The early church seems to have deliberately chosen to meet on the first day of the week to mark the resurrection victory of the Lord Jesus. That is why it is described as the “Lord’s Day.” It is also an anticipation of the great and final “Day of the Lord,” when Jesus returns, the dead are raised and judged, and those who believe and trust the Lord Jesus enter into eternal glory, whilst those who have rejected the Lord Jesus are justly consigned to the eternal punishment of hell.

Last week I was preaching at a thriving Grace Baptist Church in Suffolk that has applied to affiliate to FIEC. The church was built in 1834 in the shape of a coffin, with the deliberate intention of reminding the congregation of their mortality. It is also surrounded by a graveyard, which is a very tangible reminder of those church members who have gone before in the faith and have now died.

Our first thought might be that this all seems a little morbid, and certainly not a pattern of church architecture we want to replicate, but it brings home the essence of what church ought to be about. We gather together as believers in the Lord Jesus to remember what he has done to save and deliver us from death.

The early church seems to have deliberately chosen to meet on the first day of the week to mark the resurrection victory of the Lord Jesus. That is why it is described as the “Lord’s Day.” It is also an anticipation of the great and final “Day of the Lord,” when Jesus returns, the dead are raised and judged, and those who believe and trust the Lord Jesus enter into eternal glory, whilst those who have rejected the Lord Jesus are justly consigned to the eternal punishment of hell.

We gather together as church to re-orientate ourselves around these eternal realities of life and death, heaven and hell, salvation or condemnation. As born-again believers we rejoice precisely because we know that Jesus died in our place so that we can be saved from death and judgement. We meet to encourage one another to live in the light of eternity, and not for the worries and pleasures of this present world that is transient and passing away. We want to declare the glorious good news of the gospel to unbelievers who might be amongst us, so that they might know the danger they are in and the hope that they could have in Christ.

Read More