True Spirituality - How to Experience Authentic Community, Part 1

Someone has said the greatest social disease in America today is loneliness. We all long to be deeply connected and I want to know that God has a plan for developing genuine beautiful intimate relationships. Once you to experience that kind of connection with others today were going to talk about how you can experience authentic community.

Right now, right where you live statement is welcome to this Edition of Living on the Edge with Living on the Edge features the Bible to promise daily discipleship program in just a minute triple continuous series.

True spirituality coming out Romans 12 first is just said the focus of this program is on the community fact is, we were all created a desire to be in relationship that's a friend, sibling of spouse God has placed that longing in our hearts.

This is an important message, especially for those who been let down by past experiences that hears check with his message, how to experience all that it community from Romans chapter 12.

Did you ever wonder why so many Christians get spiritually stuck in the Bible is very clear. It's as if any man if any woman is in Christ, the old things passed away behold all things become new.

And yet you know you meet people and I mean sincere good. I don't mean slackers I mean people that really love God. They seem transformation in some very significant areas in either even in the Bible on a regular basis and they really want to grow and yet they had a ceiling or the stall there's just some area that just seems to the temper just never seems to get under the spirits control how they say certain things the way they judge people or visible private eating disorder over here in addiction, maybe even on the Internet and they felt terrible and they promise godly recommit their life.

About 25 times in and in the distal stock soar and he was when he came and talked to me except I would never dreamed and he was stuck, and he came when I was pastoring another church. Many, many years ago and I met him in the first 1020 minutes.

I thought while we we were really growing at the time and were longing for leaders and he moved in from out of town and I met him that his wife just got to know him… Like wow I just so got a heart for God, got up in the mornings and spending time with God. I saw his family. He been through been a Christian for quite a while so he been in leadership positions in churches and aims is a great guy and warm and caring and I would never have dreamed that there was a little pocket for the little pocket in Andy's life that he was stuck and he asked if we could grab a cup of coffee and he had sent me really need to share with massive sure Randy lied to and we sat down and he began to tell me about that compartment that is been sealed off that he tried so hard and he was stuck sitting on it started when I was about 08 or nine years old and a Sears catalog came in the mail and I was flipping through it and found myself in the lingerie session, then later offense magazines underneath my dad's bed spoke, the teenager I was fully addicted to at least soft porn when the Internet happened it was just like over overwhelming the access and the privacy that you could have a set ship. I have prayed. I fasted a memorized verse. I beg God I'll go for a few weeks or a few months and just my whole life I mean my wife I love her, I'm absolutely committed to her my kids off try to do all this. I'm stuck.

Then he shared with me said I heard something on the radio about this group of people and they are meeting a sin for about the last six months I've been driving 45 minutes on Thursday night in a meeting with this group of people and I got unstuck the answer to why he was stuck despite God's word and all the rest came when he met with that group and all title bit more about it.

But as you see on your notes part of the answer is that the greatest seed in the greatest soil cannot grow in the wrong environment.

You might write Luke chapter 8 or Mark chapter 4 parallel passages in Jesus is talking about calling himself. He's the sower and what he sows his the seed in the seed is God's word and the soil is the human hearts that various reception that the word of God receives in.

If you know the story. Some is on the path and some on the rocky soil and is just the condition of different people's hearts, and some words thorny others is good soil, good and honest hard people who were really honest and really want to grow but here's what I want to get the greatest seed God's word in the greatest soil a good and honest heart cannot grow in the wrong environment. There's certain things in your life and in my life in every believer's life transformation won't occur, no matter how much you're in the Bible matter how honest and desiring your heart is apart from you.

Being in this environment work can occur. What I want you to see.

Is there a race specific ecosystem or environment that God has been brings about transformation when the seed of God's word in your heart and mine is there and if it's not there certain things you just get stuck noticing your notes little biblical background here the command of Jesus requires very specific ecosystem or environment.

The very last night on the earth. He'd wash their feet and then he turned to them and he looked at him wide-eyed. He said I want to.

This is the new commandment to love each other in the same way I love you sacrificially authentically lay down your life one another, but requires an environment. The second is the example of Jesus requires a very specific environment when he wanted to change the world. He started by teaching and he went there was multitudes in thousands and thousands of people. He did miracles. But then when he wanted to get the team together. That would change the world. He stayed up all night, he prayed all night and he chose 12 to be the Texas with him. The multitudes heard the truth. The 12 learn to live the life there was an environment they needed to be in for all that truth to get down there soul in their life and the relationships the practice of the early church and its impact argue for the same environment.

You know the story they were committed in acts to the apostles teaching into the fellowship of gathering together and to the breaking of bread to the Lord's supper and suddenly gathered how in the temple courts and Peter, John, or someone would preach and teach all these brand-new Christians and then where from house to house.

Finally, church history, past and present.

Confirm this specific environment for spiritual growth and transformation and whether I could take you back to the Moravians or the westerlies or the Welsh revival and they would get these little societies together, or I could take you to Korea.

That was I mean completely non-Christian. Five. Six decades ago in the cell movement with a small group movement now spanning the earth. Here's what I want you to get the specific environment or ecosystem in which the seed of God's word in your heart that's honest and good and wants to grow his authentic community's authentic community. Notice the form that it takes is a small group the group to be three people for people 10 people. But that's just the form that's the container, never ever confuse just being in a small group with authentic community.

I've been in small groups that there's no within a community M2 ever gone to small group and someone opens the Bible reads little bitten, you know, maybe watch little part of the DVD and someone says what did you get for question four what you get for question seven.

All that's nice that's nice and and some deep question is asking answers all maybe I should I should probably not work so much.

Okay.

Thank you for sharing so deeply either a prayer request. Yet my hip really hurts.

It really hurt you know. And then you can't get on with that and yet you get up in the ladies are over here. Did you hear about that Nordstrom's our for Macy's you know what's going on there.

You guys ever hear about Meadows giants are doing it now. The 49ers auto what that linebacker and then eat a few mortal treats and you and your cards him when that crate, but what was just don't call it authentic community. It's a good start.

It's a connection you know some people, but authentic community is deeper, authentic community is this environment where people lay down their lives for one another.

Authentic communities where you take a group of people and they say you know what working to change the world and they were around Jesus. Authentic community is living under persecution and hearing God's word and not from house to house to support one another to live it out.

In fact, raises two very important questions. Question number one is what is authentic community and in question number two is how to get it in answer to both those questions is in Romans chapter 12 verses 9 to 13. If you just knew with us were going through the chapter in Romans 12 and in verse one we learn that what God really wants from all of us is what he wants to surrender to him all we are all that we have in verse two we said there's an enemy of our soul.

There's a world system is trying to woo and seduce our heart away from our Savior and were not to be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of our line to be separate from the world's values and we looked at verses three through eight and we learned that were not to think too high or too low, but have a sober self-assessment to know where we fit in the body, and now is in a talk about his serving and loving chocolate.

What kind of relationships are we to have his fellow believers. And if you look at you if you notice there in verse nine. You get to see that authentic community is the real you showing up verse 10 is going to say that the real you need to meet real needs in verse 11 is to say the real you needs to meet real needs, but for the right reason. In verses 12 and 13.

The real you need to meet real needs for the right reason and do it in the right way for some of you your where my friend Andy was you love God, give a good heart you're taking in God's word, but you're stuck. There's a ceiling you have these outbursts of anger and you feel terrible about it.

You have issues in your life it, you know you don't want, and you've told God, I'm sorry, and you want to change.

You try hard to change, but you still don't see any radical transformation. I'm telling you this moment on this day may be God's answer to the environment in which some of those things you struggle with, so long he can change but it doesn't happen along.

So let's look together. What is authentic community and maybe more importantly, how to get it first from verse nine. Authentic community is the real you, not a projection of yourself. See you can't have authentic community less the real you shows up authentic community.

He says let love be sincere. Hate what is evil. Cling to what is good. The two characteristics of the real you showing up as one authenticity into its purity where the word says let love be sincere circle word sincere and write about hypocrisy. Paul is borrowing from the Greek of his day and in the Greek theater of that day they were all male actors and so if you are a good thespian you could be able to throw your voice you could play a male part of female part. An old person, a young person and that dress up in different costumes and then there would be a mask that you would wear so you throw your voice and Paul takes that word for the mask and that's this word says let love be without a mask, without hypocrisy, but the real you show up. Yes, you gotta be discerning and you gotta be careful of who you share the real you with but he saying that authentic community isn't just getting in a small group is when the real you showing up and let people see who you are progressively wisely discerning like back jotting units.

If you were asked chapter 5.

This is important when this is beyond important.

Some people never experience this their entire Christian life and they can never figure out whether an experience the transformation power.

The goddess promised us in Scripture that I didn't grow up as a Christian I never open a bottle till I was 18 and so my first trip through the New Testament, was likable while I'm running really that was like Matthew Mark Luke John Menotti know the names and stuff and I got to ask not to get out okay this is the early church history and Jesus ascended he went to heaven in chapter 2. The church is born in chapter 3, you know, he and John are doing miracles and pretty exciting stuff and then you get to chapter 5. The church is exploding and so there's all these needs any tens of thousands of people are now in the church in a very short amount of time that about 80% of them are slaves and a very small percentage are pretty affluent people. Some inherits household and in others, and they did this in this time of emergency. They did the sort of unusual thing where they all came together and they said we need to help each other week. We need to be devoted to one another and so in chapter 4 gives an example of this very wealthy man. What a piece of property in in Cyprus on this island which is the equivalent of like downtown San Francisco or Manhattan in that day and so he sells it and he takes the money cases look at me and I don't know this for sure, but I got a second home is a piece of property you take this to meet the needs of the people in the church there really hurting and I think a buzz happened in the church. Where will it was so sacrificial was so generous and people were like boy. I guess this is what it means to love one another in his name was Barnabas and I think Barnabas got this reputation because I started calling the son of encouragement and the story goes on and asked chapter 5 and jot that down because before your head hits the pillow. Gotta read it's not very long. It's very interesting, but I'm a brand-new Christian I'm reading this and so there's this young couple. I'm guessing their young. They do not young but Ananias and Sapphire and and so they kind of look around and they think while everyone is talking about Barnabas. We wish people would talk about us like that. We sure wish people would think were that generous and loving and kind and so they hatched this plan and the plan is.

Here's what we can do working to sell this piece of property, and will get the money and will tell people that we we sold it for this much money and like we keep it all away but will really keep back the money for us so can have our cake and eat it too will appear generous and loving and sacrificial but will still have the major part of money and so you he comes and talks to Peter and God reveals to Peter what's going on. And Peter says Ananias why have you lied to the Holy Spirit before it was sold. It was years after it was sold.

It was yours. You are compelled to give a little or a lot. The issues integrity and then right there I am, he dies me literally drops dead, and the young men come and pick him up for what is hypocrisy. The very first sin in the church is hypocrisy and the judgment is death, his wife comes a few hours later and I'm I'm thinking Peter is going.

I sure hope she's not in on this and so he says that's a pirate it's good to see how things go on a pretty good house kids. I'm adding just a little and he says to so did you sell this piece of land for such and such a price of yes you know Ananias when you're married such a generous, loving, kind, amazing husband like I haven't. We sacrificially have given it all away again.

Reading between the lines and Peter looks at her and I think just with sadness in his heart, said the young man's feet, who took away your husband shall take you away as well. Damn she dies on the spot and this is a great fear came among the church yet. Are you kidding now you understand.

Can you imagine if you've never read the Bible before and this is your first time to the New Testament in your brand-new Christian you're thinking so this is what happens to hypocrites. I'm in trouble. I mean literally like 10.

In fact, if God was acting in this way. I think he was to make a point see if hypocrisy gets in the mix is like leavening bread spreads and when people aren't authentic.

The message of Jesus would've been wiped out within a few years, and so God wanted to demonstrate how important this was often, but later when I was a pastor if if God did that for like 24 hours and in the church all across America. All of us would have to turn in our pastors badges become morticians, probably a lot of us pastors. We need other pastors who are doing better than us to bury us, but you get to teach you really get that church quote was never ever intended to be a group of people that come to an event and feel like in some way.

There doing something morally positive because they come to event and listen to someone talk about God and even sing a few worship songs to him and then file out and live life their own way and not be absolutely connected to one another and have a safe environment with the real you shows up and you know what the real you doesn't show up the same reason room you'd doesn't show up in me. He says let love be without hypocrisy and it says cling to what is good, good. Hate what is evil, literally the word is up or what is evil fit. If that pictures were a member doing a word study on this and it's a picture of being on vacation for like three or four weeks.

Whoever gets up much time but that's really hypothetical, but you been out of town for a while and there's a carton of milk or some fruit and you open the carton of milk to smell at the seat and it's all done it and the smell so bad you want to throw up this word hits as of for evil. Most of us are spending this.

I wonder if this is wrong, how close can I get to sin without falling in so people and counsel asked me questions like what is this writing. This rating this writing in this movie.

Could you things okay if I can do this for you know were dating right now were doing this this this and this is that really sexual sin or can we tour you know we have so much money and I want to know is that the groceries at the net hours if it can I take a percentage and you collect how instead of witnessing.

Cling to what is good. It's completely the wrong question. The issue is and how close can I get to see."

Without sinning. It's how close can I get to God help here.

Can I live because when you're pure not perfect, pure, the real you can show up as you can be honest and you know one of the most powerful and significant experiences you will ever have in your life is being in a small group of people that's really safe. That really love you and you really love them in the real you shows up the real you. That's making great progress. The real you with the frustrations and hurts and struggles.

The real you with the real problems and as you bring your struggles are not judged your loved in the real you that needs help get support in the real you that needs accountability and as we all do an occasional kind of rebuke, and you know what you think he kind of violated our trust by that. See that's fundamental part of authentic community and a lot of people never have that and so enormous amounts of energy what we what we end up doing.

Instead of allowing God to transform us. The energy is what we have to do sin management as were spending all this energy trying to either hide or do other guilder do with our shaper drowned it out with food or work money shopping speed will join us here in student. This application just a minute you've been listening to the first part of his message. How do we experience all the community from a series true spirituality becoming a Romans 12 Christian the word Christian means little Christ.

So when we put our faith in Jesus we are to look and act like little copies of Jesus.

Unfortunately that is not the reputation Christians have in this day and age, so how can we change that will through the series chip teaches us what it means to be a genuine follower of Christ by studying Romans chapter 12 you'll discover God's plan for you and me why we matter the need for genuine community and how we should respond to evil and injustice. So if you're wanting a clear blueprint to becoming a true little Christ.

These messages are for you wasn't any time on the trip and remap or@livingontheedge.org website is also where you can learn more about the resources for this series which are discounted for limited time and while you're on our side. Let me encourage you to sign up for the brand-new daily discipleship with chip based on true spirituality for 17 days triple walk with you through Romans 12 and reveal what it means to really follow after Jesus and the ups and downs of everyday life.

You can sign up for the study right now and when you do will send you our friend Lance with devotional based on Romans 12 called leave ordinary behind at no cost. Sign up now. While this offer lasts by going to LivingontheEdge.org or calling AAA 83336003 app listeners just tap discipleship.

I'm to be right back and talk about today's message but I want to talk directly and personally to you first. We've gotten millions of people going to church going through the motions, many of them sincere but ignorant about the gospel about truth.

Their lives don't change. We have a whole generation of young people saying you can have your Jesus in your church inanity and I'm outta here because they don't see reality and Living on the Edge has been called to declare war on religious activity that doesn't align with the Jesus of the New Testament, but we can't do it without you. I grew up in that environment and I turned away from God and I just praise God that he brought people into my life that clearly explained the gospel but as importantly, they lived it out and they lived it out in real life and love me and cared for me and they were holy and they weren't weird. God longs to do that in our day and the message of Living on the Edge is helping Christians like Christians, we do through teaching we create resources, but it requires a team and for us to do it moving toward the future as God is open more and more doors. I simply tell you I need your help.

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Your generosity is greatly appreciated. You know, as we wrap up today's program. I guess the question I have for you is that if a non-Christian over heard you talking or was sort of at the next table at a coffee shop and heard you, talking with a friend when they hear you talk about other people were aware they hear you talk about information. Would it be just sports or what's on sale or would they come to eavesdrop and think. While I wish I had a relationship with someone the was that deep that real that vulnerable and that authentic and I don't know where you're at on this, but you don't you don't slide into it.

If you don't have close friends then you need to launch a small group or if your family doesn't have these kind of relationships and don't get me wrong, I know it's hard. You gotta go there because at the end of the day. Relationships are what matter and deep relationships that matter can't happen without authenticity, and that means I gotta get real. You gotta get real and what I'll tell you this personally is it's a little scary and you need to be wise about who you do it with little be the greatest thing that ever happens because when the real you shows up in the real you gets loved.

It's awesome and that's God's plan before we go. Let me remind you of an easy way to listen to or extended teaching podcast here chip any time on Amazon's Alexa echo and echo.just say Alexa open Living on the Edge and you'll hear that days extended teaching any time you want for chip and everyone here, this is Dave saying thanks for joining us for this Edition of Living on the Edge