My question is on the faith of my own church.  We have a playgroup which has taken everything over.  They have a youth group with children who do not attend, some atheist, but they use church money.  We’ve lost members, so church is no longer in the sanctuary but in the fellowship hall.  We had to go to a part-time minister; the ones taking over are homosexual, so all we hear about is about how they should be accepted, taking focus off of God and onto them; they do not accept my daughter and are rude to her, and she is at the age of great temptations.  We haven't attended for three Sundays.  Do you have any advice?  We have left and come back three times already.  Thank you.

Sincerely,
Fed Up

Dear Fed Up,

The local congregation’s work has always been very simple:

1. Teach the saved.
2. Preach to the lost.
3. When necessary, care for needy christians.

This congregation isn’t doing those things, and is instead doing all sorts of things that are opposed to Scriptures!

The clearest verse on the subject of the church’s purpose is in the book of Ephesians. Eph 4:12-16 points out that the church was designed, so that the saints would be ‘perfected’, for the ‘work of the ministry’, and for the ‘edifying (building up) of the body of Christ’.

The church of the New Testament is supposed to help prepare christians to be better christians by filling their minds with God’s Word. We see many examples of the church being busy with this kind of teaching and learning (Acts 2:42, Col 3:16). This is how christians are perfected (Col 1:28).

The church is also to be busy about the ‘work of ministry’ – preaching to the lost. Christ said He came to save sinners (1 Tim 1:15). One of His last commands to His apostles was to preach to the lost (Matt 28:18-20). Every congregation must be actively attempting to teach the Word of God to those who don’t understand it.

After preaching to the lost and teaching the saved, the only other work that we see an example of is caring for needy christians. Paul told Timothy there was a time to help out poor widowed christians (1 Tim 5:9-10). We also see the church in Jerusalem doing this (Acts 4:34-35)

The church is supposed to be the pillar and support of the truth (1 Tim 3:15).  These church isn’t.  You need to leave.  We would be happy to point you in the direction of a local congregation that puts the Bible as their guide and focus on worshipping God in spirit and in truth (Jhn 4:24).  If we can help, just e-mail us at askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org and we’ll try and get you in contact with a faithful group near you.

Currently, I am not attending a church.  I stay in my Bible and study The Word as much as possible.  I love learning about the Lord and am excited about my journey with Him for the rest of my life!  My question is: are there other ways to tithe my money other than giving to a church?  I listen to a Christian radio station daily and would love to send an offering, but from what I have been told, this is not tithing.  What about giving to the Salvation Army or another Christian organization?  Please help!

Sincerely,
A Generous Heart

Dear A Generous Heart,

It is a common misconception that studying our Bible at home is a replacement for attending services.  Heb 10:24-25 states that forsaking the assembly is a sin and that without the church, we won’t be the kind of people that we ought to be because the church provokes us to love and good works.  It is an admirable thing that you want to give, and it is an admirable thing that you faithfully study your Bible.  Now is a great time to fulfill even more commands by finding a faithful church and doing what every New Testament Christian did – become an active member.  We’d be happy to help you find a congregation in your area that is faithful to the Word in every way.  If we can help, e-mail us at askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org.

     Our preacher says that not attending church is a sin and that you are NOT able to worship Him without going.  Am I not always in His presence and can worship and praise Him anywhere?  Thank you.

Sincerely,
Worship Where I Want

Dear Worship Where I Want,

You can worship God on your own, but the Bible commands that we shouldn’t forsake the assembly (Heb 10:24-25).  God designed the church, so each individual would be strengthened by the power of the whole (Eph 4:16).  God never wanted Christians to try and serve Him without the support of a local church; that is why He commanded the church to assemble.  It is impossible to do God’s work without being a part of a local church.