Almost without fail, every Sunday, around 9:30 AM, as I drive up Admiral Callaghan Lane on my way to the church facility, I get to see the same elderly couple walking down the road. I have no idea where they are headed. Or maybe it’s just their regular exercise. Whatever their destination or purpose, I can count on seeing them every week … walking … together.
Companionship and community is a good thing. I am reminded of musings of the author of Ecclesiastes that begins with “two are better than one” and closes with “a cord of three strands is not quickly broken” (Ecclesiastes 4.9-12). He reflects on some advantages of a life lived in companionship or in community with others: support, warmth, strength.
Community is companionship multiplied. And God intends for us to live in the context of community. One of the tragic mistakes of a common form of Christianity is the tendency toward an imbalanced emphasis on the individual, adopting the faulty individualism of secular society. The Lord never intended for the Christian life to be lived in isolation. The Christian life is best lived in community. Where else will the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control—be best manifested and practiced except in community?
We often say that Christianity is not about religion but about relationship. Relationship always involves another person—with God and with other people, especially fellow believers. Yet we tend to pursue spiritual growth as though it was an individual endeavor.
One important characteristic of the early Christians is described as believers “all joined together constantly in prayer” (Acts 1.14 NIV). Paul shares the same perspective with the rest of the New Testament writers when he writes: “May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 15.5–6 ESV). The primary focus and concern of Jesus’ prayer in John 17.20-26 is the community life of his followers. An essential factor of a church’s ministry is the health of its own community life. And a healthy community life will be a faithful reflection of that perfect community called the Trinity.
Can the Lord count on us to live in true Christian community … walking together … constantly … in accord with Christ?
—Keith Jainga