It's about community
The other day a friend was saying that if you have a job that consistently prevents you from attending church Sunday service, you should quit your job. Blink & I objected to this because, if that's so, then there would be NO Christians in retail, or working in hotels and the hospitality industry, not to mention being air stewardesses and pilots and... all that lah.
Blink (I'm so proud of him) pointed out that the Hebrews verse people always use to say "you must go to church!" merely states, "Let us not give up meeting together... but let us encourage one another". Technically, this can be done outside a church setting -- like in cell groups or even informal meet-ups.
When, all your life, you've been conditioned to think that Christians must go to church, the idea that 'church' need not occur in a designated building at a designated time can be a bit difficult to swallow.
I am fortunate because I'm in constant contact with many Christian friends, and we often talk about our faith journeys and share what God is doing in our lives. When listening to that particular friend insist that we should all attend Sunday service, I realised it is more imporant to me that I be part of a faith community than it is that I should to go to church like clockwork every Sunday. I also realised that I've found the community I've been looking for, except it happens to be beyond the four walls of the church.
To me, community is important because community gives you a sense of belonging. Given the chance, I would want to find that sense of belonging within a local church. When you join the Methodist church, you pledge to support the church with your prayers, presence, gifts, and service. Too often we interpret 'church' in this context as the institution itself, but I think we should be upholding other members of the church with our prayers, presence, gifts, and service... because that's what community is all about.
Since I've found it difficult to become part of a community within any of the local churches, I'm glad I still have a loosely structured faith community anyway. That's what's helped to keep me in check when I've been in danger of sliding off a slippery slope and doing my own thing, forgetting all about God.
I wouldn't say that church is redundant, however. When I do attend Sunday service I am reminded to praise & worship God for who He is, not what He can do or what He has done. And it is always a reminder that I am part of a much larger family of believers, and have a place in all of that somehow; a role to play, perhaps a task to accomplish. That it is not all about ME, but about God and His purposes.