The Blessings and Responsibilities of Community

Introduction

            Last Saturday, Roslyn and Brett made some pretty serious promises to each other when they were married. That is what happens at a wedding. When I do a wedding I like to remind the couple of the significance of the promises they are making to each other. In a marriage we expect that these promises will be made and we expect and hope they will be kept.

            When we moved to Winnipeg, we made several trips to the Credit Union in order to make arrangements for a mortgage. They gave us pages and pages of paper and we were asked to sign and initial all of them. They wanted to make sure that we would keep our promise to pay back the money, and we wanted to make sure they would keep their promise to give us the money.

            In both of these illustrations, there are promises which two parties make to each other for the mutual benefit of each. Each party has something to offer and something that is expected. In a marriage, each partner offers and expects, faithfulness, honor, exclusiveness and love. When making a mortgage, the bank offers the money and expects to be paid back.

            Two weeks ago, I spoke about how when we become Christians, we become part of the community of all those who also belong to Jesus. Each person who is a Christian needs to be part of a local community of faith. I also said that being part of a church is not just a casual arrangement, but must be a relationship which is lived in covenant. The Bible tells us that we are in a covenant with others of God's people and that is what it means to be the church. Today, I would like to take that thinking one step further and talk about what it means to be in a covenant relationship with the body of believers in a local church. Today we are using the language of covenant, but the church is so much more than that. It is a loving connection with another family member. It is described as being as close as a part of the physical body. Yet the language of covenant can also help us understand how we are to live in the community of faith. What does each party promise? What are the blessings that can be expected in that relationship?

I.     What the Church Promises

            I would like to begin by talking about what you can expect from the church. What do you expect will be offered to you if you are part of a community of faith?

A.   To Make Disciples

            When He went to heaven, Jesus left the church with an important responsibility and that is to make disciples. In Matthew 28:19, Jesus said, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”"

            A disciple is a follower of Jesus. When we talk about following Jesus, we are not only talking about knowing things, but we are talking about knowing a person. Being a disciple is very specific to a relationship with the person of Jesus Christ. There are some people who have a great deal of knowledge about spiritual things. They have read the books of the Bible and they have an understanding of history. Those are good things, but making those things happen is not the task of the church. The church is not first of all an educational institution. The task of the church is to introduce people to Jesus and to help them know Him.

            Making disciples is also not about merely helping people know about Jesus. A person can know about Jesus and even know Jesus, but if anyone knows Jesus, there is no doubt that they must also imitate Jesus. Being a disciple is about knowing Jesus and imitating Jesus. Ephesians 4:15 puts it this way, "… we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ…" That is what discipleship is all about.

            How does the church make disciples? I believe that there are three things that the church offers. The aspect that we are most familiar and comfortable with is teaching. Matthew says that we are to teach. So every person that is a part of a congregation can expect that they will have an opportunity to learn. That is why we have sermons and Sunday School classes for children and adults. That is why we have a library.

            Another aspect of making disciples is modeling. Last week we talked about this as part of our responsibility with children. Every person who is part of a church should expect to be able to look at the lives of the people there and be able to see what it means to be a follower of Jesus. Paul puts it this way in 1 Corinthians 11:1, "Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ."

            The third aspect of making disciples is discipline. There could be a rather large conversation about this aspect because the church has not always done this right. Sometimes it has been too harsh and sometimes it has ignored discipline. Yet it is still true that if someone is walking away from Jesus, we should expect that the church would do what they can to gently and lovingly bring them back. Galatians 6:1 says, "My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness..."

            Every person who is part of a community of Christians should expect to be taught, shown and encouraged to be a follower of Jesus.

B.   To Love

            The church is also responsible to love.

            The love that should be expected in the church is a love that does not make distinctions. The church is and ought to be one of the most unique institutions in the world. It is the only institution which encompasses people of such a variety of socio-economic, racial and cultural backgrounds. Whether you are a Christian from Africa or from Northern Europe you belong in the church. If you are on social assistance or if you earn $500,000 your belonging should not be impacted. If you have three doctorates or if you have not finished grade nine you have something to contribute. That is why we have the audacity to suggest that three congregations with very different histories and cultures can worship and work together in one location. The fact that we are all children of one Father, brothers and sisters of Jesus and filled with the same Holy Spirit means that we are able to love all who belong to Jesus and even to love those who don't know Jesus.

            The love that should be expected in the church is also not a theoretical love. It is a love that does practical things and cares for those in the congregation. The early church caught the importance of this immediately in a very practical way when one of the first things that distinguished them was that they had everything in common. The particular model that they chose to express love has changed, but the reality of love that acts has not changed. We need to find practical ways to love each other. I have seen this practiced in the most wonderful ways in the church. People have brought meals to those who have a need. People have given rides to those who have medical appointments. We don't just formally acknowledge that someone is going through a difficult time, but we actually listen with a loving and caring heart.

            The love that can be expected in the church is also a love that continues even if a person has failed. The Bible calls us to be patient and to bear with one another. Colossians 3:13 says, "Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."

            Anyone who is a part of any congregation can expect that they will be treated with that kind of love.  

C.   To Encourage

            Hebrews 10:25 says, "…not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching."

            I believe that another responsibility that the church has is to encourage each person who is a part of the church to let them know that God is present in the midst of all of life.

            Probably the primary way in which we do that is through our times of worship. Ephesians 5:18 – 20 talks about this when it says, "…be filled with the Spirit, as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." The purpose of worship is to give glory to God and to remind us about God. It is easy in the midst of the everyday challenges of life to forget that God is present. Although we have our own personal devotions to remind us, there is something powerful about the purposeful focus on God that happens as we come together to worship God. We are reminded about who God is and what He has done. We are encouraged that He is our Lord and that we can come to Him at any time.

            We also encourage each other by pointing to God through the ordinances which we practice. Whenever someone is baptized it is an occasion when we declare that God has done something in that person's life. Whenever we observer the Lord's supper, we are reminded of what God has done for us through Jesus' death and resurrection.

            We also encourage each other and point to God's presence at occasions like weddings or child dedications or even when we mourn together at funerals. All of these activities are done in community and each of us should expect to be encouraged and brought near to God as we are reminded of God at these occasions.

D.   To Train For God's Mission

            The final responsibility of the church to each individual is to train them and send them out into the mission which God has given the church to do. This involves several different aspects.

            The church must remind us that we have a mission given to us by God. In Matthew 5:16 Jesus reminds us to, "…let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." Each person can expect to be reminded of this task.

            But another part of this role of the church is to train people to do the work. II Timothy 2:2 gives the role of the church when it says, "and what you have heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well." From time to time we have special sessions, special emphases which are intended to train us in God's mission.

            But awareness and training are not the only tasks. It is also the role of the church to give opportunities for service and ministry. God has given gifts for the work of the church to each individual. It is the role of the church to discern those gifts and to give opportunities to use those gifts. I Peter 4:10 says, "Like good stewards of the manifold grace of God, serve one another with whatever gift each of you has received." That is why the church makes no apologies for asking people to do things whether that is serving coffee at funerals, cleaning house at Woody's Place, like we did yesterday, leading singing, teaching Children's Church or any other task.

            You can expect that the church will remind people of God's mission and help people become meaningfully involved in that mission.

II.  What Each Individual Promises

            What the church promises is what we receive as a blessing. We benefit from being taught, loved, encouraged and challenged. But we also have obligations. What are the obligations.

            As I tried to organize these thoughts I noticed that what the church promises corresponds to our obligation.

A.   To Live As A Disciple

            The church is to teach us to be disciples, but it is the responsibility of each one of us to follow Jesus.

            As followers of Jesus, we are called to a life of holiness. Romans 12:1 says, "I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect." It matters what we do and how we live. We are always shocked when a police officer, who is duty bound to uphold the law, is caught breaking the law. How much more is that true of every person who is a follower of Jesus. We aren't just Christians on Sunday, but we are followers of Jesus every day. When we fail to walk in obedience to Him, we not only let down our brothers and sisters, even more significantly, we let down Jesus. When it comes to holiness, we are always on duty.

            In order to be successful in living as disciples, it is our responsibility to develop a life of self discipline and devotion. Bible reading must be a part of our life. Psalm 1:2, speaking of those who are living in God says, "…their delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law they meditate day and night."  Ephesians 6:18 calls every believer to a life of prayer when it says, "Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints."

            If it is the responsibility of the church to discipline those who walk away from Jesus, it is the responsibility of each person who belongs to Jesus to accept the discipline of the church. That may be a hard thing to do, but if we are following Jesus, He is the one who has given us the church to help us in that walk. Let us not allow pride to prevent us from following in obedience.

            It is our obligation as part of the body of Christ to always live faithfully as members of the body of Christ.

B.   To Love

            We said earlier that the church is called to provide love. Of course the church is made up of its members, which means that each of us is called to act with love. There is probably no command in the New Testament repeated more often than the call to love one another.

            We are able to love because we know that we are loved. 1 John 4:10 reminds us that, "In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins." I find that in the area of finances, it is easy to be generous when I know that my resources are abundant. The same kind of a thing is true when it comes to loving others. When we know that we are abundantly loved by God, it is much easier to pass that love on. Which means that we should be very loving because we are very greatly loved.

            Love is easy when the love of God is in our heart. As followers of Jesus, the love of God is in our heart by the presence of the Holy Spirit. So love is an expression of the presence of God in us. This is what John means when he says in 1 John 4:7, "…everyone who loves is born of God and knows God."

            Yet  we also need to make choices to act in love. Such choices involve the decision to bear with one another. It means that there are times when we will have to choose to forgive someone. It means that we need to open our eyes in order to see what is happening in someone else's life and to choose to do something about it. Such love must be expressed practically as James 2:15 reminds us. "If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that?"

            Love will also grow when we spend time with each other. It is much easier to love when we know someone and so we need to be together and as we are, we will see the needs of others, our hearts will be filled with love for them and we will act in love in a natural way out of a heart that belongs to God.

C.   To Be Committed

            The church encourages us and provides a place of worship. It is expected of each of us that we will commit to the life of the church. If Jesus is Lord of all and if our relationship with the body of Christ is the beginning of an eternal relationship, then our relationship to the church can't be a casual part of our life. There must be covenant and that covenant requires commitment.

            This means that if you are in a covenant relationship with a community of faith you need to be there regularly. We expect that those who are part of the church will show up at the meetings of the church. Hebrews 10:25 reminds us that we cannot be, "…neglecting to meet together…"

            Of course to really be committed to the life of the church, we need to be engaged in the life of the church. We need to make it a point to understand the vision of the church and to know the mission of the church. We cannot sit back and let someone make decisions about the direction and ministry of the church and then vote with our feet by not participating. We need to speak and engage and then commit to the work that we do together. Sometimes many people agree in general with the direction and work of the church and let a few people do it. That is not the commitment that should be expected. If we are present and fully engaged, then it will also be natural to serve.

            Our commitment to the church will also fulfill the command in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to, "…pray without ceasing…" It will mean that prayer for the church and on behalf of the church will be something that we regularly engage in.

            Can the church expect this kind of a commitment from you?

D.   To Serve in God's Mission

            The church is called to mission and to teach us to engage in God's mission and in response we need to be involved in God's mission.

            This means first of all that we need to understand the task God has left us with. It is our role to point people to Jesus and invite them to know Him and follow Him. Are you fully aware and convinced that this is God's task for the church and for each one who is a part of the church.     

            What is your part in accomplishing that task? God has given each person specific gifts for service. We need to discover what our gifts are and we need to find a way of serving with those gifts. What have you got to offer God in the mission He has given you?

            It also means that not only do we need to be aware of our role, but we need to be doing it. We need to find ways of giving our time, our gifts and also our money to the work that God has called us to do. The key idea is servanthood and Jesus is our model since He came as a servant. 1 Corinthians 4:1 speaks of the testimony of Paul in this regard when it says, "Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries."

            Are you fulfilling your role as a servant?

Conclusion

            What happens in a marriage if only one partner fulfills the covenant? What happens to a mortgage if one party defaults? In a similar way, when the church fails in its obligations something must change. Likewise, if you are failing in your obligations, something needs to change.

            When we speak of covenant obligations, it sounds like it might be a burden, but when it comes to the covenant between us and the church, it is not. It is joy and above all of that it is worth it. 1 Corinthians 15:58 remind us, "Therefore, my beloved, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, because you know that in the Lord your labor is not in vain."

            Therefore, I would encourage you to receive what the church offers with gratitude and give what you owe with joy.