For the message, Mike read Luke 14:7-14, and reflected on the architecture of common ground. Mike was fascinated by the insights of a Syrian architect. She suggested that isolating different groups of people in tower blocks along the outskirts of a city is a precursor to war: "Tower blocks, even when they are luxurious, tend to promote isolation and 'otherness.'" For at least 500 years, the church has invested more in dividing people than bringing people together. Our priority has been to sort people according to what they believe. We need a new understanding of what it means to be the church. We’re not here for the sake of division. God is not revealed in our sameness. God is revealed in the way we create space for each other. What would it look like for us to see the church as common ground? Does this vision of the church speak to your condition? How can you build a landscape of common ground, here and in other aspects of your life?
