Being Human (Part Two)

Today's Old Testament reading comes from the book of Genesis, chapter 1, verses 26 through 31.

Genesis 1:26–31

Then God said,

Let us make man in our image, after our likeness,

and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,

and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock,

and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

So God created man in his own image.

In the image of God, he created him.

Male and female, he created them.

And God blessed them.

And God said to them,

Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it,

and have dominion over the fish of the sea,

and over the birds of the heavens,

and over every living thing that moves on the earth.

And God said,

Behold, I have given you every plant-yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth,

and every tree with seed in its fruit, you shall have them for food.

And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens,

and to everything that creeps on the earth,

everything that has the breath of life,

I have given every green plant for food.

And it was so.

And God saw everything that he had made,

and behold, it was very good.

And there was evening, and there was morning, the sixth day.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Well, again, let me welcome those of you,

especially those I have not yet met.

If you're joining us for the first time tonight,

we are in the midst of a series that we started a few weeks back called Foundations.

And we're taking some time to ask

what you might call ultimate or foundational questions

about ourselves, about our world, about our God.

And the foundation for all of this

can be found in the first few chapters of the book of Genesis,

which is the first book of your Bible.

It's the first book of the Old Testament.

And so we're looking at the first few chapters.

We've spent quite a few weeks in chapter 1.

And we're here at the end of chapter 1.

A couple of weeks ago, we asked the question as a part of our series,

what does it mean to be human?

What does it mean to be a human being?

What does it mean to be a person?

It's a pretty foundational question.

And there are a lot of thoughts about that, but very little agreement.

Which is interesting, considering most everything else

that we think, believe, do,

is somehow related to how we answer that question.

There are some people that say,

well, being human is distinct in that we can use tools,

or we have a superior intelligence,

or we have the ability of foresight,

or we have the ability to have self-awareness,

or it's our use of imagination and creativity.

And yet there's a whole other group of researchers

that continues to say and to demonstrate

that they're finding that animals are capable of such feats and such acts.

And so there are some people who say,

well, genetically we're 99% identical to chimpanzees.

There is nothing that makes human beings uniquely human.

So we're asking, what does it mean to be human?

Is there anything that is distinct about a human being?

And we're looking in the Bible to help us understand this,

specifically at Genesis chapter 1, verses 26 to 31.

Genesis 1:26–31

And a couple of weeks ago we had part 1 of this,

and we said, first of all, what makes us human,

what it means to be human,

is that we are created in the image of God,

the one who made us.

Unlike the other creatures of creation,

we uniquely bear God's image.

And we said that has a lot of implications.

It means that we are spiritual and material,

that we are body souls.

It means that we have an inherent holiness or sanctity,

that there is a sanctity to all human life.

And we said, lastly,

that there is an inherent dignity to all human life.

Well, this week we're going to continue asking this question,

looking at this passage,

and we're going to go further than just our nature as image bearers,

and we're going to look at the purposes for which human beings were made.

Why are we here?

And we're going to see that this passage shows us

that the central reason that we're here is that we're made for relationship.

Simply put, we're made for relationship.

Three kinds of relationship, to be more specific.

We're made to have a certain kind of relationship with this world.

We're made to have relationships with one another.

And we're made to have a relationship, finally, and most importantly, with God.

And we're going to have time tonight to look at the first two in detail.

We will touch on the third.

And then next week we're actually going to spend the whole night

talking about what our relationship with God was created to be

as we look at the Sabbath.

But tonight we're primarily going to focus on the first two,

our relationship with creation and our relationship with one another.

And here's really the point of tonight that I would like to invite you to consider.

And that is that whether or not you're a Christian,

whether or not you're certain what you believe

or whether you believe there's anything to this,

this is making a very clear claim.

And that is that all three kinds of relationship are essential

to what it means to be a human being.

And if you have all three,

a right relationship with the world,

a right relationship with other people,

and a right relationship with God,

that that is the most fully human way to be.

And if you lack any one of these,

it's impossible to be fully and authentically human.

So that's the claim.

So let's consider these in more detail.

Let's pray for the Lord to lead us.

Our Father, we do thank you for your word.

We thank you for your promise to speak through it.

May this not remain simply ink and paper,

but through the power of your spirit,

may we see in these pages and hear in these words

and encounter the word, your son.

We pray that by encountering him,

we would be changed,

that we would leave differently than when we arrived.

And we pray that this would be for your glory

in the name of your son.

Amen.

So, again, we're looking at Genesis chapter 1,

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

beginning in verse 26.

The first thing we see is that we're created

for a certain kind of relationship with this world.

It says in verse 26,

Then God said,

Let us make man in our image,

after our likeness,

and let them have dominion

over the fish of the sea,

and over the birds of the heavens,

and over the livestock,

and over all the earth,

and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

And then if we move down to verse 28,

it says,

And God blessed them,

and God said to them,

Be fruitful,

and multiply,

and fill the earth,

and subdue it.

And then again,

Have dominion over the fish of the sea,

the birds of the heavens,

every living thing that moves on the earth.

So right here,

we have our original job description,

the original job description

for human beings in creation.

And you have these verbs that really stand out.

Be fruitful,

multiply,

fill,

subdue,

have dominion.

Now the context of these words in the English language,

they have certain connotations to them,

undeniably so.

When you look at the words by themselves,

at least for me,

they conjure up ideas of conquest,

domination.

When I hear have dominion,

my mind immediately goes to this idea of domination.

And so this,

at first pass,

gives us this image of human beings

sort of spreading throughout creation

and subduing and conquering

and dominating.

And it sounds more like a virus.

And surely,

this helps us understand

why many people have taken these verses

to justify all kinds

of harmful and exploitative relationship

with the world.

In the years and decades

following the Enlightenment,

when there arose in the Western culture

a kind of post-Enlightenment utilitarianism,

there was very much a view

that we could justify

exploiting the earth for our personal gain

in the name of progress.

And it was easy for Christians

to jump on the bandwagon

and to support that theologically

by pointing to such verses.

But is that, in fact, accurate?

And we see as we move to chapter 2

that, in fact,

that's not the right way to read this

because God restates

this job description to Adam

in verse 15 of chapter 2.

It says,

The Lord God took the man

and put him in the Garden of Eden

to work and to keep it.

Or you might translate it

to tend and till it.

That's Andy Crouch's way

of translating this

in his book, Culture Making,

which, if you haven't read it,

you should pick it up and read it.

It's a fantastic book

that focuses on this idea.

There's a lot here.

We're going to come back to this,

actually, in a few weeks

when we talk about our work

and our vocation.

Our whole way of understanding

as Christians,

our work and our vocation

is rooted in these verses.

But for now,

it helps just to clarify

our role in the natural world.

because God's given us

this tremendous responsibility.

He's created this world

that he says is good and perfect.

It reflects his will in every way,

and yet it's inherently incomplete.

It's an unfinished world.

And that's amazing.

That should give us applause.

Why?

Why would it be good

and yet incomplete?

Why would God create

a world full of potential?

An acorn world?

Well, that's why we're here.

It's amazing to think

that God desires us

to bear his image

in creation

by finishing creation.

In other words,

by...

Why did God create a garden

and then the rest of the earth

is a wilderness?

It's because the purpose

of human beings

is to turn the wilderness

into a garden.

It's to finish the work

of creation.

It is to exercise dominion.

It is to subdue.

It is to cause to flourish

and be fruitful.

This was our original purpose here.

It's our job

to turn the wilderness

into a garden.

And our role

can really be summarized

in one word.

It's the best word for it,

and that is

the role of stewardship.

Stewardship.

Part of what it means

to be human

is that we are stewards

of creation.

What that means is this.

All of this stuff,

just as we sang

a little while ago,

this is our Father's world.

It doesn't belong to us.

Nothing does.

It all belongs to Him.

And we have a responsibility

to care for it.

We've all been in this situation

where we had a friend

go out of town,

or maybe we were the people

going out of town,

and they wanted somebody.

Maybe they wanted you

to come and house sit.

And they say,

well, come,

and we're going to be gone

for a few weeks,

and we want you to house sit.

And all the food

in the fridge is yours.

All the wine

in the wine rack

is yours.

You can have it.

We want you to enjoy yourself.

Watch Netflix.

Sleep in the bed.

We want this to be

a restful time for you.

At least,

hopefully,

that's what they said

when you house sat.

And they said,

make yourself at home.

But that doesn't mean

this is your home.

In other words,

it doesn't mean

that it belongs to you.

Right?

And a good house sitter

knows that you need

to take care of that house.

You need to take care

of the stuff.

You need to enjoy it

and love it

and have fun with it,

but you need to remember

that it doesn't belong

to you, right?

And in the same way,

God has said,

this is my world,

but I'm entrusting it

to you.

And in verses 29 to 31,

we actually see

why this balance,

this stewardship relationship,

it requires such

a finely tuned understanding,

it's because God

establishes

an interdependence

between us

and the earth,

an interdependent

relationship.

So it says,

yes,

we have dominion

over the earth.

Yes,

we're called

to subdue it.

Yes,

we're called

to exercise

in God's name

authority over it

and make it flourish,

but we also have

to depend on it

for our survival.

So it needs us

to cultivate

and care for it.

The world was designed

to need humans

to care for it,

and yet,

we need it

for our survival.

We need each other,

so there's a very

fine balance here.

And it's fascinating

when you think about

the way this speaks

into the current

conversations about

human beings

and the environment,

because it does

balance us out.

On the one hand,

we very clearly see

that we're not called

to worship nature.

We're not called

to worship animals

or trees

or mountains

or rivers.

We're not called

to worship these things

because the Bible

makes it very clear

that God is not

His creation.

He's above it.

He's separate from it.

That's what holiness is.

So we're not called

to do that.

It says,

we're not called

to think of animals

as being as valuable

or more valuable

than human beings.

because we see here

that only human beings

are created

in the image of God.

Animals are created

after their own kind.

And we're called

to have dominion

over them

and they're given

into our hands.

God gives the world

into the hands

of human beings

for their survival.

However,

we are the ones

God holds responsible

to care for the world

and to make it as fruitful

as it can possibly be.

So that means

that we are accountable

and as Christians

when we have an understanding

of sin and repentance,

we need to include

in these things,

in our understanding

of what sin is,

things like pollution

and global warming

and the depletion

of natural resources

and waste disposal

and deforestation

and animal cruelty

and overpopulation.

these are things

that should massively

concern us.

They're things

for which we are

responsible

and are held accountable.

You know,

the issue of overpopulation

is an interesting one.

It says that God

blesses people

and gives them

the potential

to fill the earth.

That doesn't mean

we have license

to so populate the earth

that it becomes

unsustainable

for human life,

right?

This is something

we need to be thinking about

as Christians.

These are actually ways

that we sin against God,

His world,

and our created purpose,

things that we need

to repent of.

And the church

has not historically

done a very good job

of recognizing

the central role

we should be playing

in these issues.

Some of you,

many of you actually here

are very passionate

about these issues.

You either volunteer

or through your vocation

you work on issues

like renewable energy

or environmental stewardship

and I know that you're

passionate about these things.

This is changing.

Pope Francis' encyclical

on climate change,

Laudato Si,

is a strong voice

in the direction

of recognizing our role.

He very much emphasizes

in that the interconnectedness,

the interdependence

between us

and all living things.

There are groups

like Arosha

and Flourish

and the Evangelical

Environmental Network.

Many of you

are affiliated

with these groups already.

Some friends of ours

have actually joined together

and started a campaign

with the Humane Society

called Every Living Thing

and they're trying

to get Christians

engaged in standing up

for and fighting

against animal cruelty.

And actually,

our very own Ryan Patch

was commissioned

to make the video

that sort of explains

this campaign

and to my great surprise

when I watched the video,

I saw Aaron and Joanna

and their dog Lily

in the video,

which was pretty cool.

But this,

so a lot of our friends

are involved in this.

All of the groups

that are partnering with it,

we're personal friends with

and we think

it's a great movement.

It's called Every Living Thing.

You should check it out.

But all of this

is basically

where Christians

are catching up to

or recovering

or regaining a sense

of the fact

that this needs to be

a central concern for us

as we think about

a missional presence

in this world,

restoring

the created purpose

of human beings

to be good stewards

of creation,

to recognize our responsibility

to care for this world.

And what this means,

if we're talking about

what it means to be human,

it means when we neglect this,

it's not just irresponsible,

it's inhuman.

There's an inhumanity

to us

when we neglect these things.

So that's the first

kind of relationship

we're called to have,

a balanced relationship

of interdependence,

a stewardship relationship

with the world

that God has made,

with our Father's world,

as we sang earlier.

The next kind of relationship

we'll look at

is the kind of relationships

that we are called to have

with one another,

interpersonal human connection.

If we look at Genesis 1.26,

it's very fascinating.

It says,

Then God said,

Let us make man

in our image

after our likeness.

What's fascinating about this

is if you look at

the whole creation account,

start at Genesis 1,

Genesis 1:1

verse 1,

and you read through it,

there's a poetic rhythm to it,

because this is a kind

of liturgical poetry,

as we said a few weeks ago.

And there's a rhythm to it,

and the rhythm repeatedly says this,

Then God said,

and God said,

and God said,

and God said,

and it says that

for all of the days of creation,

for the sky and the sea

and the day and the night

and the earth and the land,

all of that,

until we get to the day

that God creates human beings.

And then it changes.

And imagine, you know,

in a song,

if you've been hitting

the same note,

and all of a sudden

you hit a different note.

You're meaning,

you're trying to emphasize something.

And it changes,

and it doesn't say,

and God said,

it says,

then God said,

let us.

And that us just kind of

crackles into existence.

Us.

And it emphasizes

the nature of God

as a relationship.

This being who is one,

and yet three persons,

three distinct persons,

who are all God,

and yet they're not

interchangeable.

And so what we have here

is a being who is one

and yet interpersonal.

An eternal relationship.

And then we see later

when God places Adam

in the garden,

in chapter 2,

it says in 2, verse 18,

that it's not good

for Adam to be alone.

And the sense of that

is that he is incomplete.

And while this has

implications for gender

and implications for marriage,

and we'll be talking about

those in a few weeks,

this also has implications

for the fact that humans

are designed

for relationship

with others.

That it's part of how

we're built.

It's part of how

we're made

because we reflect the image

of a God

who is

a relationship.

And the most foundational,

most basic relationship,

as much as we talk

about marriage these days,

the most foundational

relationship

is actually friendship.

And you know,

friendship,

at its core,

every good marriage

is

a committed friendship.

A lifelong,

covenantal friendship.

friendship.

This is why

Aristotle,

I believe,

wrote so much

about what he called

the virtuous friendship.

He said,

you know,

there are friendships

of pleasure

and friendships

of utility,

but he considered

among the highest

possible things

that human beings

could attain

a virtuous friendship.

And that's a friendship

where you are concerned

for the betterment

of the other,

regardless of whether

that brings you

pleasure

or utility,

that your primary

concern is for the good

of the other.

And he said,

this virtuous friendship,

there are few,

if anything,

greater than that

that human beings

can attain.

He put it higher

even than things

like justice.

Neuroscience,

as we look,

and it's always dubious

to quote neuroscience,

so, you know,

so,

so,

a caveat aside,

you know,

but,

but,

you know,

neuroscience

is increasingly showing

actually across the board

that,

that our brains

are hardwired

for social connection.

They're just hardwired

for social connection.

I mean,

studies everywhere

in every kind of area

you can imagine

are just showing

again and again

and again

that we are,

the wiring,

the way we're built

is actually designed

for that.

There was a study

that you may have heard of

at Harvard

called the Grant Study.

Anybody heard of this?

It's famous

because it's the longest

and most comprehensive

longitudinal study

really ever undertaken.

Now,

admittedly,

there was a narrow

selection of candidates.

268,

I think,

all of them white,

Harvard males

were a part of,

this started in the early

20th century,

so,

you know,

cut it a little slack,

but,

but essentially the idea

was take people

who are pretty well off,

who seem to come

from decent families,

who are fairly intelligent,

who had a fairly decent

shot at worldly success,

and tracked them

for 75 years.

This has been running

for 75 years,

and the goal

is to figure out

what are the primary factors

that,

that influence

aging well,

living a long time,

and being satisfied

with life.

What are the main factors

that contribute

to that,

to those outcomes?

And they assessed

everything.

They assessed everything

about career,

everything about family,

everything about health,

to everything

from organ functioning,

to the hanging length

of the scrotum.

Yeah,

let that sink in.

Suffice it to say,

they wanted to leave

no stone unturned

in their search

for the key to well-being.

The outcome,

it may surprise you to know,

has nothing to do

with scrotal hanging length.

The outcome is,

in fact,

the primary investigator

for the last three decades

is a guy named

Dr. George Valant.

He's written three books

on the findings,

and he says this,

essentially,

life satisfaction

and healthy aging

can all be boiled down

to one factor.

Guess what it is?

The quality

and the warmth

of human relationships.

Literally,

the people

with the warmest,

deepest,

highest quality

friendships

are the people

who not only

live the longest,

but the people

who report

the most satisfaction

in their lives.

It matters more

than money,

it matters more

than career,

it matters more

than where you live,

it matters more

even than your health.

Human relationships.

We were designed for it,

we were made

for relationships.

They make us

more human.

They make us

more human.

I've said this before,

but you know,

C.S. Lewis in The Four Loves

has a great example

of how we are humanized

in our relationships.

He says when a friend,

when a mutual friend died,

there used to be

three friends

that would spend

a lot of time together,

and he said when this

one of the friends died,

the two remaining friends,

he said logically

you would think

that would mean

you would get more

of each other

because there's not

a third person competing.

But he said in fact

it was the opposite

because the friend

that died

used to be able

to evoke things

in this person

that only he could evoke.

And he would evoke

things in this person

that only he could evoke.

And so the loss

of that person

meant a loss

in each of the surviving friends.

Something in them

was no longer brought out.

The more we have

deep, meaningful

human relationships,

the more of us

is brought out

or evoked

or nourished into being

or watered

or fed

that we humanize

one another.

Relationships

are the key factor

to our health

and well-being

because we're designed

for them.

So knowing that,

here's the question.

We should be very thoughtful

when it comes to things

that hurt

or impair

or damage

our relationships.

Right?

If I told you,

if I took one of your organs

and put it out

and your life depends

on this organ

and I put it in a glass jar

and said,

take care of this,

you probably would.

You would,

you know,

if your heart

was somehow

on the outside

of your body

and it was in a glass case,

you would probably protect it

and you wouldn't let anybody...

Why don't we do that

with our relationships?

Why are our relationships,

if they're so key

to our health

and well-being,

why will we so casually

let them go?

Why will we so casually

let them fade?

As somebody who has let

many, many, many

friendships fade,

I often ask myself

this question.

One in...

What a big issue

that I think

we should talk about

in relation to relationships

is the impact

that technology is having.

This is a big conversation

as it should be.

In 2010,

researchers put together

the findings

of 72 separate studies

and they found

that there had been

a decline in empathy

among college students.

A 40% decline.

And there was a precipitous drop

starting in the year 2000.

And since the year 2000,

empathy among college students

has been plummeting.

A 40% drop

is quite significant.

And the primary reason

that researchers point to

is the impact of

technology

on our empathy.

If you may be familiar

with Sherry Turkle

who writes and thinks

a lot about this,

she's an MIT professor

who basically

has spent decades

researching this.

And here's what she says

specifically about

our smartphones.

She says,

Our phones are not

accessories,

but psychologically

potent devices

that change

not just what we do,

but who we are.

Your phone in your pocket

is changing

who you are.

It's changing

not only

your productivity,

your connectedness

to things like email

and social media,

but it's changing you.

She did a study

in a device-free

summer camp

and she had a control group

and an experimental group.

In the control group,

they were allowed

to continue using

their devices

and they participated

in all of the camp events.

And the experimental group,

she took their devices away.

And she said,

after just a few days,

there was a statistically

significant measurable

increase in empathy

among kids

who had had their devices

taken away.

Why is that?

Well, she says

it's quite simple.

We learn,

especially as children,

we learn empathy

from face-to-face contact.

When I'm looking at you

and I'm talking to you

and I say something funny

and I see your face smile

and I see you laugh,

I learn,

I learn what that emotion

looks like on your face.

Or if I say something

that's hurtful

or a hurtful topic

comes up

or you get angry,

I see what that looks like.

And because we're talking

face-to-face,

body-to-body,

person-to-person,

as kids,

we learn how to read

the emotions of others

and then we develop

the capacity to identify

and put our place,

put ourselves

in one another's place.

But today,

the tendency is more

and more for kids,

even who are there together,

to text one another.

So they're literally

getting less time

looking at one another's eyes

and so they're not learning

how to empathize.

But just a few days

without devices,

and there was a spike

in empathy

because kids were learning

how to interpersonally

connect.

Simply having a phone

put out on the table,

so having a phone

just out on the table,

doesn't have to be on,

it can be in the periphery,

it can be on the edge

of the table.

Simply having a phone

in the vicinity

when you're speaking

to another person

has a measurable impact

both on the quality

of the conversation

and the things

that you choose

to talk about.

Conversation tends to be

a lot more disconnected,

topics tend to be

a lot lighter,

the sense of connection

tends to be a lot less.

Why?

Because there's that

ever-present awareness

of this other thing

that might interrupt you.

This is the kind of impact

that simply smartphones alone,

not to mention the impact

on marriages,

on sex lives,

on intimacy.

So the question

we need to be thinking

is what role

is technology playing

in our life?

Technology is not evil,

it's not good,

it's neutral,

but as Turkle says,

it is very obviously

taking us places

we may not want to go.

Especially if what we've said

about relationships

is true.

And here's the thing,

if part of what it means

to be human

is having warm

and deep friendships,

and our smartphones

are harming

those relationships,

then we need to ask ourselves

a very honest question.

Are our smartphones

dehumanizing us?

That's a strong way

to put it,

but is this

dehumanizing

me?

I believe they are.

I believe they are.

I think that all

of the connectivity

is having ultimately

a dehumanizing effect.

Now what does that mean?

It means different things

for different people.

It may mean

that we throw our smartphones

out and we go back

to the flip phone.

Maybe that'll solve it.

Some of you are very

pro flip phone.

You're that far ahead

of the rest of us

in the curve.

But,

and that may be

for some of us

the answer.

That may be what

I have to do.

Surely,

at a minimum,

it means that

we're very intentional

about how and when

we use devices.

That we have

device-free zones

and times

in our house.

I remember,

and I've probably

told you before

the time that

one of my boys

was trying to get

my attention

and I was looking

at my phone

as I will

habitually do,

like a nervous tick.

I can whip that thing out

and get to my news feed

in a fraction

of a second.

Right?

With the slightest

pause in activity.

Boom!

I'm on the news feed.

My kids hate it.

You know how I know?

Because he took it

out of my hand

and dropped it

in a cup of water.

And then he said,

Dada?

Because that's all

he could say.

He was that young

but he had learned

to hate

the smartphone

in my hand.

So what role

is technology

playing in our lives

and our relationships?

We need to be

thinking about

what it means

to have freedom

from these things

that are meant

to set us free.

As a church community,

I think we need

to take very seriously

the priority

of human relationships.

We believe

this is what

makes us human.

That face-to-face

conversation

and interaction

is one of the most

humanizing things

we can do.

When you invite people

into your home

to have dinner

with you,

there's much more

going on there

than you might think.

That is an opportunity

to humanize

and be humanized.

It's nothing

less than that.

Hospitality

and our commitment

to radical hospitality

is one of the most

powerful ministries

that we can have.

Why?

Because you're inviting

somebody

into a relationship

where they can

experience

humanness.

There are a few

greater things

that we can do

for another human being.

Our vision

is for this community

to not only be a place

where anyone

can experience that,

but where we actually

take steps

to safeguard

and protect

our relationships.

And also,

by the way,

what that means is

if somebody is

working 80 hours a week

and they have no margin,

that we say,

I have an interest

in you being a human being.

You need to cut back.

You need to have margins.

We're so quick

to judge somebody else's

diet.

That's bad for you.

You're going to die

next year

if you keep eating

like that.

Maybe that's just

what people say to me,

but people have said

that to me a lot.

But what I don't often hear

is people saying,

you need to prioritize

the relationships

and the friendships

in your life.

If you don't,

you're going to live

a short life.

It's actually hurting you

and dehumanizing you.

The fact that you work

that much.

We need to be having

these conversations.

This is also a place

to learn how

to have friendships.

A gospel-centered church

can be a laboratory

for learning

how to be a friend

and how to have friends.

Listen,

friendship is a set

of skills,

a set of abilities

and aptitudes

that does not come

naturally to people.

We need to learn how.

And there are people here

who feel like they

continually fall

through the social cracks.

This needs to be a place

where those people

learn how to be friends

and have friends.

We need to have

these conversations

about what real friendship means.

It requires making,

in some cases,

major changes.

But if human relationships

are so central

to our humanness,

why would we not do

everything we can

to protect and nourish them?

So, as I said

at the beginning,

the third kind

of relationship

we're created for,

we looked at our relationship

with the world

as stewards

and we looked at

our relationship

with one another

and how vital that is

to our lives.

The third kind

of relationship

is the kind

of relationship

that we are designed

to have with God.

And we're going to spend,

in some ways,

this is what we talk

about every week.

We're going to get into it

in much more detail

next week,

but I will say,

I will say one thing.

I'll say this one thing

about this third relationship.

There's a reason

why virtually every society

across all cultures

and societies,

all places,

virtually every society

that has ever existed

has been religious.

There's a reason for that.

There's a reason why

when places like China

try to outlaw religion,

the opposite effect happens

and there's an explosion

of spiritual hunger.

children.

It's because we were made

to know the one

who made us.

And that is the good,

fundamentally good impulse

underneath all religions

is that desire.

You know, a few nights ago,

we had the senior leadership team

from this church,

All Souls Unitarian.

They came over to my house.

Some of our leadership

was there.

We had a wonderful conversation.

And it's very clear

that we disagree

on most issues.

But one of the things

as the Spirit worked

and as time passed

and as guards dropped

and as tears began to flow

and as arms uncrossed

and legs uncrossed

and postures became more open

and eye contact became deeper

and more prolonged,

one of the things

we were able to acknowledge together

is that we all

have a deep down

gnawing hunger

to know that we are loved by God.

That we're loved by God.

And it's because we were made

to know the one

who made us.

And all of these relationships

that we're talking about

are part of what it means

to be a human being.

Our relationship with creation.

Our relationship with one another.

Our relationship,

most importantly,

with God.

All tend toward

one or another of these.

You know, some of us

are very much

about the environment.

And some of us

are very much about community

and we love community.

And some of us

are very pious

and religiously observant people.

Right?

We all have our tendencies.

But the point this is making is

all three are required

for humanness.

You can't have one

without the other.

In other words,

the ecological landfills

that some of us

are so concerned about,

those are simply symptoms

of the spiritual landfill.

And you cannot address one

without addressing the other.

All of these are required.

You cannot have a relationship

with the Lord

that doesn't immediately

impact your relationships

with other people.

Because Jesus says

if we love Him,

we'll love one another.

We need all three.

And that's why the gospel

is such good news.

The good news is this,

that Jesus Christ

has come to restore

all of these relationships.

Through His death

and resurrection,

He reconciles us to God.

As He puts His Spirit in us

and as we follow Him,

we learn more

what it means

to love one another

as we're loved.

And then lastly,

His promise is to renew

the heavens and the earth.

Including our bodies.

This is why the gospel

is not only good news,

but there's no better news

imaginable

for human beings

than Jesus.

Because Jesus has come

for nothing less

than to make us

fully human once again.

That's the gospel.

That's what it's here to do.

The gospel restores to us

our humanity.

Let's pray.

Our Father,

we recognize that

for Your words

to penetrate,

to be planted

and to give life,

it requires Your Spirit.

We pray that

whatever has been said

that is not of You

would be removed

from our memory,

but whatever has been said

tonight that is Your Word,

Lord,

and we believe

this is Your Word,

that You,

by Your Spirit,

would plant it deep

in our hearts,

that it would bring new life

in and through us.

We pray this in Your Son's

holy name.

Amen.