The mission of the Kingdom - Integration

This is our Sunday teaching from Senior Pastor, Lesley Thompson. Recorded live at our Sunday Service in Harris Academy Purley, Croydon on Sunday 23rd November, 2025.

Below you can find the full talk audio, and a summary article.  

Want to lead a connect group session on this teaching?  The notes are here!

I–Thou Community: Becoming a People Who Truly See One Another

This Sunday, Leslie continued our series The Mission of the Kingdom by looking at one of the most beautiful – and most challenging – aspects of church life: integration. If evangelisation is about helping people meet Jesus, integration is about helping people belong to His family.

Drawing on her work as an integrative therapist, Leslie introduced the idea of two kinds of relationships described by the Jewish philosopher Martin Buber: I–Thou and I–It. An I–Thou relationship treats the other person as a whole, God-made human being – worthy of attention, dignity, curiosity, and love. It’s mutual, honest, and open. In contrast, an I–It relationship treats someone as an object: useful, functional, or transactional.

Our culture trains us to drift toward I–It relating. Individualism tells us to prioritise our own preferences. Consumerism tempts us to define ourselves by what we buy. Even our online lives encourage shallow, curated interactions rather than genuine presence. But God’s vision for His people is radically different. The Church, Leslie reminded us, is God’s idea – a community of belonging where we meet one another person-to-person, not tool-to-tool.

Scripture paints a rich picture of this kind of life together. Paul urges us in Romans 12: “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them… Take delight in honouring each other.” Peter echoes it: “Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other… Share your homes with those who need a meal or a place to stay.” Community is not an optional extra. It is the operating system of the Kingdom.

Leslie shared Mona’s story as a vivid picture of integration done well. In her first days in the UK, ordinary members of Croydon Vineyard welcomed Mona into their homes, invited her to breakfast, helped with lifts, encouraged her into a Connect Group, prayed with her, and served alongside her. No programme could have achieved what simple I–Thou hospitality and attention did: she found family.

So the question for all of us is this: Where are you in that story?
If you’re new, perhaps it’s saying yes to an invitation. If you’ve been around a while, maybe it’s offering one. Joining a Connect Group, serving on a team, opening your home, or simply slowing down enough to see someone’s face and ask, “How are you—really?” becomes holy work.

Integration is not complicated. It’s costly, vulnerable, beautiful—and it’s how the Kingdom grows.

Let’s be a church that chooses I–Thou. A church where no one stands alone. A church that looks like Jesus.