Community

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"It shall be that the firstborn whom she bears shall assume the name of his dead brother, so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel." - Deut. 25:6 (NASB)

   I will admit that this may seem like an odd verse to devote time to this morning. Many people avoid the OT like the plague; I love the OT. It is not outdated, unfit, or relegated to examples for sermon material. Yes, there are passages in the OT that are not applicable today because of Jesus' arrival, death, and resurrection. However, the principles that are found there are applicable today. This verse is a prime example. The context involves the duties of a dead man's brother. According to law, if the dead man has a wife, then the dead man's brother is to marry her in order that the firstborn will carry the name of the dead man, and assure his family's legacy. This is not a practice for the Christian church, but it does reveal a powerful principle that the church needs to understand: Community.
   Serving the LORD was central to the Jews in the OT. It was not something they did on the weekend when they had time, or when they had nothing better to do. Serving the God was their primary reason for being. Taking care of their neighbor was a logical procession from serving God. Jesus summed up the whole law in a few short phrases, "And He said to him, " 'YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.'  "This is the great and foremost commandment.  "The second is like it, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.'  "On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Matt. 22:37-40, NASB)  The people of God were connected to each other and they acted like it.
   I may come across as rambling a bit, for that I apologize. I am very concerned that the church in America has lost this community connection with each other. We to come to church and worship (sometimes), but we do not want to connect with each other. If we really are the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12), then we need each other, and will never be as strong, useful, or fulfilled until we connect with each other. Community is not the same as fellowship. When the church has community, there is both accountability and responsibility to each other. This is not always easy or comfortable, but it is necessary. I wonder what the church might look like if we began to have the same level of care and responsibility toward each other that the OT law intended?

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