Series: When Cultures Collide
Topic: Remember: Part 2
July 21, 2002
Daniel 5
"Then Daniel answered before the king, "Let your gifts be for yourself, and give your rewards to another; nevertheless I will read the writing to the king and make known to him the interpretation. O king, the Most High God gave Nebuchadnezzar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty; and because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him; whom he would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive; whom he would he raised up, and whom he would he put down. But when his heart was lifted up and his spirit was hardened so that he dealt proudly, he was deposed from his kingly throne, and his glory was taken from him; he was driven from among men, and his mind was made like that of a beast, and his dwelling was with the wild asses; he was fed grass like an ox, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, until he knew that the Most High God rules the kingdom of men, and sets over it whom he will. And you his son, Belshazzar, have not humbled your heart, though you knew all this, but you have lifted up yourself against the Lord of heaven; and the vessels of his house have been brought in before you, and you and your lords, your wives, and your concubines have drunk wine from them; and you have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the God in whose hand is your breath, and whose are all your ways, you have not honored." Daniel 5:17-23, RSV
History forgotten
Sin continued
Lessons that need to be learned and remembered from generation to generation
"Love God and love your neighbor" (Matthew 22:37-40; Mark 12:29-31; Luke 10:27-28)
truth that dates back farther than Jesus
Deuteronomy 6:4-5 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might." (RSV)
Leviticus 19:18 "You shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD." (RSV)
Review Part 1: Love God
A. Honor
B. Obedience
C. Worship
D. Purity
This morning we discuss the second part of this: Love your neighbor, and the six ways to express this love.
2. Love Neighbor
John 15:12 "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you." (RSV)
Love is the greatest commodity desired, but the most difficult to give.
To love someone is to value them.
A. Kindness
Deuteronomy 22:1-4 "You shall not see your brother’s ox or his sheep go astray, and withhold your help from them; you shall take them back to your brother. And if he is not near you, or if you do not know him, you shall bring it home to your house, and it shall be with you until your brother seeks it; then you shall restore it to him. And so you shall do with his ass; so you shall do with his garment; so you shall do with any lost thing of your brother’s, which he loses and you find; you may not withhold your help. You shall not see your brother’s ass or his ox fallen down by the way, and withhold your help from them; you shall help him to lift them up again." (RSV)
How different do you feel when someone holds the door open for you to pass through? You feel appreciated. You may not even know the person holding the door open; they may be a complete stranger. But it still makes you feel valued.
Ever had a flat tire on the side of the freeway? If someone helped you didn’t make you feel valued. By demonstrating acts of kindness we are saying to someone, "You are worth my time and effort."
B. Sacrifice
Matthew 5:39-42 "But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also; and if any one would sue you and take your coat, let him have your cloak as well; and if any one forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you." (RSV)
This is probably the most difficult manner by which to show love for most Americans, and dare I even say it, most Christians, today. It’s one thing to help someone when it doesn’t cost us much. To give a neighbor a ride to the grocery store, or to help a child find a lost pet isn’t much of a sacrifice. In fact it makes us feel rather good about ourselves. By demonstrating kindness we not only invest value in another, but we increase our personal worth as well. But, to help the neighbor whose dog keeps tearing up our rose bushes...? Or to help our enemy out of a tight spot? Now that costs a little more.
There’s a reason they call it ‘sacrifice’. To sacrifice is to give up something valuable. Something I want. Something I desire. Is it really much of a sacrifice to lend a power tool to a neighbor we get along with. One who we know will return it in the same condition, or better than when we lent it? One who reciprocates our efforts?
What about when that no good blankety-blank who lives two doors down; parties all the time till all hours of the night. The one who leaves trash all in the front yard, and it keeps blowing into ours. The one rotten apple of the neighborhood. The blight, that if they moved away all property values would increase 10%. How easy is it to help them? "Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you." That’s sacrifice
How many bitter people would be open to the gospel, all because someone cared enough to sacrifice?
C. Silence
Now you may be thinking this a bit odd. Loving my neighbor by silence? How on earth can I love my neighbor by silence? Listen to what James says:
James 3:6-7, 9-10 "And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is an unrighteous world among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the cycle of nature, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by humankind, . . . With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brethren, this ought not to be so." (RSV)
Remember the old adage, "If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything." How many a testimony has been destroyed because of a slip of the tongue? "That so-and-so, she’s such a blankety-blank. Do you know what she did? Did you hear what I heard about her?"
How often have our passions risen up because of some silly thing. We lose our keys and it takes hours to find them. We get in our car and the tire’s flat. Someone cuts us off in traffic. Someone drives down the lane in the wrong direction at us. There’s no parking up front for us. They don’t have the exact item we want. We go home and yell at our spouse and kids, who have done absolutely nothing wrong, and have in no way caused our anguish. I could go on and on about the tongue. You really want to show someone love. Keep your mouth shut. Silence can be golden; especially when the alternative is a potty mouth.
D. Service
Galatians 5:13 "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another." (RSV)
Mark 9:35 "And he sat down and called the twelve; and he said to them, "If any one would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all." " (RSV)
Take your neighbor a homemade apple pie. Mow their lawn for them. Visit a shut in. Babysit for that busy mother in church for free. . . . .etc., and just watch at how much of a difference you will make in another’s life. You want to know what love is like? Serve them. All it takes is one simple act to see someone walking on the clouds. That friend who needs a car repair, but is too busy holding down two jobs. That coworker who takes care of a terminally ill parent at home and isn’t capable of socializing as they would like. . . .
E. Humility
Philippians 2:3-8 "Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility count others better than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross." (RSV)
Romans 12:10 "love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor." (RSV)
F. Generosity
Matthew 10:8 "You received without paying, give without pay." (RSV)
Conclusion:
Ephesians 5:1-2 "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." (RSV)
