Reconnecting to our great story and purpose

I always look forward to our time, our assembly every Sunday, even this morning. Did you notice that all we do-our singing, our praying, our participation in our common meal, our contribution talk, are all about re- enacting a grand story, a story anchored around the LORD? God’s grand story of his new creation. We get the chance to tell/listen to that same story.

There’s a commonly known Native American proverb, “Tell me a fact, and I will learn, tell me the truth, and I will believe, but tell me a story, and it will live in my heart forever.” I am not sure who came up with that.”

All over the world, stories have so much power. Netflix, YouTube, TV news stories, reality TV series, google news, cable news, Instagram, Meta, etc., all seem to know this truth. I believe the Bible is even more up-to-date than today’s news sources!

So, stories from these sources grab our attention and generate a range emotions and responses – joy, tears, sadness, anger, fear and new ways to think. You do agree that stories have the potential to powerfully and creatively change the ways we see and interpret the realities of our existence. Telling stories has proven to be one of the most effective ways to help people engage critical ideas.

Remember the story you are part of. Gen. 12:1-3

God invites the first humans to partner with him to rule his terrestrial kingdom from the GOEden. We are told that since divine disobedience, God has been working with mankind to bring about his original intent of creating the cosmos. Beginning with Adam, to Noah, to Abraham, to Isaac, to Israel, and then to David. The Hebrew text (from the beginning and the end), is all about God’s missionary concern for the world.

Can I have volunteer read aloud Gen 12:1-3 Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

The rest of Gen to 50 re-enacts this story/promise with…Isaac, Jacob, Israel, and culminating in Jesus….in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.

In Matthew 1:1 (let me read that one). Matthew and others believed the God of Israel has kept his promise through the Messiah Jesus to open the door of blessing to all nations.

In Jesus, we see clearly God’s mission to bring healing and blessing to his whole creation. (All nations).

As we are already aware, the Story didn’t end with his resurrection and ascension. It continued with the Apostles, those who heard them, over the centuries. We are partners in this epic continuing rescue story of God’s people here in St. Louis MO.

The earliest followers of Jesus embarked on this mission of Jesus to the Jews at Pentecost, and Gentiles, beginning with the Ethiopian, then Cornelius, then You, (call names here)…

They did this because they knew the story they were in.

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus commands that we tell his story (good news) to all nations. For us what would this mean? In Christ, this is our story too.

Last week, we were reminded to continue to participate in this epic story by “Finding a person of peace”. We are called to take a missional posture in everyday conversations. Allow me to share how that has impacted me last week. I had grown very familiar with coming to meetings, BS, QT, and all that is great. The pace of daily life, its challenges, and our past experiences, often derail our best intentions to share the story. We can get used to not sharing…and pay very little attention to finding persons of

peace. Let’s not forget or neglect or be distracted from the story we are in?

Tali and I at Sam’s club on Sunday and trash truck driver.

Here Paul wants us to know how the Spirit takes delight in our discipline. We have to become intentional again about this universal call of the one we love so much-Christ. C. S Lewis said “there’s not a square inch in the cosmos that is not contested.” In our sin-sick society today, there are grand packaged deceitful/addictive distractions that have many in captivity. The world is doing such a great job at telling their own stories that our constant exposure to them tends to have a numbing effect on God’s mega story. We have real gift for presenting God’s Truth in a fresh and lively way to help people understand the mysteries of the Bible. Our smart phones/other devices, participation in FB, Instagram, LinkedIn, others (help me out). Some young ones think the more likes/viewers you get, the happier you become, and the more joyful and significant you are.

But Energy flows towards what we focus on. Jesus energy flowed towards God’s grand story of rescuing and redeeming mankind. He came to us where we live, where we shop, work. Jesus was very intentional with sharing his story, God’s story. In Synagogues, by the Sea of Galilee, at the well, on the road. Let’s examine Jesus’s pattern of living and telling the same story.

Read John 3:1-5, and John 4, Jesus turned normal everyday conversations into bringing Nicodemus & the Samaritans to meet Jesus. We too encounter friends, family, coworkers who tell us about what’s going on in the lives and around them. We can turn those conversations into introducing them to God’s story in Jesus. We are called to take a missional posture in everyday conversations. What an opportunity we have to rediscover God’s mega story and find creative ways of telling it.

To close this out, let us…