And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. Matthew 21:13.
With the attitude that many Christians have towards going to the Church of the living God nowadays, you begin to wonder if the sayings that “the church is becoming worldly, and the world becoming churchy” is not becoming valid. With these various reasons why many go to Church which is fast becoming the norm in many congregations, if a redress is not sought urgently, many are bound to miss the mark.
Many of the reasons seem sensible, genuine and good, but the truth still remains that God’s standard cannot be substituted with man’s standard. It doesn’t matter how good the intention of man is, if it doesn’t align with the standard of God, it is only a filthy rag kind of righteousness.
Most of the reasons why many people go to church today have no spiritual or eternal relevance as far as the eternal mission of Jesus Christ is concerned. Every man-made reason for coming to the church of the living God is only secondary and earthly as far as God’s word stands.
The Lord says:
"For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts”. Isaiah 55:8-9.
Some of The Reasons People Go To Church Nowadays Are:
1. To Perform And Entertain Others
It is an aberration to go to Church, simply because you want to perform or entertain the congregation of God. This is because the altar is never a place for entertainment but of sacrifice. This is one of the greatest undoing of this generation. Many go to Church with an attitude to perform and entertain others. And this has become an attitude to many, unknowingly.
For this reason, I strongly advice Shepherds over Churches to watch out for these set of persons and relieve them of their responsibilities in Church, till they are able to set their priority right. Or else, it will only be a distraction which will lead to their downfall. Service Leaders, Worship Leaders, Instrumentalists, Drama Ministers, Choristers and some Pastors easily fall into this category. Can you imagine that some just go to Church only to play musical instruments? This is an irony! It is only a distraction from encountering Christ for the individuals.
2. To Get Entertained
Just like some go to Church to entertain others, so also does some people go to Church to be entertained by the supposed Church entertainers who are disguised as Preachers, Ministers, Singers, Comedians and Prophets or in whatever guise. Some people go to Church just to feel good. I guess it will be better to just turn on your TV for entertainment rather than wasting your precious time seeking for it in the Church.
The Church should never been a place for entertainment, for that is not the original purpose for which Christ Jesus founded His Church. Entertainment in itself is not sinful, but there is something far better than entertainment which you should aim at when you go to Church. To worship God, learn from Christ, and be a better Christian, are the reasons one should go to Church, and these have eternal values in contrast to the entertainment which only has a temporal benefit.
3. As Opportunity To Show-off
There are does who goes to Church just to show-off their new car or wears. It is indeed good to dress well to Church. But it becomes a misplaced priority when your sole purpose of coming to Church is to show your latest dress or material possession. The Church is not a fashion parade arena but a place where men present themselves to their Maker, who looks at the heart and not on the outward appearance. Don’t let what you wear distract you in God presence neither should you let it distract other Brethren in Church.
4. Out Of Duty And Obligation
Many Church workers fall into this category. They go to Church simply because they have a duty to perform. You’ll see a brother running to Church simply because he would be the one leading the opening prayer. The only reason why she will be in Church on a mid-week service is simply because she will be leading the praise and worship section in that service. Relieve them of that assignment then you’ll see their true state of commitment.
Yes, it is very good to have a strong sense of commitment to your assignment in Church, but you must transcend that to having a ‘personal walking relationship’ with the Saviour Jesus Christ. So that you can be committed to Christ Jesus not to the assignment per se, this will invariably translate into your assignment in the house of God.
5. To Get Personal Needs Met
Here, I am not referring to having your spiritual needs met in Church but one which is temporal and artificial in comparison to the very purpose why Christ founded the Church. While some goes to Church to look for money, food and some go just to get material needs. There is nothing wrong in going to Church to ask God to meet your needs in these areas, what is wrong about this is when that becomes your primary purpose of going.
This reminds me of the 5,000 men that were fed with five loaves of bread and two fishes by Jesus Christ. They came back, looking for Jesus only because of the bread that has no eternal value.
Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. John 6:26.
Here is the counsel of Jesus to such people:
Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. John 6:27.
6. To Meet People Or Get A Spouse
You may not believe it, many go to Church just to meet people, make friends or find a spouse. The Church is truly a community of people, but never forgets that the primary aim of going to Church should be to meet with God and not to meet with men.
Many have regretted their decision to get spouse from the Church because they’ve fallen to the wrong hand. They forgot that the door of the Church is opened to every kind of person and if you are not spiritually lead you can be mislead to make a wrong choice. Yes, the Church should be the best place to get a spouse, but that is still not the primary purpose of the Church.
7. For Man’s Sake
There was a time some people told me that they became members of a Church I was attending because I was there. That’s a fantastic testimony right? Thank God they encountered God and developed in their Christian faith there. But let’s imagine that after coming, their focus were on me and not on the God of the house. That would have been an irony.
Have you met people who have refused to leave a particular Church despite the fact that they were not being changed or transformed by the words from the pulpit? They just stay there only because they’ve built a community of friends there.
There are some that have taken the Church to be like a social club. Socialization is a major hindrance to the influence of the Word of God to a heart, if it’s not put in check, because it could lead to over familiarity.
8. For Business Purposes
These sets of persons fall into the same category of the people that Jesus drove out of the Temple because they were merchandising in the Synagogue, despising the original purpose of coming to the Temple.
Some people that run petty trades around the Church are guilty of this. There are the set that goes to Church solely to get a client for their business or get a contract deal either from the Church itself or a member.
I don’t think there is anything wrong in doing a business around the premises of a Church except if it is becoming your focus and it is replacing the purpose of going to Church.
Those that have a job with a Church as employee should be careful not to mix attention to their job and have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ who is the Lord of the Church.
9. To Look Religious
There is a difference between; going to Church because you want to serve God out of love and reverence for God, and going to Church just for the show of being religious. The later reason is exemplified in the life of those that goes to Church just because the day is Sunday or because it’s a new year and by those that goes out of a patterned way of life which has been instilled in them right from birth without any love or reverence for God. This is religious, and it has become a dogma to such people.
Being a religious Christian only leads to being boastful, hypocritical, judgmental, self-righteous and being dogmatic in all you do. This is a very bad state to be in because it ends up blinding the fellow from having an encounter with the reality in Christianity.
10. Out Of Compulsion
There is nothing wrong for dependants like children and young adults to be compelled to go to Church, since a precept is being laid for them to follow. But even then, a time will come as children attain maturity they are expected to go to Church because they love Jesus and not out of compulsion. That is why fervent prayer should be made for them to embrace the Lord of the house early in life.
Notwithstanding, there are still adults that still feel a sense of compulsion to go to Church. They wouldn’t go unless someone compels them either directly or indirectly. There are some that goes just because they would be asked why they were not around considering their place or position in the Church. That shouldn’t be so; you should go to Church because you love God and the fellowship of the brethren.
