draw me, O Savior, so precious Thou art. Unto you that believe He is precious." I hope that's your testimony this morning. I greet you in the name of Jesus, our Savior, the Precious One, the Prince of Peace. This morning, as was already said, the title is Peaceful Brotherhood Relationships, and I would like to begin with one short song yet, a song I believe that as we sing it, you'll discover this is a song that is short, yet it's very profound, and I'd like to sing it together, and as we sing it, think about how this song speaks to us about how we experience peaceful brotherhood relationships. I think we all know this song. The song is J-O-Y. Let's sing that together. J-O-Y, J-O-Y, J-O-Y must be Jesus first, yourself last, and others in between. J-O-Y, J-O-Y, J-O-Y must be Jesus first, yourself last, and others in between. Amen. Thank you. The subject today is a subject that's dear to my heart, I trust is dear to all of our hearts, and I'm sure and I know that it is dear to the heart of God, because God loves His church. And God cares deeply about His church, and God is concerned that within the body of Christ that there are peaceful brotherhood relationships. He desires that we would dwell together in peace and in unity and in harmony one with another. And yet, probably most of us here this morning, if we have been a part of a body, a part of a church for any length of time, I would say this morning there's a pretty good chance that we have experienced, at least to some degree, some level of disunity within the body that we were a part of. I would venture to say that's probably been some of our experience. The Apostle Paul understood that when there are brothers and sisters who dwell together in a body called the church. Paul understood that there is great potential for those who are living in close proximity to each other to have conflict and to have situations that are difficult for them. I invite you to turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 12. First Corinthians chapter 12, there are two other chapters that are companion chapters to this one, Romans chapter 12 being one of them, and Ephesians chapter 4. And it's beautiful how that Paul illustrates so well how that the church is to function as the human body. It's so beautiful how Paul illustrates that so well. And as we read this, I'd like for you to ask, just try to keep a couple of questions in your mind. One question could be, what is my responsibility to my brother and to my sister? And then as we look at this chapter and the illustration of the human body, let's let Paul help us answer the question of what makes for peaceful brotherhood relationships. 1 Corinthians 12, verse 1. Wherefore, I give you to understand that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed, and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord but by the Holy Ghost. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but is the same God, which worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit, and to another faith by the same Spirit, to another the gift of healing by the same Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another diverse kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. For as the body is one and hath many members, and all the members of that one body being many are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free, and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot shall say, because I am not of the hand, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body? And if the ear shall say, because I am not the eye, I am not of the body, is it therefore not of the body? If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members, every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased Him. And if they were all one member, where were the body? But now are they many members, yet but one body, and the eye cannot say into the hand, I have no need of thee, nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Nay, much more those members of the body which seem to be more feeble are necessary. And those members of the body which we think to be less honorable, upon these we bestow more abundant honor, and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. For our comely parts have no need, but God hath tempered the body together. having given more abundant honor to the part which lacked, that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it, or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers. After that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. Are all apostles, are all prophets, are all teachers, are all miracle workers. Have all the gifts of healing. Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?" One of the challenges in peaceful brotherhood relationships. One of the challenges that we find in real life, in real church life, I think is found in verses 4, 5, and 6. Paul says here that within the body of Christ, he says that there are diversities of gifts. Verse 5, there are differences of administrations. Verse 6, there are diversities Paul uses these words, differences and diversities, within the body. And actually, both of those words go back to the very same source, the very same Greek word, which simply means variety, not the same. All right? So when we say diversity and we say differences, both of those words mean the same thing, which is variety and not the same, things that are different. And so we could say that within the church, within the body of Christ, God puts variety. And God does so intentionally. He does so on purpose. And He does so with a purpose. And in your church, Think about the variety. Think about the differences in the different brothers and sisters and the different giftings that they have and how they fit certain roles within the church because of the certain diversity and differences of gifts that God has given to them. Think about that. There are a variety of gifts, there is a variety of work, and there is a variety of ways to do the work, is in essence what Paul is saying. There's work to be done. And yet sometimes as we think about the differences and the diversity within the body of Christ, don't we sometimes think about that and think about the difficulty that comes with that when people are different? Don't we think about that sometimes as a recipe for trouble? Well, it shouldn't be, and I hope by the end of this message you'll agree with me on that. It shouldn't be a recipe or a formula for trouble within the body of Christ. We're speaking here about diversity and differences, and we're talking specifically about spiritual endowments, those things that God has given to the members of the body of Christ. And we're thinking primarily this morning about the local body. Think about the congregation that you are a part of, specifically the local body. spiritual endowments. These are gifts. These are administrations. These are operations that God has given to the members of the body, specifically given by God. We're not talking about the differences maybe in our own personalities, in our own ideas about things. This is talking about specifically spiritual endowments that God has given to the members of the church. And I hope we can understand why God has done that. These are not man-made. They're not man-generated. And we may say sometimes, well, this person has the gift of language, and this person has the gift of interpretation, and she has the gift of helping others, and they have the gift of hospitality. and on and on, gifts that God has given to people for the purpose of ministering and meeting the needs of those around them, specifically in the congregation. But for what purpose? Verses 7 and verse 24, I think quickly we'll see the purpose that God puts this diversity and these differences within the body. Verse 7, it says, but the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit. to profit with all. And unfortunately, the giftings that God has given and the differences in the church and diversities of gifts, operations, and administrations, unfortunately, sometimes we could say we really didn't see the profit in that. But God has given it so that it says every man would profit, every man would profit, and every woman would profit by that gift. And that word profit means to bring together. to bring the body of Christ together and the many members, to bring them together. Verse 24, Paul is talking about the human body, and he says, for our comely parts have no need, but God has tempered the body together. God has tempered the body together, and these giftings that God has given within the church, the variety, if you will, that God has given in the church is to temper the body, and to temper also has the same idea as prophet. To temper means to mix together. to mix together, to bring the body of Christ together. It's not given to drive us apart. It's given to the church to bring the body of Christ together into a cohesive unit, to something that is strong, it's powerful, and has an impact on the world around, to blend and to mix together. And I'd like to ask you this question, is this a true statement? that sometimes the variety that God places in the church has a way of creating friction and dissension rather than profiting and tempering the body together." Is that a true statement? I think so. I think so. I think it's true. Sometimes the body of Christ has struggled in knowing how to blend together, knowing how to mix together, knowing how to operate in diversity and in the differences for the purpose of becoming stronger, of becoming blended and mixed together as a body. We have struggled with that as a body of Christ from time to time, but God has put every brother and every sister in your church by His plan and by His design, and they are there for a reason, and they bring something into your local body that would be missing, would be absent were they not there. The variety within the body is not given to create tension within the body of Christ. That's not why God has given that kind of variety and the differences and the diversity. And when my gift starts to be in tension with the gift that God has given you, and those gifts start to work against each other, that is, I believe, when trouble begins. The gifts are given to complete the body, not to compete within the body. So we agree it's important that all of the diversity and the differences, the gift that God has given, the variety God has given, we agree that all of those things need to be brought together and mixed together. We agree. But how does this happen? What does Paul talk about here that gives us some direction as to how this happens? Well, if you were watching, if you were listening and paying attention as we read through here, seven times Paul says these words. He uses, same Spirit, same Lord, same God. Seven times. Paul brings us to the fact that even though there are many members and there's much variety, what brings us all together and mixes and blends it well is the fact that we have the same Spirit, we have the same Lord, we have the same God within the body of church. And so when the same Spirit, the same Lord, the same God is working and moving within each member, what happens? God is then able to take those diversities and those differences, He's able then to take those things and to blend them in a way that brings the body of Christ together into one body. Verse four, I'm sorry, verse 12 and verse 13, we see four times, we see where the word one is used. One, one, one, one. One body, one spirit. Romans 12, four times he uses one body, one body, every one, one of another. Ephesians 4, seven times he uses one, where he says there's one body, one spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God. That's the secret, if you will, that brings it all together. is that we serve one God, one Spirit who presides over the variety and brings that variety together and makes it something beautiful that God has intended. And I believe that we need to get rid of the idea that within the church that my gift is more significant than your gift. That's not true. And we see that there in 1 Corinthians 12. When that happens, we begin to see what Paul calls schism, division, separation begin to happen. When we begin to compete, well, I have this gift, and this is my strength, and this is what I love to do, and it's what I'm passionate about. Did you know that your strength can be your weakness? That is very true. Our strength can be our weakness. Let's not be so concerned about what my gift is. Let's exercise what God has given us, but let's be sure that as all of us within the body of Christ are exercising the gift God has given to us, let's make sure that the one selfsame spirit is presiding over the variety and over the giftings and over the differences and over the diversity That's what makes a church be what God wants it to be. That's what makes a brotherhood a peaceful, working, And as I think about that, it excites me to think about the fact that it is not, well, we have this variety, we have these differences, we have, you know, we're all different, so somehow we have to figure out a way to blend these together within the church. No, it's not that at all. And I like to say that it is not in spite of our gifts, but it is because of our gifts that God brings the church together. Not in spite of. But it's because of our gifts that God brings unity and He brings oneness in the church because of, not because, I'm sorry, not in spite of, but because of our diversity and our differences. And we may sometimes look at our congregations and we think, well, there's just so much variety here and there's difficult people and so on and so forth. But remember, Paul is writing to the Corinthian church, a church that was troubled, a church that he went so far as to call carnal. It was said of the Corinthian church that it was a miracle that a church even existed there. And Paul is pointing these Christians in Corinth, he's pointing them to the importance of the many members being united by one spirit. even Jew and Gentile. And if they were able to come together as Jew and Gentile, don't you think that within our churches that we should be able to come together, blend, profit, be brought together? But what it takes is the Spirit of God, that one Spirit, when He is in control of my life and He is in control of your life, I believe that is what is so important. It's key. And we can't help but being one body. Though we are many, we can't help but be one body and unified in spirit. I probably answered this question, but I'll just ask it. Are diversities and differences, are they good things or are they bad things? Is it a good thing or is it a bad thing? And before you answer, I just want to insert, well, it depends if the one spirit is present. It depends if the one spirit is present or not, because if that one self-same spirit is not there, and we try to function as a church in all our differences, in all our variety, without the Spirit of God directing us and guiding us, church life can become pretty messy in a hurry if the Spirit of God is not there. But it is when the Spirit is in control of all of our lives that the body of Christ can be blended together and tempered. I'm going to read an illustration here. I think that points out so well, better than what I've been trying to say, an illustration, a story, hypothetical story that is not original with me. And it's an illustration that demonstrates the variety in the church and the beauty of how that variety works together. within the body of Christ. It's in a story form. Brother Joe fell out of the apple tree and he's laying in the hospital, his broken leg suspended between heaven and earth, and the body of Christ goes into action. They begin to reach out to Joe. Brother Prophet comes to visit Brother Joe. He tells Joe, Joe, you've been pushing it too hard, and God is trying to tell you that you need to be spending more time in prayer and meditation. And Brother Joe must admit he must be spending more time in prayer and meditation. Brother Ministry, the server, comes to visit Brother Joe. He tells Joe, don't worry about the apples, Joe. I went over and picked them and packed them all away in the cellar, so that's all taken care of. Brother Teacher comes to visit Brother Joe, and he tells Joe, it's no wonder your ladder slipped. That was a 34-degree angle your ladder was sitting on. Next time, you need a four and five-eighths inch block under the one leg, and you will be okay. A brother exhorter comes to visit Joe, and he says, I'm sure this must be a very trying experience for you, Joe, but through it all, you will learn a great deal of patience and endurance. The exhorter sees the good coming out of this experience for Brother Joe. The giver comes to visit Brother Joe, and he comes and his arms are loaded down with books and snacks and magazines, and he says, "'Here, Joe, I thought these things might help you pass the time. Oh, and don't worry about the hospital bill. I spoke with the deacon, and the church will pick up the tab.'" Brother Mercy comes to visit Joe, and he says, I'm sure you must be feeling absolutely miserable being in that position all day. Here, Joe, let me arrange the pillows for you. Brother Ruler comes to visit Joe, and he says, I've asked Dan and Ron to do the milking. Sam is doing the feeding, and the youth are coming tonight to mow the lawn. The ruler usually organizes while everyone else does the work. Just an illustration of how within the body of Christ, the gifts that God has placed there, how it is to profit and how it is to temper the body and to bring it together. And when Joe comes out of the hospital, don't you think that there will be a closeness there that had not been there prior? I think so. There will be a bond there that had not been there before. But Joe's needs were met because the body of Christ was at work, building God's kingdom one person at a time, working together. We didn't see any of those giftings competing against the other ones. No, they were complementing each other and helping each other. Joe benefited from the diversity of gifts in the church. And brothers and sisters, that's your responsibility. That's my responsibility. that the gifting that God has given to you, that you would use that gift that is so different from your brother beside you and so different from your sister beside you. Take that gift and use it for the work of the ministry. for the perfecting of the saints, for the edifying of the body of Christ, to enhance the unity of the brotherhood. That's what we are called to do, and that's what is called blessing the church, not in spite of our giftings and diversities, but because of our differences and our diversities. Turn back to Psalm 100. and 33. Psalm 133, behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. It is like the precious ointment upon the head that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard that went down to the skirts of his garments. As a dew of Hermon and as a dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life forevermore. The psalmist is pointing out. the beauty of brotherhood peace, the beauty of unity within the body of Christ. And he says how good it is and how pleasant it is. And if you've ever been in a situation where it has not been good and it has not been pleasant, But now it is, you know how good and how pleasant it is today. It is truly good and it is truly pleasant to be a part of a body that is unified. Ephesians 4.3 says that we are to endeavor to keep that unity. to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. You and I were made for relationship, first of all with God, secondly then with each other. God has created us for that. And we like peaceful and unified relationships. But within each and every one of us, there is the potential to create disunity in any relationship that we're a part of. We have that potential, but also within each one of us is the potential to enhance the unity of every relationship that we are a part of. The Bible in basic English here in Psalm 33 verse 1 says, see how good and how pleasing it is for brothers to be living together in harmony. And we read 1 Corinthians 12, 18, but now hath God set the members, every one of them, in the body as it hath pleased Him. And now I'd like to try to meld those two together. How good and how pleasant it is for the members God has set in the church to live together in harmony. Are you aware this morning that as all of us, I don't know how many people are here, are you aware that as we sang together, many people, many words, many notes, many pitches, many chords, four distinctively different parts, I heard a lot of harmony up here. It was beautiful. Why is that? Think about the variety that was happening within our singing this morning. But it was so beautiful because we followed our director. We followed our director and how beautiful it was. And let's be honest, sometimes within the church, sometimes there's disharmony. Sometimes we miss some notes. Sometimes we're a little off key in our relationships with our brothers and with our sisters. But just like the harmony was so beautiful today, within the body of Christ, it is God's plan that as God brings all the variety and all the different giftings and so on, He brings it together, that as the church, your local body, functions under the directorship of the Holy Spirit, what's going to happen? Harmony. It'll be beautiful, undeniable harmony, a beautiful thing. And that's God's plan and God's desire for brotherhood. And I know this. that these dear young people sitting here today, the young people in your churches, that's what they want. They want to be a part of a church that is in harmony with each other. I can assure you of that. In fact, they deserve that. As mature adults, we owe that to them. From little up, we teach them, J-O-Y, J-O-Y. Put Jesus first, put others next, and yourself last. Don't we teach our little ones that growing up? And there's a toy. No, you need to share your toy. Jesus wants you to share your toy. So share your toy with your friend or your cousin. They're in school and someone misuses them in some way. We say, don't hit them back, just be kind to them. Return good for evil. Later, when they become a little older and they join the church and they observe these mature people around them within the body of Christ, hmm, they may observe something like YOJ. or Y-J-O. Brothers and sisters can't get along with each other. Carnal attitudes. I can't work together, so I'll go to my sandbox and play over here. And it creates confusion. I've seen it. It creates confusion in their minds. I ask my students at CBS this question. I'm sorry, give your thoughts of what you think the ideal church is like. It was hard to choose just two, but I limited it to two. And I'll give those to you, and these reflect the other 19. I think the ideal church for me would be when members of the church would be in harmony with each other. Everyone would obey the standards and help the church members grow closer to God. Number two, I think it is where the ministry gets along with each other. The ministry should be on the same level as the members. The members should be willing to submit to the ministry as they make decisions. The members should be willing to give up their time to help each other and reach out to the people in the community. The ministry should get to know the people. And in all of these responses, the theme that came through was work together, be unified, and get along. That came through every last one of them. I find that interesting. That's what they want, and I think that's what we should give them. What does it take for that to happen? What ingredient is necessary to work together to be unified and to get along? I'm back now to 1 Corinthians chapter 12. If you were awake, you notice I skipped the last verse, verse 31, and then we'll go into chapter 13. 1 Corinthians 12, 31, but covet earnestly the best gifts, and yet show I unto you a more excellent way, and this is it. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass. or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. Charity suffereth long and is kind. Charity envieth not. Charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil. Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth, but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail. Whether there be tongues, they shall cease. Whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child. But when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three, but the greatest of these is charity." Clearly, Paul is saying, before you exercise your gift, be sure, be very sure that it's exercised in love. Love must be present. And Paul says, if I can do all these wonderful things, and if I can speak so well, and if I can pray the mountains to move, or all of those things, if I have not charity, I'm nothing. It is nothing if charity is not there. And may we never try to function as a body without love being the foundation stone in everything we do. Love should be the undercurrent that helps us and motivates us to do what we do and why we do it. If you were to ever go out with your tractor and your brush hog and you were to start brush hogging and there was no oil in the gearbox, what would happen? wouldn't be long and that gearbox would get really hot. And pretty soon, it would just simply seize up tight and it wouldn't work because there's no lubricant. And that's how love is within the brotherhood. The lubricant of love helps us as we function together, as we try with the help of the Spirit, as we try to blend and mix together. the differences, the diversity, the variety within the body. We need love to make that happen so those gears can mesh smoothly and so that the heat stays low within relationships. We need love. And when love is present in the church, it opens the doors to everything good that needs to be there. Things like unity, servanthood, J-O-Y, encouragement, accountability, transparency, vulnerability, forgiveness, to name a few. And the Bible is full of verses that talk about love and charity. Above all things, have fervent charity among yourselves is given twice in Scripture. Put on charity. Put it on. It's important. Well, we're people of love, right? We love God. Yes, we do. If I say, do you love God? I think every hand would go up. Well, but what is the measure by which you love God, and you know that you love God, and the measure by which other people know that you love God? What is the measure of that? What is the proof of that? 1 John 4, 21, John says, And this commandment have we from him, that he who love God love his brother also." And I would propose this morning to each one of us, you cannot love God more than you love your brother. And the love that you have for your brother or your sister is the measuring stick by which you love God. And if you love your brother fervently, You're going to love God fervently. And if you have trouble loving your brother or trouble loving your sister, you're going to have trouble loving God the same way. But we all love God. We say we love God. And if we love God, why then do we struggle sometimes within the body of Christ, within the church? Charity is a bond of perfectness. It brings us together. and unites us in a bond. It always draws together. It always bonds brother and sister together despite the variety. David Geitz, if I'm saying it right, writes an article entitled Suburban Spirituality. And I don't have the article, but I remember a couple of things that he said that really spoke to me. When he talked about within the church, within the body of Christ, he said that conflict in the church is your opportunity for growth. Conflict is not a time to leave the church, it's a time to stay and see what God will do in your life. I'm challenged by that. That is a different way of looking at it. And we don't like conflict, but it is an opportunity for us to learn how to blend and mix in the body of Christ. And when there is conflict, we often forget the fact that behind every conflict, there is actually another conflict taking place. There's a spiritual battle taking place for your congregation. And sometimes we forget that. And we have an enemy. His name is Satan, and he is called the accuser of the brethren. And He does accuse the brethren, and He loves to get in there to the church and divide people, divide brothers and sisters, and to tear the church apart and bring division. That's what He wants to do. Satan is the originator of pride, and Proverbs says, only by pride cometh contention. Prideful people are contentious people. And contentious people are prideful people. Proverbs tells us that. Charity, it says, does not lift itself up. It doesn't do that. It doesn't be – it isn't puffed up. It isn't proud. Ephesians 4 goes on to tell us – I thought I had the verse here. Sorry, it's Romans 12, "'For I say through the grace given unto you, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than you ought to think, but to think soberly, according as God has given to every man the measure of faith.'" Humility is so important. That's another thing we could talk about for peaceful brotherhood relationships. with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Why is it important to have peaceful brotherhood relationships? Why is that important? Is it so that we can have a trouble-free church? Is that why? Is it to make the minister's jobs easier? That sounds pretty good. Is it to impress the neighboring churches? Is that why we want to have peaceful brotherhood relationships? No. No. There's a much greater reason. By this, by what? By your love for one another, John says, shall all men know that you are my disciples. That's the reason. We have peaceful brotherhood relationships, and we strive for that. No, it's not always easy, but that's always the goal, so that all men looking in can see that we are disciples of Jesus. We follow Him. We are His children. That is the end goal for living out J-O-Y. It's joy. Yes, it is. It's joy for me. It's joy for you when there's peaceful brotherhood relationships. It brings us joy, doesn't it? Yes, it does. But I'd like to say that more than that, it brings joy to the heart of God when His children dwell together in unity. How good, how pleasant it is. Because the bride of Christ is beautified, is beautified, and it brings joy to God. Christianity is the only religion that embraces the gospel. And the heart of the gospel is what Paul says, he calls it the gospel of peace, the gospel of peace. And it is the ministry of reconciliation, reconciliation first with God and then that reconciliation flows out to those who are among us, those with whom we worship with, our brothers and our sisters. And when we encounter the gospel of reconciliation. There's no area of our life that remains untouched. It touches every aspect of our life, including our relationships with our brothers. It is called the gospel of peace. I'd like to close with two stories. The first story is a story of two brothers. John and his younger brother lived next door. They were farmers. They lived nearby, near each other for 40 years, and as brothers they got along really well. They traded machinery, they traded labor, worked together really well until one day a small misunderstanding turned into a huge blow-up and they parted ways and didn't speak to each other. One morning, John heard a knock on the door of his house. of his house and so John walked over the door and he opened the door and standing there outside the door was a man holding a toolbox and he said, I'm just wondering, is it possible that you would have some work for me just for a day or two? And John thought a little bit and John said, yeah, in fact, I do. He said, over there by the barn is a stack of lumber. a stack of wood drying over there. He said, my younger brother lives across that creek right there, that's his farm, and we're not talking to each other. There used to be a nice little meadow between our farms, but last week John took his bulldozer to the river levee and now there's a creek flowing through there. He said, I want you to take those boards and build an eight-foot fence so I don't have to look at his place anymore." And that'll teach him a lesson. So the man said, I think I know what you want me to do. I think I can do what you want. And so John said, but I need to get a few supplies. John went to town, got some supplies, brought them home, got the man started on the project, and John went to work. That evening when John came home, the sun was going down, and John came home and he drove in the lane, and to his dismay, what did he see? His mouth dropped open when he saw not a wall, but a bridge. And as he got out of his vehicle and walked over to the bridge, his younger brother was walking across the bridge to meet him. And he said, you're quite the brother to build this bridge after all the things that I've done to you. And John walked out and he shook hands with his brethren and they embraced. And as they turned to look to the carpenter, he was picking up his toolbox and was turning to leave. And John said, no, wait, I'd like for you to stay a few days. I've got a couple more projects for you to do. And the carpenter said, now I must be on my way. I have more bridges to build. What a tremendous story. I don't know if that's a true story or not, but it brings out a wonderful point. The other story, the second story, is in the Bible. And I'd like to just take us to the upper room, to the Last Supper. Jesus and His disciples, and Luke tells us that as they were During the Last Supper, Luke tells us that the disciples there were having a discussion. More than a discussion, there was dissension. They were arguing with each other who should be considered the greatest among them. Can you imagine that at the Last Supper in the presence of Jesus? Who of us is the greatest? And I think it was then that Jesus turned to them and said, I am among you as one that serveth. And Jesus, at that point, I believe, stood up, He laid aside His garments, He took a towel, and I'm going to use my imagination, and He said, I'm going to wash your feet. Judas, starting with you, you're the first one. I don't know if He did that or not. Wouldn't surprise me, though, if He did. And He did that. He served them. You and I are commanded to serve one another by love, by love serve one another. And I fear that sometimes within the church, we would never stand around and talk to each other and discuss who's the greatest. We wouldn't do that. We're way too polite for that. But sometimes I think there's the same prideful spirit within us as we compare with each other who really is the greatest here. And if you are a part of that environment right now, in that discussion even, I urge you to do what Jesus did, to get up, exit, exit the discussion. Get a towel and start with the Judas in your life, the one whom you feel has betrayed you. Start there. And in love and deep humility, serve that brother, serve that sister. We are never more like Jesus than when we serve one another. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God." May God bless you.