Communities of Growth
Preacher: Rev Phil Swain Readings: Acts 2:42-47; Col 2:1-7; Heb 10:19-25
This Talk is from our annual combined worship service where all three worshipping communities – our 9am + 10:45am + Evolve congregations – will come together and worship as one. It is our third sermon in the GROW series where Phil will help us to consider what are the communities or groups that are fertile soil for our spiritual growth and how we can invest deeply into these communities.
The Bible uses many different images to talk about our relationship to God and to each other. For example, we are the sheep and Jesus is the Good shepherd. We are body and Christ is the head. We are a building and Jesus is the foundation on which we build.
The image that we have been using as we have explored some of the GROW sermons of late has been that we are like a seed that is planted – or our faith is like a seed that is planted in the soil, and we grow. This imagery is used over and over – in the Old Testament, by Jesus in his parables and by Paul in the New Testament – such as 1 Corinthians 3:6 where Paul says that he planted the seeds, Apollos watered the seeds but ultimately it is God who makes things grow.
The most famous passage which uses this imagery of seeds and growth is … the Parable of the Sower. Matthew 13 or Mark 4 or Luke 8. You know the parable. Farmer scatters the seeds but the seeds ability to grow was helped or hindered by where the seeds fell. The path, or the rocky ground or the thorn patch were not a good places for the seeds to grow … but the seeds the fell on the good soil … it grew really well. And it is this idea of the “good soil” that I wish to just play with a little bit today.
Back on Vision Sunday we talked about that God wants us to grow – to grow as a church, to grow as a community that loves and supports each other and to grow spiritually in our faith and relationship with Jesus. I guess the question is … if we want to grow the best we can, then we need to make sure that we find some “good soil” to plant ourselves in – not unyielding or rocky or thorning soil but the good stuff.
So .. what do we understand is this fertile soil, the good soil that will make us grow well? Our first reading from Acts 2 hinted that this good soil was found in community … in being with other followers of Jesus to encourage us, teach us and support us.
This reading came straight after the Pentecost reading where the early church started. So what was the very first thing that the early church did? They invested in community.
They saw the benefit of being together, so they gathered for teaching and fellowship, worship and prayer. They cared for each other and supported each other so that no one was in need. They ate together and in doing so … they grew! It says that more were added to their number every day. They grew because the people around them saw that there was something special about this fertile soil of good community.
Have you experienced this time of community? A gathering that is like rich, fertile soil? Maybe it has been a few friends meeting for coffee, or a small group or support group, or larger gathering which was helpful for your spiritual growth?
I actually want you to think about this … and I am going to give you a 2 minutes to … if you would like to … to turn to the people around you or to run across the other side of the room and share your thoughts.
What are your examples of “communities of growth” (2mins)
For me it would be…
- My bible study groups – different ones over the year but all good
- The “oldies” when I was growing up – who probably weren’t that old – who encouraged me to jump in and do things for God and the church and would keep encouraging me even if I was no very good.
- My church family – all five version of it.
- EVOLVE / Young Adults … pushing me to think differently (and to grow in what it means to be an empower-er).
I think it is important for us to ponder what these communities of growth are for each of us – especially in the light of the second reading that Stewart read for us… Colossians 2 (which if you were really on the ball you would have noticed is the same passage as I used on Vision Sunday).
In this Colossians reading, Paul’s goal for the church is that we might be encouraged and grow in our understanding of God, the mystery of God.
How do we do this? Find the fertile soil of a great community of Jesus followers and plant yourself there. Sink your roots deep so that you will be built up and strengthened in the faith. That is why that 90 second discussion was so important … because if we can name the communities of growth that we find helpful … then we can invest deeply into them. Just as Daniel did with the kids … we can get out roots and plant them into the fertile soil of these communities.
Paul does hint in verse 5 that there is a discipline to this. If you want to get good growth within a community, you need to be involved, to be giving as well as receiving. The more that you invest of yourself and what you bring to the community, the more you will find that the community will be a fertile place for you to grow. It is more than just finding a good patch, it is making the commitment to be part of the community and investing of yourself into that community.
I am not preaching anything new here – you know all this. But I do need to acknowledge that sometimes communities that are good fertile soil, good communities of growth are not always perfect. For example – sometimes a great community with beautiful, fertile soil for us to grow in becomes … dry. Do you know what I mean by that? All communities go through cycles but what do we do if our community of growth is going through a drought period, or a winter period where not much growth is happening?
Our last Bible reading from Hebrews 10 picked up on this. The context of Hebrews is that people were finding the way of Jesus tough; and the writer is trying to encourage Christians to endure, and not to abandon their faith.
Or in the terms of our analogy today, the writer was encouraging them to not give up just because the soil has become dry.
How do we keep growing when the soil is dry? This passage gives us 4 gems – 4 great pieces of practical advice of how to keep going … or should I say … keep growing!
They are:
- Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart. (v22)
When times are dry the best first step is to make sure our relationship with God is good and we do that by drawing near to God with a sincere heart. Lean into Jesus who offers to fill us with living water. - Let us hold unswervingly onto the hope we profess for God is faithful (v23)
One of the great blessings from the GROW studies is that I have heard heaps of stories of how God helped people, was there for people, blessed people … and we acknowledged that if God did these things, if God had been close to us then God, who is faith, will do it again – even if we are not feeling it right in this moment. All we need to do is hold onto the hope we profess because God is faithful. - Let us consider how we can spur one another one towards love and good deeds. (v24)
One of the best ways to respond to dryness in your spiritual life is to put your faith into action. When we are proactively showing love or helping others or standing against injustice … we can find growth and life even in the driest of times. So let us not just do this ourselves but also spur on each other towards love and good deeds.
And lastly …
- Let us not give us meeting together (v25)
Great communities of growth are great because of the people who are part of them. And that is why it is so important in the dry times (or even in the good times or busy times or chaotic times) for us to not give us meeting together.
Repeating what I have already said … if we find a place which encourages us to grow then we need to invest in the fertile soil of our growth communities, encourage others to be connected in community … for that way we will continue to grow.
Great wisdom, eh?
For the past month we have been encouraging all of us here at TUC to try and weave more prayer into our lives. For the month of August, I would love for us to invest more into the groups or communities that help us to grow. This might be inviting some people out for coffee and being brave to ask each other how we are really going? Or finding time to chat with Daniel about his Christology course he is doing. If you are interested in a bible study group … chat with Kevin or myself or Nigel and we will see what we can do.
I also encourage us over the next month to spur each other on towards love and good deeds! And let us during August commit to meeting together … if our communities of growth are meeting … whether that is our bible study or youth group or Sunday worship or whatever … lets turn up. Lets give of ourselves to our communities … and in doing so, we will grow. Amen.