1 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:07,000 I invite you to turn with me to the Gospel of Mark in chapter 2 00:00:07,000 --> 00:00:20,600 14, beginning in verse 26. Mark 1426 and the passage will 3 00:00:20,600 --> 00:00:30,150 end at verse 31. And when they had sung. 4 00:00:30,190 --> 00:00:33,270 A hymn. They went out to the Mount of 5 00:00:33,270 --> 00:00:37,680 Olives, and Jesus said to them, You will all fall away. 6 00:00:37,680 --> 00:00:41,040 For it is written, I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep will 7 00:00:41,040 --> 00:00:44,840 be scattered. But after I am raised up, I will 8 00:00:44,840 --> 00:00:49,840 go before you to Galilee. Peter said to him, Even though 9 00:00:49,840 --> 00:00:55,040 they all fall away, I will not. And Jesus said to him, Truly, I 10 00:00:55,040 --> 00:01:00,160 tell you this very night before the rooster crows twice, you 11 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:04,720 will deny me three times. But he said emphatically, if I 12 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:08,680 must die with you, I will not deny you. 13 00:01:09,360 --> 00:01:15,440 And they all said the same. Lord, help us understand this 14 00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:17,880 passage. Give us your help. 15 00:01:18,960 --> 00:01:24,000 We need you and we believe you in Jesus name, Amen. 16 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:30,680 My prayer is really simple. My prayer for our time together 17 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:34,480 is that the explanations and the applications of this very text 18 00:01:34,480 --> 00:01:37,120 that we just read would do one thing. 19 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:45,040 It would awaken the eyes of our hearts to the splendor of the 20 00:01:45,040 --> 00:01:49,280 Savior. I hope that if anything moves 21 00:01:49,280 --> 00:01:53,240 you today, it will be a refined understanding of the nature of 22 00:01:53,240 --> 00:01:57,040 the Lord Jesus Christ. Again, my prayer is that each of 23 00:01:57,040 --> 00:02:02,560 us here would be fixated on Him, fixated by his fascinating 24 00:02:02,560 --> 00:02:08,800 fortitude, his unbreakable love, his breathtaking loyalty. 25 00:02:10,199 --> 00:02:15,160 And the stage that is set to display His glory remains in 26 00:02:15,160 --> 00:02:19,480 that upper room, the same room where Jesus and his. 27 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:23,920 Disciples honor the Passover. Where the Lord discussed his 28 00:02:23,920 --> 00:02:29,320 betrayer while eating with him, and where Christ instituted the 29 00:02:29,320 --> 00:02:34,480 Lord's Supper for His church. So much has happened already in 30 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:37,680 one evening, and yet there's still more to discover. 31 00:02:37,680 --> 00:02:41,600 And I want us to explore those things by the Spirit's help. 32 00:02:42,440 --> 00:02:46,440 Again, my agenda with this message is by the grace of God. 33 00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:50,600 It's to reveal the heart of Jesus. 34 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:57,200 To you and his heart for you. I mean, just providentially, 35 00:02:57,200 --> 00:03:00,320 these songs that we're singing are just praising God that so 36 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:04,080 much on Christ, so much on his love, so much on his nature. 37 00:03:04,200 --> 00:03:07,720 Yes, we do that weekly, but I feel as though the songs that 38 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:10,120 were chosen for this time fits perfectly with what we're going 39 00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:13,600 to see in the Lord today. So where shall we begin? 40 00:03:13,600 --> 00:03:17,200 Where we started? Let's meditate on verse 12 for a 41 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:19,480 brief time. Again, it says here, and when 42 00:03:19,480 --> 00:03:24,240 they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives. 43 00:03:25,720 --> 00:03:28,040 Be honest, how many of us would just brush over a verse like 44 00:03:28,040 --> 00:03:30,520 that? We would simply deem it as a 45 00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:35,440 transition, but it's not. It pulls us to meditate. 46 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:38,040 It draws us into consider what's happening here. 47 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:42,000 Do you realize that this is the only place in all the Gospels 48 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:46,640 that we're told Jesus sang? And more than singing, we have 49 00:03:46,640 --> 00:03:50,760 two actions here that offer powerful thoughts, each offering 50 00:03:50,760 --> 00:03:53,280 profound insight. So you have to understand that 51 00:03:53,280 --> 00:03:55,600 as the Lord here and his disciples are concluding the 52 00:03:55,600 --> 00:04:01,440 Passover celebration, they chose to pause and do what we tend to 53 00:04:01,440 --> 00:04:05,600 do when we end any service as we gather together and sing and 54 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:08,440 sing. And it's likely that the Lord 55 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:14,200 who has been delegating and directing this whole meal also 56 00:04:14,200 --> 00:04:18,160 at this time conducted this intimate doxology. 57 00:04:18,160 --> 00:04:21,720 He was the one behind it. Can you imagine it? 58 00:04:22,720 --> 00:04:27,400 Jesus singing? Think about it. 59 00:04:28,200 --> 00:04:30,160 You know what thought came to my mind when I was meditating on 60 00:04:30,160 --> 00:04:32,000 it? What did his voice sound like? 61 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:37,800 How strong was it? What kind of emotion did he have 62 00:04:37,800 --> 00:04:41,920 as he sang those stanzas and those verses? 63 00:04:43,200 --> 00:04:44,640 What kind of? Focus did he have? 64 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:51,680 Did it carry the same authority as he had when he preached, only 65 00:04:51,680 --> 00:04:54,920 left to imagine? And additionally, I thought, 66 00:04:55,160 --> 00:04:58,760 what did they sing? It says here generally that the 67 00:04:58,760 --> 00:05:01,520 saying of hymn. But what hymn the Spirit doesn't 68 00:05:01,520 --> 00:05:03,960 tell us. But we may have a hint from the 69 00:05:03,960 --> 00:05:07,760 Jewish Talmud, which is a collection of writings that were 70 00:05:08,160 --> 00:05:12,080 brought together by rabbinical teachings around the 1st 71 00:05:12,080 --> 00:05:16,040 century. And in that set of documents 72 00:05:16,040 --> 00:05:21,560 we're told how some of the Jews, the time of Christ, would have 73 00:05:21,560 --> 00:05:25,920 celebrated these feast, these Old Testament feast. 74 00:05:27,200 --> 00:05:31,760 And there is a set of Homs called the halal psalms, Halal 75 00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:35,160 being the same word that we have in Hallelujah, praise in Hebrew. 76 00:05:36,240 --> 00:05:42,040 And those psalms are grouped by Psalm 113 to Psalm 118. 77 00:05:42,040 --> 00:05:44,360 And it is believed that throughout, specifically the 78 00:05:44,360 --> 00:05:48,320 Passover, those psalms would be sung throughout the evening. 79 00:05:49,960 --> 00:05:52,160 And the last Psalm, the concluding Psalm, would have 80 00:05:52,160 --> 00:05:57,320 been Psalm 118, which is very likely what Mark referred to 81 00:05:57,320 --> 00:06:00,640 when he said that Jesus and his disciples sang to him. 82 00:06:02,320 --> 00:06:04,320 Is it for certain? No, because it's not in 83 00:06:04,320 --> 00:06:06,080 Scripture. But you know what is certain? 84 00:06:07,000 --> 00:06:09,760 Maybe not what he's saying, but when he sang it. 85 00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:14,000 When he sang it, which is just as profound. 86 00:06:15,640 --> 00:06:19,480 What's the context? Jesus Christ chose to lift up 87 00:06:19,480 --> 00:06:24,840 his voice with a melody right after revealing that he was 88 00:06:24,840 --> 00:06:27,400 going to be betrayed from one of the 12. 89 00:06:29,360 --> 00:06:32,240 And even right before he tells his own disciples that they're 90 00:06:32,240 --> 00:06:36,880 all going to abandon him. That is when Jesus Christ chose 91 00:06:36,880 --> 00:06:39,920 to lift up worship to the Lord with a tune. 92 00:06:41,160 --> 00:06:45,280 And you have to be aware of of believing that when Jesus Christ 93 00:06:45,800 --> 00:06:49,760 made predictions or declared prophetic insights that he did 94 00:06:49,760 --> 00:06:53,640 so with unfeeling manifestations of omniscience. 95 00:06:54,720 --> 00:06:58,400 When Christ spoke about His betrayer, don't think He did so 96 00:06:58,400 --> 00:07:02,120 mechanically. When Christ understood that His 97 00:07:02,120 --> 00:07:06,000 disciples were going to run away from him, don't think that He 98 00:07:06,000 --> 00:07:09,920 did so without emotion. And if you doubt that for any 99 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:11,560 reason, go to the Gospel of John. 100 00:07:11,560 --> 00:07:14,560 Look at one verse that will dispel any misconception about 101 00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:18,080 Christ's heart, His humanity in this moment. 102 00:07:18,080 --> 00:07:22,640 In verse 21 of John 13, listen to how the Holy Spirit pens it 103 00:07:23,720 --> 00:07:28,400 from John's perspective. After saying these things, Jesus 104 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:33,640 was troubled in His Spirit and testify truly, truly. 105 00:07:33,640 --> 00:07:36,640 I say to you, one of you will betray me. 106 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:41,040 He was disturbed with that reality. 107 00:07:41,760 --> 00:07:46,760 Oh, he knew it, the scriptures foretold it, but it didn't 108 00:07:46,760 --> 00:07:53,240 cancel out the pain with it. He was troubled in His spirit as 109 00:07:53,240 --> 00:07:57,320 he shared these things, and though troubled in His spirit, 110 00:07:57,320 --> 00:08:03,240 he sang. Still, though distressed, he 111 00:08:03,240 --> 00:08:10,520 mustered up the strength to give this truth in song to God and 112 00:08:10,520 --> 00:08:14,800 before His people. Why couldn't He have concluded 113 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:18,000 the evening because of the heaviness of His heart with no 114 00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:21,080 song and just move on to the Mount of Olives? 115 00:08:21,080 --> 00:08:23,600 He could have, but why didn't He not? 116 00:08:23,600 --> 00:08:26,400 Because of mere custom. The Lord Jesus never did 117 00:08:26,400 --> 00:08:28,920 anything out of mere formality. Never. 118 00:08:30,280 --> 00:08:32,320 He did it because of why He did everything. 119 00:08:32,320 --> 00:08:37,320 The Father was worthy of it. He sought to glorify the Father 120 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:39,640 in every way, including this way. 121 00:08:41,280 --> 00:08:44,440 You know, the book of Hebrews tells us that we are to offer up 122 00:08:44,440 --> 00:08:48,960 to God continually, a sacrifice of praise. 123 00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:52,360 A sacrifice of praise. That's for us. 124 00:08:53,160 --> 00:08:56,600 What language? Sacrifice of praise. 125 00:08:56,840 --> 00:08:59,440 And then He describes what that sacrifice looks like. 126 00:08:59,640 --> 00:09:04,240 That is the fruit of the lips which acknowledge His name. 127 00:09:05,880 --> 00:09:09,240 So praise isn't internal. It should come from the inside, 128 00:09:09,400 --> 00:09:12,520 but it manifests outwardly. It manifests with a sound. 129 00:09:13,320 --> 00:09:17,200 And according to God, when you and I choose to praise, even 130 00:09:17,200 --> 00:09:22,320 when it feels like a sacrifice, that is a pleasing aroma to God, 131 00:09:23,200 --> 00:09:26,720 that moves God, that honors God, that glorifies God. 132 00:09:27,280 --> 00:09:30,080 See, what we did here wasn't just the appetizer for the Word 133 00:09:30,080 --> 00:09:31,800 of God. What we just did in the past 30 134 00:09:31,800 --> 00:09:37,440 minutes was worship. It was pleasing to God, both 135 00:09:37,440 --> 00:09:41,400 insight and sound. And here's the Lord Jesus Christ 136 00:09:41,400 --> 00:09:45,320 modeling this for us. Despite the distress and His 137 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:51,480 soul, He gave to the Father words that blessed him and even 138 00:09:51,480 --> 00:09:56,160 blessed His people. Now hypothetically, if Jesus did 139 00:09:56,160 --> 00:09:59,880 sing Psalm 118, I don't know what parts of it he's saying. 140 00:09:59,880 --> 00:10:02,800 I don't know if it was the entire thing, but I just love to 141 00:10:02,800 --> 00:10:06,480 imagine Him singing these particular verses. 142 00:10:07,040 --> 00:10:10,000 After learning He was troubled in spirit, knowing what's ahead 143 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:14,120 of Him, He was still able to posture himself in such a way to 144 00:10:14,120 --> 00:10:17,480 give God such honor. Would you like to see it with 145 00:10:17,480 --> 00:10:18,760 me? Go to Psalm 118. 146 00:10:18,760 --> 00:10:21,800 Look at the first few verses and with everything that you just 147 00:10:21,800 --> 00:10:27,280 heard, imagine the Son of God in flesh in that upper room, hours 148 00:10:27,280 --> 00:10:32,000 away from his arrest, betrayal, torture, and him being able to 149 00:10:32,000 --> 00:10:35,800 do and say this in Psalm 118 verse one. 150 00:10:42,380 --> 00:10:48,380 Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast 151 00:10:48,380 --> 00:10:52,620 love endures forever. Let Israel say his steadfast 152 00:10:52,620 --> 00:10:56,160 love endures forever. Let the House of Aaron say his 153 00:10:56,160 --> 00:11:00,560 steadfast love endures forever. Let those who fear the Lord say 154 00:11:00,680 --> 00:11:03,800 his steadfast love endures forever. 155 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:10,440 You're singing that in light of the fact that in a few moments 156 00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:15,440 you're going to be beaten and bruised, where the Father is 157 00:11:15,440 --> 00:11:18,760 going to turn his face away with those who have claimed 158 00:11:18,760 --> 00:11:20,680 allegiance to you will leave you to yourself. 159 00:11:20,680 --> 00:11:23,080 You're, you're going to be able to say his steadfast love 160 00:11:23,080 --> 00:11:27,000 endures forever. That's what a sacrifice of 161 00:11:27,000 --> 00:11:28,920 praise looks like. It's you being able to sing 162 00:11:28,920 --> 00:11:31,360 these truths, whether or not you're experiencing them in the 163 00:11:31,360 --> 00:11:34,840 moment, whether or not you believe them necessarily with 164 00:11:34,840 --> 00:11:38,440 your circumstances. It's saying that this truth is 165 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:41,800 truth. Whether or not my flesh is in 166 00:11:41,800 --> 00:11:44,640 total agreement. I know in my heart, I know 167 00:11:44,640 --> 00:11:47,560 because this is God's word, that these things are true of Him, 168 00:11:48,920 --> 00:11:50,720 whether or not the circumstances are favorable. 169 00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:54,720 But singing also has a secondary effect. 170 00:11:55,600 --> 00:11:58,720 Not only does it produce a savoring thing unto God, it 171 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:01,680 strengthens you and I does it not? 172 00:12:03,400 --> 00:12:07,040 That is a unique way when you lift up your voice of, of 173 00:12:07,080 --> 00:12:11,040 engaging and gathering and stirring every part of you to 174 00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:17,080 face the truth, to entertain the truth, to exercise truth and 175 00:12:17,080 --> 00:12:21,920 every faculty of your being. When you and I sing it, it, it 176 00:12:21,920 --> 00:12:28,280 emboldens us, it comforts us, it builds us, it refreshes us, it 177 00:12:29,320 --> 00:12:33,320 helps us to remember, and essentially it draws out 178 00:12:33,320 --> 00:12:38,080 something from you that other ways and mediums can't. 179 00:12:39,000 --> 00:12:41,240 God designed singing to do that for you. 180 00:12:43,960 --> 00:12:47,200 Remember what John said, that Jesus was troubled in His 181 00:12:47,200 --> 00:12:50,280 spirit. Now I wonder if in His humanity, 182 00:12:50,640 --> 00:12:54,560 when Christ sang certain verses of Psalm 118, that it quieted 183 00:12:54,560 --> 00:12:57,440 His soul. Imagine verses like this. 184 00:12:57,440 --> 00:13:02,760 Look at verse five of Psalm 118. Out of my distress, I called on 185 00:13:02,760 --> 00:13:06,160 the Lord. The Lord answered me and set me 186 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:08,120 free. Now look at this. 187 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:10,000 He's going to be betrayed. Do you understand that? 188 00:13:10,000 --> 00:13:11,680 He's going to be abandoned. Look at verse six. 189 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:15,560 The Lord is on my side. I will not fear. 190 00:13:16,160 --> 00:13:20,320 What can man do to me? The Lord is on my side as my 191 00:13:20,320 --> 00:13:23,280 helper. I shall look and triumph on 192 00:13:23,280 --> 00:13:27,960 those who hate me. Yes, that is true. 193 00:13:29,480 --> 00:13:33,840 So what can you learn from the first part of verse 12 in your 194 00:13:33,840 --> 00:13:36,720 suffering? Sing. 195 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:43,240 Because when you choose to do that, even if it's a sacrifice. 196 00:13:43,760 --> 00:13:50,280 It will strengthen you, it will supply a grace for you to to 197 00:13:50,280 --> 00:13:56,440 know an endurance and longevity as you serve him, even when it's 198 00:13:56,440 --> 00:14:00,000 extremely difficult to do so. But it's not the second movement 199 00:14:00,000 --> 00:14:04,240 of that verse of verse 26. And when they had sung in hymn, 200 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:07,200 the second thing is they went out to the Mount of Olives. 201 00:14:08,000 --> 00:14:12,960 They went out to the Mount of Olives, and that's interesting 202 00:14:12,960 --> 00:14:16,000 to me because they were celebrating the Passover. 203 00:14:18,760 --> 00:14:22,600 Their instructions, many detailed instructions about how 204 00:14:22,600 --> 00:14:26,480 one ought to celebrate the Passover, including where each 205 00:14:26,480 --> 00:14:29,280 faithful Israelite ought to be as they observed it. 206 00:14:30,720 --> 00:14:33,760 So turn to Exodus 12 and look at verse 22 and you'll see what I 207 00:14:33,760 --> 00:14:39,200 mean. And with this as a background 208 00:14:39,440 --> 00:14:44,240 insight and make you question why Jesus and the disciples made 209 00:14:44,240 --> 00:14:49,000 this transition, Exodus 12, verse 22. 210 00:14:54,420 --> 00:14:58,680 Moses and the Israelites were told that the inauguration of 211 00:14:58,680 --> 00:15:01,360 this feast take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood 212 00:15:01,360 --> 00:15:05,240 that is in the basin and touch the lentil and the two doorposts 213 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:07,160 and the blood that is in the basin. 214 00:15:07,320 --> 00:15:09,840 And look at this. None of you shall go out of the 215 00:15:09,840 --> 00:15:12,000 door of His house until the morning. 216 00:15:13,720 --> 00:15:17,680 So when you observe the Passover as Jesus and the disciples did, 217 00:15:17,960 --> 00:15:20,760 part of that celebration is that you would remain indoors until 218 00:15:20,760 --> 00:15:23,600 the morning. Well, we know from the gospel is 219 00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:26,240 that when Jesus left to the Mount of Olives with the 220 00:15:26,240 --> 00:15:27,920 disciples, it was still at night. 221 00:15:29,280 --> 00:15:31,880 So why did they leave? Well, a simple answer could be 222 00:15:31,880 --> 00:15:34,160 well, they didn't honor every single detail of the 223 00:15:34,760 --> 00:15:37,320 instructions of the Passover. I'm not too comfortable with 224 00:15:37,320 --> 00:15:39,800 that. I believe Jesus is doing this 225 00:15:39,800 --> 00:15:43,920 intentionally, and he's doing this symbolically because what 226 00:15:43,920 --> 00:15:47,520 happened in Exodus 12, if you left the protective canopy of 227 00:15:47,520 --> 00:15:52,880 the blood that was smeared at your door, the first born of 228 00:15:52,880 --> 00:15:56,520 your family would die. And so you were called to 229 00:15:56,520 --> 00:16:01,720 refrain and trust and wait for the Angel of death to Passover 230 00:16:02,160 --> 00:16:04,480 and that you would be spared, especially the first born. 231 00:16:05,080 --> 00:16:08,440 So to leave the house would be to walking into your death 232 00:16:08,440 --> 00:16:12,920 because of unbelief. And here Christ, hundreds of 233 00:16:12,920 --> 00:16:15,320 years later, chooses to walk out. 234 00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:21,000 To walk out symbolizing what? Christ is not hiding from death. 235 00:16:21,000 --> 00:16:24,960 He's embracing it. He's walking out to it. 236 00:16:26,080 --> 00:16:28,480 He's ready to be struck. That's what we read later, 237 00:16:28,480 --> 00:16:30,560 right? That the shepherd will be 238 00:16:30,640 --> 00:16:33,680 struck. And here's Christ symbolizing 239 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:35,760 that act, ready to go out. And to do what? 240 00:16:36,600 --> 00:16:40,480 To institute a new exodus. Remember when the original 241 00:16:40,480 --> 00:16:44,160 Passover was observed? It preceded them escaping Egypt 242 00:16:44,360 --> 00:16:46,080 and going into the Promised Land. 243 00:16:46,840 --> 00:16:50,560 And when did Jesus choose to establish the Lord's Supper? 244 00:16:52,600 --> 00:16:57,000 The eve before another exodus. Not a deliverance from the 245 00:16:57,000 --> 00:17:03,640 slavery of a country or a tyrant, but of sin and death. 246 00:17:04,680 --> 00:17:08,359 So Christ here is establishing a new exodus. 247 00:17:09,040 --> 00:17:13,920 He's bringing about a new deliverance through his death. 248 00:17:15,119 --> 00:17:18,880 And so he is walking straight into the mouth of the grave with 249 00:17:18,880 --> 00:17:21,520 No Fear, no hesitation, no second thought. 250 00:17:24,319 --> 00:17:25,560 So they went out to the Mount of Olives. 251 00:17:25,560 --> 00:17:29,680 And on their way to the Mount of Olives, in verse 27, Jesus said 252 00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:31,480 to his disciples, you will all fall away. 253 00:17:31,480 --> 00:17:35,800 For it is written, I will strike the shepherd and the sheep will 254 00:17:35,800 --> 00:17:39,120 be scattered. So this is more devastating 255 00:17:39,120 --> 00:17:42,200 news. He just finished telling that 256 00:17:42,200 --> 00:17:44,000 one of you, one of the 12, is going to betray me. 257 00:17:44,000 --> 00:17:45,920 And now he says, you know what? Actually, all of you are going 258 00:17:45,920 --> 00:17:47,240 to fall away. Now. 259 00:17:47,240 --> 00:17:49,280 He's not speaking about the same level of treachery. 260 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:52,800 Judas would be a permanent abandonment for these other 261 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:54,160 eleven. It would be momentary. 262 00:17:55,600 --> 00:17:59,280 They would fail because of the lack of courage, though they 263 00:17:59,280 --> 00:18:03,360 would be restored. But just like Judas, the fearful 264 00:18:03,360 --> 00:18:06,000 desertion of the disciples was predicted by the prophets. 265 00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:08,680 Remember we learned that Judas and what he would do to Christ 266 00:18:08,920 --> 00:18:11,120 was told in the Hebrew Scriptures. 267 00:18:11,520 --> 00:18:15,200 And now Christ opens our eyes even again and more and he says, 268 00:18:15,360 --> 00:18:18,440 actually, even you abandoned me. That's been that's been written. 269 00:18:19,800 --> 00:18:21,720 And he quotes Zechariah 13 seven. 270 00:18:21,720 --> 00:18:26,080 I will strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered. 271 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:30,400 Now be careful how you interpret this, because some might, as 272 00:18:30,400 --> 00:18:33,640 they think about passages like this, come to the conclusion 273 00:18:33,640 --> 00:18:37,280 that you know this might be unfair then for for God to 274 00:18:37,280 --> 00:18:39,520 predict something and then for the disciples to be held 275 00:18:39,520 --> 00:18:41,880 responsible for it. How do we make sense of that? 276 00:18:42,040 --> 00:18:45,200 If if the disciples walking away from Christ, as the argument 277 00:18:45,200 --> 00:18:49,440 goes, has been determined, so to speak, then how can these 278 00:18:49,440 --> 00:18:53,800 disciples be blamed for their lack of faith and boldness and 279 00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:56,240 devotion? And here's a simple way of 280 00:18:56,240 --> 00:18:57,840 answering this. I know some people would answer 281 00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:01,080 it differently, but this is what I believe is the answer. 282 00:19:01,320 --> 00:19:04,760 You cannot confuse God's foreknowledge with His 283 00:19:04,760 --> 00:19:10,400 determinism. For God to predict something 284 00:19:10,760 --> 00:19:14,520 does not always mean He orchestrated the event in order 285 00:19:14,520 --> 00:19:18,560 for it to be realized. That is especially important 286 00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:22,480 when you realize God Speaking of something concerning man's 287 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:26,840 sinful ways. For God to say this will take 288 00:19:26,840 --> 00:19:31,720 place and it deals with something evil in nature does 289 00:19:31,720 --> 00:19:37,320 not mean His prediction was also his production, lest he become 290 00:19:37,320 --> 00:19:39,600 blamed and responsible for the very thing that He said would 291 00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:41,840 take place. There are some things that He 292 00:19:41,840 --> 00:19:45,160 says and He is behind for it to be accomplished. 293 00:19:45,320 --> 00:19:48,360 There are other things that he says and it's purely his 294 00:19:48,360 --> 00:19:52,840 knowledge of what is going to transpire and for these 295 00:19:52,840 --> 00:19:57,360 disciples to scatter from the shepherd who would be struck is 296 00:19:57,360 --> 00:20:00,240 fully on them. It's just been foretold by the 297 00:20:00,240 --> 00:20:03,080 Spirit of God showcasing His omniscience. 298 00:20:03,480 --> 00:20:06,360 But I want to spend less time on that and more time on what this 299 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:09,920 verse is all about that he quotes because Jesus only quotes 300 00:20:10,400 --> 00:20:13,640 the second part of it. And so when you look at 301 00:20:13,640 --> 00:20:16,320 Zechariah 13-7, you see that there's a more complete thought. 302 00:20:16,320 --> 00:20:20,480 And it is astounding when you take the time to look at it and 303 00:20:20,480 --> 00:20:25,040 to ruminate over the jewels that it presents. 304 00:20:25,200 --> 00:20:27,400 Listen to what it says in Zechariah 13, seven. 305 00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:31,160 Jesus quotes the second part, but here's the first part. 306 00:20:31,160 --> 00:20:35,560 Awake, O sword against my shepherd, against the man who 307 00:20:35,560 --> 00:20:38,320 stands next to me, declares the Lord of hosts. 308 00:20:38,800 --> 00:20:41,800 Strike the shepherd and the sheep will be scattered. 309 00:20:42,280 --> 00:20:45,400 I will turn my hand against the little ones. 310 00:20:46,240 --> 00:20:50,480 So Jesus looks at his disciples. He goes, you're about to walk 311 00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:55,480 into what Zechariah said would happen, and he identifies 312 00:20:55,480 --> 00:20:58,600 himself as the shepherd that would be struck in Zechariah, 313 00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:03,360 and he identifies them as the. Sheep that will be scattered. 314 00:21:04,840 --> 00:21:08,240 But reel back and consider the wider implication. 315 00:21:09,120 --> 00:21:12,560 Who's the one speaking in Zechariah 13, Seven, We're told 316 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:16,760 here the Lord of hosts. So it's God Almighty who is 317 00:21:16,760 --> 00:21:20,120 saying awake, O sword against my shepherd, against the man who 318 00:21:20,120 --> 00:21:23,480 stands next to me. He's not speaking about a 319 00:21:23,480 --> 00:21:26,480 literal sword. This is metaphorical for justice 320 00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:30,160 being applied, divine justice being activated. 321 00:21:32,000 --> 00:21:35,440 And so to understand this as God being the speaker and the 322 00:21:35,440 --> 00:21:39,360 initiator in this case means that the Father was the one 323 00:21:39,360 --> 00:21:46,600 behind through the hands of evil men, the Son being slain and the 324 00:21:46,600 --> 00:21:50,440 Son joyfully working with the Father to see that that would be 325 00:21:50,440 --> 00:21:52,680 accomplished. Do you know why that's 326 00:21:52,680 --> 00:21:54,640 important? Do you know why it's important 327 00:21:54,640 --> 00:21:59,080 for God to be the one to say, awake, O sword against my 328 00:21:59,080 --> 00:22:01,560 shepherd? Because Jesus was not as 329 00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:06,400 helpless victim. Jesus was not spontaneously and 330 00:22:06,400 --> 00:22:09,400 surprisingly overtaken by the wrath of his enemies. 331 00:22:10,400 --> 00:22:14,800 No, Jesus was strategically and submissively given over to the 332 00:22:14,800 --> 00:22:22,160 wrath of God, the wrath of God. There are people out there who 333 00:22:22,160 --> 00:22:25,720 believe that when Jesus died, he was not the object of God's 334 00:22:25,720 --> 00:22:28,120 wrath. There are people believe that 335 00:22:28,120 --> 00:22:31,240 because they think that's cruel, they think that's brutal. 336 00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:35,320 They believe that's unloving. He did die, but there was a 337 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:38,560 different reason why he died. He did surrender his life, but 338 00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:40,920 it was separate from the Father's activity. 339 00:22:40,920 --> 00:22:44,920 This was a a willing death on his part to do a cleansing work, 340 00:22:44,920 --> 00:22:48,440 separate from God's feeling towards the sin upon him. 341 00:22:48,440 --> 00:22:49,680 There are people who believe that. 342 00:22:49,720 --> 00:22:53,040 We don't believe that. And if you want to prove text 343 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:57,440 that would reject such a notion, Zechariah 13 Seven is massive 344 00:22:58,760 --> 00:23:01,360 because it's God who says awake O sword. 345 00:23:01,360 --> 00:23:07,480 Against my Shepherd. This is me demonstrating my 346 00:23:07,480 --> 00:23:14,440 justice against my Shepherd. But there's something else here 347 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:18,160 to consider. You can't afford to miss the 348 00:23:18,160 --> 00:23:20,520 detailed description of who the Shepherd is. 349 00:23:21,640 --> 00:23:25,280 Look at it again, Zechariah 13 Seven awake, O sword, against my 350 00:23:25,280 --> 00:23:31,760 shepherd, against the man who stands next to me, declares the 351 00:23:31,760 --> 00:23:35,760 Lord of Hosts. So if you have a new King James, 352 00:23:35,760 --> 00:23:40,000 it would read against the man, against my companion with a 353 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:42,880 capital C. If you have the NASB, it would 354 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:46,920 say against the man, against my associate. 355 00:23:47,840 --> 00:23:49,760 You have the King James, it would say against the man, 356 00:23:49,760 --> 00:23:54,560 against my fellow. Whatever faithful translation 357 00:23:54,560 --> 00:24:00,560 you hold, the original Hebrew word speaks of a close neighbor 358 00:24:01,160 --> 00:24:05,040 and outside of Zechariah 13, seven, it is only used in the 359 00:24:05,040 --> 00:24:10,720 book of Leviticus over and over again to express or explain one 360 00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:14,840 who is close in proximity, a fellow neighbor here or there. 361 00:24:16,520 --> 00:24:21,000 And yet the Lord of hosts says of this shepherd in the ESV, one 362 00:24:21,000 --> 00:24:24,680 who stands next to me, this is who the shepherd is. 363 00:24:25,120 --> 00:24:27,040 So you understand the implications of this, right? 364 00:24:27,360 --> 00:24:29,800 The shepherd is a close confidant to the Lord. 365 00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:36,880 He is a nearby friend. What the Lord is saying here is 366 00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:42,600 that we share in our interest, in our affections, in our 367 00:24:42,600 --> 00:24:45,480 fellowship, and even in our nature. 368 00:24:47,440 --> 00:24:51,160 So there's a clear clue here that whoever the shepherd is, 369 00:24:52,120 --> 00:24:56,360 he's otherworldly. But he's not just otherworldly, 370 00:24:56,960 --> 00:24:58,240 because what did he say before him? 371 00:24:58,240 --> 00:25:01,520 Saying that he stands next to me against who? 372 00:25:03,160 --> 00:25:09,320 The man. So his origins are otherworldly, 373 00:25:10,320 --> 00:25:13,160 and yet at the same time he is a man. 374 00:25:14,120 --> 00:25:18,880 And so here again, you and I have more evidence about the 375 00:25:18,880 --> 00:25:22,160 prophesied dual nature of Jesus Christ. 376 00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:28,960 He stands next to the Lord of hosts, but he's also a man. 377 00:25:30,880 --> 00:25:34,400 And more than that, here we read that he is referred to as my 378 00:25:34,400 --> 00:25:37,640 shepherd. So he's not a random man. 379 00:25:37,880 --> 00:25:42,280 He's a man who's been appointed by the Lord of hosts to be sent 380 00:25:42,280 --> 00:25:44,400 into the world to save lost sheep. 381 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:50,920 And this one who is close to the Lord, but also a man who's been 382 00:25:50,920 --> 00:25:54,720 appointed as a shepherd to save lost sheep, would save them how? 383 00:25:54,800 --> 00:25:58,600 By being struck by the sword of the Lord of the hosts. 384 00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:02,480 So you have gospel right here in Zechariah 13, seven. 385 00:26:04,240 --> 00:26:07,160 Us believing that God became flesh is not a New Testament 386 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:10,160 idea. It's been prophesied hundreds of 387 00:26:10,160 --> 00:26:13,600 years before, and Christ fulfilled those prophecies 388 00:26:13,960 --> 00:26:17,320 perfectly. And if you are a person who has 389 00:26:17,320 --> 00:26:21,000 trouble believing in the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ, then 390 00:26:21,000 --> 00:26:23,800 you have to take it up with him because back in our main text, 391 00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:27,600 he identifies himself as this shepherd from Zechariah. 392 00:26:28,760 --> 00:26:30,800 He's the one who's saying I'm that shepherd who will be 393 00:26:30,800 --> 00:26:33,000 struck. And when you go to Zechariah 13, 394 00:26:33,000 --> 00:26:37,720 you realize that the Lord says he's a man, but he's also close 395 00:26:37,720 --> 00:26:42,080 to me, near me, my companion, my associate. 396 00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:46,360 Jesus Christ is the God man and he believed that and he 397 00:26:46,360 --> 00:26:50,800 proclaimed that. But he says something in verse 398 00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:53,520 28. He says, But after I am raised 399 00:26:53,520 --> 00:26:56,120 up, I will go before you to Galilee. 400 00:26:58,720 --> 00:27:01,200 So he doesn't finish there. He tells his disciples of his 401 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:05,840 impending death and their swift desertion, but he also comforts 402 00:27:05,840 --> 00:27:09,320 them with two thoughts. He comforts them with two 403 00:27:09,440 --> 00:27:11,560 points. The first one deals with his 404 00:27:11,560 --> 00:27:13,480 resurrection. He says one and 28. 405 00:27:13,640 --> 00:27:16,280 But after I am raised that what a gloriously triumphant 406 00:27:16,280 --> 00:27:18,560 statement. I'm going to be struck. 407 00:27:19,120 --> 00:27:22,600 I'm going to be abandoned, but I'm getting out of that grave. 408 00:27:23,360 --> 00:27:26,960 I will be raised up. So as much as he was looking 409 00:27:26,960 --> 00:27:28,840 forward to his death, he knew what was coming on the other 410 00:27:28,840 --> 00:27:30,920 side. He was going to be resurrected. 411 00:27:31,560 --> 00:27:34,920 And he's telling his disciples, listen, I'm going to be raised 412 00:27:34,920 --> 00:27:37,080 and we can spend the rest of the message talking about that. 413 00:27:37,080 --> 00:27:39,280 But I want to focus on the second comforting thought. 414 00:27:39,600 --> 00:27:41,280 The first one deals with His resurrection. 415 00:27:41,400 --> 00:27:44,720 I will be raised. But the second part deals with 416 00:27:44,720 --> 00:27:47,200 His reunion. Look again. 417 00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:51,040 What does He say? I will go before you to Galilee. 418 00:27:54,360 --> 00:27:57,400 I'm going to meet you in Galilee after I'm raised. 419 00:27:58,640 --> 00:27:59,800 You know what happened in Galilee? 420 00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:02,160 You don't have to turn there, but you read it on your own in 421 00:28:02,160 --> 00:28:04,160 Matthew 28. That's where Jesus issued the 422 00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:05,680 great. Commission in Galilee. 423 00:28:07,880 --> 00:28:09,600 So what is Christ saying about his own? 424 00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:14,880 He's telling them I'm planning to be reunited with you after 425 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:16,840 when? My resurrection, even before 426 00:28:16,840 --> 00:28:22,600 that, after your betrayal, after you walk away from me, I want to 427 00:28:22,600 --> 00:28:24,600 let you know that I'm planning to meet with you. 428 00:28:26,120 --> 00:28:28,520 I'm planning. To fellowship with you. 429 00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:33,880 And I'm planning to use you. Inconceivable. 430 00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:39,200 Well, that's Christ. The point of what Jesus saying 431 00:28:39,200 --> 00:28:41,320 in this brief verse is so profound. 432 00:28:42,320 --> 00:28:47,240 He's aware more than you are of your frailty. 433 00:28:48,120 --> 00:28:49,920 You know, he tells his disciples, you're going to all 434 00:28:49,920 --> 00:28:51,720 walk away from me. And they couldn't believe it. 435 00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:55,240 They couldn't even register and understand how they can do that 436 00:28:55,240 --> 00:28:57,440 to Christ. Christ knew them more than they 437 00:28:57,440 --> 00:28:59,840 knew themselves. And though he knows the depths 438 00:28:59,840 --> 00:29:05,560 of your weakness, of your potential airings, you know 439 00:29:05,560 --> 00:29:07,720 what? Jesus shows them, I still desire 440 00:29:07,720 --> 00:29:11,960 to be associated with you. I still desire to fellowship 441 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:13,520 with you. I still desire to have a future 442 00:29:13,520 --> 00:29:16,920 with you. You know what happens when you 443 00:29:16,920 --> 00:29:19,040 and I become aware of other people's imperfections? 444 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:22,400 Can I tell you I'm no prophet, nor am IA son of a prophet. 445 00:29:22,400 --> 00:29:24,200 I just know human nature because I'm a human. 446 00:29:24,720 --> 00:29:26,960 When we discover people's weaknesses, we distance 447 00:29:26,960 --> 00:29:29,880 ourselves from them. That's not Christ. 448 00:29:29,880 --> 00:29:32,200 You know what Christ does? He wants you to draw nearer to 449 00:29:32,200 --> 00:29:36,920 Him with your weakness. How different is He from us? 450 00:29:38,960 --> 00:29:41,600 And we see here that this is the heart of your Lord and mine. 451 00:29:43,400 --> 00:29:47,440 He knows they're going to betray him, and he wants to meet them 452 00:29:47,440 --> 00:29:48,360 in Galilee. Why? 453 00:29:48,360 --> 00:29:49,800 So he can slap them up a little bit. 454 00:29:50,320 --> 00:29:52,320 No, He commissions them to do a work. 455 00:29:54,280 --> 00:29:58,600 And this is so difficult for us to grasp as it was for the 456 00:29:58,600 --> 00:30:01,680 disciples to grasp. Do you know how I know that? 457 00:30:01,760 --> 00:30:04,560 Because Jesus repeats himself to the disciples even after he 458 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:07,400 resurrects. Listen, look, verse 28. 459 00:30:07,520 --> 00:30:10,600 You know what verse 28 is useful for in terms of application? 460 00:30:11,160 --> 00:30:17,000 Praying against what the disciples operated in in 461 00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:19,080 response to Jesus truth because why? 462 00:30:19,200 --> 00:30:20,640 He tells I'm going to be resurrected again. 463 00:30:20,640 --> 00:30:23,800 And guess what? They didn't believe it because 464 00:30:23,800 --> 00:30:25,720 I'll be raised up. And what they did, they stuffed 465 00:30:25,720 --> 00:30:27,320 themselves in a room and locked the door. 466 00:30:28,680 --> 00:30:30,120 Did they just not believe in his resurrect? 467 00:30:30,120 --> 00:30:31,880 No, they also didn't believe in the fact that he wanted to 468 00:30:31,880 --> 00:30:34,920 reunite with them. Let me show you how you're in 469 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:36,240 Mark, I hope. Go to Mark 16. 470 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:38,640 This is the last chapter of our study in Mark. 471 00:30:38,640 --> 00:30:44,240 And notice what Jesus says to the woman who came to the tomb 472 00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:47,000 so that they can relay the message to the frightened 473 00:30:47,000 --> 00:30:55,280 apostles in Mark 16, verse 6. And he said to them, do not be 474 00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:57,840 alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who 475 00:30:57,840 --> 00:30:59,560 was crucified. He has risen. 476 00:30:59,560 --> 00:31:02,440 He is not here. See the place where they laid 477 00:31:02,440 --> 00:31:03,720 him. So what did Jesus say back in 478 00:31:03,720 --> 00:31:05,360 Mark? He says I'm going to be raised 479 00:31:05,360 --> 00:31:08,400 up. And he tells some of the ladies 480 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:11,200 there, the sisters, He's not here, He's risen. 481 00:31:12,080 --> 00:31:13,520 But notice the next part in verse 7. 482 00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:18,120 But go tell his disciples and Peter that He is going before 483 00:31:18,120 --> 00:31:22,800 you to Galilee. There you will see Him just as 484 00:31:22,800 --> 00:31:25,560 He told you. You know what I take out of 485 00:31:25,560 --> 00:31:26,640 this? Here's what I take out of this, 486 00:31:26,880 --> 00:31:29,040 that if there's any missed message that is difficult for 487 00:31:29,040 --> 00:31:33,880 disciples of Jesus to grasp, it is the wonderful truth that 488 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:38,320 Christ longs to be reconciled with us after you fail him. 489 00:31:41,120 --> 00:31:44,880 They had difficulty grasping it. And boys stick around the church 490 00:31:44,880 --> 00:31:47,520 long enough with genuine believers, and genuine believers 491 00:31:47,520 --> 00:31:48,960 have a difficulty understanding it. 492 00:31:49,880 --> 00:31:53,520 You're telling me that after I messed up in this colossal way 493 00:31:53,520 --> 00:31:56,760 or in a series of way, that this Christ that I pledge my 494 00:31:56,760 --> 00:32:04,480 allegiance to wants to still deal with me and use me and 495 00:32:04,480 --> 00:32:07,560 reveal himself to me? Yes. 496 00:32:08,640 --> 00:32:10,080 That's why we read the Word of God. 497 00:32:10,080 --> 00:32:12,040 That's why we're in Mark, so we can know what the heart of 498 00:32:12,040 --> 00:32:16,320 Christ is like. And we see here that this is for 499 00:32:16,320 --> 00:32:20,040 us, that like these disciples, you and I have to rehearse that 500 00:32:20,040 --> 00:32:24,160 truth over and over until it's trusted, until it's really 501 00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:27,440 trusted. That's the heart of my Jesus for 502 00:32:27,440 --> 00:32:30,640 me. Now, I'm aware that there will 503 00:32:30,640 --> 00:32:33,720 be some who will distort this truth and use it as a proof text 504 00:32:33,720 --> 00:32:35,400 to convince themselves. So listen up. 505 00:32:35,400 --> 00:32:40,320 If this is you, that would use a proof text like this to try to 506 00:32:40,320 --> 00:32:43,360 convince themselves and others that you know, God will accept 507 00:32:43,360 --> 00:32:48,120 you as as you are. Meaning you can live and sin all 508 00:32:48,120 --> 00:32:52,200 you want consciously and the Lord will just gush over you. 509 00:32:54,160 --> 00:32:57,360 Well, there is one crucial aspect of the Lord's gracious 510 00:32:57,360 --> 00:32:59,480 instructions here that cannot be overlooked. 511 00:32:59,480 --> 00:33:01,240 It's not in Mark, it's in Luke's account. 512 00:33:01,560 --> 00:33:04,000 When Luke talks about the betrayal of the disciples, he 513 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:08,080 focuses in on Peter. And notice what the Lord told 514 00:33:08,760 --> 00:33:11,960 Peter as he was speaking in the presence of the other disciples. 515 00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:23,160 And Luke 22, verse 31 Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to 516 00:33:23,160 --> 00:33:27,200 have you, that he might sift you like wheat. 517 00:33:28,400 --> 00:33:32,080 But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. 518 00:33:33,040 --> 00:33:37,160 I can't wait for the day that as a church we'll talk about Jesus 519 00:33:37,160 --> 00:33:42,000 intercessory ministry because he died, he was buried, he rose 520 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:45,040 again and we we think now that Jesus is just waiting in heaven 521 00:33:45,680 --> 00:33:47,760 for the world to get really bad so he can come back. 522 00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:51,120 No, Jesus Christ has been working since he rose and 523 00:33:51,120 --> 00:33:55,200 ascended. He is praying for us, 524 00:33:55,880 --> 00:34:00,960 interceding for us every single moment of your life and mine. 525 00:34:02,200 --> 00:34:06,000 He tells Peter, I've prayed for you that your faith may not 526 00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:08,080 fail. Notice what he says in the last 527 00:34:08,080 --> 00:34:12,679 part. And when you have turned again, 528 00:34:14,719 --> 00:34:19,320 strengthen your brothers. You see that crucial part? 529 00:34:20,600 --> 00:34:22,080 I know you're going to fail me, Peter. 530 00:34:22,239 --> 00:34:24,280 Not just you, but all of these guys are going to fail me. 531 00:34:25,600 --> 00:34:27,280 But I'm going to wait for you in Galilee. 532 00:34:27,400 --> 00:34:32,400 I have a wonderful plan for you with this contingency when you 533 00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:37,800 have turned again. So should I believe that the 534 00:34:37,800 --> 00:34:41,000 Lord is willing to deal with me even in my disobedience, Walk 535 00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:46,800 with me, love me, promise things to me amazingly, yes, as long as 536 00:34:46,800 --> 00:34:48,639 you do your part. What's your part? 537 00:34:48,639 --> 00:34:54,920 Live repentantly before him. It's not necessarily the absence 538 00:34:54,920 --> 00:34:57,200 or presence of sin. It's what you do with that sin. 539 00:34:58,840 --> 00:35:02,960 And if you like Peter? Even in denying Christ more than 540 00:35:02,960 --> 00:35:06,200 once choose to turn back again to Him, which Judas failed to 541 00:35:06,200 --> 00:35:08,120 do. Christ is always waiting with 542 00:35:08,120 --> 00:35:11,400 open arms. So this truth that I hope is a 543 00:35:11,400 --> 00:35:14,640 balm to the hearts of believers who love the Lord but know that 544 00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:18,720 they are greatly able to fail Him, is not. 545 00:35:18,720 --> 00:35:21,360 For those who would try to abuse his grace, there are other 546 00:35:21,360 --> 00:35:25,560 prophecies in the Bible. For you, my friend, they're not 547 00:35:25,560 --> 00:35:31,240 comforting, they're terrifying. But for the true Christian, know 548 00:35:31,240 --> 00:35:37,000 that this is your inheritance. He loves you, He desires you, 549 00:35:37,600 --> 00:35:40,680 even on the other side of you, falling on your face and 550 00:35:40,680 --> 00:35:43,480 disappointing Him over and over again. 551 00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:49,040 How does Peter respond? Since we're talking about him, 552 00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:52,600 he's going to become the focus of our concluding verses in Mark 553 00:35:52,600 --> 00:35:55,880 1429. Peter said to him, even though 554 00:35:55,880 --> 00:36:01,240 they all fall away, I will not. Oh boy. 555 00:36:03,080 --> 00:36:06,040 And Jesus said to him, truly, I tell you this very night before 556 00:36:06,040 --> 00:36:09,000 the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times. 557 00:36:09,280 --> 00:36:11,720 But he said emphatically, you know what's amazing? 558 00:36:11,920 --> 00:36:15,280 The word emphatically there is only found in Mark. 559 00:36:15,840 --> 00:36:17,800 You won't find it in the other Gospel accounts. 560 00:36:17,800 --> 00:36:20,080 And you remember how we opened up Mark, right? 561 00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:23,640 We came to the conclusion that Mark wrote this under the 562 00:36:23,640 --> 00:36:27,080 guidance and the inside of the apostle Peter. 563 00:36:28,720 --> 00:36:31,760 And there's so many internal clues of how Peter was really 564 00:36:31,760 --> 00:36:33,720 the author behind Mark's writings here. 565 00:36:34,640 --> 00:36:38,520 And I think this is one of them, because in the other Gospel 566 00:36:38,520 --> 00:36:41,680 accounts it says Peter said. But here we have the emotion 567 00:36:41,680 --> 00:36:47,320 behind it, emphatically said with passion, and it just makes 568 00:36:47,320 --> 00:36:49,960 me wonder if Peter. Brought that to Mark's 569 00:36:49,960 --> 00:36:51,880 attention. He's like, make sure that when 570 00:36:51,880 --> 00:36:55,760 you write this that I had every intention, that my emotions were 571 00:36:55,760 --> 00:36:59,680 wrapped up behind my response. I emphatically said it. 572 00:37:01,320 --> 00:37:03,560 And amazing how surgically precise the Bible is. 573 00:37:05,040 --> 00:37:07,880 But he said emphatically, like it bothered him. 574 00:37:07,880 --> 00:37:10,040 It caused his blood to boil, in a sense. 575 00:37:10,680 --> 00:37:15,520 If I must die with you, I will not deny you. 576 00:37:17,120 --> 00:37:19,560 And that passion must have been contagious, because it says here 577 00:37:19,560 --> 00:37:22,000 and they all said the same Peter. 578 00:37:22,080 --> 00:37:24,520 Peter had a way of leading people, whether he knew it or 579 00:37:24,520 --> 00:37:28,640 not. Many years ago I preached the 580 00:37:28,640 --> 00:37:32,800 message on several occasions called the stages of 581 00:37:32,800 --> 00:37:36,000 backsliding. You can still find that message 582 00:37:36,000 --> 00:37:38,720 online. And the essence of that teaching 583 00:37:38,720 --> 00:37:42,880 was to examine Peter's actions and attitudes leading up to his 584 00:37:42,880 --> 00:37:46,560 denial of Christ. And how they reflect the same 585 00:37:46,560 --> 00:37:50,040 pitfalls that Christians encounter before finding 586 00:37:50,040 --> 00:37:53,280 themselves in a perilous spiritual condition. 587 00:37:55,080 --> 00:37:57,240 And if you want to listen to that message in its entirety, 588 00:37:57,240 --> 00:37:58,320 you can. But if you want a little 589 00:37:58,320 --> 00:38:03,320 preview, what Peter does here is stage one for many people as 590 00:38:03,320 --> 00:38:08,280 they slip into a vulnerable and unpleasant spiritual state. 591 00:38:08,520 --> 00:38:11,360 You know what that is? Here's stage 1 overconfidence. 592 00:38:15,160 --> 00:38:18,360 Jesus didn't ask the disciples if they were going to fall away. 593 00:38:18,360 --> 00:38:20,120 Jesus told them they were going to fall away. 594 00:38:21,320 --> 00:38:25,400 Like it's going to happen. And the way that this man 595 00:38:25,400 --> 00:38:29,000 answers him reveals that he is. Rejecting what the Lord said 596 00:38:29,000 --> 00:38:34,280 would happen and Peter's response should not be 597 00:38:34,280 --> 00:38:36,560 misinterpreted as fiery fidelity, right? 598 00:38:36,560 --> 00:38:41,520 He's not saying like I. He's saying this in pride and if 599 00:38:41,520 --> 00:38:45,680 you doubt that, then see how he actually compares himself to the 600 00:38:45,680 --> 00:38:47,520 other disciples. What does he say in verse 29? 601 00:38:48,080 --> 00:38:53,840 Peter said to him, even though they all fall away, I will not. 602 00:38:54,440 --> 00:38:59,320 Is that inspirational to you? No, that stinks with arrogance. 603 00:39:00,640 --> 00:39:01,880 He didn't do that privately by the way. 604 00:39:01,880 --> 00:39:03,400 He did that in front of the disciples. 605 00:39:04,600 --> 00:39:08,000 So Jesus, you're all going to fall away and he goes, they 606 00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:12,920 might, not me. So you just got to think a 607 00:39:12,920 --> 00:39:14,960 little bit and consider what these implications are when 608 00:39:14,960 --> 00:39:17,040 people use these certain words and how they're saying it. 609 00:39:18,840 --> 00:39:20,400 What should have been Peter's response? 610 00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:22,880 I believe there should have been a humble admission and inquiry 611 00:39:22,880 --> 00:39:25,320 about the possibility of him failing the master. 612 00:39:25,440 --> 00:39:30,080 But there's no evidence of that. There's no probing, there's no 613 00:39:30,080 --> 00:39:34,120 brokenness, there's no investigation, there's no 614 00:39:34,120 --> 00:39:36,800 examination. Just not me. 615 00:39:37,840 --> 00:39:43,520 Not me. And we see here that Peter is 616 00:39:44,080 --> 00:39:47,920 essentially declaring that it is not possible for anything or 617 00:39:47,920 --> 00:39:51,240 anyone to derail his devotion to Christ. 618 00:39:52,760 --> 00:39:56,160 And when you have that kind of a heart posture. 619 00:39:56,880 --> 00:40:02,280 It will eventually encourage you to indirectly challenge some of 620 00:40:02,280 --> 00:40:05,240 the warnings in the Bible about your flesh. 621 00:40:05,680 --> 00:40:08,200 Because you are now beginning to believe that they don't apply to 622 00:40:08,200 --> 00:40:12,160 you. And over time, when you don't 623 00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:16,480 acknowledge what the Bible says about your flesh, you will fail 624 00:40:16,480 --> 00:40:19,760 to invest in the holy boundaries and disciplines that are meant 625 00:40:19,760 --> 00:40:22,720 to guard you and protect you from the very things that you 626 00:40:22,720 --> 00:40:29,360 think won't affect you. And that is exactly what happens 627 00:40:29,360 --> 00:40:32,800 to Peter. So he says to Jesus 628 00:40:32,800 --> 00:40:37,760 emphatically, I'm not. And what happens after this? 629 00:40:38,560 --> 00:40:41,320 Jesus calls him and two other disciples to pray with him in 630 00:40:41,320 --> 00:40:43,120 the garden at a very critical juncture. 631 00:40:44,680 --> 00:40:46,080 How did Peter end up doing there? 632 00:40:46,840 --> 00:40:51,320 He falls asleep. Jesus wakes him up and says, 633 00:40:51,320 --> 00:40:53,600 watch and pray lest you fall into temptation. 634 00:40:55,360 --> 00:40:58,440 And the very thing that Peter said wouldn't happen to him, 635 00:40:59,600 --> 00:41:03,560 happened to him because prayerlessness. 636 00:41:04,840 --> 00:41:06,960 Is the following stage in backsliding? 637 00:41:09,840 --> 00:41:14,080 If you don't believe that you're able to walk away or fail in 638 00:41:14,080 --> 00:41:18,160 certain areas, certain sins, then you won't make this 639 00:41:18,160 --> 00:41:23,040 necessary measures and create the spiritual reinforcement in 640 00:41:23,040 --> 00:41:25,720 the disciplines that God has given us to stay strong. 641 00:41:25,840 --> 00:41:27,240 That's exactly what happens to Peter. 642 00:41:29,440 --> 00:41:34,880 And he drifts. And as he drifts, he confirms to 643 00:41:34,880 --> 00:41:39,760 us we're backsliding begins. Do you know where reverting to 644 00:41:39,760 --> 00:41:44,040 old sinful way starts? Where it started For Peter in 645 00:41:44,040 --> 00:41:47,760 the heart. In the heart doesn't just 646 00:41:47,760 --> 00:41:54,120 appear, it's in seed form and then it is nourished indirectly. 647 00:41:55,360 --> 00:41:58,040 Can I prove that to you? It's in Proverbs 1414. 648 00:41:58,880 --> 00:42:05,960 The Bible says the backslider in heart, the backslider in heart 649 00:42:05,960 --> 00:42:07,800 will be filled with the fruit of his ways. 650 00:42:08,000 --> 00:42:11,920 It starts in your heart, starts in what you believe about God, 651 00:42:11,920 --> 00:42:14,520 what you believe about his Word, what you believe about yourself. 652 00:42:15,600 --> 00:42:17,240 That's where all the trouble begins. 653 00:42:17,920 --> 00:42:20,680 And in Peter's situation, his heart was calloused by 654 00:42:20,680 --> 00:42:24,720 overconfidence, and that overconfidence blinded him from 655 00:42:24,720 --> 00:42:26,520 seeing the urgency of this moment. 656 00:42:26,520 --> 00:42:30,160 So he doesn't pray. Oh, let me say this in love. 657 00:42:30,160 --> 00:42:34,120 I'm not talking about momentary times or some days where you 658 00:42:34,120 --> 00:42:35,480 don't pray. I'm talking about a lifestyle, 659 00:42:35,480 --> 00:42:38,880 prayerlessness. Many people, when they realize 660 00:42:38,880 --> 00:42:43,320 that they've come to a point of backsliding, acknowledge it far 661 00:42:43,320 --> 00:42:45,720 too late. Many people have been 662 00:42:45,720 --> 00:42:47,880 backsliding, they just haven't been realizing it. 663 00:42:51,080 --> 00:42:55,680 When I fail to come to the Lord in an awareness of my neediness 664 00:42:55,680 --> 00:42:59,400 of Him to sustain me and to strengthen me, when that's gone, 665 00:43:01,960 --> 00:43:04,720 you're at a stage that you don't want to be at. 666 00:43:08,000 --> 00:43:12,040 And if you begin to think, well, this won't affect me, you're 667 00:43:12,040 --> 00:43:13,920 falling into the same trap that Peter did. 668 00:43:18,320 --> 00:43:20,720 So what's the appropriate response to what Peter does 669 00:43:20,720 --> 00:43:22,120 here? Is it to simply admit as a 670 00:43:22,120 --> 00:43:24,640 church all right, we're all going to fail him eventually, 671 00:43:25,120 --> 00:43:27,880 Then sing a couple songs, half heartedly, hang our heads low, 672 00:43:27,880 --> 00:43:30,360 and then go and have a picnic and try to forget about the 673 00:43:30,360 --> 00:43:33,240 conviction we felt? I don't believe so. 674 00:43:35,960 --> 00:43:38,760 I believe that the appropriate response is to do what Peter 675 00:43:38,760 --> 00:43:43,560 didn't do and that is so wholeheartedly acknowledge our 676 00:43:43,560 --> 00:43:47,920 need for Christ and then to seek Him for what he's able to 677 00:43:47,920 --> 00:43:52,720 supply. As I kicked back and meditated 678 00:43:52,720 --> 00:43:58,160 on all the wonderful promises of the sustaining mercies of God, 679 00:43:58,200 --> 00:44:01,440 this particular text, and it's our closing one, came to mind. 680 00:44:01,440 --> 00:44:04,200 And I present it to you with the hope that it will energize you 681 00:44:04,200 --> 00:44:09,800 in the way that it energized me. Jude 24. 682 00:44:10,840 --> 00:44:15,760 Do you know that verse? Listen to it now, to Him who is 683 00:44:15,760 --> 00:44:20,520 able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless 684 00:44:20,520 --> 00:44:23,000 before the presence of His glory with great joy. 685 00:44:25,440 --> 00:44:28,080 Who's the source of a stumble free life? 686 00:44:29,320 --> 00:44:33,400 Who's the source of evaporating any concern? 687 00:44:33,400 --> 00:44:37,240 What will I, what will become of my faith in the future? 688 00:44:37,760 --> 00:44:39,360 I love. I know I love the Lord, and I 689 00:44:39,360 --> 00:44:41,400 know I'm serving the Lord and I know I'm honoring the Lord. 690 00:44:41,400 --> 00:44:43,360 But what will become of me 10 years from now? 691 00:44:43,360 --> 00:44:46,040 What will become of me when things get really ugly in 692 00:44:46,040 --> 00:44:47,800 America? What will become of me? 693 00:44:48,240 --> 00:44:54,120 Look at you, 24 now. To Him, He's your source who is 694 00:44:54,120 --> 00:45:00,600 able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless. 695 00:45:01,160 --> 00:45:03,760 Are we blameless before God? Yes, because of what Christ has 696 00:45:03,760 --> 00:45:07,080 done. But practical blameless is also 697 00:45:07,080 --> 00:45:10,600 available and possible for us as you realize that He's the source 698 00:45:10,600 --> 00:45:13,680 of it. He's able to keep me, not me. 699 00:45:13,680 --> 00:45:17,800 Peter thought I was in him. I'm able, I, I, I not. 700 00:45:17,800 --> 00:45:20,480 Lord, keep me from doing this against you. 701 00:45:20,480 --> 00:45:26,960 That wasn't His heart, it was me, but it's him. 702 00:45:27,000 --> 00:45:29,160 So here's how I end. How do you draw from that 703 00:45:29,160 --> 00:45:30,600 source? If he is the source, how do I 704 00:45:30,600 --> 00:45:34,400 draw from it? Is it separate from any action 705 00:45:34,400 --> 00:45:36,360 on my part? No, there is something on your 706 00:45:36,360 --> 00:45:40,360 part yet it's so simple. So he says in June 24, not to 707 00:45:40,360 --> 00:45:42,040 him was able to keep you from stumbling. 708 00:45:42,160 --> 00:45:46,880 I want that Peter didn't have the wrong desire and wanting 709 00:45:46,880 --> 00:45:48,480 that. His problem was he looked to the 710 00:45:48,480 --> 00:45:54,240 wrong source and realizing it. I want to never ever hurt my 711 00:45:54,240 --> 00:45:56,400 master. And I hope that's your heart cry 712 00:45:56,400 --> 00:45:58,440 as well. So how do I draw from the power 713 00:45:58,440 --> 00:46:00,600 the only can come from him? Look at Jude 20. 714 00:46:02,040 --> 00:46:04,560 But you, beloved, building yourselves up in the most holy 715 00:46:04,560 --> 00:46:07,560 faith. And praying in the Holy Spirit. 716 00:46:08,720 --> 00:46:10,280 Keep. Yourselves in the love of God, 717 00:46:11,400 --> 00:46:13,920 waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to 718 00:46:13,920 --> 00:46:17,160 eternal life, praying in the Holy Spirit. 719 00:46:17,160 --> 00:46:21,280 That's what I want you to see. This is the exact opposite of 720 00:46:21,280 --> 00:46:23,360 what Peter did. Peter saw the source of his 721 00:46:23,360 --> 00:46:26,000 strength in himself, and he failed to pray and to receive 722 00:46:26,000 --> 00:46:28,160 the grace to endure the temptations that were coming 723 00:46:28,160 --> 00:46:32,480 that night. And Jude tells us he's able to 724 00:46:32,480 --> 00:46:35,640 keep you from stumbling, but you have to keep yourselves in the 725 00:46:35,640 --> 00:46:38,440 love of God. And one of the ways in which you 726 00:46:38,440 --> 00:46:40,960 keep yourself in the love of God is that you pray in the Holy 727 00:46:40,960 --> 00:46:43,200 Spirit. How do I pray in the Holy 728 00:46:43,200 --> 00:46:44,840 Spirit? You know the mind of God. 729 00:46:45,520 --> 00:46:47,600 You know the promise of God, the warnings of God, and you 730 00:46:47,600 --> 00:46:50,800 translate that in prayer. And you ask him, Lord, let these 731 00:46:50,800 --> 00:46:54,440 things be true of me, Let these things be real in me, and He 732 00:46:54,440 --> 00:46:58,320 will keep you from stumbling. Lord, we ask that in this 733 00:46:58,320 --> 00:47:00,280 afternoon that would be true of each of us. 734 00:47:01,000 --> 00:47:02,840 We. Pray, Lord, not with the 735 00:47:03,480 --> 00:47:08,200 arrogant attitude that we're able to endure in our own power 736 00:47:08,200 --> 00:47:12,280 and wisdom. We ask that this promise in June 737 00:47:12,280 --> 00:47:22,400 24 would become our reality. Lord, I pray for those who 738 00:47:22,400 --> 00:47:27,080 might, who might have struggled, believing that you're willing to 739 00:47:27,080 --> 00:47:32,000 meet us in Galilee even after we've failed you miserably 740 00:47:34,200 --> 00:47:36,280 again. May we see the heart of Christ 741 00:47:36,280 --> 00:47:39,880 for us and for those who might be in another place. 742 00:47:39,880 --> 00:47:43,360 For those who are in the web of deception, as Peter was at this 743 00:47:43,360 --> 00:47:47,240 time, may you remove those webs from our thinking. 744 00:47:48,000 --> 00:47:49,960 It may help us see that you're the source. 745 00:47:49,960 --> 00:47:52,240 And. Then we draw from that source 746 00:47:53,720 --> 00:47:54,920 through what we're doing right now. 747 00:47:55,640 --> 00:48:01,280 Help us, help us. So Lord, at this time we choose 748 00:48:01,280 --> 00:48:07,320 to sing to you no matter what we are experiencing, the prayers 749 00:48:07,320 --> 00:48:10,280 that await to be answered, the pain that might be riddling 750 00:48:10,280 --> 00:48:11,680 through our bodies. Even now. 751 00:48:13,120 --> 00:48:16,200 We see Jesus as our example and we choose to give you a 752 00:48:16,200 --> 00:48:19,920 sacrifice of praise because you're worthy of it and because 753 00:48:19,920 --> 00:48:24,320 we know we will be strengthened by the truths that we joyfully 754 00:48:24,320 --> 00:48:27,160 bring to you. In Jesus name we pray. 755 00:48:27,520 --> 00:48:29,720 Amen. Let's stand together, shall we? 756 00:48:30,000 --> 00:48:37,880 As a praise team comes. I wonder even if there is one 757 00:48:37,880 --> 00:48:43,920 person here who might have heard this message and thought, what 758 00:48:43,920 --> 00:48:48,440 does it take to be able to sing when it doesn't make sense to 759 00:48:48,440 --> 00:48:53,680 sing and to trust when it doesn't make sense to trust? 760 00:48:54,720 --> 00:48:59,720 How can I have that? And I think that there are many 761 00:48:59,720 --> 00:49:01,800 answers to how that can be realized. 762 00:49:02,320 --> 00:49:05,040 And I want to let you know that there is a passage in the book 763 00:49:05,040 --> 00:49:10,400 of Job that informs us that God is the one who gives us songs in 764 00:49:10,400 --> 00:49:13,080 the night. God is the one who gives us 765 00:49:13,080 --> 00:49:16,840 songs in the night. And for you to know, the ability 766 00:49:16,840 --> 00:49:22,880 to express faith and concrete confidence can only be realized 767 00:49:22,880 --> 00:49:26,240 when you know God. If you don't know God, then you 768 00:49:26,240 --> 00:49:28,680 won't be able to receive those songs in the night. 769 00:49:28,680 --> 00:49:32,760 So I wonder even if there is one person here you've heard in the 770 00:49:32,760 --> 00:49:35,640 past hour and a half through song and through preaching about 771 00:49:35,640 --> 00:49:39,360 the wonders of Jesus Christ. And my question is, before we 772 00:49:39,360 --> 00:49:41,400 conclude this meeting, is do you know Him? 773 00:49:42,480 --> 00:49:45,760 Do you know Him? There are many questions that 774 00:49:45,760 --> 00:49:49,880 people ask in life. The most important question is 775 00:49:50,200 --> 00:49:55,960 who is Jesus Christ? And with it is do you know Him? 776 00:49:56,640 --> 00:50:00,040 Do you know Him? If you don't know Christ, let me 777 00:50:00,040 --> 00:50:03,680 briefly tell you who He is. He is God Almighty, who entered 778 00:50:03,680 --> 00:50:07,440 into this world taking on flesh, not so that He can give this 779 00:50:07,440 --> 00:50:11,560 world teachings and maximum proverbs and ideas for society 780 00:50:11,560 --> 00:50:15,280 to thrive and harmonize. He came to die. 781 00:50:16,320 --> 00:50:21,440 He came to die, and he came to die a death that would apply to 782 00:50:21,440 --> 00:50:24,560 you and me and every other person in this world. 783 00:50:25,560 --> 00:50:28,320 And the way that his death makes sense is when you understand 784 00:50:28,320 --> 00:50:32,920 that the wages of sin is death. Why do we die in this world? 785 00:50:32,960 --> 00:50:36,520 Why do your loved ones die? Why is there not one part of the 786 00:50:36,520 --> 00:50:38,600 world where you can escape this thing called death, the 787 00:50:38,600 --> 00:50:40,760 cessation of life? It's because we've all been 788 00:50:40,760 --> 00:50:44,280 plagued with sin, and the consequence of that is that we 789 00:50:44,280 --> 00:50:47,160 cease to live in our bodies. And then there's something 790 00:50:47,160 --> 00:50:49,840 called the second death in which we are judged for all eternity 791 00:50:50,960 --> 00:50:53,000 unless you put your faith in Christ. 792 00:50:53,880 --> 00:50:56,640 When Christ died, he paid a price on your behalf. 793 00:50:57,240 --> 00:51:00,040 He died so that you would not have to die, not not in this 794 00:51:00,040 --> 00:51:04,400 life, but in the life to come. And death in this life is no 795 00:51:04,400 --> 00:51:06,880 longer a fearful thing is it's really just a door for you to 796 00:51:06,880 --> 00:51:11,560 enter into everlasting life. Christ transformed everything 797 00:51:11,560 --> 00:51:15,600 when he died and the reason why he did is because he didn't stay 798 00:51:15,600 --> 00:51:17,800 in the grave. He rose from the grave. 799 00:51:17,800 --> 00:51:20,320 Do you know what it means? When Jesus rose from the grave, 800 00:51:20,320 --> 00:51:24,800 when he was resurrected from the dead, that was God's Amen to 801 00:51:24,800 --> 00:51:28,760 what he did on the cross. That was God saying, I approve. 802 00:51:28,760 --> 00:51:32,120 This satisfied my justice, my wrath for humanity, sin. 803 00:51:33,240 --> 00:51:35,800 Jesus Christ satisfied God's. Wrath. 804 00:51:36,600 --> 00:51:40,080 And when you hear that as you heard it now, and you accept 805 00:51:40,080 --> 00:51:43,920 that truth for yourself and believe on that truth, the 806 00:51:43,920 --> 00:51:46,400 blessings associated with his death and resurrection are now 807 00:51:46,400 --> 00:51:51,600 yours, and you receive that inheritance where death doesn't 808 00:51:51,600 --> 00:51:56,000 have a sting anymore and everlasting life is your future, 809 00:51:56,000 --> 00:51:59,480 not everlasting death. You're saying this sounds too 810 00:51:59,480 --> 00:52:01,640 good to be true. That's why we Christians call 811 00:52:01,640 --> 00:52:03,240 this the gospel. The gospel means good. 812 00:52:03,240 --> 00:52:05,120 News. It's a good news. 813 00:52:05,920 --> 00:52:07,880 That's why we sing, because we're so happy. 814 00:52:08,760 --> 00:52:12,600 That's why I hope we smile a lot because we realize that our 815 00:52:12,600 --> 00:52:15,080 hearts have been changed and we have the greatest treasure that 816 00:52:15,080 --> 00:52:18,240 you can have in this life. I want you to have that gift 817 00:52:19,320 --> 00:52:22,000 saying how much does it cost? It's free. 818 00:52:23,000 --> 00:52:24,280 Wait, what do you mean it's free? 819 00:52:24,360 --> 00:52:26,360 It's free. When you get a gift from 820 00:52:26,360 --> 00:52:29,680 somebody, I hope you don't have to pay them halfway or do 821 00:52:29,680 --> 00:52:34,200 monthly returns. You just accept the gift and 822 00:52:34,200 --> 00:52:38,320 Jesus extends his gift to you, and you just, you open your 823 00:52:38,320 --> 00:52:42,440 hands and you receive it. And if you really receive it, 824 00:52:42,760 --> 00:52:46,600 then they will change you. So I invite you to repent and 825 00:52:46,600 --> 00:52:49,040 believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. 826 00:52:49,480 --> 00:52:54,000 I invite you to bring your filthy sins, even your filthy 827 00:52:54,240 --> 00:52:57,280 acts of righteousness, and to come before the foot of the 828 00:52:57,280 --> 00:53:00,720 cross and say, I surrender this. If you wrote a check to pay off 829 00:53:00,720 --> 00:53:04,560 my debt, give me that check. I'm I'm tired of paying for it 830 00:53:04,560 --> 00:53:06,400 for myself. I can't the the amount is too 831 00:53:06,400 --> 00:53:09,400 great. And if you really do that today, 832 00:53:09,400 --> 00:53:10,640 you'll leave here a brand new person. 833 00:53:11,000 --> 00:53:13,840 Not only will he have your name written in the Lamb's book of 834 00:53:13,840 --> 00:53:15,640 life, but he will give you his spirit. 835 00:53:17,200 --> 00:53:20,520 New life comes to you now and then this word becomes your 836 00:53:20,520 --> 00:53:24,880 bread and prayer becomes your breath, and the people of God 837 00:53:24,880 --> 00:53:27,520 become your company. And now you have a whole new way 838 00:53:27,520 --> 00:53:29,880 of looking, because Jesus promised that when you put your 839 00:53:29,880 --> 00:53:35,000 faith in Him, He changes you. Today, repent and believe. 840 00:53:35,960 --> 00:53:38,200 I wouldn't wait for you to even leave this door to do that. 841 00:53:38,720 --> 00:53:41,280 I would block out all this noise, sit back on that Pew 842 00:53:41,280 --> 00:53:44,320 while people are hugging each other, and you talk to this God 843 00:53:44,640 --> 00:53:46,560 for yourself, and He will hear you. 844 00:53:47,640 --> 00:53:50,680 Lord, we ask that if there's even one who doesn't know you, 845 00:53:50,920 --> 00:53:54,320 may your Holy Spirit work in Him as He has worked in us, that 846 00:53:54,320 --> 00:53:57,400 that one person would come to saving faith in Jesus Christ. 847 00:53:57,800 --> 00:54:00,600 Lord, for us, we're walking this pilgrimage for those who have 848 00:54:00,600 --> 00:54:03,160 put your your gospel truth on our hearts. 849 00:54:03,160 --> 00:54:06,400 We believed on that truth. Help us, help us live believing 850 00:54:06,400 --> 00:54:08,640 your love for us, not just when you save this, but as you're 851 00:54:08,640 --> 00:54:11,440 sanctifying us. Help us believe that you love us 852 00:54:11,440 --> 00:54:15,040 and you wash our feet gladly even when it gathers the dirt of 853 00:54:15,040 --> 00:54:19,120 this world. So Lord, please help us believe 854 00:54:19,120 --> 00:54:21,800 the things that we heard today. Only You can make them real to 855 00:54:21,800 --> 00:54:23,960 us. And we trust that you will. 856 00:54:24,400 --> 00:54:27,120 And now, Lord, as we go on fellowship as a family, bless 857 00:54:27,120 --> 00:54:29,840 that time. May we know joy, may we know 858 00:54:29,840 --> 00:54:32,280 hope, May we know counsel, may we know laughter. 859 00:54:32,280 --> 00:54:35,040 May we know fellowship the way you intended it to be. 860 00:54:35,040 --> 00:54:36,880 Give us a piece of heaven this afternoon. 861 00:54:37,320 --> 00:54:39,840 In Jesus name we pray, Amen and Amen. 862 00:54:39,840 --> 00:54:40,520 Amen. Amen.