What is your goal in your Christian walk? Why? When we are adopted into God’s family, not only do we have a relationship with God, but also with other believers. We connect with other believers in the church. Can I be honest here? Mentioning the church made me cringe. In our culture today, people have devalued church attendance. We have the mind thought that we don’t have to go to church to be a Christian. There is an amount of truth to that but we do need one another. We need to be committed to one another.
Christianity is about having a relationship with God and then extending it out to others in and out of the church. Let’s read about community of the church based on Acts 2:42-27. “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day, they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God, and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
How did the first Christian community care for and support one another? What would happen in our culture if we, as Christians, would do what the first Christian did in Acts? How do our relationships with other Christians deepen our relationship with God? What would you not know about God without our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ?
Fellowship comes from the bible word koinōnia. It means to join in the life of another person. How often should we, as believers, connect during the week? Once, twice, or more? How essential is it to connect?
Read Mark 9:50; Romans 12:16; Ephesians 4:32; 1 Thess. 5:11; James 5:9. Why do we need to have a relationship with one another to follow Jesus faithfully? How did the early church support and celebrate with each other? Why is the community essential in both good and bad circumstances?
In the first century, many people came to God by seeing relationships in the church. How is God using our relationships with each other to make a tangible impact on the world around us? Are we representing God the way we should be, or are we pushing people away from God?
The church is not perfect. Yes, we have disagreements. Yes, we do get hurt by the very people we think we shouldn’t get hurt by. However, we are all human. We are still here on earth, where we battle sin daily. God has shown us how to handle these parts of being in the church. This is when we need to lean more into God and be obedient to Him. It is there that others will see who God is and how He works.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for your great plan of having church. Thank you for placing us where you want us to be in your family. I pray that we will seek you first and obey your will. I pray we will offer love, forgiveness, mercy, and grace to our brothers and sisters In Christ. I pray we will encourage and uplift one another and be there in the hardships of life.
In Jesus Name
Amen
