SABBATH

God's Gift to Us

Sermon: Why Do You Feel Entitled?

Falling into the Entitlement Trap
#1324B

Given 28-May-16; 51 minutes

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description: The government assumes an unseemly role as being entitled to do whatever it wants, dominating over the lives of its constituents, instead of functioning as a servant. Having in the last several decades ignored the Constitution, and the laws and precepts of the Bible, all branches of government are clueless as to fair weights and measures, proper ways to treat the poor and homeless. They have compulsively baited the entitlement trap, consisting of food-stamps, Medicare, Medicaid, subsidies, and welfare, turning its citizenry into abject economic slaves rather than uplift them out of poverty. When a person, under Old Testament Law, fell into economic peril, either by his own carelessness or accident, God prescribed a way back to economic freedom and dignity through the Jubilee year. Furthermore, while he worked as a bondservant to his countryman, he was never demeaned as chattel or property, but was respected and maintained his dignity as he worked for food, shelter, and clothing. The apostle Paul demonstrated the work ethic, working with his hands, refusing to accept offerings from the congregation, even though he could have. Jesus Christ also demonstrated the work ethic, working diligently as the Father works diligently. Back in the 1950s, young people seemed to have more responsibility, more often than not having summer and after-school jobs, earning their own spending money. Today, our young people, with the coaxing of the Federal government, have racked up insurmountable debt, shamelessly expecting the rest of the 'serf' society to pay for their schooling and bankroll them into careers. Sadly, the entitlement attitude has surreptitiously crept into God's church, with people seemingly feeling they should be served instead of eagerly serving others, completely at odds with Jesus Christ's admonition that leadership consists o


transcript:

We now live in a very entitled country and society. Our government and the people they are supposed to serve feel that they are entitled. The government feels so entitled that it does not function according to the law of the land in the Constitution. The branches of our government—the President (Executive), the House of Representatives, and the Senate, now kind of do what they want because they feel that they are all entitled.

American society in general is also just about the same when it comes to feeling entitled. Most Americans have a very entitled attitude. The pitfall for us in all of this is that this entitlement attitude has spilled over into God's people in His church.

Does God want us to feel entitled, or to be entitled? This is the question for all of us.

When God brought Israel into the Promised Land, He gave them a number of laws that had to do with how to live with one another, such as how to conduct business with fair weights and measures; how their land inheritance was not to be sold, ever; how they were not allowed to take usury or interest on a loan from another Israelite brother.

God also told them how to treat the fellow Israelite who became poor. It did not matter how the man, or a family became poor. It did not matter if they had become poor because of laziness, or the weather, or insect pests, or a death within the family, or poor management practices, or other reasons for crop failure. God told them how this situation was to be handled.

So let us turn to Leviticus 25.

Leviticus 25:39 And if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor, and he sells himself to you, you shalt not compel him to serve as a slave.

God is saying that you cannot treat these poor people that sell themselves to you like the Israelites were treated by the Egyptians. We tend to be more familiar with how the black Americans were treated by the plantation owners. Both of these groups [ancient Israelites, and nineteenth century black Americans] were nothing more than property to their masters and were treated as such. They would be fed, clothed, and sheltered however they chose. They even could have been beaten, abused, or even killed if the master so said. But God said, “Not so with My people. You will treat the poor more like family than a slave.”

Leviticus 25:40 As a hired servant and as a sojourner he shall be with you, and shall serve you until the Year of Jubilee.

The next verse will tell us why he was a sojourner in your keeping:

Leviticus 25:41 And then he shall depart from you—he and his children with him—and shall return to his own family. He shall return to the possession [his inheritance, usually land] of his fathers.

This person or family who became poor was not to become a slave forever, but rather a servant until the Jubilee Year. But on the other hand, there are two sides to this coin: The person or family who got themselves into this pickle were not entitled to a free ride on the backs of others. They were required to work as a servant for others.

You see, in Israel there was no entitlements like food stamps, low-income housing, welfare, Medicare, or Medicaid, or Meals on Wheels. Please do not be offended by what I just said if you happen to be receiving any of these benefits. I have used some of these, and had them, and so did my wife. Take advantage of what our government offers us.

But the danger to all of us, young and old, is falling into the entitlement trap—the entitlement attitude puts a wedge between us and God. This is the problem.

God's government was, and is based on the Word of God, and there is no entitlement within the Word of God. Turn to II Thessalonians 3.

II Thessalonians 3:7 (Amplified) For you yourselves know how it is necessary to imitate our example. For, we were not disorderly or shrinking from our duty when we were with you. We were not idle; we worked.

This is Paul talking about himself, Silas, and Timothy. And then in verse 8:

II Thessalonians 3:8-10 (Amplified) Nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it. But with toil and struggle we worked night and day that we might not be a burden or imposition on any of you for our support. It was not because we do not have the right to such support [for they do!], but we wish to make ourselves an example for you to follow. For while we were yet with you, we gave you this rule and charge: If anyone will not work, neither let him eat.

God's way of life is all about work: physical work; spiritual work; working at overcoming; the work of Bible study and prayer; the work of serving the brethren, and so on.

God's government and God's nation Israel were expected to work and provide for themselves, even when they became poor. They still had to work. When an Israelite became poor, he sold himself into a nice type of slavery. But make no mistake, it was still slavery, and a whole lot of work was required of you. He was now working for someone else instead of himself, his property, his inheritance; he was not working for you.

In God's nation Israel you were not entitled. You could not get food stamps, and collect a welfare check, and then sit on the couch and watch Captain Kangaroo all day doing absolutely nothing. That is not how God's government was set up in Israel.

God expects us to work and to provide for our families; to teach our children and our grandchildren how to work; how to be industrious, and not entitled. Turn to John 5.

John 5:17 (Amplified) But Jesus answered them, “My Father has worked until now. He has never ceased working. He is still working, and I, too, must work.’”

God has been working forever because He has lived forever. Christ says that He has never ceased working either, and that He must work. This is what God expects of us as firstfruits. He does not want us to have this entitled attitude that permeates America.

When we fall into this entitlement trap, we begin to take liberties with God's law. We take privileges with the Sabbath, the preparation day, getting leaven out of our homes, or the holy days, or dating outside the church. And, on and on it goes. You see? We do these things because we feel entitled.

Now let me read to you what the definition of entitlement is: “To give a right or claim to something; to qualify for something; a position with certain privileges.” Entitlement means the right to guaranteed benefits (without work).

We all know what our rights are with God. Mankind’s right from God is death because we have all sinned.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

We are not entitled to anything except death. It is only through the gift of God, His grace, and Christ's shed blood that eternal life is even available to any of us.

Do you realize how vastly different society is now in this entitled nation we live in compared to when I grew up in the 1950s and 60s? Things have changed tremendously. Most of us did not get an allowance from our parents. Can you imagine that? Most of my buddies and I mowed lawns so we could buy baseball cards, or candy, or whatever. We would also do paper routes. We passed them down from the older kids to the younger kids. When I stopped doing my paper route, I passed it down to a younger kid in the neighborhood and taught him how to do it.

In the summer there was always a drink or Sno-Cone stand somewhere in the neighborhood, because most of the kids worked at trying to make extra money. All my buddies and I worked to earn money to buy our cars, and one year of insurance, because our folks would not let us drive without one year of insurance. And they sure were not going to provide a car for us.

I remember when one of my buddies called me on the phone to tell me about a car he just bought. He was excited and wanted to come by and show me his car. When he drove in my driveway, I ran out to see his car, and it was a really nice white ‘57 Chevy, with red and black interior. And I asked him, right off, if he had enough money for his insurance? And he replied that he had had just enough money for car and one year of insurance. He told me he had bought the car from a neighbor, and it was more than he could afford, but he told the neighbor about needing to have that year of insurance too, and the neighbor agreed to sell him the car for a little less.

We all worked and had jobs. Another buddy bought a ‘56 Mercury. And again, he had to have a year’s insurance. Another did the same. The kid across the street was older than me, but the same. And on and on it went. We bought these things with our own money that we earned.

The point is, none of us were entitled. We all made our own way because our folks taught us to work and expected us to work. We all helped one another to get jobs too. I do not see that going on now either.

I went down to the local car wash, and I got hired. And then I got jobs there for three more of my buddies. And then one of them got a better job up to Cole’s Market as a box boy. And after he had been there a couple of months, he was able to get me a job there too. Some of us had two jobs. This same friend got me a summer job with him, in addition to the box boy job. It was a night job in a fruit and berry packing plant.

We all worked and helped one another to get jobs where we were. Nobody was entitled, and we tried to help one another. We all worked for what we had.

Now I want to give you some other examples from then until now which fostered American society to get into this entitlement attitude.

One contribution is that we have so much. We are so blessed in this country it has made us entitled. Most families, when I grew up, were large by today’s standards. Most had three to six children. In my neighborhood, all the homes were three-bedroom, one bath, and about 1300 square feet. Other nearby neighborhoods had much smaller homes! And the average family living in those homes really was not smaller than the families in my neighborhood. So, it was rare that any of my friends or nearby kids had their own bedroom. In many cases there were three kids in a bedroom. Today, most of the kids each have their own bedrooms.

One of my very good friends had six older brothers, and they lived in an older house, kind of rundown with three bedrooms and one bath; seven boys in two bedrooms. That kind of thing does not happen anymore in America.

One of my friend’s older brother was the renown football player Big John LoVetere. I do not know if any of you remember or have heard of that name. He was a very good football player in the NFL. He only played for two teams in his whole career: the Los Angeles Rams, and then the New York Giants. He was a great player. He was the strongest man in football at the time. He was so good that when the Rams traded him to the Giants, they got Roosevelt (Rosey) Grier for him. He became such a good player along with Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy, and Merlin Olsen, that those were named the fearsome foursome. That was the first team in the NFL to have a named defense.

Now, John LoVetere never made the money that football players and great sports stars make today. I went over to his house a couple of times with his brother. He lived in a very modest house with just average furniture, and an everyday car. He was not like the big sports figures today that have everything.

The players attitudes have become so entitled, that even when they sign a multi-million-dollar contract to play two to five years someplace, if they have a really, really good season in the middle of that contract, they want to negotiate a new contract for more money. They were originally to play for so much, for so long, but now they feel they are entitled to more money because they had one really good season. Their word is not any good. The paper contract they wrote is useless because they feel entitled.

We have been so blessed in America with so much that we have developed this entitled attitude. Look at all the toys, books, bikes, skateboards, and junk our kids and grandkids have! My grandkids have so many toys that they even have a room in my house with their toys in it, so they do not have to bring a toy from home. My generation had very few toys. We made a lot of our own toys.

All this has to do with the entitlement mentality that permeates our society, as well as God's people today.

Let me tell you another story of what the mindset in America is like today. My son, J. B., runs an automobile repair shop. About a month ago one of his customers was crying the blues to him, because he wanted Bernie Sanders for president. J. B. asked him why. He said that his poor daughter had gone to college, and had gotten her doctorate, and now she owned $340,000 in student loan debt.

Think about that. She is the one who decided to get her doctorate. She is the one who went to that college. She will be the one who benefits from that doctorate degree. But her father wants all Americans to pay for it—you and me. We need to pay for what his daughter will benefit from? That is why he wants Bernie Sanders to be president. Bernie has said that he wants to make all college degrees free for all Americans. Where will all that money come from? I do not know. Bernie is a socialist with communist leanings who never worked until he was 40. But this customer wants Bernie for president.

Americans have lost their way because most of us have an entitled mentality. Americans do not look for character or morals in a candidate anymore. We look for what that person can promise to do for us. We do not have a candidate running for the highest office in the world worth two red cents. I am actually not anymore against Bernie Sanders than any of the rest of the clowns running for president.

These are the times we are living in! This man, who was crying the blues because of the bills his daughter had racked up—think of this—was a local union official. He was a union business agent. I have been in a union for most of my life. I am still a union member. And I know that union officials make good money and have great benefits like medical, dental, vision, chiropractic, and really great pensions. This man’s daughter is now a practicing medical doctor, with the matching income. And she is married to a medical doctor herself. Think of the income they have. I will trade mine for theirs, and even take that $340,000 debt, and I would be in a lot better shape than I am now. Anyways, just as I said, these different people want you and me to pay for her schooling. This comes from that entitlement mentality in our society today.

My youngest daughter, Nicole, has her doctorate. She also owes about $100,000. That is what she chose, and she will reap the benefits from it. So she needs to pay off her own schooling, not you and me. I paid for her bachelor’s degree, and then I said, “Bye, bye! You’re on your own.” She decided to move on—great! Good for her! And she is already benefiting from it and has landed a good job.

Nicole is an educator. And where she now works, her co-workers in that school district feel so entitled that it has made her job very difficult. She teaches teachers. She is looking at a principal’s job in another district because of this entitlement attitude. But she will learn that wherever she goes, the people will still feel entitled.

Now, the company my oldest daughter works for struggles to hire people because they want to start at the top. Can you imagine that? “I just got out of high school, but I want to be the president!” Michelle does do some of the hiring and firing for her employer here on the West Coast, because the company she works for is based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. About 8 months ago, Michelle needed to hire a new operator. She received a resume from a young lady who had just graduated from either Berkley, or Stanford. Everything looked good on the resume. She had the required degree, so Michelle gave her a call to discuss the resume, and the available position. And they did. But Michelle barely got the words out of her mouth when the young lady began telling Michelle that she required a starting salary of $70,000 a year, as well as all the required benefits she would need to even accept the job. Well, Michelle let her finish making her demands, and then said, “I see that you wouldn’t be the right fit for us. Thank you very much.” (Bye, bye, baby!)

Do you see how society has become extremely entitled? This young lady thought that just because she had a degree from a high-powered college that she was now entitled to the moon right out of the chute.

The sad part about all this is this attitude is now in God's church, and His people. A lot of us feel entitled. I will give you some examples of what I am talking about in the greater churches of God, with us and our children.

Back when I was called, in 1970, and pretty much through the 80s when you went to dinner at someone’s home, or hosted brethren at your home, when dinner was finished all the women pitched in and helped cleanup and wash all the dishes. Parents watched their children for the most part, and did not let them destroy stuff, or make a big mess, becoming unruly.

But now in 2016, after dinner is over, the guests stand up and dusts the crumbs off onto the carpet, and go park themselves in the family room, or living room, until the party is over. No one helps clean up the mess. In a lot of cases, we let our kids make a huge mess, and even break things, while thinking nothing of it. Is this the entitlement attitude that society has? Yes.

I talked to some of my friends in other groups of God's church this year after the Night to be Much Observed. One person said that they had the Night to be Much Observed in their home, and one of the guests was asked to pick up an older lady on their way in. That was all they wanted them to do to help. There was no need to bring food, or do anything else, just bring our elderly friend. They replied that they could not do that. You are asking too much of me. However, the host of this dinner picks up the elderly woman each week for Sabbath services. And it is a long way out of their way to do this. But they do it every week out of love for the woman and God.

You see, there are two attitudes within God's church: the entitled attitude and the right attitude. If it is in the world, it is in the church. We have to be on guard all the time. God will not have entitled people in His Kingdom. The Kingdom of God will be full of servants.

Another thing other people have mentioned to me is how when someone perceives that you have a little money, whether you really do or do not, and you are out to dinner or lunch, they never ask how much they owe, or never offer to get the bill. Entitled people always let someone else get the bill. That is the way it is.

Do not get me wrong. Some people never let you get the bill, either. And that is okay. Some of us do have more than others, and we really want to get the bill. That is good. But we should always offer to pay our way.

I do not know how many of you who are on Facebook, but have ever seen the GoFundMe site? When this site started, it was for people who had genuine and serious problems that they needed monetary help with. When GoFundMe was first brought to my attention, there was a church family that I had never met, who had a baby that was born with cleft palate. I think we can all realize how distressing this would be, if you had no insurance, and not a lot of savings, and really no family help, and looking at this costly operation you needed for your child.

Well, they scrounged all the money they could, but they were still short several thousand dollars. So they asked for help on GoFundMe. That is not a bad thing. That is a good thing. It is a worthwhile need.

Now, from what I understand, they received the help they needed from the brethren, and friends, and the baby is doing just fine, and was able to get the operation.

But today, the GoFundMe site has turned into a “gimme”-site because of the I-am-entitled attitude. I have seen people on GoFundMe asking others to buy their first car. That should be between them and their parents. Not all of us. My generation for the most part got a job to buy our first car, and second, and third, and on and on. Nobody ever bought me a car. Can you imagine having to work to purchase a car? Oh, the humiliation! That is cruel and unusual punishment!

I have seen people on GoFundMe ask for help to fund them to start a business! Really? I know all kinds of people that would go into business for themselves on your dime. I would love that! Sign me up! I am in! Please somebody fund me so I can go into business. I would love it.

But do you know what usually happens when you do not have any skin in the game? Things do not work out very well. It is like the old saying, “Easy come, easy go.”

I have seen people ask on GoFundMe for help to support their families when they do not want to work themselves, even though they were offered a very good job in the field they are educated in, and have a degree in, and still refused a job. You see, that would be work! That would be getting out of bed in the morning, and actually going to work. That would mean someone would have to be responsible. But it is much easier to post your wants on GoFundMe.

These GoFundMe examples were all posted on Facebook by God's people. I could give more examples, but I will not. I have probably already offended enough people, but that is not my intention. If these things are not brought to our attention (like David Grabbe talked about), we do not connect the dots to what is going on in life, like he said. If we do not repent, and if we do not make right choices, we are in trouble as God's people. This is not to offend you at all.

But the question is: do you think there will be any entitled firstfruits in the Millennium ruling with Christ? Even more important, do you think there will be any entitled Beings and Family in the government of God for eternity?

Turn to Revelation 5.

Revelation 5:10 (Amplified) And you have made them a kingdom, a royal race, and priests to our God. And they shall reign as kings over the earth.

The firstfruits of God will be priests and kings for 1,000 years with Christ in the Millennium. That kind of sounds like we will be entitled, does it not? The priests of this world, and the kings of this world, are all entitled. Think about the British royal family. They have every imaginable thing. They have servants. They eat the best food. They drive the best cars. They get the best seats at events. They wear the best clothing. They do not worry about their bills, and they sure do not worry about having a job. They are taken care of, and they are spoiled by all the people around them—their subjects. Let us look at how the kings of this earth have always been entitled, right from your own Bible.

Turn to Esther 5. This is the encounter that Queen Esther has with King Ahasuerus. We all know she was the queen of Persia, as well as Mordecai’s niece. This was in the second world-ruling empire, according to the statue in Daniel. So we know the story.

Esther 5:1 Now it happened on the third day that Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king's palace, across from the king's palace, while the king sat on his royal throne in the royal house, acing the entrance of the house.

So we see here that Esther got herself all dolled up to go and see the king. But what she was really doing was taking her life into her own hands, because you could not just go in to see the king whenever you felt like it. The king was “the man,” and whatever he said was done. It was law. He had to summon you or hold out the royal scepter to you. If he did not accept you by holding out the scepter to you, it meant death. So Esther was taking a chance, operating on faith, and on Mordecai’s prodding, and reasoning with her about what Haman had in mind to do to their people, the Jews. We know the story.

Esther 5:2 So it was, when the king saw Queen Esther in the court, that she found favor in his sight [there it is! You have to have favor with the government because they are entitled], and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther went near and touched the top of the scepter.

Now she could petition the king because he accepted her into his presence. This is how entitled the kings of this world are. Most of them and the modern governments of this world are very self-serving. They can take your property, your rights, and even your life if they wish.

Another example is in Daniel 2.

Daniel 2:5 The king [Nebuchadnezzar] answered and said to the Chaldeans, “My decision is firm: if you do not make known the dream to me, and its interpretation, you shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made an ash heap.”

This king could do this because he was the king. And he is asking here for something that is impossible. Could any of you interpret the dream I had last night? Or even tell me what I dreamed? Nebuchadnezzar is asking for something that is impossible without a miracle from God. But he could do that, and much more, because he was king and he was entitled. You see, the kings and priests of man’s world are entitled individuals. They get the best of the best. And their word is law.

God's firstfruits are called, not to be entitled, but to be servants of the Most High God. You and I were called to serve. The definition of serve is to render assistance; be of use; to help; to have definite use; to work for. The definition of servant is a person employed by another to perform duties, or work.

How entitled is the U. S. government? We see and know the kings in governments are all entitled. The king that you and I should use as our example and pattern our actions in life after is Jesus Christ—our King, our Example.

Turn to Matthew 2. Here is an example that God wants us to pattern our lives after:

Matthew 2:2 Saying, “Where is He who has born King of the Jews [Christ was born to be king of the whole world]? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

Christ our King and our Example has a legitimate right to be entitled. But He does not act entitled. Our King is a servant. Think about how Christ acted when He was on this earth. He did not act like Nebuchadnezzar or Ahazariah. Turn to Zechariah 9.

Zechariah 9:9 “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your King is coming to you; He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

What king or government of this world is just? None of them.

When Christ was on this earth, He was humble, lowly; and His whole life was dedicated in service to teaching, not a life of entitlement. Turn to John 5.

John 5:6 When Jesus saw him lying there, He knew that he had already been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?”

Now everybody who is sick or has a physical problem wants to become well.

John 5:7 The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another [some entitled person] steps down before me.”

That is the ways of the world. I am getting mine!

John 5:8-9 Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk” And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath.

Now, we all know Christ performed miracles to prove that He was the Messiah to His disciples and others. This miracle Christ performed was also a teaching tool, just like this miracle that was performed on the Sabbath. So He could use the Sabbath to teach the people how to use this holy day correctly, not like the Sadducees and Pharisees. They had all these dos and don’ts. That is not what He wants from us. He wants us to worship Him properly and use the day properly in worship to Him.

Christ could have worked any kind of miracle, but most of His miracles were in service to humanity and mankind while He was here on this earth. There was the water to wine serving the people at the wedding; the Roman centurion who was healed of the palsy; the calming of the waves in the storm when His disciples were scared to death because they thought they might end up in the drink, drowning. Then, there was the two blind men he healed; the casting out of the demons from two men; the healing of another man of palsy; and another blind man; and then the raising of Lazarus from the dead after waiting two whole days, teaching again to make sure that the people and His disciples knew and understood that God can and will resurrect all mankind in their own time.

Christ wanted to make sure that everybody knew that Lazarus was dead; He let him begin to stink. He wanted them to realize this: Christ's whole life was in service to all of mankind, not just the church and His disciples. You cannot find anywhere in the Bible where Christ was entitled. You and I were miraculously called—it is a miracle you are here—to be kings and priests. What do true priests of God do? They serve mankind.

I Kings 8:63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two-twenty thousand oxen and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.

Do you realize how much work is involved in the sacrifice of just one animal, let alone 142,000 of them, and 22,000 were large animals like oxen? We are talking about a lot of work here!

The priests worked and they served the people. The priests and the Levites worked or served in the Temple. They sacrificed animals daily for the people. Their whole lives revolved around service for both God and man. Turn to II Chronicles 30. Here in II Chronicles we have more of the same sacrifices being done under another king, King Hezekiah. But this time, it also says the Levites taught the good knowledge of God to the people. They were also teachers! Exactly what we are going to be! Teaching is a service to mankind.

II Chronicles 30:22 And Hezekiah gave encouragement to all the Levites who taught the good knowledge of the LORD; and they ate throughout the feast seven days, offering peace offerings and making confession to the LORD God of their fathers.

It tells us again how many animals in verse 24, and this time it was 8,000 more that the priests and Levites had to do. Another bunch of work. The priests of God were ordained to serve the people, not to be entitled. Look at today’s ministry in the greater churches of God. Their whole lives are in service to the people. They give and prepare sermons and sermonettes. That is a bunch of work! They anoint us when we are sick. They baptize us into the body of Christ. They counsel us when we have issues. They perform marriage and funeral ceremonies. They set up feast sites and make sure we have all the accommodations that we require. And then a lot of us complain because we feel entitled. They do all this work for us.

Mr. Ritenbaugh and Richard fly around the country every year to try and visit all of us. Martin and Susan come all the way across the country for Passover services for the West Coast brethren. I could go on and on with all these duties and things God's ministers do in serving His people.

God is not looking for, or interested in, people who have an entitled attitude. Do you know why? Why is it so important that we do not allow ourselves to get involved with this world, and its entitled attitudes? If you have an entitled attitude, which most of us probably do to come extent, because we live in this entitled nation and society, if we are entitled even a little bit, it makes it very difficult for us to keep God's royal law which is extremely important.

You and I have to work to keep God's royal law to the very best of our ability if we want to be in the Kingdom of God as firstfruits. That is what is at stake here.

James 2:8 If you fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “Thou shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well.

The keyword in this scripture is love. Love is the direct opposite of entitlement. Love is the affectionate concern for the wellbeing of others. Love is an action word. It is doing something for others.

Entitled is all about the self. It is all about you or me, not others. Turn to Galatians 5.

Galatians 5:13 For brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty for an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

There is the word ‘serve’ right next to the word ‘love.’ We will be kings and priests with Christ serving physical human beings in love in the Millennium. We will be helping Christ sort out the mess and destruction left in people’s lives in the world after the Tribulation. We will be teaching God's way of life and God's law, which are love and outgoing concern for others. It is not entitlement. There is no entitlement involved.

Galatians 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

This is really hard to do for all of us, but we must work at it daily. Turn to John 13.

John 13:34 (Amplified) I give you a new commandment that you should love one another, just as I have loved you. So, you also should love one another.

Do you see that God commands us to love one another? This commandment trumps all the other commandments because you cannot keep the other commandments without keeping this one, and you cannot keep it if you are entitled. It is impossible. Turn to Romans 13.

Romans 13:10 (Living New Testament) Love does no wrong to anyone. That is why it fully satisfies all of God's requirements. It is the only law you and I need.

God has called us for a specific job. Each one of us will have a very special job to do and perform in the Millennium in the Kingdom of God, a teaching, working, serving position with the government of God. Turn to I John 3.

I John 3:17-18 (Living New Testament) But as someone who is supposed to be a first fruit has money enough to live well, and sees a brother in need, and will not help him, how can God's love be within Him? Little children, let us stop saying we love people; let us really love them, and show it by our actions.

I told you love is an action word.

How do we perform these scriptures? This is the key right here—doing what Christ did for us, by giving our lives for one another. How do we give our lives? Our lives consist of minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years.

We love each other by giving our time to one another through prayer, for one thing. When we pray for someone, it takes time. Time is our life.

When we serve another person, it takes time. Time is our life.

When we give someone money, it took us time to make that money. Time is our life.

When we send someone a card, it takes time and money, which again is our life.

When we call each other to see how things are going? It takes time. Time is our life.

This is what God wants from us. He wants us to love and serve one another because this is what we will be doing with Christ in the Millennium. Serving and teaching other people. There is no secret to this. The Bible is full of examples. It is what we should be doing right now. God does not want entitled people that want others to always pay their way for them, or beg through GoFundMe to buy a car, clothing, or set themselves up in business. That is how society acts. American society is now extremely entitled. We can see this very clearly if we are looking, all around us. We as God's people must be different! Turn to Titus 2.

Titus 2:14 Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous of good works.

The word I want there is peculiar (in the KJV). This word means to be strange; queer; odd; uncommon. This is how we as God's people should act. We should be very different from the people of this world. Different is to be strange, queer, odd, and uncommon in their mind.

When I was a child, queer was not a bad word. It meant different or odd. And if you liked a man, and you were a man, you were queer, because you were different or odd. There was no bad connotation to the word.

Now we use a word that does not mean what the word is—gay. What does that mean? You see, we have changed stuff because we want to be entitled. We should treat all people correctly with love and outgoing concern. Turn to I Peter 2.

I Peter 2:9 For you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a His own special people; that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

We should be so different from the entitled society we live in, that the people we know and come into contact with should think of us as strange, queer, odd, and uncommon.

KM/rwu/drm