WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.639 Our theme this morning is United in Christ. 00:00:06.540 --> 00:00:15.500 And it forms part of a series that over these weeks we're looking at what it means to be in Christ. 00:00:18.500 --> 00:00:21.740 That's where we find our identity as followers of Jesus. 00:00:22.660 --> 00:00:26.379 There are all sorts of different things you can say about a human person. 00:00:26.379 --> 00:00:32.299 But as a Christian the one thing that defines us first and last is Jesus. 00:00:32.740 --> 00:00:35.519 It's him in whom we are held. 00:00:36.359 --> 00:00:38.100 He is the one who has saved us. 00:00:38.179 --> 00:00:40.879 He is the one who promises to hold us for all eternity. 00:00:42.519 --> 00:00:44.079 It is God who has created us. 00:00:44.159 --> 00:00:45.259 It is God who saves us. 00:00:45.359 --> 00:00:49.820 It is God who through a lifelong process makes us the people that he wants us to be. 00:00:51.000 --> 00:00:54.359 And so we are in Christ and that is where our identity lies. 00:00:56.380 --> 00:01:06.719 But there's a danger that when we talk about these things that it can become very introspective and rather individualistic. 00:01:07.420 --> 00:01:12.060 So we just get caught up in ourselves and our own personal individual identity. 00:01:12.060 --> 00:01:18.980 And so this morning is a really important part of this series as we think of what it is to be in Christ. 00:01:19.100 --> 00:01:23.920 As Paul says that, you know, there's no sort of lone range spirituality here. 00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:26.379 It's not about just me, myself and I. 00:01:28.340 --> 00:01:30.560 Rather we are part of something bigger. 00:01:31.980 --> 00:01:37.000 That as Paul puts it, all the members belong to one another. 00:01:38.180 --> 00:01:39.379 United in Christ. 00:01:39.379 --> 00:01:48.239 You know, all of this is particularly important because of the cultural map on which we find ourselves in the West right now. 00:01:49.060 --> 00:01:51.959 Now, the question of personal identity is not a new one. 00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:52.759 Of course it's not. 00:01:53.920 --> 00:02:00.060 But what is very contemporary in our Western world is the nature of the struggle and the confusion 00:02:00.060 --> 00:02:06.740 in which our culture more widely is caught up in that question of what is personal identity 00:02:06.740 --> 00:02:09.699 and how do we identify one another? 00:02:13.400 --> 00:02:23.120 Add to that the Western focus on individualism in the extreme sense, 00:02:23.120 --> 00:02:26.120 and you've got the perfect storm. 00:02:27.840 --> 00:02:31.480 Let me give you an illustration, albeit a rather extreme one. 00:02:32.980 --> 00:02:39.060 Several years ago I was reading about a woman in this country who had just got married. 00:02:39.060 --> 00:02:43.580 She had baked her own cake. 00:02:44.400 --> 00:02:45.460 She'd made her own dress. 00:02:46.099 --> 00:02:47.479 She'd done all the invites. 00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:51.259 Nothing unusual about that. 00:02:52.199 --> 00:02:54.840 Perhaps a little bit more unusual, although not unheard of. 00:02:54.840 --> 00:03:01.340 She'd played quite a big part in actually writing the words of the ceremony. 00:03:02.599 --> 00:03:08.580 Whilst in a marriage ceremony we might perhaps, sometimes it may be that the people getting married 00:03:08.580 --> 00:03:12.439 want to sort of input into the words that might be used. 00:03:12.960 --> 00:03:15.740 This was rather more unusual in that she'd written the whole lot. 00:03:15.740 --> 00:03:22.680 But the thing that really stood out about this particular marriage 00:03:22.680 --> 00:03:29.300 was that the lady who was getting married was marrying herself. 00:03:31.320 --> 00:03:36.540 Now you may think I'm joking, but it wasn't intended as a joke, 00:03:36.700 --> 00:03:40.700 even though the way the media reported it perhaps made a bit of fun of it, 00:03:40.860 --> 00:03:42.580 but actually she was really serious. 00:03:42.580 --> 00:03:48.520 And she said that the reason she wanted to be married was that she didn't see herself 00:03:48.520 --> 00:03:52.760 finding somebody to get married to in the near future, 00:03:53.160 --> 00:03:55.760 and she didn't want to wait to have her big day. 00:03:55.980 --> 00:03:57.380 She wanted her wedding ceremony. 00:03:58.540 --> 00:03:59.700 She wanted the party. 00:03:59.840 --> 00:04:00.980 She wanted to bring her friends in. 00:04:01.020 --> 00:04:04.820 But actually, at a deeper level, she wanted to celebrate who she was. 00:04:06.280 --> 00:04:09.320 She wanted her family and her friends around her 00:04:09.319 --> 00:04:14.219 to celebrate that sense of who she was and is. 00:04:15.519 --> 00:04:19.420 Now this was several years ago, and it has become a bit of a growing trend. 00:04:19.540 --> 00:04:23.540 Of course, you can't marry yourself and have that legal status. 00:04:24.600 --> 00:04:28.779 But actually, going through or having a wedding day 00:04:28.779 --> 00:04:31.839 where you marry yourself and you celebrate your identity 00:04:31.839 --> 00:04:33.539 is a growing thing. 00:04:33.699 --> 00:04:36.239 It's actually called sologamy. 00:04:38.679 --> 00:04:43.019 Put that into Google, and you'll see that it's not a few people 00:04:43.019 --> 00:04:45.079 that are now marrying themselves. 00:04:45.759 --> 00:04:47.779 I even, and it sounds like I'm joking, 00:04:47.779 --> 00:04:51.679 I actually read, and I was looking this up, preparing for today, 00:04:51.779 --> 00:04:53.959 somebody just recently married themselves, 00:04:54.079 --> 00:04:57.159 and the next day announced that they were going to divorce themselves 00:04:57.160 --> 00:05:00.660 because they just couldn't cope with being with themselves for any longer. 00:05:01.300 --> 00:05:03.080 Better get used to it because you've got the rest of your life. 00:05:06.320 --> 00:05:09.440 Now, one I've just described is a pretty extreme example. 00:05:10.220 --> 00:05:13.680 Perhaps it's something that maybe might not immediately resonate 00:05:13.680 --> 00:05:15.220 with our own experience. 00:05:16.500 --> 00:05:18.020 But what I'm talking about here 00:05:18.020 --> 00:05:21.420 is our wider cultural obsession with individualism 00:05:21.420 --> 00:05:25.100 and the way in which the question of identity gets caught up within that. 00:05:25.100 --> 00:05:28.080 And that theme of individualism 00:05:28.080 --> 00:05:30.680 is something that I think actually probably all of us 00:05:30.680 --> 00:05:33.300 of any age in the West 00:05:33.300 --> 00:05:35.160 would have been caught up in. 00:05:36.360 --> 00:05:37.780 Ask yourself this question. 00:05:39.939 --> 00:05:41.660 When you receive something 00:05:41.660 --> 00:05:43.780 from somebody else, 00:05:44.600 --> 00:05:46.680 whether that's a gift, 00:05:47.800 --> 00:05:49.740 whether it's an act of kindness, 00:05:51.300 --> 00:05:54.120 maybe it's just the offer of an act of help or kindness, 00:05:54.120 --> 00:05:58.199 what are your instinctive internal reactions? 00:06:00.600 --> 00:06:03.040 I'm going to dare to answer the question for you 00:06:03.040 --> 00:06:06.639 because I think, generally speaking, 00:06:07.000 --> 00:06:08.939 we shirk away from it. 00:06:09.019 --> 00:06:09.819 We back off. 00:06:11.899 --> 00:06:12.459 Why? 00:06:12.920 --> 00:06:14.459 Because we feel uncomfortable 00:06:14.459 --> 00:06:16.740 about receiving. 00:06:16.740 --> 00:06:20.720 because we have this culture 00:06:20.720 --> 00:06:22.500 that we've been brought up in. 00:06:23.460 --> 00:06:25.900 I'm talking about a Western reality now 00:06:25.900 --> 00:06:29.079 that actually you've got to stand on your own two feet. 00:06:29.180 --> 00:06:31.879 Now, there's nothing wrong inherently with that, of course. 00:06:33.400 --> 00:06:35.120 But there's something quite dangerous 00:06:35.120 --> 00:06:37.220 when we become so individualised 00:06:37.220 --> 00:06:39.939 that actually we feel uncomfortable 00:06:39.939 --> 00:06:44.259 about receiving help or support from somebody else. 00:06:45.699 --> 00:06:47.319 And we feel that actually somehow 00:06:47.319 --> 00:06:48.680 the only way we can receive that 00:06:48.680 --> 00:06:50.500 is if we're going to reciprocate it 00:06:50.500 --> 00:06:51.800 and pretty quickly too. 00:06:51.800 --> 00:06:59.980 And it's against that that Paul says 00:06:59.980 --> 00:07:03.000 that our identity, 00:07:03.560 --> 00:07:05.879 who we are as human beings, 00:07:06.540 --> 00:07:07.580 is in Christ. 00:07:08.460 --> 00:07:08.620 Okay? 00:07:09.100 --> 00:07:11.019 It's a deeply, deeply personal thing, 00:07:11.780 --> 00:07:14.540 but it's not an individualistic thing. 00:07:15.840 --> 00:07:16.920 He says this, 00:07:16.920 --> 00:07:18.860 in Christ, 00:07:19.580 --> 00:07:21.000 each member, 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:23.680 and he's not talking about the church as a club. 00:07:24.240 --> 00:07:25.720 Often that's how we turn it into, 00:07:25.819 --> 00:07:26.920 but that's not what he means. 00:07:27.420 --> 00:07:28.819 Paul uses the language of the body 00:07:28.819 --> 00:07:32.200 and talks about body parts as members. 00:07:32.460 --> 00:07:34.520 So it's an organic living thing, the church. 00:07:35.460 --> 00:07:37.259 In Christ, we are a body 00:07:37.259 --> 00:07:39.580 and each one of us as members of that body 00:07:39.580 --> 00:07:41.100 belong to one another. 00:07:43.480 --> 00:07:45.460 It's not an individualistic thing. 00:07:45.459 --> 00:07:47.979 John Wesley put it, 00:07:48.479 --> 00:07:50.199 none holiness but social. 00:07:51.199 --> 00:07:53.680 We are in this together. 00:07:54.379 --> 00:07:55.739 Our mission is together. 00:07:55.919 --> 00:07:58.180 We are called to serve not just individuals, 00:07:58.479 --> 00:08:01.379 but collectively the society around us. 00:08:01.799 --> 00:08:03.759 And that we are called to be followers of Jesus, 00:08:03.879 --> 00:08:07.039 not just as individual persons, 00:08:07.759 --> 00:08:09.679 but as part of a body. 00:08:11.539 --> 00:08:14.519 And if we're serious about growing in Christ, 00:08:14.519 --> 00:08:17.060 about learning more about who we are 00:08:17.060 --> 00:08:18.359 and what our identity is 00:08:18.359 --> 00:08:20.579 and why we matter to God 00:08:20.579 --> 00:08:23.139 and how we can truly flourish as human beings, 00:08:23.899 --> 00:08:25.620 we need to understand that 00:08:25.620 --> 00:08:27.279 that is not something that we can do 00:08:27.279 --> 00:08:29.699 and work out in isolation from others. 00:08:29.699 --> 00:08:35.980 If you've ever watched geese fly, 00:08:37.360 --> 00:08:39.639 you'll notice they do it in formation, 00:08:40.740 --> 00:08:41.720 in the shape of a V. 00:08:43.200 --> 00:08:47.039 It's one of those fascinating lessons from nature 00:08:47.039 --> 00:08:48.620 that we can all learn from. 00:08:49.799 --> 00:08:52.360 Because there is a reason why they do this 00:08:52.360 --> 00:08:56.419 in that it enables them to fly so much better 00:08:56.419 --> 00:08:57.219 and more efficiently. 00:08:58.699 --> 00:09:02.179 The formation acts aerodynamically 00:09:02.179 --> 00:09:06.059 like the geese, collectively, are a single wing. 00:09:07.019 --> 00:09:11.860 The air drag becomes evenly distributed 00:09:11.860 --> 00:09:13.599 across all of the birds, 00:09:14.639 --> 00:09:16.199 such that if one of the geese 00:09:16.199 --> 00:09:19.479 accidentally falls away from the group, 00:09:19.579 --> 00:09:21.679 then they need to rejoin it pretty fast. 00:09:21.679 --> 00:09:26.500 Apparently, research says 00:09:26.500 --> 00:09:29.199 that when geese fly, 00:09:29.279 --> 00:09:32.479 if 25 geese fly together in the shape of a V, 00:09:33.439 --> 00:09:39.039 they can fly for more than 70% further 00:09:39.039 --> 00:09:42.339 than one goose flying on its own. 00:09:43.199 --> 00:09:45.299 Over 70% further. 00:09:45.299 --> 00:09:49.939 We are called, says Paul, 00:09:50.059 --> 00:09:51.759 to understand and to learn 00:09:51.759 --> 00:09:52.859 and to grow in the truth 00:09:52.859 --> 00:09:54.679 that our identity, 00:09:54.939 --> 00:09:57.559 as personal and as unique as it is to each of us, 00:09:57.779 --> 00:09:59.000 is shaped and formed, 00:09:59.139 --> 00:10:00.819 not in isolation from one another, 00:10:01.459 --> 00:10:02.019 but together. 00:10:02.139 --> 00:10:03.139 That is how we fly. 00:10:03.279 --> 00:10:04.559 That is how we flourish. 00:10:04.559 --> 00:10:13.399 If we really want to grow, 00:10:15.719 --> 00:10:19.799 then we need to not only understand 00:10:19.799 --> 00:10:21.279 that we are part of something bigger, 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:24.659 but actually get actively engaged 00:10:24.659 --> 00:10:27.099 in that bigger thing. 00:10:27.100 --> 00:10:30.759 And the danger can then be 00:10:30.759 --> 00:10:33.040 that if we get involved in a church, 00:10:34.639 --> 00:10:38.920 that if we become just passive consumers 00:10:38.920 --> 00:10:39.840 of that church 00:10:39.840 --> 00:10:42.800 and we're not actually actively involved with it, 00:10:43.600 --> 00:10:45.980 the danger can be that we feel isolated, 00:10:46.180 --> 00:10:47.820 we can feel lonely within it, 00:10:48.220 --> 00:10:50.879 and this can apply to churches of any size, 00:10:50.960 --> 00:10:52.620 whether they're big churches or smaller churches, 00:10:52.620 --> 00:10:54.580 but I would suggest that perhaps bigger churches 00:10:54.580 --> 00:10:56.220 are more vulnerable to this danger. 00:10:57.460 --> 00:11:00.379 That if we're not engaged with it at all, 00:11:00.840 --> 00:11:03.680 we can feel quite lonely and isolated within it. 00:11:03.960 --> 00:11:05.080 Because we look around us 00:11:05.080 --> 00:11:05.960 and we see other people 00:11:05.960 --> 00:11:07.580 and we can assume that they're really engaged 00:11:07.580 --> 00:11:10.300 and we can feel quite alone and cut off. 00:11:10.440 --> 00:11:12.700 And that's why I would really encourage to anybody, 00:11:12.840 --> 00:11:13.800 whenever you're joining a church, 00:11:13.899 --> 00:11:14.720 wherever it is, 00:11:15.180 --> 00:11:16.860 however big or small it is, 00:11:16.940 --> 00:11:18.759 that the earliest opportunity, 00:11:18.879 --> 00:11:20.040 actually try and get involved. 00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:21.220 And there's loads of ways 00:11:21.220 --> 00:11:24.000 in which you can get involved in any church 00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:24.940 and there's loads of ways 00:11:24.940 --> 00:11:26.259 you can get involved in this one. 00:11:27.100 --> 00:11:29.480 And if you're not sure where to start, 00:11:29.560 --> 00:11:32.000 then just have a chat with any of us. 00:11:32.060 --> 00:11:32.700 And look out for the people, 00:11:32.820 --> 00:11:34.320 the yellow lanyards afterwards 00:11:34.320 --> 00:11:35.540 are on the host team this morning. 00:11:35.840 --> 00:11:38.340 The host team itself is a great place to start 00:11:38.340 --> 00:11:39.000 if you're not sure, 00:11:39.080 --> 00:11:41.080 if you want to just join in and get involved. 00:11:42.100 --> 00:11:43.500 But there are loads of other ways, 00:11:43.560 --> 00:11:44.940 and not just here on the Sunday, 00:11:45.080 --> 00:11:46.120 but throughout the week. 00:11:46.120 --> 00:11:49.220 But the thing is, you see, 00:11:49.299 --> 00:11:53.200 is when we don't get engaged and active together, 00:11:54.580 --> 00:11:59.840 the danger can be that we become isolated from others. 00:12:01.120 --> 00:12:02.860 And then the next step can be 00:12:02.860 --> 00:12:04.460 we become critical of others, 00:12:05.000 --> 00:12:07.580 and then we become cynical of others. 00:12:07.580 --> 00:12:11.879 Jesus said that we're to let our light shine. 00:12:12.100 --> 00:12:14.759 He said that nobody puts a light underneath a bowl 00:12:14.759 --> 00:12:15.440 and covers it up, 00:12:15.480 --> 00:12:17.840 but rather they put it on a prominent place 00:12:17.840 --> 00:12:18.940 so that it can shine. 00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:24.480 And that's true for every single one of us, 00:12:24.759 --> 00:12:25.800 that we need to shine. 00:12:25.900 --> 00:12:26.879 And when we don't, 00:12:27.560 --> 00:12:29.280 well, let me share with you another analogy. 00:12:30.740 --> 00:12:33.100 Years ago, when I was a sixth former, 00:12:34.160 --> 00:12:35.520 in fact, that wasn't just a few years ago, 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:37.460 that was an embarrassingly long time ago. 00:12:38.000 --> 00:12:38.899 But I can remember, 00:12:39.139 --> 00:12:39.860 I'm trying to, 00:12:40.000 --> 00:12:40.899 I think it was a, 00:12:41.220 --> 00:12:41.919 I was trying to write a, 00:12:42.220 --> 00:12:43.240 it was British history. 00:12:43.360 --> 00:12:45.799 I was trying to write an essay on the corn laws, 00:12:45.899 --> 00:12:46.819 I think it was, something like that. 00:12:47.360 --> 00:12:49.600 And I was in my bedroom 00:12:49.600 --> 00:12:52.199 and had one of those angle poised lamps. 00:12:53.340 --> 00:12:55.159 And I'll be honest with you, 00:12:55.159 --> 00:12:57.399 I was bored senseless with the corn laws. 00:12:57.399 --> 00:13:00.579 And I was just fiddling with this angle poised lamp. 00:13:00.779 --> 00:13:03.299 The room light itself wasn't on. 00:13:03.299 --> 00:13:05.099 So the angle poised lamp was, 00:13:05.199 --> 00:13:07.979 was all the light that I had to work with. 00:13:08.059 --> 00:13:09.419 And in my boredom, 00:13:09.659 --> 00:13:11.000 I was fiddling with this thing 00:13:11.000 --> 00:13:13.479 and I found out that I could dim it 00:13:13.479 --> 00:13:16.659 by bringing the lamp closer to the surface of the desk. 00:13:17.379 --> 00:13:19.159 And I found it great fun 00:13:19.159 --> 00:13:21.679 to see how much I could dim this lamp 00:13:21.679 --> 00:13:24.479 without it completely losing all of its light 00:13:24.479 --> 00:13:26.319 by just bringing the lamp 00:13:26.319 --> 00:13:29.439 against the surface of the desk. 00:13:29.699 --> 00:13:32.039 And then I could actually make the light go out completely 00:13:32.039 --> 00:13:33.179 and then just bring it back up again. 00:13:33.219 --> 00:13:35.219 So it's just like about half a millimetre 00:13:35.219 --> 00:13:37.360 off the surface of the desk. 00:13:38.299 --> 00:13:40.099 And I managed to actually set this thing 00:13:40.099 --> 00:13:42.539 so there's just enough light to see. 00:13:42.759 --> 00:13:43.319 So it was just, 00:13:43.599 --> 00:13:44.959 the lamp, if you can just imagine, 00:13:45.120 --> 00:13:47.019 was just a millimetre or so 00:13:47.019 --> 00:13:48.379 above the surface of the desk. 00:13:48.500 --> 00:13:49.179 And there I was. 00:13:49.219 --> 00:13:51.120 So I went back to my essay. 00:13:52.959 --> 00:13:54.219 And a couple of minutes later, 00:13:54.219 --> 00:13:55.559 there was an almighty bang 00:13:55.559 --> 00:13:57.199 and I was plunged into complete darkness. 00:13:59.000 --> 00:14:00.279 See, what had happened 00:14:00.279 --> 00:14:03.779 was because I'd messed around with this lamp in this way, 00:14:04.059 --> 00:14:06.099 the heat had just built up within the lamp 00:14:06.099 --> 00:14:07.339 and the bulb had just exploded. 00:14:09.119 --> 00:14:10.459 Never forgotten that. 00:14:13.119 --> 00:14:13.819 You see, 00:14:14.199 --> 00:14:16.419 there was plenty of heat, 00:14:16.679 --> 00:14:19.099 but not very much light. 00:14:19.100 --> 00:14:23.240 And that's the danger 00:14:23.240 --> 00:14:24.720 when we turn in on ourselves. 00:14:25.700 --> 00:14:26.420 Heat builds up 00:14:26.420 --> 00:14:26.940 when we're actually, 00:14:27.340 --> 00:14:28.379 as Christian believers, 00:14:28.600 --> 00:14:30.940 we're called to be people whose light shines. 00:14:31.460 --> 00:14:33.659 And we're called to do that as individuals. 00:14:33.899 --> 00:14:35.440 We're called to do that as a church. 00:14:36.720 --> 00:14:37.480 And it's when people, 00:14:37.740 --> 00:14:39.879 and when churches stop doing stuff together 00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:40.639 and stop engaging, 00:14:40.759 --> 00:14:41.820 we turn in on ourselves. 00:14:42.139 --> 00:14:42.920 The heat builds up. 00:14:43.000 --> 00:14:43.920 There's not so much light. 00:14:43.920 --> 00:14:45.800 And people start to fall out into arguing. 00:14:46.320 --> 00:14:47.139 And that's not good. 00:14:49.100 --> 00:14:55.720 I saw a documentary a few years ago, 00:14:56.220 --> 00:14:58.019 BBC Wildlife documentary. 00:14:59.720 --> 00:15:00.540 And it was, 00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:02.440 it was out on the African plains. 00:15:02.560 --> 00:15:03.019 And there was this, 00:15:03.580 --> 00:15:06.340 I think it's called a springbok. 00:15:06.860 --> 00:15:08.720 It's like a type of gazelle type antelope. 00:15:09.639 --> 00:15:11.139 And there was two of these things. 00:15:11.180 --> 00:15:14.300 And they're normally really super alert to predators. 00:15:14.300 --> 00:15:16.180 They have to be in order to survive. 00:15:16.179 --> 00:15:19.139 But in this particular documentary, 00:15:19.279 --> 00:15:20.699 it was showing these two springboks, 00:15:20.699 --> 00:15:21.879 springboks, 00:15:22.699 --> 00:15:23.759 fighting each other. 00:15:24.679 --> 00:15:27.039 They were so absorbed with their fight. 00:15:28.039 --> 00:15:29.219 I don't know what it was about, 00:15:29.359 --> 00:15:31.599 but they were so absorbed with their fight, 00:15:32.559 --> 00:15:34.719 they didn't notice 00:15:34.719 --> 00:15:36.959 the lion 00:15:36.959 --> 00:15:39.719 that was prowling around them 00:15:39.719 --> 00:15:41.359 and encircling them. 00:15:41.360 --> 00:15:47.379 When we turn inward 00:15:47.379 --> 00:15:50.080 and just see the conflict 00:15:50.080 --> 00:15:51.560 and the differences 00:15:51.560 --> 00:15:53.379 between one another, 00:15:53.460 --> 00:15:54.200 when we argue, 00:15:54.320 --> 00:15:56.639 when we become embroiled 00:15:56.639 --> 00:15:58.200 within all of that stuff 00:15:58.200 --> 00:15:59.560 that's inward looking, 00:15:59.820 --> 00:16:04.300 we don't notice the dangers around us. 00:16:04.299 --> 00:16:07.519 it says in 1 Peter 00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:09.500 that the devil is like a prowling lion 00:16:09.500 --> 00:16:13.139 ready to pounce at any time. 00:16:13.620 --> 00:16:15.000 And we need to be alert. 00:16:17.199 --> 00:16:18.740 Churches, generally speaking, 00:16:19.219 --> 00:16:21.179 when churches are persecuted 00:16:21.179 --> 00:16:23.079 by sources, 00:16:23.199 --> 00:16:24.099 whether that's the state 00:16:24.099 --> 00:16:25.079 or whether that's others 00:16:25.079 --> 00:16:26.339 from outside of them, 00:16:26.779 --> 00:16:28.099 when churches are persecuted, 00:16:28.319 --> 00:16:29.279 generally speaking, 00:16:29.579 --> 00:16:30.240 they grow. 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:34.539 because they haven't got the time, 00:16:35.240 --> 00:16:36.259 they can't afford 00:16:36.259 --> 00:16:37.740 to focus on their divisions. 00:16:40.539 --> 00:16:42.820 The big danger facing churches 00:16:42.820 --> 00:16:44.779 is when we turn in on ourselves 00:16:44.779 --> 00:16:47.740 and we isolate ourselves 00:16:47.740 --> 00:16:48.740 from what's going on outside 00:16:48.740 --> 00:16:49.620 and we just focus 00:16:49.620 --> 00:16:52.100 on the things that are dividing us. 00:16:55.159 --> 00:16:56.200 And Paul says that 00:16:56.200 --> 00:16:57.840 if we are really to 00:16:57.840 --> 00:16:59.200 not just be in Christ, 00:16:59.200 --> 00:17:00.480 but to grow in Christ 00:17:00.480 --> 00:17:01.840 and to flourish in Christ 00:17:01.840 --> 00:17:02.800 as individuals, 00:17:03.060 --> 00:17:04.500 as groups and as churches 00:17:04.500 --> 00:17:05.539 and as the church 00:17:05.539 --> 00:17:06.559 in the widest sense, 00:17:07.240 --> 00:17:08.720 we need to understand 00:17:08.720 --> 00:17:10.059 this basic truth 00:17:10.059 --> 00:17:11.940 that we belong to one another, 00:17:12.480 --> 00:17:13.700 that we are part 00:17:13.700 --> 00:17:15.380 of something so much bigger 00:17:15.380 --> 00:17:16.259 than just our own 00:17:16.259 --> 00:17:17.539 personal spirituality. 00:17:18.779 --> 00:17:20.180 To be and to grow 00:17:20.180 --> 00:17:21.519 as a disciple of Jesus 00:17:21.519 --> 00:17:23.660 is to be and grow 00:17:23.660 --> 00:17:25.259 as part of something bigger 00:17:25.259 --> 00:17:26.360 and to know that we are 00:17:26.360 --> 00:17:28.039 united in Christ. 00:17:29.200 --> 00:17:31.000 And of course, 00:17:31.059 --> 00:17:32.019 this is not just to do 00:17:32.019 --> 00:17:33.640 with the stuff that we do. 00:17:35.080 --> 00:17:36.200 Most fundamentally, 00:17:37.740 --> 00:17:38.799 it is to do, 00:17:39.960 --> 00:17:40.860 it has to do 00:17:40.860 --> 00:17:41.539 with the fact 00:17:41.539 --> 00:17:42.420 that we are, 00:17:42.580 --> 00:17:43.600 as Christian believers, 00:17:44.059 --> 00:17:45.740 united around one thing 00:17:45.740 --> 00:17:46.660 and that is that 00:17:46.660 --> 00:17:47.740 we are all receivers 00:17:47.740 --> 00:17:48.720 of God's grace. 00:17:49.880 --> 00:17:51.400 We don't earn our way 00:17:51.400 --> 00:17:52.500 into being in Christ 00:17:52.500 --> 00:17:53.180 through the stuff 00:17:53.180 --> 00:17:53.759 that we do. 00:17:53.759 --> 00:17:56.839 We are in Christ 00:17:56.839 --> 00:17:58.359 and we are held in Christ 00:17:58.359 --> 00:17:59.019 because we have 00:17:59.019 --> 00:18:00.079 one fundamental thing 00:18:00.079 --> 00:18:00.559 in common, 00:18:01.299 --> 00:18:03.079 that we all need him. 00:18:04.640 --> 00:18:05.779 And that it is he 00:18:05.779 --> 00:18:06.720 who opens up the way 00:18:06.720 --> 00:18:07.920 to eternal life for us 00:18:07.920 --> 00:18:08.599 and him alone. 00:18:09.500 --> 00:18:10.879 And that all of us 00:18:10.879 --> 00:18:11.879 are broken beings, 00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:13.799 all of us need his help, 00:18:13.920 --> 00:18:15.319 all of us need his salvation. 00:18:15.319 --> 00:18:20.019 And it is that recognition, 00:18:20.379 --> 00:18:21.839 first and last, 00:18:22.740 --> 00:18:23.980 in our brokenness, 00:18:24.639 --> 00:18:26.460 that we share that brokenness 00:18:26.460 --> 00:18:28.439 and we share that 00:18:28.439 --> 00:18:31.139 common grace in God 00:18:31.139 --> 00:18:32.419 that unites us, 00:18:32.480 --> 00:18:33.240 that holds us together. 00:18:33.240 --> 00:18:34.120 I'm going to share 00:18:34.120 --> 00:18:35.319 with you one last story 00:18:35.319 --> 00:18:36.279 and it's a story 00:18:36.279 --> 00:18:40.819 that comes from 1941. 00:18:43.539 --> 00:18:44.099 Interestingly, 00:18:44.339 --> 00:18:44.900 the words 00:18:44.900 --> 00:18:47.599 Amen and Alleluia 00:18:47.599 --> 00:18:49.400 are words that 00:18:49.400 --> 00:18:51.099 unite Christians 00:18:51.099 --> 00:18:51.819 around the world 00:18:51.819 --> 00:18:53.579 and are almost identical 00:18:53.579 --> 00:18:54.700 in just about 00:18:54.700 --> 00:18:55.940 every language. 00:18:57.799 --> 00:18:59.099 But the following story 00:18:59.099 --> 00:19:00.599 is told about 00:19:00.599 --> 00:19:01.759 a Romanian soldier 00:19:01.759 --> 00:19:03.420 in the Second World War 00:19:03.420 --> 00:19:05.119 named Anna George. 00:19:06.500 --> 00:19:07.519 And it was 1941 00:19:07.519 --> 00:19:09.779 and Russian troops 00:19:09.779 --> 00:19:10.460 had overrun 00:19:10.460 --> 00:19:11.819 the Romanian region 00:19:11.819 --> 00:19:13.319 of Bessarabia 00:19:13.319 --> 00:19:14.539 and entered Moldavia. 00:19:15.660 --> 00:19:17.140 And Anna and his comrades 00:19:17.140 --> 00:19:20.319 were badly frightened. 00:19:22.039 --> 00:19:23.460 Bullets whizzed around them 00:19:23.460 --> 00:19:24.200 and water shells 00:19:24.200 --> 00:19:24.960 shook the earth. 00:19:25.420 --> 00:19:25.940 By day, 00:19:26.099 --> 00:19:27.220 Anna sought relief 00:19:27.220 --> 00:19:28.259 reading his Bible. 00:19:28.859 --> 00:19:29.619 But at night, 00:19:29.619 --> 00:19:32.239 he could only crouch 00:19:32.239 --> 00:19:33.319 close to the earth 00:19:33.319 --> 00:19:35.019 and recall verses 00:19:35.019 --> 00:19:36.279 memorised in childhood. 00:19:38.639 --> 00:19:39.279 And one day, 00:19:39.359 --> 00:19:40.159 during a spray 00:19:40.159 --> 00:19:41.599 of enemy fire, 00:19:42.359 --> 00:19:43.159 Anna was separated 00:19:43.159 --> 00:19:43.959 from his company. 00:19:45.559 --> 00:19:46.359 In a panic, 00:19:47.319 --> 00:19:48.419 he bolted deeper 00:19:48.419 --> 00:19:48.959 and deeper 00:19:48.959 --> 00:19:50.059 into the woods 00:19:50.059 --> 00:19:51.639 until, 00:19:51.779 --> 00:19:52.779 huddling at the base 00:19:52.779 --> 00:19:53.639 of a large tree, 00:19:53.719 --> 00:19:54.359 he fell asleep 00:19:54.359 --> 00:19:55.059 from exhaustion. 00:19:55.059 --> 00:19:58.099 The next day, 00:19:58.179 --> 00:19:58.819 he tried to find 00:19:58.819 --> 00:19:59.480 his comrades 00:19:59.480 --> 00:20:01.019 and he moved 00:20:01.019 --> 00:20:01.819 cautiously towards 00:20:01.819 --> 00:20:02.359 the front, 00:20:03.819 --> 00:20:04.759 staying in the shadow 00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:06.019 of the trees, 00:20:06.299 --> 00:20:07.019 nibbling a crust 00:20:07.019 --> 00:20:07.480 of bread 00:20:07.480 --> 00:20:08.359 and drinking 00:20:08.359 --> 00:20:09.220 from the streams. 00:20:11.099 --> 00:20:12.299 Hearing that the battle 00:20:12.299 --> 00:20:13.359 was closing in, 00:20:14.759 --> 00:20:16.059 he unslung his rifle 00:20:16.059 --> 00:20:16.759 and pulled the bolt 00:20:16.759 --> 00:20:17.179 and watched 00:20:17.179 --> 00:20:17.720 for the enemy. 00:20:19.559 --> 00:20:20.519 His nerves 00:20:20.519 --> 00:20:21.960 near the breaking point, 00:20:21.960 --> 00:20:25.120 20 yards away, 00:20:26.720 --> 00:20:27.720 a Russian soldier 00:20:27.720 --> 00:20:28.720 suddenly appeared. 00:20:31.180 --> 00:20:32.480 Anna wrote this. 00:20:34.920 --> 00:20:36.900 All my mental rehearsals 00:20:36.900 --> 00:20:37.600 of bravery 00:20:37.600 --> 00:20:38.579 served me nothing. 00:20:39.579 --> 00:20:40.860 I dropped my gun 00:20:40.860 --> 00:20:42.120 and fell to my knees, 00:20:42.380 --> 00:20:43.660 then buried my face 00:20:43.660 --> 00:20:44.640 in my sweating palms 00:20:44.640 --> 00:20:45.620 and began to pray. 00:20:46.940 --> 00:20:47.759 And while praying, 00:20:47.840 --> 00:20:50.039 I waited for the cold touch 00:20:50.039 --> 00:20:51.720 of the Russian's rifle barrel 00:20:51.720 --> 00:20:53.000 against my head. 00:20:54.500 --> 00:20:56.039 I felt a slight pressure 00:20:56.039 --> 00:20:56.740 on my shoulder 00:20:56.740 --> 00:20:57.639 close to my neck. 00:20:57.940 --> 00:20:59.579 I opened my eyes slowly. 00:21:01.339 --> 00:21:02.639 There was my enemy 00:21:02.639 --> 00:21:05.619 kneeling in front of me, 00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:08.839 his gun lying next to mine 00:21:08.839 --> 00:21:10.059 among the wild flowers. 00:21:11.819 --> 00:21:13.180 His eyes were closed 00:21:13.180 --> 00:21:13.720 in prayer. 00:21:15.399 --> 00:21:17.039 We did not understand 00:21:17.039 --> 00:21:18.119 a single word 00:21:18.119 --> 00:21:19.220 of the other's language. 00:21:20.039 --> 00:21:21.839 but we could pray. 00:21:23.799 --> 00:21:25.180 We ended our prayer 00:21:25.180 --> 00:21:26.299 with two words 00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:27.700 that need no translation. 00:21:29.639 --> 00:21:30.139 Hallelujah 00:21:30.139 --> 00:21:32.460 and Amen. 00:21:34.379 --> 00:21:36.659 Then after a tearful embrace, 00:21:37.720 --> 00:21:38.940 we walked quickly 00:21:38.940 --> 00:21:39.940 to opposite sides 00:21:39.940 --> 00:21:40.460 of the clearing 00:21:40.460 --> 00:21:43.659 and disappeared 00:21:43.659 --> 00:21:46.279 beneath the trees. 00:21:46.279 --> 00:21:50.700 let's pray together. 00:21:58.839 --> 00:21:59.500 Lord God, 00:21:59.579 --> 00:22:00.539 we thank you 00:22:00.539 --> 00:22:02.759 that we are in Christ 00:22:02.759 --> 00:22:04.660 and we thank you 00:22:04.660 --> 00:22:05.980 that you call each of us 00:22:05.980 --> 00:22:06.960 as individuals 00:22:06.960 --> 00:22:11.920 to know that we are loved 00:22:11.920 --> 00:22:12.940 by you 00:22:12.940 --> 00:22:14.180 and that you want us 00:22:14.180 --> 00:22:15.160 to know that you are 00:22:15.160 --> 00:22:16.019 loved by you. 00:22:16.560 --> 00:22:17.259 Thank you 00:22:17.259 --> 00:22:17.940 that that is where 00:22:17.940 --> 00:22:19.320 we find our identity 00:22:19.320 --> 00:22:20.820 and that each of us 00:22:20.820 --> 00:22:21.519 is individual 00:22:21.519 --> 00:22:22.600 and unique. 00:22:25.560 --> 00:22:26.279 But Lord, 00:22:26.360 --> 00:22:27.160 we thank you 00:22:27.160 --> 00:22:29.240 that that individuality 00:22:29.240 --> 00:22:30.120 and that uniqueness 00:22:30.120 --> 00:22:31.580 does not mean 00:22:31.580 --> 00:22:32.360 that we are 00:22:32.360 --> 00:22:34.060 to be in isolation 00:22:34.060 --> 00:22:35.080 from one another. 00:22:35.079 --> 00:22:36.319 Lord, 00:22:36.319 --> 00:22:37.839 we are all dependent 00:22:37.839 --> 00:22:38.579 on each other. 00:22:38.899 --> 00:22:39.879 We are all dependent 00:22:39.879 --> 00:22:40.480 on you. 00:22:42.980 --> 00:22:43.480 Lord, 00:22:43.639 --> 00:22:44.299 forgive us 00:22:44.299 --> 00:22:45.199 for those times 00:22:45.199 --> 00:22:46.139 when we have 00:22:46.139 --> 00:22:47.539 sought to go it alone, 00:22:47.899 --> 00:22:49.000 for when we resist 00:22:49.000 --> 00:22:49.899 the help 00:22:49.899 --> 00:22:50.799 from others, 00:22:51.179 --> 00:22:52.220 for when we feel 00:22:52.220 --> 00:22:53.139 that we are 00:22:53.139 --> 00:22:53.819 on our own 00:22:53.819 --> 00:22:55.419 and we should be alone, 00:22:56.480 --> 00:22:57.939 for when we become 00:22:57.939 --> 00:22:58.679 stagnant, 00:23:00.000 --> 00:23:00.419 critical, 00:23:00.720 --> 00:23:01.099 and perhaps 00:23:01.099 --> 00:23:01.859 even cynical. 00:23:01.859 --> 00:23:04.039 Lord, 00:23:04.039 --> 00:23:04.859 we are sorry. 00:23:06.759 --> 00:23:07.859 But we thank you 00:23:07.859 --> 00:23:08.719 that we may know 00:23:08.719 --> 00:23:09.759 that we are forgiven 00:23:09.759 --> 00:23:11.439 because we are all 00:23:11.439 --> 00:23:12.719 dependent on your grace. 00:23:15.599 --> 00:23:16.339 So Lord, 00:23:16.439 --> 00:23:17.240 help us 00:23:17.240 --> 00:23:19.139 to bring what we have 00:23:19.139 --> 00:23:20.259 and to bring 00:23:20.259 --> 00:23:21.139 who we are 00:23:21.139 --> 00:23:22.519 in all our uniqueness 00:23:22.519 --> 00:23:24.159 into your service, 00:23:24.719 --> 00:23:28.079 that we can serve you together, 00:23:28.259 --> 00:23:29.899 that we can grow together, 00:23:29.900 --> 00:23:32.960 and that we can join together 00:23:32.960 --> 00:23:35.180 in saying that 00:23:35.180 --> 00:23:35.800 alleluia 00:23:35.800 --> 00:23:37.280 and amen. 00:23:38.440 --> 00:23:40.100 In Jesus' name we pray. 00:23:41.540 --> 00:23:42.080 Amen.