Sermon Info
Summary
Starting today, let’s make a 40-Day Commitment to Grow Spiritually. This means we must engage. God created us to grow spiritually and this happens through community. We need others to help us in the hard times and to celebrate with us in the good times. We all want deep relationships, but this only comes when we are willing to invest the time and energy. Church is a gift from God to accomplish His Will and to grow us as His disciples. Engage in community by joining the church (Partnership Class), joining a Community Group, Men’s or Women’s Study and getting your kids involved. We all need Jesus and His Church. Let’s engage for 40-Days and watch God do great things in our hearts, minds, marriages, friendships, children, jobs, and more. Engage!
Content
The Power of Community
God has created us just as we were meant to be. He gave us a particular hair color, certain interests and talents, specific desires and dreams. He created us just as we are because He has a plan and purpose for us – and one of the ways that He created us was for community. God is relational, and He made us in His image. Therefore, we were designed to work together with others and to have relationships with others. We were never meant to function alone.
With that, He also designed His Church to function in the same way. Each one of us has a gift, a skill, a part to play in God’s Church. That’s where community comes in. None of us were created the same, and we were all intended to work as a body with many parts to fulfill the calling that God placed on His people and His Church. You are essential to the body, and the calling is one that is special and holds eternal implications.
What the Bible Says about Community
In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul writes, Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12). Your skillset and wiring is just what God designed you with, in order for you to be able to serve the body of Christ. Paul goes on to say that there is not one part that is more important than another. Whether you’re out on stage or behind the scenes, each part, each member of the church, has a special purpose. That’s what true community means. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it (1 Corinthians 12:26). Just as we all have a role in the body, we all also come alongside each other when one part is hurting, as well as rejoice with others when it’s a time for rejoicing.
Community is integral to the life of the believer, as well, because God uses community to encourage those who are already Christians, giving them the ability to grow spiritually while surrounded by those who push them towards Jesus. As Henri Nouwen said, “Your own growth cannot take place without growth in others. You are part of a body. When you change, the whole body changes. It is very important for you to remain deeply connected with the larger community to which you belong.” The Church at large is your connection to further growth in your faith and your body to which you belong. God created us to continue to grow each and every day in our faith, whether you’re brand new to your faith or have been a Christ-follower for years.
Community matters – to you, to Christ, to non-believers and other believers, and to Christ’s Church. And being a part of a church community blesses both those in the community and those whom the community reaches.
What’s the value of community to you?
Community is God’s gift to His people. Community is absolutely essential to the life of a believer, and God wants each of us to have a place in His body. You are a part of God’s Church, and He wants you to be in relationship with other Christ-followers, being challenged and encouraged daily in your walk with Jesus.
In order to grow, however, we must be engaged. We must be intentional. We must make a regular impact to grow in our faith journeys. Because, friends, that’s where community starts and ends – with you. God has created us for community, and He’s given us people in His Church to connect with. We, now, have to take the next step in finding the place in His body that He has for us. Community won’t always be easy or problem-free. But we each have a common calling and purpose on our lives, and it’s through that calling that we can connect with our church community.
