1
00:00:01,960 --> 00:00:04,720
Good morning church. 
Today we're going to be reading 

2
00:00:04,720 --> 00:00:09,320
from Matthew 9, verses 14 
through 17, and if you're using 

3
00:00:09,320 --> 00:00:19,120
the Bible beneath your seat, you
can open up to page 764 starting

4
00:00:19,120 --> 00:00:22,880
in verse 14. 
Then the disciples of John came 

5
00:00:22,880 --> 00:00:26,520
to him saying, why do we and the
Pharisees fast, but your 

6
00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:30,320
disciples do not fast? 
And Jesus said to them, Can the 

7
00:00:30,320 --> 00:00:33,120
wedding guests mourn as long as 
the bridegroom is with them? 

8
00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:36,200
The days will come when the 
bridegroom is taken away from 

9
00:00:36,200 --> 00:00:40,080
them, and then they will fast. 
No one puts a piece of unshrunk 

10
00:00:40,080 --> 00:00:43,040
cloth on an old garment, for the
patch tears away from the 

11
00:00:43,040 --> 00:00:46,000
garment, and worst hair and a 
worst hair is made. 

12
00:00:46,720 --> 00:00:49,320
Neither is new wine put into old
wine skins. 

13
00:00:49,920 --> 00:00:53,280
If it is the the skins burst and
the wine is spilled and the 

14
00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:57,000
skins are destroyed, but new 
wine is put into fresh wine 

15
00:00:57,000 --> 00:01:00,600
skins and so both are preserved.
This is the word of the Lord. 

16
00:01:12,310 --> 00:01:14,030
Good morning. 
My name is John. 

17
00:01:14,030 --> 00:01:17,470
I'm one of the pastors here and 
we're continuing our series 

18
00:01:17,470 --> 00:01:22,390
today in Matthew 8-9 as we look 
at the authority of the king, 

19
00:01:23,070 --> 00:01:26,550
see Matthew in his gospel, he 
continues to establish Jesus 

20
00:01:26,550 --> 00:01:29,310
authority as the king. 
And today's really going to be 

21
00:01:29,310 --> 00:01:31,710
no different. 
I mean, as we jump back into 

22
00:01:31,710 --> 00:01:36,440
where we were last week, I want 
you to think about a time you or

23
00:01:36,440 --> 00:01:39,160
someone else could not read the 
room. 

24
00:01:40,640 --> 00:01:44,400
I feel that way a lot of times. 
But whether it's telling a sad 

25
00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:46,640
story at a party, you know, 
that's a mood killer, right? 

26
00:01:47,080 --> 00:01:50,520
Or when you walk into a library 
with your with kids or your kids

27
00:01:50,520 --> 00:01:53,040
or some kids and they're 
practically yelling, right? 

28
00:01:53,280 --> 00:01:56,880
You're like SH the library, you 
know, or it's like those 

29
00:01:56,880 --> 00:01:59,920
Progressive insurance 
commercials where they're trying

30
00:01:59,920 --> 00:02:02,920
to keep new homeowners from 
being their parents or acting 

31
00:02:02,920 --> 00:02:04,840
like their parents. 
Most of it's just not reading 

32
00:02:04,840 --> 00:02:07,680
the room though, right? 
You know, whether it's eating in

33
00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:11,200
the locker room without getting 
dressed first, taking photos for

34
00:02:11,200 --> 00:02:13,160
someone and then turning that 
into a photo shoot. 

35
00:02:13,160 --> 00:02:16,800
Or my favorite, which is the, 
you know, they're in their 

36
00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:20,400
department store and they 
basically give someone advice 

37
00:02:20,400 --> 00:02:25,120
who didn't even ask. 
So we we could fail to look 

38
00:02:25,120 --> 00:02:29,120
around and pick up on what how 
the situation fits and and we 

39
00:02:29,120 --> 00:02:30,960
can miss it. 
This can happen a lot, though, 

40
00:02:30,960 --> 00:02:34,440
because when we have something 
on our minds or questions that 

41
00:02:34,440 --> 00:02:37,400
we're mulling over that, you 
know, that kind of just spills 

42
00:02:37,400 --> 00:02:39,680
out and everything. 
And that's what we see today in 

43
00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:42,440
our text. 
OK, so we're still at the dinner

44
00:02:42,440 --> 00:02:44,640
party that's happening at 
Matthew's house. 

45
00:02:45,000 --> 00:02:46,960
OK. 
Everyone is reclining at table 

46
00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:49,360
like we saw last week, right? 
It's it's a party. 

47
00:02:49,720 --> 00:02:52,800
Not sure how many people were 
there, but I would imagine it's 

48
00:02:52,800 --> 00:02:56,200
a packed house. 
But it's Matthew and he's a tax 

49
00:02:56,200 --> 00:02:57,600
collector, so he's got a little 
bit of money. 

50
00:02:57,600 --> 00:02:59,640
This isn't a 500 square foot 
job, right? 

51
00:02:59,640 --> 00:03:03,640
This is more like a 2500 to 3000
square foot like branch, right? 

52
00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:07,000
So there's probably a lot of 
people there, in other words, 

53
00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:08,680
right? 
So people are talking to each 

54
00:03:08,680 --> 00:03:11,200
other, they're slowly eating and
drinking, they're chilling, 

55
00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:13,240
they're vibing, right? 
They're having a good time. 

56
00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:17,200
The centerpiece of the occasion,
though, is Jesus visiting 

57
00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:21,360
Matthew and his tax collector 
buddies, I would assume, right? 

58
00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:24,520
This is. 
But this, this like fact has 

59
00:03:24,520 --> 00:03:27,840
added a bit of a spectacle to 
this particular party. 

60
00:03:27,920 --> 00:03:31,960
OK, See, in Jewish society, as 
in all societies, there's always

61
00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:34,560
those people you associate with 
and there's people you don't 

62
00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:36,920
associate with. 
But The thing is, is that 

63
00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:40,320
Matthew is definitely in the 
group that you don't associate 

64
00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:41,320
with. 
All right? 

65
00:03:41,840 --> 00:03:43,280
I mean, we learned that last 
week. 

66
00:03:43,280 --> 00:03:47,640
But yet there were people who 
were not ordinarily be there 

67
00:03:47,880 --> 00:03:50,840
just out of curiosity as to what
Jesus was even doing. 

68
00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:53,320
OK. 
And one of the groups was the 

69
00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:55,520
Pharisees. 
Who were they? 

70
00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:58,360
They were right there. 
They asked a question, and we 

71
00:03:58,360 --> 00:03:59,880
talked about that question last 
week. 

72
00:04:00,200 --> 00:04:02,840
So the question last week was 
more or less this. 

73
00:04:02,840 --> 00:04:06,320
It was why are you eating with 
them, those people? 

74
00:04:06,800 --> 00:04:09,440
But they didn't dare ask Jesus 
directly. 

75
00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:12,520
If you remember, they actually 
asked the disciples and then 

76
00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:16,040
Jesus spoke up an answer, which 
probably kind of escalated 

77
00:04:16,040 --> 00:04:17,839
things for them, probably 
further than they thought. 

78
00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:20,360
I kind of imagine they had a bit
of embarrassment in the pit of 

79
00:04:20,360 --> 00:04:22,800
their stomach, like, oh, and 
they immediately regretted the 

80
00:04:22,800 --> 00:04:26,720
question that they asked. 
But this week we get a different

81
00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:29,120
question at the party. 
So let's look at that. 

82
00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:32,320
So who we're going to look at 
who asked the question, the 

83
00:04:32,320 --> 00:04:36,080
question itself, Jesus answer to
the question and the 

84
00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:40,720
implications of his answer. 
So questioners a question and 

85
00:04:40,720 --> 00:04:44,360
answer and then implications. 
OK, let's look at the 

86
00:04:44,360 --> 00:04:47,480
questioners first. 
So the awkward exchange kind of 

87
00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:49,920
continues this week. 
All right, so the Pharisees 

88
00:04:49,920 --> 00:04:51,880
asked the disciples a question 
and Jesus answered. 

89
00:04:52,120 --> 00:04:55,240
Now the conversation has 
switched directly to Jesus. 

90
00:04:55,240 --> 00:04:57,800
OK, with the pit of 
embarrassment in in the 

91
00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:00,840
Pharisee's stomach, a different 
group kind of steps up and 

92
00:05:00,840 --> 00:05:05,360
quickly ask a follow up. 
This time it's the disciples of 

93
00:05:05,360 --> 00:05:08,800
John. 
And so if you don't remember 

94
00:05:08,800 --> 00:05:13,200
John, he's the guy who wore 
camel hair, clothes and a 

95
00:05:13,200 --> 00:05:15,960
leather belt and he ate locust 
in honey and he lived in the 

96
00:05:15,960 --> 00:05:18,560
wilderness. 
Kind of a strange dude, but he 

97
00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:20,000
was a serious dude. 
OK? 

98
00:05:20,280 --> 00:05:24,000
John preached a baptism of 
repentance and he was actually 

99
00:05:24,000 --> 00:05:27,520
Jesus cousin, one of those crazy
cousins, but he was a cousin. 

100
00:05:27,920 --> 00:05:30,760
So I like to think that the 
disciples of John are pretty 

101
00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:34,080
serious, but they're genuine. 
After all, they would have 

102
00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:36,720
received a baptism of 
repentance, if you will. 

103
00:05:36,720 --> 00:05:40,320
And it really takes humility to 
kind of own your own failures, 

104
00:05:40,320 --> 00:05:42,520
right? 
So yet at this party and with 

105
00:05:42,520 --> 00:05:45,400
their question, they align 
themselves though with the 

106
00:05:45,400 --> 00:05:49,600
Pharisees, another pretty 
serious group, but not that 

107
00:05:49,600 --> 00:05:52,240
humble. 
In fact, they boasted about 

108
00:05:52,240 --> 00:05:54,680
their law keeping and paraded 
their righteousness before 

109
00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:56,960
others and Jesus kind of called 
them out on it as we saw last 

110
00:05:56,960 --> 00:05:59,160
week. 
But I think I like to think that

111
00:05:59,160 --> 00:06:01,880
the disciples of John came to 
really learn. 

112
00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:05,240
They seem to have a genuineness 
about them despite their 

113
00:06:05,240 --> 00:06:08,920
association with the Pharisees. 
See Jesus response kind of also 

114
00:06:08,920 --> 00:06:12,080
indicates that as well. 
But they're like their teacher. 

115
00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:17,240
They follow their aesthetics. 
John was a minimalist camel hair

116
00:06:17,520 --> 00:06:18,920
attire. 
You know, that's not exactly 

117
00:06:18,920 --> 00:06:22,800
Gucci, but I imagine the 
disciples of John followed him 

118
00:06:22,800 --> 00:06:26,240
in his asceticism and we're 
extremely disciplined. 

119
00:06:26,280 --> 00:06:28,360
OK. 
They probably were trying really

120
00:06:28,360 --> 00:06:31,640
hard to just bear fruit and 
keeping with repentance is what 

121
00:06:31,640 --> 00:06:34,600
John taught them. 
They took God's law seriously 

122
00:06:34,600 --> 00:06:38,800
and earnestly and tried to obey.
This frame of mind is probably 

123
00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:41,320
why they asked the question that
they did. 

124
00:06:41,800 --> 00:06:43,480
So let's look at that question 
again. 

125
00:06:43,720 --> 00:06:45,320
Let's look at the question verse
14. 

126
00:06:45,880 --> 00:06:50,160
He says, then the disciples of 
John came to him saying, why do 

127
00:06:50,160 --> 00:06:54,600
we and the Pharisees fast, but 
your disciples do not fast. 

128
00:06:55,280 --> 00:06:58,360
So the question last week was 
why do you eat with them? 

129
00:06:59,000 --> 00:07:01,760
The question this week is why 
are you eating at all? 

130
00:07:02,360 --> 00:07:04,520
Right. 
Notice last week the question 

131
00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:09,200
was asked about Jesus to the 
disciples, but this week the 

132
00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:12,080
question is asked about the 
disciples to Jesus. 

133
00:07:12,360 --> 00:07:15,720
Notice that you're the teacher. 
Why don't your disciples fast 

134
00:07:15,720 --> 00:07:17,360
like us? 
We fast. 

135
00:07:17,360 --> 00:07:20,440
You guys are always eating now 
It's not clear. 

136
00:07:20,480 --> 00:07:22,440
It's not it's really not clear 
from the text though. 

137
00:07:22,760 --> 00:07:25,840
If it, it could be that they are
actively fasting for some 

138
00:07:25,840 --> 00:07:29,480
occasion right there at the 
party, hence the inclusion of we

139
00:07:29,480 --> 00:07:32,120
and the Pharisees. 
Or it could just be a general 

140
00:07:32,120 --> 00:07:34,400
question, you know, let you guys
don't fast. 

141
00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:38,040
We noticed, but as best as we 
can tell, both groups had a 

142
00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:41,880
regular rhythm of fasting, and 
so the Pharisees were probably 

143
00:07:41,880 --> 00:07:46,200
more seeking A righteous life 
with their fasting, and the 

144
00:07:46,200 --> 00:07:49,440
disciples of John were probably 
seeking an aesthetic lifestyle 

145
00:07:49,440 --> 00:07:52,840
of repentance, which fasting 
regularly would have 

146
00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:55,320
demonstrated. 
So the question was a serious 

147
00:07:55,320 --> 00:07:58,560
one for the disciples of John, 
and they genuinely wanted to 

148
00:07:58,560 --> 00:08:00,960
know about the discipline of 
fasting. 

149
00:08:01,400 --> 00:08:04,120
You could rephrase their 
question to be how do you teach 

150
00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:06,680
your disciples to live or 
practice? 

151
00:08:06,880 --> 00:08:09,040
What are your rhythms? 
That's what they're asking. 

152
00:08:09,480 --> 00:08:12,560
They probably were wrestling 
with a cognitive dissonance, if 

153
00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:14,560
you will. 
They understood a life of 

154
00:08:14,560 --> 00:08:17,880
repentance to look like John the
Baptist and the ascetic life of 

155
00:08:17,880 --> 00:08:20,920
abstaining from so many things, 
including food. 

156
00:08:21,240 --> 00:08:23,560
They probably knew John baptized
Jesus. 

157
00:08:23,560 --> 00:08:27,400
They knew that John held Jesus 
in high esteem, but they were 

158
00:08:27,400 --> 00:08:30,800
having trouble reconciling the 
lack of fasting in an ascetic 

159
00:08:30,800 --> 00:08:33,400
lifestyle. 
And suddenly they may be asking 

160
00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:37,320
Jesus, am I doing this right? 
Am I missing something? 

161
00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:41,440
They couldn't even be calling 
into question Jesus's devoutness

162
00:08:41,440 --> 00:08:44,280
because it contradicted their 
understanding of a devout life, 

163
00:08:44,880 --> 00:08:47,960
which was asceticism. 
But let's look at Jesus's 

164
00:08:47,960 --> 00:08:50,280
response. 
OK, Look at verse 15. 

165
00:08:51,360 --> 00:08:55,160
And Jesus said to them, Can the 
wedding guests mourn as long as 

166
00:08:55,160 --> 00:08:58,000
the bridegroom is with them? 
The days will come when the 

167
00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:01,640
bridegroom is taken away from 
them, and then they will fast. 

168
00:09:01,920 --> 00:09:05,320
No one puts a piece of untrucked
cloth on an old garment, for the

169
00:09:05,320 --> 00:09:07,520
patch tears away from the 
garment, and a worse tear is 

170
00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:10,640
made. 
Neither is new wine put into old

171
00:09:10,640 --> 00:09:13,080
wine skins. 
If it is, the skins burst and 

172
00:09:13,080 --> 00:09:15,400
the wine is spilled and the 
skins are destroyed, but new 

173
00:09:15,400 --> 00:09:19,520
wine is put into fresh wine 
skins, so both are preserved. 

174
00:09:20,280 --> 00:09:23,960
OK, so let's get the easy part 
out of the way. 

175
00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:25,920
How about that Jesus simple 
answer? 

176
00:09:25,920 --> 00:09:29,520
His simple answer is they will 
fast, just not now. 

177
00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:31,800
OK, just not now. 
That's the simple answer. 

178
00:09:32,080 --> 00:09:35,920
But Jesus loved them by not just
saying that, He added one 

179
00:09:35,920 --> 00:09:38,360
important reason. 
Then he gave some explanation 

180
00:09:38,360 --> 00:09:40,560
through a couple of parables 
which we'll get into in a 

181
00:09:40,560 --> 00:09:43,240
minute. 
But you can simply know that 

182
00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:46,880
Jesus answer to their question 
is that they will fast, just not

183
00:09:46,880 --> 00:09:50,480
now. 
OK, but the reason why not now 

184
00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:52,600
is remarkable. 
Let's look at that. 

185
00:09:52,840 --> 00:09:55,600
He answers the question with a 
question. 

186
00:09:55,600 --> 00:09:59,000
Love that, don't you? 
Can the wedding guests mourn as 

187
00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:01,400
long as the bridegroom is with 
them? 

188
00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:05,880
Can he mourn? 
So remember, they're reclining 

189
00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:08,840
at table, OK? 
And they ask him a question 

190
00:10:08,840 --> 00:10:13,080
about fasting. 
Guys, read the room. 

191
00:10:14,120 --> 00:10:16,360
It's a party, and you're asking 
about fasting. 

192
00:10:16,600 --> 00:10:21,000
Really remember their aesthetics
and this is on their mind a lot.

193
00:10:21,280 --> 00:10:24,560
So Jesus rhetorical question has
an obvious answer. 

194
00:10:25,000 --> 00:10:29,680
No, no, you don't mourn when you
heard a guest at a party with a 

195
00:10:29,680 --> 00:10:32,360
bridegroom. 
If the groom is there, you're 

196
00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:35,960
celebrating with him, right? 
You're you're focused on him and

197
00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:39,120
the joy of his coming wedding. 
Now I want I want you to see 

198
00:10:39,120 --> 00:10:42,720
something though Jesus. 
He makes a mental association. 

199
00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:45,800
He associates fasting with 
mourning. 

200
00:10:46,400 --> 00:10:49,920
That's important. 
One reason you fast is linked to

201
00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:51,160
mourning. 
OK? 

202
00:10:51,320 --> 00:10:54,560
So the reason they don't do it 
now is because it's not a time 

203
00:10:54,560 --> 00:10:58,040
for mourning, but a celebration.
It's like having the groom with 

204
00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:00,720
us. 
Jesus is telling them graciously

205
00:11:01,120 --> 00:11:04,120
they're missing something. 
But we'll come back to that in 

206
00:11:04,120 --> 00:11:06,360
just a minute. 
Let's look at the parables. 

207
00:11:06,400 --> 00:11:10,440
OK, so Jesus doesn't stop with 
his simple answer associated 

208
00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:13,120
with the bridegroom. 
He gives him two parables to 

209
00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:15,800
illustrate his point further. 
Here's what he said. 

210
00:11:15,800 --> 00:11:19,160
Let's read it again. 
Look back, no one puts a piece 

211
00:11:19,160 --> 00:11:22,800
of unshrunk cloth on an old 
garment for the patch tears away

212
00:11:22,800 --> 00:11:25,040
from the garment and a worse 
tear is made. 

213
00:11:25,320 --> 00:11:28,360
Neither is new wine put into old
wine skins. 

214
00:11:28,360 --> 00:11:31,960
If it is, the skins burst and 
the wine is spilled and the 

215
00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:36,520
skins are destroyed, but new 
wine is put into fresh wine 

216
00:11:36,520 --> 00:11:42,440
skins and so both are preserved.
OK, two parabolic illustrations,

217
00:11:42,560 --> 00:11:48,640
cloth and wine. 
OK, first one cloth patching an 

218
00:11:48,640 --> 00:11:51,160
old piece of clothing with a new
piece of cloth. 

219
00:11:51,160 --> 00:11:55,320
That's what that's the example. 
So apparently the whole 100% 

220
00:11:55,320 --> 00:11:58,160
cotton shrinking thing is an 
age-old problem, right? 

221
00:11:58,520 --> 00:12:01,760
The first illustration is about 
a new piece of cloth shrinking. 

222
00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:04,640
When you put it on an old piece 
of clothing, you wear it and 

223
00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:07,040
wash it. 
The new cloth tears away. 

224
00:12:07,280 --> 00:12:09,840
It doesn't work. 
This is why your grandma cut up 

225
00:12:09,840 --> 00:12:11,280
old clothes for patching 
clothes, right? 

226
00:12:11,280 --> 00:12:15,200
This is Bible wisdom, right? 
So then the second one, wine. 

227
00:12:15,560 --> 00:12:19,680
Using old wine skins or 
containers to put new wine in. 

228
00:12:20,000 --> 00:12:22,320
Leather containers were used 
before bottles, in case you're 

229
00:12:22,320 --> 00:12:24,320
wondering. 
But one thing we should know 

230
00:12:24,320 --> 00:12:26,720
about animal skins. 
And if you're pita sensitive, 

231
00:12:26,720 --> 00:12:28,440
you're just going to have to 
bear with me for a second. 

232
00:12:29,000 --> 00:12:33,160
When the skins are new, they're 
soft and flexible. 

233
00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:37,960
But as they age, they harden and
they come more rigid and they 

234
00:12:37,960 --> 00:12:40,720
become less flexible. 
This is important because new 

235
00:12:40,720 --> 00:12:44,960
wine emits CO2, carbon dioxide 
as a result of the fermentation 

236
00:12:44,960 --> 00:12:46,880
process. 
And so the new wine skin 

237
00:12:46,880 --> 00:12:50,880
containers, they will expand, 
right, with the gases of the, of

238
00:12:50,880 --> 00:12:53,400
the old and the wine. 
And so the old wine skins, 

239
00:12:53,400 --> 00:12:55,800
they're not going to hold up to 
the pressure of the gases of the

240
00:12:55,800 --> 00:12:56,920
new wine. 
And they're going to, they're 

241
00:12:56,920 --> 00:12:58,400
going to rupture, right? 
They're going to burst. 

242
00:12:58,560 --> 00:13:01,000
It's kind of like those, anybody
remember those device charging 

243
00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:02,760
backpacks that were out a while 
back? 

244
00:13:02,760 --> 00:13:05,640
They just kept exploding, like 
people were just like walking 

245
00:13:05,640 --> 00:13:07,160
down the street. 
You can watch videos of this on 

246
00:13:07,160 --> 00:13:09,240
YouTube later and the battery 
would just explode. 

247
00:13:09,240 --> 00:13:11,080
And then just like drop the bag.
You didn't run away. 

248
00:13:11,600 --> 00:13:15,880
If you put the new wine in old 
wine skins, you're just going to

249
00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:18,280
be walking down the street. 
And basically the next thing you

250
00:13:18,280 --> 00:13:20,000
know what you're wearing wine, 
you're going to look at it and 

251
00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:21,400
you're like, man, this was my 
best tunic. 

252
00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:24,040
You don't want that. 
You don't want that. 

253
00:13:24,360 --> 00:13:26,880
It doesn't work. 
The wine is ruined and the wine 

254
00:13:26,880 --> 00:13:29,840
skin is ruined as well. 
So it's you got to, you got to 

255
00:13:29,840 --> 00:13:31,720
have a new container. 
You got to have a new container.

256
00:13:31,920 --> 00:13:34,960
See the concept in the 
illustrations is that the idea 

257
00:13:34,960 --> 00:13:37,360
of putting new inside of old 
fakes? 

258
00:13:37,360 --> 00:13:40,640
That's the concept. 
And when you put the new inside 

259
00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:46,280
the old, it tears or explodes, 
OK, The old cannot hold the new.

260
00:13:48,280 --> 00:13:50,840
This is kind of the point. 
The old cannot hold the new. 

261
00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:52,000
That's the point of both 
parables. 

262
00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:56,200
So Jesus is more complex answer 
to the disciples of John is that

263
00:13:56,560 --> 00:13:59,960
they are missing something. 
They are trying to put something

264
00:13:59,960 --> 00:14:03,560
new within something old. 
And if they do, it's going to 

265
00:14:03,560 --> 00:14:09,240
RIP, it's going to explode. 
OK, but what does all this mean?

266
00:14:09,640 --> 00:14:11,200
Right. 
Let's look at the implications. 

267
00:14:12,600 --> 00:14:16,120
Now let's pull together all of 
the loose ends of what Jesus is 

268
00:14:16,120 --> 00:14:18,760
saying. 
Here's the first implication of 

269
00:14:18,760 --> 00:14:22,160
what he's saying. 
The Kingdom and its king has 

270
00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:25,640
come, has come. 
See Jesus telling the disciples 

271
00:14:25,640 --> 00:14:28,280
of John that the bridegroom is 
here. 

272
00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:32,520
Jesus is telling them I'm here 
and that's why they don't fast 

273
00:14:32,920 --> 00:14:35,320
when I leave. 
Then they'll fast. 

274
00:14:35,440 --> 00:14:38,880
He's the bridegroom. 
But this language of the 

275
00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:42,520
bridegroom is no accident. 
See Jesus has the writings of 

276
00:14:42,520 --> 00:14:46,120
the prophet Hosea on his brain. 
You see he just told the 

277
00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:49,800
Pharisees, if you look back at 
verse 13 that he says, go and 

278
00:14:49,800 --> 00:14:52,520
learn what this means. 
I desire mercy and not 

279
00:14:52,520 --> 00:14:54,760
sacrifice. 
That's a quote from Isaiah. 

280
00:14:54,760 --> 00:15:00,080
Hosea 66 OK, but Hosea also says
in chapter 2 early on, I'll just

281
00:15:00,080 --> 00:15:03,480
read it to you and I will 
betrothed you to me forever. 

282
00:15:03,680 --> 00:15:07,400
I will betrothed you to me in 
righteousness and injustice, in 

283
00:15:07,400 --> 00:15:10,920
steadfast love and in mercy. 
I will betrothed you to me in 

284
00:15:11,040 --> 00:15:15,160
faithfulness, and you shall know
the Lord to betroth this, to get

285
00:15:15,160 --> 00:15:20,520
engaged, to promise to Mary. 
In Hosea as well in Isaiah, the 

286
00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:25,440
bridegroom is God himself and 
the bride is his people. 

287
00:15:25,720 --> 00:15:28,440
Jesus is the bridegroom 
preparing for the upcoming 

288
00:15:28,440 --> 00:15:32,320
wedding or marriage. 
But notice in the Old Testament 

289
00:15:32,320 --> 00:15:37,120
context, God is the bridegroom. 
This means Jesus is in fact 

290
00:15:37,120 --> 00:15:40,880
positioning himself into a title
reserved for God. 

291
00:15:41,440 --> 00:15:44,280
And he does that because what 
Matthew, Matthew has already 

292
00:15:44,280 --> 00:15:48,600
said in chapter 1, if you look 
at that in verse 23, he says, 

293
00:15:48,600 --> 00:15:52,680
behold, the virgin shall 
conceive and bear a son and they

294
00:15:52,680 --> 00:15:58,520
shall call his name Emmanuel, 
which means God with us. 

295
00:15:58,640 --> 00:16:01,800
See, Jesus is the bridegroom 
because he is God with us. 

296
00:16:01,800 --> 00:16:06,160
Jesus is Emmanuel, disciples of 
John, you are missing something.

297
00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:09,480
What you're missing what is 
happening among you, the God 

298
00:16:09,480 --> 00:16:12,240
man, he's here see, read the 
room. 

299
00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:14,840
It's not a time for mourning, 
but rejoicing. 

300
00:16:15,360 --> 00:16:17,200
The the Kingdom of heaven is at 
hand. 

301
00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:22,840
The king is here, God is here. 
You may find some joy, you know,

302
00:16:22,840 --> 00:16:27,160
from your rhythms and practices,
disciples of John or us, but you

303
00:16:27,160 --> 00:16:30,680
are missing out on the joy of 
Jesus himself. 

304
00:16:31,800 --> 00:16:34,280
You see, it's kind of like being
married and enjoying the rhythms

305
00:16:34,280 --> 00:16:37,320
of your married life together, 
but not actually loving the 

306
00:16:37,320 --> 00:16:40,240
person you're married to. 
I like that we do this, this, 

307
00:16:40,240 --> 00:16:43,480
and this, but I missed you. 
And that's what they're doing, 

308
00:16:43,800 --> 00:16:46,880
Jesus telling the disciples of 
John that there is a celebration

309
00:16:46,880 --> 00:16:49,880
going on, and you're missing the
joy of the celebration because 

310
00:16:49,880 --> 00:16:52,760
of your practice. 
You don't love your rhythm so 

311
00:16:52,760 --> 00:16:56,240
much that you miss Jesus. 
All right, so that's the first 

312
00:16:56,240 --> 00:16:57,680
implication. 
The next implication. 

313
00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:02,560
This means things have changed. 
Things have changed. 

314
00:17:03,120 --> 00:17:07,040
The main point of what Jesus 
said to John's disciples is that

315
00:17:07,040 --> 00:17:10,599
the bridegroom is here, and you 
cannot put the new and the old. 

316
00:17:10,680 --> 00:17:13,520
It doesn't work. 
And worse, it'll explode. 

317
00:17:13,960 --> 00:17:15,640
OK. 
This means that there is a 

318
00:17:15,640 --> 00:17:19,280
continuity and there's a 
discontinuity that's going on. 

319
00:17:19,480 --> 00:17:24,359
OK, so on the one hand, Jesus is
in fact the Messiah, the Christ,

320
00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:27,520
the promised 1 He is the 
fulfillment of all the promises 

321
00:17:27,520 --> 00:17:30,600
made to the Jewish people. 
He is, but on the other hand, 

322
00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:33,840
Jesus sits at the transition of 
something new. 

323
00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:37,280
So there is a continuity with 
the past, a continuation of 

324
00:17:37,280 --> 00:17:39,520
things God was planning and He's
doing. 

325
00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:42,280
And Matthew really does a great 
job of pointing all those things

326
00:17:42,280 --> 00:17:45,000
out, this promise fulfillment, 
promise fulfillment pattern. 

327
00:17:45,240 --> 00:17:49,280
There's a continuity in things, 
but then there are things that 

328
00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:50,960
are just new. 
OK? 

329
00:17:51,120 --> 00:17:53,920
There's a discontinuity. 
In other words, with what is to 

330
00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:57,520
come, many things will not be 
the same as they were before. 

331
00:17:58,040 --> 00:18:00,320
In other words, Jesus didn't 
come to patch up Judaism. 

332
00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:02,480
He didn't. 
He came to do something new. 

333
00:18:03,440 --> 00:18:07,280
It's a continuation for sure, 
but it's not a re envision of 

334
00:18:07,280 --> 00:18:08,800
Judaism. 
It's just not. 

335
00:18:09,360 --> 00:18:12,560
Notice in our text, the 
disciples of John asked him 

336
00:18:12,560 --> 00:18:16,080
about fasting and he reframes 
the conversation around the 

337
00:18:16,080 --> 00:18:17,480
bridegroom. 
Did you see that? 

338
00:18:17,720 --> 00:18:20,920
They asked a question about 
rhythms, But Jesus reframes the 

339
00:18:20,920 --> 00:18:24,080
rhythm around himself. 
You see, rhythms were to be 

340
00:18:24,080 --> 00:18:27,120
centered on around God, not 
tradition. 

341
00:18:28,000 --> 00:18:29,800
See, Jesus is adding more 
clarity. 

342
00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:32,880
The rhythm of fasting relates to
his presence. 

343
00:18:32,880 --> 00:18:35,320
If he is here, it's not the time
for fasting. 

344
00:18:35,760 --> 00:18:38,960
When he goes away, which hints 
out his death and resurrection, 

345
00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:42,040
then it's a time of mourning 
where fasting will be present. 

346
00:18:42,640 --> 00:18:46,440
But fasting orbits around him, 
not something else. 

347
00:18:46,760 --> 00:18:50,200
And what this means is that 
rhythm center around Jesus, not 

348
00:18:50,200 --> 00:18:52,920
tradition. 
The new way forward has 

349
00:18:52,920 --> 00:18:56,360
everything to do with Jesus. 
Have you ever noticed that 

350
00:18:56,360 --> 00:18:59,280
although Jesus is a Jewish 
Messiah and descended from 

351
00:18:59,280 --> 00:19:03,000
David, who was descended from 
Abraham, is Jewish as it gets, 

352
00:19:03,320 --> 00:19:06,080
right? 
But those who follow Jesus are 

353
00:19:06,080 --> 00:19:09,960
no longer referred to as Jews. 
They're not even early on, the 

354
00:19:09,960 --> 00:19:13,160
followers of Jesus referred to 
themselves as those practicing 

355
00:19:13,160 --> 00:19:16,360
the way. 
But even that didn't really last

356
00:19:16,360 --> 00:19:18,200
long because something new 
happened. 

357
00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:21,800
The good news of Jesus travels 
to not just tax collectors and 

358
00:19:21,800 --> 00:19:25,480
sinners like Matthew, but to 
Gentiles like us. 

359
00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:28,640
Later on in the New Testament, 
we're even going to see that the

360
00:19:28,640 --> 00:19:32,680
Gentiles, the Gentile Cultural 
Center of Antioch the Third, 

361
00:19:32,680 --> 00:19:34,960
which was the third largest city
in the Roman Empire by the way, 

362
00:19:35,440 --> 00:19:40,240
they start calling followers of 
Jesus Christians, Christianos to

363
00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:44,040
be exact, which means of Christ 
like Christ. 

364
00:19:44,320 --> 00:19:47,840
They're not just Jews practicing
the way one rabbi taught them. 

365
00:19:48,160 --> 00:19:51,360
No, something bigger and 
something new has happened. 

366
00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:55,280
See, they tried to just patch 
the way in with the rest of 

367
00:19:55,280 --> 00:19:58,720
Judaism, but it didn't work. 
There's no need to sacrifice 

368
00:19:58,720 --> 00:20:00,680
anymore. 
There's no need for a temple 

369
00:20:00,680 --> 00:20:03,120
anymore. 
Things have changed in Acts 15. 

370
00:20:03,120 --> 00:20:05,560
You're going to go on to learn 
that you don't even have to be 

371
00:20:05,560 --> 00:20:07,240
culturally Jewish to be a 
Christian. 

372
00:20:07,640 --> 00:20:10,440
So there, there would become 
this like Jewish Christian and 

373
00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:13,240
this Gentile Christian. 
So this new wine basically 

374
00:20:13,240 --> 00:20:16,000
exploded out of the old 
wineskins. 

375
00:20:16,000 --> 00:20:18,440
It couldn't hold it. 
They couldn't hold it, but 

376
00:20:18,440 --> 00:20:20,840
that's kind of like a historical
angle, if you will. 

377
00:20:21,120 --> 00:20:24,320
Let's focus for a second on a 
personal one more personal note.

378
00:20:25,160 --> 00:20:28,680
Not mixing the old with the new 
means that a set of rhythms 

379
00:20:29,080 --> 00:20:32,160
doesn't make you a Christian. 
It just doesn't. 

380
00:20:32,520 --> 00:20:35,640
The disciples of John came 
asking about rhythms, and Jesus 

381
00:20:35,640 --> 00:20:38,360
came, gave them a relational 
response. 

382
00:20:39,000 --> 00:20:41,520
So you may be here and you want 
to try out being Christian. 

383
00:20:42,080 --> 00:20:44,320
Maybe it's attending a service 
like this one, reading the 

384
00:20:44,320 --> 00:20:46,880
Bible, trying to pray and maybe 
it's even fasting. 

385
00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:50,040
Or maybe you may you may be 
curious, you may want to learn 

386
00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:53,000
and and lean in and learn more, 
right, that's great. 

387
00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:56,240
I think that's awesome. 
Please explore, ask questions 

388
00:20:56,280 --> 00:20:58,400
and get answers. 
Find out how Christians think, 

389
00:20:58,480 --> 00:20:59,760
live in love. 
Do it. 

390
00:20:59,760 --> 00:21:02,600
You need to do that. 
OK, but what I want to cautious 

391
00:21:02,600 --> 00:21:06,160
us on because it's becoming a 
thing historically and currently

392
00:21:06,640 --> 00:21:10,600
you can try out these things, 
but becoming a Christian is not 

393
00:21:10,600 --> 00:21:13,720
about enacting rhythms. 
It's just not I'm a Christian 

394
00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:16,640
now because I do these things. 
That's not how this works. 

395
00:21:16,840 --> 00:21:19,600
It's just not. 
That is part of what that's part

396
00:21:19,600 --> 00:21:21,960
of what Jesus is trying to tell 
the disciples of John and we 

397
00:21:21,960 --> 00:21:25,080
need to see it as well. 
Rhythms don't make you a 

398
00:21:25,080 --> 00:21:28,160
Christian. 
Being in Christ does. 

399
00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:31,960
See, they came with a question 
of rhythms and he answered with 

400
00:21:31,960 --> 00:21:34,240
a relationship. 
See, this means that being a 

401
00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:37,680
Christian is not a tradition. 
You were not born a Christian. 

402
00:21:37,720 --> 00:21:40,280
I love you. 
You were not born a Christian. 

403
00:21:41,400 --> 00:21:43,480
Your traditionalism doesn't make
you a Christian. 

404
00:21:43,520 --> 00:21:45,440
It can't. 
It can't. 

405
00:21:46,120 --> 00:21:49,560
It's even possible to even stand
up a whole set of Christian like

406
00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:52,840
practices and traditions and 
have nothing to do with Jesus. 

407
00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:56,240
Paul warns us of these things. 
The apostles laid this out for 

408
00:21:56,240 --> 00:21:57,600
us. 
He wrote in Colossians 2. 

409
00:21:57,600 --> 00:21:59,480
He said this. 
Listen to this Colossians 2 

410
00:21:59,840 --> 00:22:03,280
verse 16 says. 
Therefore let no one pass 

411
00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:06,560
judgement on you in questions of
food and drink, or with regard 

412
00:22:06,560 --> 00:22:09,200
to a festival or a new moon or 
Sabbath. 

413
00:22:09,440 --> 00:22:13,360
These are a shadow of the things
to come, but the substance 

414
00:22:13,480 --> 00:22:16,760
belongs to Christ. 
Let no one disqualify you. 

415
00:22:16,760 --> 00:22:20,080
Insisting on asceticism and 
worship of angels, going on in 

416
00:22:20,080 --> 00:22:23,880
detail about visions, puffed up 
with all without reason by this 

417
00:22:23,880 --> 00:22:27,200
His sensuous mind, and not 
holding fast to the head. 

418
00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:30,160
That is Jesus, from whom the 
whole body, nourished and knit 

419
00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:33,200
together through its joints and 
ligaments, grows with a growth 

420
00:22:33,360 --> 00:22:36,160
that is from God. 
He goes on to say this, If with 

421
00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:40,040
Christ you die to the elemental 
spirits of the world, why, as if

422
00:22:40,040 --> 00:22:41,960
you were still alive in the 
world, do you submit to 

423
00:22:41,960 --> 00:22:44,920
regulations? 
Do not handle, do not taste, do 

424
00:22:44,920 --> 00:22:48,360
not touch, referring to things 
that all perish as they are used

425
00:22:48,520 --> 00:22:50,560
according to human precepts and 
teachings. 

426
00:22:50,840 --> 00:22:53,880
Don't miss this. 
These have indeed an appearance 

427
00:22:53,920 --> 00:22:58,200
of wisdom and promoting 
self-made religion and 

428
00:22:58,200 --> 00:23:03,040
asceticism and severity to the 
body, but they are of no value 

429
00:23:03,040 --> 00:23:05,400
in stopping the indulgence of 
the flesh. 

430
00:23:05,600 --> 00:23:08,720
No value. 
It's possible to fabricate a 

431
00:23:08,720 --> 00:23:12,080
self-made religion that has the 
language of Christianity, the 

432
00:23:12,080 --> 00:23:16,360
symbols of Christianity, but 
misses the king himself. 

433
00:23:17,040 --> 00:23:21,120
It's possible to have something 
that sounds and looks like 

434
00:23:21,120 --> 00:23:23,920
Christianity, but it is Christ 
less. 

435
00:23:24,240 --> 00:23:26,720
It's possible. 
In fact, I'm going to give you 

436
00:23:26,720 --> 00:23:30,480
an example later today. 
I want you to go and research a 

437
00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:34,280
group called the Hutterites. 
HUTTERITES. 

438
00:23:34,680 --> 00:23:37,400
The Hutterites. 
They're a small sectarian group 

439
00:23:37,400 --> 00:23:40,440
that isolates itself from 
society at large and claims to 

440
00:23:40,440 --> 00:23:42,880
be Christian. 
They're mostly located in 

441
00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:46,000
Montana in the United States, 
and they have the language, some

442
00:23:46,000 --> 00:23:48,360
practices, but they do not talk 
about Jesus. 

443
00:23:48,360 --> 00:23:50,760
For the most part. 
They miss grace. 

444
00:23:51,160 --> 00:23:54,760
It's Christ less. 
It's possible to be traditional 

445
00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:57,200
and Miss Christ. 
It's possible to be committed 

446
00:23:57,320 --> 00:24:01,160
and religious and miss Christ. 
It's possible to participate in 

447
00:24:01,160 --> 00:24:03,720
Christian rhythms and Miss 
Christ. 

448
00:24:03,720 --> 00:24:06,160
It is the substance. 
Hear me. 

449
00:24:06,440 --> 00:24:10,240
The substance is not the church.
It's not tradition. 

450
00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:14,040
It's not rhythms. 
The substance is Christ. 

451
00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:18,520
That's what Paul wrote and just 
before that section that we read

452
00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:21,920
in Colossians, Paul also wrote 
this right before that in verse 

453
00:24:21,920 --> 00:24:26,280
13 he says and you talking about
those who repented and trust in 

454
00:24:26,280 --> 00:24:29,880
Christ and you were dead in your
trespasses and the 

455
00:24:29,880 --> 00:24:33,640
uncircumcision of your flesh. 
God made alive together with him

456
00:24:33,760 --> 00:24:37,240
having forgiven us all our 
trespasses by canceling the 

457
00:24:37,280 --> 00:24:40,200
record of debt that stood 
against us with its legal 

458
00:24:40,200 --> 00:24:44,080
demands. 
This he set aside, nailing it to

459
00:24:44,080 --> 00:24:48,040
the cross, and he disarmed the 
rulers and authorities, and he 

460
00:24:48,040 --> 00:24:52,120
put them to open shame by 
triumphing over them in him. 

461
00:24:52,360 --> 00:24:54,960
And then he said, therefore do 
these things. 

462
00:24:55,400 --> 00:24:58,520
See, what Jesus is hinting at to
the disciples of John is that in

463
00:24:58,520 --> 00:25:02,320
Him everything changes. 
What they are anticipating in 

464
00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:04,840
their fasting and rhythms is 
actually here. 

465
00:25:05,040 --> 00:25:07,960
He's in front of them. 
The day is dawn, the king has 

466
00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:12,880
come, the bridegroom is here. 
You see, we are all dead in our 

467
00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:16,400
trespasses and sins, in our 
uncircumcision, meaning we're 

468
00:25:16,400 --> 00:25:18,600
not Jewish, we don't keep the 
law. 

469
00:25:19,560 --> 00:25:23,960
We were cut off from the life of
God from the very start, but 

470
00:25:23,960 --> 00:25:28,560
making us spiritually dead. 
We may be walking around, but 

471
00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:31,760
we're still there's an aspect of
our humanity that is dead. 

472
00:25:32,240 --> 00:25:35,640
It's it's defunct. 
It's it's gone, but in Christ he

473
00:25:35,640 --> 00:25:38,960
has made us alive. 
We can be forgiven. 

474
00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:42,560
Our trespasses, our record of 
debt can be canceled because 

475
00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:45,040
there was a cross on which Jesus
died. 

476
00:25:46,080 --> 00:25:49,520
Jesus didn't die of death as a 
mere example, though He did not.

477
00:25:49,800 --> 00:25:53,040
For those who are in Christ, by 
grace through faith, your sins 

478
00:25:53,040 --> 00:25:54,960
are no longer counted against 
you. 

479
00:25:54,960 --> 00:25:58,520
They're not, but have been 
nailed to the cross on which 

480
00:25:58,520 --> 00:26:01,880
Jesus died. 
Past tense, completed, done. 

481
00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:04,920
It's done. 
In Christ, our relationship into

482
00:26:04,920 --> 00:26:07,280
law, the practices and God 
Himself changes. 

483
00:26:07,720 --> 00:26:11,680
Friends, this can be yours. 
Repent of your sins and trust 

484
00:26:11,680 --> 00:26:14,720
Christ. 
But faith, family, this is true 

485
00:26:14,720 --> 00:26:18,800
of you right now. 
Right now, if you just try to 

486
00:26:18,800 --> 00:26:22,600
add Jesus to your religious 
population of of rhythms, things

487
00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:26,400
are going to RIP and tear. 
It may look like it fits for a 

488
00:26:26,400 --> 00:26:28,480
while at first, but it will come
apart. 

489
00:26:28,920 --> 00:26:31,360
It may look like things are 
fine, but they'll blow up on 

490
00:26:31,360 --> 00:26:32,360
you. 
They will. 

491
00:26:33,120 --> 00:26:36,000
Jesus is the substance. 
Our rhythms are to be centered 

492
00:26:36,000 --> 00:26:37,920
around him to actually be 
Christian. 

493
00:26:38,240 --> 00:26:39,560
There's all kinds of people 
around the world. 

494
00:26:39,560 --> 00:26:41,720
Fasting doesn't make a 
Christian. 

495
00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:44,080
Anybody can do that for 
different reasons. 

496
00:26:44,320 --> 00:26:46,800
Unique Christ. 
You may have heard the phrase 

497
00:26:46,960 --> 00:26:48,600
eat the fish and spit out the 
bones, right? 

498
00:26:49,520 --> 00:26:52,040
You may want to grab from 
Christianity those things that 

499
00:26:52,040 --> 00:26:55,520
augment your life, make it 
better in some way, like 

500
00:26:55,520 --> 00:26:58,080
fasting, right? 
I'll adopt some of these things 

501
00:26:58,080 --> 00:27:00,280
into my life because it seems 
like it would improve my 

502
00:27:00,280 --> 00:27:03,160
relationships, my health, and 
just make me a better person. 

503
00:27:03,360 --> 00:27:05,560
I'll eat the fish and spit out 
the bones. 

504
00:27:06,200 --> 00:27:09,320
I'll do these things, but leave 
some of this Jesus talk behind. 

505
00:27:09,360 --> 00:27:12,560
Friends, I'm telling you, Jesus 
is actually the fish. 

506
00:27:12,880 --> 00:27:16,120
He's the meat. 
Jesus himself is the best part. 

507
00:27:16,840 --> 00:27:21,120
Jesus is the substance. 
This changes everything are the 

508
00:27:21,120 --> 00:27:25,880
next implication. 
The Kingdom is now but not yet. 

509
00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:28,640
Kingdom is now but not yet. 
Remember the simple answer Jesus

510
00:27:28,640 --> 00:27:29,920
gave. 
Look back, he says. 

511
00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:33,200
The days will come when the 
bridegroom is taken away from 

512
00:27:33,200 --> 00:27:39,040
them and then they will fast. 
They won't fast now, but later. 

513
00:27:39,720 --> 00:27:43,240
We are in the later. 
Jesus, the bridegroom has been 

514
00:27:43,240 --> 00:27:45,480
taken away. 
See, we're still awaiting A 

515
00:27:45,480 --> 00:27:48,920
reunification with Jesus. 
Christ has risen from the dead, 

516
00:27:48,920 --> 00:27:51,280
but he's not returned. 
He's not here yet. 

517
00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:55,760
We call this the now, and the 
not yet fasting is here. 

518
00:27:56,000 --> 00:27:57,280
And we kind of need to read the 
room. 

519
00:27:57,760 --> 00:28:00,560
The Kingdom has come, but it's 
not yet fully realized. 

520
00:28:00,560 --> 00:28:03,200
So what does this mean? 
It means that there are sad 

521
00:28:03,200 --> 00:28:07,040
days. 
There are there will be fasting 

522
00:28:07,040 --> 00:28:09,040
in our morning. 
There will be fasting in our 

523
00:28:09,040 --> 00:28:13,760
repentance. 
Fasting is here, but but we will

524
00:28:13,760 --> 00:28:16,040
not fast to get God to do 
something. 

525
00:28:16,280 --> 00:28:17,560
That's not what the Bible 
teaches. 

526
00:28:17,560 --> 00:28:19,600
It's not. 
Doesn't mean it doesn't have 

527
00:28:19,600 --> 00:28:22,280
benefits or rewards to it as 
Jesus taught in the Sermon on 

528
00:28:22,280 --> 00:28:23,480
the Mount. 
Go look that up. 

529
00:28:23,840 --> 00:28:27,960
It may teach you something. 
Fasting will, but you don't fast

530
00:28:27,960 --> 00:28:31,280
to get something from God. 
You don't fast to get God to do 

531
00:28:31,280 --> 00:28:33,720
something. 
Fasting is to get Him to do 

532
00:28:33,720 --> 00:28:35,400
something. 
It's like bargaining with God. 

533
00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:38,880
OK, God, I did this. 
Now you do this, right? 

534
00:28:39,280 --> 00:28:42,000
God, I'm serious. 
So serious that I won't eat. 

535
00:28:42,200 --> 00:28:44,400
Look at me, God. 
See, I'm for real. 

536
00:28:44,520 --> 00:28:46,200
Look at this. 
Let me. 

537
00:28:46,200 --> 00:28:48,400
Let me let you know. 
Like a secret. 

538
00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:51,520
Not that's so secret. 
If you want God to do something,

539
00:28:51,920 --> 00:28:54,000
just ask him. 
Just ask him. 

540
00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:54,800
Pray. 
Talk to him. 

541
00:28:54,800 --> 00:28:56,560
Ask him. 
But let me tell you something 

542
00:28:56,560 --> 00:28:58,840
else. 
The answer will be either yes or

543
00:28:58,840 --> 00:29:01,520
no, OK? 
God doesn't need you to grease 

544
00:29:01,520 --> 00:29:03,640
his palm with fasting. 
He doesn't. 

545
00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:06,480
He'll either say yes to 
something or he won't. 

546
00:29:06,640 --> 00:29:11,560
He has his reasons either way. 
Just ask him to bribe him. 

547
00:29:12,400 --> 00:29:15,760
You don't fast to get you fast 
to focus. 

548
00:29:15,960 --> 00:29:18,320
You don't fast to get you fast 
to focus. 

549
00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:22,360
Remember what Paul said in 
Colossians Do not handle, do not

550
00:29:22,360 --> 00:29:25,040
taste, do not touch, referring 
to things that all perish as 

551
00:29:25,040 --> 00:29:27,680
they are used according to human
precepts and teachings. 

552
00:29:27,960 --> 00:29:30,840
These have indeed an appearance 
of wisdom and promoting 

553
00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:33,640
self-made religion and 
asceticism and severity to the 

554
00:29:33,640 --> 00:29:36,960
body, but they are of no value 
in stopping the indulgence of 

555
00:29:36,960 --> 00:29:40,000
the flesh. 
Here's the thing, fast that 

556
00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:43,760
fasting will not purify you. 
Fasting will not get God to like

557
00:29:43,760 --> 00:29:47,680
you or put you in His graces. 
Fasting helps us focus. 

558
00:29:47,920 --> 00:29:50,800
OK, Fasting helps us focus. 
Here's why. 

559
00:29:50,880 --> 00:29:54,520
Fasting helps us focus because 
it a withdrawal from something 

560
00:29:54,600 --> 00:29:58,320
brings sobriety. 
OK, but unless I fail to read 

561
00:29:58,320 --> 00:30:03,680
the room myself today, if you 
struggle with disordered eating,

562
00:30:04,360 --> 00:30:07,800
you should not be fasted for 
food. 

563
00:30:07,960 --> 00:30:09,960
Period. 
If you're struggling with 

564
00:30:09,960 --> 00:30:12,280
disordered eating, you cannot 
fast. 

565
00:30:12,280 --> 00:30:15,120
You shouldn't be doing that. 
Food is fuel. 

566
00:30:15,360 --> 00:30:17,880
Period. 
Your body needs food. 

567
00:30:17,880 --> 00:30:20,680
Food is not a reward. 
Food is not an obstacle. 

568
00:30:20,760 --> 00:30:23,320
It's not. 
Food is fuel. 

569
00:30:23,480 --> 00:30:27,440
God made us in such a way that 
we need food. 

570
00:30:27,800 --> 00:30:30,120
Food is good. 
Food is good. 

571
00:30:30,120 --> 00:30:32,920
God made us in such a way that 
food is enjoyable. 

572
00:30:33,160 --> 00:30:35,680
That flavor. 
It was God's idea. 

573
00:30:36,360 --> 00:30:39,960
The creativity of the chef among
us is God's idea. 

574
00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:42,560
To create in the kitchen is to 
image God. 

575
00:30:42,560 --> 00:30:47,600
Well, OK, food brings unity. 
It's why he gave us a meal as 

576
00:30:47,600 --> 00:30:50,280
one of our symbols. 
OK, food is good. 

577
00:30:50,520 --> 00:30:53,040
And Paul even tells us in 1st 
Corinthians 1031. 

578
00:30:53,200 --> 00:30:57,520
So whether you eat or drink, 
whatever you do, you do all to 

579
00:30:57,520 --> 00:31:00,840
the glory of God, OK. 
And so while there are elements 

580
00:31:00,840 --> 00:31:05,560
of self denial in the life He 
has called us to, asceticism is 

581
00:31:05,560 --> 00:31:08,720
a life of only denial, only 
denial. 

582
00:31:09,080 --> 00:31:12,320
And in asceticism you are 
constantly framing your life 

583
00:31:12,320 --> 00:31:16,680
around denial, OK? 
This is not the life that Christ

584
00:31:16,680 --> 00:31:18,400
has called us to. 
Faith, Emily. 

585
00:31:18,760 --> 00:31:21,880
If we give something up, then 
it's for the sake of gaining 

586
00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:25,040
Christ. 
We may put something away or 

587
00:31:25,040 --> 00:31:27,720
take something off or put 
something to death, but in the 

588
00:31:27,720 --> 00:31:32,760
same breath we are called to put
on Christ, to put on life. 

589
00:31:33,200 --> 00:31:37,000
You are trading for a life with 
God and a life that is Christ. 

590
00:31:37,000 --> 00:31:41,160
Like, OK, it sounds unbiased, 
but a life with Christ is not 

591
00:31:41,160 --> 00:31:43,680
just one giving up party. 
It's not. 

592
00:31:44,640 --> 00:31:46,400
Will there be things that we 
give up? 

593
00:31:46,440 --> 00:31:49,600
Yes, but never to the exclusion 
of gain. 

594
00:31:50,200 --> 00:31:52,360
It's just not well. 
Following Christ cost us 

595
00:31:52,360 --> 00:31:57,600
something yes, but it's pales in
comparison to what we gain. 

596
00:31:57,600 --> 00:32:02,800
That's what Philippians 3 says. 
We get God himself, friends and 

597
00:32:02,800 --> 00:32:04,320
faith family. 
If you just see your 

598
00:32:04,320 --> 00:32:07,800
relationship with God as only 
giving up stuff, then you'll 

599
00:32:07,800 --> 00:32:10,080
just see a life with God as a 
killjoy. 

600
00:32:10,720 --> 00:32:14,040
This doesn't mean that God will 
always like have you healthy and

601
00:32:14,040 --> 00:32:17,840
wealthy, but he wants you holy. 
And there are paths, in fact, we

602
00:32:17,840 --> 00:32:20,640
will, He will lead us down that 
are just no fun. 

603
00:32:21,160 --> 00:32:23,320
They're no fun. 
You might be in one right now. 

604
00:32:24,000 --> 00:32:26,920
It's not fun. 
But our life with God is not 

605
00:32:26,920 --> 00:32:29,440
just one big denial of 
everything. 

606
00:32:30,080 --> 00:32:32,080
It's actually a reordering of 
things. 

607
00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:34,360
OK, imagine this. 
It's kind of like when you move 

608
00:32:34,360 --> 00:32:37,240
into a new house, you have all 
your furniture and stuff from 

609
00:32:37,240 --> 00:32:40,440
the old house, right? 
And you might be in the new 

610
00:32:40,440 --> 00:32:43,480
house, might be roughly the same
size, but some things just no 

611
00:32:43,480 --> 00:32:47,000
longer fit anymore, right? 
There's a window there where you

612
00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:49,400
can't put the couch. 
We come to Jesus. 

613
00:32:50,000 --> 00:32:52,760
When we come to Jesus, some of 
the things in our life, they 

614
00:32:52,760 --> 00:32:55,080
have to go. 
It's a new house. 

615
00:32:55,320 --> 00:32:58,200
Not everything goes, but not 
everything fits anymore either. 

616
00:32:58,200 --> 00:33:01,960
It's kind of like that and what 
a rhythm like fasting does in 

617
00:33:01,960 --> 00:33:05,240
the now but not yet is it acts 
like a pause button. 

618
00:33:05,880 --> 00:33:08,040
So fasting is a pause button, 
right? 

619
00:33:08,360 --> 00:33:13,280
So I remember in 2020 during 
lockdown, good time, a lot of 

620
00:33:13,280 --> 00:33:17,120
things had to stop, right? 
I remember thinking how busy my 

621
00:33:17,120 --> 00:33:19,640
life and other people's lives 
around me were prior to that 

622
00:33:19,640 --> 00:33:22,400
event and how everything just 
came to a sudden halt. 

623
00:33:22,560 --> 00:33:25,360
It was just like breaks. 
It was jarring, it was 

624
00:33:25,360 --> 00:33:27,880
disorienting. 
But when things started to 

625
00:33:27,880 --> 00:33:31,480
return back to normal, if you 
remember 2 years later, we often

626
00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:34,400
found ourselves, you know, we 
were like, I'm not necessarily 

627
00:33:34,400 --> 00:33:36,240
going to add that back into my 
schedule. 

628
00:33:36,240 --> 00:33:38,920
People start re evaluating their
schedules and refuse to put 

629
00:33:38,920 --> 00:33:42,920
things back in right. 
This is what fasting does. 

630
00:33:43,000 --> 00:33:46,600
It gives us a chance to pause 
and re evaluate. 

631
00:33:46,880 --> 00:33:49,920
Many times this corresponds with
things that are sad and 

632
00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:53,040
disappointing in our lives. 
When we mourn, we often find 

633
00:33:53,040 --> 00:33:55,680
ourselves in a period of 
fasting, a period of reflection 

634
00:33:55,680 --> 00:33:59,160
and reconsideration. 
What a prayer, a season where we

635
00:33:59,160 --> 00:34:02,360
abstain from some things. 
Now, as I mentioned earlier, if 

636
00:34:02,360 --> 00:34:04,920
you struggle with disorder 
eating, you have no business 

637
00:34:04,920 --> 00:34:08,520
fasting from food. 
That is, food is fuel. 

638
00:34:08,920 --> 00:34:11,040
And this is similar to the way 
someone who struggles with 

639
00:34:11,040 --> 00:34:14,280
alcoholic beverages should be 
taking communion where wine is 

640
00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:16,760
used instead of juice. 
You shouldn't be doing that. 

641
00:34:17,040 --> 00:34:19,880
It's just a limitation. 
But that doesn't mean that we 

642
00:34:19,880 --> 00:34:22,560
don't need to fast from 
something from something, 

643
00:34:22,840 --> 00:34:26,159
because here's the reality. 
If you lost me, come back. 

644
00:34:26,840 --> 00:34:30,000
Here's the reality. 
Fasting has everything to do 

645
00:34:30,000 --> 00:34:32,600
with food, and it has nothing to
do with food. 

646
00:34:34,120 --> 00:34:37,719
What do I mean? 
Fasting is a practice that keeps

647
00:34:37,719 --> 00:34:40,719
us from 2 ditches. 
If you can imagine a road with 

648
00:34:40,719 --> 00:34:44,800
two different ditches. 1 ditch 
is gluttony on the one side and 

649
00:34:44,800 --> 00:34:48,440
aestheticism on the other. 
It's meant to keep us from too 

650
00:34:48,440 --> 00:34:51,679
much or too little. 
But fasting can only help us 

651
00:34:51,679 --> 00:34:56,159
with the one and not the other. 
The other rhythm is the obvious 

652
00:34:56,159 --> 00:34:58,320
one in the story. 
Do you see it? 

653
00:34:58,680 --> 00:35:00,680
It's feasting. 
It's feasting. 

654
00:35:00,680 --> 00:35:03,400
See, Jesus was feasting because 
the moment called for feasting, 

655
00:35:03,400 --> 00:35:05,440
not fasting. 
We need both. 

656
00:35:06,200 --> 00:35:07,760
But why? 
Why do we need it? 

657
00:35:07,760 --> 00:35:11,040
Because fasting has everything 
to do with food and has nothing 

658
00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:13,160
to do with food. 
It's all about pleasure. 

659
00:35:13,600 --> 00:35:16,360
But some most of the time we 
think about it relating to the 

660
00:35:16,360 --> 00:35:19,520
pleasures found in eating. 
However, it targets an 

661
00:35:19,520 --> 00:35:21,560
overindulgence and pleasure 
seeking. 

662
00:35:22,080 --> 00:35:25,680
What fasting does is it pulls us
back to moderation by helping us

663
00:35:25,680 --> 00:35:29,400
find sobriety. 
And it's hard to know if you are

664
00:35:29,400 --> 00:35:33,200
over indulging in the midst of 
something we we fast to focus. 

665
00:35:33,360 --> 00:35:35,720
For some of us it does have 
something to do with food. 

666
00:35:36,560 --> 00:35:39,000
If you overindulge, then fasting
will bring you back to 

667
00:35:39,000 --> 00:35:42,240
moderation. 
If you under indulge, then 

668
00:35:42,240 --> 00:35:44,360
fasting brings you back to 
moderation. 

669
00:35:44,600 --> 00:35:47,160
You see how that works? 
But that's the rhythm of it. 

670
00:35:47,560 --> 00:35:51,560
But what lies behind the reality
that what we are looking for in 

671
00:35:51,560 --> 00:35:54,280
that bowl, you're not going to 
find it. 

672
00:35:54,480 --> 00:35:57,680
It's not there what you were 
looking for behind the self 

673
00:35:57,680 --> 00:36:00,320
infliction of hunger and the 
power and control you think you 

674
00:36:00,320 --> 00:36:02,600
might have in it, it's not 
there. 

675
00:36:02,920 --> 00:36:06,040
It's not there. 
Neither over or under indulgence

676
00:36:06,040 --> 00:36:10,840
will give you what you want. 
We need God, we need God, and 

677
00:36:10,840 --> 00:36:14,280
more poignantly, we need Jesus. 
We need Jesus, we need the 

678
00:36:14,280 --> 00:36:16,320
Bridegroom. 
And while fasting in the New 

679
00:36:16,320 --> 00:36:19,000
Testament is mainly concerned 
with food, I get that it's not 

680
00:36:19,000 --> 00:36:21,840
limited to food. 
I mean, how many things do we 

681
00:36:21,840 --> 00:36:24,600
over indulge in within our own 
culture, right? 

682
00:36:24,840 --> 00:36:27,520
Social media, TV, streaming, 
right? 

683
00:36:27,520 --> 00:36:31,240
Your fantasy team, a hobby, some
kind of activity from needing 

684
00:36:31,240 --> 00:36:34,120
attention, from being in the 
center of attention, from 

685
00:36:34,120 --> 00:36:38,360
talking about yourself, whatever
it is, there's a need to fast so

686
00:36:38,360 --> 00:36:41,320
that we can focus. 
But this isn't, this isn't so 

687
00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:44,520
that we can just work on 
ourselves, but so we can prize 

688
00:36:44,520 --> 00:36:47,000
Christ. 
You prize Christ. 

689
00:36:47,000 --> 00:36:49,080
This doesn't mean that the 
things that we fast from are 

690
00:36:49,080 --> 00:36:51,600
bad. 
Again, food is not bad. 

691
00:36:51,840 --> 00:36:53,080
It's fuel. 
It's good. 

692
00:36:53,520 --> 00:36:55,520
Neither are many of the things 
we need to moderate. 

693
00:36:55,520 --> 00:36:59,080
We need to moderate them because
we have become gluttonous. 

694
00:36:59,480 --> 00:37:02,720
But again, you can be a glutton 
with food, or you can be a 

695
00:37:02,720 --> 00:37:05,040
glutton for punishment. 
See how that works? 

696
00:37:07,600 --> 00:37:11,400
We are aiming at a temperate 
life that glorifies God through 

697
00:37:11,400 --> 00:37:13,720
faith in Christ and always say 
or do. 

698
00:37:13,720 --> 00:37:18,120
We are aiming to keep things, 
good things, as gifts and not as

699
00:37:18,120 --> 00:37:21,760
idols, not as gods. 
OK, That's what we're trying to 

700
00:37:21,760 --> 00:37:23,480
do. 
So the disciples of John, they 

701
00:37:23,480 --> 00:37:26,680
were in fact missing something. 
The king was among them and he 

702
00:37:26,680 --> 00:37:29,080
came to give them life and life 
abundantly. 

703
00:37:29,360 --> 00:37:32,760
And this party of at Matthew's 
house, it was only the 

704
00:37:32,760 --> 00:37:34,560
beginning. 
It was only the beginning. 

705
00:37:34,840 --> 00:37:40,040
Let's pray. 
Father, I thank you that you are

706
00:37:40,040 --> 00:37:42,760
a God that meets us in 
celebration in the morning. 

707
00:37:43,520 --> 00:37:46,760
Father, I just thank you for 
sending your son to to buy us 

708
00:37:46,760 --> 00:37:48,800
back. 
Thank you Jesus for doing what 

709
00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:51,160
we could not do. 
Thank you for bringing us back 

710
00:37:51,200 --> 00:37:55,280
into a life with you God, where 
we are tempted to choose rhythms

711
00:37:55,280 --> 00:37:57,200
over you. 
Forgive us, we need you. 

712
00:37:57,200 --> 00:37:59,160
God, would you show us your 
beauty? 

713
00:37:59,320 --> 00:38:01,320
Would you capture our 
imaginations once more? 

714
00:38:01,960 --> 00:38:03,400
Jesus, you were the King of the 
new. 

715
00:38:03,960 --> 00:38:07,200
Would you continue to make us 
new it's review flame?