1 00:00:00,850 --> 00:00:02,540 I don't have to yell. OK, great. 2 00:00:02,550 --> 00:00:05,150 I might yell anyways, but you know, at least now I don't have 3 00:00:05,160 --> 00:00:10,100 to. OK, here we go. 4 00:00:10,150 --> 00:00:13,640 One day everything will work all at the same time. 5 00:00:14,230 --> 00:00:16,910 It's great. I love this. 6 00:00:16,920 --> 00:00:19,420 Hey, if you're new special, welcome to you. 7 00:00:19,530 --> 00:00:22,380 Sometimes I'm better at technology than this. 8 00:00:22,450 --> 00:00:26,000 That's all I can give you. Sometimes my name is my name is 9 00:00:26,010 --> 00:00:29,520 Grant, and I'm one of the pastors here at the church and 10 00:00:29,610 --> 00:00:31,320 it's good to have. It's good to have all of you 11 00:00:31,330 --> 00:00:33,040 with us. I do want to say this one thing 12 00:00:33,050 --> 00:00:39,450 because I saw, listen, like some of us wandering in as Chris was 13 00:00:39,460 --> 00:00:43,620 giving this announcement. And I just want to point out, if 14 00:00:43,630 --> 00:00:46,280 you are a young adult, if you consider yourself to be a young 15 00:00:46,290 --> 00:00:50,280 adult, I'm not gonna challenge you too much on how you define 16 00:00:50,290 --> 00:00:52,850 that. We're we're hosting, we're 17 00:00:52,860 --> 00:00:55,780 hosting a young adults lunch at our house. 18 00:00:55,990 --> 00:00:57,980 Connie, my wife and I are hosting that lunch. 19 00:00:57,990 --> 00:00:59,720 And so we're looking forward to it. 20 00:00:59,730 --> 00:01:02,070 I was thinking as I was sitting there was like, man, wouldn't it 21 00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:04,959 be crazy if you forgot that you were hosting and then it was 22 00:01:04,970 --> 00:01:07,300 just announced and you're OK? Alright, here we go. 23 00:01:07,310 --> 00:01:09,660 Game on. That was not the case. 24 00:01:09,670 --> 00:01:12,740 OK, That was not the case today. We're so looking forward to 25 00:01:12,750 --> 00:01:14,440 that. So I hope that as many of you as 26 00:01:14,450 --> 00:01:18,330 possible can come out to young adults Lunch and we'll try to 27 00:01:18,340 --> 00:01:20,240 fit as many of you into our place as possible. 28 00:01:20,820 --> 00:01:22,390 But we're looking forward to that. 29 00:01:22,440 --> 00:01:24,480 Do you wanna say listen, like if you're new, if you're new, if 30 00:01:24,490 --> 00:01:27,280 you just checking us out and new to Guelph. 31 00:01:27,500 --> 00:01:29,690 Welcome. About a year ago, I was brand 32 00:01:29,700 --> 00:01:32,460 new to Guelph and we've absolutely fallen in love with 33 00:01:32,470 --> 00:01:34,450 this place. So we would love to talk to you 34 00:01:34,460 --> 00:01:38,160 about that as well. We're picking up in a series 35 00:01:38,170 --> 00:01:41,830 that we've been working through on the Gospel of Luke and we're 36 00:01:41,840 --> 00:01:43,230 going to be in it for a long time. 37 00:01:43,240 --> 00:01:44,850 So don't worry if you're just catching up. 38 00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:48,450 There's time to catch up and hang with us for a while. 39 00:01:49,020 --> 00:01:51,710 But we are still in Luke Chapter 9. 40 00:01:51,800 --> 00:01:56,880 And if you want to find Luke 9 on a phone in a Bible, we've got 41 00:01:56,890 --> 00:01:59,940 some Bibles at the back of the sanctuary over there. 42 00:01:59,950 --> 00:02:03,150 We'll have it on the screens as we work our way through it as 43 00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:05,090 well. I just think it's good to have 44 00:02:05,100 --> 00:02:06,550 it in front of you. It's good to read. 45 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:08,490 And if it's a different version, that doesn't matter. 46 00:02:08,500 --> 00:02:11,510 And if you write in our church Pew Bibles, that's great. 47 00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:14,330 Like underline things. I just want to get it in front 48 00:02:14,340 --> 00:02:15,890 of you as we work our way through it. 49 00:02:15,900 --> 00:02:19,730 But Luke 9, we're going to be reading from about verse 43, 50 00:02:19,740 --> 00:02:22,790 which backs us up a couple verses through to verse 50. 51 00:02:22,910 --> 00:02:26,780 And I'm gonna pray before we do that. 52 00:02:26,790 --> 00:02:30,830 So if you take your time, find those verses, Lucas, most of the 53 00:02:30,840 --> 00:02:34,800 way through your Bible, and that'll get you most of the way 54 00:02:34,810 --> 00:02:35,530 there. Let's pray. 55 00:02:36,670 --> 00:02:39,670 God, thanks for your love, thank you for your grace, and thank 56 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:44,300 you for this rhythm of life and gathering that you call us into. 57 00:02:44,310 --> 00:02:47,600 Thanks for this habit and discipline of worship that we 58 00:02:47,610 --> 00:02:52,220 are challenged to embrace. And I'm grateful to be here and 59 00:02:52,230 --> 00:02:57,300 that you would gather us here to worship and to encourage one 60 00:02:57,310 --> 00:03:00,360 another to pray together, to read scripture. 61 00:03:00,530 --> 00:03:03,480 Yet at the end of the day, like none of this works without you. 62 00:03:03,570 --> 00:03:07,200 And so we need you to do what you promised to do, which is to 63 00:03:07,210 --> 00:03:10,680 show up and speak to us and challenge us, encourage us. 64 00:03:11,580 --> 00:03:14,470 Yeah, we're yours. So over these next few minutes 65 00:03:14,480 --> 00:03:18,150 as we read and as we work our way through these these verses, 66 00:03:18,160 --> 00:03:21,310 yeah, what would you do that? Would you remind us of who we 67 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:23,990 are and whose we are? Would you remind us of your 68 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:27,730 goodness and of your grace? We pray in Jesus name, Amen. 69 00:03:31,550 --> 00:03:38,740 So Luke 9, starting at roughly verse 43, it says this while 70 00:03:38,750 --> 00:03:41,820 everyone was marveling at all that Jesus did, He said to his 71 00:03:41,830 --> 00:03:44,860 disciples, listen carefully to what I'm about to tell you. 72 00:03:45,550 --> 00:03:48,780 The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. 73 00:03:49,330 --> 00:03:51,980 But they did not understand what this meant. 74 00:03:52,190 --> 00:03:55,610 It was hidden from them so that they did not grasp it, and they 75 00:03:55,620 --> 00:04:00,090 were afraid to ask Him about it. An argument started among the 76 00:04:00,100 --> 00:04:03,790 disciples as to which of them would be the greatest. 77 00:04:04,260 --> 00:04:07,350 Jesus, knowing their thoughts, took a little child and had him 78 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:11,370 stand beside him. Then he said to them, Whoever 79 00:04:11,380 --> 00:04:15,570 welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me, and whoever 80 00:04:15,580 --> 00:04:20,250 welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me for it is the one who is 81 00:04:20,260 --> 00:04:25,010 least among you who is the greatest Master, said John. 82 00:04:25,020 --> 00:04:28,070 We saw someone driving out demons in your name, and we 83 00:04:28,080 --> 00:04:31,470 tried to stop him because he is not one of us. 84 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:36,190 Do not stop him, Jesus said. For whoever is not against you 85 00:04:36,930 --> 00:04:43,330 is for you. Now I've got a question for you, 86 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:46,580 and you can answer this by putting your hand up if you'd 87 00:04:46,590 --> 00:04:48,490 like or you can not. Choices. 88 00:04:48,500 --> 00:04:52,090 Up to you, but I'm curious who here is bold enough to admit to 89 00:04:52,100 --> 00:04:56,140 being competitive? OK, right on. 90 00:04:56,150 --> 00:04:57,680 I would add my hand to that as well. 91 00:04:57,750 --> 00:05:00,980 Now here's the real challenge. Who raised their hand first? 92 00:05:03,180 --> 00:05:06,250 Like we want to settle it. OK, try again, 123. 93 00:05:06,260 --> 00:05:08,190 No, I'm just, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. 94 00:05:08,580 --> 00:05:10,550 I am competitive. I don't know if you know this 95 00:05:10,560 --> 00:05:11,510 about me. I don't know if this is a 96 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:13,410 surprise to you or not, but I'm competitive by nature. 97 00:05:13,420 --> 00:05:15,810 It's something I've had all the way through my entire life, my 98 00:05:15,820 --> 00:05:18,710 child's entire childhood and into adulthood. 99 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:21,530 I think the older I get, like an old age, it's maybe kind of 100 00:05:21,620 --> 00:05:26,040 tempering off a little bit. But I, I, I'm competitive. 101 00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:36,700 I actually think most of us, if not all of us are competitive 102 00:05:38,130 --> 00:05:42,140 human beings seem to have this like really fundamental habit 103 00:05:42,150 --> 00:05:46,700 and way of competing and comparing ourselves to one 104 00:05:46,710 --> 00:05:50,180 another, right? We we compare ourselves to those 105 00:05:50,190 --> 00:05:53,570 who are immediately around us, those we know, like our family, 106 00:05:53,580 --> 00:05:56,300 our siblings growing up. Like don't get me started on 107 00:05:56,310 --> 00:05:59,860 that. Our friends, maybe our 108 00:05:59,870 --> 00:06:03,540 neighbors, our coworkers, like we look around and we just 109 00:06:03,550 --> 00:06:08,880 naturally start to compare and to compete who has what and when 110 00:06:08,890 --> 00:06:12,450 and who's reached what benchmark first and how. 111 00:06:14,670 --> 00:06:17,070 But I think here's where we also as a culture and as a people, 112 00:06:17,080 --> 00:06:19,600 like we tend to get a little bit silly because you and I, we 113 00:06:19,610 --> 00:06:21,760 don't just have a problem comparing ourselves to people 114 00:06:21,770 --> 00:06:25,260 that we know, to people immediately around us in our 115 00:06:25,270 --> 00:06:26,770 life. We compare ourselves to people 116 00:06:26,780 --> 00:06:29,530 that we have never met and probably never will meet. 117 00:06:31,810 --> 00:06:34,820 We compare ourselves not not only to like, siblings and 118 00:06:34,830 --> 00:06:38,300 coworkers and friends and neighbors, but to imaginary 119 00:06:38,310 --> 00:06:41,320 benchmarks that we see all around us, like from advertising 120 00:06:41,330 --> 00:06:45,220 campaigns that push these irrational views of self. 121 00:06:45,290 --> 00:06:49,920 Sort of standards where we ought to be where we aren't to news 122 00:06:49,930 --> 00:06:53,920 outlet stories, to Instagram posts, to social media videos, 123 00:06:53,930 --> 00:06:59,900 all of it that kind of tip us into this mode of who has what, 124 00:07:00,830 --> 00:07:05,220 who looks like what, who is doing this and that that I am 125 00:07:05,230 --> 00:07:10,290 not that I want to. I don't know about you, but 126 00:07:10,300 --> 00:07:14,100 like, when was the last time you remember looking at somebody and 127 00:07:14,110 --> 00:07:17,360 thinking, I'm just not keeping up. 128 00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:23,810 I thought I'd be done school. I thought I'd have a career by 129 00:07:23,820 --> 00:07:27,040 now. I thought I'd be married. 130 00:07:28,100 --> 00:07:31,190 I thought I'd have kids. I thought I'd be retired. 131 00:07:31,200 --> 00:07:33,630 I I thought I'd travel. I'd thought we'd vacation. 132 00:07:33,640 --> 00:07:39,800 I thought we'd enjoy. I thought I'd keep up, like we 133 00:07:39,810 --> 00:07:42,150 all try to do this kind of imaginary, like keeping up with 134 00:07:42,160 --> 00:07:46,660 the Jones, this kind of thing. And it's like the pressure and 135 00:07:46,670 --> 00:07:50,700 the habit of trying to match the social status and lifestyle and 136 00:07:50,710 --> 00:07:54,240 possessions of family and friends and neighbors and peers 137 00:07:54,250 --> 00:07:58,870 because we're afraid that we might be left behind. 138 00:08:01,560 --> 00:08:06,400 So I read this, this story. Everybody's marveling at all 139 00:08:06,410 --> 00:08:11,010 that Jesus did while everybody was looking at all that Jesus 140 00:08:11,020 --> 00:08:13,480 had done. He gathers his disciples and he 141 00:08:13,490 --> 00:08:16,320 says to them, listen carefully. Like don't pay attention to 142 00:08:16,330 --> 00:08:18,760 what's going on over here. Listen carefully to what I'm 143 00:08:18,770 --> 00:08:20,770 gonna tell you. The Son of Man is gonna be 144 00:08:20,780 --> 00:08:25,140 delivered into the hands of men. But they did not understand. 145 00:08:27,030 --> 00:08:28,480 They didn't understand what it meant. 146 00:08:28,490 --> 00:08:31,720 It was hidden from them so that they did not grasp it, and they 147 00:08:31,730 --> 00:08:41,169 were afraid to ask him about it. And in that moment an argument 148 00:08:41,179 --> 00:08:50,400 started among them as to which of them would be the greatest. 149 00:08:53,090 --> 00:08:56,970 Which among us is the greatest, like here? 150 00:08:56,980 --> 00:09:00,170 So here's the situation. A father has just brought his 151 00:09:00,180 --> 00:09:04,710 son to Jesus and his his father's father's begging, 152 00:09:04,720 --> 00:09:09,010 Jesus, heal my son, heal my son. Like cast out the demons that 153 00:09:09,020 --> 00:09:12,490 are imposing on him, that are making him ill. 154 00:09:12,540 --> 00:09:15,600 And furthermore, like this father comes to Jesus and he 155 00:09:15,610 --> 00:09:18,070 says, listen, like I brought my kid to your disciples. 156 00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:20,770 Your disciples couldn't do it. They couldn't heal him. 157 00:09:20,820 --> 00:09:23,890 So I'm begging you, Jesus, would you please heal him? 158 00:09:23,900 --> 00:09:26,320 Jesus has healed the son. That's happened. 159 00:09:26,430 --> 00:09:30,460 And people are marveling at that healing. 160 00:09:30,930 --> 00:09:34,420 They're all over here watching what Jesus had done, celebrating 161 00:09:34,430 --> 00:09:38,000 that this kid was healed. And Jesus says to his disciples, 162 00:09:38,010 --> 00:09:41,460 hey, don't become distracted by what's going on over here. 163 00:09:41,530 --> 00:09:44,800 Don't become distracted away from what really matters. 164 00:09:44,810 --> 00:09:47,600 And so he calls them in close and he says, listen carefully to 165 00:09:47,610 --> 00:09:52,110 what I'm about to tell you. And it's a turning point in the 166 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:54,880 Gospel of Luke. These last couple of verses, 167 00:09:54,890 --> 00:09:57,880 this chapter, as we move into 10, like this is a turning point 168 00:09:57,890 --> 00:10:01,420 for Luke's gospel because from here we're gonna move very 169 00:10:01,430 --> 00:10:05,940 decidedly toward the cross and towards Jesus's death and 170 00:10:05,950 --> 00:10:09,620 eventually his resurrection. And what we see in these moments 171 00:10:09,630 --> 00:10:12,000 is Jesus saying, listen, like, I'm still going to bring the 172 00:10:12,010 --> 00:10:13,360 Kingdom. I'm still going to heal. 173 00:10:13,430 --> 00:10:15,840 I'm still gonna cast out demons. People are still gonna have 174 00:10:15,850 --> 00:10:18,420 their lives restored. Relationships are still gonna be 175 00:10:18,430 --> 00:10:20,820 made right? All of that will happen, but 176 00:10:20,830 --> 00:10:24,180 don't lose sight of the fact that it is not the Kingdom in 177 00:10:24,190 --> 00:10:27,380 its entirety. This still needs to happen. 178 00:10:28,520 --> 00:10:30,110 We still need to walk to Jerusalem. 179 00:10:30,120 --> 00:10:32,130 We still need to move toward the cross. 180 00:10:32,140 --> 00:10:35,810 Jesus will still need to die. All of this will continue to 181 00:10:35,820 --> 00:10:37,390 happen. But he says, hey, disciples, 182 00:10:37,400 --> 00:10:41,950 don't become so distracted by the miracles and these moments 183 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:45,570 that you lose sight of what I'm really trying to show you and 184 00:10:45,580 --> 00:10:48,320 reveal and accomplish and do in the world. 185 00:10:49,490 --> 00:10:54,110 And it's like he's saying, hey, pay attention, pay attention. 186 00:10:55,020 --> 00:10:57,670 And, and I think like the disciples at best in this 187 00:10:57,680 --> 00:11:02,620 moment, they lean in and they say, hey, we don't understand 188 00:11:02,630 --> 00:11:06,730 what you're talking about. We're a little bit afraid to ask 189 00:11:06,740 --> 00:11:09,160 you, Jesus, But like, could you just, could you, could you 190 00:11:09,170 --> 00:11:12,280 reveal a little bit more? Could you tell us a little bit 191 00:11:12,290 --> 00:11:14,770 more? We're a little bit curious here. 192 00:11:14,780 --> 00:11:17,380 What do you mean? Like, at best, they would lean 193 00:11:17,390 --> 00:11:20,700 and ask For more information. At worst, like I think maybe 194 00:11:20,710 --> 00:11:24,200 they'd continue to celebrate the miracle and continue to like be 195 00:11:24,210 --> 00:11:25,860 distracted over here and be like, hey, yeah. 196 00:11:25,870 --> 00:11:28,320 But Jesus, can we just remember what you did? 197 00:11:28,330 --> 00:11:31,080 Like, look at this son, he's healed and this father's kid 198 00:11:31,090 --> 00:11:33,100 back. Like, let's celebrate this. 199 00:11:35,360 --> 00:11:39,230 And to me, it's just like it becomes it's almost painfully 200 00:11:39,240 --> 00:11:43,580 funny that they do neither of those things. 201 00:11:44,590 --> 00:11:48,680 The disciples who have just failed to heal this kid. 202 00:11:50,090 --> 00:11:52,760 I say up here, like in the verses that go for it. 203 00:11:54,690 --> 00:11:56,710 They've failed to hear to heal the kid. 204 00:11:57,480 --> 00:12:01,040 Jesus has stepped in and healed, and then the disciples get into 205 00:12:01,050 --> 00:12:04,570 an argument about which of them is the greatest. 206 00:12:06,400 --> 00:12:10,650 It it's a little ironic. It's like, I got an F on this 207 00:12:10,660 --> 00:12:12,210 test. You also got an F on the test. 208 00:12:12,220 --> 00:12:17,490 None of us passed, but who's the greatest is like you can get 209 00:12:17,500 --> 00:12:20,840 into their minds a little bit. It it doesn't make sense. 210 00:12:23,050 --> 00:12:27,190 But I wanted to know something that is so important because I 211 00:12:27,200 --> 00:12:29,450 think it's something that like every single one of us struggles 212 00:12:29,460 --> 00:12:32,950 with in one way or another, and it's this. 213 00:12:33,220 --> 00:12:36,370 So they don't understand. It was hidden from them. 214 00:12:36,440 --> 00:12:39,380 They did not grasp it, and they were afraid. 215 00:12:40,730 --> 00:12:44,630 They were afraid. They argue about who's the 216 00:12:44,640 --> 00:12:47,220 greatest. They begin into this like 217 00:12:47,230 --> 00:12:51,310 descent of comparison because they are afraid. 218 00:12:52,660 --> 00:12:54,540 They didn't understand it was hidden from them. 219 00:12:54,550 --> 00:12:56,710 They were afraid to ask him about it. 220 00:12:56,720 --> 00:13:01,730 And then an argument started. The way that Jesus teaches all 221 00:13:01,740 --> 00:13:04,610 throughout the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the way 222 00:13:04,620 --> 00:13:07,550 the early church wrestle out Jesus's teaching, all of his 223 00:13:07,560 --> 00:13:10,550 teaching invites us toward asking questions. 224 00:13:10,560 --> 00:13:13,330 That's the intention. There's a passage of scripture 225 00:13:13,380 --> 00:13:15,950 where Jesus actually breaks down, hey, we teach in parables. 226 00:13:15,960 --> 00:13:20,870 I teach in parables because. And the because is that he wants 227 00:13:20,880 --> 00:13:23,590 you leaning in. He wants you not just like, hey, 228 00:13:23,600 --> 00:13:27,490 so spoon feed me and so that I can go off and feel a little bit 229 00:13:27,500 --> 00:13:30,050 better about my life. Jesus wants you to lean in and 230 00:13:30,060 --> 00:13:31,730 have to work a little bit, right? 231 00:13:31,740 --> 00:13:35,620 Have to wrestle with what he is teaching and how to apply it to 232 00:13:35,630 --> 00:13:37,480 your life. The implication for you 233 00:13:37,490 --> 00:13:40,860 specifically, you need to be active and participate in it. 234 00:13:40,950 --> 00:13:44,320 And so Jesus is constantly teaching in a way that invites 235 00:13:44,330 --> 00:13:48,180 us to ask question. His desire is for you to lean in 236 00:13:48,190 --> 00:13:53,800 and to ask what does it mean? But in order to do that, you've 237 00:13:53,810 --> 00:13:57,070 got to take a vulnerable and humble posture. 238 00:13:58,740 --> 00:14:01,520 The expectation here isn't for the disciples to know 239 00:14:01,530 --> 00:14:05,290 everything. The expectation isn't that they 240 00:14:05,300 --> 00:14:10,070 can explain why Jesus has done everything, why he was able to 241 00:14:10,080 --> 00:14:12,190 heal the the kid and why they weren't. 242 00:14:13,010 --> 00:14:16,830 Jesus is expectation is is not that the disciples would know 243 00:14:16,890 --> 00:14:20,700 immediately what he means when he says the Son of Man is going 244 00:14:20,710 --> 00:14:22,200 to be delivered into the hands of men. 245 00:14:22,210 --> 00:14:26,590 Like he's not demanding perfect knowledge from them, he's 246 00:14:26,600 --> 00:14:31,260 inviting them into deeper relationship and into wrestling 247 00:14:31,430 --> 00:14:35,320 it out. But the disciples are afraid, 248 00:14:37,070 --> 00:14:42,280 and it's their fear that drives them away from vulnerability, 249 00:14:42,290 --> 00:14:46,300 away from humility, and toward comparison and into this 250 00:14:46,310 --> 00:14:50,290 argument about who will be the greatest, about which among them 251 00:14:50,410 --> 00:14:57,010 is the best. So I kind of think like, what? 252 00:14:57,090 --> 00:14:59,240 What are the disciples trying to figure out? 253 00:15:01,270 --> 00:15:03,490 They're, they're trying to figure out where they fit. 254 00:15:04,890 --> 00:15:08,390 Like where do I fit within the social hierarchy of this group? 255 00:15:08,400 --> 00:15:11,010 Like maybe it is out of fear because they've just failed and 256 00:15:11,020 --> 00:15:14,600 they recognize it. Like where do I belong? 257 00:15:14,610 --> 00:15:17,940 If not here, then how like do I belong? 258 00:15:19,410 --> 00:15:20,840 Here's the thing about comparison. 259 00:15:22,060 --> 00:15:24,870 You and I, we compare ourselves to others because we all have a 260 00:15:24,880 --> 00:15:28,970 fundamental human need for social connection and for self 261 00:15:28,980 --> 00:15:34,690 understanding. Like I need to know who I am and 262 00:15:34,700 --> 00:15:40,930 where I fit, that I do fit, that there is a role for me within a 263 00:15:40,940 --> 00:15:44,610 community. And and so we're all driven, 264 00:15:44,620 --> 00:15:48,710 each of us to ward comparison in an attempt to figure out who am 265 00:15:48,720 --> 00:15:52,650 I? How do I understand myself? 266 00:15:52,660 --> 00:15:55,600 And, and not only that so that I can go off and do my own thing, 267 00:15:55,610 --> 00:15:58,340 but how do I then understanding who I am? 268 00:15:58,350 --> 00:16:00,900 How do I fit into this community around me? 269 00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:04,770 How do I fit into my family? How do I fit into my friends 270 00:16:04,780 --> 00:16:06,800 circle? How do I fit into my profession 271 00:16:06,810 --> 00:16:10,910 and occupation or vocation? Like what role do I have to 272 00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:12,010 play? We're all looking for 273 00:16:12,020 --> 00:16:14,410 connection. We're all looking to understand 274 00:16:14,420 --> 00:16:18,060 ourselves. We need to know who we are, and 275 00:16:18,070 --> 00:16:21,960 we need to know that there is something for us inside of 276 00:16:22,170 --> 00:16:25,380 community. But like so many things and so 277 00:16:25,390 --> 00:16:28,920 many other ways that sin distorts, it takes something 278 00:16:28,930 --> 00:16:33,860 that is good and twists it just enough in the just enough of a 279 00:16:33,870 --> 00:16:37,050 lie that that it looks almost right. 280 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:40,730 And so it's no longer that I'm just trying to understand 281 00:16:40,740 --> 00:16:43,370 myself, and it's no longer that I'm just trying to understand 282 00:16:43,380 --> 00:16:46,370 how we fit together. It's that I'm trying to 283 00:16:46,380 --> 00:16:52,980 understand who I am and you know that I belong maybe just a 284 00:16:52,990 --> 00:16:55,710 little bit more than the next guy. 285 00:16:58,590 --> 00:17:01,720 We start to believe the lie. I think in comparison that that 286 00:17:01,730 --> 00:17:07,569 belonging is a 0 sum game. We start to believe that that my 287 00:17:07,579 --> 00:17:10,550 belonging is conditional and that in order for me to belong, 288 00:17:10,560 --> 00:17:12,560 I need to belong just a little bit better than you. 289 00:17:14,720 --> 00:17:18,190 I need to have a role just a little bit more than you, and if 290 00:17:18,200 --> 00:17:20,700 you fill this role that that means I like, maybe there's 291 00:17:20,710 --> 00:17:29,200 nothing for me here. We all need to know, have been, 292 00:17:29,210 --> 00:17:34,040 I think, created, believe, created to know they were safe, 293 00:17:35,410 --> 00:17:37,710 that we're secure, that we belong, that we have a place, 294 00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:40,020 that we have a purpose. We wanna know that our lives 295 00:17:40,030 --> 00:17:43,330 have significance, that we are known and that we are loved. 296 00:17:45,030 --> 00:17:53,790 And so we run around looking to fill these longings each of us 297 00:17:53,800 --> 00:17:58,050 created with these longing inside of our heart and our 298 00:17:58,060 --> 00:18:00,780 head. We want to experience being 299 00:18:00,790 --> 00:18:04,450 loved. We want to experience what it is 300 00:18:04,460 --> 00:18:08,790 to love someone. We long to live in a a life that 301 00:18:08,800 --> 00:18:11,670 is significant that to understand and know that we have 302 00:18:11,680 --> 00:18:15,030 a role and a purpose. We search for security and 303 00:18:15,040 --> 00:18:19,730 safety, a place where we can be ourselves actually, fully, truly 304 00:18:19,740 --> 00:18:23,240 and and become vulnerable with others and grow. 305 00:18:24,670 --> 00:18:26,900 We need to be understood and have a purpose. 306 00:18:26,910 --> 00:18:30,310 We need to live for something that matters and do something 307 00:18:30,320 --> 00:18:32,910 that matters. We desperately need community. 308 00:18:32,920 --> 00:18:38,540 You know this belonging to have a people or like a tribe, a 309 00:18:38,550 --> 00:18:44,100 family, a Group, A place to be and to belong, to love and to be 310 00:18:44,110 --> 00:18:53,030 loved. And it's fear that praise on 311 00:18:53,040 --> 00:19:00,830 those longings. It's fear that drives us to 312 00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:07,660 compare and compete and believe that we need to discover and 313 00:19:07,790 --> 00:19:13,560 find and attain and hold on to these things before anybody else 314 00:19:13,570 --> 00:19:17,870 does. Maybe the fear sounds like I I 315 00:19:17,880 --> 00:19:23,070 won't find a community. What if there's nobody for me 316 00:19:23,080 --> 00:19:25,750 there? What if I land? 317 00:19:25,760 --> 00:19:27,520 What if I settle into a residence? 318 00:19:27,530 --> 00:19:30,910 What if I move? What if I change jobs and 319 00:19:30,920 --> 00:19:37,480 there's just nobody for me? What if I make no friends? 320 00:19:37,490 --> 00:19:39,770 What if I have no connection? What if I'm lone? 321 00:19:40,560 --> 00:19:44,440 What if I'm lonely? Maybe it sounds like I I don't 322 00:19:44,450 --> 00:19:45,450 belong. I've never belonged. 323 00:19:45,460 --> 00:19:47,260 I've never been able to find my place. 324 00:19:47,490 --> 00:19:49,900 Maybe the fear sounds like my life doesn't have a purpose and 325 00:19:49,910 --> 00:19:52,380 it isn't where I thought it would be and so therefore it's 326 00:19:52,390 --> 00:19:55,820 never going to be where I believe it ought to be. 327 00:19:58,100 --> 00:20:00,830 Maybe it's fear that sounds like I won't be loved, I can't be 328 00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:03,620 loved, or worse, the fear that I am unlovable. 329 00:20:05,700 --> 00:20:13,220 Like fear and insecurity cause us to grasp that comparison and 330 00:20:13,230 --> 00:20:16,280 it's at the end of the day all of the goodness of belonging 331 00:20:16,290 --> 00:20:20,040 turned in on itself, turned selfish, turned sideways, turned 332 00:20:20,120 --> 00:20:23,660 broken. And in the disciples case, it's 333 00:20:23,670 --> 00:20:27,380 their fear that distracts completely away from what Jesus 334 00:20:27,390 --> 00:20:30,620 is doing. It distracts completely away 335 00:20:30,630 --> 00:20:32,940 from the healing. It distracts completely away 336 00:20:32,950 --> 00:20:36,100 from what he is trying to speak to them and and have them 337 00:20:36,110 --> 00:20:39,950 understand that this is still not it, that there is still work 338 00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:42,500 yet to be done. We need to remain focused. 339 00:20:42,590 --> 00:20:47,060 It's fear that causes them just to descend into this argument 340 00:20:47,410 --> 00:20:55,010 among themselves. Who is the greatest Jesus? 341 00:20:55,020 --> 00:20:59,420 Knowing their thoughts took a little child and had him stand 342 00:20:59,430 --> 00:21:01,550 beside him. And then he said to them, 343 00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:04,850 Whoever welcomes you can highlight that one. 344 00:21:04,920 --> 00:21:07,870 This little child in my name welcomes me, and whoever 345 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:10,820 welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me for it is the one who is 346 00:21:10,830 --> 00:21:15,350 least among you all. Who is the greatest? 347 00:21:18,040 --> 00:21:22,360 Fred Craddock writes he wrote a commentary on the book of Luke. 348 00:21:22,370 --> 00:21:26,190 He says the argument among the disciples about the greatness 349 00:21:26,260 --> 00:21:30,350 right is ugly and inappropriate for is comparative and 350 00:21:30,360 --> 00:21:32,860 competitive. It destroys their unity and it 351 00:21:32,870 --> 00:21:38,510 diverts praise from God to themselves, and it introduces 352 00:21:38,520 --> 00:21:42,060 into the circle of Jesus followers criteria of greatness 353 00:21:42,070 --> 00:21:46,530 that are totally foreign to the reign of God, something that was 354 00:21:46,540 --> 00:21:51,930 never intended to be part of the community of that eventually we 355 00:21:51,940 --> 00:21:54,670 call the church a part of the Kingdom of God. 356 00:21:54,680 --> 00:22:00,600 Comparative competitiveness. And he says it destroys unity. 357 00:22:02,390 --> 00:22:05,400 Comparison I I believe through and through. 358 00:22:05,410 --> 00:22:11,670 Comparison kills intimacy with Jesus and it destroys unity with 359 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:15,720 others. There is nothing that distracts 360 00:22:15,730 --> 00:22:19,720 my attention and my affection away from God faster than 361 00:22:19,730 --> 00:22:24,250 comparing myself to others. And you can take it further and 362 00:22:24,260 --> 00:22:26,270 think about your own relationships. 363 00:22:26,930 --> 00:22:30,800 There is nothing that kills the relationship between spouses 364 00:22:30,930 --> 00:22:36,810 quicker than comparison, and there's nothing that destroys 365 00:22:36,820 --> 00:22:41,470 the unity of the Church more than comparison. 366 00:22:43,500 --> 00:22:48,470 Comparison kills intimacy with Jesus and it destroys unity with 367 00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:51,180 others. When I was in high school, my 368 00:22:51,260 --> 00:22:55,170 high school in university, I ran track and field and my coach 369 00:22:55,180 --> 00:22:59,950 would say often run your race, that's it. 370 00:23:00,020 --> 00:23:02,170 Sometimes he's all. He would also say like, run 371 00:23:02,180 --> 00:23:07,680 faster, you're too slow, but but that was just to me. 372 00:23:09,850 --> 00:23:14,680 Run your race. My point is that the you're the 373 00:23:14,690 --> 00:23:19,580 only person who's running your race, so run it. 374 00:23:21,180 --> 00:23:26,840 Don't try to run somebody elses. Like don't get caught up in the 375 00:23:26,850 --> 00:23:29,920 lie that if they win their race, you lose yours. 376 00:23:31,100 --> 00:23:34,290 Don't divert attention away from Jesus because you're more 377 00:23:34,300 --> 00:23:37,270 worried about being greater than the other disciples around you. 378 00:23:37,940 --> 00:23:43,060 It's not a 0 sum game and you can't run somebody else's race, 379 00:23:43,210 --> 00:23:48,150 nor can they run yours. And so I think in this moment, 380 00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:50,530 the disciples here, we're going to talk about this in a second. 381 00:23:50,540 --> 00:23:55,110 The disciples are being invited to own their own formation. 382 00:23:56,280 --> 00:24:00,190 They're being invited to actively participate in how God 383 00:24:00,200 --> 00:24:02,700 is teaching them and where God is leading them. 384 00:24:03,390 --> 00:24:07,060 They're being invited to take a step and to do it with humility 385 00:24:07,070 --> 00:24:09,880 and to do it with vulnerability. Yes, but they're being invited 386 00:24:09,890 --> 00:24:19,180 to act, and I believe the same invitation extends to all of us. 387 00:24:22,380 --> 00:24:26,670 No one can develop your relationship with Jesus better 388 00:24:26,820 --> 00:24:30,600 than you can. People can't do it for you on 389 00:24:30,610 --> 00:24:34,060 your behalf. It's not a spoon fed reality. 390 00:24:35,180 --> 00:24:38,110 You need to be an active participant. 391 00:24:38,950 --> 00:24:43,140 You need to lean in so Jesus knows their thoughts. 392 00:24:43,370 --> 00:24:48,820 This, interestingly, is a phrase reserved typically for Jesus's 393 00:24:48,830 --> 00:24:52,720 adversaries. Most often when we see this line 394 00:24:52,730 --> 00:24:56,880 in the New Testament, it's He knows what the Pharisees are 395 00:24:56,890 --> 00:25:01,030 saying about him or he knows how people are plotting against him. 396 00:25:02,140 --> 00:25:04,970 And so it does create a little bit of this distance he's 397 00:25:04,980 --> 00:25:06,640 pointing out. What Luke wants us to see is 398 00:25:06,650 --> 00:25:10,190 that in this moment, the disciples are not acting in line 399 00:25:10,200 --> 00:25:13,320 with the Kingdom. They're acting in line with 400 00:25:13,330 --> 00:25:16,380 their own will and their own identity and their own wrestling 401 00:25:16,390 --> 00:25:19,760 outs and their own feelings and faults and feeling like they're 402 00:25:19,810 --> 00:25:24,060 not living into the Kingdom. And so then Jesus takes a child 403 00:25:24,150 --> 00:25:26,020 and has the child come up and stand beside him. 404 00:25:26,030 --> 00:25:28,940 And he says to them, whoever welcomes this child in my name 405 00:25:28,950 --> 00:25:31,640 welcomes me. Whoever welcomes this kid, 406 00:25:31,650 --> 00:25:34,680 whoever embraces this kid, whoever draws, brings this kid 407 00:25:34,690 --> 00:25:39,300 in, brings me along with him. And I want us to again notice 408 00:25:39,310 --> 00:25:42,790 this, what I think is a little bit funny, this comedic irony of 409 00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:44,520 what's happening. At the end of the day, the 410 00:25:44,530 --> 00:25:47,430 disciples are acting like kids, like kids like they're acting 411 00:25:47,440 --> 00:25:50,230 like children, like no dad likes me more, more, no dad likes me 412 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:53,030 more, No, I'm better. No, I'm I'm better. 413 00:25:53,100 --> 00:25:58,890 And Jesus pulls A literal child into the mix and said whoever 414 00:25:58,900 --> 00:26:02,780 becomes whoever welcomes whoever embraces this little kid 415 00:26:02,790 --> 00:26:05,120 welcomes me. Now here's the thing. 416 00:26:05,130 --> 00:26:08,240 In Jesus day, children had absolutely no status. 417 00:26:08,650 --> 00:26:11,500 They were the lowest rung on the status ladder. 418 00:26:11,950 --> 00:26:14,740 All right, we like to elevate children today. 419 00:26:14,750 --> 00:26:16,550 That's not the case in Jesus's time. 420 00:26:16,560 --> 00:26:18,540 They they were less than human beings. 421 00:26:18,550 --> 00:26:20,860 That's kind of how you can think about it. 422 00:26:21,370 --> 00:26:26,060 In Jesus's time, people were concerned about relative status, 423 00:26:26,370 --> 00:26:29,750 How you related, what my status was compared to you, what your 424 00:26:29,760 --> 00:26:32,510 status was compared to me, what our status is like compared to 425 00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,060 this group over here, this, you know, group of kids. 426 00:26:36,140 --> 00:26:39,530 And you're constantly trying to navigate who is greater and who 427 00:26:39,540 --> 00:26:43,260 is lesser. And the reason being that to 428 00:26:43,270 --> 00:26:48,430 welcome somebody in Jesus names means to extend to them honor 429 00:26:48,440 --> 00:26:53,620 and hospitality, to see them and to treat them as guests. 430 00:26:53,630 --> 00:26:57,840 To welcome and to receive somebody in means to give them 431 00:26:57,850 --> 00:27:02,760 honour and to treat them with hospitality and then elevate 432 00:27:02,770 --> 00:27:04,900 them. Here's the thing. 433 00:27:04,910 --> 00:27:08,700 You would only do that to someone who had equal status to 434 00:27:08,710 --> 00:27:12,650 you or who was of greater status to you. 435 00:27:13,310 --> 00:27:16,920 You would never welcome somebody who was lower status. 436 00:27:17,130 --> 00:27:20,200 It was expected that they would welcome you, they would receive 437 00:27:20,210 --> 00:27:22,140 you, they would give you hospitality. 438 00:27:22,210 --> 00:27:24,900 And so it's like children lowest on the ladder. 439 00:27:24,950 --> 00:27:27,210 Nobody's giving them hospitality. 440 00:27:28,030 --> 00:27:31,590 Nobody. And Jesus says whoever welcomes, 441 00:27:31,600 --> 00:27:36,290 whoever shows to this littlest of kid, this lowest of honor, 442 00:27:37,420 --> 00:27:41,330 whoever shows them hospitality, whoever receives and welcomes 443 00:27:41,340 --> 00:27:44,560 and embraces and pulls them up, welcomes me. 444 00:27:46,600 --> 00:27:50,330 What Jesus is doing in this moment when the disciples are 445 00:27:50,340 --> 00:27:53,810 are busy bickering about who among them is the greatest, like 446 00:27:53,820 --> 00:27:57,110 let's climb the ladder. Jesus takes the whole thing and 447 00:27:57,120 --> 00:28:01,590 flips it upside down. He begins to dismantle the very 448 00:28:01,600 --> 00:28:06,090 social convention that they're arguing about. 449 00:28:06,330 --> 00:28:11,530 Who's the greatest? Who's less am I? 450 00:28:11,540 --> 00:28:15,080 Are you? And he flips it on his head to 451 00:28:15,090 --> 00:28:17,490 see the lowliest of kids. Now here's the thing. 452 00:28:17,750 --> 00:28:20,960 This could even be and some people suggest that this little 453 00:28:20,970 --> 00:28:23,620 child is the kid that Jesus has just healed. 454 00:28:26,740 --> 00:28:30,770 And he says, this little kid, no status, no honor. 455 00:28:31,640 --> 00:28:37,650 Whoever is humble enough to welcome this kid welcomes me and 456 00:28:37,660 --> 00:28:42,680 welcomes the one who sent me. It's about humility and 457 00:28:42,730 --> 00:28:47,390 hospitality, not comprehension, not competition. 458 00:28:48,650 --> 00:28:53,500 Like everyone is anxious and Jesus is day to extend 459 00:28:53,510 --> 00:28:56,350 hospitality to the great, the greatest. 460 00:28:57,120 --> 00:28:59,750 Jesus says. My disciples, my Kingdom, my 461 00:28:59,760 --> 00:29:05,020 culture is one that offers hospitality to the least. 462 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,570 Alright last slide to wrap up, Master John said. 463 00:29:10,580 --> 00:29:13,030 So this is John replying one of Jesus disciples. 464 00:29:13,040 --> 00:29:15,780 We saw someone driving out demons in your name and we tried 465 00:29:15,790 --> 00:29:20,970 to stop him because he is not one of us, she said. 466 00:29:20,980 --> 00:29:25,280 Do not stop him for whoever is not against you, his for you. 467 00:29:26,510 --> 00:29:30,120 Now I read that and like less funny and starting to be like a 468 00:29:30,130 --> 00:29:33,580 little bit more sad. Like, the disciples still don't 469 00:29:33,630 --> 00:29:36,540 get it. This time it's John. 470 00:29:36,550 --> 00:29:40,120 John replies like, hey, yeah, but like, listen, Jesus, OK, 471 00:29:40,130 --> 00:29:41,300 good. Get it about the kids. 472 00:29:41,310 --> 00:29:43,990 But like, we saw somebody driving out demons in your name 473 00:29:44,000 --> 00:29:46,220 and we tried to stop him. Like he's not one of us. 474 00:29:46,370 --> 00:29:48,380 He's not one of us. He's not on the end with you. 475 00:29:48,390 --> 00:29:51,520 He's like, who should we allow this guy to do the things? 476 00:29:51,530 --> 00:29:56,820 Like, what's that about? But again, like this guy's doing 477 00:29:56,830 --> 00:30:01,120 the things that the disciples just failed at, and he's doing 478 00:30:01,130 --> 00:30:07,370 it in Jesus's name. And it's almost like they're 479 00:30:07,380 --> 00:30:11,980 saying like, hey, like, we get it, we're OK, alright, you've 480 00:30:11,990 --> 00:30:13,770 convinced us about welcoming kids. 481 00:30:13,780 --> 00:30:16,570 But like, surely he's not one of us. 482 00:30:18,080 --> 00:30:20,360 Like we were right for doing this, right? 483 00:30:22,280 --> 00:30:24,170 The disciples? They're still acting like the 484 00:30:24,180 --> 00:30:28,610 Kingdom of God is exclusive and like they have secret knowledge 485 00:30:28,620 --> 00:30:33,950 that nobody else has and that nobody else is entitled to and 486 00:30:33,960 --> 00:30:37,340 that if they receive it, it has to happen through them, like 487 00:30:37,350 --> 00:30:39,900 through their little like in crowd and group. 488 00:30:39,910 --> 00:30:43,200 And and she just simply says, no, don't stop him. 489 00:30:44,520 --> 00:30:47,030 Now eventually we're going to see that Jesus sends out not 490 00:30:47,040 --> 00:30:52,510 just the 12 disciples, but 70 disciples to preach and teach 491 00:30:52,520 --> 00:30:58,010 and heal, to do the things that that are of the Kingdom and to 492 00:30:58,020 --> 00:31:01,290 carry the culture of the Kingdom into the world in very real and 493 00:31:01,300 --> 00:31:04,130 tangible ways. It's not gonna be just about 494 00:31:04,140 --> 00:31:07,690 that little 12 group of in guys who think they know all the 495 00:31:07,700 --> 00:31:12,320 things but are still wrestling it out like this thing is going 496 00:31:12,330 --> 00:31:15,230 to blow up far beyond and NT right. 497 00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:17,380 What he says about these disciples that that they're 498 00:31:17,390 --> 00:31:20,480 gonna have to learn that the Kingdom of God might be going 499 00:31:20,490 --> 00:31:23,790 forward through people that they don't know and who aren't part 500 00:31:23,800 --> 00:31:26,280 of their group. And I would even suggest an an 501 00:31:26,290 --> 00:31:28,990 argue through people that that we don't like or that we think 502 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:33,990 we might not agree with or get along with, like the Kingdom of 503 00:31:34,000 --> 00:31:36,370 God is exploding. And the disciples have to reckon 504 00:31:36,380 --> 00:31:39,710 with the fact that like even this guy who they tried to stop, 505 00:31:39,840 --> 00:31:43,930 even through him, and I would say especially through him, the 506 00:31:43,940 --> 00:31:51,740 Kingdom of God is gonna go. Fear causes us, and now I'm 507 00:31:51,750 --> 00:31:54,580 speaking to you if you've been in the church for a long time or 508 00:31:54,590 --> 00:31:57,550 some time. I think fear causes us in the 509 00:31:57,560 --> 00:32:02,720 church to act the same way. Like what if I don't like the 510 00:32:02,730 --> 00:32:06,840 way this thing goes? Like surely the Kingdom of God 511 00:32:06,850 --> 00:32:09,060 isn't happening through them, that group over there, right? 512 00:32:09,070 --> 00:32:11,870 Like we don't, we don't agree with them, we don't like them, 513 00:32:11,880 --> 00:32:13,610 we don't get along with them. They don't look like us, they 514 00:32:13,620 --> 00:32:15,710 don't worship like us. Like they don't believe the same 515 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:18,850 things that we believe. Like surely not through them. 516 00:32:20,020 --> 00:32:23,350 We do it in our own community, like what if? 517 00:32:23,360 --> 00:32:25,150 What if I? What if I'm no longer in 518 00:32:25,160 --> 00:32:28,510 control? Like what if this thing 519 00:32:28,520 --> 00:32:29,720 happened? Like what if I don't like the 520 00:32:29,730 --> 00:32:32,930 change? What if it doesn't feel like 521 00:32:32,940 --> 00:32:35,880 it's about me? What if I'm not comfortable? 522 00:32:36,700 --> 00:32:38,810 What if I don't get the attention that I once did? 523 00:32:38,820 --> 00:32:41,390 Like what if I'm not consulted? Or what if my opinion is not 524 00:32:41,400 --> 00:32:43,410 asked? Like what if I lose influence? 525 00:32:43,420 --> 00:32:47,800 What if and and in fear were driven away from unity and were 526 00:32:47,810 --> 00:32:49,630 driven away from the mission of God? 527 00:32:49,700 --> 00:32:54,200 And again, I say, like fear kills intimacy with God and it 528 00:32:54,210 --> 00:32:59,050 destroys unity with others. And together, those things 529 00:32:59,060 --> 00:33:02,550 distract entirely from the mission of God, from what God is 530 00:33:02,560 --> 00:33:07,870 doing. And so here's my challenge. 531 00:33:10,140 --> 00:33:15,830 In a world that seems to perpetually choose to comment on 532 00:33:15,840 --> 00:33:21,350 other people's lives and to compare and to critique and to 533 00:33:21,360 --> 00:33:27,470 yell and argue and fight and misrepresent God and the gospel, 534 00:33:28,260 --> 00:33:30,860 and in the world that fails to demonstrate the humility and 535 00:33:30,870 --> 00:33:36,120 hospitality of the Kingdom, Let's choose for us here to be 536 00:33:36,130 --> 00:33:41,330 ones who lean in. Let's choose to be ones who are 537 00:33:41,340 --> 00:33:46,300 humble and who are hospitable. Ones who raise up the last and 538 00:33:46,310 --> 00:33:51,020 the least. Ones who work for peace and for 539 00:33:51,030 --> 00:33:55,510 justice, and who do carry the culture of the Kingdom. 540 00:33:57,300 --> 00:34:01,550 Let me pray. Yeah, Thanks for your love and 541 00:34:01,560 --> 00:34:05,480 for your grace and thanks that each one of us gets to 542 00:34:05,490 --> 00:34:07,980 experience that same love and that same grace. 543 00:34:08,250 --> 00:34:10,020 So you got like we would do Wanna pray? 544 00:34:10,030 --> 00:34:14,000 We know those of us here wrestling things out need in a 545 00:34:14,270 --> 00:34:18,900 very brand new way to experience your love and your grace because 546 00:34:18,909 --> 00:34:20,270 of your death and your resurrection. 547 00:34:20,280 --> 00:34:23,719 And God, I pray that for those of us here wrestling that out, 548 00:34:23,730 --> 00:34:26,400 You would continue to convict us and challenge us. 549 00:34:27,239 --> 00:34:33,639 Pray that you continue to push and I pray that, yeah, we we 550 00:34:33,650 --> 00:34:39,110 would turn and I pray that we might know and experience in a 551 00:34:39,120 --> 00:34:41,510 brand new way that love and grace and the life that you have 552 00:34:41,520 --> 00:34:45,380 on offer. And yeah, for many of us, I pray 553 00:34:45,389 --> 00:34:48,460 that you would do that in a new way, for a new season and for a 554 00:34:48,469 --> 00:34:52,860 new time, that you would continue to remind us of your 555 00:34:52,870 --> 00:34:55,750 love and your grace and how it challenges and changes and 556 00:34:55,760 --> 00:34:57,520 transforms our hearts and our minds. 557 00:34:58,710 --> 00:35:04,250 Yeah, we need you to do it. That I I pray against this like 558 00:35:04,260 --> 00:35:10,430 spirit of anger and resentment and one that's driven toward 559 00:35:10,440 --> 00:35:13,550 conflict and comparison that we do seem to see. 560 00:35:15,030 --> 00:35:22,680 I pray God that we would be ones who are convicted and convinced 561 00:35:22,690 --> 00:35:28,990 to be humble and to be hospitable and to welcome and to 562 00:35:29,000 --> 00:35:35,320 receive the ones who embrace all that your Kingdom has to offer. 563 00:35:35,390 --> 00:35:37,640 God thanks that you love us and things that life inside the 564 00:35:37,650 --> 00:35:42,690 Kingdom is one of joy, absolutely one that is fun 565 00:35:42,740 --> 00:35:45,300 living. God, I pray today that you would 566 00:35:45,310 --> 00:35:47,820 challenge us to continue to become the people you need us to 567 00:35:47,830 --> 00:35:49,060 be. And I pray these things in the 568 00:35:49,070 --> 00:35:50,840 strong name of Jesus, Amen.