1 00:00:01,360 --> 00:00:04,560 The holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Mark 2 00:00:06,120 --> 00:00:10,920 and he said to them, is a lamp brought in to be put under a 3 00:00:10,920 --> 00:00:16,600 basket or under a bed, and not on a stand, For nothing is 4 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:21,360 hidden except to be made manifest, nor is anything sacred 5 00:00:21,640 --> 00:00:27,520 except to come to light. If anyone has ears to hear, let 6 00:00:27,520 --> 00:00:30,840 him hear. And he said to them, pay 7 00:00:30,840 --> 00:00:35,400 attention to what you hear. With the measure you use, it 8 00:00:35,400 --> 00:00:39,600 will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. 9 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:45,560 For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one 10 00:00:45,640 --> 00:00:50,320 who has not even what he has will be taken away. 11 00:00:51,680 --> 00:00:56,480 And he said, The Kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter 12 00:00:56,480 --> 00:01:00,160 seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and 13 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:03,640 day, and the seed sprout and grows. 14 00:01:04,040 --> 00:01:08,640 He knows not how the earth produces by itself fast the 15 00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:12,760 blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. 16 00:01:13,320 --> 00:01:18,000 But when the grain is ripe at once, he puts in the sickle, 17 00:01:18,320 --> 00:01:23,240 because the harvest has come. And he said, With what can we 18 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:27,640 compare the Kingdom of God, or what parable should we use for 19 00:01:27,640 --> 00:01:30,440 it? It is like a grain of mustard 20 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:35,200 seed, which when sown on the ground is the smallest of all 21 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:39,320 seeds of the earth. Yet when it is sown it grows up 22 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:44,280 and becomes larger than all the garden plants, and puts out 23 00:01:44,280 --> 00:01:49,840 large branches so that the birds of the air can make nests in its 24 00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:52,680 shed. The Gospel of the Lord. 25 00:01:53,960 --> 00:01:57,520 And good morning, happy Easter Tide. 26 00:01:58,480 --> 00:02:03,440 In Easter Tide, we are going back to our series simply Jesus 27 00:02:04,400 --> 00:02:09,479 walking through the gospel of Mark and looking at Jesus and 28 00:02:09,479 --> 00:02:13,160 his Kingdom. Today's today we're covering 29 00:02:13,400 --> 00:02:18,360 Mark 4, verses 21 through 25. If you'd like an exposition of 30 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:23,480 the parables in verses 26 through 32 that was covered in a 31 00:02:23,480 --> 00:02:26,080 different message in 2024, you can look that up. 32 00:02:26,600 --> 00:02:28,480 It's online and you can hear that. 33 00:02:29,720 --> 00:02:33,400 Let's pray. Lord, we do thank you that you 34 00:02:33,400 --> 00:02:37,120 continue to work, you continue to speak, and that even now as 35 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:42,920 we open up this this biography of your life, that it has 36 00:02:42,920 --> 00:02:46,400 relevance for us today, that as your people, your spirit is 37 00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:48,520 still working. We pray that your resurrection 38 00:02:48,520 --> 00:02:52,360 power would allow us to understand and see what you want 39 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:55,920 us to see from this gospel as well as to live it together. 40 00:02:56,240 --> 00:02:58,960 Thank you Lord that you will answer this prayer in Jesus 41 00:02:58,960 --> 00:03:05,600 name, Amen. Mark 4, verses 21 through 25. 42 00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:10,200 Nothing is hidden except to be made manifest, nor is anything 43 00:03:10,200 --> 00:03:18,360 secret except to come to light. The 198898 movie The Truman Show 44 00:03:20,400 --> 00:03:24,200 is about a man named Truman played by Jim Carrey. 45 00:03:25,400 --> 00:03:29,880 Now, on the surface, Truman had a very like, simple and great 46 00:03:29,880 --> 00:03:32,560 life. He had a he had a good stable 47 00:03:32,560 --> 00:03:35,280 job. He had a adoring wife. 48 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:37,680 He had a faithful and loyal best friend. 49 00:03:38,280 --> 00:03:40,960 Everything worked well. Everybody was happy. 50 00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:45,840 And he like was living and working in the same community 51 00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:50,400 where he grew up. But beneath the surface, even in 52 00:03:50,400 --> 00:03:54,280 Truman's own soul, something was a miss, something was a stir. 53 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:56,360 He had questions that no one would answer. 54 00:03:56,840 --> 00:03:59,640 When he tried to move beyond the surface, people would blow him 55 00:03:59,640 --> 00:04:02,720 off and redirect him back to, you know, all of the happy 56 00:04:02,720 --> 00:04:05,320 things in his life. So he kept pushing, and he kept 57 00:04:05,320 --> 00:04:06,920 thinking. And what, at some point, he 58 00:04:06,920 --> 00:04:09,880 realized, like, no one's going to give me the truth, and so I 59 00:04:09,880 --> 00:04:13,200 have to find it myself. And so he begins to act 60 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:16,399 disruptively. He begins to do erratic things 61 00:04:16,399 --> 00:04:19,040 that don't go according to the script of what everyone's 62 00:04:19,040 --> 00:04:22,120 expecting of him to do because he's trying to find out how are 63 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:24,160 they going to react? And what am I going to discover? 64 00:04:24,160 --> 00:04:27,080 And he kept finding more and more bizarre things until he 65 00:04:27,080 --> 00:04:29,200 realized that the whole thing was a lie. 66 00:04:31,120 --> 00:04:34,800 That the entire world that he thought was real was actually 67 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:36,920 fake. That from the time of his birth, 68 00:04:37,680 --> 00:04:43,080 his entire life with some moments was live streamed to the 69 00:04:43,080 --> 00:04:50,320 world for someone else's profit. He was the star, but the world 70 00:04:50,320 --> 00:04:52,560 was fake. His wife was an actor. 71 00:04:52,560 --> 00:04:56,120 His best friend was an actor. All the neighbors were extras. 72 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:59,880 His job was a farce. His center of meaning wasn't 73 00:04:59,880 --> 00:05:06,040 real, but that there was a real world and that if he was willing 74 00:05:06,040 --> 00:05:08,320 to press hard enough, he could find the door to it. 75 00:05:08,320 --> 00:05:11,640 And he could walk out of this world of lies into a world where 76 00:05:11,640 --> 00:05:17,160 he was truly loved, truly called, truly known, truly seen, 77 00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:19,280 not used for someone else's profit. 78 00:05:19,280 --> 00:05:22,680 He walked into that world, but the first thing that he had to 79 00:05:22,680 --> 00:05:26,920 realize is that this world that I'm living in is built on 80 00:05:27,280 --> 00:05:31,400 concealed lies that everyone is agreeing to. 81 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:35,640 Now. Our world bears some 82 00:05:35,640 --> 00:05:37,840 similarities with Truman's world. 83 00:05:38,640 --> 00:05:40,640 Things aren't always as they appear. 84 00:05:41,840 --> 00:05:43,800 People aren't always who they claim to be. 85 00:05:44,280 --> 00:05:46,000 There are truths that are concealed. 86 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:48,600 There are falsehoods that are perpetuated. 87 00:05:50,240 --> 00:05:56,000 And Jesus came right into the heart of this false world, not 88 00:05:56,000 --> 00:06:00,280 to condemn it, but to redeem it. It's a world where we are truly 89 00:06:00,280 --> 00:06:04,160 loved, truly called, where our life truly begins. 90 00:06:04,160 --> 00:06:08,320 And it's here where our deepest questions are answered and our 91 00:06:08,320 --> 00:06:12,440 deepest longings are met. That world is open to us. 92 00:06:13,800 --> 00:06:16,240 That world of truth is open to us. 93 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:19,960 It's called the Kingdom of God, and it's breaking in right 94 00:06:19,960 --> 00:06:23,600 inside the world that we live, not to condemn it, but to redeem 95 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:25,920 it. Now in our gospel text today, 96 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:31,960 Jesus is going to use two simple images from his culture. 1 is a 97 00:06:31,960 --> 00:06:36,760 lamp which reveals his Kingdom, and another one is a measure 98 00:06:36,840 --> 00:06:42,000 which reveals his people. Now these images pair together. 99 00:06:42,440 --> 00:06:47,360 They are both about bringing secret things to light, what the 100 00:06:47,360 --> 00:06:50,480 scriptures call in other places, the apocalypse, the revealing, 101 00:06:50,480 --> 00:06:56,120 the unveiling. And Jesus is going to use these 102 00:06:56,120 --> 00:07:00,320 images to reveal the Kingdom and reveal his sons and daughters. 103 00:07:00,840 --> 00:07:03,720 And we're going to unpack these images as well as reflect on 104 00:07:03,720 --> 00:07:07,240 ways that we can live this out together to become a people of 105 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,360 the truth who reveal the truth of Jesus. 106 00:07:11,480 --> 00:07:14,600 So let's look first at the lamp, the lamp which reveals the 107 00:07:14,600 --> 00:07:19,040 Kingdom of God in verses 21 through 23, verse 21. 108 00:07:19,040 --> 00:07:23,120 And he said to them, is a lamp brought in to be put under a 109 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:26,520 basket or under a bed and not a stand. 110 00:07:27,720 --> 00:07:30,880 Now this is a rhetorical question and people listening 111 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:33,720 are, you know, expected to be like, no, of course not. 112 00:07:33,720 --> 00:07:35,320 You would never do that with the lamp. 113 00:07:36,320 --> 00:07:40,080 Lamps in Jesus day are not the stationary kind like that. 114 00:07:40,080 --> 00:07:41,840 Just sit in one place all the time. 115 00:07:41,840 --> 00:07:45,240 They were, they were portable. They were made out of a bowl, 116 00:07:45,680 --> 00:07:49,680 you know, a medium sized bowl. And the bowl contained oil, 117 00:07:49,680 --> 00:07:52,520 enough oil to like last several hours. 118 00:07:52,720 --> 00:07:55,880 And in the midst of that oil was an oil drenched Wick. 119 00:07:56,200 --> 00:07:59,880 And you would light the Wick and then you would carry the light 120 00:07:59,880 --> 00:08:03,480 wherever it needed to go. In the ancient world, homes were 121 00:08:03,480 --> 00:08:06,800 not large. Most people at night could sort 122 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:09,760 of exist before bedtime in one room. 123 00:08:09,760 --> 00:08:14,520 You would bring the the bowl of light into the room and set it 124 00:08:14,680 --> 00:08:17,920 on the lampstand and it would give light to everyone. 125 00:08:18,120 --> 00:08:21,280 There would be light enough for cooking, There would be light 126 00:08:21,280 --> 00:08:24,280 enough for reading or writing if you needed to do that, light 127 00:08:24,280 --> 00:08:27,000 enough to work, light enough to clean. 128 00:08:27,160 --> 00:08:30,600 If there were robbers that were trying to break in, it would 129 00:08:30,600 --> 00:08:32,600 expose them to it. It looked, it exposed 130 00:08:32,600 --> 00:08:38,760 everything. And so there's no point and 131 00:08:38,760 --> 00:08:41,760 going through all of that trouble and lighting a lamp and 132 00:08:41,760 --> 00:08:46,600 then putting it underneath the the bed or putting it underneath 133 00:08:46,920 --> 00:08:49,000 a bushel or putting it underneath a basket. 134 00:08:49,000 --> 00:08:52,360 Like the light is not meant to be subsumed by the darkness. 135 00:08:52,600 --> 00:09:00,520 The light is meant to to transform the darkness and Jesus 136 00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:04,000 is going to apply this to God's Kingdom in our world when he 137 00:09:04,000 --> 00:09:07,920 continues in this way, verse 22, nothing is hidden except to be 138 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:12,920 made manifest, nor is anything secret except to come to light. 139 00:09:14,320 --> 00:09:19,520 Here's one of the reasons that I admire and follow Jesus and it 140 00:09:19,520 --> 00:09:22,040 is because he is not afraid of the truth. 141 00:09:23,920 --> 00:09:27,160 He loves to reveal the truth, and he's not doing it to be 142 00:09:27,160 --> 00:09:28,880 mean. He's doing it to bring life. 143 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:33,000 He's ready to see it revealed, and as light of the world, he 144 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:39,920 does the revealing. God's Kingdom reveals other 145 00:09:39,920 --> 00:09:46,000 competing kingdoms as well. He knows all the secrets of the 146 00:09:46,000 --> 00:09:49,880 heart. He knows all of the things that 147 00:09:49,880 --> 00:09:53,240 are brewing under the surface. He knows all of the lies that 148 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:58,160 are keeping people like in in place in unjust situations. 149 00:09:58,160 --> 00:10:00,680 And he brings a light. You know, you read the gospels, 150 00:10:00,680 --> 00:10:02,200 you see him doing this over and over again. 151 00:10:02,200 --> 00:10:04,760 People hated it. But the turning over of the 152 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:08,040 temples being like this is not what the temple is for. 153 00:10:08,040 --> 00:10:12,160 All these tables of merchandise. This is supposed to be a House 154 00:10:12,160 --> 00:10:14,080 of prayer. Or when he revealed what was 155 00:10:14,080 --> 00:10:18,040 going on in the hearts of the Pharisees who were judging him 156 00:10:18,240 --> 00:10:20,560 and keeping people under their control. 157 00:10:20,560 --> 00:10:24,400 He's like, you know, you're keeping people from the Kingdom 158 00:10:24,400 --> 00:10:26,600 of God. You're standing in their way. 159 00:10:27,360 --> 00:10:30,640 They did not like it when the rot of their heart was exposed, 160 00:10:30,640 --> 00:10:33,280 even though it was good even for them to have it exposed. 161 00:10:33,280 --> 00:10:36,720 So Jesus's light is going to reveal not only his Kingdom, but 162 00:10:36,720 --> 00:10:40,240 all the competing ones that are going to keep us bound. 163 00:10:41,200 --> 00:10:47,000 Now, there's one hidden expectation, for example, in 164 00:10:47,000 --> 00:10:51,880 Jesus's day that he exposed, and it was this, if only we could 165 00:10:51,880 --> 00:10:54,960 gain political victory, then we'd be truly free. 166 00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:58,280 That was something that people believe. 167 00:10:58,280 --> 00:11:01,560 They wouldn't necessarily have said that like as plainly or out 168 00:11:01,560 --> 00:11:07,200 loud, but it was something that they believed and thought, you 169 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:12,280 know, Jesus's peers believed that if they could overthrow 170 00:11:12,280 --> 00:11:14,840 their Roman occupiers, they would be free. 171 00:11:15,640 --> 00:11:19,600 And we can understand why they thought that because they were 172 00:11:19,600 --> 00:11:22,880 heavily taxed by Rome. They were occupied by Rome. 173 00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:27,240 You know, imagine if, like, a foreign country sent a military 174 00:11:27,280 --> 00:11:29,560 police force to police our streets. 175 00:11:29,560 --> 00:11:32,320 We would not like that at all. We would want them out. 176 00:11:32,800 --> 00:11:34,560 OK. And so that's how they thought 177 00:11:34,560 --> 00:11:36,960 about Rome is like, this isn't where Rome's supposed to be. 178 00:11:36,960 --> 00:11:41,800 This is our country, and they're taxing us, and our taxes are 179 00:11:41,800 --> 00:11:44,520 going to pay for the swords of our occupiers. 180 00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:47,440 Like that's not good. And so they thought, you know 181 00:11:47,440 --> 00:11:50,760 what we need, we need a political Messiah who will take 182 00:11:50,760 --> 00:11:53,120 care of this. The true king of the, you know, 183 00:11:53,120 --> 00:11:55,400 the true son of David, the true king of Israel needs to 184 00:11:55,400 --> 00:12:01,000 overthrow these guys yesterday. And so when Jesus feeds the 5000 185 00:12:02,320 --> 00:12:06,240 and and they're like, what? He's our guy. 186 00:12:07,320 --> 00:12:09,800 He's our guy. I mean, if he can do this, he 187 00:12:09,800 --> 00:12:11,840 can certainly. So they tried to make him king 188 00:12:11,840 --> 00:12:16,880 by force. That's what happens when the 189 00:12:16,880 --> 00:12:20,800 light of Christ comes in like the the all of our desires come 190 00:12:20,800 --> 00:12:23,560 to the surface. All the things that we thought 191 00:12:23,560 --> 00:12:26,360 would save us come to the surface and we put them on 192 00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:28,680 Jesus. We put them on our leaders. 193 00:12:28,760 --> 00:12:35,280 We go save us. Now Jesus brings the lamp into 194 00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:37,760 that darkness. He brings the lamp and he sets 195 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:39,600 it on the lampstand, and it brings light. 196 00:12:39,800 --> 00:12:43,120 And the light is this. The Messiah came to deliver us 197 00:12:43,120 --> 00:12:46,040 from our sin and from death and from the devil. 198 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:50,440 And he didn't come to give us victory over a particular person 199 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:54,320 or a particular political group. That's not why he came. 200 00:12:55,600 --> 00:12:59,240 Now politics matters. Some of us are called to it, but 201 00:12:59,240 --> 00:13:03,160 that's not where the Kingdom of God begins or ends. 202 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:08,640 Our deepest problems can't be solved by winning a temporary 203 00:13:08,800 --> 00:13:13,040 political victory. And that's why Jesus brought the 204 00:13:13,040 --> 00:13:16,240 light of the Kingdom in, and that's why he ascended to his 205 00:13:16,240 --> 00:13:20,400 throne by descending to the cross, to show this is what the 206 00:13:20,400 --> 00:13:25,360 true King came to do. And it was the biggest reveal in 207 00:13:25,360 --> 00:13:29,160 all of human history. It was the greatest, brightest 208 00:13:29,440 --> 00:13:33,480 lamp that humanity has ever seen, shining in the darkest 209 00:13:33,480 --> 00:13:36,400 place. It was his cross. 210 00:13:36,400 --> 00:13:39,360 It was his humility which was forgiving our pride. 211 00:13:39,360 --> 00:13:42,680 It was his suffering which was healing our dying race. 212 00:13:42,680 --> 00:13:47,160 It was his obedience exposing our mortal enemy and our mortal 213 00:13:47,160 --> 00:13:52,040 enemy's rebellion. And this is the light. 214 00:13:52,040 --> 00:13:55,240 This is the light that after his resurrection, Jesus, you know, 215 00:13:55,360 --> 00:13:57,880 he didn't make himself mayor of Jerusalem. 216 00:14:00,080 --> 00:14:03,200 He didn't make himself Roman Empire, Roman emperor. 217 00:14:05,320 --> 00:14:08,880 He, what did he do? He he appeared to people who 218 00:14:08,880 --> 00:14:12,840 were ready to be forgiven for all the ways that they had 219 00:14:12,840 --> 00:14:15,760 brought darkness into the world. He encouraged them. 220 00:14:15,760 --> 00:14:19,560 He breathed new life into them. He gave them authority over sin, 221 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:25,080 over death, and over the devil. And then he's like, hey, put the 222 00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:29,320 lamp of his Kingdom into their hands and said, go forth into 223 00:14:29,320 --> 00:14:33,400 all the world. And it's still true, friends, 224 00:14:33,400 --> 00:14:37,440 that our biggest problems aren't solved by amassing more power 225 00:14:37,440 --> 00:14:42,920 for ourselves that that lie, that if only we had more power, 226 00:14:42,920 --> 00:14:46,480 we'd be truly saved. That keeps us in darkness. 227 00:14:47,960 --> 00:14:52,480 Biggest victories for us are never political or military or 228 00:14:52,480 --> 00:14:56,040 financial, whether on a small scale or a large scale. 229 00:14:56,800 --> 00:15:01,240 The suffering servant is our king and our light, and he's the 230 00:15:01,240 --> 00:15:06,320 king over all temporary kings, and he shines with humility, He 231 00:15:06,320 --> 00:15:09,520 shines with love, and he so calls us to shine. 232 00:15:09,520 --> 00:15:12,800 And his reign begins in the hearts and the common life of 233 00:15:12,800 --> 00:15:17,960 his subjects. This past weekend I was reading 234 00:15:18,480 --> 00:15:24,240 about the remarkable witness of the Church in Iran during the 235 00:15:24,240 --> 00:15:27,680 chaos of Iran in the last few years. 236 00:15:27,920 --> 00:15:31,040 I mean, it's there was a wave after wave of chaos. 237 00:15:31,040 --> 00:15:34,920 It's the, it's they had an economic crisis and then they've 238 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:38,760 then they've had war and then I've had more bombings in war. 239 00:15:38,760 --> 00:15:42,360 And So what do you do in war? It's like a big question. 240 00:15:42,360 --> 00:15:47,400 And so many Christians have actually continued to meet in 241 00:15:47,400 --> 00:15:50,800 homes, to worship, to love one another, and then to mobilize to 242 00:15:50,800 --> 00:15:53,600 love their neighbors. Some, especially the leaders, 243 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:55,920 have been interrogated, abused, imprisoned. 244 00:15:56,720 --> 00:16:02,400 And yet they have the light of the Kingdom in their hands and 245 00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:06,400 they're carrying it everywhere they go, whether it's to prison 246 00:16:06,640 --> 00:16:09,480 or to a war-torn apartment building next door. 247 00:16:11,280 --> 00:16:14,280 Christianity Today reports a story of one recent convert in 248 00:16:14,280 --> 00:16:17,600 Iran. He came to faith and then 249 00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:21,280 expressed a desire to send his tithe to poor Christians and 250 00:16:21,280 --> 00:16:23,640 other Iranian cities. And he asked his pastor, like, 251 00:16:23,640 --> 00:16:24,880 what should I do with this tithe? 252 00:16:24,880 --> 00:16:28,920 I want to give it to to those who are suffering and who don't 253 00:16:28,920 --> 00:16:32,360 have much money. And so the pastor connected him 254 00:16:32,360 --> 00:16:38,200 with a family, an impoverished family in another city who was 255 00:16:38,200 --> 00:16:40,040 caring for a disabled grandfather. 256 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:44,400 And so we sent his tithe there. Now it just so happened that 257 00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:47,040 another group of Christians had come to that same city to do 258 00:16:47,040 --> 00:16:49,440 some ministry. And they, they actually ended up 259 00:16:49,440 --> 00:16:51,920 in the apartment building of this, of this family with the 260 00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:55,160 disabled grandfather. And they said, we got this money 261 00:16:55,320 --> 00:16:56,760 from someone we didn't even know. 262 00:16:57,800 --> 00:17:01,280 And we had we, we had no money left. 263 00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:04,720 We didn't know where our money would come from. 264 00:17:04,839 --> 00:17:07,800 We didn't know how we would make it and arrived just in time. 265 00:17:08,760 --> 00:17:11,599 It's testimonies like that that are popping up all over the 266 00:17:11,599 --> 00:17:15,040 country. And the church continues to 267 00:17:15,040 --> 00:17:18,800 thrive and to grow. It was 500 people in 1979. 268 00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:21,280 It's over 1,000,000 Christians in Iran today. 269 00:17:23,200 --> 00:17:25,440 Why? It's because in the midst of all 270 00:17:25,440 --> 00:17:30,960 this war and chaos and economic turmoil, it's the Christians who 271 00:17:30,960 --> 00:17:33,600 have the peace and it's the Christians who have the light. 272 00:17:33,800 --> 00:17:38,120 And in a country built on so much control, when you walk into 273 00:17:38,120 --> 00:17:41,400 a Christian house gathering, you feel loved, not controlled. 274 00:17:41,400 --> 00:17:47,800 And that is a huge witness. Now here's the lamp of Jesus 275 00:17:47,800 --> 00:17:51,080 truth in his day and ours. Blessed are the poor in spirit, 276 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:52,520 for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven. 277 00:17:53,200 --> 00:17:57,560 I mean come on, it's still true. The light of Jesus Kingdom is 278 00:17:57,680 --> 00:18:02,200 blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted and 279 00:18:02,200 --> 00:18:04,720 blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for 280 00:18:04,720 --> 00:18:07,280 justice, for they shall be satisfied. 281 00:18:08,120 --> 00:18:10,080 Now that's the Kingdom that won't collapse. 282 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:15,840 All other kingdoms are built on lies, but the Kingdom of Jesus 283 00:18:15,840 --> 00:18:20,000 is being built on truth, 1 Lantern at a time. 284 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:23,040 Now this is what I love about Jesus's parables. 285 00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:28,680 They reveal reality and they reveal the unreality that that 286 00:18:28,680 --> 00:18:33,760 binds us. So, OK, back to Chicago where 287 00:18:33,760 --> 00:18:36,400 we're living our life. You know, we're living our call. 288 00:18:37,120 --> 00:18:40,120 Have we have our eyes adjusted to the darkness? 289 00:18:40,640 --> 00:18:44,800 Just think about that. What are the controlling lies 290 00:18:45,360 --> 00:18:49,680 maybe that are comfortable for us that we've adjusted too much 291 00:18:49,680 --> 00:18:52,040 to? Have we become a little too 292 00:18:52,040 --> 00:18:53,920 comfortable with the world as it is? 293 00:18:54,160 --> 00:18:57,680 You know, have we become too comfortable with with our Truman 294 00:18:57,680 --> 00:19:03,280 Show reality? What ways and have the lies of 295 00:19:03,280 --> 00:19:07,800 the culture convinced us and just lulled us to sleep? 296 00:19:09,080 --> 00:19:12,000 You know, you think about like our headspace. 297 00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:14,240 What what's what's going through our head? 298 00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:18,920 What, what are we listening to? Does the Lantern of Jesus truth 299 00:19:18,920 --> 00:19:23,440 have any prominence in how we think and how we live? 300 00:19:23,720 --> 00:19:28,680 Jesus says in verse 23, if anyone has ears to hear, let him 301 00:19:28,680 --> 00:19:33,840 hear, let her hear. And I just wonder if we can hear 302 00:19:33,840 --> 00:19:37,600 the urgency in those words. It means essentially Jesus being 303 00:19:37,600 --> 00:19:39,480 like, are you guys, are you listening? 304 00:19:39,840 --> 00:19:41,840 Are you really listening to this parable? 305 00:19:43,600 --> 00:19:46,960 And so we're supposed to listen and then prepare because the 306 00:19:46,960 --> 00:19:52,560 world is not as it seems. And This is why, friends, we 307 00:19:52,560 --> 00:19:54,840 don't just listen to the scriptures on Sundays. 308 00:19:55,320 --> 00:19:59,240 We've got to be in the Word of God throughout our week, like 309 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:02,040 finding a time in the morning, finding a time in the evening 310 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:05,520 just to take in the words. And if we find something that 311 00:20:05,520 --> 00:20:08,400 feels a little bit too glaring or a little bit too bright from 312 00:20:08,400 --> 00:20:12,600 the scriptures, it's maybe because it's probably because 313 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:19,120 our eyes have adjusted to something else and we could use 314 00:20:19,120 --> 00:20:24,720 some of that light. So Lord, let the word be a 315 00:20:24,720 --> 00:20:28,280 Lantern to our feet and a light to our path, because if we're 316 00:20:28,280 --> 00:20:31,440 going to shine a light in our city, guys, it's got got to be 317 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:35,000 formed within us first. And that's what the second image 318 00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:37,200 is all about. It's not enough for the light to 319 00:20:37,200 --> 00:20:41,160 be out there. It's got to get in here. 320 00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:44,920 So let's look at the measure which is revealing the people of 321 00:20:44,920 --> 00:20:46,560 God. If the lamp was revealing the 322 00:20:46,560 --> 00:20:50,040 Kingdom of God, the measure reveals the people of God, verse 323 00:20:50,040 --> 00:20:53,160 24. And Jesus said to them, pay 324 00:20:53,160 --> 00:20:57,400 attention to what you hear. So again, it's it's listened 325 00:20:57,400 --> 00:21:00,120 closely with the measure you use. 326 00:21:00,120 --> 00:21:03,680 It will be measured to you and still more will be added to you. 327 00:21:04,480 --> 00:21:07,920 Verse 25 for the one who has more will be given and from the 328 00:21:07,920 --> 00:21:11,720 one who has not even what he has will be taken away. 329 00:21:13,240 --> 00:21:17,920 Is Jesus a raging capitalist? You might be saying no. 330 00:21:18,520 --> 00:21:30,040 Let's look at Yeah, I mean, that's the TLDR version anyway. 331 00:21:31,160 --> 00:21:35,240 Verse 24 refers to a tool, a measure. 332 00:21:35,720 --> 00:21:39,320 This is used in the marketplace to determine how much you owe 333 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:41,160 for the goods and services that you're buying. 334 00:21:43,280 --> 00:21:45,760 And weights and measurements. Weights and measurements. 335 00:21:45,760 --> 00:21:48,680 So before scales, this is like the ancient version of the 336 00:21:48,680 --> 00:21:50,480 scale. You'd put your stuff in the 337 00:21:50,480 --> 00:21:53,480 measure, you would put the weight on it like, OK, how much, 338 00:21:53,480 --> 00:21:54,960 how many radishes are you buying? 339 00:21:54,960 --> 00:21:58,800 OK, a pounds worth. OK, here, you know, that's how 340 00:21:58,800 --> 00:22:01,960 much money you owe. So vendors provided their own 341 00:22:01,960 --> 00:22:05,760 weights and measurements. So guess what happened? 342 00:22:06,560 --> 00:22:09,360 OK, false weights and measurements got, you know what 343 00:22:09,360 --> 00:22:10,680 I mean? You can kind of adjust it. 344 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:15,680 You can suit suit you now for a while you could get away with it 345 00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:19,920 and people have paid a little extra for their radishes. 346 00:22:19,920 --> 00:22:22,880 But after a while word gets around. 347 00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:26,160 I'm like, I think the weights and measurements guy over at the 348 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:28,440 radishes department is, you know what I mean? 349 00:22:28,440 --> 00:22:30,040 He's taking a little bit more from us. 350 00:22:30,760 --> 00:22:33,560 And so there was a phrase that you know the faithful would use 351 00:22:33,560 --> 00:22:35,840 around the time of Jesus that Jesus quotes. 352 00:22:35,840 --> 00:22:38,320 He's going to re appropriate, but he's the measure you use 353 00:22:38,320 --> 00:22:43,040 will be measured to you and he's going to apply this to the 354 00:22:43,040 --> 00:22:46,760 Kingdom of God. He's going to apply it to our 355 00:22:46,760 --> 00:22:52,000 lives, to our character, because eventually it catches up to us. 356 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:56,200 He's calling for us to be formed in the Kingdom of God on the 357 00:22:56,200 --> 00:22:59,360 inside because eventually it will be revealed on the outside. 358 00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:05,560 You know, I think sometimes we have this problem, which is that 359 00:23:06,680 --> 00:23:11,400 we think other people can't see what we don't want them to see. 360 00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:14,680 You know, it's like that kid that's like you put they put 361 00:23:14,680 --> 00:23:16,800 their hands over their eyes and like you can't see me. 362 00:23:18,160 --> 00:23:21,760 You know that like we think that because we can't see us, other 363 00:23:21,760 --> 00:23:28,600 people can't see us. We're good at fooling ourselves 364 00:23:28,600 --> 00:23:30,680 is actually it's a human condition problem. 365 00:23:30,680 --> 00:23:33,360 We fool ourselves all the time, but it's much harder to fool 366 00:23:33,360 --> 00:23:37,280 other people. And so we can get away with 367 00:23:37,280 --> 00:23:41,600 something for a while, like hiding, hiding what we really 368 00:23:41,600 --> 00:23:46,240 want and hiding what we really think and who we really are. 369 00:23:46,240 --> 00:23:51,520 But eventually word gets out. People figure out what we're 370 00:23:51,520 --> 00:23:54,320 about. You just can't hide from people. 371 00:23:54,600 --> 00:23:56,360 We think people are dumb. They're not. 372 00:23:58,400 --> 00:24:05,480 People aren't stupid. And the measure we use, it's 373 00:24:05,480 --> 00:24:09,160 measured to us, right? You know this for other people. 374 00:24:10,040 --> 00:24:13,120 I know this for other people. It's much harder to realize this 375 00:24:13,120 --> 00:24:16,880 is true about myself. And sometimes we do this with, 376 00:24:16,880 --> 00:24:20,440 we think we can fool God. We use religious things and 377 00:24:20,440 --> 00:24:22,000 stuff and sure, you know what I mean? 378 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:28,440 I'm this, I'm that we play act. You know that we're really 379 00:24:28,440 --> 00:24:30,560 listening that we're really Jesus's disciple. 380 00:24:31,920 --> 00:24:34,280 Are we cheating God with false weights and measurements? 381 00:24:34,400 --> 00:24:37,480 If so, we're only cheating ourselves and eventually it's 382 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:40,200 going to be revealed. That's what this parable is all 383 00:24:40,200 --> 00:24:42,720 about. But the more we take in the 384 00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:45,400 Kingdom of God with our whole heart, you know, with a humble 385 00:24:45,400 --> 00:24:49,920 heart, with an open heart, the more of it guess what it's going 386 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:52,560 to, it's going to leak out. It's going to come out, it's 387 00:24:52,560 --> 00:24:55,800 going to be multiplied. And then also God's work in us, 388 00:24:55,880 --> 00:24:59,320 his grace, you know, Jesus says, and even more will be added. 389 00:24:59,880 --> 00:25:02,240 This is like the, the good soil. Remember that. 390 00:25:02,240 --> 00:25:05,520 It's like the good soil that produces 3060 a hundredfold. 391 00:25:06,560 --> 00:25:09,440 This is what happens when we when we draw close to Jesus. 392 00:25:09,520 --> 00:25:12,760 He's going to do things through us that we have no idea that we 393 00:25:12,760 --> 00:25:15,680 couldn't have ever dreamed of, we couldn't have ever planned. 394 00:25:15,680 --> 00:25:18,240 And especially when the people of God start doing this 395 00:25:18,240 --> 00:25:20,040 together. God works through us as a 396 00:25:20,040 --> 00:25:21,920 people. I mean, we're bearing fruit in 397 00:25:21,920 --> 00:25:25,800 ways that we would never ever dream of, and probably won't 398 00:25:25,800 --> 00:25:29,000 even be aware of fully until he brings his Kingdom in its 399 00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:36,040 fullness. Still more will be added to you, 400 00:25:36,040 --> 00:25:38,680 more will be given. Can you hear the grace in that? 401 00:25:39,640 --> 00:25:45,120 It's going to get revealed. So let us, as Jesus says, pay 402 00:25:45,120 --> 00:25:48,360 attention to what we hear. Let us pay attention to what we 403 00:25:48,360 --> 00:25:50,880 hear. Pay attention to Jesus's words 404 00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:53,440 and also you familiar with the phrase. 405 00:25:53,440 --> 00:25:55,560 Pay attention to what you're paying attention to. 406 00:25:56,320 --> 00:25:59,440 You ever paid attention to what you're paying attention to, what 407 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:04,280 you worry about, think about, dream about, hope for there's 408 00:26:04,280 --> 00:26:07,600 this apocalypse that needs to come for our headspace. 409 00:26:07,600 --> 00:26:10,080 There's this unveiling that needs to come with what's 410 00:26:10,080 --> 00:26:12,760 circulating through our mind and heart. 411 00:26:13,680 --> 00:26:17,120 Is it Jesus's thoughts, Jesus's values, or someone else's? 412 00:26:17,320 --> 00:26:20,120 What messages are we internalizing as the most 413 00:26:20,120 --> 00:26:23,880 important message of our lives? Because eventually that's going 414 00:26:23,880 --> 00:26:25,720 to leak out. It's going to be revealed. 415 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:29,120 It's going to overflow. And how we, how we live and what 416 00:26:29,120 --> 00:26:32,360 we say and whose Kingdom we really are Allegiant to. 417 00:26:34,200 --> 00:26:38,040 And this is all about letting the Kingdom of Jesus be formed 418 00:26:38,040 --> 00:26:42,480 in US off the spot, so that when we're put on the spot, the 419 00:26:42,480 --> 00:26:49,280 Kingdom comes out. The Kingdom shines off the spot. 420 00:26:49,280 --> 00:26:55,720 Moments are our leisure time, what we choose to schedule, whom 421 00:26:55,720 --> 00:26:59,440 we choose to hang out with, passions that we give our energy 422 00:26:59,440 --> 00:27:05,240 to, content we choose to engage on the spot. 423 00:27:05,240 --> 00:27:09,880 Moments are whatever comes out, revealing who we've become along 424 00:27:09,880 --> 00:27:16,320 the way, suffering, conflict, success, and also all those 425 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:19,360 unguarded moments where we kind of let our hair down and just 426 00:27:19,360 --> 00:27:21,600 say what we're thinking. Those are the on the spot 427 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:25,680 moments. Like the Iranian church, the 428 00:27:25,680 --> 00:27:31,760 early church was often put on the spot and they had been 429 00:27:31,760 --> 00:27:37,200 formed in the Kingdom off the spot in such a way that people 430 00:27:37,200 --> 00:27:40,000 got super curious about what they were all about. 431 00:27:40,920 --> 00:27:44,920 Around 130 AD, 130 AD, you know, about a generation or two or 432 00:27:44,920 --> 00:27:51,640 three after Jesus ascended to the Father, there was a, a man 433 00:27:51,640 --> 00:27:54,800 named Diogentis, not a Christian. 434 00:27:56,120 --> 00:27:58,640 And he was really curious about Christians. 435 00:27:59,000 --> 00:28:04,120 So he asked his friends, his friend Matthitas, about the 436 00:28:04,120 --> 00:28:06,920 strange group of people. Now Matthitas was, was a 437 00:28:06,920 --> 00:28:10,800 Christian and he's like, what? What are Christians all about? 438 00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:14,440 Who are they? And so Matthitas rose back to 439 00:28:14,440 --> 00:28:18,880 his friend and said this quote. They love all men and are 440 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:23,120 persecuted by all. They are poor, yet make many 441 00:28:23,120 --> 00:28:26,040 rich. They're dishonored, yet in their 442 00:28:26,040 --> 00:28:30,640 very dishonor are glorified. They're reviled, but bless. 443 00:28:31,200 --> 00:28:34,200 They're insulted and repay the insult with honor. 444 00:28:34,760 --> 00:28:38,280 They do good, and yet are punished as evil doers. 445 00:28:38,640 --> 00:28:42,480 When punished, they rejoice as if quickened to life. 446 00:28:42,680 --> 00:28:46,240 Those who hate them are unable to assign any reason for their 447 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:49,640 hatred. And I wonder, as we hear these 448 00:28:49,640 --> 00:28:53,600 words, can we see the lamp shining brightly in the cruel 449 00:28:53,600 --> 00:28:57,560 darkness of the Roman Empire, revealing the Kingdom of God and 450 00:28:57,560 --> 00:28:59,760 all of its beauty and all it's unveiling? 451 00:29:01,880 --> 00:29:06,680 Can we see the Lantern of love, of of gospel truth giving light 452 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:09,320 to everyone in the house? Just that open secret, The 453 00:29:09,320 --> 00:29:12,120 Kingdom of God has come. You can leave the fake world of 454 00:29:12,120 --> 00:29:15,400 Roman cruelty and enter the real world of the Kingdom of love, 455 00:29:15,400 --> 00:29:23,280 which will no no end. There's Iran, There's the early 456 00:29:23,280 --> 00:29:26,680 church, and then it's us. We have the light. 457 00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:31,200 We have the light, friends. And now we have an opportunity 458 00:29:31,200 --> 00:29:36,720 to set it on its stand right here in our city, in our own 459 00:29:36,720 --> 00:29:41,320 lives, in our own community, in our own word, in our own deed, 460 00:29:41,480 --> 00:29:45,360 to show Chicago what is actually, actually true, which 461 00:29:45,360 --> 00:29:48,440 is that guess what? This idea that you can be your 462 00:29:48,440 --> 00:29:54,640 own Lord, that's a lie. That really is a lie. 463 00:29:54,640 --> 00:29:57,000 You will end up a slave if you try to be your own Lord. 464 00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:02,040 There's only one true Lord that won't mistreat you, and his name 465 00:30:02,040 --> 00:30:04,000 is Jesus Christ. That's the truth. 466 00:30:05,920 --> 00:30:10,600 This idea that God hides from us, that he stands judgingly at 467 00:30:10,600 --> 00:30:15,240 a distance, just judging, that is absolutely a lie. 468 00:30:16,840 --> 00:30:20,600 But we have the light of the truth, which is that God is 469 00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:24,640 Emmanuel, God with us, who is our friend and who loves us and 470 00:30:24,640 --> 00:30:27,520 forgives us and is the most tender, patient person you've 471 00:30:27,520 --> 00:30:30,520 ever met and who cares deeply about every single human life. 472 00:30:32,600 --> 00:30:38,360 This idea that death has to be feared or like, boxed against or 473 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:47,160 somehow avoided and and shunted away into warehouses and pretend 474 00:30:47,160 --> 00:30:49,120 like, let's pretend that we're not going to die. 475 00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:52,800 That's a lie that keeps people enslaved. 476 00:30:52,800 --> 00:30:55,680 But we have the light of the truth of the Kingdom of God, 477 00:30:55,680 --> 00:30:58,480 which is that, yeah, death is our mortal enemy. 478 00:30:58,560 --> 00:31:00,880 It's defeated. And that even though it's going 479 00:31:00,880 --> 00:31:04,920 to take time for us to to like, learn this death, we don't have 480 00:31:04,920 --> 00:31:07,960 to be afraid of it. You and I are all going to die. 481 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:10,560 And we don't have to be afraid of that moment. 482 00:31:12,040 --> 00:31:15,680 We can actually see death as a threshold into life, into the 483 00:31:15,680 --> 00:31:18,920 into the life of the Kingdom of God, which will know no end. 484 00:31:18,920 --> 00:31:25,440 In fact, it even begins now. And I wonder if a curious 485 00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:28,600 onlooker would be like, man, what are the people of Emmanuel 486 00:31:28,600 --> 00:31:32,200 Angle can all about? Like, what makes them go? 487 00:31:32,400 --> 00:31:37,640 You know, I hope and pray that it could be said this way. 488 00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:40,000 You know what the people at Emmanuel Angle can? 489 00:31:40,160 --> 00:31:44,800 They're not seduced by lies. They actually really love the 490 00:31:44,800 --> 00:31:46,400 truth, even if it's uncomfortable. 491 00:31:47,720 --> 00:31:52,680 They they don't actually live as if Chicago is the end all be 492 00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:54,320 all. They love Chicago, there's no 493 00:31:54,320 --> 00:31:56,640 doubt about that. Absolutely no doubt that they 494 00:31:56,640 --> 00:32:01,000 love Chicago, but they don't worship it because they seem to 495 00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:06,080 shine with the light from another world, but not with 496 00:32:06,080 --> 00:32:10,160 pride, but with lots of humility and love and personal sacrifice. 497 00:32:10,640 --> 00:32:13,280 I'm not sure I believe what they believe, but I sure wish I 498 00:32:13,280 --> 00:32:16,640 could. I sure hope it's true. 499 00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:23,400 Maybe someday I will, because when I see them love our city, 500 00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:26,560 it really makes me long for a city I can't yet see. 501 00:32:27,480 --> 00:32:32,080 I hope. I hope it could be said of us 502 00:32:32,160 --> 00:32:35,560 that that was true. That's going to take some time 503 00:32:35,560 --> 00:32:38,320 to get formed, won't it? It's going to take some Holy 504 00:32:38,320 --> 00:32:40,080 Spirit. It's going to take some 505 00:32:40,080 --> 00:32:45,640 repentance. Nothing is hidden except to be 506 00:32:45,640 --> 00:32:50,880 made manifest, nor is anything secret except to come to light. 507 00:32:51,560 --> 00:32:57,280 So let the unveiling come, not to destroy, but to reveal, not 508 00:32:57,280 --> 00:33:01,520 to condemn, but to redeem. Let that Kingdom be revealed in 509 00:33:01,520 --> 00:33:07,080 us now, even now, for the life of the world, in the name of the 510 00:33:07,080 --> 00:33:09,080 Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen.