23 But now I have finished my work in these regions, and after all these long years of waiting, I am eager to visit you. 24 I am planning to go to Spain, and when I do, I will stop off in Rome. And after I have enjoyed your fellowship for a little while, you can provide for my journey.25 But before I come, I must go to Jerusalem to take a gift to the believers there. 26 For you see, the believers in Macedonia and Achaia have eagerly taken up an offering for the poor among the believers in Jerusalem. 27 They were glad to do this because they feel they owe a real debt to them. Since the Gentiles received the spiritual blessings of the Good News from the believers in Jerusalem, they feel the least they can do in return is to help them financially. 28 As soon as I have delivered this money and completed this good deed of theirs, I will come to see you on my way to Spain. 29 And I am sure that when I come, Christ will richly bless our time together.
We Are Not Alone
During my road trip in late September, I spent the night in Roswell, New Mexico. Roswell, of course, is famous for the supposed crash of a UFO in 1947. As a result of that claim, the town has become a tourism hotspot. In my blog update of that day, I had a little fun with the idea of being in “Alien Country.”
When you make the statement, we are not alone, in a place like Roswell, it means something completely different than what I am trying to suggest today.
Paul is sharing an incredibly beautiful story of how churches from different communities have come together to support one another. While each church had their own challenges and issues, they recognized that they are not alone – they are part of a bigger Church family. They saw a responsibility to stand together.
And so, churches that had more gave to those who had less. They didn’t expect anything in return. They did it because in the end, they recognized the value of having strong, healthy churches in many different communities. I love that.
I also love that there are churches today who get that. Today, we find churches that go out of their way to be a part of the larger church community. Churches that offer their resources, materials, and finances to those who are in need. I think it’s great, and I hope that Bikers’ Church will always be one of those churches ready to give to others.
And yet, there are still some who think they are the only ones that matter. Churches who are so inward thinking that they forget about the larger church community. Their insecurity causes them to believe they are in competition with the other churches in their community.
Of course, every church is made up of people. The churches that Paul mentions in today’s passage are simply groups of people in those cities. Each individual decides if they will be part of a larger Church or if they will turn inward.
What kind of person are you?
My prayer: Jesus, it was you who prayed that your followers would be one. Your heart cried out for unity. I want have the same heart. I want to see the Church as bigger than just the one congregation I am blessed to be part of. I want to see the diversity and uniqueness of the greater Church. Thank you that because of the larger Church family, I can claim to have brothers and sisters all over the world. It is true, I am not alone. Amen.
Until tomorrow.
