1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,000 And now, if you will, turn with me in your Bibles to Jeremiah chapter 42. 2 00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:14,280 Jeremiah 42, we're going to read the entire chapter. 3 00:00:14,280 --> 00:00:19,560 Before we get to that, let me explain to you a little bit about the background of what 4 00:00:19,560 --> 00:00:24,560 is taking place in Jeremiah 42. 5 00:00:24,560 --> 00:00:28,840 Jerusalem has fallen to Babylon. 6 00:00:28,840 --> 00:00:37,200 Now, after the fall, there was what was called a remnant, a few people left in the land. 7 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:42,400 And the Babylonians had set up a temporary government. 8 00:00:42,400 --> 00:00:49,440 There were soldiers there to run the land, but it wasn't a lot. 9 00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:56,600 And there's going to be all sorts of misadventures that will happen between the fall and what 10 00:00:56,600 --> 00:00:57,960 we are going to read. 11 00:00:57,960 --> 00:01:00,760 Now, explain that a little later. 12 00:01:00,760 --> 00:01:07,600 But now the people are making a request of Jeremiah. 13 00:01:07,600 --> 00:01:14,440 Let's see what that request is about, and let's see what the answer is. 14 00:01:14,440 --> 00:01:23,160 Beginning in verse 1, then all the army officers, including Johanan, son of Caria, and Jezaniah, 15 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:30,040 son of Hoshiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest approached Jeremiah, 16 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:36,080 the prophet, and said to him, please hear our petition and pray to the Lord your God 17 00:01:36,080 --> 00:01:38,720 for this entire remnant. 18 00:01:38,720 --> 00:01:46,960 For as you now see, though we were once many, now only a few are left. 19 00:01:46,960 --> 00:01:53,720 Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do. 20 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:57,640 I have heard you reply, Jeremiah the prophet. 21 00:01:57,640 --> 00:02:02,760 I will certainly pray to the Lord your God as you have requested. 22 00:02:02,760 --> 00:02:10,320 I will tell you everything the Lord says and will keep nothing back from you. 23 00:02:10,320 --> 00:02:16,440 Then they said to Jeremiah, may the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if 24 00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:22,600 we do not act in accordance with everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us. 25 00:02:22,600 --> 00:02:29,280 Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, we will obey the Lord our God to whom we are 26 00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:36,720 sending you so that it will go well with us, for we will obey the Lord our God. 27 00:02:36,720 --> 00:02:42,280 Ten days later, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, so he called together Johanan, 28 00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:47,720 son of Caria, and all the army officers who were with him, and all the people from the 29 00:02:47,720 --> 00:02:50,160 least to the greatest. 30 00:02:50,160 --> 00:02:56,920 He said to them, this is what the Lord the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present 31 00:02:56,920 --> 00:03:00,000 your petition says. 32 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:05,920 If you stay in this land, I will build you up and not tear you down. 33 00:03:05,920 --> 00:03:13,360 I will plant you and not uproot you, for I have relented concerning the disaster I have 34 00:03:13,360 --> 00:03:14,960 afflicted on you. 35 00:03:14,960 --> 00:03:20,000 Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon whom you now fear. 36 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:27,400 Do not be afraid of him, declares the Lord, for I am with you and will save you and deliver 37 00:03:27,400 --> 00:03:30,400 you from his hands. 38 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:37,480 I will show you compassion so that he will have compassion on you and restore you to 39 00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:39,000 your land. 40 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:45,240 However, if you say we will not stay in the land, and so disobey the Lord your God, and 41 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:53,120 if you say no, we will go and live in Egypt, where we will not see war or hear the trumpet 42 00:03:53,120 --> 00:04:00,680 or be hungry for bread, then hear the word of the Lord you remnant of Judah. 43 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:05,160 This is what the Lord Almighty the God of Israel says. 44 00:04:05,160 --> 00:04:12,120 If you are determined to go to Egypt and you do go to settle there, then the sword you 45 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:18,080 fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow you into Egypt, and 46 00:04:18,080 --> 00:04:20,120 there you will die. 47 00:04:20,120 --> 00:04:26,800 Indeed, all who are determined to go to Egypt to settle there will die by the sword, famine, 48 00:04:26,800 --> 00:04:28,040 and plague. 49 00:04:28,040 --> 00:04:34,360 Not one of them will survive or escape the disasters I will bring on them. 50 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:38,760 This is what the Lord Almighty the God of Israel says. 51 00:04:38,760 --> 00:04:44,560 As my anger and wrath have been poured out on those who lived in Jerusalem, so will my 52 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:48,480 wrath be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. 53 00:04:48,480 --> 00:04:55,280 You will be a curse and an object of horror, a curse and an object of reproach. 54 00:04:55,280 --> 00:04:59,320 You will never see this place again. 55 00:04:59,320 --> 00:05:06,960 Remnant of Judah, the Lord has told you, do not go to Egypt, be sure of this. 56 00:05:06,960 --> 00:05:13,000 I warn you today that you made a fatal mistake when you sent me to the Lord your God and 57 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:15,840 said, pray to the Lord our God for us. 58 00:05:15,840 --> 00:05:19,280 Tell us everything He says and we will do it. 59 00:05:19,280 --> 00:05:26,280 I have told you today, but you still have not obeyed the Lord your God in all He sent 60 00:05:26,280 --> 00:05:29,880 me to tell you, so now be sure of this. 61 00:05:29,880 --> 00:05:39,040 You will die by the sword, famine, and plague in the place where you want to go to settle. 62 00:05:39,040 --> 00:05:45,240 Let's pray and ask God to bless the reading of His word. 63 00:05:45,240 --> 00:05:52,720 Our Heavenly Father, please be with us now as we listen to what you are going to say 64 00:05:52,720 --> 00:05:55,120 to us. 65 00:05:55,120 --> 00:06:02,600 Help us, our God, to understand how we are to live in this fallen, uncertain world. 66 00:06:02,600 --> 00:06:06,600 Give us assurance that you are with us. 67 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:10,520 Hear our prayer, our God. 68 00:06:10,520 --> 00:06:11,520 Amen. 69 00:06:11,520 --> 00:06:19,640 Now, most of the time, I know exactly what is going to happen in the future. 70 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:25,640 For example, I knew that when I got up this morning, I would let the dogs out, eat breakfast, 71 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:34,400 feed the dogs, work on the sermon, go to church, deliver the sermon, eat lunch, take my nap, 72 00:06:34,400 --> 00:06:40,600 start working on next week's sermon, watch a little TV, go to bed, next morning get up, 73 00:06:40,600 --> 00:06:44,480 go to work, repeat. 74 00:06:44,480 --> 00:06:49,960 Most of you, same way, you are pretty certain about what is going to happen in your near 75 00:06:49,960 --> 00:06:52,160 future. 76 00:06:52,160 --> 00:06:56,320 Next day, next week, next month, we're pretty confident. 77 00:06:56,320 --> 00:07:02,000 And thank goodness for gravity, because that assures that when I walk out that door, I'm 78 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:05,760 not just going to float away one day. 79 00:07:05,760 --> 00:07:09,920 There's a lot of regularity in the world. 80 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:13,040 But not always. 81 00:07:13,040 --> 00:07:19,800 Sometimes life does not go the way we expect it to. 82 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:22,560 Now, I know that is true for me. 83 00:07:22,560 --> 00:07:30,040 In fact, one day after Jan and I had gone to General Assembly in Tampa, we were coming 84 00:07:30,040 --> 00:07:40,920 back through Tallahassee, a drive that I had made before, had lunch, and got on the road, 85 00:07:40,920 --> 00:07:43,280 and we got into a crash. 86 00:07:43,280 --> 00:07:46,720 A crash, which has scarred both of us. 87 00:07:46,720 --> 00:07:49,240 A crash which we will never forget. 88 00:07:49,240 --> 00:07:50,400 Did we expect it? 89 00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:51,600 Did we plan for it? 90 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:55,080 No, we did not expect it at all. 91 00:07:55,080 --> 00:08:02,840 And I'm sure if you looked at your own life, there are events that have happened, and you 92 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:10,200 saved yourself, I wish I had planned for that. 93 00:08:10,200 --> 00:08:11,920 Problem is we're humans. 94 00:08:11,920 --> 00:08:13,640 We are limited. 95 00:08:13,640 --> 00:08:17,720 We don't know everything that's going on. 96 00:08:17,720 --> 00:08:25,800 And sometimes we say to ourselves, I wish I could look in the future and know exactly 97 00:08:25,800 --> 00:08:30,080 what to do and what is going to happen. 98 00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:33,840 Oh, think of the possibilities of that. 99 00:08:33,840 --> 00:08:39,040 I would know which job really was the best for me. 100 00:08:39,040 --> 00:08:44,560 I would know the right people to hang around with. 101 00:08:44,560 --> 00:08:51,120 I would also know which lottery ticket to buy and become very wealthy. 102 00:08:51,120 --> 00:08:56,960 I would know if I did such things, and I'm not suggesting you should, which sports teams 103 00:08:56,960 --> 00:08:58,960 to bet on. 104 00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:07,920 Oh, life could be so much different, but it's not, and it never will be. 105 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:13,120 We are limited, finite, human beings. 106 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:17,080 We are not God. 107 00:09:17,080 --> 00:09:21,600 And we don't know what's going to happen ultimately to us tomorrow. 108 00:09:21,600 --> 00:09:24,720 We don't know what's going to happen in the United States. 109 00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:27,000 We don't know what's going to happen in Pensacola. 110 00:09:27,000 --> 00:09:29,760 It could be good. 111 00:09:29,760 --> 00:09:32,400 It could be bad. 112 00:09:32,400 --> 00:09:34,320 We don't know. 113 00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:41,560 We don't know when the judgment of God may fall or when he will bless us more than we 114 00:09:41,560 --> 00:09:44,120 have expected. 115 00:09:44,120 --> 00:09:52,840 So the real question then for all of us is how then should we live? 116 00:09:52,840 --> 00:10:01,680 And that is exactly the question that the people of God have come to Jeremiah for. 117 00:10:01,680 --> 00:10:10,320 They want to know in their situation as a remnant, the leftovers of Israel, left in 118 00:10:10,320 --> 00:10:13,800 the land, how then do we live? 119 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:22,360 And this morning, Jeremiah tells us we're going to see that there is a seemingly spiritual 120 00:10:22,360 --> 00:10:36,360 request, a truly deceitful desire, and a biblical way to live in this passage. 121 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:44,000 As you read this together, you can see that there is a seemingly spiritual request here, 122 00:10:44,000 --> 00:10:45,400 can't you? 123 00:10:45,400 --> 00:10:53,560 On the surface, it seems to be right and godly something maybe you and I would request. 124 00:10:53,560 --> 00:10:59,920 But let me give you a little bit of a background about what is going on in this passage. 125 00:10:59,920 --> 00:11:04,880 First of all, Jerusalem has been destroyed. 126 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:12,240 Now when the Babylonians came in, they tore the place up, but they did leave a remnant 127 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:20,760 from Judea to stay in the land, take care of the fields and the vineyards. 128 00:11:20,760 --> 00:11:29,720 Nebuchadnezzar also left a governor in charge, Gadalia, who was formally secretary to King 129 00:11:29,720 --> 00:11:33,280 Josiah and a friend of Jeremiah. 130 00:11:33,280 --> 00:11:35,480 And it talks about soldiers here. 131 00:11:35,480 --> 00:11:42,400 These were probably soldiers that Nebuchadnezzar left to take care of order in Judea. 132 00:11:42,400 --> 00:11:46,040 But here's what happened. 133 00:11:46,040 --> 00:11:52,240 Gadalia was assassinated by Jewish rebels. 134 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:59,320 In other words, the Babylonian appointed governor was killed. 135 00:11:59,320 --> 00:12:03,000 And the question then comes up by those who were left in the land. 136 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:07,280 What in the world is King Nebuchadnezzar going to do? 137 00:12:07,280 --> 00:12:09,880 It can't be good. 138 00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:14,440 Will King Nebuchadnezzar come in and try to punish us? 139 00:12:14,440 --> 00:12:21,640 Will he turn our city into a city which is nothing more than a parking lot for his chariots 140 00:12:21,640 --> 00:12:26,040 and a stable for his horses? 141 00:12:26,040 --> 00:12:28,720 This is what they are worried about. 142 00:12:28,720 --> 00:12:38,320 They are scared to death of what could happen to them because of an assassination of one 143 00:12:38,320 --> 00:12:39,800 of their leaders. 144 00:12:39,800 --> 00:12:47,480 Would Nebuchadnezzar wipe them out once and for all? 145 00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:51,040 So the question in their minds is, what do we do? 146 00:12:51,040 --> 00:12:53,520 Do we stay or do we go? 147 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:59,720 Do we get out of Jerusalem and possibly stay of our lives or do we listen to God and stay 148 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:05,680 and listen to what it says in verse 3 and you get to the heart of what's going on here? 149 00:13:05,680 --> 00:13:14,560 Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do. 150 00:13:14,560 --> 00:13:19,520 Stay or go to Egypt. 151 00:13:19,520 --> 00:13:23,200 And Jeremiah says, alright. 152 00:13:23,200 --> 00:13:29,120 I will go and I will hold nothing back. 153 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:36,320 I'm going to tell you as they say on the Perry Mason episodes, the truth, the whole truth, 154 00:13:36,320 --> 00:13:39,320 nothing but the truth. 155 00:13:39,320 --> 00:13:43,280 Ten days pass. 156 00:13:43,280 --> 00:13:48,120 And before this, remember the people have said in verses 5 and 6, oh, we'll obey. 157 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:50,360 We'll obey whatever you say. 158 00:13:50,360 --> 00:13:51,520 We'll obey. 159 00:13:51,520 --> 00:14:00,320 But ten days pass before the word of God comes to Jeremiah. 160 00:14:00,320 --> 00:14:04,000 And he tells them, you're to stay. 161 00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:05,000 Don't leave. 162 00:14:05,000 --> 00:14:06,800 Don't go to Egypt. 163 00:14:06,800 --> 00:14:13,360 You are to trust and obey because there is no other way. 164 00:14:13,360 --> 00:14:21,880 Doesn't that seem like a pious, godly request? 165 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:24,680 The surface it certainly does. 166 00:14:24,680 --> 00:14:30,840 I mean that's something that you and I should be asking God, God, what do we do? 167 00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:37,880 And in times of uncertainty when you don't know what the future beholds, certainly you 168 00:14:37,880 --> 00:14:51,400 must continue to trust God and obey in times of blessing or in times of trouble. 169 00:14:51,400 --> 00:14:56,640 But there's more going on here, isn't it? 170 00:14:56,640 --> 00:15:10,000 It's not just merely a pious request and at the end of the chapter, listen to what Jeremiah 171 00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:13,240 says to them. 172 00:15:13,240 --> 00:15:18,920 He says, you are not listening. 173 00:15:18,920 --> 00:15:24,960 You have asked me to go and make this request of God, but yet you have no intentions at 174 00:15:24,960 --> 00:15:31,480 all of doing what I have just told you. 175 00:15:31,480 --> 00:15:37,880 He says in verse 21, I told you today, but you still have not obeyed the Lord your God 176 00:15:37,880 --> 00:15:41,680 and all he sent me to tell you. 177 00:15:41,680 --> 00:15:50,680 And what happens later on is those people do go to Egypt and they die there because they 178 00:15:50,680 --> 00:15:58,600 thought, oh, we'll be saved by the Egyptian because they're a superpower too. 179 00:15:58,600 --> 00:16:04,440 But Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian smashed Egypt too. 180 00:16:04,440 --> 00:16:15,200 It is a seemingly pious request, but what is really going on in this prayer request is 181 00:16:15,200 --> 00:16:20,640 a sinful desire of the heart. 182 00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:24,720 Were they truly desires of God's will? 183 00:16:24,720 --> 00:16:26,220 No. 184 00:16:26,220 --> 00:16:28,200 Do they want to trust God? 185 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:30,680 Now God has given them some good news. 186 00:16:30,680 --> 00:16:37,800 It says in verse 9 and 10, I'm going to have compassion on you if you stay in the land. 187 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:42,840 I'm sorry for what has happened and all your struggles. 188 00:16:42,840 --> 00:16:46,400 And in verse 11, look what he says. 189 00:16:46,400 --> 00:16:51,120 Listen to what the Word of God says to those fearful people. 190 00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:57,160 Don't be afraid of the king of Babylon whom you now fear. 191 00:16:57,160 --> 00:17:04,560 Do not be afraid of him, declares the Lord, for I am with you and will save you and deliver 192 00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:07,480 you from his hands. 193 00:17:07,480 --> 00:17:16,200 Jeremiah has told them what you fear is not going to happen, but they don't seem to listen. 194 00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:22,880 God has shown them His grace and mercy, but they don't listen. 195 00:17:22,880 --> 00:17:28,600 God was going to be with them though they were nothing more than a remnant. 196 00:17:28,600 --> 00:17:32,760 Ever seen the basketball movie Hoosiers? 197 00:17:32,760 --> 00:17:38,400 It's about a little rinky dink basketball team in the state of Indiana who no one thought 198 00:17:38,400 --> 00:17:43,680 would win, but with Gene Hackman as your coach. 199 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:46,000 You can win. 200 00:17:46,000 --> 00:17:48,160 It's like this, you're right, they have nothing. 201 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,960 There has been a sin problem, but God was going to be with them. 202 00:17:51,960 --> 00:17:56,000 But they're not interested. 203 00:17:56,000 --> 00:18:01,240 Their request is hypocritical. 204 00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:08,000 They think by going to Egypt, they will escape the trouble. 205 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:17,360 They are trusting in a world power rather than the God who has made them and judged them 206 00:18:17,360 --> 00:18:19,840 and condemned them. 207 00:18:19,840 --> 00:18:27,080 And they ask Jeremiah, go and ask God, oh, we are so pious, but they didn't want what 208 00:18:27,080 --> 00:18:29,680 God was saying to them. 209 00:18:29,680 --> 00:18:31,800 It's called hypocrisy. 210 00:18:31,800 --> 00:18:38,520 And if you go on in the New Testament, what do we read about? 211 00:18:38,520 --> 00:18:39,520 Hypocrisy. 212 00:18:39,520 --> 00:18:40,520 You hypocrites? 213 00:18:40,520 --> 00:18:43,200 Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you. 214 00:18:43,200 --> 00:18:46,760 These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 215 00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:48,800 They worship me in vain. 216 00:18:48,800 --> 00:18:53,640 Their teachings are merely human rules. 217 00:18:53,640 --> 00:18:59,600 And in Matthew 23, what does the Word of God say in verse 28? 218 00:18:59,600 --> 00:19:05,760 In the same way on the outside, you appear to people as righteous, but on the inside, 219 00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:10,440 you're full of hypocrisy and wickedness. 220 00:19:10,440 --> 00:19:13,480 That's what's taking place here. 221 00:19:13,480 --> 00:19:18,840 The evil, sinful desires of the heart. 222 00:19:18,840 --> 00:19:20,480 And why are they doing this? 223 00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:22,480 This is the question. 224 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:24,320 Why? 225 00:19:24,320 --> 00:19:28,440 Because they don't trust God. 226 00:19:28,440 --> 00:19:36,720 What they want is God to bless what they have already decided to do. 227 00:19:36,720 --> 00:19:39,760 They've already made up their minds without listening to God. 228 00:19:39,760 --> 00:19:46,080 And they're basically saying, I hope God is going to tell us to go to Egypt even though 229 00:19:46,080 --> 00:19:47,880 Egypt is not the place to go. 230 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:51,440 It's not the promised land. 231 00:19:51,440 --> 00:19:56,760 It's like what happens often in churches where we want the ceremonies. 232 00:19:56,760 --> 00:19:58,760 We want a baptism. 233 00:19:58,760 --> 00:20:06,800 We want a Christian marriage ceremony when we have no intentions of fulfilling the vows 234 00:20:06,800 --> 00:20:11,720 that we have decided to take. 235 00:20:11,720 --> 00:20:13,880 And people do that. 236 00:20:13,880 --> 00:20:19,400 And they think they're being pious when really what they're asking God to do is bless their 237 00:20:19,400 --> 00:20:21,400 sin. 238 00:20:21,400 --> 00:20:27,880 And you and I often have to check our motives when we pray. 239 00:20:27,880 --> 00:20:33,480 And we have to ask about our desires. 240 00:20:33,480 --> 00:20:39,000 What we need to be thinking is when we ask God to work in our lives or we ask for his 241 00:20:39,000 --> 00:20:44,600 wisdom, am I really being honest here? 242 00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:52,760 Am I really going to listen when what God says may go against our common sense? 243 00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:58,640 Am I really willing to trust him instead of whatever power brokers we want to trust in 244 00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:01,640 for our safety and our security? 245 00:21:01,640 --> 00:21:06,360 Because often they will not deliver. 246 00:21:06,360 --> 00:21:12,560 Are we willing to trust God when his will may be risky? 247 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:19,000 Or do we simply ask God, bless my sin? 248 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:20,800 Bless what I've done. 249 00:21:20,800 --> 00:21:23,120 Never mind about your kingdom. 250 00:21:23,120 --> 00:21:27,200 Never mind about what you think is right. 251 00:21:27,200 --> 00:21:38,800 There is sin in this Bible chapter, hypocrisy, under the guise of righteousness. 252 00:21:38,800 --> 00:21:49,800 Yes, that request was seemingly pious, but yes, it was extremely sinful. 253 00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:55,200 But also in this, we do see a biblical way we should live. 254 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:59,680 And what did I ask at the beginning of the sermon? 255 00:21:59,680 --> 00:22:04,520 How then should we live? 256 00:22:04,520 --> 00:22:06,920 What does God want from us? 257 00:22:06,920 --> 00:22:14,920 And I will tell you, it has been the same answer from Genesis to Revelation. 258 00:22:14,920 --> 00:22:17,080 Trust me. 259 00:22:17,080 --> 00:22:23,600 He wants his people to trust him enough that even though the land has been devastated, 260 00:22:23,600 --> 00:22:31,600 even though there are few in numbers, God is with them. 261 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:37,680 If you are going to live in this world, you're going to have to trust someone. 262 00:22:37,680 --> 00:22:42,920 We think we can get out of life without having faith or trust in anyone, but that is not 263 00:22:42,920 --> 00:22:45,200 the case. 264 00:22:45,200 --> 00:22:51,280 You will either trust yourself or you will trust God. 265 00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:56,800 You will either trust institutions or you will trust God. 266 00:22:56,800 --> 00:23:02,840 You will either trust another person or God. 267 00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:04,320 Who are you going to trust? 268 00:23:04,320 --> 00:23:07,240 And don't say Ghostbusters. 269 00:23:07,240 --> 00:23:09,640 You trust God. 270 00:23:09,640 --> 00:23:15,000 That is really the heart of the Bible. 271 00:23:15,000 --> 00:23:22,680 And that is the problem that Adam and Eve had all the way down through history, and it's 272 00:23:22,680 --> 00:23:26,320 the same with us. 273 00:23:26,320 --> 00:23:29,560 And what does the book of Proverbs say? 274 00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:40,320 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. 275 00:23:40,320 --> 00:23:43,600 And we come to the New Testament. 276 00:23:43,600 --> 00:23:46,680 There is a wonderful Bible passage, which we should all memorize. 277 00:23:46,680 --> 00:23:56,840 It's in John chapter 14 verse one, where Jesus is headed to the cross. 278 00:23:56,840 --> 00:24:04,880 He is told his disciples that he is going to be betrayed. 279 00:24:04,880 --> 00:24:11,880 He's going to be sold out and he's going to die. 280 00:24:11,880 --> 00:24:16,240 And all of those disciples may have been thinking to themselves, well, what's going to happen 281 00:24:16,240 --> 00:24:19,640 to us? 282 00:24:19,640 --> 00:24:24,280 Will we be persecuted if this is true? 283 00:24:24,280 --> 00:24:25,360 Will we die? 284 00:24:25,360 --> 00:24:29,960 Will we be disbanded? 285 00:24:29,960 --> 00:24:31,240 What about the church? 286 00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:33,360 What about all those promises you said? 287 00:24:33,360 --> 00:24:35,480 And you're telling us you're going to the cross. 288 00:24:35,480 --> 00:24:40,560 You're telling us if they persecuted me, they're going to persecute you. 289 00:24:40,560 --> 00:24:45,160 And what does Jesus tell them? 290 00:24:45,160 --> 00:24:52,280 Don't let your heart be troubled. 291 00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:55,320 Trust in God. 292 00:24:55,320 --> 00:25:00,360 Trust also in me. 293 00:25:00,360 --> 00:25:08,040 And what was the lesson that that small bunch of disciples had to learn? 294 00:25:08,040 --> 00:25:14,280 And what was the lesson that the early church, though persecuted and small in number, had 295 00:25:14,280 --> 00:25:16,600 to learn? 296 00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:26,880 You've got to trust me and you've got to keep moving forward with the cards you have been 297 00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:31,200 given in this life. 298 00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:36,280 Follow me, even though it may seem risky. 299 00:25:36,280 --> 00:25:44,240 Now, when I was in Covenant College, which is up in the mountains, one of the extracurriculum 300 00:25:44,240 --> 00:25:51,080 activities that many of the boys used to participate in was repelling. 301 00:25:51,080 --> 00:25:58,080 And I remember the first time I ever went repelling and I went with a friend who claimed 302 00:25:58,080 --> 00:26:06,800 to have some experience and knowledge of this sport. 303 00:26:06,800 --> 00:26:12,520 And then repelling, there is a rope which has supposedly been tested and everything. 304 00:26:12,520 --> 00:26:16,760 And the idea is that there is the side of the cliff. 305 00:26:16,760 --> 00:26:22,080 You turn around, you have the rope, you've got the carabiners and the guy at the bottom 306 00:26:22,080 --> 00:26:29,800 who was my friend says, belay, you say belay on and then you attempt to walk off the side 307 00:26:29,800 --> 00:26:30,800 of the cliff. 308 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:36,560 And I've got to tell you, I was scared. 309 00:26:36,560 --> 00:26:43,960 But at one point, instead of not doing it, I took the step. 310 00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:45,680 Why did I take that step? 311 00:26:45,680 --> 00:26:53,000 Because I trusted my friend of questionable experience and I trusted that rope. 312 00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:55,480 Now, belay me, that was not the only time I went. 313 00:26:55,480 --> 00:27:01,000 I remember one time they either had the wrong rope or it was too spongy and I stepped off 314 00:27:01,000 --> 00:27:05,400 the side and I went right into the side of that mat. 315 00:27:05,400 --> 00:27:08,520 But do you see what we're talking about here? 316 00:27:08,520 --> 00:27:14,080 It's that trust, that faith which we have in other things. 317 00:27:14,080 --> 00:27:19,680 But the real question is, do we have it in God? 318 00:27:19,680 --> 00:27:26,160 To keep moving forward in life, trusting that He loves us enough to take care of us, to protect 319 00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:34,680 us and one day bring us to our heavenly home. 320 00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:37,520 The way forward. 321 00:27:37,520 --> 00:27:39,800 In one sense, life is uncertain. 322 00:27:39,800 --> 00:27:42,920 I can't tell you what's going to ultimately happen tomorrow. 323 00:27:42,920 --> 00:27:47,040 I can't tell you what is ultimately going to happen to this church. 324 00:27:47,040 --> 00:27:54,480 I can't tell you what is ultimately going to happen to the United States of America. 325 00:27:54,480 --> 00:28:00,320 I can't tell you if there's going to be success or failure, but I do know this, that I am to 326 00:28:00,320 --> 00:28:12,960 trust God and keep walking, walking forward obeying His commandments, no matter what is 327 00:28:12,960 --> 00:28:14,880 ahead. 328 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:31,920 Let's pray and ask God to bless this reading of His Word.