A Compelling Testimony: Maintaining a Disciplined Walk, Christlike Character, and Godly Relationships as God's Servant

308

A Compe l l i ng Tes t imony

VI. Connections for Urban Ministry Today

Rom. 12.3-5 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. [4] For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, [5] so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

From a negative perspective, the fellowship in faith speaks against an individualistic form of Christianity – that practice of the faith which neglects the experience of the community and overemphasizes the subjective and personal dimension of the faith. It is true that the Christian faith is intensely personal. Christ died for me, is an article of faith. Individualism, however, is something different than a personal relationship with God in Christ. It is a form of Christianity which fails to understand the integral relationship that exists between the members of Christ’s body. It often exhibits itself in a failure to realize the importance of involvement with other Christians in a local church; in a failure to recognize that being a Christian is not some thing a person does alone; in an overemphasis on personal experience; and in a devaluation of the corporate life of the church. It is what Dave Jackson calls “free-lance” Christianity. This neglect of the whole body of Christ is a dangerous rejection of the body in which Christ dwells. To be cut off from the church in this way is to be put outside the means of grace for nourishment and strength received through the church. The result is a weakened and ineffective faith.

~ Robert E. Webber. Common Roots . Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1979. p. 48.

Answer the following questions openly and honestly about your personal use of the disciplines covered in this lesson.

A. Connection to your personal discipleship

1. Have I confessed Jesus as Lord of my life? If so, is it my ongoing habit to acknowledge my sins before God? In what setting do I confess my sins to others and receive their prayers for my ongoing healing and cleansing?

2. Do I set aside regular time to offer God my own personal worship and praise? How comfortable do I feel in ex pressing my feelings and affection to the Lord personally, or in a group? How can I be more creative and free in the body during my own worship of the Lord?