Today is a day of community. The electronic
and literary media have drawn the world together into 'a
global village'. We can even begin to talk of 'the community
of nations'.
However, this global village is an uneasy
one. The world community lives in endless factions, religions,
and political strife. Is there, in fact, a true and living
community?
The answer is, 'Yes,' the community of the
Father—the family. It is also the people of Christ, the community
of the Holy Spirit. It is the quiet but powerful miracle
of God—His elect people always living in difficult times
and bringing the witness of love and hope to the troubled
nations.
Its role is prophetic and priestly. Its
proclamation is of the Kingdom of God—'Your God reigns!'
Its confession is not only to its own community, but to all
the world.
We need to know this community, to live
in it more dynamically than we have, and to share its constraints
with the world. CHRIST'S PEOPLE IN TODAY'S WORLD is a book
which can help us.
Geoffrey Bingham, Coromandel 1985
