I love being on a team. It gives me a sense of belonging, more good things get done, and I feel a sense of connection to something bigger and better than myself. I am glad teams are a biblical concept; they don’t call them “teams” in the Bible, but the Bible clearly identifies the benefits of working together. My New Testament reading for today from Romans included this: “Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us” (Rom. 12:4-6).
This passage tells us a few things about teams. For instance it tells us that just because you have a group of people that does not necessarily mean you have a team. A group of people could be just a crowd of people. Paul indicates that teams involve collaboration and interdependence – the group forms “one body,” A team is a group that comes together to collaborate in order to reach a shared goal for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. A team is a group of people with a high degree of interdependence, all aimed at achieving a common goal.
The passage also teaches that teammates are people deeply committed to each other; Paul writes that “each member belongs to all the others.” A team cares for its members; they are working together at such a deep level that the group literally “belongs” to one another – there are no lone-rangers or free-lancers or superheroes on a team when it is working at its highest potential. That is not to say each person has the same level of gifting – Paul mentions that each one contributes “according to the grace” given him or her. Everyone brings something unique and important to the table. And when a team finds its proper rhythm – its groove, so to speak – where each member is contributing exactly what they should - then watch out!
And that leads to still another observation about teams found in Scripture. With teams, synergy is achieved; the sum of a team is greater than its individual parts; two plus two equals five or more. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 describes it in this way: “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
The acronym stenciled in locker rooms and board rooms across the land is clichéd but true T.E.A.M. – Together Everyone Accomplishes More. Since biblical times people have realized this. The question is, why don’t we take advantage of teams? How about you? Are you a part of any teams? Or are you just part of a few groups? Imagine what a church staff, or even an entire church could accomplish if it began functioning as a team? If your department, or class, or business or church is not functioning as a team, what can you do to foster its evolution into a team? Why not begin working toward that today?
This passage tells us a few things about teams. For instance it tells us that just because you have a group of people that does not necessarily mean you have a team. A group of people could be just a crowd of people. Paul indicates that teams involve collaboration and interdependence – the group forms “one body,” A team is a group that comes together to collaborate in order to reach a shared goal for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. A team is a group of people with a high degree of interdependence, all aimed at achieving a common goal.
The passage also teaches that teammates are people deeply committed to each other; Paul writes that “each member belongs to all the others.” A team cares for its members; they are working together at such a deep level that the group literally “belongs” to one another – there are no lone-rangers or free-lancers or superheroes on a team when it is working at its highest potential. That is not to say each person has the same level of gifting – Paul mentions that each one contributes “according to the grace” given him or her. Everyone brings something unique and important to the table. And when a team finds its proper rhythm – its groove, so to speak – where each member is contributing exactly what they should - then watch out!
And that leads to still another observation about teams found in Scripture. With teams, synergy is achieved; the sum of a team is greater than its individual parts; two plus two equals five or more. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 describes it in this way: “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”
The acronym stenciled in locker rooms and board rooms across the land is clichéd but true T.E.A.M. – Together Everyone Accomplishes More. Since biblical times people have realized this. The question is, why don’t we take advantage of teams? How about you? Are you a part of any teams? Or are you just part of a few groups? Imagine what a church staff, or even an entire church could accomplish if it began functioning as a team? If your department, or class, or business or church is not functioning as a team, what can you do to foster its evolution into a team? Why not begin working toward that today?
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