You are listening to a message from Southwood Presbyterian Church in Huntsville, Alabama.
Our passion is to experience and express grace. Join us.
Good morning, everybody. If I haven't had the chance to meet you, my name is Derek Harris.
I'm one of the pastors here, and I'm just going to go ahead and throw down that I am reeling from the events this past week.
So you can pray for me.
Thank you.
Sorry.
There's two guys sitting in the back there who are in my youth group in Nashville.
I know you're hurting.
I love you.
That's why we do what we do.
That's why we preach the Word of God.
Our world is changing.
And America has often been thought of as a Christian country.
And it's changing.
It's changing drastically.
Okay?
This is not an alarmist thing.
This is a realistic thing that's been happening gradually, not just this past week.
I want us to consider this slide here.
Let's see if this is working.
Oh, let me get back.
I'm going to talk about four things this morning.
We're going to talk about the world.
We're going to talk about the Word.
We're going to talk about why it matters.
And we're going to talk about what now.
But first, with the world, it's changing.
Okay?
It's changing a lot.
And it may be changing rapidly for you.
I want you to consider this quote here from Pew Research just in 2022.
Only a few decades ago, a Christian identity was so common among Americans that it could almost be taken for granted.
And as recently as the early 1990s, about 90% of U.S. adults identified as Christians.
But today, about two-thirds of adults are Christians, identifying as Christians.
And the change in America's religious composition is largely the result of large numbers of adults switching out of the religion in which they were raised to become religiously unaffiliated.
Many times they're known as the nones, N-O-N-E-S.
Okay?
Because that's what the box that they would check on a survey or a test or something like that.
Because they have no affiliation with faith, none, when it comes to the faith.
And not only is religious affiliation changing, so is the treatment of those who claim to be Christians, especially in America.
Especially in the deep south, the Bible Belt, where you have been protected for so very long.
It could be due to the past failures of leaders in the church.
Workers of the church.
Members of churches who may have hurt people.
Missions, organizations.
In regards to claims.
Rightful claims.
Of abuse.
Racism.
Discrimination.
Etc.
Right?
Church.
Quote-unquote church.
Institution church.
Has done a lot of damage to a lot of people.
And there's a lot of anger.
And there's a lot of disappointment in our society towards these religious institutions.
Not just the Christian church.
And so you may not affiliate yourself with church leaders who've been caught up in some sort of public controversy.
Or an organization as such.
But there's a good chance that those people who aren't in church.
Who you really wish were here.
There's a good chance that they actually do affiliate those people with you.
Okay?
And us.
And when you enter into any conversation.
You may find yourself needing to take punches.
And we're going to sense that more and more and more as Christians.
Okay?
I will walk up to some conversations.
And if they just hear that I'm a pastor.
Conversation's over.
Or it's instant anger.
My wife was in a conversation with someone recently.
And they were giving her the dagger eyes just because they knew that I was a pastor.
And sometimes it's the opposite.
Sometimes it's actually, oh, breath of fresh air.
Please, can I ask you this?
Can I ask you this?
But you may feel some of that too.
As followers of Christ in the West, we don't live in a Christian country anymore.
We live in a post-Christian country.
This is what I mean by that.
The fundamental, this is a quote again.
The fundamental societal institutions, family, school, church, that took their meaning and place from a basic Christian worldview shaped by Protestantism,
are going through a rewriting of their status, which undermines their traditional outlook.
Christians need to learn or relearn how to be creative and faithful minorities.
The transition may be painful and difficult, but nostalgic attitudes toward a status quo, somewhat marked by Christianity, will not serve the cause of the gospel.
I thought that was an interesting quote there.
So what he's getting at is this, that we as Christians now moving into the, living in this post-Christian era and moving forward,
we might need to unlearn some of our old habits to be able to share the love of Jesus with the world that we so desperately want to have in the church.
And that's going to be a challenge for us, okay?
It's not far-fetched.
We're kind of at a crossroads right now.
It's not far-fetched to believe that in our generation and kids and the generations that you grow up in,
that if you follow the basic tenets of Christianity,
you're going to be seen more and more as unloving, not loving.
You're going to be seen as a renegade.
You're going to be seen as extremist.
And I just want to prepare you for that because we have to be ready.
We have to be ready to love, okay?
And it's not something to be alarmed about, but it is something that we have to be aware of.
And this is why.
Because the world is really, really confused about the church, okay?
Most of the cars that drive by here that never set foot in here think what we do is really, really weird, okay?
I recently was watching a documentary of the band U2,
and they've rewritten the words to Sunday, Bloody Sunday,
to reflect more where the heart of what they've learned over the years is.
And this is what they said.
Here at the murder scene, the virus of fiction, reality TV,
Why so many mothers cry?
Religion is the enemy of the Holy Spirit guide, and the battle just begun.
Where's the victory Jesus won?
You ever asked that question?
That resonated with me.
He was coming from a heart of the love of Christ and wanting to share it,
but just creating that tension in those lyrics.
The world's confused about the church, and the world is longing for the love of Jesus.
And the culture is looking for an alternative to itself, not an echo of itself.
So how are we as Christians supposed to behave and live within a world that doesn't understand us
and is potentially hostile towards us?
Well, remember, though, it may appear more challenging to follow Jesus right now
than it has in the years before in your life,
it was also very difficult for those who followed Christ in the first century.
And they left us some really, really good notes.
The Word of God.
So let's read that today.
The Word.
I'm going to open it up and read it from my Bible,
because I just like reading it from my Bible.
Finally, all of you have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love,
a tender heart, and a humble mind.
Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling,
but on the contrary, bless.
For to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
For whoever desires to love life and see good days,
let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.
Let him turn away from evil and do good.
Let him seek peace and pursue it.
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.
This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grass withers and the flower fades,
but the Word of our God will stand forever.
And it is what we need.
It's what we need to learn,
and it gives us the direction that we need.
It's not changed.
God's love hasn't changed.
So a little bit about this.
Are you all familiar with the TV show Friday Night Lights?
It's an older show.
So Coach Taylor, one of the great TV characters,
he had this phrase that he would say,
clear eyes, full heart, can't lose.
Although I think he said full hearts.
I think there was an S on it, but you know.
Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose.
Well, this text that we just read,
think of Coach Peter, okay?
He's getting in our faces.
He's helping us see how we're supposed to be playing this game to win.
Now, let's start there with verse 8.
He says,
Finally, all of you,
finally, all of you,
have unity of mind, sympathy,
brotherly love, a tender heart,
and a humble mind.
Now, notice he doesn't start by looking outside the huddle.
Right?
Imagine him standing there, Coach Peter.
He says, he's talking to the team,
and he says,
Finally, all of you, right?
Which means that he doesn't mean some of you.
Okay?
What does all of you mean?
Anybody?
What does all of you mean?
Everybody.
Okay?
Every single one of us.
And the idea here is that
what he says after that
is how Christ calls
every single one of us
who proclaim faith in Christ
to live
within the church,
within the team,
and also
everywhere
all the time.
How many of you
love the smell of coffee in the morning?
Right?
Some of you,
I know there's some big coffee heads.
If it's not coffee,
maybe it's bacon.
Okay?
If it's not bacon,
maybe it's barbecue.
If it's not barbecue,
fill in the blank.
Maybe it's candy.
I don't know.
Sugar being made.
And cookies.
Something like that.
Right?
And when you smell that smell,
you ever woken up in the morning
and you had that smell
and you just feel like
one of those cartoon characters
that wants to float down
to where the smell is coming from,
it changes the environment.
And when we live the way
that Peter describes,
we're not going to echo the culture.
We're going to offer it
the very thing that it needs.
The aroma of God's grace.
But that happens
through Christ-centered community
and relationships
built on the foundation
of the Word of God
and Christ is the chief cornerstone.
But grace is that aroma.
I was talking with somebody
about that this morning.
Grace is the aroma.
And what does Coach Peter say?
He says,
unity of mind,
sympathy,
brotherly love,
tender heart,
humble minds can't lose.
Okay?
Think about this for a second.
Unity of mind.
Let's look at those phrases
for a second.
Unity of mind means
literally live in harmony.
Literally though,
be of the same mind.
Okay?
That can only happen
when we share the mind of Christ.
Where do you find the mind of Christ?
The Scriptures.
This is offered to us
every day
through the Scriptures.
Right?
And through the fellowship
of the Holy Spirit.
God in you.
Christ living in us
in this inseparable union
that happens through faith.
So the unity of mind
comes from the unity
of the mind of Christ
within us
that we apply towards one another.
And what does the sympathy mean?
So when we live in harmony
and we're of the same mind,
then we can enter
into the feelings of others.
Right?
Sympathetic comes from a Greek word
which means feeling with.
And it's probably better signified
by our English word empathy.
Okay?
And when we can enter
into the feelings of others,
then we're more properly positioned
to share God's love with them.
And that becomes that aroma of grace.
So it breaks down
the doors of hostility first.
And my guess is that
if you've ever been in a situation
where you felt like heard
and really understood
that whatever anger
you brought to that situation
probably went down a little bit.
Went down a couple levels.
Well, Peter's playing off
his discussion
that Will got to preach
last week and not me
about husbands and wives
in those previous verses.
And so here's the idea.
Having the unity of mind,
having the sympathy,
having this aroma of grace,
it takes time
and it takes hard work.
And it's very hard
to understand one another
even on the good days, right?
How much harder on the bad?
But all things are possible
through Jesus Christ
who gives us strength.
And it starts
by listening to each other.
Listening to hear
as we've been challenging
one another here recently.
The church, God's people,
the living stones,
which we talked about
a few weeks ago.
We're to be lights
and to be sanctuaries
out in the world.
Places of peace,
but first to each other
within here
so that this is a place of peace.
And then we take that peace
into the relationships around us.
And then we're properly
postured and positioned
to share that love of God.
And you can start
just simply by asking questions
and then listening.
Okay?
Listening to love.
Listening to hear
where the world is hurting.
And that, guess what?
That world is here.
We're hurting too.
Think about listening
to each other here
so that you can go listen
out there.
And then he goes on
to say humble mind,
brotherly love.
We'll start with
brotherly love, tender heart.
What does that mean?
Being tender hearted
comes more naturally
to some more than others, right?
However difficult
though that journey may be,
the early Christians
would have agreed
on the fact
that they were called
to become tender hearted
no matter how difficult it was.
That was going to be
a staple characteristic
of the community.
Humble mind,
what does that mean?
So humble mind
actually ties together
the three attitudes before it.
That phrase, humble mind.
And what I mean is that
if you have that humble mind,
you're going to have
those other three things.
And one commentator
describes it this way,
a humble mind
shows that the secret
of the character
described here
lies in a realistic estimate
of oneself
and a high concern
for others.
So it starts
by looking outside yourself
and putting a higher view
of that one outside of you
than yourself.
I love the language
of the,
there's a translation
of the Bible
called the message
and it's meant to be
as a tool,
not a replacement.
But it says it this way,
it helps to get my head
around these.
Be agreeable,
be sympathetic,
be loving,
be compassionate,
be humble.
That goes for all of you,
no exceptions.
And one of the things
that I also love
about Scripture
is how it interprets itself.
The Word of God
will help you understand
the Word of God.
And it reinforces itself.
And it's not just Coach Peter
who says these things.
And it's not just Coach Peter
who talks about this aroma
of grace.
So does Coach Paul.
And listen to what Coach Paul
says in Ephesians.
I therefore,
a prisoner for the Lord,
urge you to walk
in a manner worthy
of the calling
to which you've been called.
With all humility
and gentleness,
with patience,
bearing with one another
in love,
eager to maintain
the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace.
Okay, now some of you
may be thinking,
nope,
not going to do that.
Not possible for me
in my current situation
that I'm in.
You don't understand.
But it is.
Okay?
When we stop thinking
about ourselves,
which is hard,
guilty,
and we start calling
on the power of God,
amazing things can happen
in your relationships.
And remember,
what God is doing
with us as a church.
He said it earlier
in 1 Peter.
He's building us
into a spiritual house
where He dwells.
And how's all that happening?
Not through your power,
but through the power
of the Holy Spirit.
So before you give yourself
the test
and you're destined
to fail
on your own strength,
stop it.
Okay?
Take that to God,
whatever the situation is
that pops in your brain.
And remember,
He's at work in you.
He's the one
forming you
into these things.
But we have to start
by being honest
about where we need
to be that open door.
To open the door
of our hearts
and to be that open door
for the world
to talk to.
And the passage,
this passage,
gives us that opportunity
because it's possible
to have the Holy Spirit
in you.
It's a Holy Spirit resident,
but not president.
Okay?
So,
what does living this way
look like?
We'll go faster
through these.
Don't repay
evil for evil
or reviling for reviling.
But on the contrary,
bless,
for to this you are called
that you may obtain
a blessing.
So,
in another way,
you remember,
we talked a few weeks ago
about living stones.
Living stones
don't just sit.
Well,
Peter's giving us more info.
Living stones
are living blessings.
They go live blessings.
That's what we do.
That's what the stones do.
We live that blessing
to one another
and we go live
that blessing to the world.
And when we do,
the world sees
the power of God
at work in us
because we can't do that
on our own.
I was speaking with someone
this past week.
One of the most powerful things
in evangelism
to the world
is emotional health.
Did you know that?
That your wounds
are actually
the open door
to share the love of God.
But one of the things
that the world notices
the most
is how you're still walking.
And so focusing
on our own emotional health
is one of the greatest steps
towards evangelism
because it's one
of the greatest doorways
to talk about
where you found the healing.
And the world notices
that seems to be
one of the number one things
that makes us approachable
or not approachable
is
are you emotionally healthy?
Because they're watching
in this post-Christian world.
But Peter says
we're to bless
in verse 9.
So just like
humble mind
summed up verse 8.
Peter uses that word
bless to sum up
all of verses 8 and 9.
All of these attitudes
and virtues
of the heart
can be summed up
in that one word.
Bless.
And what does blessing mean?
One commentator says this
I love this definition.
The calling down
of God's gracious power
and love
on all people
even those
who wish to do us harm.
Who does that sound like?
Hmm.
Jesus.
Right?
Blessing instead of cursing.
Praying for those
who persecute.
Forgiving our debtors
as we have been
forgiven.
And how can we do this?
First by opening
the doors of darkness
in our own hearts
to the power
of the light
of the living God.
And only you
can open that door.
I can't open that for you.
Your neighbor
can't open that for you
but you can.
You can go and open
that door to God
right now.
You can call
on that resource
and that power
of the Holy Spirit
available nowhere else
than to God himself.
And when you do
he's going to come in there
and he's going to do
some business
in your heart
and he's going to show you
the relationships
in your life
that he's calling
you to
to have an impact
for him.
And typically
it's going to start
with the ones
that probably
aren't that great.
They're a mess.
That's okay.
I don't want that
to scare you.
That's the whole purpose
of needing a savior.
You're a mess.
You don't have it together.
Neither do I.
We're broken messes
but Jesus takes
broken things
and he makes them beautiful.
How?
Because he was broken.
And that's beautiful.
And he offers you
eternal life.
He was broken for you
so you don't have to go
be broken for yourself
and punish yourself
over and over.
In fact he's called you
to be a part
of cleaning up the mess.
And when you do
you're going to find purpose
but it starts
with relationships.
It starts with you
letting them in there.
Letting them in your heart
and look around.
Ask him to dwell there
and while he's in there
you've got to keep your eyes
on the scoreboard
and the scoreboard
says you win.
When you look around
the world
it says oh this is bad.
Scoreboard says we win.
Okay?
We win because Jesus wins.
We're going to talk
about that this week.
Right?
We get to see
the light
and the darkness
of the gospel story
as we lead
into this Easter week.
But only you
can open that door.
The message says it this way
no retaliation
no sharp tongue sarcasm
instead bless
that's your job
bless.
You'll be a blessing
and also get a blessing.
And what's the blessing?
First
it's this
that
you're going to experience
the blessing
of living a life
that doesn't retaliate
with anger.
You're going to have
freedom
from the prison of anger.
The prison of comparison.
It's only realized
through a life
of forgiveness.
forgiveness.
These are some
of the benefits
of asking Christ
to forgive you
is that you actually
get freedom.
And it's only possible
if you've experienced
true forgiveness
that's offered
through Jesus' blood.
And when you live
a life of forgiveness
like Peter described
you're oftentimes
going to be reviled
for it.
Okay?
But you will be free.
And what does
that freedom look like?
Unity of mind
sympathy
brotherly love
tender hearts
humble minds
not repaying evil
for evil
or reviling
for reviling
but blessing.
I've got
a student
who is in
one of our
youth groups
a dear student
who is in
a gender transition
right now
and
you know
with what happened
last week
I didn't
I wanted to reach out
because most of the world
and family
has abandoned him
but I still love him
and
he identifies
as a female now
so
it's still hard
for me to say that
to say him
so I just texted him
how you doing
with the recent news
he lives in Nashville
the world is so crazy
right now
I don't even have
much time to absorb it
taking this to heart
I said well you know what
it's a good time
for me to remind you
that I love you
you are bringing
something to the world
and I love you
you know
he sent something back
right
we're still
still in that relationship
there's an opportunity
to bless him
and then he returned
a blessing
and so you got
that blessing
of living that life
of forgiveness
not anger
we don't have to retaliate
we don't have to be
so up in arms
about everything
we should be
the least easily
offended people
on earth
if Christ is at work
in us
but the blessing
of freedom
also means
the future blessing
of hope
that you have
that scoreboard
that's been won
the eternal life
that's ahead
where you're going
to live
in the presence
of the one
who's forgiven you
is free
you're going
to worship
and experience
that new creation
forever
and you get
to take that invitation
right now
to the world
that's what you offer
them when you go
and enter into
the relationship
and you take
your hurt
and your emotional
unhealthiness
and talking about
how God
has gotten you
through it
guess what
they need that too
and ultimately
you get to hold
their hand
and take them
to Jesus
okay
then verses
10 through 12
there
whoever desires
to love life
and seek good days
don't you want
to love life
and seek good days
here's the key
let him keep
his tongue
from evil
and his lips
from speaking deceit
oh that's easy
let him turn away
from evil
and do good
okay
let him seek
peace
and pursue it
got it
for the eyes
of the Lord
are on the righteous
and his ears
are open
to their prayer
but the face
of the Lord
is against
those who do evil
may not seem so
but it is
may not seem so
when you look around
but it is ultimately
and one day
those two things
will line up
so Peter goes on
now
and this is what
I love too
about the reliability
of scripture
if you doubt
the trustworthiness
of this book
they quote
from things
that were written
hundreds and hundreds
of years earlier
and all these things
line up
you go look at your Bible
we've taken the oldest documents
and the newest documents
you compare them
it's 99.9999% accurate
yes there are some errors
in your Bible
but you know what
they're like punctuation
and little things
here and there
and it was transmission stuff
but there's no other document
that is as accurate
and attested to
as the scriptures
people aren't going to tell you
that very often
it's true
you can back it up
there's all the data
that's not a lie
so when you read this
know that what you're reading
is accurate
now what we do
with it is the hard part
right
it's telling us
to go do something
so Peter's going on now
to say
I'm backing all this up
with the Old Testament
just like he did
in chapter 2
about living stones
he backed it up
with the Old Testament
and then he talked
about the living stones
he quoted from Psalms
he's doing that again here
because he's a human
and he writes
and he has similarities
so living stones
are living blessings
so a life of blessing
doesn't curse
doesn't retaliate
it doesn't speak deceit
it doesn't pursue evil
it pursues peace
does that describe you
in your current relationships
with other Christians
does that describe you
in your current relationships
with those around you
it's hard
it's messy
but that's
that's what we're supposed to do
okay
are you doing it
blessed are the peacemakers
Jesus said
for they shall be called
sons of God
where is the Lord's
attentive ear
and caring eyes
they're on the righteous
it says
okay
well who are the righteous
how do you get that
for our sake
he made him to be sin
who knew no sin
so that in him
we might become
the righteousness of God
it's not us
it's foreign
it's an alien righteousness
that's given to us
by Jesus
and he paid the price
for the gift on the cross
so if we confess our sins
he's faithful and just
to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us
from all unrighteousness
aka we become
the righteous
and God's attentive eye
and listening ear
are always on
the righteous
that's you
if you have faith in Christ
he clothes you
in his righteousness
so in these verses
this is really cool
Peter's quoting
from Psalm 34
12 through 16
and this was a psalm
of thanks
for God to deliver David
remember he was
asking to be delivered
from king of Gath
okay
referred to as
Abimelech
in the title
of that area of your Bible
so David was delivered
from the king
after he
changed his behavior
is what it says
now do you remember
how he changed his behavior
to get out of there
he was trapped
so he tried to act
like he was going insane
he just started
you know
he just started
freaking out a little bit
to scare somebody
he did that
and the king
let him go free
so Peter's
playing off that theme
by quoting the psalm
and when
as Christians
when we live
the way he describes
get this
lives of freedom
in Christ
when we change
our behavior
the world's
going to think
we've gone mad
but we are the ones
who are set
free
isn't that beautiful
that's the blessing
that when we come to God
we're set free
though his face
is against the evildoer
his eyes
are on the righteous
so to turn your face
is to turn
your back
okay
we are called
to repent
and turn our back
on evil
and run
to him
but how
there's only one place
where God the Father
turned his back
on evil
and it was the evil
of our sin
and this
is why on the cross
Jesus bled
and he cried out
my God
why have you
forsaken me
that's true justice
why have you
turned your back
on me
God
it's a rhetorical
question
it's because
of us
and it's for us
so that we could have
the blessing
that Peter
is speaking of
in these verses
to be adopted
as children of God
and then to invite
others into the family
who has access
at all the times
to the loving ear
of King Jesus
who always has access
to the power
of forgiveness
who has always
the future hope
of heaven
and eternity
who possesses
this knowledge
this power
and carries it around
in their bodies
the church
okay
those who have been
adopted as sons
and daughters
of the living God
through faith
in the sacrifice
of Jesus
and live this life
of freedom
in Christ
unity of mind
sympathy
brotherly love
tender heart
humble minds
can't lose
the aroma
of God's grace
to a grace
and love
hungry world
and here's
why it matters
because the culture
is looking for
an alternative
to itself
not an echo
of itself
and a divided world
needs a united church
you are the church
that's you
remember your purpose
it's greater
than anything
you can conjure up
on your own
if you are a child
of God
you are a uniter
of this world
in the name of Jesus
by taking him to him
these verses
aren't just about
being moral
they're not about
trying harder
they're not about
doing better
they're about
remembering your
true identity
in Jesus
living stones
built on the
chief cornerstone
being built up
to that spiritual
house
literal walking
temples of the
Holy Spirit
living stones
who are living
blessings
living stones
who are the
children of God
and how we live
says something
really important
about dad
he knows
that when his
children get along
and treat one
another this way
other people want
to be in our
family
and it's so important
that we live this
way that he gave us
the Holy Spirit
the power of the
resurrection
to be able to
live this way
so the companionship
of Jesus
in every single
moment is available
to you
the place where
we're supposed to
be safe and
practice all of
this
is right here
and this is
what the world
needs to experience
from us
how
they do it
through you
so
in closing
church
who are you
I love this
quote
the church is a
beloved family
created by God
and redeemed by
the gospel
called to be the
primary means by
which God shows
and tells his story
of redemption in
Jesus
and he tells it
with your life
he tells it with
your wounds
he tells it with
all of the things
that he's made
you to be
and he's put
you uniquely
in one place
to go share
it with somebody
else
so what do
you do with
that
I challenge you
to look inside
first
okay
where do you
need to open
the doors of
darkness in your
heart to God
today and let
him walk around
okay
start there
so look inside
then look around
once you know
it's probably
going to be a
person that you
need to go do
something with
make something
right
call somebody
once you know
okay
go to that
person
if you need
help
take somebody
with you
and when you
go to that
person you
have to seek
peace
and sometimes
you have to
pursue it in
community
okay
you don't have
to go it
alone
we're living
stones right
and living
stones don't
just sit but
they hold one
another up
where two or
more are
gathered there
I am in
their midst
where do you
need to go be
that living
blessing today
in a relationship
in the same
way that
you would run
after your dog
if he bolted
out the door
and ran into
traffic
don't expect
peace to come
to you
when you
whistle
it has to be
pursued
all right
and that may
require us
learning some
new habits
it's all about
that freedom
of forgiveness
though
so look
inside
look around
and then go
live a blessing
seek that
peace
it's all
about that
freedom
and without
your brothers
or sisters
you can't
do it
okay
you just
can't do
it
so by the
power of the
Holy Spirit
though
at work in
us the church
you can go
proclaim Jesus
as alive to
this whole world
don't you want
to do that
let's go
proclaim him
as alive
because this
culture
is looking
for an
alternative
to itself
not an
echo
of itself
a divided
world needs
a united
church
and you
are the
church
let's pray
father
on this
Palm Sunday
I thank you
father that you
hold us
and that it
was your
palms
father
that held
the reins
of the
foal
it was your
palms that
washed the
feet of your
disciples
and father
it was your
palms that
were bound
to the
cross
and lord
you've come
to save
us
you've come
to redeem
us
and you've
come to
make us
yours
and Jesus
only you
father
can make
us
slave
for these
slaves of
sin and
fear and
despair
into prisoners
of hope
lord
jesus
you have
you are
and you
will forever
continue to
do that
thank you
lord for
these words
and that
prayer
those are
not my
words
that
scotty
smith
wrote
and lord
i pray
that you
would do
something
magnificent
with this
church
take us
into this
world
and use
us father
as those
blessings
praise you
god
it's in the
name of
jesus i pray
amen
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