Castlemaine Church of Christ

Why do you go to church? That’s probably a question most of us have been asked when someone knows you are a Christian. How do you answer? A recent survey had some interesting results to that very question. Some went because they found fellowship and acceptance, others because they believed the church to be perfect in relation to the outside world. Others because of the worship style, others for the preaching. The biggest flaw with all those answers is that the church is made up of imperfect people, and as Paul says in 1 Cor. 13:10 “when the perfect comes, the imperfect disappears” so if your looking for perfection, remember the church is full of sinners, imperfect people, the leaders are sinners, the pastors are sinners. The good thing is that while we were all sinners, Christ came to redeem and die for us, that’s the good news of the Gospel.
So why do you come to church? If we are to take any notice of the very first church as recorded in Acts, it is to encounter the living God. Do we experience God’s presence in our church? If not why not? There can be no other reason than to encounter God that would motivate any of us to continually, week after week, to come to church of a Sunday morning. Sure all those other things have value and some attraction, but all pale into insignificance when compared to an intimate encounter with the living God.
If I was to go to church to find the perfect fellowship, the perfect pastor, the perfect sermon, the worship I liked every week, then I know without doubt that I would be disappointed, no such institution exists that can fulfil all those need. But if I come with the desire to encounter God, I will be satisfied every time, God inhabits the praise of His people the Bible teaches us.
May you be blessed this morning as you encounter the perfect amongst the imperfect; and may you experience an encounter with God today that will reveal to you the real reason you come to church.
God Bless
Blair

Popularity: 6% [?]

From the books I have been reading lately, the newspaper articles and the Christian services I have seen on the internet, I have been amazed at how each one claims to know something someone else misses out on. I have read a number of articles in newspapers reporting on the various doctrines that some churches [...]

I was reminded a couple of weeks ago in a newsletter from Conference about the ministry of forgiveness. It was from a reflection by John Gilmore on John 20:23 “If you forgive anyone his sin, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven” This verse highlights two situations that we [...]

God told Joshua to cross over the Jordan and to go in and possess the land. Notice he said “possess the land” a phrase that implies action. Our salvation is the same, we have a ‘promised land’ and when we put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ as Lord, we too must take possession [...]

“But just as you excel in everything-in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us-see that you also excel in this grace of giving.” (2 Corinthians 8:7).Today’s word comes from Joel and Victoria Osteen, pastors of the United States largest church, Lakewood Church in Dallas Texas“As a born-again believer, [...]

In the ‘Spiritual battle’ that Paul talks about in Ephesians 6, we can all be encouraged by the words of the apostle John when he writes “Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.” (I John 4:4)The indwelling Holy Spirit in all believers enables you and me to claim [...]

Merry Christmas everyone! If you are visiting this morning a special welcome to you all. I found it interesting during the week for our Prime Minister to make a call for Australia to put the “Christ’ back into Christmas.  Amongst all the racial and religious tension that has erupted into the ‘un-Australian” like violence that we [...]

Like most churches at this time of the year we concentrate on the birth of Jesus and to do that we often revisit the Christmas stories as outlined to us in the Scriptures.As I do that each year there is one group that I am always amazed about and that’s the Magi, the kings or [...]

Julie and I attended the local Ministers Association this week and for a time we all shared our childhood memories of Christmas. Most memories centred on gifts, Santa Clause, family events and the like. As each one shared I pondered on the real meaning of Christmas. Today so many take the ‘Christ’ out of Christmas, [...]

It’s strange how God seems to impress upon you a particular Scripture and you just can’t seem to get it out of your mind. One such Scripture for me is John 10:10 and I thought I would share it with you today, at least the second part of that verse where it says “I have [...]