We often think of the Apostle Paul as the Lone Ranger, gallivanting solo about the empire, leading everyone to Christ, never afraid, never struggling, often alone, but never lonely.

Scripture corrects this impression as Paul recounts for the Corinthians one of his recent stresses:

Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-bye to them and went on to Macedonia. (2 Corinthians 2:12-13)

Did you catch that? This is Paul—the courageous apostle. He says God opened a door of ministry for him. So what did he do? He went through the door, right? No. He moved on! Paul actually turned his back on a God-given opportunity to minister. Why? Because, he says, “I did not find my brother Titus there.”

Paul needed the encouraging presence of a friend. He felt he could go no further without a comrade—someone to listen to him. The principle is clear; when we are isolated from God’s family, it’s hard to accomplish the tasks of life.

Paul David Tripp writes this in his book New Morning Mercies:

One of the themes that courses through the New Testament…is that your walk with God is designed by God to be a community project. Anonymous, consumerist, isolated, independent, self-sufficient, “Jesus and me” Christianity is a distant and distorted facsimile of the faith of the New Testament. You and I simply were not created (“It is not good that the man should be alone”; Gen. 2:18) or re-created in Jesus Christ (“For the body does not consist of one member but of many”; 1 Cor. 12:14) to live all by ourselves. The biblical word pictures of temple (stones joined together to be a place where God dwells) and body (each member dependent on the function of the other) decimate any idea that healthy Christianity can live outside of essential community.

…the Bible is clear. When each part is working properly, the body of Christ grows to maturity in Christ (see Ephesians 4). We each need to live in intentionally intrusive, Christ-centered, grace-driven redemptive community. This community is meant to enlighten and protect. It is meant to motivate and encourage. It is meant to rescue and restore. It is meant to instill hope and courage. It is meant to confront and rebuke. It is meant to guide and protect. It is meant to give vision and sound warning. It is meant to incarnate the love and grace of Jesus when you feel discouraged and alone. It is meant to be a visible representation of the grace of Jesus that is your hope. It is not a luxury. It is a spiritual necessity.

Photo: Unsplash