____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ April 14, 1991 ____________________________________________________ Must I Attend the Evening Services? by Tom Edwards A common weakness among many churches today is manifest in the attendance average that often dwindles from the Sunday evening to the Wednesday night services. When this occurs, it seemingly indicates that there are many Christians who simply feel that the Sunday morning service is the only one in which they really need to attend. It should be our desire, however, to emulate the zeal and commitment of the early church. According to Acts 2:42,46: ''...they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers...So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart.'' Here we have a picture of the fervent devotion of these primitive Christians toward God and their joyfulness in meeting often with one another. I imagine many of these were of the same heart as that great king David who declares in Psalm 122:1: ``I was glad when they said to me, `Let us go into the house of the Lord.''' Are God's people lacking in this type of gladness today when it comes to assembling in the church of the Lord? There are at least three ways in which one could view the evening services, though not all would be correct: 1) They should not be. 2) It does not matter if I attend them or not. 3) I must be there, and any other time in which the church meets. I don't think many would argue that the evening services should not be. Obviously, it is for the good of the Christian who is there, and a lack of attendance is generally a sign toward a need to meet more often. Surely, if becoming stronger in the Lord produces a decline in the attendance among churches of Christ then I must have misunderstood God's word. Some have made the claim that it doesn't matter whether they attend any other than the Sunday morning services because ``Man doesn't have the right to set the rules, and God authorizes the need to meet only one time on Sunday.'' Though it is true in some areas that man doesn't have the right to make the rules, can we say this is so in every circumstance? What about the government? Does it not have the right to legislate and execute laws that are hopefully to promote and bring to realization a better society in which to dwell? Jesus not only paid His taxes, but He also gave the commandment for others to do so as well. As Paul declares to the Roman brethren, we are each to be in subjection to the governing authorities (Rom. 13). If we refuse to submit to those laws that are not contrary to God's law then our refusal to obey the civil authorities is actually a refusal to obey God Himself. In verse 2, Paul writes concerning the one who would be insubordinate in this way, by saying: ``Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves'' (NIV). ``Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good'' (1 Pet. 2:13,14). Clearly, as these two passages reveal, the Bible shows the right the government has to make and carry out laws as well as our need to obey them. And how about in the home? Are the rules and regulations that the parents lay down merely an option that the children can either give heed to or not? This certainly would not be inferred from Ephesians 6:1, for here children are instructed to ''...obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.'' During the Mosaical period, a child who became stubbornly rebellious and refused to repent was to be stoned to death. Honoring the parents by respectfully complying with their demands would obviate the need for such severe execution and would, therefore, result in a longer life for the child (Eph. 6:3). Conclusively, parents do have the right to make rules that are to be obeyed by their children. The husband-wife relationship also shows another area in which devotion is necessary. Wives are to be obedient to their own husbands (Titus 2:5) -- even to those who would happen to be non-Christians. Hopefully, the chaste and respectful behavior of the believing wife toward her non-believing spouse would result in the soul-saving conversion of her mate (1 Pet. 3:1). Though the husband is to live with his wife in an understanding manner, granting her honor (1 Pet. 3:7), and not serving in a dictatorial way, he is still to be the head of the house (Eph. 5:22-25); and his word -- which is often based on his wife's wishes -- should be heeded. Also, in the work-realm of Paul's day, servants were to be obedient to those who were their masters (Eph. 6:5); and this they were to render as unto the Lord. Though we are not slaves today, this same principle can be applied in our employee-employer relationship. If our boss would ask us to work a particular Saturday that we might normally have off, I don't think we would be philosophically discussing whether he truly has that authority or not, to request us to be present. Rather, we would realize the urgency of his demand. And in the church, Christians are to be in subjection to the elders. In exhorting the brethren towards this endeavor, the Hebrew writer urges the believers to ``Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you'' (Heb. 13:17). The elders have an obligation to watch over the local congregation that they are with and to care for it. Paul had instructed the Ephesian elders to ''...take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood'' (Acts 20:28). How are the elders going to adequately do this, if the brethren are not meeting regularly and are not all present? For this reason it is also imperative that Christians identify with a particular congregation and strive to do their individual parts in working with that group. ``Church hopping'' is not good for the child of God. What would happen to the church today if no one was really a stationary member anywhere, but each one simply kept drifting from congregation to congregation as a transient Christian who never becomes established in any one group? How would the elders be able to successfully work with such people for their proper spiritual development, and how effectual would the work of these members be towards one another whom they hardly get the time to know? If the laws instituted by the civil authorities must be observed, as well as the demands parents make to their children, and masters to their servants, are we not greatly minimizing the importance of the church when we declare that the elders, who have agreed on what evenings to meet nightly, really don't have the right to expect the members to be present for these services? Does God give us the liberty to disobey the elders of a congregation, but at the same time children can not disobey their parents nor citizens, their government? To the contrary, God said, ``Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive....'' (Heb. 13:17). Another point to consider is our need to set the right example by our own lives. Would we be very successful in teaching the importance of the church if we ourselves barely attend half the time? It's a shame to think that there are probably some people who neglect the services merely so they can engage in some recreational activity or watch a favorite TV show that they would hate to miss. Are we more concerned with tuning in to Unsolved Mysteries rather than helping our brethren by sharing with them the mysteries of God's word that have been revealed? Or is it more important for us to watch Wonder Years than to meet with our brethren and praise God for His wonders and to better aim our sights toward that heavenly home that will endlessly endure after years and time itself will end? We need to be concerned with the type of image which we project. Imagine a newborn babe in Christ who is eagerly desiring to grow. This person is new in the congregation and a little wobbly, like a young lamb just beginning to walk; and when he looks around for the one who helped in his conversion, he sees that this particular individual is never there for Sunday and Wednesday nights, and then learns that on these nights this person finds it more important to be with the fellow team-members in his bowling league than to join with his brethren and serve as a needed member in the body of Christ. How do you think you would react if you were that recent convert? Hypocrisy flagrantly marks the one who quotes the Lord's instruction for the disciple to ``deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me,'' but then can't even make the sacrifice of giving up his Sunday night card games and Wednesday evening jogging in order to be in the house of the Lord. James warns how that WE CAN DECEIVE OURSELVES by being merely hearers of the word, but not doers (James 1:22). Perhaps we need to ask ourselves, ``Do I love the church as much as Jesus does?''; and, if not, ``Should I strive to love the church as much as the Lord does?'' Paul teaches the need for ``Husbands, (to) love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it'' (Eph. 5:25). Rarely would a wife want to be cared for only once a week. The husband's love for her is to be a constant thing -- just as Christ's love is for the church. And this love is to be deep and sacrificial. Christ Himself poured out His life's blood in order that there could even be a church (Acts 20:28). In view of this, it is obvious that the Christian today devaluates the church or minimizes it by manifesting an ``unworthwhileness'' toward it by his lackadaisical and sporadic attendance. May it truly be our desire to seek after God's kingdom first and all His righteousness (Matt. 6:33), realizing what the church cost God, what it cost Christ, and what it cost the early believers as they worked together with God in extending the borders of that blood-bought institution -- and which they had oftentimes even shed their own blood for, as martyrs for the cause of Christ. May we, too, be willing to pay the price that we must render for it, making from our hearts any sacrifice necessary. ___________________________________________ "and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near" (Hebrews 10:24,25). "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, there I am in their midst" (Matthew 18:20). ________________________________________ Tri-State CHURCH OF CHRIST 713 13th Street, Ashland, Kentucky 41101 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 10:50 A.M. Worship 6:30 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:30 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (606) 325-9742 e-mail: tedwards@zoomnet.net Gospel Observer web site: http://www.zoomnet.net/~tedwards/go ________________________________________