The gospel of Jesus doesn’t leave us the way it finds us. Rather, it bears fruit among us in community and through us in mission.
By community we mean relationship—with God and with each other (Eph. 4:1-17). By mission we mean purpose—we have been rescued for a reason, to serve God by bearing witness to the gospel of Christ in both word and deed and making disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:18-20; Rom. 6:1-23).
Mission and community mutually reinforce one another. On the one hand, community is a fruit of the gospel’s mission as God draws people to himself, unites them in Christ, and refashions them into the image of Christ (Col. 1:3-14). At the same time, mission takes place in the context of community, as we bear corporate witness to the transforming grace of God through our proclamation and love (Jn. 17:20-23; Phil. 1:27-30).
What does gospel-centered community look like?
What does a gospel-centered community do in terms of mission?