Cornerstone Magazine - The Voice of Jesus People USA

kaiz replies:
Thoughts on Thirty Years

As Jesus People USA (JPUSA) is celebrating its thirtieth year of ministry, I was asked to consider what signifies this particular intentional Christian community in Uptown, Chicago. As I ’ve said many times in both interviews and personal conversations, I believe the touchstones we emphasize and strive for are biblical love, truth, and balance. We continue to seek and hopefully grow in all of these, and by God ’s grace have, I trust, shared a measure of them with a vast number of people. A fourth hallmark I frankly overlooked as being equal to these in our earlier days:biblical forgiveness. To walk as a Christian—no matter where or in what sort of service—these four rise to the top or the labor is in vain. Rise up they must or the whole house falls.

Historically, the Jesus movement produced little “Jesus houses” all over the landscape of the United States and beyond. Various experiments in what would be later called “community living” were tried, and very few lasted. Even in the ones that did, not all leaders or other disciples stayed the course. In many cases people just weren ’t called of God to live in such close proximity, or were not truly led by the Holy Spirit to live or remain in intentional community. Very new and spiritually immature believers within communities often exhibited the zeal without knowledge Paul spoke about.

People also got married and had children, and due to the normal stress and other issues of family life began to think living so closely wasn ’t as cool as it had once been! For some folks, community living wasn ’t the issue; they left in pursuit of various temptations, at times returning to drugs, sexual sin, or other addictions.

We at JPUSA have faced such realities just as, to varying degrees, all Christians do whether in or out of community. Yet the grace of God has been evident, and this we have seen in amazing supply. A core of people continue on from the earliest days of our community who, if anything, sense a greater depth of calling to this particular fellowship in service to Jesus, the poor, and the otherwise marginalized. We always opened our doors to the young and disenfranchised because most of us had the same background. The emptiness, drugs, sexual sin, and false hope we experienced left a gaping hole only God Himself could fill.

I doubt any of us ever dreamed Jesus People USA would have anywhere near the impact we seem to have had these thirty years later. Yet it is the call to common life and shared service at JPUSA—intentional community living—and the bond the Holy Spirit forms in relationships that is at the heart and, I ’m convinced, the very core of what we are about from the first year of our existence to the present. The “Meet Our Family ” article in this issue briefly describes the many outreaches and services we currently offer, but when one looks at them, relationships are at the center of them all.

Our individual relationships with Jesus Christ, then with one another under His Lordship, were and are the soul of who we are and all we do. Without Him, there would have been no Jesus People, nor any conviction of mission to the USA and beyond. We are literally about Jesus and people. Day to day, our lives still include the excitement of the adventure alongside typical mundane tasks, no matter which area of service we’re individually involved in. Here are the spiritually and physically weak, strong, “on fire,” and “those in need of renewal ” Christians. We have our share of extroverts, introverts, converts, and the not-yet-decided.

Within and without we seem to have far more friends than enemies, though I ’d be remiss to not mention we have always had our share of detractors. Preaching repentance and holiness both draws and repels. Working at living out both does likewise, and JPUSA has never been nor will ever be sin free! We certainly do not believe belonging to JPUSA or any intentional community equals a relationship with Jesus!

My wife Wendi tells a story about our first years, which included close-quarters living on an old school bus as the band and community members traveled. At one point I looked at her with a smile and enthusiastically exclaimed, “Honey, I love this! I don ’t know why more people don ’t live like this!” (referring to community lifestyle). She replied, “Many are called but few can stand it!” Indeed. The cost of close community—especially to those who for whatever reason (s) cannot “stand it”—is great. But thirty years later I still can ’t personally think of a better way to live. Most of my life has been focused on my own relationship with Jesus and spiritually (and otherwise) needy people.

One doesn ’t have to live in community for that to happen, but it is nearly impossible to escape if the Lord calls you as He has me or if you serve with others who place themselves where needy people live. If I had to do it over—including the painful experiences of JPUSA life with fallen people and my own failures—I absolutely would! JPUSA is a grace-filled miracle, and there is no way I could have written these words thirty years later without having experienced it as I have, not only in my life but recognizing it clearly in the lives of those I live with daily. . . which brings me back to love, truth, balance, and forgiveness.

Faith in God is far easier than faith in human beings. But what I ’ve seen in the history of JPUSA is God ’s active love changing people from faithless to faithful, unloved to loving, totally imbalanced to caring about such things as moderation, being far more thoughtful as opposed to simply reactionary. Along this route, forgiveness became essential for us because we had to face ourselves as well as one another in living, working, and socializing so closely. Forgiveness became as tangible as sin.

I sincerely thank God for the countless lessons community living has taught me about seeking forgiveness as well as forgiving others. Such lessons are priceless. Apostle Paul said it so well:“though poor, yet making many rich. ”Most of us at JPUSA have comparatively little with regard to the “average” American lifestyle. Less can be more, spiritually!Ultimately, only God can determine the fruitfulness of Jesus People USA. I’m convinced He has made us rich in things too precious to keep for ourselves. Community has taught me to keep sharing.

We cannot know for certain what the Lord will do with JPUSA in the next thirty years, but the first thirty have been incredibly blessed. I wish the current members happy birthday, and offer glory to God for all we have seen Him do! (Please peruse www.cstonenet.com for our main web site and JPUSA-based web pages) .