We Gather Together. Galatians 6:1-10, Acts 2:42-47

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1 Galatians 6:1-10, Acts 2:42-47 Today we continue on our journey on the path of Discipleship. We ve been asking ourselves: What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. The last message emphasized the importance of committing ourselves to the discipline of prayer and study of the Scriptures. I was encouraged and blessed that a number of you indicated you will be praying daily for the ministry of our church, for the pastors, the staff, and our many outreaches and ministries. I invite others to join in this important prayer effort. God can accomplish great things through us if we truly trust him and seek the Lord s guidance. Today we look at the priority of presence. That as people of faith, we need each other, we need to gather together for support, encouragement, and spiritual accountability. Well, the baseball season is over and congratulations to the San Francisco Giants. Maybe one of these years the Phillies will get back there. Throughout the years, the Phillies have sought to promote support of the teams through various slogans In 2011, it was simply Unsinkable. During the 2008 playoffs it was the phrase that caught on: Why can t us? (not the best grammar). In 1964, the year of the infamous collapse, the title Win, Phillies, Win eventually had people asking When, Phillies, When? There was one particular slogan which I feel is especially relevant to us as people who gather as Christ s disciples: It only happens when you re here. That was the 1986 Phillies slogan that emphasized the impact of being present to support the team. For us in the Christian community it represents a very important principle: It only happens when you re here the priority of presence. When we join the church, one of the things we commit ourselves to: is supporting the church with our presence. To be consistent and faithful in our participation in the life of the church is essential for the health of any church. The church needs you and as a disciple of Jesus Christ, you need the church. It is here that we receive mutual support, fellowship, and caring. It is here that can offer our worship together as the body of Christ. It is here we can receive inspiration and encouragement. Page 1 of 5

2 As we describe ourselves in our mission statement We are a community of faith. That s been an emphasis of First UMC for the past 200 years. On this All Saints Sunday, we can remember so many persons who were an example of Christ s love to us. Persons who were committed to the church, sharing in the family of God and serving others. And when you think about it, being a community of faith is what we have been since the early days of the church. Acts 2 describes the church this way: They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home, and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having the goodwill of the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. What a powerful description of the church that s what we are all about seeking to do the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ, but realizing we cannot do it alone. We need each other. A couple quotes from A Disciple s Path from our Soup and Study: No one walks the discipleship pathway alone. There is no such thing as solitary Christianity. From John Wesley: Holy solitaries is a phrase no more consistent with the gospel than holy adulterers. The gospel of Christ knows of no religion, but social; no holiness but social holiness. The point is clear: We need each other to sustain our Christian walk, to build each other up, to hold each other accountable. We come together to hold each other up, to pray for one another, and to work together to accomplish Christ s mission. It is this realization that must have caused the writer of Hebrews to give this admonition: Let us not give up meeting together as is the habit of some, but let us encourage one another, and all the more, as you see the Day approaching. Our faithful participation in the community of faith is an encouragement to our faith, and an encouragement to others. With all the subtle and some not so subtle influences that attack us daily Page 2 of 5

3 in the world, we need this place of refuge, so stay strong in our faith. It is the fellowship that we share as we gather together that gives the strength. On one of my first Sundays here I talked about the Chinese bamboo tree and its ability to grow so tall because of its deep roots. But I want you to think about another tree this morning (evening). I m talking about the redwood tree. You know that root system of most trees is as wide and deep as the leaf line is wide and high. But not so with the redwood. The redwood has roots that spread out in all directions, but they are not very deep. And this creates a problem for any redwood that stands alone when a storm comes, it can be easily blown over, because the lack of deep roots gives it no stability. What makes the difference for the redwood is when several redwoods grown together. Their root structures intertwine with each other and help support the whole group of trees. Though weak standing alone, together they grow quite strong and tall. In this community of faith, we need the gifts and graces of each disciple, to truly be a community of faith. Each person a member of Christ s body offering their unique gifts. But it only happens when you re here. Let us never underestimate the priority of presence. When we gather together, we are so much stronger than when we isolate ourselves from the community. Obviously a big part of this picture, is our gathering together for worship Sunday after Sunday; to be supported in our faith by our brothers and sisters in Christ, to be inspired by the music, to be fed by the Word, and to experience God s grace at the communion table. But the book, A Disciple s Path reminds us of another essential part of the Priority of Presence. Not only do we need to gather in worship together, we also need to find that place of a smaller group experience where we can grow in our faith. A place where we can be challenged in our discipleship, a place where we can support and pray for one another personally, a place where we can learn more deeply about our faith and how to serve the Lord. The apostle Paul expressed the importance of this community life as he writes to the Galatian church. We pick up his admonitions and instructions in Galatians, Page 3 of 5

4 chapter 6. He talks about accountability when he speaks of restoring a brother or sister in a spirit of gentleness. He talks about caring for one another when he says, Bear one another s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. Yes, whenever we have the opportunity, Paul declares, let us work for the good of all, and especially for the family of faith. You are part of that community of faith. Look for those places where you can connect with others in the church to deepen your faith. We have so many wonderful opportunities for Christian education, for spiritual growth and discipleship. There are Sunday School classes, Bible studies, topical studies, support groups, fellowship groups. Just about any day of the week, something is offered to guide you in your spiritual journey. I want you to pray about which opportunity will help you the most right now in our walk as a disciple. Look for the group that may best be suited to your needs right now and take the steps necessary to get connected. My prayer is that you will seek it out and discover it as a place of growth in your faith. I want to close with the story about is a young minister who had gone to his very first church and he was full of enthusiasm and excitement. When he got there, he was quite disappointed and disillusioned because the services were so poorly attended, the spiritual life was at an all-time low. This pastor decided to call from house to house trying to renew interest, but a number of people said to him, that the church was so dead, that they did care to attend. And so the pastor discussed the situation with his church leaders and then he announced that since the church was considered dead, he would conduct a funeral for the church the following Sunday. Well, as you might expect, the church was very crowded that Sunday. And how surprised the members were when they entered the sanctuary and up in front of the pulpit was a coffin. As the worship service proceeded, the minister gave a eulogy for the church. He spoke of how much the church had accomplished in the past, and he expressed great sorrow over its untimely death. And then he invited the congregation to come forward to the coffin and view the corpse. One by one, the people came forward and looked into the casket. And one by one, each was amazed to see his or her own face reflected from a mirror in the bottom of the casket. Many were shocked, some were offended, but eventually each Page 4 of 5

5 member began to realize that it was his own indifference that had caused the church s death. Well, I decided not to bring a coffin into the sanctuary as a visual aid. Actually I didn t need to, for our church is very much alive, and our church has so much life to offer. But this story reminds us of the importance of each person being present, being the church alive for Jesus Christ, being a disciple that sees the need for Christian community, and looking for ways to strengthen community life. As we gather for worship and fellowship this morning, I hope that you can sense an ever deeper appreciation of why it is so important to gather together. To see how much we need each other in the family of God. To know that we are the body of Christ. We express that so powerfully every time we gather at the Lord s table. The priority of presence. You make a difference. Your commitment to Jesus Christ as his disciple. Your faithfulness in the life of the church that we would truly be a community of faith sharing the love of Jesus Christ. Remember, it only happens when you re here! Page 5 of 5