1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:04,400 New Year, we look forward to 2026. 2 00:00:04,440 --> 00:00:06,760 I know that many of us probably have plans. 3 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:12,720 Maybe plans for dating, plans for marriage, plans for a first 4 00:00:12,720 --> 00:00:18,000 child or second child or third child, plans for graduating 5 00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:26,000 school, plans for a career change, plans to to move or or 6 00:00:26,000 --> 00:00:30,120 maybe plans to keep things the same and not make any changes 7 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:36,120 whatsoever. Lord, help us to submit our 8 00:00:36,120 --> 00:00:41,560 plans to you and to recognize our our our plans are not 9 00:00:41,560 --> 00:00:44,000 sovereign. You are sovereign God. 10 00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:47,080 You are sovereign over our plans. 11 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:50,320 I pray God that you would teach us that this morning through 12 00:00:50,320 --> 00:00:59,600 this text in Jesus name, Amen. There are all types of planning. 13 00:01:01,600 --> 00:01:05,560 Some people will have plans for their plans. 14 00:01:07,640 --> 00:01:10,240 There is financial planning, right? 15 00:01:10,320 --> 00:01:14,280 Planning to have an emergency fund, maybe plan to save for a 16 00:01:14,280 --> 00:01:17,200 home purchase. There's plans for budgeting, 17 00:01:17,200 --> 00:01:20,960 plans for investing. There is a date planning. 18 00:01:20,960 --> 00:01:25,520 You talk to Nick Pleasants about that, wills and trust and 19 00:01:25,520 --> 00:01:29,640 beneficiaries. There is retirement planning, 20 00:01:29,640 --> 00:01:31,560 saving for the latter years of your life. 21 00:01:31,560 --> 00:01:34,960 There's how you will spend your latter years, where you'll spend 22 00:01:34,960 --> 00:01:36,360 it. There's senior care. 23 00:01:37,080 --> 00:01:41,440 There is tax planning. How can you minimize your tax 24 00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:44,680 liability? There is insurance planning, 25 00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:48,680 things like life insurance and health insurance or career 26 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:53,000 planning, plans to start your own business, maybe do a start 27 00:01:53,000 --> 00:01:57,400 up, plans to change careers. Maybe you have business goals. 28 00:01:58,200 --> 00:02:01,440 There is family planning, plans for marriage, plans for 29 00:02:01,440 --> 00:02:05,320 children, plans for parenting decisions. 30 00:02:06,200 --> 00:02:08,800 There is education planning, saving for your children's 31 00:02:08,800 --> 00:02:15,120 education, planning to get a graduate degree or a doctorate. 32 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:20,440 There's health and fitness planning, plans for diet, I'm 33 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:24,120 going to have plans for a new diet this year, plans for 34 00:02:24,120 --> 00:02:28,760 exercise, plans for sleep, there's travel plans, vacations 35 00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:31,320 and plans to go see family there. 36 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:37,800 There's all kinds of plans. None of those plans are wrong in 37 00:02:37,800 --> 00:02:45,640 and of them self. The question is this, how much 38 00:02:45,680 --> 00:02:53,800 does God factor into your plans? That's the question. 39 00:02:55,880 --> 00:03:01,920 Is it that God's will is the center of my life and I want to 40 00:03:01,920 --> 00:03:06,560 know how do my plans fit into God's will? 41 00:03:08,840 --> 00:03:14,960 Or is it that my plans are the center of my life and I want to 42 00:03:14,960 --> 00:03:18,120 know how God's will fits into my plans? 43 00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:26,080 That's the question, isn't it? What is central? 44 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:33,120 What dictates everything? God or your plans? 45 00:03:35,480 --> 00:03:37,000 That's what we're going to get to this morning. 46 00:03:38,280 --> 00:03:39,960 So let's start with the exhibition of the text. 47 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:43,360 I'll try to explain this, exposit it, and then I'll give 48 00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:45,720 you application of our text this morning. 49 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:48,800 Let's start in verse 13, where James writes come now, you who 50 00:03:48,800 --> 00:03:53,000 say today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town, We'll 51 00:03:53,000 --> 00:03:57,320 spend a year there, we'll trade and we'll make a profit. 52 00:03:57,720 --> 00:04:01,080 James starts off our passes this morning with a call. 53 00:04:01,480 --> 00:04:05,760 It is a harkening. Come now or there's the NIV 54 00:04:05,800 --> 00:04:10,160 translates. Now listen, James wants to get 55 00:04:10,160 --> 00:04:13,920 the attention of a certain group of people in the church. 56 00:04:14,240 --> 00:04:20,680 He says, come now, you who say, what do they say today or 57 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:23,040 tomorrow? We will go into such and such a 58 00:04:23,040 --> 00:04:25,680 town. We'll spend a year there. 59 00:04:26,480 --> 00:04:28,920 We'll trade and we'll make a profit. 60 00:04:29,960 --> 00:04:33,120 So James wants to get the attention of these people who 61 00:04:33,120 --> 00:04:36,120 are making business plans. Let's break down their 62 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:39,640 statement. First they say today or 63 00:04:39,760 --> 00:04:41,320 tomorrow. Now this doesn't have to be 64 00:04:41,320 --> 00:04:43,800 literal. Today can just mean this season. 65 00:04:43,960 --> 00:04:46,000 Tomorrow can be the proverbial tomorrow. 66 00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:51,160 Just in the future, sometime we will go into such and such a 67 00:04:51,160 --> 00:04:54,120 town. So they have plans to move to a 68 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:57,920 certain place. We know that in antiquity it was 69 00:04:57,920 --> 00:05:03,120 a very trade kind of oriented profession or, or, or, or 70 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:06,000 culture. And so these traders would move 71 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:09,120 around from place to place to be able to sell their products. 72 00:05:09,520 --> 00:05:13,040 And so they would move there for businesses purposes, spend time 73 00:05:13,040 --> 00:05:15,960 there. They plan to spend a year there. 74 00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:19,120 So they have a timeline for how long they're going to spend in 75 00:05:19,120 --> 00:05:20,760 this town. They're going to stay there for 76 00:05:20,760 --> 00:05:22,720 one year. What are they going to do when 77 00:05:22,720 --> 00:05:24,680 they get there? They're going to trade, 78 00:05:25,080 --> 00:05:28,640 literally to carry on an activity involving buying and 79 00:05:28,640 --> 00:05:33,040 selling or to be in business. This could be anything from 80 00:05:33,040 --> 00:05:38,720 spices to silk to olive oil to textiles to perfumes to grain to 81 00:05:38,720 --> 00:05:42,320 clothing. They're going to trade and they 82 00:05:42,440 --> 00:05:45,840 plan to make a profit. Literally a game. 83 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:47,880 They plan to make a profit or a game. 84 00:05:48,520 --> 00:05:51,200 So I want us to consider the nature of their statement. 85 00:05:52,600 --> 00:05:57,880 They have a purpose, they have a timeline, they have direction, 86 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:03,400 they have plans, they have ambitions, they have an exit 87 00:06:03,400 --> 00:06:07,360 strategy. Sounds wise, doesn't it? 88 00:06:11,320 --> 00:06:13,760 I was thinking about this. What are some modern day 89 00:06:13,760 --> 00:06:19,720 versions of this statement? Next year I'm going to move to 90 00:06:19,720 --> 00:06:22,280 Los Angeles, launch this startup. 91 00:06:22,600 --> 00:06:24,320 We'll be profitable by quarter 3. 92 00:06:26,560 --> 00:06:29,000 I'm going to work here for two years, then I'm going to switch 93 00:06:29,000 --> 00:06:30,640 companies to a higher paying role. 94 00:06:32,840 --> 00:06:36,040 I'm going to save and invest for the 1st 25 years of my life, 95 00:06:36,640 --> 00:06:39,400 retire at 50 and live off the returns. 96 00:06:42,080 --> 00:06:45,600 We're going to plant 5 churches in the next 5 years. 97 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:47,720 Each one will grow to 100 or more. 98 00:06:51,520 --> 00:06:56,240 I plan to graduate at 22, get married by 26, have our first 99 00:06:56,240 --> 00:07:03,000 kid by 30. What is James's response to such 100 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:06,440 statements? What is his response to such 101 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:07,800 statements? Look at verse 14. 102 00:07:11,000 --> 00:07:13,200 You do not know what tomorrow will bring. 103 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:18,840 What is your life for you are a miss that appears for a little 104 00:07:18,840 --> 00:07:24,240 time and then vanishes. Now one thing I want to point 105 00:07:24,240 --> 00:07:29,040 out is that the statement in verse 13, there are 4 verbs in 106 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:34,320 their statement. Go, spend, trade, make. 107 00:07:34,960 --> 00:07:36,360 Those are 4 verbs in the statement. 108 00:07:36,600 --> 00:07:41,880 All four verbs are in the indicative mood, the mood of 109 00:07:42,080 --> 00:07:44,520 reality. That's important because in 110 00:07:44,520 --> 00:07:48,840 other words, they are not making this statement as a statement of 111 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:54,000 possibility that we hope to do this or we we, we desire, or 112 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:56,960 maybe we'll do this. They are making the statement as 113 00:07:56,960 --> 00:08:00,520 a reality. We will go into such and such a 114 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:03,480 town. We will spend a year there. 115 00:08:03,600 --> 00:08:07,760 We will trade. We will make a profit. 116 00:08:08,000 --> 00:08:11,680 They're all indicative mood, and James is challenging these 117 00:08:11,680 --> 00:08:15,800 people with a self-evident elementary truth. 118 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:20,640 You don't know what tomorrow will bring. 119 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:30,880 You don't know the future. And James asked them a question. 120 00:08:31,800 --> 00:08:39,960 What is your life? What is your life? 121 00:08:41,919 --> 00:08:44,840 I think James is trying to get these people to stop and 122 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:52,920 consider how small they are, how powerless they are, how 123 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:58,520 insignificant they are. Think of it like this. 124 00:08:59,160 --> 00:09:01,400 It'd be like if an Ant came into my house. 125 00:09:01,760 --> 00:09:06,600 An Ant, a little Ant came into my house and it started 126 00:09:06,600 --> 00:09:10,680 boasting. Tomorrow I'm going to go into 127 00:09:10,680 --> 00:09:13,640 the pantry and start eating all this food. 128 00:09:15,040 --> 00:09:18,760 Then I will work my way to the counter where the fruit bowl is 129 00:09:19,000 --> 00:09:23,840 and I will enjoy some of that. Then I will finish with dessert, 130 00:09:23,840 --> 00:09:29,000 with the candy and the cupboard, to which I would say to the 131 00:09:29,080 --> 00:09:33,280 aunt, how do you know I'm not going to crush you right now? 132 00:09:43,480 --> 00:09:51,960 What is your life? Oh, Aunt James is exhorting them 133 00:09:51,960 --> 00:09:57,000 to consider the existential nature of their life. 134 00:09:57,200 --> 00:10:00,440 And what is that? What is the existential nature 135 00:10:00,440 --> 00:10:01,720 of their life? Here it is. 136 00:10:01,960 --> 00:10:11,000 You are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 137 00:10:13,920 --> 00:10:16,960 You ever spray an air freshener or you spray it, You see the 138 00:10:16,960 --> 00:10:19,960 mist come out and you see it for like a few seconds and then it 139 00:10:19,960 --> 00:10:23,840 just, it's just gone. Are you ever going outside on a 140 00:10:23,840 --> 00:10:26,360 cold day? I this morning I parked at the 141 00:10:26,360 --> 00:10:29,120 school while I got here like at 7:30 in the morning, right? 142 00:10:29,120 --> 00:10:32,040 It was freezing outside. I, I was, I'm walking to the 143 00:10:32,040 --> 00:10:33,760 church. Ever you, you breathe and you 144 00:10:33,760 --> 00:10:35,880 see your breath. You see it for like a second or 145 00:10:35,880 --> 00:10:38,560 two and then it just it's just gone. 146 00:10:40,920 --> 00:10:51,200 James says that is your life. It's there and then it's gone. 147 00:10:51,200 --> 00:10:58,440 Look at verse 15. Instead, you ought to say, if 148 00:10:58,600 --> 00:11:04,440 the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that. 149 00:11:04,720 --> 00:11:09,040 Now I want you to notice the issue is not with making plans. 150 00:11:10,120 --> 00:11:12,880 The issue is not with the plan itself. 151 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:16,160 James does not talk about their plan. 152 00:11:16,640 --> 00:11:18,760 There's no problem with the plan. 153 00:11:18,840 --> 00:11:21,480 There's nothing wrong with their plans. 154 00:11:23,560 --> 00:11:28,880 The issue is with the heart that goes with the plans. 155 00:11:29,880 --> 00:11:36,360 That's the issue, James writes. Instead, you ought to say this, 156 00:11:36,720 --> 00:11:43,880 if the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that. 157 00:11:44,960 --> 00:11:46,320 Let's break this down. The statement. 158 00:11:46,480 --> 00:11:49,520 What does it mean to say if the Lord wills? 159 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:51,880 What? Why does he say that? 160 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:54,600 What is what is he getting at? What does that mean when we 161 00:11:54,600 --> 00:11:57,280 first need to discuss a common paradigm that I've given you 162 00:11:57,280 --> 00:12:01,840 many, many times, but I'm going to keep sharing it because it's 163 00:12:01,840 --> 00:12:03,760 difficult to kind of get our minds around. 164 00:12:04,440 --> 00:12:08,320 When the Bible talks about the will of God, there are two 165 00:12:08,520 --> 00:12:11,960 different ways that the Scriptures describe His will. 166 00:12:12,240 --> 00:12:15,880 The 1st is what we call will of ordination, and the second is 167 00:12:15,880 --> 00:12:18,440 what we call will of command. What are those? 168 00:12:18,440 --> 00:12:19,920 Let me talk about the second first. 169 00:12:20,280 --> 00:12:24,360 God's will of command is that which He has commanded us to do. 170 00:12:24,840 --> 00:12:28,920 So for example, God wills that we not murder, that we not 171 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:33,040 steal, that we not covet, that we not lie, that we not commit 172 00:12:33,040 --> 00:12:35,880 idolatry. But this will is broken Every 173 00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:37,960 day. People murder. 174 00:12:37,960 --> 00:12:39,640 Every day people steal every day. 175 00:12:39,640 --> 00:12:41,160 People commit adultery every day. 176 00:12:42,040 --> 00:12:47,480 That's God's will of command. God's will of ordination is what 177 00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:51,800 God has sovereignly decreed will happen no matter what. 178 00:12:53,760 --> 00:12:57,760 So, for example, if a person gets into a car accident with a 179 00:12:57,800 --> 00:13:03,240 drunk driver, why did that happen? 180 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:05,760 It's very easy to say, well, because the person was a drunk 181 00:13:05,760 --> 00:13:07,920 driver. That is true on one level. 182 00:13:08,200 --> 00:13:11,720 But what is the real answer? Why did that happen? 183 00:13:11,920 --> 00:13:16,640 God willed it to happen. God willed it to happen. 184 00:13:19,280 --> 00:13:22,320 God's will of ordination is never broken. 185 00:13:23,160 --> 00:13:29,920 It's never frustrated. So when James says if the Lord 186 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:35,160 wills, he's referring to God's will of ordination. 187 00:13:36,960 --> 00:13:43,480 In other words, if the Lord wills it, if God ordains it, 188 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:48,440 they will go into such and such a town and spend a year there 189 00:13:48,920 --> 00:13:57,320 and trade and make a profit. But if God wills that on their 190 00:13:57,320 --> 00:14:05,560 way to such and such a town they get run over by a wagon, they 191 00:14:05,560 --> 00:14:11,040 contract malaria, or that pests eat all their crops that they're 192 00:14:11,040 --> 00:14:15,280 planning to sell, then they won't do it. 193 00:14:17,000 --> 00:14:24,480 They won't do these things. Notice James's point is not only 194 00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:27,920 that God is sovereign over whether they make it to the 195 00:14:27,920 --> 00:14:30,160 town. Not only is He sovereign about 196 00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:33,680 whether they stay there for one year or one minute. 197 00:14:34,040 --> 00:14:36,640 Not only is he sovereign over whether they have something to 198 00:14:36,640 --> 00:14:40,120 trade or not. Not only is He sovereign whether 199 00:14:40,120 --> 00:14:45,200 they make a profit or not, God is even sovereign over whether 200 00:14:45,280 --> 00:14:47,800 they are going to wake up the next morning. 201 00:14:50,280 --> 00:14:55,160 That's why he says if the Lord wills, we will live. 202 00:14:58,560 --> 00:15:02,600 Meaning whether I wake up tomorrow morning is up to the 203 00:15:02,600 --> 00:15:13,120 Lord, because if God wills that I die tonight, I'm not going to 204 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:19,400 make it to this town tomorrow. Look at verse 16. 205 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:23,800 As it is you boast in your arrogance. 206 00:15:23,840 --> 00:15:30,880 All such boasting is evil, James says as it is meaning taking 207 00:15:30,880 --> 00:15:34,480 your statement as is taking your statement at face value, you are 208 00:15:34,480 --> 00:15:37,600 boasting in your arrogance. Now how was their statement at 209 00:15:37,600 --> 00:15:39,640 verse 13? Boasting right? 210 00:15:39,720 --> 00:15:43,640 When we all make you know, are we boasting? 211 00:15:43,640 --> 00:15:45,560 When? When we say, you know, I'm going 212 00:15:45,560 --> 00:15:48,800 to do this tomorrow, right? Somebody said, hey, what are you 213 00:15:48,800 --> 00:15:50,520 doing tomorrow? I'm going to Burger King. 214 00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:57,560 I think boaster, are we boasting whenever we how, how is this 215 00:15:57,600 --> 00:16:02,600 arrogance? Well, here's how they are acting 216 00:16:02,600 --> 00:16:06,760 independent of God. They are assuming they have 217 00:16:06,760 --> 00:16:14,200 control over their lives. You ever hear, I hear people say 218 00:16:14,200 --> 00:16:19,040 this on TV or somebody gets diagnosed with cancer and they 219 00:16:19,040 --> 00:16:24,240 say I will beat this cancer. Always bothered me when I hear 220 00:16:24,240 --> 00:16:27,960 that. This is so prideful. 221 00:16:31,280 --> 00:16:34,200 It assumes we have control over the cancer. 222 00:16:37,400 --> 00:16:41,120 This statement by them. It assumes they have control 223 00:16:41,120 --> 00:16:45,400 over travel, the weather, their health, the market, the 224 00:16:45,400 --> 00:16:51,120 timeline, and ultimately God. Their statement completely 225 00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:58,120 leaves God out of the equation, which is why James says this 226 00:16:58,120 --> 00:17:05,480 kind of boasting is evil will stop their exposition. 227 00:17:07,520 --> 00:17:11,119 Application of the text. I have 7 points of application 228 00:17:11,119 --> 00:17:21,359 for you #1 make plans but plan to trust God. 229 00:17:23,240 --> 00:17:28,600 Make plans but plan to trust God. 230 00:17:30,840 --> 00:17:34,680 Some of us are planners, some of us are not. 231 00:17:35,800 --> 00:17:37,520 I know this about this about, about you. 232 00:17:37,640 --> 00:17:41,920 I, I, I spent a lot of time listening to you, studying your 233 00:17:41,920 --> 00:17:44,120 personalities, understanding who you are. 234 00:17:44,320 --> 00:17:49,960 Some of us in this room are very planners and some of us are not. 235 00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:55,760 I've known people who literally planned out every 30 minutes of 236 00:17:55,760 --> 00:18:00,760 their life. Literally like every 30 minutes. 237 00:18:00,760 --> 00:18:04,040 They planned out in their calendar 30 minutes. 238 00:18:05,800 --> 00:18:07,920 I thought I was intense. And I'm like, man, I'm nowhere 239 00:18:07,920 --> 00:18:12,840 near that intense. I've known people who have never 240 00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:20,680 made a plan a day in their life. They wake up and whatever, man. 241 00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:27,680 Some of this boils down to personalities and gifting and 242 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:31,680 preferences and lifestyle. But here's what I'm getting at 243 00:18:31,680 --> 00:18:34,480 this morning. Is there a spiritual way to 244 00:18:34,480 --> 00:18:38,080 think about planning? Is there a spiritual Is there a 245 00:18:38,080 --> 00:18:41,640 godly, mature way to think about planning? 246 00:18:41,840 --> 00:18:47,560 Does God want us to be planners, or is planning a worldly 247 00:18:47,560 --> 00:18:49,520 practice? That's the question. 248 00:18:50,120 --> 00:18:52,840 Does God want us to be planners? Or is planning something that 249 00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:58,080 the world does and we should not make plans when someone reads 250 00:18:58,080 --> 00:19:01,000 this text, it would be very easy to walk away thinking that God 251 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:03,240 doesn't want us to make plans, right? 252 00:19:03,240 --> 00:19:05,680 And he's very, you could read that and a face value could read 253 00:19:05,680 --> 00:19:06,840 that thing. Well, I shouldn't make plans. 254 00:19:06,840 --> 00:19:08,560 I should just, you know, take life as it is. 255 00:19:08,560 --> 00:19:11,760 And, and that would be a wrong application of the text. 256 00:19:12,720 --> 00:19:13,960 That would be a wrong application of the text. 257 00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:18,320 Now, how do I, how do I deduce that making plans is not 258 00:19:18,320 --> 00:19:21,200 inherently sinful? Let me show this to you from a 259 00:19:21,200 --> 00:19:24,320 few verses. Proverbs 66 to 8. 260 00:19:24,640 --> 00:19:28,040 Go to the Ant, Oh sluggard, I love that. 261 00:19:28,040 --> 00:19:32,640 Oh sluggard, consider her ways and be wise without having any 262 00:19:32,640 --> 00:19:35,600 chief officer or ruler. She prepares her bread and 263 00:19:35,600 --> 00:19:37,920 summer and gathers her food and harvest. 264 00:19:38,880 --> 00:19:44,200 So there Solomon is, is is exhorting the the world to say, 265 00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:47,200 go learn from the Ant. The Ant makes plans for the 266 00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:50,320 winter. Go learn from this. 267 00:19:50,800 --> 00:19:54,720 There's wisdom in making plans. Proverbs 16 three Commit your 268 00:19:54,720 --> 00:19:58,960 work to the Lord, and your What plans will be established? 269 00:19:59,520 --> 00:20:03,800 Proverbs 2018 Plans are established by council. 270 00:20:03,960 --> 00:20:08,440 Proverbs 21 five The plans of the diligent lead surely to 271 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:12,480 abundance. Even Jesus says and Luke 1428 272 00:20:12,720 --> 00:20:15,920 For which of you desiring to build a tower, does not first 273 00:20:15,920 --> 00:20:19,760 sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to 274 00:20:19,760 --> 00:20:22,080 complete it? What would that be called? 275 00:20:23,120 --> 00:20:27,840 Planning, financial planning, business planning, and even Paul 276 00:20:28,160 --> 00:20:30,320 made plans on his missionary journeys. 277 00:20:30,320 --> 00:20:32,680 He made plans to go back and visit towns. 278 00:20:32,680 --> 00:20:34,440 He made plans to go to Jerusalem. 279 00:20:34,600 --> 00:20:39,680 He made plans to go to Spain. There are all kinds of plans 280 00:20:39,880 --> 00:20:44,040 that can rise. Plans are not inherently sinful. 281 00:20:44,320 --> 00:20:53,200 That being said, plans can often reveal where our true hope and 282 00:20:53,200 --> 00:21:01,000 trust and joy lies. Sometimes we make plans not out 283 00:21:01,000 --> 00:21:07,680 of wisdom, but out of fear. Sometimes we make plans not out 284 00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:11,480 of faith, but out of a desire for control. 285 00:21:14,320 --> 00:21:19,200 Sometimes you make plans not out of a joy in the Lord, but a joy 286 00:21:19,560 --> 00:21:26,120 in profit. You see, plans can easily rival 287 00:21:26,120 --> 00:21:32,200 God. In other words, rather than 288 00:21:32,200 --> 00:21:35,960 consult the Lord, we consult our plans. 289 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:42,040 Rather than trust the Lord, we trust our plans. 290 00:21:46,560 --> 00:21:51,640 Church family make plans, but plan to trust God. 291 00:21:54,320 --> 00:21:59,720 Make that your first plan. Plan to trust God with your 292 00:21:59,720 --> 00:22:06,760 plans #2 Plans have a way of revealing where whether our 293 00:22:06,760 --> 00:22:09,120 faith is in God or in our effort. 294 00:22:10,440 --> 00:22:15,000 Plans have a way of revealing whether our faith is in God or 295 00:22:15,000 --> 00:22:17,320 our effort. When we read this statement 296 00:22:17,320 --> 00:22:20,200 today or tomorrow, we will go into such and such a town. 297 00:22:20,440 --> 00:22:23,080 We'll spend a year there, we'll trade, we'll make a profit. 298 00:22:23,080 --> 00:22:25,200 When we read that, we might think, what's wrong with that 299 00:22:25,200 --> 00:22:27,160 statement? What's wrong with it? 300 00:22:27,640 --> 00:22:30,920 Well, here's the question. Are they making this statement 301 00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:35,920 because they have faith that is centered on God, or are they 302 00:22:35,920 --> 00:22:40,000 making this because they have confidence that is centered on 303 00:22:40,000 --> 00:22:44,320 effort? In other words, why do they 304 00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:46,360 believe that they will be able to do this? 305 00:22:47,640 --> 00:22:51,000 Why they believe they will be able to go into this town and 306 00:22:51,000 --> 00:22:53,720 stay a year there and trade and make a profit? 307 00:22:54,360 --> 00:22:58,240 Is it because they have faith that God will provide for them, 308 00:22:58,640 --> 00:23:02,720 that God will sustain them? Or is it because they have 309 00:23:02,720 --> 00:23:05,680 confidence that they can make this happen? 310 00:23:11,250 --> 00:23:15,840 Over the past 15 years that I've lived here, I have heard some 311 00:23:15,840 --> 00:23:18,480 disturbing statements about future plans. 312 00:23:19,120 --> 00:23:21,000 These are all true. I've heard every one of them. 313 00:23:23,080 --> 00:23:28,440 One is I will work six or seven days a week, 18 hours a day. 314 00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:32,080 I'll do this for 20 years and then I'll retire at age 40. 315 00:23:36,560 --> 00:23:40,280 Another is I'm going to save up a large sum of money and then I 316 00:23:40,280 --> 00:23:41,800 will take a year or two off of work. 317 00:23:43,680 --> 00:23:46,160 I just want to work for a couple of years just to get a break. 318 00:23:48,720 --> 00:23:52,080 Another is I'll focus on my career for the first decade out 319 00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:56,240 of college and then I'll think about marriage in my 30s. 320 00:23:59,520 --> 00:24:03,240 Another is we will date for six years and then get married. 321 00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:09,920 Another is our plan is to be married for five years and then 322 00:24:09,920 --> 00:24:14,800 we'll have kids. Another is I'm going to quit my 323 00:24:14,800 --> 00:24:20,640 job and I'll get another one after some time off. 324 00:24:21,160 --> 00:24:22,960 I don't know, you know, but I'm going to quit it without it, 325 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:27,440 without something else. Another is I'm not worried about 326 00:24:27,440 --> 00:24:36,260 finding a spouse. I know I can when I hear these 327 00:24:36,260 --> 00:24:38,740 things, my, my thought is always the same. 328 00:24:40,540 --> 00:24:41,980 How do you know any of that's going to happen? 329 00:24:48,560 --> 00:24:53,360 Let me how do you know you're not going to get hit by a car 330 00:24:53,360 --> 00:24:55,960 crossing the street and you're paralyzed for the next 50 years 331 00:24:55,960 --> 00:25:02,360 of your life? You got to save up this. 332 00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:05,720 How do you know that the market's not going to crash and 333 00:25:05,720 --> 00:25:11,320 you lose everything you have? How do you know that you're not 334 00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:14,520 going to date for six years and after six years your partner 335 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:17,320 decides they're fed up with you and they they leave you. 336 00:25:17,960 --> 00:25:20,840 You don't get married. How do you know that when you 337 00:25:20,840 --> 00:25:23,160 decide you want to start having kids, you're actually going to 338 00:25:23,160 --> 00:25:28,560 be able to have them? How do you know that when you 339 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:30,600 quit your job, you're going to be able to get a new one? 340 00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:37,840 How do you're good looking now so you're not worried about 341 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:39,320 getting a spouse? How do you know that you'll be 342 00:25:39,320 --> 00:25:41,760 good looking in five years? You might not be good looking in 343 00:25:41,760 --> 00:25:49,040 five years. How do you know that these 344 00:25:49,040 --> 00:25:53,240 things are going to happen? It sounds to me as though your 345 00:25:53,400 --> 00:25:57,680 faith is not in God, it is in your effort. 346 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:08,760 Plans have a way of revealing where our faith actually is #3 347 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:15,800 no matter how educated or experienced or wise or well 348 00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:22,880 researched we are, nobody knows the future except God. 349 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:30,000 I don't care how educated we are, how experienced we are, how 350 00:26:30,000 --> 00:26:34,800 wise we are, how well researched we are, nobody knows the future 351 00:26:34,800 --> 00:26:36,760 except God. James says. 352 00:26:36,920 --> 00:26:41,480 Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. 353 00:26:41,720 --> 00:26:45,400 This is such a simple truth. I would imagine that even the 354 00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:48,160 kids in our congregation, if I asked you, does anybody know the 355 00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:50,640 future, they would know enough to say no. 356 00:26:50,920 --> 00:26:52,800 It's, it's, it's such a simple truth. 357 00:26:53,040 --> 00:26:56,200 Nobody knows the future. And yet how often do we 358 00:26:56,200 --> 00:27:00,920 subconsciously or consciously believe that we know the future? 359 00:27:04,840 --> 00:27:07,400 Some of my boys teammates have started sports betting. 360 00:27:09,600 --> 00:27:13,480 Sports betting has exploded in America. 361 00:27:15,120 --> 00:27:16,600 Now, as far as I know, none of you do that. 362 00:27:16,600 --> 00:27:22,520 But if any of you do this, you need to stop now, or any kind of 363 00:27:22,520 --> 00:27:26,560 betting. It is exploded. 364 00:27:27,120 --> 00:27:31,120 It is growing at an exponential and a devastating rate. 365 00:27:35,400 --> 00:27:40,600 One of the roots of its popularity is the prideful 366 00:27:40,600 --> 00:27:42,200 assumption that we know the future. 367 00:27:44,680 --> 00:27:47,040 People are willing to put their money on the table on the 368 00:27:47,040 --> 00:27:49,000 assumption that they know the future. 369 00:27:51,280 --> 00:27:55,120 I even saw an article this week that said there are now 370 00:27:55,120 --> 00:27:57,960 companies out there that will let you bet on almost anything. 371 00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:02,360 I mean, anything. How many times the president 372 00:28:02,360 --> 00:28:08,080 will say drill, baby, drill? You can bet on that. 373 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:15,240 The same is true with the stock market. 374 00:28:15,520 --> 00:28:17,960 There's an age-old saying nobody times the market. 375 00:28:19,480 --> 00:28:21,280 Yeah, do not people try to time the market. 376 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:28,520 The same can be said with options and leveraging. 377 00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:35,560 I'm not saying we shouldn't be educated. 378 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:38,640 I'm not saying that we shouldn't seek experience. 379 00:28:38,680 --> 00:28:40,560 I'm not saying that we shouldn't have wisdom. 380 00:28:40,720 --> 00:28:42,160 I'm not saying we shouldn't do research. 381 00:28:42,280 --> 00:28:45,040 We should, we should do these things. 382 00:28:45,200 --> 00:28:49,880 If you were an encyclopedia salesman back in the 90s when 383 00:28:49,880 --> 00:28:53,600 the Internet was exploding, you might want to start planning for 384 00:28:53,600 --> 00:28:59,920 a career change. The same can be said with AI and 385 00:28:59,920 --> 00:29:04,160 robotics. We will be going through a 386 00:29:04,360 --> 00:29:08,720 revolution with this. We will and we have to be wise 387 00:29:08,720 --> 00:29:11,960 about what the industries that look like in the next 5-10, 388 00:29:12,040 --> 00:29:16,320 fifteen, 20 years. We have to think that way, yes. 389 00:29:16,480 --> 00:29:21,040 But that being said, no matter how wise we are, no matter how 390 00:29:21,040 --> 00:29:23,560 educated we are, no matter how experienced we are, no matter 391 00:29:23,560 --> 00:29:30,200 how research we are, nobody knows the future except for God. 392 00:29:32,200 --> 00:29:35,480 Now, let me be clear on this. It's not enough to just mentally 393 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:37,480 assent to that. You might be sitting there 394 00:29:37,480 --> 00:29:40,080 thinking, well, yeah, of course, Matt, yes. 395 00:29:40,080 --> 00:29:45,080 Nobody knows the future. It's not enough to just mentally 396 00:29:45,080 --> 00:29:48,080 assent to that. That truth needs to impact the 397 00:29:48,080 --> 00:29:54,040 way we live. It needs to impact the way in 398 00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:58,120 which we live. I have heard stories where 399 00:29:58,120 --> 00:30:05,480 parents put all their eggs in one basket, a basket known as a 400 00:30:05,480 --> 00:30:10,680 kid. They put all their eggs in this 401 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:14,640 one basket and when that kid turned 18 they wanted nothing to 402 00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:20,360 do with their parents and now all their plans are down the 403 00:30:20,360 --> 00:30:25,560 drain. I've heard stories where someone 404 00:30:25,560 --> 00:30:29,440 planned out their entire life. They had it all mapped out. 405 00:30:29,680 --> 00:30:33,440 They planned everything down to the year and and how it was 406 00:30:33,440 --> 00:30:39,480 going to work out and then they got cancer at 32 and all their 407 00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:45,920 plans are wasted. I have heard stories where a 408 00:30:45,920 --> 00:30:50,320 couple got married and they waited 10 years to have kids 409 00:30:50,400 --> 00:30:53,200 assuming that as soon as they wanted them they would have them 410 00:30:53,320 --> 00:30:54,800 only to find out they can't get pregnant. 411 00:31:02,200 --> 00:31:12,240 Nobody knows the future. We can say we know that, but do 412 00:31:12,240 --> 00:31:16,120 we not often live as though we know how it will turn out? 413 00:31:16,560 --> 00:31:20,280 We we will be able to control what we do in the future. 414 00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:30,920 Be careful that we don't make plans on the assumption that we 415 00:31:30,920 --> 00:31:39,640 know the future. 4 Humility acknowledges the transitory and 416 00:31:39,640 --> 00:31:41,880 insignificant nature of our life. 417 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:47,720 Humility acknowledges the transitory and insignificant 418 00:31:47,720 --> 00:31:50,800 nature of our life. One of the reasons that I love 419 00:31:50,800 --> 00:31:56,360 this book, that I love the word of God is that it reminds me of 420 00:31:56,360 --> 00:32:02,680 how small I am. This book reminds me like no 421 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:06,440 other of how small I am. It's like the Grand Canyon or 422 00:32:06,440 --> 00:32:10,440 Mount Rainier. I can feel very important. 423 00:32:12,000 --> 00:32:14,280 I I you know, people say they have imposter syndrome. 424 00:32:14,760 --> 00:32:16,920 Y'all heard that before? I told Lauren that I have 425 00:32:16,920 --> 00:32:20,400 posture syndrome. I don't have imposter, I have 426 00:32:20,400 --> 00:32:25,080 posture syndrome. I wrestled with like, I'm him. 427 00:32:26,880 --> 00:32:29,640 I, I, I don't. I've never, I've never had 428 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:31,000 imposter syndrome a day of my life. 429 00:32:34,000 --> 00:32:37,520 I can feel important and significant and large. 430 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:43,120 But but when I stand next to the Grand Canyon, when I stand next 431 00:32:43,120 --> 00:32:46,960 to Mount Rainier, I am reminded of how small I am. 432 00:32:47,720 --> 00:32:54,080 I am reminded of how insignificant I am, and when I 433 00:32:54,080 --> 00:32:58,920 read this book, I am reminded of how small I am and how 434 00:32:58,920 --> 00:33:05,000 insignificant I am. It's so easy to think of 435 00:33:05,000 --> 00:33:07,360 ourselves as the main character, isn't it? 436 00:33:09,280 --> 00:33:13,080 Like like most of us can have this mentality of like that this 437 00:33:13,240 --> 00:33:17,240 world is the story. I am the main character and all 438 00:33:17,240 --> 00:33:19,000 of you are background characters. 439 00:33:20,840 --> 00:33:24,640 This is my story. I'm living in that story. 440 00:33:24,960 --> 00:33:27,720 You're all background characters in my story. 441 00:33:28,280 --> 00:33:31,040 This earth is the setting and I'm the main character. 442 00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:38,080 And yet not only is it true that I am not the main character, I'm 443 00:33:38,080 --> 00:33:45,400 not even in the text. I am a footnote in God's story. 444 00:33:47,320 --> 00:33:52,400 A footnote. James asked this question, a 445 00:33:52,400 --> 00:33:55,320 question that we should all ponder the rest of the day. 446 00:33:57,760 --> 00:34:06,160 What is your life? What is your life? 447 00:34:06,480 --> 00:34:09,000 This is similar to the questions that God asked Job. 448 00:34:10,080 --> 00:34:14,960 He asked Job, Who is this that darkens counsel by words without 449 00:34:14,960 --> 00:34:19,199 knowledge? Where were you? 450 00:34:21,360 --> 00:34:27,800 What is your life? James tells us. 451 00:34:28,960 --> 00:34:36,639 He tells us what it is you are, a mist that appears for a little 452 00:34:36,639 --> 00:34:44,679 time and then vanishes. Humility acknowledges the 453 00:34:44,679 --> 00:34:47,840 transitory and insignificant nature of our life. 454 00:34:48,120 --> 00:34:50,639 I love these types of statements in the Bible. 455 00:34:51,679 --> 00:34:55,400 Isaiah says that the nations are like a drop from the bucket and 456 00:34:55,400 --> 00:34:58,520 as dust on the scales. The psalmist writes that our 457 00:34:58,520 --> 00:35:02,880 days are like grass, the wind passes over it and it is gone. 458 00:35:03,160 --> 00:35:07,000 God tells us in Genesis that we are dust and Bill Dad reminds us 459 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:13,280 that man is a maggot, a worm. James is wanting to highlight 460 00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:18,360 that our life is very short. It's very insignificant. 461 00:35:21,080 --> 00:35:24,640 And and we have to feel this because often it doesn't feel 462 00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:27,520 like it's that short or that insignificant. 463 00:35:30,080 --> 00:35:32,800 I love how in Christopher Nolan movies, Christopher Nolan's a 464 00:35:32,800 --> 00:35:34,040 director. Some of you know who that is, 465 00:35:34,040 --> 00:35:36,840 but you may not. I love that how he plays with 466 00:35:36,840 --> 00:35:38,800 relativity. Relativity of time in his 467 00:35:38,800 --> 00:35:40,280 movies, does it in multiple movies. 468 00:35:41,360 --> 00:35:42,880 One of them is in the movie Interstellar. 469 00:35:43,400 --> 00:35:46,680 They go to this planet, they're on the planet for just a few 470 00:35:46,680 --> 00:35:52,560 hours, but then the guy back on the space shuttle has lived 23 471 00:35:52,560 --> 00:35:56,880 years in that amount of time. So they get back in just a few 472 00:35:56,880 --> 00:36:00,000 hours, but when they get back, he's lived 23 years. 473 00:36:03,200 --> 00:36:05,720 I can only imagine this is how it is with God. 474 00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:14,280 You see, for US, 80 years can feel like an eternity, but to 475 00:36:14,280 --> 00:36:21,280 God it's like a millisecond. Our life is like a millisecond. 476 00:36:21,280 --> 00:36:33,960 To God, it's like, that's it. There's so much talk in our 477 00:36:33,960 --> 00:36:36,000 culture today about legacy, right? 478 00:36:36,040 --> 00:36:38,040 You hear that? What's going to be your legacy, 479 00:36:38,120 --> 00:36:39,400 right? So much talk about legacy. 480 00:36:39,520 --> 00:36:41,600 What legacy will we leave? Brothers and sisters? 481 00:36:41,600 --> 00:36:45,800 There's only one true legacy, and that is Jesus Christ 482 00:36:45,800 --> 00:36:47,440 crucified and risen from the dead. 483 00:36:48,280 --> 00:36:54,000 That's it. Nobody leaves a true legacy. 484 00:36:55,200 --> 00:37:04,760 It's already been laid. 5 Whatever we desire to happen 485 00:37:05,760 --> 00:37:12,360 will happen if God wills it. And whatever we desire to happen 486 00:37:13,160 --> 00:37:17,400 will not happen, no matter how much we will it. 487 00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:23,080 If God doesn't, we'll say it again. 488 00:37:23,280 --> 00:37:31,800 Whatever we desire to happen will happen if God wills it, and 489 00:37:31,800 --> 00:37:36,640 whatever we desire to happen will not happen no matter how 490 00:37:36,640 --> 00:37:44,200 much we will it if God doesn't, James tells the self confident 491 00:37:44,200 --> 00:37:48,800 planners. Instead, you ought to say if the 492 00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:54,320 Lord wills, we will live and do this or that. 493 00:37:55,320 --> 00:38:00,960 James is reminding them that God is sovereign and we are not. 494 00:38:01,000 --> 00:38:03,120 Now God being sovereign is somewhat of a double edged 495 00:38:03,120 --> 00:38:06,800 sword, is it not? What it means is that whatever 496 00:38:06,800 --> 00:38:11,640 we desire to happen will happen. If God wills it. 497 00:38:13,640 --> 00:38:18,080 That's a good thing. Whatever we desire to happen, 498 00:38:19,040 --> 00:38:23,160 whatever you want to happen tomorrow, a week from now, a 499 00:38:23,160 --> 00:38:26,960 month from now, a year from now, 10 years from now, whatever you 500 00:38:26,960 --> 00:38:28,720 desire will happen in your future. 501 00:38:28,840 --> 00:38:35,440 It will happen if God wills it. If God wills for a 90 year old 502 00:38:35,440 --> 00:38:38,120 woman to have a child, she will have a child. 503 00:38:40,080 --> 00:38:44,400 If God wills for a a corpse that has been dead for four days in a 504 00:38:44,400 --> 00:38:47,640 tomb to be raised from the dead, he will walk out of the tomb. 505 00:38:49,640 --> 00:38:53,840 If God wills for a Moabite woman to find a new husband in Israel, 506 00:38:54,840 --> 00:39:00,200 she will have a new husband. If God wills that a prophet not 507 00:39:00,200 --> 00:39:04,240 be the lion's dinner, then those lions will go hungry for the 508 00:39:04,240 --> 00:39:09,560 night. Whatever we desire to happen 509 00:39:09,640 --> 00:39:18,880 will happen if God wills it, and whatever we desire to happen 510 00:39:19,440 --> 00:39:25,960 will not happen no matter how much we will it if God doesn't. 511 00:39:28,240 --> 00:39:33,640 No matter how much a prophet wills to go to Tarsus, he will 512 00:39:33,640 --> 00:39:36,560 not make it because God didn't will it. 513 00:39:38,440 --> 00:39:41,720 No matter how long a prophet preaches repentance to Israel, 514 00:39:41,880 --> 00:39:45,920 they will not repent because God didn't will it. 515 00:39:47,480 --> 00:39:50,760 No matter how much 10 brothers try to get rid of their brother, 516 00:39:51,920 --> 00:39:55,320 they won't get rid of him because God didn't will it. 517 00:39:56,920 --> 00:40:01,640 No matter how much a king tries to kill a shepherd boy, he will 518 00:40:01,640 --> 00:40:05,000 be unsuccessful because God didn't will it. 519 00:40:08,720 --> 00:40:15,200 Whatever we desire to happen will happen if God wills it. 520 00:40:16,680 --> 00:40:21,200 And whatever we desire to happen will not happen, no matter how 521 00:40:21,200 --> 00:40:30,760 much you will it. If God doesn't, number six, if 522 00:40:30,760 --> 00:40:35,720 the Lord wills. That statement is not fatalistic 523 00:40:36,480 --> 00:40:44,480 or formulaic, but foundational. If the Lord wills, it's not 524 00:40:44,480 --> 00:40:50,440 fatalistic, it's not formulaic, it is foundational. 525 00:40:51,520 --> 00:40:54,240 Now some people will hear this statement, maybe just the point 526 00:40:54,240 --> 00:40:55,880 that I just made in the application. 527 00:40:55,880 --> 00:40:59,000 Some people hear the statement if the Lord wills as a statement 528 00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:01,240 of fatalism. They will hear that as a 529 00:41:01,240 --> 00:41:04,000 statement of fatalism. One of the reasons that some 530 00:41:04,000 --> 00:41:08,440 people have a hard time admitting or accepting that we 531 00:41:08,440 --> 00:41:11,240 don't have ultimate free will, right? 532 00:41:11,240 --> 00:41:13,920 If I say we, you know, people ask, do we have free will, I 533 00:41:13,920 --> 00:41:15,560 would say we don't have ultimate free will. 534 00:41:17,280 --> 00:41:20,280 One of the reasons that people have a hard time accepting this 535 00:41:20,320 --> 00:41:24,200 or admitting this, that we don't have ultimate free will is they 536 00:41:24,200 --> 00:41:29,360 confuse this doctrine with what's known as fatalism or 537 00:41:29,360 --> 00:41:34,400 perhaps hard determinism. They mistakenly believe that 538 00:41:34,400 --> 00:41:38,120 this doctrine teaches that everything is already 539 00:41:38,120 --> 00:41:41,760 predetermined by God and there's nothing we can do about it. 540 00:41:42,200 --> 00:41:43,600 There's nothing we can do to change it. 541 00:41:45,680 --> 00:41:48,200 And so if that's true, then we're nothing more than robots. 542 00:41:49,280 --> 00:41:51,560 We're simply coding God's matrix. 543 00:41:53,160 --> 00:41:56,080 That's the idea. But that's not the picture of 544 00:41:56,080 --> 00:41:58,600 what we get in the Bible. That's not what the Bible 545 00:41:58,600 --> 00:42:03,280 teaches. God allows His people to affect 546 00:42:03,400 --> 00:42:07,960 His will. I've said this before and I'll 547 00:42:07,960 --> 00:42:10,840 say it again. There are two phrases that we 548 00:42:10,840 --> 00:42:13,920 shouldn't say. 2 phrases. There was many phrases we 549 00:42:13,920 --> 00:42:16,440 shouldn't say, but here's 2 in this context. 2 phrases we 550 00:42:16,440 --> 00:42:21,040 shouldn't say. A well, God's going to do what 551 00:42:21,040 --> 00:42:25,040 God's going to do. Don't say that. 552 00:42:26,880 --> 00:42:32,800 That's a statement of fatalism. What God is going to do is often 553 00:42:32,800 --> 00:42:37,720 determined by what is. People pray or don't pray. 554 00:42:40,560 --> 00:42:44,000 God allows you to affect what He's going to do. 555 00:42:46,440 --> 00:42:47,480 Here's the second one. B. 556 00:42:48,000 --> 00:42:54,920 When we pray, we shouldn't say if it's in your will, we 557 00:42:54,920 --> 00:42:58,680 shouldn't pray. Lord, would you heal them if 558 00:42:58,680 --> 00:43:04,160 it's in your will? You think about it, it, it, it's 559 00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:06,880 somewhat it's, it's paradoxical, right? 560 00:43:06,880 --> 00:43:09,040 If it's in his will, he's, he's going to heal them. 561 00:43:10,640 --> 00:43:11,960 That's what it means to be in his will. 562 00:43:15,200 --> 00:43:20,440 Instead, we should pray, Lord, would you be willing to heal 563 00:43:20,440 --> 00:43:25,360 them? Would you be willing to heal 564 00:43:25,360 --> 00:43:30,520 them? We are asking that God would be 565 00:43:30,520 --> 00:43:36,560 willing to do this. This statement, if the Lord 566 00:43:36,560 --> 00:43:41,600 wills, is not a fatalistic statement, nor is it formulaic. 567 00:43:42,560 --> 00:43:44,840 It's not fatalistic, it's not formulaic. 568 00:43:44,840 --> 00:43:47,680 What do I mean formulaic? This idea, if the Lord wills it, 569 00:43:47,680 --> 00:43:52,960 exists in many religions in Islam Insha'allah. 570 00:43:54,480 --> 00:44:04,080 If Allah wills, Judaism has their own version, Hinduism has 571 00:44:04,080 --> 00:44:07,320 their own version, the Greco Roman world had their own 572 00:44:07,320 --> 00:44:09,320 version. If the gods permit or you hear 573 00:44:09,400 --> 00:44:15,000 if fate permits. We must be careful to not turn 574 00:44:15,000 --> 00:44:19,200 this statement into a Christian formula right where we make 575 00:44:19,200 --> 00:44:22,960 plans and then we say if the Lord wills as a tack on. 576 00:44:24,080 --> 00:44:28,520 It's not a formula. It's like in Jesus name, it's 577 00:44:28,520 --> 00:44:32,120 like praying for a Ferrari and at the end saying in Jesus name 578 00:44:34,160 --> 00:44:36,520 that prayer is not in Jesus name. 579 00:44:36,840 --> 00:44:42,960 No matter how much you say that, it does no good for these people 580 00:44:42,960 --> 00:44:47,520 to say today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town, 581 00:44:47,680 --> 00:44:50,160 spend a year there, trade, make a profit. 582 00:44:52,320 --> 00:44:57,400 If the Lord wills, if that is nothing more than lip service, 583 00:44:58,080 --> 00:45:01,280 if it just becomes a formula, thinking that it will give them 584 00:45:01,280 --> 00:45:05,600 a greater chance of success if the Lord wills is not 585 00:45:05,760 --> 00:45:07,680 fatalistic. It's not formulaic. 586 00:45:07,680 --> 00:45:09,640 Well, then, what is it? It is foundational. 587 00:45:10,240 --> 00:45:13,800 It's foundational meaning the statement is meant to reflect a 588 00:45:13,840 --> 00:45:18,160 heart that is founded, that is who finds its foundation 589 00:45:18,160 --> 00:45:19,840 submitted to the will of the Lord. 590 00:45:24,200 --> 00:45:26,720 When you when you say the Lord wills, it means listen. 591 00:45:27,000 --> 00:45:31,240 If God's will is for us not to go into this town, man, we 592 00:45:31,240 --> 00:45:34,680 really want to go into this town because they love our olive oil. 593 00:45:36,040 --> 00:45:40,480 I know that it feels like God's directing us here, but we'll 594 00:45:40,480 --> 00:45:44,720 make way more profit over here. If God's will is not for us to 595 00:45:44,720 --> 00:45:47,120 go into this town, we won't force our way there. 596 00:45:49,800 --> 00:45:54,280 If God's will is for us not to stay a year, we've been here six 597 00:45:54,280 --> 00:45:57,320 months, profits through the roof, why would we leave? 598 00:45:57,320 --> 00:46:01,520 If God's will is for us to leave at six months, then we will 599 00:46:01,520 --> 00:46:05,200 leave at six months. We won't stay a day longer than 600 00:46:05,200 --> 00:46:09,560 he wills. If God's will is for us not to 601 00:46:09,560 --> 00:46:14,320 make a lot of money, that's a hard one. 602 00:46:14,320 --> 00:46:16,560 I talked to college graduates, you know, about getting jobs, 603 00:46:16,560 --> 00:46:18,760 and I'm like, have you ever considered that it's God's will 604 00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:20,360 that you not make a lot of money? 605 00:46:21,840 --> 00:46:30,160 It's like blasphemy. You ever thought about that? 606 00:46:30,800 --> 00:46:36,040 What if it's God's will that you not often hear? 607 00:46:36,040 --> 00:46:39,960 What about kids? And you know, when I hear that, 608 00:46:39,960 --> 00:46:41,800 I'm like, do you think like, what are you saying about my 609 00:46:41,800 --> 00:46:48,520 kids? Are they going to be itty beanie 610 00:46:48,520 --> 00:47:01,600 weenies the rest of their life? If it's not God's will that we 611 00:47:01,600 --> 00:47:04,960 make a lot of money, we will be content with what God gives. 612 00:47:09,320 --> 00:47:14,200 Seven last point. Plans that leave God out of the 613 00:47:14,200 --> 00:47:21,520 equation are arrogant plans. Plans that leave God out of the 614 00:47:21,520 --> 00:47:26,280 equation are arrogant plans. Verse 16 gets at the heart of 615 00:47:26,280 --> 00:47:30,680 what's wrong with their plans. There is absolutely nothing 616 00:47:30,680 --> 00:47:32,560 wrong with them wanting to go to this town. 617 00:47:32,840 --> 00:47:35,240 There's nothing wrong with them wanting to spend a year there. 618 00:47:35,440 --> 00:47:38,280 There's nothing wrong with wanting to make a profit. 619 00:47:38,920 --> 00:47:41,320 Some of these anti capitalistic people will read this and be 620 00:47:41,320 --> 00:47:42,640 like see they should make a profit. 621 00:47:42,800 --> 00:47:43,920 That's not what this is teaching. 622 00:47:45,720 --> 00:47:49,400 There's nothing wrong with wanting to make a profit. 623 00:47:50,200 --> 00:47:53,200 So what is wrong with the statement? 624 00:47:54,760 --> 00:47:59,040 It leaves God out of the equation. 625 00:48:01,280 --> 00:48:02,800 It leaves God out of the equation. 626 00:48:03,400 --> 00:48:07,200 In their startup business plan, there is no line item for God. 627 00:48:09,360 --> 00:48:14,600 And James says that when God is left out of your plans, you wise 628 00:48:14,600 --> 00:48:17,160 plans. You may have intelligent plans, 629 00:48:17,280 --> 00:48:20,320 you may have well thought out plans, you may have detailed 630 00:48:20,320 --> 00:48:22,920 plans. But you have arrogant plans. 631 00:48:28,840 --> 00:48:38,640 A person who consistently procrastinates is not just late, 632 00:48:40,960 --> 00:48:45,240 they are arrogant because they assume they have all the time in 633 00:48:45,240 --> 00:48:51,080 the world. A person who doesn't get proper 634 00:48:51,080 --> 00:49:00,360 sleep is not just foolish, they are arrogant because they think 635 00:49:00,360 --> 00:49:02,520 that human limitations don't apply to them. 636 00:49:05,800 --> 00:49:11,160 A person who doesn't rely on others is not just private nor 637 00:49:11,160 --> 00:49:16,200 they just independent. They are arrogant because they 638 00:49:16,200 --> 00:49:21,640 don't see their need for support, and the person who 639 00:49:21,640 --> 00:49:27,800 makes plans without God being the center of those plans is 640 00:49:27,800 --> 00:49:32,600 arrogant because it assumes we have control over our life. 641 00:49:35,520 --> 00:49:39,320 Brothers and sisters, God is not a part of the equation. 642 00:49:40,600 --> 00:49:47,880 He is the equation. Humility acknowledges. 643 00:49:49,160 --> 00:49:55,520 Humility acknowledges that God always has the power to lovingly 644 00:49:56,240 --> 00:50:00,160 and wisely wreck all of my plans. 645 00:50:02,480 --> 00:50:02,920 Let's pray.