Reset... with a Spirit of Excellence! | Dr. Marcus D. Cosby

series of messages in this new church year for us. Some know some don't know that we begin our church year on September 1st and so every September we begin a new series of messages to help us launch out into the spaces where God would have us to be. This year our church theme, our church year theme is reset. We learned on the first Sunday that there's some areas in which we need to just reset, get refreshed, press control or delete and start over in some areas. We've got to reset and so I want to continue with this business of reset, this thought, this idea of reset and we've done it from the perspective of our church's mission statement. Before the first Sunday of this month there were some people in our church who had no idea that we even had a mission statement but we do have one and we looked at it on the first Sunday and we'll look at a game today and then on subsequent Sundays so that we can understand where we are and who we are as a church body. Is that alright? I want us to look at our mission statement. I want us to share it together. Read it together. If you're able to see the screen I want you to read it with us as we together remind ourselves of the mission statement of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church. Let us begin. It is the mission of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church to be a worshiping, witnessing and welcoming congregation committed to a spirit of excellence in the praise of the Almighty God through Jesus Christ. The Christian education of children, youth and adults for the maturation in the faith and worldwide ministry for the promotion of peace and justice in every aspect of life. To this end all people will be touched and transformed by the liberating power of God's Holy Spirit. Amen. Amen. When we gathered together on the first Sunday, I was not with you last Sunday of course, when we gathered together on the first Sunday, we looked at the first phrase of our mission statement and that suggests to us that we are a worshiping, witnessing and welcoming congregation. And that's who we are as a body of believers. That second phrase is what I want to deal with today. That second phrase says that we are committed to a spirit of excellence. That's what I want to talk about is we get reset during this time and we've got to put some Scripture to it, don't we? Absolutely. We

are a Bible-believing church and so I invite your attention to three verses of Scripture, the first of which is found in my favorite book of the Bible, the book of Psalms. And you actually sang it already today. Psalm 8 verse 1 from the King James Version reads like this, "O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth." I like that. But I want you likewise to read with me or see consider with me Daniel chapter 6 and Daniel chapter 6 verse 3, the word of the Lord reads like this from the King James Version. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes because an excellent spirit was in him. Then thirdly I want you to look at the New Testament and New Testament book of 1st Corinthians chapter 12 at verse 31. The word of the Lord reads like this from the King James Version, "But covet earnestly the best gifts and yet I will show unto you a more excellent way." That's enough for these moments of Scripture reading that we spend together today. But for the time that is out of the shed together, I want to talk from this subject. Reset with a spirit of excellence. Reset with a spirit of excellence. You may be seated in the presence of the Lord. Reset with a spirit of excellence. Aren't you tired of trifling? If you anything like me, you get tired of trifling. Some of us got some trifling friends that just get on our nerves. Don't testify. They might be watching. We've got some trifling family members. Some of us are trifling ourselves every now and then. (audience cheering) Wow, you pointing the finger. We got some trifling ways every now and then. Every now and then you oughta get just the weary of trifling and average and mediocre and half-hearted. But hating you just, sometimes you just wanna, you wanna go to another level, wanna experience life on a whole other level. You wanna experience living on a whole other level. I wanna submit to us on this Sunday

that excellence ought to be part of our DNA. And who we are as a people of God ought to be demonstrated displayed through excellence. And what we do must be, must be as unto the Lord. And if we do what we do as unto the Lord, it ought to be done with a spirit of excellence. Our church staff has heard these words from me more times than they care to remember, but we have a mantra on our staff. Many of our other congregants have heard it. But what I've tried to share with our staff from day one is that excellence is the standard, not the goal. But we're not trying to ease up on excellence. We start at a position of excellence and we move forward from there. And we have a responsibility. We have a burden to demonstrate excellence in the world. The triathlon shows up too easily. Average is easy to come by. Have hearted can always be found. But excellence, that makes you take a second look. Excellence makes you take an opportunity to ponder and consider. And I want to share with us today that when we are who we are, as Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church, that we have a responsibility to be a people who operate in excellence every day. Three eight men's write this. Well, I'll try it again for the folk

who may have been taking notes. I said that we have a responsibility to operate in excellence every day. A whole lot better, there's still some holdouts in the rooms. I'm going to try it one more time. We have an obligation, a responsibility, to operate in excellence every day. Thank you so much. Welcome to the Wheeler Avenue Church. And when we function with excellence, we show case and show off the God that we serve. And the God that we serve is one who needs to be lifted and lauded, the God that we serve needs to be applauded and appreciated because this God is a God who is no average God. No ordinary God that the God we serve is in a class or by himself that the God we serve is worthy of looking at again and again and pondering and considering because this God that we serve is a God who is a God of excellence. As a matter of fact, that's what the Psalmist says to us isn't it in Psalm eight verse one. When he says, oh Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth? With reverberation and with resounding joy, you sang it right after the prayer that the Reverend Johnson prayed today because we recognize that in all the earth, the name of the Lord is excellent.

That's what got us started on that moment of praise and worship, which has really led us in singing Jesus. You are worthy, excellent King that when we sing these songs, it reminds us that we do not serve an average deity, that the God we serve is sovereign and supreme, that this God is in a class all by himself and he is worthy of all of the glory, honor and praise that is due unto his name. That's why King David who is attributed as to having written this psalm reminds us in no uncertain terms that the God we serve is excellent. I like that church family and I want to suggest throughout this entire message that if you say that your God, your heavenly Father is excellent, you ought to look a little like your daddy. (congregation applauding) Yeah, you ought to look a little like your daddy. I'm gonna do it right every time I walk past the mirror, I get more and more nervous 'cause I'm looking more and more like my father, the older I get, and I want to suggest that ought to be all of our testimony, not just for our earth. Every time you look into the mirror, you ought to resemble your heavenly Father all the more. Oh Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth. May I suggest to you in the first of this three-point message that when we look at Psalm 8 verse 1, it is for us the opportunity to have reverence for God's character. Somebody say reverence, and we ought to have reverence, we should revere God's character. That's what Psalm 8 verse 1 is teaching us. Listen again to the words, oh Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth.

I've been trying to teach this church for several years that whenever you understand the Hebrew notion of naming, Hebrews, Israelites, named folk in accordance with their nature. So names and nature were synonymous that what you called somebody revealed their character. Bible scholars on your row will tell you that when you look at the name Jacob in the Old Testament, that word meant trickster, supplantor, a heathen, a rascal. And that's exactly what he demonstrated until his name got changed. When you look at the name Peter in the New Testament, Peter in the Greek means a rock, a strong foundation, and although he didn't start out like that when Jesus changed his name from Simon to Peter, he said, listen upon this rock, I'm going to build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against Jesus understood that what you call somebody is equivalent to their character. So when the Psalmist says, oh Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name, he's saying your character is excellent. You are a God who exudes excellence in everything that you do, that there is nobody like you in all the earth. There's no one who is your equal and there is no one who is your rival. And when you know who your God is, it radically transformed the way you relate to God. I need six people in here who know that God is all that you need, he is everything that is good and lovely. He is superlative and splendid in his deity. And every now and then you're just all, thank God that you don't serve an average deity who only listens to you every second or third prayer. No, he listens to you every time you call on him. He's available to you every day of your life as a matter of fact. When you woke up this morning, you woke up to brand new mercies because your God is a faithful God who takes care of his children. I need seven people in here to encourage somebody with your own personal testimony and say he's been taking care of me for a long time. He's been good to me. He's opened doors for me. He's closed doors for me. He's fought some battles for me. He's lifted up my burdens and lifted up my bow down head and I've been lifted up my hands because he's an excellent God. His name and his nature are synonymous. His character and what we call him are synonymous. That's why when you look at verse one, it is the picture of the identity of God. Somebody say identity. Listen, when you look in your Bible, it's still open. If your app is still unlocked, I want you to check out Psalm 8 verse one. You'll find out that you have recited. I have read for you the word Lord on two occasions in verse one. Oh Lord, our Lord. Yeah, it is. Oh Lord, our Lord. Such beautiful language. Let me unpack it so you can really appreciate it. That word Lord, the first one, if you look at your Bible, it's in all capital letters. L-O-R-D. It is Yahweh. It is Jehovah. It is the covenant making and covenant keeping God. It is the God who keeps every promise that God makes. And they begin to revere that God so much so that they wouldn't even say God's name in public because they thought God's name was too holy to speak aloud.

And they say Jehovah Yahweh. You are excellent. Oh Lord, he's in a class all by himself. He is the God that is beyond us. He is the God that is in heaven. It is that God who is amazing. It is that God who is not like anybody else. But watch what the text says, oh Lord, that God out there. Yahweh, watch our Lord. Literally suggesting that the God who is way out there comes all the way in here to make himself personable to me. That the God that I can barely get to understand shows up so I can know him and know him for myself. I need six people in here who understand that the God you serve is not just imminent, he's transcendent. He's not just out there, he's right here at the very same time. So much so, that the whole saint said, he walks with me. And he talks with me, and he tells me that I am his own. So much so that the hymn writer said, you asked me how I know he lives. He lives within my heart. He's not just in heaven, he's right here with me. Now that ought to bless you when you go through some of the challenging circumstances that life brings your way. That second word, Lord, is Adonai. Now you got to be careful using that word because Adonai is not like Jehovah. Jehovah is the covenant making, covenant keeping God. Adonai means he's my commander, my ruler, my master, means he tells me what to do, and I do it. Yeah, I was prepared to lose some amenes right there. I kind of figured that was going to happen. So I brought my own amen, Revan, that every now and then you

and I are commanded by God to do some things. And our responsibility is to do what the Lord says to. And I'm looking at some people in church right now who understand there were some seasons of your life where you didn't necessarily feel like doing what God told you to do, you would not dispose or incline to do what God told you to do, but the more you walk with God. The more God reveals God's own self to you, you get in alignment with his will and his way. That's why the whole say said things I used to do. I don't do any more because I'm getting closer and closer to God. And I don't cast aspersons or anybody who's not yet there. I just say keep walking with him. Because if you keep trusting him, he'll begin to turn your heart toward him in a way that you want to please him every day. I need somebody in here who's at the point where you just say yes, Lord, to throw your hands up and say whatever you want me to do, however you want me to do it here, am I? Send me out, go. I'll say yes, Lord, yes, to your will and to your will. I'll say yes, Lord, yes, I will trust you and obey. When your spirit speaks to me with my whole heart, I'll agree and my answer will be yes, Lord, yes. Oh, child of God, we grow to that point. We grow to that point. There's some folk who are in their younger years who may not be there now, but there's some folk who are in their middle and older years who can testify the closer I get toward him. And the more I want to do exactly what he tells me to do, because I want him to be pleased with me.

Can I get a witness right over in here? [CHEERING] We're seeing you in college. You wasn't studying Jesus. But now that you're about 65, you're like, yes, Lord, yes, Lord, yes, Lord, yes, Lord. [CHEERING] It is the identity of God that reveals itself with excellence. But can I go a little farther? Because the Psalmist begins to testify when I consider the heavens, the moon, and the stars which thou hast made. It literally speaks to the creativity of God, the creation of God, that God has put all of creation in his place. And all of creation is done with God as told and deduced since the first, second, third day. Fourth day, fifth day of creation. And so then we get diverse form. And the Psalmist makes an interrogative. He moves from identity to interrogative. And here's the interrogative. Here's the question. What is man that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man that you visit him. What is humanity that you care so much about us? Why is it that you invest so much time and energy in blessing us? You didn't have to give us brand new mercies this morning. You didn't have to make your grace sufficient for us.

And the more we mess up, the more we do what we want to do, you can easily take your love away from us. And I need to find six people in every section who are still excited that even though you made some mistakes and missteps, the mercy of the master keeps hunting you down. Why are you even mindful of us? Why do you even care about us? The stuff we told you we would never do again. Anybody ever do that? You say, "God, if you get me out of this, I'll never do that again." And as soon as he got you out, come on, help me preach somebody. God, why do you keep caring about us? Why do you keep loving us? As a matter of fact, he asked his own question. He said, "You made humanity a little lower than the angels. You crowned them with glory, with wisdom and honor. You created us just below the angels. It is to suggest there's God, there's the angels and then there's humanity." Then we are a crown of God's creation that God looked at us and says, "That right there?" That's very good. She act crazy sometimes, but she's still mine. She does what he wants to do most of the time, but he still belongs to me. I need six people in here who know that you're still created in the image and after the likeness of God to begin to testify. I'm glad I'm on God's mind. I'm glad God cares about me. I'm glad God is mindful of me. I'm glad that God is preparing my next while I'm still in my now. I'm glad that God is looking after me, that God is hooking me up in ways I could never do for myself. What is humanity that you're mindful of them? You consider them that you visit them. You show up in the midst of their trials, in the midst of their circumstances. You show up and assure them of your abiding presence. You made them a little lower than the angels crown them with glory and honor. Listen here. You made them to have dominion over the works of your hands. You put all things under their feet, sheep, oxen, even the beast of the field to follow the air, the fish of the sea, whatever passes through the paths of the sea. Then God said, listen here, I'm going to put humanity in the world and I expect you to take care of my creation. I didn't just put you here to have a good time. I put you here to take care of my creation, to make sure that my earth stays clean and green. I need you to make sure that you don't pollute my world with your toxins and that which will not allow you to live a profitable and prosperous life.

God says, I want you to do your part to take care of this world. That is the interrogative. How would God put all of this under our care? And when David thinks about it, when the Psalmist thinks about it, David says, I got to end this poem the same way I started it. I got to end this Psalm the same way I got it started. It is what we call an inclusio. Somebody say inclusio. He moves from the identity of God to the interrogative about humanity and then he gives an inclusio. He closes in verse nine, the same way he opened in verse one. All Lord, how excellent is that name in all the earth? Don't miss that technical term. Whenever a psalmist, a biblical writer starts a passage and ends it the same way. It is called an inclusio. It is to encapsulate everything that has been said from the first verse unto the last to make sure that the point has been... There is excellent. He shuts it down the same way he got it started. Literally suggesting I said it because everybody else said it. Everybody else was telling me to say it. Then I started thinking about it. And when I started thinking about it, I say, I'm not saying this just because they told me to say it. I'm saying this because I've found out this is true and right at all times. I know they say, say God is good and good all the time. But when you start thinking about the doors he opened for you and the ways he's made for you and the benefits he's granted unto you, you don't need her testimony. No. You don't need his testimony. Praise he may got to make you say it when I think of the goodness. And all he done for me, my soul cries, hallelujah. I want to thank God for saving me. I need you to think of two, three things that God forbid for you last week and just begin to testify. You don't have to make me say hallelujah. I say it because every time I turn around, and two, think about what he did yesterday and begin to raise your hands in celebration of the God who does okay, all right. Don't think about yesterday, think about what he did before you got to church. While you were driving here riding a bus here on your way here, he kept you from danger, scene and unseen, somebody on a testify. He's a keeper. Yes, he is. I want us to reset and have more reverence for God's character. That's why I got so happy with y'all. While you were praising God earlier, we did not praise God because somebody promised us another $5,000. We weren't praising God because we found out that all our bills were going to be paid after the benediction. No, we were praising God because he's excellent. That whole extended moment in worship was all about the excellence of God. People bowing down on

their knees, raising their hands, tears falling from their faces because we serve a God who is no average ordinary deity. All out, Lord, how excellent is thy name? In all of the earth, it is reverence for God's character. Can I go farther? Because I gave you another passage, didn't I? In Daniel chapter 6, we find out about this business of excellence even the more. And in chapter 6 of Daniel, it has nothing to do with reverence for God's character. It has to do with the reflection of godly conduct. What are you about to say now? Well, buckle up, buttercup. It's about to get a little right. The reflection of godly conduct. I said to you, and it sounded a little comical maybe to some, but I said to you that the more we stay with God, we ought to look a little more like our dad. The longer you hang with God, transformation takes place. You come to God one way, but you are not expected to stay with God the same way. Then at some point, you and I have to reflect the character about which we just spoke. And that reflection is demonstrated in our conduct. I'm in Daniel chapter 6, because in Daniel chapter 6, your Bible says that this Daniel was preferred above all the princes and presidents because an excellent spirit was found in him. Do you see it? Now we just talk about the nature of God being excellent, but now when we get to this business of Daniel and the way he operates, your Bible says he operates in excellence. Watch this. And they found it out while he was at work that when he got to work, he operated in excellence. Let me give you the context so you'll appreciate the content. Your Bible says that when Darius the king decided to set up governance in the kingdom, he put in 120 fellows to operate the day-to-day operations of the church of the kingdom, and when he did that, he took three more guys and put them over the 120. Then he chose one of the three and put him over the two because an excellent spirit was found in him. His name was Daniel. Did you catch it? Got 120. Look at the day-to-day operations of the kingdom. He got three who had chosen above them and one gets chosen from them to be over everybody. That's it because an excellent spirit was found in him. And I need you to understand that when you operate in excellence every day, it'll stand you up head and shoulders above the rest. When you operate in excellence every day, people will be able to see it from a mile away. When you operate in excellence every day, you will not act like everybody else. Your comportment, your disposition, your deportment will be very different.

That's what your Bible says. He who was an exile, he wasn't even a part of their nationality, their ethnicity. He was an exile who had come in from a different place and he's now in a space where even though he's not among his own kindred, he still stands out with excellence. I started this message talking about being trifling, didn't I? 'Cause I wanna suggest that when you and I go to work tomorrow, that we have a responsibility to reflect the excellence of our God, even at the job's sake. Oh, you say you don't have a job, even at school. You say you're not a student, you're retired, even in the community. You just sitting around walking around them all, walking around them all who don't retire itself. Walk in excellence. (audience laughing) His brother man is excellent, and he found out that excellence is usually regarded in preference. If you were listening to me when I read verse three, I told you that Daniel was preferred above everybody else because an excellent spirit was found in him, his personality, his character, his integrity demonstrated excellence, and he was preferred. He's moved to the top of the class, but I need you to hear me, along with preference, comes enemies. (audience laughing)

When you choose to operate in excellence, everybody's not excited about your excellence, 'cause you just raised the bar for everybody else. (audience laughing) Oh, you're gonna have some haters, you're gonna have some detractors. It's right there in Daniel chapter six, your Bible says that when they saw that brother operating in excellence, all the mother, 120 or so guys, they decided to get together to conjure up a strategy to bring Daniel down 'cause he kept lifting up the bar. (audience cheering) And you and I have to make a decision, don't we? That we're not gonna lower our standards just to make somebody happy with being dumber and more and less likely to succeed than anybody else. I'm not dumbing down my excellence. God did this. (audience cheering) I'm not dumbing down my excellence. The Lord chose to put me in this position and make me who I am. I need somebody in here to just go ahead and bless God 'cause you are fearfully and wonderfully made. God did not make a mistake when he made you as bad as you are. (audience cheering) Turn to us, somebody close to you, say he talking about me. (audience laughing) Show is.

God has put something in you that the world needs. Don't make sense for you to dumb it down just to make your Pew partner feel at ease. No, no, no, no. You going up here with me? I ain't coming down there with you. (audience cheering) Come on, come on, let's go, let's go. (audience cheering) When you go to work in school, whenever you go tomorrow, raise the bar. (audience cheering) When you go to work, raise the bar. You'll be preferred. Yeah, you're gonna have some haters, they're gonna scheme and plot against you, but you'll be preferred. I want to suggest that this business of excellence, this conduct that we demonstrate, that we portray, it often results in promotion. I've already told you the story, haven't I? He's preferred by Daniel, but he's now promoted by Daniel. I don't know if you heard, he's second in command in the kingdom. And he doesn't even fit the description of everybody else. He's different, he's unique. He's not even a part of the click the club to crew. (audience laughing) He doesn't even go to lunch with them. He doesn't hang with them.

Maybe that's why he got promoted. (audience laughing) You can't hang with everybody and expect promotion to keep coming your way. Yeah, the Bible says come out from among them and be separate since the look. (audience clapping) His red arrow up here, everybody can't breathe this thing. (audience laughing) Take short breaths, throw back Thursday, that's Harlem Knights, check it out when you get a check. (audience laughing) (audience laughing) Rare air, hang on. See, he has promoted, boy I love my job. Watch this, he got promoted. get at him, trying to take him down. They devise a scheme because everybody who started out with you will stay with you when you rise to a place that only God could take you to. Oh, child of God, will you hear me? Will you hear me when I tell you? You don't need Lottie and Dottie and everybody to make your life what it needs to be. You need a God on your side, and when you got a God on your side, he will put the right people in your life to fulfill you, to make you happy. If they keep bringing you down, child of God is time to make a change. I'm trying to help you. There's some people in here right now who testify at some point in their life. They had to make a decision to change the folk they hang with and hung with. And if you keep living and keep hanging out with ratchet folk at some point, you'll get convicted.

I can't keep living like this. This is beneath my privilege. This is beneath what God has for me. I need six people in here who still believe you, the head, and not the tail. You're a bomb and not beneath. I need somebody in here who ran your Bible. The Bible says to you, the lender, not always the borrower. Now, I say it often results in promotion, excellence often results in promotion. Notice, I didn't say it always does, because here's the rub. Here's the rub. You've got to help me right there. Sometimes less than excellence gets promoted. And if you're not careful, you'll get upset when you see folk who aim trying to be excellent, get promoted and you still in this season right here. Hear me? I'm trying to tell you the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Sometimes less than excellence gets promoted. You can just turn on news, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, less than excellence gets promoted. No, I'm not being mean, I'm not being mean. When people who don't care about everybody get promoted, you've got to start asking some questions. What's really going on? That's not excellence. Excellence sometimes stays back here while less than excellence gets promoted. And then you've got to wonder why these gas prices so high, because I don't want to shut down and unjust war until I get, but we got to ask yourself, how are you going to promise $5,000 to people if they vote your way? If you got $5,000 to spend on everybody else, why people still dealing with un-qualitative healthcare? Why are there still people who are dealing with the fact that they don't have the right

kind of books in underserved communities to be properly educated? If you got $5,000 for everybody, shouldn't nobody be in poverty in the United States of America? I need to find somebody in here who testifies if you're going to give to somebody, give to these poor people who need some assistance, and stop just giving to the top 1%. That's excellence. Taking snap benefits away from the poor while continually feeding the rich. That ain't excellence. When I close, when I tell you that excellence should always be rooted in prayer. Then you got preferred, then you got promoted, because then you knew how to pray. Missed it, let me try it again. I said, then you was preferred, then you got promoted, because then you knew how to pray. Then you was preferred, then you got promoted, because then you knew how to pray. I need six people in here who still believe prayer changes things and prayer still works and God still answers prayer to begin to testify. I didn't get here just because I studied. I got here because I studied and I prayed. I didn't get here just because I'm cute. I got here because I'm cute and I prayed. I didn't get here just because I came from the right family. I came from the right family and I prayed. Come here. I came from the wrong family, but I prayed. I didn't have the money, but I prayed. Oh, man, my time is up. David is a prayer warrior. I like how all y'all look back at the clock. I told you my time is up. David is a prayer warrior, Daniel, Daniel is a prayer warrior, and the reason why Daniel was preferred and promoted is because he kept on talking to God.

That's my word to somebody in here. Don't you stop talking to God. I said, don't you stop talking to God. I don't care what it looks like right here. I don't care if you've got to go into liars then. Don't you stop talking to God because God still has his prayer. I got to close. I got to rush through the last point. That's just two. I got three. I got to rush through it. I thought I'd tell you today. If we're going to operate in excellence, if we're going to reset and show you how to operate in excellence, we've got to have reverence for God's character. We've got to reflect godly conduct. I'm done when I tell you that when you operate in excellence, you have the responsibility that is a responsibility of God's church. There's a certain responsibility that goes along with being the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. I read to you, 1 Corinthians 12 verse 31, did I not? I said there's a lot of gifts that you can have covered them, covered earnestly the best gifts. Then Paul says to the Corinthian community of Christians, I will show you a more excellent way. I knew it in the National Virgin if you have it, they said I will show you the most excellent way. It is to suggest, let me give you a big picture and I'll break it down. Watch this. Big picture. In church is a most gifted church.

They got it going on. Look, a whole lot like y'all. You should at least set a man for yourself. Encourage yourself in the law. Look, a whole lot like you. It's a great church, a gifted church, genuine church. And you've got a lot of, a lot of magmite and a lot of hatred, a lot of drama going on in the church. You have been doing drama for never mind. Don't answer the question, isn't it? There's a lot of drama. And so in chapter 12, he tells him all these gifts you got, y'all doing well. Ooh, it's good. Nice, nice, nice, applaud, applaud, applaud, but he says you're missing something. You're lacking something. And I'm going to show you the most excellent way. That's the end of chapter 12. Oh, turn over to chapter 13 and he begins to tell them what the most excellent way is. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not loved, I'm becoming like loud, glung and glung and a tinkling symbol. He says if I have no love, even though I prophesied Marcus D. Cosby, but I don't have love, even though I understand all mysteries and all knowledge, but I don't have love, it means nothing. Even if I can move some mountains, but I don't have love, it means nothing. Even if I got it going on at the job and everybody tells me how wonderful I am, but I'm always hating on people and it means nothing because I have no love. I came all the way to Wheel Avenue to tell you that the responsibility of God's church is to show love to God's people no matter how much you think you've got it going on. And nobody should look down on anybody else. No one should have condescension for anybody else.

Don't care how long you've been saved, how spiritual you are, you do not have the right to look down on anybody else because God keeps doing what God is doing in each one of our lives to make us better. Our responsibility is the love. Can I tell you what love ought to look like? It starts in verse 4, chapter 13. Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy. It is not rude. It is not rude. It is not rude. It is not rude. It is not rude. It is not self-seeking. It does not dishonor others. I'm in your Bible. I ain't making none of this up. It does not dishonor others. It does not delight in evil. It always delights in the true love, keeps no record of wrongs. I just lost all the hallelujahs in the house. It always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres, love just keeps on going. Love takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin' and I need six people in here who are so glad that you have found out that you serve a God who loves you with an everlasting love. But don't just get happy on the love of God. to be some good singers and good preachers and good few members. It's to be some good loving people who love people to life. I use this phrase and I'm almost done. Don't think I'm going to get to holiday.

I use this phrase. I'm almost done. I do not mean it in a profane way at all. But every now and then, you and I are going to have to learn to love the hell out of some people because you and I have experienced some people loving the hell out of us or every last person in church got some hell in you. But I'm so grateful that we serve a God who will keep on loving us until he gets some of that junk out of us. And you ought to thank God that you got some people in your life who will love you until you get some of that junk out of you. Can I find six people in here who are grateful that people did not give up on you? They did not throw you aside. They did not turn you away. But they kept on loving you even when you were addicted, even when you were in prison. Even when you dropped out of school. Even when you didn't do what your parents told you to do, they kept on loving you. That's why today I'm excited to serve a church that knows what love ought to look like. I told our first service, I'm done. I told our first service when I grew up at a manual about this church. And the 301 South Damon Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60620, would have opened up Dr. L. K. Kerry was my pastor. He sang a hymn and said I was sinking. Deep in sin, come on and help me. Far from the peaceful shore, very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more. But the master of the sea, heard by despairing crime. Number waters, he lifted me. Now safe am I, I need somebody to testify, love lifted me, love lifted me, when nothing else could help, love lifted anybody in here knowing that God demonstrated his love toward us. In that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

The Bible says, "Greater love hath no man than this," and a man who would lay down his life for his friend. God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, and so who so ever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. I want you to thank God for the next 10 seconds that he loved you to life. Now thank God for those men and women who kept on loving you, when you were acting unlovable. Come on, you got some names in your mind, don't you? And take some seconds to thank God that you have the responsibility to love somebody else just like you've been loved. Come on, come on, thank God that he chooses to use you to look a little more like your daddy. That's the message today. And for some of us, hear me, for some of us to do that, we got to reset. That's not normal action, that's not normal activity, that's godly activity. That's why I told you the first part of the message. This is looking like God, and if we're going to look like God and we should, we're going to have to ensure that we start loving people a little bit more than we hate on them. Even when they're different, even when they're doing some stuff that we know is out of order and it's wrong, we're going to love them to the place where they need to be. They say, "Man, love means discipline, show us. Love means get yourself together, get yourself up, come your act like you know who you are. Put some clothes on, look like you go in somewhere, love means. I don't just let you do what you want to do. I show you the more excellent way, and that's who we are, that's what we do. I need somebody in here to reset. If you're able to stand stand with me all over the church, if you're not just standing and you're able to stand stand with me all over the church, I want to invite someone to a love relationship. I just mentioned to you that God was in Christ demonstrating reconciling the world to himself, demonstrating His love toward us even while we were yet sinners. And then maybe somebody on

your road, maybe somebody in the sanctuary, somebody in the cathedral, somebody online who says, "I need to know a love like this." Help me, Joe. "I need to know a love like this." And if you, my friend, my sister, my brother, have not yet given your life to the Lord Jesus Christ, you're not yet in relationship with the Lord. I want to introduce you to a great God who does great things in the lives of His great people. And if you're not yet in relationship with Him, the Langston will come to stand with me here in the cathedral. Others are going to stand with the leaders in the sanctuary. The Reverend Moore is there waiting for you. And if you need a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, I want you to start moving right now. Don't wait. Don't hesitate. Don't procrastinate. Come on this way. You say, "Here's my brother right there. Here's my brother right there. Here they come. You ought to be celebrating while they're walking." Here's my second invitation. Here's my second invitation, sister brother. You say, "You're saved, but you need a church home. You need a church where you can grow and grace in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. If that's you, you need a church family that you can call your own. Come on down here right now. I'm waiting on you. Move in the sanctuary. Reverend Moore is waiting for you. Who's whoever will let them come? Let them come. Pastor, I need to be a part of this church. I need to be a part of this church. Come on, sister. Come on, brother. A man, woman, a child. Make your way this way. We love you. I'm telling you, we love you. Yep. Yep. We love you. Look at him coming, church. Are you excited? Yep. Yep. Yep. Here's my third invitation. Pastor, I'm just in Houston for a limited time. I'm here for school over there at TSU down there and rice. I'm over there at U of H. Yeah. I'm even at prayer review, but I came to church today, and I believe that I need to be at this church during this season of my life. Even while I'm away from home, I want to be on the watch care. It means we'll watch over you care for you while you're here and send you back home with joy. Pastor, I got a temporary job assignment in Houston. I need to be in a church where I can grow and develop and mature. Come on, we'll be watching over you and caring for you while you're here and then send you back to where you came from with joy. Pastor, I'm in the medical center. Just give us some treatment and I need a church while I'm here. Come on, sis. We were loving the fact that you have been led to Wheeler Avenue for such a time as this. If that's you, if you're in the balcony, come on downstairs. We got time to wait on you to come down this way. We'll have a whole lot of time, so move quickly as you can so we can

move on to the next service. We're in overtime already, but if you know you need to respond to either of these invitations, I need you to come right now in the sanctuary. Start walking toward the Reverend Moore here in the Cathedral. Walk toward Remcott me. All of us are waiting for you and we're gonna sing this great hymn of the church. Love lifted me. That's what love does. It always lifts. It always lifts. If you know it, let's sing it together. I was sinking deep in sin. Sing, I love it. Far from the peaceful shore. Very deeply stained within, sinking to rise from one. Look at that precious line of young people coming down. But the master of the sea heard my despairing cries. From the waters lifted me. Now safe am I. Come on, let's sing. Love lifted me. Three of these precious young people. When nothing else could help, here come four right there. Love lifted me. Love lifted me. Love lifted me. When nothing else could help. Watch this right here. Watch this. Let's sing the second verse. This is what we need to do. All my heart to him, I give. In his blessed presence, live. Love so mighty and so true Marits my soul's soul faithful loving service To him belong big of these gentlemen coming come on Now let's get me When nothing else could help Love this did me I've let you make me walk it down When nothing else could help Here's the last time last time Oh Thank God for his love and the love of God's people that has surrounded you Listen to each of you who stands with us here in the cathedral Maybe there's some in the sanctuary as well I'm so excited that the Lord has given us the privilege to welcome each one of you into the family of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church But more than that into the family of faith the family of God the household of faith That's what the Scriptures call it so on behalf of our entire church family I say to each one of you who stands before us today. Welcome to your new church

Oh, welcome to a loving group of people who are going to love you to life So that you and I might always Reveal and reflect more of the image of God's dear son. So on behalf of all of us I say to each of you. Welcome to your new church home. Come on family and celebrate God bless your man Happy for you. Happy for you. I see you in the sanctuary Come on to celebrate the sanctuary sites. Amen Will you please follow the direction of the Reverend Moore and those who give leadership there in the sanctuary and here Will you look at that distinguished gentleman right there as he can carry laying? Will you please follow him and all of you do the same as you make your way that way Deaconess Lange will make sure that everybody gets to where you need to be and we're going to celebrate that our church just expanded to include each one of you Come on while they're walking, we should be singing love lifted me When nothing else Love lifted me Oh When nothing else The Lord bless you the Lord keep you the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious unto you Lord lift the light of his countenance upon you and give you his peace You're going out in your coming in and your labor and in your leisure and your joy As well as in your sorrow and your laughter and even in your tears until that day when we meet the Lord face-to-face And cry holy holy holy to the Lord of hosts until that day my brothers my sisters go in peace Go in love go enjoy and may the very God of peace love enjoy go with you now and forever in Jesus name Amen God bless you. Have a great week Pride of life starts Wednesday Pride of life starts with you. Have a great time Love on somebody while you're leaving Love on somebody Love on somebody while you're leaving Love on somebody while you're leaving Love on somebody while you're leaving the way my brothers my sisters go with you now and forever in Jesus name

Amen God bless you the Lord of hosts until that day my brothers my sisters go with you now and forever in Jesus name Amen God bless you the Lord of hosts until that day my brothers my sisters go with you now and forever in Jesus name Amen God bless you the Lord of hosts until that day my brothers my sisters go with you now and forever in Jesus name (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music) (upbeat music)