‘Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.’ Ephesians 4.25
So what does (comm)unity look like? Sharing levity and gravity, purpose and pleasure, laughter and tears: in a word, life! ‘This does not mean that we are to be perpetually solemn. We must play. But our merriment must be of that kind (and it is, in fact, the merriest kind) which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously–no flippancy, no superiority, no presumption.’ C.S. Lewis, “The Weight of Glory”
To recap, then:
1.) (comm)unity is rooted in the character of God.
2.) (comm)unity is commanded of the Church.
3.) (comm)unity comes from genuine love for one another.
4.) Genuine love for one another comes from valuing Christ supremely.
5.) (comm)unity is a means for reaching the lost.
6.) (comm)unity is, ultimately, a means to joy in God.
7.) Therefore, (comm)unity begins and ends with God’s glory.
All of this rests on the finished work of Christ and the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit. Though (comm)unity doesn’t just ‘happen’ and we must work at it, it depends not on us, whose righteousness is filth and efforts are ineffectual, but on God ‘who cannot fail or fall.’ [George Herbert, "The Holdfast"]
Sources:
C.S. Lewis. The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses.
D.A. Carson. “The Supremacy of Christ and Love.” 2006 Desiring God National Conference.
Francis Schaeffer. The God Who Is There.
George Herbert. The Temple.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version.
John Piper. “The Supremacy of Christ and Joy.” 2006 Desiring God National Conference.
Jonathan Matthews. Sermons on John 17.1-5 and 17.20-26
Marc Sandhu. Sermon on John 17.6-19.
so, do you think there’s a human desire or need that is apart from God? hmm i’m not sure if this makes sense, but do you think there is a part of us that God cannot satisfy or fill, that is only completed by our need/want for community with other humans?
well… i know that in creation, the only thing that God said that wasn’t good was when adam was alone. and after He made eve, it was ‘very good.’ i think community can be enjoyed by people who don’t believe in God by His common grace, just like people who don’t believe can fall in love. but we don’t know the truest meaning and deepest joy of our connection with other people until we recognize it as a gift from God and glorify Him in it. so it’s really not apart from Him after all… does that make sense?
i think so, it’s like we as humans have a need for other humans to be a part of our lives, but our relationships with others is supremely blessed when God is the center. in my abnormal psych class, we were learning about reductionism.. and how if you look at each part of the mind and how it works and you add it all up together.. it still won’t be complete, because the total is greater than the sum of it’s parts. i guess i can equate that with how God created us. it’s meant to be this balance of good that he created, composed of community, truth etc. But our relationship with Him and who He created us to be is so much greater and more than we can understand. kind of like shalom. cool. ok thanks! idk if any of that made sense to you, but it does in my mind haha