True Community

Reading: Exodus 21-22, Psalm 12, Acts 4

Acts 4:32-34a "All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God's grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them."

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say some hard stuff. I'm going to disclaimer this by saying that I'm not trying to take a political stance, sell any propaganda, take a swipe at anyone's political views or standings, or even say that I know the answers to all of our socioeconomic problems. And I'm not denouncing tithing (which I will probably end up talking about in a later post...but if you have questions about my standings and why I tithe please just ask me). I'm just going to say what this particular passage means to me.

Often times Christians are pigeon-holed as "conservatives" (whether they are or not), which in many cases translates into a perceived financial stinginess, or at least the common conception that are against "sharing the wealth". When you draw the lines of political wings, Christians tend to be lumped on the republican end, and republicans are decidedly less "liberal" (pun intended) with the way they choose (or want) to spread around their finances. But when you look at what the Bible says, being a "conservative" coincides with being overly generous, particularly by sharing resources throughout the community.

Now, I'm not trying to say that imposed socialism is going to solve the world economy, but if you look at the model of the early church, all of their resources were shared for the purpose of furthering the gospel, AND there were no needy persons among them. We're not talking about a church funded charity (or "ministry") to help the poor, we're talking about a true verb-driven, real life COMMUNITY, powered by the grace of God working through all of them.

Man, that's some craziness. We're talking about people selling their own land and possessions for the sake of the well-being of their neighbors. That's like someone saying, "Here, let me sell my car to cover the cost of your past due mortgage." How often does that happen, among Christians especially! That's a tough thing. We have such a "look out for yourself or no one else will" kind of mentality in our society that it really is a stretch of faith to do something of that magnitude for someone else, because we are so afraid that we will fall into a situation where we are in need and there won't be anyone willing to help us out. It's a scary thing to give something up that you weren't already going to throw out to help support someone else who is not necessarily tied to you. That's challenging to me!

A pastor of mine spoke about this one time and when faced with the question of whether it could possibly work to have that type of genuine community in the church today, his only retort was, "Why not?"

It may seem like as long as we tithe or make offerings to our church congregation that puts the responsibility of the "church" to do the "ministry" and "help people", but the fact of the matter is that WE ARE THE CHURCH. You and me. I think it's time that we take a good look at what the word says and not only just read it, but actually DO it. Because it doesn't mean anything until you actually start doing something that changes your life and the lives of those around you. And I'm not trying to give some extremist model saying that if you don't sell everything you have and give it to the church then you're not doing it right. But just maybe we can take a start, and be the church by giving something of ourselves, of our own, that can benefit someone (A REAL PERSON) and just give it.

It's a crazy thing to think about, but since you and I are both "The Church"...if you give something to someone who needs it, then you ARE giving to The Church. I think if we started to think of our giving as actual gifts that mean something and have a tangible effect (instead of just percentages of income), maybe we might be able to more clearly see the heart of God for the community of His people.

Why not? Even just as an experiment. Even just for one time (at least to try) to see what it feels like, and what happens. Why not?

Father, please help me to learn to be more generous through your love and grace working in me. Please provide me with opportunities to invest in true community with my time and my resources. Thank you for all that you have blessed me with, so that I can bless others.