Yes, there are extraordinary circumstances that keep the sheep from hearing the voice of the Shepherd on a Sunday morning through a called preacher. But ordinarily speaking, to neglect Christian fellowship and the means of grace through which God grants us communion with himself is a terrible sin. And not only is it itself a sin, but it often leads to more sin. 

Throughout much of college, I didn’t have a strong tie to the local church. Regrettably, I just didn’t think of being connected to a local body, and attending church on Sundays, was that important for Christians. I thank God for the people he brought into my life who encouraged me in my walk with Christ and helped me to see the importance of gathering together with other sinners around Jesus’ Word. I’ll never forget a conversation I had with a pastor in those days who really helped to shape my thinking.

He was from Chicago and happened to be a huge fan of the Chicago Bears. Growing up in San Diego, I knew what it was like to have a home team that you grew up watching and rooting for. This pastor took me under his wing, and we were having one of our discipleship meetings at a local Starbucks. He said something during our time together that stunned me. “Even if I had tickets to see the Bears in the Superbowl on a Sunday morning, I wouldn’t go…”

I laughed out loud as if to suggest that he was crazy. “Are you serious?” I replied. He was. At that moment, I thought he was a little extreme. I remember thinking to myself, “What’s the big deal? The Super Bowl is once a year! If they make it, your team probably isn’t going to go again in your lifetime!” He was being absolutely genuine though. “No,” he said with a slight grin. “What’s more special than being gathered together around God’s throne, with God’s people?” It was hard to argue with him. I just hadn’t met many Christians who actually believed that at the time. My thinking had been: “yeah, the church is important, but the Christian life is really about your relationship with Jesus. You don’t need to be in church to have a healthy relationship with God.”

Sitting under this pastor had a profound effect on me. It’s the same effect I hope to have on the people I get to minister to. He loved the church, and you could tell. When he talked about missing out on the Bears game to be with God’s people, it was as if it was a no-brainer. He made me feel like I was the crazy one for thinking otherwise. Looking back now, I believe that I was.

Sometime later, I came across another shocking statement from a different pastor. Saint Cyprian of Carthage, a 3^rdcentury bishop in the Christian church. He famously said, “outside the church, there is no salvation.” Now, I know what you’re thinking, “There are Christians throughout the world who don’t have access to fellowship, how could anyone make such a claim?” The sentiment of Cyprian is hard to sell today because we’re so used to making a rule out of the exception. Yes, there are extraordinary circumstances that keep the sheep from hearing the voice of the Shepherd on a Sunday morning through a called preacher. But ordinarily speaking, to neglect Christian fellowship and the means of grace through which God grants us communion with himself is a terrible sin. And not only is it itself a sin, but it often leads to more sin.

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