Do you BELONG? Are you CONNECTED to anything that transcends yourself?
One of the most striking paradoxes of our current culture today… is the crisis of
connection.
• Never has our world experienced the level of connection that has become possible in
just the last 10 years. It’s become the world of globalization… unlimited potential
connection… What has emerged is the ability to be connected to anyone on the
planet at any time ….
> Yet never have people felt so disconnected….so alienated…so alone.
Sociologists and psychologists are describing the deep and dark crisis of alienation that is
plaguing modern life.
Not just an issue of lacking popularity or social success…
Winona Ryder Finds Fame Lonely
"When I was 18, I was driving around at two in the morning, completely crying
and alone and scared. I drove by this magazine stand that had this Rolling Stone
that I was on the cover of, and it said, ’Winona Ryder: The Luckiest Girl in the
World.’ And there I was feeling more alone than I ever had."
Citation: Winona Ryder, cited from Plugged In, Vol. 6, no. 4 (April 2001); submitted by Van Morris, Mount
Washington, Kentucky
Sheryl Crow - “I don’t want to spend the rest of my life alone. That’s the only true fear I have.”
Citation: Interview magazine (10-01-98); submitted by Mike Herman, Glen Ellyn, Illinois
In a Rolling Stone interview, Trent Reznor, the lead musician of the rock band Nine
Inch Nails, muses on how his anti-religion stance helped lead him into his lapse into
depression:
“In my head, that spilled over into an utter-chaos outlook: ‘I don’t need
anything, I don’t need anyone, and I don’t need to believe there’s any
reason to anything.’ It was a pretty self-centered approach. I was lonely
and had a bleak outlook on everything. I think people have an inherent
need for belonging…”.
Citation: Anthony Bozza, "The Fragile World of Trent Reznor," Rolling Stone (10-14-99), p. 140;
Inherent need… something that reflects our essence… the issue of belonging is ultimately a
spiritual one… a transcendent one.
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There is a very simple premise to this journey…
The search for connection… is a search for the common.
• The very root of the word “community” is “common.”
Here lies the challenge –
The loss of some transcendent connection gives rise to a tendency to find identity through
distinctions that prove destructive.
From niche marketing and clothing styles… to social cliques and gangs… to ethnic
rivalries and nationalism… we are so hungry to find ourselves…to belong … that our identify
is often simply reduced to that of identifying with some sub-group over and against others. And
those connections prove not only destructive… but dissatisfying…. far too fragile to really
provide the deep connection we long for.
The desperate alternative is to try and simply diminish our differences… forge some idea of
common identity… communism… new tendencies of ‘tolerance’ and spiritual relativism.
Our Need – to discover the common in the midst of the unique… not a bland conformity… but
unity amidst diversity.
> Differences don’t divide when they are centered and secured in the
commonalities that connect.
> Which is precisely what God has at hand….
Colossians 1:19-20 (GW)
”God was pleased to have all of himself live in Christ. God was also pleased to bring
everything on earth and in heaven back to himself through Christ. He did this by making
peace through Christ’s blood sacrificed on the cross.”
What is God seeking to reconcile in Christ? > ALL THINGS… > ultimate unity
At the center lies His relationship with us…
Eph. 1:5 (NLT)
“His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into His own family by
bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ.”
> God wanted a family. That’s why we’re here. He wanted children. And the Bible
says He planned everything in the entire universe so we could be born, so we could share in His
glory, so we could be part of His family.
The word “famly” may seem hard to equate with God… it’s the sense of ultimate connection
that is reflected here.
There are few words that can strike us with both a sense of warmth… and a sense of wanting.
The family experience is what shapes our entire sense of BELONGING…
serves as the REFERENCE POINT for our place in the world.
For some of us, our earthly experience of belonging has been a good and helpful taste of what
God intends family to be…. For others of us…. feel adrift… all of us…. there is a level of
ultimate connection that eludes us.
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> We all long to belong. The pain of not belonging is so deep we can deny it with a façade
of independence… but such independence denies our true nature. Where the womb or the
world can fail us… God says “welcome.”
Hebrews 2:10-11 (NLT)
”God, for whom and through whom everything was made, chose to bring many children
into glory. …So now Jesus and the ones he makes holy have the same Father. That is why
Jesus is not ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters.”
In reconciling us to the true Father of all… Jesus is able to welcome us as
brothers and sisters.
> The entire Bible, this entire book, is the story of God building a family.
That’s what it is all about. It is an eternal family.
Airport > that is only a glimpse of our eternal reconciliation
What is the “common” by which we can discover true connection and
community?
1. Divine Community is rooted in our common SOURCE… and STORY of
mercy.
Everything centers in God….
God is a divine community… a benevolent community of Father – Son – Spirit
All life was birthed to bear His image….
God is the ultimate common source and force in the universe …. In God who has revealed
Himself to be the true Creator of the universe… beginning and end… we discover the ultimate
beauty of unity amidst diversity… one God in three persons… Father, Son, and Spirit.
> In the very being of God we are shown perfect community.
The root of our hope to ever ‘get along’… is to fully awaken to the fact that we have one
common source…. HUMAN RACE.
1 Peter 2:9-10 (NIV)
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people
belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of
darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the
people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received
mercy.
Corporate identity… bound in God (“chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation..”)
To discover the reality of Divine community my self-centered identity must
be replaced by a God-centered identity.
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Many of us long for community… but have never given up our
individualism.
Individuality is from God… but not individualism.
Individuality reflects the beauty of diversity… but diversity that is lived within the common life
of being God’s people.
Individualism is a way of life that makes the individual supreme or sovereign over
everything.
Natural… individuation
Individuation reflects the nature of discovering that one is an individual… connected and yet
separate. The tragedy is that the soul is no longer returning to a defining common bond and is
often left adrift.
Individuation is never being completed… and the result is an individualism
that we may find easy because it demands nothing … but excludes us from real
life. Individualism is separation without connection. We’re becoming dictators
of a one-person country… our own gods… only to discover the world we rule is
isolated and dark.
Jesus reissues a call (Restoration of our common cause)
Also COMMON STORY… > ‘mercy’
2. Divine Community is rooted in our common CAUSE.
From the start God gave human life purpose… but the enemy of our souls deceived us
into thinking we could find our own.
The same who came as a serpent… came to Jesus in the desert (tempted Jesus
with what? … an alternative purpose)
> He comes to the desert of our souls… to steal our purpose.
> If we can be drawn out into the autonomy… into the wilderness of self… then
we’ve entered the enemy’s way of life… and his fate.
Abraham… called out to birth a people defined as those through whom God would BLESS the
whole world.
Jesus – “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”… “You are the light of the world…
salt of the earth….”… and sent them to proclaim and demonstrate the Kingdom reign of God.
Divine Community is rooted in a common CAUSE.
Randy Frazee
“The principle of sharing a common purpose is … simply not optional if you want true
community. When you come across a place of community that truly works, you will discover
that they share a common mission that is larger than any one person.”
> We were shaped to be a part of something bigger than ourselves… a common cause that
unites us.
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Who do you think experiences a deeper camaraderie…. those who meet to discuss life or those
who gather for a common cause out of which their lives are shared?
3. Divine Community is rooted in our common TRUST.
When we understand our common source and story… and discover we are a team were a
team … we naturally discover that we not only share in a common cause, but in a common
trust… each other’s well being..
We all want others on our team… but deep down may wonder if anyone is really for us.
That’s precisely what Jesus is doing right here… calling us to a life of truly being for
eachother.
Philip. 2:1-4 (NIV)
If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from
his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make
my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and
purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider
others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests,
but also to the interests of others.
> The essence of the trust that builds and binds Divine community, is the
ability to enter and embrace the well-being of others.
Galatians 6:2
Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
> Common trust begins with a movement within myself, in which I make room in my soul
for another.
And here it is in I Peter 2:17.
"Love your spiritual family."
> That’s what God wants you to do. That’s the second purpose of your life. You see, God
says I want you to learn to love the people in your family. Why? .. several reasons.
1. It transcends the limitations of your physical family. Your physical
family is going to eventually fall apart. In fact, many of them fall apart here on earth.
But our spiritual connection is going to last forever.
2. It makes us more like God, because God is love.
3. It reflects and reveals eternal reality. Our unity amidst diversity reflects life
centered in God.
The Call of God summons every one of us into divine community… divine
family… divine fellowship.
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Fellowship is a word that the Bible uses to describe loving each other.
Often misunderstood. …coffee and donuts… small talk… It’s a word we have made so soft
and sentimental… takes the imagination no further than images of potluck socials.
J.R. Tolkein understood the power of true Fellowship….. In his first book, Fellowship of
the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien describes the camaraderie of a diverse group, banded
together by a common cause.
MOVIE CLIP - "FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING":
True fellowship is a radical choice to redefine oneself in relationship to something
bigger than oneself… to discover the power of a common covenant with God… and a
common cause from God. Cause that transcended their differences
Though they differ in nearly every way-racially, physically, temperamentally-they are united in
their opposition of the Dark Lord.
What is involved in discovering and developing community that is based in our common
source, cause, and trust?
I believe there are three natural steps or stages that we must consider within ourselves.
Discovering Divine Community involves…
1. Choosing to BELONG (MEMBERSHIP)
Community begins with making the choice to belong. That’s the most basic level.
Ephesians 2:19
“… you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people
and members of God’s household…”
> But now “fellow citizens with God’s people”
• These words are life changing… imagine… Greeks / Gentiles… receiving Christ… but
never able to really become Jewish… a part of God’s people… always outsiders…
“foreigners and aliens”… > exactly how many of us feel.
• No longer are the people of God defined by Jewish heritage… but rather by being
reconciled to God.
• Friend David Ryan… three weeks ago…became a citizen… swaw the beginnings of
an internal shift… how much more we wh have been given passports as citizens of an
eternal perfect kingdom?
• Internal shift… identity shift began
You and I, if reconciled to God through Christ… have a new citizenship… with
God’s people throughout eternity… citizens of heaven… of the kingdom of
God.
You are now “members of God’s household”
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• God has no orphans…. When we come to God… reconciled with Him (through Christ)…
we become a part of His people… family.
• This reality isn’t intended to have to contend with the significance and special bonds of
our earthly families… but rather it is the reality that fulfills what they can only offer point
to… belonging.
> You belong. The Christian life is not just a matter of believing. It is
matter of belonging, and you and I must choose to belong. Fellowship begins
with belonging, with making that choice. God wants you to identify to make the choice to be a
part of His family.
Romans 12: 5,
“In Christ we who are many form one Body, and each member belongs to all the
others."
I know the word "membership," is a funny word to some of us. But did you know that this
word originally was a Christian word? It came right out of these verses in the Bible. I
know that today it is used for being a member of every kind of club and signing up for this and
joining that. But originally, the meaning was right here in the Bible; a member of the Body of
Christ. Just like your hand is a member of your body, that’s how tightly we’re tied to each
other. This isn’t about being a part of some silly club, wearing silly hats and having silly signs.
It’s an organic interdependent connection…
> We have got to shift our minds from thinking about an ORGANIZATION…
to thinking about an ORGANISM.
Some people say, “Well, I’m a Christian, but I don’t want to belong to any church.”
Without inter-related connection… organs will atrophy and die. If for the sake of
health… sometimes a transplant is needed…. but it’s never taken lightly… nor are the
organs just left outside a living organism for long.
Jesus calls the church the “body.” We need to have that same kind of respect for it, to
recognize what it means.
2. Choosing to CONTRIBUTE (PARTNERSHIP)
Partnership is realizing that I’ve got a contribution to make; that the family of God needs
you.
God didn’t bring you here just to soak up or suck up all you can… He wants to make a
difference through your life.
One of the primary reasons that the experience of community and belonging is hard to
grasp today… is that we are so steeped in consumerism. We have come to identify with
being consumers … rather than contributors.
You see, it is great to share your heart, but it is even greater to do your part. That is what
this part of community is all about.
1 Cor. 3:9a (TEV)
“We are partners working together for God.”
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In Greek, the language of the New Testament was originally written in, the word
"fellowship" is often translated “partnership.” That’s how close these two words are.
You ever want to be part of a great team, something that just did something great? Some of
you guys maybe had a dream of being a part of a team that went to the super bowl or won the
World Series. You’re part of the greatest team there ever was in the church. What we do is
going to last forever. Ever want to be a partner in a great business that went to the top of the
Fortune 500? In the church, we are part of the greatest enterprise that’s ever existed. We get
to be part of God’s plan for the universe. That’s what it is all about, when we cooperate and
participate together in the family of God.
But in order to be a part, you’ve got to find your niche, you have got to find out, “Where
do I fit, how I do I fit?” The Bible tells us we all have a niche.
Eph. 4:16 (NLT)
“The whole Body is fitted together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it
helps the other parts grow, so that the whole Body is healthy and growing and full of
love.”
Circle those words "each part." …it is working together that we get things done.
3. Choosing to SHARE (FRIENDSHIP)
… which means learning to share.
The Bible says, “It is not good for man to be alone.” In other words, we were made for each
other. Life is not a solo act. And you need friends.
Acts 2:44.
"All the believers met together constantly and shared everything with
each other."
Notice two things: one, you can’t develop friendships without meeting together; and two,
you can’t develop friendships without sharing.
Do you ever see some people that have really deep friendships; they have long-term
friendships, 20, 30 years, something like that. And you go, “Man, how lucky.” …a little
envious. How lucky they are to have a deep friend like that.
> It is not luck at all. It is a choice. You choose to develop friendships by making time for
them.
And you can’t develop friendships without sharing.
So what are we supposed to share? Let me just mention three.
1. Our homes.
I Peter 4:9, "open up your homes to each other."
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• It doesn’t say if they are really nice ones, open them up. It just says open them up. They
don’t have to be really nice. It just says open up your home. Why does God say that?
• Why are we to share our homes? I’ll tell you why – because you cannot fellowship in a
crowd. You can only fellowship in a small group. Or one on one. For most of us, this won’t
be a morning in which we experience deep fellowship. We can worship together. We can
celebrate together. We can learn together. But you may not walk out of here knowing
anybody better than you do right now.
• Did you know in the first 300 years of Christianity, there were no church buildings? All
church meetings were held in homes.
Natural that we may come to a larger gathering… and leave with a sense of connection on one
level… a spiritual level… we joined our voices in praise, our hearts in prayer, and perhaps
shared in the common body and bread of Christ… but on another level… relationally… very
likely to feel a certain loneliness. Nothing is wrong… it’s just the nature of joining in any large
gathering … by it’s nature it isn’t a relationally connecting. That is why we believe that smaller
gatherings are an essential part of relay discovering community.
Now, some of you tried a group and to be honest with you, you didn’t feel like you really fit.
So what do you do?
> Just try another one!
If I try a restaurant… don’t care it… I don’t decide to never eat out again… I just enjoy trying
another. Just try another one! Okay? Don’t give up.
2. Our Experiences.
Prov. 27:17 (TEV)
“People learn from one another, just as iron sharpens iron.”
It is wise to learn from the experiences of other people, because you don’t have time to make
all the mistakes yourself. You see, we’re all ignorant, just on different subjects.
3. Our problems. We’re not meant to face our problems alone.
Gal. 6:2 (NLT) - “Share each other’s troubles and problems.”
• The Bible says, “Weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice.”
• You don’t have to fix everybody’s problem. God hasn’t told you to do that. It just says
share them.
Conclude with that which represents it all… the sharing of Christ’s meal… which
represents his own body and blood…
This is our passport to the new citizenship we share… the birth certificate of the new family
we are a part of.
In this act is the cause we have been given to share in common.
In this act lies the greatest sharing of oneself ever made.
1 John 3:16 (NLT)
“We know what real love is because Christ gave up His life for us. And so we also ought to
give up our lives for our Christian brothers and sisters.”
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Nothing builds or proves trust more than a sacrificial act done for us for which the one who
did it had no other gain… no other motive … but to have served our best interest.
COMMUNION
