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[0:00] making our way through the Gospel of Matthew, making our way through this wonderful book. And really, as we are here in the first Gospel account that we have recorded for us in the New Testament, probably not the first Gospel written. Mark was probably the first Gospel written.

[0:16] And so if you read the chronological Bible plan and you come and you're reading the Gospels and you read Mark first, don't get too bent out of shape there because I know it's not that way in your Scripture. But Mark is probably the first written. But Matthew has its place of priority in the New Testament with some intentionality.

[0:33] It's written to the Jewish audience. It's written to people who were expecting a king. Think about even the way Scripture is compiled, that is, from Genesis to Revelation, how God ordained that the canonization, that is, the full completion of the Bible, would be put together.

[0:48] Because the last resounding call of the book of Malachi was that there was a forerunner coming who was coming before the soon-appearing king and coming to declare the day of peace and refreshment and renewal.

[1:04] And then we turned a page and there's the book of Matthew, the Gospel of Matthew, who is highlighting these very things, right? So there's a reason it's there. So we have Matthew writing to a Jewish audience and he is highlighting and he is pointing to the reality.

[1:19] The king has come. The king of kings and lord of lords, who is Jesus Christ. Because the great hope and the great anticipation of the Jewish people then and even the Jewish people today is the arrival of a king who would sit upon the throne of David and reign forever and ever and ever and ever.

[1:36] This is something that the Old Testament prophesies of repeatedly. This is something that is reiterated and repeated over and over and over in Scripture. That there would be a king that would come and he would sit upon that throne and he would reign.

[1:48] And the rod and the reign of David would never depart from his hand. Now that kind of messes with people when we understand that there's this church age or this valley. That there's a time between his appearing and his inauguration of his kingdom.

[2:02] Then his death, burial, resurrection. And then later the coronation or the happening of the kingdom. That it would actually go into effect. But, all that to say this.

[2:13] The king has come. The kingdom is present. And the people of God, that is those who have trusted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, are a part of that kingdom. Okay?

[2:24] We are members of the kingdom. We are, as Tony Evans and others would say, we are kingdom people. Okay? Matthew 5, 6, and 7, commonly referred to as the Sermon on the Mount, is the king declaring to his people what their lives look like.

[2:41] It is really an emphasis not on the coming of the kingdom, not even on the king himself. It is the emphasis on the kingdom individuals. And what life looks like living out a kingdom life as a member of the kingdom under the reign and the rulership of the king.

[3:00] And what it looks like to live as a kingdom individual in this world. What it looks like to live as an ambassador and a member of the true kingdom in the world that we have been placed and planted in.

[3:12] Now, we see here in Matthew 7, verses 1 through 12, which is our text this morning. We want to read it in just a moment. But I'll go ahead and give you the title. I want you to see the kingdom individual's relationship with others.

[3:25] I don't think there's any better way to start out a new year. Really, I couldn't have planned it any better. I couldn't have apportioned it any better of speaking on this reality. What it looks like to be a kingdom individual and live in relation with other people.

[3:39] Not just one another, but the other people we live in in this world. This past year and years prior to that have been one of confusion, one of discord, one of animosity.

[3:51] Not only in the world, but also in churches. One of separation, one of people calling out and saying, oh, well, I have this right and you have that right. And I have the right to this and all these social reforms and all this stuff.

[4:04] When the reality is, is if kingdom individual would live in a right relationship with others around them, the world would be transformed. That's difficult and it's challenging. But it's direct.

[4:15] And the king has something to say to his people how they should live. So if you are physically able and desire to do so, I'm going to ask if you'll join with me as we stand together and we read the word of God found in Matthew chapter 7, starting in verse 1 and going down to verse 12.

[4:28] That very, very familiar verse to you in Matthew 7, verse 12. Let's see what the word of God says. Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in this way you judge, you will be judged.

[4:40] And by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, let me take the speck out of your eye, and behold, the log is in your own eye?

[4:53] You hypocrite. First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces.

[5:07] Ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. And he who seeks, finds. And to him who knocks, it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone?

[5:23] Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father, who is in heaven, give what is good to those who ask him?

[5:35] Verse 12. In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you. For this is the law and the prophets. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you so much for this day.

[5:48] God, we thank you for this new year which you have given to us. And we thank you for the great privilege it is to gather together with brothers and sisters in Christ. Lord, to come and to read your word and to hear your word.

[6:01] And we pray, Lord, as it has been read, as we have heard it and seen it. Lord, now by the power and presence of the Spirit that it would be opened up to us. Lord, that we would come to a greater understanding of it and the truths that it contains so that it may transform our lives for your glory and yours alone.

[6:18] We ask it all in Jesus' name. Amen. You may be seated. Here we see the kingdom individual's relationship with others. Now, this is not just relationship with those of like faith, right?

[6:32] Not just relationship. Now, there are some portions. In particular, the very first set of verses deals with our relationship with brothers and sisters in Christ or other kingdom individuals. And then we end this section, really, in our relationship with all people of all time.

[6:45] So here we see this great spectrum in which the king is looking at his people and he is declaring to them how they are to live in relation with the people around them.

[6:55] Now, some people are not 100% certain. By some people, I mean Bible scholars and even Bible historians are not 100% certain that Jesus declared all these things in one setting.

[7:06] Rather, they think that Matthew probably compiled a number of teachings which Jesus taught over a three and a half year public ministry and put them together here in one setting. But these would be things, even if that was the case, I tend to think that it was probably one long discourse.

[7:21] I don't know that for 100% certain, so I'm not going to declare it as an emphatic truth. But some people think that he compiled a bunch of different statements and different things and things he had heard of Christ and put them all together as kind of like wise sayings.

[7:34] But we do see some unity that runs through at least these 12 verses here. And then we see unity in the second half of Matthew chapter 7 as it relates to how we live out our life.

[7:46] But here the unity is how we live in relation to people around us. And as a wise teacher and as a great prophet and as a true king, the king begins to speak to his people in their closest relationships, that is, how they deal with their brothers and sisters.

[8:01] And he moves to the furthest circle, how they deal with everyone. And here we see the spectrum going from those who believe like us and those who act like us into those who are absolutely nothing like us.

[8:14] But we see at least the standard declared here of how we ought to live in relation. We also see here a number of verses that are twisted and turned and made to say things which they absolutely do not say.

[8:27] And we don't want to ever take a verse and separate it from its context, right? So we don't want to take Matthew 7 verse 1 and separate it from Matthew 7 verse 6.

[8:39] And I'll show you why in just a moment. Because many people would love to declare to you Matthew 7 verse 1 and use that in a way that kind of ties your hand and ties your feet and doesn't allow you to do anything, not even to use your mind.

[8:51] But the problem is, is they separate that from a verse that is declared very clearly just five, six verses later. So we want to make sure that when we're looking at this, we let the king say what the king is saying and we don't make him say anything that he is not saying.

[9:05] Okay, that's the goal of scripture. To look at what the truth is and then live out the application from that truth. Be sure that we're not reading scripture with rose-tinted glasses and wanting it to say what we want it to say.

[9:20] Let's let him say what he says. And then let's shape our lives accordingly. Okay, so as we get into it here, number one, we see that kingdom individuals ought to demonstrate humility.

[9:36] There ought to be a demonstration of humility. Here is the verse, Matthew 7 verse 1. Do not judge so that you will not be judged. I would dare say if any of you have ever been bold in your witness, or let's not say that.

[9:50] I don't like the word if. If is a big two-letter word. So let's say it this way and let's say it with some expectation and let's say it with some standard. Let's say it this way. I would dare say that when you have been bold in your witness, you have heard this verse put back to you.

[10:07] And that verse is usually twisted and misconstrued and taken really out of context. Because what this verse does not say is that you cannot judge at all. It does not say that.

[10:20] Now let's just put it in paragraph here, okay? Stay with me. You say, wait a minute. It says, do not judge lest you be judged. Right. So let's read it in context.

[10:31] And we also have to use the rest of scripture because the Bible says later on, Paul would write to the church and Paul would say, what right do I have to judge the outsider when I absolutely have the right to judge those who are my brothers and sisters in Christ.

[10:43] And so Paul speaks of judgment that goes on between brothers and sisters of Christ. Paul says, I'm not the judge of the outsiders. They have their own judge who is Christ on the throne. But I am the judge of my brothers and sisters in Christ.

[10:55] This is why when Paul wrote the letter to Corinth in 1 Corinthians, he said that he had handed an individual over to Satan. That seems a little judgmental, does it not? It seems a little kind of anti-biblical according to what we see the king saying here.

[11:08] And he is here referring to brothers and sisters in Christ. So how do we reconcile the fact that Paul says, I've handed this one over to Satan, but the king seems to say, do not judge lest you be judged. So the very first thing we say is, is it does not, it cannot, because scripture never contradicts scripture.

[11:25] It cannot say that we are never, ever, ever to have any type of true biblical judgment. Now I use my words accurately and intentionally.

[11:37] True biblical judgments. Okay, so let's see what it says, because since we know these things and we understand these things from the rest of scripture, what then is the king talking about?

[11:50] He says, do not judge so that you will not be judged for in the way you judge, you will be judged. And by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. So the first application, the first truth we see to this is the judgment that I express towards other brothers and sisters in Christ is the same judgment that they will express towards me.

[12:10] Because he says, this is our expectation. But then he takes it a little bit further and he begins to use almost humorous illustrations here. And he says, why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye and do not notice the log, or some scriptures say the plank, that is in your own eye?

[12:26] So it's a difference between a splinter and a log. And he's given us this caution here. The caution is, don't be so concerned when your brother has a splinter and you have a log.

[12:37] He says, don't be so concerned about the small, minute faults of your brother or sister in Christ, while you yourself have major issues that you cannot handle. But this again is how we know that he is not saying that we should not judge, or we should not have a little bit of a discerning spirit among us, because he says, but first, take the log that is in your own eye out.

[13:02] And then you'll be able to help your brother get the splinter that is out of his, or the speck that is out. Now, how would we ever help a brother get a speck out if we did not first notice that it was there?

[13:13] How can we, unless we have a little bit of wisdom and perception? Now, the picture is this, okay? So we can tie it all up so we can truly understand what the king is saying.

[13:27] We are not the final judge. And what the king is telling us here is, don't try to assume the position of final judge. Paul, who said, I have no right judging those outside the church, but I do have a right judging those inside the church, also said this, who am I to judge a man because he honors one day over another, or this one eats and this one abstains for eating, or this one celebrates this festival and this one doesn't celebrate that festival?

[13:55] Because Paul makes this declaration, and I think it would be good for all denominations to understand this, to his own master he stands for false. Because the emphasis here is, we are not the final judge of other kingdom people.

[14:15] And we are not to take that position. We are not to be those who emphatically stand up and declare, those people can't be a part of the kingdom because of this.

[14:28] We can't. We can't do that. Now, we talk, again, let's put it in context. There is the discernment of fruits, right? There are major theology, there are big rocks and little rocks.

[14:40] I'm not talking about disfellowship between, or fellowship with those who have major big rock issues, right? Some of us in this room, if we're to be just completely honest and completely transparent, and we were to sit down and have just a great, genuine conversation, I would almost guarantee that every one of us agree on the big rock issues, right?

[15:03] The main theology of who Christ is, who God is, who the Father is, who the Spirit is, salvation, who Jesus is, you know, the death, the burial, the resurrection, all these born of a virgin.

[15:15] We need to agree on the major rock, the big rock issues. But there are some little rock issues that we would disagree on, such as the events that transpire at the end of times, kind of the interpretation of the book of Revelation, the interpretation of some Old Testament prophecies, things of that nature.

[15:34] There are some small rock issues, and that's okay. It's okay because none of us have everything figured out, but we're going to agree on the major rock. But what we cannot do is we cannot look at a small issue or a small matter, or we can't do this.

[15:48] I see a fault in my brother's life, so there's no way he can be a believer. That's standing and sitting in the place of the final judge. But rather, we ought to do it this way.

[16:01] I have major issues in my life. I have a log sticking out of my eye. So what I'm going to do in all humility and humbleness, I'm going to go before my king, and I'm going to ask him to help me take this log out of my eye.

[16:16] And when I get this log out of my eye, then I guarantee you, when I come to you and you have a speck in yours, I'm going to come with a lot more humility. I'm helping you deal with your speck right after I took care of my log.

[16:31] You see the difference? I'm going to come to you in love, and I'm going to come to you in humility, and I'm going to come to you in respect. At least we should, and say, you know what, brother, sister, I see this going on in your life, and I'm not here to tell you, I'm not here to judge you, and I'm not here to cast you out, but I'm here to tell you that the king took care of what was wrong with me, and he can take care of what's wrong with you, too.

[16:52] See the difference? And we ought to be able to do it with one another. We ought to hold, how else are we going to hold one another accountable? How else are we going to build one another? You don't build anybody up by allowing them to stay in something that's holding them down.

[17:08] Right? You don't encourage anyone to walk with a closer walk with the Savior by allowing them to continue in something that's going to take them away from the Savior. But it's also not your position and not your place to tell them they don't know the Savior.

[17:21] It's your position and your place to say, you know what, I had some major issues in my life that until I overcame those, I could not grow, or I could not walk, and I could not follow, and now that he has done it for me, I want you to experience what I've experienced.

[17:33] And now there's this new humility. There's this humbleness. Is there still judging? Yes, we have to judge. That's called wisdom and perception.

[17:46] But is it judgmentalism? No. I'm not being judgmental. I'm not your final judge. But I know the Savior, and I would be so unkind and unworthy, not just to be a pastor, but to be a follower of Christ, to allow someone to walk in something that I know is separating them from Christ.

[18:08] Do you see that? Because I know my issues. I, like Paul, can say, I've met the biggest sinner in the world, and I meet him every time I look in the mirror.

[18:23] He's looking right back at me. The biggest sinner I know is me. And man, God uses that to humble me, to allow others, to help others, and to walk with others.

[18:37] It is not a minimizing our own faults, and it's not even highlighting our own failures. It's highlighting our need for a Savior, and therefore taking that great need we have and using it for the help of others.

[18:55] So we see here it is a demonstration of humility. Now this next verse will really get us twisted out of sorts, because we need to take this in context with what we've just said.

[19:07] Not only is there a demonstration of humility, there is a discerning spirit. Now, please allow me this, okay? Stay with me. Don't throw me under the pulpit yet.

[19:22] Verse 6 says, Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw you pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet and turn and tear you to pieces.

[19:33] Now, again, this great, almost hilarious imagery here would be like taking a strand of pearls, bursting those pearls, going to the pig pen and throwing them before the swine, and the pigs thinking you're feeding them.

[19:45] And as soon as the pigs realize that's not corn or pods, they would turn around and come after you because they think you're there to feed them. Okay? So this is just this kind of verse that makes us scratch our head and say, what in the world is the king talking about?

[19:56] But it's here, right? So we have to deal with it. We don't want to skip over it. So we come with this humility, which we have just learned on do not judge. And we have learned this humility that we are not the final judge.

[20:08] And I think this is intentional. This is why these two have to be together. Because if we had verse 6 by itself, we would almost come with this prideful declaration of, yes, we know what is right, rather than this humble, and it leads us to the third thing, which we'll get to in just a moment, this humble, Lord, help me in this moment, right?

[20:28] So we see that the kingdom individual's relationship with others comes with a discerning spirit. Now, dogs and swine are often images used for the rampant unbelieving, okay?

[20:41] Those who have not just disbelieved, but those who want nothing to do with, right? They say, we don't want anything to do with him. We don't want anything to do with the Savior. We don't want anything to do with Jesus. We don't need him.

[20:51] And they cast him out. They've made their decision. Now, stay with me. I told you not to throw me on the pulpit here. What the king is telling us is that we ought to have a discerning spirit. Do not take that which is holy, that is, the kingdom, and try to force it upon somebody who doesn't want it.

[21:13] Now, this, again, calls for a lot of humility because we are commanded to declare the gospel, right?

[21:24] We are commanded to proclaim the gospel. But we also see this here. Not everyone is going to respond to the gospel.

[21:35] As a matter of fact, the very next set of verses, if we were to continue reading in chapter 7, would tell us that narrow is the path that leads to eternal life, but broad is the way that leads to destruction, right? And there are few who find the narrow gate, but there are many who walk upon the broad path.

[21:51] But again, now stay with me. This is humility. There are some who want nothing to do. As a matter of fact, the king refers to them as dogs and swine here.

[22:02] It's not that they just don't know the Savior. It's that they've heard about him, they've listened to it, and they have made their decision. They want nothing to do at all with that. And the discernment is this.

[22:16] Don't try to cheapen the gospel to make it appeal to someone who wants nothing to do with it. Don't belittle the king or cheapen the kingdom to make it applicable to someone who said, I don't want it.

[22:34] And to use discernment. In pastoral circles, it's called fruit ripe for the picking. I had a pastor call me one time.

[22:46] He said, hey, brother. He said, I just ran into an individual at the gas station. This was many years ago. He said, I just started up a conversation with him.

[22:56] He said, man, he's hungry for the gospel. He's hungry. He said, if he lives right down the road from your church, he said, you need to go declare the truth to this man because it's fruit ripe for the picking, right?

[23:12] It's the right time in his life. It's there. And that's not cheapening it because then you go with the truth of the gospel and you understand the Spirit's moving in his life, the Spirit has worked circumstances and happenings out, and it's there and there's discernment.

[23:26] Because here's the reality, okay? Here's the reality. You only have a set amount of time in your life. There's a saying that I like to say around the house that typically gets me in trouble, so I would encourage you husbands not to say this because it gets you in trouble.

[23:44] But I like to say it. It gets me in trouble anyhow, and I still do it. Anytime I hear someone say, we don't have enough time, I don't have enough time or I'm running out of time, I don't have enough time, the truth is you have just as much time, you have all the time in the world because nobody else in the world has more time than you, and nobody else in the world has any more time or any less time than you, and you have all the time in the world.

[24:04] It's just a matter of what we do with that time. Right? Same 24 hours a day all over the world. And it's not a matter of we don't have enough time.

[24:17] It is how we utilize it. Some of you have a husband go, no wonder he gets in trouble when he says this. It's how we utilize our time, right? And what we're doing with our time, and here's the discernment.

[24:30] There are people that God has put around you that want nothing at all to do with the Savior, and they're making that true in their life, and they're making that true in their actions, and they're making that true with their declarations, and then there are people around you that are waiting for someone to declare the Savior to them.

[24:48] Here's the encouragement. Invest more time than those who are waiting. Don't fail to declare the truth. I'm not telling you to forget people.

[25:00] I'm not telling you not to proclaim the gospel. I'm not telling you to not live in such a way, and to also not, I'm not telling you to not expect God to change their hearts, and not expect God to move them. I'm not telling you that.

[25:11] I'm not saying that God can't do it, because there are very, very, very, very few people you will ever come into contact with that just absolutely are the dogs and the swine here.

[25:21] Okay? Very few people. But this is the discernment. Invest your time for the kingdom wisely.

[25:35] Okay? Live lovingly, acceptingly, truthfully among all people. Live wanting to proclaim the gospel.

[25:47] I mean, be like the farmer that Christ has. Scatter the seed on the stony ground, the thorny ground, and the ground that's going to get choked out. Scatter your seed everywhere, but hang out on the good soil.

[25:59] Hang out on the good soil. Because I promise you, God has put good soil people around you. He has. He has put people ready, waiting, longing, hoping, and praying.

[26:15] Someone would give them an answer. Because, let me just say it this way. This is why we need discernment. We can't save anyone.

[26:27] Salvation is not of man. Salvation is completely of the Lord. And as Jesus declares in Nicodemus in John 3, the spirit blows where it wants, and no man knows where.

[26:39] Right? It's a spiritual exercise. But, when Nicodemus comes to you in the middle of the night, stop. And say, the spirit must be blowing. I need to talk to this man. Or you run into someone.

[26:50] One of the greatest encounters I ever had. Probably one of the greatest, least expected encounters I ever had. I was running late, getting ready to go to the Southern Baptist Convention. My family and I were getting ready to go to the Southern Baptist Convention.

[27:02] And I was trying to clean up around the yard. And there was one thing I needed to do that day before we left the next day to go to the Southern Baptist Convention. Many years ago, I want to think it was like the second or third one we'd ever been to. So, we were excited.

[27:12] The kids were young. And I'd been mowing the yard. And I had shorts and a cut-off sleeve t-shirt on. I was still in my 20s. You know, so back then I didn't mind. You know, I had a little bit more muscle in my arms, what I'm trying to say, guys.

[27:23] So, you know, I was there. And I was like, okay. So, not so much gut there. And I was just nasty, filthy. And I had to go to the Christian bookstore there in town. I said, it really doesn't matter.

[27:33] You know, they're saying, I won't run into anybody I know. So, I went in there to do this one thing I needed to get. And I walked in. There's this man who was, he worked with the power company.

[27:46] He was in line with the power company. And he was there on his lunch break. And he was standing in front of the Bibles. And he had this confused look on his face. I'm just going to go ahead and tell you, if you ever see someone on their lunch break looking at Bibles, stop.

[27:58] I said, sir, I'm not trying to be rude. I'm not trying to interrupt. And I know I don't look like it. But I'm a pastor. Is there anything I can help you with in selection of a Bible?

[28:14] And he just opened up to me. His life was in chaos at that moment. There were a lot of things going on. It's just, just, just spiraling downhill.

[28:27] And all kinds of questions. I shared the gospel with him right there. That man accepted Christ right there. Brought his family to church. His wife accepted Christ the next Sunday.

[28:38] His kids later accepted Christ. They were there with us when we were servants, pastors at the time for a number of years. And they left and joined another church. Several, several years later, he was on an airplane.

[28:49] He took a picture of the Bible that I had helped him buy that day. I picked that for him. He took a picture of the cover and said, Pastor, I just want you to know this Bible is on its way to Africa on a mission trip today. Because God puts people around you.

[29:05] And if we discern, now I'll just be honest, my flesh wanted to go, I need to get out of here now. But God puts people around us. And we need discernment.

[29:16] We need discernment. We need discernment. So, kingdom individuals live with a discerning spirit. Number three, these build on top of each other, by the way, a demonstration of humility, a discerning spirit.

[29:29] Number three, a dependency on prayer. Because how are you going to have a true discerning spirit unless you are absolutely 100% dependent upon prayer? There is a dependency on prayer.

[29:39] Verse seven says, Now, first of all, this does not say, whatever you want, ask for it and you're going to get it.

[29:54] It is not a name it and claim it theology. Right? It does not say that. It is not saying that. If you ask, it says, everyone who asks, receives. I promise you, you ask your father, you're going to receive an answer.

[30:06] It does not say, you're going to get the answer you want. It says, you're going to receive. Many, many, many times the things I have asked for, the answer was no. More times than that, it was just wait.

[30:19] And then on a few times, it's like, sure, okay. But what it says here, and we lose it in our English translation, it says, ask, seek, and knock, right? But in the original language, it says, keep on asking, keep on seeking, and keep on knocking.

[30:32] It doesn't say, you're going to hit your knees, and you're going to ask the father, you're going to seek for, and you're going to knock on his door, and he's going to all of a sudden. It says that you are going to be going to do it on a continuous, ongoing exercise. It is the fact that you will not stop.

[30:45] You're going to continue, because by the way, this is really one of the great filters in prayer. That thing which you won't let go of, is that thing that matters to you the most. Sometimes that asking may be for years.

[31:02] He says, keep asking, keep knocking, keep seeking. Those who do that, because it shows, because it shows, a dependency on prayer, because if you can get it, or attain it, or at least accomplish it on your own, you won't be dependent upon prayer.

[31:17] The things that you will continuously ask, seek, and knock over, are the things you can't do. Are the things you're dependent upon, someone else to do. The things you're dependent upon, your father to take care of.

[31:29] And those are the very things he wants to do in your life. Those, there are things he puts in your life, he wants you to not be able to accomplish. Okay? And we need to say that's okay. God allows things in our lives, which we cannot do on our own.

[31:43] And we need to thank him for that. We need to rejoice in that. Because if he only allowed those things, which we could accomplish, then we would never ask him for anything.

[31:54] And we need to celebrate the fact that God put some people around us, we don't know how to deal with on our own. And we need to celebrate the reality, that there are some things in our relationships with others, we're going to have to continue to ask, to seek, and to knock.

[32:12] And there are some people that, that we think that God is working in our hearts, because we have this discernment, but we don't know what to say, we don't know what to do. So we ask, seek, and knock, and we just continue, and we continue, we continue.

[32:23] And it is this dependency upon prayer, and it is this reality, that it's something greater than me. And I will go ahead and tell you why you can have such great confidence in prayer.

[32:34] It's not because you know what to ask for, it's because you know who you're asking. Because the picture he gives, and I love how the king says it, which of you, if his son asked for a loaf, would give him a stone?

[32:46] Because the stones were kind of shaped like the loaves there. Or if he asked for a fish, would give him a snake? None of you would do that, not knowingly. You wouldn't intentionally do anything to harm your children. And then think about it. Just let this seed come from him. The king says, and if you being wicked, he's talking to his people, by the way, and he calls his own people wicked.

[33:04] And if you being wicked, know how to give good gifts, how much more your father who is in heaven, will give good gifts to you? See, the confidence that the believer, the confidence that the believer, and the kingdom individual has in prayer, has nothing to do with their own righteousness.

[33:18] It has everything to do with the one that they are petitioning, and the one they're talking to. It is confidence in he who we address, not those of us who are asking.

[33:29] And it is the dependency that knows, these things will be met in their time, because the one we are asking will meet them. There's a demonstrated humility, there's a discerning spirit, there's a dependency on prayer, fourth and finally, and I'll be through here.

[33:47] Kingdom individuals' relationship with others is a different standard. It is an absolutely different standard.

[33:59] Matthew 7, verse 12, often referred to as the golden rule. Matthew 7, verse 12, in the New American Standard says, In everything, therefore treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the law and the prophets.

[34:16] Now, we're speaking of people here. Not just brothers and sisters. Right? Now the circle has gotten much larger. We're not just talking about those who think like us, believe like us, and act like us, and worship with us.

[34:31] We're not talking about people who agree with us on major rock. Now we're talking about all people, right? Treat people. People is such a general term. And wouldn't it be so much better if the verse said, treat brothers and sisters, or treat your fellow countrymen, or to treat people who look like you in the same way?

[34:47] He doesn't say that. He said, you treat people. Now, people is all-encompassing. Right? People includes everybody from all around the world, of all races, and all ethnicities, and all backgrounds, and all nationalities, and all languages.

[34:58] People is people. Right? People is everyone. But then he prefaces this with this. In everything. The kingdom individual standard does not just apply to the religious things.

[35:19] To the holy things. He says, in everything. That is how you do your job.

[35:30] How you handle your finances. How you drive your car. Oh, that gets me sometimes, right? How you handle this. How you handle... In everything.

[35:44] In everything. Sometimes we try to make scripture more complicated than it is, but let's just go ahead and simplify it. Everything is everything. Anything you can think of is included in everything.

[36:01] In everything, treat all people. Now we start seeing the difference in the standard. This has often been called a rule and a standard without...

[36:15] without anything... without anyone or anything else getting close to it in all of history. which is from Confucius, really connected to a lot of Asian worship, has a standard.

[36:30] And even the Jewish standards, standard of Christ today, they seem to have the same standard, but it reads differently because in their standards it says, do not do anything to anyone that you do not want done to you.

[36:45] They say, well, that makes sense. Yeah, but let's put it like this way. All you have to do is not do the things you don't want done to you. That's passive, right? If I don't do to you what I don't want you to do to me, that means I don't have to do anything for you.

[37:02] See the difference? That doesn't imply that I have to do something for you. That just means I don't have to do anything to you. So I can ignore you and still fulfill that standard.

[37:14] But when the king looks at his people, he says, and everything treat people. That means do something to the people you come into contact with. Actively treat people the way you want them to actively treat you.

[37:27] So the standard of the king is proactive, not reactive. It is taking the initiative. That means if I want people to be kind to me, the first thing I must do is be kind to people.

[37:40] If I want people to be loving to me, the first thing I must do is be loving to people. If I want people to be gracious to me, then I must be gracious to people. It does not say that I just have to keep from doing the bad things.

[37:53] It means I need to do the good things to everybody. And this is a standard without equal in all of the world.

[38:03] And I can assure you that if all kingdom people would do that one thing, one thing, it would completely transform society.

[38:18] Because it would confuse them to no end at first, anger them for a while, and silence them in the end. It may not always win them, but it's kind of like Paul, the life of Paul.

[38:36] One commentator once said, the world didn't know what to do with Paul. The world says, Paul, we're going to imprison you. And Paul says, that's great. I bear in my body the brand marks of Christ. I'll suffer for Christ.

[38:49] All right, Paul, then we'll kill you. Well, to crucify me is to make me present with Christ. Well, then Paul will let you live. Well, to live is Christ, but to die is gain. They didn't know what to do with Paul. Because he was always actively treating people the way he wanted to be treated, and everything revolved around Christ.

[39:11] So they just finally washed their hands and said, we don't know what to do. Left him in the prison for a while, so we preached to the Praetorian Guard, and we have a number of books written.

[39:22] What a great thing. See, there's a different standard for kingdom people. The king says we're to be proactive, not reactive.

[39:34] The king says we are to go treat all people in everything the way we want to be treated. And I hope you see how these tie together.

[39:45] Sure. We are to have humility, and discernment, and dependency upon prayer. But it all rests on that different standard.

[39:58] Because if I come to you and speak to you in humility about the speck in your eye, but I'm living according to that standard, then it's definitely not breaking the law. If I have discernment about the declaration of the gospel, while living according to that standard, it's definitely not breaking the law of the prophets.

[40:19] And if I go in prayer while standing on that standard, then surely the Father will answer that prayer according to His desire. And this is our relation with the people around us.

[40:33] Let's pray. Lord, we thank You. We thank You for this day. We thank You for allowing us to gather together.

[40:43] We thank You for the truth of Your Word. Lord, we pray that it would resonate in our lives, and Lord, find its application in our daily existence. Lord, just be glorified and honored in all that we are and all that we do.

[40:56] We ask it in Christ's name. Amen. Amen.

[41:16] Thank you.

[42:15] Thank you.

[42:45] Thank you.

[43:15] Thank you.

[43:45] Thank you.

[44:15] Thank you.

[44:45] Thank you.

[45:15] Thank you.