"Real" Community-Based Ministry

Pastor Damian continues the church’s series through the book of Acts, focusing on Acts 18 and the theme of real community-based ministry. He begins by asking what “community” really means—not in an idealized sense, but in lived experience. Drawing from his own background growing up in Oakland, he describes how sports teams like the A’s, Raiders, and Warriors created a sense of community through shared excitement and identity. He compares that to the Pacific Northwest, where local teams like the Kraken and Huskies unite people, even amid friendly rivalries. Citing the Oxford Dictionary, he notes that community involves both shared place and shared feeling—a sense of belonging that connects people emotionally. True community, Damien emphasizes, includes not only those we naturally get along with but also those we might prefer to avoid—because they, too, are part of our shared world. Turning to Acts 18, he introduces the city of Corinth, a thriving center of commerce and culture in the Roman Empire, as the setting where Paul models real community ministry. Paul connects with Aquila and Priscilla, fellow tentmakers and displaced Jews, forming bonds through shared work and faith. Damien frames this first section, “Familiar Ties,” as an example of how God often builds ministry through relationships rooted in both common ground and shared purpose.