We can’t faithfully follow Jesus alone. We need companions on the journey of discipleship.
The way of Jesus is the way to life as God means it to be – a way of love, justice, peace and joy – but it isn’t easy.
That’s why nearly every New Testament snapshot of Jesus-followers is a group photo. There are very few individual portraits.
None of us is self-made or self-sustained. We depend on one another’s example, experience and wisdom when we’re trying to decide what is right and good.
We count on each other’s understanding, encouragement and resourcefulness when we’re weary and disheartened.
When the Scriptures say, “you,” it’s often plural – “y’all” or “you all” – rather than singular.
In Romans 12:1-2, for example, when Paul calls for living in ways that make a difference in the world, he calls the community, not isolated individuals:
“I appeal to y’all therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present y’all’s bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is y’all’s spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of y’all’s minds, so that y’all may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
EthicsDaily.com / Baptist Center for Ethics is part of my “y’all” – a part of the fellowship of Jesus-followers who invite me to keep presenting myself for transformation, remind me that the pursuit of justice is possible only because of God’s mercy and help me to discern God’s will in challenging times like ours.
When the daily e-newsletter arrives, it calls to mind and heart that a lot of sisters and brothers are venturing to live creatively, effectively and ethically; it gives opportunities to learn from them and to connect with what they’re doing.
I don’t think of my support for EthicsDaily.com / Baptist Center for Ethics providing resources for an institution, though I want the center to be a strong organization.
I think of it, instead, as a way of strengthening a community of fellow travelers for which I am grateful.
Editor’s note: Individuals who sign up during the month of August to make monthly donations to support EthicsDaily.com will receive a free t-shirt!
A consultant with the Center for Healthy Churches (CHC), he served previously as an assistant professor of religion at Mars Hill University, an adjunct professor at Gardner-Webb Divinity School and as pastor of several Baptist churches.