🎵Music🎵
Great singing, let's go to a word of prayer. Yes, Heavenly Father, Lord, we ask you to be here with us this morning Lord as we seek to praise you and to worship you, to be in your house.
Lord, we need a fresh start this week.
Lord, just thinking about you, meditating upon you.
And Lord, I pray that you teach us great truths
from your word.
Lord, where two or three are gathered in Christ's name,
we know that he's in the midst here.
So Lord, I just pray that we would have a focus
and attention on our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ
as we come into this Easter season,
remembering what he's done for us.
Lord, may you be honored in all that we say and do
and receive our songs of praises.
Lord, we pray these things in Jesus' name, amen.
You may be seated.
All right, hymn number 130, please.
One, three, zero, yesterday, today, and forever.
One, three, zero, yesterday, today, forever.
Jesus is the same.
One, three, zero.
One, three, zero, yesterday, today, and forever.
Oh, how sweet the glorious message simple faith may claim.
Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same.
Still he loves to save the sin from guilt the sick can lay.
She, the mourner, still the tempest, glory to his name.
Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same.
All may change that Jesus ever called.
Glory to his name.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
Give me God, the very days of heaven, it's now clear.
He that came to make us warmest, all thy heart will clear.
He who led the love-desire upon his bosom rest.
It's this sin with harvest and the clean upon his breast.
Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
He who built the raging billows, walked upon the sea.
Still can catch our father's canvas as on Galilee.
He who wept and prayed in anguish, he kept seminary.
Drinks give us each cup of tremble in our agony.
Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
As of old, he walked to Everest with them to come by.
Soon through all life's way he walked, ever near our side.
Soon again shall we behold to case some more per day.
God to me, this same Jesus as he runs our way.
Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
All may change but Jesus ever.
Glory to his name.
All right, one more hymn before the Bible reading.
Let's turn to 113.
113, 113. Wonderful piece.
113, wonderful piece.
We haven't sung this one too much.
Far away in the depths of my spirit tonight
grows a melody sweeter than sound.
In celestial light strange it in,
thinly calls o'er my soul like an infinite calm.
This, this wonderful piece
coming down from the Father above.
Sweep over my spirit, forever I pray
in leatherless fillers of love.
What a treasure I have in this wonderful piece
buried deep in the heart of my soul.
So secure that no power can lie in our way
while the years of eternity roll.
This piece, wonderful piece
coming down from the Father above.
Sweep over my spirit, forever I pray
in leatherless fillers of love.
I am resting tonight in this wonderful piece,
restless within Jesus' control.
For I'm kept for all danger by night and by day,
and his glory is blood in my soul.
This piece, wonderful piece
coming down from the Father above.
Sweep over my spirit, forever I pray
in leatherless fillers of love.
Let me think when I rise to that sitting of peace,
where the offer of peace I shall sing.
That monstrous song which a raton will sing,
in the heavenly kingdom shall be.
This piece, wonderful piece
coming down from the Father above.
Sweep over my spirit, forever I pray
in leatherless fillers of love.
Not a soul are you here without comfort or rest,
marching down from the pathway of time.
Make Jesus your friend and her shadows grow dark.
Go accept this weakness so sublime.
This piece, wonderful piece
coming down from the Father above.
Sweep over my spirit, forever I pray
in leatherless fillers of love.
All right, we're going to practice that one a few more times
and we'll do better.
All right, please take your Bibles now
and turn to Matthew 27.
Brother Rob is coming up for the reading
and we're only going to be reading the first 26 verses.
Okay, so Matthew 27 for the first 26 verses.
Thank you, brother.
Matthew 27 verses 1 to 26.
When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people
took counsel against Jesus to put him to death.
And when they had bound him, they led him away
and delivered him to Pontius Pilate, the governor.
Then Judas, which had betrayed him when he saw that he was condemned,
repented himself and brought again the 30 pieces of silver
to the chief priests and elders,
saying, I've sinned in that I've betrayed the innocent blood.
And they said, what is that to us?
Seet out of that.
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple
and departed and went and hanged himself.
And the chief priests took the silver pieces and said,
it's not lawful for to put them into the treasury
because it is the price of blood.
And they took counsel and brought with them the potter's field
to bury strangers in.
Wherefore, that field was called the field of blood unto this day.
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet,
saying, and they took the 30 pieces of silver,
the price of him that was valued,
whom they of the children of Israel did value,
and gave them for the potter's field as the Lord appointed me.
And Jesus stood before the governor,
and the governor asked him, saying,
art thou the king of the Jews?
And Jesus said unto him, thou sayest.
And when he was accused of the chief priests and elders,
he answered nothing.
Then said Pilate unto him,
hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee?
And he answered him to never a word,
insomuch that the governor marvelled greatly.
Now at that feast, the governor was wont to release
unto the people a prisoner whom they would.
And they had then a notable prisoner called Barabbas.
Therefore, when they were gathered together,
Pilate said unto them, whom are ye that I release unto you?
Barabbas, or Jesus, which is called Christ?
For he knew that for envy they had delivered him.
When he was set down on the judgment seat,
his wife sent unto him, saying,
have thou nothing to do with that just man,
for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him.
But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitude
that they should ask Barabbas and destroy Jesus.
The governor answered and said unto them,
whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you?
They said, Barabbas.
Pilate saith unto them, what shall I do then with Jesus,
which is called Christ?
They all say unto him, let him be crucified.
And the governor said, why, what evil hath he done?
But they cried out the more, saying, let him be crucified.
When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing,
but that rather a tumult was made,
he took water and washed his hands before the multitude,
saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person.
See ye to it.
Then answered all the people and said,
his blood be on us and on our children.
Then released he Barabbas unto them,
and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, Lord, we just thank you for your word.
Lord, we thank you that we can get to know our Savior Jesus Christ through your word.
And Lord, I just pray that you'll be with us to hear and understand the message today
and fill our pastor with the Holy Ghost as he preaches your message.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
Okay, thanks brother.
All right, the sermon this morning is a sermon that I've been going back and forth on
whether I should preach it to the church or not
because I consider it one of my secret weapons.
And by revealing my secret weapon, I kind of...
Well, hopefully I make you guys a bit stronger.
You can utilize my secret weapon.
But it's not really my secret weapon. It's the secret weapon of Jesus Christ.
And if you apply this in life, if you learn this in life, it's really going to help you.
Because in life, there are enemies.
In life, there are people that are going to betray you.
And as we come during this Easter season,
I was just thinking about the story of Christ and how Christ was betrayed.
He had an enemy in the midst.
As he was in the ministry for the three years,
he had Judas Iscariot, which was a traitor,
which was someone who did not believe in Christ.
And it's so important that we recall,
we take note of the fact that Christ has come to set us an example.
And we see how Christ deals with a traitor.
And I believe this will help you in your life
because not everybody that you become friends with,
not everybody that you come in contact with is your friend.
Sometimes they're going to be enemies. Sometimes they're going to be traitors.
And if you look at Matthew 27 verse number 3, it says,
Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned,
repented himself and brought again the thirty pieces of silver
to the chief priests and elders, saying,
I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.
And they said, What is that to us? See thou to that.
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple and departed
and went and hanged himself.
The title for the sermon this morning is, Enough Rope to Hang Themselves.
Enough Rope to Hang Themselves.
Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus Christ and of course Christ was then taken to the cross.
And let's not forget the fact that Christ came to die in the first place.
But nevertheless, Judas was a traitor.
And by his actions, by his betrayal, by his attack on Christ,
he ended up going and hanging himself.
A piece of rope went and hanged himself.
This comes from an English idiom you're probably very familiar with,
which says, Give him enough rope and he'll hang himself.
Give him enough rope and he'll hang himself.
Now Judas Iscariot lost his life.
Now the question I want to bring to your attention here is this.
And this might seem like an unusual sermon.
It's probably one of the most unusual sermons I've ever preached.
But, Judas lost his life.
He betrayed Jesus Christ, he was a traitor, he destroyed himself.
He destroyed his testimony, he destroyed his reputation, and he lost his life.
But who caused him to lose his life?
Did Jesus go on the attack?
Did Jesus go and attack Judas Iscariot?
Did the disciples of Jesus Christ go and attack Judas Iscariot?
No, Judas destroyed himself.
Jesus Christ gave him enough rope, as it were, in an idiom, as an illustration.
And he took that, destroyed himself.
He went on the attack of someone he considered an enemy.
Someone that he considered he could betray, but he only destroyed himself.
And brethren, when it comes to our enemies, Jesus Christ has come to set us an example.
If you can keep your finger there, we're going to come back to it.
Please come with me to 1 Peter chapter 2.
Come with me to 1 Peter chapter 2.
1 Peter chapter 2.
Now while you're turning to 1 Peter chapter 2,
I'm going to read to you just some definitions that I found online,
just from some different dictionaries,
about what it means to give someone enough rope to hang themselves.
And one definition says, if one gives someone enough freedom of action,
they may destroy themselves by foolish actions.
So you're allowing your enemy, you're allowing someone that is seeking to hurt you,
you're giving them enough freedom.
That's not the natural response.
The natural response is, if you feel that someone is trying to hurt you,
the natural response is trying to restrict them.
But what we see here is give them enough freedom.
So they reveal themselves and they destroy themselves.
Another definition, and they're all very similar but just another definition says,
to allow someone to accomplish his or her own downfall by his or her own foolish acts.
Let them show themselves to be foolish.
Let them perform their actions, even though there might be some harm towards you.
But as they perform their actions, they show themselves to be foolish.
And the next definition I have here, to give one the freedom or opportunity
to do something wrong or detrimental to oneself because one will usually do it.
The saint expresses the belief that someone does not need to interfere
to bring about one's downfall.
Did Jesus Christ interfere?
Did he get involved in the death of Judas Iscariot?
No.
Jesus didn't do anything.
Jesus did not go on the attack.
But Judas lost his life and lost his testimony and died, as it were, someone of great shame.
And even today, 2,000 years later, we're still speaking of the shameful actions of Judas Iscariot.
Forever his testimony is tainted.
Let me give you just another illustration, just a smaller illustration of this.
You might have a little child who might go to the heater.
He might have a desire to touch the heater, and that's going to hurt him.
That's going to be harmful to the little child.
And you say, no, don't touch the heater.
Don't touch the heater, but you know how little children can be.
They're so curious and they'll find the opportunity, even though mum and dad said no,
they'll still go and touch it.
And there have been times like that where I feel like I've given my child enough instruction,
but I see they're only going to learn by burning themselves.
They're only going to learn by giving them enough rope,
enough freedom where they go and actually touch that heater.
They touch the heater and they learn the lesson.
But you've given them that freedom sometimes to learn that lesson.
They've harmed themselves.
You instructed them, don't touch it.
They're like, I'm going to find a way.
So you give them enough rope sometimes.
Of course, not something extremely detrimental,
but something where they can actually experience it for themselves, as it were, give them enough rope.
And they've caused themselves harm and they learn from that.
Of course, when it comes to Judas Iscariot, he's not going to learn his lesson.
You know, he lost his life in this.
But if you look at 1 Peter chapter 2, and I want to show you verse number 21,
because these are passages that we're familiar with.
This is a verse that's very common, very popular.
We're familiar with this verse, verse number 21.
This is about us.
If you're a believer, it says this,
For even hereunto were ye called,
because Christ also suffered for us, look at this,
leaving us an example that ye should follow his steps.
I want you to remember that.
The interactions Jesus Christ has with people.
Yes, even Judas Iscariot is an example,
he's left us an example that ye should follow his steps.
You know, the reason I was going back and forth on this sermon
is because like I said, it's kind of like my secret weapon.
It's something that I've applied in my life many, many times.
In fact, I learnt it in the business world.
I learnt this in the business world
and I found out, well actually this is a biblical principle.
We see this is how Jesus Christ acts.
And you know, if this is something that we can learn from Christ,
then it's important that we teach it.
Now look, Christ has left us an example that we should follow his steps.
It's not finished.
If we keep going there, look at verse number 22.
Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth.
Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again.
Look, when Judas went on the attack to Jesus,
Jesus did not attack Judas in return, all right?
When he suffered, he threatened not, but this is so important,
but committeth himself to him that judgeth righteously.
Jesus says, all right Lord, I'm to the Father,
I'm going to allow Judas, I'm going to allow my enemies
to take a hold of me, to arrest me, to crucify me,
but I'm committing myself to your hands.
I'm letting my enemy go on the attack.
And brethren, if we want to allow ourselves to be in the hands of our Father,
and brethren, those are protective hands, by the way.
Protective hands, you know, and you follow the steps of Christ,
you know, you obey the steps of Christ,
then of course our Heavenly Father will be pleased.
You know, he will look favorably upon you,
even when you're in the midst of a difficult situation,
dealing with enemies and backstabbers, betrayers.
So this is the example of Christ.
He did not sin. He had no goal in his mouth.
He did not go on the attack with Judas Iscariot, okay,
or the others that ended up crucifying him.
But we know what their end is. For those that rejected Christ, all of them.
All of those that, you know, put Christ on the cross,
that never believed on him, we know what their end is.
Their end is the lake of fire.
Now, a quick summary. Let's learn a little bit about Judas Iscariot.
Come with me. You probably have a finger still in Matthew 27,
and we will come back to that, but that's kind of more toward the end of the sermon.
Sorry about that. But come with me to John chapter 6.
Let's get a quick summary of the Judas Iscariot story,
you know, dealing with Christ. And again, we're coming to Easter,
so we are remembering the death of Christ.
I think it is important that we just sort of pay attention
to some of the stories leading up to his death.
But John chapter 6 and verse number 64.
So we're going to look at just some brief things with Judas Iscariot,
and we're going to learn how to give someone enough rope to hang themselves.
How do we allow our enemies to hurt themselves?
How do we allow them to act and show their foolish actions?
Another idiom that we use in English is they shot themselves in the foot.
That's another way to look at it.
In fact, I've seen some videos of police or security guards
where they haven't handled their weapon properly,
and they've literally shot themselves in the foot.
Has anyone seen videos like that on YouTube or anything like that?
You know, they're out there, and that's the idea.
No one attacked them. No one shot them.
But by the mishandling of their weapon, you know, they shot themselves.
That's the same idea of giving someone enough rope to hang themselves.
Now, John chapter 6, verse number 64.
It says here, these are the words of Christ.
But there are some of you that believe not.
For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not,
look at this, and who should betray him.
We learn here that from the very beginning of his ministry,
Jesus already knew who believed on him and who did not believe on him.
And one of these that did not believe on him would be the one who would betray him.
Jesus knew from the very beginning that Judas would be a betrayer.
He knew from the very beginning that Judas would be the one that would fulfill the Scriptures,
where someone would betray Christ.
And his friends would betray him, and he would die on the cross.
Now, the first point that I have, in fact, let me speak a little bit further.
We do not have the insight of our Lord, right?
We are not God. Like, we are interacting with people.
You know, I assume that you're all my friends, and I assume you're all saved,
and I've heard your testimonies, and, you know, my default position is to think the best of people.
All right? We don't have the insight of the Lord God.
Neither did the disciples. Remember, the disciples did not know that Judas was the betrayer.
But Jesus Christ knew that Judas was the betrayer.
Now, when you go about life, and, you know, you interact with people,
you don't have that knowledge of Christ, but what you do have is intuition.
What you do have sometimes is you see actions, and you start to suspect.
You know, you have suspicion. Maybe someone, a friend, or someone in church, or someone at work,
someone in your life, someone in your family, you know, someone that you're involved with,
they start to behave a little bit weird.
We might say, you know, we started to see some red flags.
We see some behavior that just doesn't fit the norm, and so you start to suspect.
Okay? Now, this is as far as we can go.
You know, when someone starts to act a little bit strange, and you're like,
I don't know, I think this person might have bad intentions.
I don't know. You know, I guess we've all had these kinds of feelings.
And I would say, you know, listen to your instincts, generally speaking,
especially if you're out in the world, if you're out in the streets.
Okay? And you suspect someone, this person could be dangerous.
My advice is just get yourself out of that situation as soon as possible.
It might very well be the Holy Spirit, you know, guiding you away from danger.
But at the end of the day, everybody, you know, people in general are going to act weird,
even if they're not suspicious.
Like, even if they're not your enemy, even if they don't seek to hurt you or harm you,
because people have bad days, right?
Like, you know, sometimes we come to church, I guess we try to put in our best.
We try to be loving and friendly and a blessing.
You know, but sometimes someone might be just going for a bad time in life,
a bad day, and sometimes they might say something nasty
or they might react in a way that might not seem normal,
and you might suspect, ooh.
But then you eventually find out, you know what, they're just having a hard time.
Like, they're not an enemy. They're not seeking to betray.
They're not seeking to hurt. But, you know, you still have suspicions, you know?
And, you know, the first step that I have for you, brethren,
if you're going to give someone enough rope to hang themselves,
you need to take note of suspicious behaviour.
Just take note of it.
I'm not saying take action on it, because it's just your suspicion.
Your suspicion might be wrong, okay?
Again, we don't have the perfect insight of our Lord and Saviour,
but take note, step number one is take note of suspicious behaviour.
Let me give you a quick definition, dictionary definition of the word suspicion.
It's a state of mental uneasiness and uncertainty
without proof or on slight evidence.
So if I suspect someone in my church might be a Judas,
I don't know for sure.
I don't really have evidence or just slight, you know, slight evidence.
I have no proof.
So am I going to treat this person badly?
Am I going to treat them any different to anybody else?
No, because, again, my suspicion can be wrong.
Again, that person could just be having a bad day.
Do I really want to label them a Judas?
Do I really want to label that person maybe a reprobate?
Judas, do I really want to label that person maybe a reprobate
if they're just having a hard time?
Maybe they just need a bit of encouragement, all right?
But pay attention, you know, if you see things that seem just abnormal, weird, right?
Take note of suspicious behaviour.
Now, you're there in John chapter 6.
Come with me to John chapter 6, verse number 70.
Just drop down to verse number 70.
We see the next step here.
It says here,
Have not I chosen you twelve?
And one of you is a devil.
Okay?
He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon,
for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
What did Jesus do with Judas?
He knew that Judas would betray him,
but he selected him as one of the twelve apostles.
He gave him a prominent position in the ministry.
Go what?
He gave him a great position.
Look, did Jesus treat Judas bad, badly?
Or was he kind toward Judas?
Was he good toward Judas?
What do you think?
This is early in the ministry.
Judas is involved in every day of the ministry of Jesus Christ.
You know, Judas was treated well.
You know, Judas Christ treated his enemies well.
He did good to Judas Iscariot.
He gave him a great position of authority as well.
I mean, which of you,
if you knew this person was going to betray me,
is going to treat them in such a great, great way?
And this is the hard part in human nature.
Okay?
Step number two, brethren, is show kindness.
Do good.
Even if you suspect this person is an enemy,
you might suspect this person is a false brother in the Lord.
You might suspect this person is coming to hurt our church
or this person is seeking to betray me.
How do you act toward them?
Are you going to act toward them harshly, rudely?
No, again, because it's still a suspicion.
You don't know.
And yet, Christ gives us the example.
He knows Judas is the enemy and he still does good to Judas.
Reverend, step number two, show kindness and do good.
You know, again, your natural response to what I suspect an enemy
is probably wanting nothing to do with them.
But Jesus keeps Judas close.
Okay?
There is this man, I don't know if you're all familiar with him.
His name is, he lived before Christ, about 500 years before Christ.
He was a Chinese general and his name is Sun Tzu, Sun Tzu.
Okay?
He wrote a very famous war time strategy book
known as The Art of War.
Maybe you've heard of it.
It's a very famous book.
A lot of military generals across the world still read that book today
because there's a lot of great lessons.
And there are going to be some quotes that I give you out of this book,
The Art of War.
Not that I'm trying to teach you some other book.
I'm just giving you some illustrations that line up with scripture,
that line up with what Christ did with Judas Iscariot.
And one of the very famous, I'm sure you've all heard this quote,
actually comes from Sun Tzu, is keep your friends close
and your enemies closer.
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
What does Jesus do with his enemy?
Keeps him very close.
One of my apostles.
And look, he treats him well.
Right?
He doesn't single out Judas Iscariot.
He's not attacking Judas Iscariot.
You know, he treats him just as well as he does all his other disciples.
Keep your friends close and your enemies close.
Again, your natural response is once it's nothing to do with someone you suspect,
but sometimes it's best that you're actually close by.
In case they start taking actions against you.
It starts to become a greater awareness.
You can start taking notes of the actions that are taken against you.
If you can come with me to Romans 12.
Come with me to Romans 12 and verse number 17.
Romans 12 and verse number 17.
Now, if you suspect someone or you're confident,
this is my enemy. This person hates me.
This is one of the hardest things in the Bible.
And I preach a lot about it.
I think I preach a lot about it is because I need to hear it myself.
Sometimes when I preach on something a lot is because I just need to hear it.
Honestly.
And it says in Romans 12, 17.
Because again, it's not natural to do good to your enemies.
Okay?
And you might say, well, I don't have part of the strategic brain.
You know, I don't have the tactical awareness
to desire to treat my enemies well or to keep them close.
And so the Lord makes it easy for us.
Okay?
He makes it easy for us.
You know, instead of relying on our tactical awareness,
He just gives us a command.
Okay?
And the command is here in Romans 12, 17.
Recompense to know man evil for evil.
Provide things honest in the sight of all men.
If it be possible, as much as life in you,
live peaceably with all men.
Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves,
but rather give place unto wrath,
for it is written, vengeance is mine.
I will repay, saith the Lord.
Let's stop there for a moment.
If you have a suspected enemy seeking to hurt you,
don't you want the Lord to step in?
Again, you don't know for sure.
You suspect, all right, as we're going through this.
You're suspecting this person's going to harm me.
But you don't know for sure.
It could just be a brother in the Lord.
Like I said, going through a hard day, a hard time in life.
Instead of you taking vengeance,
instead of you recompensing evil for evil, give it to God.
You say, Lord, if vengeance needs to be taken,
I'm leaving it in your hands.
Let's keep going there.
It says in Psalm 20,
Therefore, if thine enemy hunger, feed him.
If he thirst, give him drink.
What did Jesus do to his enemy, Judas Iscariot?
He fed him, gave him to drink, right?
Like all of the blessings of the ministry of Christ.
He even gave Judas Iscariot the bag, the treasury, the money.
Give him drink, for in so doing,
thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head,
be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
See, we don't always know.
When we suspect somebody,
we don't know if that person is seeking to harm us.
But the Lord knows.
The Lord knows.
So just do good.
To your friends, you do good.
To your friends, give them something to drink.
If they're thirsty, if they're hungry,
give them something to eat.
But even your suspected enemy,
if they're thirsty, give them something to drink.
If they're hungry, give them something to eat.
Okay?
And what are you doing if they are an enemy?
You're actually causing the Lord to step in
and for him to bring vengeance upon that person
that he's seeking to harm you.
The other advantage to this,
I'm gonna quickly read to you,
you don't have to turn there,
is from Proverbs 16 verse seven, which says,
when a man's ways please the Lord,
he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
You know, if someone is your enemy,
seeking to hurt you, seeking to backstab you,
and you start to do nice things to them,
you know, sometimes you can win them over.
Before they betray you, before they hurt you,
you know what, you try to live peaceably with that person,
sometimes you can win them over.
Your enemy can become your friend.
Okay?
Because they say, well, you know,
I didn't like this individual,
I wanted to hurt this individual,
you know, but they're so nice to me.
They're so kind to me.
They're treating me even better
than my own friends are treating me.
Maybe I'm completely wrong about this individual.
You can win people over.
This is the advantage of doing good to your enemies.
Not only do you allow the Lord to step in and him
to provide the vengeance,
but you could win them over to be a friend of yours.
And now you're at peace again.
Now you don't have to worry about the betrayal.
You don't have to worry about the attack,
because the enemy has become your friend.
You see, there's a lot of advantages
to treating your enemy as well.
The other advantage brethren is,
let's say you suspect someone.
You just suspect them.
And they're not your enemy.
They love you.
They're just having a bad day, like I said.
Okay?
And you, well, you start treating them like an enemy.
You start going on the attack against them.
You start to treat them poorly.
But they never met.
They were never your enemy.
Now your reputation is being defiled.
Now your testimony, okay?
Because you're acting on suspicion.
Alone.
No evidence.
Okay?
And you're treating someone horribly.
And your suspicion was wrong all along.
Your suspicions can be wrong.
Your intuition can be wrong.
It's not always right.
It can be wrong.
So treat your enemies well.
Do good to your enemies.
Love your enemies.
And that's the hard part.
In fact, this whole procedure is quite hard.
It's a strain.
You'll find if you're going through this situation,
it's a mental strain.
Because you're having to do things that are contrary
to your natural desires.
Okay?
Now, if you can come with me to Luke 22.
Come with me to Luke 22, verse number 1.
Luke 22, verse number 1.
This next step, again, you're going to feel like,
no way, I can't do this.
You're going to feel like, I can't do this, pastor.
Okay?
No, it's actually really important.
And again, we see the steps of Christ as it does this.
Now, Luke 22, before we read Luke 22,
we've been going chapter by chapter through the book of John,
haven't we?
As a church.
And you know we're up to near the crucifixion of Christ.
And as we've been going through, you know that the Jews
have gotten so frustrated, especially the chief rulers
and the Pharisees, so angry at Jesus Christ
that they're seeking to kill him.
Okay?
And even as the Passover feast comes around,
Jesus Christ is saying, look, we've got to go back to Jerusalem
to go to the Passover, and his own disciples are like,
I don't know if we really need to go, Lord,
because they're seeking to kill you.
And look, they could kill us as well, the disciples.
So Jesus going to Jerusalem for the Passover,
when all these people are seeking to kill him,
what's Jesus Christ doing?
He's putting himself in a vulnerable position.
Look at Luke chapter 22, verse number 1.
Luke 22 and verse number 1, it says,
Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh,
which is called the Passover, and the chief priests and scribes
sought how they might kill him, for they feared the people.
See, there's a conspiracy here to kill Christ.
Christ knows, though.
His disciples know.
Everybody knows that they're seeking to kill Jesus.
And this might be the hardest one of all.
Step number 3 is you have to show yourself vulnerable.
You have to show yourself vulnerable.
You say, pastor, if they're trying to kill me in Jerusalem,
there's no way I'm going to turn up to Jerusalem.
But you need to understand what's important about this is
you're not making yourself vulnerable.
You're showing yourself vulnerable.
There's a difference.
You're not making yourself vulnerable.
You're showing yourself vulnerable.
Jesus Christ is literally walking into the trap
as he goes to the Passover feast.
Now, as we keep reading, I'll explain all that in a moment to you,
but let's keep reading there.
Luke 22, verse number 3.
Then entered Satan into Judas, surnamed Iscariot,
being of the number of the twelve,
and he went his way and communed with the chief priests and captains.
How he might betray him unto them,
and they were glad and covenanted to give him money,
and he promised and sought opportunity to betray him unto them
in the absence of the multitude.
You see, when you make yourself vulnerable,
the enemy now starts to show their fangs.
They start to show their teeth.
They see the opportunity.
Wow, the person that I'm seeking to attack is vulnerable.
This is my opportunity.
Jesus has gone into Jerusalem.
They're seeking to kill him.
Hey, I can make a profit from this.
I can make money off this.
I can betray Jesus.
And we see the whole motivation of Judas there.
We know the Bible says that he's a thief from the beginning.
Okay, this man was all about the money.
He got into the ministry for the money.
Well, you know what, Jesus Christ, in his eyes, he doesn't believe in Christ.
He doesn't believe he's the Messiah.
He doesn't believe he's the Son of God,
so I'll just sell off this man,
and I'll make a profit,
and the others will step in and do something about it.
The chief priests and the captains, they'll go and arrest Jesus Christ.
But the only reason Judas did this
is because Christ put himself in a vulnerable position.
You see, you might have an enemy seeking to hurt you,
and they're just waiting for that opportunity to open up itself.
When is it going to open up?
Instead of playing into their hands,
you have to open up the opportunity.
You have to put yourself in a vulnerable position,
or make them assume that you're in a vulnerable position.
Let me read to you another part of The Art of War from Sun Tzu.
It says, if your opponent is arrogant,
pretend to be weak so he will underestimate you.
I'll read that again.
If your opponent is arrogant,
pretend to be weak so that he will underestimate you.
Okay, Judas Christ put himself in a weak position.
But was Jesus truly weak?
Was Jesus truly weak?
You know, the lion waits to attack the vulnerable,
and we know that Satan is a rowing lion seeking whom he may devour.
When you think of a lion in the wilderness,
a lion in the wild,
he'll try to find, number one, a sickly animal,
one that is not strong, one that cannot run fast.
That's an easy prey.
Or he might find a wanderer,
a creature that's wandered away from the herd,
and he'll go on the attack.
The lion finds the vulnerable,
and then the lion attacks.
This is what your enemy is like.
He's like a lion.
They can't help themselves.
Once they find the vulnerability,
they will attack, okay?
And this is the time when you'll know
where your suspicions have been fully realised
and you know this is my enemy
because you've allowed yourself a position
for them to go on the attack.
You know, if you suspect someone
and they're actually a friend,
and like I said, they just had a rough time
and you suspected them,
and you show yourself a period of vulnerability,
you know what your friend's going to do?
They're not going to attack you.
They're going to try to encourage you.
They're going to get around you.
They see you vulnerable.
They'll try to support you.
They'll pray for you.
They'll do good to you.
They'll love you, okay?
And at that point, you can say,
well, ma'am, my suspicion was completely wrong.
But you've not treated that person any different.
You've not treated them badly,
so there's no harm in the friendship.
But the enemy, when they see the vulnerability,
they'll attack.
Again, you're showing yourself vulnerable.
You're not really vulnerable, okay?
You know, have you ever played a game of...
My dad, he's not really a chess player,
but he played checkers.
He's very good at checkers
and my dad taught me how to play checkers
and then I learned chess later on.
But the principle applies to both games.
Sometimes my dad will play
and he'll show himself vulnerable
and he'll move a piece and I'm like,
oh, man, I've got a chance here.
I can eat two of these pieces.
So bang, bang, yes.
I'm two pieces ahead.
And I've done that
and then my dad's like bang, bang, bang.
Sometimes bang, bang, bang, bang, bang.
I went on the attack.
I saw the vulnerability.
But he wasn't vulnerable.
You know what I'm saying?
He showed himself vulnerable.
And because I'm his opponent in the game,
I went on the attack
because that's what happens
when you're playing chess.
You know, one of the tactics
is to pretend your queen is vulnerable.
Your queen is the most powerful piece.
You show the queen to be vulnerable
and people can't help themselves
but go on the attack.
But if you have a world planned out,
then you're going to obviously
counter-attack much more powerfully
and get the advantage over your opponent.
That's the idea behind showing yourself
to be vulnerable.
You're not really vulnerable.
You're there in Luke 22, aren't you?
Actually, I'll just read these passages to you.
In fact, I think you've got a finger
in Matthew 27 anyway,
so you might want to go to Matthew 26 for me.
Come with me to Matthew 26.
Now, the difference between you and Christ,
myself and Christ,
you know, we're not seeking to,
hopefully we're not seeking
to be hurt by the enemy.
Judas went on the attack
but don't forget Jesus
allowed the attack to take place.
You know, it says in John 10, 17,
you go to Matthew 26,
it says in John 10, 17,
these are the words of Christ,
Therefore doth my Father love me,
because I lay down my life,
that I might take it up again.
No man taketh it from me,
but I lay it down of myself.
I have power to lay it down
and I have power to take it up again.
This commandment have I received of my Father.
Does Jesus sound weak
when he says these words?
Because I lay down my life.
I'm making the decision.
I'm allowing the betrayer and my enemies
to take a hold of me.
But this was, of course,
always the plan of Jesus Christ.
This was always the goal,
that he would be arrested, taken,
beaten and crucified for us,
that he would die in our place.
And so this is not a point of weakness,
but Christ showed himself weak.
He showed himself vulnerable
so that the enemy could present themselves.
They can't help themselves.
They've been waiting for Judas Iscariot,
they've been waiting for three,
he's been waiting for three years
to go on the attack of Christ.
You know, sometimes you can have enemies
that masquerade as your friend
and they can be that way for three years,
for five years, for ten years.
They're just waiting for the vulnerability.
They're waiting for the opportunity.
Then they attack.
That's how wicked these people are.
You're there in Matthew 26,
look at verse number 52.
This, of course, takes place
as Christ is getting arrested.
This is after Judas betrays him
and you know the story where Peter
takes out his sword and strikes off an ear
of one of the servants.
Matthew 26 verse 52,
Then said Jesus unto him,
Put up again thy sword into his place,
for all they that take the sword
shall perish with the sword.
He's telling Peter,
don't go on the attack.
This is the whole thing I'm trying to teach you today.
You don't have to go on the attack.
Alright?
He goes in verse number 53,
Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father,
and he shall presently give me
more than twelve legions of angels?
Let me ask you again,
was Jesus actually vulnerable?
Was Jesus truly weak?
No.
Number one,
he's the one deciding to lay down his life,
but number two,
at any point,
he could have twelve legions of angels
protecting him
from the attack of Judas Iscariot
and those that conspired against him.
This is what I'm saying,
show yourself vulnerable,
so your enemy,
because they're so ferocious,
they're so seeking to hurt you,
they'll take that opportunity,
but you've opened up that opportunity.
You've prepared yourself.
And this is the hard part,
because it can be hurtful.
It can be hurtful to see a friend become an enemy.
It's hurtful to be betrayed.
Even if you suspect it all along,
it still hurts.
We see when Judas Iscariot betrayed Christ,
he says his spirit was troubled.
It still caused him hurt.
He still considered him a friend.
He still treated Judas in a loving way,
like he did with his other apostles.
So brethren,
so brethren, show yourself vulnerable.
That's a tricky one.
But it's the only way for these people to show themselves
for what they are.
Now, I've got step number four for you.
Okay.
Step number four is optional.
It's hard.
It's a tricky one.
Okay.
It's a tricky one.
But,
so you're showing yourself vulnerable.
Your enemies are seeking to attack you.
They start to formulate a plan.
What did Judas Iscariot do?
He conspired with the chief priest and the captains.
You'll often find someone that is seeking to betray you,
they're too cowardly to do it themselves.
They try to get other people.
They try to get a number.
They try to get a majority against you.
Okay.
I mean, Judas, all he has to do is kiss Christ on the cheek.
That's it.
And the rest will come and arrest him.
The others will.
Okay.
I mean, Judas doesn't really do much.
He's behind the scenes.
Okay.
He's organized.
He's the main guy,
but he wants to operate behind the scenes.
He wants other people to do his dirty work.
Now, come with me to John 13, please.
Come with me to John 13.
John 13, verse number 26.
And these should be just familiar verses,
because we just taught on this on Wednesday, not long ago.
John 13, verse number 26.
Let's read the passage and then I'll give you step number four.
But this one's optional.
It's optional because you need to get the right timing.
And sometimes the timing can be difficult to work out.
And especially if you're kind of emotional,
you're kind of fearful what's going to happen.
I'm going to be betrayed.
I'm going to get attacked.
Sometimes you're not thinking clearly.
But of course, Christ always thought clearly.
Okay.
So we see like a perfect example of this.
And it says in John 13, 26.
This is the Last Supper.
Jesus answered,
He it is to whom I shall give a sop,
when I have dipped it.
And when he had dipped the sop,
he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.
So he's demonstrating who the traitor is.
Judas Iscariot.
Now you may recall in the story,
the disciples still didn't get it.
And that's okay.
That's one side of it.
But if Jesus Christ just finished giving Judas Iscariot the sop,
who gets it?
Jesus gets it and Judas gets it.
Look at verse number 27.
And after the sop, Satan entered into him.
Then said Jesus unto him,
that thou doest do quickly.
What's it saying to Judas?
I know you're going to betray me.
I know you're my enemy.
So go and do it quickly.
Get on with it.
Step number four, inform your enemy
that you are aware of their intentions.
Step number four is inform your enemy
that you are aware of their intentions.
That you know, you're not fooled.
You now have some concrete evidence against them.
This isn't just a suspicion.
You've seen their actions.
You know that they've gathered together with other people
to cause you harm, to betray you.
You know their actions are harmful or hurtful.
Why would you want to inform your enemy?
They've really started the attack.
They've really started.
They can't stop the attack now.
When you inform your enemy that you know what they're about to do,
you know what happens to your enemy?
They get flustered.
They start to panic because they wanted you to not know
until it's too late.
They start to panic. They get flustered.
They start making stupid decisions.
Okay?
They start making stupid decisions.
You're giving them enough rope to hang themselves.
Okay?
Like, their plan is out of the window.
Their original plan is just out of the window.
Now it's a matter of urgency.
I better act upon this quickly.
Again, you're helping with the timing.
Go and do it quickly.
There's a short time. I know what your intentions are.
I know you're at my enemy.
I know you're seeking to hurt me, so get on with it.
That's going to take them back.
It's like, what? You want me to go on the attack?
But they've really started the attack.
They've really showed their fangs.
They can't stop now. Okay?
They've got a short time.
They're going to start doing foolish things.
They're going to show themselves for the enemy that they are.
Again, you don't have to attack them.
They'll reveal themselves.
They'll manifest themselves.
They'll show themselves for the wicked people that they are.
Again, tricky because it requires to be done in a certain timeframe.
The timeframe for Jesus was the Passover.
That he would be arrested and that he would be killed at the same time
that the Passover lambs would be slaughtered in Jerusalem.
Jesus Christ was working on the timeframe.
And sometimes you need to work on the timeframe.
This is why it's optional. It's tricky.
Because you need to have a calm mind.
You need to put away the emotions.
You've got to have a plan.
And you have to realize, look, the time is short.
Action needs to happen soon.
It needs to happen soon.
This can't go on.
But again, you've prepared yourself.
You know it's coming.
So as I said, it unsettles your enemy.
They realize their time is short.
They don't have enough time to strategize against you.
And they can slip up and make mistakes.
Come with me back to Matthew 27.
Come back with me to Matthew 27 and verse number 5.
Obviously, once Judas kisses Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane
and the captains and the guards come and arrest Jesus.
At that point, obviously, the other disciples knew
or know that Judas was a betrayer all along.
That Judas was never a brother in the Lord.
He was never a believer of Jesus Christ.
Not because Jesus had to outwardly do anything to show that.
Judas revealed it himself.
For what he did to Christ.
Matthew 27 verse 5.
We read this one already.
And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple
and departed and went and hanged himself.
Step number 5 is allow your enemy to disgrace himself.
Allow your enemy to disgrace.
Don't stop them.
Just let them disgrace themselves.
Let them show themselves for the wicked people that they are.
Let me read to you another quote from the Art of War from Sun Tzu.
He says.
This guy was like a great military leader.
I don't know how many battles he was involved in
but he didn't lose any of them.
Okay.
He says,
Supreme excellence.
This is what he considers supreme excellence in the battlefield.
Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.
How do you break your enemy's resistance without fighting?
You let them destroy themselves.
Okay.
Jesus Christ did not go on the attack.
Jesus did not fight back.
But Judas destroys himself.
He destroys his testimony.
He betrays innocent blood that the burden, the guilt falls upon him.
He goes and kills himself.
Jesus Christ gave him enough rope.
Jesus Christ gave him freedom.
Jesus Christ allowed him to go and betray him.
Jesus Christ allowed Judas to be the wicked man,
show himself to be the wicked man that he was.
Look at verse number six.
And the chief priest took the silver pieces and said,
It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury
because it is the price of blood.
And they took counsel and brought with them the potters field to bury strangers in.
Wherefore that field was called the field of blood unto this day.
It appears that Judas was buried in this field.
But if what he sold Christ for, the thirty pieces of silver, is known as the field of blood.
The field of blood represents innocent blood.
That Judas is a betrayer.
Like they even got a piece of land that forever is shameful to Judas.
That he is a betrayer of innocent blood.
The field of blood.
And brethren you allow your enemies to disgrace themselves.
The shame is on show for everybody.
The weakness is on show for everybody.
And you didn't even have to fight back.
This is my secret weapon when it comes to dealing with people.
Sometimes I get people say to me, Pastor you're very kind or you're very accommodating to this individual person.
But I suspect they're an enemy.
Yeah I've been kind for a reason.
I'm not ignorant.
You know I didn't become a pastor out of ignorance.
You know I was 37 years old before I became a pastor.
I've got a lot of experience dealing with very difficult people, difficult situations.
But we see the example of Christ.
If Christ has come to give us an example to follow up these steps.
Then brethren this is very powerful.
This is very helpful in your life.
Very helpful.
I'm not going to say it's easy.
Your emotions can get out of control.
Mentally you might be a little bit disturbed thinking that someone you consider a friend to be a betrayer.
Just go on the attack.
But just do what Christ did.
Just do good to your enemies.
Give people enough rope to hang themselves.
Show yourself vulnerable.
Start being tactical about how you do things.
Be like Christ.
Okay and then you leave the vengeance to the Lord.
He'll take care of it.
Leave it in God's hands.
He'll do a better job with your enemy than what you can do.
Enough rope to hang themselves.
Now I'm going to give you just a very quick life.
You know I didn't want to really.
I'm not trying to target these individuals.
I want you to understand.
I just want to give you an example of how I applied this principle.
These steps in my life as a pastor.
Alright.
So I said to you step one take note of suspicious behaviour.
When in 2020 when COVID started to you know hit and we had all the COVID restrictions.
I started to receive phone calls from people at Blessed Up Baptist Church.
Nothing unusual. I get phone calls all the time.
But there were concerns about church or church individuals.
And it started to raise for me suspicious.
I started to see suspicious behaviour.
Things that are outside of the norm.
Now again my default position.
I want to think the best of people.
You know COVID.
I mean it's unsettling people.
Restrictions.
Maybe people think it's the.
Some people thought it's the end of the world.
It's tribulation.
Etc.
It's unsettling to certain people.
And so I'm just okay.
Maybe brave and unsettling.
But behaviour.
I've become suspicious.
It doesn't seem right.
I'm not going to go through the actions.
That's not what it's about.
The purpose of this example is so you can see the steps.
You can see what Christ did and how it can apply in real life.
Okay.
So it took not a suspicious behaviour.
I'm not treating these people that I feel that are suspicious.
I'm not treating them any different.
I've been loving.
I've been a friend.
Again my suspicions could be wrong.
It could just be COVID that's causing people distress.
Step number two is show kindness and do good.
Okay.
So you guys know what I decided to do.
I felt like there were cracks developing at Blessed Baptist Church.
Okay.
So I decided to go down to Sydney.
Okay.
To show kindness.
To do good to the brethren.
To do good to the sheep that are down there.
To help lead them in a time potentially of challenges
because the restrictions were getting much heavier in Sydney
than they were here on the Sunshine Coast.
Then I showed myself to be vulnerable.
And there was a disagreement as it were with a brother in the Lord
who claimed that I had made promises, certain promises
and that I had lied.
I won't go into all the details.
Some of you guys know the details but I'm not going to go through all.
And I claimed that I had lied and that I had done harm
and you know they wanted to take this to the church
and for the church to make a decision about me as a pastor.
First of all, I knew that no matter what happens
the church would not side with this person.
I knew because I had already had evidence
to show that I had not made any promises or had not lied toward anybody.
I document things.
I come from a business world where you document things.
You document things.
It's not just in my brain.
You take note of things.
You keep track of things.
And I already knew that nothing's going to happen.
But I showed myself vulnerable by saying
and I said this to many people, even to some people here
that if the church sides against me
and thinks I've sinned against this brother
then I'm going to step down as a pastor of Blessed Baptist Church.
That's a pretty vulnerable position.
That's a state of I'm showing myself to be weak.
And I'm not a hero.
I'm not a hero.
I'm just showing you.
This was a tough time.
This is mentally straining.
This is not easy.
Troubling, sad, sorrow.
I'm not like, oh, look at me.
I'm such a great guy.
I wish this never happens.
But you've got to show your enemy, as it were,
like a boxing illustration.
You're on the ropes.
Just one strike to the head, you might be knocked down.
You've got to show that weakness, though you're not weak.
Because at that point, you need to now figure out,
is this person my enemy?
Are my suspicions right here?
Is this person a liar?
Is this person a betrayer?
Is this person a traitor?
The only way I can know is if I show myself to be vulnerable.
Because just like the lion seeking the prey,
they were looking for the vulnerability
and then they'll attack.
So I showed myself to be vulnerable.
I was always going to continue to be in the past with myself
at this church.
I knew that.
And surely, yes, they went on the attack.
And not just one, but two went on the attack.
Why?
Why two?
Because just like Judas Iscariot,
they try to find other people to join them.
It's easier to be behind the scenes and try to get others.
And there was attempt to enlist others.
But the others still threw it.
So you show yourself vulnerable.
And by showing vulnerability, they went on the attack.
And the attack was, again, I won't go into everything,
but secret messages, secret chat groups,
accusations thrown about me with no evidence,
without me knowing so I can bring forth a defense.
So I see this as an attack now.
This isn't just brothers trying to do the right thing.
Because, again, when you show yourself weak,
what's a friend going to do?
A friend's going to lovingly come up to you,
be honorable, be loving.
They're going to try to edify you.
But the enemy goes on the attack.
The enemy goes on the attack.
The traitor goes on the attack when they see the vulnerability.
Once I found out about the secret chat groups,
of course my church are going to tell me about it.
Of course someone's going to say,
Pastor, I've got a concern.
I don't want to think the worst of somebody,
but this is happening.
Of course that's going to happen.
I don't have the knowledge and intuition of Jesus,
but at some point, if you've got a clear conscience
and you leave vengeance to the Lord,
he'll make sure things transpire in your favor.
And then I could tell my enemy,
look, I know you're on the attack.
I know what you're doing.
Remember, step number four, which is optional,
inform your enemy that you are aware of their intentions.
And guess what happens?
Panic. Mistakes.
The original plan falls apart.
They know their time is short,
and they start to message church men,
long messages about how wicked I am,
how I'm trying to destroy the church,
you know, a blessed-up Baptist church.
I come to preach on Sunday,
pages and pages of documentation about how,
I don't even know because I've never read it.
I never read these messages.
That's how clear my conscience is.
I don't care about it because to me it's just rubbish.
And the people that did read those messages,
they say, pastor, it's rubbish.
I can't even believe they're saying that stuff about you.
I don't even know what it is.
I don't want to know.
But what's happening?
Did I go on the attack? No.
Did I ever accuse these men of anything?
All I did, once all the evidence was there,
is look, church, look at this railing,
look at this behavior,
and then I conducted church discipline
based on their railing behavior.
Like nobody can turn around and say,
man, pastor, you went out hard.
You attacked these men.
You made these accusations. No.
They did it themselves.
They went on the attack themselves.
I gave them enough rope.
I did the steps of Jesus Christ.
Reverend, this works.
This is like a secret weapon.
It's completely the opposite
of what you want to do as a human being.
But I promise you it works.
God's word always works.
You do it God's way, it always works.
And, Reverend, the fellowship at Blessed Up Baptist Church
has never been sweeter
once you deal with the enemies,
once you deal with betrayers.
I'm not saying they're reprobate.
I'm not saying they're Judas Iscariot in that sense.
But this works everywhere.
This works anyway.
As long as you do it the right way.
You say, Lord, I'm not going to take vengeance.
Vengeance is yours.
Vengeance is yours, Lord.
You know what? I'm going to have a clear conscience.
I'm just going to do good.
I'm going to do good to my enemies.
If they're thirsty, I'll feed them.
If they're hungry, I'll give them to drink.
If they're hungry, I'll give them something to eat.
And, Reverend, it works again.
You just have to, by faith, understand that this works.
Because God is all powerful.
And even if you don't do it quite right,
if the Lord sees you trying to follow the steps of Christ,
He will bless you.
He will cause the events to fall in your favour.
And your enemies, your betrayers,
you know, they'll show themselves for what they are.
Alright, brethren, in conclusion.
Let me give you those steps one more time, in conclusion.
Step number one.
Take note of suspicious behaviour.
Step number two.
Show kindness, do good.
In fact, before I conclude, just very quickly,
I'll give you another example.
On the job, just a very quick one.
I was offered a promotion.
I was offered a position once.
A very high position.
I never wanted it. I never sought it.
There were other people, other colleagues of mine,
that sought the position.
They were doing the training,
they were doing the university degrees,
they were sucking up to the bosses,
they were doing everything they could do to get the position.
I did not care for the position.
But then the position was offered to me.
Because I just want to try to work hard,
and try to be a good worker. That's it.
Position was offered to me.
Okay, that's good money.
Help me pay down the mortgage, I'll take it.
My colleagues that wanted the position,
do you think they're happy about that?
No, they worked so hard for that position.
Okay.
One colleague in particular that I'm thinking about
stopped talking to me.
Okay.
And I need to work with this colleague.
We've got to work. We've got to be productive.
We've got to achieve. We've got to get the work done.
This one colleague stops talking to me.
And I'm like, oh.
Has this become my enemy? Has this person become my enemy?
Okay.
That's what I'm thinking. I say, look, I'll leave it for a week.
I realise maybe they're having a hard day.
I want to think the best of people.
So I'm still going to treat them well.
I'm still going to greet them even if they don't want to talk to me.
I'm still going to say bye at the end of the day
even if they don't want anything to do with me.
I'm still going to treat them well.
I'm not going to treat them any differently.
Maybe they're just hurt. They're just going for a hard, you know.
They wanted the position so badly
and they're just having a hard time accepting that they didn't get the position.
Let's think about that.
Then the day goes by, day after day after day.
Not talking, not talking, not acknowledging.
I'm this person's boss, by the way.
I'm their boss now.
Okay. Not talking, not talking, not talking.
A week goes by.
I'm like, man, we've got to get work done.
So I start documenting. This could be an enemy.
Look, we've got work to do.
And by this person's actions, we're not getting the work done.
We're not achieving what we need to achieve.
So I start documenting these things in case I need to take disciplinary action,
fire this individual potentially
if it leads to that.
Okay? But why am I documenting?
Because I'm not going on the attack.
I'm going to demonstrate how this person
is hurting the business,
how this person is hurting relationships.
So another week goes by.
We're coming up to two weeks.
No talking, no collaboration.
I don't even know what kind of work is being done.
Maybe no work. I don't know.
Right? Because there's no communication.
And I get to this point going, all right,
I think this might be an enemy.
Hurt me somehow. I don't know.
Okay, maybe I need to start showing
what this person is doing.
Well, as I prepared to
show others what's happening,
HR department, et cetera, so I can take disciplinary action,
this individual comes into my office
and says, Kevin,
I'm so sorry for not talking to you for the last two weeks.
I've been so upset that I did not get the position.
You know what? I'm not mad at you.
I'm just angry about the situation.
I wanted it so badly.
I finally realised I'm just being an idiot
by behaving like this.
I'm really sorry.
And this individual became
one of my best colleagues, one of my best friends
on the job. After that,
why? Because you do good.
Right?
I mean, if I started to treat this person
harshly because of the way they were acting immediately,
they could end up becoming a betrayer.
They could end up becoming an enemy.
But by following this process,
instead of it being a bad result,
or a result in the sense of a
trade-out, exposing themselves,
I want this person over.
You know,
I became great friends, great work colleagues.
We got so much more work done, so much more productive.
See Brevin, this works
no matter how you apply it.
Even if your suspicions aren't right,
it still works.
So step number two
was show kindness, do good.
Step number three, show yourself vulnerable.
Step number four, optional.
Inform your enemy
that you are aware of their intentions.
And step number five, allow your enemy
to disgrace himself.
Okay Brevin, I hope that's a blessing. A bit of a strange sermon.
But it's still related to Easter somehow, right?
Alright, let's pray.
Heavenly Father, Lord, I want to thank you for this day.
Thank you for this morning.
Lord, thank you for helping me to
communicate, Lord,
this important doctrine,
Lord, this important information
that we need to hear. Lord, Jesus Christ
has given us such a wonderful example.
And we know he's God.
And we know he knew all things.
But Lord, he's still given us an example
of how to walk this earth.
And Lord, many of us have had situations
where we've been betrayed.
Or we've had people go on the attack.
Lord, maybe we've not handled it the right way.
Lord, I pray that we could take these instructions
and apply it in our lives moving forward.
And Lord, we want to leave vengeance in your hands.
Lord, thank you so much for being a God that protects us.
Lord, help us have a clear conscience
in the way that we do.
And we thank you so much for our Savior.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
Alright, hymn number 137, please.
Hymn number 137.
One, three, seven.
In times like these.
You need a Savior.
One, three, seven.
In times like these.
You need a Savior.
In times like these.
You need an anchor.
Be very sure.
Your anchor holds
and grips a solid rock.
This rock is Jesus.
Yes, he's the one.
This rock is Jesus.
The only one.
Be very sure.
Your anchor holds
and grips a solid rock.
In times like these.
You need the Bible.
In times like these.
Oh, be not old.
You need the Bible.
In times like these.
Oh, be not old.
Be very sure.
Your anchor holds
and grips a solid rock.
This rock is Jesus.
Yes, he's the one.
This rock is Jesus.
The only one.
Be very sure.
Your anchor holds
and grips a solid rock.
In times like these.
I have a Savior.
In times like these.
I have an anchor.
I'm very sure.
My anchor holds
and grips a solid rock.
This rock is Jesus.
Yes, he's the one.
This rock is Jesus.
The only one.
I'm very sure.
My anchor holds
and grips a solid rock.