“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 1:4-6, NIV
Gospel movements are often called streams. The beauty of small streams is that they can flow together and split back apart, but ultimately they flow in the same direction. In the middle of the U.S., small streams merge into several rivers that eventually reach the Mississippi and together, the water from all over the midwest pours into the Gulf of Mexico.
This is a beautiful picture of kingdom movements. Many streams – denominations, networks, churches and organizations – are all flowing toward the same destination. In certain times and places, we have the privilege and opportunity to merge our streams for the good of our region – to “water” the area with the love and truth of Jesus.
The Biblical word for this is koinonia – translated in Philippians 1:5 as “partnership.” Koinonia means sharing. In Philippians, Paul appreciates the believers in Philippi for sharing their financial and relational resources with him, to support and invest in his ministry. They partnered with him; they poured into him.
In the EFCA (our denomination) District, National and City leaders often say we are “better together.” This is true for individual Christians and leaders. We need one another! We are healthier and more effective when we walk together. When a pastor or leader walks too long by themselves sin can creep in along with discouragement, distraction and loss of missional focus.
But when we walk together, “iron sharpens iron,” we encourage and challenge one another, and there are opportunities to do gospel ministry together.
This is also true for churches, organizations, networks and denominations. As long as we agree on the essentials of the Christian faith, and especially the Gospel, we are “better together!” We have a common mission – to share the good news of Jesus Christ with everyone we can and bless people in His Name. And in the city of Tampa Bay we have 3.1 million people to reach. No church or organization can come close to reaching every man, woman and child in our region on its own. We need each other!
This is why TampaBay4Christ was formed! We are a coalition of churches dedicated to working together to reach everyone in Tampa Bay. This begins with prayer, is built on relationship among pastors and expresses itself in cooperative evangelism and church planting.
How can you partner with other believers in your neighborhood, workplace or school? Together in that space all believers have a shared responsibility. That is your “circle of accountability.” Consider working with a Christian neighbor to host a block party. Or grab a Christian co-worker and talk about starting an evangelistic Bible study before or after work or maybe during lunch one day.
For sure support missionaries and ministries in town. Pray for them. Serve when you can. Help raise money. All of these efforts express how we are “better together.” All of this is part of our koinonia – our gospel partnership.
What gospel streams are you seeing right now? What streams are you actively contributing to? There are opportunities all around us, if we pay attention and pray. The kingdom is coming. The gospel is advancing. Let’s keep moving forward – TOGETHER!