Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “…thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Jesus is the rock (not Peter) and the church is built upon the Saviour of Men, not Simon Barjona. The ever-living Christ, is the head of the church, and is united to and with his church (Colossians 2:19) to nourish, strengthen, and “increase with the increase of God.” The church is also built upon the doctrine of Jesus – the truth that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, the revealed truth of Heaven.
Such an organization may seem like a social club, or a charity organization, but it is the house of God, the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15). The place where the Almighty is worshipped and glorified (Ephesians 3:21), and the place where God meets with His people (Matthew 18:20 in a special way. It is where the Lord Jesus walks among His own (Revelation 2:1). It the place that Jesus loves, so much so, husbands are to look to Christ’s love for His church as the supreme example of how to love their wives (Ephesians 5:25). The organization He purchased with His own blood (Acts 20:28).
The church is essential for the members. It’s where we are strengthened by God’s Spirit and provoked unto love and good works, and exhorting one another to persevere in the faith (Hebrews 10:24-25). It is the only place on earth where you can take the Lord’s Supper, that Jesus Himself commanded to keep to remember his death till He returns. It’s where penitent believers can follow the Lord Jesus in the waters of Baptism. It is the organization the King of Kings has commissioned and authorized to make disciples, teach the doctrine, and baptize believers.
The church is not essential? Tell that to the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last. Tell the one with “eyes as a flame of fire” and the one whose “voice as is the sound of many waters” whose “countenance was as the sun” His church is not essential. Stand before the one whom John fell at his feet as dead and let He that liveth and was dead, and now is alive for evermore that His assembly, His house, His worship is not essential (Revelation 1:11-20).
If Wal-Mart is essential, and if Lowe’s and Home Depot are essential, then the church of the Lord Jesus Christ is essential. If the members of Congress can assemble during the lockdown for the “Greg LeMond Congressional Gold Medal Act” (H.R.3589) or such vital and essential work as S.4762 – “a bill to designate the airport traffic control tower located at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, NC, as the “Senator Kay Hagan Airport Traffic Control Tower”, then I’ll assemble to worship the Son of God. Come and join us!
But is it safe? Probably not. Is it safe for your soul to forsake the Lord’s assembly? Definitely not.
