We need each other in order to live the gospel, the Body of Christ is our spiritual family and our collective reality, and it is God’s master plan. There is no other form for the Christian life except a common one. This is the church that we are called to engage with and help build.
Yes, we certainly must deal with individuals, but the very nature of our lifestyle and our church teaching must be consistent with its goal —the communion of saints, shared life together as a family, the Trinitarian life of God’s Kingdom!
The prophet Haggai criticized the Jews after the exile for dwelling comfortably in their “paneled houses” while the common walls of the temple lie in ruins (see Haggai 1:4, 9). We continue to think that we can work with the world’s agenda, where career and individual fulfillment are the basic building blocks of society. However, God needs “living stones making a spiritual house” (1 Peter 2:5).
For Jesus, teachings of forgiveness, healing, and justice are not just spiritual tests or requirements. They are the necessary foundations for basic shared life. Peacemaking and reconciliation are not some kinds of tickets to heaven. They are the price of peoplehood. (2 Corinthians 5:18–19)
Evangelism and church building are the expressed truth in the heart of God, the truth that has been shared with us in the Holy Spirit, the union in Jesus Christ who is reconciling all people to God.
1 Peter 2:5 “And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.”
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