BELIEVERS’ COMMUNITY – CHRISTIANS’ MUTUAL RESPONSIBILITIES.
INTRODUCTION:
Often, we find believers who say they have decided to go their own way, mind their own business apart from other brethren. Usually they arrive at this position because of previous experiences of disappointments and misunderstandings. But, can this position be justified based on God’s words and expectation of the believers’ community. The answer is No! The bible clearly places some responsibilities on believers towards one another. If we must do it the bible way, it will be impossible for any believer to make it to the finishing line without an intercourse with other believers within the church ecosystem. In this study we shall examine some of the obligations the bible place on us Christians toward one another.
I give you a new commandment – to love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. Everyone will know by this that you are my disciples – if you have love for one another”. (John 13:34-35)
Jesus stressed a new commandment for those who follow him, a community built on love for one another, measured by his own love for us. But, how is it possible to love others as Jesus did? It is only possible when Jesus lives within us and does it through us as we depend on the power of the Holy Spirit within.
“For God did not give us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control” 2 Tim. 1:7.
The word honor in the Greek means to value something for what it is worth. At what price did Jesus value us? As his children, he priced us at the cost of his own death. So we are to honor those in our church community who drive us crazy, whose worth to the church we may question, who aren’t even living out their faith very well. Yet we are required to value them as Jesus does.
Paul uses the word build metaphorically in both Rom. 14:9 and 1 Thess. 5:11. Instead of erecting a building, we are to build up one another spiritually. This happens when we use our talents and grace to serve in the church. Read
Paul encouraged us to serve one another in love. This could involve denying oneself a privilege in order to serve the interest of a brother or sister. It could also be in terms of deploying our spiritual gifts, technical/professional skill or societal privileges to assist the church and other brethren. The community needs each of us to shoulder our part of the load so that God’s work is done (Eph 4:16). Discuss other practical ways by which can we serve one another.
This literally means to pick up and carry a weight for someone else. We do this when we pray for the other women in our groups, when we give to those who have need, when we weep with those who weep etc
Bear with means to endure or to forbear. Consider the story of Abigail who had to forbear with a difficult husband. Forbearance involves the idea of not retaliating, of not returning what the other person deserves. The New American Standard translates it as “showing tolerance for one another”. The Bible in Basic English says “putting up with one another.” That’s a hard one!
It is a believers obligation not to deceive one another with lies or by hiding from telling each other the truth even if it might hurt. What is most important is that we communicate in love.
Kindness, forgiveness, compassion operating in the midst of a Christian community would make it look so different from the world. That kind of community would bring Jesus into people’s lives without question and speak to the world of his love.
Those of you who have studied the marriage passages are probably familiar with this verse. But it doesn’t merely deal with marriage but with all relationships in the community of the church. We are to listen to one another and give up our right to win, so to speak, because we are motivated by reverence for Christ.
This command precedes the verses describing Jesus’ humbling himself in death. He gave up all of the rights and privileges of being God in heaven for our sakes. We are to give up our preferences for the sake of others in that same way.
The Greek word exhort can mean instruction, warning, or admonition. It literally means placing something in someone’s mind. So this is a broad instruction telling us to talk to one another about truth, about God, about what is right and about danger that looms before us if we stray from God’s best for us.
This is a different word from the word exhort in the previous command. This one means to comfort and strengthen by means of consolation. It can also include admonition but seems to focus more than the previous word on the comfort we give one another.
Over and over God tells us to be more concerned about everyone else than about ourselves. We are to pursue what is the best thing for other people and for the group instead of only looking after ourselves.
If Jesus is present in us, he is present in others when we gather as believers. There is something positive about confessing to each other. It makes us accountable to the community for our repentance. James also says to pray for one another, which is part of sharing one another’s burdens. Ladies, we have to take seriously our responsibility to pray for one another in our groups. I know that when I ask for prayer, I am counting on those who get the request to pray. I know that you feel the same way. But we have to be as concerned to pray for others as we are that they pray for us. Community is not just about what we get out of it, but it’s about what we give to the other members of that group; it is about the tangible presence of Jesus in us loving them.
The word for hospitality suggests being a friend to a stranger. But in this case it says to do this for one another. As we show hospitality to other believers, we show the love of Jesus to them. We become His hands giving food and clothing and shelter to those who need it.
CONCLUSION:
All of this seems overwhelming as we go through it. The reality is that it’s not done with mere cramming the checklist. Instead, we must focus on living out Jesus within us, loving one another as he loved us. If we live daily in touch with his presence and his power in us, we will hear him telling us how to respond to the community of faith as he would. We are his voice, his hands, and his feet to care for one another.
Let’s take a minute to consider this list of “one anothers.” Sit silently before God and ask him to impress one of them on your heart, one that you need to personally work on, one to have at the forefront of your mind. Listen to what the Lord says.
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