Community: A Christian Directive

There is no such thing as a lone Christian. Christians, by command of Christ, are communal people. Take this for example:

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. - John 13:34-35

And then in the High Priestly Prayer:

I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Fater are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. - John 17: 21-22

In their book, Creating Community, Andy Stanley and Bill Willits write, Jesus is saying that the credibility of His life and message in teh eyes of unbelievers is dependent upon the way we as hiss followers relate with one another...Our relationship with each other is the criterion the world uses to judge whether our message is truthful--Christian community is the final apologetic.

But what is this community of which Christ speaks? Not merely a series of connections, Stanley and Willits suggest a total lifestyle, The kind of connections we need are more than casual. Casual conections aren't life-giving. The church is called to be more than casual, accidental, or infrequent. Instead, the church is a series of intentional relationships developed for the intent purpose of growing in the Christian life and making the gospel known to all the world.

The church is not a building, it is the people of Christ living as he has called them to live. Don't fool yourself or allow others to be fooled. The Christian life is a team thing!