Break-Out#3: Community - March 20th, 2011

Date: March 20th, 2011

Speaker: Pastor Kevin Snyder

Title: Break-Out #3: Community

Text: Acts 2: 42 - 47

Review

When the Holy Spirit came upon the believers in Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost , 3 break-outs took place.

A.THERE WAS A SPIRITUAL BREAKOUT.

B.THERE WAS A FAITH BREAKOUT.

C.THERE WAS A BREAKOUT OF COMMUNITY.

What a great thing to be a part of that kind of community. ..something we all long and search for. But it’s hard to experience given we aren’t all perfect people, blessed with the best people skills, live in the same area, work schedules…Community has been a challenge ever since the fall in Genesis 3.

But it is that kind of community that the Holy Spirit created in Acts 2. He enabled a group of believers to break-out from “I” to “We.”

Acts 2: 42 -47

42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper?*?), and to prayer.

43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity?*?— 47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THAT COMMUNITY

Growth – devoted to learning together
Hospitality – sharing meals both at church and in their homes
Excitement & Anticipation – God seemed to frequently show up in their gatherings and their was a deep sense of the presence of God
Care & Team – they helped each other and had a sense of belonging to each other and teamwork
Generosity – This was a giving church. They gave to of their resources generously to help people.
Positive & Uplifting – The atmosphere was one of praise and encouragement not criticism & judgment & frustration
Attractive– This body was attractive. People wanted to be a part of this kind of church.

And often when we hear those characteristics we say to ourselves ….”I sure would like to find that kind of community….”

But maybe our efforts would be better spent if we sought to make , rather than” find”, that kind of community.

Because maybe a good church, isn’t found… it’s created.

It’s created in a people who have allowed the Holy Spirit to break-in to their lives….when God starts to heal our wounds, we capture his example in terms of livng in truth & love, gives us the incentive and power to forbear with each other and forgive our grievances, to turn cheeks instead of strike back, to bless and love rather than repay or take revenge….

Today, I want to think “not on what the church can do for you, but what you can do for your church.”

Focus on how you and I can in partnership with God’s Spirit create an Acts 2 church.

What can we learn from these folks about our part in building community?

1. BE REAL

Let me start by talking Family .

Does it ever end where we quit saying “Sorry” in our family?

Doesn’t seem to for me…I find ways of making my wife mad… I could get to the point where I could walk in and just start with “I’m sorry”…(don’t even know for what yet but there must be something)

... my kids made a deal that if I used them as an illustration I would have to pay them…

(Some of the most humbling experiences I had as a Dad was having to go to my kids and say “SOOOOORRRRRRY.” But it kept walls from building, resentments from accumulating, it kept us “family”.

(Probably when we quit doing that is when we start heading for the divorce court.)

We understand that in our family & human relationships…but what changes when it comes to relationship with God?

We get this mistaken notion that we only need to say “sorry” to God once when we first come to Christ, and then we don’t need to do it again. Or at least we pretend we don’t ever need to do it again.

Result: we become this dysfunctional spiritual family that goes about like we don’t need grace anymore.

The church started with a people acknowledging their need of Jesus Christ. It started with them confessing their sin and need of Jesus Christ. It started with them being real….taking off the mask of pride.

And that doesn’t end when we first come to Christ.

i.e.

Parable of Pharisee and Tax Collector.

Came to church. Pharisee basically stood up proudly at the front & prayed, “Thanks God that for how good you have made me, not like these other people.”

Tax collector bowed head and said, “Lord, have mercy on me a sinner.”

And Jesus asked “Which one went home connecting with God?”

The tax collector!

In our life in community which one are we more akin to?

Which one more typifies our practice?

Do we put forth the image having no needs, no struggles, no problems…

Or do we portray that we today are in need of God’s grace?

Do we find ourselves thinking – “Boy they sure need Jesus”

Or do we find ourselves thinking – “Boy Lord I need you”?

I wonder...

Reality is you are in as need of Christ today as you were that 1st day you surrendered your life.

Speaking personally,

I need the Holy Spirit & help to be a

good husband

…to have good attitudes

…to not slip into gossip and judgment

…to forgive hurts and not let them accumulate

…to control my tongue

…to guard my eyes

…to help overcome my worry, anxiety and fear…

You see, being a Christian doesn’t mean you now have to portray you have it all together.

You aren’t called to portray that you are good. You are called to portray that Jesus is good.

And, we show Jesus is good when we are transparent and humble… Our message is basically this:

“If there is any goodness in me it is because of him not because of me. He deserves the credit. He did the makeover of my heart.”

Fellowship starts with us taking off the masks of pride…being honest with God & each other.

"Christians file into church on a Sunday morning. One by one they march in like separate alabaster jars. Contained. Self-sufficient. Encased. Contents undisclosed. No perfume emitting at all.Mary broke her jar. Broke it?! How shocking. How controversial.Was everybody doing it? Was it a vase-breaking party? No, she just did it all by herself. What happened then? The obvious: All the contents were forever released. She could never hug her precious nard to herself again. Many bodies that file into church do so, no doubt, because the have Jesus inside them. Jesus!--precious, exciting, life giving. But most of them keep Him shut up, contained, enclosed all their lives. And the air is full of NOTHING. They come to church and sit--these long rows of cold, beautiful, alabaster jars! Then the cold, beautiful, alabaster jars get up and march out again, silently--or maybe talking their cold alabaster talk--to repeat the ritual week after week, year after year. The need for Christians everywhere is to be broken. The jar has to be smashed! Christians have to let the life out! It will fill the room with sweetness. And the congregation will all be broken shards, mingling together for the first time. Of course it's awkward and scary to be broken! Of course it'seasier to keep up that cold alabaster front. It was costly for Mary, too."(3)

Bonhoeffer said:

True fellowship doesn’t happen when we sing together, pray together, or even eat together….It begins when we confess we are sinners to one another.”

Expand this for just a moment:

Being real isn’t just confessing our sins to one another.
It’s also, like Mary, confessing our love for God.
It’s confessing our love and appreciation for one another. Telling people what they mean to us.

Community breaks out when we break some of the vases, when we quit hiding behind masks and confess who we are to one another.

2. It takes DEVOTION

When we think of devotion we think of the symbol of a ring.

Wedding ring – committed to that person for life….”symbol of our unending devotion to each other.”

It implies commitment to the institution of marriage…to the person we are in love with…

Think of devotion think of that ring.

Well, these believers were devoted to …

apostles teaching,
to prayer…
to meeting together …
to care for each other…

a. Start with measuring our “devotion”

One of the things I have learned over the years as a pastor is that many people WANT community, but they aren’t devoted to community.

Put it bluntly:

Should we expect worship to move us without giving an ounce of preparation to it?
Should we expect our church to grow if it’s about #5 on our list of priorities?
Should we expect to see exciting “God-things” to happen w/o devoting ourselves to prayer?
Should we expect the church to be a force in the community w/o giving time?
Should we expect the church offer staff and all kinds of programs w/o giving?
Should we expect to have our needs met w/o ever thinking that we should meet another’s needs?

It’s easy to expect more from the church 2 blocks away than we expect from ourselves.

Rule of Thumb:

We are in danger whenever we expect more of others (of the church institution) than what we expect of ourselves. Because we are the church…it’s us, people…warts and all.

You see, this was a dynamic , exciting, growing , caring community because these people were devoted to it.

If you want to measure the "l" temperature of your church, stick a thermometer in your own mouth.”

Don’t expect your brothers and sisters to be more devoted to God, and to the church than you are.
Don’t expect them to serve and you not
Don’t expect them to give and you not.
Don’t expect they should care and you don’t have to.
Don’t expect them to come but you don’t need to…

Point:

Community breaks out when lift our devotion to each other to match our expectations of each other.

Summary

Acts 2 Community isn’t found…it’s created. It’s created by people who are filled with the Holy Spirit .

And are now real

And are now devoted.

Devoted to 2 main things

a. Devoted to the cause of the Kingdom of God

b. Devoted to each other

a. DEVOTED TO THE CAUSE OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD

i.e.

Suppose we loaded up a plane to go to Japan. On the way we got into a discussion over coffee, and coke, - on end times, and gifts of the Holy Spirit and views of communion, about what the church sanctuary should look like, or sound like…

Maybe some are talking to loud when we are trying to sleep. Maybe someone stayed in the bathroom too long. Maybe some are a little ticked because they aren’t singing my style of music on the plane. Maybe someone said some things that pinched. By the time we got there we could perhaps be a little separated and miffed with each other…

But something would change I’m sure when we hit the ground …when we saw the devastation…when we saw the need. Suddenly the purpose /cause of why we came would grab us and it wouldn’t matter if you were young or old, like country or rock, thought the sanctuary be pink or orange, thought tongues should be spoken more or less, …all those things I would guess would fall into the background of the insignificant and we would lock arms and clear rubbish, and nurse people, and build houses because what really matters is the cause.

That’s what happened in Acts… they were more devoted to the cause than their preferences.

They were devoted as a team to the purpose and the goal.

They were bound together by more than warm fuzzies and coffee cups…. they were bound together by a vision. …a vision of the world where Christ reigned in the hearts of people, and the homes, and the communities, and the nations.

Community breaks out when you & I are devoted to the cause.

b. DEVOTED TO EACH OTHER

These people were devoted to each other in several ways:

Meeting together – at church and in their homes

And that isn’t just in the good times but the tough times:

i.e.

Sports Team – often hear announcer speak of an athletes dedication/devotion when they play with pain. Broke his finger and tapes it up and continues to play. We measure their devotion to the team by their willingness to play through pain.

Does that apply to the church?

When we are hurting, are we devoted to meeting together? Or do we pull back? – Do we drop out of small group, quit coming to church, pull back from people…?

i.e.

Water Buffalo – when under attack form a circle with hooves out. Danger comes when one gets nervous and breaks rank and turns it into every buffalo for itself.

We could learn from the water buffalo. When we are attacked….when we are going thru stuff…. that is the time to come together in a circle and gain support ….not to bolt off on our own. To gather people to pray for us, to support us.

Sad when we go running … become easy pray

Are we devoted to keeping the circle of support….the team together?

c. Devoted to caring for each other

They gave of time and resources to help each other. “There were no needy among them.’

Doesn’t mean everybody had the same, but they cared for the less fortunate in their midst.

True community breaks out when our brothers and sisters lay claim on our lives.

Conclusion:

Today is communion.

Communion is really a vase-breaking party. It acknowledges that we are all in need of God’s grace…. And we take it regularly not just once because we need to be reminded of our need of grace. In taking it we say toeach other “Hey look I’m the tax collector…I need God’s mercy and grace, and I need it yet again today.

The challenge is to turn it beyond the symbol. To be real in life with each other… to share our needs, to confess, to say sorry….

This morning: people to pray for you as you come….it’s okay to acknowledge I have a need… I need prayer….just step out and be happy to pray briefly for your need.

Communion is also a symbol of community. Many traditions use one cup. More biblically accurate in terms of symbol because we all drink from the same cup. We all need Christ’s blood to save us. We are all bound together by one Spirit and into one family and partake of one loaf. And so in this meal we express our common cause and common bond. We practice symbolically what we spoke of today…and it challenges us to make it more than symbol…to live it in our corporate life…

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* Greek the breaking of bread; also in 2:46.

* Or and sincere hearts.

Tyndale House Publishers: Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 2nd ed. Wheaton, Ill. : Tyndale House Publishers, 2004, S. Ac 2:42-47