What is Church?

What is the CHURCH?

Mat_23:14  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

Mat_23:15  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

Mat_23:23  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Mat_23:25  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

Mat_23:27  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

Mat_23:29  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,

Please read all verses this morning before you read the devotional because it will help you get the idea of what I’m talking about…..Not that anyone would skip the verses.  ;)

First off, let me say that I am in no way condemning going to church…..I think it is very important to have a place to learn the Word of God and Praise Him.  Church, though, is not a building or denomination.  Church is what the body of believers around the world are called.  Church is not a location….Church is the body of believers around the world.  Church is not a denomination.  The church is simply the body of believers from around the world.

I tell you all of this so you will understand that Jesus doesn’t care what church you go to….As long as you Know Him.    As you see in today’s verses, Jesus was very quick to tell the Pharisees about their religious ideas.  I kind of think about it like this……You could replace the word Pharisee with the name of any religion on the planet.  I think that is the point He was trying to make here.  Woe to you scribes and _________________, hypocrites!  For you make clean the outside of the cup and platter, but in your walls you are full of extortion an excess. 

Sorry to get longwinded with this, but it is of eternal consequence that you understand the difference between going to Church, and being a part of The Church.  Read through the verses again and you should kind of get a feel for what Jesus was trying to say about Religion in general.  Don’t think that Pomp and Circumstance, position in a church, how many prayer groups you are in, or even how much you give will get you 1 step closer to Heaven. 

The only step toward Heaven that you can make is to step toward the CROSS!  A relationship with God is what the whole of life on earth is about, but just like the Pharisees and other religions have done throughout history……….humans are always trying to come up with their own “formula” for entering the pearly gates.

Please…..Go to church…..But….focus on actually knowing God on a personal level before you focus on anything else.  Church should ultimately make your relationship with God closer and more understandable.  Make sure your church believes in Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Make sure they preach about all of these, not just the first 2.  Make sure you and your church understand that Jesus paid all of your fines on the Cross, and the moment that He died…..Satan had lost. 

God calls us to repent!  If that doesn’t make sense to you, just pray that God will revel Jesus to you and that you will Understand what the cross meant for your eternity.  Tell God you are sorry for the sinful life you have lived.  Thanks him for sending Jesus and raising Him after 3 days.  Now learn about Him and His ways from the Bible, Prayer, and Church. 

Final thought……Remember the verse that says “when 2 or more are gathered together….”  It doesn’t say “when  2 or more Baptist, Pentecostal, Catholic, Methodist, ect…. Does it?”  Be around believers no matter what….doesn’t matter if you hang out at a church, or at a house bible study….just live your life around other believers so you can be built up in order to do whatever God has planned for you!

God Bless!