Belonging: Session 1

Introduction

Well, afternoon (evening)! It feels so good to be back here with you guys, worshiping…digging into God’s Word! There’s just something about this place…I just love this place so much. I love coming to you guys…I love getting to know you, spending time with you. Thank you so much for how you welcome us…make us feel a part of your family.

Listen, if you have your Bible, and I hope that you do, we’re gonna be flipping around quite a bit over the next couple of days as we look at the idea of the church. Our Bible conference this year, its called “Love Your Church.” It’s based on a book that a pastor in the States wrote…and he gives 8 ideas on what it means to love your church.

I’m not gonna lie, I have a motive tonight…With this study, I want people to love Jesus…and listen, I want people to love His church, equally as much…to know how to love their church. You see, for many…the church, they don’t see it as a necessary means to having a relationship with Jesus…but I’d beg to differ that its crucial in our lives as believers…I mean, it is after all, the thing that Jesus died for…it’s what He’s coming back for. It’s the thing He, Himself gave us in conjunction with His Spirit, as Ephesians 4 shows us, to grow us closer to Himself.

The problem with many Christians today, its not that they don’t see church as a necessity…it’s that they fail to prioritize the church properly. You see, from the moment we’re born…we’re raised to think Jesus, family, church…right? But I’d argue that’s not what Jesus taught us…He taught us to forsake all (metaphorically) and follow Him. Listen, I’m not saying don’t love your family…I’m not saying don’t prioritize them or care for them. We have responsibilities to those God’s placed around us…but our responsibilities to them never come before our responsibility to what God’s called us to…and as a believer, we’re called to a new family with the purposes of advancing God’s kingdom (which includes your family). You see, if we’re actively involved in what God’s called us too, we’ll take our family with us…therefore, the church and family, it really becomes one.

And so listen, that’s our purpose over the next couple of days…its to show you, what does the Bible say about loving our church family? What are we called to as believers concerning our church?

But listen, for people to love Jesus and love His church…for people to know how to love their church…I think it starts with believers understanding what their church is. The church, its made up of two things…People and Mission.

First, the church…its made of people who’ve been redeemed and adopted by Christ Jesus. When it comes to loving our church, this is so important for us to remember…the church isn’t a building…the church isn’t a group of perfect people who have it all together…its people saved by grace. It’s people who once walked in the ways of the world according to Ephesians 2…people who still struggle with the flesh even as believers today…it’s a group of imperfect people being sanctified together for the purposes of bringing Jesus glory. We have to know this…because it helps us to live in grace as we interact with the people God’s called us. The people in your church, they’re gonna hurt you at times…they’re gonna make you mad…you’re gonna disagree with them…but if you live in the core gospel truth that we’re all sinners saved by grace, it’ll make it much easier to love your church family. Guys, the reality is…its impossible to love in this world today without experiencing hurt. Don’t let the sin that consumes everything keep you from the thing God called you to and the thing God deemed good for you. The people here, they’re worth your time…they’re worth your investment…they’re worth your love.

The second thing…the church, it has one mission…to gather together for the glory of Christ. That’s it…we don’t gather for anything else other than to bring glory to Christ. We recognize what He’s done in our life…we’ve been changed by the message of good news…we know His Word…and because we love Him, we wanna glorify Him together. And listen, that’s what these 8 sessions are all about…what does it mean…how do we glorify Him together as we gather together with the people He’s called us to? Which brings us to our first session…belonging. We’re called to belong to one another in our church family.

Belonging:

Genesis chapter 1, it talks about man being made in God’s image, right? Genesis 1:26, it says that God made man in His image. In fact, we see the use of plural language there. It says, “Let US make them in OUR image.” It’s the trinity of God we’re seeing here. We’re made in the image of the Triune God. And listen, concerning this Triune God, it’s important for us to understand that God, He’s a relational God. In His relationship with Himself…through the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit…He has everything He needs, right? His relationship, its complete and its what brings Him glory and fulfillment. We’re created in that image…made for that same kind of relationship…fulfilling and satisfying relationships.

I mean think about everything in our world today…TV shows…social media…a lot of our day-to-day, its centered around community. Even unbelievers, they seek, more than anything, community. But listen, the problem, its that because of sin, everything apart from Christ, those communities…they’ll never build you up closer to Christ…and therefore, they’ll never truly be satisfying or bring you real joy.

As believers today, we have to understand that God, in giving us new life, He’s also given us new community…godly community. Sin might break our fellowship with God and other people, but Jesus, He gives us the ability to be restored to Him and to each other. And listen guys, because of that primary gospel truth, we’re called to commit to one another in our church family. These are the people God’s given you upon giving you new life…these are the people God’s called you to. We belong to one another by worshiping together, in corporate worship…by coming together in small groups, discipling one another…serving one another with each other’s physical and spiritual needs, right?

But listen, if we’re ever gonna understand this idea of belonging within the church, we have to understand the church from Jesus’s perspective. Church isn’t about preference or an experience…its not about your wants or your needs…its about finding a body that’s invested in gospel-centered community…who joyfully serve together to advance Jesus’s mission.

As believers, we should look upon our church, the people God’s brought us to, and realize the great privilege He’s given us. It’s a privilege to be counted among God’s people…it’s a privilege to gather with the people of God. That’s why its called a church…the word church, it means to gather or to assemble. And guys, Jesus, He died for the church…the only way to live a life honoring to Christ as a believer, its to live our relationship with Him in a very visible way with other believers in the church. That’s why its so crucial to our relationship with Him for us to commit to a local church…to become active in that church, serve alongside of the people there…because it’s our privilege and its our blessing and its our calling.

And so, with all that being said, how do we do a better job belonging in the church God’s called us to?

If you have your Bibles, open ‘em up with me to Ephesians chapter 2 and 3. We’re not gonna read it all, for the sake of time…but I do want you to have it open…I do want you to go back at some point and read these passages on your own. Paul, in this letter, he was addressing some issues in the church at Ephesus…and in doing so, he was showing them this call to belong to one another in the church. This letter, its all about the church.

If you’ve read the letter, chapter one it describes the church as the body of Christ, with Christ being the head. Chapter two, it reminds believers of their alienation from God and His people…how Jesus reconciled them all together. Chapter three, Paul prays for God to be glorified “in the church.” Chapter 4, it’s all about the unity of the church. Chapter 5, it shows us that Christ so loved the church [His bride] that He gave Himself for her. Chapter 6, we see the mission of the church through the armor of God. This letter, its all about the church…what we’re called to together as God’s people.

But listen, as we come to chapter 2, especially in verses 18 through 22…we see Paul use some images here to describe the church…to show them what the church’s identity is. He says things like “fellow citizens, members of the household of God, stones in God’s temple.” He shows ‘em that their identity, together, its rooted in…its founded in Christ, who’s the cornerstone. They’re one in Christ Jesus. That’s the point here. They belong together because Christ made it possible and Christ deemed it so.

But listen, as you start to move into chapter 3, Paul begins to show the Ephesian church the purpose of the church…to glorify God by making Him known. We do that through the church…that’s his purpose in writing this, to show us that. We do that by uniting together in Christ. We give this great picture of redemption to a watching world…Which is why I want us to read Ephesians chapter 3, verses 14 through 19 together. This is Paul’s prayer here…but I want you to pay attention to the details here…what he’s saying about the church. Let’s read it:

Ephesians 3:14-19:

“14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family[a] in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Paul’s showing his reader here that God, He’s glorified in the church…He’s glorified when we come together as the Church…He’s glorified when we find a sense of belonging and satisfaction and joy in the relationships He’s restored for us…the people He’s brought us to. That’s how He’s glorified.

And listen, I get it…you’ve heard this before…I’m sure Pastor Gomez [Pastor Steven] has said this many times, right? But guys, here’s the dangers of not grasping what I’m saying here…here’s the reason its such a big deal throughout the New Testament. Our faith will falter without godly relationships to hold us accountable and push us closer to Christ. That’s what Ephesians 4 is all about. We need each other, we need each other to help us see our blind spots. Without the church, we become consumed by sin and instead of growing in righteousness, being conformed into the image of the Son, we become consumed by sin and we grow in our selfishness, thinking we got this on our own…that we’re somehow capable of this Christian life alone…which dear friend, that’s no different than those that hold to the Catholic faith. It’s about works and you completely bypass the grace of God…you completely bypass the person and work of Christ…and if that’s you…if that’s you’re view of the Church, it might just mean you “love a Jesus you don’t know very well!” Because Jesus told us “if we love Him, He told us to obey His commandments.” Half of the New Testament, its about the church and what He’s called us to in this community. We can’t walk with Christ, minus the church. And if all you do is show up on Sunday morning, or if all you do is come and consume…you’re missing out on what the church was intended to be in your life…you’re robbing yourself of the joys Jesus has for you.

And so, real quickly…if you’re taking notes…here’s how we can belong more to our church.

Number 1, we have to elevate our concept of the church…this is a group of people, saved by grace like us…who Jesus gifted to us to grow us.

Number 2, we have to identify ourselves first and foremost with the people in our church. This is your new family…this is who you belong to…this is who you’re most responsible for…who you’ll give an account for when you stand before Jesus.

Number 3, we have to make our church life THE priority above everything else…meaning, its not just about Sunday mornings…its about the people who are apart of this church. You spend your time and your resources and your energy and your talents, first and foremost, taking care of the people you’ve been gifted.

Number 4, we have to remember it’s a privilege to belong to a local family of faith and it’s a privilege to be apart of an even larger universal church. Again, this is a blessing of God…a blessing that I think goes all the way back to Genesis chapter 12 and God’s promise to Abram. It’s a privilege to be included in this family…we can’t lose sight of that.

And then number 5, we have to pray for our church daily…we have to pray for the people, pray for the sin, pray for the mission, pray for the building of one another up…we have to petition God to move in our lives among our church family. I believe what you pray for the most, its where your heart’s at, right?

Guys, we show that we love our church, we love the community God’s given us, by first and foremost, belonging to one another. But through that sense of belonging, things come out of us (fruit, works)…which is what we’re gonna talk about next with Johnny.

But before we do that, let me pray with you!