WEBVTT 00:00:00.959 --> 00:00:04.400 In a few weeks, my family will go to the beach. 00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:05.919 And so we're gonna get in the car. 00:00:06.000 --> 00:00:10.400 We're gonna get my wife's car because my wife's car is a little bit nicer than my car. 00:00:10.480 --> 00:00:11.599 But my wife's car is old. 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:14.000 It's actually over a hundred thousand miles. 00:00:14.160 --> 00:00:16.640 It has a hundred and twenty-four thousand miles. 00:00:16.719 --> 00:00:18.160 So it's old for a car. 00:00:18.239 --> 00:00:21.280 It's getting older, but it still moves. 00:00:21.440 --> 00:00:25.120 We pile in it, we pack it up, we move down the highway. 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:30.320 And so as long as it keeps moving, it is doing what it was created to do. 00:00:31.359 --> 00:00:42.799 On road trips, I tend to drive because I have control issues, and my wife tends to send shotgun because she has napping issues, and the girls are in the back watching movies, and the entire time we are moving forward. 00:00:43.600 --> 00:00:45.600 As the car was created to do. 00:00:45.840 --> 00:00:46.560 Movement. 00:00:46.799 --> 00:00:52.719 Now, as a church, we are essentially a movement supported by structure. 00:00:53.679 --> 00:00:57.520 We're a people served by a building. 00:00:58.000 --> 00:01:02.560 So you can see the room behind me, and if you're watching online, it means you're not in this room. 00:01:02.640 --> 00:01:06.239 You're not in this building, but that doesn't mean you're not a part of the church. 00:01:06.319 --> 00:01:08.879 It doesn't mean we are not one church. 00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:12.560 Because we are a people served by a building. 00:01:12.719 --> 00:01:24.959 That's never been more clear for us than the last three months, where most of you have not been inside of our church building, and yet we never cease to be a church moving forward. 00:01:28.799 --> 00:01:31.599 I've been walking these rows behind us. 00:01:32.239 --> 00:01:35.519 Empty rows for weeks and weeks and weeks and weeks. 00:01:35.599 --> 00:01:41.280 I've been walking them during worship while Sam leads worship. 00:01:41.519 --> 00:01:43.359 And I'm just by myself. 00:01:44.719 --> 00:01:45.840 But I'm not. 00:01:46.159 --> 00:01:50.239 Because we are a church, gospel together, we are a church. 00:01:50.959 --> 00:02:04.000 So we continue as a church, whether we're online or in person, we continue to have shared purpose and we continue to have lavish grace upon ourselves from God and to each other. 00:02:04.159 --> 00:02:15.919 And so this week I want us to look at Acts chapter 2 at that first church, to look at the way that they had shared purpose and lavish grace. 00:02:16.080 --> 00:02:19.599 Look at Acts chapter 2, verses 42 through 47. 00:02:19.759 --> 00:02:25.919 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:27.680 Now we're going to keep reading. 00:02:28.080 --> 00:02:30.159 I want to read down through of verse. 00:02:30.240 --> 00:02:32.240 I got my notes down here, by the way, below me. 00:02:32.319 --> 00:02:33.120 You can't see them. 00:02:33.360 --> 00:02:34.560 Verse 47. 00:02:35.680 --> 00:02:41.199 But we're going to spend our time on verse 42, but I want you to feel verses 43 through 47. 00:02:41.280 --> 00:02:43.280 I want you to feel what these people were like. 00:02:43.439 --> 00:02:46.719 And this is not a prescription for who we should be. 00:02:46.800 --> 00:02:52.719 This is a description of their generous and gracious hearts. 00:02:54.240 --> 00:02:56.080 And what we should be like. 00:02:57.439 --> 00:03:09.280 Verse 43, and all came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles, and all who believed were together and had all things in common. 00:03:09.439 --> 00:03:15.680 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need. 00:03:15.840 --> 00:03:22.080 And day by day attending the temple together, breaking bread in their homes. 00:03:22.800 --> 00:03:36.960 They received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all people, and the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. 00:03:38.960 --> 00:03:46.879 At the big church that I used to work at before coming to work at Redeemer, starting Redeemer. 00:03:47.039 --> 00:03:49.120 At that big church, we had a fellowship hall. 00:03:49.199 --> 00:03:51.039 We called it the Commons, but it is a fellowship hall. 00:03:51.120 --> 00:03:57.439 A lot of churches have these fellowship halls, these big rooms, and all sorts of different things happen in them, right? 00:03:57.520 --> 00:04:02.000 Like you share a meal in them, you have a covered dish dinner, you have a membership reception. 00:04:02.159 --> 00:04:04.719 That's what we did at this big church I used to work at. 00:04:04.879 --> 00:04:10.240 The room was there for being together and a share life, a fellowship hall. 00:04:10.560 --> 00:04:14.479 Now, verse 42 says they were devoted to teaching. 00:04:14.800 --> 00:04:20.879 So they were devoted to a pursuit of a Jesus-shaped spirituality for their life. 00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:24.959 Then verse 42 says also they were devoted to fellowship. 00:04:25.040 --> 00:04:30.160 There's that word, but the word's more than it's more than just a building or a room. 00:04:30.720 --> 00:04:33.360 The word comes from this word koinos. 00:04:34.480 --> 00:04:35.439 Koinos. 00:04:36.959 --> 00:04:41.199 And that means a group that shares together. 00:04:42.160 --> 00:04:45.360 It's an intimate term, it's a deep knowing. 00:04:46.720 --> 00:04:51.839 It's a knowing, a relational knowing from the innermost parts of our beings. 00:04:55.519 --> 00:04:56.560 Fellowship. 00:04:56.720 --> 00:05:02.160 That's why verse 42 leads us into this idea of the breaking of bread and of prayer. 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:08.560 Breaking of bread leads us to this idea of shared life, and it also leads us to the idea of communion. 00:05:08.639 --> 00:05:14.319 So being known and being loved by God and being known and being loved by others. 00:05:14.399 --> 00:05:21.920 And then prayer leads us into this idea and our practice of a surrendered life, both personally and communally. 00:05:23.040 --> 00:05:36.800 And our nature is to live separate, to live unknown, because we're not sure or we're afraid if we are known by God or by others, would we be loved? 00:05:38.399 --> 00:05:40.879 If I'm known, will I be loved? 00:05:42.000 --> 00:05:56.319 And a gospel together, a church, our church mirrors to each other what we know from the gospel that in Jesus we can be fully known and fully loved. 00:05:56.480 --> 00:05:59.680 And so our church gets to mirror to each other. 00:06:00.000 --> 00:06:03.600 You can be known and loved in Jesus. 00:06:03.920 --> 00:06:06.639 18 years ago, Christy and I, we were dating. 00:06:06.720 --> 00:06:08.160 This was before we were married. 00:06:08.240 --> 00:06:09.279 I don't even think we were engaged. 00:06:09.360 --> 00:06:18.319 I'm not, I don't, I don't remember, but we we were attending a large Baptist church in our hometown, really big church, huge, thousands, thousands of people, tons of programs and ministries, all sorts of stuff. 00:06:18.399 --> 00:06:20.000 They did stuff well. 00:06:20.879 --> 00:06:23.199 But one week I got asked to guest preach. 00:06:23.360 --> 00:06:26.959 I think I was still in seminary, so you know you took these options, these opportunities. 00:06:27.199 --> 00:06:27.680 So excited. 00:06:27.839 --> 00:06:33.279 Go guest preach at this small country Baptist church. 00:06:33.519 --> 00:06:35.439 And the sanctuary was small. 00:06:37.120 --> 00:06:38.639 It was not impressive. 00:06:39.600 --> 00:06:42.319 They didn't own a cool warehouse. 00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:45.199 They didn't own a good sound system. 00:06:45.360 --> 00:06:48.079 There were no smoke machines. 00:06:49.279 --> 00:06:51.600 There were probably 50 people there. 00:06:53.439 --> 00:06:54.959 They sang together. 00:06:55.199 --> 00:07:04.639 After that opening hymn, a person, I think a man stands up and he was kind of leading the service, and he said, Hey, we're gonna have a time of any praises and prayer requests. 00:07:04.720 --> 00:07:06.079 And I thought, oh, there's no way. 00:07:06.240 --> 00:07:11.360 No way people are standing up in a group and doing praise and prayer requests in the middle of a worship service, right? 00:07:11.439 --> 00:07:13.759 That'd be that wouldn't be refined to do that. 00:07:13.920 --> 00:07:18.800 And sure enough, as soon as he said that, a lady stands up and she says, Hey, my sister is sick. 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:20.399 Would you please pray for her? 00:07:20.480 --> 00:07:22.720 And everybody nods along and says, Oh, we will. 00:07:22.800 --> 00:07:23.279 We're praying. 00:07:23.360 --> 00:07:23.839 I got that. 00:07:24.000 --> 00:07:25.519 People are writing it down. 00:07:26.319 --> 00:07:28.160 And I'll never forget it. 00:07:28.639 --> 00:07:35.040 A man stands up and he, as soon as he stands up, he starts to tear up and he says, His mama died. 00:07:36.240 --> 00:07:38.560 And he begins to thank everybody. 00:07:40.000 --> 00:07:40.480 Thank you. 00:07:40.639 --> 00:07:41.600 Thank you for being there. 00:07:41.759 --> 00:07:42.800 Thank you for showing up. 00:07:42.959 --> 00:07:44.399 Thank you for praying for us. 00:07:44.560 --> 00:07:45.600 Thank you for praying for my mama. 00:07:45.759 --> 00:07:46.639 Thank you for praying for me. 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:48.160 Thank you for praying for praying for my family. 00:07:48.319 --> 00:07:49.439 Thank you for bringing that meal. 00:07:49.600 --> 00:07:52.959 He just begins, and he has tears coming down his face. 00:07:54.480 --> 00:07:56.399 I never seen anything like it. 00:07:58.959 --> 00:08:00.560 It wasn't a big stage. 00:08:00.720 --> 00:08:02.480 It wasn't professional. 00:08:04.319 --> 00:08:06.560 And here is what I learned. 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:10.959 Those people didn't do big church. 00:08:11.279 --> 00:08:11.920 Great. 00:08:15.120 --> 00:08:20.160 But those people were a big church to each other. 00:08:21.279 --> 00:08:23.279 They were a church to each other. 00:08:23.680 --> 00:08:24.399 Fellowship. 00:08:24.560 --> 00:08:25.600 And that's point number one. 00:08:25.680 --> 00:08:27.279 I know it took me a while to get there. 00:08:27.519 --> 00:08:32.879 Point number one is this community is a reaction to the gospel. 00:08:33.360 --> 00:08:36.480 So the context here in Acts chapter 2 is Peter just preached. 00:08:36.559 --> 00:08:38.159 Peter just preached the gospel. 00:08:38.320 --> 00:08:43.519 This good news of Jesus as a final sacrifice. 00:08:43.679 --> 00:08:49.759 That all we need, the grace of God and this person, the work of Jesus is all we need. 00:08:52.720 --> 00:08:56.320 Full forgiveness, full acceptance, full righteousness. 00:08:56.559 --> 00:08:58.799 We are in right standing with God. 00:08:58.960 --> 00:09:00.080 We are his beloved. 00:09:00.399 --> 00:09:03.440 It cannot be taken from us because of the work of Jesus. 00:09:03.600 --> 00:09:06.159 What good news our sin is put upon him. 00:09:06.480 --> 00:09:08.639 His righteousness is given to us. 00:09:09.279 --> 00:09:16.799 And these people, their response to this good news was to just keep meeting together. 00:09:17.519 --> 00:09:23.440 And this good news and this fellowship was so captivating, other people just kept showing up. 00:09:23.519 --> 00:09:25.919 And we have to ask, what was it about? 00:09:26.080 --> 00:09:34.159 This group of people, this fringe group that was so magnetic and life-changing. 00:09:35.600 --> 00:09:43.679 Point number two is this gospel community is a place of guiding truth and tenacious grace. 00:09:43.919 --> 00:09:48.240 Gospel community is a place of guiding truth and tenacious grace. 00:09:48.399 --> 00:09:50.559 So back in the car on the way to the beach, right? 00:09:50.639 --> 00:09:51.519 You've been on a road trip. 00:09:51.600 --> 00:10:02.080 I don't know if you've been on a road trip with three girls, three little girls in the backseat lined up, squished together, one, two, three, one row, all tight together. 00:10:03.440 --> 00:10:12.240 There's laughter during the movies, and then as soon as the movie shuts off, it's like whose elbows where and her legs over here, and I need a snack, and whatever's going on. 00:10:13.759 --> 00:10:14.480 Like I got to switch. 00:10:14.559 --> 00:10:19.759 I can you switch it from this American Life podcast over Dave Matthews Band, Dave Matthews Band back to this American life. 00:10:19.840 --> 00:10:21.039 I want to listen to Brene Brown. 00:10:21.120 --> 00:10:23.840 I want to listen to Coldplay, flip me around, do this, do this. 00:10:23.919 --> 00:10:24.639 And I want a snack. 00:10:24.720 --> 00:10:26.399 What about me getting a snack? 00:10:27.039 --> 00:10:31.120 And then eventually I'm gonna put those girls in their place, and then eventually, you know what's gonna happen. 00:10:31.279 --> 00:10:33.279 Christie's gonna put me in my place. 00:10:33.360 --> 00:10:38.559 I am talking about guiding truth is being laid down out in that car. 00:10:38.639 --> 00:10:40.879 You know it if you've been on a road trip. 00:10:41.840 --> 00:10:50.639 And I have four girls in a car with me, you know eventually they're gonna give it to me, and I'm gonna get some guiding truth. 00:10:51.600 --> 00:11:00.879 And here's what I've learned in all of that guiding truth, and a lot of times it is true, and I need to be quiet or I need to do something or I need to get better clothes or something, they're gonna let me know about it. 00:11:01.039 --> 00:11:02.159 Here's what I've learned. 00:11:02.320 --> 00:11:08.080 If the car is not a place of tenacious grace, also we are all doomed. 00:11:08.320 --> 00:11:15.679 The car life has to be a place of guiding truth and tenacious grace. 00:11:15.919 --> 00:11:24.559 God's truth is going to reveal to you the way to go and your inability to get there. 00:11:25.600 --> 00:11:32.879 And God's grace will rescue you of all of that inability, failure, sin, shame, condemnation. 00:11:33.039 --> 00:11:47.919 God's grace is going to rescue you from that and empower you by the Holy Spirit inside of you to continue to walk, imperfect, but continue to walk in an ongoing walk with Jesus. 00:11:48.639 --> 00:11:54.240 Where we are known and we are loved, and we mirror that to each other, and the Holy Spirit is working in our lives. 00:11:54.399 --> 00:12:04.080 Last point, point number three: gospel community feeds our souls as we learn about and experience the presence of Christ. 00:12:04.960 --> 00:12:10.480 Gospel community feeds our souls as we learn about and experience the presence of Christ. 00:12:10.720 --> 00:12:15.679 Maybe you remember last October when I told you about Fat Bear Week up in Alaska. 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:17.200 I was very excited about it. 00:12:17.279 --> 00:12:20.080 I think about two of you were excited about it, but I'm nerdy enough. 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:22.559 I still followed this on Instagram. 00:12:22.960 --> 00:12:25.360 And it's amazing, by the way, the bears are back. 00:12:25.440 --> 00:12:29.120 They're coming back to Brooks Falls and Katman National Park there in Alaska. 00:12:29.200 --> 00:12:30.480 You can go follow it also. 00:12:30.559 --> 00:12:31.759 It's very exciting. 00:12:31.919 --> 00:12:35.840 The bears are beginning to feed again here at the beginning, the middle of June. 00:12:36.000 --> 00:12:40.960 They're really gonna start to feed in July, July, August, September, October. 00:12:41.039 --> 00:12:43.200 There in October, we're gonna have Fat Bear Week again. 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:44.720 We're gonna talk about it. 00:12:44.960 --> 00:12:49.039 And there's gonna be a couple bears who got the fattest from July to October. 00:12:49.200 --> 00:12:53.840 If you remember last year, it was Lefty the Bear versus Holly the Bear, girl power. 00:12:53.919 --> 00:12:57.600 Holly won at the beginning in July, she looked like me, right? 00:12:57.679 --> 00:12:59.759 Like she could get just blown over by the wind. 00:12:59.919 --> 00:13:03.600 By the end of it in October, she looked like a dump truck. 00:13:03.840 --> 00:13:17.360 And what we learned from Holly back in October, what I believe we're learning now as a church, is that when something is lavish, you don't move on. 00:13:18.399 --> 00:13:21.200 When something is lavish, you don't move on. 00:13:21.360 --> 00:13:33.759 This early church, they were receiving a lavish love of God in the person and the work of Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit in them active. 00:13:35.200 --> 00:13:51.200 And that was freeing them from bondages of the heart, bondages of judgment, bondages of sin, shame, condemnation, bondages of performances, legalism, the law, bondages of escapism and hiding. 00:13:52.399 --> 00:13:58.480 This lavish love was freeing them and calling them to walk with God. 00:13:59.519 --> 00:14:01.440 They were like Holly, the bear. 00:14:02.480 --> 00:14:05.600 Something's lavish, you don't move on. 00:14:07.120 --> 00:14:10.000 That's why they kept meeting together. 00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:12.720 That's why they didn't move on. 00:14:12.960 --> 00:14:16.320 They were feeding on the lavish love of God. 00:14:16.480 --> 00:14:19.840 And listen, Redeemer, this is where I want us to end today. 00:14:20.720 --> 00:14:22.480 It will never be about our building. 00:14:22.559 --> 00:14:24.080 That's good news if you're still at home. 00:14:24.480 --> 00:14:26.799 It will never be about the building. 00:14:27.039 --> 00:14:30.159 As good as this building serves us, it serves us so well. 00:14:30.320 --> 00:14:32.960 It's going to serve us in the future, but it serves us. 00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:34.399 It is not us. 00:14:36.879 --> 00:14:58.559 As good as programs could be, as good as we hope them to be, as well as we want to perfectly execute them, as well as our services could be, and as well as we want to have all that tight and so well done, and the exercising of our gifts for you and service of God, as well as we want to do all that, it will never be about our building or our services or the execution. 00:14:58.720 --> 00:15:03.919 It will always be about the lavish love of God in Jesus. 00:15:04.240 --> 00:15:08.320 It will always and only be about that. 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:11.279 So let's pray together. 00:15:11.600 --> 00:15:12.480 That's good news. 00:15:12.879 --> 00:15:14.080 God, thank you. 00:15:14.960 --> 00:15:19.759 Thank you that this building is in service to your church. 00:15:19.919 --> 00:15:20.320 Thank you. 00:15:20.480 --> 00:15:23.200 That structure is in service to your church. 00:15:23.440 --> 00:15:30.720 Thank you that we are a movement, a people, a living, a thriving thing. 00:15:32.080 --> 00:15:34.159 A group of people that wants to walk with you. 00:15:34.320 --> 00:15:46.000 Forgive us of all the ways that we continue to be bound up by our own sin and shame, feeding on other things and not the lavish love of God. 00:15:46.639 --> 00:16:01.759 Help us to be more and more a gospel community devoted to your teaching, devoted to the fellowship, devoted to welcoming your move in our lives, our relationships, and our church. 00:16:02.080 --> 00:16:03.440 In Jesus' name we pray. 00:16:03.679 --> 00:16:04.159 Amen.