Sunday, September 22nd, 2019 - AM - The Disciple in Community, Part 5 (Mt. 5:43-48)

You're listening to the services of the Broomfield Baptist Church. This is the pastor bring into Sunday morning message continuing a series that we began some weeks ago. Now, this is probably the fifth session that we've had in this segment in The Sermon on the Mount but if you're listening you can join us we invite you to grab a Bible get that close by and keep your eyes on that join us in The Gospel according to Matthew. You'll find our verses that will be studying together today down in verses 43 to the end of the chapter Matthew chapter number 5 beginning and verse number 43 continuing our journey through the studies of the so-called Sermon on the Mount where Jesus is teaching his disciples instructing them how to live in community. As they serve him and follow him Matthew chapter number 5 we take the scriptures in hand. We read these words. You have heard that it has been said. Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy But I say unto you the Lord Jesus speaking here. Love your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you. That ye may be the children of your father which is in heaven for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good and send it to rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love them which love you what reward have ye do not even the publican's the same and if you salute your brethren only what do you more than others? Do not even the publican's so Reverse 48 out loud with me if you would be there for perfect even as your father, which is in heaven is perfect Lord. We pray that you will help us again today to grow in your grace and knowledge. Then we can be further conform to your image. These words Lord can have an effect on us that if we don't understand them or if we miss apply them or misinterpret them from what you intended Lord. It can drive us to despair. The Lord's you knew exactly what we needed when you spoke these words all those years ago to those that got to hear this from your very lips that day as you sat on the hillside and your disciples that you would cold came on to you and you taught them openly you gave them such wonderful truth about the blessed life and how to find that you gave them the blueprint blueprints to build their life accordingly around you and around your teachings and around your word, but then Lord you didn't hold anything back from them as you don't hold anything back from us. As we follow you Lord, we inevitably encounter difficulty in trial along the way. Lord we are called on to stand for righteousness to make a distinction Lord. Not because we're better than anyone else. But because we found your word and did eat them and they are unto us the source of life. It's not that we know all the answers Lord It's that you have given us the right way to walk in and we've decided to follow that and therefore we must take a stand against things that would depart from your truth and your word and when we do Lord we can expect persecution to come but may we count that as we should and rejoice and be exceeding glad maybe understand that you're working a greater purpose. And may we take up your cross and follow you being souls and being light Lord, we do ask that you would use our life to make a difference to others that as we walk and talk that it would all be in line with your word that we would be quick to get right with you any missteps. We make any shortcomings that your Holy Spirit reveals to us as we continue growing Lord. We understand the purpose of your word and the foundation that it provides for us. You didn't undo anything that Moses said written in the Old Testament. You didn't undo any of the prophet's teachings about the end times or or what's to come get for Israel and and all the blessings that we have through the promises given to Abraham Lord. You haven't done done any of that. You're still working to fulfill that plan and yet we have a place in your program here and now as disciples to bring forth fruit, but Lord, we've got to be careful how we handle your word. We can be in danger of making the same mistakes with your word that even the best people when you walk this Earth the cream of the crop of society those that were the religious Elite those that were supposed to have known your word made grievous errors with it and began teaching for the Commandments of God the doctrines of men and they imposed upon your word legalistic standards that you never uttered. Oh Lord. I pray that you would help us to regard your word with sincerity and to learn that it's the spirit of the law the spirit of the law. That's the motivation for why we do what we do not just the outward letter but it's the heart change that comes from the inside out. And we look forward to your coming Kingdom Lord. As we look at your word, we have some hard things to understand and if we miss them. We'll miss the blessing that you have for our life. As we come to these versus Lord, I pray that you would help us to see the love of father. And that we would grow to be more like him each day that we live. Unlock our understanding law and order status on all thank you for what you he's name. Amen. Amen, we've been centering around this theme of protecting our heart. So that our testimony is protected because when that's the case, it allows us to then be able to present the gospel in meaningful ways that we wouldn't otherwise be able to do. Your heart is where it all begins. The heart of the matter is a matter of the heart as many preachers have said before me and and I quote them and stand on their shoulders and remind us today guard your heart keep thy heart with all diligence for out of it are all the issues of Life. Jesus is encouraging us as his disciples for those who are saved and washed by his blood saying I want to follow Jesus. I want to learn to be more like him. He calls us today. To deal with his word in a way that he would approve to rightly divide the word of Truth now. We also must consider backdrop. What was going on in this day and here is a case in point in the versus under our study as we began to read. We read Jesus say these words you've heard that it has been said he didn't say you have read that I wrote you read that God wrote. No. He said you've heard that it has been said. and this is the key movement indicator for these 6 illustrations from the law that he is pulling out in this point that he's making

driving his disciples to make sure their righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees. How can we better be better than a Pharisee know today? We have to condition that because when we say the term Pharisee when I under the word Pharisee immediately many of you most of you maybe all of you are having negative connotations come to your mind, you're thinking Pharisee Pharisee those mean Ferris eat okay in this day and time don't know what would be in the best person in the entire Community. I'm talking about every T is crossed every I is dotted nothing ever seems to go wrong or when it does. They just know right how to fix it and there and upstanding person in the community. You would never see them in the front pages of some of the headlines of the atrocities that happened in the news today ever. I mean, it just wouldn't occur because they live their life in such a way that it's straight down the line.

Now say something bad about that person. No, don't do it. Okay, cuz you don't have good anything good to say my mama Tommy and you shouldn't open your mouth to begin with that be the same as what you're doing to the Pharisees because they walk the line. They were upstanding people if if you were a parent had children, maybe you wanted your children grow up, you might even dream one day that they could grow up and and be like Pharisee such-and-such. This was a prestigious roll a prestigious place to attain to not everybody could get their Paul was a Pharisee of the Pharisees and he gives his pedigree he gets his leg. Is there a certain qualifications now the Pharisees built much of their system off of what the scribes had done and working with the Old Testament. So they would take the law of Moses found in Exodus 20 and in Leviticus and Deuteronomy and Those portions of the Torah at the elevated so highly and the scribes would come to that and and basically come out of the way that we say sometimes hear you've heard me say the Bible has the answers for everything. We're going to face in life. I get that right out of the scriptures. That's my way of paraphrasing what Peter said that the scriptures give us all things that pertain to life and godliness everything. We need to live Gods told us about this word. It doesn't tell us, you know, everything under the sun. He doesn't give us all to my new shift of Neuroscience everything Grable to unlock today, but he did give us what we need to live and operate by and to bring him glory and to have a Peaceable life about us not free from trouble necessarily, but we're able to be content with the things we have. He's given us everything that pertains to life and godliness male. What describes would do is they would impose upon the scripture something is very dangerous to do. And so well God never explicitly said you can only walk X number of miles on the Sabbath. Are you with me? Okay describes would say inherently that's in the law. It's not explicitly written. But inherently it's there. So here's the rules. You can only go this far from the temple on on the Sabbath day. You can only carry this much of a load above. This is too much. You can only cook this much remember they had certain things that they had to do when they gathered mana and all of that they could have had together twice as much on Friday to cast to the last over into Saturday and those kind of things but they kept it too long. It would grow mold and begin to stink and grow worms and all that stuff. So What describes did is impose upon what God had written and interpreted out of that. That's the danger they misinterpreted it and they applied their traditions. And they impose those on everyone else and said if you're going to be spiritual then you're going to abide by these inherent things that we have developed out of what God had written explicitly.

So the Pharisee said we got this. And they live their life in a way that boy you don't step over that line. For instance. Why would they get so upset? When here comes a Man From Galilee into a synagogue one day and there's a woman that's been boat over running just boat in half for decades and decades and on one Saturday. Jesus speaks a word and that ladies able to be healed and stands upright and she's made whole in the fella officiating that Sabbath day's proceedings. Stop everything dead in its tracks and was upset that Jesus had done that.

Why?

And he corrected that officiator that day by the way. All because well, it's the Sabbath day and it's it was not permitted to heal on the Sabbath.

Oh as Jesus was walking when time his disciples were hungry. So they grabbed some the grab some grain and they rub it in their hands and begin to just you know, eat because they were starving. That's what you do. We can do that here in Colorado in the amber waves of grain that we sing about right you get that Rice stuff and you go out there and you chase it with your hands and you get all the shells off of it. You can actually eat that and grindin make bread and those kind of things just right from the fields that grows wild here. That's what disciples do they were gleaning, but the problem was it was on the Sabbath You weren't allowed to thrash on the Sabbath. And so when they took that granted they did that they were threshing. Oh you remember the time that he came by the pool of Bethesda the Northside of Jerusalem and came in and there was a man that had been there what 38 years if I recount correctly by John? 38 years not able to Define healing in Jesus comes through in one instance and says Rise take up thy bed and walk go that way. Everything so fine until it's the Sabbath day. Because taking up his bed. Was a violation of the Sabbath you're not to carry your couch. You're not to carry your bed. You see go find a verse in Exodus Leviticus Numbers unit Genesis anywhere in the Old Testament. It says Thou shalt is not a scariest. Bettis Tan on the Sabbath list. It's not there. But the scribes imposed it and the Pharisees said that's the spiritual way. And you know Nicodemus agree that Jesus was a teacher come from God because no man could do these Miracles except God be with him. So they had that much figured out at least Nicodemus did and maybe some other Pharisees that were questioning. We know of Nicodemus for sure, maybe Joseph of Arimathea, but the others begin to wrestle these things in your mind and begin to Discount the ministry the Miracles the messiahship the very Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Well, you know if he was from God and if he really was what he sang, then he wouldn't violate the Sabbath. You see how they reason it. One of the things that was a turning point for me in my spiritual growth was when I had to translate. Okay, I say that bad. I had to translate the gospel of Mark. I got to translate it from Greek. Okay, I'll put it that way for a country teacher sake I wish I could say I did better in the class. I'm not a great scholar by any stretch imagination, but I did enough to be dangerous. I supposed as I was coming through the gospel of Mark doing my translation work as rough as it was around the edges as little as it could be. I came to Chapters 2 and 3 and 4 and I stopped dead in my tracks and I had a little altar time with the holy spirit because he was working on me big time. I begin to put some things together. Here I am. I'm a Seminary Student and I've got you know a few years of Bible College under my belt and I'm feeling like I'm able to handle the word of God a little bit better now than I could before I begin and I'm getting to the place where my mind's beginning to analyze things and criticize and that's not just really bad thing. Unless you're walking a dangerous path, but I came to Mark chapter 2 and chapter 3 chapter 4 and I found out something occurred in the ministry of Jesus that woke me up. There was a time in Jesus ministry when he began he began teaching and preaching openly to the public and all of his teachings were there for everybody to hear and see much like what we're seeing with The Sermon on the Mount it was open. It was abroad anybody could come and sit as a multitude and listen to what he was teaching the Turning Point came when certain of the scribes and Pharisees begin to blaspheme Jesus Christ. Remember that account. They said well, he's just doing this by the power of Beelzebub. That's how he's able to cast out these demons because the devil's empowering to do it. That was their argument. And they missed the fact that Jesus is God that he came into his own and his own received him not but as many as received him to them gave he power the right if you will to become the sons of God even believe on his name. They missed it. And I stopped dead in my tracks as I came to that translate because he was turning point after that point in the gospel of Mark. You'll notice Jesus no longer talk openly publicly. He taught in parables.

That's the turning point. Parables in Jesus's teaching are the difference between light and darkness parables are the difference between understanding the Heavenly teaching and getting caught in the Earthly story. Cuz a parable is an Earthly story with a Heavenly meaning.

I have stopped dead in my tracks because here I am I'm mines beginning to analyze things and criticize things and what arrested me in my studies was the fact that I put myself in the scribes and Pharisees shoes. And I saw what if I were there alive when Jesus did these things? And my thought process went like this, you know, if somebody stood up here today in our service and said I am the son of God.

I do like what you just did.

Yeah right now if you did it once I might, you know have a little. Laughter, but then if he presses that and begins to come back again and say all I am sent from God and then he does these crazy things and and always I begin to wonder would I not question the way that they did?

Criticism I think he is.

That was a humbling moment for me. Because I don't have it all figured out.

What I know I have to keep it within the confines and the guidelines of Holy Scripture. This is the only thing that's inerrant. The only thing that is infallible anything outside of this is prone to Decay and prone to error. But this is Holy these words from beginning to end Genesis to revelation. This is the infallible inerrant verbally plenary inspired word of God and I believe that with all my heart. now if I believe that then I have to believe that Jesus was born of a virgin. That he has fulfilled hundreds of prophecies that nobody else could do that was given in the Old Testament. So I'm thankful that I was able to come through that. With humility and say Lord if I would have been there that day who knows I what I might have been right there with them ready to throw rocks at you because you're standing up saying your God and I refuse to believe it. We have many many people. Maybe even right here in this building right now is we're meeting many people that do not believe Jesus Christ is God.

They don't believe in his DD. Muslims don't believe in his DNA for sure not according to their qurans teachings.

So this is the dividing line. What are you going to do with Jesus? Be careful that you don't wind up in the same campus the scribes and Pharisees. And say, how can he be?

That was my own personal journey, and I thought Lord if I would have been there I would have been just as blinded as them what's not to say it would have been me saying you're doing this by the power of the Devil by the power of Beelzebub. You were casting out demons who's not to say that it would have been coming out of my mouth. As critical as I could be in his analytical as I could be about the scriptures and then somebody stayed up doing this stuff. I might have been right there with him. That changed how I viewed the scribes and Pharisees from that day forward. I began to weep over their condition. I begin to see them Through The Eyes Of Love rather than eyes of criticism. How can they get locked into this to where they missed what's tearing them? Right in the face. I would have been under the same danger. And as I sat if I would have been alive in that day sitting under The Parables of Jesus. I pray would have left their scratch my head going. What in the world does that mean? Because I would have been blinded. The disciples had the privilege to ask Jesus when they didn't understand the Parables Lord what you mean by that and he would sit down with them almost almost in a funny way. Sometimes I I kind of chuckled to myself when I read about how they would ask him Lord. What is this Parable me and then he would answer them. It's right here. It's right before your face. It's clear as day. I mean the seed and the seed is the word of God and and the son of man and all the ending begins to explain to them the parable of the sower and another pair of bulls and But the scribes and Pharisees they missed it all they weren't privy to Jesus's explanation of those and they asked him Lord. Why are you teaching in Parables now?

He answered them and said really for two purposes. Number one that those that have eyes to see and ears to hear. Might see and hear the truth the Heavenly truth that God would share with us. And for the second purpose that those having ears would hear not and they having eyes would see not and see through that. He even fulfilled a prophecy given by Isaiah. In that part of the purpose for Parables was to Blind the blasphemers. And unlock the truth for his followers his disciples. Now. I've given you a lot of backdrop of almost take my message time to do that. I don't want you to look at our passage here and verse 43 to 48. Jesus is going to give an antithesis just so you can see the structure what's going on here. He names the tradition you have heard that it has been said he did not say again. He remembered he's in sake God wrote that out. What did he say in verse 3 love? Thy neighbor and hate thine enemy. Now God did tell the Israelites that they should love their neighbor and you can read about that in the Torah, but I challenge you to go find this second phrase anywhere in the Old Testament as it's written right here. Hate thine enemy God never once that I can find told the Israelites to actually hate their enemy not in in these certain terms. Now, they're certain teachings that he gave about hating evil, which could lead to the conclusion that well if you're going to hate the evil in you need to hate the one who's perpetrating the evil so that would be your enemy. You need to hate your enemy, but that's an end-run and you see that so that's a conclusion based off of a principal that's found in the Old Testament. That's not what God said. That's what would they derived from it and the scribes begin teaching in the Pharisees began upholding that it's okay if you hate your enemy, Because there are enemy there against the things of God and it's okay to hate them. Jesus says, let me correct your thinking. Because it's the spirit of the law not simply the letter that God's concerned with what's your motivation? What's happening on the inside? He goes on to say in verse 43 after he exposes the tradition about loving neighbors and hating enemies. He gives them and a he says I say unto you. Love your enemies. Not only that let's go above and beyond that love your enemies. Bless them that curse you. Do good to them that hate you pray for them, which despitefully use you and persecute you.

That's quite a list.

How many of you right now you can Envision an enemy before your eyes right now, you know you have an enemy and you can see them right now. I don't know why you'd sometimes it's hard for me. I don't like to have enemies. I try try not to have enemies. Okay. Now got some faces coming before my mind are a Lord and please let me pray for them. You see there are people I want you to notice here in the text. First. Before we go any further pay close attention to the distinction between singular and plural.

in verse 42, you'll notice Jesus said give to him that ask if the singular inform him that would borrow of Z singular turn not thou singular away and verse 43. He goes right back to the plural. Ye have heard that it has been said Keep that in mind because he's going to make the distinction threw out here with the group of his disciples versus how an individual disciple responds in that situation. Maybe you underline the the pronouns. They're using these pay attention to that will help you as you read it. He says but I say unto you plural.

Love your enemies plural. So context establishes for us who the real enemy in this case would be it's not just somebody that's Diana me. No, it is the enemy of God's disciples the enemy of God's Church. the enemy of his followers

That helps us a lot doesn't it? Because now all those faces disappear, maybe one or two of them lyrics it's somebody that's doing something. It's the church. Here's something to pay attention of pay attention to take the note up historically exciting for Christians. I'm going back only to the church now, okay back to the book of Acts in the first century ever since Christ died and was buried for our sins rose again the third day according to the scriptures ever since that occurred. His disciples have been on the earth and his church has been here. Look historically every time whether it's his his people to Jewish people Israelites or the church think of in human history that either Israel or the church has been persecuted by either the state or some other enemy. As we would put it. Has it worked out well in time for that persecutor. Not once and it never will. Because God watches out for his own. CC he says love your enemies at this time, even right now as he's writing this there are certain. leaders in Rome that are imposing upon people things that are not be done. grievance kind of issues never remember this ties into the larger context of this whole Sermon on the Mount, doesn't it? Because he's talking about the law. He's talking about legal situations. So the same thing that applies to you not being a doormat for somebody, you know God's not telling you hear that. You just need to give your code every time somebody asked you and you know that person that's maybe living an alcoholic lifestyle comes and asked you for money and and that you know uses a scripture and says will you've got to give it? No God never once told you anywhere in his word to enable someone to go and buy more booze. Do they say they're going to go get food with it. But, you know really deep down inside what they're really going to do with that money. You're not helping them at all. And that's not what being a follower of Christ is. No one in the name of Jesus Christ is at stake for his testimony. In these kind of contacts when we protect the cause of Christ. That's where these things apply. So then apply that now to these forces in the context of who our enemies are as a church does the church have enemies?

Yeah, I wish I weren't so but not everybody agrees with what we're doing here today. I wish that weren't so there were people that just blew right by our booth yesterday cuz they saw Baptist on and that's all they need to know if I'm staying far away from that place. Not just Baptist. Okay other churches to my do. So the churches have enemies.

So what do we do about it? God never told us that it was okay to hate them. That's the wrong approach the Pharisees would take an approach like that though and they would they would say it's okay for you to hate them that better your enemies. Love your neighbor hate your enemies to them. That was okay. That was an okay standard, but God never wants him pose that he says Jesus goes on to say love your enemies bless them that curse you I think of David when I think of that remember when he was walking in and he had that that manages railed on him up one side and down the other and so much so that his is a buddies with him was like going to go take care of them. I'll go I will take him right now. Remember that and David said no, let him be

I don't I wonder if you know maybe David prayed for that man. What a story bless them that curse. You do good to them that hate you pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you but what's the real motive? So he's supposed to try and he gives a mandate to love them to pray for them to bless them. What's the motivation motivation is in verse 45 to be God's children? Remember the forces of nature fall on both of them. The just and the unjust God's good to everyone. Hate your enemy you'll find that in the Old Testament. Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones, put it like this and I would agree with him. I think here perhaps it can be best put like this. If you do not accept that principle, which says that all these implications he was courting the the Psalms imprecatory Psalms praying about you no enemies and those things to read about in the Psalms trying to balance. That was what Jesus says love your enemies here. How do you balance those things? That was his argument. He says if you do not accept that principle, which says the oldies imprecations are always judicial and character that it wants you're involved in an insoluble problem with regard to the Lord Jesus Christ himself here. He's telling us we are to love our enemies then dr. Jones. Encourages us to turn to Matthew chapter 23 and listen to Jesus the Same Jesus sundering out woes upon the heads of the fair seats. And dr. Lloyd-jones pose this question. How do you reconcile these two things? Love your enemies woe unto you scribes and Pharisees. How do you balance that? How do you reconcile the exhortation to love your enemies with these woes pronounce upon the Pharisees and all the other things that he said with respect to them or indeed. Let us look at it this way here. Our Lord tells us to love our enemies because he says that's exactly what God does. His argument is he sends the rain on the just and on the unjust when you love your enemies you're doing exactly what God does. following in your Father's Footsteps that fits the argument before what Jesus is making I I think this is exactly what God does that she may be the children of your father, which is in heaven free make it this Sunday rise on the evil and the good send it to rain on the just and the unjust and underline this there are people who have foolishly interpreted this to mean that the love of God is universal. Absolutely. And that it does not matter whether a man sends or not. We can go right out here. Take a right go down a few blocks crossover few intersections take a left and you'll see a group of people down there. They're teaching that this morning. right here in Broomfield That's just one that I can think of right off the cuff here. I'm sure there's others.

Because you know God is love everybody is going to heaven because God is love. That's the argument. God is love he can never punish, but dr. Lloyd-jones went on to say this and I believe he is. Absolutely correct. Because he's getting it from the scriptures. He says that is to deny the teaching of scripture from beginning to end. Amen, dr. Lloyd-jones. Rest his soul. He's with the Lord now. I don't agree with everything that dr. Lloyd-jones wrote and said but I agree with this. To say that is to to deny the teaching of scripture for beginning in these are the examples he gave God punished Cain. and he also punish the ancient world in the flood. He punished the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to punish the children of Israel when they were recalcitrant. then the whole teaching in the New Testament from the lips of Christ himself is that there is to be a final judgment that finally all the impenitent are going to a lake of fire to a place where Jesus says their worm dieth not And the fire is not quenched. So if you do not accept this judicial principle, you must say there's a contradiction running through not only the teaching of the Bible but the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ himself. Love your enemies under you scribes in Pharisees. How do you balance that?

The wrong conclusion to come to is that will God loves everybody and doesn't matter if anybody since everybody's going to heaven. Anyway, that's universalism. And that's a lie right other pit of Hell. Jay has God said.

Yes, he did say their worm dieth. Not the fire is not quenched. Yes. Jesus did say the rich man died and in hell he lifted up his eyes being in torments. There is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun. We preach his dying man to a Dying World. And all of it hangs upon the cross of Jesus Christ. So the way to resolve the problem is we recognize there's a Judicial element to what Jesus is teaching here. Some observations that I would make with you.

Tell me if I'm reading the scriptures correctly.

You've heard that it has been said Thou shalt like Thy Neighbor and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you like your enemies bless them that curse you do good to them that hate you pray for them, which despitefully use you and persecute you. Did I read that correctly? What word did I change?

God did not Jesus did not tell you you have to like them.

How many Beano there's a difference between loving someone and liking them? Liking them liking somebody either comes naturally or it doesn't.

You like certain people because that just comes natural something about them. There's an appeal you like them. there's other people now we don't like Maybe you're here because you like you know, how I sound I don't know why you do but okay. I'm glad you're here. Thanks for putting up with me. and there are other things you know, how can somebody sit under somebody was completely monotone and just I think about sinners in the hands of an Angry God. It said that that sermon was read by Jonathan Edwards kind of monotonous monotonous Lee and and that the the conviction was so heavy on people I guarantee it wasn't because they liked how he was reading his manuscript. You understand. The point God is not telling you here that you have to like those that are treating you in horrendous ways. You don't even have to like what they're doing to you. But you can and you must and you have to learn to love them regardless of whether you like them or not. Are you with me? This means yes, okay. You might not like certain policies that our state isn't acting. I don't know about you but I about had a nervous breakdown last week when I got the mail. Some of you might know what I'm referring to cuz you got the same piece of mail and had the same reaction I did and I open this thing up and if you don't have the the Seal of our state on it and explain it to me in there just a couple of things that they want to do that. I remember, you know, this was coming down the pike because of last session, but he's so I read through that and I said, okay, so basically what you're telling me you want to do you want to you want to get rid of Tabor the taxpayer Bill of Rights. And you want to remove any restraints that the people of Colorado have put on you to get more money and keep more money. And then on top of that you want to text me more.

Lord help me Lord, help me.

with love in my heart I weighed that manuscript down and I just said no.

And I walked away and I moved on with my life and I didn't let it debilitate me know maybe you disagree with me. Maybe you think our state should have no restraints on how much money it can keep that it takes from you and and that our state can take more money from you later on to pay for all these things. They're dreaming about doing maybe you're in agreement with all I'm not and I'm Frank with that. I'm not talking about the scripture. I know I'm talking about my opinion you're free to disagree with me. I respect your opinion and I would just ask that you respect mine when it comes to these things. I'm using that as an illustration because I don't like to think about the state taking more for me when they're already taking how much already I don't like that but doesn't mean that I shouldn't love Senator Garcia. Now this man stood in the well many times last session. And actually held a balance that kept things within reason now, there are things that he did allow that I would not like and I would disagree with but the man had respect he had a rapport. He conducted himself with dignity and I pray for Senator Garcia and I pray that you do too and everyone that sits on either side of the aisle as one person said it's not about politics. It's not about donkeys and it's not about elephants. It's about the lamb.

And it's about the Lord Jesus Christ and there are things that the elephants team. So to speak has done that. I'm like what in the world? And the donkey Steam and I'm saying what in the world? No, we need to remember there is a guiding principle of scripture. And whichever is going to align with that is going to have my blessing and have my favor because it's in line with scripture plain and simple. It's not about party. It's about principle. Now I don't like the direction our state is going but it doesn't mean that I can't love and pray for people who maybe they can't even see the bondage that it's going to bring. As a pastor my heart breaks because I look down through the corridors kind of preemptively in a way and I think how many more people are going to sit down across a desk for me with a broken life because they're locked in bondage. Now that the state almost encouraged them. To take up all these devices. Why why is it ever good for any society to open up and have full strength beer? I mean my soul. You can get in any any convenience store. Now, let's just take all of the restraints off. Okay, let's just make things easier. Why do we need dispensaries on every corner in Colorado? Why do we need allow dispensaries in Broomfield are kids already have enough trouble in the school system with her friends and things that they can get even just right around here. If you want to know what that kind of stuff does to a town go look at somewhere like Trinidad. Broomfield I'm praying for Broomfield because we have until 2021 to keep that stuff out of here and if we don't get City Council on board on this thing. 5 what's it going to look like 5 or 10 years from now Broomfield will not be the same. It will not and that hurts me. Yeah, we're going to have more opportunities to minister. And if I go to City Council meetings and things are probably going to be people it'll stand up in that room and really hate me. And really not like what I have to say because I come from scriptural principle. Not that I have it all figured out but that I'm just saying there's a right way and a wrong way and in this is leaning the wrong way to open up all of these things into just make it easier for people to be immoral and in drunken and and not living in sobriety and in to make it easier for people to send and sand and sand and the eyes or Neverfull in the fire continues to burn and it's never quenched and people get to the end of themselves and they wonder what is life all about anyway. Maybe we can step in somewhere along the way and point them to Jesus and say there is a better way just because it's legal doesn't mean you have to do it. We've known that for a long time haven't we just because you can doesn't mean you should and that you ought to but I'll tell you lust lust is a driving factor that shackle so many. We must help them get free from that. Well, I'm taking my time here with you this morning. Jesus didn't say you have to like them but he did mandate you need to learn to love them. This is an act of your will it's not going to come natural to you, but you can learn to love them. Love is giving It's in spite of who the person is you give in spite of who they are. Because there's a greater purpose working. There's a motive. The reason we love them is we're trying to get them to be like God. I'm not trying to get them to be like me. I'm trying to get them to be like God. I love them and I continue to do good to them all of Ohio believing that one day what I go through and what I put up with here and how I pray in a one preacher said it this way. It's really hard to be mad at somebody you're praying for a man. I pray for them and I did give even when they don't deserve it in spite of who they are. I keep giving why to try to point them to Christ knowing that one day. There will be a reward. That God will bring the Reckoning at the end of it all. So if I'm going to be televised if I'm going to be perfect if I'm going to be mature if I'm going to give all of me to God my heart my soul my mind my strength if I'm going to be perfect as my Father in Heaven is perfect.

I think this him puts it. Well when it says Edward Denny's him. Speaking of Jesus. He says thy foes might hate despise reveal that friends Unfaithful proof. unwearied unwearied and forgiveness still die heart could only love Jesus suspended between Earth and Heaven. From the cross. I heard those words father. forgive them Who his enemies enemies of of all things? Holy? Forgive them for they know not what they do. as we treat others

that should never depend upon what they say or what they do to us.

As we do good to them that hate you. It means we are benevolent towards them despite action against us continuously benevolent. It means that we're going to take it a step further not just do good. Not just bless them. We are going to pray for them sincerely. That they find God because that is their ultimate need to be right with him and I can be hard to do this. I'm out of time as I mentioned. I'll close with this last illustration to try to drive it all home. It can be difficult to Envision how Jesus teaching on loving your enemies might be lived out and it's often messy particulars one, right or put it was a powerful example of Love of the enemy in the work of dr. C. Timothy Floyd. Floyd he was an orthopedic surgeon he tells about his 2003 experience as a member of the US Army's 934th forward surgical team FST in Iraq. Listen to what this orthopedic surgeon rights and I quote the FST is located within 10 km of active battle area. We treated wounded at camps near karbala Baghdad by La Barca bar and tikrit. We often arrive to take wounded at base just after the Air Force and Army Rangers cleared it but before other units arrived. Most of the people we treated they were not Coalition forces. We treated Iraqi Army. We treated Republican Guard Special Republican guard terrorists unfortunate civilians caught in crossfire as an orthopedic surgeon East as we treated them all. every condition that came into our tent military medical doctor in calls for the humane an ethical treatment of all persons wounded in battle regardless of politic regardless of deed. Regardless of ideology here's an orthopedic surgeon that one day stood and took an oath the Hippocratic Oath. And hear his testimony says I lined up with that. It didn't mean that he liked everybody that was on his table. But he worked on them. As Jesus says love your enemies. He's not telling me you've got to like everybody that comes within your sphere of influence, but I'm telling you if you're a follower of Jesus Christ work on them.