Building the Beloved Community: Faith Put Into Action

Because you cannot believe one thing and do a different thing. You cannot believe that Jesus in him there is hope and live a hopeless life. You cannot believe that in Christ there is life and life in abundance and live your life miserable as if the tomorrow or the the world is ending tomorrow. You cannot live your life based you on the faith that we have in Christ and produce something differently. It must show in our practices. It must show in how we carry ourselves. [00:29:02] (47 seconds)  #WalkTheFaith

And they built structure to protect future generations. And as a result of that, they became people that were strict to the law and they didn't have room for grace. Amen? believe that the soul that sinned must die. If you sin, if you go wrong according to the law, you must die. But Jesus came and preached the message of grace. They didn't have room to think about because they wanted to protect their structure and protect the future generation. They didn't want to go back into captivity. [00:41:08] (49 seconds)  #GraceNotLegalism

So the problem arises not from their motivation but when they because their motivation was correct, they wanted to follow the law of God. This is what they have been taught. This is their tradition. They wanted to follow the law of God. But when they commit to their tradition, their tradition overrides their devotion to the community. And when they become inflexible and unwilling to listen to God, they hinder what it means to build a beloved community. Their tradition was overriding their devotion to the community. [00:42:33] (47 seconds)  #TraditionVsCommunity

And God does not want us to play act. Amen? They were play acting. That means what? That means what? They were hypocrites. They were play acting, and that means that they they they were showing forth outwardly but there was no transformation that was happening inwardly. They were playing acting. They know how to dress and how to to to be religious and say the religious thing. But when the rubber hits the road, when the the when lying circumstances happen, they know they turn back against their God. [00:33:45] (47 seconds)  #NoMoreHypocrisy

They were playing acting. They know how to dress and how to to to be religious and say the religious thing. But when the rubber hits the road, when the the when lying circumstances happen, they know they turn back against their God. They were playing acting because they know how to put on their tassels and put on their long garments, and they know how to to share the law and tell people what to do, and they make it even more difficult and put on more shoulders. They know how to show off, but they they don't know how to practice it even in their own life. [00:34:13] (51 seconds)  #PracticeWhatYouPreach

Last Sunday was Pentecost Sunday, and we started a journey called the beloved community. We realized in our text that the reason the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples gathered at the upper room in Acts chapter two came like a rushing wind and that signified a new way of life, a new language. When the church was born, the church is the only child that was born and began to speak the same day. But it began to learn the language of God, and the language of God is a language of love. The language of God is a language of building a beloved community. Amen? [00:18:40] (50 seconds)  #LanguageOfLove

Can I tell you this Sunday morning, the best days of the kingdom, the best days of the church is not behind us? They are ahead of us. Amen? When we live into the kingdom, when we live into the beloved community, the birthdays are ahead of us. When we have a four things what it means to be part of something bigger. Look, being part of the church and the kingdom is a beautiful thing. It's bigger than you. It's bigger than your career. It's bigger than your life and your family. [00:24:24] (46 seconds)  #GloryDaysAhead

Because if you declare that Jesus is Lord of your life, it must show in your life. If you declare in your faith, if you have given your life to Christ you you you you are a child of God, it shows in how we live our life. Because the faith we have is a faith that is grounded in the finished work of Christ on the cross. Amen? The faith we have is a solid faith. The faith we have is a balanced faith. [00:28:08] (37 seconds)  #FaithThatShows