It is Sunday morning—time to assemble with the saints of our Lord. Believe it or not, for many, this is a moment of decision. There are so many things around the house calling your name—lawn mowing, repairing the thing-a-ma-jig, washing the car, etc. As all of these things flash through your mind, the Lord calls. You may actually find yourself asking, “Whose call do I heed?”

Do you decide on Sunday morning, or evening, or Wednesday evening, whether or not you are “going to church?” Do you find that chores around the house, fishing, hunting, watching sports, working, or other things, win out over the Lord? What a shameful predicament many place themselves in!

It is shameful because, some day, when the Lord returns again, you will have to explain to Him why you said, “I’m too busy for church.” It is written, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Cor 5:10).

Though it is true that attending church is not the ‘end all’ of Christianity, it is nevertheless commanded (Heb 10:24-25). Any Christian who must ask himself at the appointed time if he is going to assemble with the saints needs to realize the dilapidated condition of his soul. For the convicted, faithful, zealous Christian, such an appointment is automatic! There is never a doubt, only the faithful fact that he will be there when the saints meet!

When one is too busy to go to church, what they really say is: “I’m too busy for my brethren (Heb 10:24-25)” and “I’m too busy for the Lord (Eph 1:22-23; Mt 25:40, 45).” If one is too busy for these, he is too busy for heaven! The next time you find yourself thinking, “I’m too busy for church;” remember what that translates into—“I’m too busy for heaven!”