Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro:

Options

I was at a shopping center, Cheryl was exercising her spiritual gift - shopping...

Personalization

Hold book up, Uncomfortable (Slide Please) and talk about inspiration.

So over the next several weeks I want us to take the Bible and hold it up to our community.

I want to ask some awkward questions some uncomfortable questions.

Question one, what would your dream church look like?

Convenience

Repent

Baptism

Share

Give = Akward

Me - My dream church…

Weekend services are EPIC!!!

They last anywhere from 8 to 10 hours, depending on how the God/Spirit is moving.

At least 100 people ask Jesus to be the forgiver of their sins and the leader of their lives at every service.

We add at least 3,000 new covenant members a month.

Speaking of covenant members, everyone in our church gave all their money to the poor.

Brevard and surrounding cities have zero homeless or hungry people thanks to our congregation’s on-site food pantry and homeless shelter.

(Most of our members became homeless after giving all their money to the poor - they simply bunk at the shelter).

We have prayer teams that intercedes 24 hours a day for the church and for one another.

They don’t eat.

They don’t sleep.

They just pray!

Our pastors and directors are amazing.

Their person lives are exemplary.

They are never hypocritical, pray and read the scriptures 10 hours daily and personally disciple every person in our church.

They have all memorized the entire Bible, not only in English, but also in the 3 foreign language.

All staff members have been marries at least 20 years.

They have an average of 23 children.

Most are adopted.

Our family ministries are outstanding.

Kids meet anywhere from 4 to 5 hours, most of it in deep Bible study with the occasional Coptic worship chant.

The High Schools just got back from a 6 week mission trip to Afghanistan.

I didn’t talk about the worship and singing.

Wow, it is amazing.

It’s both load and soft.

We would always do more fast songs and slow songs.

All songs would flow quickly into each other and have long periods in between for reflection.

More repetition of songs so they can be learned and meditated upon and less repetition of songs because it gets boring signing the same songs.

It’s hard to explain you are just going to have to experience it.

We - America has become a culture of consumerism.

Fast food, drive ups, Netflix…

We - America has become a culture of consumerism.

Fast food, drive ups, Netflix…

We - America has become a culture of consumerism.

Fast food, drive ups, Netflix…

As consumers we desire -

Options

Personalization

Convenience

Ill - Dad and whatchamycallits - Peace’s Grocery.

Always having to have options, personalization and convenience leads to cronic dissatisfaction.

It the grass is greener mindset.

If we are not careful this can crept into our church experience.

We enter into a community of Christ-followers with certain expectations and the minute they are not met we will find another group of Christians.

The point of this message series is to debunk and destroy the toxic consumerist approach.

It is not healthy.

If we are not careful this can crept into our church experience.

Ill - Man on deserted island with three huts.

House, church, my old church.

What We Want Most Of The Time Is Not What We Need

That is why one of our values here at BCC is -

SERVING OTHERS (show value slide)

We are called to be spiritual contributors, not spiritual consumers.

We believe the church does not exist for us; we are the church and we exist for the world.

Christian community is not about going to get.

It’s about gathering to give.

That needs to tip in our lives.

As you check out church you are not going to really experience dynamic community until you get out of your comfort zone and make next moves that move you into a more dynamic relationship with Jesus Christ.

If I had never joined a church till I had found one that was perfect, I should never have joined one at all; and the moment I did join it, if I had found one, I should have spoiled it, for it would not have been a perfect church after I had become a member of it.

Still, imperfect as it is, it is the dearest place on earth to us. - Charles Spurgeon

God - So real authentic community is not about my dream church it is about God’s destiny.

It seems to me that God uses the discomfort and awkwardness for me to get to know Him and people better.

When I study the life or Jesus his life was anything but comfortable.

So here is what I know, the more comfortable I become the less I’m like Jesus and the more I feel at home in a place that is not my home.

The more uncomfortable I become the more I’m like Jesus and the more I realize my hope of an eternal home.

My mindset and attitude shifts from play now pay later to pay now play later.

When I follow Jesus I do things that require me to depend on him and His spirit.

Jesus first followers also struggled with these misconceptions.

BACKGROUND

John 14:16

The Holy Spirit is no mere shoulder for us to cry on but the sustainer of our faith and courage in the darkest of times.

The Comforter comes alongside us to give us strength and courage as we follow Jesus in a place this is not our home.

Two Misconceptions About Christian Community

Fit, Foundation, Focus

McCracken, Brett.

Uncomfortable: The Awkward and Essential Challenge of Christian Community (p.

24).

Crossway.

Kindle Edition.

What is your dream church?

We all have one, and there’s a good chance the church you’re in now doesn’t check all the boxes on your list.

This is the focus of our new four week series “Uncomfortable”—based on McCracken’s book.

What are we to make of the fact that following Jesus often leads us into uncomfortable and awkward situations?

What does the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus tell us about embracing the challenge of living in Christian community?

Misconception #1: Christian Community Is Going To Meet All My Preferences

1 Peter

Ex: Peter, while writing to various churches that are experiencing forms of persecution, shares what it means to be the chosen people of God.

Just like Jesus was “the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him” (v.