Could Involvement With The Church Be A Sign of Regeneration?

Many people who come to faith in Christ are excited about their new life in Christ, but they show lack of zeal for the church. David Murrow, author of Why Men Hate Going to Church, talks about a few men who said they were Christians, but have no involvement with the church. This is nothing new especially in the Bible belt.

As I am reading in Acts 2, I see something that made me ask this question, could my involvement in the church be a sign of my regeneration? Acts 2:41 says that 3,000 people were saved after they heard Peter preach the gospel. The story continues as follows,

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved (Acts 2:42-47, ESV).

Who is the "they" in verse 42? The 3,000 people who were just saved after hearing the gospel for Peter. These five verses show what happens when people who are regenerated truly know their identity in Christ and know what it means to be involved with the church. Does that mean we sell all our possessions? No, but it does mean we minister to those in need.

When we become Christians, the Holy Spirit regenerates us so that we care about the people, believers and non-believers, all around us and do whatever we can to meet their needs. Regenerated believers care about the teachings of the scriptures. They love the Bible. They do not look in it for a to do list, they look at it to be transformed. They met together everyday and had fellowship with one another. My question is, "where is that church?" Matt Carter said, in his book that he wrote along with Darrin Patrick, For The City, that people in this generation are reading Acts wondering why does my church not look like the one in the Bible. I think one of the reasons is that people who attend church are either not believers, which I hope is not the case for every church, or believers are not allowing the Holy Spirit to work in their lives, which is a scary thought.

I personally believe that a sign that a believer is truly regenerated is to be involved with the church. Does not matter if they are an elder, a pastor, or someone who works a 9 to 5 job that faithfully witnesses to his employees. I know for me when I got saved 19 years ago, I knew I needed to be involved with the church. I have a friend that so excited about being saved, that he went to his church, thinking there an event he thought he missed, and accidentally crashed a wedding.

Believers who say they are Christians, but have no involvement with the church fall into one of these categories:

1. They are only saved just to get out of Hell.

2. They are truly saved but cannot find a church that faithfully teaches the Bible, which John MacArthur can tell stories about that.

3. They were saved at some event or heard some street preacher, and have no idea that they were to be in a church.

4. They do not have a good Biblical picture of what the church should be.

Recommended reading on the church:

For The City by Matt Carter and Darrin Patrick

What is the Mission of the Church by Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert

9 Marks of a Healthy Church by Mark Dever

A recent post I did called, To Love Christ is to Also Love The Church

Vintage Church by Mark Driscoll and Gerry Breshears

Dangerous Church by John Bishop

Recommended reading on regeneration:

Justification and Regeneration by Charles Leiter

Finally Alive by John Piper