Update: Christian Community is way more than Church on Sunday
Restack from Aug. 10, 2022
Over the past few weeks, I have really reflected on what it means to be part of the Christian community.
Most people would quickly assume that to be part of the Christian community you are part of the church. Others would assume that to be part of the community you affirm the beliefs of the Bible.
While these play a part of our community and are certainly involved in our experience as Christians, these aspects do not really express the heart of Christian community.
Unlike other communities, the Christian community finds their identity outside themselves.
Their identity stems from Jesus and the life which flows from him.
Community is created out of our mutual connectedness to him. This connectedness then breathes life into ourselves and each other when we are together.
Christian community is more than church because the community is more dynamic than the church.
Church is a commodity in the West.
When the church no longer fills our need or fits our preference, we choose a new one. We can move and change churches. We can choose our church.
Christian community does not function that way.
We do not choose it. Rather, Jesus chooses us.
The past few weeks I have seen how people come together outside the church.
We eat together.
We cry together.
We laugh together.
We sing and play together.
We breathe the same air together.
We encourage each other.
We speak life together.
Church highlights many of these things but the Christian community goes beyond the church setting.
Christian community chooses to love people regardless our situation.
You cannot un-choose the Christian community... unless you seek to leave it.
A practical encouragement: invest in your Christian community. Even though its bigger than your church, I encourage you to really love your church well. The people in your church are your closest Christian community and they need you.
It’s easy to just go to church on Sunday, but the community needs you every day…
The people need you…
Update:
Over the last 2 years, we have seen a dramatic shift in the Christian landscape in the west. The volatility of COVID-19 has settled, but the Church has been changed in a foundational way. Trust in the church is lower than before… The political landscape of the USA has led many in the church to become divided.
The past few weeks, I have been reflecting on my Pentecostal heritage—specifically my home in the Assemblies of God. Since the beginning, our movement has been founded on the idea of missions and evangelism.
This presents a challenge. In a divided world, where it is a challenge to get people involved beyond simply attending church, we are faced with a choice. Do we seek to simply survive internally or do we seek to pour out our very souls into the mission of God to bring the gospel to all nations?
As I near my fourth year of pastoral ministry, I can see how easy it is to simply be consumed by the day to day operations of the church and Sunday morning services. It’s easy to neglect more demanding ministries and evangelistic efforts. They take more resources—time, money, and human.
Pastors and lay leaders can’t do it alone. We need the church; the people of God.
Unlike other communities, the Christian community finds their identity outside themselves.
This identity cannot be held within, but rather must be offered as frequently and widely as possible. When the church becomes centripetal—moving or existing focused inwardly—the church becomes stagnant.
This is where the full breadth of the Christian community is needed. The church needs each person moving toward the mission of the Kingdom.
We desperately need Christian community more and more in a world that is divided, tribal, isolated, misinformed, distracted, uncommitted, anxious, fearful, and unfulfilled.
Dig into your Christian community—local church—today. You (we) need it.