Sermon delivered by Nicholle Griffith, Vice Chairperson of the Board

I chose this Acts 2 passage because church has changed as we know it. Acts 2 paints a picture of the early church, and, if we examine it closely, we can get back to our roots and remember what is important. We have been put in a situation where we are forced to rebuild, restructure, and change how we do church. And let’s just clear the air: it is largely because of COVID.

I know, I’m 30 seconds into this and already saying the word COVID. If you took a shot of communion juice every time I say COVID, you would walk out of this church with a crazy sugar rush. I’m actually done saying the word COVID for today, because it happened, it is happening. Now we are here. Now we are challenged with how to continue growing our church despite the circumstances we face. There are complicated questions that arise when we think about this but, guys, there is one simple statement we need to remember.

We grow this church by BEING the church. By taking what we love so much about First Christian and transforming it into an emotion, into an action. That’s how we truly transform this situation.

Acts 2 gives us a very simple look at the early church. This simple perspective paves the way for how we can be the church. The days of the church being only an institution, is slowing fading away. Church is no longer just a building. It is a feeling. It is a mission. Church is how you treat people. Church is community.

Acts 2 mentions the fact that they devoted themselves to fellowship and breaking bread together. For us at First Christian, that could describe the way we partake in communion every Sunday and invite ALL who believe to the table. It could also be taking the time to see a fellow church member or someone who just needs a friend or listening ear. The breaking of bread, the sense of community is why I’m proud to say I go to church at First Christian. I go to First Christian, where I made my best childhood friends. I go to First Christian because it is my second family. The sense of community among the members here is something you just can’t describe until you are a part of it. People really care here. 

Also in Acts 2, they emphasize that everyone had everything in common. You know, I honestly think that’s impossible. How that verse speaks to me, though, is that maybe they don’t literally have everything in common but they don’t let disagreements divide them. That’s also why I’m proud to go to First Christian.

This church is where people believe in me enough to be a leader despite my gender, age, etc. I go to this church that makes people feel secure and loved. I go to this church that I came out as my true self in. I go to this church that I got married in. I go to this church that welcomes my children with open arms. I go to this church where members have watched me grow up and have cheered for me in success and prayed for me during bad times. First Christian is safety. This church is acceptance, a place I can be myself.

This church is a place where adult leaders such as Tere McWhirter, Linda Curtner, Melissa Carter to name a few would take the time to teach our youth bible study. They didn’t care if it was only four or five youth. We were worth it to them. Just like the church in Acts 2 they gave their possessions for the needs of others. That possession was time. They gave us youth their time. This church is friendship. Despite age, race, gender, identity.

So I just described what this church is in my eyes and how everyday we resemble qualities of the church we read about today in our reading. But that feeling can’t stay within these four walls or under this roof. The experience can’t be just for me. It can’t be just for us in this room. We have to spread the First Christian experience despite the obstacles ahead. We do that by being the church. It is time to GO BE THAT CHURCH in the outside world.

We as individuals must embody the best qualities of our church in our everyday life. I know you guys already do that but I am here to encourage you and energize you and tell you to keep it up. Because many people are tired, or discouraged, or drained. Maybe it feels like you’re the only one giving your time. Maybe it’s hard to see the fruits of all your hard work. I get it, trust me, but we have to fight. We have to stay encouraged. We have to keep our energy up and our momentum going forward. We have to walk into this church everyday with a fire in us.

Whenever someone walks in this church, whether it be a member or a visitor they have to feel our energy. Our words, actions and our service has to reflect that fire within us. Because like in the song Ms. Lori sang beautifully today, there are people who walk in church and have doubts. They walk in church and are not sure if they can be themselves. They might be doing everything they can to keep it together because they’re afraid to open up. They are pretending to be okay, but they really are fighting their own personal battles. They may think we are going through the motions or are just plain skeptical. Even worse, they may not even step foot in a church for those listed reasons. That is why we must embody the best qualities of this church and exude it in the outside world.

People have to see the fire in our hearts, guys. We keep that fire going by remembering who we are here at First Christian and the special community we have worked so hard to have. We have to keep pushing.

The end of Acts 2 says that the Lord added to their number daily. The verses didn’t mention anything about a beautiful sanctuary, or a formal choir or awesome sermons even though you’re probably sitting in your pews thinking that this is, in fact, an awesome sermon. They grew because of their devotion to fellowship. Not attempted. Not tried. Devoted to fellowship. That is what we must do.

This is such a crucial time. We have to keep our chins up and BE THE CHURCH. We have to keep fighting. We have to move forward. We may have to rebuild and or restructure. We may have to be open to change. We may have to put ourselves out there. It won’t be easy. But we will come out stronger and better for it in the end and we will have done it together.

That’s how it has been all along here at First Christian. Ever since I joined this church in middle school I have never been alone. I have had this church beside me the whole time. When I got dispatched to some violent situations here in Jacksonville recently, I texted Pastor Jim and Pastor Karen. When my kids were born, they were also the first to know besides immediate family. When I first got engaged, a church member messaged me right away and asked us out to dinner. She told me that she wanted to get to know us as a couple.

That is what this church means to me. Never being alone. A wise person told me last week that God didn’t create the church for him. He created it for us. He wanted us to have a place to worship and praise but also a place to come together as community. We have to capture that emotion, that sense of community that we experience here and turn it into our mission.

Our mission is to go be that church. Every Sunday when we return to this church we have to be on fire. We have to be full of love because this church is love. This church is strong. This Church is us.

Closing Prayer

Father God, we come before you and thank you for this church. We feel blessed to have the freedom to come here and worship you. We pray that you deploy us to go share this experience with a hurting world. Help us to be bold and brave as we embark on being the church outside of these walls. Direct us to bring this experience to those who need it the most. Amen.