Reason #8 why going to church this Sunday is the best plan:  TO TEACH YOUR KIDS TO LOVE GOD.  I am so blessed by the young families of our church.  They are my heroes!  In a culture where so many people are walking away from God and walking towards selfishness and narcissism, the young families that bring their kids to church are wise beyond their years.  Kids watch what their parents really do.  Kids know what their parents really believe by watching their actions.  Josh McDowell wrote, “You can con a con, you can fool a fool, but you can’t kid a kid.”  So true.  Kids will most often become like their parents.  Jesus said in Luke 6:40 that a student will become like his teacher.  It doesn’t say that a student will become what the teacher teaches him;  he will become what his teacher is.  Kids will become like their parents.  When parents love God by participating in a church family, the kids will more likely do the same.  Christian author, Julie Rupp, wrote: “Our children will learn more about faith from watching us live out our own faith journey… than from us telling them about God.”

Reason #7 why going to church this Sunday is the best plan:  IT’S WHAT GOD WANTS FOR YOU.  In the Old Testament, God’s people were commanded to observe the Sabbath and rest in God.  The Sabbath was the seventh day of the week and His people would rest and worship in recognition of the greatness of God who worked at creation for six days and then rested on the seventh.  God said in Exodus 20:5… “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.  Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work.” By resting and worshipping God on the Sabbath they were “keeping it holy.”  Holy means “set apart” or “sacred.”  In the New Testament, Christians now rest and worship God on Sunday, the Lord’s Day, in much the same manner.  Sunday is the first day of the week and we observe that day in recognition of the resurrection of Christ, which happened on a Sunday.  We are “keeping it holy” by resting and worshipping on that day.  Plus, Sundays are a time to collectively look forward to the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Hebrews 10:25 says this… “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”  In American culture today, we are sorely tempted to busy ourselves with other activities:  sports, entertainment, food, etc.  It takes a conscious decision to set aside Sunday for rest, corporate worship and expectation of Jesus’ coming.  But when we do, we will be blessed with a peace that is far more important than one more busy activity or amusement.

Reason #6 why going to church this Sunday is the best plan:  THE BODY OF CHRIST NEEDS YOU.  The Bible is clear that the church is a body with Jesus as it’s head.  But the body is made up of many unique parts.  One of those unique parts is YOU!  Without your uniqueness, the body is not whole.  When you participate in the body-life of a church, you will be blessing others.  1 Corinthians 12:12-15 says, “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ…. For the body does not consist of one member but of many.  If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.”  YOU are unique and you have something to contribute.  No one is more important or less important – everyone is needed… INCLUDING YOU!

Reason #5 why going to church this Sunday is the best plan: IT WILL HELP YOU DEFINE WHAT YOU BELIEVE.  There are so many voices in our current American culture, crying out with different messages, values and beliefs.  Which ones are right?  Which ones are best?  When you gather together in church, studying the Word of God together, you will gain a deeper understanding of WHY you believe what you believe.  You won’t just learn new facts, you will gain a better foundation for your whole belief structure.  Thinking alongside others, sharing ideas and learning together is a great way to challenge and refine your thinking.  The Apostle Paul said to the Christians in Colossae, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom…” (Colossians 3:16).  Plus, if you take on a teaching role of any kind (Bible Study leader, Sunday School teacher, etc) you will learn exponentially.  “The teacher always learns twice,” as the saying goes.