Community - The Way We Belong
September 13 - October 11, 2009

Sermons@Skyline

The Greek word for the special kind of community followers of Christ experience is koinonia. It’s often translated “fellowship”. We are exploring what it means to live in that kind of community at Skyline this fall. Paul celebrates his understanding of atonement, or restoration of relationship with God, using this mysterious Greek word, koinonia, in the greeting of his letter we call First Corinthians. The word typically means “fellowship” or “participation”, and derives from a root meaning “common” in the sense of “common or shared ownership of property or ideas”. The NLT translation in 1 Cor. 1:9 (key verse above) departs from the typical “fellowship” translation and uses “partnership” instead, focusing on the miracle of union with God for all people that Christ accomplishes through his death and resurrection. Through Christ, we experience the miracle of being “at one” with God, a vital partner in God’s mission of mercy to invite the whole world to experience the awesome blessing of oneness with God.

We will be exploring the various understandings of Christian community, or koinonia, in the New Testament throughout this short series. The four primary expressions of koinonia community, or partnership with Christ, that we will explore are: assurance, sticking power, compassion, and the mission of the Christian community. The inspiration for this series was Jim Walker's prophetic book, Dirty Word: The Vulgar, Offensive Language of the Kingdom of God, which exlpores the many surprising lessons God has taught Jim about the nature of koinonia that God makes possible at Hot Metal Bridge, a Christian community in Pittsburgh, where Jim serves as co-pastor.

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	September 13 1 Corinthians 1:1-10 (Key verse: 1:9) At-oned with Christ God calls and keeps followers of the Way of Jesus in a relationship that unites us with Jesus Christ in the way we experience love and in the way we live our lives.		September 20 1 Corinthians 10:13-17 (Key verse: 10:16) Assured in Communion Through koinonia, or communion with God in Christ, we experience faith that gives us real assurance to calm our fears.
	September 27 Acts 2:41-47 (Key verse: 2:42) Bound in Community Through koinonia, or community with others, we experience a real sense of belonging to overcome any rejection.		October 4 Philippians 3:7-12 (Key verse: 3:10) Clothed in Compassion Through koinonia, or sharing in Christ’s sufferings and connecting with the poor, and the outcase, and the broken, we experience finding real meaning and hope that endures beyond our hopelessness.
	October 11 Philippians 1:1-11 (Key verse: 1:5) Called to God’s Kingdom Through koinonia, or partnership in sharing Good News of God’s Kingdom Jesus died to proclaim, we discover our true identity that soars far beyond superficiality.
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