WEBVTT 00:00:04.809 --> 00:00:06.910 Hello and welcome to this week's episode of Trinity 00:00:06.910 --> 00:00:09.630 Sermons. This week we are continuing our sermon 00:00:09.630 --> 00:00:12.189 series called This is the Way, where we look 00:00:12.189 --> 00:00:14.529 at what it means to follow in the way of Jesus 00:00:14.529 --> 00:00:16.510 and what are some of the practices that help 00:00:16.510 --> 00:00:20.030 us to become more like Jesus. Today we also celebrate 00:00:20.030 --> 00:00:22.730 Palm Sunday, that day when we remember Jesus' 00:00:22.949 --> 00:00:26.010 triumphant arrival into Jerusalem, riding on 00:00:26.010 --> 00:00:28.250 a donkey surrounded by hundreds and hundreds 00:00:28.250 --> 00:00:30.809 of people. But are all of those people the same? 00:00:30.929 --> 00:00:33.390 Do they all have the same kind of relationship 00:00:33.390 --> 00:00:36.399 to Jesus? Or does Jesus actually intentionally 00:00:36.399 --> 00:00:39.840 choose some of them to be his closest friends, 00:00:40.020 --> 00:00:42.899 his closest disciples? That's what Rob's going 00:00:42.899 --> 00:00:44.939 to unpack for us in today's sermon as we think 00:00:44.939 --> 00:00:47.460 about who are those people in our lives that 00:00:47.460 --> 00:00:49.820 we want to be our closest friends, and who are 00:00:49.820 --> 00:00:56.899 some of those crowds that surround us. The scripture 00:00:56.899 --> 00:01:00.899 reading is taken from Mark 11, verses 1 to 11. 00:01:02.829 --> 00:01:05.769 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethpage 00:01:05.769 --> 00:01:09.349 and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent 00:01:09.349 --> 00:01:13.469 two of his disciples, saying to them, Go to the 00:01:13.469 --> 00:01:16.430 village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, 00:01:16.450 --> 00:01:20.370 you will find a colt tied there which no one 00:01:20.370 --> 00:01:23.969 has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 00:01:24.969 --> 00:01:29.510 If anyone asks you, why are you doing this? Say, 00:01:29.709 --> 00:01:33.000 the Lord needs it. and will send it back here 00:01:33.000 --> 00:01:37.439 shortly. They went and found a colt outside in 00:01:37.439 --> 00:01:41.439 the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied 00:01:41.439 --> 00:01:44.920 it, some people standing there asked, What are 00:01:44.920 --> 00:01:49.040 you doing untying that colt? They answered, as 00:01:49.040 --> 00:01:52.079 Jesus had told them to, and the people let them 00:01:52.079 --> 00:01:55.659 go. When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw 00:01:55.659 --> 00:01:59.469 their cloaks over it, he sat on it. Many people 00:01:59.469 --> 00:02:02.390 spread their cloaks on the road while others 00:02:02.390 --> 00:02:06.189 spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those 00:02:06.189 --> 00:02:09.490 who went ahead and those who followed shouted, 00:02:09.650 --> 00:02:14.310 Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name 00:02:14.310 --> 00:02:18.050 of the Lord. Blessed is the coming kingdom of 00:02:18.050 --> 00:02:21.909 our father, David. Hosanna in the highest heaven. 00:02:22.509 --> 00:02:25.770 Jesus entered Jerusalem and went into the temple 00:02:25.770 --> 00:02:29.840 courts. He looked around at everything, but since 00:02:29.840 --> 00:02:33.500 it was already late, he went out to Bethany with 00:02:33.500 --> 00:02:37.800 the twelve. The word of the Lord. We missed you 00:02:37.800 --> 00:02:39.939 guys last week. Last week, our family had the 00:02:39.939 --> 00:02:42.539 great opportunity to go to Vancouver Island where 00:02:42.539 --> 00:02:46.500 we did a whole lot of hiking. In fact, some of 00:02:46.500 --> 00:02:49.439 the hikes we went on last week were like, you 00:02:49.439 --> 00:02:52.939 know, four hours long, five hours long. And when 00:02:52.939 --> 00:02:55.520 you're hiking with a group of six for that long, 00:02:55.639 --> 00:02:58.419 there are times in your mind where you ask yourself, 00:02:58.659 --> 00:03:01.819 would this hike go a lot faster if these other 00:03:01.819 --> 00:03:05.840 people were not with me? And I'm not trying to 00:03:05.840 --> 00:03:07.759 name any names. names, but when you've got that 00:03:07.759 --> 00:03:09.900 many people, you know, people get distracted 00:03:09.900 --> 00:03:12.259 along the way and it slows you down. And the 00:03:12.259 --> 00:03:15.300 truth is, yes, of course, you would go faster 00:03:15.300 --> 00:03:18.460 if you were just on your own. But what happens 00:03:18.460 --> 00:03:20.840 if, you know, ran out of water or something like 00:03:20.840 --> 00:03:23.780 that? Or what happens if you hurt yourself? And 00:03:23.780 --> 00:03:26.379 it's in moments like that that you are certainly 00:03:26.379 --> 00:03:31.719 glad to be going with a group. There is an old 00:03:31.719 --> 00:03:34.060 African proverb that says, if you want to go 00:03:34.060 --> 00:03:38.620 fast, go alone. But if you want to go far, go 00:03:38.620 --> 00:03:41.759 together. In our world today, we all want to 00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:45.319 go. fast. We want everything to be efficient 00:03:45.319 --> 00:03:49.199 and quick and right away. That attitude, unfortunately, 00:03:49.300 --> 00:03:52.759 has also bled over into our spiritual lives. 00:03:52.960 --> 00:03:55.500 We want to grow. We want to grow spiritually, 00:03:55.719 --> 00:03:59.099 but we want that also to happen quickly. We want 00:03:59.099 --> 00:04:03.439 that to happen efficiently and fast. And after 00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:06.840 all, doesn't it make sense, therefore, to kind 00:04:06.840 --> 00:04:09.599 of go it alone on our spiritual journeys? Isn't 00:04:09.599 --> 00:04:11.810 that faster? After all, isn't it just really 00:04:11.810 --> 00:04:13.949 about me and Jesus? Isn't it really just about 00:04:13.949 --> 00:04:18.449 me and my prayers or me and my Bible? Should 00:04:18.449 --> 00:04:22.769 we just go it alone in our spiritual lives? Well, 00:04:22.850 --> 00:04:24.410 we're in the middle of a teaching series we're 00:04:24.410 --> 00:04:27.949 calling This is the Way. And we've been asking 00:04:27.949 --> 00:04:30.410 the question, you know, how does one experience 00:04:30.410 --> 00:04:34.209 spiritual transformation? And if you're like 00:04:34.209 --> 00:04:36.649 me, then probably over the past few weeks, you've 00:04:36.649 --> 00:04:39.189 missed one or two Sundays. And so therefore, 00:04:39.310 --> 00:04:40.930 I thought before we go too much further today, 00:04:41.050 --> 00:04:42.829 it might be good for us just to look back and 00:04:42.829 --> 00:04:46.509 recap where we have been. It all started back 00:04:46.509 --> 00:04:49.029 on Ash Wednesday when I was up here on the platform 00:04:49.029 --> 00:04:51.930 and I had a big thing of clay. You guys remember 00:04:51.930 --> 00:04:54.250 that if you were here Ash Wednesday? And my point 00:04:54.250 --> 00:04:56.660 was, is that we're all made of dirt. We're all 00:04:56.660 --> 00:04:59.060 made of soil. And as such, we're constantly being 00:04:59.060 --> 00:05:02.000 formed and changed. Whether you like it or not, 00:05:02.079 --> 00:05:04.180 whether you realize it or not, you're being changed 00:05:04.180 --> 00:05:06.459 and formed into something. And my point that 00:05:06.459 --> 00:05:10.379 night was that only God should be the one to 00:05:10.379 --> 00:05:13.139 form us into the people that we were meant to 00:05:13.139 --> 00:05:16.379 be. And then on the following Sunday, we talked 00:05:16.379 --> 00:05:19.350 about how one of the most important... transformational 00:05:19.350 --> 00:05:21.269 decisions you can make in your own life is the 00:05:21.269 --> 00:05:25.110 decision about who you will follow. We are all 00:05:25.110 --> 00:05:28.329 following someone or we are all following something. 00:05:28.750 --> 00:05:32.290 And Jesus comes along and says, follow me, be 00:05:32.290 --> 00:05:34.709 my student, be my apprentice, be my disciple. 00:05:34.790 --> 00:05:39.060 Let me show you how to live your life. If you 00:05:39.060 --> 00:05:41.300 remember, the week after that, we welcomed a 00:05:41.300 --> 00:05:44.579 guest speaker, Kristen Dede Johnson from Wycliffe 00:05:44.579 --> 00:05:47.560 College. And she spoke to us about the formative 00:05:47.560 --> 00:05:51.319 power of studying scripture. Not studying scripture 00:05:51.319 --> 00:05:54.660 just for information, but studying scripture 00:05:54.660 --> 00:05:58.660 for transformation. And then the week after that, 00:05:58.759 --> 00:06:00.120 if you're still tracking with me, you remember 00:06:00.120 --> 00:06:02.540 I was up here on the stage and I had a basketball 00:06:02.540 --> 00:06:05.180 in my hands. And the point I was trying to make 00:06:05.180 --> 00:06:07.920 that day was, you know, just like none of us 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:10.060 could ever possibly expect to become like Michael 00:06:10.060 --> 00:06:13.339 Jordan unless we adopt the practices and the 00:06:13.339 --> 00:06:16.040 habits and the disciplines of Michael Jordan. 00:06:16.139 --> 00:06:18.519 So too, none of us could ever expect to really 00:06:18.519 --> 00:06:21.360 become like Jesus unless we're willing to accept 00:06:21.360 --> 00:06:23.959 and adopt the disciplines and practices of Jesus. 00:06:24.060 --> 00:06:26.519 And it was that day that we started to talk about. 00:06:26.569 --> 00:06:28.410 about what some of those disciplines were, like 00:06:28.410 --> 00:06:32.079 prayer and solitude and so on and so forth. The 00:06:32.079 --> 00:06:35.279 very next week, we talked about how it is so 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:39.300 important for us to put these ideas into a plan, 00:06:39.660 --> 00:06:42.560 right? Spiritual growth doesn't happen by itself. 00:06:42.759 --> 00:06:45.759 We need a structure. We need a plan. And we encouraged 00:06:45.759 --> 00:06:48.560 everyone to start putting together what is called 00:06:48.560 --> 00:06:51.720 a rule of life. This is what we've been doing 00:06:51.720 --> 00:06:53.879 all Lent long, and we've been handing out these 00:06:53.879 --> 00:06:56.000 little booklets. Hopefully, by the end of Lent, 00:06:56.060 --> 00:06:58.620 you're going to have a solid plan for how you 00:06:58.620 --> 00:07:02.879 can grow spiritually. And then, of course, last 00:07:02.879 --> 00:07:06.040 week, Sandra was here to talk to us about how 00:07:06.040 --> 00:07:09.199 important it is for us to go through a process 00:07:09.199 --> 00:07:12.319 of healing as part of our spiritual transformation. 00:07:12.680 --> 00:07:15.480 You cannot run a marathon if you have a broken 00:07:15.480 --> 00:07:19.100 leg. And it is really hard to grow spiritually 00:07:19.100 --> 00:07:23.819 if you have unhealed wounds in your life or unresolved 00:07:23.819 --> 00:07:29.430 sin in our lives. All of these teachings and 00:07:29.430 --> 00:07:31.689 all the podcasts and all the practices that we've 00:07:31.689 --> 00:07:33.629 been developing as we go through this, they're 00:07:33.629 --> 00:07:35.949 all available on our website, trinitystreetsville 00:07:35.949 --> 00:07:38.949 .org slash thisistheway. And if you were to go 00:07:38.949 --> 00:07:41.129 and if you look at this, you'd probably say, 00:07:41.170 --> 00:07:42.930 okay, well, that's pretty much got to do it. 00:07:43.009 --> 00:07:44.970 I mean, what more really could there be? How 00:07:44.970 --> 00:07:46.889 much more could there be to this spiritual formation 00:07:46.889 --> 00:07:50.790 thing? Well, we're not done yet. There's today, 00:07:51.069 --> 00:07:53.839 Palm Sunday. and then Maundy Thursday, and then 00:07:53.839 --> 00:07:56.300 Good Friday, and then even Easter Sunday. We're 00:07:56.300 --> 00:08:00.160 going to talk about the final four kind of practices 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:03.480 and aspects of spiritual growth in our life. 00:08:03.579 --> 00:08:05.360 So as Kyla said at the beginning of the service, 00:08:05.540 --> 00:08:08.399 please stay with us and keep tracking with us 00:08:08.399 --> 00:08:12.100 all the way through. And that brings us to today. 00:08:12.819 --> 00:08:15.759 Today, we are going to look at what very well 00:08:15.759 --> 00:08:19.660 may be the most overlooked part of spiritual 00:08:19.660 --> 00:08:29.139 growth. You cannot follow Jesus alone. Solo Christianity 00:08:29.139 --> 00:08:35.899 is a myth. The truth is that it's only by gathering 00:08:35.899 --> 00:08:39.340 with others that we can spiritually be transformed. 00:08:39.820 --> 00:08:44.559 Today is Palm Sunday. And today, Jesus begins 00:08:44.559 --> 00:08:49.440 the most challenging week of his life. It is 00:08:49.440 --> 00:08:52.519 a week that will lead to his own suffering and 00:08:52.519 --> 00:08:56.919 death. And he does not go into that week alone. 00:08:57.600 --> 00:09:00.970 Now, can you imagine if he had? Can you imagine 00:09:00.970 --> 00:09:03.990 if Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem alone? No 00:09:03.990 --> 00:09:07.690 disciples, no crowds, no people around him. Just 00:09:07.690 --> 00:09:12.190 one man on a donkey heading into the hardest 00:09:12.190 --> 00:09:16.970 week of his life. I mean, how much harder would 00:09:16.970 --> 00:09:19.629 that week have been for Jesus if he had gone 00:09:19.629 --> 00:09:22.250 it alone? What would have even become of the 00:09:22.250 --> 00:09:25.370 Jesus movement, which we call Christianity, if 00:09:25.370 --> 00:09:28.690 he had gone it alone? But of course, Jesus never 00:09:28.690 --> 00:09:31.830 lived that way. And Jesus never called us to 00:09:31.830 --> 00:09:34.570 live that way either. Because Jesus knew that 00:09:34.570 --> 00:09:38.830 spiritual formation cannot happen in isolation. 00:09:39.129 --> 00:09:43.269 It happens in relationship. It happens in community. 00:09:43.669 --> 00:09:46.409 This is the picture that we're more familiar 00:09:46.409 --> 00:09:49.389 with when we think of Palm Sunday. Crowds and 00:09:49.389 --> 00:09:52.929 disciples and waving branches and people crying 00:09:52.929 --> 00:09:58.549 Hosanna. Where did those people all come from? 00:09:59.210 --> 00:10:02.129 Well, from the very beginning of Jesus's ministry, 00:10:02.389 --> 00:10:05.750 he was constantly gathering groups of people 00:10:05.750 --> 00:10:08.549 around him so that they could follow him and 00:10:08.549 --> 00:10:12.730 so that they could be formed by him. Jesus did 00:10:12.730 --> 00:10:16.730 not come just to save individuals. Jesus came 00:10:16.730 --> 00:10:22.330 to create a community around himself. So therefore, 00:10:22.610 --> 00:10:26.149 this is the takeaway point. Following Jesus. 00:10:26.919 --> 00:10:33.639 Always means following Jesus with others. But 00:10:33.639 --> 00:10:36.379 who are these others? Who are these people, especially 00:10:36.379 --> 00:10:40.299 around Jesus on this day? Now, if you look closely, 00:10:40.419 --> 00:10:42.659 what I want to suggest to you is it's not just 00:10:42.659 --> 00:10:47.220 one group. There are, in fact, four or more groups 00:10:47.220 --> 00:10:51.039 here. There's a psychologist by the name of Robin 00:10:51.039 --> 00:10:54.879 Dunbar. And he has determined that there are 00:10:54.879 --> 00:10:58.879 at least four circles of relationships in everyone's 00:10:58.879 --> 00:11:02.519 life. And Jesus also has these four circles of 00:11:02.519 --> 00:11:05.019 relationships in his own life. And we can see 00:11:05.019 --> 00:11:08.019 them all on a day like Palm Sunday. And I've 00:11:08.019 --> 00:11:09.700 given you guys some teaching notes. If you want 00:11:09.700 --> 00:11:11.399 to follow along today to make sure you get the 00:11:11.399 --> 00:11:14.320 most out of this, I encourage you to do so. Let's 00:11:14.320 --> 00:11:17.539 start with that very first circle, which I'm 00:11:17.539 --> 00:11:21.779 going to call Jesus's core group. This is what 00:11:21.779 --> 00:11:25.860 Robin Dunbar would call Jesus' intimates. Did 00:11:25.860 --> 00:11:28.299 you know, many people don't, did you know that 00:11:28.299 --> 00:11:32.019 Jesus had a core group of friends that he was 00:11:32.019 --> 00:11:36.559 especially close to, more than he was with the 00:11:36.559 --> 00:11:40.879 others? Now, that core group definitely included 00:11:40.879 --> 00:11:45.450 these three guys, Peter, James, and John. This 00:11:45.450 --> 00:11:49.250 was Jesus's inner circle, right? They were given 00:11:49.250 --> 00:11:51.610 exclusive access to some of the most important 00:11:51.610 --> 00:11:53.570 and intimate moments of Jesus's life. So for 00:11:53.570 --> 00:11:55.269 example, on the night that Jesus was arrested, 00:11:55.389 --> 00:11:57.850 he was praying in the garden of Gethsemane. And 00:11:57.850 --> 00:12:01.730 who did he have with him? Peter, James, and John. 00:12:02.210 --> 00:12:04.669 And it's also very interesting that Jesus had 00:12:04.669 --> 00:12:06.730 another little core group of people that he hung 00:12:06.730 --> 00:12:09.570 out with all the time. In fact, the day before 00:12:09.570 --> 00:12:12.110 Palm Sunday, where was Jesus? He was in Bethany. 00:12:12.230 --> 00:12:14.309 What was going on in Bethany? Well, in Bethany, 00:12:14.370 --> 00:12:16.500 there... were these three dear, dear friends 00:12:16.500 --> 00:12:21.000 of Jesus, Mary, Martha and Lazarus. John tells 00:12:21.000 --> 00:12:26.330 us that Jesus loved Mary and Martha and Lazarus. 00:12:26.330 --> 00:12:28.870 That is Jesus's core group. These are his kind 00:12:28.870 --> 00:12:31.570 of little core groups. And there are moments 00:12:31.570 --> 00:12:33.730 in your life and moments in my life where you 00:12:33.730 --> 00:12:36.490 don't need more and more people around you. You 00:12:36.490 --> 00:12:39.149 just need the right people. You need that core 00:12:39.149 --> 00:12:43.210 group of people. The people who know you, like 00:12:43.210 --> 00:12:45.990 know you deeply. They know the good. They know 00:12:45.990 --> 00:12:50.299 the bad. They know the ugly. And research would 00:12:50.299 --> 00:12:53.320 say that really in these core groups, we can 00:12:53.320 --> 00:12:56.779 only sustain like maybe three or five or six 00:12:56.779 --> 00:13:02.700 people that are this intimate to our lives. The 00:13:02.700 --> 00:13:05.279 Celtic Christians had a name for this kind of 00:13:05.279 --> 00:13:09.120 a friend. It was an Anamkara or a soul friend, 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:15.279 someone who knows your innermost self. Some people, 00:13:15.340 --> 00:13:17.620 granted, might feel like they don't have this 00:13:17.620 --> 00:13:19.639 kind of a friend in their life. I really hope 00:13:19.639 --> 00:13:22.220 that you all do have someone like this in your 00:13:22.220 --> 00:13:24.519 life. Someone that you can be yourself with. 00:13:24.580 --> 00:13:27.759 Someone you can bear your soul to. Because they 00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:30.360 are absolutely essential for spiritual transformation. 00:13:30.639 --> 00:13:35.279 Just as they were for Jesus, so too for us. Now, 00:13:35.299 --> 00:13:38.460 let's zoom out from that picture. Remember that 00:13:38.460 --> 00:13:41.759 picture? Let's zoom out one step from the core 00:13:41.759 --> 00:13:46.820 to what I want to call The companions. Now, when 00:13:46.820 --> 00:13:50.460 I speak of Jesus' companions, I'm not talking 00:13:50.460 --> 00:13:53.259 about those three to five core. Now, I've expanded 00:13:53.259 --> 00:13:56.299 it to include the twelve. The twelve apostles. 00:13:57.320 --> 00:14:01.779 You see, Palm Sunday, in Matthew's version of 00:14:01.779 --> 00:14:04.679 the gospel, we are told that as Jesus was making 00:14:04.679 --> 00:14:07.860 his way to Jerusalem along the road, that he 00:14:07.860 --> 00:14:12.480 took aside the twelve disciples by themselves 00:14:12.480 --> 00:14:16.240 to talk to them. There are some things that Jesus 00:14:16.240 --> 00:14:18.960 does not want to talk to the crowd about, but 00:14:18.960 --> 00:14:21.580 he wants to talk to his 12 disciples about. In 00:14:21.580 --> 00:14:23.600 this case, it was about all that awaited them 00:14:23.600 --> 00:14:27.000 in Jerusalem, suffering and death and the cross. 00:14:27.240 --> 00:14:31.519 This is a conversation for Jesus and his companions. 00:14:31.919 --> 00:14:35.039 And all through the gospel, we see Jesus hanging 00:14:35.039 --> 00:14:38.980 out with these 12, right? He eats with them. 00:14:39.019 --> 00:14:42.200 He travels with them. And Mark 12 says, Jesus. 00:14:43.039 --> 00:14:46.879 collected these 12 just so he could be with them. 00:14:46.899 --> 00:14:50.360 I love that line, just to be with them. Now, 00:14:50.360 --> 00:14:52.779 sociologists will say that this circle of friends 00:14:52.779 --> 00:14:57.019 is usually around like 10 or 15 people big. And 00:14:57.019 --> 00:14:59.159 these are the kind of people that we actually 00:14:59.159 --> 00:15:03.360 do life with. Remember when Jesus said, love 00:15:03.360 --> 00:15:05.700 one another. That's this group of people. Forgive 00:15:05.700 --> 00:15:07.759 one another. That's this group of people. You 00:15:07.759 --> 00:15:09.379 know, pray for one another. That's this group 00:15:09.379 --> 00:15:11.340 of people. You know, bear one another's burdens. 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:14.340 That's this group of people where we do all that 00:15:14.340 --> 00:15:18.450 one anothering. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said that 00:15:18.450 --> 00:15:21.330 the Christian needs another Christian who speaks 00:15:21.330 --> 00:15:24.309 God's word to him. He needs him again and again 00:15:24.309 --> 00:15:26.509 when he becomes uncertain and discouraged for 00:15:26.509 --> 00:15:31.929 by himself, he cannot help himself. There are 00:15:31.929 --> 00:15:35.889 things you just can't see in yourself. And there 00:15:35.889 --> 00:15:39.470 are moments you need someone else to remind you 00:15:39.470 --> 00:15:41.409 who you are. So here's a question. Who's a question? 00:15:41.830 --> 00:15:46.179 Who are your spiritual companions? Right? Who 00:15:46.179 --> 00:15:50.379 walks this journey of faith with you? Because 00:15:50.379 --> 00:15:52.419 Jesus didn't just have a core group. He had these 00:15:52.419 --> 00:15:56.759 companions as well. Now, I want to zoom out. 00:15:57.080 --> 00:15:59.720 Let's zoom out to the next circle. From the core 00:15:59.720 --> 00:16:03.679 group, from the companions, to what I want to 00:16:03.679 --> 00:16:07.480 call the crowd. And now I'm going to refer to 00:16:07.480 --> 00:16:09.779 the crowd as disciples, which may sound really 00:16:09.779 --> 00:16:11.519 confusing because Rob, didn't you just talk about 00:16:11.519 --> 00:16:14.019 the 12 as disciples? Well, I call the 12 companions. 00:16:14.299 --> 00:16:17.320 I'm calling the crowd disciples. And here's why. 00:16:17.460 --> 00:16:21.100 Jesus had more than 12 disciples. In fact, again, 00:16:21.220 --> 00:16:24.840 let's go to the Palm Sunday reading from Luke's 00:16:24.840 --> 00:16:27.080 gospel this time. We are told that the whole 00:16:27.080 --> 00:16:33.320 crowd of what? Disciples. It's a crowd of disciples 00:16:33.320 --> 00:16:37.419 began to joyfully praise God. So there was this 00:16:37.419 --> 00:16:41.379 core. There was his companions. But then we often 00:16:41.379 --> 00:16:44.799 read about the crowd. The crowd. And look at 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:46.460 what this crowd is doing. I find it fascinating. 00:16:46.639 --> 00:16:49.100 What are they doing? They are joyfully praising 00:16:49.100 --> 00:16:53.600 God. They are celebrating Jesus. They're worshiping. 00:16:53.789 --> 00:16:56.129 So therefore, in my mind, when I think of a crowd 00:16:56.129 --> 00:16:58.710 and I think of worshiping, I, of course, think 00:16:58.710 --> 00:17:03.750 of a church, right? And again, sociologists have 00:17:03.750 --> 00:17:09.630 this rule that they call the rule of 150, which 00:17:09.630 --> 00:17:12.410 basically says you can really only sustain about 00:17:12.410 --> 00:17:17.500 150 relationships in total. In your life. Which 00:17:17.500 --> 00:17:19.000 is interesting. Because you know what the kind 00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:22.339 of average size. Of most churches is. It's around 00:17:22.339 --> 00:17:27.319 150. Now Trinity is. A church that's bigger than 00:17:27.319 --> 00:17:30.819 150. But for our purposes. Think of the crowd. 00:17:31.380 --> 00:17:35.299 As this church. This is us. When we gather to 00:17:35.299 --> 00:17:38.700 sing. When we gather to pray. And praise God. 00:17:38.940 --> 00:17:43.559 To celebrate Jesus. When we're doing that. Something 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:47.519 important is happening in your spiritual formation. 00:17:48.000 --> 00:17:51.500 And researchers have shown that people who participate 00:17:51.500 --> 00:17:53.920 in what you're doing this morning in communal 00:17:53.920 --> 00:17:56.680 worship, they have stronger predictors of long 00:17:56.680 --> 00:18:00.200 -term faith, of resilience, and of emotional 00:18:00.200 --> 00:18:04.380 well -being, right? You can, of course, over 00:18:04.380 --> 00:18:06.960 here on your own encounter God all by yourself. 00:18:07.710 --> 00:18:10.630 But something powerful happens when we gather 00:18:10.630 --> 00:18:14.849 to do this thing we're doing as a crowd. James 00:18:14.849 --> 00:18:19.250 K .A. Smith puts it this way. Worship is the 00:18:19.250 --> 00:18:23.289 arena in which God recalibrates our hearts, reforms 00:18:23.289 --> 00:18:28.750 our desires, and rehabituates our loves. When 00:18:28.750 --> 00:18:31.430 we gather here week after week, that's what is 00:18:31.430 --> 00:18:34.670 happening. Look to your left. Look to your right. 00:18:36.089 --> 00:18:37.890 The people that are around you this morning, 00:18:37.950 --> 00:18:42.349 they are essential to your spiritual growth. 00:18:42.950 --> 00:18:46.750 Okay? So we have the core. We have the companions. 00:18:47.369 --> 00:18:52.150 We have the crowd. But finally, we have the community. 00:18:53.329 --> 00:18:57.170 The community is that larger group of people 00:18:57.170 --> 00:19:00.490 with which you identify. For Jesus, of course, 00:19:00.549 --> 00:19:03.890 his community. Was the Jewish faith. It was the 00:19:03.890 --> 00:19:07.450 people of God. It was Israel. God's chosen people. 00:19:07.650 --> 00:19:11.049 And on Palm Sunday. They were there too. Now 00:19:11.049 --> 00:19:13.329 Jesus did not know who all those people were. 00:19:13.490 --> 00:19:16.009 He did not know their names. He had never hung 00:19:16.009 --> 00:19:19.509 out with them. And yet they were part of his 00:19:19.509 --> 00:19:24.029 community. We read that a great multitude of 00:19:24.029 --> 00:19:26.309 people were there that day. That had come to 00:19:26.309 --> 00:19:29.210 the feast. Having heard that Jesus was coming 00:19:29.210 --> 00:19:33.430 to Jerusalem. This is your people group. This 00:19:33.430 --> 00:19:36.470 is Jesus's people group. They were gathered around 00:19:36.470 --> 00:19:40.369 the markers of their ethnic identity, the city, 00:19:40.509 --> 00:19:43.609 the temple, their worship, their shared life, 00:19:43.789 --> 00:19:46.769 their identity. It's the story that, you know, 00:19:46.769 --> 00:19:50.390 binds them all together, right? This is the widest 00:19:50.390 --> 00:19:54.869 circle of all. And it's not people that you necessarily 00:19:54.869 --> 00:19:58.730 know personally, but you belong to these people 00:19:58.730 --> 00:20:01.599 nonetheless. You're part of something bigger 00:20:01.599 --> 00:20:05.599 here at Trinity Streetsville. You're not just 00:20:05.599 --> 00:20:08.339 part of this congregation. You're not even just 00:20:08.339 --> 00:20:10.980 part of the Diocese of Toronto. You're not even 00:20:10.980 --> 00:20:14.119 just part of the Anglican worldwide communion. 00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:16.619 You are part of something bigger than that. You 00:20:16.619 --> 00:20:21.079 are part of the great body of believers in Christ 00:20:21.079 --> 00:20:26.519 all around the world. Sometimes sociologists 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:30.220 call this your tribe. Right? It's that group 00:20:30.220 --> 00:20:32.420 of people that give you that sense of identity 00:20:32.420 --> 00:20:37.099 and purpose. It's, you know, when you ask yourself 00:20:37.099 --> 00:20:39.079 the question, what am I a part of? Who am I a 00:20:39.079 --> 00:20:42.960 part of? That's your community. Dallas Willard 00:20:42.960 --> 00:20:47.119 says that God's aim is to create an all inclusive 00:20:47.119 --> 00:20:51.420 community of loving persons. That is the vision 00:20:51.420 --> 00:20:54.839 of the church. It is not about where you attend. 00:20:55.059 --> 00:20:58.640 That's your crowd. But it's where you belong. 00:20:58.799 --> 00:21:02.599 And you belong to this community, whether you're 00:21:02.599 --> 00:21:06.980 in Mississauga or Montreal or Mozambique. Okay, 00:21:07.059 --> 00:21:10.539 so here we have it. The core, the companions, 00:21:11.059 --> 00:21:15.799 the crowd, and the community. These are four 00:21:15.799 --> 00:21:19.319 circles that shape you spiritually. But let me 00:21:19.319 --> 00:21:21.339 ask you the question. Which one of these circles 00:21:21.339 --> 00:21:24.700 do you think is most important to your spiritual 00:21:24.700 --> 00:21:27.759 formation? They're all important. Jesus had all 00:21:27.759 --> 00:21:29.960 these circles in his life. We need all these 00:21:29.960 --> 00:21:33.339 circles in our life. But they don't all shape 00:21:33.339 --> 00:21:37.500 us equally. Right? And here's the truth. You 00:21:37.500 --> 00:21:40.819 can be part of a community and still remain unknown. 00:21:41.079 --> 00:21:44.319 You can be part of a crowd. And still feel alone. 00:21:45.200 --> 00:21:48.920 You can come to church on Sunday. And still remain. 00:21:50.539 --> 00:21:53.680 Untransformed. And that's because research shows 00:21:53.680 --> 00:21:56.900 us. That while large groups. Can give us a sense 00:21:56.900 --> 00:22:02.059 of identity. Deep personal change. Happens in 00:22:02.059 --> 00:22:06.380 those smaller circles. Greg Ogden says. Life 00:22:06.380 --> 00:22:08.960 transformation takes place. In the context of 00:22:08.960 --> 00:22:13.549 intentional relationships. Not in crowds. Intentional 00:22:13.549 --> 00:22:16.089 small relationships. You can hear a sermon in 00:22:16.089 --> 00:22:17.950 a crowd. You're hearing a sermon in a crowd right 00:22:17.950 --> 00:22:20.670 now. But you're going to be formed more by your 00:22:20.670 --> 00:22:24.369 core and by your companions. Those are the friends 00:22:24.369 --> 00:22:27.769 who see you, know you, can challenge you, and 00:22:27.769 --> 00:22:30.829 encourage you in ways that I cannot up here. 00:22:32.069 --> 00:22:35.589 There's a guy named Ken Shigematsu who wrote 00:22:35.589 --> 00:22:38.769 a book on spiritual formation. And in that book, 00:22:38.789 --> 00:22:41.910 he talks about... Four kinds of friendships that 00:22:41.910 --> 00:22:44.950 we're all going to need in order to grow spiritually. 00:22:45.150 --> 00:22:48.369 Here's the first one. We need friends who show 00:22:48.369 --> 00:22:51.990 up. Who are simply there consistently. They're 00:22:51.990 --> 00:22:54.269 present and they are faithful. Not just when 00:22:54.269 --> 00:22:56.769 it's convenient. Not just when life is easy. 00:22:56.809 --> 00:22:58.630 But they're there when you need them. You see, 00:22:58.650 --> 00:23:01.930 spiritual transformation takes a long time. And 00:23:01.930 --> 00:23:04.369 so you need people who are going to be there. 00:23:04.430 --> 00:23:06.990 And they don't disappear when things get hard. 00:23:08.519 --> 00:23:11.400 So question number one, who shows up for you? 00:23:12.759 --> 00:23:18.619 Who do you show up for? Secondly, we need friends 00:23:18.619 --> 00:23:22.829 who lift us up. We need friends who encourage 00:23:22.829 --> 00:23:26.009 us, friends who remind us of what is true and 00:23:26.009 --> 00:23:30.089 point us back to the Jesus when we forget. Because 00:23:30.089 --> 00:23:32.549 in our spiritual lives, we're going to have moments 00:23:32.549 --> 00:23:35.650 of, you know, where we feel dejected and we're 00:23:35.650 --> 00:23:38.470 going to lose our faith. And it's in those moments 00:23:38.470 --> 00:23:40.890 we need people to come along and say, no, no, 00:23:40.890 --> 00:23:43.170 no, no, no. That's not who you are. Remember 00:23:43.170 --> 00:23:47.470 who you are. So question number two, who lifts 00:23:47.470 --> 00:23:54.240 you up? Who do you lift up? Third, we need friends 00:23:54.240 --> 00:23:57.259 who open up. We need friends who are willing 00:23:57.259 --> 00:23:59.980 to be real and vulnerable and honest with us 00:23:59.980 --> 00:24:03.599 and not just talk about surface level chit chat. 00:24:03.680 --> 00:24:05.539 We can do that in a crowd. We can do that in 00:24:05.539 --> 00:24:08.519 the community. But we need people with whom we 00:24:08.519 --> 00:24:10.779 can name our struggles and we can take off our 00:24:10.779 --> 00:24:13.039 masks and we can stop pretending. So question 00:24:13.039 --> 00:24:17.990 number three. Who do you open up to? Who actually 00:24:17.990 --> 00:24:22.089 knows your real life? And question number four, 00:24:22.089 --> 00:24:25.329 or number four, is we need friends who speak 00:24:25.329 --> 00:24:27.450 up. We need friends who are willing to tell us 00:24:27.450 --> 00:24:29.990 the truth, even if that's a truth that we don't 00:24:29.990 --> 00:24:33.029 want to hear. Hey, Rob, you're drifting. Hey, 00:24:33.210 --> 00:24:35.730 it seems like you're stuck. Hey, I think God 00:24:35.730 --> 00:24:39.509 has more for you than this. Left to ourselves, 00:24:39.769 --> 00:24:42.069 we will minimize these kind of things, or we 00:24:42.069 --> 00:24:45.150 will justify our problems, but real friends ask 00:24:45.150 --> 00:24:49.670 the hard questions. So question four, do you? 00:24:50.119 --> 00:24:53.700 have friends like that. These are the kind of 00:24:53.700 --> 00:24:56.619 relationships that form us. Friends who show 00:24:56.619 --> 00:25:01.319 up and lift us up and speak up and open up. We 00:25:01.319 --> 00:25:02.920 don't need a hundred people like this in our 00:25:02.920 --> 00:25:06.380 lives, but we do need a few because this is where 00:25:06.380 --> 00:25:10.420 real transformation happens. Now, maybe you're 00:25:10.420 --> 00:25:12.640 saying, oh, Rob, yeah, I agree. This sounds really 00:25:12.640 --> 00:25:13.900 good, but I have to be honest with you. It's 00:25:13.900 --> 00:25:16.259 hard for me to find friends like this. I don't 00:25:16.259 --> 00:25:19.500 have. Friends like us. I have a community and 00:25:19.500 --> 00:25:23.220 I have a crowd I'm part of. But yeah, it's hard. 00:25:23.319 --> 00:25:25.400 I'm not trying to say this is easy. But just 00:25:25.400 --> 00:25:28.940 as we close today, let me suggest just a couple 00:25:28.940 --> 00:25:31.200 of ways that you might begin to build your own 00:25:31.200 --> 00:25:38.400 inner circles this way. First, pray for companionship. 00:25:38.599 --> 00:25:42.259 Pray to God. Say, God, would you send me the 00:25:42.259 --> 00:25:44.680 kind of friends I need? God, I need a spiritual 00:25:44.680 --> 00:25:48.460 friend. God, I need an Anamkara. Someone who 00:25:48.460 --> 00:25:50.500 I can walk with and someone who I can grow with. 00:25:50.559 --> 00:25:55.160 God cares about you. So pray and ask God for 00:25:55.160 --> 00:26:00.799 a spiritual companion. Second, pursue those connections. 00:26:01.759 --> 00:26:05.579 You know, don't just sit back. Take the initiative. 00:26:06.349 --> 00:26:08.930 You know, don't wait for these friends just to 00:26:08.930 --> 00:26:11.829 land in your lap. Why not invite someone to coffee 00:26:11.829 --> 00:26:14.549 or start up a conversation with someone? Invite 00:26:14.549 --> 00:26:16.769 someone to a meal. Because every meaningful friendship, 00:26:16.910 --> 00:26:18.769 you know, starts with the first step. And I'm 00:26:18.769 --> 00:26:20.329 not saying they're all going to turn into like, 00:26:20.369 --> 00:26:22.630 you know, spiritual bosom buddies. But you got 00:26:22.630 --> 00:26:27.029 to take some initiative. Thirdly, rather than 00:26:27.029 --> 00:26:30.799 pining for a friend. Just start practicing being 00:26:30.799 --> 00:26:33.460 a friend. Be the friend that you're looking for. 00:26:33.480 --> 00:26:37.079 Someone who shows up and lifts up and opens up. 00:26:37.480 --> 00:26:44.589 Be that to someone else. Fourthly, plug in. to 00:26:44.589 --> 00:26:48.069 some fellowship. Take an intentional step to 00:26:48.069 --> 00:26:50.230 inject yourself into community. See, here at 00:26:50.230 --> 00:26:53.509 Trinity, we have ways of trying to help people 00:26:53.509 --> 00:26:55.509 develop these kind of friendships. Right now, 00:26:55.509 --> 00:26:58.049 you're gathered in a crowd, and that is wonderful, 00:26:58.269 --> 00:27:00.750 but we also have ways of getting people into 00:27:00.750 --> 00:27:03.970 smaller groups. We call them life groups. Life 00:27:03.970 --> 00:27:07.349 groups are groups of 10, 12, 15 people that meet 00:27:07.349 --> 00:27:10.970 all around our city, and I believe that is where 00:27:10.970 --> 00:27:14.139 most of the transformation takes place. this 00:27:14.139 --> 00:27:16.279 congregation, not in this moment on a Sunday 00:27:16.279 --> 00:27:18.339 morning, but in those moments on Tuesday nights 00:27:18.339 --> 00:27:20.960 or Thursday mornings in the coffee shop, whatever 00:27:20.960 --> 00:27:23.019 they are. So if you're interested in being part 00:27:23.019 --> 00:27:26.119 of a life group, please visit our welcome desk 00:27:26.119 --> 00:27:29.240 after the service and ask about how you can start 00:27:29.240 --> 00:27:32.220 exploring a life group that is a good fit for 00:27:32.220 --> 00:27:36.140 you. And finally, finally, if you're trying to 00:27:36.140 --> 00:27:39.259 find some people in your life, just remember 00:27:39.259 --> 00:27:42.359 to keep prioritizing your relationship with God. 00:27:42.990 --> 00:27:45.089 make sure you prioritize your friendship with 00:27:45.089 --> 00:27:47.890 God because the deeper your relationship with 00:27:47.890 --> 00:27:50.930 God becomes, the more you're going to be drawn 00:27:50.930 --> 00:27:53.170 into relationship with others. You see, God himself 00:27:53.170 --> 00:27:56.349 is a relationship. Father, Son, Holy Spirit. 00:27:56.650 --> 00:28:00.750 And when we follow God, we find ourselves drawn 00:28:00.750 --> 00:28:05.549 into relationship with others. So let's end where 00:28:05.549 --> 00:28:11.450 we began. Jesus riding into Jerusalem, surrounded 00:28:11.450 --> 00:28:15.190 by people, a core, his companions, a crowd, and 00:28:15.190 --> 00:28:16.990 his community. He didn't walk into the hardest 00:28:16.990 --> 00:28:20.390 week of his life alone, and neither should you. 00:28:21.549 --> 00:28:25.710 If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want 00:28:25.710 --> 00:28:31.750 to go far, go together. This is the way of Jesus. 00:28:33.329 --> 00:28:38.599 Amen. Thanks for listening to this week's episode 00:28:38.599 --> 00:28:41.299 of Trinity Sermons. This sermon was recorded 00:28:41.299 --> 00:28:43.940 at Trinity Church Streetsville in Mississauga, 00:28:44.000 --> 00:28:47.559 Ontario on March 29, 2026.