WEBVTT 00:00:01.181 --> 00:00:03.491 Welcome to the First Love Church Podcast. 00:00:03.491 --> 00:00:11.112 This is a collection of Sunday teachings inspired by the Revised Common Lectionary and recorded weekly in Ocala, florida. 00:00:11.112 --> 00:00:14.169 Grateful this morning for those of you who have joined us again. 00:00:14.169 --> 00:00:21.492 There is so much goodness and truth for us as we remember what Sundays are for us. 00:00:21.492 --> 00:00:31.050 They are a reorienting of our true selves, a rest for our souls, an invitation to remember who we truly are. 00:00:31.050 --> 00:00:53.411 We are ones deeply loved by God, and so I'm grateful this morning that you have come to reorient yourself, to reset your soul in the naming of yourself as beloved, in the peace that it comes from recognizing the spirit of Christ is here among us, that love is here and that you are welcomed exactly as you are. 00:00:53.411 --> 00:00:57.368 You do not need to leave any parts of you in the car or anywhere else. 00:00:57.368 --> 00:00:59.131 You bring your whole self. 00:00:59.131 --> 00:01:05.460 That is welcomed in the presence of the Lord, and I'm grateful for those of you who are willing to do that. 00:01:05.460 --> 00:01:13.968 When things are not going wonderfully, you still show up and say this is where I want to be encouraged, and so I'm grateful for that this morning. 00:01:13.968 --> 00:01:23.825 I'm grateful for, again, those of you who are excited and have good news to share, and those of you who are struggling, all of us welcomed in the presence of the Lord. 00:01:24.287 --> 00:01:42.513 And so, as we gather together today, we got to read together the Beatitudes, and I think that that's such a beautiful way to recenter us, to remind us that Jesus is the one we are following, and all of us at least those of us present today and even those of us online our intention is to be an apprentice to Jesus. 00:01:42.513 --> 00:01:50.810 What would it be like if all of us understood the work of Jesus in the world and said this is what we would like to join in on? 00:01:50.810 --> 00:01:55.632 What does it look like for me to behave like Jesus would behave toward my neighbors? 00:01:55.632 --> 00:02:01.066 What would it look like if Jesus were in my place and he went to the grocery store? 00:02:01.066 --> 00:02:07.742 Or Jesus drove the car with me this morning to the grocery store, or Jesus drove the car with me this morning? 00:02:07.742 --> 00:02:09.026 I just think that things might be a little different. 00:02:09.045 --> 00:02:26.662 And so, as we get together, we practice and we apprentice together in the good things that are available to us, in learning to live like Jesus did fully human, fully divine and said this is what I've come for, that you would have life and have it to the fullest. 00:02:26.662 --> 00:02:38.937 Wouldn't it be amazing for all of us to get to the end of our lives and say I rung every minute out, I enjoyed every strawberry I ate, I saw every sunset, I watched every star. 00:02:38.937 --> 00:02:45.292 And very often, for us, we live on autopilot and we forget the wonder that is around us. 00:02:45.292 --> 00:02:56.645 So every Sunday when we come back, we are reminded that wonder introduces us to awe and that awe brings us back into the presence of love, into the presence of God. 00:02:57.066 --> 00:02:58.169 Amen, it's beautiful. 00:03:01.082 --> 00:03:04.379 I want to read to us this morning from Philemon. 00:03:04.379 --> 00:03:13.389 We've been studying the chapter in a few chapters of James and so, don't panic, we're getting back there, but this is part of the same kind of language. 00:03:13.389 --> 00:03:25.991 I'm praying that you will put into action the generosity that comes from your faith as you understand and experience all the good things we have in Christ. 00:03:25.991 --> 00:03:30.651 This is an invitation to actually do what James tells us to do. 00:03:30.651 --> 00:03:35.186 I don't really want to know so much about what you say, you believe, but let me see it by how you live. 00:03:35.186 --> 00:03:40.171 Let me see it by how you actually serve the world or what you do. 00:03:40.640 --> 00:03:47.781 And this letter to Philemon is reminding us that there's so much good that God has in store for us. 00:03:47.781 --> 00:03:53.453 There's so much abundance and beauty, even in the world, and we're invited to experience it. 00:03:53.453 --> 00:04:00.413 I want to remind you that living a Christian or a Christ-filled life is not just knowing facts. 00:04:00.413 --> 00:04:22.084 It's an experience to be able to live in the presence of love spirit, to be able to be in constant communion with the spirit of God, to be able to live in a place where we see the things as Jesus sees them and that God's good kingdom that we prayed for earlier would actually come into our life, even as it is in heaven. 00:04:22.464 --> 00:04:38.009 You know, a lot of times we uh, uh, misuse our christianity by having the idea that we're going to add some god to us, let's get a little jesus in what we're doing, and, and the truth is that's not how it works. 00:04:38.009 --> 00:04:41.504 You know, he's not a condiment that you add to the meal. 00:04:41.504 --> 00:04:53.954 He is in fact the fact, the source of all goodness, and so it doesn't really work until we understand that and live in surrender to that. 00:04:53.954 --> 00:05:10.052 Not that you can always do it perfectly or always, but that we understand that that is the intent to really follow in a place where I'm giving over to love and letting my will go by the wayside. 00:05:10.052 --> 00:05:29.641 That's why the old man needs to pass away, we need to be done with that life and then live in this new way, and that's when we begin to see the real transformation and the real immersion, you know, immersion in, in spiritual life. 00:05:29.641 --> 00:05:36.240 And so, make no mistake, it doesn't happen through dabbling, you know, we, we need to make the plunge. 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:39.206 Somebody say amen amen. 00:05:39.848 --> 00:05:42.273 That's a good word, that's a beautiful imagery. 00:05:42.273 --> 00:05:44.303 Remember your baptism, beloved. 00:05:44.303 --> 00:05:49.908 This is the family that God is creating now, with everyone, because this is our Father's world. 00:05:49.908 --> 00:05:54.925 And Jesus has come, and the words of Jesus are this are any of you tired? 00:05:54.925 --> 00:05:57.550 Are any of you worn out? 00:05:57.550 --> 00:06:00.295 Are you burned out on religion? 00:06:00.295 --> 00:06:06.589 Then come to me and I will show you the unforced rhythms of grace. 00:06:06.589 --> 00:06:10.865 I will show you how to live freely and lightly. 00:06:11.327 --> 00:06:19.249 And so, together, as a church, we look at what the tradition has given us, what Jesus has given us, what are the unforced rhythms of grace? 00:06:19.249 --> 00:06:26.230 How do we live our lives in harmony and in frequency with love and what God intended us to live in? 00:06:26.230 --> 00:06:38.440 And one of the things that we do is a practice called a Sabbath, and it's what we do when we come together on a Sunday and we reorient ourselves in love and we remind ourselves that we are not what we produce. 00:06:38.440 --> 00:06:43.148 Our goodness or our belovedness is not based on our productivity. 00:06:43.148 --> 00:06:48.622 We are simply loved by God and there is rest that is given to us. 00:06:48.622 --> 00:06:50.365 We don't earn our rest. 00:06:50.365 --> 00:06:51.809 Our rest is given to us. 00:06:51.809 --> 00:07:04.531 And so when we rest on Sundays and we say I stopped the work that I usually do during the week and I remind myself I am loved, god is with me, god is for me and there is good in the world. 00:07:05.353 --> 00:07:13.331 You know the things that we do and why we recommend come to church on Sunday, you know, or watch church online on Sunday. 00:07:13.331 --> 00:07:15.163 Why do we want you to engage in that? 00:07:15.163 --> 00:07:39.713 It's not just a bump up viewership, it really is, because we believe that the things that we talk about are transformative to your life and we always will talk about practices and there are things that the church has handed to us and, as pastors, we hand to you and hopefully you can take some of those and apply those to your life and walk in those kind of practices. 00:07:39.713 --> 00:07:43.151 And I tell you that you already have practices. 00:07:43.151 --> 00:07:50.350 There are ways that you automatically think and many of us automatically think negatively. 00:07:52.002 --> 00:07:53.065 Am I talking to anybody here? 00:07:53.065 --> 00:07:55.387 Are you all just positive 100% of the time? 00:07:55.387 --> 00:07:57.384 You know when things break. 00:07:57.384 --> 00:07:59.983 Do you ever have the thought I'm never going to make it? 00:07:59.983 --> 00:08:02.149 Or where are we going to come up with the money for that? 00:08:02.149 --> 00:08:04.468 Or this always happens to me. 00:08:04.468 --> 00:08:14.581 We have patterns of the ways that we think and one of the things that the church hands us is the practice of gratitude and people. 00:08:14.581 --> 00:08:26.961 To me it's funny because if you're not familiar with that practice, you will literally say to yourself well, I don't have nothing to be grateful for. 00:08:27.982 --> 00:08:37.811 That's the problem that we are living, you know, breathing this beautiful air that we have, even though it's hot air here in Florida it's clean. 00:08:37.811 --> 00:08:38.855 I've been in big cities. 00:08:38.855 --> 00:08:59.894 You can go outside and just inhale the most beautiful and look up to to the sky, and almost every day there's in high definition, there's the most beautiful artwork of clouds flowing through in our skies and you right there, could get stuck in a loop of gratitude that would keep you going. 00:08:59.894 --> 00:09:19.687 But if you stop and think about the things that you do have because we do often assess all the things that we don't have and we oftentimes meditate on the things that we wish that we had, you know, and it consumes us and it brings us to that negative place. 00:09:19.687 --> 00:09:27.216 You know the just dissatisfied, angry, frustrated, disappointed, isolated. 00:09:27.875 --> 00:09:48.841 But I'm telling you, if you could, if you would just decide, I'm going to take what the pastor says as a, as a prescription, like I went to a doctor, and for the next just week I'm going to practice moments in my day 30 second, 45 second increments, but as many times as it comes to my mind I'll practice gratitude. 00:09:49.383 --> 00:09:57.442 I promise you you will see transformation in in, really in moments, uh, but. 00:09:57.442 --> 00:10:05.009 But you could begin to have a practice that would be so contrary to the one that you know you don't enjoy, am I right? 00:10:05.009 --> 00:10:26.264 Nobody enjoys that spiraling down the toilet, meditation and practice that we have, but there's so many, though, and that's just one we're talking about now, but there's so many Practice of generosity, practice of not getting the last word in Patience oh, there, I said it. 00:10:26.264 --> 00:10:47.875 You know, traffic will give you that opportunity on the way home, and how we and we're gonna we're setting you up, because the things we're going to talk about today in james are going to be honest practices that, we must admit, aren't at the forefront of most of our lives and of our choices of behavior. 00:10:47.875 --> 00:10:55.754 So let the words of James impart to us potential for real transformation today, amen. 00:10:56.660 --> 00:10:56.980 Amen. 00:10:56.980 --> 00:11:11.629 I was sitting with a wisdom and an older person years ago and I was going to tell them how I did my morning devotions, and a lot of times probably, if you're in the presence of wisdom, you shouldn't say a lot. 00:11:11.629 --> 00:11:12.663 At least that's what I've learned. 00:11:12.663 --> 00:11:14.809 I really start regretting some of the things that I said. 00:11:14.809 --> 00:11:22.168 But I said, oh, now is the time that I am going to sit down and I'm going to read my Bible, and I just think that I didn't want them to think that I was ignoring them. 00:11:22.168 --> 00:11:23.831 They were in our living room and I was kind of. 00:11:23.831 --> 00:11:25.974 You know, let me just explain myself here. 00:11:25.974 --> 00:11:27.095 There's no explanation needed. 00:11:27.095 --> 00:11:36.368 It just I was declaring that I was going to read the Bible in the morning and this person from across the living room said well, when I sit down to read the Bible, I allow the Bible to read me. 00:11:36.368 --> 00:11:47.101 And I thought, oh, there's a difference. 00:11:47.101 --> 00:11:47.623 There isn't there. 00:11:47.623 --> 00:11:58.543 If I sit down and I let the Bible say to me, I wonder if there's a place that you could give more thanks, or I wonder if there's a place where you could be more gentle and allow the scriptures to actually read you, as opposed to you going there trying to find reasons why you're okay the way you are. 00:11:58.543 --> 00:12:07.148 I mean, if we look for something, we'll find evidence of it, and so when we look for, I love what you offered us the practice of gratitude, the practice of prayers. 00:12:07.148 --> 00:12:10.880 Jesus was a man of prayer and so we look at that. 00:12:10.880 --> 00:12:17.445 As people of faith, we are people who pay attention to prayers, and the prayers are a part of even the new forming of the church. 00:12:17.445 --> 00:12:25.873 In Acts 2.42, it said all the people, all of them, devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, to the Lord's Supper and to the prayers. 00:12:25.873 --> 00:12:32.048 I mean, these are the practices that formed this new community, these people that followed after Jesus. 00:12:32.400 --> 00:12:40.721 And I would like to one-up Pastor Dennis' invitation for you to think about a few things this week that you're thankful for, and I invite you to enjoy a practice Now. 00:12:40.721 --> 00:12:44.235 It's a big one and I like to give ourselves lots of grace for things. 00:12:44.235 --> 00:12:47.126 Is your energy matching your motivation on this? 00:12:47.126 --> 00:12:53.830 But I would ask that this year, because particularly that we're coming into the Thanksgiving season at least it says that on our calendar. 00:12:53.830 --> 00:13:00.092 It's very hot outside, and so we can't trust the wind to tell us we're going to trust the calendar in this situation. 00:13:00.539 --> 00:13:01.842 But consider this. 00:13:01.842 --> 00:13:09.029 Maybe this year you begin a practice, and the practice is recognizing a thousand gifts. 00:13:09.029 --> 00:13:20.447 So the information is that for the next year you would spend time in getting to a thousand of all the gifts that are in your life, and it can be the most amazing sunset. 00:13:20.447 --> 00:13:22.928 It can be the regular Tuesday sunset. 00:13:22.928 --> 00:13:25.707 It could be the food that you have eaten. 00:13:25.707 --> 00:13:29.105 It could be we turned on the water and it came out clean. 00:13:29.105 --> 00:13:43.551 You know there's a lot of gifts around us, but perhaps this next year you would consider paying attention to a thousand gifts that you are entering into, and so I'm so grateful for you this morning to even consider those things. 00:13:43.551 --> 00:13:46.139 Jesus was a man of prayer and the prayers. 00:13:46.139 --> 00:13:47.163 Can I just interject? 00:13:47.202 --> 00:13:56.453 that there's a perspective on that too, because, you know, I oftentimes will miss the appreciation of the hot water in the shower. 00:13:56.453 --> 00:14:11.779 But every time I come back from Haiti or any third world missions trip that I'm on and maybe we didn't get a shower or you stand in a bucket and you, you know, you pick up and you pour a cup over your head and that's your shower. 00:14:11.779 --> 00:14:17.948 Or you sneak off to a spring and though you're cleaning in a nice spring, you've got 30 Haitian people watching you bathe. 00:14:17.948 --> 00:14:28.886 That's not as fun as it sounds, and so you can come back home in your private little shower and tell it exactly what temperature that you want. 00:14:29.227 --> 00:14:39.982 And so it's perspective, because how many of you climbed into the shower this week and felt like it was owed to you or complained because something wasn't exactly the way we wanted? 00:14:39.982 --> 00:14:41.645 So perspective helps us. 00:14:41.645 --> 00:14:48.905 And so ask God, god, and I think when you talk about the Bible reading you, sometimes we can begin to see where we are. 00:14:48.905 --> 00:14:57.009 Think that we're dressed so nice but we are clothed with nakedness, you know, and we're missing. 00:14:57.009 --> 00:14:58.794 Really, what's going on? 00:14:59.056 --> 00:15:00.279 I love the invitation too. 00:15:00.279 --> 00:15:00.921 From the Psalms. 00:15:00.921 --> 00:15:21.220 It says give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his mercy endures forever, and you'll hear some of the patterns in reciting or hearing those words and it reminds us these are the things that matter to the way that we are able to see the world, that we can actually see the abundance that God has given us, that we can see the goodness that is all around us. 00:15:21.220 --> 00:15:24.785 Beloved people will show you where things are broke and where they need fixing. 00:15:24.785 --> 00:15:27.049 You don't have to worry about that, someone will let you know. 00:15:27.049 --> 00:15:41.470 But what we do have to do as followers of Jesus is be intentional with looking for the good, with celebrating the good, with tuning our ears to hear the good and to hear the wisdom. 00:15:41.470 --> 00:15:52.024 We've been hanging out in the book of James and I was thinking about highlighting some of the verses, and then been hanging out in the book of James and I was thinking about highlighting some of the verses and then, when I got to the end of it, I already had 17 verses, like not even in the row. 00:15:52.024 --> 00:16:00.852 So I just thought we're just going to hang out in James and I just encourage you to read this letter and allow it to read you too and allow it to bring hope to you. 00:16:00.852 --> 00:16:05.932 But in this particular part of the letter, james is reminding us about wisdom. 00:16:06.039 --> 00:16:15.597 Now, last week, we were at the point when James was like, hey, don't talk a lot, just let's just take that down a whole bunch, like, let's see what you say, you believe by what you live. 00:16:15.597 --> 00:16:17.061 I mean over and over again. 00:16:17.061 --> 00:16:20.105 James actually says this it's going to be your actions. 00:16:20.105 --> 00:16:21.727 You say that you love people. 00:16:21.727 --> 00:16:23.711 Well then, let's see how much you love people. 00:16:23.711 --> 00:16:31.847 And Jesus shows us how to love people, how to listen to the things that they have need of, how to be gracious to them. 00:16:32.460 --> 00:16:45.427 I was noticing something in the scriptures this week where Jesus is healing someone and there are people opposing him because he's decided to heal on the Sabbath and they said well, it's against the rules. 00:16:45.427 --> 00:16:48.590 And it says that Jesus marveled at the hardness of their hearts. 00:16:48.590 --> 00:16:56.408 I wonder how many of us are more comfortable with the rule than with the breaking of someone else's heart. 00:16:56.408 --> 00:17:03.208 And so Jesus has asked us to live differently, and James is reminding us of this. 00:17:03.208 --> 00:17:14.849 He's writing this letter to a group of followers and he's saying hey, pay attention, there's some wisdom here that maybe you need to refocus on or you need to now align yourself with that. 00:17:14.849 --> 00:17:17.229 And there's so much hope in that truth. 00:17:17.229 --> 00:17:19.465 I want to go on a little bit of. 00:17:19.465 --> 00:17:22.768 I'm going to read to you this morning because I love you. 00:17:22.768 --> 00:17:24.233 Welcome to my life, welcome to everybody in my family's life. 00:17:24.233 --> 00:17:25.377 I'm going to read to you this morning because I love you. 00:17:25.397 --> 00:17:25.799 Welcome to my life. 00:17:25.859 --> 00:17:27.786 Welcome to everybody in my family's life. 00:17:27.786 --> 00:17:34.109 I'm going to read you and I didn't say this is going to be one thing, because I learned it's not going to be one thing, it's going to be a lot. 00:17:34.109 --> 00:17:38.941 And sometimes when you're passing by in my house and you're doing something, I'm like, hey, just a minute, let me read you this one thing. 00:17:38.941 --> 00:17:39.461 That was really good. 00:17:39.461 --> 00:17:50.030 And so this morning you're all here, so I'm going to read you a few things, because it's good and it's so beautiful to have truth given to us and for us. 00:17:50.030 --> 00:17:55.195 I encourage you this morning, don't just listen with your ears, listen with your heart. 00:17:55.195 --> 00:17:56.237 It's not four pages. 00:17:56.237 --> 00:17:58.325 Those are some notes Plus. 00:17:58.325 --> 00:18:02.082 I'm a very good reader and I can read very quickly and you can listen very quickly, I promise. 00:18:02.082 --> 00:18:03.984 But I'm going to read with intention this morning and I'm going to read. 00:18:03.984 --> 00:18:06.589 Don't pretend, pretend that you're going to enjoy this part. 00:18:06.589 --> 00:18:12.630 Okay, it's from the book of wisdom too, so you could go back and read that later. 00:18:13.432 --> 00:18:24.849 Realizing that I was only human, I prayed to God and I was given understanding and the spirit of wisdom came to me and I regarded her more highly than any throne or crown. 00:18:24.849 --> 00:18:32.349 Wealth was nothing compared to her Precious jewels could not equal her worth Beside wisdom. 00:18:32.349 --> 00:18:42.342 All the gold in the world is a handful of sand, and silver is nothing more than clay, and I valued wisdom more than health and good looks. 00:18:42.342 --> 00:18:48.108 Hers is a brightness that never grows dim, and I preferred it to any other light. 00:18:48.108 --> 00:18:52.310 When wisdom came to me, all good things came with her. 00:18:52.310 --> 00:18:58.590 She brought me untold riches and I was happy with them because wisdom had brought them to me. 00:18:58.590 --> 00:19:04.365 I had not realized before that she was the very source of all things. 00:19:04.365 --> 00:19:09.372 I was sincere in learning from her and now I am glad to share what I have learned. 00:19:09.372 --> 00:19:12.895 No one can ever exhaust the treasures of wisdom. 00:19:12.895 --> 00:19:20.382 Use the treasures of wisdom and you will be God's friends. 00:19:20.382 --> 00:19:21.403 God will approve of what you have learned from her. 00:19:21.403 --> 00:19:26.574 I pray to God that my thoughts are worthy of what I have learned and that I would speak according to God's will. 00:19:26.574 --> 00:19:28.707 God is wisdom's guide. 00:19:28.707 --> 00:19:31.108 God gives correction to those who are wise. 00:19:31.108 --> 00:19:52.212 We are under God's power and authority we ourselves, our words, our understanding and our skills, and God gives us true knowledge of the forces of nature, what the world is made of and how the elements behave, how the calendar is determined by movements of the sun and the changing seasons, the constellation and the cycle of years. 00:19:52.212 --> 00:20:11.010 God has taught us the nature of living creatures, the behavior of wild animals, the force of the winds, the reasoning power of human beings, of different kinds of plants that use their roots as medicine, and we learned things that were well known and things that have never been known Because of wisdom. 00:20:11.612 --> 00:20:14.604 Wisdom gave shape to everything that exists. 00:20:14.604 --> 00:20:42.239 There is in her a spirit that is intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, agile, clear, unpolluted, distinct, invulnerable, loving the good, humane, free from anxiety, all-powerful, overseeing all, penetrating through all spirits, intelligent, pure and altogether subtle, for wisdom is more mobile than any motion. 00:20:42.239 --> 00:20:46.211 Because of pureness, she pervades and penetrates all things. 00:20:46.211 --> 00:20:49.288 She is the breath of the power of God. 00:20:49.288 --> 00:20:52.950 She is pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty. 00:20:52.950 --> 00:20:56.609 Therefore, nothing defiled gain entrance into her. 00:20:56.609 --> 00:21:02.769 She is a reflection of eternal light, a perfect mirror of God's activity and goodness. 00:21:02.769 --> 00:21:06.589 And even though wisdom acts alone, she can do anything. 00:21:06.589 --> 00:21:13.548 She makes everything new, although she herself never changes From generation to generation. 00:21:13.548 --> 00:21:19.351 She enters the souls of holy people and she makes them God's friends and prophets. 00:21:19.351 --> 00:21:24.712 There is nothing that God loves more than people who are at home with wisdom. 00:21:24.712 --> 00:21:28.704 Wisdom is more beautiful than the sun and all the constellations. 00:21:28.704 --> 00:21:33.521 She is better than life itself, because night always follows day. 00:21:33.521 --> 00:21:37.127 But evil will never overcome wisdom. 00:21:37.127 --> 00:21:43.909 And I appreciate what the prophet said when he said in all of your getting, get wisdom. 00:21:43.909 --> 00:21:48.859 So this would have been the groundwork for the people that are hearing this word. 00:21:48.859 --> 00:21:51.548 They understood that wisdom is the prize thing. 00:21:51.548 --> 00:21:54.269 And then he begins to bring some adjustment. 00:21:54.680 --> 00:22:03.544 And so we go this morning to James, chapter three If you are wise I like the if part there, because it's possible that you are a fool, and that's okay too. 00:22:03.544 --> 00:22:07.208 I mean, you'll get what a fool gets, but you know it is just what it is. 00:22:07.208 --> 00:22:11.442 So you sometimes need to name yourself Am I wise or am I foolish? 00:22:11.442 --> 00:22:13.209 Where am I building my house? 00:22:13.209 --> 00:22:14.031 What am I doing? 00:22:14.031 --> 00:22:22.412 And so, to be able to reorient our lives and say have I understood that God's wisdom is here and that love is here? 00:22:22.412 --> 00:22:24.303 Wisdom is a choice. 00:22:24.303 --> 00:22:33.589 If you are wise and understand God's ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. 00:22:33.589 --> 00:22:39.211 Prove it by living an honorable life. 00:22:39.211 --> 00:22:46.230 We hear James over and over again say your life will testify of what you believe. 00:22:46.230 --> 00:22:49.449 Your life will testify of who you love. 00:22:49.449 --> 00:22:55.373 Your life will testify of how big you understand God to be. 00:22:56.080 --> 00:23:08.553 You know it talks about humility and gentleness as being traits of wisdom, and I find that oftentimes in in men we don't value that. 00:23:09.603 --> 00:23:12.711 That has not been anything that has been taught to us as value. 00:23:12.711 --> 00:23:30.272 So it is wisdom for you to get, to get this understanding and to not maybe just say, because it was handed to me one way, then that you know, because usually what is prized with men is is the, the stronger, the ones that beat you up and push you in the corner. 00:23:30.272 --> 00:23:56.349 They're the ones that get the respect and there is really for in in the kingdom of god, the value of of humility and uh and of gentleness, and if we won't surrender to that, it kind of explains why we're not walking in the wisdom that God has for us or we're not seeing the things that God has for us as men. 00:23:56.349 --> 00:24:16.871 Amen, it's not a real popular message among men, but if we will surrender to spirit, god will bring us through to this place of transformation but if you're bitterly jealous and their selfish ambition in your heart, don't cover up the truth with boasting and lying. 00:24:17.392 --> 00:24:21.386 for jealousy and selfishness are not God's kind of wisdom. 00:24:21.386 --> 00:24:25.994 Such things are earthly, unspiritual and demonic. 00:24:25.994 --> 00:24:36.588 For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind. 00:24:36.588 --> 00:24:46.308 But but the wisdom from above is first all pure. 00:24:46.308 --> 00:24:55.509 It is also peace-loving, gentle at all times and willing to yield to others. 00:24:55.509 --> 00:25:00.651 It is full of mercy and the fruits of good deeds. 00:25:00.651 --> 00:25:08.853 It shows no favoritism and is always sincere the wisdom from above. 00:25:08.944 --> 00:25:12.971 We've got to understand that that's not something that's going to be natural. 00:25:12.971 --> 00:25:17.173 For you and I, that's not going to be the first choice. 00:25:17.173 --> 00:25:25.809 This is kind of God coming in and replacing the way that you would normally do it with a new way. 00:25:25.809 --> 00:25:26.393 Amen. 00:25:26.393 --> 00:25:27.691 Are we open to that? 00:25:27.691 --> 00:25:29.310 Are we open to a new way? 00:25:29.310 --> 00:25:32.694 I think sometimes we have to get tired of our old way. 00:25:33.186 --> 00:25:38.444 Oftentimes I see, really, as pastoring over the years, I see people like and breakups in relationships. 00:25:38.444 --> 00:25:54.622 They come around the losing of jobs, uh, you know, maybe tragedies of of family loss and stuff, and people will use those events as as those markers and really begin to allow real change. 00:25:54.622 --> 00:26:05.946 You know and it's a shame, something of a devastating event has to happen in our lives for us to realize that we need real change and that real change comes from heaven. 00:26:05.946 --> 00:26:13.932 And so, uh are, are we willing to allow that word to read us, like we were talking about earlier? 00:26:13.932 --> 00:26:32.885 You know, for us to hear that word of God reminding us of lovingness and gentleness and really to look at myself in that way and say, you know what I couldn't say that I'm gentle, one of the things that years ago I said to Heather. 00:26:32.885 --> 00:26:36.292 I said I'm nice, right, and she started laughing. 00:26:36.292 --> 00:26:39.398 That didn't feel good. 00:26:39.398 --> 00:26:40.286 And I go what do you mean? 00:26:40.286 --> 00:26:44.355 Like you know, when you think of me, don't you think nice? 00:26:44.355 --> 00:26:54.051 And she goes Dennis, if I was given one word, two words, ten words, nice would not be the one and I was super offended. 00:26:54.112 --> 00:26:54.632 I go, what do you mean? 00:26:54.632 --> 00:26:57.134 She goes no, no, it's not bad, it's just. 00:26:57.134 --> 00:26:59.817 I think you're a risk taker. 00:26:59.817 --> 00:27:14.865 You're funny, you're kind, loving I'm these things, but nice, you know, it's just. 00:27:14.865 --> 00:27:16.107 And so if we're honest honest, oh, no, I'm nice, you're wrong. 00:27:16.107 --> 00:27:19.134 Let me yell at you about how wrong you are, about how nice I am, just to prove your point, even better. 00:27:19.895 --> 00:27:27.198 But if we can allow the holy spirit to do that within us, you know, okay, you're not nice, you're not gentle. 00:27:27.198 --> 00:27:36.650 When you talk, oh, thank you, holy spirit, that you still love and care for me and will help me begin to see that. 00:27:36.650 --> 00:27:47.448 And then, all of a sudden, if you really will open up your heart to that, you'll have a lot of cringe moments because a line will run out of your mouth and you'll be like, oh, I wish I could get that back. 00:27:47.448 --> 00:27:50.012 That had a lot of meanness on there. 00:27:50.012 --> 00:27:51.154 That wasn't my goal. 00:27:51.154 --> 00:27:57.292 I wanted to be nice, you know, and the Holy Spirit will work with us in these things. 00:27:57.292 --> 00:28:04.174 But we first must see the importance that peace brings in to the home loving gentleness. 00:28:04.576 --> 00:28:08.269 We pause here for a moment to thank you for joining us today. 00:28:08.269 --> 00:28:15.765 If you're finding this episode meaningful, would you take a moment to share it with a friend? 00:28:15.765 --> 00:28:19.294 This podcast is made possible thanks to the generosity of people just like you. 00:28:19.294 --> 00:28:31.913 If you would like to support the ongoing work of First Love Church and the continued work of our podcast, visit us online at firstlovechurchorg, reminding you to like, follow and subscribe. 00:28:32.265 --> 00:28:35.195 But the wisdom from above is first, all pure. 00:28:35.195 --> 00:28:41.250 I remind you of this that there is totality in God and in the understanding of who God is. 00:28:41.250 --> 00:28:42.814 God is love. 00:28:42.814 --> 00:28:45.337 That's the end of it. 00:28:45.337 --> 00:28:46.164 That is the end. 00:28:46.164 --> 00:28:48.328 There is no, but it is God is love. 00:28:48.328 --> 00:28:49.711 That is the whole thing. 00:28:49.711 --> 00:28:52.938 And love is the most principal thing. 00:28:52.938 --> 00:29:03.452 And it's reminding us that it's pure love emanating from God, Again in the understanding that came from the book of Solomon, where it is pervading everything. 00:29:03.452 --> 00:29:08.209 It is holy, it is sacred, it is all, and it is also peace loving. 00:29:08.209 --> 00:29:20.355 And this comes and confronts us in ways that say do you have a God who loves peace, is peace-loving, or do you have a God who is like Zeus, full of war? 00:29:20.355 --> 00:29:29.592 And there is for us an understanding of saying if you understand that, the wisdom that you have is peaceful, is for the making of peace. 00:29:30.065 --> 00:29:32.271 Jesus said blessed are the peacemakers. 00:29:32.271 --> 00:29:34.326 The blessing is in the peacemakers. 00:29:34.326 --> 00:29:40.608 Jesus said to Peter put down your sword, Stop with the fighting, beloved, you know there's another way. 00:29:40.608 --> 00:29:53.300 And so Jesus is asking us, reminding us, and then James, the brother of Jesus, is also telling us years later hey, it's peace loving, it's gentle at all times. 00:29:53.300 --> 00:30:00.756 Now that's where it gets a little sticky, because he put the at all times, because some of us are gentle some of the time. 00:30:00.756 --> 00:30:08.950 I mean when we feel good and everything's nice and it's 70 degrees and there's no reason to be upset, then we're gentle. 00:30:08.950 --> 00:30:13.125 And so then we mark ourselves as gentle or we name ourselves as gentle. 00:30:13.125 --> 00:30:15.730 But are you gentle when you disagree? 00:30:15.730 --> 00:30:22.060 Are you gentle when you sit in the opposition? 00:30:22.060 --> 00:30:24.833 Are you gentle at all times? 00:30:25.153 --> 00:30:29.588 Now, the scripture tells us this in evidence, or a fruit of the Holy Spirit is gentleness. 00:30:29.588 --> 00:30:34.910 In fact, in another book it says let your gentleness be known to all. 00:30:34.910 --> 00:30:42.453 To all, that means the other drivers in front of you, that means the drivers in the lane next to you. 00:30:42.453 --> 00:30:45.173 Let your gentleness be known to all. 00:30:45.173 --> 00:30:57.834 This is an evidence that we are connected to the Spirit of God that we are people who are gentle at all times and willing to yield to others. 00:30:57.834 --> 00:31:07.413 Very often we know what we want, we know what we think is right and we know how to live other people's lives. 00:31:07.413 --> 00:31:09.411 I didn't know if you knew this, but we do. 00:31:09.411 --> 00:31:16.372 We have a lot of opinions and we have a lot of judgments and we are willing to share them for free. 00:31:16.372 --> 00:31:20.306 And this particular verse tells us we need to take a look at that. 00:31:20.306 --> 00:31:33.626 Gentle at all times, willing to yield to others, peace loving, not just tolerating Peace loving this is the spirit of Christ. 00:31:34.287 --> 00:31:38.929 You know, early, early on in Heather and I's marriage, we worked at another church and we were doing counseling. 00:31:38.929 --> 00:31:48.594 And we were doing counseling with a couple that was like 10 years younger than us and they were just babies and they were married and they were having marriage problems and we were like, well, how can we help you? 00:31:48.594 --> 00:31:49.094 And he goes. 00:31:49.094 --> 00:31:58.278 Well, the bottom line is she screams at me all the time, she screams at the little baby, she screams all the time and he goes. 00:31:58.278 --> 00:32:05.342 And I just grew up in a bunch of foster homes and there was violence and all that. 00:32:05.342 --> 00:32:09.103 And I've just decided I don't want to have a home like that. 00:32:09.103 --> 00:32:15.451 And as he's saying that, I could really hear her going, I don't want to have a home like that. 00:32:15.451 --> 00:32:17.135 And, as he's saying that I could really hear her going, I don't want this either. 00:32:17.135 --> 00:32:21.307 And I watched the two of them say let's decide, we will not be a home that screams at each other. 00:32:21.307 --> 00:32:42.715 And I mean, and the two of them came to that decision on their own and I I followed them in in their relationship and it was a pivotal moment where they, no matter how mad they get, that's just not a choice, that's not a place they're going to, because they had decided pre-fight, pre-anger, because there's going to be struggles, but we're just not going to be a family that yells. 00:32:42.715 --> 00:32:44.426 And they made that decision. 00:32:44.426 --> 00:32:45.971 What a great decision I. 00:32:46.112 --> 00:32:48.707 I went home and I was talking to heather and I said can you do that? 00:32:48.707 --> 00:32:55.068 And she said, yeah, that's what I've been telling you for about 10 years of our marriage. 00:32:55.068 --> 00:33:02.272 And I came from a home where the loudest person won the argument and you had to yell and it was just. 00:33:02.272 --> 00:33:04.057 It wasn't even something that I considered. 00:33:04.057 --> 00:33:07.771 It's just the way human beings interacted, because it was. 00:33:07.771 --> 00:33:09.355 I saw no other way. 00:33:09.355 --> 00:33:13.147 And Heather was raised where, you know, they didn't yell, they talked. 00:33:13.147 --> 00:33:19.490 And so she was offering this idea and her and I at that point said well, let's make a decision Now. 00:33:19.590 --> 00:33:21.174 I haven't always honored that Heather has. 00:33:21.174 --> 00:33:28.970 I haven't always honored it, but I have to to the point that I could tell you it makes a transformation in your relationship. 00:33:28.970 --> 00:33:37.553 If you decide I'm not going to be mean If you decide that peace is Now, peace doesn't mean you'll never disagree. 00:33:37.553 --> 00:33:40.025 There's just a way of doing it peacefully. 00:33:40.025 --> 00:33:45.825 Or you can do it aggressively and mean that we're always, love is always ruling. 00:33:45.825 --> 00:33:47.864 How can I still be gentle. 00:33:47.864 --> 00:33:53.114 But be gentle and tell you that what you're doing is trampling all over my heart. 00:33:53.114 --> 00:33:57.655 There's a gentle way or there's a I say nothing, say nothing, build up and then I blow up. 00:33:57.655 --> 00:34:03.798 That's the way most of us deal with conflict, and then it's very messy and there's no gentleness with it. 00:34:04.125 --> 00:34:14.409 So I wonder if you could look at this and say, even from this moment forward in my relationship there are things I want to pick up about that, or just my own autonomy. 00:34:14.409 --> 00:34:27.835 I don't want to live outside of that boundary Because those looking at it, those are the times when I'm the most miserable, when I feel the worst is when I violate that anyway. 00:34:27.835 --> 00:34:35.592 So once I intentionally go, I don't want to be in that kind of relationship and you talk to your partner. 00:34:35.592 --> 00:34:45.356 If they're any kind of a of a sensible person, they will see that that makes sense and I'm telling you, if they're not sensible enough to surrender that you may. 00:34:45.356 --> 00:34:49.070 I'm like Jeff Foxworthy you may be in an abusive relationship. 00:34:49.070 --> 00:34:51.653 Although it's not funny, it's. 00:34:51.653 --> 00:34:54.820 You know, if we're not able to look at this and go. 00:34:54.820 --> 00:35:01.347 I see that now how painful that is to other people and to you and I don't want to. 00:35:01.347 --> 00:35:07.695 I've seen the light, I've seen a path and I want to apply those practices to my life. 00:35:08.626 --> 00:35:11.235 The wisdom that is from above is, first of all all, pure. 00:35:11.235 --> 00:35:17.994 It is also peace-loving and it is gentle at all times and willing to yield to others. 00:35:17.994 --> 00:35:20.259 It is full of mercy. 00:35:20.259 --> 00:35:26.186 Wisdom that is from above is full of mercy. 00:35:26.186 --> 00:35:27.507 We just read this in James's previous chapter. 00:35:27.507 --> 00:35:32.530 We just read this in James' previous chapter Mercy triumphs over judgment. 00:35:32.530 --> 00:35:34.972 Mercy is going to be the thing that wins. 00:35:34.972 --> 00:35:38.715 God in God's self is infinite mercy. 00:35:38.715 --> 00:35:44.737 In fact, in the book of Lamentations it says that the mercies of the Lord are new every morning. 00:35:44.737 --> 00:35:49.701 Great is God's faithfulness, faithful to mercy. 00:35:49.701 --> 00:36:00.440 I remind you even Jonah I talked about it last week where he says this about God God tells Jonah go and tell the people to repent. 00:36:01.405 --> 00:36:02.570 And Jonah doesn't really want to tell them to repent. 00:36:02.570 --> 00:36:04.599 He wants the judgment that's coming because those people have been an enemy for a long time. 00:36:04.599 --> 00:36:05.985 And so he goes there and I judge this morning. 00:36:05.985 --> 00:36:09.527 It's not in the text, but I'm using my imagination and you can judge me on that. 00:36:09.527 --> 00:36:10.668 But here's where he goes. 00:36:10.668 --> 00:36:11.809 I think it was half-hearted. 00:36:11.809 --> 00:36:12.568 I do. 00:36:12.568 --> 00:36:19.472 I don't believe that he really had intention for these people to change, but he spoke the word of the Lord to them Repent, change your ways. 00:36:19.472 --> 00:36:20.393 And what is repentance? 00:36:20.393 --> 00:36:22.295 Repentance is not saying I'm sorry. 00:36:22.295 --> 00:36:23.715 That's called saying I'm sorry. 00:36:23.715 --> 00:36:30.219 Repentance is changing the way you think Repentance is, and Jesus said this I want you to live a life of repentance. 00:36:31.199 --> 00:36:31.920 What does that mean? 00:36:32.141 --> 00:36:33.561 for all of us as we mature. 00:36:33.561 --> 00:36:43.235 We should be changing the way that we think, not about love, but about how we can expand and understand what the Spirit is telling us to do. 00:36:43.235 --> 00:36:44.342 The wisdom that comes from above is, first, pure. 00:36:44.342 --> 00:36:49.210 It is peace-loving, it is gentle at all times, it is willing to yield to others, it is full of mercy. 00:36:49.210 --> 00:36:59.105 And Jonah goes there and tells them if you don't repent, there is a judgment coming. 00:36:59.105 --> 00:37:05.380 And then he goes and he sits down and the people repent and God relents. 00:37:05.380 --> 00:37:07.106 God does not judge them and Jonah is furious. 00:37:07.126 --> 00:37:12.552 Jonah is furious and says to God I knew you were like this before I left the house. 00:37:12.552 --> 00:37:14.356 I mean, he literally says that. 00:37:14.356 --> 00:37:17.880 And I remind you his journey involved like being in a fish's belly, you know. 00:37:17.880 --> 00:37:21.452 So he had quite a journey and he said I knew you were like this before I left the house. 00:37:21.452 --> 00:37:23.717 You are full of mercy. 00:37:23.717 --> 00:37:30.858 This is your intention that everyone would come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. 00:37:30.858 --> 00:37:38.018 Everyone would come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, for God so loved the world that he gave Jesus so that we could come home to God. 00:37:38.018 --> 00:37:46.668 God's intention was love, and so it's important for us to know that when we hear the words that are coming to us, that someone says this is what God wants. 00:37:46.668 --> 00:37:47.610 Is it full of mercy? 00:37:47.610 --> 00:37:48.853 Because that's what God wants. 00:37:48.853 --> 00:37:50.266 Is it full of peace? 00:37:50.266 --> 00:37:51.576 Because that's what God wants. 00:37:51.576 --> 00:37:52.682 Is it full of peace Because that's what God wants? 00:37:52.682 --> 00:37:52.945 Is it gentle? 00:37:52.945 --> 00:38:01.715 Because that's who God is and that is what God wants for all of us to be people that our gentleness is known to all. 00:38:01.715 --> 00:38:04.659 I will give you another. 00:38:04.659 --> 00:38:09.670 See how these kind of things kind of creep up on us and this understanding of gentleness known to all. 00:38:09.989 --> 00:38:14.914 I was thinking of Dallas Willard, because he is, I'm, excited about some new things that are happening with the parables of Jesus. 00:38:14.914 --> 00:38:21.641 But Dallas Willard said this this is like the beginning, the basic knowledge of like, discipleship or apprenticeship. 00:38:21.641 --> 00:38:25.335 This is what you must do first. 00:38:25.335 --> 00:38:32.601 You must ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life. 00:38:32.601 --> 00:38:38.985 Ruthlessly eliminate hurry from your life, because let me tell you when you're not gentle, when you're in a hurry, let me tell you, when you're not patient, when you're in a hurry, let me tell. 00:38:38.985 --> 00:38:40.530 And you know what we are as Americans. 00:38:40.530 --> 00:38:41.873 We are in a state of hurry. 00:38:41.873 --> 00:38:44.788 I mean, alarms are going off all around us. 00:38:44.788 --> 00:39:01.545 There's meters everywhere to tell us that we are in a rush and there is a peace that comes from slowing and receiving love and recognizing our belovedness is not based on the timetable or the treadmill that has been given to us. 00:39:01.545 --> 00:39:11.896 We are allowed to disengage and say if I am going to stay in mercy, if I am going to stay in peace, then I have to eliminate and I love that. 00:39:11.916 --> 00:39:16.193 He used the word ruthlessly ruthlessly eliminate, hurry from my life. 00:39:16.193 --> 00:39:20.188 And then he says it's full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. 00:39:20.188 --> 00:39:23.856 Again, this is James and he's not believing what you're telling him. 00:39:23.856 --> 00:39:30.398 He's like just let me watch, I'll see what you believe, I'll see how you live. 00:39:30.398 --> 00:39:39.286 And, beloved, it's not just James, it's the people around you, it's the people you work with, it's your neighbors, it's how you interact with people when you go to the store. 00:39:39.286 --> 00:39:40.971 Are you full of mercy? 00:39:40.971 --> 00:39:42.835 Are you full of gentleness? 00:39:42.835 --> 00:39:48.175 Is it the wisdom from above or is it the wisdom of this world that told you you better get it done fast. 00:39:48.175 --> 00:39:56.989 I mean, get your stuff, get in, get out, get it done fast. 00:39:56.989 --> 00:39:58.614 Beloved, there's no way to have a relationship with anyone like that. 00:39:58.614 --> 00:39:59.697 And all the good stuff is in relationship. 00:39:59.697 --> 00:40:01.422 All of the good stuff is in the place where spirit allows us. 00:40:01.443 --> 00:40:14.018 Silas and I were here last night and there were many people here but we had walked past the kitchen and we have food there and there was a half sheet of a Publix birthday cake and it was so pretty. 00:40:14.018 --> 00:40:16.911 They just do a good job there and I know that cake to be good. 00:40:16.911 --> 00:40:18.014 I think it was odd. 00:40:18.014 --> 00:40:25.672 I came up from the north and we all had bakeries, lots and lots of bakeries, and you've had a favorite bakery and down here you just have Publix and they just got it right. 00:40:25.672 --> 00:40:28.237 So nobody else is trying the bakeries, everybody's doing something else. 00:40:28.237 --> 00:40:30.197 So, but this was a public cake. 00:40:30.257 --> 00:40:34.860 And I said to Silas when we pulled in, the neighbors right behind us were having some kind of a party. 00:40:34.860 --> 00:40:41.347 There were so many cars and there were people all outside and I said let's go get that cake and let's take it to our neighbors. 00:40:41.347 --> 00:40:42.710 And so we did. 00:40:42.710 --> 00:40:50.172 Silas carries the cake for me and we go to the neighbors and we said we had extra and we just thought maybe you'd like some cake and they were so excited. 00:40:50.172 --> 00:40:52.275 They're like what kind of a church gives away cake? 00:40:52.275 --> 00:40:53.376