Sharing in the Gospel.

Steve Gentry

[0:00] Do you have your Bibles? [0:02] Open to 2 Corinthians chapter 2 this morning.

[0:06] And I kind of just want to jump off of the reality of that song. [0:11] And I’m going to start right now in verse 14, [0:14] but then we’re going to work our way a little backwards. [0:16] Just work with me this morning. [0:18] I want to jump off the reality of God’s overcoming power through Jesus [0:23] and what the cross and what the resurrection and what the gospel brings

[0:27] into our lives and the reality that Paul paints for us here. [0:32] Look in 2 Corinthians 2.14 with me. [0:36] It says, But thanks be to God, [0:39] who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession. [0:44] It says here that he always leads us in triumphal procession. [0:49] If you go back to the original language, that word always, it means always.

[0:54] All right, there’s nothing really deeper than that. [0:56] But but it’s this reality of always. [0:59] And see, to me, that is one of the hardest things for us to really [1:02] wrap our minds around. [1:03] So the most difficult parts of the gospel for me is because it does not always feel like it. [1:12] But Paul, in the reality that he’s writing, a man who,

[1:16] if you go further in this same book, he talks about the fact that he was once [1:22] stoned with stones by a village and they thought he was dead, [1:26] so they dragged him out of the city. [1:27] And he two times was beaten with sticks, [1:32] kind of like Jesus was the cat of nine tails. [1:34] But that happened to Paul twice.

[1:36] And he’s been shipwrecked and he’s been abandoned by people. [1:41] He’s been kicked out basically of his home nation. [1:44] And he travels day and night, he says, through hunger and through thirst, [1:50] often not having a place to stay.

[1:54] But here in the midst of all of that, he’s in the middle of that reality, [1:59] even to the point where he’s imprisoned. [2:02] And he says, Christ always leads us in triumphal procession. [2:09] And through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. [2:15] For we, and we’re included in that, are the aroma of Christ to God among those [2:22] who are being saved and among those who are perishing to want a fragrance

[2:27] from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.

[2:32] So Paul gives this amazing vision. [2:37] To the life that God has given us through his son, Jesus, [2:42] and it is this life that he says is overwrought with victory. [2:47] It is triumphant. [2:49] It is this thing where the essence of who we are and the lives that we live [2:54] spread to everyone to reveal the life of Christ in us.

[2:59] And I’m going to fast forward to like point three real quick, [3:02] but don’t put it up there because I’ll come back to it. [3:04] But in point three, I was going to say, but I’m going to say it [3:06] in the introduction instead. [3:08] That this is actually an analogy [3:11] of something that they could understand in their culture.

[3:15] See, in Roman society, whenever a victory was won by one of their many armies, [3:22] the soldiers would return. [3:24] And this triumphal procession that he’s talking about is what the soldiers would do. [3:28] And when they came home, they would go through the streets on a parade [3:32] and incense would be offered up on the sides of the street. [3:37] And this incense was referred to as the fragrance of victory.

[3:41] So he’s not simply giving this pie in the sky idealistic thing [3:46] that we can’t really understand because to the audience that he’s writing to right now, [3:50] they know exactly what he’s referring to. [3:52] And he’s referring to the Roman triumphal procession [3:56] where they would declare themselves victorious over all of their enemies. [4:00] And if you know history, you know that they were victorious.

[4:04] They basically took over the modern world at that time. [4:08] And so these triumphal processions were just a constant for them. [4:13] And this incense would fill the streets. [4:17] And Paul says, this is a very interesting thing, he says, [4:20] through the life of a follower of Jesus, [4:23] you in the way that you live are on a triumphal procession.

[4:31] And then he says the incense that they would offer, [4:34] he’s saying that that incense is what your life is [4:40] and that through the life that you live, [4:44] you are offering up the essence or the odor of Jesus to everyone around you. [4:51] And that through your life is how they know who Jesus is. [4:59] Through the triumph that you live in the gospel is how the world

[5:04] will see the greatness of Jesus Christ. [5:10] And so in one sense, this is a magnificent portrait of my victory [5:15] that I can claim through Jesus, because in Galatians, Paul says, [5:19] I have been crucified with Christ, so I can take that victory, [5:24] hold it in my life and know that it’s true.

[5:28] But Paul says it is not simply a mental belief, [5:33] but rather it’s a life belief for the way that you live, [5:36] the way that you conduct yourself, the way that you walk. [5:41] He says our walk is to be one of triumph. [5:44] Our life is to be one where people simply look at us and they say, [5:48] that is victory, that is the gospel.

[5:52] And then when they say, what’s that essence? [5:56] You say, that’s Jesus. [5:58] They believe or they’re totally offended life to life, [6:02] or death to death for those that don’t believe.

[6:06] So the question I have, and when we were putting together our core team [6:10] before we ever launched services here at the village, [6:15] this text was one of those texts that we would always go to because [6:18] you’re still in, you want a really discouraging career. [6:22] Go into church planning.

[6:26] There are some dark days, but on those dark days, [6:30] you go to passages like this and you’re encouraged. [6:35] But then on the back end, all right, there’s that. [6:40] And I think you guys felt that a few minutes ago because I heard a couple of.

[6:45] Is when it’s like, man, my life doesn’t feel that triumphant.

[6:49] If people examine me, I don’t know if they see victory. [6:52] And I sure don’t think they smell Jesus. [6:54] It’s more like smelling a middle school locker room [6:56] when you look at my life sometimes. [6:59] And if you’ve ever been a teacher or ever been in middle school [7:01] or if you’re in middle school, you stink.

[7:05] There is no substitute for showering and real deodorant. [7:11] Axe body spray does not cut both of those together. [7:15] Just trust me as a former teacher.

[7:19] I don’t know where that came from. [7:22] Bad memories, I guess.

[7:26] But here’s what we struggle to do, and here’s why I think [7:30] we have a very hard time seeing this reality in our lives. [7:34] And it’s because this is frequently what we do with scripture is, [7:37] is we’ll find something that sounds great. [7:40] And this does.

[7:44] And then we’ll believe it. [7:47] And we struggled to say, well, how do I live that, though, [7:51] in the confines of my life? [7:54] How do I see this triumphal procession come about? [7:58] How do I let off the essence of Christ?

[8:03] But the key is understanding, really, [8:06] the context of what he’s talking about. [8:09] So today, our service is going to be a little bit of the same [8:13] and a little bit different. [8:14] We’re going to we’re going to hopefully, and they’re depending on me for this, [8:18] cut it a little short.

[8:20] To give us time, really, to experience [8:24] the how and to actually begin to walk into an environment [8:28] of how do we begin to see this triumph? [8:31] Because Paul does not just simply give us this metaphor, [8:35] as amazing as it is, without giving us the context [8:38] to see how this metaphor is going to come about.

[8:40] Because the way that they kind of broke up the chapters is this. [8:44] Paul is kind of ending a chapter here, [8:48] not himself, but the guys that put it in the chapter. [8:51] So they broke it up. [8:52] But what comes before that? [8:54] What is the triumph that he’s talking about?

[8:57] And so that’s what we’re going to do today. [8:58] And the context of everything that we’re talking about [9:01] and have been talking about in this series is the context of how community [9:05] furthers the gospel in my life. [9:07] And by community, I’m talking about the relationships of discipleship [9:10] within the local church.

[9:14] And today, we’re going to call you to something radical. [9:16] But what I believe we’re going to call you to do today [9:19] is something that God has specifically defined as the only way. [9:24] And I’m going to be that objective today by saying the only way [9:28] that you can truly experience the triumph that God has for you in Jesus. [9:35] And I think one of the problems with this is that we want to say

[9:38] this happens many ways, but Paul’s being very specific in this chapter. [9:42] So go back to verse five of Chapter 12.

[9:49] Paul has come off of First Corinthians, [9:52] which is a book dealing with the same church, [9:55] but it’s a church that was in turmoil, a church that was in great sin. [9:59] If you’ve ever read First Corinthians, [10:01] you know that this is a church that is struggling with even what we today [10:06] would call immorality.

[10:08] People say the world’s so bad now. [10:11] You obviously didn’t live in first century Corinth. [10:14] OK, it was pretty bad back then, too. [10:16] They were fairly immoral people. [10:18] And the immorality that was sweeping the streets [10:22] was making its way into the church and they were having pagan

[10:27] almost sacrifices to pagan gods through these sex practices. [10:32] And Paul writes First Corinthians to deal with how they deal with immorality. [10:36] And he does that. I mean, he comes he comes straight up. [10:40] And he says, you don’t believe the gospel. [10:42] This is what you’re doing. [10:43] So what has happened in Corinth at this point between First

[10:45] and Second Corinthians is is a lot of repentance has taken root in people’s [10:50] lives. And in that repentance, if you’ve ever repented of a sin, [10:56] you know that oftentimes out of that repentance, [10:59] there comes the need to rebuild that life that you had.

[11:06] If you’ve ever been in a relationship and had one of those moments [11:10] where it’s almost like you stabbed a friend in the back or you were stabbed [11:13] in the back by someone else, you know, the experience that, [11:18] yes, I will forgive you, but I’m not going to immediately turn my back.

[11:24] Trust has to be rebuilt. [11:27] The foundations of that relationship needs to be put back together. [11:32] So in Second Corinthians, he’s beginning by talking to a church. [11:37] It is rebuilding their trust in one another.

[11:43] So look in verse five.

[11:48] Says, now, if anyone has caused pain, [11:53] he’s caused it. [11:56] Not to me, but in some measure, not to put it too severely to all of you.

[12:05] When Paul wrote First Corinthians, a lot of the church’s response.

[12:11] Instead of saying, clearly, we’ve done something wrong. [12:14] A lot of the response was to say, you’re a false teacher, Paul. [12:18] Don’t tell us what to do.

[12:21] And so in that, they caused a great deal of disunity in that church. [12:25] And so Paul says, understand that. [12:29] They haven’t just wronged me, that has also affected you, [12:32] and that’s why you’re struggling now to forgive. [12:35] So he continues and he says, for such a one,

[12:39] this punishment by the majority is enough. [12:43] So you should rather turn to forgive.

[12:49] And comfort him.

[12:52] Isn’t that interesting? [12:53] We don’t typically look at it that way, do we? [12:55] Here’s how we look. [12:56] I’ve been wronged. [12:58] I’ll forgive, but I need someone to comfort me in the fact that I’m forgiving you.

[13:05] Here, Paul says,

[13:08] forgive and comfort the person you’re forgiving.

[13:16] He says, so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, [13:19] or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. [13:25] And for a lot of us, when we’re forgiving people, we’re like, well, yeah, he should be.

[13:33] If he doesn’t act sorry enough, I take it back.

[13:39] I don’t forgive anymore. [13:41] It’s mine again. [13:42] Ha ha.

[13:45] So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. [13:51] For this is why I wrote that I may test you and know whether you are being obedient in everything. [13:59] Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. [14:03] Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake [14:09] in the presence of Christ so that we would not be outwitted by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his designs. [14:19] And Paul starts out really simple and then he takes it to a whole another level.

[14:26] When Paul talks of the triumph in Christ, he specifically referring to what takes place in the community of believers about sin.

[14:40] And he’s giving a reality where great wrong has been done in and among the church. [14:47] And he begins to say, this is what the gospel looks like. [14:52] If you want to experience the triumph of Christ, do not forsake each other, but rather come together in obedience to Jesus.

[15:08] So what we see here is that the gospel is this force of the grace of God that brings people together. [15:19] It’s completely countercultural to what we would normally believe.

[15:38] Here’s what Paul is doing. [15:41] He’s saying what takes place in the grace of God is completely different than what you would do outside of the grace of God. [15:51] He does not look at them and say, come together as a community, form community groups, do stuff together, be the church. [15:59] Paul simply writes and assumes that if they believe the gospel, they are a community. [16:08] So he delves full force into what the community should look like rather than begging them to come into community. [16:15] He instead begs them to be a healthy community.

[16:21] And he says the love of Christ looks a lot different than what human love is ever even capable of. [16:27] And he says that and basically that’s because human love is counterfeit.

[16:31] Only the love of God is genuine. [16:32] And he says, here’s how it fleshes out. [16:34] That great pain that’s been caused to me has also been caused to you. [16:39] But understand that in the gospel, we must forgive because it is forgiveness that brings us together as one. [16:47] And our lack of forgiveness is actually an indicator that the life of Christ is not in us.

[16:54] The gospel brings us together.

[16:59] Understand this morning that sin is a very painful experience, especially being sinned against, is it not?

[17:14] If you’ve ever been in a relationship with another human being, you have felt the pain of sin. [17:22] And sometimes, it’s been against you.

[17:28] And we all believe that we’re alone in that, and none of us are. [17:33] If you’ve ever been married, you know the pain of sin and you know the necessity of forgiveness. [17:39] As a husband that’s not very good, I know my need for forgiveness.

[17:46] I have a sharp tongue. [17:48] And I have to say I’m sorry a lot.

[17:53] If you’re a child and you have brothers and sisters, you know sin. [17:57] If you have one friend, you know sin. [18:00] If you have no friends, go get coffee.

[18:07] And then I’ll give you a reason to need to forgive someone. [18:10] Isn’t that fun? [18:11] I’ll sin against you or something, I don’t know. [18:13] So that you can be in with the rest of us, because the rest of us, we’re here, we’re there. [18:19] And we struggle to come together as a local church, and we struggle to trust other people in the context of a local church. [18:27] We struggle to have relationships, and you want to know why that is?

[18:32] It’s because someone has hurt you at some point.

[18:36] And so instead of pouring your life into relationships, you pour your life into everything else, and now you have an excuse to avoid them, because you simply don’t have time.

[18:50] But deep down inside, there’s another reason that you don’t want to be in relationships, and you want to know why? [18:56] It’s because if you actually proactively seek and strive for relationships about, for, and through the Gospel to take place in your life, you will experience the reality of needing to forgive someone else, and what’s even harder, the reality of needing to seek out someone else’s forgiveness.

[19:23] And that’s uncomfortable.

[19:27] But when Paul talks about the triumph of the Gospel, he’s talking about that.

[19:35] So outside of that, what’s the Gospel going to do?

[19:42] You see, the hope inside of the community that we’re building here at the village is not simply to show you, oh, well, you need to forgive people. [19:55] You need to get over what they’ve done to you. [19:57] No, you don’t.

[20:01] You need to get through it, not over it.

[20:06] You say, well, how do I do that?

[20:10] The way the Gospel brings people together in the light of sin, and that’s what Paul’s doing, he’s calling them together, he’s calling them to huddle for one another, for the sake of one another, to help each other with their sinful lives.

[20:22] Forgiveness is not real unless justice is found for the sin. [20:26] It’s not. [20:28] It’s like the whole forgive and not forget. [20:30] My wife does that a lot to me. [20:33] She’ll bring something up I did seven years ago when we were dating.

[20:38] And she says, well, and I said, I thought you forgave me for that. [20:40] I didn’t forget.

[20:44] She got me again. [20:45] And then I try to do the same thing and I can’t think of anything. [20:49] So there’s either one of two things. [20:51] Either I’m very forgetful or my wife’s really good to me. [20:54] And I think it’s that she’s really good to me and that I’m pretty forgetful. [20:59] Because there’s got to be something she’s done to me.

[21:00] There’s got to be. [21:02] I just do way more.

[21:06] But through the gospel, when we believe the gospel and someone sins against us, [21:12] I’m not talking about being a doormat here. [21:13] I’m talking someone has sinned against you and you’re struggling to forgive them and they’re seeking repentance.

[21:19] You know where you find your justice? [21:21] You find it in the cross.

[21:25] Did Jesus not die for that sin? [21:29] Did he not?

[21:32] See, that’s where the gospel becomes real life. [21:35] That person that sinned against you, that you just cannot forgive, [21:38] the imprisonment that not forgiving someone is causing in your life, [21:43] did Jesus not take it to the cross? [21:45] Justice has been served.

[21:52] And then secondly, it’s not so much that they need to feel your forgiveness. [22:00] See, because I think we like to play God with that.

[22:04] Ha ha! I’ve still got it.

[22:08] I have power over you because I’ve not forgiven you.

[22:16] See, the thing to understand here is they don’t so much need your forgiveness.

[22:24] Two things need to happen there. [22:26] You need to believe the gospel and you need to help them believe the gospel.

[22:33] See, it’s not so much your forgiveness they need to feel. [22:35] They need to feel God’s forgiveness. [22:38] And that triumphal procession, part of it is not your forgiveness. [22:40] When we forgive each other and we are in relationships, [22:45] we are tangibly showing the work of the gospel.

[22:51] Because when I forgive someone and I can really do it because I’m finding justice in the cross, [22:56] and it’s exciting to actually be able to forgive people. [23:00] And you know what you’re doing? [23:02] You’re helping them feel the forgiveness of Jesus. [23:06] Because where you’re finding your justice is where you’re going to point them to feel justice.

[23:15] So it brings people together. [23:18] But community is a messy thing because we struggle to believe it. [23:23] And it takes time. [23:25] And it takes effort on our part to actually live out what we believe. [23:33] When you come together to see this type of forgiveness fleshed out in people’s lives [23:40] and you actually help them to realize that type of forgiveness,

[23:45] the gospel jumps off the pages of scripture and it actually becomes real life to you. [23:53] But so long as you are avoiding the relationships that are for and about the gospel, [23:58] that can only be found in the church, by the way. [24:00] You’re not going to find it at the Rotary Club. [24:02] Or your fantasy football league.

[24:07] That’s the place where the gospel is going to work and you’re going to see lives redeemed.

[24:19] So today what we decided to do was, it’s great for me to talk. [24:22] I love hearing my voice. [24:25] But I wanted to hear a few stories from the village.

[24:32] Of the way that community and the way that forgiveness has just gone into their lives [24:38] and the way that being in relationships has actually furthered the work of the gospel [24:42] rather than detracted to the work of the gospel. [24:45] And so right now I want to hear one of those stories. [24:47] I want to see a videotape that we taped of Kelsey McLean. [24:51] Let’s see if we can get that up there.

[24:56] Hi, I’m Kelsey McLean and this is Y Community Group. [25:00] Community group is so important to me. [25:03] Community group has meant so many things to me since I’ve been here at the village. [25:07] When I first started coming to the village, I was new to the church and I would even say that I wasn’t a Christian yet. [25:15] Being able to go to a community group and hear about the things that other people were experiencing in their lives [25:21] and the things that they were struggling with, it really showed me that God could love people with messy lives.

[25:27] That being a Christian wasn’t about leading a seemingly perfect life. [25:33] That and being able to share my experiences and my story and the things that I’ve struggled with, [25:39] those two things are really huge steps that God used to bring me to Him. [25:44] Since then, community group has been a place for me to come and to learn, to grow, to grow in God’s Word. [25:52] To talk about things that I may not understand the first time I hear or read them. [25:59] To come and to hear about the things that God is doing in other people’s lives, in our church, and in our community.

[26:05] It’s so humbling to be able to see that God’s not just in my life and in my small aspect, [26:10] but He’s doing huge things throughout the church and throughout our community. [26:15] It’s very humbling to be able to be a part of. [26:18] Community groups are actually one of my favorite things to do here at the Village. [26:23] I’m really excited to see the things that God has in store and God hasn’t planned for us. [26:29] In a few weeks when we relaunch our community groups,

[26:32] I’m really excited to see some new people and new members coming out to the community groups and just being a part of that.

[26:41] Here’s what’s so great about the story that we see here.

[26:47] Kelsey is someone that started coming very early on. [26:50] She wouldn’t even consider herself a Christian. [26:52] She’s someone, and I’m a great friend, she actually through community found her husband, James, who sings up here every Sunday. [26:59] Which is great because we needed him to get married.

[27:07] She’s someone that came in here and didn’t even consider herself to be a Christian. [27:10] She’s someone like all of us. She came in with baggage because of sin. [27:16] Here’s what community in the Village did. [27:18] She came when it was very small, now it’s a little bit bigger. [27:21] It helped her to understand and to grasp the forgiveness of God for her sins.

[27:30] She came in with some real sin in her life. [27:34] She said, didn’t really have any hope.

[27:38] It wasn’t because someone sat down and pointed out her sin, but rather because someone sat down in the context of a relationship where we knew we loved each other in Christ. [27:51] Someone showed her the forgiveness of Jesus to her. [27:54] That baggage was taken off, led to a marriage. [27:57] She’s now our children’s director.

[28:01] Through the context of forgiveness, because it wasn’t anyone’s forgiveness that she needed to feel, but rather it was the forgiveness of Jesus Christ.

[28:12] She believed it. [28:14] She saw it. [28:15] The triumph of the Gospel can only be experienced in community.

[28:24] It can’t happen anywhere else. [28:26] That’s it. [28:28] It’s only in the context of community that we’re known and we know each other.

[28:37] In that text, Paul is talking about people. [28:39] He leaves it very general. [28:41] You know he’s talking about some specific circumstances in people’s lives. [28:45] He talks about it. [28:46] He never deals with the core issue, but rather speaks out it in generality so that everybody could apply it to some aspect in their lives. [28:56] He says, Paul, you have to see that you have been tasked as an ambassador of reconciliation to take the Gospel to others.

[29:03] Paul, throughout the rest of 2 Corinthians, lays out our identity as missionaries for the Gospel. [29:09] Notice that he does not start by saying, here’s the mission, get out of here. [29:15] He says, here’s the mission. [29:17] Here’s what the mission is going to do to you. [29:19] It’s going to drive you into community. [29:21] Community is where God works.

[29:27] It’s where that aroma begins to spread. [29:32] It’s where that triumphal procession takes place. [29:34] When we talked about John 17, Jesus prays to the Father, he says, as we are one, so may they be one. [29:44] Because it’s only in community that we reflect the relationship that God experiences with himself in community. [29:52] It’s only that when we come together, united for the Gospel, just giving forgiveness away as fast and as quickly as we possibly can, so that we can come together as a people united for the Gospel. [30:08] It is only then that we can bring glory to God and then reveal the glory of God to everyone else.

[30:19] You say, how do I know that?

[30:24] Because as soon as Paul is done saying, anyone I forgive is forgiven by Christ.

[30:34] Because he believes the Gospel that radically.

[30:40] Then immediately, after talking about his missionary journey for two verses, he says, but thanks be to God who leads us in triumphal procession.

[30:50] Here’s what I think. [30:51] I think that if you believe that if you come together with people, too much, if you give too much of yourself over,

[31:03] number one, you’ll get hurt, but number two, the people will have power over you.

[31:10] Because if you really forgive and really come together, I’m just pandering to them and I’m looking weak.

[31:20] And Paul deals with that immediately. [31:23] He says, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. [31:25] He says, when you forgive, you’re actually the most powerful.

[31:33] Because you’re believing that no one can have anything over you, whereas pain is concerned because your justice has been completely found. [31:43] And it’s only in community that we can help each other feel forgiveness.

[31:50] Imagine how it feels to be someone racked with sin, to be someone racked with rebellion against God, to be someone whose life is filled with pain. [32:04] Maybe you’re sitting there thinking, well, you’re describing me pretty well. [32:09] Imagine what it feels like to go into a group of people who actually get to know that part of you. [32:15] And just look at you with love rather than disdain.

[32:21] Look at you and say, let’s work through that, rather than doing what everybody else out there does. [32:27] And that’s like, you’re afraid sin will get on you, so you’re like, oh, I don’t know. [32:32] I’ve got to keep my kids away from that one.

[32:36] Imagine what it’s like to actually show someone forgiveness. [32:41] You’re like, I want to do that.

[32:47] But it’s never going to happen until you intentionally, proactively walk into environments where it could happen.

[32:57] It’s never going to happen. [32:58] God’s probably not just going to bring them to your doorstep. [33:01] Could he? Yeah. [33:02] But if you’re sitting there waiting, they may never come. [33:05] But where will they come?

[33:09] If we’re the type of community that offers forgiveness to each other in relationships that lead to redemption and discipleship, [33:17] then people will come because they know that this is the place where love is happening.

[33:24] But if you are not proactively putting yourself into relationships with other people in the church, [33:31] and I’m talking about you’re doing it so radically that rather than saying no to community groups because you don’t have time, [33:41] because you’ve got other things going on, you’re saying no to those other things that are going on [33:47] because you know that the triumph of Christ is going to be experienced in community groups.

[33:55] Do we believe the gospel? [33:59] That is what Paul is dealing with here. [34:03] So long as you are avoiding relationships that lead to redemption, [34:08] so long as you are withholding the gifts that God has given you where other people are concerned, [34:15] and the gifts that God gives never go past other people. [34:19] They’re constantly for other people.

[34:22] So long as you’re doing that because something else is more important to you than that other thing is what you believe. [34:27] Believe then!

[34:36] See, community reveals the aroma of redemption.

[34:43] This is not, when he talks about the triumph and the aroma, [34:48] this is not some unrealistic analogy, but rather it is one that serves to show [34:53] the forgiveness that we exchange and help others feel in the gospel. [35:00] You see, that aroma, that forgiveness that we exchange back and forth, [35:04] because remember it’s not about you forgiving something that’s been hurting you, [35:07] as much as it is about you giving the forgiveness of Jesus to someone that needs to desperately feel it.

[35:16] When we do that, it serves to further the mission of Jesus to the world around it [35:22] because we are truly believing it and showing it together with each other.

[35:30] You see, there are often times in my life when I’m weak in my faith, I’m weak in my belief.

[35:40] And I’ll go to community group, and here’s what will happen sometimes, [35:42] I’ll hear someone else’s story. [35:45] Like I said last week, I feed off of their faith.

[35:51] Or I’ll hear someone else’s story of redemption from sin, [35:55] and it will help me believe that my sin is forgiven.

[36:02] You see, when we avoid community, you know what we’re avoiding?

[36:10] We’re avoiding the work of the gospel. [36:13] We’re avoiding what the gospel desires to do in our lives. [36:18] And through our lives and into the lives of other people. [36:26] Maybe you’re the type of person that believes that you can’t help anyone,

[36:30] because you don’t have enough faith or you don’t have enough strength. [36:34] Tim Keller says it very wonderfully when he says, [36:37] when we say we can’t help anyone, what we’re really saying is that [36:41] we can’t break away from the other things that we have going in our lives to help anyone. [36:47] Because what is Paul talking about here? [36:49] He’s talking about the gospel, he’s not talking about what you can or you can’t do.

[36:56] Because there are people that need to feed off of your faith. [37:01] Right now I want to see a story from a guy in our church, his name’s Clint, [37:06] about how community groups have helped him through some hard times.

[37:12] All right, so I just want to talk a little bit about community groups and what they’ve [37:17] really meant to me since I’ve been coming to Village. [37:21] First of all for community groups, those of you who don’t know, what we do is just kind of [37:25] get together and a leader goes through the sermon that Steve or Nate preached. [37:31] And we just kind of talk about it, there’s some further or deeper teaching on it. [37:36] And then the other part of community group is what we really try to do is make sure that

[37:39] we make it practical, we try to come up with tangible ways that we can really live out [37:46] what God is calling us to do. [37:49] You get to see people, you get to hear how God’s working in their life and what he’s [37:55] doing through them. [37:56] And it’s just awesome, you get to see people living out that faith and I think that’s

[38:02] really, that’s right out of scripture. [38:03] If we look at Paul’s writings, he’s constantly just being uplifted by hearing about people’s [38:11] faith, by hearing about people coming to Christ and people living out the mission. [38:15] It’s an awesome thing, it’s uplifting and really encouraging.

[38:21] Another thing for me, over the last seven months of my life, I’ve had really an unfortunate [38:27] hardship dealing with marital separation and unfortunately ultimately leading to divorce [38:37] proceedings. [38:38] And just a time that’s a lot of hurt, a lot of pain and a lot of suffering and those things [38:45] are real.

[38:48] But as scripture speaks and God tells us that he’ll never forsake us and he doesn’t. [38:56] And we see his love just manifested through his people and those people are at the villages, [39:03] those people are at community groups. [39:05] And I’ve had just an awesome group of people in my small group and outside the small group [39:12] that have just been a blessing, have kept me on track, have helped keep me grounded, [39:18] have grieved with me, have prayed with me.

[39:21] And just been there and been whatever they needed to be in that moment. [39:28] And yeah, I don’t know how, I can’t picture getting through it without that. [39:35] It’s a true family. [39:38] My family’s a great family but they’re all in Pennsylvania. [39:42] So yeah, I’ve been leaning hard on my church family. [39:46] I mean that’s really I think what Jesus teaches us.

[39:50] He says we’re all brothers and sisters in Christ. [39:55] And so why should you come out to community group? [39:59] Ultimately you’re going to learn about God, you’re going to learn about scripture. [40:03] And in doing so you’re going to grow in your walk. [40:07] You’re going to come to know a different level of joy and satisfaction in God. [40:13] You’re going to rejoice with God’s people.

[40:17] You’re just going to have a great time. [40:19] You’re going to have people that you can share your life with. [40:23] You’re going to have people that are going to share their life with you. [40:27] And ultimately you’re just going to experience God’s love through his people. [40:32] And you’re going to really be welcomed into a new family. [40:38] And it’s just the family of God and the family of Christian brothers and sisters.

[40:42] So yeah, definitely come out.

[40:49] You may be out there thinking, you know, great, I know what this is leading up to. [40:53] Now you’re going to guilt me into joining a community group. [40:56] You’re going to make me feel like a terrible person because I don’t go to a community group. [41:00] Great. Well, I am. Yeah, that’s what’s going to happen.

[41:04] But here’s why. [41:06] All right. [41:07] All right. Pastors, you know, they just want more and more of our time. [41:10] I don’t have time. [41:12] If I didn’t do this, then I’m telling you that I don’t love you.

[41:22] Because I’m a husband, father, I have stuff I want to do, I have stuff I need to do.

[41:30] But without actually coming into a active community with other people, and it has to be broken down smaller. [41:38] We have to do that to believe that 100 more than 100 people showing up on a Sunday morning, we can all proactively get to know each other. [41:46] Now, that’s silly. So what have we done? [41:48] We’ve we’ve kind of tried to boil it down smaller and smaller so we can actually get to know people and pray with people through pain, help people through those hard times. [41:57] We have to do that. And here’s why. [41:59] Look in verse 11 really quick.

[42:03] He talks about the forgiveness so that we can get people into the presence of Christ. [42:08] And he says, so that we would not be outwitted by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his designs.

[42:16] Paul points. And here’s what we would do. [42:18] We would point to some gross sin that we would never do and say, that’s the work of Satan. [42:23] But Paul says, when we do not come together under the banner of the gospel to form a community, to help others get into the life of Christ, we are setting ourselves up to be outwitted by the evil one.

[42:43] Because when you are not in community, I don’t care how old you are in the faith. [42:47] I don’t care how young you are in the faith. [42:49] I don’t care how much scripture you think you know. [42:52] When you are not in community, you are alone and you are with yourself to go against the principalities and powers of darkness in this present age that Paul warns us about. [43:07] And you are just depending on your own faith. [43:10] And you are setting yourself up to be in a place where temptation will triumph over your life rather than where the gospel will triumph over your life.

[43:20] Because it is only in community that Paul says the gospel works. [43:25] Because the gospel is supposed to go between people’s lives. [43:31] And when it’s just you, where is it going to go? [43:33] Into the ground.

[43:37] And when you are not experiencing the way that God designs you to live your life, you are denying the very truth that God has given you. [43:47] And you are saying you are smarter, you are wiser, you are different than everybody else. [43:53] You don’t need it. You don’t want it. You are fine on your own. [43:57] Well, you are already believing lies and you are being outwitted by Satan.

[44:06] You are already doing it.

[44:11] He says, verse 17, he says, for we are not like so many peddlers of God’s word. [44:23] But as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.

[44:33] See, verses 11 and verse 17 are these very sobering realities.

[44:38] Because at that time, just like today, if you look on TVN, there were people who used God’s word for their own profit, for their own fame, for their own name.

[44:54] What is interesting about this is Paul marks those people by a lack of community.

[45:02] See, because when it is just you, there is this great temptation to turn all of God’s word towards yourself.

[45:11] And then it just becomes all about you. [45:14] But community prevents you from that. And that is what Paul is marking on here. [45:17] What community does is it forces you to live a life where it is about others.

[45:27] I am not talking about the type of community where you just come together and you have a Bible study where you use Christian language to talk about your problems. [45:34] I am talking about a real community where you come and you are loved and you actually talk about your real life. [45:39] You actually ask the question, can we use in our daily lives what Steve talks about on Sunday mornings?

[45:48] And maybe the answer will be no, I have no idea.

[45:53] But I am talking about a community where it is not just about you being loved and what others are doing for you. [45:58] And you don’t have time to worry about that because you are so concerned about what you can do for other people.

[46:04] And before you know it, you have grown into this thriving community where people from the outside can actually look in and say, [46:11] I have never seen a people with more love. [46:14] I have never seen a people so quick to offer forgiveness. [46:17] I have never seen a people that don’t turn their backs on others when they are in pain. [46:24] But rather a people who live triumphantly and are always pushing and digging further and further into the life of Christ. [46:35] Because Paul writes that the triumph of God is only encountered in relationship, true relationships with other believers.

[46:49] So here is what I want to do, a little bit differently today than we normally do. [46:54] We are going to take communion, we are going to reflect on the gospel, on that triumph. [46:59] And we are going to sing two songs.

[47:03] And then after those songs, what I am going to ask you to do is there is going to be community group leaders and maybe some community group members out there in the lobby. [47:10] I still don’t know what to call that area. [47:12] The lobby.

[47:15] And they are going to be ready to sign you up for a community group. [47:20] Or maybe you just want to inspect a little bit to make sure we are not crazy.

[47:26] And you just want to talk to somebody. [47:28] And then maybe think about it.

[47:32] But I am going to ask, if you are not in a group, I am going to ask for you to go out and just maybe meet somebody. [47:38] Maybe find a group that you can connect with. [47:40] Now I understand some of you work nights. [47:43] Maybe you won’t be able to come every week. [47:45] That is not my goal. [47:47] My goal is not attendance.

[47:50] My goal is lives joined together. [47:52] So maybe you can come every other week. [47:54] Maybe you can come once a month. [47:56] But at least you will know that someone is praying for you and someone is there for you when you need them. [48:04] And maybe they will actually call you or shoot you an email just to see how you are doing. [48:08] And you can be honest because you know they believe the gospel.

[48:15] And maybe that is just a good start to something else that God is going to do.

[48:21] But after we are done today, go out there. [48:24] Stay for a minute. [48:27] Begin to experience community.

[48:32] Because it all starts with relationships.

[48:37] Father, we love you.

[48:43] I want to ask today that you would give us a vision of triumph.

[48:49] God, I personally wish I could do it alone. [48:53] That is how I am wired in my sin.

[48:59] But God, the gospel calls me to repent of that.

[49:03] So that I can catch a vision for so much more. [49:08] I pray that you would continue to help me do that. [49:11] And help us as a church cling to each other rather than clinging to our shame and our individuality. [49:18] But rather we would choose your plan over our plan. [49:22] Because it is better.

[49:26] Lord, help us today.