We meet with some friends every week to read and talk about scripture, share a meal, and pray together, which is definitely a step in the right direction. We've been thinking about and are being led to, eliminating the dissonance between our lives and life as a community of Christians, and the life of the true disciple, and early community of Christians as outlined in the New Testament.
The people of the early Gospel Communities were not withdrawn from society, but drew society in by fully living in the light of their risen savior. There has to be a middle ground between the individualist isolation built by our picket fences and the communal isolation that withdraws from society in a group. Its seems that the driving force in either isolation is desire to build the kingdom that we want, whether it is in our own house or land or acquisition of property, or in a group devoted to creating some utopian society.
Jesus taught us to pray "Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever." While we cannot rightly pray his prayer without joining in the work, we must leave the kingdom up to the Father, and focus on what we have been given: to obey, and enter into the joy of the Trinity. I am often wrong, but I am coming to believe that the Gospel cannot be lived out in isolation, at least not very fully. To invite someone into the life of Christ there must be a community (church, bible study, whatever) to invite someone to. Words can be effective in communicating the Gospel message, but for someone to meet Christ, they may just need to see his body, his hands and feet in action as they were meant to be. I am coming to believe that the most effective means to communicate the Gospel is "Come and see." If I told someone to "come and see" the church gathering that we attend on sunday, I'm not sure it would mean much to them. But if someone was asking about the hope that is within me (1Peter 3.15) and I could invite them into a community that looked like Acts 2.42-47 I think they just might see Jesus, and Jesus is infinitely more compelling than I am.
We need Gospel, Kingdom communities sprouting up in the shell of the kingdom of this world.
tjl
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I'm so in favor of changing the world by being part of it!
"While we cannot rightly pray his prayer without joining in the work, we must leave the kingdom up to the Father, and focus on what we have been given: to obey, and enter into the joy of the Trinity. I am often wrong, but I am coming to believe that the Gospel cannot be lived out in isolation, at least not very fully."
Exactly.
"if someone was asking about the hope that is within me (1Peter 3.15) and I could invite them into a community that looked like Acts 2.42-47 I think they just might see Jesus, and Jesus is infinitely more compelling than I am."
Jesus is IN us as the Holy Spirit, and that is what people see that makes them ask, or to say yes when invited to come to church or to join a group. It's a wonderful joy to have the opportunity to open God's word to a new seeker!
Peace,
Jo
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