“Buller, Buller, Buller …”

We live in a culture of deep individualism.  People in the United States are fiercely independent.  Who gets all the attention at election time?  Independents.  It is not just about swaying a voting block, it is subconsciously a part of what we value and immortalize.

It because of this that people are very hesitant to commit to others.  People used to commit to a company and work their entire career at one place.  People used to attend one college all four years.  We used to call a committed relationship marriage, but today the masses are afraid to commit.

This fear of being committed to any group or institution bleeds over into the church.  And thus, church attendance is sinking.  Polls show that a very high percentage of people believe in God, and a high percentage also claims to be Christian.  But, a very low percentage claim affiliation to a religious group and a smaller number actually attend more than 10 worship services a year.

I too value individualism, but our individualism becomes unbiblical when it keeps us from deeply connecting to one another and to a group that can do great things together.  The Bible instructs us to, “Love one another deeply, from the heart.”  How can we do that when we never spend any time together?  Can you really love someone deeply and never show interest in being with them?  Can you really love other believers and not have a desire to meet with them and spend time with them?  Can you really love Jesus and then not love the people that he loves and calls his family?  Jesus said that those who do the will of my Father are really my mother and brothers and sisters.  Jesus calls believers his family.  A healthy family wants to be together.

Church attendance says something about the heart of the attendee.  One thing that it says is, “I value these people and love them deeply, and so I am here today with them.”