The Cost of Covenant | Bishop Rosie S. O’neal

Listen, get your Bibles. We're going

into the word of God today. Are you

ready for it? All right. And even though

the Bible is big, I may still have to

use my glasses, but when I tell you, do

not laugh at me. Um because again, Yes.

Right. I love you, baby. You got to get

on. All right. Hold it up. Look at that

thing. Na says big as a cereal box. Say,

"This is my Bible. This is my Bible. It

is God's word. It is God's word. It

reveals to me. It reveals to me God's

will. God's will. Therefore, therefore,

it is the final authority. It is a to

which I submit to which I submit to

settle all the issues settle all the

issues of my life of my life. It is the

standard the standard of my conduct of

my conduct and the basis the basis of

all my expectations of all my

expectations. Shout it out. I am I am

what it says I am. It says I am. I

possess I possess what it says I

possess. It says I possess and I can do.

I can do absolutely everything.

Absolutely everything it says I can do.

It says I can do. Turn and tell your

neighbor. I know that's right. Yes,

indeed. Come on, E church, let's do

this. I want to call your attention

today, and I am not really totally sure

of the sermon subject title, but I am

sure that it's a word from the Lord.

Um to Matthew chapter

Matthew 14 · chapter mention

14 and I will just kind of talk you

through it. Is that okay?

Um

yeah, I'm going to talk you through it.

That time Herod the tetrarch heard about

the fame of Jesus and his guilt got to

him. He said this got to be John the

Baptist risen and he's showing these

mighty works because Herod was the one

that laid hold on John bound him put him

in prison for Herodious sakes but goes

on to tell it cuz John said y'all in

Matthew 14:4 I forgot to tell you. Can

Matthew 14:4

y'all take the red off that background?

Red is a beautiful color on people, but

it irritates me. And I must be a bull or

something because it is wearing me

out. The older I get, I notic in so many

little

idiosyncrasies. So, see, can you find a

green or a blue, baby blue would be

nice. All right. Because So, Herod laid

laid hands on him because John told him,

"It's wrong for you to have your

brother's

wife." You Oh, okay. Thank you. I like

that baby blue. Make the whole thing

blue and we'll be in we'll be in

business if it's possible. Yes, sir. He

said it's wrong for you to have your

brother's wife. His brother wasn't

dead. Well, y'all passing folk through

the

family. He said that's not

right. And uh if you read Luke 3:1 19,

Luke 3:1

Luke also says there were many evils

that he did that Herod did and so John

rebuked him for it. Okay? And so you

know the story and then on Herod's

birthday um well Herod wanted to kill

John but he was scared to do it because

everybody knew he was a prophet. Then

you know his niece or I guess her

stepdaughter when Herod's birthday was

kept the daughter of Herodiius danced

and pleased him and he said well I give

you whatever you want up to half the

kingdom. She said well uh mom what

should I ask for? Her mom was a villain

just as hateful and her mom said get

John the Baptist head. That's what you

get because he tried to break up this

relationship and I'm living large now.

So get him killed. Okay. So when the

girl told him what he wanted, the king

was sad, but he was embarrassed in front

of everybody. So he had to do it. Verse

10, he sent beheaded John in prison. And

then the man's head was brought on a

platter in front of everybody and given

to the girl and she brought it to her

mother. There's some sick folks.

Your mom brought it. I mean that's just

ridiculous. The disciples came and took

up the body, buried it, and went and

told Jesus. For a few minutes, I will

attempt uh to give this a subject, but

the Holy Spirit lifted up the cost of

covenant.

You know, I was reading the text and I

got to the part about John got beheaded

and something about the fact that they

put his head in a charger on a

platter and was carrying it around. That

thing upset me. I said,

"God, I'm feeling some kind of way about

this." And he said, "John is a covenant

man."

I said, "Well, that's what I'm saying."

Thank

y'all. He's a covenant

man. Well, why you let him Why you let

it go down like

this? I mean, you know, we we ran here,

honey, I got a covenant with God. I'm

believing for better, more power, all

this stuff. I say, "And this is how you

going to let him

do?" And God checked me again. He was a

covenant man. Talk to me about the

covenant. I said, "Well, a covenant is

oath binding agreement." The way you

helped me to understand it Jesus was is

a covenant binding oath and agreement

between at least two parties and it has

promises and privileges, rights and

responsibilities. He said, "That's what

I'm

saying. There are

responsibilities in the covenant."

Oh,

there's a statement I make sometimes and

it is your

experience shapes your

theology. What you view the way you view

God. Your experience shapes your

theology, the way you view God. And then

the way you view God and that

experience, that new perspective now

influences the way you read scripture.

Do you understand that? Who said I had a

late night, too? Say it again. Okay,

here it is. All right. What you have

been through, your

experience shapes the way you view

things.

Okay, let's look at the people back in

Exodus. They had been in bondage. They

had been making bricks with no straw. It

was hot. They were tired. And the Bible

says that God gave them promise. I'm

bringing you out of Egypt and I'm going

to take you to the promised land. Well,

when they got to the first place that

looked like Hawaii,

read your Bible. It said they came to a

place where there were 12 wells of w

water and palm trees that they sat down

there. And guess what the name of it

was? Sin.

What is God showing it? It wasn't they

weren't bad people, but because of what

they had been through, they just they

were like, "You know what? This is good

right here." That's why that's why

that's why the world wants you to stop

at you first. You get some nice clothes.

You get you a nice ride. You may not

have any money in the bank. You may not

own anything. But they say that's more

important. Where your money instead of

have your money. That's stopping at the

12 wells of water.

But nudge your neighbor. Say that's not

the promised land. That's not the

promised land. Yeah. That's not the

promise. Okay. Here's another one. I've

shared it before. You remember the

verse. Uh give and it shall be given

unto you. Good measure. Pressed down,

shaken together, and what? running over

shall men give into your bosom. For with

the same measure you meet with all it

shall be measured you again. Here's the

thing. If you grew up and didn't have

anything.

Chances are when you read that verse or

hear that verse, what stands out to you?

Honey, God getting ready to get raise

somebody up to bless me.

Very smooth. Right? That's what hits

you. Good to see you, Elder Mary. You

understand what I'm saying? That's what

that's what hits you because your

experience has now shaped you in a way

that right now because all you've been

through you just looking you on the

wanting to be on the receiving end.

But as I shared with you, if you're not

careful, your experience will make you

put yourself in the wrong place in that

verse.

I don't want to be m I don't want to be

in the part of the verse talking about

give and it'll be given unto you. I

don't want somebody to have to. Now,

thank God. Feel free to give me some

today. I'll stand right here today. But

that's not the ideal because Jesus said

it's more blessed to give to be the one

giving.

And here's the thing. If I look at Luke

Luke 6:38

6:38, I don't want to be given to be

given unto you. I don't want to be that

you.

Amen. I mean, if I have to start there,

but that's not my desire. My desire is

when he said give and it be given unto

you. Good men press down say sh together

shall men give into your I want to be

that person. I want to be the one that

can give into people's bosom. Nancy so

much overflowing and still have all the

money I want.

But do you see what I'm saying? Our

experiences

shape the way we see stuff and then we

turn that on scripture and can put

ourselves in the wrong part of the

verse.

And so what hit me when we were talking

about covenant, I said, "But Lord, this

seemed like a sorry way to die, to be a

covenant man."

And what I realized

is, you know, we always talk Jesus is

our representative. Jesus, I thank you,

Lord. He cut covenant on our behalf

while we were asleep. Y'all know the

example in Genesis 15. Oh, he cut

covenant on our behalf.

Somehow our experiences I think maybe

have shifted something. We say he's our

representative but we live like he's my

representative.

Seem like a small shift

but it's not small mother the Lord

because what it means is we think that

being in co honey I got a covenant with

God and we act like it's just me and

God.

But Jesus was our representative. So if

he cut covenant on our behalf, I'm just

as connected to you as I am him almost.

When did it get to be so personal?

Your bodies are the temple. And we said,

"No, I'm the temple." Wait a minute. How

do we go from the group to just you? How

do we

stop looking at the Bible? He raised us

up together talking about God, when you

going to raise me up?

I done lost you, huh? Okay.

Perhaps you and I have become blinded by

blessings.

Perhaps it does not directly there are

things around us that don't affect us so

we don't say nothing about it. John

spoke up and got his head taken off. So

my question was I

wonder would

John look back and say you wrong for

that Jesus.

That's really the question that made me

come to church this morning.

I was going to come worship, but I would

don't have to say nothing cuz I'm

sleep. E church, I'm not sleepy. I'm

sleep. This is AI. No, I'm

joking. I'm joking. I'm joking. I'm

joking. But I wondered when I looked at

that, I just thought that was that's how

you going to let the man of God

die. That was in covenant. Is this how

the covenant ends?

I got a covenant. And then he ends up

with his head. I mean, not even a smooth

death. Not even just a I mean, Julian

just be cut his head off and give it to

a kid to take to her mama

recently in the news.

Lord pray as I President

Ibraim

Throwway they're gonna put him

him he is president one of the cap of

Burkina

Faso okay where we have a church Bishop

Kamboo and Prophet

Desantel he his thing has been trending

because and you should well I wanted to

show

He spent about eight

minutes

respectfully but very

clearly speaking to the Pope. Can y'all

believe we have an American pope? Wow.

And I know you say we don't. You're

right. I get you. But I'm saying the

Catholic Church.

He wrote and spoke so eloquently but so

clearly, not angrily but very

seriously about the

injustices of the church uh and their

silence and the way we have allowed and

I say we he's talking about the the

church as a whole Africa to be stripped

and raped. Amen. He used his voice and

his platform to speak out against

centuries old

injustices in Africa. And as soon as he

did now, he wrote to the Pope and to

this Pope's

credit, he spent 35 minutes apologizing.

See, we don't even know what. See,

that's shocking. You didn't even know it

was shocking.

Um, but it's

shocking. But he responded to this man.

But what took me over was the courage of

this gentleman.

The eloquence,

the fact that he was

unapologetic but not angry in the way he

said it, but he's clearly upset and

rightly so.

And of course, as soon as he did it, and

I'm not dealing with the fact that the

Pope responded, but what blew me away is

that as soon as that happened, he

started getting attacked on every hand,

worse than they were already going

through. Because speaking up

against

injustice will cost you something.

And as covenant

people, we don't necessarily have a

right to

hide amidst the blessings that our

covenant has provided and not see

ourselves connected to others who may

are facing injustices that we should be

helping them with.

[Applause]

You know, I didn't get a chance to tell

John about my

lesson. I tried to say a few things, but

that was just yesterday. But he pulled

up the perfect

clip. A

17-year-old requiring

and and and and I'm William. What she

said was it's not that it was

unforgivable. It was unacceptable. Not

that it was impossible to forget. It's

unacceptable to forget.

You know, as covenant people, we do not

have the right.

We do not have the right to see things

happen and see people

mistreated and see

blatant

violations against people with no voice

and we not say something.

And you say, "But

Bishop, look what happened to John. I

got you.

But there's a cost to covenant.

Because Jesus did not die on a pole.

He died

on a cross. What did he die on? He died

on a cross which says just as much as I

must be connected vertically, I have a

responsibility horizontally. And I

cannot be right with God and be wrong

with y'all.

[Applause]

I cannot get out of my cute truck, which

you know the you know new media people

said I had a Bentley. I don't know. Did

you get me one? You ain't saying nothing

about it. I

ain't right. I can't get out of my

truck and drive

around and frolic and see people hungry

or or or see systemic racism

where maybe my voice adds to it.

I tell you, I was in a meeting one time

and in case you want to go and turn to a

verse, I know y'all like a lot of

verses. I'm here for you. Luke 4:18 will

Luke 4:18

be

next. I was in a

meeting and it was a United Way meeting.

I was on the board of United Way many

years ago. Danielle was there with me.

Um and somebody of um you know it's so

funny because like in Greek in Greece

you're Greek or you're

not. The other the color part is not the

biggest issue.

It's it's you know, are you Greek or

not?

Well, I was there and there was someone

of a different race than I am. Either

one of the ones that I am is different.

And so, you didn't have to laugh at

that, Derek. I heard

it. And they went on to say

basically that because there had been a

couple things and they said that the

black people were causing all of this

crime.

So, I'm sitting in the meeting. I didn't

I don't like meetings because I have

short attention span. So, I struggle at

stuff like that. And then people say,

"Oh, let me

piggyback. If you ever see me pick up my

phone in a meeting, I'm playing

skip." I just can't I can't stay locked

into that with everybody just resaying

the same thing.

So, I sat there for a second. up said,

"Now I know good and well he did not

just say and black people because of all

the so I'm sitting in there. We're all

in a

square and I said sit here for a second

and see is anybody going to say

anything and you know I gave it a good

40

seconds and a nobody said nothing." I

said, "Um, excuse me. I'm going to need

to say something." Which, you know,

again, I know I get in trouble for

because I have the my spiritual gift is

not giving like people think. It's

prophecy, which means the need to tell

someone something. So, it's hard for me

to see something and not say something.

But, I'm learning. I'm learning. Bail

say, "Did they ask

you?" Right? And I struggle with that.

Right? I struggle with that. They didn't

ask me, but I would want you to tell me.

So, but that doesn't work all the time.

So, anyway, so I'm sitting there and I

said, "Wait a hold on, please. I'm I

don't understand why we just roll past

that

comment." I said, "But that's only you

only think that because that's the way

the media puts things out."

I said, "Because whether it's just an

accusation or somebody thought about it

last week, they're going to put our

picture." And I say, "Our don't don't

start. Don't do that to me. Y'all always

picking me." I said, "They're going to

put the black person's picture up

there."

I said, "But there are more people

committing crime than black." We aren't

We're only like 10% of the population

now. We do too much.

Oh. Oh.

God help me if I could be media.

I would now if I could if I thought

y'all that's why I retire in six months.

But listen to me.

We're doing far too much and we need to

jack each other up for this

foolishness and start requiring that we

do better. But the point of that meeting

was there is no way that's

true and I can't sit here and let you

just go on with that.

That's right. So I mean I don't have to

be up here. I didn't want to be on the

thing to start with.

No offense. I love United Way, but I

don't like meetings.

But I'm not going to be able to be here

if you respect me enough that you would

ask me to be here. then don't think you

gonna disrespect me while I'm here.

Now, why is that important?

Because as covenant

people, we should be following the heart

of Jesus.

Following the heart of who? Jesus. Luke

Luke 4:18

4:18. Come on. The spirit of the Lord is

upon me. This is what he says. Because

he hath anointed me to preach the gospel

to the poor. Who Jesus get anointed to

preach the gospel to?

Not because poor people are better or

more spiritual or No, no, no, no. But

they were poor because of they were

being oppressed. There's a difference

between being poor because you're lazy.

Being poor, y'all not talking to me.

Okay. Because you are ignorant and just

don't know better. And being poor

because everything has been stacked

against you.

How many of you all have ever played the

game step to the line?

How many don't have a clue what I'm

talking about? See?

Okay. There's a line. Veronica, who else

can I get? Who else can I get? I don't

want to mess with people if I don't call

and know your story. Come here, Ar. All

right. Come. That's right. Nisha, come

on up here since you pastor. Look at her

preacher thing. No, not nature. No, I'm

not going to bring the prophet up I'm

not bringing the prophet up here cuz you

going to know what I was going to ask

anyway. I'm just playing. All right. So

y'all come here. Come stand right here.

Hurry. Hurry cuz my sermon at least they

change. I love that blue projection

ministry. Y'all going to get something

today. All right. So this is how they do

this. They say imagine that we are in a

race and we are racing to get to that

that wall back there. Everybody with me?

All right. Then they add stuff. this

kind of stuff Pastor Trey will be doing

to us.

They say, "How many people have never

had to worry about money in your home?

Take a step

forward." I was an only child. I didn't

both my parents did really well. I never

had to think about it. I stole from them

and gave it to poor people. That's a

fact. My mama tell you right now. All

right. Then it's something like this.

How many people of this group both your

parents went to

college? How many people of this group

both your parents graduated from

college? Okay. They say, "Okay, of this

group, how many people were exposed to

financial information around the the

household table?" Take a step forward.

Okay. How many people of this group had

access to transportation? Whether the

family had vehicles or you had bus

routes and could get to libraries and

things very easily, take a step

forward.

Now, the point is, if we're getting

ready to race,

I'm already near about a two a third of

the way to it. So before they even start

the bell, I'm already ahead because I

have not had to face the things that

they have faced.

[Applause]

If they grew up in situations where they

did not have access to education and you

say, "Well, that could

you live in the country, how you going

to get to the city?" That's right.

With no car and no bus route. Well, it's

their fault for moving out there. But if

I cannot be given a job that takes into

account my abilities, it it's systemic.

You got to And I'm not talking about us

looking or people looking to always make

excuses because there are some people

didn't I tell you there were some people

that would let them poke cuz they lazy.

But y'all, that's not everybody. Amen.

That's just like everybody ain't

divorced because something wrong with

them. There are a few folk that married

nuts.

God knows I'm preaching. I I just

So if there was food insecurity,

okay. All right. Transportation issues.

Okay. Sometimes. Okay. No car. Mother

didn't drive. No car. Mother didn't

drive. So I'm way up here getting ready

to start my race. Then I'mma run. I'mma

get here first and then I'm going to

say, "What's wrong with y'all?" See? See

what's wrong with y'all? How come y'all

can't do it? I did it.

Thank

[Applause]

y'all. Jesus said the spirit of the Lord

was upon him. He anointed him to preach

the gospel to the poor. He sent him to

heal the brokenhearted, preach

deliverance to the captives, the

recovering of sight to the blind, and to

set at liberty the people who were

chained up from so much oppression.

Go with me in your Bibles to Micah 6. I

know those that have old school Bibles

are hurting right

now cuz where in the name of Jesus is

Micah? I don't hear no pages flipping.

You ain't giving

up. You can look on the screen for time.

This is a very famous verse, but it's

very clear. Says, "He has showed thee,

oh man, what is good and what does God

require of you? But to be about

justice."

Uh-uh. Two claps, one holler. to be

about justice and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God.

We have to have changes. I've I've said

um you know our current president has um

done so many things. Lord,

there have to be changes though. So I

try to look at things very openly and I

try to say when I think things were good

that is probably the thing that needs to

happen right now. But one of the things

that I do not have any now I still don't

trust why it's happening

cuz I can see I see hearts now you know

but anyway it's not in there. But

uh as a as a former immigrant myself had

a blue green card alien registration

card. I'm now a cit a citizen of this

country. Amen. Praise God. Cuz right

about now,

what is not okay? It's it's Hey, I agree

that we cannot just say, "Oh, this

anybody and everybody

if you don't have structure,

I we got structure in the church.

We can't you just can't bring this many

people in a room and don't have

structure."

Okay. So you have to have some rules.

But the way they were busing people and

dropping them off at folks houses that

show you they don't care about these

people. Now what do the church what does

what should a Christian do? What should

the church do? We can't just sit around

and not say anything not do anything not

talk about not vote not do there has to

be some response. says, "Because if you

really look at it, what God is looking

for, you do right, you do justice, love

mercy, care about somebody besides

yourself,

and walk humbly with God." Come on.

Let's go on some more. Let's go some

more. Let's go some more. Get me. Uh

Isaiah

1. Isaiah

1.

Hurry.

Hurry. Isaiah 1 verse 14- 18. Read that.

Isaiah 1:14–18

Your new moons and your appointed feasts

my soul hated. God say, "I'm so sick of

y'all with these deep church services. I

don't know what in the world to do."

Read. They are trouble unto me. They

wear me out. I am weary to bear them.

This is what God is saying. Keep going.

And ye spread forth your hands. I will

hide my He said you doing all this. He

said, "I can't hardly hear nothing you

saying." Yay. When you make many

prayers, I will not hear you. He said,

"I can't hear you." Not because you're

not standing and sitting when it's

appropriate. Not because you don't have

your little altar thing. He said, "But I

can't get past what you do when you

ain't on your prayer altar. I can't get

past the way you are systemically making

sure that people don't have or that

people are missing out." Now, I don't

you know, war is the whole war thing is

probably beyond my intellectual

understanding at this point. I'll have

to ask Pastor Hutchkins when he gets

home. But what I do

know is if we got enough food to at

least send some food so the folk ain't

starve. But y'all ain't gonna let the

people eat. I know you fighting and

think but this is really and what are we

fighting over again? What are we doing?

You know when we are we are

purposefully robbing countries of their

goods, gold, uranium, all the things

that they have and other places as well.

We're doing all of this and we set

things in place. I know we want to be a

strong nation. We do. But

folks, there's going to be a price to

pay

for mistreating people.

God said, "I can't stand a faulty

scale." You understand what I'm saying?

Like I tell people when I got to go buy

a vehicle, you can make some money cuz

you got a family to feed, but you ain't

sitting all send all of them on a cruise

on me. This got to be win-win.

You want to resolve things in a winwin.

In a what kind of fashion?

God said, "You're doing all this

prayer." He said, "It makes me sick."

Come on. Your hands are full of blood.

Yeah. Wash you, make you clean. Put away

the evil of your doings from before mine

eyes. Cease to do evil. Cease to do

evil. Verse 17. Learn to do well. And do

what? Seek judgment. Yes. Seek justice.

Do what else? Relieve the oppressed and

do what else? Judge the fatherless.

That's right. That don't mean put them

in court. That means take care of them.

Look at the situations. Put things in

place and cry out for the widow.

Don't nobody care

about That's that lack of sleep. Did you

see it that came on me so fast? Girl

said, "Don't nobody care about your

shoes and your bag,

your rims. Your grandmama's floor is

about to cave in.

[Applause]

Come all up from the hea na. Interpret

your own time. Let me interpret them for

you. Do it again. Hea na na. God said

take some of that stuff and go pay their

bills cuz this is a mess.

Sayeth the Lord. Come on. Come on. Come

on. Amen. This is the cost of covenant.

Give me verse 18. Come now and let us

reason together. He said, "Come on.

Though your sins be as scarlet, they

shall be as white as snow. Though they

be red like crimson, they shall be as

white. God says, see, here's the thing.

I want to work through this. He said,

because it is a lot easier to get into

the ritual element of our faith than the

actual relationship and walking it out.

It's a lot easier to come to church than

not cuss at somebody

when they upset you.

Come on, y'all. Don't fall out now. No,

it's a lot easier.

He said, "But this is what I expect."

Give me Proverbs 31. Come on. Proverbs

31. As covenant people, open thy mouth.

Wait a minute. As covenant people,

Proverbs 31:8-9, we have a

Proverbs 31:8–9

responsibility. Sometimes it's speaking

out like the president, like that young

man did. He did it in a respectful way.

He called him your holiness, your

imminence, whatever all he said. But

when I tell you he did not cut punches

on what he

said, said this is the

time. And I was so impressed that his

passion for his

country motivated him to use his

platform. But that ain't nothing new.

That's what John the Baptist did, too.

Come on. Proverbs 31. Open thy mouth for

the dumb. in the cause of all such as

are appointed to destruction. Come on.

Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and

plead the cause of the poor and needy.

Let me tell you something. I remember

telling our boys early on, you remember

going to school? I said, "Now, you

better not be in school fighting

cuz the fight you get in when you get

home, I know you going to lose that one

unless

you are standing up for somebody

now you see and it happened um had a

little fell I can't remember that guy's

name you remember the little boy that

had the braces on his legs I know you

remember well whatever his name was

sweet baby you know they pushed him down

and knocked his books

down TJ

being the child like his mama

Now he jumped in

it. So, oh no. And was so gentle. See

this? It was a

picture. You don't get in a fight cuz

somebody call you something. Whatever.

You walk on. You understand? You ain't

paying no bills at the house. Don't you

nobody care what you talking about? You

fat or whatever. I'm going to get a

donut. Right. I mean, I don't care about

you.

I mean, I'm not trying to be ugly, but

that is an inappropriate use of being

upset. That's an inappropriate use of me

taking my energy. God did not give us

breath and life and strength and

intelligence for us to dump it on people

who have no lasting influence on our

lives.

But if I'm going to raise up, I'm going

to raise up for somebody that you are

trying to hurt or violate. And if they

don't have a voice, well, guess what?

I got one.

And that has to be our posture.

The late and great Reverend Dr. Martin

Luther King Jr. said, "Injustice

anywhere is a threat to justice

everywhere."

Let me give you a little bit more,

y'all. Y'all, we I still got Oh, I still

got five minutes. My God. Thank you,

Jesus. Zechariah 7. I'm putting them

Bibles to work. Zechariah 7.

Thus speak Wait, wait. You got to let

Doc You can tell he has a phone. You can

tell that, can't you? Yeah. He ain't he

ain't flipping no scriptures that that

fast. Just going to put that on out

there. Zechariah 7 verse 9 and 10. Start

Zechariah 7:9

at verse eight.

And the word of the Lord came unto

Zachchariah saying, Yes. Thus speaketh

the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true

judgment, and do what else? And show

mercy and compassion, every man to his

brother, and oppress not the widow, nor

the fatherless, don't do it. The

stranger, nope. Nor the poor, don't do

it. And let none of you imagine evil

against his brother in your heart.

Underline that one. Highlight that one.

Put that one on the back of the car.

No. If I'm in covenant with God, then

remember he didn't die on a what? Pole.

He died on a And that means I have a

responsibility because of how good he is

to me. Because of what he's doing in my

life, I ought to reach out and help

somebody myself. I'm Listen, you're not

going to care about most of the things

that you think about when it comes time

to die.

I have stood there. I have a file and

right in the side of my bottom drawer

this thick of people that have died over

the past 35 years

and I have been there for many of them

and they didn't care nothing about that

stuff.

If you can help somebody as you travel

along, if you can cheer somebody with a

word or a song, if you can show some

traveler they're traveling wrong, then

your living is not in vain. I can't I

can't live good myself and then see

somebody dog and somebody old and think

that's okay. Both of my children,

they're strong. But what about

somebody's child that has special needs?

I'm not going to let you roll over them.

And maybe maybe the parents aren't as

articulate as I am. I'll be glad to say

it for you.

In

Matthew, John said, "It is wrong for you

to have your brother Philip's wife." It

wasn't just that, y'all. Again, Luke

Luke 3:19

3:19 said it was a lot of stuff. It was

an abuse of power. What was it? Abuse of

power. And what he said

is, "You can't do that. That's wrong."

That's what this guy said. He said, "We

are no, we are tired." And this is not

necessarily He was talking for Africa.

We don't live in Africa.

Okay. This is bigger than black.

No, this is bigger than black. Now, this

is black is important. Black lives do

matter.

Well, all lives matter. See, to even say

that is an ongoing refusal to accept

that we have systemically made it seem

like they didn't matter.

They can't all matter till at least that

one matter.

You can't wear the necklace if you got

one of the links that's still broken.

So, but this is bigger than that. It

could be somebody in your community

that's being mistreated.

Could be somebody on the job.

John the Baptist said to him, "It's

wrong for you to have this." John the

Baptist was a prominent prophet. He

could have easily he could have done the

same thing that Esther almost did.

See, all kind of folk that confronted

people that stood up for justice in the

Bible. Nathan confronted David.

He said about adultery. Now, watch this.

This is not a sermon to say that you

need to be on your Facebook, your your

social media platform trying to call

everybody out. That is not what I'm

saying.

[Applause]

The reason Nathan came at David wasn't

just the issue of adultery. Notice the

story he told. He said, "Then what was a

rich man that had all he needed, but he

wasn't satisfied to have his and use

his. He wanted to take the little bit

that the poor man had. It wasn't really

about adultery as much as it was. How is

it that you can't ever be satisfied and

are willing at all cost to protect your

will wealth and let everybody else go

dead broke?

Read your Bible.

He came up against it. Elijah confronted

I'm going to get back to Esther. Elijah

confronted Ahab and Jezebel about their

idolatry and oppressive political abuse.

But what it caused was a nationwide

revival. When Nathan confronted David,

it caused him to repent. Moses

confronted Pharaoh, risked everything,

and had to live in exile. But he spoke

up because it's what God told him to do.

Moses could have shut his mouth and

stayed in the palace grinning and

blinking.

He looked close enough to him,

but he didn't do it. Amen. He spoke up.

He said, "What you're doing, God ain't

for this foolishness, and he's not

playing with you. It cost him

exile. There's all kind of people."

Jesus spoke up.

All this stuff that they were doing, all

this religious hypocrisy, he said,

"Y'all up here with these long gowns on

you look so deep and you look so holy."

He said, "I can't hardly beat you. You

out praying me."

He said, "You doing all of this stuff.

You're just the deepest thing I've ever

seen. You paying tithe of mint, you go

to the This is what Jesus said. Y'all go

buy sugar and divide it into 10 and

bring one row of it like cocaine almost.

Bring one row of it to the church.

That's how funny you are about tithing.

But you will walk right past somebody

that you did wrong.

[Applause]

Esther and Mori

also beautiful example. Esther was in a

place of privilege. Mori, not really.

They both used what they had to speak

out against it. So when I look at this

text I was reading, I said, "God, I'm

just trying to say looked like to me

this was a beat up way for a covenant

man to die." So I asked, I said, "I

wonder if John would be mad about the

way he died." I mean, I really I really

do wonder about that. God, would would

John John, how would you feel about

that?

how would you feel? What I realized

was now I don't think he'd be

upset because he understands you're in a

covenant with God and there are

privileges and promises and there are

rights but there are responsibilities.

And if we are to fulfill those that

means we got to speak up just like this

man did.

We got to be willing to use responsively

and respectedly in a respectful manner

our

platforms whether it's talking to

somebody whether it is a social media

post whether it is voting which we all

ought to be but voting with justice in

mind

not just your own self interest but

what's really

right I don't believe he would be mad

Dr. James Conn said true faith man

manifests itself in social

[Music]

concern and MLK Jr. said the church is

not the master or the servant of the

state. We are to be the conscience

of the state.

You see somebody walking past laughing

at somebody said doc don't don't do

that. What if they hit you? You should

have stayed out of it. You know,

sometime we use these little slang that

statements that we like. I ain't got now

nickel in that dime. Well, get

one because you do because they if they

could laugh at them.

I told you I was in school in high

school and I'm about done. I was in

school in high school and there was a

guy who's completely gay just, you know,

not even a question. It's a little white

fellow and he was walking down the hall

and somebody proceeded to take what do

you call it? Matt the um

lighter and and and started doing stuff

burning at his head.

Now I don't even remember his name. I

might not have known his name at the

time but something said something about

this is just terrible.

So, of course, what' I do?

I jumped in it because in my

mind, what what kind of person am I if I

can stand by and watch

people do other people like that? Cuz

let me tell you, if you don't know, I

hear you, Pastor Trev, get out my ear.

The same dog that'll bring a bone will

carry one.

And if they come at them today, all you

got to do is turn your face wrong one

time and they will come for you. No, you

ain't coming for no. That's why I told

that little that little prophet fell was

doing all that stuff, raping these

churches, using my name. So no, doc,

you're not f to do that. Not in

Greenville.

And everybody looked at me like I was

mean cuz I put him in the newspaper.

Cuz I told him, I said, "Stop using my

name or I'm putting you on blast." He

didn't believe me. He opened the

newspaper and a halfpage ad had been

paid for with his name and and I told

him and I got the money to fight you in

court. Get

your custommade suits and your gator

shoes and get your butt out of our

county. You're not doing it here now.

Why? Because we got to protect I got to

protect the pastors that got 23 members.

I got to protect them cuz they're

working just as hard as I am to obey

God. And I'm not going to let them come

in and rape that

church.

So Dr. King finally says, "Our lives

begin to end the day we become silent

about things that matter."

So, I don't think John the Baptist got

mad. I think he knew that the cost of

covenant is

caring. And caring will make you stand

up. Amen. Amen.