"One Anothering- The Christian Life"

 

“The Christian Life: One Anothering”  5/15/22 1 Cor. 1:10;  1 John 4:11-12;

“I appeal to you, brothers and sister, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.”
“Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.  No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is made complete in us.” 

I’d like to begin with an old pastors joke.  Three pastors had bats in their community and in their church (I guess bats in the belfry).  These bats were difficult to get rid of, and made a mess and were scaring people away from worship.  One pastor said, “I got so mad, I used a shotgun.  But it just made a hole in the roof.  Another said,  “I trapped them but then they came back after we released them.”   A third pastor said, “I figured out how to do it- and it worked.  They asked, “How?” “I caught them and then baptized them- and then I never saw them again.”  For some the church is about being baptized or confirmed and then they disappear.  The Church is so much more than an insurance policy into heaven or just meeting together.  It is more than being enriched by a sermon, or inspired by an anthem.  Blaine touched on love last week, but one concrete expression of love is found 100 times in the New Testament.  It is not a verb, but it is the Greek word “alleylon” which means “one another.”  In many ways, the church is about one anothering.  This is a unique New Testament church phrase.  It is not found much in the Old Testament and not much in the secular Greek of the day- but it is as common (as one scholar said) as “salt on popcorn” in the New Testament.  It is the idea: I serve you- you serve me; I bear your burdens, you bear mine;  I love you, you love me;  I come with you to worship- you come with me. 
I want to group these into 3 parts- love, sin, helping. 
LOVE ONE ANOTHER- 16 passages
Jesus said it (Jn. 13) - “A new command I give to you, “Love one another.”  Then to make sure we didn’t think it was trivial he said it again in John 15: “”My command is this: Love one another as I have loved you- greater love has no one than this- that he lay down his life for his friends.”  Later 1 John 4 says 3x to love one another.  It says, “Love one another for love comes from God.  He who loves has been born of God and knows God.  He who does not love does not know God because God is love.”  The test for knowing God is not your theology or your ethics.  I know churches who split apart because of supralapsarian theology and infralapsarian theology.  Most of us don’t know or care what those beliefs are.  There are churches that split apart because one if premillennial and one is amillenial.  Then they split apart again because one is premillennial post trib and one is premillennial pre trib.  Once you start splitting thinking you will have the perfect church- you will not find it.  In the 1700s churches had rifts over dancing.  Indiantown Presbyterian near Hemmingway had a rule that Christians don’t dance.  An elder went to the town’s only crossroads after church, and danced publicly.  At first he was threatened with excommunication- but the better angels of their nature won in the end.  In the early 1900s in the prohibition era- churches were splitting apart over being dry or drinking.  Where is the grace and the love in all of that?  1 Corinthians 13 says, “If you have faith that can move mountains, but you do not have love- you are nothing…  Faith hope and love abide- but the greatest of these- the greatest of these- the absolute greatest of these is love.”  Love one another.   
Romans 12:10 says, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.”  We are so lacking in real love.  This is not just coming together to be shallow and simply play games.  But it is to focus our love on God and then on each other. 
Three times (Rom. 16:16; 1 Thess 5; 1 Peter 5:14; 2 Cor. 13:12)in scripture it says that our greeting to one another should be a thing of love- so “Greet one another with a holy kiss.”  That probably went the Covid way, but I would like to see us greet one another- just say “Hi.” 
In our day there are many people taking selfies or Tik Toks of themselves to show the world.  That comes close to narcissism and the opposite of agape love.  But being able to “one another- one another” is so very important. 

There is a dark side to one anothering.  We know it, and if you are not careful you can be so afraid of the darkness that you will never go into the place of light.  DO NOT SIN AGAINST ONE ANOTHER- People can come together to sin.  We recognize that.  I know one man who doesn’t want his wife to come to church because he thinks she will come to church to sin.  I see it happen in other ways.  In fact the Bible warns us-
1) Do not sin from your lips: Gossip, Lie, or Slander one another- that is not why we come together.  My father used to say, “If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say it at all.”  James 5:9 says, “Do not grumble against one another.”  James 4:11 says, “Do not slander one another.”  Colossians 3:10- says, “Do not lie to one another since you have taken off your old self and its practices.”   The Christian way is not to lie, gossip, or slander.  That may be the way of the world, but that is not God’s way.  The positive command in contrast is “Let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what will build up one another.”  (Eph. 4:29).
2) Do not judge one another- we are not here to say, “I am better than you” we are all at the foot of the cross.  When you are in small group or Bible study you are not to take notes so you can condemn that person.  We are quick to judge, but grace teaches us to hold the truth in humility. 
The Bible- recognizing sins in the body also says, “Confess your faults to one another.”  Jesus said, “Forgive one another as I have forgiven you.” 

HUMBLY HELP ONE ANOTHER-
A) Submit to one another- 1 Thess 5:5; Eoh, 5:21 says, “Submit to one another out of fear of God.” 
     Why should we submit to one another?  After all I know I’m right and she’s wrong.  Or he is just being a bully male- why should I submit;  She makes such a long list of things for me to do- why should I submit?  The-  answer is out of fear of God.  If you are always getting your own way- and you don’t want to listen to anyone else, then you are not one anothering- you are simply listening to yourself- gazing at a mirror thinking how beautiful you are.  This is a problem.  In society there are those 20% who think they are so beautiful, and then there are those 80% who think they are so ugly.  Social media and bullying enhance this.  But then there are those who look to listen, who look to humbly help.  Not help so they can get more from you- but help simply out of fear of God. 
B) Serve one another Galatians 5:13 C- In our consumer society, we seek to look for others to serve us, and if they don’t do it right, then we call up, email, text customer service and say, “I can’t believe you do such a poor job of serving others.”  Coming to church is not about the minister.  It is not about the music.  It is about your getting the opportunity to one another one another.  It doesn’t matter whether your church is big or small.  Coming to church is not about who has the best recreation program, or counseling program, but who will allow you to love them and love you in return. 
C) Bear one another’s burdens- Gal. 6:2 Look for ways to carry someone elses’ burden.  Look for ways to care.  If you know someone is bearing a heavy load, look for a way to help. 
D) PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER-  James 5:16 says, “Pray for one another that  you may be healed.”  Again, secularists and those who discount the power of Almighty God, think prayer is nothing.  But for those who believe, prayer is what draws us together, and helps us in our time of need.  People tell me all the time how much the prayer cards from the men, the deacons and others mean to them.  Some ask how I know so many names here.  I know many of you simply because I pray for you.  If you are a member here, I pray for you- each week.  Prayer is one way we can get to know and love one another. 
So my point is- The church is about one anothering. 
Here are some of the ways we do it best at LMPC: 
When the Men of the Church build a wheelchair ramp- that is one anothering. 
When Helping Hands brings a meal for someone- like when a baby is born, or someone is sick. 
When the deacons help when there is a death in the family- ushering and having a reception. 
When a Sunday School class lifts up a member who is discouraged. 
When a committee doesn’t just do committee work, but cares for one another.
When the youth gather around a young girl whose boyfriend just broke up with her. 
When a group prays for a stranger- or prays for those hurting. 
When we celebrate the confirmands joining the church, or celebrate a new baby with a baptism,
When we celebrate a marriage as a church, or when a marriage is hurting/breaking and we care this is one anothering. 
Look for ways to one another one another.  But also look for ways to let others one another you.  Love does not mean just giving it out- it also means letting others love you in return. 
The last apostle living, John- according to strong tradition, went to church in Ephesus.  He didn’t have livestream then- they carried him in on a cot.  He had a word to say at the end of each service it was this:  “Little children, let us love one another.”  Amen.