Pastor Jonah Sage preached on “How We Live, Part 2” in our Orientation series. He said that we are family, and we are witnesses, experiencing the love of God and announcing to others what we have experienced.
Pastor Jonah Sage preached on “How We Live, Part 2” in our Orientation series. He said that we are family, and we are witnesses, experiencing the love of God and announcing to others what we have experienced.
This is our last Sunday covering our Orientation material. We'e learned:
What we do as a church: Reach, Build, Send
What we love as a church: Truth, Beauty, Goodness
And now we are considering how we live as a church.
Core mission, values, and rhythms.
We believe that everything, including our mission, values, and rhythms, exist for the purpose of relationships.
Made explicit in our core rhythms which define we relate to God and others.
We come to Jesus as his disciples, spending time with him to become like him
This changes how we relate to God, enabling us to worship him truly. This is how we become like him! Through worship of the heart. Jesus makes us worshipers.
This changes how we relate to others. Instead of seeking to take, we give, following the pattern of God. Jesus makes us servants.
Three of our five identities: disciples, worshipers, servants.
Two to go, and these are healing guardrails against certain temptations of the other identities
Think of them as the introvert's temptation and the extrovert's temptation.
Distorted discipleship, twisted worship, can lead us ever inward, the introvert's temptation
To fall so in love with the idea of God's presence, being with him, that you travel ever further into yourself...and never leave.
Like the introvert who thinks a lot about how to talk to people, but never talks to people. Reads a lot of books about dancing, but never dances. When introversion goes too far, it removes someone from the real world around them.
If all we are is a disciple, a worshiper, we might succumb to the introvert's temptation
We will live in our heads and become detached from the world around us.
Extrovert's temptation is just the opposite...go out out out and lose touch of who they really are
Introvert's temptation is to know who they are, but they don't live in the real world.
Extrovert's temptation is to live in the real world, but not know who they are
Gotta serve, serve, serve. Gotta go go go. Gotta stay happy, clappy, and light.
When you lose sight of who you are, you lose sight of your humanity.
The introvert's temptation leads to detachment, passivity, a life of abstraction
The extrovert's temptation leads to loneliness, exhaustion, a life of duty
But the way of Jesus is the way of restored humanity. It is the road of healing and wholeness...not detachment nor exhaustion. Which is why we have two more identities
These describe how we relate to each other in here and out there.
In other words, how we relate to those we belong to, our brothers and sisters in christ, and how we relate to the world around us.
Identity Four: We are Family
Identity Five: We are Witnesses
Now...anyone willing to admit you have some baggage with words like "family" and "Evangelism"?
Most of us do, whether our biological families or the idea of the church as a family, and "evangelism" and "evangelical" stir up other feelings, too.
These are likely indicators of our little "b" beliefs we talked about a few weeks ago, those under-the-water-line beliefs we've absorbed.
And if you're here with some baggage, I encourage you to receive that as an opportunity for healing.
Maybe instead of throwing out words the Bible uses and affirms because we were hurt by them...maybe we can find a way to embrace those words and be healed.
Let me try and paint you a picture of what this could look like:
All the believers were together...
-Acts 2:44
Fascinating. In our culture today, we typically only spend time with people we are related to or people who are just like us.
This was the same in Jesus' day too...except amongst his followers.
One of the first hallmarks of the early church was its diversity.
Men and women relating in unprecedented ways.
Jews and Gentiles, Romans and Greeks and Asians...all together.
They weren't simply in the same room, either:
...and had everything in common. They sold property and possession to give to anyone who had need.
Acts 2:45
What was the criteria for sharing? Was it affinity? Was it worthiness? Only those who deserved it? Boy...how uncomfortable is this!
NEED was the criteria.
This family, alike and different in every way, shared what they had.
In this family, need was obsolete. Because everyone had a family.
The Extrovert's never get paid attention to you. Do you notice that? Not in a real way.
Extrovert's are often loud, silly, grabbing the spotlight...because they want to be seen.
What makes you want to be seen? Being overlooked.
And the problem is they don't know who they really are, so they just keep going
Keep doing, keep serving or being silly.
They live on the periphery of their souls, only letting the world know a version of themselves, and that version has to take care of other people.
When these people hear "family", they think overlooked, lonely, tired.
But in the family of God, EVERYONE gets paid attention to.
NEED is obsolete because everyone chips in and shares the load together.
Before Jesus' resurrection, this kind of commonality was foreign to humanity
Perhaps you would share this way with someone from your own tribe, your own blood...but never a foreigner. Never a different class.
The family of God reminds each of us that we all have needs, and when those needs are brought to each other, not hidden, not sugar coated or white washed, those needs are met, because in the family of God, we are interdependent brothers and sisters.
We are diverse, yes, more diverse than any culture on earth!
And yet we are harmonious.
The harmony of the early church was one of its distinguishing features.
To relate to one another as family means we see everyone as necessary.
Just like a body. And just like a body, every part will need tending to at some point.
If you want to experience healing in the family of God, you have to be willing to both share your burdens and carry others'.
You cannot be angry with others for not helping you when you have not said how you need help.
James 5 tells you to call the elders when you're sick. Did you know that?
Elders don't always know when you're sick. So what do you do? TELL THEM!
And then elders will come pray for you and visit you. James 5.
The principle is you cannot receive help you haven't asked for in the church.
And too many of us grew up in families where we punished for asking help.
Maybe you thought it was shameful, or too vulnerable, or too painful because you knew no help would come.
But here, we believe help has come. Jesus has made us a diverse and harmonious family. So we ask for help. We're honest about our neediness.
It will be everyone's turn to ask for help at some point.
When it's yours, ask. Don't be embarrassed. We belong to each other. We need each other. And when it's someone else's turn to ask for help, we show up.
Let me give you just one more picture of what it looks like to be family:
They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people .
-Acts 2:46
Try to imagine how you might feel in a family like this.
Your needs met. You help meet others' needs.
Eat together, spend time together with glad and SINCERE hearts.
How nice does that sound?
Praising God. Safe. Peaceful. How delightful does this sound?
We all left our childhoods with a limp. Everyone.
And how will God heal that? Adopting us into a new family, where we can be healed.
When we think of our family in the church, the family of God, three words need to guide our imaginations. These are healing words for us:
Diversity: The family of God is open to all kinds of people.
People just like you and nothing like you.
People who look, think, and spend money just like you...and people who do not.
The Gospel is good news for every kind of person.
Jesus has made a way for every one of us to come home to God.
Our family is diverse, open to all people, all kinds of people.
Unity: We do not unite around affinity or politics or hobbies.
Our unity is not like the world's, or our own biological families.
We are united by blood, but not our own.
We have been united through Christ's life, death, and resurrection.
This means Jesus is the center of our family, he is what holds us together.
Which is how diverse people can remain together: we share the center.
With Jesus at the center, we can sacrifice lesser allegiances and preferences
Harmony: we have a common goal, one great mission: reach build send.
We work together, interdependent, necessary siblings
Unity. Diversity. Harmony. Imagine how you might feel in a family like this?
Unity, diversity, harmony. Just like the Trinity.
A place to belong. A place to be healed. A place that has room for you, purpose for you.
"Family" is not just a biblical metaphor for the church; "family" is God's plan for healing your soul
You're free to fail in this family. You're free to forgive in this family.
You belong and you are needed.
Your unique self is able to find its place in this larger group.
And if the way we relate to one another inside our family can be healed, that will change the way we relate to those outside of our family.
Not everyone's heart races when they hear the word "family", but 90% of Christian's I've ever known feel anxious the moment they hear "evangelism."
Yes? Amen? We don't know what it means, not really.
And we don't know how to do it, not really.
And anytime we're supposed to do something and we don't know what it is, don't know how to do it...well you'll feel anxious.
How many of us have read books on evangelism? Gone to a class on evangelism? Thought a lot about evangelism?
Have you ever thought that maybe all of our thinking is a way to avoid...actually doing it?
The introvert's temptation is upon us. Think and think and think, and once we're ready, then we'll do it. And until then...we'll probably just feel a little guilty and anxious most of the time. Right?
But think about what Jesus' life looked like for a moment:
Jesus...
In John's gospel, Jesus says he came into the world to testify to the truth.
And that's what it looked like. Sometimes teaching, sometimes feeding.
Sometimes telling stories, sometimes healing.
The common thread under all of this was Jesus testifying.
So let's think about what that means for a moment.
When you are asked to testify, you simply share what you know to be true.
Isn't that incredible? Notice Jesus never argues with someone.
Really only when the religious folk fuss at him.
Jesus never tries to win. He appeals, he invites. It's kind of like this.
He says "are you thirsty?" If someone says "no" he says "ok have a nice day."
If someone says "yes" he says "here's some water." If they say "i don't want that water" he says "have a nice day." Do you see?
To testify is to share what you already know to be true.
This is what it means for us to be witnesses.
We experience something and we share what we've experienced. That's it!
Witnesses experience something and share what we've experienced.
Who gets called to testify? The WITNESS. Experienced something, share what they know to be true.
And Jesus found all kinds of ways to share this.
Sometimes practically, sometimes verbally, but in every case, Jesus' LIFE was built around sharing the good news of the kingdom of God with people outside of the family of God.
He didn't just think about it, didn't just reflect on it. He actually did it.
Because he wasn't out there trying to win, or meet a quota...he was inviting the lost to be found, the hungry to be fed, the thirsty to be satisfied.
And when people said "no"... Jesus said "OK." He moved on.
And maybe you're saying "but I'm not Jesus!" And I would say "correct!"
We don't just misunderstand what being a witness is, we also misunderstand how to do it.
What is a witness? Someone who shares something they've experienced.
All that's required of you to be a witness is for you to have experienced something with Jesus.
That. Is. IT.
This requires you to know your story...how has he saved you, healed you, restored you?
What is he up to in your life? When has he shown up for you?
To be a witness is to be so rooted in your own story that you recognize how your story is part of God's.
IN other words, you know how God has been there for you and so you can recognize it when he's there for someone else.
How do you do it, then? IF that's what it is...how??
Here's what Jesus said:
You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere.
-Acts 1:8
There's another trigger word for our culture: power.
But what is this power here that Jesus talks about? Is it the kind our culture is obsessed with? The kind that tells other people what to do? That decides who is in charge?
is this the kind of power that points guns at our enemies?
This is POWER of PRESENCE, the Spirit within us. And that Presence empowers us to be witnesses. And what do witnesses do? Tell people about me everywhere.
Do you see? This is a different kind of power.
Holy Ghost Power is not corporate America power or armed forces power.
Holy Ghost Power is other-worldly power to proclaim good news
One other place comes to mind where this kind of power is mentioned. Ephesians 3, Paul's great prayer for his friends:
I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power...to grasp how hide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ
-Ephesians 3:16-17
Power and presence to know and proclaim the love of Christ
And listen...this is the most natural thing you will ever do.
What happens when you experience love? Something lovely, something delightful?
I learned this in college. Stoic, stoic friend Tim. Tall, silent, brooding. History major.
He CHOSE to move to Minnesota. Cold, just like him.
There wasn't a single bubble to this man's personality.
Not an extroverted bone in his body.
But then Tim met Claire. This lady was all bubbles. Way too good for Tim.
And one day, we were walking through campus, and Tim jumped on to a park bunch, surrounded by strangers, and he shouted "I'M IN LOVE WITH CLAIRE DEVORE AND I DON'T CARE WHO KNOWS!"
What happens when you experience love? You share it.
When you eat at a great restaurant? You share it.
Find a great record? Share it.
See a great movie? Share it. On and on and on. And you do this already.
When your child takes her first step? Post on facebook.
When your child gets his driver's license? Instagram, call the grandparents.
When you see an incredible sunset? Text the group chat...
Humans are built to Experience LOVE and then share it.
You never see Jesus or Paul or disciples sharing strategies for evangelism.
The closest we get is Jesus saying "if someone doesn't listen to you move on."
They don't talk about strategy. They talk about love. Because sharing love is hard wired into every single one of us.
Strategy breeds fear, insecurity, and performance.
Strategy wants to be measured and accounted for...but love wants to be enjoyed and shared.
The introvert temptation is to go further and further inward.
Deeper and deeper into contemplation and reflection...but we cannot allow ourselves to go so far in that we never come back out.
Jesus says we will receive power. It's a gift from him, the gift of his presence.
And the emphasis for us needs to be on experiencing the gift of that presence, because when we do we will share it.
It's love that moves us outside of ourselves, and love that brings us back home.
Believing we are lovable allows us to live as family, sharing our needs and burdens.
Believing we are loved empowers us to share good news with the world.
Perhaps with the people in our house, at work, at school, across the street, or across the world.
Perhaps over a meal, perhaps through acts of service, perhaps through acts of mercy and kindness, perhaps through words of hope or announcing good news.
Love empowers us to share good news.
Love brings us home to ourselves and sends us back out.
We are family, and we are witnesses, experiencing the love of God and announcing to others what we have experienced.
Let's pray