Invest in People
Scott Woller's flip-flop message
Today is a “flip-flop” Sunday in the Corner Church world. What this means is that each Corner Church pastor is sharing their own message, and in the next months each Corner Church pastor will be at each of the other communities and will share what he or she is talking about today.
We do have something beautiful under our feet, as Corner Church—being one church in multiple communities; being five churches and five valued-in-community businesses. Our calling as a church, to have a church and valued business within walking distance, is happening. It is under our feet. And there is so much value and beauty in being a micro church in a local: artisan, human-scaled, local, neighborhood, connected, known, and valued. The ultimate of it is that it can open the potential of the local body of Christ. Because God’s plan was not and is not an entity, an organization, a system, or an org chart. It is people being who they are made to be in the midst of intentional community.
This is beautiful—and it is not without challenges. The legacy church has found a way to thrive with 20% carrying a significant load while the other 80% is able to blissfully tag along. In our intentional community, designed to be operated and funded and lived out by the 80%, tagging along is impactful. We often use the picture of a body. How much dead weight—parts that are not working—does it take before there is incredible negative impact? YOU are an essential, vital, important part to God’s plan! As is the person to your right and left!
Now, this picture of a body is for us as people, but we really have another beautiful layer that is easy to take for granted. We are part of a network of five churches that support each other, not as a side project but as being one—five bodies that are also one body. Synergy, not as a concept, but in practice. Synergy in our church community, pastoral team, and coffeehouses.
This is who we are, and this is beautiful. And the world is asking for and wanting and needing what is right here under our feet.
It is time for us to give it all away.
Not our stuff—stuff has such little value—but give away the beauty that is under our feet: what we have learned and developed and processed. It’s a crazy thing, but by the grace of God, we have something to give away. And you are a part of that.
Let’s stop and process for a second. Proximity can cause blindness. I am going to invite you into conversation that is not just focused on Corner Church things. I am going to ask you to step out of yourself and look back. There are some things, because of where we are placed, that the world covets that we have. This might include free refills, or free bathrooms, or pickup trucks, or having pop culture in one’s first language. Or it might be bigger things, like good roads and clean water and free speech and freedom to travel and free education. Let me invite you to process this together.
What are some things that you have, experience, participate in, and/or consume that others (globally) would love to have?
In Acts 6 and 7, we see Stephen lose his life. Stephen was a follower of Jesus.
Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. Opposition arose, however, from members of the Synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called)—Jews of Cyrene and Alexandria as well as the provinces of Cilicia and Asia—who began to argue with Stephen. But they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke. Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.” (Acts 6:8-11)
He was full of grace and full of God’s power. Miracles were happening. AND opposition arose against him. Stephen as a follower of Jesus was disrupting the status quo. He was endangering the power balance. And while they didn't have grounds for a real charge, some people were persuaded to speak false accusations against Stephen. So Stephen was seized and brought before the religious leaders.
In Acts 7, we see his boldness in speaking about Jesus being the Messiah, the Savior, who had been killed by their orchestration—and it was not well received, to say the least!
When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.” (Acts 7:54-56)
The religious authorities were enraged. But in that moment, Stephen saw and felt and experienced the reality of Jesus. And they stoned him.
On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. (Acts 8:1)
This was a great moment to feel that it was the end. No resources, no support. All is lost. There’s no hope—it’s over.
But it wasn’t over. This moment, these experiences, the scattering all nudge us forward to Acts 11. When it had to feel like all was lost, it was actually just beginning. Hold on to that.
Let’s pick up the story in Acts 11, in Antioch. Syrian Antioch was founded in 300 BC by Seleucus I Nicator, a former general of Alexander the Great and was the capital of the Seleucid Empire. It was later the capital of the Roman province of Syria and a major city in the Roman Empire.
Antioch was about 300 miles north of Jerusalem and about 20 miles inland from the Mediterranean Sea. Many considered Syrian Antioch the third greatest city in the Roman Empire, behind Rome and Alexandria. Antioch was known for its business and commerce, for its sophistication and culture, but also for its immorality. One might say that Jerusalem was all about religion; Rome was all about power; Alexandria was all about intellect, and Athens was all about philosophy. Adding to that, one might say that Antioch was all about business and immorality.
Now some followers of Jesus went to Antioch and started telling this immoral Greek culture about Jesus:
Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that broke out when Stephen was killed traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, spreading the word only among Jews. Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord. (Acts 11:19-21)
And God’s hand was with them and a great number believed and turned to the Lord. What?? I didn’t see that one coming!
When word made its way back to the center of the followers of Jesus in Jerusalem, Barnabas was sent to check it out.
News of this reached the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw what the grace of God had done, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. (Acts 11:22-24)
It’s not difficult to think of Barnabas being exhausted and overwhelmed by all the work and opportunities in Antioch, and then remembering Saul of Tarsus. Barnabas was tired, overwhelmed, and under-resourced—so he went to find Saul so he could help. Saul was so valuable to Barnabas that it was worth it for him to leave the work in Antioch for a season and search hard to find him.
Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. (Acts 11:25-26)
So Barnabas finds Saul (Paul) and they teach for a year together. And the believers were called Christians for the first time there. In Latin, the ending -ian meant “the party of.” A Christ-ian was “of the party of Jesus.” “Christians” was sort of like saying “Jesus-ites,” or “Jesus People,” describing the people associated with Jesus Christ.
During this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, named Agabus, stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world. (This happened during the reign of Claudius.) The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul. (Acts 11:27-30)
The Christians at Antioch were not just inwardly focused. They looked outward and took action. There was prediction of a famine, and so they gave as they were able and sent it to Judea (300 miles south) with Barnabas and Saul.
What is happening here is remarkable. A group of under-resourced people go to a complicated place (wild Antioch). They have intentional relationship with the people there (discipling the Greeks). God blesses it and the Body of Christ forms (a great number believed), and Barnabas and Paul invest in it for a year. Then they hear of the needs of others and they share as they can (sending resources to Judea to provide during the famine).
Feel what happened. I don’t know what we have to offer, but we will offer it. Jesus has been transformational to me and I am willing to walk with you, because I believe relationship with Him will be transformational for you. And God blessed it—people were being changed in this place where people probably wouldn’t be expected to change. It was an intentional, costly, focused, and over-time investment, and it led not to a self preservation moment but to a generous moment.
I am going to ask you to be creative for a moment. Thinking about this beautiful story, what could have interrupted it? What could have caused it to fall short, or to never happen?
What could have interrupted this beautiful story?
Here are some possibilities: Staying away. Keeping to comfortable culture. Not sharing about the transformational reality and power of Jesus. Not investing in the Body of Christ. Not giving it time. Hoarding.
Let’s process our own world for a moment. Take a look at this diagram.
This is a tool that is great for processing outside of this moment, but we can at least get the process started here. Thanks for diving in!
Step one is to name some of the people that are in these worlds of yours. Write them down in the different sections.
Who is in your world?
Now, we just spent some time processing Acts 11, where we saw these elements:
Intentional relationship
Blessed by God
Investing over time
Full circle
For step two, I want you to star any people where you see these things happening. It doesn’t have to be all the things to get a star, but just that it’s happening to some degree.
Star all the people where you see things in the grey box happening to some degree.
There’s one more step. Using the letter codes in the gray box, please identify what would be helpful, important, valuable, and/or needed in the given relationships. This is for all of them, not just the unstarred ones. What is the gap, of the elements from the story? Is it intentional relationship (IR) or blessed by God (BBG) or investing over time (IOT) of full circle (FC)?
What element(s) would it be great to have or to add in these relationships?
Let’s take one more moment before we dialogue. This is a time for thinking or maybe writing, but not talking just yet.
What do you see and feel as you do this process?
I love the narrative from Acts 11. Here was a group of people without a lot of resources. They were not in an ideal or easy moment. And yet, they were intentional; they were blessed by God; they invested over time; and they didn’t self-fixate but looked outside of themselves.
As we go into a new year, Jesus commissions us:
Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)
What happened in Acts 11 was from these words. From these words—what will happen in us?
So let’s bring that internal process moment to the table:
How are you compelled to be intentional in relationships?
How are you compelled to pray?
How are you compelled to keep going?
How are you compelled to bring it beyond us to them?
TAKE IT DEEPER
Read Proverbs 2:11-15.
What has been a highlight of 2024?
What was the low point of 2024?
What is the power of discretion?
Do you have any resolutions for 2025?
What is the power of wisdom?
How can discretion and wisdom have impact on your 2025?
How are you challenged, focused, encouraged, and/or confused by this text?
READING PLAN
Proverbs 2
Proverbs 15
Proverbs 16
Proverbs 19
Proverbs 21