1 00:00:00,440 --> 00:00:05,840 A reading from the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2, verses 41 2 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:10,040 through 47. So those who accepted his 3 00:00:10,040 --> 00:00:15,560 message were baptized, and that day about 3000 people were added 4 00:00:15,560 --> 00:00:18,800 to them. They devoted themselves to the 5 00:00:18,800 --> 00:00:23,320 apostles teaching, to the fellowship, and to the breaking 6 00:00:23,320 --> 00:00:28,480 of bread, and to prayer. Everyone was filled with ore, 7 00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:32,680 and many wonders and signs were being performed through the 8 00:00:32,680 --> 00:00:36,480 apostles. Now all the believers were 9 00:00:36,480 --> 00:00:39,480 together and held all things in common. 10 00:00:40,280 --> 00:00:44,480 They sold their possessions and property, and distributed the 11 00:00:44,480 --> 00:00:50,440 proceeds to all as any had need. Every day they devoted 12 00:00:50,440 --> 00:00:55,160 themselves to meeting together in the temple and broke bread 13 00:00:55,160 --> 00:01:02,280 from house to house. They ate their food with joyful 14 00:01:02,280 --> 00:01:08,240 and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all 15 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:11,680 the people. Every day the Lord added to 16 00:01:11,680 --> 00:01:15,600 their number those who were being saved, the word of the 17 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:21,040 Lord. Let's pray together Lord, what a 18 00:01:21,040 --> 00:01:23,960 holy and good thing it is when you come to visit your people, 19 00:01:25,120 --> 00:01:29,280 as the Word is opened and preached, as ears are open to 20 00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:33,400 listen, to receive, to ponder and to respond in faith at every 21 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:35,200 step. We need the help of Your Holy 22 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:38,920 Spirit, so a light upon our minds, our hearts, our words, 23 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:43,680 our actions, so that we might be the Church today that carries 24 00:01:43,680 --> 00:01:46,480 the torch that was lit on the day of Pentecost. 25 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:49,640 We pray this in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 26 00:01:49,640 --> 00:01:51,720 Amen. Please be seated. 27 00:01:57,870 --> 00:02:02,030 Hey, good morning, friends. Want to do something this week 28 00:02:02,030 --> 00:02:05,510 to take a moment to speak about something that's heavy on a lot 29 00:02:05,510 --> 00:02:09,830 of people's hearts this week. Just days ago, a man named 30 00:02:09,830 --> 00:02:13,310 Charlie Kirk, who was a political activist and the 31 00:02:13,310 --> 00:02:17,910 leader of an organization called Turning Point USA, was gunned 32 00:02:17,910 --> 00:02:22,550 down on a college campus. And this was just a, it was a 33 00:02:22,550 --> 00:02:26,480 shocking act of violence, but it didn't happen in isolation. 34 00:02:26,920 --> 00:02:29,360 In the recent months and years, we've actually seen a troubling 35 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:32,200 rise in politically motivated attacks. 36 00:02:32,800 --> 00:02:35,160 There was a fire set at the Pennsylvania governor's 37 00:02:35,160 --> 00:02:37,600 residence, Josh Shapiro, while his family was sleeping 38 00:02:37,600 --> 00:02:41,360 upstairs. Thankfully, they did not die 39 00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:43,560 from that, but that was the intent. 40 00:02:44,880 --> 00:02:48,160 Earlier, two young Israeli embassy embassy workers were 41 00:02:48,160 --> 00:02:54,360 shot and killed in our nation's capital, Washington, DC Not too 42 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:57,160 long ago, public officials in Minnesota were targeted in their 43 00:02:57,160 --> 00:02:59,840 homes. Some were killed and some barely 44 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:02,840 escaped. And last year, we did see two 45 00:03:02,840 --> 00:03:07,280 attempted assassinations of President Donald Trump during 46 00:03:07,280 --> 00:03:10,560 the election cycle. Each one of these is is 47 00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:12,440 grievous. We could actually list more 48 00:03:12,440 --> 00:03:15,160 types of violence in our country and more types of gun violence 49 00:03:15,160 --> 00:03:17,960 in our country, not the least of which is violence against 50 00:03:17,960 --> 00:03:19,720 children in schools, which is heinous. 51 00:03:21,520 --> 00:03:25,840 This week's murder feels like a raising of the temperature in 52 00:03:25,840 --> 00:03:29,520 our country in a terrible way. And it just feels like the 53 00:03:29,520 --> 00:03:33,200 darkness is trying to pull people in to a cycle of hatred 54 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:36,720 and revenge. And so we have to ask, as God's 55 00:03:36,720 --> 00:03:38,960 people, what do we do? How do we respond? 56 00:03:39,880 --> 00:03:42,200 And that's why I want to speak to you briefly first, is that we 57 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:44,760 grieve. And that is something that all 58 00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:48,080 Christians do in every, every generation, is that we grieve 59 00:03:48,080 --> 00:03:51,440 the loss of innocent life. We grieve the image of God being 60 00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:55,080 treated violently. Charlie Kirk was made in God's 61 00:03:55,080 --> 00:03:56,800 image, and his death matters to God. 62 00:03:57,760 --> 00:04:02,680 Second, we remember who we are as followers of Jesus. 63 00:04:02,680 --> 00:04:07,320 We do not belong to the Kingdom of this world with its cycles of 64 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:10,160 fear and retaliation and dominance and anger. 65 00:04:10,160 --> 00:04:13,080 We don't belong to that cycle, and we will not participate in 66 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:16,880 that cycle through the cross. Jesus has, as Saint Paul said, 67 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:19,200 torn down the dividing wall of hostility. 68 00:04:19,399 --> 00:04:20,880 Hear the good news in that phrase. 69 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:24,480 He tore down the dividing wall of hostility and he made peace 70 00:04:24,480 --> 00:04:26,720 possible with God and with one another. 71 00:04:28,520 --> 00:04:33,200 Thirdly, we bear witness. We show a different way because 72 00:04:33,200 --> 00:04:36,280 God is perfectly just. We don't need to take vengeance 73 00:04:37,160 --> 00:04:40,600 into our own hands because Jesus forgave his enemies. 74 00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:43,760 We can forgive our enemies because Jesus rose from the 75 00:04:43,760 --> 00:04:46,000 dead. We can be courageous and 76 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:50,240 hopeful, and we can leave behind the burdens of cynicism and 77 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:54,120 despair. So I just want to acknowledge 78 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:58,200 this is a sobering time in our country, but it's also an 79 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:02,000 opportunity for us to be a spiritual beacon that shines 80 00:05:02,000 --> 00:05:04,640 with gospel light. And so I want to call all of us 81 00:05:04,640 --> 00:05:07,920 to reject hatred. I want all of us to reject 82 00:05:07,920 --> 00:05:09,760 cynicism. During prayers of the people, we 83 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:12,600 will pray for our nation. We will pray for our leaders. 84 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:15,400 And we will continue these prayers in the week, won't we? 85 00:05:16,200 --> 00:05:19,040 We will continue to pray, and we'll pray even for our enemies, 86 00:05:19,720 --> 00:05:25,320 and we'll pray for our country. And let's friends walk the road 87 00:05:25,320 --> 00:05:29,440 of the King of Peace, pointing to him who laid down his life to 88 00:05:29,440 --> 00:05:33,080 reconcile a divided and violent world to himself. 89 00:05:34,320 --> 00:05:36,280 Come, Lord Jesus, bring your peace. 90 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:39,320 Lord, we pray for your peace even now to descend upon us, 91 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:41,840 your people. Let it descend. 92 00:05:41,840 --> 00:05:45,400 Lord, we give you our hatred, violence, despair, anything that 93 00:05:45,400 --> 00:05:47,480 doesn't belong in our hearts. We pray that you would bring 94 00:05:47,480 --> 00:05:53,120 joy, hope, vision that belongs to the Kingdom to come in Jesus 95 00:05:53,120 --> 00:05:58,120 name, Amen. All right, well, let's continue 96 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:01,040 on in our Sacred Spaces series. In the book of Acts, Acts 97 00:06:01,040 --> 00:06:06,520 chapter 2, verses 41 through 47, we're looking at the church. 98 00:06:09,080 --> 00:06:12,240 Karen Mains and her husband David lived on the West side of 99 00:06:12,240 --> 00:06:17,200 Chicago during and after the race riots of the 1960s and the 100 00:06:17,200 --> 00:06:22,560 1970s, and they helped start a church community on the West 101 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:25,760 side, like the near West Side called Circle Church. 102 00:06:26,280 --> 00:06:29,680 Circle Church. This church was beautifully 103 00:06:29,680 --> 00:06:34,280 diverse and alive and growing. Circle Church helped people put 104 00:06:34,280 --> 00:06:37,040 down roots in the city when so many were fleeing for the 105 00:06:37,040 --> 00:06:41,160 suburbs and beyond. And it became this sacred space 106 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:45,560 in the city which drew people closer to God and closer to one 107 00:06:45,560 --> 00:06:48,640 another. There was really beautiful, 108 00:06:48,640 --> 00:06:50,920 otherworldly reconciliation happening. 109 00:06:51,680 --> 00:06:53,040 There was community that was forming. 110 00:06:53,040 --> 00:06:56,560 There were lives were changing. But for Karen, who helped lead 111 00:06:56,560 --> 00:06:59,560 this community, there was a growing tension inside of her. 112 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:04,680 She and her husband did lots of hospitality, and she didn't 113 00:07:04,960 --> 00:07:08,280 particularly enjoy, like, the housekeeping tasks. 114 00:07:08,280 --> 00:07:10,080 You know, that, like, wasn't her favorite thing to do. 115 00:07:10,240 --> 00:07:12,800 But she started to feel like, man, all I'm doing is, like, 116 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:17,280 cleaning up after people. And there came a point where, 117 00:07:17,360 --> 00:07:20,600 you know, like, after all that, like trying to provide a clean 118 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:25,280 and comfortable space for community to take place, she 119 00:07:25,280 --> 00:07:29,720 just couldn't take it anymore. And one day, her house was a 120 00:07:29,720 --> 00:07:31,200 wreck. And she was like, I don't feel 121 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:32,800 like it. Someone rang the doorbell. 122 00:07:32,800 --> 00:07:35,680 It was someone from her church. And she had a decision to make. 123 00:07:35,840 --> 00:07:39,200 Am I going to open the door and show hospitality right now or 124 00:07:39,200 --> 00:07:42,600 not? And so she reached for the 125 00:07:42,600 --> 00:07:43,960 handle. She opened the door. 126 00:07:44,400 --> 00:07:47,280 And she was like, I'm not going to apologize for nothing. 127 00:07:47,280 --> 00:07:51,640 And she just like opened the door, loved, loved her fellow 128 00:07:51,640 --> 00:07:55,200 congregant as best she could and showed her hospitality, opened 129 00:07:55,200 --> 00:07:58,440 her home, opened her heart. And a friend kind of looks 130 00:07:58,440 --> 00:08:02,680 around. It's like, oh, I thought you 131 00:08:02,680 --> 00:08:06,000 were perfect. Now I think we can be friends. 132 00:08:10,800 --> 00:08:13,520 And that's when the real community began to form for 133 00:08:13,520 --> 00:08:17,600 Karen and her community. So here we are, one generation 134 00:08:17,600 --> 00:08:20,920 later. Some of us are like Karen. 135 00:08:21,520 --> 00:08:25,720 We have been opening our lives and spending ourselves to form a 136 00:08:25,720 --> 00:08:29,080 church that flourishes right here in Chicago. 137 00:08:29,320 --> 00:08:31,880 And some of us feel totally spent from that. 138 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:36,440 It's exhausting sometimes. But others of us are like that 139 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:40,520 woman ringing the doorbell, hoping for an open door, hoping 140 00:08:40,520 --> 00:08:44,760 for a welcome, longing for that rich, close community. 141 00:08:45,680 --> 00:08:49,360 And the closer we get to to one another friends, the more the 142 00:08:49,360 --> 00:08:54,520 ideal facade and of hopes and dreams for a community will will 143 00:08:54,520 --> 00:08:56,400 fade away. All the hopes and dreams that we 144 00:08:56,400 --> 00:08:58,920 could get it perfect and get it right and do it just right. 145 00:08:59,360 --> 00:09:03,200 The the closer we get to one another, the more we can be 146 00:09:03,200 --> 00:09:07,000 friends and the more we can let the illusion of what we thought 147 00:09:07,000 --> 00:09:12,920 community to be to pass away. The Church is a sacred space 148 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:17,240 between the ideal community we long for and the messy community 149 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:20,920 that we have. And so as we explore together in 150 00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:25,640 Acts 2, we're going to see Saint Luke paint a picture of the 151 00:09:25,640 --> 00:09:27,880 early church. And it's sort of, as you read 152 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:31,120 it, it's like, wow, what a beautiful mosaic, as beautiful 153 00:09:31,120 --> 00:09:35,680 as these windows, you know? But the closer we get to the 154 00:09:35,680 --> 00:09:39,720 mosaic, the more that we see it's made-up of all these broken 155 00:09:39,720 --> 00:09:44,720 shards and pieces of glass and things unformed and rough, 156 00:09:44,720 --> 00:09:46,840 little patches of cement between them. 157 00:09:47,440 --> 00:09:51,120 We realized that like it's messy and broken and Jesus has put it 158 00:09:51,120 --> 00:09:53,040 together. He's the only thing putting 159 00:09:53,120 --> 00:09:55,080 hang. It's the only thing hanging this 160 00:09:55,080 --> 00:10:01,120 mosaic together. But I hope that this can give us 161 00:10:01,120 --> 00:10:05,600 hope for the community that we have, the mess that we're in and 162 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:08,000 the beauty that Jesus is creating in our midst. 163 00:10:09,160 --> 00:10:11,640 Let's look at the first reality of the early church. 164 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:14,800 The first reality of the early church is that it was filled 165 00:10:14,800 --> 00:10:19,840 with unformed converts. You see that in your Bibles or 166 00:10:19,840 --> 00:10:24,160 in your bulletins on page 9, Acts 241. 167 00:10:25,720 --> 00:10:30,880 Those who accepted his message, Peter's message, were baptized 168 00:10:31,040 --> 00:10:34,000 and that day about 3000 people were added to them. 169 00:10:34,440 --> 00:10:36,480 Do you know how many unformed converts that? 170 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:39,640 I mean? Like, OK, the early church was 171 00:10:39,640 --> 00:10:43,280 about 120 people. Did you know that here we are 172 00:10:43,280 --> 00:10:47,240 about the same size? This was the early church size. 173 00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:52,560 Now imagine 3000 people being added to our midst. 174 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:57,960 That's 25 times growth. OK, That would break anybody's 175 00:10:59,560 --> 00:11:01,800 brain. That would break any community. 176 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:08,480 It would be so disruptive. In his book You Found Me, Don 177 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:11,640 Everts tells the story of Russell, who became a Christian 178 00:11:11,640 --> 00:11:14,800 as a college student through the loving witness and example of 179 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:18,320 Christian friends. Russell described his first few 180 00:11:18,320 --> 00:11:23,360 weeks as a Christian like a desert experience. 181 00:11:23,360 --> 00:11:26,040 Here's a quote from Russell, the new convert. 182 00:11:26,840 --> 00:11:30,240 I was the ugliest person lashing out at people. 183 00:11:30,720 --> 00:11:34,280 I had all this hatred and jealousy in me and it was all 184 00:11:34,280 --> 00:11:37,320 coming out. Past moments of being excluded 185 00:11:37,320 --> 00:11:39,240 were coming out and needed to be dealt with. 186 00:11:39,640 --> 00:11:41,200 I didn't really know how to pray. 187 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:45,800 I would lash out at God. I was calling friends constantly 188 00:11:45,800 --> 00:11:48,160 with questions like, why am I feeling this way? 189 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:49,920 Or Are you sure that God is for real? 190 00:11:49,920 --> 00:11:51,760 Is this just an emotional experience? 191 00:11:53,240 --> 00:11:56,640 And that first year was a really tender and confusing year for 192 00:11:56,640 --> 00:11:59,800 Russell. Now, as Everett's noted, people 193 00:11:59,800 --> 00:12:04,040 in Russell's position had had a lot to wrestle with their first 194 00:12:04,040 --> 00:12:05,880 year of faith. Questions like these. 195 00:12:06,040 --> 00:12:08,520 How do I live now? How do I relate with my 196 00:12:08,520 --> 00:12:12,120 boyfriend or girlfriend now? Do I keep cheating on tests? 197 00:12:12,280 --> 00:12:18,200 My grandma thinks I'm in a cult. Like this is what you have to go 198 00:12:18,200 --> 00:12:19,680 through in your first year as a Christian. 199 00:12:19,680 --> 00:12:25,200 Sometimes we forget this. So converts, the 3000 converts 200 00:12:25,440 --> 00:12:27,480 have tons of questions about their life. 201 00:12:27,480 --> 00:12:30,000 Now. This is a big moment of getting 202 00:12:30,000 --> 00:12:34,800 baptized. Could the Messiah really die a 203 00:12:34,800 --> 00:12:38,760 cruel death on a Roman cross? Can I trust and follow that 204 00:12:38,760 --> 00:12:44,120 Messiah and bear a cross myself? That was mind blowing and and 205 00:12:44,120 --> 00:12:48,360 really tough to digest for 1st century Jews from Asia Minor. 206 00:12:49,520 --> 00:12:51,200 What does this mean for the temple? 207 00:12:51,200 --> 00:12:53,080 What does this mean for sacrifices? 208 00:12:53,920 --> 00:12:55,800 Does my grandpa think I'm in a cult? 209 00:12:55,840 --> 00:13:00,360 They did, by the way, and they rejected them. 210 00:13:02,040 --> 00:13:05,000 Or you also go, who are all these strange people that I'm 211 00:13:05,000 --> 00:13:06,960 supposed to call brother and sister? 212 00:13:08,720 --> 00:13:11,720 Do I have to forgive my enemies? Do I have to part with my money? 213 00:13:12,680 --> 00:13:17,280 Imagine 3000 blinkered men and women like asking these 214 00:13:17,280 --> 00:13:20,520 questions. And so how did the church 215 00:13:20,520 --> 00:13:22,680 respond to all the unformed converts? 216 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:24,920 Here's what they did. They invited these unformed 217 00:13:24,920 --> 00:13:27,960 converts to become devoted disciples. 218 00:13:28,400 --> 00:13:31,120 The unformed converts were then invited to become devoted 219 00:13:31,120 --> 00:13:33,160 disciples. Verse 42. 220 00:13:33,400 --> 00:13:37,120 They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching, to the 221 00:13:37,120 --> 00:13:40,080 fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. 222 00:13:40,960 --> 00:13:44,520 They devoted themselves. This group of people, this 223 00:13:44,520 --> 00:13:50,400 massive group of early converts, became a family through common 224 00:13:50,440 --> 00:13:53,120 devoted practices. And this is how a family is 225 00:13:53,120 --> 00:13:55,240 formed. You know this, it's one day at a 226 00:13:55,240 --> 00:13:57,600 time, doing uncomfortable things together. 227 00:13:57,680 --> 00:14:00,400 We do family dinner together. We have a common culture 228 00:14:00,480 --> 00:14:02,640 together. We do family outings together. 229 00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:05,040 Now, at some point that changes. But for a while, if you want to 230 00:14:05,040 --> 00:14:08,320 form a family culture, you do common practices. 231 00:14:08,320 --> 00:14:10,320 And it's no different for the early church. 232 00:14:10,640 --> 00:14:13,000 They had a they learned a common story. 233 00:14:13,880 --> 00:14:15,880 They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching. 234 00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:20,880 It's story time and this one is Israel's story. 235 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:24,160 You can see Peter and you can see other apostles opening up 236 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:27,320 the book of Isaiah, opening up the book of Genesis being like, 237 00:14:27,320 --> 00:14:29,320 here's how this points to your new king. 238 00:14:29,800 --> 00:14:32,800 Here's Israel's true story. Here's how all of your hopes and 239 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:35,520 dreams find their resolution in Jesus. 240 00:14:35,840 --> 00:14:38,480 Story time. Day after day, they devoted 241 00:14:38,480 --> 00:14:41,520 themselves to it. They lived a common life. 242 00:14:42,280 --> 00:14:46,720 The word fellowship, Koinonia, It was not a cliche for them. 243 00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:52,680 It was, it was a way of living where they were needed and known 244 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:55,960 and loved and challenged. Your stuff came up and was 245 00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:58,880 exposed and then you were encouraged and your life was 246 00:14:58,880 --> 00:15:01,200 opened up. Your home was opened up. 247 00:15:02,200 --> 00:15:05,960 It was a, it was a, it was a lot of life on life, life. 248 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:08,040 It was a common life. They lived it. 249 00:15:09,000 --> 00:15:12,400 They shared a common table. Of course, they devoted 250 00:15:12,400 --> 00:15:14,000 themselves to the breaking of bread. 251 00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:18,320 This seems to be both an early practice of the Eucharist. 252 00:15:18,520 --> 00:15:21,960 But as people are getting together in homes, you, you know 253 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:24,440 you're going to eat. You know this, they're there. 254 00:15:24,520 --> 00:15:27,000 It's lots of eating. It's spiritual food and it's 255 00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:28,400 physical food and it's everything. 256 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:30,880 They're breaking bread. And like good Anglicans, they 257 00:15:30,880 --> 00:15:35,280 prayed a common prayer, right? They heard a common story, lived 258 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:39,400 a common life, shared a common table, prayed a common prayer. 259 00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:41,720 Some of it was probably liturgical, like the Lord's 260 00:15:41,720 --> 00:15:44,520 Prayer or some of the early Jewish prayers passed down to 261 00:15:44,520 --> 00:15:47,800 them, seen through Jesus. But also, we see in the book of 262 00:15:47,800 --> 00:15:50,880 Acts, they're praying for needs that arise, like Peter's in 263 00:15:50,880 --> 00:15:52,080 prison. Let's pray together. 264 00:15:52,080 --> 00:15:54,640 Or, you know, we need to be bold and sharing our faith. 265 00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:57,480 Let's pray for that together. They did a lot of spontaneous 266 00:15:57,480 --> 00:16:00,440 prayer, liturgical prayer, all of the above. 267 00:16:02,680 --> 00:16:05,440 And so guess what? It wasn't natural, It wasn't 268 00:16:05,440 --> 00:16:08,480 comfortable, it wasn't ideal. It probably didn't feel good, 269 00:16:08,480 --> 00:16:12,040 but it was formative. They were becoming a new family, 270 00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:13,920 and that's how they stayed together. 271 00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:16,600 And all of it, friends, they didn't. 272 00:16:16,680 --> 00:16:20,200 You don't see them congratulating themselves for 273 00:16:20,200 --> 00:16:24,400 their expansive growth or their ancient practices. 274 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:27,200 They weren't patting themselves on the back for getting it 275 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:30,480 right. They were in awe and devotion of 276 00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:33,440 someone else. Verse 43 says they were filled 277 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:36,560 with awe and many wonders and signs are being performed 278 00:16:36,760 --> 00:16:42,000 through the apostles. And the subtext here is that God 279 00:16:42,000 --> 00:16:44,680 is visiting them. The living God is in their midst 280 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:47,320 as they're devoting themselves to Jesus through these 4 281 00:16:47,320 --> 00:16:50,120 practices. He is drawing near to them like 282 00:16:50,120 --> 00:16:51,880 we've seen in every other sacred space. 283 00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:55,760 The garden, the mountain, the altar, the Tabernacle, the 284 00:16:55,760 --> 00:16:57,720 temple. God is drawing near to them as 285 00:16:57,720 --> 00:17:01,360 they draw near to him. He's the treasure. 286 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:03,640 Now here's one thing that happened. 287 00:17:03,640 --> 00:17:08,520 These signs and wonders were not just entertainment value. 288 00:17:09,480 --> 00:17:12,480 Many people walked into the early church and they had 289 00:17:12,480 --> 00:17:14,839 physical ailments and they were asking for prayer and they were 290 00:17:14,839 --> 00:17:16,720 getting delivered many, many others. 291 00:17:16,720 --> 00:17:19,200 This is hard for us in our Western culture, but they had a 292 00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:21,200 they were battling spiritual darkness. 293 00:17:21,200 --> 00:17:24,480 They had spiritual darkness that had come to harass them and 294 00:17:24,480 --> 00:17:26,200 oppress them or or their families. 295 00:17:26,680 --> 00:17:30,560 And a lot of times what would happen, according to there's a 296 00:17:30,560 --> 00:17:33,400 book called The Patient Ferment of the Early Church, where a 297 00:17:33,400 --> 00:17:38,600 historian describes this, people's battle with darkness 298 00:17:38,600 --> 00:17:41,880 would come to light in the midst of the worship service. 299 00:17:41,920 --> 00:17:45,120 And the name of Jesus would overcome that darkness and 300 00:17:45,120 --> 00:17:47,320 people would see it and they would be like, wow, Jesus is 301 00:17:47,320 --> 00:17:49,680 more powerful than all the powers of this age. 302 00:17:49,680 --> 00:17:52,680 Maybe I should follow him. Lots and lots of people were 303 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:57,280 converted that way. And so signs and wonders were 304 00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:00,160 were intersecting with raw human need. 305 00:18:01,280 --> 00:18:03,720 And God was in their midst and they were filled with awe and 306 00:18:03,720 --> 00:18:05,520 wonder and it was binding them together. 307 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:12,360 You know, one cry I've heard recently in our community is for 308 00:18:12,360 --> 00:18:16,960 more discipleship, more common practices that we can devote 309 00:18:16,960 --> 00:18:20,160 ourselves to as we navigate urban life in Chicago. 310 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:23,120 Whether you've been a for a Christian for a long time or a 311 00:18:23,120 --> 00:18:25,480 recent convert, guys, I just want to name it. 312 00:18:25,480 --> 00:18:27,880 It's not easy. It's not easy, is it? 313 00:18:28,080 --> 00:18:30,040 It's not easy to follow Jesus in this city. 314 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:34,600 It's not easy to to have a a spiritual family in this city. 315 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:37,800 Now, in the next year, we want to see more and more 316 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:40,400 discipleship happening, especially in the next 317 00:18:40,400 --> 00:18:43,280 generation. I think that's going to include 318 00:18:43,280 --> 00:18:46,840 more classes, maybe even a confirmation process at some 319 00:18:46,840 --> 00:18:51,120 point, which is a mixture of theological, biblical, and 320 00:18:51,120 --> 00:18:55,200 personal discipleship. Lord willing, I'd love to see 321 00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:59,480 like more and more people say I want to be a disciple of Jesus. 322 00:18:59,480 --> 00:19:02,640 I want to join in the common practices of the ancient church 323 00:19:02,920 --> 00:19:05,840 and and be made new like Jesus and be made into a family. 324 00:19:05,840 --> 00:19:10,080 And I'll speak into more of this in our at our family meeting 325 00:19:10,120 --> 00:19:15,240 annual celebration today. So even as these unformed 326 00:19:15,240 --> 00:19:19,120 converts become devoted disciples, there was an issue 327 00:19:19,120 --> 00:19:22,800 that rose to the surface and it's a sensitive topic even to 328 00:19:22,800 --> 00:19:25,720 this day. And that was that there were 329 00:19:25,720 --> 00:19:29,440 unequal resources. There were unequal resources in 330 00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:32,560 the community. Do you notice how people who 331 00:19:32,560 --> 00:19:37,160 have similar resources tend to cluster together kind of happens 332 00:19:38,040 --> 00:19:41,800 And it part of its human nature, like attracts like, and we're 333 00:19:41,800 --> 00:19:45,400 drawn to people who understand our life and our world and 334 00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:47,680 people who understand our limits, etcetera. 335 00:19:48,280 --> 00:19:52,760 But on a large scale, like if you, if you don't confront that 336 00:19:53,200 --> 00:19:57,320 and do something different, it it gets out of hand and all of a 337 00:19:57,320 --> 00:20:01,120 sudden you're cut off from cultures, you're cut off from 338 00:20:01,120 --> 00:20:04,560 life experiences, you're cut off from the enrichment of sharing 339 00:20:04,560 --> 00:20:06,760 life with people who live differently than you and have a 340 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:08,000 different experience of the world. 341 00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:12,800 Then in our own city. This is a huge problem. 342 00:20:14,520 --> 00:20:18,040 Chicago is is segregated by culture, by economics, 343 00:20:18,040 --> 00:20:20,880 especially by class, by education levels, by ethnic 344 00:20:20,880 --> 00:20:23,120 groups. And it's hurting everybody, it's 345 00:20:23,120 --> 00:20:27,000 hurting every single group for us to be as segregated as we 346 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:30,320 are. In fact, in 2017, a study was 347 00:20:30,320 --> 00:20:35,080 published by the Urban Institute and they, they found, they 348 00:20:35,080 --> 00:20:39,440 looked at what would happen to Chicago in very practical terms 349 00:20:40,320 --> 00:20:45,040 if Chicago's like integration levels set, like if, if the 350 00:20:45,040 --> 00:20:47,960 segregation levels went down on all these different measures, 351 00:20:47,960 --> 00:20:51,040 economics and culture and, and race and everything. 352 00:20:51,360 --> 00:20:54,320 If that went down just to match the median levels of the United 353 00:20:54,320 --> 00:20:58,520 States, if Chicago got just less segregated, what would happen? 354 00:20:58,520 --> 00:21:02,720 And they found, this is going to be hard to believe, but this is 355 00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:07,080 what they found. 4.4 billion would be gained in additional 356 00:21:07,080 --> 00:21:10,120 income in our in our city and region. 357 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:15,280 There would be a 30% lower homicide rate just if people 358 00:21:15,280 --> 00:21:19,800 mixed more. And there would be an additional 359 00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:24,040 83,000 more people in our region with with bachelor's degrees 360 00:21:24,040 --> 00:21:27,160 that don't have one. Now, isn't that crazy? 361 00:21:27,440 --> 00:21:29,960 But it's real. You and I know this, that when 362 00:21:29,960 --> 00:21:33,720 we interact with someone who's not like us, who's not from our 363 00:21:33,720 --> 00:21:36,840 culture, who's not from our background, who's doesn't share 364 00:21:36,840 --> 00:21:41,720 our life experience, if we can find a way to connect, is a life 365 00:21:41,720 --> 00:21:44,320 changing, enriching, beautiful experience. 366 00:21:47,760 --> 00:21:50,720 Now the early church gathered people with different resource 367 00:21:50,720 --> 00:21:54,440 levels and the book of Acts doesn't lie about this. 368 00:21:54,440 --> 00:21:58,640 So you see people who are like Barnabas and Lydia, they're land 369 00:21:58,640 --> 00:22:00,720 owners. They can sell land and give it 370 00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:02,200 like most people couldn't do that. 371 00:22:02,200 --> 00:22:05,600 Lydia had a very lucrative business with high level 372 00:22:05,600 --> 00:22:10,640 clientele. They could host larger groups of 373 00:22:10,640 --> 00:22:13,280 Christians in their homes. Not everyone could do that. 374 00:22:13,560 --> 00:22:17,080 Others, like the widows and the servants or the rescue babies 375 00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:20,960 from the early church were marginalized and scraping by and 376 00:22:20,960 --> 00:22:24,680 barely existing. And then some, like probably 377 00:22:24,680 --> 00:22:27,920 most, were working class trace people and merchants and 378 00:22:27,920 --> 00:22:30,680 farmers. And so what's even more 379 00:22:30,680 --> 00:22:32,920 complicated is that they're coming from different parts of 380 00:22:32,920 --> 00:22:35,240 the Roman Empire, different parts of Asia Minor, different 381 00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:37,520 customs, different values, different ways of thinking. 382 00:22:38,680 --> 00:22:42,000 Yet when they came together in Jesus, their unequal resources 383 00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:48,880 became by grace, willing sacrifices, willing sacrifices. 384 00:22:48,880 --> 00:22:51,920 And everyone's got something. They can sacrifice, even if it's 385 00:22:51,920 --> 00:22:54,920 their pride. Everyone's got something, even 386 00:22:54,920 --> 00:22:57,280 if it's just their time or their attention. 387 00:22:58,720 --> 00:23:02,480 Verse 44 and 45 describes this. Now all the believers were 388 00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:04,440 together and held all things in common. 389 00:23:04,960 --> 00:23:07,480 They sold their possessions and property and distributed the 390 00:23:07,480 --> 00:23:14,600 proceeds to all as any had need. So look, some had a need, It's 391 00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:18,680 right there in the text. And they willingly, like, let 392 00:23:18,680 --> 00:23:22,440 that need be known. Some had a resource and they 393 00:23:22,440 --> 00:23:25,360 willingly sacrificed their comfort, their status, their 394 00:23:25,360 --> 00:23:29,600 freedom to give that resource so that a need could be met. 395 00:23:29,600 --> 00:23:31,920 And that's a beautiful exchange right there, isn't it? 396 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:35,240 Others are opening their homes and sharing their tables. 397 00:23:36,120 --> 00:23:39,600 All of them are sharing their time and their days and their 398 00:23:39,600 --> 00:23:42,360 weeks to to, to hang out together. 399 00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:45,440 You know this in the city, that's a big sacrifice to hang 400 00:23:45,440 --> 00:23:47,280 out together. We talked about this last week. 401 00:23:47,480 --> 00:23:49,720 Some of this is awkward. Some of this is hard. 402 00:23:49,920 --> 00:23:52,920 And just like the woman who said to Karen Mains, look, now that I 403 00:23:52,920 --> 00:23:55,200 see you're not perfect, we can be friends. 404 00:23:58,200 --> 00:24:02,000 And the riches that follow are so much better than the riches 405 00:24:02,000 --> 00:24:08,360 that we give up or so much more than what pride could keep. 406 00:24:09,760 --> 00:24:12,840 After last week's message where I did talk about from 407 00:24:12,840 --> 00:24:16,560 Deuteronomy 12, the sacrifices of worship, I got an e-mail from 408 00:24:16,560 --> 00:24:19,240 a leader in our community. She's a mom. 409 00:24:19,240 --> 00:24:22,960 She's an ESL teacher for refugees making life work in the 410 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:28,440 city, and here's what she she wrote to me when we moved here 411 00:24:28,440 --> 00:24:31,080 six years ago. I was really concerned about 412 00:24:31,080 --> 00:24:34,560 living in a busy urban city with no family, knowing that my 413 00:24:34,560 --> 00:24:37,640 husband would be traveling a lot for work this summer. 414 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:40,440 I had been dreading being a single parent during one of his 415 00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:43,360 eight day work trips. But thanks to our Emmanuel 416 00:24:43,360 --> 00:24:47,280 community, it was actually a really encouraging week. 417 00:24:47,760 --> 00:24:51,600 One family had me and the kids over for a game night, a second 418 00:24:51,600 --> 00:24:54,680 family had us down to Lawndale for chili and outside play time, 419 00:24:56,400 --> 00:24:59,160 and I got together with a third family for lunch and trading 420 00:24:59,160 --> 00:25:02,040 child care. She says this. 421 00:25:02,240 --> 00:25:05,600 It meant so much to know that all these people with crazy 422 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:08,840 schedules were willing to make so much space for me and the 423 00:25:08,840 --> 00:25:12,680 kids during the time when I typically feel vulnerable, tired 424 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:18,320 and lonely. As you hear that story, can you 425 00:25:18,320 --> 00:25:22,360 hear the notes of sacrifice? Can you can you think about the 426 00:25:22,360 --> 00:25:26,920 people who opened up their home, open their door, their schedule, 427 00:25:27,240 --> 00:25:31,720 their meals to to be there for a single mom for a week? 428 00:25:32,880 --> 00:25:37,800 Can you imagine yourself receiving that kind of grace or 429 00:25:37,800 --> 00:25:41,320 being the one to offer it? And here's one of the paradoxes 430 00:25:41,320 --> 00:25:43,080 of Christian community. Don't miss this. 431 00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:47,040 The more we give of ourselves, the more we gain. 432 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:50,960 Then that's just true. Yes, it's a sacrifice. 433 00:25:51,120 --> 00:25:53,760 There's something more beautiful that we gain in the process. 434 00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:57,560 It doesn't matter what we're bringing to this, to the altar. 435 00:25:57,680 --> 00:25:59,640 It doesn't matter what sacrifices we're bringing. 436 00:25:59,840 --> 00:26:02,040 Maybe it's a need, maybe it's a contribution. 437 00:26:02,200 --> 00:26:05,280 Maybe it's friendship or, or or the freedom that we're giving 438 00:26:05,280 --> 00:26:09,000 up, or personal space or plate of cheese and crackers. 439 00:26:10,840 --> 00:26:15,800 This is exactly where God meets us to form the new family of 440 00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:19,480 Jesus. It's these, it's these willing 441 00:26:19,480 --> 00:26:21,680 sacrifices. You know, there's no, there was 442 00:26:21,680 --> 00:26:24,440 no law from on high to make this happen. 443 00:26:25,200 --> 00:26:30,720 Thou shalt shall thy possessions and give everything you have. 444 00:26:30,760 --> 00:26:33,480 It was willing. The Spirit had fallen. 445 00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:36,640 The Spirit was moving in people, the Spirit was creating a 446 00:26:36,640 --> 00:26:39,520 community. It was willing, it was free, it 447 00:26:39,520 --> 00:26:43,840 was joyful. What if we became known as a 448 00:26:43,840 --> 00:26:48,080 community where there was willing sacrifices that overcame 449 00:26:48,480 --> 00:26:52,480 unequal resources? You know, Circle Church was 450 00:26:52,480 --> 00:26:55,720 known for that in their day. But one generation later, what 451 00:26:55,720 --> 00:26:58,840 if we took that torch along with all the other gospel churches in 452 00:26:58,840 --> 00:27:01,240 Chicago, and carried it in our day? 453 00:27:04,240 --> 00:27:07,920 There was unformed converts, but they became devoted disciples. 454 00:27:07,920 --> 00:27:11,160 There was unequal resources then that became willing sacrifices, 455 00:27:11,160 --> 00:27:14,400 and then finally there was an unfinished task. 456 00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:18,400 An unfinished task despite friends, the explosive growth of 457 00:27:18,400 --> 00:27:21,480 the early church. They were a tiny percentage of 458 00:27:21,480 --> 00:27:25,440 the population. Most people had never heard of 459 00:27:25,440 --> 00:27:28,120 King Jesus. Most people had never been 460 00:27:28,120 --> 00:27:30,960 invited to receive his forgiveness or share at his 461 00:27:30,960 --> 00:27:34,760 table. They hadn't gone to Judea, they 462 00:27:34,760 --> 00:27:37,640 hadn't gone to Samaria, they hadn't gone to the ends of the 463 00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:41,000 earth, they hadn't grown in love or maturity. 464 00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:46,440 Yet there would be some disputes about who would care for the 465 00:27:46,440 --> 00:27:51,240 widows. And there were in chapter 5, 466 00:27:51,240 --> 00:27:54,920 there were people pretending, pretending to sell all they had, 467 00:27:55,160 --> 00:27:58,960 Ananias and Sapphira, and they were lying to the Holy Spirit 468 00:27:58,960 --> 00:28:01,200 and everybody. It this was a mess. 469 00:28:01,840 --> 00:28:04,720 It was unfinished. The discipleship was unfinished. 470 00:28:04,760 --> 00:28:06,240 The maturity levels were unfinished. 471 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:08,680 Their mission was unfinished. Mostly. 472 00:28:08,840 --> 00:28:16,560 It was mostly not done right. Yet even still, there's this 473 00:28:16,560 --> 00:28:21,360 joyful overflow, the joyful overflow way before the missions 474 00:28:21,360 --> 00:28:25,960 done. Verse 46 Every day, every day 475 00:28:25,960 --> 00:28:28,600 they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple 476 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:31,160 and broke bread from house to house. 477 00:28:31,560 --> 00:28:36,000 They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, otherwise 478 00:28:36,000 --> 00:28:39,680 translated generous hearts, joyful and generous hearts, 479 00:28:40,360 --> 00:28:43,680 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. 480 00:28:44,960 --> 00:28:50,760 Let's just let our imaginations rest on the eating the food with 481 00:28:50,760 --> 00:28:56,440 joyful and generous hearts. This joyful feasting was their 482 00:28:56,440 --> 00:29:00,000 path forward to the mission. That was their way to get it 483 00:29:00,000 --> 00:29:03,760 done, eating food with joyful and generous hearts. 484 00:29:04,400 --> 00:29:06,240 There was a radiance to their gathering. 485 00:29:06,240 --> 00:29:08,760 They're praising God. They have favor with people 486 00:29:08,760 --> 00:29:14,440 outside of the early church. They're they're like joining in 487 00:29:14,440 --> 00:29:17,520 with the other people of God in the scriptures where like when 488 00:29:17,520 --> 00:29:21,000 you feast, you're celebrating that the Lord God has won a 489 00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:23,640 great victory. That's the the best kind of 490 00:29:23,640 --> 00:29:27,760 feasts in the Bible are when God has won a victory and you're 491 00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:29,920 savoring it and you're enjoying it. 492 00:29:30,520 --> 00:29:34,240 And they feasted as if the victory was already won. 493 00:29:35,640 --> 00:29:38,280 But you know what? You and I, we eat at our desks 494 00:29:38,480 --> 00:29:44,520 as if we're already behind. Most days we're shoveling 495 00:29:44,920 --> 00:29:48,880 nutrition in our mouth on our way somewhere because we're 496 00:29:48,920 --> 00:29:53,120 we're behind. There's no time to feast, but 497 00:29:53,120 --> 00:29:56,920 the way into that Kingdom of God, the way into the 498 00:29:56,920 --> 00:30:00,520 completion, the fulfilment of all things, is through feasting. 499 00:30:03,080 --> 00:30:06,480 Robert Capon was an Anglican priest and chef, and he wrote a 500 00:30:06,480 --> 00:30:11,480 theological cookbook called The Supper of the Lamb, and in that 501 00:30:11,480 --> 00:30:15,920 book he notes this quote. Food does not exist merely for 502 00:30:15,920 --> 00:30:17,800 the sake of its nutritional value. 503 00:30:18,480 --> 00:30:22,720 To break real bread is to break the loveless hold of hell upon 504 00:30:22,720 --> 00:30:26,560 the world, and by just that much, to set the secular free. 505 00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:31,240 A picture of those early believers going house to house, 506 00:30:31,680 --> 00:30:34,960 breaking bread, joyful and generous hearts, giving thanks 507 00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:37,840 to God, Eucharistically celebrating all His mighty 508 00:30:37,840 --> 00:30:40,640 deeds. Can you picture the early? 509 00:30:40,640 --> 00:30:46,600 Can you picture Circle Church 50-60 years ago on the West side 510 00:30:46,600 --> 00:30:49,240 of Chicago? West Side's been burned out 511 00:30:49,680 --> 00:30:51,720 after Martin Luther King has been assassinated. 512 00:30:51,720 --> 00:30:53,640 But there they are. They're feasting from house to 513 00:30:53,640 --> 00:30:58,400 house, even as the fate of the city was unknown, even as 514 00:30:58,400 --> 00:31:01,200 neighbors were deciding, should I get out of the city or stay in 515 00:31:01,200 --> 00:31:04,800 the city? The gospel, the victory could be 516 00:31:04,800 --> 00:31:07,800 celebrated right there, right then, with Italian beef 517 00:31:07,800 --> 00:31:13,160 sandwiches and cheesecake and old Style and whatever they had 518 00:31:13,280 --> 00:31:16,400 and the children playing in the backyard, children that may one 519 00:31:16,400 --> 00:31:19,840 day, you know, be a part of another church plant in Chicago. 520 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:24,280 Most of our work is unfinished at a manual. 521 00:31:24,840 --> 00:31:28,480 The story is still unfolding yet, guys. 522 00:31:28,480 --> 00:31:33,360 In my last count, we have 10 different city groups with 523 00:31:33,360 --> 00:31:40,560 tables for a common life that are opening up this fall to pray 524 00:31:40,720 --> 00:31:45,200 in some cases, to eat together for a common devotion and an 525 00:31:45,200 --> 00:31:49,480 uncommon joy. Yeah. 526 00:31:49,480 --> 00:31:54,800 Isn't that what everyone longs for, to celebrate together, to 527 00:31:54,800 --> 00:31:57,680 have joy together in an uncommon way? 528 00:31:58,160 --> 00:32:01,520 Isn't that why we're taking our feedbags along with us and, 529 00:32:01,520 --> 00:32:04,800 like, just eating on the way? Because we're trying to get to 530 00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:08,560 the time when the victory is won and and we can celebrate. 531 00:32:10,080 --> 00:32:13,240 We long for unity and joy and encouragement and hope and a 532 00:32:13,240 --> 00:32:17,240 sense that we're not alone. So it's no surprise that this 533 00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:19,840 early fledgling group kept growing. 534 00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:22,680 Verse 47, the second-half of it says this. 535 00:32:22,680 --> 00:32:24,720 Every day. The Lord added to their number 536 00:32:25,360 --> 00:32:29,960 those who are being saved. They were unformed converts with 537 00:32:29,960 --> 00:32:32,360 unequal resources and an unfinished task. 538 00:32:33,280 --> 00:32:37,600 Yet in that mess of perfection, friends, was real friendship and 539 00:32:37,600 --> 00:32:41,200 the real presence of Jesus and a sacred space where people from 540 00:32:41,200 --> 00:32:43,800 all walks of life could encounter the living God. 541 00:32:45,320 --> 00:32:49,120 Now look, in conclusion, OK, I know it's hot in here. 542 00:32:50,280 --> 00:32:56,080 Every sacred space we've looked at is more or less a relic, and 543 00:32:56,080 --> 00:32:57,840 we just encounter it. We encounter it through the 544 00:32:57,840 --> 00:33:01,200 Lord. But this sacred space is a real 545 00:33:01,200 --> 00:33:03,960 place you can go, and it's called the local church. 546 00:33:04,360 --> 00:33:06,400 And in the mess of the local church where everything's 547 00:33:06,400 --> 00:33:08,800 unfinished, that's where we encountered the living God. 548 00:33:09,200 --> 00:33:12,000 We can't do it as individuals. Don't believe that lie. 549 00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:14,480 We experienced some of God as individuals. 550 00:33:14,640 --> 00:33:16,800 But you know, the real stuff that needs to come up for us, 551 00:33:17,280 --> 00:33:20,520 for us to be transformed into God's image and the real 552 00:33:20,520 --> 00:33:24,280 community that we're made for that is in the church and that 553 00:33:24,280 --> 00:33:29,200 is available to us. This can be our story. 554 00:33:29,720 --> 00:33:35,160 We, we are the Mosaic guys. We're a bunch of broken and 555 00:33:35,160 --> 00:33:40,440 unformed pieces brought together through Jesus and brought 556 00:33:40,440 --> 00:33:43,440 together through the Spirit, just so you know, around a 557 00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:48,320 table, around the word of God and the prayers and the mission, 558 00:33:49,560 --> 00:33:54,840 filled with gratitude and joy and awe at the presence of God 559 00:33:54,840 --> 00:33:57,440 in our midst. Friends, the church is where God 560 00:33:57,440 --> 00:34:00,120 shapes us. Not because we're perfect, 561 00:34:00,320 --> 00:34:05,480 because Jesus is present. So let us, friends, now be that 562 00:34:05,480 --> 00:34:09,239 mosaic and be that family, in the name of the Father, Son and 563 00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:10,639 Holy Spirit, Amen.