Values for the Church & Her Leaders (part 2): Community

The second value that is important to both the local church and to her leaders is community.  This is another word that has multiple meanings for various groups, so I want to offer the following summary: “Authentic relationships guided by love can change the world.”

The values of community and missional fit together perfectly.  It is impossible to have one without the other.  Without a community to partner with God, humanity would have no mission.  And without a mission, the community has no reason to assemble.  But the New Testament gives us a beautiful and messy picture of authentic relationships.  The early church committed herself to the breaking of bread, prayer, fellowship, and the Apostles’ teaching.  It was in such an environment that the many “one another” passages of the Scriptures were carried out.  The community of faith was a place to be known and to know others.  It was a value of participating in common story and together discerning what that meant for their lives.  As they did so, it became evident that each person had something to contribute to the well being of church and to the world around it. A Christian leader is one who understands that she or he is not above but is part of the community, contributing leadership and unleashing others to reflect the reign of God. [1]

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The rest of this series can be read here.