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August 2 Daily Devotional

A Good Custom

Frans Bakker

They went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. —Luke 2:42

Bible Reading

Luke 2:41–45

Devotional

Mary and Joseph went up to Jerusalem with their child Jesus to visit the temple of God. It is notable that we read in our text that they did this “after the custom of the feast.” Pay attention to the word “custom.” Some people sincerely think that you should only go to church out of desire.

Oh, it sounds very nice to say that you should only go to church out of desire and not out of custom. That sounds sincere and honest. When you hear people state this, you may even be persuaded that those who go to church out of custom would be better off to stay at home. In addition, you may come to think that to have a day of rest at home is a wonderful way to spend the Lord’s Day. You can delight in a day off of work in any way you please. It is, after all, a day of rest that the Lord wants to give you. Man’s corrupt heart makes up these stories and shares them with others under the pretense of being honest. It is really amazing what people nowadays call honest.

Man’s reasoning, however, is nothing more than an invention to neutralize the commandment of God. For the Lord says very clearly in His Word that we are not allowed to forsake the assembling of the congregation. People will devise any invention to stay out of church. Man’s heart is very cunning. And the devil also plays his part in order to try to keep people away from the proclamation of God’s Word. That is because he delights in nothing more than in man’s perdition. Man’s own heart and the devil are allies. They both know how to devise schemes to stay on the wrong side of the church walls. But it will be an eternal sorrow to have neglected the supervision of God’s Word. It will be an eternal remorse to have had the way proclaimed but not to have walked in that way. The schemes and excuses of people destroy themselves. If they are parents, they set up their children for failure and destruction as well.

Is the issue simply one of going to church? It is definitely wrong not to go to church. So going to church is a good custom and staying away from church is a bad custom. If this is our logic, we prefer to agree with Mary and Joseph, who with their child Jesus went up to the temple out of custom. This was faithfulness to the commandment of the Lord. The text does not say that they had no desire to go but went anyway. Why would desire and custom not go together? It was a joyful time of gathering to worship. We should do likewise. And even if you attend church out of sheer custom, the Word of God can strike you with truth and gain for eternity.

A minister can at times ascend the pulpit out of custom and a child of God can be seated beneath the pulpit out of custom. But blessed be God who still speaks, no matter what our motivation is for being in the house of the Lord. The Lord says in Psalm 50:23, “And to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.” It is a good custom to go to church. Is this also your custom? Is it the custom of your children?

 

From The Everlasting Word by Frans Bakker, compiled and translated by Gerald R. Procee. Reformation Heritage Books and Free Reformed Publications, 2007. Used by permission. For further information, click here.

 

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