Biblical Community

CS 654 Spiritual Formation in CongregationsWeekend #2

Being together in Christ Sharing a common life in Jesus Having a mutual interest in each other’s

maturity, i.e., the ministry of reciprocity (as the community contributes to my growth, I contribute to its growth corporately and to the growth of individual members of the community)

Journeying together toward Christ Reaching a sacred place of vulnerability and

authenticity

Community – What is it?

Community – How does it

function?

ConfirmationProvides a place to

develop one’s identity to

discover how to serve within the kingdom

Affirms when the developing

identity is congruent with the

values of the community

Confirms gifts and talents

Contradiction

Creates opportunities to be

confronted with the reality of one’s

direction, which may be

counterproductive to his or her

maturing

Acts as an “agent of dissonance”

that causes members to rethink the

direction of their identities

Consists of people who have the

integrity to come clean, with the confidence that brokenness will

not end a relationship

Continuity

Develops a story and a character that gives it the

right both to confirm and to

contradict

Provides a story into which

participants can fold their stories

for a sense of stability

Recognizes the same Spirit at work within believing

communities as he was within

biblical cultures

Fractured in the

Fall

Kept alive in the Old Testame

nt

Renewed by Jesus

Realized in the New

Testament

Biblical Community

Christian community is the body of Christ

expressing the life and message of Christ to build up one another and redeem the world for God’s glory.

Read from Donahue. What is your definition? It is important to know your definition of

biblical community in order to develop a training program for small group leaders.

Biblical Community

Divide into 2 groups of 3. Consider the following questions together:

Where did you live between ages 7 and 12? How was your home heated then? Who was the center of human warmth in your

family? When, if ever, did God become more than a

mere word to you?

Small Group Firestarter #1

Each individual should select one of the “one

anothers” from Gorman 40-41 Go to the library and do some research on the

accompanying reference, noting insights (15 minutes)

Meet with assigned small group and share insights discovered (10 minutes)

Draw conclusions together regarding how the “one anothers” reveal biblical community that could be practiced in our culture today (10 minutes)

Small Group Firestarter #2

Taking into account all we’ve discussed

tonight, how could the intentional development of biblical community be counter-cultural?

Brainstorm the potential impact of counter-cultural community within the context of your church, your family, and perhaps beyond.

Prepare to report your findings to the class.

Small Group Firestarter #3

How do people commonly view the church?

Centered in a building Represented by a pastor, priest, or minister Made up of people who share a common faith

The role of leadership: Look carefully at the patterns and practices of

church life Unexamined presuppositions or assumptions can

hide the roots of conflict and confusion even as the church experiences renewal and growth – Roberta Hestenes

Community in the Congregation

Institutional

Looks at the formal power and organizational structure of the church

Issues of power and authority emerge Considers the governing board, the pastor and

staff, the committee structure, and the people who are active in the programs

Key questions are: Can we get them involved in helping the

program? Are enough people coming to the program?

Two perspectives for church life

Relational

Looks at the relationships and interpersonal connections in the church

Considers the networks within the congregation Issues concern regarding whether a sense of

belonging exists Focuses on the groups of people in the

congregation—those who meet within the church building and those who meet elsewhere

Committees become one form of congregational relational groups

Two perspectives for church life

The major difficulty occurs when a new leader with

relational, community-building eyes unwisely develops relational programs and emphases to the neglect of people who are more programmatically or institutionally oriented

Doing this risks ending up with two congregations with contradictory goals

The challenge is to work with both types—to draw relational people into mission and institutional people into situations where they are cared for—to work toward community

--Roberta Hestenes

The major difficulty

Can be a meeting place for both relationally

and programmatically oriented church people when committees know how to function as communities

Even committees can be structured and operated in a way that remembers one of the central commands of Jesus—to love one another

Transformed committees

Discerning spirituality Spiritually gifted for the task Clear job descriptions Sense of calling Description of available training Annual retreats Sharing reflection questions and stories

Things to consider

Avoid giving singular meanings to plural

passages in the Scriptures Include sermon illustrations that reflect the

communal life of the church Consider letting people in to the deeper parts

of our lives because community demands it Understand the church as a system Encourage spiritual formation through Bible

study

Talk community

Create

community. Make a

difference in someone’s

day

Starbucks found it

The American front porch further represented the ideal of community in

America. For the front porch existed as a zone between the public and the private,

an area that could be shared between the sanctity

of the home and the community outside. It was an area where interaction with the community could

take place – Scott Cook

No more front porches

Sketch your “Journey of Transformation” on a

sheet of paper. Where did a person or persons play a major part

in your formation? How did this occur?

Why are people today so lonely? Do you think people really want community?

Do you?

Firestarter #4

Story-rap (198) What are the characteristics of

pseudocommunity? Have you experienced any aspects of

pseudocommunity? How does true community compare? How do you see true community among the

12 disciples? What would God have you do to develop

“realness” in your community experience?

The answer is not pseudocommunity!

• Major part of the abundance in the abundant life

• Community begins and ends in God—the purpose is his, the power to actualize is his, the resulting benefits are his.

Community is inherent in being Christian

Community—don’t leave home without it

• The distinctiveness of the followers of Jesus must include the godly treatment of one another

• “Sainthood is perfected in communion with others, never apart from it” – Simon Chan

Community is intrinsic to our evolving Christlikeness

• Life in the Father’s household lasts forever

• Sharing in the marriage supper of the Lamb will be the consummation of earthly community

Community is God’s gift to his own, now and forever