One of the great desires I have for Pambo as a ministry, is that it will help women to come together and offer each other community and fellowship. I see this as part of the working out of God’s intended purpose in the grace He has supplied through the Church as the corporate body of believers.
While the gospel is something to which every individual must respond (by faith or rejection), those who put faith in Jesus are never called to live out their lives as individuals. He calls believers to belong to a body of believers. In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, the risen Christ is made head of the Church, “which is his body” (Eph. 1:22-23). Further on in the letter, Paul reveals that through Jesus, God works peace so that he can bring all sorts of people (Jews and Gentiles) together to be “fellow citizens” and “members of the household of God” (2:19). These united peoples, one new man (2:15), are built on God’s Word and together grow into a “holy temple”, “a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (2:20-22). Note the corporate nature of what God has worked in Christ.
It is in this spirit of the corporate nature of the church that Paul will instruct the Ephesian church to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called” and what follows is a call to live in unity and love (see 4:1-6). The expectation is that the believer, at the very least, belongs to a local congregation of believers and does life with them, bearing fruit in the Spirit. It is to the congregation of believers that Christ has given Word speakers, who build up the body by speaking God’s word to them. This then equips the body to do the work of speaking this truth to each other for their growth together to look like Jesus. Note that the point of the speaking of God’s Word is that God’s community building project would grow to look more and more like its Head, Jesus (4:7-16).
I believe that while this work starts at the level of the local church, it branches out beyond it in the larger context of the global Church. The hearing of truth, the speaking of it to each other, the living it out together starts within the local church but expands out into the Church – the larger community of believers. I envision Pambo participating in this process as we publish truth and encourage women to speak about it to each other and as we challenge each other to live out these truths to the glory of God.
I envision Pambo participating in this process as we publish truth and encourage women to speak about it to each other and as we challenge each other to live out these truths to the glory of God.
This is how we participate in this wonderful means of grace. Through this blog and other teachings that will soon be made available, women will get to hear the truth of Christ faithfully proclaimed. Through Bible studies, prayer circles, intentional friendships and conferences, women will get to meet together and speak truth to each other in love, further deepening their knowledge of the Lord and encouraging each other to live for Him more wholeheartedly. Within these opportunities for community and fellowship, women will hopefully help each other to live in a manner pleasing to the Lord, lovingly encouraging and rebuking each other to honor Jesus more.
Please join me in praying that this is the role Pambo will play in the lives of the women whom it works amongst. Pray that God’s Word will be taught faithfully and that it will work in the midst of community to see women grow more and more into the likeness of Christ.
