about . . . community and unity

Human beings were created for community, and it is our duty and privilege to foster this person to person, person to group, and group to person unity. This community is a result of our being created in the image of a God who has always been in community, the community of the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.

Because community is nearly instinctive among people, it is no surprise to find a variety of people-groups scattered throughout society. Some of these are helpful, others are not. But the ideal people-group is that which is formed by the Spirit of God, who calls us into fellowship with the Father and his Son. It is this community that should enjoy, promote, and support.

As believers, we count ourselves as part of the larger Christian community around the world and throughout history. But we also give expression to this unity through various local pockets of believers.

In order to foster a God-honoring community, it is essential that we look to God and seek to live according to his sacred standards. Of course such a project cannot be maintained unless we acknowledge our many short-comings and our need of continual divine and human assistance. We must, therefore, be patient with one another, for our growth as individuals and as a group is an imperfect process.

Of course there are occasions when some of us refuse to follow through on our God-given responsibilities, at which time it our duty to patiently and lovingly assist and encourage those who venture away from the right path. Jesus spoke to this end in Matthew 18:15ff; where he outlined the basic plan for intervening in the lives of those who have gone astray. Some have termed this “church discipline,” which is sometimes necessary, but the overall purpose of this passage, and Scripture in general, is to nurture the fallen back to spiritual health. Whether through gentle words, loving action, patient counsel, or blunt reproof, our intent must always be to support and encourage one another.

When friction occurs (and it inevitably will), it is our responsibility to contain the fallout (and potential gossip) as much as possible, maintain the integrity of the group (and accompanying relationships), look to ourselves lest we too be misled, seek wisdom from God and direction from his Word, and prayerfully attempt to bring about spiritual restoration.

In this world we all falter in many ways, but our imperfections need not be faced alone. Likewise, the gifts we possess and the joys we encounter were never intended to be hidden from others. Together–imperfectly but truly–we can walk by faith. Surrounded by love, empowered by God’s Spirit, motivated by truth, governed by grace, and illumined by hope, we just might experience a measure of the connectivity that flows from our three-in-One Maker.