I am going to be outlining Robert Lewis’ book, The Church of Irresistible Influence, over the next several blogs. Serving our community is one of our major-league core values here at Origin. I want to answer why it is so important. Origin Team, this is why we were a part of the Haunted Depot and will be serving at the Christmas Parade coming up in December.
- Imagine the community in which you live being genuinely thankful for your church.
- Imagine city leaders valuing your church’s friendship and participation in the community-even asking for it.
- Imagine the neighborhoods around your church talking behind your back about “how good it is” to have your church in the area because of the tangible witness you’ve offered of God’s love.
- Imagine a large number of your church members actively engaged in, and passionate about, community service, using their gifts and abilities in ways and at levels they never thought possible.
- Imagine the community actually changing because of the impact of your church’s involvement.
Matthew 5:16 captures a forgotten and long-neglected part of our Christianity; the part that believes that the Great Commandment “to love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:39) is just as essential to the spread of the gospel and to the sanctification of church members as the Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20). Reconnecting a church to the community makes it both real and reachable. The church accomplishes this not just by word but by deed.
At Origin, we don’t want to be a stranger to our community. We refuse to become preoccupied with ourselves. There is no better metaphor for what the church of Jesus Christ is biblically designed for than to be a bridge to the community.
