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Living Hope SDA Church

Christian Martin

Born of One Blood

I was recently in Kenya, as many of you know, and while we were there, they gave us such a warm welcome.

And it reminded me of how we're truly a family.

And there we were, traveling to different locations.

Banana Hill, a small community just outside of Nairobi, the very place that we had been 21 years before when Heidi and I went to Kenya for the first time.

And there in Banana Hill, there stood the little church, same location, same hearts, people worshiping the same God.

And as we enjoyed our time there, and as we prepared to return home, they gave us a warm, a warm farewell.

And what I'm wearing here today, some of you may be wondering, is actually the gift that I received from Kenya.

Our brothers and sisters there gave us a gift and they gave me this beautiful attire and it's typical traditional wear in Kenya for special events.

So I thought it would be quite fitting to wear this on International Day and also doing a joyous day that we recognize our cultural diversity.

But I'll be honest with you though, it was good to come home.

After 3 weeks, it's good to be safely home.

But when we came back, less than a week later, I was reminded that my homeland is not free of danger.

As sweeted as it was to come home, home sweet home, and find a safe place, a place we call home, Well, I was reminded of the realities of the world that we live in.

You see, the local national news this past week could have been drastically different.

But thanks be to God that it was not drastically different as it could have been.

I'm sure many of us know, for we are all local today in this congregation, last Sunday, authorities arrested a man who they say was minutes away from carrying out a mass shooting at a church in northern Virginia.

You know, it's bad enough that a man went to a church on a mission to kill.

And it's unnerving when a church, when the church that he went to with these evil intentions, is less than a mile and a half from this pulpit.

It was Park Valley Church just down the street.

Hours later, the police searched his home.

And while they were there, they made a disturbing discovery.

The chief of police, he said, officers found a kill manifesto, the likes of which I've never read.

He continues, but he also articulated that he didn't know anyone at the church.

He knew he was going to take many lives yesterday, he wrote, but he also said, I don't know any of them.

You know, America the beautiful, that when we sing that song our hearts are warm and thankful to God for a country like ours.

But the reality is that America the beautiful is becoming more and more outright ugly.

A Christian counselor by the name of John Regeer, he made this keen observation.

Very simple concept, but yet full of meaning.

If there's fruit, if there's distrust, if there's anger, if there's hatred, If there's bitterness, if there's disloyalty, if there's grief, there is root.

And during his sermon on the mount, Jesus, near the beginning of his ministry, he actually said a very similar analogy when he said, a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, Nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

Then he said, by their fruit ye shall know them.

And what's interesting, about 3 and a half years later, in the upper room, on the night of His betrayal, we're talking about the very night that Jesus is arrested, taking a trail, the next day He's crucified, Jesus declared the ultimate display of good fruit.

This ultimate fruit that Jesus is about to declare can only come from a spirit-filled heart, from a good tree.

And Jesus said, by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, And you can finish the phrase with me, if you love 1 another.

People will know that you're my disciples if you have love for 1 another, period.

The truth is is that despite the culture, the language that you speak, the culture that you're from, regardless of how you're dressing right now, red, yellow, black and white skin color, all of us, a true disciple rooted in Christ, bears good fruit.

You bear good fruit in Christ and everyone loves 1 another of any culture, race, and skin color.

You see, true disciples rooted in Christ.

They'll look out for the interest of others.

They'll be attentive to each other's needs.

You know, Paul wrote about the church, the body of Christ, and again a similar analogy.

He said, if 1 member suffers, how many members will suffer with them?

If 1 member rejoices, How many are going to rejoice with Him?

We're part of that same tree bearing good fruit.

You see, the disciples of Christ, who are part of the body of Christ, love.

And when I say the world, I'm talking about the world that's under the sway of Not the God who is love, but of the enemy of God who is love.

The Bible says that he is the prince of the ruler of darkness and this world is under his sway.

That's why the God of love says be not of the world.

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Born of One Blood

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