Beauty Never Dies

If you have your Bibles, I’d like to invite you to turn with me to Psalm chapter 27. Psalm 27. I’ve just got a couple of quick announcements as you’re turning there. I wanted to echo what the video announcements said, which is that this coming so week from today, it’s a Sunday morning. It’s our Thanksgiving service. Sometimes we’ve done them Tuesday nights, sometimes we I think we did them used to be on Thanksgiving back in the day. But just so you know, it’s this coming Sunday, so week from today. So really love for you to be here. It’s a faith builder, I’ll say that, to come here and to just celebrate and hear everything that God has done, and maybe it’s something that you would even like to share. Hop up on the mic for a quick minute and tell us what God has done for you this past year. But hope you could be there.

Also, we wanted to say they’re not here, but nonetheless, we wanted to congratulate Donald and Amaya who got married last night. They’re just too, it’s just too much cuteness for me. So I just can’t even look back because I just love them. But they should be here possibly Tuesday, but they’ll be here for sure next Sunday, and so make sure to congratulate them. It’s been a long time coming, they’ve been faithful, and it’s really a beautiful thing. And I had planned on speaking this morning on because it’s the you know, it’s kind of like the one right before the Thanksgiving service. I had planned to talk about turning our attention to God and becoming grateful. But then last week I heard my wife speak and she did just such a phenomenal job. Does anyone else think so? I it was just it was so good, and it was so um, it was so complete and so well rounded that I just didn’t want to add anything to it. I just wanted it to be kind of like what it is. So I thought it was fantastic. I’d encourage you if you feel like you need more of that, listen to it again. Because it was content-packed.

And so I’m going at kind of a different direction this morning. I think it’s a related direction, but it’s a little bit of a different direction, and I’m excited about it. Although, if I’m being honest, I was joking with someone earlier. I think I’m just excited about not having to ask myself this question as I’m preparing sermons. How might this be interpreted politically? I’m just so grateful to be done with that for a little while. Because it’s like, oh, it was like I should use that verse. Oh no, these guys are gonna get mad at that. And so it’s like, I’m just so grateful to be done with that. And I know that we’re still kind of detoxing and retraining our ears to not just like perk up when something could possibly have political ramifications. So because of that, I want to say that this morning, this message, listen to me, has absolutely positively unequivocally nothing to do with American politics, okay? So if you’re like, so if you’re like, oh, what what is he saying? What is he saying about the cabinet? Nothing. I’m saying nothing about any of that. We’re talking about the kingdom of God, and I’m just so grateful to be able to talk about what I want to talk about, because I just trust you enough to know that you’re not gonna write me emails about how this rubbed you wrong politically, okay? So if it changes, I’ll tell you. But otherwise, we’re talking about the kingdom of God. And so I do think God wants to challenge us with something, and I’m really excited for it.

Beauty never dies

Psalm chapter 27 in verse 4. If you have your Bibles, I’m reading from the NIV, it says this the psalmist would say,

One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. Listen to this phrase, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.

So if you’re taking notes this morning, I’d like you to write down this is the title. Beauty never dies. Beauty never dies. So, Heavenly Father, today we say thank you for being with us. We believe that you’re with us, because you said you would be with us. And so we open our hearts up. We ask that you would speak to us and that you would help us to listen and to receive. And sin your sons let me pray. Everybody said. Amen.

So the psalmist says that he has one desire to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord. It says one desire. So David is drawn to beauty. I don’t know if anyone ever, maybe in high school, you read the famous Spanish novel Don Quixote. Anybody? Okay, like ten of you. Famously, the book has this quote. I’ve got it on the screen. It is the prerogative and charm of beauty to win hearts. It’s the prerogative and charm of beauty to win hearts. And if that language is a little bit confusing to you, what he’s saying is this beauty is what wins hearts. Beauty is what wins hearts.

It’s kind of like the phenomenon of falling in love. We were at Donald and Amaya’s wedding last night, and they hopped up at the reception and they said, Well, we don’t know how to dance, and usually it’s gonna be like a first dance. We don’t know how to dance, so we don’t want to dance, but we can sing. And so they held hands and they sung a song to each other, and we all just wanted to die because it was so incredible. It was such an amazing moment. But they I think there’s just something really cool and inspiring about young people who are clearly in love with each other. But I wonder if you’d like to think about that phenomenon of falling in love. I’m not talking about the lifelong commitment to love, which is what will sustain a marriage. I’m talking about the phenomenon of being in love, falling in love. Well, if you were to think about it, probably you could say something like this that when you fall in love, you fall in love with something beautiful about that person. Right? Think about it. And their beauty, it’s their beauty that wins our hearts.

Why did you start following Jesus?

And so I’ve got a question for you when it comes to your Christianity. It’s this, it’s on the screen. Why did you start following Jesus? Why did you start following Jesus? For the majority of you here, you have either made or are making a decision to follow Jesus. But the question is this why? Especially when following Jesus is somewhat difficult if done correctly. It’s not hard to say you’re a Christian. It’s not any harder than saying you’re like a piece of broccoli. Like I’m a Christian. That’s not hard. But following Jesus specifically, if done right, is something that’s difficult. And so the question is, why? Why did you choose that life over another life?

Was it maybe because you thought you were supposed to? Possible, right? Maybe was it because someone you loved wanted you to and you didn’t want to disappoint them? It’s possible. Maybe for some of you, you were afraid not to. You were scared into the kingdom. Maybe for some of you, the reason that you came to faith in Christ is because you lived in a culture where Christianity was the dominant religion. Some Christians in the West are Christians for the same reason that some Muslims in the Middle East are Muslims. That’s just a fact. That there’s that there is cultural Christians that they would say they follow Christ, but it’s mostly because that’s the dominant religion here. Did you know that two-thirds of Americans self-identify as Christians? Two-thirds. I want you to imagine how different this place would look if that were even remotely true. But like I went to Walgreens to buy deodorant. It’s in a glass case. Like Mountain Musk. All right. Why? Why do we put our deodorant in cases? Well, it’s not because there’s just so many people around here that are so committed to following the ways of Jesus. It’s just a sad fact that we are surrounded by people that say they’re Christian, and it’s not because they’ve made Jesus the Lord of their life.

But for those of you who have, not just you don’t just say you’re a Christian, but you’ve actually decided that Jesus is the central thing that you orient all of your life around. For those of you who have made that decision, the question is why? Why did you decide to do that? Well, whatever your initial reason for coming to follow Jesus, we would hope that at some point the reason that you continue to follow Jesus has something to do with love. Did you know that everything in the Christian faith centers around love? Everything. Paul says this in 1 Corinthians. He says there’s three things that last, 1 Corinthians 13, 13.

And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Right? After the resurrection, when Jesus comes and he appears to Peter. Peter is a man who claimed to follow Jesus, but he betrayed Jesus when the cards were down. And Jesus goes up to Peter and says, Do you love me? And then Peter says, Yes. Jesus asks again, Do you love me? Peter says, Yes. Jesus asks again, Do you love me? Peter says, Yes. And only after Peter affirms that he loves him three times, does Jesus say, then follow me. In other words, only after Peter falls in love with Jesus is he really able to follow him. Why? Because it’s the beauty of Christ that wins hearts.

The true, the good, and the beautiful

And so, so it’s a challenge, I think, when it comes to presenting Christ to the world. Because there’s a lot of different ways and a lot of different angles that we could present Christ to the world, but I’m wanting to challenge you with another one. Some of you may be familiar with Plato. Plato’s not the not the toy. Plato. Plato. He’s an ancient Greek philosopher. And he all of his philosophy, he was before he he lived before Christ, and if you know him, his philosophy at all, it was all centered around what he would call the three prime virtues. It’s this the good, or the true, the good, and the beautiful. In fact, why don’t can you all say those three with me? The true, the good, and the beautiful.

Well, Christians would say that all three of these things are found in Jesus. Is it okay if I teach you a little bit this morning? I just want to pump you up. I also want to teach you. Christians would say that all three of these things are found in Jesus. They would say the true. Jesus is the truth. Right? John chapter 14, verse 6, Jesus says this.

Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Next we have the good. Jesus is the good. Notice I didn’t just say Jesus is good, but Jesus is the good. And you’re only good to the degree that you line up with Jesus. Right? If you think something’s good, but it goes against Jesus’ definition of good, it’s not good. It’s bad. But also look at this the beautiful. Jesus is the beautiful. Jesus is beauty in its highest form.

And in the modern age, Christians, we have worked really hard and we continue to work really hard to defend the truth of Jesus. Right? And that makes sense because the truth of Jesus is under attack. So an atheist would reject our truth claims. A Buddhist would reject our truth claims. A Muslim would reject our truth claims. Modern culture rejects our truth claims. And so we’ve worked really hard to defend the truth of Jesus. In fact, there’s this whole field of study called apologetics. Apologetics is just the defense of the truth of Jesus. And there is some good that comes from apologetics. I think the primary function of apologetics is mostly to comfort nervous Christians. You want my opinion? It’s like, it’s okay. Your faith is valid. You can be smart too. But but it’s like, but the faith of the truth of Jesus is certainly under attack, and so it’s something that we ought to and do defend the truth of Jesus. You’re only true to the degree that you agree with him.

But then there’s also the good of Jesus. The goodness of Jesus is also under attack. So we would call it Christian ethics. So for Christians, it’s not just about what’s true and what’s a lie. For the Christians, it’s also about what’s good versus bad. And because of Jesus, we know what’s good, and because of Jesus, we know what’s bad. So Jesus taught that loving our enemies is good. We know that because of him. Jesus thought that selfishness is bad. Jesus thought that sexual purity is good. And he taught us that materialism is bad. And so Jesus gets to decide what’s good and bad. And you’re only good insofar as you agree with him. He decides what’s good.

But then also the beautiful. So we have the truth of Jesus, the goodness of Jesus, but then we also have the beauty of Jesus. And there are thousands of books written about the truth of Jesus. And there are thousands of books written about the goodness of Jesus. But the beauty of Jesus is almost completely ignored. And I think it’s a mistake. The question is why. Like I’ve given my life to this gospel thing. And it’s not just so that we can continue to like, you know, enjoy it to get, it’s like hopefully we’re gonna spread the gospel. Right? And we’re gonna cause people who are from, and I don’t know if you know this, but in Albuquerque, probably anywhere in America, people are familiar with the basic tenets of the truth of Jesus. They know what we think. Right? And they’re also familiar with the basic tenets of the goodness of Jesus. Right? They know what we think is good versus bad. They know that. They reject it, but they do know it. Right? And so, and so the thing is, for me, if you want my opinion, the thing that will cause people to consider and reconsider Jesus, is not just to scream louder the truth of Jesus or to scream louder the goodness of Jesus, but to put on display the beauty of Jesus. And that’s not to say that truth and goodness are unimportant. Like they’re super important, but when it comes to reaching the lost, listen, truth and goodness are important but incomplete. Because Jesus was the true, and he was the good, and he was the beautiful.

A pillar of truth, an example of goodness, a reflection of beauty

And so when I think about what I want for this church, I’ll say this. I want I want this church, and I believe this church is, but I want this church to be a pillar of Christ’s truth. Like, like, like if you don’t appreciate absolute truth, this is not the church for you. I tell you all the time, like you can’t act right if you believe wrong. And and so, like, I’m all for fresh and new and creative, original, but I’m never gonna make the mistake that a lot of young preachers like me make, which is to compromise the truth of the gospel to make it attractive. Like that’s a mistake. Right? And so don’t take any of this to mean that David’s tempted to compromise the truth. I’m not like that’s the Christian faith is not something that we invent, it’s something that’s passed down to us. And so I’m not up here trying to invent clever things to say to you. Right? What I’m doing is I’m receiving the faith that has been passed down to me, and I’m trying to pass it to the next generation. So the Christian faith, we sort of don’t make it up. So it’s not the question of like, what is your truth? What is my truth? That’s like, that doesn’t even make any sense. The truth has been passed down to us generation after generation after generation. And part of my calling, if you’re curious, is to communicate eternal truth in an interesting way. And so the way that I deliver eternal truth might be a little unconventional in a certain amount of ways, but I am deeply committed to the truth. Number one, I want this church to be a pillar of Christ’s truth.

Number two, I want this to I want this church to be an example of Christ’s goodness. And what I mean by that is this I want our lives to be a tangible example that living God’s way is the best way. And the comparison between us and the world is the condition of our life versus the condition of theirs. And so that’s why we as pastors, that’s why we’re gonna do everything that we can to help you to be a good example of Christ to the world. And so we’re gonna talk about how to do marriage well. Because only when we do marriage well do people become open to doing marriage God’s way. Right? It’s not just the truth of what we yell at them, it’s us putting on display something worth imitating. Right? Like if like if you’re on, if you’re on your seventh husband and you’re trying to tell me how to talk to my wife, it’s like, no, thank you. But we’ve got people in here that have been married, committed, faithful, 30 years, 40 years, 50 years, 60 years. Now that is something to celebrate, right? That’s displaying the goodness of God. Not just not just yelling the truth of God, not just not, but but exhibiting the goodness of God, right? And so that’s why we’re gonna talk. We’re gonna talk about it in real practical ways. We’re gonna talk about how to be a great parent. Because it’s important. We’re gonna talk about how to be a great employee, we’re gonna talk about how to be a great boss, how to be a great student. Because in everything that we do, we want to be an example that living God’s way is the best way. And God’s definition of what’s good is the correct definition. So I want us to be a pillar of Christ’s truth. I want us to be an example of Christ’s goodness.

And then number three is this I want this church to be a reflection of Christ’s beauty. So what does that mean? It means that we’re not just angry people who also happen to be right. You know what I mean? No, but we’re walking with yes, the truth of Jesus. And we’re walking with yes, the goodness of Jesus, but we’re also walking with the beauty of Jesus. And so that someone would see you, see you at your workplace, and say there’s something beautiful about that guy. And not because he’s got like such a great hairline, or he’s like so skinny, or he’s so good looking. But like there’s something beautiful on the inside of you. And that makes you attractive to a world that’s literally dying. And that’s why sour-faced Christians are such a bummer. Right? Because you might have great wisdom. But the world’s not going to want to hear it because people don’t want to be like you. Because you’re no fun. Because you look miserable, because people don’t like being around you. And so that’s why it’s important as a carrier of truth. And as a carrier of God’s goodness, you’re also carrying the beauty of Christ.

Philippians chapter 4, verse 8. We probably know it’s a well known scripture talking about what we think about, and we know it’s like what whatsoever is true, whatsoever is right. But did you notice, it also says this, whatsoever is lovely? Lovely. Well, lovely. When I want to think about stuff that’s lovely, what is that? What does that what does that even mean? Lovely. It’s just talking about beauty. And listen, it’s all through scripture. Isaiah chapter 33, verse 17.

Your eyes will see the king in his beauty and view a land that stretches afar.

This is a verse that’s prophesying, amongst other things, Christ’s return and his eternal kingdom. And it says this, that when he comes, we’ll see the king in his beauty. And we know this, that it’s not physical beauty. We know that in fact Isaiah says that he was not physically beautiful. Isaiah chapter 53, verse 2.

He had no beauty or majesty to attract him, to attract us to him. Nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

So Jesus was, I think, probably average. It doesn’t say he’s ugly. It just says that he wasn’t beautiful. Right? So, like if we were to put up 10 photos of like first century Jews and said, pick Jesus. Well, you probably couldn’t do it. You’d be like, Mmm, there he is. It’s like, nope, that’s Baruch. But in art, Jesus is always like super gorgeous. You know what I mean? Long hair, he’s ripped, he’s got six-pack app. Like, that’s just that’s how art is. You know, you like you don’t want a tattoo of a guy that’s like slightly overweight, you know, with like balding. That’s just not how art works. And so, easy for us. I’ll take it, I’ll get a tattoo of you. But the reality was this is that Jesus was not outwardly beautiful. But listen to me, his life was beautiful. Right. It was his story that was beautiful. His birth, his life, his miracles, his teaching, his death, his resurrection, his ascension. It was beautiful.

And you know, something that I love about Jesus is he doesn’t have any skeletons in his closet. I’m so grateful for that. I don’t know if you guys know, familiar with Joseph Smith, he’s the founder of Mormonism. He had like 40 wives. And you might be thinking, well, that’s how it was in 3000 BC. This is like 200 years ago. He he was a 19th century polygamist. And he told he went and told his original, his first wife, that an angel appeared to him three times and commanded him to marry more women. No choice. Some of them as young as 14 years old. That’s the founder of Mormonism. And so, look, you may or may not like his teachings. I do not like his teachings. Some of you, some people would certainly like his teachings, but you can’t say that he lived a beautiful life. He didn’t. There’s, and there’s nothing like that with Jesus. His life was objectively beautiful. But do you know how much time Mormons waste trying to defend the broken behavior of Joseph? Like, we don’t have to do that. You know what I mean? Like, like, we just tell the story. Jesus is, even if people reject the deity of Jesus, they admit that he lived a beautiful life. Everyone does. Right? So, and so he was beautiful.

Is my Christianity beautiful?

And so here’s my question for you this morning. Simple question. Is my Christianity beautiful? Is my Christianity beautiful? Yes, I know it’s true. Yes, I know it’s good, but is it beautiful? And not to you, but to the world. Is your Christianity beautiful? Because I don’t know if you know this. Truth does not imply beauty. Right? Like math is true. But it’s not, I was gonna say, well, and math teacher right here. I was gonna say, most people would not find it beautiful. Trigonometry is true. Gorgeous. Says James. Calculus. Even better. He says, oh my God. Okay. Your driver’s license picture is true. It’s a true picture of you. But it’s not beautiful. Truth does not imply beauty. Also, goodness does not imply beauty. A colonoscopy is good. But it’s not beautiful. And so, look, you need truth and you need goodness if you’re going to show real and lasting beauty. But just because you’re true and just because you’re good, doesn’t mean that you’re necessarily beautiful. Right? Truth does not imply beauty, and goodness does not imply beauty.

And so you might be thinking, okay, well, what’s beautiful then? What are we talking about? What are you talking about? Beautiful. Well, Paul outlines it in the book of Colossians, and I think he does it really well. Colossians chapter 3. Read four verses for you. It says this.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body, you were called to peace and be thankful.

So I could obviously make like a big old super long series about all those things, which I’m not going to, but I wanted to just point out, I want to read it again and point out the beautiful qualities that Paul outlines for us. So beginning in verse 12 again. Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, listen to this. Clothe yourself with compassion, compassion is beautiful. Kindness, kindness is beautiful. Humility, humility is beautiful. Gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another. If any of you has a grievance against someone, forgive as the Lord forgave you. Forgiveness, forgiveness is beautiful. And over all these virtues, put on love which binds them all together in perfect unity. Love. Love is beautiful. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. And sit since as members of one body, you were called to peace. Peace. Peace is beautiful. And be thankful. Gratitude. Gratitude is beautiful. And so we know that what I’m wanting to do is like I know that these qualities are things that you know you’re supposed to have. Because that’s what, you know, that’s what’s going to make the best life for you. But I want you to know these are qualities that if you have them in your life, don’t just bless you, but they’re also qualities that glorify God and make him attractive to the people around you.

And there’s tons of sermons on like each of these points, but I just want to point out three beautiful qualities, super fast as we close. We could, if you’re taking notes, you write these down. The title of the of the list is this: being a beautiful Christian in an ugly world. Being a beautiful Christian in an ugly world.

Respond gently

Number one is this respond gently. Respond gently. First Peter chapter 3, verse 3 says this.

Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self. Listen to this, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.

And I was brought to tears on Friday when I was reading this, and I and I came across this verse because, like, as someone who, amongst other things, I stand on a stage for a living. You know, and I do videos, and people like look at my face as I talk. Like that’s part of part of what I do for a living. You know, and it just became so clear to me that it’s like, man, I don’t want my beauty to be because I work out and I’ve got cool, cool hairline now, and you know, oh, he’s in good shape, and like he’s got cool tattoos and he wears like nice clothes or whatever. Like, I’m fine with all of that, man, but I I just I don’t want that to be what’s beautiful about me. You know, like like what I want to be beautiful about me as one of your pastors, I want this to David, he makes jokes and he’s whatever, whatever, but that you would also say, like, he has a gentle spirit. Like that’s what’s beautiful. And if we’re talking about like what’s gonna attract people to Christ, like cool clothes, ain’t gonna do it. But that there needs to be something about how you respond and how you interact with the world, and something about the way that you carry your truth that is beautiful, and I think a lot of that has to do with gentleness, right? Responding and having a gentle and quiet spirit.

Because you will encounter people in life that from your perspective say dumb things. Did you know that? You will encounter people that from your perspective think dumb things. And so the question is not about you agreeing with everything. The question is how do you respond? That’s the question. Are your responses beautiful or are your responses ugly? Did you know that you can disagree in a beautiful way? And you can disagree in an ugly way. You can agree in a beautiful way. You could even agree in an ugly way. And so it’s not about believing versus not believing, it’s about how we’re responding. Is it a beautiful way or is it an ugly way? Proverbs chapter 12, verse 16 says this.

Fools show their annoyance at once, but the prudent overlook an insult.

Is that not an amazing scripture? Fools show their annoyance. So it’s so it’s fools that are always showing how annoyed they are. It’s fool, fools show their annoyance at once. And you might think, oh, not me, it’s because I’m surrounded by fools. That’s why I’m always annoyed. Right? It’s like, well, not according to Proverbs. It says fools show their annoyance at once.

And some people think that like being gentle, gentleness is some kind of thing that’s like a little bit like weakness. But it’s not that at all. You say, this is my definition. You can take, if you’re writing, taking notes, you can write this down. Gentleness is power under control. Power under control. You know, I’ve got a seven-year-old daughter named Grace, who y’all probably know. She loves to wrestle me. She loves wrestling. I don’t think she loves like wrestling, but she loves wrestling with me. So, like between you and me, though, is she in here? It’s like between you and me, I could I could totally beat her in wrestling. Like if I wanted to. A few body slams. Oh, she’d be running crying to her mama. I think I could take probably two or three seven-year-olds at a time. Four, it’s getting close. So I have the power to defeat her in wrestling. But listen, but I also have the power to wrestle gently. Come on, Red. Some of y’all miss that. I have the power to wrestle gently. That’s right. Power under control. So I don’t take every shot I could take. That’s right. It’s good.

Listen to me, I don’t even mean. I’m just probably gonna be mean, so I don’t I don’t mean to insult any of you, but when I talk to some of you, I could take lots of shots. You know what I mean? Like like I lovingly, I study this book for a living. You know what I mean? And some of y’all like the way that you try to explain it to me is like not quite right. But okay. But I don’t take every shot I could take. That’s right. Right? Because I because I’m gentle. It’s not just about being right, it’s about me being effective. Right. And so I’m not so I’m not just I’m not just correcting everyone I can correct all the time. Because what’s the point of that? So that I would like boost my ego somehow. It’s not just about being right, it’s about being effective. There’s people in this room that you’re thinking, like, man, if people don’t receive the true things I say, it’s always their problem, not mine. It’s not true. Come on. Because you can say a truth in a beautiful way, and you can also say a truth in an ugly way. You could say it like this. This is my next slide. Gentleness speaks truth in a way people can receive it. Gentleness speaks truth in a way people can receive it.

And so if you want to walk like Jesus, and I do, like if you want to walk like Jesus, you’re gonna have to manage the tension of being lion-like and lamb-like. Because there are times when you’re supposed to be lion-like, where you’re supposed to be powerful and you’re supposed to be assertive, but then there’s also times when you’re supposed to be lamb-like, gentle, humble, to not say what you could say, to not do what you could do. Gentle, because only because only the gentle use power responsibly. But you’ve you’ve got great power, man. Ma’am, sir, you’ve got great power. Right? And you’ve got great wisdom. We know that. You’ve got great power in your words, great power. Use that power responsibly. Use that power to show not just the truth of Jesus, but the beauty of Jesus. How did Jesus talk to people he disagreed with? Did he always just agree with them? No, of course not. But he had a way of communicating truth in a way that people could understand.

Like we have, we have a security team in the room. I don’t know if you know this. Right now, there’s security people in here, and they’re trained to handle any sort of threats, and they have all sorts of different levels of force that they could use at a moment’s notice, all the way up to lethal. And so, just know that’s happening right now. And so, but think about it like this: like, if let’s say there’s a confrontation with you. Let’s say you hop up and you start in the middle of the sermon, start screaming the F-word. Please don’t do that. Like, I’m not ready for that. Pastor, you Pastor Marshall, he’d know how to handle that. I wouldn’t know what to do. So please don’t. But let’s say someone starts making a ruckus. Look, the security team’s not just gonna not just gonna walk right up to you and shoot you. They have the power to shoot you, right? But they have the restraint to use that power responsibly. I hope you’re getting this. So they’re not going around like walking around shooting people. But some of you, that’s exactly what you do with your words. You just shoot anyone you think deserves to be shot. That’s not gentleness. So respond gently. Carry your truth, carry your goodness. Don’t ever compromise the truth. Don’t ever compromise on the goodness of Jesus. Let him have all the votes on what you think is acceptable and not acceptable. 100%. Never compromise on that. But listen to me, do that in a beautiful way. Do that in a beautiful way. You can do it. Right? So you’re gonna have to manage this tension. Right? If any of you think, oh, he’s going soft on the trip, like I’m not. I’m not at all. But I’m saying you can do what you do in a beautiful way. Respond gently.

Forgive quickly

Number two is this: forgive quickly. Forgive quickly. You know, this past week, my wife and I and daughter, we watched our first Christmas movie of the season, a home alone, which is the only correct choice. Some of y’all may have watched another incorrect Christmas movie, and we forgive you. But we watched Home Alone. But think about Home Alone. Think about the plot. It’s a real deep plot. But think about the plot of Home Alone. Or maybe, maybe any, almost almost any feel-good family movie. What’s the movie about? It’s about forgiveness. That’s what they’re all about. Like practically all feel-good family movies are about forgiveness. Even a broken, disgusting, perverted world knows that forgiveness is beautiful. That’s right. They know it. You know it and they know it. And so it’s it’s it like in forgiveness for us, like they they forgive when they want to forgive, they forgive maybe when they’re compelled to forgive, but but for us, like forgiveness is at the core of the Christian faith. I say it like this: if if the Christian faith isn’t about forgiveness, it’s not about anything. Forgiveness is how you got here. How am I allowed to sit in this chair that I’m sitting in? Forgiveness. Like forgiveness is how you got here. It’s foundational to what it means to be a Christian. Prove it. Okay, here we go.

The Lord’s Prayer. Jesus says this forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those that trespass against us. The Last Supper, Jesus said this. This is the blood of my covenant that’s poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. On the cross, Jesus says this, Father, forgive them. They know not what they’re doing. The evening of the resurrection, Jesus says after he’s been raised, he says, This, if you forgive your sin, if you forgive anyone’s sins, they’re forgiven. If you do not forgive someone’s sins, they are not forgiven. And then in the Apostles’ Creed in the early church, I believe in the forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness is everywhere. Every page, forgiveness. It’s just how we got here. It’s how we relate to God. It’s how we relate to the world.

And I always tell people that forgiveness is, and it always gets quiet when people talk about forgiveness, and that’s totally cool because I know it’s personal. But forgiveness is simple. It’s not easy, but it is simple. And I’m trying to be real practical here just for like two minutes. But forgiveness comes in two phases. I’m gonna forgive this person. That’s the easy part. It’s just making the choice. It’s like deciding to lose weight. That’s cool. You haven’t lost any, but it’s an important part of the process, right? The choice to lose weight, the choice to forgive, that’s the easy part. The second phase of forgiveness is this, the process of forgiving. And that’s the hard part. Because that’s the part where you must deal with your own anger. And I I tell people this that the secret to forgiving is not about what you do, it’s about who you are. You could say it like this: the secret to forgiving is having the identity of a forgiven person. Notice I didn’t say forgiving person, a forgiven person.

Think about the question that God asks Jonah. So Jonah, he hates the Ninevehes. These people have oppressed his people, and he wants God to strike them dead. And he’s super glad about it. And then then God forgives them, and Jonah is so mad that he just wants to curse God and die because he would forgive his enemies. And look at what God said. But the Lord replied, Jonah 4:4. The Lord replied, is it right for you to be angry? That’s the question. Is it right for you to be angry? Like, do you have the right to be Jonah? You know, because I I feel like I recall just like a few days ago, you were the one running from me just like they are. Like, do you have the right to be angry? And I think that’s the question for us too. People who people who struggle with unforgiveness, the question almost always is this do you have the right to be angry? And if you honestly consider it, in the vast majority of cases, the answer is no. Remember this that first and mostly you are a receiver of forgiveness. And secondly, you’re a giver of forgiveness. So when anyone talks about forgiveness, you should say, wow, I’ve received a lot of that. Instead of like, oh, I hate forgiveness because I’m always having to forgive other people. Like, no, primarily you’re a receiver of forgiveness, not a giver of forgiveness. And if you think you’re only a giver of forgiveness, and forget that you’re mostly a receiver of forgiveness, you’ll struggle to forgive. Because you feel like you’re owed something. And it costs you. And it costs you something that you don’t want to pay. But then you remember, oh, but my debt was paid. Right? Forgiveness is always expensive. It always costs you. But the key is this to remember how much debt you had that was paid. Forgiveness, you could take a picture, write this down. Forgiveness is about believing that the cross of Jesus Christ is sufficient payment, not only for everything you’ve done, but also for everything that’s been done to you. It’s about the cross, forgiveness.

Live gratefully

Okay, so number one, respond gently. Number two, forgive quickly. Number three, live gratefully, and I’m done. Philippians chapter two and verse 14 says this.

Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault, in a warped and crooked generation.

So he’s quoting Deuteronomy chapter 32. Listen to this. Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky. So having a grateful heart rather than a grumbling and arguing heart causes you to shine like stars in the sky, is what it says. So, like let’s say you’re at work and there’s 20 people there and they’re all complaining, oh, can you believe this traffic? Oh, this city’s going to hell in a handbag. Can you believe the nerve of those people? Like blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And like, and then in the midst of all of that ugliness, there’s someone who’s grateful. Scripture says that that person shines like a star in that workplace.

And maybe you’re thinking, well, I don’t have anything to be grateful for. Well, that’s definitely not true. But let’s pretend it is. Let’s pretend you’ve just like lived the worst life and God’s never done a single nice thing for you in your entire existence, and there’s nothing to be grateful for. Listen, did you know that Jesus models for us, thanking God in advance for what we’re believing for him to do? Did you know that? Right? Did you know that you can be grateful before the prayer is answered? Did you know that you can be grateful before the miracle comes? You can be grateful before deliverance comes, before the answer comes. And you might be thinking, I need some examples of that. No problem.

So when Jesus goes and he raises Lazarus from the dead, right? So before the miracle happens, and it’s just grieving and it’s just sorrow and it’s just sadness, the first thing Jesus does is he goes to the Father and he expresses gratitude. The first thing he says to Jesus is or to the Father is this He says, Father, I thank you that you have heard me. He says, Thank you that you’ve heard me even before he prays. Right? So the first thing he does is he’s expressing gratitude before the miracle happens. You can see this over and over in the miracles of Jesus. When Jesus he feeds, he has like thousands of people to feed, and all he’s got is five loaves of bread and two fish. Like, what does he do? Well, he’s believing for the miracle, and he turns to heaven, and the first thing he does is he gives thanks. Jesus gives thanks before the miracle happens. Before the miracle happens.

There’s a lady here in the church a couple weeks ago. I was talking to her. I don’t even know if she’s in here, but there’s a lady that a lot of you all know that went through a really horrible tragedy. I don’t know, six weeks ago, something like that. Tragically losing a young person in the family. And you know, some of the worst, right? Some of the worst you’ll ever experience. And I and so I went up to her and I said, How are you doing? And she said, Oh, Pastor David, she says, Well, I have good days and bad days, and it’s really hard. And then she says this, but I thank you, Jesus, that you still have a plan for me. But you’re not done with me. There’s something here for me to do. And Jesus, I thank you that you’re my protection, you’re my provision, you’re my provider, and I won’t be defeated. And I looked at her and I was like, I want to be like you when I grow up. That’s what I told her. I want to be like you when I grow up. But man, you think think about think about being beautiful to the world. Right? You don’t deny that there’s problems, but you’re just always ready and eager to express gratitude to God, even for things that haven’t happened yet. Right? There’s like just this grateful heart. It’s like, man, the world, the world needs not just more angry yelling, the world needs an example. And you can show them, and they become, they become open to your truth, and they become open to your goodness when they see your beauty, when they’re captured by the beauty of you living an alternative way.

You are the salt

Jesus talks about being the salt of the earth, right? Did you know it it the salt is not something that you have, right? It’s not like the salt of the good idea, I’ve got salt of good ideas, I’ve got the salt of even even the salt of the Bible that I’m sprinkling. No, you are the salt. And if you think that doesn’t make any difference, it’s all the difference in the world. Your life is the salt. Your life is the thing that’s the alternative. Right? And so, like, if if we’re not a bright and shining alternative to a world gone mad, they won’t listen to us. Jesus said so. Jesus says, like, if you’re not salty, if your life is not an alternative, if you’re not putting the beauty of Christ on display, he says, people are just gonna throw you away. Just gonna throw you away.

And so, like, man, I told you, I told you this a couple weeks ago, but you know what I think this city needs is this influence. People of influence. And when you walk into your work placement, there’s an influence on you. When you work, walk onto your campus, there’s an influence on you. When you walk into school, there’s an influence on you. And okay, well, what’s that influence? Well, it’s a number of things, but most certainly the influence that you have and the opportunity that you have to influence is by presenting the beauty of Christ to the world. And I am calling the people of this church to something. And it’s this to reflect the truth of Christ, to reflect the goodness of Christ, but to also reflect the beauty of Christ. That people would see the people of this church, even if they don’t agree with the things that they they would see you and they’d say, yeah, but there is something beautiful about that guy. There is something beautiful about her. And that beauty is what makes them receptive to what you would have to say. So, yes, we’re true, yes, we’re good, but we’re also beautiful. So we don’t ever sacrifice truth and goodness for beauty, but we don’t sacrifice beauty for truth and goodness. But the good news is this you don’t have to choose. And you had the perfect example. Because Jesus was true, Jesus was good, and Jesus was also beautiful.

Ultimate beauty in the midst of ultimate ugliness

Here’s my closing statement. In a world that’s hurt and dying, displaying the beauty of Christ is incredibly important. One, respond gently, using power that’s under control and speaking truth in ways others can receive. Two, forgive quickly, remembering that we are first receivers of forgiveness before we are givers of it. Three, live gratefully, offering thanks to God even before our prayers are answered, shining like stars in a dark world.

And that leads us, of course, to Jesus. I mean, Jesus is the ultimate example of beauty in the midst of ugliness. It’s funny, sometimes I think about the cross and I think about how crazy it is that like we’ll wear it on our necks and like tattoo it on our bodies and stuff. That, you know, it’s like there was a it was a torture and execution device. It was brutal. It wasn’t like it wasn’t like we’re trying to figure out more humane ways to kill people. They were trying to find more painful and inhumane ways to torture and kill people. That’s the cross. Right? And so, and so you have this perfect, fully God, but perfect man who’s on this suffering, like suffering. It says in scripture that he was no longer recognizable as a man. Right? So it’s like these two pieces of wood that is the culmination of all of the wickedness and ugliness that humanity has to offer. The absolute worst. That we wouldn’t want to just kill someone we oppose, we want to torture them and see them suffer. Right, that this is like the ugliest of the ugly. And then here you have Jesus right there in the middle of it. And you know what he says? He says, forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing. It’s ultimate beauty in the midst of ultimate ugliness. And that’s the beauty that we’re drawn to. And that’s the beauty that we’re called to imitate.

And so, Heavenly Father, this morning we say we’re so grateful for you. We’re thankful that, man, we’re thankful that we don’t have to make up any of this stuff. We just follow your example. Jesus, thank you for showing us how to do it. Not that this is like this delicate dance that we have. And we don’t always get it right. But thank you for your perfect example. And give us the courage and the motivation to look at you again and consider you again and to commit ourselves to following you again again, following your example again. We thank you, Lord. We we ask that you would use us just in really cool ways in this city. We’re grateful to be here with the Christians, but we’re but we’re asking you for opportunities outside of these walls to represent you well to a hurt and dying world. And we know that one of the ways that we do that is by putting the beauty of Christ on display. So help us to do that, Lord. Help us to present a beautiful Christ in the midst of an ugly world. Everybody said, Amen.

Well, you stand up on your feet with me. Oh, we love you so much. Hey, we have wanted to tell you that we have, as we close service, we’ve got our prayer team. So me and the pastors will be here. But also in the back, there’s these prayer stations, and up here, you just we just invite you to take part. We we believe that there’s a synergistic effect to prayer, right? That that like we have a certain amount of authority in the spiritual realm through Christ, but then there’s like this way where there’s like it talks about like a thousand to flight, ten thousand a flight. So, like agreement in prayer is super powerful. And so if you need prayer for anything, it could be big, it could be small, please utilize some of the prayer team. Any of us as the pastors, we’re here for you. We love you. Look forward to praying with you, being involved in your life in whatever way we can. Please just let us know. We look forward to seeing you this coming Tuesday at 7 p.m. It’s for the whole family. And if not, see you next Sunday at 10 a.m. for Thanksgiving service. Looking forward to it. We’ll see you then. God bless you.