The Privilege of We: Series Summary

Throughout the summer of 2015 we explored our life in the Gospel as the people of God- together. The intent of the series was to learn about where community comes from and the beauty of what it is meant to be. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer said in his book Life Together, “It is easily forgotten that the fellowship of Christian brethren is a gift of grace, a gift of the Kingdom of God that any day may be taken from us. 

Therefore, let him who until now has had the privilege of living a common Christian life with other Christians praise God’s grace from the bottom on his heart. Let him thank God on his knees and declare: It is grace, nothing but God’s grace, that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brethren." Each week, is an exploration into a different aspect of this privileged life that we are allowed to share with others.

"Privileged to Temple" - 1 Peter 2:4-5 (The Privilege of 'We')

As the last week and final sermon in our summer series, we will end our exploration of biblical community with Peter's metaphor in 1 Peter 2. As the people of God, we are living stones who are being built up as a spiritual house. In order to fully grasp Peter's metaphor, we will take a brief journey back into the Old Testament to look at the form and function of the first spiritual house, Solomon's temple. Then, with that fresh in our minds, we will dive into some of the practical implications of our privilege to be stacked together as the temple of the Living God.

"Privileged to Bear" - Galatians 6:1-5 (The Privilege of 'We')

This Sunday we’ll explore exactly what Paul is referring to in his writings to the Church at Galatia when he instructs them to “bear one another’s burdens” and what this means for us each day. While none of us are likely looking for more of a burden then we already carry in this life, I think we’ll see that this instruction, when carried out in the spirit with which the Lord intends, is truly a life-giving and life-changing privilege.

"Privileged to Confess" - James 5:13-18 (The Privilege of 'We')

This week we will be covering one of the most counter-intuitive privileges of community: confession. In addition to our confession of sins to Jesus for forgiveness, James 5 calls us to confess our sins to one another for our healing. What sounds like a most terrifying burden is actually the source of countless blessings for our souls. We will explore how the beauty of confession to one another can draw us into a deeper communion with sinners turned saints. 

"Privileged to Love" - Luke 10:25-37 (The Privilege of 'We')

At the heart of Jesus' prayer for his church is a unity grounded in love. We are privileged to love another just as the Father has loved us in Jesus.

"Privileged for Friendship" - 2 Samuel 23:8-17 (The Privilege of 'We')

Although technology and activity abound, it seems as though the loneliness and disconnection of our culture is growing. Even among the family of God, more and more people feel the weight of being all alone. This week will be covering the theme of friendship by taking a look at a scene in the life of David and his mighty men. As we learn more about the details and adventures of David's closest friends, we catch a glimpse of what friendship can be in a real and tangible way. We are privileged for friendship through the friendship of Christ.

"Privileged to Preach" - Ephesians 4:15-21 (The Privilege of 'We')

After a couple of introductory weeks, we are going to be getting specific and practical about our life in community together. This week, we will be discussing our privilege to "preach." While not everyone will preach a formal sermon from a pulpit, God does call all believers to speak the truth in love to one another as His people. Fundamental to our life together is being able to speak the truth of Jesus to another another in the everyday matters of life. We will explain (1) the importance of our preaching, (2) the problems with our preaching and (3) the pattern for our preaching.  Our spiritual health depends on these gospel "sermons" throughout the week and not just on Sundays alone. As the body of Christ, we are privileged to preach.

"Privileged to Image" - Genesis 2 & 3 (The Privilege of 'We')

We first established that human community finds its origin in the eternal community of love shared among the the Trinity - Father, Son, and Spirit. Another way of describing perfect community is “communion”. This week we consider what perfect community looks like as an expression of God’s image though humanity. Genesis 2 & 3 show us not only what perfect communion looks like but also the results of communion corrupted. However, the end corruption is also revealed in Genesis - we can experience the redemption of true community in and through Christ, the new Adam. As we experience and live out the redemption of community in Christ we display what the world longs for - true communion with God and one another.

"The God of the 'We'" - Genesis 1 & John 1 (The Privilege of 'We')

Before diving into the specific features of our life together in the Gospel, we first want to start with the why. Why is community so important for the people of God? And the answer to that question takes us back on the timeline before creation to the very nature of God. This week, we will be exploring the community that has eternally existed among the Godhead between the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Every true and proper understanding of community finds its source, meaning, and direction from this eternal community of love.