Who rouses Him from among the dead, you also being dead to the offenses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He vivifies us together jointly with Him, dealing graciously with all our offenses, erasing the handwriting of the decrees against us, which was hostile to us, and has taken it away out of the midst, nailing it to the cross.
Paul to the Colossians 2: 13-14, Concordant New Testament
For many, this is the Lords day. That day each week where we supposedly all gather together to worship in our local Lords house. Pews will be filled with believers who feel it is their duty to God to come together with their brethren to worship the Lord. Yet, you won't find me there. Granted, I still consider myself to be a believer, I just have not participated in the traditional institutional church in more than a few years. I do have good friends who continue to gather in church for their own reasons, and I respect them for that. It's just not for me. In my younger years, I felt the tug of compulsion to fill my seat in the church each week, but not so much in recent years. The writer of Hebrews calls on believers to "Not forsake the assembling of ourselves" {To the Hebrews 10:25}. Many well meaning pastors point to this passage as the evidence that our participation in weekly worship is mandatory. Not for me. For the author of Hebrews did not come outright and issue the command of the Lord that all gather together in worship. Yet it is claimed it is "According as the custom of some." There will be those who gather in worship and those who choose not to. This is not the identifier of a believer. What is the identifier of a believer and follower of Jesus is knowing that our life is no longer our own, but belongs to Him. The apostle Paul points this out as he speaks of the indwelling Christ in us {Paul to the Galatians 2:20}. Therefore, I see two different versions of Jesus in the world today, the traditional church version and the authentic Christ Whom God desires all of His children to know. The traditional Jesus is a Savior Who dwells in heaven, far removed from the Lords children here on earth. The mainstream church speaks to this in the claim that we can only ever hope to "Be like" Jesus. In reality, the true authentic Jesus is a Lord and savior Who has always been an intimate part of our life {Johns Account 1:1-5}. Jesus was in the beginning and He is today. This is the One true Christ.
In this we know that we are remaining in Him, and He in us, for He has given us His spirit.
First Epistle of John 4: 13, Concordant New Testament
One of my favorite scenes from The Chosen series is the scene of Jesus and the woman at the well drawing water. This woman, a Samaritan, seemed shocked that this Jew would request a drink from her. By Jewish tradition, Samaritans were not allowed to worship in the presence of Jews. Yet Jesus explains that the time is coming when neither "In this mountain nor in Jerusalem shall you be worshipping the Father" {Johns Account 4:21}. He then reveals to this Samaritan woman the worship which the Father desires, "When the true worshippers will be worshipping the Father in spirit and truth" {Johns Account 4:23}. I can definitely see the correlation between this woman at the well and so many worshippers in our churches of today. We've been told that coming together in church is the acceptable measure of worship of God. Yet Jesus Himself has proclaimed that it's not about temples or traditions at all. True worship of the Father is about spirit and truth. I can honestly say that even though I am not in church this Sunday, that I am indeed in worship to the Father. I know that I live in union with Him {Johns Account 14:20}. I do not follow the traditional church model of "Authentic" worship. No, I follow my heart for Him.
But coming is the hour, and now is, when the true worshippers will be worshipping the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is also seeking such to be worshipping Him.
Johns Account 4: 23, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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