I’ve been studying a bit about what Lord Jesus didn’t do. It’s a fascinating subject! During His time before Herod, Jesus wouldn’t respond to his insincere questioning. (Luke 23:8-11)

Why not? Lord Jesus said, “Do not give what is holy to dogs and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” (Matthew 7:6) Discernment is necessary.

Yesterday I was visiting a doctor for a checkup, a Christian man, he told me that he was reading a book about the things Jesus didn’t do. That’s confirmation from God.

Lord Jesus also did not live alone. He lived in a community of believers in Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee. (Matthew 4:13) Most of His disciples were called to follow Him from that area. He healed people there. In a sense it was His headquarters.

When The Lord traveled, walking, from village to village, His followers went with Him, both men and women. The place, Capernaum, was not the community, but the people, the fledgling beginning of the Church, was the community. (Matthew 10:1-4; Luke 10:1; Matthew 27:55-56)

After Christ ascended, His people, the Church continued living in community in Jerusalem while around them was persecution. (Acts 1:15) As the Church grew and spread, more and more parts of the Church body were established.

Paul planted some of these communities—Rome, Corinth, Philippi, Thessalonica….while around them was persecution.

Lord Jesus said, “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” (John 10:9) A sheep pen is an enclosure or a cave with only one entrance. The sheep go in an out of this entrance to feed. But at night, the shepherd himself is the door; he lays down across the entrance so that no sheep wander off and no wolves get in.

Believers are the sheep, kept together in a community. The door to the community is Lord Jesus. Believers go in and out, which means freely about their daily activities. (Jeremiah 37:4; Psalm 121:8) There is protection in a community of believers. It is a way of Jesus.

In 1984, my college class took a weekend trip to Chicago. There we visited Jesus People USA. It is a vibrant community of believers living together in a 10-story building in Uptown Chicago with the purpose of serving the poor. Within their ranks are young people, senior citizens, married couples and children. Begun in 1972, with a group of hippies living together in a basement, today they number about 200 souls. Sounds radical doesn’t it? But it has worked for nearly 50 years.

The heritage of Christians has been community, for support, safety, help in need, care, edification, etc.. It is how the believers of the Holy Land have survived and remained for 2,000 years. It is the legacy of the Mayflower Pilgrims, the Puritans, Mennonites and all other Christian communities that have come to America to worship in freedom leaving behind the persecution of the Old World.

The Amish also came to the United States for freedom of religion; theirs is a history of martyrdom, extreme persecution. Though they primarily live in rural areas, they keep together as a church, where there is safety to practice their own ways, help when life’s storms come, and they take care of their own seniors and people who are disabled. Together they celebrate marriages and births and mourn with those in mourning. No one is left to bear his burden alone.

The first large group of Amish arrived in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in 1730. They have been growing strong for 290 years.

The modern church has deviated from this way of Jesus. Community, where people care. Where safety resides. Where there is freedom in everyday life.

Lord Jesus never lived alone. Neither are we to be monks, isolated, living alone, watching tv.

If you are alone, in isolation, reach out to a church community where you live. Go there. Jesus People USA welcomes visitors and those who would live with them. Even the Amish welcome outsiders to come in to their fellowship if they will abide by their ordinances.

As God has led His Church in the past, so He is leading her now. There is no safety without The Lord.

FORGIVENESS, A WAY OF GOD

Survival. There is much to be learned from Christians in the Middle East, who have existed there for the last 2,000 years. Up until the recent years, there were tribes of believers that lived on the land and traveled together. One was the Ghassani tribe, from which my spouse’s father’s family descends.

As they moved across camel trails, over mountains and through deserts, the Gospel of Jesus went with them and was shared. They were known as people of the Book.

Other settlements of Christians lived together in villages, like Acco, on the Mediterranean Sea, not far from Nazareth.

Christians in the Middle East today still live together, for safety, in their own villages or near to relatives. They support each other’s businesses and services. Together, with God’s help, they have kept the churches in the Holy Lands open and vital for 2,000 years. This has not been easy. They have endured poverty, famine, occupation, empires, and numerous wars. But they are still standing and many refuse to leave.

The Word of God says that it is good and pleasant for brothers to dwell together in unity. (Psalm 133:1-3) The psalmist, David, likens the oneness of brotherhood to the dew which comes down upon Mount Hermon in northern Israel. Refreshing.

Lord Jesus had a large following of believers and disciples during His three-year ministry on Earth. There were squabbles about who would be first and where bread could be purchased, but the men and women lived as a community, following The Lord. He kept them safe. (John 17:12)

After The Lord’s ascension, the Acts church developed and boomed to thousands from 120 on Pentecost because of the baptism of Holy Spirit. Under persecution from the Jewish and later Roman societies, these believers learned to listen to Holy Spirit and live together in community. Even land was sold to provide for others; no went in need. (Acts 4:32-37)

Once again, there were squabbles about eating meat first sacrificed to idols or meats previously considered unclean, but division was overcome.

They lived in the world, but were not of the world. They were separate from the world. And they lived together and were of one mind. (Acts 2:41-47; John 17:11)

Believers are to meet regularly, eat together, pray together, study Scripture together, even daily and be of one mind, living in unity with each other. (Romans 15:5; 1Corinthians 1:10; Philippians 1:27) There will be squabbles, just as there were in the beginning, but they too can be overcome with God’s help, counsel and direction.

Do you rely upon the fellowship of community?

If a great crisis came, would you have a network of believers to go to for help?

We are called to love each other. This is a command of Lord Jesus. Do not isolate yourself. You matter and you are needed by The Lord as a vital part of the body of Christ. (Romans 12:5)

Unity of the body of Christ is necessary for survival just as it always has been.

LOOK UP!

FORGIVENESS, A WAY OF GOD