DO NOT FORSAKE...WHAT?

I guess most of us have been told that we should not forsake the assembling of ourselves together in the context of someone exhorting us to attend church services.

The truth is if we attend 52 Sunday services a year, we are forsaking the assembling of ourselves together.

The Greek word used in Hebrews 10:25 mean ‘your synagogue’, the place where you gather together. It is not the word ‘ecclesia’ which means the church assembly.

This suggests a smaller gathering in the home. This is backed up by the fact that the purpose of assembling together is to exhort one another. The meaning of this word can only be done in the confines of the sort of interaction that you get in a small group. It does not say to gather together to sing songs and listen to someone preach.

At the same time we note that the New Testament Church met daily in their homes as the basis for their fellowship. Sharing of food with each other, to pray and receive apostolic teaching. They did not meet to sing songs and have a bible study.

It is no use quoting the word of God if we ignore the meaning of the words that we are quoting and use them just to support our cultural application. I believe that the Sunday whole of church meeting is contributing to the problems in society as it is very impersonal, it generally ignores people as individuals as the system has to be served, needs are not listened to or met and people leave with the burden they came in with.

In the smaller home fellowship, people can relate to each other in a personal way and bear one another’s burdens. At the same time we can exhort one another as the verse instructs us to.

That is if it is not just a repeat of Sunday or a platform for the leader’s ministry, which so often it is. The New Testament Church met daily in their homes and occasionally met together as a whole church for the purpose of building up the body of Christ with the gifts of the Spirit.

If we spent more time meeting in homes round a meal and exhorting one another, our maturity would go through the roof as no one could hide behind religious devotion and ritual. We would all be exposed and accountable and united in a way that would enable us to do exploits for God.