God is so good, isn’t He? As that great hymn goes, “There’s a sweet, sweet spirit in this place; and I know that it’s the spirit of the Lord.” I was so blessed by worship this morning, and the sermon I dreaded preaching went okay...at least I didn't get punched in the face! Ha! (If you haven't read Friday's blog, I preached on divorce). Seriously, I have the wonderful privilege of pastoring the greatest church in the world--Hilldale Baptist Church, Clarksville, Tennessee. We're not perfect because we're made up of imperfect people...but we worship and serve a perfect God!
I've been thinking. We have lots of responsibilities as Christian congregations, one of which is biblical fellowship or koinonia. True Christian fellowship is based upon and built around Jesus Christ. Because our lives are connected to Him, we should be connected to each other. We love one another, help one another, and encourage one another. Koinonia in Christ’s church is a non-negotiable if we’re going to honor Christ in our fellowships. But, as with so much in growing churches, we must be intentional about koinonia if it’s going to happen.
We must also guard ourselves, however, against Koinonitis—the disease of becoming too inwardly focused as a church and getting out of balance in the area of fellowship. The church is called to nurture those within the Body of Christ and reach those outside the Body.
Beth and I have a couple of Blue Mountain College friends—Jeff and Nell Ginn—who were missionaries in Columbia for a number of years. While they were on the mission field, their daughter coined a phrase that may help us fight off the tendency toward Koinonitis. One morning Jeff entered his home study to find his world map had fallen off the wall. In the process of falling, it became torn. His then-two-year-old daughter, Anna, assisted Jeff in the repair of the map.
Nell noticed the unusual quietness of her daughter, so she called out from another room, “Honey, what are you doing?” Quickly and matter-of-factly, Anna answered her mother, “We’re fixin’ the world, Mommy.”
I think that if we will stay busy “fixin’ the world,” then our church will enjoy rich and healthy koinonia while staying immunized against Koinonitis. Nothing brings a church together like working together to make Christ known in their community and within their culture.
I've been thinking. We have lots of responsibilities as Christian congregations, one of which is biblical fellowship or koinonia. True Christian fellowship is based upon and built around Jesus Christ. Because our lives are connected to Him, we should be connected to each other. We love one another, help one another, and encourage one another. Koinonia in Christ’s church is a non-negotiable if we’re going to honor Christ in our fellowships. But, as with so much in growing churches, we must be intentional about koinonia if it’s going to happen.
We must also guard ourselves, however, against Koinonitis—the disease of becoming too inwardly focused as a church and getting out of balance in the area of fellowship. The church is called to nurture those within the Body of Christ and reach those outside the Body.
Beth and I have a couple of Blue Mountain College friends—Jeff and Nell Ginn—who were missionaries in Columbia for a number of years. While they were on the mission field, their daughter coined a phrase that may help us fight off the tendency toward Koinonitis. One morning Jeff entered his home study to find his world map had fallen off the wall. In the process of falling, it became torn. His then-two-year-old daughter, Anna, assisted Jeff in the repair of the map.
Nell noticed the unusual quietness of her daughter, so she called out from another room, “Honey, what are you doing?” Quickly and matter-of-factly, Anna answered her mother, “We’re fixin’ the world, Mommy.”
I think that if we will stay busy “fixin’ the world,” then our church will enjoy rich and healthy koinonia while staying immunized against Koinonitis. Nothing brings a church together like working together to make Christ known in their community and within their culture.
2 comments:
Thanks for your comments. As a pastor for 40 years I could identify with what you've said. And it's certainly true that we have to work at maintaining a loving fellowship in the church "intentionally." We're to be "endeavouring [making every effort] to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Eph. 4:3).
I'm not sure I would concur that Doris Akers' "There's a Sweet, Sweet Spirit" is a "great hymn," but it did describe the warmth of devotion at a prayer meeting on one particular Sunday morning. If you enjoy reading about our hymns and their authors, I invite you to check out my daily blog on the subject, Wordwise Hymns.
Thank you, my friend, for your comment and invitation to view your blog. I look forward to that. By the way, I should have used the word "chorus" instead of "hymn." You're the first to catch that, but I agree with your assessment. :-)
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