WEBVTT

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Grace mercy, and peace, be yours in the knowledge of God, our Father

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and Jesus Christ

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the Lord.

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Amen.

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The text for the sermon is the gospel lesson read a few minutes ago.

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Some people may be quite a few find this text challenging.

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Now, the challenge is not in the meaning.

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Jesus is quite plain. Love your enemies. Do

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good to those who hate you. Bless those who curse you.

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Pray for those who persecute you. If someone strikes you on one cheek

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offer him the other. If they take your coat offer your jacket.

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Give to those who ask. Lend without expecting repayment.

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Don't judge, and you won't be judged. Don't condemn

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and you won't be condemned. Instead

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forgive and you will be forgiven, give, and it will be given to you.

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Jesus instruction about your life and it is your life.

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This instruction for all the people of God is quite clear here.

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There's no challenge in understanding Jesus

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meaning.

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No, the challenge is, of course in what Jesus is asking for.

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Love your enemies. Do

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good to those who hate you.

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Give to everyone who asks?

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Now, one of the challenges here or to get at the challenge, a one way

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of seeing it is a matter of framing.

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From what perspective

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are you looking at

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this?

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Maybe you've been in a Bible study, perhaps you've heard a sermon.

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Maybe you done this in your own devotional reading.

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Consider your reading along and you consider.

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I have to love her.

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What about that guy?

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I know he just waste the money

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I give him. I've lend to him all sorts of times.

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I don't expect the money back, but really the things he spends in on.

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Now, those are not illegitimate questions, but note the frame.

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It's from your perspective.

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What it costs you. What you have to give up.

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Now I mentioned the framing because Jesus himself provides framing for

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his own instruction.

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Why should you love your enemies?

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Why should you pray for those who persecute you?

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Why should you give to those, who ask?

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Well, it's about how you're going to be treated.

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Why should you not judge?

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Why should you not condemn?

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Why

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instead of, should you forgive? Why should you give?

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Because by the measure you use, you'll be used on you. Whatever you

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want others to do for you do also for them.

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That's one way in which Jesus frames this, not in terms of what it

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might cost

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you. Not might suffer, not in terms of what you might lose.

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But rather in how you will be treated.

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If you want people to be generous and kind, if you want people to be

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gracious and merciful.

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Be generous and kind be gracious and merciful.

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However, you would like people to treat you treat them. The measure

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you use

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will be used on you.

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So that's one way in which Jesus frames it.

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But he has a second frame.

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If you love, just those who love you.

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What's the big deal?

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Even, sinners, do that.

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And by sinners, he meant here, Israelites who lived with open clear

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disregard for following the law of Moses.

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We're not just talking about people who fail to do this or don't do

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that.

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We're talking about people who are outcasts, even they love those who

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love them.

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If you lend only to those who, you know, you can get back.

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Sinners, do that.

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Don't be a sinner.

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Be like God.

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Be like your Father.

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Because that's ultimately what is behind all of this, God's Own Mercy

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for you.

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God is your Father.

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He made himself your Father in baptism.

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When Jesus was in the Jordan and was baptized, God, himself spoke and

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called Jesus, his Son, and gave him his Holy Spirit.

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And that's what happened when you were baptized according to the

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command and institution of Jesus Christ, in the name of the Father and

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of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, you are sons of the most high.

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You are children of God.

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God is your Father.

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And that's a good and great thing.

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Martin Luther expressed it beautifully.

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When he explained, Our Father Who Art in Heaven. God would by these

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words

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tenderly invite us to believe that he is our true father

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and we are his true children.

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That is what you are.

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You have the right to go to God.

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You have the right to follow God. You have inheritance from God.

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Everything that is God will be yours.

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Think of that frame. And that's what Jesus proposes.

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If you love your enemies, if you do good, if you lend without

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expecting repayment, you will be sons of the most high you'll be real

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Children of God.

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You will be what you are.

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Just as your Father is merciful

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so also you.

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The frame is important.

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Frames are always important.

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This is talked a lot about by cognitive linguists and psychologists and

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philosophers and it's pretty subtle.

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Here's one an example from George akoff, who talks a lot about this.

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Talking about taxes.

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Imagine a politician runs on this on this promise.

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I'm going to give you tax relief.

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What's the frame?

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Well, if taxes are a burden, they are an affliction.

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Now, suppose someone thinks that's a bad idea.

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Don't run on being against tax relief.

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You have to change the frame.

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Frames matter.

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Now I noticed.

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Why did. I noticed

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when we were starting this service.

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We confessed I a poor miserable sinner.

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That's a frame.

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Now

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I understand, you know, perfectly

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well simul justus et peccator simultaneously, Saint and sinner.

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With the frame that our Lord

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is putting out here.

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Is that you are children of God.

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You are sons of the most high.

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Tax relief means nothing for those who can pay it.

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Tax relief means nothing for those for whom they have more money than

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they can spend.

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And you as children of God, you who have God as father have far more

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riches.

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You have nothing to lose by loving your enemies.

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You have nothing to lose.

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Nothing at all to lose by loving those who hate you.

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Blessing, those who curse you. By lending to those who can get anything

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back from, you have nothing to lose.

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Because all is yours already.

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Your Father was and is merciful to you.

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Your Father has given you promises that you can't imagine how they'll

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pay off.

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They will be great.

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They will be wonderful.

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Now with that, love your enemies.

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Pray for those who persecute you. Give to those, who ask.

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Be generous be kind.

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God was kind and generous to those who are ungrateful and wicked.

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Be the same.

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Don't judge, don't condemn forgive give

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because you are children of God.

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Be children of God full of kindness and mercy and generosity.

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In Jesus name. Amen.

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We continue with the offertory hymn.