Walking in the light as a community
We pack tightly in a little church building on the corner of two streets.
We sing songs loudly in praise.
We fellowship together afterwards around a potluck meal.
We live in community.
Some may question - why should we go to church? Why the work of gathering the children, trying desperately to keep them still? Why the taking turns with the baby who’s currently skipping his nap in the church basement?
Is church merely a good thing to do as a believer - or perhaps a bit more?
I’m realizing the later is true.
Attending a weekly service isn’t simply a bonus to your Christian life - something to lift you up or check of your list as a good follower of Christ. The gathering of the believers was designed by a God who doesn’t make mistakes.
He knows our forgetful tendencies. He knows the need we have to frequently gather and sing truths together in audible voice.
But beyond it all, He knows the need we have for life inside of a community.
We are prone to wander. We are prone to blind spots.
When we commit ourselves to the body, we are committing ourselves to more than just a weekly attendance. We are committing ourselves to life together. We are committing ourselves to being open for others to speak into us and for the linking of arms through both the good and the bad.
An isolated Christian simply won’t make it far.
Perhaps this sounds harsh? But how can we expect to live outside of the way of our Maker and assume we will see the same fruit?
A plant needs water to grow. A Christian needs community to flourish.
The question I ask myself now - am I open to others?
To walk in the light as we’re commanded in 1 John, doesn’t simply mean a life of personal examination. It means to be transparent and open to the gentle rebuke of a fellow believer. It means that we believe with our whole hearts that we are better together.
We dress the kids. We add our rockus to the background noise. We sometimes miss 30 of the 40 minute sermon.
But it all holds purpose. We are reminding our own selves that we are committed to one another because God says that is the the way it all works - we do it to agree with His very good plan.