God’s Story, Our Story & the Ancient Church: The Christian Life is Like Shakespeare

Last night we continued in our series at Pangea Communities called Threads. This is a look at our core values as a church and how when we weave them together, they produce what Paul calls “a tapestry of love.” [PODCAST]

The value we covered in our latest worship gathering is STORY–We choose to live into the narrative of God.

Of all of our values, this can seem the most “abstract.”

What does it mean to live into the story of God?

Is it Bible memory? Nope. Is it bible study? Nope.

Is it coming up with the right answers to the hard questions of theology? Nope.

Although some of those things may be part of it, they are not the point. Too often we’ve settled.

God’s story begins in creation and ends in new creation.

God’s story only helps when we recognize that all of life, including our personal lives, are storied.

God’s story requires actors and actresses.

God’s story invites us to life’s stage as improvisationists.

Just like a group of Shakespearian actors/actresses would do if most of the resolution to a play were missing we must immerse into the Script we do have and improvise in continuity with it.

Our story profoundly makes sense when it crosses paths with God’s own story.

Paul states: “If anyone is in Christ that person is part of the new creation.” 2 Cor. 5.17a

If anyone (our story)

In Christ (God’s story)

…that’s the intersection of New Creation.

The end of the story meets us in the present and unites us to the past.

In our past, we find ancient practices that emerged as the church improv’ed its way forward from the the days of the Apostles.

In the present we hold hands with the past and the future.

As we improv with a community of other committed actors, the new creation seems as though it is already here… and in a sense, it is.

The only way to act out the story of God is to do so by immersing ourselves into the other parts of the story.

If we do so, the possibilities are endless………….

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Those are some brief thoughts on what we talked about last night. Scattered thoughts to provoke you to listen to the whole talk. you can find it here.  [PODCAST]