1 00:00:00,600 --> 00:00:04,680 Today we will conclude our third installment of our series, 2 00:00:04,680 --> 00:00:09,120 Legacy of Blessing. Next Sunday begins Advent, and 3 00:00:09,120 --> 00:00:12,440 so we're looking forward to walking together through that 4 00:00:13,520 --> 00:00:17,400 entitled Legacy of Blessing. We are probing Genesis and 5 00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:21,160 seeking wisdom for our most foundational questions. 6 00:00:21,440 --> 00:00:25,360 What am I, who am I, and why am I here? 7 00:00:26,080 --> 00:00:32,640 For a culture that is desperate for answers and in a confusing 8 00:00:32,640 --> 00:00:37,640 and chaotic cloud of ideologies and lies regarding these most 9 00:00:37,640 --> 00:00:41,200 profound questions. It's a fraught place to live. 10 00:00:41,960 --> 00:00:45,400 And we, the Church, have the audacity to claim that this old 11 00:00:45,400 --> 00:00:49,400 book has everything that we need for life and godliness, which 12 00:00:49,400 --> 00:00:52,600 means that it delivers profound and exceptional beautiful 13 00:00:52,600 --> 00:00:55,040 answers to these our deepest questions. 14 00:00:55,680 --> 00:00:58,040 What are we? We are human beings, created 15 00:00:58,040 --> 00:01:00,160 male and female in the image of God. 16 00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:04,280 We make human families that are procreative and we are able to 17 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:10,240 multiply and fill the earth. We are tasked to tend and garden 18 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:12,720 and protect God's beautiful planet. 19 00:01:12,760 --> 00:01:19,760 And last, these purposes of God are frustrated and thwarted by a 20 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:23,720 great enemy, Satan, who came and tempted the first humans to 21 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:27,800 rebel against God. And so we have a frustration in 22 00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:33,560 these beautiful areas. God is determined to bless us in 23 00:01:33,560 --> 00:01:37,000 spite of ourselves and comes to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob with 24 00:01:37,000 --> 00:01:41,480 profound promises to give them a place to live, a land to make 25 00:01:41,480 --> 00:01:45,400 them into a great nation, a nation of priests, for the 26 00:01:45,400 --> 00:01:51,400 purpose of being able to mediate blessing to all the nations of 27 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:55,640 the earth. Sadly, as we go through the 28 00:01:55,680 --> 00:02:00,000 stories of the patriarchs, we see sin once again threaten all 29 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:03,160 of these categories. And particularly as we've been 30 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:07,480 working through the stories of Esau and Jacob, these two 31 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:12,400 brothers who were rivals in utero in the womb, they are 32 00:02:12,400 --> 00:02:15,920 tussling and they come out and the rivalry extends. 33 00:02:15,920 --> 00:02:19,920 And we are very nervous as we're reading the Bible if this too is 34 00:02:19,920 --> 00:02:24,240 going to end in murder, just as it did with Cain and Abel before 35 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:27,120 them. How bad is this sin problem? 36 00:02:27,120 --> 00:02:31,400 Will it overwhelm God's promises like a flood? 37 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:38,960 Or will God's grace extend beyond human sin and provide 38 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:46,360 redemptive action to bring indeed his people to their 39 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:53,000 precious home, to bring warring rivals into Shalom, into 40 00:02:53,000 --> 00:02:59,480 peaceful reconciliation in order so that they may indeed mediate 41 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:04,640 blessings to a world that has lost and in great need of a 42 00:03:04,640 --> 00:03:08,080 Savior? This narrative tension drives us 43 00:03:08,080 --> 00:03:11,640 into each chapter. Once again, we will go into 44 00:03:11,640 --> 00:03:13,960 chapter 36. As I said, it's the conclusion 45 00:03:13,960 --> 00:03:17,600 of this section. And what we will find here is a 46 00:03:17,600 --> 00:03:23,680 very long genealogy. And I decided to be merciful to 47 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:27,960 our Scripture reader and to myself and to y'all. 48 00:03:27,960 --> 00:03:31,840 We are not actually going to read through all these names 49 00:03:31,920 --> 00:03:35,920 this morning, but we do believe that all of Scripture is God 50 00:03:35,920 --> 00:03:40,400 breathed and profitable for us. And so we will spend some time 51 00:03:40,400 --> 00:03:44,040 in this chapter gleaning what we may in order to have life and 52 00:03:44,040 --> 00:03:47,040 godliness. And we can notice structurally 53 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:52,040 that Genesis tends to do this after we get a narrative section 54 00:03:52,160 --> 00:03:56,640 following the tension, but also focusing specifically on the 55 00:03:56,640 --> 00:04:02,400 chosen Son of promise. We also get information about 56 00:04:02,400 --> 00:04:05,280 the sibling or the non chosen line. 57 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:09,840 So if you remember when we were learning about Abraham, Abraham 58 00:04:09,840 --> 00:04:14,040 parted from lots and we yet we're still told things about 59 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:19,560 Lot's legacy story extends into the next generation. 60 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:23,160 Abraham has two sons, Ishmael and Isaac. 61 00:04:23,160 --> 00:04:26,440 Isaac is the son of promise, but we still learn things about 62 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:31,480 Ishmael, particularly how he becomes the head of a very large 63 00:04:31,480 --> 00:04:35,680 and important family. And so we come to this text and 64 00:04:35,680 --> 00:04:38,080 the pattern continues. Now we're going to learn some 65 00:04:38,080 --> 00:04:43,000 things about Esau, the non chosen son, to learn how the 66 00:04:43,000 --> 00:04:46,440 Lord was working with him in this story. 67 00:04:46,800 --> 00:04:52,920 It'll give a genealogy or some history about his line. 68 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:56,760 And that's where we find ourselves this morning. 69 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:04,760 The first thing that we're going to discover is that God blessed 70 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:09,040 Esau because of Isaac. It's important to recognize that 71 00:05:09,040 --> 00:05:14,240 God is blessing Esau in this text, though He is not the 72 00:05:14,240 --> 00:05:17,920 chosen son of promise. Now, there isn't a Bible verse 73 00:05:17,920 --> 00:05:22,720 that's explicitly going to say to you, behold, the Lord did 74 00:05:22,720 --> 00:05:25,440 then bless Esau because of Isaac. 75 00:05:25,440 --> 00:05:28,120 There's no verse like that in this chapter, but rather you 76 00:05:28,120 --> 00:05:30,840 need to be able to see the pattern that has been developing 77 00:05:30,840 --> 00:05:33,200 through the text and notice some things that are happening that 78 00:05:33,360 --> 00:05:38,440 imply that indeed the Lord is blessing Esau because of Isaac. 79 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:44,960 The pattern, as I said, begins in Genesis 17 where it is more 80 00:05:44,960 --> 00:05:47,600 explicit. God says to Abraham this in 81 00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:49,680 Genesis chapter 17, beginning in verse 20. 82 00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:53,080 As for Ishmael, I have heard you. 83 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:58,440 Behold, I have blessed him and and will make him fruitful and 84 00:05:58,440 --> 00:06:03,320 multiply him greatly. He shall father 12 Princess, and 85 00:06:03,320 --> 00:06:05,560 I will make him into a great nation. 86 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:10,360 But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah shall 87 00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:13,680 bear to you at this time next year. 88 00:06:14,720 --> 00:06:18,240 In the New Testament, the writer of the Hebrews understands that 89 00:06:18,400 --> 00:06:21,880 Esau is blessed as well. In Hebrews Chapter 11, verse 20, 90 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:25,440 it says this. By faith, Isaac invoked future 91 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:30,640 blessings on Jacob and Esau. And as you read this text, you 92 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:35,240 already know coming into this chapter that Esau is fabulously 93 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:37,760 wealthy. Fabulously wealthy. 94 00:06:37,760 --> 00:06:40,160 He was worried that he was going to miss the blessing because of 95 00:06:40,160 --> 00:06:42,440 his grasping brother and the great deceit. 96 00:06:42,440 --> 00:06:46,520 He's murderously angry, but as time plays out, the Lord blesses 97 00:06:46,520 --> 00:06:48,640 him and blesses him and bless him, and he's got tons of 98 00:06:48,640 --> 00:06:52,200 wealth, 400 fighting men, and a huge family. 99 00:06:52,840 --> 00:06:56,080 But we're also going to see that there are very important 100 00:06:56,080 --> 00:07:02,160 departures in this text as Esau moves away from the chosen line. 101 00:07:02,640 --> 00:07:05,560 2 important departures in the text 1 is that you're going to 102 00:07:05,560 --> 00:07:09,360 see that he assimilates his family with the Canaanites. 103 00:07:10,280 --> 00:07:12,280 Remember that was appalling to Rebecca. 104 00:07:12,280 --> 00:07:15,680 She wanted Jacob to go away and get a wife from the family and 105 00:07:15,680 --> 00:07:17,160 not assimilate with the Canaanites. 106 00:07:17,160 --> 00:07:21,680 We're going to see that Esau assimilates with the Canaanites, 107 00:07:22,120 --> 00:07:26,400 but we're also going to see that he departs physically from the 108 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:32,000 land of Canaan, moves away from Jacob, and has his own country. 109 00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:36,640 Let's begin in verse one. These are the generations of 110 00:07:36,680 --> 00:07:39,560 Esau, that is Edom Esau took his wives. 111 00:07:39,560 --> 00:07:42,240 You're listening. Esau took his wives from the 112 00:07:42,240 --> 00:07:47,880 Canaanites, and it goes on to list this family, but they're 113 00:07:47,880 --> 00:07:51,040 also seeing that he moved away. This is the text that Phil read 114 00:07:51,040 --> 00:07:53,840 earlier, verse 6. Then Esau took his wives, his 115 00:07:53,840 --> 00:07:57,240 sons, his daughters, and all the members of his household, his 116 00:07:57,240 --> 00:08:00,040 livestock, all his beasts, and all his property that he had 117 00:08:00,040 --> 00:08:03,880 acquired in the land of Canaan. He went into a land away from 118 00:08:03,880 --> 00:08:07,120 his brother Jacob, for their possessions were too great for 119 00:08:07,120 --> 00:08:10,200 them to dwell together. The land of their sojournings 120 00:08:10,200 --> 00:08:13,320 could not support them because of all their livestock. 121 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:16,120 So Esau settled in the Hill Country of Seer. 122 00:08:16,400 --> 00:08:20,720 Esau is Edom, so you should hear an echo of the story with 123 00:08:20,720 --> 00:08:22,440 Abraham and Lot. Do you remember why they had to 124 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:26,080 separate says because the land could not support all of their 125 00:08:26,080 --> 00:08:28,320 great wealth, particularly the livestock. 126 00:08:28,960 --> 00:08:32,720 So the text is saying clearly here that Esau has been blessed 127 00:08:32,720 --> 00:08:36,200 with a huge family and he's also been blessed with so much wealth 128 00:08:36,400 --> 00:08:40,679 that it's time for him to depart and move into a different place. 129 00:08:41,200 --> 00:08:45,000 So we have these departures. But we can also see as we go 130 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:47,960 through this text and as you look at the the headings to the 131 00:08:47,960 --> 00:08:52,280 paragraph divisions, that there is prestige in Esau's family. 132 00:08:52,280 --> 00:08:54,760 And that the biblical writers trying to highlight the 133 00:08:54,760 --> 00:09:00,280 blessings of God to him, particularly by notice noting 134 00:09:00,360 --> 00:09:07,760 like Ishmael before him that his sons are important chiefs and 135 00:09:08,000 --> 00:09:11,040 kings. If you can look down at verse 136 00:09:11,080 --> 00:09:15,680 15, it says something like this. These are the chiefs of the sons 137 00:09:15,680 --> 00:09:18,680 of Esau. And you get this list and then 138 00:09:18,680 --> 00:09:22,560 it repeats the word chiefs over and over and over in this 139 00:09:22,560 --> 00:09:26,200 chapter until you get the point. These guys are important. 140 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:30,120 The family is blessed. If you move down to verse 31, 141 00:09:30,120 --> 00:09:34,000 the word kings is used. These are the kings who reigned 142 00:09:34,000 --> 00:09:38,760 in the land of Edom before any king ruled over the Israelites. 143 00:09:38,760 --> 00:09:42,880 Again, the writer is telling you of prestige, a monarchy that 144 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:48,800 precedes even the monarchy of Saul and David and Solomon. 145 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:54,040 If you skip down to verse 40, you'll hear the similar 146 00:09:54,040 --> 00:09:55,120 language. Once again. 147 00:09:55,360 --> 00:09:59,040 These are the names of the chiefs of Esau according to 148 00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:04,600 their clans. So you see the abundance that 149 00:10:04,880 --> 00:10:10,280 Esau experienced because of his proximity to Isaac, his father. 150 00:10:10,440 --> 00:10:15,880 He received material blessings from God, abundant descendants, 151 00:10:16,080 --> 00:10:19,560 chiefs and kings. We also see a departure as he 152 00:10:19,560 --> 00:10:22,680 moves to become a different people in a different place. 153 00:10:23,160 --> 00:10:27,800 But the Bible is very clear about this relationship. 154 00:10:27,800 --> 00:10:33,120 Now as Israel grows and as Edom grows, that they're supposed to 155 00:10:33,120 --> 00:10:38,600 remember the story that they are siblings, they are brothers, 156 00:10:38,720 --> 00:10:44,440 they are supposed to be allies. In Deuteronomy chapter 23, 157 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:48,640 beginning in verse 7, the Bible says to the nation of Israel, 158 00:10:48,840 --> 00:10:53,360 you shall not abhor, that means hate. 159 00:10:53,360 --> 00:10:59,920 You shall not hate and Edomite, for he is your brother. 160 00:11:02,360 --> 00:11:05,800 Children born to them in the third generation may enter the 161 00:11:05,800 --> 00:11:10,000 assembly of the Lord. There is a pathway for them to 162 00:11:10,000 --> 00:11:14,360 be blessed in the Direct Line. And so you have this 163 00:11:14,360 --> 00:11:18,680 relationship between the two countries and you're wondering, 164 00:11:18,680 --> 00:11:21,160 will this be a good and peaceful relationship or will it be 165 00:11:21,160 --> 00:11:25,960 fraught and characterized by rebellion and rivalry? 166 00:11:25,960 --> 00:11:30,560 And so now I need to take you on just a brief little sidebar so 167 00:11:30,560 --> 00:11:33,400 we can zoom out and think about the two nations in biblical 168 00:11:33,400 --> 00:11:36,480 history. It's brief, I promise, so that 169 00:11:36,480 --> 00:11:40,720 we can see how the rest of the Bible discusses Esau. 170 00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:45,560 What goes on in the National History is that as time 171 00:11:45,560 --> 00:11:50,000 progresses, Israel does indeed have a series of great kings as 172 00:11:50,000 --> 00:11:54,880 a dynasty, and in the time of King David, Israel does rule 173 00:11:54,880 --> 00:11:58,080 over the Edomites, the descendants of Esau. 174 00:11:59,160 --> 00:12:01,120 You can read about that in Second Samuel 8. 175 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:07,240 But later we find when the Kingdom is unraveling and 176 00:12:07,240 --> 00:12:13,120 Israel's under direct threat from Babylon, that Edom betrays 177 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:18,800 his brother. Israel, attacks Israel allied 178 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:22,240 with the Babylonians. The prophets in the Bible, 179 00:12:22,480 --> 00:12:28,760 particularly in Obadiah, are very upset with this betrayal. 180 00:12:29,360 --> 00:12:33,760 There's very strict and condemning language that says 181 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:37,720 that they are going to experience divine retribution. 182 00:12:38,120 --> 00:12:40,400 And indeed, historically this happens. 183 00:12:40,880 --> 00:12:45,880 Babylon wipes out Edom and though Israel is brought into 184 00:12:45,880 --> 00:12:49,840 exile, but then brought back and their line continues today. 185 00:12:51,000 --> 00:12:55,240 Edom cut off because of this great betrayal. 186 00:12:55,600 --> 00:12:58,800 And it's given in such strong prophetic language, even in the 187 00:12:58,800 --> 00:13:03,880 voice of God saying Jacob I have loved, Esau I have hated. 188 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:07,240 So great is this divine retribution for this horrible 189 00:13:07,240 --> 00:13:10,120 sibling betrayal. As we come into the New 190 00:13:10,120 --> 00:13:14,160 Testament, the symbol of Esau gets used in a couple of 191 00:13:14,240 --> 00:13:21,720 interesting ways. 1st we have to note that on the one hand, God 192 00:13:21,720 --> 00:13:26,080 was blessing Esau and his descendants because of Isaac, 193 00:13:26,600 --> 00:13:30,360 but on the other hand, over the course of ages and this betrayal 194 00:13:30,360 --> 00:13:34,320 that happens, we see Esau brought up as kind of a symbol 195 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:39,480 of rebellion. And Paul even quotes this line. 196 00:13:39,480 --> 00:13:43,240 Jacob I have loved and Esau I have hated in a difficult 197 00:13:43,240 --> 00:13:47,640 chapter in Romans. In Romans Chapter 9, Paul will 198 00:13:47,640 --> 00:13:52,320 quote this very line as he teaches his readers about God's 199 00:13:52,320 --> 00:14:00,480 mysterious freedom and sovereignty over human beings. 200 00:14:01,160 --> 00:14:03,880 So though Esau experienced material blessings because of 201 00:14:03,880 --> 00:14:08,440 Isaac, biblically he turns into an example of God's judgement on 202 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:11,760 the enemies of his people. So here we have an interesting 203 00:14:11,760 --> 00:14:17,800 example of God's mercy and loving kindness, joined also to 204 00:14:18,040 --> 00:14:22,240 a warning of divine justice and righteousness on the other. 205 00:14:22,760 --> 00:14:28,000 And so these tandem truths come to us and serve as an example to 206 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:32,960 us, particularly friends, because we are the Gentiles in 207 00:14:32,960 --> 00:14:37,040 the story. We are the ones outside of the 208 00:14:37,040 --> 00:14:40,400 lines of Israel. And so when we come to Esau, we 209 00:14:40,400 --> 00:14:45,840 need to be paying attention because these tandem truths of 210 00:14:45,840 --> 00:14:50,400 God's blessing to us because of who we are related to, but also 211 00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:55,640 his warnings of apostasy and rebellion right there in Esau. 212 00:14:57,240 --> 00:15:01,920 So we have to listen carefully given our status as Gentiles. 213 00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:05,520 It's important when you're talking about God blessing Esau 214 00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:07,560 because of Isaac. You can guess what I'm going to 215 00:15:07,560 --> 00:15:12,320 say next in our second movement. God blesses us because of Jesus. 216 00:15:12,840 --> 00:15:17,360 God blesses us because of Jesus. We've been talking about how 217 00:15:17,400 --> 00:15:22,640 Jesus is the true and better Jacob throughout this series. 218 00:15:23,280 --> 00:15:29,000 He is the Son of promise. He is the Chosen 1, but we're 219 00:15:29,000 --> 00:15:32,240 also going to notice that he sticks to the mission of God, 220 00:15:32,400 --> 00:15:36,200 which is first to reveal himself to the Jews, to make a nation of 221 00:15:36,200 --> 00:15:41,240 priests, and then through them outwardly to the Gentiles. 222 00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:44,360 First to the Jews, then to the Gentiles. 223 00:15:44,720 --> 00:15:50,240 So what I have queued up for you next is a story from Matthew 15, 224 00:15:50,680 --> 00:15:54,840 beginning in verse 21, where we see in the life of Christ the 225 00:15:54,840 --> 00:15:59,320 true and better Jacob, Him following this sort of plan, 226 00:15:59,320 --> 00:16:02,040 first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. 227 00:16:02,040 --> 00:16:05,760 Matthew 15, I'm beginning in verse 21. 228 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:11,600 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of 229 00:16:11,600 --> 00:16:17,400 Tyre and Sidon. Dun Dun Dun, Gentile territory. 230 00:16:17,960 --> 00:16:19,760 You're paying attention, Gentiles, you're paying 231 00:16:19,760 --> 00:16:21,720 attention. What's going to happen? 232 00:16:22,840 --> 00:16:26,360 And behold that strong biblical language that says, pay 233 00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:35,880 attention, a Canaanite woman, a Canaanite woman. 234 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:40,120 And behold, A Canaanite woman from that region came out and 235 00:16:40,120 --> 00:16:43,080 was crying. Have mercy on me, O Lord, son of 236 00:16:43,080 --> 00:16:44,920 David. My daughter is severely 237 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:50,800 oppressed by a demon. Verse 23 but he Jesus did not 238 00:16:50,800 --> 00:16:55,480 answer her a word that's strange. 239 00:16:56,400 --> 00:16:59,040 And his disciples came and begged him. 240 00:16:59,040 --> 00:17:03,280 So she's begging now they're begging, begged him saying send 241 00:17:03,280 --> 00:17:06,119 her away for she is crying out after us. 242 00:17:06,560 --> 00:17:08,560 She's so annoying Canaanite woman. 243 00:17:11,079 --> 00:17:15,400 Interestingly, the text seems to make you think that Jesus is on 244 00:17:15,400 --> 00:17:19,760 their side. He sticks to the script because 245 00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:22,440 this is the biblical plan, first to the Jews, then to the 246 00:17:22,440 --> 00:17:25,599 Gentiles. He says he answered in verse 24. 247 00:17:25,599 --> 00:17:30,040 I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. 248 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:34,240 I think He's got a twinkle in his eye as he looks and says 249 00:17:34,240 --> 00:17:37,200 this. She's encouraged, but she knows 250 00:17:37,200 --> 00:17:40,080 the Bible better than they do. Verse 25 But she came and knelt 251 00:17:40,080 --> 00:17:42,360 before him, saying, Lord, help me. 252 00:17:42,640 --> 00:17:46,240 And he answered, it is not right for the children's bread to take 253 00:17:46,240 --> 00:17:49,200 the children's bread and throw it to the dogs. 254 00:17:49,200 --> 00:17:54,680 She said, yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that 255 00:17:54,680 --> 00:18:00,720 fall from their master's table. There is blessing for Gentiles 256 00:18:00,720 --> 00:18:07,480 in proximity to the chosen 1 and I'm begging for whatever you 257 00:18:07,480 --> 00:18:09,640 got. Have mercy on me. 258 00:18:11,000 --> 00:18:20,680 Jesus answers verse 28. O woman, great is your faith, be 259 00:18:20,680 --> 00:18:24,720 it done for you as you desire. And her daughter was healed 260 00:18:25,720 --> 00:18:30,000 instantly. So we see in the life of Christ 261 00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:33,760 that God blesses us Gentiles because of Jesus. 262 00:18:34,360 --> 00:18:37,640 We also see this first to the Jew and then to the Gentile 263 00:18:37,960 --> 00:18:40,360 pattern throughout the rest of the New Testament. 264 00:18:40,360 --> 00:18:44,480 If you read it in the book of Acts, remember, the expansion of 265 00:18:44,480 --> 00:18:47,800 missionary activity starts with the Jews, doesn't it? 266 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:51,240 Apostles are Jewish. But then it moves out from 267 00:18:51,280 --> 00:18:57,760 Jerusalem, Samaria, all the way out to the ends of the earth to 268 00:18:57,760 --> 00:18:59,320 the Jews and then to the Gentiles. 269 00:18:59,320 --> 00:19:02,480 And you can also see that this is a hard lesson for Peter 270 00:19:03,880 --> 00:19:07,520 'cause he's told to eat stuff he ain't at before and to go places 271 00:19:07,520 --> 00:19:11,920 he hadn't been before, and he's supposed to go first to the 272 00:19:11,920 --> 00:19:16,880 Jews, then to the Gentiles. As God seeks to bless the world 273 00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:22,480 through the Jewish people, we also see this Gentile expansion, 274 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:26,480 this missionary expansion, first to the Jews, then to the 275 00:19:26,480 --> 00:19:30,880 Gentiles and the life of Paul who specifically understands his 276 00:19:30,880 --> 00:19:35,600 calling as the apostle to the Gentiles, doesn't he? 277 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:41,560 He says in Romans chapter one verse 16, I am not ashamed of 278 00:19:41,560 --> 00:19:45,120 the gospel because of the power of, because it is the power of 279 00:19:45,120 --> 00:19:50,040 God for the salvation of everyone who believes, first for 280 00:19:50,040 --> 00:19:56,880 the Jew, then for the Gentile. What are some applications for 281 00:19:56,880 --> 00:20:01,240 us as we consider this Old Testament New Testament pattern 282 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:05,280 of the chosen line of priests mediating blessings to those who 283 00:20:05,280 --> 00:20:09,280 are not in the chosen lines? What does it mean for us today? 284 00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:16,440 Since we are Gentile recipients of the covenant promises to 285 00:20:16,440 --> 00:20:21,000 Israel? Since we are we are the Gentile 286 00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:25,320 recipients of the covenant promises to Israel, the Bible 287 00:20:25,320 --> 00:20:28,240 teaches us that we must honor the Jews. 288 00:20:28,960 --> 00:20:36,040 We must honor the Jews. Romans 11 makes this point over 289 00:20:36,040 --> 00:20:39,200 and over and over. It says, listen, Gentiles, just 290 00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:42,880 because Israel isn't believing right now, don't all y'all get 291 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:48,240 cocky. The blessings belong to the 292 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:50,080 patriarchs. They coming down from you. 293 00:20:50,080 --> 00:20:53,720 It's like a big tree. Big tree, a blessing. 294 00:20:53,720 --> 00:20:59,160 And guess what, Gentiles, you're grafted on and this living SAP 295 00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:02,480 that's coming up through there and making you alive is in 296 00:21:02,480 --> 00:21:05,440 continuity with all of that. Don't get cocky. 297 00:21:08,160 --> 00:21:12,480 Romans Chapter 11, verse 18, it says do not be arrogant toward 298 00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:18,080 the branches, Gentiles, if you are, remember it is not you who 299 00:21:18,080 --> 00:21:21,320 support the root, but the root that supports you. 300 00:21:22,120 --> 00:21:25,960 So do not become proud, but fear. 301 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:31,920 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will 302 00:21:31,920 --> 00:21:34,440 be grafted in. Paul is very hopeful about their 303 00:21:34,440 --> 00:21:38,480 future, for God has the power to graft them in again. 304 00:21:39,720 --> 00:21:42,520 He warns them about pride in verse 25. 305 00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:46,200 Again, lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to 306 00:21:46,200 --> 00:21:49,640 be unaware of this mystery. Brothers, a partial hardening 307 00:21:49,640 --> 00:21:53,080 has come upon Israel, and to the fullness of the Gentiles has 308 00:21:53,080 --> 00:21:55,800 come in. And in this way all Israel will 309 00:21:55,800 --> 00:21:59,600 be saved as it is written. The deliverable, the Deliverer, 310 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:03,040 will come from Zion. He will banish ungodliness from 311 00:22:03,040 --> 00:22:06,640 Jacob, and this will be my covenant with them when I take 312 00:22:06,680 --> 00:22:11,200 away their sins. We must honor the Jews Now. 313 00:22:11,720 --> 00:22:16,720 Honoring the Jews does not mean that we completely support all 314 00:22:16,720 --> 00:22:21,280 of modern Israel's policies. We must look at those with 315 00:22:21,280 --> 00:22:25,800 gospel lenses and Christian ethics, even if it means saying 316 00:22:25,800 --> 00:22:32,360 hard things. But it also means that there is 317 00:22:32,360 --> 00:22:36,160 no room in the Christian religion for anti-Semitic 318 00:22:36,280 --> 00:22:39,000 rhetoric, comments or affections in our hearts. 319 00:22:39,000 --> 00:22:45,520 We must honor the Jews when in as much as we are honoring the 320 00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:48,560 Jews, remembering that their blessings we are grafted into, 321 00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:51,560 we must also bless the outsiders. 322 00:22:52,800 --> 00:22:58,000 We must also bless the outsiders, and if in that case 323 00:22:58,000 --> 00:23:01,720 it means that they are Palestinian outsiders, we have 324 00:23:01,720 --> 00:23:04,280 to care about them too, don't we? 325 00:23:06,840 --> 00:23:10,600 So we come to this with Christian discernment and wise 326 00:23:10,600 --> 00:23:12,800 understanding. Searching the scriptures in 327 00:23:12,800 --> 00:23:15,040 community with one another. We were. 328 00:23:15,200 --> 00:23:18,840 We need to humbly recognize outsiders. 329 00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:22,040 Why? Because we is 1. 330 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:28,800 All the Gentiles are outsiders. That means when you come to a 331 00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:32,200 text with an outsider in it, you should pay attention. 332 00:23:32,520 --> 00:23:37,200 Oh, yeah, Canaanites. Yeah, that's me. 333 00:23:37,360 --> 00:23:40,640 Moabites. Yeah, that's me. 334 00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:45,880 And recognize that God has been kind to outsiders in a pattern 335 00:23:46,080 --> 00:23:50,680 all the way through the Bible. Rahab is a Canaanite, a 336 00:23:50,680 --> 00:23:57,400 prostitute who harbors the spies and is blessed in genealogy. 337 00:23:58,720 --> 00:24:02,400 Ruth is a get this friends, a Moabitess. 338 00:24:07,840 --> 00:24:11,800 Also honored in the genealogy. And that's awesome. 339 00:24:11,800 --> 00:24:15,960 Hope for you and for me, because we're the outsiders. 340 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:20,560 But it's also a humility check so that we don't form our own 341 00:24:20,560 --> 00:24:30,160 holy clusters and huddles in Pharisaical arrogance, shunning 342 00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:35,560 and oppressing and calling down fire from heaven on our enemies. 343 00:24:36,280 --> 00:24:39,680 We must bless the outsider. That super hard. 344 00:24:39,680 --> 00:24:43,960 It's going to take divine help by the Holy Spirit. 345 00:24:44,520 --> 00:24:50,800 We must bless the outsiders. The text goes on and on about 346 00:24:50,800 --> 00:24:53,600 this. Let's take a couple of examples. 347 00:24:54,360 --> 00:24:59,120 Ephesians 211 directly tells you to remember your status as an 348 00:24:59,120 --> 00:25:00,560 outsider. Ready. 349 00:25:02,040 --> 00:25:07,320 Therefore, remember that at one time you Gentiles, outsiders, 350 00:25:08,600 --> 00:25:11,560 were at that time separated from Christ. 351 00:25:11,560 --> 00:25:15,360 Listen to this separated from Christ, alienated from the 352 00:25:15,360 --> 00:25:19,440 Commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of 353 00:25:19,440 --> 00:25:24,840 promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 354 00:25:24,920 --> 00:25:27,240 That's your status. That's my status. 355 00:25:29,120 --> 00:25:36,520 Verse 13 But now, But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once 356 00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:40,320 far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 357 00:25:41,040 --> 00:25:46,600 For He himself is our peace, who has made us both one, and has 358 00:25:46,600 --> 00:25:49,920 broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility. 359 00:25:50,200 --> 00:25:55,440 And he came and preached peace to you who are far off, and 360 00:25:55,440 --> 00:26:01,080 peace to those who are near. Paul again now in Colossians. 361 00:26:01,080 --> 00:26:03,880 The 4th chapter gives us more instructions. 362 00:26:04,000 --> 00:26:09,280 How are we going to do this? It says, continue steadfastly in 363 00:26:09,280 --> 00:26:13,920 prayer, being watchful in it with Thanksgiving. 364 00:26:16,040 --> 00:26:19,480 At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a 365 00:26:19,480 --> 00:26:23,080 door for the Word to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of 366 00:26:23,080 --> 00:26:27,040 which I am in prison, that I may make it clear, which is how I 367 00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:31,480 ought to speak. Gentiles walk in wisdom toward 368 00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:34,240 outsiders, making the best use of the time. 369 00:26:34,440 --> 00:26:38,840 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salts, 370 00:26:39,040 --> 00:26:44,000 so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. 371 00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:50,720 Wow, watchfulness and prayer, loaded with Thanksgiving. 372 00:26:51,760 --> 00:26:57,560 Looking for opportunity, making the best use of time, gracious 373 00:26:57,560 --> 00:27:00,600 speech, season with salt so that you know how to answer each 374 00:27:00,600 --> 00:27:05,640 person. That is a divine purpose, and it 375 00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:08,520 will be given divine enablement by the Holy Spirit. 376 00:27:08,920 --> 00:27:12,880 But if you notice carefully in this text, Paul mentioned some 377 00:27:12,880 --> 00:27:16,760 pain, did you catch it? Paul mentioned some pain, did 378 00:27:16,760 --> 00:27:20,080 you catch it? On account of which the gospel, 379 00:27:20,240 --> 00:27:26,480 I am in prison. And the Bible's super clear 380 00:27:26,480 --> 00:27:31,480 about this too, that our efforts to bless the nation's includes 381 00:27:31,480 --> 00:27:33,960 blessing our enemies. And some of them aren't going to 382 00:27:33,960 --> 00:27:37,560 like us very much. They're going to hurt us. 383 00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:41,080 They're going to harm us. They're going to do all kind of 384 00:27:41,080 --> 00:27:44,440 manner of evil to us. And Jesus says bless those who 385 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:48,200 persecute you. Now, if I'm supposed to bless 386 00:27:48,280 --> 00:27:52,520 enemies, that's a problem. What about justice? 387 00:27:52,520 --> 00:27:57,720 God, don't you care? You know what's happening down 388 00:27:57,720 --> 00:28:00,280 here? This is a scary, horrible world 389 00:28:02,320 --> 00:28:06,800 and we are taught, we are taught that we must trust the righteous 390 00:28:06,800 --> 00:28:09,720 judge. Couple of things here. 391 00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:13,840 This does not mean that Christians sort of lays into a 392 00:28:13,840 --> 00:28:17,120 passive trust where we stop caring about justice. 393 00:28:17,200 --> 00:28:20,080 It's not what it means. Some of you are going to be 394 00:28:20,080 --> 00:28:25,680 called the law enforcement, public advocacy, the political 395 00:28:25,680 --> 00:28:28,320 arena, and you're going to work hard from a Christian 396 00:28:28,320 --> 00:28:33,120 perspective to try to pass just laws and advocate for the ones 397 00:28:33,120 --> 00:28:36,840 who are brutally oppressed. And you're going to work towards 398 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:41,440 justice as a Christian. And holy calling, we're not 399 00:28:41,440 --> 00:28:45,440 called to just completely lays out in some sort of passive 400 00:28:45,440 --> 00:28:47,840 trust. We are supposed to work for 401 00:28:47,840 --> 00:28:52,640 justice, but we're also supposed to do that within the bounds of 402 00:28:52,640 --> 00:28:56,520 the law, because it is not Christian for us to take justice 403 00:28:56,520 --> 00:29:02,360 into our own hands, for us to act as vigilantes and to act as 404 00:29:02,360 --> 00:29:07,160 those who do not have gracious words seasoned with salt but 405 00:29:07,160 --> 00:29:10,680 rather are cantankerous cussing fighters. 406 00:29:11,800 --> 00:29:16,360 We must remember the tone matters, The content matters. 407 00:29:16,440 --> 00:29:19,600 The rule of the law matters. We advocate for justice in the 408 00:29:19,600 --> 00:29:21,440 here and now. But we're also going to realize, 409 00:29:21,440 --> 00:29:28,360 friends, that some injustice we're going to take all the way 410 00:29:28,360 --> 00:29:30,920 to the grave and to the resurrection and to the glory. 411 00:29:31,400 --> 00:29:37,440 There are some consequences of sin that no prison sentence will 412 00:29:37,440 --> 00:29:40,280 give back to a family what they have lost. 413 00:29:42,880 --> 00:29:48,400 And for that loss we have to have heavenly hope and heavenly 414 00:29:48,400 --> 00:29:52,800 eyes, and trust the righteous judge who will raise the dead 415 00:29:53,240 --> 00:29:55,840 and perfectly pay back everything. 416 00:29:57,040 --> 00:30:03,040 Redeem the lost, judge the wicked, and finally, at last the 417 00:30:03,040 --> 00:30:06,840 great scales will balance in the person, in the work of Jesus 418 00:30:06,840 --> 00:30:10,800 Christ the righteous who took condemnation for us in our 419 00:30:10,800 --> 00:30:15,360 place. Hear the words of the Lord from 420 00:30:15,360 --> 00:30:18,920 Romans 12. Friends, bless those who 421 00:30:18,920 --> 00:30:22,280 persecute you. Bless and do not curse them. 422 00:30:23,240 --> 00:30:27,120 Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep. 423 00:30:27,440 --> 00:30:29,600 Live in harmony with one another. 424 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:33,640 Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. 425 00:30:34,280 --> 00:30:36,320 Never be wise in your own sights. 426 00:30:36,680 --> 00:30:41,360 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is 427 00:30:41,400 --> 00:30:46,840 honorable in the sight of all friends, if possible, so far as 428 00:30:46,840 --> 00:30:51,840 it depends on you, live peacefully with all beloved. 429 00:30:52,080 --> 00:30:56,240 Never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God. 430 00:30:56,240 --> 00:30:58,880 For it is written, vengeance is mine. 431 00:30:59,120 --> 00:31:03,240 I will repay, says the Lord, to the contrary. 432 00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:05,360 If your enemy is hungry, feed him. 433 00:31:05,600 --> 00:31:08,400 If he is thirsty, give him something to drink, for by doing 434 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:10,560 so you will heap burning coals on his head. 435 00:31:10,760 --> 00:31:15,280 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. 436 00:31:16,280 --> 00:31:22,120 In the here and now and in the life to come, everything will be 437 00:31:22,480 --> 00:31:28,480 repaid. So to conclude, we Gentiles are 438 00:31:28,480 --> 00:31:33,400 blessed in order to bless others, even our enemies. 439 00:31:33,800 --> 00:31:37,480 Will you pray with me? Father in Heaven, we give you 440 00:31:37,480 --> 00:31:40,680 thanks this day and this week for our many physical and 441 00:31:40,680 --> 00:31:44,080 spiritual blessings. We also acknowledge those who 442 00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:50,080 are in deep scarcity who need provision, and those who are 443 00:31:50,080 --> 00:31:52,400 impoverished spiritually who need Jesus. 444 00:31:53,160 --> 00:31:57,360 We lift up the hurting to you and ask you to be generous, as 445 00:31:57,360 --> 00:32:01,320 you have been with us. Bless us now as we respond in 446 00:32:01,320 --> 00:32:04,160 Jesus name and by the Spirit, Amen.