Witness FAITH AND REASON
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up. John 3:14.
There are at least three types of people who go to church. There is the committed Christian, who loves to see Jesus lifted up. He goes to church because he wants to. Nothing can keep him away. He has been solidly converted. He desires nothing so much as communication with the Lord Jesus. He has a meaningful prayer life and studies God's Word. He loves to share with others. He has learned to trust in God, and when God says go to church, he says, All right, if God says it, I'll do it. If he had been present when Moses said for the people to look at the snake, he would have looked at the snake without question. He believes that God knows what is best for him.
For the committed Christian it is pointless to talk about reasons for going to church, because that's where he desires to be. The committed Christian goes to church because he loves to. But in almost any so-called Christian group, there are some who are not committed Christians.
There is another group of people who go to church who are simply regular church members. Somewhere along the line they got baptized. It may or may not have meant something to them at that time, but they have no current relationship with the Lord Jesus. They go to church because it is a habit. They are stuck. They have a beaten path between home and church, and can't get out of the routine. They go for the sake of their reputation, or for some other selfish reason. If this sort of person had been alive at the time of Moses, he would have probably insisted on knowing a good reason before he looked. God is not against reason. It's not wrong to have some understanding, so long as we don't insist on having everything completely clear before we are willing to act on God's Word.
The third type of person who comes to church is actually hostile to religion. He comes the church because he is forced to come. Not only would he be uninterested in looking at the snake, but he wouldn't care about reasons for it, either. This type is not interested, period. But for all three types, God, through His Holy Spirit, is present in His church. He will meet the needs of any who come to Him. He will do all that He can do to reach each one.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up. John 3:14.
There are at least three types of people who go to church. There is the committed Christian, who loves to see Jesus lifted up. He goes to church because he wants to. Nothing can keep him away. He has been solidly converted. He desires nothing so much as communication with the Lord Jesus. He has a meaningful prayer life and studies God's Word. He loves to share with others. He has learned to trust in God, and when God says go to church, he says, All right, if God says it, I'll do it. If he had been present when Moses said for the people to look at the snake, he would have looked at the snake without question. He believes that God knows what is best for him.
For the committed Christian it is pointless to talk about reasons for going to church, because that's where he desires to be. The committed Christian goes to church because he loves to. But in almost any so-called Christian group, there are some who are not committed Christians.
There is another group of people who go to church who are simply regular church members. Somewhere along the line they got baptized. It may or may not have meant something to them at that time, but they have no current relationship with the Lord Jesus. They go to church because it is a habit. They are stuck. They have a beaten path between home and church, and can't get out of the routine. They go for the sake of their reputation, or for some other selfish reason. If this sort of person had been alive at the time of Moses, he would have probably insisted on knowing a good reason before he looked. God is not against reason. It's not wrong to have some understanding, so long as we don't insist on having everything completely clear before we are willing to act on God's Word.
The third type of person who comes to church is actually hostile to religion. He comes the church because he is forced to come. Not only would he be uninterested in looking at the snake, but he wouldn't care about reasons for it, either. This type is not interested, period. But for all three types, God, through His Holy Spirit, is present in His church. He will meet the needs of any who come to Him. He will do all that He can do to reach each one.
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