MISSION + COMMUNITY

There's an old saying, "If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together." If you've ever been on an extended hike or backpacking trip, you know the truth of this proverb.

Sometimes I enjoy the solitude of a solo hike through Spring Mill State Park. But the best hikes are with family or friends. Those are the memorable moments. Going together turns it from exercise into a life-giving experience. A fast trail run may be good for my body. But a slow hike alongside my wife, sons, or close friend is good for my soul.

It's Not Good...

God knew this from the beginning. "It is not good for the man to be alone," we're told in Genesis 2. Lonely and bored is a deadly combination. Nothing good happens when we're lonely and bored. Almost all of our worst decisions and most negative emotions resurface under these circumstances. God knew this about us. So he gave us a mission, and he gave us a community.

The man in Genesis 2 was tasked with tending the garden and caring for it. He was given the mission of naming (and taming?) the animals. And he was also given a companion, a partner, a friend, a wife. The word God uses is "helper" - a title which in the rest of the Old Testament refers almost exclusively to God's relationship with his people Israel.

God gave the first humans a mission and a community.

Bored and Lonely: a Deadly Combination

Notice, though, how most of the major mess-ups (i.e. sins) in the stories of Scripture take place when someone is lonely and/or bored? Eve, possibly separated from Adam, was tempted into eating the fruit. Cain was separated from his family when his anger led him to commit a heinous murder. David fell into temptation when he was lonely and bored on his palace roof. Satan even tried to get to Jesus when he was isolated and fasting in the wilderness.

This pattern is, I believe, one of the reasons Scripture places such a strong emphasis on community and mission – both of them together.

"One-Anothering"

This past Sunday, I pointed us to the "one another" passages in the New Testament. The Greek word for "one another" occurs so frequently in relation to the church, it could be said that the main task of the church is "one-anothering." Just take a look at this infographic from overviewbible.com

Did you notice anything in the wording? Each "one another" is preceeded by a verb. Pray, comfort, encouage, welcome, accept, serve, love – all these things are part of our MISSION. "One another" – that's our COMMUNITY.

"A Christian Alone Is No Christian"

Community and mission. Mission and community. There is no going-it-alone in Christianity. There are no lone-wolf disciples. One early church father said, "Unus Christianus, nullus Christianus" or "A Christian alone is no Christian." Even Jesus sent his disciples out on a mission in pairs so they wouldn't be alone against the world.

Obviously there may be exceptions – like in Acts 17 when Paul is on his own in the city of Athens, Greece. But I fear many religious people are content to focus on a "personal relationship with Jesus." Those words gasp* are not in the Bible. Faith is almost never a thing just between you and God. Our faith is cross-shaped, both vertical and horizontal. When you are committed to Jesus, you are signing up to be part of his family!

He gave us a community. The church was his plan from the beginning. And he also gave us a mission – which is...building the community! Before Jesus left this earth, he told his disciples, and all of us, to go and make more disciples. We are not just saving individual souls for heaven. We are creating outposts of heaven here on earth, communities of believers from all races, genders, socio-economic statuses, languages, ethnicities, political affiliations, and everything in between.

Unity, not Uniformity

The goal is always unity, never uniformity. We honor and celebrate our differences while being united in Christ. "This," Paul writes in Ephesians 4, "is so that God's multi-faceted wisdom may now be made known through the church to the rulers and authorities in the heavens." When we live in community and on mission, we show everyone on earth and heaven what God's kingdom is truly about.

"And the gates of Hades will never overcome it."

Are you living on mission for God and his kingdom? What does your day-to-day mission look like in practice?

Are you living in community with others united in Christ? How are you living to build up his church locally and the kingdom around the world?