Today we finish up our series "Go Deep." I hope these messages have helped you to understand better how to go deeper in your walk with God. Eliminate some noise from your life so that you can hear the whisper of God. Every Sunday when you show up for church, be ready to engage in a high-energy, high-impact encounter with Jesus Christ. Everyday look for divine intersections that God designs for you to share your faith story with others. Stop going through the motions of your faith and experience true worship by helping those on the margins of society. Let God use you help others grow in their relationship to Christ.

There is one more element that deserves our attention as we wrap up this series. It represents an area that I think we sometimes take for granted. Or we minimize its significance. To go deep with God, you need to be vitally connected to God's family. Attending a worship service is not what I mean when I talk about the need for family connections.

God is our Father. We are His family. As believers, we share a common bond, namely, the blood of Jesus Christ. We are brothers and sisters in Christ. We need each other. We need to establish meaningful relationships with one another. We need other believers in our lives to share our joys and our sorrows, our challenges and our victories.

Our world is starving for meaningful relationships. A couple of weeks ago I left the house very early to be the first one in line at the tire store to get a new set of tires. Sure enough I was the first one there. When the doors opened at 7, I was at the counter giving my order. I had my sermon with me so I could jot down my notes. I had a magazine and a book with me. And I had my Palm Pilot so that I could play some Monopoly if I got tired of reading.

Five minutes after sitting another man joined me in the waiting room. Remember my message a few weeks ago about divine appointments? I said hello to the guy and we struck up a conversation. He was about my age. And he began to tell me his story—how several months ago his wife died from a very rare form of cancer that took her out in a short period of time. And for the next hour I listened to him. At points he broke down as he shared his grief. We talked about faith and he explained how these circumstances have strengthened his faith. He was starving to connect with someone who would just listen.

I think this story represents an accurate portrayal of life in America today. People are starving for meaningful relationships. Yet we pull into our garages after work or after shopping and with our remote control we shut the garage door behind us—for safety, yes, but also as a way to say, "Home is my haven where I can be alone and not bothered by anyone."

You've probably been reading a lot lately about Britney Spears. I know we make fun. But think about her situation. Recently she was put on a suicide watch when she tried to hang herself with a sheet. She had 666 written on her shaved head and was screaming out that she was the anti-Christ. Then she cried out, "I'm a fake! I'm a fake."

What do you think of her situation? I wonder where are the people in her life who can lift her up instead of pull her down. Why isn't there someone who can tell her how precious she is and how much she matters to God? Who will be there to love her for who she is and not for what she has or how she looks?

Deep inside all of us we have this inner longing to connect with others in meaningful relationships. But we've become good at covering over this need and proclaiming, "I'm okay. I don't need your help." It's easy to hide our pain in a worship setting of a few hundred people. You can slip into your seat, worship for an hour, and leave without ever really connecting to anyone.

God created human beings to be relational. And when we put up relational walls around us that won't let others in, we essentially are turning away from God's design for our lives. God Himself exists in community—God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. Because He exists in community, He designed us to live in community with Him and with one another.

The verses today talk about our need for significant relationships, connections with God's family. In the verses preceding our text today the writer presents an excellent explanation of how on the cross Jesus gave the perfect and ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Because of His sacrifice we can enter into His presence at any time. Let's pick up there and read 10:19-25.

The writer does us a great favor by giving us an obvious outline of this passage. If you mark in your Bible or on your study guide, underline the following words: since (19), since (21), let us (22), let us (23), let us (24), let us (25). These verses give us a great synopsis of what it means to go deep with God. The two "sinces" explain why we are able to go deep with God. We can walk right up to God anytime, any day, whenever we choose. Without hesitation we can walk into the Holy Place. Why? Because Jesus cleared the way by His sacrifice. He acted as our priest before God. Since Jesus has provided the way, why wouldn't anyone yearn for a deep relationship with God?

Then notice the four phrases "let us." They tell us how to go deep. Two have to do with our vertical relationship with God; the other two deal with deepening our family connections. Jot them down. Since Jesus paved the way for us to enter the presence of God, we, first, should draw near to Him with sincere hearts. Second, we should hold firmly to our hope. In other words, we trust Him to be faithful to His promises of forgiveness and eternal life.

Now jot down the other two which relate to strengthening our family connections. Third, we should encourage others to go deep. We should spur other believers to love and good deeds. Fourth, we should meet with one another. In today's language, I think the writer is reminding us of the importance of being with God's family. We need each other's encouragement. We need to motivate each other and deepen our relationships with one another. I want to use the rest of my message emphasizing those last two points.

I read an article recently that listed the top 20 websites based on the number of total minutes people spent there. The list was for the month of December. Of all the multiple millions of sites, do you know what the number one site was? My Space. Believe it or not—the total number of minutes users stayed on My Space in the month of December was 27,999,906,051. 11.9% of all minutes. Do you know what My Space is all about? Connecting. Relationships. Our younger generation gets it. Whether it's out in web land, through text messaging, or just hanging out, they thrive on connecting with their friends.

I think the church can learn a lot from these phenomena that have become ingrained in our culture. Of all people, believers need to lead the way in building meaningful relationships with one another. Through the blood of Jesus Christ, we have a common bond that should draw us toward one another. And if you really want to go deeper in your walk with God, you need to go deeper in your relationship with other believers.

Let me mention several practical things you can do to build healthy family connections. These things apply to you regardless of age, spiritual level of maturity, male, female, rich, poor, single, married, student or already graduated.

First of all, get involved in a small group. Small groups are the lifeblood of our church. In Class 101 and 201 I teach a principle that goes like this: We must grow larger and smaller at the same time. In other words, I believe Chapin Baptist Church will continue to increase in size. There is no reason why we should not continue to grow for many more years. Yet as we grow, as our membership numbers increase, we must do small well. We must have many entry points for people to engage in small groups so that they can nurture family connections.

You never really feel connected to the body until you are engaged in a Sunday School or Chapin U class or some other type of small group ministry. When we come to this worship service, we enjoy being with God's people. We chat before and after the service and shake hands during the service. But you can't really build significant relationships in the big group setting.

We all have hurts and issues and we need to know that our Christian family cares for us. But if you are not engaged in a small group situation, it makes it very difficult for the church to minister to you when you are hurting and share your joy when you have good news. Every one of our staff pastors visits the hospitals, attends funerals, writes letters of encouragement, and counsels with people needing help. But there is only so much pastoral care we can provide with a membership that exceeds 1,700 people. We must move beyond the mentality that places expectations upon pastors that God Himself doesn't place on us. God designed the church (not the pastors) to be the primary caregivers of the flock. In other words, when someone is in need, the church responds. But for the church to respond in the most effective way, you need to be a part of a group within the church, a group that knows your needs, a group that will be there when life gets messy.

Studies show (and our experience verifies) that a new member of a congregation must engage in a small group within six weeks of joining or he/she will most likely be a lifelong spectator. Think about that. If you're not a member of a Sunday School class, isn't it true that you're most likely a spectator? You sit back and allow all the others to do the work. I know there are exceptions. But it's far more than just missing out on the joys of service. Without the small group experience, you don't have anyone to hold you accountable. There is no one praying for you on a regular basis. Hardly anyone calls when you're hurting. No one encourages you. You're not really connected to the family.

This truth can be compared to a family who has a son or daughter or parent who doesn't engage with the family. He's under the same roof and may show up at the dinner table. He enjoys the comforts of the home but is doing nothing to make the home stronger.

My challenge to you is to connect with the family here. God never intended you to do this Christian thing alone. Go deeper by getting involved in a small group. Some of you have been spectators for years. You have so much to offer to this community of believers. Some of you have been visiting for a long time. Keep on coming. But I challenge you to go deeper with us. Don't just come on Sundays. Share your life with us.

If you are engaged in a small group, then be committed to that group. Build solid relationships with your Christian family. Hold your fellow Christians accountable. And let them hold you accountable. If you see a fellow believer slipping in his/her faith, confront that person with Christ-like love. Love each other. If someone misses, get on the phone to find out what's going on. And if you're the one who has slipped in your small group commitment, don't wait on your class to come after you. Don't play that game. You get back in there where you're needed and stop whining. If someone said something or did something to offend you, stop your pity party and get back where you belong. Go to the person and say, "You hurt me, but that's okay. I forgive you." That's what family connections are all about.

You may be here today and not a Christ follower. God loves you very much. He wants you to be a member of His family. He wants you so much that He allowed His only Son to die on the cross for you. I don't know what your impressions of church are. There are no perfect churches. Our church is simply made up of folks who are sinners just like you are. We struggle. But we love Jesus and we are a family. And we'd love for you to connect with our family. You need to build meaningful relationships in your life. And we'd love to build a relationship with you.

Go deep with God. Go deep with Him by going deep in your connections to God's family. Encourage one another. Love one another. Study God's Word with one another. Serve with one another. Go deep with one another.