Alright, so we're continuing our decently and in order series and what I'm going to
be preaching on tonight is you would say it's common sense, I think it's common sense, but
unfortunately the reason it's not common, even though it's common sense, is because
we have a rebellious nature, we have rebellious flesh and so this has to be teached and it's
so important.
Look at the verse number 9, 1 Thessalonians 4 verse number 9, it says, but as touching
brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you, for ye yourselves are taught of God to
love one another.
So hey, that is common sense that we ought to love one another as brothers and sisters
in the Lord.
But then it says in verse number 10, and indeed you do it toward all the brethren which are
in Macedonia.
Listen, I don't just love the brethren in this church, I love all the brethren.
If I come across a brother or sister in the Lord, outdoor knocking or just from another
church and I know they're saved, hey, I'm commanded to love that person as well.
That should be a natural thing to love your brethren, but then it says this, but we beseech
you brethren that ye increase more and more.
And so Paul is telling the people of this church, hey, I want you to increase, I want
you to mature, I want you to grow in the Lord, there's more that we need to add than just
this love that you have toward your brethren.
What is this increase?
Verse number 11, that ye study to be quiet.
Let's stop there for a moment.
To study is to give due diligence toward something.
But Paul is saying, listen, give diligence to quietness, give diligence to peace.
You know, get along with your brethren, not just love your brethren, but get along, try
not to cause divisions amongst yourself, look for peace, look to be quiet.
Then it says this, and to do your own business.
Brethren, you know what this is teaching us?
This is teaching us to mind your own business.
The title for the sermon tonight is mind your own business.
We have that saying, don't we?
Mind your own business.
And it comes from 1 Thessalonians 4, when it says to do your own business, then it says,
and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you.
So you see, you know, yes, it's great to love one another.
But if we want to increase, we want to grow, we want to mature, we also need to learn how
to get along, okay?
And listen, we're not going to see eye to eye all the time, okay?
We want things to be done decently in order, we got to look for the quietness, we got to
look for the peace amongst ourselves, we got to mind our own business, okay?
Got to mind our own business, it says and to work with your own hands.
Hey, whatever it is that is your business, whatever your authority is, or your responsibility
lies, brethren, you do that work.
You know, you don't get involved and work in somebody else's business, you find where
your area is, and you work with your own hands in your own area.
This is what's going to help you to mind your own business.
Now, when we often think about this term, mind your own business, what do we think about?
You know, if you came to me, brethren, you know, and you said something to me, and I'm
not happy with what you're saying, hey, I think you're stepping over your line, I think
you're involving yourself in my matters, what am I going to say to you?
Hey, mind your own business, what am I saying?
Stick your nose out of it, it doesn't concern you.
And you know, that's what we often think about, right?
Yeah, that's the first thought.
But really, let's take, let's not think of the negative right now, let's just think about
the positive.
When we talk about minding your own business, it means basically what to do your own business
is work out what it is you have to do.
You know, for my children, when they wake up, they know they have to read their Bibles,
you know, I get them to write a short summary of what they've read in the Bibles, hey, that's
their business, you know, they prepare their own breakfast, the older ones help the little
ones, that's their business, they're to, you know, make their beds and sort out their rooms
and clean up after themselves, that's their business, they've got chores to do, hey, that's
their business, they've got study, they've got the schooling to do, that's their business.
And that's what they need to be focused on.
Amen.
And as men, we go out and we work hard, we've got our jobs, we've got the workplace, hey,
whatever responsibility you have, brethren, that's your business, you got to take care
of that business, right?
And ladies, if mothers, if you have children, hey, it's your job to raise the children in
the nurture and admission of the Lord, hey, that's your business.
And so what we instructed here, brethren, is find what is it is that you have to do,
we all have responsibilities, okay, we all have responsibilities, no matter where you
are in life, we all have some level of responsibility, take care of the things that belong to you.
All right.
Now in this decently and in order series, we looked at four institutions, you know,
and the first one that we looked at was the workplace, right, the employment, the second
one was the family, the third one we looked at was government, and the fourth was church.
And you know, as we've seen each of these institutions, we saw that there is a leader,
there is someone with authority in that institution, right?
And then there are those that are to be submissive to that leader.
In every institution, it's the same.
And the leader, the one that is over that business is accountable directly to the Lord
Jesus Christ.
Whether they're saved or unsaved, it's the Lord Jesus Christ that will judge them by
their works, by how they lived out their life, right?
Whether they were wicked, whether they were good, and you know, one day we're all going
to stand before the Lord, the unbelievers are going to stand before the great white
throne judgment, and we're going to stand before the, it's not sometimes the beamer
seat or the judgment seat of Christ, okay?
But we all have Christ as our head.
And look, it doesn't matter if you're the one in charge of that institution, or if you're
the one submissive to that, we all have responsibilities within that institution, and we all have a
job to do, we all have work to do.
And so if you've got a business to do, Brev, and you've got something to do, well, make
sure you work it in your own hands.
You give due diligence to what God, what responsibility God has given you.
Now please turn to Luke chapter 16, turn to Luke chapter 16 for me.
Luke chapter 16, and I think this is my water here, unopened, yep.
Luke chapter 16 and verse number 10.
Verse number 10.
Luke chapter 16 verse 10 reads, he that is faithful in that which is least is faithful
also in much, and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
What do we learn here?
We get a principle here that all of us have something to be faithful in.
Hey, you might have very little to be faithful in.
There might be, you know, you may have been given very little to be in charge of, to manage
and take care of.
You know, you go to work and you've got a boss over you, you've got some responsibility
there in the workplace.
Well, maybe you consider it little in comparison to what other people are doing, hey, but God
is calling you to be faithful in that which is least.
And if you show yourself to be faithful in that which is least, he's going to give you
the more, right?
But I just want to show you that.
Even if it's a little bit of responsibility, brethren, it's your job to do your business,
take care of that, you know, work hard and make sure you do the best you can.
Let's keep going to verse number 11.
If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to
your trust the true riches?
And this is this, and if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who
shall give you that which is your own?
What is this telling us?
This has given us the instruction of how to get promotions, instructions of how to get
authority, you know, over an institution, how to receive more.
You've got to first be faithful in that which is another man's, okay?
So when we look at the institution, as I said, there's someone that has authority, let's
take the workplace.
You've got your boss, and then you've got your job, God is saying, look, be faithful
to that which is another man's, you know, work hard.
It's not just the one that is accountable to God that's in charge or has to work hard,
but even those that are submissive to that leader has to work hard and be faithful to
that which belongs to another man.
Hey, if you're faithful to that which is another man's, God will promote you.
God will give you the opportunity, God will give you more, so you can one day be that
person in authority, okay?
That's how you get promotions on the job.
Hey, that's how you become a pastor.
You be faithful in the church, you be faithful in whatever little that you have been given
to you, you know, you'd be faithful with that, you're going to get more responsibility, more
responsibility, more responsibility, one day you might one day become a pastor, okay?
But it begins by being faithful in that which is another man's, all right?
So we see that in whatever institution that is brethren, if you want to take authority,
you want to get more, then you've got to be, you know, work hard, mind the business, even
if it's a little bit of what you have, as we know, Jesus Christ can make much of a little
bit, okay?
Jesus Christ was able to feed the 5,000 with just a few fish and loaves, right?
Jesus Christ can multiply that as long as you're faithful with what you have.
Now, that should be common sense.
You know, what I've just covered right now, that should be basic, we have responsibilities,
we've got to take care of our responsibilities, you know, if you've got a family, you've got
to take care of your family, you know, you've got to provide for them, you've got a job,
you've got to work hard, you come to church, you know, if you've got some responsibility
in the church, take care of that responsibility, right?
Make sure you give the best you can and be faithful with what God has given you.
Now, the question comes up when I talk about these things, the question becomes, well,
what about the ladies?
Because when I talk about the church, hey, we saw that the pastor had to be the husband
of one wife.
And when we looked at the family, we saw that the husband is the head of the wife.
And sometimes ladies get a little bit uncomfortable with this.
So let's turn to 1 Timothy chapter two, let's turn to 1 Timothy chapter two, and verse 11.
And you know what, as far as I'm concerned, ladies, mothers especially, you've got the
most important job that you could possibly have.
That's what I really believe, you know, a lot, you know, you get told that being a mother,
being a homekeeper is, you know, a waste of your time, you know, that it just, you know,
it stops you from pursuing your career, whatever that means, right?
It stops you from being able to live out the, you know, you know, all your honeys making
money, throw your hands up at me, all that ridiculous stuff, you know, that feminism,
that stupidity that gets taught to our young girls.
But listen, I don't know what greater responsibility you want.
I mean, do you, you know, if you could choose between the things that you want to look after,
wouldn't your kids be like top of priority there?
I mean, do you really want to be looking after some job, some workplace, you know, instead
of your kids?
Or would you really, you know, would you really want to be looking after somebody else's kids
instead of your own kids?
You know, I mean, you know, God has given you lives to raise.
You know, my wife, with the 11 kids we have, she's got eight boys and three girls.
Hey, those eight boys will one day be soul winners.
Hey, those eight boys, you know, if they just love the Lord, they serve the Lord, hey, they
can do great things.
Hey, and the girls, they can be great help, now great help to another man who wants to
be faithful to the Lord.
You know, and this comes down to mom's responsibility because you're with them most of your time.
And look at there in 1 Timothy 2 verse 11, I'm surprised just how recently, how often
I've spoken to a few ladies and they have a desire to be a pastor.
1 Timothy 2 verse 11 says here, let the, now, let me, before we go there, Timothy was a
pastor.
This is Paul the Apostle writing to Timothy about how to manage his church, all right.
Verse 11, let the women learn in silence with all subjection, subjection.
So who's she to be subject in subject to?
Verse number 12, but I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to serve authority over the
man, but to be in silence.
So what is it saying here?
A woman is to not teach in the house of God.
She is not to have authority over the man.
Listen, the person that gets behind the pulpit to preach ought to be a man, okay.
Listen, I would, if we get to a point where we're just weak as a church, I'd much rather
the weakest man to preach behind the pulpit than the strongest woman.
Even then I would say the weakest man should get behind the pulpit and preach here because
that's what God told us, that the woman is not to have authority of man, but to be in
silence.
And say, say, you might say, well, are women not allowed to sing in church, are they meant
to be quiet?
It's about teaching.
It's about teaching, right?
When it comes to teaching God's Word at church, this is the responsibility of a man.
But ladies, you have the ability to teach your own family, to teach your own children
the things of God.
Hey, they're the people that you care the most.
In fact, I told the men here on Friday, last Friday, that the people that I preach to,
the people that I'm targeting when I'm preaching in the house of God is my own children.
I want my children to understand what the Bible says and hopefully that makes sense
to everybody else.
But I might, you know, the people that I care about the most is, I care for all of you,
but the ones that I care and love and I don't want to see go to the devil the most are my
own kids.
I want them to learn.
So mothers, you have that responsibility in your own home to teach your own children.
But look, why should a woman not teach in the house of God, verse number 13, for Adam
was first formed, then Eve, and Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was
in the transgression.
So who was deceived by the devil?
The woman.
Adam was not deceived.
He said, hold on.
He did eat of the tree.
Yeah, he knew what he was doing.
He knew exactly when he does that, when he eats of that fruit, that he's disobedient
to God and that, you know, he's going to lose his life somehow.
But he didn't.
I guess out of love for his wife or something along those lines, right?
But it's the woman that was deceived by the devil and then Adam kind of just, you know,
let her have her way.
But this is why women not to teach in church.
Listen, a lot of ladies might be more spiritual, might be even more mature in the Lord than
a lot of men, but the Bible's telling us here that ladies are more likely to be deceived
by the devil when it comes to preaching God's Word than a man.
Okay?
That's what the Bible tells us.
But look at verse number 15, notwithstanding, she shall be saved in childbearing if they
continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety.
Hey, how is a woman saved from being deceived from having children?
By getting married, by having her own family?
Hey, this is the area that God wants you to focus in, ladies, to have your family, to
have your children, to teach your children, because otherwise if you set that aside and
you think, man, I just want to be a woman pastor, well, the devil's got you in his sights.
He's going to easily deceive you and he's going to destroy your ministry that you shouldn't
have, right?
But listen, you're to be saved or saved from deception in childbearing, okay, raising children.
This is what's going to give you value.
This is what's going to give you satisfaction, all right?
So listen, every woman has authority as well, okay?
But her authority is over her children.
I think that's lovely.
I think that's beautiful.
I don't know why women today are fighting that.
That's the most important people you can have in your life is your own children.
And God's given you authority over those children, okay?
Why would you leave your kids to someone else or to some institution that hates God, all
right, just so you can go about taking care of some other man's business?
Listen, what's more important, you know, making a few extra dollars on the job, you know,
filling up some spreadsheets and taking some phone calls on the job or raising your own
children?
What do you think is more valuable?
Your own children.
You know, I don't preach just to say that somehow women are of lower value.
You've been given the most precious souls to look after, all right?
You know, when I was working a job, I mean, I was just dealing with angry customers all
the time, you know, missing parcels, problems in the system, you know?
And I'm thinking, man, my wife, she's raising the kids.
She's got the better job.
She's got a more valuable job, right?
She's looking after the things that I love the most.
I don't really care if the parcel goes missing, but it is my business, so I've got to take
care of it.
I don't care about that, really, so much as much as my children, right?
So ladies, I don't want you to feel that you are missing out on some level of authority.
You've been given authority, but it's over your own children, okay?
Now let's go, you're in 1 Timothy, let's go to chapter 5, 1 Timothy chapter 5 and verse
number 13, 1 Timothy chapter 5, just a few chapters over, verse number 13, again, speaking
to the ladies here, it says, And with all they learned to be idle, wandering about from
house to house, and not only idle, but tattlers also in busybodies, speaking things which
they ought not.
Hey, these ladies are not minding their own business.
They haven't got their own kids, they haven't got their own families, what's going to happen
to them?
They're going to go around gossiping.
And listen, that's what social media is all about, okay?
You know, that's what social media does, it satisfies the desire of gossip and getting
involved in other people's matters and sticking your nose in their business, that's not the
right thing to do.
Look at verse number 14, I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children,
guide the house, and then it says this, Give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully,
for some are already turned aside after Satan.
Ladies, if you're not raising your family, if you're not having children, if you're not
managing your household, you will be tempted, it's not just ladies, men do this as well,
you will be tempted to become a busybody.
You will start to not mind your own business, but get yourself into the business of others,
it's exactly what the devil wants you to do, okay?
And you say, well, no, I'm going to the workplace, well, that you're going to gossip over there,
guaranteed, okay?
Because I've seen it.
My whole working life, I've seen the gossip, the backstabbing, the getting involved in
other people's matters and you know, not looking after the things that God has given ladies
to take care of, all right?
So number one, number one, first meaning of taking your own business is to take care
of it, mind your own business, take care of what is your responsibility.
And ladies, if you're not married yet, you know what you should be aiming and praying
to God, Lord, help me find a good godly man that I can marry, because I want to raise
my own family, I want to have that authority to raise the souls to love you, and to serve
you, because I know that's what's going to give me ultimate satisfaction.
That's what's going to give me joy in life.
Now you're in, where are you now?
You're in 1 Timothy, let's go to 2 Thessalonians now, 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 please, 2 Thessalonians
chapter 3, because that's common sense, that's common sense.
Take care of the things that are your responsibility, mind your business, right?
But then we have the second meaning of minding your own business and again, we mean to stick
your nose out of the business of others.
Stick your nose out of the business of others.
And I feel this should be common sense, but I guarantee you, it's happened in this church
where people have gotten their nose involved in other people's matters.
I bet you it's happened at New Life Baptist Church.
Maybe I've done it, maybe you've done it to me.
The reason I say this is common sense, but the thing is, it is, and we all know we should
just take care of our own things, right?
But we have rebellious flesh.
You know, we have this critical flesh where we look on other people in church, we look
on other families in church, and we're like, oh man, I can't believe they're doing that.
I can't believe their children are behaving like that.
And you start getting yourself involved in other people's matters.
This is not common, should be common sense, as I keep saying, right?
But boy, if you've been in church long enough, you know that people love to get involved
in other people's matters.
Second Thessalonians chapter 3 verse 10, second Thessalonians chapter 3 verse 10.
And this sounds a lot like what we read in first Thessalonians, but there's a different
perspective here.
It says, for even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work,
neither should he eat.
So you can see now, you know, I already targeted the ladies, but now we're targeting the men.
Neither should he, that's a man, eat, right?
Look at verse 11.
For we hear that there are some which walk among you, disorderly, working not at all,
look at this, but are busybodies.
Man, you know, we just finished telling the ladies, listen, don't be busybodies, have
your own families.
And what happens to men that don't work?
They become busybodies.
They start taking on these bad characteristics amongst themselves, right?
Because look, they're walking this orderly.
This is the decently and in order series.
We want things to be done in order and decently, right?
Look at verse number 12.
Now them that are such we command and exhort by our Lord Jesus Christ, look at this, that
with quietness, they work and eat their own bread.
Hey, just get in business.
Find what it is that God wants you to do, work hard, give the best you can for it, right?
And don't get involved in somebody else's business.
Don't become a busybody.
You know, in First Peter chapter four, verse 15, it says, but let none of you suffer as
a murderer.
That's pretty bad to be a murderer.
Or as a thief.
That's pretty bad too, right?
Going around stealing things.
Or as an evildoer.
Then it says this, or as a busybody in other men's matters.
What a list of sins, right?
Think about a list of sins again, murder, theft, evildoing, busybody, right?
That's just as wicked as all these other sins.
It's in the same list.
You know, we think of being a busybody is not a big deal, but it's listed amongst murder
and theft and evil doings, all right?
So listen, we need to learn how to stick our nose out of other people's matters.
And when you start doing that, brethren, you're going to find yourself in a much more peaceful
attitude rather than constantly frustrated.
Because listen, I'm sure there are things I do that frustrate you.
If you know me well enough, all right?
I'm very sarcastic.
I know that sometimes frustrates people, right?
And you know, if I spend enough time with you, there's probably things that you do that
frustrate me.
Okay?
Or we frustrate each other.
There are things, that's how it is.
I'm sure there are things your wife will say about you that frustrates her, you know, that
you do that frustrates her and there are things that she does that frustrates you.
Okay?
But we have to just learn how to have peace, how to be quiet, right?
And not get ourselves involved in things that belong to another.
Can you please turn to Hebrews chapter 12?
I really want you to see this.
Hebrews chapter 12 and verse number 6, please.
Hebrews chapter 12.
I want to move back to the topic of family because we're in a church and churches are
made up of families, all right, normally, made up of several families.
And you know what?
The way I raise my kids are not going to be the same way that you raise your kids.
You know, the way I think about things are not the same way you're going to think about
things.
And I don't want you to think like me.
I want you to do what's best for your family, okay, in accordance to God's word.
But Hebrews chapter 12 and verse number 6 reads,
For whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
So listen, we're all children of God here, we're all saved.
That means when you make a mistake, when you're in sin, God's going to chastise you.
He's going to scourge you.
He's going to correct you.
It's going to be painful sometimes, right?
Look at verse number 7.
If ye and you are chastening, look at this, God dealeth with you as with sons.
For what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not?
Now let's think about a family.
Think about fathers and sons or fathers and children.
Hey, that's an institution, right?
We have someone in authority.
That's the father.
We have those that are submissive to the authority.
That's the children.
And then we can also apply that to the spiritual realm.
Like we have God the Father, hey, here's our boss.
Then we ought to be submissive to his will and do the righteousness, do the works that
God wants us to do.
But as his children, because we ought to be submissive, when we're out of line, when we're
disobedient, he's going to come down and chastise us.
Is that the right thing for him to do?
Absolutely, because we're his.
We're to be submissive under his authority, right?
But look at verse number 8.
But if ye be without chastisements, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards and
not sons.
So what's a bastard?
A bastard, you know, is a person who was born illegitimately, okay?
He doesn't have a real mother and father, as it were, a family, right?
Maybe the woman was a little bit, you know, played around, whatever, had a son, maybe
doesn't even know who his father is, you know, that would be a bastard child, okay?
So what is he saying?
If you don't get disciplined by God, if God does not discipline you when you do wrong,
you're not a child of God, you're a bastard.
God is saying, I will only chastise my children, I'm not going to chastise a bastard, okay?
What is that saying?
That's saying, look, if someone is unsaved, God's not going to chastise them the same
way that he chastises his children, okay?
God does not step out of line, that is not his child.
Someone that is unsaved is not a child of God, all right?
This is the same thing, you know, on my street there are some neighbors with a bunch of kids
as well, they get pretty loud.
You know, I hear the kids crying and fighting and yelling, you know, is it right for me
Brevin to just roll up my sleeves, take out the rod, all right, and start, you know, get
into the house and start disciplining those children?
Is that my place to do that?
No, I've got to mind my own business, yeah?
Those children belong to another set of parents and they have the authority over those children.
Now, I could look at that family and say, well, I disagree with how they're doing things,
but even if I disagree, is it my place to get in there and get involved?
No, I've got my own children to discipline, I've got my own house to take in order, I've
got my own business to manage, so I'm not going to get my nose stuck in someone else's
matters.
Amen, does that make sense?
Well, if we think about our church and we think about the families in this church, hey,
there are children, there are families here, guess what parents?
These children, they're my children, you can't command them, you don't correct them if they
do wrong.
That falls in my jurisdiction and when your children do wrong, it is not for me to command
them and correct them, hey, where should I go if I see your children doing bad?
Let's say your child, let's turn it around, let's turn it around, I don't want to say
if you're doing it, let's say my kids, right?
Let's say Matthias here starts bullying, you know, one of your children, what should you
do?
Should you just go to Matthias and yell at him and say, hey, stop doing that, child?
Hey, that's not your place, that's not your child.
Hey, mind your own business, but if he's doing that, there is a proper way to go, there is
a proper person to go to and speak to about that matter.
It's the person that has authority over that child, amen?
You know, if a child is doing the wrong thing, brethren, you don't correct that child, you
go to the parents, you go to the one that has authority over that child and you sort
it out with them.
If you can please go to Romans 14, go to Romans 14 please, Romans 14 and verse number 4, Romans
14 and verse number 4.
If you start correcting and commanding other people's children's church, you'll soon realize
that nobody likes you because you're stepping out of line, you're not minding your own business.
Romans 14 and verse number 4 reads, who art thou that judges another man's servants?
Listen, my children are my servants, okay, who are you to judge another man's servants?
Right?
If I go to a, you know, who am I to go into a workplace, just a random workplace, right,
go next door, they do signage next door and start telling them what they need to do.
Who am I to judge them?
Who am I to command?
I'm not to go to them.
Hey, if there's an issue that I have to deal with next door, I've got to go to the boss
and say, hey, there's a situation there, you know, maybe you need to look into that.
But at the end of the day, I can't go in there and tell them what to do, right?
Who art thou that judges another man's servant, look at this, to his own master, he standeth
or falleth.
Listen, children, to their own master, to their own parents, they stand or they fall,
okay?
If you're not happy with how, you know, kids are behaving in church, do not go and correct
them, okay?
To their own parents, they stand or fall, not to you, not to some random person, just
because you think you're older, and you know, you're a parent yourself, you know, I mean,
do you want me to do the same thing, go to your kids and tell them what to do, and command
them and tell boss them around?
Listen, there's only two reasons why you should ever command another parent's children.
There's only two reasons why you should ever do it.
Number one, if the child is in some immediate danger, listen, if little Adrian runs out
to the street, and you yell out, Adrian, come inside, I'll thank you for it, because he
could run out to the street and get hit by a car, hey, that's some immediate danger,
yeah, you know what, you can do that, you know, you don't have to go, oh, let's get
past the Kevin quickly, because he could get hit by the car by then, right?
If you need to, you know, address some immediate danger, absolutely, you can, you know, say
something to the children that might be doing something wrong, but the only other time that
you are to command children is if another parent has left you in charge temporarily
over those children.
That's the only time, okay?
So for example, last Sunday, or the Sunday that has just passed, right, Brother Juan
was here, he took a few of the kids out for soccer training.
And so my five boys, you know, they went with Brother Juan to Fairfield Park, and he was
there telling, all right, kick the ball this way, do this, run here, run that, hey, Brother
Juan was, guess what, commanding my children around.
But guess why he's doing that?
Because for a period of time, a temporary period of time, I allowed him, I said, hey,
can you train my kids as well?
And while you're training them, hey, you're the boss over that right now, you know, if
I take my children to piano lessons, and they've got a piano teacher, temporarily, that teacher
has authority over them, hey, can you play these scales, can you play this song, can
you practice this?
Hey, yes, you know, temporarily, someone else has authority over my children, I've taken
my children to swimming lessons, and you know what, for that hour or so, that swimming instruction
had authority over my children, but again, it was temporarily, and again, it was a situation
with the parents, and trusted somebody else to have authority over those children for
a period of time.
This ought to be common sense, this ought to be common sense.
Unfortunately in churches, it is not common sense.
Unfortunately in churches, I've seen it, I've seen it time and time again, parents bagging
out other people's kids, you know, to the kids, instead of going to the parents and
sorting out the issue.
Listen, if there's a problem, I'm not saying don't address the problem, I'm just saying
address it with the master, address it with the one that has authority in that situation.
All right?
Don't rebel against the family units.
God has created every family to be independent one of another.
Don't forget when a husband gets married, right, for this cause shall a man leave his
father and mother.
They start a new family unit, okay?
It's a separate family.
I know, you know, I love my parents, I love my mum and dad, but they're a separate family
unit to my wife and I and my children, okay?
There's a separate unit.
My parents can't tell me what to do with my family.
That's not the right place for them, okay?
You know, when you get married, man, you have authority over your house now, you're
in charge, you're accountable to God for your family, and don't let anybody else tell you
what to do, okay?
You're responsible, you're accountable, allow God to be the one that's the judge over you.
And listen, those that are submissive to that authority, they rise, they stand or they fall
under that person's authority, all right?
Now you know what?
If you see children in the church and you say, well, you know, that child should not
be doing that, and you go to the parent and you say, you know what, and it's not a sin,
it's just your opinion, right?
Your child should not be doing that, well, don't be surprised when the parent says, well,
you know what, I didn't have a problem with my child doing that, right?
I mean, there are things, as I said, there are things that you do that I don't agree
with.
There are things that I do that you're not going to agree with, but you know what?
If it's not sinful, if it's not causing harm, if it's not dividing the church, you know
what?
I'm just going to say, well, parents, that's your business.
You know what?
And I might disagree and I think it's going to cause problems in the future.
Well, you're going to have to deal with that situation if it comes up.
But at the same time, I got to understand that, hey, maybe you're doing things the better
way than I am doing.
You know, every family ought to organize themselves with what's best with their family.
We're all different.
We all have different sized families.
We all work different hours, right?
We all have different personalities.
We all have different types of children.
And so you're going to have to tailor your family to what is best between mother and
father.
And you guys work that out.
Right?
I'm not trying to live a life that's, you know, I've got to make sure my family lines
up with what brother, where did brother, I'll say brother Anthony because he's gone.
You know, I've got to make sure that my family lines up with what brother Anthony wants from
my family.
That's not right.
And brother Anthony should not be saying, well, I've got to make sure my family lines
up with how pastor Kevin wants it.
That's not right.
Okay?
We have authorities for a reason.
They're the ones that call the shots.
They're the ones that are accountable with what happens to those that are under their
authority.
Should be common sense.
Should be.
Okay?
It should be common sense.
Now, you're in Romans 14.
We read verse number four.
Let's keep going.
Verse number five.
One man esteemeth one day above another, another esteemeth every day alike.
Every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
And I know, look, we're talking about days and what we eat here, but listen, there are
things that I might do with my family that you don't necessarily like.
There might be things you do with your family that I don't like.
Let every man be persuaded in his own mind.
Okay?
You don't have to worry about what other people have to say.
It's not their business.
It's not, your house is not my business.
Okay?
Your family is not my business.
You sort it out.
You know, fathers, you're in charge of your family.
Verse number six.
He that regardeth the day regardeth it unto the Lord.
And he that regardeth not the day to the Lord, he doth not regard it.
He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks.
And he that eateth not to the Lord, he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
Look at this.
For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
What does that mean?
For whether we live, we live unto the Lord.
And whether we die, we die unto the Lord.
Whether we live therefore or die, we are the Lord's.
Fathers, I am not your Lord.
Okay?
Don't worry.
Just run your family.
Okay?
You're in charge.
You're accountable to God.
You don't have to worry about what Pastor Kevin might say.
It's not my business.
And if I come and I get involved in your family, I come and start telling your wife what to
cook.
Alright?
And how to dress your kids.
And whatever.
Listen, fathers, you have my blessing to say, Pastor Kevin, it's none of your business.
Okay?
It's none of your business.
I'm the man of my house.
I want men to have authority.
I'm sick and tired of the feminine men that this society is bringing up.
Men that are afraid to make decisions.
Men who are afraid to lead.
I'm sick and tired of seeing that.
You know what I want to see in church?
Good, strong, godly men.
Good, strong leaders.
You know, who make decisions for themselves.
Who understand they're accountable to God directly for what they do.
I want to see that.
I want to see manly men in this church.
Let's keep going.
What are we up to?
Verse number nine.
To this end, Christ both died and rose and revived, that he might be Lord both to the
dead and living.
Look at this.
But why dost thou judge thy brother?
Or why dost thou set at naught thy brother?
At naught means nothing.
Why do you make your brother nothing?
You know, when we're judging each other, brethren, you know, when we can, look, where can we
judge?
Where it's our business.
You know, you go to work, you have something to do.
You can pass judgment here.
Alright, I've got to get this job done.
I've got to get this job.
I'm going to start doing this.
These hours I'm going to spend on that.
Hey, you pass judgment on what authority you have.
And if you manage people, hey, you can judge the employees that you have under you, right?
Whatever institution exists, those that are under you, whatever job you have under you,
you can pass judgments.
But within the boundaries that God has given you, if you step outside of those boundaries,
now you're judging another man.
It's not your business.
Okay, it's not your business to go around judging somebody else.
It's not my business to go around judging some other pastor of some other church.
You know, are there pastors that do things differently to me that I don't agree with?
Absolutely.
Is it my business to get into that church and tell the pastor what to do, though?
No, it's not my business.
Verse number 10 again, but why dost thou judge thy brother?
Or why dost thou set at north thy brother?
You make him nothing, for we shall stand.
So we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Talking about believers here, we're all going to stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
Now brethren, this is how you overcome frustration when, oh man, that family and that pastor
and that church and all that, that, this, that's got nothing to do with you, though.
All right, this is how you overcome frustration.
One day, they're going to have to stand before Jesus Christ, and Jesus will judge them accordingly.
And Jesus is going to be the righteous judge.
You know what, I could be wrong in my assessment about that situation, but I know when Jesus
Christ judges, it's going to be perfect and it's going to be right.
And brethren, I could look at a family, I could look at some of the pastor that I think
are doing things wrong.
And if I see Jesus Christ reward them, I'm just going to have to say, well, you know
what, maybe I was wrong about that then.
If Jesus Christ steps in and he rewards them, well, I'm going to have to go with Jesus'
judgment there rather than my own foolish thoughts.
Okay?
Because, you know, Jesus Christ is the judge overall.
Everything, every institution, every family, every workplace, every government, every church
is the business of Jesus Christ.
He's going to judge, he's going to judge righteously.
Whatever judgments they stand before, he's going to judge them righteously.
So that's how we get rest.
I get rest like that.
You know, oh man, I've got to tell them to stop, listen, they're going to stand before
Jesus Christ.
Jesus, you deal with it, right?
You deal with it, Lord, and help me to just be at peace.
Help me to be at rest.
Help me to just show love rather than being constantly criticizing and judging other people
about matters that don't even involve me, that has nothing to do with me.
Can you please turn to John 21, verse 17?
John 21, verse 17.
I'm moving on to the church now.
And you know, when we had these COVID restrictions, I don't know if I've told the story already,
but I kind of think it's funny.
A friend, a friend of mine called me, okay, he phoned me up.
And this friend of mine, oh, let me tell you what happened first.
He calls me up and he says, oh, you know what, you guys still following the restrictions,
this and that?
I'm like, yeah, yeah, we're doing that.
He says, well, you know what, the Black Lives Matters protests, they were able to get out
there in the thousands.
And you know what, nothing happened to them.
You know, I think you just open church to everybody, forget the restrictions.
You know, this is not fair, because the protests are going on.
And I know he means well, he's my friend, and he means well, I understand.
But you know what I said to him?
I said to him, brother, I know you mean well, but here's why I won't even listen to you.
He's like, oh, because you want to obey the government.
So no, no, yeah, I mean, that's part of it, okay.
But that's not why I'm not going to listen to you.
Number one, church, I'm the one authority.
I'm in charge of the church.
This is my business.
Number two, you don't attend my church, who are you to come and tell me what I should
do in our church?
And number three, you don't even attend church anymore.
So a person that doesn't attend church anymore, all right, is trying to tell a pastor how
he ought to run business in his own church, right?
I mean, what, he should have just minded his own business, and I rebuked him for that,
lovingly rebuked him, right?
We still talk.
But I'm just saying, you know what, this is a situation, it's like, what are you talking
about?
Hey, at least be in church.
At least show me that you love, and maybe come to our church, and maybe then I'll value
your input a lot more, okay?
But this is, I'm talking about this stuff should be common sense, but it's not.
John 21 verse 17, Jesus speaking to Simon Peter, it says, He saith unto him the third
time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?
Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, lovest thou me?
And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things, thou knowest that I love thee.
Jesus saith unto him, feed my sheep.
You know what, what does it mean to feed his sheep?
He's asking Peter, become a shepherd, feed my sheep, we saw before, that's the pastor.
You know, the shepherd, the Latin form of shepherd is pastor.
He's telling Peter, be a pastor, okay, not just an apostle, but I want you to pastor
a church, I want you to feed my sheep.
Verse number 18, verily, verily, I say unto thee, when thou wast young, thou girdest thyself
and walkest whither thou wouldest, but when thou shall be old, thou shalt stretch forth
thy hands and another shall gird thee and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.
So God, Jesus Christ explained to Peter, look, when you were young, you were able to take
care of yourself and you get older, you're going to have to have others.
You know, Jesus Christ has basically given him just a quick snapshot of his future.
You know, some people believe, it's also telling him, well, you know, I still believe this
as well, that, you know, Peter's going to die at an old age, right?
And so, you know, Jesus Christ is focused on Peter, he says, look, Peter, get into the
ministry, become a pastor, lead a church, you know, you're going to serve for many years,
you're going to get to a point where you're old, right?
And then look at this, it says in verse number 19, this spake he, signifying by what death
he should glorify God, and when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, follow me.
So Jesus is just very, you know, focused on Simon Peter, Peter, follow me.
I'm giving you a job, I want you to become a pastor, all right?
Look at verse number 20, then Peter turned about, see if the disciple whom Jesus loved
following, listen, the disciple whom Jesus loved was John, the apostle John, okay?
But then it says here, which also leaned on his breast at supper and said, Lord, which
is he that betrayeth thee?
Verse number 21, Peter seen him sayeth to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?
Let's stop there for a moment.
So Jesus finishes telling Peter, I've got a job for you, I've got a ministry for you,
you're going to go for a long time, you're going to serve me till you get old.
And then Peter looks at John the apostle and says, well, Jesus, what about John?
What's John going to do?
Right?
I mean, you're telling me how I'm going to die, I'm going to die when I'm old, all this
stuff, but what's John going to do?
How does Jesus respond to him?
Verse number 21, Jesus saith unto him, if I will that he tarry till I come, what is
that to thee?
Follow thou me.
He says, look, if I want John to live till I come back, what is that to you, Peter?
What is Jesus telling Peter?
Mind your own business.
Don't worry what John is doing.
I'm giving you a work, you focus on what I'm giving you to do.
You know, John's got his own business, you've got your business, you focus on what I've
given you.
Listen, if I want to keep John alive till I come back, what is it to you?
That's pretty harsh words.
What is it to you?
Mind your own business.
It's not for you to know, Peter.
We need to learn this.
We know Peter.
Peter was very outspoken.
Peter demonstrates a lot of characteristics that I see in Christians, you know, this busy
body mentality.
What about others?
What about them?
What about that church?
What about our pastor?
Listen, this is your church, focus on this church, focus on the work that God has given
you to do.
Don't worry about everybody else.
What is that to you?
You know what, you've got to figure out what is your business.
What is it that God wants you to do?
And you focus in on that, when you focus in on that, you're not going to be thinking about
what others are doing.
Look at verse number 23, now just what I love about verse number 23 is that this teaching
to mind your own business is hard to be absorbed.
Again, you know it's common sense, but it's hard to live out.
Because for some reason, we're very curious to know what everybody else is up to.
And I'm like that Brethren, even I sometimes figure out, what's that church doing up?
Who cares?
If they're serving God, great!
You know, but you start wondering, you start questioning, right, and look why it's hard
for them to absorb.
Verse number 23, then went this saying abroad among the Brethren, that the disciples should
not die.
So you know, people amongst the Brethren are saying, well, God said, John, but he's not
going to die.
He's going to live until Jesus Christ comes back.
But then it says this, sorry, yeah, yet Jesus said, yet Jesus said, not unto him, he shall
not die.
But if I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?
So the lesson that Jesus was trying to tell Peter, hey, mind your own business.
But the Brethren misunderstood the lesson.
And they're thinking, oh, Jesus must be teaching that John the Apostle is going to live till
Jesus Christ comes back.
You see, they didn't absorb the teaching, what Jesus Christ said.
What is that to thee?
It's not your business.
Mind your own business.
Do what Jesus Christ has asked you to do.
Don't worry about everybody else.
Oh, but I'm soul winning every week.
I'm out there knocking the doors.
Why isn't brother so-and-so knocking?
What is that to thee?
You do what Jesus told you to do, okay?
And let Jesus Christ deal with that person.
Let Jesus Christ deal with that family, okay?
They're not, you're not to be their judge, okay?
Mind your own business.
Okay, if you know soul winning is important, you get out there and you do the job.
Leave everybody else alone.
Don't be like Peter.
You know, learn the lesson.
Mind your own business.
Please turn to Philemon, please, Philemon, verse number 10, Philemon, and there's only
one chapter in that book, Philemon, chapter 10, oh, sorry, verse number 10, verse number
10, Philemon, verse number 10.
We've looked at the family.
We've looked at the church.
And actually, before I move on to Philemon 10, let me just give you just a few other
examples to think about here.
As I was preparing this, I was just thinking, you know, why does Blessed Hope Baptist Church
exist?
Why does it exist?
We can probably give several reasons why, but one of the major reasons why this church
exists is because one pastor could not mind his own business.
One pastor got his, stuck his nose into the business of another pastor, okay?
Another church on the other side of the world in the northern hemisphere, right, with people
that we barely know, barely know, right?
You know, the pastor kicked out his deacon because he denied the Trinity or whatever
it was, right?
And one pastor thought, well, that's my business.
I need to get involved in that business.
And then what happened?
Families left, right?
Families left.
Well, I mean, it's a blessing.
I'm thankful.
I'm thankful for Blessed Hope Baptist Church.
I love this church.
It's wonderful.
But why, you know, should it have happened?
Well, the Lord knew what was going to happen and the Lord had other plans, brethren.
But you know what?
When you stick your nose into another person's business, listen, if a pastor kicks out a
man in his church, and let's say, I don't even agree with the reason he may have kicked
him out.
It's still not my business.
And if I kick someone out of this church and some other pastor disagrees in me kicking
that person out, it's not their business.
They got to mind their own business.
We're all accountable to Jesus Christ.
You know, just when we started soul, it was a Halloween, the Halloween soul winning, right?
We went knocking doors in Old Guildford and we came across a man, Brother David and I
think it was a man who, you know, goes to another church and the independent Baptist
Church with another pastor, you know, unfortunately, English was not his best, not his first language,
but he was definitely not saved.
You know, he kind of gave me the right answers at the beginning, but then he made it very
clear that, you know, loving your neighbors and doing good things was also necessary to
go to heaven.
And look, you know, if I could communicate better, I would, but you know what I did?
Instead of bagging out that church and that pastor, instead of saying, well, hold on,
this guy identifies with that church and he's not even saved.
What is this pastor teaching?
Is that the right approach?
You know what I did?
I emailed the pastor.
I said, look, pastor, met one of your church members.
I don't believe he's saved.
This is his address.
I'm going to leave it in your hands.
It's your business.
Okay.
Now, if I could speak to him in English, clearly I would have given the gospel and try to get
him saved, but because of that struggle, you know, I don't have that ability to do that
and he belongs to another church.
All right.
That's your business, pastor.
And look, I think that's even started developing a bit of a friendship because of the way you
handle things.
All right.
But yeah, it's easy to be very critical.
It's very easy.
Oh, what are they teaching that church?
You know, what's going on?
Why isn't that guy saved?
You know what?
I hope that if there's somebody in my church that's not saved and some other pastor finds
out about it, I would love nothing more than that pastor to contact me and say, hey, can
you check this out?
Because I'm worried about that person.
That'd be wonderful.
I would love that.
You know?
Had another situation.
A couple moved to our church in Queensland.
You know, they were attending some other independent Baptist church in Brisbane and they moved
to our church, New Life Baptist Church.
And I said to him, well, you know, you sure you want to make this move?
You know, it seems like from what I'm hearing and I've got another friend in that church.
It's a decent church.
You know, I don't want to be a sheep stealer.
You know, I don't want, you know, in fact, I recommended, hey, why don't you just stay
in that church?
You know?
But hey, he wanted to go soul winning.
He wanted to learn how to go soul winning.
So he really wanted to be part of that church.
So, you know, well, you know, at the end of the day, that's your family.
It's your decision.
I'm not going to tell you what you can or can't do, right?
But what I did, as soon as they moved to our church, you know what I did?
I put up his pastor and I respect, you know, very respectfully to the pastor and said,
hey, look, this family has decided to move to our church.
I just want you to be aware of it, that I did not try to come into your church and steal
people away.
You know, in fact, I told him to maybe stay in your church, but they decided to come.
And I just want you to know that there's no hard feelings between me and you.
I'm not trying to do any damage to your ministry.
And he was very thankful.
He thought I hated his church.
He thought I hated him.
I didn't even know the guy.
And then, you know, having a conversation, we sort it out, it's pleasant, you know, and
it's all good.
You know, I honour the authority in other churches, you know, again, even with churches
that I may not necessarily agree with.
I don't agree with a church that's not soul winning, brethren, but isn't my business.
My business is this church.
Is this church soul winning?
That's my business.
Philemon, verse 10, Philemon, verse 10.
I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds.
So very quickly, Onesimus got saved in Paul's ministry.
Paul was in jail, he was in prison, and he got this man saved.
And if you remember, I told him this not long ago, but if you remember, Onesimus was a servant
to another man, which we're going to look at here, verse number 11, in which time passed
to thee unprofitable.
So he was once an unprofitable servant, but now profitable to thee and to me, whom I have
sent again, thou therefore receive him, that is mine own bows.
So what Paul is saying here, look, this Onesimus is profitable to me, but you're his master.
You're his employer.
You know, you own him, at least for this time while he's your servant, you know, I'm sending
him back to you.
You see, Paul, he does the right thing.
You know, he helps this man, but then he says, you know what, at the end of the day, you're
actually his boss.
I need to send him back to you, right?
He respects the authority.
He expects that institution, that workplace.
He belongs over there, not here.
Then he says here in verse number 12, did I read verse number 12 already?
Anyway, I'll read it again.
Whom I have sent again, thou therefore receive him, that is mine own bows, whom I would have
retained me, I would have kept him with me, but in thy stead, he might have ministered
unto me in the bonds of the gospel.
But look at verse number 14, but without thy mind would I do nothing.
He says, look, you need to be in charge.
You own this servant.
This servant belongs to you.
I can't do anything without you first approving of it, without you first saying what to do.
Even Paul the apostle respects the authority.
Even Paul the apostle knows that's not his business.
He likes Onesimus.
He wishes Onesimus can continue working with him in the gospel.
But he says, well, at the end of the day, this is not my business.
You got to go back to your master.
He makes sure the master knows that I'm thinking about you.
I respect your authority.
You're over that man.
And, you know, I can't do anything.
I can't tell Onesimus to do things unless you approve of that.
Okay.
It says, let's just finish verse number 14, but without thy mind would I do nothing that
thy benefit should not be as it were of necessity, but willingly.
I love that about Paul, right?
So if I work at McDonald's, if I'm a McDonald's store worker, brethren, I cannot go to KFC
and tell the employees what to do.
Okay.
I'm outside of my jurisdiction.
Okay.
Paul's thinking the same thing.
I can get Onesimus to work here, but he actually is a worker, is an employee of this other
man.
I've got to send him back to his job.
All right.
And listen, if I manage a McDonald's, I can't go to some other McDonald's franchise either
and tell them what to do.
There are boundaries of authority.
Okay.
My boundary of authority is in this church.
Don't forget when we're not having church, when we break up and we go our separate ways,
I have no authority over you, brethren.
Okay.
I don't want the authority over you.
I've got enough on my hands.
Okay.
I don't want that.
I'm glad to have the authority in the church, but that's it.
All right.
Can you please go to Luke chapter 12.
Luke chapter 12.
And remember, this Thessalonians series, I've been saying it over and over again.
God does not ask us to do something that he has not already done.
Okay.
We are following after the steps of Jesus Christ.
And look, Jesus Christ is the Lord of Lords.
He's got authority over every institution.
All right.
But when he came here 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem's manger, he humbled himself, he submitted,
you know, lowered himself and became just like a man.
Okay.
Part of his authority, he left that in heaven.
Part of his glory, he left that and he came and he appeared to be a normal man when he
was walking this earth.
But look at Luke 12, 13, please.
Luke 12, 13.
And one of the companies said unto him, said unto Jesus that is, Master, speak to my brother
that he divide the inheritance with me.
I believe that's the right thing to do.
I don't believe it's right for one brother, one person to get all the inheritance.
All right.
I believe it's right that the inheritance gets divided, you know, amongst all the brothers
and sisters.
Right?
I mean, this man's not asking Jesus to do something sinful or wrong.
Hey, can you talk to my brother?
Can you tell him to divide the inheritance?
Right?
He shouldn't just all go to him.
But look at verse 14.
And he said unto him, man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?
Listen, Jesus knows this is not my business.
Who's made me a judge over you?
It's your parents that decided to give all that inheritance to that brother.
Okay, right or wrong, it's not Jesus's business.
And Jesus is God.
He's the Lord.
I mean, if anybody has a right to say anything, it's the Lord.
But Jesus Christ came and set us an example.
He said, look, that's a family business.
I'm here to do the work of God.
I'm here to preach the Word of God.
I'm not here to get myself involved in other people's matters.
Hey, Jesus knew how to mind his own business.
Okay, and he's asking us to do the same.
Same thing.
You know what?
I don't want some wife to come up to me.
Can you speak to my husband?
And some husband, can you deal with my wife?
And can you deal with my in-laws?
And can you deal with my children?
And can you deal with my cousins and my uncles?
And who's made me a judge or divider over you?
Right?
We have to learn to mind our own business.
Listen, I'm not saying I won't pray for you.
You have some struggles, you've got some problems, and you want me to pray for you?
I'll pray for you.
I'll commit that to the Lord.
Right?
But at the end of the day, whoever has authority in that situation has to sort that out.
And they may sort it out in a way that I don't agree.
And again, if I don't agree, it's still not my business.
It's still not my business.
All right?
Can you please turn to James chapter four?
Actually, no, no, no, sorry.
Say that in Luke chapter 12.
I just want to show you this.
Luke chapter 12.
Because after Jesus Christ says, man who have made me a judge or divider over you,
you might say, well, Pastor Kevin, you get behind the pulpit, don't you?
Don't you call out people's sins?
Aren't you always in our business?
Because you're telling us how we ought to live our lives?
Yeah, but you know what?
All I'm doing is preaching God's Word.
If it hits you, it hits you.
Right?
I'm like, all right, Brother Tim, can you give me your list of sins right now?
Brother Matthew, Brother David, can I have your list of sins right now?
You know, can I have your sins?
You know, Brother Daniel, can I have your sins?
And then I get behind the pulpit and I say, oh, man, did you know Brother Tim got up to
this this week?
Did you know he got himself drunk and I'm just calling out for his sin?
Hey, that's not what I'm doing.
Should he be drinking?
I shouldn't be drinking.
He wasn't drinking.
Okay, just in case someone doesn't understand my sarcasm.
He wasn't drinking.
All right.
But hey, here's the thing.
I'm not doing that.
Right?
I'm not getting involved in your matters.
I'm not directing one sermon to just your problem and calling you out by name and saying,
hey, that would be me getting involved in your business.
My business in the house of God is to preach you God's Word.
Okay?
And then you, as the one that has authority in your household or whatever, you take it
on board and decide what you're going to apply or not apply.
Because look at verse number 15 there, Luke 12, 15.
What does Jesus do?
He says, look, I'm not a divider.
I'm not a judge over you.
I'm not going to get involved in this matter.
But then he says this, and he said unto them, take heed and beware of covetousness, for
a man's life consists of not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.
So instead of Jesus getting involved in the family business, he's just taught teach a
lesson.
Hey, beware of covetousness.
Okay?
Wherever that fits, if it fits with that man that came to Jesus, or if it fits with the
brother that got everything, or if it fits with the parents that, you know, was not fair
in the way he divided, Jesus, look, he doesn't get involved.
He just preaches God's Word.
Hey, get covetousness out of your life.
Hopefully that's a lesson that they needed to hear.
Okay?
I hope it's a pastor.
So just preach God's Word.
Beware of covetousness.
But I'm not there to work out in your personal life what you're being covetous about.
All right?
Step in and whatever.
Okay?
That's not the right.
I've got to mind my own business.
We've got to learn how to mind each other's business.
Okay?
Understand, I don't want everybody alike.
You know what, ladies?
I don't want you to be like my wife.
And men, I don't want you to be like me.
I don't want some cult.
Okay?
I don't want you to start preaching, men that preach here.
I don't want you to act like me.
I don't want you to use the same jokes like me.
I don't want you to speak like me.
I want you to be yourself.
Okay?
I want you to be yourself.
Please don't try to pattern yourself after any man.
Pattern yourself after Jesus Christ.
James chapter 4.
James chapter 4, verse 11.
I'm up to the conclusion now.
I'm near the end.
James chapter 4.
James chapter 4, verse 11.
It says, speak not evil one of another, brethren, for he that speaketh evil of his brother and
judgeth his brother speaketh evil of the law and judgeth the law.
You know, brethren, I'm not here preaching a judge not sermon.
As I said, if it falls in your responsibility, if it's your issue, you judge, okay?
But if it's not your business, it's not yours to judge, right?
It's not you to be critical of the others that have nothing, things that have nothing
to do with you.
Right?
Then it says this, but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge.
It says, look, if you step out, if you get involved in someone else's business, and you
start passing judgment in someone else's business, you're setting yourself up to be a judge over
that person.
Okay?
Look at verse number 12.
Now, this should be the reminder.
If you struggle with this, brethren, if you struggle with getting involved in other people's
business, right?
Oh, why isn't so-and-so here in church today?
It's not your business.
You come to church.
That's what matters, right?
You say, oh, what about, what's that person, who's that, why isn't he, why isn't he, who's
that?
Listen, it's not your business.
Stop setting yourself up to be a judge of others.
Okay?
And if you're struggling with that, look at verse number 12.
It says, there is one lawgiver who is able to save and to destroy who art thou that judgeth
another.
Listen, when you set yourself up, when you get yourself into someone else's business,
you know what you're saying?
I'm Jesus Christ.
I'm God.
No, there is only one lawgiver.
There is one judge.
Okay?
There is one person that judges that person's business.
That's the Lord Jesus Christ.
Then it said there at the end of it, but if they are judged, sorry, and then it says,
yeah, who art thou that judges another.
Brethren, if you struggle with this, ask yourself the question.
When you're tempted to, oh man, what happened to that family?
What happened to that person?
What's going on in that church?
When you start getting yourself into other people's matters, brethren, ask yourself this
question.
Who art thou?
Who am I?
What am I?
Am I a judge in that situation?
Right?
Who are you?
You know, one of the sports that I like to watch is soccer, football, right?
And sometimes when you have these teams battling, and you know, sometimes you got like a superstar,
a superstar player, right, who thinks they're everything, you know, they can score all
the goals.
Sometimes the opposition fans, they yell this chant out.
You know, it's who are you?
Who are you?
It's like, who are you?
Who cares who you are?
Right?
That's what, you know what, when you start getting yourself involved in someone else's
matters, who are you?
Who are you to do that?
Who are you to elevate yourself and be a judge of another person's matters?
There's only one judge, brethren.
That's the Lord Jesus Christ, okay?
Remember yourself and remember your station.
Are you God?
Are you Jesus?
Is that your place?
If it's not your place, brethren, deal with what God has given you.
I promise you this.
If you just mind your own business, stop thinking about everybody else, just focus on what God
has given you.
You'll be faithful with what God has given you.
He's going to give you the more.
He's going to give you more.
But if you're constantly, oh man, this person, that person, this church, that church, all
right, governments, you know, you're constantly there.
Listen, you're going to stay with the very little.
You stick your nose in other people's matters, you're going to stay with what is very little.
I want you to increase.
I want you to grow in love.
I want you to grow in maturity.
And this is such an important lesson, brethren.
Again, common sense, but not really.
Not really.
We need to mind our own business.
Let's pray.