Real Life Community (1 Peter 4:7-11)
Albert Einstein once said, "Things should be made as simple as possible, but not any simpler." There is a power that comes from being simple in the right way, as Einstein said: by being as simple as possible, but not any simpler. That's what we've been trying to do these past few weeks as we've looked at the church and asked, "If you make it as simple as possible, what is the one thing that really matters as a church?"
The one thing that really matters, of course, is that we love one another. Jesus said, "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" (John 13:34-35). The last night that he was alive, he demonstrated this priority in his actions, his words, and his prayers. Scripture is clear that if we succeed at everything else but fail at loving each other, we've failed. It's over for us. But if we really love each other, this will be powerful evidence that we are disciples and that the gospel is true.
In other words, when we love one another in the church, we become evidence that the gospel is true. This is far more powerful evidence than arguments or books.
Imagine trying to explain the game of baseball to someone who has never seen a baseball field. You try to explain the pitcher's mound and the diamond and the outfield and the catcher. It would be far easier to explain all of this if you could take this person to an actual field, and walk around pointing to the diamond and the mound as you explain it.
Now imagine explaining the gospel to someone who has never heard of Jesus before. It is far easier to take a person to a group of people who are living the gospel, practicing love and forgiveness and trust, and explain to them what the gospel is like as you look at people who are living it, rather than giving them abstract principles about the gospel. We have the potential of living as the concrete expression of the gospel, so that people can point to us as evidence that the gospel is true – but only if we love each other. Jesus said that the world will know that we are his followers if we love one another.
So my question today is: what does it look like in reality? Maybe you've had the experience of going to McDonalds and looking at the pictures of what you're going to get on the menu. The hamburgers look amazing. Have you ever compared what you get with what's in the picture? I don't recommend it. The hamburger in the picture isn't real. It was real at one point, but somebody took a lot of time to make it look absolutely perfect. Then they sprayed it with stuff to make it look better in the picture. Then they adjusted the lighting, paid a professional to take its picture, and then airbrushed it in the lab. The hamburger you get at the counter was thrown together by a kid in the back and looks nothing like what's in the picture.
We could talk about the airbrushed picture of community, the ideal. As we close this series, though, I want to be more real than that. What does it look like in real life? How does it work in a church like Richview with real people and real life?
To answer this, I want to look with you at some real-life churches who faced the challenge of building real community in a real-life challenging situation. There is nothing theoretical in what we're about to look at.
Peter, a disciple of Christ, wrote this letter to churches in the area we would call Turkey today. If you read Peter's whole letter, you discover that the churches he's writing to were experiencing persecution. In other words, Peter is writing to churches that are experiencing stress. This is not some ideal community in perfect circumstances in someone's imagination. These are real people facing real challenges, and Peter addresses how they can truly love each other in this context.
This gives me hope, because we too are real people facing real challenges. We are not some ideal community. We are real people who disappoint each other and who face some challenging circumstances. So the question is: in real life circumstances, with real life people, what does it look like?
Well, Peter tells us. Let's read it together. It's found in 1 Peter 4:7-11:
The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. If you speak, you should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If you serve, you should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Here's what I want to do with this text. I want this text to function as a kind of a vision of what Richview could look like as we develop as a community. I want to begin by looking at the big picture, which makes community possible, and then look at the specific instructions that Peter gives for how a group like us can become a true community. Then I want to look at what we can do to make this a reality.
This is a vision of what we could become as a church. It isn't the airbrushed ideal. This is real-life stuff of what we could become. But before we can follow his instructions, it's important, I think, that we see the big picture.
The Big Picture
So here's the big picture. Peter doesn't just say, "Act this way." he gives us a theological framework for how we are to act. We've already seen in previous weeks that the gospel is the basis for our community. The only way that we can love one another as Jesus commands is through is work at the cross. Peter gives us two other big picture items which frame our becoming a real life community of believers.
So here's the big picture. First, verse 7 says, "The end of all things is near." Have you ever been at home not doing what you're supposed to be doing when you hear a car in the driveway? Somebody returns home, and you go, "Oh man, I had better do what I am supposed to be doing before they walk in the door." It's exactly that dynamic that Peter talks about.
Peter says, "The end of all things is near." Look back at verse 5: "But they will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead." It reminds me of another passage, from James 5:8-9:
You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near. Don't grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
Here is the big picture, and the motivation for becoming a real life community: because the Judge is standing at the door, and because we are about to be judged for how well we have loved one another. The picture of the coming judgment is a powerful motivator for us to love one another as Jesus has commanded us.
Now think about this for a minute. When we think of the day of judgment, if we think of it at all, we think about giving account for our individual lives, don't we? But there's a sense in which we will not only have to give account for our individual lives, but we will also have to give account as a church. One day, those of us who are part of Richview will have to give account for the type of church that we have been. Peter gives us the picture of Jesus standing at the door, and of having to give account to God at the judgment.
It's easy for us to dismiss what Peter says about the end being near, because it's two thousand years later and Christ still hasn't returned, and we still haven't had to give account. From a biblical perspective, though, Peter was exactly right. Biblically, the entire period in between the resurrection of Jesus and the second coming are referred to as "the last days." All the major events in God's plan have occurred. Now all things are ready for Christ to return and to rule. Therefore, in light of his imminent return, work your way backwards and be the type of community you're supposed to be today.
The other big picture concept is found in verse 11:
If you speak, you should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If you serve, you should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
If you go back to the baseball analogy again, it's important to understand the end game. What is the goal when you're playing baseball? If you think that the object of baseball is to keep the uniforms clean – and some baseball moms have thought this! – then you'll never dive for a ball, or slide into second base. If you think the object of baseball is to socialize with the other team, you'll play the game differently. If you think the goal of baseball is to win the game, and you buy in, you will do everything possible – even to the point of discomfort and injury – to win the game. Players have played with major injuries, with the help of painkillers, to win the game.
Peter says that the end game of the church is that God gets the glory and power for ever and ever. In other words, the end game of the church is the glory of God. That is why we exist. We don't exist to keep the uniforms clean for socializing or to enjoy church. We exist to bring God glory. The minute that we think we exist for our own comfort or convenience, we've missed the point.
Put this together, and you have the big picture. The end of all things is near. We will soon give account to Jesus for how we live out our fellowship in the gospel. We exist not for our own comfort or convenience or for our ease, but for God's glory.
Given this big picture, what does community look like in real life?
Community in Real Life
Peter gives a list of seemingly unrelated commands in verses 7 to 11. Lists are some of the hardest parts of the Bible to preach or to apply. It's easy to come up with a laundry list of commands: "Wash the car, buy milk, pick up the kids, and peel the potatoes." What's hard is pulling together the essence of the seemingly unrelated commands.
I believe that Peter isn't just listing random commands, but that he's getting at something. Listen to what he says again:
The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. If you speak, you should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If you serve, you should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Peter says that in light of Jesus' soon return and the upcoming judgment, and in light of our purpose as a church, this is how we are to act. But what binds these commands together? Why these commands and not others?
I don't know what you think, but I'd like to take a guess. The one thing that all of these commands seem to have in common is that they are about how we relate together within the church. This is how the church is to act as we relate to each other. A failure to do anything that he commands here will lead to a failure of community. On the other hand, if we do the things that he lists here, it will lead to greater community. These seemingly unrelated commands are about life together as God's people, in context of the end and God's glory as our goal.
In other words, this list gives us a bit of practical help. Instead of saying, "Just be loving to one another," Peter gives us four very practical things we can do to develop community within the church. These aren't unrelated commands. These are four very practical steps that we can take to develop community at Richview.
Let's look at how we're doing at each one.
Think straight
"Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray." Peter says that we're supposed to maintain cool and balanced heads, to exercise self-control and moderation. We think about and evaluate situations maturely and correctly. Eugene Peterson puts it this way: "Take nothing for granted. Stay wide-awake." The way we'll know we've done this is if we're praying together. When God's people are praying, it's evidence that they have their heads screwed on straight.
A good, clear mind is the best foundation for prayer. When we believe that the end of history is near, and that we exist for God's glory, it will energize our prayer life and lead to a special focus.
So here's my challenge: what can you do to develop an alert and sober mind that is the foundation for praying that we will develop a church that loves one another and glorifies God? Prayer is essential for this to happen. Peter tells us to take whatever steps are necessary to get to this point of praying.
Love
Second, Peter says in verse 8, "Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins." This is obviously important. Love is the "above all" virtue. It's a perennial solution to the problems we face as a community of Christians. Love is not an optional extra, but a central part of the faith.
Peter says, "Above all, love each other deeply." The picture he uses is what was used in Peter's day of athletes straining as they tried to win the game. Peter's saying, don't slack off when it comes to love. Love one another strenuously. Again, Peterson translates it, "Love each other as if your life depended on it." If you think it takes work to love some people, you're right. But Peter says that we are to do the work necessary, to strain ourselves and do whatever it takes to love one another.
The idea is not that we develop feelings, although feelings are nice. The idea is that we work hard at acting in love. The way we'll know that we are loving is when we experience what Peter describes: "love covers over a multitude of sins." Have you ever been in a situation in which every word is viewed with suspicion, every action is liable to misunderstanding? That's the opposite of what Peter is talking about. When we love each other, offenses will happen, but they will be overlooked and forgotten because we love each other. We will relate to each other in an atmosphere of grace.
So here's the command: not to feel a certain way about others, but to act in love so that you treat others with grace. Work hard at it. Do it strenuously, not half-heartedly. Love each other deeply.
Show hospitality
Third, Peter says, "Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling." In those days, Christians would often travel. There weren't networks of decent hotels, and hotels were known for immorality. That's why it was important to be willing to entertain strangers, to have them in your homes. One of the qualifications for church leaders was that you had to be hospitable.
I love the touch of reality in this command: "without grumbling." I can picture the whispers: "How long is she going to stay?" "Can you believe his appetite?" Hospitality can be an exasperating task. It comes at a price.
Today, it's not so much about a lack of good hotels, but hospitality, or entertaining strangers, is more needed than ever. Take a look around you. Do you see any strangers? One of the things I hear a lot now is, "I don't know who everyone is at Richview." One of the best ways to fix that is to be hospitable. Hospitality has a cost. It will be exasperated at times. You may even feel like grumbling. But Peter says, "Be hospitable." At the very least, invite someone you don't know to Swiss Chalet. Even better, open your home to strangers so they won't be strangers anymore. Be hospitable.
Finally, share the gifts God has given us
Verse 10 says, "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms." Peter then gives two examples of spiritual gifts: speaking and serving. Peter says that God has entrusted something to each of us that the whole body needs. Listen to that again: God has entrusted something to you that the entire church needs. Peter says, "Use what God has given you for the benefit of others. They need it!"
The picture he gives is that of a steward. A steward was responsible for managing someone else's property, distributing wages and food to its members. It is sort of like the payroll company that our church has hired. The church pays the payroll company, then the payroll company is supposed to take that money and pay each of the staff and the government. Imagine if the church paid the payroll company, and the payroll company said, "No, we've decided not to pay the employees this month. Something else came up."
That's exactly what it's like with us. God has entrusted each of us with something that the whole church needs. When we don't share it, we've taken something that God intended for everyone's benefit and kept it to ourselves. That's called stealing. Peter says, "Use what God has given you, which is different from what he's given everyone else, for the benefit of the entire church." We administer it, but it isn't ours. We are responsible, though, for how it is used.
Now put this all together. What does a church community look like that takes the gospel seriously? They pray, they act with love and grace, they show hospitality, and they share whatever God has given them. What will Richview look like when we take the gospel seriously and live out God's command to love one another? We will pray. We will create an atmosphere of grace. We will open up our homes to each other, even to strangers among us. And we will use what God has given us for the benefit of the whole body.
This is what it looks like in real life. None of this is hard to understand. The only question today is, will we do it? If we fail to do these things, we won't have community. If we do these things, we will be ready to meet the Judge who is standing at the door, and we will bring glory to God for ever and ever.
Here's what I'd like you to do. Look at this list and ask what you will have to do to make this happen. Then let's pray and commit to being doers, not just hearers, of God's Word. I'm going to give you a minute to look at these commands, and then lead us in a prayer of commitment as we ask God what we have to do differently, so we can live out God's commands for his glory.
