The children may go or stay, but going is more normal, I suppose.
! So out you go. Thank you.
Let me read your Bibles this morning to John chapter 13. Let me read the passage, and I
want you to follow along in your own copy of the Scriptures, beginning there in verse
34. A new commandment I give you, that you love one another just as I have loved you,
you also are to love one another. By this, all people will know that you are my disciples
if you have love one for another. Since we don't have a problem with this passage, and
it's something we're pretty good at, I'm just going to pray that God helps me preach for
my own soul's edification. How's that? The rest of you just listen in and see how it applies.
But let's pray together. Our Father God, this morning we are so very thankful for the blessing
we have of being able to open the Scriptures and find in them words of life, truth.
We're thankful also for the fact that we who know the Lord Jesus Christ have the indwelling
Spirit, and one of His ministries to us is enabling us in listening, in understanding,
and applying the Scriptures. And we would ask that this morning you would do a work in our lives
that is powerful to the point that the unbelieving world marks the radical difference in our lives
from this day until you take us home. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
So I want to ask you a question. Just kind of think with me here for a minute at the start. And I do this
because I want to frame this lesson against the backdrop. The context is important. Question.
Do you think the disciples really, really loved each other a whole bunch?
Nod your heads like this or go like that. Okay. I'm kind of convinced that. Okay.
Are there any Bible indications that they struggled a little bit with getting along with each other?
Any Bible? I mean, after all, we're not up here to hear my opinion. We want to know what the Word says.
Right? Are there any Bible
information items that kind of tell us they
struggled a little bit with each other?
What were they arguing about this night?
Remember?
If you were to go, and don't need to, but if you were to look in Luke,
in the context of the Last Supper, you'll find that
they ended up in a dispute.
Now, you've got to understand that this was in the context
of Jesus breaking bread and sharing the cup and saying,
this blood is the New Testament.
This is my body, which is for you.
I'm going to die for your sins.
I am going to die because I love you,
and I'm going to die because I love the Father.
And here they are having their little intramural spat
about who's going to be what.
Can I tell you,
you can't be arguing about who's going to be the greatest
and really be in love with anybody other than yourself?
Okay.
Now, we've got the disciples in the bag.
We know where their hearts were, right?
Here's what I want you to do.
Just think with me just a minute.
I want you to make a short list.
I don't want you to cover everything,
but I just want you to make a short list of some people
that you honestly really don't like a whole lot.
I know you have to think hard.
But some people that you actually kind of struggle with,
even that are in the body of Christ,
I mean, you know, they irritate you.
They've offended you.
I appreciate pastor's prayer.
If it were not for the fact you know better as a believer,
you would go ahead and get involved in bitterness
and an unforgiving spirit, right?
But what happens when you have an unforgiving spirit?
Does anybody know what the Bible says,
the unintended consequence of that disobedient act is?
Matthew 18 says this.
You get turned over to the tormentors.
Some of the most miserable people I've ever met
are people that will not forgive.
Okay, so here we are.
We're just talking about the fact, short list,
some people that are really honestly a real challenge for you to love.
You got your list, right?
I grew up in India.
My parents were missionaries.
One of the things I learned in India
is that missionaries a lot of times leave the field because,
do you know why?
Why?
Because they can't get along with other missionaries.
I have had the privilege of serving here for 30 years.
Well, it will be 30 in December 30th, something like that, you know.
I have seen people come and go, sadly, profoundly saddening to me.
And one of the most common denominators
is they were having trouble with other people.
Yesterday, a number of us were taking oatmeal to homeless people.
Do you know what the number one common denominator is
over the years that I've discovered with people
that are in a homeless environment?
Do you know what it is?
They can't get along with other people.
I talked with an individual a couple months ago,
several months ago.
The dad and mom are attorneys here in Columbus
living under the bridge.
Reading a play by Moliere.
And you need to know the name,
so I'm just throwing them out there so you can hold on to them.
Right, Jared?
He's like, who cares?
But reading a French play and reading Oedipus Rex.
You know, it's like, I mean, these are important books to read.
And there he is, chattering at night, freezing,
because he doesn't like his mom and dad.
Met a guy yesterday.
Has a sister in Mount Sterling.
I mean, is that very far away?
Does anybody know?
Is that?
I'm teasing you.
It's like, I would rather sleep under the bridge
than sleep with my family, right?
Okay.
How does that happen?
You got your short list?
I want you to remember my prayer.
It's for me.
Lord, I want your word to make me different
than I am by nature.
I want to be a person who understands
what it is to love like Jesus loves.
Oh, add this little piece there.
Father, with the power of the Spirit of God.
Well, with that, let's get into the lesson.
And I want you to understand that
had you asked the disciples,
okay, so what is Jesus going to say
just, you know, like five hours
before he dies on the cross?
What is he going to say?
How many of you think,
I mean, if you didn't know the story
because you got the book,
but how many of you think that,
oh, yeah, yeah, I would talk about loving one another.
And so here we go with Jesus.
As he goes about the Last Supper,
the first thing that he does is
he gets involved in a Passover lesson.
And I want you to understand that
the way in which the Passover was constructed,
going all the way back to the book of Exodus,
and you don't need to go back there at this time,
but one of the characteristics of celebrating the Passover
is that it was a time of family instruction.
I'll just kind of recite the portion.
In Exodus chapter 12, verse 25 and 27, it says this,
And when you come into the land
that the Lord will give you as he promised you,
you shall keep this service.
And when your children say to you,
what do you mean by, why are we doing this?
You shall say to them,
it is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover,
for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel
in Egypt when he struck the Egyptians
but spared our houses.
So, in this pattern of conducting the Passover
in a very typical and traditional Jewish fashion,
one of the things that was wrapped up in that ceremony
and that service was teaching and instruction.
And so I have no doubt that in relationship
to that responsibility,
Jesus, as he conducted the Passover,
the Last Supper,
he actively engaged himself
in teaching critical lessons to his disciples.
And I've got to tell you that I am fully persuaded
that the disciples didn't get it.
I mean, do you think they did?
No.
But the benefit is that it was placed into their hearts
by the teaching of the Lord Jesus
recorded for us in the Scriptures
and enabled in terms of the ministry of the Spirit of God,
bringing back to remembrance
those things which he said,
for our sakes that we may grow
to be more like the Lord Jesus Christ.
And so I do think there is some significance
for us to stop and think here this morning
of just how important this particular portion
of the lesson must have been
for Jesus right on the other side
of Judas going out
and him saying,
now is the Son of Man glorified
and God is glorified in him.
He says, and by the way,
I've got a new commandment for you.
So what I want us to do now
as we frame this issue of here's the Passover lesson
and Jesus says,
I've got a new commandment for you.
Let's think a little bit about what is new.
What are we talking about here?
The newness of his command.
As we take up verse 34
and kind of put your finger on it there
and look, it's a new commandment.
We recognize that actually
this statement of loving other people
was not an entirely new idea.
It wasn't something that Jesus kind of
just invented on the spur of the moment
or thought up
because if you know the ministry of Christ,
one of the things that characterized it,
it was Bible rich.
What I mean by that is that
every time he had a lesson,
every time he had a statement,
you could track it back.
You could track it back to the Old Testament
that was just kind of the genesis of his teaching.
He who was the Word brought the Word forward.
Not new, but the Word that had already been given.
And you recognize that Moses had already given,
under God's instruction,
the commandment in Leviticus chapter 19, verse 18.
Take a look at that passage just for a moment.
Leviticus chapter 19, verse 18.
Let's go back there just for a second
and mark the instruction there.
Leviticus chapter 19, verse 18.
Leviticus chapter 19,
you shall not take vengeance
or bear a grudge against any of the sons
of your own people,
but you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Deuteronomy chapter 6 is the other one.
In Deuteronomy chapter 6, verse 5,
hear, O Israel,
the Lord our God,
the Lord is one,
and you shall,
what?
Can anybody say the rest of it?
You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart,
with all your soul,
and with all your mind.
And you'll remember that Jesus was asked
the question by a lawyer,
hey, by the way,
what's the greatest commandment?
Which one I really need to focus in on?
And Jesus said what?
Love the Lord your God
and love your neighbor as yourself.
So we have to ask ourselves the question,
it's a practical one,
so what's new about this?
Fair?
I mean, Jesus said,
he said what?
A new commandment.
What is new?
It helps us to understand,
first of all,
that the word that Jesus used for new
is a Greek word that refers to something
that is more impressive
or superior in value,
more attractive.
Now, this is not to be compared
with boxes of cereal,
but you and I have been trolled
innumerable times
by advertising that tells us
this is new and improved.
And the truth of the matter is
the packaging is new,
but the actual contents is less.
How many of you figured that one out?
It's like, what happened?
That box of Cheerios used to be this big
and now it's this big.
And it does have a fancier exterior,
but hey, I was into what was inside the box,
not the outside.
Can't eat that.
And so here's Jesus saying,
this is new.
He's saying,
this is something that is,
that's better.
And we have to stop
and ask ourselves the question,
where is the superiority
in this matter?
The newness of this command
lies actually in the benchmark
that Jesus set for loving.
So keep in mind the passage
that we have over in Leviticus
that I just recited
where it said,
love your neighbor as yourself.
Here is Jesus saying,
I want to kind of up this a little bit.
I want you to love one another
like I have loved you.
And so the newness lies in this matter
of the comparison
and the connection he is making
with the expectation
that you and I love one another
the way he loves us,
not the way you love yourself.
Now let me get over on a side here
just for a moment
because it continues to be
one of these things
that just stuns me.
I can remember having a conversation
with an individual
that had been engaged in immorality
and gross behavior.
And as he was,
how many of you have learned
that in counseling
it's always good to start out
by listening longer than anything?
Take time and hear
what a person has to say.
And this person was just going on
about all the filth and vile.
And I asked him a question
after he'd talked for a long time.
I said,
so why do you think you did that?
I mean, you know,
I expected a Sunday school answer.
The guy said he was a believer.
He's like, oh, I sinned.
Now here's what he said.
He said,
I guess I didn't love myself enough.
I was like, what?
Now one of the things
that goes with being 68
is you learn just kind of like,
uh-huh, yeah.
Yeah, that was really good.
I didn't do that.
I just kind of,
no, I didn't.
You just have to act like,
yeah, I get it.
But I said, you know,
your problem wasn't loving yourself.
Your problem is
you're just focused entirely on yourself.
You're really full of yourself.
I didn't say it exactly that way.
It was a little slower.
But here's my point.
The church of the living God
has bought into the unbeliever's mindset
that the starting of all of our getting it all right
is loving ourself.
Jesus wasn't saying,
guys, you need to get a handle
on how much you love yourself.
He was saying,
let's get an idea
of how you ought to love other people.
At least kind of bring it up in your game
to the way you love yourself.
How many of you love yourselves?
No, I don't want to admit it publicly,
but are you good at that one?
Try this.
Hit your thumb with a hammer one time.
Your entire psyche wraps up with saying,
don't do that again.
Do you follow me?
It's really, you got the memo.
It's like, I like my thumb.
Don't be so, you know,
you got my point, right?
We love ourselves.
And Jesus says, hey, you know,
you need to get into this a little more.
And by the way,
the newness also relies
or lies in this issue of
the frame of reference
that Jesus was pointing to
was new,
was superior.
So Jesus here is calling his disciples,
in fact, he is calling us,
to love one another like he loves us.
How many are doing well at that?
Come on, just say to me,
I am.
I'm really good.
I love people like Jesus loves me.
Liar.
I mean, you know.
Any of you here struggle
with being a little judgmental?
I mean, when, you know,
the first thought that you have
is not sweetness and light,
you know.
Someone is five minutes late
and you don't immediately think,
oh, they may have gotten struck
by a train, you know.
You're just thinking,
yeah, they don't care about me.
My time is really important.
Or someone doesn't answer your text,
you know, the full day
and you think to yourself,
well, if they cared more,
they would keep their watch chart.
You know,
they have all kinds of things
that help them know
when I'm texting.
And when I'm texting,
it's, you know,
it's not God,
but it's close.
Jesus says,
hey, you're to love one another
the way He loves you.
And the truth of the matter is,
is loving other people
the way we love ourselves
does have some inconsistency
and is insensitive.
How many of you have to admit
there are times that
you aren't very impressed
with yourself?
I mean, you admit it.
But the fact of the matter is
that Jesus calls us
to a standard of love
that absolutely surpasses
the best we do
at loving ourselves.
So when we love like Jesus loves,
our love goes to a far higher,
nobler,
and spirit-enabled plane.
I want you to hold on to that fact.
Because if you walk out of here
this morning thinking to yourself,
all right,
I need to up my game
and I have got a list
of three people
that I'm just going to really focus
on loving more.
And you go and stop at
Walmart,
Meyers,
CSV,
I don't want to name all of them,
but you know,
you're going to get five cards
and you're going to make
a little list
and you're going to put it on you
and you're just going to go
all hog wild to do this
and you don't recognize
that you can't pull it off
apart from the Spirit of God,
you're missing the point.
When we love like Jesus loves,
we're going to step it
to a spirit-enabled plane.
So let's think a little bit
about how Jesus actually loves us.
Now, for the sake of continuity,
I'm going to stay primarily
within the frame
of John chapter 13.
John 13 has enough information
of how Jesus loved
that we don't have to go beyond it.
Now, I want to tell you this morning
for me to propose to you
that John chapter 13
kind of presses together
all the important information
about the love of Christ
would be wrong
and I couldn't do that
because for one,
in Ephesians chapter 3,
verse 14 through 19,
what does Paul say?
How many of you know it
without looking?
You should.
For this cause I bow the knee.
Well, what's he going to pray for?
He's going to pray
that we might be able
to comprehend with all the saints
what is the breadth
and height and width
and depth of the love of Christ.
How big is the love of Christ?
How big?
It is mind-blowing.
But at least,
for this morning's lesson,
I want us to think about
the love of Christ
as we see framed here
in John chapter 13.
So, first of all,
I want you to understand
that the love of Christ
is settled in its unwavering commitment.
It is settled
in its unwavering commitment.
John chapter 13, verse 1,
it says here,
Now before the feast of the Passover,
when Jesus knew that His hour
had come to depart
out of this world to the Father,
having loved His own
who were in the world,
He loved them to the, what?
He loved them to the end.
Aren't you glad
that He loves you to the end?
Huh?
He hasn't changed His mind.
I'm trying to think of the author.
Pastor Saul,
can you bail me here?
David Platt,
I'm thinking,
There's nothing you can do
that will make Jesus love you more,
and there's,
I'm waiting for a nod
from somebody.
Just nod
to make me feel better.
There's nothing you can do
that will make Jesus love you more,
and there's nothing you can do
that will make Jesus love you less.
That's really hard to believe,
isn't it?
I mean,
we are in a performance-based world.
Isn't that right?
Huh?
I love this statement.
The love of Christ is settled
in its unwavering commitment.
That means that when we love like Jesus,
we know up front
that it's going to cost us
more often than not.
Courtship,
I'm talking about
between a young man and a woman,
are usually,
I call it hide-and-seek, actually.
It's not full disclosure.
You never want to talk about,
you know,
all the things that really come
with marriage,
but, you know,
it's like,
I am going to be the answer
to all of your dreams.
I mean,
I am the best thing going.
I am going to satisfy your interests.
I will love on you.
It's just going to be wonderful.
It would probably be wise
in pastoral counseling
on premarital to say,
do you realize
what you're signing up for?
Huh?
Do you understand
what's going to happen?
You're going to spend
the rest of your life.
You're going to hand over
your check.
You're going to run up
and down steps
for a drink of water.
You're going to move furniture
until you die.
Yes!
She's in the nursery today.
When we love like Jesus,
we understand
that it's going to cost us something.
When we love like Jesus,
we do not walk away
from relationships
because of the disappointments
that come with them
and the frailties
that are involved in that.
Loving like Jesus
means we don't say,
pay attention
because these are some things
that when you're counseling
other people,
you can help them with.
When we're loving like Jesus,
we don't say,
here we go.
Are you ready?
Write this down
so you can pick it up
on helping others.
I'm not getting my needs met.
You ever heard of that said?
I'm not getting my needs met?
Or here's another one.
Stinky, stinky.
I didn't sign up for that.
You heard that one?
I didn't sign up for that.
What?
Loving like Jesus?
Can you imagine Jesus saying that?
What?
It settled
in its unwavering commitment.
Second thing about the love of Christ,
it is joyfully sacrificial to the end.
As you look at John chapter 13,
here is Jesus at the table
in verse 3 and 4.
Jesus, knowing that the Father
had given all things into His hand,
that He was come from God
and was going back to God,
He knew exactly what was going to happen.
And as He was there at the table
with His disciples,
that He loved unconditionally
and with an unwavering love,
He knew that His life
was going to be sacrificed for them
and it was joyful in doing so.
I think about the passage in Hebrews
where it says this,
There are times when we're going to sacrifice our rights.
We're going to sacrifice our preferences.
I remember a dear saint came to me once
and said,
Pastor, I've been led to believe
that you prefer hymns
over some of these more contemporary songs.
And I said,
Yes, I do.
And this dear saint said,
Well, then why don't we sing more of them?
And I said,
Well, let me tell you,
when we have dinner at the Kenoyer Home,
I never fix a meal
that is reflective of just my personal preferences.
I fix a meal to the preferences of the children
that God has blessed me with.
I grew up in India
and I can eat it as hot as you can make it.
In fact, I like it that way.
I prefer it that way.
And any of you here that on occasion
have decided to go spoon for spoon,
you understand that I can stay with you.
But here's the deal.
Love gives away some of those preferences
because of people that you genuinely love.
I got to tell you,
my mom knocks me out of the park.
She's with Jesus now.
But I remember when she began that process
of adapting to more contemporary music.
It was like nails on the chalkboard.
Do you follow what I'm saying?
There was a learning curve.
There really was for Marlia.
But she loved Jesus
and she loved others.
And when it came time to do her funeral,
one of the songs was one of the more contemporary ones
that we sing here as a congregation.
And when we had that service,
you guys knocked it out of the park.
I remember your dad.
Same thing.
You cannot love like Jesus
without being willing to give away your preferences.
By the way,
if you're going to love like Jesus,
you're also going to have to learn a whole lot about forgiving.
Will you write that down?
We are hardwired for justice.
Isn't that right?
Huh?
Justice?
Merchant of Venice,
some of us play Shylock to the extreme.
It's like,
I want my pound of flesh
and it's going to be your heart.
You can't be faithful in loving like Jesus
and not be well-practiced at forgiving other people.
Well,
there's a third thing that I want you to see here.
It is a sanctifying love.
You find there,
as Jesus goes about washing his disciples' feet,
you'll remember that Peter was all about,
you're not washing mine.
And Jesus says,
oh yeah,
I am,
or you don't have anything to do with me.
And it really comes down to that.
This business of washing the feet
is kind of a word picture,
an image of this business of progressive sanctification,
dealing with the grit and the crud of daily living.
And Jesus is into that.
And that means if you're going to love like Jesus,
that you are conscious and deliberate
in going about building other people up.
Are you listening?
Dad,
so what's your plan
for helping your boy learn
how to be a godly leader in his home
before he walks out the door at 18 or so
and is on his own?
Are you going to nurture godliness?
We do a much better job
of teaching our children how to work
than how to walk godly.
There's nothing wrong
with teaching your children how to work.
That's important.
But,
it's more important
to teach your children
what it is to walk uprightly
before the Lord.
What does it say in Micah?
Love mercy,
do justice,
walk humbly with your God.
Get those down.
And here we look at
the sanctifying ministry of Christ.
His interest was in
the ministry to the disciples.
There's a fourth point
that I want you to recognize
if you're going to love like Christ.
Christ's love was spirit-enabled
in its power.
Now,
I don't want to overemphasize this
to the point of diminishing
the entirety of the divine nature
of Jesus,
but at the same time,
Jesus, the Son of Man,
was dependent on the Spirit
for His earthly ministry.
I love the summary statement
that you find
over in Acts chapter 10, verse 38.
And let's turn there,
lest you think I just kind of
come off the top of my head
with this,
but Acts chapter 10, verse 38.
If you're going to love like Jesus,
you're going to have to rely
upon the Holy Spirit.
Remember the list of three people
that you struggle with loving?
You have them.
I know you.
Most of you.
Some of you.
Okay, you got your list.
You can't do it without the Holy Spirit.
Acts chapter 10, verse 38.
Let me read it to you.
How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth
with the Holy Spirit
and with power,
and He went about doing good
and healing all who were oppressed
by the devil,
for God was with Him.
How was God with Him?
In the Holy Spirit's presence,
enabling His ministry.
Jesus had the Spirit
without measure.
No restraint,
no restriction.
Here is the encouraging piece
to us.
Listen,
if you're sitting here
and thinking
that you actually need
to walk out of here
and kind of pick up
your energy just a little bit
and be a little more loving
towards maybe two or three people
on the list occasionally,
that's not the purpose
and vision that Jesus had
in this lesson to His disciples.
You cannot love effectively
like Jesus calls us to love
apart from a persistent dependence
on the Holy Spirit.
I love Galatians chapter 5, verse 16.
I was reciting it to myself
over and over again this morning.
How many of you know it?
Walk.
Help me out here.
How many of you?
Just raise your hand.
Just nod at me like you know it.
You know the verse.
Stop just for a second.
Everybody know it.
If you don't know the verse,
it may be because you haven't thought
it necessary to know it.
Right?
Illustration.
I bet you I could call on
Dr. Radcliffe
or Dr. Malumba
and they could give me
a fairly reasonable explanation
of what it is to have
tachycardia.
Could you do that?
Bang.
If I said to them
I've had PVCs,
they could answer all the details.
Do you know why they know those things?
Because it's,
hello,
it's important to their well-being
and mine.
Are you listening?
Galatians chapter 5 verse 16,
walk by the Spirit
and you will not fulfill
the lusts of the flesh.
And if you don't have that verse
on the short list,
maybe you're just so adept at this
you don't need the Holy Spirit's help.
Okay?
A little snarky.
Forgive me for that.
I mean that.
I would plead with you.
You can't love the way
Jesus wants you to love
unless you have the enabling
of the Holy Spirit.
So when we love like Jesus,
we're going to do it in a manner
that is beyond our natural bent.
We're going to go beyond
what it is to love ourselves.
And we're only going to be able
to do it through the power
of the Spirit.
So let me push this
to this point.
His expectation is that
you love like Him
backed up by the power
of the Spirit of God.
You need to get that in your mind.
His expectation is that
you love like Him
backed up by the power
of the Spirit of God.
And it would be extremely frustrating
and unfair to call us
to love like Him
apart from the enabling
of the Spirit of God.
Does that make sense?
Do you understand the logic
of what I said?
It would be unfair to say
here's what you ought
to be doing
and not recognize
or encourage you to understand
here's where the empowerment
comes from.
Take a look just for a second.
You're there in John
or you were in Acts
but I want you to go
to Romans chapter 8
verse 4 and 5.
Romans chapter 8
verse 4 and 5.
Let me go ahead and read verse 3.
For God has done
what the law weakened
by the flesh could not do
by sending His own Son
in the likeness of sinful flesh
and for sin He condemned sin
in the flesh
in order that the righteous requirement
of the law might be fulfilled in us
who walk not according to the flesh
but according to the Spirit.
Do you understand what that's saying?
I don't have to be the way I am.
If you don't think
that's pretty good news
let me say it again.
I don't have to be like I am.
For those who live
according to the flesh
set their minds
on things of the flesh.
You wonder why you're thinking
the way you are?
There's the word.
But those who live
according to the Spirit
set their minds
on the things of the Spirit.
Now, what is it like
to set your mind
on the things of the Spirit?
It means that when those things
of the flesh
go zinging by
you say
no, no, no
that's not
no, no
not that one.
You got me?
Going back to the passage
in John
if the idea of loving
with an unwavering commitment
with a sacrificial joy
with a planned effort
to bless the ones you love
seems incredibly hard
and very frankly
impractical
then you must confess
either that you do not know
the Lord Jesus Christ
and the expectations
of His word
are just beyond
your imagination
or
you are a believer
who is not appreciating
the blessing
of living much
of the Christian life
with the power
of the indwelling Spirit.
You know what Jesus said
to His disciples?
He said,
listen
it's a good thing
that I'm going
because guess what?
You get the Spirit.
It's good for you.
You need the Spirit.
That brings me
to one more
incredible truth
and I'll close with it.
Go back to the passage
in John
and just be struck
by what it says there
in John chapter 13
verse 35.
By this all people
will know
that you're my disciples
if you have love
for one another.
By this
all people
will know
that you are
my disciples
because you have
love for one another.
Now it's not
the only way
that the unbelieving
world knows
that we're His
disciples
and the unbelieving
world is used
to looking for
signals as to
what your faith
or your religion
is.
I mean hey
if you're an Amish
person guess how
you can pick out
an Amish person
if you're up
around Millersburg.
How do you do it?
How many
buttons?
I mean hey
what is a zipper?
Not to be had
by a good Amish man.
Okay.
Hats.
I mean do you
follow what I'm
saying?
I was up in
I went to
Lehman's.
How many of you
know Lehman's?
I had to go.
Okay.
And sure enough
there was buggy
parking.
I didn't park there
but you know
you can tell
the Amish.
How many of you
can pick out
a Muslim?
How many of you
can pick out
a Muslim today?
What's a giveaway
of a Muslim woman?
What?
Are we this
culturally
a headscarf?
I mean
I was at
Home Depot
the other day
and there's a guy
there named
Mohammed.
I'm a frequent
flyer at Home Depot.
They know me
and I'm talking
to the guy
and I noticed
that he had
actually left
where he was
working normally
and he was
walking around
with a young lady
and an older woman
and I could tell
by the way
they were talking
that they were
related and so
I said to Mohammed
I said
I want to tell
your mother
that you are
a fine young man
and I held out
my hand.
Mohammed said
oh
she won't touch
that.
Tim Kenoyer
should know better
it's like
I'm sorry
Muslim women
do not what?
What?
They don't touch
the hands of men
I mean
die and go to
wherever
you know
but
can you pick out
Muslims?
Yes.
How many of you
can pick out
Sikhs?
Do you know
what a Sikh is?
Sikhs.
How many of you
have seen Sikhs
with turbans?
They never
cut their hair
never cut
their hair
in all
of life.
It does
fall out
occasionally
but
a Sikh
also wears
a steel
bangle
around his
wrist
if he's
a good
one.
So Jesus
says
you don't
have to
wear a
steel
bangle
you don't
have to
have a
dot
you know
what a
tikka is
right here
between the
eyebrow
if you're
a Hindu
our
neighbor
put out
a website
called
connect
the dots
it's a
little bit
like
e-harmony
for
Hindus
okay
took you
a while
I know
it's a
little slow
on the
uptake
you know
but
connect
the dots
duh
so how
do you
pick out
Christians
huh
no red
dots
no lots
of hair
you know
you
we
are to
be
marked
by our
deep
love
for
one
another
our
deep
love
for
one
another
and I
thought
very
quickly
just
what
was
the
early
church
so
good
at
that
there's
a lot
of
history
about
how
the
early
church
took
care
of
each
other
and
you
can
work
through
the
book
of
Acts
you
can
work
through
books
on
church
history
for
one
they
cared
for
one
another
in
times
of
need
remember
in
the
early
church
in
the
book
of
!
Acts
church
but
there
were
people
who
got
the
idea
that
hey
why
work
and
what
did
Paul
say
if
you
don't
work
you
don't
eat
so
we
see
the
pendulum
going
back
and
forth
but
they
were
willing
to
help
each
other
the
early
church
rescued
abandoned
babies
to the
point
that
a lot
of
people
came
to
Christ
through
the
ministry
of
the
early
church
and
rescuing
abandoned
babies
they
took
care
of
the
sick
that's
really
interesting
isn't
it
if
norovirus
had
happened
in the
lobby
of
the
new
testament
church
how
do
you
think
the
church
would
have
acted
I
won't
go
there
email
me
they
protected
one
another's
reputation
okay
so
when
someone
comes
to
you
and
has
something
to
say
you
can
say
hey
how
did
it
go
when
you
practice
Matthew
18
step
one
to
go
real
well
they
protected
one
another's
reputation
they
spoke
well
of
one
another
and
they
served
one
another
I'll
tell
you
one
of
the
things
that
has
been
a
consistent
testimony
of
this
ministry
has
been
the way
we
take
care
of
each
other
when
people
are
sick
and
when
people
need
to
move
and
over
and
over
again
when
we
are
John
where
are
you
when
you
left
your
neighborhood
everybody
I gotta
hire
two
men
in
a
truck
and
they're
not
very
happy
and
all
these
people
parked
up and
down
the
streets
carrying
boxes
and
you
know
having
a
great
time
so
we
are
to
be
marked
by
the
joy
of
spirit
enabled
obedience
and
we
are
to
be
marked
in
such
a
fashion
that
the
unbelieving
world
looks
at
the
way
we
care
for
one
another
and
says
wow
they
must
be
following
Jesus
so
let's
close
in a
practical
way
I
would
venture
to say
that the
truth of
the matter
is
is that
every
one
of us
here
have
more
to do
at
learning
to
love
like
Jesus
loved
isn't
that
right
and
if
you're
kind
of
giving
yourself
a
pat
on
the
back
go
back
to
that
list
of
three
people
you're
really
struggling
with
Jesus
doesn't
have
people
like
that
on
his
list
for
the
reasons
you
have
them
there
and
you
go
to
the
Lord
and
say
Lord
I
want
the
enabling
of
the
Spirit
of
God
to
love
like
you
do
I
want
to
love
others
like
Jesus
loves
me
let's
close
in
prayer
God
to
Father God
this
morning
as we
attend
to
the
word
of
God
we
recognize
that
it
speaks
with
authority
in
our
lives
and
its
purpose
is to
help us
see the
Lord
Jesus
Christ
Lord
of
glory
Savior
of
the
world
the
one
who
came
to
die
for
our
sins
and
rise
again
that
we
might
be
his
children
that
we
might
be
examples
and
witnesses
to
his
glory
and
Lord
the
purpose
of
preaching
is to
put us
on the
spot
of
saying
yes
or
no
to
God
and
this
morning
the
word
of
God
convicts
us
that
we
who
know
Christ
blood
bought
need
to
work
at
loving
one
another
as
we
ought
to
we
don't
want
to
have
a
short
list
we
want
to be
like
Jesus
and
so
quietly
and
deliberately
this
morning
we
ask
for
your
spirit
to
convict
us
and
that
from
this
day
forward
we
are
growing
in
our
love
in
a
conscious
and
deliberate
fashion
and
we'll
give
you
the
glory
we
ask
in
Jesus
name
amen
let's
stand
together
as
we
sing
and
to