{{2013_05_08_t1.jpg}}
{{2013_05_08_t2.jpg}}
{{2013_05_08_t3.jpg}}
[[http://www.jesusnetwork.eu/de/doku.php/jn_de_2013_05_08|Deutsche Version]] [[Start|| Wiki Start]]
[[topics_collection_v|| Topics Collection v ]]
======What type of community? ...======
Wednesday, May 8, 2013. The book of Acts reports a special kind of
community which appeared in the early Christian church, the "community of goods"
in Acts 2, 44. The early Christians had all things in common. They even
sold their land or houses, to give it to the apostles, which used it for the
community of believers ...
{{2013_05_08.jpg }}
**What community? ...**
It is a good question, what type of community we can achieve in the Christian
church! We are very different people. And we belong to each other, since we
are part of Christ in faith. There are deep and important consequences of faith -
we cannot just stay ignorant. We cannot just act as if we would not be linked
to the Lord, and to the other Christians by the holy spirit!
But when you look practically into the community of the church, you quickly
realize how different people are. Often, when we stay away from each other in
normal life, we do not realize the differences. But when you get closer
to others, you will see quickly how many ways there are to live your day.
Friends of ours have a completely different way to deal with their little
kids than we have. Nursing a child, educating a child ... there are decisions
to be made. When do you say no? What are the consequences of nasty behavior
of a child towards others?
And with the decisions which all parents need to make, big differences can arise
in style and rythm.
{{ 2013_05_08_2.jpg}}
**Community one layer deeper ...**
**
There is something, which connects us! There is a community between believers,
which is much deeper than the superficial things which often catch our view.
It is like a subsurface river, like a huge subsurface stream below the ice. When
people believe in Christ, the holy spirit lives in them, influences them,
works on them. Our community is with the father and Christ, the son.
It is the adventure of our life, to explore God himself, with all what he is,
and with all what he brings to us. Part of this adventure are the others. The
community of the church, the community with other people, is a fantastic
adventure which is given to us by the holy spirit. It means that we can expect
great things in our life and in our community. We can expect that the wonders,
which always come with the presence of the Lord in many ways, are also part
of our community!
What can we do to get deeper into the community which we long for? First of all,
it is a community with the Lord. HE enables us to find to one another. It is him,
we should search first. It is his community, which will link us together. He
frees our mind and our heart. He gives us goals. His love fills us, helps us,
holds us, guides us!
(Roland Potthast)
[[http://www.jesusnetwork.eu/en/doku.php/topics_collection_v|... more texts]]