WEBVTT - The Secret Scoreboard 0:00:00.600 --> 0:00:02.440 Hey, don't start clicking off. I promise we're going to 0:00:02.480 --> 0:00:04.480 get to the preaching in just a moment. But I'm 0:00:04.519 --> 0:00:08.879 excited about this. This is a very special tradition at Elevation, 0:00:09.039 --> 0:00:10.600 and we want to speak to all of you who 0:00:10.920 --> 0:00:14.040 call our church home, especially our extended family, our EPAM 0:00:14.480 --> 0:00:17.840 around the world, because once a year we have a 0:00:17.880 --> 0:00:21.120 special series. It's really more than a collection of teachings. 0:00:21.160 --> 0:00:24.079 It's a faith experience for all of the people who 0:00:24.079 --> 0:00:26.720 are part of our ministry at Elevation, and this year 0:00:26.760 --> 0:00:29.920 our theme is game Changer. I think one of the 0:00:29.960 --> 0:00:33.440 most exciting things that God is doing in our ministry 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:36.880 is to open the doors of our ministry beyond our walls. 0:00:36.880 --> 0:00:39.279 What I mean by that is we are amazed at 0:00:39.280 --> 0:00:42.519 the thousands and thousands and thousands of you who are 0:00:42.560 --> 0:00:46.280 letting us know that you're impacted by this ministry in 0:00:46.360 --> 0:00:50.920 another zip code, in another state, in another country, maybe 0:00:50.920 --> 0:00:53.640 eventually on another planet. But what I wanted to mention 0:00:53.800 --> 0:00:55.920 to you is that you can be a part of 0:00:55.960 --> 0:00:59.840 this beyond just consuming. Many of you have been blessed 0:00:59.840 --> 0:01:02.400 by God to be a blessing. Now I wanted to 0:01:02.760 --> 0:01:05.480 ask today, would you be willing during this special time 0:01:05.480 --> 0:01:08.600 of year to make a one time donation to the 0:01:08.600 --> 0:01:12.000 ministry or maybe partner with us on a monthly basis 0:01:12.080 --> 0:01:15.479 through recurring giving. I believe God could use your gift 0:01:15.520 --> 0:01:18.720 to enable this ministry to continue to reach, to continue 0:01:18.760 --> 0:01:22.080 to break paradigms, to continue to lift up Jesus. And 0:01:22.120 --> 0:01:24.640 I wanted to ask you personally to go to Elevationchurch 0:01:24.760 --> 0:01:26.959 dot org and you can see the ways to give there. 0:01:27.000 --> 0:01:30.679 But most importantly, know that we feel a tremendousness of 0:01:30.720 --> 0:01:34.040 responsibility to minister the word of God not only to you, 0:01:34.400 --> 0:01:36.959 but to challenge you to partner with us in reaching 0:01:36.959 --> 0:01:39.520 people for the Gospel. I believe your gift today could 0:01:39.560 --> 0:01:42.440 be a game changer, so don't put it off right now. 0:01:42.800 --> 0:01:45.720 Elevation Church dot org you can find all of the details. 0:01:45.959 --> 0:01:48.080 I hope you enjoy this message and thank you for 0:01:48.120 --> 0:01:51.320 being a part of the family. Excited to start a 0:01:51.360 --> 0:01:54.240 new series with you. The series is called Game Changer. 0:01:57.720 --> 0:02:00.360 The goal of this series is to increase your faith, 0:02:01.040 --> 0:02:03.600 and the way you increase your faith is to stretch 0:02:04.080 --> 0:02:06.840 and to obey God in practical ways. And so we're 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:08.679 going to do that over the next few weeks. It's 0:02:08.720 --> 0:02:10.760 one of my favorite series. I can't ever figure out 0:02:10.760 --> 0:02:14.639 why this is my favorite series because it's a challenging series. 0:02:15.280 --> 0:02:17.840 At the end of the series, on December eighth and ninth, 0:02:18.160 --> 0:02:21.560 our church together and our em online around the world, 0:02:21.639 --> 0:02:23.840 let's thank God for our extended family around the world 0:02:24.320 --> 0:02:30.799 joined with us. We bring an offering and we take 0:02:30.840 --> 0:02:33.960 these weeks to pray and consider and ask God what 0:02:34.000 --> 0:02:35.519 he would have each of us to do on the 0:02:35.600 --> 0:02:38.920 level that he's blessed us. Of course, the church is 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:41.840 able to do ministry on an ongoing basis because of 0:02:42.200 --> 0:02:46.079 thousands of people and families who faithfully tithe and give 0:02:46.120 --> 0:02:49.040 that first ten percent to God, which sounds like a 0:02:49.040 --> 0:02:52.120 lot when you first hear it. It's like ten percent, Bro, 0:02:52.800 --> 0:02:55.560 my gym membership is like forty a month, and you know, 0:02:55.680 --> 0:02:59.440 like that's a whole lot, ten percent of all of it. 0:02:59.560 --> 0:03:01.920 But when you realize that all of it came from God, 0:03:03.360 --> 0:03:05.320 it kind of makes you think about the ninety more 0:03:05.360 --> 0:03:08.520 than the ten, and then it really doesn't seem that 0:03:08.560 --> 0:03:12.240 crazy anymore. That's the game changer. The series is called 0:03:12.320 --> 0:03:15.480 game Changer, and the game changer is when you realize 0:03:15.480 --> 0:03:18.040 that it's all Gods and it all belongs to him, 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:21.800 makes you grateful and hopefully encourages you to be faithful. 0:03:21.840 --> 0:03:24.240 So we're going to be doing that on December eighth 0:03:24.760 --> 0:03:29.960 and nine of this year and will end the year 0:03:30.440 --> 0:03:34.760 on a note of sacrificial generosity. Each of us and 0:03:34.840 --> 0:03:37.120 thousands of people do it. Last year, the church gave 0:03:37.480 --> 0:03:41.520 over ten million dollars in that offering, which is phenomenal, 0:03:41.560 --> 0:03:46.720 which is what enables us to expand and reach. Ask 0:03:46.760 --> 0:03:49.080 the person next to you, are you a game changer 0:03:49.160 --> 0:03:53.800 or a benchwarmer, because that's what I'm trying to find out, amen, 0:03:55.000 --> 0:03:57.480 And so it's going to be so good and I'm 0:03:57.480 --> 0:03:59.960 going to see God do amazing things. Well, sit down 0:04:00.200 --> 0:04:02.040 for now, drap somebody up on the way to your seat, 0:04:02.080 --> 0:04:08.600 and tell him I'm a game changer. When we say 0:04:08.640 --> 0:04:11.200 game changer, you know, every year I pick a word 0:04:11.640 --> 0:04:16.719 several months in advance and try to really build my teachings. Really, 0:04:16.880 --> 0:04:18.880 rather than pick the word, I try to see what 0:04:18.920 --> 0:04:21.240 God is speaking and then find a word that describes that. 0:04:21.360 --> 0:04:23.560 It works better that way. And I thought it was 0:04:23.600 --> 0:04:26.080 a little corny game changer. You know. You hear that 0:04:26.160 --> 0:04:30.080 like three times a day. ESPN but it sounded like 0:04:30.080 --> 0:04:32.760 a gatorade commercial to me more than a sermon series. 0:04:33.160 --> 0:04:36.479 But it really it'll mean something different when we're done 0:04:36.480 --> 0:04:38.640 with the series than it does going into it, and 0:04:38.680 --> 0:04:40.960 you'll see that. And today I just want to lay 0:04:40.960 --> 0:04:46.279 a foundation from the pulpit from Matthew chapter six. And 0:04:46.520 --> 0:04:50.240 last year's series was called Waymaker, and so apparently I'm 0:04:50.240 --> 0:04:52.880 on this like a Waymaker game Chang. I'm gonna do 0:04:52.920 --> 0:04:56.560 Cake Baker in twenty nineteen, see how if I could 0:04:56.560 --> 0:04:59.159 make a trilogy out of it. But Matthew chapter six 0:05:00.440 --> 0:05:02.720 will be a good place for us to start from 0:05:02.760 --> 0:05:06.039 the Sermon on the Mount. This was my dad's favorite scripture. 0:05:06.400 --> 0:05:09.360 He used to read it every day, and then I 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:11.039 would use it against him when he went acting right, 0:05:11.120 --> 0:05:13.240 I'd be like, you read it, but are you living it? 0:05:14.800 --> 0:05:17.240 So I've used the Bible against him as a as 0:05:17.240 --> 0:05:20.880 a weapon, all right, Matthew Chapter six, verses one through four, 0:05:21.760 --> 0:05:23.880 And I can't wait to share this with you. Very 0:05:23.920 --> 0:05:29.200 powerful principle. It's practical, but it's also on another level, 0:05:30.520 --> 0:05:34.200 very profound, and I think the best lessons are that way. 0:05:34.760 --> 0:05:37.040 And so here's what Jesus said, be careful not to 0:05:37.040 --> 0:05:40.520 practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen 0:05:40.760 --> 0:05:48.279 by them. So this might mean you have to delete 0:05:48.320 --> 0:05:53.400 some apps on your phone. Do you know what I mean? Well, 0:05:54.320 --> 0:05:59.680 if you do practice your acts of righteousness in front 0:05:59.680 --> 0:06:02.720 of others to be seen by them, you will have 0:06:03.440 --> 0:06:10.160 no reward from your father in heaven. That's scary. So 0:06:10.240 --> 0:06:12.920 when you give to the needy, for instance, do not 0:06:12.960 --> 0:06:16.120 announce it with trumpets as the hypocrites do in the 0:06:16.160 --> 0:06:20.560 synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly, 0:06:21.440 --> 0:06:24.600 I tell you they have received the reward in full. 0:06:24.920 --> 0:06:28.480 But when you give to the needy, do not let 0:06:28.520 --> 0:06:33.000 your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 0:06:34.040 --> 0:06:38.520 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your father, 0:06:39.480 --> 0:06:44.200 who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 0:06:44.839 --> 0:06:47.760 And the title of this message is the Secret Scoreboard. 0:06:49.720 --> 0:06:55.280 When my kids first started playing recreational sports, I went 0:06:55.320 --> 0:06:57.520 out and I turned to the person next to me 0:06:57.560 --> 0:07:02.680 and said, they need to turn on the scoreboard. And 0:07:03.240 --> 0:07:06.360 Elijah was playing t ball at the time for the 0:07:06.480 --> 0:07:11.680 mud Caps of Mint Hill. I said, they need to 0:07:11.680 --> 0:07:15.040 turn on the scoreboard. It was his first game. Brother 0:07:15.080 --> 0:07:17.280 looked back at me. He had several kids that already 0:07:17.280 --> 0:07:19.200 played t boy, he said, they don't keep score at 0:07:19.200 --> 0:07:23.680 this level. And when Elijah got in the car after 0:07:23.720 --> 0:07:30.800 the game, I said, congratulations on your first win. He said, win. 0:07:32.880 --> 0:07:37.800 They didn't keep score. I said, I did the first 0:07:37.840 --> 0:07:42.320 thing I did when that man said they don't keep 0:07:42.360 --> 0:07:46.320 score at this level. I found an app on my 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:52.360 phone and I decided every game that he played, I 0:07:52.520 --> 0:07:56.000 was going to score it myself. And I told that 0:07:56.120 --> 0:08:00.280 boy this the following I said, when you get in 0:08:00.280 --> 0:08:04.440 this car after the game, you ask me if you won, 0:08:05.160 --> 0:08:07.800 and I will tell you whether or not you won. 0:08:08.480 --> 0:08:13.080 I am your official scorekeeper. I believe God wants to 0:08:13.080 --> 0:08:16.600 look at somebody today, y'all A uncle help me preach 0:08:16.640 --> 0:08:22.880 after three weeks off. And one of the first things 0:08:22.880 --> 0:08:28.320 that God does when he assumes control of your life 0:08:28.480 --> 0:08:33.760 is he becomes your scorekeeper, because by default, we tend 0:08:33.760 --> 0:08:38.120 to let everybody else keep score. And it's hard to know. 0:08:39.000 --> 0:08:43.679 Am I winning? In real life, especially in adulthood, Am 0:08:43.679 --> 0:08:48.160 I winning? I wonder that all the time. I feel 0:08:48.160 --> 0:08:51.199 like in some areas it's the weirdest thing I will 0:08:51.360 --> 0:08:54.400 win for a season. And while I'm winning in those 0:08:54.480 --> 0:08:57.000 areas for that season, the other areas that are also 0:08:57.080 --> 0:09:00.320 important to me suffer and I can't keep up because 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:03.400 it's like I'm playing five sports at once, do you 0:09:03.400 --> 0:09:05.880 know what I mean? It's like the family thing and 0:09:05.920 --> 0:09:10.040 the financial thing. Those don't always work together. Sometimes those 0:09:10.240 --> 0:09:13.439 seem to compete against each other, and it's hard to 0:09:13.520 --> 0:09:17.640 keep score, especially because now we live in a world 0:09:17.880 --> 0:09:22.120 where there are permanent reminders of everybody else's score. And 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:24.480 even though they're not playing the same sport, they don't 0:09:24.480 --> 0:09:27.479 have the same calling, the same circumstances, the same situation. 0:09:28.120 --> 0:09:30.560 We're all living on the same platforms, being fed the 0:09:30.600 --> 0:09:33.840 same false images and wondering is their life really that 0:09:33.920 --> 0:09:36.960 much better than mine? Or are they just a better photographer. 0:09:38.000 --> 0:09:41.280 The game has changed because back in the day, you 0:09:41.400 --> 0:09:44.280 used to compare yourself to a really small circle of people, 0:09:44.280 --> 0:09:46.680 whoever was around you. And that's why I grew up 0:09:46.679 --> 0:09:49.680 thinking I was a good guitarist, because I didn't have 0:09:49.800 --> 0:09:53.200 any really good guitarists to see on YouTube, and so 0:09:53.640 --> 0:09:56.400 you know, whoever else played guitar, all three of us. 0:09:56.480 --> 0:10:00.640 That was my standard of comparison. But the game has changed. 0:10:02.000 --> 0:10:06.920 Now it's no longer possible to feel really good about 0:10:06.960 --> 0:10:10.880 yourself for any length of time because the standards have 0:10:10.920 --> 0:10:16.000 shifted and the game has changed. Touch somebody say the 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:22.480 game has changed when Jesus preached this sermon, the Bible 0:10:22.520 --> 0:10:24.640 says at the beginning that he went up on a 0:10:24.640 --> 0:10:28.480 mountain side and sat down, and his disciples came to him, 0:10:28.520 --> 0:10:32.160 and he began to teach them, and began to teach them. 0:10:32.400 --> 0:10:38.640 So like the text speaking physically has Jesus in a 0:10:38.640 --> 0:10:42.000 All right, let's say physically, the text is describing elevation. 0:10:42.120 --> 0:10:44.160 He went up on a mountain side, sat down, and 0:10:44.200 --> 0:10:47.559 began to teach them. That is the physical motif of 0:10:47.600 --> 0:10:50.640 the text. This is the beginning of it. But really 0:10:50.640 --> 0:10:53.480 what he was about to do was more like excavation, 0:10:54.320 --> 0:10:57.679 which is that he was going to dig out beneath 0:10:57.679 --> 0:11:00.559 the surface. And I'm not sure change in the name 0:11:00.559 --> 0:11:02.720 of the church, but excavation would be a good church 0:11:02.800 --> 0:11:06.040 name too, because when you have a really good encounter 0:11:06.080 --> 0:11:10.040 with God, when you really really meet Jesus, the first 0:11:10.120 --> 0:11:13.559 thing that he begins to do is challenge your values. 0:11:14.720 --> 0:11:16.880 And we want him to build our life up and 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:21.120 build us and raise us, and all of these wonderful 0:11:21.120 --> 0:11:23.120 promises that are indeed in his word but if he 0:11:23.120 --> 0:11:26.120 does not first dig out a deep enough place in 0:11:26.160 --> 0:11:30.280 our hearts and a foundation that is steady and stable enough, 0:11:31.040 --> 0:11:32.959 then even what he builds in our life will be 0:11:33.040 --> 0:11:36.920 subject to situations and circumstances. And so the first thing 0:11:37.040 --> 0:11:41.600 that proves the presence of God in your life is 0:11:41.640 --> 0:11:46.040 that he will begin to challenge your values. You know how, 0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:49.040 you can know if you if you met with God, 0:11:49.320 --> 0:11:52.720 were your values challenged? And I'll prove it to you 0:11:53.960 --> 0:11:56.680 when he started preaching, because you look highly skeptical right now, 0:11:57.960 --> 0:11:59.280 I won't lie. I thought you're going to be more 0:11:59.360 --> 0:12:02.439 energetic with it, an extra hour of sleep, but apparently not. 0:12:03.760 --> 0:12:06.880 It's all right, It's all right. I'll hustle down a 0:12:06.880 --> 0:12:10.320 little bit when you start teaching. He said. Blessed are 0:12:10.320 --> 0:12:12.600 the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 0:12:14.280 --> 0:12:18.280 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Well, 0:12:18.840 --> 0:12:21.680 right right off the bat, I'm kind of confused because 0:12:22.480 --> 0:12:26.880 Jesus is telling me that it's not those who look 0:12:27.000 --> 0:12:30.400 like they're winning a lot of times who are really 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:34.000 the most blessed, blessed or the meek, for they will 0:12:34.000 --> 0:12:37.000 inherit the earth blessed to those who hunger and thirst 0:12:37.040 --> 0:12:39.880 what's a blessing about being hungry and thirsty for righteousness? 0:12:39.880 --> 0:12:43.679 For they'll be filled. And with each of these statements 0:12:43.760 --> 0:12:47.040 is commonly called the beatitudes. Jesus is giving a new 0:12:47.080 --> 0:12:50.640 definition of blessing. And one thing that you'll notice about 0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:53.560 it when he defines it, it's very contrary to the 0:12:53.600 --> 0:12:58.080 cultural values, which are very external. You know, everything is 0:12:58.120 --> 0:13:01.120 about how you look. If God blessed, it is going 0:13:01.160 --> 0:13:03.840 to show up as a physical manifestation in your life. 0:13:04.840 --> 0:13:08.320 But when Jesus showed up, it changed the game because 0:13:08.400 --> 0:13:13.319 in a religious system that was corrupted by the elevation 0:13:13.720 --> 0:13:19.439 of appearances over the real condition of the heart, Jesus 0:13:19.480 --> 0:13:22.520 begins to challenge the values not only of the world, 0:13:23.520 --> 0:13:27.120 but of the religious not only in the streets but 0:13:27.160 --> 0:13:29.360 in the synagogues. I've noticed the Church is really good 0:13:29.720 --> 0:13:32.400 at challenging the values of the world when it comes 0:13:32.400 --> 0:13:38.000 to sexuality and entertainment and Disney. That's twenty years old, 0:13:38.040 --> 0:13:39.840 but some of y'all will remember when the Church was 0:13:39.880 --> 0:13:42.880 really good at challenging the value system of the world. 0:13:43.080 --> 0:13:45.280 But the first thing that Jesus did, it seems to me, 0:13:45.640 --> 0:13:50.320 is to challenge the value of the church, and so 0:13:50.520 --> 0:13:54.480 in order to do that, he begins to dig. And 0:13:54.520 --> 0:13:58.040 it really changes the game because it seems almost like 0:13:58.160 --> 0:14:01.959 an inversion, seems like something is being flipped upside down. 0:14:02.600 --> 0:14:05.360 It's almost as if when Jesus comes on the scene, 0:14:06.040 --> 0:14:10.160 he's less concerned with playing the game right and more 0:14:10.200 --> 0:14:16.080 concerned with playing the right game. And some of us 0:14:16.120 --> 0:14:20.440 are playing the wrong game. And we spend a lot 0:14:20.480 --> 0:14:22.760 of our lives trying to figure out how to play 0:14:22.760 --> 0:14:26.560 the game right. But the question becomes, this is the 0:14:26.600 --> 0:14:30.440 game changer, not are you playing the game right, but 0:14:30.520 --> 0:14:34.440 are you playing the right game? And sometimes it takes 0:14:34.560 --> 0:14:38.040 us half our lives to realize I've learned to play 0:14:38.080 --> 0:14:41.400 the game right, but I wasn't playing the right game. 0:14:42.560 --> 0:14:46.400 Wouldn't it be tragic to spend your whole life to 0:14:46.480 --> 0:14:49.720 get good at a game that you weren't even supposed 0:14:49.760 --> 0:14:54.960 to play, to win the approval of people who don't 0:14:55.000 --> 0:14:59.040 sit on the throne anyway, to get really good at 0:14:59.080 --> 0:15:03.400 something that is isn't good for you. And I see 0:15:03.440 --> 0:15:06.120 this more and more, more more and more as it 0:15:06.160 --> 0:15:09.440 becomes easier for us to get sucked into systems of 0:15:09.480 --> 0:15:13.880 comparison and analysis that have nothing to do with real value. 0:15:15.120 --> 0:15:18.200 We start, we start getting good at winning, but winning 0:15:18.280 --> 0:15:23.360 at what? Winning at what? And the game has changed. 0:15:24.200 --> 0:15:26.720 It's changed so much for young people, you know, Like 0:15:27.520 --> 0:15:30.600 when I was growing up, it was different in terms 0:15:30.600 --> 0:15:34.560 of social media. Even the games that I played as 0:15:34.600 --> 0:15:36.960 a kid, the video games I played as a kid, 0:15:37.160 --> 0:15:39.520 were much different than the games I see my kids 0:15:39.560 --> 0:15:44.600 playing today. It was an entirely different level of nobility 0:15:45.120 --> 0:15:48.560 involved in When the games I used to play, we 0:15:48.560 --> 0:15:55.040 were doing real things, important things like when I was 0:15:55.360 --> 0:15:58.320 when I grew up playing games, we were we were 0:15:58.360 --> 0:16:07.960 saving princesses. We were training to win heavyweight titles or 0:16:08.080 --> 0:16:11.160 to do that, we had to we had to face 0:16:11.240 --> 0:16:17.280 opponents like Soda Popinski and King Hippo and Don Flamenco 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:22.080 and the second Don Flamenco and Piston Honda and the 0:16:22.120 --> 0:16:26.520 second Bald Bull. Real stuff, you know, things that that 0:16:27.360 --> 0:16:32.160 transposed into actual life skill. But the other day, I 0:16:32.240 --> 0:16:35.200 was watching my kids play game on their phone and 0:16:35.440 --> 0:16:37.920 all they were doing and it was very it was 0:16:38.000 --> 0:16:39.720 very fascinating to me. I just watched them for like 0:16:39.800 --> 0:16:43.160 five minutes. All they were doing was tapping the screen, 0:16:46.440 --> 0:16:48.720 and I watched for a little while before I realized 0:16:48.800 --> 0:16:52.800 there's absolutely no strategy to what they're doing right now. 0:16:52.840 --> 0:16:55.320 I didn't know the game that they're playing because I 0:16:55.360 --> 0:16:56.840 don't play games on my phone. I read my Bible 0:16:56.920 --> 0:17:01.440 because I'm a pastor. But I walked over said and 0:17:01.520 --> 0:17:04.080 I said, what is that game? What are you doing? 0:17:04.720 --> 0:17:08.200 And they said it was called Cookie Clicker. They said 0:17:08.200 --> 0:17:12.040 it's old, Dad, it's an old game, not as old 0:17:12.080 --> 0:17:14.280 as your games, but it's an old game for us. 0:17:15.880 --> 0:17:18.280 I said, Cookie Clicker, Let me see it. How do 0:17:18.359 --> 0:17:26.160 you play? They said, you click the cookie. I said, 0:17:26.160 --> 0:17:30.400 all right, and then what like up up, downtown, left, right, left, right, 0:17:30.440 --> 0:17:34.720 ba start? Is that the They said, no, you just click. 0:17:35.400 --> 0:17:39.320 You just click a cookie. See, these kids don't have 0:17:39.400 --> 0:17:44.440 to think like we had defended. They said, you clicked 0:17:44.480 --> 0:17:47.280 the cookie. I said, all right. And then what they said, 0:17:47.280 --> 0:17:51.000 then you get more cookies. When you click the cookie, 0:17:51.040 --> 0:17:53.879 you get more cookies. I said, and then after you 0:17:53.920 --> 0:17:56.120 get more cookies, what do you do after you get 0:17:56.119 --> 0:17:58.480 more cookies? They said, well, the more cookies you get, 0:17:58.520 --> 0:18:01.400 the more the more cookies you can get each time 0:18:01.440 --> 0:18:08.679 you click. That's what y'all been doing over here for 0:18:08.720 --> 0:18:14.360 the last thirty minutes. No Princess Zelda, no Princess Toadstool, 0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:23.359 just clicking cookies to get more cookies, to get more cookies, 0:18:24.640 --> 0:18:28.200 to get more cookies, to give more cookies. I said, 0:18:28.280 --> 0:18:31.480 let me try that. It was addictive. I loved it. 0:18:34.920 --> 0:18:40.360 Five millions of cookies and I couldn't need any of them, 0:18:40.720 --> 0:18:44.080 but I had fun clicking. Let me ask you a question. 0:18:44.440 --> 0:18:51.199 Have you been clicking on stuff playing a game without 0:18:51.240 --> 0:18:55.040 asking the question what is the goal of this game? 0:18:56.000 --> 0:18:59.919 Have you ever argued with somebody? And then you realize 0:19:00.240 --> 0:19:04.000 that even if I win the argument, even if I 0:19:04.080 --> 0:19:08.280 win your approval, even if I win your friendship, it's 0:19:08.359 --> 0:19:12.920 not worth winning if I have to win it, even 0:19:12.960 --> 0:19:23.520 if I make you like me. And that's what he 0:19:23.560 --> 0:19:25.760 was doing. He was telling him quick clicking. Jesus was 0:19:25.800 --> 0:19:29.679 saying this. He was saying, quick clicking. Tell somebody quick clicking, 0:19:31.000 --> 0:19:36.880 quick clicking, and ask a different question. It's not am 0:19:36.880 --> 0:19:40.480 I playing the game right? You know? Because you can 0:19:40.520 --> 0:19:47.199 get that right and succeed materially relationally. You could get status, 0:19:48.160 --> 0:19:52.760 you could get power, you can get position, you can 0:19:52.800 --> 0:19:56.280 even be a really good preacher. But if you don't 0:19:56.280 --> 0:20:04.640 do it for the right reason, you can get all 0:20:04.720 --> 0:20:08.760 the cookies that you want, but you can't dunk any 0:20:08.800 --> 0:20:15.639 of them in milk if it's not real. Am I preaching? Okay? 0:20:17.000 --> 0:20:20.199 Everybody over fifty that ever clicked on worthless stuff and 0:20:20.240 --> 0:20:25.760 found out it wasn't worth clicking on makes some noise. God, 0:20:25.840 --> 0:20:28.600 the church is old. Did you hear that? That was 0:20:28.640 --> 0:20:32.360 a roar? Twelve and a half years ago? If I'd 0:20:32.400 --> 0:20:34.280 asked that, it wouldn't have been. Oh, that made me 0:20:34.280 --> 0:20:40.480 feel weird. But it's good. It's it's multigenerational. Amen, there's 0:20:40.480 --> 0:20:45.040 some wisdom that you get. Jesus gives it on multiple levels. 0:20:45.119 --> 0:20:47.040 And six times he does this thing in the Sermon 0:20:47.080 --> 0:20:48.280 on the Mount. I wish I had time to show 0:20:48.280 --> 0:20:51.639 you all of it. He sets up a construct like this. 0:20:51.800 --> 0:20:56.199 You have heard it said, But I say to you, 0:20:56.200 --> 0:20:59.800 you've heard it said. And then he would quote from 0:21:00.000 --> 0:21:02.159 the Rabbinic tradition that they had been handed through the 0:21:02.200 --> 0:21:05.639 Law of Moses. But I say to you, then he 0:21:05.680 --> 0:21:10.000 would correct the values because he was speaking to people 0:21:10.040 --> 0:21:15.960 who had perfected the appearance of religion. But he understood 0:21:15.960 --> 0:21:18.320 that if the behavior is right, but the belief that 0:21:18.440 --> 0:21:23.560 is beneath the behavior is not right. If your values 0:21:23.640 --> 0:21:31.600 are shallow, your victories will be empty. And why didn't 0:21:31.600 --> 0:21:35.200 you write that down? I worked all week on that, Gaston. 0:21:35.280 --> 0:21:36.880 I know you've got your pins out. I have faith 0:21:36.880 --> 0:21:42.080 in you. If your values are shallow, your victories will 0:21:42.080 --> 0:21:47.199 be empty. So I'm winning at what. I'm winning at what. 0:21:48.920 --> 0:21:50.600 And Jesus went up on a mountain side and he 0:21:50.640 --> 0:21:54.960 sat down. But then he began to teach them. He's 0:21:55.040 --> 0:22:00.800 digging beneath the behaviors to identify the beliefs, like one 0:22:00.840 --> 0:22:03.160 of them that he said, he said, you've heard it said, 0:22:03.200 --> 0:22:07.400 don't murder. But I'm telling you, if you're angry, even 0:22:07.440 --> 0:22:11.280 if you don't murder, you will suffer the consequences of 0:22:11.320 --> 0:22:14.800 that anger and eventually will either lead you toward taking 0:22:14.840 --> 0:22:18.040 action on it, or it will deteriorate your spiritual condition 0:22:18.359 --> 0:22:19.800 to the point that you might as well have gone 0:22:19.800 --> 0:22:21.879 ahead and done it because you're living in a prison 0:22:22.119 --> 0:22:24.600 of hatred. And whether or not you acted out doesn't matter, 0:22:24.640 --> 0:22:27.919 because beneath the behavior is a belief that led to 0:22:27.960 --> 0:22:31.640 the behavior. This is what we mean when we say 0:22:32.000 --> 0:22:36.399 Jesus was the game changer, because he didn't just play 0:22:36.440 --> 0:22:41.040 the game. That's why they killed him. He touched lepers 0:22:41.240 --> 0:22:46.080 that they wouldn't touch. He spoke with women who they devalued. 0:22:48.000 --> 0:22:53.480 He challenged their social values by associating with people who 0:22:53.520 --> 0:22:57.439 ethnically and religiously had nothing in common with the Jewish people. 0:22:57.960 --> 0:23:01.440 And that's what they hated about him. He didn't endorse 0:23:01.560 --> 0:23:06.520 their values to run his campaign. He challenged their values. 0:23:07.119 --> 0:23:11.359 He got beneath their actions and challenged their values. As 0:23:11.400 --> 0:23:14.040 a matter of fact, he did it not only in 0:23:14.119 --> 0:23:17.280 terms of hatred and murder and adultery, but he did 0:23:17.359 --> 0:23:19.760 it in terms of other areas. Like one thing he 0:23:19.800 --> 0:23:24.800 said was you've heard it said love your neighbor. But 0:23:24.840 --> 0:23:30.840 that's easy. I say love your enemy. See that changes 0:23:30.880 --> 0:23:36.440 the game. Grace changes the game. I said. The grace 0:23:36.520 --> 0:23:41.800 of God is a game changer when the grace of 0:23:41.840 --> 0:23:45.720 God really becomes operative in your life. What Jesus is 0:23:45.760 --> 0:23:49.320 saying when he says love your enemy is you can't 0:23:49.680 --> 0:23:54.000 insist on God relating to you one way and then 0:23:54.040 --> 0:23:58.960 you turn around and relate to people another way. So 0:23:59.119 --> 0:24:02.960 if you want God to be gracious to you, that 0:24:03.080 --> 0:24:07.320 grace has to flow not only to you but through you. 0:24:08.200 --> 0:24:11.359 And if it's not flowing through you, it didn't really 0:24:11.400 --> 0:24:15.480 flow to you. If you don't give it, you don't 0:24:15.480 --> 0:24:18.520 got it. And I'm sorry for my grammar, but my 0:24:18.640 --> 0:24:24.520 theology is spot on. It's a game changer. And we 0:24:24.640 --> 0:24:27.560 beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten Father, 0:24:27.800 --> 0:24:31.480 of the Father full of grace and truth. So when 0:24:31.520 --> 0:24:35.000 grace shows up, it changes the game. And the Bible 0:24:35.119 --> 0:24:38.800 actually says that when Jesus finished teaching all these things, 0:24:39.119 --> 0:24:42.560 the people were amazed at his teaching, not because he 0:24:42.680 --> 0:24:46.840 was so funny, not because he was so succinct, not 0:24:46.960 --> 0:24:49.640 because of the human wisdom, but he taught as one 0:24:49.640 --> 0:24:53.080 who had authority, and not as one of their teachers 0:24:53.080 --> 0:24:55.639 of the law. Well, what was it that his teacher, 0:24:55.760 --> 0:24:58.680 the teachers of the law were teaching that had no authority. 0:24:58.960 --> 0:25:04.120 They were teaching on the basis of appearance. And that's 0:25:04.160 --> 0:25:08.159 what he's correcting in Matthew chapter six. It's not a 0:25:08.200 --> 0:25:16.160 giving scripture. It's a scripture about intention. So when you give, 0:25:16.240 --> 0:25:20.160 he assumes that you're going to give, not if when 0:25:21.800 --> 0:25:26.239 he's making the assumption that your actions will align with 0:25:26.320 --> 0:25:32.679 your values. And I've learned that the greatest way for 0:25:32.720 --> 0:25:35.439 me to know whether I'm winning in my life is 0:25:35.480 --> 0:25:40.040 not to ask people you know, or not to consult 0:25:40.200 --> 0:25:43.960 certain external scoreboards that can tell me how I'm doing, 0:25:45.119 --> 0:25:48.480 because my bank account is a bad indication of whether 0:25:48.480 --> 0:25:53.800 I'm winning or the car I drive or any of that. 0:25:55.240 --> 0:26:09.040 But when my actions match my values, I'm winning. And 0:26:09.080 --> 0:26:12.240 it's cool when you can get to that place. Not 0:26:12.320 --> 0:26:14.160 that I live there all the time, but when I'm there, 0:26:14.200 --> 0:26:17.920 I know it and I can feel it. And when 0:26:17.920 --> 0:26:22.600