek understanding. Be like Jesus. Be an active member of a church. Bring others to Christ.
Ephesians 2:21-22 In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
Marty Pressey 