Circles of Relationship

Years ago a pattern from the life of Jesus was pointed out to me.  My life and ministry have been shaped by it ever since.  It is key to our vision for community and care here at Christ Covenant.  It is based on three "circles of relationship" that can be seen in the life of Jesus.

An Overview: The Three, The Twelve and The Seventy-Two
Look at the life and relationships of Jesus, and one can see an arrangement of three circles that reflect a level of intimacy and accountability.

The Three - Mark 5:37; 9:2; 13:3;14:33, etc

He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James.

The Twelve - Mark 3:13-19, etc

He appointed twelve—designating them apostles—that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach.

The Seventy-Two - Luke 10:1 

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.

Digging Deeper

An important premise for each of these circles of relationship is that they are founded in the Gospel of Grace.  On different levels and in unique ways, each circle should be helping us identify and grow in acceptance of Jesus' grace and application of that to every issue of life.

An accountability group based in guilt motivations or performance is the furthest thing imaginable from these Gospel circles.  It's not about people who hold our feet to the fire, give us expectations and behaviors and help us maintain the pressure of performance.  It's about people who help us navigate the pathways of our own heart and bring every thought and motivation captive to the finished work of Jesus.  Grace means that we find in Jesus a motivation and power - call it a new heart - that then leads to new perspective and behaviors.

Intimacy

Peter, James and John were given unique access to the life and heart of Jesus.  He took them up to the Mount of Transfiguration.  They alone joined him at the raising of Jarius' daughter.  They conversed and interacted while the others were off and gone.  This is the circle of intimacy.  It is necessarily small in that this level of relationship grows out of large amounts of time, transparency and vulnerability.  I find that these are relationships I cannot plan or program.  There is a certain "Holy Spirit chemistry" to them.  They may only run for a season, but even after that season there is a closeness and ability to "pick back up" that crosses both years and miles.

Community

In the Twelve that would become Apostles, Jesus had - with the exception of Judas - a group of people that he was "living life with."  He mentored them as a group, taught them to pray, answered questions from His public teaching and commission them with carrying on His ministry.  They were equipped, prepared and enabled.  They were close and open, even if not quite like Peter would have been with Jesus.  These are the relationships that go with us through day to day life and are often marked by a particular affinity -  "Young Marrieds," "Twenty-Somethings," "Photographers" or "Recovering Alcoholics." 

Identity

As the public ministry of Jesus grew and matured, it necessarily began to reach past Himself and even His own circle of comrades.  The crowd was now large enough though, that even within it, people who could carry the message were identified and commissioned for service.  Within this large group, they might not know each other well, or even personally know the Twelve, but they have heard Jesus and His message and they have signed on.  They are willing to step up to the plate and contribute in the way that they can.  Jesus commissions them and sends them out.  There may well have been "circles of twelve" with this larger group.  Picture this circle as a honeycomb of smaller circles, all radiating out from Jesus.  Such a group is based on identity - everyone has a single point of contact and find themselves related by proximity.  They are there together to see Jesus, and have now identified with Him enough to be an extension of His work.

Living It Out

At Christ Covenant, I pray, preach and shepherd with these three circles of relationship in mind for each person.  I want each of our people to have a few - at least one - person who knows them deeply and honestly and who can encourage and challenge them in the Gospel.

In addition, all of us need a group of folks that we are "living life with."  People that we share interests with, recreation, study, growth in the Gospel and service.  A group of people that will help us move; that we take vacations with; that will keep the rest of our kids with no notice while we run one to the Emergency Room.

Finally, there is encouragement in an identity that is bigger than just my circle of friends.  A larger group headed in the same direction and contributing to a larger impact in our community.  I may not know these folks well, but I recognize them as sharing a contact point with what the Father is doing at Christ Covenant.

In real life, the numbers here are illustrative of the circle - not a rigid accounting.  You may have a "one," a "nine" and a "sixty-four" in your own life.  It is still reflective of the essential principle of relationships.

I've served in churches of 70 worshipers and churches of 1,500 worshipers as well as several in between.  No matter what the size, I've found that if each person can have healthy relationships ranging across these three circles, they are well set to face life through God's grace. At Christ Covenant, we expect to plant daughter churches with a similar Gospel of Grace vision rather than grow any one congregation much past 300 worshipers.  I'm certain though that as these churches develop, we will want to maintain this same "circles of relationship" focus that we see in the life of Jesus.