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Turn it in the Scripture to John chapter one.

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And this morning, what we're going to look at a few verses,

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but we're going to read the context.

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And the context is going to be John 1 verses 6 through 15.

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And so I'm going to ask you, is you turn in your Bibles,

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or your tablet, would you all stand with me in honor of the Scriptures,

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in honor of the God who has revealed in the Scriptures.

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And in honor of the martyrs who gave their lives so that this book

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could be placed in our hands.

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There was a man sent from God whose name was John.

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He came as a witness to testify about the light,

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so that all might believe through him.

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He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light.

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The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.

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He was not in the world, and he was in the world,

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and the world was created through him.

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And yet the world did not recognize him.

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He came to his own and his own people did not receive him.

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But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God,

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to those who believe in his name, who were born,

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not of natural descent, nor the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man,

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but of God.

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The word became flesh and dwelt among us.

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We observed his glory.

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The glory is the one and only son from the father,

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full of grace and truth.

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John testified concerning him and exclaimed,

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this was the one of whom I said, the one coming after me,

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ranks ahead of me because he existed before me.

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These are the Holy Scriptures,

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make God bless our study of them this morning.

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Heavenly Father, we ask that you would open up the eyes of our heart

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that we would look into the beauty of the wisdom of the written word

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and perceive and discern the living word.

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And we ask that that living word would abide within us,

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and among us.

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As like Mary, we set at your feet to be taught of the Lord.

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In Jesus' name, we pray, amen.

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You may be seated.

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So this morning, what we're going to do is that we,

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we of course, are studying the book of John,

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and we've entitled the study, Beholding Christ.

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And as I said last week, it's a little cowardly title,

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because I wanted to title it,

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beholding the Christ within you.

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But I was afraid it could be misunderstood.

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But it is my heart if we behold Christ,

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my hope is not that we have a revelation of more information

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about Jesus, but you begin to see the life that is living within you.

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And that all those things you think might be impossible

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or inaccessible to you are not only possible

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and accessible, but they're already within you,

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because Christ is in you as the hope of glory.

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And if we can just move to recognizing

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to actually have faith to rest in the presence

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of the living Christ in the who has made his home and our soul,

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then we can begin to experience true spiritual transformation rather

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than just religious conformity.

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And that's what we're after.

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So this morning, what I want us to do is I want us to take a look

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at this context, but very specifically,

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let's just take a moment this morning and chat about

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what it means in reference to John the Baptist.

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Because there are a few verses here,

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and this is a little bit of a clunky translation.

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As I told you last week, it's believed by many scholars

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that opening, that preface that we read last week,

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that begins in the Eons of Time,

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that John likely put that in after he had written his gospel.

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And so you can, and that contributes to the clunkiness,

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because he talks about the preaminent, uncreated Christ,

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and then he starts talking about his mission to earth.

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And then he says a few words about John,

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that he flips back over to talking about the coming of the light,

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and then he has another bit about John.

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And even modern translators, if you'll notice in your Scriptures,

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they probably put verse 15 in parentheses.

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Now those parentheses are not in the original documents,

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but they put them there to realize,

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yeah, there seems John seems to be doing some back and forth here,

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and parenthetically adding some information about John,

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mixed in with this introduction of Jesus as the Word,

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as the creator, as the light, and as the life.

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And so we're gonna look at just those couple of verses

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that are speaking about directly about John, the Baptist.

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And those are going to be verses six, seven and eight,

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and then there's a break, and then it drops down to verse 15.

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So we'll just remind ourselves of those words.

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There was a man sent from God whose name was John.

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He came as a witness to testify about the light,

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so that all my belief through him, he was not the light,

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but he came to testify about the light.

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John testified concerning him, and exclaimed,

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this was the one of whom I said,

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the one coming after me ranks ahead of me,

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because he existed before me.

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And in that last statement, we have this tie in,

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back to verse 1.

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In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God,

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and the Word was God, and everything was created through the Word,

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and nothing that was created was created without him.

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And so John is looping back that reminder

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on this time in reference to John, the Baptist,

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and on the lips of John, the Baptist saying,

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he ranks higher than me.

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Now, he existed, notice that what he existed before me.

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If you look at the narrative of Scripture,

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and you look at the numbers and the dates

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and you're getting geography,

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then you can figure out a number,

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I said geography on purpose, and because I'm talking about math,

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tchchchchch, anyway.

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If you look at that, you will quickly discern

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that John the Baptist was born before the birth of Christ.

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And so this becomes an important statement here

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at the beginning of the first chapter of John,

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because it's this recognition that John had the revelation,

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that the Christ the Messiah in whose name he spoke

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was in fact with God in the beginning

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and was God from the very beginning.

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And that's his reference to existence here.

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So what does this say about John the Baptist?

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There are a few statements, number one,

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and if you look through, I have these in your notes

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and the references to the verses.

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He was a man sent from God.

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He was a man sent from God who came as a witness

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to testify about the light.

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The man was not the light, the man came to testify

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about the light, and then we're told why in verse seven.

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I don't know how much of a Bible word nerd you are.

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I didn't mean to say word nerd as a rhyme.

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I meant to say nerd and came up word,

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but anyway, word nerd maybe I'll coin it.

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It is always interesting that little phrase so that,

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so that unlocks so much when we're doing the work

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of interpreting and interpreting.

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Oh, but thank you all for coming this morning.

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I am gonna go home and take a nap

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and I will see you all next week.

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When we're doing the work of interpreting the scripture,

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when we see that phrase so that that's a fun

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one to highlight or to circle.

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And in order to train your mind to go back

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and really dive into the context.

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And so what we're told in verse seven

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is the reason why John was a man sent from God.

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He was a man sent for God to witness and testify

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about the light.

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We're highlighting that he was not the light,

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but he came to testify about the light.

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The reason why is so that all

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might believe through him.

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And now we get this insight for how God works in the world

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when God is on the move.

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He sends people.

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That is how God manifests his work in the world.

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Even we might argue when God committed

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to his most important work, the redemption of all.

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Even then he begins with sending people.

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God reveals himself through human witnesses.

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And when we experience his grace,

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we're called to embody and share that grace with others.

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So that they too might believe in the light.

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And that is my main point this morning.

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God reveals himself through human witnesses.

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He could do it through angelic witnesses.

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He could do it primarily through supernatural acts.

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And I'm not saying that God never utilizes those means

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because if you read the scripture enough,

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you'll see he does sometimes utilize angels

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and supernatural events.

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But if you look at the scripture from cover to cover,

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God's primary means of revealing himself in the world.

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Has been will be is today through human witnesses.

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In other words, if we tease this out,

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what do I mean by that?

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I mean that God chooses people to make his presence known

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to other people through the his human witnesses.

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And these are witnesses who have personally experienced

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his grace when these witnesses encounter God's grace

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and when they're alive, they demonstrate

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and represent that grace through their words and actions.

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Essentially becoming visible, living examples

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of God's grace for others to see an experience.

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Jesus makes God tangible and his followers make Jesus tangible.

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I think there's an image that might remind us of that.

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Perfect, oh, that was almost near perfect timing.

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God, and all he is fully dwelt in Christ,

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that's the great plan of redemption.

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And how does this plan continue to work out?

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Well Paul reminds us, the mystery hidden for the ages

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is that not only for Jews, but also for Gentiles,

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Christ is in you as the hope of glory.

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And so Christ makes his residence in us,

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and this allows the world to see a multi-faceted temperament

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of Christ because Christ will be uniquely expressed

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to the world through you.

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You are the only one that can steward

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that particular revelation of Christ,

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because it's in you.

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And so this is how God's work continues to move

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throughout history.

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God expresses his work of redemption through human witnesses

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to his grace and love.

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God reveals himself to the world by saving you and sending you,

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by saving you and sending you.

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Now we're going to find a little bit and broaden that

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understanding of what sent means for those of you

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who may have come from backgrounds

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where sending language has a lot of negative emotional baggage

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to attach to it because that just meant,

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insessantly, working for the church and making

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to be filled shameful if you didn't continue

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with working for the church and all your free time.

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That's not what I'm going to be talking about.

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But one of the things we're learning is we cannot allow

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bad emotional experiences from our past

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to take away language from the scripture.

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We might have to work on doing some deep work

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to redefine it or broaden the definition

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that we shouldn't jettison these ideas.

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So the way that God reveals himself to the world

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is by saving you and sending you.

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You are the means through which God is revealing himself

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to the world.

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You are the means through which God is revealing himself

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to the people in your relational circle of influence.

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You are the means through which God is revealing

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himself to the people to whom he is sending you

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and make no mistake.

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This is not realms regulated to vocational ministers

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and missionaries.

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If you are breathing and if you love Jesus,

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the spirit in you is longing to move you outward.

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If you are breathing and you love Jesus,

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there are people to whom you are being sent.

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The only question is, are you willing to cultivate

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the self awareness so that you can be aware

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to whom you're being sent

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and actually participate in faithful stewardship

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of that mission?

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We may be sent but we might not be doing a great job

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with stewarding that mission.

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Because we have allowed our vision

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to become my optically preoccupied with ourselves

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and our problems and therefore we made it

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then little to sleep to the larger purpose of our lives.

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So we have moments like this where we gather together.

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We say, wake up!

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We jab on another little bit out of our apathy and lethargy.

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To remember, there's a lot more going on

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with what God is doing with your life

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than just the current crisis that you are facing.

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So let's go back to John the Baptist

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because what does John the Baptist teach us

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about being a witness to Christ?

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Well, there are many things I'm sure we can talk about

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this morning we're gonna highlight only one

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because the scripture highlights it

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and because I do think it is one of the most profound

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aspects of John the Baptist's life

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and furthermore I think that the movement of contemporary

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evangelicalism would do well to stop, pause,

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and listen to what John the Baptist has to teach us

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about this particular virtue.

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The essential quality that empowered John the Baptist

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effectiveness was his humility.

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His humility is the reason why

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God entrusted him with such a heavy mantle

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of anointing and authority.

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He could be trusted with it because of the reality

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of humility that was consistently characteristic

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of his life.

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There is no limit to why God might do through you

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when you are finally delivered

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of the concern about whether or not you get credit.

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Once that is removed from our heart,

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the potential for impact is limitless.

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Before that, it is true, it is the grace and mercy of God

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that he limits effectiveness that would

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enter and destroy us because of our pride.

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God is well aware of what pride can do

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in the hearts of his servants.

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Anybody remember our Satan origin story?

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This is a very real principle and God protects us.

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He shields us from that.

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So we are given grace for ministry as we grow

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in our humility and dependence upon him.

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Let's look at the way we see this outline in John's life.

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We see it very clearly if we flip over to John chapter 3.

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Look at verse 15, what we have said before,

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John, testifying concerning him,

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this was the one of whom I said, the one coming after me,

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rinks ahead of me because he existed before me.

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Now one of the things that we can see in that verse is

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one of the things that empowered John's vision of

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evaluation of himself and his posture of humility

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is he had a powerful revelation of the pre-existence

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00:17:03,160 --> 00:17:05,160
pre-eminence of Christ.

301
00:17:05,160 --> 00:17:08,160
When Jesus looms large in our hearts,

302
00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:11,160
it's very easy for the ego to shrink.

303
00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:14,160
When Jesus is minimized in our hearts,

304
00:17:14,160 --> 00:17:17,160
the ego is very eager to take this place.

305
00:17:17,160 --> 00:17:21,160
And so it's rooted in this powerful vision

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00:17:21,160 --> 00:17:25,160
that it's not just Jesus, my friend and my body.

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00:17:25,160 --> 00:17:30,160
I mean, I believe in cultivating a tender familiar

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friendship with Jesus, but it's always in the context of

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00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:37,160
remembering this is not just my pal.

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This is the sovereign creator of all that was created.

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00:17:42,160 --> 00:17:49,160
And somehow this balance between all and intimacy

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was embodied in John.

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00:17:51,160 --> 00:17:55,160
And that's exactly the kind of lifestyle we want to cultivate

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00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:58,160
is we want this balance of both all and intimacy

315
00:17:58,160 --> 00:18:03,160
when it comes to our thoughts about God and our relation to him.

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00:18:03,160 --> 00:18:06,160
John chapter three, which we'll get to,

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00:18:06,160 --> 00:18:11,160
according to my sermon schedule, we'll be here in about nine months.

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00:18:11,160 --> 00:18:17,160
So John chapter three, verses 25 through 30,

319
00:18:17,160 --> 00:18:22,160
then a dispute arose between John's disciples and a Jew

320
00:18:22,160 --> 00:18:24,160
about purification.

321
00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:27,160
Sorry for the K, that's my footnote in there.

322
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Verse 26, so they came to John and told him,

323
00:18:31,160 --> 00:18:34,160
Rabbi, the one you testified about,

324
00:18:34,160 --> 00:18:37,160
who was with you across the Jordan,

325
00:18:37,160 --> 00:18:41,160
is baptizing and everyone's going to him.

326
00:18:41,160 --> 00:18:44,160
John responded, no one can receive anything,

327
00:18:44,160 --> 00:18:47,160
unless it has been given to him from heaven.

328
00:18:47,160 --> 00:18:51,160
You yourselves can testify that I said,

329
00:18:51,160 --> 00:18:56,160
I'm not the Messiah, but I've been sent ahead of him.

330
00:18:56,160 --> 00:19:01,160
He who has the bride is the groom.

331
00:19:01,160 --> 00:19:06,160
But the groom's friend who stands by and listens for him,

332
00:19:06,160 --> 00:19:10,160
rejoices greatly at the groom's voice.

333
00:19:10,160 --> 00:19:17,160
So this joy of mine is complete.

334
00:19:17,160 --> 00:19:20,160
It's not hindered by these things that you say,

335
00:19:20,160 --> 00:19:23,160
it is fulfilled by these things that you say,

336
00:19:23,160 --> 00:19:27,160
and then that famous line in verse 30,

337
00:19:27,160 --> 00:19:35,160
he must increase, but I must dig into it.

338
00:19:35,160 --> 00:19:38,160
He must dig out the most decreased.

339
00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:44,160
Look at even the language there, the he and the I.

340
00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:48,160
He being God must increase.

341
00:19:48,160 --> 00:19:51,160
My ego must decrease.

342
00:19:51,160 --> 00:19:53,160
The I must decrease,

343
00:19:53,160 --> 00:19:56,160
and then Paul's going to take it further to say

344
00:19:56,160 --> 00:20:00,160
that the I doesn't even exist anymore.

345
00:20:00,160 --> 00:20:04,160
The life that I now live by faith in the Son of God

346
00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:08,160
and gave Himself for me.

347
00:20:08,160 --> 00:20:14,160
The goal is not to live and I plus Christ's life.

348
00:20:14,160 --> 00:20:18,160
The goal is not to even to live a Christ plus I life.

349
00:20:18,160 --> 00:20:24,160
The goal is to live the not I but Christ's life.

350
00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:31,160
That is where we find our deepest contentment and our highest joy,

351
00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:34,160
because this is the life that we're fashioned for.

352
00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:40,160
This is how our operating system works most optimally.

353
00:20:40,160 --> 00:20:45,160
And I'm sorry for all of you not tech people that I just alienated with that comment.

354
00:20:45,160 --> 00:20:48,160
I know you're out there.

355
00:20:48,160 --> 00:20:54,160
The essential quality that empowered John the Baptist effectiveness was his humility.

356
00:20:54,160 --> 00:21:00,160
The essential quality that will empower your witness is humility.

357
00:21:00,160 --> 00:21:04,160
So how can we get practical as we get ready to close?

358
00:21:04,160 --> 00:21:09,160
I like to say that for the people who are nodding off and they look up immediately.

359
00:21:09,160 --> 00:21:10,160
What?

360
00:21:10,160 --> 00:21:11,160
Papa's pizza.

361
00:21:11,160 --> 00:21:12,160
Is that what he said?

362
00:21:12,160 --> 00:21:14,160
No, I said we're coming to a close.

363
00:21:14,160 --> 00:21:19,160
You're ego inserted the other thing.

364
00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:22,160
There are probably multiple approaches to this,

365
00:21:22,160 --> 00:21:29,160
but what was burdened on my heart was one aspect of how we cultivate humility.

366
00:21:29,160 --> 00:21:36,160
And I believe that humility is a fruit of living a just as life.

367
00:21:36,160 --> 00:21:39,160
And I'll explain what that means in just a moment.

368
00:21:39,160 --> 00:21:45,160
In other words, humility can only be experienced passively.

369
00:21:45,160 --> 00:21:50,160
If you try to work your program for humility,

370
00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:55,160
your flesh will take pride in the humility you attained.

371
00:21:55,160 --> 00:21:59,160
And then you realize all this was all a smoke screen.

372
00:21:59,160 --> 00:22:01,160
Humility is elusive.

373
00:22:01,160 --> 00:22:03,160
You can't go for it directly.

374
00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:08,160
If you do, it is almost like when you were a child and you played with the magnates,

375
00:22:08,160 --> 00:22:11,160
not the magnets, the magnets.

376
00:22:11,160 --> 00:22:17,160
You know, you push those magnets, those disc magnets,

377
00:22:17,160 --> 00:22:20,160
and they repel each other and bounce away.

378
00:22:20,160 --> 00:22:24,160
That is keep that pitching in your mind because that's what happens when you try to take hold

379
00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:26,160
of humility.

380
00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:29,160
Oh, she won't allow you to do that.

381
00:22:29,160 --> 00:22:33,160
She has to come to you as the fruit of your life

382
00:22:33,160 --> 00:22:35,160
because of other things you're going after.

383
00:22:35,160 --> 00:22:40,160
Well, what are those other things living a just as life?

384
00:22:40,160 --> 00:22:45,160
The more you live a faithful just as life,

385
00:22:45,160 --> 00:22:52,160
the more humility will rise up from your soul and test to itself across your forehead.

386
00:22:52,160 --> 00:22:55,160
And you don't have to work to make it happen.

387
00:22:55,160 --> 00:22:58,160
Let's take a look at Colossians chapter 3.

388
00:22:58,160 --> 00:23:00,160
Versus 12 through 13.

389
00:23:00,160 --> 00:23:04,160
I think maybe your notes say 2 through 13, that's a mistake.

390
00:23:04,160 --> 00:23:09,160
Verse 12 says, therefore, as God's chosen ones,

391
00:23:09,160 --> 00:23:15,160
holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility,

392
00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:20,160
gentleness, impatience, bearing with one another,

393
00:23:20,160 --> 00:23:24,160
and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another,

394
00:23:24,160 --> 00:23:29,160
just as the Lord has forgiven you.

395
00:23:29,160 --> 00:23:34,160
So you ought to forgive.

396
00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:38,160
He says the same sentiment in Ephesians 432,

397
00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:41,160
and be kind and compassionate to one another,

398
00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:49,160
forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.

399
00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:56,160
When we are for others, just as God is for us,

400
00:23:56,160 --> 00:24:04,160
we will embody and share His grace so that they too might believe in the light.

401
00:24:04,160 --> 00:24:15,160
Sometime ago, those of you who have been here a while,

402
00:24:15,160 --> 00:24:20,160
we'll know there was a struggle and questions,

403
00:24:20,160 --> 00:24:26,160
and I was the target of multiple accusations.

404
00:24:26,160 --> 00:24:30,160
They weren't moral accusations for those of you who are now,

405
00:24:30,160 --> 00:24:33,160
he was like, oh, what's he going to share now?

406
00:24:33,160 --> 00:24:35,160
What's the juicy thing?

407
00:24:35,160 --> 00:24:38,160
That's for another day if the,

408
00:24:38,160 --> 00:24:44,160
but they were specifically about the nature of the doctrine that I was articulating from the pulpit.

409
00:24:44,160 --> 00:24:48,160
And I learned a lot from those voices.

410
00:24:48,160 --> 00:24:52,160
They were hard, it was hard, hard, hard.

411
00:24:52,160 --> 00:24:58,160
The most probably difficult season of my entire existence on earth.

412
00:24:58,160 --> 00:25:03,160
But I learned a lot from those voices,

413
00:25:03,160 --> 00:25:09,160
and I learned a lot about my own motives and communications.

414
00:25:09,160 --> 00:25:15,160
But if there's any leftover or if I'm in danger of repeating that mistake,

415
00:25:15,160 --> 00:25:18,160
I want to clarify.

416
00:25:18,160 --> 00:25:26,160
Some reason, there's this assumption on the part of nervous evangelicals,

417
00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:29,160
that if you celebrate the grace of God,

418
00:25:29,160 --> 00:25:34,160
it's a mask to give everyone an excuse to continue sitting

419
00:25:34,160 --> 00:25:40,160
with our consequences.

420
00:25:40,160 --> 00:25:43,160
Now, that is very problematic on many levels,

421
00:25:43,160 --> 00:25:48,160
because it reveals that we believe that our words of shame were supposed to be the consequences for sin,

422
00:25:48,160 --> 00:25:51,160
and sin is its consequence in and of itself,

423
00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:53,160
but that's another sermon for another day.

424
00:25:53,160 --> 00:25:55,160
Sorry if I'm danger of ranting.

425
00:25:55,160 --> 00:25:58,160
But there is this assumption, and I get it.

426
00:25:58,160 --> 00:26:02,160
It's the same thing that people were afraid of with another guy.

427
00:26:02,160 --> 00:26:05,160
It is inserted my sound.

428
00:26:05,160 --> 00:26:09,160
No, I assure you, in those stories, I'm standing with the Pharisees.

429
00:26:09,160 --> 00:26:11,160
Did you bear witness to that?

430
00:26:11,160 --> 00:26:14,160
Maybe you and I are the two witnesses of revelation.

431
00:26:14,160 --> 00:26:17,160
Although things don't end out too well for those two guys.

432
00:26:17,160 --> 00:26:20,160
So, I advocate my position.

433
00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:23,160
But so, I really do get it.

434
00:26:23,160 --> 00:26:25,160
It's the thing that we fear.

435
00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:30,160
We are so fearful that the infinite beauty and holiness of Christ

436
00:26:30,160 --> 00:26:36,160
can somehow be tainted by the puny human sin of his creation.

437
00:26:36,160 --> 00:26:40,160
But it's a deep fear that we all have.

438
00:26:40,160 --> 00:26:42,160
And I want to make it crystal clear.

439
00:26:42,160 --> 00:26:43,160
And you know what?

440
00:26:43,160 --> 00:26:48,160
I never did the service for those who struggled with what I was saying,

441
00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:50,160
and I regret that.

442
00:26:50,160 --> 00:26:53,160
My motive,

443
00:26:53,160 --> 00:27:03,160
important people to the offensive over the top, gratuitous grace of God,

444
00:27:03,160 --> 00:27:09,160
I believe in English Paul calls it extravagant.

445
00:27:09,160 --> 00:27:14,160
The Greek word is the word from which we get the word hyper.

446
00:27:14,160 --> 00:27:19,160
So, there is even a pejorative hyper grace attached to it.

447
00:27:19,160 --> 00:27:26,160
The reason for that is because I have observed in my own heart and life.

448
00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:30,160
I have observed when I read the testimony of Jesus,

449
00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:32,160
particularly the characters of the Pharisee.

450
00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:38,160
And I have observed in my so-journ in contemporary evangelism,

451
00:27:38,160 --> 00:27:48,160
evangelism, that we give to others only the measure of grace that we feel has been given to us.

452
00:27:48,160 --> 00:27:58,160
So, if we disqualify ourselves, our limit God's grace in our lives because of what we have done,

453
00:27:58,160 --> 00:28:03,160
we have no choice but to limit the grace we're willing to give others.

454
00:28:03,160 --> 00:28:08,160
Because here's the deal, you'll always live a just as life.

455
00:28:08,160 --> 00:28:17,160
The only question is, are you're just as interpretations based on the scripture or based on your emotions?

456
00:28:17,160 --> 00:28:21,160
Because if they're based on your emotions and feelings,

457
00:28:21,160 --> 00:28:26,160
you will shrink that grace that God has extended.

458
00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:32,160
And you will constantly be giving limited grace to others.

459
00:28:32,160 --> 00:28:43,160
It's why there's something akin to jealousy when we find out a believer is under the Lord's favor,

460
00:28:43,160 --> 00:28:47,160
and they've got looser standards than we have.

461
00:28:47,160 --> 00:28:49,160
That doesn't seem fair.

462
00:28:49,160 --> 00:28:52,160
I saw a wine bottle in their house the other night.

463
00:28:52,160 --> 00:28:58,160
Sorry, I'm been a little bit too real, I guess a little bit this morning.

464
00:28:58,160 --> 00:29:07,160
But you know that feeling, I felt it that envy of other Christians that didn't put themselves under the same yolk of legalism.

465
00:29:07,160 --> 00:29:12,160
Why should they be happier than me when I'm doing more right things than them?

466
00:29:12,160 --> 00:29:14,160
Why is that?

467
00:29:14,160 --> 00:29:16,160
Because I was in a Christian.

468
00:29:16,160 --> 00:29:21,160
I was an idolatier worshipping at the altar of my own religious works.

469
00:29:21,160 --> 00:29:23,160
That's not Jesus.

470
00:29:23,160 --> 00:29:29,160
And I thought I was free, but I was in fact impondent.

471
00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:38,160
Some of you have great testimonies of the intense lives of sin from which you've been delivered.

472
00:29:38,160 --> 00:29:48,160
Mine is super boring because he delivered me from a profound bondage to religious performance,

473
00:29:48,160 --> 00:29:51,160
so that I could see the Savior.

474
00:29:51,160 --> 00:30:04,160
And so the reason why it's so critical that you understand God's loving kindness towards you is so that you are then to empower to live a just as life toward others.

475
00:30:04,160 --> 00:30:11,160
You will begin to give the loving kindness that you're convinced that you've received.

476
00:30:11,160 --> 00:30:26,160
This is why it's so critical in the lives of believers, especially those who grew up in toxic legalistic backgrounds to have a revelation of grace that sets them free.

477
00:30:26,160 --> 00:30:31,160
Because the limitations they experience is the limitation to their witness.

478
00:30:31,160 --> 00:30:35,160
And so as we enter into that, we can live a just as life.

479
00:30:35,160 --> 00:30:47,160
So as we close, there are two ideas that I would like to share with you as a way of responding to simple but huge ones, know yourself and know your mission.

480
00:30:47,160 --> 00:30:51,160
This is what's powerful about John the Baptist.

481
00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:53,160
He knew who he was.

482
00:30:53,160 --> 00:30:55,160
I'm inferior. He existed before me.

483
00:30:55,160 --> 00:30:57,160
And he knew his mission.

484
00:30:57,160 --> 00:31:00,160
I'm called to go before him and testify about the Messiah.

485
00:31:00,160 --> 00:31:04,160
Know yourself and know your mission.

486
00:31:04,160 --> 00:31:05,160
Know yourself.

487
00:31:05,160 --> 00:31:08,160
What I mean by this is something very simple.

488
00:31:08,160 --> 00:31:17,160
So simple, I would get irritated for what I'm about to say.

489
00:31:17,160 --> 00:31:20,160
Know, I mean, be honest with yourself.

490
00:31:20,160 --> 00:31:27,160
You don't have to confess it to me or anyone else unless the Holy Spirit leads you to, then I would encourage your obedience to the Spirit.

491
00:31:27,160 --> 00:31:34,160
But outside of that, know who you are when you live Antichrist.

492
00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:38,160
And don't pretend like you never live Antichrist.

493
00:31:38,160 --> 00:31:42,160
Because that will ruin the experiment for you.

494
00:31:42,160 --> 00:31:47,160
Know who you are when you live Antichrist.

495
00:31:47,160 --> 00:31:55,160
And by the same token, take time to know who you are when you live in Christ.

496
00:31:55,160 --> 00:32:00,160
Now, once you do that, do less of the former and more of the latter.

497
00:32:00,160 --> 00:32:03,160
All right, amen. Let's go home.

498
00:32:03,160 --> 00:32:09,160
It's not easy, but it is that simple.

499
00:32:09,160 --> 00:32:24,160
It is recognizing I have choices that either lead me throughout the day or maybe Abon flow throughout the day to live more Antichrist or I make choices that cause me to reveal and live more in Christ.

500
00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:27,160
And there are consequences to those decisions.

501
00:32:27,160 --> 00:32:36,160
Know who you are when I went through my most profound valley of disbelief.

502
00:32:36,160 --> 00:32:46,160
And even if you've ever entertained giving up your belief in God, you know that kind of when you're at the decision, but it's actually pretty exciting.

503
00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:48,160
Because I'm like the whole new world opens up.

504
00:32:48,160 --> 00:32:51,160
There's not somebody over my shoulder watching my every move.

505
00:32:51,160 --> 00:32:59,160
And all of these legalistic things we've projected upon God were like, rightfully, I'm going to be free of this.

506
00:32:59,160 --> 00:33:04,160
And it's like I went to the edge. There were two things that helped me back.

507
00:33:04,160 --> 00:33:11,160
Number one, when I got to that point, my natural reaction was to pray.

508
00:33:11,160 --> 00:33:16,160
God, I don't believe in you anymore.

509
00:33:16,160 --> 00:33:26,160
And then the contradiction of that act began to seep into the back of my mind and question the newfound faith and atheism.

510
00:33:26,160 --> 00:33:35,160
But the second one was simply the Holy Spirit given me a chance to reflect.

511
00:33:35,160 --> 00:33:38,160
This might not seem like a strong faith.

512
00:33:38,160 --> 00:33:49,160
It might not seem like a strong foundation for other more-learning people than I and I and accept that.

513
00:33:49,160 --> 00:33:54,160
I know who I am for others when I'm pursuing Jesus.

514
00:33:54,160 --> 00:33:59,160
And I know who I am for others when I'm pursuing me.

515
00:33:59,160 --> 00:34:08,160
I am heartbreak and broken and ashamed of what this lifestyle choice causes for me and the people around me.

516
00:34:08,160 --> 00:34:15,160
And I rejoice in the life that is given to me and the people around me when I pursue Christ.

517
00:34:15,160 --> 00:34:22,160
And that moment it was enough to say, maybe I don't have to know whether or not you exist.

518
00:34:22,160 --> 00:34:28,160
I know what it's like for me to live like you do and when it's like for me to live like you don't.

519
00:34:28,160 --> 00:34:35,160
And I want the fruit of pursuing Jesus.

520
00:34:35,160 --> 00:34:38,160
And so you'll be happy to know I'm going to head and let him in.

521
00:34:38,160 --> 00:34:40,160
God I believe in you again.

522
00:34:40,160 --> 00:34:45,160
I'm not happy with you and I want to talk for a while but I'll get there.

523
00:34:45,160 --> 00:34:47,160
You have to know these things.

524
00:34:47,160 --> 00:34:54,160
My friends, you're brokenness, you're suffering, you're struggle are powerful ways for others to experience God's mercy.

525
00:34:54,160 --> 00:35:00,160
If you have the courage to be honest and vulnerable.

526
00:35:00,160 --> 00:35:10,160
Because if all you have is answers, they just think great for you but if you don't struggle like me, those answers mean nothing.

527
00:35:10,160 --> 00:35:20,160
It is when we have permission to not be angels pursuing Christ but to be humans pursuing Christ.

528
00:35:20,160 --> 00:35:28,160
And all that means and your humanity is only seeing in the testimony of your weakness and struggle.

529
00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:32,160
It is not seeing in your easy answers.

530
00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:38,160
People need to know how those answers were meaningful to you when it was dark.

531
00:35:38,160 --> 00:35:42,160
My friends, there are days.

532
00:35:42,160 --> 00:35:46,160
I keep telling people I didn't go to seminary.

533
00:35:46,160 --> 00:35:50,160
But to Bible school, but not seminary.

534
00:35:50,160 --> 00:35:56,160
And in my idolatry of academic excellence, that's embarrassing for me to admit some of the times.

535
00:35:56,160 --> 00:35:58,160
For my ego to admit.

536
00:35:58,160 --> 00:36:04,160
But I realize this week, there is a seminary I have attended.

537
00:36:04,160 --> 00:36:08,160
There are days I wake up full of faith.

538
00:36:08,160 --> 00:36:12,160
As though I'm woken up by the presence of God himself.

539
00:36:12,160 --> 00:36:16,160
I'm sure my wife experienced that a lot more waking up next to me than maybe I do.

540
00:36:16,160 --> 00:36:20,160
But I don't know, I'll never talk to her about it.

541
00:36:20,160 --> 00:36:22,160
And I'm full of faith.

542
00:36:22,160 --> 00:36:24,160
I want to engage in ministry.

543
00:36:24,160 --> 00:36:26,160
I want to spend my life for Jesus.

544
00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:30,160
And if the thought of death crosses my mind, it's old death where it is your sting.

545
00:36:30,160 --> 00:36:38,160
Because I'm living from a revelation that I have been given as a birthright, not as a reward.

546
00:36:38,160 --> 00:36:44,160
An intimate, deep connection with God that will never be severed.

547
00:36:44,160 --> 00:36:52,160
Even when this body wears down and can no longer operate as the locomotive means of my spirit.

548
00:36:52,160 --> 00:37:00,160
I still have trust that this can go in the ground and I will continue my journey with Jesus.

549
00:37:00,160 --> 00:37:04,160
In whatever glorious reality that has next.

550
00:37:04,160 --> 00:37:12,160
And sometimes certainly within the same month, maybe within the same week.

551
00:37:12,160 --> 00:37:20,160
I wake up with a gripling panic of little time.

552
00:37:20,160 --> 00:37:28,160
On those days, I believe in my heart death is chasing after me.

553
00:37:28,160 --> 00:37:34,160
And I have to do all that I can to outrun it.

554
00:37:34,160 --> 00:37:42,160
And when I get into that place anxiety and worry and fear begin to creep in.

555
00:37:42,160 --> 00:37:50,160
And once fear gives way, that doesn't take long for me to begin entertaining hate and judgment as well.

556
00:37:50,160 --> 00:37:56,160
Now I'd like to say, but I come to church and I pray with the staff and read our scripture devotion

557
00:37:56,160 --> 00:37:58,160
and it all goes away.

558
00:37:58,160 --> 00:38:04,160
But sometimes when I do that, don't tell the staff.

559
00:38:04,160 --> 00:38:08,160
I'm faking it.

560
00:38:08,160 --> 00:38:16,160
I am 100% faking it because the reality of my inner life is not that's not what I feel.

561
00:38:16,160 --> 00:38:24,160
And then, and I don't turn away, I go home to other responsibility and people that I'm called to give my life to and love.

562
00:38:24,160 --> 00:38:28,160
And I disassociate from them emotionally.

563
00:38:28,160 --> 00:38:34,160
I abandon the people in my home because I've got to disconnect.

564
00:38:34,160 --> 00:38:42,160
And when I do, I emotionally enter in to a self-made cocoon of self-protection.

565
00:38:42,160 --> 00:38:50,160
And in that moment, I feel utterly isolated from everyone and from God.

566
00:38:50,160 --> 00:38:54,160
And in that dark cocoon, I pray the prayer of the Psalmist,

567
00:38:54,160 --> 00:39:04,160
my God, my God, why have you forsaken me and despair is there and depression is there.

568
00:39:04,160 --> 00:39:10,160
And fear is there.

569
00:39:10,160 --> 00:39:16,160
And I sit with those unwelcome demons in my cocoon for a bit.

570
00:39:16,160 --> 00:39:22,160
And before long, I realize someone else is here,

571
00:39:22,160 --> 00:39:26,160
the Holy Spirit slipped into.

572
00:39:26,160 --> 00:39:30,160
And he's not fighting these enemies, he's using them.

573
00:39:30,160 --> 00:39:34,160
They're on his side.

574
00:39:34,160 --> 00:39:44,160
And over and over again, in that moment, I return to what is me as an anchor from my soul that Jesus prayer.

575
00:39:44,160 --> 00:39:48,160
And I've rented and raved and was angry.

576
00:39:48,160 --> 00:39:52,160
And then I am silent.

577
00:39:52,160 --> 00:39:56,160
Get that on my knees and say, Jesus Christ,

578
00:39:56,160 --> 00:40:02,160
Son of God, have mercy on me.

579
00:40:02,160 --> 00:40:12,160
Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.

580
00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:16,160
And then peace floods the cocoon.

581
00:40:16,160 --> 00:40:20,160
I open my eyes and I see an opening with light.

582
00:40:20,160 --> 00:40:22,160
And I want to and I step out.

583
00:40:22,160 --> 00:40:28,160
And all of a sudden, I'm Superman for Jesus again.

584
00:40:28,160 --> 00:40:32,160
And I realize this week,

585
00:40:32,160 --> 00:40:36,160
I'm a man who's not in the world.

586
00:40:36,160 --> 00:40:44,160
And I can track this or directly the places where I have seen the most of the people who are in the world.

587
00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:46,160
And I realize this week,

588
00:40:46,160 --> 00:40:50,160
that cocoon has been my seminary.

589
00:40:50,160 --> 00:40:52,160
Have you been there, too?

590
00:40:52,160 --> 00:40:54,160
I have at lunch.

591
00:40:54,160 --> 00:40:58,160
There is much more alums here than we care to admit.

592
00:40:58,160 --> 00:41:02,160
But the lessons in the cocoon,

593
00:41:02,160 --> 00:41:10,160
or directly the places where I have seen the most effective ministry in my life.

594
00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:14,160
It's not what I gathered from books.

595
00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:16,160
It's not what I gathered from sermons.

596
00:41:16,160 --> 00:41:19,160
It's not what I gathered from Bible school.

597
00:41:19,160 --> 00:41:25,160
It is nearly 100% what I've earned in the cocoon.

598
00:41:25,160 --> 00:41:29,160
Because this is what makes me not a super person, super,

599
00:41:29,160 --> 00:41:32,160
I'm not the pastor you deserve.

600
00:41:32,160 --> 00:41:34,160
I want to be.

601
00:41:34,160 --> 00:41:37,160
And I do my best on the bad days to fake it.

602
00:41:37,160 --> 00:41:44,160
But I need Jesus every second of every single day.

603
00:41:44,160 --> 00:41:48,160
And if I am blind to that need,

604
00:41:48,160 --> 00:41:51,160
I see being effective in ministry.

605
00:41:51,160 --> 00:41:54,160
And we have run out of time.

606
00:41:54,160 --> 00:41:57,160
So I'll let you study the rest of the lessons.

607
00:41:57,160 --> 00:41:59,160
Right now, I think we need to do something different.

608
00:41:59,160 --> 00:42:07,160
And what you all have to stand up and the worship thing to come forward.

609
00:42:07,160 --> 00:42:10,160
What you to close your eyes is we get ready to come to the Lord's table.

610
00:42:10,160 --> 00:42:13,160
For those of you who are new, we will start from the back row.

611
00:42:13,160 --> 00:42:16,160
And you just kind of see the flow of traffic as people come through.

612
00:42:16,160 --> 00:42:18,160
We'll take the elements in return to our seat.

613
00:42:18,160 --> 00:42:20,160
And you can take communion privately.

614
00:42:20,160 --> 00:42:26,160
But for now, close your eyes as we come to the Lord's table.

615
00:42:26,160 --> 00:42:33,160
I want you to ask yourself in the inner chamber of your heart.

616
00:42:33,160 --> 00:42:40,160
What are the lessons from your cooking?

617
00:42:40,160 --> 00:42:49,160
Where can you take a moment and pause and see the Holy Spirit's faithfulness in the midst of your darkness?

618
00:42:49,160 --> 00:42:54,160
Or maybe you're there now.

619
00:42:54,160 --> 00:43:03,160
And all you see is the presence of the demons, your enemies, your shortfalls.

620
00:43:03,160 --> 00:43:10,160
Can you take a moment and breathe and look around for the presence of God this morning?

621
00:43:10,160 --> 00:43:15,160
You feel the presence of the Holy Spirit?

622
00:43:15,160 --> 00:43:18,160
Maybe bringing peace in.

623
00:43:18,160 --> 00:43:27,160
And maybe ripping open that cocoon just a little bit to where you see some light shining through.

624
00:43:27,160 --> 00:43:32,160
Don't waste your suffering.

625
00:43:32,160 --> 00:43:41,160
Let it become your memorial of God's faithfulness, not a testimony to your failure.

626
00:43:41,160 --> 00:43:49,160
And rejoice in this and rest in the forgiveness of Christ.

627
00:43:49,160 --> 00:44:03,160
And in the mercy of God, let it feel your heart so completely that it begins to spill over to the people in your life.

628
00:44:03,160 --> 00:44:13,160
Then you will know the joy of what it means to be used by God.