Joining God’s People
Hot take…you cannot follow God by yourself. We like to think we can do everything by ourselves. But we’re wrong. We can’t be Christians on our own. Somewhere along the way, we made Christianity an “individual sport,” but that idea is completely foreign to the scriptures. God always meant for this to be something we do together.
Have you ever been on a team? Maybe you played some hardcore elementary basketball. Or maybe you currently play on some legit soccer club. Maybe you’re not the athletic type but you’re in band, or orchestra, or once were on a dance team. Regardless, I trust you’re familiar enough with the concept.
What makes a good team? You might say it’s when you have the most skilled people together. Possibly. But there have been plenty of teams with great talent that just couldn’t make it work. There’s more to it. It’s the intangibles that often matter the most. Work ethic, commitment, relationships - not just skill but the right skills that fit together just the right way. Five amazing point guards aren’t going to do a team much good…
The best teams don’t always have the “best” players. The best teams are committed to each other and to getting along. They don’t compete with each other but for each other. They show up, every time; late nights or early mornings, they’ll be there.
This is what Jesus had in mind when he envisioned the Church*. That’s why he talked so much about unity, and subsequently love and forgiveness. Because God is building a team too. A new kind of people, working together to build God’s Kingdom. The Church is God’s team.
There are no tryouts for this team, anyone can join! But this isn’t a just-for-kicks pickup league, we’re playing for keeps. You might not be very good to start, but God makes you good. Likewise, your teammates aren’t going to be perfect, quite the contrary. Teams can get real messy and unfortunately God’s team is no exception. Everyone is going to mess up at one point or another, failing each other both on and off the “court.”
Nevertheless, there’s something really special about this team. This team is more than a team, it’s a family. Because we’ve experienced God’s profound forgiveness and love, we can offer that profound forgiveness and love to each other. What could be stronger? God fits us together meticulously, giving us each a job we’re designed to do. And so we get all the things everybody really wants and needs in this world: acceptance, love, and purpose. We are strong together, and together we become God’s presence on this earth, and with his Spirit living in and among us, we get to do the kinds of things only he can do.
“He’s using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he’s using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.”Ephesians 2:19-22 MSG
That’s the calling. That’s the invitation. Following God never has been and never will be an individual sport. In all its messiness and in all its glory, we were made to be a team. And only together can we do the things God is calling us to do. Today we’ll look at what this team is like and how God wants us to play our part!
- What’s been your experience with “church” so far and how do you feel about it?
- What’s your response to the idea that you can’t be Christian alone?
Let’s first take a look at our earliest picture of what the Church looked like…
- How would you describe this church in your own words?
- What were they devoted to? What does it look like to be devoted to each of those things?
- Are you devoted to any of those things yet?
- Just like a team, God wants each of us to play a part. Have you ever thought about what part you could play?
- Share what “gifts” you see in each other and how God could use them to build up the community of believers.
- What’s he saying here?
- How can we push each other towards love and good deeds?
- Why do we sometimes “give up meeting together”? Why is it important not to and how can you personally protect against that?
This is right before Jesus went back to heaven.
- What did he tell us he wants us to do?
- How can the church accomplish this together better than separately?
- Have you been contributing to this goal?
- How can you?
- What does unity mean and what does it look like practically?
- Why do you think unity is such a big deal to God? How might disunity negatively impact what God is trying to do through his people?
- What would it look like to make every effort to keep unity between us?
- Are you at peace with all other Jesus followers? If not, what’s a step you can take to make peace?
- In what ways is what you’ve seen today different than your experience or idea of church?
- Based on the scriptures we looked at, how would you describe what God wants the church to be like?
Spend time with God praying and reflecting on these questions, write out your thoughts and answers to discuss next week.
- If everyone was like me, what would the church look like? (Think about these like how often you show up, how much you participate, how much you talk to others or include others, what your attitude is like while you’re there, how much you get along with others…this is not intended to make everyone feel guity but rather to evaluate how we’re doing as a part of a team and what it would look like to make some improvements)
- What’s a gift or skill God has given you that you could bless the community with? What would it look like for you to use that?
- How can you be an encouragement to believers around you? What are some practical things you could start doing now?
- Do you see yourself as a peacemaker both between yourself and others and between other people when you’re involved? How can you live this out?
- After this lesson, what do you feel God calling you to do or change?