No More Death

1 Corinthians 6:12-14 | May 31, 2020

How do you remember things?

Often times we use slogans or mottos.

Some people put things like that on t-shirts.

It may not be a real slogan, but I remember years ago a kid that was probably about 9 years old and looked just like Chunk from the movie The Goonies walked by me in Target and across the front of his t-shirt it said…

“I’m here. What are your other two wishes?”

We are now surrounded by pandemic slogans that in many ways we are longing to never hear again, so, I’m not going to repeat them, but most of them refer to some level of safety.

Safety slogans are nothing new.

At school or work or in the mall, we have all seen certain safety signs posted and those safety signs are designed to help us be wise and helpful.

However, I was reading an article on safety risk this week and it pointed out an interesting truth about one safety slogan and the slogan goes like this…

“All accidents are preventable.”

What’s wrong with that slogan?

It’s technically impossible.

Although well-intentioned, that slogan ignores the reality of human fallibility. 

Now, do we need to be safe at school and home and work?

Yes.

On any given day at any point in our lives, we should be trying to be wiser and kinder with our decisions so that we can do as much as we can to protect ourselves and our families and our friends and our neighbors and even complete strangers.

If you think that is a silly notion, let me ask it another way:

When your daughter is in traffic on the interstate and your grandkids are in the backseat don’t you want the stranger in the car next to them to be kinder and wiser in how he drives?

Then what makes you think that stranger doesn’t want you being kinder and wiser when you are driving around his grandkids or when you sneeze next to his grandmother in the grocery store or when you try to hug his mom at a church regathering?

There will never be a season of your life where you should be looking for a loophole so that you can avoid being wise and kind toward the safety of yourself or your family or the people around you – especially if you claim to be a Christian.

However, some new statistics came out just this week that reveal some very interesting numbers.

• 100% of all spouses are not perfect
• 100% of all children are not perfect
• 100% of all parents are not perfect
• There are 0% neighbors that are perfect
• There are 0% politicians that are perfect
• There are 0% pastors that are perfect
• There are 0% church members that are perfect

And one of the most startling numbers, and I hate to break this to you, but you are not perfect.

So, although that safety slogan is good and noble in its efforts, it is not true – all accidents are not avoidable because people are not perfect. 

So, what do we do when a slogan doesn’t work?

What happens if a slogan you are living by is actually hurting the people you love and even hurting people you don’t know?

And maybe slightly more personal, what happens if a slogan you are living by is wrecking your soul?

Let’s see if we can find out. 

The Apostle Paul is writing some folks in a place called Corinth. 

Corinth was a community marked with:

• Emotional anxiety
• Sexual immorality
• Political corruption
• Social unrest
• Human injustice
• Religious division

I know it will be a huge stretch for us to make any connection with their community but let’s do our best.

Listen to 1 Corinthians 6, beginning with verse 12:

12 All things are lawful for me,

That was some kind of slogan the Corinthians used and it is possible they took it from a sermon or a Bible study or maybe something in the church by-laws.

They might have had it printed on magnets for their cars or had it screened on t-shirts that they wore to political rallies.

And at first glance, it promotes a biblical truth.

Christians are free in Christ.

This is what Jesus said:

John 8:36

So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Today, we might describe their slogan as “Christian liberty”.

Christian liberty is a big topic these days, right?

When it comes to some people’s views of Christian liberty, philosopher Inigo Montoya might say, “You keep using those words. I don’t think it means what you think it means.”

For instance, although my personal desires might be temporarily hindered if the church doors are not open that will not hinder my freedom to worship Christ.

Although my personal comfort might be temporarily hindered if the home improvement store requests that I wear a mask that will not hinder my freedom to buy a Double Bevel Sliding Compound Miter Saw.

Although my personality might be temporarily hindered if the zoo requests that I social distance in the kangaroo pit that will not hinder my freedom to enjoy the kangaroos and not be kicked by them.

Tim Senn is a friend of mine and was my weekly prayer buddy in college.

He also happens to now be my in-laws pastor in Little Rock, Arkansas.

He recently shared this with the church…

Tim Senn

…from a Christian perspective, if I love you, I should desire your health and well-being above my own personal desires, and therefore do what I can to protect you from the inadvertent spread of this disease.

Where would he get a crazy idea like that?

This is what Jesus said…

Matthew 22:39

You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

That is the Christian perspective – you can deny it or you can ignore it or you can reject it or you can get angry about it, but you can’t erase it – that is what Jesus said.

Sometimes you love your neighbor by hugging them and shaking their hand at church when you see them, but if the church is still in regathering phases then you might love your neighbor with air hugs and air high fives no matter how silly or stupid you think it is.

Why?

Because hugging and not hugging and shaking hands and not shaking hands can both be ways that Christian love works.

Sometimes you love your neighbor by letting them borrow your Double Bevel Sliding Compound Miter Saw, but if they previously borrowed your Brushless Compact Reciprocating Saw and broke it then you might love your neighbor by not letting them borrow your tools so they won’t have to keep dipping into their 401K or selling their Yogi Berra baseball cards to replace your tools.

Why?

Because letting someone borrow and not letting someone borrow can both be ways that Christian love works.

Sometimes you love your neighbor by wearing a mask into their home because they are in the middle of some kind of medical treatment, but if the treatments are done and the doctors have done all they can do you might love your neighbor by walking into their home and kissing them on the forehead.

Why?

Because both of those can be ways that Christian love works. 

Christian liberty should not cancel out Christian love, rather Christian liberty should enhance Christian love.

Why?

Because Christian love looks for ways to be helpful.

Listen to what Paul says next:

12 All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable.

Yes, if you are a Christian you are free.

• You are free to eat bacon
• You are free to play golf
• You are free to go shopping
• You are free to take medicine

But you are not free to eat so much bacon that your daily sodium intake matches the sticker price of a Ferrari F60.

And you are not free to play so much golf that you barely see your family and your best friend and closest confidante becomes the gofer at the club that digs holes into the greens.

And you are not free to go shopping so much that you have 13 credit cards maxed out and summer vacation with the Blarts.

And you are not free to take so much medicine that your family has to admit you to a treatment center.

None of those things describe Christian liberty.

Why?

Because Christian liberty does not mean you can do anything and everything you want.

• Everything is not profitable
• Everything is not beneficial
• Everything is not helpful
• Everything is not appropriate
• Everything doesn’t always bring everything together.

How do we know that Christian liberty doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want or whatever you think is right?

This is what Jesus said:

Matthew 5:29

If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.

Matthew 5:30

If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body, than for your whole body to go into hell.

Can you imagine some guy in the crowd saying…

• “Don’t mince words, Jesus!”
• “Don’t leave me hanging!”
• “Tell me where I stand!”

No.

Regardless of how you want to interpret the intensity of what Jesus is saying there is no confusion about what it means – what you do matters – hell is a real consequence.

You are not free to do whatever you want.

You are free do to whatever you want in Christ. 

What does that mean?

• All things do not honor Jesus
• All things do not advance the gospel
• All things do not edify the church
• All things don’t help your family
• All things don’t help your friends
• All things don’t help your community
• All things don’t help your heart
• All things don’t help your mind
• All things don’t help your body
• All things don’t help your soul

Christian liberty should not cancel out Christian love because Christian liberty is defined by being in Christ.

And by definition you can’t be in Christ and outside of Christ at the same time.

In other words, not perfectly, but every Christian should be looking for ways to be loving and helpful.

So, how are we doing with that?

How are we doing at looking for ways to be loving and helpful during these challenging days?

And how do we begin to exercise our Christian liberty?

Well, it kind of starts with a slogan.

And what’s that slogan?

1 Corinthians 7:23

You were bought with a price…

Christian liberty says…

“My freedom only exists because of the blood of Christ!”

“Without the price Jesus paid for my soul, right now, I would be dead in my sins and my trespasses – right now, I would be lost and without hope in this world and the world to come.”

Galatians 2:20

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me;

Galatians 2:20

and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Christian liberty says…

• “I am free…to live for Christ!”
• “I’m not free to get my way!”
• “I’m free to live for the One who gave himself up for me!”

“I’m free to go out in the Target parking lot in Minneapolis and pass out water and pray for people in the middle of a pandemic and a violent protest.”

That’s what John did. 

I met John Erickson I think about 13 years ago in Raleigh, North Carolina.

If I remember right, he was just starting out as the pastor of Jubilee Community Church in Minneapolis.

What I remember most was his humble despair that the closest Chick-fil-A to Minneapolis was like 5 states away. 

Since that time, Chick-fil-A has made its way up there, but I’m not sure what’s happened to those locations this week.

Over the last few days John’s immediate community has been turned upside down. 

I’m not certain if their church building was specifically attacked or vandalized, but he posted a picture of smoke pouring above the roof.

In the middle of the first night of violence, bullets were flying near the houses of some of their church families.

He and the other elders of the church were having to pray and decide whether or not they should advise some of their church members to evacuate with their families.

Needless to say, it has definitely given me some gracious perspective on the stress of planning church regathering phases.

But as things unfolded, John went to the parking lot of the Target where his son works and as it was being destroyed and looted he and some of the people from their church passed out water and prayed with people.

He reported yesterday that the destruction at their local police precinct was not done by outraged African Americans from the community, but rather they saw 5 young white men that were not from their neighborhood coordinating the attack. 

In the middle of that first long night of fires and bullets outside the windows of their homes John wrote this:

John Erickson

Tears, sighing and yet going to our good King.

How is that his response?

Because no matter the circumstances, true Christian liberty never stops going to Jesus.

And why is that truth so desperately important for you today?

I saw someone put it this way – and this is a true story…

A man was looking out his bedroom window one Friday morning and saw a middle-aged man in a three-piece suit walking down the sidewalk.

The man was carrying something yellow in his hand, but he was too far away to see for sure what it was – maybe a banana or a wrapper from a bacon, egg and cheese Hot Pocket.

As he walked along, the man looked to his left across the street and then he turned and looked behind him and then he tossed the yellow thing over the fence next to him. 

Which way did he not look?

He didn’t look up.

In other words, he didn’t want anyone to see him, but he didn’t even care to consider the eyes of heaven. 

• Do we look up before we post our political opinions?
• Do we look up before we text our school frustrations?
• Do we look up before we ask that question on a zoom call?

Christian liberty looks up.

To be free in Christ means you look up first and most – and you do it over and over and over again. 

Now let me drop back and punt for a moment. 

There may be someone thinking…

“You know this sounds a lot like that safety slogan – it sounds like you are saying all sin is preventable if you just look up.”

No – what I’m saying is that if you don’t look up you are not free. 

If you make big decisions and small decisions based on some random memory of Noah and the ark from when you were a kid, then you are not free – you are more like a dog on the leash of your opinions instead of a sheep led by the Good Shepherd.

Christian liberty doesn’t mean Christian perfection, but Christian liberty does mean Christian direction.

A Christian should be striving to think and live and act in the direction of the gospel – not perfectly, but at least in the ballpark.

So, what does all of this have to do with the title of this sermon?

The sermon is “No More Death” – what does Christian liberty have to do with death?

Let me jump down to verse 14:

14 Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power.

God raised Jesus from the dead – the evidence is weighty. 

And the guaranteed promise for you if you are trusting in Jesus first and most is that you will also be raised from death.

If you are truly a Christian, you should be looking up first and most and praying that you use your Christian liberty to spread Christian love because in some certain way and at some certain time you will be raised up by the power of God and you will live forever.

• No more pandemic
• No more protests
• No more bullets
• No more bullying
• No more looting
• No more littering
• No more fires
• No more fear
• No more disease
• No more depression
• No more Enemy

And the reality of no more death means that how we live today should be different.

Dr. Kent Keith is the author of what is known as The Paradoxical Commandments and they have been around since 1968 but I just heard about them for the first time after a text from a friend.

Dr. Keith wrote them when he was 19 years old, but he said the inspiration for them started all the way back when he was in school government in 5^th grade. 

As you listen to them try to appreciate that fact – these are the product of government influence.

Kent Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered. Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds. Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs. Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them. Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you’ll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway.

Why should we live like that?

Not so we can pat ourselves on the back and get our name on a plaque at the church. 

No, we live like that because no matter our circumstances we can look up and keep going to the King.

And when we do will see all over again that the King has set us free – dear Christian, you are free indeed!

 

Message by Dow Welsh |

May 31, 2020 © Holland Avenue Baptist Church

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Above are pre-sermon manuscript notes, not sermon transcript

Sermon scriptures NASB unless otherwise noted

Lots of help from many pastors and theologians

Weekly help from Bruce Hurt at www.preceptaustin.org

https://www.paradoxicalcommandments.com/

So how do you remember things? How do you How do you keep things in your mind? One of the ways that our culture uses and that many of us use is slogans. You slogans? I was walking through a target years ago. This kid came walking by me like about nine or 10 years old. Look, just like chunk from the movie The Goonies. And he was wearing this shirt. Jertz, what are your other two wishes? An hour later, I was still laughing in the car. Slogans are on billboards. We put him all over the place. And these days there are a lot of slogans surrounding the pandemic. Most of them we don't want to hear any more, so I won't repeat any of them. But But they all have to do is safety. And we know safety slogans, right? I mean, we've seen him our whole life at school. We were growing up. There were there were different slogans that we saw. There were things that we knew we were being told to pay attention to. And I was reading an article this week on safety risk, something that has become a daily part of my life now to read about safety and read about risk in the culture. In the days that were in this one particular article referenced a safety slogan. It it said something very interesting about it. This is the slogan. All accidents are preventable now. What's wrong with that safety? Slowly. Well, technically, it's not truths. It's impossible because see that slogan, although well, intentional will well intentioned, it completely leaves out the reality of human failing human error. Human fallibility. Do we need to be safe at school? Yeah. Who do you say? Fit? Work? Yeah. Going to be safe at home? Yes. Listen, in every way, on any given day, you should be doing all you can to be wise and to be kind and the way that you function so that you were doing everything you possibly can to protect yourself and your family and your friends and even complete strangers. You should do all that you can to protect others. Now some might say, Well, that's just kind of a silly notion. In this day and age, I can't do everything I can to protect others. That may be true, but let me just see if I can put it in different language for you. Imagine that this afternoon your daughter's in traffic somewhere and your grandkids air in the back seat. Are you not going to want the stranger in the car next to her to be kinder and wiser and how he drives his car? And if you want that, then don't you think that that stranger wants you to be kinder and wiser when you're in your car, driving around his grandkids or when you're sneezing next to his grandmother in the store? When you're trying to hug his mom at a church re gathering, we understand the concept of what it means to be kind and wise and waves that air safe for others. In fact, there's never a single day of your life that you should be looking for a loophole so that you don't have to be wise and kind towards safety toward trying to protect yourself and others. There's there's no loophole you should be looking for, especially if you are a Christian. That's awesome. Statistics this week that really presses into thinking through this don't get lost in these numbers. But the statistics show this that 100% of all spouses are not perfect. 100% of all parents are not perfect. 100% of all kids are not perfect. The fastest ICS show that there are zero perfect neighbors. There are zero perfect politicians. There are zero perfect pastors. There are zero perfect church members and I'm sorry to offend you bit. But the statistics also have borne out that you we're not perfect and I am not perfect. So that safety slogan is good noble in and it should be pursued by all means. But it's impossible because no one is perfect. So all accidents can't perfectly always be avoided. So what do we do in the slogan doesn't work. What do we do in the slogan that we're living our lives by doesn't work? What do we do in the slogan that we are using toe to function the motto of our life? It's something that actually hurts the people we love. What do we do in the motto? The slogan of our life is actually hurting people we don't know. And maybe more personally, what do we do when the slogan of our lives is actually wrecking our very own souls? What do we do, then we'll see if we can find out. The Apostle Paul is writing some folks in a place called Core in Community of Corinth was marked with a number of things. Emotional anxiety, sexual immorality, political corruption, social unrest, human injustice, a religious division. So to be a stretch for us to try toe, think of their community right now. The reality is, is pretty sure these words from Paul to those folks a long time ago. I have not lost any of their punch for us right now. So what did Paul say to them? But he's trying to move the long word, and he writes this First Corinthians Chapter six, Verse 12. All things are lawful for me. All things are lawful for me. So this was some kind of slogan in the church corn, some kind of motto. They might have even pulled it from a sermon or a Bible study, or or from the church bylaws somewhere. But it was it was something connected to the church, something they were using in the Corinthian church. All things are lawful for me, and I have had it printed all magnets. They might have had it on a T shirt they wore to political rallies, but it was something that they used. This slogan was one of their slogans, and at first glance it promotes a biblical truth. Ah, Christian is free in Christ. This is what Jesus, said John, 8 36 So if the sun makes you free, you will be free. Indeed, today we might look at this notion that their slogan as what we would call Christian Liberty and boy were living in a time where Christian Liberty is a big topic, right? I think when it comes to many people's definitions of Christian liberty, I think philosopher Inigo Montoya would say, You keep using those words. I don't think they mean what you think they mean. For instance, although my personal desires might be temporarily hindered if the doors of the church or not open my freedom to worship, Jesus Christ is never hindered here. Perhaps my personal comfort might be temporarily hindered if the home improvement store asked me to wear a mask when I'm inside of their business. But I will not be hindered from the freedom of purchasing what I went into the store to purchase my personality might be temporarily hindered if the zoo asked me to social distance in the kangaroo pit. But my freedom to enjoy the kangaroos and make sure they don't kick me will not be hinder. Christian Liberty and Christian freedom does not mean that everything we won't we must have. Nor does it mean if some aspect of our freedom has taken away that all of our freedom is taken away. Timpson is a friend of mine. He was for his senior year in college. He was my prayer buddy and my accountability partner. He also happens to be my in laws pastor in Little Rock, Arkansas, these days he wrote this to his church recently. From a Christian perspective, if I love you, I should desire your health and well being above my own personal desires and therefore do what I can to protect you from the inadvertent spread of this disease. Now, where would he get a crazy idea like that? Well, this is what Jesus said. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. That's the Christian perspective. I cannot force non Christians to gather that perspective. But for those of us who call ourselves believers, this is the Christian perspective. You can deny it. You can ignore it. You can push back from it. You can reject it. You can be angry about, but you can't erase it. This is what Jesus said. You shall love your neighbor as yourself. So sometimes you love your neighbor by hugging them and shaking their hand when you see them at church. But if your church is in a re gathering phase, then you might love your neighbor by giving him an heir hug are giving him an air high five. Why? Because hugging and not hugging and shaking a hand or not shaking a hand are both ways that Christian love can work. You might love your neighbor by letting them borrow your saw. But if last week pay Barger drill and broke it, then you might love your neighbor by not letting them borrow your tools anymore, because they're having to dip into their savings and sell their Yogi Berra baseball cards to keep replacing broken tools. You see letting someone borrow are not letting someone borrow can both be ways that Christian love works, or you might love your neighbor by going into their office or into their home wearing a mask because they may have had some type of sickness or some type of of medical treatment. And you love them by doing that? Yeah, if the medical treatments are done, if the doctors have said they've done all they could do, then you might love your neighbor by going to their home, sliding your mass down and kissing them on the forehead. Why? Because both of those reflect how Christian love can work. Christian Liberty. Christian Freedom should never cancel out. Christian Love. Christian Liberty. Christian Freedom should only enhance Christian love. Why? Because Christian Liberty Christian freedom should be feeding Christian love, and Christian love is always looking for ways to be helpful. Look what Paul sayss next. All things are lawful for me. But not all things are profitable. Yes, if you're a Christian, you're free. You are. You're free to eat bacon. You're free. You're free to play golf. You're free to go shopping. You're free to take medicine. But you are not free to eat so much bacon that your daily sodium level is the same as a sticker price of a Ferrari F 60. You're not free to play so much golf that that your family barely sees you. And your best friend is the go for it. The club that dicks holes in the greens. You're not free to shop so much that you have 13 credit cards maxed out and you vacation every year with the mall security and his family. And you're not so free to take medicine to such a degree. And in such a way that your family has toe put you in treatment because of abuse. So, yes, you are free. But you're not free to do whatever you want. See, Christian Liberty does not say hey do anything and everything that you want. Why? Because anything and everything is not profitable. And anything and everything is not beneficial. And anything and everything is not appropriate. And anything and everything is not helpful. And anything and everything does not bring things together. Christian liberty and Christian freedom does not mean that you are free to do whatever you won't are to do whatever you think is right in your own eyes. This is what Jesus said, Matthew 5 29 If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out, throw it from you for it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 1st 30 If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you. For it is better for you to lose one of the parts of your body than for your whole body to go into help. Can you imagine a guy in the crowd turning to Jesus and Jesus? Come on, don't mince words with Tell me where I stand. Timber, where things really are now he wouldn't. Jesus is pretty clear. And however you want to interpret the intensity of what Jesus is saying, you cannot erase our ignore the meaning and the meaning. Is this what you do matters? No matter who you are, no matter where you live, no matter what your job is, what you do matters whether you are Christian or you are not a Christian. What you do matters and hell according to Jesus is a riel consequence. You're not free to do whatever you want. You are free to do whatever you want in Christ. That's a difference. So what does it mean to be free to do everything in Christ. Well, it's just this reminder that all things do not honor Jesus. All things do not advance the gospel. All things do not edify the church. All things do not help your family. All things did not help your friends. All things did not help your community. It's just to make it personal. All things like If you have total freedom and you do whatever you want, it's not good for your heart. It's not good for your mind. It's not good for your body, and it's not good for your soul. Oh, things. Whatever you won't is not the definition of Christian liberty. Christian liberty should not cancel out Christian love because by definition, Christian liberty means that you're in Christ and you can't be in Christ and be outside of Christ at the same time. So not perfectly. But if you are a believer and if you are a Christian and if you profess to be a follower of Christ, then you should be looking for ways to be loving and helpful. Not perfectly, but you need to be in the ballpark. So how are you doing it? Looking for ways to be loving and helpful. If we could look back through your social media posts this past week, how are you doing it? Being loving and helpful? How are you doing it? Taking your Christian freedom and using that freedom to fuel Christian love to be helpful to the world. Four. Cause the gospel and the reason we're helpful for the cause of the Gospel is because we believe that Jesus is the only one who can give you rest. Okay, your movie a reprieve from from certain foods or an indulgence in certain foods or or whatever you want to slide in the blank. There are things that may give you rest for an hour or two hours, a weekend a week. But the Onley person who can give your soul rest is Jesus. And so we use our Christian freedom and our Christian liberty to feed our Christian love so that we might be looking for ways to be helpful so that as we're looking for ways to be helpful, people might hear the gospel and they might find the rest that can only come from Jesus. So how do you start exercising your Christian freedom? Where does it begin. Well, it begins with slogan begins with a slogan slogan comes from First Corinthians, Chapter seven, Verse 23 and this is it. You were bought with a price. That's where your Christian freedom begins. That's where your Christian liberty begins. That this is the slogan in your mind and your heart that you should repeat over and over again. I was bought with a price, and then you step in to what you're doing. I was bought with a price. My freedom. Onley exist because of the blood of Christ. You are not free without the blood of Christ, you can earn your way into heaven. You can't be a good enough citizen. You can't do the right thing enough. You can't be safe enough to be right with God. You need safety, the protection and the salvation of the blood of Jesus. Because without the blood of Jesus, without the price that he paid right now you are dead in your sins, Dead in your trespasses. You are without hope in this world or in the world to come. So being bought with a price, it's kind of a big deal. And here's what happens when you get that when you realize that you've been bought with a price. Listen. It changes how you speak and how you act and how you talk. It changes how you function on the streets of major cities during a protest and it changes how you function on the streets of your own neighborhood being bought with the price changes, how you think and how you act and how you live. This is what Paulson Galatians, Chapter two I have been crucified, killed, put away, surrendered with Christ and it is no longer I who live. But Christ now lives in me. And then he says this and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself up for me. Christian Liberty, Christian Freedom says this. I am free. I am free. I am free. I am free to live for Christ. Not I'm free to do whatever I won't. I'm free to live for Christ. I'm free toe live for the one who gave himself up for me that is my freedom. I'm free to go in the parking lot A target in Minneapolis and pass out water bottles and pray with people. I'm free to do that. That's what John did. I met John Ericsson about 13 years ago. I think something like that in Raleigh, North Carolina. I think if I remember right about that time to he was just beginning his ministry at Jubilee Church in Minneapolis. The one thing I distinctly remember about John when I met him was his humble despair over the fact that there was a chick fil A like five states away from Minneapolis. There was no Chick fil A, and it really bumped him out. Who knows what's happening with those Chick fil A's now because they've arrived up there. They made their way up to Minneapolis, but But he knows the state of things today. You see, over the last few days in John's immediate neighborhood, it's been all the chaos that we've seen on the news. From that first night, there were bullets flying outside of the houses of some of his church members. I don't know if there church was specifically attacked and vandalized, but I do know that he posted a picture where there was smoke just pouring right above the roof. he had to get together with the elders of the church, and they had to pray about whether or not they should advise some of their church families to evacuate for their own safety. I'll be honest is, I've been looking through his post the last few days. It's really helped me a lot with the stress of trying to re gather the church. It's give me a lot of perspective on things that we should just pray about and really not worry about. Maybe I say that from my own heart. As things unfolded, John went to the target parking lot, the target where his son works, and he and some other church members. As as the building was still being attacked and looted during the morning and the day they just made themselves available in the parking lot of the passed out water and they prayed with people, he reported. Also this week, another thing that we've seen played out and that is that their local police priest, Inc was not damaged by angry people from their community, but specifically they watched his five young white men not from their community, came and destroyed the police precinct on that first night, as the fires were growing as the bullets were flying, he reported it to oclock in the morning. This was happening four o'clock in five in seven. In the middle of all of that, this is what was in his update, tears sign and yet going to our good king. How is that your response? That is, John in the middle of the chaos of what his family and his church, family and their community was experiencing. How do you say tears sign and yet going to our good king? How? Because no matter what the circumstance ISS, no matter what you're facing, no matter what's going on, there's never a time not to turn to the King. There's never a time that Christian Liberty doesn't run to Jesus. There's never a time that the Christian Freedom stands up and says, I'm going to fight from our rights right now. No, Christian freedom says, Jesus, I'm going to run to you and then you show me what to do. You strengthen me to do what I need to do. I looked. Yesterday's is John posted a small video, a huge field park in their neighborhood where people of all races and colors and backgrounds have gathered that. I couldn't tell how many people and they were just there to pray and talk about how they could help each other. Christian Liberty, Christian Freedom. It looks for ways to help, and it never stops turning to the king ever. It never stops turning to the key. Why's that truth important for you? You may say, Well, I'm not in one of these cities. My family is not African Americans. I'm not in this conversation. I'm far away from this. Why does it still matter for you? Well, it still matters for you because no matter what's happening in the world, it is a constant, consistent wake up call for our own personal hearts. Are we turning to the King? Are we using our Christian liberty and freedom to show our Christian love so that people confined the one the only one who can give their soul rest? So here's how it might play out. Practically, I was reading a story a couple of weeks ago that happened 35 years ago. Incidently it happened probably maybe just a couple of streets over from what was happening with John and their family. And this was the scene. This is what happened. So a man was walking down the sidewalk in a three piece suit and another man who was Pastor John Piper, was standing in the window of his house and just looking out the window. And he watched as this businessman walk down the street. He was holding something yellow in his hand. Didn't know what couldn't really tell it. Could have been a banana peel. Could have been a hot pocket packet. Rapper something couldn't really tell but something yellow. They watched as the man walking down the street looked to his left and he kind of turned around and looked behind him. And when he didn't see anybody, he took whatever that yellow thing was and just throw it over the fence and walked on by now, which way did he not? Look, we didn't look up. He didn't look up. In other words, Hey, didn't care. Nobody around saw him, but he didn't even consider the eyes of head. So how are we doing it? Looking up? Do you look up before you post that thing on social media? Do you look up before you text about your school frustrations or your church frustrations or whatever frustrations you may have. Do you look up before you make that statement or asked that question on a zoom call or Google hand and hang out or whatever you're using? How are we doing it looking up? Because here's the thing. Christian Freedom, Christian Liberty looks up before looks out Christian freedom looks up to be free, and Christ means that you look up first and most it means that a part of who you are and then you do it over and over and over again. You look up now let me drop back and punt just for a second, cause someone might be thinking, Hey, man, this sounds like your safety slug. It sounds like what you're saying is that if I just look up and all sin is preventable and I'll never throw trash over a fence. It's not what I'm saying. I am saying this. If you don't look up, you're not free. If you don't look up, you're not free. You can beat your chest. You can wear your T shirt, your hats, your bumper stickers. You can say whatever you want to on social media. But if you're a professing Christian, you don't look up. You are not functioning as a free person. If you're making big decisions in small decisions based on some story about God and no on the art that you heard way back in the day when you're a kid, you are not free. You're not living in the freedom of Christ. Christian Liberty doesn't mean Christian perfection, but it does mean Christian direction. Christian Liberty means that we should be striving to think and live and act in a way that is loving and helpful again, not perfect. It's but somewhere in the ballpark somewhere in the ballpark were striving to be loving and helpful. We're striving to be free in Christ for the Gospel and four others. So what is any of this have to do with the title of the sermon? Because title the Sermon is no more death. So what is all this Christian liberty in this Christian freedom have to do with death? Let me jump down to Verse 14. Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through his power. God raised Jesus from the dead that the evidence for this is waiting. You have to work really, really hard to dismiss the evidence of the resurrection of Christ. But if you are believing in and trusting in and relying on and clinging to Jesus in the promise of God is that you will be raised from death as well. I think this is This is what it means. If you're truly a Christian, you take your Christian freedom and you look up first and most and you take your Christian freedom and you let it feed your Christian love and you look for ways to be helpful. You look for ways to show love because the fuel behind all of that is you know that it's some certain time in some certain way you are going to be raised on the death will no longer have a sting over you, that you will live forever. And if you're going to live forever, that promise is true for you in Christ, that it changes how you live because no matter what's happening in the present, and no matter what we've been called to do in the present, in our minds, in our hearts, we keep remembering, remembering that the Kingdom of Jesus is coming, and when the kingdom comes, there will be no more pandemic. There will be no more protest. There'll be no more bullets, no more bullying, no more looting, gnome or littering. No more fear, no more fires, no more disease gnome or depression gnome or enemy that this is the promise of God in Jesus. And if that's the promise, the guarantee that we have in Christ, that it means how we speak and how we act and what we do today is different. It must be different. If we're in Christ, we must live different. Dr. Kim Keith is the author of what's known as the Paradoxical Commandments. They've been around since 1968. I've never heard of him until yesterday morning when I got a text from a friend. So thanks Mike Smith. I appreciate it. Dr. Keith was 19 years old when he wrote the Commandments, but when asked about how they came about, he said it kind of all began when he was in school government in the fifth grade state that don't miss that, that that what I'm about to read to you came out of government influence Okay, so here's the commandments and a few of their taglines will be on the screen. This is what he writes. People are illogical, unreasonable and self center. Let me just repeat. People are illogical, unreasonable and self center. Just to be clear, that's me in that shoe. It's not just other people. People are illogical, unreasonable and self centered. Loved them anyway. If you do, good people will accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Do good anyway. If you're successful, you will win. False friends and true enemies succeed anyway, The good you do today will be for gotten tomorrow. Do good anyway. Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable. Be honest and frank anyway. The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and the smallest women with the smallest minds faint big anyway. People favor underdogs, but they follow Onley. Top dogs fight for a few underdogs anyway. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight build anyway. People really need help but may attack you if you do help them help people anyway. Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you have anyway. Why should we live like that? Should we live like that? So that one day at work or school that the church they'll be something donated and they'll be a little plaque with our name on it. Should we live that way? So that that one day somebody will talk about us in a sermon or put together something on the good news network or social media posts praising us for doing good anyway, No, that we should live like that. Because no matter what our circumstances, maybe there's never a time where we can't turn to the King. There's never a time where Jesus doesn't promise rest. And when we turn to the King and we turn again and we turn again and we turn again when we turn to the King, we will discover that we are free. Dear Christian, you are free. Indeed. So what are you going to do with your freedom? What you going to do with your freedom today? What you going to do with your Christian liberty? What you going to do with your Christian freedom? We really have one call. There's just the one. Do justly love mercy. Walk humbly with our God.