Take the Missional Challenge is a 31 Day experience designed to help align believers with Jesus' mission. Each day's post includes missional concepts and activities. For more information - click here.
Following Jesus is not a solo act! God designed every believer to live in relationship with other Christians - to "be Jesus" with each other. That's incarnational community!
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Incarnational Community is a group of believers
with the heart of Jesus - they physically represent Jesus in a particular location. |
The mission of Jesus is experienced and fulfilled
together with other Christians in community! As a result
of living in Biblical community with one another, the
early Christians in Acts experienced God's power and
presence in their lives. People sensed the Hand of God.
God was working in their lives.
"Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to
house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the
good news that Jesus is the Christ" (Acts 5:42). Early
Christians kept on telling others about Jesus! They were
not ashamed of the gospel, because it is "the power of
God at work, saving everyone who believes" (Rom 1:16).
The Church is not a place or a program. It is people.
Every Christian is part of the Church! It is God's
intent for believers to thrive out in the culture!
Imagine the impact of believers who live in authentic
relationships and open up their homes to one another and
are loving on each other and helping each other and
sharing meals together all week long. They're not just
waiting until Sunday morning at "church" to share or
care for one another - but they are living it
incarnationally all week long.
In Acts 2:47, another result of authentic,
biblically-functioning community is that people were
coming to faith in Jesus. "And each day the Lord added
to their group those who were being saved." The family
of God grew and expanded as more and more people
believed in Jesus and were adopted into the family.
In John 13:34-35, Jesus says, "A new commandment I give
to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved
you, that you also love one another. By this all men
will know that you are My disciples, if you have love
for one another."
There are two assumptions in that verse: 1) Christians
really do love each other like Jesus loves; and 2)
People who do not know Jesus are close enough to see
that love. When non-believing people see how Christians
love each other and care for each other because of their
commitment to Christ, they want to experience it too.
"Community cannot be created in isolation, nor does it happen without action. It requires people to navigate the tensions of interpersonal relationships. Creating community doesn't come easily, but when it happens, the rewards are worth the effort" (Halter and Smay, The Tangible Kingdom Primer
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Motivate and Mobilize Others to Join with You
In Embodying Jesus' Mission
- Read Acts 2:42-47, Acts 4:31-35, Romans 12:9-13 and I Peter 4:8-10
- What are the benefits of pursuing authentic community together with other Christians?
- What might you have to give up in order to make time for community in your life?
- With whom will you gather weekly to live in incarnational community?
- When and where could you regularly meet together?
- Invite others to join you in incarnational community - embodying Jesus' mission.
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It's a great resource to help you get started. (here's a
link to the intro and first two chapters). Read more
about it
here and
here. Day 29 Missional Challenge: Invite others to join you in God's mission. Live together in incarnational community.
Related Posts:
What is Missional Christianity?
Creating Incarnational Community
Missional Distinctives
Murray Moerman (