1. I will praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and I will glorify Your name forevermore. For great is your mercy toward me… (Psalm 86:12-13) W HY C HRISTIANS A TTEND A LL T HE A SSEMBLIES O F T HE L OCAL C HURCH

2.  Continued steadfastly, Acts 2:42  Daily assemblies, Acts 2:46; 5:42  Warned not to forsake, Heb. 10:25  “leave behind” or “abandon”  Some first century Christians had developed the habit of forsaking the assembling of the saints  Willful choice not to be present  Symptom of deeper problems John 4:23-24 Acts 20:7 1 Cor. 14:26 Heb. 10:24-25 Christians are Eager to Worship 2

3.  God deserves worship, Psa. 86:8-13 (Rom. 1:21)  God commands assembled worship, Heb. 10:24-25  Respectful obedience, Mal. 1:6-8; 1 Jno. 3:4; Acts 2:42  Sin to forsake assembling together, cf. Jas. 4:17 “Why must I attend ANY of the worship services of the local church?” Why Assemble to Worship? 3

4.  In order to worship God in spirit and in truth, Jno. 4:23-24  Happy expectation, Psa. 122:1  Fellowship in Christ (Acts 2:42)  Lord’s Supper, 1 Cor. 11:20 (Acts 20:7)  Teach and admonish in song, Col. 3:16  Prayer, Acts 2:42; 1 Tim. 2:8  Giving, 1 Cor. 16:2  Feed on God’s word, Acts 11:26 (20:7) “Why must I attend ANY of the worship services of the local church?” Why Assemble to Worship? 4

5.  To receive and give edification, 1 Cor. 14:26 (14:12); Eph. 4:11-16  Influence each other, Heb. 10:24-25  Consider and exhort one another  Good work of worship, Titus 2:14  Grow through hearing word, 1 Pet. 2:2  Praise God and speak to each other in songs, Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16  Remember and proclaim the Lord’s death, 1 Cor. 11:23-26  Give to support the work, 2 Cor. 9:7-10 “Why must I attend ANY of the worship services of the local church?” Why Assemble to Worship? 5

6.  Talking about excuses that crowd out worship, Mk. 4:18-19 (Lk. 14: 18-20)  Willfully choosing not to worship the Lord, cf. Rom. 1:21-22  Failure to be thankful, 1:21  Futile thinking takes over, 1:21  Heart becomes darkened, 1:21  Professing to be wise, these become fools, 1:22 “I don’t want to attend ALL the worship services.” Willful Refusal to Assemble 6

7.  Fail to honor God through His prescribed worship, Jno. 4:23  Sin against God, Heb. 10:25 (Acts 10:34-35)  Robbed of opportunities for growth, Heb. 10:24; Eph. 4:11-12, 16  Convenience over conviction, Acts 24:25  Not putting God first, Matt. 6:33; 16:24 “I don’t want to attend ALL the worship services.” Willfully Refuse to Assemble 7

8. With reverence and devotion we must commit ourselves to “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together…” (Hebrews 10:25) T RUE W ORSHIP H ONORS G OD AND E NCOURAGES C HRISTIANS