WEBVTT 00:00:00.630 --> 00:00:03.149 Hello, you are listening to Second City Sermons, 00:00:03.270 --> 00:00:06.209 a ministry of Second City Church in Midtown Harrisburg. 00:00:06.849 --> 00:00:08.750 It's our hope that these sermons will draw you 00:00:08.750 --> 00:00:11.169 more into the life of following God, Father, 00:00:11.310 --> 00:00:13.970 Son, and Holy Spirit. Please consider coming 00:00:13.970 --> 00:00:16.269 and joining with us each Sunday morning at 10am 00:00:16.269 --> 00:00:18.809 in the heart of Midtown Harrisburg. You can find 00:00:18.809 --> 00:00:22.350 us online at secondcitychurch .org and on Facebook, 00:00:22.629 --> 00:00:25.030 Instagram, and YouTube. We hope you enjoy this 00:00:25.030 --> 00:00:30.780 sermon. God bless. Let's pray again. Lord, thank 00:00:30.780 --> 00:00:33.520 you for the Psalms, these songs, these prayers 00:00:33.520 --> 00:00:36.039 that the community together would offer up to 00:00:36.039 --> 00:00:37.899 you. Lord, I pray that this community, Second 00:00:37.899 --> 00:00:40.539 City Church, would hear these words, that we 00:00:40.539 --> 00:00:42.359 would hide them in our hearts, that we would 00:00:42.359 --> 00:00:44.079 live them out in faithfulness to you, that you 00:00:44.079 --> 00:00:46.060 would teach us what you need to teach us today. 00:00:46.719 --> 00:00:48.979 I pray that our hearts would be open to you and 00:00:48.979 --> 00:00:52.259 that you would speak, Lord. That we would hear 00:00:52.259 --> 00:00:56.219 your voice. Would the words of my mouth and these 00:00:56.219 --> 00:00:57.899 meditations of all of our hearts be pleasing 00:00:57.899 --> 00:01:00.789 in your sight? the Lord our rock and our Redeemer. 00:01:01.210 --> 00:01:04.609 Amen. All right, I don't know if you have heard 00:01:04.609 --> 00:01:06.829 this, but I've heard this a few times recently 00:01:06.829 --> 00:01:13.109 that dinner parties and family meals are getting 00:01:13.109 --> 00:01:17.030 less and less interesting. People just aren't 00:01:17.030 --> 00:01:18.969 sure what to talk about. Some of it is that we 00:01:18.969 --> 00:01:21.209 live our lives in isolation. There's a few other 00:01:21.209 --> 00:01:24.780 interesting reasons that I have. At about, I'm 00:01:24.780 --> 00:01:26.579 not going to get into all those right now. Instead, 00:01:26.579 --> 00:01:29.540 what I want to do is give you your question for 00:01:29.540 --> 00:01:33.920 your next dinner. OK? It's probably one you've 00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:35.180 been asked. I've been asked this before, but 00:01:35.180 --> 00:01:36.560 it's a great question. It helps you get to know 00:01:36.560 --> 00:01:40.120 somebody else. Here's what it is. Who is a who 00:01:40.120 --> 00:01:43.239 is a teacher in your life that had a big impact 00:01:43.239 --> 00:01:46.819 on you? Great question. Of course, the subsequent 00:01:46.819 --> 00:01:53.329 question is. Why? What did they teach you? that 00:01:53.329 --> 00:01:57.069 influenced you. Not just who it is, why and what, 00:01:57.310 --> 00:02:00.609 okay? Who, why what? Teacher. Maybe ask that 00:02:00.609 --> 00:02:03.590 around your dinner table tonight. Maybe ask that 00:02:03.590 --> 00:02:07.469 with some friends. I have often thought that, 00:02:07.870 --> 00:02:09.550 when that question comes up, the people that 00:02:09.550 --> 00:02:13.349 come to my mind often are my high school teachers. 00:02:13.659 --> 00:02:16.699 I can actually remember all their names, my high 00:02:16.699 --> 00:02:19.360 school teachers. I can remember very few of my 00:02:19.360 --> 00:02:21.400 college teachers, but my high school teachers 00:02:21.400 --> 00:02:23.379 I can remember. And then also I think of my young 00:02:23.379 --> 00:02:25.520 life leader actually in high school, Matt Shorak. 00:02:25.840 --> 00:02:29.840 He had a huge impact in my life. But I kind of 00:02:29.840 --> 00:02:31.439 was thinking about this because a couple of weeks 00:02:31.439 --> 00:02:35.080 ago, I was telling Lily that the first time I 00:02:35.080 --> 00:02:37.479 got to go sailing was with one of my high school 00:02:37.479 --> 00:02:40.830 teachers. took me out on a sailboat with a couple 00:02:40.830 --> 00:02:42.870 other friends. It was so fun, and I remember 00:02:42.870 --> 00:02:45.870 that very clearly. Just the love and the kindness 00:02:45.870 --> 00:02:48.389 that was shown to me. But I want to tell you 00:02:48.389 --> 00:02:50.310 actually a little bit about one of my other teachers, 00:02:51.189 --> 00:02:53.129 who was not just my teacher, he was my history 00:02:53.129 --> 00:02:55.330 teacher my junior and senior year, but also my 00:02:55.330 --> 00:02:58.150 high school principal. His name is Dick Hanula, 00:02:58.349 --> 00:03:03.169 Richard Hanula. As the high school principal, 00:03:03.490 --> 00:03:05.710 he of course had to also be a disciplinarian. 00:03:06.770 --> 00:03:08.849 This is not something that I faulted for at all. 00:03:08.870 --> 00:03:10.949 In fact, it was a wise and good thing and he 00:03:10.949 --> 00:03:13.129 was very kind in it. But I remember being called 00:03:13.129 --> 00:03:15.550 into his office with four of my other classmates 00:03:15.550 --> 00:03:20.069 and we weren't just reprimanded with gentleness 00:03:20.069 --> 00:03:23.069 and kindness, but we were also fined because 00:03:23.069 --> 00:03:27.930 that was the policy of the school. Because after 00:03:27.930 --> 00:03:31.159 the school play, which we were in, as seniors, 00:03:31.979 --> 00:03:35.219 we were over at one of the other seniors house 00:03:35.219 --> 00:03:38.080 and we were all smoking cigars, which was not 00:03:38.080 --> 00:03:41.039 according to school policy. So anyway, but he 00:03:41.039 --> 00:03:43.259 did that in gentleness. I remember I remember 00:03:43.259 --> 00:03:47.979 where I was sitting in his office. But beyond 00:03:47.979 --> 00:03:50.479 some beyond somebody that like took sort of these 00:03:50.479 --> 00:03:54.439 rules with grace, but also with proper. sort 00:03:54.439 --> 00:03:57.819 of severity and love in that. He also just loved 00:03:57.819 --> 00:04:00.060 where we lived. He actually wrote our history 00:04:00.060 --> 00:04:02.860 book on the Pacific Northwest in Washington State. 00:04:03.120 --> 00:04:06.060 And I knew this guy loved the Northwest. He loved 00:04:06.060 --> 00:04:07.860 the people of the Northwest, he loved the place, 00:04:08.020 --> 00:04:13.340 and he just exuded it. He also loved, loved history. 00:04:13.580 --> 00:04:17.980 He actually wrote a book called Radiant, 50 Remarkable 00:04:17.980 --> 00:04:21.180 Women in Church History, but he primarily liked 00:04:21.180 --> 00:04:24.769 to teach 20th century history. And he was funny 00:04:24.769 --> 00:04:27.990 and he's still living. I'm just saying was because 00:04:27.990 --> 00:04:34.110 it's my past. So he was kind of dry. He was funny 00:04:34.110 --> 00:04:36.230 and he was kind of warm, but also really serious. 00:04:36.509 --> 00:04:40.069 And he gave us the option one year to get extra 00:04:40.069 --> 00:04:43.149 credit for us who both wanted to take it on and 00:04:43.149 --> 00:04:46.009 who maybe needed to take it on. And the extra 00:04:46.009 --> 00:04:50.269 credit was that we memorize Billy Joel's famous, 00:04:50.769 --> 00:04:54.589 we didn't start the fire. because we were learning 00:04:54.589 --> 00:04:57.930 about the Cold War. And so if we memorize the 00:04:57.930 --> 00:05:01.449 whole thing and sang it in front of the whole 00:05:01.449 --> 00:05:06.009 class, we could get extra credit. You know, we 00:05:06.009 --> 00:05:09.589 didn't start the fire. It was always burning. 00:05:09.790 --> 00:05:13.189 I mean, it's such a good song. By the way, he 00:05:13.189 --> 00:05:15.970 also wrote a book on Samuel Rutherford, the Scottish 00:05:15.970 --> 00:05:20.490 preacher. He's a great guy. But Mr. Hanula, I 00:05:20.490 --> 00:05:22.620 want to say is a great... teacher because he 00:05:22.620 --> 00:05:25.819 was so very principled and he desired, he loved 00:05:25.819 --> 00:05:29.819 the content and he wanted it to be known, to 00:05:29.819 --> 00:05:34.259 be loved. He wanted to teach us well. He wanted 00:05:34.259 --> 00:05:36.279 us to love the Pacific Northwest where I grew 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:39.620 up. It's history, it's people, it's places. He 00:05:39.620 --> 00:05:42.139 wanted us to know the historical figures that 00:05:42.139 --> 00:05:45.899 we might actually be shaped well as people, right? 00:05:47.759 --> 00:05:50.870 So Psalm 78, we're in this Psalm today. Cause 00:05:50.870 --> 00:05:52.930 we're making our way through the Psalms in the 00:05:52.930 --> 00:05:54.470 summers. You know, this is the 12th summer we've 00:05:54.470 --> 00:05:56.769 been doing this. And it's a long Psalm, isn't 00:05:56.769 --> 00:05:59.870 it? That's a long Psalm. How many of you drifted 00:05:59.870 --> 00:06:02.509 off? You do not need to raise your hand. How 00:06:02.509 --> 00:06:04.269 many of you began to dream about canoeing on 00:06:04.269 --> 00:06:07.329 the yellow breaches? Yeah. Quite a few of you, 00:06:07.550 --> 00:06:08.850 probably. Nobody raised their hand, but that's 00:06:08.850 --> 00:06:11.569 fine. If you're interested for your next Bible 00:06:11.569 --> 00:06:15.689 trivia, Psalm 78 is the second longest Psalm 00:06:15.689 --> 00:06:19.360 in the Psalter. The longest one being Psalm 119, 00:06:19.360 --> 00:06:21.800 of course, that one's much, much longer. But 00:06:21.800 --> 00:06:23.899 this is a history Psalm, and that's actually 00:06:23.899 --> 00:06:25.980 not normally one of the categories that people 00:06:25.980 --> 00:06:27.699 break the Psalms down into. I've mentioned, of 00:06:27.699 --> 00:06:30.500 course, last week that lament is by far the most, 00:06:30.720 --> 00:06:32.660 the largest category. There's Psalms of praise 00:06:32.660 --> 00:06:35.360 and royal Psalms and things like that. And then 00:06:35.360 --> 00:06:37.519 there's a small category that some people make 00:06:37.519 --> 00:06:40.040 called history Psalms, where they recount much 00:06:40.040 --> 00:06:42.639 of the history or key aspects of the history 00:06:42.639 --> 00:06:46.800 of God working with his people. If you're interested, 00:06:46.959 --> 00:06:52.040 it's Psalm 105, 106, 135, 136, and 78. Those 00:06:52.040 --> 00:06:54.759 are the history Psalms. It's a history lesson, 00:06:55.339 --> 00:06:59.060 but before it gives the history lesson, it says, 00:07:00.300 --> 00:07:06.560 remember the past and teach it to those who go 00:07:06.560 --> 00:07:11.819 ahead. So, I want us to sort of consider two 00:07:11.819 --> 00:07:14.699 big lessons, and it sort of begins like this, 00:07:14.699 --> 00:07:20.069 I think. Instruct the present and the future 00:07:20.069 --> 00:07:23.670 with the past. That's kind of big lesson one. 00:07:24.870 --> 00:07:29.730 And then the obvious next lesson is learn the 00:07:29.730 --> 00:07:34.790 history of the past. Learn it, know it. If you're 00:07:34.790 --> 00:07:36.990 gonna be told to teach it, you gotta know it. 00:07:37.990 --> 00:07:39.910 So first, instruct the present and the future 00:07:39.910 --> 00:07:42.920 with the past. So if you hopefully have your 00:07:42.920 --> 00:07:49.379 Bibles open to Psalm 78, found on page 578. Oh, 00:07:49.379 --> 00:07:55.420 that's pretty handy. What you will notice maybe 00:07:55.420 --> 00:07:58.160 is that there's this first kind of section, it's 00:07:58.160 --> 00:08:01.339 really verses one to eight, that sort of are 00:08:01.339 --> 00:08:03.759 a preface or a preamble to the whole rest of 00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:05.519 it. You know, right? In that section, there's 00:08:05.519 --> 00:08:07.620 not so much of the history happening yet. It's 00:08:07.620 --> 00:08:12.000 sort of here. Here's what you need to do. And 00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:15.399 there's two things that it tells us. First, I 00:08:15.399 --> 00:08:18.220 want to say that place the past alongside the 00:08:18.220 --> 00:08:21.060 present, right? So if this first main point is 00:08:21.060 --> 00:08:22.720 instruct the present and the future with the 00:08:22.720 --> 00:08:25.040 past, the first thing is place the past alongside 00:08:25.040 --> 00:08:28.600 the present. Verse one, give ear to my people, 00:08:28.740 --> 00:08:31.279 to my teaching, incline your ears to the words 00:08:31.279 --> 00:08:33.399 of my mouth. So he's speaking in the present. 00:08:33.539 --> 00:08:36.059 Here, listen to me, listen to me. I'll open my 00:08:36.059 --> 00:08:38.200 mouth in a parable. I'll utter dark sayings from 00:08:38.279 --> 00:08:41.299 things, dark things, things that may have been 00:08:41.299 --> 00:08:46.620 forgotten or pushed aside. Things that we have 00:08:46.620 --> 00:08:49.860 heard and known that our fathers have told us 00:08:49.860 --> 00:08:52.879 maybe aren't before our eyes like they need to 00:08:52.879 --> 00:08:56.519 be. We will not hide them from their children, 00:08:57.139 --> 00:08:58.759 but tell them to the coming generation. We're 00:08:58.759 --> 00:09:01.059 going to get to that in a second. But an interesting 00:09:01.059 --> 00:09:03.940 thing here is that the past is called a parable. 00:09:05.129 --> 00:09:06.929 And it's called a parable there in verse two, 00:09:06.990 --> 00:09:09.429 right? I'll open my mouth in a parable. And if 00:09:09.429 --> 00:09:11.570 you think of a parable, probably what you think 00:09:11.570 --> 00:09:14.470 of is, well, you probably think of the parables 00:09:14.470 --> 00:09:16.549 of Jesus. That's probably one thing you think 00:09:16.549 --> 00:09:19.710 of, like the good Samaritan, all these different 00:09:19.710 --> 00:09:22.289 parables, right? And maybe when you think of 00:09:22.289 --> 00:09:28.129 a parable, you think fictitious, right? Maybe 00:09:28.129 --> 00:09:30.549 not grounded in what really happened, that kind 00:09:30.549 --> 00:09:33.950 of thing. But I want to just kind of dispel that, 00:09:34.070 --> 00:09:38.990 okay? Christianity is based on what happened. 00:09:39.250 --> 00:09:42.230 In fact, Paul says, if the resurrection didn't 00:09:42.230 --> 00:09:44.370 happen, we're all to be most pitied. And the 00:09:44.370 --> 00:09:46.029 scriptures are always saying God did this in 00:09:46.029 --> 00:09:49.169 real time and space. These things happened. Okay. 00:09:49.490 --> 00:09:52.250 So what does the parable mean here? Well, para 00:09:52.250 --> 00:09:57.490 means alongside of that prefix. And the parable 00:09:57.490 --> 00:10:00.350 part comes from balein, which means to throw. 00:10:00.830 --> 00:10:03.649 So you put these two things together. And what 00:10:03.649 --> 00:10:06.529 it means is to take alongside, to put it along, 00:10:06.570 --> 00:10:09.110 to throw it alongside, to put it alongside. So 00:10:09.110 --> 00:10:10.909 you're supposed, the idea is that you're supposed 00:10:10.909 --> 00:10:13.950 to have one story and another, and you're supposed 00:10:13.950 --> 00:10:16.350 to compare the two. What are you supposed to 00:10:16.350 --> 00:10:18.210 learn from this story? How does this good Samaritan, 00:10:18.210 --> 00:10:19.789 you know, the person that comes up to Jesus, 00:10:19.809 --> 00:10:22.190 who's my neighbor, and he tells the story and 00:10:22.190 --> 00:10:24.289 you're supposed to put that story along with 00:10:24.289 --> 00:10:27.450 your story. How do you understand who your neighbor 00:10:27.450 --> 00:10:35.860 is? So we're supposed to put. history alongside 00:10:35.860 --> 00:10:41.620 our story and to learn in the present from the 00:10:41.620 --> 00:10:43.720 past. Of course, there's tons of great quotes 00:10:43.720 --> 00:10:46.419 about history. Think of James Baldwin saying, 00:10:46.460 --> 00:10:49.399 history is not the past, it is the present. We 00:10:49.399 --> 00:10:52.440 carry our history with us. There's a parable 00:10:52.440 --> 00:10:56.299 dynamic. Of course, there's a famous quote also 00:10:56.299 --> 00:10:59.159 from George Santayana saying, those who cannot 00:10:59.159 --> 00:11:04.789 remember the past are what? Yeah, gonna repeat 00:11:04.789 --> 00:11:09.330 it So put it alongside the present take the past 00:11:09.330 --> 00:11:13.929 learn it Instruct the present with it Of course, 00:11:13.929 --> 00:11:18.570 there's tons we can learn from history One of 00:11:18.570 --> 00:11:21.470 the things that we can learn from history is 00:11:21.470 --> 00:11:23.970 that oftentimes our stories aren't terribly different 00:11:23.970 --> 00:11:29.190 than theirs So we can actually use them as walls 00:11:29.190 --> 00:11:32.029 comparing our lives with what has happened in 00:11:32.029 --> 00:11:34.809 the past Of course, it invites certain questions. 00:11:34.889 --> 00:11:39.610 Have we learned from it? Have we learned enough 00:11:39.610 --> 00:11:41.350 that we are able to actually speak to it with 00:11:41.350 --> 00:11:46.230 those who come alongside us or after us? Will 00:11:46.230 --> 00:11:48.009 our children know that we've learned it in such 00:11:48.009 --> 00:11:52.590 a way because we speak of it, right? Of course, 00:11:52.590 --> 00:11:54.389 this begs the question of what kind of legacy 00:11:54.389 --> 00:11:56.470 we leave also. Have we learned from the past 00:11:56.470 --> 00:11:59.610 and what will people say of us when we become 00:11:59.610 --> 00:12:07.539 the past? Place the past. But this, of course, 00:12:08.059 --> 00:12:11.980 quickly brings up the idea that the path doesn't 00:12:11.980 --> 00:12:14.679 just inform the present, but it informs also 00:12:14.679 --> 00:12:18.399 the future, right? So the other thing that's 00:12:18.399 --> 00:12:22.039 in this little preamble here is talk to the future 00:12:22.039 --> 00:12:24.460 about the past. Don't just learn it in the present, 00:12:24.500 --> 00:12:26.759 but talk to the future about the past. Teach 00:12:26.759 --> 00:12:30.799 the past to the future. And that's actually kind 00:12:30.799 --> 00:12:33.600 of the main thing that's happening in this preamble. 00:12:33.659 --> 00:12:35.620 And so I'll just walk through verse four, right? 00:12:35.980 --> 00:12:40.460 We will not hide them from their children, but 00:12:40.460 --> 00:12:45.120 tell the coming generations, verse five, the 00:12:45.120 --> 00:12:47.159 second half, which He commanded, talking about 00:12:47.159 --> 00:12:49.980 the law appointed in Israel, which He commanded 00:12:49.980 --> 00:12:52.860 our fathers to teach their children. Verse 6, 00:12:52.980 --> 00:12:56.019 that the next generation might know them, the 00:12:56.019 --> 00:12:58.100 children, even yet unborn, it doesn't say even, 00:12:58.259 --> 00:13:01.740 but yet unborn, and arise and tell them to their 00:13:01.740 --> 00:13:06.379 children. You know, it's like that Russian doll 00:13:06.379 --> 00:13:11.830 just keeps going. Verse 7. So that they should 00:13:11.830 --> 00:13:14.870 set their hope on God and not forget his works. 00:13:15.029 --> 00:13:17.370 You know, this memory that's being passed on. 00:13:17.690 --> 00:13:19.110 Verse eight, and that they should not be like 00:13:19.110 --> 00:13:21.750 their fathers, a stubborn and rebellious generation, 00:13:21.789 --> 00:13:23.710 a generation whose heart was not steadfast. It's 00:13:23.710 --> 00:13:28.129 all this generational language. Teach the past 00:13:28.129 --> 00:13:33.129 to the future. It's really clear here is teaching 00:13:33.129 --> 00:13:36.769 the past to the future. What that of course assumes 00:13:36.769 --> 00:13:41.370 is that you know it. that you know it, you know, 00:13:41.450 --> 00:13:43.809 shirk it off, that you learn it yourself, that 00:13:43.809 --> 00:13:47.330 you place your own story alongside it as a parable 00:13:47.330 --> 00:13:50.710 to be thought of together, to be instructed for 00:13:50.710 --> 00:13:55.129 yourself and for the coming generations. Now, 00:13:55.149 --> 00:13:57.610 okay, let me stop there for a moment before we 00:13:57.610 --> 00:13:59.350 kind of get into the next section because I have 00:13:59.350 --> 00:14:01.610 a few questions that I want to ask you. And though 00:14:01.610 --> 00:14:03.330 these may seem like they're geared towards parents, 00:14:03.389 --> 00:14:06.149 which I think to some degree they are, keep in 00:14:06.149 --> 00:14:09.379 mind that this psalm was to be read by the whole 00:14:09.379 --> 00:14:12.259 community. It was to be sung by the whole community 00:14:12.259 --> 00:14:18.500 together. And so this is broadly for us. What 00:14:18.500 --> 00:14:20.419 are your children going to say that they learned 00:14:20.419 --> 00:14:26.120 from you? You know, your children aren't going 00:14:26.120 --> 00:14:29.519 to be able to, I don't know, spend a hundred 00:14:29.519 --> 00:14:32.159 hours talking about what they learned from you. 00:14:32.399 --> 00:14:34.379 If they were quickly to say, what did they learn 00:14:34.379 --> 00:14:40.679 from you? What are they going to say? What are 00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:42.139 the children of this church going to say they 00:14:42.139 --> 00:14:48.860 learned from us? Kind of similarly, what do you 00:14:48.860 --> 00:14:52.039 want your children to say that they learned from 00:14:52.039 --> 00:15:00.919 you? I think related to this is just a real simple 00:15:00.919 --> 00:15:04.779 question if we go back to the dinner table. What 00:15:04.779 --> 00:15:06.259 are your children going to say that you were 00:15:06.259 --> 00:15:10.409 always talking about? Like just literally, like 00:15:10.409 --> 00:15:11.870 think about your life, think about the conversations. 00:15:11.970 --> 00:15:14.049 What are the things that are often on your lips? 00:15:15.330 --> 00:15:17.409 What are your children gonna say they heard you 00:15:17.409 --> 00:15:22.210 talking about a lot? Of course, let's keep in 00:15:22.210 --> 00:15:23.889 mind, there's a lot of good answers, right? There 00:15:23.889 --> 00:15:26.009 are a lot of good answers to these questions. 00:15:27.389 --> 00:15:30.029 I can think back, right, of Mr. Hanula teaching 00:15:30.029 --> 00:15:35.330 me the history of the Pacific Northwest. I want 00:15:35.330 --> 00:15:37.590 my children to know the history of their place 00:15:37.590 --> 00:15:42.429 and to love it. Right? I want to think through 00:15:42.429 --> 00:15:44.529 creatively, how do I learn some of the history 00:15:44.529 --> 00:15:46.750 of Harrisburg and our church and all of this 00:15:46.750 --> 00:15:49.929 so that I can teach you? So those are good things. 00:15:52.029 --> 00:15:55.049 I hope your children say that my parents taught 00:15:55.049 --> 00:15:57.490 me to seek the welfare of the city where God 00:15:57.490 --> 00:16:00.190 has placed them, like we're instructed to do 00:16:00.190 --> 00:16:02.970 in Jeremiah 29, as Jeremiah instructed the exiles 00:16:02.970 --> 00:16:06.789 in Babylon to do long ago. I want my children 00:16:06.789 --> 00:16:11.289 to learn to love the arts and music and painting 00:16:11.289 --> 00:16:15.190 and all of that. My kids love sports and I love 00:16:15.190 --> 00:16:17.509 that. There's lots of answers that you could 00:16:17.509 --> 00:16:22.029 give. But what will they say that you most talked 00:16:22.029 --> 00:16:26.190 about? What were you eager to have on your lips 00:16:26.190 --> 00:16:32.090 more than anything else? What will they say, 00:16:32.169 --> 00:16:37.259 you know, my parents wanted me to love? Well, 00:16:37.559 --> 00:16:39.340 of course, there are a number of questions or 00:16:39.340 --> 00:16:41.120 passages that I could read to you from, well, 00:16:41.120 --> 00:16:43.399 actually quite a few, but let me read to you 00:16:43.399 --> 00:16:47.860 Deuteronomy 6 verses 6 to 9. So this is Moses. 00:16:47.879 --> 00:16:50.299 This is his fifth book as they enter into the 00:16:50.299 --> 00:16:53.460 promised land. He's instructing them. Deuteronomy 00:16:53.460 --> 00:16:55.379 means the second giving of the law. This is the 00:16:55.379 --> 00:16:56.940 book that was written right before they entered 00:16:56.940 --> 00:16:59.860 in. He says, and these words that I command you 00:16:59.860 --> 00:17:03.519 today shall be on your heart. And that's lip 00:17:03.519 --> 00:17:06.940 service. You shall teach them diligently to your 00:17:06.940 --> 00:17:09.759 children, and shall talk of them when you sit 00:17:09.759 --> 00:17:12.900 in your house, when you walk by the way, when 00:17:12.900 --> 00:17:16.059 you lie down and when you rise. You shall bind 00:17:16.059 --> 00:17:19.380 them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be 00:17:19.380 --> 00:17:22.400 as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write 00:17:22.400 --> 00:17:24.660 them on the doorposts of your house and on your 00:17:24.660 --> 00:17:26.920 gates." He's saying the law of the Lord and the 00:17:26.920 --> 00:17:29.759 ways of God and how He has saved you are the 00:17:29.759 --> 00:17:34.039 thing. That's it. That you should have on your 00:17:34.039 --> 00:17:35.700 lips when you're walking around when you're lying 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:38.619 down when you're eating your dinner They're on 00:17:38.619 --> 00:17:40.140 your hands. They're right before you they're 00:17:40.140 --> 00:17:44.059 right between your eyes. It's what you see That 00:17:44.059 --> 00:17:48.480 is what our children should know That we want 00:17:48.480 --> 00:17:52.420 to strike them in So will your children say main 00:17:52.420 --> 00:17:55.779 thing? The main thing that you wanted them to 00:17:55.779 --> 00:17:58.960 know and to pass on to their own children was 00:17:58.960 --> 00:18:05.700 God In some ways, it's a simple assessment. It's 00:18:05.700 --> 00:18:09.559 a great question. Is that going to be the thing 00:18:09.559 --> 00:18:11.640 that your children go, that's what my parents, 00:18:11.700 --> 00:18:14.079 that's what my church, that's what their friends 00:18:14.079 --> 00:18:17.640 wanted me to know. The glorious deeds of the 00:18:17.640 --> 00:18:19.660 Lord, as it says here, his might, his wonders 00:18:19.660 --> 00:18:26.519 that he's done. Well, they say you wanted them 00:18:26.519 --> 00:18:31.319 to not forget the works of God, but to keep his 00:18:31.319 --> 00:18:36.299 commandments. As verse seven says, will they 00:18:36.299 --> 00:18:38.180 say that you did not want them to be stubborn 00:18:38.180 --> 00:18:41.299 and rebellious generation, that we're not steadfast 00:18:41.299 --> 00:18:46.819 and we're not faithful to God? As verse eight 00:18:46.819 --> 00:18:51.059 says, what will they say that you taught them? 00:18:52.099 --> 00:18:55.539 What's the main thing? So my first point is this, 00:18:55.880 --> 00:18:59.819 instruct the present. Learn it yourself, the 00:18:59.819 --> 00:19:04.819 past as a parable. the present and the future 00:19:04.819 --> 00:19:09.420 with the past. Okay. Of course, what very easily 00:19:09.420 --> 00:19:13.259 comes out of that is the second main point, which 00:19:13.259 --> 00:19:16.640 is what happened, right? I mean, that's a good 00:19:16.640 --> 00:19:18.480 question. Well, if we're supposed to know this, 00:19:18.700 --> 00:19:22.960 what is this? What are these lessons from history? 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:24.519 That's kind of the second main thing. What are 00:19:24.519 --> 00:19:29.009 the lessons from history? And let's just broadly 00:19:29.009 --> 00:19:31.410 agree that learning the lessons from history 00:19:31.410 --> 00:19:34.289 is a very wise thing to do. And you can agree 00:19:34.289 --> 00:19:37.269 with this if you're a Christian or not. Learn 00:19:37.269 --> 00:19:41.170 the good things from history and the not so good 00:19:41.170 --> 00:19:42.970 things from history, right? There's lots that 00:19:42.970 --> 00:19:46.769 we can say are great about our city from past 00:19:46.769 --> 00:19:50.450 and that are not so great. There's a lot of good 00:19:50.450 --> 00:19:53.180 about our country from the past. And a lot that's 00:19:53.180 --> 00:19:55.279 not so great. And, you know, when you talk about 00:19:55.279 --> 00:19:56.839 American history, it seems as though you either 00:19:56.839 --> 00:19:59.059 have to be in one of those camps, right? It's 00:19:59.059 --> 00:20:01.259 either you have to look at it, go, oh, man, blah, 00:20:01.400 --> 00:20:03.279 blah, blah, blah. Just, you know, only the story 00:20:03.279 --> 00:20:07.920 is the story of slavery or it's only good. We 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:09.799 know that it's more complex than that, of course. 00:20:10.859 --> 00:20:12.680 Think about think about some of the history that 00:20:12.680 --> 00:20:14.319 we must learn here in Harrisburg. Some of you 00:20:14.319 --> 00:20:16.420 all know the history of the Eighth Ward here 00:20:16.420 --> 00:20:19.200 in Harrisburg that became our state capital park 00:20:19.200 --> 00:20:23.140 where soldiers grow in that area. That was like, 00:20:23.599 --> 00:20:27.480 that ward was the heartbeat of primarily the 00:20:27.480 --> 00:20:29.220 minority communities and immigrant communities 00:20:29.220 --> 00:20:32.259 in our city. Place where the churches and the 00:20:32.259 --> 00:20:34.759 synagogues were, where the music venues were, 00:20:34.779 --> 00:20:39.059 where their businesses thrived. We decided we 00:20:39.059 --> 00:20:43.400 want Soldiers Grove instead. We displaced thousands 00:20:43.400 --> 00:20:47.380 of minorities and immigrants. Primarily the black 00:20:47.380 --> 00:20:50.339 community, the Jewish community, Italian communities. 00:20:50.910 --> 00:20:54.349 We need to know these stories. These are important 00:20:54.349 --> 00:20:58.309 stories for our city to tell. And we need to 00:20:58.309 --> 00:21:00.490 know the stories of God's great work and our 00:21:00.490 --> 00:21:03.230 rebellious hearts. And that's kind of the two 00:21:03.230 --> 00:21:05.990 big things that are in the rest of this Psalm. 00:21:06.250 --> 00:21:09.529 The story of God's great work, His saving acts 00:21:09.529 --> 00:21:12.849 for His people and our rebellion, our rebellious 00:21:12.849 --> 00:21:15.880 sinful hearts. So first, the work of God for 00:21:15.880 --> 00:21:19.140 His... The work of God were wondrous for His 00:21:19.140 --> 00:21:21.400 people. His great saving acts were amazing for 00:21:21.400 --> 00:21:28.000 His people. So let's see, guys. Do we have... 00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:34.539 Verse 9 to 72, you ready? Here's what we're gonna 00:21:34.539 --> 00:21:36.619 do. I'm just gonna highlight some of these for 00:21:36.619 --> 00:21:38.420 you, okay? We're not gonna walk through it all. 00:21:38.700 --> 00:21:41.319 I know we have canoeing and I need to be at Paxton. 00:21:41.420 --> 00:21:44.980 You all wanna eat eventually. But if you look 00:21:44.980 --> 00:21:49.059 at verse 13 to 16, what you'll see is a little 00:21:49.059 --> 00:21:53.640 bit here of being recounted of what God did in 00:21:53.640 --> 00:21:57.640 parting the Red Sea. And the story of the pillar 00:21:57.640 --> 00:22:01.119 of fire by night and the cloud by day, right? 00:22:01.140 --> 00:22:04.279 Of how God brought them in safety, even when 00:22:04.279 --> 00:22:07.380 things seemed like we saw last week, unimaginably 00:22:07.380 --> 00:22:11.039 against them. God was providing for them. I mean, 00:22:11.039 --> 00:22:14.140 there's some beautiful language here. He made 00:22:14.140 --> 00:22:17.940 the waters stand like a heap. Waters don't stand 00:22:17.940 --> 00:22:21.180 like a heap unless God does it. His saving acts 00:22:21.180 --> 00:22:23.119 for his people. Amazing. If you look down at 00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:26.400 verse 20, this is kind of a funny verse because 00:22:26.400 --> 00:22:29.059 they spoke against God saying, can God spread 00:22:29.059 --> 00:22:31.500 a table in the wilderness? He struck the rocks 00:22:31.500 --> 00:22:33.359 with the waters gushed out and streamed overflowing. 00:22:33.539 --> 00:22:35.660 Can he also give bread and provide - First people, 00:22:35.680 --> 00:22:37.559 that's kind of a rebellious thing. But the fact 00:22:37.559 --> 00:22:40.920 is that it does recount what God does, right? 00:22:41.059 --> 00:22:42.859 Even in the rebellious hearts, it's mentioning 00:22:42.859 --> 00:22:45.819 what God does. If we look at verses 23 down to 00:22:45.819 --> 00:22:47.680 verse 29, I'm not going to read all of this, 00:22:48.420 --> 00:22:50.599 but we can, this part here is talking about how 00:22:50.599 --> 00:22:53.720 God provided them food in the wilderness, this 00:22:53.720 --> 00:22:56.240 desert place. You know, and if you know the story, 00:22:56.319 --> 00:22:58.039 what they're really grumbling about is the fact 00:22:58.039 --> 00:23:01.799 that they had, ah, the food back in Egypt. Some 00:23:01.799 --> 00:23:04.339 of you know the Keith Green song, ah, hamburgers. 00:23:04.569 --> 00:23:06.869 right? They're remembering the hamburgers. They're 00:23:06.869 --> 00:23:09.509 thinking back and they're grumbling and God provides 00:23:09.509 --> 00:23:13.230 for them miraculously, unbelievably, lavishly 00:23:13.230 --> 00:23:16.170 in the midst of the desert. We can jump down 00:23:16.170 --> 00:23:20.750 to verse 45 to 51. This is a long recounting. 00:23:20.809 --> 00:23:23.890 of the plague that God sent because Pharaoh was 00:23:23.890 --> 00:23:25.890 hardened and he was not going to let God's people 00:23:25.890 --> 00:23:28.789 go. And he sends these plague after plague after 00:23:28.789 --> 00:23:31.829 plague so that his people can be freed from their 00:23:31.829 --> 00:23:35.369 400 years of slavery. God using his power, his 00:23:35.369 --> 00:23:40.470 saving act for the sake of his people. Verses 00:23:40.470 --> 00:23:45.769 54 and 55, they brought them to his holy land, 00:23:45.809 --> 00:23:47.650 to the mountains, which his right hand had won. 00:23:47.690 --> 00:23:49.549 He drove out nations before them. He appointed 00:23:49.549 --> 00:23:52.089 them. for possession, and settled the tribes 00:23:52.089 --> 00:23:56.029 of Israel in their tents. He's saying God is 00:23:56.029 --> 00:23:57.569 the one that brought us into this promised land. 00:23:57.670 --> 00:24:00.589 It's He that did it. Which, by the way, let me 00:24:00.589 --> 00:24:04.170 take a quick aside here. This is a rabbit trail 00:24:04.170 --> 00:24:08.509 that has to do with the point. The first battle 00:24:08.509 --> 00:24:10.730 that takes place when God brings His people from 00:24:10.730 --> 00:24:12.190 the wilderness into the promised land is the 00:24:12.190 --> 00:24:14.349 battle of Jericho, right? What do the people 00:24:14.349 --> 00:24:17.970 of God do in that? They don't do basically anything. 00:24:18.170 --> 00:24:21.849 They walk around and they blow a horn. And actually, 00:24:21.849 --> 00:24:24.730 is God gracious? He shows His grace is open to 00:24:24.730 --> 00:24:26.769 all the people there at Jericho. Why do we know 00:24:26.769 --> 00:24:30.250 that? Because Rahab, who is a prostitute, is 00:24:30.250 --> 00:24:32.329 the one that is saved because she says, I follow 00:24:32.329 --> 00:24:36.269 your God. People don't do anything. God does 00:24:36.269 --> 00:24:38.970 it. Right? And that's part of what this is recounting. 00:24:38.970 --> 00:24:41.250 This is the mighty acts of God for these people 00:24:41.250 --> 00:24:47.400 that just don't do anything. Anyway, this is 00:24:47.400 --> 00:24:49.559 the refrain in this psalm. It goes, here's what 00:24:49.559 --> 00:24:51.180 God did. Here's what God did. Here's what God 00:24:51.180 --> 00:24:53.500 did. Here's the story of how God acts. Here's 00:24:53.500 --> 00:24:55.059 how he does miraculously beyond what you could 00:24:55.059 --> 00:24:56.960 imagine, beyond what makes sense of creation. 00:24:57.400 --> 00:24:59.440 Here's how he has done it. He's done it all. 00:25:03.759 --> 00:25:07.660 But I asked you, partly because I know my own 00:25:07.660 --> 00:25:09.539 mind is going to wander when somebody's reading 00:25:09.539 --> 00:25:12.880 72 verses. So I asked you, hey, would you try 00:25:12.880 --> 00:25:15.920 to be attentive? when I'm reading this, to the 00:25:15.920 --> 00:25:19.720 buts and the yet's and the even so's and all 00:25:19.720 --> 00:25:23.240 of that kind of stuff. Because as much as this 00:25:23.240 --> 00:25:25.880 Psalm is recounting for us the wondrous acts 00:25:25.880 --> 00:25:34.279 of God for his people, it is so instantly recounting 00:25:34.279 --> 00:25:37.500 for us their rebellious hearts and their sinful 00:25:37.500 --> 00:25:42.220 lives. And so let's look at some of these, okay? 00:25:44.500 --> 00:25:46.279 And they're kind of sandwiched in between all 00:25:46.279 --> 00:25:48.640 those other ones, right? Verse 10 and 11, right 00:25:48.640 --> 00:25:51.559 after this command, they did not keep God's covenant, 00:25:51.680 --> 00:25:54.759 but refused to walk according to his law. They 00:25:54.759 --> 00:25:57.079 forgot his works and the wonders he had shown 00:25:57.079 --> 00:26:04.759 them. Verse 17 to 19, yet they sinned still more 00:26:04.759 --> 00:26:06.960 against him, rebelling against the most high 00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:09.259 in the desert. They tested God in their hearts 00:26:09.259 --> 00:26:12.529 by demanding the food they craved. They spoke 00:26:12.529 --> 00:26:15.450 against God saying, can God spread a table in 00:26:15.450 --> 00:26:20.769 the wilderness? Verse 21 and 22. They didn't 00:26:20.769 --> 00:26:25.410 believe God or trust in his saving power. Verse 00:26:25.410 --> 00:26:33.369 31. Yeah, despite all that he had done, they 00:26:33.369 --> 00:26:35.230 still sinned. Despite his wondrous, they don't 00:26:35.230 --> 00:26:41.319 believe. Verse 36, verse 37. flattered him with 00:26:41.319 --> 00:26:44.039 their mouths, but lied to him with their tongue, 00:26:44.180 --> 00:26:47.559 as their hearts were not satisfied toward him. 00:26:47.799 --> 00:26:51.000 They were not faithful to his covenant. Verse 00:26:51.000 --> 00:26:57.500 40, how often they rebelled against him in the 00:26:57.500 --> 00:27:00.839 wilderness and grieved him in the desert. And 00:27:00.839 --> 00:27:04.740 then verse 56 to 66, which I'm not going to read 00:27:04.740 --> 00:27:09.660 all of again, but it begins, Yet they tested 00:27:09.660 --> 00:27:13.759 and rebelled against the Most High God. And actually 00:27:13.759 --> 00:27:15.799 what that whole next section is talking about 00:27:15.799 --> 00:27:18.440 is that they rebelled in terms of idols. They 00:27:18.440 --> 00:27:21.819 went after other gods. They said, something else 00:27:21.819 --> 00:27:24.940 is going to give me what I desire. Something 00:27:24.940 --> 00:27:28.180 else is going to protect me and provide for me 00:27:28.180 --> 00:27:32.420 and give me meaning. See, here's what's happening 00:27:32.420 --> 00:27:35.759 is that all along this recounting of history 00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:39.230 that that the preamble says you've got a place 00:27:39.230 --> 00:27:43.269 alongside your own, is recounting the great deeds 00:27:43.269 --> 00:27:46.569 of God and recounting a rebellious and sinful 00:27:46.569 --> 00:27:51.309 people, constantly. Just as you go throughout, 00:27:51.390 --> 00:27:54.710 you're like, man, God is amazing. And man, these 00:27:54.710 --> 00:27:57.329 people, which they were to say is us, because 00:27:57.329 --> 00:28:01.809 they're singing it, reject God again and again. 00:28:04.329 --> 00:28:10.130 See, if we tell this history well, you have to 00:28:10.130 --> 00:28:14.750 tell both the wondrous part and the rebellious 00:28:14.750 --> 00:28:18.569 part. If you're going to live wisely in the present, 00:28:18.609 --> 00:28:21.069 if you're going to instruct the future, you got 00:28:21.069 --> 00:28:28.250 to tell both sides. So again, what story are 00:28:28.250 --> 00:28:35.359 you telling? Are you telling stories of God's 00:28:35.359 --> 00:28:39.640 faithfulness? Are you willing to tell the stories 00:28:39.640 --> 00:28:43.500 of your own rebellion? Maybe you noticed that 00:28:43.500 --> 00:28:46.700 actually in this Psalm also, the rebellion is 00:28:46.700 --> 00:28:48.640 not just, hey, we did this, but actually here's 00:28:48.640 --> 00:28:52.480 the effects of it. Here's the judgment, or here's 00:28:52.480 --> 00:28:55.500 just how this destroyed us. Here's how my sin 00:28:55.500 --> 00:29:00.539 led to something that was really not good. Are 00:29:00.539 --> 00:29:03.970 you telling a story with your work? and with 00:29:03.970 --> 00:29:13.609 your actions that is honest. Do you spend your 00:29:13.609 --> 00:29:15.829 time and your money? Because that's another way 00:29:15.829 --> 00:29:21.509 that we tell a story that recounts the wonders 00:29:21.509 --> 00:29:31.029 of God. Are you telling history honestly? To 00:29:31.029 --> 00:29:33.900 tell history well, to tell the history of God 00:29:33.900 --> 00:29:36.779 and of God's people, to tell our own stories 00:29:36.779 --> 00:29:43.259 faithfully, you have to tell both of these. We 00:29:43.259 --> 00:29:45.880 have to tell the story of God's wondrous grace 00:29:45.880 --> 00:29:50.319 and our sin. We have to tell the stories of the 00:29:50.319 --> 00:29:55.779 disastrous effects of sin. So how do you tell 00:29:55.779 --> 00:29:57.920 the story? What's the story you're telling? Are 00:29:57.920 --> 00:30:03.480 you being honest with it? I have often thought, 00:30:03.500 --> 00:30:05.500 and I've said this before, but probably not for 00:30:05.500 --> 00:30:07.900 a long time, one of the reasons why I'm a Christian, 00:30:08.099 --> 00:30:12.059 which is a good question to ask yourself. Let 00:30:12.059 --> 00:30:13.579 me encourage you with this. I've given you so 00:30:13.579 --> 00:30:16.000 many questions to ask around the dinner table, 00:30:16.440 --> 00:30:21.480 but maybe ask this one. Why are you Christian? 00:30:22.839 --> 00:30:25.720 If you're with a Christian, okay? If you're having 00:30:25.720 --> 00:30:28.380 lunch together today, maybe before going canoeing, 00:30:28.619 --> 00:30:29.680 maybe ask yourself, why are you a Christian? 00:30:30.240 --> 00:30:31.819 Here's one of the reasons why I'm a Christian. 00:30:33.720 --> 00:30:38.960 The world is immensely, sometimes overwhelmingly 00:30:38.960 --> 00:30:43.200 beautiful. I mean, creation itself at times. 00:30:44.039 --> 00:30:48.240 How many of us have sat down along the riverside 00:30:48.240 --> 00:30:50.789 park and watched the sunset? I mean, it's like 00:30:50.789 --> 00:30:53.650 it will literally take your breath away. But 00:30:53.650 --> 00:30:57.029 other people are like each one of you are like 00:30:57.029 --> 00:31:00.609 wonderfully beautiful. And if you sit with someone, 00:31:00.630 --> 00:31:03.269 you're like amazed by, wow, look at how you're 00:31:03.269 --> 00:31:06.230 made and how insightful different people. I mean, 00:31:06.230 --> 00:31:09.829 it's like so much beauty in the world, which 00:31:09.829 --> 00:31:12.210 is how the whole Bible begins. The great works 00:31:12.210 --> 00:31:16.329 of God. Good, good, good. You know, God looks 00:31:16.329 --> 00:31:18.670 back and says, very good. So you have to give 00:31:18.670 --> 00:31:21.200 an account. You have to give an account for the 00:31:21.200 --> 00:31:23.119 wondrous beauty of the world, the overwhelming 00:31:23.119 --> 00:31:28.220 beauty of the world. But you must also give an 00:31:28.220 --> 00:31:32.380 account for why is why are things so messed up? 00:31:35.440 --> 00:31:39.000 Why is it that the streets do not feel safe at 00:31:39.000 --> 00:31:42.559 certain times of the day at night? Why does war 00:31:42.559 --> 00:31:46.420 persist as it does when so many do desire peace? 00:31:49.519 --> 00:31:51.700 Why are marriages, even the best marriages, so 00:31:51.700 --> 00:31:55.980 often fraught with conflict? So you must give 00:31:55.980 --> 00:31:57.839 an account both for the beauty of the world and 00:31:57.839 --> 00:32:00.539 for the brokenness of the world. You have to, 00:32:00.880 --> 00:32:04.359 because it is so glaringly obvious. And one of 00:32:04.359 --> 00:32:06.220 the reasons I'm a Christian is because Christianity 00:32:06.220 --> 00:32:09.240 does that. It doesn't shirk off either. It doesn't 00:32:09.240 --> 00:32:13.920 say, ah, it's so messed up. Right? It's not just 00:32:13.920 --> 00:32:17.960 a Debbie Downer about things. Nor is it sort 00:32:17.960 --> 00:32:22.400 of, ah, everything's just fine. Don't worry about 00:32:22.400 --> 00:32:25.900 it. It gives a true account of the way the world 00:32:25.900 --> 00:32:30.880 is. So here's this story that's doing the same 00:32:30.880 --> 00:32:32.920 for the people of God and God's interaction with 00:32:32.920 --> 00:32:37.279 us. The mighty saving acts of God in a consistently 00:32:37.279 --> 00:32:43.640 rebellious people. I wonder if you were able 00:32:43.640 --> 00:32:48.200 to make it with attention. to the end. It's a 00:32:48.200 --> 00:32:51.359 long Psalm. I don't blame you if you didn't. 00:32:51.660 --> 00:32:55.319 But if you get to the end, the last little paragraph 00:32:55.319 --> 00:32:58.019 there, the very last part of it, it says things 00:32:58.019 --> 00:33:01.579 like this. He rejected the tent of Joseph, you 00:33:01.579 --> 00:33:04.359 know, all this stuff, but he built a sanctuary 00:33:04.359 --> 00:33:06.839 like the heavens, like the earth, which he's 00:33:06.839 --> 00:33:08.859 founded forever. He chose David his servant and 00:33:08.859 --> 00:33:11.440 took him from the sheepfolds. From following 00:33:11.440 --> 00:33:13.559 the nursing ewes, he brought him to shepherd 00:33:13.559 --> 00:33:18.109 Jacob his people. Israel his inheritance. With 00:33:18.109 --> 00:33:21.509 upright heart he shepherded them and guided them 00:33:21.509 --> 00:33:27.349 with his skillful hand. There's this story of 00:33:27.349 --> 00:33:32.250 God working and just the consistent rebellious 00:33:32.250 --> 00:33:36.109 sinfulness of God's people and it ends with saying 00:33:36.109 --> 00:33:41.630 there is a shepherd who once shepherded ewes 00:33:41.630 --> 00:33:44.009 as they were nursing their children. but now 00:33:44.009 --> 00:33:47.710 it's the shepherd my people. And the New Testament, 00:33:47.890 --> 00:33:49.609 and actually the scriptures often look forward 00:33:49.609 --> 00:33:52.650 to a greater David. And that one is actually 00:33:52.650 --> 00:33:55.390 called the shepherd of his people, the true shepherd, 00:33:56.170 --> 00:34:00.410 right? The good shepherd, as John says, and as 00:34:00.410 --> 00:34:04.970 Jesus. And I think, honestly, this, I don't think 00:34:04.970 --> 00:34:07.630 this is forcing this at all. This passage is 00:34:07.630 --> 00:34:10.190 pointing us to the work of God in Christ Jesus. 00:34:10.690 --> 00:34:15.329 Because it is in Jesus that we see the true telling 00:34:15.329 --> 00:34:17.630 of the story, right? The true account of the 00:34:17.630 --> 00:34:21.170 world is seen in the Great Shepherd. Because 00:34:21.170 --> 00:34:24.550 Jesus does not shirk off the wonder of the world, 00:34:25.590 --> 00:34:27.530 so often He's re -establishing the wonder of 00:34:27.530 --> 00:34:31.679 the world. He's giving sight to the blind. Making 00:34:31.679 --> 00:34:35.219 the lame to walk. He's re -establishing social 00:34:35.219 --> 00:34:38.320 relationships that have been broken. He's feeding 00:34:38.320 --> 00:34:40.840 people. After the resurrection, most of the time, 00:34:40.880 --> 00:34:43.139 he's just eating with people as though he's like 00:34:43.139 --> 00:34:45.179 delighting in the wonder of the taste of grilled 00:34:45.179 --> 00:34:49.659 fish over a campfire. He's saying this world 00:34:49.659 --> 00:34:53.719 is lovely. But what the cross does is it says, 00:34:54.260 --> 00:34:58.460 this world is in utter rebellion. And you and 00:34:58.460 --> 00:35:02.199 I are in utter rebellion. And it does us no good 00:35:02.199 --> 00:35:05.980 to shirk that off. That has got to be dealt with 00:35:05.980 --> 00:35:08.980 because the effects of rebellion are destruction. 00:35:11.199 --> 00:35:14.280 The effects of rebellion are always disastrous. 00:35:16.300 --> 00:35:18.239 And so Jesus goes to the place where there is 00:35:18.239 --> 00:35:21.360 the most destruction, the most gruesome destruction, 00:35:21.500 --> 00:35:24.639 the cross, and says, I'm going to show you both 00:35:24.639 --> 00:35:29.269 the love of God and the heinous reality of rebellion 00:35:29.269 --> 00:35:32.769 and sin. And I'm gonna take that upon myself. 00:35:34.369 --> 00:35:36.510 Your sin and your rebellion is so awful that 00:35:36.510 --> 00:35:41.090 it demands the very death of God, but God gladly 00:35:41.090 --> 00:35:44.570 does it for you because He holds together the 00:35:44.570 --> 00:35:47.690 beauty of the world and the brokenness. He tells 00:35:47.690 --> 00:35:55.190 the story honestly. So I'm gonna invite you again. 00:35:57.280 --> 00:35:59.780 First, I'm going to ask you to ask the question, 00:36:00.599 --> 00:36:03.340 who is the teacher that influenced you the most? 00:36:04.059 --> 00:36:09.980 Why? Right? Who? Why? What? How did he influence 00:36:09.980 --> 00:36:13.320 you? And then I want you to ask this question. 00:36:13.579 --> 00:36:14.860 I've given you a lot, but these are the two main 00:36:14.860 --> 00:36:23.000 ones. What history are you telling? What history 00:36:23.000 --> 00:36:25.699 are your words telling, your actions telling? 00:36:26.239 --> 00:36:28.840 And if you're a Christian, are they telling the 00:36:28.840 --> 00:36:33.400 story of Jesus? That's what we are to pass on 00:36:33.400 --> 00:36:37.199 to one another. We're to pass on to the generations 00:36:37.199 --> 00:36:39.139 after us. That's what we're to instill in them 00:36:39.139 --> 00:36:41.659 in such a way that they want to instill it to 00:36:41.659 --> 00:36:43.460 their children and their children's children. 00:36:43.599 --> 00:36:46.300 What story are you telling? Let's pray. Lord, 00:36:46.960 --> 00:36:48.940 God, we're thankful for this Psalm long though 00:36:48.940 --> 00:36:51.420 it is packed full of different stories that we 00:36:51.420 --> 00:36:53.739 could dive into. But God, I thank you for this. 00:36:55.789 --> 00:36:58.969 sober encouragement, and I pray, Lord, that in 00:36:58.969 --> 00:37:02.250 the sobriety of it, we would look to the cross 00:37:02.250 --> 00:37:06.710 and cast our sins there, where we are washed 00:37:06.710 --> 00:37:09.250 clean by the pure and spotless Lamb who is our 00:37:09.250 --> 00:37:12.849 Lord Jesus himself, in whose name we pray. Amen. 00:37:13.469 --> 00:37:15.530 Thank you for listening to Second City Sermons 00:37:15.530 --> 00:37:18.289 podcast. We hope this sermon has encouraged you 00:37:18.289 --> 00:37:20.469 to worship God and to celebrate the gospel of 00:37:20.469 --> 00:37:23.530 Jesus. Please consider subscribing to this podcast 00:37:23.530 --> 00:37:26.269 and joining us in person each Sunday at 10 a 00:37:26.269 --> 00:37:29.110 .m. You can find us online at SecondCityChurch 00:37:29.110 --> 00:37:32.190 .org and on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube. 00:37:32.690 --> 00:37:34.570 Thanks again for listening. God bless.