WEBVTT 00:00:01.799 --> 00:00:04.679 Heavenly Father, thank you for sending your Son. 00:00:06.080 --> 00:00:10.199 Thank you, Lord Jesus, for embracing the commission 00:00:10.199 --> 00:00:13.960 of the Father. Both of you had to cooperate in 00:00:13.960 --> 00:00:16.000 this, in the Holy Spirit as well, and we're very 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:23.339 grateful for the incredible lengths. I mean, 00:00:23.379 --> 00:00:26.539 really, the whole universe is built just as a 00:00:26.539 --> 00:00:30.420 stage for this story of redemption and restoration. 00:00:30.559 --> 00:00:34.420 play out, but the incredible, incredible lengths 00:00:34.420 --> 00:00:38.700 you've gone to to reconcile sinners to yourself, 00:00:39.960 --> 00:00:43.740 of which we are definitely part of the number. 00:00:44.659 --> 00:00:47.100 And I thank you that it's not a one and done, 00:00:47.340 --> 00:00:49.420 and we're on our own to struggle through this 00:00:49.420 --> 00:00:52.719 life and hopefully make it stumble across the 00:00:52.719 --> 00:00:56.539 threshold of heaven. into an inheritance that 00:00:56.539 --> 00:00:59.119 we have. But your power, as Erica reminded us 00:00:59.119 --> 00:01:02.340 this morning about your power, power in the truth, 00:01:02.579 --> 00:01:06.040 and part of the truth that we find in your Word 00:01:06.040 --> 00:01:09.840 is that you are protecting us. The same power 00:01:09.840 --> 00:01:13.239 that is protecting our inheritance and reserving 00:01:13.239 --> 00:01:16.980 it in heaven is also protecting us as well. And 00:01:16.980 --> 00:01:21.560 you keep us in your hand. And we stray often. 00:01:21.659 --> 00:01:25.280 We stumble often. But scripture says the righteous 00:01:25.280 --> 00:01:28.299 man stumbles seven times and he gets up. And 00:01:28.299 --> 00:01:31.959 so I thank you for each person that's drawn here 00:01:31.959 --> 00:01:36.959 today. All of us are drawn as Christ is lifted 00:01:36.959 --> 00:01:39.859 up. And I pray that you would be lifted up here 00:01:39.859 --> 00:01:44.480 in our hearts and before our eyes that we would 00:01:44.480 --> 00:01:47.040 behold your beauty, Father, in the face of the 00:01:47.040 --> 00:01:51.159 Lord Jesus. And thank you for His high priestly 00:01:51.159 --> 00:01:56.519 prayer here. which points to his ministry now 00:01:56.519 --> 00:02:00.620 as our intercessor, who is able to identify with 00:02:00.620 --> 00:02:03.879 us and is a faithful high priest. And we thank 00:02:03.879 --> 00:02:07.900 you for that, Lord Jesus, that you are willing 00:02:07.900 --> 00:02:11.900 to continue to suffer through your saints. It's 00:02:11.900 --> 00:02:14.000 an amazing thought to think that we, as part 00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:17.939 of your body, you feel the pain, the persecutions, 00:02:17.960 --> 00:02:21.039 what happens to these believers in Nigeria, you 00:02:21.039 --> 00:02:23.930 are there. Even as you told Paul, why are you 00:02:23.930 --> 00:02:26.349 persecuting me? And so we know that you're not 00:02:26.349 --> 00:02:29.550 unaware of these things and unaware of the pain 00:02:29.550 --> 00:02:34.210 in our own lives as well. And the injustice, 00:02:34.430 --> 00:02:37.590 the darkness, the disappointment and despair 00:02:37.590 --> 00:02:39.849 that we feel in this world, we thank you that 00:02:39.849 --> 00:02:43.650 it's not the final chapter. That you are working 00:02:43.650 --> 00:02:47.250 it out together for good. Help us to understand 00:02:47.250 --> 00:02:51.120 these things. Apply them. Believe them and obey 00:02:51.120 --> 00:02:57.139 them today, in Jesus' name, Amen. Last time we 00:02:57.139 --> 00:03:00.439 started talking about the topic of joy, and I 00:03:00.439 --> 00:03:04.819 want to ask you again, my intent last time, we 00:03:04.819 --> 00:03:07.099 ended up talking about a lot of other things, 00:03:07.620 --> 00:03:10.360 and that's not necessarily bad, as long as we 00:03:10.360 --> 00:03:15.580 don't stray too far from Scripture. Anytime you're 00:03:15.580 --> 00:03:17.680 reading a part of Scripture and studying it, 00:03:17.759 --> 00:03:20.060 It has connections to other parts of Scripture, 00:03:20.259 --> 00:03:23.000 right? And that's appropriate for us to delve 00:03:23.000 --> 00:03:24.740 into these topics. And we're going to do that 00:03:24.740 --> 00:03:27.919 today, Lord willing. We've got a number of Scriptures 00:03:27.919 --> 00:03:31.400 in both Old and New Testament that deal with 00:03:31.400 --> 00:03:36.520 this topic of joy and rejoicing. And I kind of 00:03:36.520 --> 00:03:38.259 primed the pump a little bit last time, but I 00:03:38.259 --> 00:03:42.139 want to ask you again if you've given any more 00:03:42.139 --> 00:03:46.270 thought to that or considered... What joy is 00:03:46.270 --> 00:03:49.810 and how does it compare to something say happiness, 00:03:49.810 --> 00:03:54.229 right? It's always an acronym. Your mom told 00:03:54.229 --> 00:03:58.830 me years ago. Joy is Jesus others in yourself. 00:03:59.770 --> 00:04:02.490 You put Jesus first others before you in yourself, 00:04:02.569 --> 00:04:05.370 right? I didn't know if you said that we weren't 00:04:05.370 --> 00:04:08.129 here last week, but I remember her saying that 00:04:08.129 --> 00:04:11.449 stuff with me. It's hard. It's hard to do that. 00:04:11.449 --> 00:04:16.769 That's right. It's even sometimes hard. I may 00:04:16.769 --> 00:04:18.670 be shunned, but it's hard sometimes for Jesus 00:04:18.670 --> 00:04:21.410 first. You know, we say that's what we want to 00:04:21.410 --> 00:04:25.310 do, but our simple desires and our nature is 00:04:25.310 --> 00:04:29.810 to look out for number one. If we sit here and 00:04:29.810 --> 00:04:31.689 say we don't do that, then we're not truthful 00:04:31.689 --> 00:04:35.949 with ourselves. Yes, that's very true. Very true. 00:04:38.329 --> 00:04:43.449 I think the joy is. Being like the flag that 00:04:43.449 --> 00:04:47.730 flies over the life of the person in which Jesus 00:04:47.730 --> 00:04:54.810 is Lord We can remember seeing that in our brother 00:04:54.810 --> 00:04:58.389 who's more service we just participate in that 00:04:58.389 --> 00:05:01.649 he was a person Do it not just giddy, but he 00:05:01.649 --> 00:05:07.209 really had the joy in his heart. Yes, it is That's 00:05:07.209 --> 00:05:09.269 right, and I was reflecting about that fact I 00:05:10.180 --> 00:05:12.819 I had some thoughts, you know, I had no idea 00:05:12.819 --> 00:05:14.399 what the service was going to be like, you know, 00:05:14.639 --> 00:05:17.560 and it was long enough. They didn't need to have 00:05:17.560 --> 00:05:20.620 an open mic. But sometimes you do at these things. 00:05:20.740 --> 00:05:22.560 You have an open mic and somebody can come up 00:05:22.560 --> 00:05:25.160 and, you know, friends, you know, can reflect 00:05:25.160 --> 00:05:27.579 on the life of the person that's passed. If that 00:05:27.579 --> 00:05:29.699 had happened, you know, I had several words, 00:05:29.899 --> 00:05:33.600 but I was, you know, I wrestled with how do you 00:05:33.600 --> 00:05:36.480 summarize somebody like Hunt and I think that... 00:05:36.430 --> 00:05:39.550 You heard that word a lot of people use it yesterday 00:05:39.550 --> 00:05:43.509 in his service is joy, right? He was very a very 00:05:43.509 --> 00:05:47.509 joyful person, you know and big smile, you know 00:05:47.509 --> 00:05:52.189 and So which is good because I've been reflecting 00:05:52.189 --> 00:05:57.889 on that and and in our text Jesus So if you get 00:05:57.889 --> 00:05:59.670 your notes in front of you there, we've been 00:05:59.670 --> 00:06:02.649 through points number one and two on our outline. 00:06:03.029 --> 00:06:11.220 Okay Remember that we are in the middle section 00:06:11.220 --> 00:06:15.420 of this high priestly prayer. This is the longest 00:06:15.420 --> 00:06:19.779 prayer that Jesus prayed, recorded for us in 00:06:19.779 --> 00:06:21.199 Scripture. Not the longest that he prayed, but 00:06:21.199 --> 00:06:24.600 it's the longest that we have of his prayers 00:06:24.600 --> 00:06:26.839 recorded. I don't know how to say that in a way 00:06:26.839 --> 00:06:28.360 that makes sense. You know what I'm trying to 00:06:28.360 --> 00:06:31.639 say? We have other prayers of his, little snippets, 00:06:31.899 --> 00:06:34.779 but this is by far and away the longest recorded 00:06:34.829 --> 00:06:39.970 prayer of Jesus, okay? And it's got, it's structure 00:06:39.970 --> 00:06:43.050 is very simple. It's got three parts to it, hence 00:06:43.050 --> 00:06:44.889 the notes, right? The first part that we looked 00:06:44.889 --> 00:06:47.110 at is verses one through five, Jesus prays for 00:06:47.110 --> 00:06:50.029 himself. The section we're in now is Jesus prays 00:06:50.029 --> 00:06:53.649 for his disciples and that's these verses six 00:06:53.649 --> 00:06:57.410 through 19. And then starting with verse 20 and 00:06:57.410 --> 00:07:00.269 going to the end of the prayer, Jesus prays for 00:07:00.269 --> 00:07:02.689 all believers. which would include his disciples, 00:07:02.850 --> 00:07:05.250 but it's touching every time I read verse 20. 00:07:05.649 --> 00:07:08.610 It's, I can't help but be moved sometimes emotionally 00:07:08.610 --> 00:07:12.129 by reading that, that he prays for you. And the 00:07:12.129 --> 00:07:15.730 prayer, if you're a believer in Jesus, you do 00:07:15.730 --> 00:07:18.449 so through the testimony of the scriptures, right? 00:07:18.970 --> 00:07:23.329 And so touching to see him pray for us as well, 00:07:23.350 --> 00:07:26.529 right? So we're in that middle section. He's 00:07:26.529 --> 00:07:31.500 been praying for his disciples and We've looked 00:07:31.500 --> 00:07:33.920 at the first two points there. Jesus expresses 00:07:33.920 --> 00:07:36.860 his desire to be glorified. I'm sorry, I'm looking 00:07:36.860 --> 00:07:40.439 at the wrong outline. Jesus characterizes the 00:07:40.439 --> 00:07:44.439 disciples as those who show they are God's by 00:07:44.439 --> 00:07:47.100 obeying his truth, right? Six through eight. 00:07:47.980 --> 00:07:49.800 I don't want to belabor that. Point number two, 00:07:49.800 --> 00:07:53.660 Jesus requests that the Father protect the disciples 00:07:53.660 --> 00:07:58.040 in the world system. And this is... Remember 00:07:58.040 --> 00:08:04.529 that... This is the final chapter of five chapters 00:08:04.529 --> 00:08:08.509 that are collectively known as the Upper Room 00:08:08.509 --> 00:08:11.769 Discourse, right? The first four chapters, Jesus 00:08:11.769 --> 00:08:16.149 is giving them information, is giving them truth, 00:08:16.269 --> 00:08:18.850 is a better word to say. And Erica's opening 00:08:18.850 --> 00:08:23.149 was good because it reminded us that there is... 00:08:22.860 --> 00:08:26.180 power in God's truth, right? The Word of God 00:08:26.180 --> 00:08:28.779 is living and active. It's sharper than any two 00:08:28.779 --> 00:08:30.720 -edged sword. It's able to judge the thoughts 00:08:30.720 --> 00:08:34.320 and intents of the heart. I like to say the Bible 00:08:34.320 --> 00:08:37.460 is the only book that reads you as you're reading 00:08:37.460 --> 00:08:44.220 it. And so it does have power, and God's truth 00:08:44.220 --> 00:08:51.669 given to us changes us if we let it. And if the 00:08:51.669 --> 00:08:54.730 Holy Spirit also is taking it and illuminating 00:08:54.730 --> 00:08:59.110 it, there's people, I say that because the Bible 00:08:59.110 --> 00:09:01.570 by itself doesn't save you, right? We've already 00:09:01.570 --> 00:09:04.450 seen that in chapter five, verse 39 and 40, where 00:09:04.450 --> 00:09:07.230 he tells the religious leaders, you search the 00:09:07.230 --> 00:09:09.750 scriptures diligently because in them you think 00:09:09.750 --> 00:09:11.269 you have eternal life, but these are they which 00:09:11.269 --> 00:09:14.309 speak to me and will come to me, right? So simply 00:09:14.309 --> 00:09:16.149 reading the Bible, and they had made a whole 00:09:16.149 --> 00:09:19.039 life. lifetime of studying the scriptures and 00:09:19.039 --> 00:09:21.379 they had this whole thing where they had, you 00:09:21.379 --> 00:09:25.159 know, all their accomplishments and their rabbi, 00:09:25.159 --> 00:09:29.159 rabbinic commentaries and so on. Which, by the 00:09:29.159 --> 00:09:33.059 way, modern Judaism is very different. It's really 00:09:33.059 --> 00:09:38.580 allowed for the most part, okay? There's exceptions, 00:09:38.740 --> 00:09:41.139 but for the most part modern Judaism has allowed 00:09:41.139 --> 00:09:45.669 their I'm trying to remember the names of these 00:09:45.669 --> 00:09:48.769 documents, but basically the collection of their 00:09:48.769 --> 00:09:53.009 traditions and rabbinic commentary to eclipse 00:09:53.009 --> 00:10:01.649 the scriptures in their own faith. Well, I forget 00:10:01.649 --> 00:10:05.230 where I was going with all that. Oh, the truth, 00:10:05.350 --> 00:10:11.049 yes. So Jesus has given them four chapters of 00:10:11.049 --> 00:10:15.460 truth about the Father, About the Holy Spirit 00:10:15.460 --> 00:10:18.700 right and about Himself and what's happening 00:10:18.700 --> 00:10:21.120 and the whole point of this and you hear this 00:10:21.120 --> 00:10:24.080 in that second point there in verses 9 through 00:10:24.080 --> 00:10:27.200 12 Reflected in his prayer. What's what's on 00:10:27.200 --> 00:10:30.100 his heart as he's? Talking to them through these 00:10:30.100 --> 00:10:33.779 five chapters is that they might be protected 00:10:33.779 --> 00:10:37.820 He is hours away from the cross and he has been 00:10:37.820 --> 00:10:40.759 with them for three years and he's been able 00:10:40.759 --> 00:10:43.440 as the shepherd to to guide and protect them. 00:10:44.000 --> 00:10:46.120 And when there's some false teaching that comes 00:10:46.120 --> 00:10:48.639 in and their minds are kind of distracted and 00:10:48.639 --> 00:10:53.240 they start like sheep going down the wrong path, 00:10:53.440 --> 00:10:55.899 He's able to speak the truth of God and bring 00:10:55.899 --> 00:10:59.460 them back to proper thinking, to correct thinking. 00:11:01.059 --> 00:11:03.820 But He's not able to do that. So He's committing 00:11:03.820 --> 00:11:08.080 them to the Father. And we looked at how many 00:11:08.080 --> 00:11:13.360 times those words keep and kept and then give 00:11:13.360 --> 00:11:16.159 and given are used, right? And it's this idea 00:11:16.159 --> 00:11:19.120 of trading some valuable things around, right? 00:11:19.120 --> 00:11:22.600 And they have also kept, they've taken the treasure 00:11:22.600 --> 00:11:26.059 of God's Word and God's truth and they have kept 00:11:26.059 --> 00:11:29.379 it by obeying it, right? And protecting it. And 00:11:29.379 --> 00:11:33.159 we are called to do the same. In line yesterday 00:11:33.159 --> 00:11:37.080 with one of the brothers, he's struggling, one 00:11:37.080 --> 00:11:39.179 of the guys at the Bible study, is struggling 00:11:39.179 --> 00:11:42.399 because the church she's involved with is increasingly 00:11:42.399 --> 00:11:49.159 sliding more and more left and liberal. As they 00:11:49.159 --> 00:11:52.299 abandon the moorings of Scripture and they have 00:11:52.299 --> 00:11:54.000 a low view of Scripture, they are going more 00:11:54.000 --> 00:11:55.259 and more left and he's struggling with that. 00:11:55.679 --> 00:11:59.279 His wife has already started going to a different 00:11:59.279 --> 00:12:02.110 church. And I was like, I think your wife has 00:12:02.110 --> 00:12:03.570 the right idea. You know, I'm trying to tell 00:12:03.570 --> 00:12:05.649 them gently, but you know, you need to take a 00:12:05.649 --> 00:12:07.289 stand for the truth. You can't, what fellowship 00:12:07.289 --> 00:12:10.450 does light have with darkness? It doesn't. And 00:12:10.450 --> 00:12:12.929 it hurts because you know people, right? These 00:12:12.929 --> 00:12:15.169 are people you know, you care about, and you're 00:12:15.169 --> 00:12:17.509 talking about essentially breaking fellowship 00:12:17.509 --> 00:12:20.750 with them and going somewhere else. And it sounds 00:12:20.750 --> 00:12:22.870 easy for us, but if you're really in the middle 00:12:22.870 --> 00:12:30.590 of it, it's tough. having influence in unsaved 00:12:30.590 --> 00:12:34.350 churches and God work and bring these unsaved 00:12:34.350 --> 00:12:38.129 people to Christ? I think so. I've been reflecting 00:12:38.129 --> 00:12:39.509 a little bit on it. That's kind of what he was 00:12:39.509 --> 00:12:41.370 saying. He said the Lord still has me there for 00:12:41.370 --> 00:12:44.029 some reason. I didn't want to disagree with him 00:12:44.029 --> 00:12:51.490 because I don't know. The Laodicean Church was 00:12:51.490 --> 00:12:54.190 an unsaved church. Kind of the way it's described, 00:12:54.350 --> 00:12:59.480 it sounds a lot like many of the modern mainline 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:01.879 churches that are like that. They're wealthy 00:13:01.879 --> 00:13:03.460 and rich and think they have need of nothing. 00:13:06.720 --> 00:13:09.480 But Jesus says it's interesting because in the 00:13:09.480 --> 00:13:12.519 other churches he's there in the midst of them, 00:13:12.620 --> 00:13:15.500 but in Laodicea he's outside the church and he's 00:13:15.500 --> 00:13:18.320 knocking to be let in. And I was thinking about 00:13:18.320 --> 00:13:21.220 that and he says if anyone hears my voice, which 00:13:21.220 --> 00:13:23.940 means that there are, remember in John 10 he 00:13:23.940 --> 00:13:26.529 said my sheep hear my voice, right? So there 00:13:26.529 --> 00:13:30.330 are some in that church that are still his, and 00:13:30.330 --> 00:13:34.990 he's calling, you know, let me in. So, yes, I 00:13:34.990 --> 00:13:38.529 think there's a place for that, perhaps, but 00:13:38.529 --> 00:13:40.610 I know he's, in his case, he's not getting fed. 00:13:40.789 --> 00:13:42.649 I come to the Bible study, I'm like, the Bible 00:13:42.649 --> 00:13:49.889 study isn't church. You know if you get serious 00:13:49.889 --> 00:13:52.110 is correct, you know, if you've got a couple 00:13:52.110 --> 00:13:55.009 bad apples in a barrel eventually the other ones 00:13:55.009 --> 00:13:57.370 are gonna rot as well and it's kind of a good 00:13:57.370 --> 00:14:00.570 analogy because If you're still stuck in this 00:14:00.570 --> 00:14:03.730 church, that's not feeding and not doing not 00:14:03.730 --> 00:14:08.129 you may be Turned into that you know I'm saying 00:14:08.129 --> 00:14:10.049 you may follow that because everybody else is 00:14:10.049 --> 00:14:12.470 following it well Even if you're strong, you 00:14:12.470 --> 00:14:14.690 know, you may think okay, maybe I'm wrong. Maybe 00:14:14.690 --> 00:14:17.129 I'm even though I'm trying to search scripture 00:14:17.129 --> 00:14:19.549 out So we need to pray for this man, because 00:14:19.549 --> 00:14:21.629 I'm sure that it's a struggle, especially that 00:14:21.629 --> 00:14:24.309 his wife has left the church, and without him, 00:14:24.870 --> 00:14:27.769 it wasn't a unity thing. That's right. To me, 00:14:28.009 --> 00:14:32.330 that's not good. It needs to be a choice for 00:14:32.330 --> 00:14:35.250 both, but I just think about that apple thing. 00:14:35.370 --> 00:14:37.649 I don't know why I brought that up, but if you've 00:14:37.649 --> 00:14:39.669 got a couple bad apples in a barrel, or in a 00:14:39.669 --> 00:14:42.210 bag, or whatever, the rest of it is going to 00:14:42.210 --> 00:14:45.799 rot as well. Seems like if it gets permeated, 00:14:46.039 --> 00:14:48.259 then you... Like 11, about a year ago. Yeah, 00:14:48.539 --> 00:14:51.240 like a little bit of 11 ago. But Paul said too, 00:14:51.299 --> 00:14:55.759 bad company corrupts good morals. So yeah, you 00:14:55.759 --> 00:15:00.700 can pray with me about that and talking to him. 00:15:00.980 --> 00:15:02.960 Back on this, I'm sorry to talk about this, but 00:15:02.960 --> 00:15:05.899 back on this thing about the disciples, what 00:15:05.899 --> 00:15:09.720 I'm reminded of with is, you know, they blamed 00:15:09.720 --> 00:15:12.879 on him, you know. We live on the side of the 00:15:12.879 --> 00:15:15.120 cross, so all we have is the Holy Spirit and 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:18.480 the Word. But they had him physically. They could 00:15:18.480 --> 00:15:21.700 see him walk. So they leaned on him. They didn't 00:15:21.700 --> 00:15:24.419 understand until after the resurrection that 00:15:24.419 --> 00:15:27.440 the power of the Holy Spirit. That's why I love 00:15:27.440 --> 00:15:29.600 14 is when he says, I'm going to leave you as 00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:32.059 orphans. And he had that in mind when the upper 00:15:32.059 --> 00:15:34.059 room discourse was in the back of his mind, I 00:15:34.059 --> 00:15:36.220 think. Because he knew what he was going to have 00:15:36.220 --> 00:15:39.240 to tell them. That's why I think he prepared 00:15:39.240 --> 00:15:41.429 him when he said that to them. He said, this 00:15:41.429 --> 00:15:42.830 is why I'm not going to leave this orphanage, 00:15:42.889 --> 00:15:46.009 because it's coming. They were like, nah, you 00:15:46.009 --> 00:15:49.649 know, nah. They just didn't get it. I mean, they 00:15:49.649 --> 00:15:52.230 didn't. That's right. And so it was not ever 00:15:52.230 --> 00:15:54.070 the reason for it. They also didn't know how 00:15:54.070 --> 00:15:56.889 spiritually vulnerable they were, I think. Well, 00:15:56.909 --> 00:15:58.230 they were trying to decide who was going to be 00:15:58.230 --> 00:16:01.250 the best. Right. You know? Right. But anyway, 00:16:02.929 --> 00:16:05.350 I just know that we're very, very fortunate to 00:16:05.350 --> 00:16:07.330 live this side of the cross. That's right. Amen. 00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:09.960 We're blessed, actually, because we have not 00:16:09.960 --> 00:16:12.279 only the Holy Spirit, we can't walk with Him 00:16:12.279 --> 00:16:14.120 physically, but we can walk with Him physically, 00:16:14.320 --> 00:16:16.919 but we have the Word of God that we can read, 00:16:17.580 --> 00:16:20.759 and the Holy Spirit works there. If you allow 00:16:20.759 --> 00:16:22.100 the Holy Spirit to work in your life. That's 00:16:22.100 --> 00:16:24.679 right. That's right. And that's the key is not 00:16:24.679 --> 00:16:27.799 just the Bible, but the Holy Spirit as well. 00:16:28.340 --> 00:16:32.279 He takes the Holy Spirit. Do you think the Holy 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:36.200 Spirit speaks to us? Yes, through His Word. I 00:16:36.200 --> 00:16:38.659 know, but like, tell you, because I was listening 00:16:38.659 --> 00:16:41.799 to a broadcast of, I think it was Focus on the 00:16:41.799 --> 00:16:44.759 Family, and they were talking about how, you 00:16:44.759 --> 00:16:46.860 know, a lot of people have to hit rock bottom 00:16:46.860 --> 00:16:50.559 before they'll come to Christ, and this lady 00:16:50.559 --> 00:16:55.639 was talking about an example of this man who 00:16:55.639 --> 00:17:02.120 was, there was, I guess, a homeless person, and 00:17:02.120 --> 00:17:06.049 he hadn't prayed before he gave him money. And 00:17:06.049 --> 00:17:08.710 then so he gave him some money and then it's 00:17:08.710 --> 00:17:11.230 like the Holy Spirit told him it's like I almost 00:17:11.230 --> 00:17:13.150 had him if you happen to give him this money. 00:17:13.170 --> 00:17:16.069 Do you think God does that? Do you think he tells 00:17:16.069 --> 00:17:19.430 us this kind of stuff? You know like it almost 00:17:19.430 --> 00:17:21.410 made it feel like it was this man's fault because 00:17:21.410 --> 00:17:23.609 he made the wrong choice to give this man money 00:17:23.609 --> 00:17:26.250 and now this homeless person is not going to 00:17:26.250 --> 00:17:28.630 get saved. What does Scripture say about that? 00:17:31.230 --> 00:17:36.000 All who the Father has given me what? will come 00:17:36.000 --> 00:17:41.299 to me. So if the Holy Spirit tells you something 00:17:41.299 --> 00:17:43.819 that you know from Scripture isn't true, the 00:17:43.819 --> 00:17:48.680 Holy Spirit is not the Holy Spirit. You've got 00:17:48.680 --> 00:17:52.039 to be really careful about these little inklings, 00:17:52.119 --> 00:17:54.180 and I hear that all the time, right? People, 00:17:54.420 --> 00:17:56.339 oh, you know, that's a really strong impression. 00:17:56.900 --> 00:17:58.940 I mean, something like that happened to me recently 00:17:58.940 --> 00:18:02.619 where with Hunt, when he was still alive and 00:18:02.619 --> 00:18:05.259 I heard that he was at Elizabeth House, that 00:18:05.259 --> 00:18:07.619 Friday and and I was thinking about what am I 00:18:07.619 --> 00:18:09.819 do that Saturday and you know my kind of the 00:18:09.819 --> 00:18:11.680 usual you know how it is you got an open day 00:18:11.680 --> 00:18:14.220 and you're thinking about what you can do and 00:18:14.220 --> 00:18:16.740 all that and I just I just just kept coming back 00:18:16.740 --> 00:18:18.359 to my mind again and again I got to go over there 00:18:18.359 --> 00:18:21.819 going to see him and we had tried to get get 00:18:21.819 --> 00:18:24.099 in touch with Monica hadn't worked out you know 00:18:24.099 --> 00:18:26.380 get over to visit him when he was in the hospital 00:18:26.380 --> 00:18:29.039 so anyway I was just like I'm not gonna say anything 00:18:29.039 --> 00:18:31.920 I'm just gonna show up I'm just gonna show up 00:18:31.920 --> 00:18:35.720 and and and one thing led to another. I wasn't 00:18:35.720 --> 00:18:37.779 allowed back there because it's, you know, unless 00:18:37.779 --> 00:18:39.819 the family comes and gets you, you know, and 00:18:39.819 --> 00:18:42.660 anyway. So Monica did come out and got to see 00:18:42.660 --> 00:18:44.599 him and spend a little time and then she was 00:18:44.599 --> 00:18:49.119 like, hey, let's see if the Bible study man can 00:18:49.119 --> 00:18:51.619 come the next day. And the next, you know, we 00:18:51.619 --> 00:18:55.000 just set that up. Well, I'm convinced that that 00:18:55.000 --> 00:18:58.259 was The Lord, you know, I think He was involved 00:18:58.259 --> 00:18:59.599 in that. There's no doubt about it. And a lot 00:18:59.599 --> 00:19:01.339 of men have thanked me for that and so on. I'm 00:19:01.339 --> 00:19:03.339 like, well, okay, but the Lord, you know, I was 00:19:03.339 --> 00:19:05.599 just trying to be obedient to what I think the 00:19:05.599 --> 00:19:09.940 Lord wanted me to do in that situation. But that's 00:19:09.940 --> 00:19:12.700 different than, you know, putting my faith and 00:19:12.700 --> 00:19:15.500 trust in some kind of voice that I think is telling 00:19:15.500 --> 00:19:18.779 me something over here, right, that doesn't align 00:19:18.779 --> 00:19:22.200 with Scripture. The Holy Spirit uses this primarily 00:19:22.200 --> 00:19:25.910 to speak to us. And it's just like the Lord Himself, 00:19:26.089 --> 00:19:28.970 right? He didn't come speaking His own words, 00:19:29.150 --> 00:19:33.450 but He tells them, what you hear me say is the 00:19:33.450 --> 00:19:36.829 words I give you are from where? The Father, 00:19:37.089 --> 00:19:39.609 right? The Father. The very beginning of this 00:19:39.609 --> 00:19:43.309 Gospel. He is the Word of God, right? He is the 00:19:43.309 --> 00:19:46.390 means by which God is communicating what He wants 00:19:46.390 --> 00:19:48.650 us to know. Colossians, I'm starting to study 00:19:48.650 --> 00:19:52.220 Colossians. Colossians chapter 2. He is the express 00:19:52.220 --> 00:19:57.799 image of God. Everything that God wants us to 00:19:57.799 --> 00:20:01.420 know is being given to us through the Son, and 00:20:01.420 --> 00:20:03.680 the Holy Spirit is in cooperation with that as 00:20:03.680 --> 00:20:07.960 well. But through, in fact, verse 20, right? 00:20:08.140 --> 00:20:09.960 I pray for those, not just the disciples, but 00:20:09.960 --> 00:20:11.759 for those who will believe on me through their 00:20:11.759 --> 00:20:15.799 testimony, right? So Jesus has given... gave 00:20:15.799 --> 00:20:18.940 the truth to these men that came from the Father. 00:20:19.200 --> 00:20:21.099 The point I'm trying to get to is the Holy Spirit 00:20:21.099 --> 00:20:25.299 isn't out on His own over here telling us stuff, 00:20:25.299 --> 00:20:28.279 right? That doesn't align with God's Word. And 00:20:28.279 --> 00:20:30.039 I hear the Holy Spirit get blamed for a lot of 00:20:30.039 --> 00:20:32.079 things that are not Biblical. The same thing 00:20:32.079 --> 00:20:34.259 is true with near -death experiences, right? 00:20:34.339 --> 00:20:37.079 It's very popular right now. Someone so died 00:20:37.079 --> 00:20:38.700 and they came back and they tell us all this 00:20:38.700 --> 00:20:42.319 stuff. And some of those stories get way off 00:20:42.319 --> 00:20:44.900 base. I'm like... Don't know what you saw but 00:20:44.900 --> 00:20:47.559 ain't it ain't the heaven that let's talk about 00:20:47.559 --> 00:20:59.700 here, you know, right? To do good We don't we 00:20:59.700 --> 00:21:01.940 don't have to have a Holy Spirit to tell us to 00:21:01.940 --> 00:21:05.059 do that right because we have a scripture we 00:21:05.059 --> 00:21:09.460 know what to do so for instance working in good 00:21:09.460 --> 00:21:12.019 news club I didn't have the Holy Spirit tell 00:21:12.019 --> 00:21:15.440 me you need to work on the good news stuff. I 00:21:15.440 --> 00:21:21.619 seemed to need, and I done it. Now you could 00:21:21.619 --> 00:21:26.819 argue, was that from the Holy Spirit? Well, I 00:21:26.819 --> 00:21:30.240 think you seemed to need. And it aligns with 00:21:30.240 --> 00:21:32.940 scripture, so you do it. And you have a desire. 00:21:33.160 --> 00:21:35.440 Yeah, and so you do it. So everything that you 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:39.380 do does not have to necessarily be told of you 00:21:39.380 --> 00:21:42.799 by the... by the Holy Spirit. It has to align 00:21:42.799 --> 00:21:46.559 with Scripture. That's the only criteria. I'll 00:21:46.559 --> 00:21:50.279 tell you how, you know, Jesus says in John... 00:21:50.279 --> 00:21:51.980 He gives us a lot of really good insight into 00:21:51.980 --> 00:21:55.920 how the Spirit works in John 3, when He says 00:21:55.920 --> 00:21:57.880 that the Spirit is like wind. In fact, it's a 00:21:57.880 --> 00:22:00.259 play on words, right? Because the word Spirit 00:22:00.259 --> 00:22:04.210 itself is... is the Greek word pneumo. We get 00:22:04.210 --> 00:22:06.490 pneumonia from that, right? It has to do with 00:22:06.490 --> 00:22:10.069 wind and breath really is what it is, okay? So 00:22:10.069 --> 00:22:11.609 there's a little bit of a play on words and what 00:22:11.609 --> 00:22:14.589 he's saying there is that the spirit is like 00:22:14.589 --> 00:22:16.009 the wind. You didn't see where it came from, 00:22:16.049 --> 00:22:18.190 you don't see where it's going, but you do see 00:22:18.190 --> 00:22:22.089 its effects. So are also those who are born of 00:22:22.089 --> 00:22:24.769 the spirit, right? In other words, as Paul says 00:22:24.769 --> 00:22:28.109 in Galatians, the fruit or the effect. of the 00:22:28.109 --> 00:22:30.049 Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness. 00:22:30.450 --> 00:22:33.609 So the point is, number one, we don't control 00:22:33.609 --> 00:22:38.549 the Holy Spirit. He's not obligated to do what 00:22:38.549 --> 00:22:41.849 we want, right? Who's He listening to? Listen 00:22:41.849 --> 00:22:45.029 to the Father and the Son, right? And remember, 00:22:45.170 --> 00:22:48.750 even Jesus told them, He said, He was very clear 00:22:48.750 --> 00:22:52.369 about the order of authority. He said, I don't 00:22:52.369 --> 00:22:54.369 order the Holy Spirit. I'm going to ask the Father 00:22:54.369 --> 00:22:58.289 to send the Holy Spirit. So the Spirit is listening 00:22:58.289 --> 00:23:01.470 to the Father. We don't control Him. Secondly, 00:23:02.690 --> 00:23:05.869 we don't see Him directly when He's working. 00:23:06.930 --> 00:23:10.829 But you know the Holy Spirit has worked by His 00:23:10.829 --> 00:23:15.130 effects. And I think that's very important. You 00:23:15.130 --> 00:23:18.470 see the effect. And what's the effect? Well, 00:23:19.349 --> 00:23:22.609 fruit is the scriptural way of talking about 00:23:22.609 --> 00:23:27.859 effect. a changed heart, right? The joy that 00:23:27.859 --> 00:23:30.680 we're talking about is one of those ingredients, 00:23:30.880 --> 00:23:33.400 one of those effects of the Holy Spirit's work. 00:23:35.339 --> 00:23:37.319 And same with what you're saying, Larry. We know 00:23:37.319 --> 00:23:40.720 that, and back to your point, sweetheart, is 00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:46.430 that you don't know going forward in life Should 00:23:46.430 --> 00:23:48.910 I do this? Should I do that? You know, and so 00:23:48.910 --> 00:23:51.170 that Saturday, you know, I had other plans, but 00:23:51.170 --> 00:23:53.109 it just kept coming to mind again and again. 00:23:54.650 --> 00:23:56.289 We didn't know Hunt was going to pass away that 00:23:56.289 --> 00:23:59.269 Tuesday. No idea. I mean, we thought, I mean, 00:23:59.269 --> 00:24:00.890 the hope was that he was going to be at Elizabeth's 00:24:00.890 --> 00:24:03.809 house for a little while and then go back home 00:24:03.809 --> 00:24:08.230 and you know, maybe have some more months of 00:24:08.230 --> 00:24:13.509 recovery or whatever. But it was just a strong 00:24:13.509 --> 00:24:15.150 desire, and I'm like, okay, all right, and I 00:24:15.150 --> 00:24:18.349 really think this is maybe what the Word is telling 00:24:18.349 --> 00:24:20.049 me to do today, and I need to do it and make 00:24:20.049 --> 00:24:24.849 priority and do it. And in hindsight now, I look 00:24:24.849 --> 00:24:27.049 back and I say, okay, yeah, I can see where God 00:24:27.049 --> 00:24:29.089 used that, right? I think it's the same with 00:24:29.089 --> 00:24:35.970 you, Larry. But some rebuke like that that, well, 00:24:36.450 --> 00:24:38.190 he's not going to get saved now because you gave 00:24:38.190 --> 00:24:39.829 him that money, and I was trying to work in it. 00:24:40.970 --> 00:24:44.390 I wouldn't say that. You just lose a blessing 00:24:44.390 --> 00:24:49.210 in your own personal life. If you feel led, and 00:24:49.210 --> 00:24:54.789 I guess that's a loose term there, if you think 00:24:54.789 --> 00:24:58.430 you need to witness to somebody and you don't 00:24:58.430 --> 00:25:02.730 do it, that's not going to determine the outcome 00:25:02.730 --> 00:25:07.710 of God's election. Right. That just steals your 00:25:07.710 --> 00:25:09.950 blessing and yours because you didn't do it. 00:25:10.029 --> 00:25:14.009 That's right. We have a good example here in 00:25:14.009 --> 00:25:16.089 John, right? Remember at the beginning of John 00:25:16.089 --> 00:25:18.809 when the disciples were called and were given 00:25:18.809 --> 00:25:21.029 the calling for five disciples, including John 00:25:21.029 --> 00:25:24.049 himself and Andrew, Peter's brother, right? They 00:25:24.049 --> 00:25:26.470 were disciples of John the Baptist. And when 00:25:26.470 --> 00:25:29.750 Jesus came, remember He came to be baptized and 00:25:29.750 --> 00:25:32.119 then He was... Other gospels tell us that he 00:25:32.119 --> 00:25:34.259 was driven immediately after that into the wilderness 00:25:34.259 --> 00:25:37.299 for 40 days, tempted. The other gospels don't 00:25:37.299 --> 00:25:39.319 tell us what John tells us, is that after that 00:25:39.319 --> 00:25:41.819 temptation, Jesus came back to where John the 00:25:41.819 --> 00:25:45.559 Baptist was. And John the Apostle and Andrew 00:25:45.559 --> 00:25:48.420 were still there as disciples of John the Baptist. 00:25:49.000 --> 00:25:50.839 And Jesus comes back and then John the Baptist 00:25:50.839 --> 00:25:52.599 says, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the 00:25:52.599 --> 00:25:55.099 sin of the world. And apparently it was two days 00:25:55.099 --> 00:25:58.799 there that Jesus was hanging out. And John kept 00:25:58.799 --> 00:26:02.619 pointing his disciples to Jesus, and then John, 00:26:02.740 --> 00:26:05.880 the apostle, future apostle, and Andrew said, 00:26:06.079 --> 00:26:08.940 hmm, let's go follow him. And so they start following 00:26:08.940 --> 00:26:11.220 him, right? And remember that whole story, it's 00:26:11.220 --> 00:26:14.299 in John. And Jesus turns around and says, where 00:26:14.299 --> 00:26:17.079 are you going? Well, I don't know. We want to 00:26:17.079 --> 00:26:18.519 see where you are. You're going to stay, right? 00:26:18.680 --> 00:26:20.799 And this is kind of a funny scene in a way. He's 00:26:20.799 --> 00:26:26.369 like, come and see. Years later, John 15. Jesus 00:26:26.369 --> 00:26:30.450 tells him, you did not choose me, but I chose 00:26:30.450 --> 00:26:34.890 you to go bear fruit. Oh, wait a minute. We're 00:26:34.890 --> 00:26:37.309 the ones who decided it, John the Baptist. Remember 00:26:37.309 --> 00:26:39.990 when you were there, John the Baptist doing his 00:26:39.990 --> 00:26:46.049 thing, and we started following you? What's that? 00:26:46.190 --> 00:26:48.069 The Holy Spirit's already working, right? So, 00:26:48.089 --> 00:26:51.859 going forward, we don't know. You pray about 00:26:51.859 --> 00:26:54.339 things. You do know God's moral will, right? 00:26:54.359 --> 00:26:58.140 So if something is morally wrong in Scripture, 00:26:58.579 --> 00:27:01.480 that's sin, right? Divide like that. But for 00:27:01.480 --> 00:27:04.619 all these other things, what do you want to do? 00:27:05.460 --> 00:27:08.039 Do that, you know, and trust it to the Lord. 00:27:08.200 --> 00:27:10.400 If it's a really big decision, you know, something, 00:27:10.940 --> 00:27:13.319 pray about it. Get wisdom, you know, and try 00:27:13.319 --> 00:27:15.920 to make the best choice you can. And then watch 00:27:15.920 --> 00:27:19.039 God in hindsight use it in ways you never thought. 00:27:20.289 --> 00:27:22.690 So I'm sure all of us have had an experience 00:27:22.690 --> 00:27:25.289 of what we thought we were, we were following 00:27:25.289 --> 00:27:28.309 the story. It didn't bear fruit and we stopped. 00:27:28.470 --> 00:27:34.890 And I guess that's normal, you would think. I'll 00:27:34.890 --> 00:27:36.369 give you a good example of where I struggled 00:27:36.369 --> 00:27:40.589 with that earlier, some decades ago. We had a 00:27:40.589 --> 00:27:44.009 missionary family in this church that came for 00:27:44.009 --> 00:27:47.950 a while and they were kind of part of us sending 00:27:47.950 --> 00:27:50.779 them and we were supporting them. We personally 00:27:50.779 --> 00:27:54.059 were giving to them for several years and they 00:27:54.059 --> 00:27:56.579 went to where they were going to serve a couple 00:27:56.579 --> 00:27:59.259 years struggle didn't work out and they came 00:27:59.259 --> 00:28:01.339 back and back to the states and we're not doing 00:28:01.339 --> 00:28:04.279 that anymore Oh great, you know, I thought the 00:28:04.279 --> 00:28:07.579 Lord was gonna and and finally it dawned on me 00:28:07.579 --> 00:28:11.660 You know, why was I giving in the first place? 00:28:11.660 --> 00:28:15.440 Was it because I wanted to see some result that 00:28:15.440 --> 00:28:18.650 I thought I wanted in other words You can't look 00:28:18.650 --> 00:28:21.890 at giving, whether it's financial or giving of 00:28:21.890 --> 00:28:24.569 your time or your resources or your speech, you're 00:28:24.569 --> 00:28:26.910 talking to somebody, whatever. You can't look 00:28:26.910 --> 00:28:29.150 at any investment you put into the kingdom of 00:28:29.150 --> 00:28:31.329 God with the same eyes that you look at the stock 00:28:31.329 --> 00:28:33.690 market. When you put some money in the stock 00:28:33.690 --> 00:28:37.029 market, you want to be careful about, does this 00:28:37.029 --> 00:28:39.029 investment have a future where I'm going to get 00:28:39.029 --> 00:28:42.799 an ROI? kind of thing. And we take that thinking 00:28:42.799 --> 00:28:44.900 and we apply it to our investments in the Kingdom 00:28:44.900 --> 00:28:47.559 of God and you can't do that because you don't 00:28:47.559 --> 00:28:50.059 know what God is going to do with it. And God 00:28:50.059 --> 00:28:52.819 is not looking at the gift, He's looking at what? 00:28:53.039 --> 00:28:55.980 Your heart. He's looking at your faith as you 00:28:55.980 --> 00:28:58.059 give it. So even if those missionaries come back 00:28:58.059 --> 00:29:00.319 or you don't get the result you thought you were 00:29:00.319 --> 00:29:03.269 going to get out of it, is it... That's really 00:29:03.269 --> 00:29:05.329 where you have search your heart was I just doing 00:29:05.329 --> 00:29:07.950 this for me for my glory? Because I was excited 00:29:07.950 --> 00:29:10.789 about some outcome as I do because I want to 00:29:10.789 --> 00:29:15.630 see God's kingdom his name advanced and see him 00:29:15.630 --> 00:29:18.369 pleased and However, he whatever he wants to 00:29:18.369 --> 00:29:21.369 do with it is not up to me. You know I'm saying 00:29:21.369 --> 00:29:24.470 it's a different way of thinking for believers 00:29:32.359 --> 00:29:35.019 You tell them, you know, God's knocking on your 00:29:35.019 --> 00:29:36.720 heart, you know, come see me. We're going to 00:29:36.720 --> 00:29:39.880 pray and receive Christ and we do. And then they 00:29:39.880 --> 00:29:44.079 grow up and it all fizzles out. So that's kind 00:29:44.079 --> 00:29:46.940 of the same thing, isn't it? In a way, yes. Yes, 00:29:46.940 --> 00:29:49.500 it is. You know, you really, I really believe 00:29:49.500 --> 00:29:54.019 that because I was really pouring all of this, 00:29:54.279 --> 00:29:56.700 you know, my whole heart, soul, mind into my 00:29:56.700 --> 00:30:00.700 kids, that they would come to Christ. by a certain 00:30:00.700 --> 00:30:04.059 age, I really believed that. And it didn't happen, 00:30:04.200 --> 00:30:07.519 and so that's kind of a hard pill to swallow. 00:30:08.299 --> 00:30:11.400 Especially when you see other people's kids that 00:30:11.400 --> 00:30:13.960 are in Christ, and their parents did the same 00:30:13.960 --> 00:30:16.000 thing. It's like, well, does God love them more 00:30:16.000 --> 00:30:18.319 than He loves me? Because their kids got saved. 00:30:18.380 --> 00:30:20.619 Why couldn't my kids get saved when they were 00:30:20.619 --> 00:30:24.380 10 or whatever? You know? So it doesn't make 00:30:24.380 --> 00:30:31.960 sense. You have to in that and really in all 00:30:31.960 --> 00:30:36.539 situations get your eyes off of the results And 00:30:36.539 --> 00:30:38.900 get your eyes where? Where does the writer of 00:30:38.900 --> 00:30:43.039 Hebrews tell us looking unto? Jesus the author 00:30:43.039 --> 00:30:45.579 in fact this is this is really good setup because 00:30:45.579 --> 00:30:48.559 that's what joy is rooted in That's the essence 00:30:48.559 --> 00:30:51.119 of joy right there. That's the real secret of 00:30:51.119 --> 00:30:56.410 joy is is that that I am Scripture admonishes 00:30:56.410 --> 00:31:06.089 us to rejoice in circumstances. Well, yeah, okay, 00:31:06.289 --> 00:31:09.349 rejoice. I'm thinking of Philippians 4, right? 00:31:09.369 --> 00:31:14.789 Rejoice in the Lord, right? I will say it again. 00:31:16.130 --> 00:31:19.869 Rejoice. Why did Paul have to say that twice? 00:31:21.250 --> 00:31:24.490 He's distracted with everything else. We're looking. 00:31:25.160 --> 00:31:28.160 for joy and everything else. Alright, so let's 00:31:28.160 --> 00:31:33.819 get to our point here, okay? Our text. Point 00:31:33.819 --> 00:31:37.299 number three on our outline. Jesus requests that 00:31:37.299 --> 00:31:41.059 the Father sanctify the disciples from the world 00:31:41.059 --> 00:31:43.480 system. And we started this last time. There's 00:31:43.480 --> 00:31:46.279 verses 13 through 19. Let me read that if you 00:31:46.279 --> 00:31:50.720 want to follow along. John 17, 13 through 19. 00:31:50.759 --> 00:31:55.119 He says here, but now I am coming to you. and 00:31:55.119 --> 00:31:57.740 these things I speak in the world that they may 00:31:57.740 --> 00:32:04.640 have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given 00:32:04.640 --> 00:32:09.039 them your word and the world has hated them because 00:32:09.039 --> 00:32:11.400 they are not of the world just as I am not of 00:32:11.400 --> 00:32:14.960 the world. I do not ask that you take them out 00:32:14.960 --> 00:32:18.039 of the world but that you keep them from the 00:32:18.039 --> 00:32:21.960 evil one. They are not of the world just as I 00:32:21.960 --> 00:32:26.059 am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth 00:32:26.059 --> 00:32:31.640 your word is truth as You sent me into the world 00:32:31.640 --> 00:32:34.880 so I have sent them into the world and for their 00:32:34.880 --> 00:32:39.619 sake I consecrate myself That they may also be 00:32:39.619 --> 00:32:44.079 consecrated in truth What going on there yes, 00:32:44.079 --> 00:32:49.839 it's a lot Yes, yes and since you brought that 00:32:49.839 --> 00:32:55.059 up remember that in this context of these five 00:32:55.059 --> 00:32:58.599 chapters, it's very important that we understand 00:32:58.599 --> 00:33:01.819 the word world as Jesus intends for it to be 00:33:01.819 --> 00:33:07.420 understood. It is not everybody and everything, 00:33:07.859 --> 00:33:11.420 it's not earth, it's not even broader human culture. 00:33:13.160 --> 00:33:17.200 It's specifically that system that they were 00:33:17.200 --> 00:33:21.380 born and raised into. And so when he's saying 00:33:21.380 --> 00:33:23.859 here that the world has hated them, that's past 00:33:23.859 --> 00:33:27.059 tense, right? That's not talking about, well, 00:33:27.180 --> 00:33:29.779 that's talking about me. Well, in a way it is, 00:33:29.960 --> 00:33:31.599 okay? The world will hate you, we know that, 00:33:31.599 --> 00:33:33.960 okay? But we know that from other scriptures 00:33:33.960 --> 00:33:35.779 as well where Paul says all those who desire 00:33:35.779 --> 00:33:39.079 to live godly will suffer persecution, okay? 00:33:39.099 --> 00:33:41.480 You can expect that, Christian, even if you're 00:33:41.480 --> 00:33:45.359 not in Nigeria and China. You can expect pressure. 00:33:45.640 --> 00:33:48.029 You can expect people... Like my friend, it's 00:33:48.029 --> 00:33:49.269 one of the things that I think he's struggling 00:33:49.269 --> 00:33:53.170 with in this church that he's in. If you leave 00:33:53.170 --> 00:33:58.089 that sort of perspective and you go follow after 00:33:58.089 --> 00:34:02.390 these sort of backwoods country churches over 00:34:02.390 --> 00:34:04.849 here that are extreme and they actually take 00:34:04.849 --> 00:34:07.089 the Bible literally, then you're kind of looked 00:34:07.089 --> 00:34:10.510 down on intellectually. You're just a little 00:34:10.510 --> 00:34:14.010 out there, okay? So there's pressure there, too. 00:34:14.389 --> 00:34:17.429 Anyway, the point is, That is all true, but that's 00:34:17.429 --> 00:34:19.949 not his point here. His point here, remember, 00:34:19.969 --> 00:34:22.570 he's praying for his disciples who were born 00:34:22.570 --> 00:34:26.929 and raised in that system, and that system hated 00:34:26.929 --> 00:34:29.989 Jesus, and it's going to hate them too, right? 00:34:29.989 --> 00:34:32.010 So yes, you see the word world in here a lot, 00:34:32.030 --> 00:34:34.289 and that's important. I don't want to focus on 00:34:34.289 --> 00:34:37.309 those verse 13 this morning, but I'm coming to 00:34:37.309 --> 00:34:39.550 you, of course, speaking to the Father, and these 00:34:39.550 --> 00:34:42.510 things I speak in the world. Notice another thing 00:34:42.510 --> 00:34:44.809 that's very important. Remember this whole section, 00:34:45.449 --> 00:34:48.050 The main theme in here that we there's a lot 00:34:48.050 --> 00:34:50.469 of things going on But the main trunk line that 00:34:50.469 --> 00:34:52.150 we don't want to miss okay that all the other 00:34:52.150 --> 00:34:55.610 limbs are growing off of okay is truth It's truth. 00:34:55.909 --> 00:35:02.409 So even in verse 13 This this joy is sandwiched 00:35:02.409 --> 00:35:05.769 between truth. It's hard to miss it It's hard 00:35:05.769 --> 00:35:08.030 to see it at first, but once you see it, it's 00:35:08.030 --> 00:35:10.650 hard to unsee it, right? So these things I speak 00:35:10.650 --> 00:35:13.480 in the world what things? the other four chapters. 00:35:13.679 --> 00:35:16.260 He just laid out for them the plan of what's 00:35:16.260 --> 00:35:18.320 coming, right? He warned them that the world, 00:35:18.559 --> 00:35:21.139 he is leaving and the Holy Spirit is coming and 00:35:21.139 --> 00:35:24.039 the Father is working and you can now go and 00:35:24.039 --> 00:35:27.360 pray in my name and the world is going to hate 00:35:27.360 --> 00:35:29.820 you. They're going to kick you out of the synagogues 00:35:29.820 --> 00:35:31.820 and they're going to think that when they kill 00:35:31.820 --> 00:35:33.719 you they're doing God a service and all of these 00:35:33.719 --> 00:35:37.159 kinds of things. He's told them this. which is 00:35:37.159 --> 00:35:39.719 nothing less than God's truth. He's given them 00:35:39.719 --> 00:35:42.159 to God's truth, right? So that's that. I speak 00:35:42.159 --> 00:35:45.500 in the world that they may have my joy, right? 00:35:45.500 --> 00:35:48.320 That's the contents of the sandwich here, okay? 00:35:48.920 --> 00:35:50.900 Fulfilled in themselves. And then look at verse 00:35:50.900 --> 00:35:54.019 14. I have given them your word. So that's the 00:35:54.019 --> 00:35:55.980 same thing. He says it twice, right? I've spoken 00:35:55.980 --> 00:35:57.840 these things to them and then I've given them 00:35:57.840 --> 00:36:00.539 your word, right? He isn't saying, I've spoken 00:36:00.539 --> 00:36:02.960 to them about other unrelated things. Oh, by 00:36:02.960 --> 00:36:04.559 the way, I've also given them your word too. 00:36:05.710 --> 00:36:09.730 The joy is sandwiched in between these statements 00:36:09.730 --> 00:36:14.090 affirming the power of God's Word. Reputation. 00:36:14.530 --> 00:36:16.690 Okay? And the importance of God's Word. And that's 00:36:16.690 --> 00:36:22.889 not an accident. Notice he says, my joy, right? 00:36:22.969 --> 00:36:27.170 And last time I pointed out to you that earlier 00:36:27.170 --> 00:36:32.690 in chapter 14 verse 27, okay? He calls it, my 00:36:32.690 --> 00:36:35.309 peace I give to you. Not as the world gives, 00:36:35.389 --> 00:36:39.670 do I give to you, but I give, my peace, right? 00:36:39.809 --> 00:36:43.969 And when we studied my peace, he's not saying, 00:36:44.510 --> 00:36:46.469 hey, you can get peace in the world and you can 00:36:46.469 --> 00:36:48.949 also get it from me. What he's saying is, the 00:36:48.949 --> 00:36:51.309 peace that I give you is a different kind of 00:36:51.309 --> 00:36:55.769 peace than the same, you get, we call it the 00:36:55.769 --> 00:36:57.530 same word and it's confusing, right? But it's 00:36:57.530 --> 00:36:59.329 really the different kind of peace than what 00:36:59.329 --> 00:37:03.969 you get in the world. And in that context, the 00:37:03.969 --> 00:37:08.889 peace that Jesus had, now remember, what's he 00:37:08.889 --> 00:37:13.110 facing as he's talking to them? The cross! It's 00:37:13.110 --> 00:37:17.690 hours away from bearing the sins of the world, 00:37:17.969 --> 00:37:22.050 right? And the wrath of God is about to be poured 00:37:22.050 --> 00:37:25.070 out on him and he's talking about, I have peace 00:37:25.070 --> 00:37:31.199 and I have joy. What? If anyone had the right 00:37:31.199 --> 00:37:35.019 to say, I'm really disturbed, you know, and I'm 00:37:35.019 --> 00:37:37.940 really depressed and I'm hopeless in this dark 00:37:37.940 --> 00:37:40.880 hour, it would be him. But he's talking about 00:37:40.880 --> 00:37:45.179 my peace and my joy. And there's a secret there, 00:37:45.440 --> 00:37:49.860 if you'll pay attention, that Jesus' peace and 00:37:49.860 --> 00:37:54.559 joy are not dependent on circumstances. They 00:37:54.559 --> 00:37:56.920 have nothing to do with what he's about to face. 00:37:57.559 --> 00:38:00.440 they have everything to do with the fact that 00:38:00.440 --> 00:38:04.599 God is fully sovereign and in control and Have 00:38:04.599 --> 00:38:06.639 everything to do with the fact that even though 00:38:06.639 --> 00:38:11.380 he's about to face the darkest Time that any 00:38:11.380 --> 00:38:13.519 human being has ever faced you and I haven't 00:38:13.519 --> 00:38:15.599 faced anything like what he faced and we never 00:38:15.599 --> 00:38:20.800 will thank God Okay But as he's about to to to 00:38:20.800 --> 00:38:24.639 take on God is about to take on God as Sin and 00:38:24.639 --> 00:38:28.000 be the sin bearer for us He's talking about peace 00:38:28.000 --> 00:38:31.880 and joy because he knows some truth. The writer 00:38:31.880 --> 00:38:35.199 of Hebrews tells us that he scorned the cross, 00:38:35.420 --> 00:38:38.239 despising the shame. Why? Because he looked beyond 00:38:38.239 --> 00:38:43.639 that to the joy set before him. He knew that 00:38:43.639 --> 00:38:48.380 the cross was not the end. He's not going to 00:38:48.380 --> 00:38:50.440 go to the grave and stay there and then go to 00:38:50.440 --> 00:38:53.960 hell and that's it, right? He's going to go to 00:38:53.960 --> 00:38:57.340 hell and back for you and I. but he's going to 00:38:57.340 --> 00:39:00.000 be resurrected and he's going to ascend to heaven 00:39:00.000 --> 00:39:03.119 and he knows that on the other side of that God 00:39:03.119 --> 00:39:06.059 is in control of all of those circumstances and 00:39:06.059 --> 00:39:09.739 it's part of yes the darkest part but it's part 00:39:09.739 --> 00:39:13.980 of this larger grand plan that will ultimately 00:39:13.980 --> 00:39:17.559 result in glory and redemption and restoration 00:39:17.559 --> 00:39:23.239 right and revelation of God to all of us and 00:39:23.239 --> 00:39:27.219 to to praise and worship of him and of the Father. 00:39:27.900 --> 00:39:30.840 And so he's willing to go through all of that, 00:39:30.940 --> 00:39:33.760 yes, because of his love for us, but also because 00:39:33.760 --> 00:39:36.119 he wants to bring glory to the Father. Remember 00:39:36.119 --> 00:39:39.500 how the prayer started, right? Glorify yourself. 00:39:39.719 --> 00:39:42.599 You know, I've glorified you, now glorify me, 00:39:42.679 --> 00:39:46.219 right? He's interested in glory. That's on his 00:39:46.219 --> 00:39:49.340 heart as well. And the secret to that is, again, 00:39:49.360 --> 00:39:54.489 don't miss this, the truth God so the things 00:39:54.489 --> 00:39:57.369 that he has imparted to them that he's been telling 00:39:57.369 --> 00:40:04.090 them That truth is the soil in which this joy 00:40:04.090 --> 00:40:08.829 grows Not and that's very important because they're 00:40:08.829 --> 00:40:12.429 about to face The darkest time that in their 00:40:12.429 --> 00:40:15.809 lives up to that point right especially who? 00:40:16.309 --> 00:40:19.989 Peter right He's got three days of ruminating 00:40:19.989 --> 00:40:25.269 on Jesus' look at him. Can you imagine that? 00:40:25.369 --> 00:40:28.610 I mean, that look burns. I think it's Luke that 00:40:28.610 --> 00:40:30.469 tells us about that, that Jesus turned and looked 00:40:30.469 --> 00:40:35.230 at him at that final denial, right? Can you imagine? 00:40:35.650 --> 00:40:38.949 I mean, I can almost see that look myself. It 00:40:38.949 --> 00:40:41.409 just burns through the scriptures in our eyes. 00:40:41.809 --> 00:40:46.550 Peter whipped bitterly, right? even in the midst 00:40:46.550 --> 00:40:50.170 of the tears and the depression and the disappointment 00:40:50.170 --> 00:40:53.570 in your own, I swore I was going to stand with 00:40:53.570 --> 00:40:55.530 Him and all the others would do better. I'd even 00:40:55.530 --> 00:40:58.630 die with Him and here I am denying Him in front 00:40:58.630 --> 00:41:03.489 of some servant girl, you know, and my joy, my 00:41:03.489 --> 00:41:15.719 peace, not rooted in circumstance. It's truth, 00:41:16.380 --> 00:41:18.360 you know, my truth I live with you, which is 00:41:18.360 --> 00:41:22.039 peace, joy, you know, but those attributes don't 00:41:22.039 --> 00:41:24.039 mystically come, you know, they come to the Holy 00:41:24.039 --> 00:41:26.920 Spirit. I always thought whenever he said, my 00:41:26.920 --> 00:41:29.280 peace, I live with you, my joy, I live with you, 00:41:29.460 --> 00:41:33.400 that he was speaking directly of the Holy Spirit. 00:41:34.179 --> 00:41:39.039 Is that off base? Well, the Holy Spirit. You're 00:41:39.039 --> 00:41:40.480 not going to get peace and joy without the Holy 00:41:40.480 --> 00:41:44.079 Spirit. Yes, but the means. So I'm leaving you 00:41:44.079 --> 00:41:46.360 the comforter. And I'm leaving you in peace. 00:41:46.599 --> 00:41:51.079 I'm leaving you in joy. And how does that come 00:41:51.079 --> 00:41:53.699 without the Holy Spirit? The means by which the 00:41:53.699 --> 00:41:57.480 Holy Spirit brings that is by helping us to really 00:41:57.480 --> 00:42:02.800 understand and apply and live in the truth. And 00:42:02.800 --> 00:42:05.840 they have to work, they work hand in hand. In 00:42:05.840 --> 00:42:07.800 other words, and that's an important point, David, 00:42:07.800 --> 00:42:12.800 thank you, because to hear a lot of... people 00:42:12.800 --> 00:42:16.480 talk today about the Holy Spirit you would almost 00:42:16.480 --> 00:42:20.739 it's almost like he's been assigned to this sort 00:42:20.739 --> 00:42:25.659 of mystical drug in a way that you sort of moves 00:42:25.659 --> 00:42:28.159 in and I just feel so peaceful you know you heard 00:42:28.159 --> 00:42:29.880 my story about the time that I went to the doctor 00:42:29.880 --> 00:42:32.440 some years ago and had some back pain and and 00:42:32.440 --> 00:42:35.139 I thought anyway it turned out to be some muscle 00:42:35.139 --> 00:42:40.150 pain back there and getting older and she It's 00:42:40.150 --> 00:42:42.389 actually physician assistant. She she gave me 00:42:42.389 --> 00:42:45.329 some muscle relaxants, you know there this will 00:42:45.329 --> 00:42:48.750 help you feel better to you kind of Okay, so 00:42:48.750 --> 00:42:52.949 I'd start taking them. I was so chill man. I 00:42:52.949 --> 00:42:57.550 was driving Nothing bothered me, which is saying 00:42:57.550 --> 00:43:03.349 a lot for me, right? So I But I was just not 00:43:03.349 --> 00:43:05.010 motivated I didn't want to get out cut the grass 00:43:05.010 --> 00:43:08.190 do any of that kind of stuff, right and and but 00:43:08.190 --> 00:43:11.409 this Holy Spirit Sometimes it's presented like 00:43:11.409 --> 00:43:13.469 that. Well, all you need is you don't have joy 00:43:13.469 --> 00:43:15.409 and peace in your heart. Well, just just get 00:43:15.409 --> 00:43:20.849 the Holy Spirit man Well, the Holy Spirit isn't 00:43:20.849 --> 00:43:22.929 first of all isn't a drug right? We know that 00:43:22.929 --> 00:43:26.289 he's not a mystical force He's a person and he's 00:43:26.289 --> 00:43:28.949 he is not again He's not listening to us and 00:43:28.949 --> 00:43:31.309 what we want. It's not a pill that you take to 00:43:31.309 --> 00:43:33.550 get the outcome you want He's listening to God 00:43:33.550 --> 00:43:37.500 the Father right who has Your sanctification 00:43:37.500 --> 00:43:40.699 in mind and and so he's going to use the Holy 00:43:40.699 --> 00:43:43.739 Spirit who then uses or the Holy Spirit I should 00:43:43.739 --> 00:43:46.219 say in cooperation with father is going to use 00:43:46.219 --> 00:43:48.820 the truth of God. Here's how this works Remember 00:43:48.820 --> 00:43:52.019 how Paul what Paul said when I was a child I 00:43:52.019 --> 00:43:55.000 what? Thought like a child. I spoke like a child 00:43:55.000 --> 00:43:57.099 acted like a child, but now that I've become 00:43:57.099 --> 00:44:00.699 a man I put away childish things Paul's point 00:44:00.699 --> 00:44:05.360 is that as you grow up in your physical life 00:44:05.800 --> 00:44:08.579 The things that bothered you or that concerned 00:44:08.579 --> 00:44:13.460 you or that were a fear to you or source of frustration 00:44:13.460 --> 00:44:17.000 for you as a child change, should change, as 00:44:17.000 --> 00:44:20.760 you get older. Why? Because I'm bigger now, right? 00:44:20.880 --> 00:44:25.420 Well, somewhat. But really because you have learned 00:44:25.420 --> 00:44:29.559 many things that are true now, that were true 00:44:29.559 --> 00:44:33.440 then, but you understand it better now. Let me 00:44:33.440 --> 00:44:38.059 give you a great example. As children, probably 00:44:38.059 --> 00:44:40.099 all of us at one point or another were afraid 00:44:40.099 --> 00:44:41.800 when the lights went out at night, right, in 00:44:41.800 --> 00:44:47.260 the room. Afraid of the dark. Common fear. Now, 00:44:47.599 --> 00:44:53.159 do you struggle with that? I like it. Rick's 00:44:53.159 --> 00:44:57.800 always in the dark, isn't he? Yeah. No. You know, 00:44:57.800 --> 00:44:59.679 when I go down to the basement now and I'll turn 00:44:59.679 --> 00:45:01.699 the lights out, sometimes it's dark. I mean, 00:45:01.820 --> 00:45:03.659 it is pitch black down there, right? There's 00:45:03.659 --> 00:45:05.880 no light at all. anywhere, not even a little 00:45:05.880 --> 00:45:09.199 LED or something. And it just, the other day 00:45:09.199 --> 00:45:10.980 it struck me, I was just, cause I knew where 00:45:10.980 --> 00:45:12.400 the other door was and I was turning the light 00:45:12.400 --> 00:45:14.820 out and walking over there and it didn't bother 00:45:14.820 --> 00:45:17.099 me at all. And I was like, you know, as a child, 00:45:17.179 --> 00:45:18.960 I'd have been, and my girls were really afraid 00:45:18.960 --> 00:45:20.659 of the basement. You know, they tell us now, 00:45:20.860 --> 00:45:22.300 we wouldn't want to go to the basement without 00:45:22.300 --> 00:45:25.360 daddy, you know. Well, point is, and I told them 00:45:25.360 --> 00:45:28.199 when they were little, there's nothing there 00:45:28.199 --> 00:45:31.880 in the dark that's not there in the light. Right? 00:45:32.280 --> 00:45:35.639 As an adult, you know that, but as a child, you 00:45:35.639 --> 00:45:38.500 don't know that. So Paul's point is that as we 00:45:38.500 --> 00:45:41.880 grow in truth of God's Word, you learn more and 00:45:41.880 --> 00:45:45.440 more about who God is and what He has promised. 00:45:45.539 --> 00:45:49.019 And then, here it is, sports fans, how trustworthy 00:45:49.019 --> 00:45:54.480 He is and how you can really lean into His sovereignty. 00:45:54.699 --> 00:45:58.980 And He really will not let you down. And as you 00:45:58.980 --> 00:46:02.670 learn to, as it were, timidly at first but more 00:46:02.670 --> 00:46:05.429 and more as you grow as a believer put more and 00:46:05.429 --> 00:46:10.250 more weight onto God and and and trust in him 00:46:10.250 --> 00:46:12.670 and faith you know what scripture calls that 00:46:12.670 --> 00:46:15.969 growing in faith that's what that is faith is 00:46:15.969 --> 00:46:19.150 again it's not just belief but belief in truth 00:46:19.150 --> 00:46:22.309 and it's my part of the truth and as I take the 00:46:22.309 --> 00:46:24.909 faith that is the body of truth that God has 00:46:24.909 --> 00:46:27.349 delivered in his word and it becomes part of 00:46:27.230 --> 00:46:30.550 my thinking and I assimilate and I let it work 00:46:30.550 --> 00:46:33.110 into how I think and how I view the world and 00:46:33.110 --> 00:46:34.969 view what's happening in my life more and more 00:46:34.969 --> 00:46:39.829 as I grow in that and then as like Larry was 00:46:39.829 --> 00:46:42.389 saying a second ago and as you look back and 00:46:42.389 --> 00:46:45.429 you see those times of fear and disappointment 00:46:45.429 --> 00:46:48.869 and how God worked even in those dark points 00:46:48.869 --> 00:46:51.960 in your life and But he turned things around 00:46:51.960 --> 00:46:54.139 and now you're in a place that's very different 00:46:54.139 --> 00:46:56.719 than where you thought you would be. And you 00:46:56.719 --> 00:47:01.400 start to learn to trust more and more. God's 00:47:01.400 --> 00:47:06.320 Word is true. He can be trusted. Right? And then 00:47:06.320 --> 00:47:10.360 that builds faith and strength for the next trial 00:47:10.360 --> 00:47:13.179 that comes. And you're a little stronger for 00:47:13.179 --> 00:47:15.639 that. And guess what God is doing? It's how He 00:47:15.639 --> 00:47:18.909 works. And we know that He has promised, what? 00:47:19.130 --> 00:47:25.429 Romans 8 .28. We know, not we feel, we know that 00:47:25.429 --> 00:47:27.809 God works all things together for good. Those 00:47:27.809 --> 00:47:30.030 who love Him will call to corn His purpose. That's 00:47:30.030 --> 00:47:32.409 hard when you're sitting in the doctor and you're 00:47:32.409 --> 00:47:35.250 hearing a cancer diagnosis, right? It's hard 00:47:35.250 --> 00:47:37.849 when your children aren't where you want them 00:47:37.849 --> 00:47:41.989 to be, okay? It's hard where, it's hard in, you 00:47:41.989 --> 00:47:44.570 know... job stress, whatever, you know, all of 00:47:44.570 --> 00:47:46.989 these things that we face, and we all face trials 00:47:46.989 --> 00:47:51.469 of many kinds, James says, but we know some things, 00:47:51.510 --> 00:47:55.989 right? And because we know these things, our 00:47:55.989 --> 00:48:00.170 joy is preserved. And it's not happiness, right? 00:48:00.210 --> 00:48:01.949 It's not happiness. Jesus is not talking about 00:48:01.949 --> 00:48:05.449 happiness here. He's about to face, even before 00:48:05.449 --> 00:48:07.969 the cross is the garden, right? He's right after 00:48:07.969 --> 00:48:10.130 this prayer right here is when I believe that 00:48:10.130 --> 00:48:13.400 He separated the three disciples, Peter, James, 00:48:13.480 --> 00:48:15.639 and John, and then he went himself a little distance 00:48:15.639 --> 00:48:19.579 from them to call out in prayer and even, as 00:48:19.579 --> 00:48:22.820 Luke says, sweat great drops of blood. He was 00:48:22.820 --> 00:48:25.579 humanly speaking with the high level of anxiety 00:48:25.579 --> 00:48:28.440 about what's about to happen to him. They're 00:48:28.440 --> 00:48:32.340 still under that. He is still rejoicing in the 00:48:32.340 --> 00:48:35.820 fact that God is in charge of all these things 00:48:35.820 --> 00:48:38.880 and he is playing it out, even if I don't understand. 00:48:39.400 --> 00:48:43.139 where it's going and how we're going to get there. 00:48:43.219 --> 00:48:45.920 I know we'll get there. Because like a child, 00:48:47.360 --> 00:48:50.960 I trust my daddy, right? I trust him. He knows 00:48:50.960 --> 00:48:54.139 what he's doing. And unlike human daddies that 00:48:54.139 --> 00:48:56.519 don't know everything and do fail their promises, 00:48:57.579 --> 00:49:00.980 our Heavenly Father will not fail every promise 00:49:00.980 --> 00:49:03.920 He has. And as Erica said this morning, that 00:49:03.920 --> 00:49:06.659 power that, Paul, we're going to talk about it 00:49:06.659 --> 00:49:08.889 next time we're willing when we... get together 00:49:08.889 --> 00:49:12.989 again for our study in Ephesians, that power 00:49:12.989 --> 00:49:15.889 there, four words for power that are mentioned 00:49:15.889 --> 00:49:19.909 in Ephesians 1 .19, God's working, God's ability, 00:49:20.170 --> 00:49:22.590 His mighty power, His strength, all of those 00:49:22.590 --> 00:49:26.769 words there become the spring head and it's like 00:49:26.769 --> 00:49:29.429 a river that flows to the rest of the chapters 00:49:29.429 --> 00:49:35.650 in Ephesians that basically tells us there's 00:49:35.650 --> 00:49:40.159 no obstacle that you face that's too big for 00:49:40.159 --> 00:49:44.079 God. The world of flesh and the devil, as mentioned 00:49:44.079 --> 00:49:47.739 in chapter 2, can't stop Him. Death can't stop 00:49:47.739 --> 00:49:53.280 Him. Your sin can't stop Him. There's nothing 00:49:53.280 --> 00:49:56.340 that can stop God. His purposes in your life 00:49:56.340 --> 00:50:00.179 will be accomplished. And thank God for that. 00:50:00.460 --> 00:50:03.820 And so that is the basis then of this joy. We 00:50:03.820 --> 00:50:08.519 can rejoice, and by the way, joy is the noun 00:50:08.519 --> 00:50:11.980 rejoices the verbal form, right? So when you 00:50:11.980 --> 00:50:14.659 see that in your English, it's the same root 00:50:14.659 --> 00:50:19.800 word in Greek, but it's just a noun and verbal 00:50:19.800 --> 00:50:23.440 form. Okay, so let's look at a few two texts 00:50:23.440 --> 00:50:26.280 of Scripture. These really speak to this and 00:50:26.280 --> 00:50:31.300 sort of hammer the point home for us. Let's turn 00:50:31.300 --> 00:50:34.500 first to a very well -known verse here. In fact, 00:50:35.260 --> 00:50:38.340 My wife has that on the front of her bag there. 00:50:38.860 --> 00:50:41.480 Psalm 37, you want to read that for us? Psalm 00:50:41.480 --> 00:50:53.699 37 verse 4. In English, it makes it sound 37 00:50:53.699 --> 00:51:02.280 -4, right? 34. 37 -4. Prepositions are a hard 00:51:02.280 --> 00:51:06.780 thing in some of these source languages. In English, 00:51:06.880 --> 00:51:10.039 our prepositions are very, very specific. I went 00:51:10.039 --> 00:51:14.619 through the cloud. I went over the cloud. I went 00:51:14.619 --> 00:51:16.780 under the cloud. I went around the cloud. All 00:51:16.780 --> 00:51:21.360 of these things add subtle differences. And so 00:51:21.360 --> 00:51:24.639 in some of these other two languages, Hebrew 00:51:24.639 --> 00:51:28.039 and Greek, they kind of depend on more broader 00:51:28.039 --> 00:51:31.880 context to get the preposition right. And so, 00:51:32.219 --> 00:51:34.239 in English, it makes it sound like He'll just 00:51:34.239 --> 00:51:35.960 give you what you want. Delight yourself in the 00:51:35.960 --> 00:51:38.579 Lord and He'll give you what you want. It's better 00:51:38.579 --> 00:51:41.519 to translate it, though, I think, given what 00:51:41.519 --> 00:51:43.940 Scripture teaches here. And you could translate 00:51:43.940 --> 00:51:46.880 it this way. He will give you the desires for 00:51:46.880 --> 00:51:50.800 your heart. In other words, kind of confirming 00:51:50.800 --> 00:51:53.960 what we talked about a minute ago, that the Lord 00:51:53.960 --> 00:51:57.599 works in and through our desires. And I know 00:51:57.599 --> 00:52:00.469 that's true in my life when... when I really 00:52:00.469 --> 00:52:04.429 got saved, I now had new desires that weren't 00:52:04.429 --> 00:52:06.909 there. I wanted other people to know what I was 00:52:06.909 --> 00:52:08.909 learning. I was excited about it, and the scripture, 00:52:09.110 --> 00:52:12.750 boom, opened up. And now I have a desire to read 00:52:12.750 --> 00:52:14.769 the scriptures, you know, and whereas before 00:52:14.769 --> 00:52:16.510 it was a chore, you know, I've got to do this, 00:52:16.590 --> 00:52:19.909 check the box. And now it's like, man, like Erica 00:52:19.909 --> 00:52:21.469 was excited this morning, right? This is what 00:52:21.469 --> 00:52:23.610 God's shown me. She's excited about it. That's 00:52:23.610 --> 00:52:25.969 good. That's good. That's new desires. I got 00:52:25.969 --> 00:52:32.239 to pursue Him, study Him. Study Him. Study the 00:52:32.239 --> 00:52:35.199 word, but what's the prerequisite delight yourself 00:52:35.199 --> 00:52:38.619 in the Lord, right? That's another that's kind 00:52:38.619 --> 00:52:42.840 of a synonym for joy is Delight take take delight 00:52:42.840 --> 00:52:45.760 and that's a choice right to to delight yourself 00:52:45.760 --> 00:52:48.880 That's part of the trust and and there's an it 00:52:48.880 --> 00:52:51.960 is an excitement there even even when you're 00:52:51.960 --> 00:52:57.039 facing a difficult circumstance Emotionally you 00:52:57.039 --> 00:52:59.300 don't want to do that. But there's a it's another 00:52:59.300 --> 00:53:01.920 part of you where you know, okay I know this 00:53:01.920 --> 00:53:05.139 is part of what God has, and He's going to bring 00:53:05.139 --> 00:53:07.659 glory to Himself in my life, and growth in my 00:53:07.659 --> 00:53:10.059 life, and maybe other people. I don't know what 00:53:10.059 --> 00:53:11.780 that future is going to be like, but I know it's 00:53:11.780 --> 00:53:14.019 a bright future. So there's a delight there. 00:53:14.380 --> 00:53:16.239 Again, not in the circumstances. It doesn't say 00:53:16.239 --> 00:53:19.639 delight in circumstances, or delight in happenstance, 00:53:19.840 --> 00:53:22.420 or delight in your money, delight in health. 00:53:22.539 --> 00:53:24.719 It doesn't say any of that. It says delight where? 00:53:24.880 --> 00:53:33.070 In the Lord. to go the opposite way, the claimant 00:53:33.070 --> 00:53:36.429 group uses that as something to say, well, if 00:53:36.429 --> 00:53:39.409 I pray hard enough or long enough or whatever, 00:53:39.570 --> 00:53:42.449 then I should get whatever I want. So if it's 00:53:42.449 --> 00:53:44.849 taken out of context and used in a way, that's 00:53:44.849 --> 00:53:48.010 one of the passages they use. That's right. That's 00:53:48.010 --> 00:53:50.869 right. But they never define what delight yourself 00:53:50.869 --> 00:53:53.889 and the Lord means, right? And then you have, 00:53:53.989 --> 00:53:56.829 as Paul Zurich in our study likes to say, a coin 00:53:56.829 --> 00:54:00.019 -operated God. I put my little thing in and I 00:54:00.019 --> 00:54:03.019 get what I want out of my little God. Which by 00:54:03.019 --> 00:54:05.739 the way, that's a hallmark of an idol. If your 00:54:05.739 --> 00:54:08.659 God never disagrees with you, you have an idol. 00:54:09.920 --> 00:54:14.659 If your God always follows your little prescription 00:54:14.659 --> 00:54:16.960 for stuff and you get the little thing out at 00:54:16.960 --> 00:54:21.300 the end, like with the monkeys, they pull the 00:54:21.300 --> 00:54:23.400 little lever and the little food pellet falls 00:54:23.400 --> 00:54:25.440 out. If your little God gives you the little... 00:54:25.210 --> 00:54:27.690 Blessing that you want every time you have an 00:54:27.690 --> 00:54:34.630 idol Billy had his hand up go ahead bill jump 00:54:34.630 --> 00:54:42.610 in there bro, okay It's the Lord's will it's 00:54:42.610 --> 00:54:46.969 gonna be his way Because he's gonna be boy fighting 00:54:46.969 --> 00:54:49.650 over it sometimes we see things Oh my gosh, why 00:54:49.650 --> 00:54:51.769 didn't that happen? Why didn't that happen? You 00:54:51.769 --> 00:54:55.789 know circumstances happen People get sick, people 00:54:55.789 --> 00:55:01.809 die. The whole scheme of the whole thing is that 00:55:01.809 --> 00:55:05.409 the Lord's glorified. That's why Jesus did this. 00:55:05.530 --> 00:55:07.230 He was doing the will of the Father to glorify 00:55:07.230 --> 00:55:09.949 Him. That's why He went to the cross because 00:55:09.949 --> 00:55:15.309 that's what God wanted Him to do to take away 00:55:15.309 --> 00:55:18.349 the sin. That was His way of doing it. Where 00:55:18.349 --> 00:55:21.050 we saw it, where we asked Him, Lord, if this 00:55:21.050 --> 00:55:23.070 shepherd could just cut past for me. He didn't 00:55:23.070 --> 00:55:26.860 have doubts. He was just, I think, getting reassured. 00:55:27.460 --> 00:55:30.940 Is this your will? And that is the whole thing, 00:55:31.000 --> 00:55:33.980 I think, a lot of times we, and myself, we go, 00:55:34.059 --> 00:55:36.820 oh, really? Why, why, why? But if we really back 00:55:36.820 --> 00:55:39.840 up and let it happen, not that we sit there and 00:55:39.840 --> 00:55:42.340 just be like a puppet, but search the scripture. 00:55:42.760 --> 00:55:46.159 Why is this happening? And it's all gonna be 00:55:46.159 --> 00:55:49.159 to glorify Him. I might be totally wrong the 00:55:49.159 --> 00:55:52.860 way I say it. I'm trying to say it, but to glorify 00:55:52.860 --> 00:55:56.300 Him is what? His will is because it's all pointed 00:55:56.300 --> 00:56:01.860 to Him. It's all pointed to Him. If your pain 00:56:01.860 --> 00:56:06.719 in life brings glory to God, are you okay with 00:56:06.719 --> 00:56:14.000 that? Maybe. I mean, that's really kind of the 00:56:14.000 --> 00:56:23.550 question in front of us, right? It's hard. But 00:56:23.550 --> 00:56:25.730 we have to hold our head up and know that endurance 00:56:25.730 --> 00:56:28.690 to the end is where it's at. We must endure, 00:56:28.809 --> 00:56:31.349 there's no way. So we have to go through uncomfortable 00:56:31.349 --> 00:56:34.449 times, but joy still comes. That's right. Our 00:56:34.449 --> 00:56:36.989 joy may not look like your joy because you don't 00:56:36.989 --> 00:56:42.429 understand what people really value. And you 00:56:42.429 --> 00:56:45.469 know, in church we really should be sensitive 00:56:45.469 --> 00:56:48.429 to that too, right? You'll hear me sometimes 00:56:48.429 --> 00:56:51.429 I'll pray up here about that, you know, in the 00:56:51.429 --> 00:56:55.280 services and say, and ask the Holy Spirit's blessing 00:56:55.280 --> 00:56:58.860 and say it, I like to say it this way, that I 00:56:58.860 --> 00:57:00.480 don't know where everybody's been this week. 00:57:01.639 --> 00:57:03.159 Maybe it's been a hard week. Maybe it's been 00:57:03.159 --> 00:57:04.980 just another week. Maybe it's been a great week. 00:57:04.980 --> 00:57:07.400 I don't know, right? I don't know. And a lot 00:57:07.400 --> 00:57:09.739 of times you go to churches, you know, I've been 00:57:09.739 --> 00:57:11.440 to some churches where I feel like it's a pep 00:57:11.440 --> 00:57:13.579 rally, right? You come in and it's all jacked 00:57:13.579 --> 00:57:16.840 up. Let's get jacked up for two hours and celebrate 00:57:16.840 --> 00:57:19.019 Jesus and we'll take our Jesus pill and we'll 00:57:19.019 --> 00:57:23.400 feel good until Monday, right? and you come back 00:57:23.400 --> 00:57:25.639 into the depressing circumstances that you're 00:57:25.639 --> 00:57:28.960 in. Paul says in Romans 12, I can't remember 00:57:28.960 --> 00:57:32.219 which verse, 12, 13 or something, but he says, 00:57:32.880 --> 00:57:34.719 weep with those who weep, rejoice with those 00:57:34.719 --> 00:57:37.639 who rejoice. I think that's a great verse. I 00:57:37.639 --> 00:57:41.119 have that in the top of our men's, I maintain 00:57:41.119 --> 00:57:43.139 two prayer lists for two different Bible studies, 00:57:43.579 --> 00:57:45.179 and that's the verse I have up there. Remind 00:57:45.179 --> 00:57:47.719 all of us, that's as body of Christ as we were 00:57:47.719 --> 00:57:50.909 to do. I just love that. Weep with those who 00:57:50.909 --> 00:57:54.210 eat, rejoice with those who rejoice. Whatever 00:57:54.210 --> 00:57:58.769 your week's been like when you come here, we're 00:57:58.769 --> 00:58:00.929 gently calling all of us again to get our eyes 00:58:00.929 --> 00:58:03.130 off of the circumstances and off of us and what 00:58:03.130 --> 00:58:04.949 we're feeling at that moment and look where? 00:58:05.829 --> 00:58:09.010 Look to Him. Why? Because that's the soil out 00:58:09.010 --> 00:58:12.769 of which our peace and joy grows. But we get 00:58:12.769 --> 00:58:15.750 our eyes off Him and to everything else, right? 00:58:16.190 --> 00:58:18.010 And then that happens even when things are going 00:58:18.010 --> 00:58:21.690 great too, right? I mean, if you think about 00:58:21.690 --> 00:58:23.929 it, yes, we call them trials and they're hard 00:58:23.929 --> 00:58:28.130 times. When times are going good, that's a trial 00:58:28.130 --> 00:58:34.329 too. Because now, isn't that what the Lord said 00:58:34.329 --> 00:58:35.809 that would happen to Israel? He says, when you 00:58:35.809 --> 00:58:37.710 get into the land and you get blessed and you 00:58:37.710 --> 00:58:39.829 move into these cities you didn't build, you 00:58:39.829 --> 00:58:43.090 reap the fruit of plants that you didn't plant 00:58:43.090 --> 00:58:45.869 and everything else, and then you'll forget God. 00:58:46.429 --> 00:58:48.389 You'll forget me. You'll forget that I brought 00:58:48.389 --> 00:58:51.500 you here. And so our sin nature is terrible, 00:58:51.699 --> 00:58:54.400 right? And that's why we have to gather regularly. 00:58:54.840 --> 00:58:57.059 And the whole point of this really is, yes, to 00:58:57.059 --> 00:58:58.940 comfort and encourage each other, enjoy the fellowship. 00:58:59.099 --> 00:59:00.739 But really, we kind of want to turn our eyes 00:59:00.739 --> 00:59:03.360 back to Jesus, right? Looking unto Him, the author 00:59:03.360 --> 00:59:06.059 and the fact of our faith. Because He's the one 00:59:06.059 --> 00:59:10.059 who's in charge. It's God's plan. He's in control. 00:59:10.119 --> 00:59:13.000 He has a purpose in mind. Whether your week has 00:59:13.000 --> 00:59:15.280 been wonderful, has just been another week, or 00:59:15.280 --> 00:59:17.780 it's been terrible, whatever it is, God's still 00:59:17.780 --> 00:59:20.469 in charge. He's still on the throne. You've been 00:59:20.469 --> 00:59:22.510 bought with a price. You're not your own. He 00:59:22.510 --> 00:59:25.570 has a higher purpose for you. He has an inheritance 00:59:25.570 --> 00:59:28.110 in heaven reserved for you. His power is protecting 00:59:28.110 --> 00:59:31.730 you now. Even it doesn't look like it. You know 00:59:31.730 --> 00:59:35.010 what I'm saying? That's the basic message. Because, 00:59:35.030 --> 00:59:40.389 again, our peace, our joy, our hope all grow 00:59:40.389 --> 00:59:44.619 from the soil of that trust in God. Faith and 00:59:44.619 --> 00:59:47.079 trust in what he says and knowing that's why 00:59:47.079 --> 00:59:49.920 we open the word a lot to preach this right because 00:59:49.920 --> 00:59:52.780 we want to know what God is saying and it adds 00:59:52.780 --> 00:59:55.000 to your faith and as you add to your faith you 00:59:55.000 --> 00:59:57.639 trust that and you lean on to it and You find 00:59:57.639 --> 01:00:00.880 God didn't fail you and it just it strengthens 01:00:00.880 --> 01:00:04.940 you and you grow as a believer All right, and 01:00:04.940 --> 01:00:08.800 we're out of time So good discussion is really 01:00:08.800 --> 01:00:17.320 good good Father your word has so much to say 01:00:17.320 --> 01:00:22.079 when we start looking at this About trusting 01:00:22.079 --> 01:00:25.519 you instead of trusting our circumstances which 01:00:25.519 --> 01:00:28.900 we do so easily we're always looking at that 01:00:28.900 --> 01:00:31.960 and yet We know from our from experience in our 01:00:31.960 --> 01:00:34.920 own lives and then also as we watch other people 01:00:34.920 --> 01:00:37.880 who get so afraid as they're looking looking 01:00:37.880 --> 01:00:41.960 down and looking around and and and full of fear 01:00:41.960 --> 01:00:46.099 full of anger full of anxiety because they have 01:00:46.099 --> 01:00:51.880 no hope, really, but we have hope. Not in the 01:00:51.880 --> 01:00:56.760 way things look now, but hope in you. And thank 01:00:56.760 --> 01:00:58.920 you that you have given us your precious word 01:00:58.920 --> 01:01:02.659 which told us how we got here, why the human 01:01:02.659 --> 01:01:04.940 race is here, why the universe is here, and then 01:01:04.940 --> 01:01:08.519 where it's all going. And our little tiny, tiny, 01:01:08.519 --> 01:01:14.070 tiny little sand grain life compared to the grand 01:01:14.070 --> 01:01:17.510 scheme of things, is not insignificant to you. 01:01:18.469 --> 01:01:22.849 You care about us. As Peter says, cast all your 01:01:22.849 --> 01:01:27.750 cares on Him because He cares for you. Love that 01:01:27.750 --> 01:01:30.809 intimacy, Father, that you want each and every 01:01:30.809 --> 01:01:34.429 one of us to have the same kind of peace and 01:01:34.429 --> 01:01:38.190 joy that our own Savior here models for us as 01:01:38.190 --> 01:01:41.329 He is hours away from sin bearing on the cross. 01:01:41.559 --> 01:01:45.239 facing the worst point ever in human history. 01:01:46.739 --> 01:01:48.920 And he can talk about peace and joy, and we can 01:01:48.920 --> 01:01:52.619 as well, when things are not going the way we 01:01:52.619 --> 01:01:55.780 think they ought to go. Remind us of this, especially 01:01:55.780 --> 01:01:59.239 in those dark hours, the dark night of the soul, 01:01:59.400 --> 01:02:03.179 as the Puritans used to talk about. Father, knowing 01:02:03.179 --> 01:02:05.659 that all believers go through it, and we all 01:02:05.659 --> 01:02:08.519 need to be tested and reminded that you can be 01:02:08.519 --> 01:02:11.250 trusted. And we pray this in Jesus' name, amen.