Sermon Tone Analysis

*Why We Need Each Other*  \\ \\ Romans 12:5-12:5 \\ \\ We Americans love our independence.

\\ Our nation was founded on the Declaration of Independence.

\\ We celebrate Independence Day.

\\ We love our independence!

\\ “I’ve got to be me!” \\ “I did it my way!” \\ “I don’t need anybody to tell me what to do!” \\ \\ We’ve been taught that happiness is the result of independence.

\\ We’ve been taught to work towards financially independence – THEN we will be happy!

\\ We’ve been taught to be relationally independent.

\\ We’ve been taught to be independent in every way – THEN we will be the happiest!

\\ \\ And yet, we have never had more unhappy people in the world than we do today.

\\ And the suicide rate continues to sky rocket.

\\ Why? \\ Independence is not the answer!

\\ \\ Happiness doesn’t come from being independent, isolated, with all the barriers up and all the masks on, keeping people at a distance.

That’s not the way to be happy.

\\ Happiness doesn’t come from independence.

\\ Happiness comes from interdependence.

\\ Happiness comes from community.

\\ \\ Notice what the Bible says in Romans chapter 12:5... \\ You have the verse there on your outline.

\\ Let’s read it aloud together: \\ \\ [Read verse on outline] \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ Turn to the person next to you and say, “You need me.”

Go ahead.

“You need me.”

All right.

\\ Now, I want you to say, “I need you.”

Go ahead.

“I need you.”

Now, that wasn’t SO hard, was it?

\\ \\ We need each other.

We just don’t realize how much we need each other because we are taught to be independent.

God wired all of us in such a way that we can only fulfill His purposes for our lives in community, in His family, in relationship to each other.

\\ We need each other!

\\ That’s the big idea we’re going to look at for the next 40 days.

\\ \\ This morning we’re going to look at: Why we need each other.

\\ We will identify 5 reasons why we need each other.

\\ We will examine why you need a church family... \\ ...why you need to be involved in a community with other believers.

\\ ...why you need to be involved in a small group with other believers who get to know you on a deeper level.

\\ \\ \\ 1. WE NEED OTHERS TO WALK WITH US \\ \\ You need other believers to help you grow spiritually.

\\ Read Colossians 2:6-7 with me, it’s there in your outline... \\ “Just as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him...” \\ \\ Now the Bible often refers to your spiritual life as your “walk.”

We are told to walk in the light, to walk in love, to walk in obedience, to walk in the Holy Spirit, to walk as Jesus walked, to walk in wisdom.

Why? \\ Why does the Bible talk about our spiritual life as a “walk”?

\\ Because life is not just a sit-down thing.

It’s a journey.

\\ You’re always growing.

You’re always moving.

\\ Your life is a journey.

There is a destination to get to.

\\ \\ But here’s the thing we must grab hold of this morning: \\ God never intended for you to walk through life alone.

Never! [Repeat] \\ This has nothing to do with whether you’re single or married.

\\ Now some of you say, “Well what’s wrong with walking alone?

I like to walk alone.

I prefer to walk alone.

I get my own way when I walk alone.”

\\ \\ The problem with hibernating and just being by yourself all the time is that you never learn to cooperate.

\\ You never learn what it means to be in relationship.

\\ You never truly learn to love or be loved.

\\ You never learn to be more like Christ because you are never challenged or provided with opportunities to live out your faith.

\\ \\ Practically speaking, why is it better to walk with others in life?

\\ \\ 3 Reasons: (you might want to just jot these down in the margin) \\ \\ 1) It’s safer.

\\ \\ It’s safer when you walk with others through life.

There’s safety in numbers.

Whether it’s walking in a dark alley in the inner-city or out in the countryside, it’s still safer to have someone walking with you.

It’s a whole lot less risky.

\\ \\ Now, some might disagree here.

Maybe the words to a Simon and Garfunkel song (a real oldie!)

express your thoughts: \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ \\ A winters day \\ In a deep and dark December; \\ I am alone, \\ Gazing from my window to the streets below \\ On a freshly fallen silent shroud of snow.

\\ I am a rock, \\ I am an island.

\\ I’ve built walls, \\ A fortress deep and mighty, \\ That none may penetrate.

\\ I have no need of friendship; friendship causes pain.

\\ Its laughter and its loving I disdain.

\\ I am a rock, \\ I am an island.

\\ \\ Don’t talk of love, \\ But I’ve heard the words before; \\ It’s sleeping in my memory.

\\ I won’t disturb the slumber of feelings that have died.

\\ If I never loved I never would have cried.

\\ I am a rock, \\ I am an island.

\\ \\ I have my books \\ And my poetry to protect me; \\ I am shielded in my armor, \\ Hiding in my room, safe within my womb.

\\ I touch no one and no one touches me.

\\ I am a rock, \\ I am an island.

\\ \\ And a rock feels no pain; \\ And an island never cries.

\\ \\ Sure, you feel no pain.

Sure, you never cry.

But have you lived?

\\ Have you fulfilled God’s purpose for your existence?

No! \\ God desires that we be involved in relationship with others.

\\ We need each other to walk with us.

\\ It’s not only safer, it’s also... \\ \\ 2) It’s supportive \\ \\ It keeps you from giving up.

\\ When other people are walking with you, they keep you going.

\\ \\ Listen to this old Zambian proverb: \\ “When you run alone, you run fast.

But when you run together, you run far.”

\\ The life that we are called to live is not a 50-yard dash! \\ It’s a marathon!

And we had better be prepared to run far.

\\ And to do that we need each other.

\\ \\ The geese are going to start flying south for the winter now.

\\ Why do they fly in V-formation?

\\ It’s because they can fly farther in that formation because it creates an updraft and they don’t get as tired when they fly together like that.

\\ When we fly, when we walk, when we run through life together, we’re a whole lot less tired when we walk with others.

\\ It’s safer.

It’s supportive.

It’s also just plain... \\ \\ 3) It’s smarter \\ \\ You’ll learn a whole lot more when you go through life with other people close to you.

You will learn from them.

You will learn from their mistakes.

It’s just plain smarter to walk together through this life with others.

\\ \\ Now, I want you to look at Genesis 2:18.