But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. 2 Thessalonians 2:13
“Christian community is like the Christian’s sanctification. It is a gift of God which we cannot claim. Only God knows the real state of our fellowship, of our sanctification. What may appear weak and trifling to us may be great and glorious to God. }ust as the Christian should not be con stantly feeling his spiritual pulse, so, too, the Christian com munity has not been given to us by God for us to be constantly taking its temperature. The more thankfully we daily receive what is given to us, the more surely and steadily will fellowship increase and grow from day to day as God pleases.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Life Together: The Classic Exploration of Christian Community (New York: Harper One, 1954) 30.
Yesterday many friends and family surrounded us with love with the wedding of our son. Sammy and Emily are now happily married. And what a privilege to officiate (pictured above). It was a special experience of Christian community. What a gift. A few friends advised me beforehand to greet as many people as possible, to enjoy their presence, and simply thank them for coming. Now I see why. The experience of Christian community is a great gift.
Bonhoeffer teaches us that Christian community is something to receive and participate in but not something we can ever claim as ours. He’s right. Think about it. Even as we own nothing, but experience everything is a gift of grace, we don’t own people either, so our interaction with and the blessings generously shared in the process are gifts from God who chose us as His own in the first place.
Today, while Sammy and Emily head to Hawaii for their honeymoon and relatives depart, I fly to Washington D.C. to experience the gift of Christian community with a dear friend, Dan Busby, president of ECFA. We will enjoy fellowship, talk about our families, share about our GTP and ECFA work, and go to World Series game 5 together. It’s a gift from God. I pray our experience of Christian community produces fruits that bless the whole world.