WEBVTT 00:00:02.559 --> 00:00:05.900 Alright, thank you very much. Paul, we welcome 00:00:05.900 --> 00:00:08.019 you back from a couple of weeks of vacation. 00:00:10.339 --> 00:00:12.439 I'd like you to open your Bible with me please 00:00:12.439 --> 00:00:16.000 to the book of Colossians and the third chapter. 00:00:18.199 --> 00:00:20.500 I heard a story several years ago about a man 00:00:20.500 --> 00:00:23.739 who decided to play a trick on four of his friends. 00:00:26.739 --> 00:00:30.420 So he sent to each of them an anonymous note 00:00:31.459 --> 00:00:38.240 that simply said, all is discovered, flee. Three 00:00:38.240 --> 00:00:43.979 of the four left town immediately. Most people 00:00:43.979 --> 00:00:47.259 fear the disclosure of the secrets of their lives. 00:00:49.119 --> 00:00:51.000 Certainly in the day in which we're living, before 00:00:51.000 --> 00:00:54.719 someone enters public service, he or she had 00:00:54.719 --> 00:00:58.920 better consider that. But not all of the secrets 00:00:58.920 --> 00:01:05.599 of our lives are bad and unhappy ones. Yesterday 00:01:05.599 --> 00:01:09.280 I visited with one of our attendees who was in 00:01:09.280 --> 00:01:14.659 the hospital, an elderly lady. And as we talked, 00:01:14.659 --> 00:01:21.560 she recounted her first memory of church. She 00:01:21.560 --> 00:01:25.379 was a little girl, three years old, and after 00:01:25.379 --> 00:01:28.980 church, her mother and father had to practice 00:01:28.980 --> 00:01:32.500 in the choir. And so her mother said to her, 00:01:33.280 --> 00:01:35.719 I want you to go out and to sit on the front 00:01:35.719 --> 00:01:38.180 steps of the church and wait until we're done 00:01:38.180 --> 00:01:40.640 practicing and then we'll come out and get you 00:01:40.640 --> 00:01:43.900 and we'll walk home. This was in Amery, Wisconsin, 00:01:44.340 --> 00:01:48.640 many, many years ago. And so she did. And she 00:01:48.640 --> 00:01:51.900 remembers sitting on those steps, listening to 00:01:51.900 --> 00:01:58.060 the choir, and hearing her mother's voice, her 00:01:58.060 --> 00:02:02.170 mother now long dead. Hearing her mother's voice, 00:02:03.090 --> 00:02:08.469 I will sing of my Redeemer and His wondrous love 00:02:08.469 --> 00:02:17.349 for me. What a wonderful memory to have your 00:02:17.349 --> 00:02:21.330 mother's voice frozen in your mind from three 00:02:21.330 --> 00:02:27.150 years of age, singing of Jesus. Well, life has 00:02:27.150 --> 00:02:30.469 contained its troubles and its trials. for freedom. 00:02:33.569 --> 00:02:36.229 And yesterday, at her advanced age, I saw her 00:02:36.229 --> 00:02:41.830 lying there in a hospital bed. She may not ever 00:02:41.830 --> 00:02:46.590 be back in a church service again. Only God knows. 00:02:49.250 --> 00:02:52.310 But as she spoke to me of how she had grown in 00:02:52.310 --> 00:02:55.530 the Lord under the ministry of Dr. W .B. Riley, 00:02:56.110 --> 00:02:59.580 Dr. Moyer, at First Baptist Church in Minneapolis. 00:03:04.080 --> 00:03:08.259 And as she recounted to me her experiences with 00:03:08.259 --> 00:03:14.340 God in her recent years, it's very clear that 00:03:14.340 --> 00:03:18.919 her focus and her gaze is upon something that's 00:03:18.919 --> 00:03:27.069 beyond this world. She spoke of the return of 00:03:27.069 --> 00:03:29.409 the Lord Jesus Christ. Surely, she said, the 00:03:29.409 --> 00:03:34.870 Lord is going to return soon. Well, I believe 00:03:34.870 --> 00:03:39.349 the same thing. Before he returns for all of 00:03:39.349 --> 00:03:43.729 us, she knows that he may return for her and 00:03:43.729 --> 00:03:49.210 take her home to be with herself. How do you 00:03:49.210 --> 00:03:57.539 explain a woman who is advanced in age Facing 00:03:57.539 --> 00:04:01.199 the reality of life being very short, death may 00:04:01.199 --> 00:04:05.539 be soon at hand, we don't know. And doing that 00:04:05.539 --> 00:04:10.599 with an attitude of optimism and hope, with a 00:04:10.599 --> 00:04:16.040 smile on her face. I'll tell you how you can 00:04:16.040 --> 00:04:20.680 explain it. It's because of the secrets of her 00:04:20.680 --> 00:04:28.810 life. The Apostle Paul in our text, says to us 00:04:28.810 --> 00:04:33.709 in essence, if you have Jesus Christ, you have 00:04:33.709 --> 00:04:39.209 everything that you need. And in this paragraph 00:04:39.209 --> 00:04:42.569 we're going to look at this morning, he talks 00:04:42.569 --> 00:04:46.069 about three secrets of the life of the child 00:04:46.069 --> 00:04:52.350 of God. If then, or better since then, you have 00:04:52.350 --> 00:04:56.990 been raised up with Christ, Keep seeking the 00:04:56.990 --> 00:05:01.449 things above, where Christ is seated at the right 00:05:01.449 --> 00:05:06.470 hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, 00:05:06.569 --> 00:05:10.089 not on the things that are on earth. For you 00:05:10.089 --> 00:05:14.310 have died, and your life is hidden with Christ 00:05:14.310 --> 00:05:19.389 in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, 00:05:19.610 --> 00:05:24.089 then you also will be revealed with him in glory. 00:05:25.610 --> 00:05:28.050 The first secret of the believer's life that 00:05:28.050 --> 00:05:32.009 I see in this text is the secret of the believer's 00:05:32.009 --> 00:05:37.829 life's source. Everybody has some source for 00:05:37.829 --> 00:05:41.829 their inner life. That energy within them that 00:05:41.829 --> 00:05:45.490 enables them to function in this world on an 00:05:45.490 --> 00:05:50.850 emotional, mental, and social level. Some find 00:05:50.850 --> 00:05:56.000 their life's energy in ideas like self -realization 00:05:56.000 --> 00:06:01.060 or self -actualization, the psychobabble terms 00:06:01.060 --> 00:06:04.300 of self -esteem that are so prominent in our 00:06:04.300 --> 00:06:09.139 day. Some find their life source in relationships 00:06:09.139 --> 00:06:13.579 with family or friends. And when they're around 00:06:13.579 --> 00:06:15.959 people, that's when they're really with it, you 00:06:15.959 --> 00:06:20.540 know, and that energy exudes from them. Others 00:06:20.540 --> 00:06:23.480 find their life source and energy in the church 00:06:23.480 --> 00:06:28.620 or in their religion. Some find their energy 00:06:28.620 --> 00:06:31.660 and vitality in their work that they do for the 00:06:31.660 --> 00:06:35.779 community. Perhaps it's in social activism or 00:06:35.779 --> 00:06:39.560 it's in political change or movements, but it's 00:06:39.560 --> 00:06:41.879 in that sort of thing where they find the energy 00:06:41.879 --> 00:06:46.240 for their lives. And perhaps none of these things 00:06:46.240 --> 00:06:51.149 is wrong that I've talked about. But my question 00:06:51.149 --> 00:06:53.930 is, is that really going to carry you through? 00:06:57.589 --> 00:07:00.550 You see, the child of God has a source of inner 00:07:00.550 --> 00:07:03.050 life that far exceeds any of these that we've 00:07:03.050 --> 00:07:07.449 talked about. For the life source of the child 00:07:07.449 --> 00:07:13.329 of God is his union with Jesus Christ. It is 00:07:13.329 --> 00:07:16.990 that union, that connection with Christ Himself 00:07:17.370 --> 00:07:20.509 that provides the energy, the power, and the 00:07:20.509 --> 00:07:24.389 endurance to carry us through all life seasons 00:07:24.389 --> 00:07:30.709 and into eternity. The life source that we have 00:07:30.709 --> 00:07:34.129 in Christ is described in several ways. He says 00:07:34.129 --> 00:07:38.829 you have died. Well, we died with Christ. He's 00:07:38.829 --> 00:07:41.970 talked about that in earlier verses. He says 00:07:41.970 --> 00:07:45.899 you've been raised up together with Christ. You 00:07:45.899 --> 00:07:50.399 see, we have a union with Jesus. So that whatever 00:07:50.399 --> 00:07:53.879 happened to Jesus 2 ,000 years ago happened to 00:07:53.879 --> 00:07:58.480 us. And now whatever happens to us happens to 00:07:58.480 --> 00:08:03.019 Him. When we rejoice, He rejoices. When we suffer, 00:08:03.060 --> 00:08:08.319 He suffers. There is a life connection between 00:08:08.319 --> 00:08:11.720 us and Christ because of our dying with Him and 00:08:11.720 --> 00:08:17.600 being raised with Him. He describes this union 00:08:17.600 --> 00:08:21.819 with these words, your life is hidden with Christ. 00:08:24.579 --> 00:08:27.379 In that word, hidden, there is pictured the idea 00:08:27.379 --> 00:08:31.740 of a spring that secretly provides water for 00:08:31.740 --> 00:08:40.799 a city. Such as the spring of Gihon. It is the 00:08:40.799 --> 00:08:46.990 spring that flows out of a mountainside in Israel. 00:08:48.570 --> 00:08:51.029 And thousands of years ago there was a people 00:08:51.029 --> 00:08:54.730 that built a city around that spring. It was 00:08:54.730 --> 00:08:59.870 called Jebus. The Jebusites. And it existed there 00:08:59.870 --> 00:09:03.870 as a city in Palestine until David came along 00:09:03.870 --> 00:09:07.149 and conquered it. Do you know how he conquered 00:09:07.149 --> 00:09:13.000 it? The Jebusites in order to protect their fortress 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:17.679 city called Jebus had built a tunnel from the 00:09:17.679 --> 00:09:22.059 city down to the water. Secretly there was a 00:09:22.059 --> 00:09:25.620 tunnel that no one knew about except David and 00:09:25.620 --> 00:09:28.220 his men found out and they went up through that 00:09:28.220 --> 00:09:36.080 tunnel and captured the city. Later Solomon was 00:09:36.080 --> 00:09:39.679 anointed the king. was coronated as king at that 00:09:39.679 --> 00:09:46.980 very site, at the spring of Gihon. And 250 years 00:09:46.980 --> 00:09:49.860 after Solomon Hezekiah, in a time of siege in 00:09:49.860 --> 00:09:51.740 the city when Sennacherib and the enemy were 00:09:51.740 --> 00:09:57.539 outside, he fortified and built an extended tunnel 00:09:57.539 --> 00:10:01.580 down to that spring that the Assyrians never 00:10:01.580 --> 00:10:06.659 found. And that spring provided life and water. 00:10:06.860 --> 00:10:12.059 for the city of Jerusalem under siege. What is 00:10:12.059 --> 00:10:17.559 the spring of the child of God that cannot be 00:10:17.559 --> 00:10:20.399 seen by the world but which secretly nourishes 00:10:20.399 --> 00:10:27.679 the soul? The answer is it is Jesus. Your life 00:10:27.679 --> 00:10:33.259 is hidden with Christ. And when your life is 00:10:33.259 --> 00:10:36.860 under siege and when illness attacks you and 00:10:36.860 --> 00:10:40.320 you're lying on a bed wondering if you're going 00:10:40.320 --> 00:10:44.100 to get out of the hospital. It is that spring, 00:10:44.159 --> 00:10:48.919 my friend, that sees you through. The secret 00:10:48.919 --> 00:10:54.799 of the believer's life's source. He says, third, 00:10:55.039 --> 00:10:59.460 Christ is our life. Notice he doesn't say Christ 00:10:59.460 --> 00:11:05.309 gives us life. He says Christ is our life. It 00:11:05.309 --> 00:11:08.090 reminds me of what Jesus said, I am the vine, 00:11:08.350 --> 00:11:14.250 you are the branches. You see, the vine gives 00:11:14.250 --> 00:11:17.769 the life to the branches and extends himself 00:11:17.769 --> 00:11:20.870 through the branches. And that's what Jesus does 00:11:20.870 --> 00:11:26.269 in you and me. Norman Geisler said, life in this 00:11:26.269 --> 00:11:30.330 world will be better if it is lived by a power 00:11:30.330 --> 00:11:34.169 beyond this world. And that's what a Christian 00:11:34.169 --> 00:11:41.129 has. I hope today you have this secret of a life's 00:11:41.129 --> 00:11:44.690 source that goes outside of this world into eternity 00:11:44.690 --> 00:11:49.669 and is found in the person of Jesus Christ. The 00:11:49.669 --> 00:11:52.610 second secret that I see in this paragraph is 00:11:52.610 --> 00:11:55.889 the secret of the believer's life's security. 00:11:58.090 --> 00:12:03.500 This word hidden in verse 3. is one that also 00:12:03.500 --> 00:12:09.360 implies being safe and secure. Notice that it 00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:13.159 implies that we are doubly secured. It says your 00:12:13.159 --> 00:12:20.179 life is hidden with Christ in God. With Christ 00:12:20.179 --> 00:12:25.820 in God. Your life is hidden with Christ. If our 00:12:25.820 --> 00:12:28.539 life is hidden with Christ, then where is Christ? 00:12:29.580 --> 00:12:33.629 He tells us in verse 1, He is seated at the right 00:12:33.629 --> 00:12:38.549 hand of God. That means, in the language of that 00:12:38.549 --> 00:12:43.889 day, that Christ is in the place of acceptance 00:12:43.889 --> 00:12:52.610 and equality with God the Father. And you and 00:12:52.610 --> 00:12:56.049 I are hidden with Him who is seated there at 00:12:56.049 --> 00:13:00.129 the right hand of God. The connection that we 00:13:00.129 --> 00:13:02.710 have, the union that we have, goes right to the 00:13:02.710 --> 00:13:07.110 one who is counted equal with God and who is 00:13:07.110 --> 00:13:13.690 fully accepted by God. Romans 8 .34 says, Who 00:13:13.690 --> 00:13:17.990 is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is he who 00:13:17.990 --> 00:13:21.210 died. Yes, rather who was raised, who is at the 00:13:21.210 --> 00:13:25.490 right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 00:13:26.269 --> 00:13:30.549 You and I are as secure as the position of Jesus 00:13:30.549 --> 00:13:37.289 Christ. If it were possible for Him to be removed 00:13:37.289 --> 00:13:40.909 from the right hand of God, then we could fear 00:13:40.909 --> 00:13:46.929 our security and wonder if we were safe. But 00:13:46.929 --> 00:13:53.409 our life's security is based upon the one who 00:13:53.409 --> 00:13:58.450 is at the right hand of God eternally. Your life 00:13:58.450 --> 00:14:02.110 is hidden with Christ in God. And so what of 00:14:02.110 --> 00:14:07.690 God? Well Romans 8 verses 31 to 33 gives us a 00:14:07.690 --> 00:14:10.870 hint where Paul says if God is for us who is 00:14:10.870 --> 00:14:15.409 against us? He who did not spare his own son 00:14:15.409 --> 00:14:20.690 But delivered him up for us all How will he not 00:14:20.690 --> 00:14:27.519 also with him? freely give us all things Who 00:14:27.519 --> 00:14:30.480 will bring a charge against God's elect? God 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:35.480 is the one who justifies. Now if Jesus is at 00:14:35.480 --> 00:14:38.500 the right hand of God, that means that God is 00:14:38.500 --> 00:14:41.580 the one who's on the throne. He's the judge. 00:14:43.000 --> 00:14:48.200 He is the one who has the right to condemn. Or 00:14:48.200 --> 00:14:51.419 the one who has the right to say, you're innocent. 00:14:52.169 --> 00:14:55.570 And that's exactly what Paul says. God who is 00:14:55.570 --> 00:14:59.210 on the throne has already spoken. And he says, 00:14:59.870 --> 00:15:04.669 I declare you believing in Jesus Christ to be 00:15:04.669 --> 00:15:09.690 justified. That means our sins are forgiven, 00:15:10.370 --> 00:15:12.830 we receive the righteousness of Christ, and God 00:15:12.830 --> 00:15:19.210 sees no sin in us. We are as accepted by God 00:15:19.210 --> 00:15:24.090 who sits on the throne. as fully as he accepts 00:15:24.090 --> 00:15:28.330 his own son. There is nothing that can get your 00:15:28.330 --> 00:15:34.789 life, get to your life, to destroy it or to damage 00:15:34.789 --> 00:15:39.690 it. For you have been concealed with Christ in 00:15:39.690 --> 00:15:46.110 God." Dr. A .T. Robertson wrote, so here we are 00:15:46.110 --> 00:15:51.909 in Christ who is in God. And no burglar, not 00:15:51.909 --> 00:15:54.850 even Satan himself, can separate us from the 00:15:54.850 --> 00:15:59.549 love of God in Christ Jesus. The world cannot 00:15:59.549 --> 00:16:03.250 understand that kind of confidence and assurance 00:16:03.250 --> 00:16:08.669 that the Christian has. It's a secret. It belongs 00:16:08.669 --> 00:16:13.690 to the believer to know that he's right with 00:16:13.690 --> 00:16:18.399 God. There's a third secret that I see in our 00:16:18.399 --> 00:16:21.460 text. It is the secret of the believer's life's 00:16:21.460 --> 00:16:30.039 destiny. He says whenever Christ is revealed 00:16:30.039 --> 00:16:36.860 then you also will be revealed. One day Christ 00:16:36.860 --> 00:16:40.019 is going to be openly displayed to the world. 00:16:41.539 --> 00:16:43.960 The picture here is like the lifting of a veil. 00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:48.000 And I think of a bride at a wedding who comes 00:16:48.000 --> 00:16:52.539 down the aisle veiled. Now the groom already 00:16:52.539 --> 00:16:54.360 knows what's behind the veil, but he doesn't 00:16:54.360 --> 00:16:56.860 see it at that moment. If he's smart, he knows 00:16:56.860 --> 00:17:00.779 what's behind the veil. I mean, there are surprises, 00:17:00.840 --> 00:17:03.419 and then there are surprises, and you don't want 00:17:03.419 --> 00:17:07.440 that one. But there comes that moment in some 00:17:07.440 --> 00:17:11.920 ceremonies still, when the father lifts the veil. 00:17:14.700 --> 00:17:18.220 And what has been hidden to that point is shown 00:17:18.220 --> 00:17:22.539 to the bridegroom. Well here it's the other way 00:17:22.539 --> 00:17:24.920 around. Christ is the one who has veiled. We 00:17:24.920 --> 00:17:27.019 don't see Him now. The world doesn't see Him 00:17:27.019 --> 00:17:30.559 now. But there's coming a day when the veil is 00:17:30.559 --> 00:17:34.099 going to be taken away. And the world will see 00:17:34.099 --> 00:17:38.539 Him. But my friend, the secret of the believer 00:17:38.539 --> 00:17:42.079 is on that day we also will be revealed with 00:17:42.079 --> 00:17:50.970 Him. John says, we shall see Him as He is. Therefore, 00:17:50.990 --> 00:17:58.029 he says, we shall be like Him. At the same time 00:17:58.029 --> 00:18:00.630 that Paul wrote Colossians, he wrote Philippians. 00:18:02.650 --> 00:18:05.390 And in Philippians chapter 3, verses 20 and 21, 00:18:05.450 --> 00:18:07.490 he talks about what we're talking about here. 00:18:07.490 --> 00:18:12.150 He says, our citizenship is in heaven, not in 00:18:12.150 --> 00:18:17.250 this world. Our citizenship is in heaven, from 00:18:17.250 --> 00:18:20.930 which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the 00:18:20.930 --> 00:18:24.809 Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform the body 00:18:24.809 --> 00:18:30.329 of our humble state. That is, a body that is 00:18:30.329 --> 00:18:35.609 humbled by disease and weakness, and ultimately 00:18:35.609 --> 00:18:40.029 death because of sin's effect on it. That body. 00:18:40.109 --> 00:18:44.089 that humble body will be transformed into conformity 00:18:44.089 --> 00:18:48.849 with the body of his glory by the exertion of 00:18:48.849 --> 00:18:54.049 the power that he has even to subject all things 00:18:54.049 --> 00:18:58.910 to himself. So in that moment when he is revealed 00:18:58.910 --> 00:19:02.910 he is going to exert power and when he exerts 00:19:02.910 --> 00:19:06.349 power his people in that instant are going to 00:19:06.349 --> 00:19:11.160 be changed to be like him. Now that's a secret 00:19:11.160 --> 00:19:16.259 that will sustain you for a while. When the question 00:19:16.259 --> 00:19:23.880 comes to your mind, how ever can I go on? Or 00:19:23.880 --> 00:19:26.640 when you wonder whether it's worth all of your 00:19:26.640 --> 00:19:32.220 effort to be faithful to God. Or you're concerned 00:19:32.220 --> 00:19:35.740 about what's going to happen in the future to 00:19:35.740 --> 00:19:40.119 your kids, to your grandkids. with the world 00:19:40.119 --> 00:19:42.619 degenerating as it is. Do you ever wonder that? 00:19:42.779 --> 00:19:46.460 Listen, you have a secret that will sustain you. 00:19:46.940 --> 00:19:50.339 The world cannot comprehend it. It doesn't understand 00:19:50.339 --> 00:19:55.579 it. But you and I have a secret that says there's 00:19:55.579 --> 00:19:59.000 a destiny waiting for the child of God, and it's 00:19:59.000 --> 00:20:04.980 glory. Warren Wiersby wrote, the Christian life 00:20:04.980 --> 00:20:07.940 is a hidden life. as far as the world is concerned, 00:20:08.220 --> 00:20:13.579 because the world does not know Christ. Our sphere 00:20:13.579 --> 00:20:17.480 of life is not this earth, but heaven, and the 00:20:17.480 --> 00:20:21.039 things that attract us and excite us belong to 00:20:21.039 --> 00:20:26.140 heaven, not earth. That's why the apostle exhorts 00:20:26.140 --> 00:20:30.299 us as he does in this paragraph. Keep on seeking 00:20:30.299 --> 00:20:35.500 the things above. Set your mind on the things 00:20:35.500 --> 00:20:42.319 above, not the things that are on earth. Now 00:20:42.319 --> 00:20:44.380 he's going to talk to us about some of the things 00:20:44.380 --> 00:20:50.339 on earth as we continue on in chapter 3. And 00:20:50.339 --> 00:20:52.779 most of those things would be considered sinful. 00:20:53.619 --> 00:20:56.220 But not all things on the earth are sinful in 00:20:56.220 --> 00:21:00.539 and of themselves. Possessing something, for 00:21:00.539 --> 00:21:07.559 example. Is that sinful? No. What about playing? 00:21:08.039 --> 00:21:12.920 Is there something sinful about playing? Some 00:21:12.920 --> 00:21:14.680 Christians seem to think so. They don't play 00:21:14.680 --> 00:21:20.619 much. But there isn't. What about resting? We 00:21:20.619 --> 00:21:24.359 all need rest. But you see, any of those three 00:21:24.359 --> 00:21:30.930 can be sinful. If we focus on them, set our minds 00:21:30.930 --> 00:21:36.269 on them, if we set our affections on them, if 00:21:36.269 --> 00:21:43.210 we seek them before the Kingdom of God, perhaps 00:21:43.210 --> 00:21:47.789 the greatest threat to our obedience to these 00:21:47.789 --> 00:21:52.869 commands today could be under the label amusements. 00:21:55.210 --> 00:21:57.970 In the declining days of Rome, the people went 00:21:57.970 --> 00:22:01.549 to the circus and that's where Americans are 00:22:01.549 --> 00:22:09.390 going by the millions to the circus. As one writer 00:22:09.390 --> 00:22:13.369 said some time ago, we are amusing ourselves 00:22:13.369 --> 00:22:20.390 to death in this country with entertainment and 00:22:20.390 --> 00:22:25.839 sports, video games and movies. and things to 00:22:25.839 --> 00:22:30.160 do that are fun. And I say that those things, 00:22:30.220 --> 00:22:33.240 while they may not be wrong in themselves, are 00:22:33.240 --> 00:22:35.480 one of the greatest threats the Christians face 00:22:35.480 --> 00:22:38.960 in our culture to setting our minds on things 00:22:38.960 --> 00:22:44.180 above, not on the earth. How much time did you 00:22:44.180 --> 00:22:46.599 spend last week watching television or going 00:22:46.599 --> 00:22:51.119 to a movie or playing a video game? as compared 00:22:51.119 --> 00:22:53.819 to the time that you spent really seeking the 00:22:53.819 --> 00:23:04.240 things of God. The scripture says that we are 00:23:04.240 --> 00:23:06.740 to set our minds on things above, that we're 00:23:06.740 --> 00:23:12.039 to keep seeking the things above. The things 00:23:12.039 --> 00:23:16.420 that we're called to. The place where our citizenship 00:23:16.420 --> 00:23:21.130 is. Because those are the things that are going 00:23:21.130 --> 00:23:27.049 to count in the end Most of you won't be able 00:23:27.049 --> 00:23:30.809 to see this magazine that I'm holding up But 00:23:30.809 --> 00:23:32.250 it's such a pretty picture. I thought I would 00:23:32.250 --> 00:23:37.509 bring it and do a show -and -tell It's the magazine 00:23:37.509 --> 00:23:41.789 of the biblical archaeology Society their review 00:23:41.789 --> 00:23:44.130 magazine the most recent issue. I'm fascinating 00:23:44.130 --> 00:23:47.420 fascinating with every issue, but this A particular 00:23:47.420 --> 00:23:49.819 one caught my eye because of what's on the front 00:23:49.819 --> 00:23:52.559 of it. That doesn't look like much, especially 00:23:52.559 --> 00:23:56.500 to those of you in the back. But what this is 00:23:56.500 --> 00:23:59.200 is a picture of a piece of clay called a bulla. 00:24:01.859 --> 00:24:05.359 When ancients wanted to seal a document or seal 00:24:05.359 --> 00:24:09.619 a scroll, they would take a piece of wax or clay 00:24:09.619 --> 00:24:13.559 and they would apply a seal to it. The piece 00:24:13.559 --> 00:24:18.140 of clay was called a bulla. B -U -L -L -A. This 00:24:18.140 --> 00:24:23.200 is a picture of one. And here written in ancient 00:24:23.200 --> 00:24:28.240 Hebrew on this particular ring, it says, Belonging 00:24:28.240 --> 00:24:34.759 to Barakayu, the son of Nerahu, the scribe. Say, 00:24:34.799 --> 00:24:39.000 so what? Well, that Hebrew is brought into our 00:24:39.000 --> 00:24:46.720 English as Baruch, son of Neriah. the scribe. 00:24:46.960 --> 00:24:48.799 And if you remember your Old Testament, this 00:24:48.799 --> 00:24:52.359 is the man who was the secretary, the amanuensis, 00:24:52.839 --> 00:24:57.019 the assistant to the prophet Jeremiah. He wrote 00:24:57.019 --> 00:25:01.480 with his hand some of the book of Jeremiah that 00:25:01.480 --> 00:25:03.880 Jeremiah told him to write. He was an assistant 00:25:03.880 --> 00:25:09.900 and did chores and odd jobs for Jeremiah. And 00:25:09.900 --> 00:25:12.519 this is the second one that exists. There's another 00:25:12.519 --> 00:25:14.740 one that exists made from this very same seal 00:25:14.740 --> 00:25:18.220 that they've found. But this particular one is 00:25:18.220 --> 00:25:20.519 interesting because up here in this corner, none 00:25:20.519 --> 00:25:22.319 of you can see it, even you Paul in the front 00:25:22.319 --> 00:25:26.779 row, as good as your eyes are, there is a fingerprint. 00:25:29.279 --> 00:25:32.200 And they believe that this is the fingerprint 00:25:32.200 --> 00:25:36.599 of Baruch. The natural thing for him to touch 00:25:36.599 --> 00:25:43.539 the clay as he put... the seal upon it 2600 years 00:25:43.539 --> 00:25:47.259 ago. And I looked at that and I was greatly moved 00:25:47.259 --> 00:25:53.039 by it. Realizing that two things struck me. First 00:25:53.039 --> 00:25:56.240 of all that we are a part of a train, a parade 00:25:56.240 --> 00:26:01.240 of people who have loved God and served God on 00:26:01.240 --> 00:26:03.700 this earth. Sometimes we just see ourselves as 00:26:03.700 --> 00:26:06.299 the faithful who live right now. But folks, we're 00:26:06.299 --> 00:26:09.279 part of a parade. And this is our time on earth. 00:26:11.259 --> 00:26:13.440 And there are many who've been a part of this 00:26:13.440 --> 00:26:17.200 parade who are already in heaven. But this is 00:26:17.200 --> 00:26:21.859 our time. Let's make the most of it. Let's set 00:26:21.859 --> 00:26:25.119 our fixation on what's coming and not be distracted 00:26:25.119 --> 00:26:28.579 by the things of the earth. But the second thing 00:26:28.579 --> 00:26:35.509 that struck me was that He's been gone. thousands 00:26:35.509 --> 00:26:41.430 of years. And how quickly life passes. And as 00:26:41.430 --> 00:26:44.410 the scriptures say, as for man his days are like 00:26:44.410 --> 00:26:47.309 grass, as a flower of the field so he flourishes. 00:26:47.349 --> 00:26:50.890 When the wind has passed over it, it is no more. 00:26:51.529 --> 00:26:55.970 And its place acknowledges it no longer. If you're 00:26:55.970 --> 00:26:57.849 like me, you went out to your yard last summer 00:26:57.849 --> 00:27:01.809 and you pulled up a dandelion or two. You know, 00:27:01.930 --> 00:27:06.809 with roots about like this or... And it probably 00:27:06.809 --> 00:27:09.289 left a hole in your lawn, but how long did it 00:27:09.289 --> 00:27:13.730 take for that hole to fill up? And you didn't 00:27:13.730 --> 00:27:16.210 even have the place. That's the way life is. 00:27:17.049 --> 00:27:19.750 We think our roots are so deep and our place 00:27:19.750 --> 00:27:22.650 is so broad and when we're gone, no one's going 00:27:22.650 --> 00:27:26.410 to miss us. And yet when death plucks us up, 00:27:27.130 --> 00:27:30.009 it is not any time at all before that place is 00:27:30.009 --> 00:27:36.980 covered over and you're not remembered. It's 00:27:36.980 --> 00:27:40.180 kind of a dismal thought, isn't it? And I was 00:27:40.180 --> 00:27:42.240 praying about that this week. I said, Lord, this 00:27:42.240 --> 00:27:47.819 is not real encouraging to me. And the Lord said, 00:27:47.900 --> 00:27:53.900 what are you studying for Sunday? I said, oh, 00:27:55.460 --> 00:28:04.920 your life is hidden with Christ in God. And when 00:28:04.920 --> 00:28:07.980 Christ, who is our life, appears, you're going 00:28:07.980 --> 00:28:15.319 to appear with Him in glory. Life has its meaning, 00:28:16.279 --> 00:28:20.759 and it's not found in how long we live, but how 00:28:20.759 --> 00:28:27.279 well we live. And how faithfully we seek the 00:28:27.279 --> 00:28:31.359 things above, and don't allow ourselves to be 00:28:31.359 --> 00:28:35.720 enticed and allured. by the things that are on 00:28:35.720 --> 00:28:43.579 the earth that surely will pass away. Let's pray. 00:28:47.039 --> 00:28:49.200 Father, I thank you for the challenge of this 00:28:49.200 --> 00:28:52.200 text this morning and my prayer is that as we 00:28:52.200 --> 00:28:56.640 come to the communion table, you will show to 00:28:56.640 --> 00:29:02.000 us how we need to align our lives to live well. 00:29:04.400 --> 00:29:08.000 And wherein we have allowed ourselves to become 00:29:08.000 --> 00:29:11.579 focused and centered on the things of the earth, 00:29:12.720 --> 00:29:18.339 show us. Please open our eyes so that however 00:29:18.339 --> 00:29:24.880 long we have in this world, we will use that 00:29:24.880 --> 00:29:31.920 time wisely. In Jesus' name, amen.