1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,000 upwards of 13% of the United States population, adult population, this doesn't 2 00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:14,660 include the children, but upwards of 13% of the American adult population is on 3 00:00:14,660 --> 00:00:20,600 some form of antidepressant medication. Did you know that? 13% that's rather high. 4 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:28,040 When you break it down to the genders, women, about 18% of women in the 5 00:00:28,040 --> 00:00:35,920 United States are on some form of antidepressants. We have, and forgive me 6 00:00:35,920 --> 00:00:38,840 this, some of this is my opinion and I'm going to get into the article, we have 7 00:00:38,840 --> 00:00:46,600 for decades now been told that the need to take antidepressants, SSRIs, is so is 8 00:00:46,600 --> 00:00:51,520 because clinical depression is related to low serotonin in the body. Have we 9 00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:57,800 heard that messaging? A report came out this week that says this, scientists have 10 00:00:57,800 --> 00:01:01,600 called into question the widespread use of antidepressants after a major review 11 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:06,200 found quote no clear evidence that low serotonin levels are responsible for 12 00:01:06,200 --> 00:01:10,280 depression. Many people take antidepressants because they've been led 13 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:14,400 to believe their depression has a biochemical cause, but this new research 14 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:20,200 suggests this belief is not grounded in evidence, says the study's lead author 15 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:24,480 Joanna Moncrief, a professor of psychiatry at the University College 16 00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:31,680 London and consultant psychiatrist at Northeast London NHS Foundation Trust. 17 00:01:31,680 --> 00:01:35,400 She goes on to say it is always difficult to prove a negative but I 18 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:39,520 think we can safely say that after a vast amount of research conducted over 19 00:01:39,520 --> 00:01:43,600 several decades there is no convincing evidence that depression is caused by 20 00:01:43,600 --> 00:01:48,840 serotonin abnormalities particularly by lower levels or reduced activity of 21 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:54,320 serotonin. The new review of existing studies found that depression is not 22 00:01:54,320 --> 00:01:57,840 likely to be caused by a chemical imbalance and that people should be made 23 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:04,640 aware of other options for treating it. Obviously we want to make sure that I am 24 00:02:04,640 --> 00:02:09,200 not a medical professional, I am not an MD, I am not a psychiatrist, if this 25 00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:14,560 counts for you this is not advice to cold turkey stop anything, talk to your 26 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:19,560 doctor. I find this to be a rather fascinating development in the medical 27 00:02:19,560 --> 00:02:32,560 world because they go on to say I want to make sure I find it. Other studies, 28 00:02:32,560 --> 00:02:37,880 other studies looked at the effects of stressful life events and found that the 29 00:02:37,880 --> 00:02:43,120 more stressful life events a person had experienced the more likely they were to 30 00:02:43,120 --> 00:02:48,760 be depressed showing the importance of external events not necessarily your 31 00:02:48,760 --> 00:02:56,880 internal chemical imbalances. Now why am I talking about this as a pastor? If we 32 00:02:56,880 --> 00:03:03,320 are to take seriously this new study and again I am I am NOT an MD if we are to 33 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:09,120 take seriously this this study though what it tells me as a theologian what it 34 00:03:09,120 --> 00:03:14,960 tells me as someone who looks to the Word of God for guidance in my life we 35 00:03:14,960 --> 00:03:21,440 can find instruction for how to find joy in the middle of turmoil. This is not an 36 00:03:21,440 --> 00:03:28,440 admonition to quote pray it away but if it is more likely that external causes 37 00:03:28,440 --> 00:03:33,360 are a result of depression instead of a chemical imbalance as a part of clinical 38 00:03:33,360 --> 00:03:40,120 depression then I would encourage us as people of faith as people who find our 39 00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:47,360 joy not in the changing winds of what goes on in society but rather in the 40 00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:54,320 fixed point of Jesus Christ then perhaps it gives us options now because what 41 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:59,040 this tells me is that if so many people are looking for a pill to solve their 42 00:03:59,040 --> 00:04:05,760 problem when the studies seem to say that it's not the solving of those 43 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:10,680 chemical levels that will fix the problem it is coping with external 44 00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:17,640 factors it seems that as a society we would be well off to consider options in 45 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:24,640 how to better cope with tough times. I think as a people as I look around as I 46 00:04:24,640 --> 00:04:28,760 have conversations with men and women and people across the demographics 47 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:33,320 what seems to come through is that our society is really good at helping people 48 00:04:33,320 --> 00:04:39,880 escape. You take a pill to take care of a symptom not always the underlying cause. 49 00:04:39,880 --> 00:04:44,920 Watch more screen time to help you escape that's why people go to the 50 00:04:44,920 --> 00:04:50,480 movies. Escapism. Look through social media so you can find out how happy 51 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:55,000 other people are on Instagram and by looking at their happiness it can help 52 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:58,880 you feel a little better or a little worse because you wish you were that 53 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:06,200 happy. That actually seems to be the the prevailing trend. This is a fascinating 54 00:05:06,200 --> 00:05:18,120 study to me because it helps me consider that rather than looking 55 00:05:18,120 --> 00:05:27,200 for a now questionable route for for coping mechanisms as a man of faith as 56 00:05:27,200 --> 00:05:33,840 a people of faith we can look for other ways of coping ones that perhaps don't 57 00:05:33,840 --> 00:05:39,520 have such negative side effects. Some of those side effects are rather lengthy 58 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:46,360 and rather severe. I am I am just simply sharing this take it for what you will. I 59 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:51,640 find it interesting I find it fascinating and it it leads me to think 60 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:58,400 that maybe we can find a longer lasting peace in the Prince of Peace. This is not 61 00:05:58,400 --> 00:06:03,680 again just a throwaway for people who who struggle with it. I can empathize to 62 00:06:03,680 --> 00:06:10,640 to a point. This is not just a pray it away kind of thing but it is at least 63 00:06:10,640 --> 00:06:18,960 adding something to the conversation if you will. Let us now look at our message 64 00:06:18,960 --> 00:06:25,360 for today to put us back on track though let us offer up one more word of prayer. 65 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:30,960 Heavenly Father we thank you that you are always there that you look on us in 66 00:06:30,960 --> 00:06:36,000 favor that you incline your ear in our direction. So we pray that you would do 67 00:06:36,000 --> 00:06:40,600 that right now for us. This we pray in your name amen. If you'll excuse me 68 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:43,200 for a moment. 69 00:06:58,840 --> 00:07:02,960 With the rain at my house the other night apparently one found a new 70 00:07:02,960 --> 00:07:15,920 home. Do we have my picture up? We try to do this last minute. Okay can y'all see 71 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:21,360 that? Have we seen this picture before? How many of us have seen this one 72 00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:25,720 already? Oh most all of us very good. So for those who don't know this was the 73 00:07:25,720 --> 00:07:31,560 very first image that was transmitted and received by the new James Webb 74 00:07:31,560 --> 00:07:36,800 telescope. The James Webb telescope puts the Hubble to shame if you will. The 75 00:07:36,800 --> 00:07:41,600 Hubble is fantastic this is phenomenal. I am really intrigued with what's coming 76 00:07:41,600 --> 00:07:47,880 through on this telescope because the ability how far out from Earth it is, the 77 00:07:47,880 --> 00:07:54,440 size of it, the detail of the images that it is collecting from the universe or 78 00:07:54,440 --> 00:08:00,800 at least what we see as the universe is astounding. Clear and crystal high 79 00:08:00,800 --> 00:08:07,160 definition good resolution all things considered and we are now getting a 80 00:08:07,160 --> 00:08:12,960 glimpse into corners of the universe that previously hadn't even been seen 81 00:08:12,960 --> 00:08:19,600 before. What we see here, I am not an astrophysicist so I have to take other 82 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:27,000 people's at their words, what we see here are stars and galaxies and nebula tens of 83 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:32,400 billions of light years away or hundreds of billions of light years away. The most 84 00:08:32,400 --> 00:08:37,560 recent picture, I don't have it but you can find it, I think it came in yesterday 85 00:08:37,560 --> 00:08:44,160 or the day before. It's a fuzzy little red globe looking thing that they say is 86 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:51,640 the oldest known galaxy that they have found so far. I have to take a lot of 87 00:08:51,640 --> 00:08:55,480 people at their word and how they calculate light speed in years and so on 88 00:08:55,480 --> 00:09:03,360 but this new red galaxy image is supposed to be about 400 billion light 89 00:09:03,360 --> 00:09:10,360 years away. So to the astrophysicists that are studying these things they say 400 90 00:09:10,360 --> 00:09:15,720 billion light years is about when we think the Big Bang happened. 91 00:09:15,720 --> 00:09:21,440 I'm using their terminology for this. This is an interesting photo because 92 00:09:21,440 --> 00:09:28,440 let's put this into perspective. If you laid on your lawn on a dark summer 93 00:09:28,440 --> 00:09:32,760 night and you looked up at the heavens you would only be seeing a portion of 94 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:39,760 our one galaxy, the Milky Way. The Milky Way galaxy is about a hundred 95 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:46,560 thousand light years across. These are multiple galaxies ranging anywhere from 96 00:09:46,560 --> 00:09:52,920 50,000 light years across to about a million light years across and there's 97 00:09:52,920 --> 00:09:58,040 multiple of them inside of one image. In case you're asking about the one that 98 00:09:58,040 --> 00:10:02,880 looks kind of like the star David, that the the rays that are shooting out is 99 00:10:02,880 --> 00:10:07,980 because this is a composite photo because the telescope uses multiple 100 00:10:07,980 --> 00:10:12,840 lenses to bring together its images. So those rays are just from where the 101 00:10:12,840 --> 00:10:16,840 lenses are touching each other on the edges. So it's just it's just a part of 102 00:10:16,840 --> 00:10:21,600 the lighting. To put this into perspective that one image would be if 103 00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:28,760 you went to a beach and you picked up a grain of sand and you held it out at 104 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:33,600 arm's length and you looked at that grain of sand, that's the grain of sand 105 00:10:33,600 --> 00:10:42,080 compared to the rest of the known universe. And there are lots of galaxies 106 00:10:42,080 --> 00:10:48,680 and nebula and constellations etc. in this one grain of sand held out at arm's 107 00:10:48,680 --> 00:10:54,320 length compared to the rest of the universe. That is vast my friends. That is 108 00:10:54,320 --> 00:11:04,160 huge my friends. Who are we in that is what comes to my mind. Because if this is 109 00:11:04,160 --> 00:11:11,960 that picture, well you would have to be a speck on that speck to maybe be one of 110 00:11:11,960 --> 00:11:16,440 the galaxies and then inside of that galaxy you would be another speck to 111 00:11:16,440 --> 00:11:22,320 get down to a planet like ours. So you're a speck on a speck on a speck of an 112 00:11:22,320 --> 00:11:27,160 image like this and then you break that down even in a smaller to like who who 113 00:11:27,160 --> 00:11:32,320 am I? I've wrestled with that question as I look at that and I've I've wondered 114 00:11:32,320 --> 00:11:40,400 what other people think about this. You can find well-known international 115 00:11:40,400 --> 00:11:47,120 astrophysicists that will say this is interesting because we can see back into 116 00:11:47,120 --> 00:11:53,000 history close to the Big Bang and this is what it looked like and this is what 117 00:11:53,000 --> 00:11:57,680 was going on because you have to factor in the differencing of time for how long 118 00:11:57,680 --> 00:12:01,320 it takes light to just get here. You know so the telescope is actually 119 00:12:01,320 --> 00:12:08,320 collecting light from that many years ago. When I look at it oh and and to 120 00:12:08,320 --> 00:12:15,400 most international astrophysicists are also very devout atheists and so some of 121 00:12:15,400 --> 00:12:20,480 them have said things like when I see these images I have to remind myself 122 00:12:20,480 --> 00:12:24,760 that this is nothing more than a reflection or a transmission of a 123 00:12:24,760 --> 00:12:30,080 cluster of ones and zeros that represent an image taken out in space and it has 124 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:38,280 no deeper meaning, none. This is just cool but in the big scheme of things. 125 00:12:38,280 --> 00:12:45,840 Nothing bigger, nothing deeper, nothing broader. To the Christian, to the Bible 126 00:12:45,840 --> 00:12:54,240 believer, we might see something like that and we recall what David writes in 127 00:12:54,240 --> 00:13:02,320 Psalm 19. To someone who has a belief that we are not some cosmic accident but 128 00:13:02,320 --> 00:13:06,600 that there is a God in heaven who kick-started the universe whenever he 129 00:13:06,600 --> 00:13:10,880 wanted to and he spoke it and then at some point he thought he'd come to our 130 00:13:10,880 --> 00:13:16,840 little speck of a speck of a speck, take what was chaos, put it into order, speak 131 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:22,080 into existence light and earth and grass and animals and then not speaking 132 00:13:22,080 --> 00:13:29,440 mankind into existence but kneeling in the dirt and with God's own hand shaping 133 00:13:29,440 --> 00:13:36,320 the first human body, breathing in the breath of life and then I like to 134 00:13:36,320 --> 00:13:42,960 imagine a handful of hours later the second human being comes around. That 135 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:50,520 brings to mind when we see these images, David in Psalm 19, the heavens declare 136 00:13:50,520 --> 00:13:59,320 the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours 137 00:13:59,320 --> 00:14:05,560 out speech and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor are 138 00:14:05,560 --> 00:14:10,280 there words whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the 139 00:14:10,280 --> 00:14:15,760 earth and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the 140 00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:20,800 sun which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber and like a strong 141 00:14:20,800 --> 00:14:26,280 man runs its course with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens and its 142 00:14:26,280 --> 00:14:30,640 circuit to the end of them and there is nothing hidden from its heat and all of 143 00:14:30,640 --> 00:14:36,880 that speaks to us of the glory of God. A God who saw fit to look on that speck 144 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:44,800 of a speck of a speck and not only shape you but then when when our earliest 145 00:14:44,800 --> 00:14:52,320 parents thought to reject him, God saw fit to send his only son so that you 146 00:14:52,320 --> 00:14:59,840 might have eternal life. Who are you? And maybe a more important question is who 147 00:14:59,840 --> 00:15:08,960 is God? Who is God? What is our thoughts about, what are our thoughts about God? 148 00:15:08,960 --> 00:15:15,120 Who is he to us and what is our relationship to him? This image, I hope 149 00:15:15,120 --> 00:15:20,720 it's still up there I'm not pointing at a blank screen, that image brought those 150 00:15:20,720 --> 00:15:27,520 thoughts to my mind and it made me wonder how am I to respond when I ponder 151 00:15:27,520 --> 00:15:35,000 those questions because what your beliefs are about God should shape how 152 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:41,880 you respond to him. What you believe about God, what you believe about your 153 00:15:41,880 --> 00:15:50,320 relationship to him should affect how you interact and behave toward him. Which 154 00:15:50,320 --> 00:15:57,840 is why today we are looking at reverence and fire. Which is why today our verse in 155 00:15:57,840 --> 00:16:01,920 Hebrews chapter 12 at the very end and I hope you have your fingers still there 156 00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:11,440 or it's open on your app. That's why this question about worship that is acceptable 157 00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:16,800 with reverence and awe should be considered because when we wrestle with 158 00:16:16,800 --> 00:16:23,640 those big eternal weighty questions who is God and who am I to him and then what 159 00:16:23,640 --> 00:16:31,640 is my response to him, what is our conclusion? This verse takes us through 160 00:16:31,640 --> 00:16:37,920 many things we're gonna talk about three of them today. These two 161 00:16:37,920 --> 00:16:43,600 verses are so jam-packed you could do a month's worth of sermons on them and 162 00:16:43,600 --> 00:16:49,640 their weight of meaning. We're gonna look at three main points. One, let's put this 163 00:16:49,640 --> 00:16:54,320 into context because it comes to our first point. When you consider your 164 00:16:54,320 --> 00:16:59,680 relationship with God you have to ask why is he, why and what is he doing for 165 00:16:59,680 --> 00:17:06,280 you? Well the Bible tells us that God loved you so much that he sent his only 166 00:17:06,280 --> 00:17:12,440 begotten son to live to die so that you might have eternal life. Well that's not 167 00:17:12,440 --> 00:17:17,200 just so you can feel good about something, that's not just so it can be 168 00:17:17,200 --> 00:17:20,640 hopes and dreams for some far-out-distance millennia-in-the-future 169 00:17:20,640 --> 00:17:28,520 kind of reality. It's not purely so we can think about prophetic eschatology 170 00:17:28,520 --> 00:17:36,680 the end-of-times study. It's not just so we go through the mundane rigor morale 171 00:17:36,680 --> 00:17:43,640 of today thinking that there won't be a blessing until the tomorrow's tomorrow. 172 00:17:43,640 --> 00:17:50,520 Because what we read in our first point is therefore in verse 28 of Hebrews 12 173 00:17:50,520 --> 00:17:56,720 let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken. 174 00:17:56,720 --> 00:18:03,000 Leading up to this verse we read about the Israelites experience if you will at 175 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:08,640 the mountain of Sinai. We read about how it was shaken when God's presence was 176 00:18:08,640 --> 00:18:14,960 there. We read about how the Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant sprinkled 177 00:18:14,960 --> 00:18:18,800 blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. We read about in the 178 00:18:18,800 --> 00:18:23,360 context of what all of Hebrews is talking about is that there is something 179 00:18:23,360 --> 00:18:29,640 better than that God is giving to you. The best that this world has to offer, 180 00:18:29,640 --> 00:18:34,880 the best of the sacrifices that were a part of the Old Testament, religious 181 00:18:34,880 --> 00:18:41,880 ceremonies, Jesus is the better blood. The best that our kingdoms can offer with 182 00:18:41,880 --> 00:18:47,120 the grandeur, the spreading out of David's kingdom and the splendidness of 183 00:18:47,120 --> 00:18:52,800 Solomon's riches and the glory of the temple. Well we know that all of that was 184 00:18:52,800 --> 00:18:59,560 raised to the ground. God is saying that there is something better than that. When 185 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:04,080 we think about Daniel chapter 2 and we see the statue that Nebuchadnezzar 186 00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:07,800 dreamed and you've got the various metals building and building, what's the 187 00:19:07,800 --> 00:19:15,200 last one? The rock carved without human hands. It grows into a mountain that will 188 00:19:15,200 --> 00:19:22,240 last forever. When we think about the things of this earth, when we look at all 189 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:30,000 around us, when we consider some of it's rather impressive. You ever seen a really 190 00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:35,280 impressive building or a sculpture? You've got these, I mean just beautiful 191 00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:41,080 buildings. I think of the Taj Mahal as a beautiful building. I think Notre Dame is 192 00:19:41,080 --> 00:19:48,120 a beautiful building. I think of some of these these edifices that humans have 193 00:19:48,120 --> 00:19:56,120 erected either in memory of or in glory to or just because. And then I remember 194 00:19:56,120 --> 00:19:59,800 that all it takes is the right kind of storm or the right kind of earthquake or 195 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:05,800 the right kind of rowdy crowd and they can all come crashing down. I think of 196 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:09,680 the greatest nations that have ever stood throughout history. We think of 197 00:20:09,680 --> 00:20:16,160 Egypt. We think of the Mayan Empire here in the Americas. We think of Greece and 198 00:20:16,160 --> 00:20:22,240 how far Alexander took it in his brief lifetime. We think of the might and the 199 00:20:22,240 --> 00:20:27,040 strength and the power of Rome and even how Rome and Grecian philosophy and 200 00:20:27,040 --> 00:20:35,440 ideology impacts us today. We think about the rising of the United States right on 201 00:20:35,440 --> 00:20:39,280 time when God said the United States would come onto the scene and it would 202 00:20:39,280 --> 00:20:44,080 be this mighty power and it would influence other nations and it would in 203 00:20:44,080 --> 00:20:48,240 a good way spread civil and religious liberty around the globe. That's a good 204 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:54,320 thing. But if we keep reading into the into the Word of God we find that the 205 00:20:54,320 --> 00:20:59,600 kingdoms of this earth, the monuments that we erect for ourselves, the the 206 00:20:59,600 --> 00:21:06,040 manner of government that is set up, some fantastic, others wickedly evil, doesn't 207 00:21:06,040 --> 00:21:13,280 matter, it all comes crumbling down. It all comes crushing down. When the things 208 00:21:13,280 --> 00:21:18,040 of this earth are looked at as if they were stable, God is saying, no I'm going 209 00:21:18,040 --> 00:21:26,320 to shake them. When I come I shake them. The context leading up here keeps our 210 00:21:26,320 --> 00:21:32,400 mind on Mount Sinai and I want to try and keep our mind on Mount Sinai. When 211 00:21:32,400 --> 00:21:38,360 the nation of Israel was laid out at the foot of that great mountain, delivered 212 00:21:38,360 --> 00:21:43,120 from slavery, the promise of a land that they are going to inherit not of their 213 00:21:43,120 --> 00:21:47,800 own but God's going to give it to them. And God says prepare yourself I'm going 214 00:21:47,800 --> 00:21:55,400 to come down and meet you. There was a shaking. That ground rumbled. That ground 215 00:21:55,400 --> 00:22:01,000 trembled. There was thunders and lightning. It shook when God's presence 216 00:22:01,000 --> 00:22:07,920 came and when God comes again, when Christ comes again to take us as his own, 217 00:22:07,920 --> 00:22:15,120 there's going to be a shaking of the nation's perceived might. And by that I 218 00:22:15,120 --> 00:22:20,800 mean there. Whatever we set up when Christ comes, when God comes, it shakes 219 00:22:20,800 --> 00:22:31,560 and it crumbles. But who is God to you? How do you answer that? Well God is your 220 00:22:31,560 --> 00:22:39,440 Creator. God knew you before you were formed and he has a plan for you. That 221 00:22:39,440 --> 00:22:46,600 plan is to get you home to heaven. Along the way we learn valuable lessons but 222 00:22:46,600 --> 00:22:53,720 ultimately that plan is to get you home to heaven. God saw fit on this speck of 223 00:22:53,720 --> 00:22:58,920 a speck of a speck to love you enough that all of heaven was embodied in the 224 00:22:58,920 --> 00:23:05,640 person of Jesus Christ who lived, ministered, died that sinless life just 225 00:23:05,640 --> 00:23:13,800 so you can be redeemed by his blood. How do you quantify that? I can't. And it 226 00:23:13,800 --> 00:23:18,200 doesn't end there because God has promised that this kingdom he's going to 227 00:23:18,200 --> 00:23:23,520 establish it's for you. You get to be a part of it. You get to go through the 228 00:23:23,520 --> 00:23:30,440 record books. You get to judge angels. You get to see how God has has moved and 229 00:23:30,440 --> 00:23:37,920 and bent his energies just to save humanity. And what else can you do but 230 00:23:37,920 --> 00:23:44,480 throw your crowns at Jesus feet and just say praise the Lamb. But you don't have 231 00:23:44,480 --> 00:23:53,200 to wait until those final scenes to start receiving the kingdom now. That's 232 00:23:53,200 --> 00:23:58,000 what this verse is saying. Let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that 233 00:23:58,000 --> 00:24:06,000 cannot be shaken. That structure is in a present participle. That means now and 234 00:24:06,000 --> 00:24:13,120 ongoing. Right now you have the opportunity of accepting by faith that 235 00:24:13,120 --> 00:24:18,880 kingdom of God. You have right now that opportunity at receiving by faith the 236 00:24:18,880 --> 00:24:23,920 joy that comes with the presence of the Holy Spirit. You have right now the 237 00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:27,960 opportunity of receiving by faith a peace that surpasses understanding. And 238 00:24:27,960 --> 00:24:35,520 right now you have by faith the opportunity of an unshakable relationship 239 00:24:35,520 --> 00:24:40,560 with the saving God that will sustain you through the great shaking when God 240 00:24:40,560 --> 00:24:48,600 comes back. Right now don't think that these promises are only for then. Right 241 00:24:48,600 --> 00:24:54,440 now this can be a part of your life. Do you want it? Do you want what God is 242 00:24:54,440 --> 00:24:59,760 freely offering to you? Do you acknowledge that you can't have it in and 243 00:24:59,760 --> 00:25:05,720 of yourself? It is only that free gift of God. Do you recognize that it is because 244 00:25:05,720 --> 00:25:14,640 God is your creator, your Redeemer, your sustainer, your Savior that you can even 245 00:25:14,640 --> 00:25:22,560 have this opportunity? Well then who are you and what do you do back? When you 246 00:25:22,560 --> 00:25:30,000 recognize that God is so sovereign that this is his footstool, when you recognize 247 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:38,240 that nothing happens unless God either does it or deems it allowed, when you 248 00:25:38,240 --> 00:25:42,480 recognize that, when you believe that, when you accept that, that shapes what you 249 00:25:42,480 --> 00:25:49,560 think of God and then you go, he is so far above me how can I bring him so low 250 00:25:49,560 --> 00:25:59,080 to me? And that's why our next point is to the verse goes on, therefore then and 251 00:25:59,080 --> 00:26:05,760 thus then because of the receiving the kingdom, because of God's good gift to us 252 00:26:05,760 --> 00:26:12,040 that cannot be shaken, let us offer to God acceptable worship with reverence 253 00:26:12,040 --> 00:26:18,640 and awe. You see God is up there and we are down here and his sovereignty is so 254 00:26:18,640 --> 00:26:26,760 high and his holiness so pure that he gets to tell you how to worship him. The 255 00:26:26,760 --> 00:26:36,080 acceptable worship is according to his instruction, his dictates, his manner of 256 00:26:36,080 --> 00:26:43,760 request if you will. I was, it's been a long time since I've seen this as a 257 00:26:43,760 --> 00:26:48,720 child I used to, I used to see these shirts there for a while and my youth I 258 00:26:48,720 --> 00:26:53,160 guess it was kind of the beginning, maybe the beginning middle of this, we want to 259 00:26:53,160 --> 00:26:59,160 get away from a hard legalism and a stiff rigidity when it comes to our 260 00:26:59,160 --> 00:27:02,080 religion. I'm okay with that, we don't need legalism, you can't earn your way to 261 00:27:02,080 --> 00:27:06,600 heaven and I also think that we should be joyful as Christians, we have a hope, 262 00:27:06,600 --> 00:27:10,840 we have a love, we have a peace, we should not look sad and beaten down 263 00:27:10,840 --> 00:27:19,160 because we have saving grace, right? Can we take it too far? I think we took it 264 00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:23,040 too far when I walked into a store one time in the mall in Jonesboro, Arkansas 265 00:27:23,040 --> 00:27:38,360 and I saw hanging from the shelves, Jesus is my homeboy. I said, I get, I get 266 00:27:38,360 --> 00:27:47,600 that Jesus is our brother, the Bible says that. I get that the Bible talks in terms 267 00:27:47,600 --> 00:27:54,360 of a friendly relationship with us, He is kind and gracious, He is long-suffering 268 00:27:54,360 --> 00:28:00,520 towards us, He carries us in those moments when we need to be carried but 269 00:28:00,520 --> 00:28:05,480 in the same way that I tell my 14 year old boy, I am not your classmate from 270 00:28:05,480 --> 00:28:13,560 school, don't talk to me like I am, that's not a made-up story, he's not here so he 271 00:28:13,560 --> 00:28:18,880 can't defend himself. I have to tell my son there is a difference between me and 272 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:26,280 your peers at school, I do play with you, we go to an amusement park or we hike 273 00:28:26,280 --> 00:28:30,560 through the woods and we play board games together and we eat together and 274 00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:36,840 we we fellowship and we are a family but I am not your schoolmate, you'll talk to 275 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:41,280 me with a little bit different kind of tone, you'll use a different language, 276 00:28:41,280 --> 00:28:46,240 you will use proper language, don't muddle slang in your conversations 277 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:51,240 with me because I am not that, I am your father. We have this relationship but 278 00:28:51,240 --> 00:28:56,560 there is a distinction between me and them. We have a relationship with our 279 00:28:56,560 --> 00:29:00,560 Savior Jesus Christ but He is distinctly different than the person sitting next 280 00:29:00,560 --> 00:29:08,000 to you and we need to remember that, we need to remember that that He might be 281 00:29:08,000 --> 00:29:16,960 God and man totally and complete but Jesus Christ is still pure, perfect, 282 00:29:16,960 --> 00:29:25,040 sinless, holy in a way that you and I are not and so to relegate Jesus Christ down 283 00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:33,520 to my homeboy is to bring him into an area that I would suggest we don't dare 284 00:29:33,520 --> 00:29:39,040 do because when we know who God is and we know where He fits in the universe 285 00:29:39,040 --> 00:29:50,200 and we realize the weight that it cost heaven to pay for our sins then then we 286 00:29:50,200 --> 00:29:58,400 desire that our worship be with reverence and awe and acceptable. There's 287 00:29:58,400 --> 00:30:04,760 no other way of doing it. To do otherwise is to assume something that is not ours 288 00:30:04,760 --> 00:30:13,160 to assume. To do otherwise is to forget our place in the universe or our place 289 00:30:13,160 --> 00:30:23,720 in the plan of redemption. Just so you know, a little taste for the future, 290 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:29,200 we are not today going to look at the minutiae of the what's and the how's 291 00:30:29,200 --> 00:30:35,320 when it comes to reverence today. That's next week. I'm here next week preaching 292 00:30:35,320 --> 00:30:38,880 we're gonna look at that a little bit more in depth but today we're setting 293 00:30:38,880 --> 00:30:44,520 the foundation for it because you need to understand first before you wonder 294 00:30:44,520 --> 00:30:51,000 about the how's is that who you are who he is and that you should. You should be 295 00:30:51,000 --> 00:30:57,560 worshiping in a way that is reverential, fearful, in awe of God for who He is 296 00:30:57,560 --> 00:31:02,520 compared to your relationship. When you come before Him, when you pray and you 297 00:31:02,520 --> 00:31:09,400 lay out your your heart before Him in your own devotions you're gonna speak 298 00:31:09,400 --> 00:31:14,560 more plainly. Be open with Him, be raw with Him, there's nothing irreverent 299 00:31:14,560 --> 00:31:19,040 about that. Now tell Him your frustrations. You can read when the 300 00:31:19,040 --> 00:31:25,640 prophets express their frustrations to God in a rather raw and real way but 301 00:31:25,640 --> 00:31:31,080 then in reverence understand that how He responds back to you is understood for 302 00:31:31,080 --> 00:31:36,760 what it is. Your God is speaking back to you. That doesn't mean that it's open for 303 00:31:36,760 --> 00:31:42,380 debate, that means that it is God speaking back to you. That means that when 304 00:31:42,380 --> 00:31:49,880 we come to worship God, when we come to give Him praise, when we come to when we 305 00:31:49,880 --> 00:31:58,280 come to sing glory to He who is holy, we don't take on the same attitude as if we 306 00:31:58,280 --> 00:32:08,060 were going to a rock concert in a large arena. There is a difference. When we come 307 00:32:08,060 --> 00:32:15,080 before the God of heaven and holiness and we have in a real sense invited His 308 00:32:15,080 --> 00:32:20,880 presence, we don't just mean it with empty words. We mean it because we mean 309 00:32:20,880 --> 00:32:26,740 it. It's real. God has said I will be with you when you gather together to 310 00:32:26,740 --> 00:32:33,040 worship and that's an attitude that we need to remember. We don't just take it 311 00:32:33,040 --> 00:32:40,300 for granted. We don't just cheapen it. We hold it in a high regard because we 312 00:32:40,300 --> 00:32:48,240 should hold God in a high regard. So now let's look at our third point, our last 313 00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:51,360 verse and this is where we're going to play with a little bit of the original 314 00:32:51,360 --> 00:32:58,200 wording in the Greek. For our God is a consuming fire. There's the reason for 315 00:32:58,200 --> 00:33:03,300 why we come before Him in awe and reverence and an acceptable worship according to 316 00:33:03,300 --> 00:33:12,000 His dictates. Our God is a consuming fire. So we want to look at this in two main 317 00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:20,680 contexts. One, if we look before it, it is in the context of God is a consuming fire 318 00:33:20,680 --> 00:33:26,240 with regards to judgment. If we see yet once more indicates the removal of 319 00:33:26,240 --> 00:33:30,380 things that are shaken, that is things that have been made in order that the 320 00:33:30,380 --> 00:33:38,480 things that cannot be shaken may remain, we are in judgment. Right now, presently, 321 00:33:38,480 --> 00:33:42,400 God is judging the record books to see who is faithful to Him and who is not 322 00:33:42,400 --> 00:33:48,640 faithful to Him. God is a consuming fire when it comes to an end time event. God 323 00:33:48,640 --> 00:33:53,640 is a consuming fire in that His holiness cannot have sinfulness enter its 324 00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:59,280 presence without the sin being consumed. When God descended upon the mountain at 325 00:33:59,280 --> 00:34:06,720 Sinai, He had to instruct them put bounds around the mountain so that no one comes 326 00:34:06,720 --> 00:34:13,320 near it. If they came near it, these were a sinful people who hadn't made 327 00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:19,480 themselves right with God. They were just going to be consumed. God's presence 328 00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:24,280 weighed so heavily on that mountain that even the priests were told don't step 329 00:34:24,280 --> 00:34:31,780 foot beyond this point. Pure holiness consumes sin when it enters the 330 00:34:31,780 --> 00:34:37,800 holiness's presence. Do you still have sin attached to your life or have you 331 00:34:37,800 --> 00:34:44,640 cast it off? And I don't want to make it sound super complicated because God has 332 00:34:44,640 --> 00:34:49,960 said if you repent and you confess your sins, I am faithful and just to forgive 333 00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:54,120 you, to cleanse you of your sins. Elsewhere, you find that He takes those 334 00:34:54,120 --> 00:34:58,200 sins and He casts them as far away into the deepest trench that you can possibly 335 00:34:58,200 --> 00:35:03,600 imagine. In there, there might be a black hole. I don't know, there might be a black 336 00:35:03,600 --> 00:35:11,460 hole. God cleanses you so thoroughly that the last speck of sin gets cast into the 337 00:35:11,460 --> 00:35:17,400 farthest black hole. And you need that through the merits and righteousness of 338 00:35:17,400 --> 00:35:22,400 Jesus Christ or you cannot enter into the presence of this consuming fire. I 339 00:35:22,400 --> 00:35:29,480 mean you can't. That's just the reality of it. So I want to encourage you 340 00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:35,040 that if there is something still lingering in your life, go to Him for the 341 00:35:35,040 --> 00:35:42,480 forgiveness. Ask for the cleansing and then by faith trust that He has and live 342 00:35:42,480 --> 00:35:48,960 your life as the new creature, that new creation. That's the other part of it. You 343 00:35:48,960 --> 00:35:53,200 don't get to from that point forward listen to the tempter's 344 00:35:53,200 --> 00:35:57,440 doubting word and says God hasn't forgiven you yet. No, you claim the 345 00:35:57,440 --> 00:36:04,880 promise. Yes, He has. You be quiet. Yes, He has. Now my worship is acceptable. 346 00:36:04,880 --> 00:36:10,920 Now I can come to Him because He is faithful. He is just. I can worship Him 347 00:36:10,920 --> 00:36:18,480 in awe and in reverence. When we look at Sinai, God meant it when He 348 00:36:18,480 --> 00:36:28,880 said it don't come near the mountain. And then the people responded with fear 349 00:36:28,880 --> 00:36:34,800 because they knew who they were compared to God. Sometimes we want to shy away 350 00:36:34,800 --> 00:36:39,600 from fear and only talk about fear as meaning awe and reverence. Sometimes fear 351 00:36:39,600 --> 00:36:46,880 is just fear. Sometimes fear is understanding you in relationship to Him. 352 00:36:46,880 --> 00:36:53,680 Sometimes fear is I am harboring a sin because it's my own little pet that I 353 00:36:53,680 --> 00:36:59,120 like to pull out at times to make me feel good. That's my sin and I really 354 00:36:59,120 --> 00:37:05,200 don't want my sin to depart from me. I'm gonna hang on to it. Well when God says 355 00:37:05,200 --> 00:37:09,440 if you come near me with that pet sin still attached to you, I'm a consuming 356 00:37:09,440 --> 00:37:14,160 fire. The Bible tells us there will be people who will shake in those moments 357 00:37:14,160 --> 00:37:18,840 when they realize it. And that sin becomes more important to them than 358 00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:26,400 their faith in Jesus Christ. I hope you don't have a pet sin today. I hope you 359 00:37:26,400 --> 00:37:37,600 don't. The second meaning to it, so one is just simply that. God is a consuming 360 00:37:37,600 --> 00:37:55,200 fire. Have you gone to Him for a cleansing? And then two, it's not just in 361 00:37:55,200 --> 00:38:04,720 the sense of judgment. Not just. There is this idea of forgiveness and don't 362 00:38:04,720 --> 00:38:11,880 presume. What do I mean by that? If we remember that this is a relationship to 363 00:38:11,880 --> 00:38:17,440 the Israelites, you can keep your finger here in Hebrews, you can turn to 364 00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:26,920 Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy chapter 9, we read that in Moses' final sermon to the 365 00:38:26,920 --> 00:38:31,280 Israelites before they pass over into the promised land, he's taking them 366 00:38:31,280 --> 00:38:34,480 through their history. He's reminding them of things and he's giving them 367 00:38:34,480 --> 00:38:39,640 blessings and cursings and assurances and so on and etc. It's a great read. It's a 368 00:38:39,640 --> 00:38:47,840 great book. Learn a lot from it. Deuteronomy chapter 9, beginning with 369 00:38:47,840 --> 00:38:52,120 verse 1, the heart of it is verses 3 and 4. Here, O Israel, you are to cross over 370 00:38:52,120 --> 00:38:56,040 the Jordan today to go into dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, 371 00:38:56,040 --> 00:39:00,160 cities great and fortified up to heaven, a people great and tall, the sons of the 372 00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:03,880 Anakim who you know and of whom you have heard it said, who can stand before the 373 00:39:03,880 --> 00:39:09,520 sons of Anak? Sounds a little bit like God is promising them an unshakable 374 00:39:09,520 --> 00:39:14,200 kingdom from something that is about to be shaken, doesn't it? I'm about to give 375 00:39:14,200 --> 00:39:17,760 you something that you can't have in and of yourselves but God is giving it to 376 00:39:17,760 --> 00:39:24,160 you. Can we see some parallel? He goes on, know therefore today that he who goes 377 00:39:24,160 --> 00:39:33,080 over before you, that's God, as a consuming fire is the Lord your God. He 378 00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:39,160 will destroy them and subdue them before you so you shall drive them out and make 379 00:39:39,160 --> 00:39:42,800 them perish quickly as the Lord has promised you. God is the consuming fire 380 00:39:42,800 --> 00:39:49,680 to the enemies of God's people. In other words, it's in your benefit that God be a 381 00:39:49,680 --> 00:39:58,840 consuming fire. God's consuming fire is what goes before and takes care of these 382 00:39:58,840 --> 00:40:07,400 nations, this sin, the enemy of souls so then you are ultimately free from it. But 383 00:40:07,400 --> 00:40:13,440 we have a little warning. When God does these things for you, do not say in your 384 00:40:13,440 --> 00:40:18,080 heart after the Lord your God has thrust them out before you, quote, it is because 385 00:40:18,080 --> 00:40:21,800 of my righteousness that the Lord has brought me into possess this land. 386 00:40:21,800 --> 00:40:25,720 Whereas it is because of the wickedness of the nations that the Lord is driving 387 00:40:25,720 --> 00:40:30,920 them out before you. Not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your 388 00:40:30,920 --> 00:40:34,560 heart are you going into possess their land but because of the wickedness of 389 00:40:34,560 --> 00:40:40,160 these nations the Lord your God is driving them out from before you. God is 390 00:40:40,160 --> 00:40:46,640 a consuming fire to others but then don't presume that it's because you are 391 00:40:46,640 --> 00:40:56,600 good. God is a consuming fire to sin and Satan and hurt and death and 392 00:40:56,600 --> 00:41:01,720 destructions and nations that rise against the people of God and then he 393 00:41:01,720 --> 00:41:06,280 gives you that kingdom that cannot be shaken and remember that it's not 394 00:41:06,280 --> 00:41:11,560 because of your righteousness again it's because of his. That's why we worship 395 00:41:11,560 --> 00:41:16,160 with reverence and awe. Everything cycles back around to how mighty and 396 00:41:16,160 --> 00:41:22,200 sovereign and good and great and glorious and holy God is and he's doing 397 00:41:22,200 --> 00:41:31,680 all of this for you. So in return we praise and we give thanks and we serve 398 00:41:31,680 --> 00:41:42,600 and we worship and we and we respond to him with with reverence with awe with a 399 00:41:42,600 --> 00:41:51,200 humility with a desire with a desire to not act presumptuously or to lower him 400 00:41:51,200 --> 00:41:57,600 down to our sinful standards but rather we long to be elevated up to his 401 00:41:57,600 --> 00:42:03,320 standards. We long to be elevated up to the heavenly courts we long for our 402 00:42:03,320 --> 00:42:08,120 thoughts to be directed towards the light and out of the darkness and when 403 00:42:08,120 --> 00:42:12,800 we enter into his presence when we come here to worship when you take time in 404 00:42:12,800 --> 00:42:17,040 your bedroom or your study or wherever you happen to have your morning 405 00:42:17,040 --> 00:42:23,240 devotional enter into his presence with reverence and awe. Open up the Word of 406 00:42:23,240 --> 00:42:28,800 God whether it be privately publicly individually or corporately and take on 407 00:42:28,800 --> 00:42:37,320 that attitude of reverence and awe. He is so good. What can we do besides to 408 00:42:37,320 --> 00:42:44,680 respond with reverence and awe? I am so glad that we live in an era where we 409 00:42:44,680 --> 00:42:51,760 don't have to traverse nations to get to a singular temple in order to 410 00:42:51,760 --> 00:42:56,840 worship God. God has promised through the presence of his Holy Spirit wherever 411 00:42:56,840 --> 00:43:03,200 you are you can enter into worship with him. I am so thankful for that. We are 412 00:43:03,200 --> 00:43:10,280 not tied down we are set free. I am so thankful for that and so I want to 413 00:43:10,280 --> 00:43:16,840 encourage you today as we as we end remember that one you can today by faith 414 00:43:16,840 --> 00:43:21,720 through receiving a kingdom that is not to be shaken. God's kingdom a kingdom of 415 00:43:21,720 --> 00:43:27,920 grace and peace and love and joy that can be yours today do you want it? 416 00:43:27,920 --> 00:43:35,040 Accept it by faith ask for it plead for it. When you know who God is do you then 417 00:43:35,040 --> 00:43:43,440 want to respond to him with reverent awe-filled humble worship? Do you want to 418 00:43:43,440 --> 00:43:48,400 remember who he is in relationship to you? Do you want to do that? I encourage 419 00:43:48,400 --> 00:43:53,720 you to do that whether it's here or at home worship him with reverence and awe 420 00:43:53,720 --> 00:44:00,400 and then two remember that we don't always like to think about it but God is 421 00:44:00,400 --> 00:44:06,760 a consuming fire. Ask for the forgiveness accept that it is real in your life and 422 00:44:06,760 --> 00:44:13,640 then remember that God's consuming fire is intended for your enemies. God's gonna 423 00:44:13,640 --> 00:44:19,560 go before you he's gonna prepare the way he will be warmth in your light as he is 424 00:44:19,560 --> 00:44:26,880 a destroying fire to the enemy of souls. Look forward to that and respond with 425 00:44:26,880 --> 00:44:34,360 reverence and awe. Let's pray. Heavenly Father we thank you for your word we 426 00:44:34,360 --> 00:44:40,560 thank you for we thank you for the encouragement and the exhortation that 427 00:44:40,560 --> 00:44:46,080 we can find in it. Lord I pray that as we have come before you today I pray that 428 00:44:46,080 --> 00:44:52,440 we have not been so distracted that our thoughts have become irreverent. I pray 429 00:44:52,440 --> 00:44:56,720 that as we have come before you today that we have had a desire to acknowledge 430 00:44:56,720 --> 00:45:04,360 you as our Lord and Savior. I pray that that attitude not end with this closing 431 00:45:04,360 --> 00:45:09,840 prayer but this evening and tomorrow and the next day as we enter into your 432 00:45:09,840 --> 00:45:15,120 presence with praise and worship as we read from your word I pray that it would 433 00:45:15,120 --> 00:45:21,480 be with reverence. I pray that we would worship you in acceptable ways. Lord 434 00:45:21,480 --> 00:45:27,280 please inspire us go with us go before us let us know of your love and then 435 00:45:27,280 --> 00:45:42,080 help us show it to others. This we pray in Jesus name. Amen.