“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.”
-acts 2:42 (ESV)
As John Donne wrote, “no man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main…” We are made by God to exist in community and fellowship with one another. We are meant to know others and be known by others so that, as it says in Proverbs, we may be sharpen one another. Make no mistake, practicing community is a discipline not meant for the faint of heart. The church is not made up of entirely likeminded individuals who agree on all things at all times. But by persevering in community and fellowship, we are used by Christ to encourage and strengthen others just as they do the same for us. In so doing we become more like Jesus and we prepare for eternity.
