Sermon on the Mount

Matthew chapter 5 and from verse 38. You've heard that it was said eye for eye and tooth for tooth, but I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also, and if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coats as well. If anyone forces you to go 1 mile, go with them 2 miles. Give to the 1 who asks you and do not turn away from the 1 who wants to borrow from you.

Well, good evening all. My name's Rory, and it's great that we're able to continue in our series on the sermon on the Man. It is is quite a remarkable sermon to be going through. And Although, I I I I don't think it's always massively impossible to understand. It is it is very hard to apply this to our lives and to actually live this out.

So let's ask God's help as we begin. And then we'll get stuck into this section of the sermon in the Mount. Father, we we thank you for your word. We thank you for all the things that we have seen so far in this this amazing sermon that the Lord Jesus delivered. And we pray now that as we think about these words that you will be challenging us where we need challenging.

These are not easy words. We don't find this natural, but with your help and with your power, we are able to live these words out and so we pray father that you will help us now to listen and therefore help us to apply it to our lives We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. Well, I think you would all agree with me that people are very much interested in their rights. They love their rights. I looked up a definition for the for the word rights.

It's a moral or legal entitlement to have or do something. And we're all very concerned with people's rights. I mean, we learn about this in our laws. So if you just look at our laws, I used to teach year sevens, and we used to talk about the Mcna Carton, how these these people wanted their rights, and that's fed into our international human rights law. We even got a law that that covers international about how we want our rights.

And and we we And I think this is right as well. We get into uproar when we hear and we see people's rights being abused. When people don't have the right to living standards or they haven't got the right to vote, or they don't have the same rights as the other people in the country. However, I think that generally, people get so wrapped up in this area of rights. It becomes less about equality and it becomes more about me.

So it might be how I've been wronged or how my rights have been violated and how how people should make what they've done wrong up to me. I mean, if you think about the way our language goes, It's my right to speech, my right to express, my right to protest, my life, my way, my right to speak. And actually, you can see this from an early age all the way up. So some of you might have children. Some of you have all well, you've all been children.

May have nephew in fact, I saw this yesterday. This this eye these children grab, and it's mine. It's my toy. So there I was. Yesterday, I looked at my nephew.

He was wearing a Spider Man costume, and the hat was on his sister. And he couldn't have that, could he? I want it. It's mine. I want to be Spider Man.

You're never going to be Spider Man. You're a little boy. Give it to me. Or or he hit me first. It was my right to strike back.

And then we laugh at children. We've got some young people here. They probably all done it. Brothers hit them. They get hit back.

Yeah? It's my time on the on the on the games console. It's my time on the TV. It's my muffin. If you ever have muffins, I don't know.

But although we see it in in children, it it it doesn't get getting better for teenagers. I mean, who remembers the the arrogant little so and so this is probably me? Still is probably, who does something that they probably shouldn't do and say, oh, it's a free world. I could do what I want. Because it might have they've upset someone.

It's my right to say what I wanna say. And then if we're adults here and we're laughing at them, well let let's just reflect on our own lives. Soon as someone cuts in on us in the road, oh, my rights. I'm human. Or and the I mean, the most British thing to do is obviously queue up, and if someone jumps the queue, I j, wherever she is.

Yeah. Because I j doesn't live in queues. Yeah. She jumps in the queue. I'm absolutely living my right.

That was my space. It was my turn. There you are on the road. My right of way. We gotta turn for it.

It's my right of way. Don't you love it when like it's usually a bus and a bus is coming through and taking up someone else's right way. And they have like a standoff, but the bus is never going to move and there there are showing at each other, and then the people behind them are getting angry because their right to go somewhere is being now being violated. And so everyone's a few minute and they're beeping the horns at the guy who's not letting the bus through. And eventually because the bus can't reverse down the road because the bus The the guy has to has to kind of submit and then reverse back, and it looks ridiculous.

And then we all we all laugh at him. We're like, yes, get in there. I don't know who says I give as good as I get. It's my right If you're wrong, you should make it right. You should make it right for me.

You have to pay me. We love our rights and actually we have this sense of entitlement and as soon as someone wrongs us, we we very I mean, we might not always verbalize it because we're a bit cowardly for inside. We we plot and plan ways to absolutely take that person down. Or at least I do. Anyway, I gotta do with anything?

Well, that's exactly what the Faracies were like. So 2000 years before us, the pharisees were exactly the same. I mean, if we've just looked through the sermon and the man, we've seen that these pharisees are all about their rights. What can I do? What can't I do?

What can I do by right? What would the law permit me to do? And it's exactly the attitude they have to the law that we see today. So in verse 38, you'll notice that Jesus introduces law by saying, you have heard that it was said, eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. This here is what we call the law of retaliation.

And it's seen 3 times in the old testament. It's seen in exodus. It's seen in leviticus and it's seen in Duttrati, those words, eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth come up time and time again. But the pharisees are actually getting it wrong because this law was not a law about me getting my own revenge. This law was actually a law of mercy.

The whole point of this law was to make sure that an appropriate punishment was meted out to the to the wrongdoer. So that that that there wasn't this escalating violence like where you get blood food. You know, like if someone chopped off my hand, so I went and chopped his head off and then murdered his whole family, and then they murdered my whole family in the and it goes on and on and on. It's a a a tale of Romeo and Juliet if you know that that story. I did that in English.

I hated it. Anyway, not let's not get into Rome and Juliet. So it was actually it's it's it's about mercy. It's about she's saying, don't punish everybody. You punish the 1 person who's responsible for the crime.

But not only is it about mercy, is to be done by the law courts. This was not a law for me to go, oh, you wrong me, well then I get to wrong you. This was a law that said the law courts, the justice system will meet up the punishment. Because I think we all know that if I'm wronged, my idea of making it right is wildly disproportionate. I mean I mean, if anyone does me wrong, even as a joke manner, I make sure that I get my own back.

So it needs to be done by the the law courts. The other thing about this law is that it off it it it nearly always wasn't literal. So in other words, you might have you might have had your hand chopped off. My hand wouldn't be chopped off as well. It was actually a monetary thing.

So they would calculate the the how much pain was caused, what was the injury, What was the healing like? What do they need to do to get healed? How much time would that take and what indignity was there? What sort of humiliation had been caused? And so they would add all that up and go, this is the money that you should pay back.

And the last thing to say about this law is that this law is not just isolated. This law actually is not the end of old testament ethics. In fact, there's plenty of places where the bible says, don't hold grudges. Don't hold these negative feelings that actually have a have a a sense of forgiveness about you, and we'll we'll see them as we go along. Now the pharisees, didn't believe in taking the law like that.

They didn't believe in leaving it with the law courts. They believed let's bake it back to being personal. And so they twisted it and they thought it was all about in the end for the pharisees how I can get my vengeance. How I can make sure that I get my personal retaliation. How far can I go with my personal retaliation before I break the law?

What can I what can I do by my rights? What is rightful for me to do? Can I, you know, chop a couple hands off? Maybe a leg as well? Maybe we'll see.

But that's not what this law is about and we've just seen that. And so Jesus is introducing this law and he knows all of those things. He knows that it's actually should be done in the law courts. He knows those that that that actually that it's not the the only part of this law, but actually he wants us to go further. See, Jesus, as we've seen, is not minimalistic.

He's he's about filling the law to the maximum. He's about going, you need to go further than just making sure that you don't enact your vengeance. Because actually, this is not this is not something to be treated lightly. This is about relationships and when you're in your relationship with people, it's not about exercising your rights. It's not about oh, well, I've been wrong, so you need to make it right for me.

And so he says actually, the Christian must go further and they must forego their rights. It's like you have an attitude that you have no rights at all. Which is which is hard to hear after we've just heard what we're like in terms of I'm all about my rights. What the Christians gonna act like they've got no rights? And so he gives us 4 examples to show us this.

K? So here's the first 1. Turn the other cheek. Number 1, turn the other cheek. If you look down at verse 39, but I tell you, do not resist an evil person If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.

Now what Jesus is is not saying here is that you can never resist anyone ever. Just because they're evil, you so if you're walking down the street and someone's attacking someone else, then intervene. Jesus isn't saying, oh well, I'm told not to resist an evil person, so go ahead, beat the person off and take the money. Jesus is not saying do that. And he's also not saying that you should go around and if someone attacks you, you can just, you know, should let it happen.

They come at you and they start trying to batter you, you can leg it. It's okay to run. You don't have to go oh, well, Jesus, Tom, I'm gonna take this. He's not saying that. He's not saying, look, oh, get your head kicked in.

No. What he's saying here is that if you get slapped on the right on the on the cheek, then you need to turn the other cheek. Now what does that mean to be slapped on the on the right cheek? Well, actually, to be slapped on the right cheek in these days was to be backhanded. Okay?

So you obviously, most people right handed in these days. So I'll backhand you in the in the right cheek. And it wasn't about physical pain really. The idea that you got backhanded in the in the right cheek was actually a a a hugely and deeply insulting thing to have done to you. It was an insult.

It was it was I guess the modern day equivalent would be if I spat in your face. I reckon. Pretty disgusting. It's vile. It's it's It's hatred, it's evil language, And I and I I think this is the problem.

Right? Because if I get if I get insulted, if I get called every name under the sun in a vile and violent manner. If I get wronged, what is my natural instinct? Well, my natural instinct is to give as good as I get. So I'll think of some other violent and vile language to give back.

Someone if someone wrongs me, I'll think, how can I get back at this person? I need to be right here. It's surely my right to take revenge. It's surely my right to do to that person what they've done to me. But Jesus says no.

Turn the other cheek. Don't retaliate. Don't resent. Actually, you go further. You don't just you don't just you don't just go, okay, stop.

In fact, you turn the other cheek. You allow for another another strike. See, Jesus is saying you need to exercise a spirit of forgiveness rather than revenge. You need to be willing to be wronged rather than retaliate. Now you might hear that and go, well, that sounds pretty weak.

Right? That sounds unbelievably weak, pathetic. In fact, some philosophers have hated this idea so much that this is the why they don't like Christianity because they see this as a weakness. But this isn't a weakness. Like, you can't do this.

The fact that you have to try and suppress every natural instinct of my body to strike back to attack. That is pretty strong to do. And as we've been going through the sermon and the Mount, actually we should expect this type of behavior. Have you just looked back at verse 11 to 12? Bless it to you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

Rejoice and be glad because great is your reward in heaven for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. So if you're a Christian, then expect to be insulted. If you're a Christian expect to be persecuted, And if you are insulted, if you are persecuted, if you are wronged and that behavior will come towards you if you are a Christian, then you can let them do it and you can forgive. Romans chapter 12 takes on this kind of this this theme Paul in his letter to the Roman says this, bless those who hurt you, bless them and do not curse them. Be joyful with them, who are joyful, be sad with those who are sad, agree with 1 another, don't be proud.

Be willing to be a friend of people who aren't considered important, don't think you're better than others. Don't pay back evil with evil. Be careful to do what everyone thinks is right. If possible live in peace with everyone, but that as much as you can. My dear friends don't try and get even.

Leave room for God to show his anger. It is written. I am the God who judges people. I will pay them backs as the Lord. Do just the opposite.

Scripture says, if your enemies are hungry, give them food to eat. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink, by doing those things you will pile up burning coals on their heads. Don't let evil overcome you. Overcome evil by doing good. So in other words, when someone attacks you, when someone perps you, when someone insults you, I can say, no.

I don't need to strike back. I don't need to attack back. I can accept the insult and I can continue living for Jesus. And people have done this throughout history. I mean, if you look at at saints of the I mean, if I was interested at Root the other day.

We're doing these sessions where we look at heroes of the faith we call it, like people that have really lived for Jesus at the time. And James Marsh is going through William Wilberforce. Now there is a man who was willing to take insults. He was a man who wanted to get rid of the slave trade. He wanted to remove the slave trade from bringing African to to America, but not only that, but to abolish slavery totally in this country.

And when he was doing that, people hated him for it. They called him all sorts of names. They said things about his wife. They said things about him that was was violent. But does he -- did he retaliate now?

He continues to work. It's in those who remember tariffs. I remember when tariffs came and we talked about how Christianity was viewed in Belarus. Don't know if anyone remembers this. And the way that other people who are off another religion religion orthodox orthodoxy in in Belarus.

They used to say that those in evangelical churches like terraces were people that ate their babies. It's horrible. Actually, it's what the early Christians faced in Rome as well. But he can accept and keep going on. I remember a few weeks ago you might have heard me talk about a man who who went to Nazi officials and preach the gospel to them.

And the hatred and the insults that you went his way, you're a Nazi lover. But he's able to keep on going and not retaliate. And you can see here you pour burning coals on their head. They realize they're in the wrong there. And as a Christian, I can say, well, it's okay.

I can take the insults. I can take the mocking. I can take the Jiran. I can take the fact that people are dismissive of me. They say all sorts of things about me behind my back to my face.

I can take it because I know God's is a God of Justice, and justice will be done. But it's also great because if people see me Living like this, forgiving like this, then they may see something hugely attractive about the gospel. So that's the first thing. Turn the other cheek. Second thing, give your cloak.

Look with me at verse 40. But if anyone wants to see you and take your shirt hand hand over your coat as well. Now in what he's talking about with this shirt, you have the shirt is kind of a tunic. It's kind of like an undergarment that everyone would have had. And if you were taken to court, you might give that that that undergarment over because everyone had at least 2.

Even if you were the poorest of the poor, you would have 2 2 undergarments. Obviously, 1 that you need to wear, 1 that you'd wash, and then you'd switch. It's lovely. Less complicated than owning a lot of clothes, I suppose. But the thing that that was by right yours was your cloak.

This cloak, you can see it in this this passage here, the coat was this kind of blanket like covering that when it was like really cold, you might use it as a blanket at nighttime. So you wouldn't wanna strip someone off the the the thing that was theirs by right. You can see it. The coat the coat is the only thing your neighbor owns to wear or sleep in. So he wants people to let them have their clothes.

So buy right, By right, this cloak is mine. You shouldn't take it off them. But what does Jesus say here? He says, if they're going for your your tunic, you're undergarment, give them your cloak as well. And what does he mean by this?

Well, he's actually saying, you can give up what is yours by rights? You can abandon your rights. Unwillingly abandon him and say, okay, well, yes, this is what is rightfully mine, but I can give it away. I mean, this is so not normal. If something's mine by right, it's mine, you're not having it.

Even if you are assuming this is mine. And and there's people like this all even in the church, I was talking to and 1 1 preacher who who they used to have a bloke in their church. And this is how far away he didn't get this. He believed it was his right to disagree. It was his right to to disagree.

He was all about the congregational policy and he could quote the constitution of the church off his head. That is not someone who's willing to give up their rights, is it? For the good of the church, for the good of other people. But Jesus is saying here, give them up. Give them up in order to win other people over.

Be about your duties, not your rights, be about your responsibilities, not your privileges. Give up your rights so that you can serve other people. That's what Jesus is saying there. Their thing. Go the extra mile.

Go the extra mile. Look down with me at verse 41. If anyone forces you to go 1 mile, go with them 2 miles. I love the old version, so that the King James version said, well, I can't can't remember it all, but it says, go with them twain. What a lovely language, guys.

Twain. Bringing that back. But what is this talking about? Well, actually, I think this is the CEV and it really helps us understand this this verse because it says this. If a soldier forces you to carry his pack 1 mile, carry it to.

So in other words, when on the Roman occupation, if a soldier was carrying his backpack and he couldn't be bothered anymore, he might see you on the road and go, carry this up a mile. Once you've done a mile, you can give it me back and I'll carry it on. You might you might have seen this before in Scripture. Right? When did the Romans force someone to carry something that's not theirs?

Well, Simon of Syrene, right? When Jesus is walking through the streets of Jerusalem, he's so weak that he can't carry his his cross anymore and they say, Simon or siren, he come here, sing the cross on him, you can carry it a mile. And Christ is saying here, be willing to go the extra mile. I guess that's where we get the phrase from. So it's not and it's not this.

It's not Okay. I I'm being forced to do something, so I've got to carry them out. So I'll go the mile. I'll dump the sack off and I'll storm off. Now, Jesus is saying you can go further, go 2 miles.

Now, this would be the wrong interpretation of how what Jesus is saying here. Right? 2 miles, that's me done. Storm off. He's not saying that either.

And Jesus is saying, be willing to go further. Go 1 mile, 2 mile, 3 mile, 4 mile, however long it takes. You don't have to say, buy right, buy my rights because we're all about rights, buy my rights, I'll go the 1 mile and that's me done. Therefore, I'm only doing the mile. No.

Go further, Jesus says. Rather than being a bitter moody resentful person who's been asked to do something that's out of their contract or outside of their rights, Be cheerful and realize this is an act of service to other people. I remember when I I worked in a school and I I remember this is not what you want, but it wasn't a Christian, so this is what you expect. I emailed my computer my technology wasn't working. My project I need my projector to teach for goodness sake.

And so I'm there early at work before my before I meant start. And I emailed the the IT bloke and no. He didn't answer. So I went and knocked on this door and said, can you just come and sort my projector out? He said, well, I don't start working till 15 minutes.

I'm gonna say. Oh, there. I I went away a little bit moody. It was retaliating in my head, thinking of the words I should have said. But That is not the attitude.

It's not the attitude. You don't just go, oh well, I don't It will be yes. Of course, I'll help you. I know it's outside of my work time, but I'll come and help you. Another place I worked, I I I got I got given a job.

I still don't know why I got given this job, but I got given this job. And essentially, I got given a piece of paper. Yeah? Nice little blank a 4 white piece of paper. It's exciting, isn't it?

And I got given a box of pens, and they said, can you try every pen to make sure that they work? I spent an hour trying out pens. I was 20 20 odd years of age. Now I can I could do do do 2 things with that job? I can moan and be grumpy.

And as soon as they finish the 1, you know, basket of pens. Like I said, that's me done storm out and then never come never return again. Or I could fit I could do it with joy and say, well, they need depends. For something. I don't know what, but they need it for something.

And once I finish that basket, have you got any more pens? Oh, please. I can flip this a 4 piece pay by. I won't waste paper and there you go again. That would be a a a a cheerful service.

So you're at work and maybe you've been asked to stay a bit longer to help out at work. But what a good thing it would be to stay a bit longer? You you serve in the church and there's something that you have to do that's not usually when you're service. Maybe I do youth work and I get into into the hub and the toilets are an absolutely filthy state. Right?

It's not my job to clean the toilets. Right? But because I I I I love and I wanna do what's good for other people and I wanna use my freedom to serve other people. I get that toilet brush I get those marry goals and I go to town on that toilet. Because I want to go the extra mile.

I want to go the extra mile. I don't want to just go, oh, well, I'm it's oh, this is what I've got to do. I go, I want to serve. I wanna be about other people. So go the extra mile.

Fortunately, give to the 1 who asks. Look at verse 42. Give to the 1 who asked you and do not turn away from the 1 who wants to borrow from you. So this actually it's it's interesting actually. We we say Jesus is coming up with new teaching.

He's not. This is all in the Old Testament. All the things that we've seen in the old testament, really. I mean, if you wanna hear about to go turn the other cheek, you just need to go to lamentations chapter 3 and verse 30. You wanna talk about your you know, being a a giver, that's all in the bible and not holding grudges.

So Jesus is just going, look. You're just you're just so focused on a tiny bit scripture. Actually, scripture's so much broader and richer, and I want you to live like this. And so he does the same thing here. In fact, in in in deuteronomy 50 in verse 7 to 11.

He says this, suppose someone is poor among you and suppose they live in 1 of the towns in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Then don't be mean to them. They are poor, so don't hold back money from them. Said open your hands and lend them what they need. Do it freely.

And then verse 10, so give freely to needy people. They heart be tended toward them, then the Lord your God will bless you in all your work. See, we think about rights. I could easily I could easily view my possessions and my money and all the things that I have and my house It's mine. By right, they're mine.

Not yours, not yours, they're mine. And and and what can that that can result in this being really tight fisted and really miserly. Or I just give to people that I know will give back. So I'll probably give to someone who's a lot of money. Phil?

Yeah? I said, have you got a lot of money? Okay. Great. Well, it'd be nice to you then.

But Paul says in 2 Corinthians 9, be a cheerful giver. Be 1 that is willing to give up what is rightfully theirs. Give to the poor and needy. Give to the poor and needy. Give to the person that can't give you give back That's what Jesus says.

He says, don't just be given to people that can give back. Don't go in with an attitude that says, what's in it for me? What will I get back? If I give a bit of a bit of money, will I get something in return? If I serve in this area, will they give me some presence?

Will they give me some nice chocolate? Sometimes in youth work, they give you nice presents at Christmas. It's worth it. That's not why we do youth work though. But it is a good bonus if you wanna if you're interested.

But this is the thing. You need to realize that what you give and what you have, sorry, is not yours. It's God's. God's given it to you as a steward of money and as of possessions, and you Give it back. And when you give to the poor, and when you give to the needy, and when you give to those who ask of it, you're giving back to God.

See, the rabbis of the time before sorry. Before Jesus' time, used to say loving kindness was 1 of the few things which the law puts no limitations on. I can give freely. So how you doing with this? How are you doing with retaliation, revenge, with your rights?

Now are you able to live like this? Are you able to forgive when someone wrongs you? Well, I actually think this is impossible to do. It's absolutely impossible. You've listened to this sermon, actually, you can't do it.

So that's it really, isn't it? This is counter everything. This is counter cultural. It's counter. My nature counter intuitive.

I can't live like this. I don't I don't wanna forgive. When I get caught on the road, I wanna give a blast on my horn, and I wanna probably swear at them in my heart. I might not do because I'm good Christian, and I can really hide it well in smiling, go, no, bother. And inside, I think I hate you.

I remember talking to a girl and a Christian girl and and and she she didn't die tell me really why she was struggling to forgive someone in her life, and she said, this person did some horrible things to me. I don't know what it was, and she said I just can't forgive them. And to be honest, she's right. She can't. Of course you can't forgive them.

You can't forgive them. All you want to do is get revenge and get even. You can't do it. You need the supernatural. Christ asks us to do the supernatural.

Christ asks us to do the impossible. Why does he ask us to do the impossible? The good thing about Christ is he never asks us to do something that he didn't do beforehand. And this is why we can do this. So we can do the impossible as Christians, why because of Christ.

That's my fifth point because of Christ. Christ in in 1 period 2 verse 20 to 25 says the following. Let me just get it in here as well. 1 peter 2 verse 20 to 25. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it?

But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this, you were called because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in his steps. He committed no sin and no deceit was found in his mouth. When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate. When he suffered, he made no threats.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness by his wounds, you have been healed. This is Christ. This is the reason we can give up our rights. We can give up our rights because Jesus gave up his rights. You might have been here this morning.

It was a great sermon if you didn't catch go back and listen to it. Philipp chapter 2 says he did not consider equality with God something to be grasped. In other words, he was the rightful son of God, rightfully at the right hand of God, rightly the 1 to be praised forever and ever and ever. And he said, I will give up those right and I will become a human being. But not only will I become a human being, but I will go to a cross I will go to the cross, I will give up my rights so that I can give all you need.

I can give all you need for salvation. I can give you all you need for forgiveness. I can give you all you need. This is the Jesus who went the extra mile, literally went the extra mile. This is the Jesus who turned the other cheek.

He does not just say turn the other cheek and when someone insults him, he goes absolutely crazy at them. He's not a hypocrite. You look at his life. He was called a glutton. He was called a drunkard.

He was called a friend of sinners and tax collectors. In other words, you are a friend with them. You'll probably like them. You're probably sexually immoral? Did he did he answer back?

Did he say, you're that thing. You're a disgrace. No. This is the Jesus who who who who who kneels down and is flogged and is is slapped about And does he respond? No.

This is the Jesus that as he hangs on the cross and people jeer and mock and hurl insults at him, What does he say? Father, forgive them. This is Jesus, and this is why we can live like this. See, in the power of Christ, if you trust in the Lord Jesus, by his by his holy spirit, we can give up our rights. And live and love other people.

We can forgive. You think of There's some amazing story of forgiveness. There's some amazing stories of people giving up their rights. I mean, the 1 that sprung to my mind about people giving up their rights. I don't know if most people might have heard of Eric Liddle, chariots of fire, what a film, we all love the tune.

I could sing it right now. I'm not gonna And he and his terrible running star, but the greatest thing about Eric Liddle was not the fact he won the 400 meter race when he was a 100 meter sprint runner. The greatest thing about Eric Liddle was that he was a Christian and he went to China on mission. And this is the great 1 of the this is so good. There was a prisoner it ended up in a concentration camp, basically.

And there was an exchange arranged for his life, a political political prisoner chain exchange. Yeah? And he had the right to leave that concentration camp and get better and get well and be away from all the horrors of a concentration camp. What does Eric Liddle do? He gives up that right, and he says this pregnant woman can go in my place.

What a legend? There's amazing acts of forgiveness. You may know of You'll remember there was a there was actually a program that was on recently about the the killing of Anthony Walker. Rem Anthony Walker in Liverpool in Hyton, got an ice pick in his head. Horrible story, horrible racists, chase them, and kill this young lad who had so much potential.

And you can look on on on YouTube and you can see the videos of his mom and his and they say, we forgive the killers. What? You forgive them? Why? Because they have a trust and a faith in the lord Jesus Christ.

It says, forgive those just as I've forgiven you. Now that is quite a big step. And actually, I when I say that and I think if someone kills someone in my family, I find this quite hard. But it starts with the little things. So we wanna pray more and more that we will have hearts like this.

That we will have attitudes that are willing to forgo our rights, that we'll have attitudes that are willing to forgive. That when we're in that queue and IJ pushes in, we forgive her. That when we're in on in our cars and someone takes advantage of us like that, we can forgive them and say it's okay. When we're insulted at work. When you're called a bigot maybe or what intolerant.

Because it's okay. It's okay. I don't need to strike back. I can forgive. So that you can use your possessions and your things and you can give.

And we just talked about India tonight, ravaged by COVID. And where we pray for them, what can we give to them? Can we give up our time? Can we give up our possessions? Can we give up our houses to serve on another and to serve other people.

It started the small. So how are we doing with this? May I encourage you to keep your eyes fixed in the Lord Jesus Christ to see how this plays out ultimately so that we may live like the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's pray. Father, we we recognize that we are people that by nature want to live for our rights.

And that we are people that want to have revenge and that we all want people that want to keep things for ourselves and that we want to the bare minimum for others at times. And so we pray that you'll forgive us when we live like this and when we act like this and when we think like this, And we pray father that you will lift our eyes and that you'll put that you'll put our eyes and the lord Jesus Christ. The 1 that we see who gave up his rights to give us all we need, the 1 who when insulted, forgave. And as we fix our eyes on Christ, we pray father that we will start to live more and more like him. We pray this in his name, our man.