Sligo22: Together
Seán Mullarkey is the Senior Pastor of St. Mark’s Church Dublin and the National Leader of Christian Churches Ireland. He started out as a secondary school teacher before becoming a pastor and has been in full time Christians ministry for 26 years. Here’s a summary of what he had to say at New Wine (notes taken during Week A).
It is so brilliant to be here at New Wine and to see so many familiar faces. I love New Wine because it brings together Christians from different strands of the church from across the island. We are part of the same family. We really are the body of Christ and it thrills my soul to be here.
We are living in strange times. I know you are tired to be hearing about the pandemic. It seemed like it brought the world together and divided the church. We had pro-mask and anti-mask; pro-vaccine and anti-vaccine. Some Christians acquired instant medical degrees and were able to share their opinion. Pastors faced a catch 22: you were damned if you did and damned if you didn’t. There was a rise of online abuse. Pastors were getting emails from well-meaning and not-so-well-meaning members of the congregations. Some chose not to come back. It has been a ‘fun’ couple of years.
During the pandemic, we missed connectivity. We had a real hunger for togetherness. We are made in the image of our God who is an eternal togetherness. That is in our DNA and we are destined for eternal togetherness with Him. Where brothers and sisters dwell together in that unity, that is where the commanded blessing comes. I wonder if the reason that we are missing out on the revival that we long for is because we are in one place but we are not together. That togetherness is an image of God.
For renewal, we need a holy spirit refreshing in our togetherness. For individual and personal renewal to truly happen, we need to be in a place of unity with other Christians.
Let me start by stating the obvious. We are better together. I find with my wife Susan, that our family works best when we are genuinely united. We always want to be together and have a united heart. When we are genuinely together our children cannot play one off against the other. True togetherness is real and strong. Even though the six of us were all in one house during the pandemic we were often apart (in different rooms) but what we absolutely adored was every evening at 6pm we would have dinner together as a family. We were grateful for those times we had. You have to make the best of a bad thing, and that is what happened!
When we gather round the table together, there is an expression of Christ. I would love to have that family togetherness in my church. I saw a website that said:
Togetherness is about hearts not habits.
Togetherness is about love not location.
Togetherness is about desire not duty.
Togetherness is about conviction and not convenience
Togetherness is about vulnerability not visual presence
Togetherness is about forgiveness not keeping a record of offences
Togetherness is about genuine community not just putting up with people.
Let’s read together in Hebrews 10: 19 – 25
Truth leads to Togetherness
Since we have confidence to enter the most holy place by the blood of Jesus… we are people of incredible, exciting truth. There is no greater truth in all the world than the truth we have. We have access to truth that is alive. We have access to truth that can keep us clean. We have access to truth that can heal. We have access to truth that can point us in the direction we should go.
Great truth leads to great togetherness. We gave our lives to Jesus Christ because we believed that He alone had the words of eternal life. We believe that the words of God are the breath of God. When we are excited about that truth, it gathers us together to speak, rejoice, share, expound, discuss… there is something about great truth that brings great togetherness.
Some of us aren’t as sure on the truth as we used to be. Whatever is going on, the word of God hasn’t changed but we have changed. When we become a-la-carte Christians with the Bible, we pick and choose what we go to. There is a pressure on pastors and ministers to feel like they should put on church like a variety show. There was a simplicity in the early church and their togetherness.
Togetherness helps us to keep in God’s truth
When we are confident that we have a great high priest, it helps us on our journey through life. How do you know that truth is working? It brings us together in Christ and it brings us together for Christ in the great commission. A house divided against itself will fall. At times, we allowed the language of division into our hearts. There is stuff out there that is crazy but there is a bigger picture that God has for us.
Let Us…Together draw near to God
Too often we read that in an individualistic way but the blueprint for drawing near to God is found in the book of Acts. Acts 2: 42 - 47 They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching, to the breaking of bread, to the fellowship and prayer… they were all together and everyone had everything in common… There is a synergy going on when the church gets its act together. The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Drawing near to God was done corporately. They devoted themselves to teaching, fellowship, prayer and breaking bread. Together they were praying, “Our Father” (not my Father). When you think about it, when Jesus went away to pray in lonely places, He was getting Himself ready for the group He was ministering to. Everyone was filled with awe. We are so thrilled when someone is filled with awe. But because of their togetherness, everyone was filled with awe, every day!
When you draw near to God together you don’t impact the odd someone, you impact everyone.
Now and again, we step out and put on a dinner and invite people from church. Invariably when it is coming up to that, we say, “Why did we say we would do that?” We begin to back out from committing ourselves to togetherness. But what we say afterwards is, “Wasn’t it so precious? Aren’t we invigorated now?” There is blessing in togetherness.
We can think the early church were off their heads to meet so often. But they were energised by it. As you move in the spirit, you want to meet with people every day. They broke bread in their homes. They ate together and the Lord added to their number. They were imaging (reflecting) the godhead. They showed unity in diversity.
The best ministers that I have ministered with in St. Marks are the people that are the most open-housed. I’ve noticed this through the years. The people who have this great gift of hospitality (as well as open hands and open hearts) have a blessing upon them. Where the brethren dwell together in unity, there God commands His blessing.
Let us… Together hold unswervingly to the hope we profess because He who promised is faithful.
If ever we needed to hold fast to our profession of faith, it is now. We need to resolutely hold fast to the hope we have. The path is straight. The days are evil and time is short.
Who enjoys being in a car that swerves all the time? It does increase your prayer life but someone who drives “swervingly” is not someone who fills you with blessed assurance. We don’t want to be on a journey with someone who drives “swervingly”. (In hope, out of hope, no hope, lots of hope) We need to hold fast to what we believe. When we are truly together, we can remind people of the hope we profess.
Let’s hold it together so we can hold on together then we can be together and people who are in the world can come into the hope. What a blessing to be those who hold onto what will keep us on the straight and narrow.
Let us… Together consider how we may spur one another on to love and good deeds.
How many times in your Christian lives, have you taken time out to contemplate how you might spur your brothers and sisters on to love and good deeds? Think about this. That doesn’t go with our individualistic Christianity. I want to go to church and I want my favourite songs to be sung and my favourite teacher to speak. I want. A lot of time our prayers sound like that: “I want, I want, I want.. Amen…” What a challenge it is when we are told to be thoughtful and considerate about how we need to spur one another on… you get on your knees for our church and say, “Lord, give me something to help others and spur them on to love and good deeds.”
It could be something very simple. Blessing someone with a meal in your house. Some of the most powerful and impactful events in my life happened in simple moments. We are used to being knocked about by the world. When someone comes alongside you and says, “I see God’s hand on our life. I see this in you…” It makes such a difference
There is a young Irish actress (Jesse Buckley) who recently won an award. In her acceptance speech (warning: she does throw in a curse), she talks about how she went to London with nothing. She was doing a backstreet play and this guy saw something in her and paid for her to go to RADA. When she lifted the award and she mentioned his name.
Imagine in the corridors of eternity bumping into people who said, “Because you wanted to really spur others on, you blessed me and changed the trajectory of my life.” How wonderful to hear that.
I believe we have been called to together. If we don’t get this, we are going to miss out. Ireland is going to miss out. Europe is going to miss out. But if we get togetherness right… we become attractional again. There is something about togetherness that will move people towards God.
Let us.. Together keep on meeting
Don’t give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing. Can you imagine being the guy who missed the first Pentecostal because he decided to stay home and watch Sky Sports. We can have this take it or leave it attitude about church. On the day of Pentecost they were all together in one place. If they were not together nothing would have happened that day. They were in one mind and heart. Where there is real togetherness there God commands a blessing.
Acts 2: 1 – 4 The place of togetherness was filled and all the people who were together were filled. Are we together? Let us not neglect meeting together but encourage one another all the more because the day is near.