Community & the

Individual

And Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now therefore, if you will obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my own possession among all peoples; for all the earth is mine, and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.” – Exodus 19:3-6

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous light. Once you were no people but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy but now you have received mercy. – 1 Peter 2:9-10

Man as an individual

“Let us create man in our own image” (Gen. 1:26a)

The IMAGO DEI, ‘image of God’ – personhood of an individual

Man in community

“it is not good that a man should be alone…” (Gen. 2:18).

Though salvation is an individual experience, there is also the collective reality of belonging to a collective whole in the Body of Christ as one people of God. The two must be balance and of equal importance. The question is not, “which is more important”? The fact is both are necessary to make a whole.

Crisis Of Individualism In The Modern Christian

Church

A universal fallacy: the dogma of Individualism

Rene Decartés (17th Century)

“Cognito Ego sum,” -(I think, therefore I Am)

Man defining Himself(sounds suspiciously like, ‘I Am What I Am’)

Man defining Himself(sounds suspiciously like, ‘I Am What I Am’)

It decentralizes God and puts the individual as the center of life.

He has the right to happiness or whatever he choose to lay his hands on, to enjoy life to the fullest as has deem fit as long as he is willing to

pay the price.

Personal feelings vs truth

Instead of questioning the truth of the matter itself, the nature of the commandment (imperative or optional), we place the value of that truth against our personal feelings and agenda. It seems that truth is not immutable but of value only in relation to how we as individuals feel. Whether it fits into our personal agendas.

The Scriptural Understanding of the

People of God.

If individualism is unscriptural, does that mean that the individual should be subservient to Community? If that

is so, then what is the difference between Christian Community and

Marxism and Socialism?

Marxism Christian Community

That evil lies in class distinction. In other words, evil is in found a wrong sociological system.

Evil lies in the sinful nature of man himself.

Marxism Christian Community

A materialistic doctrine, that is, material is the only reality, there is no place for religion

Faith in God is central. There is no dichotomy between material and spiritual.

Marxism Christian Community

That the Community overrules the individual.

The individual is unique but he is also created as a social being, he cannot be separated from Community for he is part of Community. The individual must be understood in the context of Community, and the Community be understood in the light that the individual is a distinct person who is given self-will. One cannot be separate from the other nor can they be evaluated apart from the other.

Marxism Christian CommunityThat all material and immaterial wealth belongs to Community as a whole, all things be shared, there is no personal possession.

Christian stewardship states that we are all stewards of God. God is the owner; we are but stewards of these gifts (be it material or immaterial). What is required of us is to be good stewards of God’s gifts according to two principles: love for God and love for the neighbour.

The primary difference is the difference of being. In other words, the difference lies in WHO we are as people of God rather than what we

do with possession or how we conduct ourselves.

The last prayer of Jesus at the garden of Gethsemane commonly known, as the High Priestly prayer of our Lord,

was that we should be one as He and the Father is one.

Unity exists the moment we accept Jesus into our lives. By virtue of our new birth we are

united.

Our task therefore is to maintain this unity, to demonstrate this unity and in our unity

testify to the reality that we are of God.

We are challenged to elevate our vision above ourselves to see the needs of the brother, the priority of the kingdom of

God and our corporate responsibility and blessedness as being united in Christ. No more do we think of ourselves first, but

God and the neighbour. It is learning and treading the path of maturity in dying to

self and made alive to God.

And by this the world may know that we are Jesus’

disciples, because of our love one for one another.