Community, Part 2

Today on Summit life with Jeannie Greer one orchard people need Jesus. People who know Jesus, who are now involved in his mission of a lot of thought about Bill past torture freighters people to come back.

No, I'm not afraid of that because the subtle consumer Christian thing that says I got Jesus meet my needs now is all about me. That's not discipleship. We have two factors that we think about does it please God doesn't retreat back to another week like Pastor Jeannie Greer of the Summit church in Raleigh, North Carolina.

As always, I'm your host Molly would avenge now.

I think for many Christians. Church is just an event that they attend on the weekends and switching churches is as easy as trying out a new movie theater, but that's not what God intended when he designed the church body and it's not going to lead to lasting spiritual growth.

Today pastor JD challenges us to flip our view of church. It's not about what I can get out of the service that what I can give to the body of Christ. So if you miss the beginning of this sermon, I just wanted to remind you that you can always hear our previous broadcasts at our website. JD Greer.com right now. Let's return to our teaching titled community pastor gave John 1512 here's where we see the next thing the Jesus introduces about the gospel changed gospel centered heart, John 1512 this is my commandment, Jesus says, but you love one another as I have loved you right Mark number three of the gospel changed heart living in community. Now what you'll find is that this theme surfaces quite often in Jesus. Those talk that is given in John 13 to 17 November 1 we got explain you the job working for something is gonna be unit. It is Jesus farewell speech that is giving to his disciples. John 1517 verses there in John 15, they kinda function somewhat like a summary of all the Jesus talk about me and the rest of the talk just got word you go for the euro for the outline, but you'll find at other places in John 13 to 17 will take the subject.

See he mentions in John 15 will go deeper with Joe. Let me take you a couple other places in John 13 to 17 to show you where he developed the idea of the talk about their verse 12 go first to John 17 John 1723. This is Jesus praying for his disciples in the presence I pray he says that they may be one even as we are one.

I am them and you and me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me go from John seven think about four chapters. Now go back to John 13 John 1334 John 1334 new commandment I give to you, but you love one another, just as I have loved you, so you also are to love one another. By this will all people know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another. Melissa did down on this one. How did Jesus love us.

How did Jesus love us. Let me give you five ways that Jesus in John 13 has just demonstrated and expressed his love to them, take notes and encourage you write these down number one, he served them. He served in the whole context of John 13 back versus you see, the Jesus was just washed their feet and as he washed their feet in John 13. You'll see that he explains to them that this washing of the fetus disassembled the ultimate way he was going to serve them to spill his blood wash the dirtiest parts of them which was not their feet. It was there seven black and souls. Which leads me to number two leverage his abilities for their needs leveraged his abilities for their needs. We going to number three, number three, he shared in their pain and their sorrow felt right before the chapters in John chapter 11 there was a story where Jesus shows up at the tomb of Lazarus, Mary and Martha, Lazarus, his two sisters are standing there outside the tomb and of course the weeping of the brother died and it says that when Jesus got there.

The shortest personal the Bible you notice, Jesus wept waves. Why is he entered into bear pain because he had become one with him just like you say here in John 17. You become one, so that when they we pay waves, which means that when you go through pain. He weeps do you have a broken heart. Are you lonely if Jesus Christ is entered into you then whenever you week he weeps because he shares in your pain and sorrow he has made them his very own number four… Among them. Stand in heaven shout his love toward them with a bullhorn he took on flesh and blood was born into our pain and our poverty. In fact, he was born. Of course you could possibly get because he was taking on himself the poorest of the poor and coming close to them. He got so close that he could be touched.

He could be interrupted can be betrayed with a kiss. He lived among them.

Number 554 number 40 bridge the gap to get to them.

These five things are probably was on the apostle John wrote obviously the gospel John when he wrote first John 31 when he says behold what manner of love the Father has given to us that we should be called children of God, not just the amount of God's love, not the fact of God's love. What kind of love the father gave us it was a serving. It was a self emptying and empathizing and coordinating gap bridging plus another question for us becomes does this describe our relationships to one another. Galatian six.

To know how Paul says it is good all minute, especially those of the household of faith do good all men, especially those of the household of faith.

This is where love starts right here to one another, but we forget that we something about what's going on out there. We forget the were a family. One of us has a need. I feel your pain and so I step into it and I share it in a part of Dr. John Galatian six then I did you not stood up from the audience and he he I was just there taking notes and he said now this process to go to good all men, especially those of the household of faith is really agree with that. I think we'll do more good for those outside the church than those inside the church and went on to teach you thought about one. It's nice to hear somebody actually admit that it is blatantly the final word of God was my first thought. My second boat was you're not allowed to do that. You're not allowed to just contradict the word of God. God's word tells us that my first responsibility is to you in your first responsibility is to me and we love each other. We share each other's pain the church to be the most well taken care of community.

Jesus said what happens.

Then they'll know that you're my disciples. Number three shared our pain and our sorrow do you share the pain of others, and agenda number four.

He lived among us.

Are you really involved in people's lives. Can people touch you. Are you close enough to them to feel their pain. You know right now that you're praying for daily that is outside of the people that are in your family. What are you investing in people.

Even if you're brand-new believer there somebody you are to be bring along a full process of making disciples life on life two or three people that you're bringing along that I should apply your phone right now and show me the numbers of three people in your contact list were not Christians that you could call or text right now and get them to meet you at Starbucks after this talk about something. Could you do that. Are you involved in the lives of others. Are you close to lives at least five to bridge the gap to get to us you bridging the gap to get the others. Are you building your life around people that you feel comfortable with, or are you building your life around people who need Jesus to follow Jesus means that you follow him across the gap told you last week that we got 150 of our members right now hundred 54 members right now. This weekend or living somewhere in unreached people group.

Contrary to popular opinion, that's not because that's their preference, because I always want to live overseas in a fundamentalist Muslim country because they realize that Jesus left heaven to come to earth for them when they were lost. And now we know we have to leave.

What we know to go the people whose only way to hear about them is that we go to them ourselves. That's what I do that because there are unreached people groups in the world and to live like Jesus means you have the same attitude toward them that he had toward you remember when I felt God was calling to ministry. I thought it was to go overseas and I told my parents that much of a struggle was for my parents were godly people. Remember the end of the struggle.

My mom told me she said should we always had dreams of our child. Our first son living in very close to us raising our grandkids next to us similar to what God taught me is that there are somebody sons and daughters all over the world who don't know Jesus there is precious in God's sight. As you are and ours. And if that means that we have to postpone real fellowship with you and you get to heaven until we all get to heaven.

That's okay because somebody sons and daughter needs to know Jesus. And if that was you needed to know Jesus. I would hope someone would come after you bridge the gap you involved in the poor parts of our city and we talk about the home was the war from the prison of the my mother the high school dropout… Projects were talking about Mrs. I realize God is not honored by the same thing not calling overseas not called you to do what I'm about to say to you that some of you which are to follow Jesus is you're actually going to uproot your comfortable life and live among the homeless or for the prison to drop on our city is not one time here that you can affray out into them do something about your car for rail your answer go on with your life good about yourself.

Some of you, we have people to shirts that have moved out of rich neighborhoods and moved into poor neighborhoods because they wanted incarnate Christ to those neighborhoods because you gotta come close.

I'm not saying God called you to do it but I'm saying some of you this is precisely how you're going to follow Jesus not to live where your income says you can live you live among people that you can incarnate Christ in the midst of our you have at this.

Are you willing to be part of the church is not about you as a people we want our church people need Jesus.

People who know Jesus, who are now involved in his mission, realize that is not about them. Are you willing to be a part of a church where everybody's not just like you, which means it were to do some things that are not according to your preference. Listening to some it might in a message titled community will be right back with the conclusion at today's message.

First, let me remind you about this month's featured resource. Now, our greatest joy comes when you're working overtime to impress God when were serving him from a place of gratitude for what he's already done in the gospel. Bible study Pastor JD want to see the difference maker is the gospel itself. This amazing gift that God has given us doesn't merely punch our ticket to heaven, but it is actually the driving force in everything we do as believers for your gift of $50 this month will be the video teaching on DVD along with five Bible study guides for you and for friends to give us a call at 866-335-1520 or go online to Jamie Greer.com to reserve this Bible study. This is a letter I got from a girl totally gets it about this is such a challenge to some of us and make she says I am writing to you as an African-American female. I was in search of a church home in Durham and visited many different churches in the area. I first went to where all the black people going Durham at the suggestion of my friend. I came to the summit number first reaction was quite hesitant symbol because the praise and worship at my home church in Virginia and at the summit are about as different as Beyoncé and Mother Teresa.

She goes on to say how the worship grew on her.

After a while she said. She said I was mainly just super excited to hear what was to happen next to the Bible. I found myself leaving church every Sunday meeting up with friends: my mom assured when I learned how the word was directly applicable to my life and circumstances. I've learned that it is about the color of the pastor. But I might get in the word and I hearing the gospel my learning and growing in my relationship with Christ and answered all those questions as I've been attending the summit is yes. I was just writing to thank the summit church keep making it so that people like me who were far from God for like it's okay to come back she gets it that gospel singer unity is not about it's not that she doesn't have preferences gospel is larger than this preferences the rest of us ask question.

Are you willing to be a part of a church that's not catering to your preferences. Are you willing to be a part of the church like that. As I have loved you love one another answered five ways. Notice required notice Jesus prediction number 35 of the kind of power. The church would have its effect on the community, but this will people know that you are my disciples.

What if you if you love one another housing organelle possible to notice because I can articulate Christian doctrines with precision and clarity because our worship teams are able to lift us to the throne of God with how majestically they play the worship anthem no how. I know I seen a lot of Christians have for one another. John 17 Jesus said when they observed your love one another. What happens is they get in the heart of echo of my presence. They my name David articulated.

There are some things Jesus says that her even more powerful than logic and that is sometimes you just know that you're in the presence of your creator and when there is a church that is living in love with one another. That is exactly what the unbelieving community.

That's what you see in acts two and number says a 5000 people got saved at the end of ask to have it happen.

How did it happen asked to. It says that the spirit of God filled church.

The church was just doing what I'm describing never love each other.

They were sharing their stuff there.

Pray for each other at all things in common and it says that a great sense of fear and all came upon every soul that community and God started to add to their number daily those that were being saved. See you showing us what would the authors showing us what this the greatest evangelistic catalyst in any community is the presence of a healthy local church in the community. Just as the church being the church.

It's not even at the church sends missionaries into the community. The local church is itself the missionary justice presents when the church is the church, the community says God must be at work among them Francis Schaeffer that is strangely European men who were like what long stockings that that taught us more about apologetics in the MM last hundred years.

He said this printer. Schaeffer will never forget that the final apologetic Jesus gave us the observable love true Christians brother to Christians the world is going to judge whether Jesus has been sent by the father, on the basis of something that is open to observation.

Somehow we could change our cynical community is that my sermons no not even so much what we do from the stage and here's how you live out there that does that spent a lot of money on buildings.

You know why because the beauty of the church is not in the architecture it's in how the members love one another. What we do in here is not as compelling to them is what happens when we live the way that Christ taught us to live out there so that my desire in all of this is that you see the centrality of the church, the local community and God's plan. There is a rich cross-pollination that produces abundant fruit so you can hear you right now I can sense that I got none on part of the universal church. Another part of the local church wrong word. Church Atlas EA is used in the New Testament hundred 15 times over 100 of those times, it refers to the local church. The word Atlas see in Greek literally means an assembly church means a gathering of people together.

The old and New Testament recognize no walk with God, separated from the people of God. The phrases we say around here.

The way in your audit you hear a lot local church is God's plan. I local church is God's plan. The local church is God planning what we mean by that is how God gets his best work done local church is God's plan for doing that to me, but it will quick personal.

It's how God works in your life. The image of the church is the body right first Corinthians, Paul talks about this. Paul says that God the father like the mind and we are like the members Jesus like him. I would like the members of his body to the government on my body. My left elbow pitches in its roots in the blue messenger up my brain that says okay wow does not bring fixed the hitch visit like sap it with mental powers that be hitch no it sends a message down to my right hip and says hey your brother, elbow has a niche go fix it yet many of you are praying for God to do something in your life but you cut yourself off from the very thing that God intended to answer that prayer to me like God I need direction in my life.

God zap you from heaven was some kind of vision that's not how it usually works he puts it in the church. So if you separated yourself and the people of God you separate yourself the power of God. Marriage fall apart God fix my marriage. The local church is God's best plan for keeping healthy communities in helping marriages. I learned so much about raising my children just from being in the presence of this church. Local church is, is how God works in our lives.

Your crying out to God to join a person stands on the water fountain, complaining to God about your first don't water on you from heaven is thinking about this local church is God plan a is how God reveals himself to you.

You notices because fastening is that very rarely in the New Testament, Jesus ever heal people the same way. It was always did something different. Some even to speak a word to me would say do you believe me some people he would be a one time race back in the bed, some people he spit on the ground and made mud pies for their eyes and imagine… Come on, Susan just spoke a word, he'll be gone over there and you spit on the ground and you like a mama is now seriously why did Jesus do it differently, but needed something different.

I was why and that means watch that it was only when they came together and share their stories that they got the fullest picture of who Jesus was. God works in the church. He works with everybody differently based on what you need and see there is a watch. There's a part of Jesus. I'll never know unless I know you because I only see one part of Jesus and that's how he dealt with me but he had to do it differently because you much more proud, stubborn and rebellious that I was, so he revealed himself a certain way so that I could know Jesus through you and that is why together.

We know Jesus more fully than we do alone. The action step for you is if you're not involved in a small group that you need to get involved in one, because that's part of being in the church is kinda close this whole thing by telling you as a pastor now for lo these many nine years I have their two reasons I've seen people don't get involved in small groups.

Our number one number one is that unhealthy desire for privacy and isolation that they're afraid to let people win because they're afraid that everybody will see how screwed up they are new/we already know it, and the more you try to convince us of your perfection. The more ridiculous you become. In our eyes, because we can all see it even if you can't run the summit we say everybody is normal until you get to know them and then you get to know them, you realize how dysfunctional they are.

What happens, what's this this is all of this. What happens is when you come to know Jesus you are the presence of one who is infinitely holy but one who accepted you through all of your faults because he died to make your new and when you have the opinion of the only one whose opinion really matters you suddenly become much for your and be able let other people see your flaws because I don't need you to think I'm perfect because I'm accepted by Jesus. The second phrase of the gospel prayer.

All I need for everlasting joy. I need you to think I'm perfect. I can let you see my weaknesses. I can let you see Ron screwed up because Jesus sees those and he's accepted me and promised me that I will be made new. See what we we believe around here is that Jesus is not just a model for how we love each other is the power because until you get this right you'll never get this right so you need to open up your lives because the only way that God can work in your life if you open it up and you'll never be able to open it up and you realize you are loved and cherished by Jesus himself who accepts you beyond your flaws in his guide to making an unhealthy desire for privacy and isolation. Here's a second reason some of us are Christianity has nothing to do with knowing God. You want to be a good person to come to church so you can't do this on your religious checklist check I came to church up like a good person, but truth be told, Christianity has nothing to do with knowing and serving God and that is demonstrated by the fact that you never take the steps of discipleship that would lead you to knowing and serving God you have zero thirst for God. That's why you're just a spectator.

You might be a follower of Jesus, but your follower Jesus like I'm a follower people on twitter.

Some of you follow Jesus like I've checked to be a follower. Jesus is not that you check to see pieces of advice he is the God of heaven to be a follower means that he is total control and domination of you and that means that you avail yourself of the commands that he is made to you offers. He's made to you how you could come to know him and I will tell you this weekend.

Attenders against spectators are not disciples of Jesus. And they're not part of the kingdom of God and you need to move beyond fan of Jesus and you need to move follower Jesus and this is one of the ways you will challenge you to take a step of faith today. It's time to treat yourself in the truth of the gospel and gain the courage to step out where ever God is leading Sochi around here. We talk a lot about something called the gospel prayer. What exactly is this prayer was not a magical prayer and it's not supposed to replace the Lord's prayer is a way that also grow out of my own quiet time or ways that I could center myself on the gospel every single day. So I came up before the phrases that I pray for whilst on my own. The first phrase is that in Christ there is nothing I can do that. That would make you God love me anymore. Not that I have done that will make you love me less phrase to is that you are all I need for everlasting joy.

Phrase three. As you have been to me so I will be to others in phrase four is as I pray I'll measure your compassion by the cross and the power in your power by the resurrection. Those are for statements that will center you on the gospel and I'm not overpromising. Here they will transform your life, would love for you to join our team. We are sending a copy to all of our gospel partners this month as a way of saying thank you for their ongoing support.

So take a look@jdgreer.com thanks Katie.

The gospel prayer catechism is available for your one time get $35 and our thanks for your commitment to being a regular monthly giver and if you'd like to support summit life with a gift of $50 or more gospel of the curriculum that we mentioned earlier, thankful for your generous support. Please contact Dave for when it featured resources give us a call at 86633 520-866-3524. Check out all we have to offer online here.com I'm writing you to listen again tomorrow.

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