Sermon Central
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Connecting To Community Part Two Series
Contributed by Anthony Zibolski on Mar 18, 2014 (message contributor)
Summary: We make an impact in the community that we live in when they see that God's people love each and desire to reach out to those that are around them.
Connecting to Community Part two
Selected Scriptures
Introduction-
Last week we started a series called Vital Connections.
These connections are the people and things that we hold important.
We live in a society that doesn’t want connection. People want freedom! The freedom to say and do what they want, when they want, in the way they want.
God tells us to be connected not to the world, but to Him and His church.
He tells us that isolation actually is not good for you and can destroy you if you will let it.
The two main connections that God desires for us are to connect to Him and to His church.
(1) He wants an Intimate relationship that doesn’t allow anything or anyone between you and the Lord.
(2) Good connection between each of us and God’s people.
I heard this week at our Bountiful Blessing session as a family was filling out an application that they were “very spiritual” but they did not want to attend any church. I had to bite my lip, it took everything I had not to let that person know that you cannot be very spiritual and not go to church.
Impossible because what he thought was being spiritual was actually disobedience.
The one most use is that churches are only after my money. I have to tell you there is a lot of ways to make money that would be easier and less time consuming.
Where they are disobedient is not only in robbing God of His tithes and offerings, but they rob God of their time and their talents. These are the two things that allow you to make a living and supply for your family.
You also cannot get past our text from last week-
“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another and all the more as you see the day approaching.”
I need you! You need me! We need each other.
No man is an island, and you cannot have community without people.
I told you last week that I was going to stretch you a little bit.
I will again stretch your thinking and prayerfully stretch your obedience to the things of God.
Society looks at church as place you get married- they don’t want God in their lives but they want God to bless their marriages and enjoy the surroundings of church.
When they die- they had no time for God while living, but in transition, want the preacher to say nice things about them and promise them a perfect safe place for eternity.
Some visit on special occasions and holidays- that is church
(invests nothing, but want a dividend check sent ahead.)
You saw last week that church is not a building; it is each one of us.
We gather together to worship, we pray that God would show up in the service. If each one of us believers are filled with His Holy Spirit, and each of us is part of the body of Christ- we ought to be praying and thanking God for what He is about to do because we know that He is at every service.
We are to meet together, we are to worship together, and we are to encourage each other. That is what God’s word says- there is no stutter in His voice and not left to what we think about it.
We (church) are a vital connection for each other.
Think about this;
6 days a week, some sow their wild oats. Sunday they pray that the crop fails.
Some are waiting for that perfect church. Stop looking. Where people are involved, there won’t be perfection. Besides, if you and I start going, it won’t be perfect anymore.
Until God’s people see the church as it was intended to be, we will miss the blessings that God has for His church.
Some leave because of the pastor. He couldn’t preach. He didn’t come visit me, he disciplined me and I didn’t care for that. Pastors aren’t perfect. There forgiven just like you are.
If a church wants a better pastor, it can have one by praying for the one they have. I ask everyone of you to be praying for your pastor. Pray that I would be all that God wants me to be. Pray we accomplish all that God wants us to do.
The word church- Greek word “Ekklessia” appears 114 times. 111 times in the NT it is used in the technical service of the body of Christ. Church does not appear in the OT, yet it means the same as congregation which is used in OT.
“Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.”
