SEPTEMBER 12, 2021 SUNDAY MESSAGE
JOIN US LIVE AT 10 AM TODAY!
We are Common Ground
Transcription:
Over the last few years this community has undergone a LOT of a transformation as a church...and it’s not just the pandemic. In the ____ years that the NORTHEAST CAMPUS has been around:
the planting pastor moved on to take a position at a Mission Org focus on ministry in Uganda,
our affiliation with the Common Ground network has changed. While there is no formal connection, we have a lot of overlap in our events, ideologies, and relationships, so it transitioned from a legal connection to more of a family connection
Years before the topic hit the public sphere, our community embraced a conviction to seek JUSTICE and ethnic RECONCILIATION in our church
We embraced a theological conviction for WOMEN to be in all areas of leadership - both pastors and elders
OUR FAMILY moved out here from Phoenix AZ to play in the snow with you all (we will have been here 3 years next month!)
There is always a relational negotiation that takes place when a church acclimates to new leadership
We have walked through a Pandemic!!
Social distanced
Masked up
Scattered
Localized in our neighborhoods
Sustained loss on a global scale
We’ve been ZOOMED IN AND ZOOMED OUT
There have been some staff changes including worship, youth, and communications.
In the midst of it all, we have had people migrate in and out of our congregation.
There have been twists and turns and ups and downs….through it all God has been FAITHFUL TO THIS COMMUNITY!!
With this level of shifting WE have changed as a Church!! We've been stretched, we’ve been challenged in certain areas emotionally & spiritually and it makes sense that we might:
feel a little bit of confusion in our identity or
a sense of wondering WHO ARE WE NOW...WHO IS COMMON GROUND NORTHEAST?!
In fact, I remember, in the middle of the shut down, preaching into a camera for a Sunday and feeling the weight of the fact! I was just sitting with the idea that we, AS A GLOBE, are experiencing real-time communal trauma and thinking “we just aren’t going to be the same on the other side of this as we were when we went in.”
And I had this moment of grief HIT me as I thought about it and lamented the
loss of PEOPLE
Loss of STABILITY we felt before the pandemic and
the loss you endure when everything that was familiar seems to be gone or harder to grasp
BUT, also there was an emergence of something new being birthed in our midst:
We all had to learn to trust God on a new level and
We saw God carry us through difficulties
I got to see the faithfulness of teams and volunteers that helped keep our church moving,
All of the WORK it took to get us operating online,
All of the GENEROSITY of those of you who provided meals and careportal needs and
now seeing LOTS of new faces in the congregation today that were not here before!
These last seasons have been required to pivot, be flexible, find opportunities in uncertain circumstances while caring for our own wellbeing.
As a church, I think about our pandemic navigation in a few seasons:
Shock turned to adrenaline-infused (we are going to be the helpers/fixer)
Rhythm - we utilized the Gospel Story in-depth through readings, teachings, and online resources to help bring our scattered church in sync together!
Reconnection - As we were able to move about and interact more freely during the summer,
we encouraged HC’s to meet again
We hosted a few events for those that needed extra community
Children’s ministry opened up more and VBS was in-person again!
More recently, the staff and elders had the opportunity to get together for an offsite retreat to pray, discuss, and DREAM TOGETHER about the future
The formation team and staff have tried to checkin in with lots of individuals and just get out together more!
It was a season of RECONNECTION.
BUT, since it’s easy to let SURVIVAL mode become the standard, we need to move into what’s next?!
This puts us in a new phase wherein we want to move out of a defensive posture and into an offensive posture...we are transitioning into a new phase of BUILDING our community!
This is why we wanted to lay the foundation of our 3 Pillars again over the summer.
Put a more intentional focus on Evangelism/outreach
Launch/relaunch House Churches
It’s like we need time to Survey the land, similar to the time of Nehemiah, and get a sense for who is going to help put back the walls here, and stack the stones there, and raise the gates on this side?
Except for us it’s...who will help with childrens’ ministry here, be a greeter there, lead a house church, plant a house church, etc.
Through it all and as the waves of change hit us, it helps to identify who we are first:
what makes us US
What makes Common Ground Northeast, COMMON GROUND NORTHEAST?!
This is also timely because there are a couple audiences sitting before us:
New people have the opportunity to learn more about who we are as they discern their placement in our church!
If you’ve been around CG, this is a time of re-establishing the values that still help us maintain a kind of fidelity to the core convictions that we hold as a corporate body.
There are a few values (the elders were in process to determine) that serve as a plumbline for things we are committed to as a leadership that help guide us as we build anew and still remain faithful to the convictions we have as a church...the first is our name!!
We are COMMON GROUND
We EMPOWER
We are COURAGEOUS
We SEEK JUSTICE
We are COMMITTED
Today we are talking about our namesake. What does it mean to become a church community that is a place of COMMON GROUND?
Story of Debbie talking to me and realizing that we disagreed on a specific doctrine about God’s provision:
We were casually talking because I had to drop something off. She learned that
I leaned in the direction of sovereignty and
she leaned more towards free will...
She informed me that she would be leaving our church because she disagreed with my theological stance AND
She didn’t want me to be around her son any longer
ALL BECAUSE WE HAD A MINUT DISAGREEMENT on a very tertiary aspect of theology.
For her, this was a reason to cut ties with me and an entire church
I was concerned and talked to the pastor who said, “I’ll talk to her but I want you to let it go, if she is willing to leave over something as small as this, it was just a matter of time...”
I don’t mean this to point an accusing finger at this one particular lady because
I believe WE ALL have different backgrounds, values, and perspectives right?
...AND we have all make decisions to UNIFY or DEPART based on the things we value and the way we weigh different opinions…
maybe we did it over a giant decision to depart from a longstanding relationship (toxic or flippant)
Or maybe you have made a decision to depart from a church community or from a denominational affiliation at some point in your life
Perhaps you just decided to unfriend someone because of their political opinions, vaccination status, or mask preferences in the last few months..
There is no shortage of reasons why we, as HUMANS, separate in our culture right now BUT one of the beautiful things about Common Ground Northeast is that we attempt to BE Common Ground...even in the midst of our polarized culture.
Being the Common Ground between two polarized forces can be DIFFICULT
...but the ability to create unified space in the middle is incredibly beautiful and
We believe it’s something Jesus tried to create throughout his life in a few different spheres. Let’s start in John Chapter 17 verse 13!
This verse comes directly AFTER Jesus institutes the Lord’s supper.
HE KNOWS He is about to be crucified and there are some final things He wants the disciples to know before Jesus prays over them
AND today’s scripture is a part of a larger prayer that Jesus prays over Himself, then the disciples, and then (around verse 20) Jesus includes us...let’s see how He gets us there.
John 17:13-23
13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.
We see there is JOY possible even in the midst of public disagreement and even public disdain.
15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
Jesus is anticipating the difficulties His followers will have in the world. So, He PRAYS for them:
To find Joy,
To be protected,
and, finally, to live a sanctified life
At the beginning, Jesus also REFUSES to pray something here AND He makes sure to point it out to us! He said, “I WILL NOT pray for you to be taken out of the world!” and He focuses on praying for protection while in it! Then Jesus shifts His prayer slightly:
20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message (This addresses us, right now!), 21 that all of them may be ONE, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be IN US so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be ONE as we are ONE— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to COMPLETE UNITY. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
SO, pay attention to this - their lives will be lived in a way that becomes Common Ground on THREE different levels:
FIRST, with God as SANCTIFIED People - meaning they will be like God. They will LIVE in a way that is HOLY, separates them from the world and, at times, puts them at odds with it.
The washing of our lives with the word of truth helps us to accomplish this. It said: “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.”
SECOND, they will have overlapping Common Ground with the believers
Jesus gives multiple, direct pleas for a UNIFIED ONENESS between believers!
WHICH He seems concerned they will specifically be TEMPTED to dis-unify.
AND YET, they are meant to REMAIN IN THE WORLD...so there is Common Ground between them and the world too!
Specifically, it says they are “sent” into the world “so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
because He doesn’t want them to be of no good to the world they live in!
These three ropes pull believers in different directions sometimes but there is a sweet spot of shared space at the very center of it all that allows God to work through you in a multifaceted way!!
We are going to look closer at the second two today.
1. FIRST, AS WE CONSIDER UNITY, I WANT TO NOTE THAT this verse has had a MASSIVE influence on believers throughout history including a larger movement in Christian History called the Restoration Movement…
I’m telling you this because, although we have no FORMAL connection to it, our roots are in this movement and you can still see the influence it has had on us!! It started with:
Through Trader’s Point
who planted Common Ground
who planted us and
there is a residual influence that we can still see...
One tangible reminder is that the R.M. traditionally takes communion every single week (the conviction is different, but we do the same to this day).
The RM is marked by a focus on unity that intended to disengage from the SPLINTERING tendencies of denominationalism.
They simply meant to go back - OR RESTORE Christianity - Hence the name “RESTORATION Movement” - TO the roots of First Century Church we read about it Acts!!
One historian said they were “seeking to reform the church from within and sought "the unification of all Christians in a single body patterned after the church of the New Testament”
As a result, they are famous for utilizing mottos like:
No Creed but Christ
No Book but the Bible
And, of course the famous:
“In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty,
In All Things Charity”
The Restoration Movement, and many other traditions, wanted to take John 17 to heart and as our name indicates,
Common Ground is a church that wants to center UNITY whenever the scriptures make it possible.
We want to invite people of various faiths and cultural backgrounds to come together to worship God.
So let me tell you what I experienced when I first came to CGNE! It’s filled with People from:
different religious backgrounds who grew up:
catholic, and methodist, the AME Tradition,
Presbytarian, Anglican,
Wesleyan, baptist, orthodox
In fact, I kept hearing the joke from couples: “I grew up Lutheran and I was catholic and this was the only church where we felt like we could find Common Ground.”
Worship styles that range from
Charismatic, contemporary,
Liturgical, Gospel
There’s a WIDE variety of worshipful practices and we borrow things from those traditions all the time!
We are politically:
progressive AND Conservitive
And those who feel POLITICALLY HOMELESS
There is a HUGE level of theological diversity found within this community.
So, you will find that we don’t ascribe to any specific denominational or theological framework.
Instead, WE stick to the overlapping “common ground” of historical orthodoxy across a plurality of accepted Christian traditions.
If the scriptures make room for ambiguity, then we want to do the same and focus on the things that are essential to walk with God with integrity to the Gospel but openness in non-essentials!!
This all works BECAUSE we have decided to let go of the things that don’t matter so that we can co-commune together under the banner of Christ as a unified whole!
This is what makes us Common Ground for many. We believe it’s unique to our identity & Beautifully reflective of Christ’s character!
It is also, at times, INEFFICIENT because we have a conviction to remain in the tension of the gray space!
As a result, we often move SLOW - we like to say “we move at the speed of relationship”
...because one of the benefits of making conclusions based on denominational, political, church governance, liturgical, and theological distinctions is black and white hyper-CLARITY and the efficiency that comes with that:
If you’re at a Presbytarian Church, you’re decidedly teaching reformed theology, drawing from Luther and Calvin, embracing their creeds, you sing songs from the Presbyterian Hymnal, and the elders answer to the Presbytery who answer to the Synod and so on…
This is very clear, and decisive but, for us, we have decided that it’s too limiting to:
the borders of our unified community
The scope of our missional capacity
So, we have chosen to wade into the waters of the GRAY SPACE and hold these things in tension.
It’s NOT BETTER than other traditions,
it’s just our community's conviction and value to look for Common Ground where there is overlapping space in the world of Christian orthodoxy.
Finding Common Ground in the non-essentials creates unified space with other Christians BUT there are OTHER benefits of finding Common Ground:
It continually makes us better people because we are always seeking to benefit from the experiences of others and allow them to shape and sharpen you.
While many groups and churches want to immerse themselves in people who already agree with them and live in an echo-chamber, we are committed to being a Learning Community.
Our hope is to constantly be in a learning posture
able to engage the culture in a healthy way
And process it
To that end:
We have certain areas and platforms of our church that we leave open for opinions that may diverge from our typical stances.
We read books, listen to speakers, and engage resources that don’t always fully agree with our statement of faith.
We give ourselves grace to reassess and seek the Holy Spirit on certain topics and issues to see if we still believe it aligns with the scriptures
one example is our decision to change our position on women in Leadership.
We may take time to engage certain issues that may have been held by our church and allow them to be reassessed according to the scripture, church history, and as we discern with the Holy Spirit.
So being Common Ground helps us grow but it also opens up missional space in the culture for those outside the fold of God.
The world - that Jesus refused to take us out of - is trying to make sense of a broken world without the creator to help.
So we want to be aware and ACTIVELY engaged
in the world,
the many cultures around us,
and seek to love people amidst the many trends and currents
Jesus often modeled this for the sake of mission and reaching others:
Woman at the well (mission)
Eating with sinners (mission)
Zacheus on one end Nicademus on the other
Interacting with Tax collectors, demon possessed people, and those who were deemed as unclean (all of it was missional engagement with the world around him)!!
Whenever He was able to create Bridges of Common Ground for those to come into a saving faith.
Remember “In Essentials Unity, In Non-Essentials Liberty, In All Things Charity”
Now, there are “ESSENTIALS:”
Theologically - We have some convictions that we call our “Statement of Faith” that boils down our essentials to the bare minimum.
In fact, the openness of these convictions is what allows us to have
as much Common Ground
with as many people as possible under Jesus!!
This is what opens us up to have LOTS of diverse engagement:
Politically
Ethnically
Socio-economically
Denominationally
THIS also allows you to recognize the image of God in the “other” but this also leads us into another area...
What about issues of Justice? While we don’t want to build UNNECESSARY walls of division, issues of Justice take on a different tone with Jesus. This is when we SEE Jesus:
stand in the way as stones are being collected for execution.
Jesus called out evil people in public and deemed them a brood of vipers
Jesus Flipped Tables at the temple
Where the scripture liberates, we must participate in the liberation process and stand in SOLIDARITY!
In THIS way, I see areas of justice as an extension of our Common Ground shared with the oppressed, those deemed marginalized by the culture around us.
We may participate in suffering
We may become a voice for the voiceless and
We may become an oppositional force against injustice in the name of the Gospel because, as Jemar Tisby says, “justice takes sides.”
I’m going to come back to this in the final week in more depth.
When you embrace Common Ground, you embrace the OVERLAPPING OF YOUR WORLD with a unified purpose!
Not at the cost of “Truth” - but with a proper evaluation of it and
with a strong priority of UNITY in the midst of the community of believers
while still remaining in the world (no problem right??)!!
If you CHOOSE to walk this path with us, you will see that God’s interested in...
Agitating you towards growth,
teaching you to trust Him,
expanding your faith!
Keeping the body of believers unified with YOU in it
ALL WHILE saturating the world with Justice and the Kingdom essence which has been deposited in you!
We believe Jesus has called us to live in the gray space and tension of the Common Ground. This isn’t an easy task but one we invite all who call this place home to enter into…
Over the next 4 weeks we are covering a core value or a defining aspect of our church, if you have any questions about these things, please feel free to reach out to learn more.
Let’s pray and ask God to help us live into the idea of Common Ground...
COMMUNION:
(1 COR. 11:23B-26)
“The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
PRAYER REQUESTS:
We are hosting prayer team meetings for both the congregation at large and individuals to sign up for individual prayer.
SUGGESTIONS FOR WORSHIP:
“Praise & Worship” Spotify playlist and “Praise & Worship” YouTube playlist (slightly different from each other), both of diverse music that are being constantly updated!
Bethel Music :
Bethel Music’s hours of live music YouTube Playlist, also being constantly updated
Bethel provides chords to most (if not all) of their songs here (just have to register email, but free!)
Live worship moments from the Upper Room YouTube Playlist
Journal writing! (I’m a writer too, so sometimes creative writing and writing my thoughts to God is my form of worship.)
Declare and worship with truth by singing and praying scriptures.
WORSHIP NIGHT! Dedicate a night to worship with friends and family, your house church or neighbors, those who need prayer, love worship, or just enjoy music through a video chat platform like Zoom. You can have one person leading at a time (switching off to whoever else wants to lead) while others sing along, pray, or prophesy, etc.
Serving your community, both online, in person, or both, is a great way to worship God, from spreading encouragement and God’s Word online to physically serving food to others. If you are able to go out and serve, click here for opportunities.
COMMISSIONING:
As Jesus said in John 20:21,
"Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
Go, be the Church!
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Amen.