When the elders of a congregation oversee the church (as they are commanded to do in Acts 20:28 and 1 Peter 5:2-3) and when they decide to organize the church to have Sunday evening worship and Wednesday evening assemblies (as part of their responsibility to watch for the souls of the church in Hebrews 13:17), how do some Christians choose to willfully not attend?
For each Christian, there should be the consideration that God commands us to “obey” the elders and “be submissive” to them (Heb. 13:17). If I do not submit to them and obey them (when what they ask of me does not violate God’s will), then I am disobeying God (Jas. 4:17).
And there’s something else to consider. When I choose to willfully not attend on Sunday nights and Wednesday nights, my church family notices that, including some very impressionable children. What message does it give children about the Lord, His church, His worship and His elders when I choose to absent myself? And is that really the influence that I want to have on the children (see Matthew 18:6)? Assemblies of the church are a big deal for a lot of reasons.
