Can you follow Jesus without clocking into church every week? For a lot of people, even asking the question feels like wandering into heresy territory. Isn’t church attendance one of those non-negotiables?
If you ask most church leaders, they’ll likely point you to Hebrews 10:25: “Not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
It’s a go-to defense. Many leaders insist this verse is the biblical mic drop that makes regular church attendance essential. Some pastors say you should be in church all 52 weeks of the year, no excuses.
But does that verse really mandate a perfect attendance record? Not quite. It was written to early Christians who had stopped gathering because of persecution, not because they preferred brunch or a lazy Sunday morning. It wasn’t about guilt-tripping people into showing up—it was about survival and solidarity under pressure. Still, it’s easy to see how the verse gets repurposed to boost attendance stats today.
Even without the guilt, church attendance patterns have shifted dramatically over the years. Thom Rainer, president of Lifeway, notes that 20 years ago, being an “active” church member meant showing up three times a week. Today, it’s more like three times a month. And with online services making it even easier to catch the sermon from your couch, fewer people see weekly attendance as a baseline for being a “good Christian.”
That raises some questions. Is attendance really the point? Does showing up every week automatically mean you’re growing spiritually? Does it mean your faith is thriving? The answer is more complicated than a simple “yes” or “no.”
Rainer has compared church commitment to being on a sports team: if you’re part of the team, you show up, plain and simple. It’s a neat analogy, but it misses the mark. Church isn’t supposed to be a team. It’s supposed to be a family. And skipping a family dinner every now and then doesn’t make you a bad sibling or child.
But here’s the thing: if you’re consistently checked out — missing conversations, neglecting relationships or ghosting responsibilities — it’s fair to ask how invested you really are. You can’t claim to be part of a family if you never act like it.
Maybe the bigger issue is that we’ve been measuring the wrong thing. Attendance doesn’t automatically equal engagement. You can sit through every sermon, sing every worship song, and still feel disconnected from your church and your faith. Engagement, on the other hand, is about connection. It’s about showing up in ways that matter, not just physically but emotionally and spiritually.
So, what does engagement look like? It starts with relationships—whether that’s joining a small group, finding a mentor or building a community within your church. It means contributing, whether that’s through serving, volunteering, or financially supporting the church’s mission. It’s not about checking off a box; it’s about being part of something bigger than yourself.
Engagement also means immersing yourself in what the Church is doing. That could be working toward social justice, helping those in need or simply creating a space where people feel seen and valued. It’s about taking steps toward Jesus, not just as a personal pursuit but as part of a larger, collective mission.
Here’s the truth: you can sit through 52 sermons a year and still feel spiritually stagnant. You can check off every Sunday morning and remain unchanged. Or, you can dive deeper — build relationships, serve, grow — and experience something that actually transforms you.
This isn’t about giving you a pass to skip church. It’s about shifting the focus from just showing up to truly engaging. Attendance might keep you in the loop, but engagement is what keeps your faith alive and growing.
So maybe it’s time to rethink the question. It’s not “Am I going to church enough?” but “Am I engaging with the Church in a way that shapes my faith?” Because at the end of the day, attendance might check a box, but engagement changes lives.
Church isn’t a spectator sport, and it’s not a performance you watch from a distance. It’s a living, breathing community. And being part of that community—really being part of it—means more than just showing up. It means showing up with purpose, connection and a willingness to grow.
So, what’s your next step? Is it joining a small group, volunteering your time or simply having an honest conversation about where you are in your faith? Whatever it is, take it. Because faith isn’t about how often you walk through the church doors. It’s about who you’re becoming along the way.