Change Requires All of Us

Change Requires All of Us

“Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other"

Romans 12:4

Something good that you don't hear much about today is evangelism. Probably because it has gotten a bad reputation over the years because of the abuses it has never at the hands of the misguided. The passage cited above Romans 12:4-5, “Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other”  shows us that we need each other - to change ourselves and by that to change the world in which we live. I need you and you need me to survive. The phrase “one another” is used 58 times in the New Testament and ranges from "Love one another," to care for one another, encourage one another, support one another, pray for one another, greet one another, share with one another...and more. God never meant for you to go through life by yourself. Whether you ever marry or not is irrelevant. You need a spiritual family, and you need to be involved in that household. You will not make all the changes you need to make, want to make, plan to make, or desire to make by yourself. If you could, you would. But you can’t, so you won’t!

There are a plenty of good self-help books that will tell you the right thing to do, but they don’t provide the two things the Bible says you must have: God’s power and community. That's what you need to change. Change requires community. We’ve got people from every kind of background and have members from many different religious and cultural backgrounds. What we have in common is our love for God, hat unites us and allows us to help each other.

What are the changes you want to make in your life this year? Get involved with someone within God's house and help one another reach that goal. You might say, "I don't need brothers or sisters in church, I have my personal family." Jesus said, "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.(Mt.10:37)." We might say, "I'll let some else teach others the gospel, I'll just concentrate on me." This is to rob others of the precious gift that you have come to receive and know. Paul ststed, "And entrust what you heard me say in the presence of many others as witnesses to faithful people who will be competent to teach others as well.(2 Tm.2:2)."

It takes all of us working together, whether on a personal level, or on a group family level to bring about what God wants. Are you about God's business? Perhaps it is time to break out of our isolated shells and join with God's community to accomplish what God wants personally as well as communally.

Jim