NOTES: Defragment, Part 4
Sermon: Defragment: Week 4: Sacred Community
Date: March 4, 2024
Text: Mark 3:13–21 (ESV)
13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. 20 Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”
Let’s Connect:
To Defragment is to simplify our whole lives around Jesus— keeping company with him in his ways & practices
Matthew 11:28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
How does community help defrag my life?
Our human flourishing happens as we are rooted in God within the ecosystem of sacred community.
Text Explained:
Understanding sacred community?
1. Foremost, unity in and with Jesus.
John 6:44 (ESV)44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”
John 15:16 (ESV)16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
Apprenticeship:
2. This community is about unity in Jesus, within a wildly diverse spiritual family.
Romans 15:4–7 (ESV) 5 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, 6 that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 7 Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
Who are these 12? Why diverse?
“When Christian believers gather in churches, everything that can go wrong sooner or later does….Just as a hospital collects the sick under one roof and labels them as such, the church collects sinners… So Christian churches are not generally model communities of good behavior. They are…places where human misbehavior is brought out in the open, faced and dealt with.” Eugene Peterson
Wise cautions (not fear):
3. The activities of this community cultivate the life and love of Jesus.
Let’s Relate:
Defragmenting in sacred community:
- Find one or two who “get you,” then expand from there.
- Add sacred community to what you’re already doing.
- Give priority to a rhythm of sacred gatherings (Sunday worship).
Our Challenge:
As His coming draws near, we need to keep each other near!
Closing thoughts: