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Salt + Light Community is a SOMA church plant in the heart of Fort Worth, TX. Here you’ll find teaching and discussions from our gatherings on Sundays.
Speaker 2: Gosh, what we're talking
about today, uh, I just feel like
spending time sharing and praying for one
another is just, like, such a tangible
example, and I love that we got to kinda
start, um, our teaching time with that.
Um, so when I was five, I asked my dad
if I could go- if we could go to church,
and I had no idea what church was.
We didn't attend church.
Um, my parents were not yet
believers, but I had a neighbor.
Y'all, some of y'all know the story.
I had a neighbor whose dad, uh, th-
he was a pastor, they had planted
a church, and I loved this family.
Uh, I didn't know a thing about
church, what that meant, what it
looked like, um, but I did know
that I was really curious about it.
And God used that church, that
group of people, to change
everything for my family.
And not only was that the church
where I f- first heard the gospel
proclaimed, but it's also where I saw
the gospel lived out among its people.
Uh, I experienced the impact of
the gospel, the impact that it, the
gospel has on a community of people.
I met and experienced the people of
God in that church, a group of people
who lived and operated differently, and
I could tell you a thousand different
stories of little, tiny moments where
I experienced the goodness of God
through the people of that church.
And, you know, what drew me to church,
and also kept me there, was the people,
and the way that they loved and cared
for one another, and the way that
they pointed each other towards Jesus.
Like, that's what kept me
tethered to that church community.
So that's to say, I love the church.
You guys know this.
I love the church, and that's
not to say, um, that's certainly
not to excuse that there are hard
things, there are confusing things.
Sometimes it asks a lot of you,
sometimes you're disappointed, sometimes
it is really hard, and I know that.
But even though there are highs and lows
to our church experience, I am committed.
And most of us in this room probably
have a, a mixture of stories,
of really beautiful stories and
really painful stories when it
comes to our church experience.
But I still believe in the church,
and I believe in the church because
it's changed my life, and the
people of God have changed my life.
You guys have changed my life.
So we're five weeks into this series.
I don't know, I mean, I, I feel like we
should have that passage memorized by now.
Um, we're five weeks into this series
that's called Following Jesus Together.
Together being the key word there, and,
uh, here's why that's so important.
You are not a Christian alone.
You are not a Christian alone.
Following Jesus alone,
that's actually an oxymoron.
God's plan as we see in Acts and in the
New Testament, and through thousands
of years of church history, God's plan
was for believers to be in community
with one another through the church.
Well, what does that look like?
Well, that's why we've
been looking at Acts 2.
It looks like being devoted to a
few key practices, and that's what
we've been looking at over this fall.
We've considered different practices,
um, that the early church was
devoted to, and they were devoted
to fellowship with one another.
They were devoted to
the teaching of Jesus.
They were devoted to
being on mission together.
And today, we're gonna look at how
they practiced serving together.
So a couple weeks ago when I taught,
we, uh, looked at this idea of
fellowship, the Greek word koinonia,
and I wanna refresh us just for
a minute on what that word means.
Koinonia, it refers to the joint
participation in a community that is
formed around having something in common.
So it's like this partnership that is
rooted in the fact that we all have one
thing in common, and we have a shared
responsibility to one another because
of that thing that we have in common.
And that thing that we have in
common is the grace of the gospel,
that we are bound together by our
identity as disciples of Jesus.
So if we have nothing else
in common, we've got the most
important thing in common.
So this week is kind of our part
two of this concept of koinonia.
So if last time we focused on shared
life by way of fellowship, what
does it look like to share life with
each other, this week we're going
to zoom in on the sacrificial and
costly generosity that flows out
of that commitment to fellowship.
And what I mean by generosity is
a, a giving of ourselves, of our
time, and our resources, our energy.
A giving of ourselves, that is what I'm
looking at when, what I'm considering
when I say this term generosity.
So to put it plainly, we're
talking about serving, serving.
So before we get into that, let's
look back into Acts 2 again of, of
what this group of people are doing.
So I wanna read, um, a part
of this passage for us once
more, starting in verse 44.
Said that, "All the believers were
together and had everything in common.
They shared everything.
They sold property and possessions
to give to anyone who had need."
Okay.
I'm sorry, what?
Okay, like, you read that and
you think, "Okay, that isâ¦
What do we do with that?"
Okay, they were all together.
They had everything in common.
They shared all their things.
They sold everything, and
they gave to anyone who had
need so that no one had need.
This is a direct expression
of koinonia in action.
The believers' attitude towards one
another, it prompted them to sell their
possessions and share their resources.
It was an overflow of their love.
The selling of things described here, um,
that wasn't separate from this concept
of koinonia, this concept of fellowship.
What it was was koinonia made visible.
This type of sharing, it displays the
unity of believers and the commitment
that they had to one another.
It is a response to the
grace that they had received.
And you might read this, and we
actually had this conversation a
few weeks ago at our, uh, DNA group.
You might read this and think, "Well, uh,
this sounds like a form of socialism."
Okay?
I'll stop you right here.
This is not gonna be a sermon about
socialism or capitalism or communism
or any other economic system, okay?
Um, instead, I want us to think
about how these people from various
backgrounds that were added to the
number daily, so these aren't just
people that they've known forever.
These are added people daily from various
backgrounds, coming together, who start
serving and sacrificing for one another.
It's not because they had this great new
insight into a new economic system, a,
a new way to live that benefits them.
No, that's not what they
were doing here, okay?
So we're gonna look into
that more, um, as we go on.
Um, but back in, back in col- when I
was in college, I spent some time in
Northern Ireland, and it was part of my,
um, study, when I was studying education.
And in Northern Ireland, there was,
um, they were beginning to integrate
schools between, um, Protestant
families and Catholic families.
Uh, this was a cultural thing, you
know, and so they're, they were trying
to do these new integrated schools.
So I was, I was there, um, kind
of learning, and this teacher
who was mentoring me, she was so
passionate for Jesus that it just
motivated every part of her day.
The way she interacted, how she said
things, how she cared for others.
I mean, it just was a natural overflow
to how she operated about her days.
Um, so I should've known better when I
one day complimented her on her bracelet.
I was like, "Oh, that's such a,
such a neat, interesting bracelet."
It was a really unique kind of bracelet.
And she immediately takes it off and hands
it to me, and insisted that I keep it.
That is the kind of heart posture
that we see in this passage.
This overflowing generosity of their time
and their resources and their own selves.
The reality is, though, that this true
koinonia, it comes with a price tag.
It expects and it hopes that each one
of us would invest in the spiritual, the
physical, and the material welfare of
your family in Christ, the people that
you are united with because of the gospel.
And that's gonna look different from
person to person and season to season that
we find ourselves in, and that's okay.
But you're not exempt
from this participation.
This generous giving and serving, it
is a response to something greater.
It's a response to the goodness of God
in your life, to the grace that these
individuals and this community experience,
to the grace that we as individuals
and as a community get to experience.
The grace that I've been
given, let me extend it to you.
That should be our default
setting as believers.
Serving is meant to be a natural response
of a rescued people, not out of guilt.
It is not a guilt-driven obligation
But I think we can probably all
acknowledge that this sounds
pretty radical to our ears.
Uh, is that just because this
is our Western mindset reading
this passage of scripture?
And there are certainly barriers
to us serving one another and
being generous to one another.
And here in the West, our culture
is very individualistic, and
that's one reason why, uh, the
American Dream does so well here.
Because we celebrate individual success.
We prioritize our personal time
and space, and we don't like to
share our needs with our community.
So we can imagine that our Western
individual culture could be an
obstacle to this generous, serving
lifestyle that we see in Acts 2.
So we can think, okay, well, this is
probably a Western cultural issue, right?
Um, Eastern culture is
very different from ours.
It's whatâ¦
We would consider the Eastern culture
as known as a collective culture.
So if we're an individualistic
culture, Eastern culture
would be a collective culture.
And as, umâ¦
There's this great book that our
DNA leaders are reading right now.
I'm sure I've recogni- I've
recommended it to y'all in the past.
It's called How to Know
a Person by David Brooks.
Excellent book.
Everybody should read it.
Um, in the book, he gives this really
interesting example, though, that
demonstrates the difference between
Western individualistic culture
and Eastern collective culture, and
he uses a fishbowl as his example.
And he says, based on our
cultural context, Easterners and
Westerners, they observe this
fishbowl completely differently.
So while a Westerner focuses on
the individual fish in the bowl, an
Easterner observes the collective
environment, like the water and the
rocks and the plants, and how these
things all interact with the fish.
So the, the image is meant to s- uh, the,
the example is meant to show us that while
Westerners i- idolize the individual,
Easterners prioritize family and society.
So on paper, we would be able to
make the argument that it seems like
this type of joyful generosity in
Acts 2 would naturally flo- flow
from a culture like Eastern culture,
this col- collective culture.
But it doesn't produce that
either, because Eastern culture is
actually one of honor and shame.
So service and generosity can instead
flow from external pressure or family
guilt or fear of being socially excluded.
So it's still not the same motivation.
It's not based on their culture.
In Acts 2, it's not based on
this culture that they're in.
So what is it based on?
What is it that caused these first
century Christians to joyfully sell
their possessions and serve one another?
We need to look at the motivation here.
These early church members, they were
only able to even practice this radical
service and generosity because they
had first received radical generosity.
They had experienced something that
completely altered their perspective
on their lives and their resources.
So I want us to read a passage in John
when Jesus and his disciples are about
to share their last supper together,
and Jesus does something unexpected.
We're gonna look at John
13 starting in verse 4
Okay.
So he got up from the meal, took off
his outer clothing, Jesus, and he
wrapped a towel around his waist.
After that, he poured water into a
basin and began to wash his disciples'
feet, drying th- them with the
towel that was wrapped around him.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to
him, "Lord, are you gonna wash my feet?"
Jesus replied, "You do not
realize now what I am doing,
but later you will understand."
"No," said Peter, "You
shall never wash my feet."
And Jesus answered, "Unless I wash
you, you have no part with me."
When he had finished washing
their feet, he put on his clothes
and returned to his place.
"Do you understand what
I have done for you?"
He asked them, "You call me
teacher and Lord, and rightly
so, for that is what I am.
Now that I, your Lord and teacher,
have washed your feet, you also
should wash one another's feet.
I have set you an example that you
should do as I have done for you.
Very truly I tell you, no servant
is greater than his master,
nor is a messenger greater
than the one who sent him.
Now that you know these things, you
will be blessed if you do them."
Do you see what Jesus does here?
He's the Messiah.
He is the king.
But he stoops down and takes
the posture of a servant.
And how is this received?
I mean, Peter's like, "No.
No way.
No way, Jesus."
Why is this so hard for them
to receive this from Jesus?
Because they feel like it's beneath
Jesus, that this is a dirty job.
This is not fit for a king.
But Jesus is always flipping things
upside down for us, and he says,
"I, I give you this example."
He tells us that we will
be blessed if we do this.
If we want to do, be like Jesus and do
the things that he did, then this servant
identity is central to who we are.
It is something that we're all
invited into the kingdom of God.
Young and old, whether you are new
to following Jesus or if you've
been walking with him for decades,
this is part of your identity.
So I wanna categorize three
different areas of service.
Uh, serving the church and serving one
another, we see that on display in Acts 2.
And then, uh, we're also called, though,
we know that we are called to serve others
as a way to help usher in the Kingdom
of God on Earth as it is in Heaven.
So the first, um, the first area
of service is serving the church,
and the beauty of a small church
is that the needs are obvious.
And if you consider Salt & Light your
home here, your church family, then you
are part of an all-hands-on-deck team.
And there are a few of us, there
are a few of us who are supported,
financially supported by the church,
um, but none of us are full-time.
So our Sundays can't happen without you.
Our weekday gatherings, like Alpha and
DNA and youth, none of those things
can hap- happen without each other.
They can't happen without you.
None of this is funded without you.
Everyone has an important role
to play, and we s- we instill
this belief at a young age.
Our kids help to serve here just as much
as our adults do, because we believe that
everybody matters and everyone is needed.
And you guys know I feel
strongly about this.
A- as a church leader, one of my biggest
desires, one of the things that I pray
consistently for, is that our children
who are part of our church community
here would become adults who deeply
understand that every person matters
and belongs, and that they would have
gotten to taste and see and experience
that through their own church experience.
And one way we know that
people understand whenâ¦
Excuse me.
Um, when people know that
they belong, it is when they
understand that they're needed.
And not in a what can you produce
for us, what can you give to us
type of way, but we need you because
we are better because of you.
So as your church leader, I-
as I was thinking on this this
week, I just wanna say thank you.
Thank you for participating and helping
and serving alongside each other.
It is a true joy and an honor to
get to lead alongside you guys.
The second area that we
serve is serving one another.
In Acts 2, they gave to anyone
who had need, that there were
no needs because of that.
And this is a challenge to be generous
with yourself to one another in this room.
And honestly, I think we are
pretty good at this, uh, when we,
when we know each other's needs.
You guys, I hear so many stories.
You guys feed each other.
Uh, you help make job connections.
You help people move.
You watch each other's kids.
You help cover bills when
that needs taken care of.
You do projects around the house.
You make time and space
for one another regularly.
Some of you even give to our
benevolence fund that we sometimes
use to share when we know that there's
a, a greater need in our community.
You guys are often generous
with one another, with both
your time and your resources.
What we're less good at is sharing
our needs, letting people in, letting
people know that you need help.
And one reason for this is we
are hyper-independent people.
We don't like receiving help.
It makes us uncomfortable,
makes us feel vulnerable.
We don't like to feel needy.
Instead of asking for help, we
often run a, uh, cost-benefit
analysis to determine if it's worth
the risk, if we really need it.
Can I just manage this on my own?
But here's the deal.
Being served, it does put you in a posture
of vulnerability, and serving another, it
does put you in a posture of sacrifice.
It will cost someone
something, and that's okay.
That's good.
God takes care of us through one
another, and it is also meant to be a
blessing to us to get to participate.
And that doesn't mean that you areâ¦
Hear me when I say this, you are not
meant to do everything for every need.
But I do want you to pray for grace
and wisdom to know how to respond and
how to serve and how to let people in.
Ask God how He wants you
to serve someone else.
Ask God to help you notice who and
what He's drawing your attention to.
We're not all gonna take care of
the same needs, and we don't all
need to do that, but somebody does.
And so we wanna ask God for hearts and
minds and eyes that are paying attention
to the needs around us, the needs
that are within this own community.
And the third group that
we get to serve is others.
Okay, stick with me for a minute on this.
I love the power of scent.
Uh, and what I mean by that is I
am fascinated by the way a, a scent
can trigger a memory or take you
somewhere in your past, you know?
Um, and there are studies and research
done on, like, the, the importance
of scent connected to memory.
But you all have that experience, you
know, where you'll, like, catch a scent,
and it'll suddenly take you back to,
like, your grandparents' house, you know?
Or that one, like, really
special family vacation.
Um, after each of my kids were born, I, I
bought a candle for each, like, for each,
um, time, and I had it, like, going the
whole, like, first couple of weeks that we
were just home and, you know, like, just
in that, like, beginning newborn stage.
Because I wanted a scent attached
to those, like, moments, you know?
Um, and it's, and it's ⦠Every once in
a while, I'll get, like, a scent, a, a
whiff of it, you know, and I ⦠it'll
take me back to those beginning moments.
So this leads me to an ex- this is
gonna be such a youth group story,
um, that I had in high school.
I was with my youth group on a mission
trip, uh, in Mexico, and we always
went to the same tiny village up
in the mountains in central Mexico.
And we went there, like,
five or six times in a row.
It had minimal electricity, no plumbing.
We camped out in tents in kind
of, like, this big open field.
It was really hot during the day.
It was chilly at night.
And one particular summer, our
main job was to mix, uh, cement.
We were gonna lay a foundation for the
church that was also used as their school.
And when we got there, our youth leader
gave each one of us a shirt to wear.
It was, like, this ugly beige shirt,
and it had a letter, a random letter
in the corner for each one of us.
Um, it was ugly, and it was weird,
and it just felt like a strange
youth group thing, you know?
Um, and at the end of our first day
when we were all, like, really hot
and sweaty and exhausted, you know,
a bunch of teenagers, like, sweaty
and, um, smelly, he had us all line
up to see what our shirts spelled out.
And what they spelled out was
The Pleasing Aroma of Christ
And the lesson for us was that
when you serve others out of the
overflow of your own love for God,
it produces the aroma of Christ.
It has the power to draw the attention
of others, not to you, but to Jesus.
Through serving others, we
get to bear witness to God.
We get to bear witness to
a generous and loving God.
We say we don't do this for our own
glory, but to produce the aroma of Christ.
The aroma of Christ is
the mark of a servant
So listen again to Jesus' words, uh,
after he has washed his disciples' feet
The night before his death, he says, "A
new command I give you: love one another.
As I have loved you, so
you must love one another.
And by this, everyone will
know that you are my disciples,
if you love one another."
When we serve one another and when
we serve others, it is love in action
When we serve others, whether
it's our church, our family, or
the stranger, it is meant to be a
fragrant offering to God as well.
He loves when we serve others.
When believers live sacrificially, and
lovingly, and with generous hearts,
we mirror Christ, and we become
a sweet-smelling offering to God.
Because it was Christ who first served us.
It was Jesus who entered this world
with the intent to generously love and
serve others, completely and wholly.
And Jesus is the one that
gives us a tangible picture
of the infinite love of God.
Because by the world's standards,
Jesus had every right to show up and
expect to be served, but he didn't.
Rather, he humbled himself, and
he said, "The Son of Man came not
to be served, but to serve, and to
give his life as a ransom for many."
Not to be served, but to serve.
That is the posture that God is
asking his followers to take.
But that is usually not
our default setting.
So when we talk about doing
the things that Jesus did, this
is what we're talking about.
Every day is full of opportunities to
follow Jesus' example, and to give your
life in service, whether it's your time,
your resources, your money, your energy
Jesus did not consider himself
better or above others.
He did not consider himself
better or above acts of service.
Rather, he actually says it is more
blessed to give than to receive,
because the blessing is in the service
So I want to invite us to
communion together now.
What I want us to do is approach the
table this morning with humility and
gratitude, 'cause communion reminds us
that Christ has held nothing back for you
It represents His body that was given, His
blood that was poured out for our needs.
And at the table, we remember that
our salvation cost everything, and
that should not fill us with guilt,
but it should fill us with gratitude
Because Jesus loves you so much.
And whether we devote ourselves to serving
or not, Jesus did, and He did it for you
So would you please come to the table
now, gather your communion, and then
we'll come back and take it together