WEBVTT 00:00:02.600 --> 00:00:06.019 Welcome to Season 3 of Love & Context. This season, 00:00:06.120 --> 00:00:08.640 we're exploring the life of Jesus step -by -step 00:00:08.640 --> 00:00:11.140 and uncovering what His story teaches us about 00:00:11.140 --> 00:00:13.919 loving God and others. Here on Love & Context, 00:00:13.960 --> 00:00:16.059 we're all about having real conversations about 00:00:16.059 --> 00:00:18.140 how to live out that love in practical, everyday 00:00:18.140 --> 00:00:20.199 ways, and understanding the Bible in its full 00:00:20.199 --> 00:00:22.839 context. We're so glad you're here. Let's dive 00:00:22.839 --> 00:00:29.000 into Season 3 of Love & Context. Well, welcome 00:00:29.000 --> 00:00:32.159 back to the Love and Context podcast. We are 00:00:32.159 --> 00:00:35.200 no longer at my house. No. We're at our previously 00:00:35.200 --> 00:00:39.380 undisclosed recording location. Uh -huh. We're 00:00:39.380 --> 00:00:41.560 recording at the church. We're at our church. 00:00:41.600 --> 00:00:46.280 At this point. Yeah. And also, just in the long 00:00:46.280 --> 00:00:48.100 line of Ben didn't think things through, you 00:00:48.100 --> 00:00:49.659 notice how I'm holding a mic if you're watching 00:00:49.659 --> 00:00:53.679 us? That's because Ben decided to take the stands 00:00:53.679 --> 00:00:56.240 to my house, but you know where I didn't bring 00:00:56.240 --> 00:00:59.149 them? Back to church. Back to church, yeah. So 00:00:59.149 --> 00:01:01.689 if we start sounding a lot like this and then 00:01:01.689 --> 00:01:04.269 like this, it's because we don't have a stationary 00:01:04.269 --> 00:01:06.230 stand and we might be like, you know, waving 00:01:06.230 --> 00:01:08.489 our hands around or something. It's also super 00:01:08.489 --> 00:01:10.510 rude because I do have to actually edit this, 00:01:10.569 --> 00:01:11.769 so I'm going to have to try to figure out if 00:01:11.769 --> 00:01:15.269 your voice cuts out there how to fix it. So randomly 00:01:15.269 --> 00:01:16.750 I'll be in the middle of saying something really 00:01:16.750 --> 00:01:18.530 profound and I'll just slowly move the mic away 00:01:18.530 --> 00:01:20.790 like this so that Ben's like, I'm just joking. 00:01:20.790 --> 00:01:22.730 So rude. I'll try not to do that. All right. 00:01:23.140 --> 00:01:26.599 This is the last story in the life of Jesus. 00:01:26.879 --> 00:01:28.680 We will have one more episode after this because 00:01:28.680 --> 00:01:30.040 we're going to talk about forgiveness, what that 00:01:30.040 --> 00:01:32.219 looks like from God's perspective, and then what 00:01:32.219 --> 00:01:33.959 that means for us from our perspective on forgiveness. 00:01:34.500 --> 00:01:36.159 That's actually going to close out our season, 00:01:36.239 --> 00:01:37.700 but this is the last one we're doing chronologically 00:01:37.700 --> 00:01:40.099 walking through the life of Jesus. So this is 00:01:40.099 --> 00:01:42.280 the Great Commission, and I think it's Matthew 00:01:42.280 --> 00:01:46.780 28. So can you read in Matthew 28 from, I believe, 00:01:46.799 --> 00:01:53.140 16? 16, yes. Then the eleven disciples left for 00:01:53.140 --> 00:01:55.959 Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had 00:01:55.959 --> 00:01:58.700 told them to go. When they saw him, they worshipped 00:01:58.700 --> 00:02:01.700 him, but some of them doubted. It was Spencer. 00:02:01.819 --> 00:02:06.769 Spencer doubted. Jesus came and told his disciples, 00:02:06.969 --> 00:02:08.849 I have been given all authority in heaven and 00:02:08.849 --> 00:02:11.110 earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all 00:02:11.110 --> 00:02:13.330 nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, 00:02:13.349 --> 00:02:16.310 Son, and Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples 00:02:16.310 --> 00:02:18.810 to obey all the commands I have given you and 00:02:18.810 --> 00:02:23.169 be sure of this. I am with you always, even to 00:02:23.169 --> 00:02:26.990 the end of the age. All right. So it's not exactly 00:02:26.990 --> 00:02:34.439 like a tidy ending. Yeah. But it's really a beginning. 00:02:34.520 --> 00:02:36.759 Yeah. Right? Because then it's like, okay, what 00:02:36.759 --> 00:02:38.860 came afterwards? Well, our life. That's what 00:02:38.860 --> 00:02:41.360 came afterwards, right? And so we arrive at the 00:02:41.360 --> 00:02:43.360 last scene, and Jesus is not proving that he's 00:02:43.360 --> 00:02:44.800 alive. He's been there. He's showed up multiple 00:02:44.800 --> 00:02:46.639 times. He walked through walls multiple times, 00:02:46.860 --> 00:02:50.719 ate fish at least once. By the way, do you want 00:02:50.719 --> 00:02:52.780 to tell people that you caught fish? I caught 00:02:52.780 --> 00:02:54.400 lots of fish. Yeah, after making fun of you for 00:02:54.400 --> 00:02:57.000 not being able to catch fish? Yeah. My freezer 00:02:57.000 --> 00:02:58.840 is like two -thirds full now. It's great. Yeah. 00:03:00.349 --> 00:03:03.530 So Jesus isn't – this isn't about proving his 00:03:03.530 --> 00:03:05.310 life. He's forming a people and sending them, 00:03:05.370 --> 00:03:07.550 commissioning them. And then he's going to ascend 00:03:07.550 --> 00:03:09.810 not to just like disappear but to actually go 00:03:09.810 --> 00:03:11.409 reign and continue his work through the spirit 00:03:11.409 --> 00:03:13.509 -empowered church, right? So we're going to be 00:03:13.509 --> 00:03:15.069 talking about two things today. First is the 00:03:15.069 --> 00:03:17.990 commission and then the ascension, so what it 00:03:17.990 --> 00:03:20.569 means afterwards. So Matthew tells us that the 00:03:20.569 --> 00:03:22.490 disciples go to the mountain in Galilee because 00:03:22.490 --> 00:03:23.949 apparently this is a mountain that they know. 00:03:24.069 --> 00:03:25.550 It's probably the mountain that Jesus went to 00:03:25.550 --> 00:03:28.460 a lot of times. And it's not – random geography 00:03:28.460 --> 00:03:30.620 because this is kind of more of a back to the 00:03:30.620 --> 00:03:32.719 beginning thing. Because if you remember, the 00:03:32.719 --> 00:03:34.460 Galilee is where it all started with Jesus. The 00:03:34.460 --> 00:03:37.020 calling, the teaching, the healing, table fellowship, 00:03:37.300 --> 00:03:40.360 confrontation, discipleship. After the cross 00:03:40.360 --> 00:03:42.300 and resurrection, Jesus gathers them and says, 00:03:42.479 --> 00:03:45.180 hey, this is what this is all for. Yep. Right? 00:03:46.659 --> 00:03:49.479 I love that in 2817 it says they worshipped him 00:03:49.479 --> 00:03:53.120 but some doubted. Feels honest. Right. Right? 00:03:53.520 --> 00:03:56.199 Now, I have made kind of light of this on the 00:03:56.199 --> 00:03:57.800 last few episodes. I was like, cause nothing 00:03:57.800 --> 00:03:59.439 changes your opinion. Like a person coming back 00:03:59.439 --> 00:04:04.060 from the dead. Also, you're about to go and proclaim 00:04:04.060 --> 00:04:05.460 something that's probably going to get you killed. 00:04:06.159 --> 00:04:10.479 Right. Yeah. At least ostracized. Yep. They're 00:04:10.479 --> 00:04:12.819 like, okay, we, we love you. We know who you 00:04:12.819 --> 00:04:16.579 are. Also, I have some doubts. And I think the 00:04:16.579 --> 00:04:19.100 thing is that the, that I love about this is 00:04:19.100 --> 00:04:21.060 that the text doesn't airbrush the moment. It 00:04:21.060 --> 00:04:22.980 doesn't like push it aside to actually come after 00:04:22.980 --> 00:04:26.300 this, like, place of like worship but wonder 00:04:26.300 --> 00:04:32.019 yeah right faith also fear um oh what did i write 00:04:32.019 --> 00:04:34.279 here obedience and questions that's a good line 00:04:34.279 --> 00:04:37.139 i like that good job past ben you wrote good 00:04:37.139 --> 00:04:39.939 things right uh but he doesn't pause the mission 00:04:39.939 --> 00:04:41.819 until everyone feels brave he connects them to 00:04:41.819 --> 00:04:43.800 him while they're still human he says hey you 00:04:43.800 --> 00:04:46.740 need to connect to me and he makes his core claim 00:04:46.740 --> 00:04:48.519 which is all authority in heaven earth has been 00:04:48.519 --> 00:04:51.660 given to me all authority in heaven on earth 00:04:51.660 --> 00:04:54.279 has been given to me Which is massive, right? 00:04:54.660 --> 00:04:56.379 By the way, I expect you to say lots of things 00:04:56.379 --> 00:04:57.560 because you love to quote the Greek mission. 00:04:58.420 --> 00:05:01.959 Oh, I will. I'm getting there. It's not built 00:05:01.959 --> 00:05:04.819 on our charisma. It's not built on our competence. 00:05:05.019 --> 00:05:06.699 It's not built on our ability to talk to people, 00:05:06.779 --> 00:05:09.639 which is great because sometimes words are hard. 00:05:10.480 --> 00:05:13.339 Words know good good, right? It's built on the 00:05:13.339 --> 00:05:15.860 authority of Jesus Christ. Resurrection authority, 00:05:16.100 --> 00:05:18.660 kingship authority. So the command is to not 00:05:18.660 --> 00:05:22.470 go try harder, right? It's go because the king 00:05:22.470 --> 00:05:24.389 has spoken, and you're carrying his authority. 00:05:25.189 --> 00:05:29.629 Right? Yeah. Then you'll see in verse 19 where 00:05:29.629 --> 00:05:32.790 it says, therefore, go and make disciples. Now, 00:05:32.810 --> 00:05:34.629 we've talked about before, whenever you see a 00:05:34.629 --> 00:05:37.170 therefore, you should probably see why it's there. 00:05:37.350 --> 00:05:39.670 Yeah. Right? See what it's there for, right? 00:05:40.529 --> 00:05:43.470 Which Ben just talked about. But you have this, 00:05:43.649 --> 00:05:46.470 go make disciples. I'm chuckling because I think 00:05:46.470 --> 00:05:48.569 every pastor who started pastoring in the 90s 00:05:48.569 --> 00:05:50.870 and 2000s used what the therefore is there for. 00:05:50.990 --> 00:05:53.730 Yeah, exactly. Right? Exactly. Go and make disciples 00:05:53.730 --> 00:05:56.829 of all nations, baptizing them. the name of the 00:05:56.829 --> 00:06:00.930 father son and holy spirit so you have the go 00:06:00.930 --> 00:06:03.230 and oftentimes in church we focus just on this 00:06:03.230 --> 00:06:05.709 part where it's like where you'll where i've 00:06:05.709 --> 00:06:08.230 heard you know matthew 28 19 be quoted all the 00:06:08.230 --> 00:06:09.949 time where it's like therefore go and make disciples 00:06:09.949 --> 00:06:12.189 we need to get outside the church walls make 00:06:12.189 --> 00:06:15.389 disciples yes we do also we need to recognize 00:06:15.389 --> 00:06:18.120 who It's sending us, right? Right. It's Jesus 00:06:18.120 --> 00:06:21.199 and all of his authority. Right. Right. And then 00:06:21.199 --> 00:06:34.720 you look at verse 20 and it says, So you actually 00:06:34.720 --> 00:06:36.699 have a bit of this mirrored text going on here 00:06:36.699 --> 00:06:38.480 a little bit where you have Jesus saying, hey, 00:06:38.500 --> 00:06:40.300 I have all authority in heaven and earth. Go. 00:06:40.860 --> 00:06:42.259 And by the way, the one who has all authority 00:06:42.259 --> 00:06:44.600 in heaven and earth will be with you as you go. 00:06:44.660 --> 00:06:47.420 Yeah. Right? You're not doing this alone. Yeah. 00:06:47.920 --> 00:06:51.660 But oftentimes we will treat it as, like, go 00:06:51.660 --> 00:06:55.899 bring the gospel, and then we won't actually 00:06:55.899 --> 00:06:58.639 mention, like, no, Jesus is with you. He's the 00:06:58.639 --> 00:07:00.800 one that's actually bringing it forward, and 00:07:00.800 --> 00:07:03.259 he is the one who's working through you to bring 00:07:03.259 --> 00:07:06.100 it forward. We have to follow in obedience and 00:07:06.100 --> 00:07:09.360 step out. Yeah, I've actually, so I did a writing 00:07:09.360 --> 00:07:11.500 on this, and I broke it into five parts, which, 00:07:11.560 --> 00:07:12.819 by the way, you can break it into however many 00:07:12.819 --> 00:07:15.279 parts you want. This is just how I did it. Because 00:07:15.279 --> 00:07:18.980 I think we see it as go, therefore, right? But 00:07:18.980 --> 00:07:22.920 I actually broke it into all authority, go, make 00:07:22.920 --> 00:07:28.640 disciples, baptize, teach, presence of God. These 00:07:28.640 --> 00:07:30.360 are all separate things that are all working 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:32.319 cohesively together in this tapestry that we 00:07:32.319 --> 00:07:34.860 call ministry, in this tapestry of actually bringing 00:07:34.860 --> 00:07:37.240 about the kingdom of God. I do want to notice 00:07:37.240 --> 00:07:38.939 a few things that Jesus did not say in here. 00:07:39.040 --> 00:07:42.139 He didn't say, go make converts. He didn't say, 00:07:42.199 --> 00:07:45.860 build an audience on Instagram or TikTok or wherever 00:07:45.860 --> 00:07:48.579 you're building it. He also didn't say, win arguments 00:07:48.579 --> 00:07:52.579 against people who are wrong. He says, make disciples. 00:07:53.329 --> 00:07:55.269 And then he qualifies, like, what does a disciple 00:07:55.269 --> 00:07:56.769 look like? Well, there's somebody who's baptized. 00:07:57.089 --> 00:07:58.670 You're going, first of all, you're crossing boundaries. 00:07:58.870 --> 00:08:01.629 And that going might be locally or far apart. 00:08:01.709 --> 00:08:05.170 We'll actually get to that in a minute. It has 00:08:05.170 --> 00:08:06.889 to go with crossing boundaries, going forward, 00:08:06.910 --> 00:08:09.149 going to where other people are. I was actually, 00:08:09.250 --> 00:08:11.370 I was writing today for one of my new series 00:08:11.370 --> 00:08:14.629 going over prophetic literature. A lot of the 00:08:14.629 --> 00:08:16.930 prophetic books start with the word of the Lord 00:08:16.930 --> 00:08:21.480 came to. Then the name of the prophet. I said, 00:08:21.519 --> 00:08:23.420 you notice that they don't have to go find God 00:08:23.420 --> 00:08:25.879 to get a word. The word of the God comes to you. 00:08:26.800 --> 00:08:29.540 Same thing that Jesus does. Now he says, because 00:08:29.540 --> 00:08:31.319 I have authority and you trust me and you're 00:08:31.319 --> 00:08:34.860 in my name, you're going to go to those people. 00:08:35.799 --> 00:08:37.580 And then you're going to baptize them. So you're 00:08:37.580 --> 00:08:40.220 going to help them have a changed reality and 00:08:40.220 --> 00:08:42.860 teach them to obey the things that I taught you. 00:08:42.899 --> 00:08:44.940 Now, I always think this is really important. 00:08:45.440 --> 00:08:47.299 We should definitely teach them the things that 00:08:47.299 --> 00:08:53.850 Jesus told them to do. Not what you think the 00:08:53.850 --> 00:08:58.309 Bible says. Okay? And Spencer, you're laughing 00:08:58.309 --> 00:09:00.669 there because I know you're laughing. I can see 00:09:00.669 --> 00:09:02.710 you. I can see you both on the camera and the 00:09:02.710 --> 00:09:06.570 video and in person. Really? Yes. I can see you 00:09:06.570 --> 00:09:10.210 everywhere. Because I think that a lot of times 00:09:10.210 --> 00:09:11.610 we're like, well, we need to teach them church 00:09:11.610 --> 00:09:13.710 tradition. And I'm not against church tradition. 00:09:14.470 --> 00:09:16.309 But when we commission and we create disciples, 00:09:16.450 --> 00:09:19.210 we teach them to obey Jesus, not to obey doctrine. 00:09:19.820 --> 00:09:22.139 Yeah, and the disciples are going to have a different 00:09:22.139 --> 00:09:25.460 view of what a disciple looks like, right? Because 00:09:25.460 --> 00:09:28.120 we in the church, we're like, all right, bring 00:09:28.120 --> 00:09:30.519 your friend to church, right? And then they will 00:09:30.519 --> 00:09:32.480 come to know Jesus, and then they will be a disciple 00:09:32.480 --> 00:09:35.840 of Jesus by showing up at church one hour a week, 00:09:35.980 --> 00:09:39.909 right? I'm calling you out a little bit on this, 00:09:39.970 --> 00:09:42.049 right? Like not you specifically, but no, you 00:09:42.049 --> 00:09:43.870 right there. I'm looking, hold on, looking right 00:09:43.870 --> 00:09:48.009 at the camera. I'm calling. We're not that type 00:09:48.009 --> 00:09:51.409 of podcast, Ben. But I have to win arguments. 00:09:51.490 --> 00:09:54.730 What do you mean? But we get into this mindset 00:09:54.730 --> 00:09:56.250 of like, oh, if we just get them to church, they'll 00:09:56.250 --> 00:09:58.690 hear about Jesus. They'll become a disciple and 00:09:58.690 --> 00:10:01.169 all is good. Right. And it's like, well, the. 00:10:02.440 --> 00:10:06.059 The way that discipleship worked in Jewish tradition 00:10:06.059 --> 00:10:08.639 was you were doing life with those people. Yeah. 00:10:09.100 --> 00:10:13.519 So take Jesus' disciples with Jesus, right? They 00:10:13.519 --> 00:10:16.100 followed him around, right? They learned not 00:10:16.100 --> 00:10:19.039 just what he taught but how he lived, right? 00:10:19.220 --> 00:10:23.240 And that was the rabbi – that was the teacher 00:10:23.240 --> 00:10:25.720 -disciple model. And so when they're saying make 00:10:25.720 --> 00:10:28.379 disciples, this is kind of what they're probably 00:10:28.379 --> 00:10:30.570 – thinking, right? Right. They're probably not 00:10:30.570 --> 00:10:32.230 thinking, okay, let's just get them to a service 00:10:32.230 --> 00:10:34.830 once a week. No. I'm actually going to invite 00:10:34.830 --> 00:10:36.850 you into a life that changes everything. Exactly. 00:10:37.070 --> 00:10:40.450 Right? And then that's what we're called to do 00:10:40.450 --> 00:10:43.190 when we make disciples. Yeah. Right? We are called 00:10:43.190 --> 00:10:46.649 to introduce them to Jesus, walk with them as 00:10:46.649 --> 00:10:49.850 they learn to follow Jesus, right? And teach 00:10:49.850 --> 00:10:54.940 them the things of Jesus. Yeah. I do want to 00:10:54.940 --> 00:10:56.820 echo your point on this. A lot of times what 00:10:56.820 --> 00:10:59.639 we will do is we will turn our personal convictions 00:10:59.639 --> 00:11:03.059 in the gospel law. There are people who have 00:11:03.059 --> 00:11:04.580 personal convictions that they're only going 00:11:04.580 --> 00:11:07.519 to listen to worship music. That doesn't mean 00:11:07.519 --> 00:11:10.059 the people who aren't or who are listening to 00:11:10.059 --> 00:11:12.100 other music are less of a follower than Jesus. 00:11:12.879 --> 00:11:14.620 There are people who have personal convictions 00:11:14.620 --> 00:11:18.399 to not drink alcohol. That doesn't mean the Christians 00:11:18.399 --> 00:11:23.590 who do drink responsibly aren't. less of a disciple, 00:11:23.750 --> 00:11:25.549 right? Correct. We do need to separate these 00:11:25.549 --> 00:11:27.950 things out. Yeah, so what I've called this in 00:11:27.950 --> 00:11:30.009 the past, because I like alliteration, is trying 00:11:30.009 --> 00:11:31.750 not to turn your convictions into commandments, 00:11:31.990 --> 00:11:34.750 right? And I think that if you have convictions, 00:11:34.850 --> 00:11:36.330 you should live them out, and you should explain 00:11:36.330 --> 00:11:38.009 why you have those, because I think living out 00:11:38.009 --> 00:11:40.149 your convictions can be a very powerful witness. 00:11:41.289 --> 00:11:42.710 But that's what they are, is your convictions. 00:11:43.009 --> 00:11:45.370 And we need to be able to live in grace with 00:11:45.370 --> 00:11:46.909 people who don't have the same convictions we 00:11:46.909 --> 00:11:50.120 do, right? Well, can we just clarify one more 00:11:50.120 --> 00:11:53.519 thing on that? There are things that are in the 00:11:53.519 --> 00:11:56.720 Bible that are very black and white. Right. Where 00:11:56.720 --> 00:11:58.840 it's like, hey, don't do this. Yeah. Turns out 00:11:58.840 --> 00:12:01.059 you should not murder people. Right. Don't murder 00:12:01.059 --> 00:12:03.320 people and then come to church and be like, hey. 00:12:03.580 --> 00:12:05.860 Right. Or don't be like, oh, it's okay. Me having 00:12:05.860 --> 00:12:08.659 an affair isn't distracting me from my relationship 00:12:08.659 --> 00:12:11.039 with Jesus. Right. Right. Do you remember the 00:12:11.039 --> 00:12:13.490 movie, Oh Brother, Where Art Thou? You remember 00:12:13.490 --> 00:12:14.990 when the guy gets baptized and he says, Jesus 00:12:14.990 --> 00:12:16.570 washed everything away, but then the state's 00:12:16.570 --> 00:12:18.490 still chasing him. He's like, but Jesus forgave 00:12:18.490 --> 00:12:23.830 me. But the state didn't. So, I mean, let's just 00:12:23.830 --> 00:12:26.610 be clear on that. There are things in the Bible 00:12:26.610 --> 00:12:29.470 that it's like, hey, this is a no, no, don't 00:12:29.470 --> 00:12:32.350 cross that line. So we're going to people. And 00:12:32.350 --> 00:12:34.929 what's the scope of the people that we're going 00:12:34.929 --> 00:12:37.490 to, like the range of people that we're going 00:12:37.490 --> 00:12:39.649 to? Because I believe it has a specific word. 00:12:41.450 --> 00:12:45.159 All. Nations? Yep. Okay. Well, that's crazy for 00:12:45.159 --> 00:12:47.940 a bunch of Jews, right? Because in their mind, 00:12:47.960 --> 00:12:50.179 they've always been about being faithful to Torah, 00:12:50.500 --> 00:12:53.039 being obedient, following Yahweh, all those different 00:12:53.039 --> 00:12:55.080 things, right? Now he's like, hey, you're going 00:12:55.080 --> 00:12:57.639 to make disciples of everybody. Well, and then 00:12:57.639 --> 00:13:02.299 imagine that call on your life. Like, hey, there's 00:13:02.299 --> 00:13:05.240 11 of you right now. Yeah. You're going to go 00:13:05.240 --> 00:13:08.519 to every known nation and share the gospel. Go 00:13:08.519 --> 00:13:10.759 to all nations. Which, granted, they didn't know 00:13:10.759 --> 00:13:12.580 every nation that exists currently, but there 00:13:12.580 --> 00:13:15.019 was still a lot. Well, yeah, you look at the 00:13:15.019 --> 00:13:18.460 world, though. I mean, everything from England 00:13:18.460 --> 00:13:23.080 to East Africa to Rome to over to India, places 00:13:23.080 --> 00:13:25.820 like that, all were known nations at this time. 00:13:26.379 --> 00:13:30.200 And it's all people. So it's every people group, 00:13:30.360 --> 00:13:34.139 every outsider, every enemy, every neighbor, 00:13:34.240 --> 00:13:38.639 every stranger. Right? That's a lot. It's not 00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:42.659 just a small spattering of things. It's a kingdom 00:13:42.659 --> 00:13:44.320 announcement for the entire world. Something 00:13:44.320 --> 00:13:47.340 significant has happened, right? You can't just 00:13:47.340 --> 00:13:51.779 stay home and not talk about it. Yeah. And so 00:13:51.779 --> 00:13:55.679 you have this inclusive gospel now, right? Everybody 00:13:55.679 --> 00:13:58.649 is welcome. It doesn't matter your background. 00:13:58.809 --> 00:14:00.470 It doesn't matter what you've done. It doesn't 00:14:00.470 --> 00:14:04.750 matter your religious affiliation. Everybody 00:14:04.750 --> 00:14:07.690 is welcome, and all you have to do is say yes. 00:14:07.929 --> 00:14:13.029 And then you're being baptized not as just a 00:14:13.029 --> 00:14:14.090 personal commandment, but you're actually being 00:14:14.090 --> 00:14:16.269 baptized into a name. It says you're going to 00:14:16.269 --> 00:14:19.049 baptize people in the name of the Father, the 00:14:19.049 --> 00:14:21.580 Son, and the Holy Spirit. It's a shared life. 00:14:21.679 --> 00:14:23.379 It's a new allegiance. It's a new belonging, 00:14:23.460 --> 00:14:25.419 right? And it also tells us something is that 00:14:25.419 --> 00:14:26.879 this mission is actually going to be relational 00:14:26.879 --> 00:14:28.559 because we're all part of the same family. We're 00:14:28.559 --> 00:14:30.860 part of the same name, right? We're going in 00:14:30.860 --> 00:14:33.820 the name of Jesus, right? And then you get to 00:14:33.820 --> 00:14:38.379 this, teach these new disciples to obey all the 00:14:38.379 --> 00:14:41.320 commandments I have given you. So let's look 00:14:41.320 --> 00:14:44.960 at that real quick, right? Jesus, when he was 00:14:44.960 --> 00:14:47.379 approached by someone and saying, hey, Lord, 00:14:47.460 --> 00:14:50.480 what must I do? And he's like, love the Lord 00:14:50.480 --> 00:14:52.620 your God with everything you have and love your 00:14:52.620 --> 00:14:56.379 neighbor as yourself. Everything Jesus did was 00:14:56.379 --> 00:15:00.940 based around those things. Even if you look at 00:15:00.940 --> 00:15:05.580 the Sermon on the Mount, that whole sermon was 00:15:05.580 --> 00:15:08.720 all about how do we set ourselves apart so people 00:15:08.720 --> 00:15:11.879 know who we are. How do we live in such a way 00:15:11.879 --> 00:15:14.659 that God's kingdom reality is present? And if 00:15:14.659 --> 00:15:16.879 you haven't listened to our series on that. Go 00:15:16.879 --> 00:15:18.320 listen to that. That'll make a lot more sense. 00:15:18.539 --> 00:15:20.259 Yeah. You're going to be like, those guys look 00:15:20.259 --> 00:15:22.500 younger when they did this. Yeah. Right? We've 00:15:22.500 --> 00:15:24.620 aged a lot in the last year. Six months? Six 00:15:24.620 --> 00:15:27.059 months. I don't know. Time just blends together 00:15:27.059 --> 00:15:30.100 right now. Time is. Oh, yeah. I can't sing songs 00:15:30.100 --> 00:15:32.299 on here. Nope. I think I'm probably okay with 00:15:32.299 --> 00:15:34.320 just doing those two notes. We'll be all right. 00:15:34.399 --> 00:15:37.899 Yeah. But what did Jesus teach? Right? Right. 00:15:38.159 --> 00:15:41.950 Jesus, he taught. You need to love the Lord your 00:15:41.950 --> 00:15:43.710 God with everything you have and love your neighbor 00:15:43.710 --> 00:15:46.710 as yourself. It all starts there. And he did 00:15:46.710 --> 00:15:48.470 give descriptions on that because, like, there's 00:15:48.470 --> 00:15:50.289 tons of parables about how you love people. Well, 00:15:50.350 --> 00:15:51.950 in fact, we may even talk about one of them here. 00:15:52.090 --> 00:15:53.509 He had a lot of things even in the Sermon on 00:15:53.509 --> 00:15:56.870 the Mount where he says, blessed are you when 00:15:56.870 --> 00:16:00.129 you do this, right? You're salt and light, which 00:16:00.129 --> 00:16:02.529 means you have to go and be out there. Also, 00:16:02.649 --> 00:16:05.429 don't get drowned in anger, right? Obviously, 00:16:05.450 --> 00:16:06.610 go back to the series if you want to get all 00:16:06.610 --> 00:16:08.769 those. But Jesus gave very clear commands, grounded 00:16:08.769 --> 00:16:11.649 in Torah. Right. But also applicable for people 00:16:11.649 --> 00:16:13.350 who are not under the law in the same way the 00:16:13.350 --> 00:16:14.970 Jews are, because that's going to be coming up 00:16:14.970 --> 00:16:18.389 with Gentiles. But like the heart is still to 00:16:18.389 --> 00:16:20.309 put God on display, which is what Torah always 00:16:20.309 --> 00:16:25.129 did is showed who God was. Right. I like this 00:16:25.129 --> 00:16:27.190 part here where you said we're talking about 00:16:27.190 --> 00:16:29.590 the hold on with you always to the very end of 00:16:29.590 --> 00:16:32.549 the age. I love that God doesn't just say, see 00:16:32.549 --> 00:16:36.809 you. Good luck. Have fun. Don't forget to write. 00:16:37.429 --> 00:16:40.539 Send me a postcard. He's not like the boss who's 00:16:40.539 --> 00:16:42.139 like, here's a project you need to get done. 00:16:42.240 --> 00:16:44.799 I expect it done by this date. And then the boss 00:16:44.799 --> 00:16:47.519 never checks in, right? That's not what's going 00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:50.379 on here. You have Jesus who is like, I am with 00:16:50.379 --> 00:16:54.419 you always, even to the end of the age. As I 00:16:54.419 --> 00:16:57.580 am giving you this monumental task to go to every 00:16:57.580 --> 00:17:00.179 place in the world and share the gospel, I am 00:17:00.179 --> 00:17:04.170 going to be with you. I'm not sending you out 00:17:04.170 --> 00:17:08.410 alone. I'm not sending you to struggle your way 00:17:08.410 --> 00:17:11.829 through this. I am going to be with you. That's 00:17:11.829 --> 00:17:13.650 not to say that there won't be struggles or hardships. 00:17:14.069 --> 00:17:18.009 If you are like, well, but Jesus is with them, 00:17:18.069 --> 00:17:20.569 go read the book of Acts. There was a lot of 00:17:20.569 --> 00:17:22.109 struggles and hardships. One of my favorite stories 00:17:22.109 --> 00:17:23.890 in there was actually, I forget what chapter 00:17:23.890 --> 00:17:26.170 it is, but the disciples got kicked out of a 00:17:26.170 --> 00:17:28.289 town and stoned within an inch of their lives. 00:17:28.430 --> 00:17:30.490 And then when they were feeling... When they 00:17:30.490 --> 00:17:32.329 were able to stand, they went back in the town 00:17:32.329 --> 00:17:36.329 and proclaimed the gospel. You're going to have 00:17:36.329 --> 00:17:38.730 hardships. You're going to have struggles. But 00:17:38.730 --> 00:17:42.930 Jesus is with you in those times. I think one 00:17:42.930 --> 00:17:44.809 of the hardest things for us to remember is that, 00:17:44.869 --> 00:17:46.869 yes, there's peace. Yes, there's understanding. 00:17:47.109 --> 00:17:48.650 Yes, there's a better life. All these different 00:17:48.650 --> 00:17:51.190 things. But we're also called to be Jesus, and 00:17:51.190 --> 00:17:53.630 Jesus had to go to a cross in order for redemption 00:17:53.630 --> 00:17:55.630 to come for other people, which means that sometimes 00:17:55.630 --> 00:17:57.069 you're going to go into a city and people will 00:17:57.069 --> 00:17:59.589 throw metaphorical rocks at you. That's to be 00:17:59.589 --> 00:18:01.890 expected. It doesn't mean that's always going 00:18:01.890 --> 00:18:03.390 to be the case because other places they go, 00:18:03.430 --> 00:18:06.329 people receive them gladly. But wherever God 00:18:06.329 --> 00:18:08.450 calls you, you go. And it's not always going 00:18:08.450 --> 00:18:10.150 to be good treatment, but you're going there 00:18:10.150 --> 00:18:12.670 on behalf of the other people. And you're not 00:18:12.670 --> 00:18:17.509 going alone. You're going with Jesus, carried 00:18:17.509 --> 00:18:20.089 in your heart. And obviously a few other things 00:18:20.089 --> 00:18:22.769 to note is that in the book of Acts, the Holy 00:18:22.769 --> 00:18:25.349 Spirit is going to be sent to them. And when 00:18:25.349 --> 00:18:27.069 the Holy Spirit goes with them, he's literally 00:18:27.069 --> 00:18:30.609 going. inside of their life, right? And it's 00:18:30.609 --> 00:18:31.930 important because all throughout the book of 00:18:31.930 --> 00:18:33.690 Acts, you're going to see very quickly, they're 00:18:33.690 --> 00:18:34.809 like, we don't know which way to go, and the 00:18:34.809 --> 00:18:36.910 Spirit led us this way. We don't know what to 00:18:36.910 --> 00:18:38.630 do, and the Spirit told us to do this, right? 00:18:40.049 --> 00:18:41.950 If you're going out and you're like, I have no 00:18:41.950 --> 00:18:44.910 idea how to go to all nations and tell them about 00:18:44.910 --> 00:18:47.750 Jesus. Good thing the Holy Spirit's there, and 00:18:47.750 --> 00:18:50.529 I was like, left, right, straight. Ah, gotcha, 00:18:50.609 --> 00:18:53.490 you know? I want to point out real quick here 00:18:53.490 --> 00:18:58.359 in Mark's summary. of this event. The only thing 00:18:58.359 --> 00:19:00.240 that is different between this and Matthew is 00:19:00.240 --> 00:19:03.339 that Jesus will correct unbelief and hardness 00:19:03.339 --> 00:19:05.960 of heart, and is going to send them out, and 00:19:05.960 --> 00:19:08.000 then the story continues as the Lord works with 00:19:08.000 --> 00:19:11.579 them. But the main thing about both of these 00:19:11.579 --> 00:19:14.200 mission commissions, I like that way that flew 00:19:14.200 --> 00:19:18.299 out, both these mission commissions is that the 00:19:18.299 --> 00:19:20.740 main power isn't in the mission, it's in Jesus. 00:19:21.599 --> 00:19:26.859 It's in Jesus commissioning you. Because a lot 00:19:26.859 --> 00:19:29.839 of people have said, go out and change the world. 00:19:31.259 --> 00:19:33.160 Not a lot of people say, hey, go change the world. 00:19:33.240 --> 00:19:37.160 I'm going with you. Yeah, and you have, and that's 00:19:37.160 --> 00:19:39.680 the point, right, is that Jesus is the center. 00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:43.299 He's the one working through you. He's the one 00:19:43.299 --> 00:19:45.740 who's bringing this message to the world through 00:19:45.740 --> 00:19:50.960 you. We're not doing it on our own. I mean, you 00:19:50.960 --> 00:19:52.279 want to go change the world, there are plenty 00:19:52.279 --> 00:19:54.720 of people who make millions, billions of dollars 00:19:54.720 --> 00:19:57.799 who've invented new tech, new industry, so on 00:19:57.799 --> 00:20:00.380 and so forth. And they are revolutionizing what 00:20:00.380 --> 00:20:03.420 we know in the world today. So if you want to 00:20:03.420 --> 00:20:05.279 change the world, you have an avenue to do that. 00:20:05.319 --> 00:20:07.000 But Jesus is saying, hey, we're bringing eternal 00:20:07.000 --> 00:20:10.099 change. And that message has stayed the same. 00:20:11.240 --> 00:20:13.500 After he gives them this commission, and we can... 00:20:14.349 --> 00:20:16.329 people can quibble and talk about like what the 00:20:16.329 --> 00:20:18.529 timeline is on this. Um, then there comes the 00:20:18.529 --> 00:20:20.670 Ascension and I think let's read it from Acts, 00:20:20.769 --> 00:20:25.349 uh, Acts one, one through 11. Yeah. In my first 00:20:25.349 --> 00:20:30.190 book, I told you, uh, it's the Lopius. Yep. Theophilus. 00:20:30.390 --> 00:20:31.690 Theophilus. Thank you. Let me try that again. 00:20:31.769 --> 00:20:34.430 In my first book, I told you Theophilus. Listen, 00:20:34.490 --> 00:20:36.250 you can try it again. I'm leaving in the first 00:20:36.250 --> 00:20:38.650 one. I'm the one that edits it. I'm leaving it 00:20:38.650 --> 00:20:40.880 in there. Do you want me to just give you a third? 00:20:41.099 --> 00:20:44.180 Yeah, you go ahead. Go one more time. In my first 00:20:44.180 --> 00:20:46.339 book, I told you Theopolis. There you go, Ben. 00:20:46.539 --> 00:20:49.440 About everything Jesus began to do and teach 00:20:49.440 --> 00:20:53.000 until the day he was taken up into heaven after 00:20:53.000 --> 00:20:55.980 giving his chosen apostles further instructions 00:20:55.980 --> 00:20:58.740 through the Holy Spirit. During the 40 days after 00:20:58.740 --> 00:21:02.059 he suffered and died. He appeared to his apostles 00:21:02.059 --> 00:21:05.359 from time to time, and he proved to them in many 00:21:05.359 --> 00:21:08.539 ways that he was actually alive. And he talked 00:21:08.539 --> 00:21:12.400 to them about the kingdom of God. Once when he 00:21:12.400 --> 00:21:15.779 was eating with them, he commanded them, Do not 00:21:15.779 --> 00:21:18.779 leave Jerusalem until my father sends you a gift 00:21:18.779 --> 00:21:20.579 as he has promised, as I have told you before. 00:21:21.319 --> 00:21:23.720 John baptized you with water, but just in a few 00:21:23.720 --> 00:21:25.660 days he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. 00:21:28.850 --> 00:21:33.089 So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept 00:21:33.089 --> 00:21:36.130 asking him, Lord, has the time come for you to 00:21:36.130 --> 00:21:39.650 free Israel and restore your kingdom? He replied, 00:21:39.930 --> 00:21:43.029 the Father alone has the authority to set those 00:21:43.029 --> 00:21:45.670 dates and times, and they are not for you to 00:21:45.670 --> 00:21:48.160 know. But you will receive power when the Holy 00:21:48.160 --> 00:21:50.900 Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witnesses, 00:21:50.940 --> 00:21:54.579 telling people about me everywhere, in Jerusalem, 00:21:54.759 --> 00:21:57.619 throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends 00:21:57.619 --> 00:21:59.740 of the earth. After saying this, he was taken 00:21:59.740 --> 00:22:02.579 up in a cloud while they were watching, and they 00:22:02.579 --> 00:22:07.609 could no longer see him. And they strained to 00:22:07.609 --> 00:22:10.309 see him rising to the heavens. Two white -robed 00:22:10.309 --> 00:22:13.329 men suddenly stood amongst them. Men of Galilee, 00:22:13.410 --> 00:22:16.230 they said, why are you standing here staring 00:22:16.230 --> 00:22:19.369 into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into 00:22:19.369 --> 00:22:22.289 heaven, but someday he will return from heaven 00:22:22.289 --> 00:22:26.309 in the same way you saw him go. So we see here, 00:22:26.349 --> 00:22:28.269 even in the book of Acts, prior to the Holy Spirit 00:22:28.269 --> 00:22:30.829 coming, they still think, all right, Jesus, so 00:22:30.829 --> 00:22:32.410 are you going to establish your kingdom now and 00:22:32.410 --> 00:22:34.569 kick out Rome? Like, in some ways, like, they're 00:22:34.569 --> 00:22:37.450 still thinking that, right? Luckily, when the 00:22:37.450 --> 00:22:39.329 Holy Spirit comes on them, they're like, oh, 00:22:39.509 --> 00:22:43.250 that's what's going on, right? But here in the 00:22:43.250 --> 00:22:44.589 ascension, I think a lot of times people think 00:22:44.589 --> 00:22:46.109 the ascension, Jesus going up into the clouds, 00:22:46.230 --> 00:22:49.269 oh, well, he left. No, he was exalted, right? 00:22:49.869 --> 00:22:52.339 It's not absence. It's actually authority. That 00:22:52.339 --> 00:22:54.599 is, he's actually going to sit at the right hand 00:22:54.599 --> 00:22:56.579 of God, right, is what's going to be talked about 00:22:56.579 --> 00:23:00.559 in Ephesians, I believe. And it's not abandonment, 00:23:00.559 --> 00:23:02.839 but it's a new mode of presence because if he 00:23:02.839 --> 00:23:04.539 doesn't leave, he can't send the Holy Spirit, 00:23:04.599 --> 00:23:06.259 and they're still going to be asking questions 00:23:06.259 --> 00:23:07.779 like, hey, are you going to come and kick out 00:23:07.779 --> 00:23:11.920 Rome yet? Right? And so it means that Jesus is 00:23:11.920 --> 00:23:15.109 not just risen, he's actually reigning. I do 00:23:15.109 --> 00:23:17.130 want to point this out in Luke in the ending. 00:23:17.269 --> 00:23:19.990 It says that Jesus leads them out, lifts his 00:23:19.990 --> 00:23:21.549 hands, and he blesses them, which, by the way, 00:23:21.549 --> 00:23:24.109 is priestly imagery, right? Going back to Leviticus. 00:23:24.869 --> 00:23:27.029 The last physical posture that Luke leaves us 00:23:27.029 --> 00:23:29.450 with is not Jesus scolding, not Jesus disappointed, 00:23:29.609 --> 00:23:31.609 but Jesus blessing his people as he departs. 00:23:32.809 --> 00:23:34.730 And so then what do the disciples do? They worship, 00:23:34.890 --> 00:23:36.390 they return to Jerusalem with great joy, and 00:23:36.390 --> 00:23:39.329 they're continually in the temple blessing God. 00:23:40.450 --> 00:23:42.109 And that's surprising because you think they 00:23:42.109 --> 00:23:43.589 feel abandoned, but they obviously don't feel 00:23:43.589 --> 00:23:46.089 that way. They're not grieving like people have 00:23:46.089 --> 00:23:47.509 lost them. They're actually joyful. They're like, 00:23:47.569 --> 00:23:49.490 okay, well, it's coming. We know it's coming. 00:23:49.650 --> 00:23:51.430 This isn't the end, and it's the beginning. And 00:23:51.430 --> 00:23:53.529 in this conversation where they do want to know 00:23:53.529 --> 00:23:55.609 about the kingdom, Jesus actually redirects them. 00:23:55.650 --> 00:23:58.410 He says, you will receive power when the Holy 00:23:58.410 --> 00:24:00.470 Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my 00:24:00.470 --> 00:24:04.930 witnesses, right? And I love the expanding circles, 00:24:05.109 --> 00:24:08.210 Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria. Yes, guys, Samaria. 00:24:08.230 --> 00:24:10.890 You have to go to Samaria, ends of the earth. 00:24:11.490 --> 00:24:12.990 It's the church learning to cross geographic 00:24:12.990 --> 00:24:16.309 lines, ethnic lines, hostility lines, comfort 00:24:16.309 --> 00:24:20.990 lines. It says that Jesus ascends and then the 00:24:20.990 --> 00:24:22.329 angels say, why are you standing here staring? 00:24:23.390 --> 00:24:25.130 What are you doing? What are you guys doing? 00:24:25.529 --> 00:24:28.190 Why are you here? That Jesus is going to come 00:24:28.190 --> 00:24:29.809 back the same way. So the church lives in between 00:24:29.809 --> 00:24:32.390 the time of the ascended king and the king who's 00:24:32.390 --> 00:24:35.289 coming back. That's our timeline now. That's 00:24:35.289 --> 00:24:39.859 where we're living now. And then if you read 00:24:39.859 --> 00:24:41.799 into the book of Acts, like you understand, like 00:24:41.799 --> 00:24:43.160 this is the formation of the church where the 00:24:43.160 --> 00:24:45.180 church goes forward and it starts pushing into 00:24:45.180 --> 00:24:47.180 different regions and all these different things. 00:24:47.200 --> 00:24:50.339 But this is where Jesus' story does not end here. 00:24:51.559 --> 00:24:56.720 But his, I don't want to say this, his physical 00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:59.200 presence in the way that we understand it is 00:24:59.200 --> 00:25:00.599 not on earth because he's reigning in heaven. 00:25:01.079 --> 00:25:03.940 Now, I want to clarify that because Jesus still 00:25:03.940 --> 00:25:06.720 does show up in people's life all the time. especially 00:25:06.720 --> 00:25:08.740 if you're familiar with people in the Middle 00:25:08.740 --> 00:25:09.859 East where they've talked about they've been 00:25:09.859 --> 00:25:12.980 out camping in the desert, and this guy will 00:25:12.980 --> 00:25:15.019 show up before Christian missionaries get there 00:25:15.019 --> 00:25:17.140 and tells them all about what's going on. They're 00:25:17.140 --> 00:25:18.619 like, oh, yeah, he said his name was Jesus, and 00:25:18.619 --> 00:25:22.259 you tell me about him. So Jesus still shows up. 00:25:22.259 --> 00:25:24.079 He shows up in our lives, in our dreams, in our 00:25:24.079 --> 00:25:27.680 churches, in a lot of different ways. But the 00:25:27.680 --> 00:25:29.480 way that he's fully present in the believers 00:25:29.480 --> 00:25:32.200 is through the Holy Spirit. Right. God in three 00:25:32.200 --> 00:25:33.700 persons, the Holy Spirit actually dwells within 00:25:33.700 --> 00:25:36.960 us. And it's by that spirit that we then go and 00:25:36.960 --> 00:25:42.720 proclaim his truth. Right. Yeah. And I do love 00:25:42.720 --> 00:25:47.559 how Jesus does not neglect anyone in the in where 00:25:47.559 --> 00:25:50.059 he sends them. Right. You just highlighted that. 00:25:50.220 --> 00:25:53.700 Yes, you have to go to Samaria. Right. Yes, you 00:25:53.700 --> 00:25:55.500 have to go to the ends of the world. And you 00:25:55.500 --> 00:25:57.279 have to realize, like in the time that they're 00:25:57.279 --> 00:26:00.859 living. The ends of the world, a lot of surrounding 00:26:00.859 --> 00:26:03.420 nations have come and gone and have conquered 00:26:03.420 --> 00:26:07.099 Israel and then have left. And that's happened 00:26:07.099 --> 00:26:09.319 over and over. Read the Old Testament. Right. 00:26:09.839 --> 00:26:13.619 So Jesus is literally saying you get to go to 00:26:13.619 --> 00:26:16.640 your enemies and proclaim that God loves you. 00:26:16.940 --> 00:26:21.740 Yeah. Right. And so like when we have that, so 00:26:21.740 --> 00:26:23.500 when we actually translate that call onto our 00:26:23.500 --> 00:26:27.140 lives. That means the people that we know who 00:26:27.140 --> 00:26:30.960 have hurt us, who have wronged us, we get to 00:26:30.960 --> 00:26:35.299 bring Jesus to them. Which is why next week we're 00:26:35.299 --> 00:26:37.279 going to talk about forgiveness in depth. Because 00:26:37.279 --> 00:26:39.980 if you're going to be this kind of witness, it's 00:26:39.980 --> 00:26:44.779 very difficult. And there's a lot to it. I have 00:26:44.779 --> 00:26:46.220 a couple of notes here. I'm just going to pull 00:26:46.220 --> 00:26:51.160 this up here on my iPad. At the end of this... 00:26:52.190 --> 00:26:55.069 life of uh life of jesus on earth and the story 00:26:55.069 --> 00:26:57.670 that we have in the gospels uh the story does 00:26:57.670 --> 00:27:02.549 not end with heroes right it actually ends with 00:27:02.549 --> 00:27:07.430 he sends like that's he is sending commissioning 00:27:07.430 --> 00:27:10.809 out yes death burial resurrection incredibly 00:27:10.809 --> 00:27:13.109 important now all authority belongs to him and 00:27:13.109 --> 00:27:16.990 you are to go that's really important for us 00:27:17.839 --> 00:27:19.920 Because I think sometimes we live in the death, 00:27:19.920 --> 00:27:21.920 burial, resurrection, which are so pivotal and 00:27:21.920 --> 00:27:25.279 so beautiful and so important. But they led to 00:27:25.279 --> 00:27:29.759 go. Which then leads us to Acts chapter 2, where 00:27:29.759 --> 00:27:31.680 the Spirit dwells, and then they actually go. 00:27:32.319 --> 00:27:35.759 The ascension of Jesus is not stepping away from 00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:37.799 the world. It's Jesus taking his throne and empowering 00:27:37.799 --> 00:27:40.799 his people by the Spirit to bear witness. By 00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:42.059 the way, right when I read that, I was like, 00:27:42.119 --> 00:27:45.779 bear witness. Like a black bear. Or grizzly bear. 00:27:46.380 --> 00:27:49.740 We've got a few of those. Yeah. And the Great 00:27:49.740 --> 00:27:53.279 Commission is not a guilt trip. It is not a checklist 00:27:53.279 --> 00:27:55.160 that you do. It's actually an invitation to join 00:27:55.160 --> 00:27:57.400 the king in what he's been doing all of his life. 00:27:58.519 --> 00:28:00.680 The promise underneath it is this. This is one 00:28:00.680 --> 00:28:02.039 of my favorite lines. It's actually something 00:28:02.039 --> 00:28:04.539 from you. He is with us by his spirit, through 00:28:04.539 --> 00:28:07.099 his word, among his people, until the very end. 00:28:07.759 --> 00:28:11.920 Amen. And amen. Yeah. I just want to talk about 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:17.819 this word go for a minute. If you pass it, you 00:28:17.819 --> 00:28:21.240 get $200. Yeah. No, that's a different thing. 00:28:21.339 --> 00:28:24.180 Yeah, every time you guys say go, you have to 00:28:24.180 --> 00:28:26.940 send Ben and I $200. Oh, man. That's how it works. 00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:28.680 That's definitely not it. That's not it either. 00:28:30.699 --> 00:28:35.000 But the point being, we live in Alaska. Alaska 00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:36.980 is where we live in Alaska. There's a lot of 00:28:36.980 --> 00:28:41.380 boats, right? And it is a lot easier to direct 00:28:41.380 --> 00:28:46.599 a moving boat than it is not. So I heard a pastor 00:28:46.599 --> 00:28:48.619 one time say where he was talking to somebody, 00:28:48.640 --> 00:28:50.240 and this person was like, yeah, I'm just praying 00:28:50.240 --> 00:28:54.259 that the Lord sends me an amazing spouse. And 00:28:54.259 --> 00:28:56.519 the pastor's like, all right, well, what have 00:28:56.519 --> 00:28:58.000 you been doing? He's like, honestly, I just stay 00:28:58.000 --> 00:29:03.859 at home and watch TV. Well, it might be easier 00:29:03.859 --> 00:29:06.359 for God to introduce you to somebody if you're 00:29:06.359 --> 00:29:09.380 actually out and about, if you start volunteering 00:29:09.380 --> 00:29:12.339 in church. And he just listed a bunch of things. 00:29:12.819 --> 00:29:15.900 The point being is it's easier for God to direct 00:29:15.900 --> 00:29:18.339 us when we actually are saying, yes, we will 00:29:18.339 --> 00:29:23.119 go and start moving. Right? Yeah. And versus 00:29:23.119 --> 00:29:24.940 when we're like, okay, I'm just going to sit 00:29:24.940 --> 00:29:27.039 and wait. And there is a time for sit and wait, 00:29:27.119 --> 00:29:30.180 but also we're called to go. I think you actually 00:29:30.180 --> 00:29:33.200 see that in the disciples because when they go, 00:29:33.299 --> 00:29:35.400 he says, you're not supposed to go. He gives 00:29:35.400 --> 00:29:36.579 them the commission, but he also tells them, 00:29:36.579 --> 00:29:37.539 he's like, hey, you're not going to go until 00:29:37.539 --> 00:29:40.240 the spirit comes, right? Like this is the commission, 00:29:40.339 --> 00:29:42.160 but you need to wait until the spirit shows up. 00:29:42.559 --> 00:29:44.079 And so what do they do is they go and they're 00:29:44.079 --> 00:29:46.240 hanging out in the house. They're fellowshipping. 00:29:46.240 --> 00:29:48.839 They're breaking bread together. They're reciting 00:29:48.839 --> 00:29:51.400 history of what Jesus is doing. They are living 00:29:51.400 --> 00:29:53.839 in the temple, going there on a regular basis. 00:29:54.079 --> 00:29:56.740 In fact, when the Spirit comes, they are celebrating 00:29:56.740 --> 00:30:00.299 Shavuot, which is a Jewish festival. They're 00:30:00.299 --> 00:30:02.640 celebrating the bounty of God and the giving 00:30:02.640 --> 00:30:05.420 of the law at Sinai on the day that they receive 00:30:05.420 --> 00:30:09.680 the Spirit. And it's important. They were waiting 00:30:09.680 --> 00:30:13.500 to go, but they were also not sitting still. 00:30:13.950 --> 00:30:16.390 Like they were waiting, but they were also like 00:30:16.390 --> 00:30:20.950 building. So that when God said go, they were 00:30:20.950 --> 00:30:25.049 ready. They were ready. Sorry, you guys missed 00:30:25.049 --> 00:30:27.509 that. I forgot that I had to move the mic to 00:30:27.509 --> 00:30:29.369 my mouth. I just said what I was saying and Ben's 00:30:29.369 --> 00:30:35.480 like, mic. I'm tired, okay? It's a great – but 00:30:35.480 --> 00:30:37.119 it's a great thing, right? Like they were ready 00:30:37.119 --> 00:30:40.019 to go. And I think sometimes like in our life 00:30:40.019 --> 00:30:41.599 we're like, well, I'm waiting for God to give 00:30:41.599 --> 00:30:43.160 me direction on the next portion of my life. 00:30:43.200 --> 00:30:44.799 I was like, cool. What are you actually doing 00:30:44.799 --> 00:30:47.839 now though? Are you being faithful? Are you fellowshipping? 00:30:47.940 --> 00:30:48.920 Are you serving? Are you being faithful? If you're 00:30:48.920 --> 00:30:51.160 waiting for God to give you direction, start 00:30:51.160 --> 00:30:53.279 by going and hanging out with people who are 00:30:53.279 --> 00:30:55.839 following Jesus. Yeah. Right? Go be in fellowship. 00:30:56.730 --> 00:31:00.190 Like, go learn more about who Jesus is, right? 00:31:00.349 --> 00:31:02.809 Go to church. Get involved in a small group, 00:31:02.910 --> 00:31:05.470 right? Go do something where it's like, okay, 00:31:05.490 --> 00:31:07.589 I'm waiting for God to speak and give me direction. 00:31:07.950 --> 00:31:10.029 Well, go hang out with other people who are following 00:31:10.029 --> 00:31:13.349 God, and maybe the Lord will speak to you through 00:31:13.349 --> 00:31:17.930 them. Yeah. Maybe he won't, right? But to your 00:31:17.930 --> 00:31:21.670 point, you're already a moving ship. Yeah. So 00:31:21.670 --> 00:31:24.490 when God says you need to turn, whoop, you can 00:31:24.490 --> 00:31:29.180 just turn right out. Yeah. Yes. I'm tired. Yes. 00:31:29.839 --> 00:31:33.039 Oh, man. All right. Well, that is life of Jesus. 00:31:33.119 --> 00:31:34.579 That's the ascension. That's the great commission. 00:31:34.839 --> 00:31:38.180 I hope the main thing you guys hear from us is 00:31:38.180 --> 00:31:43.920 go. Go. But be ready to go. Right? And what does 00:31:43.920 --> 00:31:45.779 that look like? It's the authority of Jesus. 00:31:46.619 --> 00:31:50.079 It is making disciples, baptizing into a fellowship. 00:31:50.299 --> 00:31:52.460 Yeah. Teaching them everything that God commanded 00:31:52.460 --> 00:31:53.640 and not the things that you think are important. 00:31:53.819 --> 00:31:56.000 Yep. And knowing that he's with you the entire 00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:58.900 way. It's a big deal. Yes, it is. And he's enthroned 00:31:58.900 --> 00:32:00.500 in heaven. We're on earth. And the Holy Spirit 00:32:00.500 --> 00:32:02.400 is working in our lives every day. Yep. And that's 00:32:02.400 --> 00:32:05.359 great. Next week, we will be talking about forgiveness. 00:32:05.480 --> 00:32:07.319 And we're probably going to poke at your feelings 00:32:07.319 --> 00:32:12.799 a little bit. Yep. Because it is probably the 00:32:12.799 --> 00:32:14.740 most contentious subject that I deal with in 00:32:14.740 --> 00:32:17.039 the church. Yes. People do not want to forgive. 00:32:17.259 --> 00:32:19.240 And it's the most important thing that we can 00:32:19.240 --> 00:32:21.259 do. One of the most important things that we 00:32:21.259 --> 00:32:26.250 can do. Yes. All right. Until next time. Goodbye. 00:32:28.809 --> 00:32:31.049 And that's a wrap for today's episode of Love 00:32:31.049 --> 00:32:33.509 and Context. We hope this conversation encouraged 00:32:33.509 --> 00:32:36.190 you and gave you fresh insights into how we can 00:32:36.190 --> 00:32:38.269 better love God and others through the powerful 00:32:38.269 --> 00:32:40.890 truths of the Bible. 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Until next time, keep seeking 00:33:07.950 --> 00:33:10.190 wisdom, embracing love, and living out your faith 00:33:10.190 --> 00:33:10.990 in today's world.