WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.339 Well, good morning. Welcome to the second week 00:00:02.339 --> 00:00:04.339 of Advent. You see our two candles are lit this 00:00:04.339 --> 00:00:06.980 morning. We are now seven days closer to the 00:00:06.980 --> 00:00:09.980 celebration of the incarnation of God the Son, 00:00:10.080 --> 00:00:13.160 the very center point of human history. When 00:00:13.160 --> 00:00:16.839 at just the right time, God sent forth his one 00:00:16.839 --> 00:00:20.559 and only Son to take on flesh and to not just 00:00:20.559 --> 00:00:24.379 to be true man, but to live a life that we couldn't 00:00:24.379 --> 00:00:28.489 possibly live. to suffer and die in our place, 00:00:28.570 --> 00:00:32.149 to pay the ransom for sin so that you and I might 00:00:32.149 --> 00:00:36.929 be reconciled to our creator by faith. And that's 00:00:36.929 --> 00:00:39.409 not all. Because of his work of reconciliation, 00:00:39.969 --> 00:00:42.909 we now get to enjoy his presence forever and 00:00:42.909 --> 00:00:46.109 ever as adopted sons and daughters with all the 00:00:46.109 --> 00:00:47.869 rights and the privileges that come with being 00:00:47.869 --> 00:00:51.250 heirs to an unfathomable inheritance. That is 00:00:51.250 --> 00:00:54.950 an amazing story, is it not? How easy is it for 00:00:54.950 --> 00:00:58.109 us to... to come into Christmas and blow right 00:00:58.109 --> 00:01:01.170 through it and forget just the magnitude of that 00:01:01.170 --> 00:01:03.969 story. And at Christmas time, we should always 00:01:03.969 --> 00:01:05.769 remember that everything I just described, it 00:01:05.769 --> 00:01:10.049 is a gift from God. It is a gift. Never forget 00:01:10.049 --> 00:01:13.349 that he owed us nothing. He wasn't obligated 00:01:13.349 --> 00:01:16.430 to suffer and die for us. None of us deserves 00:01:16.430 --> 00:01:19.849 that kind of love. We certainly didn't earn it. 00:01:21.189 --> 00:01:23.670 After all, prior to God saving us, we didn't 00:01:23.670 --> 00:01:26.599 honor him or give thanks to him. Romans 1 makes 00:01:26.599 --> 00:01:29.439 that clear. We pushed him away. We suppressed 00:01:29.439 --> 00:01:31.640 the truth about him in our hearts, every one 00:01:31.640 --> 00:01:35.560 of us. That's our story. We treated God as an 00:01:35.560 --> 00:01:38.239 enemy. We chased after our own needs, our own 00:01:38.239 --> 00:01:41.140 wants, our own desires. We lived only for ourselves, 00:01:41.280 --> 00:01:45.519 every single one of us. But God, who's rich in 00:01:45.519 --> 00:01:48.819 mercy, because of his great love, even when we 00:01:48.819 --> 00:01:53.159 were spiritually dead in our sins, he brought 00:01:53.159 --> 00:01:56.829 us to spiritual life. That's the gift that we've 00:01:56.829 --> 00:01:59.310 received. And now he has given to his children 00:01:59.310 --> 00:02:02.129 the ministry of reconciliation. We now get to 00:02:02.129 --> 00:02:05.689 represent him as ambassadors. Now we're all missionaries 00:02:05.689 --> 00:02:08.689 to a lost and dying world. Every one of us appealing 00:02:08.689 --> 00:02:12.469 to the people that God puts in our path, appealing, 00:02:12.509 --> 00:02:17.110 be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ. This 00:02:17.110 --> 00:02:19.689 is what Christmas is all about, folks. But it 00:02:19.689 --> 00:02:21.490 all starts with that original gift. That's what 00:02:21.490 --> 00:02:23.969 we celebrate at Christmas. I said it last Sunday, 00:02:24.030 --> 00:02:27.050 I'm gonna say it again. God is the great gift 00:02:27.050 --> 00:02:31.770 giver. Isaiah prophesied a son will be given 00:02:31.770 --> 00:02:35.629 to us. And 700 years later, John reports the 00:02:35.629 --> 00:02:37.969 good news. God so loved the world that he gave 00:02:37.969 --> 00:02:41.370 his only begotten son. It's done. God the Father 00:02:41.370 --> 00:02:44.310 gave us the gift that every single one of us 00:02:44.310 --> 00:02:48.389 needed the most. He sent forth his son. That's 00:02:48.389 --> 00:02:51.689 the ultimate Christmas card, isn't it? Our theme 00:02:51.689 --> 00:02:53.530 verse for this four -week Advent series comes 00:02:53.530 --> 00:02:56.210 out of Acts 1. We're looking at God's heart for 00:02:56.210 --> 00:02:59.229 the nations of the world. And in Acts 1, here's 00:02:59.229 --> 00:03:01.930 how Luke describes the final conversation the 00:03:01.930 --> 00:03:04.750 disciples had before Jesus ascended to heaven. 00:03:05.310 --> 00:03:23.379 It says, But you will receive power when the 00:03:23.379 --> 00:03:26.780 Holy Spirit has come upon you. Key verse now. 00:03:27.120 --> 00:03:29.900 And you shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem 00:03:29.900 --> 00:03:33.360 and in all Judea and Samaria and even to the 00:03:33.360 --> 00:03:36.469 remotest parts. Now, last Sunday, we focused 00:03:36.469 --> 00:03:39.449 on that first grouping of people at the end, 00:03:39.509 --> 00:03:42.090 Jerusalem and Judea. We looked at God's heart 00:03:42.090 --> 00:03:43.789 for the Jewish people, and we covered everything 00:03:43.789 --> 00:03:48.150 from Jesus' purpose, his mission on earth, all 00:03:48.150 --> 00:03:50.650 the way to modern -day Israel. Today, we're going 00:03:50.650 --> 00:03:52.430 to turn our attention to the second group of 00:03:52.430 --> 00:03:55.469 people that you see in that verse, the Samaritans, 00:03:55.550 --> 00:03:58.830 which raises a question perhaps you've never 00:03:58.830 --> 00:04:01.689 thought about asking this question ever before. 00:04:02.620 --> 00:04:07.740 Why is Samaria mentioned in that verse? Why did 00:04:07.740 --> 00:04:10.280 God choose to put Samaria smack dab in the middle 00:04:10.280 --> 00:04:13.360 of that statement? Knowing what we know about 00:04:13.360 --> 00:04:15.300 the people who lived in Samaria in the first 00:04:15.300 --> 00:04:18.220 century, it seems a little bit strange. Why not 00:04:18.220 --> 00:04:20.480 just say it this way? You will be my witnesses 00:04:20.480 --> 00:04:22.740 beginning in Jerusalem and to the ends of the 00:04:22.740 --> 00:04:26.800 earth. But he puts that phrase in there and Samaria. 00:04:26.860 --> 00:04:29.529 In fact, from a Jewish perspective, That little 00:04:29.529 --> 00:04:32.069 phrase, and Samaria, would have been quite shocking. 00:04:33.230 --> 00:04:35.250 Does that mean that God actually has a heart 00:04:35.250 --> 00:04:38.990 for Samaritans? Could they somehow be included 00:04:38.990 --> 00:04:43.529 alongside Jews in the kingdom of God? Those would 00:04:43.529 --> 00:04:46.129 have been real questions back in the day. We 00:04:46.129 --> 00:04:48.129 talk about God reconciling people to himself, 00:04:48.430 --> 00:04:50.750 people from every race, tribe, and tongue, but 00:04:50.750 --> 00:04:56.800 seriously, Samaritans? Is that possible? And 00:04:56.800 --> 00:04:58.759 before you even scoff at that question, let me 00:04:58.759 --> 00:05:02.980 challenge you. Is there any group of people today 00:05:02.980 --> 00:05:06.300 who you've come to believe are not worthy of 00:05:06.300 --> 00:05:09.420 consideration because you think they're beyond 00:05:09.420 --> 00:05:13.980 God's saving grace? I'll ask it again. Is there 00:05:13.980 --> 00:05:15.819 any group of people today who you've come to 00:05:15.819 --> 00:05:18.180 believe are not worthy of consideration because 00:05:18.180 --> 00:05:20.660 you have judged that they are somehow beyond 00:05:20.660 --> 00:05:24.019 God's saving grace? It's an important question. 00:05:24.959 --> 00:05:27.120 We'll come back to that at the end, so save that 00:05:27.120 --> 00:05:29.480 thought. Let's start with this question. Who 00:05:29.480 --> 00:05:31.459 are the people of Samaria that are mentioned 00:05:31.459 --> 00:05:33.959 in this verse? Why would it have been so shocking 00:05:33.959 --> 00:05:36.500 to a Jew that the gospel mission would somehow 00:05:36.500 --> 00:05:40.060 be directed to them? Well, in the first century, 00:05:40.120 --> 00:05:42.220 the land of Samaria was just to the north of 00:05:42.220 --> 00:05:45.339 Judea. It was the region located between Judea 00:05:45.339 --> 00:05:47.939 and Galilee. This is a great excuse for what? 00:05:48.620 --> 00:05:53.519 A map, of course. Good. So a couple things. to 00:05:53.519 --> 00:05:55.360 get yourself oriented. Every time we look at 00:05:55.360 --> 00:05:57.459 a map of Israel, if you're new, sorry, we do 00:05:57.459 --> 00:06:01.379 this a lot. Maps are helpful for you visual learners, 00:06:01.579 --> 00:06:03.699 which I am. The first thing you do when you look 00:06:03.699 --> 00:06:05.399 at a map of Israel, you see north and south, 00:06:05.480 --> 00:06:07.720 but you see the two bodies of water, right? In 00:06:07.720 --> 00:06:10.920 the north, it's the Sea of Galilee. In the south, 00:06:11.120 --> 00:06:14.040 good, it's the Dead Sea. So we get that first. 00:06:14.459 --> 00:06:17.300 Then we go to, that is the region we call Galilee, 00:06:17.439 --> 00:06:21.569 okay? Upper Galilee, Lower Galilee. Then you 00:06:21.569 --> 00:06:23.670 have Judea and Samaria, this big, is that an 00:06:23.670 --> 00:06:26.750 orange color? Sort of orange, right? With the 00:06:26.750 --> 00:06:30.509 blue dot, which is Jerusalem. Good. All right. 00:06:30.550 --> 00:06:34.149 Now, we tend to view Judea and Samaria as separate 00:06:34.149 --> 00:06:36.889 territories. From a Roman perspective, they were 00:06:36.889 --> 00:06:39.389 seen as one administrative district. In fact, 00:06:39.529 --> 00:06:41.649 if you look again at that Acts 1 passage, you 00:06:41.649 --> 00:06:45.060 see that even Luke, the author of Acts, lumps 00:06:45.060 --> 00:06:47.660 them together as Judea and Samaria. And that's 00:06:47.660 --> 00:06:49.980 because those two regions are traced back to 00:06:49.980 --> 00:06:52.759 the ancient Semitic kingdoms. We have Judah in 00:06:52.759 --> 00:06:57.160 the south with the capital of Jerusalem and Israel 00:06:57.160 --> 00:07:01.240 in the north whose capital city was called Samaria. 00:07:01.699 --> 00:07:04.920 Exactly, very good. So the traditional boundary 00:07:04.920 --> 00:07:08.079 line for Samaria runs about what you see on the 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:11.959 map there. On the west side, it's north of Jaffa. 00:07:12.379 --> 00:07:14.920 On the east side, it's north of Jericho. So that's 00:07:14.920 --> 00:07:17.379 generally the boundary that we see. And the red 00:07:17.379 --> 00:07:20.839 dot there is the ancient location of Samaria. 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:24.220 So the people we know as Samaritans in the New 00:07:24.220 --> 00:07:26.480 Testament were the people of that northern kingdom, 00:07:26.579 --> 00:07:31.560 which was conquered in the year 722 BC. By the 00:07:31.560 --> 00:07:33.759 Assyrians. That's very important to know. The 00:07:33.759 --> 00:07:36.279 Assyrians, when they conquered Samaria, when 00:07:36.279 --> 00:07:39.579 they conquered that region, they deported a large 00:07:39.579 --> 00:07:42.560 percentage of the Israelite population, took 00:07:42.560 --> 00:07:45.120 them completely out of the land, and then they 00:07:45.120 --> 00:07:48.060 imported a bunch of their citizens from the area 00:07:48.060 --> 00:07:51.160 of Mesopotamia. And over time, there became a 00:07:51.160 --> 00:07:54.930 natural mixing of the gene pool. Remnants from 00:07:54.930 --> 00:07:57.290 the Israelite tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh 00:07:57.290 --> 00:07:59.750 who were in that area, who remained in the land, 00:07:59.870 --> 00:08:01.870 they found themselves intermarrying and having 00:08:01.870 --> 00:08:04.589 children with all these new settlers from Assyria 00:08:04.589 --> 00:08:07.689 and Babylon. And what came out of that over hundreds 00:08:07.689 --> 00:08:10.829 of years was a very distinct ethnic and religious 00:08:10.829 --> 00:08:15.509 community. Now in 586 BC, the southern kingdom 00:08:15.509 --> 00:08:17.870 of Judah, along with Jerusalem and the temple, 00:08:18.009 --> 00:08:21.509 it fell to the Babylonians. And soon after that, 00:08:21.550 --> 00:08:24.370 when Judea fell under Persian rule, that's when 00:08:24.370 --> 00:08:27.189 we see the beginning of tensions flare up between 00:08:27.189 --> 00:08:29.709 the Jews in the south and this new ethnic group 00:08:29.709 --> 00:08:33.490 to the north of them in Samaria. Because in 539 00:08:33.490 --> 00:08:36.529 BC, a remnant of Judah's people came back to 00:08:36.529 --> 00:08:38.730 Jerusalem. They'd been in exile in Babylon. They 00:08:38.730 --> 00:08:41.250 came back and they began to rebuild the temple 00:08:41.250 --> 00:08:44.049 and the city walls. And they bumped up against 00:08:44.049 --> 00:08:46.750 all kinds of opposition. One of the groups that 00:08:46.750 --> 00:08:49.679 opposed the rebuilding in Jerusalem were the 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:53.279 Samaritans. Now, initially they offered to help 00:08:53.279 --> 00:08:55.620 with the construction, believing that they were 00:08:55.620 --> 00:08:59.679 somehow brothers in Judaism, but because of who 00:08:59.679 --> 00:09:01.559 they were and what they believed, Judah's leadership 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:03.820 rejected their offer. So they turned around, 00:09:03.879 --> 00:09:06.500 they became a thorn in the side of leaders like 00:09:06.500 --> 00:09:08.759 Nehemiah and others who were trying to rebuild 00:09:08.759 --> 00:09:12.860 Jewish life in the land. Now, the second temple 00:09:12.860 --> 00:09:17.370 in Jerusalem was finished in 516. And it's around 00:09:17.370 --> 00:09:21.210 the year 450 that the people of Samaria formalized 00:09:21.210 --> 00:09:24.409 their separation from Israel by building a temple 00:09:24.409 --> 00:09:28.970 of their own near the city of Shechem on a place 00:09:28.970 --> 00:09:32.029 called Mount Gerizim. Now, why would they do 00:09:32.029 --> 00:09:33.509 such a thing? Well, it's important to understand 00:09:33.509 --> 00:09:36.629 the Samaritans believed that they were the legitimate 00:09:36.629 --> 00:09:39.820 heirs of Judaism. They believed they were the 00:09:39.820 --> 00:09:42.240 preservers of the true faith. Based on the fact 00:09:42.240 --> 00:09:44.940 that God gave Jerusalem over to the Babylonians, 00:09:45.000 --> 00:09:48.399 they saw that as a sign that Yahweh had rejected 00:09:48.399 --> 00:09:52.460 Jerusalem, had rejected that temple. And that 00:09:52.460 --> 00:09:55.000 Mount Gerizim, not Mount Moriah, was the correct 00:09:55.000 --> 00:09:57.879 location for worship. They believed that Moses 00:09:57.879 --> 00:10:00.500 intended Mount Gerizim to be the place of worship 00:10:00.500 --> 00:10:03.820 all along, and that Jerusalem had been a mistake. 00:10:05.549 --> 00:10:08.730 If you go to Israel today, you'll see this picture 00:10:08.730 --> 00:10:11.710 of these two mountains with the city of Shechem 00:10:11.710 --> 00:10:14.190 right in the middle of it. What you see there 00:10:14.190 --> 00:10:17.690 is Mount Gerizim on the left and Mount Ebal on 00:10:17.690 --> 00:10:20.850 the right. So the Samaritans pointed to Deuteronomy 00:10:20.850 --> 00:10:25.049 27 to make their case. In that chapter, God instructs 00:10:25.049 --> 00:10:27.649 six of the tribes of Israel to go up on Mount 00:10:27.649 --> 00:10:30.610 Ebal and the other six to go up on Mount Gerizim 00:10:30.610 --> 00:10:34.649 and curses. For disobedience were placed on which 00:10:34.649 --> 00:10:39.830 mountain? Abel. And blessings for obedience were 00:10:39.830 --> 00:10:43.029 placed on Mount Gerizim. Thus, they figured Mount 00:10:43.029 --> 00:10:46.090 Gerizim was the place of blessing, not Jerusalem. 00:10:46.470 --> 00:10:49.509 And this became the location where they not only 00:10:49.509 --> 00:10:53.529 worshipped, but practiced animal sacrifice. A 00:10:53.529 --> 00:10:57.210 whole priesthood, everything that... Israel was 00:10:57.210 --> 00:10:59.929 doing in Jerusalem, they duplicated with their 00:10:59.929 --> 00:11:02.750 own spin on it on Mount Gerizim. Now you can 00:11:02.750 --> 00:11:05.850 only imagine what the Jews thought of this. They 00:11:05.850 --> 00:11:07.789 looked at that temple, they looked at that people 00:11:07.789 --> 00:11:11.570 as a monstrosity, as a defilement. And so during 00:11:11.570 --> 00:11:13.809 the intertestamental period around the year 120 00:11:13.809 --> 00:11:17.350 BC, when the Jewish Hasmonean kings were sitting 00:11:17.350 --> 00:11:20.070 on the throne in Jerusalem, one of those kings 00:11:20.070 --> 00:11:22.970 by the name of John Hyrcanus decided the time 00:11:22.970 --> 00:11:26.679 had come to end that monstrosity. And he took 00:11:26.679 --> 00:11:29.240 his army and he marched into Samaria and he tore 00:11:29.240 --> 00:11:33.340 down the Samaritan temple. He razed it to the 00:11:33.340 --> 00:11:35.799 ground, killed hundreds of Samaritans. And of 00:11:35.799 --> 00:11:37.600 course, that made the hostility between these 00:11:37.600 --> 00:11:40.200 two groups even worse than it was previously. 00:11:41.200 --> 00:11:44.639 So if you go up on Mount Gerizim and Oak Hill, 00:11:44.679 --> 00:11:47.139 we went up there in 2017. I took this picture. 00:11:47.379 --> 00:11:49.679 That's the view from Mount Gerizim looking down 00:11:49.679 --> 00:11:52.620 into Shechem and across the way at Mount Ebal. 00:11:54.049 --> 00:11:56.529 And then if you, we did not do this, but you 00:11:56.529 --> 00:11:59.230 can go to the ruins. Those are the ruins of the 00:11:59.230 --> 00:12:03.549 Samaritan temple that still exist on Mount Gerizim. 00:12:03.629 --> 00:12:07.490 You can look at it. Now, besides the temple, 00:12:07.529 --> 00:12:09.690 what else did the Samaritans believe? Well, they 00:12:09.690 --> 00:12:12.879 accepted only the Pentateuch. Only the first 00:12:12.879 --> 00:12:15.179 five books of the Bible and only with certain 00:12:15.179 --> 00:12:18.139 alterations which fit their particular historical 00:12:18.139 --> 00:12:21.460 and ethnic situation. They completely rejected 00:12:21.460 --> 00:12:24.120 the prophets, rejected the writings. They also 00:12:24.120 --> 00:12:27.139 had their own unique interpretation of the festivals 00:12:27.139 --> 00:12:30.440 of Israel and the food laws. And they believe 00:12:30.440 --> 00:12:33.220 not in a Jewish Messiah, but in their own messianic 00:12:33.220 --> 00:12:36.539 figure, a man they call the Teheb, which is the 00:12:36.539 --> 00:12:39.799 Aramaic word for restorer. And he was said to 00:12:39.799 --> 00:12:42.279 be the true fulfillment of the promise in Deuteronomy 00:12:42.279 --> 00:12:44.759 18, where there's a promise that in the future, 00:12:44.779 --> 00:12:47.759 a prophet like Moses would be sent by Yahweh. 00:12:47.879 --> 00:12:50.100 They believe they had their own guy for that. 00:12:50.200 --> 00:12:53.299 And they believe that he would come back to earth 00:12:53.299 --> 00:12:56.720 someday and he would restore proper worship on 00:12:56.720 --> 00:12:59.820 Mount Gerizim, that he would reveal sacred, secret, 00:12:59.879 --> 00:13:03.159 mystical vessels from Moses. And he would usher 00:13:03.159 --> 00:13:05.740 in this great time of peace, even raise people 00:13:05.740 --> 00:13:09.139 from the dead. So they had a parallel theology 00:13:09.139 --> 00:13:12.240 going on up on Mount Gerizim. So, as you might 00:13:12.240 --> 00:13:15.299 imagine, first century Jews would have had a 00:13:15.299 --> 00:13:17.360 strong opinion about their neighbors to the north. 00:13:17.960 --> 00:13:20.960 And it's not a good opinion. First, about their 00:13:20.960 --> 00:13:24.379 ethnicity. They're not fully Jewish. They're 00:13:24.379 --> 00:13:28.399 not fully Gentile. And as proud Jews, that means 00:13:28.399 --> 00:13:34.379 they are half -breeds. Not a pleasant term, right? 00:13:34.889 --> 00:13:36.690 But that's the way they were looked at. Secondly, 00:13:36.769 --> 00:13:39.169 obviously, their religion was blasphemous. So 00:13:39.169 --> 00:13:41.450 in Jesus' day, then, as you read the Gospels, 00:13:41.490 --> 00:13:44.649 the Samaritans are viewed as outsiders to be 00:13:44.649 --> 00:13:47.610 completely avoided. In fact, in some writings, 00:13:47.669 --> 00:13:50.710 you see that Samaritans are considered worse 00:13:50.710 --> 00:13:53.750 than Gentiles, if you can imagine such a thing. 00:13:54.559 --> 00:13:57.360 So an observant Jew, it was so bad they wouldn't 00:13:57.360 --> 00:13:59.799 even step foot on Samaritan lands. If they had 00:13:59.799 --> 00:14:02.220 to travel between Galilee and Judea, they would 00:14:02.220 --> 00:14:04.779 cross the Jordan River and completely go around 00:14:04.779 --> 00:14:08.360 Samaritan lands so as to not, quote, defile themselves. 00:14:09.019 --> 00:14:11.720 This is the situation. By the way, modern day 00:14:11.720 --> 00:14:14.080 update on the Samaritan people, they still exist. 00:14:14.740 --> 00:14:17.019 They still exist. Despite the odds, they have 00:14:17.019 --> 00:14:20.200 found a way to endure over the centuries. They 00:14:20.200 --> 00:14:22.320 were at one time a sizable nation, you guys, 00:14:22.360 --> 00:14:25.820 with a mighty army. But after persecution from 00:14:25.820 --> 00:14:29.179 the Jews and persecution from the Arabs and persecution 00:14:29.179 --> 00:14:31.779 from the Byzantine Christians and persecution 00:14:31.779 --> 00:14:34.799 from the Ottoman Turks, their numbers have dwindled. 00:14:34.799 --> 00:14:38.379 They're down to about 900 people today. The Israeli 00:14:38.379 --> 00:14:40.620 government actually marked them out as a religious 00:14:40.620 --> 00:14:44.039 minority back in 1954 and gave them protected 00:14:44.039 --> 00:14:47.899 status. And so they still meet today. One group, 00:14:47.980 --> 00:14:49.940 there's one group of several hundred that meet 00:14:49.940 --> 00:14:53.220 in a small district outside of Tel Aviv. And 00:14:53.220 --> 00:14:55.519 the other group lives together in a village in 00:14:55.519 --> 00:14:58.100 the West Bank, the city of Nablus, which was 00:14:58.100 --> 00:15:00.799 the ancient city of Shechem. And they still, 00:15:00.840 --> 00:15:04.139 to this day, go up on Mount Gerizim three times 00:15:04.139 --> 00:15:07.159 a year, including Passover, in order to worship. 00:15:07.220 --> 00:15:09.539 In fact, here's a picture of them doing exactly 00:15:09.539 --> 00:15:14.470 that. The Samaritans still exist. Okay, that 00:15:14.470 --> 00:15:16.429 was a great excuse for maps and pictures. Thank 00:15:16.429 --> 00:15:18.990 you for putting up. No, it's good to set the 00:15:18.990 --> 00:15:22.470 context so you know. These are real people. These 00:15:22.470 --> 00:15:24.929 are real people that God looks down on. He sees 00:15:24.929 --> 00:15:27.509 their hearts. He sees their souls. And we should 00:15:27.509 --> 00:15:30.570 as well. So let's come back to our Advent theme 00:15:30.570 --> 00:15:32.669 then, a savior for the nations. Now, before we 00:15:32.669 --> 00:15:34.870 talk about whether God has a heart for the Samaritans, 00:15:34.889 --> 00:15:37.230 let's talk more generally about God's nature 00:15:37.230 --> 00:15:40.830 when it comes to various people groups. Three 00:15:40.830 --> 00:15:43.370 things have to be set up as a basis for understanding 00:15:43.370 --> 00:15:47.269 how God approaches salvation. And the first thing 00:15:47.269 --> 00:15:50.669 is this, listen to how he describes his own character 00:15:50.669 --> 00:15:55.870 to Moses in Exodus 34. He says, Yahweh, Yahweh 00:15:55.870 --> 00:15:59.990 El, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger 00:15:59.990 --> 00:16:03.210 and abounding in loving kindness and truth, who 00:16:03.210 --> 00:16:06.789 forgives iniquity, transgression and sin, yet 00:16:06.789 --> 00:16:10.330 he will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. 00:16:11.110 --> 00:16:12.830 That's the first thing we have to know about 00:16:12.830 --> 00:16:15.649 God in salvation. He is a God who is perfectly 00:16:15.649 --> 00:16:18.950 balanced in his attributes. compassionate, gracious, 00:16:19.210 --> 00:16:21.929 loving, truthful, merciful. That's all true, 00:16:22.049 --> 00:16:24.710 but also entirely just when it comes to dealing 00:16:24.710 --> 00:16:28.210 with sin. Those who transgress his law will be 00:16:28.210 --> 00:16:31.450 punished, he promises. And we should know that. 00:16:32.470 --> 00:16:35.049 Second thing, God's standards for holiness and 00:16:35.049 --> 00:16:37.750 justice don't change from one people group to 00:16:37.750 --> 00:16:41.789 another. The standard is the same. Very simply, 00:16:41.929 --> 00:16:44.470 Paul says in Romans chapter two, there is no 00:16:44.470 --> 00:16:48.000 partiality with God. There's no partiality with 00:16:48.000 --> 00:16:51.559 God. Jew, Gentile, Samaritan, there is one standard 00:16:51.559 --> 00:16:54.960 for all. God is not swayed by factors like ethnicity, 00:16:55.259 --> 00:16:58.279 background, appearance, or culture. He looks 00:16:58.279 --> 00:17:01.980 upon the heart, always. Now, this is where an 00:17:01.980 --> 00:17:04.200 objection is often raised. People ask, well, 00:17:04.220 --> 00:17:06.680 how can God be impartial in light of the doctrine 00:17:06.680 --> 00:17:10.480 of election? After all, God gave the law of Moses 00:17:10.480 --> 00:17:14.200 only to the Jews, right? Only to the Jews. We 00:17:14.200 --> 00:17:16.259 looked at it last week. They had so many advantages. 00:17:16.539 --> 00:17:18.519 By the way, you sometimes hear a similar objection 00:17:18.519 --> 00:17:21.299 today. They say, well, look, you and I have so 00:17:21.299 --> 00:17:24.140 much access to the Bible and to Bible tools, 00:17:24.339 --> 00:17:26.559 but other people in other countries don't have 00:17:26.559 --> 00:17:29.799 that same access. So how can God be impartial? 00:17:30.819 --> 00:17:32.940 Well, the good news is Paul addresses this question. 00:17:33.140 --> 00:17:36.160 In Romans 2, in the very next verse, verse 12, 00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:39.200 he says this. For all who have sinned without 00:17:39.200 --> 00:17:42.970 the law, meaning non -Jews, they will perish 00:17:42.970 --> 00:17:47.089 without the law. And all who sin under the law, 00:17:47.190 --> 00:17:49.890 meaning Jews, they will be judged by the law. 00:17:50.930 --> 00:17:53.309 With God, there's no partiality. On the judgment 00:17:53.309 --> 00:17:56.450 day, the question will not be how much of the 00:17:56.450 --> 00:17:58.490 law or how much of the Bible did you possess 00:17:58.490 --> 00:18:00.970 and know? That will not be the question. The 00:18:00.970 --> 00:18:03.950 question will be in view of how little or how 00:18:03.950 --> 00:18:06.950 much you possessed and knew, how did you respond 00:18:06.950 --> 00:18:12.240 and how did you live? Let me say it again. In 00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:14.359 view of how little or how much you possessed 00:18:14.359 --> 00:18:17.720 and knew, how did you respond and how did you 00:18:17.720 --> 00:18:21.599 live? That's how we will all be judged. Paul 00:18:21.599 --> 00:18:23.460 goes on to say in the next few verses that while 00:18:23.460 --> 00:18:25.380 the Gentiles didn't receive the law of Moses, 00:18:25.579 --> 00:18:28.160 they will still face a judgment for they, ready, 00:18:28.220 --> 00:18:32.279 instinctively do the things of the law, showing 00:18:32.279 --> 00:18:34.640 that in creation God has written the work of 00:18:34.640 --> 00:18:38.619 the law on our hearts, on our consciences. Paul 00:18:38.619 --> 00:18:41.900 says they all know God. Everyone knows God. They 00:18:41.900 --> 00:18:44.299 just don't want to acknowledge him or honor him 00:18:44.299 --> 00:18:46.640 or give him thanks. They want to fulfill their 00:18:46.640 --> 00:18:51.220 own lustful desires. And the point of all this 00:18:51.220 --> 00:18:53.660 is to stress that every people group and every 00:18:53.660 --> 00:18:57.000 individual falls short of God's standard. Listen, 00:18:57.059 --> 00:18:58.859 none of us can live up even to the demands of 00:18:58.859 --> 00:19:01.420 our own conscience, let alone the standard that 00:19:01.420 --> 00:19:03.640 God lays out in his word. None of us. We all 00:19:03.640 --> 00:19:08.160 fall short. That's why we need a savior. There's 00:19:08.160 --> 00:19:10.480 no other way. That's why the incarnation matters. 00:19:10.700 --> 00:19:12.920 When the question is asked on the judgment day, 00:19:13.059 --> 00:19:16.500 how did you live? Those who've trusted in Christ 00:19:16.500 --> 00:19:20.519 will be covered by his righteousness. And those 00:19:20.519 --> 00:19:24.180 who haven't will give an account for their life 00:19:24.180 --> 00:19:26.599 based on their works, and it will not go well 00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:30.519 for anyone. That's why we need the cover and 00:19:30.519 --> 00:19:33.519 the refuge and the shelter of Christ for the 00:19:33.519 --> 00:19:36.470 day of judgment. So all are equally accountable. 00:19:36.650 --> 00:19:39.329 Jews, Gentiles, Samaritans, there is no partiality 00:19:39.329 --> 00:19:41.509 with God. Here's the third thing we have to know 00:19:41.509 --> 00:19:44.509 related to God and salvation. You ready? In both 00:19:44.509 --> 00:19:46.930 the Old Testament and the New Testament, God 00:19:46.930 --> 00:19:50.890 has declared this. I will have mercy on whom 00:19:50.890 --> 00:19:54.690 I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom 00:19:54.690 --> 00:19:58.390 I have compassion. As hard a truth as that is 00:19:58.390 --> 00:20:01.069 for us to receive, God says it multiple times. 00:20:01.509 --> 00:20:03.529 Salvation comes down to his sovereign grace. 00:20:03.650 --> 00:20:06.930 It is outside of our human control, which we 00:20:06.930 --> 00:20:11.269 hate, right? But he's declared it clearly. When 00:20:11.269 --> 00:20:12.809 we look at the scripture and the world around 00:20:12.809 --> 00:20:15.710 us, guess what we see? That God sovereignly chooses 00:20:15.710 --> 00:20:18.690 to pour out his mercy and compassion on all kinds 00:20:18.690 --> 00:20:22.970 of people. Aren't you glad? All types of people, 00:20:23.029 --> 00:20:27.390 Jews, Gentiles, even Samaritans. In fact, it 00:20:27.390 --> 00:20:30.150 seems that God delights in constantly surprising 00:20:30.150 --> 00:20:34.690 us by redeeming people who, A, don't appear to 00:20:34.690 --> 00:20:37.890 deserve it, and B, are outside of what we would 00:20:37.890 --> 00:20:40.910 expect. God delights in that. Does he not surprise 00:20:40.910 --> 00:20:43.130 us sometimes? Do we not sometimes look in the 00:20:43.130 --> 00:20:45.150 mirror and we're surprised that he saved that 00:20:45.150 --> 00:20:52.190 guy? Consider, for example, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, 00:20:52.309 --> 00:20:56.710 Gentile women. who are not only included in Israel's 00:20:56.710 --> 00:20:58.809 covenant, but find themselves in the genealogy 00:20:58.809 --> 00:21:03.710 of the Jewish Messiah. That's surprising. Consider 00:21:03.710 --> 00:21:06.730 the people of Nineveh, sworn enemies of Israel, 00:21:06.869 --> 00:21:10.250 to whom God sends one of his own prophets, Jonah, 00:21:10.509 --> 00:21:13.309 with a message of repentance and salvation. That 00:21:13.309 --> 00:21:18.269 is surprising. Consider the Roman centurion in 00:21:18.269 --> 00:21:20.309 Matthew chapter 8. What did he do to deserve 00:21:20.309 --> 00:21:24.569 a meeting with Jesus? Or Zacchaeus, a corrupt 00:21:24.569 --> 00:21:27.470 tax collector who gets called out by the Lord. 00:21:28.349 --> 00:21:31.470 Or Simon, one of Jesus' own inner circle who 00:21:31.470 --> 00:21:34.509 once belonged to this violent revolutionary group 00:21:34.509 --> 00:21:39.069 called the Zealots before he met Christ. Consider 00:21:39.069 --> 00:21:42.420 how God transformed Saul of Tarsus. The chief 00:21:42.420 --> 00:21:44.880 of sinners, he calls himself. For God's glory 00:21:44.880 --> 00:21:47.059 and for the salvation of the Gentile people, 00:21:47.279 --> 00:21:50.099 God did that work. Here's the point. God's grace 00:21:50.099 --> 00:21:52.480 often extends beyond what we can even imagine. 00:21:53.359 --> 00:21:55.799 And he often chooses the least likely people 00:21:55.799 --> 00:22:00.059 to display his power and mercy. Isn't that great? 00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:04.400 And this is true of the Samaritan people. In 00:22:04.400 --> 00:22:08.660 Jesus' day, they were outside of Yahweh's covenant. 00:22:09.839 --> 00:22:12.519 They were living in rebellion against him in 00:22:12.519 --> 00:22:16.019 so many ways, rejecting his word, rejecting his 00:22:16.019 --> 00:22:18.579 worship, rejecting his temple, all of it. They 00:22:18.579 --> 00:22:21.000 lived in rebellion against him, and yet what 00:22:21.000 --> 00:22:24.440 do we see in the pages of Scripture? We see Jesus, 00:22:24.579 --> 00:22:27.200 God in the flesh, actually ministering to them. 00:22:28.480 --> 00:22:33.319 Is that surprising? We see Peter and John confirming 00:22:33.319 --> 00:22:38.140 their full inclusion into the early church. Surprising. 00:22:39.369 --> 00:22:41.950 It all starts early in Jesus' public ministry 00:22:41.950 --> 00:22:44.730 in John chapter 4. We've recently studied this 00:22:44.730 --> 00:22:47.569 story. We read that Jesus, first of all, passed 00:22:47.569 --> 00:22:52.609 through Samaria. Just that is an exhibition of 00:22:52.609 --> 00:22:55.369 God's grace that the Messiah is willing to walk 00:22:55.369 --> 00:22:58.829 straight through Samaria to put his feet in Samaritan 00:22:58.829 --> 00:23:01.289 lands when Jews were constantly going around. 00:23:02.549 --> 00:23:05.029 And of course, it's there in the city of Sukkar 00:23:05.029 --> 00:23:10.099 that Jesus has a revolutionary with a woman of 00:23:10.099 --> 00:23:13.259 Samaria who's come to draw water at the well. 00:23:14.859 --> 00:23:17.519 Being weary from the journey, the Lord sits down 00:23:17.519 --> 00:23:20.940 alone. And when the Samaritan woman approaches, 00:23:21.180 --> 00:23:24.119 he asks her for a drink, right? And the woman's 00:23:24.119 --> 00:23:26.220 reaction tells us everything that we need to 00:23:26.220 --> 00:23:29.140 know about how tense the situation was between 00:23:29.140 --> 00:23:32.220 Jews and Samaritans. She is shocked. She says, 00:23:32.319 --> 00:23:36.599 you, a Jew, are talking to me? And to a woman? 00:23:38.059 --> 00:23:41.059 This is a shocking scene, and we know how the 00:23:41.059 --> 00:23:43.380 story plays out, but have you thought about what 00:23:43.380 --> 00:23:48.500 Jesus actually says to this sinner, this woman 00:23:48.500 --> 00:23:51.259 of Samaria? First of all, he offers her living 00:23:51.259 --> 00:23:55.579 water. To a woman who is historically an enemy 00:23:55.579 --> 00:23:58.480 of the Jewish people, who is daily living as 00:23:58.480 --> 00:24:01.859 an enemy of God, Jesus says, I can give you living 00:24:01.859 --> 00:24:06.720 water. That's surprising, isn't it? Then he goes 00:24:06.720 --> 00:24:09.220 on to talk about true worship. Remember the scene? 00:24:09.420 --> 00:24:12.180 She's at the base of Mount Gerizim and she points 00:24:12.180 --> 00:24:14.279 to the mountain. She says, we worship here. What 00:24:14.279 --> 00:24:17.039 about Jerusalem? And Jesus shares this amazing 00:24:17.039 --> 00:24:19.819 insight that he hasn't shared with anybody else 00:24:19.819 --> 00:24:22.079 yet. He says, look, an hour is coming and now 00:24:22.079 --> 00:24:25.079 is when true worshipers will worship the Father 00:24:25.079 --> 00:24:28.259 in spirit and truth. I'm ushering in a whole 00:24:28.259 --> 00:24:33.039 new time. This is surprising, isn't it? And then 00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:35.599 he drops the biggest of all truths. He reveals 00:24:35.599 --> 00:24:37.680 something he hasn't said to anybody yet, not 00:24:37.680 --> 00:24:41.920 to the Jews, not to his own disciples. He tells 00:24:41.920 --> 00:24:46.240 this unbelieving, rebellious idolater that he 00:24:46.240 --> 00:24:51.279 is the Christ. He's the Messiah of Israel. Wow. 00:24:52.740 --> 00:24:55.859 To a Samaritan woman. You guys don't understand 00:24:55.859 --> 00:24:58.640 how shocking that is. What a big deal that is. 00:24:59.380 --> 00:25:01.819 But what does it lead to? Do you remember where 00:25:01.819 --> 00:25:03.700 the woman goes next? She runs into the village. 00:25:04.279 --> 00:25:07.079 And she says, I met this guy. He knows everything. 00:25:07.279 --> 00:25:11.180 She thinks he's a prophet, right? And as a result 00:25:11.180 --> 00:25:13.779 of this, John reports this glorious news. Many 00:25:13.779 --> 00:25:18.920 came out to see him. And many believed in him 00:25:18.920 --> 00:25:24.099 because of the testimony of the woman. They believed. 00:25:24.140 --> 00:25:28.019 They found salvation in the Jewish Messiah. These 00:25:28.019 --> 00:25:32.430 idolaters. It gets better. The Samaritans then 00:25:32.430 --> 00:25:35.109 plead with Jesus to stay with him. Stay with 00:25:35.109 --> 00:25:39.490 us, they say. And he does. The Jewish Messiah. 00:25:39.910 --> 00:25:46.589 For two days he stays with Samaritans. It's so 00:25:46.589 --> 00:25:48.769 easy to read right past that and not understand 00:25:48.769 --> 00:25:52.509 what's going on here. He stays with them. And 00:25:52.509 --> 00:25:54.549 then John says many more believe because of his 00:25:54.549 --> 00:25:57.190 word. They were saying this, we've heard for 00:25:57.190 --> 00:26:00.089 ourselves now. We know this one is indeed the 00:26:00.089 --> 00:26:07.190 savior of the world. What? Samaritans. And to 00:26:07.190 --> 00:26:09.930 his stunned disciples, who must have been blown 00:26:09.930 --> 00:26:12.529 away at this, Jesus says, listen to this now, 00:26:12.650 --> 00:26:18.630 lift your eyes. Guys, lift your eyes and look 00:26:18.630 --> 00:26:23.230 on the fields. They are white for harvest. Mind 00:26:23.230 --> 00:26:28.390 blown. But lift your eyes. Does God have a heart 00:26:28.390 --> 00:26:31.710 for the Samaritans? Yeah. It's surprising, isn't 00:26:31.710 --> 00:26:35.109 it? Nobody's beyond God's grace when God is willing 00:26:35.109 --> 00:26:40.430 to show mercy and compassion and save. Then there's 00:26:40.430 --> 00:26:42.109 the lesser known story that we should know. It's 00:26:42.109 --> 00:26:46.369 in Luke 17 where Jesus heals the 10 lepers. We 00:26:46.369 --> 00:26:48.109 often forget that the beginning of that story, 00:26:48.150 --> 00:26:51.789 it says Jesus was passing through Samaria again. 00:26:52.940 --> 00:26:55.059 And he goes into this village and there's 10 00:26:55.059 --> 00:26:57.720 leprous men. And what are they crying out for? 00:26:59.039 --> 00:27:02.940 Mercy. They're crying out for mercy. And Jesus 00:27:02.940 --> 00:27:05.339 heals them with the word and says, go show yourself 00:27:05.339 --> 00:27:08.000 to the priests. And they run off. But one turns 00:27:08.000 --> 00:27:11.460 back, right? And Luke tells us, when he saw that 00:27:11.460 --> 00:27:14.240 he had been healed, he turned back, glorifying 00:27:14.240 --> 00:27:17.420 God with a loud voice. And he fell on his face 00:27:17.420 --> 00:27:20.660 at Jesus' feet, giving thanks to him. And then 00:27:20.660 --> 00:27:25.819 Luke drops the truth bomb. And he was a Samaritan. 00:27:27.359 --> 00:27:35.000 He was a Samaritan. Surprising. Jesus says what? 00:27:36.119 --> 00:27:39.920 Stand up and go. Your faith has made you well. 00:27:42.059 --> 00:27:45.539 Wow. One last example. It's an important one. 00:27:45.559 --> 00:27:48.599 Acts chapter 8. Soon after the murder of Stephen 00:27:48.599 --> 00:27:51.000 and the scattering of the disciples, it says 00:27:51.000 --> 00:27:53.579 this, those who had been scattered preached the 00:27:53.579 --> 00:27:56.579 word wherever they went. Philip went down to 00:27:56.579 --> 00:28:00.880 a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah 00:28:00.880 --> 00:28:05.039 there. So you catch that? Using Jesus' example, 00:28:05.359 --> 00:28:09.920 early on by Acts chapter eight, it's not just 00:28:09.920 --> 00:28:12.220 we're gonna pass through Samaria, it's we're 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:15.079 gonna intentionally go to a city in Samaria and 00:28:15.079 --> 00:28:17.740 preach the good news of the gospel. Intentionally. 00:28:18.720 --> 00:28:21.140 Because God's doing a work there among that people. 00:28:21.980 --> 00:28:25.480 Can you believe it? And it goes on to say, when 00:28:25.480 --> 00:28:27.460 the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he 00:28:27.460 --> 00:28:29.859 performed, they all paid close attention to what 00:28:29.859 --> 00:28:32.700 he said, for with shrieks, impure spirits came 00:28:32.700 --> 00:28:35.400 out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame 00:28:35.400 --> 00:28:37.980 were healed, so there was great joy in that city. 00:28:38.099 --> 00:28:40.720 And then just six verses later, we find that 00:28:40.720 --> 00:28:43.019 when the apostles in Jerusalem heard this stunning 00:28:43.019 --> 00:28:45.740 news that more people in Samaria had received 00:28:45.740 --> 00:28:48.440 the word of God, they sent Peter and John there 00:28:48.440 --> 00:28:55.009 to go pray for them. Surprising. But you get 00:28:55.009 --> 00:28:57.650 the picture, right? These are dirty sinners. 00:28:59.269 --> 00:29:03.089 Dirty sinners. Rebellious people. Idolaters. 00:29:03.990 --> 00:29:09.109 Just as we all were once. Yes, God has a heart 00:29:09.109 --> 00:29:10.910 for the Samaritan people. He has a place for 00:29:10.910 --> 00:29:14.029 them in his kingdom when he is willing to extend 00:29:14.029 --> 00:29:17.430 grace and compassion and salvation. Isn't that 00:29:17.430 --> 00:29:22.250 great news? So what does this teach us? Let's 00:29:22.250 --> 00:29:24.839 come back to the teaser question. that I asked 00:29:24.839 --> 00:29:28.440 at the outset. This is important for our own 00:29:28.440 --> 00:29:33.059 hearts. Is there any group of people today who 00:29:33.059 --> 00:29:36.420 you've come to believe is not worthy of consideration 00:29:36.420 --> 00:29:39.619 because they're beyond the reach of God's grace? 00:29:41.539 --> 00:29:43.339 You don't have to say it out loud, but be honest 00:29:43.339 --> 00:29:46.079 in your own heart. Have you judged a group of 00:29:46.079 --> 00:29:50.440 people in that way? In other words, you view 00:29:50.440 --> 00:29:53.339 them as a first century Jew looked at a Samaritan. 00:29:54.599 --> 00:29:56.519 So it's not possible that they can be saved. 00:29:57.400 --> 00:30:00.259 So why would we waste our time? It's not possible. 00:30:02.559 --> 00:30:12.579 Muslims? Orthodox Jews? Deeply entrenched Roman 00:30:12.579 --> 00:30:18.859 Catholics? Mormons? Men or women who are engaged 00:30:18.859 --> 00:30:23.059 in a homosexual lifestyle? Somebody who says 00:30:23.059 --> 00:30:27.460 they're trans? Maybe just someone from a different 00:30:27.460 --> 00:30:31.519 race or culture than yours. Does God have a heart 00:30:31.519 --> 00:30:37.839 for them? Or are they beyond God's reach? We 00:30:37.839 --> 00:30:39.759 open our service by reading from 2 Corinthians 00:30:39.759 --> 00:30:42.980 5 this morning. Listen again. From now on, Paul 00:30:42.980 --> 00:30:46.319 says, we recognize no one according to the flesh. 00:30:47.819 --> 00:30:50.779 No one. Even though we've known Christ according 00:30:50.779 --> 00:30:53.339 to the flesh, yet now we know him in this way 00:30:53.339 --> 00:30:55.680 no longer. What he means is this. We who know 00:30:55.680 --> 00:30:59.000 Christ, we who understand what it means to be 00:30:59.000 --> 00:31:02.720 redeemed out of a life of sin, to be freed from 00:31:02.720 --> 00:31:05.079 that kind of slavery, we no longer view people 00:31:05.079 --> 00:31:10.279 from a fleshly perspective. We no longer look 00:31:10.279 --> 00:31:12.700 at them as if the physical life in this world 00:31:12.700 --> 00:31:15.450 is all that there is. We know differently. We 00:31:15.450 --> 00:31:17.930 look holistically. We look beyond this life. 00:31:18.029 --> 00:31:20.430 We look beyond these earthly bodies. We now look 00:31:20.430 --> 00:31:23.170 at eternal truths. When we see people, we think 00:31:23.170 --> 00:31:27.710 about eternity, right? We know that if God is 00:31:27.710 --> 00:31:31.490 willing, anyone can be saved. Paul goes on and 00:31:31.490 --> 00:31:34.329 he says, therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he's 00:31:34.329 --> 00:31:36.150 a new creature. The old things have passed away. 00:31:36.490 --> 00:31:39.509 Behold, new things have come. Now, all these 00:31:39.509 --> 00:31:41.869 things have come from God, he writes, who reconciled 00:31:41.869 --> 00:31:44.710 us to himself through Christ and then gave us 00:31:44.710 --> 00:31:48.329 the ministry of reconciliation. Now, the word 00:31:48.329 --> 00:31:50.410 reconciliation is very simple. It just means 00:31:50.410 --> 00:31:54.250 the restoration of a relationship, bringing two 00:31:54.250 --> 00:31:56.490 parties together. In this case, it means the 00:31:56.490 --> 00:31:59.269 work of God through Jesus Christ by which he 00:31:59.269 --> 00:32:02.190 restores men and women to a relationship of peace 00:32:02.190 --> 00:32:05.430 with him. And it's from God. Did you see that 00:32:05.430 --> 00:32:08.549 in the verse? This is the type of reconciliation 00:32:08.549 --> 00:32:11.390 that can only come from God. God is both the 00:32:11.390 --> 00:32:14.069 subject and the object of the work. He's doing 00:32:14.069 --> 00:32:16.609 the reconciling and he's bringing us back to 00:32:16.609 --> 00:32:18.730 himself. He does all the work from beginning 00:32:18.730 --> 00:32:22.549 to end. He does the reconciling and then it comes 00:32:22.549 --> 00:32:27.829 back to him. It's all about him. And let's be 00:32:27.829 --> 00:32:30.630 honest, only God's creative power can explain 00:32:30.630 --> 00:32:34.849 what's happened in our lives. Only God's creative 00:32:34.849 --> 00:32:39.670 power. can explain the recreation of people who 00:32:39.670 --> 00:32:43.450 once lived only for themselves and now lovingly 00:32:43.450 --> 00:32:45.490 choose to die to themselves and live to please 00:32:45.490 --> 00:32:48.549 God. That is not natural. That is supernatural. 00:32:48.690 --> 00:32:51.750 Only God's power can explain anybody turning 00:32:51.750 --> 00:32:54.789 from themselves to Christ. We're all miracles. 00:32:55.069 --> 00:32:57.329 If you know Christ, if you're abiding in him 00:32:57.329 --> 00:32:59.809 this morning, you are a miracle of his work. 00:33:03.089 --> 00:33:06.960 Verse 20, therefore, because of this work of 00:33:06.960 --> 00:33:10.099 grace that God has done. We are ambassadors for 00:33:10.099 --> 00:33:12.160 Christ. As though God were making an appeal through 00:33:12.160 --> 00:33:15.279 us, we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled 00:33:15.279 --> 00:33:18.400 to God. So now you and I have been sent out into 00:33:18.400 --> 00:33:24.099 the world. It's not optional, by the way. God 00:33:24.099 --> 00:33:26.660 reconciled you to himself. He made peace between 00:33:26.660 --> 00:33:29.900 himself and you. That's not optional now. Now 00:33:29.900 --> 00:33:32.559 you go into the world, you're an ambassador representing 00:33:32.559 --> 00:33:35.660 the one who saved you and sent you, and you declare 00:33:35.660 --> 00:33:39.599 his message, not your own. And the message about 00:33:39.599 --> 00:33:43.079 God is this. Same thing. Number one, God is compassionate 00:33:43.079 --> 00:33:47.599 and gracious. Put it up here. God is compassionate 00:33:47.599 --> 00:33:51.680 and gracious. He forgives sin, yet he will not 00:33:51.680 --> 00:33:55.089 leave the guilty unpunished. Number two, there's 00:33:55.089 --> 00:33:57.829 no partiality with God. All men and women are 00:33:57.829 --> 00:34:00.210 held to the same standard and accountable before 00:34:00.210 --> 00:34:03.170 him. And number three, he will have mercy on 00:34:03.170 --> 00:34:08.050 whom he has mercy. And so as ambassadors of reconciliation, 00:34:08.329 --> 00:34:11.449 we appeal to every person that God puts in our 00:34:11.449 --> 00:34:16.869 path. Every person, Samaritans included. And 00:34:16.869 --> 00:34:20.730 we say this, today is the day of salvation. Repent 00:34:20.730 --> 00:34:23.070 of your sins and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:34:23.210 --> 00:34:26.210 Be reconciled to God while that door is open 00:34:26.210 --> 00:34:32.110 to you. With urgency, we appeal to everyone. 00:34:32.409 --> 00:34:34.730 It's an amazing thing that God has made a way 00:34:34.730 --> 00:34:37.130 for his enemies to come and find peace with him. 00:34:37.269 --> 00:34:40.610 He has spread his arms open wide. He's offered 00:34:40.610 --> 00:34:43.630 an amnesty for sin. Now it's our job to make 00:34:43.630 --> 00:34:47.809 that appeal to everyone, every type of person. 00:34:48.360 --> 00:34:52.039 that God puts in our path. So let's finish now 00:34:52.039 --> 00:34:53.599 with that list of people groups I mentioned. 00:34:56.179 --> 00:35:01.239 Muslims, Orthodox Jews, Roman Catholics, Mormons, 00:35:01.239 --> 00:35:05.500 homosexuals, trans men and women, someone from 00:35:05.500 --> 00:35:07.199 a different race or culture than yours. Would 00:35:07.199 --> 00:35:12.119 they be a waste of your time? Friends, guard 00:35:12.119 --> 00:35:16.159 your heart from despising anyone. You're a child 00:35:16.159 --> 00:35:19.630 of the King. Do not despise anyone. I know it's 00:35:19.630 --> 00:35:22.989 hard these days. The world wants you so badly 00:35:22.989 --> 00:35:26.550 to hate. This is the whole mission of social 00:35:26.550 --> 00:35:29.869 media. To make you hate other groups. To pit 00:35:29.869 --> 00:35:32.349 you against others. And your group against other 00:35:32.349 --> 00:35:36.750 groups. But that ought not be true for anybody 00:35:36.750 --> 00:35:39.449 that professes to know Jesus Christ. We don't 00:35:39.449 --> 00:35:44.090 hate. We don't consider anybody according to 00:35:44.090 --> 00:35:48.300 the flesh anymore. Because we know better. So 00:35:48.300 --> 00:35:55.420 guard your hearts carefully. Also hear me on 00:35:55.420 --> 00:36:00.599 this as just a balancing truth. The Bible never 00:36:00.599 --> 00:36:04.219 teaches us to sacrifice truth in order to reach 00:36:04.219 --> 00:36:08.800 people with the gospel. We don't water it down 00:36:08.800 --> 00:36:13.820 to win hearts. Instead, we look to Christ as 00:36:13.820 --> 00:36:18.090 our example. Remember, he is full of grace full 00:36:18.090 --> 00:36:22.550 of truth, completely. That's our example. We 00:36:22.550 --> 00:36:25.110 embody that principle in the way we think about 00:36:25.110 --> 00:36:28.429 the people in our world. Here's why I bring this 00:36:28.429 --> 00:36:30.750 up. Sometimes I get a sense that Christians who 00:36:30.750 --> 00:36:32.750 love to err on the side of being gracious, they 00:36:32.750 --> 00:36:37.510 end up living in a bubble of delusion, not taking 00:36:37.510 --> 00:36:42.489 wicked things as seriously as they should. And 00:36:42.489 --> 00:36:44.650 I wanna say this, collectively speaking, we can 00:36:44.650 --> 00:36:46.849 and should think truthfully truthfully about 00:36:46.849 --> 00:36:50.829 things that we know are wrong. We should think 00:36:50.829 --> 00:36:54.130 truthfully about things that we know are damaging 00:36:54.130 --> 00:36:57.269 to people's bodies and souls. We should think 00:36:57.269 --> 00:36:58.829 rightly about those things. I'm talking about 00:36:58.829 --> 00:37:01.449 thinking rightly about false religions and false 00:37:01.449 --> 00:37:04.530 ideologies and false lifestyles. If they stand 00:37:04.530 --> 00:37:06.789 in opposition to the truth of God's word, we 00:37:06.789 --> 00:37:09.769 are obligated to think of them in those terms. 00:37:09.849 --> 00:37:14.650 They are false and they are damaging. So in my 00:37:14.650 --> 00:37:17.440 heart, I know the following statement is true. 00:37:18.340 --> 00:37:21.820 Are you ready to be shocked? In my heart, I know 00:37:21.820 --> 00:37:24.619 this is true. Islam is a religion started by 00:37:24.619 --> 00:37:28.980 warlords, pedophiles, and idolaters. And as an 00:37:28.980 --> 00:37:33.460 ideology, it's a scourge upon the world. I can 00:37:33.460 --> 00:37:37.599 think that because that's provable fact. I know 00:37:37.599 --> 00:37:39.639 this as well. Mormonism is nothing more than 00:37:39.639 --> 00:37:42.719 a preposterous fable that ultimately teaches 00:37:42.719 --> 00:37:47.210 a false gospel that cannot save. And I know this, 00:37:47.210 --> 00:37:49.809 living out a homosexual lifestyle is disordered, 00:37:49.849 --> 00:37:53.769 unnatural, unhealthy, and an affront to the living 00:37:53.769 --> 00:37:57.090 God. I know those things are true. But having 00:37:57.090 --> 00:38:00.570 said that, what does scripture tell me to do 00:38:00.570 --> 00:38:06.969 when God puts before me a Muslim? Or a Mormon? 00:38:08.909 --> 00:38:13.869 Or a homosexual? What am I to do? I don't forget 00:38:13.869 --> 00:38:18.829 the truth. I don't forget the truth about what 00:38:18.829 --> 00:38:20.710 they believe or what they're engaged in. That 00:38:20.710 --> 00:38:22.530 doesn't change. But in that moment, there's a 00:38:22.530 --> 00:38:25.449 few things I have to remember. I have to remember 00:38:25.449 --> 00:38:28.190 Jesus' own words first. He said, it's not the 00:38:28.190 --> 00:38:32.190 healthy you need a doctor, but the sick. Amen? 00:38:33.489 --> 00:38:35.730 I've not come to call the righteous, but sinners. 00:38:35.829 --> 00:38:39.050 I have to remember that. I have to remember that 00:38:39.050 --> 00:38:42.469 I once was just as sinful and as far from God 00:38:42.469 --> 00:38:45.380 as they are now. It's a different sin. But I 00:38:45.380 --> 00:38:49.460 was just as far from God as this person sitting 00:38:49.460 --> 00:38:54.280 before me right now. I have to remember that 00:38:54.280 --> 00:38:56.500 nobody is beyond God's reach if he wills that 00:38:56.500 --> 00:38:58.460 that person be saved and brought into the kingdom. 00:38:59.199 --> 00:39:02.639 So there's always hope, right? If God wills it. 00:39:03.500 --> 00:39:06.860 And I remember that truth from Romans 2. And 00:39:06.860 --> 00:39:08.840 this is so important, that everybody has the 00:39:08.840 --> 00:39:12.889 law of God written on his or her heart. Now, 00:39:12.929 --> 00:39:14.630 whether they're suppressing that truth in their 00:39:14.630 --> 00:39:19.230 own righteousness, it's possible. But the fact 00:39:19.230 --> 00:39:20.909 that the law has been written on their heart 00:39:20.909 --> 00:39:23.570 means there's always a possibility that I can 00:39:23.570 --> 00:39:27.429 connect with that person on some level and be 00:39:27.429 --> 00:39:30.070 able to share the gospel. And the fact is either 00:39:30.070 --> 00:39:32.070 God has prepared them to be drawn to the truth 00:39:32.070 --> 00:39:34.050 or he hasn't, and that's going to ultimately 00:39:34.050 --> 00:39:36.869 determine the outcome of my conversations. What's 00:39:36.869 --> 00:39:41.460 my job? To see them rightly. and to be faithful 00:39:41.460 --> 00:39:45.699 to share my faith. That's it. But I've got to 00:39:45.699 --> 00:39:48.460 consider them. I can't say, well, I know what 00:39:48.460 --> 00:39:50.800 type of person you are, and you know what? This 00:39:50.800 --> 00:39:54.960 isn't worth my time. You're too far gone. You're 00:39:54.960 --> 00:39:56.760 too far gone. This is a waste of my resources. 00:39:59.139 --> 00:40:03.030 Can't do that. So it doesn't depend on us. It 00:40:03.030 --> 00:40:05.090 doesn't depend on our answers or our eloquence. 00:40:05.210 --> 00:40:07.510 It depends on God who has mercy and therefore 00:40:07.510 --> 00:40:10.269 we can be hopeful whenever we share our faith 00:40:10.269 --> 00:40:12.730 and that's all we have to do is to be faithful 00:40:12.730 --> 00:40:15.570 and simply focus on balancing grace and truth. 00:40:16.809 --> 00:40:20.690 Does that make sense? So my encouragement for 00:40:20.690 --> 00:40:23.670 each of you this Christmas is to consider the 00:40:23.670 --> 00:40:26.849 Samaritans of the New Testament. Consider doing, 00:40:27.030 --> 00:40:29.710 setting aside some time to do a little bit of 00:40:29.710 --> 00:40:32.559 heart work. in your spare moments, to ask some 00:40:32.559 --> 00:40:34.519 really good questions before the Lord in prayer. 00:40:34.699 --> 00:40:37.260 Do I need to repent of any unbiblical attitude 00:40:37.260 --> 00:40:41.219 that I've had about some group of people or even 00:40:41.219 --> 00:40:44.400 some individual within a group of people? Have 00:40:44.400 --> 00:40:47.900 I written them off as too far gone, beyond God's 00:40:47.900 --> 00:40:50.900 reach? Do I need to repent of that? Do I need 00:40:50.900 --> 00:40:53.380 to work on turning my heart towards having more 00:40:53.380 --> 00:40:57.150 compassion? Or having a greater desire to share 00:40:57.150 --> 00:40:59.630 my faith with somebody that God has put in front 00:40:59.630 --> 00:41:02.289 of me recently. I've recognized that, but I haven't 00:41:02.289 --> 00:41:07.110 been faithful. Do I need to start praying more 00:41:07.110 --> 00:41:09.869 often that God would give me eyes to see the 00:41:09.869 --> 00:41:16.070 way he sees people? Friends, God has told us 00:41:16.070 --> 00:41:18.849 about the Samaritan people in scripture for a 00:41:18.849 --> 00:41:21.949 really good reason. Because of the historical 00:41:21.949 --> 00:41:25.820 people north of Judea, of course. but so much 00:41:25.820 --> 00:41:29.139 more. He's given them to us as a great way to 00:41:29.139 --> 00:41:32.699 test our own hearts towards this lost and dying 00:41:32.699 --> 00:41:36.199 world that we live in. So let's remember the 00:41:36.199 --> 00:41:38.480 amazing undeserved gift that we've been given. 00:41:38.940 --> 00:41:41.860 And let's not dare withhold it from others, from 00:41:41.860 --> 00:41:45.679 anybody. And let's follow Jesus's instruction 00:41:45.679 --> 00:41:50.280 and let's lift our eyes and look upon the fields. 00:41:51.309 --> 00:41:54.050 and see that the harvest is ripe when God chooses 00:41:54.050 --> 00:41:57.710 to move. Amen? Bow your heads with me, would 00:41:57.710 --> 00:42:15.429 you? Lord, I am grateful as I think back on this 00:42:15.429 --> 00:42:18.820 passage in Acts 1, the fact that you... you saw 00:42:18.820 --> 00:42:21.420 fit in your sovereignty to put that phrase and 00:42:21.420 --> 00:42:27.139 Samaria in that verse. And that by those two 00:42:27.139 --> 00:42:31.639 simple words, our hearts can be challenged in 00:42:31.639 --> 00:42:36.099 2025 about our attitudes towards the people around 00:42:36.099 --> 00:42:40.880 us. That we might, God forbid, limit your grace 00:42:40.880 --> 00:42:44.219 and what you can do to save the people that you 00:42:44.219 --> 00:42:48.449 are willing to save. So Father, these questions 00:42:48.449 --> 00:42:52.070 that I just finished asking the folks, will you 00:42:52.070 --> 00:42:56.309 remind us to meditate on these things? Do we 00:42:56.309 --> 00:42:58.750 need to repent of unbiblical attitudes that we 00:42:58.750 --> 00:43:02.869 have? Do we need to work on turning our hearts 00:43:02.869 --> 00:43:06.030 towards having more compassion, a greater desire 00:43:06.030 --> 00:43:09.070 to share our faith? Is there somebody that we 00:43:09.070 --> 00:43:12.050 have neglected talking to because we've written 00:43:12.050 --> 00:43:15.650 them off? Lord, give us eyes to see the people 00:43:15.650 --> 00:43:19.500 around us. the same way you see them. And Lord, 00:43:19.559 --> 00:43:21.460 make us faithful servants, faithful ambassadors. 00:43:21.579 --> 00:43:24.219 Lord, we know the results are not up to us. It's 00:43:24.219 --> 00:43:27.920 too heavy of a burden for us. Just make us faithful, 00:43:28.019 --> 00:43:30.699 Lord. And we'll let you do what you do, God, 00:43:30.780 --> 00:43:33.340 which is always good and always glorious. So 00:43:33.340 --> 00:43:35.179 thank you for our time in the word this morning, 00:43:35.239 --> 00:43:37.300 Lord. Seal these truths to our hearts and be 00:43:37.300 --> 00:43:40.199 glorified even now as we continue to sing praises 00:43:40.199 --> 00:43:42.320 to you. In Christ's name we pray, amen.