why people think that going to church make them go to heaven?

Question

no matter what religion it is, God is just one, and I don't think that some people that go to church are going to heaven, there are some that go to church and they are not even there with their heart, and they are not even good people. church is our body, our mind, our heart. I believe in God and I feel really close to him, and I am trying my best to be a good person and i don't like to go to church. so what do you think?

Answer 1

I think the importance in going to church is that none of us is an island. We are not -as a species - built to make it on our own.

It is for this reason St. Paul said, "As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit. Now the body is not a single part, but many."

It is also why Islam has the Ummah - the body of believers, and why Jews have the Shema directed at their whole community, and not just one by one individuals - "Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is one God!"

Humans are meant to be oriented towards God - but we are a kind of creature that is called to do so in fellowship and solidarity with other people. How can you be a helper of other people, if you share spirituality with no other people? How can you be a healer of other people, if you are not in chuirch or synagogue enough to know what other peoples' journeys are like? How can you be a doer of the word, if you are never a hearer of the word, as other people might preach it?

None of us is called to practice in solitude - the city on the hill was never meant to be one tent with a single person in it, but a multitude, heart to heart and hand in hand...

Answer 2

Going to church makes you a Christian no more than going to a garage makes you an automobile.

Yes, there are people in church who will not make it to heaven. There are more who don't who won't make it.

Going to church doesn't mean you'll go to heaven. It's a place to learn and worship God. Going helps you learn, helps you get support when you struggle with doing what's right, and keeps you going on the right path. . .IF it's a really good church.

What makes you go to heaven is accepting Jesus as your personal savior and having a relationship with Him. People can go to heaven without going to church, but it's harder. Do you read your Bible a lot and pray always? That's what the Bible says to do. Church usually helps people do that. It also helps you see that you're not alone.

That actual true church, though, the Bride of Christ, is not in one building, but spread all over the world, in many churches.

Yes, there are hypocrites in every church. Everyone on the face of this planet puts up a front - does their best to make themselves look better than they are - and that's in or out of church. So there are hypocrites. . .don't let someone else come between you and God. Only you answer for your choices - not them. All you can do is your best.

I think you'd be better off finding a church to help you in your walk, but no, it doesn't save you - only Jesus does that.

Answer 3

God is not "one" among all religions. Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God (and so thus knows a whole lot deal more about God than we do, being God in nature Himself), says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

This means that you cannot obtain salvation through anyone except Jesus Christ. Buddha is a cool guy and all, but he doesn't provide us with a way to God. Worshipping a cow (Hinduism) is considered idolatory by God. Simply ignoring God will not give you salvation, nor will good works.

Romans 10:9 - That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

It is only through doing this that we can be saved from our sins, which we plunged ourselves into back at the Garden of Eden, by Adam's sin. Sin is inherited, which is also why you see babies that steal, kick, punch, bite, etc.

Church is a place of fellowship with other believers and a place to learn more about God. Reading the Bible does much, but churches usually give us a more in-depth look at what the Bible says. It is of course, a choice, but it is recommended for spiritual growth. Of course, be careful which church you go to. There's this awesome quote, "Never listen to a preacher unless you have a Bible with you." If the preacher is teaching you unbiblical doctrines, you know that's when it's time to leave that church.

Answer 4

Going to church won't send you to heaven. What it can do, though, is strenthen your faith by putting you in a community of believers. It can be an opportunity to reflect on your life over the past week and see where you went wrong. It helps make sure you read or listen to some of the Bible every week. It can bring you closer to God through the Eucharist and through prayer. It can make sure you take a break from your hectic schedule to make time for spiritual things. I think church can be a very useful and important tool. It may make it easier for you to live the sort of life that will get you to heaven.

Answer 5

That's the way their priests can make money from them. But in reality church should be a place where you can share thoughts of your faith with others that are congregated. People who say they don't go to church and worship God in their own way, are lonely souls who are blinded due to the erroneous thoughts on how to worship God. On one count of the Greek scriptures it says that in the first century about 120 disciples of Christ while congregated were anointed with God's holy spirit. The apostle Paul wrote in Hebrews 10:24, 25 reminding the Christians in Jerusalem in "not forsaking the gathering of ourselves together, as some have the custom, but encouraging one another, and all the more so as you behold the day drawing near".

Answer 6

You make a very good point and I agree with you that a lot of people going to church do it unwillingly and aren't really there to worship God. I also think that going to church benefits you in teaching you how to interpret the Bible, helping you to form opinions about it, letting you teach others about God's Word. This is the whole reason that God put us on this Earth: to spread his word and without knowing the scriptures, we cannot do this, so going to church has its benefits, but only if you let it.

Answer 7

Church, I think helps for you to be around other Christians to make you stronger. I know from experience getting out of church tends to make you be around the wrong crowd sometimes. People in church have more in common with you. Yes a lot of churches are out for the money. Lot of churches have wrong doctrines. I also think you don't have to go to church to be a christian and more importantly go to Heaven. You calling with Jesus Christ is what gets you to Heaven, not what your gonna wear on Sunday. I believe you should tithe, but there are gospel radio stations you can tithe to also.

Answer 8

WELL yea im belive in God and i really feel close to him and yes i don't like to go to church either but Jesus made it place where you can have a more 101 with him you know and i know church its borring something but go because you want a closer time with God not becuase you call your self a chritian
And those people that you see like that well don't mind them cause you have to save your own skin and if they countinue like that well you know that there is a place where they go that is not heaven

Answer 9

If any man is in christ he is a new creature. You desire no longer to do the things of the flesh but to do the things of the spirit. You want to be with other believers to refresh and fellowship and learn and lift each other up. This is a natural desire. If you don't crave that I have to honestly ask you why you wish to not assemble when God specifically states "do not forsake the assembling of yourselves" I agree not all chuches are on the up and up but every church has unsaved people in it. You just have to find the group that loves the lord and plug in there.

Answer 10

I think you are at the right place in regards to where you think the church is...(in your heart). A lot of people do go to church with the wrong motive in mind and you are quite observant of the fact. Other people go there because they like the feeling of the celebration and they love to celebrate the fact that God loves them. My thoughts regarding you and your lack of desire to want to go to church are that you are not uncommon. Don't go if your not eagar to be there.