Galatians 6: Community and Brotherhood

The movie Castaway brings up an interesting question: What would do if you were stuck by yourself on a deserted island? Could you survive without anyone else? For some it might be heaven, for at least a little while. However, Genesis 1-3 puts humanity solely in the category of needing community; both within a family structure but also with a larger societal structure. Why do immigrants seek out other immigrants from their homeland? They need the support from the community to survive.

When God created humanity, he made us for the purpose of being in relation to him—the vertical—but also horizontally in relation to other people. In Galatians 6, Paul touches on proper horizontal relationships when he exhorts the Galatians to live in such a way that they restore those captive to sin (v. 1) and bear each other’s burdens (v. 2). Paul breaks down the idea of boasting—setting themselves up as a means of comparison to boast about (v. 3-4). Constantly comparing yourself to your neighbor does not build community but often leads only to jealousy and bitterness. Instead, Christians are to live their lives in such a way that sows the grace and love of Christ to others and thus reap eternal life (v. 8-9). Let us then do good to everyone—especially those in the church (v. 10). Living in community comes with obligations and rewards. God calls us to love each other, but somehow in our families and in our churches this becomes incredibly difficult. So how do we live this way?

Our first step is to have a deep, personal relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ. We cannot mistake receiving the benefits of being in a church and being involved in church as a replacement for loving and trusting in Christ personally. Out of this vertical relationship all other relationships flow. As we are conformed to Christ’s image our relationships with others begin to change and we become more gracious, patient and loving. Secondly, we must practice gracious corporate living. The grace we receive from Christ is the grace we must give. Only in community are we truly living the Christian life—there are no Christian hermits or lone rangers. Our interactions with other Christians give us encouragement and strength to face our burdens that we face. As we help carry the burdens of those around us God begins to change us and we conformed into Christ’s image.

Posted By Aaron

1 Corinthians 16: It takes a Team

If we didn’t have 1 Corinthians 16 and other chapters like it, our understanding of the advance of the gospel would be severely truncated. From our western, celebrity-obsessed culture, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that Paul alone was the missionary that put Christianity on the map in the first century. Though it would be difficult to underestimate the influence of his leadership in the Christian movement even to this day, his role was closer to a spokesperson for a movement of witnesses than the primary witness.

That should encourage us because in the community of Paul and on his team were regular people just like you and me. There was Timothy who wanted to serve God but struggled when opposed and needed a lot of encouragement. There was Apollos who was an activist and a communicator but needed to learn more about the Christian message. There was Stephanus and his large extended household who weren’t flashy but were genuine servants of Christ. Aquila and Priscilla served as Apollos mentors and extended themselves financially and in hospitality to spur the Christian movement. If you can’t identify with Paul, can you identify with these? Even better news—Jesus identifies with them and uses them and us by His Spirit to advance the movement of the gospel.

Some wise counsel comes from this passage regarding living in community:

· When it comes to money, people get funny. So over-explain, be diligent, and maintain proper accountability. (1-5)
· God opens doors for us for ministry. Keep our plans as loose as possible to allow room for the Spirit to change them. (5-9)
· It is important to be sensitive to how people hear you when you communicate. Timothy was sensitive and that was not just his problem, the Corinthians needed to bear responsibility for that as well. (10-11)
· Submit to the people you are supposed to submit to, not just the ones you want to submit to. (Submission when you feel like it isn’t actual submission). (15-18)
· A bunch of people meeting in a house can be called a church. Just don’t forget to submit to whom you are supposed to submit to. (19)