What Is Christian Community and Why Does It Matter?

What if your growth has far less to do with your own individual effort than you think? Why are Christians always talking about community? And is there anything in the Bible about healthy relationships? 

I grew up around flourishing redwood forests. I’ve also lost more than one sad, parched houseplant. Through both experiences, I learned that plants need a healthy community to grow—and so do humans.

This all points to a big word that will help explain what we need from Christian community: syntropy.

Life → More Life

Entropy is the slow drift away from order and life toward chaos and death. Syntropy, by contrast, is the slow movement toward togetherness, growth, and more life. I can hardly think of anything that does not flourish when placed in a community that looks like this. 

When I search for human examples of syntropy, the relationship between Jesus and His closest followers stands out. That’s not too surprising, considering that Jesus said in John 10:10, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” 

In this article, we’ll talk about how you can cultivate the kind of Christian community you need to grow. You’ll find challenge, biblical encouragement, practical ideas, and a daily prayer for community as we discuss the following topics:

• What is Christian community, and why does it matter? 
• How can we become the kind of people who are strengthened by our communities? How can we also make our communities stronger?
• Where can we find examples of Christian community in the Bible? 
• A few lessons from the forest. 🌲

A Simple Definition of Christian Community

A Christian community is a group of people whose relationships are formed by believing in and living out the words and ways of Jesus. You’ll know these churches, friend groups, and families when you experience them, because they move everyone together toward more life. 

When a community is fueled by division, fighting, fear, and bitterness, they haven’t fully learned how to do community the Jesus way. 

Why Live the Jesus Way? 

Christians believe that Jesus is fully human and fully God. This means Jesus is our ultimate human example of what God is truly like. Through Jesus’ relationships with others, we learn what an ideal human community can be like.

Probably the most concise description of Jesus’ followers living in healthy Christian community appears early in the Book of Acts. More on that soon, along with some other helpful passages of Scripture. 

So, Do You Want to Grow?

If you know you need growth, but you can’t seem to make it happen, there’s a good chance you can’t do it on your own. You need a healthy community. 

See if any of these situations feel relatable:

• You lose your patience too often with kids, coworkers, or family members. 
• You feel like you don’t reach your full potential at work, in relationships, and at home because of some deeper wound or issue. 
• Your life seems fine, and there are people all around you, but you feel dull and discontent.
• Your kids or loved ones keep finding the wrong friends, downloading the wrong apps, or missing out on their potential. 
• You’re facing barriers like diminished mental or physical health, addiction, or loss of faith.

These are common life struggles, but every single one of them is better faced with a strong, healthy community. Remember, you want syntropy, not entropy.

How Does Christian Community Help Us Grow? 

Consider the Forest

Let’s consider a redwood tree growing in a sprawling forest and a houseplant I impulsively purchased.

A redwood in a healthy forest is growing right now, even though I make no effort to water it, feed it, or go on a strenuous hike to visit it. The houseplant, on the other hand, will wilt and decay without my proper placement, care, and attention.

Why does one flourish while the other struggles? Like people, trees and plants are growing things that require an environment in which collaboration and care keep piling up in the direction of life and more life: syntropy. We’ll get to these environments in the Bible in the next section, but first, let’s take a closer look at God’s creation and why it works.

A tree in the forest is part of a caring community.

Researchers have identified fungi that carry nutrients and chemical signals from tree to tree, even across different species of trees. These mutual relationships help entire forests thrive. Leaves and branches that fall to the ground are digested by insects and fungi to become shared food for trees and other plants in the soil. Healthy streams contribute to these communities, providing water for all the plants and animals in the forest, including the redwood we’re thinking about.

But it’s not all comfort. Naturally occurring fires allow redwood cones to heat up enough to drop seeds to the forest floor, where fire has cleared enough brush that the sun can reach new seedlings—which will grow in soil made rich by the carbon from all the burnt and decaying organic matter. In God’s world, even what appears as death and destruction can move toward life and more life.

What About People? 

Like the redwood in the forest, surrounded by clear creeks, networks of fungi-fed roots, and decomposers storing up food for winter, a person in a life-giving Christian community will grow. Long-term individual growth flows from trusted interdependent relationships. So a person without a healthy spiritual ecosystem may feel uprooted, dry, and directionless. 

Jesus Wants to Show You How to Live

• “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 MSG

Jesus wants to show you how to live. Not in some harsh or rule-laden way, but with the rhythms and relationships that plant you like a tree near a stream of water. 

So let’s take a look at how Jesus lived in community and how His earliest followers pursued community that modeled His way of life.

What Does the Bible Say About Christian Community?

A whole lot. The Bible is full of references to the kind of communities that we need to thrive. 

The Apostle Paul, who you could say acted as a kind of forester for early Christian communities, wrote many letters to Christians describing how to become people who thrive in community together. Peter, a close friend of Jesus and a founder of the Christian church, also wrote two letters (1 and 2 Peter) on this topic.

In fact, a majority of the New Testament teaches Christians how to become so transformed by Jesus Christ that they become both a living representation of Him and a part of His body in their communities. 

We Belong to Each Other Because We’re Different!

In Paul’s letter to new followers of Jesus in Rome, he describes how and why we must belong to each other as one body with different parts.  

• For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. Romans 12:4-5 NIV

Sometimes we end up isolating ourselves from the community we need because we feel like we won’t—or don’t—fit in. This problem is apparently a few millennia old. In the passage above, Paul says we belong to each other because we’re different! There is a role for you in community, and a way for you to belong. It may not be easy, but it will be worth it. The body of Christ requires all its different parts. 

Just as nature has both deserts and rainforests, spiritual communities can be very different from each other and still healthy in their own right. It’s not only okay to find a unique community of faith where you belong—it’s necessary to your growth and the growth of that community! 

If Christian Communities Can Be Unique, Then What Should Be Consistent?

The New Testament is rich with examples of different aspects of Christian community. We’ll focus on seven themes taught and modeled by three of the most prominent figures of the early Christian church: Jesus, Paul, and Peter.  

Seven Consistent Values of Christian Community

1. Unity with diversity (John 13:35, John 17:20-23, 1 Corinthians 1:10, 1 Peter 3:8)
2. Hospitality (Matthew 25:35-36, Romans 12:13, 1 Peter 4:9-11)
3. Mutuality (Luke 6:31, Ephesians 5:21, 1 Peter 5:1-7)
4. Humility (Matthew 5:5, Matthew 23:11-12, John 13:1-17, Philippians 2:3, 1 Peter 5:5-6)
5. Accountability (Matthew 18:15-20, Galatians 6:1-10, 1 Peter 5:1-5)
6. Generosity (Matthew 25:31-40, Luke 6:35, Acts 20:32-35, 1 Peter 4:8-10)
7. Prayer and thanksgiving (Matthew 6:5-15, Philippians 1:1-11, 1 Peter 2:1-10)

In Luke’s description of the early community of Christians in Acts 2:42-47, we can see each of these values playing out in their community. Notice the outcome: More people were experiencing the abundant life Jesus came to offer. 

• They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,  praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:42-47 NIV

How Do I Find Christian Community?

Do you want to be in the kind of Christian community that brings life and more life? Here are a few practical ideas for finding or creating Christian community. 

• Mentoring: Find a mentor and be a mentor. Many churches offer a way to find and become a mentor. But you don’t have to make it official; you can find opportunities to mentor and be mentored wherever you are. Here’s more on mentoring. 
• Meet in groups: Join or lead a group of people who are committed to learning how to be in community together. At my church, we call these LifeGroups, but like mentoring, you can start or join this kind of community anywhere. 
• Share food and resources: Invite your neighbor to a meal, do Taco Tuesday with coworkers, give your time or money to local organizations doing good work, share what you have with others in need, and meet the needs of your family members or friends. And don’t forget to also share your needs with others. 
• Pray and be thankful together: Don’t just wait for church services to pray and give thanks together—do it when you’re together with others for meals, when someone is in crisis, when you’re celebrating, and when a friend or family member is starting something new, like a job, school, or just another week. 
• Play your unique part: Do you write screenplays, toss pizzas, run marathons, fix cars, appreciate good movies, go to the lake, enjoy hiking, or love a good video game? Whatever good thing you do, you can do it in community for the good of others. 

Everyone’s need for community looks a little bit different.

Maybe you’re dry, thirsty, weary, or lonely. Maybe you’ve been straining to thrive on your own. But now, you’re ready to find community.

Or maybe you have community, but that community needs to grow in order for everyone to be supported well.

Maybe you have the healthy, thriving community you need, but you know you have more you can offer others.

No matter what your need looks like, let the way of Jesus do its work in you as you become rooted and planted in a caring and collaborative community. Remember, no forest, or church, or group is perfect, and somehow God still works it all together for good. 

So, what is Christian community, and why does it matter? Christian community is a group of people whose relationships are formed by believing in and living out the words and ways of Jesus. God works through communities like these to partner with humans, to bring life and more life to the world.

A Daily Prayer for Spiritual Community

God, I know You created me to grow and belong in community with others. Will You show me today who to listen to, how to offer care, and when to just receive? Thank You. In Jesus’ name, amen. 

One more thing: Don’t forget to water your new plant. It needs you.