Good evening, Lakeside. Good evening. 39 more days. I'm not counting down for Christmas. I'm a little bit older than that. 39 more days, we'll be done with 2020. I don't ever think I would applaud for that. What a year. It's just a year that keeps on giving. There's an aspect to it where I've never seen anything like it. But we're almost done. And there's a sense in which 2020 for us as believers has been different from everybody else. Because the world goes a little bit crazy by these kind of things and we expect it. They panic and they fear because they fear death and they have reason to, they don't have hope. But Christians face the world differently. Our approach is a little bit different and yet there's an aspect of this year where I feel like it's been a running test for all of us. How will we deal with life when it doesn't go well? There's a part of me, and God's sovereign, He knows the future, not me, where I almost feel like this is a test run for what could become a new normal. And we, although our citizenship is in heaven and our hope is there, we still live here, and we have an opportunity to make an impact on our fellow citizens. The question is, how are we doing? How did you do this year? I'm going to read a particular verse. Our study is in 1 Peter 2, but I'm going to read a verse and it's sort of a prism to think through everything that happened this year and your reaction to it. In Philippians 2, verses 3 and 4, the Apostle Paul admonishes us, Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves. Do not merely look out for your own personal interest, but also for the interest of others. That attitude is in short supply amongst our fellow citizens in America. And if we're honest with ourselves, because I know the struggle of my heart, we're susceptible to ignoring that as well. That's what's made this year so difficult, is it's not a single thing. It seems to be an accumulation of things that never let up and press upon us. And are we going to respond as God would have us respond, or are we going to revert to our flesh that says, I've had enough? It's all of our struggle. And yet, the Bible points to a better way. In fact, as we've hopefully all processed the election, it's not all over, but I think we have a better idea of what's occurring. And I talked last week from First Peter about our duty to submit to the government. There's an aspect where we should be the best American citizens this country has ever known. We should be different than all other Americans. In fact, when our country is increasingly selfish and increasingly self-centered, and increasingly inward focused, and increasingly embracing all sorts of sin, the Bible obviously points a different way for us. And our text tonight, it's only two verses, but it should help us be the best citizens America has. But it's not just being good American citizens as though we took a civic class from high school or college and we're going to do everything with our rights. It's all part of Peter's broader directive to us from this letter. 1 Peter 1.15, I read it almost every time I teach. But like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior, because it is written, you shall be holy for I am holy. So as we continue this study together, remember our context from last week. This verses tonight are actually in that context of submission to the government. Verse 13 of chapter 2, Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether a king is one in authority or to governors is sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. As I taught last time, the mandate is difficult for us at times because we're required to submit to the government regardless of whether we like it or not. Unless the government tells us to sin, we submit. But in the context of this, this really is an expression for any believer in any time, but for us now, of how we live out our citizenship. Even our status as American citizens should be lived in a holy manner. So tonight, as we look into this text, that's what I'm going to be talking about. It's critical for us because our lives are an example to an unbelieving world. I value my rights. I value your rights. But the greatest issue that we face as individuals is not preserving our American citizenship. Our greatest issue is living wholly as an example to a nation that is cramming the wide road that leads to destruction. I've thought about this a lot and I thought about this in the context of tonight. If America is everything we want it to be, if we get every law passed, if we get every politician elected, if everything goes our way, and our fellow citizens wind up in hell because they don't know Christ, we've not accomplished anything other than our own comfort. So I want us to think outside of ourselves tonight. I think Peter wants us to think outside of ourselves tonight. I want us to think about what it would mean to be holy citizens. So our study tonight is in just two verses, 1 Peter 2, verses 16 and 17. I'm going to read those verses, and then we're going to see some principles of holy citizenship. Peter says this, beginning at verse 16, Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond slaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the King. So for my short study, I'm going to suggest that we can see from our text two essential principles of holy citizenship. Two essential principles of holy citizenship, so that we can be the best citizens America has ever known. The first is this, understand and use your freedom wisely. Understand and use your freedom wisely. Peter begins with a simple declaration and some admonition in verse 16. Act as free men and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond slaves of God. Now this is dealing with an issue that's been universal in the church. It was present in the early church, it's present now, but we need to dig into this a little bit because even the phraseology at times can throw us off. When Peter says, act as free men as the way it's originally done, the experts that know Greek much better than me tell us that this actually isn't a command to do something, it's actually a declaration of what we are. We are free men. For ease of reading, most English translations add in something like act or live. But Peter is not telling us to do something as much as he is telling us we are something. In Christ, we are free men. Now to us, that really doesn't necessarily jump off the page because we're free in America. So one of the things we value the most is our freedom. But in its immediate context and in the original time it was given, it conveyed something else, and it's something else that still has applicability to us. At the time of Peter writing, slavery was an integral part of Roman culture. Different experts say different things. I was reading yesterday one historian was saying as much as many as a third of the people in certain parts of the Roman Empire were slaves. Perhaps as many as one in five throughout the entire empire. Normally brought about because the Romans conquered people and they made them slaves. But the idea is that slavery was a fact of life in New Testament Christianity. The New Testament has many references to slavery. In fact, in verse 18, Peter begins to talk about the actual institution of slavery in terms of how slaves are to live in relation to their masters. But as is clear in the New Testament, one of the things that happened at the cross of Christ was that people got the same footing. Paul described it this way in Galatians 3.28, there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. So when Peter says we are free men, particularly when his original hearers would have seen this, it conveyed something important. Because some of the people that were called free men were actually slaves. Yet even the slaves in Christ were free. Again, I think there's an extent to where this language is a little bit minimized to America, because while we have a dark stain on our history of the institution of slavery, that ended a long time ago. In fact, the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution outlawed slavery in America. I'll read the 13th amendment. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted shall exist within the United States or any place subject to their jurisdiction. So when we come across the scripture that says free men, we have to be careful to not think too quickly that the language is just a picture or a figure that doesn't really apply to us. And I want to bring all this together because it impacts how you and I live. I'm going to start by saying something that won't seem right perhaps. If you're bear with me though, what I'm saying is actually true. I looked at one of those internet sites that tells you the population of America and within the United States as of yesterday, we have 328 million and some odd people. That's a lot of people in one country. We're not the biggest, but that's a lot of people. And yet, despite what I just read you from the 13th Amendment, every one of those individuals is a slave. Our default position as human beings is slavery and not in the context of one human subjugating another human to do their will. In John chapter 8 verses 33 and 34, Jesus made this clear, talking to the Jewish people, and He was talking about freedom. They answered Him, We are Abraham's descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone. How is it that You say You will become free? Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. When you combine that with Romans 3.23, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, that's it. Each one of the 328 million plus people that are within our borders began life as a slave to sin. And we know by just looking around that many, if not most of them, still are. In fact, the Bible says that Satan has dominion over them. God is sovereign, but He gives Satan a certain latitude with unbelievers. In the first part of Acts chapter 26 verse 18, it says this, talking about our salvation, but He says, to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God. So all those people in America, All of the people that are around us, they started out and many of them still are slaves today. They're slaves to sin and the 13th amendment can't help them. But when we become believers, we're delivered from all of that. We're delivered from the bondage to Satan. We're delivered from slavery to sin. The bondage to our flesh. And that's of course what Peter is talking about. Jesus said it this way in John 8, 36, So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. Paul again in Galatians chapter 5 verse 1 says, It was for freedom that Christ set us free. Therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. So when Peter says we're free men, he's not talking about the cultural interplay of individuals. He's talking about who we are in Christ. We're freed from wicked bondage. Our fellow citizens are still enslaved. And our hearts should be that they could have the freedom we have. But this is important. Even though we're freed from our slavery to sin, we're still slaves. Romans 6.22 says it this way, and we're going to read in a moment, Peter calls us bond slaves of God, but Paul said this, but now, having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit resulting in sanctification and the outcome eternal life. So in the context of being free men, We have to always be aware of the nature of that freedom. Our freedom from sin and bondage is real. We now have freedom from condemnation for those sins. We now have the freedom to willingly obey because God's given us a new heart and He's given us His Spirit and He's given us His Word. Really, we've been freed to be holy as God is holy. What Peter is getting to is the fact that our freedom should make us live differently than every other American. We actually can live according to God's will. We can comply with God's laws, not because we'll be condemned if we don't, or not because we're trying to earn God's favor, but because we love the one that first loved us. Jesus said in John chapter 14 verse 15, familiar words, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. And this is really getting to the heart and getting closer to what Peter is telling us and the lesson we need to learn. The freedom we have that's most valuable isn't given by our government, it's given by our Savior. It's freedom from Satan, freedom from bondage to sin, freedom from condemnation. Our freedom, if we're thinking about it correctly, really describes what happened when Christ died in our place. When I was first saved, I was drawn to these words, and they've never lost their power with me. Colossians 2 verse 13, When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, when we were in bondage. He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us which was hostile to us, and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. such that the Apostle Paul can tell us words that are music to our ears. Romans chapter 8 verse 1, Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and death. So when you think about being free, I want you to understand the depth and the preciousness of that gift from the Lord and then understand its consequences. Because Peter makes this declaration, but then he goes on to give a warning. Act as free men and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil. Almost sounds like an odd thing. Wait, he's talking to believers. What do you mean a covering for evil? He's really dealing with a tendency that existed amongst some people back then that still rears its head that says, because we're free and because we're saved, things are different. And they are. There's a theological word called antinomianism, which really just means no law against the law. The idea is that because of all that I just said about our freedom, because we're free men, some people have taken that to say, so guess what? You can do whatever you want. Which is true in one sense, and yet it's not true in the way that it's distorted and what Peter's warning against. There's a sense in which we don't have to obey the Old Testament laws. That's very clear. The book of Hebrews makes clear that that's done away with. I know a guy that taught on Hebrews one time and it was something he studied a lot. The Old Testament laws are gone. You don't have to comply with them. So there's a sense where that's true. In Christ, we don't have to obey the law. And there's another important sense that we don't have to obey the law to earn our salvation. That was what was so horrific about the Pharisees was they were trying to work their way to heaven with hard hearts. They weren't actually following God, they were complying with rules. In the Apostle Paul in Ephesians 2.8, said these great words, 8 and 9, for by grace you've been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not as a result of works so that no one may boast. So there's a sense in which it's absolutely true. You weren't saved because of the law. You didn't comply and obey and get saved. And once you're saved, you don't have to comply with the Old Testament ceremonial laws. But some people have taken that and gone in the wrong direction. Because that doesn't mean that we're not bound by anything that God tells us. We still have mandates from God. We still have things that we must do. Jesus wouldn't have talked about obeying my commandments if we were free to do whatever we want no matter what. One of the parts of the Great Commission that, at least in my early days, I always heard the first part but not the rest of it, Jesus said in Matthew 28 verse 19, Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. When I was first saved, I thought that was the Great Commission. But verse 20 says this, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you. So here's the fallacy of somebody that thinks the law doesn't matter. They think I can do whatever I want, and there's a sense in which you can, except that you're in sin if you do. Paul warned against the same thing. This was not an uncommon tendency in Galatians 5.13, For you were called to freedom, brethren, only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. So looking back at what Peter is telling us, Act as free men and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil. What he's saying is don't hide behind the fact that your sins are forgiven. Don't be a hypocrite. Don't comfort yourself by saying, well, I'm okay. And then willfully in defiance of God live in sin. And the actual context of this verse has to do with our submission to the government. It applies at a broader scale But we're never supposed to use our status as Christians as an excuse to be disobedient. That would be an abuse and a distortion of our freedom and we can't do that. Sadly, to me, much of America doesn't equate Christianity with holiness. Because what they've seen and experience from people that call themselves Christians is hypocrisy. We don't want to be that way. Now I want to be careful here and distinguish something because I don't want to discourage the people that Peter is not talking to. Each one of us that knows Christ still sins. We do. I hate that in myself. I hate my sin. One of the things I look forward to most about heaven, I think, I think when I'm in the presence of God I might think differently. But now what sounds most appealing to me is I won't have to fight sin anymore. 2020 has made that battle very, very hard. And it was a hard battle to begin with. I don't believe Peter is rebuking us because of that daily fight. What he's rebuking is people that say, I don't need to fight. God will forgive me, I'll just go from there. Quite often those same people are encouraging other people to sin with them, and that's not okay. Romans chapter 16, verses 17 and 18, I think is an illustration of this concept of people that are in the church, but they're not content with their own sin. They want other people to join them. Verse 17, Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissension and hindrances, contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ, but of their own appetites. And by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. I see this all over America. I'm sure you do too. people openly living in sin and claiming to have God's approval. They're not acting as freemen if they're genuine believers, but they're using their so-called freedom as a covering for sin, for evil. Even pastors saying to people, what you're doing is okay and God likes it, even though the Word of God says He'll punish it with His wrath. So let me encourage you, particularly in a time like this year when our emotions are raw, when we see our freedoms as Americans under assault, and they are, and we look over the horizon and we think that the assault is going to grow, and I hope I'm wrong, but we think it is. And be careful how you think about the concept of freedom. Our freedom in Christ gives us the freedom to be the best citizens the country has ever seen, living obediently, living conscientiously. Our freedom is not the ticket to do whatever we want. Our freedom allows us to be true bond slaves of our Savior. Serving the true Master, not ourselves. That's what Peter says, Act as free men and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond slaves of God. We now have the freedom to serve God fully. He's given us the new heart. He's given us His Spirit. He's given us His Word. He's given us each other. Understand that there are consequences to being God's slave. It's not a horrific thing where he's an ogre cracking a whip, but he's pulled us into his family. And we're accountable to him. 1 Corinthians says a lot about this. Chapter 6 verse 20 says this, For you have been bought with a price. Your freedom was purchased for a price. Therefore glorify God in your body. A little further in chapter 7 verse 22, he says this, For he who is called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord's freedman. Likewise, he who is called while free is Christ's slave. You were bought with a price. Do not become slaves of men. So let me encourage you. God has given us freedom. Understand it and use it wisely. Not so that we get what we want. but so that we are holy, carrying out the will of our Master. So the first principle of holy citizenship is to understand and use your freedom wisely. The second is this, live fearfully and respectfully with your fellow citizens. Live fearfully and respectfully with your fellow citizens. Verse 17 is one of those verses that summarizes some things, and it has commands, but it's one of those verses that if we could live this out, our testimony to a lost and dying world would be radically different. Verse 17 says this, Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the King. There's a sense, I think, in which if we live this way, our lives would come closer to the quiet and peaceable lives that we're supposed to seek after. The Apostle Paul in Romans 12, 18 said this, if possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. And I think Peter shows us one of the aspects of how do we do that, particularly in a culture and in a world that's hostile to us and what we believe and wants to accuse us of all kinds of slanderous things. So we're going to look at these individually and I'm going to summarize what it means for us. Honor all people is much more challenging than it looks like. It's a comprehensive command and it's relatively simple. But if we're following this command, it means that we as believers would never treat any of our fellow citizens with contempt and scorn. Honor has the idea of treating every person you meet with a measure of respect. I can't think of anything that's more sorely lacking in our culture until I find another verse, and that'll be lacking too. But honor is in short supply in America. Unfortunately, in some respects, this idea of honoring all people isn't just a problem out there, it can affect us as well. All people means all people. We're going to see in just a moment about love the brotherhood. That's for believers. This is everyone. You and I are supposed to honor everyone else. Be they male or female, no matter where they're from, no matter what language they speak, every skin color, every language, every political point of view. It applies to every sinner that makes you angry in America, which is about 328 million other people. As Christians, we do not have the freedom to hate and dishonor other human beings. This covers every area of our lives. Every interaction that we have with someone else we need to approach theologically. We understand and affirm and teach something I already said from Romans 3.23, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Everybody around you is a sinner. Okay, we get it. That's the starting point. And yet we're still told to honor all people, including sinners. Here's where we're stretched a little bit. I'm going to tell you something that's easier to understand, but then living it out is hard for us. There is something of inherent, intrinsic value in every human being on this planet. regardless of where they're from, regardless of their status as a believer or unbeliever, regardless of whether they're trying to follow the Lord or they're indulging every fleshly desire they have. And it's not an insignificant value. Genesis 127 says something about the creation of man. God created man in His own image. In the image of God, He created him male and female. He created them. There is something of the image of God imprinted on every human soul. There is inherent value in even the worst of sinners. We have to be careful because it's easy for us to look at certain people and think they get what they deserve. I hope something happens bad to them. Definitely been on display in the election where we divided our country up into warring camps that hate each other. If we're not careful, we can take the view that some people deserve to be despised, and then we can treat them with dishonor. We have to be careful because that's not God's assessment. God made every human being with something of the image of God in them. In fact, when you go back in the Scriptures and you see God authorizing the death penalty for murder, it had to do with this very idea, Genesis 9, 6. Whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of God he made man. There's something destructive when a human being harms another human being because God's image is defiled. And this is one of those things theologically we have to think about a little bit. Because we know not every person will be saved. If someone does not come to God the Father through Jesus Christ the Son, they will spend eternity in hell. And yet God has made clear that even in those who are rejecting Him, there's something there. 2 Peter 3 verse 9, The Lord is not slow about His promises, some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. So let me encourage you. I know if I asked you, do you want people to come to faith in Christ, you'd all say yes. But we've got to be careful because that applies to everyone. Would you have really wanted Adolf Hitler to hear the gospel and come to faith? Would you have wanted Osama Bin Laden to have embraced Jesus Christ? Or were you happy that the Navy SEALs got him? Let me make it very uncomfortable. Think of two or three politicians right now that make your blood boil. Would you want to spend eternity with them? We've got to be careful because one of the ways that we wind up not thinking we should honor all men is because we think some people deserve bad things. And in fact, they may, and they may get it one day. The challenge is this. You deserve the same thing. So do I. But God showed us mercy. Romans 5.8, but God demonstrates His own love towards us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. It becomes a little bit easier to honor all people when you realize you're not honorable either. Neither am I. And God loved us and saved us anyway. No Christian should ever despise any other person created in the image of God. Now be careful. I'm not saying that we shouldn't be outraged by their sin because it is outrageous. Doesn't mean we can't be frustrated with them for trying to get other people to sin with them. Doesn't mean people shouldn't be punished for the crimes that they commit. Doesn't mean that there's no such thing of right or wrong. There is. But it does mean our heart should see value in even the worst sinner. And we ought to never get to the point where we think that someone has sinned so much that they're beyond the reach of God's mercy. We should honor all people. This would end all racism. There wouldn't be any of that kind of hatred. It should end our hatred of individuals and groups. We cannot appreciate or be happy about groups that are trying to do bad things, but remember the people inside, we must honor them. We don't have to like their conduct, we don't have to approve their wickedness, but we still have to honor them with our words and actions. Be careful, it's an issue of the heart. The command is broad and it's not conditional. We need to remember that all those people and those groups are made up of humans. Human beings imprinted with the likeness of God. I think Peter's challenge to honor all people is actually summed up for most of us in terms of what does this look like in daily life by something that the Apostle James said. In James chapter 3, beginning at verse 8, he's talking about our speech. He says, but no one can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it, we bless our Lord and Father. And with it, we curse men who have been made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. I think that sums up honoring all people. Don't do that. Don't let from your mouth come both blessings of God, but cursing those made in His image. As I'm saying these words to you, I'm speaking to me. But if you're talking about politicians, or people from other countries, or people engaged in certain types of sin like homosexuality, or your co-workers, or your bosses, or your unsafe family members that you're dreading talking to this week. If you have contempt in your heart for them, not for their conduct, but for them, be careful. You need to honor all people. Command 2 is more specific from this section to God's family. Love the brotherhood. This is a simple command. I won't belabor it. Peter's already talked about these things. But we must love one another. Our duty to fellow Christians goes beyond just honoring them. We must love each other. Jesus in John chapter 13 made it clear, verse 34, A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this, all men will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another." I want us to be the best citizens in America. I want to be a better citizen of America than I've been in my prior years. I want to be a testimony. One of the ways I'm a testimony is by loving you. And one of the ways you're a testimony is by loving each other. It extends even beyond just the small circle of believers here or in your Sunday school class. or even lakeside, all believers. In fact, I think if you take honor all people, honor all men, love the brotherhood, it really is summed up by Galatians 6.10. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are the household of faith. The third command in this, as we bring this to an end, is very simple, fear God. That's that attitude of reverence and awe that always remembers that even as we're challenging ourselves and living in a year like 2020, God is still on His throne. We live it under His watchful eye. We live it with His Spirit indwelling us. And then finally, we come to the last statement, honor the King. It's interesting. We're not told to love the king. I talked last week in the message, the king at that time was the emperor. Specifically, the emperor Nero. In our case, honoring the king would likely be honoring the president. I read some scholars that had some good historical context. They said it's very important at that time when this letter was written, it's a very different view of leadership than we have in America in the Roman system, by this point, the emperors were calling themselves deity. They were calling themselves gods. They wanted to be worshipped. And Peter makes it clear, that's not our duty. We don't worship. But we do honor. It's just a recognition of their God-given authority. Even when the ultimate leader is not a believer, when they're wicked, When they're sinners, when they're self-willed, we still show them honor. I had to repent a lot earlier in my Christian walk because I spent eight years not honoring a president, but just bad-mouthing him at every turn because I didn't like anything he did. It's not something to be proud of. I still stand by my assessment of his behavior But my heart was wicked. I didn't honor Him at all. We have to remember, every leader is appointed by God. And while they have the role, and while God's given them that role, we owe them honor. So as we come back and we look at what's happening here, Peter's really telling us how do we live in a fallen world? How do we live in relation to the government? How do we live in relation to a hostile citizenry that doesn't like us? We live holy lives. We honor all people. We love one another. We fear God. And we honor the King. Please join me in prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, this has been a challenging year. For all the trials though, Lord, we are thankful that we live out these challenges here. Lord, you've blessed us to be able to live in a country that does give us freedom. And we're grateful for that, Lord. But we also know that there are certain freedoms that could be taken away and there wouldn't be anything we could do about it. Lord, help us view our citizenship correctly. Lord, help us desire each one of us to be holy, even in how we live our lives in relation to the fallen world around us. Lord, we are forgiven. You saved us. You've taken away our condemnation. You forgave our sins, past, present, and future. Lord, help us not to abuse that and use that as a covering for evil, for sin. And Lord, I pray that you give us a new heart for the sinners that are all around us. Lord, it's so easy to just be angry and frustrated because of the evil that we see everywhere. And yet, even in the midst of evil, you tell us we should honor all people. Lord, help us do that. Lord, we want to be evangelist for you with our lives. We want to live before a lost and dying world in such a way that at least some of them might be curious and would want what we have. Lord, we thank you. We thank you for your mercy and we pray that you would show your mercy to the unbelievers all around us. Lord, we are surrounded by those who are in slavery to sin. Help us be bold to tell sinners that there is hope in Jesus Christ, that Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of sin for sinners. And that if they would repent, they could become a part of the redeemed. Lord, we pray that we would have a heart for the lost. We would honor them and we would witness to them for your glory. We ask all of this in our Savior's name. Amen.