WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.259 Well, I'm really excited to tell you tonight 00:00:02.259 --> 00:00:06.860 that some recent research has in fact shocked 00:00:06.860 --> 00:00:10.230 the medical community. The diagram before you 00:00:10.230 --> 00:00:12.189 represents what we always thought we knew about 00:00:12.189 --> 00:00:14.189 both the circulatory system and the digestive 00:00:14.189 --> 00:00:17.769 system. How they were these separate things, 00:00:17.829 --> 00:00:21.030 right? For decades we assumed that, you know, 00:00:21.190 --> 00:00:23.429 when you ate something it went down your esophagus 00:00:23.429 --> 00:00:26.210 into your stomach and meanwhile your heart pumped 00:00:26.210 --> 00:00:28.649 blood throughout your body but these were separate 00:00:28.649 --> 00:00:32.789 organs and they were separate pathways. Well, 00:00:33.289 --> 00:00:36.929 groundbreaking research. has discovered something 00:00:36.929 --> 00:00:39.850 amazing. In fact, it's located in the recent 00:00:39.850 --> 00:00:43.130 issue of the scientific journal Apatitis, the 00:00:43.130 --> 00:00:46.609 international journal of misplaced longings. 00:00:47.270 --> 00:00:50.009 It was reported there that there actually has 00:00:50.009 --> 00:00:54.850 been discovered a direct connection between the 00:00:54.850 --> 00:00:58.140 digestive system and the circulatory system between 00:00:58.140 --> 00:01:01.899 the stomach and the heart. Look at this. Researchers 00:01:01.899 --> 00:01:05.920 have discovered the existence of a large pipe, 00:01:06.579 --> 00:01:10.420 a large tube that they're calling the cardiogastric 00:01:10.420 --> 00:01:13.700 canal that actually connects the stomach directly 00:01:13.700 --> 00:01:15.799 to the heart. Now, why we didn't realize this 00:01:15.799 --> 00:01:18.180 earlier, I actually just don't know. I can't 00:01:18.180 --> 00:01:22.170 say. But there it is. plain as day for all to 00:01:22.170 --> 00:01:25.370 see on this very realistic looking diagram, right? 00:01:25.629 --> 00:01:28.549 And its presence has actually once and for all 00:01:28.549 --> 00:01:31.689 confirmed what we all had thought, right? That 00:01:31.689 --> 00:01:34.450 there is a connection between our hearts and 00:01:34.450 --> 00:01:36.909 our stomachs. There's a connection between our 00:01:36.909 --> 00:01:41.450 desires and our appetites. Now in some instances, 00:01:41.969 --> 00:01:46.609 an irregularity can take place with the cardiogastric 00:01:46.609 --> 00:01:49.469 canal. What can happen is it can lead to something 00:01:49.469 --> 00:01:53.209 they call confused craving pathway. And it happens 00:01:53.209 --> 00:01:57.609 when the hunger in your stomach and the desire 00:01:57.609 --> 00:02:01.109 in your heart start to get confused with each 00:02:01.109 --> 00:02:05.209 other. The heart is longing for something, but 00:02:05.209 --> 00:02:10.199 you start eating instead. And if left unchecked, 00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:14.860 it can turn into what they call full -blown CMAS, 00:02:15.240 --> 00:02:19.300 chronically misaligned appetite syndrome. And 00:02:19.300 --> 00:02:21.580 you guys, you can read all about it, like I said, 00:02:21.659 --> 00:02:24.080 in the journal, Appetitis. In fact, if you'd 00:02:24.080 --> 00:02:27.259 like to subscribe to Appetitis, you can subscribe. 00:02:27.580 --> 00:02:30.560 There's quarterly publications, and it's $200 00:02:30.560 --> 00:02:34.219 a year. And after the service, I'd be happy to 00:02:34.219 --> 00:02:38.150 sign you up, if you would like. Well, this is 00:02:38.150 --> 00:02:41.229 very important information It's especially important 00:02:41.229 --> 00:02:44.849 tonight as we are wrapping up our teaching series 00:02:44.849 --> 00:02:49.050 Which has been on the seven deadly sins the seven 00:02:49.050 --> 00:02:51.129 deadly sins. We've looked at pride We've looked 00:02:51.129 --> 00:02:53.849 at envy and sloth and greed and lust and wrath 00:02:53.849 --> 00:02:56.490 and now tonight we come to gluttony gluttony 00:02:56.490 --> 00:03:01.430 is all about the confusion and the connection 00:03:01.430 --> 00:03:05.449 between our hearts longings and our stomach's 00:03:05.449 --> 00:03:08.330 appetite. Most people, when they think of gluttony, 00:03:08.349 --> 00:03:10.789 they just think of the stomach, right? They picture 00:03:10.789 --> 00:03:12.969 somebody at a buffet going back for their third 00:03:12.969 --> 00:03:15.129 plate, or they picture somebody going through 00:03:15.129 --> 00:03:17.349 the drive -thru, getting the super -sized combo 00:03:17.349 --> 00:03:20.590 meal, and that is definitely part of it, right? 00:03:20.689 --> 00:03:23.349 The word gluttony, the Latin word gluttony, actually 00:03:23.349 --> 00:03:26.870 comes from the word that means to gulp down, 00:03:27.169 --> 00:03:29.490 right? So yes, gluttony is all about what we 00:03:29.490 --> 00:03:33.780 eat, why we eat, how we eat, when we eat. The 00:03:33.780 --> 00:03:36.560 ancient monks, though, who gave us the seven 00:03:36.560 --> 00:03:39.240 deadly sins in the first place, they actually 00:03:39.240 --> 00:03:42.000 showed that gluttony has a number of different 00:03:42.000 --> 00:03:45.800 symptoms, five different symptoms. And we're 00:03:45.800 --> 00:03:48.060 going to go through these, and just people, if 00:03:48.060 --> 00:03:50.419 one of these hits close to home, do not feel 00:03:50.419 --> 00:03:53.639 bad, because I'm sure that you are in very, very 00:03:53.639 --> 00:03:57.939 good company. The first symptom of gluttony is 00:03:57.939 --> 00:04:00.590 called eating hastily. And that's just eating 00:04:00.590 --> 00:04:04.310 too quickly, right? It's like you can't wait 00:04:04.310 --> 00:04:08.189 to eat. Before anyone else has sat down at the 00:04:08.189 --> 00:04:10.050 table you're already halfway through your meal. 00:04:10.169 --> 00:04:13.090 It just smells too good. It looks too good. You're 00:04:13.090 --> 00:04:15.229 having dessert and they've barely finished their 00:04:15.229 --> 00:04:19.290 salad, right? Because gluttony always puts the 00:04:19.290 --> 00:04:23.949 food on the table. above the people around the 00:04:23.949 --> 00:04:26.990 table. It becomes more about consumption than 00:04:26.990 --> 00:04:30.629 community. So eating hastily, eating quickly 00:04:30.629 --> 00:04:34.949 is a form of gluttony. Another symptom of gluttony 00:04:34.949 --> 00:04:39.410 is eating sumptuously. This is eating that only 00:04:39.410 --> 00:04:42.569 wants the very best food, the fanciest fare, 00:04:42.689 --> 00:04:46.129 the most expensive food, even if we can't really 00:04:46.129 --> 00:04:49.019 afford it. Now I just want to say, of course, 00:04:49.319 --> 00:04:51.660 nothing wrong with a great meal. A wonderfully 00:04:51.660 --> 00:04:55.560 prepared meal can be a real gift, and chefs are 00:04:55.560 --> 00:04:58.019 gifted and skilled and deserve to be paid for 00:04:58.019 --> 00:05:01.399 every bit of work they do. But gluttony demands 00:05:01.399 --> 00:05:05.379 that level of food at every meal. You know, mac 00:05:05.379 --> 00:05:08.800 and cheese isn't enough unless it's, you know, 00:05:09.120 --> 00:05:12.959 mac and cheese with truffles and very expensive 00:05:12.959 --> 00:05:17.060 exotic ketchups, right? So eating hastily, eating 00:05:17.060 --> 00:05:20.720 sumptuously, the third symptom of gluttony according 00:05:20.720 --> 00:05:22.939 to the ancient monks is eating excessively. This 00:05:22.939 --> 00:05:24.699 is, of course, the one most of us think of when 00:05:24.699 --> 00:05:27.259 we think of gluttony. It's just eating too much. 00:05:27.319 --> 00:05:29.879 It's drinking too much. And often, for no particular 00:05:29.879 --> 00:05:32.720 reason, you're just bored or maybe you're sad 00:05:32.720 --> 00:05:35.180 or maybe you're a procrastinator. You open the 00:05:35.180 --> 00:05:37.720 fridge, you don't really know why, but you just 00:05:37.720 --> 00:05:43.519 eat and eat and eat. Why do we do that? The fourth 00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:47.149 symptom of gluttony is eating greedily. And this 00:05:47.149 --> 00:05:50.189 is when food actually starts to become territorial, 00:05:50.189 --> 00:05:53.529 right? Now you eat with possessiveness. You're 00:05:53.529 --> 00:05:55.689 looking around the table. You're eyeing the food. 00:05:55.870 --> 00:05:57.110 You're trying to figure out if there's enough 00:05:57.110 --> 00:05:59.290 for everyone. You want to get the biggest piece. 00:05:59.550 --> 00:06:02.009 You're guarding your fries like they're gold, 00:06:02.310 --> 00:06:05.329 right? You're darting. You're hoping people don't 00:06:05.329 --> 00:06:08.410 take too much and not leave enough for you. It's 00:06:08.410 --> 00:06:11.769 greedy. It's territorial. But the fifth symptom 00:06:11.769 --> 00:06:15.470 of gluttony is eating daintily. Now, this one 00:06:15.470 --> 00:06:17.910 might actually surprise you. It's actually not 00:06:17.910 --> 00:06:20.589 about eating too much. It's about just getting 00:06:20.589 --> 00:06:24.069 too fussy and too picky about what we eat. Oh, 00:06:24.069 --> 00:06:26.889 this isn't hot enough. Oh, I like my poached 00:06:26.889 --> 00:06:29.990 eggs not that runny, or no, now they're too runny, 00:06:30.050 --> 00:06:33.149 and so on and so forth. Oh, I asked for my toast 00:06:33.149 --> 00:06:36.129 to be triple toasted. Not once, not twice. Triple 00:06:36.129 --> 00:06:38.750 toasted. What part of triple toasted don't you 00:06:38.750 --> 00:06:42.209 understand? I don't want a lot, they say, but 00:06:42.209 --> 00:06:47.970 I want it just. so So we eat too fast too fancy 00:06:47.970 --> 00:06:53.269 too much too selfishly too picky Meanwhile Jesus 00:06:53.269 --> 00:06:58.389 asks us this question is not life more than food 00:06:58.389 --> 00:07:02.389 All these symptoms they point to the same problem. 00:07:02.389 --> 00:07:06.089 We're trying to feed an appetite in there, right? 00:07:06.350 --> 00:07:09.649 But is that appetite is that desire coming from 00:07:09.649 --> 00:07:14.110 our stomach or our heart remember? They're connected. 00:07:15.350 --> 00:07:20.290 What makes us do this? Well, there are a few 00:07:20.290 --> 00:07:22.610 underlying conditions I'd like to point out. 00:07:23.089 --> 00:07:24.949 Again, you can read all about these in Appetitis, 00:07:25.050 --> 00:07:27.769 but the first condition, the first condition 00:07:27.769 --> 00:07:30.009 that causes us to behave this way when it comes 00:07:30.009 --> 00:07:33.769 for food is what we call a relational rupture. 00:07:34.410 --> 00:07:38.829 Gluttony happens when we neglect the people connection 00:07:38.829 --> 00:07:43.019 with food. Eating was meant to be something that's 00:07:43.019 --> 00:07:45.839 done by community, in community. Eating brings 00:07:45.839 --> 00:07:49.540 us together. Eating is how we get to know each 00:07:49.540 --> 00:07:52.379 other and form relationships. Gluttony, though, 00:07:52.740 --> 00:07:54.920 makes the food on the table more important than 00:07:54.920 --> 00:07:57.779 the people around the table. In fact, who needs 00:07:57.779 --> 00:07:59.779 them anyways? They're just going to eat more 00:07:59.779 --> 00:08:02.540 of what I could have, right? And so gluttony 00:08:02.540 --> 00:08:05.560 actually distracts us. distracts us from the 00:08:05.560 --> 00:08:08.079 presence of people. And here's the flip side 00:08:08.079 --> 00:08:11.819 of that is food sometimes distracts us from the 00:08:11.819 --> 00:08:15.079 absence of people. We're lonely. We want people, 00:08:15.319 --> 00:08:17.680 but we can't have people, but our stomach says, 00:08:17.740 --> 00:08:21.339 well, you can have food. And so we eat. The messages 00:08:21.339 --> 00:08:25.899 all get confused. When we forget the people and 00:08:25.899 --> 00:08:29.779 focus just on the food, something sacred is lost 00:08:29.779 --> 00:08:32.159 in the act of eating. The conversation is gone. 00:08:32.480 --> 00:08:35.200 The laughter is gone. The connection is gone. 00:08:35.580 --> 00:08:38.000 You know, there are places in our world where 00:08:38.000 --> 00:08:40.860 they still to this day, they eat slowly. It takes 00:08:40.860 --> 00:08:43.120 a long time for them to have a meal. It's communal. 00:08:43.240 --> 00:08:45.639 It's a relational event. There is actually a 00:08:45.639 --> 00:08:47.840 movement called the Slow Food Movement that is 00:08:47.840 --> 00:08:51.620 trying to reclaim this idea of that food, eating 00:08:51.620 --> 00:08:54.799 food is more about people. But we live in a culture 00:08:54.799 --> 00:08:58.960 that is speeding up, not slowing down. We rush 00:08:58.960 --> 00:09:01.220 through meals like there are pit stops, right? 00:09:01.279 --> 00:09:03.759 It's purely utilitarian, our eating. We just 00:09:03.759 --> 00:09:06.639 want to get something in us and keep on going. 00:09:06.700 --> 00:09:10.279 No eye contact, no conversation, just consumption, 00:09:10.799 --> 00:09:14.360 right? Now, where is the relationship, I ask 00:09:14.360 --> 00:09:16.580 you? When you've got one hand on the wheel, another 00:09:16.580 --> 00:09:19.980 on a burger, another, your chicken nuggets in 00:09:19.980 --> 00:09:23.340 your armpit, and your dipping sauce between your 00:09:23.340 --> 00:09:24.840 legs. It's pretty impressive if you can pull 00:09:24.840 --> 00:09:28.419 that off, I must say. But... You're totally disconnected 00:09:28.419 --> 00:09:31.940 from people. Now, I think actually if somebody 00:09:31.940 --> 00:09:34.500 from another century were to come and watch us 00:09:34.500 --> 00:09:38.320 eat, they would say, what is wrong? What's wrong 00:09:38.320 --> 00:09:41.419 is there's a relational rupture. That is the 00:09:41.419 --> 00:09:46.639 first underlying condition of gluttony. The second 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:49.799 underlying condition of gluttony is spiritual 00:09:49.799 --> 00:09:54.019 amnesia. Gluttony happens when we just forget. 00:09:54.279 --> 00:09:59.159 Man, food is a sacred thing, right? In the Bible, 00:09:59.340 --> 00:10:03.440 food is not just fuel for our bodies. It is one 00:10:03.440 --> 00:10:06.259 of the most powerful spiritual symbols in the 00:10:06.259 --> 00:10:08.799 entire story of God, from Genesis all the way 00:10:08.799 --> 00:10:11.220 through to Revelation. Food, it doesn't just 00:10:11.220 --> 00:10:15.419 keep us alive. Food is how God teaches us. to 00:10:15.419 --> 00:10:17.539 live. Let me prove it to you. Look, the very 00:10:17.539 --> 00:10:20.320 first meal in the whole Bible, the first time 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:22.759 anyone reached for a piece of food, Adam and 00:10:22.759 --> 00:10:25.960 Eve, they weren't physically hungry. They were 00:10:25.960 --> 00:10:28.179 just spiritually confused. Again, the connection 00:10:28.179 --> 00:10:32.440 that they took the fruit, not because their stomach 00:10:32.440 --> 00:10:35.860 needed it, but because their hearts were hungry 00:10:35.860 --> 00:10:38.840 for control. They were hungry for independence. 00:10:39.120 --> 00:10:42.570 They were hungry for knowledge. The apple They 00:10:42.570 --> 00:10:44.450 thought the apple would satisfy that hunger, 00:10:44.590 --> 00:10:47.549 but the real need was for God, something only 00:10:47.549 --> 00:10:51.110 God could fill. Fast forward. Now we have Israel. 00:10:51.149 --> 00:10:53.730 They're walking through the wilderness and they 00:10:53.730 --> 00:10:56.190 are hungry, right? They're very hungry in the 00:10:56.190 --> 00:10:58.899 wilderness. And the Lord says, I will... give 00:10:58.899 --> 00:11:02.019 you food and I will rain down manna from heaven 00:11:02.019 --> 00:11:05.419 but it was only enough just enough for each day 00:11:05.419 --> 00:11:07.700 and what was God teaching them he was teaching 00:11:07.700 --> 00:11:11.399 them to let go of their instinct to hoard food 00:11:11.399 --> 00:11:15.059 he was trying to retrain their hearts onto him 00:11:15.059 --> 00:11:19.029 this is the Bible has this rich rich sacredness 00:11:19.029 --> 00:11:22.009 about food. Or take about this, when Jesus was 00:11:22.009 --> 00:11:24.509 being tempted by the devil in the wilderness, 00:11:25.269 --> 00:11:26.929 the devil says, if you're really the son of God, 00:11:27.190 --> 00:11:30.190 turn these stones into bread. But Jesus refuses, 00:11:30.490 --> 00:11:33.029 not because food is a bad thing, but because 00:11:33.029 --> 00:11:37.210 Jesus would rather be hungry with God than be 00:11:37.210 --> 00:11:40.970 full without God. Okay, and then Jesus of course 00:11:40.970 --> 00:11:43.330 he didn't just he didn't just preach about food 00:11:43.330 --> 00:11:46.429 He he ate his way through the kingdom of God 00:11:46.429 --> 00:11:49.549 the son of man came eating and drinking We are 00:11:49.549 --> 00:11:51.230 told he just kept sitting at tables with all 00:11:51.230 --> 00:11:53.789 the wrong people and there were prostitutes the 00:11:53.789 --> 00:11:57.029 poor the outcasts These meals obviously were 00:11:57.029 --> 00:11:59.809 not about indulgence. It wasn't about filling 00:11:59.809 --> 00:12:02.490 a stomach. They were about invitation They were 00:12:02.490 --> 00:12:05.980 about creating community And then one more, just 00:12:05.980 --> 00:12:07.980 don't forget how the story of the Bible ends. 00:12:08.620 --> 00:12:11.039 The story of the Bible ends when there is a final 00:12:11.039 --> 00:12:12.960 feast. This is not a snack. This is not some 00:12:12.960 --> 00:12:15.940 kind of takeout container. This is a wedding 00:12:15.940 --> 00:12:18.460 banquet, the wedding supper of the Lamb, where 00:12:18.460 --> 00:12:21.720 we will all sit down and all of our desires and 00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:24.559 all of our hungers will finally once and for 00:12:24.559 --> 00:12:31.580 all be satisfied. Do you see how deeply spiritual 00:12:31.580 --> 00:12:36.799 eating is? how deeply sacred food is, but we 00:12:36.799 --> 00:12:39.840 look at food and we don't see anything spiritual 00:12:39.840 --> 00:12:45.639 about it. It's just grub, right? We're just bodies 00:12:45.639 --> 00:12:47.700 with stomachs and we need to put something in 00:12:47.700 --> 00:12:50.820 it. That is spiritual amnesia. We've forgotten 00:12:50.820 --> 00:12:55.309 the sacred connection of food. So so here we 00:12:55.309 --> 00:12:58.669 go. We've got our first condition is that we 00:12:58.669 --> 00:13:01.330 have separated food from relationship The second 00:13:01.330 --> 00:13:03.970 condition is we separate food from spirituality, 00:13:03.970 --> 00:13:07.450 but thirdly and perhaps most deeply gluttony 00:13:07.450 --> 00:13:12.830 arises through disordered desires That's when 00:13:12.830 --> 00:13:16.250 the old Cardio gastric canal Confuses us and 00:13:16.250 --> 00:13:19.669 we're not sure how we're feeling inside. We're 00:13:19.669 --> 00:13:21.809 not sure whether that desire we are feeling is 00:13:21.809 --> 00:13:25.879 actually for food or whether it's for God whether 00:13:25.879 --> 00:13:30.039 that is our stomach grumbling or whether that's 00:13:30.039 --> 00:13:33.899 our heart aching gluttony is not just a stomach 00:13:33.899 --> 00:13:36.879 problem it is a heart problem they're connected 00:13:36.879 --> 00:13:40.279 and of course we need food to survive but the 00:13:40.279 --> 00:13:45.139 thing we need most of all our deepest need is 00:13:45.139 --> 00:13:49.970 not for food it is for So that ache that you're 00:13:49.970 --> 00:13:52.029 feeling down there, that restlessness that you're 00:13:52.029 --> 00:13:54.769 feeling down there, that might not be emanating 00:13:54.769 --> 00:13:57.289 from your stomach, that might actually be coming 00:13:57.289 --> 00:13:59.570 from your heart. And what you're really hungry 00:13:59.570 --> 00:14:05.269 for is the love of God. Gluttony causes us to 00:14:05.269 --> 00:14:08.809 look for, to look to food for things that only 00:14:08.809 --> 00:14:11.429 God can really give us. Comfort and identity 00:14:11.429 --> 00:14:14.470 and... peace and all that stuff the heart and 00:14:14.470 --> 00:14:16.289 the stomach I'm telling you they're connected 00:14:16.289 --> 00:14:19.169 you got to read the journal now think about it 00:14:19.169 --> 00:14:20.549 think about I mean think about how many times 00:14:20.549 --> 00:14:22.490 that we eat why do we eat when we're not hungry 00:14:22.490 --> 00:14:25.929 that's it you know I don't know it's why do we 00:14:25.929 --> 00:14:29.129 try to use food in our stomach to soothe our 00:14:29.129 --> 00:14:34.429 soul it's that inner wiring it's connected that 00:14:34.429 --> 00:14:38.429 causes us to feed our bodies thinking it will 00:14:38.429 --> 00:14:41.750 satisfy the ache in our heart so Thomas Aquinas 00:14:42.000 --> 00:14:45.899 He said that gluttony is not sinful because food 00:14:45.899 --> 00:14:49.419 is bad. It's sinful because we love it in the 00:14:49.419 --> 00:14:53.019 wrong way. Food's meant to nourish us. We treat 00:14:53.019 --> 00:14:55.580 food like it's something that completes us. And 00:14:55.580 --> 00:15:00.120 when that happens, when all of those... underlying 00:15:00.120 --> 00:15:03.279 conditions come together, whether it's the relational 00:15:03.279 --> 00:15:05.240 rupture, the spiritual amnesia, and the disorder 00:15:05.240 --> 00:15:08.779 desires, the result can be one of the most dangerous 00:15:08.779 --> 00:15:12.139 of all disorders, and that is chronically misaligned 00:15:12.139 --> 00:15:16.080 appetite syndrome, or what the Bible calls idolatry. 00:15:16.440 --> 00:15:20.620 We make food an idol. Food gives us peace, not 00:15:20.620 --> 00:15:24.799 God. Food gives us comfort, not God. Food relieves 00:15:24.799 --> 00:15:28.940 my pain, not God. You know, Paul once talked 00:15:28.940 --> 00:15:32.379 about a group of people, and he said, their God 00:15:32.379 --> 00:15:37.019 is their stomach. When we obsess over food, when 00:15:37.019 --> 00:15:40.279 we plan our day around it, when we comfort ourselves 00:15:40.279 --> 00:15:43.080 with it, when we reward ourselves with it, food 00:15:43.080 --> 00:15:46.580 has become an idol, and our stomach is our God. 00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:51.500 When we find more joy in a good meal than in 00:15:51.500 --> 00:15:54.779 God's Word, More comfort in a hot dish than the 00:15:54.779 --> 00:15:58.220 Holy Spirit, more excitement about dessert than 00:15:58.220 --> 00:16:02.080 discipleship, then we're no longer just enjoying 00:16:02.080 --> 00:16:05.860 food, we're worshiping it. And food was never 00:16:05.860 --> 00:16:09.240 meant to bear the weight of our worship. It will 00:16:09.240 --> 00:16:13.220 always let us down. But we don't just worship 00:16:13.220 --> 00:16:18.139 it, we're enslaved by it. The glutton is not 00:16:18.139 --> 00:16:22.039 a free person, but a slave to their cravings. 00:16:22.240 --> 00:16:24.720 It's the same for all the deadly sins actually 00:16:24.720 --> 00:16:27.360 the real question it comes down to is who's in 00:16:27.360 --> 00:16:33.080 control Do we rule our appetites or do our appetites 00:16:33.080 --> 00:16:39.039 rule us? But good news good news according to 00:16:39.039 --> 00:16:42.590 the journal no according to the Bible There is 00:16:42.590 --> 00:16:44.529 a cure. There's a cure for the symptoms. There's 00:16:44.529 --> 00:16:46.730 a cure for the conditions. There's a cure for 00:16:46.730 --> 00:16:49.230 the disorder of gluttony. And what better place 00:16:49.230 --> 00:16:51.750 to discuss it than in a church. Why is that? 00:16:52.029 --> 00:16:56.610 Because if gluttony is worshiping the wrong thing, 00:16:57.149 --> 00:16:59.450 then the cure for it is not some new diet, but 00:16:59.450 --> 00:17:03.950 it's actually worshiping the right thing. Jesus 00:17:03.950 --> 00:17:09.430 said, I am the bread of life. And when he said 00:17:09.430 --> 00:17:12.950 that, he was offering himself as the one and 00:17:12.950 --> 00:17:16.250 only thing that will truly satisfy the cravings 00:17:16.250 --> 00:17:20.170 and desires of our hearts. He's offering himself 00:17:20.170 --> 00:17:23.549 as the true object of our worship. Jesus is the 00:17:23.549 --> 00:17:26.849 only one who can reach down deep into your disordered 00:17:26.849 --> 00:17:32.529 body and actually satisfy the hunger of your 00:17:32.529 --> 00:17:35.700 heart. And so I want to just end really practically 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:38.299 and give you three prescriptions you can take 00:17:38.299 --> 00:17:41.859 away today to help you cure gluttony as ever 00:17:41.859 --> 00:17:46.519 it shows up in your life. Here is the first way 00:17:46.519 --> 00:17:51.200 to cure it. Say grace. Just say grace when you 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:52.759 eat. I don't know if you say grace when you eat. 00:17:52.960 --> 00:17:55.500 Some people do it religiously. Other people have 00:17:55.500 --> 00:17:57.579 never done it. Some are kind of embarrassed to 00:17:57.579 --> 00:18:02.069 do it. Some are too rushed around to do it, or 00:18:02.069 --> 00:18:04.670 you feel it's old -fashioned, whatever. But Saint 00:18:04.670 --> 00:18:08.470 Grace is just a simple way to remind us this 00:18:08.470 --> 00:18:11.769 food is a gift. This food is a gift. Like manna 00:18:11.769 --> 00:18:13.950 in the wilderness, it is meant to be received 00:18:13.950 --> 00:18:17.990 with gratitude, not grabbed with greed. Saint 00:18:17.990 --> 00:18:22.650 Grace reminds us we are needy creatures. We're 00:18:22.650 --> 00:18:26.089 not self -sufficient. Saint Grace reminds us 00:18:26.089 --> 00:18:30.539 the food comes from... God's hand. And I know 00:18:30.539 --> 00:18:33.339 this doesn't sound like much, but a quick prayer 00:18:33.339 --> 00:18:37.299 before you eat can actually turn that meal into 00:18:37.299 --> 00:18:42.380 worship. Right? And now the meal is not about 00:18:42.380 --> 00:18:44.599 worshipping the food, it's about worshipping 00:18:44.599 --> 00:18:48.319 the one who gave us the food. The food becomes 00:18:48.319 --> 00:18:52.400 a way to thank God, not to replace God. So that's 00:18:52.400 --> 00:18:55.140 the first thing we can do. Just say grace. The 00:18:55.140 --> 00:18:58.470 second cure... is practice fasting, right? We 00:18:58.470 --> 00:19:01.049 have been learning about fasting this Lent. Many 00:19:01.049 --> 00:19:03.869 of you took the fasting course, and if you did, 00:19:04.349 --> 00:19:07.410 then you will know that fasting isn't just about 00:19:07.410 --> 00:19:11.609 abstaining from food. It's actually about reordering 00:19:11.609 --> 00:19:16.569 our desires. Just as gluttony disorders our loves, 00:19:17.009 --> 00:19:20.410 when we fast, it reorders those loves. It reconnects 00:19:20.410 --> 00:19:23.779 things in the right way. In fasting, We decide 00:19:23.779 --> 00:19:27.420 on purpose we want to be hungry. Not because 00:19:27.420 --> 00:19:30.000 we're going to punish ourselves, but because 00:19:30.000 --> 00:19:33.420 we're retraining our hearts and we're going to 00:19:33.420 --> 00:19:36.039 eat. Not because we're hungry and not because 00:19:36.039 --> 00:19:38.640 we're bored and not because we're sad or stressed. 00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:41.299 We're not going to do that. Fasting, you know, 00:19:41.380 --> 00:19:45.539 says no, I am not ruled by my appetites. I am 00:19:45.539 --> 00:19:49.880 willing, in fact, to be empty in order to be 00:19:49.880 --> 00:19:53.809 filled with God. And here is the paradox that 00:19:53.809 --> 00:19:57.710 in fasting, we actually become more aware of 00:19:57.710 --> 00:20:00.930 the real hunger we have inside us, not for food, 00:20:01.089 --> 00:20:06.069 but for God. Fasting, therefore, becomes feasting 00:20:06.069 --> 00:20:11.269 on the love of God. So, finally, and this is 00:20:11.269 --> 00:20:12.829 where we were going the whole night anyways, 00:20:13.289 --> 00:20:17.789 the final cure for gluttony is something we're 00:20:17.789 --> 00:20:20.000 going to experience in just a few moments. Monday 00:20:20.000 --> 00:20:22.720 Thursday, we're going to come to this table that 00:20:22.720 --> 00:20:25.920 is going to totally reframe our hunger. This 00:20:25.920 --> 00:20:28.079 meal is called communion. Sometimes it's called 00:20:28.079 --> 00:20:30.200 the Lord's Supper. Sometimes it's called the 00:20:30.200 --> 00:20:33.460 Eucharist. But it invites us not just to come 00:20:33.460 --> 00:20:37.640 and consume food, but to come and commune with 00:20:37.640 --> 00:20:42.940 God and with each other. That night at the table, 00:20:43.660 --> 00:20:47.170 Jesus took bread. And when he had given thanks, 00:20:47.269 --> 00:20:49.670 he broke it, and he gave it to his disciples, 00:20:49.710 --> 00:20:54.589 saying, take it, it's my body. And then he took 00:20:54.589 --> 00:20:56.490 a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave 00:20:56.490 --> 00:21:00.190 it to them, and they drank from it. This is my 00:21:00.190 --> 00:21:03.710 blood of the covenant, which is poured out for 00:21:03.710 --> 00:21:08.569 many, he said to them. Now sometimes people have 00:21:08.569 --> 00:21:11.950 asked, why do we have communion every single 00:21:11.950 --> 00:21:15.609 week here at Trinity Streetsville? It adds time 00:21:15.609 --> 00:21:17.890 to the service. The service could be 15, 20 minutes 00:21:17.890 --> 00:21:19.569 shorter if we didn't do communion. You're right, 00:21:19.730 --> 00:21:23.589 it takes time. Communion slows everything down 00:21:23.589 --> 00:21:28.230 and isn't that great. Because in a fast food 00:21:28.230 --> 00:21:32.210 culture, in a culture detached from community, 00:21:32.490 --> 00:21:34.650 in a gluttonous culture that says, I just need 00:21:34.650 --> 00:21:37.869 to be fed and I need it now, Jesus gives us this 00:21:37.869 --> 00:21:41.450 meal. Not as our own little private indulgence, 00:21:41.630 --> 00:21:44.049 not to satisfy our stomachs, it's not gonna fill 00:21:44.049 --> 00:21:47.529 your stomach, but to reorient our hearts toward 00:21:47.529 --> 00:21:51.730 the cross, to re -center our lives on his grace. 00:21:52.809 --> 00:21:56.250 And the more we hunger for this meal, the more 00:21:56.250 --> 00:21:59.529 it cures us. Communion, look, look what it does. 00:21:59.970 --> 00:22:04.130 Communion cures that relational rupture, because 00:22:04.130 --> 00:22:06.309 we eat together. This is not your own little 00:22:06.309 --> 00:22:09.269 private picnic with Jesus. It is a shared meal 00:22:09.269 --> 00:22:12.509 where everyone comes together and we are reconciled 00:22:12.509 --> 00:22:14.710 with each other as we gather around this table 00:22:14.710 --> 00:22:18.170 together. Communion also cures our spiritual 00:22:18.170 --> 00:22:20.470 amnesia. Do you know what Jesus said when he 00:22:20.470 --> 00:22:23.829 gave us communion? He said, do this in remembrance 00:22:23.829 --> 00:22:26.349 of me. I want you to remember. I want you to 00:22:26.349 --> 00:22:29.890 not forget the story of God, the story of who 00:22:29.890 --> 00:22:34.390 you are, the story of how much God loves you. 00:22:34.890 --> 00:22:38.589 And as we remember that story, as we remember 00:22:38.589 --> 00:22:42.730 Him, we're reshaped by Him. And communion, of 00:22:42.730 --> 00:22:46.009 course, Finally, it cures us of all those disordered 00:22:46.009 --> 00:22:49.950 desires. The Lord's Supper is a disciplined act 00:22:49.950 --> 00:22:53.710 of eating and drinking that teaches us how to 00:22:53.710 --> 00:22:56.990 desire rightly. That's the sermon in a sentence 00:22:56.990 --> 00:23:00.130 because here at this table, hunger gets retrained, 00:23:00.589 --> 00:23:03.670 appetites get realigned, idols get dethroned, 00:23:04.150 --> 00:23:07.230 gluttony says I need more, Eucharist says Christ 00:23:07.230 --> 00:23:10.509 is enough. At the table we learn that ache inside 00:23:10.509 --> 00:23:14.119 of us isn't for food. is for fellowship with 00:23:14.119 --> 00:23:18.700 the one who made us. So, that's it. Let's end 00:23:18.700 --> 00:23:21.460 this, though, by not being too hard on ourselves. 00:23:21.539 --> 00:23:24.019 It is really easy to confuse the craving for 00:23:24.019 --> 00:23:26.960 food with the desire for the love of God. It's 00:23:26.960 --> 00:23:29.680 that darn cardio gastric canal. You can read 00:23:29.680 --> 00:23:32.160 all about it, as I mentioned, in the journal, 00:23:32.259 --> 00:23:35.299 Appetitus. But tonight, we've seen the symptoms, 00:23:35.440 --> 00:23:38.160 we've understood the conditions, we've explained 00:23:38.160 --> 00:23:40.680 the disordered desires, and now we know the cures. 00:23:41.259 --> 00:23:44.059 Jesus. Doesn't want to leave us hungry. He's 00:23:44.059 --> 00:23:46.160 inviting us to this table tonight Not just to 00:23:46.160 --> 00:23:49.140 consume but to commune not to indulge but also 00:23:49.140 --> 00:23:53.059 to remember and not just to fill our bellies 00:23:53.059 --> 00:23:57.420 But to calm our restless hearts Guys, this is 00:23:57.420 --> 00:24:01.839 not just a ritual This is not just a symbol This 00:24:01.839 --> 00:24:07.220 is a cure This is a cure. So come with your hunger 00:24:07.220 --> 00:24:11.089 with all your disorders Come with your empty 00:24:11.089 --> 00:24:15.730 hands and your messed up cravings and be made 00:24:15.730 --> 00:24:19.710 whole at this table. Thanks be to God.