1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:01,800 My name's Ben. 2 00:00:01,800 --> 00:00:02,640 How's everybody doing? 3 00:00:02,640 --> 00:00:03,640 Hopefully good. 4 00:00:03,640 --> 00:00:06,440 The worship leader here at Village. 5 00:00:06,440 --> 00:00:11,440 Today's scripture reading is from Romans 5, 1 through 11. 6 00:00:12,560 --> 00:00:16,440 That's gonna be page 971 in the Bibles 7 00:00:16,440 --> 00:00:17,440 that are in the back of the pews. 8 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:19,720 So if you'd like to follow along. 9 00:00:22,720 --> 00:00:26,560 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, 10 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:30,240 we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 11 00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:33,440 We have also obtained access through him by faith 12 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:36,280 into this grace in which we stand. 13 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:39,680 And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 14 00:00:39,680 --> 00:00:43,360 And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions. 15 00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:46,640 Because we know that affliction produces endurance. 16 00:00:46,640 --> 00:00:48,440 Endurance produces proven character 17 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:51,360 and proven character produces hope. 18 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:53,240 This hope will not disappoint us 19 00:00:53,240 --> 00:00:57,200 because God's love has been poured out in our hearts 20 00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:00,520 through the Holy Spirit who has given to us. 21 00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:03,320 For while we were still helpless at the right time, 22 00:01:03,320 --> 00:01:05,880 Christ died for the ungodly. 23 00:01:05,880 --> 00:01:08,880 For rarely will someone die for a just person. 24 00:01:08,880 --> 00:01:12,560 Though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. 25 00:01:12,560 --> 00:01:14,680 But God proves his own love for us 26 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:19,320 and that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 27 00:01:19,320 --> 00:01:20,520 How much more then, 28 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:23,520 since we have now been justified by his blood, 29 00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:25,560 will we be saved through him from wrath? 30 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:29,400 For if while we were enemies, 31 00:01:29,400 --> 00:01:32,680 we were reconciled to God through the death of his son, 32 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:35,640 then how much more, having been reconciled, 33 00:01:35,640 --> 00:01:37,920 will we be saved by his life? 34 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:40,600 And not only that, but we also boast in God 35 00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:42,440 through our Lord Jesus Christ, 36 00:01:42,440 --> 00:01:45,320 through whom we have now received this reconciliation. 37 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:47,240 This is God's word. 38 00:01:47,240 --> 00:01:49,080 You know it's a good time in worship 39 00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:52,200 when the worship team also sings songs 40 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:53,760 that basically capture the essence 41 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:55,760 of what you're about to preach on. 42 00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:58,080 So you all may be like, have I heard this before? 43 00:01:58,080 --> 00:02:00,000 Yeah, just a little few minutes ago. 44 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:05,160 Ecclesiastes chapter three, verse 11 says, 45 00:02:05,160 --> 00:02:08,800 he has put eternity in their hearts. 46 00:02:10,120 --> 00:02:13,920 He has put eternity in their hearts. 47 00:02:13,920 --> 00:02:16,120 Something happens around this time of the year. 48 00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:20,520 It shows up in our arts, in our creation, 49 00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:22,520 in our movies and messages. 50 00:02:23,920 --> 00:02:28,920 The holiday season seems to tug at some deep seeded hope, 51 00:02:28,920 --> 00:02:30,320 fear, longing. 52 00:02:31,840 --> 00:02:35,240 It's as if each year our hibernating hearts 53 00:02:35,240 --> 00:02:38,680 reach a tipping point and then we gorge ourselves 54 00:02:38,680 --> 00:02:40,920 on the themes of eternity. 55 00:02:40,920 --> 00:02:44,240 For a short little while. 56 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:46,800 Maybe some of you remember these. 57 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:49,200 After cursing his family and wishing them away, 58 00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:51,760 eight year old Kevin McAllister 59 00:02:51,760 --> 00:02:54,960 realizes how special it is to even have a family. 60 00:02:56,280 --> 00:02:58,400 As he helps old man Marley, 61 00:02:58,400 --> 00:03:01,600 the falsely rumored South Bend shovel slayer, 62 00:03:02,760 --> 00:03:06,640 reconcile with his son, his estranged son. 63 00:03:06,640 --> 00:03:11,640 Or Buddy the elf goes out to discover his true identity, 64 00:03:11,640 --> 00:03:13,320 leading him to his human father 65 00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:17,240 and helping his human father discover his true identity 66 00:03:17,240 --> 00:03:21,040 and self all while saving Christmas together. 67 00:03:23,720 --> 00:03:26,520 Or as I am so familiar with, 68 00:03:27,760 --> 00:03:30,720 army buddies Bob Wallace and Phil Davis 69 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:33,720 partner up with a young man named John McAllister. 70 00:03:33,720 --> 00:03:38,040 Bob Wallace and Phil Davis partner up with a sister act 71 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:40,560 to save the failing Vermont Inn 72 00:03:40,560 --> 00:03:44,200 of their former commanding officer, General Waverly, 73 00:03:44,200 --> 00:03:47,040 who has lost his sense of purpose and identity 74 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:50,200 since he left the army in White Christmas. 75 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:56,040 And who could forget Ebeneezer Scrooge's transformation 76 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:58,880 from that miserly bitter old man 77 00:03:58,880 --> 00:04:02,640 to a generous and kind hearted individual 78 00:04:02,640 --> 00:04:06,600 caring for Mr. Cratchit and his family 79 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:08,680 and the poor and outcast. 80 00:04:09,600 --> 00:04:12,120 The themes of redemption, reconciliation, 81 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:16,040 compassion, hope, joy, peace, purpose and identity 82 00:04:16,040 --> 00:04:19,640 are replete in this season of Christmas. 83 00:04:19,640 --> 00:04:22,640 And this morning we're going to spend a little bit of time 84 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:24,640 exploring the theme of peace. 85 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:28,000 So if you are a note taker, 86 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:29,760 I would invite you to write down the first point 87 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:32,560 which is the pursuit of peace. 88 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:36,960 If our movies and commercials and messaging 89 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:38,720 are any indication we live in a world 90 00:04:38,720 --> 00:04:42,880 that is pricked to the heart around the theme of peace. 91 00:04:42,880 --> 00:04:46,280 Peace is the absence of conflict. 92 00:04:46,280 --> 00:04:50,440 It is the state we long to be in mind, body and spirit. 93 00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:53,840 Whether you're a mother of young children 94 00:04:53,840 --> 00:04:58,040 or a daily commuter or in the golden years of your age 95 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:01,120 you regularly find yourself longing for peace. 96 00:05:03,720 --> 00:05:06,480 Maybe you find glimpses of that peace you're looking for 97 00:05:06,480 --> 00:05:09,040 camped out next to a lake in the mountains. 98 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:12,440 Or maybe it's seaside listening to the waves 99 00:05:12,440 --> 00:05:13,640 break on the shore. 100 00:05:14,640 --> 00:05:17,520 Or maybe it's curled up with a hot drink and a good book. 101 00:05:18,640 --> 00:05:21,400 It's even possible, though rare, 102 00:05:21,400 --> 00:05:24,040 to find a moment of peace and harmony 103 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:25,840 when you're out on family vacation, 104 00:05:25,840 --> 00:05:27,520 when no one is fighting, 105 00:05:27,520 --> 00:05:29,240 when no one is yelling and no one is thinking 106 00:05:29,240 --> 00:05:30,720 only of themselves. 107 00:05:31,960 --> 00:05:34,440 And in those moments, wherever it is that you find it, 108 00:05:34,440 --> 00:05:37,360 there's always that moment when you think to yourself 109 00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:42,360 right here, right here and nowhere else. 110 00:05:43,200 --> 00:05:45,960 What can I do to capture this moment 111 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:48,800 and repeat it for infinity? 112 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:52,240 But we all know you can't. 113 00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:55,680 Because you are experiencing something 114 00:05:55,680 --> 00:05:58,840 that is transient or passing, 115 00:05:58,840 --> 00:06:01,160 because you are experiencing something 116 00:06:01,160 --> 00:06:06,160 that is a shadow and a whisper of a greater reality, 117 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:08,840 one which is not fully realized yet. 118 00:06:10,280 --> 00:06:13,120 It's kind of like a clear TV channel 119 00:06:13,120 --> 00:06:14,600 that's breaking through the static 120 00:06:14,600 --> 00:06:17,520 and the white noise ever so often. 121 00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:20,840 And you get the clear picture, it catches us up into it 122 00:06:20,840 --> 00:06:23,760 for just a few moments, and it lifts us to a place 123 00:06:23,760 --> 00:06:25,920 that almost feels otherworldly. 124 00:06:28,120 --> 00:06:30,840 Why is it only sometimes, though, that it breaks through? 125 00:06:32,120 --> 00:06:35,200 Why is life, the chaotic static, 126 00:06:35,200 --> 00:06:38,360 more often than not? 127 00:06:41,840 --> 00:06:43,920 Number two, the problem of peace. 128 00:06:46,920 --> 00:06:48,400 The problem is conflict. 129 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:49,920 The problem is conflict. 130 00:06:50,960 --> 00:06:53,720 All around us is conflict. 131 00:06:54,560 --> 00:06:59,360 We pursue peace, and I mean, look at the 60s, right? 132 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:03,000 The 60s were all about peace, harmony. 133 00:07:04,280 --> 00:07:07,240 We hear of peace talks going on all around the world. 134 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:08,760 I listened to a pastor this week 135 00:07:08,760 --> 00:07:11,560 who was preaching a sermon 10 years ago. 136 00:07:11,560 --> 00:07:13,960 I was listening to a sermon that he preached 10 years ago, 137 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:15,800 and for an illustration, he opened up 138 00:07:15,800 --> 00:07:18,800 the Wall Street Journal, and he was reading the front page, 139 00:07:18,800 --> 00:07:21,400 summary of the news, and then it struck me 140 00:07:21,400 --> 00:07:23,680 because one of the items that was on there, 141 00:07:23,680 --> 00:07:27,920 it said that the peace talks between Israel and Palestine 142 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:29,200 were going very well. 143 00:07:31,080 --> 00:07:32,000 10 years ago. 144 00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:34,480 Where are they now? 145 00:07:36,160 --> 00:07:38,160 There is no peace between man. 146 00:07:39,040 --> 00:07:42,120 We hear of wars, and we hear of rumors of wars. 147 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:44,360 We hear of exploitation of the poor and the helpless. 148 00:07:44,360 --> 00:07:47,480 We see the devastating effects of homelessness. 149 00:07:47,480 --> 00:07:50,280 We see the statistics of the killing of the unborn. 150 00:07:51,280 --> 00:07:54,120 We even see conflict, not just among man, 151 00:07:54,120 --> 00:07:56,000 between humans, between persons, 152 00:07:56,000 --> 00:07:59,440 but we see it, that conflict in nature as well. 153 00:07:59,440 --> 00:08:04,360 The earthquakes, tornadoes rip through the Tennessee area 154 00:08:04,360 --> 00:08:06,520 and through communities. 155 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:10,320 The winds and the waves are like an angry torrent, 156 00:08:10,320 --> 00:08:15,120 and we, at least where I live, about an hour from here, 157 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:17,400 live in fear of wild animals. 158 00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:20,280 I tiptoe to my car every Sunday morning 159 00:08:20,280 --> 00:08:22,320 because I leave around four in the morning. 160 00:08:22,320 --> 00:08:24,320 I'm looking around, I'm listening. 161 00:08:24,320 --> 00:08:26,760 I'm on high alerts, like I'm gonna get 162 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:28,240 sideswiped by a mountain lion. 163 00:08:30,720 --> 00:08:33,240 Nature is subject to decay. 164 00:08:33,240 --> 00:08:36,160 Did you know that 99% of all species of animals 165 00:08:36,160 --> 00:08:38,440 that ever existed are extinct? 166 00:08:38,440 --> 00:08:40,920 They're gone. 167 00:08:40,920 --> 00:08:43,640 We see it in our, we see that same decay 168 00:08:43,640 --> 00:08:45,360 at work in our own bodies. 169 00:08:47,320 --> 00:08:50,040 Whether you're in healthcare or you spend a lot of time 170 00:08:50,040 --> 00:08:52,520 with healthcare workers, you know. 171 00:08:53,840 --> 00:08:55,760 Nature knows no peace. 172 00:08:56,960 --> 00:08:59,520 And even if it did, even if we could find a place 173 00:08:59,520 --> 00:09:01,320 where mankind was getting along 174 00:09:01,320 --> 00:09:05,120 and where nature was at peace, what about within yourself? 175 00:09:05,120 --> 00:09:07,720 What about within yourself? 176 00:09:07,720 --> 00:09:12,720 Crippling anxiety, overwhelming guilt, 177 00:09:14,440 --> 00:09:17,440 frustration over unrealized hopes and dreams, 178 00:09:17,440 --> 00:09:22,440 shame and regret, confusion, debilitating depression. 179 00:09:23,520 --> 00:09:27,640 The soul is like a turbulent ocean 180 00:09:27,640 --> 00:09:29,800 teeming with internal strife. 181 00:09:31,840 --> 00:09:33,240 Something is wrong with me. 182 00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:34,640 Something is wrong with you. 183 00:09:35,840 --> 00:09:36,920 And we know it. 184 00:09:38,440 --> 00:09:39,760 What is the problem of peace? 185 00:09:39,760 --> 00:09:42,640 Well, the problem of peace is that there is no lasting peace. 186 00:09:43,840 --> 00:09:48,840 As wishful as we may be, there is no lasting peace. 187 00:09:51,040 --> 00:09:56,040 John Lennon could write a song themed around 188 00:09:56,040 --> 00:10:01,040 what the world could be like if we could just live at peace. 189 00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:03,040 John Lennon was a crackpot. 190 00:10:03,880 --> 00:10:06,040 He didn't know what he was talking about. 191 00:10:06,040 --> 00:10:09,040 Or he was talking beyond his rank. 192 00:10:09,040 --> 00:10:10,120 It's not possible. 193 00:10:11,320 --> 00:10:13,000 I mean, for him, he wanted to dispense with God. 194 00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:14,440 He thought that would do it. 195 00:10:15,400 --> 00:10:16,480 There's no peace. 196 00:10:17,560 --> 00:10:20,120 The problem of peace isn't something that can be fixed 197 00:10:20,120 --> 00:10:22,560 between people in conflict, nor is nature 198 00:10:22,560 --> 00:10:25,240 on a path of self-correction. 199 00:10:25,240 --> 00:10:27,840 No amount of counseling or miracle drugs 200 00:10:27,840 --> 00:10:29,840 as helpful as the power of the mind 201 00:10:29,840 --> 00:10:32,240 or miracle drugs as helpful as they are 202 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:35,440 will calm that inner sea of conflict that's going on 203 00:10:35,440 --> 00:10:37,600 within your own heart and mind. 204 00:10:37,600 --> 00:10:38,440 Why? 205 00:10:38,440 --> 00:10:40,840 Because the problem is so much deeper. 206 00:10:40,840 --> 00:10:43,800 The biblical narrative tells us exactly why 207 00:10:43,800 --> 00:10:46,960 our experience is this way related to peace. 208 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:50,080 It tells us of a time when humanity, 209 00:10:50,080 --> 00:10:53,080 nature and God were all at peace, 210 00:10:53,080 --> 00:10:56,240 where harmony and wholeness of mind, body and spirit 211 00:10:56,240 --> 00:10:57,720 were the reality. 212 00:10:57,720 --> 00:10:59,040 But something happened. 213 00:11:00,360 --> 00:11:02,560 A serpent deceived. 214 00:11:02,560 --> 00:11:06,360 Mankind took the baits and rebelled against God. 215 00:11:07,440 --> 00:11:11,080 Adam and Eve, who once were completely satisfied in God, 216 00:11:11,080 --> 00:11:15,240 completely satisfied in their relationship to God, 217 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:17,120 turned away from his good wisdom 218 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:19,320 and they instead preferred their own. 219 00:11:20,880 --> 00:11:24,440 And instead of peace with God, they chose conflict with God. 220 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:27,360 They chose to be at odds with their creator. 221 00:11:28,520 --> 00:11:31,560 And that right there is ground zero 222 00:11:32,800 --> 00:11:34,840 for the problem of peace. 223 00:11:36,120 --> 00:11:38,640 They ruined everything. 224 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:44,440 From henceforth relationships, 225 00:11:44,440 --> 00:11:46,960 there's conflict between men and women, 226 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:49,640 exploitation, stealing and even murder 227 00:11:49,640 --> 00:11:51,280 that follow from that point on. 228 00:11:51,280 --> 00:11:54,720 With nature, cursed to produce thorns and thistles, 229 00:11:54,720 --> 00:11:56,880 hard packed earth that resists, 230 00:11:56,880 --> 00:11:58,400 yielding its good fruit, 231 00:11:58,400 --> 00:12:00,720 wild and untamed, groaning, 232 00:12:00,720 --> 00:12:04,640 groaning for a freedom and an existence it once knew. 233 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:09,480 Our bodies turn against themselves. 234 00:12:09,480 --> 00:12:11,560 Cells attack cells. 235 00:12:12,960 --> 00:12:14,280 Sickness and death, 236 00:12:15,520 --> 00:12:19,480 with death as the ultimate conflict between man and man. 237 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:22,800 The ultimate conflict between man and nature. 238 00:12:24,760 --> 00:12:26,280 And what of the inner life? 239 00:12:27,440 --> 00:12:30,760 Was it preserved through all of that falling of humankind? 240 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:33,280 No, it was destroyed. 241 00:12:33,280 --> 00:12:35,560 Created by God for God, 242 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:39,480 our first parents exchanged that life for a life 243 00:12:39,480 --> 00:12:41,960 that was so turned inward 244 00:12:41,960 --> 00:12:43,800 that they immediately realized 245 00:12:43,800 --> 00:12:46,200 that they were no longer who they ought to be. 246 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:49,120 Immediately, they had so turned inward, 247 00:12:49,120 --> 00:12:51,520 taking the fruit, the forbidden fruit 248 00:12:51,520 --> 00:12:53,560 and doing what was right in their own eyes, 249 00:12:53,560 --> 00:12:56,000 they immediately realized and became aware 250 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:57,960 that they were not who they ought to be. 251 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:03,200 They were so free and so glorious in their innocence 252 00:13:03,200 --> 00:13:05,120 and the innocent peace that they existed in 253 00:13:05,120 --> 00:13:06,920 with God and nature before 254 00:13:06,920 --> 00:13:08,920 that they didn't even recognize they were naked. 255 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:11,040 They had no need to, no shame. 256 00:13:12,120 --> 00:13:14,120 But now in that moment, shame 257 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:18,360 crept inside to the inner parts. 258 00:13:18,960 --> 00:13:22,720 And their nakedness led them to hiddenness 259 00:13:23,720 --> 00:13:25,640 and turned them ever inward. 260 00:13:27,640 --> 00:13:30,520 It's broken and it cannot be fixed by looking inward. 261 00:13:31,720 --> 00:13:35,000 That's what broken or that's what broke it 262 00:13:35,000 --> 00:13:36,160 in the first place. 263 00:13:38,160 --> 00:13:40,760 Conflict with God has literally driven us mad. 264 00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:43,080 We no longer know what we are supposed to be. 265 00:13:44,480 --> 00:13:46,360 We have no grounding because we are made 266 00:13:46,360 --> 00:13:47,880 to be grounded in God. 267 00:13:51,600 --> 00:13:56,040 Man was created to co-rule good creation with God 268 00:13:56,040 --> 00:13:58,440 and to have authority over creation 269 00:13:58,440 --> 00:14:00,200 and therefore when man fell, 270 00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:02,720 all of creation was subject to that fall. 271 00:14:03,560 --> 00:14:06,160 Under its authority and its co-rulership, 272 00:14:06,160 --> 00:14:09,320 no peace with God means there will be conflict. 273 00:14:09,320 --> 00:14:11,720 Everywhere, always. 274 00:14:13,400 --> 00:14:15,680 Until enmity with God is dealt with, 275 00:14:15,680 --> 00:14:17,760 we cannot know peace. 276 00:14:18,360 --> 00:14:20,080 This is truly the problem with the world. 277 00:14:20,080 --> 00:14:22,320 It's not that we haven't yet discovered 278 00:14:22,320 --> 00:14:24,360 the perfect form of government. 279 00:14:25,560 --> 00:14:27,640 It's not that we haven't yet found 280 00:14:27,640 --> 00:14:30,160 the perfect leader to lead us somewhere. 281 00:14:31,640 --> 00:14:33,800 We don't have to worry about the elections 282 00:14:33,800 --> 00:14:35,600 to try to bring about world peace 283 00:14:35,600 --> 00:14:37,640 or free us from this turmoil 284 00:14:37,640 --> 00:14:40,480 that we find between man and man and man and nature 285 00:14:40,480 --> 00:14:43,160 and inside of our own self because they can't do it. 286 00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:46,560 They can't do it, they never could and they never will. 287 00:14:50,080 --> 00:14:52,600 It's not that we need peace between warring parties 288 00:14:52,600 --> 00:14:55,040 in order to experience wholesale peace. 289 00:14:56,880 --> 00:14:58,800 No, these are all broken because something 290 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:01,720 far more fundamental is broken. 291 00:15:01,720 --> 00:15:06,720 But we, humanity, are mad, we're crazy. 292 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:10,480 We're unable to broker a peace deal. 293 00:15:11,880 --> 00:15:15,840 More so, we are rebels, just like our first parents. 294 00:15:15,840 --> 00:15:20,840 And Isaiah 48, 22 says, there's no peace for the wicked. 295 00:15:22,120 --> 00:15:23,160 No peace. 296 00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:26,640 So how will this mess be made right? 297 00:15:26,640 --> 00:15:27,880 We need a mediator. 298 00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:34,440 We need point number three, the prince of peace. 299 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:39,880 Isaiah chapter nine, beginning in verse two. 300 00:15:42,320 --> 00:15:47,320 The people walking in darkness have seen a great light. 301 00:15:48,560 --> 00:15:52,040 A light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness 302 00:15:52,040 --> 00:15:54,640 and the people who are living in darkness. 303 00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:58,240 A light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness. 304 00:15:58,240 --> 00:16:01,840 You have enlarged the nation and increased its joy. 305 00:16:01,840 --> 00:16:04,360 The people have rejoiced before you as they rejoice 306 00:16:04,360 --> 00:16:07,920 at harvest time and as they rejoice when dividing spoils. 307 00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:10,440 For you have shattered their oppressive yoke 308 00:16:10,440 --> 00:16:12,160 and the rod on their shoulders. 309 00:16:12,160 --> 00:16:14,520 The staff of their oppressor, just as you did 310 00:16:14,520 --> 00:16:15,800 on the day of Midian. 311 00:16:17,080 --> 00:16:19,160 For every trampling boot of battle 312 00:16:19,160 --> 00:16:22,000 and the bloodied garments of war will be burned 313 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:27,000 for the fire, for a child will be born to us. 314 00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:31,080 A son will be given to us 315 00:16:31,080 --> 00:16:33,440 and the government will be on his shoulders 316 00:16:33,440 --> 00:16:36,920 and he will be named wonderful counselor, 317 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:41,920 mighty God, eternal father, prince of peace. 318 00:16:42,920 --> 00:16:45,920 The dominion will be vast 319 00:16:45,920 --> 00:16:48,880 and its prosperity will never end. 320 00:16:48,880 --> 00:16:50,760 He will reign on the throne of David 321 00:16:50,760 --> 00:16:53,360 over his kingdom to establish and sustain it 322 00:16:53,360 --> 00:16:57,480 with justice and righteousness from now on and forever. 323 00:16:57,480 --> 00:17:02,480 The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this. 324 00:17:05,560 --> 00:17:08,400 The glory of the gospel is that rebels were given 325 00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:12,040 the gift of the child that bears four names. 326 00:17:13,120 --> 00:17:15,240 Rebels were given the gift of the child 327 00:17:15,240 --> 00:17:18,200 that bears four names, wonderful counselor 328 00:17:18,200 --> 00:17:22,000 and wonderful might be also translated miraculous. 329 00:17:22,000 --> 00:17:26,000 His counsel works wonders. 330 00:17:26,000 --> 00:17:28,200 His counsel works wonders. 331 00:17:28,200 --> 00:17:30,360 It was his counsel in the beginning 332 00:17:30,360 --> 00:17:32,160 that would have kept and preserved 333 00:17:32,160 --> 00:17:34,040 the unity and peace of the garden 334 00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:36,960 had the first parents obeyed it. 335 00:17:38,120 --> 00:17:40,200 But it is his counsel and his plan 336 00:17:40,200 --> 00:17:44,520 and his wisdom today that will bring us back to peace. 337 00:17:44,520 --> 00:17:48,240 He is our wonderful miraculous counsel. 338 00:17:48,240 --> 00:17:51,000 His counsel works. 339 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:53,080 And he is the mighty God. 340 00:17:53,080 --> 00:17:55,160 He is the enemy crusher. 341 00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:56,600 He is the warrior God. 342 00:17:56,600 --> 00:17:59,960 Psalm 24 says, who is the king of glory? 343 00:17:59,960 --> 00:18:01,680 Who is the king of glory? 344 00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:05,680 The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. 345 00:18:06,680 --> 00:18:11,680 Mighty God is not just a, hey, my dad is strong and mighty. 346 00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:13,520 This is war terms. 347 00:18:13,520 --> 00:18:17,520 This is about my God can defeat all other gods. 348 00:18:17,520 --> 00:18:20,880 My God can triumph over any enemy. 349 00:18:20,880 --> 00:18:23,360 He's an enemy crusher. 350 00:18:23,360 --> 00:18:26,040 He's a warrior God. 351 00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:27,120 Who is the king of glory? 352 00:18:27,120 --> 00:18:28,520 He's mighty in battle. 353 00:18:30,640 --> 00:18:35,640 Eternal Father, when does his covering and watchfulness end? 354 00:18:38,320 --> 00:18:41,520 What can go beyond his gaze? 355 00:18:41,520 --> 00:18:44,160 What can find its way to a shadow 356 00:18:44,160 --> 00:18:47,040 where he can't see or cover? 357 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:49,760 When is he no longer Abba Father? 358 00:18:49,760 --> 00:18:50,640 Never. 359 00:18:50,640 --> 00:18:54,880 He is the unchanging family head. 360 00:18:56,920 --> 00:18:58,880 And finally, Prince of Peace. 361 00:19:00,360 --> 00:19:02,120 We're told his kingdom is vast 362 00:19:02,120 --> 00:19:05,360 or another way of thinking of his ever-expanding, 363 00:19:06,320 --> 00:19:09,200 ever-expanding kingdom. 364 00:19:09,200 --> 00:19:11,840 His peace is never-ending. 365 00:19:11,840 --> 00:19:14,240 More are falling into his rule. 366 00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:18,200 He is our peace and he will broker our peace. 367 00:19:18,200 --> 00:19:20,400 He brings us back to a kingdom 368 00:19:20,400 --> 00:19:22,240 where there is peace and flourishing. 369 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:25,920 He gives us his perfect peace. 370 00:19:28,440 --> 00:19:29,280 But how? 371 00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:33,200 How will he broker our peace? 372 00:19:34,800 --> 00:19:37,920 What is the plan that the warrior God 373 00:19:37,920 --> 00:19:40,640 and the miraculous counselor 374 00:19:40,640 --> 00:19:43,000 without of this world wisdom, 375 00:19:43,000 --> 00:19:44,640 what plan has he prepared? 376 00:19:45,920 --> 00:19:49,880 How will he win us when we can never gain, 377 00:19:49,880 --> 00:19:51,960 what we can never gain for ourselves? 378 00:19:51,960 --> 00:19:52,800 What's the big plan? 379 00:19:52,800 --> 00:19:55,120 Well, the big plan is found 380 00:19:55,120 --> 00:19:58,320 in a fairly lengthy scripture I'm gonna read right now. 381 00:19:58,320 --> 00:20:00,600 Isaiah 53. 382 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:05,680 Who has believed what we have heard 383 00:20:05,680 --> 00:20:08,600 and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 384 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:12,800 He grew up before him like a young plant 385 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:15,480 and like a root out of dry ground. 386 00:20:15,480 --> 00:20:18,440 He didn't have an impressive form or majesty 387 00:20:18,440 --> 00:20:19,920 that we should look at him, 388 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:22,760 no appearance that we should desire him. 389 00:20:22,760 --> 00:20:25,680 He was despised and rejected by men, 390 00:20:25,680 --> 00:20:29,160 a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. 391 00:20:29,160 --> 00:20:32,320 He was like someone who turned away from. 392 00:20:32,320 --> 00:20:35,120 He was despised and we didn't value him. 393 00:20:35,120 --> 00:20:40,120 Yet he himself bore our sicknesses 394 00:20:40,120 --> 00:20:42,320 and he carried our pains. 395 00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:44,400 But we in turn regarded him stricken, 396 00:20:44,400 --> 00:20:46,800 struck by God and afflicted. 397 00:20:46,800 --> 00:20:49,960 But he was pierced because of our rebellion, 398 00:20:49,960 --> 00:20:52,080 crushed because of our iniquity. 399 00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:55,400 Punishment for our peace was on him 400 00:20:56,720 --> 00:20:58,960 and we are healed by his wounds. 401 00:21:00,240 --> 00:21:03,920 We all win astray like sheep. 402 00:21:03,920 --> 00:21:06,000 We all have turned to our own ways 403 00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:11,000 and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all. 404 00:21:12,640 --> 00:21:14,440 He was oppressed and afflicted, 405 00:21:14,440 --> 00:21:17,760 yet he did not open his mouth like a lamb led to the slaughter 406 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:20,760 and like a sheep silent before her sheers, 407 00:21:20,760 --> 00:21:22,480 he did not open his mouth. 408 00:21:23,560 --> 00:21:27,240 He was taken away because of oppression in judgment 409 00:21:27,240 --> 00:21:29,160 and who considered his fate? 410 00:21:30,080 --> 00:21:32,560 For he was cut off from the land of the living. 411 00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:35,280 He was struck because of my people's rebellion. 412 00:21:35,280 --> 00:21:38,240 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, 413 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:40,640 but he was with a rich man at his death 414 00:21:41,600 --> 00:21:44,040 because he had done no violence 415 00:21:44,040 --> 00:21:46,880 and had not spoken deceitfully. 416 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:50,640 Yet the Lord was pleased to crush him severely. 417 00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:52,960 When you make him a guilt offering, 418 00:21:52,960 --> 00:21:56,360 he will see his seed, he will prolong his days 419 00:21:56,360 --> 00:21:59,560 and by his hand the Lord's pleasure will be accomplished. 420 00:21:59,560 --> 00:22:03,080 After his anguish, he will see light and be satisfied. 421 00:22:03,080 --> 00:22:06,360 By his knowledge, my righteous servant will justify many 422 00:22:06,360 --> 00:22:08,360 and he will carry their iniquities. 423 00:22:08,360 --> 00:22:11,720 Therefore, I will give him the many as a portion 424 00:22:11,720 --> 00:22:14,600 and he will receive the mightiest spoil 425 00:22:14,600 --> 00:22:17,320 because he willingly submitted to death 426 00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:19,720 and was counted among the rebels, 427 00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:24,720 yet he bore the sin of many and interceded for the rebels. 428 00:22:24,720 --> 00:22:28,480 God will send God to pay the just penalty 429 00:22:28,480 --> 00:22:30,080 for the rebels' rebellion 430 00:22:32,400 --> 00:22:36,000 so that no conflict will exist between God and the rebels 431 00:22:36,000 --> 00:22:39,360 who will be free and clear, reconciled back to God. 432 00:22:39,360 --> 00:22:42,080 That's his miraculous plan. 433 00:22:43,760 --> 00:22:44,600 What a plan. 434 00:22:46,880 --> 00:22:48,800 He will take on all the rebels 435 00:22:48,800 --> 00:22:50,840 and he will take on all the rebels 436 00:22:50,840 --> 00:22:52,720 and he will take on all the rebels 437 00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:55,200 and he will take on all the rebels. 438 00:22:56,480 --> 00:22:58,240 He will take on all the conflict. 439 00:22:58,240 --> 00:22:59,800 He will bear all the sin. 440 00:22:59,800 --> 00:23:02,760 He will bear all the sickness and all the weird weariness 441 00:23:02,760 --> 00:23:05,340 and waywardness and hopelessness and oppression 442 00:23:05,340 --> 00:23:06,600 and judgment and guilt. 443 00:23:06,600 --> 00:23:07,880 He will take it on. 444 00:23:07,880 --> 00:23:11,120 He will snap the neck of the serpent deceiver. 445 00:23:11,120 --> 00:23:16,120 He will crush the enemy and be victorious over evil and death. 446 00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:18,680 a cosmic laughing stock. 447 00:23:21,240 --> 00:23:24,560 He will do what the madness of humanity loss could never do. 448 00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:29,000 He will give himself in order to redeem and restore 449 00:23:29,000 --> 00:23:31,100 all that was lost. 450 00:23:33,680 --> 00:23:35,440 I don't have a war with other humans 451 00:23:35,440 --> 00:23:37,640 because God in Christ is ruling and reigning 452 00:23:37,640 --> 00:23:39,980 with justice and righteousness. 453 00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:43,080 I don't have to fear the decay of creation, 454 00:23:43,080 --> 00:23:45,540 even my own body, because God in Christ 455 00:23:45,540 --> 00:23:47,000 is making everything new. 456 00:23:47,980 --> 00:23:50,620 I don't have to interpret reality through the turmoil 457 00:23:50,620 --> 00:23:54,100 of that inner raging sea within my own heart and mind. 458 00:23:54,100 --> 00:23:55,940 There wasn't a plan B either. 459 00:23:56,940 --> 00:24:00,440 This wasn't a last minute, last ditch rescue effort 460 00:24:00,440 --> 00:24:02,480 on the Lord's part. 461 00:24:02,480 --> 00:24:06,640 This was hidden in the wisdom of God for all times. 462 00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:10,160 He was going to do this, to show the glory of who he is. 463 00:24:10,160 --> 00:24:12,920 What kind of God would do this? 464 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:16,500 He wanted to put it on display for all of us to glory in. 465 00:24:18,920 --> 00:24:21,000 And he wasn't half-hearted about it either. 466 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:24,720 He didn't go begrudgingly or grumbling under his breath. 467 00:24:24,720 --> 00:24:27,880 Isaiah nine told us that the zeal of the Lord, 468 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:29,880 the passion, it's the same word that's used 469 00:24:29,880 --> 00:24:32,160 in Song of Solomon for the passion that man and woman 470 00:24:32,160 --> 00:24:33,400 have for one another. 471 00:24:33,400 --> 00:24:36,600 The passion, the deep-seated zeal of the Lord 472 00:24:36,600 --> 00:24:38,920 will accomplish this. 473 00:24:38,920 --> 00:24:40,240 He's all about it. 474 00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:41,560 He's all about it. 475 00:24:43,360 --> 00:24:46,320 God's zeal to reclaim what was stolen. 476 00:24:46,320 --> 00:24:49,880 God is zealous to have what is rightfully his. 477 00:24:49,880 --> 00:24:53,560 God is all about bringing cosmic peace. 478 00:24:55,240 --> 00:24:57,880 God did not let you or I or anyone sit 479 00:24:57,880 --> 00:25:00,360 in their despair and hopeless chaos. 480 00:25:01,480 --> 00:25:02,560 He did something. 481 00:25:02,560 --> 00:25:09,560 God sent God to pay the just penalty for the rebels' rebellion 482 00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:15,280 so that no conflict will exist between God and the rebels. 483 00:25:15,280 --> 00:25:18,600 And the rebels will be free and clear, 484 00:25:18,600 --> 00:25:20,200 reconciled back to God. 485 00:25:23,200 --> 00:25:24,600 Is your life a mess? 486 00:25:26,040 --> 00:25:29,160 Are you ravaged by that never-ending inner dialogue 487 00:25:29,160 --> 00:25:33,320 of rage, anger, despair, hopelessness, and conflict? 488 00:25:35,600 --> 00:25:38,240 Have you accepted a truce in your life 489 00:25:38,240 --> 00:25:40,400 that isn't really peace, it's just 490 00:25:40,400 --> 00:25:42,560 keeping an illusion of peace? 491 00:25:44,680 --> 00:25:48,560 Are you at an impasse in a relationship or in your marriage? 492 00:25:49,560 --> 00:25:52,640 Have you accepted a marriage of conflict and pain? 493 00:25:52,640 --> 00:25:54,280 The fates have just spoken. 494 00:25:54,280 --> 00:25:56,880 Are you tired of being beat down in every direction? 495 00:25:58,960 --> 00:26:01,560 There is no kingdom peace. 496 00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:04,120 There is no kingdom peace without the king. 497 00:26:07,480 --> 00:26:10,840 You cannot have peace unless you first have 498 00:26:10,840 --> 00:26:13,520 the lordship of the Prince of Peace. 499 00:26:16,040 --> 00:26:19,120 It is only in his realm and under his reign 500 00:26:19,120 --> 00:26:20,800 that you can have peace. 501 00:26:20,800 --> 00:26:25,600 It is only in his realm and under his reign that we access 502 00:26:25,600 --> 00:26:30,120 the benefits of the kingdom, the kingdom of everlasting peace. 503 00:26:31,640 --> 00:26:34,880 And so Romans tells us that since we have been justified 504 00:26:34,880 --> 00:26:38,280 by faith, we have peace with God through our lord, 505 00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:40,960 Jesus Christ. 506 00:26:43,600 --> 00:26:45,720 How are we brought into peace with God? 507 00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:46,680 By faith. 508 00:26:46,680 --> 00:26:51,680 You cannot do anything except one pastor, Roy Ortland, 509 00:26:53,680 --> 00:26:57,080 was preaching a message and he said, he put it this way, 510 00:26:57,080 --> 00:27:00,320 all you can do is fall forward. 511 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:04,880 In all your unrighteousness, in all your failings 512 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:09,880 and frailty, in all your sin, fall forward into Christ. 513 00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:13,440 Fall forward into Christ. 514 00:27:14,960 --> 00:27:18,400 Fall forward into Christ. 515 00:27:18,400 --> 00:27:22,280 Roy went on to talk about, Roy Ortland went on to talk about 516 00:27:24,040 --> 00:27:26,920 when he sees Jesus for the first time, he has this image 517 00:27:26,920 --> 00:27:28,680 that he repeats in his mind. 518 00:27:28,680 --> 00:27:31,080 He imagines that moment of meeting Christ, 519 00:27:31,080 --> 00:27:34,200 entering into heaven and running, 520 00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:37,080 running full speed as he sees Christ. 521 00:27:37,080 --> 00:27:40,560 Christ saying, you wanna hug? 522 00:27:40,560 --> 00:27:43,240 Opening his arms and Roy hitting Christ so hard 523 00:27:43,240 --> 00:27:45,440 that they fall down on the ground. 524 00:27:46,520 --> 00:27:50,200 And in that embrace, they spend a couple years there. 525 00:27:51,040 --> 00:27:55,240 As Roy said, he feels humanity restored to him 526 00:27:55,240 --> 00:27:58,800 from his feet, slowly all the way to his head. 527 00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:02,640 And then he breathes and they get up 528 00:28:02,640 --> 00:28:06,760 and they just start running, running through the kingdom 529 00:28:06,760 --> 00:28:07,600 of peace. 530 00:28:10,840 --> 00:28:14,080 To access the realm of the King, 531 00:28:14,080 --> 00:28:17,080 you must be under the rule of the King. 532 00:28:17,080 --> 00:28:20,400 Fall forward in all your unrighteousness 533 00:28:20,400 --> 00:28:22,560 into the grace that awaits you in Christ. 534 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:26,120 This is faith, fall in the direction of Christ 535 00:28:26,120 --> 00:28:28,240 and fall under his Lordship. 536 00:28:30,280 --> 00:28:34,040 It is there and only there that you can experience 537 00:28:34,040 --> 00:28:35,920 a greater measure of peace today 538 00:28:35,920 --> 00:28:38,840 and the fullness of peace to come. 539 00:28:38,840 --> 00:29:04,680 Let's pray.