A People of a Common Need #2

Text: Philippians 3:1-9

"The people who have become a community because they have been called out by God through the love of Jesus Christ!" As we stated last week this is truly a definition that God has for His church. We have become part of the church not by choosing to be part of it but by being chosen! (John 14:6)
I just want to read a couple of passages before beginning this morning:
Luke 18:9-14, 15:18-24

Now we began last week by looking somewhat at the fact that the church needs to be that community of grace that seasons the lost & dying world and enable it to taste the goodness of the Lord and say with us how good God really is!
To be that community however, we need to be a group of people that are not built on any possible human division. Remember that any group that requires one or many human qualities or efforts also results in a human made division! Paul said however that we are to be one, many but one! In fact, Paul says each of us in the church needs to be able to look at everyone else and say to them you belong just the same as the rest of us! It doesn't matter if you can do things as good as others, if you're as smart as others or more polished. If you are in this community you belong. When your seat is empty your place will be missed!

How can we get to that point?
This is a challenge. In a world where we usually are grouped with people who either think like us, act like us, or have dreams like us, how can we in the church become one without being clones of each other?
Now, we are going to get to what is supposed to be the heart of our community!
As Jesus moved closer & closer to his death- you will find him speaking more and more about that coming death and what that death was designed to do!
I want you this morning to raise your hands if you have an idea to what the answer might be to my question. Now, your answer may be correct, but I'm looking for a particular one.
Who did Jesus die for?
Answer: Sinners! (Matthew 9:13, 1 Tim.1:15)

Now, what in the world does this have to do with our community?
Plenty! In fact, the only way we can be the effective body of Christ is if we understand this common need:
the need for grace!
As I mentioned AA last week as being a place where it doesn't matter what human qualifications you bring to the table, I also want to point out something else about that community:
they never tell a struggler to come back when they've finally defeated the bottle!
While AA is a struggle with the bottle, can the church do any less when so many of us are struggling with sin?
Here is the problem that the church can seem to forget:
if our community is not built on being a people with a common need for grace, we can easily forget what we are supposed to be really about!
Have you ever wondered how Jesus could talk to a woman who had just been caught in the very act of adultery?
How could he allow a prostitute to touch him so freely?
Why did he feel comfortable in the presence of those who were known drunkards and so forth?
I am convinced that if Jesus were alive today, he would be caught talking to homosexuals, dancers in night clubs and many others that proper society might find shameful! How could he?
But, when you get to know Jesus a little bit more. Maybe it's better to say when you begin to truly experience for yourself this side of Jesus, instead of sitting & wondering why he does it, you sit in wonder at the fact that he does it!
When we are not built on the fact that Christ died for sinners of whom I belong to, but are now the church of those who are redeemed but we don't know what we've been redeemed from something happens to us!
To keep our perspective as a religious group and that we are spiritual two things emerge:

it becomes clear what sins are not welcome!
We are sure glad that God forgives our sins but we are also glad we are not guilty of certain sins! 'Lord I am thankful you forgive me of this inability to let go of my anger and I am glad you have kept me from drug use, being drunk & stealing a car'

As stated earlier we forget what we are supposed to be doing!
Instead of bringing the lost the gospel, we are in charge of promoting our self-made identity! The community becomes about us! Instead of allowing ourselves to be stretched so others may experience our awesome God, everything becomes how does our work satisfy us? We'll talk about this later..
Please turn in your Bibles to Philippians 3! Now, the first thing we need to remember always (and this will help us in our relationship with God by the way) is that none of us have become a member of this community based on any 'human' effort, quality etc.
Vs.1-3- listen closely to Paul's opening remarks here! All brothers are to find their rejoicing in the Lord! We worship in spirit, we rejoice in Christ Jesus and we do not boast in the flesh! Now, this is important as we'll try to elaborate on:
your rejoicing in Jesus is directly proportionate to how little we boast in our own ability! Remember Jesus began his public ministry describing this truth:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit" (Matt.5:3) None of us are here because we have accomplished something. (Family, intelligence, work etc)
Vs.4-6- to prove it Paul says I tried it the other way! I tried finding my place in the kingdom of God the old fashion way: by earning it.
I had more than anyone else. I thought I had it all! Compared to me all others were second-class.
Vs.7- but I gave up all these things. In fact I consider them all useless! Why?
I encountered Jesus Christ the way he should be encountered and something changed with the way I look at things!
Vs.8,9- what was it Paul?
When I hold on to the things about me and the things I do I only find something worth very little to when I lean on Jesus! You see, when I lean on Jesus instead of searching for my own righteousness, I find his which is far more pleasing!
Paul says, to find pure joy in the Christian community, releasing a reliance on human qualities, and renouncing all and simply leaning on Christ the solid rock brings it to you!
Isa.64:6, Romans 3:10,11!
Okay, so none of us can be here because of our own ability. In fact, if we are honest we are only in this community because we haven't got it all right all the time. We haven't developed a perfect model for living in any area of life! What does that bring us to?
What happens when we realize this?
1 Timothy 1:12-17! We become a very dependant/helpless but grateful person!

We become very thankful for being a part of the community! We are thankful that God the Father has welcomed someone like me around the table! Instead of declaring it our right to enter this room and engage in routine, we are amazed that we of all people have been invited and we engage in generous praise!
Matt.20:1-16- even if we've been here since the first hour, we don't grumble about the pay, but rejoice that we along with the 11th hours got the same! You know a Pharisee would never have eaten the showbread that belonged to the priest. He would never have committed adultery with another man's wife. He never would have had that man killed to cover up his sin. He also wouldn't have been the man after God's own heart!

We become a people who can share this grace with others in all areas!
Luke 7:36-50- we don't begrudge someone who is 'worse' than us being welcomed at the feet of Jesus! If I am allowed to be there I am happy that you are too! 2 Samuel 9:1-13- Mephibosheth!
Remember, the Christ of the Bible convicts us all that we are all sinners before the eyes of God and if one can be welcomed praise God we all can be welcomed. It's time to get back to the truth of the song that we teach our children "red, yellow, black & white we are all precious in God's sight"!
Matthew 18:21-35- we have no problem giving that grace when we are sinned against. How can I hold something against someone when God hasn’t held it against me?
What right do I have to become less of a brother or sister to you when I don't become less of a son to the Father?
When that son came walking home and the father saw that unmistakeable swagger, how his eyes lit up at the thought of a son returning. God, give me eyes that light up when my brother returns! We have no problem remembering what we are about! We are about sinners who have been redeemed by grace. Not about whether or not someone's kids act up, not about whether or not someone puts in the hours I do, not about how one dresses, sings, or looks. We are about the lostness & hurtfulness about sin & the search for us by Jesus!

We will help out of love our brother who falls! Gal.6:1-5. We know where he is traveling because we have traveled there ourselves. We want them to taste the Lord again.

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