Society is changing
and so is community, as committed involvement and service by individuals within
social clubs as well as religious communities continues to suffer, falling down
and even off many people’s priority lists. Unfortunately, congregational community
is a non-negotiable according to the Scriptures and is one of those spiritual
disciplines essential for the life of a follower of Messiah Yeshua. Several
years ago I wrote a discipleship series called “The Seven Spiritual Habits of a Maturing Messianic Jewish Faith.”
The material covers basic spiritual disciplines which must be practiced in
order for a follower of Messiah Yeshua to grow in their personal relationship
with God. Two of these disciplines relate to involvement with other believers
within a community.
The first one is Congregational
Integration. Just showing up for services and studies is insufficient
for spiritual maturity. We must be committed to our community: its purpose,
programs and people. Having only a superficial connection to a congregation
will never allow someone to become a unified and useful part of the community;
we will not be able to be raised up to areas of service, responsibility and
leadership. Remember that God calls us to
be actively connected to our congregations so we can be fully useful for
service!
The second is Commitment
to Service. An integrated member of a congregation is a committed
servant within that congregation. This happens naturally in the life of a
spiritually maturing believer who recognizes their spiritual responsibility to
serve. The list of service opportunities within a congregation is never ending,
especially if a congregation is committed to reaching out to those who are not
yet followers of the Messiah. Remember
that God expects us to serve him first and foremost through committed service
within and through our congregational community!
Over time we can get
discouraged through the “back and forth” of being in community, being actively
involved with one another. Taking a break from responsibility from time to time
is healthy and wise; stepping back from being active in community is not. As
our Messiah taught, “Love one another.” Let’s remember that the love Messiah
Yeshua spoke us is best developed when we practice it with real people within
his Messianic community. Our Devar Emet membership expectations challenge us to
realize that the growth and development of our community is our shared
responsibility. As our Membership Expectations remind us, members commit themselves
to being willing to adjust their own schedules to give priority to meeting together
as a community, commit to seeking to identify, develop, and use their spiritual
gifts and abilities to intentionally serve and, as appropriate, even lead
within the community. But most importantly, they commit themselves as members
to develop a spirit of mutual love, unity, forgiveness, concern, encouragement,
and the bearing of one another's burdens within our congregation. This is what
commitment to community is all about!
Let us consider what
we each can do to facilitate and encourage greater community within our own communities
of faith. This will require some sacrifice, mostly our time, talent and
treasure, but certainly that is the least we can do to follow the way that our
Messiah Yeshua has asked us to walk. Consider in what ways G-d would want you
to sacrificially build on the foundation that has been laid within your community,
not just for your own benefit, but for the benefit of others! In this new year
of 5778 let us each consider what we can do to allow G-d to work more
effectively through us in order that G-d will be able to more effective work
through His Messianic community.
Forward for Messiah!
Kirk Gliebe
Rabbi & Director
