Reason 2: You are enjoying things that you know the Bible says are sinful.
Can we be honest about this? Most people who have left church fall in this category. Hurt and hypocrisy, while honest critiques that the church should confront and correct, are more often than not excuses to continue living a certain way.
You remember all the teachings from church. You remember what the Bible said about the recent life choices you made. You also don’t feel like changing. You like what you are doing and don’t want anyone telling you that it’s wrong.
Maybe if you aren’t confronted with the Bible or Christians, you can continue on in your new lifestyle. There will be no one there to say no. You can make your own choices without interference from others.
It’s like avoiding going to a doctor because you think he might tell you something is wrong. Sure, no one likes to hear bad news, but wouldn’t you rather hear it coupled with hope for the cure? Why would you want to avoid confronting problems that only will get worse with time?
All those fears you have about returning? They’re lies. People love you and are praying for you to come home, even now. More importantly, God loves you and longs to be reunited with you.
Do you remember the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Jesus describes God as the Father who stood by the road and waited for the moment when His child would come home. He’s there waiting for you—ready to take you in.
Coming home can be difficult and painful. It means leaving old things behind to embrace new life, but it is dropping rags to pick up riches. When you embrace Christ and the things He has for your life, everything else, even those things that seemed so valuable to you before, pales in comparison.
As precious as our sin may seem to us, we cannot take hold of the treasures God has for us with our fingers still clutching our old rags.
Sure, you’ll find hypocrites in the house when you come home, but you’ll remember that they’re not any different from you. They need grace and forgiveness, just like you. Maybe, just maybe, you can offer it to them and they can extend it to you.
Now that we know the real reasons people don’t go to church, here are two questions for those of us who are active members of a church family.
What can we do to help comfort those who have been hurt by church and the people there? How can we show those who are enjoying their sin that their is more joy within the church than outside?
Perhaps the two questions have the same answer.
