1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:08,360 Hello and welcome to Trinity Sermons here at Trinity Church, Streetsville. 2 00:00:08,360 --> 00:00:13,560 We're a church in Mississauga, Ontario that wants to love Jesus, live like Jesus, and 3 00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:15,440 lead others to Jesus. 4 00:00:15,440 --> 00:00:20,480 Today we have guest preacher with us today, Simon Davis, and he will be continuing our 5 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:26,240 sermon series called Playing with Fire as he unpacks how Jesus challenged the symbol 6 00:00:26,240 --> 00:00:27,520 of family. 7 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:35,080 We hope you enjoy the sermon today and God bless. 8 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:36,080 Good morning. 9 00:00:36,080 --> 00:00:42,760 A reading from the Gospel of Matthew chapter 12 verses 46 to 50. 10 00:00:42,760 --> 00:00:48,040 While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside wanting 11 00:00:48,040 --> 00:00:49,640 to speak to him. 12 00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:55,760 Someone told him, your mother and brothers are standing outside wanting to speak to you. 13 00:00:55,760 --> 00:01:01,120 He replied to him, who is my mother and who are my brothers? 14 00:01:01,120 --> 00:01:09,120 Pointing to his disciples, he said, here are my mother and my brothers, for whoever does 15 00:01:09,120 --> 00:01:15,600 the will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. 16 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:19,720 The word of the Lord. 17 00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:21,720 Well good morning. 18 00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:23,000 It's great to be with you all today. 19 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:28,080 If we haven't met yet, my name is Simon and I used to work here a very long time ago. 20 00:01:28,080 --> 00:01:29,080 Hello. 21 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:35,320 And some of you I know and remember from back then and some of you I haven't met yet. 22 00:01:35,320 --> 00:01:39,840 So if I haven't met you, it's going to be an exciting time to meet with you after the 23 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:40,840 service. 24 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:46,260 But I have a bit of a disclaimer as we start. 25 00:01:46,260 --> 00:01:52,000 If you ever go and watch a Quentin Tarantino movie, sometimes in the review, it will give 26 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:59,720 you count of the number of times a certain F word is used in the movie. 27 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:02,360 And I'm going to use an F word. 28 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:03,360 It's a different one. 29 00:02:03,360 --> 00:02:04,360 Don't worry. 30 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:05,600 Quite a lot. 31 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:08,960 And the word is family. 32 00:02:08,960 --> 00:02:15,960 And as I use this word, I'm pretty sensitive to a reality when you talk about family, you 33 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:18,980 start thinking about your own family. 34 00:02:18,980 --> 00:02:24,520 And I want us to be challenged today by Jesus' words, but I also want to challenge you to 35 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:29,320 listen and not get too distracted by thinking about our own family. 36 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:34,320 And I'm going to have us start in this way. 37 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:37,600 You know the Cleavers? 38 00:02:37,600 --> 00:02:40,560 We're bombarded by images of families. 39 00:02:40,560 --> 00:02:43,520 And I thought it would be fun to start with this question. 40 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:48,300 What is the type of family you would most like to be in? 41 00:02:48,300 --> 00:03:03,780 Maybe you like your family's nuclear or suburban or Gujarati or prodigal or animated or moving 42 00:03:03,780 --> 00:03:16,200 on up or Oscar winning or friendly or modern or fresh. 43 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:18,860 But here's the problem. 44 00:03:18,860 --> 00:03:23,520 Whether or not we are Christians, we are all formed by our families. 45 00:03:23,520 --> 00:03:29,800 We have opinions about what kinds of families are good or bad. 46 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:33,520 Our families are a powerful force in our lives. 47 00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:41,480 And in one way or another, we are all striving to either recapture or distance ourselves 48 00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:47,760 from those family photo albums that we hold close in our hearts. 49 00:03:47,760 --> 00:03:49,600 But here's the thing. 50 00:03:49,600 --> 00:03:56,120 This sermon is not about the six easy steps to make your family system biblical. 51 00:03:56,120 --> 00:04:00,740 I do think Christians need to think about family systems and get help. 52 00:04:00,740 --> 00:04:04,960 And if you want help on family systems, I happen to know a very beautiful therapist 53 00:04:04,960 --> 00:04:08,940 and I can introduce you to her after the service. 54 00:04:08,940 --> 00:04:16,600 So God's answer to this question, what is family for, is simultaneously more simple, 55 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:22,360 offers more fulfillment and is more accessible than any good change that you could make in 56 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:24,400 how you manage your family. 57 00:04:24,400 --> 00:04:28,180 So what is family for? 58 00:04:28,180 --> 00:04:34,880 How do you evaluate whether a family is fulfilling its true function or not? 59 00:04:34,880 --> 00:04:38,800 Every single one of us has an answer to that question. 60 00:04:38,800 --> 00:04:44,440 And I'm here to tell you this morning that our passage should tell us that A, the way 61 00:04:44,440 --> 00:04:47,440 all of us define families is false. 62 00:04:47,440 --> 00:04:54,400 We all have a corrupted view of families, but that God has a family plan. 63 00:04:54,400 --> 00:05:04,560 Jesus knows what a good family truly does and that Jesus points us to a truly fulfilling 64 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:05,560 family. 65 00:05:05,560 --> 00:05:13,160 No matter how good or bad or wonderful or broken your family is, Jesus has a better 66 00:05:13,160 --> 00:05:17,240 family for you right now. 67 00:05:17,240 --> 00:05:22,480 I did this before and Rob, I kind of complained about it last time in the summer when I came 68 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:23,720 to preach. 69 00:05:23,720 --> 00:05:26,680 You gave this to a guest preacher, you know. 70 00:05:26,680 --> 00:05:31,000 If I'm faithful in preaching this passage in this series, it's going to confront us 71 00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:36,240 and I have a very high need to have people like me. 72 00:05:36,240 --> 00:05:37,760 So what are you doing? 73 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:42,760 Are you trying to help me in my journey of confession and sanctification? 74 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:43,960 Playing with fire indeed. 75 00:05:43,960 --> 00:05:47,140 And that is the series we're in. 76 00:05:47,140 --> 00:05:51,080 But today we're going to hear how we have a corrupted view of families, that Jesus knows 77 00:05:51,080 --> 00:05:56,720 what a good family truly is, and that Jesus has a better family for us today. 78 00:05:56,720 --> 00:06:04,280 Now, I wrote the words of these points carefully in case we missed the impact. 79 00:06:04,280 --> 00:06:10,520 It's an easy thing to say that all of us are in imperfect families. 80 00:06:10,520 --> 00:06:13,760 That might make your mind go to the mess that we're all struggling with. 81 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:20,360 But stay with me for a second, because I'm not just saying our families are imperfect. 82 00:06:20,360 --> 00:06:28,680 I'm saying that the very ideals we hold up for what would make my imperfect family good, 83 00:06:28,680 --> 00:06:33,720 the very way you define good families, that's what's false. 84 00:06:33,720 --> 00:06:34,720 It's wrong. 85 00:06:34,720 --> 00:06:38,280 And don't worry, you don't have to listen to me here. 86 00:06:38,280 --> 00:06:42,700 Sadly, I know a lot about broken families firsthand. 87 00:06:42,700 --> 00:06:47,040 But we're in this sermon series called Playing with Fire, and we're talking about the way 88 00:06:47,040 --> 00:06:52,560 that Jesus challenged sacred symbols. 89 00:06:52,560 --> 00:06:57,720 And the sacred symbol Jesus is addressing in our passage today is not Pharisees or the 90 00:06:57,720 --> 00:07:04,280 Holy Land, but it is the very concept of family that you and I have in our heart. 91 00:07:04,280 --> 00:07:11,620 I actually love this phrase, sacred symbols, because symbol means to stand for something, 92 00:07:11,620 --> 00:07:14,580 a stand in, a representation. 93 00:07:14,580 --> 00:07:21,520 And sacred means to deem something worthy of religious veneration. 94 00:07:21,520 --> 00:07:26,600 And so the mistake in Jesus' day, and our mistake today if we do not listen to Jesus, 95 00:07:26,600 --> 00:07:31,200 is to confuse symbols for what they're pointing to. 96 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:39,700 But we need to be careful here, because Jesus is not setting fire to obviously evil things. 97 00:07:39,700 --> 00:07:46,800 The things, actually the good things that Jesus sets his sights on are things that are 98 00:07:46,800 --> 00:07:51,080 not in their right place. 99 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:57,120 In the first week of the series, it was not that the land was evil, but it was always 100 00:07:57,120 --> 00:08:05,000 God's intention that the land promised to Israel would be a symbol pointing. 101 00:08:05,000 --> 00:08:09,680 The cycle of living in the land and being exiled from the land is a cycle for the children 102 00:08:09,680 --> 00:08:17,320 of Abraham that will ultimately end when God comes to dwell forever with his people. 103 00:08:17,320 --> 00:08:23,100 Jerusalem was supposed to point us to the New Jerusalem. 104 00:08:23,100 --> 00:08:30,240 When Abram was a hopeless wanderer on the earth, God promised him a home, and that land 105 00:08:30,240 --> 00:08:37,120 is a symbol pointing to that deep yearning for a true home, a holy home. 106 00:08:37,120 --> 00:08:43,520 And the fulfillment of that yearning can only be found in and through God. 107 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:50,480 Last week, Rob spoke about how Jesus directly attacked the Pharisees who were standing in 108 00:08:50,480 --> 00:08:54,420 between the people and God's words. 109 00:08:54,420 --> 00:09:01,120 They were interpreting, but Jesus called them blind guides. 110 00:09:01,120 --> 00:09:05,600 But remember, did Jesus come to say, your religious leaders got their interpretation 111 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:09,400 right, but I'm going to give you a new word that cancels out the Old Testament? 112 00:09:09,400 --> 00:09:11,720 Is that what he came to say? 113 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:12,940 No. 114 00:09:12,940 --> 00:09:17,600 Do not think I have come to abolish the law and the prophets. 115 00:09:17,600 --> 00:09:21,680 I have not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 116 00:09:21,680 --> 00:09:24,520 So wait, what is happening? 117 00:09:24,520 --> 00:09:28,480 Jesus is telling off the teachers of the law, but not changing the law. 118 00:09:28,480 --> 00:09:29,480 How does that work? 119 00:09:29,480 --> 00:09:35,280 Well, one of the most beautiful illustrations I've heard of what Jesus is doing is about 120 00:09:35,280 --> 00:09:36,760 a sheep pen. 121 00:09:36,760 --> 00:09:41,700 And I was told it came from Jonathan Edwards, this illustration, but I wasn't actually able 122 00:09:41,700 --> 00:09:42,820 to source it. 123 00:09:42,820 --> 00:09:44,840 So I have no idea where it comes from. 124 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:47,840 But here's the analogy. 125 00:09:47,840 --> 00:09:51,920 Imagine a sheep pen in the desert. 126 00:09:51,920 --> 00:10:02,360 It's a fence in the sand, but at the very center, there is a spring of water and grass. 127 00:10:02,360 --> 00:10:05,480 So why have the fence? 128 00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:10,760 Well if you're sheep, you're probably not that bright, but you can see and tell a fence 129 00:10:10,760 --> 00:10:11,760 is coming. 130 00:10:11,760 --> 00:10:18,840 And if they see the fence, they can turn around and move back toward the center. 131 00:10:18,840 --> 00:10:23,100 So Jesus will say, you have heard it said, do not commit murder. 132 00:10:23,100 --> 00:10:26,120 And anyone who commits murder is subject to judgment. 133 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:28,060 That's the fence. 134 00:10:28,060 --> 00:10:36,560 But I tell you, anyone who is angry with his brother is subject to judgment. 135 00:10:36,560 --> 00:10:44,160 Anger in your heart and hatred are gazing out into the desert, not toward the spring. 136 00:10:44,160 --> 00:10:51,640 Jesus says that not only can hating your brother and sister lead to murder, but you're still 137 00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:53,640 ignoring God's purpose and plan. 138 00:10:53,640 --> 00:11:00,880 You're still sinning in a way that Jesus says makes you subject to judgment, even if you 139 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:06,000 don't hop the fence to commit murder. 140 00:11:06,000 --> 00:11:10,420 See the Pharisees' mistake is that they were obsessed with the fence. 141 00:11:10,420 --> 00:11:15,200 And they were blind to the fact that patting yourself on the back when you have one foot 142 00:11:15,200 --> 00:11:23,200 on the fence but haven't jumped over is foolishness and blindness to the very purpose of the law. 143 00:11:23,200 --> 00:11:29,840 When you hate someone in your heart, don't think you're righteous just because you haven't 144 00:11:29,840 --> 00:11:32,520 murdered them. 145 00:11:32,520 --> 00:11:35,560 God cares about your heart and your actions. 146 00:11:35,560 --> 00:11:40,640 And that's what Jesus is trying to say to the Pharisees and to you and me. 147 00:11:40,640 --> 00:11:47,000 So the fence in this illustration was given to us so that if we even get a glimpse of 148 00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:52,760 it coming, we can turn around, turn back, repent. 149 00:11:52,760 --> 00:12:00,520 You can be staring longingly into the desert even if you don't hop the fence. 150 00:12:00,520 --> 00:12:05,200 And if your love and your attention and your belief about what is good is not oriented 151 00:12:05,200 --> 00:12:12,280 at the center, at the spring and the grass, you will die thirsting for a mirage when the 152 00:12:12,280 --> 00:12:16,240 living water is right behind you. 153 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:21,560 And as Rob said last week, no person can keep the law when the bar is as high as Jesus sets 154 00:12:21,560 --> 00:12:26,000 it except Jesus. 155 00:12:26,000 --> 00:12:33,800 And as it says in Jeremiah 17, nine, the heart is deceitful above all things. 156 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:42,600 When we admit we don't measure up, we have a God who loves us and is waiting to change 157 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:48,600 us, to reorient us, which is why the words of that beautiful hymn read, oh, to grace 158 00:12:48,600 --> 00:12:52,720 how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be. 159 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:57,920 Let thy goodness like a fetter bind my wandering heart to thee. 160 00:12:57,920 --> 00:13:01,120 Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it. 161 00:13:01,120 --> 00:13:03,080 Prone to leave the God I love. 162 00:13:03,080 --> 00:13:06,840 Here's my heart, Lord, take and seal it. 163 00:13:06,840 --> 00:13:11,780 Seal it for thy courts above. 164 00:13:11,780 --> 00:13:14,680 Over and over and over again. 165 00:13:14,680 --> 00:13:21,440 When Jesus sets his sights on the sacred symbols of the culture of his time, he is telling 166 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:28,880 us and his listeners then that we are in danger of missing the point. 167 00:13:28,880 --> 00:13:36,120 And that can have eternal consequences and it fires Jesus up. 168 00:13:36,120 --> 00:13:42,480 You and I have a corrupted view of families. 169 00:13:42,480 --> 00:13:46,560 The land had a purpose to point to something sacred, our need for a true home. 170 00:13:46,560 --> 00:13:52,720 And the people had made it into an idol and Jesus burned it down. 171 00:13:52,720 --> 00:13:56,260 The law of God had a purpose to point us to something sacred. 172 00:13:56,260 --> 00:14:01,200 The law was designed as a fence in the desert to remind us of our need to turn around and 173 00:14:01,200 --> 00:14:06,740 come back to the heart of God where we have everything we need, like a sheep eating grass 174 00:14:06,740 --> 00:14:09,680 beside a well. 175 00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:16,440 But Pharisees had placed themselves in between the Bible and the people had missed the point. 176 00:14:16,440 --> 00:14:22,760 And just like the land and the law, the family has a purpose. 177 00:14:22,760 --> 00:14:29,640 But in so many ways we miss the point and twist it all up. 178 00:14:29,640 --> 00:14:37,620 What is the sacred thing the families are supposed to point us toward? 179 00:14:37,620 --> 00:14:45,160 What is the well and the living water and the grass? 180 00:14:45,160 --> 00:14:46,880 This is John the Baptist. 181 00:14:46,880 --> 00:14:49,200 They're learning about him downstairs. 182 00:14:49,200 --> 00:14:53,600 And he's pointing to Jesus. 183 00:14:53,600 --> 00:14:57,920 So what is the sacred thing families are supposed to point us towards? 184 00:14:57,920 --> 00:14:59,400 Grace. 185 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:02,880 Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. 186 00:15:02,880 --> 00:15:07,480 That's what John the Baptist is saying there. 187 00:15:07,480 --> 00:15:14,520 Grace is unmerited favor, a gift you know you did not deserve. 188 00:15:14,520 --> 00:15:17,920 What is that gift? 189 00:15:17,920 --> 00:15:20,640 Eternal life. 190 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:27,000 Jesus held up the disciples who were listening to him as his true family. 191 00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:28,000 And what was he saying? 192 00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:31,340 He was saying things like this. 193 00:15:31,340 --> 00:15:34,360 The wages of sin is death. 194 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:39,080 For the gift of God is life everlasting through Jesus. 195 00:15:39,080 --> 00:15:44,360 God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him 196 00:15:44,360 --> 00:15:49,120 would have eternal life. 197 00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:51,620 There is a fulfillment. 198 00:15:51,620 --> 00:15:54,480 It's what our hearts are longing for. 199 00:15:54,480 --> 00:15:57,160 Forever with Jesus. 200 00:15:57,160 --> 00:15:58,160 Glory. 201 00:15:58,160 --> 00:16:05,480 And I'm sorry but it's not passing on good values to the next generation. 202 00:16:05,480 --> 00:16:11,560 It's a good thing but that's not the ultimate thing. 203 00:16:11,560 --> 00:16:20,040 Seeking your family identity in anything but Jesus' kingdom is staring into the desert. 204 00:16:20,040 --> 00:16:23,240 But what God is about is amazing grace. 205 00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:27,640 Where are you going to hear that? 206 00:16:27,640 --> 00:16:29,280 From Jesus obviously. 207 00:16:29,280 --> 00:16:36,680 But actually throughout human history God has given signs and symbols to point us to 208 00:16:36,680 --> 00:16:43,160 his grace and the Bible holds out families as a special means of God's grace. 209 00:16:43,160 --> 00:16:48,880 God's grace coming through families in a special way. 210 00:16:48,880 --> 00:16:55,640 And if you stop to think about those families for a minute, they are not perfect ones. 211 00:16:55,640 --> 00:16:59,160 God works through Abraham's broken family. 212 00:16:59,160 --> 00:17:03,000 God graphs Ruth into Israel's family legacy. 213 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:06,520 But listen, I hear your objection. 214 00:17:06,520 --> 00:17:10,480 My family is not helping me see Jesus. 215 00:17:10,480 --> 00:17:15,920 And many of us come from families and are in families where there is zero danger that 216 00:17:15,920 --> 00:17:19,660 we will think too highly of them. 217 00:17:19,660 --> 00:17:25,180 Some of us have toxic families and painful families and some of us just came from Christmas 218 00:17:25,180 --> 00:17:31,200 with them and I really need you to stop from doing something. 219 00:17:31,200 --> 00:17:38,680 Don't let the brokenness of our families cause us to miss the point of families in 220 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:42,120 God's providence. 221 00:17:42,120 --> 00:17:48,880 God designed families to point our hearts towards God's grace. 222 00:17:48,880 --> 00:17:51,880 We have forgotten that. 223 00:17:51,880 --> 00:17:54,280 Think about this for a second. 224 00:17:54,280 --> 00:17:59,160 How many of you are first generation Christians in your family? 225 00:17:59,160 --> 00:18:03,140 I know there will be some of us. 226 00:18:03,140 --> 00:18:09,540 But always God has seemed to use families, even broken families, in a special way. 227 00:18:09,540 --> 00:18:15,600 The story of grace seems to be passed on even in our broken families. 228 00:18:15,600 --> 00:18:18,420 Maybe that's you. 229 00:18:18,420 --> 00:18:22,120 But let's be really honest for a moment. 230 00:18:22,120 --> 00:18:32,880 How many of us even think that our families' primary purpose is to point us toward grace? 231 00:18:32,880 --> 00:18:34,560 Passing on values maybe? 232 00:18:34,560 --> 00:18:37,040 Passing on safety? 233 00:18:37,040 --> 00:18:39,540 Passing on wealth? 234 00:18:39,540 --> 00:18:45,200 What is your family for? 235 00:18:45,200 --> 00:18:49,440 Families today still exist to help people forge their identity. 236 00:18:49,440 --> 00:18:57,760 But so often, even in the church, that is not an identity of growing in grace, of growing 237 00:18:57,760 --> 00:19:00,620 in Christ. 238 00:19:00,620 --> 00:19:07,440 So this morning, listen to Jesus' words because it doesn't have to be that way. 239 00:19:07,440 --> 00:19:12,720 I remember speaking to a man who's really famous for something he did and I asked him 240 00:19:12,720 --> 00:19:14,780 about this legacy of his fame. 241 00:19:14,780 --> 00:19:16,580 You know what he said to me? 242 00:19:16,580 --> 00:19:23,800 He said that the legacy he prays for is not about the thing he did, but he prays for a 243 00:19:23,800 --> 00:19:30,000 legacy of an unbroken line of believers in his family until Christ's return. 244 00:19:30,000 --> 00:19:33,840 I think about that almost every day. 245 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:40,320 So no matter what type of family you come from, the tendency to let cultural values 246 00:19:40,320 --> 00:19:50,200 be the measuring stick for family success rather than God's grace as our core value. 247 00:19:50,200 --> 00:19:55,800 That reality is all around us, even in the church. 248 00:19:55,800 --> 00:20:01,320 So I have actually no problem asserting that we all have a corrupted view of families that 249 00:20:01,320 --> 00:20:06,200 needs reorientation. 250 00:20:06,200 --> 00:20:14,840 But Jesus doesn't actually give us information in Matthew chapter 12 of what the best family 251 00:20:14,840 --> 00:20:17,680 structure is in your biological family. 252 00:20:17,680 --> 00:20:22,760 It doesn't mean we're off the hook for holding up the Bible standards to our families, but 253 00:20:22,760 --> 00:20:28,680 let's look at what Jesus actually does. 254 00:20:28,680 --> 00:20:33,000 Let me reread these four verses and as you listen, consider Mary because it's going to 255 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:35,440 help us think about the family together. 256 00:20:35,440 --> 00:20:39,480 While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brother stood outside wanting 257 00:20:39,480 --> 00:20:40,820 to speak to him. 258 00:20:40,820 --> 00:20:45,360 Someone told him, your mother and brothers are standing outside wanting to speak to you. 259 00:20:45,360 --> 00:20:50,520 And Jesus replied to him, who is my mother and who are my brothers? 260 00:20:50,520 --> 00:20:56,720 Pointing to his disciples, he said, here are my mother and brothers for whoever does the 261 00:20:56,720 --> 00:21:01,720 will of my father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. 262 00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:05,560 What is Jesus doing here? 263 00:21:05,560 --> 00:21:11,000 All throughout Matthew's gospel up until this point, Jesus has been rebuking the Pharisees 264 00:21:11,000 --> 00:21:12,000 for missing the point. 265 00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:16,640 And suddenly poor Mary and her boys come to Jesus to interrupt his teaching. 266 00:21:16,640 --> 00:21:18,320 And what is Jesus' response? 267 00:21:18,320 --> 00:21:20,960 Who is my mother and who are my brothers? 268 00:21:20,960 --> 00:21:27,720 Doesn't that seem a little disrespectful to you? 269 00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:28,720 But think about this. 270 00:21:28,720 --> 00:21:32,680 In Mark chapter three, we're given a little bit more information about this scene in case 271 00:21:32,680 --> 00:21:35,840 we missed the point. 272 00:21:35,840 --> 00:21:40,240 Then Jesus entered a house and again a crowd gathered so that he and his disciples were 273 00:21:40,240 --> 00:21:41,680 not even able to eat. 274 00:21:41,680 --> 00:21:48,280 And when his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him for they said he 275 00:21:48,280 --> 00:21:50,980 is out of his mind. 276 00:21:50,980 --> 00:21:55,400 They went to take charge of Jesus. 277 00:21:55,400 --> 00:22:04,200 So in that moment, Mary and her sons sided with the Pharisees. 278 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:11,080 Mary opposed Jesus and Jesus did something that I hope you caught. 279 00:22:11,080 --> 00:22:17,500 Jesus did something countercultural and he challenged the concept of family. 280 00:22:17,500 --> 00:22:22,500 In a traditional culture, maybe in your family that you came from, mom showed up and told 281 00:22:22,500 --> 00:22:25,520 you to come home, you did it right away. 282 00:22:25,520 --> 00:22:27,080 That was Jesus' culture too. 283 00:22:27,080 --> 00:22:31,360 But do you see what Jesus is doing here? 284 00:22:31,360 --> 00:22:37,260 When Jesus' blood family, when his nuclear family opposed discipleship, opposed Jesus 285 00:22:37,260 --> 00:22:46,520 leading others to growing grace, Jesus reminded Mary and he reminds us that our need for a 286 00:22:46,520 --> 00:22:54,360 group of broken people like us to be a true family to us, to push us towards Jesus' teaching, 287 00:22:54,360 --> 00:23:03,680 to push us towards grace, that need can be met in a Christian community of disciples. 288 00:23:03,680 --> 00:23:06,360 Now it's time for a little bit of embarrassment of Simon. 289 00:23:06,360 --> 00:23:07,360 You ready? 290 00:23:07,360 --> 00:23:12,040 Look at that handsome fellow in the middle. 291 00:23:12,040 --> 00:23:18,720 The guy in the Raptors shirt is now the director of special needs at Pioneer Camp and the guy 292 00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:23,560 in the middle is me holding the very small bass. 293 00:23:23,560 --> 00:23:28,480 When I was 16, I was doing the leaders in training program at Ontario Pioneer Camp and 294 00:23:28,480 --> 00:23:32,680 I was real arrogant because I grew up in the church. 295 00:23:32,680 --> 00:23:34,480 My dad's a pastor. 296 00:23:34,480 --> 00:23:42,940 So I knew stuff, you know, like a 16 year old knows stuff. 297 00:23:42,940 --> 00:23:49,120 And I had just finished telling my small group leader about how pitiful it was that all these 298 00:23:49,120 --> 00:23:55,100 other leaders in training needed to have experiences to follow Jesus. 299 00:23:55,100 --> 00:23:59,600 You know, those type of Christians, the experienced ones. 300 00:23:59,600 --> 00:24:03,040 And I was all good because I believed the correct doctrine. 301 00:24:03,040 --> 00:24:10,360 Side note here, I did not believe the correct doctrine at this point. 302 00:24:10,360 --> 00:24:14,920 So immediately after I have this arrogant conversation, I go out and I dislocate my 303 00:24:14,920 --> 00:24:16,840 shoulder. 304 00:24:16,840 --> 00:24:22,360 Now luckily it sort of popped back in, but I was still lying on the grass swearing like 305 00:24:22,360 --> 00:24:26,940 a sailor and one of those leaders pointed out something awkward. 306 00:24:26,940 --> 00:24:32,160 I was still getting trained as a leader, so I was technically a camper. 307 00:24:32,160 --> 00:24:39,680 And campers are only allowed to be transported in vehicles insured by the camp because insurance 308 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:44,160 and all the vehicles that were insured by the camp had just left to take people to canoe 309 00:24:44,160 --> 00:24:45,400 trips. 310 00:24:45,400 --> 00:24:48,940 And Simon needed to get to the hospital. 311 00:24:48,940 --> 00:24:50,480 So here's what happened. 312 00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:56,040 This couple who didn't know me, but who used to work for camp and had a vehicle insured 313 00:24:56,040 --> 00:25:00,880 by camp got called and they drove all the way into camp. 314 00:25:00,880 --> 00:25:06,080 And they got me and the leader who was accompanying me and they drove us to the hospital. 315 00:25:06,080 --> 00:25:12,700 And as I was sitting in the back seat, still swearing under my breath, they pointed me 316 00:25:12,700 --> 00:25:16,060 toward God's grace in Jesus. 317 00:25:16,060 --> 00:25:20,460 They actually treated me like a perfect family would. 318 00:25:20,460 --> 00:25:25,360 And they even gave me money for dinner and told us to call them when I was done to drive 319 00:25:25,360 --> 00:25:27,360 me back. 320 00:25:27,360 --> 00:25:33,480 And they pointed me toward something I'd never actually experienced growing up in the church. 321 00:25:33,480 --> 00:25:36,240 Strangers who love me like family. 322 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:42,640 And all we had in common was that we were saying we were trying to be Jesus' disciples. 323 00:25:42,640 --> 00:25:48,820 Yes, they were holding up a good cultural norm of Christian generosity and meeting my 324 00:25:48,820 --> 00:25:50,520 material needs. 325 00:25:50,520 --> 00:25:57,640 But in our conversation, they held up the truth that Rob quoted last week from Tim Keller, 326 00:25:57,640 --> 00:26:05,120 that Jesus lived the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died. 327 00:26:05,120 --> 00:26:06,440 And that's grace. 328 00:26:06,440 --> 00:26:09,920 That's pointing to Jesus' teaching. 329 00:26:09,920 --> 00:26:17,220 If I'm honest with you, when I was 16, I was pretending. 330 00:26:17,220 --> 00:26:21,960 I liked what I got out of Christian culture, but I wasn't really vulnerable. 331 00:26:21,960 --> 00:26:24,720 People didn't know what my heart really was. 332 00:26:24,720 --> 00:26:28,560 They just knew I knew the right answers. 333 00:26:28,560 --> 00:26:35,480 And maybe I wasn't jumping the fence, but I pretended I was in while I was still staring 334 00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:38,480 out at the desert. 335 00:26:38,480 --> 00:26:45,980 But I was actually made vulnerable by my injury and my need for kindness, my insufficiency 336 00:26:45,980 --> 00:26:48,520 was spread out for all to see. 337 00:26:48,520 --> 00:26:52,160 And in my vulnerability, I was loved. 338 00:26:52,160 --> 00:26:56,000 And my heart started to melt toward a God of grace. 339 00:26:56,000 --> 00:27:02,000 And I started to see Him for who He really is. 340 00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:05,300 In an ideal world, your family can do that for you. 341 00:27:05,300 --> 00:27:11,240 Because however good or bad our families are, do you know what families always see? 342 00:27:11,240 --> 00:27:13,400 Our vulnerability. 343 00:27:13,400 --> 00:27:15,920 We can't hide from our family. 344 00:27:15,920 --> 00:27:17,960 And sometimes that's a good thing. 345 00:27:17,960 --> 00:27:22,560 And sometimes that's the most painful thing, isn't it? 346 00:27:22,560 --> 00:27:27,400 I've been so aware and so burdened as I prepared for this sermon that whatever our families 347 00:27:27,400 --> 00:27:35,160 look like on the outside, many of us are carrying scars of ungrace. 348 00:27:35,160 --> 00:27:40,200 And every institution, including family, is broken because they're all made up of broken 349 00:27:40,200 --> 00:27:41,200 people. 350 00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:47,240 But if your family's a mess, listen to Jesus today. 351 00:27:47,240 --> 00:27:55,400 Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. 352 00:27:55,400 --> 00:28:01,800 There is a community whose purpose should be to seek out and hold up and spur each other 353 00:28:01,800 --> 00:28:05,740 on to God's will. 354 00:28:05,740 --> 00:28:12,440 In this moment, in Matthew 12, Jesus is holding up a community of disciples as the family 355 00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:14,440 of grace. 356 00:28:14,440 --> 00:28:21,400 The family that can truly fulfill you is a family where you are being pointed toward 357 00:28:21,400 --> 00:28:24,640 God's grace again and again and again. 358 00:28:24,640 --> 00:28:27,000 We're understanding God's grace. 359 00:28:27,000 --> 00:28:28,480 We're becoming more gracious. 360 00:28:28,480 --> 00:28:35,080 We're holding up Jesus' grace at every opportunity is the norm and it's the ideal that we strive 361 00:28:35,080 --> 00:28:36,080 for. 362 00:28:36,080 --> 00:28:40,160 And that may sound idealized, but it's not. 363 00:28:40,160 --> 00:28:43,640 Jesus knows our families are broken. 364 00:28:43,640 --> 00:28:53,840 And so he sets a table to point us toward the ultimate act of grace, dying on the cross. 365 00:28:53,840 --> 00:28:58,520 Giving up his body and his blood, he says, whenever you eat this bread and drink this 366 00:28:58,520 --> 00:29:03,800 cup, you proclaim the ultimate act of grace. 367 00:29:03,800 --> 00:29:10,680 Jesus, dying the death we should have died, for all have sinned and fallen short of the 368 00:29:10,680 --> 00:29:14,320 glory of God. 369 00:29:14,320 --> 00:29:23,580 What Jesus is doing in Matthew 12 is the same thing he is always doing, correcting a mistake. 370 00:29:23,580 --> 00:29:29,040 Even Jesus' own family did not always point to grace. 371 00:29:29,040 --> 00:29:34,560 But in Jesus' kingdom, there is another family, a church family. 372 00:29:34,560 --> 00:29:38,360 That is the body that is to point us to grace. 373 00:29:38,360 --> 00:29:46,040 Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother. 374 00:29:46,040 --> 00:29:50,280 So what is a family for? 375 00:29:50,280 --> 00:29:53,520 What is a church family for? 376 00:29:53,520 --> 00:30:01,400 Pointing us, each of us, to God's grace, listening to the teaching of Jesus, teaching that is 377 00:30:01,400 --> 00:30:08,160 not mitigated or obscured by cultural norms, teaching that gets down deep, not into just 378 00:30:08,160 --> 00:30:14,120 what we project on a Sunday morning, but deep into our hearts. 379 00:30:14,120 --> 00:30:17,440 Jesus' teaching confronts us. 380 00:30:17,440 --> 00:30:22,820 Jesus tells you that in the same moment, you are more sinful than you are willing to admit, 381 00:30:22,820 --> 00:30:28,820 so sinful you deserved the death Jesus died on the cross. 382 00:30:28,820 --> 00:30:35,920 And in that same moment, you are so loved more than you can imagine. 383 00:30:35,920 --> 00:30:43,200 The devastating news that the verdict against you is death happens in the same moment where 384 00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:49,880 the Son of the King stands up to change places with you. 385 00:30:49,880 --> 00:30:57,080 That is the grace that can be held out for us in our families, in our small groups, in 386 00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:00,160 our church family. 387 00:31:00,160 --> 00:31:08,120 It's the message that Jesus wants you to hear over and over and over again until it sinks 388 00:31:08,120 --> 00:31:16,840 into your heart and your soul and your future and becomes the true fulfillment of the deepest 389 00:31:16,840 --> 00:31:19,960 desires in your heart. 390 00:31:19,960 --> 00:31:29,000 So if you're staring out into the desert this morning, you need to turn around. 391 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:34,640 If you're blocking someone's view of Jesus, or if you're distracting them from looking 392 00:31:34,640 --> 00:31:40,640 to the living water and the grass, you need to get out of their way. 393 00:31:40,640 --> 00:31:46,280 If you need directions to the living water, or even if you need to get back into the sheep 394 00:31:46,280 --> 00:31:53,600 pen, only listening to the voice of Jesus and desiring to do the will of our Father 395 00:31:53,600 --> 00:32:00,000 in heaven can lead you to the true family your heart longs for. 396 00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:07,600 The will of the Father that Jesus was teaching about in Matthew 12 was to save you through 397 00:32:07,600 --> 00:32:09,240 Jesus. 398 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:16,680 So let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy 399 00:32:16,680 --> 00:32:22,440 set before him, endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of 400 00:32:22,440 --> 00:32:25,680 the throne of God. 401 00:32:25,680 --> 00:32:31,540 Consider him who endured such hostility from sinners so that you would not grow weary 402 00:32:31,540 --> 00:32:33,320 or lose heart. 403 00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:36,680 Let's pray. 404 00:32:36,680 --> 00:32:43,180 Heavenly Father, in our brokenness, we are so humbled and grateful that you hold up this 405 00:32:43,180 --> 00:32:47,040 promise of a true family. 406 00:32:47,040 --> 00:32:52,640 In our broken lives, would you continually point us to your grace, and would that change 407 00:32:52,640 --> 00:32:55,120 us from the inside out? 408 00:32:55,120 --> 00:32:56,120 Amen. 409 00:32:56,120 --> 00:33:01,640 Thanks so much for joining us today here at Trinity Church, Streetsville. 410 00:33:01,640 --> 00:33:04,020 We hope that you enjoyed the message. 411 00:33:04,020 --> 00:33:08,520 Please make sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our YouTube channel and like 412 00:33:08,520 --> 00:33:10,280 our podcast. 413 00:33:10,280 --> 00:33:15,840 Today's sermon was taken from the January 21, 2024 service at Trinity Church, Streetsville 414 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:35,880 in Mississauga, Ontario.