We are beginning a new series on “Becoming Like Family” as our online community begin to share the daily challenges with friends, and we begin to gather our larger community together.

Why would we bother?  One survey found that 59% of 18-29 year old Americans with a Christian background dropped out of church.  Four-in-ten American young adults with a Christian background (43%) believe going to church and having Christian friends is optional.

Source

It’s clear that not everyone feels it’s essential, and with our use of technology to form a new church, you might think we mean to simply form an “online” church where no one ever meets in person.  But we believe it’s essential.  We believe church is essential, but to be clear, we are talking about a community of people.

  • We’re not saying going to a building is essential
  • We’re not saying attending a particular kind of worship service with particular kinds of music is essential

Those might be good things.  But they are things that churches do, not what makes them a church in the first place.

We want to ensure our church community will have five main characteristics.  The first was learning common things about discipleship, and we explored that last week.  The second, this week’s focus, is to be spending time in community together.

Some churches do this at bake sales, ham suppers, and such. For us, it will happen in groups that meet regularly to discuss how they’re growing as followers of Jesus.  We’ll grow and learn together.  Yes, we’ll be learning focused, but we’re also supposed to be a functioning community, a fellowship, in both small groups, and as a large group.

Perhaps you’ve heard the saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.”  Well, it takes a church to raise a follower of Jesus.

Question: Why do you think people might avoid joining a church today?  Have you been part of a church before?  Why or why not?

Reminder: The Following Jesus course in Whitby starts tomorrow – visit https://www.redeemthecommute.com/events/following-jesus-course-whitby-2013-11-05/

Reminder: Last week we saw the importance of reading the Bible together in sync, so our new daily bible readings start today in our mobile app and web site.

Read the Bible in Sync Today

Ryan Sim - October 10, 2013

Thursday - Act On It - Partners To Friends

This week we’ve been exploring the story of Levi meeting Jesus, and having a big party with his former partners in crime, now his friends. Jesus’s transformative effect brings Levi’s colleagues into a new friendship with Levi first, then that friendship brings his friends into contact with Jesus. It’s no different today, this is very reason we held an outdoor movie night. We brought a bunch of people together over a great feast of popcorn. Our online users met one another, and made some new friends. This app and web site is meant to be more than a transaction, more than something to watch/listen to. It’s meant to bring us into community. It’s meant to be made up of real people, in real community with one another. Obviously movie nights and apps are large scale. But it depends on the small scale. It depends on people like you. You can be a Levi. At parties, people mingle and meet, and often discover things in common. So, have some people over to dinner, see what happens. It doesn’t have to be fancy. Or maybe have a hockey watching party, a playdate, a block party, whatever your scene is. Through that kind of party, I hope you and some people you know and work with, or have helped, will become friends, and friends can talk about what really matters. When followers of Jesus are present in the room and real deep things of life come up, I think that’s when Jesus enters the conversation, just like at Levi’s table. When he throws a great feast, his partners in crime learn the money grubbing tax collector actually isn’t driven by money anymore, but now he’s driven by love for Jesus, which makes him love them. Imagine the transformative effect on their lives. More than that, they just met a Jewish rabbi who will actually eat and drink with them, get to know them, love them, despite the risks, rather than standing outside and shaking his head. So, go and show your neighbours the same! Learn their names, stories, needs, and then become friends. Challenge: Plan a party, big or small! Please tell me the story, I’d love to hear how it goes.

Related Topics: Colleagues, Friends, Parties | More Messages from Ryan Sim | Download Audio

From Series: "Won't You Be My Neighbour?"

Discuss

More Messages From Ryan Sim...

Powered by Series Engine