Kingdom Life: Community

Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. ~ Acts 4:32-34

We cannot live only for ourselves. A Thousand fibers connect us with our fellow (humans). ~ Herman Melville.

 Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. ~ Helen Keller
Why is it that the chief way we tend to worship God as Christians is in a place we call church?

 What exactly IS church?

 When I was a kid, to me it was simply a building. It was the place we went on Sundays. You know the old children's hand play: "Here's the church and here's the steeple, open the doors and see all the people." As if the church and the people were two separate things.

 But the church IS the people. The church building is where we go, but the edifice itself is not church. The community is the church.

 And we go not to be alone, to worship in a vacuum. But we go to worship with others. We go to be with our community.

 And together with our community, we DO church to the world.

 The early church has much to teach us. Nothing in Acts talks about church being a building of where the followers of Jesus went; Acts instead told of how the followers of Jesus were.

 The cared for each other. They saw that no one was left out. They fed each other. They felt God's grace together.

 And then they were called, as we are now, to share this community - a community based on love - with the larger community of Humanity.

 Prayer: Help me "do" church today. Help me "be" church today. Help me reach out in love as part of your plan of community. Amen.

Popular posts from this blog

But we had hoped

Now on that same day two (disciples) were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles  from Jerusalem,  and talking with each other about all these things that had happened.  While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them,  but their eyes were kept from recognizing him.  And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad.   Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?”  He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth,  who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,  and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him.  But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.  Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place.  Mo
Read more

Resurrection Run

For the week after Easter, some deeper dives into the Resurrection . When (the women) looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back.  As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed.  But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him.  But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.”  So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid. ~ Mark 16:4-8 No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear. I am not afraid but the sensation is like being afraid. The same fluttering in the stomach; the same restlessness; the yawning. ~ CS Lewis The cave you fear to enter holds the  treasure
Read more

God's People: Abram

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.  I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” ~ Genesis 12:1-3 Abram was Shem's great times seven grandson. And sometime in between Shem and Abram was the Tower of  Babel. God's creation had begun in a garden, and with sin, creation spread east of Eden. As the selfishness of sin continued, God pulled the reins in and brought creation back to a smaller size, managed by one family. But before too many generations, that family grew and spread and once again became embroiled in trying to compete with God. And so God, with Babel, sent creation scattered off near and far. So when we meet Abram - already an old man - he is part of one of the many tribes
Read more