Christian Community: Where Giving and Receiving Meet

Christian Community: Where Giving and Receiving Meet

When I think of Christian community, I am reminded of the immense love and care I felt from a group of adults in my church on the night my dad died. Immediately after my mom broke the news that my dad was likely not going to live, the ICU waiting room was filled with family and friends from all areas of our lives. At only ten years old, I found myself drawn to these adults from my parent’s Bible study group. I easily could have run to my biological family. Yet, my heart seemed to know, even then, that only the hope of Jesus could truly heal this hurt. In that moment I felt Jesus’ hope alive within this group of faithful Christians. 

Our church helped my family and I through this painful time in a variety of ways. They provided us with meals and helped us with chores around the house. They took us to fun outings, even made quilts out of my dad’s old t-shirts, and most importantly, prayed for us. 

That church family continued to pray for me, pray with me, and showed me Christ’s love throughout my many highs and lows in life. For that, I am so grateful. This community exemplified what the author of Hebrews writes…

 And let us consider how we can spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:24-25

If it wasn’t for the constant prayer and encouragement from this community and the Christian friends I surrounded myself with as a teenager, I may have never chosen to trust Jesus or go on to serve in full-time ministry. 

While surrounding ourselves with Christian community and support is imperative, the Holy Spirit has recently been reminding me that there is another side to the coin. Failing to look at the other side of this coin means we have let our outlook on Christian community become more about what we can get out of it, than what we can do for it. 

If you were to ask any stranger on the street about their community, they would likely think of their neighbors, the people who live close to them. If we, as Christians, think of community in the same way, we may need to be reminded of a very popular parable from Jesus. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, found in Luke 10, Jesus teaches us two main things: who our neighbors are and how a neighbor should act. Even though we have heard this many times, how often do you and I resemble the teacher of the law who tries to justify himself by not acting as a neighbor? 

As the Church we are called to go even further to build up the body of Christ.  In our interactions with other believers: we are called to bear with and forgive each other (Colossians 3:13), to teach and admonish one another with gratitude in our hearts (Colossians 3:16), to gently restore each other out of sin and to carry each other's burdens (Galatians 6:1-2), to offer hospitality without grumbling and use our gifts to serve others (1 Peter 4:9-10), and to confess sins to one another and pray for each other (James 5:16). 

In Acts, we see the early Church going so far as to share all their wealth and possessions while having meals together and worshipping cheerfully, (see Acts 2)! In this same passage we encounter the first Biblical use of the Greek word koinonia, which is used to describe our fellowship with each other as well as our fellowship with Christ.

The common denominator in all of this is that those of us in fellowship with Christ are called to love others as Christ did, with humility and sacrifice. Sometimes this also means swallowing our pride and allowing others to serve us as well.  Remember, there are two sides to this koinonia. Which do you need to work on today? 

• Loving your community as Christ would – Serving selflessly, showing up for others in tangible ways, or embodying Christ’s love even when it's inconvenient or costly.

• Allowing your community to serve you as Christ served each of us – This requires vulnerability, humility, and trust. Jesus let others care for Him, and we’re called to do the same.

Take time now to pause and reflect honestly:

1. Do you find it easier to give than to receive? Why?

2. Or do you tend to lean on others without stepping into the role of servant yourself?