Torch, Winter 1983

by Rev. \V.PaulJackson I t's not an unusual happening to discover some very lonely people in some very crowded places . To many people an airport can be one of the coldest, loneliest places in the world . It can be crowded with people in the midst of bustling activity and even constant communication, but utterly void of any meaningful relationships. The people are consumed with their own things and their own destinations; the activity is cold and mechanical and the communication at best is of a surface nature that deals only with the facts. One never feels at home in an airport, but rather like an outsider whose only purpose is to move through as quickly as possible in order to get someplace else. I suppose one has grown to expect this of an airport, for it was never designed to be anything else. The sad thing, however, is that the previous description could just as easily be applied to some of our local churches, designed by God to be much more than people-movers, programs, and P.A. systems. Our churches can easily become places where we find crowds of people, endless activity , and surface communication . But at the same time they can be filled with painfully lonely people feeling very much like outsiders, wishing they were able to enjoy that marvelous awareness of just being an important , loved , accepted part of the "family." A widow or widower, or a single person , or the elderly , or a physically or mentally handicapped individual - these, for varying reasons, are made to feel different than the rest . To feel lonely in one's own family is one of the saddest indictments that can be brought against a family. And, that is no less true of a "church family." In the world , we would expect to experience prejudice, rejection, or neglect because of outward criteria such as age, appearance, intellect, background, race, or marital status. But to come into the house of God among the people of God and find the same values is tragic and inexcusable. Yet it is happening with all too frequent regularity . Why? FORGOTTEN PRINCIPLE In the first place, there seems to be a forgotten principle. The church is not spoken of in the Bible as a social club or meeting place , but a fellowship. Fellowship literally means a commonness or common ground that results in a true spirit of togetherness . People have an inborn longing to love and to be loved. It's there because God put it there . Genesis 2 states that it is not good for man to be alone. Therefore , by God's own evaluation , being alone or feeling alone is not a healthy situation . What is the common ground that believers in Christ have that is to produce this spirit of warm togetherness? I believe this is the forgotten principle . I John I:3 states , That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly ourfellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. You see, our common ground is not social, economic , intellectual, cosmetic, physical, or any other such thing . In fact, our common ground as believers has nothing to do with us or what we have done, but is based solely on the miracle ofregeneration that God alone has accomplished in us through faith in His Son . By this , we are part of the same eternal family and share a common eternal life. It is that common eternal life that we share as Christians that is to draw us together . It is the sole basis of our love and care and ministry to one another. I fear that we in the body of Christ can easily fall into the trap of directing our love and care and active acceptance toward only a select few whom we have chosen as our friends because of surface similarities such as those mentioned above . The result is that rarely, if ever, are we drawn to actively minister and care for others purely because of the commonness which we have in Jesus Christ. FRUSTRATING PROBLEMS In the second place, it is only fair to say that the 5