1 00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:05,400 Heavenly Father, we pray that for these next four weeks are 2 00:00:06,200 --> 00:00:11,100 our hope and planting Emmaus church is that they are the clay 3 00:00:11,100 --> 00:00:13,900 and You Are The Potter. And so we know your hands are 4 00:00:13,908 --> 00:00:19,000 just all over this church plant, shaping molding growing and 5 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:24,400 developing and yet we also know that father you made us your 6 00:00:24,400 --> 00:00:28,000 image bearers and so when you affect change in the world and 7 00:00:28,000 --> 00:00:31,600 when you do things on Earth, you You don't generally like to do 8 00:00:31,600 --> 00:00:33,700 that by just snapping your fingers and Heaven. 9 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:37,700 You do it by working through your image bearers. 10 00:00:37,700 --> 00:00:41,100 And so for this next month, I just pray that we will be all 11 00:00:41,100 --> 00:00:44,200 hands on deck. This would be Emmaus Church, 12 00:00:44,200 --> 00:00:47,600 training camp and we would come prepared to encourage them. 13 00:00:47,700 --> 00:00:50,700 Pray for them, celebrate them and support them. 14 00:00:50,700 --> 00:00:55,100 So meet Luke profoundly and powerfully this morning and just 15 00:00:55,100 --> 00:00:58,700 speak fire through his lungs and the precious name of Jesus. 16 00:00:58,700 --> 00:01:00,600 We pray all these things. Amen. 17 00:01:04,099 --> 00:01:09,400 So a man's church, we have a very simple, very clear vision. 18 00:01:09,400 --> 00:01:13,100 For what we're doing in Ankeny, we are planting a church that 19 00:01:13,100 --> 00:01:16,300 the goal is to plant a church that Delights and Jesus together 20 00:01:16,300 --> 00:01:18,200 for the joy of Ankeny for our city. 21 00:01:18,200 --> 00:01:22,300 We want to plant a church where there is Delight in Christ in 22 00:01:22,300 --> 00:01:27,600 the city. And so we need, we continue to 23 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:32,100 need Frontiers help and these are the four ways in which we 24 00:01:32,100 --> 00:01:33,900 need your help. We need you to pray for. 25 00:01:34,100 --> 00:01:36,800 Or us. So if you are not currently 26 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:39,100 praying for us we actually you do that. 27 00:01:39,500 --> 00:01:42,700 You take time to pray for it because we need God's help. 28 00:01:42,900 --> 00:01:46,000 And we believe that your prayers for us are probably the most 29 00:01:46,000 --> 00:01:48,900 important and not only the most important, but the most 30 00:01:48,900 --> 00:01:52,000 effective way to serve us and help us as we go out. 31 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:56,700 So if you commit to pray for us, we also we also need Financial 32 00:01:56,700 --> 00:01:59,600 Resources. God has been amazingly good to 33 00:01:59,600 --> 00:02:03,100 us so far and has provided us quite a bit, but we continue. 34 00:02:03,100 --> 00:02:04,900 We're going to need more Into the future. 35 00:02:04,900 --> 00:02:08,500 And on the frontier Church's website, the giving page, there 36 00:02:08,500 --> 00:02:10,600 is a line there for Emmaus church. 37 00:02:10,600 --> 00:02:14,400 And so if the Lord would put on your heart to give to the 38 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:19,800 mission, we would definitely be blessed by that and then We 39 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:23,300 don't quite have 10% yet of a frontier. 40 00:02:23,800 --> 00:02:29,800 Some of you don't know that. I'm not into like wrangling 41 00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:33,000 anybody by the throat to come with us, I don't want that. 42 00:02:33,000 --> 00:02:38,200 But but I would ask if you have not prayed and asked God, if he 43 00:02:38,200 --> 00:02:41,100 would call you to come and be a part of a church plant, like my 44 00:02:41,100 --> 00:02:46,800 parents in Ankeny pray, who knows what God would do in your 45 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:50,700 heart and maybe not come and permanently come and be a part 46 00:02:50,700 --> 00:02:54,100 of Emmaus, but may come to me. Be serve for a short time. 47 00:02:54,100 --> 00:02:57,500 I know Church plenty of church plants where people have said, 48 00:02:57,500 --> 00:03:01,000 you know, Know what, we're not ready to step in commit to like 49 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:04,600 a lifetime with this new church plant, but for a season, we 50 00:03:04,600 --> 00:03:07,700 might serve you in a particular area, if God would put on 51 00:03:07,700 --> 00:03:09,800 anybody's heart to do that. We would be blessed as well. 52 00:03:09,800 --> 00:03:14,200 So those are the four ways that we'd ask you to pray for us and 53 00:03:14,200 --> 00:03:16,800 help us as we go out. Because it's a lot of work, got 54 00:03:16,800 --> 00:03:20,200 a lot to do, and we can use all of God's help and yours as well. 55 00:03:20,200 --> 00:03:26,000 So, that being said, Zephaniah. Holy cow Zephaniah. 56 00:03:26,500 --> 00:03:31,600 We recorded a podcast this last week or not let this last week 57 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:35,400 but it released this last week with Cole and I discussing 58 00:03:35,900 --> 00:03:39,700 Zephaniah and why Zephaniah and what's going on in Jeff and I 59 00:03:39,700 --> 00:03:43,600 cuz I'm not going to take time to bore you with a bunch of dry 60 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,800 history and context and all that. 61 00:03:47,100 --> 00:03:49,800 So if you want that, we have a good conversation about that on 62 00:03:49,800 --> 00:03:52,400 the podcast, you can go and see that. 63 00:03:52,500 --> 00:03:55,700 At. But if so you're not going to 64 00:03:55,708 --> 00:03:57,500 get all those details this morning, I'm gonna be able to 65 00:03:57,500 --> 00:04:01,800 cover all that in a sermon will be here till 2:00 and so go to 66 00:04:01,800 --> 00:04:05,600 that podcast in here that. But as we come to Zephaniah, I 67 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:10,000 just there's a picture in my mind that that will actually 68 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:12,600 from a video that I saw that just encapsulate. 69 00:04:12,800 --> 00:04:17,399 I think how we would receive Zephaniah as a father and a son 70 00:04:17,399 --> 00:04:20,800 sitting in a fishing boat there on a lake and it's very clear 71 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:23,200 that this son who's a little Cool guy. 72 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:26,600 It's his first time fishing. He's got the little fishing pole 73 00:04:26,800 --> 00:04:29,400 and he's really excited because as he's doing something with his 74 00:04:29,400 --> 00:04:32,000 dad and he's doing the fishing thing and he's really excited 75 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:35,600 and he catches a fish and he's reeling it up and he cannot see 76 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:39,600 over the edge of the boat because he's little and as he's 77 00:04:39,600 --> 00:04:43,800 pulling the fish up as he's pulling it up and the fish comes 78 00:04:43,800 --> 00:04:47,100 up over the edge, he sees what's on the end of his line, which is 79 00:04:47,100 --> 00:04:50,800 like a little bluegill and he freaks out and he throws his 80 00:04:50,800 --> 00:04:53,800 pole in the water and he wants has nothing to do with it. 81 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:57,400 He wanted to fish but he had no clue what a fish was. 82 00:04:59,200 --> 00:05:02,400 I think when we come to the book of Zephaniah, we're coming to 83 00:05:02,400 --> 00:05:08,200 the Bible, this is God's word and we have assumptions about 84 00:05:08,200 --> 00:05:11,000 what that looks like. And what that means this is all 85 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:16,400 rainbows and the love of God and everything is wonderful and easy 86 00:05:16,500 --> 00:05:20,300 and I think if we want to prepare your heart, I want your 87 00:05:20,300 --> 00:05:22,600 heart to be prepared. This morning, we open up the 88 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:26,000 book, as F Anaya, we are not finding rainbows and little 89 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:28,000 bunnies and cute kittens this morning. 90 00:05:29,300 --> 00:05:32,300 There's a reason that slide looks that way, even though I 91 00:05:32,300 --> 00:05:35,700 was told it looks like a gen xer made that, I'll accept it. 92 00:05:38,100 --> 00:05:40,800 There's a skull on fire there, for a reason. 93 00:05:41,800 --> 00:05:48,300 This book is like it's heavy. It's dark, there's judgment and 94 00:05:48,300 --> 00:05:52,100 fire everywhere. And and I want you to be aware 95 00:05:52,100 --> 00:05:56,900 of that because this is not, this is not happy-clappy stuff. 96 00:05:56,900 --> 00:05:58,900 We're walking and we're walking into the fire. 97 00:05:59,100 --> 00:06:02,200 This morning and through this series, this is probably 98 00:06:02,900 --> 00:06:05,200 academics. Say this is the most judgment 99 00:06:05,200 --> 00:06:08,300 heavy book in the Bible given its size, its three chapters 100 00:06:08,300 --> 00:06:11,600 long and the vast majority of it, got his killing everything 101 00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:14,500 and everyone, and it's dark and heavy. 102 00:06:14,700 --> 00:06:19,800 And so, so prepare your hearts this morning to receive that, 103 00:06:19,800 --> 00:06:24,100 and to jump into it with me. And as we say c, as you can see 104 00:06:24,100 --> 00:06:26,600 up there, see that we're safe in Jesus together. 105 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:29,900 So, if you have a copy of the scripture, Go ahead and open up 106 00:06:29,900 --> 00:06:31,900 with me to Zephaniah chapter one. 107 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:35,700 We're going to be in Zephaniah 1 all of chapter 1 and into 108 00:06:35,700 --> 00:06:39,700 chapter 2 and verse 3. And so if you'll stand with me 109 00:06:39,700 --> 00:06:42,900 for the reading of God's word, we will look at this together. 110 00:06:50,300 --> 00:06:53,300 Zephaniah, chapter, 1 verse 1, the word of the Lord, that came 111 00:06:53,300 --> 00:06:56,000 to Zephaniah. The son of cush, I the son of 112 00:06:56,000 --> 00:06:59,700 get alya, son of a Mariah, son of Hezekiah. 113 00:06:59,800 --> 00:07:04,200 In the days of Josiah, the son of a mon, king of Judah. 114 00:07:06,000 --> 00:07:09,500 I will utterly sweep away everything from the face of the 115 00:07:09,500 --> 00:07:14,200 Earth, declares the Lord. I will sweep away, man, and 116 00:07:14,200 --> 00:07:16,700 Beast. I will sweep away the birds of 117 00:07:16,700 --> 00:07:20,700 the heavens and the fish of the Sea, and the rubble with the 118 00:07:20,700 --> 00:07:23,900 wicked. I will cut off Mankind from the 119 00:07:23,908 --> 00:07:27,200 face of the Earth. Declares the Lord, I will 120 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:29,600 stretch out my hand against Judah and against all the 121 00:07:29,600 --> 00:07:33,800 inhabitants of Jerusalem and I will cut off from this place. 122 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:38,600 The remnant of Baal and the name of the idolatrous priests along 123 00:07:38,800 --> 00:07:41,700 with the priests those who Bow Down. 124 00:07:41,900 --> 00:07:45,800 On roofs to the host of the heavens, those who bow down and 125 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:48,400 swear to the Lord and yet swell bucks whereby milk. 126 00:07:48,400 --> 00:07:52,100 Mm, those who have turned back from following the Lord, who do 127 00:07:52,100 --> 00:07:54,600 not seek the Lord or inquire of him. 128 00:07:55,800 --> 00:08:00,500 Be silent before the Lord. For the day of the Lord is near, 129 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:03,700 the Lord has prepared his sacrifice and consecrated his 130 00:08:03,700 --> 00:08:05,100 guests. And on the day of the Lord 131 00:08:05,100 --> 00:08:09,400 sacrifice, I will punish the officials and the King's sons 132 00:08:09,500 --> 00:08:13,100 and all who array themselves and foreign attire on that day. 133 00:08:13,100 --> 00:08:16,300 I will punish everyone who leaps over the threshold and those who 134 00:08:16,300 --> 00:08:19,600 feel their masters house with violence and fraud on that day. 135 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:23,000 Declares the Lord, a cry will be heard from the fish gate and and 136 00:08:23,000 --> 00:08:27,500 a whale from the second quarter allowed Crash from The Hills Way 137 00:08:27,500 --> 00:08:33,700 low Agents of mortar for all the Traders are no more all who way 138 00:08:33,700 --> 00:08:37,600 out, silver are cut off. At that time, I will search 139 00:08:37,600 --> 00:08:40,700 Jerusalem with lamps and I will punish the men who are 140 00:08:40,700 --> 00:08:43,799 complacent. Those who say in their hearts, 141 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:45,600 the Lord will not do good, nor will. 142 00:08:45,600 --> 00:08:48,800 He do ill. Their goods will be plundered 143 00:08:49,100 --> 00:08:52,100 their houses laid waste, though they build houses. 144 00:08:52,100 --> 00:08:53,700 They shall not inhabit them though. 145 00:08:53,700 --> 00:08:55,500 They plant Vineyards? They shall not drink. 146 00:08:55,500 --> 00:08:58,500 Wine from them. The great day of the Lord is 147 00:08:58,500 --> 00:08:59,100 near. Near. 148 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:04,800 Near and hastening fast the sound of the day of the Lord's. 149 00:09:04,800 --> 00:09:08,000 Wrath of the Lord is bitter. The mighty man, cries aloud 150 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:10,400 there. A day of Wrath. 151 00:09:10,500 --> 00:09:15,100 Is that day a day of distress and anguish a day of Ruin and 152 00:09:15,100 --> 00:09:19,800 Devastation a day of darkness and Gloom a day of clouds and 153 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:24,400 thick Darkness, a day of trumpet, blast and Battle Cry 154 00:09:24,400 --> 00:09:29,000 against the Fortified cities and against the lofty battlements, I 155 00:09:29,000 --> 00:09:33,300 will bring distress Us on mankind, so that they shall walk 156 00:09:33,300 --> 00:09:36,500 like the blind because they have sinned against the Lord, their 157 00:09:36,500 --> 00:09:39,900 blood shall be poured out like dust and their flesh. 158 00:09:39,900 --> 00:09:44,300 Like dung, neither their silver, nor their gold shall be able to 159 00:09:44,308 --> 00:09:48,700 deliver them on the day of the Wrath of the Lord, in the fire 160 00:09:48,700 --> 00:09:52,800 of his jealousy. All the Earth shall be consumed 161 00:09:52,800 --> 00:09:56,700 for a full and sudden, and he will make all the inhabitants of 162 00:09:56,700 --> 00:10:00,000 the Earth. Gather together. 163 00:10:00,700 --> 00:10:05,800 Yes, gather o Shameless Nation before the decree takes effect. 164 00:10:05,900 --> 00:10:10,200 Before the day passes away, like chaff before there comes upon 165 00:10:10,200 --> 00:10:13,800 you, The Burning Anger of the Lord before there comes upon 166 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:15,400 you. The day of the anger of the 167 00:10:15,400 --> 00:10:19,800 Lord, seek the Lord. All you humble of the land, who 168 00:10:19,800 --> 00:10:23,000 do his just commands seek righteousness. 169 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:28,200 Seek, humility, Perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the 170 00:10:28,200 --> 00:10:31,800 anger of the Lord. For Gaza shall be deserted. 171 00:10:31,800 --> 00:10:36,300 And Ashkelon shall become a desolation, Ash Duds, people 172 00:10:36,500 --> 00:10:40,600 shall be driven out at noon and ekron, shall be uprooted. 173 00:10:41,400 --> 00:10:47,600 You could be seated. Who. 174 00:10:50,800 --> 00:10:54,100 That's Heavy. We need God's help to think 175 00:10:54,100 --> 00:10:55,800 through this text together. Let's pray. 176 00:10:56,200 --> 00:11:02,400 God, we thank you for your word. And reading this thanking you 177 00:11:02,400 --> 00:11:07,200 for it feels awkward. Because what do we even do with 178 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:13,300 that? We'd like to come to church and 179 00:11:13,300 --> 00:11:17,800 have a feel good talk and your word gives us something heavy 180 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:20,200 and hard. And I just pray God that your 181 00:11:20,200 --> 00:11:24,400 Holy Spirit would not only give us wisdom to understand what 182 00:11:24,400 --> 00:11:30,800 you're teaching us this morning. But I pray that in it that we 183 00:11:30,800 --> 00:11:37,300 would just see Jesus clearly and that we would find Hope and 184 00:11:37,300 --> 00:11:39,700 safety and him together as we look at this and pray. 185 00:11:39,700 --> 00:11:45,400 This in Jesus name, amen. Many of, you know that I am a 186 00:11:45,400 --> 00:11:49,900 nurse worked at a local hospital here in town for years worked 187 00:11:49,900 --> 00:11:53,900 in, with pediatric patients, doing pediatric oncology for 188 00:11:53,900 --> 00:11:57,600 many years. And one of the things that we 189 00:11:57,600 --> 00:12:00,500 have to do as nurses or anybody that works in the healthcare 190 00:12:00,500 --> 00:12:05,500 field is that we unfortunately have to deal with issues of 191 00:12:05,500 --> 00:12:09,700 abuse. Over the years, I've taken care 192 00:12:09,700 --> 00:12:12,600 of many different children who've been victims of abuse. 193 00:12:12,700 --> 00:12:17,700 Whether Broken Bones from a parent being angry at them, 194 00:12:17,700 --> 00:12:22,000 whether it be literally locking a child into a room and starving 195 00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:25,500 them. I've seen, unfortunately, I've 196 00:12:25,500 --> 00:12:30,000 seen it all and it's a horrifying, horrifying reality. 197 00:12:30,900 --> 00:12:34,600 And those are may be really extreme versions of abuse. 198 00:12:34,600 --> 00:12:40,100 But abuse, unfortunately, in our broken world is something that 199 00:12:40,100 --> 00:12:44,400 has touched many people's lives. Even People in our church to 200 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:50,100 varying degrees of one another. and when we come to a text like 201 00:12:50,100 --> 00:12:55,800 this, and we open it up and we see God making these kinds of 202 00:12:55,800 --> 00:13:02,400 threats, what the question that comes to my mind is, Is God, 203 00:13:02,400 --> 00:13:06,500 just another abuser. Is he just? 204 00:13:07,700 --> 00:13:11,400 In heaven, like an angry stressed out, dad who doesn't 205 00:13:11,400 --> 00:13:15,300 know how to control his emotions, freaking out on his 206 00:13:15,300 --> 00:13:18,900 children and just smack him down because he has the power. 207 00:13:19,900 --> 00:13:23,900 Is that what is that? Where is this coming from? 208 00:13:24,800 --> 00:13:28,600 What is happening? That God would say something 209 00:13:28,600 --> 00:13:31,400 like, I'm gonna utterly sweep away everything from the earth, 210 00:13:31,400 --> 00:13:35,000 I'm gonna pour out all of your blood like dust. 211 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:39,100 Where why would he say that is dangerous? 212 00:13:39,100 --> 00:13:43,000 As a question is that is right? Why would like what is 213 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:46,700 happening? Is God just another abuser. 214 00:13:46,700 --> 00:13:49,500 Is he a power-hungry irritated dad? 215 00:13:53,600 --> 00:13:55,100 We say God's love. We profess. 216 00:13:55,100 --> 00:13:59,100 God is love. Who may even look at a text like 217 00:13:59,100 --> 00:14:00,900 this and say, well that's not my God. 218 00:14:03,800 --> 00:14:06,900 No doubt the resistance to incorporating prophecy like this 219 00:14:06,900 --> 00:14:08,900 into our vision of God as challenging. 220 00:14:09,400 --> 00:14:13,100 And so, what we, what I'm hoping to show you this morning. 221 00:14:13,100 --> 00:14:17,500 What I hope we can see is that as we read text like this that 222 00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:22,600 we can come to the text, ask this hard question and I think 223 00:14:22,600 --> 00:14:26,000 what we're going to see is not only that God is not an abuser 224 00:14:26,200 --> 00:14:28,300 but we're going to see that there's safety in God. 225 00:14:28,300 --> 00:14:32,200 Despite all of the language here and to see that there's safety 226 00:14:32,300 --> 00:14:34,100 in Jesus, that's what That's what I hope. 227 00:14:34,100 --> 00:14:36,000 You all will see with me and that's what I hope. 228 00:14:36,100 --> 00:14:38,900 That's where I hope this this will go for us this morning and 229 00:14:38,900 --> 00:14:41,800 so there's three ways were going to break up this text. 230 00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:44,900 There's so much here, I can't cover all of it, but there's 231 00:14:44,900 --> 00:14:47,600 three things I want to. I want you to see through the 232 00:14:47,608 --> 00:14:50,700 text to kind of help us get an understanding of where this is 233 00:14:50,700 --> 00:14:53,400 going. And to see something hopefully 234 00:14:53,400 --> 00:14:56,700 glorious about God that comes through this text. 235 00:14:56,700 --> 00:14:59,400 So first, we're going to see God's Wrath second. 236 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:02,400 We're going to see God's reasons and third, we're going to see 237 00:15:02,400 --> 00:15:06,100 God's rescue. You in this text, his wrath, his 238 00:15:06,100 --> 00:15:10,300 reasons and his rescue. So first, then God's Wrath. 239 00:15:11,700 --> 00:15:17,500 It is unavoidable and obvious on first read that God is angry and 240 00:15:17,500 --> 00:15:21,600 he's going to kill everything and everyone the this chapter 241 00:15:21,600 --> 00:15:26,200 I've said sounds more like it sounds more like lyrics to A 242 00:15:26,208 --> 00:15:28,400 Slipknot song than it does the Bible. 243 00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:32,400 It sounds more like Cannibal Corpse is screaming in the 244 00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:35,800 background like you can hear the fast. 245 00:15:35,800 --> 00:15:36,400 What? I don't know. 246 00:15:36,400 --> 00:15:39,400 The music people, you know what? They call those double drums 247 00:15:40,600 --> 00:15:42,800 like it. Like You can hear heavy metal in 248 00:15:42,800 --> 00:15:46,200 the background here with someone you know, bringing out these 249 00:15:46,200 --> 00:15:47,600 lyrics. Yes. 250 00:15:48,200 --> 00:15:52,300 And if any of you don't know, if you're not around here, early in 251 00:15:52,300 --> 00:15:56,000 the morning Frontier those are the sounds coming out of these 252 00:15:56,000 --> 00:15:58,800 speakers as we get the church ready for you to come worship. 253 00:16:00,200 --> 00:16:03,600 This is a heavy metal church. And this is a heavy metal text. 254 00:16:04,200 --> 00:16:08,500 It sounds that way, right? Verse 2 and 3 make it clear, 255 00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:14,500 That God is going to destroy everything and everyone. 256 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:18,000 What we have going on here, especially in verses 2 & 3 is 257 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:22,500 what you might call D Creation. In Genesis chapter 1, God 258 00:16:22,500 --> 00:16:26,400 creates the world, and it listed out in this, the order of seven 259 00:16:26,400 --> 00:16:29,900 days and he creates it in the particular order, he creates in 260 00:16:29,900 --> 00:16:34,100 Genesis one, fish in the sea, birds in the air, beasts on the 261 00:16:34,100 --> 00:16:38,500 ground and then man and here and Zephaniah, he gives us the exact 262 00:16:38,500 --> 00:16:43,700 and intentional opposite list of the way in which God is going to 263 00:16:43,700 --> 00:16:47,100 destroy the Earth. He Says there, in verse 3, I 264 00:16:47,100 --> 00:16:50,300 will sweep away. I will sweep away, man and 265 00:16:50,300 --> 00:16:52,900 Beast. Birds of the heavens fish of the 266 00:16:52,900 --> 00:16:56,400 sea. God is doing, he is going in the 267 00:16:56,400 --> 00:17:02,200 opposite direction of Genesis 1, he is undoing the world as he 268 00:17:02,200 --> 00:17:09,099 created it in Genesis chapter 1 The Judgment here is very 269 00:17:09,099 --> 00:17:12,300 parallel to what we see in. Genesis chapter 6, Genesis 270 00:17:12,300 --> 00:17:16,800 chapter 6, God does a work of D Creation with Noah and the flood 271 00:17:16,800 --> 00:17:19,400 we all know that story we teach it to our children like it's a 272 00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:22,599 children's story but it's the same thing we have here in 273 00:17:22,599 --> 00:17:25,500 Zephaniah. Chapter 1, God is bringing D 274 00:17:25,500 --> 00:17:29,500 creation and destroying everything in Genesis. 275 00:17:29,500 --> 00:17:33,800 Chapter 6 with the flood and you see up here I will blot out man. 276 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:36,800 Whom I have created from the face of the land man animals 277 00:17:36,800 --> 00:17:39,000 creeping. Things birds of the heavens from 278 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:42,900 sorry that I've made them. God is doing a work of D 279 00:17:42,900 --> 00:17:47,000 creation, bringing his judgment and destroying everything. 280 00:17:50,700 --> 00:17:55,900 God is going to in verses 8 and 9 punish people when he comes, 281 00:17:55,900 --> 00:18:00,700 people will wail in verse 10. They will cry out verse 13. 282 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:04,900 All their resources are gone. Their efforts in vain, they're 283 00:18:04,900 --> 00:18:07,300 going to build a house and then they're going to be homeless. 284 00:18:07,300 --> 00:18:09,300 They're going to plant a Vineyard and then they're going 285 00:18:09,300 --> 00:18:13,400 to go hungry all of their efforts will only yield more 286 00:18:13,400 --> 00:18:18,600 pain and more suffering. Verse 14 tells us, it's going to 287 00:18:18,608 --> 00:18:20,400 be a bitter day and understandably. 288 00:18:20,400 --> 00:18:24,000 It'll be a bitter day. Such that even a mighty man 289 00:18:24,000 --> 00:18:28,200 would be on his knees. I have a picture here of Shaq 290 00:18:28,200 --> 00:18:30,500 being like, I'm gonna figure this out. 291 00:18:31,200 --> 00:18:36,400 And then on his knees incapable of finding, flourishing or life. 292 00:18:37,900 --> 00:18:41,900 Verses 15 to 18 in this chapter are the crescendo. 293 00:18:41,900 --> 00:18:45,500 There are the there, the Pinnacle of God's Wrath being 294 00:18:45,500 --> 00:18:49,100 poured out. The fever pitch of the 295 00:18:49,100 --> 00:18:53,400 experience of God's judgment just the language in these 296 00:18:53,400 --> 00:18:57,600 verses wrath distress. Anguish ruin, Devastation, 297 00:18:57,600 --> 00:19:02,200 Darkness Gloom clouds. Thick, Darkness verse 16. 298 00:19:02,200 --> 00:19:07,700 You hear a call to war. God is literally making war on 299 00:19:07,700 --> 00:19:11,300 the Earth. Such that he's going to pour out 300 00:19:11,300 --> 00:19:14,900 blood like dust and dust gives the idea of something that's 301 00:19:14,900 --> 00:19:17,700 Vain and meaningless. It just flies away with the 302 00:19:17,700 --> 00:19:19,100 wind. He just going to pour it out 303 00:19:19,100 --> 00:19:21,800 like you're not worth anything. Just going to pour it out. 304 00:19:22,900 --> 00:19:29,300 And then flesh like dung rotten and stinky worthless revolting. 305 00:19:31,200 --> 00:19:32,600 And then what's really surprising? 306 00:19:32,600 --> 00:19:35,900 I mean a couple surprises in here verse 17, there's no 307 00:19:35,900 --> 00:19:39,400 ambiguity, this isn't some Demon from Hell doing this. 308 00:19:40,000 --> 00:19:45,000 God says I will bring distress, this is something God's going to 309 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:47,100 do. This is something. 310 00:19:47,100 --> 00:19:54,300 This is God's purpose. God is going to bring in essence 311 00:19:54,300 --> 00:19:56,200 hell on Earth. This is hell. 312 00:19:56,800 --> 00:19:59,600 You read Jesus descriptions of Hell in the Gospels. 313 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:05,000 It sounds basically like this God is going to bring hell and 314 00:20:05,000 --> 00:20:12,000 put it on Earth. and if that's not enough, look at who it is 315 00:20:12,000 --> 00:20:18,100 directed at If you look over in verse 4, you see who the objects 316 00:20:18,600 --> 00:20:23,000 of this, wrath are going to be who God is going to pour His 317 00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:26,800 wrath out upon verse 4. I will stretch out my hand 318 00:20:26,800 --> 00:20:32,400 against Judah. Against Jerusalem against the 319 00:20:32,400 --> 00:20:37,300 priests against their kids against the rulers. 320 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:43,400 And if you know anything about the Bible, this is a problem. 321 00:20:44,300 --> 00:20:49,200 This is a major problem because this is the god who said to 322 00:20:49,208 --> 00:20:51,000 those people, I'm going to be your God, you're going to be my 323 00:20:51,000 --> 00:20:53,000 people. This is The God Who says to 324 00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:54,600 them, you're the apple of my eye. 325 00:20:54,800 --> 00:20:56,100 This is The God Who says to them. 326 00:20:56,100 --> 00:20:57,900 I'm going to Covenant to love you forever. 327 00:20:57,900 --> 00:21:00,300 I'm going to give you a king that's going to last forever. 328 00:21:00,300 --> 00:21:03,300 I'm going to make you a blessing to the nation's. 329 00:21:03,300 --> 00:21:07,800 I'm going to bless you and all of the Bible leading up to this 330 00:21:07,800 --> 00:21:12,400 point leaves you thinking Well leaves you thinking the same way 331 00:21:12,400 --> 00:21:15,600 the Contemporary of Jeremiah of Zephaniah Prophet. 332 00:21:15,600 --> 00:21:19,100 Jeremiah a couple books earlier describes the attitude of the 333 00:21:19,108 --> 00:21:20,700 people of Israel. They had got cocky. 334 00:21:20,700 --> 00:21:24,400 They're like, yeah, God loves us, he's he's committed to us, 335 00:21:24,400 --> 00:21:26,800 right? He's on our side and so they'd 336 00:21:26,800 --> 00:21:29,600 go around arrogantly saying all the temple, the temple, the 337 00:21:29,600 --> 00:21:31,300 temple. And the reason they'd say the 338 00:21:31,300 --> 00:21:34,500 temple, the temple, the temple is Jeremiah points out is 339 00:21:34,500 --> 00:21:38,200 because they just assume that because God was there, he was 340 00:21:38,200 --> 00:21:39,700 there. Lucky rabbit's foot in their 341 00:21:39,700 --> 00:21:41,900 pocket. And they were good to go. 342 00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:45,500 They had nothing to worry about and for us as we look at that, 343 00:21:45,500 --> 00:21:48,900 the children of God, the special objects of God's love in the 344 00:21:48,900 --> 00:21:52,500 world, hear his wrath, and his vengeance is being turned on 345 00:21:52,500 --> 00:21:56,700 them. Which again, begs the question. 346 00:21:59,200 --> 00:22:01,600 Why would a God who says he loves them? 347 00:22:02,800 --> 00:22:04,200 Make these kinds of threats against him. 348 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:08,700 Is he an abuser? He sounds like an abusive 349 00:22:08,700 --> 00:22:12,400 father. He want to say Okay God chill 350 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:17,500 out like deescalate bro. Right, that's coming. 351 00:22:17,500 --> 00:22:19,000 That's that's what goes in my mind. 352 00:22:21,400 --> 00:22:24,800 Well, that's the wrath of God. It's heavy, it's dark, it's 353 00:22:24,800 --> 00:22:28,400 crazy. So now we need to then look at 354 00:22:28,400 --> 00:22:32,200 God's reasons because God has given us reasons here in this 355 00:22:32,200 --> 00:22:34,700 text. There are a couple things, 356 00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:36,800 there's a couple things that happen in our minds. 357 00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:39,500 We hear somebody like this when we read a passage like this, 358 00:22:39,800 --> 00:22:43,000 we're a that, you know, all wrath and fury and Devastation. 359 00:22:43,800 --> 00:22:46,800 We tend to make all whole host of assumptions. 360 00:22:46,800 --> 00:22:50,200 We assume we just assume at least I know in my heart. 361 00:22:50,200 --> 00:22:52,800 My first read, when I read some like this, it just seemed. 362 00:22:52,800 --> 00:22:54,800 Is this really is? This really reasonable? 363 00:22:55,600 --> 00:22:58,300 Is this Justified? I'd just got really have a good 364 00:22:58,300 --> 00:23:01,900 reason for this because it seems unjust on the surface. 365 00:23:02,200 --> 00:23:05,100 It seems like an overreaction. It seems reactionary. 366 00:23:06,000 --> 00:23:08,900 It seems too much it seems abusive. 367 00:23:10,800 --> 00:23:13,300 So I'm going to invite you to imagine a scenario with me. 368 00:23:14,300 --> 00:23:15,800 This is going to be uncomfortable, but I need you to 369 00:23:15,800 --> 00:23:19,100 imagine the scenario with me. Imagine a man who looks 370 00:23:19,100 --> 00:23:25,700 something like me. man who you know, big Guy with beard scary. 371 00:23:25,700 --> 00:23:35,800 Looking face handsome. Yes, rolls up to a family and 372 00:23:35,800 --> 00:23:39,800 Mom is holding maybe a 23 year old child. 373 00:23:40,900 --> 00:23:47,100 And as I as a guy, like me would roll up to that family, pull the 374 00:23:47,100 --> 00:23:50,300 child out of the arms of the child is crying. 375 00:23:51,300 --> 00:23:56,600 And the mother is crying and hands hands the child to the man 376 00:23:57,000 --> 00:24:01,800 and the man takes that child. And as he's walking away from 377 00:24:01,800 --> 00:24:05,700 the mother with that child, the child is got its arms out, 378 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:12,000 screaming, crying and that man. Ann has a group of other 379 00:24:12,000 --> 00:24:16,500 individuals with him that are surrounding him and they March 380 00:24:16,500 --> 00:24:22,000 that child into a locked room with no windows and it's 381 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:25,400 basically soundproof. And in that room, they take the 382 00:24:25,400 --> 00:24:29,700 child and they bind the child down, maybe a three-year-old. 383 00:24:29,700 --> 00:24:34,500 They bind the child down as it's screaming and four people hold 384 00:24:34,500 --> 00:24:38,300 the child down while one of them proceeds to stab the child until 385 00:24:38,300 --> 00:24:44,800 they bleed That is the worst kind of abuse you could ever 386 00:24:44,800 --> 00:24:51,100 think could happen to a child. And yet that with intentionally 387 00:24:52,600 --> 00:24:56,300 flagrant language is what happens everyday in a children's 388 00:24:56,300 --> 00:25:01,100 hospital in America. This is what I do as a nurse 389 00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:04,100 this is what I do. I'd go take a child from its mom 390 00:25:04,100 --> 00:25:06,600 she'd be crying the child would be like I don't want anything to 391 00:25:06,600 --> 00:25:10,100 do with you and then I have to take them into a room that's 392 00:25:10,100 --> 00:25:13,500 quiet with four other people and hold them down while they are 393 00:25:13,500 --> 00:25:18,100 scared freaking out and we put IVs in them to give them 394 00:25:18,100 --> 00:25:21,300 medicine and fluids and whatnot because children don't want to 395 00:25:21,300 --> 00:25:23,500 have IVs in them and so they freaked out. 396 00:25:24,900 --> 00:25:28,900 And this is to the point where when people used to ask me what 397 00:25:28,900 --> 00:25:31,400 I do for a living, I'd always just tell them I just make 398 00:25:31,400 --> 00:25:35,100 children cry if it's just, that's how I felt what my job 399 00:25:35,100 --> 00:25:37,900 was. But here's my point. 400 00:25:39,500 --> 00:25:42,000 We all know, children need IDs and they're not just going to 401 00:25:42,008 --> 00:25:45,300 sit down and take it and parents aren't going to be happy about 402 00:25:45,300 --> 00:25:50,500 it. And if I wasn't in scrubs and in 403 00:25:50,500 --> 00:25:54,500 a hospital, you would want me in jail forever for doing that kind 404 00:25:54,500 --> 00:25:57,500 of thing. And yet in that circumstance, it 405 00:25:57,500 --> 00:26:02,100 is the most reasonable. It is the most justified and it 406 00:26:02,100 --> 00:26:05,600 is the most necessary thing to happen for that child. 407 00:26:07,300 --> 00:26:11,700 Such that if I did not do that, everything would get worse. 408 00:26:13,200 --> 00:26:16,400 And I want to suggest to you that that's what we're reading 409 00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:19,900 in, Zephaniah. What looks like abuse? 410 00:26:19,900 --> 00:26:23,100 What looks like just an irritated out of control. 411 00:26:23,100 --> 00:26:29,500 Dad is actually something very different reasoned careful. 412 00:26:30,700 --> 00:26:38,200 Precise and exact for a good purpose, unspeakable Horrors, 413 00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:41,400 happen to people every day. And when they're done, for the 414 00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:44,500 right reason, and with the right heart, and then the right way 415 00:26:44,500 --> 00:26:48,800 for the right purposes, not only is the act Justified, but can be 416 00:26:48,800 --> 00:26:52,600 necessary for life and health flourishing, Etc. 417 00:26:52,600 --> 00:26:55,800 When you go to a doctor because your appendix is about to burst, 418 00:26:55,900 --> 00:26:58,500 you don't want them to say, oh, I hope it gets better, you want 419 00:26:58,500 --> 00:27:02,900 him to cut you open and take Get out something that would 420 00:27:02,900 --> 00:27:06,600 otherwise be will put a person in prison forever. 421 00:27:08,900 --> 00:27:14,200 And so this text I want to be clear, gives good reason for 422 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:17,200 what is happening what we're reading, we find in this text, 423 00:27:17,200 --> 00:27:20,700 really good reasons. But before we go onto the 424 00:27:20,700 --> 00:27:23,300 reasons, let me just take a beat and we need to catch our breath 425 00:27:23,300 --> 00:27:26,100 and be reasonable for a moment and acknowledge a couple things. 426 00:27:27,200 --> 00:27:30,200 First, you might not find these reasons sufficient because 427 00:27:30,200 --> 00:27:33,400 Zephaniah was not writing to justify God's actions so much as 428 00:27:33,400 --> 00:27:35,100 to warn people of what was coming. 429 00:27:35,600 --> 00:27:39,400 This is not a this book in this chapter you're not going to find 430 00:27:39,400 --> 00:27:41,700 like a little cake guys. Now here's you need to 431 00:27:41,700 --> 00:27:44,500 understand exactly why God is doing that's not Zephaniah is 432 00:27:44,500 --> 00:27:46,300 reason. That's not his purpose here. 433 00:27:46,500 --> 00:27:49,000 His purpose is to tell. It's happening not so much. 434 00:27:49,000 --> 00:27:50,700 Why? So we're not going to get just 435 00:27:50,700 --> 00:27:55,000 like a systematic listing justifying these actions of God. 436 00:27:56,600 --> 00:28:00,500 but the second thing that we need, that we need to be aware 437 00:28:00,500 --> 00:28:03,400 of, is something Tim, Keller is known for pointing out and I 438 00:28:03,400 --> 00:28:07,100 really appreciate this point, he says that only us modern Western 439 00:28:07,100 --> 00:28:10,500 people have difficulty perceiving God as having wrath 440 00:28:10,500 --> 00:28:14,400 like this for most cultures, especially the cultures in which 441 00:28:14,400 --> 00:28:17,300 these things were written, the most difficult subject for 442 00:28:17,300 --> 00:28:20,700 people to comprehend was, the idea that God would be gracious 443 00:28:20,700 --> 00:28:25,100 and loving that made that for them was more intellectually and 444 00:28:25,100 --> 00:28:28,700 emotionally problematic for them, it made more sense for 445 00:28:28,700 --> 00:28:30,800 them that God would be this angry. 446 00:28:31,800 --> 00:28:37,400 And so we come at this text with very different values and a very 447 00:28:37,400 --> 00:28:40,200 different set of problems that we're trying to solve in our 448 00:28:40,200 --> 00:28:42,200 mind. Then the original readers of 449 00:28:42,200 --> 00:28:45,600 this text would have had and so we need to be careful as we read 450 00:28:45,600 --> 00:28:51,300 it to not import our Western 21st century Rich middle class. 451 00:28:52,400 --> 00:28:56,800 Predominantly white values onto the text, that would be 452 00:28:56,800 --> 00:28:59,400 unhelpful. We're not going to get, we're 453 00:28:59,400 --> 00:29:01,200 not going to get what we would want, if we do that. 454 00:29:01,200 --> 00:29:05,300 And so, we have to so that allow that to moderate your 455 00:29:05,300 --> 00:29:07,800 perspective, if you're struggling, if you're struggling 456 00:29:07,800 --> 00:29:10,000 with this. But that being said, there are 457 00:29:10,000 --> 00:29:13,400 six and probably more, very clear reasons why this is 458 00:29:13,400 --> 00:29:16,200 happening, I'll run through them super fast Verses 4 and 5. 459 00:29:16,208 --> 00:29:18,500 Tell us this that it's about idolatry. 460 00:29:18,500 --> 00:29:21,200 The Church of the Israelite people. 461 00:29:21,200 --> 00:29:24,200 We know this. US based upon second Kings 462 00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:28,800 chapter 23 because this is r.f. This book was written in that 463 00:29:28,800 --> 00:29:30,600 time. If you read second Kings, 464 00:29:30,600 --> 00:29:33,500 chapter 23, you learn that Josiah. 465 00:29:33,500 --> 00:29:38,300 The king during this time, is removing Idols from the temple 466 00:29:38,300 --> 00:29:42,500 in which the people worshipped because they were putting Idols 467 00:29:42,500 --> 00:29:45,700 in the temple be like having the Buddha over here and part of the 468 00:29:45,700 --> 00:29:47,600 worship service is given to Buddha. 469 00:29:48,900 --> 00:29:52,900 Or that six-armed lady that you see. 470 00:29:52,900 --> 00:29:54,300 I don't know. I forget her name. 471 00:29:54,500 --> 00:29:58,100 Anyway, if she was up here and we like, this is what they're 472 00:29:58,100 --> 00:30:01,500 doing in the temple. So there's idolatry there. 473 00:30:01,800 --> 00:30:05,800 Verse 6, they've forsaken God, verse 8, they're wearing for and 474 00:30:05,800 --> 00:30:08,200 a tire, which I don't have time to go into that, but that's an 475 00:30:08,200 --> 00:30:12,300 interesting one verse 9. There's violence and fraud going 476 00:30:12,300 --> 00:30:15,100 on. Among the people verse 11 there, 477 00:30:15,100 --> 00:30:18,500 explores exploitation and Injustice. 478 00:30:18,700 --> 00:30:22,900 The poor going on and verse 12 is a really interesting one for 479 00:30:22,900 --> 00:30:25,700 us Western folks there, agnostic. 480 00:30:25,900 --> 00:30:29,200 We're not really sure if God's going to ever do anything about 481 00:30:29,200 --> 00:30:31,600 all of this anyway. So why not just do whatever we 482 00:30:31,600 --> 00:30:35,400 want? Those six reasons is odd and is 483 00:30:35,400 --> 00:30:38,900 weird as they sound, they all come down to one. 484 00:30:38,900 --> 00:30:43,200 Simple reason, all of them can be enveloped in one term and 485 00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:46,300 that is idolatry. So we need to understand what we 486 00:30:46,300 --> 00:30:50,500 need to understand idolatry and why that's a big deal because on 487 00:30:50,500 --> 00:30:53,000 the surface that doesn't sound like a good enough reason for 488 00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:54,800 this. But I want to promise you it is 489 00:30:54,800 --> 00:30:56,400 and I don't want to show you why? 490 00:30:56,800 --> 00:31:00,800 So idolatries, the act of putting your faith or trust in a 491 00:31:00,808 --> 00:31:03,300 god, other than the god of the Bible, That's Just, what 492 00:31:03,300 --> 00:31:06,900 idolatry is putting your faith, your trust, your worship toward 493 00:31:06,900 --> 00:31:10,900 anything, or anyone other than the god of the Bible, Yahweh. 494 00:31:10,900 --> 00:31:14,900 Jesus. The Trinity trusting, God means 495 00:31:14,900 --> 00:31:18,100 that we trust God with our Salvation, our life, our food, 496 00:31:18,100 --> 00:31:21,400 our safety, our future, our children, our ability to get 497 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:24,900 pregnant, trusting him with our finances, our security, and 498 00:31:24,900 --> 00:31:29,200 friendships, our sex life Etc. God makes Promises of blessing 499 00:31:29,200 --> 00:31:31,100 to us as we trust him and Obey him. 500 00:31:31,100 --> 00:31:34,600 And we live in the light of Blessing as we worship and enjoy 501 00:31:34,600 --> 00:31:36,600 him. That's the vision that God has 502 00:31:36,600 --> 00:31:38,700 for his people. That's what you called. 503 00:31:38,700 --> 00:31:43,000 The Israelite people to, at that time idolatry works the same 504 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:45,500 way, but it works toward another God. 505 00:31:45,700 --> 00:31:48,200 So all Idols, you need to know this. 506 00:31:48,400 --> 00:31:52,800 People didn't bow down and worship idols like bail and milk 507 00:31:52,800 --> 00:31:56,300 them that we find here because they thought those objects 508 00:31:56,300 --> 00:31:59,900 deserve their worship. They Bow Down and Worship them 509 00:31:59,900 --> 00:32:02,900 because they made promises to them that they Trust. 510 00:32:03,100 --> 00:32:04,900 Stood more than the promises of God. 511 00:32:08,000 --> 00:32:11,900 They the idols not only make promises, they demand 512 00:32:11,900 --> 00:32:16,300 ritualistic worship and sacrifice, not entirely 513 00:32:16,300 --> 00:32:20,900 different, but yet distinct from the god of Israel, all Idols, 514 00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:27,200 all of them offered the worshipper life health, peace, 515 00:32:27,200 --> 00:32:32,800 security, hope. Joy, flourishing, Etc. 516 00:32:33,100 --> 00:32:38,300 If they worship them, and if they sacrifice to them, And you 517 00:32:38,300 --> 00:32:41,400 can imagine living in the Bronze Age with no High V. 518 00:32:42,200 --> 00:32:47,300 No internet, no Refrigeration or air-conditioning in the desert. 519 00:32:50,600 --> 00:32:55,300 You might have a sense of your needs for basic reality. 520 00:32:55,300 --> 00:33:01,100 Like, just Basics, like food to be a, to be a really important 521 00:33:01,100 --> 00:33:03,000 need that you have met here in America. 522 00:33:03,000 --> 00:33:05,600 We've lost. We don't use the term idea that 523 00:33:05,600 --> 00:33:08,500 people are starving anymore. We don't even talk like that. 524 00:33:08,800 --> 00:33:12,900 Now if you hear language about that it's we use the phrase food 525 00:33:12,900 --> 00:33:15,200 insecurity. It's not that they're not going 526 00:33:15,200 --> 00:33:17,400 to eat, it's just they're insecure about where they're 527 00:33:17,400 --> 00:33:21,300 going to get it from. We have a very different set of 528 00:33:21,300 --> 00:33:24,300 problems that were interfacing in the world within this time. 529 00:33:24,600 --> 00:33:27,400 And when an idol says, hey you worship me. 530 00:33:27,600 --> 00:33:30,700 I'll make sure your crops grow and I'll make sure you have food 531 00:33:30,700 --> 00:33:32,900 to eat. That's a very compelling promise 532 00:33:32,900 --> 00:33:37,700 to them just as just as other types of promises would be 533 00:33:37,700 --> 00:33:42,000 promising and helpful or compelling to us today. 534 00:33:43,100 --> 00:33:45,200 And the names of these gods that we mentioned that they were 535 00:33:45,200 --> 00:33:47,100 worshiping were bailed and milk them. 536 00:33:47,400 --> 00:33:49,900 These God's offer the promises of a fertile womb. 537 00:33:49,900 --> 00:33:53,600 So they worship them so that they could have children. they 538 00:33:53,600 --> 00:33:57,400 offered Promises of great yields from crops, they the the, if you 539 00:33:57,400 --> 00:33:59,400 worship these gods that make your crops grow and you'd have 540 00:33:59,400 --> 00:34:03,500 food Be offered financial status and security. 541 00:34:03,600 --> 00:34:06,500 And literally, this is why the people worship them. 542 00:34:06,500 --> 00:34:10,500 They would go through famine and they would pray to God, and God 543 00:34:10,500 --> 00:34:13,900 wouldn't bring rain and they'd be like, well, bail. 544 00:34:13,900 --> 00:34:16,800 You got anything for me and then it would rain they'd be like, 545 00:34:16,800 --> 00:34:18,500 well, we got to worship Baal now. 546 00:34:19,800 --> 00:34:24,000 And so they would bring these Idols into the temple into the 547 00:34:24,007 --> 00:34:28,300 place, where God would worship, where God demanded worship, and 548 00:34:28,300 --> 00:34:32,600 they began worshipping him. And there they were essentially 549 00:34:32,699 --> 00:34:36,600 just trying to cover their bases, you know, if God doesn't 550 00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:40,699 provide then maybe milk of will. If God doesn't provide then 551 00:34:40,699 --> 00:34:46,600 maybe bail will. And the, the problem one of the 552 00:34:46,600 --> 00:34:50,100 problems with these Gods is the way that they were worshipped 553 00:34:50,100 --> 00:34:54,400 the way they were worship contradicted, everything that 554 00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:57,300 God had called the people to do. How you worshipped Baal was you 555 00:34:57,300 --> 00:35:00,600 took your children, a child, one of your children and you'd set 556 00:35:00,600 --> 00:35:03,600 them on fire and worship him in front of bail, they were doing 557 00:35:03,600 --> 00:35:07,900 this in the temple and if you were to worship milk them, you 558 00:35:07,900 --> 00:35:13,400 would go and either by a temple prostitute for yourself or just 559 00:35:13,700 --> 00:35:19,700 Doing a sex orgy in the temple, to get crops, and to get 560 00:35:19,700 --> 00:35:22,300 pregnant like that, that you worship these gods. 561 00:35:22,300 --> 00:35:25,000 And these ways, this is how they wanted to be worshipped. 562 00:35:25,300 --> 00:35:28,400 This is how they wanted to engage the people. 563 00:35:28,400 --> 00:35:30,600 And so this is what the people of Israel were doing. 564 00:35:30,600 --> 00:35:34,500 They were practicing child, sacrifice and engaging in these 565 00:35:34,500 --> 00:35:37,000 wild sex parties inside the temple. 566 00:35:37,100 --> 00:35:40,000 While also holding a worship service to the god of the Bible, 567 00:35:41,500 --> 00:35:46,400 Crazy. You can see where Y is some of 568 00:35:46,400 --> 00:35:50,300 this is now Justified like okay it's not just the concept of 569 00:35:50,300 --> 00:35:54,600 bowing down to an idle, there's a lot to this and it's because 570 00:35:54,600 --> 00:35:58,700 these Idols well I'll give you point out a couple things here. 571 00:35:58,700 --> 00:36:02,400 God we need to understand what makes this so bad as first that 572 00:36:02,400 --> 00:36:04,600 God directly. Prohibits it in the Ten 573 00:36:04,600 --> 00:36:06,600 Commandments the force for can command. 574 00:36:06,600 --> 00:36:11,100 Of the pretend Commandments are all are all broken in. 575 00:36:11,300 --> 00:36:15,800 In committing, I and committing idolatry and trusting oneself to 576 00:36:15,800 --> 00:36:17,400 another God. In first, don't put any other 577 00:36:17,400 --> 00:36:19,900 gods before me. Well, when you use an idol, 578 00:36:19,900 --> 00:36:23,900 you're doing that. The second commandment is, don't 579 00:36:23,900 --> 00:36:26,200 worship an idol. Don't make a carved image. 580 00:36:26,200 --> 00:36:29,700 Don't worship idols. The third commandment is not to 581 00:36:30,000 --> 00:36:32,300 take the lord's name in vain, which is not a Prohibition 582 00:36:32,300 --> 00:36:34,800 against cursing. It's against talking about 583 00:36:34,800 --> 00:36:39,100 thinking about feeling about God, as if he is not valuable. 584 00:36:40,400 --> 00:36:46,300 As if he is on the same level as bail, just another option for a 585 00:36:46,300 --> 00:36:51,200 deity in life, and the command that we heard about recently, to 586 00:36:51,200 --> 00:36:54,200 practice the Sabbath, which means to rest in the promises 587 00:36:54,200 --> 00:36:56,700 and provision of God and him alone. 588 00:36:57,100 --> 00:36:59,400 So all four of the first Commandments are immediately 589 00:36:59,400 --> 00:37:02,000 broken in the practice of idolatry. 590 00:37:02,000 --> 00:37:07,400 So that's that's one big reason. But the other reason is wild 591 00:37:07,400 --> 00:37:09,900 because and we can see it just by it. 592 00:37:10,100 --> 00:37:11,300 Location of how these Gods wants. 593 00:37:11,300 --> 00:37:15,900 You want to be worshipped is It just doesn't, it doesn't just 594 00:37:15,900 --> 00:37:18,900 turn a idolatry, doesn't just turn people away from God. 595 00:37:18,900 --> 00:37:23,800 It turns people against one another, and this is what you 596 00:37:23,800 --> 00:37:26,400 see all throughout the Bible and you see it in life. 597 00:37:26,400 --> 00:37:31,400 In general idolatry, turns people away from God, and in 598 00:37:31,900 --> 00:37:39,000 enmity, and in conflict with one another verses 911 show us that 599 00:37:39,000 --> 00:37:44,200 idolatry makes us corrupt. People who use defraud and 600 00:37:44,500 --> 00:37:48,300 Others, first nine tells us on that day, I will punish everyone 601 00:37:48,300 --> 00:37:51,600 who leaps over the threshold. That is the doorway into the 602 00:37:51,600 --> 00:37:56,700 temple and those who fill their masters house with violence and 603 00:37:56,700 --> 00:38:02,700 fraud idolatry the demands of an idol, the demands of other gods, 604 00:38:03,200 --> 00:38:09,000 cause conflict and fraud and violence among them. 605 00:38:09,000 --> 00:38:12,800 And child, sacrifice obviously is one of the most obvious 606 00:38:13,500 --> 00:38:15,000 manifestation. I love that. 607 00:38:16,600 --> 00:38:18,900 You see an idol cannot deliver on the Promises. 608 00:38:18,900 --> 00:38:21,800 They make, they're not God, they're inevitably inevitably, 609 00:38:21,800 --> 00:38:24,100 leave us desperate and destitute. 610 00:38:24,100 --> 00:38:26,800 They leave us clawing for some semblance of peace and 611 00:38:26,800 --> 00:38:30,200 prosperity because it's not governed by God and His law. 612 00:38:30,700 --> 00:38:33,800 And it turns us into people who consume it, turns us into people 613 00:38:33,800 --> 00:38:37,600 who devour. And so, and use another and use 614 00:38:37,600 --> 00:38:41,000 one another to get what it is that we're hoping the idol will 615 00:38:41,000 --> 00:38:46,500 give us And to put it simply wherever there is dysfunction, 616 00:38:46,500 --> 00:38:50,000 and exploitation and Injustice wherever there is a buse and the 617 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:56,000 use of others manipulation. There's an idol there whether 618 00:38:56,000 --> 00:38:59,300 there's a physical statue to it, or whether it's in the mind, or 619 00:38:59,300 --> 00:39:03,400 the heart of the individual, there's an idol and functioning, 620 00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:11,100 they're all sin, all sin all Pride, all abuse and 621 00:39:11,100 --> 00:39:16,400 exploitation has one root. And that is idolatry idolatry is 622 00:39:16,400 --> 00:39:19,900 behind every rape. Every murder, Every Act of 623 00:39:19,900 --> 00:39:23,500 cowardice. And abuse is behind every Act of 624 00:39:23,500 --> 00:39:24,600 evil. Ever. 625 00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:28,300 It is the fuel for racism bigotry, social injustice. 626 00:39:28,600 --> 00:39:32,300 It is the primary route, evil in the world in all sins emerged 627 00:39:32,300 --> 00:39:37,300 from it and it's corrupt bowels that's where everything all evil 628 00:39:37,300 --> 00:39:40,900 comes from. This is the sin of Eve in the 629 00:39:40,900 --> 00:39:45,200 garden when she took the fruit was not that she was hungry and 630 00:39:45,200 --> 00:39:49,300 God wasn't giving her food. It was that she made an idol out 631 00:39:49,300 --> 00:39:52,200 of that fruit. She made an idol out of it and 632 00:39:52,200 --> 00:39:56,400 she desired it and she desires Heard the promises of the fruit. 633 00:39:56,500 --> 00:40:06,600 More than the promises of God. Knowing knowing that this is 634 00:40:06,600 --> 00:40:12,500 what idolatry produces a God, who would look upon the 635 00:40:12,500 --> 00:40:19,100 sacrifice of a Child In Worship. Or even the rape of a child in 636 00:40:19,100 --> 00:40:21,400 the process of worshipping an idol. 637 00:40:21,600 --> 00:40:26,000 Whether it's a physical statue, or the lust of a man's heart, 638 00:40:27,900 --> 00:40:31,800 And God doesn't respond and pouring out their blood like 639 00:40:31,800 --> 00:40:36,200 dust would implicate God as being an uncaring. 640 00:40:37,400 --> 00:40:44,700 Unjust God in the face of it, that God cares this much about 641 00:40:44,700 --> 00:40:49,900 Injustice and the and the manifestation of sin and evil in 642 00:40:49,900 --> 00:40:55,900 the world. It should in a awkward way, 643 00:40:55,900 --> 00:41:00,500 bring Comfort to our hearts. It should cause us to be 644 00:41:00,500 --> 00:41:03,600 comforted by the fact that especially if there are victims 645 00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:07,200 of abuse that God actually cares. 646 00:41:08,300 --> 00:41:12,200 God actually cares. He sees it, he knows it and he 647 00:41:12,200 --> 00:41:16,400 cares about it and the other part of his it puts us in a 648 00:41:16,400 --> 00:41:17,400 tough spot. Sure. 649 00:41:17,400 --> 00:41:20,800 The the prop this prophecies written to people in the 600's 650 00:41:20,800 --> 00:41:25,900 BC, but as we've already noted the seeds of idolatry they live 651 00:41:25,900 --> 00:41:32,300 in us, the seeds of idolatry. Are everywhere around us and in 652 00:41:32,300 --> 00:41:36,400 us, whether it's porn or gluttony, he's money Sports, 653 00:41:36,400 --> 00:41:40,500 work, power influence or just the approval of other people. 654 00:41:40,800 --> 00:41:44,400 All of us, whether we bow down before an altar and literally 655 00:41:44,400 --> 00:41:49,800 Neil, we worship idols in our hearts, and our souls, in our 656 00:41:49,800 --> 00:41:54,700 minds and we have the relational scars to prove it, We have the 657 00:41:54,700 --> 00:42:01,100 relational conflict to prove it. And though, these threats were 658 00:42:01,100 --> 00:42:03,900 given to Jerusalem in that day. We should not think that God has 659 00:42:03,900 --> 00:42:06,700 since this day come around to the idea that Ali dollet. 660 00:42:06,700 --> 00:42:08,200 Reason. Okay, practice. 661 00:42:09,500 --> 00:42:12,700 God has certainly not changed his mind about this. 662 00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:17,900 And so though, we are not the same people as these, we are 663 00:42:17,900 --> 00:42:23,300 guilty of the same kinds of sins and idolatry that they were The 664 00:42:23,300 --> 00:42:27,300 threats mentioned here appear to be all encompassing. 665 00:42:27,400 --> 00:42:31,300 Oh right these threats appear to be all encompassing and so the 666 00:42:31,300 --> 00:42:34,600 question then is is there any hope and this is where I want us 667 00:42:34,600 --> 00:42:40,200 to conclude is is there any hope if Israel is doomed? 668 00:42:40,800 --> 00:42:47,100 And we are participating in it in some way, what hope is there 669 00:42:47,100 --> 00:42:49,600 for them? What hope is there for us? 670 00:42:49,600 --> 00:42:52,500 And I think we see some Seeds of Hope in this. 671 00:42:53,700 --> 00:42:57,100 There's good news that just as God was not satisfied to kill 672 00:42:57,100 --> 00:43:01,700 everything and everyone in the flood with Noah and his family. 673 00:43:03,200 --> 00:43:06,500 God has a rescue plan to Deliver Us from this promised judgment. 674 00:43:07,500 --> 00:43:12,500 God is not in heaven. Having fun with this. 675 00:43:12,900 --> 00:43:17,400 He has an intention to save a people from his wrath. 676 00:43:17,700 --> 00:43:21,100 He gives three commands in this text verse 7. 677 00:43:21,300 --> 00:43:24,400 Be silent or just shut your mouth stop. 678 00:43:24,400 --> 00:43:27,700 Talking people, just just be quiet is what God says. 679 00:43:28,500 --> 00:43:32,800 Stop defending yourself, stop explaining yourself 2:1. 680 00:43:32,900 --> 00:43:36,500 He says, gather together and that seems really odd because 681 00:43:36,500 --> 00:43:38,900 that seems like it would make it easier for God to find people to 682 00:43:38,908 --> 00:43:41,300 destroy them. But he says to gather together 683 00:43:41,800 --> 00:43:44,800 and then chapter 2 and verse 3, he says seek the Lord so jug 684 00:43:44,800 --> 00:43:47,500 just make yourself more vulnerable to this God who's 685 00:43:47,600 --> 00:43:52,300 made threats of judgment but seek him out seek him and says 686 00:43:52,500 --> 00:43:57,800 in verse 3. The three commands Seen Crazy, 687 00:43:57,900 --> 00:44:01,300 why not try to defend yourself, why not try to run and hide? 688 00:44:02,200 --> 00:44:05,500 Why go to him if he's got this disposition? 689 00:44:06,500 --> 00:44:08,900 Well, verse 3, gives us the reason verse 3. 690 00:44:09,100 --> 00:44:12,500 Gives us a clear reason. He says there in verse 3, 691 00:44:13,600 --> 00:44:17,800 Perhaps. You may be hidden on the day of 692 00:44:17,800 --> 00:44:22,000 the anger of the Lord. Now that's not impressive, 693 00:44:22,000 --> 00:44:24,400 right? Perhaps we will be more 694 00:44:24,400 --> 00:44:27,900 comfortable comfortable to be like hey by the way, this will 695 00:44:27,900 --> 00:44:31,400 work. He says perhaps and I think 696 00:44:31,400 --> 00:44:35,300 there's a reason why the perhaps is there. 697 00:44:35,300 --> 00:44:39,500 I think God is being sarcastic. I think God is kind of making 698 00:44:39,500 --> 00:44:43,400 fun of them at this point because this is how the people 699 00:44:43,400 --> 00:44:48,000 were treating him and the idols. Well perhaps, God will provide 700 00:44:48,000 --> 00:44:52,400 for me if I worship Him Him. And if I worship Baal, and if I 701 00:44:52,408 --> 00:44:55,500 worship milk them all through, I'm bound to hit somewhere. 702 00:44:56,300 --> 00:44:59,500 I'm bound to get some things from somewhere, perhaps, one of 703 00:44:59,500 --> 00:45:00,700 them will provide for me and gods. 704 00:45:00,700 --> 00:45:04,300 Like you want to play the perhaps game, perhaps you might 705 00:45:04,300 --> 00:45:06,600 be hidden from the anger of the Lord on this day. 706 00:45:07,800 --> 00:45:12,600 Which is not all that impressive, but it's pointing us 707 00:45:12,600 --> 00:45:17,200 towards something, it's pointing us to Ward the reality that God 708 00:45:17,200 --> 00:45:21,500 does indeed have a plan and a purpose to save people, who 709 00:45:21,500 --> 00:45:26,100 would silent become silent before him and hump in humility 710 00:45:26,800 --> 00:45:31,000 gather together and seek him when Noah, and his family 711 00:45:31,000 --> 00:45:36,300 entered the Ark. They enter the ark and the 712 00:45:36,308 --> 00:45:39,400 Judgment of God, rained down on them and the Earth for 40 days. 713 00:45:39,600 --> 00:45:42,200 God delivered on their perhaps for them. 714 00:45:43,200 --> 00:45:44,700 God delivered on the perhaps for them. 715 00:45:44,700 --> 00:45:48,100 They sat in the ark, hearing smelling feeling and enduring 716 00:45:48,100 --> 00:45:51,600 the Judgment of God on the earth huddled together hiding and 717 00:45:51,600 --> 00:45:57,000 seeking refuge in the ark. They led a dove out perhaps that 718 00:45:57,000 --> 00:46:01,900 it might find an Olive Branch or some sign of Life somewhere in 719 00:46:01,900 --> 00:46:05,100 the world so that they could know that there is life beyond 720 00:46:05,100 --> 00:46:10,300 the Judgment of God. And perhaps the Olive Branch was 721 00:46:10,300 --> 00:46:12,400 delivered and there was indeed life. 722 00:46:14,000 --> 00:46:16,900 Noah did not Escape God's judgement though. 723 00:46:18,600 --> 00:46:24,400 He was there in it. It came, it fell destruction 724 00:46:24,400 --> 00:46:30,900 happened, and he watched it. And yet he was safe in it and 725 00:46:30,900 --> 00:46:34,900 that is the message of Zephaniah judgment is coming. 726 00:46:35,800 --> 00:46:41,800 But perhaps perhaps if you go to the Lord in humility and you 727 00:46:41,800 --> 00:46:46,900 forsake your idols and you come to seek him and not Baal seek 728 00:46:46,900 --> 00:46:51,500 him and not whatever Idols are in your heart, perhaps you can 729 00:46:51,500 --> 00:46:55,400 hide in Christ as did Noah in the ark. 730 00:46:57,400 --> 00:47:03,300 Perhaps you will find hope they're see our idolatry for us. 731 00:47:03,300 --> 00:47:05,500 The Judgment of God is real. It's unavoidable. 732 00:47:06,800 --> 00:47:09,500 And this book, this passage does point us to the Future day of 733 00:47:09,508 --> 00:47:11,800 the Lord were Justice is going to be established. 734 00:47:12,000 --> 00:47:14,500 And so the question is, what hope is there for us as there 735 00:47:14,500 --> 00:47:19,800 was for these people? As I said as Noah hides the ark, 736 00:47:20,200 --> 00:47:22,800 we now hide ourselves in the cross and resurrection of Jesus 737 00:47:22,800 --> 00:47:26,000 Christ. On the cross, God does fulfill 738 00:47:26,000 --> 00:47:30,500 this passage, he pours out his wrath on Jesus, fully and 739 00:47:30,500 --> 00:47:33,900 completely. In fact, the sky literally goes 740 00:47:33,900 --> 00:47:39,700 black with clouds, his blood is poured out like dirt. 741 00:47:40,900 --> 00:47:45,600 Christ experiences, all of the judgments promised in here on 742 00:47:45,600 --> 00:47:51,300 himself. and while we do not get the opportunity to escape God's 743 00:47:51,300 --> 00:47:57,000 judgment and wrath, we can hide in him and just like Noah did be 744 00:47:57,000 --> 00:48:01,100 safe. And not only be safe but find 745 00:48:01,100 --> 00:48:03,500 that there's life on the other side to the resurrection of 746 00:48:03,500 --> 00:48:07,300 Jesus just as Noah and his family could descend The Arc and 747 00:48:07,300 --> 00:48:11,300 into new life and New Creation. So in Jesus Christ, when he 748 00:48:11,300 --> 00:48:15,100 rises from the dead after we find our safety in him, there is 749 00:48:15,100 --> 00:48:20,000 new life and not only New Life, there is transformation so that 750 00:48:20,000 --> 00:48:23,300 our hearts would be more compelled by the promises of God 751 00:48:23,300 --> 00:48:27,000 and the promises of idols. And so there's real hope that 752 00:48:27,000 --> 00:48:33,400 not only that, not only we could Escape the destruction of God's 753 00:48:33,400 --> 00:48:36,700 justice. We could also, we can also be 754 00:48:36,700 --> 00:48:38,900 transformed into the kind of people and worshippers that he's 755 00:48:38,900 --> 00:48:41,500 pleased by which is unbelievable. 756 00:48:41,500 --> 00:48:44,400 Hope, it's real. Hope that there's a that that 757 00:48:44,400 --> 00:48:47,400 perhaps is a reality for us in. Jesus. 758 00:48:47,700 --> 00:48:52,400 Jesus actually accomplished that and you can, we can hide in him 759 00:48:52,500 --> 00:48:55,300 as the people of Zephaniah did in that day. 760 00:48:57,000 --> 00:49:00,400 And for the abused and exploited, you need to see this. 761 00:49:00,400 --> 00:49:05,000 If you have felt this pain and Christ, you are safe. 762 00:49:06,100 --> 00:49:07,700 The fiery. Judgments poured out in. 763 00:49:07,700 --> 00:49:10,900 Zephaniah are aimed at the abusers. 764 00:49:12,400 --> 00:49:15,800 They're aimed at the abusers, The unrepentant, abusers Who 765 00:49:15,800 --> 00:49:19,800 continue in their exploitation, I dialed idolatry and abuse, 766 00:49:20,000 --> 00:49:22,800 Zephaniah tells us that God not only cares about bringing 767 00:49:22,800 --> 00:49:26,100 Justice against abusers, but he's willing to be abused 768 00:49:26,100 --> 00:49:30,000 himself in the person of Jesus. So, that in him, you find a 769 00:49:30,008 --> 00:49:35,200 brother, who knows your pain? God does not stand aloof in your 770 00:49:35,200 --> 00:49:38,700 life, distant from the pain of abuse, he's endured it, and he 771 00:49:38,708 --> 00:49:41,600 knows the sting of it and the effects that it has on your 772 00:49:41,600 --> 00:49:44,900 life. Because he's endured it. 773 00:49:46,200 --> 00:49:48,700 You're not just safe from God's Wrath, and Jesus, you're safe 774 00:49:48,700 --> 00:49:51,700 and hiding and one who can really identify with you and 775 00:49:51,700 --> 00:49:56,900 cares for you and is out. He is out to make things right 776 00:49:56,900 --> 00:50:03,000 for you. So somehow some way there's hope 777 00:50:03,500 --> 00:50:06,800 and life in the midst of the fire There's Hope and there's 778 00:50:06,800 --> 00:50:13,700 life in the midst of that which is ridiculously incredible and 779 00:50:13,700 --> 00:50:20,800 weird and freaky and amazing. There's reason not, not simply 780 00:50:20,800 --> 00:50:24,400 to experience peace in this but to celebrate and worship God for 781 00:50:24,400 --> 00:50:28,500 delivering us and transforming us through the gospel into 782 00:50:28,500 --> 00:50:32,300 people that can enjoy that. And no, and no, the peace and 783 00:50:32,300 --> 00:50:36,500 joy of God through those things. So let's pray and ask God to 784 00:50:36,500 --> 00:50:44,300 help us further. comprehend that Lord. 785 00:50:46,900 --> 00:50:51,300 Paul in Ephesians 3, praise at the church who already believes 786 00:50:51,300 --> 00:50:53,400 in the love of Jesus and know the love of Jesus that they 787 00:50:53,400 --> 00:50:58,900 would further know the love of Jesus because your love is super 788 00:50:58,900 --> 00:51:02,700 weird and complicated and confusing, even scary. 789 00:51:03,700 --> 00:51:08,300 And we struggle. We just struggle to know how to 790 00:51:08,300 --> 00:51:11,900 process and manage that. And so I just pray that you 791 00:51:11,900 --> 00:51:13,300 would, by the power of your spirit. 792 00:51:13,300 --> 00:51:17,600 This time cause our hearts to rest in And find safety in 793 00:51:17,600 --> 00:51:21,000 Jesus, in the midst of all of this. 794 00:51:21,500 --> 00:51:23,900 And we pray and ask this in Jesus name, amen. 795 00:51:16,600 --> 00:51:21,000 And find safety in Jesus, in the midst of all of this. 796 00:51:21,500 --> 00:51:23,900 And we pray and ask this in Jesus name, amen.