WEBVTT 00:00:01.439 --> 00:00:04.799 If you had the king of the universe standing 00:00:04.799 --> 00:00:07.860 right in front of you, what would you ask for? 00:00:08.660 --> 00:00:12.779 Which dreams would you want him to make a reality? 00:00:13.960 --> 00:00:17.300 Now imagine, as you have these dreams in mind, 00:00:17.960 --> 00:00:20.500 that some guy next to you yells out to the king 00:00:20.500 --> 00:00:23.039 of the universe, teacher, tell my brother to 00:00:23.039 --> 00:00:26.679 divide the inheritance with me. Dude, what are 00:00:26.679 --> 00:00:30.660 you doing? He heals people with the word. He 00:00:30.660 --> 00:00:34.640 proclaims forgiveness, He raises the dead, and 00:00:34.640 --> 00:00:39.979 you're asking Him for legal advice. But let's 00:00:39.979 --> 00:00:44.320 not laugh too hard. Because this man in our Gospel 00:00:44.320 --> 00:00:48.740 lesson is trapped in a story, a narrative, where 00:00:48.740 --> 00:00:53.039 life is about securing what you believe is rightfully 00:00:53.039 --> 00:00:58.259 yours. He's blind to the idea that true life 00:00:58.259 --> 00:01:04.010 is being rich. with God. His dream is shaped 00:01:04.010 --> 00:01:07.730 by self -interest and the illusion that wealth 00:01:07.730 --> 00:01:13.409 will secure his future. This man with small dreams, 00:01:14.069 --> 00:01:17.909 he doesn't realize he's living inside a story 00:01:17.909 --> 00:01:23.349 that cannot save him. And honestly, neither do 00:01:23.349 --> 00:01:27.670 we. The man's request, tell my brother to divide 00:01:27.670 --> 00:01:30.799 the inheritance with me, It's not extravagant. 00:01:31.680 --> 00:01:34.219 It actually sounds pretty reasonable. Sounds 00:01:34.219 --> 00:01:38.340 pretty fair. Maybe his brother really is being 00:01:38.340 --> 00:01:41.980 unjust. He just wants what he thinks will make 00:01:41.980 --> 00:01:47.400 his life easier, more comfortable, more secure. 00:01:48.579 --> 00:01:52.739 But that's the problem. His dream is far too 00:01:52.739 --> 00:01:56.700 small. He's dreaming like a man who thinks this 00:01:56.700 --> 00:02:00.439 life is all there is when speaking with the King 00:02:00.439 --> 00:02:04.120 who can give him life eternal. He's standing 00:02:04.120 --> 00:02:06.859 in front of the King of the universe, but all 00:02:06.859 --> 00:02:10.680 he can think about is his share of the family 00:02:10.680 --> 00:02:14.280 estate. He's like a man sitting at the gates 00:02:14.280 --> 00:02:17.400 of heaven, but all he wants is a voucher for 00:02:17.400 --> 00:02:20.830 a nicer room at the inn. His eyes are on the 00:02:20.830 --> 00:02:24.090 ground when the skies are opening up right in 00:02:24.090 --> 00:02:28.810 front of him. It's easy to think small when we're 00:02:28.810 --> 00:02:33.990 afraid of losing control. Now imagine for a moment 00:02:33.990 --> 00:02:37.909 that this man's request is the start of a dream 00:02:37.909 --> 00:02:43.430 sequence. In his mind, life becomes simple. Maybe 00:02:43.430 --> 00:02:46.550 he's read Ecclesiastes and he grabbed onto the 00:02:46.550 --> 00:02:49.409 line that says there is nothing better for a 00:02:49.409 --> 00:02:52.629 person than to eat and drink and find enjoyment 00:02:52.629 --> 00:02:56.710 in his toil. I mean, that sounds pretty good, 00:02:56.930 --> 00:03:01.689 right? Work hard, enjoy what you've earned, take 00:03:01.689 --> 00:03:06.050 life as it comes. I just want to be comfortable. 00:03:06.569 --> 00:03:11.370 I'm not asking for much. That's how the dream 00:03:11.370 --> 00:03:15.509 begins. And Ecclesiastes was never meant to be 00:03:15.509 --> 00:03:20.669 a fatalistic, pessimistic book. The Hebrews valued 00:03:20.669 --> 00:03:24.409 it because it told the truth about life's limitations, 00:03:24.550 --> 00:03:28.969 about how small we really are. Luther loved Ecclesiastes 00:03:28.969 --> 00:03:33.449 for the same reason. He saw its joy not as an 00:03:33.449 --> 00:03:37.110 achievement of human effort, but as a gift from 00:03:37.110 --> 00:03:41.310 God. to be received with humility. But when we 00:03:41.310 --> 00:03:44.949 take that wisdom and twist it into a mantra that 00:03:44.949 --> 00:03:49.069 we are always supposed to follow, we risk losing 00:03:49.069 --> 00:03:53.310 its heart. Because mantras, they don't always 00:03:53.310 --> 00:03:58.270 work. The dream keeps going, but soon it starts 00:03:58.270 --> 00:04:02.310 to shift into a bit of a nightmare. The words 00:04:02.310 --> 00:04:06.500 sound the same, but the tone changes. Now it's 00:04:06.500 --> 00:04:11.520 not Ecclesiastes whispering into our ear. It's 00:04:11.520 --> 00:04:15.360 Isaiah 22. A moment when God looks at his people 00:04:15.360 --> 00:04:18.519 and sees them partying while the city is under 00:04:18.519 --> 00:04:22.839 siege. Judgment is coming, but they say, let 00:04:22.839 --> 00:04:27.540 us eat and drink for tomorrow we die. The same 00:04:27.540 --> 00:04:34.040 type of mantra, but now it's resignation to condemnation. 00:04:34.829 --> 00:04:39.269 disguised as wisdom. It's just giving up. The 00:04:39.269 --> 00:04:42.009 man doesn't even notice the shift. He thinks 00:04:42.009 --> 00:04:46.350 he's still being wise. But now his enjoyment 00:04:46.350 --> 00:04:52.129 has become a mask for his despair. It's we're 00:04:52.129 --> 00:04:56.029 all doomed anyway, so let's just live in our 00:04:56.029 --> 00:05:00.610 dreams as long as we can. And then the dream 00:05:00.610 --> 00:05:05.459 begins to crumble. And now he's alone. He's looking 00:05:05.459 --> 00:05:09.519 at his land, his barns, his plans. Here in Luke 00:05:09.519 --> 00:05:13.160 12, just a few verses later, he's become the 00:05:13.160 --> 00:05:17.319 rich fool. Building bigger barns and telling 00:05:17.319 --> 00:05:21.860 himself, take life easy. Eat, drink, be merry. 00:05:22.779 --> 00:05:25.920 He thinks that he has won in the game of life. 00:05:26.540 --> 00:05:29.699 But in the dream, there's a knock on the door. 00:05:30.279 --> 00:05:34.019 And a voice says, you fool. This very night your 00:05:34.019 --> 00:05:37.399 life will be demanded from you. And all of his 00:05:37.399 --> 00:05:39.980 dreams, all of his plans, all of his striving, 00:05:41.079 --> 00:05:45.759 it's gone. That's how mantras in our life shift. 00:05:46.660 --> 00:05:50.540 They start as a humble joy in God's gifts, but 00:05:50.540 --> 00:05:54.319 they become coping mechanisms for despair. And 00:05:54.319 --> 00:05:58.360 they end as self -made traps of false security. 00:05:58.730 --> 00:06:01.269 And through it all, the man doesn't realize that 00:06:01.269 --> 00:06:04.970 the one who can rewrite his dreams is standing 00:06:04.970 --> 00:06:09.129 right in front of him. There's a show that's 00:06:09.129 --> 00:06:11.930 been going on on Netflix called The Sandman. 00:06:12.449 --> 00:06:15.529 It's really dark and deals with all the sins 00:06:15.529 --> 00:06:18.290 that are in our Colossians passage, so be careful 00:06:18.290 --> 00:06:21.250 if you decide to watch it. But even if you haven't 00:06:21.250 --> 00:06:25.949 watched it, we know the idea. The Sandman. People 00:06:25.949 --> 00:06:29.839 build dreams to escape reality. They craft worlds 00:06:29.839 --> 00:06:32.040 where they don't have to face the fear of death. 00:06:32.540 --> 00:06:35.879 Where they control the outcome. Where life's 00:06:35.879 --> 00:06:39.620 mess doesn't reach them. And there's a catch 00:06:39.620 --> 00:06:42.480 though. Because the deeper they go into their 00:06:42.480 --> 00:06:45.939 dreams, the more they get trapped in avoiding 00:06:45.939 --> 00:06:48.819 the truth that's all around them. Because at 00:06:48.819 --> 00:06:51.259 the heart of those dreams is this quiet voice 00:06:51.259 --> 00:06:56.029 whispering, this is all there is. You can't escape 00:06:56.029 --> 00:07:00.529 reality, so just ignore it in your dreams. And 00:07:00.529 --> 00:07:03.990 maybe that's what we do. Maybe we chase after 00:07:03.990 --> 00:07:07.310 the jobs and the relationships, the experiences, 00:07:07.730 --> 00:07:11.730 the security, thinking, if I can just get this 00:07:11.730 --> 00:07:15.149 one thing, I'll be okay. But the dream starts 00:07:15.149 --> 00:07:19.269 to crack. The illusion fades. The world is still 00:07:19.269 --> 00:07:24.410 fragile. We are still fragile. And when it all 00:07:24.410 --> 00:07:26.490 starts falling apart, what does the world tell 00:07:26.490 --> 00:07:31.430 us? That's just how life is. Grow up. Accept 00:07:31.430 --> 00:07:35.910 it. Make the best of it. It'll all be over soon. 00:07:37.350 --> 00:07:41.050 But that's not wisdom. That's elegant despair. 00:07:41.829 --> 00:07:45.350 That's learning how just to beautifully give 00:07:45.350 --> 00:07:50.560 up. Without Christ, the dream attempts to atone 00:07:50.560 --> 00:07:55.860 for sins without a Savior. That story of the 00:07:55.860 --> 00:07:59.839 dream ends only in self -destruction and hopelessness. 00:08:00.540 --> 00:08:03.759 But what if dreams aren't meant to be an escape 00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:08.040 from hopelessness? What if dreams are meant to 00:08:08.040 --> 00:08:12.420 wake us up? The man in Luke 12 wasn't dreaming 00:08:12.420 --> 00:08:17.800 too big, he was dreaming far too small. He stood 00:08:17.800 --> 00:08:19.540 in front of the king of the universe, but all 00:08:19.540 --> 00:08:21.959 he could think about was his inheritance He wanted 00:08:21.959 --> 00:08:24.199 what he thought would make him happy in the moment, 00:08:24.199 --> 00:08:28.839 but Jesus was ready to offer him something eternal 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:33.019 Instead of letting him cling to a fading dream 00:08:33.019 --> 00:08:38.559 You're asking for an inheritance But I'm offering 00:08:38.559 --> 00:08:42.580 you a kingdom as Jesus would put it you want 00:08:42.580 --> 00:08:45.639 to be rich for a moment. I want to make you rich 00:08:45.909 --> 00:08:52.850 with God. Christ doesn't take away joys or life 00:08:52.850 --> 00:08:58.970 or dreams. He wakes us up to real joy, real life, 00:08:59.470 --> 00:09:02.590 the kind that doesn't fade when the dream ends. 00:09:03.929 --> 00:09:07.649 That's where Colossians 3 pulls us in. Paul writes, 00:09:07.970 --> 00:09:11.289 set your mind on things above, not on earthly 00:09:11.289 --> 00:09:14.720 things, for you died and your life is now hidden 00:09:14.720 --> 00:09:19.259 with Christ in God. You don't need to escape 00:09:19.259 --> 00:09:23.559 reality through shallow dreams. You need to be 00:09:23.559 --> 00:09:29.120 reborn into a greater reality. A redeemed dream, 00:09:29.320 --> 00:09:34.840 a life hidden in Christ. Not rich just for a 00:09:34.840 --> 00:09:39.100 moment, but rich for eternity. A life that isn't 00:09:39.100 --> 00:09:41.500 about grabbing what you can before it's gone. 00:09:42.029 --> 00:09:46.610 A life that is secured, eternal, gloriously full 00:09:46.610 --> 00:09:50.809 in Christ. Because Colossians 3 doesn't deny 00:09:50.809 --> 00:09:57.990 death. It says, you have died. And your life 00:09:57.990 --> 00:10:01.730 is now hidden with Christ in God. And it doesn't 00:10:01.730 --> 00:10:05.470 stop there. It proclaims a resurrection life 00:10:05.470 --> 00:10:10.559 that transforms every part of existence. What 00:10:10.559 --> 00:10:14.759 you wear, how you love, how you eat, how you 00:10:14.759 --> 00:10:18.639 work. It transforms every part of our existence, 00:10:18.940 --> 00:10:22.000 what we give, how we serve, to be better than 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:27.000 it ever was before. Just like the King of Dreams, 00:10:27.259 --> 00:10:31.240 the man in Luke 12 doesn't need a prettier ending 00:10:31.240 --> 00:10:35.500 to his old story. He needs to be baptized into 00:10:35.500 --> 00:10:40.919 a new one. But here's the thing. Jesus doesn't 00:10:40.919 --> 00:10:43.480 wake the man up from his dream just to leave 00:10:43.480 --> 00:10:48.799 him in the cold, harsh light of reality. He wakes 00:10:48.799 --> 00:10:53.840 him up to redeem the dreams of his life, to baptize 00:10:53.840 --> 00:10:56.879 them, to take what was twisted and broken and 00:10:56.879 --> 00:11:02.500 give them back to him, whole, new, alive in God. 00:11:03.120 --> 00:11:07.399 That's what Colossians 3 is all about. Paul says, 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:11.440 Put to death therefore whatever belongs to your 00:11:11.440 --> 00:11:17.700 earthly nature. That's Isaiah's part of the despair. 00:11:18.980 --> 00:11:23.019 The fatalism, the despair that we try to ignore 00:11:23.019 --> 00:11:27.240 and numb by living out every vice and sin that 00:11:27.240 --> 00:11:30.379 we know will only destroy us, but we're hoping 00:11:30.379 --> 00:11:34.200 will distract us. But Jesus doesn't tell us to 00:11:34.200 --> 00:11:37.610 numb ourselves to that feeling. He tells us to 00:11:37.610 --> 00:11:41.490 crucify it. To be done with it. He's already 00:11:41.490 --> 00:11:47.409 faced it at the cross and won. And then Paul 00:11:47.409 --> 00:11:50.090 says, take off your old self with its practices. 00:11:50.950 --> 00:11:54.610 And put on the new self. And that's Luke's part 00:11:54.610 --> 00:11:57.610 of the dream. The bigger barns, the illusion 00:11:57.610 --> 00:12:02.830 of control. Paul says, take it off. Like an old 00:12:02.830 --> 00:12:08.539 ragged coat. It's not you anymore. Finally, Paul 00:12:08.539 --> 00:12:11.659 says, whatever you do, whether in word or deed, 00:12:12.600 --> 00:12:16.419 do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving 00:12:16.419 --> 00:12:21.600 thanks to God the Father through Him. That's 00:12:21.600 --> 00:12:27.340 Ecclesiastes in this dream, but now it's redeemed. 00:12:27.799 --> 00:12:31.779 The eating, drinking, working, giving, serving, 00:12:32.159 --> 00:12:36.299 rejoicing, but no longer hollow, because now 00:12:36.299 --> 00:12:41.879 it's worship. Now it's sacred. Christ doesn't 00:12:41.879 --> 00:12:46.840 erase the dream. He resurrects it. Instead of 00:12:46.840 --> 00:12:49.279 seeing the treasures we have been blessed with 00:12:49.279 --> 00:12:53.460 as a way to avoid life and just revel in more 00:12:53.460 --> 00:12:57.039 pleasures, we can actually do things with what 00:12:57.039 --> 00:12:59.159 we've been given that can benefit the kingdom 00:12:59.159 --> 00:13:02.799 of God that we live in. A kingdom that is eternal 00:13:02.799 --> 00:13:07.360 instead of elusive. Instead of a setting aside 00:13:07.360 --> 00:13:10.320 our treasures, hoping we may use them someday, 00:13:10.639 --> 00:13:13.679 we can give them toward what matters today, helping 00:13:13.679 --> 00:13:16.879 others, while trusting that God will provide 00:13:16.879 --> 00:13:21.399 for us as well. Christ doesn't tell the man in 00:13:21.399 --> 00:13:24.440 Luke 12 to stop desiring good things. He invites 00:13:24.440 --> 00:13:29.679 him to desire something greater, to be rich with 00:13:29.679 --> 00:13:33.960 God, to live a life where joy isn't a last meal. 00:13:34.159 --> 00:13:38.320 before the end with all of your barns full, but 00:13:38.320 --> 00:13:41.639 a daily feast in the presence of a God who provides, 00:13:42.200 --> 00:13:46.860 who redeems, who reigns. In Colossians, Paul 00:13:46.860 --> 00:13:51.279 isn't giving us a list of do's and don'ts. He's 00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:54.580 giving a picture of what it looks like when your 00:13:54.580 --> 00:13:58.580 dreams have been baptized into real life. A real 00:13:58.580 --> 00:14:01.600 life that lasts forever in Christ. When your 00:14:01.600 --> 00:14:06.740 old self has died with Christ, and your new self 00:14:06.740 --> 00:14:10.279 is raised with Him. See, that's the dream Jesus 00:14:10.279 --> 00:14:13.940 wants for this man. It's the dream He wants for 00:14:13.940 --> 00:14:19.340 us. Christ is not the King of escapist dreams. 00:14:20.039 --> 00:14:25.000 He's the King of a renewed universe. He doesn't 00:14:25.000 --> 00:14:29.279 offer fantasy. He offers a resurrected life that 00:14:29.279 --> 00:14:32.500 brings beauty. and fullness to the very things 00:14:32.500 --> 00:14:36.100 we try to escape from. Work and relationships 00:14:36.100 --> 00:14:40.399 and death. You have died and your life is now 00:14:40.399 --> 00:14:45.019 hidden with Christ in God. The old dreams die, 00:14:45.860 --> 00:14:50.100 but now you're clothed in a new self, dreaming 00:14:50.100 --> 00:14:54.259 God's dreams. There's an old Japanese art called 00:14:54.259 --> 00:14:59.159 Kintsugi, where broken pottery is repaired with 00:14:59.159 --> 00:15:03.320 gold. The cracks are not hidden. They're made 00:15:03.320 --> 00:15:06.539 beautiful. The pot becomes stronger and more 00:15:06.539 --> 00:15:08.820 precious where it was once broken. And that's 00:15:08.820 --> 00:15:13.000 what Christ does with our dreams. Even the ones 00:15:13.000 --> 00:15:16.440 that we thought were broken and gone. He doesn't 00:15:16.440 --> 00:15:20.240 throw them away. He redeems them. He sanctifies 00:15:20.240 --> 00:15:24.879 them. He makes them part of a bigger story. He 00:15:24.879 --> 00:15:27.600 doesn't offer fantasy. He offers resurrection. 00:15:28.909 --> 00:15:33.129 So let's go back to our funny man at the beginning 00:15:33.129 --> 00:15:37.470 of our story. He came to Jesus with a simple 00:15:37.470 --> 00:15:40.950 request. Tell my brother to divide the inheritance 00:15:40.950 --> 00:15:44.190 with me. That was his dream. That was the story 00:15:44.190 --> 00:15:46.409 he thought he was living in. Get what's fair. 00:15:46.909 --> 00:15:49.450 Secure a little comfort. Make life a little easier. 00:15:50.350 --> 00:15:54.370 But standing in front of him wasn't a judge to 00:15:54.370 --> 00:15:57.570 settle his dispute. He was the king of the universe. 00:15:58.360 --> 00:16:02.059 inviting him into a kingdom. And I wonder, what 00:16:02.059 --> 00:16:05.639 if in that moment, Jesus wasn't just hearing 00:16:05.639 --> 00:16:11.320 a demand, what if he was hearing a cry? A cry 00:16:11.320 --> 00:16:16.059 from a man tired of striving, tired of being 00:16:16.059 --> 00:16:19.860 afraid, tired of pretending that grabbing a few 00:16:19.860 --> 00:16:24.320 coins would somehow make him whole and wealthy. 00:16:26.080 --> 00:16:30.120 Friends, we are that man. Every time we reduce 00:16:30.120 --> 00:16:34.120 life to what we can earn, secure, control, we're 00:16:34.120 --> 00:16:37.000 standing in front of Jesus asking Him to bless 00:16:37.000 --> 00:16:42.879 our small dreams. But Jesus loves us too much 00:16:42.879 --> 00:16:46.500 to settle for that. He's not here to help you 00:16:46.500 --> 00:16:49.500 build a bigger barn. He's here to give you a 00:16:49.500 --> 00:16:54.620 better life. A life hidden with Him. A life clothed 00:16:54.620 --> 00:16:59.929 in compassion, humility, kindness, a life rich 00:16:59.929 --> 00:17:04.369 not in things, but in Him. Christ is here to 00:17:04.369 --> 00:17:09.369 baptize your dreams because He has already been 00:17:09.369 --> 00:17:14.289 crucified for your life. He is here to crucify 00:17:14.289 --> 00:17:18.410 what needs to die. He's here to sanctify what 00:17:18.410 --> 00:17:22.569 He has given you and to resurrect your life into 00:17:22.569 --> 00:17:27.509 His Kingdom. And the invitation is open. Will 00:17:27.509 --> 00:17:32.470 you keep chasing the dreams that fade? Or will 00:17:32.470 --> 00:17:36.609 you let Christ redeem you and everything that 00:17:36.609 --> 00:17:40.549 you could ever hope for to have a life that will 00:17:40.549 --> 00:17:47.970 never fade? So eat, drink, rejoice, but do it 00:17:47.970 --> 00:17:52.089 as one who is rich toward God. Because that's 00:17:52.089 --> 00:17:56.670 the only dream that's worth living. Thanks be 00:17:56.670 --> 00:17:57.009 to God.