Good morning and happy Saturday.
As most of you know, our mission is to Love God, Love others, Impact our community, and Change the world. It is what we have set out to do and have been working very hard to make it a reality. The other day I was pulling up to our church and noticed the space next door had a banner in the window. In case you aren’t aware of it, they are renovating the space to make it into a “family brew pub.” I’m not actually sure what that means but that is what they told me. As I looked at the sign of our soon-to-be neighbors something caught my attention. Apparently, we have something in common. That is our desire to impact a community. However, it appears that they are taking a slightly different approach than we have been. Their sign has the slogan Brew Beer – Build Community. At first glance that might sound a bit far-fetched. In reality, building community is about bringing people together around a common interest. In their case, the fine art of brewing beer. And more than likely, they will be successful at it. There are a whole lot of people out there that like beer. People gathering around the table, laughing, sharing stories, building relationships and generally enjoying life together. At least on the good days. Other days, maybe drinking too much, saying things they shouldn’t, ruining relationships, spending too much money, crashing the car, getting a DUI, etc.
In some ways, we aren’t all that different. Granted, we gather together because of our love for the Lord Jesus Christ. When are focused on our common interests we have really good days. When sin rears its ugly head, not so much. One incredible thing that we have is that of grace and mercy of God. We can reconcile relationships and fix problems through the power of the Holy Spirit. The people of God brought together because of the cross of Christ. It is an amazing thing and it is quite beautiful. That is one reason why we are to keep our eyes on the author and perfecter of our faith. It builds and maintains community.
One definition of community is this: a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals.
That kind of sounds like a summary of what the apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 2:1-5
1Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
There are a lot of people clamoring about building community these days. Some do it around brewing beer, others will attempt it through building neighborhoods in a certain way or through the new urbanism that is so popular. Most civic groups, book clubs, and people that gather around various hobbies are really wanting the same thing – to build community. Let’s seek to build biblical community by loving God and loving each other.
Instead of relying on brewing beer to building community, how about Hebrews 10:24-25?
Hope to see you this weekend!
Love God. Love others. Impact our community. Change the world.
Pastor Larry
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