What is the
Bond We Have?
Whether
you realize it or not, you have a very unique bond with multiple people
throughout this world. And it is a bond
unlike any other. Which also means that
it is a bond that not too many people have.
You share this special bond - this unity - with groups of people in
Bulgaria, Russia, Latvia, and the Czech Republic, South Korea, Puerto Rico, Mexico,
Germany, Australia, Indonesia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Malawi, Zambia, Portugal,
Finland, Norway, Sweden, Japan, Peru, and the Ukraine. And you have this intimate connection with groups
of people in all of these different places because there are church bodies in
these countries that believe exactly what you believe. And so this connection is not cultural of
course! And it’s not due to a common
language or the proximity to each other or a family tree. The bond you have with all of these people is
much stronger and much more important. Because
it is a bond based in God’s Word. Faith
in Jesus is where it starts, of course, but it’s even more than that. All of these people are not just Christians -
there are many different Christians in this world - all of these particular
Christians agree with you in every point of doctrine; they confess to every
single teaching in Scripture in the same way that you and I do. There is not one disagreement between those
groups and us when it comes to the teachings of the Bible. None.
And so this bond is a deep and profound unity, a very personal
fellowship with people you have never met before.
And, of
course, you share this same unity with many more people right here in the
United States. Including a group of
Sudanese in Omaha, NE, a group of Hmong immigrants in Kansas City, Missouri, a
group of Navajo Christians in Farmington, New Mexico and many, many more. And so this bond cannot be cultural - even
here! It cannot be based on language or
proximity or family trees. It cannot be
tied together by social status, economic status, or job status. This bond can only be found and bound in the
Word. And there are almost 400,000
people in this country with whom you have this bond because they believe
exactly what you believe based on God’s Word.
We Are Bound
Together in the Word
Look
around you. There are people in this
room from different tax brackets, different races, different ages, and
different genders. There are people with
vastly different backgrounds and people that will have even more diverse
futures. There are people with different
hobbies, different opinions, different mindsets, and different baggage. But there is one thing that brings us all together. There is one thing that unites us and binds
us to one another. And that can only be
God’s Word.
You are
not here because this is where all of your friends go to church! You are not here because it is the popular
place to be! You are not here because
the pastor is charismatic or the orchestra is of concert quality or the
technology is state of the art! You
gather together every week with this specific group of people because this is
where you hear and read and study and sing and confess God’s Word in all of its
truth and purity - and those sitting right next to you and across from you and
in front and behind you agree with you on every point. God’s Word is the only common ground all of
us share together. It’s the only common
denominator that could unify a group of people like us.
This is
the same unity that has always existed between Christians ever since the first
promise of the gospel was proclaimed.
It’s the same unity that the early Christian Church clung to as they
were scattered throughout the world during the time of the apostles. It’s the same unity that Paul himself wrote
about on multiple occasions. Which makes
sense because he was living at a time when there were a lot of differences
between the people in the congregations he was involved with. There were converts from Judaism alongside
Gentiles, people that still spoke their own language mixed with citizens of the
Roman Empire, people that were very much still rooted in their own ancestry and
culture but living among those who had long ago adjusted to the Greek way of
life. And so as Paul wrote to the
congregation in Rome that was filled with a whole variety of Christians from
different walks of life, what is the one thing he came back to unify this group
of Christians? The Word of God. “Everything
that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance
and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. May the God who gives endurance and
encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ
Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Paul
desperately wanted the Lord to continue to develop a spirit of unity among that
congregation so that with one heart and mouth they would glorify their
God. How? Through the endurance and the encouragement
of Scripture. God’s Word is where they
had to be if they were going to grow closer.
God’s Word is what they had to study if they were going to find some
common ground. God’s Word is how that
unity would tighten and that fellowship would flourish. God’s Word and the power of the Holy Spirit
working through it was the only thing that would solidify this bond so that it would
not break.
Our Attitudes Strain
That Bond
We have
the privilege of sharing this special bond with this group of Christians. But we also have the habit of straining this
bond from time to time as well. Because
our attitudes and our pride sometimes stretch that bond we have with one
another in unhealthy ways. Do any of
these thoughts sound familiar: “I don’t like what he said to me the other
day…” “I didn’t appreciate her
attitude…” “I think that person was
completely out of line…” “They aren’t
handling the situation as well as I would…”
“That person annoys me, that person ignores me, and that person drives
me up the wall!” And so in our
resentment we complain about those people, we talk about them behind their
backs, and at the very least we grumble about them in our own minds.
Does
that sound like “unity” to you? Does
that sound like the attitude of someone who has a healthy and vibrant bond of
fellowship with another? “But they
started it!” we argue. It doesn’t
matter. “But they’re at fault!” we cry,
attempting to justify our sour attitude.
It doesn’t matter. “But I don’t
like them and they don’t like me!” It
doesn’t matter. They are your fellow like-minded
Christians with whom you share a bond deeper than any other connection you have
with any other people in this entire world.
Not to mention: they are God’s dearly loved children. And just like any father would, our heavenly
Father does not appreciate his children being complained about, begin talked
about behind their backs, being grumbled about by those who should care about
them the most. He does not like it when the
bond he has worked so hard to establish is strained by those who have been
blessed with that bond. He will not put
up with that. He will not tolerate an
unloving attitude among his children.
What if
he treated you like you treat others at those times when you let him down? What if he wanted to sever the bond he has
with you every time you acted inappropriately or said something that offended
him? If that were the case we would have
lost our connection with Christ a long time ago! He would have given up on us right from the
start if our fellowship with him depended on how likeable we are! Fortunately, our Lord has always loved us
even when we aren’t likeable at all.
Jesus Establishes
That Bond
Do you
think he liked you when you were born completely saturated with sin and came
into this life automatically an unbeliever?
No. He didn’t like you. But he loved you. And so he made it possible for you to come
into contact with his Word so that he could work faith in your heart and bring you
to faith in him. Do you think he likes
us when we continually disobey his commands and ignore his teachings now? No.
But he loves us. And so he
instantly forgives us our sins every time through the blood he let fall from
the cross. Do you think he likes us when
we fall into our old sinful habits once again and seem to take a few steps
backward instead of walking with him?
No. But he still loves us. And so he provides his body and blood in the
Lord’s Supper to give us that beautiful forgiveness in yet another powerful
way. Do you think he likes us when we treat our fellow Christians - his own
children! - in an unchristian way?
No. But he still loves us. And so he doesn’t take back his promise of
eternal life that he had guaranteed to us before but reassures us of that guarantee
once again. We are not likeable, are
we? I know that might be a shot to some
of your egos (it is to mine!), but the way we act and the way we talk and the
way we think cannot make us very likeable to our Lord at all. We probably don’t even like ourselves
sometimes. And so it’s a good thing our
Lord loves us!
In fact,
he loved us so much that he became one of us, he died for all of us, and he
rose from the dead like all of us one day will.
He formed a bond with us that is unbreakable, a fellowship with us that
is almost unfathomable, a unity with us that is completely undeserved. It is a unity through faith in him, a unity
grounded in his Word. There is no
stronger bond then the one our Lord has made with us on the cross. There is no other bond like it.
There is No
Other Bond Like It
This
bond that I have with my Lord and that you have with your Lord is the same bond
that every person in this room shares with their Lord as well. And because we all have an intimate relationship
with the same Savior, we have an undeniable connection with one another. A bond strengthened even further by the fact
that we have been brought to believe in every teaching of his Word together in
exactly the same way. That’s why we can
say that we are in “fellowship” together.
It is a mutual agreement. A
statement of faith. A spiritual
unity.
Now you
might not be the best of friends with every single person in this room. You might not get together for coffee with
every single person in this room. You
might not necessarily like the personality of every single person in this
room. And that’s OK. But you do share a bond with every single
person in this room that trumps personalities, that is more powerful than differences
of opinion, a bond that even forgives sin.
This is a bond that is established in the pages of Scripture, a bond
that is solidified by every word found in the Bible. A bond that makes it possible to study with
one another, sing with one another, pray with one another, celebrate with one
another no matter what we disagree with outside these walls.
Where
else are you going to find this kind of bond?
In certain congregations in Bulgaria and Russia and South Korea…
Sure. In the scattered congregations within
our church body throughout this country?
Of course. But right now, right
here in this town, whom else do you share this bond with? There’s something special going on here. Don’t overlook it. Don’t take it for granted. You have a fellowship here that is
irreplaceable. Make it count! Make it last!
And make an effort to do that through the Word. In the Word.
By the Word. Because “Everything that was written in the past
was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the
Scriptures we might have hope. May the
God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among
yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may
glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This is a precious bond. A bond built on our Savior. There is no bond stronger. There is no bond better. Amen.
“Praise be to the
Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, ‘Amen!’ Praise the
Lord.” - Psalm 106:48
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