Who Cares About Poor People? (cont'd)

Whatever you do for the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it for me coming your way next Pastor Paul Sheppard encourages us to help those in need in this message.

Who cares about poor people. But first he joins me from a studio in California to talk about a very important role that you can play in the ministry of Destin for victory.

Glad you brought that up when partners are really the lifeline of this ministry without those people committed to giving regularly. We literally could not continue doing what were doing.

I guess people hear that a lot, but it is really true without partners. We simply can't get the gospel out to the world. The gospel is free but the plumbing cost an awful lot of money and we want to continue preaching. As I've said in times past we've got generations to reach that have never heard the gospel and they misunderstand when they hear people talk about things like serving the Lord and we need to make it plain to them. The only way I can do it is with my partners, helping us reach them through their generous gifts.

I'm so grateful for every single partner and I'm praying in 2021.

That God will give us thousands more.

There are many more outlets and many more opportunities we could take advantage of in our ministry but the only thing that holds us back is lack of income.

So I'm praying that God is going to touch the heart of many more people to realize that with just your gift of $20 or more.

You can help us remain strong on the stations and outlets were on and reach many more with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you Pastor. That's what it's all about reaching more people with the gospel and if you make that commitment by pledging $20 or more per month to help us do that will send you with our thanks a couple of great gifts including one of Pastor Paul's most popular CDs. The best of let my people smile. It's a compilation of some of Pastor's most humorous illustrations and stories, something that we know will be sure to make you laugh and learn at the same time, call 855-339-5500 or mail your gift letting us know you wish to become a partner. The address is destine for victory PO Box 1767, Fremont, CA 94538.

You can also set up by clicking become a partner right at the top of the homepage@pastorpaul.net and if you're already a partner Pastor Paul and I both want to say a heartfelt thank you and challenge you to consider becoming a legacy partner.

These are special ministry friends are able to support us with gifts of $2500 or more each year.

The details are available at the website. Pastor Paul.net or by calling 855-339-5500. Now if you can't become a partner today but would like to make a generous donation to Destin for victory would be glad to send you a DVD from Pastor Paul called get your hopes up.

That's get your hopes up our gift to you by request for your gift to Destin for victory. He says if you really keep the royal law found in Scripture love your neighbor as yourself you're doing right.

If you show favoritism to sin. That's the third point. Favoritism is sin. It is not a weakness is not an issue not something you need to work on. Favoritism is sin. The Christian life can be divided into two separate, but equally important concepts orthodoxy, which is what we believe in ortho prexy, which is how we behave.

James as much to say about her behavior in his New Testament epistle today on destine for victory. Pastor Paul Sheppard takes us to that letter to give us a practical guide for treating one another in particular those who are less fortunate. So here now is Pastor Paul. Today's message cares about poor people. We gotta care about what the kingdom cares of the fact of the matter is James is we have to learn not to practice favoritism.

Look at what he says now as he continues this passage look at the rest of verse six and then even beyond that, because I want you to understand that this teaching is really important. He makes a second point, which is that not all wealthy people honor God, or live by godly values.

He's just making the point look at the rest of verse six and verse seven. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you, are they not the ones who are dragging you into court and are they not the ones who are slandering the noble name of him to whom you belong now be real clear about what James is and is not saying he's talking about a particular type of wealthy person that he knew were the burial service of the saints who were scattered because of persecution. He's right in the first century church is writing in a particular context. Saints are scattered have been oppressed and persecuted because of their newfound faith and he says some of that persecution has come at the hands of certain wealthy people he did not say all wealthy people are persecutors or oppressors. He didn't say all wealthy people are dragging the saints into court.

He didn't say all wealthy people are dishonoring the name of God so I got a word for you. Not yet.

Wealthy folks don't Attitude when every body who is financially blessed because certainly don't have a habit of just taking the rich and throwing them in the one category and it's a very unflattering category as if James were suggesting that to have wealth is to dishonor God and dishonor people and that's not what he said it on his word balances out. So we all got a problem. You get to when you see somebody forget wealthy blast you get attitude was about to get a car better than yours.

You get attitude when somebody moves into her house nicer than yours and you have to learn that you can't put all people in the same category because of what they have. Just like they shouldn't put people in the category because of what they don't. This is good on the get the CD myself. You gotta learn not to do that. So you will have to get rid of your wealth phobia call so you all don't know it, but you're pushing money away by your very attitude your pushing open doors away by your very attitude somebody all people can sense your resentment that they are in a different place than you're in, you gotta learn how God and respect people without practicing favoritism because not all wealthy people are bad people I met someone I have some kingdom first wealthy friends love God, love the kingdom would never think about dishonoring God would never think about dishonoring poor Christians and they have been a blessing to me and my ministry down through the years and I've learned that you just gotta understand. Wealthy people come in the same two categories that powerful coming. Some poor folks are jerks and some are blessing some rich folks are just works and some olive blessing say man whenever you can always category of jobs, black folk, given their white folk and their reasons Hispanic. Everybody jobs in all of when I first pastored multiculturalism when I first saw it happen in my past. Decades ago, when it began to happen in my black pastor friends at home when just yeah white folk up in their 80s and last problem yeah but you know what they come in the saying categories that folk, in will help me somebody so mom I was so glad to have him.

It was a pleasant as some of my said Jesus why did they come to St. and down from heaven.

The referee these fights based on cultural issues.

I'm trying to teach them the principles of the kingdom. When people started coming of different cultures and what have you and some of them have certain political slant based on their cultural norms. Next thing I know I went as a pastor I was a referee star referee and fights, and I remember when I first started realizing that in American Christianity, especially, there are people who think you can't be Christian and be a Democrat. And then there are the people who think you can't be a Christian be a Republican because of their personal experience and their personal set of assumptions and limited what you want here I was pastoring and one of the elections of presidential election coming up, I forget which one, and one of the fall came to me when I see you right okay alright it was on a Sunday between just — in the my office so they could tell me anything. Pastor looked out in the parking lot and now are stickers I forget which candidate will go to a church with somebody will call the cell sleeve be pushing this candidate and I said Jesus.

The people don't pay me enough money that I mean flat out knock down drag out fights when you all, but got the Synod beacon the break it up over matters that have to do with cultural sensitivities and norms and presumptions we learn to not put everybody in your glory and let people be where it's not the end of the world.

They have a political view you don't share people used to write when I first went on national TV that will write me and they would say hi.

One brother wrote me and said why do all Christians vote Democrat need you pastor Paul you are a voice on national need you to miss. I wrote him back. Said there is no way on God's green earth that I would try to explain to you why you presume something that first of all true. And secondly, if you think there is a preponderance in one direction versus another. And you think you have statistical facts for that and you're asking me why that is. I said what you need to do is take some mom out to lunch and ask. I promise you that's what I told you wonder about why Christians vote Democratic doesn't want you to get what city was limited.

Just put up in a black Baptist Church and going man grants you a sample chart, take you to lunch on the tradeshow I want to know about the live stream lunch and say I'm having difficulty with this. Can you help me understand why you're doing what you doing. We have to learn to be careful not to judge people on insufficient grounds don't go away were only about halfway through today's destiny for victory message with pastor Paul Sheppard, senior pastor of destiny Christian Fellowship in Fremont, California. If you enjoy listening to Pastor Paul.

We know you love watching some of his best video clips subscribe to pastor Paul and YouTube were for more details and all the social media be sure to visit pastor Paul.net Jesus calls us to treat the poor with love and respect.

But he also asked the poor among us to love and respect the people around them, even if those people happen to be wealthy is pastor Paul with the rest of today's destiny for victory message. Who cares about poor people don't even judge the people to be what he talks about James about a certain bunch that God and dishonor poor folks, but I promise you that some wealthy folk who love God and love poor folks and if you learn to walk with them instead get mad at him because of what they have. First of all you get mad.

Getting mad doesn't give you more futile emotion what one of the kingdom values is learned how to celebrate people who have something good going on. Learn celebrated the Christian thank God. Thank God I'm glad I got some rich Christian friends.

I got some pickle and I went to somebody all pray for me and you know you're my boy right you you mom, but I will pray for you, but I guess I planned to them they could do a lot and pray that is what you need and that would look at 30 God, make away. Lawrence also plan Jesus plan is done when you want to be wanted him somebody, you would need to go in the prayer. It is what you may. I know you favor one you love God and encourage Diane this shop thousand dollars in the hand and walk away.

You can get there. I'm a witness I've been the one needing the show of been in the shop where you can get there same testimony I once needed a blessing from God has blessed me and I can be a blessing to somebody else.

Not all wealthy people dishonor God or his values. Don't put them on the same category and then he makes a final point. Look at what James says beginning in verse eight he says if you really keep the royal law found in Scripture love your neighbor as yourself you're doing right, he said, but if you show favoritism, you sin. That's the third point.

Favoritism is sin. It is not a weakness is not an issue. You need to work on. Favoritism is sin. If you treat some folk nice because of what they don't have or have and treat other folk poorly because what they don't have. You are in sin is what James is saying here. He says if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers and then he goes on to make the point about law.

He says for whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it for he who said, do not commit adultery also said do not murder.

If you do not commit adultery but you do motor, you become a lawbreaker. You see his point is you don't get graded on the curve. Why not about the law. See, I was only going 5 miles over the speed limit and you going 25 miles over the speed limit. They need to pull you over waxy. The law says both he only to be pulled over a little right and wrong. All he's saying is so.

And God will all is that if you favor one set of people over another set of people broken all you might not be a murderer.

You might not be in adultery. But God says it matters to me that you have send by showing favoritism. Then James closes the passages he warns us of the consequences of the rest of the passage verses 12 and 13, he says, speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom a song about the New Testament law based on love of Christ that you know the great commandment is love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. He says all of us would not be judged by that law. So speak and act like you're going to be judged by that law, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

What a way to wrap up that segment of his letter he says don't be too hard and have a sinful attitude toward certain people. He said because the way God looks at that when you have a sinful attitude of favoritism. He says God says all right then you're showing me that I can afford to be merciful to you because you won't be merciful toward other people sites. Instead, he saying make sure you put yourself in a position where when you need mercy as a whole bunch of it. Waiting on you because you practice mercy as you deal with other folks.

That's what I want to be a person who has a mercy, just sitting there little equity loan mercy just got a bus just like their previous line of credit waiting on you.

You might not need it but you got a line of credit. If you ever needed.

Got a $10,000 line of credit against my morning or whatever it is nice to know that you have it needed. This passage said you need to be so merciful as it relates to other people that when you need mercy might not be in the form of, but if you need mercy for.

You want God to be able to look down on your life and your track record of treating people right and so yeah you gonna send in summers to send them some cover that sin, because they been merciful to others is what you want to be saints. We all need comment you need some say so given out to others. I know I know we live in a world where a lot of people who will stand at the corner with a sign and not all of them were legitimate. Not all are some folk dance how they make daily on some folk. That's how they take care of some illegitimate desires. I know that there are scams and scammers, but not everybody is some folk are in need, and you say, but it's tough to know the different but you know I learned the glacé Lord, make me sensitive to somebody I'm supposed to help all my heart when I see you just give me a little. No help. This one might not be a Holy Spirit might be me as an imperfect science always accurately know whether I'm given in the will of God to somebody. What I'm being taken advantage of. But you figured out that sometimes I just go with the right wrong or indifferent because I can't be God be God given recently when I gave somebody has second thoughts later so you feel good about that.

After that was yeah I might have been scanned, but how many times did I stand God no, I was doing what I had no business going anyway. God can only know you're out you call me. Thanks so much for joining us for today's message.

Who cares about poor people. For more information about Destin for victory to contact us for prayer or to find out about this month special thank you gift for your support. Be sure to stop by our website Pastor Paul.net that's Pastor Paul.net when you get the churchwide. Now you see a little bit everything and all folk are naming his name, but their life doesn't bear witness to that and so we gotta make sure that there's real Christian being behind the profession of faith.

That's tomorrow in Pastor Paul Shepard's message faith on trial, but until then, remember he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory