Honor in the Church

[0:00] We are so thankful for those of you that are here this morning, and we want to get into the Word of the Lord. Kids are going to be dismissed to Sunday school, so we are grateful for that.

[0:11] So all the children can go with Sister Deanna to Sunday school. And I'm going to need some help on the board. I gave Grayson a couple of verses of Scripture that we'll get to eventually.

[0:24] And I need everybody to pay attention to what I'm going to say for the next little bit, because it's really important.

[0:38] And I've been stewing on this for the last couple of months, two, three months, I guess. And I just feel like it's an appropriate time.

[0:49] I want to start off by saying that I come before you in a spirit of humility, and everything that I'm going to say today applies to me first.

[1:05] And then secondly, it applies to every one of you that is going to hear what I'm going to say. So I do not place myself above being instructed, above having to learn, above even the transformation that God is trying to do in my own life.

[1:25] And each and every day, I do pray, and I say, Lord, continue the work in me, in my heart. Change what needs to be changed in me, because there's still some learning that I need to do.

[1:38] So I come to you in that attitude and in that spirit this morning. We are talking about the heart, the home, and the church, and we're going to be talking about that for the next several weeks.

[1:52] I'm going to talk about the church this morning, and specifically, I want to talk to you about honor in the church. Honor in the church.

[2:04] And so, having said that, I'll get to a verse of Scripture in a little while. But I want to first mention this, that if you go back into the New Testament and you look at the early church, everybody say the early church.

[2:22] Now, these are all people that lived within the first century. The early church, the originals, those that heard the apostles preach, teach, those that followed after them, that's who I'm talking about.

[2:40] The early church bears almost no resemblance to what we modern churchgoers are accustomed to. What we do today bears little resemblance to what they did then.

[2:58] And I'm talking generally speaking. If you were to type in a church on YouTube and you were to look up a church, and I did this the other day because I was trying to look at some music, it bears little resemblance to what took place in the first century.

[3:20] And, in fact, most of what you hear or experience regarding other churches is their music. That's mostly what gets projected onto social media.

[3:35] The early church focused on just a few things. Really, three different things is all that they focused on. The first thing was prayer. They focused on prayer. The next thing they did is they focused on the proclaiming of the word.

[3:50] Proclaiming the word, whether it was teaching or whether it was preaching. And then, lastly, what they focused on was ministry. Helping others, giving to others, and ministering to others, whether they were sick, whether they were poor, or whether they were widows.

[4:09] And there's not very much else that they did. They did those things. The early church, a huge characteristic of the early church was that they were led by the spirit.

[4:22] They were led by God's spirit. It was not unusual because people prayed that God would speak to them and say, go here, go there, go there, do this.

[4:36] That was characteristic of the early church. And they went about doing good works and spreading the gospel.

[4:46] The early church did not measure their success in terms of finances. Money meant very little to them except how it would benefit everybody as a whole.

[5:02] They shared. And they gave. Not so that there would be some that would have more than others, but so that everybody would have enough. That was a characteristic of the early church.

[5:15] In the early church, nobody ever said, let's go to church. Or we had good church. Or I go to church. They didn't say that because they recognized they were the church.

[5:31] They were the church. Somebody said, I am the church. That's how they identified it. They did not have public buildings that they went to.

[5:44] When they gathered together, they would gather on the streets. They would maybe gather in a space that was open. It was often outside. Or they would gather in somebody's house.

[5:57] They did not have church buildings until about the fourth century. So about the first almost 400 years of Christianity, there was not a church building.

[6:09] They gathered together in small gatherings. It might be 10 people. It depended on the size of the home. There might be 10 people. There might be 15 in some cases.

[6:20] And they have found one home where they discovered that somebody took out a partition wall between a living space and the bedrooms. And they figured they could fit maybe about 70 people there.

[6:32] But that was really about as big as it got. It didn't really get much bigger than that. And so they went into spaces that they had. And so they would have said things like, we are the ecclesia.

[6:48] We are the body. We are the gathering. Wherever it was that they were. The early church was, and I use this term somewhat loosely, organic.

[7:01] It sprung up where it was planted. It was not something that was highly structured, highly organized. It was led by God's spirit.

[7:12] In fact, people could not organize it because it spread so quickly. And so there was very little organization when it came to the church.

[7:25] As I said, if you were to look on YouTube, what you would see is you would see basically somebody up on a platform or up on a stage and people singing.

[7:37] And there would be all these different camera shots and video shots. That's what we recognize as church today. And the early church, they didn't do that.

[7:49] Notice how nobody ever posts videos of prayer meetings. Why would anybody post a video of a prayer meeting? Because that's not exciting.

[7:59] It's not visually stimulating. It's not entertaining. Nobody ever does that. But yet, that's what the early church majored in. They majored in prayer.

[8:10] It was the one thing that they knew would help carry the gospel to the rest of the world. So all I'm saying is that the early church looked vastly different than what we recognize as church today.

[8:24] The Apostle Paul spent three years in the city of Ephesus. Ephesus was one of the early churches. It was a large city in that time.

[8:37] It was an important city. And we're going to read from the book of Acts chapter 20. Grayson, if you could help me beginning at verse number 25. Acts chapter 20, if you have your Bible.

[8:49] If this comes across more as a Bible study, forgive me. That's just how it's coming out. And I want to share with you some things, though, that are really, really important.

[9:00] Acts chapter 20, begin at verse number 25. Here's what Paul says. And now behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching in the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.

[9:13] He's been there three years, and he's about to leave them, and he will never see them again. Wherefore, I take you to record this day that I am pure from the blood of all men, for I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

[9:30] I've just spent, Paul is saying, three years teaching from house to house to house to house. And I have not held anything back. Verse 28.

[9:42] Listen to this. Take heed, therefore, unto yourselves unto all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers to feed the church of God, which he had purchased with his own blood.

[9:57] Let's go back to that. He has purchased this church with his own blood. It wasn't he bought it. He paid a price for it.

[10:09] Verse 29. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

[10:26] Paul says, even those of you that I'm talking to right now, he says, from some of you are going to arise those that are going to become selfish, self-centered, and you're going to lead away others.

[10:42] You're going to draw them away unto yourselves. I've just spent three years with you, but even some of you, after I am gone, are going to do this.

[10:53] You're going to hurt the church. You're going to hurt this body, is what he is saying. Therefore, he says in verse 31, watch and remember that by the space of three years, I ceased not to warn everyone night and day with tears.

[11:10] And now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.

[11:22] And what strikes me here is that Paul says, even among yourselves. Now, I could understand if people were coming in from the outside that posed to be Christians.

[11:33] But he said this, from among your own selves, those of you that are within the sound of my voice right now, Paul is saying, you're the ones that are going to hurt the church.

[11:45] And he says, and Paul is making a big deal out of this, and here's why. Because this is a church that Jesus has purchased with his blood.

[11:58] He has given his blood for this thing. He didn't give his blood for a church building. He did not give his blood for church music. He did not give his blood for church pews and wonderful things that we can see.

[12:17] He gave his blood for the church, the people, the souls that are saved within the church. Paul said, even amongst your own selves, damage will be inflicted.

[12:29] Because people can be self-centered. Now, what Paul is trying to remind them is he's speaking to the leaders of the church.

[12:40] He's saying, I want you to do something. I want you to take care of this flock. And notice that he calls it a flock. Because people are likened to sheep in the scripture.

[12:51] And Paul says, take care of the flock. Care for them. And remind them. And he wants to mind the body of the flock.

[13:05] And he wants to preserve this culture. What culture has Paul been trying to ingrain in this Ephesian church? What has he been trying to do? He's been trying to ingrain humility.

[13:17] He's been trying to ingrain devotion, prayer, joy, and giving. That's what Paul has been trying to teach them.

[13:31] Why? Because this is the body. He's saying, I want you to take care because this is the body. Can I tell you something? The church is not a club.

[13:43] It doesn't give out membership cards. Well, some churches used to give out membership cards. Which is ridiculous. But it's not a club that you join.

[13:55] It's not an organization. It's not something that you can rest any way that you want. That you can do anything you want to it.

[14:06] It doesn't have a charter that people sign on to and say, I'm part of the church. It's not like that. The church is the body of Jesus Christ.

[14:20] It not only belongs to Jesus. He is in the midst of it. He does not inhabit buildings. He inhabits people.

[14:32] Jesus lives inside of people. He doesn't live in buildings. He doesn't live in cars. He doesn't live in houses. He lives inside of people.

[14:42] And that's what the church is. He's purchased this church. Not lightly. But he hung on a cross. And gave his own blood for this church.

[14:56] It's his body. And he purchased this body with blood. So not only are we in the church. We are the church.

[15:09] And it's no light thing to be a part of the body. It's not something to sneeze at. It's not something to take for granted. It's not something to where we can say, well, I can take it one day and not the next.

[15:23] Now, I want to read one more passage of scripture that's kind of long, but you're just going to have to bear with me this morning. Because I'm going somewhere with what I'm trying to say. In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, we're going to put it up on the board, beginning at verse number 12.

[15:38] Listen to what Paul says about the body of Christ. This is the body that you and I belong to. This is the body that we are a part of. Here's what he says.

[15:48] For as the body is one, and hath many members, that's you and I, and all the members of that one body being many are one body, so also is Christ.

[15:59] Verse 13. For by one spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, bond or free. We have all been made to drink into one spirit.

[16:11] For the body is not one member, but many. Everybody say many. You have brothers and sisters that you have never met, but they are part of the body.

[16:24] There are people all over the world that are part of this body. I may not know them personally, but they are a part of this body. So look at what he says.

[16:35] For the body is not one member, but many. Verse 15. If the foot shall say, because I am not the hand, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body?

[16:46] If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing?

[16:58] If the whole hearing, where were the smelling? In other words, he's saying this. The eye doesn't say, I'm the whole thing. And the ear doesn't say, I'm the whole thing, or I don't need to be a part of the whole thing.

[17:13] I don't do what the eye does, or I'm better than the eye. And your nose might say, well, I'm better than both of you. And your right ear might say, well, I'm better than the foot, or I'm better than your big toe.

[17:28] It's all part of the body. It's all one in the same. It's not separated. Let's move on. Look at what he says in verse 18. Listen to this.

[17:40] But now God had set the members, every one of them in the body, as it pleased him. God does this. God does it. You know how they say you can't choose your family?

[17:54] Right? You can't choose the people that you go to church with. You can choose what church you go to. But you can't choose your brothers and sisters in the Lord.

[18:08] Now, I've tried to do that. Trust me, I've tried. And it doesn't work. No, I'm serious. I have been out in public talking to somebody, even talking to somebody about the Lord.

[18:24] And when I hear their problems, you know, what went through my mind was, I don't know if I want to invite them to church. I'm serious. Because people can get like that.

[18:36] You can pick and choose who you decide you want to witness to. So here's what he says. And if, in verse 19.

[18:50] And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now, after many members, but yet one body. Verse 21. The eye cannot say to the hand, I do not need thee.

[19:04] Nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more of these members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary. So, one person cannot say to another.

[19:17] This is what Paul's saying. One brother cannot say to a sister, or a sister cannot say to a brother, I don't need you. I can do this on my own.

[19:27] You can't. You can't, and be a part of the body, by the way. You can try, but you'll never be a part of the body. Listen to what I'm going to say here.

[19:39] Verse 22. Nay, much more of those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are what? Necessary. They're needed.

[19:50] They may not seem like much to you, but you know what? God put them there because they're necessary. Well, they're not very talented. They're necessary.

[20:02] They're needed. They need to be there. And guess what? Not only do they need to be there for themselves, they need to be there for you.

[20:14] And so, this is what gets me when people can't decide whether they're going to be loyal to the church body. It's like they think, well, whether I show up, whether I don't belong to them, whether I am a part of them or not doesn't really make any difference.

[20:31] I beg to differ. It does make a difference. It makes a big difference. Verse 23. And those members of the body, which we think to be less honorable, upon these we bestow more abundant honor.

[20:52] Now, I like this word honor because this word honor is extremely important. For he says, upon these that seem less honorable, we bestow abundant honor.

[21:13] And our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. For our comely parts have no need, but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to the part which lacked.

[21:27] The church is the great equalizer. Let me just say this. Everybody is equal in the church. And we need to understand that.

[21:38] We need to live up to that. Everybody is. There's nobody that means more than the next person. Everybody is equal.

[21:51] Some people may have a college education. Some may not. Some may make $100 an hour, and that person makes $25 an hour. Some people might drive in a late model car.

[22:04] Some people might drive in a car that is way back in years. But none of that makes any difference to God, and it does not make any difference to the body, is what Paul is saying.

[22:21] Now, verse 25. This is the part I really want to get to. That there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care.

[22:34] Everybody say care. That the members should have the same care for one another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it.

[22:47] Or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now are ye the body of Christ, and members in particular.

[22:58] So he's saying this. If one of you is out of sorts, the whole thing doesn't work. If one of you is lacking, the whole thing doesn't work.

[23:17] If one of you is angry, the whole thing doesn't work. If one of you is offended, the whole thing doesn't work. Paul is saying it's all one body.

[23:31] It's all one body. And it all feels the same thing, even if it's just one that's feeling. Now, think about that for a minute.

[23:42] Just think about that for a second. When one member, when one person, there might be a thousand people, but when one of them is out of sorts, it affects the entire thing.

[23:58] Have you ever stubbed your toe? I did that the other day. You know, it hurts. And the only thing that you can concentrate on that moment is what just happened to that toe.

[24:19] Nothing else matters. An earthquake could be happening. And your toe would be saying, I don't care about no earthquake. I'm hurting right now.

[24:32] Have you ever gotten a splinter? Nothing is enjoyable. Have you ever had a toothache? Nothing. I mean, nothing, nothing is enjoyable until you get that thing fixed, right?

[24:48] Until you get some relief, it does not. You could listen to beautiful music. You could have a beautiful meal in front of you. And none of that would make any difference until you got that fixed.

[25:02] And it's the same way with people. When somebody is in pain, when somebody is hurting, when somebody's angry, when somebody's offended, when all of that happens, guess what?

[25:15] It affects everything else. And nothing else works like it should. It just doesn't. Because it's important to understand that the body is not separate parts.

[25:30] It's all one and the same. So that's why when you stub your toe, it tells the rest of your body, I'm hurting. And you better do something about this.

[25:42] And the rest of your body starts listening. It may not be your whole body that's hurting, but it sure feels like your whole body's hurting. Think about this.

[25:55] Do we really think that what we do on the outside of this gathering has no effect when we gather?

[26:08] Everything that we do outside of this gathering affects what happens when we gather. It can't help it. Whatever we do, we are always the body.

[26:26] We are never not in the church. We might not be in a church service, but we are never not in a church. And whatever we do and whatever we feel affects the entire body.

[26:42] Everything you and I carry in our spirit affects the whole. You and I might think, and I certainly have been a victim to this.

[26:56] You and I might think, well, nobody else knows about what I'm feeling. That's not true.

[27:09] You know why? Because this has happened to you. Sometimes somebody will call you on the phone and say, you know what? God put you on my mind.

[27:22] God put you on my heart. And I'm praying for you right now. I don't know what you're going through. I've gotten texts like this. I've gotten phone calls like this. God put you on my heart and my mind.

[27:34] Whatever it is you're going through, I'm praying for you. And they're not calling to be nosy. They're calling because God put you on their heart.

[27:47] So don't you think that whatever it is that is happening to you in private affects the whole? It does. Every word that gets said, every thought, every action, every deed, all of it affects what happens when people gather together.

[28:08] Hurts, pain, unforgiveness, contempt, hostility, anger, selfishness, all of it affects the whole. And listen to what I'm going to say.

[28:21] The church works best when everyone experiences healing from all of those things.

[28:31] And healing only happens when you stay attached to the body. Brother Zeke, you just had your toe worked on, right?

[28:45] But what they didn't do was they didn't separate his toe from his body and say, we'll put it back on after it heals. They said, we're going to leave it on you and you're going to have to make sure it heals.

[29:02] People don't get healed when they detach themselves. People do not experience healing when they separate themselves.

[29:14] Healing happens in the body. The body brings healing. That's why people need to stick together. And that's why especially the family, the family, the family, the family of God has to stick together.

[29:33] Because that's where healing comes. You say, well, I'm hurt. Well, stick with it. Because that's where healing comes from.

[29:46] All right. Let me move on here. Now, I want to talk about how we treat each other. Because this is really, really important. James said this.

[29:59] He said, my brethren, do not have the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ of glory with respect of persons. And this is what he says. If there is somebody that comes in and they're dressed nice and you know they got a lot of money.

[30:11] And you put them in the best seat of the house. You put them in the best seat in your gathering. And then somebody poor comes in and you make them sit in the worst place.

[30:24] He said, you're showing respect. You're showing a difference between people. Just because you know one has money. You know. You know, sometimes Pentecostal church services get like crazy.

[30:47] People talking in tongues and acting all weird. And somebody walks in that's like completely unfamiliar to all that.

[31:00] And I'm thinking, oh, Lord. They're going to last about five minutes here. And then they're going to walk out. Because sister so-and-so or brother so-and-so, I just know they're going to start acting up.

[31:16] You know. And, you know, all that happens because of church culture. I'm not here to say whether it's right or wrong. But here's the thing.

[31:28] Sometimes I've thought, you know what? I hope that they don't do that. Because I would love to see that family really just stick around for a while. And you know what?

[31:39] The eye is deceiving. Because appearances are about that deep. And you cannot get sidetracked by what people look like, what they talk like, or any of those things.

[31:57] And James says, hey, when you do that, you know what you're doing? You're showing partiality. He says, and that can't happen. Not in God's church. You cannot do that.

[32:08] So he says this. He says, you have respect to him that wears the gay clothing. King James says gay clothing.

[32:20] We would say effeminate clothing. And you say, sit here in the good place and say to the poor, stand here or sit under my footstool. You're being partial.

[32:31] He says, and you cannot do that. So what's the ideal? Here's the ideal. And this is what we have to all strive for. Me too. Honor. Show honor to everyone.

[32:45] Everybody say show honor. Paul says it like this. And I'm just going to read you a few verses. In Romans, he says this. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love.

[32:58] In honor, preferring one another. Romans 12.10. Romans 13.7. Render therefore unto all their dues. Tribute to whom? Tribute. Custom to whom?

[33:09] Custom. Fear to whom? Fear. Honor to whom? Honor. Honor. In Ephesians 4, he says, be kind to one another.

[33:22] Tenderhearted. Forgiving one another. Forbear. Even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you. In Colossians, he says, forbearing one another and forgiving one another.

[33:32] If any man have a quarrel against any, even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. Can I tell you also something? That forgiveness and honor go hand in hand.

[33:43] They're like brother and sister. Because in order to truly give honor to somebody, you also have to have a forgiving spirit. In order to truly give honor, you have to also be able to forgive.

[34:01] And so that's why Paul, he kind of just lumps all of this together. They are twins, so to speak. Honor and forgiveness. Who are we supposed to honor?

[34:13] Who are we supposed to give honor to? Well, Paul says this in 1 Corinthians, to honor the less honorable.

[34:24] And we read this. He said, and those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, upon these we bestow more abundant honor.

[34:34] On the ones that we don't think are honorable, or seem to be less honorable, on these we're going to give abundant honor to.

[34:45] We're going to show them honor. We're going to respect them. We're going to treat them with integrity and kindness as if they really matter.

[34:57] Why? Because they do matter. And then the Bible, Paul says this in Ephesians, he says, children, honor your mother and your father, which is the first commandment with promise.

[35:17] Oh, we love that verse because some people have used that verse on their children like a stick. Boom. You need to do this.

[35:29] But in the very next sentence, Paul says to fathers, and he might as well be speaking to the moms too, don't provoke your children.

[35:40] And you know what he means by that? Don't discourage them. Do not discourage your children. I can't believe you always do this.

[35:52] I cannot believe you're that dumb. You say, well, people don't say that. Yes, they do. People say rotten things to their kids.

[36:08] And then they live later to regret it. People, even children, need to be shown honor.

[36:19] So, Paul says, don't discourage them. Don't provoke them. Because every time that you do, you know what? They're just going to store that up and store it up and store it up and store it up.

[36:31] And when it comes time to go home, they're going to say, see ya. Maybe. Maybe I won't see ya. Maybe I don't care if I see you. Who else are we supposed to honor?

[36:46] Honor the widows. This is a big deal. And it should still be a big deal. In Timothy, Paul says, honor widows that are widows indeed.

[37:02] In other words, if they're really widows, give them honor. Show them honor. They have paid their dues. They have been diligent. They have been faithful.

[37:13] And Paul says, honor those widows. It's really, really important. Peter instructs husbands to honor their wives.

[37:25] He instructs husbands to honor their wives. He instructs wives to show respect to their husbands.

[37:35] And Paul, who, by the way, was not married, but doesn't mean that he doesn't have some friendly advice to give.

[37:48] Because I'm sure that he observed quite a bit in his lifetime. Says, if you want your marriage to be harmonious, husbands honor the wife.

[38:01] And wives show respect to your husbands. And honor is something that's really, really important.

[38:12] It's important in the home. It's important in the church. It's important wherever you are. Honor. So, honor is one of these primary things.

[38:31] Lastly, this. We're also supposed to honor leaders. Everybody say leaders. Paul tells Timothy, he says, let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor.

[38:48] Especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. Now, the key here is those that rule well.

[39:03] Those that do a good job. He said they are to be given not just honor, but double honor. Double honor.

[39:15] Now, this is hard. I have at various times felt like this is really difficult to read out loud or teach on in the position that I'm in as pastor.

[39:27] Because I'm not trying to toot my own horn. I've never wanted to do that. But I recognize also that it's not just the individual that you give honor to.

[39:41] It's the position. Do you know that that's why Paul instructed the church to honor even those that were in government?

[39:56] Boy, we sure don't live in that culture. It's disturbing to me how easy it has become to criticize people who are in leadership.

[40:10] People who are in authority. People who are in elected positions. To make fun of them. To belittle them.

[40:22] You might say, well, it's just a joke. We laugh at it. Da, da, da, da, da. But you know what it's doing? It's tearing the foundations away from our sense of showing honor even to each other.

[40:37] And every time that you partake in that, what you are doing is you are tearing down the foundations of respect.

[40:50] Now, can I just tell you something? It's telling you something that we live in a day where, and we have always lived in a day where rulers of countries, of states, of cities have been less than honorable.

[41:05] I think we all know that. I think we know that. But it doesn't mean that we have license to hurl personal insults at people.

[41:21] Or to mock them. Or to belittle them. That doesn't give us license to do that. And every time that we do that, guess what? Those of us that are in the church, we bring it to our gathering.

[41:33] Now, you may not like that, but I'm telling you that's the truth. That attitude, that spirit, that spirit becomes a part of you.

[41:45] And that is the same spirit by which you use to worship God. How can that be? How is that possible?

[41:58] So, Paul says, let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor. I will confess to you that when leaders act in dishonorable ways, it doesn't help.

[42:15] I think we understand that. We know that. But, since the Bible is true, and Jesus said that whatsoever a man sows, so also shall he reap.

[42:31] If I want to honor, if I want to receive honor, I need to give honor. I need to plant it. Because whatever I plant will come up.

[42:42] If I want for my wife or my spouse to honor me, I've got to honor them first.

[42:55] So, no, it really works like that. We have to try to set this in our heart as an ideal.

[43:09] Because we have to honor one another. And everything that we attach to our spirit or that we allow to be attached to our spirit affects the body as a whole.

[43:25] And, you know, you've heard this. When it comes to families, people say, well, blood is thicker than water. Well, yes, it's true, right?

[43:36] But the blood of Jesus is thicker than any family blood. The blood of Jesus is thicker than any family blood.

[43:49] And that's the family. That's the family. The family of God. The family that is the body of Christ is so important.

[44:04] And that's why Paul says, you need to care for one another. And we need to, folks. We've got to care for one another. We need to honor one another.

[44:16] We need to stick up for one another. We need to help one another. We need to do that because we are a part of the body. Not because somebody's talented, rich, or whatever.

[44:27] Because we're just simply a part of the body. When you were born again into the body of Christ, you were born into not an exclusive club, but you were born into the most precious family that exists on this planet.

[44:50] Amen. And it doesn't matter whether a brother speaks Spanish or Chinese or Japanese or Russian or Italian.

[45:02] If they're a brother or if they're a sister, they're a brother. They're a sister. And it doesn't matter what part of the world they come from. It does not matter what color their skin is.

[45:15] It does not matter what their voice may sound like. They may be from the south and sound like a southerner.

[45:28] They may be from the east and sound like an easterner. But the blood of Jesus surpasses all of those things.

[45:40] And my point today, and I'm getting ready to finish here. My point today is that we've got to honor one another. We have to show honor.

[45:53] There are some of you that have been in this church a long time. It's important that we honor that. There are some of you that have been in this church a short time.

[46:07] We honor that. And when somebody is out of sorts, the body needs to minister to that and try to get that resolved.

[46:21] Because the whole body needs to function healthy. Because if my little finger has a splinter in it, then nothing else really matters until I get that thing fixed.

[46:39] So, oh my goodness, that's a little thing. Why don't you just live with it? No, you try living with it. I've had them. They hurt.

[46:51] And it's important that we show honor. That we show respect. When somebody comes up to sing. When somebody comes up to preach. When somebody leads a group.

[47:03] When somebody organizes an event. When somebody, whoever it is. You know what we need to do? We need to honor it. And so long as all of us strive.

[47:18] And even leaders have to strive to be the best leaders they can. It's important that we show honor to leaders. But it's important that we show honor to everybody.

[47:33] You know, and I think that that's why Jesus said, hey, when you're on the way to the temple to offer your gift. And there you remember that somebody has something against you.

[47:48] He says, let your gift stay where it's at. Go make it right. And then go offer your gift. Because Jesus knows that human relations are so important that we cannot afford to let the devil get a toehold in our relationships.

[48:09] And he sure would love to. He sure would love to. Can I tell you what? The devil's not out to destroy you.

[48:20] He's out to divide you. He doesn't care about destroying you. But he does want to divide you. Because he, above all, recognizes that division is one of the worst things that there is in the kingdom of God.

[48:40] So, let's stand this morning. I love this.

[48:52] I'm not so good at this. But my wife is really good at this. Whenever we run across somebody that has said that they were, that they're a veteran or that they served, whether it was Afghanistan or Vietnam, I don't know if there's any World War II or Koreans left.

[49:13] But the first thing she says is, thank you for your service. And I'm like, man, why didn't I think of that?

[49:29] Yes, thank you for your service. Because it's important to show honor. It's important to show honor. There's a lot of wars, I suppose, that I could be completely against and think we had no right to be there, da-da-da-da-da.

[49:50] But men and women served because that was their job that they were given. It's important to honor people. I don't need to honor somebody's bank account.

[50:02] I don't need to honor somebody's degree. I don't need to honor somebody's job status. But I do need to honor that person.

[50:13] Because that's what we're given to do. Everything works better, folks, in the church. Everything works better. And I don't mean to try to kill this horse I'm riding on.

[50:31] But just being nice to somebody, that's not honor. That's not honor. Just being nice can hide all kinds of stuff.

[50:47] But what I'm talking about is genuinely saying, You're my brother. You're my sister.

[51:02] I love you. And somehow, we just got to work this out. And if I need to forgive you or you need to forgive me, we just got to do this.

[51:19] Because we need to show one another honor. We need to show one another respect. And we need to have that kind of integrity.

[51:30] If we will do this, there's a whole world of people that are looking for some place where they can feel like somebody cares about them.

[51:48] But it starts in our hearts, and it starts here in the church. The church is the central point. The church, not the building, the people.

[52:02] You are the central point. You're the focus, the focal point. You are the body. And we need to be able to honor one another.

[52:14] As they play music, I would like every one of us to just come, and let's just quickly pray. Lift up our hands and say, Lord, help me to honor my brother.

[52:25] Help me to honor my sister. Help me, Lord, to show honor in the church. Help me to honor the church, which is the body, not the building.

[52:36] And not just when, not just when we're gathered together, but every day, on Monday, on Tuesday, on Wednesday, on Thursday, every day, every day.

[52:51] Hallelujah. Come on, let's pray. God, help us today. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.

[53:14] Hallelujah. Come on, let's pray. Let's pray. Let's pray. I need you. We're all a part of God's body.

[53:29] I won't harm you with words by my mouth. We're all a part of God's body. It is his will.

[53:40] Let every need be supplied. God, you are important to me. I need you to survive.

[53:55] I'll pray for you. You pray for me. I want you. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you.

[54:06] You pray for me. I want you. I need you to survive. I need you to survive. It is his will that every need be supplied.

[54:19] You are important to me. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you.

[54:31] I'll pray for you. You pray for me. I want you. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you. I'll pray for you. I'll pray for you.

[54:41] You pray for me. I want you. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you. I need you to survive. I want you.

[54:52] I need you. I need you. I need you. I need you to survive. I want you.

[55:08] I need you. We're all a part of God's body. I won't harm you. I won't harm you with words from my mouth.

[55:19] We're all a part of God's body. It is his will that every need be supplied.

[55:31] You are important to me. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you.

[55:44] You pray for me. I want you. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you. You pray for me.

[55:55] I want you. I need you to survive. It is his will that every need be supplied.

[56:05] You are important to me. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you.

[56:19] You pray for me. I want you. I need you to survive. I'll pray for you. You pray for me.

[56:30] I want you. I need you to survive. It is his will that every need be supplied.

[56:42] You are important to me. I need you to survive. Hallelujah. You know, the words to this song, I'll pray for you.

[56:54] You pray for me. I love you. I need you. I need you to survive. I think that that's really true.

[57:06] I think it's really true. I don't think any of us is going to survive without each other. I have always said that I wish that this was a verse of Scripture.

[57:19] It's not. But I wish that it was. That if one of us doesn't make it, then none of us are going to make it.

[57:29] Because that would give us great incentive to help everyone that is faltering and that is weak.

[57:40] But if we are going to be a church, if we are going to be the church, that really does have to be our attitude. Hey, I can't make it without you.

[57:55] I don't want to make it without you. I need you. And you need me. And that's really just the way that needs to be.

[58:05] Amen. Praise God. Give each other the right hand of fellowship this morning. Greet one another. In the name of the Lord. Amen. Amen.

[58:17] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.