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sermon. God bless. Lord, thank you for your word
again. Thank you for the Psalms Think of it this
series of songs here that some some people think
are related to the festivals Israel celebrated
the required festivals Going together and singing
your praises as they went to Calling out as this
one does for all the people's praise should die
Yeah, great that as we as we listen to you as
we learn from you today That the blessing that
you give to us would be extended into your world
But the earth itself might bless that you rock
Here the spirit or can speak to us and amen So
I did not know my Grandfathers very well. I didn't
know one of them at all. Actually one of them
died three years to the day before I was born.
He got tuberculosis in World War II. It was really
sick. It was so life -threatening. My grandmother
met him at a hospital in Seattle where he was
one and a half with World War II, where they
met. And my mom kind of really wonderfully always
told me that it's my birth three years after
his passing today. It was a way, kind of like
hovering over the sorrow. I mean, sorrow of patch
club year. parents passed and so we made, you
know, but it believed in me anyway. It's like
God's gift to her that she had a child on the
day we passed. But anyway, my paternal grandfather
died when I was in fifth grade. I think it was
actually the first sleepover that I ever had
at a friend's house. And I remember actually
exactly where I was in this room when my friend's
mom came over and told me that my grandpa died.
And I did not feel just so good during that.
But it was a very good memory for me. My grandpa
was a very gentle man. He was a very kind man.
And my memories of being with him are all very
sweet and a little rowdy. He was really the fishing.
One of my fond memories of him was that he let
my older brother and I ride in the back of his
pickup truck through the city of Tacoma. And
I remember this very clearly again, he had one
of these like this is he had like a 1990, 91,
maybe 89 two -tone Ford with which a canopy.
So you probably wouldn't let us do this without
the canopy, but we were sitting up against the
back of the cab, right? And Jeremy and I were
looking at a Lego catalog and Jeremy turned to
me and punched me in the face and I bled all
over the Lego catalog. And now that's it. That's
how I remember Because I'm not sure that I didn't
instigate it because I certainly punched him
in the face quite a few times when we were growing
up But he's still one of the dear people in my
life. Okay But anyway, that's one of my memories
of my grandfather He let us ride around this
pickup truck right down Pacific Avenue punching
each other in the back The grandfather was a
volunteer firefighter When my dad, my dad was
a big kind of baby. His closest siblings, 15
years or 14 years old. And so my grandfather
was really active in the volunteer firefighters
in South of Denver. And, and my dad said that
about once a week, my grandpa would go to the
firehouse and then most Saturdays he would spend
at least the morning and a lot of the day volunteering
at the firehouse. And my dad would tag along.
My dad said it's just like one of his favorite
memories going along and being invited to. joined
his dad at the firehouse and he said a lot of
times Saturday mornings they'd make pancakes
and he loved that but what he really loved about
the firehouse was the table and from about as
soon as he could kind of you know peek over the
pool table by this side, he started learning
how to play pool and so he played pool with all
these volunteer firefighters and I'm telling
you I've never beat my dad at the pool. and I
will never bet against him. He's like a full
shark, okay? So if he's ever visiting here and
he's like, hey, let's go grab a beer down at
Mount Madness. I don't like that name as much,
but if he ever, he's like, hey, let's put a dollar
on this, don't do it. It's pretty good. And he
loved tagging along with his dad and hanging
out. I'm gonna make a little shift here and tell
you about somebody else, actually his song, okay?
One of my favorite current singer songwriters
is Zach Bryan. Anybody that's Zach Bryan? Okay,
I got a few, y 'all. Okay. Okay, there's a few
of you. The rest of you should give him a listen.
He is actually playing the MetLife Stadium where
the Giants and the Jets play on July 18th, 9th
and 20th. Cheapest tickets are like 160, so if
anybody of you want to take me, I would go with
you. Okay? I don't think I have any plans those
nights. But he has this great song called Nine
Ball. And maybe some of you know that it's a
cool scene with the father and the son. But actually,
it's not a very lovely cool scene, because the
son is being used by the father when it's best,
okay? And I want to read some of it to you. And
you guys know how hard this mean I think that's
a lot. I'm really try to just read it that really
wants thinking but I Don't want to bet that my
father of check that I bet this blank I'm editing
could never cash He's betting on the eight ball
landing inside wall full blooded killer if you
ask But every night he needs me to land himself
a red three -cornered pocket at 12 a .m. Only
12 years old But I got a fold of a pool stick.
I was gifted from him My father's a betting man,
but I got myself steady hands He's sitting in
the corner with a six -pack of Corona betting
that his son will win again You'll get another
six -pack then I'll make a comeback. I know that
this table's got a lien Won't you take me fishing?
I want to try out seventh grade football But
I would be nothing but this town's old run there
and die on the same school But right now he's
got a bargain that he's taken too far on his
boys game of nine ball I Think any of us in this
ring right now would question which pool experience,
which pool game experience if it bothered you,
is going to lead to a harmful experience or sort
of a joyful experience. In some ways it's the
same thing, father and a son playing pool, but
one leads one direction and one leads another.
I don't think any of us would doubt which child
was being seen and loved and delighted and given
space and safety. I don't think any of us in
this room questioned which experience kind of
leads to a life that contributes to the well
-being of the world, or which experience may
likely, not guaranteed, raise the Lord, lead
to an action of harm to the world. Because, I
mean that's true. There is a spreading that goes
out from a father's love and care. Or sometimes
there is actually a spreading that goes out from
a father's distance of harm. It's just the way
the world works. Goes out. You know the statistics,
one in four children in the U .S. live without
a biological step or adoptive father. One in
four. One in four percent don't have a biological
stepfather or an adoptive father. And yet, 63
% of youth suicides come from fatherless homes.
85 % of behavioral disorders come from fatherless
homes. 85%. There's a four times greater risk
of poverty. There's a seven times greater risk
of teen pregnancy. You are twice as more likely
to suffer obesity or drop out of school. And
you probably know that the list gets on. I really,
I said this is about as much time as I have to
share these stats with you. There is something
sure about this. That a dynamic and the love
and care of a father extends out and oftentimes
to harm or the absence So if you've heard this
I've said this before in sermon script Tom Thompson
says when each one of us comes into the world
we answer it looking for someone Looking for
us desire to be seen and delighted and cared
for, sheltered, given attention. So, listen,
okay, this song, in many ways, I hope you heard
this, it's sort of making these great echoes
of the Abrahamic covenant, the blessing that
God was going to give to Abraham, and from that
blessing, the going out into the world, right?
The extending into the world of the blessing
of God. And so I want you to see that first.
I want us to walk through how actually there's
this movement that starts this way and then just
works out. Okay. So the first thing I want you
to see is that this song actually begins with
the blessing of God's people. Okay. So verse
one, may God be gracious to us and bless us.
Okay. It's let me say it's a good thing to desire
God's blessing on yourself. It's something like
that. This feels like a selfish thing, but it's
okay to pray. God, please bless me Shine your
favor upon me. Look upon me with your joy Care
for me in my knee and those are those are good
pricks. Those are good things to desire. They're
more blessed Here you'd be this thing. I think
I just want like seeking the blessing of God
Is a good good prayer But it's also true that
a lot of times Christians I'm gonna say because
this is the only sort of world that I've significantly
exist within Reform Presbyterian Christians.
My guess is that all Christians are kind of like
this but I know that the world be well a lot
of times we tend to think We tend to engage as
though the blessing and the grace of God's just
rests and We kind of want to afford it We kind
of want to think about just how special we are
God gave his face to shine upon us Wow me and
not you And that is not an issue Right. Look
what it what it Lord say to Abraham, but this
I would bless you make your name great so that
You'll be blessed I remember really Fairly actually
and this is still the book that I confer with
But reading Christopher Wright's book condition
of God In seminary seminary in st. Louis and
reading him say The election is not for privilege
Elections for responsibility and just having
my point. Whoa I have engaged for so often as
though I was privileged Instead of seeing that
god calls us and says i'm gonna bless me so that
he can go out You have less So taking that privilege
and looking down on others So what you see is
in sometimes you have two errors, right? We we've
won you want to say I can't ask God for his blessings.
No And then we say oh well God blesses me and
not you Don't engage with it like that Do errors
maybe ditches that weren't fine to fall into
But the first thing that I want you to see is
that this song begins with where you are Where
we are as the people of God and actually desire
your first God's blessing upon us But it moves
out from there and actually so is this there's
a little Kind of like a heading in verse 2 that
you're waiting, you know on the earth You're
standing on powers among the nations and then
it shifts to this idea of the nations. Okay So
the second movement is a moving out From blessing
the people of god's blessing the nation subversive
screened by I Let people's praise you. Oh god
Let all the people's praise Let the nations be
glad to sing for joy for you judge the people's
with equity guide the nation's plunder so Let
people's praise you. Oh god Let all the people's
praise you. You probably heard that little conclusion
praise beginning with praise again let the people's
grace be exalted let all the people's grace and
in some ways if there's an emphasis on this song
that that seems to be it against the most attention
against the most words devoted to it the second
movement all the peoples of the earth all the
nations are going out for the blessing of god
but um i've said this plenty this is not a unique
thing to this song it's not a unique thing to
the new testament the mission of god is always
for the sake of the world that god has made god's
blessing was never for the few but for the many
god god's desire his constant desire was for
all of the people to know him to be blessed by
him he desires the nation's gladness and joy
the desire for nations are judged and guided
by him because he desires this gladness and joy
so So what I'm saying again, it's this song is
moving out. Okay, make you stop with moving starts
people got it God bless us it moves missions
like all people's creation and then It keeps
going in a way. Maybe you're like Where else
can it go here? Glad you asked The third the
third sort of circle that I watched you see and
I think it's gonna take a little bit of an argument
I don't know that Don't know if you're gonna
go there with me, okay? But I want you to see
that actually the third movement of the third
circle is actually the earth itself And by earth,
I don't necessarily mean people I mean like soil
trees that consent, okay? So let me read verse
6 and 7 The earth is healed of this increase
God our God shall bless us God shall bless us
let all the ends of the earth spirit I want to
suggest to you, and this is where I think some
of you probably are gonna go, that sounds weird.
That's okay. Weird's all right. I want to suggest
to you that at the very least, I think that the
Bible presents us with a form of panpsychism.
Meaning that there is a level of consciousness
to the creation itself. Y 'all know the Bible
tells us that if we're side of the rocks the
trees will cry out, right? I'm not saying couldn't
be as though saying that the fish itself actually
desires the goodness of God and then the thorns
and whatnot are actually affected by the sin
of Man if our being are following God as his
sons and his daughters actually affects the entirety
of creation I Know that might sound a little
strange verse 7 tells us that the ends of the
earth We decided to answer the earth, but fear
him. And that word earth there, the Hebrew word
is erets, most often means soil or ground, okay?
Which would make sense that actually thorns and
whatnot are connected to the fall and sin. Now
you might, I don't know too many astute Hebrew
scholars here. but the objections that would
rightly be raised, doesn't erratically mean people
groups, but it does, okay. That's true. It does
kind of mean that at times. It's sort of a word
just like the word nations. But we've already
had a different word for nations here in this
song. It's already been talked about. That group
has already been discussed and was used, a different
Hebrew word was used for that one. And yet here
in verse six and in verse seven, then also that
heading that I suggested, verse two, it uses
the secret word erets. It's different. It's distinguishing
from just the blessing going out for nations.
It seemed like it's going beyond the earth itself.
But all the evidence or verse six tells us the
erets has yielded its increase. That's talking
about the plants growing. That's probably why
actually a lot of people think this song was
sung during the hardest festivals of Israel.
It's the hardest festival song. So the earth
has yielded to the priest. Let's praise the Lord.
And that same word for earth there in verse seven,
verse six is used in verse seven, that all the
ends of the harretts hear the Lord. It's as though
the earth itself is saying, oh, the sons and
daughters of God. truly understand his great
care for them, because we will be blessed if
they do. Some of you are familiar with the book
of Romans and the New Testament. It's one of
the great passages of the idea that creation
itself has this desire for God and for things
to be right. Let me read it for you. This is
verse 19 to 23 of chapter eight of the Romans.
When the creation waits, With eager longing for
revealing of the sons of God The creation was
subjected to futility not willingly the creation
was not willingly it did not will that it also
has a But because of him who said we subjected
in hope that the creation itself will be set
free from its bondage to corruption Maintain
the freedom of the glory of the children of God
For we know the whole creation has been groaning
together Fish itself has a level of consciousness
that grown your sword trees birds fish Groaning
together in the pains of childbirth until now
and not only the creation, but we ourselves We
have first words the spirit grown inwardly as
we eager as we wait eagerly for the adoption
of sons the redemption of our bodies did you
hear that really kind well Beginning verse 19
it says through the revealing of the sons of
God then in verse 21 And obtain the freedom of
the glory of the children of God And then at
the end of verse 23 drums drum inwardly as we
wait eagerly for our for the adoption of sons
Creation itself is desiring The father's blessing
upon his children to come to full fruition And
it's then the groaning for which it longs will
be met. Abundance and joy. So what I'm trying
to argue here, and I hope you're kind of definitely
buying it, is that there's this movement, God
bless us, God bless the nations, the other people.
We actually might be inclined to go, bless all,
all. They bless the earth itself. It's moving
out and out and out. Blessing. And here's something
I want you to hear. Love expands. I'm actually
talking to a good friend of mine who has a PhD
in medieval sacramental theology on my way down
to the General Assembly this last week. And he
was telling me that one of the medieval arguments
for the Trinity as being you know the sort of
explanation of God is love and the fact that
the Trinity exists there in Genesis one and gracious
spirit hovering over the face of the waters and
the sun speaking and God ordering he says uh
one of the reach one of the arguments medieval
elotians gave was that love does not just give
and receive that's that is part of what it does
but love is not complete unless it actually expands
it shares The things that when you love you share
the world and that's actually why that they argued
that Children are actually proper Outworking
of true blood the sharing into the world of what
you have and that's why the Trinity almost can't
help but create That was an interesting idea.
So what's happening here is once you receive
the blessing of God the love of God there is
not a View it within the bible that says you
can work yourself It just doesn't like not a
category it has to move out from into the world
If we are people who have received god's blessing
then we will be people who share god's blessing
that's how it goes if we believe that god is
here among us and Working in us and changing
us and shaping us and caring for us. Then we
will desire other people We brought something.
We cared. We changed. We changed. An expansive
thing that's necessarily an expansive thing.
You're intended to go out. A father who does
his job lets his children go. Go out. Move beyond.
Change the world anew in a fresh way. And what's
at the heart of this blessing, you know, I I
sped over it actually because I intended to speed
over to that one get back to it That part but
the heart is blessing it's the second part of
verse one that I have yet to reach And it's this
It's the verse one read together, but I want
you to hear verse two may God be gracious to
us and bless us and make his face to shine upon.
The blessing of God is the attentiveness. God
actually looking right at you. He's not the father
that just says, hey, let me drink my beer in
the corner, and can you please make me some money
so I can keep drinking? Which actually I think
a lot of people engage with religions like this
in a way. I'm going to earn my dad's approval
of me by playing this game. I'm going to show
up and do the right things and say the right
things and then maybe the father might engage
with me in a way that at least I can get by in
life. That's not Christianity. That's not Christianity.
But I mean the first thing that God does when
he creates humankind male and female is he blesses
them. Which sake you looks on them in love. He
makes his face shine You see somebody you haven't
seen in a while I thought sometimes this week
you chat me that One of my dear friends from
high school. I hadn't seen her in 14 years Do
you think guys like? Yes, we got to be her five
kids. I've met one of them, you know. We were
embracing. It was a delight. My face was shining,
you know. It hurt that her husband also got elected
to our Permanent Committee for Phenomenal Examination,
which he's a brilliant dude. Hold a testament
in BFG from Denver and be able to do great in
that role and maybe even shine for him. For my
friend. So I was in high school. But you know
what this is, right? If you're actually delighted
It's decent This is at the heart of the christian
message This is at the heart of creation That
god first looked upon the world with this just
the life You know the good good good good good
very good. Let me bless it. Give me a father
to it As it most needs and as I most desire You
probably know that that yeah That first verse,
may God be gracious and bless us and make the
space shine upon us, is an echo of the great
Aaronic blessing words, Cynthia Redforce remembers,
right? To God's people, God's priests, his pastors,
the Old Testament, actually, it's the most common
blessing that God's people hear still today.
You know, it's the Lord bless you and keep you
and make the space shine upon you. And be gracious
to you, Lord, let the light shine upon you, give
you peace. It's echoing. It's saying that that
is at the center of the great movement of redemption.
God's blessing people, God's care for his people.
If you think back at me again of those two images
that you had maybe made in your mind of my own
dad with this, my grandpa at the firehouse, and
then the Samhain, the boy in the Samhain. Do
you get, you know, real fishing? and then try
out from the seventh grade for the whole team.
He says his dad's gonna die on that smoke -stained
stool. It's probably not far to then take that
and move to at least maybe what some of you know
a little bit about attachment science, attachment
theory. Keep those people in your mind, right?
Attachment science explores the deep -seated
bonds that take place. in relationships and really
finer relationships primarily with with your
main caregivers when you're younger but not not
supposed to be that but actually how those bonds
then influence how you go out to the world you
know i hope each one of you investigate that
some okay um but at the basic thing there's kind
of two foundations and i'll say that uh a helpful
book Do foundations for secure attachments are
the idea of delight and the idea of shelter?
Meaning are we delighted with this with your
parent or I could be a significant other to this
delight There is their face shining a little
bit in your mouth, you know that nothing the
shelter. Are you being cared for? Being watched
over do you think they're you say within their
presence? And what the blessing? The blessing
that Aaron the priest were to speak over God
was speaking to this very night That the thought
of Pentecost really makes all that's this for
you that you might then go out to the world The
strength with dignity With a level of ability
that uniquely you and yet going out to do this
bidding in the world That's the great blessing
of God to his people would bless you keep you
Make the space shine on you be gracious to you
the light Blessing and care God turning to God
soon unaware of your unique needs your reading
concerns and your unique loves. What made you
you? His grace, his gentleness, his attentiveness.
This is the blessing of God. Friends, this is
what we have in Jesus. I did already mention
how unique Christiana is. Christiana does not
say, you get all your stuff together and then
maybe the Father will look upon you with some
kind of Okay. It's like Christianity. But this
is more uniquely Christian, too, because Christianity
of all the religions, of all of them, says that
God actually infleshes himself if he might truly
look upon us in the flesh. And you have to harken
back to the garden of being, right? Not coming
out searching for them, wanting to walk with
them, at some level wanting to be present in
the flesh, with them, but his blessing might,
his face might shine right there with them in
the present. This is the good news. This is the
good news that each one of us need, this is the
good news that the nations need. And there I
say, it's actually the good news that the earth
itself desires. To you and them, we're a son
from God, God only. Lord, thank you for the songs.
Thank you most of all for your love. Your love
which we learn most of all and most clearly in
Jesus, but that we have throughout the entirety
of scripture, this wonder of wonders. That your
love moves out. It's a shared love and what we
share. Your face lights up. Should grace shine
upon us Yeah, I do pray that we would be people
first to cry out for your blessing upon us individuals
on our church second city church That we here
in this space right now in our church would be
people That own our adoption as sons and daughters
of God And Because we own that, it would necessarily
ripple out from us. God, would you continue to
make us missionary people that extend out, invite
people into this blessing? Would you cause us
to be a creation -bearing people that are deeply
enraged when your world is marred by deeper pockets?
technological progress, all the rest. There may
be those that care deeply for a creation that
is groaning. God, beyond these things, what we
long for is your face. Because without your face
shining upon us, without your light in your shelter,
everything else is for naught. God bless us.
Thank you for listening to Second City Sermons
podcast. We hope this sermon has encouraged you
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Thanks again for listening. God bless.