Daily Reading for Monday, Feb. 25: Community

Core Value: Community

We are committed to building healthy and loving relationships with God and each other.

Life is lived in relationship! Our intent is to connect relationally with others and join together in a community of faith for love and support. Accountability, belonging, care, and spiritual growth happen best with relationally-connected people. People matter to God, and they matter to us – believer and unbeliever alike – we love people. We understand our relationship with Christ is personal but not private, and we are called to live life together in honesty, authenticity, and transparency.

Introduction

Last week, we discussed the very real joy we can experience in sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with those we come into contact with. This week, we see how that joy is made complete by coming into fellowship with one another. Our belief in Christ automatically places us in this special, one-of-a-kind organism that is called the church. As we build community with one another, we build each other up, enabling us to build real, life-affecting relationships with those who need to hear the good news we have to share.

Daily Reading for Monday, Feb. 25
“Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” Galatians 6:10 NIV

Belonging—–that is the essence of community. Have you ever been somewhere where you didn’t belong or where you were made to feel that you didn’t belong? You didn’t want to stay in the place, or with those people, for very long. This verse is part of a whole passage of practical exhortations for Christ-like living, but I wanted to take particular note of this phrase: “...to those who belong to the family of believers.” We belong!

First, we belong to Jesus. We belong to God. We belong to our creator who paid the dearest price that could be paid so that we could belong to Him. How incredible it is when we consider what Jesus did in order to make it possible for us to no longer belong to the enemy of our souls, to no longer be trapped by our sin-steeped selves, but to belong to one who gave up His very life so that we could live with Him eternally.

Secondly, through the blood of Jesus, we are joined together in a family that has stronger ties than any natural family could have. Jesus not only gives us a new life, He gives us a community to support that life, to help nurture it, grow it, and encourage it. And then, as we grow, we can give others that same encouragement that we have received and offer that same belonging.