When life goes wrong, God gives us each other.
Notes
Transcript
Story | Talk about something unimportant that you can’t stand.
Question | What’s something you can’t stand?
Maybe you didn't agree with every annoying thing that was just mentioned, but let's be honest: it's kind of fun to hate things sometimes, isn't it?
When someone calls out something they hate, we often want to join in and pile on. But although it's pretty harmless to gang up on something dumb (like pineapple on pizza), have you ever noticed how easy it is for us to gang up on other people?
Have you ever been ganged up on? Have you ever ganged up on someone else? Why do you think people tend to gang up on each other?
Video | A clip from “The Mob Song,” from Beauty and the Beast
Sometimes, it's like we're just waiting for someone to make a mistake so we can gang up on them.
When one person is angry enough, or scared enough, or mean enough, it doesn't take much for their negative emotions to spread to others. Pretty soon, an entire group of people will often join in, united by their shared anger or hatred.
Psychologists use the term "mob mentality" to explain this phenomenon, which makes me think of this clip . . .
You’ve probably never joined an angry mob with pitchforks and torches, but I’m guessing you’ve seen a group of people get together and gang up on someone before.
WE’RE DESIGNED TO GATHER TOGETHER
God has designed us to thrive in relationships with each other, but instead of coming together in healthy relationships, we often come together in judgment or hatred of others — and that's not what God intended.
For the last two weeks, we've been talking about what we can do when we face losses, challenges, or failures. We talked about how Jesus can redeem what's gone wrong and how, when life doesn't make sense, God can be trusted.
But today I don't want to talk about your hurt and pain. I want to talk about what we do when others are hurting.
It's easy to gang up on someone. But when someone is in pain or has made a big mistake, what might it look like for us to gather around them in a different way?
Story | Talk about a time when your community made you stronger
Have you ever made it through a hard time because of the people who gathered around you? What happened?
Scripture |
Last week, we talked about several people who suffered in ways that didn't seem to make a lot of sense. We said that, after Jesus died, rose again, and left earth, Jesus' followers had their faith in God tested in significant ways.
Because the Roman government was threatened by the message of Jesus and the new Kingdom Jesus came to announce, Jesus' followers were being captured, imprisoned, tortured, and killed. They knew Jesus had called them to share His good news all over the world, but they were being severely punished for it.
Last week, we read part of a letter written by a man named Peter, who wrote to his fellow Jesus-followers to encourage them. Today, I want to read part of a letter written by another man named Paul. Paul wrote a letter to a group of Christians living in Rome — a letter we now call "Romans."
2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Paul says we can "rejoice" in our pain. That seems a little weird, doesn’t it? Nobody throws a party when they fail a test, get their heart broken, or make a big mistake.
But Paul says we have a legitimate reason to find joy in our pain. We rejoice because loss and failure produce perseverance, and perseverance, over time, produces character.
But let’s face it — no matter what Paul says, have you ever tried to be happy about your own pain and suffering? It's not easy!
But let me remind you what I said a moment ago when I gave you some context for this letter. Paul's words weren't written to an individual. They were written to a community! Paul assumed this letter would be read by an entire church, together — a group of people committed to God and to each other.
Paul assumed this letter would be read by an entire church, together — a group of people committed to God and to each other.If we want to understand what Paul is saying, we have to understand the context that Paul was writing in.With that in mind, a few pages later, it shouldn't be surprising that Paul talks in greater detail about how we can take care of each other. It's not a change of subject — it's a continuation.
Paul assumed this letter would be read by an entire church, together — a group of people committed to God and to each other.
If we want to understand what Paul is saying, we have to understand the context that Paul was writing in.
With that in mind, a few pages later, it shouldn't be surprising that Paul talks in greater detail about how we can take care of each other. It's not a change of subject — it's a continuation.
With that in mind, a few pages later, it shouldn't be surprising that Paul talks in greater detail about how we can take care of each other. It's not a change of subject — it's a continuation.
9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Again, Paul tells us to rejoice in our suffering. But this time it's right in the middle of advice on how we can love each other better. That's not an accident. Paul wanted his readers to understand he was writing to all of them — a community that was committed to each other.
Paul knew something we need to remember: when life goes wrong, God gives us each other.
When something hurtful is done to us, God gives us each other.
When we suffer a tragedy or loss, God gives us each other.
When we make huge mistakes, God gives us each other.
I said I don't want to talk about our pain today, though. Instead I want to talk about the pain of others, and what we're going to do about it.
When someone in our lives is hurting, grieving, or experiencing a big failure, how will we respond? Will we ignore them? Will we pile on in judgment or anger? Or will we gather around them in love?
And if we do decide to gather around them in love, what should that even look like? How do we know when someone is hurting, and what should we do about it?
If you were hurting because of your own failure, mistake, or choice, how would you want others to help you?
If you were hurting because of something that happened to you, how would you want others to help you?
When someone is hurting, how can we make sure we help them in the ways they want and need to be helped (and not just the ways we think they should be helped)?
Video | Sara Tucholsky’s Home Run Moment
Sara's injury was painful and unexpected. She probably felt angry with herself, frustrated at the situation, and embarrassed at the way things had happened. But do you see what her opponents did for her? Their actions reflected so much of the words Paul wrote to the church of Rome. When they saw Sara's pain, failure, and loss . . .
They didn't just pretend to care about her — they really cared.
They honored her.
They practiced enthusiasm, joy, hope, patience, and hospitality.
They celebrated her in her victory and they mourned with her in her pain.
They weren't too proud to help her.
They refused to see her as an enemy to be hated or ignored — they saw her as a person to be loved.
Every time we see someone fall, either in pain or in failure, we have an opportunity to pick them up and help them finish the game. When we do . . .
We all win, together.
We all grow stronger, together.
We all build character, together
.We all model hope, joy, and selfless love to the world around us, together.
Did you hear what these girls said about the reaction from the crowd? People were moved. Why? Maybe it's because, deep down, we know we're designed to do life together.
When we're going through a difficult time, what are some ways other people can help make us stronger?
When we help others through a difficult time, what are some ways that experience can make us stronger?
I know life can get difficult and painful sometimes, both for us and for those around us. And when it does, I hope you remember that, when life goes wrong, God gives us each other.