Community

I've noticed that most of the new church plants I hear about are establishing themselves on the idea that the Church needs to be more community centered, meaning that newer church planters place high value on the power of interpersonal relationships. This brings up conflicting reactions from me.

I've been reading a commentary on 1 John, and apparently one of main reasons that the author wrote the letter was to address the false teaching of a group of secessionists. One of these teachings diluted the idea that sin even existed, hence John's rebutting verse: If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. Apparently this false teaching was leading to quarrels within the church enough to prompt an under girding of the law of love: The one who says he is in the light and yet hates his brother is in the darkness [...]

1 John attempts to clean up the mess that secessionists have caused by spreading teaching that led to a disruption in their fellowship. It is obvious that community is something that was important to the apostle writing under the inspiration of the Spirit. This is one biblical example among several others that unity is good.

Conversely, the story of Babel in Genesis 11 shows that community is not always welcomed by God. In this passage, the descendants of Noah had once again become rebellious. Even the Great Flood could not wash away the old habits of sin it seems (which makes it one of many Old Testament foreshadows of the final redemptive act of Christ). Thus, we find mankind with the will to come together and combine their sinful natures to build a monument to pride: a tower that would reach into heaven.

This corporate mission so concerned our Lord that He intervened by confusing their languages. This is supposedly why, to this day, us earth dwellers have thick barriers between cultures established by speech. So we see that unity can be bad.

The consensus? I believe these conflicting equations (Unity = Good and Unity = Bad) mean that though community is to be sought after, it should not take the place of a real reverence for the Lord and a respect for His prerogative to reach down and blow up whatever plans we cook up together outside of His specific command.

When you are surrounded by a bunch of people who agree with you, it is easy to come up with some absolutely foolish ideas. Take this burger king commercial.



"Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-A-Lot was first released in 1992. That's almost seventeen years ago. The song has been parodied and re-parodied to exhaustion. Even Christians were turning it into something they could use with "Baby Got Book," and you know when the Christians finally catch up with a pop culture joke it has already stopped being funny ten years ago. BUT THAT'S NOT EVEN THE KICKER. The real senselessness of this commercial lies in the fact that they are promoting a Spongebob Squarepants KIDS meal with sexual innuendo. AHH!

If I know anything about childhood development, it is that by the time little johnny starts letting his french fry make most of his decisions for him, he no longer wants the kids meal. So who are they trying to reach with this marketing mishap? The parents of the kids? Did they think the parents would say something like: "oh boy, those dancing girls really make me want to buy my kid a BK kid's meal!" Past Burger King commercials have won awards for advertising, and I think that Burger King mascot is cool, but this particular commercial fails because: (1.) It's not original or funny. It's annoying. (2.) It will probably offend parents who are trying to feed their kids a simple meal without having to explain why Spongebob is objectifying women.

How do commercials like this get made? There must have been a board room of marketing guys who think after 17 years Mix-A-Lot's single can still make people laugh. I don't think they exist, but I wouldn't want to share my breathing air with such individuals. Chalk another point up to the Unity = Bad theory.

I guess there is a reason that Jesus so sternly told his followers that he did not necessarily come to bring peace but a sword. He rightly predicted that his presence would divide families and friends. "What Would Jesus Do?" Oh, I know! He would break up a tight knit Mormon family when Gary starts to learn the truth that Joseph Smith was a complete fraud, and Christ is his only hope for redemption. That doesn't seem like the Jesus we picture, but can it be a real possibility that God does not want certain people to be together?

All of that to say I don't think community should not be the goal of church planting, because there's no where to go once you achieve it, just as there would be no where to go if the Genesis 11 folk had been allowed to finish their tower. Humanity is quite fond of something we don't even know how to use: power.

I'm at a point in my walk with Christ that I'm taking a good look at what I sincerely believe in and what I don't. I believe in God's ability to take on our pain and clean up our messes, but I don't believe in our ability to save ourselves with a good plan for togetherness. We have a deep affection for the programs we conjure up to help God with His mission, but I'm learning that He doesn't need help with what He does best. Good community should happen when we stop worshiping everything we tend to put in Jesus' place.

But what happens if we are putting community in Jesus' place? Then it too must die.