I love receiving news from the many missionaries who have been our guests at The Haven Missionary Care Center. This past week a newsletter arrived from one of those families ministering in eastern Europe. Here’s what they wrote:
“Our family was taking an afternoon walk in the park when our daughter suddenly stopped and screamed. What she originally thought was a stick on our path was moving. She jumped back. As we observed more closely, we realized it wasn’t a snake at all but a column of centipedes The “snake” of centipedes was following their leader so closely that you couldn’t tell the beginning of one from the end of the next.
I thought, “strength in numbers.”
“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”(Ecclesiastes 4:12 NIV)
Although we may feel alone in this world, God doesn’t intend for us to walk through life alone. We need each other in the body of Christ to encourage, support, and pray for one another. With God leading us, we can face anything together.”
Often “church” is thought of as a time of meeting together once or twice each week at a specific location to sing some familiar songs and hymns and listen to an uplifting Word from the Lord. However, when “going to church” is confined to Sunday morning and Wednesday evening alone, we’re missing out on the God-given benefits of true Christian fellowship.
Consider that column of centipedes the missionary family saw crossing their path. I really don’t know much about centipedes, but it appears that they were on a mission together to accomplish whatever work centipedes do. That’s a good visual lesson of how the body of believers we call “the church,” with Jesus Christ as our leader, should be moving.
Together, following Jesus’ lead, we should be loving one another every day. We should be reaching out to support one another, to guide one another in the path of righteousness for His Name’s sake. Together, we can more effectively preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ as we help widows and orphans, feed the hungry, and share our lives.
I once heard someone complain that they didn’t like a certain church because, in their own words, “They haven’t done a thing for me.” Imagine, if you would, one of those centipedes in that column taking the attitude that the rest of his group was not supportive of him. What if that centipede decided to break away and just do their own thing. According to the Scripture quoted above, that lone centipede would quickly become weak and easily overpowered. While the column of centipedes was intimidating, a lone centipede could easily be squashed.
When any one of us decides to pull away from Christian fellowship, you choose to weaken your effectiveness and become vulnerable to easy defeat. Realistically, people who go to church are not perfect. There are some who will offend you. There are others whose interests do not line up with your own. Maybe you don’t like how the preacher speaks. The one common focus that unites us all in Christian fellowship should be as the Apostle Paul stated, “Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”
“For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2 NKJV)