Why Church?

In Denver we’re surrounded by inspiration. The mountains are in our backyard, the microbreweries are in our neighborhoods, and weekends are full of adventure. And we live at a time when the best preaching in the world came be streamed on our drive in to work. Isn’t God’s glory all around us? So why go to church?
At Redemption we believe our faith is best expressed in a real tangible gathering of believers. We’re not just clinging to a traditional relic, but together pursuing the God who made it all.
There are at least three reasons we go to church.

1.  Gospel is Relational
The gospel is the basis of our faith, and it literally means good news. The good news is that our broken relationship with God has been restored by Christ. The gospel itself is about a renewed relationship. In restoring his relationship with us, God makes it possible to restore our relationships with each other. The clearest expression of our faith is in a community of people whose love for one another overflows into our city. Jesus said, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” When we gather together we show and experience God’s love for one another. There are some things, like love, that you just can’t know from a podcast.
2.  The Gospel is Transformative
This good news that Christ has redeemed the world, is not just a fact to know in our heads, but a truth that transforms the whole of our lives. Christ died so that we could live for him, and living for him means becoming exactly who God created us to be. True transformation requires relationships. To be transformed we need encouragement, openness, and diversity. In order to discover who we truly are we need a community. This is Christ’s design, that all of us with diverse backgrounds and dispositions might find the deepest unity in him. That’s why Jesus prays for the church, “that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”
3. The Gospel is Dynamic
Jesus didn’t set out to create a new organization but a dynamic movement. That means being a part of a church shouldn’t just be good for you, but for everyone you interact with throughout the week. As the community builds itself up in love for one another, our cities and cultures become more loving, gracious, generous, and kind. Paul an early church writer says it like this, “When each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” Our desire as a church is to be a dynamic movement in our city that grows together to demonstrate and experience the love of Christ. To live this out in a simple way we all gather together on Sunday mornings, and gather together in small groups throughout the week.
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