WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.259 I have, some of you know my father -in -law passed 00:00:03.259 --> 00:00:06.559 away earlier this year. I inherited a brand new 00:00:06.559 --> 00:00:10.580 community. Okay, so his passing moved my life 00:00:10.580 --> 00:00:13.800 to inherit something brand new. It is a fishing 00:00:13.800 --> 00:00:18.239 tournament community. Those of you that were 00:00:18.239 --> 00:00:20.940 here for just camping, that whole collection 00:00:20.940 --> 00:00:23.739 on that, you know I'm not much of an outdoorsy 00:00:23.739 --> 00:00:28.429 type person. However... I am now an official 00:00:28.429 --> 00:00:31.350 member, an official member, you guys, of the 00:00:31.350 --> 00:00:39.390 Rooster Tail Club. Yeah. It's a big deal, apparently. 00:00:39.770 --> 00:00:43.770 So what it means is this, that I have now been 00:00:43.770 --> 00:00:47.929 on my third fishing tournament. So my first, 00:00:48.049 --> 00:00:49.850 some of you, thanks for your response. That's 00:00:49.850 --> 00:00:58.189 good. and it's different lakes every time, right? 00:00:58.270 --> 00:01:01.649 So we're at a lake, and they'd change the water 00:01:01.649 --> 00:01:04.489 levels, and the fish were bedding, and all information 00:01:04.489 --> 00:01:07.409 you don't need and I didn't need, and all I needed 00:01:07.409 --> 00:01:10.129 to know is they're not biting, right? So we go 00:01:10.129 --> 00:01:12.250 to the first tournament. Tournament day comes 00:01:12.250 --> 00:01:13.969 around. Like I said, it's a big deal. So tournament 00:01:13.969 --> 00:01:16.349 day comes around. There's a lot of pressure because 00:01:16.349 --> 00:01:18.290 you have to go and weigh in in front of other 00:01:18.290 --> 00:01:19.849 people. If you don't have fish, that's not a 00:01:19.849 --> 00:01:22.230 good time. Let me tell you. A little embarrassing. 00:01:22.629 --> 00:01:25.790 Talk about the walk of shame, right? So you get 00:01:25.790 --> 00:01:29.370 we get down there and I caught zero fish tournament 00:01:29.370 --> 00:01:33.129 day. Thankfully, my brother in law, who who's 00:01:33.129 --> 00:01:36.620 the reason I'm doing this, he. caught all five 00:01:36.620 --> 00:01:39.019 and we were able to walk proudly and weigh our 00:01:39.019 --> 00:01:40.620 fish. And I think we finished like eighth or 00:01:40.620 --> 00:01:42.819 something. Uh, so, so the second tournament, 00:01:42.859 --> 00:01:44.319 I'm like, okay, I'm going to show up better. 00:01:44.379 --> 00:01:46.400 Like I'm talking big game to him, right? Like 00:01:46.400 --> 00:01:48.260 we'll go down practice day. Cause you have to 00:01:48.260 --> 00:01:50.019 have a practice day apparently. So you go down 00:01:50.019 --> 00:01:52.640 the day before fish lake to know the lake, you 00:01:52.640 --> 00:01:54.099 know, what is, know what it's doing, what they're 00:01:54.099 --> 00:01:56.359 biting, where they're biting that whole thing. 00:01:56.359 --> 00:01:58.359 You need information. Just ask me, I'll let you 00:01:58.359 --> 00:02:02.879 know. All right. So, so, so it's, it's a, it's 00:02:02.879 --> 00:02:05.560 a whole thing. It's a whole thing. So we go the 00:02:05.560 --> 00:02:09.139 second time and you'll be happy to know tournament 00:02:09.139 --> 00:02:14.379 day caught five fish. They were all, they were 00:02:14.379 --> 00:02:21.060 all smaller than his. So I still have not contributed 00:02:21.060 --> 00:02:25.199 at all to our, to our tournament standings. So 00:02:25.199 --> 00:02:30.599 this weekend, Friday was practice day. And I'm 00:02:30.599 --> 00:02:32.039 like, I'm going to show up. I'm going to show 00:02:32.039 --> 00:02:34.449 up. We're going to, We're going to do this, right? 00:02:35.030 --> 00:02:37.250 But what you need to know, it's a whole weekend, 00:02:37.530 --> 00:02:43.889 right? And so, like, I sleep in, again, back 00:02:43.889 --> 00:02:48.250 to just camping. The second term, I slept on 00:02:48.250 --> 00:02:53.889 a cot in the middle of a parking lot. Those of 00:02:53.889 --> 00:02:55.469 you that know me, that's not my idea of fun. 00:02:56.189 --> 00:03:00.189 So I up my game this time. I got a hammock. Okay? 00:03:00.530 --> 00:03:05.370 Still in the parking lot. But did you know unicorns 00:03:05.370 --> 00:03:10.169 are real? You don't believe me. Look at this 00:03:10.169 --> 00:03:19.789 guy. That's right. Captured on my iPhone. Because 00:03:19.789 --> 00:03:24.189 I was in the parking lot. Yeah, that guy's there. 00:03:24.250 --> 00:03:25.990 But you know what else you get? Like sleeping 00:03:25.990 --> 00:03:28.550 in a hammock in a parking lot. You also get this. 00:03:28.610 --> 00:03:33.180 These views. I mean, they're just stunning. Right? 00:03:33.259 --> 00:03:35.719 Like it slows your heart rate. It's good for 00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:41.099 you. And so I'm in the parking lot in the hammock. 00:03:41.120 --> 00:03:45.360 We've done our practice day, right? And I'm in 00:03:45.360 --> 00:03:49.099 the hammock and it's 2 .15 in the morning. You 00:03:49.099 --> 00:03:56.439 ever been woken up to, hee -haw, hee -haw, right? 00:03:56.520 --> 00:04:01.780 Like out of nowhere, 2 .15, this guy, This guy 00:04:01.780 --> 00:04:06.599 decides, true story, this guy, he walks up to 00:04:06.599 --> 00:04:09.199 me to get a picture. Like he's all the way over 00:04:09.199 --> 00:04:11.879 and I'm the one going, okay, I'm good, I'm good. 00:04:11.900 --> 00:04:14.219 I don't need you to get any closer to me, right? 00:04:15.280 --> 00:04:17.699 So here's the backstory on this, right? Like 00:04:17.699 --> 00:04:20.180 I sleep on a cot and I got to thinking a rattlesnake, 00:04:20.180 --> 00:04:22.100 that's about the same height as the cot. I'm 00:04:22.100 --> 00:04:23.800 sure that rattlesnake could just stick its head 00:04:23.800 --> 00:04:26.899 up over the cot. So I'm like. I'm not doing that. 00:04:26.939 --> 00:04:28.259 I'm going to get a hammock, get off the floor. 00:04:28.379 --> 00:04:31.160 Well, then I'm told, well, sometimes the donkeys 00:04:31.160 --> 00:04:33.560 decide they're just going to walk over and just 00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:35.899 inspect stuff. I'm like, well, a donkey's head 00:04:35.899 --> 00:04:39.279 height is right at my hammock. So now I hear 00:04:39.279 --> 00:04:42.459 the hee -haw at 215, and I'm like straight up, 00:04:42.500 --> 00:04:44.879 like looking for the donkey. Where are they? 00:04:44.920 --> 00:04:48.279 And there's a whole bunch of them, like too close 00:04:48.279 --> 00:04:51.259 for comfort. You ever been woken up by a donkey? 00:04:52.680 --> 00:04:56.019 Some of you are like my husband snoring. That's 00:04:56.019 --> 00:05:01.540 not kind. That's not kind. Right. So so the donkeys 00:05:01.540 --> 00:05:06.319 get going. I react. Right. Like to their activity. 00:05:06.600 --> 00:05:10.899 I react. I'm up looking. Well, now the donkeys 00:05:10.899 --> 00:05:13.439 get done. The coyotes start howling instantly 00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:16.879 after. I'm like, what is happening? They're like 00:05:16.879 --> 00:05:19.160 the worship of the animals at 215. Like, what 00:05:19.160 --> 00:05:21.579 is this? Right. And they're just howling. So. 00:05:22.300 --> 00:05:24.560 So somebody told me on this fishing deal, they're 00:05:24.560 --> 00:05:26.079 like, I don't believe that you actually go fishing. 00:05:26.160 --> 00:05:30.120 I know you. I need proof of life. So so we go 00:05:30.120 --> 00:05:31.879 down practice day, you guys. And we're there 00:05:31.879 --> 00:05:35.500 45 minutes. And this guy, I pulled this guy out 00:05:35.500 --> 00:05:39.379 of the lake. Now, he's just a little guy, but 00:05:39.379 --> 00:05:42.620 he's got a big mouth. Right. And so I send that 00:05:42.620 --> 00:05:44.439 to my friend. I'm like proof of life. Right. 00:05:44.480 --> 00:05:46.600 Here it is. Proof that I'm actually fishing. 00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:49.779 And you guys, I'm like, yes, tournament three 00:05:49.779 --> 00:05:54.689 is going to be on. I got this down now. The only 00:05:54.689 --> 00:05:56.290 thing I caught the rest of the day, Swedish fish 00:05:56.290 --> 00:06:00.370 might have been bigger, right? So we get to tournament 00:06:00.370 --> 00:06:05.170 day and now we're on the lake and I'm like, okay, 00:06:05.269 --> 00:06:09.110 we got this. So early morning, like it's perfect. 00:06:09.149 --> 00:06:11.649 If you're a fishing person, like where it's calm 00:06:11.649 --> 00:06:13.370 and there's a tree and you know there's stuff 00:06:13.370 --> 00:06:15.170 underneath, you're like, man, I'm going to hit 00:06:15.170 --> 00:06:17.779 them with some top water, right? So that's a 00:06:17.779 --> 00:06:19.540 little lure, throw it out there. It's got a little 00:06:19.540 --> 00:06:22.800 pop to it, right? We're popping sounds. And I'm 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:24.339 like, I'm going to get this fish. I just feel 00:06:24.339 --> 00:06:26.819 it, right? This is the start of the day. We're 00:06:26.819 --> 00:06:29.759 inside the first hour. Bang, two and a half pound 00:06:29.759 --> 00:06:33.819 fish. The only problem was it was the wrong species. 00:06:35.319 --> 00:06:37.540 It was a white bass instead of a largemouth. 00:06:37.779 --> 00:06:39.899 My brother -in -law looks at me and goes, I have 00:06:39.899 --> 00:06:43.279 never seen anybody do that. And I'm like, well, 00:06:43.319 --> 00:06:45.079 it's just me because God knew I needed an intro 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:48.040 to a message. But you know what's amazing with 00:06:48.040 --> 00:06:50.399 fishing? What's amazing with fishing is you're 00:06:50.399 --> 00:06:54.939 always changing your activity. You're proactive, 00:06:55.240 --> 00:06:57.699 right? Like you're changing, trying to get the 00:06:57.699 --> 00:07:01.600 fish to react. I think that's what Luke 8 is 00:07:01.600 --> 00:07:05.000 all about. That God has been proactive. Proactive. 00:07:05.000 --> 00:07:07.360 If you've been here, the story of the sower, 00:07:07.379 --> 00:07:10.100 God has been throwing seed to you. Right. Like 00:07:10.100 --> 00:07:13.259 he has been proactive that even though you didn't 00:07:13.259 --> 00:07:14.939 deserve it, even though you know where you are, 00:07:15.000 --> 00:07:17.720 God is still giving you seed. Right. To try and 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:19.959 get something to grow. God has been proactive. 00:07:20.399 --> 00:07:23.600 And the whole point of Luke 8 is that you would 00:07:23.600 --> 00:07:27.259 be reactive spiritually with God. Right. Like 00:07:27.259 --> 00:07:29.839 the whole thing that God has been doing is trying 00:07:29.839 --> 00:07:33.000 to engage you and get you to be reactive. And 00:07:33.000 --> 00:07:36.750 he is the one being proactive to you. So much 00:07:36.750 --> 00:07:38.990 so that it comes to this hinge pin verse that 00:07:38.990 --> 00:07:43.089 we hit last week where it says that my family 00:07:43.089 --> 00:07:46.050 are the ones, so Jesus speaking, my family are 00:07:46.050 --> 00:07:53.449 the ones that listen and do. They take the proactivity 00:07:53.449 --> 00:07:59.889 of God to speak and then what we do, what humans 00:07:59.889 --> 00:08:04.029 do, we respond to what God's been doing. We react. 00:08:04.110 --> 00:08:06.110 And so it's the hinge pin verse because what 00:08:06.110 --> 00:08:08.910 comes after this is four stories. The first story 00:08:08.910 --> 00:08:10.589 you might be familiar with. There's a boat and 00:08:10.589 --> 00:08:12.569 a storm and the disciples think they're going 00:08:12.569 --> 00:08:15.209 to drown. You know, they're there. I thought 00:08:15.209 --> 00:08:17.250 I was going to drown this week, but that's OK. 00:08:17.370 --> 00:08:20.110 This is a different story for another time. They 00:08:20.110 --> 00:08:21.870 think they're going to drown and they wake up 00:08:21.870 --> 00:08:24.930 Jesus. And guess what Jesus says? These are the 00:08:24.930 --> 00:08:28.060 guys. These are the guys. That when Jesus goes, 00:08:28.139 --> 00:08:30.040 hey, who has ears, let them hear, meaning engage 00:08:30.040 --> 00:08:31.500 me spiritually. These are the guys that stand 00:08:31.500 --> 00:08:33.659 up and go, what does it mean? Tell us. We're 00:08:33.659 --> 00:08:37.500 engaging you. And so he tells them, he tells 00:08:37.500 --> 00:08:39.500 them the meaning of the parable. But then in 00:08:39.500 --> 00:08:44.080 the storm, he says, where's your faith? Where's 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:47.980 your faith? You heard I was the Messiah. You 00:08:47.980 --> 00:08:49.879 think the Messiah is going to be taken out by 00:08:49.879 --> 00:08:53.279 a storm in a boat? You think the son of God is 00:08:53.279 --> 00:08:55.509 going to be like. Like, so he's challenging, 00:08:55.590 --> 00:08:59.889 he's challenging their reaction. He's challenging 00:08:59.889 --> 00:09:05.669 their faith. The very next story, Luke chapter 00:09:05.669 --> 00:09:10.070 8, verse 26. They sailed, so continuing in the 00:09:10.070 --> 00:09:12.129 boat, right? They get through the storm. Sail 00:09:12.129 --> 00:09:14.789 to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across 00:09:14.789 --> 00:09:20.730 the lake from Galilee. When Jesus stepped ashore. 00:09:22.210 --> 00:09:28.679 Wait. When Jesus stepped ashore, Jesus is the 00:09:28.679 --> 00:09:31.299 one that has been proactive to go from where 00:09:31.299 --> 00:09:34.440 he was all the way across this lake. And we're 00:09:34.440 --> 00:09:36.879 going to discover that he meets a man. I think 00:09:36.879 --> 00:09:39.539 it's worth just noting that the man was the destination 00:09:39.539 --> 00:09:43.720 of the trip for Jesus. The Jesus is proactive. 00:09:44.600 --> 00:09:48.120 He's proactive to go across the lake through 00:09:48.120 --> 00:09:50.700 a storm, which tells me this, that Jesus will 00:09:50.700 --> 00:09:54.049 go through some darkness to get to you. Right. 00:09:54.110 --> 00:09:56.889 And then when he gets there, when he gets there, 00:09:56.990 --> 00:10:00.990 what he is stepping into is a Gentile area, which 00:10:00.990 --> 00:10:04.149 was opposed to the God of the Bible. If you want 00:10:04.149 --> 00:10:06.470 to, you could put it on the outsider's territory. 00:10:06.690 --> 00:10:09.629 And Jesus steps into the outsider's territory 00:10:09.629 --> 00:10:12.450 and he is present in the darkness of the man 00:10:12.450 --> 00:10:15.529 we're about to meet. Jesus enters the darkness. 00:10:16.600 --> 00:10:18.919 And I have to believe that Jesus is not scared 00:10:18.919 --> 00:10:21.080 of the darkness in your life. He is not scared 00:10:21.080 --> 00:10:23.019 to enter the darkness of your life. And he's 00:10:23.019 --> 00:10:25.620 not scared to be fully present in the darkness 00:10:25.620 --> 00:10:29.440 of your life. Your darkness does not scare him. 00:10:30.899 --> 00:10:33.559 Right? We sit in here and if we were to give 00:10:33.559 --> 00:10:35.120 a microphone, there are things that we would 00:10:35.120 --> 00:10:36.659 not share because we're embarrassed. There's 00:10:36.659 --> 00:10:37.899 things that we would not share because they're 00:10:37.899 --> 00:10:41.740 too dark. You just need to know that Jesus is 00:10:41.740 --> 00:10:47.480 already in the middle of it. When Jesus stepped 00:10:47.480 --> 00:10:52.480 ashore, he was met by a demon -possessed man 00:10:52.480 --> 00:10:58.120 from the town. He was met by a demon -possessed... 00:10:58.120 --> 00:11:02.000 Isn't it fascinating the labels we put on people? 00:11:03.000 --> 00:11:05.600 Isn't it fascinating the identities that we put 00:11:05.600 --> 00:11:08.740 to people? So of all the things you can pick 00:11:08.740 --> 00:11:10.659 about this guy, you pick that he is the demon 00:11:10.659 --> 00:11:14.639 -possessed man. That is not the word, that is 00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:16.679 not the word that Jesus is speaking over him. 00:11:17.299 --> 00:11:19.720 And I wonder how many things in your life, how 00:11:19.720 --> 00:11:22.620 many identities, false identities you sit under 00:11:22.620 --> 00:11:25.759 that Jesus didn't speak that, somebody else spoke 00:11:25.759 --> 00:11:30.059 that over you. The identity you live with, the 00:11:30.059 --> 00:11:33.730 identity you're known for. It's not you that 00:11:33.730 --> 00:11:36.870 created that. It's somebody else's words speaking 00:11:36.870 --> 00:11:40.730 over you. And now you assume life under the identity 00:11:40.730 --> 00:11:43.330 of somebody else's false narrative about your 00:11:43.330 --> 00:11:46.929 life. Instead of letting God shape your identity 00:11:46.929 --> 00:11:50.090 and God shape who he says you are and what you 00:11:50.090 --> 00:11:51.470 are to be known by and what you're known for. 00:11:51.629 --> 00:11:53.830 Now, in this case, it says that when Jesus steps 00:11:53.830 --> 00:11:55.809 through, he's met by a man, demon possessed man 00:11:55.809 --> 00:11:58.389 from the town for a long time, for a long time. 00:11:59.720 --> 00:12:02.460 I think sometimes we fall into the things we 00:12:02.460 --> 00:12:05.519 are known for and the things that we do. I think 00:12:05.519 --> 00:12:07.700 sometimes those things that we're known for and 00:12:07.700 --> 00:12:10.419 those things that we do, they become our identity, 00:12:10.440 --> 00:12:12.600 whether we like it or not. But you just need 00:12:12.600 --> 00:12:14.720 to know today, that's not who God says you are. 00:12:15.720 --> 00:12:22.220 That's not who God says you are. That while people 00:12:22.220 --> 00:12:25.279 may want to say that of you, you need to set 00:12:25.279 --> 00:12:28.220 your ear attuned to the voice of God. And what 00:12:28.220 --> 00:12:31.960 does God say that you are? And so this man comes. 00:12:32.019 --> 00:12:34.019 He's been there a long time. He had not worn 00:12:34.019 --> 00:12:38.740 clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in 00:12:38.740 --> 00:12:40.460 the tombs. I mean, this guy could have been known 00:12:40.460 --> 00:12:43.500 as the naked guy, right? He hasn't worn clothes. 00:12:43.580 --> 00:12:47.100 Now, naked in this culture at this time, naked 00:12:47.100 --> 00:12:50.700 connected shame to it. There's a deep shame to 00:12:50.700 --> 00:12:54.820 being naked in this culture. This man, what he's 00:12:54.820 --> 00:12:56.519 trying to get us to understand is for a long 00:12:56.519 --> 00:12:59.279 time, because of the enemy and what the enemy 00:12:59.279 --> 00:13:01.840 is doing to him and the way the enemy is moving 00:13:01.840 --> 00:13:04.860 him, that what is happening in his life is causing 00:13:04.860 --> 00:13:08.580 shame and is causing hiding. So he ends up in 00:13:08.580 --> 00:13:11.000 the tombs. He ends up isolated. Why? Because 00:13:11.000 --> 00:13:12.879 the enemy would love for you to be isolated. 00:13:13.059 --> 00:13:15.360 Do you know why? He does his best work in isolation. 00:13:16.299 --> 00:13:18.500 When you're in a community, when you're connected 00:13:18.500 --> 00:13:23.080 to people, the enemy can't do it the same way 00:13:23.080 --> 00:13:25.419 that he does when you are isolated in an echo 00:13:25.419 --> 00:13:28.720 chamber of one. When you are isolated to your 00:13:28.720 --> 00:13:31.200 own thoughts, when you're isolated to your own 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:33.340 feelings, when you're isolated to your own view 00:13:33.340 --> 00:13:37.399 of the world, it's really easy for the enemy 00:13:37.399 --> 00:13:41.580 to convince you of anything in that space. But 00:13:41.580 --> 00:13:43.779 you get with a group of people and you get known 00:13:43.779 --> 00:13:46.100 and seen and loved and they hear your struggle 00:13:46.100 --> 00:13:48.000 and they enter your struggle and all of a sudden 00:13:48.000 --> 00:13:50.559 what the enemy has to say has no stronghold on 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:55.419 you anymore. And so the enemy would love to push 00:13:55.419 --> 00:13:58.200 you to isolation. He lived in the tombs. He could 00:13:58.200 --> 00:13:59.720 have been known as the homeless man. He doesn't 00:13:59.720 --> 00:14:04.279 live in a house. Verse 28, when he saw Jesus. 00:14:05.039 --> 00:14:07.840 He cried out, fell at his feet, shouting at the 00:14:07.840 --> 00:14:11.980 top of his voice, What do you want with me, Jesus, 00:14:12.120 --> 00:14:15.379 Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don't torture 00:14:15.379 --> 00:14:20.480 me. So isn't it fascinating? He's in his own 00:14:20.480 --> 00:14:23.720 skin, but he is a puppet in his own skin. He's 00:14:23.720 --> 00:14:26.720 a puppet in his own skin. What do I mean? Him 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:29.740 coming and him falling at the feet and him declaring 00:14:29.740 --> 00:14:33.049 the name of Jesus. Oh, it's his body. And it's 00:14:33.049 --> 00:14:34.970 his voice, but they're not his words and they're 00:14:34.970 --> 00:14:38.450 not his actions. The enemy has full control of 00:14:38.450 --> 00:14:41.230 him that what is happening in this moment is 00:14:41.230 --> 00:14:43.730 that he is now a puppet to what the enemy wants. 00:14:43.909 --> 00:14:46.309 And what you hear is the voice of the enemy through 00:14:46.309 --> 00:14:49.110 him. And I just wonder for us how many of us 00:14:49.110 --> 00:14:53.269 are puppets in our own skin. Like, think about 00:14:53.269 --> 00:14:59.330 it. You open up an app and an algorithm chooses 00:14:59.330 --> 00:15:03.029 what you spend the next two hours doing. You 00:15:03.029 --> 00:15:04.990 didn't choose the algorithm. You didn't choose 00:15:04.990 --> 00:15:07.169 the content. You happen to stay a little too 00:15:07.169 --> 00:15:08.990 long on one video. Now, all of a sudden, you've 00:15:08.990 --> 00:15:12.309 got all those videos, right? And maybe it's not 00:15:12.309 --> 00:15:15.250 social media. This ever happened to you? I was 00:15:15.250 --> 00:15:16.990 having a discussion in my kitchen with one of 00:15:16.990 --> 00:15:18.870 my daughters about a water bottle. And all of 00:15:18.870 --> 00:15:20.610 a sudden, on my feed, I'm getting water bottles 00:15:20.610 --> 00:15:23.110 in the exact color we were talking about, right? 00:15:23.929 --> 00:15:27.429 And what did I do? I clicked on it. And now I'm 00:15:27.429 --> 00:15:29.970 purchasing water bottles that I had no intention 00:15:29.970 --> 00:15:34.049 of purchasing, right? Why? Because it's a small 00:15:34.049 --> 00:15:36.750 example, but when the enemy gets in, you can 00:15:36.750 --> 00:15:39.850 become a puppet in your own skin. Stuff that 00:15:39.850 --> 00:15:41.590 you're like, I never thought I would do that. 00:15:41.970 --> 00:15:44.169 And reality was you weren't in control of your 00:15:44.169 --> 00:15:48.389 body because you've given up control that Jesus 00:15:48.389 --> 00:15:50.350 is trying to get for you. Why? Because the enemy 00:15:50.350 --> 00:15:52.809 would love for you. The enemy would love for 00:15:52.809 --> 00:15:57.090 you to do what he wants you to do and how he 00:15:57.090 --> 00:15:59.610 wants you to do it. And this guy comes and he 00:15:59.610 --> 00:16:04.299 falls and even notice the enemy. He says at the 00:16:04.299 --> 00:16:06.019 end of that verse, most high God, Jesus, son 00:16:06.019 --> 00:16:08.220 of the most high God, I beg you, don't torture 00:16:08.220 --> 00:16:12.059 me. Pause. When in scripture have you heard God 00:16:12.059 --> 00:16:17.080 go, oh, I'm so excited to torture. I just can't 00:16:17.080 --> 00:16:22.580 wait. It's not there. You have the God who is 00:16:22.580 --> 00:16:26.860 long suffering. Yes, Jesus is a judge. Yes, God 00:16:26.860 --> 00:16:30.169 the Father is a judge. But you don't have anywhere 00:16:30.169 --> 00:16:32.690 where that judgment is something that is exciting 00:16:32.690 --> 00:16:34.970 and something that he's like, I just can't wait 00:16:34.970 --> 00:16:38.750 to do this to you. And the enemy will even twist 00:16:38.750 --> 00:16:40.870 the very character and nature of God for you 00:16:40.870 --> 00:16:43.149 to believe something about God that's not found 00:16:43.149 --> 00:16:46.110 in this book. That's why getting in the book 00:16:46.110 --> 00:16:48.230 and understanding it. That's why getting around 00:16:48.230 --> 00:16:50.710 people that can silence the enemy's voice so 00:16:50.710 --> 00:16:53.090 that you can understand who God actually is. 00:16:53.769 --> 00:16:56.289 That you can understand the God who is compassionate 00:16:56.289 --> 00:17:04.099 and gracious and kind. Verse 29, for Jesus had 00:17:04.099 --> 00:17:06.420 commanded the impure spirit to come out of the 00:17:06.420 --> 00:17:12.259 man. I read this and I go, wait a minute. A three 00:17:12.259 --> 00:17:16.839 -letter word stopped me in my tracks. So the 00:17:16.839 --> 00:17:21.519 man in the verse before falls at Jesus' feet, 00:17:21.619 --> 00:17:26.380 cries out to Jesus, right? But notice what it 00:17:26.380 --> 00:17:30.519 says in verse 29, for Jesus, What's that next 00:17:30.519 --> 00:17:39.799 word? Had. Wait. The way it's captured makes 00:17:39.799 --> 00:17:43.240 it sound like the man comes to Jesus and falls 00:17:43.240 --> 00:17:46.440 at his feet. And then it should be Jesus commanded 00:17:46.440 --> 00:17:48.119 the spirit to come out of it. That's not what 00:17:48.119 --> 00:17:51.039 it says. So I was like, okay, I'm confused because 00:17:51.039 --> 00:17:55.140 the order seems off here. So I went and found 00:17:55.140 --> 00:17:57.299 Pastor Nolan. I go, hey, I only have two minutes. 00:17:57.339 --> 00:17:59.160 I just need your quick, big -brained answer. 00:18:00.970 --> 00:18:04.069 In the Greek, what is actually happening with 00:18:04.069 --> 00:18:06.109 this three letter word we translate had because 00:18:06.109 --> 00:18:09.950 had speaks of tense that this has already happened. 00:18:10.930 --> 00:18:13.230 And so he looks it up like he does and he goes, 00:18:13.230 --> 00:18:17.789 no, you're right. The tense here is that it could 00:18:17.789 --> 00:18:20.829 be a one time command that Jesus gave or it's 00:18:20.829 --> 00:18:23.289 an ongoing command, which is why it's written 00:18:23.289 --> 00:18:26.430 the way it is in the narrative. He goes, but 00:18:26.430 --> 00:18:31.700 either way, the person initiating. is Jesus, 00:18:31.700 --> 00:18:36.079 not the enemy. And instantly I went, oh my gosh, 00:18:36.240 --> 00:18:39.819 this is huge. Because what it means is this, 00:18:39.960 --> 00:18:44.180 that Jesus is the one being proactive and the 00:18:44.180 --> 00:18:48.279 enemy is the one being reactive. So Jesus is 00:18:48.279 --> 00:18:52.380 the one doing it, whatever it is first, and the 00:18:52.380 --> 00:18:56.480 enemy is responding to what God is doing. What 00:18:56.480 --> 00:19:01.170 that means is that The enemy is not setting the 00:19:01.170 --> 00:19:06.269 pace of what's happening. God is. So if you take 00:19:06.269 --> 00:19:07.849 notes or you've got notes on your phone, you 00:19:07.849 --> 00:19:09.250 need to write this down. It's this important 00:19:09.250 --> 00:19:13.289 to you understanding the Bible. This idea that 00:19:13.289 --> 00:19:19.630 God, Jesus, is proactive and the enemy is reactive 00:19:19.630 --> 00:19:22.609 is all the way through Scripture. All of a sudden 00:19:22.609 --> 00:19:25.410 I go, this is a pattern on all of the pages of 00:19:25.410 --> 00:19:27.650 Scripture. Think about it for a second. God shows 00:19:27.650 --> 00:19:30.230 up. Or he's been there. He didn't show up. He 00:19:30.230 --> 00:19:32.349 just decided to do it, right? Like he creates 00:19:32.349 --> 00:19:34.630 and he says, it's very good. What does the enemy 00:19:34.630 --> 00:19:38.789 do? He reacts to very good to show up and try 00:19:38.789 --> 00:19:42.250 and break it, right? Think about Job. God blesses 00:19:42.250 --> 00:19:45.869 Job. And what does the enemy do? Hey, can we, 00:19:45.869 --> 00:19:49.750 can we like take his stuff away? Right? Like 00:19:49.750 --> 00:19:52.029 all the way through scripture, Jesus shows up 00:19:52.029 --> 00:19:53.589 and what does the enemy do? We're going to kill 00:19:53.589 --> 00:19:57.230 him. Then we'll win. The enemy is always reacting 00:19:57.230 --> 00:20:00.349 to what God does. This is monumental to your 00:20:00.349 --> 00:20:04.410 faith. That when God does something in your life, 00:20:04.630 --> 00:20:07.910 like throw some seed at the beginning of this 00:20:07.910 --> 00:20:13.039 chapter, when God blesses you with good, Why? 00:20:13.099 --> 00:20:15.339 Because God showed up in what was the first words 00:20:15.339 --> 00:20:17.779 Jesus, when he got to his formal communication 00:20:17.779 --> 00:20:19.799 that we have. I'm sure he said a lot more before 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:22.500 this. But what we have recorded is he shows up 00:20:22.500 --> 00:20:25.920 and he goes, blessed. God is on the side of who? 00:20:26.660 --> 00:20:30.039 Those that are far away from him. God is on the 00:20:30.039 --> 00:20:32.400 side of those that mourn. God is on the side 00:20:32.400 --> 00:20:35.200 of the poor. What does he show up? He goes, wait, 00:20:35.240 --> 00:20:38.380 wait, wait. God is blessing, blessing, blessing. 00:20:39.680 --> 00:20:41.400 And what does the enemy want to do? Convince 00:20:41.400 --> 00:20:43.319 you that God is out to get you, that God's not 00:20:43.319 --> 00:20:45.119 kind, that he's not loving, that he's not on 00:20:45.119 --> 00:20:47.359 your side. So every time that blessing comes 00:20:47.359 --> 00:20:48.819 your way, guess what the enemy wants to do? He 00:20:48.819 --> 00:20:50.819 wants to show up in your life and go, no, he's 00:20:50.819 --> 00:20:54.579 not. The enemy wants to react to what God is 00:20:54.579 --> 00:21:00.539 doing in your life every single time. He ever 00:21:00.539 --> 00:21:04.700 tried to have a conversation about sex with a, 00:21:04.799 --> 00:21:07.819 depending on the age that you do it with, but 00:21:07.819 --> 00:21:11.119 let's say middle schooler. And they look at you 00:21:11.119 --> 00:21:15.180 like, that is the weirdest, grossest thing. And 00:21:15.180 --> 00:21:16.779 then you try and tell them, no, no, no, no, it's 00:21:16.779 --> 00:21:20.680 good. God created it. Where did that come from? 00:21:21.480 --> 00:21:25.160 That it would be twisted? What came from an enemy 00:21:25.160 --> 00:21:26.960 that would want to convince you that sex inside 00:21:26.960 --> 00:21:29.140 of marriage between two people is the best thing 00:21:29.140 --> 00:21:30.900 that there could ever be because that's how God 00:21:30.900 --> 00:21:33.920 made it to be? So he would love to convince you 00:21:33.920 --> 00:21:35.559 that that's not actually accurate. God's holding 00:21:35.559 --> 00:21:38.019 out on you, so you should. Therefore, do all 00:21:38.019 --> 00:21:39.839 these other things. And you do all those other 00:21:39.839 --> 00:21:42.000 things, and then you realize that you have scars 00:21:42.000 --> 00:21:45.339 that you never intended to have. Right? Why? 00:21:45.400 --> 00:21:47.660 Because the enemy wants to destroy what is good. 00:21:48.920 --> 00:21:51.940 So if God goes, this is good, and it belongs 00:21:51.940 --> 00:21:55.259 here, and then all of a sudden, all of a sudden, 00:21:55.319 --> 00:21:57.920 the enemy comes along and goes, nah, it's better 00:21:57.920 --> 00:22:01.079 over here. You ever sit with somebody, by the 00:22:01.079 --> 00:22:04.859 way, that's had an affair? And they tell you 00:22:04.859 --> 00:22:07.420 how good it was? Or they thought it was going 00:22:07.420 --> 00:22:11.240 to be only to be decimated by what happened. 00:22:13.220 --> 00:22:14.960 And what does the enemy do? He comes along and 00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:17.140 he sends you a whole bunch of apps. Hey, you 00:22:17.140 --> 00:22:18.940 can be with whoever you want, whenever you want, 00:22:19.000 --> 00:22:21.559 and it doesn't matter. I'm here to tell you the 00:22:21.559 --> 00:22:23.920 enemy would love to convince you that what God 00:22:23.920 --> 00:22:26.779 says is good. He will try and twist and say it's 00:22:26.779 --> 00:22:30.079 not every single time. Why? Because Jesus is 00:22:30.079 --> 00:22:38.140 proactive and the enemy is reactive. Got real 00:22:38.140 --> 00:22:43.160 quiet in here. For Jesus commanded the emperor 00:22:43.160 --> 00:22:45.720 spirits come out of the man many times, many 00:22:45.720 --> 00:22:48.579 times it seized him. And though he was chained 00:22:48.579 --> 00:22:51.319 hand and foot and kept under guard, he had broken 00:22:51.319 --> 00:22:54.200 his chains and have been driven by the demon 00:22:54.200 --> 00:22:56.480 into solitary places. There it is again that 00:22:56.480 --> 00:22:59.880 the enemy wants to lead you to solitary, isolated 00:22:59.880 --> 00:23:02.299 places, right? Like places away from people. 00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:04.539 I used to read this and think that, man, they 00:23:04.539 --> 00:23:07.740 were cruel to him. Like they tied him up in chains 00:23:07.740 --> 00:23:10.839 like they and then and then I was reading it 00:23:10.839 --> 00:23:12.299 this time and I go, actually, that's not what 00:23:12.299 --> 00:23:15.099 it says here. What it says is his community, 00:23:15.259 --> 00:23:18.380 his community that he was in, they were actually 00:23:18.380 --> 00:23:20.660 trying to protect him from what the enemy was 00:23:20.660 --> 00:23:23.529 doing. And so the enemy would come and the enemy 00:23:23.529 --> 00:23:26.349 would possess him. So what they thought is, hey, 00:23:26.390 --> 00:23:29.309 we'll put you in chains, physical chains, and 00:23:29.309 --> 00:23:31.869 we will put guards around you and then we can 00:23:31.869 --> 00:23:35.309 stop what's coming. Maybe just worth grabbing 00:23:35.309 --> 00:23:38.789 here that they are trying to use physical means 00:23:38.789 --> 00:23:42.829 like chains to fight a spiritual battle. You 00:23:42.829 --> 00:23:45.430 can't use physical means to fight a spiritual 00:23:45.430 --> 00:23:48.940 battle. Only the person of Jesus and what God 00:23:48.940 --> 00:23:50.859 has done can fight the spiritual battle in your 00:23:50.859 --> 00:23:55.740 life. Which is why when people in marriages are 00:23:55.740 --> 00:23:59.660 struggling, yes, can you get advice? Yes, but 00:23:59.660 --> 00:24:01.960 the only thing that will heal your marriage is 00:24:01.960 --> 00:24:05.759 the person of Jesus. That's it. Why? Because 00:24:05.759 --> 00:24:08.880 it's a spiritual fight. The only thing that will 00:24:08.880 --> 00:24:12.700 change your anger to love is a transformation 00:24:12.700 --> 00:24:16.000 by the person of Jesus. The only thing that will 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:18.819 heal where you don't have peace, the only thing 00:24:18.819 --> 00:24:20.680 that can bring peace is the person of Jesus. 00:24:20.900 --> 00:24:24.079 And so too often we're like, okay, do all these 00:24:24.079 --> 00:24:25.740 physical things and I'll find peace. You ever 00:24:25.740 --> 00:24:27.319 meet that person? They got their Zen garden. 00:24:27.440 --> 00:24:29.039 You know what I'm talking about? Like they are, 00:24:29.039 --> 00:24:32.559 they are Zen. And then the slightest thing happens 00:24:32.559 --> 00:24:37.119 and they're like, oh, right. And you're like, 00:24:37.160 --> 00:24:38.619 that's not very peaceful. I thought you found 00:24:38.619 --> 00:24:40.900 Zen. And they're like, I got to go back to my 00:24:40.900 --> 00:24:44.960 garden. Why? Because peace is a spiritual battle, 00:24:45.039 --> 00:24:48.539 you guys. And only God himself is going to bring 00:24:48.539 --> 00:24:52.700 peace. So the more we try to fill the void with 00:24:52.700 --> 00:24:55.259 these, you're in a spiritual battle, but I try 00:24:55.259 --> 00:24:57.059 these physical things, they will always come 00:24:57.059 --> 00:24:58.900 up short, just like the chains that are holding 00:24:58.900 --> 00:25:04.579 this man. Jesus asked him, verse 30, what is 00:25:04.579 --> 00:25:08.539 your name? Oh man, you guys, what is your name? 00:25:10.519 --> 00:25:19.910 Don't you love? God is so gracious. Right? Think 00:25:19.910 --> 00:25:22.809 about creation. Humans sin. They turn against 00:25:22.809 --> 00:25:25.529 God. God shows up. Why? Because God is proactive. 00:25:26.950 --> 00:25:30.069 God shows up and what does he say? Where are 00:25:30.069 --> 00:25:36.849 you? Where are you? What's your name? Legion, 00:25:36.990 --> 00:25:41.430 he replied. Still not the man speaking. Because 00:25:41.430 --> 00:25:45.069 many demons have gone into him. That word legion 00:25:45.069 --> 00:25:49.829 can be connected to thousands. And they begged 00:25:49.829 --> 00:25:52.210 Jesus repeatedly not to order them to go into 00:25:52.210 --> 00:25:54.230 the abyss. We don't have time to unpack it. They 00:25:54.230 --> 00:25:56.829 know what's beyond the grave. They're like, don't 00:25:56.829 --> 00:26:00.269 send us to there. Instead, a large herd of pigs 00:26:00.269 --> 00:26:02.849 was feeding there on the hillside. The demons 00:26:02.849 --> 00:26:05.089 begged Jesus. The demons begged Jesus. Let's 00:26:05.089 --> 00:26:08.009 just be clear who's doing the begging. The demons 00:26:08.009 --> 00:26:11.960 begged Jesus. So let them go into the pigs and 00:26:11.960 --> 00:26:16.259 he gave them permission. They know who has the 00:26:16.259 --> 00:26:21.180 power. The enemy knows who has the power. And 00:26:21.180 --> 00:26:24.240 I think Pastor Ben made a good connection during 00:26:24.240 --> 00:26:25.980 our teaching prep this week where he goes, hey, 00:26:26.019 --> 00:26:28.480 in Ephesians, Paul's praying for the church. 00:26:29.500 --> 00:26:31.359 And when he prays for the church, he wants them 00:26:31.359 --> 00:26:34.619 to know, he wants them to know the power that's 00:26:34.619 --> 00:26:37.359 inside of them. That the same spirit that raised 00:26:37.359 --> 00:26:39.779 Jesus from the dead is alive and well inside 00:26:39.779 --> 00:26:43.500 of his followers. The enemy knows the power that's 00:26:43.500 --> 00:26:45.799 in your life. The enemy knows the power that's 00:26:45.799 --> 00:26:50.079 been put inside you. The enemy wants to unplug 00:26:50.079 --> 00:26:53.619 your power source, so to speak, and will do whatever 00:26:53.619 --> 00:26:57.420 he can for you to forget that inside of you is 00:26:57.420 --> 00:27:01.119 the same spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. 00:27:02.539 --> 00:27:08.160 Right here, right now. The same power. Verse 00:27:08.160 --> 00:27:10.119 33, when the demons came out of the man, they 00:27:10.119 --> 00:27:12.559 went into the pigs and the herd rushed down the 00:27:12.559 --> 00:27:15.960 steep bank into the lake and was drowned. Some 00:27:15.960 --> 00:27:18.759 people say, well, why would Jesus let them go 00:27:18.759 --> 00:27:20.359 in if he knew they were going to kill the pigs? 00:27:20.660 --> 00:27:28.000 That seems inhumane to the pigs. I would say 00:27:28.000 --> 00:27:30.579 this to that. I think we're supposed to get a 00:27:30.579 --> 00:27:32.180 picture of what the enemy wants to do in your 00:27:32.180 --> 00:27:36.210 life. And what he did in the pigs. The enemy 00:27:36.210 --> 00:27:39.930 wants to run you off a cliff and drown you. The 00:27:39.930 --> 00:27:45.130 enemy wants to destroy and kill. When those tending 00:27:45.130 --> 00:27:48.490 the pigs saw what had happened. They ran off. 00:27:49.430 --> 00:27:52.809 And reported in the town. In the town. So they 00:27:52.809 --> 00:27:56.670 just take off. Telling the countryside. And the 00:27:56.670 --> 00:27:58.190 people went out to see what had happened. When 00:27:58.190 --> 00:28:01.130 they came to Jesus, they found the man. When 00:28:01.130 --> 00:28:06.069 they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom 00:28:06.069 --> 00:28:09.930 the demons had gone out. You see the change in 00:28:09.930 --> 00:28:13.769 identity? He was this guy, but he met Jesus. 00:28:14.410 --> 00:28:17.910 And he ain't that guy no more. The demons had 00:28:17.910 --> 00:28:23.009 gone out, sitting at Jesus' feet. Dressed and 00:28:23.009 --> 00:28:27.349 in his right mind and they were afraid. It's 00:28:27.349 --> 00:28:29.650 one of the most beautiful verses in all of the 00:28:29.650 --> 00:28:33.049 Bible. That when Jesus shows up into the darkness 00:28:33.049 --> 00:28:35.549 and the demons are tormenting. It says that the 00:28:35.549 --> 00:28:38.950 outcome of meeting Jesus is that this man is 00:28:38.950 --> 00:28:44.809 sitting in his right mind. The reason that phrasing 00:28:44.809 --> 00:28:47.670 is used is because he was shattered into pieces 00:28:47.670 --> 00:28:50.390 and sitting in your right mind means that God 00:28:50.390 --> 00:28:55.150 has brought wholeness to you. That is what Jesus 00:28:55.150 --> 00:28:59.650 does. And this man is sitting and he is dressed. 00:28:59.730 --> 00:29:03.809 No more shame, no more nakedness. He's not exposed. 00:29:06.069 --> 00:29:09.670 And he's in his right mind. And they were afraid. 00:29:09.710 --> 00:29:12.940 Verse 36, those who had seen it. told the people 00:29:12.940 --> 00:29:15.359 how the demon -possessed man had been cured or 00:29:15.359 --> 00:29:18.920 healed, then all the people of the region of 00:29:18.920 --> 00:29:22.240 the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them. Side 00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:23.779 note, those of you that were here when we were 00:29:23.779 --> 00:29:26.140 talking about the sower, and there's that moment 00:29:26.140 --> 00:29:29.160 where Jesus basically goes, I'll give you what 00:29:29.160 --> 00:29:31.359 you want. If you do not want to engage me, I 00:29:31.359 --> 00:29:33.380 will not enforce you to engage me spiritually. 00:29:33.640 --> 00:29:36.539 He will give you what you want. They ask him 00:29:36.539 --> 00:29:39.750 to leave. And here is proof because they were 00:29:39.750 --> 00:29:43.009 overcome with fear, so he got into the boat and 00:29:43.009 --> 00:29:47.490 what? Left. Jesus is like, I'll give you what 00:29:47.490 --> 00:29:50.250 you want. I've shown you the proof of what I 00:29:50.250 --> 00:29:54.009 can do. You see the difference that Jesus makes. 00:29:54.109 --> 00:29:56.329 This man is in his right mind, but if you want 00:29:56.329 --> 00:29:58.670 me to go, I will go. And what held them back? 00:29:58.910 --> 00:30:04.009 Fear. The man from whom the demons had gone out 00:30:04.009 --> 00:30:08.259 begged to go with him. Hang on, hang on. Verse 00:30:08.259 --> 00:30:11.220 37 says, so he, so Jesus, got in the boat and 00:30:11.220 --> 00:30:16.779 left. But then it says, the man from whom the 00:30:16.779 --> 00:30:20.359 demons had gone out begged to go. You ever read 00:30:20.359 --> 00:30:21.839 scripture and you're like, what did that look 00:30:21.839 --> 00:30:25.200 like? Jesus is like, hey, we want you to leave. 00:30:25.319 --> 00:30:30.279 All right, peace, I'm out. Gets in a boat and 00:30:30.279 --> 00:30:33.559 starts to leave. What did it look like? Did the 00:30:33.559 --> 00:30:39.519 man run along the shore? Hey, hey, hey. Like, 00:30:39.519 --> 00:30:41.940 what? Like, does he run in the water and start 00:30:41.940 --> 00:30:48.099 swimming? What is it? Jesus is out. And it says 00:30:48.099 --> 00:30:51.160 that he's he's begging to go with him. But Jesus, 00:30:51.220 --> 00:30:53.960 but Jesus, look at this. But Jesus sent him away 00:30:53.960 --> 00:30:59.720 saying, return. What a beautiful word. Home. 00:31:01.299 --> 00:31:09.279 Return home. A place. You belong. Return home. 00:31:10.900 --> 00:31:19.240 Return back. And tell how much God has done for 00:31:19.240 --> 00:31:22.559 you. So the man went away and told all over town, 00:31:22.740 --> 00:31:24.759 that's believed to be all over the cities, like 00:31:24.759 --> 00:31:28.259 he went above and beyond how much Jesus had done 00:31:28.259 --> 00:31:35.559 for him. The man gets sent home to go and tell 00:31:36.759 --> 00:31:39.599 Right? This is an area. This is Gentile area. 00:31:40.279 --> 00:31:43.019 There's a lot of cities in this area that needed 00:31:43.019 --> 00:31:46.440 the gospel. And what does Jesus do? He sends 00:31:46.440 --> 00:31:53.059 one man. Go home and tell. He doesn't tell the 00:31:53.059 --> 00:31:58.039 boys, hey boys, go with him. He sends one. Do 00:31:58.039 --> 00:31:59.740 you know that in the New Testament, this is the 00:31:59.740 --> 00:32:02.000 first missionary in the entire New Testament. 00:32:03.119 --> 00:32:08.990 A guy whom. Demons had come out of. And Jesus 00:32:08.990 --> 00:32:11.630 goes, go tell. Go tell. I love a couple of things, 00:32:11.690 --> 00:32:15.109 then we're done. You ready? Jesus restores his 00:32:15.109 --> 00:32:17.950 place. Jesus restores his place. He gives him 00:32:17.950 --> 00:32:21.609 a home. Jesus gives him a belonging, a place 00:32:21.609 --> 00:32:24.130 that is his. He restores what had been taken. 00:32:24.190 --> 00:32:25.950 Remember what we know about him. He's homeless. 00:32:26.470 --> 00:32:30.190 He's naked. Jesus restores him back without shame 00:32:30.190 --> 00:32:35.750 and into his community. Jesus restores his identity. 00:32:37.049 --> 00:32:41.410 Jesus restores his voice. The enemy had stolen 00:32:41.410 --> 00:32:45.470 his voice. Jesus restores his actions. It says 00:32:45.470 --> 00:32:49.150 Jesus sent him. His actions are now his. His 00:32:49.150 --> 00:32:52.529 voice is now his. His home is now his. Why? All 00:32:52.529 --> 00:32:57.170 because he met a man named Jesus. You know another 00:32:57.170 --> 00:32:59.769 pattern all the way through scripture? Jesus, 00:32:59.809 --> 00:33:03.839 God, has... always been proactive and humans 00:33:03.839 --> 00:33:09.759 are always reactive. God has always been proactive 00:33:09.759 --> 00:33:14.660 and humans are always reactive. We react to the 00:33:14.660 --> 00:33:20.059 things that God has done for us. We realize that 00:33:20.059 --> 00:33:22.380 what God has done in the person of Jesus is he 00:33:22.380 --> 00:33:25.920 has given me right standing with God. That makes 00:33:25.920 --> 00:33:29.549 me react and go, thank you. How could I not say 00:33:29.549 --> 00:33:32.369 thank you that for all of eternity I will be 00:33:32.369 --> 00:33:37.190 right with God because of Jesus? Right? Think 00:33:37.190 --> 00:33:40.170 about it. That he's given you an identity. That 00:33:40.170 --> 00:33:42.210 the words the enemies wanted to speak, the things 00:33:42.210 --> 00:33:43.950 that have been spoken over you, they're no longer 00:33:43.950 --> 00:33:50.140 true anymore. That everything about you is different 00:33:50.140 --> 00:33:52.440 because of the person of Jesus. And it makes 00:33:52.440 --> 00:33:56.119 me want to what? React to what he's done. You 00:33:56.119 --> 00:33:58.400 are not the one that is proactive to God. He 00:33:58.400 --> 00:34:01.119 is proactive towards you. You're just reacting 00:34:01.119 --> 00:34:04.059 to his proaction. Pretty sure proaction is a 00:34:04.059 --> 00:34:08.260 word. Team, I don't know if you can hear me. 00:34:08.280 --> 00:34:09.760 You can come on out. We're just going to go. 00:34:11.789 --> 00:34:13.949 But you were always designed to react to what 00:34:13.949 --> 00:34:16.789 God does. So God creates a perfect world. And 00:34:16.789 --> 00:34:19.289 what does he do? He tells Adam, hey, Adam, name 00:34:19.289 --> 00:34:21.550 the animals. What does Adam do? He reacts to 00:34:21.550 --> 00:34:24.670 what God says and he names the animals. God comes 00:34:24.670 --> 00:34:27.789 from there to different individuals like Abraham. 00:34:27.949 --> 00:34:29.829 Hey, Abraham, this is what, and Abraham does 00:34:29.829 --> 00:34:33.409 what? He goes. The pattern of scripture is that 00:34:33.409 --> 00:34:36.670 God's people, when God is proactive towards them, 00:34:36.730 --> 00:34:39.929 they react. So when God showed up and went to 00:34:39.929 --> 00:34:42.650 a cross for you and took your sin and your shame 00:34:42.650 --> 00:34:45.309 and your guilt and your punishment, the reaction 00:34:45.309 --> 00:34:49.269 should be, how can I not praise who he is? How 00:34:49.269 --> 00:34:53.210 can I not go? You are the only name that these 00:34:53.210 --> 00:34:56.829 lips can go. You're worth it. You're worth it. 00:34:58.690 --> 00:35:01.929 You're worth it. I don't know where you are today, 00:35:02.090 --> 00:35:07.179 but God is throwing seed. He's thrown his word. 00:35:08.519 --> 00:35:13.360 And you have a choice how you react. He is proactively 00:35:13.360 --> 00:35:18.880 pursuing you right here, right now. He is present 00:35:18.880 --> 00:35:23.199 in your darkness. He is present in the way the 00:35:23.199 --> 00:35:28.000 enemy stole your last night. He's present in 00:35:28.000 --> 00:35:30.239 the way the enemy's trying to steal your response 00:35:30.239 --> 00:35:34.500 in this moment. But church, can I just challenge 00:35:34.500 --> 00:35:39.889 you? We get to react because we have a God who 00:35:39.889 --> 00:35:44.369 is proactive on our behalf. Who has done everything 00:35:44.369 --> 00:35:49.150 you will ever need for all of eternity. To have 00:35:49.150 --> 00:35:54.869 healing. To restore a place called home. To put 00:35:54.869 --> 00:35:59.449 you in a family. To give you people to walk this 00:35:59.449 --> 00:36:05.610 life with and beyond. That he knows you by name, 00:36:05.789 --> 00:36:11.349 that you are seen, that you are loved. And we 00:36:11.349 --> 00:36:16.130 get to just go, Jesus, be the name. Jesus, I'll 00:36:16.130 --> 00:36:23.090 take my voice. I'll take my soul. I'll use my 00:36:23.090 --> 00:36:25.070 voice because you bought it back. I'll use my 00:36:25.070 --> 00:36:29.929 voice to declare who you are. Because you deserve 00:36:29.929 --> 00:36:32.849 the glory. Would you stand where you are? We're 00:36:32.849 --> 00:36:33.190 going to worship.