For some, perhaps, this question comes with a past that was a bit too formal or irrelevant. Others ask because they've had an experience of church that's left a bad taste. And who would want to "lose" their Sunday mornings? But this all sounds like church is something to get out of! That's not how the Bible sees it, and that's not how we see it.

To understand church, and to benefit from it, we need to start where the Bible starts. Everything begins with Jesus Christ, and focuses on his death for sin and resurrection for new life. Christians are people who believe Jesus' actions bring forgiveness from God and entry into his family. It'd be a pretty strange family that never got together - and that's where church comes in.

We've got the slogan In Christ We Believe, Belong, Behave. In other words, real believers belong together, and that affects our behaviour. Week by week we gather to hear the Bible read and explained, to pray together to God, our heavenly Father, and to praise him in word and song. We do this together to help and encourage each other to keep believing, belonging and behaving.

This is what the very first Christians did and that's what Christians still do.

Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:41-47, NIV)

Perhaps we can turn the question around: if you believe in Jesus or want to find out about him, why wouldn't you come to church?

It certainly must seem rather morbid! It would have been even worse in the first century, when everyone knew that crucifixion was not only a very slow and painful way to die, but a shameful way, too, because the person was stripped naked and hung up on public display. An early preacher, the apostle Paul, wrote that everyone found it hard to accept, "Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." (1 Cor 1:22-24)

However, Jesus himself had insisted this was at the heart of his ministry. "The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life." (Luke 9:22) His death was necessary to deal with our sin. As he hung dying on the cross, he bore away the guilt of sin. "God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them." (2 Cor 5:19)

After his resurrection, Jesus wanted the good news of his death and resurrection to be made known. He told his apostles, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high." (Luke 24:46-49)

This is what the apostles did, and Christians have been making a fuss about it ever since.

Years before Jesus’ execution, Peter rightly identified him as the Christ, but was baffled when he then spoke about dying.

He then began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again. (Mark 8:31)

In Jesus, the Old Testament figures of the glorious Christ and of the suffering Servant of the Lord come together. In Ps 2, the Christ (Anointed) overcomes an international plot and then rules the earth. In Isa 53, willing to give his life as a guilt offering, the Servant lives again, great and strong. This is Jesus’ Easter: sin-bearing death and life-giving resurrection.

This is the genius of Jesus Christ; understanding this leads to life. And it isn’t complex. In fact, if you know his name you know enough: Jesus means “God Rescues” and Christ means “God’s Ruler”. All that remains is to respond with faith and gratitude.