TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR? 2 CHANGING page 12 THE NARRATIVE ???? page 24 3 BRINGING ........................... ........................... ........................... ........................... ........................... THEM TO THE TABLE page 38 4 / WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? ........................... ........................... ........................... TENACIOUS FRIENDSHIP 4 page 50 5 THROWING BETTER PARTIES page 62 6 CROSSING CULTURES 21 page 74 7 CONTROLLING THE CALENDAR page 88 LIVING DIFFERENTLY ........................... page 100 ........................... 8 ........................... National Community Church / 5 PREFACE This is a book about communitycommunity. created How within the context“neighbor” of community. is understood A group across comprised different of our missioncontexts team, and what small neighboring group directors, means and in campusyour neighborhood, in your marketplace and in social pastors contributed to the content that you hold in situations. How you have been a good neighbor yourand how hands. others We listenedhave been to aa broadgood neighborcross-section to of NCCers—suburban,you. How neighboring urban, is a reflectionBlack, White, of God Latino, and men, women,an expression young, of old, the single Gospel. professionals and young families—to hear what neighboring looked like in their variousAlthough contexts. we’re sure this book doesn’t cover all aspects of being a neighbor, it will certainly hit home in a lot of areas and contexts. And in a Howsociety “neighbor” where everyone is understood. struggles with being a Howgood neighboring neighbor at playedcertain outtimes, within we praydi­erent this contexts. Howstudy each will challenge was strategically you to a and new organically adventure being of neighborsloving and inserving their geographic, others, just asmarketplace Jesus and play environments.commanded. How others had been good neighbors to them. As we walk through this sermon series, we want Howto strive neighboring to be people is a reflectionwho look atof theand world expression like of theJesus Gospel. did and reflect him better. This curriculum will facilitate that process by asking questions, Wediving shared into scripturestories and and listened giving youto stories. ideas of Wehow threw to live ideas it out at practically. the whiteboard. We wrestled with scripture and with one another. We sat around a table, ate together, prayed together, laughed together, shared blank stares together, wrote 6 / WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? / 4 INTRODUCTION Who is my neighbor? And how do I love them? The focus of Jesus’ time, energy, and teaching seemed to revolve around answering those two questions. He slowed down for children, went out of his way to touch lepers, engaged with those who were religiously and culturally dierent, elevated women, and showed honor to those who had been pushed to the margins. He ate with tax collectors and political rebels, religious people and prostitutes, sinners and saints, rich and poor. People who looked nothing like Jesus, liked Jesus. Can the same be said of his followers? The Church is meant to be the body of Christ; we are the hands and feet of Jesus to the world today. When people encounter us, do they encounter Jesus? When people think about us, what does it tell them about Jesus? When you think about the neighbors in your circles, think of those you encounter in the following places: 8 / WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? / 5 • Geographical neighbors: where you live. • Marketplace neighbors: where you work. • Social neighbors: where you play - school, gym, coeehouse, etc. How can you practically show them the love and life of Jesus? As we walk through this sermon series, we want to strive to be people who look at the world like Jesus didit and reminds reflect us himthat webetter. are noThis better curriculum or worse Who Is My Neighbor? will facilitatethan that our process“neighbors.” by asking questions, diving 2.into We the choose scriptures, to listen and to andgiving learn you from ideas our of how to itneighborhoodlive reminds it out us practically. that history. we are This While no has better you included orcan worse use Who Is My Neighbor? this book thanlisteningon your our “neighbors.”toown, Chuck it is Brown, best engaged reading Chocolate within the context2. WeCity of choose and community. Washington to listen So, to at andjoin Home learn a small, and from listening group our and engageneighborhoodto the in storiesthis adventure and history. memories This of lovinghas of thoseincluded people in our like Jesus.listeningneighborhood. to Chuck Brown, reading Chocolate 3. CityWe choose and Washington to work, play, at Home go to, andschool, listening and tovolunteer the stories where and we memories live. of those in our 4. neighborhood.We choose to leave space in our daily lives choose listen to 3. Weto be choose present to towork, those play, around go to us. school, That mayand volunteerbe as simple where as leaving we live. our front door open, 4. Weto accepting choose to invitations leave space to cook in our outs/parties/ daily lives choose listen to tochurch be present events/etc, to those to smiling around and us. sayingThat may hello beto ALL as simple our neighbors. as leaving our front door open, to accepting invitations to cook outs/parties/ Sometimeschurch weevents/etc, are good to neighbors, smiling and and saying hello sometimesto ALL weour areneighbors. not. Thankfully his mercies are new every morning, especially for us! WON’TNational YOU Community BE MY NEIGHBOR? Church / 9 / 6 Sometimes we are good neighbors, and sometimes we are not. Thankfully his mercies are new every morning, especially for us! Resources ResourcesWHO IS MY NEIGHBOR by Wayne Gordon LEROYWHO IS BARBER MY NEIGHBOR ON “BELOVED COMMUNITY” http://qideas.org/videos/beloved-community/by Wayne Gordon LEROYTHE NEW BARBER PARISH: ON HOW “BELOVED NEIGHBORHOOD COMMUNITY” CHURCHES ARE http://qideas.org/videos/beloved-community/TRANSFORMING MISSION, DISCIPLESHIP AND COMMUNITY by Paul Sparks THE NEW PARISH: HOW NEIGHBORHOOD CHURCHES ARE TRANSFORMING MISSION, DISCIPLESHIP AND COMMUNITY by Paul Sparks National Community Church / 19 National Community Church / 19 1 WHO IS MY ? NEIGHBOR What speaks loudest in our lives? If it’s not love, it’s just noise. We have to become great at the Great Commandment. Our love for Jesus will be defined by and reflected by our love for others. ? ? ? ? 12 / WON’T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR? Engage Have we made God’s story boring? Jesus was a master storyteller. He was whimsical and profound, inviting and compelling, relevant and Changing The Narrative timeless. We often use the word “Gospel” to refer to his teaching, life, and death and resurrection. Although it is used primarily as a religious word in our context, it was once a word that simply meant “breaking news” or “good news.” It was the kind of story that grabbed the headline above the fold. Today, we often communicate the Gospel like this: “Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. But if you don’t follow the plan, you will burn in hell forever.” It’s doubtful that any of us have used those specific words (at least in the second part) but it’s essentially what we have often communicated. That’s not likely to sound like “good” news to most people. We have reduced the Gospel to a story that is condemning, truncated, and anemic. We need to change the narrative. The Gospel is not a set of statements that we give mental assent to. It is not an eternal fire insurance policy. It is not a means of forcing people into moral conformity through scare tactics. At its core, the Gospel does not present a set of rules to live by but proposes a calling to live for. Part of the problem with our stories is that we have reduced the story of God to something like this: Adam and Eve sinned. Jesus died to make it right. We acknowledge sin and point to redemption but it keeps the story centered around us. We forget what came before and what comes after. God’s Story In the beginning, God. He references himself over 30 times in the opening chapter of Genesis alone as if to declare this is his story and it’s ultimately about him. Both author and protagonist. In the National Community Church / 27 Read Who Is My Neighbor? “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Luke 10:27 Read Luke 10:25-37 (Parable of the Good Samaritan) ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... ...................... NationalWON’T YOUCommunity BE MY ChurchNEIGHBOR? / 13 / 8 Engage Who Is My Neighbor? The Parable of the Good Samaritan is one of the most well-known and loved stories of Jesus. But have we slowed down and considered the diculty of Jesus’ teaching and our obedience to his words? To fully understand how shocking and revolutionary Jesus was, we have to pull back the curtain of our own western filters and get into the world of first-century Judaism. A lawyer approached Jesus to ask what he must do to inherit eternal life. In true Jewish teaching form, Jesus responded with a question. “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” Jesus asked. He was far more interested in asking the right question than in giving a quick answer. As we engage our faith with others, perhaps we should follow the way of Jesus by asking more compelling and inviting questions rather than giving quick and easy answers. The lawyer quoted two passages from the Old Testament, Deuteronomy 6:5 (“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul”) and Leviticus 19:18 (“love your neighbor as yourself”). The first thing that is important to note is the intent of the original language.