Joyce Meyer says one of the important steps to take beyond salvation is getting involved in a local church. She says this is crucial not only to learn more about the Word, but also to make new friends in the body of Christ.
“[It’s important] to get into relationship with people that are going to believe like you and be like-minded with you,” Meyer says.
Meyer says it’s vital that we don’t let a few bad church experiences make us quit going to church altogether—not out of the sake of legalism or rituals, but because we need to be in godly fellowship with one another and be held accountable to one another.
“So many people, if they try a church and they get hurt, or they try a church and they feel like people aren’t friendly, then they just want to ditch it all and forget it and give up,” Meyer says. “But, like I said, church doesn’t save you. … Jesus didn’t die so we can have a religion; He died so we could have a relationship with God through Him. … But it’s important, I think, to be in church. …
“To be in community with people requires some accountability, and it’s good for us. It’s not a matter of somebody spying on you or being nosy, but it’s good for us if somebody says, ‘Hey, we haven’t seen you for a couple of weeks; is everything OK?’ Everybody wants to know that somebody cares about them.”
To hear more encouraging guidance on what new believers can do next to grow in their relationship with God, watch the entire video here.
