1) Belonging to a local church is important because it allows you to identify as a genuine believer and show love for Christ's body. You cannot be a Christian in isolation. 2) Church membership helps prevent self-centered isolation and allows you to encourage and be encouraged by other believers. 3) Being part of a church family helps you grow spiritually through using your spiritual gifts to serve others and build each other up. 4) Each believer's participation is important because the body of Christ needs every member to function well.

1. Loving God‟s House First!
Why should you make
belonging to your local church
your top priority?

2. Haggai 1:1-15 (NIV)
1 In the second year of King Darius, on the first day of
the sixth month, the word of the Lord came through
the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,
governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak,
the high priest: 2 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
"These people say, 'The time has not yet come for the
Lord's house to be built.'" 3 Then the word of the Lord
came through the prophet Haggai: 4 "Is it a time for
you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses,
while this house remains a ruin?" 5 Now this is what
the Lord Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your
ways.

3. 6 You have planted much, but have harvested little. You
eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have
your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn
wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it." 7
This is what the Lord Almighty says: "Give careful
thought to your ways. 8 Go up into the mountains and
bring down timber and build the house, so that I may
take pleasure in it and be honored," says the Lord. 9
"You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little.
What you brought home, I blew away. Why?" declares
the Lord Almighty. "Because of my house, which
remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own
house.

4. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have
withheld their dew and the earth its crops. 11 I called
for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the
grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground
produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your
hands." 12 Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua
son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the whole
remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord
their God and the message of the prophet
Haggai, because the Lord their God had sent him. And
the people feared the Lord.

5. 13 Then Haggai, the Lord's messenger, gave this
message of the Lord to the people: "I am with you,"
declares the Lord. 14 So the Lord stirred up the spirit of
Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and
the spirit of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high
priest, and the spirit of the whole remnant of the
people. They came and began to work on the house of
the Lord Almighty, their God, 15 on the twenty-fourth
day of the sixth month in the second year of King
Darius.

6. Why belong to a local church?
Eph 2:19b LB
“You are members of God‟s very own family,
citizens of god‟s country, and you belong in
God‟s household with every other Christian.”

7. Our gathering
together is not about
the lost or the saved
but is about Him!

8. 1. You need to belong to identify
yourself as a genuine believer.
John 13:35
“Your love for one another will prove to the
world that you are my disciples”

9.  "I don‟t need a Church" is nonsense. You
can‟t love Christ & not his Body, the King &
not his Kingdom, the Father & not his Family
– Rick Warren

10. To say: 'I want to be a Christian, but I don't want to
belong to a church' would be like saying: 'I want to be
married and stay single!' You simply cannot become a
Christian on your own. By new birth you have entered
the family of God and belong to the 'household of faith'
(Galatians 6:10). It means belonging to a group of
people, rather than to an institution. Just as Jesus
surrounded himself with the twelve disciples, we need
to be with other followers of Jesus. The church shows
us that the Christian faith is a 'together' faith. When
you became a Christian, you were not only brought
into a relationship with God; you were brought into a
relationship with other people, too. You became a part
of God's people, the church, living on earth. God bless
you. (REINHARD BONNKE)

11.  Telling Jesus "I love u but don‟t need your
church" is like telling your wife "I love u but
don‟t need your Body. Fake love.”
 „There are two things we cannot do alone.
One is to be married; the other is to be a
Christian.” - Paul Tournier
 "A follower of Jesus disconnected from a
local church family is an orphan." Rick
Warren

12. 2. You need to belong to get yourself
out of self centered isolation.
1Cor 12:26 (NCV)
„If one part of the body suffers, all the other
parts suffer with is. Or if one part of our body
is honoured, all the other parts share its
honour.

13. 1 John 3:16
“Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we
ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.”

14.  “Only in our culture of idolatrous
individualism do believers think they can
follow Jesus without belonging to His Body”
 “The earth is not changed by institution but
by family”

15. 3. You need to belong to develop
spiritual muscle
Eph 4:16 (NLT)
“As each part does its own special work, it
helps the other parts grow, so that the whole
body is healthy and growing and full of love.”

16. Over 50 times in the NT the phrase one
another or each other is used.
 Love each other
 Pray for each other
 Encourage each other
 Greet each other
 Serve each other
 Bear one another‟s burdens
 Forgive each other
 …….

17. 4. You need to belong because the
body of Christ needs YOU
1Cor 12:7 (LB)
A spiritual gift is given to each of us as a
means of helping the entire church.” 20
Eph 2:10 (MSG)
“He creates each of us by Christ Jesus to join
him in the work he does, the good work he has
gotten ready for us to do, work we had better
be doing.

18.  “Christians are the physical organism
through which Christ acts. We are His fingers
and muscles, the cells of His body.” C.S.
Lewis
 “We've amputated the Body of Christ's
hands & feet & left only a big mouth.”
 “Church is not an organisation you join; it is
a family where you belong.” Nicky Gumbel

19. 5. You need to belong because your
church, cell, youth group will help
keep you from tripping
Heb 3:13 (NIV)
“Encourage one another daily … so that none
of you may be hardenend by sins
deceitfulness”
James 5:19 (MSG)
“If you know people who have wandered off
from God‟s truth, don‟t write them off. GO
AFTER THEM, Get them back.”

20.  “No man appreciates derogatory comments
about his girlfriend or wife. So be careful
what you say about God's bride.” Sean
Feucht
 “The more optional church becomes to
you, the less impact it can have on you. He
builds His Church to build your life!” Brian
Houston

21. 6. You need to belong because it
was the custom of Jesus
Luke 4:16
“(Jesus) went to Nazareth, where he had been
brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went
into the synagogue, as was his custom”

22. 7. You need to protect Sunday
Ex 20:8
“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it
holy”

23.  “Christ is the head of his body, the Church!
Are you connected in the body somewhere?
Sheep travel together, snakes run alone!”
Jonathan Stockstill

24. 8. God often uses corporate
gatherings to speak to us
individually in supernatural ways.


25. 9. Because you encourage and
inspire other Christ followers by
your presence.

26. 10. You establish a legacy for
children.

27. CONCLUSION
Is it important to belong?
Yes

28. Ephesians 5:25-33 (NIV)
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ
loved the church and gave himself up for her
26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the
washing with water through the word, 27 and
to present her to himself as a radiant church,
without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish,
but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way,
husbands ought to love their wives as their
own bodies. He who loves his wife loves
himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated his own
body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as
Christ does the church-- 30 for we are
members of his body.

29.  “Jesus laid down His life for the church. And
you?” PJ Smyth