>
> Yup there is "Forsake not the assembly of"
>
> --
> Prayer is the bridge between panic and peace.
> Karen Carter '74

Dear Karen, and friends

I thought I would share with you part of a small book that really helped me
a few years ago. It really goes into all of this in a bit more detail...

Keith

---
CHAPTER 4
ASSEMBLING OURSELVES TOGETHER, AND OTHER CHALLENGES
        There are, of course, quite a few other references in the New
Testament to "gatherings" or "get-togethers" of Christians. Because they don't
mention Sunday or Corporate Worship doesn't mean that we can overlook them.
There is, for instance, the famous verse most often brought up in
discussions about the unstructured church lifestyle: "Forsake not the
assembling of yourselves together, as the manner of some is" (Hebrews 10:25
AV). The first thing I would point out, with regard to this verse, is the
context - which shows what the writer was expecting to happen at these
get-togethers. It wasn't worship! It was: "Consider how we may spur one
another on to love and good works" (v24); and "Let us encourage one another"
(v25). It wasn't even a teaching session; it was a time for conversation
among people.
        The second issue I would want to point out with regard to Hebrews
10:25 is that critics of unstructured church-life always seem to quote this
verse from the Authorised Version, even though many of them don't actually
use the AV much. Whereas most translations say "meeting together", the AV
says "assembling together", which sounds a little grander, and perhaps gives
the impression that we ought to be at something which is like a school
assembly, or a Christian Brethren assembly.
        The truth is, however, that the actual Greek verb (epi-sun-ag-ein),
translated as "assemble together" in the AV simply means "to gather
 together" - of any numbers, including small numbers. Jesus used the
selfsame word when talking about vultures gathering round a dead body (Luke
17:37). You don't get many vultures round one corpse - usually just a pair,
or a couple of pairs! Jesus also uses that actual word to describe the hen
gathering her chicks under her wings (Matthew 23:37). You don't get all that
many chickens under one mother hen!
        So, it really is a bit naughty to use this verse to suggest that we
ought to be at regular occasions which have the characteristics of
"assemblies", and that when we get there, we should be engaging in corporate
worship. The verse itself doesn't carry either of these implications. In
fact, with regard to numbers, there is absolutely no reason why it could not
refer to an informal get-together of, say, two couples or half-a-dozen
individuals. All the verse really means is: "It is essential to have
get-togethers with other Christians for mutual encouragement and spurring-on
to good works. The living stones of a spiritual house are not to remain
isolated. They are to be linked with each other. They are constantly to
develop relationships with one another.