When You Can't Be At Church

I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet...

Revelation 1:9-10

The first thing we find is that this letter is written by John. This is, of course, the Apostle John. One of Jesus’ disciples and the author of the Gospel of John as well as books of the Bible known as I,II, and III John. Church history tells us that the wicked Roman Emperor Domitian had tried to kill John by boiling him alive, but John had survived. So Domitian exiled John to the island of Patmos to put him out of the way. It was on this island around the year 95 AD when John received this vision and wrote his book of Revelation.

What I want you to notice is this…look what John is doing. John was cut off from the people of God. He couldn’t gather with them on the Lord’s Day. He couldn’t go to church, but he didn’t let that stop him from communing with God. If you look again at vs 9 and 10 you will see that John was exiled on the island of Patmos but He was “in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.” 

Over the past year and a half it has been more difficult to attend church than at any other point in my lifetime. Even as I write the numbers of COVID cases are on the rise again and church attendance is plummeting as many believers feel that it is unsafe for them to attend. My point isn’t to make you feel guilty about that. Sure, I had hoped that all of this was over, but it obviously isn’t. And now I am hoping that it will end soon and we will be able to get back to normal but what if it doesn’t? What if there are more Sundays that we can’t gather together Or what if your age or preexisting medical conditions put you at a high risk for COVID and you don't feel comfortable gathering in large groups? What should you do then? 

You should follow John’s example. When John couldn’t gather with other believers for worship, he worshipped alone. He wasn’t going to let little things like not having a song leader, or a choir, or pews, or a church building, or even someone to preach to him stop him from worshipping God. John just went right on worshipping God alone. He preached to himself. I imagine he sang songs and prayed prayers by Himself. He drew near to the Lord.

I hope our churches do everything they can to preserve our ability to gather in person, but if for some reason you can’t be with other believers right now, then don’t let that prevent you from being with God. We have technology now that John didn’t have. If you can’t be at church in person, then be there via livestream. And if at some point in the future you can’t even gather with your church by livestream then worship God alone, but don’t let a single Sunday pass without worshipping your God.

The Worth of His Name (W.o.W. Rewind)

 Your name, Lord, endures forever, your renown, Lord, through all generations.

Psalm 135:13

Psalm 135 opens with two lines that are both an invitation and a command. "Praise the LORD! Praise the name of the LORD." Scripture has a lot to say about God's name. We are encouraged to praise His name (Ps. 30:4), to exalt it (Ps. 34:3), to fear it (Ps. 86:11), to love it (Ps. 69:35-36), to call on God's name (Ps 116:13), to ascribe the glory due His name (Ps. 29:2) and much more. 

Why so much emphasis on a name? A person's name carries their character around from conversation to conversation. You can sense it in the way a person's name is spoken. When someone is loved or even revered their name is spoken in sweet tones. When someone is reviled or hated then their name can sound like a curse coming across your lips (Psalm 102:8) (Sadly, many today so revile our God that they do use His precious name as a curse). In this way a person's name is like a shorthand for their reputation. When you drag a person's reputation through the mud, you give them a bad name. In the same way, when you praise someone, when you lift them up and glorify them, you praise not only them but also their name. 

This is why God's name will be remembered forever, because it is treasured. It is treasured because He is worthy of such honor. This is especially true of the name of Jesus. Countless believers throughout the centuries have laid down their lives for the name of Jesus. Had they been willing to revile Him, to curse His name, then they would have been spared, but they considered His name worth more than their very lives. Why? Because "salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

When all the kingdoms of men have faded into obscurity, when no one remembers the names of great generals or great football players anymore, a thousand years into eternity in heaven, still the name of Jesus will be treasured. As Philippians 2:9-11 says,

"God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

You might consider obeying Scripture's command today by singing praises to His name using this praise chorus written by Gloria and Bill Gaither.

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus

   There's just something about that name

Master, Savior, Jesus

   Like a fragrance after the rain

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus

   Let all heaven and earth proclaim

Kings and kingdoms may all pass away

   But there's something about that name

For further reading, consider this selection of what Scripture has to say about God's name:

• Our trust is in His name. "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God." Psalm 20:7
• Jesus instructs us to pray "Hallowed be your name." Matthew 6:9
• We are to baptize disciples in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28:19
• Jesus prayed, "Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one." John 17:11
• The Apostle Peter healed by the name of Jesus. "Then Peter said, 'Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.'” Acts 3:6
• The Apostle Paul cast out demons by the name. "'In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!' At that moment the spirit left her." Acts 16:18
• The Apostle Paul was prepared to die for the name. "Then Paul answered, 'Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.'” Acts 21:13
• One of the descriptions of Heaven in the last chapter of the Bible is as follows. "[God's servants] will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads." Revelation 22:4

A Eulogy for Joshua

As the Lord commanded his servant Moses, so Moses commanded Joshua, and Joshua did it; he left nothing undone of all that the Lord commanded Moses...So Joshua took the entire land, just as the Lord had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions. Then the land had rest from war.

Joshua 11:15

I think you would struggle to find a eulogy that better sums up Joshua’s life and legacy than these two words: Obedience and Success. Joshua obeyed God in everything. He left nothing undone of all he had been commanded to do, and God gave him success.

Consider what God did with Joshua’s obedience. God took this man who was born a slave in Egypt and used him to lead Israel to victory over six nations and 31 kings (Joshua 12:7-24). Joshua conquered six nations and 31 kings! And He did it simply by being strong enough and courageous enough to obey God fully.

Are you obeying God fully or are you leaving something that He has commanded you to do undone? Let me encourage you not to go halfway in your commitment to follow God! Don’t leave anything undone that God has commanded you to do. Obey God fully!

Putting the Word to Work

And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe.

I Thessalonians 2:13

This verse tells us why reading God's word is important. It tells us why Christians have been willing to live and die for this book. It even tells us why we shouldn't be too concerned at the statistics that say most people can't tell me what my sermon was about two hours after they leave church.

It does all that and more when it says that the word of God is at work in those who believe. When you read God's word or when you hear a good sermon explaining the word, it doesn't just increase your knowledge. If you believe, then the word goes to work on you and begins to change you.

It may sound a little odd for me to say that I don't care (too much) if my congregation can't remember what I preached last Sunday, but I really don't. Sure, I want my sermons to make an impact, and I would love for them to remember what I say, but I know that my people can't remember every sermon I preach. So, I strive to preach biblical sermons full of God's word because if I succeed at that I know that even if they don't remember the sermon, they will be changed by it! If I am faithful to preach the word, then God is faithful to make the word work on those who believe. 

This is why so many have been willing to live and die for God's word, because it was far more than just a book for them. It was the source of their spiritual life change. It can be the same for you. I want to challenge you to read your Bible every day...even when you don't feel like it... even when it seems like it isn't accomplishing anything. Read the Bible. Listen to the Bible. Sing the Bible. And believe the Bible. As you do these things, you can trust that God's powerful word, the same word that spoke creation into being, is at work in you transforming your heart and mind by its truth. Let God's word work on you today.