Community

Today I was reading in Matthew 24 where Jesus is talking to the disciples about the future. In the closing of this chapter he states,

A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. But what if the servant is evil and thinks, 'My master won't be back for a while,' and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 24:45-51, NLT)

The servants Jesus is referring to are the servants of Christ. The household they serve is the Kindgom of God, so the other servants He is referring to would be our brothers and sisters in Christ. Jesus is urging us to "manage" and "feed" the other household servants, our brothers and sisters in Christ. The community I am in now has given me an experience that I can relate this passage to. I've read it before, but overlooked it or didn't quite understand how simple yet important it is. 

When Jesus is speaking of the servant who is beating the other servants, my mind immediately goes to 1 John 4:20-21

If someone says, 'I love God,' but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don't love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters. (NLT, emphasis mine)

 Loving our Christian brothers and sisters isn't a feeling we have for them. It is an action we show towards them. 1 John 3:18, "Dear children, let's not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions." And God told us how we were to operate as a church family in Acts 2. The community of people in Acts shared money with those in need and "shared their meals with great joy and generosity," (v. 43-47) We can love each other in more than sharing money and food. If you don't have extra money, you can help those in need in your community by babysitting, cleaning their house, giving them clothes, changing the oil in their car... Whatever gift, talent, or tangible item you have, you can give it to someone else to bless them and that is a picture of what God is looking for. I think this is what Jesus was emphasizing in Matthew. We need to care for one another in whatever way we can. When we do this, we are taking care of God's servants and living in the design He created for community!