August 7, 2016

Community with Each Other

Preacher: Josh Tancordo Series: Doing Church Biblically Scripture: Acts 2:42–47

Community with Each Other – Acts 2:42-47

This evening, we’re going to continue our sermon series on “Doing Church Biblically.” This is a series of teachings that’s sort of a sermon series and a church membership class combined into one. And it’s designed to prepare those who are interested to start Redeeming Grace Church this October. And right now, we’re looking at three characteristics of a healthy church. Last week, talked about the first characteristic, Communion with God, and this week, we’re talking about the second characteristic, Community with Each Other. A healthy church is a church that lives in community with each other. 

You know, it’s always helpful to be aware of how our culture influences the way we view things. For better or for worse, our culture shapes us far more than we often realize. And one of the characteristic of our culture in America is that it’s highly individualistic. As Americans, we’re all about pulling ourselves up by our own bootstraps. We like to lean on our own abilities, be defined by our own choices, and be regarded as our own person. We are a nation of proud individuals. Contrast that with other nations that are oriented not around the individual but around the community. People there are more concerned about the needs of the community, they’re more fearful of bringing shame on the community, and they conceive of their identity more as a member of their community than as an isolated individual. For example, if a young person in Japan or China found out that their family needed additional income, they would probably see that as a priority over attending college. So they might delay their college studies for a few years in order to help their family get through that difficult time. That’s a lot different from the American student who would probably still care about their family but would probably be a lot less likely to delay their college education in order to help their family. We are a nation of individuals. 

And individualism isn’t entirely bad; there are some positive aspects to it. But we have a way of taking it way too far and smuggling that extreme form of individualism into Christianity. And so, for the American evangelical, it’s all about having a “personal relationship with Jesus,” isn’t it? Of course it is, because we Americans are individuals. But is that a helpful way to describe what Christianity is all about? In some ways, yes, it absolutely is helpful. That’s way I frequently employ it myself many times. But we have to be careful that we don’t think the only things Christianity is about. Living as a Christian isn’t just about enjoying a personal relationship with Jesus. It’s also about living as a part of the Christian community. 

Please turn with me to Acts chapter 2. You may remember that we briefly examined Acts 2 a few weeks ago when we talked about why we should be part of a church. But this passage also has a lot to say about what being part of a church looks like, specifically how Christians are called to live in community with each other. Again, the context is that Peter has just delivered his famous sermon at Pentecost, where thousands of people embrace Jesus and we see the church come into being. And then, verses 42-47 describe how they lived. Look what it says: “And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

As I mentioned, the main thing I’d like us to observe from this text is that Christians are called to live in community with each other. Church should be more than a once-a-week meeting of loosely associated people who live in relative isolation from one another. God calls us to live life in community with each other. As we look at Acts 2, we see that these people weren’t just attending a meeting every Sunday and calling it church. Verse 42 describes how one of the things they devoted themselves to was “the fellowship.” That word refers to a closely connected, interdependent group—a group that shared life together. And in verse 44, it states that “all who believed were together and had all things in common.” Isn’t that neat? They simply “were together.” They were a unit; they were an entity; you didn’t often find one without finding the others. They were living in community with each other, and we’re called to do the same. 

And as we examine this idea of living in community, I’d like to look at three things. First, the foundation of life in community. Second, the importance of life in community. And third, how to start doing life in community. 

The Foundation of Life in Community

So first, the foundation of life in community. Here in Acts 2, the foundation of the community these people enjoyed was their common experience of God’s saving grace. They heard Peter’s sermon recorded in verses 14-36, became sorrowful over their sins in verse 37, and publically announced their desire to follow Jesus through their baptism in verse 41. And that baptism was a symbol of their new identity. Their identity was now defined not by their sin but by their adoption into God’s family. And as Christians, we also have experienced this adoptions. Ephesians 1:5 states that God “predestined us for adoption as sons [and daughters] through Jesus Christ.” And 1 John 3:1 says, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” Previously, we were spiritual orphans. But now, we’ve been adopted into God’s family and can be rightfully called God’s children. And since all of us Christians are God’s children, that makes us spiritual brothers and sisters to each other. That’s why Ephesians 2:19 refers to the church as “the household of God.” We are a spiritual family. 

One of the things I appreciate so much about Pittsburgh is how closely knit together many families are around here. They’re always doing things together, spending time with each other, being a family. I also think of my wife and how close she is to her family. Her parents and sister may live six hours away, but that doesn’t stop them from talking on the phone almost every day, that doesn’t stop them from texting each other pictures. They also visit each other every month or two and celebrate significant life events together. And when someone needs help, they’ll rearrange everything so they can be there for each other. Like when Becky and I were dating and Becky had to have surgery in Atlanta, they flew down to help take care of her for a week. That’s just what family does. And in a similar way, that’s what the church is supposed to be like. It’s supposed to be a spiritual family—a family that loves each other, spends time together, has meaningful interactions with each other throughout the week, and shifts their schedules to come through for each other in times of need. 

And the foundation of us acting like a family is that we really are a family, spiritually speaking. It’s not just something we choose to do or should do; it’s an identity we possess. That’s the foundation of living in community; that’s the foundation of living like a family. It’s because we are family. We have a shared identity. 

The Importance of Life in Community

So now that we understand the foundation of life in community, let’s look at the importance of life in community. As we can see from our main text in Acts 2, we see significant emphasis place on the community the early Christians enjoyed. So that in itself should tell us it’s pretty important. But why specifically is it so important? I believe it’s because this is where a great portion of discipleship and spiritual growth takes place. Disciples are made and believers grow to maturity largely within the context of the Christian community. 

Just look at the example of Jesus. How did Jesus make disciples? How did he teach people about what it means to follow him? Yes, he spoke to large crowds, but it seems as though the focus of Jesus’ ministry was on those 12 men he chose to follow him around and live life with him and spend significant time with him on a regular basis. And the main way he taught them wasn’t so much in highly structured teaching sessions. It was more situational. It was more in the context of things that came up as they lived life together. Something would happen or they would be having a conversation, and Jesus would use that as an opportunity to teach them something. Like in John 13 they were having a meal together –something they did quite often. But Jesus got up and did the job that typically in that culture the lowliest servant of the household would do—he washed his disciples’ feet. People’s feet got dirty from walking around the dusty streets in sandals, so they needed their feet washed. And Jesus did that for his disciples and told them that they needed to serve others just as he served them. He taught them a powerful lesson in the midst of their everyday life together. And that was his typical method of teaching them. It’s not that he didn’t have organized, structured times set aside for teaching—I don’t think we can say that. But the method that seems to be emphasized in the records we have of his ministry is the teaching he did in the midst of everyday life. 

And as we think about our God-giving calling to disciple others and as we think about our own growth to spiritual maturity, it’s critical that we go beyond simply attending a Sunday gathering and orient our lives around living in community with each other—because that’s where a huge portion of spiritual growth takes place. 

For example, J and I try to exercise together on a regular basis. Most of you know that J’s a personal trainer, and so one way we live life together is by exercising together in his fitness studio one or two times a week. And I think that both he and I would agree that we’ve had some incredibly formative and helpful conversations during those times together. And it goes both ways. For example, J’s helped me with my marriage. One of the things Becky and I struggle with is that we’re so busy with different things related to me being a pastor that we have difficulty connecting with each other and carving out time to spend together. And we would have family evenings and date evenings, but it was still a real struggle to have quality time. And J just shared with me some of the things he does to connect with Rachel even though they also have a busy and irregular schedule. And it seems so obvious now, but he helped me see that it’s not enough just to carve out time to spend together, I have to actually put some effort into planning what we’re going to do together. Because, previously, a lot of our times together would begin with 15 minutes of just trying to figure out what we were going to do. “What do you want to do?” “I don’t know, what do you want to do?” But when I put some effort into actually planning out before hand something to do and making all the necessary arrangements, that effort shows Becky that I care and that I value that time. And we’re on a budget so it’s often something relatively simple that we do, but that effort I put in makes all the difference. And J helped me to see that. Over the course of 2-3 conversations together, he helped me to see some very helpful things that I hadn’t seen before. But those conversations came about because we were striving to live in community. 

How to Start Doing Life in Community

And I think this whole concept of living in community is so contrary to our American, individualistic way of thinking that it would be helpful at this point to sketch out what we mean by “life in community.” Many of us are so programmed to think that church is about attending a service on Sundays and watching the professionals do ministry that we need a little guidance about how to actually start living in community with each other. So having talked first about the foundation of life in community and then about the importance of life in community, let’s now look at how we can actually start doing life in community. 

And living in community with each other doesn’t mean setting up some sort of commune or attempting some weird social experiment. If I had to describe it concisely, I would say that living in community is about pursuing three things: close relationships, meaningful conversations, and deep-rooted commitment. You may want to memorize those three things. Close relationships, meaningful conversations, and deep-rooted commitment. 

Close Relationships

First, we want to pursue close relationships—relationships characterized by love, trust, authenticity, and regular time together. And not just time officially dedicated to so-called “spiritual activities” but time where we do regular things together—things like birthdays and play dates and meals together. The goal is to overlap life as much as we can. We’ve already said we can’t live together, and we usually can’t work at the same workplace together, but just ask yourself, “What other ways can we spend time with each other? What other rhythms of life can we share?” It’s neat observe in Acts 2:42 how it says one of the things they devoted themselves to was “the breaking of bread.” And some scholars think that refers to the Lord’s Supper, but many if not most think that simply refers to eating meals together. Many of the other activities in that verse are quite general, and so it’s probably best to see that activity as general as well. Also, verse 46 talks about them “breaking bread in their homes” and “receiv[ing] their food with glad and generous hearts,” which definitely seems like eating meals. So I think we can be reasonably confident that these early Christians ate together a lot. And all of that time together facilitated close relationships. If you want close relationships, you have to do more than just show up to a Sunday gathering once a week. You have to hang out together throughout the week. 

On any given week in a healthy church—a church that’s living in community—two or three of the guys might get together to play disc golf, a few of the moms might get together for a play date, others might meet at a coffee shop for a book study, one of the families might host a cookout, and two other men might meet to talk through some specific issues in their lives and pray together. All of these interactions are natural and yet purposeful. We’re building close relationships.

Meaningful Conversations

Another thing we want to focus on is having meaningful conversations. And I’m not just talking about discussing theology, although that’s one important thing to discuss. I’m talking about discussing life, specifically our lives. And this includes both sharing our struggles and addressing other people in their struggles. Colossians 3:16 tells us, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom.” Galatians 6:2 tells us to “bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” Ephesians 4:15 says that it’s by “speaking the truth in love” to each other that we grow up to be more like Christ. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 says to “encourage one another and build up one another up.” Hebrews 3:13 says to “exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” Hebrews 10:24 says, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” James 5:16 tell us, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed.

So basically, we’re not minding our own business. We’re actually all up in each other’s business—in an appropriate and humble and respectful way. And if all of this sounds kind of scary to you, keep in mind that it’s not like we’re talking about these personal things with strangers or even surface-level associates we see once a week on Sundays. If we’re pursuing those close relationships we talked about, those relationships will facilitate these conversations. We’ll be more comfortable with each other and gradually be able to open up more and more about what’s really going on in our lives. And it works the other way too. If we have close relationships, we’ll be able to see things in other people’s lives that need to be addressed. Obviously, we don’t want to be “knit-picky,” but that’s just a reality. The closer you get to people, the more you see “the real them,” which includes areas where they need to grow. And perhaps you’ll have the opportunity to lovingly and humbly help them see some of those areas themselves. That’s what the Bible tells us to do within the community of believers. 

Deep-rooted Commitment

And the third element of living in community with each other is demonstrating deep-rooted commitment. So we have close relationships, meaningful conversations, and deep-rooted commitment. One of the things that strikes me the most in Acts 2 is how committed they were to each other in very practical ways. They didn’t just talk the talk of community. They put their money where their mouth was. Look at verse 44: “And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.” So basically, those in the community who had extra things were selling those things and giving the money to those who didn’t have as much. They were practicing radical generosity. There were demonstrated deep-rooted commitment to each other. We’ve already talked about how the church is a spiritual family. This is one of the ways the church acts like a family—by showing the kind of commitment to each other that typically only a family would show. 

For example, one of the people in our group is going through a really difficult time with their living situation. A few weeks ago, their apartment was infested with bed bugs, which, as you may be aware, are terribly difficult to eliminate. And to make matters worse, around that same time, this person was laid off of work because the company they were working for had to downsize. So there they were, without a job and an apartment that was almost unlivable because of the bed bugs. And they didn’t have any biological family living in the area either. But they did have a family—they had a spiritual family, a church. And one of the families in our church has demonstrated deep-rooted commitment by opening up their house for this person to live with them for a season. We also worked together a week or so ago to discard all of the bed-bug infested furniture from this person’s apartment and even found someone who was getting rid of a bunch of lightly-used furniture. So we want over there to Oakland and loaded all of that furniture up and put it in storage until this person is able to get another apartment. That’s the kind of stuff that family does for each other. 

Conclusion

And let me tell you something: as we live in this kind of way—in community with each other—that’s the most powerful and persuasive testimony we could give to the watching world about that truth of the gospel. Jesus himself said in John 13:35, “By this all people will now that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” And when we demonstrate that love by pursuing close relationships, meaningful conversations, and deep-rooted commitment, it makes an impact. In verse 47 of our main text in Acts 2, we see that the Lord was adding to their number daily people who were being saved. I don’t think it’s any accident that we’re given this piece of information right after the author describes Christians practicing life in community. And that’s the kind of thing we want to see happening in this church as well.

other sermons in this series

Feb 28

2021

Matthew 26: The Lords Supper

Preacher: Josh Tancordo Scripture: Matthew 26:26–29 Series: Doing Church Biblically

Oct 16

2016

Trusting in Man vs. Trusting in God

Preacher: Josh Tancordo Scripture: Jeremiah 17:5–10 Series: Doing Church Biblically

Oct 9

2016