Will Smith and Tom Hanks Preach About Community

Will Smith is a fantastic preacher.  As a matter of fact, so is Tom Hanks.  These two guys must have sat in on the same creative meeting, because they preached congruent sermons in their respective movies: I Am Legend and Castaway. 

These blockbusters gave us more than zombie survival tips and an appreciation for volleyballs; they preached a sermon to us, a sermon we all needed to hear.  These movies reminded us, You Weren’t Created To Live Alone.

It’s a message that needs to be preached because isolation is our daily temptation.  It is so tantalizingly easy.  To be alone requires nothing.  You can live in your pajamas, sink into your sofa, and never miss an episode of The Bachelor.  Tempting, right?

Loneliness doesn’t just happen to us.  We choose it.  It is a calculated cost-cutting measure.  You don’t have to invest in inconveniences like soap or deodorant, and a tank of gas can last forever when you’re going nowhere.   

Many of us are going nowhere, and we’re going nowhere alone.

But you weren’t built to be alone.  You’re a piece of the broader puzzle.  You were made to fit with others.  There’s power in that truth.

Even though the Apostle Paul gave us deep spiritual doctrine in his epistles, one of the biggest things I appreciate every time I read his letters is an embarrassingly simple observation: Paul had friends.  The revered apostle who wrote 2/3 of the New Testament lived in community.  He always greeted people by name, and he always wrote about past and future visits.   

Paul loved people.  Paul refused to live alone.  Paul valued community.

The great beauty of the church is community.  There are people here who want to love you.  There are people here who want to share their lives with you.  There are people here worth getting off of your couch to meet. 

Community isn’t flashy.  It doesn’t get many accolades.  Best sellers aren’t written about it.  But it’s more than cute, and it’s greater than important.  Living with others is necessary for survival.  Just ask Will Smith and Tom Hanks; they’ll tell you.