The word “church” isn’t mentioned in the bible until the New Testament. Under the Old Covenant (in the Old Testament), people were supposed to worship God in the Tabernacle or synagogues. Today we sometimes understand church to be a place where Christians meet on Sunday to worship The Lord.
Some definitions are: a building used for public Christian worship; a particular Christian organization, typically one with it’s own clergy, buildings, and distinctive doctrines; institutionalized religion as a political or social force.
The first time that I see this word used in the bible is in Matthew 16:18 where Peter declared that Jesus was Christ. Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being. Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means rock), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.” (see Verses 13 – 18 in the New Living Translation) Church, here Jesus was referring to a group of believers that believe that Jesus is the foundation or what sets apart The Church!.
Later in the book of Acts we see that the disciples started meeting in each others’ homes. This is how the early church started.
Today most people equate going to church to meeting in a church building somewhere. This is sometimes the most convenient option, but do we need to meet in a church building to go to church?
I certainly believe that we can “have church” on the back tailgate of a truck somewhere. We can meet around a campfire to have or experience church, even out on a walk! All of these examples are a meeting of believers to worship -revere God & talk or learn more about Our Creator! It doesn’t have to be complicated, based on a set of rules in a formal way of having church. Church should be fun, exciting!
Let me encourage you to enjoy church gatherings wherever there is opportunity. Take the time to learn from each other. None of us have all the answers, so it’s important to refer to the bible on every subject but let’s take every opportunity to have church!
