Tuesday, 5/5 | Community
Ephesians 4:13-16 | Community
13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
During this odd and funky season that has been quarantine, one of the common topics of discussion has been on how to continue to create community within our church. Around the country, pastors and church leaders have been constructing creative plans to keep everyone connected or have provided unique avenues for community.
At Storehouse McAllen, we have encouraged our groups and pockets of community to be creative in how they connect, but haven’t provided many different avenues of connectivity. Here’s why: the method has changed, but not the message.
In other words, the context and avenue of community hasn’t changed, but how we engage (method) has. Currently, we have groups and friends meeting over Zoom, hosting virtual game nights, and connecting via old school phone calls more than ever. In today’s passage, Paul encourages discipleship in the context of community in five ways:
Unity: Unity does not mean uniformity so what is at stake is NOT the method, but the message.
Faith in Jesus: The reason we fight for unity is because of the foundation upon which we stand: the gospel. The gospel, then empowers and informs how our lives are shaped.
Knowledge in Jesus: Growing in our understanding of who Jesus is and what He has revealed to us through His word. If we grow in knowledge without community, we can become arrogant and proud. If we grow in community and relationships without knowledge, then we’re really a consumer of the church.
Speak the truth in love: Speaking the truth in love isn’t so that we can be right, but so that we would sanctify one another in the gospel. Our speech is seasoned with grace.
Love: Jesus demonstrates his love for us so that we might love like him. That is, He is intentional as he entered into our world, He is sacrificial and self-giving as he gave himself upon a cross, and He is active and not passive in His pursuit of us. Do we love in a manner that is intentional, sacrificial, and active?
When we disciple one another in community, we grow in our maturity. So, while the season is interesting, we’re not fully back in “reopening,” and the method of our gatherings have changed right now (they’ll continue to change), what does community look like for you right now? It requires the same intentionality that it did 8 weeks ago.