As humans it would be pretty fair to say that we desire, and perhaps even need, community right? I mean think of all the communities and groups we fill our lives with; church, life groups, friends, work colleagues, sports teams, hobbies groups, and of course Facebook. God’s pretty into community too. God himself is community, the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit, each performing different roles but coming together in unity. God also desires community with us. Because of sin this community is broken. We read in Genesis how Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden due to their sin, an act which cut them off from eternal life with God. Fortunately the story doesn’t end there. All throughout the rest of the bible we see God trying to reconnect with his people. In the Old Testament we have the priests and the prophets, God reaching out to reconnect with the Jews. Then in the New Testament Jesus comes along and through his death bridges the gap between us and God. Here God reaches out to reconnect not only with the Jews but to the Gentiles also, to all those who believe. The writer of Hebrews begins Hebrews chapter ten by addressing this very fact...
“Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest (Jesus) had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy”. Hebrews 10: 11-14.
So here the writer points out how Jesus as our priest makes us clean once and for all, welcoming us into a perfect relationship with God. The writer of Hebrews then goes on to encourage us to be in community, not only with God, but with each other also. Now remember this was a community that was similar in many ways to ours. The time when this was written is probably somewhere around 60AD, so it’s likely that much of the church community were second generation Christians. A lot of them had probably grown up in the church and didn’t know anything different. Maybe they were starting to take their faith and the church for granted, possibly because they hadn’t gone through the same persecution that their parents had (see Hebrews 10:32-34). They also lived in a society that was full of Emperor worship and other gods. Perhaps some of them were reaching a point in their lives where they were thinking, “Yeah, I don’t really know if this is for me”, and they wanted to go and try out some other religions or lifestyles. I wonder if this attitude is also held by many young adults today. Are we guilty of giving up community with each other because we want to discover what else is out there, what “works best for me”? The writer of Hebrews encourages us not to do this but instead writes:'
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day approaching”. Hebrews 10: 24-25.
This is probably a verse that many of you have heard before. I think we often look at it and just see the middle bit about “not giving up meeting together”. You might be thinking right now “Phew! Glad you picked that verse JD because I come to church every Sunday, I’m sorted”. Ah not quite. If we look at the type of community in this passage like a ham sandwich it’s like you’ve stocked up on the ham but forgotten the bread. Without the bread it’s not a sandwich, it’s just ham.
Sometimes we can view the church community like a jar of marbles. We’re like the marbles, the jar is the church. We come together and might get shaken up a bit we’re not really changed by the experience. Hebrews 10:3 talks about the ritual of animal sacrifice as an annual reminder of sin. I wonder if we see church in a similar way. Maybe we just see it as a bit of a ritual. Or perhaps church, for us, acts as a reminder as well, a reminder of our sin or our community in Christ. I’m not saying this is a bad thing. Actually meeting together to remember our community with God and how Jesus come to establish that community is one of the reasons why community is important. The writer of Hebrews asks us to do more than this however.
There are two other key practices that the writer points out in Hebrews 10:24-25. Firstly he encourages us to spur one another on toward love and good deeds...love and good deeds. So does that mean we should go up to our mates and say, “Hey bro, you know how there’s that chick you have a crush on, well I think it’s time you go and ask her out. Oh and chuck some good deeds in there, you know like shower before you meet her and open the door for her...” Ok so that’s probably not what it’s talking about here. We could look at these words as an encouragement to keep each other accountable though. Now we often think about accountability as telling each other what not to do. Like we’ll hear one of our friends swear and we’ll be like “Hey, I don’t think you should be doing that because the bible says we should honour God with our mouths”. Hebrews points out however that accountability is about more than just reminding your fellow Christian of the stuff ups they’re making. It’s also about challenging each other to be loving and to do good deeds. The second point also comes in here, the point of encouraging one another. So we are called not only to meet together but to challenge and encourage one another also. A community like this is more like a jar of grapes. We come together, get shaken up, and leave changed. The grapes get broken, mixed together and get covered in each other’s juice. They have been influenced by the other grapes and they in turn have influenced others. We are encouraged to be a community that actually connects with each other. Ok so you’re probably thinking, “But they’re damaged! Those grapes got bruised and broken!” True, a community of grapes is vulnerable, but it’s through coming together and challenging and encouraging each other that we grow. You see the jar of marbles is like a group of individuals, but the jar of grapes is like a community journeying together. It’s a community that acknowledges we are all vulnerable and broken, but also that we have something of value inside us that is worth sharing.
Ecclesiastes points to a similar community. Let’s remember that it is Solomon writing here. This guy had power, wealth, and influence. Yet here he has come to the end of his life and realized that none of this can make him happy, that it is all meaningless. He is probably also thinking “Yeah having 1000 wives probably wasn’t the best idea I ever had”. What he suggests instead is that the only meaningful thing worth pursuing is community with God and with each other.
“There was a man all alone who had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless – a miserable business! Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labour: If they fall down they can help each other up”. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
Solomon first points out here that striving for our own gain or profit is useless but that community is worthwhile. he gives is that if He then gives three examples of why community is better. Firstly he reminds us that if two are together and one falls down the other can help him up. When I read this I think of two people working in the field together or walking along a road carrying a heavy load. Then I thought, okay maybe it’s a bit like tramping. You’re walking along and the track’s a bit slippery and you fall over. Now with a heavy pack on you’re going to have a bit of a mission getting back up on your own. With someone to help you it’s a lot easier though, right? This is also a bit like journeying together in faith. It’s like being there to help each other when we are going through tough times and about caring for each other.The next example Solomon gives is Ecclesiastes 4:11:
“Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?”
Yes that’s right the bible promotes spooning! In all seriousness though, we see in this example a community that is meeting each other’s physical needs. There is perhaps a reminder here that we should be looking out for the physical, as well as spiritual, needs of those we are in community with.
Let’s look at the last example, Ecclesiastes 4:12.
“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
Here Solomon points out how two can defend themselves against the attacks of the enemy. We could extend this concept to persecution or to spiritual warfare, with the idea that in community we can better defend ourselves against discouragement and other spiritual attacks. The image I’m going to use here is the chopstick. On its own it can be easily broken but if you tie several chopsticks together then the bunch becomes really strong. We can see in this how those in community are much stronger under pressure. The chopsticks are also a good example because on its own a chopstick is pretty useless. The only way you can really use a chopstick on its own is by stabbing your food. Many people in fact find this use of the chopstick offensive. I wonder if God views our desire to go it alone offensive as well. We are actually designed to function only when in community with others. Only when the chopsticks work together can they dominate a big bowl of Noodle Canteen.
The interesting thing about the three examples Solomon gives is that they all involve mutual relationships. Verse 10 suggests that both parties are looking out for and caring for each other. We get the impression that they are journeying side by side and that if either of them slips up (whether literally of in the spiritual sense) the other one will be there to pick them up and get them going in the right direction again. Verse 11 suggests that both parties are helping each other to survive. Both parties can make it through the cold of the night because their heat is helping the other keep warm. Verse 12 likewise suggests that both parties are safer as they are able to help each other overcome attacks. In all of these examples it’s not simply about how I can benefit from you but more importantly how we can benefit equally from working together.
Maybe we’ve been viewing community in the wrong way. I think quite often we can look at community in terms of “what can I get from this?”, or “how can I benefit from this?” But what Hebrews and Ecclesiastes show us is that community isn’t about me, it’s about us. It’s actually about what I can give to build others up, not about what I can take. Let’s also remember that when Hebrews says “do not give up meeting together” it’s not talking about rituals, it’s talking about relationships.
So here are some thoughts to reflect on:
• Why do you think young adults struggle with this whole idea of community? Why are so many leaving church?
• Do we actually need to reassess the way we view/approach this concept of “meeting together regularly?"
If you'd like to listen to JD's talk from Sunday (and it is awesome to listen back and to hear everyone laughing and clapping together), you can find it here:
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