Are You Ready For Christian Community?

“AND THEY, CONTINUING DAILY WITH ONE ACCORD IN THE TEMPLE, AND BREAKING BREAD FROM HOUSE TO HOUSE, DID EAT THEIR MEAT WITH GLADNESS AND SINGLENESS OF HEART,” ACTS 2:46

There is good reason that most of the church is not modeled after the early church; it is easier to practice religion than it is to live together in Christian Community.

Within what I call the Traditional Church Model, I may need to be able to tolerate you once to three times a week, if we are both active in our church. Our relationship can remain superficial, perhaps as superficial as the occasional “hello” or “goodbye”. If the church is large enough I can avoid you altogether if I am upset with you.
In an organic church modeled after the first church we must not merely tolerate one another, but we must love one another in spite of our differences until we come into the Unity of The Faith, where the purpose of Christ is more important than our petty differences and disagreements. Note the emphasis of the above passage; “AND THEY, CONTINUING DAILY WITH ONE ACCORD” - DID EAT THEIR MEAT WITH GLADNESS AND SINGLENESS OF HEART,” In the Temple where they ministered together and from house to house where they lived, they came together “DAILY WITH ONE ACCORD, WITH GLADNESS AND SINGLENESS OF HEART”
It is easy to say, “Let’s be like the first church and eat meals together” But what set the first church apart was that their shared life was born out of the community of the church, not the other way around. They came together because they shared life, they didn’t share life and because they came together.
The real key to unity is not how well do you get along. The real key to experiencing family unity is how well do you handle it when you DO NOT Get Along? Do you run? Do you hide? MUST you be right? What if you aren’t? Must everyone agree with you? How do you handle it when they don’t? Unity is not born out of mutual agreement. Community is born out of the unconditional love we share with one another in spite of our disagreements.
“CONTINUING DAILY” implies continued effort – daily striving and working. For what end; to be right? No! To come together in “ONE ACCORD”, to be able to live and love those who hurt you, mistreat you and misunderstand you. To allow love to cover a multitude of sin, so that God family can live with a “SINGLENESS OF HEART”.
ARE YOU READY FOR CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY? I doubt it. How do we prepare ourselves? Jesus told His Disciples to go into the upper room and wait until the Holy Spirit had come upon them. And so they waited and prayed and waited and prayed and waited and prayed and in Acts 2:1 we see the result; “AND WHEN THE DAY OF PENTECOST WAS FULLY COME, THEY WERE ALL WITH ONE ACCORD IN ONE PLACE.” He doesn’t say go or be alone; He says come together and allow me to knit your hearts and your lives together into one Body with One Heart and One Mind with One Purpose. Amen!