1 00:00:01,280 --> 00:00:03,680 Hey everybody, this is Pastor John Ewart from Inglewood 2 00:00:03,680 --> 00:00:05,720 Baptist Church here in Rocky Mountain, North Carolina. 3 00:00:06,040 --> 00:00:07,840 Thank you for tuning in to the podcast today. 4 00:00:07,840 --> 00:00:10,760 Today we're going to continue in our series called Help Searching 5 00:00:10,760 --> 00:00:14,400 for God's peace with him, with one another, and with ourselves. 6 00:00:14,400 --> 00:00:16,800 Listen closely to what God has to say to you today. 7 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:24,600 Thank you, Pastor Charles. Well, it's good to see everybody 8 00:00:24,920 --> 00:00:29,760 in this session together for those who are listening online, 9 00:00:29,760 --> 00:00:34,240 thank you so much for tuning into this episode and and this 10 00:00:34,240 --> 00:00:36,720 session together. For those of you who are alive, 11 00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:39,640 it's always very encouraging to see all of you in the middle of 12 00:00:39,640 --> 00:00:44,360 the summer. And just a, an an advertisement 13 00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:48,680 for down the road for both of those who are listening as 14 00:00:48,680 --> 00:00:50,720 podcast and those who are coming live. 15 00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:57,720 We're going to be developing additional podcast only podcast 16 00:00:57,720 --> 00:01:00,160 series. Obviously, we'll continue to do 17 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:03,080 live things here as well. But one of the things that we'll 18 00:01:03,080 --> 00:01:08,120 be working on is a personal discipleship podcast that'll 19 00:01:08,120 --> 00:01:11,000 help you and your personal daily walk with Christ. 20 00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:15,120 And so I'll continue to spread information about that. 21 00:01:15,120 --> 00:01:17,800 So down the road, those of you who are listening and live, 22 00:01:17,800 --> 00:01:20,200 that'll be something additional you may enjoy while you're 23 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:25,360 you're walking or working or, or or whatever time you listen. 24 00:01:26,480 --> 00:01:30,320 This series is hopefully helpful in the sense of it. 25 00:01:30,640 --> 00:01:33,040 You know, if it's not, then the title of the series is kind of 26 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:38,040 pointless where, you know, we're we're working with in God's word 27 00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:42,640 to think about things like stress and fear and anger, and 28 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:46,760 also sometimes the things that cause those things like time and 29 00:01:47,120 --> 00:01:49,200 work. And tonight money. 30 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:51,720 I'm not here to pick your pockets. 31 00:01:52,400 --> 00:01:56,760 I'm actually here to help you think through how do we address 32 00:01:56,800 --> 00:01:58,840 this thing called money in our world today. 33 00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:03,720 And our goal as, as we have said every week, is we we're very 34 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:07,160 thankful that that God wants us to have peace with him. 35 00:02:07,720 --> 00:02:10,960 I often think of the famous Billy Graham tract, Steps to 36 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:14,720 Peace with God, which was kind of the famous Gospel tract that 37 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:17,560 the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has used. 38 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:20,080 And that's in a sense what we're looking for here. 39 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:24,880 How do I actually work through this thing called life, which 40 00:02:24,880 --> 00:02:29,200 can be interesting and have peace with God and peace with 41 00:02:29,200 --> 00:02:33,560 others and peace within my own house and peace within myself. 42 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:37,880 And so that idea of Shalom, that idea of completeness is part of 43 00:02:37,880 --> 00:02:39,320 that. I'm very thankful, as I've said, 44 00:02:39,320 --> 00:02:43,080 every single single episode for those people who are involved in 45 00:02:43,080 --> 00:02:45,520 Christian counseling, it's a ministry. 46 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:48,200 I hope that we at Inglewood could continue to develop down 47 00:02:48,200 --> 00:02:50,840 the road, something that I'm praying about, we're thinking 48 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:54,400 about and talking about. But then also those who are in 49 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:58,000 our recovery ministries that meet every Tuesday night at 50 00:02:58,000 --> 00:03:01,640 Inglewood. And then also, even those who 51 00:03:01,640 --> 00:03:04,320 are in the medical industry and law enforcement, for some who 52 00:03:04,320 --> 00:03:08,640 may be facing traumatic need in their life, some folks need 53 00:03:08,640 --> 00:03:10,440 these special networks of support. 54 00:03:10,840 --> 00:03:13,400 But we all need to know what God's Word says about some of 55 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:17,800 these these stresses and causes of stress right, in life. 56 00:03:17,800 --> 00:03:20,920 And so that's what we're going to be be talking about. 57 00:03:21,480 --> 00:03:26,400 And so the question for the night really is, why do we value 58 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:29,800 what we value and how does that affect us? 59 00:03:30,560 --> 00:03:33,200 And that may not sound like I'm talking about managing money, 60 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:36,840 but I am. Why do we value what we value? 61 00:03:36,840 --> 00:03:39,600 And, and how does that affect my life? 62 00:03:40,480 --> 00:03:43,760 And how does that drive me? And how does that distract me or 63 00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:48,720 how does that help focus me? And So what do we believe 64 00:03:48,720 --> 00:03:53,280 because of that understood value the, the, the value that we 65 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:57,440 believe in and understand, and how do we live based upon that 66 00:03:57,440 --> 00:04:00,000 understood value? Those are the questions that 67 00:04:00,000 --> 00:04:01,240 we're really dealing with tonight. 68 00:04:01,240 --> 00:04:06,040 So it's much deeper than just, you know, dollars and cents, but 69 00:04:06,040 --> 00:04:09,800 at the same time, dollars and cents often represent value, our 70 00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:12,240 culture. And so we need to think about 71 00:04:12,600 --> 00:04:15,720 this issue because God, God's word, certainly addresses it a 72 00:04:15,720 --> 00:04:17,839 lot. As I've mentioned in in previous 73 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:21,360 sermons and as I even shared in my latest sermon, it's very 74 00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:25,600 important that that in the midst of this worldly confusion and 75 00:04:25,600 --> 00:04:28,320 chaos that we might find ourselves living in to be 76 00:04:28,320 --> 00:04:31,800 reminded of of why we are and who are supposed to be. 77 00:04:31,800 --> 00:04:35,320 What is our true biblical identity and how does it get 78 00:04:35,320 --> 00:04:42,000 impacted by what we define as being important and how we 79 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:45,320 define success? How we define important, how we 80 00:04:45,320 --> 00:04:49,520 define value? Those philosophical theological 81 00:04:49,520 --> 00:04:53,920 type questions really do or should impact in a sense how 82 00:04:53,920 --> 00:04:56,920 we're practically living out our lives and even dealing with 83 00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:01,360 something such as money. So we one of the things that 84 00:05:01,360 --> 00:05:06,000 we'll recognize is that as as people, we are going to invest 85 00:05:06,000 --> 00:05:10,840 in those things that we think are valuable, not just money, 86 00:05:11,560 --> 00:05:15,320 but as I've shared in previous times, overall stewardship 87 00:05:15,320 --> 00:05:17,480 concept. And again, this isn't even a 88 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:22,080 stewardship Bible study really, but to think about time and 89 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:26,360 energy and best focus. We're going to spend, we're 90 00:05:26,360 --> 00:05:30,160 going to invest in the things that we think are the most 91 00:05:30,160 --> 00:05:32,200 important. So answering those questions of 92 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:35,040 what I think the most important things are, are what do I think 93 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:39,320 are the most valuable things really are significant questions 94 00:05:39,320 --> 00:05:43,040 to be addressing all the time because we can, we can get off 95 00:05:43,040 --> 00:05:46,120 track, we can get, we can get off kilter. 96 00:05:46,120 --> 00:05:49,440 So the things that we find are considered truly valuable. 97 00:05:49,440 --> 00:05:53,800 Things like family, things like friends, but even more basic 98 00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:55,800 things. And when you travel around the 99 00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:58,640 world, you realize that there's a, there's a lot of insecurity 100 00:05:58,640 --> 00:06:02,920 in the world and also here locally, But you think about 101 00:06:02,920 --> 00:06:07,960 things as simple as safety or comfort or food or shelter, 102 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:12,800 things that are important, things that are valuable, even 103 00:06:12,800 --> 00:06:15,200 perhaps vital and necessary in life. 104 00:06:15,640 --> 00:06:18,440 And so, so how do we, how do we deal with those things? 105 00:06:18,680 --> 00:06:21,840 And then how do we then translate that into eternal 106 00:06:21,840 --> 00:06:25,880 things, things that are beyond our presence here in the 107 00:06:25,880 --> 00:06:30,280 creation, our time on earth, our limited time here, things that 108 00:06:30,280 --> 00:06:34,400 go beyond that. So how generous will we be in 109 00:06:34,400 --> 00:06:39,280 extending and investing in what we consider valuable? 110 00:06:39,280 --> 00:06:41,880 I remember doing COVID. Anybody remember COVID? 111 00:06:42,600 --> 00:06:45,960 So I remember COVID. You remember you remember that I 112 00:06:45,960 --> 00:06:47,840 need to hoard toilet paper craze. 113 00:06:48,160 --> 00:06:51,440 Everybody remember that some of you anybody still hoarding 114 00:06:51,440 --> 00:06:52,880 toilet paper at this point? Thank you. 115 00:06:53,280 --> 00:06:56,360 I've I've known people from Y2K that still have bottled water. 116 00:06:56,360 --> 00:07:01,640 So, so, so you know, some of you may still be hoarding toilet 117 00:07:01,640 --> 00:07:04,080 paper. I remember there was a time 118 00:07:04,080 --> 00:07:07,080 during the I Need to Hoard toilet paper craze where we were 119 00:07:07,080 --> 00:07:09,160 trying to figure out sources of toilet paper. 120 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:14,240 And I found some, some mini rolls of toilet paper online and 121 00:07:14,240 --> 00:07:17,120 I ordered them. And, you know, six months later 122 00:07:17,120 --> 00:07:20,000 when they actually showed up, they were about the size of hair 123 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:21,400 rollers. I'm not kidding you. 124 00:07:21,400 --> 00:07:23,360 I mean, I mean, I don't know how to describe them. 125 00:07:23,720 --> 00:07:28,120 I mean, it was, it was amazingly not valuable, you know, even 126 00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:31,200 though at the time I've got to have these, you know, and it 127 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:34,280 didn't matter that you know how much they cost or whatever we're 128 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:36,960 going to anyway. So but little hair rollers of 129 00:07:36,960 --> 00:07:39,960 toilet paper. So not so generous perhaps. 130 00:07:40,520 --> 00:07:45,160 But as as true Kingdom seekers, we desperately want to grow as 131 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:47,520 disciples. We want to, we want to grow in 132 00:07:47,520 --> 00:07:50,680 our community with one another. And, and one of the enemies of 133 00:07:50,680 --> 00:07:54,400 peace, frankly one of the enemies of Shalom, one of the 134 00:07:54,400 --> 00:07:59,840 temptations or distractions away from Shalom in our life can be 135 00:07:59,840 --> 00:08:05,080 how we manage resources, how we manage our money, or in turn, 136 00:08:05,080 --> 00:08:08,840 how they might manage us. And so these are important 137 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:12,720 lessons I've shared with you back in when in our Acts series 138 00:08:12,720 --> 00:08:17,320 on Sunday mornings when we were in about Acts 5, that that Jesus 139 00:08:17,320 --> 00:08:20,640 spent a large number of verses, a large number of parables. 140 00:08:20,640 --> 00:08:23,880 There's a large number of verses in the New Testament about 141 00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:27,080 money. And so this is an issue that 142 00:08:27,080 --> 00:08:29,440 needs to be addressed. And so one of these, one of 143 00:08:29,440 --> 00:08:33,000 these enemies perhaps, or one of these causes of some of the 144 00:08:33,000 --> 00:08:35,760 things we've talked about in this series, the stresses, the 145 00:08:35,760 --> 00:08:39,640 fears, the worries, the guilt, etcetera, can actually be this 146 00:08:39,640 --> 00:08:41,720 category. You know, it's been said among 147 00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:44,440 the things that money can't buy is what it used to. 148 00:08:45,160 --> 00:08:49,520 And so and so it's an interesting slippery thing. 149 00:08:49,520 --> 00:08:52,920 So folks are lined up though in your life, Don't worry, Folks 150 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:55,720 are lined up for you in your life on social media, on 151 00:08:55,720 --> 00:08:59,840 television, everywhere in your world, in your e-mail box, even 152 00:08:59,840 --> 00:09:03,280 calling you on your telephone constantly to guarantee you a 153 00:09:03,280 --> 00:09:08,080 way to cash in and to make more. Anybody getting those, those 154 00:09:08,080 --> 00:09:11,080 weird texts where they're going to hire you from home for a lot 155 00:09:11,080 --> 00:09:14,280 of money And you get to, you know, we got your resume and 156 00:09:14,280 --> 00:09:17,120 you're like the only qualified person in the entire world to 157 00:09:17,120 --> 00:09:19,440 come work for us. Yeah, yeah, I've been getting 158 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:21,640 those a lot. And I didn't realize my resume 159 00:09:21,720 --> 00:09:25,240 had gone that far. But but you know, they'll tell 160 00:09:25,240 --> 00:09:27,840 you you can fulfill your earning potential from home. 161 00:09:27,840 --> 00:09:30,720 Unleash the power within you and and men. 162 00:09:30,720 --> 00:09:34,960 And meanwhile, truly our income or frankly, our lack of income 163 00:09:34,960 --> 00:09:38,760 at times can strict can trigger stress and it just piles up. 164 00:09:39,120 --> 00:09:42,600 It's also when I do these community assessments like we've 165 00:09:42,600 --> 00:09:46,760 done around here, it's obviously one of the top felt needs of 166 00:09:46,760 --> 00:09:50,280 people in our community. One of the one of the worries, 167 00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:53,880 one of the concerns is financial security. 168 00:09:54,640 --> 00:09:57,000 And that's a big part of our world today. 169 00:09:57,000 --> 00:10:00,040 And especially with some of the, the current, you know, inflation 170 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:02,200 rates, etcetera, going on, people are worried about that. 171 00:10:02,840 --> 00:10:05,040 And so there was a lady one day that they got a bill from the 172 00:10:05,040 --> 00:10:08,520 hospital for her recent surgery, Paul, that you might need to pay 173 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:10,400 attention to this because you can have surgery tomorrow. 174 00:10:10,760 --> 00:10:13,840 And she was astonished to see this huge fee from the 175 00:10:13,840 --> 00:10:17,200 anesthesiologist. And so she called the office and 176 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:19,800 she just wanted an explanation. This is this some kind of 177 00:10:19,800 --> 00:10:22,440 mistake? And and she got the doctor on 178 00:10:22,440 --> 00:10:24,440 the phone and the doctor said, no, no, no, this is not a 179 00:10:24,440 --> 00:10:26,800 mistake. And she goes, see, that's 180 00:10:26,800 --> 00:10:29,880 awfully costly for just knocking somebody out. 181 00:10:30,760 --> 00:10:32,840 And the doctor said, well, no, not at all. 182 00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:36,480 I knock you out for free. The huge fee is to wake you up 183 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:41,200 again. So sometimes we don't understand 184 00:10:43,000 --> 00:10:46,360 how do we manage the stress that can be induced with the thing 185 00:10:46,360 --> 00:10:50,600 called money or the lack of it. And so we, we here and we 186 00:10:50,600 --> 00:10:53,000 believe that God will provide for our needs. 187 00:10:53,360 --> 00:10:56,120 And so we have to ask ourselves, what do I really need? 188 00:10:56,120 --> 00:10:59,280 And, and obviously it's not a sin to have money. 189 00:10:59,280 --> 00:11:02,840 It's not a sin to be wealthy. It's not a sin to even earn 190 00:11:02,840 --> 00:11:04,440 money. The Bible tells us we've talked 191 00:11:04,440 --> 00:11:07,280 about work in this series. We're supposed to work, we're 192 00:11:07,280 --> 00:11:10,080 supposed to provide. And so, but it can also be 193 00:11:10,080 --> 00:11:13,960 dangerous if we have the improper perspective toward 194 00:11:14,320 --> 00:11:17,920 earning money and what it means and, and, and how how high a 195 00:11:17,920 --> 00:11:21,000 priority that is for us. So we need to carefully define 196 00:11:21,320 --> 00:11:23,280 value tonight. So we're going to go to Luke 197 00:11:23,280 --> 00:11:26,480 chapter 12 and we're going to learn, you know, see, in this 198 00:11:26,480 --> 00:11:28,880 passage, Jesus is performing miracles. 199 00:11:29,520 --> 00:11:34,840 He's teaching truth, he's doing what he often does and and at 200 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:38,560 this point in ministry, he's drawing huge crowds, large 201 00:11:38,560 --> 00:11:42,080 numbers of people, thousands of people are coming to him and 202 00:11:42,080 --> 00:11:44,080 they're following him. A lot of them want to see him 203 00:11:44,080 --> 00:11:45,800 perform miracles. Obviously a lot of them are 204 00:11:45,800 --> 00:11:49,000 coming for all the wrong reasons, but in Luke chapter 12, 205 00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:54,680 verse one, we see this in the meantime, when so many thousands 206 00:11:54,680 --> 00:11:58,440 of the people had gathered together, they were trampling 207 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:00,600 one another. He began to say to his 208 00:12:00,600 --> 00:12:03,440 disciples, you know, I've been actually walking through the 209 00:12:03,440 --> 00:12:06,800 Gospel of Luke again and one of the books that I'm studying in 210 00:12:06,800 --> 00:12:09,640 my personal quiet time. And I I don't know that I've 211 00:12:09,640 --> 00:12:14,640 ever recalled noting how often Luke talks about the large 212 00:12:14,640 --> 00:12:17,040 numbers of people that are affected early on in the 213 00:12:17,040 --> 00:12:19,920 ministry of Jesus. He really does all of Judea goes 214 00:12:19,920 --> 00:12:23,320 out to him, all of these people. So this this is a lot of people. 215 00:12:23,960 --> 00:12:28,000 So he shares warnings to them. He's also sharing encouragement 216 00:12:28,000 --> 00:12:30,040 to them. And then let's go all the way to 217 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:33,760 verse 13. Someone in the crowd said to 218 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:38,400 him, teacher, tell my brother to divide, divide the inheritance 219 00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:41,800 with me. But he said to him, man, who 220 00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:46,680 made me a judge or arbitrator over you? 221 00:12:47,080 --> 00:12:49,320 So one of the things I would just want us to start off 222 00:12:49,320 --> 00:12:52,000 talking about, let's talk about some of the problems that we're 223 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:55,920 going to run into with money. Money can cause problems. 224 00:12:56,560 --> 00:12:59,600 I don't know if you ever have money problems or not, but money 225 00:12:59,600 --> 00:13:02,720 can cause problems. And so this one man works his 226 00:13:02,720 --> 00:13:06,000 way through the crowd and and shares his problem. 227 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:10,760 He's got a, he's got a stingy brother and the brother, daddy 228 00:13:10,760 --> 00:13:15,120 has passed away and, and brother wants all of it. 229 00:13:15,440 --> 00:13:18,720 Brother wants the inheritance. Now, throughout the ages, 230 00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:24,280 settling estates has caused a lot of bitter family quarrels. 231 00:13:24,600 --> 00:13:26,680 Anybody have that relative? Anybody ever, you know, you all 232 00:13:26,680 --> 00:13:27,720 have that. You all been through some of 233 00:13:27,720 --> 00:13:29,120 that. I've walked through that with 234 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:32,840 many families, including my own, where you have that relative who 235 00:13:33,000 --> 00:13:36,160 kind of thinks their piece of the pie is frankly the only 236 00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:39,240 piece and no knife is needed. Just hand me the whole thing. 237 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:44,800 And listen, I once and I can't tell all these stories 238 00:13:44,800 --> 00:13:48,200 completely because, you know, especially this one, this is 239 00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:52,880 going, this is being recorded. But, but I've performed a lot of 240 00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:55,920 funerals in my life. And I've mentioned to you before 241 00:13:55,920 --> 00:13:57,920 that I should write AI don't know if you can write a funny 242 00:13:57,920 --> 00:14:00,560 book about funerals. But but I once had to break up a 243 00:14:00,560 --> 00:14:03,440 fight between the wife and the girlfriend over a dead body. 244 00:14:03,680 --> 00:14:06,360 So you talk about I thought about, I thought about cutting 245 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:09,400 him in half and giving each one of them a part, but that just 246 00:14:09,400 --> 00:14:10,800 didn't seem appropriate at the time. 247 00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:15,920 But but today in our culture, when that kind of issue arises, 248 00:14:16,480 --> 00:14:18,280 normally that can be settled in court. 249 00:14:18,280 --> 00:14:20,720 You'll have judges who would settle that. 250 00:14:20,720 --> 00:14:23,400 But in Jesus's day, that wasn't to the way in the in the Jewish 251 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:26,880 world, they would take these kinds of things and they would 252 00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:30,920 be arbitrated by the rabbi. And so it wasn't, it wasn't 253 00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:34,360 wouldn't be unusual for this man to come to Jesus and ask this 254 00:14:34,360 --> 00:14:37,560 kind of question. But Jesus is basically saying, 255 00:14:37,720 --> 00:14:40,640 listen, I'm not your rabbi. Go to your rabbi for that. 256 00:14:41,080 --> 00:14:44,000 That's not why I'm here. But as you notice, the man 257 00:14:44,000 --> 00:14:46,280 addresses him, his teacher, and we don't know why the brother 258 00:14:46,280 --> 00:14:48,760 won't share. And and Jesus points out I'm not 259 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:52,480 the official judge in this matter, but he also recognizes 260 00:14:52,840 --> 00:14:56,240 this is a moment to share truth. So look at verse 15. 261 00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:01,960 And he said to him, take care and be on your guard against all 262 00:15:01,960 --> 00:15:07,040 covetousness for one's life does not consist in the abundance of 263 00:15:07,040 --> 00:15:09,440 his possessions. Now, I thought this was an 264 00:15:09,440 --> 00:15:11,960 interesting thing to say to the guy who's getting ripped off. 265 00:15:12,600 --> 00:15:15,120 You know what I mean? I mean, if the brother was 266 00:15:15,120 --> 00:15:17,440 there, it would seem more appropriate. 267 00:15:17,440 --> 00:15:19,840 But but Jesus is going to make a point here. 268 00:15:19,960 --> 00:15:22,920 I'm not questioning Jesus. He's going to make him a point 269 00:15:22,920 --> 00:15:24,280 here. And and then one of the points 270 00:15:24,280 --> 00:15:26,720 is, and we need to recognize money in and of itself is not 271 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:28,560 evil. That's not that's not a problem. 272 00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:31,560 Possessing money, being wealthy is not evil. 273 00:15:32,040 --> 00:15:35,200 It's what we're going to do with it, our relationship with money 274 00:15:35,840 --> 00:15:40,480 and striving for money as our primary goal in life can be a 275 00:15:40,480 --> 00:15:43,680 problem. And I, I've experienced that in 276 00:15:43,680 --> 00:15:45,640 my own life. In my childhood, that was kind 277 00:15:45,640 --> 00:15:49,880 of the way our, our family lived and dwelt. 278 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:53,360 And so money was king. But but that relationship with 279 00:15:53,360 --> 00:15:54,920 it. So I'm reminded of the words, 280 00:15:55,200 --> 00:15:58,080 and some of you would know this, the words of Tephia in the 281 00:15:58,080 --> 00:16:02,360 Fiddler on the Roof Roof, when a friend warns him that money is 282 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:06,400 the world's curse. And then he says, may the Lord 283 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,120 smite me with it and may I never recover. 284 00:16:10,520 --> 00:16:14,200 And then of course, he breaks out into, if I vote a rich man, 285 00:16:14,200 --> 00:16:19,280 you know the rest of the song. And so let's see what Jesus 286 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:22,280 really is talking about here. So what he's trying to say, 287 00:16:22,280 --> 00:16:28,360 first of all, is money or the pursuit of it, the primary focus 288 00:16:28,360 --> 00:16:32,400 upon it can lead to greed. And this statement wasn't 289 00:16:32,400 --> 00:16:36,400 obviously just for this man. This was a a lesson. 290 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:40,920 This was a teaching that these thousands of people needed to 291 00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:43,840 hear. He says don't be stingy and 292 00:16:43,840 --> 00:16:46,800 don't be greedy. And this is such an important 293 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:49,040 issue because it comes up over and over again. 294 00:16:49,040 --> 00:16:53,840 The idea of covetousness or greediness can be a real poison 295 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:56,320 to the point, if you'll remember, it's one of the 10 296 00:16:56,320 --> 00:17:00,640 commandments to not covet, to not wish you had something that 297 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:02,600 you don't have that somebody else has. 298 00:17:03,800 --> 00:17:08,599 And so, so much so that that the lust for more and more stuff 299 00:17:10,760 --> 00:17:14,520 could be an ever present danger, even for the disciples of Jesus. 300 00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:17,960 We've, you know, eventually get to the point to where one of 301 00:17:17,960 --> 00:17:22,319 them turns on him for the sake of pieces of silver. 302 00:17:23,599 --> 00:17:26,599 And so he uses two really important words here. 303 00:17:26,599 --> 00:17:29,160 So let me break this down some of the original language for you 304 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:32,120 to drive this point even further home. 305 00:17:32,720 --> 00:17:34,840 He says, first of all, you need to take care. 306 00:17:35,040 --> 00:17:38,360 It means to watch out it it it means to beware. 307 00:17:38,360 --> 00:17:42,880 But it's the form of a verb that ordinarily means to see 308 00:17:44,080 --> 00:17:46,840 eyesight. So when he says you need to 309 00:17:46,840 --> 00:17:49,720 really fix your eyes on this, you need to really focus. 310 00:17:49,720 --> 00:17:52,120 You need to pay attention to what I'm saying to you. 311 00:17:52,680 --> 00:17:55,560 This is a big deal focusing on this. 312 00:17:56,040 --> 00:18:01,880 And then he says, he says, be on guard or look out or avoid. 313 00:18:02,440 --> 00:18:05,720 And, and then there's a second part of this, this verse, it's 314 00:18:05,720 --> 00:18:08,280 really awkward when you translate it. 315 00:18:08,800 --> 00:18:12,680 And so it says, for one's life does not consist in the 316 00:18:12,680 --> 00:18:19,280 abundance of possessions, right? But in, in, in one sense, it's 317 00:18:19,280 --> 00:18:24,080 it, it could go like this. A person's true life is not 318 00:18:24,080 --> 00:18:28,800 made-up of the things he owns, no matter how rich he may be. 319 00:18:29,600 --> 00:18:32,600 Or another translation would say, don't be greedy for what 320 00:18:32,600 --> 00:18:36,440 you don't have. Real life is not measured by how 321 00:18:36,440 --> 00:18:40,480 much we own. Or even another translation a 322 00:18:40,480 --> 00:18:45,160 little more obscure says even if you have more than enough, your 323 00:18:45,160 --> 00:18:49,760 property doesn't give you life. And I like that. 324 00:18:50,240 --> 00:18:54,480 What you own, your stuff does not equal life. 325 00:18:55,040 --> 00:18:58,920 It doesn't give you life. And so we've got to be careful 326 00:18:58,920 --> 00:19:03,360 that your life isn't just about the obtaining of things, right? 327 00:19:03,920 --> 00:19:09,280 And so greed is deadly because it can lead a person to believe 328 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:14,200 that having wealth or pursuing wealth is all that life's about, 329 00:19:15,720 --> 00:19:17,200 that that's what everything is for. 330 00:19:17,200 --> 00:19:20,480 So it can become their focus. It becomes your goal, it becomes 331 00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:23,000 your target. So we got to lay aside greed, 332 00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:26,760 that idea of covetousness, to think about what life is really 333 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:29,960 about. So the poor envy the rich, the 334 00:19:29,960 --> 00:19:34,200 rich envy the richer, and the cycle tends to not stop. 335 00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:38,200 And so ownership of possessions does not mean possession of a 336 00:19:38,200 --> 00:19:40,920 meaningful life. It it will never satisfy. 337 00:19:40,920 --> 00:19:43,920 We keep pursuing it, believing that satisfaction will come. 338 00:19:44,360 --> 00:19:46,880 But that's part of the problem. So this one of the second 339 00:19:46,920 --> 00:19:51,760 problems of money is that money or the pursuit of it can lead to 340 00:19:51,760 --> 00:19:55,800 misplaced faith. So now Jesus says, let me Share 341 00:19:55,800 --> 00:19:57,640 your story. Let me tell you a story. 342 00:19:58,120 --> 00:20:02,040 And so he shares a parable with them beginning in verse 16. 343 00:20:02,840 --> 00:20:06,200 He says, and he told them a parable, saying the land of a 344 00:20:06,200 --> 00:20:10,640 rich man produced plentifully. And he thought to himself, what 345 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:13,600 shall I do? For I have nowhere to store my 346 00:20:13,600 --> 00:20:15,920 crops. And he said, I will do this. 347 00:20:15,920 --> 00:20:19,080 I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I 348 00:20:19,080 --> 00:20:21,280 will store all my grain and my goods. 349 00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:25,520 And I will say to my soul now, don't miss that phraseology. 350 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:28,200 Among the probably the most important part of tonight is 351 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:31,800 getting ready to come up. Don't miss that phrase, my soul, 352 00:20:31,880 --> 00:20:34,280 right? Remember that in a minute, soul, 353 00:20:34,560 --> 00:20:37,240 you have ample goods laid up for many years. 354 00:20:37,440 --> 00:20:41,280 Relax, eat, drink, be merry. You should be familiar with that 355 00:20:41,280 --> 00:20:47,760 saying, but God said to him, Fool, this night your soul is 356 00:20:47,760 --> 00:20:51,480 required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will 357 00:20:51,480 --> 00:20:54,800 they be? So is the one who lays up 358 00:20:54,800 --> 00:20:58,600 treasure for himself and is not rich toward God. 359 00:20:59,960 --> 00:21:04,680 So the farmer had a plentiful, very plentiful harvest. 360 00:21:04,680 --> 00:21:07,040 Nothing at all wrong with that. In fact, what a blessing from 361 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:08,880 God, right? That's not a problem. 362 00:21:09,320 --> 00:21:11,560 And at no point here's the problem. 363 00:21:11,760 --> 00:21:15,080 At no point with that blessing did the farmer ever acknowledge 364 00:21:15,080 --> 00:21:17,480 God. This reminds us of a passage we 365 00:21:17,480 --> 00:21:20,440 were in, in James at another time in this series. 366 00:21:20,920 --> 00:21:23,720 So he never acknowledges God in appreciation. 367 00:21:23,960 --> 00:21:27,040 So it's it's not wrong for the farmer to be successful. 368 00:21:27,800 --> 00:21:31,880 It's not even wrong for him to plan to store his grain or to 369 00:21:31,880 --> 00:21:35,280 plan financially for the future. That's not the problem. 370 00:21:35,960 --> 00:21:39,400 That's not the problem. The problem was the farmer was 371 00:21:39,400 --> 00:21:43,080 relying upon his wealth and not the grace of God. 372 00:21:43,080 --> 00:21:47,120 That's the point, that at no point is he acknowledging God's 373 00:21:47,120 --> 00:21:50,600 graciousness, God's blessing, giving God the glory, the the 374 00:21:50,600 --> 00:21:52,600 credit for everything that's happened. 375 00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:55,960 And so in a sense, he's taking credit for it and he's just 376 00:21:55,960 --> 00:21:59,080 running his life his own way without including God in any way 377 00:21:59,080 --> 00:22:00,600 whatsoever. I earned this. 378 00:22:00,800 --> 00:22:03,200 I rolled up my own sleeves. I did this. 379 00:22:03,200 --> 00:22:07,280 I magically can make things grow because I'm a magician and I 380 00:22:07,280 --> 00:22:12,080 take credit for it. And so his faith and his 381 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:14,320 expectation are in the wrong place. 382 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:17,960 So I can afford to build bigger, bigger barns because this crop 383 00:22:17,960 --> 00:22:20,840 is so good, it's going to support me for years to come. 384 00:22:21,080 --> 00:22:26,440 I'll be on easy street. I don't need God, all right? 385 00:22:27,160 --> 00:22:29,600 And so he thought it would just last forever. 386 00:22:30,040 --> 00:22:32,720 This will keep going forever. I can depend upon this the rest 387 00:22:32,720 --> 00:22:34,640 of my life. I've earned enough, put away 388 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:36,160 enough. I don't have to worry about a 389 00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:39,560 thing. I can now rest on my Laurel, my 390 00:22:39,560 --> 00:22:43,480 laurels, right? But you got to note the my's and 391 00:22:43,480 --> 00:22:48,080 the ay's in this passage, especially in verses 17 through 392 00:22:48,080 --> 00:22:50,840 19. A lot of my's and a lot of eyes. 393 00:22:51,560 --> 00:22:56,720 So I will do for my or me. I will build my. 394 00:22:57,040 --> 00:23:00,680 These are my crops. These are my goods. 395 00:23:01,120 --> 00:23:07,480 So he's misunderstanding the idea that that that wealth, 396 00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:10,760 earthly wealth and possessions actually provide him security, 397 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:13,880 that that they're the ones that are going to provide him 398 00:23:13,880 --> 00:23:17,160 security and sustainability. It's again, like our passage a 399 00:23:17,160 --> 00:23:20,280 few weeks ago from James. He thought he was in control of 400 00:23:20,280 --> 00:23:22,720 things. He thought he could depend upon 401 00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:25,440 that ability. So all I got to do is relax, 402 00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:29,320 eat, drink and what? Be merry, right? 403 00:23:29,960 --> 00:23:32,440 It's a familiar philosophy in those days. 404 00:23:33,000 --> 00:23:37,880 It's also a pretty familiar philosophy in our day that I, I, 405 00:23:37,880 --> 00:23:42,800 I can depend upon myself, right? Advertisers today are going to 406 00:23:42,800 --> 00:23:46,680 send out that same message that somehow we make our own lives 407 00:23:46,680 --> 00:23:50,680 worthwhile by embracing as many of the pleasures and 408 00:23:50,680 --> 00:23:52,680 opportunities available in the world today. 409 00:23:53,560 --> 00:23:55,360 But there's a problem with that philosophy. 410 00:23:55,360 --> 00:24:00,120 And it begins in verse 20 again. But there it is. 411 00:24:00,120 --> 00:24:06,320 There's that word. But God said to him, you are 412 00:24:06,320 --> 00:24:08,480 exactly right. You're a wonderfully intelligent 413 00:24:08,480 --> 00:24:12,040 human being and you can depend upon your own intelligence and 414 00:24:12,040 --> 00:24:14,080 you're going to do just fine. You don't need me. 415 00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:15,880 You're going to be able to sustain yourself the rest of 416 00:24:15,880 --> 00:24:19,120 existence and eternity right now. 417 00:24:19,120 --> 00:24:23,880 What did he call him? Fool says you're a fool with an 418 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:27,920 exclamation point. You're a fool this night. 419 00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:31,960 Your soul is required of you and the things you have prepared, 420 00:24:31,960 --> 00:24:34,800 whose will they be? So is the one who lays up 421 00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:37,880 treasure for himself and is not rich toward God. 422 00:24:38,040 --> 00:24:39,800 So there's a good, there's no doubt about what's going on 423 00:24:39,800 --> 00:24:41,560 here. He's not rich toward God. 424 00:24:41,680 --> 00:24:43,920 So this man is not spiritually minded. 425 00:24:44,280 --> 00:24:48,080 He's not spiritually obedient. He's not spiritually faithful. 426 00:24:48,280 --> 00:24:50,440 He's not doing what God wants him to do. 427 00:24:50,600 --> 00:24:52,680 He's just doing what he wants to do right. 428 00:24:52,840 --> 00:24:54,960 Again, nothing wrong with being a successful farmer. 429 00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:57,960 Nothing wrong with being successful in business, nothing 430 00:24:57,960 --> 00:25:00,800 wrong with doing well and working hard and and seeing 431 00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:02,880 things happen. But in the end, you've got to 432 00:25:02,880 --> 00:25:06,560 recognize who's, who's actually enabled that to take place. 433 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:11,240 So here's the problem. And so and so God has a 434 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:14,400 different perspective and he says, what if you died tonight? 435 00:25:15,880 --> 00:25:19,160 That's what he's saying to him. What if you died tonight and you 436 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:22,400 had replaced God with earthly goods? 437 00:25:23,200 --> 00:25:26,320 That's the point. What what's going to happen to 438 00:25:26,320 --> 00:25:28,600 you? How valuable is your earthly 439 00:25:28,600 --> 00:25:32,680 wealth when you die, right? Who's going to get it then? 440 00:25:32,680 --> 00:25:35,600 Remember the the man's original question and complaint and 441 00:25:35,600 --> 00:25:39,440 statement about his brother? Daddy's died, the stuff's left. 442 00:25:39,680 --> 00:25:41,280 Who's going to get it? And he's going to say what's 443 00:25:41,280 --> 00:25:44,120 going to happen then? And so he says it's this greedy 444 00:25:44,120 --> 00:25:47,680 heart is a foolish heart because in making his plans for the 445 00:25:47,680 --> 00:25:51,800 future, this farmer showed he was living as if there was no 446 00:25:51,800 --> 00:25:54,320 God to whom he would ever be accountable. 447 00:25:55,600 --> 00:25:59,400 And that's foolish. So money can lead us into almost 448 00:25:59,400 --> 00:26:03,840 a Scrooge like existence in which we believe it's the answer 449 00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:08,880 or it's the goal of everything. But we know that life is 450 00:26:08,880 --> 00:26:11,840 fragile. Life is frail. 451 00:26:12,520 --> 00:26:15,520 We're just a mist, we're a vapor, we're a breath. 452 00:26:15,840 --> 00:26:21,320 So this very night, your soul might be required of you. 453 00:26:21,840 --> 00:26:25,160 Your soul will be demanded. Now I want you to pay close 454 00:26:25,160 --> 00:26:28,440 attention what I'm about to say because this is a big 455 00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:32,560 theological deal. You need to understand that what 456 00:26:32,560 --> 00:26:37,120 that means is it carries the idea of a loan, OK? 457 00:26:37,560 --> 00:26:39,560 In other words, get ready for this. 458 00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:43,480 Life is a loan that must be returned. 459 00:26:45,720 --> 00:26:50,320 Your life is just a loan. It doesn't belong to you. 460 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:56,080 It was given to you and it will be recalled one day and it's 461 00:26:56,080 --> 00:26:58,680 going to be returned. Your life is just alone. 462 00:26:58,680 --> 00:27:01,640 That has to be returned. Look at verse 19 and it says, 463 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:06,040 and I will say to my soul, so you have ample goods laid up for 464 00:27:06,040 --> 00:27:08,040 many years. Relax, eat, drink and be merry. 465 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:10,480 In other words, I'm in complete control of eternity. 466 00:27:10,640 --> 00:27:16,360 My soul, your soul does not belong to you. 467 00:27:17,560 --> 00:27:21,320 It's a gift, and no matter how hard you think you've worked, no 468 00:27:21,320 --> 00:27:23,720 matter how hard you think you've achieved, no matter how hard you 469 00:27:23,720 --> 00:27:26,400 think you've done in this earthly existence, it's all 470 00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:31,120 going to be recalled one day. Life is a gift. 471 00:27:31,440 --> 00:27:34,200 And one day God's going to say, I'm going to take that right 472 00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:35,240 back. Thank you very much. 473 00:27:36,360 --> 00:27:38,640 It's mine. I gave it to you. 474 00:27:39,080 --> 00:27:45,200 The Lord giveth. And we come from dust, and to 475 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:48,920 dust we shall return. You can understand this is a 476 00:27:48,920 --> 00:27:50,760 gift. What a wonderful gift. 477 00:27:50,920 --> 00:27:54,040 What an awesome gift. This is the time we get in order 478 00:27:54,040 --> 00:27:57,200 to trust in Him, to know Him, to serve him, to be saved, to 479 00:27:57,200 --> 00:28:00,680 become a believer while we're in this little timeline called 480 00:28:00,680 --> 00:28:04,080 earthly existence. But there's going to come a time 481 00:28:04,920 --> 00:28:08,240 when it is no more. And earthly riches have an 482 00:28:08,240 --> 00:28:12,680 incredibly major weakness. Earthly riches have no 483 00:28:12,680 --> 00:28:16,000 purchasing power whatsoever after death. 484 00:28:18,040 --> 00:28:21,000 None. You can't buy your way out. 485 00:28:21,400 --> 00:28:24,320 You can't pay your way out of hell, no matter what they used 486 00:28:24,320 --> 00:28:25,800 to do in church history. Have you ever heard of 487 00:28:25,800 --> 00:28:28,360 indulgences? One of the reasons why the great 488 00:28:28,360 --> 00:28:31,080 Reformation took place is some of the corruption within the 489 00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:35,400 church, where rich people were donating land or donating money 490 00:28:35,480 --> 00:28:39,760 or donating armies or donating jewelry to the church, and they 491 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:43,800 would get grace in in repayment. You would get so much grace, so 492 00:28:43,800 --> 00:28:47,720 many years off of purgatory, so many years toward heaven because 493 00:28:47,720 --> 00:28:53,320 you paid for eternity. The problem with that is it's 494 00:28:53,320 --> 00:28:54,760 just not biblical. It's not true. 495 00:28:55,440 --> 00:28:59,600 You cannot buy the currency needed to get to heaven. 496 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:02,800 And so again, there's nothing wrong. 497 00:29:02,800 --> 00:29:06,200 We, we're, we, we've looked in our last episode about working 498 00:29:06,200 --> 00:29:07,400 hard. We're supposed to work hard. 499 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,280 We're supposed to provide, we're supposed to earn so that we can 500 00:29:10,280 --> 00:29:12,760 give and so that we can invest. So there wouldn't be good 501 00:29:12,760 --> 00:29:14,800 stewards. But if we depend upon that and 502 00:29:14,800 --> 00:29:18,720 we think somehow we now own life and I'm in charge. 503 00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:22,160 So you just kicked you just kicked Jesus off the throne and 504 00:29:22,160 --> 00:29:25,400 you put yourself there, You put your bank account there or your 505 00:29:25,400 --> 00:29:30,200 house or your yacht or your and it's not going to buy your way 506 00:29:30,200 --> 00:29:32,120 out. So the rich man can enjoy a few 507 00:29:32,120 --> 00:29:35,880 years of of misty, vaporous pleasure on earth. 508 00:29:37,120 --> 00:29:39,920 But that's that's poor exchange for eternity. 509 00:29:39,920 --> 00:29:46,520 Jesus says verse 21. So is the one who lays up 510 00:29:46,520 --> 00:29:51,240 treasure for himself and is not rich toward God. 511 00:29:52,200 --> 00:29:54,000 So it's better than just the opposite. 512 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:55,520 It's better to be rich toward God. 513 00:29:55,880 --> 00:29:57,680 And now listen, you got to understand what these words 514 00:29:57,680 --> 00:29:59,640 mean. It's better to be rich toward 515 00:29:59,640 --> 00:30:02,320 God than to lay up literally to hoard. 516 00:30:02,440 --> 00:30:07,160 That's what the word means. Don't be a hoarder things. 517 00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:10,440 Don't be hoarding things for yourself because it won't 518 00:30:10,440 --> 00:30:13,240 matter. It won't matter. 519 00:30:14,200 --> 00:30:17,280 And those who are rich toward God lay up treasures for his 520 00:30:17,280 --> 00:30:22,640 Kingdom, and they find security in him rather than in stuff. 521 00:30:23,280 --> 00:30:25,800 It doesn't mean that we don't need stuff to survive. 522 00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:27,840 We we'll need some stuff. We need some food. 523 00:30:27,840 --> 00:30:30,600 We need a shelter. We need to be able to provide. 524 00:30:30,600 --> 00:30:32,680 But, but that stuff isn't the answer. 525 00:30:32,680 --> 00:30:35,280 So when the books are settled, those who are hoarding 526 00:30:35,280 --> 00:30:38,040 possessions for themselves are going to fail to have those 527 00:30:38,040 --> 00:30:41,240 possessions that are left to enjoy and will actually matter 528 00:30:41,600 --> 00:30:48,040 when it comes to eternity. Teresa and I, and I don't know 529 00:30:48,040 --> 00:30:50,120 if she'll remember this couple or she will when I start telling 530 00:30:50,120 --> 00:30:52,040 the story. But in one of the churches I 531 00:30:52,040 --> 00:30:54,520 pastored, we had an older couple who were hoarders. 532 00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:58,120 I mean, if you've ever seen those TV shows, these people 533 00:30:58,120 --> 00:31:02,040 were worse. And this older couple were 534 00:31:02,040 --> 00:31:04,040 hoarders. And I would try to go visit 535 00:31:04,040 --> 00:31:06,080 them. I physically could not get into 536 00:31:06,080 --> 00:31:09,000 their home. You would go into their home and 537 00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:12,040 there's little passageways. And I'm just way too large for 538 00:31:12,040 --> 00:31:14,480 that. I'm, I'm, I'm surprisingly 539 00:31:14,480 --> 00:31:20,040 abnormally large and I couldn't get in there and neither could 540 00:31:20,040 --> 00:31:23,240 they after a while. And so they lived in their car 541 00:31:23,520 --> 00:31:28,920 out front and could not live in their own house. 542 00:31:30,080 --> 00:31:32,040 And after a while the car didn't work anymore. 543 00:31:32,240 --> 00:31:35,440 So they were living in a broken down car parked in front of 544 00:31:35,440 --> 00:31:38,880 their home while they couldn't get in their house. 545 00:31:40,240 --> 00:31:43,880 And I tried and I tried to get them to accept help and we 546 00:31:43,880 --> 00:31:47,800 offered to go in and do everything you can imagine, but 547 00:31:47,800 --> 00:31:49,960 they were so focused, so distracted. 548 00:31:49,960 --> 00:31:53,160 Obviously there was some some mental illness involved with 549 00:31:53,160 --> 00:31:59,840 that in their life, some things that were not healthy, but they 550 00:31:59,840 --> 00:32:03,160 struggled with that and they weren't enjoying any of it. 551 00:32:03,160 --> 00:32:05,280 Think about that. It was all locked up in there, 552 00:32:05,680 --> 00:32:07,240 but they weren't enjoying any of it. 553 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:14,880 So what value is it right when my mom and dad died, which they 554 00:32:14,880 --> 00:32:18,360 died separately, but not too many years apart really. 555 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:21,880 And when my mom and dad died, my brother became the executor of 556 00:32:21,880 --> 00:32:25,440 the estate because he lived closer and, and, and, and we had 557 00:32:25,440 --> 00:32:28,680 a house. My family home was a home that 558 00:32:28,680 --> 00:32:31,080 my family had lived in for over 100 years. 559 00:32:32,400 --> 00:32:37,760 And every single drawer, nook, cranny, under every piece of 560 00:32:37,760 --> 00:32:42,120 furniture, there was something. And my brother and I had to have 561 00:32:42,120 --> 00:32:45,280 hard conversations about we're not going to become the 562 00:32:45,280 --> 00:32:48,160 caretakers of the Newark Museum, you know what I mean? 563 00:32:49,480 --> 00:32:55,680 And I remember just kind of offloading all of that stuff for 564 00:32:55,920 --> 00:33:00,000 for pennies on the the dollar just so that we wouldn't have to 565 00:33:00,000 --> 00:33:04,280 have that stuff anymore. You know what an amazing thing, 566 00:33:04,280 --> 00:33:10,760 the things that we think are so important, so covetous people, 567 00:33:12,080 --> 00:33:14,520 those are in that spectrum. They, they just want more and 568 00:33:14,520 --> 00:33:15,960 more and they want what you have. 569 00:33:16,200 --> 00:33:18,840 They want what you have. There's almost, there's almost a 570 00:33:18,840 --> 00:33:22,120 robbery concept, almost thief like tendencies. 571 00:33:22,240 --> 00:33:24,600 I want what you have and I'm going to figure out how to get 572 00:33:24,600 --> 00:33:28,960 to what you have if I can. All right, but don't focus your 573 00:33:28,960 --> 00:33:34,080 life upon trying to be rich in regard to the Bank of the barn. 574 00:33:34,680 --> 00:33:40,320 Jesus says you've got to be smarter than this and you've got 575 00:33:40,320 --> 00:33:43,240 to focus on eternal things, be rich in your relationship with 576 00:33:43,240 --> 00:33:45,760 God. That doesn't mean you don't 577 00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:47,760 farm. That doesn't mean you don't 578 00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:49,680 harvest. That doesn't mean you don't 579 00:33:49,680 --> 00:33:53,200 work. But he says, listen, you've got 580 00:33:53,200 --> 00:33:56,240 to have a priority here. You've got to remain in focus, 581 00:33:56,240 --> 00:33:58,720 right? And so we need to be very 582 00:33:58,720 --> 00:34:01,400 careful about this. But Jesus wasn't finished. 583 00:34:01,400 --> 00:34:04,000 He wasn't even close. Look in 22 verse 22. 584 00:34:05,400 --> 00:34:09,719 And he said to his disciples, Therefore I tell you, do not be 585 00:34:09,719 --> 00:34:14,040 anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your 586 00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:18,400 body what you will put on. For life is more than food, and 587 00:34:18,400 --> 00:34:22,199 the body more than clothing. Consider the Ravens. 588 00:34:22,199 --> 00:34:25,760 They neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor 589 00:34:25,760 --> 00:34:30,480 barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you 590 00:34:30,480 --> 00:34:33,159 than the birds? And which of you, by being 591 00:34:33,159 --> 00:34:36,320 anxious, can add a single single hour to a span of life? 592 00:34:37,239 --> 00:34:42,400 If then you're not able to do a as small a thing as that, why 593 00:34:42,400 --> 00:34:46,400 are you anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they 594 00:34:46,400 --> 00:34:48,040 grow. They neither toil nor spin. 595 00:34:48,040 --> 00:34:51,440 Yet I tell you, even Solomon and all his glory was not arrayed 596 00:34:51,440 --> 00:34:53,840 like one of these. Can't you just imagine he's just 597 00:34:53,840 --> 00:34:55,480 looking at flowers when he's telling them that? 598 00:34:56,960 --> 00:35:01,480 But if God so clothes the grass which is alive in the field 599 00:35:01,480 --> 00:35:04,760 today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more 600 00:35:04,760 --> 00:35:10,520 will He clothe you? Oh, you have little faith and do 601 00:35:10,520 --> 00:35:14,120 not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be 602 00:35:14,120 --> 00:35:17,520 worried for all the nations of the world seek after these 603 00:35:17,520 --> 00:35:21,360 things, and your Father knows that you need them. 604 00:35:21,960 --> 00:35:25,520 So a third thing we need to see here is that money or the 605 00:35:25,520 --> 00:35:29,720 pursuit of it can lead anxiety. And we've had different 606 00:35:29,720 --> 00:35:33,560 episodes, different sessions on stress, anxiety, worry, those 607 00:35:33,560 --> 00:35:36,640 kinds of ideas and these lessons. 608 00:35:36,640 --> 00:35:38,880 If you'll notice, you may not realize this, but all the 609 00:35:38,880 --> 00:35:42,040 lessons, all the episodes of help all connect together. 610 00:35:43,560 --> 00:35:47,480 So my advice for those who are listening to a podcast or those 611 00:35:47,480 --> 00:35:51,360 of you who have missed being here live, that you go back and 612 00:35:51,360 --> 00:35:54,960 you put it all together. There's a holistic picture of 613 00:35:54,960 --> 00:35:58,280 life that's being painted for you in this series. 614 00:35:59,560 --> 00:36:01,800 It's best to listen to all of them to get that complete 615 00:36:01,800 --> 00:36:03,880 picture. But in order to achieve that 616 00:36:03,880 --> 00:36:08,280 peace with God, but but trust God to help you to take care of 617 00:36:08,280 --> 00:36:10,080 the essentials. That's what Jesus is saying. 618 00:36:10,320 --> 00:36:13,240 Anxiety or worry are not part of God's menu for living. 619 00:36:13,400 --> 00:36:18,360 So let the Holy Spirit lead in your decision making process and 620 00:36:18,360 --> 00:36:21,440 trust Him to lead you to a meaningful life. 621 00:36:21,640 --> 00:36:24,440 And thank Him when He blesses you. 622 00:36:25,160 --> 00:36:29,240 Give Him credit for your revenue, give him credit for 623 00:36:29,240 --> 00:36:32,360 your job, give him credit for your blessing. 624 00:36:32,560 --> 00:36:35,120 And if God has blessed you, we, we've had friends and church 625 00:36:35,120 --> 00:36:38,320 members over the years who are very, very wealthy, wonderful, 626 00:36:38,320 --> 00:36:41,160 godly people. And they were so generous in 627 00:36:41,160 --> 00:36:42,960 their giving. And you can just see why God was 628 00:36:42,960 --> 00:36:45,640 blessing them because they, they turned around and use that as a 629 00:36:45,640 --> 00:36:48,960 tool for the Kingdom. We've also known people who are 630 00:36:48,960 --> 00:36:52,920 dirt poor like us. I, in my very first pasture, I, 631 00:36:52,920 --> 00:36:55,720 I, we cut firewood to have heat in the winter. 632 00:36:55,880 --> 00:36:58,480 And if it weren't for the people who drop off firewood and some 633 00:36:58,480 --> 00:37:01,400 vegetables every now and then, I like beans and cornbread. 634 00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:03,720 The beans and cornbread about 7 days in a row. 635 00:37:03,800 --> 00:37:05,680 You're getting a little tired of the beans and cornbread, you 636 00:37:05,680 --> 00:37:08,880 know what I'm saying? We've lived that life. 637 00:37:10,200 --> 00:37:12,240 And of course, you know, I've worked around the world with 638 00:37:12,240 --> 00:37:15,200 people who couldn't scratch 2 pennies together to make a cent. 639 00:37:16,280 --> 00:37:19,920 Some of the poorest people on the planet, but some of the most 640 00:37:19,920 --> 00:37:27,400 joyous, glorify thankful people for every single thing that God 641 00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:31,080 has blessed them with. I've told you the story before, 642 00:37:31,080 --> 00:37:34,880 but my favorite honorarium of all time ever sharing in a 643 00:37:34,880 --> 00:37:38,600 church was in the largest refugee camps in the world with 644 00:37:38,600 --> 00:37:44,760 the South Sudanese and old red dirt tin roof, tree branches 645 00:37:44,760 --> 00:37:46,640 holding that roof up. No electricity. 646 00:37:46,640 --> 00:37:49,760 That would be unheard of. And we worship together and 647 00:37:49,760 --> 00:37:51,360 worship together. And after the service, they 648 00:37:51,360 --> 00:37:52,960 asked me to come and stand in front of the pulpit. 649 00:37:53,200 --> 00:37:55,680 And I thought the service was over, but they were just getting 650 00:37:55,680 --> 00:37:57,400 started. And the women of the church 651 00:37:57,400 --> 00:38:00,360 began to chant and sing and dance down the aisle. 652 00:38:00,360 --> 00:38:01,720 And they gave me that live chicken. 653 00:38:05,240 --> 00:38:08,080 And so I held that live chicken in one arm, shaking hands with 654 00:38:08,080 --> 00:38:09,760 everybody, thanking them for being there. 655 00:38:10,960 --> 00:38:13,360 We took that chicken home with us and ate it the next day. 656 00:38:13,520 --> 00:38:16,120 And let me tell you, that's the toughest chicken I've ever had 657 00:38:16,120 --> 00:38:18,960 in my life. I don't know what that chicken 658 00:38:18,960 --> 00:38:20,680 had been through, but it was merciful. 659 00:38:21,040 --> 00:38:24,160 It was merciful to for him to give his life for the gospel. 660 00:38:25,480 --> 00:38:29,560 I'm telling you, Teresa actually gave me a little toy rooster, a 661 00:38:29,560 --> 00:38:33,280 little toy chicken that I keep in my office to remind me of my 662 00:38:33,280 --> 00:38:37,560 favorite honorarium. Listen. 663 00:38:38,640 --> 00:38:42,720 And which of you, by being anxious, can add a single hour 664 00:38:42,720 --> 00:38:45,760 to his span of life? What are we accomplished by it? 665 00:38:46,000 --> 00:38:49,800 Absolutely nothing. And so we can't fret over what 666 00:38:49,800 --> 00:38:51,760 might happen. Life is worth much more than 667 00:38:51,760 --> 00:38:54,360 that. It's a gift, it's an investment. 668 00:38:54,960 --> 00:38:57,280 So there's some problems with money, but let's also learn some 669 00:38:57,280 --> 00:38:59,280 principles. Let's let's move off the 670 00:38:59,280 --> 00:39:01,960 problems and let's learn some some principles that'll help us. 671 00:39:02,200 --> 00:39:05,560 So look at verse 31. It says instead, So note that 672 00:39:05,560 --> 00:39:11,480 transition, but instead instead do this, don't do that, do this, 673 00:39:12,040 --> 00:39:16,120 seek his Kingdom and these things will be added to you. 674 00:39:16,120 --> 00:39:20,720 It's a huge word instead, not that way, but this way Jesus 675 00:39:20,720 --> 00:39:24,000 says, and so here are just a few things he says seek God's 676 00:39:24,000 --> 00:39:25,440 provision. That's the first thing. 677 00:39:25,880 --> 00:39:28,680 Have this goal. This is the primary goal, 678 00:39:28,760 --> 00:39:32,280 Accomplish this goal. Be a growing disciple in God's 679 00:39:32,280 --> 00:39:33,320 Kingdom. We're going to provide 680 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:35,000 definitions for that. We're going to provide 681 00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:36,880 directions for that. We're going to provide 682 00:39:36,880 --> 00:39:38,800 destinations for that in just a few weeks. 683 00:39:38,800 --> 00:39:41,680 We're working on, in fact, pray for a meeting coming up on June 684 00:39:41,680 --> 00:39:44,960 17th where we're meeting together in a huge workshop and 685 00:39:44,960 --> 00:39:47,040 we're going to be coming out the other side with some 686 00:39:47,040 --> 00:39:51,040 discipleship language. So do the work that God gives 687 00:39:51,040 --> 00:39:53,520 you and allow him to provide you with purpose. 688 00:39:53,680 --> 00:39:57,040 Allow him to provide you with direction and the resources to 689 00:39:57,040 --> 00:40:00,200 fulfill that purpose, right? He's here to help you. 690 00:40:00,400 --> 00:40:04,600 He's here to, to, to give you the resources that you need. 691 00:40:05,200 --> 00:40:06,840 It reminds me, this is a true story. 692 00:40:06,840 --> 00:40:11,040 I want to know a pig farmer. And, and I was out there and he 693 00:40:11,040 --> 00:40:12,360 raised pigs. That's what he did. 694 00:40:12,360 --> 00:40:15,440 He was a, a, a pig farmer and he raised big pigs. 695 00:40:15,440 --> 00:40:18,400 You know, you ever seen a really big pig about the size of 696 00:40:18,400 --> 00:40:19,960 Volkswagen? Some of them you feel like. 697 00:40:20,760 --> 00:40:23,720 And he raised big pigs. And I was out there one day with 698 00:40:23,720 --> 00:40:26,520 him and he picked up a baby pig. And that, you know what, what 699 00:40:26,520 --> 00:40:29,160 you do when you pick up a, what that pig does when you pick up a 700 00:40:29,160 --> 00:40:30,680 baby pig. Anybody here have pigs? 701 00:40:31,000 --> 00:40:32,400 Yeah. Start squealing Their their 702 00:40:32,400 --> 00:40:35,600 their little mouths off and so that little pig just is 703 00:40:35,600 --> 00:40:39,960 squealing away and within a minute he had about £2600 Mama 704 00:40:39,960 --> 00:40:42,240 pigs come running toward him all squealing. 705 00:40:42,240 --> 00:40:45,800 Leave my kid alone. Help was coming. 706 00:40:46,840 --> 00:40:49,320 So just squeal a little bit and see what God does for you 707 00:40:50,880 --> 00:40:52,440 because we have mighty resources. 708 00:40:52,440 --> 00:40:57,120 He goes on in chapter 12, verses 6 and seven, he says they're not 709 00:40:57,120 --> 00:41:01,040 5 sparrows sold for 2 pennies and not one of them is forgotten 710 00:41:01,040 --> 00:41:02,640 before God. Why? 711 00:41:02,640 --> 00:41:04,840 Even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 712 00:41:05,640 --> 00:41:09,320 Fear not, you're of more value than many sparrows. 713 00:41:09,600 --> 00:41:12,920 I've just made it easier on God with my head. 714 00:41:13,040 --> 00:41:18,120 That was a joke. Sometimes the timing's not 715 00:41:18,120 --> 00:41:18,880 there. Sorry. 716 00:41:21,200 --> 00:41:24,120 Or listen to what Paul writes to a church that just seemed to 717 00:41:24,120 --> 00:41:25,720 struggle with all kinds of things. 718 00:41:25,720 --> 00:41:29,120 He wrote to the church at Corinth in Second Corinthians 719 00:41:29,120 --> 00:41:33,720 98, he says, and God is able to make all grace abound to you, so 720 00:41:33,720 --> 00:41:39,600 that having all sufficiency in all things at at all times, you 721 00:41:39,600 --> 00:41:44,080 may abound in every good work. And do you see those all's in 722 00:41:44,080 --> 00:41:47,520 every. This is a God who can provide. 723 00:41:48,200 --> 00:41:52,040 He's a God who has you. He's a God who understands what 724 00:41:52,040 --> 00:41:54,920 you need and can help you. And so he goes on. 725 00:41:54,960 --> 00:42:00,560 Jesus continues in 1232. Fear not, little flock, for it 726 00:42:00,560 --> 00:42:03,680 is your Father's good pleasure to give you the Kingdom. 727 00:42:04,640 --> 00:42:07,760 So not only do do we recognize that we need to seek His 728 00:42:07,760 --> 00:42:10,600 provision, but we can also be secure in His pleasure. 729 00:42:12,200 --> 00:42:15,160 Everything of true value. Now listen to me. 730 00:42:16,000 --> 00:42:20,320 Everything of true value in your earthly existence is given to 731 00:42:20,320 --> 00:42:26,240 you by God. Anything else is temporary. 732 00:42:27,360 --> 00:42:31,280 Anything else is fleeting. Anything else will be sold for 733 00:42:31,280 --> 00:42:35,520 pennies on the dollar. But God gives us true value, so 734 00:42:35,520 --> 00:42:39,440 we need to surrender our fear. Tie these lessons together. 735 00:42:40,720 --> 00:42:43,160 Work hard with the opportunities He gives you. 736 00:42:43,200 --> 00:42:44,720 That's part of your stewardship of life. 737 00:42:44,720 --> 00:42:48,960 Work hard, earn what you're supposed to earn, be the best 738 00:42:48,960 --> 00:42:52,120 employee at the at the company, earn what you can, but also 739 00:42:52,120 --> 00:42:56,560 trust the Father because he seeks to give you a Kingdom and 740 00:42:56,560 --> 00:43:00,280 he's gone to prepare a place for us in that Kingdom and we can 741 00:43:00,280 --> 00:43:05,440 bank on it. Listen, the delight of his life, 742 00:43:05,920 --> 00:43:09,240 the delight of God's existence, which is the whole purpose of 743 00:43:09,240 --> 00:43:13,760 our existence, is, is to find ways to not just give us daily 744 00:43:13,760 --> 00:43:16,000 needs, but to give us His Kingdom. 745 00:43:16,720 --> 00:43:22,560 We are joint heirs with Christ, and we don't need to worry about 746 00:43:22,560 --> 00:43:26,840 the small stuff. In an obscure passage, perhaps 747 00:43:26,840 --> 00:43:30,920 from the Old Old Testament, listen to Habakkuk chapter 3. 748 00:43:31,960 --> 00:43:35,440 Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit beyond the 749 00:43:35,440 --> 00:43:40,480 vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no 750 00:43:40,480 --> 00:43:42,960 food. The flock be cut off from the 751 00:43:42,960 --> 00:43:45,880 fold and there be no herd in the stalls. 752 00:43:46,000 --> 00:43:47,520 Doesn't sound very good, does it? 753 00:43:48,800 --> 00:43:58,080 Yet I will rejoice in the Lord. I will take joy in the God of my 754 00:43:58,080 --> 00:44:01,280 salvation, because it doesn't depend upon my earthly 755 00:44:01,280 --> 00:44:05,440 circumstance. This is, it doesn't depend upon 756 00:44:05,440 --> 00:44:09,280 my state of earthly being. It doesn't sound like they had 757 00:44:09,280 --> 00:44:11,760 very much in earthly terms, but they had the Lord and that was 758 00:44:11,760 --> 00:44:14,280 plenty. It was enough for real joy. 759 00:44:14,280 --> 00:44:19,760 And we need to be careful. So be careful about trying to 760 00:44:19,760 --> 00:44:23,280 keep up with the Joneses. Don't try to keep up with them. 761 00:44:23,280 --> 00:44:24,840 They're not paying their bills anyway. 762 00:44:25,040 --> 00:44:28,480 They got everything on a credit card and and owe everything to 763 00:44:28,480 --> 00:44:29,800 that anyway. Don't try to keep up with the 764 00:44:29,800 --> 00:44:34,400 Joneses. Instead, listen to what he 765 00:44:34,400 --> 00:44:38,640 writes to the church at Philippi Philippians chapter 4. 766 00:44:39,360 --> 00:44:43,680 He says in verse 12, I know how to be brought low and I know how 767 00:44:43,680 --> 00:44:47,400 to abound in any and every circumstance. 768 00:44:47,400 --> 00:44:52,600 I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, 769 00:44:53,080 --> 00:44:57,440 abundance and need. And then he goes to verse 19 770 00:44:57,440 --> 00:45:06,520 eventually, and my God will supply what everything, all 771 00:45:06,520 --> 00:45:09,000 things. He'll provide every need of 772 00:45:09,000 --> 00:45:15,480 yours according to his riches, His riches in glory in Christ 773 00:45:15,480 --> 00:45:18,520 Jesus. My life isn't dependent upon my 774 00:45:18,520 --> 00:45:21,560 riches. My life isn't even my own. 775 00:45:21,560 --> 00:45:25,440 I've been bought with a price I no longer live. 776 00:45:26,440 --> 00:45:31,160 He lives and I depend upon his riches right now. 777 00:45:31,160 --> 00:45:33,520 Listen to how Jesus concludes his lesson for us. 778 00:45:33,760 --> 00:45:36,200 We we've discussed some of the problems that we've seen some of 779 00:45:36,200 --> 00:45:38,520 the principles, but we need to go one step further. 780 00:45:38,520 --> 00:45:39,960 So let's talk about some practices. 781 00:45:40,160 --> 00:45:43,960 Here's some practices practices. That's the word sorry for money. 782 00:45:45,640 --> 00:45:50,040 Chapter 12, verse 33. Sell your possessions and give 783 00:45:50,040 --> 00:45:53,160 to the needy. Provide yourselves with money 784 00:45:53,160 --> 00:45:56,680 bags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that 785 00:45:56,680 --> 00:46:01,800 do not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 786 00:46:02,040 --> 00:46:07,520 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. 787 00:46:08,600 --> 00:46:12,840 So so dedication to Jesus is more than simply becoming worry 788 00:46:12,840 --> 00:46:16,160 free. Not that simplistic, not that 789 00:46:16,160 --> 00:46:20,840 shallow. It's loving and living like Him. 790 00:46:21,360 --> 00:46:23,520 So here are a couple. Here are a couple of practices 791 00:46:23,720 --> 00:46:25,800 #1 invest in sacrificial service. 792 00:46:25,920 --> 00:46:29,320 He in fact, remember what Paul said about the Macedonian 793 00:46:29,320 --> 00:46:31,240 churches. He's, he's trying to help the 794 00:46:31,240 --> 00:46:33,960 church at Corinth by giving them a good example from other 795 00:46:33,960 --> 00:46:36,720 churches. And so this is what he says for 796 00:46:37,040 --> 00:46:39,680 in for in a severe test of affliction. 797 00:46:40,040 --> 00:46:41,440 And what In other words, they were hurting. 798 00:46:42,640 --> 00:46:45,680 They, they weren't wealthy. They weren't overflowing with 799 00:46:45,680 --> 00:46:49,240 abundance in the earthly terms, but listen to this in in a 800 00:46:49,240 --> 00:46:53,960 severe test of affliction. Their abundance of joy and their 801 00:46:53,960 --> 00:46:57,480 extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on 802 00:46:57,480 --> 00:46:59,640 their part. In other words, part of what 803 00:46:59,920 --> 00:47:02,560 part of what the apostles had to do at some point is take up an 804 00:47:02,560 --> 00:47:04,120 offering. They took up a collection 805 00:47:04,280 --> 00:47:07,160 because the the, the believers back in Jerusalem were having a 806 00:47:07,160 --> 00:47:09,400 very hard time and they needed help. 807 00:47:09,600 --> 00:47:11,920 And so they were actually collecting from other churches 808 00:47:12,120 --> 00:47:14,160 and the churches of Macedonia stepped up. 809 00:47:14,160 --> 00:47:16,320 Even in the midst of their own struggles, even in the midst of 810 00:47:16,320 --> 00:47:18,200 their own problems, they stepped up. 811 00:47:18,760 --> 00:47:21,120 They were incredibly happy, though desperately bored. 812 00:47:21,920 --> 00:47:26,440 And so that pressure triggered something totally unexpected. 813 00:47:27,160 --> 00:47:30,480 Instead of saying we can't, they actually had an outpouring of 814 00:47:30,480 --> 00:47:32,800 pure and generous gifts. See. 815 00:47:33,640 --> 00:47:36,800 So, So don't be tempted by your earthly money bags. 816 00:47:37,360 --> 00:47:41,240 Don't be tempted by your purses that will just grow old and rot 817 00:47:41,240 --> 00:47:45,200 and be ruined. We need purses that will never 818 00:47:45,240 --> 00:47:48,280 ruin. We need heavenly treasures 819 00:47:48,880 --> 00:47:52,520 because earthly treasures are susceptible to thieves. 820 00:47:53,120 --> 00:47:55,800 And I'll probably spend too much time telling you stories about 821 00:47:55,800 --> 00:48:01,840 me and my life, but I, I, I, I want most illustrations to just 822 00:48:01,840 --> 00:48:04,560 be authentically personal and real. 823 00:48:05,160 --> 00:48:09,680 My childhood home was broken into at least three times in my 824 00:48:09,680 --> 00:48:14,080 lifetime, maybe more before that because it was in the family for 825 00:48:14,080 --> 00:48:15,840 so long. But I remember 3 different 826 00:48:16,160 --> 00:48:19,120 burger, burger, that word, whatever that word is. 827 00:48:23,040 --> 00:48:25,360 I remember 3 different times people robbed us. 828 00:48:27,760 --> 00:48:29,440 Justin. I'll edit that out later. 829 00:48:30,720 --> 00:48:37,400 He really won't Burglary. Thank you very much. 830 00:48:38,040 --> 00:48:39,360 God bless you. Thank you all. 831 00:48:39,400 --> 00:48:44,920 Good night, everyone. I used to stutter as a child. 832 00:48:44,920 --> 00:48:47,120 You'd be amazed. Anyway, it's always fascinating. 833 00:48:47,440 --> 00:48:50,560 So my, my childhood home was broken into at least three times 834 00:48:50,800 --> 00:48:53,920 that I, I can remember. I've been robbed twice at 835 00:48:53,920 --> 00:48:57,680 gunpoint personally. You, you know when a man has a 836 00:48:57,680 --> 00:49:04,280 Vietnam era M16 barrel resting on your heart and he says, I 837 00:49:04,280 --> 00:49:06,960 want all the chickens from your camp. 838 00:49:07,720 --> 00:49:10,680 You know what you do? How would you like those 839 00:49:10,680 --> 00:49:12,880 stacked, Sir? Would you like them vertical? 840 00:49:12,880 --> 00:49:15,800 Horizontal. How can I load those for you? 841 00:49:16,480 --> 00:49:21,400 You give them all your chickens. I've been pickpocketed. 842 00:49:22,280 --> 00:49:26,200 Teresa remembers that one. And then Teresa and I have had a 843 00:49:26,200 --> 00:49:29,760 previous home on the edge of inner city when we were working 844 00:49:29,760 --> 00:49:33,040 with St. gangs and police officers and some inner city 845 00:49:33,040 --> 00:49:36,040 situations. We had our previous home, they 846 00:49:36,040 --> 00:49:39,480 literally took a sledgehammer to our front door, busted the front 847 00:49:39,480 --> 00:49:44,000 door in, pulled in a van to the garage and literally emptied the 848 00:49:44,000 --> 00:49:47,560 house. They even took the only copy of 849 00:49:47,560 --> 00:49:50,800 our wedding video. And so they took everything. 850 00:49:50,800 --> 00:49:54,760 Everybody say, oh, that's right. I mean everything. 851 00:49:54,760 --> 00:49:56,840 Oh can openers, I mean everything. 852 00:49:57,920 --> 00:50:00,360 I later found out it was a street gang that was just 853 00:50:00,360 --> 00:50:03,800 testing whether or not I'd stick around or not, but they didn't 854 00:50:03,800 --> 00:50:08,760 give me my stuff back so and so. With all that being said, you 855 00:50:08,760 --> 00:50:10,040 all may not want to hang out with us. 856 00:50:10,040 --> 00:50:16,880 I don't know. All I know is don't become too 857 00:50:16,880 --> 00:50:21,560 attached to your stuff. Don't let it be your God. 858 00:50:22,920 --> 00:50:24,560 Don't let it be the leader of your life. 859 00:50:25,760 --> 00:50:28,240 Instead, invest your resources into Kingdom work. 860 00:50:29,440 --> 00:50:31,080 Give so that others may be blessed. 861 00:50:31,080 --> 00:50:32,480 Give it so that God can bless you. 862 00:50:32,480 --> 00:50:35,880 You know, it's kind of like Mark Twain once attended a church 863 00:50:35,880 --> 00:50:38,960 service where a missionary appealed for funds to evangelize 864 00:50:38,960 --> 00:50:41,600 overseas. And after 10 minutes of a 865 00:50:41,600 --> 00:50:45,240 description about the unhappy plight of the lost overseas, he 866 00:50:45,240 --> 00:50:48,840 said I wanted to give $50. And then he said the preacher 867 00:50:48,840 --> 00:50:51,560 kept on another 15 minutes. And that gave me time to realize 868 00:50:51,560 --> 00:50:55,800 that $50.00 was an extravagance. So I cut it in half and at the 869 00:50:55,800 --> 00:50:58,400 end of another 10 minutes I reduced it to $5. 870 00:50:58,720 --> 00:51:00,920 And when at the end of an hour of speaking the plates were 871 00:51:00,920 --> 00:51:02,400 finally passed, I was so annoyed. 872 00:51:02,400 --> 00:51:04,080 I reached in and helped myself to 1/4. 873 00:51:10,470 --> 00:51:12,590 Heavenly treasures give no cause for worry. 874 00:51:12,590 --> 00:51:14,950 Therefore, let me give you some keys to managing your money. 875 00:51:16,070 --> 00:51:20,270 Very simply, we have to recognize God as the owner of 876 00:51:20,270 --> 00:51:23,110 all of our money, and we're simply a steward. 877 00:51:23,230 --> 00:51:25,870 That's true of life as well as money. 878 00:51:26,840 --> 00:51:31,360 We need to commit to, to giving a first fruits tithe faithfully 879 00:51:31,360 --> 00:51:36,840 and regularly to His Church because that represents #1 #2 880 00:51:36,840 --> 00:51:41,640 helps us represent number one. We give a first fruits tithe 881 00:51:41,640 --> 00:51:44,600 offering because that's what they used to do long before the 882 00:51:44,600 --> 00:51:48,280 law, long in the early part. I'm reading through Exodus again 883 00:51:48,280 --> 00:51:53,680 right now and every first born is dedicated to the Lord and, 884 00:51:53,720 --> 00:51:55,240 and our tithe just represents that. 885 00:51:55,240 --> 00:51:57,720 That's all that is. It's representing that every 886 00:51:57,720 --> 00:52:00,000 single thing I have, every single thing I earn is really 887 00:52:00,000 --> 00:52:01,560 yours. Thank you for allowing me to 888 00:52:01,560 --> 00:52:05,040 keep part of this so that I can provide for my family, so that I 889 00:52:05,040 --> 00:52:07,680 can use it to invest in in earthly things. 890 00:52:07,840 --> 00:52:10,880 But I want to give a portion of that back at the very beginning 891 00:52:11,240 --> 00:52:15,280 to acknowledge that I recognize that this is all yours and that 892 00:52:15,280 --> 00:52:18,800 you're loaning the rest of this to me and I appreciate it. 893 00:52:20,160 --> 00:52:22,040 In fact, there was a synagogue in New Jersey. 894 00:52:22,040 --> 00:52:24,480 You may not know this about synagogues, but they'll 895 00:52:24,480 --> 00:52:26,160 actually, they actually have do's. 896 00:52:26,960 --> 00:52:28,520 And so there's a synagogue in New Jersey. 897 00:52:28,520 --> 00:52:30,960 This is in the news that recently sued some members for 898 00:52:30,960 --> 00:52:34,120 back dues. And so when joining, members 899 00:52:34,120 --> 00:52:36,920 actually sign a contract for goods and services in the form 900 00:52:36,920 --> 00:52:39,440 of annual dues which cover those expenses. 901 00:52:39,600 --> 00:52:43,240 And a court ruled a synagogue is free to sue its members for non 902 00:52:43,240 --> 00:52:45,840 payment of dues. Where's the finance team? 903 00:52:45,960 --> 00:52:47,840 I just thought I'd bring this to our next meeting. 904 00:52:52,880 --> 00:52:54,560 Don't worry, I'm not getting any ideas. 905 00:52:57,960 --> 00:53:02,080 You're welcome. And those of you listening to 906 00:53:02,080 --> 00:53:06,400 the podcast, keep listening. It's not over yet #3 just 907 00:53:06,400 --> 00:53:10,240 remember your responsibility of discipleship to your family. 908 00:53:10,240 --> 00:53:13,600 Now, now listen to this, this very real, significant point I 909 00:53:13,600 --> 00:53:17,840 want to make. Remember that your families are 910 00:53:17,840 --> 00:53:20,720 your, your, your primary base of ministry. 911 00:53:22,000 --> 00:53:25,440 And part of your discipleship responsibility is to take care 912 00:53:25,440 --> 00:53:28,760 of your family. Part of what we talked about in 913 00:53:28,760 --> 00:53:31,800 our lesson on work is we are to provide. 914 00:53:31,960 --> 00:53:35,360 We should do that. And so I do know families and 915 00:53:35,360 --> 00:53:37,920 churches and I've known them who are in constant financial 916 00:53:37,920 --> 00:53:40,640 trouble because they actually gave away too much. 917 00:53:42,040 --> 00:53:44,280 They would actually give away, they couldn't pay their bills or 918 00:53:44,280 --> 00:53:45,920 take care of their own families properly. 919 00:53:46,080 --> 00:53:48,720 But when they encountered somebody in need or or heard of 920 00:53:48,720 --> 00:53:51,400 something, they gave away what they didn't even have. 921 00:53:52,280 --> 00:53:55,240 So there's, there's a balance of responsibility and discipleship 922 00:53:55,240 --> 00:53:57,560 here. So after you meet your basic 923 00:53:57,560 --> 00:54:04,400 needs, not necessarily your wants, but your basic needs, 924 00:54:04,480 --> 00:54:08,480 then then we think about how we can invest to help others. 925 00:54:08,880 --> 00:54:11,720 But you have a discipleship responsibility to your family. 926 00:54:11,720 --> 00:54:15,480 If if you're single to yourself and we need to take care of our 927 00:54:15,480 --> 00:54:19,680 families, number 4, then we can give sacrificially to meet the 928 00:54:19,680 --> 00:54:24,520 needs of others and to support additional Kingdom work beyond 929 00:54:24,520 --> 00:54:28,600 the tithe to special gifts and offerings, which you all dingo 930 00:54:28,600 --> 00:54:31,840 would do a good job of. So, so don't worry about what 931 00:54:31,840 --> 00:54:34,400 you what you have or or don't have to give. 932 00:54:34,400 --> 00:54:36,520 That's not the amount's not the issue at all. 933 00:54:37,040 --> 00:54:40,360 It's proportion. It's in proportion to everything 934 00:54:40,360 --> 00:54:45,800 that you've received right. How can I work through this 935 00:54:45,800 --> 00:54:49,480 balance and priority? Because giving the stewardship 936 00:54:49,480 --> 00:54:52,800 idea is just an act of worship. Money management is an act of 937 00:54:52,800 --> 00:54:55,840 worship. See, these are gifts from God. 938 00:54:57,160 --> 00:54:59,160 So God didn't or Christ didn't say. 939 00:54:59,160 --> 00:55:03,040 He never said you can't serve God and have money. 940 00:55:03,040 --> 00:55:08,760 That's not what He said. He says you can't serve both God 941 00:55:09,440 --> 00:55:14,080 and money. So priority #1 is serve Christ 942 00:55:14,080 --> 00:55:16,320 and be that steward. And so we want to invest in 943 00:55:16,320 --> 00:55:19,920 sacrificial service. Verse 34 of Luke 12 says for 944 00:55:19,920 --> 00:55:23,000 where your treasure is there, where your heart be also. 945 00:55:23,000 --> 00:55:25,640 So the second thing, the second practice we've talked about for 946 00:55:25,640 --> 00:55:27,520 a minute is to investigate your heart. 947 00:55:28,600 --> 00:55:34,360 So it's not the extent, it's not the amount of wealth that a 948 00:55:34,360 --> 00:55:38,360 person has. It's not the extent of 1's 949 00:55:38,360 --> 00:55:42,360 possessions. It's it's the place that it has 950 00:55:42,360 --> 00:55:45,600 in your life. It's the priority it has in your 951 00:55:45,600 --> 00:55:47,800 life. It's the direction of your 952 00:55:47,800 --> 00:55:50,160 heart. Is, is it heavenward or is it 953 00:55:50,160 --> 00:55:53,160 earthbound? That's what Jesus is concerned 954 00:55:53,160 --> 00:55:54,880 about. It says you need to choose where 955 00:55:54,880 --> 00:55:58,600 you want to store your treasure. Your, your heart. 956 00:55:59,400 --> 00:56:03,160 Your heart will focus on where your treasure is. 957 00:56:04,280 --> 00:56:10,080 Ignore God and and spend all your physical, emotional and 958 00:56:10,080 --> 00:56:15,400 mental energy on the world's goods and on earthly success 959 00:56:16,360 --> 00:56:22,960 like my family did. Or or trust God and spend your 960 00:56:22,960 --> 00:56:27,280 efforts on Kingdom matters. We we have no right to be proud 961 00:56:27,280 --> 00:56:30,360 of our money. It's going to be gone soon 962 00:56:30,360 --> 00:56:35,680 anyway. One way or the other, we should 963 00:56:35,680 --> 00:56:39,120 be about the business of investing in the Kingdom, that 964 00:56:39,120 --> 00:56:42,520 that's where our heavenly treasure is accumulated, right? 965 00:56:43,000 --> 00:56:45,480 That's where we can actually store up. 966 00:56:46,400 --> 00:56:51,120 See Augustine or Augustine, depending upon what part of 967 00:56:51,120 --> 00:56:57,840 North Carolina you're from, says where your pleasure is, there is 968 00:56:57,840 --> 00:57:01,960 your treasure. Where your treasure is, there's 969 00:57:01,960 --> 00:57:06,560 your heart, and where your heart is, there's your happiness. 970 00:57:07,640 --> 00:57:11,040 And so if you really want to find Shalom, you really want to 971 00:57:11,040 --> 00:57:15,800 find peace, you need to recognize that where your heart 972 00:57:15,800 --> 00:57:19,040 is, is going to give you and lead you to that place. 973 00:57:19,240 --> 00:57:23,040 And so the things that affect your heart can be your friend or 974 00:57:23,040 --> 00:57:25,520 your enemy in this search for peace. 975 00:57:26,680 --> 00:57:29,200 If our goal is money, Satan's served. 976 00:57:30,080 --> 00:57:33,760 If our goal is the Kingdom, our money becomes ministry currency 977 00:57:34,520 --> 00:57:40,360 and God's honored by that. And so think about how you use 978 00:57:40,360 --> 00:57:42,720 what you have. He'll make certain we have 979 00:57:42,720 --> 00:57:46,720 enough. God is not broke and and I mean 980 00:57:46,720 --> 00:57:52,800 God can make money out of rocks, but we have to think about how 981 00:57:52,800 --> 00:57:55,720 we're investing. There was an actual sign in a 982 00:57:55,720 --> 00:57:59,680 hospital that said this is this is not even a joke said due to 983 00:57:59,680 --> 00:58:02,480 current budget cutbacks. The light at the end of the 984 00:58:02,480 --> 00:58:04,640 tunnel will be turned off until further notice. 985 00:58:06,160 --> 00:58:11,800 It's an actual sign. We have to trust in him. 986 00:58:13,520 --> 00:58:17,080 The lights are never turned off. I always, whenever I'm in this 987 00:58:17,080 --> 00:58:21,240 passage, I, I often think of my grandfather's business. 988 00:58:22,160 --> 00:58:27,160 And I think when it came time to shut down that office and we 989 00:58:27,160 --> 00:58:32,400 actually sold the office to the Cherokee Nation and we had to 990 00:58:32,400 --> 00:58:40,600 deal with an 1880s safe that that the building was actually 991 00:58:40,600 --> 00:58:45,240 built around. It was a freestanding safe very 992 00:58:45,240 --> 00:58:47,040 much like you would find on an old railway. 993 00:58:47,160 --> 00:58:49,800 Think of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid or something. 994 00:58:49,800 --> 00:58:52,160 I mean, it's just like one of those old safes you'd find on a 995 00:58:52,160 --> 00:58:57,000 rail car that somewhere he had obtained before they built the 996 00:58:57,000 --> 00:59:01,520 building and they actually had to put that in there first 997 00:59:02,080 --> 00:59:03,600 before they could build the walls. 998 00:59:04,080 --> 00:59:07,640 And we had to figure out what are we going to do with this 999 00:59:07,640 --> 00:59:12,960 three ton safe, right? Are we going to bust out the 1000 00:59:12,960 --> 00:59:15,200 cement blocks? Are we going to take? 1001 00:59:15,200 --> 00:59:16,920 Because that's what the building was made out of. 1002 00:59:16,920 --> 00:59:20,040 It wasn't a wooden structure. It was cement block everywhere. 1003 00:59:20,400 --> 00:59:22,680 Are we going to bust out the blocks and the windows and the 1004 00:59:22,680 --> 00:59:25,200 doors in order to get the safe out? 1005 00:59:26,440 --> 00:59:28,840 Well, for years we didn't know what was in the safe. 1006 00:59:29,280 --> 00:59:31,760 As kids, you can imagine we were mesmerized by that. 1007 00:59:32,080 --> 00:59:34,880 You know, I'd go in the office and I was playing Cowboys and 1008 00:59:34,880 --> 00:59:36,760 Indians or something and that, you know, I was going to be the 1009 00:59:36,760 --> 00:59:39,760 safecracker, you know. And for years we didn't know 1010 00:59:39,760 --> 00:59:42,720 what was in the safe. Dumber than that, nobody had the 1011 00:59:42,720 --> 00:59:46,840 combination to the safe. So for years we didn't know what 1012 00:59:46,840 --> 00:59:51,160 the combination was. So finally, no joke, in a drawer 1013 00:59:51,160 --> 00:59:54,080 someplace, scribbled on the bottom of something, somewhere 1014 00:59:54,400 --> 00:59:56,040 with the combination to the safe. 1015 00:59:56,720 --> 00:59:58,920 I mean, it's Al Capone time. You ready? 1016 00:59:59,800 --> 01:00:03,200 We're going to open up the safe, and we're going to find gold 1017 01:00:03,200 --> 01:00:04,800 bars. What are we going to find? 1018 01:00:04,800 --> 01:00:07,520 Silver coins? Civil war might. 1019 01:00:07,520 --> 01:00:08,960 What are we going to find in there? 1020 01:00:09,040 --> 01:00:12,000 Because my grandfather was, you know, born in 1879. 1021 01:00:12,000 --> 01:00:14,880 What are we going to find in the safe? 1022 01:00:15,040 --> 01:00:17,120 I'll never forget the Vance vault. 1023 01:00:17,600 --> 01:00:24,200 Dun, Dun, Dun. We finally cracked the safe. 1024 01:00:24,600 --> 01:00:26,240 Big. I mean, those doors are that 1025 01:00:26,240 --> 01:00:28,360 thick. I mean, surely there's something 1026 01:00:28,360 --> 01:00:30,880 valuable being guarded in here. Surely there's something 1027 01:00:30,880 --> 01:00:32,840 important. And and we open up the door. 1028 01:00:33,600 --> 01:00:36,080 I mean, it takes two of us to push the doors back. 1029 01:00:36,080 --> 01:00:38,280 The safe. Safe is as tall as I am. 1030 01:00:38,280 --> 01:00:40,640 It's a massive thing. We're pushing it back. 1031 01:00:41,880 --> 01:00:45,080 And you know what's inside? Dust. 1032 01:00:47,320 --> 01:00:53,160 The most highly protected dust in Cherokee County, Oklahoma. 1033 01:00:54,640 --> 01:00:57,360 And so not only was there nothing in the safe, but we 1034 01:00:57,360 --> 01:01:01,200 still had to pay to get the stupid safe moved out of the 1035 01:01:01,200 --> 01:01:08,280 building with a crane. Funny our perspective in it. 1036 01:01:11,400 --> 01:01:17,560 Let me go back to the beginning. How do we define value? 1037 01:01:20,320 --> 01:01:22,840 How do we label something as important? 1038 01:01:25,200 --> 01:01:30,240 How do we discover whether or not we've been successful? 1039 01:01:32,160 --> 01:01:35,920 How are you measuring that? Are you envious? 1040 01:01:37,160 --> 01:01:40,640 Do you covet? Or are you just trying to 1041 01:01:40,640 --> 01:01:43,680 survive because you don't have enough? 1042 01:01:45,440 --> 01:01:50,400 Truly, literally, we could have both ends of the spectrum in 1043 01:01:50,400 --> 01:01:53,720 this one room. People who don't have enough to 1044 01:01:53,720 --> 01:01:58,880 pay their next bill and people who can't don't even know how to 1045 01:01:58,880 --> 01:02:01,040 pay a bill because they have someone else do it for them. 1046 01:02:04,440 --> 01:02:07,960 What is valuable to you? Jesus was just trying to help 1047 01:02:07,960 --> 01:02:12,600 them to understand that here I am right here with you. 1048 01:02:13,680 --> 01:02:17,560 I'm right here in your midst. And what I'm saying to you about 1049 01:02:17,560 --> 01:02:21,040 the Kingdom of God, that's value. 1050 01:02:22,640 --> 01:02:26,960 That's what's important, Not how much you have, not how much you 1051 01:02:26,960 --> 01:02:30,960 don't have. Because I promise you, your soul 1052 01:02:31,000 --> 01:02:35,520 is not your own. Your life is not your own. 1053 01:02:36,880 --> 01:02:39,880 And as I've shared in multiple illustrations with you, we have 1054 01:02:39,880 --> 01:02:45,480 no guarantee. We have no idea how long, what's 1055 01:02:45,480 --> 01:02:53,760 going to happen next. When I was in school, after I 1056 01:02:53,760 --> 01:03:00,120 was a believer, there was a kid who sat next to me named Phil, 1057 01:03:01,800 --> 01:03:03,960 and Phil used to just irritate the fire out of me. 1058 01:03:05,720 --> 01:03:08,880 He knew I was a Christian and he was not. 1059 01:03:09,440 --> 01:03:12,440 And not only would he poke fun at me, he would sit there and 1060 01:03:12,440 --> 01:03:17,320 flash pornographic things in front of me in class just just 1061 01:03:17,520 --> 01:03:19,880 just to irritate me, just to egg me on. 1062 01:03:22,000 --> 01:03:24,440 There are days I just wanted to pick up Phil and toss him out of 1063 01:03:24,440 --> 01:03:31,120 the room in the name of Jesus. But but God convicted me and 1064 01:03:31,120 --> 01:03:32,840 says you need to share the gospel with Phil. 1065 01:03:35,680 --> 01:03:39,160 So I, I, I, I, I was praying that night and I, you know, 1066 01:03:39,360 --> 01:03:43,040 tomorrow I'm going to share the gospel with Phil. 1067 01:03:45,240 --> 01:03:52,760 I go to class, Phil's not there, and he's not there the next day, 1068 01:03:54,840 --> 01:03:59,800 and Phil never comes back. Phil would ride his bike to 1069 01:03:59,800 --> 01:04:06,000 class and Phil had been hit by a truck and killed the very night. 1070 01:04:06,920 --> 01:04:16,720 I was praying about leading him to Jesus this very night, this 1071 01:04:16,720 --> 01:04:22,880 very day. You don't know your soul belongs 1072 01:04:22,880 --> 01:04:26,920 to Me. Your life is alone. 1073 01:04:28,720 --> 01:04:30,840 Be very careful where your focus is. 1074 01:04:31,960 --> 01:04:34,040 Be very careful where your heart is. 1075 01:04:35,040 --> 01:04:40,440 Be very careful what you're seeking so desperately that you 1076 01:04:40,440 --> 01:04:44,680 seek Him first. Father, thank you for life. 1077 01:04:47,200 --> 01:04:51,960 Thank you for this gift that we do not deserve nor could we 1078 01:04:51,960 --> 01:04:57,680 create. Father you, you are the miracle 1079 01:04:57,680 --> 01:05:03,080 worker who brings life. And Father, I thank you that you 1080 01:05:03,080 --> 01:05:09,080 give us these years sometimes just a few moments. 1081 01:05:09,080 --> 01:05:11,880 You know, as I get older, Father, every cliche about 1082 01:05:11,880 --> 01:05:16,960 growing old and time become more true, flying by. 1083 01:05:17,520 --> 01:05:23,840 Just yesterday, just yesterday, Lord, I was just, just just 1084 01:05:23,840 --> 01:05:32,770 yesterday. My kids were were a vapor, a 1085 01:05:32,770 --> 01:05:35,170 mist. But Father, what a wonderful 1086 01:05:35,170 --> 01:05:38,250 mist you've given us. What a wonderful, vaporous 1087 01:05:38,250 --> 01:05:43,010 opportunity we have to live and to live abundantly, to live with 1088 01:05:43,010 --> 01:05:47,250 joy, to live with purpose, to live in relationship with you. 1089 01:05:48,570 --> 01:05:54,360 The honour, the privilege of knowing you, of praising you, of 1090 01:05:54,360 --> 01:05:57,560 thanking you, of giving you the credit for this thing called 1091 01:05:57,560 --> 01:06:02,720 life and anything and everything, anything possibly 1092 01:06:02,720 --> 01:06:06,800 good that we might accomplish, whether it's it's something in 1093 01:06:06,800 --> 01:06:09,800 the church or something at work or something at school, 1094 01:06:09,840 --> 01:06:12,640 anything. Father, we give you all the 1095 01:06:12,640 --> 01:06:16,880 credit. Thank you for loaning US time. 1096 01:06:18,200 --> 01:06:21,760 Thank you for loaning us breath. Thank you for loaning us 1097 01:06:21,760 --> 01:06:27,600 heartbeats and opportunities. And Father, because we're still 1098 01:06:27,600 --> 01:06:31,720 here right now, because we're still here in this second, we're 1099 01:06:31,720 --> 01:06:34,000 still here in this moment. That means that we're not quite 1100 01:06:34,000 --> 01:06:38,040 done, that you still have purpose, you still have 1101 01:06:38,040 --> 01:06:40,760 investment. You still have reason for us 1102 01:06:40,760 --> 01:06:45,320 being here. And Father, if you, Terry, if 1103 01:06:45,320 --> 01:06:49,480 you don't blow the trumpet, if you don't bring us home and 1104 01:06:49,480 --> 01:06:52,120 we're still here tomorrow, that means there's a reason. 1105 01:06:54,760 --> 01:06:57,200 And Father, I pray we invest in that reason. 1106 01:06:59,200 --> 01:07:00,840 And Father, I thank you for jobs. 1107 01:07:00,840 --> 01:07:03,400 I thank you for work. I thank you for money. 1108 01:07:03,560 --> 01:07:06,640 I thank you for resources. I thank you for the opportunity 1109 01:07:06,640 --> 01:07:09,560 to feed my family, to take care of my bills. 1110 01:07:09,720 --> 01:07:13,760 I thank you for that. But Father, never let that over 1111 01:07:13,760 --> 01:07:21,640 shadow my responsibilities to you and to one another, to the 1112 01:07:21,640 --> 01:07:25,440 Kingdom. And so, Father, thank you so 1113 01:07:25,440 --> 01:07:27,920 much for this opportunity just to be in your word for a minute 1114 01:07:27,920 --> 01:07:32,840 to talk about you, to talk about how you are the provider and the 1115 01:07:32,840 --> 01:07:36,800 sustainer, and we owe everything to you. 1116 01:07:37,080 --> 01:07:42,080 Father, help us to remember those verses that we have been 1117 01:07:42,080 --> 01:07:46,520 purchased, we have been redeemed, we have been bought 1118 01:07:46,520 --> 01:07:53,240 back, and we no longer live, but Christ lives in US. 1119 01:07:55,840 --> 01:07:58,600 And Father, I pray, Lord, that we will live our lives that way, 1120 01:07:59,240 --> 01:08:02,560 that we will be testimonies. Thank you, Father, for the 1121 01:08:02,560 --> 01:08:04,080 privilege of gathering in this place. 1122 01:08:04,080 --> 01:08:06,320 For those who are listening online, I pray that if there 1123 01:08:06,320 --> 01:08:09,120 anyone, anyone who's listening to this and they recognize that 1124 01:08:09,120 --> 01:08:12,480 the priorities of their lives are not in proper order, that 1125 01:08:12,480 --> 01:08:14,760 they're all messed up, that they're seeking the wrong 1126 01:08:14,760 --> 01:08:16,800 things. Much like my brother declared on 1127 01:08:16,800 --> 01:08:19,520 my mom's deathbed that he was living for all the wrong 1128 01:08:19,520 --> 01:08:26,800 reasons, even as he had money and resources, mansion, yacht, 1129 01:08:27,200 --> 01:08:30,960 everything, he knew that was nothing. 1130 01:08:34,439 --> 01:08:36,680 So, Father, I pray that we find real value. 1131 01:08:37,840 --> 01:08:40,399 I pray we understand it and we appreciate it and we thank you 1132 01:08:40,399 --> 01:08:43,319 for it. Father, thank you for your word. 1133 01:08:43,960 --> 01:08:46,840 I pray you'll bless us. Thank you, Father, for those 1134 01:08:46,840 --> 01:08:50,040 listening online, wherever they are, I pray that if you're 1135 01:08:50,040 --> 01:08:52,640 speaking to their hearts that they'll reach out to us at the 1136 01:08:52,640 --> 01:08:56,120 church, that we might reach back out to them and help them. 1137 01:08:56,840 --> 01:09:01,640 For those who are here, live that before they leave that they 1138 01:09:01,640 --> 01:09:05,080 would take one of us by the hand, and we might pray together 1139 01:09:05,080 --> 01:09:07,560 and talk together about what you're laying on our hearts. 1140 01:09:08,399 --> 01:09:13,080 So, Father, thank you, thank you, thank you that our barns 1141 01:09:13,080 --> 01:09:18,720 are full, our crops are good, but thank you, Father, when 1142 01:09:18,720 --> 01:09:25,200 they're not just as much because it all belongs to you and it's 1143 01:09:25,200 --> 01:09:29,760 all for your glory in Christ's name, Amen. 1144 01:09:30,520 --> 01:09:32,319 God bless you all. Thank you all so much. 1145 01:09:35,439 --> 01:09:37,080 Thank you so much for listening today. 1146 01:09:37,080 --> 01:09:38,399 And I also hope that you'll go to 1147 01:09:38,399 --> 01:09:42,200 ourwebsite@englewoodbaptist.com as well as our app and find many 1148 01:09:42,200 --> 01:09:44,560 other resources that will bless you and your families. 1149 01:09:44,720 --> 01:09:45,760 Thank you once again.