GO TO CHURCH ANYWAY?

OK this post may ruffle a few feathers but please hear me out read it and think about it.
It's OK if you don't agree with me and feel free to respond.
Who knows maybe you'll change my mind.

I recently received this in a post on Facebook:

GO TO CHURCH ANYWAY
If you're having sex before marriage, go to church anyway.
If you are an addict trying to beat addiction, go to church anyway.
If you were out drunk all night the night before, go to church anyway.
If you aren't sure what gender you prefer, go to church anyway.
If you can't quit that disgusting habit, go to church anyway.
CHURCH is a HOSPITAL for the BROKEN, LOST, EMPTY, CONFUSED, DESPERATE & REJECTED.
Every saint has a past & every sinner has a future.
Amen! JESUS ROCKS

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When I first read this, I thought, “OK, I understand what they’re getting at.” But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I Have issues with the statement.

The Great Commission
Matthew 28:19 (ESV)
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

“Go to church anyway” feels more like an anti–Great Commission statement. It’s basically saying, “Sinners, go to church,” instead of, “Church, go out to the sinners and show them Christ.”

I feel like the church has come to a point where it just wants sinners to come to the church, so that the pastor can fight the battle of winning unbelievers to Christ.

Now don't get me wrong I think it's great that an unbeliever would come to the gathering of the Saints.

Right off the bat, most sinners won’t want to go to church because they feel convicted about the sin they are living in. Now, some will go because of that conviction and will be seeking salvation—and that’s great.

But what about the unbelievers who come simply because it feels good, or because the church feels like a nice place to be? My big question is: How long will they keep coming just because they like the atmosphere?

And if that’s the case, what exactly is your church preaching or teaching that allows a sinner to keep coming week after week, feeling good and comfortable, but never experiencing the heavy burden of conviction on their soul?

When an unbeliever feels that deep conviction, they ultimately have two options: repent and follow Christ, or turn and walk away.

“What fellowship does light have with darkness?”
2 Corinthians 6:14 (ESV)
“Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?”
I really feel like the modern church has gotten too comfortable with sin, and we have forgotten the holy dread and fear of God.

Malachi 2:5 (ESV)
“My covenant with him was one of life and peace, and I gave them to him. It was a covenant of fear, and he feared me. He stood in awe of my name.”
“It was a covenant of fear (morá)—and he feared Me (vayyirá otí), and stood in awe of My Name (mippnei shmi nikhat hu).”

If you are a non-believer and you feel that tugging in your soul, please come to church. We really do have a lot to offer you—the most important offer there is: Jesus Christ.

But church this is not what we are called to do, we are called to go out and win the lost.

We must remember that the church is not a building, it is the body of saints. We gather together for corporate worship and praise, for the strengthening of the body, and for instruction and training. The purpose of this is to equip us to go out and win the lost. This responsibility does not rest solely on the pastor—it rests on all of us.

Ephesians 4:11–12 (ESV)
“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.”

Hebrews 10:25 (ESV)
“Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”