Why the Church?

"Unchurched Christian" isn't a biblical category. Ask Paul, John, or Peter what they think about unchurched Christians, and they would have responded, “Why are you calling them Christians if they aren't a part of the church?”

The New Testament doesn't have a vision of the Christian life outside of the church, the local church. But there are many professing Christians today who seek to be committed to Christ with no commitment to the church. They don't believe in organized religion. They claim the church is full of hypocrites. They have experienced church hurt. They can't find a faithful, biblical church. They don't find the church necessary, supportive, or beneficial. So, they follow Christ but forsake the church.

It's wrong. It's unbiblical. It's non-Christian. You cannot have a high view of Christ and a low view of the church at the same time. Jesus declared, "On this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). The church belongs to Jesus. Christ himself is building the church. And nothing can defeat the church of Christ.
Christ is the head of the church. And he does not have out-of-body experiences. To submit to the authority of Jesus Christ over your life is to live in fellowship with the church.

Pastor David Carroll -  Senior Pastor, Sharon Baptist Church