WEBVTT 00:00:00.140 --> 00:00:05.060 There's a story told about a little girl during a thunderstorm, and I thought it might be 00:00:05.060 --> 00:00:09.120 appropriate to start with that this evening, given the amount of thunderstorms have been 00:00:09.120 --> 00:00:09.460 happening. 00:00:10.880 --> 00:00:13.939 The father had just finished doing the nightly routine. 00:00:14.820 --> 00:00:16.039 They were a Christian household. 00:00:16.839 --> 00:00:21.260 As a father, he did his duty, reminding the little girl how much she was loved by God, 00:00:21.580 --> 00:00:26.060 because she was a little bit frightened going to bed this night with the lightning flashing 00:00:26.060 --> 00:00:28.960 across her bedroom window and the sound of thunder. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:35.060 And he thought after an hour or so, he should go in and check on his daughter just to make 00:00:35.060 --> 00:00:39.259 sure that things were okay, that she was settling down, that everything was going to be okay, 00:00:39.359 --> 00:00:40.659 that they were going to have a peaceful night. 00:00:41.420 --> 00:00:43.179 The thunderstorm was still raging. 00:00:43.740 --> 00:00:45.000 The lightning was still flashing. 00:00:45.920 --> 00:00:52.280 And as he opened the bedroom window, he saw his young daughter of four years old pressed 00:00:52.280 --> 00:00:55.620 against her window, smiling. 00:00:56.620 --> 00:00:59.840 And he says, what on earth are you doing? 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:01.619 Get back into bed. 00:01:01.659 --> 00:01:02.340 Are you not frightened? 00:01:03.079 --> 00:01:04.159 No, she says. 00:01:04.379 --> 00:01:06.540 I think God's trying to take my picture. 00:01:11.099 --> 00:01:18.960 A little girl who understood how loved she was by God, because her father had told her, 00:01:19.599 --> 00:01:21.340 because she'd read it in the scriptures. 00:01:21.340 --> 00:01:28.439 And one of the things that I think is so important, this is a tenuous link, shall we say, is that 00:01:28.439 --> 00:01:32.740 when we come to passages like the Sermon on the Mount, and actually, as we come to the 00:01:32.740 --> 00:01:40.180 scripture, very often we read it with our minds intact, but we do not read it with our 00:01:40.180 --> 00:01:41.060 emotions intact. 00:01:41.780 --> 00:01:45.800 We do not read it as the love letter that it is meant to be. 00:01:45.799 --> 00:01:50.399 Especially when we come to something like the Sermon on the Mount. 00:01:51.060 --> 00:01:56.759 There is these instructions that are contained within it, instructions for moral living. 00:01:57.259 --> 00:02:03.939 So much so that Mahatma Gandhi was inspired by these words, as are many other leaders who 00:02:03.939 --> 00:02:04.700 are not believers. 00:02:04.700 --> 00:02:11.479 And if you come to the Sermon on the Mount like that, you will go away, perhaps with 00:02:11.479 --> 00:02:18.560 a different moral value, but you won't go away knowing how loved you are by your Father 00:02:18.560 --> 00:02:25.099 in heaven, who gives you these instructions to say, these are the kingdom values I want 00:02:25.099 --> 00:02:26.640 you as Christians to model. 00:02:26.639 --> 00:02:34.379 Because I think in these particular set of verses that Graham read to us, I don't know 00:02:34.379 --> 00:02:38.839 about you, but this is how the conversations have often gone with me over some of these 00:02:38.839 --> 00:02:39.259 verses. 00:02:41.059 --> 00:02:44.599 I had a friend who was due to appear as a witness in court. 00:02:45.779 --> 00:02:51.439 He was insistent after reading these verses that he would not take the oath as he stood on 00:02:51.439 --> 00:02:52.239 the witness stand. 00:02:52.240 --> 00:02:57.120 Because he was insistent that these verses told him that he mustn't take an oath. 00:02:58.939 --> 00:03:03.960 I'm sure like me, you've had the conversations in churches as to whether it's right for a 00:03:03.960 --> 00:03:07.420 Christian to serve in the armed forces or the police forces. 00:03:08.080 --> 00:03:13.520 These verses from 38 to 42, I have had many conversations where people have used these 00:03:13.520 --> 00:03:15.260 verses to defend that view. 00:03:16.879 --> 00:03:22.219 I've also heard people use these verses to expound the view about not defending oneself against 00:03:22.219 --> 00:03:25.599 an attacker because we're not meant to resist the evil person. 00:03:27.080 --> 00:03:31.960 Or that Christians should never be rich because it says we should give away our cloak. 00:03:33.939 --> 00:03:37.500 And I'm not saying there is complexities to some of these conversations. 00:03:37.919 --> 00:03:41.620 You may well hold a pacifist view and believe that Christians shouldn't serve in the forces. 00:03:41.919 --> 00:03:43.120 That's not the view I hold. 00:03:43.400 --> 00:03:45.680 But you may well hold these views. 00:03:46.079 --> 00:03:48.500 You may well hold the view that Christians shouldn't be rich. 00:03:48.500 --> 00:03:56.280 But to take these verses and use that as your defense is actually to miss the point. 00:03:57.460 --> 00:04:02.500 And in actual fact, it's to do what the people of Jesus' day were doing with the law. 00:04:03.840 --> 00:04:06.120 Manipulating it to make a point. 00:04:06.659 --> 00:04:10.340 Manipulating it to keep a certain group of people down or to keep control. 00:04:10.340 --> 00:04:10.460 Manipulating it to keep control. 00:04:12.719 --> 00:04:21.139 The people of Jesus' day were seeking to abuse and manipulate the law of God in order to serve their self-interests. 00:04:22.259 --> 00:04:28.560 And unfortunately, we sometimes do the same as disciples of Christ. 00:04:28.560 --> 00:04:35.579 And so as we make our way through these different sections of the Sermon on the Mount. 00:04:36.060 --> 00:04:41.939 Be thinking about how does this help me as a disciple serve the other Christians around me. 00:04:42.519 --> 00:04:49.399 And how does this as a disciple allow me to model to the world around me. 00:04:49.939 --> 00:04:52.899 That I'm serving a different master. 00:04:52.899 --> 00:04:58.019 That it's not just about moral duty or moral law. 00:04:58.899 --> 00:05:02.659 But it's because we have a God in heaven who loves us so much. 00:05:03.239 --> 00:05:09.060 That he leaves us with these instructions and these ways of living as kingdom people. 00:05:09.899 --> 00:05:13.599 What are the kingdom values that we're meant to learn about here? 00:05:14.479 --> 00:05:16.779 And so we have three different subjects tonight. 00:05:16.779 --> 00:05:23.479 Jesus is showing the religious leaders and the people of the day the principles behind God's law. 00:05:24.479 --> 00:05:31.339 And not the other hundred side clauses that they had created in order to manipulate and control. 00:05:32.739 --> 00:05:35.059 So remember context is key. 00:05:35.060 --> 00:05:46.079 The Sermon on the Mount is key teaching for those of us seeking to live out kingdom values. 00:05:46.720 --> 00:05:49.720 That's the other point to have in your mind as we make through them. 00:05:49.959 --> 00:05:51.939 So let's look at these under three headings then. 00:05:52.480 --> 00:05:55.800 Because it conveniently, it gives us three headings really in a sense. 00:05:55.899 --> 00:05:57.000 We have telling the truth. 00:05:57.800 --> 00:05:59.420 We have turn the other cheek. 00:05:59.959 --> 00:06:01.579 And we have tenderness for the enemy. 00:06:01.660 --> 00:06:03.019 Do you see what I did there with TTT? 00:06:03.959 --> 00:06:04.100 Yeah? 00:06:04.860 --> 00:06:09.160 It's amazing what you can do when you type in something to a computer and then hover over it with a mouse. 00:06:09.260 --> 00:06:10.520 And it gives you all these other letters. 00:06:11.020 --> 00:06:11.860 It's a great tool. 00:06:12.280 --> 00:06:14.580 Where would I be without Microsoft Word? 00:06:14.660 --> 00:06:15.420 I do not know. 00:06:17.860 --> 00:06:21.000 Two thousand years ago in Israel, the story goes something like this. 00:06:21.480 --> 00:06:23.460 Telling the truth, verses 33 to 37. 00:06:24.100 --> 00:06:27.120 Jack approaches Graham about an unpaid debt. 00:06:28.260 --> 00:06:32.000 Look, Graham, I know I owe you money for that debt. 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:34.379 I can't pay it just now. 00:06:34.379 --> 00:06:46.620 But I swear by Jerusalem that during lambing season this year, I will give you the choice of the best of my offspring once the Lord has his share. 00:06:46.620 --> 00:06:50.220 Would that suffice to cover the debt, Graham? 00:06:51.980 --> 00:06:55.840 Graham, being a reasonable fellow, agrees to that offer. 00:06:55.839 --> 00:07:03.799 And then, after lambing season has passed, approaches Jack to collect on the debt. 00:07:05.159 --> 00:07:06.779 Jack turns to Graham and says, 00:07:06.779 --> 00:07:33.119 Now, I know that's exactly the kind of thing that was going on in Jerusalem at the time of the Sermon on the Mount. 00:07:33.120 --> 00:07:40.819 The rabbis were allowing people to renege on their oaths. 00:07:41.139 --> 00:07:43.199 The Bible says it's okay, actually, to take an oath. 00:07:43.300 --> 00:07:44.340 God takes an oath. 00:07:45.420 --> 00:07:48.000 The Apostle Paul talks about taking oaths all the time. 00:07:49.280 --> 00:07:50.300 But they were saying, 00:07:50.300 --> 00:07:54.400 Ah, that oath didn't count because I only swore by Jerusalem. 00:07:54.639 --> 00:07:59.660 If I'd sworn toward Jerusalem, then I would have had to have paid up on the debt. 00:08:00.180 --> 00:08:04.980 Or, I didn't swear by the temple, so I'm not legally bound to cover that debt. 00:08:05.160 --> 00:08:08.139 That's just the rules, I'm afraid, because the rabbis have said so. 00:08:08.639 --> 00:08:12.560 Because they've allowed all these clauses to go on. 00:08:12.560 --> 00:08:21.100 You see, the issue in this particular part of verses 33 to 37 isn't the issue of oath at all. 00:08:21.959 --> 00:08:24.339 The issue is one of truthfulness. 00:08:29.000 --> 00:08:30.759 The issue is one of truthfulness. 00:08:30.759 --> 00:08:38.279 Can you, as a follower of Jesus Christ, be trusted that when you say you're going to do something, 00:08:39.039 --> 00:08:41.080 that you're going to back it up with action? 00:08:43.840 --> 00:08:45.000 So the people were really saying, 00:08:45.100 --> 00:08:48.120 Well, I didn't actually take the oath before God. 00:08:48.399 --> 00:08:49.659 So it doesn't count. 00:08:51.279 --> 00:08:52.779 And Jesus comes and says, 00:08:53.000 --> 00:08:53.720 Listen here. 00:08:54.460 --> 00:08:56.659 Can you just kind of imagine that Jesus is just saying, 00:08:56.860 --> 00:08:57.700 Listen up now. 00:08:57.700 --> 00:09:03.620 You're saying that these oaths don't count because you've never sworn them by God or by the temple. 00:09:04.980 --> 00:09:05.720 But he says, 00:09:05.800 --> 00:09:08.440 Look, all oaths are taken before God. 00:09:08.620 --> 00:09:09.900 Because who owns Jerusalem? 00:09:10.340 --> 00:09:11.240 God the Father does. 00:09:11.400 --> 00:09:12.300 Who owns the temple? 00:09:12.620 --> 00:09:13.560 God the Father does. 00:09:13.740 --> 00:09:15.720 Who owns the earth that you're very standing on? 00:09:15.920 --> 00:09:16.879 God the Father does. 00:09:16.879 --> 00:09:18.300 So if you take an oath, 00:09:18.540 --> 00:09:21.800 whether you say it's by Jerusalem, to Jerusalem, by the temple, 00:09:21.960 --> 00:09:23.060 it does not matter. 00:09:23.440 --> 00:09:25.740 All oaths are taken before God. 00:09:25.740 --> 00:09:31.820 So stop this nonsense about what does and doesn't count, Jesus is saying. 00:09:33.019 --> 00:09:36.379 Stop trying to manipulate and squirm your way out of something. 00:09:37.620 --> 00:09:39.580 It's simple, says Jesus. 00:09:40.180 --> 00:09:42.460 When you say yes, mean it. 00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:45.180 And when you say no, mean it. 00:09:45.179 --> 00:09:52.519 Now, how does this then apply to us today? 00:09:52.620 --> 00:09:59.199 Well, I will give you one of the, I think, one of the examples that is probably prevalent in most churches 00:09:59.199 --> 00:10:01.459 and in most Christian conversations. 00:10:01.819 --> 00:10:04.500 And I will admit that I too am guilty. 00:10:05.259 --> 00:10:06.919 I too am guilty of doing this. 00:10:06.919 --> 00:10:12.659 Have you ever been part of that or observed the conversation in church that goes something like this? 00:10:13.699 --> 00:10:16.279 Thank you for sharing that with me, brother, sister. 00:10:17.360 --> 00:10:19.519 I'm sure it's not been an easy time for you. 00:10:20.319 --> 00:10:21.360 I will pray about it. 00:10:25.059 --> 00:10:26.159 Or the other one. 00:10:26.639 --> 00:10:28.299 Now, you turn to a Christian friend. 00:10:28.360 --> 00:10:31.879 I'm sharing this with you, not for gossip, but for your prayers. 00:10:32.799 --> 00:10:36.179 Jim told me the other day that him and Gene's marriage is in real trouble. 00:10:36.820 --> 00:10:39.259 Now, you must promise me that you mustn't tell it to anybody. 00:10:39.379 --> 00:10:40.519 I told him I wouldn't tell anybody. 00:10:40.799 --> 00:10:43.399 But I'm just sharing with you, not as gossip, but it's a prayer point. 00:10:44.980 --> 00:10:47.120 Will you promise to join me in prayer? 00:10:52.740 --> 00:10:57.360 How often then, when you go away from that conversation having promised to pray, do you forget to do it? 00:10:58.399 --> 00:11:00.240 I'm sure there are best intentions. 00:11:01.879 --> 00:11:08.360 But I actually think the reality is, very often we just say these words because we don't know what else to say. 00:11:08.639 --> 00:11:09.960 We're like Job's comforters. 00:11:10.539 --> 00:11:12.659 We don't know what to say, so we just say the first thing that comes out. 00:11:13.000 --> 00:11:13.860 I'll pray about that. 00:11:13.919 --> 00:11:16.620 And then it gets us out of the conversation, and then we move on to something else. 00:11:16.860 --> 00:11:19.620 And then before we've got to our car, we've had a row with the wife. 00:11:19.820 --> 00:11:21.279 We've kicked the dog when we've got home. 00:11:21.419 --> 00:11:23.139 And our prayer life is in a mess anyway. 00:11:23.139 --> 00:11:25.679 And we've forgotten to pray about the very thing we promised we would. 00:11:27.179 --> 00:11:28.679 Or we've betrayed a confidence. 00:11:28.679 --> 00:11:33.699 Let your yes be yes and your no be no. 00:11:34.719 --> 00:11:35.259 Here's a tip. 00:11:35.299 --> 00:11:37.359 We can maybe talk about this afterwards in our discussion. 00:11:38.239 --> 00:11:41.919 How do you stop just from rushing out those words, I'll pray about that? 00:11:42.339 --> 00:11:45.419 Maybe the best thing to do is go, let's pray about it now. 00:11:45.419 --> 00:11:50.379 Let's sit down at the front of this church now and pray about it now. 00:11:51.039 --> 00:11:53.279 Or in the coffee house when your friend shares it with you. 00:11:53.500 --> 00:11:56.279 I remember there's a great man in Ferny Hill, John Hannah. 00:11:56.379 --> 00:11:57.679 I'm sure you know him here. 00:11:57.759 --> 00:11:58.860 He's probably come and preached. 00:11:59.599 --> 00:12:02.339 But when he says he's going to pray about it, he doesn't let you leave. 00:12:02.799 --> 00:12:05.659 He sits you down wherever you are or stands you wherever you are, 00:12:05.699 --> 00:12:08.399 and you have to pray with him even if it's in the middle of a crowded street. 00:12:08.719 --> 00:12:10.659 Because he is worried he's going to go home and forget, 00:12:11.199 --> 00:12:12.860 and he doesn't want to renege on a promise. 00:12:12.860 --> 00:12:16.480 Because he says, let your yes be yes and your no be no. 00:12:17.279 --> 00:12:20.720 Now that's just one example, but I think it's a very serious example. 00:12:21.600 --> 00:12:23.960 Because if you promise to pray for somebody and you forget, 00:12:25.000 --> 00:12:26.220 it's very, very dangerous. 00:12:27.039 --> 00:12:28.120 I think it's very, very dangerous. 00:12:28.300 --> 00:12:29.399 Because can you be trusted? 00:12:30.440 --> 00:12:31.740 Ask yourself that question. 00:12:32.139 --> 00:12:33.820 Can you be trusted? 00:12:35.899 --> 00:12:38.180 Truthfulness is a kingdom value. 00:12:38.820 --> 00:12:42.580 A Christian should be one whose word can be trusted. 00:12:43.820 --> 00:12:46.100 My word is my bond and all that. 00:12:47.220 --> 00:12:49.279 This isn't about how bad oaths are, 00:12:49.840 --> 00:12:53.759 but how damaging telling lies are to the Christian witness. 00:12:55.120 --> 00:12:56.700 Not living up to the promises. 00:12:57.720 --> 00:13:00.720 So you conclude this little section with this question in your mind. 00:13:01.340 --> 00:13:03.159 Can I be trusted? 00:13:05.159 --> 00:13:06.180 Can I be trusted? 00:13:06.179 --> 00:13:10.099 Turn the other cheek then. 00:13:11.899 --> 00:13:17.559 Now as I've said, this verse has been used as backup for Christians not being in the forces, 00:13:17.719 --> 00:13:20.439 or that Christians can't defend oneself against an attacker. 00:13:20.819 --> 00:13:22.699 You may have an opinion on these things, 00:13:23.359 --> 00:13:28.120 but you can't use these verses as your sole text for that defense. 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:30.240 It is to take them out of context. 00:13:30.240 --> 00:13:35.200 Let's briefly remind ourselves why this law existed. 00:13:36.379 --> 00:13:38.200 The law eye for eye, tooth for tooth, 00:13:38.419 --> 00:13:43.320 was created to reduce the blood feud principle that can so often occur. 00:13:44.080 --> 00:13:45.060 I get beaten up. 00:13:45.480 --> 00:13:47.600 It wouldn't work for me actually, because my brother's actually weakling. 00:13:47.680 --> 00:13:50.460 But if I get beaten up and I send my brother to beat the guy who beat me up, 00:13:50.639 --> 00:13:52.440 and then his brothers come and beat my brother up, 00:13:52.480 --> 00:13:53.340 and then before you know it, 00:13:53.899 --> 00:13:54.759 I mean, you see it. 00:13:55.299 --> 00:13:56.159 Families at war. 00:13:56.159 --> 00:13:58.899 I work in Gilmoreton. 00:13:59.000 --> 00:14:00.059 We have two families at war. 00:14:00.159 --> 00:14:02.379 That was what the stabbing was over a few weeks back. 00:14:03.539 --> 00:14:05.000 Guns were involved at one point. 00:14:05.299 --> 00:14:06.919 Two families who had been at war for years. 00:14:09.740 --> 00:14:13.339 And it probably all started over something really, really silly. 00:14:19.039 --> 00:14:21.339 What was happening with this law by Jesus' time 00:14:21.339 --> 00:14:23.419 was that it was being used for the petty 00:14:23.419 --> 00:14:26.240 and gaining limited retaliation and revenge, 00:14:26.319 --> 00:14:28.120 and it was missing the purpose. 00:14:29.339 --> 00:14:31.059 Sinclair Ferguson points out in his book, 00:14:31.139 --> 00:14:31.899 The Sermon on the Mount, 00:14:32.379 --> 00:14:33.799 the real fulfillment of the law 00:14:33.799 --> 00:14:35.939 would be in the one who did not seek 00:14:35.939 --> 00:14:38.099 personal retaliation or revenge. 00:14:39.699 --> 00:14:41.199 And in order to back up that point, 00:14:41.299 --> 00:14:43.839 Sinclair Ferguson uses divorce as his example. 00:14:44.639 --> 00:14:46.819 The real fulfillment of the divorce law, he says, 00:14:46.939 --> 00:14:48.939 was not stretching it to its limit, 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:52.059 but fulfillment was in lifelong marriage. 00:14:52.059 --> 00:14:53.779 Not that you had a get-out clause. 00:14:56.419 --> 00:14:58.939 And so the background to verse 39, 00:15:00.439 --> 00:15:02.739 and that resisting, that word resisting, 00:15:03.559 --> 00:15:04.459 the evil one, 00:15:04.500 --> 00:15:06.459 it's a legal word that's being used. 00:15:07.539 --> 00:15:10.059 The word resist is explicitly legal. 00:15:10.539 --> 00:15:12.479 It's translated as take to court. 00:15:14.259 --> 00:15:16.659 And I think I would agree with what Sinclair Ferguson 00:15:16.659 --> 00:15:18.899 and Don Carson say about this verse here, 00:15:18.959 --> 00:15:20.099 that they say, in other words, 00:15:20.100 --> 00:15:21.320 Jesus is saying, 00:15:21.680 --> 00:15:24.100 don't stand on your legal rights as Christians 00:15:24.100 --> 00:15:27.620 in order to plead others of their resources. 00:15:31.620 --> 00:15:34.080 The Christian should not make their legal rights 00:15:34.080 --> 00:15:37.420 the basis of their relationships with others, 00:15:37.420 --> 00:15:42.040 rather than use them to exclude Christians 00:15:42.040 --> 00:15:45.340 from participating in certain employment. 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:49.259 And I think that's true when you look at the examples 00:15:49.259 --> 00:15:50.680 that Jesus uses here. 00:15:51.600 --> 00:15:53.500 Jesus is going to show them personally 00:15:53.500 --> 00:15:55.660 what it looks like to surrender one's rights 00:15:55.660 --> 00:15:57.080 on his journey to the cross. 00:15:57.340 --> 00:16:00.200 He will show that in a great example of surrendering it. 00:16:01.340 --> 00:16:03.259 He doesn't take his legal rights, does he? 00:16:03.680 --> 00:16:04.940 He turns the other cheek 00:16:04.940 --> 00:16:08.639 in perhaps the greatest example that we've ever witnessed. 00:16:08.639 --> 00:16:14.159 But the images presented by Jesus here are powerful. 00:16:17.259 --> 00:16:18.360 Turn the cheek. 00:16:19.899 --> 00:16:21.740 To be slapped with the back of one's hand 00:16:21.740 --> 00:16:22.840 in the Near East 00:16:22.840 --> 00:16:25.139 is a gross insult even still today. 00:16:25.720 --> 00:16:27.460 The average fine in this day 00:16:27.460 --> 00:16:29.399 was a man's annual wage. 00:16:31.580 --> 00:16:33.539 A bit like the defamation cases 00:16:33.539 --> 00:16:34.779 you see coming much of today. 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:35.600 That's what it was like. 00:16:35.639 --> 00:16:36.700 It was that kind of an insult. 00:16:36.700 --> 00:16:41.160 So what is Jesus asking for 00:16:41.160 --> 00:16:43.180 when he says turn the other cheek? 00:16:43.240 --> 00:16:45.879 Is he saying willingly you should suffer? 00:16:47.480 --> 00:16:50.080 No, Jesus is explaining in a figurative way. 00:16:50.759 --> 00:16:53.220 He's not just saying just stand there and take it. 00:16:54.020 --> 00:16:55.940 A physical beating for the sake of it. 00:16:56.680 --> 00:17:00.020 He's pointing out that we should not seek revenge 00:17:00.020 --> 00:17:02.379 for those who insult us as Christians. 00:17:02.379 --> 00:17:06.079 Who will be impressed by the Christian 00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:07.980 who seeks revenge and retaliation? 00:17:11.480 --> 00:17:14.440 Children of God need to live in a different way. 00:17:16.119 --> 00:17:18.000 Our reputation and our standing 00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:19.859 come from being God's children. 00:17:20.519 --> 00:17:22.759 Not from seeking out petty retaliation 00:17:22.759 --> 00:17:25.200 which neither serve the kingdom of God 00:17:25.200 --> 00:17:26.279 or display its principles. 00:17:26.279 --> 00:17:30.579 So the first example is one of turning the cheek. 00:17:30.920 --> 00:17:33.680 And the other is this idea of giving your coat. 00:17:33.819 --> 00:17:34.639 It's figurative. 00:17:35.460 --> 00:17:37.579 Remember how important the coat was 00:17:37.579 --> 00:17:38.740 in this day and age. 00:17:38.879 --> 00:17:41.960 If it was taken as a deposit toward a debt 00:17:41.960 --> 00:17:43.559 or in guarantee of a debt 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:45.819 it had to be returned by nightfall. 00:17:45.920 --> 00:17:48.639 That was the legal requirement of that day 00:17:48.639 --> 00:17:51.539 because very often it was the only coat that was owned. 00:17:51.759 --> 00:17:53.379 It was used as bedclothes too. 00:17:53.380 --> 00:17:59.180 Jesus is making the point 00:17:59.180 --> 00:18:01.940 about how the Christian stands up under persecution. 00:18:02.840 --> 00:18:05.000 Don't just go to your legal rights. 00:18:05.540 --> 00:18:07.980 Show like Jesus that you are willing to surrender 00:18:07.980 --> 00:18:10.220 even your very coat. 00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:14.660 Now I think this probably has much more meaning 00:18:14.660 --> 00:18:15.820 in areas of the world 00:18:15.820 --> 00:18:20.960 where people experience physical persecution. 00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:23.319 We actually don't know how good we have it here. 00:18:23.400 --> 00:18:26.220 I've been doing the New Christianity Explored DVDs 00:18:26.220 --> 00:18:26.819 with a few people, 00:18:26.900 --> 00:18:27.640 Discipleship Explored, 00:18:27.720 --> 00:18:29.120 with a few people at our church. 00:18:29.960 --> 00:18:31.779 And one of the things that the guy says at the beginning 00:18:31.779 --> 00:18:35.140 is the guy who worked out in Eastern Europe. 00:18:36.100 --> 00:18:38.940 And the very first video is him saying, 00:18:39.259 --> 00:18:41.220 I pray for you Christians in the West 00:18:41.220 --> 00:18:42.880 to receive persecution. 00:18:43.960 --> 00:18:45.019 And it's like, whoa, 00:18:45.259 --> 00:18:46.400 calm down a wee bit there, mate. 00:18:46.400 --> 00:18:48.820 But he makes the point where he says, 00:18:48.920 --> 00:18:50.940 only then will you learn to surrender 00:18:50.940 --> 00:18:54.380 those rights that you hold so dear 00:18:54.380 --> 00:18:58.519 and be willing to suffer for Christ. 00:18:58.660 --> 00:19:00.160 That's what's being asked for here. 00:19:02.280 --> 00:19:03.420 Go the extra mile. 00:19:03.500 --> 00:19:05.160 If somebody asks you to walk a thousand miles, 00:19:05.400 --> 00:19:05.960 a mile, 00:19:06.060 --> 00:19:06.800 walk another mile, 00:19:06.880 --> 00:19:07.420 says Jesus. 00:19:08.060 --> 00:19:10.240 The Roman army had the right to commandeer people 00:19:10.240 --> 00:19:10.880 to help them. 00:19:11.220 --> 00:19:12.040 Easy to abuse, 00:19:12.220 --> 00:19:13.080 hated by the Jews, 00:19:13.240 --> 00:19:13.400 humiliating. 00:19:13.400 --> 00:19:13.880 Humiliating. 00:19:14.720 --> 00:19:15.740 But I actually think there's a 00:19:15.740 --> 00:19:18.040 passive-aggressive thing at work here, 00:19:18.200 --> 00:19:18.880 in some ways. 00:19:20.720 --> 00:19:22.900 You were required to walk a thousand paces. 00:19:23.360 --> 00:19:24.180 Well, says Jesus, 00:19:24.380 --> 00:19:25.600 walk a thousand more. 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:27.920 What's happening there if you walk a thousand more? 00:19:28.060 --> 00:19:29.120 Who has the power then? 00:19:29.420 --> 00:19:29.980 You do, 00:19:30.060 --> 00:19:31.120 because you do it voluntarily. 00:19:32.540 --> 00:19:35.080 Imagine the shock on a Roman soldier's face 00:19:35.080 --> 00:19:37.340 as an army of Christians 00:19:37.340 --> 00:19:40.160 hoiked the soldier's backpacks on their back 00:19:40.160 --> 00:19:40.640 and said, 00:19:40.720 --> 00:19:42.180 no, I'm going to walk another, 00:19:42.180 --> 00:19:43.680 I'm going to walk another thousand steps. 00:19:43.820 --> 00:19:44.980 I only need you to walk a thousand. 00:19:45.180 --> 00:19:45.980 I've got the power. 00:19:46.299 --> 00:19:47.700 I serve a different master. 00:19:50.400 --> 00:19:51.980 I serve a different master. 00:19:54.740 --> 00:19:56.480 The Roman soldier in charge 00:19:56.480 --> 00:19:58.480 who has seen the great leaders 00:19:58.480 --> 00:20:00.320 suddenly seeing an army of Christians 00:20:00.320 --> 00:20:03.240 whose leader is far greater, 00:20:04.940 --> 00:20:06.160 who's allowing them to live 00:20:06.160 --> 00:20:07.560 in a completely different way 00:20:07.560 --> 00:20:08.980 and surrender their rights, 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:10.640 turn the other cheek, 00:20:10.640 --> 00:20:12.520 walk not just one thousand yards 00:20:12.520 --> 00:20:14.200 but another thousand more. 00:20:16.600 --> 00:20:18.480 What power is at work in these Christians 00:20:18.480 --> 00:20:19.680 that they willingly do that? 00:20:19.759 --> 00:20:21.120 That's what would have been being asked. 00:20:22.320 --> 00:20:24.320 And that's what's at stake here. 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:28.900 The last example is just another way 00:20:28.900 --> 00:20:29.980 Jesus makes that point 00:20:29.980 --> 00:20:31.840 of willingly giving to others. 00:20:32.800 --> 00:20:34.600 It's a powerful Christian witness 00:20:34.600 --> 00:20:36.160 when a Christian goes above 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:38.060 and beyond what is required. 00:20:38.059 --> 00:20:39.480 And in fact, 00:20:39.559 --> 00:20:40.519 we know it's one of the reasons 00:20:40.519 --> 00:20:41.960 why Christianity exploded 00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:43.319 in those early days. 00:20:45.319 --> 00:20:46.500 When others looked on 00:20:46.500 --> 00:20:47.220 at these Christians, 00:20:47.359 --> 00:20:48.500 they saw they were different. 00:20:49.059 --> 00:20:50.179 Burying not just their own dead 00:20:50.179 --> 00:20:51.299 but the dead of Romans 00:20:51.299 --> 00:20:53.399 who were just throwing their slaves 00:20:53.399 --> 00:20:54.099 out in the street. 00:20:56.339 --> 00:20:57.679 Sharing the wealth together. 00:20:58.259 --> 00:20:59.779 Sharing of their possessions. 00:20:59.779 --> 00:21:02.139 Why? 00:21:02.559 --> 00:21:04.420 Because they served a different master. 00:21:06.559 --> 00:21:08.119 So rather than take these verses 00:21:08.119 --> 00:21:09.720 to explain why you're a pacifist, 00:21:09.759 --> 00:21:10.440 and you may well be 00:21:10.440 --> 00:21:11.399 and there's nothing wrong with that. 00:21:11.480 --> 00:21:12.519 It's maybe a good thing to be. 00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:13.639 Maybe I should be dealing 00:21:13.639 --> 00:21:14.980 with a bit more pacifism in my life 00:21:14.980 --> 00:21:16.559 but I'm a former rugby player 00:21:16.559 --> 00:21:19.480 so it's difficult to be a pacifist 00:21:19.480 --> 00:21:20.420 when you're on a rugby field. 00:21:21.639 --> 00:21:22.480 Here's the question. 00:21:22.940 --> 00:21:23.740 In the first section, 00:21:23.859 --> 00:21:24.660 can I be trusted? 00:21:25.319 --> 00:21:26.160 Second section, 00:21:26.160 --> 00:21:29.360 am I willingly surrendering my rights 00:21:29.360 --> 00:21:30.519 for the sake of the gospel? 00:21:32.040 --> 00:21:34.120 Am I willingly surrendering my rights 00:21:34.120 --> 00:21:35.040 for the sake of the gospel? 00:21:36.420 --> 00:21:37.680 And finally and briefly, 00:21:39.180 --> 00:21:40.320 tenderness for your enemies. 00:21:41.279 --> 00:21:42.779 Who is my neighbor? 00:21:44.400 --> 00:21:46.580 The question used to try and get Jesus 00:21:46.580 --> 00:21:47.720 to give them a list of people 00:21:47.720 --> 00:21:48.300 they could love. 00:21:49.480 --> 00:21:50.700 They didn't really want to know 00:21:50.700 --> 00:21:51.259 who their neighbor was. 00:21:51.320 --> 00:21:52.080 They just wanted to know 00:21:52.080 --> 00:21:52.720 who they could love. 00:21:53.600 --> 00:21:54.220 And secondly, 00:21:54.220 --> 00:21:56.319 a list of people they could hate. 00:21:57.200 --> 00:21:58.579 The law only required 00:21:58.579 --> 00:21:59.460 that you loved your neighbor. 00:22:00.299 --> 00:22:01.500 And so what had happened was 00:22:01.500 --> 00:22:02.380 they figured, 00:22:02.500 --> 00:22:03.600 well, if the law only demands 00:22:03.600 --> 00:22:04.259 we have to love our neighbor 00:22:04.259 --> 00:22:05.519 then that means we can hate our enemy. 00:22:10.079 --> 00:22:10.920 A distortion. 00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:13.279 It's a bit like Peter 00:22:13.279 --> 00:22:14.180 when he goes to Jesus 00:22:14.180 --> 00:22:15.339 thinking he's all high and mighty. 00:22:15.539 --> 00:22:16.299 How many times 00:22:16.299 --> 00:22:17.220 should I forgive my brother? 00:22:17.559 --> 00:22:18.319 Seven times? 00:22:18.420 --> 00:22:19.120 I mean, the average 00:22:19.120 --> 00:22:19.860 you're allowed to. 00:22:19.920 --> 00:22:20.900 I mean, to go three times 00:22:20.900 --> 00:22:21.720 was above and beyond 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:22.339 the call of duty. 00:22:22.759 --> 00:22:23.440 Peter's doubled it 00:22:23.440 --> 00:22:23.940 and added one. 00:22:23.940 --> 00:22:24.820 He thinks he's amazing. 00:22:25.980 --> 00:22:26.360 No. 00:22:26.799 --> 00:22:27.799 Seventy-seven times 00:22:27.799 --> 00:22:28.680 seven says Jesus. 00:22:29.200 --> 00:22:29.600 What? 00:22:32.240 --> 00:22:33.160 Not sure I'm ready 00:22:33.160 --> 00:22:34.240 for that kind of forgiveness. 00:22:38.259 --> 00:22:39.220 Who is my neighbor? 00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:41.600 When Jesus is asked that question 00:22:41.600 --> 00:22:42.259 he points out 00:22:42.259 --> 00:22:43.019 that the Samaritan, 00:22:44.140 --> 00:22:44.980 that country 00:22:44.980 --> 00:22:45.660 that they wouldn't even 00:22:45.660 --> 00:22:46.799 dirty their feet in, 00:22:47.220 --> 00:22:48.100 that was their neighbor, 00:22:48.200 --> 00:22:49.039 the good Samaritan. 00:22:50.700 --> 00:22:51.140 Because 00:22:51.140 --> 00:22:53.120 it's easy to love someone 00:22:53.120 --> 00:22:53.880 we share something 00:22:53.880 --> 00:22:54.680 in common with. 00:22:56.440 --> 00:22:57.060 Jesus says 00:22:57.060 --> 00:22:57.759 even the dirtiest 00:22:57.759 --> 00:22:58.480 of sinners do that. 00:22:58.560 --> 00:22:59.100 I worked 00:22:59.100 --> 00:23:01.140 with former convicts 00:23:01.140 --> 00:23:01.740 for a long time 00:23:01.740 --> 00:23:02.640 and I worked in a rehabilitation 00:23:02.640 --> 00:23:04.100 unit for 15 years. 00:23:05.600 --> 00:23:06.380 There was members 00:23:06.380 --> 00:23:07.160 of gangs in there, 00:23:07.240 --> 00:23:08.600 members of drug gangs 00:23:08.600 --> 00:23:09.080 in there. 00:23:11.080 --> 00:23:12.440 There was genuine affection 00:23:12.440 --> 00:23:13.600 and love between these guys 00:23:13.600 --> 00:23:14.600 if you were in the same gang 00:23:14.600 --> 00:23:15.000 as them. 00:23:15.780 --> 00:23:16.520 Of course there was. 00:23:16.639 --> 00:23:17.660 They had business interests 00:23:17.660 --> 00:23:18.099 together. 00:23:19.900 --> 00:23:20.680 They had money 00:23:20.680 --> 00:23:21.319 to make together. 00:23:21.420 --> 00:23:22.079 They had people 00:23:22.079 --> 00:23:23.740 to extort money from. 00:23:23.819 --> 00:23:24.279 They had people 00:23:24.279 --> 00:23:25.000 to beat up. 00:23:25.639 --> 00:23:26.779 They had a camaraderie. 00:23:27.680 --> 00:23:28.759 They loved one another. 00:23:32.200 --> 00:23:32.940 They didn't love 00:23:32.940 --> 00:23:33.440 their other gang, 00:23:33.559 --> 00:23:35.180 the opposition gangs though. 00:23:36.859 --> 00:23:37.559 They killed them 00:23:37.559 --> 00:23:38.000 in a heartbeat. 00:23:40.200 --> 00:23:40.960 So Jesus makes the point 00:23:40.960 --> 00:23:42.359 even these tax collectors, 00:23:42.500 --> 00:23:42.879 well they love 00:23:42.879 --> 00:23:43.680 other tax collectors. 00:23:43.779 --> 00:23:44.539 They love each other. 00:23:44.539 --> 00:23:46.519 it's easy to do that. 00:23:48.259 --> 00:23:49.420 But tenderness for enemies, 00:23:49.639 --> 00:23:50.379 love for enemies, 00:23:50.920 --> 00:23:51.940 that's a different thing 00:23:51.940 --> 00:23:52.440 altogether. 00:23:53.980 --> 00:23:55.500 Jesus is asking us here 00:23:55.500 --> 00:23:57.720 to be like God the Father 00:23:57.720 --> 00:24:00.319 who while we were yet 00:24:00.319 --> 00:24:02.220 sinners and enemies of God 00:24:02.220 --> 00:24:03.599 sent his son into the world 00:24:03.599 --> 00:24:04.359 to die. 00:24:10.079 --> 00:24:11.460 You do realize that, right? 00:24:11.639 --> 00:24:13.379 The love you have for God 00:24:13.380 --> 00:24:14.880 right now is given to you 00:24:14.880 --> 00:24:15.380 by him. 00:24:17.940 --> 00:24:19.420 That he made the first move. 00:24:20.400 --> 00:24:21.100 That you didn't make 00:24:21.100 --> 00:24:22.180 the first move to God. 00:24:25.220 --> 00:24:26.280 While you were his enemy 00:24:26.280 --> 00:24:29.140 and had fallen short 00:24:29.140 --> 00:24:29.700 of the mark, 00:24:29.760 --> 00:24:30.600 he sent his son 00:24:30.600 --> 00:24:34.820 not just into the world 00:24:34.820 --> 00:24:35.440 to live 00:24:35.440 --> 00:24:37.200 and teach us great things 00:24:37.200 --> 00:24:38.020 on a Sermon on the Mount, 00:24:38.020 --> 00:24:39.920 but to die on a cross 00:24:39.920 --> 00:24:42.240 outside the city of Jerusalem. 00:24:42.240 --> 00:24:44.680 And to be raised 00:24:44.680 --> 00:24:45.380 three days later. 00:24:46.660 --> 00:24:48.000 I have to tell you though, 00:24:49.279 --> 00:24:49.900 in closing, 00:24:50.579 --> 00:24:52.620 how difficult I have found 00:24:52.620 --> 00:24:53.880 this love for enemies. 00:24:55.880 --> 00:24:57.000 A few weeks ago 00:24:57.000 --> 00:24:58.960 during the Women's World Cup, 00:24:59.680 --> 00:25:00.579 I love sport 00:25:00.579 --> 00:25:02.579 and I will watch any sport 00:25:02.579 --> 00:25:04.380 and I will play any sport. 00:25:04.380 --> 00:25:07.100 I got a message through 00:25:07.100 --> 00:25:08.420 after the England women 00:25:08.420 --> 00:25:09.740 had won against Cameroon 00:25:09.740 --> 00:25:11.080 from a guy 00:25:11.080 --> 00:25:11.720 who has been, 00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:12.800 his children come 00:25:12.800 --> 00:25:13.720 to our youth clubs. 00:25:16.080 --> 00:25:16.820 He's a member 00:25:16.820 --> 00:25:17.960 of a church. 00:25:18.760 --> 00:25:19.220 I'm not sure 00:25:19.220 --> 00:25:19.840 where he stands 00:25:19.840 --> 00:25:20.400 before God, 00:25:20.500 --> 00:25:22.240 but given what occurred 00:25:22.240 --> 00:25:23.220 between the two of us, 00:25:23.680 --> 00:25:24.800 it's been very, 00:25:24.880 --> 00:25:25.500 very heartbreaking. 00:25:25.680 --> 00:25:26.160 I'm not going to, 00:25:26.260 --> 00:25:26.580 I guess, 00:25:27.800 --> 00:25:28.440 it's not for me 00:25:28.440 --> 00:25:29.220 to say where he stands 00:25:29.220 --> 00:25:29.980 before God actually. 00:25:30.940 --> 00:25:32.040 But I get a message through 00:25:32.039 --> 00:25:33.180 about Phil Neville's 00:25:33.180 --> 00:25:34.220 aftermatch comments. 00:25:35.139 --> 00:25:36.019 Now as an Englishman 00:25:36.019 --> 00:25:36.680 living in Scotland, 00:25:36.779 --> 00:25:37.139 I know it maybe 00:25:37.139 --> 00:25:37.920 doesn't sound like it, 00:25:37.940 --> 00:25:38.460 but I've been here 00:25:38.460 --> 00:25:39.259 for 30 years. 00:25:39.519 --> 00:25:40.480 I have been subjected 00:25:40.480 --> 00:25:41.059 to abuse, 00:25:41.440 --> 00:25:42.180 not just banter, 00:25:42.240 --> 00:25:42.659 but abuse. 00:25:42.759 --> 00:25:43.299 I've seen my brother 00:25:43.299 --> 00:25:44.440 beaten up for being English. 00:25:44.559 --> 00:25:45.399 I've seen all sorts 00:25:45.399 --> 00:25:46.539 of horrendous things 00:25:46.539 --> 00:25:47.779 and heard horrendous things 00:25:47.779 --> 00:25:49.119 and even in churches 00:25:49.119 --> 00:25:50.200 I've heard horrendous things. 00:25:50.599 --> 00:25:51.420 I'm very sensitive, 00:25:51.559 --> 00:25:51.799 I guess, 00:25:51.859 --> 00:25:52.879 probably too much so now. 00:25:54.579 --> 00:25:55.200 Lots of people 00:25:55.200 --> 00:25:56.000 don't realise I'm English 00:25:56.000 --> 00:25:56.680 because I have a 00:25:56.680 --> 00:25:58.139 kind of Scottish accent, 00:25:58.259 --> 00:25:59.220 a kind of hybrid accent. 00:25:59.220 --> 00:26:01.220 He took humbridge 00:26:01.220 --> 00:26:01.740 to the fact that 00:26:01.740 --> 00:26:02.400 England had won 00:26:02.400 --> 00:26:03.660 and he wasn't happy 00:26:03.660 --> 00:26:04.420 at some of the things 00:26:04.420 --> 00:26:05.579 that Phil Neville had said. 00:26:06.279 --> 00:26:07.240 I'm a Man United fan. 00:26:07.319 --> 00:26:07.660 Phil Neville, 00:26:07.759 --> 00:26:08.880 I grew up loving Phil Neville 00:26:08.880 --> 00:26:10.079 because he was one 00:26:10.079 --> 00:26:10.579 of the class 00:26:10.579 --> 00:26:12.339 of our great team. 00:26:13.700 --> 00:26:14.519 And I just simply said 00:26:14.519 --> 00:26:14.839 back to him, 00:26:14.860 --> 00:26:14.960 look, 00:26:14.980 --> 00:26:15.680 I'm not going to agree 00:26:15.680 --> 00:26:16.259 with you 00:26:16.259 --> 00:26:17.740 on the basis 00:26:17.740 --> 00:26:18.860 of the fact that 00:26:18.860 --> 00:26:19.920 I don't agree with you 00:26:19.920 --> 00:26:20.640 and I love Phil Neville 00:26:20.640 --> 00:26:21.420 and I think what he said 00:26:21.420 --> 00:26:21.860 was okay. 00:26:24.160 --> 00:26:25.360 Within a second, 00:26:25.579 --> 00:26:27.700 I had incredibly abusive 00:26:27.700 --> 00:26:28.839 texts about how 00:26:28.839 --> 00:26:29.619 English I was, 00:26:29.699 --> 00:26:30.779 how I was an effing this 00:26:30.779 --> 00:26:31.539 and an effing that, 00:26:31.839 --> 00:26:32.579 how I was a clown 00:26:32.579 --> 00:26:33.139 and how he was going 00:26:33.139 --> 00:26:33.539 to block me 00:26:33.539 --> 00:26:34.459 from all social media. 00:26:36.279 --> 00:26:37.299 I have really struggled 00:26:37.299 --> 00:26:37.779 with this 00:26:37.779 --> 00:26:38.879 because his kids arrived 00:26:38.879 --> 00:26:39.379 at the youth club 00:26:39.379 --> 00:26:39.839 that I was leading 00:26:39.839 --> 00:26:40.399 last week 00:26:40.399 --> 00:26:41.980 and I was looking 00:26:41.980 --> 00:26:42.500 at them thinking, 00:26:42.980 --> 00:26:43.659 why should I give 00:26:43.659 --> 00:26:44.679 of my time to you 00:26:44.679 --> 00:26:45.720 when your dad's 00:26:45.720 --> 00:26:46.220 sitting at home 00:26:46.220 --> 00:26:46.899 cursing me 00:26:46.899 --> 00:26:48.879 to the point 00:26:48.879 --> 00:26:49.959 where I had to block him 00:26:49.959 --> 00:26:51.139 from sending messages 00:26:51.139 --> 00:26:51.579 to me? 00:26:53.959 --> 00:26:54.939 Why should I give 00:26:54.939 --> 00:26:55.459 of my best 00:26:55.459 --> 00:26:56.079 to your children? 00:26:56.079 --> 00:26:59.000 And then 00:26:59.000 --> 00:27:01.259 I looked again 00:27:01.259 --> 00:27:01.740 at the passage 00:27:01.740 --> 00:27:02.079 I was meant 00:27:02.079 --> 00:27:02.839 to share on tonight 00:27:02.839 --> 00:27:06.159 and I was like, 00:27:06.220 --> 00:27:06.679 I've got to go 00:27:06.679 --> 00:27:07.619 and love this guy. 00:27:10.619 --> 00:27:11.319 I've got to forgive 00:27:11.319 --> 00:27:11.720 this guy. 00:27:11.799 --> 00:27:12.199 I've got to show 00:27:12.199 --> 00:27:12.759 tenderness. 00:27:13.539 --> 00:27:13.939 I've got to show 00:27:13.939 --> 00:27:15.019 tenderness to his children. 00:27:16.059 --> 00:27:17.460 Give of my best 00:27:17.460 --> 00:27:17.839 to them 00:27:17.839 --> 00:27:19.019 and I will tell you 00:27:19.019 --> 00:27:20.059 it has not been easy 00:27:20.059 --> 00:27:20.599 and I'm not sure 00:27:20.599 --> 00:27:21.460 where I am with it yet. 00:27:21.460 --> 00:27:24.000 And I think 00:27:24.000 --> 00:27:24.940 my story 00:27:24.940 --> 00:27:26.940 is one 00:27:26.940 --> 00:27:27.620 that you probably 00:27:27.620 --> 00:27:28.980 all have at times. 00:27:30.079 --> 00:27:30.779 Maybe not 00:27:30.779 --> 00:27:31.920 the English side of it 00:27:31.920 --> 00:27:32.519 but you'll be 00:27:32.519 --> 00:27:33.779 amused by people. 00:27:34.259 --> 00:27:34.600 You'll have been 00:27:34.600 --> 00:27:35.259 cast aside. 00:27:35.360 --> 00:27:36.039 You'll have enemies. 00:27:39.180 --> 00:27:40.279 The kingdom value 00:27:40.279 --> 00:27:41.039 that we are asked 00:27:41.039 --> 00:27:43.940 is to love 00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:45.259 our enemies 00:27:45.259 --> 00:27:47.579 and that is 00:27:47.579 --> 00:27:47.819 really, 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:48.400 really hard. 00:27:48.400 --> 00:27:50.740 But I think 00:27:50.740 --> 00:27:51.860 that when you do that 00:27:51.860 --> 00:27:53.259 the power 00:27:53.259 --> 00:27:54.280 that is in 00:27:54.280 --> 00:27:55.120 genuine forgiveness 00:27:55.120 --> 00:27:56.220 and surrender 00:27:56.220 --> 00:27:58.100 of our rights 00:27:58.100 --> 00:28:01.160 can be incredibly 00:28:01.160 --> 00:28:01.660 powerful 00:28:01.660 --> 00:28:02.200 as the world 00:28:02.200 --> 00:28:03.120 looks on and says 00:28:03.120 --> 00:28:03.480 wow, 00:28:04.040 --> 00:28:04.640 these Christians 00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:05.180 are different. 00:28:06.360 --> 00:28:06.940 They serve 00:28:06.940 --> 00:28:07.759 a different master. 00:28:08.540 --> 00:28:09.259 Can I be trusted? 00:28:10.840 --> 00:28:11.820 Am I willing 00:28:11.820 --> 00:28:12.500 to surrender 00:28:12.500 --> 00:28:13.180 my rights? 00:28:15.100 --> 00:28:15.700 And I guess 00:28:15.700 --> 00:28:16.460 in closing 00:28:16.460 --> 00:28:19.240 am I willing 00:28:19.240 --> 00:28:21.420 to show 00:28:21.420 --> 00:28:22.279 that I'm serving 00:28:22.279 --> 00:28:23.720 a different master? 00:28:24.140 --> 00:28:24.819 Let me just pray. 00:28:26.579 --> 00:28:27.000 Father, 00:28:27.059 --> 00:28:27.539 we thank you 00:28:27.539 --> 00:28:28.160 for your word. 00:28:29.079 --> 00:28:29.259 Father, 00:28:29.319 --> 00:28:29.819 we thank you 00:28:29.819 --> 00:28:30.600 for all that it means 00:28:30.600 --> 00:28:31.039 to us. 00:28:32.160 --> 00:28:32.340 Father, 00:28:32.420 --> 00:28:33.140 we pray that 00:28:33.140 --> 00:28:33.880 in the moments 00:28:33.880 --> 00:28:34.779 we find it difficult 00:28:34.779 --> 00:28:35.420 to model 00:28:35.420 --> 00:28:36.440 Christian living, 00:28:37.180 --> 00:28:38.039 in the moments 00:28:38.039 --> 00:28:38.860 we find it difficult 00:28:38.860 --> 00:28:39.840 to be your disciple, 00:28:41.420 --> 00:28:42.360 please give us 00:28:42.360 --> 00:28:43.079 your Holy Spirit 00:28:43.079 --> 00:28:44.000 to strengthen us, 00:28:44.400 --> 00:28:45.120 to lead us. 00:28:45.119 --> 00:28:46.979 in those moments 00:28:46.979 --> 00:28:47.559 where we struggle 00:28:47.559 --> 00:28:48.559 to forgive those 00:28:48.559 --> 00:28:49.679 who abuse us, 00:28:50.719 --> 00:28:51.459 those who seek 00:28:51.459 --> 00:28:52.199 to harm us, 00:28:53.039 --> 00:28:53.659 remind us 00:28:53.659 --> 00:28:54.359 that our battle 00:28:54.359 --> 00:28:55.359 is not against 00:28:55.359 --> 00:28:56.119 flesh and blood 00:28:56.119 --> 00:28:57.679 but against the powers 00:28:57.679 --> 00:28:58.759 and principalities 00:28:58.759 --> 00:29:00.839 and that you, 00:29:00.919 --> 00:29:01.259 Lord Jesus, 00:29:01.379 --> 00:29:02.119 will win the victory 00:29:02.119 --> 00:29:03.459 and for that 00:29:03.459 --> 00:29:04.439 we are truly grateful 00:29:04.439 --> 00:29:06.179 and we surrender 00:29:06.179 --> 00:29:07.559 our rights to you 00:29:07.559 --> 00:29:08.199 and we ask, 00:29:08.359 --> 00:29:08.419 Lord, 00:29:08.479 --> 00:29:09.219 that you will help us 00:29:09.219 --> 00:29:10.459 to take up our cross daily 00:29:10.459 --> 00:29:11.899 and live out 00:29:11.899 --> 00:29:12.839 these kingdom values 00:29:12.839 --> 00:29:13.500 in your name. 00:29:13.940 --> 00:29:14.160 Amen. 00:29:14.160 --> 00:29:14.200 Amen. 00:29:15.200 --> 00:29:16.599 Amen. 00:29:16.920 --> 00:29:17.079 Amen. 00:29:17.279 --> 00:29:17.339 Amen. 00:29:18.279 --> 00:29:18.640 Amen. 00:29:18.640 --> 00:29:19.220 Amen. 00:29:19.220 --> 00:29:19.279 Amen. 00:29:19.279 --> 00:29:19.500 Amen. 00:29:19.500 --> 00:29:20.539 Amen. 00:29:20.539 --> 00:29:22.200 Amen. 00:29:22.559 --> 00:29:23.559 Amen. 00:29:23.559 --> 00:29:33.519 Amen. 00:29:33.519 --> 00:29:33.579 Amen. 00:29:35.680 --> 00:29:36.079 Amen. 00:29:36.079 --> 00:29:37.079 Amen. 00:29:37.079 --> 00:29:38.220 Amen. 00:29:38.220 --> 00:29:38.519 Amen. 00:29:38.519 --> 00:29:39.220 Amen. 00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:40.240 Amen. 00:29:40.339 --> 00:29:40.359 Amen. 00:29:40.359 --> 00:29:40.480 Amen. 00:29:40.480 --> 00:29:40.640 Amen. 00:29:40.640 --> 00:29:40.660 Amen. 00:29:40.660 --> 00:29:41.700 Amen. 00:29:41.700 --> 00:29:41.960 Amen. 00:29:41.960 --> 00:29:42.160 Amen. 00:29:42.740 --> 00:29:43.480 Amen.