Need of Community

Hebrews 10:23-25

Verse 25  …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.

    We ended yesterday by saying that we need to learn to focus on our brothers and sisters of the church.  One of the ways we can learn to do that is by doing life together.

    Way back in the beginning of the world God said that it wasn’t good for man to be alone.  He designed us to be part of a community and the one community that He wants us to partake in more than any other, is the Church.  This isn’t about going to the church building once a week, but is actually about doing a level of life together with other believers.

    In a world that tells us that we should be independent, learning to live without the need of others, God is wanting us to live the way He set things to be.  He showed us through Jesus’ life here on earth that we need other believers around us.  Jesus surrounded Himself with fellow God-lovers for very specific, important reasons.

    One of the benefits of doing life together as a Church is the camaraderie that happens and reveals that we are His followers.  It is in doing life together that we can grow more in our personal walks with Christ.  We need each other as this gives us a place to learn to think about and focus on others.  The Church is a place to learn what it means to abide in Christ by abiding with each other.

    In isolation we don’t have to think of others and will tend to grow more and more self-focused.  In the Church we learn that our identity isn’t about who we are, it is about who He is.  The opportunities that being in a Church family bring us are endless.  We can encourage each other to love Him more.  We can help each other grow in our relationship with God through spending time together.

    We tend to become like those we are closest to and that is not good if our closest friends are non-Christians.  God told the Israelites that as they moved into the Promised Land that they weren’t to associate closely with the people that lived there because the people were evil and would draw them away from God.  The same is true for us about who we make our close associates.  There is no doubt we need community.  Let’s be intentional about the community we spend time in.

Making It Personal

    Who are your closest associates?  Are they leading you deeper in your walk with Christ or drawing you into the world?  Are there people you should be closer to so that you can grow in your walk with God?

Making It Personal Kids

    Why is it important to have good friends to play with?  What could happen if your closest friends didn’t love Jesus?  Do you have a friend that helps you be more like Jesus?  Are you that kind of friend?

Closing Prayer

    Father, thank You for creating us for community.  Give us a greater desire to be with Your people so that we can grow to be more like You.  In Jesus’ name, amen.