1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,200 Well, good morning everybody. 2 00:00:04,200 --> 00:00:12,000 If you have your Bibles, we'll be in 1 Peter chapter 4 here in just a little while. 3 00:00:12,000 --> 00:00:17,680 We are in our third week of looking at our beliefs, looking at our core values. 4 00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:23,960 This is a series that will help remind those of us that have been around for a little while 5 00:00:23,960 --> 00:00:27,040 who we are as a church. 6 00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:29,280 I think that's important to remind ourselves of. 7 00:00:29,280 --> 00:00:35,720 It would also help inform those of you that are newer, that these are the things that 8 00:00:35,720 --> 00:00:40,480 are the foundation of who we are as a church. 9 00:00:40,480 --> 00:00:45,880 I think it's important to remind ourselves of those things occasionally because we want 10 00:00:45,880 --> 00:00:51,640 to stay grounded in our history, but more importantly, we want to stay grounded to what 11 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:55,080 God has told us through His Word. 12 00:00:55,080 --> 00:01:01,480 This morning we're going to be looking at our core values, the difference between our 13 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:09,000 beliefs and our core values is that our beliefs are based on what we believe to be true based 14 00:01:09,000 --> 00:01:10,320 on the Bible. 15 00:01:10,320 --> 00:01:13,680 Our core values are a response to those beliefs. 16 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:18,000 If you remember back to Ephesians when we were going through Ephesians, the first three 17 00:01:18,000 --> 00:01:24,760 chapters Paul told us who God is and what he has done and what he continues to do. 18 00:01:24,760 --> 00:01:31,320 The second half of that book is how we live in light of that information. 19 00:01:31,320 --> 00:01:36,360 Since we believe the Bible to be true and the ultimate authority for our lives, our 20 00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:39,400 values should be rooted in that. 21 00:01:39,400 --> 00:01:46,000 If we claim to love Jesus, but don't act that way with others, then we would just be a bunch 22 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:48,680 of hypocrites, wouldn't we? 23 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:53,960 If we believe the Bible is true and then live according to how the world tells us that we 24 00:01:53,960 --> 00:02:00,240 should, then we're not trusting that God's ways are better than our own. 25 00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:04,680 This morning we're going to look at our core value of Christ-centered relationships by 26 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:07,000 looking at 1 Peter chapter 4. 27 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:11,400 My son, Riker, has been working on his reading. 28 00:02:11,400 --> 00:02:13,480 He's been chomping at the bit to be able to read. 29 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:17,040 You can come on up here to be able to read our scripture this morning. 30 00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:20,800 I'm going to invite him to read verses 8 through 11 today. 31 00:02:20,800 --> 00:02:24,560 I'd love for you to stand as we honor God's word together. 32 00:02:24,560 --> 00:02:35,520 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 33 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:42,560 Show hospitality to one another without grumbling, as each has received a gift. 34 00:02:42,560 --> 00:02:51,480 Use it to serve one another as good stewards of God's very grace, whoever speaks one who 35 00:02:51,480 --> 00:03:00,840 speaks oracles of God, whoever serves as one who serves by the strength that God supplies 36 00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:05,920 in order and glorified through Jesus. 37 00:03:05,920 --> 00:03:13,720 May God may be glorified through Jesus Christ to him be long glory and dominion forever and 38 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:14,720 ever. 39 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:15,720 Amen. 40 00:03:15,720 --> 00:03:16,720 Amen. 41 00:03:16,720 --> 00:03:17,720 Let's pray. 42 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:18,720 Father, we thank you for your word. 43 00:03:18,720 --> 00:03:21,040 We pray that these words of Peter will seep into our souls this morning. 44 00:03:21,040 --> 00:03:27,120 I thank you for my boy, and I pray God that he will develop a strong desire to love your 45 00:03:27,120 --> 00:03:29,000 word and to love what it says. 46 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:30,600 We ask all these things in your name. 47 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:31,600 Amen. 48 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:32,600 Thanks, bud. 49 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:45,120 Lee Ayacoka once asked legendary football coach Vince Lombardi what it took to make 50 00:03:45,120 --> 00:03:46,120 a winning team. 51 00:03:46,120 --> 00:03:50,400 Lombardi said there's a lot of coaches with good ball clubs who know the fundamentals 52 00:03:50,400 --> 00:03:53,640 and have plenty of discipline, but still don't win the game. 53 00:03:53,640 --> 00:03:55,600 Then you come to the third ingredient. 54 00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:59,840 If you're going to play together as a team, you've got to care for one another. 55 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:01,720 You've got to love each other. 56 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:04,760 Each player has to be thinking about the next guy. 57 00:04:04,760 --> 00:04:08,600 You've got to do your job well in order that he can do his. 58 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:14,920 The difference between mediocrity and greatness is the feeling these guys have for each other. 59 00:04:14,920 --> 00:04:19,040 Now that's profound, and it's very practical. 60 00:04:19,040 --> 00:04:26,320 Great teams in sports and business and especially in the church are formulated when the members 61 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:29,000 of the team love each other. 62 00:04:29,000 --> 00:04:34,120 That's why Peter assigned this principle the above all status. 63 00:04:34,120 --> 00:04:37,200 Above all, this is how we are to treat one another. 64 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:43,960 There's no question that every one of us wants to be loved and to love others, but it's not 65 00:04:43,960 --> 00:04:48,960 enough for others to know that you love them. 66 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:52,040 You must show that you love others. 67 00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:56,160 This is not a... Love is not an abstract idea. 68 00:04:56,160 --> 00:04:58,040 Love must be manifested. 69 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:02,960 True love is not something that you feel, it's something that you demonstrate. 70 00:05:02,960 --> 00:05:07,000 That's why you don't just say it, you show it. 71 00:05:07,000 --> 00:05:14,040 Marriages have problems when partners don't know or don't show love to one another. 72 00:05:14,040 --> 00:05:20,520 A husband and a wife may love each other deeply, but are miserable in their marriage because 73 00:05:20,520 --> 00:05:23,840 they don't know how to show love to one another. 74 00:05:23,840 --> 00:05:27,680 You can't raise kids properly without showing them love. 75 00:05:27,680 --> 00:05:36,560 You can't have true, lasting, satisfying friendships if your friends can't tell that you love them. 76 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:42,120 You can't experience relationships in your community, whatever community that is or 77 00:05:42,120 --> 00:05:46,720 in your church family without showing and receiving love. 78 00:05:46,720 --> 00:05:50,120 For some of you, showing love is not a problem. 79 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:52,440 For some of you, it's easy to show love. 80 00:05:52,440 --> 00:05:58,280 It comes naturally to you because of your temperament or because of how you were raised. 81 00:05:58,280 --> 00:06:02,880 Others of us have a more difficult time showing love. 82 00:06:02,880 --> 00:06:05,320 You don't feel comfortable showing your love. 83 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:10,720 You may simply have never learned how to show your love, but whether it comes natural or 84 00:06:10,720 --> 00:06:16,480 not, we need to show love and we need to grow in this area because everybody needs to know 85 00:06:16,480 --> 00:06:18,640 that they are loved. 86 00:06:18,640 --> 00:06:25,040 You especially need to know how to show love if you are a follower of Jesus because Jesus 87 00:06:25,040 --> 00:06:31,400 said all people will know that you are my disciple if you love each other. 88 00:06:31,400 --> 00:06:34,120 The good news is God tells us in His Word. 89 00:06:34,120 --> 00:06:35,120 He tells us in the Bible. 90 00:06:35,120 --> 00:06:41,120 So we're going to look at some scriptures that provide the how, the know-how, the practical 91 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:48,320 wisdom to following the standard of love that shows what following Christ is all about. 92 00:06:48,320 --> 00:06:53,920 Now we could do an entire sermon series on that passage in John 13. 93 00:06:53,920 --> 00:07:00,240 Our relationships with other believers should look different than others. 94 00:07:00,240 --> 00:07:06,680 The love and care that we have for one another should be a stark difference between how other 95 00:07:06,680 --> 00:07:09,160 people relate to one another. 96 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:16,200 It is sad to me that Christian marriages fail as often as secular ones. 97 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:22,440 It is sad to me that churches split because they can't seem to get along. 98 00:07:22,440 --> 00:07:32,120 It's sad to me that the stories that make headlines are when a pastor morally fails as opposed 99 00:07:32,120 --> 00:07:40,000 to a church loving their community in such a way that it completely changes the culture. 100 00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:45,720 So one of our core values here at Cornerstone is Christ-centered relationships and we all 101 00:07:45,720 --> 00:07:48,920 need to rise to that standard. 102 00:07:48,920 --> 00:07:52,320 If you are a part of our church, we need to rise to that standard. 103 00:07:52,320 --> 00:08:00,320 If we are going to be a church that wants our community to know that we follow Jesus, 104 00:08:00,320 --> 00:08:04,480 then we need to be reminded of how we are supposed to treat others. 105 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:08,120 I believe so many of you do this so well. 106 00:08:08,120 --> 00:08:10,320 So well. 107 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:12,120 But I believe we could all be better. 108 00:08:12,120 --> 00:08:14,000 All of us could be better. 109 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:18,640 So whatever your starting point is this morning and how you demonstrate love and how you show 110 00:08:18,640 --> 00:08:26,560 love, may we all strive to put Christ at the center of every relationship that we have. 111 00:08:26,560 --> 00:08:28,520 So let's look at a few ways that we can show love to others. 112 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:31,920 The first one being the golden rule. 113 00:08:31,920 --> 00:08:37,280 Jesus says in Luke 6.31, treat others the way you want to be treated. 114 00:08:37,280 --> 00:08:42,520 This has been called the golden rule because it is so valuable in how we relate to one 115 00:08:42,520 --> 00:08:43,520 another. 116 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:50,080 Non-believers call this the golden rule because there is so much wisdom in the words of Jesus. 117 00:08:50,080 --> 00:08:54,560 I don't even know if they understand when they say these things that this is coming 118 00:08:54,560 --> 00:08:55,560 from Jesus. 119 00:08:55,560 --> 00:08:58,600 That Jesus is the one that coined that phrase. 120 00:08:58,600 --> 00:09:03,960 You want others to treat you with love and respect and there is nothing wrong with that. 121 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:05,000 We want to be loved. 122 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:07,400 We want to be respected. 123 00:09:07,400 --> 00:09:13,140 Jesus uses something you can readily understand to teach you something that you need to know. 124 00:09:13,140 --> 00:09:17,560 You need to treat others just as you want to be treated. 125 00:09:17,560 --> 00:09:19,880 You want others to listen to you when you talk, right? 126 00:09:19,880 --> 00:09:21,600 We all want that. 127 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,440 You want them to think about your needs. 128 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:27,680 You want them to take initiative and seeking you out. 129 00:09:27,680 --> 00:09:33,240 You want them to show you love by the things they do for you. 130 00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:36,440 You want their love and forgiveness when you mess up. 131 00:09:36,440 --> 00:09:37,800 We're all guilty of that. 132 00:09:37,800 --> 00:09:39,200 You want understanding. 133 00:09:39,200 --> 00:09:40,720 You want second chances. 134 00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:43,120 Jesus says then, right? 135 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:46,120 Start doing that for others. 136 00:09:46,120 --> 00:09:50,000 Start listening when they talk. 137 00:09:50,000 --> 00:09:52,120 Be interested in what they're saying. 138 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:54,200 Don't look away. 139 00:09:54,200 --> 00:09:55,760 Don't be checking your watch. 140 00:09:55,760 --> 00:09:59,840 Don't just be thinking of what you're going to say next, but actually hear what they have 141 00:09:59,840 --> 00:10:00,840 to say. 142 00:10:00,840 --> 00:10:01,840 Listen to what they have to say. 143 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:04,920 Really focus on what they're saying. 144 00:10:04,920 --> 00:10:08,320 Start taking the initiative and seeking others out. 145 00:10:08,320 --> 00:10:10,400 Start meeting their needs. 146 00:10:10,400 --> 00:10:15,960 Start showing them love by the things that you do for them. 147 00:10:15,960 --> 00:10:17,440 Forgive others. 148 00:10:17,440 --> 00:10:19,440 Be patient with them. 149 00:10:19,440 --> 00:10:23,280 We want patients given to us, but so many of us, at least for me, we struggle with giving 150 00:10:23,280 --> 00:10:24,520 patients to others. 151 00:10:24,520 --> 00:10:28,880 Be kind and understanding even when they aren't acting right. 152 00:10:28,880 --> 00:10:32,360 Even when they're not acting the way you think they should be acting. 153 00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:36,360 We moved here from a small town. 154 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:43,360 So, I mean, Eldridge is the same way, but you know, like, in a small town, the chances 155 00:10:43,360 --> 00:10:47,600 of you running into somebody you know in the grocery store is very high. 156 00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:48,600 We know this. 157 00:10:48,600 --> 00:10:53,280 Like, if I go to High V down the road, I'm probably going to run into somebody that I 158 00:10:53,280 --> 00:10:54,800 know. 159 00:10:54,800 --> 00:11:00,320 I will never forget walking into the grocery store one random day a few years ago in a 160 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:08,880 former church member who left our church a few weeks prior in a huff just flat out ignored 161 00:11:08,880 --> 00:11:12,080 me when I acknowledged it, when I said hi to them. 162 00:11:12,080 --> 00:11:15,520 I thought it was immature, but I'm used to people being upset at me. 163 00:11:15,520 --> 00:11:17,760 It's just life, right? 164 00:11:17,760 --> 00:11:21,480 But then we get to the checkout line. 165 00:11:21,480 --> 00:11:23,560 And small town is just like Walmart, right? 166 00:11:23,560 --> 00:11:26,640 You have 14 different checkouts, but only two are open, right? 167 00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:31,440 And so I'm at the checkout line, there are a few people behind me. 168 00:11:31,440 --> 00:11:37,880 And as I'm leaving, as I've checked out and I'm leaving, she starts bashing me and bashing 169 00:11:37,880 --> 00:11:41,280 our church saying that we don't care about people. 170 00:11:41,280 --> 00:11:43,400 Our church doesn't care about people. 171 00:11:43,400 --> 00:11:50,360 Now, the reason she left was because she got migraines and she couldn't handle the noise 172 00:11:50,360 --> 00:11:51,520 in the sanctuary. 173 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:53,000 I get it. 174 00:11:53,000 --> 00:11:59,400 She would have preferred that we turn the speakers so low that there would be really 175 00:11:59,400 --> 00:12:02,440 no point in even having them on. 176 00:12:02,440 --> 00:12:05,160 But we cater to her. 177 00:12:05,160 --> 00:12:08,280 We set up a room where she could go watch the service. 178 00:12:08,280 --> 00:12:11,600 She could hear the service of whatever volume she wanted to have. 179 00:12:11,600 --> 00:12:13,520 We had this massive TV in there. 180 00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:14,520 We had a couch. 181 00:12:14,520 --> 00:12:19,120 I would have rather been in the service in that room than anywhere else. 182 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:20,720 But she didn't care. 183 00:12:20,720 --> 00:12:22,600 She didn't want it. 184 00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:24,640 She wanted the volume low. 185 00:12:24,640 --> 00:12:26,720 She didn't care what the rest of the congregation wanted. 186 00:12:26,720 --> 00:12:29,120 She wanted it her way. 187 00:12:29,120 --> 00:12:35,440 And when she didn't get it, she let everyone know that our church didn't care about people. 188 00:12:35,440 --> 00:12:42,560 Do you think all the non-believers that heard that interaction, that heard that exchange 189 00:12:42,560 --> 00:12:47,360 flooded our church the next Sunday? 190 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:50,200 Why would they want to be a part of that community? 191 00:12:50,200 --> 00:12:54,560 Why would they want to join in when their own life is dysfunctional? 192 00:12:54,560 --> 00:12:59,520 Why would they want to go join in in what seems like a dysfunctional place? 193 00:12:59,520 --> 00:13:03,120 This guideline of Jesus is pretty simple. 194 00:13:03,120 --> 00:13:04,120 It's pretty straightforward. 195 00:13:04,120 --> 00:13:09,400 It's pretty well-known, but it's also pretty easy to overlook because of our human nature. 196 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:12,200 So we need to be reminded. 197 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:14,160 Many of us have heard this verse. 198 00:13:14,160 --> 00:13:16,160 These verses read in our wedding. 199 00:13:16,160 --> 00:13:20,440 What the reality is, this verse was written for the church in 1 Corinthians 13. 200 00:13:20,440 --> 00:13:22,760 It says, Love is patient and kind. 201 00:13:22,760 --> 00:13:23,960 Love does not envy or boast. 202 00:13:23,960 --> 00:13:26,080 It is not arrogant or rude. 203 00:13:26,080 --> 00:13:28,520 It does not insist on its own way. 204 00:13:28,520 --> 00:13:30,040 It is not irritable or resentful. 205 00:13:30,040 --> 00:13:34,960 It does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 206 00:13:34,960 --> 00:13:40,560 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 207 00:13:40,560 --> 00:13:41,920 Like we think that's a marriage verse. 208 00:13:41,920 --> 00:13:42,920 That's not. 209 00:13:42,920 --> 00:13:43,920 It's a church verse. 210 00:13:43,920 --> 00:13:45,520 This is written for the church. 211 00:13:45,520 --> 00:13:47,680 Think through that list. 212 00:13:47,680 --> 00:13:50,080 Think through that list in 1 Corinthians 13. 213 00:13:50,080 --> 00:13:57,480 And then think about situations in your marriage and your family with fellow church members. 214 00:13:57,480 --> 00:14:01,320 Do you show patience and kindness? 215 00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:09,440 Are you waiting and hoping for something to fail so you can tell them, I told you so. 216 00:14:09,440 --> 00:14:14,640 Do you have endurance and hard times to fight for the relationship? 217 00:14:14,640 --> 00:14:21,880 Jesus says that people will know that you are my disciples by how you love. 218 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:25,440 Paul gives us the definition of love here in 1 Corinthians 13. 219 00:14:25,440 --> 00:14:31,080 How are those realities lining up with your life? 220 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:32,480 The next one builds on the first. 221 00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:36,720 We are to treat others the way we want to be treated, but then we need to treat others 222 00:14:36,720 --> 00:14:40,560 the way Jesus treats you. 223 00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:44,600 Jesus says in John 13, just as I have loved you, you should love. 224 00:14:44,600 --> 00:14:46,440 Love one another. 225 00:14:46,440 --> 00:14:52,000 He says again in John 15, I command you to love each other in the same way that I have 226 00:14:52,000 --> 00:14:53,000 loved you. 227 00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:57,720 I mean that's pretty good treatment. 228 00:14:57,720 --> 00:15:01,320 Some have even dubbed this the platinum rule. 229 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:06,520 The golden rule is how you treat others and you treat others the way you want to be treated. 230 00:15:06,520 --> 00:15:11,200 And one step further is you treat others the way Jesus has treated you. 231 00:15:11,200 --> 00:15:14,240 All you have to do, all you have to do is ask yourself. 232 00:15:14,240 --> 00:15:18,600 How does Christ treat me? 233 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:21,400 That's how we need to treat others. 234 00:15:21,400 --> 00:15:29,720 Five times the New Testament flatly declares that Jesus gave himself for you. 235 00:15:29,720 --> 00:15:34,280 Galatians 1, Galatians 2, Ephesians 5, 1 Timothy 2, Titus 2. 236 00:15:34,280 --> 00:15:36,200 Let's look at one of those verses, Galatians 2, 20. 237 00:15:36,200 --> 00:15:40,480 I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me. 238 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:44,280 So I live my life in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God. 239 00:15:44,280 --> 00:15:51,000 In other words, what Paul is saying is Christ is now calling the shots in my life. 240 00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:52,520 He's my leader. 241 00:15:52,520 --> 00:15:54,600 I'm going to do how he leads me to do it. 242 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:56,120 Why would he say that? 243 00:15:56,120 --> 00:15:59,960 He continues, who loved me and gave himself for me. 244 00:15:59,960 --> 00:16:03,800 So he's saying I'm allowing God to call the shots in my life because of what he has done 245 00:16:03,800 --> 00:16:05,080 for me. 246 00:16:05,080 --> 00:16:07,640 That's how much Christ loved you. 247 00:16:07,640 --> 00:16:11,680 He loved you so much that he gave himself for you. 248 00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:14,760 That's how he showed his love for you. 249 00:16:14,760 --> 00:16:17,440 He didn't just talk about loving you. 250 00:16:17,440 --> 00:16:22,640 He proved how much he loved you by giving of himself. 251 00:16:22,640 --> 00:16:28,480 By coming to this earth as a human being, by living and dying for you. 252 00:16:28,480 --> 00:16:30,960 I mean, that's great love. 253 00:16:30,960 --> 00:16:32,280 We can't compare it. 254 00:16:32,280 --> 00:16:36,960 If you ever begin to feel unloved, if you get to the place that you think no one loves 255 00:16:36,960 --> 00:16:42,320 you, look at the cross of Jesus. 256 00:16:42,320 --> 00:16:48,280 He loves you so much that he was willing to die for you. 257 00:16:48,280 --> 00:16:50,920 God is not just a God who talks about love. 258 00:16:50,920 --> 00:16:57,440 He shows you how much he loves you. 259 00:16:57,440 --> 00:17:01,520 And that's what he wants us to do for others. 260 00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:09,920 If you're going to love others the way that God loves you, then you're going to have to 261 00:17:09,920 --> 00:17:14,400 give yourself like Christ gave himself. 262 00:17:14,400 --> 00:17:18,600 That means a lot of times it's going to be inconvenient. 263 00:17:18,600 --> 00:17:21,480 At times it's going to cost you something. 264 00:17:21,480 --> 00:17:25,080 At times it's going to be uncomfortable. 265 00:17:25,080 --> 00:17:33,120 This means the question of what's in it for me never comes out of our mouths. 266 00:17:33,120 --> 00:17:35,840 There's a story about Kiasher. 267 00:17:35,840 --> 00:17:37,440 Her husband and daughter were in Mumbai. 268 00:17:37,440 --> 00:17:42,360 They were doing some mission work with the church when some terrorists came into the 269 00:17:42,360 --> 00:17:47,120 restaurant where they were eating and they killed everybody inside. 270 00:17:47,120 --> 00:17:51,840 Her husband, Alan, and her daughter Naomi were killed in that attack. 271 00:17:51,840 --> 00:17:59,000 Her response left those around her, her family, her friends, thinking that she had absolutely 272 00:17:59,000 --> 00:18:01,520 lost her mind. 273 00:18:01,520 --> 00:18:02,680 She mourned. 274 00:18:02,680 --> 00:18:04,040 She was in shock. 275 00:18:04,040 --> 00:18:08,160 She was angry as any one of us would feel if that happened to us. 276 00:18:08,160 --> 00:18:10,640 But her response was that of Jesus. 277 00:18:10,640 --> 00:18:18,840 Her response was she said, since love is lacking here, compassion is what we need. 278 00:18:18,840 --> 00:18:24,200 She said her commitment was to be the opposite of a terrorist in that she was going to love 279 00:18:24,200 --> 00:18:28,080 like an extremist. 280 00:18:28,080 --> 00:18:33,080 No one would have had a problem if she continued to be angry. 281 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:40,240 She could have demanded justice and no one would have had an issue with that. 282 00:18:40,240 --> 00:18:43,240 But that's how the world thinks, not how Jesus thinks. 283 00:18:43,240 --> 00:18:46,760 As he was being nailed to the cross, what does he do? 284 00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:49,600 He asks God for God, Father, forgive them. 285 00:18:49,600 --> 00:18:52,800 Forgive them for they don't even know what they're doing. 286 00:18:52,800 --> 00:18:59,720 Are you able to do that today to someone who has wronged you, to someone who has hurt you, 287 00:18:59,720 --> 00:19:06,720 betrayed you, to extend grace and forgiveness as Jesus has shown to you? 288 00:19:06,720 --> 00:19:13,880 It might not feel natural, but it is how we are called to stand out. 289 00:19:13,880 --> 00:19:17,840 The next way we show it to others comes from the words of Paul in Romans 12, that we should 290 00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:22,800 take delight in honoring others. 291 00:19:22,800 --> 00:19:24,920 This is a very practical thing. 292 00:19:24,920 --> 00:19:29,920 It's a very practical thing that you can do to show someone that you love them and appreciate 293 00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:33,800 them, give them recognition, give them attention. 294 00:19:33,800 --> 00:19:35,760 Everybody needs attention. 295 00:19:35,760 --> 00:19:38,520 Everybody needs to be honored from time to time. 296 00:19:38,520 --> 00:19:41,120 Spouses need to honor one another. 297 00:19:41,120 --> 00:19:42,400 Children need to honor their parents. 298 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:46,200 Even one of the Ten Commandments is top ten, right? 299 00:19:46,200 --> 00:19:48,320 Children will honor your father and your mother. 300 00:19:48,320 --> 00:19:55,000 You need to honor your family, your friends, honor your coworkers, your boss, your employees, 301 00:19:55,000 --> 00:19:58,520 and anyone in your life needs to be honored. 302 00:19:58,520 --> 00:20:02,040 We're going to pause to honor some people right now. 303 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:09,080 I don't know if you know this, but if there's a lot of feedback in the room, let's say 304 00:20:09,080 --> 00:20:11,440 some frequencies cross and it just creates feedback. 305 00:20:11,440 --> 00:20:14,360 What's your natural instinct? 306 00:20:14,360 --> 00:20:17,840 You're going to turn around and look at them. 307 00:20:17,840 --> 00:20:21,660 I could be an idiot one day and it has happened many times where I just forget to turn my 308 00:20:21,660 --> 00:20:22,660 mind on. 309 00:20:22,660 --> 00:20:24,760 You don't think it's my fault. 310 00:20:24,760 --> 00:20:27,720 You turn back and look at them, right? 311 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:33,440 If you're out of town and you want to catch our service, where do you go? 312 00:20:33,440 --> 00:20:36,280 You can go to any of our social media platforms and there we are live streaming. 313 00:20:36,280 --> 00:20:39,640 If you're watching right now, hello, right? 314 00:20:39,640 --> 00:20:46,680 We're sitting on the beach in Florida watching us have worship here in Iowa, right? 315 00:20:46,680 --> 00:20:49,120 But what do we hear? 316 00:20:49,120 --> 00:20:53,460 What do we hear when volume is not loud enough? 317 00:20:53,460 --> 00:21:00,880 What happens when whoever is running our pro presenter, our computer back there gets distracted 318 00:21:00,880 --> 00:21:05,200 or there's a computer issue and they don't keep up with the slides? 319 00:21:05,200 --> 00:21:06,800 What happens? 320 00:21:06,800 --> 00:21:08,120 Make sure they're okay back there, right? 321 00:21:08,120 --> 00:21:10,520 Like we all got to turn around and look at them, right? 322 00:21:10,520 --> 00:21:17,240 Like we have so many people that work behind the scenes that I doubt ever get honored. 323 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:18,240 So I want to do that today. 324 00:21:18,240 --> 00:21:19,240 Can we do that today? 325 00:21:19,240 --> 00:21:21,200 So I'm going to invite them. 326 00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:25,920 Not everybody's here today, but not everybody's here in the service. 327 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:26,920 But Zach Lowe, is Zach here? 328 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:27,920 Yeah, Zach's here. 329 00:21:27,920 --> 00:21:28,920 Come here, Zach. 330 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:36,480 Zach runs our sound. 331 00:21:36,480 --> 00:21:41,280 Zach runs our sound and probably gets more grief than anybody, right? 332 00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:43,000 As a sound man, right? 333 00:21:43,000 --> 00:21:45,000 I'm grateful for you. 334 00:21:45,000 --> 00:21:46,000 Let's honor him. 335 00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:47,000 Who else we got? 336 00:21:47,000 --> 00:21:48,000 Sharon. 337 00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:49,000 Sharon's running the computer. 338 00:21:49,000 --> 00:21:50,000 Come up here, Sharon. 339 00:21:50,000 --> 00:21:52,600 Sharon runs the computer. 340 00:21:52,600 --> 00:22:03,000 She's the one that keeps us on track. 341 00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:04,080 Thanks, Sharon. 342 00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:09,720 If Matthew or Drew or whoever's leading the worship decides to go in another direction 343 00:22:09,720 --> 00:22:13,000 and Sharon doesn't keep up with that, is it Matthew's fault? 344 00:22:13,000 --> 00:22:15,440 No, it's Sharon's fault. 345 00:22:15,440 --> 00:22:17,400 Come on. 346 00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:19,600 Luke, Luke, come here. 347 00:22:19,600 --> 00:22:25,760 Luke runs our sound too. 348 00:22:25,760 --> 00:22:27,080 He's about to leave us. 349 00:22:27,080 --> 00:22:28,680 We don't hold any grudges against that. 350 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:30,160 But Luke runs our sound too. 351 00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:31,160 Give him a hand. 352 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:32,160 You're awesome. 353 00:22:32,160 --> 00:22:41,960 Chuck, Chuck's over here. 354 00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:47,520 Chuck comes in on a Thursday, Friday, whatever, to get our computer set up so that you have 355 00:22:47,520 --> 00:22:49,120 words on the screen. 356 00:22:49,120 --> 00:22:53,640 He deals with me who gives him my sermon notes like Saturday night, right? 357 00:22:53,640 --> 00:22:55,160 No complaints, just does it. 358 00:22:55,160 --> 00:22:59,160 Chuck, thank you, buddy. 359 00:22:59,160 --> 00:23:04,160 Michelle, are you standing? 360 00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:06,000 Oh, there she is. 361 00:23:06,000 --> 00:23:11,680 Come on in. 362 00:23:11,680 --> 00:23:13,200 Michelle runs our live stream. 363 00:23:13,200 --> 00:23:18,200 If you're not here and you're watching us online, it's because of her. 364 00:23:18,200 --> 00:23:21,160 If you're watching right now, tell her, man, thanks, Michelle. 365 00:23:21,160 --> 00:23:22,160 Thanks for doing all that. 366 00:23:22,160 --> 00:23:25,160 We're grateful for you. 367 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:27,160 Jimmy. 368 00:23:27,160 --> 00:23:29,480 Jimmy runs our live stream too. 369 00:23:29,480 --> 00:23:32,480 Brother and sister duo. 370 00:23:32,480 --> 00:23:35,160 Brother and sister duo. 371 00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:36,160 Guess what? 372 00:23:36,160 --> 00:23:37,160 If the sound's bad. 373 00:23:37,160 --> 00:23:38,160 Jimmy, what do you do wrong? 374 00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:39,160 What do you do wrong? 375 00:23:39,160 --> 00:23:40,160 Right? 376 00:23:40,160 --> 00:23:41,160 Right? 377 00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:44,320 If the camera angles, if they don't keep up with people moving around. 378 00:23:44,320 --> 00:23:45,320 It's Jimmy's fault, right? 379 00:23:45,320 --> 00:23:46,320 Jimmy, it's not. 380 00:23:46,320 --> 00:23:47,320 Appreciate you. 381 00:23:47,320 --> 00:23:48,320 Thank you. 382 00:23:48,320 --> 00:23:49,320 Ah, Louvianne. 383 00:23:49,320 --> 00:23:50,320 Louvianne's running our sound today. 384 00:23:50,320 --> 00:24:04,280 Now, hopefully nothing goes wrong while she's walking up here. 385 00:24:04,280 --> 00:24:06,200 Feedback happens because I'm standing somewhere. 386 00:24:06,200 --> 00:24:07,200 It's Louvianne's fault. 387 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:08,200 Let's just know that. 388 00:24:08,200 --> 00:24:09,200 Right? 389 00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:11,040 But Louvianne does so much around here. 390 00:24:11,040 --> 00:24:14,400 And I'm so grateful that you serve. 391 00:24:14,400 --> 00:24:15,400 Thank you. 392 00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:16,400 You're awesome. 393 00:24:16,400 --> 00:24:17,400 You're awesome. 394 00:24:17,400 --> 00:24:26,040 But my point in saying all that is they're in the back. 395 00:24:26,040 --> 00:24:32,240 They very rarely get recognition. 396 00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:34,280 We want to honor them. 397 00:24:34,280 --> 00:24:35,400 We want to honor them. 398 00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:38,320 The Bible says we need to take delight in honoring them. 399 00:24:38,320 --> 00:24:41,560 It was my joy to write those cards. 400 00:24:41,560 --> 00:24:42,560 I enjoyed it. 401 00:24:42,560 --> 00:24:46,040 We need to look for opportunities. 402 00:24:46,040 --> 00:24:49,720 Not just those in the back, but anybody that serves, anybody in our life that has been 403 00:24:49,720 --> 00:24:50,720 a blessing to us. 404 00:24:50,720 --> 00:24:55,080 We need to look for opportunities to show others what they mean to us. 405 00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:56,180 How we treat them. 406 00:24:56,180 --> 00:24:57,600 It might be a kind word. 407 00:24:57,600 --> 00:24:59,120 It might be a small gift. 408 00:24:59,120 --> 00:25:02,640 It might be a pat on the back or a compliment. 409 00:25:02,640 --> 00:25:08,400 Little things can make a big difference in the life of someone that you love. 410 00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:14,320 In fact, in Romans 12, Paul challenges us to outdo one another in showing honor. 411 00:25:14,320 --> 00:25:19,040 Now those of you that know me know that I'm competitive, but this sounds like a competition 412 00:25:19,040 --> 00:25:20,040 to me. 413 00:25:20,040 --> 00:25:22,840 We need to outdo one another in showing honor. 414 00:25:22,840 --> 00:25:30,400 If you're going to honor somebody, then I'm going to honor them plus somebody else. 415 00:25:30,400 --> 00:25:36,000 If you give them a card, I'm giving them a card and a gift. 416 00:25:36,000 --> 00:25:38,680 That's how we do it. 417 00:25:38,680 --> 00:25:41,280 There are so many of you that do this so well. 418 00:25:41,280 --> 00:25:44,920 And there's so many others that deserve recognition and honor. 419 00:25:44,920 --> 00:25:50,320 And I've been challenged by you because that does not come easily for me at times. 420 00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:57,040 I never want to take for granted the people that serve this church, that give to this 421 00:25:57,040 --> 00:26:01,200 church, that pray for this church, that pray for me. 422 00:26:01,200 --> 00:26:07,920 Let's outdo one another by giving honor to those that we see doing great things. 423 00:26:07,920 --> 00:26:09,640 That's a Christ-centered relationship. 424 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:15,320 The last way that we show love to others is to love them by faith. 425 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:17,640 Show love to others by loving them by faith. 426 00:26:17,640 --> 00:26:22,520 Sometimes you're not going to feel like it, but like so many other areas in your life, 427 00:26:22,520 --> 00:26:24,640 you're going to have to love by faith. 428 00:26:24,640 --> 00:26:26,160 Bill Bright, he's a founder of a crew. 429 00:26:26,160 --> 00:26:27,160 Some of y'all know him. 430 00:26:27,160 --> 00:26:32,200 He said he used to preach a sermon on love that had four points. 431 00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:34,240 God loves you unconditionally. 432 00:26:34,240 --> 00:26:36,480 You are commanded to love others. 433 00:26:36,480 --> 00:26:40,760 That means God, your neighbors, your enemies. 434 00:26:40,760 --> 00:26:43,960 You are incapable of loving others in your own strength. 435 00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:47,560 And the fourth point is you can love others with God's love. 436 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:48,840 You can love others with God's love. 437 00:26:48,840 --> 00:26:50,680 I mean, that's good biblical coaching right there. 438 00:26:50,680 --> 00:26:52,560 That's a good sermon. 439 00:26:52,560 --> 00:26:56,440 But he said that God showed him something he was still missing from his sermon on love. 440 00:26:56,440 --> 00:27:01,360 He said that God showed him through his word and through experience that he needed to add 441 00:27:01,360 --> 00:27:03,120 a fifth point. 442 00:27:03,120 --> 00:27:08,480 You've got to love by faith. 443 00:27:08,480 --> 00:27:13,560 You've got to show love even when you don't feel love. 444 00:27:13,560 --> 00:27:15,600 That's not being hypocritical. 445 00:27:15,600 --> 00:27:17,920 That's loving by faith. 446 00:27:17,920 --> 00:27:23,520 He tells a story of two gifted attorneys who had great professional animosity, even hatred 447 00:27:23,520 --> 00:27:25,400 for one another. 448 00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:29,160 Even though they were distinguished members of the same law firm, they were constantly 449 00:27:29,160 --> 00:27:30,560 criticizing each other. 450 00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:33,600 They were constantly making life miserable for each other. 451 00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:38,120 One of the men received Christ and some months later he came to bill for counsel. 452 00:27:38,120 --> 00:27:41,800 He says, I have hated and criticized my partner for years. 453 00:27:41,800 --> 00:27:44,840 And he has been equally antagonistic toward me. 454 00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:50,040 But now that I'm a Christian, I don't feel right about continuing our warfare. 455 00:27:50,040 --> 00:27:52,400 What shall I do? 456 00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:57,320 He suggested I, I, I, sorry, lost my spot. 457 00:27:57,320 --> 00:28:02,920 He said, why don't you ask your partner to forgive you and tell him that you love him? 458 00:28:02,920 --> 00:28:06,040 The attorney says, I can never do that. 459 00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:07,200 I can never do that. 460 00:28:07,200 --> 00:28:08,200 That would be hypocritical. 461 00:28:08,200 --> 00:28:09,600 I don't love him. 462 00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:11,800 I don't like him. 463 00:28:11,800 --> 00:28:15,240 How could I tell somebody that I love him if I don't? 464 00:28:15,240 --> 00:28:20,920 Bill explained that God commands his children to love even our enemies and that his supernatural, 465 00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:26,640 unconditional love is an expression of our will which we exercise by faith. 466 00:28:26,640 --> 00:28:33,320 His partner was so surprised and convicted of his own sin that he, he responded to this 467 00:28:33,320 --> 00:28:40,520 amazing confession by asking for forgiveness as well. 468 00:28:40,520 --> 00:28:45,880 Then to his friend's surprise, his partner said, I would like to become a Christian too. 469 00:28:45,880 --> 00:28:48,760 Would you show me what I need to do? 470 00:28:48,760 --> 00:28:52,160 Love breaks through so many things. 471 00:28:52,160 --> 00:28:58,120 If you're going to love by faith, you need to make a faith commitment to him. 472 00:28:58,120 --> 00:29:00,960 John 1 says, he came into his own world. 473 00:29:00,960 --> 00:29:05,160 Jesus came into his own world, but his own nation did not welcome him. 474 00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:10,040 Yet some people accepted him and put their faith in him so he gave them the right to 475 00:29:10,040 --> 00:29:12,440 be children of God. 476 00:29:12,440 --> 00:29:20,760 Your right to become God's child is tied to placing your faith in Jesus Christ. 477 00:29:20,760 --> 00:29:28,120 If you've never done that before, will you pray that prayer this morning? 478 00:29:28,120 --> 00:29:31,080 Will you call upon his name? 479 00:29:31,080 --> 00:29:38,720 For those of you who are already Christ followers, are you showing love in your life? 480 00:29:38,720 --> 00:29:43,560 Do you need to put your love into action? 481 00:29:43,560 --> 00:29:46,880 Do you need to repent for the times that you've been gossiping? 482 00:29:46,880 --> 00:29:50,600 Do you need to stop giving the silent treatment? 483 00:29:50,600 --> 00:29:55,160 Get to having Christ in the center of all of your relationships. 484 00:29:55,160 --> 00:30:01,360 I said last week there are some things that you're not going to find on Google. 485 00:30:01,360 --> 00:30:02,360 How do I fix this? 486 00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:05,240 You're not going to find it on Google. 487 00:30:05,240 --> 00:30:12,360 We need the Holy Spirit to lead us in how we relate to one another. 488 00:30:12,360 --> 00:30:19,080 We need the Holy Spirit to lead us in how we interact with those around us. 489 00:30:19,080 --> 00:30:23,160 If you think to this past week, and you think about all the interactions that you had with 490 00:30:23,160 --> 00:30:36,520 people, would people know that you are a disciple of Jesus? 491 00:30:36,520 --> 00:30:43,200 Sitting at a ball game, sitting in your office at work, dealing with your children, would 492 00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:49,040 people know that you are a disciple of Jesus? 493 00:30:49,040 --> 00:30:54,360 Our core value is Christ-centered relationship. 494 00:30:54,360 --> 00:30:59,120 We need to be the example to those around us. 495 00:30:59,120 --> 00:31:01,080 People are looking at us. 496 00:31:01,080 --> 00:31:03,160 People are watching us. 497 00:31:03,160 --> 00:31:08,000 They're watching how we treat our spouses. 498 00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:10,480 They're watching how we treat our kids. 499 00:31:10,480 --> 00:31:16,920 They're watching how we treat other church members. 500 00:31:16,920 --> 00:31:23,720 People know that you're my disciple by how you love one another. 501 00:31:23,720 --> 00:31:28,080 We need to love others with the golden rule. 502 00:31:28,080 --> 00:31:32,640 We need to love others with the platinum rule. 503 00:31:32,640 --> 00:31:37,960 We need to show honor to others, and we need to love by faith. 504 00:31:37,960 --> 00:31:46,160 It's Communion Sunday, so one of the things we're remembering is how Jesus gave himself 505 00:31:46,160 --> 00:31:47,160 up for us. 506 00:31:47,160 --> 00:32:15,880 It's a great example.