WEBVTT 00:00:00.110 --> 00:00:04.070 1 Peter chapter two and beginning in verse 13, 00:00:04.209 --> 00:00:07.910 we read, submit to every human authority because 00:00:07.910 --> 00:00:11.189 of the Lord, whether to the emperor as the supreme 00:00:11.189 --> 00:00:14.130 authority or to governors as those sent by him 00:00:14.130 --> 00:00:17.730 to punish those who do what is evil and to praise 00:00:17.730 --> 00:00:20.809 those who do what is good. For it is God's will 00:00:20.809 --> 00:00:23.510 that you silence the ignorance of foolish people 00:00:23.510 --> 00:00:27.850 by doing good. Submit as free people. not using 00:00:27.850 --> 00:00:31.350 your freedom as a cover up for evil, but as God's 00:00:31.350 --> 00:00:34.869 slaves. Honor everyone, love the brothers and 00:00:34.869 --> 00:00:40.170 sisters, fear God, honor the emperor. Household 00:00:40.170 --> 00:00:43.409 slaves, submit to your masters with all reverence, 00:00:43.570 --> 00:00:45.950 not only to the good and gentle ones, but also 00:00:45.950 --> 00:00:49.810 to the cruel. For it brings favor if because 00:00:49.810 --> 00:00:52.869 of a consciousness of God someone endures grief 00:00:52.869 --> 00:00:56.590 with suffering unjustly For what credit is there 00:00:56.590 --> 00:00:59.109 if when you do wrong and are beaten you endure 00:00:59.109 --> 00:01:02.590 it? But when you do what is good and suffer if 00:01:02.590 --> 00:01:06.530 you endure it this brings favor with God For 00:01:06.530 --> 00:01:09.819 you were called to this because Christ also suffered 00:01:09.819 --> 00:01:12.340 for you, leaving you an example that you would 00:01:12.340 --> 00:01:15.500 follow in his steps. He did not commit sin and 00:01:15.500 --> 00:01:18.099 no deceit was found in his mouth. When he was 00:01:18.099 --> 00:01:20.939 insulted, he did not insult in return, and when 00:01:20.939 --> 00:01:23.140 he suffered, he did not threaten, but entrusted 00:01:23.140 --> 00:01:27.260 himself to the one who judges justly. He himself 00:01:27.260 --> 00:01:31.019 bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that 00:01:31.019 --> 00:01:33.939 having died to sin, we might live for righteousness. 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:38.750 By his wounds, you have been healed. For you 00:01:38.750 --> 00:01:41.629 were like sheep going astray, but you have now 00:01:41.629 --> 00:01:45.469 returned to the shepherd and overseer of your 00:01:45.469 --> 00:01:53.329 souls. This is God's word. So at an annual meeting 00:01:53.329 --> 00:01:57.400 of the American Psychological Association. Union 00:01:57.400 --> 00:02:00.680 College psychologist, Dr. Jack Lipton, he unveiled 00:02:00.680 --> 00:02:03.599 this kind of tongue -in -cheek survey where he 00:02:03.599 --> 00:02:07.260 went to 11 major American symphony orchestras 00:02:07.260 --> 00:02:09.699 and he surveyed them, all the instrumentalists, 00:02:10.120 --> 00:02:14.159 and he asked the musicians to list the first 00:02:14.159 --> 00:02:17.960 adjective that came to mind for each instrumental 00:02:17.960 --> 00:02:21.000 section. So each section, percussionist, strings, 00:02:21.180 --> 00:02:24.180 bass, horns, woodwinds, right? For each of them, 00:02:24.199 --> 00:02:27.250 he said, hey, What's the first adjective to describe 00:02:27.250 --> 00:02:29.610 that section? And the results were actually kind 00:02:29.610 --> 00:02:32.610 of brutal and a little bit funny. So, you ready? 00:02:33.729 --> 00:02:35.469 Percussionists. We have a few percussionists 00:02:35.469 --> 00:02:38.169 in here, right? Anyone want to admit it before 00:02:38.169 --> 00:02:42.889 I say the adjectives? No, okay. Percussionists. 00:02:42.889 --> 00:02:48.430 These were the adjectives. Insensitive, unintelligent, 00:02:49.229 --> 00:02:53.919 hard of hearing, but fun -loving. We have some 00:02:53.919 --> 00:02:58.639 fun -loving percussionists in here. Yeah, so 00:02:58.639 --> 00:03:01.479 these are other musicians talking about the other 00:03:01.479 --> 00:03:04.139 section in their own orchestra, and they're saying, 00:03:04.219 --> 00:03:06.639 yeah, unintelligent, hard of hearing, but fun 00:03:06.639 --> 00:03:08.439 -loving. They missed their part, man. They were 00:03:08.439 --> 00:03:10.639 supposed to come in on that one part, and they 00:03:10.639 --> 00:03:14.599 missed it. For the string players, the adjectives 00:03:14.599 --> 00:03:19.199 to describe the string players, arrogant, stuffy, 00:03:19.740 --> 00:03:24.090 and then I love this one, unathletic. Like, burn. 00:03:26.210 --> 00:03:30.509 On the string players, wow. Now, the brass. The 00:03:30.509 --> 00:03:34.229 brass had this unanimous word. Like, it came 00:03:34.229 --> 00:03:36.189 up over and over again in all the studies. It 00:03:36.189 --> 00:03:39.490 was the clear winner. One word adjective for 00:03:39.490 --> 00:03:43.990 the brass section was loud. If you've ever stood 00:03:43.990 --> 00:03:46.810 in front of a trumpet, you know. Like, loud, 00:03:46.830 --> 00:03:48.930 the brass section, right? And then finally, the 00:03:48.930 --> 00:03:54.060 woodwinds. They were regarded as well, with the 00:03:54.060 --> 00:03:57.479 most kind adjectives. They were regarded as quiet 00:03:57.479 --> 00:04:01.699 and meticulous, but a little egotistical, you 00:04:01.699 --> 00:04:05.120 know, those woodwind players. They got a little 00:04:05.120 --> 00:04:08.939 bit of an ego. Well, Dr. Jack Lipton, he noted 00:04:08.939 --> 00:04:11.139 that if you looked at all these stereotypes, 00:04:11.300 --> 00:04:13.840 what each section thought of the other sections, 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:17.439 you'd wonder how an orchestra could ever play 00:04:17.439 --> 00:04:20.439 a single bar together and produce anything of 00:04:20.439 --> 00:04:24.579 worth, right? Yet every night these same musicians 00:04:24.579 --> 00:04:28.519 lay aside their self -interest They lay aside 00:04:28.519 --> 00:04:31.079 their bias and their prejudice against the other 00:04:31.079 --> 00:04:34.259 sections and they come together and they fix 00:04:34.259 --> 00:04:38.420 their eyes on one conductor Following a sheet 00:04:38.420 --> 00:04:42.819 of music and they produce what? breathtaking 00:04:42.819 --> 00:04:49.040 music breathtaking Songs as long as they are 00:04:49.040 --> 00:04:53.879 submitted all of them to the one conductor using 00:04:53.879 --> 00:04:59.019 the one baton to lead them. The people of God 00:04:59.019 --> 00:05:01.339 are meant to produce, in keeping with this kind 00:05:01.339 --> 00:05:04.180 of metaphor, the music of the kingdom of God, 00:05:05.019 --> 00:05:07.519 the present and future reality of the rulership 00:05:07.519 --> 00:05:13.170 of Jesus over all things. We are exiles and strangers. 00:05:13.230 --> 00:05:15.889 We are passing through this world. But while 00:05:15.889 --> 00:05:18.490 we're passing through this world, we are called 00:05:18.490 --> 00:05:21.990 to live in such a way that our lives and conduct 00:05:21.990 --> 00:05:24.930 communicate the joyful hope that we have in our 00:05:24.930 --> 00:05:30.370 King Jesus. That's our life in the faith. And 00:05:30.370 --> 00:05:32.509 so if you're taking notes, I'll have you write 00:05:32.509 --> 00:05:36.910 down the one point that I'll put everything under. 00:05:38.569 --> 00:05:42.410 in heaven and on earth and under the earth. The 00:05:42.410 --> 00:05:47.389 one point, holy submission. Holy submission. 00:05:48.149 --> 00:05:51.069 Now we love our freedom, like we cherish deeply 00:05:51.069 --> 00:05:55.050 our autonomy. How many guys have ever said this 00:05:55.050 --> 00:05:58.730 in your own head or out loud? Who are you to 00:05:58.730 --> 00:06:04.829 tell me what to do? Anyone? Anyone today? Anyone 00:06:04.829 --> 00:06:08.939 right now? By the end of this, for sure, there'll 00:06:08.939 --> 00:06:12.639 be a few of you. Who are you to tell me what 00:06:12.639 --> 00:06:14.660 to do? I remember once being in the living room 00:06:14.660 --> 00:06:18.399 and one of my boys came in and one of my boys 00:06:18.399 --> 00:06:20.639 had a job that he was supposed to do. I don't 00:06:20.639 --> 00:06:23.839 remember what it was, taking out something or 00:06:23.839 --> 00:06:25.680 cleaning something or feeding something. We've 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:28.000 got lots of animals to feed around the place, 00:06:28.060 --> 00:06:29.720 so it was probably one of those things, it's 00:06:29.720 --> 00:06:32.839 a safe bet. But he was supposed to do it and 00:06:32.839 --> 00:06:35.019 he knew he was supposed to do it and he was going 00:06:35.019 --> 00:06:37.430 to do it. So he knew he was supposed to do it, 00:06:37.430 --> 00:06:39.189 he was going to do it, and he had no problem 00:06:39.189 --> 00:06:42.250 doing it. He just so happened to make the mistake 00:06:42.250 --> 00:06:44.689 of passing through the living room when I was 00:06:44.689 --> 00:06:48.930 in there. And so I told him to do it. And he 00:06:48.930 --> 00:06:50.769 stopped in his tracks and he looked at me and 00:06:50.769 --> 00:06:53.470 he said, Dad, he put his hands on his hips, he's 00:06:53.470 --> 00:06:58.709 like, Dad, I was going to do it. I had no problem 00:06:58.709 --> 00:07:01.170 doing it, but the moment you said that, I don't 00:07:01.170 --> 00:07:04.420 wanna do it anymore. Don't know what that is 00:07:04.420 --> 00:07:06.079 and he looked at me really he's like dad. What 00:07:06.079 --> 00:07:09.379 is that? Because I don't know I was totally fine 00:07:09.379 --> 00:07:12.019 doing it but the moment you said go do it I don't 00:07:12.019 --> 00:07:17.160 want to do it anymore And I said you sinner Go 00:07:17.160 --> 00:07:25.279 to your room. No What is that what is that thing 00:07:25.279 --> 00:07:30.899 it's that dirty word We don't like submission 00:07:30.899 --> 00:07:35.439 Submission So let's define that term just a little 00:07:35.439 --> 00:07:38.839 bit. The really base meaning of submission is 00:07:38.839 --> 00:07:44.240 to obey. To obey. There's also added to that 00:07:44.240 --> 00:07:47.439 a kind of a military definition you might think 00:07:47.439 --> 00:07:51.639 of which is to fall in line. Fall in line. Get 00:07:51.639 --> 00:07:55.040 in line, submit. And submission in scripture 00:07:55.040 --> 00:07:59.449 now. is voluntarily alignment or voluntary alignment 00:07:59.449 --> 00:08:02.990 under God's appointed authority for the Lord's 00:08:02.990 --> 00:08:05.129 glory and for others good. I'll say that again. 00:08:05.550 --> 00:08:07.870 A submission in scripture is voluntary alignment 00:08:07.870 --> 00:08:11.649 under God appointed authority for the Lord's 00:08:11.649 --> 00:08:16.230 glory and for others good. The submission itself 00:08:16.230 --> 00:08:20.509 isn't the loss of choice, at least as scripture 00:08:20.509 --> 00:08:23.170 understands, the submission isn't. the loss of 00:08:23.170 --> 00:08:25.670 choice, it's the deliberate use of our freedom 00:08:25.670 --> 00:08:29.329 to place ourselves under God -given authority 00:08:29.329 --> 00:08:33.110 for His glory and for the good of others. And 00:08:33.110 --> 00:08:34.769 we're gonna flesh this out a little bit as we 00:08:34.769 --> 00:08:38.470 go along, especially the idea of not a loss of 00:08:38.470 --> 00:08:42.610 choice. But if it's to place ourselves under 00:08:42.610 --> 00:08:44.889 God -given authorities for His glory and the 00:08:44.889 --> 00:08:47.230 good, what are these God -given authorities that 00:08:47.230 --> 00:08:50.970 we are called to submit to in the word? Well, 00:08:50.970 --> 00:08:55.090 these authorities operate within at least four 00:08:55.090 --> 00:08:59.029 God -ordained and God -established institutions. 00:09:00.370 --> 00:09:04.389 Spheres of life that God has instituted through 00:09:04.389 --> 00:09:07.590 his word and have come down to us. And that is 00:09:07.590 --> 00:09:10.029 these four. If you're taking notes, you're welcome 00:09:10.029 --> 00:09:13.970 to write these down. The family, the church, 00:09:15.370 --> 00:09:21.000 work, and the state. The family, the church, 00:09:21.340 --> 00:09:23.899 work, or marketplace, and the state, or you might 00:09:23.899 --> 00:09:29.320 say government. These four institutions exist 00:09:29.320 --> 00:09:33.440 to reflect the character and nature of God, to 00:09:33.440 --> 00:09:35.879 restrain evil and promote human flourishing, 00:09:36.500 --> 00:09:39.659 to cultivate relationships, and to reveal God's 00:09:39.659 --> 00:09:43.820 redemptive plan in this world. I'll give you 00:09:43.820 --> 00:09:46.080 a really quick description and a purpose for 00:09:46.080 --> 00:09:49.700 each one of those very quickly. Family. Family 00:09:49.700 --> 00:09:54.320 is the foundational unit of society. It was established 00:09:54.320 --> 00:09:58.759 by God back in Genesis chapter two and continued 00:09:58.759 --> 00:10:02.519 to affirm throughout scripture. The foundational 00:10:02.519 --> 00:10:05.259 unit of society established by God between one 00:10:05.259 --> 00:10:08.360 woman and one man in a covenantal relationship 00:10:08.360 --> 00:10:12.600 for the purpose of love, procreation, nurture, 00:10:13.159 --> 00:10:18.899 and discipleship. and its purpose to raise children 00:10:18.899 --> 00:10:21.960 in the knowledge of God, to cultivate loving 00:10:21.960 --> 00:10:25.659 order, and reflect God's fatherly care and his 00:10:25.659 --> 00:10:29.740 covenantal love to this world. The family institution 00:10:29.740 --> 00:10:35.840 has a purpose. The church. The church is the 00:10:35.840 --> 00:10:38.659 gathered people of God called out from the world 00:10:38.659 --> 00:10:41.960 to worship, to grow in holiness, to proclaim 00:10:41.960 --> 00:10:45.159 the gospel and live as Christ's body here on 00:10:45.159 --> 00:10:47.279 this earth, as his visible presence on the earth. 00:10:47.299 --> 00:10:50.139 That's the church. That's a description of the 00:10:50.139 --> 00:10:52.539 institution of the church and its purpose as 00:10:52.539 --> 00:10:54.940 laid out throughout scripture in Matthew 16, 00:10:55.259 --> 00:10:58.620 Acts 2, as well as Ephesians 4. Its purpose is 00:10:58.620 --> 00:11:01.360 to glorify God through worship, through teaching 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:04.909 and discipleship and missions. equipping believers 00:11:04.909 --> 00:11:07.970 for works of service and building up the body 00:11:07.970 --> 00:11:11.110 until we all reach unity in the faith. That's 00:11:11.110 --> 00:11:15.049 its purpose. And you can already start to see, 00:11:15.230 --> 00:11:17.429 I'll cover the last two in just a second, but 00:11:17.429 --> 00:11:19.990 you can already start to see that what God has 00:11:19.990 --> 00:11:23.629 instituted has order, and when there's order 00:11:23.629 --> 00:11:26.950 or complex order or things to get done, you always 00:11:26.950 --> 00:11:31.000 need leadership. You always need some level of 00:11:31.000 --> 00:11:33.539 authority, and any time you have authority, you 00:11:33.539 --> 00:11:37.940 have the dirty word submission. In order to get 00:11:37.940 --> 00:11:41.740 those things done, someone has to take charge. 00:11:41.899 --> 00:11:47.059 Someone has to see it through. Number three. 00:11:47.939 --> 00:11:51.679 work or the marketplace. It is the realm of labor, 00:11:52.179 --> 00:11:55.679 the vocation or stewardship of this world where 00:11:55.679 --> 00:11:58.419 individuals reflect God's image through creativity 00:11:58.419 --> 00:12:02.990 and responsibility. and productivity. It is the 00:12:02.990 --> 00:12:06.350 creative mandates, the mandate of work that came 00:12:06.350 --> 00:12:11.149 in Genesis 2 to go and to organize, to cultivate 00:12:11.149 --> 00:12:15.850 the world, to bring order out of chaos and to 00:12:15.850 --> 00:12:24.750 exercise dominion over it, as Psalm 8 says. And 00:12:24.750 --> 00:12:27.980 this is to provide for human needs. to express 00:12:27.980 --> 00:12:30.720 dominion over creation, to serve others, and 00:12:30.720 --> 00:12:33.500 to glorify God through diligent and honest work. 00:12:35.059 --> 00:12:37.559 And then the final institution is the institution 00:12:37.559 --> 00:12:41.220 of the state, the government. That civil authority 00:12:41.220 --> 00:12:44.899 is instituted by God to promote justice, to restrain 00:12:44.899 --> 00:12:49.580 evil through laws and regulations, and to preserve 00:12:49.580 --> 00:12:53.580 order in a fallen world as we anticipate and 00:12:53.580 --> 00:12:56.600 wait for a new kingdom, a new heavens and new 00:12:56.600 --> 00:13:02.980 earth that is not fallen. It's important to note 00:13:02.980 --> 00:13:11.120 that work, family, church, the people, they all 00:13:11.120 --> 00:13:14.259 may play a part in the new heavens and the new 00:13:14.259 --> 00:13:16.580 earth, meaning the people of God gathered up, 00:13:17.440 --> 00:13:21.750 the family of God. and its purposes and however 00:13:21.750 --> 00:13:25.669 God ordains that in the future and the work that 00:13:25.669 --> 00:13:28.490 we don't necessarily cease to work, work is not 00:13:28.490 --> 00:13:31.370 a result of sin, work was a mandate before sin 00:13:31.370 --> 00:13:36.370 entered the world. And so our eternal life with 00:13:36.370 --> 00:13:39.250 God may involve all kinds of creative endeavors 00:13:39.250 --> 00:13:43.649 and responsibilities that we can't imagine. But 00:13:43.649 --> 00:13:47.649 civil authorities here on earth, these are provisional, 00:13:48.330 --> 00:13:51.539 these are temporary. And we'll look at the other 00:13:51.539 --> 00:13:54.740 ones that we talked about, family, church, work, 00:13:55.059 --> 00:13:57.639 in the future as we come across those scriptures. 00:13:57.700 --> 00:13:59.879 But today we're gonna begin with just the state 00:13:59.879 --> 00:14:03.580 and civic government. And that's where the passage 00:14:03.580 --> 00:14:06.059 in verse 13 comes into play. Submit to every 00:14:06.059 --> 00:14:08.440 human authority because of the Lord, whether 00:14:08.440 --> 00:14:11.700 to the emperor as the supreme authority or to 00:14:11.700 --> 00:14:14.379 governors as those sent out by him to punish 00:14:14.379 --> 00:14:17.080 those who do what is evil and to praise those 00:14:17.080 --> 00:14:21.059 who do what is good. Now we already know lots 00:14:21.059 --> 00:14:23.879 of people submit to civic authority. There are 00:14:23.879 --> 00:14:26.460 many rule keepers in our world who will submit 00:14:26.460 --> 00:14:29.600 to every rule and regulation that has presented 00:14:29.600 --> 00:14:33.820 them, even the speed limit, which is annoying, 00:14:33.879 --> 00:14:35.860 right, at times, to get behind someone who's 00:14:35.860 --> 00:14:38.159 driving the speed limit. You're like, we don't 00:14:38.159 --> 00:14:43.759 do that here. So we have to ask the question, 00:14:44.019 --> 00:14:46.720 if people already submit to civic authority and 00:14:46.720 --> 00:14:50.730 this is a command of the Lord, then what? What 00:14:50.730 --> 00:14:54.210 kind of submission is distinctly Christian submission? 00:14:55.250 --> 00:14:58.309 What kind of submission is distinctly Christian 00:14:58.309 --> 00:15:01.590 submission? The kind of submission that we are 00:15:01.590 --> 00:15:04.110 ordered or we are commanded to do or we are called 00:15:04.110 --> 00:15:07.289 to do in Christ. And so let's kind of unpack 00:15:07.289 --> 00:15:11.350 that. We submit, as it says in verse 13, submit 00:15:11.350 --> 00:15:14.210 to every human authority. Why? Because of the 00:15:14.210 --> 00:15:19.100 Lord. Other translations will say for the Lord's 00:15:19.100 --> 00:15:24.919 sake. Christians submit for the exaltation of 00:15:24.919 --> 00:15:28.740 Christ. That's why we submit. We submit that 00:15:28.740 --> 00:15:32.759 Christ might be exalted in a greater measure 00:15:32.759 --> 00:15:36.470 through our submission. And so we aim to do that. 00:15:36.809 --> 00:15:39.529 See, believers are born of the spirit where our 00:15:39.529 --> 00:15:41.669 citizenship has been moved from this world and 00:15:41.669 --> 00:15:44.669 its systems and powers to a kingdom whose dominion 00:15:44.669 --> 00:15:47.690 and reign knows no human boundaries and to a 00:15:47.690 --> 00:15:49.710 king who reigns above it all. We're just saying 00:15:49.710 --> 00:15:53.289 that, amen? In other words, our allegiance and 00:15:53.289 --> 00:15:58.490 submission is owed only to our king who is supreme 00:15:58.490 --> 00:16:03.500 over any ruler of this world. Our king and our 00:16:03.500 --> 00:16:07.460 citizenship has been moved. Our allegiance has 00:16:07.460 --> 00:16:11.019 been moved to a new king, a king who reigns above 00:16:11.019 --> 00:16:15.379 it all. So does that mean then that we don't 00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:18.120 have to submit to human authorities anymore? 00:16:18.179 --> 00:16:20.779 Because we are submitted to our king, to our 00:16:20.779 --> 00:16:23.659 ruler, Jesus who rules above all other authorities. 00:16:23.919 --> 00:16:27.240 We must not have to submit anymore. And the answer 00:16:27.240 --> 00:16:32.440 biblically is no. We submit now to human authorities 00:16:32.440 --> 00:16:36.379 because the Lord has sent us to be subject to 00:16:36.379 --> 00:16:40.519 every human authority. We submit to the Lord 00:16:40.519 --> 00:16:43.419 who has sent us to be subject to every human 00:16:43.419 --> 00:16:45.320 authority. Now you say that's a little confusing 00:16:45.320 --> 00:16:48.019 and I say just stick with me a little bit. We're 00:16:48.019 --> 00:16:50.539 not done. You don't have to go out confused. 00:16:52.580 --> 00:16:54.519 By the end if you're still confused talk to me 00:16:54.519 --> 00:16:58.419 afterwards because I did a poor job. But right 00:16:58.419 --> 00:17:00.460 now, if you're confused, just stick here. Verse 00:17:00.460 --> 00:17:06.680 16 of 1 Peter 2. Verse, it says that we're free. 00:17:07.160 --> 00:17:09.920 We are free from the kingdoms and the rulers 00:17:09.920 --> 00:17:12.799 of this world. Christ has set us free. We have 00:17:12.799 --> 00:17:14.839 been transferred into the kingdom of light from 00:17:14.839 --> 00:17:17.500 the kingdom of darkness. We have a new citizenship 00:17:17.500 --> 00:17:23.799 and a greater king. And verse 16 says, submit 00:17:23.799 --> 00:17:28.940 as free people. not using your freedom as a cover 00:17:28.940 --> 00:17:35.160 -up for evil, but as God's slaves. We are free 00:17:35.160 --> 00:17:38.119 from the rule of the governor because we are 00:17:38.119 --> 00:17:41.039 slaves of God, but we are subject to the governor 00:17:41.039 --> 00:17:44.279 because as slaves of God, he has sent us to be 00:17:44.279 --> 00:17:48.480 subject to the government. And so our allegiance 00:17:48.480 --> 00:17:51.119 is to God wherever God might send us, and guess 00:17:51.119 --> 00:17:54.559 where he has sent us while we are here? To send, 00:17:54.660 --> 00:17:59.339 to submit. to the governmental rule. What are 00:17:59.339 --> 00:18:02.599 the implications of this? Well, it means that 00:18:02.599 --> 00:18:05.200 we are not submitting to the civic authorities 00:18:05.200 --> 00:18:09.680 because of their intrinsic respectability, because 00:18:09.680 --> 00:18:14.039 of their worth or their merit. We are free from 00:18:14.039 --> 00:18:16.500 that kind of submission in Christ Jesus. We don't 00:18:16.500 --> 00:18:19.059 have to submit to someone who has to live up 00:18:19.059 --> 00:18:21.339 to a certain standard of respectability anymore. 00:18:21.859 --> 00:18:25.480 We're free from that. In Christ, we are free 00:18:25.480 --> 00:18:29.799 to submit to Christ, in Christ alone. And we 00:18:29.799 --> 00:18:32.420 don't have to judge based upon respectability, 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:35.799 worth, or merit. No, we submit because we are 00:18:35.799 --> 00:18:38.900 servants of a higher authority who has sent us 00:18:38.900 --> 00:18:42.940 to be subject for a time, provisional, to earthly 00:18:42.940 --> 00:18:48.240 rulers. And why has he done that? Why has he 00:18:48.240 --> 00:18:50.720 done that? And I think we get a little bit of 00:18:50.720 --> 00:18:54.039 instruction. in an interaction that Peter had 00:18:54.039 --> 00:18:57.779 earlier in his life, a teaching moment that Jesus 00:18:57.779 --> 00:19:03.740 took advantage of in Matthew chapter 17. In Matthew 00:19:03.740 --> 00:19:07.440 17 and 24, it says, when they came to Capernaum, 00:19:07.680 --> 00:19:10.259 those who collected the temple tax approached 00:19:10.259 --> 00:19:14.819 Peter and said, doesn't your teacher pay the 00:19:14.819 --> 00:19:20.289 temple tax? Yes, he said. And when Peter went 00:19:20.289 --> 00:19:22.950 into the house, Jesus spoke to him first. What 00:19:22.950 --> 00:19:25.289 do you think, Simon? Simon is just another name 00:19:25.289 --> 00:19:30.349 for Peter. What do you think, Simon? From whom 00:19:30.349 --> 00:19:34.230 do earthly kings collect tariffs and taxes? From 00:19:34.230 --> 00:19:39.329 their sons or from strangers? From strangers, 00:19:39.450 --> 00:19:43.990 Peter said. Then the sons are free, Jesus told 00:19:43.990 --> 00:19:50.130 him. But. So we won't offend them. Go to the 00:19:50.130 --> 00:19:53.089 sea, cast in a fish hook, and take the first 00:19:53.089 --> 00:19:55.369 fish that you catch. When you open its mouth, 00:19:55.390 --> 00:19:58.009 you'll find a coin. Take it and give it to them 00:19:58.009 --> 00:20:02.309 for me and you. Pay the temple tax. So Peter 00:20:02.309 --> 00:20:04.869 is asking, Peter has asked if Jesus pays the 00:20:04.869 --> 00:20:06.670 temple tax. Does your master pay the temple tax? 00:20:06.869 --> 00:20:09.289 He's like, yes he does. And then he goes into 00:20:09.289 --> 00:20:11.809 the house, right? And then Jesus uses this as 00:20:11.809 --> 00:20:14.839 a teaching moment. to use this analogy of earthly 00:20:14.839 --> 00:20:19.019 kingdoms to clarify this reality. Kings impose 00:20:19.019 --> 00:20:22.019 taxes on their subjects, but not on their own 00:20:22.019 --> 00:20:26.220 family. Members of the royal family are exempt 00:20:26.220 --> 00:20:29.779 from the obligations imposed upon common citizens. 00:20:31.090 --> 00:20:33.710 Well, the temple tax was what? Well, the temple 00:20:33.710 --> 00:20:35.609 tax was something that was instituted back in 00:20:35.609 --> 00:20:38.549 Exodus chapter 13. It was basically an annual 00:20:38.549 --> 00:20:41.369 mandatory tax, a contribution that was collected 00:20:41.369 --> 00:20:44.849 from every Jewish man in order to maintain the 00:20:44.849 --> 00:20:47.430 operations and support of the Jewish temple. 00:20:47.849 --> 00:20:50.369 or the Jerusalem temple, the one in Jerusalem. 00:20:50.609 --> 00:20:52.910 So they would go out into the countryside, they 00:20:52.910 --> 00:20:54.849 would go all the way up into Galilee, and they 00:20:54.849 --> 00:20:56.910 would even go off into the countries where the 00:20:56.910 --> 00:20:59.730 Jewish people had kind of been scattered across 00:20:59.730 --> 00:21:01.750 the nations, and they had tax collectors who 00:21:01.750 --> 00:21:04.549 would go out and collect the temple tax to continue 00:21:04.549 --> 00:21:07.029 to maintain the operations of the temple back 00:21:07.029 --> 00:21:11.250 in Jerusalem. That was the temple tax that Jesus 00:21:11.250 --> 00:21:16.309 is talking about here. What was the temple commonly 00:21:16.309 --> 00:21:21.630 understood to be? The temple in Jerusalem was 00:21:21.630 --> 00:21:25.269 commonly understood to be the house of, who? 00:21:26.529 --> 00:21:31.369 God. The temple was the house of God. So the 00:21:31.369 --> 00:21:34.289 point that Jesus is illustrating is that as the 00:21:34.289 --> 00:21:37.710 son of God, he was not obligated to pay the tax 00:21:37.710 --> 00:21:41.170 for the house of God. As the son of God, he's 00:21:41.170 --> 00:21:43.789 not obligated to pay the tax for the house of 00:21:43.789 --> 00:21:48.970 God. He is inherently exempt. He's a son. And 00:21:48.970 --> 00:21:53.769 the disciples as his bros are like adopted sons 00:21:53.769 --> 00:21:55.910 and they're in the family too and we're free 00:21:55.910 --> 00:21:58.369 from that. We don't have to pay the temple tax 00:21:58.369 --> 00:22:01.869 because we're a part of the household. We're 00:22:01.869 --> 00:22:09.769 in the family. But then Jesus says, the reason 00:22:09.769 --> 00:22:13.529 why we are still going to submit, the reason 00:22:13.529 --> 00:22:16.430 why we're still going to pay the tax is what? 00:22:18.210 --> 00:22:24.349 So we don't offend them. So we don't offend them. 00:22:26.029 --> 00:22:29.890 But back in 1 Peter 2, in verse 15, the reason 00:22:29.890 --> 00:22:32.650 given for this submission is the same idea. For 00:22:32.650 --> 00:22:35.309 it is God's will that you silence the ignorance 00:22:35.309 --> 00:22:38.930 of foolish people by doing good. In other words, 00:22:38.930 --> 00:22:42.029 he's saying, hey, we're not going to put a stumbling 00:22:42.029 --> 00:22:45.930 block in the way for the mission that we're on. 00:22:46.240 --> 00:22:49.380 the mission of redemption, Jesus with his disciples. 00:22:49.380 --> 00:22:51.319 We're not gonna put a stumbling block where we 00:22:51.319 --> 00:22:53.819 don't pay our taxes and we become like revolutionaries 00:22:53.819 --> 00:22:55.980 that everyone is opposed to. We're gonna pay 00:22:55.980 --> 00:22:59.960 our tax so that we don't offend them because 00:22:59.960 --> 00:23:02.740 we have a greater mission, a greater purpose 00:23:02.740 --> 00:23:05.319 for being here. He came to seek and save the 00:23:05.319 --> 00:23:08.859 lost. He didn't come to worry about the governmental 00:23:08.859 --> 00:23:11.559 systems and oppose them and tear them down. He 00:23:11.559 --> 00:23:13.880 came to seek and save the lost. And so we're 00:23:13.880 --> 00:23:16.140 gonna pay it so we don't offend them. and we're 00:23:16.140 --> 00:23:21.480 gonna move on. And back in 1 Peter, Peter's riffing 00:23:21.480 --> 00:23:23.200 on that and he's saying, hey, it's God's will 00:23:23.200 --> 00:23:25.619 that you silence the ignorance of foolish people 00:23:25.619 --> 00:23:30.460 by doing what is good. Do what is right, being 00:23:30.460 --> 00:23:33.440 exiles and strangers, living the radically holy 00:23:33.440 --> 00:23:36.000 life that we're called to. People are going to 00:23:36.000 --> 00:23:41.380 believe that we are a threat to society. When 00:23:41.380 --> 00:23:45.059 we entered in, to faith in Christ and where our 00:23:45.059 --> 00:23:46.839 citizenship was transferred into the kingdom 00:23:46.839 --> 00:23:49.940 of God. We were like strangers in exiles who 00:23:49.940 --> 00:23:52.779 entered into the land of this world and this 00:23:52.779 --> 00:23:55.440 kingdom. And we entered in at some point at one 00:23:55.440 --> 00:23:57.720 border and we will exit at another border when 00:23:57.720 --> 00:24:00.079 we enter into the heavenly kingdom, the future 00:24:00.079 --> 00:24:03.460 kingdom in its fullness. But while we are here, 00:24:03.460 --> 00:24:08.759 we are on a mission sent by God to see the gospel 00:24:08.759 --> 00:24:12.259 of grace advance in our day and our time. to 00:24:12.259 --> 00:24:18.440 see Christ exalted. People are going to believe 00:24:18.440 --> 00:24:20.539 that we are a threat to society. It was even 00:24:20.539 --> 00:24:24.240 in Tacitus we read last week, the historian Tacitus 00:24:24.240 --> 00:24:27.200 and his writings, talking about Christians as 00:24:27.200 --> 00:24:32.859 a threat to the empire, a threat to politics, 00:24:33.500 --> 00:24:38.500 sabotage, or saboteurs of politics. They're a 00:24:38.500 --> 00:24:41.539 danger to power and order for their allegiance 00:24:41.539 --> 00:24:45.980 is not here. They won't say Caesar is Lord. They 00:24:45.980 --> 00:24:49.339 will only say Jesus is Lord. They're a danger 00:24:49.339 --> 00:24:54.740 to power and to the order of society. And we, 00:24:54.880 --> 00:24:58.460 like Peter, belong to a kingdom whose king reigns 00:24:58.460 --> 00:25:02.160 supremely above all earthly powers and our freedom. 00:25:02.430 --> 00:25:05.750 from human authorities isn't a license to rebel 00:25:05.750 --> 00:25:09.750 or disrespect. It's an invitation for each one 00:25:09.750 --> 00:25:12.630 of us to display our true allegiance to the King 00:25:12.630 --> 00:25:15.829 of Kings and the Lord of Lords. We submit, as 00:25:15.829 --> 00:25:19.230 Jesus did, not because we must, but because our 00:25:19.230 --> 00:25:21.490 ultimate mission isn't our personal autonomy 00:25:21.490 --> 00:25:24.690 or self -satisfaction. Our ultimate mission is 00:25:24.690 --> 00:25:26.930 the salvation and transformation of others. That's 00:25:26.930 --> 00:25:37.109 why we submit. We don't want to offend. See the 00:25:37.109 --> 00:25:42.289 gospel The gospel is offensive all by itself 00:25:42.289 --> 00:25:45.829 When someone is confronted with the gospel in 00:25:45.829 --> 00:25:49.329 the face of their self -centered self -righteous 00:25:49.329 --> 00:25:54.289 life the gospel is an offense It says, lay down 00:25:54.289 --> 00:25:56.329 your life. It says, take up your cross. It says, 00:25:56.630 --> 00:25:59.150 follow Jesus. It says, begin to respond to his 00:25:59.150 --> 00:26:01.849 commands in loving obedience until your life 00:26:01.849 --> 00:26:03.769 is changed and it's not the same as it was before. 00:26:04.349 --> 00:26:06.049 And this can all sound really good if your life 00:26:06.049 --> 00:26:08.210 has been transformed, but just remember what 00:26:08.210 --> 00:26:10.230 it's like when you're on the other side and you're 00:26:10.230 --> 00:26:13.769 living the time of your life, right? Does that 00:26:13.769 --> 00:26:16.230 mean no more clubbing? Clubbing on Friday? Yes, 00:26:16.309 --> 00:26:17.730 it means no more clubbing on Friday. It's probably 00:26:17.730 --> 00:26:20.640 not good for you, right? Lay down your life, 00:26:20.640 --> 00:26:23.680 take up your cross, follow Jesus. It can mean 00:26:23.680 --> 00:26:27.660 all kinds of things. It's individual and personal 00:26:27.660 --> 00:26:29.900 based upon where you're at when you start and 00:26:29.900 --> 00:26:32.339 where Jesus is getting to you by the end, right? 00:26:33.000 --> 00:26:35.880 But either way, it's an offense to your flesh. 00:26:36.960 --> 00:26:38.759 And then you know what? You know we have the 00:26:38.759 --> 00:26:40.940 audacity of doing, you guys out there? Okay, 00:26:41.180 --> 00:26:45.319 yeah. Sorry, it's just a blanket of light here. 00:26:46.259 --> 00:26:48.579 Well, what do we as believers Christians have 00:26:48.579 --> 00:26:51.599 the audacity to do? We say the gospel is an offense 00:26:51.599 --> 00:26:53.799 and and we are all about getting people to the 00:26:53.799 --> 00:26:57.059 gospel and then we're like Actually, let's we 00:26:57.059 --> 00:27:00.519 also you also need to stand for this. That's 00:27:00.519 --> 00:27:04.259 bad You need to stand for this too Unless you 00:27:04.259 --> 00:27:06.200 agree to this then you can agree to that and 00:27:06.200 --> 00:27:08.000 then we'll get you to the gospel But I need you 00:27:08.000 --> 00:27:13.400 on board with all of this first Right no no no 00:27:13.400 --> 00:27:17.200 like I'm offended I'm offended that they're charging 00:27:17.200 --> 00:27:20.940 a temple tax. I'm offended by that. I need to 00:27:20.940 --> 00:27:24.519 go roast them like in the public square. I need 00:27:24.519 --> 00:27:27.299 to call them names. I need to do whatever I can 00:27:27.299 --> 00:27:31.019 to get them to change. And then once they change 00:27:31.019 --> 00:27:35.720 it, they don't tell them about Jesus. Jesus loves 00:27:35.720 --> 00:27:38.680 you. He wants to save you. He's got a wonderful 00:27:38.680 --> 00:27:44.359 plan for you. Jesus is like, we don't wanna offend 00:27:44.359 --> 00:27:46.099 them. We got a mission that's so much greater, 00:27:46.099 --> 00:27:48.859 they don't understand it. It's otherworldly, 00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:53.299 but it's amazing and awesome. Life transformation, 00:27:53.559 --> 00:27:57.119 salvation for souls. And we wanna be about that 00:27:57.119 --> 00:27:59.400 business and not just get in, not get in the 00:27:59.400 --> 00:28:09.680 weeds, not get muddled up. Jesus didn't insist 00:28:09.680 --> 00:28:13.250 on his rights as the son of God. Do you know 00:28:13.250 --> 00:28:17.589 that? I read that at the very beginning of service. 00:28:18.750 --> 00:28:24.250 Though being in nature, God, he did not consider 00:28:24.250 --> 00:28:28.829 equality with God, something to be grasped or 00:28:28.829 --> 00:28:31.789 clawed at. He didn't say, I'll go down there 00:28:31.789 --> 00:28:35.490 only if they recognize who I am and they submit 00:28:35.490 --> 00:28:39.549 to my authority. They know the voice that speaks 00:28:39.549 --> 00:28:42.309 it. No, he said, I'll go down there. and I will 00:28:42.309 --> 00:28:45.470 die even for those who have no clue who I am 00:28:45.470 --> 00:28:52.809 and have put me on the cross. Jesus, the son 00:28:52.809 --> 00:28:56.710 of man, he did not insist on his rights as the 00:28:56.710 --> 00:29:00.490 son of God. Instead, he chose submission to earthly 00:29:00.490 --> 00:29:04.789 rulers. He chose to lay down his life, not out 00:29:04.789 --> 00:29:07.309 of obligation, but out of love and humility to 00:29:07.309 --> 00:29:13.039 set aside his rights. and out of a desire to 00:29:13.039 --> 00:29:16.380 not place unnecessary stumbling blocks in the 00:29:16.380 --> 00:29:23.440 path of salvation. God had every right to receive 00:29:23.440 --> 00:29:25.880 all the worship of every single one who ever 00:29:25.880 --> 00:29:28.099 came in contact with him when he was in the flesh 00:29:28.099 --> 00:29:30.339 on this earth. Do you know that? Have you ever 00:29:30.339 --> 00:29:32.380 watched a movie that maybe has a king figure 00:29:32.380 --> 00:29:35.720 and they're like. Bow before me, kiss my ring, 00:29:35.779 --> 00:29:39.099 kiss my feet. Jesus had all of that coming to 00:29:39.099 --> 00:29:41.960 him, owed to him. He was the king of the universe 00:29:41.960 --> 00:29:44.579 and he set that aside to get down in the dirt 00:29:44.579 --> 00:29:48.859 with you and me so that he could figure out a 00:29:48.859 --> 00:29:54.039 way to get us reconciled to God, reconnected 00:29:54.039 --> 00:30:02.599 so we could have life. Thank you, Anthony. I'll 00:30:02.599 --> 00:30:10.480 get you your 20 afterward. So let's bring it 00:30:10.480 --> 00:30:14.279 home practically. Are we submitting in a way 00:30:14.279 --> 00:30:16.640 that reflects Christ's humility and his kingdom, 00:30:17.579 --> 00:30:20.839 his kingdom priorities? Do we model submission 00:30:20.839 --> 00:30:23.779 in our speech and our attitudes and our interactions, 00:30:23.960 --> 00:30:26.099 especially when we disagree with those in authority? 00:30:27.000 --> 00:30:30.220 In this contentious political and cultural climate 00:30:30.220 --> 00:30:32.859 we find ourselves in, your holy submission to 00:30:32.859 --> 00:30:35.900 human authorities, even flawed ones, isn't weakness. 00:30:37.319 --> 00:30:41.839 It's a potent testimony. It declares loudly that 00:30:41.839 --> 00:30:44.420 your confidence doesn't rest in the human governments 00:30:44.420 --> 00:30:47.140 or authorities, but in the sovereignty of Christ 00:30:47.140 --> 00:30:51.380 alone. Firm foundation, sure, through all time. 00:30:54.209 --> 00:30:56.970 Submission, done rightly, preaches the gospel. 00:30:58.269 --> 00:31:01.230 It says clearly, my life isn't ultimately about 00:31:01.230 --> 00:31:04.230 my rights. It's not about self -fulfillment. 00:31:04.650 --> 00:31:06.769 My life isn't ultimately about those things. 00:31:06.809 --> 00:31:13.789 It's about His glory and others' good. And the 00:31:13.789 --> 00:31:16.710 obvious question after all of that is, is there 00:31:16.710 --> 00:31:20.829 a limit to submission? And the answer is yes. 00:31:22.829 --> 00:31:25.710 The pattern of the apostles as demonstrated in 00:31:25.710 --> 00:31:28.069 scripture is the pattern that you and I as believers 00:31:28.069 --> 00:31:31.430 must follow and that is when an earthly ruler 00:31:31.430 --> 00:31:34.829 commands us to do something that God has commanded 00:31:34.829 --> 00:31:39.990 us in scripture not to do or when an earthly 00:31:39.990 --> 00:31:42.630 authority commands us to not do something God 00:31:42.630 --> 00:31:46.490 has commanded us to do in scripture we must obey 00:31:46.490 --> 00:31:54.279 God rather than man. Full stop every time. Because 00:31:54.279 --> 00:31:58.140 this recognizes something that is supremely true, 00:31:58.299 --> 00:32:00.599 truer reality than we understand, and that is 00:32:00.599 --> 00:32:03.839 that all earthly authority is derivative, is 00:32:03.839 --> 00:32:07.859 all derived from God. Romans 13 tells us that 00:32:07.859 --> 00:32:10.000 authorities are in place because God has given 00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:13.460 them that authority. All authority is given by 00:32:13.460 --> 00:32:15.599 God, and when we recognize that, then we understand 00:32:15.599 --> 00:32:17.799 that the earthly authorities aren't the full 00:32:17.799 --> 00:32:20.819 stop end. There is a greater authority above 00:32:20.819 --> 00:32:23.200 them, that is God, who has delegated that authority 00:32:23.200 --> 00:32:25.960 to them to do good. You may go, but they don't 00:32:25.960 --> 00:32:27.880 always do good, they're not always right, and 00:32:27.880 --> 00:32:32.299 some of them are just obnoxious. And that is 00:32:32.299 --> 00:32:41.000 so, so true. That is so true. But you can know 00:32:41.000 --> 00:32:46.759 this, just as Jesus knew, that, as it says at 00:32:46.759 --> 00:32:52.640 verse, what is it? 23 of this, he did not threaten, 00:32:52.660 --> 00:32:55.660 but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. 00:32:56.400 --> 00:32:59.099 If God is going to delegate his authority to 00:32:59.099 --> 00:33:02.799 a leader, then he is going to hold the leader 00:33:02.799 --> 00:33:05.039 accountable for how they use that authority, 00:33:05.619 --> 00:33:07.480 and you and I can go, I don't have to hold him 00:33:07.480 --> 00:33:09.960 accountable. God will hold him accountable. They 00:33:09.960 --> 00:33:12.779 will stand before God and be judged as to whether 00:33:12.779 --> 00:33:16.240 or not they punished the evildoer and they rewarded 00:33:16.240 --> 00:33:19.240 the one who did right, as scripture says, is 00:33:19.240 --> 00:33:22.039 their job. They will be judged according to scripture 00:33:22.039 --> 00:33:25.099 on their conduct as a leader if God has delegated 00:33:25.099 --> 00:33:28.440 them the authority. And so it really frees you 00:33:28.440 --> 00:33:34.440 and I to listen and to submit unless they try 00:33:34.440 --> 00:33:37.779 to usurp God's word. Unless they try to command 00:33:37.779 --> 00:33:40.420 us to do something that God said not to do. Or 00:33:40.420 --> 00:33:42.140 they try to command us not to do something that 00:33:42.140 --> 00:33:47.920 God commanded us to do. And then the final thing 00:33:47.920 --> 00:33:51.720 as we wrap up right now. before we get to point 00:33:51.720 --> 00:33:57.519 two and three and four. And then the wrap up 00:33:57.519 --> 00:34:03.700 and the video afterwards is verse 17. Honor everyone, 00:34:04.599 --> 00:34:09.059 love the brothers and sisters, fear God, honor 00:34:09.059 --> 00:34:12.179 the emperor. We're not gonna cover all of those. 00:34:12.690 --> 00:34:14.510 We'll probably loop back around, or actually, 00:34:14.789 --> 00:34:18.030 this week I might put out a short video on Facebook 00:34:18.030 --> 00:34:19.829 just covering the rest of these, but we're gonna 00:34:19.829 --> 00:34:22.710 really focus on one of those statements. Honor 00:34:22.710 --> 00:34:26.989 the emperor. That's verse 17. You guys see it 00:34:26.989 --> 00:34:29.389 there, right? It's in the Word, right? Are we 00:34:29.389 --> 00:34:31.590 Bible -believing believers here? I know we got 00:34:31.590 --> 00:34:33.610 maybe some seekers here, people who are looking 00:34:33.610 --> 00:34:35.650 and checking out, and that's totally awesome. 00:34:35.750 --> 00:34:37.369 We love to have people who are kind of peeking 00:34:37.369 --> 00:34:39.920 in and seeing like, what's this all about? But 00:34:39.920 --> 00:34:41.860 for some of you guys, you are Bible believing, 00:34:42.260 --> 00:34:44.739 like you're believers, you believe this is God's 00:34:44.739 --> 00:34:46.619 word and you wanna respond to it. And it says 00:34:46.619 --> 00:34:49.760 honor the emperor. And what does that mean? Well, 00:34:49.760 --> 00:34:53.079 I wanna tell you or introduce you to the emperor 00:34:53.079 --> 00:34:56.300 that Peter is telling the people, the disciples 00:34:56.300 --> 00:34:59.059 to honor. That emperor has a name, his name is 00:34:59.059 --> 00:35:04.739 Nero. The emperor. in Rome at the time of the 00:35:04.739 --> 00:35:08.039 writing of 1 Peter is most likely Nero. Let me 00:35:08.039 --> 00:35:12.039 tell you a little bit about Nero. In AD 64, Nero 00:35:12.039 --> 00:35:15.659 blamed the Christians for the great fire of Rome 00:35:15.659 --> 00:35:18.719 that destroyed the city. He riled up the whole 00:35:18.719 --> 00:35:23.039 city against Christians. He regularly arrested 00:35:23.039 --> 00:35:25.500 and imprisoned them without trial and branded 00:35:25.500 --> 00:35:29.630 them as enemies of the state. Christians were 00:35:29.630 --> 00:35:32.349 killed for public entertainment by gladiators 00:35:32.349 --> 00:35:35.369 or by wild animals in the great arenas around 00:35:35.369 --> 00:35:40.510 Rome. Nero, and I apologize, this one's gruesome, 00:35:41.010 --> 00:35:43.429 but Nero would take Christians and he would tie 00:35:43.429 --> 00:35:46.829 them to stakes in his garden and then he would 00:35:46.829 --> 00:35:49.110 host parties and he would light the Christians 00:35:49.110 --> 00:35:51.489 on fire and they would provide the light for 00:35:51.489 --> 00:36:00.579 the party. Christians were crucified in a cruel 00:36:00.579 --> 00:36:05.300 imitation of their leader, Christ. They were 00:36:05.300 --> 00:36:08.840 social outcasts and they encountered all kinds 00:36:08.840 --> 00:36:12.719 of great hostility because of their heavenly 00:36:12.719 --> 00:36:17.900 citizenship. That's the emperor, Peter says, 00:36:17.940 --> 00:36:25.489 to honor. But shouldn't it read honor God? and 00:36:25.489 --> 00:36:27.030 fear the emperor? I mean, doesn't that sound 00:36:27.030 --> 00:36:29.570 like, let's be afraid of that emperor, let's 00:36:29.570 --> 00:36:35.190 honor God, and no, it says, fear God. So you 00:36:35.190 --> 00:36:39.449 can honor the emperor. By no accident, it's in 00:36:39.449 --> 00:36:42.030 that order. Fear is not the idea of just being 00:36:42.030 --> 00:36:45.289 terrified or afraid, it's the idea of reverence 00:36:45.289 --> 00:36:48.190 and supreme position in your heart and mind. 00:36:48.650 --> 00:36:51.869 You put God in the right place and you can honor 00:36:51.869 --> 00:36:54.869 the emperor. You can understand that even in 00:36:54.869 --> 00:36:57.989 his wickedness, God has a plan and a purpose 00:36:57.989 --> 00:37:01.429 for why he's there, and God had a purpose in 00:37:01.429 --> 00:37:04.269 delegating his authority and his rulership for 00:37:04.269 --> 00:37:07.150 this time, and the gospel can still prosper in 00:37:07.150 --> 00:37:09.789 this day, in Nero's time. And that's the crazy 00:37:09.789 --> 00:37:11.710 thing. If you read enough Christian history, 00:37:11.710 --> 00:37:14.530 you realize that the times of greatest persecution 00:37:14.530 --> 00:37:17.409 created the greatest spread of the gospel ever. 00:37:19.329 --> 00:37:21.449 And you go, oh, that's a loss. No, that's a win. 00:37:21.550 --> 00:37:24.329 Nero had no idea what he was doing. He was helping 00:37:24.329 --> 00:37:27.889 the cause. With each Christian he lit on fire, 00:37:28.389 --> 00:37:30.849 he was causing the fire of the Holy Spirit to 00:37:30.849 --> 00:37:33.110 burn brighter and the witness of Jesus to go 00:37:33.110 --> 00:37:34.929 out in the world further so that more and more 00:37:34.929 --> 00:37:37.670 people believed and ultimately ended in the overthrow 00:37:37.670 --> 00:37:44.730 or the downfall of the Roman Empire itself. God 00:37:44.730 --> 00:37:46.849 gets our reverence, earthly authorities can get 00:37:46.849 --> 00:37:49.840 our honor. God gets our worship, the rulers of 00:37:49.840 --> 00:37:52.000 this age can get our respect for the authority 00:37:52.000 --> 00:37:54.920 that God has given them. And so the final thing 00:37:54.920 --> 00:37:57.900 I'll say here, before I say the final thing, 00:37:57.940 --> 00:38:05.860 no just kidding, is this. I don't wanna be political, 00:38:06.260 --> 00:38:09.059 but I believe the gospel gets into our business. 00:38:10.820 --> 00:38:13.519 The gospel gets into our business. And so if 00:38:13.519 --> 00:38:16.630 you go, right. Who are you to tell me what to 00:38:16.630 --> 00:38:22.730 do? Just remember where we started, right? I 00:38:22.730 --> 00:38:26.030 want you to know that how you talk about Gavin 00:38:26.030 --> 00:38:31.050 Newsom is a witness for or against your ultimate 00:38:31.050 --> 00:38:35.230 allegiance to Christ. It is a witness for or 00:38:35.230 --> 00:38:37.750 against your ultimate allegiance to Christ who 00:38:37.750 --> 00:38:40.489 has commanded you to submit to the governor's 00:38:40.489 --> 00:38:43.050 authority and to honor him so that the gospel 00:38:43.050 --> 00:38:51.909 might prevail in California. The other side ready? 00:38:52.170 --> 00:38:57.869 Okay. How you talk about Donald Trump is a witness 00:38:57.869 --> 00:39:00.989 for or against your ultimate allegiance to Christ 00:39:00.989 --> 00:39:03.530 who has commanded you to submit to the president's 00:39:03.530 --> 00:39:05.829 authority and to honor him so that the gospel 00:39:05.829 --> 00:39:08.030 might prevail in the United States of America. 00:39:10.090 --> 00:39:16.449 And just one more. How you talked about Joe Biden 00:39:16.449 --> 00:39:20.989 was a witness for or against. your ultimate allegiance 00:39:20.989 --> 00:39:23.829 to Christ who commanded you to submit to the 00:39:23.829 --> 00:39:26.610 president's authority and to honor him so that 00:39:26.610 --> 00:39:29.809 the gospel, the glory of God, and the good of 00:39:29.809 --> 00:39:36.909 others might prevail in the USA. We pray for 00:39:36.909 --> 00:39:43.699 our leaders. That's what we do. We pray for our 00:39:43.699 --> 00:39:47.679 leaders. We weep for our leaders. We weep over 00:39:47.679 --> 00:39:51.039 their sin when their sinfulness has seeped into 00:39:51.039 --> 00:39:53.579 their office and they abuse their authority and 00:39:53.579 --> 00:39:55.860 we pray that God would transform their hearts 00:39:55.860 --> 00:39:58.360 and redirect them so that they might not stand 00:39:58.360 --> 00:40:01.400 before God himself on that judgment day and give 00:40:01.400 --> 00:40:03.179 an account for the authority that was delegated 00:40:03.179 --> 00:40:08.860 to them. That's what we do. We pray. We weep. 00:40:10.680 --> 00:40:16.280 We rejoice when they act godly and we pray when 00:40:16.280 --> 00:40:22.780 they act evil. But how we talk about them, I 00:40:22.780 --> 00:40:25.099 wanna be very clear, I am not talking about setting 00:40:25.099 --> 00:40:28.349 aside your citizenship. as an American and not 00:40:28.349 --> 00:40:31.289 voting and not being involved in local politics 00:40:31.289 --> 00:40:34.489 or governmental, not at all. You have freedom 00:40:34.489 --> 00:40:36.170 and you ought to know the issues and you ought 00:40:36.170 --> 00:40:38.230 to vote for the issues and you ought to vote 00:40:38.230 --> 00:40:40.989 for the people that most align with those issues 00:40:40.989 --> 00:40:43.710 and the values that you have. But the way Christians 00:40:43.710 --> 00:40:48.309 talk about the people is disgusting. The way 00:40:48.309 --> 00:40:53.409 Christians talk about the people is ungodly. 00:40:53.670 --> 00:40:58.980 And it is a shame on us. That the world, the 00:40:58.980 --> 00:41:01.480 greatest witness that we have is for the world 00:41:01.480 --> 00:41:04.619 to stand back and go, why aren't you participating 00:41:04.619 --> 00:41:08.480 with us in slandering that person? That's our 00:41:08.480 --> 00:41:12.900 greatest witness. Why won't you join in? We're 00:41:12.900 --> 00:41:15.840 ganging up on him. We're roasting him. We're 00:41:15.840 --> 00:41:17.719 insulting him. We're bringing him down with our 00:41:17.719 --> 00:41:21.880 words. Why won't you join in? And the Christian 00:41:21.880 --> 00:41:30.130 says, how could I? I was a wretch. I was lost, 00:41:30.130 --> 00:41:33.710 but now I'm found. I was blind, but now I see. 00:41:33.929 --> 00:41:39.710 How could I ever take the seat of judge and slander 00:41:39.710 --> 00:41:44.449 one made in the image of God? I will oppose the 00:41:44.449 --> 00:41:47.610 policies. I will explain what I think. I will 00:41:47.610 --> 00:41:51.670 believe and stand firm on convictions that I 00:41:51.670 --> 00:41:53.389 believe are in alignment with the scripture. 00:41:55.139 --> 00:41:59.599 But I don't wanna cross that line. And I believe 00:41:59.599 --> 00:42:02.440 that Christians get caught up in the moment and 00:42:02.440 --> 00:42:04.980 we just join in and the world sits back and goes, 00:42:05.099 --> 00:42:07.039 okay, you're not that much different than me. 00:42:08.599 --> 00:42:11.340 So like we could be buds, but I don't think I 00:42:11.340 --> 00:42:13.019 need that thing that you have because it's just 00:42:13.019 --> 00:42:16.820 not that radically different. Not that sweet 00:42:16.820 --> 00:42:22.059 of an aroma or beautiful of music. Why submit 00:42:22.059 --> 00:42:25.090 when it's hard? Why when it costs us? when we 00:42:25.090 --> 00:42:29.630 don't want it. We do it because our Savior submitted, 00:42:31.329 --> 00:42:33.449 not just to the Father, but to the suffering 00:42:33.449 --> 00:42:36.150 and the shame and the injustice for our sake. 00:42:36.210 --> 00:42:39.989 That's why we do it. And He entrusted Himself 00:42:39.989 --> 00:42:43.789 to the one who judges justly, and if our King 00:42:43.789 --> 00:42:50.829 could lay down His rights, so can we. For you 00:42:50.829 --> 00:42:53.170 were called to this because Christ also suffered 00:42:53.170 --> 00:42:55.570 for you, leaving you an example that you should 00:42:55.570 --> 00:42:59.110 follow in his steps. He did not commit sin and 00:42:59.110 --> 00:43:01.710 no deceit was found in his mouth. When he was 00:43:01.710 --> 00:43:04.730 insulted, he did not insult in return. When he 00:43:04.730 --> 00:43:07.070 suffered, he did not threaten, but entrusted 00:43:07.070 --> 00:43:10.809 himself to the one who judges justly. He himself 00:43:10.809 --> 00:43:14.289 bore our sins in his body on the tree so that 00:43:14.289 --> 00:43:18.309 having died to sin, we might live for righteousness. 00:43:18.920 --> 00:43:23.539 By his wounds you have been healed, for you were 00:43:23.539 --> 00:43:27.139 like sheep gone astray, but you have now returned 00:43:27.139 --> 00:43:32.679 to the shepherd and overseer of your soul. My 00:43:32.679 --> 00:43:36.039 hope is that not to chastise us or scold us, 00:43:36.320 --> 00:43:38.960 but to wake us up to the reality that our holiness 00:43:38.960 --> 00:43:41.340 and our conduct has an effect on our witness. 00:43:41.420 --> 00:43:42.920 We sometimes think, and I'm gonna invite the 00:43:42.920 --> 00:43:44.980 worship team to come up. wherever you guys are 00:43:44.980 --> 00:43:47.059 headed, to come up and we're gonna do a song 00:43:47.059 --> 00:43:49.300 and communion in just a moment. But we sometimes 00:43:49.300 --> 00:43:52.699 think, I need like four points, a gospel sermon, 00:43:53.059 --> 00:43:56.179 that's my witness, my witness is my words, my 00:43:56.179 --> 00:43:58.920 witness is my sermon, and your witness, yes, 00:43:59.039 --> 00:44:01.599 is your words, and it is the gospel explained 00:44:01.599 --> 00:44:05.219 or proclaimed, but it's also your life. It's 00:44:05.219 --> 00:44:07.639 your conduct, it's your words, it's your behavior 00:44:07.639 --> 00:44:10.840 in person and online and wherever you go. It's 00:44:10.840 --> 00:44:14.000 your life, your holiness. This is God's means 00:44:14.000 --> 00:44:16.579 for witnessing to his greatness on this earth. 00:44:17.639 --> 00:44:27.019 And so it matters. It matters. It matters. It 00:44:27.019 --> 00:44:32.909 doesn't matter in the sense like, oh. Well, again, 00:44:32.929 --> 00:44:36.130 I'm not trying to say, hey, check out of society, 00:44:36.269 --> 00:44:39.730 don't have opinions. I say, just remember the 00:44:39.730 --> 00:44:43.489 gospel calling that we have as believers. We 00:44:43.489 --> 00:44:49.289 are the light of the world on a hill meant to 00:44:49.289 --> 00:44:52.630 shine. Don't put things in front of the light 00:44:52.630 --> 00:44:57.280 that dim it or dull it. Yeah, you can tell what 00:44:57.280 --> 00:44:59.420 you believe or what you think or who you voted 00:44:59.420 --> 00:45:04.500 for in conversation at some point in time. But 00:45:04.500 --> 00:45:08.139 demonstrate submission to authority with a recognition 00:45:08.139 --> 00:45:11.739 of ultimate authority in God. Demonstrate an 00:45:11.739 --> 00:45:16.159 honor for what God has instituted, a respect 00:45:16.159 --> 00:45:22.739 for what God has done. This is our witness. This 00:45:22.739 --> 00:45:25.840 is our gospel. and we get the privilege and honor 00:45:25.840 --> 00:45:29.519 to live it out and so I want to join with you 00:45:29.519 --> 00:45:32.820 in doing that as we go to our time in communion 00:45:32.820 --> 00:45:37.519 and as we reflect on Christ and what he's done 00:45:37.519 --> 00:45:40.099 his suffering and the example that he left for 00:45:40.099 --> 00:45:42.920 us that we would follow in his steps it says 00:45:42.920 --> 00:45:46.719 that when he was insulted he didn't return insult 00:45:46.719 --> 00:45:49.940 and he had committed no sin and yet he was found 00:45:49.940 --> 00:45:54.880 guilty and put on a cross that we ourselves can 00:45:54.880 --> 00:45:58.199 live in the way that He lived out before us. 00:45:58.199 --> 00:46:02.260 His example that He died for us on the tree so 00:46:02.260 --> 00:46:04.460 that we might live for righteousness. And I just 00:46:04.460 --> 00:46:07.159 want to encourage you specifically today if the 00:46:07.159 --> 00:46:10.119 Word of God is in 1st Peter 2 and what we talked 00:46:10.119 --> 00:46:12.699 about in any way just struck a chord and you 00:46:12.699 --> 00:46:14.800 feel the conviction of the Spirit. That's a good 00:46:14.800 --> 00:46:17.940 thing people. It doesn't always feel good, but 00:46:17.940 --> 00:46:20.179 it's a good thing. Let the Spirit convict you 00:46:20.179 --> 00:46:21.340 and lead you to truth.