I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you. For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me. For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church 1 Corinthians 4:14-17

There is a growing trend in Christianity where Christians no longer are members of a congregation. Many will use the excuses, they don’t agree with the doctrine, or they can’t agree with the pastor, or they just can’t get along with the other Christians, these are all personal issues and not a Church issue. 

Being part of a Church community is essential to your spiritual growth. If you can’t even be around other Christians now, what are you going to do in the New Heavens and Earth? Church families are never going to be perfect, because guess what, nobody is perfect, except Christ. The Holy Spirit will use these opportunities of differences to refine and sharpen you. But the main point is , nobody can go through this Christian walk alone

Notice how Paul addresses the Church here “ I write these things not to shame you, but as my beloved sons or children” Paul, being the Shepherd of this Church, feels like these people are his spiritual family. This is a concept throughout the New Testament, the Church is a family of believers

Recently on Twitter, a professing “Christian” criticized me for calling my fellow brethren, brothers and sisters. Brother Damon Gray quickly refuted this argument using the words of Jesus Christ “Whoever does the will of God, is my brother, sister, and mother (Mark 3:35) We are all brothers and sisters through Jesus Christ, this is why you should not neglect your local Church community, they are the family God has given you

Paul says “For this cause I sent you Timothy, who is my beloved son” now was Timothy the biological son of Paul? Of course not, Timothy was a gentile and Paul was Jewish, however Paul became Timothy’s spiritual father, as he did for many Christians he mentored over the years

This brings up another good point, we need to have spiritual mentors in our lives. Many Christians go astray because they are “lone wolves”, they don’t try to learn from a more mature Christians, they don’t use their gifts of the Holy Spirit with the rest of the body of Christ. 

If you are a Born Again Christian, you are my brother and sister in Christ, don’t neglect your Church family, they need you just as much as you need them, Amen!