and go home. We’ re not just gathering to have our spiritual needs met or merely to learn more about Jesus. We’ re coming together to be the body of Christ to one another and to the world.
I’ ve watched this reality unfold as our church has begun meeting in addiction recovery centers on Sunday mornings. At first, some people wondered,“ Why would we meet there? Isn’ t church supposed to happen in a church building?” But that question reveals a misunderstanding of what the church really is. The church isn’ t a building— it’ s the people. And when the people of God show up in places where people are fighting for their lives, the body of Christ is made manifest.
The Cost of Going It Alone As I was telling my friend about the priority of community, he pushed back.“ Look, I hear what you’ re saying about community being ideal, but my current approach is working fine for me. I read my Bible, I pray before my meals, I try to live by Christian principles. The way I do it seems to be working.”
I paused, choosing my words carefully.“ Can I ask you something? How do you know it’ s working?”
He seemed surprised by the question.“ Well, I feel closer to God. I understand the Bible better than I used to. I’ m becoming a better person.”
When we gather in recovery centers, something remarkable happens. The people in recovery see that the church isn’ t just inviting them to come to us— we’ re going to them. We’ re saying,“ You don’ t have to get cleaned up to meet Jesus. We’ ll bring Jesus right here, into the middle of your struggle.” Our presence says that no place is too broken for the body of Christ to inhabit. And as we worship together, pray together, and share Communion together in those spaces, we’ re not just talking about Jesus’ love for the marginalized— we’ re embodying it.
This is what it means to be the body of Christ. We don’ t just point people to Jesus; we follow Jesus next to them through our collective life together.
“ But here’ s the thing,” I said gently.“ You’ re comparing your current experience to your past experience or to no faith experience at all. You’ ve never actually experienced what it’ s like to follow Jesus in authentic community. It’ s like someone who has only had a blackand-white TV telling me that it works fine. The individualistic approach does work, to a point. It works until it doesn’ t. And compared to what Jesus had in mind, it doesn’ t get close. Even if it works for you, it doesn’ t work for those you could“ work” for. You aren’ t contributing to the health of the body where you could— and should. The value of community isn’ t merely what you get out of it but what you invest in it.”
He frowned.“ That seems a bit harsh.”
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