WEBVTT 00:00:37.039 --> 00:00:37.520 Awesome. 00:00:37.600 --> 00:00:40.960 Well, good morning and uh welcome uh to church at the grove. 00:00:41.119 --> 00:00:44.560 If you are a guest or a visitor with us, we want to say a special welcome to you. 00:00:44.640 --> 00:00:49.359 Uh and if I had the chance to meet you, my name is Nathan, and I'm one of the pastors here. 00:00:49.520 --> 00:00:57.200 And uh special welcome to people that are here in the room with us, and if you're watching with us online this morning, we want to say a special welcome to you as well. 00:00:57.439 --> 00:01:02.079 And uh here at Church of the Grove, we are more than just about people consuming content. 00:01:02.240 --> 00:01:08.640 We want people to actually connect and we want to help people kind of journey along their faith journey and help them along in that process. 00:01:08.719 --> 00:01:12.319 And so the best way that we can help you is to get connected with you. 00:01:12.400 --> 00:01:20.000 And so if you are a guest or a visitor with us, we'd love to connect with you, and we can do that best through what we call our encounter card. 00:01:20.079 --> 00:01:30.719 And uh you can fill that out uh through our Church at the Grove app by scanning the little QR code of the chair in front of you, or on your way out, you can uh fill out a physical card at our connections desk. 00:01:30.799 --> 00:01:50.079 We'd love just to get a record of your visit, give you a little gift this week, and uh through the mail just to say thank you so much for being part of our services today, and uh just then give you some resources of how you can grow in your faith, how you can take some next steps, and how we can kind of help partner with you in your faith journey and help you uh kind of succeed in your faith journey. 00:01:50.239 --> 00:02:01.280 But uh this morning we're continuing this series that we started a few weeks ago called Build Your House, and uh we've been talking about how to build our lives on the truth of Jesus. 00:02:01.519 --> 00:02:06.719 And Jesus, at the end, at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, he makes this statement. 00:02:06.879 --> 00:02:10.960 He tells this story of a wise builder and a foolish builder. 00:02:11.120 --> 00:02:17.280 And he says that the wise builder hears my teaching and they put my words into practice. 00:02:17.439 --> 00:02:22.240 They build their house on the solid foundation of my teaching. 00:02:22.400 --> 00:02:30.719 They put the words into practice, and they, when the storms of life come and they beat against the house, the house stands securely. 00:02:30.960 --> 00:02:42.719 But the one that hears my teaching and doesn't put it into practices is like the foolish builder who, when the storms come, they wipe the house away and they cannot stand. 00:02:43.039 --> 00:02:54.240 And so we say we wanted to be a people, we want to be a church that built our lives, built our homes, built our houses on the firm foundation of God's word and what Jesus ultimately teaches us. 00:02:54.479 --> 00:02:59.039 And it's not just about hearing his word, but it's actually about putting it into practice. 00:02:59.120 --> 00:03:06.400 And this morning is a very difficult passage to put into practice, as we'll soon find out. 00:03:06.639 --> 00:03:12.879 Um, a couple years ago, uh Caitlin and I uh we got tickets to go uh to the Fox Theater. 00:03:12.960 --> 00:03:29.520 Uh, the Lion King was in town, uh, the Broadway performance, and so we were gonna go down for the night, and instead of uh making a drive down for the theater and then coming back that same night, we thought it would be best just to stay down there for the night and get away from the kids. 00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:32.080 Uh the kids had been sick that week, from what I remember. 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:37.199 They were throwing up and like sick, and we were just like, we want to get as far away as we possibly can from the kids. 00:03:37.280 --> 00:03:40.560 And so uh we decided we were gonna get a hotel room down in Atlanta. 00:03:40.639 --> 00:03:48.639 And so uh we had some credit card points that we were able to pull together, and uh we were able to get a night's stay at the Ritz-Carlton down in Atlanta. 00:03:48.719 --> 00:03:54.000 Now, the typical hotels that we stay at typically have the word in in the end of them, right? 00:03:54.080 --> 00:04:00.240 It's holiday inn, you know, holiday in express is like a really nice thing for us, and so um that's typically where we're going. 00:04:00.400 --> 00:04:06.080 We're not staying at the Ritz-Carlton typically, um, but that's just where we happen to be able to stay at this trip. 00:04:06.159 --> 00:04:11.120 And so we drive down, we pull into the Ritz-Carleton little portico there. 00:04:11.199 --> 00:04:12.879 It's the valet parking. 00:04:13.039 --> 00:04:30.800 And you know, the Ritz-Carleton is known for their customer service and for their guest experience, and so we pull in and they open the door for us, and you know, everybody else is getting out in their Acaras and their BMWs, and we're pulling up in our Honda minivan that's got Cheerios, and it's nasty and dirty and stuff. 00:04:30.879 --> 00:04:31.839 It's so embarrassing. 00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:42.000 And we get out of our car and we hand the guy our keys, and they're such incredible people, greeting us so warmly, and we tell them our names, and they're like, Thank you so much for being here, Mr. 00:04:42.079 --> 00:04:42.399 and Mrs. 00:04:42.560 --> 00:04:42.959 Boy. 00:04:43.040 --> 00:04:45.759 We are so glad that you are staying with us today. 00:04:45.920 --> 00:04:53.920 And then they grab our bags out of the back of the van and um they be proceed to carry them into the lobby of the hotel. 00:04:54.079 --> 00:04:55.519 Now, this is not normal for us. 00:04:55.680 --> 00:05:02.879 Normally we're having to lug all of our luggage in by ourselves, but they're carrying the luggage in with for us, and then they go and park the car for us. 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:18.160 And we go into the lobby and we walk up to the uh check-in desk, and there's one person in front of us, and so we kind of get in line, and it's immediately when we get in line, uh somebody immediately appears behind the check-in desk so that we don't have to wait in line. 00:05:18.240 --> 00:05:22.959 Like another guest relation person comes in and she says, I can help you over here, sir. 00:05:23.040 --> 00:05:29.600 And so we step forward, and the guy, the bellhop that had our bags, walks up to the desk with us, and he says, This is Mr. 00:05:29.680 --> 00:05:30.079 and Mrs. 00:05:30.160 --> 00:05:33.439 Boyd, and they are checking in for a night's stay tonight. 00:05:33.519 --> 00:05:42.480 And um, he introduces us to the lady behind the desk by name, and um she says, We're so thankful that you are staying with us today, and it's my pleasure to take care of you. 00:05:42.560 --> 00:05:47.279 And so she proceeds to, you know, get all the details and all the information and get us our keys and stuff. 00:05:47.360 --> 00:05:57.040 And while all that's taking place, they've got somebody else walking around with a tray of complimentary champagne that they're passing out to all of their guests that are checking into the hotel. 00:05:57.120 --> 00:06:00.240 And this was the first five minutes of being in the hotel. 00:06:00.399 --> 00:06:04.160 And I thought, man, this is a great place to stay, right? 00:06:04.319 --> 00:06:11.040 And it made me think, man, like if if I could afford it, I would stay at the Ritz-Carlton all the time, right? 00:06:11.199 --> 00:06:13.680 If I had the money, I would totally do that. 00:06:13.839 --> 00:06:24.959 And I've read some books on the Ritz-Carlton, and I've read some biographies on a guy named uh Horse Hortz Schultze, who's kind of got the guy that kind of founded it and kind of put it on the map. 00:06:25.120 --> 00:06:37.839 And uh every employee of the Ritz-Carlton walks around with a laminated card in their pocket that says, we are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen, that they are people of value. 00:06:38.079 --> 00:06:43.360 They're not just servants serving other people, but they are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen. 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:52.399 And that they have three steps of service, that they want to have a warm and sincere greeting when people arrive, which we totally were uh privy to that. 00:06:52.480 --> 00:07:00.399 Um they want to use the guest names and they want to anticipate in the fulfillment of each guest's needs, and then they want to give every guest a fond farewell. 00:07:00.560 --> 00:07:05.759 They want to give them a warm goodbye, and they want to again use the guest name over and over and over. 00:07:05.839 --> 00:07:08.000 They want to make them feel like they belong. 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:10.800 And that's exactly how we felt in our time there. 00:07:10.959 --> 00:07:12.079 And we remember that. 00:07:12.240 --> 00:07:18.560 Now, there's a lot of other hotels that we've stayed at over the course of our life that are forgetful, that we don't really remember. 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:28.879 There's some hotel stays that we've had that have been very, very bad and have been super negative, and we won't ever go back there, but we remember this stay because we were treated so well. 00:07:29.040 --> 00:07:31.279 And you we've all had those opportunities, right? 00:07:31.360 --> 00:07:39.600 We've all had places we've gone or restaurants we maybe went to where we just experienced incredible service, right? 00:07:39.759 --> 00:07:54.399 You've gone to that restaurant before where the waiter or the waitress just went above and beyond, not just doing their job, but they went above and beyond doing everything they could to take care of you and to serve you and give you that kind of wow experience. 00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:58.240 Um, Chick-fil-A has kind of branded themselves in this way. 00:07:58.480 --> 00:08:04.800 For a fast food restaurant, they have gone the extra mile to serve their customers. 00:08:04.959 --> 00:08:19.759 I mean, if you think about just the drive-thru experience with Chick-fil-A, every other fast food restaurant, you have to pull up and you have to talk into a speaker box, and they have to kind of navigate through and you have to kind of decipher what is being said through the box. 00:08:19.839 --> 00:08:30.639 But Chick-fil-A, they've got like 15 employees out there directing traffic and taking your order and taking payment and walking your food out to your car and making sure that you are taken care of. 00:08:30.800 --> 00:08:39.279 And they're all 16 and 17-year-old kids, and they're all saying, My pleasure when you talk to them at the end of your conversation. 00:08:39.519 --> 00:08:44.639 They've prided themselves on making the best guest experience that they possibly can. 00:08:44.799 --> 00:08:48.000 And as a result, people love to go to Chick-fil-A. 00:08:48.240 --> 00:08:52.559 Their food's good, but the service is really what keeps people coming back. 00:08:52.879 --> 00:08:54.720 We remember those opportunities. 00:08:54.879 --> 00:08:57.039 We remember when we're well taken care of. 00:08:57.120 --> 00:09:00.320 And this isn't true in just the food and hospitality industry. 00:09:00.480 --> 00:09:02.960 This is true in our relationships as well. 00:09:03.200 --> 00:09:08.399 When we meet someone that goes above and beyond and serves us, we don't forget it. 00:09:08.559 --> 00:09:20.720 Caitlin and I have friends of ours that um, you know, they live in other states, and like we'll randomly just get gifts in the mail from them where they're just, they just want to take care of us. 00:09:20.799 --> 00:09:29.200 They'll they'll hear conversations that things that we said maybe weeks or months or even years ago, and they'll take notice of that, and she'll make notes of that. 00:09:29.279 --> 00:09:33.279 And so randomly she'll be like, hey guys, there's something coming in the mail for you. 00:09:33.440 --> 00:09:40.879 Be on the lookout for a surprise, and we'll open up a box, a package in the mail, and we're like, man, that's such a great surprise. 00:09:41.279 --> 00:09:50.480 And we love her, not because she just gives us gifts, although that is really great, but we love her because she she goes that second mile to serve us, and there's so many people like that. 00:09:50.639 --> 00:09:55.600 We got tons of people like that in our church, in our in our congregation that go that second mile. 00:09:55.679 --> 00:09:58.559 And when you meet people like that, it sticks out. 00:09:58.720 --> 00:10:04.639 When they go beyond the call of duty and they show love towards other, it sticks out in our mind. 00:10:05.120 --> 00:10:07.840 And listen, I desperately want to be that type of person. 00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:12.720 I want to be that type of person, but so often I fall short of that standard. 00:10:13.039 --> 00:10:18.320 I'm not the person that just intentionally goes out of my way to serve others. 00:10:18.399 --> 00:10:33.519 And I think that there's probably a couple of different reasons why, but I think the two things that get in the way of me serving and going the extra mile to love others the way that they should be loved is one, I think I oftentimes get too busy and I forget. 00:10:33.600 --> 00:10:39.360 Um, and then number two, and I think this is really the primary reason, is I'm just simply selfish. 00:10:39.679 --> 00:10:43.840 And my selfishness fuels into being too busy. 00:10:44.480 --> 00:10:52.559 And I think that if I was really evaluating my life, this is something that is a huge, huge struggle for me. 00:10:52.799 --> 00:11:06.240 Where I I I fail to be able to really live this out in my life, to go that extra mile to serve those around me and to love people the way that God has called them, called me to love them. 00:11:06.559 --> 00:11:13.360 I have a lot of good intentions, but oftentimes those good intentions aren't played out in actual action. 00:11:13.759 --> 00:11:25.519 And I think if many of us were being truthful and honest with ourselves, a lot of us have great action, great intentions, but we oftentimes fail to live that out in action. 00:11:26.000 --> 00:11:37.679 And this morning, what I want us to see as we look at the challenging words of Jesus is this is that spiritual maturity is best seen in how we love others. 00:11:38.080 --> 00:11:42.159 Spiritual maturity is best seen in how we love others. 00:11:42.320 --> 00:11:47.120 Now we'll break that down in just a minute, but spiritual maturity is best seen in how we love others. 00:11:47.360 --> 00:11:50.639 Now, as we continue this series, we've been looking at the Sermon on the Mount. 00:11:50.720 --> 00:11:58.000 And the Sermon on the Mount is this incredible passage of scripture that Jesus gives us where he's laying out the foundation of his kingdom. 00:11:58.159 --> 00:12:01.039 He's laying out this is what I want my followers to look like. 00:12:01.200 --> 00:12:06.080 This is what I want them to behave like, this is who I want them to be like. 00:12:06.320 --> 00:12:15.039 And he's given us some radical ways and some difficult things to follow and some incredibly hard truths to live out in our lives. 00:12:15.279 --> 00:12:19.519 And if you haven't been with us since the beginning of the years, we've kind of walked through this step by step. 00:12:19.679 --> 00:12:33.600 I encourage you to go back and listen to some of those messages because really, the church today, we've we've kind of forsaken a lot of the things that are found in the Sermon on the Mount, and we haven't lived out the words of Jesus that he's commanded us to live out in a lot of ways. 00:12:33.759 --> 00:12:39.679 But the Sermon on the Mount, he gives us a lot of these commands and a lot of these ways that he wants his followers to live. 00:12:39.840 --> 00:12:47.919 But in Matthew chapter 7, in verse 12, Jesus probably gives us the most famous statement that is made in all of Scripture, I would argue. 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:54.960 He says this He says, Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. 00:12:55.519 --> 00:13:01.679 This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. 00:13:02.000 --> 00:13:05.840 Do unto others what you would want them to do to you. 00:13:06.399 --> 00:13:13.440 This is one of the most famous teachings of Jesus, although I don't think he oftentimes gets credit for this teaching, but it's known as the golden rule. 00:13:13.600 --> 00:13:16.320 This is something that you'll see hanging in classrooms. 00:13:16.480 --> 00:13:19.759 This is something you'll see hanging in other people's homes, perhaps. 00:13:19.919 --> 00:13:31.039 This is something that people will take hold of because it's such a great teaching to base our lives off of, to do unto others what you would want them to do unto you. 00:13:31.279 --> 00:13:37.519 Jesus is saying this is what the core of his followers should simply live this truth out. 00:13:37.759 --> 00:13:48.480 Now, what's happened in this time in history is that the religious leaders of the day, the Pharisees, they had changed what it looked like to be a follower of God. 00:13:48.720 --> 00:13:55.919 They had made everything about a vertical relationship with God, and they had forsaken the horizontal relationship with others. 00:13:56.080 --> 00:14:00.559 And so the religious leaders of the day, they were all about carrying out their religious duties. 00:14:00.720 --> 00:14:02.559 They were all about making sacrifices. 00:14:02.639 --> 00:14:05.679 They were all about making sure their tithe was exactly right. 00:14:05.840 --> 00:14:09.120 They were all about making sure that their prayers were perfectly prayed. 00:14:09.200 --> 00:14:18.159 They were all about carrying out the religious duties of the day at the expense of not loving the people around them. 00:14:18.399 --> 00:14:36.240 And Jesus comes on the scene and Jesus says, listen, guys, all throughout the Sermon on the Mount, he keeps saying over and over and over, it's not about how much scripture knowledge you have, it's not about how much theological education you have, it's not how much uh uh truth you have, or how many times you fast or how many times a day you pray. 00:14:36.399 --> 00:14:43.840 Ultimately, the true test of your spiritual maturity is really seen in how you love the people around you. 00:14:44.320 --> 00:14:52.559 We see it later in the message where we see uh somebody come up to Jesus, a lawyer that's trying to chirp Jesus up, and he says, What's the greatest commandment? 00:14:52.639 --> 00:14:58.639 And Jesus responds to him Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 00:14:58.799 --> 00:15:01.039 And the Pharisees would have said, Yeah, we got that. 00:15:01.120 --> 00:15:01.440 Awesome. 00:15:01.519 --> 00:15:03.120 We love the Lord with everything we've got. 00:15:03.279 --> 00:15:09.840 But then he says, and the second command is like it love your neighbor as you love yourself. 00:15:10.399 --> 00:15:13.360 So this is where Jesus puts these two things together. 00:15:13.600 --> 00:15:18.480 And even in this passage, he says, do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. 00:15:18.559 --> 00:15:22.480 And this is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. 00:15:22.559 --> 00:15:35.360 So he's saying, if you want to sum up the Old Testament, if you want to kind of summarize everything that the law is teaching, everything that the prophets is teaching, it's to do to others what you would want others to do to you. 00:15:35.600 --> 00:15:37.200 The golden rule. 00:15:37.519 --> 00:15:39.120 Now, here's my theory. 00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:54.720 My theory is that over the past 50 or 60 years in the Western Christian church, there's been this shift that has taken place, where we've begun to identify and define spiritual maturity in the wrong way. 00:15:54.879 --> 00:16:12.879 Where spiritual maturity has been all about how much scripture knowledge you have, how many Bible studies you attend, what your church attendance is like on Sunday morning, how much you maybe give towards a church or a project that the church is doing, or maybe serving in some manner. 00:16:13.039 --> 00:16:14.720 Now, all of those things are good. 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:17.840 All of those things followers of Jesus should be doing. 00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:20.639 We should not forsake the gathering of believers. 00:16:20.720 --> 00:16:22.559 We should make that a priority in our lives. 00:16:22.639 --> 00:16:26.480 We should be generous people with the resources that God has given us. 00:16:26.720 --> 00:16:35.919 We should be people that are studying Scripture and learning more about who God is and more theological knowledge to learn more about who God is and what he has for our lives. 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:38.320 We should be people that strive for that. 00:16:38.559 --> 00:16:49.360 But ultimately, the true test of spiritual maturity in our lives is not how much we know, but actually how we live out those truths by the way we love one another. 00:16:49.679 --> 00:16:53.519 Not just love the people in the church, but loving people outside the church. 00:16:53.840 --> 00:17:05.599 And there's this shift that's taken place, where it's been all about how much I can consume and how much I can know rather than how well I love the people around me. 00:17:05.839 --> 00:17:11.920 And this is why the church, I believe, has gotten such a bad reputation over the past several decades. 00:17:12.240 --> 00:17:15.920 Where people are okay with Jesus, but they're not okay with the church. 00:17:16.160 --> 00:17:33.359 Where the church is seen as judgmental, and the church is seen as somebody that's angry with the world around them, and they're okay with Jesus because they know that Jesus is a God that came, a guy that came in, and that he was a God that loved the outsider, that loved the sinner, that loved the person that was not, didn't have their life altogether. 00:17:33.440 --> 00:17:36.880 But that's not what they see when it comes to the church. 00:17:37.440 --> 00:17:43.599 But Jesus is telling us that true spiritual maturity is best seen in how we love one another. 00:17:43.759 --> 00:17:48.319 Now, Jesus' teaching is radical today just as it was radical back then. 00:17:48.799 --> 00:18:00.079 Because there was common misconceptions of how we lived out the uh out, our relationships back then, and still even to this day. 00:18:00.240 --> 00:18:03.039 Um, there were different rules to live by. 00:18:03.119 --> 00:18:07.759 So there's the golden rule, which we'll break down in a second, but there's there's the wooden rule. 00:18:08.079 --> 00:18:15.440 The wooden rule is uh simply this idea that you do to others what they do to you. 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:17.920 You do to others what they do to you. 00:18:18.079 --> 00:18:20.559 Now, this rule is tick for tack. 00:18:20.720 --> 00:18:23.519 It's you scratch my back and I'll scratch your back. 00:18:23.680 --> 00:18:25.680 If you hurt me, then I'll hurt you. 00:18:25.839 --> 00:18:31.039 This can be a positive or this can be negative, and it's based solely on how you are treated. 00:18:31.119 --> 00:18:33.440 It's reactive, it's not proactive. 00:18:33.599 --> 00:18:40.160 Now, this is the lowest form of relational maturity, and it's ultimately how toddl act. 00:18:40.319 --> 00:18:43.920 And this is where most people stay their entire lives. 00:18:44.079 --> 00:18:48.160 They never grow out of this section of maturity. 00:18:48.319 --> 00:18:49.519 They stay in here. 00:18:49.680 --> 00:18:51.519 And this is what's happening in our household. 00:18:51.599 --> 00:18:55.759 We've got a six-year-old and a four-year-old boy right now, and uh and this is what happens. 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:57.440 This is how they relate to one another. 00:18:57.519 --> 00:19:02.240 It's very much they do to each other how the other one relates to them. 00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:05.759 So if one hits the other, the other one hits them back, right? 00:19:05.920 --> 00:19:09.920 If one steals a toy from the other, the other one steals the toy back. 00:19:10.000 --> 00:19:12.799 It's very much a reactive relationship. 00:19:12.960 --> 00:19:17.039 So you do to others what they do to you. 00:19:17.359 --> 00:19:33.759 Now, I think that it would be great if we grew out of this type of mindset, but let's just be honest, this is where most people stay their entire lives, where we are reactive and we relate to the people around us based on how they relate to us. 00:19:34.480 --> 00:19:36.799 We live by the wooden rule. 00:19:37.200 --> 00:19:44.079 If a friend talks about you behind your back and you find out about it, what's your next reaction? 00:19:44.400 --> 00:19:49.279 Do you then negatively talk about that friend behind their back? 00:19:49.920 --> 00:20:11.279 If you're divorced and there's kids in the picture, and you've got kids that are going to mom's house one weekend and dad's house the next weekend, and you know, the the kids are going to dad's house and dad's talking really negatively about mom, and then the kids are coming home and the kids are saying, Mom, listen to what dad said about you, and then mom, what's your response in that moment? 00:20:11.599 --> 00:20:14.319 Are you saying, Well, listen to what your dad did? 00:20:14.880 --> 00:20:16.799 That's the wooden rule. 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:21.200 That's doing to others what they do to you. 00:20:21.680 --> 00:20:35.680 In business, if you're taking advantage of, or if a deal goes uh in a certain direction that you don't approve of, or you uh wouldn't uh necessarily interact with them in a certain way in the future, how do you talk about that business with others? 00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:42.079 If you're treated unfairly by your employer, do you continue to work hard and give it your all? 00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:49.200 Or do you just kind of work with a half-hearted effort because you don't like the way that you've been treated? 00:20:49.759 --> 00:20:54.640 This is how we naturally gravitate to relating to others. 00:20:54.960 --> 00:21:02.319 It's this way of just kind of phoning it in and going, well, if that's the way you're gonna treat me, then that's the way I'm going to treat you back. 00:21:02.720 --> 00:21:15.279 And this is sadly where many people stay we never progress past this toddler mindset, and we never progress in our maturity to move further into becoming more like Jesus. 00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:18.640 But Jesus has a radically different way to live. 00:21:18.799 --> 00:21:23.039 Uh we read this a few months ago, but Matthew 5, 43, it says it this way. 00:21:23.200 --> 00:21:28.240 Jesus says, You have heard the law that says, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 00:21:28.400 --> 00:21:33.119 But I say, love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you. 00:21:33.359 --> 00:21:38.160 In that way you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. 00:21:38.400 --> 00:21:45.599 For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. 00:21:45.759 --> 00:21:50.079 If you love only those who love you, what reward is there for that? 00:21:50.319 --> 00:21:53.200 Even corrupt tax collectors do that much. 00:21:53.359 --> 00:21:58.400 If you are kind only to your friends, how are you different from anyone else? 00:21:58.559 --> 00:21:59.759 Even pagans do that. 00:22:00.960 --> 00:22:05.440 But you are to be perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect. 00:22:05.680 --> 00:22:26.640 And so Jesus' command for his followers is that we're supposed to love our enemies, pray for those that harm us, that we're supposed to be people that even though they treat us poorly, that we are not supposed to seek revenge or retaliate in any way, but instead we're supposed to be people that love them regardless of how we are treated. 00:22:26.799 --> 00:22:28.160 Now, this is not easy. 00:22:28.400 --> 00:22:33.440 This is very, very difficult, but this is the command of the follower of Jesus. 00:22:33.599 --> 00:22:37.839 Now, if we progress past the wooden rule, then we might move to the silver rule. 00:22:38.000 --> 00:22:45.440 The silver rule is this the silver rule says, don't do to others what you don't want done to you. 00:22:45.680 --> 00:22:48.319 Don't do to others what you don't want done to you. 00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:51.839 Now that sounds similar to the golden rule, but it's actually much different. 00:22:52.000 --> 00:22:55.039 It's this mantra of just doing no harm. 00:22:55.359 --> 00:23:01.279 And this is what predominated the ancient world at this time and really much of our world still today. 00:23:01.440 --> 00:23:07.839 It's a negative statement, and it might prevent people from acting out evil practices, but it doesn't get us to love. 00:23:08.000 --> 00:23:16.720 It's a neutral position, and it doesn't require us to sacrifice, but rather just ensure that we don't do evil things towards others. 00:23:17.119 --> 00:23:23.279 So this is just saying, I'm not gonna do other things to people that I don't want done to me, right? 00:23:23.440 --> 00:23:37.119 So this is, I'm not gonna do bad things, I'm not gonna do evil things, I'm just gonna stay in a neutral position, but it also means that I don't necessarily have to help people, I don't have to go out of my way, I don't have to necessarily sacrifice for others. 00:23:37.279 --> 00:23:39.519 I can just kind of stay in my own spot. 00:23:39.680 --> 00:23:41.599 I'm just gonna do no harm. 00:23:41.920 --> 00:23:44.799 This story best describes this type of viewpoint. 00:23:44.960 --> 00:23:49.759 In the Good Samaritan, Jesus replies with this story in Luke chapter 10, verse 30. 00:23:49.920 --> 00:23:55.599 It says, A Jewish man was traveling from Jerusalem down to Jericho, and he was attacked by bandits. 00:23:55.759 --> 00:23:59.839 They stripped him of his clothes, beat him up, and left him half dead beside the road. 00:24:00.079 --> 00:24:07.359 By chance, a priest came along, and when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 00:24:07.599 --> 00:24:15.279 A temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side. 00:24:15.519 --> 00:24:21.920 So here in this story that Jesus is telling the people, he's saying, Listen, there was a priest and there was a temple assistant. 00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:33.359 They both see this man laying on the side of the road, but because they were operating under this idea of the silver rule where they do no harm, then they just kind of look at the man and then they pass by. 00:24:33.680 --> 00:24:35.200 Now, who were the spiritual giants? 00:24:35.359 --> 00:24:37.359 Who were the people that had their lives all together? 00:24:37.440 --> 00:24:39.519 Who were the spiritually mature back in this day? 00:24:39.680 --> 00:24:44.400 It was the temple assistants, it was the religious leaders, it was the priest of the day. 00:24:44.720 --> 00:24:47.279 But notice who is Jesus calling out? 00:24:47.519 --> 00:24:51.839 He's calling out the people that didn't love the ones that they were around. 00:24:52.079 --> 00:24:55.119 And this was the dominant mindset back in the day. 00:24:55.279 --> 00:24:58.880 They were living by the silver rule that they were doing no harm. 00:24:59.039 --> 00:25:02.960 They were, don't do to others what you don't want done to you. 00:25:03.119 --> 00:25:06.960 And this is the mindset of the men in this story. 00:25:07.119 --> 00:25:10.160 Their lives were marked with inactivity. 00:25:10.319 --> 00:25:20.000 They had an opportunity that presented itself for them to love and to help, but they just instead passed by and said it's someone else's responsibility. 00:25:20.240 --> 00:25:31.599 And when we think to ourselves that I don't have time to help somebody that's in need right now, or that somebody else will take care of it, then we're living by the silver rule. 00:25:31.759 --> 00:25:38.640 We're living by this mindset that it's not my responsibility, that somebody else will take care of it. 00:25:38.799 --> 00:25:41.599 I'll do no harm, right? 00:25:42.319 --> 00:25:48.480 This is how many of us, this is how I a lot of times operate in my life. 00:25:48.720 --> 00:26:00.559 That we fall into this trap where we're not doing harm towards others, but we're not necessarily sacrificing and loving others the way that God has called us to love others. 00:26:00.880 --> 00:26:02.000 This is where we fall. 00:26:02.160 --> 00:26:04.880 This is the trap that we have fallen into. 00:26:05.279 --> 00:26:08.640 This is where the church finds itself oftentimes. 00:26:08.960 --> 00:26:11.279 But Jesus gives us a new way of living. 00:26:11.440 --> 00:26:13.440 He says the golden rule. 00:26:13.680 --> 00:26:19.519 The golden rule was for his followers, and it says that we are to be proactive in our calling. 00:26:19.759 --> 00:26:28.160 Since we are by nature always looking for our best interests, Jesus is now calling us to put someone else's happiness ahead of our own. 00:26:28.400 --> 00:26:32.480 To live by this rule, it's to inconvenience ourselves. 00:26:32.720 --> 00:26:41.119 To live by the golden rule, it will cost us our time, it will cost us our money, it will cost us our comfort, and it will cost us our pride at times. 00:26:41.440 --> 00:26:57.599 At the end of the Good Samaritan story in Luke chapter 10, verse 33, to continue, you had the priest and the temple assistant who passed the man who was left for dead, and then in verse 33 it says, Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him. 00:26:57.839 --> 00:27:03.519 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. 00:27:03.680 --> 00:27:08.559 Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn where he took care of him. 00:27:08.720 --> 00:27:13.920 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, Take care of this man. 00:27:14.079 --> 00:27:18.720 If his bill runs higher than this, I'll pay you the next time I'm here. 00:27:18.960 --> 00:27:23.920 Now, which of these three would you say was the neighbor to the man that was attacked by bandits? 00:27:24.319 --> 00:27:25.039 Jesus asked. 00:27:25.119 --> 00:27:28.160 And the man replied, The one who showed him mercy. 00:27:28.319 --> 00:27:33.279 Then Jesus said, Yes, now go and do the same. 00:27:33.599 --> 00:27:41.039 So this is the picture that Jesus is giving his followers to do, that we are to be people that live this type of lifestyle. 00:27:41.119 --> 00:27:47.039 The golden rule that we are to do to others what we would want done to us. 00:27:47.119 --> 00:27:49.680 It's proactive, it's not reactive. 00:27:49.839 --> 00:27:56.160 It doesn't matter how someone treats us, we treat them the way that we would want to be treated. 00:27:56.400 --> 00:28:06.960 We put ourselves in their shoes and we think and we ask ourselves the question: if I was in their place, what would I want? 00:28:08.160 --> 00:28:09.599 And then we do it. 00:28:09.920 --> 00:28:10.960 Now this is hard. 00:28:11.039 --> 00:28:12.480 This is really difficult. 00:28:13.599 --> 00:28:20.640 When you're a teacher at school and you've got that parent that just is so annoying and just is grating on your nerves, right? 00:28:20.799 --> 00:28:24.559 And you want to fire back that email or you want to tell them off, right? 00:28:24.640 --> 00:28:33.920 And you want to kind of go back at them, you put yourself in their shoes, and you think about what you would want done in that situation. 00:28:34.240 --> 00:28:44.799 With your boss, and the boss is just constantly after you, and he's just on you and on you and on you, and you want to tell him off, and you want to do a lot of harm, right? 00:28:45.039 --> 00:28:46.559 And you go, no, no, no. 00:28:46.799 --> 00:28:53.920 I'm gonna put myself in his shoes, and then I'm gonna ask, what do I want in this moment if I was in his shoes? 00:28:54.000 --> 00:28:55.519 And then I'm gonna do it. 00:28:55.759 --> 00:28:58.240 This is what we've been called to do. 00:28:58.480 --> 00:29:06.880 This is what the followers of Jesus have been commissioned to do, that we are to do to others whatever we would like done to us. 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:11.599 Spiritual maturity is best seen in how we love others. 00:29:11.759 --> 00:29:19.759 Now there's this lie that the enemy has sown in our culture and our world today, that our world has brought into hook, line, and sinker. 00:29:19.920 --> 00:29:23.359 The main point of your life is to be happy. 00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:35.920 That's what the world and our culture will tell you that your main point in your life is to be happy, and the only way to get to that happiness is for you to seek after number one, and you are number one. 00:29:36.079 --> 00:29:38.799 So you chase after what will make you happy. 00:29:38.960 --> 00:29:46.559 You look after your own interest, you do you, you chase after your own happiness, and it fuels selfishness. 00:29:46.640 --> 00:29:52.000 And as a result, people become more miserable in their life. 00:29:52.240 --> 00:29:55.039 This is what we've seen all throughout our culture in our world. 00:29:55.200 --> 00:30:02.160 We've seen this mindset of you go and chase happiness, you go and do you, you go and chase after what you want out of life. 00:30:02.319 --> 00:30:21.680 You've put your interest above everyone else's interest, and you would think that people would actually be more happy in our world and in our culture today, but what we're seeing from statistics and not even Christian publications, but secular publications, we're seeing that people are more miserable today than they were a decade ago or two decades ago. 00:30:21.920 --> 00:30:22.559 Why? 00:30:22.880 --> 00:30:38.079 Because there's this there's this principle that goes below the surface that you would think that if we chase after what makes us happy and just feeds this selfishness within us, that that's ultimately would fuel our own happiness, but it doesn't. 00:30:38.240 --> 00:30:41.599 It actually leads to more being being miserable. 00:30:41.920 --> 00:30:50.799 But the the true way to happiness and fulfillment in our lives is ultimately through sacrifice. 00:30:51.039 --> 00:30:59.440 It's through pouring ourselves out, dying to ourselves, and giving ourselves to another. 00:31:00.480 --> 00:31:10.240 If you want to find true joy and true happiness, it's not about chasing after the things that are going to meet your needs, but it's actually looking out for the needs of others. 00:31:10.480 --> 00:31:16.799 Some of the most rewarding times of my life have been when I'm serving someone else. 00:31:17.039 --> 00:31:21.119 Not when I'm getting something in return, but when I'm serving someone else. 00:31:21.359 --> 00:31:28.640 We've got to get the attention and the focus off of our lives, and we've got to focus on the lives of the people around us. 00:31:28.880 --> 00:31:33.200 Now, I'm, like I said, I'm terrible at this. 00:31:33.440 --> 00:31:38.640 There are some things that we've taught through this series that I'm like, hey guys, like I'm pretty good at this. 00:31:38.720 --> 00:31:40.480 Like, follow me as I follow Jesus. 00:31:40.640 --> 00:31:42.960 Like, y'all can kind of look to me as an example. 00:31:43.039 --> 00:31:53.279 Um, that doesn't happen often, but like, you know, there are some things that I feel more confident in other areas, but this is one of those areas in Scripture where I don't feel like I do a great job. 00:31:53.519 --> 00:31:55.759 And so I'm learning and I'm growing in this. 00:31:55.839 --> 00:32:01.680 And if spiritual maturity is marked by how well I love others, I don't know if I'm super spiritually mature. 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:04.319 And y'all might want to rethink me being your pastor. 00:32:04.559 --> 00:32:18.000 Um, but I do think that we have a command and an obligation to think through our lives and how we can sacrificially love the people around us. 00:32:18.240 --> 00:32:25.680 And again, we're we as a church, we don't want to be a people that just hear the word, but we want to actually put it into practice. 00:32:26.000 --> 00:32:29.200 And so here's the question for us this week that we want to wrestle with. 00:32:29.440 --> 00:32:32.240 How can you sacrificially love this week? 00:32:32.880 --> 00:32:38.799 Or maybe a better question is who can you sacrificially love this week? 00:32:39.519 --> 00:32:41.680 How can you love your spouse? 00:32:42.400 --> 00:32:51.599 How can you sacrificially love your kids, your boss, your coworkers, your neighbors, your family members? 00:32:52.160 --> 00:33:04.319 Not just the people that you let love you back, but people that maybe don't agree with you, maybe people that would be considered your enemies, people that don't look like you or act like you or believe like you. 00:33:04.559 --> 00:33:11.440 How can you love people sacrificially this week and live out the golden rule? 00:33:12.240 --> 00:33:23.440 How can we be truly people that live out the golden rule and therefore show that we are have spiritual depth and maturity by the way that we love the people around us? 00:33:23.519 --> 00:33:28.079 And we see this even in the way that we do Sunday mornings together. 00:33:28.960 --> 00:33:35.039 We can come into a room together and we can practice this these principles and how we love one another. 00:33:35.279 --> 00:33:44.000 I think a lot of times we'll come in on Sunday morning and for the most part, we're not thinking about what we can give, but rather we're thinking about what we can consume. 00:33:44.160 --> 00:33:45.599 We're thinking about ourselves. 00:33:45.839 --> 00:33:48.720 I mean, just think about pulling into the parking lot. 00:33:48.960 --> 00:33:51.359 And what do you look for when you come into the parking lot? 00:33:51.440 --> 00:33:54.799 You look for the spot that's the closest to the door, right? 00:33:54.880 --> 00:34:02.000 And some of you have kids, or some of you, you know, like are older and you have things to carry in and stuff, and you gotta get closer to the door, and I understand that. 00:34:02.160 --> 00:34:09.760 But for many of us, like instead of looking for the spot that's closest to the door, man, let's look for the spot that's the furthest from the door. 00:34:09.840 --> 00:34:13.119 Let's sacrificially love and let's just park farther away. 00:34:13.280 --> 00:34:16.639 That's one of the things that I've just been thinking at fresh way recently. 00:34:16.800 --> 00:34:23.440 I always look for the closest spot, and I'm now like, gosh, I guess I gotta park farther away because that's a way I can love others in a simple way. 00:34:23.760 --> 00:34:28.079 Um, so if you guys see me park close to the door, like y'all can get on to me that way. 00:34:28.320 --> 00:34:35.119 Um when you when you come in and you see people that maybe are sitting by themselves, like, how can you love them? 00:34:35.360 --> 00:34:37.679 Maybe talk to people that you always talk to. 00:34:37.760 --> 00:34:41.119 Maybe you can start conversations with people that you don't know. 00:34:41.360 --> 00:34:47.119 How can you sacrificially love people, even on Sunday mornings as a church family? 00:34:47.440 --> 00:34:55.760 See, when we follow this command of Jesus, we are ultimately saying to ourselves, we're following the example of Jesus. 00:34:55.840 --> 00:35:02.559 Um, this won't be on the screen, but I thought of this in Philippians chapter two, Jesus displayed this so perfectly. 00:35:02.719 --> 00:35:14.079 In Philippians chapter two, Jesus or Paul says in verse three, it says, Don't be selfish, don't try to impress others, be humble, thinking of others better than yourselves. 00:35:14.400 --> 00:35:19.360 Don't look out for your own interests, but take an interest in others too. 00:35:19.840 --> 00:35:23.679 You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. 00:35:24.079 --> 00:35:29.760 Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. 00:35:30.159 --> 00:35:38.719 Instead, he gave up his divine privileges, he took the humbling position of a slave, and was born as a human being. 00:35:39.039 --> 00:35:48.880 When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. 00:35:49.119 --> 00:36:24.239 There's no greater example of the golden rule lived out than Jesus Christ himself being willing to live heaven, sacrificially give himself on a cross for your sins and for mine, not looking out for his best interest, but for the interest of others, to humble himself and not claim his divine privileges, as the scriptures say, but instead to live in obedience to God and die the criminal's death on the cross. 00:36:24.800 --> 00:36:26.480 This is what we've been called to. 00:36:26.960 --> 00:36:40.800 This is what the followers of Jesus have been commissioned for, that we are to be people that love those around us, that we seek to love and to serve the people around us the way that we would want to be treated. 00:36:40.960 --> 00:36:44.480 And if we do this, man, the world will take notice. 00:36:44.800 --> 00:36:50.159 Because the world is so broken and everybody is so at odds with one another. 00:36:50.320 --> 00:37:00.159 And you get on social media or you turn on the news and you just see this constant bickering and this back and forth where people are constantly just at each other's throats. 00:37:00.480 --> 00:37:13.440 And I believe that the world is hungry for men and women that live out the truth of what Jesus is teaching here, to say that we are to treat others, that we are to do to others whatever we would like done to us. 00:37:13.840 --> 00:37:16.880 We are to love and to serve the way that Jesus has. 00:37:17.119 --> 00:37:21.119 Now, listen, that doesn't mean that we accept everything that other people are doing. 00:37:21.280 --> 00:37:29.039 It doesn't mean that we agree with everything that everyone else is doing, but it does mean that we can love and serve them right where they're at. 00:37:29.599 --> 00:37:31.760 Let us be those types of people. 00:37:32.079 --> 00:37:38.559 And in so doing, let us see the kingdom of God break through in our community and in our world. 00:37:38.800 --> 00:37:39.679 Let me pray for us. 00:37:39.840 --> 00:37:42.960 Lord Jesus, I thank you so much for who you are. 00:37:43.519 --> 00:37:46.960 And Lord, I thank you so much for just your many, many blessings. 00:37:47.119 --> 00:37:52.880 And Lord, I thank you that for first first and foremost, Lord, that you are a God that lived out this truth. 00:37:52.960 --> 00:38:02.480 You're not a God that um that just gives us some command to live by and then says, have at it, without giving us an example to follow. 00:38:02.719 --> 00:38:15.599 But that you are a God that humbly gave of Himself, sacrificially loved us, even though we had rebelled against you, even though we had spat in your face, even though we had walked away from you, Lord. 00:38:15.840 --> 00:38:25.440 You pursued us with your love, and you were willing to die on a cross for my sins and for the sins of every person on earth. 00:38:25.599 --> 00:38:28.800 And so, Lord, we praise you and we thank you for that this morning. 00:38:29.599 --> 00:38:39.840 And Lord, I know that just our world and just all the chaos and the trauma and just all the different things that are going on around us, Lord. 00:38:39.920 --> 00:39:07.519 It's so easy to get caught up in all the mess and all the junk and just the hatred and the back and forth between different ideologies, Lord, that we miss out on the command that you have given us to love, to treat others the way that we would want to be treated, to not look for our selfish gain, but instead to consider others' interest above our own. 00:39:07.840 --> 00:39:10.719 And so, Lord, let us be that type of people. 00:39:11.920 --> 00:39:19.119 Lord, right now, like just wherever we're at, Lord, just put somebody in our mind that we can love and serve this week. 00:39:19.599 --> 00:39:28.960 Maybe that's a family member, maybe that's a friend, maybe that's a neighbor, a coworker, boss, maybe that's some just random stranger that we run into, Lord. 00:39:29.280 --> 00:39:37.840 But Lord, help this to be the true way that we test our spiritual allegiance and our spiritual maturity. 00:39:38.639 --> 00:39:51.920 Lord, let us dig into your word, let us pray, let us seek after you, but Lord, let the true test of our faith be seen in how well we love the people that you have put us with, the people you put around us, Lord. 00:39:52.159 --> 00:39:57.840 And in doing so, Lord, that we show the love of you, the love of your son Jesus to the world around us. 00:39:58.079 --> 00:40:02.239 And Lord, there might be people here this morning who have never experienced your love. 00:40:02.719 --> 00:40:09.119 And today, Lord, just reading that passage in Philippians, Lord, that they just they just realize that you're a God of love. 00:40:09.199 --> 00:40:18.880 You're not a God of hate, that you're a God that loves us, that loves his creation, Lord, and that you are willing to go to the cross for our sins to bring forgiveness to us. 00:40:19.119 --> 00:40:23.519 And that today is a day that maybe they need to turn their life over to you. 00:40:23.760 --> 00:40:32.079 And if that's you in the room this morning and you need to put your faith and your trust in Jesus, man, we would love uh to be able to help you experience that. 00:40:32.239 --> 00:40:35.599 We'd love to let you help you walk through that process. 00:40:35.760 --> 00:40:38.639 And um, we'd love to have a conversation with you after the service. 00:40:38.719 --> 00:40:51.760 If you're watching online, we'd love for you to uh just text the word, start to follow to 9700, and uh we'll follow up with you this week and give you some resources on how to follow up with Jesus and follow Jesus. 00:40:51.920 --> 00:40:56.800 Um, no greater decision that you could ever make than to put your faith and your trust in Him. 00:40:57.039 --> 00:40:59.760 But Lord Jesus, let us be the men and women that you called us to be. 00:40:59.840 --> 00:41:03.199 Let us be a church that loves people where they're at. 00:41:03.440 --> 00:41:07.760 That we truly love you, and in so loving you, Lord, we love the people around us. 00:41:08.079 --> 00:41:09.599 We thank you for your word and for your truth. 00:41:09.679 --> 00:41:10.960 And it's in your name we pray. 00:41:11.199 --> 00:41:11.760 Amen.