back to indexBerean Community Church - Sunday Service 10.22.23
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We're gonna go ahead and start our service with worship. 00:08:00.600 |
♪ I'm alive and well, your spirit is within me ♪ 00:08:27.600 |
♪ I'm alive and well, your spirit is within me ♪ 00:11:04.600 |
Let me get to a few announcements before we get started. 00:11:07.600 |
Next Sunday at 12.30, we have a newcomer's lunch. 00:11:12.600 |
This is for those people who are coming to the church 00:11:15.600 |
or want to find out more about what we believe 00:11:23.600 |
And we'll have a brief presentation about the church, 00:11:26.600 |
and then there'll be a time to ask questions, 00:11:29.600 |
So that's happening next Sunday at 12.30 p.m. 00:11:38.600 |
so they can prepare food for that next Sunday. 00:11:44.600 |
If you are planning to bring your child or children to that, 00:11:50.600 |
There will be food prepared for the children that are coming, 00:11:54.600 |
and so I think it is open to the parents too. 00:12:01.600 |
So please sign up for that so they can better prepare, 00:12:09.600 |
so we can direct you to the right place, okay? 00:12:27.600 |
and so we're trying to push more people to the first service. 00:12:33.600 |
on I can go to the first service or second service, 00:12:37.600 |
if you can, volunteer to go to first service. 00:12:40.600 |
We're trying to help us with the room capacity here, 00:12:51.600 |
that we are planning to open up the elementary department 00:12:54.600 |
just maybe for the first half of the elementary department. 00:12:59.600 |
If there is a need, it might be more than that, 00:13:04.600 |
So if you have children in the SEEDS department 00:13:10.600 |
and that'll help us with some of the space here. 00:13:12.600 |
And we're hoping to hold off on third service 00:13:20.600 |
we're trying to even out the services to first service. 00:13:24.600 |
we encourage you to do that to go to the first service. 00:13:38.600 |
if you're going to pay, give offering electronically, 00:14:01.600 |
I pray that every Sunday when we gather together, 00:14:10.600 |
according to the gospel that you've given us. 00:14:14.600 |
that we may know where our true help comes from, 00:14:17.600 |
that we may live for the things that are eternal, 00:15:15.600 |
let us rise from our seats and just say hello 00:25:00.600 |
I'm a second year at UCI, and this is my testimony. 00:25:07.600 |
Regardless, I was first exposed to Christianity 00:25:09.600 |
when I was enrolled at my eventual home church's summer camp 00:25:16.600 |
I didn't think too deeply about their significance. 00:25:18.600 |
Rather, I entered the camp for the activities 00:25:26.600 |
and not feeling cared for by those around me. 00:25:28.600 |
The tipping point came when my best friend at the time 00:25:33.600 |
the relationships I had with them were superficial. 00:25:45.600 |
Eventually, I became desensitized to my pain, 00:25:48.600 |
and consequentially, didn't share my struggles with anyone, 00:26:00.600 |
the same summer camp I had been attending for four years now. 00:26:02.600 |
That year, as a middle schooler, we went on a retreat, 00:26:07.600 |
for anyone to share any burdens they had before God. 00:26:10.600 |
After hearing a counselor say, "God wouldn't shun us, 00:26:16.600 |
But when I shared everything I had learned about God 00:26:21.600 |
in knowing there was a God who loved me so much 00:26:25.600 |
I saw the significance in knowing there was a God 00:26:28.600 |
who sent his innocent son to die for our sins. 00:26:32.600 |
I began attending fellowship gatherings and Sunday service. 00:26:35.600 |
But coincidentally, experiencing God's faithfulness 00:26:46.600 |
But beneath the surface, my home and my church life 00:26:55.600 |
I also wrestled with whether I actually believed in a God. 00:27:00.600 |
versus actually knowing him personally and abiding in him. 00:27:08.600 |
But as the weeks passed, I struggled with feelings 00:27:12.600 |
Frustrated, I grew bitter at those around me. 00:27:21.600 |
However, I eventually opened up about my brokenness 00:27:25.600 |
Through conversations, I was supported but also rebuked. 00:27:36.600 |
Realizing how long I had been to accuse others 00:27:39.600 |
of not caring for me, when I hadn't been caring for them, 00:27:44.600 |
not just for my transgressions against my fellow believers 00:27:49.600 |
But equally as important, I recognized my depravity. 00:28:00.600 |
Recognizing this, I desired to put my faith in him. 00:28:12.600 |
"It will be said we have fellowship with him, 00:28:28.600 |
Yet, I'm also reminded of how solely powerful his grace is, 00:28:31.600 |
despite my continuous battles against my own sin. 00:28:46.600 |
so that the power of Christ may dwell in me." 00:28:54.600 |
Because of him, I recognize him as the Lord and Savior of my life. 00:29:09.600 |
Friend, do you understand when you go into the water, 00:29:23.600 |
and then when you're coming out, you're united to Christ's resurrected life? 00:29:37.600 |
All right, thank you, Brandon, for that encouraging testimony. 00:29:52.600 |
If you can turn your Bible with me to Luke, chapter 6, 00:30:08.600 |
"For I say to you who hear, love your enemies, 00:30:12.600 |
bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 00:30:15.600 |
Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also, 00:30:25.600 |
and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. 00:30:28.600 |
Treat others the same way you want them to treat you. 00:30:31.600 |
If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? 00:30:42.600 |
If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, 00:30:47.600 |
Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount. 00:30:58.600 |
for he himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men. 00:31:01.600 |
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. 00:31:06.600 |
and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. 00:31:15.600 |
pressed down, shaken together, and running over. 00:31:31.600 |
We pray, Father God, that you give us understanding 00:31:43.600 |
May love that you poured upon us would overflow back to you. 00:31:50.600 |
So as we've been talking about loving your enemies, right? 00:31:55.600 |
And it sounds great when we talk about how Christ loved us, 00:32:13.600 |
And when that is a--just a picture or an idea 00:32:29.600 |
and you have somebody specific in mind, right? 00:32:36.600 |
Maybe it was a previous church that you came from. 00:32:46.600 |
and you're thinking, "You don't know what I've gone through. 00:32:51.600 |
And let alone wanting to take out vengeance against them, 00:32:57.600 |
to give and be good to them, to bless them, pray for them. 00:33:04.600 |
Maybe he's talking about, you know, other people. 00:33:08.600 |
Maybe he's just talking about the love of Christ, 00:33:22.600 |
more than even an attempt or even a thought of practicing this. 00:33:27.600 |
This is one of those things that you just cannot do in your flesh. 00:33:43.600 |
You can tell right away if you're walking in the flesh 00:33:47.600 |
when you try to even attempt to practice this. 00:33:51.600 |
This morning, we're going to be looking at the text that we're at, 00:33:55.600 |
and Jesus gives the reasons behind why this must be practiced. 00:34:02.600 |
This is not just something for us to be celebrated, 00:34:06.600 |
He expects us to practice this, and he gives us four reasons, 00:34:10.600 |
and I'm going to give the fifth reason as a wrap-up 00:34:14.600 |
So the first thing that he tells us why this needs to be practiced 00:34:17.600 |
is that there will be times when you are in need of that same grace. 00:34:23.600 |
There will be times in your life where you desire 00:34:26.600 |
and you need someone to be gracious with you. 00:34:31.600 |
"Treat others the same way you want them to treat you." 00:34:43.600 |
but if somebody's wronged us, we demand justice. 00:34:50.600 |
Do you have any idea what they've done to me? 00:34:53.600 |
The things that they said, and they want me harm, 00:35:02.600 |
in fact, only in the church, and I mentioned this before-- 00:35:05.600 |
only in the church where people demand grace. 00:35:08.600 |
You walk into a church, and they're not gracious to me. 00:35:12.600 |
The idea of grace is getting what you do not deserve. 00:35:18.600 |
So when we demand grace, what we are saying is, 00:35:21.600 |
"I can't believe these people are not giving me what I don't deserve. 00:35:28.600 |
I can't believe that person wouldn't give me what I did not earn. 00:35:46.600 |
In fact, I've actually even heard people say this, 00:35:51.600 |
"I can't stand people who don't practice grace." 00:35:56.600 |
As foolish as that sounds, I've heard that from many people. 00:36:00.600 |
The fact that you demand grace, and then that you refuse to be gracious 00:36:04.600 |
to somebody who doesn't practice grace is a contradiction. 00:36:10.600 |
It says there's going to be times when you may be in a position 00:36:17.600 |
Oftentimes, the people that we think are enemies are not enemies. 00:36:24.600 |
And the way conflicts happen is you did something, 00:36:26.600 |
and somebody perceived what you have done in a certain way, 00:36:29.600 |
and then as a result of that, they react to you, 00:36:32.600 |
and then they react to you, and you perceive the way that they're reacting, 00:36:41.600 |
And this happens between husband and wives all the time. 00:36:45.600 |
You're fighting each other, and you don't even know what you're fighting about. 00:36:47.600 |
You're fighting about the way you're fighting. 00:36:50.600 |
"I can't believe you said that. You never do this, and you always do that." 00:36:53.600 |
And they say, "What were we fighting about? I don't know, 00:36:55.600 |
but I can't believe they said it the way that they said it." 00:37:01.600 |
It's like, "Well, you know, that person did this, but I almost guarantee," 00:37:06.600 |
you know, they say, "Well, they've done this to me. 00:37:08.600 |
I guarantee if you ask the person on the other side, 00:37:11.600 |
they're going to say the same thing about you." 00:37:13.600 |
You don't know what they did. You don't know what they've said. 00:37:16.600 |
So when we do not practice grace, it has a tendency to overflow into a bigger issue. 00:37:21.600 |
In Matthew 7, 12, "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want to be treated. 00:37:30.600 |
This is the law and the prophets. Everything that God has taught us, 00:37:34.600 |
He said it would be summarized by this, right? 00:37:37.600 |
To love all the prophets, everything that God had commanded. 00:37:41.600 |
Everything that God had commanded can be summarized, right? 00:37:54.600 |
If you want people to be merciful to you, practice mercy. 00:37:58.600 |
In Galatians 5, 13-14, it says, "For you are called to freedom, brethren. 00:38:02.600 |
Only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, 00:38:09.600 |
You know, I don't know if you may have been in circles where you're talking about Christian liberty, right? 00:38:15.600 |
And say, "Well, because we have Christian liberty, the gray areas doesn't matter. 00:38:18.600 |
I'm going to do whatever I want because I'm not legalistic. 00:38:23.600 |
So if you have a problem with that, you're the younger brother. 00:38:28.600 |
The more mature brother, it doesn't bother him. 00:38:32.600 |
I mean, you're talking about a perversion of the doctrine of freedom in the Bible. 00:38:38.600 |
He says, "Do not use your freedom to indulge yourself." 00:38:51.600 |
And as a result of that, we can love other people much more graciously. 00:38:59.600 |
He said our freedom was given to us so that we can practice what? 00:39:04.600 |
In verse 14, "For the whole law is fulfilled in one word in the statement, 00:39:11.600 |
We live in a culture where we are told you got to love yourself first. 00:39:17.600 |
Love yourself or else you're not going to be able to love other people. 00:39:20.600 |
You notice in the Bible, it's assumed that you love yourself. 00:39:24.600 |
You don't have to try hard, "I got to love myself. 00:39:33.600 |
As soon as you're born, you're born with selfishness. 00:39:38.600 |
You don't care that your mom just labored for 25 hours 00:39:41.600 |
and you don't come out thinking like, "You know what? 00:39:43.600 |
Maybe I can eat later because my parents need some rest." 00:39:47.600 |
You don't come out unselfish thinking about your parents. 00:39:55.600 |
Your mama had a C-section, drugged up, and was in the hospital bed for three days. 00:40:06.600 |
Me, even the way we practice love for one another, it's me. 00:40:10.600 |
How are you going to reciprocate what I give to you? 00:40:14.600 |
But he says to love as you would love yourself. 00:40:19.600 |
I remember as a young Christian in my late teens, I really wrestled with this. 00:40:26.600 |
I think the best and the closest way that I could think of is figure out 00:40:32.600 |
At that time, I was thinking about, "Do I love the way I love my mom? 00:40:48.600 |
That would immediately tell me if I'm actually practicing what Christ told me to do as yourself. 00:40:55.600 |
As I got older, obviously, I experienced different things. 00:40:59.600 |
I got married, and my relationship with Esther-- 00:41:03.600 |
there are times, and those of you who have been married for a while, 00:41:05.600 |
you know that there's--especially in the beginning, right? 00:41:08.600 |
Our communication skills, I would say from 1 to 10 was 1. 00:41:14.600 |
When things were good, we don't need communication. 00:41:18.600 |
We're having fun. We're doing ministry together. 00:41:20.600 |
But when things are bad, the way Esther communicated, the way I communicated, 00:41:27.600 |
because the way she communicates is to disappear. 00:41:32.600 |
The way I communicate, like with my brother, we hit each other and get on the floor. 00:41:36.600 |
I can't do that with my wife, but that's the way I communicated. 00:41:41.600 |
We get in a nasty fight, we punch each other, and the next day we're having breakfast together. 00:41:46.600 |
And obviously, I can't practice with my wife, so I was overly aggressive when I got mad. 00:41:51.600 |
Like, "I demand you to say something," and then the more I demanded, the more she would disappear. 00:42:00.600 |
Like I said, when things were good, things were really good, 00:42:03.600 |
but every time we got mad, it just popped back up. 00:42:06.600 |
And when it was worst was when I would disappear, 00:42:09.600 |
would go to missions or go speak at some church, 00:42:12.600 |
and I don't see her for about 3 or 4 days, and I walk through the door tired, 00:42:15.600 |
hoping to get a warm embrace, and then I see my wife looking at me with a frown, 00:42:20.600 |
and she just walks by, and I'm projecting, "What did I do? I just did God's work. 00:42:25.600 |
What did I do against God or something? What's going on?" 00:42:29.600 |
And so that would trigger my anger, and then I would demand her to communicate, 00:42:35.600 |
And the more she saw how angry I was, she would just disappear and go to sleep. 00:42:39.600 |
And the more that she would sleep, the more frustrated I would get. 00:42:41.600 |
And I don't know how many times I sat by myself, just seething in anger. 00:42:52.600 |
I would never consider divorce because that would ruin my life. 00:42:57.600 |
I would have to deny Christ before I even think about that. 00:43:00.600 |
But I could understand why people get to that point, 00:43:05.600 |
when it's that miserable, and it's in your own home. 00:43:09.600 |
And sometimes the person that you feel like is hurting you the most 00:43:14.600 |
is your own wife or your own husband, even your own kids. 00:43:19.600 |
And when pain comes from somebody that is that close to you, 00:43:23.600 |
it is more painful than anything else outside. 00:43:26.600 |
And I remember sitting there thinking, "Man, how am I going to do ministry like this? 00:43:37.600 |
"This is years and years after being married and having our kids." 00:43:41.600 |
I sat there, again, memorizing Galatians 2, 20, "Be crucified. Be crucified. 00:43:48.600 |
Don't talk about, like, 'This is not fair. It's unjust.' 00:43:51.600 |
And, 'How can she do this to me? I'm doing God's work. 00:43:53.600 |
I just came back from mission. How can she be treating me this way?'" 00:43:56.600 |
So take yourself out of the picture. Die to yourself first. 00:44:00.600 |
And then I said, "Well, how should I approach her?" 00:44:03.600 |
And I start thinking, "What if she was my daughter? 00:44:09.600 |
How would I approach her if she was my daughter?" 00:44:12.600 |
And obviously I was thinking, "If my daughter-- 00:44:15.600 |
if Faith did something and I was angry, I wouldn't say, 'It's not fair. 00:44:22.600 |
I did this to you, and you're going to do--it's not fair, Faith.'" 00:44:29.600 |
I was like, "I can't say that to my daughter." 00:44:33.600 |
Faith has never caused me trouble, so I've never had to do that before. 00:44:37.600 |
But I was just imagining in my head, if that was my wife, 00:44:40.600 |
if that was my daughter, how would I approach her? 00:44:42.600 |
So my immediate thought was, "Whatever you say and do, 00:44:49.600 |
So I said, "I'm going to approach her like I would approach my daughter." 00:44:53.600 |
And then I went, and then she would be seething, 00:44:55.600 |
and then I sat down, and instead of saying, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, what did I do?" 00:45:00.600 |
That's typically how the argument would start, right? 00:45:07.600 |
She seemed upset, and I was showing grace, only externally, though. 00:45:13.600 |
Internally, I was like, "What? How dare you?" 00:45:18.600 |
I had all kinds of yelling in my head, but I was like, "Don't say anything. 00:45:23.600 |
And I just put my arms around her, and as soon as she felt safe, 00:45:31.600 |
Usually, she would start looking this way, and I'm sitting here. 00:45:37.600 |
and then eventually, if we're sitting in the car, she's just looking out the window. 00:45:41.600 |
Or if it gets bad enough, she'll just slowly get up and put her shoes on and go outside. 00:45:49.600 |
But I just put my hand around her, and then she just slowly started turning this way, 00:45:53.600 |
and I was like, "Oh, something strange is happening." 00:45:58.600 |
And then next thing I know, she kind of leans over to me and puts her head on my shoulder, 00:46:08.600 |
All the years that I've been approaching her, this is not what I was expecting. 00:46:12.600 |
And then once she put her head down, I'm like, "Okay, I have no idea what she's thinking, 00:46:17.600 |
but I'm no longer angry because I don't see her angry anymore." 00:46:21.600 |
And then when she was ready, when she felt safe, she would tell me, 00:46:24.600 |
and then a lot of times, it had nothing to do with me. 00:46:27.600 |
The kids were acting up, or she got a phone call, or something happened, 00:46:31.600 |
and she was expecting me to come and be an encouragement to her. 00:46:35.600 |
But as soon as I saw that rigid face, I'm like, "What?" 00:46:40.600 |
I was like, "Four days on the mission field, I came home for a warm embrace, 00:46:45.600 |
and she's waiting for me to give her a warm embrace because she had such a hard time 00:46:49.600 |
taking care of the kids while I wasn't home." 00:46:52.600 |
And then I react to her, she reacts to me, and next thing we know, we're fighting. 00:47:01.600 |
And that small act of choosing to love her, despite what I was feeling, 00:47:14.600 |
I can tell you specifically, that changed my marriage. 00:47:18.600 |
People talk about how we're equal partners in marriage. 00:47:22.600 |
We're not equal partners. I am the leader in this home. 00:47:26.600 |
The Bible tells the wife to submit to the husband. 00:47:32.600 |
But when most people hear that, they hear it from a sinful perspective. 00:47:37.600 |
It means they're better, they're going to rule over you. 00:47:40.600 |
No, we're not equal because God called me to be the presence of Christ in Esther's life. 00:47:50.600 |
I am not an equal because God has given me a greater call to sacrifice, 00:47:57.600 |
to make decisions that will benefit her before me, 00:48:01.600 |
to do things that will be better for her, for my children, than for myself. 00:48:08.600 |
And again, like I said, so much of human problem happens 00:48:15.600 |
because we demand things from other people that we don't practice ourselves. 00:48:22.600 |
So this is one of the most practical, life-changing things that we can practice. 00:48:28.600 |
So not just to hear, not just to celebrate it, but to practice it. 00:48:31.600 |
Second, we've been called to greater righteousness in the world. 00:48:34.600 |
What distinguishes us from the world is this love. 00:48:37.600 |
Luke 6, 32-34, "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? 00:48:46.600 |
"If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? 00:48:51.600 |
"If you lend to those whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? 00:48:55.600 |
Even sinners lend to sinners in order to receive back the same amount." 00:49:04.600 |
The distinguishing mark of a Christian and a non-Christian 00:49:12.600 |
Fallen, unregenerate, self-centered, selfish people practice love. 00:49:19.600 |
You don't have to be touched by the love of Christ. 00:49:21.600 |
You don't have to have the Holy Spirit to practice this kind of love. 00:49:25.600 |
He said, "What credit is that to you when your love looks no different?" 00:49:29.600 |
If you love those who are lovable, if you love those who will reciprocate, 00:49:33.600 |
if you love those who are like you, then your love is no different. 00:49:39.600 |
What distinguishes us is the kind of love that we practice. 00:49:43.600 |
In Matthew 5, 20, it says, "For I say to you that unless your righteousness 00:49:46.600 |
surpasses that of the scribes and the Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven." 00:49:52.600 |
I'm sure you've heard that before, but I want you to meditate and think about what he's saying. 00:49:57.600 |
That your righteousness is to exceed the Pharisees and the scribes. 00:50:02.600 |
Pharisees and the scribes prayed more than anybody else. 00:50:09.600 |
They gave to the poor more than anybody else. 00:50:11.600 |
They memorized Scripture more than anybody else. 00:50:13.600 |
They obeyed the Sabbath law more than anybody else. 00:50:18.600 |
So if you listen to this superficially, it sounds like, "No, you have to pray more than them. 00:50:23.600 |
You have to evangelize more than them. You have to give more than them. 00:50:26.600 |
Whatever standard that they have set up, it's not enough, and you have to do more than that." 00:50:33.600 |
But that's not what he's saying. That's not what he's saying. 00:50:41.600 |
In Matthew 7, verse 23, it says, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven." 00:50:47.600 |
In other words, if lordship is just lip service, it means nothing. 00:50:53.600 |
"But he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. 00:50:56.600 |
Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name?'" 00:51:01.600 |
How can somebody prophesying in His name not know the Lord? 00:51:09.600 |
They experienced the power of God to cast out demons, and yet he says, "I don't know you." 00:51:15.600 |
"In Your name perform many miracles." He even performed miracles and done healing. 00:51:21.600 |
And he says, "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you. 00:51:25.600 |
Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'" 00:51:31.600 |
The Pharisees kept the law. They memorized the law. 00:51:36.600 |
They were law keepers more than anybody else, and yet he says, "You are practicing lawlessness." 00:51:44.600 |
Prophesying, evangelizing, praying, giving, casting out demons, performing miracles, 00:51:55.600 |
What is the righteousness that he is demanding? 00:51:58.600 |
That these people who in every way on the surface is practicing better than us. 00:52:04.600 |
Well, you know this passage, 1 Corinthians 13, 1-3, we quote this, we have it hanging on the wall, 00:52:10.600 |
but I want you to really examine what it says. 00:52:13.600 |
"If I speak with tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, 00:52:24.600 |
There is a denomination, the apostolic Pentecostals believe that tongues is a sign of your salvation. 00:52:33.600 |
I mean, right there, it's a direct contradiction. 00:52:36.600 |
He said, "Even if I speak with tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, 00:52:44.600 |
It means nothing. That is not the true evidence of your salvation. 00:52:47.600 |
He said, "If I have the gift of prophecy and know all mysteries and know all knowledge." 00:52:53.600 |
Even if you have a PhD, even if you know the intricate details of every systematic theology that we study, 00:53:01.600 |
and you not just know a lot, but you know all, he says, even if you have all knowledge. 00:53:07.600 |
"And if I have all faith." Wow, this is crazy. Faith. 00:53:11.600 |
Aren't we saved by faith? Aren't we saved by faith and faith alone? 00:53:15.600 |
And he just says, "If I have all faith so that to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing." 00:53:23.600 |
Think about the shock of what he's saying here, right? 00:53:27.600 |
Think about the shock of what he's saying. Everything that you have. 00:53:31.600 |
Coming to church, becoming a member, going to seminary, reading a lot of books, performing a lot of stuff, 00:53:37.600 |
planting a bunch of churches, and he goes even further than that. 00:53:41.600 |
"And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, if I surrender my body to be burned." 00:53:47.600 |
He's talking about a martyr. He's gone so far as to give his life for the purpose of God. 00:53:55.600 |
And then he says, "But do not have love, it prompts me nothing." 00:54:05.600 |
The central, primary thing that God desires of us more than anything else is to practice his love. 00:54:13.600 |
He's not saying that none of these things are important. 00:54:17.600 |
He's not saying all of this is trash. That's not what he's saying. 00:54:20.600 |
He's saying, "If you have all of this and yet have no love, you missed the whole point." 00:54:29.600 |
Wow. I mean, how can we possibly miss this, and yet we do. 00:54:35.600 |
We come to church and we have check-off marks and everything that we've done, 00:54:39.600 |
and we feel completely satisfied that we are righteous, and yet he says, "You missed the whole point." 00:54:46.600 |
Thirdly, it is our identity mark of following Christ. This is how the world distinguishes us from the rest of the world. 00:54:52.600 |
In Luke 6, 35-36, "Love your enemies, do good, lend, expecting nothing in return, and in your reward will be great. 00:55:01.600 |
He's not saying that you're going to have to earn your way to be sons of the Most High. 00:55:07.600 |
You being gracious to those who are difficult to be gracious to. 00:55:15.600 |
And you are good to them, you bless them, you pray for them. 00:55:19.600 |
"For he himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men." 00:55:24.600 |
If you've ever tried to be kind to ungrateful people, you know how difficult it is. 00:55:30.600 |
Every single parent knows what that feels like. 00:55:34.600 |
Every single parent knows what that feels like. 00:55:37.600 |
How many times have you been taking care of them all day, and at the end of the day, 00:55:41.600 |
you're like, "Oh, I didn't get it. He got the bigger popsicle than I did." 00:55:46.600 |
This is so unfair, after everything you've done. 00:55:54.600 |
So imagine at that moment that you say, "Okay, I'm going to treat you the way you deserve." 00:56:09.600 |
You have to practice grace and restraint and mercy, or you can't be a good parent. 00:56:18.600 |
It's hard to be gracious when they're ungrateful, but he says, "To evil men." 00:56:25.600 |
"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." 00:56:36.600 |
God created us to be image-bearers of Christ. 00:56:39.600 |
In other words, he made us so that we are mirrors. 00:56:44.600 |
Before the fall, God reflected his image on us. 00:56:48.600 |
When people looked at mankind, they reflected God. 00:56:56.600 |
That's why in Romans 3, it says, "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." 00:57:01.600 |
God's glory that was supposed to shine off of us was no longer shining because of what? 00:57:10.600 |
So God's glory is no longer shining off of us. 00:57:13.600 |
The purpose of the mirror is to give a reflection. 00:57:20.600 |
Now you put pretty pictures of flowers on there, so that's an awesome mirror. 00:57:24.600 |
But if you stand in front of it, your face is all blurred and warped. 00:57:30.600 |
A good mirror is the one that reflects perfectly the person standing in front of it. 00:57:37.600 |
So because our image has been tainted because of our sin, 00:57:40.600 |
Christ comes and he washes us and cleanses us and makes us new. 00:57:45.600 |
Now we have been restored to be image-bearers of God again. 00:57:50.600 |
What is the image of God that he calls us to reflect? 00:58:00.600 |
and love in particular of those who don't deserve it. 00:58:09.600 |
1 Peter 2.21, "For you have been called for his purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, 00:58:14.600 |
leaving you an example for you to follow in his steps." 00:58:18.600 |
You know in the early church first century, you know what they used to call us in the Bible? 00:58:26.600 |
The Way. We're part of the Way because in the early church it's like Christ is the Way. 00:58:35.600 |
Today we say Christian, but the term Christian was given to us in a derogatory way. 00:58:41.600 |
And basically what that means is Little Christ. 00:58:45.600 |
So as the gospel began to spread and more and more people began to find out about what Christianity was about, 00:58:51.600 |
they said, "Man, these guys are obsessed with Christ. 00:58:54.600 |
They're going to worship Christ. They're going to eat his blood, 00:59:00.600 |
He's the creator. He's the sustainer. All things are made by him and for him. 00:59:05.600 |
That we are to fix our eyes upon Christ, the author and perfecter of our faith. 00:59:09.600 |
I mean, these guys, he's the chief cornerstone, rejected. 00:59:12.600 |
Everything they talk about are justified by faith. 00:59:16.600 |
We walk in Christ and then we hope in Christ. 00:59:19.600 |
So they said, "Man, these guys are Little Christ." 00:59:22.600 |
So to this day we use that term, Little Christ. 00:59:30.600 |
Little Christ. To be a reflection of Christ in all that we do. 00:59:35.600 |
You know, when we think about spiritual maturity, 00:59:40.600 |
we think about Bible study, theology, you know, like know-how, training. 00:59:47.600 |
No, a spiritual mature person is the person who reflects the Christ we see in the Bible. 00:59:55.600 |
And so you can have all that stuff and you do not have love, you're not reflecting Christ. 01:00:01.600 |
You can have all the knowledge of the Bible and yet you don't practice the love of Christ, 01:00:11.600 |
Long time ago, back in the 70s, there was a book called "In His Steps." 01:00:17.600 |
So when I went to Biola, that was a mandated book that we all had to read. 01:00:24.600 |
And the whole premise was about asking the question, "What would Jesus do?" 01:00:33.600 |
And so I remember reading that book and it was like for our generation, 01:00:37.600 |
it made a huge impact because we were called to ask the question in every circumstance, 01:00:47.600 |
In this particular situation, what would Jesus do? 01:00:50.600 |
We talk about all the times, "What is God's will?" 01:01:02.600 |
When you enter a fork in the road, what road would He take? 01:01:06.600 |
When somebody slanders you, what would Jesus do? 01:01:11.600 |
If we want to know the will of God, that's the central question that we need to ask. 01:01:16.600 |
Because we are His ambassadors. We are the image bearers of Christ. 01:01:20.600 |
Fourthly, we will be treated the way we treat others. 01:01:26.600 |
In Luke 6, 37-38, "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. 01:01:30.600 |
Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. 01:01:37.600 |
They will pour into your lap a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, 01:01:40.600 |
and running over, for by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you in return." 01:01:46.600 |
Thank God that God doesn't treat us according to our sins. 01:02:00.600 |
Don't come to God and ask for forgiveness if you're not going to forgive. 01:02:04.600 |
Luke 6, 12, "Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors." 01:02:10.600 |
Don't ask God to be generous if you're not planning to be generous. 01:02:14.600 |
Don't ask God to be merciful to you if you're not going to practice mercy. 01:02:19.600 |
Just as you have done to others, it will be done to you. 01:02:25.600 |
The problem that you and I are in, which leads us to our fifth and final point, 01:02:36.600 |
Jesus broke into this cycle of sin because every single one of us, 01:02:47.600 |
We are born into sin, and we continue to practice this sin. 01:02:52.600 |
So what ends up happening is, if I asked you, "In what way have you been sinned against?" 01:02:58.600 |
Some of you guys may go all the way back to your childhood and say, 01:03:01.600 |
"My uncle did this, my brother did this, my parents did this, and I come from this broken family, 01:03:05.600 |
and so as a result of that, this is the way I am." 01:03:10.600 |
And just as you have been sinned against, you've also sinned against somebody else. 01:03:16.600 |
And somebody will point to you and say, "Because he treated me this way, 01:03:19.600 |
because she treated me this way, this is the way that I am." 01:03:24.600 |
And so the cycle of sin goes over and over and over again. 01:03:29.600 |
Those who have been sinned against will sin against other people also. 01:03:34.600 |
Those who have been hurt have a tendency to hurt other people also. 01:03:38.600 |
So modern psychology basically identifies that, and all they do is, 01:03:43.600 |
"You are the way that you are because your mom did something. 01:03:47.600 |
You do what you do, and you're an alcoholic because your dad was an alcoholic. 01:03:51.600 |
You're abusive because somebody else was abusive." 01:03:53.600 |
And to be honest, that is the cycle of sin that every human being is born into, 01:04:03.600 |
Everybody who has been sinned against will sin against somebody else in this cycle. 01:04:08.600 |
And the Bible says that we are under the rain of death, not just death, but rain of death. 01:04:14.600 |
When something rains, you can't get out of that. 01:04:18.600 |
But the only sinless person that has ever walked this earth 01:04:23.600 |
chose not to retaliate, but to absorb our sins. 01:04:27.600 |
And by absorbing our sins, and in His resurrection, He pushed back to give us a new life. 01:04:35.600 |
That's why when somebody gets baptized, it symbolizes their death, 01:04:39.600 |
but it doesn't only symbolize his death, it also symbolizes his resurrection in a new life. 01:04:45.600 |
So, as Christians, we no longer say, "I am the way I am because of what my dad, my mom, my uncle, my brother, these friends, 01:04:55.600 |
because of what they did to me." That's the world. 01:05:11.600 |
Not somebody who sinned against me. Not because I sinned against somebody else. 01:05:15.600 |
But that the love of Christ came in to this fallen world that is spiraling out of control. 01:05:21.600 |
And the only hope that we have is Christ absorbing our sins upon Himself. 01:05:28.600 |
And instead of treating us the way we deserve, 01:05:32.600 |
He treated us, His enemies, with love and kindness. 01:05:38.600 |
Now, as adopted children of God, we are to practice this love and reverse this curse. 01:05:48.600 |
Instead of paying sin for sin, we pay sin with grace. 01:05:53.600 |
In 1 Peter 2, 23-24, "And while being reviled, He did not revile in return. 01:05:59.600 |
While suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously. 01:06:04.600 |
He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. 01:06:23.600 |
Stop blaming your past or somebody else who sinned against you. 01:06:30.600 |
Not just the penalty of sin, but the power of sin that is reigning over all mankind. 01:06:36.600 |
He says, "You are delivered. If the Son sets you free, you are free indeed." 01:06:46.600 |
Now we do what we do because the love of Christ compels us. 01:06:51.600 |
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin and on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God. 01:07:00.600 |
The only person, only person who lived a just life received the greatest injustice. 01:07:10.600 |
That you and I would become the righteousness of God. 01:07:15.600 |
When sinners complain before God, it's kind of like somebody who's driving on the freeway 150 miles per hour and he didn't get caught. 01:07:22.600 |
And all of a sudden he's getting off the freeway and instead of making a complete stop, he kind of had a rolling stop, made a right turn, and then you get a ticket. 01:07:37.600 |
And you complain to the cop, it's like, "What? Because I didn't make a complete stop, you're going to give me a rolling stop?" 01:07:43.600 |
It's the same ticket as passing the red light if you don't make a complete stop. 01:07:52.600 |
He's like, "Dad, because I didn't make a complete stop, you're going to give me a $550 ticket?" 01:08:00.600 |
No sinner can ask for justice just because you got away with going 150 miles per hour because you're guilty. 01:08:11.600 |
God who knows all things can take out the camera and say, "Are you seriously arguing with me?" 01:08:17.600 |
When a sinner demands justice and you get justice, you don't want it. 01:08:26.600 |
Because we have a tendency to point out certain things that we say, "Oh, that's not fair, that's not fair." 01:08:31.600 |
Okay, you want fair? You really want me to be fair? Not really. 01:08:37.600 |
But the only person who could have pled for his guiltlessness was Christ. 01:08:44.600 |
The only person who never sinned, the only person who never retaliated, the only person who was just. 01:09:00.600 |
And now, as children of people whose curse has been reversed, he says to us, "Now do likewise." 01:09:13.600 |
This is how the curse of mankind was reversed. 01:09:17.600 |
And this is how the curse in our family is going to be reversed. 01:09:21.600 |
This is how the curse of relationships is going to be reversed. 01:09:24.600 |
By practicing the love that he practiced with us. 01:09:27.600 |
I want to show you a video. I want to end with this video. 01:09:30.600 |
And I want to set it up as they prep for this. 01:09:34.600 |
This was a young man, 18-year-old, named Brant Jean. 01:09:41.600 |
I thought it was appropriate for us to listen to this. 01:09:44.600 |
Because this is the younger brother of a man who was shot in his own home. 01:09:49.600 |
Because an off-duty cop thought that she was going into her own apartment. 01:09:53.600 |
And by accident, she saw a young black man sitting in her living room. 01:09:56.600 |
And she took out a gun and just started shooting. 01:09:59.600 |
And so this young man was killed in his own living room, watching TV. 01:10:06.600 |
So they had a trial and found that it was negligence of this off-duty cop, maybe even prejudice. 01:10:13.600 |
And they sentenced her to 10 years in prison. 01:10:16.600 |
And at the end of the sentencing, they give a family member an opportunity to basically vent toward the guilty. 01:10:22.600 |
Typically in that scene, you will see a father, mother, brother, sister, cousin, uncle will come and say, 01:10:28.600 |
"I hope you rot in hell. I hope what you did to my brother, that they did to you in prison." 01:10:35.600 |
And you see courtroom scenes breaking out into fistfights because the ones who have been wronged desire justice and vengeance. 01:10:48.600 |
I want you to listen to this. It's an 18-year-old young man. 01:10:58.600 |
And I know if you go to God and ask him, he will forgive you. 01:11:12.600 |
And I don't think anyone can say it. Again, I'm speaking for myself, not even bad for my family. 01:11:22.600 |
I'm not going to say I hope you rot and die just like my brother did, but I personally want the best for you. 01:11:40.600 |
And I wasn't going to ever say this in front of my family or anyone, but I don't even want you to go to jail. 01:11:56.600 |
Because I know that's exactly what both of them would want you to do. 01:12:03.600 |
And the best would be give your life to Christ. 01:12:12.600 |
I think giving your life to Christ would be the best thing that both of them would want you to do. 01:12:36.600 |
I don't know if this is possible, but can I give her a hug, please? 01:13:25.600 |
Who else but somebody who has been touched by the love of Christ would even consider to do that? 01:13:44.600 |
The love of Christ who overwhelmed all sins that he committed, all sins that he's received. 01:14:12.600 |
We thank you, Lord God, for forgiving our sins. 01:14:17.600 |
Lord, thank you for reminding us of what it is that you've done for us. 01:14:26.600 |
That we would continue to fix our eyes upon what Christ has done. 01:14:32.600 |
That all that we do be an overflow of what Christ has done for us. 01:14:39.600 |
May Christ receive the glory that he deserves. 01:14:43.600 |
May the Holy Spirit, Lord God, be welcomed and obeyed. 01:14:53.600 |
That we would be compelled by that same love that you've given to us. 01:15:27.600 |
I once was lost in darkest night, yet thought I knew the way. 01:15:36.600 |
The sin that promised joy and light had led me to the grave. 01:15:47.600 |
I had no hope that you would all arrive to your will. 01:15:56.600 |
And if you had not loved me first, I would refuse you still. 01:16:14.600 |
But as I ran my help out of this indifferent to the cost, 01:16:25.600 |
you looked upon my helpless state and led me to the cross. 01:16:36.600 |
And I beheld God's love despite you suffered in my place. 01:16:45.600 |
You bore the wrath reserved for me. Now all I know is grace. 01:17:55.600 |
Now Lord I would bid yours alone and live so all might see 01:18:07.600 |
that the strength to follow your command could never come from me. 01:18:16.600 |
Oh Father use my ransom life in any way you would choose 01:18:27.600 |
and let my song forever be my only dose in this you. 01:19:40.600 |
Now the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the fellowship and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit 01:19:49.600 |
and eternal deep deep love of God will consume us, compel us, control us, 01:20:00.600 |
motivate us, revive us and send us that we may be the aroma of Christ wherever you send us this week. Amen. 01:20:41.600 |
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lived