Questions of Jesus Series #3
Pastor David T. Elms 8/19/2025
Loading…
0:00
39:48
Summary
In this lesson from the series 'Questions of Jesus,' Pastor David T. Elms explores how Christ uses probing questions to move believers beyond religious pretense into a life of authentic self-examination and practice. Using the metaphor of the 'white glove test,' the sermon challenges us to invite God into our real struggles rather than performing for others.
Key points
- •Relationship over Religion: Christianity is not a club or a collection of theories, but a relationship built on the foundation of practicing the Word of God rather than just hearing it.
- •The Purpose of Self-Examination: Jesus uses probing questions to develop our 'giftedness of self-inspection,' aligning our lives with genuine righteousness rather than seeking human approval.
- •Authentic Prayer: Prayer is not meant to inform or impress God, but to invite Him into our current reality and to enjoy His presence in every season of life.
- •The Danger of Pretense: Jesus reserved His harshest words for the 'pseudo' or hypocritical, emphasizing that true faith must be real and inwardly clean rather than just a public performance.
Scripture
Authenticity
Discipleship
Self-Examination
Prayer
Life application
This week, practice the 'inviting prayer' by consciously asking God into three specific moments - whether a work stressor, a family celebration, or a quiet moment of fatigue - instead of trying to pray 'impressive' prayers.
Reflection questions
- When Jesus asks, 'Why call you me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?', what specific area of your life feels most out of alignment with His words?
- Pastor Elms discusses 'seasons of dryness' that happen every few years. How do you handle those moments when you lose the 'feeling' of serving God?
- How can we cultivate a church culture that welcomes people in their 'tough moments' without forcing them to pretend everything is okay?
Have a question about this sermon?
Ask our AI and get an answer with citations.
Full transcript
0:00my side. Hallelujah. We love you, girl.
0:00Amen. 6:46 of Luke. Simple one verse
0:04question.
0:06Why call ye me Lord, Lord,
0:09and do not the things which I say?
0:14Why call you me, Lord, Lord? Do not the
0:18things which I say?
0:21Questions Jesus asked. Now Lord, let
0:23this be food for the hungry and water
0:26for the thirsty. Let this be fuel for
0:30the journey and fire for the cold. Let
0:33this be strength unto our soul. In Jesus
0:36name I pray. To God be the glory. You
0:40may be seated. In the name of the Lord.
0:43Hallelujah.
0:44So good to see every one of you. Feels
0:47great to be in the house of the Lord.
0:48We're I guess school started now which
0:51changes a lot of things and uh
0:55it's it's amazing how all that happens.
0:58Jesus is the master. Jesus is the reason
1:01we serve God. We are not a religion as
1:04much as we are a relationship.
1:06>> We are not forming a club. We are doing
1:10so much more than that. We are
1:12formulating a walk that is built on a
1:16foundation that is stable. The Lord said
1:20that if uh you're a man who does hear
1:24the word but you do not do the word uh
1:28it in other words somewhere it's got to
1:30be moved from just the understanding and
1:32theorizing and following these
1:34instructives or hearing the instructives
1:37of the Bible and being able to parrot
1:38them if you will to people uh to where
1:41you've got to put them in practice
1:43because the Bible is really how the
1:45world really works. Uh he said if you if
1:49you hear the word and you don't do it,
1:51you you shall be like the man who is
1:53built on the sand.
1:56But if you're one that hears the word
1:58and you do it, you will be like a man
2:01that builds his house on a rock. Uh
2:06we're all building a house. Um and we
2:08want to build it. Well, I'm 58 years
2:11old. Okay, I know that's very young. I
2:13know it's too young to pastor, but
2:15they're letting me do it. Um, but you
2:18know, at at 58, I want you all to know
2:20I'm still building a house. And uh, we
2:23had a special time. Our League of
2:26Extraordinary Ministers is coming back
2:27into session for the second uh, or is
2:30this the third? This is the My Lord, I
2:32can't believe time's flown by that fast.
2:34Our third. And we had our a field trip.
2:37And this field trip that we went on last
2:39night goes to Vista View Park. And if
2:42you've never been to Vista View Park, I
2:44would recommend that if you need to go a
2:46place to go and just sit and and look,
2:50um it's probably best in the evening. Um
2:53but you can go sit at the very top of
2:55Vista View Park. There's a couple of
2:56tables up there and you can see all the
2:59way from Miami's buildings. You can see
3:01every cluster from Miami to the Aventura
3:04area to Hollywood area to Fort
3:06Lauderdale area. You can even see if you
3:09look hard enough some of Bokeh. Uh but
3:12you can see all these buildings which
3:13are representative of souls, millions
3:17and millions of people. And of course
3:19you see it mostly treetops but you see
3:22that it's quiet kind of up there. Um and
3:27I like to take each LXM class up there
3:30and sit and just talk about what are we
3:33doing?
3:36You know, life can get so fast that you
3:38you get caught up, forget what am I
3:40doing here? Am I just paying my bills
3:42and going home? And sometimes you just
3:45need to stop and get quiet and turn off
3:47everything and ask, "What are we doing?"
3:50And and of course, it was to me it was a
3:52special night. I hope you guys enjoyed
3:54as much as I did. The park ranger came
3:57and ran us off. Good night. I almost
3:58told her to go jump in the lake, but
4:01there were alligators in that lake, so I
4:03didn't tell her to do that. Um, and I'm
4:05I'm the pastor, so I got to act like
4:07that. Uh, but anyway, we were having
4:10such a great time talking about why are
4:12we doing this? Why are you guys going
4:15through what you have to go through to
4:16be here? Sunday and then Monday and then
4:19Tuesday. And on Sunday, they got to-do
4:22lists. And on Monday, they're tested and
4:25they're graded. And if they don't make
4:28great grades, they might be embarrassed
4:30in front of the whole group. Yes. I'm
4:33trying to discourage you from getting an
4:34LXM if you're softy. Okay? Don't do it.
4:37No softies allowed. Uh and and and then
4:41they come on Tuesday night and they
4:43pretend like they can sing even if they
4:44can't. And we give them a mic and put
4:47them live on the web and uh and then we
4:51ask them to greet whether no matter what
4:53kind of day they've gone through. I hope
4:54they do a good job. I really do. Y'all
4:56are the one who sees them. I'm praying.
4:57I'm up here on my face praying that
4:59they're going to do a good job back
5:00there. But you all see them and uh it's
5:02always been a blessing to me to watch
5:04them. But why in the world are they
5:06doing it? Does it matter? Is it just to
5:09build a better club? Are we doing this
5:12to build a club? Are we doing this to
5:15have a neat circle and sphere of
5:18friends?
5:20Why are we doing it?
5:22>> There's got to be a core essence to why
5:27we're doing it. And Jesus is the one
5:30that has given us in his word many of
5:33these very probing and powerful
5:37questions that do not come with spoonfed
5:41answers. If you're wanting a quick
5:43answer, then then you're already
5:45thinking too shallow because Jesus's
5:48questions, they're not just looking for
5:50a quick check. You got that one filled
5:52in. No, they're so much deeper than
5:54that. They're multi-layered. They're
5:57they're filled with fragrance and
5:59they're filled with hope, but also hurt
6:02sometimes. Sometimes they come and they
6:05bring you and lead you down a road and
6:07while you start walking, you branch into
6:09a lot of different thoughts. And so when
6:11we're assessing these questions, we
6:13realize he doesn't just preach and
6:14teach. He really comes and asks the
6:16heart and he invites you on a journey.
6:20And he's not going to give you the right
6:23answer. No, your answer may be different
6:27than my answer. And he's not saying,
6:29"Well, I was wanting you to give this
6:31perfect wrote answer, this quoted
6:34answer." You know, LXM is supposed to be
6:37able to um quote this pledge and we do
6:40it before every class and sometimes I'll
6:43stumble over com compassion or
6:45consecration. Y'all know that's my spot.
6:47My speed bump is right there. I pledge
6:49to walk in the way of covenant with the
6:51League of Extraordinary Ministries who
6:52come to four. to stand in truth, to sit
6:54in love, to delight in the life and
6:56legacy of hope, so that my consecration,
6:58compassion, and faith would lead others
6:59into a
7:03>> divine encounter of I notice Elijah's I
7:06mean, he's just sitting there real
7:08quiet, not talking a bit.
7:11Yesterday, a few of them stumbled over
7:13it, and I asked them straight to their
7:14face, "Do you know it? Do you know it?
7:16Do you know it?" You know, there's some
7:18who used to know it in here.
7:22Y'all ready to rumble?
7:25So, but but here's the thing. That's the
7:28wrote, the quote, the memorized
7:34unifying pledge.
7:36And I know the older generation of LXMR,
7:39y'all didn't have this. Okay, we've
7:42we've added to LXM since y'all
7:44graduated. Y'all had extra hours spent.
7:47That's all I'll say. Uh we do let out on
7:50time for every iteration since I've been
7:52teaching. But the brother God
7:54bless you, brother Michael
7:56you're a legend. Uh he somehow he got so
8:00anointed he forgot the clock.
8:03He was a coast guard. So that's explains
8:05it there. He was a coasty. Uh and so but
8:08you know it was wonderful wonderful in
8:11this process. But why are we doing it?
8:13Why do you guys go through and I don't
8:16even like it call it the fuss, but why
8:18do you go through the fuss of saying
8:20Tuesday night I've got to be in the
8:21house of God and then you'll even attune
8:24to what I'm about to teach. What's going
8:26on? What's the benefit? And what's the
8:29payoff? And and Jesus gets us and he
8:32asks questions that make us lean in. He
8:35steps into our anxiety. And he doesn't
8:38say, "Here's your quote. Repeat it." He
8:41asks you other questions for you to
8:43ponder and to hold. He literally has in
8:46his spirit, "Come, let us reason
8:49together."
8:53You know, I've parented and I'm still
8:55parenting.
8:57Um although all my kids are grown and
9:01they're adults now, I'm trying to parent
9:03myself. Okay?
9:05Uh but in the process of parenting, you
9:09know, if all you're trying to do is
9:12teach your kids exactly what you want
9:14them to do, you're not preparing them
9:16for life. If you keep them in a bubble
9:20where everything is going to be situated
9:23just so for them and every table will be
9:26set perfectly for them, you're not
9:28preparing them for life. If the first
9:30thing you do when they run into a bad
9:32teacher is say, "We've got to get you a
9:34new teacher." You're not preparing them
9:37for life.
9:39The first time that you put them in a
9:40soccer uh match or or do a karate uh you
9:45know, try out, my my grandson had a
9:47karate try out the other day.
9:51I think I already told this story. If I
9:53did, please forgive me. But he went for
9:56a karate tie out and and and the karate
9:59teacher shocked him. Is he in here?
10:01There he is. Yes. Remember the karate
10:04teacher? He shocked him and he he was up
10:08like that but you could see him kind of
10:11jerk because he wanted to be ready but
10:13he wasn't ready for that. Uh and then he
10:16facetimed me and I had the chiefs around
10:18me. The chiefs were around me and he
10:20facetimed me and I said, "I'm sorry
10:22chiefs. Y'all are important, but you're
10:23not that important. And I took a
10:26FaceTime at a a police event and and it
10:29was River and he said, "Pop pop, I want
10:32to show you how fast I can kick."
10:38Here's the thing. Sometimes you're going
10:40to run into a bad coach.
10:43You don't prepare them for life, for
10:45making everything easy because life
10:48isn't easy.
10:50You prepare them by saying, "Guess what?
10:52you're going to run into hard in your
10:54life. Now, you and I, we're going to
10:56walk through this together. I'm not
10:58saying there wouldn't be a time to
11:00change a class, okay? I'm not saying
11:02that. I'm saying it shouldn't be your
11:05first option.
11:07>> Because you need to say, "All right,
11:09you're going to run into situations that
11:11are really bad, but that doesn't mean
11:14you're bad. Doesn't mean you can't come
11:17through it." And so what instead of
11:19giving them this wrote solution this and
11:22do you all understand what I'm saying
11:23wrote? It's uh I hope I'm using the
11:26right verbiage there. I know it's the
11:27right word but I want to make it more
11:28plain. Some memorize perfect answer. No.
11:32Life is filled with too many curves and
11:34hills and valleys and you don't know
11:37what someone's going through. So you've
11:39got to get prepared for that moment. And
11:43that's what Jesus does when he asks some
11:46questions. He exposes incon
11:49inconsistencies between words and deeds.
11:52He compels us to look at the
11:55self-examination. And he wants us to
11:58have the skill set of self-examination.
12:01He doesn't want you to have to have the
12:04pastor preach a dynamic, glorious,
12:08anointed, God-scent message before you
12:12wake up to the road you're going down.
12:16Now, that's the purpose of the church is
12:19to have us around people that will help
12:22provoke us is what the Bible says.
12:24Provoke one another to good works. And
12:27so there is times God will send his word
12:29and you know how much it's God because
12:32you know the pull pit doesn't know what
12:35you're going through and you just have
12:37to go home and say that wasn't lucky
12:41that was God
12:44>> and when that happens you have to
12:46prepare your heart but the goal of God
12:49is not for you to get in this process of
12:52saying okay I I I will wait until God
12:56sends a message from the pullpit. No, he
12:59wants you to accumulate a talent of self
13:03inspection.
13:06>> I I I will always remember going to the
13:09the um the changing of the guard in uh
13:13in Washington DC at the Arlington
13:16National Cemetery and I wanted my kids
13:18to go.
13:21Oh Lord.
13:23Right. Soon after we went there, we went
13:25to New Orleans and met brother and
13:26sister Hail down there and Ethan was
13:29really young and on what's the name of
13:31that street in New Orleans? French
13:34Bourbon Street. Is that it? Right at the
13:37corner of Bourbon Street, Ethan got
13:42outdoor in front of everybody. He did
13:43his own little marching of the uh the
13:47guard.
13:48I remember he got all kinds of attention
13:52pretending like he was the changing of
13:54the guard. But I I I wanted my kids to
13:58see it. But some things have to be
14:00caught, not taught.
14:02>> You can't tell them some things. I
14:04wanted them to see the inspection.
14:09The inspection is as important as
14:11anything. as they come through and
14:14there's three people involved in that
14:16process and and with great pump and
14:19circumstance and style and and
14:22precision, the white glove inspection
14:25and the tilting of the head and looking
14:27down the barrel and it's just phenomenal
14:30watching that. And I think everybody on
14:33this earth need to go through that
14:35because it's the white glove test. And
14:39if you can't pass the white glove test,
14:42they won't let you guard
14:45the tomb of the unknown soldier. And uh
14:48it's such an inspiring thing. But I'm
14:51telling you that inspection, it's there.
14:55But the great thing is that before they
14:57ever get there, there's a self
15:00inspection.
15:02Every man who's nominated to take that
15:05walk
15:07already knows my shoes are perfect, my
15:10gun is perfect, my gloves are perfect,
15:13my uniform is perfect, the tilt of my
15:15hat is perfect, the order of my steps is
15:18perfect because they have accumulated
15:20something they did not have as an
15:2218-year-old. They did not have it maybe
15:25as a 19-year-old, but somewhere in the
15:27process of valuing things and valuing
15:30processes, they got to a talented
15:33ability of self inspection.
15:37And really, that's what the questions
15:39Jesus asked us. It's inspiring you to
15:44gather your giftedness
15:47of self inspection. And he compels this
15:50self-examination within ourselves so we
15:53can align our lives with genuine
15:56righteousness. It strips away the
15:58pretense. It enables us to uh uh have
16:03authentic responses that honor God
16:06rather than seeking human approval.
16:08Here's some of the questions that he
16:10asks. And of course, there are over 300
16:12questions in the Gospels of Jesus. So,
16:14I'm not going to cover all of them, but
16:16just clusters of of groupings of these
16:19questions and themes. This one, it it
16:21starts in Matthew 5:46 and 47. But if
16:24you love them which love you, what
16:26reward have you?
16:29The judge of the whole earth isn't
16:30telling you. He's asking you,
16:33what what what do you think your reward
16:35is? Do not even the publicans do it like
16:38that? And if you salute your brethren
16:41only, if you only like those you go to
16:43church with, but you already have a
16:45tainted view of anybody you're working
16:47with.
16:50Do not even the publicans do that? He
16:53hasn't presented one solution.
16:57He just asked you,
16:59>> will you take this clean
17:02self- inspection device and look at
17:05yourself when you walk into the
17:07workplace? Look at yourself when you
17:09walk beside the neighbor. You're not
17:11sure you're like, "Uh, we've got a new
17:13sign in my yard.
17:19New sign."
17:22Babe, have you memorized the words of
17:23that sign?
17:25>> Tell me the gist of the sign.
17:29Please
17:31be neighborly and pick up after your
17:33pooch.
17:35>> Dog. Okay. I think pooch would have been
17:37nicer.
17:40Please be neighborly. It's about this
17:43far off the ground and it's where we
17:45have found blessedness.
17:51Now we suspect we know who did it.
17:57Believe you. Between me and my neighbor
18:00Sherlock lives on 23rd Street.
18:07But if I am only nice to those who are
18:09nice to me,
18:12there's a Holy Ghost mirror.
18:15Ah, oh Lord, help the cathedral. Hear
18:17this right now.
18:20I I'm I'm I'm serious, you guys. This is
18:22so spiritual because it takes the Holy
18:25Ghost. It takes Holy Ghost power to do
18:27what I'm talking about. to love those
18:30who don't love you, who don't respect
18:32you, who belittle you, who mock you, and
18:36you're able by the power of the Holy
18:39Ghost to say, "God's got my back.
18:43How are you doing?" I can greet you
18:46without loss. I am not going to be in
18:48debt now because I've greeted you
18:50because you have I know you're talking
18:52about me, but I can walk by and smile at
18:56you, not by saying, "I know what you're
18:58doing." That's what the world would do.
19:01You can walk by and smile saying, "God's
19:03got my back. How you doing?"
19:07These are the tools that God give us. Uh
19:10Matthew 7:3 and4, "Why beholdest thou
19:12the moat that is in thy brother's eye,
19:16but considerest not the beam that is in
19:18thine own eye?"
19:22Or, you know, if I could add some
19:24intonation to this question asking of
19:26the Lord, I would have so much fun. Can
19:29you imagine if he, you know, I'm sure
19:32you all think you know what kind of
19:33tones he used? He might have gone, why
19:37beholdest the
19:40the moment that is in thy brother's eye,
19:43but considerth not the beam. There's no
19:47body language spoken of in the scripture
19:53or
19:55[Music]
19:59how wilt thou say to thy brother, let me
20:01pull the molt out of thine eye, and
20:04behold, a beam is in thine own.
20:09He asked in Matthew 9:4 and5, "Why do
20:11you think evil in your hearts?"
20:16Which is easier,
20:19to say, "Thy sins be forgiven thee,"
20:23or to say, "Arise and walk?"
20:28He never answers his own question.
20:33He just lays it out there. Then he moves
20:36on. And you've got to figure out which
20:38is easier. Now, I know those of us who
20:40have been around the Bible and the
20:42scripture, we've already got our
20:42formulated formulated theology about
20:45this thing and we've got a whole opinion
20:47on it. But I don't think the Lord wants
20:49us to give him some simple theological
20:52answer. I think he wants us to hold
20:54those two questions for a little while.
20:58What's easier? Thy son, thy sins be
21:01forgiven thee or rise and walk? And he
21:04asked in Matthew 15:3, "Why transgress
21:06ye the commandments of God
21:09by your tradition?"
21:12[Music]
21:13So you put your tradition above the
21:16commandments of God because, you know,
21:18tradition is good,
21:21but the commandments of God are great.
21:24Now, I know I'm adding the Timothy
21:26edition in there, but I'm telling you,
21:29that's essentially what he's saying. Why
21:32are you allowing the traditions which
21:33were handed down to you by your fathers
21:36to give you license
21:39to walk past the commandments of God as
21:42if there don't rise to the level of my
21:44culture,
21:47my culture, my traditions, my
21:49commonalities with my brethren. I can
21:51just say, "Oh, we wink at this." Because
21:53here in this church, you know, I know of
21:57three that are doing it.
22:03See, a church can have a culture. An
22:06organization can have a culture. A
22:09preacher can promote a culture.
22:12No matter what men do, we're all subject
22:16to the
22:18confines of flesh. And so the Lord just
22:22says, "Here, hold this question for a
22:25minute and let it go down in your
22:28spirit.
22:30Then he says, "Why call you me Lord,
22:32Lord, when you do not the things which I
22:35say?" He highlights double standards and
22:38he provokes people to forgiveness and
22:40fairness. And the forgiveness always
22:43starts
22:45because one has developed the tool of
22:49self inspection.
22:51When people are slow to forgive, it's
22:53because they have forgotten
22:56how to inspect themselves.
22:59Because the prayer said, "Forgive us our
23:01debts." How?
23:07>> You can't even know how to pray the
23:09Lord's Prayer until you know how to
23:11inspect yourself.
23:16>> There's an old gospel song. It's real.
23:18It's real. I know it's real. It's
23:20Pentecost salvation. And I know it. Know
23:23it's real. Now other people sing it with
23:25other additions.
23:28They say it's real. It's real. I know
23:31it's real. Praise God. The doubts are
23:33settled. For I know. I know it's real.
23:36But how it goes. Oh, how well I do. I
23:39remember how I doubted day by day. For I
23:43did not for know for certain that my
23:46sins were washed away. When the spirit
23:49tried to tell me I would not the truth
23:52receive. I endeavored to be happy and to
23:56make myself believe. But it's real. It's
24:00real. I know it's real. Verse two goes,
24:04"And then at last by faith I touched
24:06him, and like sparks from smitten steel.
24:11Just so quick, salvation found me. Oh,
24:14bless God, I know it's real.
24:19This thing has got to be real. not
24:22pretend, not practice, not style. It's
24:25got to be real. And every one of us come
24:28to a place in our life where we lose the
24:32feeling of serving the Lord. I preached
24:36years ago, and I may need to preach it
24:37again, an ear bored with the all. And I
24:40talked about how
24:42uh those who loved him took a vow of the
24:46love slave. And the love slave in the
24:48Old Testament had to go before judges
24:50and witnesses and say,"I love my master.
24:54I do not want to leave him." And after
24:58he had convinced the judges and the
25:00witnesses, they would take like an ice
25:02pick. It was known as an all awl. And
25:05they would pound a hole in their ear so
25:09that everybody would know this is a
25:12love. And nowadays you gota love servant
25:16whatever you know nowadays they
25:19you guys understand what I'm saying but
25:21they're saying my servant my master is
25:24better to me
25:26than the world I was in before I was
25:29staying in his house. It's better for me
25:33in my master's house. But the Bible says
25:37that every every so often there's this
25:41understanding that God steps away. And
25:44he says, "Well, if you don't want me
25:45anymore, I'm not going to bribe you to
25:48stay."
25:50And honestly, you can about track it
25:51about every seven years. I mean, you
25:54know, when you first start start serving
25:56the Lord, it's every seven days. feels
25:57like not really but you know after that
26:00first trial comes and you decide if I'm
26:03going to serve the Lord or not and then
26:04you get a little more robust but after
26:06you've served a while you can go back
26:08and track it almost every seven years
26:10there's a period a season of dryness and
26:14it's like my lord I just want to feel a
26:16tear I don't even I don't even want to
26:19shout I'm going through all the
26:21processes and it's like God steps away
26:24and said you know what if you don't want
26:25to serve me I'm not going going to throw
26:27you a handful on purpose
26:30>> to make you stay. If you want to walk
26:33away, you can walk away. And that
26:37process, it's it's one of those testing
26:40if it's authentic. The world is sick and
26:43tired of makebelieve cardboard
26:45Christians. And the world hungers for
26:48reality. They want the authentic. This
26:50is the reason I think there's such a
26:52revival of long form podcasts. They
26:55don't want you to come with notes.
26:58They don't want you to come. They just
26:59want to hear what's in you. Can you talk
27:02without the teleprompter?
27:05>> What are you really? And I may not find
27:08out until we're over a cup of hot tea.
27:12What is this? This is a desire for
27:14authenticity.
27:16Matthew 7:17, Sister Elms come says,
27:18"Beware of false prophets."
27:20The word false is a in the in the Greek
27:23is pseudo.
27:26Pseudo prophets.
27:29Pseudo means there's a lot of
27:31semblances.
27:32There's a lot of evidences that they're
27:35a prophet. But beware of pseudo prophets
27:40which come to you how? He said in
27:42sheep's clothing, but inwardly
27:46they're revening wolves.
27:48Matthew 23:27, "Woe unto you scribes and
27:51Pharisees, hypocrites." You know that
27:52word hypocrite mean? It means to change
27:55your robe, to be a play actor.
27:58>> For you are like wided supplers, which
28:02indeed appear beautiful on the outside,
28:04but are within full of dead men's bones
28:06and all uncleanness. Even so, you
28:08outwardly appear righteous unto men, but
28:11you are full of hypocrisy
28:14and inequity.
28:17I think sometimes we've stopped with
28:20just the hypocrisy when we're quoting
28:22it, but it's you're full of hypocrisy
28:25and inequity,
28:28uncleanness.
28:30Jesus reserved his most severe words for
28:34those who pretended to be religious.
28:38Form without force,
28:40religion without being real.
28:43a culture that doesn't have the cross.
28:47Last Wednesday, we had the blessedness
28:50of having all my kids that are around
28:52here at my house.
28:55And uh
28:57so everybody was there but Ethan and
28:59Sophia.
29:01And I knew it was happening and I called
29:03my wife. I said, "Babe, since the kids
29:05have gone off and gotten married, we
29:07haven't had a fam family day." You know,
29:10the way I I ordered the family days. I
29:14did for years. Kids knew it. And I
29:16always started from youngest to oldest.
29:19We would have a devotion and then from
29:21youngest to oldest would talk what it
29:23meant to them. Some of our most
29:25hilarious times is when each other are
29:28talking. Just leave it to kids to get
29:30after it. But my grandchildren haven't
29:35been through a family day like that with
29:38us yet.
29:40And I thought, you know, River and
29:41Vienna, that was their first one that
29:43I'm aware of. I'm sure their parents
29:45have family days, but I said, "Y'all are
29:49the youngest,
29:52but since this is the first one, y'all
29:55get to go last.
30:02So the youngest was winter,
30:05youngest to oldest
30:08we went through and the oldest
30:11is me.
30:14And uh it was just tons of tears
30:20saying what we were thankful about,
30:22thankful about each other, things we had
30:23loved. It was just awesome. But if you
30:26don't plan those, they won't happen. You
30:28you got you got to say we're going to do
30:30it. But I also all my kids are adults
30:32now. And so I don't want to just act
30:34like I'm still the big daddy.
30:40You know, I got men in my family. I want
30:43my I want the men in my family to know
30:45that I respect them. Uh but oh my heart,
30:50I can't tell you how good I slept that
30:52night because by the time we got to
30:55Vienna and River
30:57We went from oldest to youngest. It was
30:59River first and then Vienna.
31:03And to hear those two grandkids go
31:06through what they were grateful for. It
31:09was their first time.
31:11It wasn't genius,
31:14but it was God.
31:18Because what they are looking for
31:22they want real.
31:25They want something in their home that's
31:28not pretending.
31:31>> Nobody's having notes. It's just the
31:33outspilling of the soul. And that's what
31:36the cathedral is. It's a place where you
31:39can come and we don't have to be putting
31:41out pretenses. We don't have to pretend
31:43like we've all got it. You know what a
31:45hypocrite is? A hypocrite is a person
31:47who is it is not a person who has failed
31:51in Christian life. That's not a
31:53hypocrite. A hypocrite is not a person
31:56who who has had made a mistake. A
32:00hypocrite is not a person who has
32:02stumbled. No, that's not a hypocrite.
32:06All of us have fallen short of the glory
32:08of God.
32:10>> So just because you stumble and sin and
32:12have a setback or have a shortage and
32:15have a a carnal moment, you're not a
32:17hypocrite.
32:19A hypocrite is not the man who was
32:22ambushed or he came to church tired
32:25tonight. I was tired. I y'all, it may
32:28not appear that way, but I'm telling
32:29you, I I I couldn't even walk and pray
32:31tonight. I just found a spot to kneel. I
32:34thought, Lord, here it is.
32:38You all get there. And I want you to
32:41know you're not in trouble with me when
32:43you're there. I hope the Holy Ghost
32:45because here's the thing. The difference
32:47between prayer and pretense
32:50is hypocrites do it so others can see.
32:56The Bible said that as soon as you come
32:59into the church, boy,
33:03now I'm not saying be an ogre when you
33:04walk through this door. I might just see
33:06you and say, "Why don't you turn around
33:07and go back and come back in here?" Like
33:11I told my kids a few times getting out
33:12of bed, I said, "You want to get back in
33:14that bed and get out of it on the right
33:15side?
33:17I will take you back to that bed."
33:20They know everybody couldn't have me for
33:23a dad. I understand.
33:25But here's my point. My point is is that
33:30we all have some tough moments.
33:34And when you love one another, you reach
33:37them where they're at. They're in a
33:39tough moment. You walk up to them. Now,
33:42some people want to stay in tough
33:44moments. They want the whole world to
33:46know it's a tough moment. They want to
33:48stay in a tough moment. And then they
33:50want to bring you into their tough
33:51moment.
33:52>> Listen, I'm gonna reach down to you, but
33:54I ain't getting in it with you.
33:57I'm not going to do it.
34:00I'm going to say, "I understand. I've
34:02been there." But here's what a child of
34:06God does when you pray. Prayer is not to
34:09inform the Lord of anything.
34:11>> He knows your problem more than you know
34:15it.
34:16>> It's not to impress him.
34:20>> Now, I've prayed impressive prayers
34:22before. I said, "Lord, I love you like a
34:25pansy.
34:26>> You're as beautiful as a pansy." My wife
34:28didn't think that was that impressive.
34:31It was at a great church in Dallas,
34:32Texas. I'll always remember it. God, if
34:35David could sing about the rose of
34:37Sharon, then this David's going to sing
34:39about the pansy. It was my favorite
34:42flower. Don't hold it against me. And
34:44San Diego, where I grew up, my mother
34:46had the most beautiful pansies.
34:53I can't believe I put that on the
34:55worldwide web.
34:58Here's what prayer is. It's not
35:01impressing the Lord. It's not informing
35:03the Lord. Prayer
35:06is inviting the Lord
35:10into
35:11whatever you're in. So, it's the best
35:14day of your life and you just got the
35:15biggest bonus you've ever got in your
35:17life.
35:18Invite him.
35:20You're taking your first drive in a
35:22brand new car. Invite him. You're taking
35:27your baby home from the hospital for the
35:29first time. Invite him. That's what
35:32prayer is. And second thing prayer is is
35:35enjoy him.
35:37>> Amen.
35:38>> Oh Lord, you're a good, good father.
35:41>> That's who you are. And I'm loved by
35:44you.
35:45>> That's who I am.
35:48Invite him and enjoy him. Shall we stand
35:52together right now?
35:54Brother Steve Sanford. I stood over him
35:57today and we
36:00put my hand on his knee and
36:03I was praying for him. His brother Bob
36:05was standing at the end.
36:07So we were praying and I was just kind
36:09of, you know, those knees had beat me in
36:11raetball one time too many. So I'm still
36:14kind of upset at those knees and I was
36:16shaking them. And Bob told me he had his
36:19eyes closed. We were all kind of crying
36:22and Bob said,
36:24"When you," he's his older brother,
36:26okay? His oldest brother. He said,
36:29"I had my eyes closed and his foot
36:32started moving."
36:36He said, "Is it really happening?" He
36:40said, "I kept my eyes closed and that
36:42foot just kept moving."
36:46He said, "I had to open my eyes and it
36:48was you moving his leg."
36:52He thought for sure we've raised the
36:54dead.
37:01I'll never forget
37:04when dementia started coming on Steve
37:07and that's essentially what took him.
37:10When it started coming on him, I was
37:12working here at the church. It was a
37:14Thursday.
37:16I was by myself here
37:18and uh
37:21the back door opened
37:23and I heard a knock on my door. This is
37:25before we had all the fancy cameras we
37:27got now. By the way, if you want to come
37:28church now, come on. Everybody knows it.
37:32We got cameras everywhere. We get to see
37:34people when they pray. I love it. It's
37:36joy watching this church. I'm telling
37:38you, watching people pray, it's awesome.
37:41Watching people love, it's awesome.
37:44So I answered the door and there was
37:46Steve.
37:48This was odd.
37:51So I just acted like it was normal. Come
37:53on in. How you doing, bud? He walked in,
37:55sat down. It wasn't very long until he
37:57realized.
37:59He said, "You know, Brother Elms, why
38:00I'm here."
38:05He didn't want to say it like this, but
38:06this is where it essentially got.
38:10said, "I couldn't remember my way home,
38:11but I knew how to get here.
38:26Oh Lord, let this house be the kind of
38:29place that when I start forgetting
38:32things,
38:34I never forget
38:36the house.
38:38I'd rather be a doorkeeper
38:43in the house of God than to dwell in the
38:45tents of
38:47David said, I saw that the sparrows had
38:50made a nest in the altar of the Lord,
38:54and I was jealous.
38:56I want to dwell in the house of the Lord
38:59all the days of my life.
39:03If you love him, if you want to be real,
39:06I'm opening this altar for just a season
39:08of prayer on this Tuesday night. Just
39:11calm down and acknowledge where you're
39:14at. Acknowledge what you're carrying.
39:17Don't pray a fancy prayer. You're not
39:20informing the Lord of anything. Don't
39:23pray an impressive prayer.
39:25He is God. Just pray an inviting prayer.
39:30Invite him into your world as it is
39:32right now.
39:34>> Invite him into the quandies you're
39:36facing right now.
39:39>> Invite him into the setbacks you're
39:41dealing with right now.
39:45>> Hallelujah.
39:47[Music]