Steve Gentry
[0:00] If you’re anything like me, community and building relationships is not something that [0:07] you’ve really focused on in a great deal of your life. [0:10] Maybe you’re like me. [0:12] And for the past 32 years, I’ve had two moods, grumpy and sleepy. [0:16] That’s really the way I’ve gone through life. [0:19] And a few years ago, as probably more than a few years, I forget my age sometimes, a
[0:25] decade ago, when I really started searching God’s Word, He really had to sow a lot of [0:31] repentance in my life where other people are concerned. [0:34] In Philippians chapter 2, the very beginning here, is where God really brought a lot of [0:39] repentance into my heart. [0:41] And I just want to begin just reading the first three verses of Philippians chapter [0:47] 2.
[0:48] So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in [0:54] the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having [1:02] the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. [1:07] Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility, count others more significant than [1:18] yourselves. [1:19] Pray with me.
[1:20] Father, You’ve brought us together today to worship You. [1:27] God, I pray that over these next few moments that You would just give me the words to speak, [1:33] Lord, that You would soften hearts and that we would be able to really form a vision that [1:38] You have for us in Your Word about what community is about, that we are called to give like [1:46] You give. [1:47] Lord, I pray that when we exit here today that we will leave saying that we worship
[1:51] the Creator of the universe. [1:54] In the name of Jesus, I pray. [1:56] Amen. [1:58] God exists in perfect community. [2:02] He really does. [2:03] The scripture paints this picture from beginning to end, from Genesis to Revelation, of a God
[2:08] that exists in perfect unity, perfect community, perfect relationship. [2:13] He’s the three in one. [2:15] He’s God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. [2:18] From the very beginning in Genesis chapter one, He declares, He says, let us make man [2:24] in our image. [2:25] Now, at that point, there was no one to talk to.
[2:29] So God is speaking to Himself in Himself in the community in the plural sense. [2:37] And when Jesus comes, we have this perfect picture of how the community of God in this [2:43] Trinity works. [2:45] When Jesus is baptized, we see the Father look to the Son and He says, this is My Son [2:50] in whom I am well pleased. [2:52] The Father is pointing to the Son.
[2:56] And then as the Son lives His life, He’ll say things like, not My will, but Yours be [3:01] done. [3:02] He points to the Father. [3:04] He says that if any man wants to go to the Father, he must come by Me. [3:07] I am the way, the truth, the life. [3:10] No one comes to the Father but Me.
[3:11] He points to the Father. [3:13] He says, I am the way in which you connect with Him. [3:18] Then when He speaks of the Spirit, He says, I’m going to send one greater than I. [3:24] He will give you greater works to do than I have done. [3:28] The Son points to the Spirit. [3:30] But then of the Spirit, He says, the Spirit will bring you to Me.
[3:34] So the Spirit points to Jesus. [3:37] So we have the Father sending and planning through the Son. [3:41] He’s pleased in the Son. [3:43] He points to Jesus. [3:45] Jesus then points to the Spirit. [3:47] The Spirit then points to Jesus and Jesus points to the Father.
[3:50] There’s this complete cycle that constantly takes place where they’re not so concerned [3:55] with themselves getting glory, but they’re concerned with one another. [4:00] God, in His very essence, in His very existence, is sufficient. [4:05] He needs nothing. [4:07] And the reason He needs nothing, He doesn’t need us for companionship. [4:11] He doesn’t need us for relationship.
[4:14] He has that within Himself. [4:16] He exists in perfect community. [4:19] He gives within Himself. [4:23] So then when He creates man, it’s very interesting. [4:27] In Genesis chapter 2, He makes Adam, this is the record of Adam, in verse 18. [4:31] He looks at Adam and he’s formed out of the dust.
[4:34] He’s breathed life into, unlike anything else in creation. [4:38] He gives a man a soul, His image. [4:41] But for the first time, He looks at Adam and He says, it’s not good. [4:45] And the reason He says this is because Adam’s an individual. [4:48] It’s by Himself. [4:49] He’s alone.
[4:51] And so He looks to Adam and He says, it’s not good for you to be alone. [4:55] So what does He do? [4:57] He makes Him a helper or a helpmate fit for Him out of Adam, which is what woman [5:04] literally means, out of Adam. [5:06] He creates Eve. [5:08] And then He looks and He says, these two shall be one flesh.
[5:13] And so He creates a community of Adam. [5:17] That’s what marriage is. [5:18] Marriage is a picture of the unity that God has. [5:22] Marriage serves to be a revelation of the person and work of God, especially in the [5:28] gospel. [5:29] But then when we look at the work of the gospel, we see that Adam and Eve
[5:34] immediately, like as soon as they’re made, sin begins to enter into the picture [5:38] through their disobedience. [5:40] And what does sin tear apart? [5:43] It tears apart community. [5:45] First, the relationship that Adam and Eve share with God. [5:49] It’s broken.
[5:50] They hide from Him. [5:52] They cover themselves in shame. [5:55] But then if you look in Genesis chapter three, we see the world’s first marriage [6:00] problem take place. [6:02] God, this woman you made me, she blew it all. [6:07] All right.
[6:08] Adam’s passing the buck on to his wife, even though if we really read the scriptures, [6:11] we see that Adam was right there the entire time, not leading the way it was designed to. [6:19] And so we see a fracture in the relationship between Adam and Eve. [6:25] And we have been struggling ever since.
[6:30] GK Chesterton, the great theologian, says, and he’s a philosopher as well, he says, [6:35] depravity or sin is really the only doctrine of the church that has thousands of years of evidence [6:41] to back it up. [6:43] Because that’s what we do. [6:44] We sin. [6:45] We struggle.
[6:46] And what does sin cause? [6:48] When I’m sinned against, I get angry. [6:50] When you’re sinned against, you get angry. [6:53] Relationships are constantly fractured between parents and children, [6:56] between husbands and wives, between friends, between partners in business. [7:01] Just we have a problem with being in community with each other.
[7:08] But on the cross, Jesus takes all of the sin that we’ve ever done, all of the nature that sin was [7:16] passed on to us from our parents all the way back to Adam and Eve. [7:20] He takes it on to himself. [7:22] He pays the penalty. [7:23] The scripture says he becomes our propitiation. [7:26] What that means is he becomes our way through sinfulness.
[7:30] He takes us from a place where we are under God’s wrath to God’s favor. [7:35] And in that, he reconciles our relationship with God. [7:40] God had a legitimate gripe with us. [7:44] We were created to worship him, and we did not do that.
[7:51] But Jesus heals God’s offense at us. [7:56] And through him, because he was completely perfect, completely sinless, [8:00] he repairs our relationship with God. [8:02] And he puts us back in what the scripture calls basically a right relationship with God forever. [8:09] It’s a work that’s been done once for all. [8:13] And so for me, that’s comforting.
[8:15] It’s one less conflict I have to deal with in my life. [8:19] I have a right relationship with God. [8:21] I can worship him with no barriers. [8:23] I’m unhindered in my relationship with God. [8:27] But there’s more than that. [8:30] See, the scripture, especially in the New Testament, it moves us into transformation.
[8:36] And it says that through our reconciliation with God, we can then be reconciled with one another. [8:42] And if you were here last spring, we spent a great deal of time in the book of Ephesians. [8:48] And we caught a vision in the book of Ephesians for what God is building through the work of [8:52] Jesus Christ, and that is the church. [8:55] He’s building a people for his own possession. [8:58] But what he’s doing through this is because of the relationship that we have with Jesus Christ,
[9:03] he’s giving us an unnatural love for other people. [9:09] If you’re anything like me, it’s very unnatural. [9:12] And it takes a great deal of repentance in my heart because I’m selfish, very prideful, [9:17] I’m very self-centered.
[9:20] And so in my life, as 2 Corinthians tells me in chapter three, I am being transformed more [9:27] and more to the likeness of Jesus Christ, who really doesn’t need us. [9:35] He’s God. [9:35] We’ve already seen he’s got community. [9:38] But he desires to love us because God is a giver. [9:46] And so when we are called into relationship with God, he necessarily then is calling us
[9:52] into relationship with other people. [9:56] Investing in relationships is investing in God’s mission. [10:00] That’s my first point today. [10:02] And I hope that I can in some way prove that to you this morning. [10:06] That when we invest in relationships, we’re investing in the foremost of what God would [10:11] have us do.
[10:12] Other people are important. [10:15] Clearly, they’re important to God or Jesus wouldn’t have died on the cross. [10:19] But above that, they’re important to us because of everything that he has done in Jesus. [10:25] Notice in Philippians chapter two, this book is really about the development of the vision [10:34] of Jesus Christ in our life. [10:35] It’s about growing and following Jesus.
[10:40] And he begins in chapter one and laying out that he is working to advance the gospel. [10:45] And what he’s doing is he’s given Philippians a vision for how they will then begin with [10:52] furthering the gospel. [10:54] But I want you to notice where he starts. [10:57] He tells them, he says, that if there’s any encouragement in Christ from what I’m doing [11:02] for the gospel, I want you to understand that it is going to begin in relationship
[11:08] with other believers. [11:10] Notice what he says. [11:11] He says in verse two, he says, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the [11:16] same love, being in full accord and of one mind. [11:22] He’s calling for a drastic unity within the church for the cause of Christ. [11:28] He’s calling us to build relationships on something that we’ve never built them before.
[11:36] Because what do we do from very early age in our relationship? [11:40] Basically, we look at relationships and we say, what do I have to gain in this? [11:45] What’s in it for me? [11:47] I need someone that’s got everything in common with me. [11:51] I want them to look like I look like the same music I like, have the exact same interest [11:55] I like, and have all of these things that look like me.
[11:58] If we have enough commonalities, we’re going to be BFFs. [12:02] We are really going to be friends.
[12:07] But in the gospel of Jesus, he calls for repentance in that. [12:12] We’re naturally going to be closer to some people than we are others, but what Jesus [12:15] is calling us to is to stop basing relationships on that which just furthers us. [12:22] What he’s saying is, is I want you to further your relationships on what furthers him and [12:27] his agenda. [12:29] That is around the gospel.
[12:32] That is what forms a church, is a group of people passionate about what Jesus has done [12:39] and is doing, and then coming together centered on that very thing. [12:47] In Romans chapter 12, Paul writes it a little different. [12:50] He says, let love be genuine. [12:53] Abhor what is evil, hold fast to what is good, love one another with brotherly affection, [13:00] outdo one another in showing honor.
[13:07] What he’s saying is, relationship is not about what you have to gain, but it’s rather what [13:11] the next person has to gain through you. [13:14] And if I’m a follower of Jesus Christ and I believe in the gospel, then what does that [13:18] person have to gain through me? [13:20] The gospel. [13:22] That is what they have to gain.
[13:23] And the scripture calls me to do something that’s completely unnatural, and that is [13:27] to show someone else more honor than I show myself.
[13:34] It’s telling me to be more worried about the guy next to me than I am about myself.
[13:44] The church then is called to be a people of drastic humility.
[13:56] Now what I want you to understand about humility is it is not just me repenting of being [14:03] braggadocious or being a braggart, whatever you want to say. [14:06] That’s not the end all of humility. [14:08] Is that involved? [14:09] Yes. [14:10] Humility, though, is more about forgetting myself and thinking of the next person.
[14:18] Giving into the life of the next person. [14:21] But that must begin in the church. [14:24] Humility then in this text is about the motivation and the action of relationships. [14:32] You cannot follow Jesus without giving yourself to others in community. [14:38] You cannot do it. [14:41] Because if we really do look at what being a Christian is, it is about following Jesus.
[14:46] And what is Jesus doing on the cross? [14:49] He’s giving everything that he has for others. [14:52] He says things in the gospel like greater love has no man than he gives his life to [14:57] his friends. [14:57] And what he’s doing there is he’s giving a prophecy of what he’s about to do. [15:01] He is about to example for us the greatest love of all.
[15:07] And he says, do likewise. [15:10] And that is what Paul is instructing us to. [15:12] But it must begin in the church. [15:15] I want to look at a couple of passages. [15:17] They’re going to be up on the screen. [15:18] I’m not going to read the whole passage.
[15:19] I’m just going to kind of summarize them for you. [15:21] The first one’s 1 John 3, 16. [15:23] Here what it says is that we are to lay our lives down for other Christians. [15:29] When you see John use the word brothers in his three later letters in the New Testament, [15:33] what he’s referring to are other believers. [15:36] In 1 Peter 2, 17, he says, show special love for other Christians or the brotherhood.
[15:43] In a first Peter that was specifically so important because Peter is writing to a group [15:48] of Christians that have been under great pressure from the government. [15:52] They’ve been driven out of Jerusalem and they’re in what is modern day Turkey, [15:56] suffering for the gospel. [15:59] And Peter looks to them and he says, show special love for each other because the times [16:04] are tough.
[16:04] You’re going to suffer and you need one another. [16:07] Make it through for the first three centuries of the church. [16:10] Christians were hunted down and sometimes burned as the headlights for Nero’s Rome. [16:16] Our headlights for our spotlights or streetlights. [16:19] There we go. [16:20] I knew I’d catch it one of these times.
[16:22] But what I want you to understand here is that what we have lost in this modern era [16:26] of really comfort and leisurely lifestyles is a commitment to each other that they had [16:31] in the first three centuries where they were drastically in need of each other’s help.
[16:38] Now we feel like we’re good on our own.
[16:41] But the scripture says that we’re not. [16:44] We may not be physically suffering, but when we forsake the relationships inside of the church, [16:49] we’re forsaking and spiritually suffering.
[16:54] Galatians chapter 6 verse 10 says, especially do good to other Christians. [16:57] John 13 35. [16:59] Jesus just spells it out and he says the world sees God’s love by how Christians love each other.
[17:09] You say, so we’re supposed to be consumed with loving each other. [17:14] What about everybody else?
[17:17] Friends, if we’re not doing it in here, we’re not doing it out there either. [17:23] God has called us to be disciples, to make disciples, and we can’t make what we aren’t.
[17:35] The gospel then is building a community that is about giving of yourself as God gives of himself. [17:43] Look in verse 3.
[17:46] Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant [17:51] than yourselves. [17:53] Let each of you look not only to his own interest, but also the interests of others.
[18:02] Selfish ambition and conceit builds life around that which benefits me. [18:07] It may make a space for relationship and environments of community, but it does not sacrifice for it.
[18:18] And I think the scripture there is clear. [18:22] I don’t know that I need to expound on the original language here because it means exactly what it says. [18:29] This text is something that I have struggled with in my life. [18:34] Count others as more significant than myself.
[18:39] As we finish today, we’re going to see a great tide of what this means and how it can do nothing. [18:46] But cause drastic repentance in my life. [18:50] It literally means I need to work on putting myself out for the sake of others. [18:58] It means I need to sacrifice for the needs of others, not just financially. [19:05] That will come, but relationally.
[19:10] I must do that because here’s how often and I’m just going to get really specific. [19:14] I’m going to hit us where I think we are. [19:15] I could go a hundred different directions with this, but I’m going to go with where I think we are as a church. [19:21] What this text means is that we must stop viewing ourselves as sponges.
[19:27] Because I think in large part, we come into a church, we look at Christian ministry as something that we get from others rather than something that we give. [19:37] Because I think we feel insufficient. [19:40] I don’t think we feel like we have anything to offer. [19:42] We feel like we need to grow. [19:44] I don’t have anything to give anybody else. [19:46] So I view myself as a sponge.
[19:48] When I go into community groups, someone teach me. [19:51] When I come on Sunday mornings, someone equipped me and that is needed. [19:56] But what will happen if 10% of those in the church are giving to the 90% who are sponges? [20:03] How long will it take before the 10% are totally dried up and dehydrated and have nothing left to give? [20:09] Because it seems to me and I’ve been in ministry for a little over 10 years now. [20:12] It seems to me that the 90% never seem to stop being sponges.
[20:20] And I don’t think it’s because we have this innate thought that we don’t want to give. [20:24] I think that we have a lack of feeling that we have anything to give.
[20:31] In the gospel, what I want you to realize is that you need to be comfortable with where you are.
[20:38] You’re where God wants you to be. [20:40] You are who God wants you to be right now.
[20:45] You’re good enough. [20:47] Gosh darn it, people like you. [20:49] If you saw SNL in the 80s, maybe you got that. [20:52] I don’t know. [20:53] Showing my age there.
[20:57] But if you have this feeling that I have nothing to give, [21:01] it is less what you were saying about yourself and more about what you’re saying about God.
[21:07] Because you’re saying he hasn’t given you enough of himself. [21:11] Friends, on the cross, God gave you everything. [21:14] And in his spirit, Jesus says he will continue to give you everything. [21:19] You have to trust in what God is going to do in you for the gospel to work in community. [21:26] When we come to groups, I don’t want you coming just with this thought of what can this leader [21:32] teach me.
[21:33] Because frankly, maybe he doesn’t have that much he can teach you or she doesn’t have that [21:38] much she can teach you.
[21:40] But buddy, together, you have something to offer the entire community of believers.
[21:48] Come to groups seeking to give into the life of that group. [21:53] Because if you think that your community group is dead, you know what the problem is? [21:57] Look in the mirror. [21:59] It’s probably because the members are depending on one leader for the lifeblood of that group. [22:06] We have to catch a vision of being a community where we give into one another’s lives. [22:13] Sure, maybe there’s one person in the group that is gifted more with teaching than anyone else.
[22:18] But let me tell you, as a pastor, there’s a great need for someone that’s gifting to [22:22] listen as well. [22:24] If just to listen to the leader.
[22:27] We have to stop viewing ourselves as sponges and view ourselves as God wants us to view ourselves. [22:32] And that is we are called to give as God gives. [22:37] Maybe the problem with your group is you’re considering yourself as more valuable than the [22:41] other people in the group, as opposed to what Philippians chapter two, three tells you to do. [22:45] When you come to group, you’re to count them as more significant than you count yourself. [22:49] And if an entire group gathers with that mentality, what can God do through 10 to 12 people who are
[22:57] passionate about giving of themselves to one another? [23:00] So when you read this text, do not read, well, this is what Susie or or Bob needs to hear. [23:07] Read. This is what I need to hear. This is what I need to do because each and every one of us have [23:13] great places of repentance in our lives that we can do to count others as more significant than [23:17] ourselves. Secondly, we must understand the power of presence to count others as more significant [23:24] than ourselves. Now I may step on your toe, but I’m also stepping on my toe here.
[23:28] All right. Maybe there are weeks where you’re just too tired to go to group so you don’t show up.
[23:34] All right. I want to cast a little bit of a vision here about the ministry of attendance. [23:41] All right. I heard that a couple of years ago and it’s really stuck in my mind. [23:45] And here’s the reason. What if everybody in the same week says I’m too tired? [23:50] I’m just too busy. I can’t go to group this week. And that happens to be the week that a couple who [23:57] just getting back into church because of a great hurt or someone who doesn’t believe in Jesus or [24:03] isn’t a follower of Christ. That’s their first week of taking the risk of jumping into community.
[24:12] And nobody else shows up. You ever been to a community group where you’re the only one that [24:15] shows up with the leader? How awkward is that? It’s the weirdest hour of your life. [24:22] I’m a pastor and when it happens to me, I’m like, oh good, this will be a great hour.
[24:30] It’s awkward. But when we don’t show up and someone that’s brand new does, [24:37] let me tell you, I’ve heard stories where we never see those people again [24:41] because it was just too awkward. And friends, if we’re very honest with ourselves, [24:47] most of the reasons that we miss group have nothing to do with a legitimate [24:51] others centered reason. Now there are reasons. I don’t want you to show up puking on each other. [24:56] And you know, sometimes you have to work late. Sometimes these things happen.
[25:01] But when three out of four weeks, you’re not there, [25:05] are you really catching a vision for Philippians 2, 3? You have no idea what the power of you [25:12] just being there may do for someone’s life. You have no idea how encouraging it is for me [25:19] when I go to a community group, when I go to my group and there’s someone else there. [25:24] You know what it makes me think? Oh, someone cares. Someone’s here that I can just talk to [25:29] openly. Someone’s there that I can share my burdens with. And if I’m doing that,
[25:33] I know you’re doing that. We have to understand that there is a power in me just showing up [25:40] when I come. The Holy Spirit’s going to do something between my life and the other person’s [25:46] life. Even if the best answer that I have for them is just Jesus loves you.
[25:54] Do you have any idea how often I need that encouragement in my life? So I realize other [25:58] people need that encouragement in their lives. I just need to be reminded of Jesus’s love sometimes.
[26:05] People aren’t looking for a complex answer to great theological questions. Don’t feel [26:10] insufficient. Just be there to put your arm around somebody. Just be there to pray for them [26:15] and pray with them. Be there to listen to them. Be there to just read the Bible with them. I was [26:21] gathered all the way on the other side of the globe a few weeks ago, and I’m not going to let [26:25] too many cats out of the bag before next week, but I gathered with a group of believers who all they [26:30] did was just go through it, read it, and say, what does this mean? Well, maybe it means this. Well,
[26:35] maybe it means this. One of the most powerful hours of worship I’ve ever been a part of, friends. [26:40] Not a theologian present. Just people loving each other. That’s what community is all about.
[26:51] Finally, discipleship begins in the environment of practical community. Look in chapter 2 verse 5.
[27:01] Chapter 2 verse 5, it says this. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours [27:07] in Christ Jesus. Now, what is he talking about there? What he’s saying is that we form [27:14] relationships, we view other people through a certain mindset that is skewed to sin. [27:20] We don’t naturally drift towards having the mindset of Jesus. We naturally drift towards [27:25] having the mindset of a sinful man, because that’s how we’re born. Through a great deal of work, [27:32] God is transforming us through the work of the gospel,
[27:36] and he’s giving us the mindset of Jesus Christ. But we have to be intentional about showing others [27:43] more honor than we show ourselves. We have to be intentional about thinking of the needs of others. [27:48] We have to be intentional about not being self-centered, not letting rivalries and [27:54] conceit ruin our relationships. We have to be intentional about really caring and thinking [28:01] others are more significant than ourselves. But that’s going to cause a great deal of repentance [28:09] in our lives. In Matthew chapter 28, when Jesus is giving the great vision, that’s the vision of
[28:14] our church, he says, go and make disciples of all nations. And when he says this, what he’s doing is, [28:25] he is saying, do something that is going to naturally form community. Do you know Jesus’ [28:32] model of discipleship was to spend a lot of time with 12 guys? It was relational.
[28:40] It was people living and doing ministry in relationship with each other. And that’s what [28:48] Jesus did. And he said to his disciples, he says, you know what we’ve been doing over the past three [28:52] years? Go and do that. Go and form relationships for the purpose of redemption going out into the [28:58] world. Go and be witnesses of all that I have done. Go and be witnesses of the sacrifice that [29:04] I’ve done on the cross for everyone since. And the fact that I rose from the dead winning victory [29:08] over sin and death. And build relationships that lead to growth and transformation. If you are
[29:14] actually taking part in discipleship, it will by very nature form community. [29:22] If you’re not forming community with your life, then you are not actively engaged in discipleship. [29:30] Friends, it’s that simple, but it’s also that hard that we have to care about each other [29:37] to actually be and make disciples. We can’t do it if all we’re doing is get, get, get, get, get. [29:44] We have to give, give, give, give, give. And when I’m given, I’ve just got to trust God that someone [29:49] else is going to give into my life. And if they’re not, well, I’ve got God, so that’s good.
[29:53] But I have to just give. Trusting in God means give, because that’s what he does. And when I give, [30:00] I’m trusting that he’s going to fulfill all the promises that he’s promised to give.
[30:05] Now, very quickly, I want to give four things because I know repentance is needed [30:12] in our church and in our lives, or community is concerned. And if you’re going to join [30:19] a community group, and I pray that maybe you will today in spite of all that I’ve said, [30:22] maybe you will. There’s four things that you’re going to need to repent of while you do it. Maybe [30:28] not today, but here’s what you need to prepare that God’s going to do in your life. First, [30:32] we need to repent of self-centeredness. We really do. You will not grow as long as your needs come
[30:40] before the needs of others. You won’t. I won’t. None of us will. What keeps you from engaging in [30:48] practical community? The environment that we have set here at Village for community is community [30:54] groups. We just kind of make it easy, and it’s like organized madness. All right, it’s like, [30:59] all right, come together. And it might be a little weird at first, but come together, [31:04] and let’s get in community. What night are you free? Okay, let’s move it around here. Okay, [31:10] this is when we’re going to engage. And guess what? We are asking you to make a sacrifice
[31:15] to engage in community. We are. I know that left to yourself, you can fill every night of the week, [31:25] but I’m asking you, are those commitments just benefiting you?
[31:32] We have to repent of self-centeredness. Do you want your children to follow Jesus? [31:37] I’m going to be very blunt here. Do you want them to be disciples? Then get in community.
[31:45] Children need parents in community more than they need parents doing anything else. [31:53] Anything. They can go to bed late one night a week,
[31:58] because they will grow up better going to bed one night a week than they will without parents [32:01] in community. I have to say that as your shepherd,
[32:07] I love you. If you’re not in community, you’re hurting your children. [32:12] That, that blunt, you’re teaching them what is more important than community
[32:20] by what you do.
[32:23] Repent of self-centeredness. I have to do it.
[32:28] Repent of fear. We must not fear others. Jesus died to redeem us from fear of being found in [32:38] our sin. I think there’s two types of fear that we have going in community. I think we’re afraid [32:42] people are going to find out who we are. And I think we’re all so afraid that someone’s [32:45] going to hurt us. We have to repent of the fear of someone finding out that we’re sinners, [32:52] because Jesus has forgiven you of your sin. And we’re all sinners. So if you’re found out, [33:00] I’m found out. We’re just going to be found out together. And I’m cool with that if you are.
[33:04] Look, if you’re in my community group, you’re going to find out that your pastor is a sinner. [33:08] All right. I’m just going to be that blunt with you. All right. So if you’re cool with that, [33:11] I’m cool with finding out you’re a sinner. There’s nothing you can tell me that will shock me. I [33:21] know that you’re going to be shocked. You’re going to be shocked. You’re going to be shocked [33:22] by the fact that you’re going to be hurt by someone else hurting us. They will.
[33:27] You’re in community group long enough, someone’s going to treat you badly. Someone’s going to [33:30] hurt your feelings. Someone’s going to say something that you think is hurtful. It’s [33:34] going to happen. But you have to trust the cross of Jesus. In First Peter, it says that [33:40] while Jesus was insulted in the cross, he trusted in the work that he was doing to [33:44] come in. And so must you repent of shame. Maybe you’ve got a sinful past.
[33:52] Maybe you don’t feel like your socioeconomic status measures up to other people. I don’t [33:57] know what it is, but maybe you’re ashamed of something. Friends, if we desire to escape the [34:02] grasp of sin, you will not be able to do it alone. You need people around you. If we are truly there [34:07] to give of ourselves, then we will embrace those who need help. We will embrace those in sin. We [34:14] are struggling with addiction. We will embrace those who are unemployed. We will embrace those [34:18] who need help with their groceries. We will embrace those who are behind on their mortgage. We
[34:22] will embrace those that don’t look the way we want to look. We will embrace those who are [34:25] of a minority class. We will embrace those who are of a different ethnic class. We will embrace [34:28] black. We will embrace yellow. We will embrace red. We will embrace brown. We will [34:31] embrace white. We will embrace everybody because that’s what the gospel does. I don’t care where [34:38] you are in life. You’re a descendent of Adam, and so am I. We must repent, finally, and then [34:43] be done of busyness. It’s got to happen. If you are too busy to be engaged in God’s
[34:55] community, then you are too busy. I don’t know if it’s a job, I don’t know if it’s [35:04] a hobby, I don’t know if it’s a sport, I don’t know if it’s academics, I don’t [35:09] know what it is, but there is never a time where God says you don’t need community right now.
[35:17] Some of it is, is we’re too materialistic. We burn the candle at both ends because we [35:22] convince ourselves we need to keep up with our neighbors who need us to show them the gospel.
[35:29] We need to repent of our busyness. It can wait, the gospel cannot. You need community. Some of [35:41] this is us not viewing our sin as sin. We must repent of our idolatry of money and our commitment [35:50] to that which is temporary. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 18 gives us this vision that Paul has, [35:56] he will not focus on that which is transient or that which is of this world, rather he will focus [36:03] on that which is eternal or that which God has clearly stated. Some of you are more worried [36:08] about that which God has not made clear in your career than you are about what God has made clear
[36:14] in the scriptures. God’s been abundantly clear about your call to be and make disciples. Do [36:22] that before anything else. Friends, I tell you that because I love you, because I want what God [36:31] has given us to be in your life. Whatever the reason, we must work together to overcome it.
[36:42] Our group leaders bend over backwards to get people in their groups. We come up with all [36:47] sorts of ways. We’ll figure it out together. Whatever the need is, be in community because [36:56] God is in community and he is restoring you to be with himself in glory forever. But if you are not [37:07] participating in his community, you need to repent because that is what God is working into your life [37:18] through Jesus. As the band comes up, I want to go into a time of communion and then we’re just [37:25] going to transition from singing right into group link. After we’re done singing, our group leaders
[37:30] are going to come up and they’re going to be ready. If you’re in their group, come up and just say [37:36] hi. If you’re not in a group, come up. Join a group. Maybe just get information. I’m not going to make [37:43] you sign your life away. I promise. I don’t think I can do that anyway. But guys, when we come and we [37:50] partake of communion, we partake of this great fellowship that God calls us into in himself. In Jewish [37:56] culture, table fellowship in the Old Testament was huge. They could only have fellowship with those who [38:01] were clean by God’s standards. When Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, he did it over the most holy
[38:09] meal that Israel shared all year, the Passover meal, unleavened bread, the cup. And this was the day [38:18] that they made sure they were cleanest above all. Right before Jesus went to the cross, he said, [38:25] now this meal commemorates the new covenant in my blood. And then you know what Jesus did? He made all [38:33] those who trust in him clean, completely, to share a meal with him. And so when you come up here to [38:43] this table, you know what you’re coming up to? A relationship with God. A fellowship with the Creator [38:48] of the universe. And you’re proclaiming your cleanness to everybody around you. But when you gather in
[38:56] community, you are also claiming your cleanness to them and their cleanness to you, because you will [39:04] have fellowship with all because of Jesus. Let’s worship him in communion. And then this week, let’s [39:13] worship him in community.