1. ATTENDANCE
My intention in this lesson is to remind us all of the benefits of regular attendance, and to convince thoe who have room for improvement to become more zealous and faithful in their attendance patterns
We will look at three examples of absenteeism and see what they missed.

2. ATTENDANCE Sunday Morning 45
This is about average for this congregation. I say average but what is our actual number in the congregation.
We do not have the wide differences between Sunday morning and Sunday night at this congregation.
Before I break my arm patting us on the back, lets ask ourselves, and I mean individually, is there room for improvement?
I want us to think about the question. Apply the question to you. Not to the congregation, but to you and you alone. Not to you and your spouse, but you individually.

3. ATTENDANCE Sunday Morning 45 Sunday Night 42
This is what we see here at this congregation, on the average.
When you consider that we have a family that many times must remain home with a child, we have excellent attendance.
This lesson is to encourage us to keep on keeping on.
However lets see if we can use some Biblical examples about lack of attendance.

4. ATTENDANCE THE CONTEST AT MOUNT CARMEL I KINGS 18:20 - 39
KING AHAB’S IDOLATRY WAS SPREADING THROUGOUT ISRAEL AND THE PROPHET ELIJAH CALLED FOR A MAKESHIFT WORSHIP SERVICE ON THE MOUNTAIN TO PROVE WHETHER BAAL OR JEHOVAH WAS GOD WORTHY OF WORSHIP.
OUR GOD WAS PRESENT THAT DAY AND ACCEPTED HIS WORSHIP.
I KG 18:17 Then it happened, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, "[Is] [that] you, O troubler of Israel?" 18 And he answered, "I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father's house [have], in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baal's "Now therefore, send [and] gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel's table."
20 So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel And Elijah came to all the people, and said, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord [is] God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him." But the people answered him not a word Then Elijah said to the people, "I alone am left a prophet of the Lord; but Baal's prophets [are] four hundred and fifty men. 23 "Therefore let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay [it] on the wood, but put no fire [under] [it]; and I will prepare the other bull, and lay [it] on the wood, but put no fire [under] [it] "Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God." So all the people answered and said, "It is well spoken."

5. ATTENDANCE THE CONTEST AT MOUNT CARMEL I KINGS 18:20 – 39
Elijah and the God of Israel against
BAAL and the prophets of BAAL.
5. A GOOD NUMBER OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL WERE ALSO THERE AND THEY HAD BEEN FOLLOING THE WORSHIP OF BAAL.
25 Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare [it] first, for you [are] many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire [under] [it]." 26 So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared [it], and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, "O Baal, hear us!" But [there] [was] no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, "Cry aloud, for he [is] a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, [or] perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened." 28 So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them And when midday was past, they prophesied until the [time] of the offering of the [evening] sacrifice. But [there] [was] no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.
Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come near to me." So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord [that] [was] broken down And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, "Israel shall be your name." 32 Then with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid [it] on the wood, and said, "Fill four water pots with water, and pour [it] on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood."34 Then he said, "Do [it] a second time," and they did [it] a second time; and he said, "Do [it] a third time," and they did [it] a third time So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water And it came to pass, at [the] [time] [of] the offering of the [evening] sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, "Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You [are] God in Israel and I [am] Your servant, and [that] I have done all these things at Your word "Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You [are] the Lord God, and [that] You have turned their hearts back [to] [You] again." 38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that [was] in the trench Now when all the people saw [it], they fell on their faces; and they said, "The Lord, He [is] God! The Lord, He [is] God!" 40 And Elijah said to them, "Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of them escape!" So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook Kishon and executed them there.

6. ATTENDANCE THE CONTEST AT MOUNT CARMEL I KINGS 18:20 – 39
Elijah and the God of Israel against
BAAL and the prophets of BAAL.
GOD IS ALWAYS PRESENT WITH HIS PEOPLE
What happened to Baal? Elijah mocked Baal’s priests. Told them Baal was on a trip, asleep, busy, or meditating. The fact was that Baal was not in attendance.
Of course Baal was not in attendance. Baal did not exist, Baal was a false God.
Who was in attendance? Elijah called upon God and God was there. God sent fire down from heaven and consumed the sacrifice Elijah had prepared, even licked up the water that had been poured all over the sacrifice, wood, and altar.
God is always present with His people. They may be out of favor with God, but the fact is that God is present to see all that we do, say, and do.

7. ATTENDANCE THE SECOND EXAMPLE ON ATTENDANCE
Lk 10:38 – 42 Martha Was Too Busy
Lk 10:38 Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me." 41 And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things "But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."
The word distracted in verse 40 tells the story. Her distraction was being hospitable. She had chosen to put forth her best hospitality and Mary was putting her attention towards the Lord.
Temporal in nature – Jesus’ words would be eternal
Attendance for Spiritual sacrificed for physical worries the good and eternal is being left behind.

8. ATTENDANCE Hospitality Rom 12:13; I Pet 4:9 Must Be Used Wisely
We are taught to be hospitable.
Rom 12:13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
I Pet 4:99 [Be] hospitable to one another without grumbling.
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Not to be used to the neglect of Spiritual
Go home early from services – Just to make dinner for guests
Company is coming – stay home from services to clean house
Company is visiting – stay home to keep from making them feeling like they are interfering with worship.
Weekend is only time I have to do work around house – Ja 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.
My job requires me to miss both AM and PM services – is your job worth your Spiritual Life? I Pet 1:24f reminds us that 24 because "All flesh [is] as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, 25 But the word of the Lord endures forever."

9. ATTENDANCE Third Example On Attendance Thomas John 20:19 - 29
We are not told why Thomas was absent when Jesus appeared to His disciples on the first day of the week. They were in fear because the scripture says they had the doors shut for fear of the Jews. Thomas was absent! What did he miss?
Seeing the risen Jesus which would have dispelled any lingering doubts he may have had that Jesus had risen from the dead.
Thomas had a faith problem, we see this in the further reading John 20:25 …. "Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."

10. ATTENDANCE Third Example On Attendance Thomas John 20:19 – 29
If your attendance is less than it should be
Could there be a faith problem somewhere?
A person whose faith is weak does himself no favors by neglecting Bible classes or worship services
If you are fighting battles of doubt, or with worldly temptations, or foul language or lack of growth in Bible knowledge, then you are suffocating yourself when you stay away from the assembling with the saints.
If you have been a Christian for any length of time, you ought to be at the point at which you can defend the depth of your faith to others and teach them about discipleship. If you are an erratic participant in assemblies and classes, you may need to be taught to grasp first principals Heb 5:12 – 14
We cannot increase our faith in front of a TV, or in a boat, or walking in a mall
Good attendance habits result from a love and reverence for God, a loving desire to give Him the praise He deserves and a godly fear of the judgment that He can exact on those who rebel against Him. To treat meetings of the church lightly is to show disdain for Him and His people. Heb 10:
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11. ATTENDANCE
Heb 10:24 – And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as [is] the manner of some, but exhorting [one] [another], and so much the more as you see the Day approaching For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.

12. ATTENDANCE
Mt. 18:20 "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."
You know attendance records have been kept here at Ashley Heights congregation for years and years. You can check the attendance records and see every time one of us missed a service. Our records are pretty accurate, and there might be a time or two that the attendance was not noted.
Your attendance record, do you have perfect attendance? I dare say not a single one present has a perfect attendance record.
There is one though that has perfect attendance.
Jesus is present with His people whenever they meet to worship Him.

13. ATTENDANCE JESUS HAS PERFECT ATTENDANCE
Mt. 18:20 "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them."
Jesus is present with His people whenever they meet to worship Him.

14. ATTENDANCE ABSENCE IS LACK OF LOVE LACK OF REVERENCE
Missing Bible classes and teaching assemblies is like missing a few days of school and then trying to catch up on what everyone else has already learned.
I did this one time when I was taking college trigonometry. I missed three 3 hour lectures and when I came back to class it was test day and I was looking at questions that were Greek to me. Final result, I failed the course. I never could catch up.
Thomas was in the wrong place when Jesus appeared.
Should Jesus return the next time the assembly meets
What do you think judgment will be like if you are found visiting at home, or be found in the bleachers watching a ball game, or kneeling before the almighty television?

15. Luke 17:10 Even so ye also, when ye shall have done all the things that are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants; we have done that which it was our duty to do.
No one should have to explain why you must attend regularly, for you should be able to do nothing less.
If we look for an excuse to stay away, you will surely find it or make one.
But be ready to give an answer before the Lord.