When you think of the word church, what images come to mind? Steeples, crosses, altars? Consider this: A church is not just a building. And what takes place inside is much more than a “well-timed Sunday service” or a “busy schedule of classes and socials.”
As the Apostle Paul suggests in Ephesians 2:19-22, you are the church, built on the foundation of Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. And as a Christian, you are a holy temple—a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit.
So, by itself, a church facility is just a bunch of bricks and windows and doors. But add to it the real holy temple—YOU—and the building becomes a church; a sanctuary inhabited by God Himself; a sacred house of worship where the Creator and the created commune.
I never quite grasped this truth until I had the opportunity to worship with some amazing Christians in Thailand.
Believers in the hillside village of Musakee meet each week in a rustic open-air structure. Actually, their church is nothing more than a thatched roof held up by several wooden poles. Beneath the lean-to are rows of makeshift pews, an altar and a cross—no plush wall-to-wall carpet or air conditioners or stained-glass windows.
Yet when Christians gather here to worship, God inhabits this place. Praises are sung, hands are lifted, Scripture is read, prayers are spoken . . . and this simple shelter is transformed into one of the most beautiful sanctuaries I’ve ever seen.
How would you describe your church—a crowded building . . . or a holy family of believers? Is “the worship hour” for you more of a programmed experience each week, or is it a passion? And since you are the church, why bother setting foot in a church building? After all, can’t we worship God just as effectively on our own?
Real Faith—Real Church
Here’s why fellowship with a body of believers is essential:
1. Attending church gives you a chance to worship with all kinds of people: young and old, rich and poor, people who go to your school and people who don’t.
2. Church enables you to be fed from God’s Word. Now you might say, “I get fed from the Bible all week; can’t I have a day off?” And I would ask, what if your mom or the chef in the campus cafeteria used that approach in cooking meals? “We feed you six days every week. Why don’t you take a day off from eating? We don’t want you to feel as if you’re always in a kitchen environment.” I don’t think you’d be amused.
3. Going to church allows you to serve others. It’s a good habit to develop early in life. Someday, church may be the only way to experience good Christian fellowship, enjoy worship and study the Word (see Hebrews 10:24-25).
The choice is yours: Keep Christianity as nothing more than a religion—keep it boring and dull by playing it safe, by going through the ceremonial motions and traditions of “churchianity”—or begin pursuing Jesus and His transforming power.
I don’t know about you, but I want to take Jesus up on His promises. I want to step out and put His Word to the test in all areas of my life. So, for me, church is my training ground. I walk through the doors expecting to learn something new, to encourage others and to be encouraged. Most of all, I gather with other “holy temples,” expecting to commune with my Creator.
A guy who wants real faith . . .
. . . doesn’t settle for “churchianity.” If you let Him, Jesus will take a dead, boring religion and transform it into something that is fresh and new, something that is exciting and full of life! That’s what Christ came to do! He came to end “religion.” That’s right. He came to destroy meaningless ritual and replace it with a dynamic, on-fire relationship—a relationship with God himself.
. . . doesn’t allow church attendance to be a cure for insomnia. Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). He did not say, “I’ve come to bore you out of your skull.”
Do some soul-searching today. Ask yourself a few questions: Is God the most important Person in my life . . . or am I allowing other pursuits to push Him out of my life? Is church really boring . . . or am I just too tired to participate? Do I truly expect God to speak to me during a worship service . . . or am I just going through the motions? 
