Real Family
Mark
Patrick Edwards
Mark 3:7-4:34
Introduction
I love Google. Recently, I was invited to a meet with a group of pastors who've been meeting together for years and had heard that I was new to the area and asked if I wanted to join them. I didn't really. I'm just kidding! The truth of the matter is that I just dread social situations like those where I don't know anybody. Even worse when they all know each other. So, I googled "How to socialize with people". I was skeptical about finding anything, but soon found I must not be alone in my social awkwardness. My search turned up 8.2 million results. Apparently, none of us are good at being in new groups.
Think about it, what do we all do when we arrive at a party or an event, or even here in the lobby on a Sunday morning. We find someone we know, and we camp out there. We gravitate to the social groups we've already formed. It's human nature, sociologists have observed. Human beings instinctually herd together. Our society is packed full of such groups or tribes, many of whom overlap, which then results in super bonds among particular people.
We group together based on things like politics, career, hobbies, the ages of our kids and how they are educated. We form groups based on income, education level, ethnicity, the sports teams we root for. We divide ourselves off into segments that make us feel most comfortable and most secure. Imagine then when we find people with whom we share multiple affinities: someone you work with whose kids are the same age, who votes like you do, looks like you even and roots for the same teams and spends their free time doing the same things? That's the BFF magic right there!
The church, however, is none of these things.
The church is the only place on planet earth where the bonds and relationships have nothing to do with affinities and interests. Not just that, the church supersedes any of those things. The church is made up of people of different polit ...
Mark
Patrick Edwards
Mark 3:7-4:34
Introduction
I love Google. Recently, I was invited to a meet with a group of pastors who've been meeting together for years and had heard that I was new to the area and asked if I wanted to join them. I didn't really. I'm just kidding! The truth of the matter is that I just dread social situations like those where I don't know anybody. Even worse when they all know each other. So, I googled "How to socialize with people". I was skeptical about finding anything, but soon found I must not be alone in my social awkwardness. My search turned up 8.2 million results. Apparently, none of us are good at being in new groups.
Think about it, what do we all do when we arrive at a party or an event, or even here in the lobby on a Sunday morning. We find someone we know, and we camp out there. We gravitate to the social groups we've already formed. It's human nature, sociologists have observed. Human beings instinctually herd together. Our society is packed full of such groups or tribes, many of whom overlap, which then results in super bonds among particular people.
We group together based on things like politics, career, hobbies, the ages of our kids and how they are educated. We form groups based on income, education level, ethnicity, the sports teams we root for. We divide ourselves off into segments that make us feel most comfortable and most secure. Imagine then when we find people with whom we share multiple affinities: someone you work with whose kids are the same age, who votes like you do, looks like you even and roots for the same teams and spends their free time doing the same things? That's the BFF magic right there!
The church, however, is none of these things.
The church is the only place on planet earth where the bonds and relationships have nothing to do with affinities and interests. Not just that, the church supersedes any of those things. The church is made up of people of different polit ...
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