Christian Concepts of Community Community is one of the integrating themes of the bible. Community is modelled in God, three different persons with a unity of purpose to live in community with humankind. So we see that... •
Jesus is called Immanuel, God with us (Matt 1:22-23)- Jesus ‘became flesh and dwelt with us with us’ (John 1:14)
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Pentecost is Spirit with us – ‘poured out on all humankind’ (Joel 2:28) – and the creation of the church as the community of the Spirit
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The Bible does not end with Pentecost but with God the Father with us – ‘Now the dwelling of God is with human beings, and he will live with them, they will be his people, and god himself will be with them and be their God’ (Rev 21:3)
It is not a surprise therefore that ‘In the beginning ... God made man .... and it was not good that he was alone ...’ . God puts man and woman together and creates the first human community and from then on community becomes a thread running through scripture: o
Family as the first covenant community of God
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Israel as the representative community of God
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Church as the redemptive community of God
God’s Community – the Church This vision of ‘God with us’ is essential to defining Christian community because it makes it distinctive from other communities. Christian community is a ‘fellowship of those who gather around the narrative of God at work in the world’. With this in mind I love this quote: ‘God’s future reign was not construed in terms of a blissful union of the elect with God that removed them from the world of humanity, but as a reign of justice and peace that repaired all wounds and restored righteousness as the standard among humans’1 For this reason (among others) Christian community is not a ‘lifestyle enclave’ - neither uniformly poor nor uniformly wealthy like-minded people gathered together around the theme of personal wellbeing. Instead the Christian community emerges from radical redemption of individuals into a radically redemptive community of grace. We see this in the ministry of Jesus: ‘The purpose of God’s grace in the ministry and parables of Jesus is to include the marginalised individual within a community .... the individual must finally be understood in terms of his or her having an appointed place in the kingdom of God. The community under the rule of god is thus the goal of each individual life’2
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Paul Hanson, The People Called: The Growth of Community in the Bible David Fergusson, Community, Liberalism and Christian Ethics REV LEIGHTON CARR • 07760 773024 • LEIGHTON.CARR@SOUTHWARK.ANGLICAN.ORG • THEFLIPCHART.COM 2
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Forgiveness and Grace as Characteristics of God’s Community One aspect of bringing individuals together into a grace filled community is that we allow God to transform the individual in order to bring them to their ‘appointed place in the kingdom of God’. The individual finds their place within God’s community without the community forcing it on them. Through forgiveness God is the Source of our community and in grace God Shapes his community. The difference between the Christian community and any other is not therefore the absence of conflict but the presence of Radical Forgiveness and Radical Grace which leads to... ... Sacrificial Service – the church is a community ‘understood not as privileged access to God or to sacred status, but as sharing together in a storied life of obedient service to and with Christ.’
Creating Community in the Workplace So what should we do? To build Christian community in the workplace each Christian worker needs to be living out a holistic life of discipleship. I wrote a piece called The Big Four of Discipleship and I think the principles are helpful for the workplace as well as home, church, or our places of leisure. 1 Worship - learning to MAKE every location, meeting, strategy, output a possibility for promoting God’s glory rather than our own ... and to TAKE every opportunity for acts of worship, prayer, and reflection. Sometimes alone. Sometimes with others. Sometimes unnoticed. Sometimes with impact. 2 Work –in two areas. First, in the workplace. A vision to build a holistic working community through acts of service for colleagues: noticeable for generosity, for praise and affirmation of others; giving credit; radical forgiveness; radical grace. It may also mean fighting for values, promoting truth, and the tenacity to stay within boundaries. Second, in the marketplace, for which read any stakeholder – purchaser, investor, provider, existing residents, new residents, authorities, schools, churches and more ... working from the inside out, helping the organisation to face outwards with the same values and culture you promote within . 3 Witness – the bottom line is ‘Why?’ All of the above is A witness, but there will come a time in the radical workplace built on radical grace when our lives become so noticeable that WE become THE witness ... always having a reason for the hope that is within us. 4 Living Life Well – (in my opinion!) the missing component is most discipleship teaching is this: our Worship, Work, and Witness can all be undermined without the support of a Well Lived Life. What does this mean for you? I don’t know ... it’s your life. In other words, the well lived life means exploring individual uniqueness and freedom while sharing in the redeemed community. Leighton Carr Battersea Power Station 20/11/2014
REV LEIGHTON CARR • 07760 773024 • LEIGHTON.CARR@SOUTHWARK.ANGLICAN.ORG • THEFLIPCHART.COM
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