Preaching and community

My church has historically viewed salvation as a five-step process culminating in baptism. While all five steps---hear, believe, repent, confess, and be baptized---are critically important in the life of a Christian, they are only the beginning of discipleship, not the whole walk.

I sometimes struggle with the concept of expending almost all my preaching energy in the assembly of believers when most of the thousands of lost souls in the city are outside the church house. After reading one of Buzz Trexler's latest posts, however, I think I see the relationship a little better. Here's Buzz:

The idea of selling fire insurance and closing the deal for Jesus doesn't do much for me. As one who was on the "buyer's" end of such deals at least twice in my journey, I can attest to its limitations. It was only after cultivation by a faith community who took the time to til the soil, to become engaged in my life and that of my family, that I fully embraced the faith with actions and not just words.

This is not to say, of course, that most churches shouldn't expend a lot more energy in reaching out to the lost. We should. But without a community of saints to nourish those who hear the Word, we're simply casting seed on rocky ground.

Update: Doug Floyd offers some well-informed thoughts on Christian community at Floydville.