0:07 Good morning family. It's good to see you all and be back. Um, I get homesick every time I travel and [clears throat] it gives me a fresh appreciation for those who don't have a church family like we do. Many of you who watch 0:24 online, the last couple weeks, I got to watch online and it's special. It's precious. It's good that God gives us technology, but it's not the same. And so, I'm back with a fresh, deeper appreciation for 0:41 what the Lord has given us. May we never take it for granted. I also don't know if we give enough credit. I know we clap for the children when they say their memory verse. uh but I wonder if we give them enough appreciation 0:58 and recognition for what they do. I counted the number of words in the three sets of memory verses. I don't know if you did or noticed it. The adults had nine words. The pre-teens had 21 words and the littlest ones, the preschool had 1:17 22 words. Did you notice that? Um, and even nine words for us sometimes, you know, maybe you can say our memory gets worse as you get older. I don't think that's an excuse, but the children really take it to heart. I mean, the little fouryear-olds getting 1:35 up here and saying 22 words boldly, I think, ought to put some of us adults to shame. Not not to feel guilty, but to say, "Lord, if you can do that for the littlest ones in our church, forgive me for my unbelief 1:54 that I thought, h I that's too much." And as we often say, memorization is not the most important thing. We're not here to impress each other with our memory. That's why it doesn't matter if you read it or say it from memory or need help 2:10 with it. as long as the word of God is spoken. That's why we have this as an important part of our church meeting that everybody has the opportunity to get up and speak God's word boldly is for the devil to see when you all get up here children. 2:28 And believe me, he is afraid of that. The word of God is living. It's active. It's sharp. And when you get up here and each one of you gives another thrust to the devil by those eight words or 21 words or 22 words, he's afraid. And I 2:46 hope you'll remember that all your life. The devil is afraid of the word of God. He's not afraid of your words. You could say all kinds of words, but you use the word of God. Then he knows there's power there and he loses his authority in your 3:00 life. So know God's word. children especially and all of us. Let's know God's word. That's why we take the pains to memorize it. Will you pray with me again? Family, I need God's power as I speak and we need God's Holy Spirit to open our ears 3:17 to hear what he wants to say to us. I don't want to give you just some words and some other message, some thoughts. I want to hide in the shadows. I want to go into the darkness and shine the lamp of truth onto the face of Jesus. That's 3:34 an awesome responsibility that we teachers have. And I never want to rely on my own strength or my own ability. I want to lean completely on the Holy Spirit and to be emptied of myself so fully that the Holy Spirit can flow 3:49 through me and through each one of us. That's what it means to be the church of God. All of our strength comes from the head. So as we seek to listen, children as well, will you pause for a moment, close your eyes with me and allow the 4:03 Holy Spirit to come and fill your heart Aresh this morning, even just to listen. We can't listen unless the Holy Spirit opens our ear. We can't speak unless the Holy Spirit opens our mouth. Heavenly Father, I lean on you. We lean 4:19 on you as a church. We're just branches in you, the vine. Outside of the vine, we can do nothing. Lord, if you don't sustain us even now during this time, it's a waste of time. It's it it will come to nothing either now or at some 4:34 point in the future. We want this next few minutes and everything about our lives to be of eternal value and that can only happen through your Holy Spirit. Lord, I lean on you for all for everything. I want nothing of self to 4:49 come out. We want nothing of self to come out even in the way we understand what we hear. We don't want to filter it through our own ideas and our own thoughts. For your thoughts is are as high above our thoughts as the heaven is above the 5:03 earth. And your ways are not our ways. They're the exact opposite of it. So we set aside our ways and our thoughts and our own understanding of the truth and come to you Lord Jesus. You are the truth. You are the way. You are the 5:20 life. Will you come and let you, your person as a person, the person of Jesus Christ become precious and real and living to us. Let the word become flesh, become life in us, Lord, today as we hear it. I believe you'll do that. So 5:35 pour out your spirit, Lord. We lift up our cup to you, asking you to fill it, believing that you will. We we bind the work of Satan and stand against you, Satan, in the name of Jesus. And Lord, will you come be a wall of fire around 5:46 us? Guard our thoughts, guard our ears, Lord, and be that wall of fire around us so that we're not distracted by what's going on in the world around us, what's happened yesterday, what's happening today, what's going to happen in the 5:59 week ahead. Be a wall of fire around us, protecting us from those distracting thoughts and from the birds of the air that would come and steal what you want to speak to us. So Lord, come and may we receive your truth in its fullness. We 6:12 believe you'll do that. Thank you in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Would you turn with me please to James chapter 2. Jesus said when he was here on this 6:36 earth that he didn't come to judge the world to condemn the world. That was while he was here on this earth. However, he is going to judge the world one day. Jesus is going to sit on that throne of 6:54 judgment and judge. And I I saw a I think they called it a meme, but I don't know if it's actually a meme, but it's just a picture of a snapshot of a Bible page and the words judge not visible and everything else 7:13 scratched out. A lot of people who who uh criticize Christianity and the fact that we stand for the truth. Standing for the truth means that you stand against what's not the truth. And that can easily be perceived as judgment. 7:30 We never we don't judge anybody. But when if you do decide to stand for the truth and not be a compromiser, people will say you're judging others. Don't mind what they say. Don't judge others, but you stand for the truth. 7:45 And uh so that caught my eye some days ago when I saw that. And often when we stand for the truth and we stand for what's in God's word, the standard criticism that other Christians and the rest of the world will throw at us is 7:59 like, "Oh, Jesus said judge not." Doesn't matter what else he said, but he said, "Judge not." But we stand, we stand for all of God's truth. The God who said judge not. And you can continue to read in Matthew chapter 7 um what else Jesus said there. But we 8:19 must remember that one day we will be judged. All of us will be judged. And it's in the light of that that we judge ourselves as we read in 1 Corinthians chapter 10. And we draw others to judge themselves in the light of God's word. 8:35 And here in James 2, we read in verse 12. James 2 verse 12. We're told here how to speak and how to act. Because a lot of people when they are shown that we have been set free from 8:54 the old covenant law, we're not under law anymore. They think that therefore now I can do whatever I want. And that's not true. There is a new law. The old old covenant law has been abolished. Yes, Jesus fulfilled it. And 9:11 because he fulfilled it, we're no longer under the old covenant law, but we're under a new law. If you're under no law at all, then there's a terrible thing waiting for you, the judgment of God. See, the law in the old covenant was given to protect 9:30 the people of Israel from the judgment of God. And it was strict laws. You can read it. Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Those laws were there so that God wouldn't have to judge them. And they were there for their 9:45 protection. The law was good. It was perfect. It was It led them to Christ. And now the new law, the law of the new covenant, which is still a law, is also for our protection. And it's kind of like imagine if the law of gravity that exists for your for your 10:05 own sake. I don't know if you realize it. That law of gravity is there to protect us. Otherwise, we'd all be flying off into space. We wouldn't be able to sit here in one place. So that law of gravity is there for our protection. Let's say God replaced it 10:20 with another law that would also be for our protection. If that law of gravity was replaced by another law and I was content with simply saying, "Well, the law of gravity's been abolished. I'm under no law now." Then you're open to the harm 10:37 that comes from not being under the law. And the same is true spiritually that those who have been set free from the old covenant law which you must be we've just gone through the book of Galatians as brothers in our Bible studies and 10:51 what a what what a wonderful way the Lord has opened up that book and shown us the truth of being set free from the old covenant law. But if that has not brought me now under the operation of a new law then all hell will break loose. 11:06 You know, literally the devil will wreak havoc in your life and in your marriage. And sadly, that's been the case for many who were under the law. Maybe they were under old covenant systems and they saw the truth that Christ has set them free 11:20 from that, but they didn't come into subjection to the new law. And here we read in James 2:12, how we ought to speak. Husbands, how must you speak to your wives at home? Wives, how must you speak to your husbands at home? Children, how must you 11:38 interact with your parents? Parents, how must you interact with your children? How must we interact with each other in the church and in our workplaces and in our communities? Let's read it. So, speak and so act as those who are to be 11:54 judged. That means every time I say something, especially in the home, I recognize before I say this, I must recognize I'm going to be judged. See, under the old covenant, before you committed adultery, if you were going to commit adultery, 12:10 there would be an awareness if I get caught, I'm going to be stoned. That's what the law was there for. Before you kill somebody, there was a little bit of a reminder that, hey, didn't you hear the law that Moses read? If you kill this person, you're going to 12:26 be killed, too. So before you go ahead and do that, recognize what the punishment will be if you do kill that person. And I believe that the law protected a lot of people from the punishment that God had ordained. There 12:40 were some who still went ahead and did it and suffered the consequences, but others who thought, "Man, I want to kill you right now, but the only thing that's holding me back is the judgment that I'll get." And a man who's drawn to 12:53 commit adultery with another woman, he's like, "Uh, no, I better not because I'll be stoned to death." That was the old covenant. Somebody who went to steal, there were strict laws. What would happen if you ste if you stole? 13:07 Now, we're told under the new covenant that yes, you're not going to be stoned if you commit adultery, etc. He talks about that in the previous verses. But then he says, "So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law." 13:22 And that recognition of the judgment that's going to come from the law ought to control how I act and how I speak. But here we're told that it's a law of liberty. It's not a heavy law. It's a law of liberty. It's a law of freedom. But it's still a 13:41 law. See what a lot of people who don't read their Bibles carefully or slowly will probably read it this way. So speak and so act as those who are under liberty. That's not what the Bible says. Who are under the law of liberty. That means 13:57 that liberty is still a law. There's still some guidelines around the liberty that we have in Christ. Let's go back a few verses to chapter one. James chapter 1. He talks about being doers of the word. Chap verse 22. Prove 14:16 yourselves to be doers of the word and not merely hearers who fool themselves, who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror. I believe that this 14:33 sadly describes the state of many Christians who at this very moment are sitting in a church meeting somewhere hearing the word of God being spoken and preached and they're just there to feel good about the fact that I sat in a 14:46 church meeting this morning or went to church as they call it and doesn't really matter how they live the rest of their lives after that and their behavior is looks a certain way for 2 hours or an hour and a half or whatever 14:58 on Sunday morning and then reverts back to what it always is the rest of the time. And James is talking about and they say, "Well, I'm I'm I've been set free. I'm not under the law." But here James is saying, "No, you are 15:12 under a law. It's the law of liberty." Yes, it's not the law of the old covenant, but it's the law of liberty. Verse 23, u for if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a 15:28 mirror. For once he has looked at himself and gone away. So what think of what's happening right now in this meeting is God is putting a mirror in front of each of you. Picture a mirror right in front of a personal mirror in front of each of you. That's 15:43 the word of God. And he's putting a mirror. Doesn't matter what I say. I hope to be used by the Holy Spirit to just show you that there's a mirror there. And that mirror is going to show you yourself. Not the person sitting 15:54 behind you. Not your wife, not your husband, but your own face, your own heart. And what happens with most people is they look at that mirror and says, "Oh yeah, you know what? Yeah, I did something bad last week." But they 16:07 forget about it the moment they walk out the door. It's like the one who has looked at himself and gone away is immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the 16:25 perfect law, the law of liberty, one who says, "Lord, I want to know this law, the law of liberty." What does it really mean? It doesn't mean that I get to do whatever I want and say whatever I want. I want to act and speak as one who 16:40 will be judged by this law of liberty. Show me, Lord. It's going to matter. One day there will be a mirror standing in front of me and there will be no more time to change. That's the judgment seat of Christ. God will judge us. Jesus Christ will 16:55 judge us exactly for who we were and we won't be able to say, give any excuse. We'll be shown that's exactly who you were and you're going to be judged based on that. And thank God for his word and for the preaching of his word that 17:10 allows us to have the mirror in front of us today, July 12th, 2026, before it's too late. Where hopefully, God willing, there will be a July 13th, 2026, if God wills, where I can be changed as opposed to that day, whatever that 17:29 final date is when Jesus comes, when there's not going to be another tomorrow to change. That's why he's given us our word, his word. That's why he's given us each other to encourage each other daily. Hebrews 3:13, while it is still 17:46 called today before there is no more tomorrow. But the one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer, but as an effectual 18:03 doer, this man will be blessed in what he does. See, there is the blessing of the Lord that God gives to all human beings. Jesus said, God causes the sun to rise on the righteous and the unrighteous. So to be blessed by God in some way, you 18:19 have to be one of two people, either righteous or unrighteous. If you're either righteous or unrighteous, you will get a blessing from God. That's just how God is. He's a giver. He's a blesser. He causes the son, which is a mark of God's blessing, 18:34 to rise on the righteous and the unrighteous. But the the different blessing that he's talking about here, a blessing that gets everything from God, that lives a life that's useful and meaningful, that has a blessing that 18:48 will have eternal value, that there's some condition. You have to be a doer, an effectual doer, one who doesn't forget what they see in the mirror and is a doer of God's word. Let's turn to Galatians chapter 5. Galatians 5 verse 13, 19:19 Paul says, "Now as we saw if for us brothers who were going through this book in the last few months that Paul wrote this letter to the church that was bound by legalism and some people came in and tried to put laws of doing this 19:33 and doing that and other things and um and got them bound up with legalism. And Paul has to remind them, listen, you were called to freedom. Yes, you were called to freedom, but there is a false freedom that preachers will preach. And that's why 19:49 Paul had to write the church, the the letter to the church in Gala Galatia. He says, "You were called to freedom, but do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh. Do not turn the fact that it is liberty 20:07 cause you to lose sight of the fact that there is a law of liberty like we just read. Do not turn the fact that this is a law of liberty that you've been called to freedom into an opportunity for the flesh. But what? So here again I see two 20:22 options. You can either say well I've been set free. I'm no longer under the law. So I can do whatever I want and say whatever I want. maybe ask for forgiveness later on. The opposite of that is one who is operating under the law of liberty says 20:39 I want to serve others with love. This is the law of liberty. You have freedom brother sister because Christ has set you free to serve somebody else in love. Is that the freedom you wanted? Is that the freedom you really thought that you 20:55 were getting when Christ set you free? He set you free from the law. He set you free from sin. First of all, praise God for that. Then he set you free from the law to do what? To serve somebody in love. You have the freedom to serve 21:09 somebody today through love. I hope you'll do that. Let's turn to chapter 6 verse one. Brethren, this is what serving through love looks like. Through love, serve one another. Brethren, if even if anyone is caught in 21:29 any trespass, you who are spiritual, if you are under the law or if you if you weren't under the law of liberty, you would say, "Well, no, that's his problem. He made the bad choice. He's got to deal with the consequences. He he 21:42 did that thing or he's backsliden. He doesn't take his life seriously. So, why is that my concern? I'm doing pretty good." That's somebody who's not under the law of liberty. Yeah, they have been set free from sin. Yeah, they've been 21:55 set free from the law, but they don't have a burden for others. The law of liberty gives me freedom to care about the fact that somebody else is not doing well spiritually. Is that the law of liberty you've been operating under? 22:09 If anyone, somebody else, that means not my wife, not my husband, not my children, somebody else. Somebody else who I might normally think, well, why is that my concern? It is brother, sister, child, because you're under the law of liberty. Now, if 22:27 anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear somebody else's burden. I hope you came here today not just to 22:42 receive something good for yourself. Oh, I have these burdens. I need to be freed from these burdens. I'm going to come and lay my burdens. Sure, that's great. Start there. Lay every burden like I prayed earlier. Lord, I cast all my 22:55 burdens upon you, but now I want to carry somebody else's burden. Did you come here to do that? Are you a part of RLCF to carry somebody else's burden because God has taken off your burden now? Well, that's a command. Galatians chapter 6:2 bear one another's 23:12 burdens and thereby fulfill this law of liberty which is also called the law of Christ. You have freedom today brother, sister, child to carry somebody else's burden. Verse three, for if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he 23:32 deceives himself. But each one must examine his own work and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone and not in regard to one another. I read a quote recently. It's by an earthly man. So take it with a pinch of salt. Uh 23:49 Jackie Robinson who many of you know or heard of who's a famous baseball player here in in the United States. And he said, "A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives." 24:07 A life is not important except on the impact it has on other lives. Now, like I said, it's an earthly person. I think he was I don't know about his spiritual condition, but he was he underwent a lot of opposition because of the color of 24:20 his skin and paved the way for many African-American athletes in sports. Now, that's not the greatest thing in the world, but there was something about that quote that I believe has the spirit of Christ in it. And I take that and 24:34 find Christ as my perfect example of that. That God has placed us on this earth not just to have a good life, not just to be successful, not just to have a good marriage and even raise godly children. That's good. but to have an 24:49 impact outside of that small little circle that we tend to draw around our lives. Not just to say, "Well, Lord, I gave my life to you. You forgave my sins and I made it to heaven." And then I believe the Lord will ask me, "Well, who 25:01 did you bring with you? Did was there a burden? Was there this law of liberty operating in your life that caused you to say, "I know, Lord, that I'm going to heaven. My assurance of my salvation is firm, but I got to bring somebody with 25:15 me. I got to gather as many as I can and draw them into this holiness. And that's why God has placed us on this earth. Otherwise, the moment we're born again, he'd say, "Your your work on earth is done." Do you believe that it's intentional 25:31 that God the moment he saves you and gives you revelation of his purpose for your life says now I want you to remain on this earth and go through suffering and go through pain and go through failure and go through disappointment 25:44 and go through frustrations on all of those things. Why? Because I want you to fulfill your purpose, the law of liberty and draw others in as well. Jesus said it this way. I prefer the quotes of Jesus to any man. John chapter 10. 26:09 I want you to see the contrast here between an earthly self-centered way of living, which is not the law of liberty, and the real law of liberty in John 10:10. See, the opposite of Christ isn't necessarily doing evil. 26:27 Yes, that's part of it. But the opposite of Christ is anything that Christ wouldn't do, even if it looks good in the world. Listen carefully to what I just said. The opposite of Christ is not just doing evil things. The opposite of Christ is 26:46 anything that Christ would not do. If Christ wouldn't do it, then it's the opposite of him. Doesn't matter if the world says, "Well, that's not so bad." or you know, you you did lived a pretty good life, man. You you you worked hard. 27:00 You provided for your family. You raised your children in a good way. Yeah, they seem to be pretty good. But if Christ wouldn't do that, if that doesn't if that's not encompassed by what Christ would do, then it's the opposite of 27:12 Christ. So now read John 10:10 in the light of that. John 10:10. The opposite of Christ is the thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I used to think about this as what the thief does to other people. Steal, kill and 27:30 destroy. Yeah, that's true. That's bad. But there is an aspect of selfishness in this too. That in other words, if I live my life only to get something for myself, that's what stealing does. That's what killing does. That's what destroying does. It's 27:45 I want to get this for me. I want to I want to please myself. I'm going to kill you because you did that to me or I want to steal this because I want it for myself. That selfishness is the characteristic of the thief which 28:00 is Satan. And the thief mentality is this. I want this for myself. So I could say that the the devil would say I come that I may have. That's how I would describe the first part of that 28:18 verse. The opposite of Christ is saying,"I have come to this earth in order to have, in order to take, in order to receive." That's the opposite of the spirit of Christ. Now, it might look good. I want to have a better life. I want to have a 28:34 bigger house. I want to have another car or I want to have this. I want to have that. That's the opposite of Christ. I want to have. The thief says, I want to have. Christ says, I want you to have. You see how that's captured in this verse? I 28:54 come that you may have. You and I. Jesus came not to just make it back to heaven cuz he would never have left heaven in the first place if that's why he came. This is the law of Christ, the law of liberty. I have come down to this earth 29:08 so that you may have. And today, those who are followers of Christ, those who have the spirit of Christ, say, "Lord, yes, you've come to to for to cleanse me and purify me, for me to be your bride. I'm here to do that for which you've placed me on this 29:23 earth. But that means I you've placed me on this earth so that others may have." And dear brothers and sisters and children, if you consider yourself a part of RLCF, this must be our mentality. I'm a part of RLCF so that 29:38 others may have something of what God wants them to have. This is the law of liberty. I come, Jesus says that you may have and you may have it in abundance. Yes, the Lord will take care of us. He will provide for us. Yes, we must preserve 29:54 ourselves in humility. But there is this mindset of Lord, how can you use me and what you've done in me and what you've given me to bless somebody else so that somebody else may have The opposite of that also you read in in 30:09 the book of Jude, the second last book of the Bible. Jude has only one chapter. Let's read in the book of Jude. He gives the bad example of Cain and Kora and uh Balum. 30:27 Three of the worst examples in the Old Testament you can think of. Kora, as you know, the earth split open and swallowed him and his family. Cain um was cursed by God because of the evil that he did. Um and lived a miserable life after 30:45 that. Balam, you know, he was so hard-headed and thick-headed that couldn't even see a donkey trying to speak to him. Barely understood that. And eventually he was cut to pieces later on because of his and he was once 31:02 upon a time a man who heard from God. A prophet who heard from God in the old covenant. In the light of that bad example, we're told that that's an example of people who are sitting in churches today. Not out in the world, 31:15 sitting in churches today. The book of Jude is written to churches warning about people who sit in churches with this mentality. Verse 12, these are men who are hidden reefs in your love feast when they feast with you without fear. 31:31 So they're sitting and they come to the meetings and they come to the fellowship meal and they come to the breaking of bread and they come to the Bible studies and the prayer meetings. But what is the characteristic of these people? They 31:42 care for themselves. Have you ever heard a sermon that said, "If you care for yourself, that is that's sin." What's so bad about caring for myself? Of course, I I got to provide for my family, right? I got to provide for my 31:59 my wife and I've got to provide for Isn't that why God's placed me on this earth? And yet, there's the spirit of the devil in that caring for themselves. Look at the contrast. Skip down to verse 22 or verse 20. The opposite of that. you, 32:17 beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith. Praying in the Holy Spirit. Take care of yourself first of all. Build yourself up in your most holy faith. Pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourself in the love of God. Wait 32:31 anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And then do what? Verse 22. Have mercy on others who are doubting. If you sit at lunch and somebody says to you, "Brother, I'm struggling in my faith. I'm doubting. 32:44 I'm starting to doubt God's plan for my life. I'm starting to doubt if I'm going to make it. What should you do? Have the law of liberty operating in you. Um, [snorts] have mercy on those who are doubting. Save others, snatching them out of the 32:58 fire. And on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh. You see the law of liberty operating here where when I see maybe maybe they don't even come up to you. Maybe they're afraid to acknowledge it, 33:12 but from a distance, you look and say, "Man, he looks like he's under he's going through a hard time. She looks like she's under some struggle. I got to do something about it. I got to set aside what I feel like doing right now, 33:23 which is playing volleyball or soccer or or talking to the people that I like to talk to and go and sit with that person and say, "Can I can we talk?" You don't even have to probe. But the law of liberty compels you like Paul says it 33:37 did him. Not to do what he would have enjoyed doing and felt like doing, but to do that which God wanted him to do. See the law of liberty operating there. And that's why men and women like that have lived godly lives. And like we sang 33:52 in the song that's been running through my mind for a number of weeks now. It's not the big things. It's not going away to the far-off country and becoming a missionary there and doing that. It's in the little things. If God is in it, 34:04 there's a crown and you can have it. Dear brothers, dear sisters, dear children, there's a crown. I I want to stress that again that God has a purpose, a prize for you to win. Has nothing to do with what you do, but that 34:18 Christ is in it. And if it in the world's eyes, it was something very little because Christ was in it, it is much. He makes the littlest things great because he is great. Little is much. if God is in it. And so let God be if you there's a crown and 34:36 you can win it if you go in Jesus' name. That's what we sang. If you leave this meeting and say, "Lord, I'm going to have you and your name and your glory and your honor fill everything about my life from this day forward. There's a 34:48 crown waiting for you." And the and the world will say, "What'd you do?" Well, I can think about how many loads of laundry I did and how many dishes I washed and how many meals I cooked and and a couple of kids that God gave me 35:01 and I taught them math and and English and I wasn't very well educated, but I did the best I could. And God say, "But you put me in it. Oh, [snorts] it's much. Well done, good and faithful servant. Welcome to the joy of your master." 35:18 That's the prize we're waiting for. If you turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 9, this is what motivated Paul 1 Corinthians 9 35:41 verse 19. Paul who had been under the law and thought that that's what he should do to be pleasing to God for all his life until he was in his 30s I believe finally saw Jesus Christ and then he says in verse 19 1 Corinthians 35:56 9:1 19 though I am free from all men he used to be chained and a prisoner to the opinions of people and God says no what does it matter what people think of you LIVE BEFORE MY FACE okay Paul thank you Lord He says, "Thank you, Lord, that 36:13 you've set me free from all men." Is that you? Wonderful. Now what? Though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all men. So now Christ has set you free. What are you going to do with it? Ah, I I don't care what you 36:28 think, brother. I'm I'm I'm in charge of my own destiny. I can do whatever I want. Uhhuh. But the law of liberty says, "You who have been freed from all men, now you make yourself a slave to all. I made I've made myself a slave to all." 36:46 I honestly acknowledge I don't fully understand that. I want to I want to know the law of liberty that having set me free from what people think about me and the opinions of all PEOPLE CAUSES ME, COMPELS ME, constrains me to say I 37:01 want to be a slave to that brother, that sister, that child. This is new covenant. Anything else you heard that says no, you don't you don't have to be a slave to to people is some other gospel. I have made myself a slave to every 37:17 single human being so that I may win more. To the Jews, I became a Jew as a Jew so that I might win Jews. To those who are under the law, as under the law, so that I might win those under the law. You see how Paul is like the good kind 37:37 of chameleon. You know, we heard about the bad kind of chameleon, the hypocrites who they'll be whatever. Oh, you want me to be like this? You want me to be like that? Now this is a different kind. Says I outwardly I will be I will 37:48 make myself your slave. Deep down I've got this law of liberty operating under me and I will make myself like you to be to win you ultimately to Christ. Now Jude says be careful that your garment is not polluted. Don't become like them. 38:04 Don't go to the bar thinking you'll win the alcoholic just so you can also drink there with them. Don't partake in their unfruitful works of godlin ungodliness. But that mentality of saying, "Lord, place me in those situations that I'm 38:18 uncomfortable with. Place me around people who are full of foul mouths perhaps. Not so that I can also swear like them. No, so that I can win them. Place me around people who are hard to get along with, who are not my type, who 38:31 whom I have very little in common with." Why? Because I want to win somebody else. I've got the law of liberty operating in me. Verse 21. to those who are without law as without law though not being without the law of God but under the law of 38:51 Christ where you're in the workplace and you're interacting with them and you're not hitting them over the head with the gospel not saying hey you know judging them but you're there and you're interacting with them and you're patient 39:03 and you're longsuffering and you're waiting for and and you're being a witness operating under the law of Christ so that you might win some so that I might win those who are without law. Verse 22, to the weak I became weak that 39:18 I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that I may by all means save some. I do all things for for the sake of the gospel so that I may become a fellow partaker of it. And then he goes on to talk about some of my 39:34 favorite verses in the Bible, verses 24- 27. I run to win. See, this winning is not just I got a crown. And that crown that I we that I spoke about earlier is not like ah I got a crown. It's that crown that came from the law of liberty. That crown of 39:53 service, that crown of becoming all things to all people so that I might win some. That's the crown. In fact, in Paul's case, you read in Romans 9 that he was willing to become accursed. That is another level of Christlikeness. 40:09 Lord, you can be allow me to be cursed if that'll mean that that salvation of that person in my workplace. I don't think any of us can pretend to be there. I know I can willing to be cursed by God so that that person whom 40:24 I'm praying for, whose salvation I really care about will really experience the benefit of it. Lord, curse me if you can save them. Romans 9, read it. Chapter verses 1, 2, and 3. I think I'm willing to be accursed. This was Jesus 40:41 own testimony. He became sin. I thought I would leave you with in closing here four things, four areas in which we can practically live out the law of liberty. So if I can get your help there pulling up those I put it on slide so you can 40:56 remember it easily. The first is faithful burden carrying the law of liberty operating this way. faithful burden carrying. If you turn with me to Luke chapter 5, Luke 5, 41:15 fulfilling the law of Christ firstly faithful burden carrying Luke chapter 5, we read in verse 18, some men who were carrying on a bed their friend who was paralyzed. 41:33 They weren't paralyzed. Their legs were perfectly fine. In fact, they were so strong that they could carry this man who was paralyzed. And and often when people are paralyzed because they can't exercise, they they are typically heavier than the average 41:48 person their same age. I can imagine this man who was paralyzed wasn't a light person to carry. And it took four men to carry him and they were trying to bring him in. But God in his love for that man and for those four people and to give us an 42:04 example said, "I got to make it difficult for these four people. It's got to be so crowded that after carrying him all that way across town, there was no ambulance or anything else to carry the person." They had to walk all that 42:15 distance carrying him. They get there to the house and they find that there's standing room only. You can't even get in. So like, uh, okay, we tried. We did the best we could, brother. Sorry. we're just going to leave you here and go on 42:27 with our we I got to get to my job. They could have said that as perhaps you and I have. So Lord, I've carried this burden. Now this that that's all I can do. Is it really or is there more? There was more. You read in verse 19, not finding any 42:43 way for his salvation to bring him in. Because of the crowd, they went up on the roof, dragged this heavy man up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher into the middle of the 43:03 crowd. The next time you pray for somebody, the next time we pray for somebody whom we're carrying a burden for and say, "Lord, give me this burden carrying mentality where I'm willing to sweat and be inconvenienced and to persevere and stay 43:21 up all night and and do something and be taken advantage of and and and climb up the roof, if you will, spiritually so that I can get the help for that person whom I'm praying for." burden carrying mentality, it will cost 43:37 you. I put there with each of these, I don't know if you can see it, the cost is personal inconvenience. If you really want to have the law of liberty operating in you, it will cost you something. Personal inconvenience. 43:51 And at that moment when it costs you that personal inconvenience, you'll be misunderstood or you will go you it'll cost you some time or money perhaps. Don't draw back. So personal a faithful burden carrying. The second thing I want to mention is 44:08 persistent prayer. Turn over a few chapters to Luke chapter 11. Persistent prayer. Many people know the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples. They call it the Lord's prayer. Matthew chapter 6. And here again in Luke 11 verse 2. Our 44:26 father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us this day our daily bread. forgive us our sins for we ourselves as also forgive everyone who is indebted to us and lead us not into temptation. It sounds like a very 44:39 selfish prayer doesn't it? Well, not really. If you think about this, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. And even though after that he goes on to pray for our own needs, for our daily bread and our 44:56 sins that need to be forgiven and not being led into temptation, the prayer is really at its root an unselfish prayer. If you really understand God's name, hallowed be your name, hallowed be your kingdom, your kingdom come, your will be 45:10 done. And to understand the spirit of this prayer, he goes on to tell a story. You know the story. It's a man who in the middle of the night after he had eaten and gone to bed with his children, a friend showed up to visit him. And the 45:26 friend hadn't eaten all day. And of course, this person, that's you and I, a friend comes to visit me and I have nothing to eat because I ate everything that was there. I'm satisfied. I ate, but my friend didn't. That's what Jesus 45:40 was saying prayer is for. So suppose one of you has a friend and goes to him at midnight and says to him, "Friend, lend me three loaves for a friend of mine has come to me from a journey and I have nothing to set before 45:54 him." I've thought about it like this that if you come into this meeting and say, "Lord, there are people who have traveled through this past week hungry and they've come here hungry. They've come here needy and I have nothing to offer. 46:13 I I have nothing. No, brother Santos is going to speak the sermon. Sure. But maybe what you want to give them is through me and I have nothing to offer them. Did you come here, dear brothers? I'm convicting myself. I'm not pointing a 46:27 finger. Did we come here with that melt mentality of Lord, you want me to offer something to somebody else who's traveled on a long journey through this past week and they're hungry and I don't want to just say, well, yeah, somebody 46:42 else is who's next to share the word. They'll they'll have something to say. Lord, I have nothing to offer them. And so, you go to God and say, Lord, I'm I want you to give me loaves of bread. And this friend whose door he's knocking 46:57 on is a picture of God for a friend. So you go to God. Suppose you go to God at midnight and say to him, midnight means what? You're tired. You yourself have needs. You want to sleep. You're tired. You're heavy laden. You've got things that are coming up 47:15 this week. You've got a big meeting with your boss and you don't know how that's going to go. You've got a future that you're concerned about. That's midnight. At that time when you want to rest but your burden is for somebody else. You go 47:26 to God at midnight in the midnight of your life and you say to him say to God, "Lord, lend me three loaves. You've just fed me. I know I'm full, but I've got a friend that needs three loaves." He has come to me from a journey. I have 47:40 nothing to set before him. Will we be sensitive, dear family, to the conversations we're about to have over lunch? and you sit and talk to somebody and you recognize, man, I need to give him a word. I need to encourage him. I 47:53 need to encourage her, but I don't have anything. Lord, give me your word. Fill me with your Holy Spirit. And then let's say God says, "No, it's too late. What will you do?" Now, God won't actually say that, but he's drawing a picture here. Will you have 48:09 that persistent prayer? And suppose he says, "Don't bother me." Verse 7, "The door has already been shut. My children and I are in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything. I tell you, Jesus said, even though he will not get up and give him anything 48:23 because he's his friend, yet because of his persistence, he will get up and give him as much as he needs. For who? For somebody else. So I say to you, ask and keep on asking, it will be given to you. Seek and keep on seeking, you will find for somebody 48:41 else. Knock and keep on knocking for somebody else and the door will be opened for somebody else to go through. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. And he goes on to 48:55 talk about that example of if you ask for a fish, you won't get a snake. If you ask for an egg, you won't get a scorpion. If you verse 13, know how to give good gifts to your children even though you're evil. How much more will your 49:09 heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him for the others for the law of liberty to operate in their life. Persistent prayer, not being disheartened even if it seems to take time. Number three, 49:26 liberal giving. Let's turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 8. As you know in our church, we never ask for money. We don't pass an offering plate. The box is there. Sometimes we even forget to mention that it's there. We're not that's not the focus. For many 49:45 churches, the the box is up front and giving and asking for money is a prominent part of their service. We a prominent part of our service is the memory verses as you saw. You know, some churches they line up to put money in 49:58 the box. Here we line up to say God's word. May it always be that way. Um, but more than that, it's the heart of giving. In the midst of being a church like that, we can easily lose sight of the fact that there is a blessing on giving. It is more blessed 50:13 to give than to receive. And just because we're a church that never asks for money and never will by God's grace, let's not lose sight of the command that God is looking. God loves a cheerful giver. God loves a cheerful 50:29 giver. and may you be somebody whom God loves for that reason. So 2 Corinthians chapter 8, give me a second. I was in 1 Corinthians um verse one. Now brethren, we wish to make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the 50:44 churches of Macedonia. So here what Paul is doing, he's telling the church in Corinth, I want to use as an example the church in Macedonia. He wants the church in Corinth to be a giving church. And I get the sense they're not really quite a 50:58 giving church. Things have gone fairly well. Things are better now than they were when he wrote the first letter. They cleaned their act act up a little bit. But he says, "I want you to receive the law of liberty, the freedom to be a 51:11 giver." And so he says, "Let me use as an example this church across town in the church in Macedonia who when they were going through, listen to what was the church in Macedonia was like in a great ordeal of affliction." 51:29 Have you ever faced that? A great ordeal of affliction. Sounds like three strikes. Great ordeal affliction. That's a pretty bad condition that they're in. But in the in their great ordeal of affliction, 51:49 they had an abundance of joy. Amazing. If you talk to somebody from the church in Macedonia, they ask, "Hey, I hear you guys are going through a great ORDEAL OF AFFLICTION. WHY DO YOU SEEM SO HAPPY? WHY IS THERE SO MUCH JOY IN YOUR LIFE? 52:05 EVEN THOUGH I know that you're going through a really hard time right now, you're facing a great ordeal of affliction, BUT I CAN'T TELL BY YOUR FACE THAT YOU'RE GOING through that great ordeal of affliction. You seem so 52:15 full of joy. And not only that, their deep poverty, that means they have much, much less than even the poorest of any of us. their deep poverty 52:33 overflowed. What does deep poverty look like when it's overflowing? It looks like worse poverty, right? For most people, deep poverty when it overflows, like [clears throat] even more in debt, more miserable, more complaining because I'm in deep poverty. 52:49 No. But the church in Macedonia because they had the law of liberty, their deep poverty mixed with their great affliction, ordeal of affliction overflowed in the wealth of their liberality. See, liberal means free. You see what Paul is the Holy Spirit is 53:07 speaking to us here that when their poverty was so great and their great ordeal of affliction they were going through, they found that that was the freedom to give. Now, instead of being so bound by their own circumstances and 53:22 their own trial and how I'm feeling today and what I'm going through, they said, "Lord, set me free to think of somebody else today." Do you see how the devil has trapped us so many years in bondage by like, "Oh, somebody's got to 53:35 take care of me and my problem and how difficult a week I've had AND THAT'S A BONDAGE. THAT'S A prison cell." The church in Macedonia said, "No, no, no, devil. We're not going to let you hold me us in bondage to this narrowminded 53:48 mindset that somebody's got to take care of me and my problem. Lord, set me free into the law of liberty where instead of worrying about who's going to worry about me, I'm saying who can I invest in? Who can I give to it? Overflowed into the wealth of their 54:05 freedom. Their freedom to give. It's wonderful. For I testify that according to their ability and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord, begging us with much urging for the favor of participating in the support of 54:22 the saints. They came to Paul and said, "Lord, Paul, you know, we're going through this hard time, but let's not even talk about that. Can we please we beg you? Can we please give you something for that other church over 54:31 there that was probably actually doing better off than Macedonia? Can we beg you, Paul? I beg you. Please let me give in some way. Let me serve in some way. This is liberal giving that's not confined by your circumstance. 54:49 You see how your circumstance is actually a prison cell if you let it be and let the Lord open those doors and say no have a mindset that wants to give even in the midst of that. Verse five. And this not as we had expected, but 55:03 they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God. So we urged Timothy Titus that as he had previously made a beginning, so he would also complete in you the gracious work as well. But just as you abound in 55:18 everything, in faith and utterance and knowledge, and in all earnestness, and the love we inspired in you, see that you abound in this gracious work also. Yes, things are going really well here at RLCF, but be abounding in giving. 55:33 I'm not speaking this as a command. He's in other words, this is not a law. Okay, so now go and make sure you put something in the box. This is not a command. I'm not we're not forcing everybody to find some way to serve in 55:46 the church. No, I'm not speaking this as a command, but as proving through the earnestness of others, the sincerity of your love also. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sake he became 56:00 poor so that you through his poverty might become rich. You see the law of Christ the law of Christ says I'm rich. I have everything that I need but make me poor. Allow me to go through some trial so that somebody else can become 56:15 rich. The law of liberty, the law of Christ. And lastly, timely encouragement. See, these are all things that we can all do. You don't have to be called to be an elder or a preacher or or anything like that or lead the singing or people 56:31 think that that's what it means to be a useful member of the church. These are all things that every one of us, even you children, can partake in. Isaiah chapter 50. Actually, before you go there, let's go to Proverbs 15. 56:49 I will come to Isaiah 50 in a moment. Proverbs chapter 15. Uh verse four, a soothing tongue or a healing tongue is a tree of life. 57:10 Says either way I but but perversion in it crushes the spirit. So there's the perversion in the tongue and then there's the healing tongue, the soothing tongue. But there's also in between which is a nothing tongue or if you will 57:24 a silent tongue. There's the the evil tongue which is the latter part of verse four. And then there's the soothing tongue. The tongue that everything every word that's said is brings life, brings healing. The literal word there is healing. But then 57:42 there's the in between where I just don't do anything. I just don't say anything. You give them the silent treatment, if you will. I've been guilty of that. And I think, well, at least I didn't say anything bad, but I'm fuming inside. I'm 57:56 upset. And so I give them the silent treatment and feel good that no, that's better than saying something evil. Sure. But the law of liberty gives you the freedom, husband, wife, in that moment where your feelings are hurt 58:12 and you're going through a hard time to say something that will bring healing instead of allowing that silence to drag on the law of liberty. You have the freedom to no longer allow yourself to be bound by I need some time to get over 58:27 this that you've treat how you've treated me and say no, I refuse to be bound by that limitation. I choose to operate under the law of liberty that says, "Lord, today give me a word that gets past the hurt, that gets past 58:43 my feelings, how I'm what I think about myself, and offers healing." Verse 23, a man has joy in an in the answer of his mouth, in an apt in an appropriate answer. And how delightful 59:01 is a timely word. And you know what that timely word is? I used to think well the timely word is at the right time at the right moment. And I've often found that that timely word and I'm speaking from experience here from mostly from 59:13 failure. I'll be honest with you that I've realized looking back that the time when God wanted me to say that word, that delightful word was when I was feeling the least like I wanted to say it. Inside I was hurt. Inside I had all 59:30 kinds of emotions going on. And God was saying, "In the midst of that difficulty, in the midst of how you're feeling, I want you to operate under the law of liberty and allow you to fill me to allow me to fill you with the Holy 59:41 Spirit so that you operate a and give a prophetic word that is not something to do with how you feel at that moment." And oh, husbands and wives, don't we face that in our situations? Well, the last thing you want to say is a word of 59:53 healing. And it can't come from yourself. It can't come from your own life. It has to be spiritfilled. So now let's turn to Isaiah chapter 50. These are words beyond what I could say in my own strength. Because if I say 1:00:08 what I feel like saying, it's either going to be something really hurtful or it's going to be nothing. And neither is the law of Christ. And so I come to an end of myself and say, Lord, I've thankfully I've come to the place where 1:00:20 I'm not saying any hurtful, but I want the words of Christ to come through me. I want the law of liberty to operate through me. I want the law of Christ to operate through me. Isaiah 50:4, "The Lord God has given me the tongue of a disciple." It's not that 1:00:37 I produced it. He has given me the tongue of a disciple. Now he has put a different tongue in your mouth than the tongue you used to have. It's not that you've somehow cleaned up your tongue. It's not that you somehow now tied up 1:00:51 your tongue so it doesn't say bad things. That tongue has been removed and you've got a new tongue, the tongue of a disciple. The Lord has given me the tongue of disciples that I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. 1:01:06 And how does that happen? He awakens me morning by morning. He awakens my ear. First of all, have you seen that the secret to a disciple tongue is in the ear? Did you know that your ear has everything to do with your tongue? 1:01:20 What's the connection between the ear and the tongue? Medically, I don't think there is actually. Well, maybe there is. I don't know. Not a medical expert. But spiritually, there is. You will never be able to operate your tongue under the 1:01:31 influence of the Holy Spirit if your ear is not fully operating under the influence of the Holy Spirit. That's what you see in Isaiah 50:4. So, it starts in the morning. We say, "Lord, I want to hear from you. I give you my ear 1:01:43 first of all. I don't want to see what's going on in the world. I don't want to check Instagram and Facebook and all the other uh scrolls. I want to I want to hear. I don't even want to check the news, Lord. I want to hear from you. I 1:01:53 want to know what's going on in heaven right now more than what's going on in the Middle East. I want to hear what what's going on at your throne and how you want to pour your Holy Spirit into me. Aresh give me an ear to hear what 1:02:04 you're saying, Lord, to me right now in this moment. And I train my ear to hear it. And then in that moment when all I feel like is hurt and pain and disappointment, he gives me a word. So much so that I look back and say, "Where 1:02:20 did that come from?" That's not something I would have said. It's what Jesus would have said. This is actually what Jesus would do more than just the WWJD bracelet that people have. How did Jesus say what he needed to say? Because 1:02:33 his ear was trained to listen to the Holy Spirit. The Lord God verse 5 has opened my ear and I was not disobedient nor did I turn back. So faithful burden carrying number one, persistent prayer, liberal giving and timely encouragement. I'll close 1:02:51 with this verse in 2 Corinthians 5. Dear brothers, dear sisters, we are called to be representatives of Jesus Christ. What does that mean? We read in 2 Corinthians 5 verse 21. First of all, this is whom we are representing Jesus 1:03:10 Christ who came that we that others may have life. That's who we're representing. So, you know, an ambassador of the United States in another country says, "I speak for the United States. I'm representing them here." And an ambassador of Jesus Christ 1:03:25 says, "I represent Jesus here on this earth." Which Jesus? The one who came that others may have life. the the one who verse 21 who knew no sin but was made sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Therefore, 1:03:44 verse 20, we are ambassadors of this Christ. As though God were making an appeal through us, we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. This is the Christ we represent. Therefore, now Romans 8:1 says, "There 1:04:03 is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, for the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death." That you might, you read the rest of that chapter, operate under the law of the Holy 1:04:17 Spirit, as many as are led by the Holy Spirit. These are the sons of God. These are the representatives of Jesus Christ. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, I thank you for your word that's living and active. Lord, I pray that everything that was 1:04:29 off me, you will burn it up, Lord, right now from anybody's mind, but that you will take everything that's off you, everything that you wanted to speak through your Holy Spirit and write it on our hearts. The law of liberty is not 1:04:42 something we can attain to, Lord. You said you would write your law on our hearts through your Holy Spirit. So, will you, Holy Spirit, take your finger even right now as you did on those tablets of stone for the old law. Now 1:04:55 write this law on my heart and write this law on the heart of every brother, sister and child listening to this that it becomes our way of life. Help us Lord. Pour out your spirit upon us. We give you freedom. We give you our hearts 1:05:07 to write that law in it. Thank you. We believe you'll do that not just now but throughout our lives until we see you in Jesus name. Amen.
