Psalms 135-136
1 Corinthians 12
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards 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
As Christians, where do we find the optimal conditions for spiritual growth? Answer: in the body of Christ. We discover true life in Christ, when we bring our individual faith and connect it with the rest of the body.
To illustrate this point, I (Peter Chu) want to disclose that I played basketball in high school. Since then, I have lost strength, stamina, speed and agility. The only thing that I gained is weight, but if I was asked, “Peter, prove that you played basketball,” I would point to all the basketball gear that I have, including a brand new pair of shoes from the Steph Curry Collection, an authentic Steph Curry jersey, an official basketball watching armchair and my controller that allows me to watch TSN, ESPN and NBA TV. I even know how the coaches should coach and how the players should play. I could provide all these constructive suggestions from my armchair and then go out onto my driveway and show off my basketball skills, but the truth is, my full potential as a basketball player is only found when I am playing with a team against another team. Why? Because basketball is a team sport. Similarly, the Christian life is a team sport; that is the way God designed it.
As Christians we can have the gear: the printed Bibles, Bible apps, worship playlists on Spotify, devotional books, devotional apps, a cross hanging on the wall of our home, a cross necklace and a Christian bumper sticker on our car. But no matter how much gear we have, podcasts we listen to or content we take in, true life in Christ happens when we bring our individual faith and connect it with the rest of the body. While it is vitally important to practice our faith individually, we thrive and grow the most when we are in community.
When we are part of a community, we learn from other brothers and sisters who are also trying to live out their faith. Together, we mutually edify each other, thereby growing and deepening in our discipleship with Jesus. Like basketball, our skills as a player can only improve when we not only learn from others but are also challenged by them. As a team, our goal is to get better and better at being the body of Christ. Our Christian walk is meant to be in community because the Christian life is a team sport.
Are we part of a Christianity community or are we sitting by ourselves in our armchair?
Lord Jesus, help me to lean into Christian community, where I could live out my faith with other brothers and sisters, mutually edifying and growing together. Thank You, Lord.
1 Corinthians 12
“And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards 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
As Christians, where do we find the optimal conditions for spiritual growth? Answer: in the body of Christ. We discover true life in Christ, when we bring our individual faith and connect it with the rest of the body.
To illustrate this point, I (Peter Chu) want to disclose that I played basketball in high school. Since then, I have lost strength, stamina, speed and agility. The only thing that I gained is weight, but if I was asked, “Peter, prove that you played basketball,” I would point to all the basketball gear that I have, including a brand new pair of shoes from the Steph Curry Collection, an authentic Steph Curry jersey, an official basketball watching armchair and my controller that allows me to watch TSN, ESPN and NBA TV. I even know how the coaches should coach and how the players should play. I could provide all these constructive suggestions from my armchair and then go out onto my driveway and show off my basketball skills, but the truth is, my full potential as a basketball player is only found when I am playing with a team against another team. Why? Because basketball is a team sport. Similarly, the Christian life is a team sport; that is the way God designed it.
As Christians we can have the gear: the printed Bibles, Bible apps, worship playlists on Spotify, devotional books, devotional apps, a cross hanging on the wall of our home, a cross necklace and a Christian bumper sticker on our car. But no matter how much gear we have, podcasts we listen to or content we take in, true life in Christ happens when we bring our individual faith and connect it with the rest of the body. While it is vitally important to practice our faith individually, we thrive and grow the most when we are in community.
When we are part of a community, we learn from other brothers and sisters who are also trying to live out their faith. Together, we mutually edify each other, thereby growing and deepening in our discipleship with Jesus. Like basketball, our skills as a player can only improve when we not only learn from others but are also challenged by them. As a team, our goal is to get better and better at being the body of Christ. Our Christian walk is meant to be in community because the Christian life is a team sport.
Are we part of a Christianity community or are we sitting by ourselves in our armchair?
Lord Jesus, help me to lean into Christian community, where I could live out my faith with other brothers and sisters, mutually edifying and growing together. Thank You, Lord.
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