# Church or School?



## InSlaveryToChrist (Aug 21, 2014)

As my move to the region where my church awaits continues, I've noticed that I've made a possible mistake concerning my choice of location between the church and the school. My choice was to live as near the school as possible, since I would visit it more often than the church. However, today, as I was reading another thread on PB, someone mentioned that church should be visited as often as its doors are open. My understanding of the function of the church is still lacking and I have no idea how and when it operates. Does it welcome unbelievers on the Sabbath day or is that day preserved only for God's people? Is it an open and free spiritual hospital to unbelievers at other times? How and when should I be engaged in it?

So, should I live as near the church as possible, instead? There is only nine kilometers (9km) between the church and the school.


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## py3ak (Aug 21, 2014)

I think that unless you are using a pogo stick to get around, you could live next door to the school and it wouldn't be disruptive for your church attendance. 

The practice of churches vary. Unless there is active persecution, it seems best for the worship services to be public - open to anyone. If your church has morning and evening worship on the Lord's day, you should be at both as much as possible. With regard to midweek services you will have to prudently consider what your schedule allows. If you are healthy and don't have unusual class or work schedules, you can probably be at most of them. But the Lord's day worship services should have the highest priority.


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## Reformed Covenanter (Aug 21, 2014)

Since the distance is only 9km, you have nothing to worry about; nor do I believe that you are morally obliged to be in a church building every time it opens its doors.


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## InSlaveryToChrist (Aug 21, 2014)

py3ak said:


> I think that *unless you are using a pogo stick to get around*, you could live next door to the school and it wouldn't be disruptive for your church attendance.
> 
> The practice of churches vary. Unless there is active persecution, it seems best for the worship services to be public - open to anyone. If your church has morning and evening worship on the Lord's day, you should be at both as much as possible. With regard to midweek services you will have to prudently consider what your schedule allows. If you are healthy and don't have unusual class or work schedules, you can probably be at most of them. But the Lord's day worship services should have the highest priority.



I don't use a pogo stick, but I do use Nike shoes that have John Piper's signature on them. Is that any better?


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## py3ak (Aug 21, 2014)

It probably means you run a little more enthusiastically.


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## Andres (Aug 21, 2014)

The phrase "whenever the church doors are open" simply means that you should attend as often as able. As others have noted, Lord's Day attendance would obviously be the utmost priority, but after that, use wisdom in prioritizing when to attend and when to skip other services, such as mid-week services or prayer meetings. I think you'd be a poor steward of both time and resources if your school work suffered in order for you to be at church every day of the week.


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## InSlaveryToChrist (Aug 21, 2014)

A couple of questions,

Should the church keep its doors open every day of the week?

What does it mean for the church to keep its doors open?

Can the church building be used for other purposes than the service (like a Bible study, conference or some other kind of meeting)?


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## Andres (Aug 21, 2014)

InSlaveryToChrist said:


> A couple of questions,
> 
> Should the church keep its doors open every day of the week?
> 
> ...



Not necessarily. 
In this context I am taking it to mean that there is something going on at the church for the public, i.e. worship, class, prayer, etc. 
Yes


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## InSlaveryToChrist (Aug 21, 2014)

Thanks to everyone!


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## jwithnell (Aug 21, 2014)

Sorry, I was using an idiom to encouage a young man who was going off to college to be actively involved in his church -- not just to show up for the Sunday morning worship but to find ways to serve and to engage in fellowship. I sometimes forget how Puritanboard demonstrates that the church is truly without borders, and that a phrase that communicates here in the US may not always be as clear as it might otherwise be.


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## InSlaveryToChrist (Aug 22, 2014)

jwithnell said:


> Sorry, I was using an idiom to encouage a young man who was going off to college to be actively involved in his church -- not just to show up for the Sunday morning worship but to find ways to serve and to engage in fellowship. I sometimes forget how Puritanboard demonstrates that the church is truly without borders, and that a phrase that communicates here in the US may not always be as clear as it might otherwise be.



It's ok.


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