Church renewal

On the Day of Pentecost individuals experienced personal renewal but the most profound renewal was witnessed when the community of believers, the church, grew in a collective sense. Their witness was profound because their lifestyle was marked by a new way of living - a selfless way. "Now all who believed were together and had all things in common and sold their possessions and goods and divided them among all as anyone had need." (Acts 2:44-45)

The distinctive feature of this community was that it was already established in Christ. Believers didn't create community; they learned to enter into it. Community had already been established because God always was and is community - Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Just as we cannot create love because God is love, so too we cannot create community, but we can enter into it. The question is, how do we enter into community? How do we realise that which has already been established between believers, regardless of the human differences that exist between believers? We experience Christ in the midst of His body when we are prepared to die to individualism and to self sufficiency. In short when we die to our own agendas and especially to the need to prevail over others, we begin to realise community in Christ.

When we begin to listen to one another's stories without judgement, we express honour toward one another. Jesus did this when He chose to walk with the two despondent disciples on the road to Emmaus. Jesus just asked them 'door opening' questions. "What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another as you walk and are sad?" (Luke 24:13) He noticed their countenances and he made space for them to express what they were believing and why they were feeling despondent. As they journeyed together, the two men came to the realisation that Jesus was with them. This is a powerful way to enter into community with each other let alone with those 'yet-to-become' believers.

Entering into community with one another starts with being in fellowship with the Father because He is the source of healthy community. When we submit to Him, we can also submit to one another because we know Him as the source of our security. We can dare to risk connecting with one another because all we are doing is passing forward what He has given us in the first place. Again we are not trying to create community; we are simply learning to enter into it.









This blog is based on a message by Ross Smith at The Vine, Springwood, Logan City, Queensland, Australia,  on Sunday 22nd May 2016 called "Church Renewal". The full message can be accessed by podcast from www.thevine.org.au/teaching.