About Jesus  -  Steve Sweetman

Community Is Vital To Our Well-being  

A human is the sum total of both his visible and invisible parts.  Maintaining one's total well-being, then, is more than a matter of eating right, exercising regularly, and getting enough sleep.  One's invisible, or spiritual, well-being must be maintained because it is meant to co-exist in a harmonious relationship with one's physicality.  Such co-existence implies a form of community between one's visible and invisible parts, and thus, the word "community" becomes vital in our attempt at total well-being.  We see the concept of community as far back as Genesis 1:26.  There, God said: "Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness..."

The words "us" and "our" in Genesis 1:26 might imply the very essence of God to be a unified plurality; a community of the sum total of who He is.  That would mean the concept of community originates, not just with God, but in the essence of who God is.  This makes community central to human existence because Genesis 1:26 states that humans were created in God's image, or shadowy image, as the Hebrew text implies.  A person, like God, is a unified plurality, a community of the sum total of who he is.  That means total well-being depends on having a healthy body and a healthy spirit/soul that co-exist in a form of community, but that's not all.      

God created a man and a woman to live in an intimate, harmonious relationship, because it is not good, not healthy, for man to live in isolation.  In marriage, a husband and a wife co-exist in an exclusive community whereby each would complement the other which is meant to enhance the total well-being of both husband and wife, but again, there is more to the matter than that.      

God's plan has always been to co-exist in community with His people.  That is why His Spirit lives within the believer.  It only makes sense, then, that a healthy communal relationship with God is vital in maintaining one's total well-being, but once again, there is more to consider.

1 Corinthians 12:13 states that the born-again of the Spirit believer has been united, or immersed, into the Body of Christ, also known as the Community of Christ.  Logic, would thus, tell us that the well-being of a believer depends on, and is complemented by, healthy supportive relationships with those whom Jesus has placed us alongside in His community, the church.  It is there where the believer finds support, love, grace, acceptance, friendships, inspiration, mental, emotional and moral support, value, admonishment, instruction, counsel, correction, productive ministry, and more.  Any sociologist will tell you that all of these advantages of community bring someone into a better state of well-being.           

I conclude that my total well-being does not solely depend on a proper diet, regular exercise, and sufficient sleep.  To the degree that I can exist in community with my Creator, with myself, with my wife, and with those whom Jesus has placed me alongside in the Community of Christ, will be the degree to which I can obtain some kind of total well-being.