When you hear an
invitation to get into a Community Group, maybe you feel like
you’re too busy and can’t add “1 more thing” to your life. So why does it
matter anyway? What’s the big deal about being in a Community Group?
I’m glad you asked! Here’s a few reasons that I think a Community Group
should be a high priority for every follower of Jesus:
1. God created you
for authentic community relationships
Five times in Genesis
1 it says that after God created, He “saw that it was good.” At the end of the
chapter it says, “God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.”
Then in the very next chapter, the story line changes to something not good!
Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone…” Gen 2:18a
Isolation isn’t part
of God’s plan for your life. His solution to the problem of isolation was
family; God created Eve to be Adam’s wife and fill the void of being alone. God
made every human being with an internal need for authentic relationships,
and when we don’t have them, we experience loneliness.
In the New Testament,
both Peter and Paul refer to the church as the “family of believers.” God
provided you with a spiritual family, and in that family you will find the
relational connections that defeat the discouragement of isolation.
2. We grow and change
best in accountable community
If I were to ask you
if there are areas that you need to grow in, chances are, you’d say “yes” and
know right away what needs to change. If you’re serious about growing to be
more like Jesus, then you’d better seriously considering doing it in a
community of friends!
In a couple of
studies on heart patients, it was discovered that:
- Only 1 out of 10 people were able to change to a healthy lifestyle when they were on their own
- 8 out of 10 people made significant and lasting changes to their diet, exercise, and habits when they were in an accountable community group that met weekly for one year
So what do heart
patient studies have to do with the Christian life? Those studies exposed a
principle of human nature that I’ve seen to be true in being able to stay the
course in following Jesus. That’s what the writer of Hebrews was talking about
when he wrote these words:
See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. (Hebrews 3:12-13)
We might think that
some sins are “no big deal” or that “it doesn’t hurt anyone.” But as this verse
describes, when we dabble in sin, it causes us to grow cold toward God and we
turn away from him as a result. When we’re in accountable community with others
who are also on a spiritual journey toward Jesus, they encourage us and help
keep us from being ensnared by the deceptiveness of sin.
On the other side of
the table, your Christian brothers and sisters need you to be there to
encourage them to keep walking with Jesus and not be deceived by sin! You need
your brothers and sisters, and they need you.
3. You’ll have a
blast with your new friends!
Every Community Group
needs to include a good dose of food and fun! And if you start going to a
Community Group and they’re not having any fun, maybe God sent you to the group
to liven it up!
So… what do you
think? Is your spiritual life worth the
time and effort needed to be in a community of friends? Invite a friend to join
you and go find a group this week!
http://www.sdrock.com/communitygroups
& click on “Find a Group”
“Bringing Pervasive Hope to San
Diego as we grow closer to Jesus
in a community of friends”
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