Community in the New Year

February, 2009

by: Chriss Barksdale

• Hollywood Church

The city which I live in here in Hollywood is one of the loneliest in the country. And that says a lot as our country is an extremely lonely place! In a documentary I watched called God Grew Tired of Us, some boys from the Sudan came to America and aptly noticed just how lonely we are as a nation. One said “it is kind of lonely here but this is the life of America”. Another worked in a grocery store and observed a lady crying and was appalled that no one stopped to ask if she was alright. Instead they ignored her, even avoiding her aisle completely. But looking at Hollywood from the outside, you would think there is no lack of community. Yet after living here for over a year and a half I find myself surrounded by lonely people. The majority of Hollywood lives as singles who drive to work alone, eat lunch alone, drive home alone, go to an apartment alone only to watch shows about people who are not alone. They hit the clubs and the streets at night in a desperate attempt to fill the void they have in their hearts for community. And yet all the one night stands and binge parties leave them only feeling more empty.

Why is this? The answer is pretty simple: they were made for community. When God created the world, He created it to be dependent upon and in relationship with Himself. Mankind was created to fellowship and commune with the Godhead who shared perfect love and communion within Himself as Father, Son and Spirit. That love God has for God overflowed into creating our world and yet the world, as the apostle John said, received Him not. But once a person is brought into this relationship via faith in Jesus Christ, they then are enlightened to the fact that they were not only created for community but saved for community!

And this concept of being saved for community is easily forgotten as well. We tend to adopt the individualism of our culture and think we can live this Christian life alone but that is a lie. The truth is that if you are not in community then you can’t ultimately live out the Christian life to the extent God desires you to. Oh, you may jump out of the gates with a burst of energy thinking you can do it on your own but what you find out is that this life is a marathon not a sprint and you soon tire out. You need the community to come around you and pick you up and carry you a little bit! You are like a branch that is part of the tree. You can’t run off down the street thinking you’ll be fine and can do it on your own. You’ll dry up and lose your vitality when you are not attached to the tree!

If you look at the Book of Ephesians you see Paul beginning his transition in Chapter 4 by addressing unity and then getting into practical life issues. The Body of Christ functioning as the body of Christ in community is essential for the rest of the Christian life! This is why he deals with that issue first. You say, how does the community affect my individual walk? Take the mission Jesus has sent us all on as an example. We are His ambassadors and He sends us out in community. No matter how persuasive or eloquent you may be in presenting the Gospel to someone, at the end of the day they are still linking you to the Church. And unless you are part of a community that is unified and you can point them to it, they will just link you to the church that is embedded in their minds. This is the church that bickers, complains, and cares only for its own which they want nothing of.

Also, think of marriage and family. The community of believers are absolutely essential for you being the spouse or parent God has called you to be. I think it is interesting that much of the practical, nitty-gritty elements of the “how to’s” of marriage and family are absent from the Bible. True, there are some practical lessons in the Song of Solomon for marriage and in the Proverbs for parenting but how I am to practically love my wife and love my children is absent. Did Jesus forget to put it in there? I mean, how should I serve my wife practically? How should I show her love practically? How should the baby sleep, when does he start eating solids, what about discipline and how and when to start that? What about when they are teenagers (God forbid)? I know as a young man getting married I didn’t know anything about being a husband. I had good principles in Scripture but I had never seen it. My father was a far cry from a role model of a husband and father. I looked for godly men that I wanted to emulate, and asked them to help me. I couldn’t’ do it on my own. This is why programs and conferences are good but not extremely helpful. They may get you fired up about being a better spouse and/or parent but at the end of the day you need the local Body of Christ to help you! You need community!

Finally, take the example of spiritual warfare. So many Christians try to fight against sin and Satan, who tempts us to sin, on their own. I was recently watching the series Planet Earth and was amazed at how certain wolves would attack a herd of caribou by running at them in different directions to try to get them separated. They would never attack the whole herd but try to get one separated from the group and that one they would kill. That is what Satan does, isn’t it? He tries everything in his power to get you off on your own. He will strive to have you thinking either you don’t need the Church or that the Church doesn’t need you. He’ll do this through apathy but also through circumstances where you get burned by someone in the Church. This is why I Peter 5 says in the plural for us to be sober-minded together and be watchful together because he is seeking someone (singular) to devour! He is looking for that individual who is off on their own! Did you know that the vast majority of commands given to us in the NT are in the plural and not the singular? It is “you all” or “ya’ll”, depending on where you come from. The commands of the Bible are meant to be lived out as a community not as individuals!

As we start this new year, let’s strive to be in community. Let’s have the world see a city within the city that is diverse and different, yet a city that loves one another and in turn loves the city as a whole. Let’s remember that they will know us by our love for one another!