WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.459 Thank you all so much for your warm welcome. 00:00:02.859 --> 00:00:06.839 I counted a great joy that my first visit and 00:00:06.839 --> 00:00:11.560 literally my first hour to the UK is being spent 00:00:11.560 --> 00:00:15.820 here at Oak Hill. I've admired this college from 00:00:15.820 --> 00:00:19.559 afar for its faithfulness and theological training 00:00:19.559 --> 00:00:22.300 and ministry formation, and the more that I've 00:00:22.300 --> 00:00:24.140 learned about you through my dear friend Chris, 00:00:24.379 --> 00:00:26.640 the more that I've sensed a heartbeat that's 00:00:26.640 --> 00:00:30.640 so close to my own. A deep desire to serve Christ 00:00:30.640 --> 00:00:35.500 and his church well for the long haul. To see 00:00:35.500 --> 00:00:38.759 the church flourish, as I understand it. And 00:00:38.759 --> 00:00:40.859 that's part of why I was drawn back to this particular 00:00:40.859 --> 00:00:45.200 passage, John chapter 3, verses 22 to 30. This 00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:47.659 is a text that I first preached two years ago. 00:00:48.060 --> 00:00:51.979 At that time, it was my final sermon in the church 00:00:51.979 --> 00:00:55.100 where I had served as lead pastor for over six 00:00:55.100 --> 00:00:59.070 years. And to be candid with you, I had reached 00:00:59.070 --> 00:01:01.909 a breaking point of exhaustion and taken a leave 00:01:01.909 --> 00:01:06.250 of absence. Like many who love ministry, maybe 00:01:06.250 --> 00:01:08.769 you can relate to this already, I found myself 00:01:08.769 --> 00:01:12.989 doing good things for Jesus faster than my soul 00:01:12.989 --> 00:01:16.689 could keep up with. But the Lord in his kindness 00:01:16.689 --> 00:01:20.049 met me there. He gave me a fresh assignment, 00:01:20.189 --> 00:01:23.510 a powerful experience of his healing presence, 00:01:23.829 --> 00:01:27.480 and a new hunger to understand. What it means 00:01:27.480 --> 00:01:31.980 not just to start well, but to finish well. And 00:01:31.980 --> 00:01:34.980 out of that season came a question that I'm still 00:01:34.980 --> 00:01:39.019 learning to answer. And it's this. Rather than 00:01:39.019 --> 00:01:42.620 burning out along the way, how can we complete 00:01:42.620 --> 00:01:48.000 our entire race with joy? And how can we do this 00:01:48.000 --> 00:01:50.239 in a space where a friend of mine, Brian Croft, 00:01:50.260 --> 00:01:52.959 who leads a ministry to pastors called Practical 00:01:52.959 --> 00:01:57.900 Shepherding. has a statistic that says 50 % of 00:01:57.900 --> 00:02:01.200 pastors will not make it five years in ministry 00:02:01.200 --> 00:02:06.519 and 80 % will not make it 10. How can we complete 00:02:06.519 --> 00:02:09.900 our entire race with joy in any realm of Christian 00:02:09.900 --> 00:02:14.060 ministry rather than burning out? And I found 00:02:14.060 --> 00:02:16.740 a surprising companion in that question, and 00:02:16.740 --> 00:02:20.180 his name is John the Baptizer. We often remember 00:02:20.180 --> 00:02:22.939 him for his boldness, perhaps his camel hair. 00:02:23.759 --> 00:02:26.199 But in this passage, we see another side of him. 00:02:26.460 --> 00:02:31.180 We see his surprising joy. Here is a man whose 00:02:31.180 --> 00:02:35.000 ministry is fading, whose public influence is 00:02:35.000 --> 00:02:38.539 declining, whose best days, humanly speaking, 00:02:38.800 --> 00:02:44.280 are behind him. And yet he says, my joy is now 00:02:44.280 --> 00:02:50.020 complete. That kind of joy anchored in a sea 00:02:50.020 --> 00:02:53.159 of sorrows is something that every follower of 00:02:53.159 --> 00:02:57.000 Jesus will need if we hope for resilience in 00:02:57.000 --> 00:03:00.539 ministry. And it's this joy that I'd like for 00:03:00.539 --> 00:03:06.860 us to explore together this morning. The first 00:03:06.860 --> 00:03:10.199 wedding that I ever officiated was nearly a disaster, 00:03:10.419 --> 00:03:14.849 and it was my best friend's wedding. Not only 00:03:14.849 --> 00:03:18.110 was I underprepared for the ceremony, and not 00:03:18.110 --> 00:03:21.189 only did I drop the bride's ring, which almost 00:03:21.189 --> 00:03:27.590 rolled into a floor vent. Worst of all, when 00:03:27.590 --> 00:03:33.469 the bride entered the room, I nearly cried. Now 00:03:33.469 --> 00:03:35.830 for you, my British friends, crying is something 00:03:35.830 --> 00:03:38.210 that happens when substance comes out of your 00:03:38.210 --> 00:03:42.030 eyes and rolls down your face. Just for an explanation 00:03:42.030 --> 00:03:47.479 there for context. You see, at this moment, in 00:03:47.479 --> 00:03:50.539 most weddings, everyone stands as the bride enters, 00:03:50.780 --> 00:03:55.159 and they look, first of all, where? To the bride, 00:03:55.319 --> 00:03:58.280 to honor her and her beauty. But then secondly, 00:03:58.400 --> 00:04:03.539 where do they look? To the groom. Why? They want 00:04:03.539 --> 00:04:06.580 to see how he's responding, right? Is he smiling? 00:04:07.240 --> 00:04:11.159 Is he emotional? Bonus points, is there a tear? 00:04:12.969 --> 00:04:16.889 But imagine instead if the minister is the one 00:04:16.889 --> 00:04:22.050 crying. You can almost hear the whispers. What's 00:04:22.050 --> 00:04:27.790 this? Is this man unhappy? Is he jealous? He's 00:04:27.790 --> 00:04:32.670 lost the plot. So the truth was simply that I 00:04:32.670 --> 00:04:36.329 loved my friend. After years of waiting and praying 00:04:36.329 --> 00:04:39.430 to see him finally receive his bride filled me 00:04:39.430 --> 00:04:41.870 with such emotion that I couldn't help myself. 00:04:43.600 --> 00:04:46.420 They were happy tears, the kind that make you 00:04:46.420 --> 00:04:51.300 lose your composure just for a moment. And that, 00:04:51.319 --> 00:04:54.360 I think, gives us a small picture of what we 00:04:54.360 --> 00:04:57.639 see here in John the Baptizer. As he nears the 00:04:57.639 --> 00:05:01.000 end of his ministry and soon his life, John also 00:05:01.000 --> 00:05:05.680 speaks in wedding terms. A groom, a bride, a 00:05:05.680 --> 00:05:10.639 best man, and complete joy. Who was this John? 00:05:11.339 --> 00:05:14.000 Of course, he was the very promised forerunner 00:05:14.000 --> 00:05:16.879 of Jesus Christ, the last great prophet chosen 00:05:16.879 --> 00:05:19.379 to prepare the way of the coming of the Messiah, 00:05:19.680 --> 00:05:22.879 a wild man who ate bugs and preached repentance. 00:05:23.899 --> 00:05:27.100 Probably not the biblical character you think 00:05:27.100 --> 00:05:32.779 of for exemplifying joy. And yet, listen to one 00:05:32.779 --> 00:05:34.540 of the first things that we read about him in 00:05:34.540 --> 00:05:37.819 Luke's gospel. In early pregnancy, when Jesus' 00:05:38.000 --> 00:05:40.720 mother Mary went to visit John's mother Elizabeth, 00:05:41.259 --> 00:05:45.240 Elizabeth said to her, as soon as the sound of 00:05:45.240 --> 00:05:48.500 your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my 00:05:48.500 --> 00:05:53.639 womb, what? Leaped for joy. How can this be? 00:05:54.040 --> 00:05:57.959 A baby throwing shapes in utero? Like what's 00:05:57.959 --> 00:06:01.860 going on here? It can be because we were told 00:06:01.860 --> 00:06:05.019 earlier in Luke's gospel that John would be filled 00:06:05.019 --> 00:06:07.800 with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's 00:06:07.800 --> 00:06:11.370 womb. And when you are filled with the Holy Spirit, 00:06:11.490 --> 00:06:15.610 it's like an umbilical cord that binds your deepest 00:06:15.610 --> 00:06:19.490 desire with that of Christ's deepest desire. 00:06:20.629 --> 00:06:23.290 The late pastor Timothy Keller puts it this way. 00:06:24.310 --> 00:06:27.529 You know you love somebody when you put your 00:06:27.529 --> 00:06:31.790 happiness into their happiness so that your greatest 00:06:31.790 --> 00:06:36.319 happiness is just to see them happy. their joy 00:06:36.319 --> 00:06:40.019 is your joy, their delight is your delight, and 00:06:40.019 --> 00:06:43.079 there's nothing beyond it, then you know you 00:06:43.079 --> 00:06:48.019 love somebody. So we might say that the defining 00:06:48.019 --> 00:06:50.819 legacy of John's life and ministry was not that 00:06:50.819 --> 00:06:55.360 he fully obeyed God or that he became known widely, 00:06:55.560 --> 00:06:58.839 though those things were true, but that he simply 00:06:58.839 --> 00:07:04.480 loved Jesus deeply. And this can be the only 00:07:04.480 --> 00:07:06.740 explanation for what we see here in John chapter 00:07:06.740 --> 00:07:11.079 3. By this point, the door to John's once thriving 00:07:11.079 --> 00:07:14.720 ministry is closing. The crowds that once flocked 00:07:14.720 --> 00:07:17.800 to him are now following Jesus. John's own disciples 00:07:17.800 --> 00:07:20.279 are starting to worry that their leader is no 00:07:20.279 --> 00:07:23.720 longer trending. They say to him in verse 26, 00:07:24.600 --> 00:07:27.399 Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other 00:07:27.399 --> 00:07:29.759 side of the Jordan, the one you testified about, 00:07:29.959 --> 00:07:33.209 look, he is baptizing. And everyone's going to 00:07:33.209 --> 00:07:37.910 him. I don't think John's disciples are rejoicing 00:07:37.910 --> 00:07:41.509 here. I think they're jealous. I think their 00:07:41.509 --> 00:07:44.649 instinct is the same as ours whenever we feel 00:07:44.649 --> 00:07:49.810 passed over in favor of another. But remarkably, 00:07:50.009 --> 00:07:55.189 as the spotlight shifts away, John's joy doesn't 00:07:55.189 --> 00:08:00.699 diminish. It deepens. So here are two things 00:08:00.699 --> 00:08:04.220 that I think made that possible for him and perhaps 00:08:04.220 --> 00:08:09.480 for us as well. First of all, we see that John 00:08:09.480 --> 00:08:13.519 served with open hands. Listen to the first words 00:08:13.519 --> 00:08:16.660 out of his mouth in verse 27. John answered, 00:08:16.860 --> 00:08:25.139 John's disciples are focused on what's happening 00:08:25.139 --> 00:08:28.069 on earth. Who's getting attention? Who's drawing 00:08:28.069 --> 00:08:31.949 the crowds? Does that sound familiar? But John 00:08:31.949 --> 00:08:36.450 immediately redirects them toward where? Heaven. 00:08:37.450 --> 00:08:40.169 And looking toward heaven has a humbling effect, 00:08:40.289 --> 00:08:44.289 doesn't it? It reminds us that we are small and 00:08:44.289 --> 00:08:47.110 that everything that we have has been given to 00:08:47.110 --> 00:08:51.389 us as an act of grace. And as the Dutch theologian 00:08:51.389 --> 00:08:55.129 Abraham Kuyper spoke, there is not a square inch. 00:08:55.529 --> 00:08:58.570 in the whole domain of our human existence over 00:08:58.570 --> 00:09:01.370 which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does 00:09:01.370 --> 00:09:07.149 not cry, mine. You think of a child who in its 00:09:07.149 --> 00:09:10.929 human instinct immediately can begin crying mine 00:09:10.929 --> 00:09:14.309 over this and mine over that, and yet it is only 00:09:14.309 --> 00:09:18.330 Jesus Christ who can rightfully declare mine 00:09:18.330 --> 00:09:23.480 over all. And Paul says, Virtually the same to 00:09:23.480 --> 00:09:25.740 the Corinthians and to us with a simple question. 00:09:26.700 --> 00:09:32.860 What do you have that you did not receive? And 00:09:32.860 --> 00:09:36.080 here lies the gateway to what is a vital quality 00:09:36.080 --> 00:09:40.600 for joy -sustained Christian servants. Humility. 00:09:42.519 --> 00:09:45.200 John was humble enough to see that even his great 00:09:45.200 --> 00:09:48.460 success came from God. So when the time came 00:09:48.460 --> 00:09:51.679 for his ministry to fade, he didn't have to defend 00:09:51.679 --> 00:09:55.460 it. He didn't have to grasp for it. It had already 00:09:55.460 --> 00:10:01.860 been surrendered to God all along the way. In 00:10:01.860 --> 00:10:05.100 his book, The Sacred Wilderness of Pastoral Ministry, 00:10:05.639 --> 00:10:09.179 Pastor David Rohr actually uses John as a model 00:10:09.179 --> 00:10:12.820 for the Christian minister. He argues that the 00:10:12.820 --> 00:10:16.179 calling of a... minister is not to seize a church's 00:10:16.179 --> 00:10:20.200 story, to make it his own, but instead to only 00:10:20.200 --> 00:10:23.320 steward it for a season. To remember that the 00:10:23.320 --> 00:10:26.220 story began before the pastor and the church's 00:10:26.220 --> 00:10:31.059 story will continue on after the pastor. This 00:10:31.059 --> 00:10:35.879 perspective continually pried open my seizing 00:10:35.879 --> 00:10:41.399 hands as a pastor, which as you can see, was 00:10:41.399 --> 00:10:44.120 the perfect preparation for when my pastorate 00:10:44.120 --> 00:10:50.220 ended more prematurely than I had expected. But 00:10:50.220 --> 00:10:54.460 notice this. John's humility, it wasn't self 00:10:54.460 --> 00:10:57.500 -deprecation, was it? Self -deprecation is really 00:10:57.500 --> 00:11:02.240 just pride in disguise. True humility is a true 00:11:02.240 --> 00:11:05.519 assessment of oneself in light of what God says 00:11:05.519 --> 00:11:09.840 of us. And John says this in verse 28. I am not 00:11:09.840 --> 00:11:12.779 the Christ, but I have been sent before him. 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:17.259 There may be no more important words for promising 00:11:17.259 --> 00:11:20.679 students who hope to complete their entire race 00:11:20.679 --> 00:11:26.980 than these five. I am not the Christ. What a 00:11:26.980 --> 00:11:31.379 freeing confession. Why suffer a career -ending 00:11:31.379 --> 00:11:34.480 spiritual hernia trying to carry the weight of 00:11:34.480 --> 00:11:38.250 the world? Your plate. constantly taking on more 00:11:38.250 --> 00:11:41.490 and more and more that you cannot handle because 00:11:41.490 --> 00:11:45.570 you are not the Christ. Hey, I can be the midwife 00:11:45.570 --> 00:11:48.090 who faithfully delivers the message of the gospel, 00:11:48.230 --> 00:11:52.570 but I cannot save the sinful heart. That's freeing. 00:11:53.990 --> 00:11:57.309 I can be the midfielder who passes the ball forward, 00:11:57.429 --> 00:12:00.210 but only Christ, the true striker, can score 00:12:00.210 --> 00:12:02.990 the goal. Hey, that's a basketball player from 00:12:02.990 --> 00:12:06.139 Kentucky trying to be in context here. Did I 00:12:06.139 --> 00:12:12.679 get it right? All right. Thank you. It is, in 00:12:12.679 --> 00:12:16.840 fact, the humble position where John's confounding 00:12:16.840 --> 00:12:25.299 joy is found. And ours as well. And so we see 00:12:25.299 --> 00:12:27.759 that John didn't burn out along the way, firstly, 00:12:27.919 --> 00:12:31.299 because he served with open hands. But there's 00:12:31.299 --> 00:12:33.039 another reason that I want to highlight today. 00:12:33.419 --> 00:12:38.899 He also... finished with an open heart. John 00:12:38.899 --> 00:12:43.259 continues in verse 29. The bride belongs to the 00:12:43.259 --> 00:12:46.399 bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom 00:12:46.399 --> 00:12:49.379 waits and listens for him and is full of joy 00:12:49.379 --> 00:12:52.700 when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy 00:12:52.700 --> 00:12:58.720 is mine and is now complete. So John turns to 00:12:58.720 --> 00:13:00.899 a wedding image that would have been familiar 00:13:00.899 --> 00:13:04.679 to his listeners. In Jewish culture, The friend 00:13:04.679 --> 00:13:07.659 who attends the bridegroom wasn't just a best 00:13:07.659 --> 00:13:11.179 man with a speech to give. He had serious responsibilities. 00:13:12.139 --> 00:13:15.320 It was his job to not only arrange many parts 00:13:15.320 --> 00:13:18.539 of the wedding, but also this when the ceremony 00:13:18.539 --> 00:13:21.259 had finished. And I'm quoting here from New Testament 00:13:21.259 --> 00:13:24.360 scholar Colin Cruz, so that you know I'm not 00:13:24.360 --> 00:13:28.120 making this up. The friend would then lead the 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:31.759 groom to his bride. and wait outside the bridal 00:13:31.759 --> 00:13:35.399 chamber while the marriage was consummated. Thus, 00:13:35.480 --> 00:13:37.960 the reference to the bridegroom's voice refers 00:13:37.960 --> 00:13:41.659 to the shout of exultation by the groom over 00:13:41.659 --> 00:13:45.240 his bride. The work of the friend of the bridegroom 00:13:45.240 --> 00:13:48.500 is then complete and he takes pleasure in the 00:13:48.500 --> 00:13:52.860 bridegroom's joy. What an intimate responsibility. 00:13:53.899 --> 00:13:57.840 Like it's maybe a bit jarring to our modern sensibilities 00:13:57.840 --> 00:14:02.299 here, okay? Get that. But what does John mean 00:14:02.299 --> 00:14:07.279 by this? In the Old Testament, the people of 00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:11.240 Israel are often described as God's bride. And 00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:16.840 so John gladly, as he releases his own hard -earned 00:14:16.840 --> 00:14:20.440 disciples to Jesus, he's saying nothing less 00:14:20.440 --> 00:14:25.659 than the bridegroom has come for his bride. What 00:14:25.659 --> 00:14:28.870 does that mean? It's a confession of lordship. 00:14:29.309 --> 00:14:36.350 He's saying, Jesus is God. And the church is 00:14:36.350 --> 00:14:40.830 his bride. And so what does that make John in 00:14:40.830 --> 00:14:44.370 the analogy? The friend of the bridegroom who 00:14:44.370 --> 00:14:52.190 couldn't be happier. This is... This is another 00:14:52.190 --> 00:14:55.610 vital quality for joy -sustained Christian service 00:14:55.610 --> 00:14:58.590 that makes it to the end and doesn't burn out 00:14:58.590 --> 00:15:01.909 before. And I want to highlight it here. It's 00:15:01.909 --> 00:15:04.409 the perfect complement to humility. Do you know 00:15:04.409 --> 00:15:09.830 what it is? It might be quite surprising. Confidence. 00:15:11.850 --> 00:15:14.750 Not the arrogance that thinks too highly of itself 00:15:14.750 --> 00:15:19.600 or grasps for control or attention. But the grounding 00:15:19.600 --> 00:15:22.399 assurance of knowing Christ intimately, like 00:15:22.399 --> 00:15:25.100 we sang about just a moment ago, knowing that 00:15:25.100 --> 00:15:29.720 he loves you, that he loves you enough to entrust 00:15:29.720 --> 00:15:32.940 a part of his bride to your care, whether that's 00:15:32.940 --> 00:15:38.779 a classroom, a congregation, a child, or a faraway 00:15:38.779 --> 00:15:45.679 people. He counts you his dear friend. What a 00:15:45.679 --> 00:15:49.720 privilege. What confidence that brings. And when 00:15:49.720 --> 00:15:52.000 the privilege of that grips your heart, do you 00:15:52.000 --> 00:15:55.100 know what confidence sounds like? In a world 00:15:55.100 --> 00:15:57.340 where people are spewing all kinds of arrogant 00:15:57.340 --> 00:16:00.159 nonsense all the time, even in the name of Jesus, 00:16:00.500 --> 00:16:05.360 what does confidence wed to humility sound like? 00:16:05.360 --> 00:16:09.639 It sounds like this. He must become greater and 00:16:09.639 --> 00:16:16.809 I must become less. That's not resignation. That's 00:16:16.809 --> 00:16:21.750 resolution. It's the confidence of a servant 00:16:21.750 --> 00:16:24.789 who knows his story is safe in Jesus' hands, 00:16:25.129 --> 00:16:31.610 even as his own part of it comes to an end. And 00:16:31.610 --> 00:16:33.649 we know here really that John's ministry didn't 00:16:33.649 --> 00:16:36.169 come to an end, though he would soon be jailed 00:16:36.169 --> 00:16:41.649 and then beheaded. His ministry still bears fruit 00:16:41.649 --> 00:16:46.700 today because we are absorbing. From his life 00:16:46.700 --> 00:16:52.399 and testimony, aren't we? Right now. John was 00:16:52.399 --> 00:16:56.240 finishing a season with an open heart, ready 00:16:56.240 --> 00:17:00.360 for whatever would come next. Don't you want 00:17:00.360 --> 00:17:07.440 that? And so what does all of this have to do 00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:12.819 with you? Well, for every one of us, there will 00:17:12.819 --> 00:17:15.859 come moments. when it's time to lay something 00:17:15.859 --> 00:17:20.279 down, and often sooner than we expected or before 00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:24.720 we feel ready. A hoped -for opportunity will 00:17:24.720 --> 00:17:30.539 pass by. A ministry role will change. A great 00:17:30.539 --> 00:17:34.079 success will fade or perhaps never materialize. 00:17:35.740 --> 00:17:38.680 Even the life you're now preparing for here at 00:17:38.680 --> 00:17:42.500 Oak Hill, the study, the structure, the community, 00:17:43.529 --> 00:17:47.109 it will give way to a new chapter that asks something 00:17:47.109 --> 00:17:51.549 different of you. And someday, yes, the letting 00:17:51.549 --> 00:17:56.369 go will become even deeper. Parents, spouses, 00:17:56.750 --> 00:18:05.190 children, health, even life itself. The question 00:18:05.190 --> 00:18:11.289 is, when those moments come, what will be true 00:18:11.289 --> 00:18:16.609 of you? Don't you want to be like a marathon 00:18:16.609 --> 00:18:19.730 runner? I know Larry and Chris do. I'm not quite 00:18:19.730 --> 00:18:22.309 like a marathon runner myself, more of a sprinter 00:18:22.309 --> 00:18:24.809 when it comes to basketball. But don't you want 00:18:24.809 --> 00:18:27.349 to be like a marathon runner who's found their 00:18:27.349 --> 00:18:31.690 ideal pace, who knows their limits because they're 00:18:31.690 --> 00:18:35.430 humble, but also knows their abilities because 00:18:35.430 --> 00:18:38.410 they're confident, and therefore they can finish 00:18:38.410 --> 00:18:40.809 their entire race without collapsing in exhaustion 00:18:40.809 --> 00:18:44.759 like I would? Don't you want that? That is, well, 00:18:44.859 --> 00:18:47.579 in fact, the calling of Hebrews 12, is it not? 00:18:47.880 --> 00:18:51.640 It tells us, let us run with perseverance the 00:18:51.640 --> 00:18:55.559 race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, 00:18:55.660 --> 00:19:02.819 the author and perfecter of our faith. That's 00:19:02.819 --> 00:19:09.779 what I want. But if I'm honest, I've often run 00:19:09.779 --> 00:19:14.400 my race of ministry over the last 25 years. More 00:19:14.400 --> 00:19:22.339 like Mr. Bean. Arms flailing. Tripping over my 00:19:22.339 --> 00:19:26.740 own shoelaces. Darting between lanes with a completely 00:19:26.740 --> 00:19:32.319 nonsensical pace. And occasionally crashing headlong. 00:19:34.119 --> 00:19:36.920 It's almost a comedic miracle that I'm here at 00:19:36.920 --> 00:19:43.549 all. And if John were here, perhaps he could 00:19:43.549 --> 00:19:47.009 say the same. Because as much as we may want 00:19:47.009 --> 00:19:50.069 to exalt him as an example to us of how to do 00:19:50.069 --> 00:19:53.089 it, how to get it right, we also need to acknowledge 00:19:53.089 --> 00:19:55.630 that while he sat in prison with great discouragement, 00:19:55.650 --> 00:19:58.829 he sent a message to Christ, the one he loved, 00:19:58.829 --> 00:20:02.750 and said, is it you or should we be looking for 00:20:02.750 --> 00:20:08.289 someone else? We all crash. We all get it wrong. 00:20:10.509 --> 00:20:13.710 We all go at the wrong pace in a modern world 00:20:13.710 --> 00:20:16.009 that comes at us faster than we can keep up with. 00:20:17.109 --> 00:20:21.329 And yet perhaps that's the point. Because in 00:20:21.329 --> 00:20:24.470 the universal absurdity of real life and real 00:20:24.470 --> 00:20:28.009 ministry, none of us will run smoothly for long. 00:20:28.769 --> 00:20:32.130 The question isn't whether you'll stumble. It's 00:20:32.130 --> 00:20:37.210 who will carry you when you do. How will your 00:20:37.210 --> 00:20:39.549 joy -sustained Christian service be possible? 00:20:43.210 --> 00:20:47.390 It will be possible for you and only possible 00:20:47.390 --> 00:20:52.990 because Jesus first did it in your place. Tell 00:20:52.990 --> 00:20:57.069 me who more than anyone embodied humility when 00:20:57.069 --> 00:21:00.329 he laid down not just his ministry, but his very 00:21:00.329 --> 00:21:04.630 life. His open hands nailed into that position 00:21:04.630 --> 00:21:09.329 on the cross. And tell me who more than anyone 00:21:09.329 --> 00:21:13.299 displayed confidence. in his father's love to 00:21:13.299 --> 00:21:17.839 never abandon him, dying with an open heart to 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:22.200 the resurrection that would come next. And yet 00:21:22.200 --> 00:21:25.400 what was it that gave Jesus this resilience to 00:21:25.400 --> 00:21:29.079 the very end? The very next line of Hebrews chapter 00:21:29.079 --> 00:21:38.160 12 tells us, for the joy set before him, he endured 00:21:38.160 --> 00:21:42.970 the cross. scorning its shame, and sat down, 00:21:43.069 --> 00:21:49.170 I'm sure, to great, great joy at the right hand 00:21:49.170 --> 00:21:54.390 of the throne of God. The umbilical cord that 00:21:54.390 --> 00:21:58.769 nurtured Christ's deepest desire was seeing the 00:21:58.769 --> 00:22:04.009 joy of his Father. And what makes God's joy complete? 00:22:05.430 --> 00:22:10.019 It's receiving his bride. And brothers and sisters 00:22:10.019 --> 00:22:15.720 in Christ, you are part of that bride. And so 00:22:15.720 --> 00:22:18.859 what makes God's joy complete can only be answered 00:22:18.859 --> 00:22:24.019 by saying in part, it's you. That's staggering, 00:22:24.160 --> 00:22:29.700 isn't it? What the gospel testifies is that God 00:22:29.700 --> 00:22:34.559 has put his happiness into your happiness. His 00:22:34.559 --> 00:22:39.710 delight into your delight. His joy into your 00:22:39.710 --> 00:22:50.109 joy. That's what fuels your sustaining joy no 00:22:50.109 --> 00:22:53.589 matter what comes at you in the highs and lows 00:22:53.589 --> 00:22:58.609 of this life in obedience to him. That's how 00:22:58.609 --> 00:23:01.630 you know he loves you. That's how you become 00:23:01.630 --> 00:23:05.069 both humble and confident at the same time. A 00:23:05.069 --> 00:23:09.089 sinner. and yet dearly loved on the basis of 00:23:09.089 --> 00:23:12.970 Christ and what he's accomplished. That's how 00:23:12.970 --> 00:23:16.970 you finish your race as part of the beloved bride 00:23:16.970 --> 00:23:26.349 and helping to deliver her to God with joy. To 00:23:26.349 --> 00:23:30.190 change the analogy slightly from umbilical cord 00:23:30.190 --> 00:23:34.829 to another cord of sorts, the scriptures speak 00:23:34.829 --> 00:23:38.730 of the vine. That Christ himself is that vine 00:23:38.730 --> 00:23:45.269 and we are the branches. There is our connection. 00:23:46.089 --> 00:23:49.150 The joy of God flowing into our hearts and filling 00:23:49.150 --> 00:23:51.509 it up, knowing that we are deeply loved by him. 00:23:51.890 --> 00:23:55.609 And our responding in like kind with the joy 00:23:55.609 --> 00:23:58.829 that we bring to him by loving his bride and 00:23:58.829 --> 00:24:02.490 helping her to flourish. There in that analogy, 00:24:02.650 --> 00:24:05.029 and I'll end with these words, there are none 00:24:05.029 --> 00:24:09.710 better. Jesus speaks, John chapter 15. I've told 00:24:09.710 --> 00:24:14.650 you this, Jesus said, so that my joy may be in 00:24:14.650 --> 00:24:22.970 you and that your joy may be complete. Let's 00:24:22.970 --> 00:24:32.329 pray. Lord Jesus, we bow our hearts before you 00:24:32.329 --> 00:24:40.529 here in this chapel. I can only speak for myself, 00:24:40.750 --> 00:24:43.509 though I hope this will echo true for others 00:24:43.509 --> 00:24:50.109 in this room and who may be listening. You have 00:24:50.109 --> 00:24:54.450 filled our hearts with joy at the wonder of your 00:24:54.450 --> 00:24:59.069 love. I confess to you, Lord, that often my heart 00:24:59.069 --> 00:25:02.569 has not been receptive to your love, and therefore 00:25:02.569 --> 00:25:08.049 I have lacked joy that... Humility has maybe 00:25:08.049 --> 00:25:10.849 been easier for me than confidence, though there 00:25:10.849 --> 00:25:13.029 may be those in this room who find the opposite 00:25:13.029 --> 00:25:16.190 to be true. Confidence is easier than humility. 00:25:18.630 --> 00:25:21.349 And yet, Lord, I just ask, as I have been asking 00:25:21.349 --> 00:25:24.410 for everyone under the sound of my voice, that 00:25:24.410 --> 00:25:26.829 they would walk away from this moment with a 00:25:26.829 --> 00:25:30.329 deepened, ever so slightly, or even greatly, 00:25:30.470 --> 00:25:35.180 sense of receptivity to your love. based on the 00:25:35.180 --> 00:25:37.660 truth of the gospel and the risen and resurrected 00:25:37.660 --> 00:25:41.680 Christ who sits enthroned at your right hand. 00:25:43.579 --> 00:25:47.640 I pray, Lord, for each one, God, that you would 00:25:47.640 --> 00:25:51.019 sustain them with your joy, that they may be 00:25:51.019 --> 00:25:57.440 able to finish their entire race. Use them mightily, 00:25:57.500 --> 00:26:00.700 Lord, just as you did John, so that their lives 00:26:00.700 --> 00:26:03.279 and testimonies will continue to bear fruit. 00:26:03.789 --> 00:26:08.049 even long after their race has finished. And 00:26:08.049 --> 00:26:10.549 Lord, to conclude, I know no better way than 00:26:10.549 --> 00:26:14.609 how you concluded your word and revelation, where 00:26:14.609 --> 00:26:17.269 our hearts, filled with joy, the wonder of your 00:26:17.269 --> 00:26:19.890 love, and with great affection for you and your 00:26:19.890 --> 00:26:25.569 bride, cry out with the Spirit, come. The Spirit 00:26:25.569 --> 00:26:29.690 and the bride say come. We want to see your face. 00:26:30.589 --> 00:26:35.170 We want to be present at the... Great marriage 00:26:35.170 --> 00:26:39.190 supper of the Lamb. And so come. And until that 00:26:39.190 --> 00:26:44.750 day, let us bring many to that feast as well. 00:26:46.430 --> 00:26:48.829 I pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.