1 00:00:02,560 --> 00:00:08,760 How do you respond to rejection? The more personal it is, and the 2 00:00:08,760 --> 00:00:12,040 more you cared about that thing you're rejected from or the 3 00:00:12,040 --> 00:00:16,000 person who rejected you, the harder it is to get over. 4 00:00:17,040 --> 00:00:19,760 You might develop a few different coping strategies in 5 00:00:19,760 --> 00:00:23,160 response to being rejected. You can blame the person. 6 00:00:23,160 --> 00:00:25,600 They don't know what they're missing out on. 7 00:00:26,040 --> 00:00:28,960 They don't know what a great employee I would have been. 8 00:00:30,040 --> 00:00:32,960 They don't know what a great husband or wife I would have 9 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:35,560 been. You can blame yourself. 10 00:00:36,400 --> 00:00:38,880 If only I'd worked harder. If only I'd said something 11 00:00:38,880 --> 00:00:40,240 different. If only I'd done something 12 00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:43,680 different. You could sort of spiral into 13 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:48,000 fruitless introspection. Can't change it now. 14 00:00:49,920 --> 00:00:54,400 You can also develop what is often called sour grapes, right? 15 00:00:54,400 --> 00:00:57,840 Oh, I I didn't get that thing. It's not that good anyways. 16 00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:00,160 That job probably would have stunk. 17 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:02,360 That boss would have been no fun to work for. 18 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:04,680 Who'd really want to go out with that girl anyways? 19 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:10,760 You can try to assuage the pain in your own heart by making 20 00:01:10,760 --> 00:01:16,560 light of that thing you lost. Christians can develop their own 21 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:23,240 strategies for attempting to not get rejected by the world or 22 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:26,920 respond when we are. Often those strategies can look 23 00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:33,680 like a kind of soft effort to assimilate, blend in, round off 24 00:01:33,680 --> 00:01:37,440 sharp edges, sound just like the things those people out there in 25 00:01:37,440 --> 00:01:39,920 the world are looking for, asking for. 26 00:01:41,000 --> 00:01:46,240 Don't use any terms that might offend or provoke, kind of lead 27 00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:51,480 with what we have in common and eventually trickle out slowly 28 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:55,360 some of the things that might be a little less appealing about 29 00:01:55,720 --> 00:01:57,280 the Christian faith and way of life. 30 00:01:59,360 --> 00:02:04,240 One problem with that kind of strategy for out flanking 31 00:02:04,480 --> 00:02:08,919 rejection, we're trying to minimize rejection as Christians 32 00:02:09,800 --> 00:02:13,800 is that Jesus himself was rejected. 33 00:02:15,520 --> 00:02:20,720 He warned his apostles to expect rejection and prepared them for 34 00:02:20,720 --> 00:02:22,920 it. And as we'll see in our passage 35 00:02:22,920 --> 00:02:26,480 this morning and the second-half of it, the prophet who prepared 36 00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:30,440 the way for Jesus and pointing people to Jesus and made a kind 37 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:35,880 of hand off to Jesus was himself rejected in a spectacular 38 00:02:36,360 --> 00:02:41,720 fashion. The Gospel of Mark teaches us 39 00:02:42,400 --> 00:02:46,440 that rejection is not something to be sort of strategically 40 00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:51,600 averted or avoided. The Gospel of Mark teaches us 41 00:02:51,600 --> 00:02:56,520 that it's something to be expected, prepared for, and 42 00:02:56,520 --> 00:02:58,920 endured. Our passage for this morning is 43 00:02:58,920 --> 00:03:03,920 Mark chapter 6, verses 1 to 29. If you don't have a Bible, you 44 00:03:03,920 --> 00:03:05,560 can put up a hand and someone will bring you one. 45 00:03:06,080 --> 00:03:07,840 You can feel free to take that home with you if you don't have 46 00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:09,880 a Bible to read at home, or you can put it back at the table 47 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:12,440 afterward. Looks like nobody needs a Bible. 48 00:03:12,440 --> 00:03:16,840 All right. Mark 6/1 to 29. 49 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:21,200 Our passage has three sections and verses one to six. 50 00:03:21,640 --> 00:03:23,720 We see Jesus rejected in his hometown. 51 00:03:25,240 --> 00:03:29,560 In verses 7 to 13 He sends out the 12 apostles on their first 52 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:36,080 preaching mission. And then in verses 14 to 29 we 53 00:03:36,080 --> 00:03:40,440 hear the sad story of the martyrdom of John the Baptist. 54 00:03:41,280 --> 00:03:43,440 Please listen as I read the whole passage. 55 00:03:48,080 --> 00:03:51,760 He went away from there and came to his home town, and his 56 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:55,840 disciples followed him. And on the Sabbath he began to 57 00:03:55,840 --> 00:03:59,240 teach in the synagogue. And many who heard him were 58 00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:04,000 astonished, saying, Where did this man get these things? 59 00:04:04,760 --> 00:04:09,200 What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done 60 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:12,640 by his hands? Is not this the Carpenter, the 61 00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:16,279 son of Mary, and brother of James and Joseph and Judas and 62 00:04:16,279 --> 00:04:19,200 Simon? And I'm not his sisters here 63 00:04:19,200 --> 00:04:21,959 with us. And it took offense at him. 64 00:04:23,280 --> 00:04:27,520 And Jesus said to them, A prophet is not without honor, 65 00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:33,960 except in his home town and among his relatives, and in his 66 00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:37,880 own household. And he could do no mighty work 67 00:04:37,880 --> 00:04:41,560 there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and 68 00:04:41,560 --> 00:04:43,920 healed them. And he marvelled because of 69 00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:46,560 their unbelief. And he went about among the 70 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:51,840 villages teaching, and he called the 12 and began to send them 71 00:04:51,840 --> 00:04:55,160 out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean 72 00:04:55,160 --> 00:04:58,600 spirits. He charged them to take nothing 73 00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:02,960 for their journey except a staff, no bread, no bag, no 74 00:05:02,960 --> 00:05:08,360 money in their belts but to wear sandals and not put on two 75 00:05:08,360 --> 00:05:10,640 tunics. And he said to them, Whenever 76 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:15,080 you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there, and 77 00:05:15,080 --> 00:05:19,000 if any place will not receive you, and they will not listen to 78 00:05:19,000 --> 00:05:25,240 you when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as 79 00:05:25,240 --> 00:05:29,280 a testimony against them. So they went out and proclaimed 80 00:05:29,280 --> 00:05:33,800 that people should repent. And they cast out many demons, 81 00:05:34,840 --> 00:05:38,600 and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them. 82 00:05:40,520 --> 00:05:44,120 King Herod heard of it, for Jesus's name had become known. 83 00:05:44,640 --> 00:05:48,920 Some said John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, that 84 00:05:48,920 --> 00:05:51,440 is why these miraculous powers are at work in him. 85 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:56,720 But others said he is Elijah, and others said he is a prophet, 86 00:05:57,240 --> 00:06:00,880 like one of the prophets of old. But when Herod heard of it, he 87 00:06:00,880 --> 00:06:05,400 said John, whom I beheaded, has been raised. 88 00:06:05,960 --> 00:06:10,640 For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in 89 00:06:10,640 --> 00:06:14,360 prison for the sake of Herodias his brother Philip's wife, 90 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:19,440 because he had married her. For John had been saying to 91 00:06:19,440 --> 00:06:24,600 Herod, It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife. 92 00:06:25,760 --> 00:06:30,200 And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put 93 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:32,880 him to death. But she could not. 94 00:06:33,960 --> 00:06:38,120 For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy 95 00:06:38,120 --> 00:06:43,680 man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was 96 00:06:43,680 --> 00:06:48,240 greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly. 97 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:53,480 But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a 98 00:06:53,480 --> 00:06:56,040 banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the 99 00:06:56,040 --> 00:06:59,960 leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias daughter came 100 00:06:59,960 --> 00:07:03,680 in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. 101 00:07:04,200 --> 00:07:07,840 And the king said to the girl, Ask me for whatever you wish, 102 00:07:07,840 --> 00:07:11,240 and I will give it to you. And he vowed to her, Whatever 103 00:07:11,240 --> 00:07:14,080 you ask me, I will give you up to half of my Kingdom. 104 00:07:15,440 --> 00:07:19,400 And she went out and said to her mother, for what should I ask? 105 00:07:20,360 --> 00:07:23,680 And she said, the head of John the Baptist. 106 00:07:25,240 --> 00:07:28,720 And she came in immediately with haste to the king, and asked, 107 00:07:28,720 --> 00:07:31,720 saying, I want you to give me at once the head of John the 108 00:07:31,720 --> 00:07:37,640 Baptist on a platter. And the king was exceedingly 109 00:07:37,640 --> 00:07:45,560 sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests, he did not want 110 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:51,120 to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent an 111 00:07:51,120 --> 00:07:53,720 executioner with orders to bring John's head. 112 00:07:54,840 --> 00:07:58,960 He went and beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head on 113 00:07:58,960 --> 00:08:03,160 a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to 114 00:08:03,160 --> 00:08:06,040 her mother. When his disciples heard of it, 115 00:08:06,040 --> 00:08:10,920 they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb. 116 00:08:13,960 --> 00:08:19,840 The key question our passage answers is what should faithful 117 00:08:20,080 --> 00:08:26,320 messengers of Christ expect? The passages 3 sections. 118 00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:28,400 The sermon will have three points. 119 00:08:28,760 --> 00:08:35,880 What should faithful messengers of Christ expect .1 Rejection. 120 00:08:36,919 --> 00:08:39,320 Rejection. This is what Jesus himself 121 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:42,400 experienced in his hometown in verses 1:00 to 6:00. 122 00:08:43,120 --> 00:08:45,720 Look again with me at verses one to three. 123 00:08:47,120 --> 00:08:50,040 He went away from there and came to his home town, and his 124 00:08:50,040 --> 00:08:53,040 disciples followed him. And on the Sabbath he began to 125 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:55,240 teach in the synagogue. And many who heard him were 126 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:58,680 astonished, saying, where did this man get these things? 127 00:08:58,920 --> 00:09:01,520 What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done 128 00:09:01,520 --> 00:09:03,440 by his hands? It's not this. 129 00:09:03,440 --> 00:09:06,480 The Carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joseph 130 00:09:06,480 --> 00:09:09,960 and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us. 131 00:09:10,800 --> 00:09:16,000 And they took offense at Him. Jesus hometown is Nazareth in 132 00:09:16,000 --> 00:09:19,320 Galilee. As he usually did on the Sabbath 133 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:22,800 when he attended synagogue, He was teaching the Scriptures 134 00:09:22,800 --> 00:09:25,280 publicly, and his hairs were astonished. 135 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:28,920 They marveled at both his teaching and His miracles. 136 00:09:29,320 --> 00:09:33,200 Now presumably they learned of His miracles primarily through 137 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:37,000 eyewitness reports, because verse 5 will tell us that He did 138 00:09:37,000 --> 00:09:41,600 hardly any miracles there. Note the common pattern in the 139 00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:45,120 first three questions. Where did this man get these 140 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:47,440 things? What is the wisdom given to him? 141 00:09:47,760 --> 00:09:50,080 How are such mighty works done by his hands? 142 00:09:50,520 --> 00:09:54,400 They aren't denying that there's something special about Jesus. 143 00:09:55,280 --> 00:09:57,920 It's just the opposite. He's so remarkable that it's 144 00:09:57,920 --> 00:10:01,400 hard to explain. He's so different that it's hard 145 00:10:01,400 --> 00:10:03,840 to account for in normal human terms. 146 00:10:04,040 --> 00:10:07,160 We know He's from here. We know He grew up with us. 147 00:10:07,360 --> 00:10:09,280 But where on earth did he get all this? 148 00:10:09,280 --> 00:10:14,000 Where did it come from? This is one of a series of seven 149 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:17,200 sets of questions in Mark's Gospel that I mentioned a few 150 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:19,560 sermons ago. You can only answer each 151 00:10:19,560 --> 00:10:25,160 question by recognizing that Jesus is God Incarnate. 152 00:10:25,680 --> 00:10:29,080 There's a sense in which all the questions his neighbors are 153 00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:34,240 asking are good questions, but they're being asked in a bad 154 00:10:34,480 --> 00:10:39,000 way. Jesus's neighbors are not asking 155 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:42,280 these questions to find out the truth about who Jesus is. 156 00:10:43,560 --> 00:10:47,680 They're asking these questions because they've already rejected 157 00:10:47,840 --> 00:10:53,640 the only right answer. Not all questions are created 158 00:10:53,640 --> 00:10:57,440 equal, and sometimes you can even ask the right question in 159 00:10:57,440 --> 00:10:59,960 the wrong way from the wrong attitude. 160 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:04,320 Sometimes questions are a smokescreen or a stalling tactic 161 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:08,880 or a political maneuver to sort of deflect attention. 162 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:16,320 Hear Jesus neighbors questions do not express a quest for 163 00:11:16,320 --> 00:11:20,640 truth, but hearts that are already hardened against the 164 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:23,080 truth. And then look at the remaining 165 00:11:23,080 --> 00:11:25,600 questions. Is not this the Carpenter, the 166 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:28,880 son of Mary and brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon 167 00:11:29,320 --> 00:11:31,040 and are not his sisters here with us? 168 00:11:31,440 --> 00:11:34,800 In other words, it's kind of like saying, we know this guy, 169 00:11:35,080 --> 00:11:39,080 we know his family, we know where he comes from, we know 170 00:11:39,080 --> 00:11:42,160 he's been working with wood and stone all these years. 171 00:11:42,160 --> 00:11:44,400 He was apprenticed into this trade by his father. 172 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:48,680 Don't don't we know all there really is to know about him? 173 00:11:49,240 --> 00:11:52,240 Sure, there's all this crazy stuff he's saying and doing, but 174 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:54,760 I mean, come on, we know this guy. 175 00:11:56,680 --> 00:12:02,520 Jesus neighbors are using his humanity to rule out his 176 00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:05,720 divinity. They're letting Jesus humanity 177 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:12,320 block his divinity rather than seeing it as a window onto his 178 00:12:12,320 --> 00:12:15,360 divinity. They are claiming they already 179 00:12:15,360 --> 00:12:18,600 know all there is to know about him. 180 00:12:19,480 --> 00:12:22,920 He's the Carpenter, Mary's boy. Calling him the Carpenter is not 181 00:12:22,920 --> 00:12:25,600 necessarily derogatory. That the trade Jesus practice 182 00:12:25,600 --> 00:12:27,560 was a skilled one. It would have been respected, 183 00:12:27,800 --> 00:12:31,840 but it is. Ordinary carpenters don't walk 184 00:12:31,840 --> 00:12:35,080 around doing the kind of stuff that Jesus does. 185 00:12:36,280 --> 00:12:42,360 So what's happened here? Jesus's neighbors privileged one 186 00:12:42,360 --> 00:12:46,720 set of evidence and used it to completely reject a whole other 187 00:12:46,720 --> 00:12:49,720 set of evidence. What were his miracles? 188 00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:54,080 Evidence. What was his teaching evidence? 189 00:12:54,400 --> 00:13:00,320 It's not that his neighbors lacked evidence, it's that they 190 00:13:00,320 --> 00:13:05,040 refused to accept the evidence that should have compelled them 191 00:13:05,040 --> 00:13:09,680 to conclude that he is the Messiah and that he is God 192 00:13:09,680 --> 00:13:14,200 Incarnate. For Jesus neighbors, their 193 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:19,440 barrier to belief was not lack of evidence. 194 00:13:20,280 --> 00:13:23,440 If you're not a believer in Jesus, what about you? 195 00:13:24,560 --> 00:13:31,080 Would you say that your barrier to belief is lack of evidence? 196 00:13:32,400 --> 00:13:39,640 If not, what is it? How did Jesus respond to this 197 00:13:39,680 --> 00:13:42,760 rejection? Look at verses 4:00 to 6:00. 198 00:13:44,760 --> 00:13:48,560 And Jesus said to them, a prophet is not without honor 199 00:13:48,560 --> 00:13:52,680 except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own 200 00:13:52,680 --> 00:13:55,880 households. And he could do no mighty work 201 00:13:55,880 --> 00:13:59,000 there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and 202 00:13:59,000 --> 00:14:01,840 healed them, and he marvelled because of their unbelief. 203 00:14:02,480 --> 00:14:05,360 And he went out among the villages teaching. 204 00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:10,480 Jesus responds with a proverb. This proverb has parallels in 205 00:14:10,480 --> 00:14:12,080 ancient Greek and Jewish literature. 206 00:14:12,200 --> 00:14:16,120 It's a kind of ancient equivalent of familiarity breeds 207 00:14:16,240 --> 00:14:19,560 contempt. Jesus Point is that it's easy 208 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:22,800 for those he grew up with to think they know him better than 209 00:14:22,800 --> 00:14:26,480 they do. It's easy for those who 210 00:14:26,480 --> 00:14:31,120 overestimate how well they know Him to cut him down to their 211 00:14:31,120 --> 00:14:36,320 size rather than letting him challenge everything they think 212 00:14:36,320 --> 00:14:42,320 they know both about him and about themselves. 213 00:14:43,760 --> 00:14:47,160 When verse 5 says he could do no mighty work there, the point is 214 00:14:47,160 --> 00:14:50,600 not that their unbelief made it physically impossible for him to 215 00:14:50,600 --> 00:14:53,560 do miracles, as if they like pulled the plug out of his power 216 00:14:53,560 --> 00:14:55,400 and no, no, now he's he can't do anything. 217 00:14:55,760 --> 00:14:58,720 No, the point and that that's disproven by the fact that the 218 00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:01,400 very rest of the verse says he laid his hands on a few sick 219 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:03,640 people and healed them. But the point about him not 220 00:15:03,640 --> 00:15:07,880 being able to do any mighty works there is that His miracles 221 00:15:08,040 --> 00:15:10,520 were signs of the coming of God's Kingdom. 222 00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:14,080 His miracles pointed to His role as the king bringing this 223 00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:18,160 Kingdom where people have already rejected the king and 224 00:15:18,160 --> 00:15:19,640 this Kingdom. The miracles would be to no 225 00:15:19,640 --> 00:15:22,200 point. They would be to no purpose. 226 00:15:22,200 --> 00:15:24,240 They would be futile. If He did a whole bunch of 227 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:26,360 miracles before everybody in Nazareth, it would have been 228 00:15:26,360 --> 00:15:31,240 casting pearls before swine. More miracles would not have led 229 00:15:31,240 --> 00:15:37,160 to more faith. In verse 6 Jesus marvels at 230 00:15:37,160 --> 00:15:39,520 their unbelief and yet he fulfills his ministry of 231 00:15:39,520 --> 00:15:42,000 traveling through all the local villages and teaching there. 232 00:15:42,600 --> 00:15:46,480 In all the gospels, Jesus is only said to marvel 2 times. 233 00:15:46,640 --> 00:15:50,520 Once he marvels at the faith of the Gentile centurion who said 234 00:15:50,520 --> 00:15:52,720 just say the word and my servant will be healed. 235 00:15:53,560 --> 00:15:58,880 And here he marvels at the unbelief of his own neighbors 236 00:15:59,440 --> 00:16:04,200 and family. Why does Jesus marvel at their 237 00:16:04,200 --> 00:16:07,720 unbelief? I think it's because this degree 238 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:13,400 of opposition in a Jewish region is new in his career in the 239 00:16:13,400 --> 00:16:16,280 gospel so far, this is the first time that in a Jewish region 240 00:16:16,400 --> 00:16:19,240 there's been a whole town that sort of turns out against him 241 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:22,000 and says no thanks. And on top of that, it's his 242 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:24,760 hometown. This region is the base of his 243 00:16:24,760 --> 00:16:26,760 ministry. If you would expect anybody to 244 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:29,880 show up and support Jesus the Messiah, it would be the 245 00:16:29,880 --> 00:16:34,040 hometown crowd. Jesus ministry experienced no 246 00:16:34,320 --> 00:16:38,080 homecourt advantage, None whatsoever. 247 00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:40,680 This is a paradox and a stumbling block. 248 00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:44,320 How could those closest to Jesus reject him? 249 00:16:44,600 --> 00:16:47,680 How could those who should know the most about him actually know 250 00:16:47,680 --> 00:16:52,400 the least about him? Kids and teens in the 251 00:16:52,400 --> 00:16:57,880 congregation, I'm confident that many of you genuinely trust in 252 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:02,200 Jesus. You have a real faith, even from 253 00:17:02,200 --> 00:17:05,440 a very young age. You're trusting in Him and 254 00:17:05,440 --> 00:17:09,560 obeying Him from the heart. I also know that not all of you 255 00:17:09,560 --> 00:17:11,880 believe in him. So my question for you this 256 00:17:11,880 --> 00:17:15,520 morning is, if Jesus were to show up in church today, or if 257 00:17:15,599 --> 00:17:19,599 Jesus were to show up at lunch with your family today, would he 258 00:17:19,599 --> 00:17:27,079 marvel at your unbelief? How many faithful Bible sermons 259 00:17:27,240 --> 00:17:32,480 have you heard? How many times have your parents 260 00:17:32,480 --> 00:17:36,240 read through a story Bible with you or portions of scripture? 261 00:17:36,440 --> 00:17:38,600 How many verses have they made you memorize? 262 00:17:38,760 --> 00:17:43,200 How many times have you seen answers to prayer show up in 263 00:17:43,200 --> 00:17:45,640 your family's life because it's something that your parents 264 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:51,520 prayed for and then God did? If you don't believe you're 265 00:17:51,520 --> 00:17:54,920 growing up in a Christian home, are you saying it's lack of 266 00:17:54,920 --> 00:17:57,280 evidence? It might be. 267 00:17:57,280 --> 00:18:00,920 You have all the evidence you need, and the problem is that 268 00:18:00,920 --> 00:18:04,320 your eyes are shut and your heart is hard. 269 00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:09,920 If Jesus was rejected by his own neighbors, then faithful 270 00:18:09,920 --> 00:18:12,800 messengers of Christ should expect to be rejected too. 271 00:18:13,040 --> 00:18:16,200 We should be ready for it, prepared for it, not surprised 272 00:18:16,200 --> 00:18:19,960 by it or taken aback by it. Jesus did not do anything wrong 273 00:18:19,960 --> 00:18:23,080 to his hometown neighbors. You cannot blame their rejection 274 00:18:23,440 --> 00:18:25,240 on him. There's nothing he should have 275 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:29,200 changed, no strategy he should have tweaked, no messaging. 276 00:18:29,200 --> 00:18:31,720 He should have softened and padded and made it more 277 00:18:31,720 --> 00:18:33,560 palatable for their sensibilities. 278 00:18:33,560 --> 00:18:36,880 The problem was not him, it was them. 279 00:18:38,120 --> 00:18:41,440 Brothers and sisters, I know that some of you have suffered 280 00:18:41,440 --> 00:18:47,160 various kinds and degrees of tension, opposition, or 281 00:18:47,160 --> 00:18:51,200 rejection from your family for following Christ. 282 00:18:51,800 --> 00:18:55,440 Take comfort. You're drinking the same cup 283 00:18:55,920 --> 00:18:58,560 Jesus drank. He's been there. 284 00:19:00,040 --> 00:19:02,440 Sometimes family members are personally affronted. 285 00:19:02,640 --> 00:19:07,320 It's like, how did Jesus sneak in and take you away from us? 286 00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:10,240 We're not those kind of people. This isn't what we've taught 287 00:19:10,240 --> 00:19:12,440 you. How did all this Jesus stuff get 288 00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:14,640 in there and make you into some kind of weirdo? 289 00:19:16,120 --> 00:19:20,080 They can be jealous of your new loyalty. 290 00:19:20,840 --> 00:19:25,560 They can be jealous for the God who in some sense has taken you 291 00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:30,800 away from them. If that's anything like your 292 00:19:30,800 --> 00:19:32,760 experience, keep trusting Christ. 293 00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:37,120 Remain steadfast in your loyalty to Christ. 294 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:44,120 When you're rejected by family or friends, remember you follow 295 00:19:44,800 --> 00:19:50,360 a rejected Christ. Don't let rejection deter you or 296 00:19:50,360 --> 00:19:53,200 silence you. Don't let rejection weaken your 297 00:19:53,200 --> 00:19:56,080 commitment to Christ or your proclamation of Christ. 298 00:19:56,360 --> 00:19:59,320 Keep trusting Him and keep telling others about Him. 299 00:19:59,760 --> 00:20:04,520 We're not all missionaries, but we are all called to tell others 300 00:20:04,760 --> 00:20:07,760 about Jesus. And telling others about Him is 301 00:20:07,760 --> 00:20:11,760 what Jesus sent his apostles out to do in verses 7 to 13. 302 00:20:11,800 --> 00:20:18,000 So point #2 risk point #2. Risk. 303 00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:21,200 What should faithful messengers of Christ expect? 304 00:20:22,560 --> 00:20:27,040 Risk. Risk is an essential ingredient 305 00:20:27,400 --> 00:20:32,720 in making Christ known to all nations, and Jesus required his 306 00:20:32,720 --> 00:20:36,560 apostles to face many different kinds of risks in fulfilling 307 00:20:36,560 --> 00:20:40,040 their first preaching mission, as we see in verses 7 to 13. 308 00:20:41,040 --> 00:20:44,680 Start with verse 7. In verse 7 we see Jesus 309 00:20:44,680 --> 00:20:48,720 Commission and send out his 12 apostles, and he called the 12 310 00:20:48,720 --> 00:20:52,720 and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority 311 00:20:52,960 --> 00:21:01,160 over the unclean spirits. So we noticed that in this first 312 00:21:01,160 --> 00:21:04,600 preaching circuit, Jesus sends his apostles out not only to 313 00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:08,520 speak in his name, but to act in his authority. 314 00:21:08,960 --> 00:21:12,360 Their work of casting out demons is a sign that the Kingdom of 315 00:21:12,360 --> 00:21:15,480 God has come. It's it's borrowed authority, 316 00:21:15,480 --> 00:21:18,040 it's delegated authority. When they cast out those demons, 317 00:21:18,040 --> 00:21:20,440 they're saying the Kingdom is here because the King is here 318 00:21:20,440 --> 00:21:23,880 and his name is Jesus. Notice that he sends them out 319 00:21:23,880 --> 00:21:26,000 two by two. This is probably for a number of 320 00:21:26,000 --> 00:21:29,120 reasons, mutual support, encouragement, help. 321 00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:33,600 Also probably to fulfill the legal requirement in the Torah 322 00:21:33,600 --> 00:21:37,400 of establishing testimony by the mouth of two or three witnesses. 323 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:43,760 How can we apply this principle of two by two and how we as a 324 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:45,600 church carry out the mission of Christ? 325 00:21:46,520 --> 00:21:50,040 One simple way is to involve other Christian friends in your 326 00:21:50,040 --> 00:21:52,760 evangelism. Ask a friend to help you share 327 00:21:52,760 --> 00:21:57,280 the gospel with a non Christian friend that can provide support, 328 00:21:57,280 --> 00:22:01,240 accountability, encouragement. It might also mean that this 329 00:22:01,240 --> 00:22:03,680 friend you enlist might be able to answer some of your non 330 00:22:03,680 --> 00:22:06,080 Christian friends questions better than you can. 331 00:22:06,280 --> 00:22:08,600 Or they might be able to relate to a different aspect of that 332 00:22:08,600 --> 00:22:11,600 friend's experience and kind of unlock a new way of connecting 333 00:22:11,600 --> 00:22:15,160 with them. We should also pray that over 334 00:22:15,160 --> 00:22:21,480 time we as a church can raise up and send out missionary teams 335 00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:24,960 and missionary speak. They call them units, whether an 336 00:22:24,960 --> 00:22:29,320 individual or a couple. It is so helpful to send out 337 00:22:29,320 --> 00:22:33,320 missionary teams of multiple units, whether from the same 338 00:22:33,320 --> 00:22:37,600 church or from a network of like minded churches. 339 00:22:38,600 --> 00:22:41,760 Finally, I'm deeply thankful that implanting this church, 340 00:22:41,760 --> 00:22:44,320 Michael Abraham and I have been able to serve side by side full 341 00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:47,560 time together as pastors. I wanted to say this to 342 00:22:47,560 --> 00:22:50,000 Michael's face, but he's homesick. 343 00:22:50,560 --> 00:22:53,480 Michael, if you listen to this on the audio, I hope you're 344 00:22:53,480 --> 00:22:58,320 encouraged. I'll say it to you all, Being 345 00:22:58,320 --> 00:23:01,720 pastored by Michael for these past few months has been an 346 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:04,120 enormous encouragement and help to me. 347 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:10,360 Michael has done a wonderful job pastoring me, and as far as I 348 00:23:10,360 --> 00:23:15,040 can see, he has done a wonderful job pastoring you all. 349 00:23:15,360 --> 00:23:18,840 It's been one of the great joys of planting this church to serve 350 00:23:18,840 --> 00:23:26,160 side by side with him. After commissioning His 351 00:23:26,160 --> 00:23:30,120 apostles, Jesus gives them two sets of instructions. 352 00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:34,320 Verses 8 and 9 are instructions for the road. 353 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:38,880 Verses 10 and 11 are instructions for their stay in 354 00:23:38,880 --> 00:23:42,760 each place that they visit. So start with verses 8 to 9. 355 00:23:45,760 --> 00:23:48,760 He charged them to take nothing for their journey except the 356 00:23:48,760 --> 00:23:52,200 staff. No bread, no bag, no money in 357 00:23:52,200 --> 00:23:56,640 their belts but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. 358 00:23:57,480 --> 00:24:02,920 The staff was for protection, whether from robbers or from 359 00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:06,480 wild animals. But now why did Jesus prohibit 360 00:24:06,480 --> 00:24:09,240 his apostles from bringing bread or money? 361 00:24:10,200 --> 00:24:13,440 It's because he wanted them to rely exclusively on the 362 00:24:13,440 --> 00:24:16,280 hospitality of those they were going to be ministering to. 363 00:24:16,840 --> 00:24:20,120 Jesus wanted them to depend directly on God, which in this 364 00:24:20,120 --> 00:24:23,840 instance meant depending on the provision of the people they'd 365 00:24:23,840 --> 00:24:26,440 be speaking to. That's also why he prohibited 366 00:24:26,440 --> 00:24:29,320 them from bringing a bag, because this sort of accessory 367 00:24:29,320 --> 00:24:31,920 of a bag was something that other teachers and traveling 368 00:24:31,920 --> 00:24:34,920 philosophers would carry as they begged for gifts. 369 00:24:35,080 --> 00:24:40,920 So no begging, just receiving. Now, the second tunic that Jesus 370 00:24:40,920 --> 00:24:43,400 prohibited them to carry was for warmth. 371 00:24:43,640 --> 00:24:45,880 People would wear a kind of inner garment, and then their 372 00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:48,400 outer garment could serve as a sheet or a blanket. 373 00:24:48,400 --> 00:24:50,520 Like if you didn't have a bed to sleep in, you just wrap your 374 00:24:50,520 --> 00:24:52,640 cloak around you. And Jesus is saying you don't 375 00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:55,320 even get to bring that. You don't get to use your second 376 00:24:55,320 --> 00:24:58,600 cloak as a bed. Someone's going to give you a 377 00:24:58,600 --> 00:25:02,440 bed. Jesus's list of what his 378 00:25:02,440 --> 00:25:07,480 apostles are and aren't to bring with them exactly matches what 379 00:25:07,480 --> 00:25:11,240 the Israelites did and didn't have with them as they left 380 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:16,520 Egypt during the Exodus, as we learn in Exodus chapter 12. 381 00:25:16,760 --> 00:25:21,280 Same Spartan packing list. What's the point of the 382 00:25:21,280 --> 00:25:25,480 connection? The apostles are participating 383 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:30,000 in the new Exodus inaugurated by Jesus, and so they can trust the 384 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:34,160 God of the Exodus to provide for them, just as he provided for 385 00:25:34,160 --> 00:25:36,480 the Israelites in the wilderness. 386 00:25:37,560 --> 00:25:41,120 That's important to recognize all the ways in which this first 387 00:25:41,120 --> 00:25:44,720 temporary mission of the apostles differs both from the 388 00:25:44,720 --> 00:25:48,480 kind of normal Christian life in general and from modern 389 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:50,240 missions. Think about some differences 390 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:53,280 between the apostles first mission and kind of ongoing 391 00:25:53,280 --> 00:25:56,520 Great Commission work. The apostles were going out for 392 00:25:56,520 --> 00:25:59,880 a short preaching tour, whereas modern missionaries often go out 393 00:25:59,880 --> 00:26:02,760 long term, indefinitely, as long as they can stay. 394 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:06,040 The apostles were travelling along their own people in their 395 00:26:06,040 --> 00:26:08,600 own homeland, whereas missionaries go out cross 396 00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:11,240 culturally. The apostles were travelling 397 00:26:11,240 --> 00:26:13,120 among people whose religion they shared. 398 00:26:13,360 --> 00:26:16,320 They were simply announcing the fulfilment of that religion, 399 00:26:16,840 --> 00:26:19,520 whereas modern missionaries often go minister to people of 400 00:26:19,520 --> 00:26:23,080 radically different beliefs. So in all those ways, this 401 00:26:23,080 --> 00:26:26,360 passage is different from Great Commission sending today. 402 00:26:27,560 --> 00:26:32,880 But the common principle is risk. 403 00:26:33,600 --> 00:26:38,000 You have to be willing to risk in order to advance the gospel. 404 00:26:38,720 --> 00:26:42,440 You have to be willing to risk how you'll be provided for and 405 00:26:42,440 --> 00:26:46,120 what degree of comfort you'll live in in order to put 406 00:26:46,120 --> 00:26:51,560 proclaiming the gospel first. There is no way to push the 407 00:26:51,560 --> 00:26:58,080 Great Commission forward without incurring risk in these 408 00:26:58,080 --> 00:27:01,520 instructions for the road in verses 8:00 and 9:00, it's as if 409 00:27:01,560 --> 00:27:04,120 Jesus goes through the normal long list of everything you 410 00:27:04,120 --> 00:27:07,560 would bring on a trip and then he says, OK, don't bring any of 411 00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:14,160 that, only a toothbrush. Are you the kind of person who 412 00:27:14,160 --> 00:27:19,000 over packs for every trip? Let's say you're going on A7 day 413 00:27:19,000 --> 00:27:24,360 vacation and somehow half of your wardrobe makes its way into 414 00:27:24,360 --> 00:27:28,240 your suitcase. You want to be prepared for all 415 00:27:28,240 --> 00:27:30,480 weather. A bathing suit in case it's hot, 416 00:27:31,360 --> 00:27:37,200 a parka in case it snows. Now for me, when I go on a trip, 417 00:27:37,600 --> 00:27:44,400 what I over pack is books. I don't ever want to be in the 418 00:27:44,400 --> 00:27:48,760 position where I actually have time to read and I run out of 419 00:27:48,760 --> 00:27:52,040 stuff to read. That would be the worst. 420 00:27:54,360 --> 00:27:56,760 What are you aiming for when you over pack? 421 00:27:57,680 --> 00:28:00,800 You're aiming for security. You want to be prepared in 422 00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:03,000 advance. You want to have all your bases 423 00:28:03,000 --> 00:28:04,800 covered. You're thinking I can supply 424 00:28:04,800 --> 00:28:06,720 whatever I'm going to need for this trip. 425 00:28:06,960 --> 00:28:10,560 Here's what Jesus is saying in this passage about advancing his 426 00:28:10,560 --> 00:28:12,640 gospel and fulfilling his missionary Commission. 427 00:28:12,960 --> 00:28:22,080 You may not pack for security. You may not over pack. 428 00:28:23,040 --> 00:28:28,640 He's saying your only security will come through God's 429 00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:34,680 provision. In what ways might a love of 430 00:28:34,680 --> 00:28:40,480 comfort or ease be limiting your effectiveness as a messenger of 431 00:28:40,480 --> 00:28:43,920 Christ? In what ways might a love of 432 00:28:43,920 --> 00:28:49,000 comfort or ease be hindering you from contributing to the advance 433 00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:51,080 of the gospel in ways that you could? 434 00:28:52,160 --> 00:29:00,520 What might be a good and godly risk for you to run for the sake 435 00:29:00,520 --> 00:29:05,560 of the gospel? In verses 10 and 11, Jesus gives 436 00:29:05,560 --> 00:29:09,000 the apostles instructions for their stay in each place that 437 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:11,760 they go. And he said to them, whenever 438 00:29:11,760 --> 00:29:15,840 you enter a house, stay there until you depart from there, and 439 00:29:15,840 --> 00:29:18,600 if any place will not receive you and they will not listen to 440 00:29:18,600 --> 00:29:22,160 you when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as 441 00:29:22,160 --> 00:29:26,720 a testimony against them. The point of verse 10 is that 442 00:29:26,720 --> 00:29:29,800 the apostles are to stay with whoever first offers, offers 443 00:29:29,800 --> 00:29:32,120 them hospitality when they show up in a place. 444 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:36,560 Jesus is prohibiting them from changing homes and thereby 445 00:29:36,560 --> 00:29:39,520 moving up the social ladder. Oh, this person offered us a 446 00:29:39,520 --> 00:29:42,280 home at first, but this one's nicer. 447 00:29:43,440 --> 00:29:46,720 This one has better food. These people are more 448 00:29:47,040 --> 00:29:49,840 influential and have more resources at their disposal. 449 00:29:50,400 --> 00:29:54,760 He's prohibiting them from advancement and insisting on 450 00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:59,240 mere provision. And then in verse 11, he 451 00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:00,920 highlights another risk they run. 452 00:30:01,240 --> 00:30:05,200 They run the risk of being rejected just as he was. 453 00:30:05,640 --> 00:30:08,360 It's possible that whole towns and cities will turn against 454 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:11,560 them, just like Jesus own hometown of Nazareth turned 455 00:30:11,560 --> 00:30:14,760 against him. When that happens, the apostles 456 00:30:14,760 --> 00:30:17,280 are to perform this sign of judgment, of shaking off the 457 00:30:17,280 --> 00:30:19,120 dust that is on their feet when they leave. 458 00:30:19,440 --> 00:30:22,840 That's a sign of breaking off communion, of having nothing to 459 00:30:22,840 --> 00:30:25,000 do with them. As if you know, not even the 460 00:30:25,000 --> 00:30:27,880 dust that you live on can stick to me or cling to me. 461 00:30:27,880 --> 00:30:31,440 It's a warning of separation. And how is it a sign? 462 00:30:32,360 --> 00:30:35,760 It's a sign because those towns aren't just rejecting the 463 00:30:35,760 --> 00:30:39,280 apostles, they're rejecting Jesus. 464 00:30:39,960 --> 00:30:44,040 By rejecting Jesus, they're rejecting God their Creator. 465 00:30:44,400 --> 00:30:48,640 It's a warning of judgment. To reject the only message of 466 00:30:48,640 --> 00:30:53,560 salvation is to seal your own judgment. 467 00:30:54,920 --> 00:30:57,280 Now after these instructions we get a brief report of the 468 00:30:57,280 --> 00:31:00,760 apostles activity in verses 12 and 13. 469 00:31:01,840 --> 00:31:04,760 So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. 470 00:31:05,520 --> 00:31:09,600 And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who 471 00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:14,720 were sick and healed them. Here the apostles message echoes 472 00:31:14,720 --> 00:31:18,040 that of Jesus and Mark 115. Jesus proclaimed that people 473 00:31:18,040 --> 00:31:20,280 should repent and so do the apostles. 474 00:31:20,440 --> 00:31:25,680 Hear repentance is an essential component of gospel preaching. 475 00:31:26,040 --> 00:31:29,600 In order to receive Christ as Savior, people must repent of 476 00:31:29,600 --> 00:31:31,640 sin. In order to trust in Christ, 477 00:31:31,640 --> 00:31:34,640 people have to turn from sin. Repentance and faith are two 478 00:31:34,640 --> 00:31:38,840 sides of the same coin. The world around us preaches a 479 00:31:38,880 --> 00:31:42,200 gospel of unconditional affirmation. 480 00:31:42,840 --> 00:31:46,840 The world around us treats a call to repentance as if it's 481 00:31:46,840 --> 00:31:50,640 some kind of traumatizing threat to someone's safety. 482 00:31:51,560 --> 00:31:56,240 But we have a message that demands that we call people to 483 00:31:56,800 --> 00:32:00,960 repent. 1 aspect of faithful evangelism is exhorting people 484 00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:03,640 to turn from sin. This includes both sin in 485 00:32:03,640 --> 00:32:07,360 general and, where relevant, specific sins. 486 00:32:07,640 --> 00:32:11,280 If someone opens up to you about a sin that they're ensnared in, 487 00:32:11,720 --> 00:32:13,920 they know you're a Christian. They know you're trying to get 488 00:32:13,920 --> 00:32:15,720 them to become a Christian. And they say, well, here's 489 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:18,480 what's going on in my life. If they give you that degree of 490 00:32:18,480 --> 00:32:22,680 transparency, it is entirely appropriate to take aim at that 491 00:32:22,680 --> 00:32:25,040 sin. It is entirely appropriate to 492 00:32:25,040 --> 00:32:27,840 plead with them to turn from that sin. 493 00:32:28,080 --> 00:32:30,600 If someone lets you know that there is a sin in their life 494 00:32:30,600 --> 00:32:34,160 standing in the way of them embracing Jesus, then train your 495 00:32:34,160 --> 00:32:38,960 sights on that sin and pray and plead and do whatever you can to 496 00:32:38,960 --> 00:32:41,960 induce them to give up that sin and lay hold of Christ. 497 00:32:42,280 --> 00:32:46,720 It is loving to try to persuade that person to let go of their 498 00:32:46,720 --> 00:32:48,880 grip on that sin so that they can lay hold of Christ. 499 00:32:49,200 --> 00:32:52,800 It is loving to tell that person that sin is spiritually 500 00:32:52,800 --> 00:32:58,240 poisoning them so that they can appeal to God for surgery, get 501 00:32:58,240 --> 00:33:01,200 the poison out and be healed by Christ. 502 00:33:02,800 --> 00:33:06,240 Now, even with all the differences between the Apostles 503 00:33:06,240 --> 00:33:10,240 first mission and our ongoing efforts to fulfill Christ's 504 00:33:10,240 --> 00:33:14,240 Great Commission, the common factor is risk. 505 00:33:14,680 --> 00:33:18,040 So I want to think a little bit more about the role of risk in 506 00:33:18,040 --> 00:33:20,080 our fulfilling the Great Commission. 507 00:33:20,920 --> 00:33:24,440 The apostles risked rejection, and so do we. 508 00:33:25,520 --> 00:33:30,280 The apostles risked humanly uncertain provision, and so must 509 00:33:30,280 --> 00:33:34,440 we in different ways. It's important to see how this 510 00:33:34,440 --> 00:33:39,800 passage implicitly dignifies both those who run the risks and 511 00:33:39,800 --> 00:33:42,920 those who provide for them. The kind of people receiving 512 00:33:42,920 --> 00:33:45,400 them in these towns aren't precisely parallel to Christians 513 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:49,320 supporting missions, but the logic is evidence Those who go 514 00:33:49,320 --> 00:33:51,640 need those who will support and supply. 515 00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:55,240 Those who go need those who will provide. 516 00:33:55,840 --> 00:33:59,400 Missions always involves partnership, and those who 517 00:33:59,400 --> 00:34:03,160 support those who supply are called partners because the 518 00:34:03,160 --> 00:34:04,720 mission doesn't happen without them. 519 00:34:05,560 --> 00:34:09,080 There are countless ways to contribute to the advance of the 520 00:34:09,080 --> 00:34:11,840 gospel. Hospitality is a major 1. 521 00:34:12,199 --> 00:34:15,920 You might open up your home for visiting missionary to stay in. 522 00:34:16,639 --> 00:34:19,120 I'm encouraged by how many of you opened up your homes to me 523 00:34:19,120 --> 00:34:21,880 and Michael and others as you're traveling back and forth in the 524 00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:23,600 kind of early stages of this church land. 525 00:34:23,600 --> 00:34:24,920 It wasn't just for me and Michael. 526 00:34:24,920 --> 00:34:26,320 It was for people considering joining. 527 00:34:26,320 --> 00:34:28,400 It was so they could come to interest meetings. 528 00:34:28,400 --> 00:34:31,719 Multiple of you opened up your homes for that kind of purpose. 529 00:34:32,800 --> 00:34:37,480 How can you use your home as a base for ministry? 530 00:34:38,239 --> 00:34:44,960 How can your home and household in some small way become a 531 00:34:44,960 --> 00:34:50,880 missions sending station? Other ways to advance the gospel 532 00:34:51,120 --> 00:34:54,520 in supporting and partnering and going include building 533 00:34:54,520 --> 00:34:58,040 businesses that can travel overseas and help provide 534 00:34:58,040 --> 00:35:02,240 financial support and visas for gospel workers or other locals. 535 00:35:02,920 --> 00:35:07,040 And of course, there must be some who will take the risks of 536 00:35:07,040 --> 00:35:12,240 becoming full time cross cultural gospel workers. 537 00:35:13,200 --> 00:35:18,440 What risks do full time missionaries incur abandoning a 538 00:35:18,440 --> 00:35:22,320 career or choosing not to start one in the 1st place? 539 00:35:22,960 --> 00:35:26,960 Financial sacrifice. Distance from family. 540 00:35:27,520 --> 00:35:29,680 Often not just physical distance, but emotional 541 00:35:29,680 --> 00:35:32,160 distance. Making a decision, perhaps, to 542 00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:35,760 bring grandkids farther than grandparents want them. 543 00:35:37,440 --> 00:35:43,600 Sometimes harsh living conditions, often rejection and 544 00:35:43,600 --> 00:35:48,200 persecution. Often the threat of violence 545 00:35:48,200 --> 00:35:55,880 against them and their families. What makes those risks worth it? 546 00:35:57,320 --> 00:36:00,880 One factor is confidence in God's provision. 547 00:36:02,040 --> 00:36:06,080 Another is a deep rooted desire for God to be glorified among 548 00:36:06,080 --> 00:36:09,120 the nations. And finally, the kind of anchor 549 00:36:09,120 --> 00:36:13,960 for them all is confidence in our eternal reward. 550 00:36:15,200 --> 00:36:22,520 The clearer that reward is in your mind, the heavier it weighs 551 00:36:22,520 --> 00:36:28,480 on your heart, the more risks you'll be willing to run for the 552 00:36:28,480 --> 00:36:30,520 sake of other people. Come and know Jesus. 553 00:36:32,360 --> 00:36:39,680 Comfort and security are good things, and they are even better 554 00:36:39,680 --> 00:36:44,800 things to let go of for the sake of the progress of the gospel. 555 00:36:46,560 --> 00:36:52,800 Someone who let go of all comfort and security for the 556 00:36:52,800 --> 00:37:00,920 progress of the Gospel was John the Baptist .3 Martyrdom. 557 00:37:01,880 --> 00:37:04,600 What should faithful messengers of Christ expect? 558 00:37:05,920 --> 00:37:08,040 Martyrdom. Not every Christian will be a 559 00:37:08,040 --> 00:37:14,160 martyr, of course, but every Christian should be prepared to 560 00:37:14,160 --> 00:37:16,920 be a martyr. And every Christian should 561 00:37:16,920 --> 00:37:23,640 understand something of how the martyr's calling is essential is 562 00:37:23,640 --> 00:37:28,280 a picture of what it means to be a Christian. 563 00:37:30,000 --> 00:37:34,200 We see this in the tragic story of John the Baptist execution in 564 00:37:34,200 --> 00:37:38,800 verses 14 to 29. Look first at verses 14 to 16. 565 00:37:43,040 --> 00:37:46,920 King Herod heard of it, for Jesus name had become known. 566 00:37:47,960 --> 00:37:51,320 Some said John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, that 567 00:37:51,320 --> 00:37:53,800 is why these miraculous powers are at work in him. 568 00:37:54,640 --> 00:37:58,760 But others said he is Elijah, and others said he is a prophet 569 00:37:59,280 --> 00:38:02,840 like one of the prophets of old. But when Herod heard of it, he 570 00:38:02,840 --> 00:38:06,760 said John whom I beheaded has been raised. 571 00:38:08,600 --> 00:38:11,960 Jesus reputation reached far and wide fast. 572 00:38:12,160 --> 00:38:14,480 That was partly through his own ministry, partly through word of 573 00:38:14,480 --> 00:38:16,120 mouth. It was also partly through the 574 00:38:16,120 --> 00:38:18,400 ministry The disciples have just had right. 575 00:38:18,400 --> 00:38:21,160 Word of this coming to Herod follows upon the apostles 576 00:38:21,240 --> 00:38:25,520 preaching ministry. Now the report about Jesus comes 577 00:38:25,520 --> 00:38:30,280 to Herod the local ruler. The Herod mentioned here is 578 00:38:30,280 --> 00:38:33,520 Herod Antipus. His title was technically 579 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:37,800 tetrarch of Galilee, but he craved the title King. 580 00:38:38,360 --> 00:38:41,320 And so Mark May be mocking him here by calling him king. 581 00:38:41,720 --> 00:38:45,640 Herod Antipas was half Jewish, but his lifestyle was anything 582 00:38:45,640 --> 00:38:51,280 but exemplary Torah keeping. So here Mark provides a survey 583 00:38:51,280 --> 00:38:53,000 of what people were saying about Jesus. 584 00:38:53,200 --> 00:38:56,560 Some people thought he was a prophet, and he was, but he was 585 00:38:56,560 --> 00:38:58,800 more than that. Some people thought he was 586 00:38:58,800 --> 00:39:00,800 Elijah. That's not as random as you 587 00:39:00,800 --> 00:39:04,080 might think because as we'll see tonight, Elijah was prophesied 588 00:39:04,080 --> 00:39:06,400 to come back before the day of the Lord. 589 00:39:06,960 --> 00:39:12,240 But Jesus wasn't Elijah. He was the Lord whose way Elijah 590 00:39:12,280 --> 00:39:14,280 prepared. We saw the beginning of Mark's 591 00:39:14,280 --> 00:39:16,800 gospel that John the Baptist fulfills this role of being 592 00:39:16,800 --> 00:39:21,040 Elijah, who prepares the way for the day of the Lord. 593 00:39:21,680 --> 00:39:25,040 But now Harriet, along with some others, apparently has a strange 594 00:39:25,040 --> 00:39:29,080 view of who Jesus is. John the Baptist raised from the 595 00:39:29,080 --> 00:39:33,160 dead. OK, now Jesus and John the 596 00:39:33,160 --> 00:39:35,560 Baptist public ministries overlapped. 597 00:39:35,880 --> 00:39:39,760 They were virtually the same age, so it's hard to know how 598 00:39:39,760 --> 00:39:45,640 John could have been resurrected and reincarnated as someone who 599 00:39:45,640 --> 00:39:47,880 is already 30 years old. It doesn't really make sense, 600 00:39:48,040 --> 00:39:50,400 but the point is, we're not meant to puzzle this out and see 601 00:39:50,400 --> 00:39:52,240 how this weird theology makes sense. 602 00:39:52,400 --> 00:39:57,400 The point is that Herod's conscience was haunting him. 603 00:39:58,200 --> 00:40:00,960 Herod was responsible for John's beheading. 604 00:40:01,600 --> 00:40:05,840 And the murderer feared the man he murdered. 605 00:40:07,880 --> 00:40:10,400 Now the text is going to flashback and tell us what 606 00:40:10,400 --> 00:40:12,880 happened. Verses 17 to 20. 607 00:40:14,520 --> 00:40:17,200 For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in 608 00:40:17,200 --> 00:40:20,880 prison for the sake of Herodias his brother Philip's wife, 609 00:40:21,280 --> 00:40:24,200 because he had married her. For John had been saying to 610 00:40:24,200 --> 00:40:28,840 Herod, It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife. 611 00:40:29,400 --> 00:40:31,960 And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put 612 00:40:31,960 --> 00:40:35,520 him to death, but she could not. For Herod feared John, knowing 613 00:40:35,520 --> 00:40:38,280 that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. 614 00:40:39,040 --> 00:40:42,840 When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he 615 00:40:42,840 --> 00:40:46,640 heard him gladly. So here's the back story. 616 00:40:47,560 --> 00:40:50,640 Herod was already married to another woman. 617 00:40:51,560 --> 00:40:56,720 His brother Philip was married to Herodias, but Herod wanted 618 00:40:56,720 --> 00:41:02,440 Herodias, so he groundlessly divorced his wife and he stole 619 00:41:02,440 --> 00:41:05,200 his brother Philip's wife to be his own wife. 620 00:41:05,720 --> 00:41:10,280 This is wrong on so many levels, and we know we learned from the 621 00:41:10,280 --> 00:41:13,840 passage that John somehow had access to Herod. 622 00:41:14,960 --> 00:41:17,360 Perhaps Herod invited him to preach at his court. 623 00:41:18,320 --> 00:41:20,680 We don't know exactly how, but somehow John had that 624 00:41:20,680 --> 00:41:24,560 opportunity to speak directly to Herod, and he used it 625 00:41:25,120 --> 00:41:31,520 courageously to rebuke him. Specifically, John would have 626 00:41:31,520 --> 00:41:35,080 appealed to the Law in Leviticus 18 and 20 that forbade a man 627 00:41:35,080 --> 00:41:37,320 from having intercourse with his brother's wife. 628 00:41:37,640 --> 00:41:39,400 After all, Herod was half Jewish. 629 00:41:39,560 --> 00:41:43,080 He would have claimed to obey the Law of Moses, even if that 630 00:41:43,080 --> 00:41:46,360 claim to align himself with the Law of Moses was more of a 631 00:41:46,360 --> 00:41:50,440 convenient political veneer than anything that spoke to the state 632 00:41:50,440 --> 00:41:54,760 of his heart. Faithful evangelism involves 633 00:41:54,760 --> 00:41:58,560 preaching the Law. Faithful evangelism will, at 634 00:41:58,560 --> 00:42:01,080 times, involve calling out specific sins. 635 00:42:01,360 --> 00:42:05,800 It's not fun, it's risky, and you should not take any kind of 636 00:42:05,800 --> 00:42:10,600 perverse Glee in it. But sometimes calling out a 637 00:42:10,600 --> 00:42:14,040 specific sin is the most loving thing you can do, even if the 638 00:42:14,040 --> 00:42:17,480 person you're talking to will receive it as the opposite of 639 00:42:17,480 --> 00:42:22,800 love. Naturally, Herodias had a grudge 640 00:42:22,840 --> 00:42:27,400 against John like Jezebel did against Elijah, as we read in 641 00:42:27,400 --> 00:42:32,640 First Kings 19, but Herod's respect for John kept her hatred 642 00:42:32,640 --> 00:42:36,360 at Bay. Though John was in prison, at 643 00:42:36,360 --> 00:42:40,480 least he's safe there. No assassin can get to him 644 00:42:40,840 --> 00:42:44,520 there. And we see how much power this 645 00:42:44,520 --> 00:42:47,360 powerless imprisoned prophet had. 646 00:42:47,920 --> 00:42:50,880 Herod knew John was righteous and holy. 647 00:42:51,080 --> 00:42:55,520 He could not deny the testimony of John's character. 648 00:42:55,760 --> 00:42:59,360 And Herod heard him. He apparently invited John out 649 00:42:59,360 --> 00:43:03,160 of his prison cell to come and preach to him repeatedly. 650 00:43:03,520 --> 00:43:06,200 He heard him gladly. He didn't know what to make of 651 00:43:06,200 --> 00:43:07,520 John's preaching. He was puzzled. 652 00:43:07,520 --> 00:43:11,920 He was confused, but there was something he liked in it, as JC 653 00:43:11,920 --> 00:43:15,360 Rile observed. We see here the amazing power of 654 00:43:15,360 --> 00:43:20,720 truth over the conscience. Herod fears John the Baptist 655 00:43:20,720 --> 00:43:24,320 while he lives and is troubled about him after he dies. 656 00:43:25,000 --> 00:43:30,840 A friendless, solitary preacher with no other weapon than God's 657 00:43:30,840 --> 00:43:35,480 truth disturbs and terrifies the king. 658 00:43:37,280 --> 00:43:41,400 But John's situation is not exactly stable. 659 00:43:42,200 --> 00:43:47,920 Verses 21 to 23 But an opportunity came when Herod on 660 00:43:47,920 --> 00:43:50,800 his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and military 661 00:43:50,800 --> 00:43:52,640 commanders and the leading men of Galilee. 662 00:43:53,760 --> 00:43:57,400 For when Herodias daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod 663 00:43:57,400 --> 00:44:00,520 and his guests. And the king said to the girl, 664 00:44:00,520 --> 00:44:03,160 Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you. 665 00:44:03,880 --> 00:44:08,280 And he vowed to her, Whatever you ask me, I will give you up 666 00:44:08,480 --> 00:44:14,040 to half of my Kingdom. Here Herod is entertaining his 667 00:44:14,040 --> 00:44:17,320 powerful and influential supporters, his inner circle. 668 00:44:18,040 --> 00:44:21,720 Now, the young woman who dances is Herodias, his daughter by 669 00:44:21,720 --> 00:44:24,880 Philip. The account is reserved, but it 670 00:44:24,880 --> 00:44:28,400 doesn't take much imagination to infer what kind of dancing would 671 00:44:28,400 --> 00:44:31,280 have so pleased the ruler and his guests that he makes this 672 00:44:31,280 --> 00:44:33,760 big, boastful offer to give her whatever she wants. 673 00:44:34,560 --> 00:44:37,000 When Herod offers her up to half his Kingdom, that's 674 00:44:37,000 --> 00:44:39,800 stereotypical language, a kind of big, boastful, generous 675 00:44:39,800 --> 00:44:41,840 offer. It's also kind of an empty 676 00:44:41,840 --> 00:44:44,040 promise. Herod's a client king. 677 00:44:44,280 --> 00:44:47,640 He doesn't own any of this land. He doesn't have the authority to 678 00:44:47,640 --> 00:44:50,720 give her a single acre. But nonetheless, the point is 679 00:44:50,720 --> 00:44:53,160 that she's got him in the palm of her hand. 680 00:44:54,080 --> 00:44:55,760 She just doesn't know what to do with him. 681 00:44:56,960 --> 00:45:02,680 So verses 24 to 29. And she went out and said to her 682 00:45:02,680 --> 00:45:05,640 mother, for which did I ask? And she said the head of John 683 00:45:05,640 --> 00:45:08,600 the Baptist. And she came in immediately with 684 00:45:08,600 --> 00:45:12,160 haste to the king, and asked, saying, I want you to give me at 685 00:45:12,160 --> 00:45:14,200 once the head of John the Baptist on a platter. 686 00:45:14,760 --> 00:45:18,320 And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths 687 00:45:18,880 --> 00:45:22,160 and his guests, he did not want to break his word to her. 688 00:45:22,680 --> 00:45:25,800 And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring 689 00:45:25,800 --> 00:45:28,440 John's head. He went and beheaded him in the 690 00:45:28,440 --> 00:45:32,520 prison and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, 691 00:45:33,320 --> 00:45:34,560 and the girl gave it to her mother. 692 00:45:35,480 --> 00:45:40,840 When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and 693 00:45:40,840 --> 00:45:46,960 laid it in a tomb. Everything comes to a head in 694 00:45:46,960 --> 00:45:51,520 verse 26. The king was exceedingly sorry, 695 00:45:52,320 --> 00:45:56,080 but because of his odes and his guests, he did not want to break 696 00:45:56,080 --> 00:46:01,400 his word to her. Here both John's fate and 697 00:46:01,720 --> 00:46:08,520 Herod's hang in the balance. Herod was a man blown and driven 698 00:46:08,760 --> 00:46:18,640 by his passions, lust, pride, fear of man, love of power. 699 00:46:19,400 --> 00:46:23,080 His conscience weighed down on him and pulled him toward John, 700 00:46:24,240 --> 00:46:29,120 but his sin pulled harder in the opposite direction. 701 00:46:30,240 --> 00:46:34,760 In that moment of giving that order, there's a sense in which 702 00:46:34,760 --> 00:46:38,320 Herod sealed not only John's fate, but his own. 703 00:46:39,360 --> 00:46:43,320 He chose to keep the world at the cost of his soul. 704 00:46:44,040 --> 00:46:46,440 He chose to please his wife and his stepdaughter and his inner 705 00:46:46,440 --> 00:46:49,840 circle rather than submitting to God in his word. 706 00:46:51,000 --> 00:46:57,920 Sins that had planted seeds in Herod's heart years before came 707 00:46:57,920 --> 00:47:00,360 to a bitter fruition. Now. 708 00:47:01,760 --> 00:47:07,240 All the promising spiritual signs in Herod's life fell short 709 00:47:07,280 --> 00:47:11,880 of true repentance. You look at Herod's character. 710 00:47:12,320 --> 00:47:15,320 You should not make the mistake of thinking that because he 711 00:47:15,320 --> 00:47:20,520 likes to hear John the Baptist preach, he must be with Jesus. 712 00:47:22,000 --> 00:47:25,120 There were good signs. He protected him. 713 00:47:25,120 --> 00:47:27,240 He kept him safe. He respected his character. 714 00:47:27,360 --> 00:47:31,480 He liked what he heard, and yet none of those spiritual signs 715 00:47:31,480 --> 00:47:37,280 added up to true repentance. It's not enough to respect a 716 00:47:37,280 --> 00:47:39,280 righteous man. It's not enough to enjoy hearing 717 00:47:39,280 --> 00:47:41,960 a faithful preacher. Only repentance from the heart 718 00:47:42,120 --> 00:47:45,720 will deliver your soul from sins Tyranny. 719 00:47:46,600 --> 00:47:48,880 So John dies. It's a tragic death. 720 00:47:49,160 --> 00:47:52,160 It's a seemingly futile death. We have to ask a couple of 721 00:47:52,160 --> 00:47:55,920 questions. Why does Mark narrate this story 722 00:47:55,920 --> 00:47:57,880 at such length? It's the longest single 723 00:47:57,880 --> 00:48:00,400 narrative in all Mark's gospel that's not about Jesus. 724 00:48:00,800 --> 00:48:04,440 Why does he give it so much space, and why does he put it 725 00:48:04,800 --> 00:48:11,600 here in this section on mission and ministry and rejection? 726 00:48:12,880 --> 00:48:18,160 I think the answer to why he puts the story here is that he's 727 00:48:18,160 --> 00:48:24,240 sending the message that gospel advance will come through cross 728 00:48:24,240 --> 00:48:29,080 shaped sacrifice. John's defeat wasn't ultimately 729 00:48:29,080 --> 00:48:31,440 a defeat, it was part of the plan God had ordained for his 730 00:48:31,440 --> 00:48:34,440 ministry. Those who go out and preach on 731 00:48:34,440 --> 00:48:39,960 Jesus behalf will run these risks and God will work through 732 00:48:39,960 --> 00:48:42,720 them. But I think the reason John 733 00:48:42,720 --> 00:48:48,160 narrates this story at such length is because John's story 734 00:48:48,800 --> 00:48:53,200 foreshadows Jesus's story. John's fate foreshadows Jesus's 735 00:48:53,200 --> 00:48:56,240 fate. What happened to John will 736 00:48:56,240 --> 00:48:59,640 happen to Jesus. John was eagerly heard, and so 737 00:48:59,640 --> 00:49:02,160 is Jesus. John became the object of the 738 00:49:02,160 --> 00:49:05,560 curiosity of a leader who tried unsuccessfully to save him. 739 00:49:06,280 --> 00:49:09,280 So would Jesus. John was arrested and bound, 740 00:49:09,440 --> 00:49:12,280 executed and buried. So was Jesus. 741 00:49:12,680 --> 00:49:18,320 John died alone, so did Jesus. John was buried by faithful 742 00:49:18,320 --> 00:49:21,120 disciples. So was Jesus. 743 00:49:21,600 --> 00:49:27,520 In John's death, a partial Jew, ruling at Rome's behest, accedes 744 00:49:27,520 --> 00:49:30,720 to the demand that he be killed so that he won't be embarrassed 745 00:49:30,720 --> 00:49:34,480 in front of the crowd. In Jesus's death, Pilate the 746 00:49:34,480 --> 00:49:38,880 Roman accedes to the desires of the chief priests and the crowd 747 00:49:39,280 --> 00:49:42,640 that Jesus be crucified. As one scholar put it, in both 748 00:49:42,640 --> 00:49:46,400 executions Jews conspire with Gentiles, thus representing all 749 00:49:46,400 --> 00:49:50,400 humanity to kill those sent to redeem humanity. 750 00:49:51,440 --> 00:49:59,800 John foreshadows Jesus, and in Jesus case we see why His 751 00:49:59,800 --> 00:50:03,720 rejection leads to the acceptance of all who believe. 752 00:50:04,360 --> 00:50:08,720 His unjust execution was not just a human miscarriage of 753 00:50:08,720 --> 00:50:12,280 justice, though it was. It was also God's ordained means 754 00:50:12,520 --> 00:50:15,640 of punishing all the sins of all those who had turned from sin 755 00:50:15,640 --> 00:50:20,600 and trust in Him. Jesus's rejection means even 756 00:50:20,600 --> 00:50:22,840 those who rejected him can be accepted. 757 00:50:23,600 --> 00:50:27,400 And Jesus's rejection is not the end of the story because God 758 00:50:27,400 --> 00:50:31,760 rose him from the dead. God reversed the world's guilty 759 00:50:31,760 --> 00:50:34,680 verdict. God reversed the world's verdict 760 00:50:34,680 --> 00:50:39,200 of pretender, false prophet, nothing, nobody. 761 00:50:39,360 --> 00:50:43,080 God lifted him up out of the grave, rose him up to his right 762 00:50:43,080 --> 00:50:46,560 hand, and now calls upon everyone everywhere to repent 763 00:50:46,560 --> 00:50:49,960 and believe in Him. Jesus's rejection can become 764 00:50:49,960 --> 00:50:54,640 your salvation if you only turn from sin and trust in Christ. 765 00:50:55,520 --> 00:51:01,080 John's story finds resolution only in Jesus resurrection. 766 00:51:01,880 --> 00:51:06,920 The story of every martyr finds its resolution only in Jesus 767 00:51:06,920 --> 00:51:09,920 resurrection. Because Jesus was raised from 768 00:51:09,920 --> 00:51:15,240 death, so will every faithful martyr be, and every faithful 769 00:51:15,560 --> 00:51:18,000 Christian. Because Jesus was raised from 770 00:51:18,000 --> 00:51:23,760 the dead, every tragedy suffered by one of God's people will one 771 00:51:23,760 --> 00:51:30,120 day turn into victory. The end of John's story is not 772 00:51:30,120 --> 00:51:33,320 the end of John's story. Because Jesus was raised from 773 00:51:33,320 --> 00:51:37,200 the dead, John will be too, and so will all who trust in him. 774 00:51:38,200 --> 00:51:41,400 What should faithful messengers of Christ expect? 775 00:51:41,760 --> 00:51:47,120 Rejection, risk, and sometimes even martyrdom. 776 00:51:47,800 --> 00:51:51,240 What makes all that risk and rejection and even martyrdom 777 00:51:51,240 --> 00:51:54,400 worth it? The promise of resurrection to 778 00:51:54,400 --> 00:52:02,000 eternal life with our Lord. John Bradford was born near 779 00:52:02,000 --> 00:52:06,840 Manchester, England in 1510. He began his adult life as the 780 00:52:06,840 --> 00:52:10,480 servant of a high-ranking nobleman, and so he had 781 00:52:10,480 --> 00:52:16,640 considerable wealth and status. When he was 37 years old he was 782 00:52:16,640 --> 00:52:20,160 born again, and one of the fruits of his conversion was 783 00:52:20,160 --> 00:52:23,120 that he sold off all kinds of jewelry and gold articles and 784 00:52:23,120 --> 00:52:26,360 used all the proceeds to care for poor Christians. 785 00:52:27,360 --> 00:52:30,080 After studying at Cambridge, he entered the Christian ministry 786 00:52:30,600 --> 00:52:32,840 and was sent out by King Edward the 6th as the kind of 787 00:52:32,840 --> 00:52:35,200 travelling preacher of Reformation doctrine. 788 00:52:35,640 --> 00:52:38,360 Kind of like the apostles made their circuit of Israel, he made 789 00:52:38,360 --> 00:52:43,560 a circuit of England. Bradford became renowned for his 790 00:52:43,560 --> 00:52:48,760 deeply godly character, gentle demeanor, and fearless preaching 791 00:52:48,760 --> 00:52:52,480 of holiness and repentance, just like John the Baptist. 792 00:52:53,760 --> 00:52:57,200 When King Edward died and his intensely Roman Catholic sister 793 00:52:57,200 --> 00:53:01,760 Mary took the throne, Bradford was imprisoned within a month. 794 00:53:02,680 --> 00:53:05,480 Bradford's refusal to embrace Roman Catholic teaching on the 795 00:53:05,480 --> 00:53:08,520 Church, the sacraments, and salvation would cost him his 796 00:53:08,520 --> 00:53:14,160 life. He never left prison again until 797 00:53:14,160 --> 00:53:16,040 he was led out to be burned at the stake. 798 00:53:18,480 --> 00:53:20,640 Bradford's sentence of condemnation was passed on 799 00:53:20,640 --> 00:53:25,440 January 31st, 1555, and then a few months later, on the morning 800 00:53:25,440 --> 00:53:30,680 of July 1st, 1555 in London, Bradford was led out to be 801 00:53:30,680 --> 00:53:34,040 executed. When word of it got out, a huge 802 00:53:34,040 --> 00:53:37,920 multitude assembled on the spot. On his way to be executed, 803 00:53:38,600 --> 00:53:42,360 Bradford distributed his remaining money as gifts, He 804 00:53:42,360 --> 00:53:46,160 gave away articles of his clothing, and he prayed with 805 00:53:46,160 --> 00:53:51,240 friends and acquaintances. When he was bound to the stake 806 00:53:52,280 --> 00:53:57,560 and about to be burned, he prayed for the forgiveness of 807 00:53:57,560 --> 00:54:00,920 those who decreed and carried out his execution. 808 00:54:07,760 --> 00:54:10,440 Then he turned to the young man who's being executed with him 809 00:54:10,440 --> 00:54:15,680 and said, Be of good comfort, brother, for we shall have a 810 00:54:15,720 --> 00:54:19,720 merry supper with our Lord this night. 811 00:54:22,080 --> 00:54:26,200 What should faithful messengers of Christ expect? 812 00:54:27,400 --> 00:54:35,760 Rejection, risk, martyrdom, and then feasting with our Lord 813 00:54:35,760 --> 00:54:37,600 forever. Let's pray. 814 00:54:44,600 --> 00:54:52,080 Father, we praise you for your power in raising the dead. 815 00:54:53,440 --> 00:54:57,240 We praise you for your generosity and promising all who 816 00:54:57,240 --> 00:55:01,240 trust in Christ an eternal reward beyond what we can 817 00:55:01,240 --> 00:55:05,200 conceive. And so, Father, we pray that you 818 00:55:05,200 --> 00:55:09,920 would grant us to live for you, and live so that others may come 819 00:55:09,920 --> 00:55:16,920 to know You, whatever it costs us, in Jesus name, Amen.