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Series: Wiii Church
September 7, 2008

1 Corinthians 12:27 tells us, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.” That’s what we’re talking about the next four weeks.

When I was in the 9th grade a friend was going on a summer vacation for a week, and I talked him into letting me borrow his NES. For a week of my summer I did nothing but play SMB, determined that I was going to complete the games. The whole concept was revolutionary. That week I accomplished my goal and finished the game. My friend returned. I gave him back his game system, and I told him, “I just wasted an entire week of my summer. I will never play video games again.” Since that time, I have never owned a video game system. I have become woefully out of touch with the world. I ride a horse and buggy, I think little people live inside my TV, I afraid of electricity and don’t understand these “micro-waves.”

Ok, I’m not that bad. But still, I have never been interested in video games… until the Wii. I was volunteering at the Northwest London Resource Centre after school program, and they were having a game day. They had set up a game cube, guitar hero, and a Wii. A kid asked me to play Wii with him. I told him he’d have to teach me, which he thought was pretty cool. He said let’s box. He handed me the numb chucks. It was awesome. Oh, it felt so good to just kick the virtual snot out of this little punk. Then I went on to kick the snot out of another kid. I was on a roll. I was having a blast. Then this little twerp, I mean, he must have weighted 98 pounds fully clothed, with his backpack, soaking wet, holding a 45-pound plate, took the controllers. I’m telling you, I was flailing around all over the place, and this kid barely moved a muscle, largely because he didn’t have any muscle to move, and he totally cleaned my clock.

Hey, all kidding aside, the Wii system is a fascinating development in technology. It was developed under the code name “Revolution,” but they soon decided that this did not really convey what they were trying to do with the Wii. You see the Wii wasn’t so much about a wireless controller, that technology was already commonplace. What was revolutionary about the Wii was how it was going to bring people together. Obviously the Wii is spelled with two lowercase I’s, side by side, representing people standing together, and simple put, the name, “Wii” sounds like “we.” Two or more people, connecting together, sharing in the game, sharing the experience.

They changed the name from revolution to Wii, but Wii has still revolutionized the way gaming is done and will be done. And likewise, this September, we want to revolutionize the way you think about church, the way you understand church, the way you do church, the way we exist as a church, the way the world thinks about us as a church. Today, and all this month, it’s about “Wii Church.” It’s about me, and you, and all of us together, in community, in connection, doing life together.

Even the title of this series emerged in a group a few weeks back as a few of us were talking about this coming fall. But the thinking behind it started in me long ago, and really started to come into focus when I decided to go with the name “Connections.” I knew it sounded like a Christian dating service, or an internet provider, but still, it was a way for me to capture what I hoped and dreamed and believed a local church could be.

Like our mission states, we believe in a church that can become a gathering of people who are radically connected with God, with people, and with the world. And all I mean by “radical” is its root meaning, which is, “root.” To be rooted, connected in a way the grounds, that nourishes, that gives life- to God, to people and to the world. We believe that our connection with God is the most vital, most essential, most important thing we can do in this world and with our lives. And we believe that our God, unlike any religion can ever offer, invited us to enter into a relationship. We believe that God the Father loves us and sent his son Jesus to us. We believe that Jesus lives in a direct connection and relationship with each and every one of his believers by sending us the Holy Spirit. And that each believer, filled with the Holy Spirit, is connected to one another, in a way that is both contemporary and concrete (here and now) and is metaphysical and eternal.

And it is through this connection with God that we become connected with one another, and when we are connected to one another, we become what the bible calls the church. And thus the church is “me,” but it is so much more than just me, it is “we.”

We are Canadians and Americans, and Camericans like my family!
We are young and old,
men and women,
rich and poor,
Red and yellow, black and white, and some even have the orange tan thing.
We are educated and uneducated,
left brained and right brained and no brained,
capable and handicapped.
We are Liberals and Conservatives.
We are athletes and book worms.
Leafs fans and Senators fans, and maybe even some of us who care way more about football.
We are the mature in faith, and new in faith,
traditional and contemporary,
Orthodox and Catholic,
Reformed and Wesleyan,
Baptist and Anabaptist.
We have been monks, and social activists.
We have conscientiously served, and we have conscientiously objected
We have built a city on a hill, and we have entered into the city to heal
We have sinned greatly, and have been greatly forgiven
We have been given much, and we have much still to give
We have loved much, and have many more to love!

We are the church and we are every person, in every corner of the world, who has died, who lives, who are yet to be born, who are IN JESUS CHRIST. That’s it, that’s the primary definition of the church- We are the gathering of everyone who has lived or now lives in Jesus Christ- every person who puts their life in Jesus.

And when we are the church, we will experience life the way it was meant to be lived. We will find community, hope, healing and wholeness. We will find life in Jesus, and we will find life in each other. We will be encouraged, and challenged. We will have our lives saved, and we will have our lives ruined- that is, we will have our old, boring, dead-end dreams of fame, wealth and worldly success ruined by a vision to live in a better way. We will discover that place where we are loved, where we have purpose, where we belong. And in the church, in this connection, we will tap into a power unlike anything else we have ever experienced.

You see, I believe that behind what much of our culture calls psychological disorder (not everything mind you), but much of what we think of as disorder, is actually so prevalent, that it is in fact the normal order of things in a fallen world. Angst, anguish, anger, confusion, depression, fear, guilt, loneliness… since everyone experiences these things to some degree, they are a part of our common soul cry for God.

I believe that because a disconnected soul lies at the heart of most of our personal and cultural struggles, the solution (again, not always, but more often that not) is not therapy, not to further isolate ourselves from others, going behind closed doors to vent on a expert at reflective listening, but church. The solution is believing in Jesus, repentance, turning our life over to God, connecting with Him, then connecting with others in him.

I believe that the greatest need then in someone’s life after they connect with God, is to connect with other people. Communities of people pouring their heart, their love, their lives into others; as we have others pouring their heart, their love, their lives into ours.

And therefore, (and this is what’s going to ruffle the feathers of hard-core church types) these communities are not primarily about correcting wrong behaviors, or providing accountability, or having mentors who are like spiritual giants standing over us- these communities are about connection. Simply connecting with each other, as the children of God, the body of Christ.

Is there a place for correcting wrong behaviors? Sure there is. If your life is wrapped up in self destructive and other-destructive behaviors, then God can help, and the church can help, and God will help and the church will help. But the church is not primarily about entering into a behavior modification program of rules and regulations; it’s about a living relationship with God.

Is there a place for accountability? Sure, when we come to a place where we desire a standard of life higher than we can ever achieve on our own, when we have that kind of intimacy with a few others. But again, the church is not primarily about holding a standard over your head so you feel constantly guilty about where you are. The church is about receiving forgiveness in Jesus, and together leaning on the standard of Jesus to raise us from death to life, from this world to the next, and living in grateful response to the grace and love he’s lavished on us.

Is there a place for being mentored and mentoring others? Of course there is. But these relationships are so intimate, so personal, so wonderful when they happen and come into place, that we can’t force them. But we can plan for them. Because the only way we are ever going to find them, the only way we can ever get to place to say to some one, follow me, or, I want to follow you, is if we are already connected, already in community, already living as the church.

This is about “we” being the church. I want to do this because I believe, like others before me, that the church is the hope of the world. I believe that the church is the one enduring and eternal institution of this world. I believe it is way more than an institution, it is an organism. I believe that the church is the organic, dynamic, predestined hope for the world. I believe that church is the living, breathing, growing body of Jesus Christ. I believe that the church is made manifest in the people of God here on earth, and will be made glorified in eternity. I believe the church is the best thing that I, or anyone else, can be a part of on this side of heaven, because the church is going to be the bride of Jesus in heaven. I believe that church, more than anything else in the world, is the method and the means to change the world.

We are the Ecclesia. That’s the Greek word that we translate church. It means a gathering or an assembly. It also has the connotation of being called out. So we, the ecclesia, are people who are called out from the world, who gather together in Jesus. Then Jesus sends us back out into the world to gather more!

Jesus said, whenever 2 or more people get together in my name, I am there. Whenever one person calls on the name of Jesus, they are saved. They become a Christian. They enter into a relationship with God the Father through believing in Jesus Christ the Son and they are filled with the Holy Spirit. They are a Christian. And that person, whether they like it or not, whether they want it or not, are immediately and eternally a part of the church. When that Christian gets together with just one other Christian- bang! The church is made visible. That’s the way it is, because we are the church. It’s not a building, and we do violence to the real nature of the church when we think of it not analogous to a building, but as a building, we change it from something living, to something dead. It’s not just a meeting on Sunday mornings. And we diminish church, we lessen it’s greatness when we think if is simply as one hour Sunday morning, no matter how important or awesome that worship experience is.

Some people don’t get this because Jesus didn’t talk about it much. Jesus didn’t rail on and on about the church. He spent his ministry talking about the Kingdom of Heaven, or the Kingdom of God. He preached, more than anything else, repent, for the kingdom is near! Jesus spent his life calling people into a relationship with him, calling people to follow him, healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, feeding the hungry, casting out demons, even raising the dead. He taught people about the love of God and how to love their neighbors. He welcomed little children into his arms. He mingled with the haves and have not’s. He associated with the right people, and the wrong crowd. He comforted the afflicted, and he afflicted the comfortable. He gave people without hope a reason to live. He gave people without purpose a direction in life. He forgave sinners and set them free. Jesus is without a doubt the most compelling figure in all of history. He has changed the world. His legacy lives on and grows larger every day.

Jesus is easy to love. He really is. And there really are few people in the history of the world who have studied the life of Jesus and have not come to believe in him as the Lord and savior of the world, even fewer won’t at least fall in love with him as the most exceptional human who ever lived. It really is hard not to love him.

So Jesus, on the last night of his life on earth, before his death, resurrection and ascension, said to his disciples a new command I give to you: love one another, as I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples. (John 13:34-35) Can you believe that- he set us up. He came to us, he lived with us, he taught us, healed us, saved us. He became our savior and our Lord, and that was great. Then he had to go and mess the whole thing up by telling us that we had to love each other, and that this is how the world will know him. He set us up!

He set us up because you people really make it hard to love you. I know, I’m your pastor. I mean, you have issues, you have baggage, you have real problems. You come from broken families, and the sins of your parents have haunted you for a lifetime. You have addictions and attitudes problems. You have parents who are sick and dying and need cared for. You have kids who have rebelled and break your heart. You have trouble finding a relationship, and finding someone to marry. Then when you find someone you have trouble in your marriage. You have debt and messed up finances. You have trouble at school and at work. Have you seen you people? Have you looked in the mirror? You really make it really hard to love you.

But God did love you. He loved you so much he has saved you and called you his very own. He loved you and trusted you so much he entrusted to you the very desire of his heart, the very center of his mission- to be the church. To be his body, the body of Christ. And as the church he send us into the world. So we’d be his feet going to everyone on earth. And we’d become his voice and we’d share the best news the world has ever heard, the greatest story ever told. And we’d be his ears, listening to the voices crying out in the darkness. And we’d his hands, going to everyone and lifting them out of the graves of this world. And so now we are left having to love other people the way Jesus loved all people because the Holy Spirit lives in us, and connects each of us, and changes my life from just being about me, to being all about we.

Our story doesn’t end with Jesus. It really just begins. Jesus appeared to his disciples for 40 days after his resurrection, then he ascended into heaven, promising to send to us the Holy Spirit. And when the Spirit would come, the church would be born. And the Spirit did come, and the church was born, and on the they very day the church was born A man named preached the story of Jesus, and 3000 people believed, repented, and were baptized.

Immediately Acts tells us what marked the life of the church…

Acts 2:42They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

What are the marks of the church? To summarize, they were devoted to God, they were devoted to one another, and they were devoted to others. And this is what we have devoted ourselves to. Take away one of those pillars- devotion to God, to people, to the world, and the church isn’t the church anymore. Take away one, and like a three-legged stool, the whole thing falls over.

This is what the church did, and what our church does. To gathering in worship in celebration of God, to study God’s word, to pray. That’s what these celebrations are all about. It didn’t end there, that was just the beginning, They gathered in homes to fellowship with one another and share in life together. That’s what we’re talking bout next week. Their life together was marked by their baptism in the Lord Jesus. SO that’s what we’re doing September 21. Their life together was sustained in sharing Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, or the breaking of Bread, or the Eucharist (it sure has a lot of names), but whatever your favorite title, we’re sharing in that meal on September 28.

That passage ended with what I think is just about the most awesome things ever- They enjoyed the favor of all people and the Lord added daily to their number those who were being saved. And so we pray daily to see people saved. This is what we mean by Wiii Church.

We are serious about Wiii Church. We are so serious about this, that we want to remove every obstacle form your path to connecting with God, and connecting with people, and connecting with the world. One of the things we’ve heard from some of our folks is that because we rush out of here after worship, a lot of folks don’t have time to connect with others. Sorry, it’s one of the limitations of the theatre and engaging our culture here. But today I want to remove your excuse for not connecting. We believe so deeply in WE, in relationships, that we are giving you a $5 gift card to Starbucks. Everyone who wants one will get one. IF we run out, I’ll run over to Starbucks and get more. They are worth $5, that’s enough for two people to each get a Grande, or Giganto, or whatever they call it, coffee. But that’s the catch. You have to share it. You have to grab a person, grab a card, and go, or set up a time to go. Or, if there’s someone you’ve been wanting to invite to Connections, or someone you just need to connect with, you can take a card, call that person, and go connect.

Are we trying to buy you off? Absolutely. You bet. We think you are worth $5. We think your relationship are worth $5. In fact, we think your life and your relationships are worth way more than $5. We think you are priceless, you are worth the life of Jesus Christ, and your relationships are about the best thing you can invest in in this world. And if $5 can help us communicate you’re worthy. If $5 can help grow relationships, well we think that the best investment we can make as a church.

And if $5 Starbucks cards gets people talking about the church that bribes people to come- well so what. In fact, if it gets them talking, if it gets them visiting us, great! But we aren’t giving out cards next week, so they all missed the boat!