Better Than Idealism
Good morning, Immanuel. In Christ, we can have something better than an idealistic community. We can have real community where the risen Christ dwells
“And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need” (Acts 2:45).
Nostalgia has a way of airbrushing history so that we only imagine an idealistic version of events. But we all know that real life is not idealistic. Neither is church community. Thankfully, the Bible recognizes and accounts for that reality. Take Acts 2:45, for example. Fresh off the news of the resurrection of Jesus, the gospel was creating a new community of beauty, joy, and peace. We may be tempted to look back at the early church with rose-colored glasses, imagining an idealistic Christian experience where everything was perfectly in order. But Acts won’t let us get far with that train of thought. Right in the middle of this new gospel community was a four-letter word—need. “And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need” (Acts 2:42).
Isn’t it amazing that God’s new community included need? And why did God design it that way? Why didn’t salvation make all our needs disappear in this life? One reason is so that the church would abound with opportunities to share in the same joy of giving and receiving that God himself models! The gospel is the good news of God’s generosity towards us in Jesus. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son…(John 3:16a)” It was God’s joy to give up his only Son for us, and it is our glory to receive his Son with the empty hands of faith. There is astounding beauty in a gospel community that joyfully reflects giving and receiving to the glory of Christ!
In Christ, we can have something better than an idealistic community. We can have real community where the risen Christ dwells, and we all share in the joy of his fullness together.