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How do we look honestly at ourselves--recognizing both the content and intent of each affection, attention, and action--with unflinching courage and compassion, without turning confession, contrition, and prayer into just another bit of performative, introspective, religious theatre? Especially, when we consider the fact that we are called saints before we have finished becoming saints--certainly long before most of us feel like saints anyways. As we have said, the name "saint" is both a gift and a task: God sets us apart in Christ, precisely BEFORE and WHILE we learn to live into that identity together, with all that we are—spirit, soul, and body. Our ordinary habits matter because they form us through who/how/where/why/what we attend and respond to during each moment, every hour, all the days of... YOUR life. This week we practiced the Examen. We recall who we are in Jesus, settle into the Father's love, notice God's presence and our response, bring our resistance out into the light, and entrust tomorrow to the grace and embrace of Jesus known and felt today. The distinction between consciousness and conscience matters: we attend both to where we received God's nearness and to where we ignored it. We ask the Spirit to help us see clearly, confess honestly, and take a concrete step toward restoration. Christ loved us, even died for us, while we were still sinners; so now we can face what needs fixing and hold what needs healing without fear or shame. Questions for Reflection Where did you notice God's nearness this week, and how did you respond?What habit helped you relate to God as Father and to others as brothers and sisters?Where did you resist the Spirit's leading, and what step toward restoration might you take tomorrow? Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:2–4; 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24; Psalm 139:7–18, 23–24; Luke 6:39–42; 1 Corinthians 2:1–16; Romans 5:6, 8. From the series Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What does listening to God have to do with the body you live in, the work you do, and the people you find difficult to hear? Our name, saints, is both a gift and a task: we are, thus, set apart in Christ and called to become who we have been named, together. By Simple Saints, we refer to simplicity as the harmony of our whole selves: spirit, soul, and body receiving and sharing in the life God gives. Yes, the body, too, belongs to that hope. Though it grows tired and passes toward death, it will be resurrected; it is where the Spirit saves and forms us even now. Romans 12 calls us to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, with minds being renewed to discern what is good. The habits of an ordinary day matter: how we work, care for what has been entrusted to us, and attend to one another. In 1 Kings 19, Elijah moves from the triumph of Carmel into fear, exhaustion, and the conviction that he is alone. God meets him with food and sleep, then with a still, small voice and a calling to return. Elijah discovers that God has been at work beyond what he could see, including among people he did not know were faithful. We enter this passage through Lectio Divina, a practice handed down through our faith family across generations. We listen to Scripture, meditate on what we hear, respond in prayer, and rest with Jesus. Before we speak, we listen. As we learn that habit with God, we can begin to practice it with our spouses, neighbors, and even our enemies. Our whole selves participate: bodies at rest, minds attentive, hearts and wills open to God. Questions for Reflection: Where do you treat your body or your ordinary responsibilities as though they have little to do with life in God? What changes when you offer them as worship?Where do you recognize yourself in Elijah’s story: afraid, exhausted, convinced you are alone, or being invited to return? What do you notice about how God meets him?As you listen to 1 Kings 19:1–18, what word, detail, or person draws your attention? Ask God how it connects with your life today, respond in prayer, and leave time to rest with Jesus.Scripture References: Romans 12:1–2; 1 Kings 19:1–18 (with the context of 1 Kings 18); 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24; 2 Corinthians 7:1. Voice referenced: St. Irenaeus of Lyon, Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

If one day our bodies will be raised anew in, with, and by Jesus, what does that say about how we live in them now? Our bodies tire, ache, deteriorate, and change. The Christian faith names that honestly (perhaps, sometimes even emphasizes our physical and spiritual vulnerability a little too much). Still, historically, Jesus people have always held that the body that is wasting away is also the body God promises to raise. Thus, we cannot understand life with Jesus by leaving our our bodies--our fleshly, material, physical, dirt and dust filled bodies--out of it. In Holy Body, we consider the whole person, our whole selves—spirit, soul, and body—and Paul's insistence that we are the temple of the living God. With Irenaeus, we attend to the flesh as the place where God's life saves and forms us. With Augustine, we consider why our loves can restrict us: even beautiful, good things cannot give us lasting rest when we cling to them as though they must last forever. That brings us back to the work of living. The way we make and care for a life, the way we begin a day, the habits that keep us attentive or distracted, aware or distant, present or promiscuous... as the case may be. We can begin by offering ourselves to God through the work already before us, praying the Lord's Prayer as people who have received this day. We can ask whether our habits help us notice the person across from us--including the person we would rather avoid. And we can worship as a body, with our bodies, receiving together the life we cannot manufacture for ourselves. Questions for reflection: Where, when, and in what circumstances have you experienced an alignment of your complete self: spirit, soul, and body?What practices are dividing your body and spirit? What would it mean to turn from them today and tomorrow?Do the habits of your day make you more attentive to God and to the person beside you, or make it easier to avoid them? Scripture: 2 Corinthians 6:11–7:1; 2 Corinthians 4:8–18; 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24; Romans 12:1; Matthew 11:25–30; Psalm 1. In the liturgy: Psalm 84; Romans 8:27–28. Voices: Irenaeus, Against the Heresies; Augustine, Confessions; Hans Urs von Balthasar on receiving life from God. Explore Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

Our bodies wear down, but our inner life can be renewed day by day. In Simply Soulful, we turned to 2 Corinthians 4:13 and ask what it means to attend to both the soul God is renewing and to God, through the ordinary practices of the Examen, contemplation and conversation, shared devotion, and Sabbath. Reflection Questions: Where, when, and in what circumstances have you experienced soul satisfaction? Is your "inner self" being renewed day by day? If so, how? If not, why, and what could you do differently tomorrow? Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; Psalm 103 Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we. Come rest in Jesus. | Sundays at 10:10AM 642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218. Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas. Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on... IG: ⁠@christcitylife⁠ X: ⁠@christcitylife⁠ TH: ⁠@christcitylife⁠ FB: ⁠christcitychurchdallas⁠ YT: ⁠@christcitylife

What does it mean to be "spiritual?" What is the difference between spirit and soul? This week we consider Paul's prayer that our whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless. Our life does not begin with us. We receive life from God, and we grow into that life through repentance, confession, listening, attention, and worship. This is not a call to escape ordinary life. It is an invitation to become whole within it, to receive God's life in our homes, work, relationships, and responsibilities. Questions for reflection: Where have you become aware that there is more to you than you?What in your life needs to be brought into the light with God?What might change if you looked at Jesus, looked at the person before you, and kept looking at Jesus in them? Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 1 Corinthians 15:43-45; Genesis 2:7. Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we. Come rest in Jesus. | Sundays at 10:10AM 642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218. Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas. Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

How do you stay whole even as contemporary life pulls you in different directions? Saint Paul calls the church "saints": people made holy in Christ, set apart, and called to grow into that gift of holiness... together. In the second message of our fall series, Simple Saints, we consider how God's own undivided life gives shape to that calling. Drawing on divine simplicity—the harmony of God—the sermon asks how our desires, actions, and relationships can become whole and holy in world of fracture and brokenness. Questions for Reflection: Where, when, and in what ways have you experienced the wholeness of being set apart by God?Where do you feel divided or mixed up in spirit, soul, or body?As you bring those places to God, how does Paul's promise, “He who calls you is faithful,” shape your hope?Scripture References: 1 Thessalonians 5:23–24; 1 Corinthians 1:2–3; 1 Thessalonians 3:11–13; James 5:7–8; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 Peter 1:13–16; John 1:9; Exodus 3:14.Liturgy: Psalm 116:1–9; Romans 8:27–28. Voices/Quotes: Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible (Elwell and Beitzel); Eugene Peterson, Practice Resurrection; Michael Gorman, Inhabiting the Cruciform God; Augustine, Confessions 1.3.3–1.4.4; Peter Leithart, “What Sort of Parts is God Without?” Aristotle. Sermon Notes & Liturgy | Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What's in a name? Really? The first message from our Simple Saints series begins by gathering the 'fruit' of our summer in James. James ends his letter calling us to speak life over one another, to draw one another into life — which is another way of saying: live into who you are and who's you are... Live into your family name. So... what is our family name? You might be thinking "Christian." But did you know that the name "Christian" appears only three times in the New Testament? And, it wasn't a 'family' name, but was given by outsiders at Antioch who noticed this group kept talking about Jesus. The name the early church took for themselves was "saints" — Paul's most common way of addressing the churches, thirty-nine times over. A saint is one set apart by God, for God: a holy one, distinct because of their relationship to God. It is not a title of distinguished accomplishment but of received blessing, one that gives shape to the identity and actions of the person so blessed. What we are called by, who we are called to be and to become and... Who it is that calls us... in every sense is our "call-ing." Which is why Paul greets the church in Corinth as those already "sanctified in Christ Jesus," yet "called to be saints" — made holy, and becoming holy. Saintliness is both a gift and a task. But, it is derivative: it comes from Christ and is being given to us. For fourteen years, this has been our quiet work as a faith family — becoming simple saints in life together, ones who cannot be described or understood apart from God's intent and attention. Questions for Reflection: What emotions, thoughts, doubts, or affirmations arise as you read Paul's greeting as addressed to you: "to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints"?"Saint" names you by what God does in and for you, not by what you do for God. Where do you struggle to believe that?What would it look like this week to live into the name you have already been given? Scripture References: 1 Corinthians 1:2-3; Romans 1:7; 2 Corinthians 1:1; 2 Corinthians 13:13; Ephesians 1:1; Philippians 1:1; Colossians 1:2; Philemon 4-5; James 1:2-4; James 5:13-20; Acts 11:26; Psalm 34:1-10; Romans 8:27-28. Voices/Quotes: Eugene Peterson, on Paul's use of "saint"; Michael Gorman, on saintliness as gift and task; James D. G. Dunn, on holiness as the beginning and the process of salvation; John Webster, on holiness as indicative and imperative Sermon Notes & Liturgy | Simple Saints --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What do you do when you believe, but feel too weak to live what you believe? James ends his letter where he began: with faith growing toward a life that is complete, lacking nothing, amid the troubles of ordinary life. In this final sermon in our Faith at Work series, James 5:13-20 invites us to participate in that work through prayer, praise, and the care we give and receive. In suffering, we turn to God for wisdom. In joy, we sing praise. And when we feel weak, we call for others to pray over us and remind us who we are in Christ. Anointing in the name of Jesus gives visible expression to a life held in Christ. The prayer of faith rests in his faithfulness and his restoring work. As we confess our sins, pray for one another, and bring a wanderer back, we participate together in that work. Faith matures in a shared life, where we can receive care in our weakness and speak the truth and grace of Christ to someone else. Questions for Reflection: Where do I turn first when life becomes difficult, and what would it mean to ask God for wisdom there?Who could I invite to pray for me where I feel weak? Whose need might I attend to this week?What would look different tomorrow if I responded joyously to faith at work within me? Scripture References: James 5:13-20; James 1:1-8; James 1:17; James 4:13-17; James 5:7-8; Acts 2:42. Voices/Quotes: Douglas Moo Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work -- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218. Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

"Come now, you rich. Weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you." Just some light, Sunday morning devotional reading... right? In James 5:1-12, James speaks first as a prophet against the unrighteous rich: those who hoard, defraud, and live in self-indulgence while the people who work for them go unpaid or overlooked. Then he turns to those who are taken advantage of--the ones who were slighted or simply forgotten about--and asks for something harder than outrage: patience. This sermon moves through three questions. 1) Not "are you wealthy," but "are you righteous" — do you rightly relate to what you have, how you got it, and who you owe? 2) Not "will your cries reach God," but "have they already" — James writes in the perfect tense: the cries of the harvesters have already reached the Lord of hosts. 3) Not "how long," but "who is with you now"--the same compassionate and merciful God who met Job's grief, argument, and lament without flinching. Patience, is not doing nothing. It is doing the faithful thing without pretending you are in control of the end. And in the end, all he asks of us is a simple yes--not a performance of faith, not a grand gesture to prove we mean it, but a yes that is yes, because the God who hears us is nothing like the ones who need convincing. Questions for Reflection: Do I trust in my riches more than I trust in God — and what does that trust produce in me, or around me?When or why do I grumble, and how does it shape the way I treat the people closest to me?What would be different tomorrow if I humbled myself through faith at work within me? Scripture References: James 5:1-12, James 4:13-17, Matthew 6:19-24, Job 1-42, Psalm 146 Voices/Quotes: Douglas J. Moo, The Letter of James Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas. Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylife X: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What is your life? A mist? A vapor? Something more? Less? In James 4, James turns from the war within us to the way we live in the world. He confronts two universal sins: the individual sin of judging and condemning one another — exalting ourselves to lawgivers — and the collective sin of presuming we are in control of our lives, planning our futures as if we were the source of our own present and future. James calls us to humble ourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt us. Not self-flagellation, but the joyous irony that when we are exposed, unhidden, and vulnerably honest before the One who is obviously greater, we are not condemned but conformed. We grieve our sins (plural) and the sin-full state of the world (Sin, singular), but through Jesus our brokenness is transformed, redeemed as faith, and made visible in how we live and love one another. Questions for Reflection: Where have I condemned others because I failed to grieve my sins?How can my grieving Sin lead to my submitting to and discerning of God's will?What would be different tomorrow if I humbled myself through faith at work within me? Scripture References: James 4:11-17, James 4:7-10, James 1:2-4, James 1:17, James 1:18, James 1:21, James 1:25, James 2:10, James 2:12, James 2:13, James 3:13, Romans 12:2, Psalm 39:1-7, James 5:7-8 Voices/Quotes: A.W. Tozer (paraphrase) Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218. Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What keeps you from peace? In week 9 of our series on James, we arrive at one of the most confrontational passages in the New Testament. James asks, "What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you?" His answer is not about the other person, the circumstances, or even the truth — it is about the war within us: frustrated desire met with twisted passion. This sermon moves through James 4:1-12, confronting the way we ask God without submitting to Him, the way we pursue lesser loves as if they were ends, and the way we treat God as a genie or a distant power instead of the One who longs for us in covenant. James accuses us of adultery — not first against ourselves or others, but against the One faithful to us. And yet even there, grace is greater. At the heart of the work of faith is a humility that does not think less of ourselves, but thinks of ourselves less — so that we find ourselves totally infatuated and consumed by the One who gives all to us. Questions for Reflection: Who am I devoted to? Myself? God? Someone/thing else?In what ways does my faith lead to my humility, and therefore, to grace?What would tomorrow look like if I responded devotedly to faith at work within me? Scripture References: James 4:1-12, James 1:3-4, James 1:9, James 1:17, James 1:19-20, James 3:13-18, James 3:14, Hebrews 11:1, Matthew 5:21-22, Matthew 11:28-29, Psalm 24:1-6 Voices/Quotes: Douglas Moo, TPNT Commentary on James Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

How do you know if you are living wisely? James does not ask for your credentials. He asks for evidence. "Who is wise and understanding among you?" is not a question looking for a particular set of ideas or even beliefs — it is a question looking for a particular way of life. In James 3:13-18 there are two kinds of wisdom. One is earthly and unspiritual, carrying bitter jealousy and self-interested rivalry underneath it. It can be factually accurate and still be false to the truth. The other comes down from above: pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. If our seeing and reacting produces disorder in our relationships with God, others, the earth, and ourselves, we are building on sand. Where a life sows peace, a harvest of righteousness follows. The test is not how much we know. It is whether our lives author peace, manifest righteousness (right-relationships), and embody the Kingdom of Heaven. Questions for Reflection: Where do envy and self-interest exist within my heart?Am I authoring peace in my roles, responsibilities, and relationships? How, or why not?What would tomorrow look like if I responded wisely to faith at work within me? Scripture References: James 3:13-18, James 1:5, James 1:8, James 1:15, James 1:17-22, James 2:1-13, James 3:9-12, James 4:4-7, James 5:7-8, Psalm 37:1-11, Matthew 7:24-27. Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work -- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218. Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylife X: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What if the problem with our words is deeper than just saying the wrong thing? In James 3:1-12, we are invited to feel the weight of the tongue. Our words matter in our journey of faith, our work, and our community. They can bless God while wounding people made in his likeness. They can become a fire that divides, or they can participate in the healing work of the Word made flesh. This sermon traces James’ warning against using words for our own elevation, his call to be quick to listen and slow to speak, and his deeper invitation: not the suppression of words, but the transformation of character. We cannot tame our tongues through technique. Instead, we bring our divided hearts, humbly and honestly to God and depend on Jesus, the Word of truth, to transform us. Questions for Reflection: What do my words reveal about myself?How do my words bless other people?What would tomorrow look like if I grounded my words in listening to Jesus? Scripture References: James 3:1-12, James 1:18-19, James 1:26-27, Genesis 1:1-3, Genesis 1:26, Genesis 2:19, John 1:1-3, Acts 2:2-4, Revelation 12:9-10, Psalm 119:105-112, Philippians 2:12-16. Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. → Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

What if faith was never meant to be a private belief you keep separate from the rest of your life? In week 5 of James: Faith At Work, we sit with one of the more difficult and controversial passages in the New Testament: James 2:14-26. James asks, to paraphrase, "What good is a claim of faith while ignoring a brother or sister in need?" He presses against a faith that separates us from our neighbors, from ourselves, and from God--faith that merely confesses the truth, all while leaving daily life untouched. This teaching reflects on James' warning about dead faith, his examples of Abraham and Rahab, and the deeper beauty underneath the warning: living faith is not performance. It is not self-justification. It is the whole person moving toward Christ. Faith is brought to fullness as the implanted word works through us in love, mercy, provision, and ordinary obedience. Questions for Reflection: What areas of my life have I separated from my faith?How is my faith at work in my daily life and community?What would tomorrow look like if I responded to faith at work within me? Scripture References: James 2:14-26, James 1:18, James 1:21, James 1:27, Matthew 25:34-40, John 13:35, Genesis 15:6, Genesis 22, Romans 3:28, Deuteronomy 6:4, Philippians 2:12-13, Psalm 107:1-9 Voices/Quotes: Douglas J. Moo, The Letter of James; Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy; Eugene Peterson, The Message and A Long Obedience in the Same Direction; Martin Luther; The BibleProject; Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals Sermon Notes & Liturgy | James: Faith at Work --- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife

Many of our churches ignore our tendencies towards partiality, justify our favoritism, and excuse our cliquish exclusivity, labeling it 'fellowship.' But what if this is an afront to God, who, after all, "shows no partiality" (Rom. 2:11)? What if communities filled with partiality actually betray their professed faith in Jesus Christ, the Lord of Glory? In week 4 of our summer series, James: Faith At Work, we sit with James 2:1-13 and the uncomfortable mirror it holds up to the church. This teaching begins by drawing our attention to the Greek word for partiality in verse 1, which carries the idea of "receiving the face" - judging a person by their visible surface, social status, usefulness, wealth, poverty, polish, burden, or perceived return. But faith is supposed to retrain our sight so that we no longer see the other person--rich or poor--as a category to manage, a resource to exploit, or an inconvenience to avoid. Faith at work sees beyond mere appearance, beyond the sur-face, and recognizes the face of the other as a summons to love. This message walks verse by verse through James' warning against favoritism, the royal law to "love your neighbor as yourself," and the law of liberty that frees us from the old economy of fear, status, and self-protection, and arrives at the fundamental Gospel truth that mercy triumphs over judgement. Lest we mistakenly think mercy is mere sentiment, we are reminded that mercy is love becoming visible, love made manifestly present, in the face of suffering--like Jesus, who was the vehicle of God's mercy. Questions for Reflection: Whose presence makes me feel important, and whose presence makes me feel burdened? Why?Do I see by the worldly facade, or by the divine Glory?Has the mercy I have received become visible over judgment?How am I responding to the faith at work within me?Scripture References: James 2:1-13, Psalm 25:1-10, Matthew 5:3, Matthew 22:34-40, Deuteronomy 6:4-5, 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 Voices/Quotes: Emmanuel Levinas, Totality and Infinity; Douglas J. Moo, TNTC James; Craig L. Blomberg and Mariam J. Kamell, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on James; Google DeepMind, "A Pragmatic View of AI Personhood" From the series James: Faith at WorkSermon Notes & Liturgy -- Tired of consumer Christianity? So are we.Come rest in Jesus. Sundays at 10:10AM642 Brookhurst Dr, Dallas, TX 75218.Christ City Church is a faith family following Jesus together in east Dallas.Learn more at www.christcity.life Follow us on...IG: @christcitylifeX: @christcitylifeTH: @christcitylifeFB: christcitychurchdallasYT: @christcitylife