Broken but Blessed – Luke 6
This message is a part of our Rethinking Church Sermon Series.
Find the rest of the messages in this series here.
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In the face of poverty and persecution the people of God still rejoice. We are currently Rethinking Church- we are trying to sweep the dust of our personal perspectives of church and get back to the original design that Jesus laid out… This is vital because Our mission is building the church our friends and neighbors will join and our children will lead. We are passionate about this mission because the church is the hope of the world.
We are not trying to make a name for ourselves. If we are, we are going about it in the absolutely wrong way… We are not building a kingdom of power, influence, money, stuff, or fame… The blueprint for the church we are building is found in God’s Word, lived out by Jesus and his first followers.
Today we are going to see the kind of people God uses to build his church. This matters because in the building of the church, we are not only the laborers or workers but we are also the building materials. We are not building a house made with hands, but rather we are building an organism and an organization of people that will then reach more people…
Last week I told you that I believe the church is the hope of the world, what I’ve been showing you in Luke’s writings is that Jesus was actively constructing this foundation of the church upon who He is with these disciples… If I told you that I needed you to go and establish an organization that would change the world, so go out and recruit the people who can help you accomplish that vision or goal, you’d probably go looking for the leaders in industry, social change, fundraising, institutional organization… You’d go looking for the glitterati, the people who give millions to foundations, and have buildings named after them… Because to achieve a vision of that scale you need people with resources and money and power and prestige….But Jesus does the exact opposite.
Jesus recruits his inner circle from the docks, the fishing boats by the sea… He goes up to a guy working at the table of corruption- you could even call it organized crime and asks him to follow him, he goes to a party at that guys house and it full of drunks and prostitutes… When his opponents want to make fun of him, ridicule him, and run what would be a political attack ad, they say, he’s a friend of sinners.
We are going to be focusing on what Jesus says later in the chapter, but I want you to read the first verses with me before we get there because I feel like it gives a real feel to how the disciples were in comparison to the religious elites and powerful people…
They were doing something that was just socially unacceptable. They had no couth. They had no manners. They were roughnecks at a tea party.
Jesus prays all night before selecting these guys. It wasn’t random. He chose these guys. Then the message that Jesus delivers right after gives us an idea of how he made his selection.
If you didn’t know, the World Series is currently happening and the Red Sox are up 3 games to 1. Years ago, it seemed hopeless for the Red Sox. It felt like they were never going to win. It felt like the Yankees would always take their best players because the Yankees could always pay more money and scoop up the best talent. The flip side to the Yankees strategy of let other teams find the best players and then pay them more to come to their team, you have teams like St Louis that do a great job of constantly raising up good players. There was a major shift in Baseball several years back, and it kind of came springing forth into league through an incredible season that the Oakland Athletics had.
This season is portrayed in a dramatic retelling called Moneyball. I love Moneyball because a team decides to look for what no one else is looking for- they decide they will use a different lens… That’s what Jesus is talking about here. In his kingdom, everything is upside down. What matters to everyone else is not important to Jesus and that informs and shapes how he builds his church. Jesus went looking for something completely different than what the powerful were looking for… Jesus went looking for willing hearts…
Most people look for ability. Jesus looked for people who would be available, teachable, and faithful. Can I let you in on a secret? 90% of your development is just showing up.
Economic Poverty: Not having what you need
Social Poverty: Not having standing or clout
Spiritual Poverty: Not having wholeness
Economic and social status may mask spiritual status, but they do not impact spiritual status.
If you think you’re good, you’re hopeless. If you know you’re spiritually poor, you’re rich in Christ.