Dillon Schupp

Do I really need to go to church to be a Christian?

That’s a popular question that many people wonder about. After all, “going to church” doesn’t make me a Christian- so it makes many wonder if the church is really necessary to their relationship with Jesus. As long as I have given Jesus my life, the thinking goes, then church isn’t really necessary. All that counts is whether I believe the Gospel.

Let’s ask a different question, then:

What does it mean to be a Christian? 

Not a cultural Christian who claims the name of Jesus but lives as if He doesn’t exist. I’m talking about a genuine Christian who’s life is devoted to Jesus.

Let’s look at how Jesus called His first disciples.

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen.  “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him.- Matthew 4:18-20

Did you catch what Jesus said?

“Follow me.”

Did you notice what Peter and Andrew did?

“…they left their nets and followed him.”

At the core of Christianity is not merely intellectual head knowledge about Jesus. At the core of Christianity is following Jesus.

You may be able to believe the right things about Jesus and not go to church (by the way, a better phrase is “gather with the church”, as the church is not a building, it is people)…but can you truly be a follower of Jesus and choose to perpetually disconnect from the church?

Let’s ask a different question: What does it mean to follow someone?

Webster defines “follow” like this: “to go, proceed, or come after.” The example they use is this: “followed the guide.”

So to follow Jesus means to come after Jesus- or, put more simply, it means to go where He goes.

Now consider what Jesus said in Matthew 18:20:

“For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”

Did you catch that?

Jesus promises to be with those who gather in His name. It doesn’t matter whether it’s two or whether it’s 200. When people are gathered together in His name, He is there with them. In other words, when the church gathers, that’s where Jesus is. 

To refuse to gather with the church is to refuse to be where Jesus is. In other words, you’re not following Jesus when you’re refusing to gather with the church.

“Aha!”, You may argue. “If size doesn’t matter, then I can do church with my family and just have a ‘house church’ on our own.”

You could…but there’s a couple of significant issues with that line of thinking.

First off…is that what you are really doing on Sunday morning? Are you really just sleeping in, watching the game, and doing your own thing?

Second…did you notice, when Jesus called His disciples, what He called them to do? Let’s revisit it:

 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”- Matthew 4:19
Following Jesus means going where He goes…and where He goes is not just to gather with the church, but to scatter with the church to be on mission to “fish for people.” In other words, the mission of the church is to reach people- to make disciples, as Jesus puts it in Matthew 28:18-20.
In other words, the purpose of the gathering of the church is so the church can scatter to make disciples. Because that’s where Jesus is going. He leaves the 99 to fo and find the one- and invites them into His fold.
I suppose then, if you are really gathering as a “house church” with your family- singing to God, sitting under the teaching of Scripture- and engaging the outside world in making disciples and inviting them into your group, then that would qualify as church.
But notice that doing so would mean that your gathering does not remain limited to your family- and it involves you leaving your home and engaging the mission of God. Note that this excludes only sitting at home and watching a message online. Until we are engaged in the mission of God, it doesn’t count as “church”!
Ironically, if you’re doing those things, then you’re actually “going to church” to begin with. It may not look like what we consider church, but it is church.
Which brings me back to the question we started with: Do I really need to go to church to be a Christian?
Let’s rephrase it: Can I truly follow Jesus and willfully disconnect from the church?
I believe the answer is resoundingly “No.”
Even in the “house church” example mentioned above, following Jesus involves gathering with other believers and being on mission to the world. That doesn’t mean it’s got to be a massive crowd. But it always, 100% of the time means relationship with other believers and being on mission to people that are lost.
If we’re not engaging in those two things (which are, by the way, THE functions of the church to begin with!), then we’re not actually following Jesus.
Yes- we need the church. It may not always look as we conceive it- it certainly doesn’t in countries where Christianity is illegal!- but if it involves relationships with other Christians and being on mission together to reach the world, then that, by definition, is church.
The question is- in staying home on Sunday- whether those things are happening in my life.
Typically- if we’re being brutally honest- the answer is “No.”
And if the answer is “No”, then it’s time to get out of bed, out of the house, and gather with the church so we can scatter through our community with the Gospel.