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    Oct 24, 2021

    Loving Our Neighbor and Our Neighborhood

    Passage: Jeremiah 29:4-11

    Speaker: David Rhoads

    Category: Sermon


    Summary    :

    The gospel calls us to love our neighbors and neighborhoods. But in many ways the church has instead forsaken them.

    Practices that contribute to "Church Forsakenness":
    1. We have forsaken our God-given position and fled or set ourselves up as fortresses in our communities.
    2. We have strayed far away from God’s original process of transformation, which hinges on us being with one another (See John 1:14)
    3. We have forsaken God’s original plan to care about the whole person by caring primarily for the ‘soul.’
    4. We have forsaken God’s directive to care for every place by disinvesting and neglecting certain neighborhoods.
    5. We have forsaken God’s people by abandoning relationships, stereotyping, and jumping to false conclusions about one another.
    6. We have forsaken the original perspective of the church, which sees the fullness of humanity and reflection of divinity in every person and place.
    7. We have forsaken the original purpose for the church, which is to be transformative representatives in the world by loving God and loving people.


    Group Discussion:
    1. How does this sermon fit with your understanding of the Great Commission (see Matthew 28:16-20)?
    2. “People should look at the church and get a glimpse of where the world is heading.” - Irwin Ince (PCA pastor, author). In what specific ways should the church preview where the world is heading?
    3. What are some practical things we can do—as individuals, as a small group, as a local church—to fight against these “Church Forsaken” practices?