Relationships

Sooo, last night we watched the Billy Joel 100th concert at Madison Square Gardens. Have you ever thought about how many songs are written about relationships (Wouldn’t It be Nice, Livin’ on a Prayer…; and/also the impact of people on our lives; American Pie (Day the Music Died [Big Bopper (JP Richardson), Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly]; Abraham, Martin, & John [Lincoln, MLK, Jr, JFK, & RFK]; Where Were You [When the World Stopped Turning])

Relationships…People are important to us!! That’s why this aspect of our lives is both so challenging…& so rewarding.

Matthew 22:39 “The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Leviticus 19:18 “Do not take revenge or bear a grudge against members of your community, but love your neighbor as yourself; I am the Lord.”

THE CHALLENGE: Relationships

We have been created for relationships.

With God.

Genesis 1:26–27 “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness. They will rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, the whole earth, and the creatures that crawl on the earth.” So God created man in his own image; he created him in the image of God; he created them male and female.” [U = v. 27]

1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”

[[ Acts 17:25–27 “Neither is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives everyone life and breath and all things. From one man he has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live. He did this so that they might seek God, and perhaps they might reach out and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.” ]]

With Each Other.

Genesis 2:18 “Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.””

Genesis 2:21–22 “So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come over the man, and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. Then the Lord God made the rib he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man.”

Matthew 22:39 “The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.””

[[ Luke 10.25-37 - The Good Samaritan… Luke 10:29 “But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”” ]]

Having been created for relationships, we value (cherish) them deeply.

This fact (for we see those who think otherwise as outside the norm, etc.) helps us understand why the brokenness, even failure or absence, of any of our relationships hurts (bothers) us.

CHALLENGES RE: RELATIONSHIPS

The Significance of Our (Earthly) Relationships (Like…I have my relationship with God over here…aaannndd, I have my other relationships over here…AND, they do not intersect at many, if any, points of significance, etc., etc.) WWWWEELLLLL…

[[1-4 = Relationship with God]]

5-10 = Relationships with Others

Exodus 20:12–17 “Honor your father and your mother so that you may have a long life in the land that the Lord your God is giving you. Do not murder. Do not commit adultery. Do not steal. Do not give false testimony against your neighbor. Do not covet your neighbor’s house. Do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

BROUGHT BY US

Matthew 5:23–24 “So if you are offering your gift on the altar, and there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled with your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.”

[Context = Matthew 5:21–22 ““You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment. But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Whoever insults his brother or sister, will be subject to the court. Whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be subject to hellfire.”]

Our ‘default’ position…

Romans 12:18 “If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.”

BROUGHT TO US

Death

1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, concerning those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, in the same way, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For we say this to you by a word from the Lord: We who are still alive at the Lord’s coming will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the archangel’s voice, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are still alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” [U = vv. 13, 18]

Desertion

2 Timothy 4:9–10 “Make every effort to come to me soon, because Demas has deserted me, since he loved this present world, and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.” [U = v. 10a]

(also 2 Timothy 1.15; 2 Timothy 4.16…Paul also deserted by ‘all those in the province of Asia’ & ‘everyone’ at his first defense)

[[ 2 Timothy 4:11–12 “Only Luke is with me. Bring Mark with you, for he is useful to me in the ministry. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus.” ]]

Respect

Romans 13:7–8 “Pay your obligations to everyone: taxes to those you owe taxes, tolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect, and honor to those you owe honor. Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”

[Respect authority =~ parent, teacher, church leader, elder (in the informal sense); respect everyone!]

Disagreements

[Restate Matthew 5.23-24]

Lying

Ephesians 4:25 “Therefore, putting away lying, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, because we are members of one another.”

[This one is the easiest to excuse and so often the most damaging!]

[[[Abuse]]]

THE PROCESS OF REPAIR

[Repair sometimes is about repentance…sometimes is about understanding…]

Offense

Confrontation

Repentance (or Rejection)

Forgiveness

Reconciliation

Consequences (Better to enter heaven with one eye than…??)

Matthew 3:7–8 “When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance.” [U = v. 8]

Luke 19:1–10 “He entered Jericho and was passing through. There was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but he was not able because of the crowd, since he was a short man. So running ahead, he climbed up a sycamore tree to see Jesus, since he was about to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down because today it is necessary for me to stay at your house.” So he quickly came down and welcomed him joyfully. All who saw it began to complain, “He’s gone to stay with a sinful man.” But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, I’ll give half of my possessions to the poor, Lord. And if I have extorted anything from anyone, I’ll pay back four times as much.” “Today salvation has come to this house,” Jesus told him, “because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost.”” [U = v. 8]

CONCL—

We like songs with hopeful, happy endings…Ever heard one that doesn’t…or ends ambiguously??

[Youth of the Nation - POD]

Who's to blame for the lives that tragedies claim? No matter what you say It don't take away the pain

That I feel inside, I'm tired of all the lies Don't nobody know why It's the blind leading the blind

I guess that's the way that the story goes Will it ever make sense Somebody's got to know

There's got to be more to life than this There's got to be more to everything I thought exists

We seek resolution. We want resolution. We need to always be ready to resolve the challenges in our relationships…as ones needing or giving forgiveness…AND as ones making or receiving restoration…AND as ones accepting and ‘overcoming’ consequences.

Relationships are NOT easy…but they ARE WORTH our time and work!!

INVITATION:

Salvation

Repentance

Reconciliation

Matthew 3:8 CSB

Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance.

Luke 19:5–8 CSB

When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down because today it is necessary for me to stay at your house.” So he quickly came down and welcomed him joyfully. All who saw it began to complain, “He’s gone to stay with a sinful man.” But Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, I’ll give half of my possessions to the poor, Lord. And if I have extorted anything from anyone, I’ll pay back four times as much.”

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