Postkiwi

You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoys its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor.
James 3:18 (The Message)

They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers.
Acts 2:42 (The Message)

In today’s reflections on Christian community, Rick Warren provides some very practical challenges for small groups. He reminds us that a small group will not work unless there is a shared commitment or covenant. He provides the following nine commitments based on nine characteristics of ‘Biblical fellowship’:

We will share our true feelings (authenticity)
We will encourage each other (mutuality)
We will support each other (sympathy)
We will forgive each other (mercy)
We will speak the truth in love (honesty)
We will admit our weaknesses (humility)
We will respect our differences (courtesy)
We will not gossip (confidentiality)
We will make group a priority (frequency)

Looking at this list I agree with Rick. Genuine fellowship is so rare because it means giving up our self-centredness and independence in order to become inter-dependent.

The phrase ‘Biblical fellowship’ is interesting.

What makes these nine marks of fellowship Biblical? Is it because they tie in with the quality of fellowship experienced by people in the Bible? I’m sure that the earliest Christians had as much trouble as us today living out the nine commitments outlined above.

Or is it because the nine commitments can be backed up by recommendations found in the Bible, in particular the Epistle section of the New Testament?

Maybe we’re given the term for the sake of people who feel they must have the word ‘Biblical’ attached to something before they can accept it.

I’m looking forward to starting a small group again at the beginning of next year. I’ll be challenging members of the group to consider the nine commitments, and any others they consider helpful. We can start with ‘intentional community’ and move towards the hard work of living out real community.