Sin Doesn't Do Well In the Light

Challies has a great post on his sight about the communal nature of growing in holiness (a spiritual process for which the big word is "sanctification").  That is, growing in Christ-likeness - growing in holiness - takes place most efficiently in the context of relationships with other people.  This is a rather foreign idea to us in the West (and it even grates on me a bit as I write it here, in fact).  It's something that doesn't come naturally to us.  Why not?  Because we are independent people.  There's nothing standing in the way of what we want to achieve other than ourselves.  We can do anything we put our minds to.  We live in a very individualistic society, so when we talk about other people being instrumental to our spiritual growth process, it's not an easy thing to consider.

Earlier this summer I preached a three week series on the biblical concept of fellowship.  One of the key points I tried to make in those sermons was that fellowship - and all of the benefits of fellowship - always happen in the context of relationships.  One cannot have Christian fellowship with oneself.  It just doesn't work that way.  And the Bible is clear that fellowship with other believers is a necessity for Christians.  You can't be a Christian and live outside of Christian fellowship.

Challies quotes a speaker he recently heard who had this helpful thought regarding spiritual growth in the context of a community: "Sin doesn't do well in the light."  The point here is that when our sins are exposed to other people we are held accountable for our actions, and can therefore repair the damage done to our relationships (temporal and spiritual) when our sin is exposed.  The key here is that you have to be in community with other people in order for your sin to be exposed.  You don't expose your sin to yourself - you already know what it is.  The Holy Spirit does indeed expose sin to the believer, but it's difficult to be held accountable to righteousness and to mortifying those sins on our own.  This is why we need other people "doing" physical and spiritual life alongside us: because sin doesn't do well in the light.  The more we have people examining us in light of scripture (and vice versa, of course), and the more we have people holding us accountable to what we've put forward in those relationships, the more power we will have in conquering that sin.

Challies makes another great point that I had pondered before, but hadn't thought of in the same way he presents it.  He argues that my spiritual growth is not only good for me, but it's also good for the community - the church; the group of people I'm doing life with.  Why is it important to people in my community that I am growing spiritually?  Because the more I am able to conquer sin, the more I can help them do the same; the more I grow, the more I can encourage others in their growth; the more I come to serve God and others, the more they can do so as well.

When you boil it down, it's almost like a a symbiotic relationship.  The more I grow, the more you grow.  The more you grow, the more I grow, and so on and so forth.  Living in community with other people is not just a primer for spiritual growth, it is the lifeblood.

12 Reasons Why You Should Join a Small Group

Here's an article I wrote for the August Newsletter at Riverview.  We'll be launching a small groups ministry this September at Riverview, so I figured it'd be appropriate to try to provide some motivation for people to join a group.  Here are 12 reasons I thought of that make joining a small group something worthwhile. 


1. You can become more like Jesus.  As you study the Bible and have biblical fellowship with other believers, spiritual growth happens; growth in holiness happens; becoming more like Jesus happens.  Being a part of a small group is a good way of taking an active part in your spiritual growth process and becoming more and more like Jesus and more and more free from sin.


2. You’ll be able to pray for people in ways you normally wouldn’t.  You can only pray for people as deeply as you know the person.  In a small group you’ll get to know people and how you can pray for them more specifically.  Plus, as people get to know you, they can be praying for you in specific ways as well.


3. You’ll be able to utilize your spiritual gifts.  Don’t know what your spiritual gift is?  Joining a small group could be a good way to find out!  If you do know what it is, a small group is the perfect way for you to be able to put it to good use.  It’s also a good way to be served by others as they use their gifts!

4. You can help other members of your group carry their physical and spiritual burdens.  We all go through difficult things in life, like the loss of a job, illness, death of a loved one, financial difficulty, fear, doubt, questions, etc. and it would be nice to have someone to help us go through those things.  In a small group you can help others when they need it, and they can help you.

5. You’ll be able to share your spiritual experiences with others.  How is your walk with Jesus going?  Good?  Not so good?  Whatever it is, the more we share with one another, the more we can celebrate in the good times and encourage one another by sharing our struggles with sin and doubt in the down times.

6. You can confess your sins to others.  Scripture tells us to confess our sins to one another.  Most of us don’t do that, though, probably because there isn’t anyone we know well enough that we’d feel comfortable confessing to.  In a small group you’ll be able to cultivate relationships over time and take them to a deeper level that makes confessing sins not only possible, but rewarding and encouraging as you receive assurance and encouragement from your fellow group members.

7. You’ll be able to serve other people in practical ways.  We all have physical and spiritual needs that can be met by others.  In a small group you’ll not only have the privilege of serving others, but you’ll be able to be served by others as well.

8. You can connect what you hear at church on Sunday to the rest of your life throughout the week.  Each week we’ll be looking more in depth at the scripture from the sermon preached during the previous Sunday’s service.  Pastor Wick is writing special study guides based on his weekly sermons for our small groups to go through together.

9. Riverview people are interesting and cool.  Riverview is full of all kinds of different people from all sorts of backgrounds and walks of life.  In a small group you’ll be able to establish and deepen relationships with people God has uniquely made and is forming into his likeness.

10. There might be food.  Your small group can decide if, as part of the meeting time, you want to eat together.  Maybe pot luck style, or maybe pizza.  Either way, you could get a good meal!

11. It’s convenient, and it will fit into your schedule.  Small groups will be able to decide what day and time work best for them to meet.  Mondays?  Thursdays?  Fridays?  That’s up to your group.  5:00?  6:00?  7:00?  Again, that’s up for the folks in your group to decide.  How many times a month should we meet?  2? 3? Every week?  Whatever works best for you and the people in the group.

12. There’s a small group meeting near you.  Our small groups will be located throughout the area in which our members live, so chances are that there’s a small group meeting somewhere near where you live.