1 00:00:03,680 --> 00:00:07,920 Matthew 14 If you want a title, this one is politics, 2 00:00:08,520 --> 00:00:11,320 righteousness and suffering. Well, 3 00:00:23,620 --> 00:00:28,860 chapter 14 and verse one, at that time Herod the tetrarch 4 00:00:28,860 --> 00:00:33,020 heard about the fame of Jesus, and he said to his servants, 5 00:00:33,340 --> 00:00:36,720 this is John the Baptist, he has been raised from the dead. 6 00:00:37,360 --> 00:00:39,680 That's why these miraculous powers are at work in him. 7 00:00:40,200 --> 00:00:43,200 For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison 8 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:46,400 for the sake of Herodias his brother Philip's wife, because 9 00:00:46,400 --> 00:00:49,120 John had been saying to him, it's not lawful for you to have 10 00:00:49,120 --> 00:00:51,440 her. And though he wanted to put him 11 00:00:51,440 --> 00:00:54,560 to death, he feared the people because they held him to be a 12 00:00:54,560 --> 00:00:57,400 prophet. But when Herod's birthday came, 13 00:00:57,560 --> 00:01:00,360 the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased 14 00:01:00,360 --> 00:01:03,800 Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she 15 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:06,280 might ask. Prompted by her mother. 16 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:10,000 She said, Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a 17 00:01:10,000 --> 00:01:12,840 platter. And the king was sorry because 18 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:17,000 of his oaths and his guests. And the king was sorry, but 19 00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:20,240 because of his oaths and his guests, he commanded that it be 20 00:01:20,240 --> 00:01:22,960 given. He sent and had John beheaded in 21 00:01:22,960 --> 00:01:24,960 the prison. And his head was brought on a 22 00:01:24,960 --> 00:01:28,160 platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her 23 00:01:28,160 --> 00:01:30,600 mother. And his disciples came and took 24 00:01:30,600 --> 00:01:34,040 the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus. 25 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:37,280 God, we do pray again that you would open the eyes of our 26 00:01:37,280 --> 00:01:40,320 hearts, that we would see exactly what you intend for us 27 00:01:40,320 --> 00:01:42,920 to see in your Word, that you would bring revelation and light 28 00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:44,800 to it. God, I pray that as I preached, 29 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,880 as I teach, as I instruct, that I would bring your direction for 30 00:01:48,880 --> 00:01:51,760 salt this morning, that we would understand fully what you want 31 00:01:51,760 --> 00:01:54,920 us to hear, receive and believe according to Your word, 32 00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:59,200 according to your promises, according to the history of the 33 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:03,880 church, according to all that it was written because it's 34 00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:08,039 profitable for us today for training and righteousness and 35 00:02:08,039 --> 00:02:12,800 holiness and ungodliness. Holy Spirit, we trust you to 36 00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:16,360 equip us for every good work. Now in Jesus name, Amen. 37 00:02:18,120 --> 00:02:20,840 So this is a gruesome story, obviously. 38 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:25,600 And you know what's happening now at this part of the story, 39 00:02:26,040 --> 00:02:28,120 we've got Herod. So there, there was multiple 40 00:02:28,120 --> 00:02:29,360 Herod's. I won't give you the full 41 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:32,440 history on all of them, but there was multiple Herod's and 42 00:02:32,760 --> 00:02:35,680 there was a Herod the Great who had three sons and this is one 43 00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:39,000 of his sons. And now he's ruling underneath 44 00:02:39,000 --> 00:02:40,760 the Romans. Remember, Romans have conquered 45 00:02:41,040 --> 00:02:43,160 and the Jews get to have their thing. 46 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:44,920 The Romans say, we'll let you do your thing. 47 00:02:44,920 --> 00:02:48,480 And Herod is the the ruler. He's their king at this point. 48 00:02:49,080 --> 00:02:51,920 And we see the history in the story of what Herod's response 49 00:02:51,920 --> 00:02:55,000 to Jesus is. Herod's response to Jesus is one 50 00:02:55,000 --> 00:02:58,280 of fear because he remembered what he had done to John. 51 00:02:58,480 --> 00:03:00,840 And we're going to talk about why his conscience was pricked 52 00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:03,920 the way it was. But we're going to focus on John 53 00:03:03,920 --> 00:03:06,240 mostly this morning. John was in prison, as the 54 00:03:06,240 --> 00:03:10,840 passage tells us, because he was faithful to call out public sin 55 00:03:11,280 --> 00:03:14,720 publicly. It was very public sin. 56 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:17,240 It would have been completely scandalous what they had done. 57 00:03:17,640 --> 00:03:22,720 So Herod took his, The other Herod brother took his wife to 58 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:25,560 himself. So she divorced her husband and 59 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:28,240 he divorced his wife and they married each other. 60 00:03:28,360 --> 00:03:30,760 So this is scandalous. Everybody knows about it and 61 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:33,120 it's a big deal. So John's commenting on it as a 62 00:03:33,120 --> 00:03:36,400 preacher of righteousness, as a prophet who's bringing the the 63 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:40,600 razor's edge of truth to say this is right and this is wrong. 64 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:44,280 And he was bold about it. And other passages tell us in 65 00:03:44,280 --> 00:03:47,040 other gospels that Herod actually even enjoyed listening 66 00:03:47,040 --> 00:03:49,080 to John. So here it had this weird 67 00:03:49,320 --> 00:03:51,360 relationship with John. He wanted to kill him, the 68 00:03:51,360 --> 00:03:54,240 passage he tells us. And at the same time he enjoyed 69 00:03:54,240 --> 00:03:56,400 listening to him. It's a strange thing going on 70 00:03:56,400 --> 00:03:58,160 there. He's going, he's fascinating, 71 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,720 you know, is he sitting up in his temple, leaning out of a 72 00:04:00,720 --> 00:04:03,760 window and John's preaching up at the castle and or, or the the 73 00:04:03,760 --> 00:04:05,600 fortress and people are surrounded. 74 00:04:05,600 --> 00:04:08,520 He's going that guy's crazy. I mean, I'd kill him, but I, you 75 00:04:08,520 --> 00:04:10,760 know, that would, that would impact the people's perception 76 00:04:10,760 --> 00:04:12,760 too much. And Herod, of course, caring 77 00:04:12,760 --> 00:04:15,440 only about what the people think, like all wicked rulers. 78 00:04:15,440 --> 00:04:17,800 What's going to be best? What do the people think? 79 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:19,880 Not, not a man of principle, right? 80 00:04:19,880 --> 00:04:22,400 That's what we should be able to count on in our leaders. 81 00:04:22,640 --> 00:04:26,320 I, I, or in our case, like I want to select a person because 82 00:04:26,320 --> 00:04:28,480 of their principles. I don't think you and I get to 83 00:04:28,480 --> 00:04:30,240 do that very often. I think we have to go. 84 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:32,880 These are both terrible. That one's definitely less 85 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:34,280 terrible. So I'm going to go with the one 86 00:04:34,280 --> 00:04:37,440 I think is less terrible instead of I'm going to stick with these 87 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:39,480 principles because I can trust this person. 88 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:43,600 Herod was a wicked ruler, so he's fascinated by John. 89 00:04:43,720 --> 00:04:48,160 He wants to kill John, but John is in prison finally, because 90 00:04:48,360 --> 00:04:52,080 the pressure that Herodias, his wife, has put on Herod to say, I 91 00:04:52,080 --> 00:04:53,880 don't like what he's saying here is like, he's fine, he's 92 00:04:53,880 --> 00:04:55,840 harmless, She's going, but I don't like it. 93 00:04:55,840 --> 00:04:56,920 I don't like it. I don't like it. 94 00:04:57,600 --> 00:05:01,040 John was the salt for the rot and he was the light for the 95 00:05:01,040 --> 00:05:04,400 darkness, and the rod didn't like that very much. 96 00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:06,280 And the darkness, unfortunately, didn't like that very much 97 00:05:06,280 --> 00:05:08,440 either. The point we want to make here 98 00:05:08,440 --> 00:05:10,680 is we want to say something really plain that we've that 99 00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:13,520 you've heard from me before. Christians should most 100 00:05:13,520 --> 00:05:18,120 definitely be involved in every sphere of life. 101 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:24,280 Politics is no exception. Oh, you're getting political. 102 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:28,200 Yes, without apology, without caveat, without any kind of 103 00:05:28,200 --> 00:05:29,960 explanation or justification for it. 104 00:05:30,440 --> 00:05:33,080 If Christians aren't involved, involved in politics, guess who 105 00:05:33,080 --> 00:05:35,320 gets more and more and more involved in politics? 106 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:37,560 There's no such thing as a neutral world. 107 00:05:38,280 --> 00:05:40,720 The church has believed this for a few decades now and we've 108 00:05:40,720 --> 00:05:43,680 lived as that way, which is why we're being shelved off of a 109 00:05:43,680 --> 00:05:45,960 Cliff right now and, and trying to resist it. 110 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:49,400 Because the church said, well, if we just yield, and if we, if 111 00:05:49,400 --> 00:05:52,280 we just stay on our side, they'll stay on their side. 112 00:05:52,280 --> 00:05:54,200 Well, that was foolish because we thought we were dealing with 113 00:05:54,200 --> 00:05:55,600 flesh and blood, but we never were. 114 00:05:56,160 --> 00:05:57,320 We're not just dealing with people. 115 00:05:57,400 --> 00:05:59,680 We love people, even our enemies. 116 00:06:00,480 --> 00:06:03,480 That's what makes us unique. But Satan and his demons are 117 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:05,440 real, so they don't yield anything. 118 00:06:06,040 --> 00:06:09,160 So they continued to advance. This was an opposition to what 119 00:06:09,160 --> 00:06:11,440 Jesus wants us to do. Jesus wants his church to be on 120 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:13,960 offense. He said the gates of hell, those 121 00:06:13,960 --> 00:06:17,320 are defensive measures. The gates of hell can't stand 122 00:06:17,320 --> 00:06:20,200 against the church. They won't be able to withstand 123 00:06:20,360 --> 00:06:21,920 the offensive measures that we're taking. 124 00:06:22,080 --> 00:06:25,520 And we see John here on on the offensive path saying this is 125 00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:28,040 good, this is right, this is wrong, this is true. 126 00:06:28,400 --> 00:06:31,760 Christians should most definitely be involved in 127 00:06:31,760 --> 00:06:32,800 politics. Why? 128 00:06:32,960 --> 00:06:36,080 Because politics is under the realm of Jesus, just like 129 00:06:36,080 --> 00:06:39,160 household, just like the church who's the head of the household, 130 00:06:39,160 --> 00:06:42,680 It's not the husband, it's Jesus who's the head of the church. 131 00:06:42,680 --> 00:06:45,400 It's not the pastor, it's Jesus who's the head of all 132 00:06:45,520 --> 00:06:47,560 governments. It's not the president or the 133 00:06:47,560 --> 00:06:50,880 king, it's Jesus. Jesus is king and ruler over 134 00:06:50,880 --> 00:06:52,760 all. And now he has delegated 135 00:06:52,760 --> 00:06:54,680 authority into these jurisdictions. 136 00:06:54,680 --> 00:06:58,240 And he says husband's the head of his wife and obviously also 137 00:06:58,240 --> 00:07:00,720 children. Therefore he says, I'll, I'll 138 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:05,160 put leadership in my church also under Jesus delegated authority. 139 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:09,840 I'll put rulers in the earth and I want you to submit to them as 140 00:07:09,840 --> 00:07:13,920 they fulfill their calling and their responsibility to submit 141 00:07:13,920 --> 00:07:17,000 to me. So we say, hey everybody, this 142 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:20,120 is your responsibility to obey King Jesus. 143 00:07:20,280 --> 00:07:24,080 Our governing officials and our civil magistrates are under the 144 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:27,520 authority of King Jesus and they are not above the word of God. 145 00:07:28,400 --> 00:07:30,360 And they might say, well, I don't believe your religion. 146 00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:35,280 I understand that, I comprehend, I completely logically follow 147 00:07:35,280 --> 00:07:37,080 you and I and I, that makes sense. 148 00:07:37,320 --> 00:07:39,640 And yet I do believe what I believe. 149 00:07:39,640 --> 00:07:42,120 Therefore I'm still going to tell you what you ought to do. 150 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:45,560 I didn't ask if you believed it. I'm just saying I've got to be 151 00:07:45,560 --> 00:07:47,720 faithful to Jesus and they go, well, you can't expect me to. 152 00:07:48,080 --> 00:07:50,600 I do actually, because I believe what I believe. 153 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:54,240 So I'm not going to yield on my convictions to be unfaithful to 154 00:07:54,280 --> 00:07:56,400 Jesus. So that makes me a truth teller, 155 00:07:56,720 --> 00:07:59,240 That makes me someone who's willing to say, hey, this is 156 00:07:59,240 --> 00:08:01,920 wrong, this is true, this is false. 157 00:08:03,040 --> 00:08:07,960 The assignment to the Church of Jesus Christ is to carry the 158 00:08:07,960 --> 00:08:10,040 gospel and teach the whole world to obey. 159 00:08:10,200 --> 00:08:14,320 The assignment to our ruling officials is to reward the 160 00:08:14,320 --> 00:08:16,640 righteous and to punish the wicked. 161 00:08:16,640 --> 00:08:20,200 And the Scripture says in Romans 13 that is their assignment to 162 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:22,160 carry out the wrath of God upon the wicked. 163 00:08:22,880 --> 00:08:26,440 So God carries out his wrath through the civil magistrate, 164 00:08:26,840 --> 00:08:31,040 through that police officer who stops the bad guy, through the 165 00:08:31,040 --> 00:08:35,720 judge who who judges rightly and, and gives the appropriate, 166 00:08:36,799 --> 00:08:38,760 gives the appropriate conviction for the crime. 167 00:08:39,080 --> 00:08:41,360 This is part of the Lord's plan. This is part of the Lord's will. 168 00:08:41,559 --> 00:08:45,800 The Christian worldview doesn't leave politicians to live or 169 00:08:45,800 --> 00:08:47,280 govern in any way that they please. 170 00:08:48,600 --> 00:08:51,400 Christian worldview doesn't go well, you know, they're not 171 00:08:51,400 --> 00:08:52,840 Christian. So we really don't have any 172 00:08:52,840 --> 00:08:54,880 jurisdiction there. Well, I don't have jurisdiction 173 00:08:54,880 --> 00:08:58,240 anywhere. I'm nobody but Jesus has 174 00:08:58,240 --> 00:09:01,760 jurisdiction everywhere and Jesus sends us out. 175 00:09:01,880 --> 00:09:04,960 We're required to teach the world to obey everything that 176 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:08,640 Jesus commanded because the the Church of Jesus Christ is the 177 00:09:08,640 --> 00:09:11,160 pillar and foundation of truth for the whole earth. 178 00:09:12,400 --> 00:09:15,120 That's the responsibility of the Church of Jesus Christ. 179 00:09:15,240 --> 00:09:17,800 We are the pillar of truth and someone says, well, I think this 180 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:19,080 is true. We go, well, you're not the 181 00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:21,920 pillar of truth, though the the pillar of truth comes from the 182 00:09:21,920 --> 00:09:24,720 church and the church just points to the Scriptures because 183 00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:27,720 they are the words of God. So we say, hey, this is what God 184 00:09:27,720 --> 00:09:29,640 says. This is what God says, this is 185 00:09:29,640 --> 00:09:32,120 what God says. And so we seek to make 186 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:33,440 disciples. We do that through the 187 00:09:33,640 --> 00:09:37,120 relationships of the people that we know, but we also speak up 188 00:09:37,280 --> 00:09:40,200 and speak out. Particularly the greater the 189 00:09:40,200 --> 00:09:43,880 wickedness, the more response from the church, the greater the 190 00:09:43,880 --> 00:09:46,600 scandal, the more we should speak up and speak out and go, 191 00:09:47,000 --> 00:09:48,680 man. This is this is particularly 192 00:09:48,680 --> 00:09:52,120 vile because, you know, church, all sins are not equal. 193 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:54,880 We've said that before, right? I would much rather you slap me 194 00:09:54,880 --> 00:09:56,760 in the face than you shoot me in the chest. 195 00:09:57,200 --> 00:09:58,240 I think you would agree with that. 196 00:09:58,240 --> 00:09:59,240 Isn't one of those words. Yeah. 197 00:09:59,240 --> 00:10:01,840 Our legal system understands that one of these things is 198 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:05,960 worse than the other. All sin is damning for, for for 199 00:10:05,960 --> 00:10:10,040 the slightest thing. It's still a terrible, terrible 200 00:10:10,040 --> 00:10:13,240 grievance against God. And yet all these things are not 201 00:10:13,240 --> 00:10:15,880 created equally. So we can't constantly. 202 00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:19,760 And it is not our assignment to be the the constant Police 203 00:10:19,760 --> 00:10:21,760 Department for the world and for their souls. 204 00:10:22,120 --> 00:10:25,520 We are not constantly to tell everyone and and condemn every 205 00:10:25,520 --> 00:10:29,640 single thing that we see. And yet nothing is off limits 206 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:32,400 for the church whenever we are to be honest and to be plain 207 00:10:32,400 --> 00:10:34,960 spoken and led by the Holy Spirit in this ministry. 208 00:10:35,320 --> 00:10:38,960 But I don't want you to be gas led by your enemies and the 209 00:10:38,960 --> 00:10:41,600 enemies of Christ who say God does. 210 00:10:41,680 --> 00:10:44,200 God has no place in politics. Says who? 211 00:10:44,600 --> 00:10:47,480 Is a great response to that. Religion has no place in 212 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:48,600 politics. Says who? 213 00:10:49,160 --> 00:10:51,240 I'll wait. I'll wait. 214 00:10:51,560 --> 00:10:55,040 Well, the Constitution. So who exactly? 215 00:10:56,120 --> 00:10:58,440 John Adams. Who exactly? 216 00:10:58,480 --> 00:10:59,840 Come on, boys. Tell me, who wrote the 217 00:10:59,840 --> 00:11:03,280 Constitution? Mostly Thomas Madison. 218 00:11:03,680 --> 00:11:05,960 Thomas Thomas Jefferson. James Madison. 219 00:11:06,080 --> 00:11:08,440 George Washington. Thank you. 220 00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:10,280 Thank you. James Madison. 221 00:11:10,520 --> 00:11:12,840 So the Constitution. So James Madison is the high 222 00:11:12,840 --> 00:11:14,280 authority that we appeal to then, right? 223 00:11:14,800 --> 00:11:16,080 Michael, do you like the Constitution? 224 00:11:16,080 --> 00:11:18,520 I sure do. Favorite governing document in 225 00:11:18,520 --> 00:11:21,320 the world. I pick America 10 out of 10/2. 226 00:11:21,320 --> 00:11:24,000 Thumbs up. My favorite country for sure out 227 00:11:24,000 --> 00:11:26,880 of all of them. And also the Constitution is 228 00:11:26,880 --> 00:11:31,440 subordinate to the word of God. It's not some magical thing 229 00:11:31,800 --> 00:11:34,960 that's that somehow supersedes the Scriptures. 230 00:11:35,800 --> 00:11:38,840 So I don't want you to be confused, and I don't want you 231 00:11:38,840 --> 00:11:41,600 to naively be led. The church has been very good at 232 00:11:41,600 --> 00:11:44,480 the innocent as a dove part of this conversation, but not the 233 00:11:44,480 --> 00:11:47,000 wise as a serpent. And the church just goes, oh, 234 00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:49,480 well, I guess they're really upset whenever I said that. 235 00:11:49,480 --> 00:11:51,040 Yeah, because of course they are. 236 00:11:51,360 --> 00:11:55,240 Herodias was really upset too. Herod was really upset too. 237 00:11:55,800 --> 00:12:00,240 You can't judge the response of the enemies of Christ or your 238 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:03,160 enemies or not even enemies in some cases, just people who say, 239 00:12:03,160 --> 00:12:05,600 hey, I love my sin, so knock it off. 240 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:09,760 You can't judge their response. You can't allow that to be your 241 00:12:09,760 --> 00:12:12,560 report card for faithfulness. Your report card for 242 00:12:12,560 --> 00:12:16,040 faithfulness is given to you by Jesus, not by anyone or anything 243 00:12:16,040 --> 00:12:18,000 else. And John stood alone. 244 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:22,600 John stood very alone. He was, he was already doing 245 00:12:22,600 --> 00:12:25,160 things socially different, the way he dressed, the things that 246 00:12:25,160 --> 00:12:27,680 he ate, and now the way he preaches. 247 00:12:30,200 --> 00:12:32,400 But Christians are supposed to be involved everywhere. 248 00:12:32,400 --> 00:12:35,880 John understood the assignment of being a righteous man in a 249 00:12:35,880 --> 00:12:39,400 wicked generation, and he was the lighthouse that would not 250 00:12:39,400 --> 00:12:44,520 yield to the waves. Times are changing, John. 251 00:12:44,760 --> 00:12:46,800 Who cares? Who cares what they're doing? 252 00:12:46,800 --> 00:12:49,040 Mind your own business. No, Who cares about the times 253 00:12:49,040 --> 00:12:51,120 changing? Who cares about the times 254 00:12:51,120 --> 00:12:52,480 changing? Because God's will hasn't 255 00:12:52,480 --> 00:12:54,880 changed. God's standard hasn't changed, 256 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:56,840 and really the times are the same. 257 00:12:57,360 --> 00:13:02,200 Ever since Adam sinned and we were plunged Into Darkness, the 258 00:13:02,400 --> 00:13:05,880 we've been under sin and death. The only way to be free from 259 00:13:05,880 --> 00:13:08,800 that is to opt out by coming under the blood of Jesus. 260 00:13:09,120 --> 00:13:12,760 It's the presence and the involvement of the church in 261 00:13:12,760 --> 00:13:17,200 every sphere of life that brings God's blessing, which is made 262 00:13:17,200 --> 00:13:19,000 evident in the human flourishing. 263 00:13:19,120 --> 00:13:20,440 That's the fruit that comes after it. 264 00:13:21,600 --> 00:13:23,120 It's the church's responsibility. 265 00:13:23,120 --> 00:13:25,680 It's the Word of God that influences the household. 266 00:13:25,880 --> 00:13:28,360 When the Word of God influences a household more, there's more 267 00:13:28,360 --> 00:13:30,600 good fruit. When the Word of God influences 268 00:13:30,600 --> 00:13:32,080 the church more, there's more good fruit. 269 00:13:32,240 --> 00:13:34,840 When the Word of God influences our civil magistrates more, 270 00:13:35,040 --> 00:13:37,400 there's more good fruit. Which is why everywhere 271 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:40,320 Christianity is gone in the world, everything gets better. 272 00:13:40,960 --> 00:13:43,520 Women are no longer treated as property. 273 00:13:43,800 --> 00:13:46,760 Slavery is ended. Didn't we have slavery here? 274 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:50,960 Yep, and we also figured out how to stop it as as the pulpits 275 00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:53,720 continued to preach and bring the standard of righteousness. 276 00:13:54,480 --> 00:13:57,080 So history is messy. Way messier than I thought it 277 00:13:57,080 --> 00:13:58,800 was as a kid, right? It's one of the things we 278 00:13:58,800 --> 00:14:01,560 learned as we grow up ago. It wasn't always crystal 279 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:04,640 clarity, right? This guy was good and bad. 280 00:14:04,840 --> 00:14:07,120 This person was good and bad. Oh, you know, it turns out they 281 00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:10,040 were all human. And yet, whenever Christendom 282 00:14:10,040 --> 00:14:13,520 shows up, when the church starts to advance, when the pulpit is 283 00:14:13,520 --> 00:14:16,560 faithful and when the Christians are faithful, you see everything 284 00:14:16,560 --> 00:14:18,520 change and you see good fruit come. 285 00:14:19,600 --> 00:14:22,120 Our current world doesn't understand that those who don't 286 00:14:22,120 --> 00:14:24,560 love, those who don't love and walk with King Jesus, they don't 287 00:14:24,560 --> 00:14:28,640 understand that they are walking in and enjoying the benefits of 288 00:14:28,640 --> 00:14:31,320 the beauty that Christ's Kingdom has brought them. 289 00:14:31,760 --> 00:14:35,080 They don't know that. They do not want another 100 290 00:14:35,080 --> 00:14:36,800 years of the trajectory that they are on. 291 00:14:37,200 --> 00:14:40,200 They think we're enlightened. Thanks for your Christian stuff. 292 00:14:40,200 --> 00:14:41,600 It was kind of helpful for a minute. 293 00:14:41,760 --> 00:14:44,600 But we've moved past that. They would find, if they could 294 00:14:44,600 --> 00:14:46,840 live that long, 200 years from now. 295 00:14:46,840 --> 00:14:49,560 You don't want the trajectory that the West is on. 296 00:14:49,800 --> 00:14:51,880 It's not going in the correct trajectory. 297 00:14:51,880 --> 00:14:54,760 We're not in a neutral place. We're not in an ascending place. 298 00:14:54,880 --> 00:14:57,040 We're in a decline as a trajectory. 299 00:14:57,480 --> 00:15:00,640 You don't want that. What you would need again after 300 00:15:00,640 --> 00:15:03,120 everything bottoms out is you would need the church to come 301 00:15:03,120 --> 00:15:05,600 bring a revival again. And she will, because that's our 302 00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:08,040 specialty. Resurrection is our specialty. 303 00:15:08,040 --> 00:15:09,600 We learned it straight from Jesus. 304 00:15:09,840 --> 00:15:12,840 So when something's dead, it qualifies for resurrection. 305 00:15:12,840 --> 00:15:14,640 Isn't God wonderful for his grace? 306 00:15:15,040 --> 00:15:19,240 Isn't he so kind that we sin? We see Israel do it over and 307 00:15:19,240 --> 00:15:21,240 over and over and over and over and over. 308 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:23,600 You read the New Testament, you're like, wow, are they ever 309 00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:25,400 going to get the message? And the Lord goes, yeah, you 310 00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:26,800 know anybody? Does that sound familiar? 311 00:15:27,920 --> 00:15:30,840 Does it remind you of anyone? Surely not me, Lord, just 312 00:15:30,840 --> 00:15:34,600 ancient Israel. But so merciful, so kind of 313 00:15:34,600 --> 00:15:35,760 goes. I'll bring you out of exile, 314 00:15:35,920 --> 00:15:37,840 I'll bring you back home. We can rebuild. 315 00:15:38,120 --> 00:15:40,200 And then sin and idolatry again. God goes. 316 00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:42,360 I'll be gracious again. I'll be gracious again. 317 00:15:42,520 --> 00:15:46,000 Obedience to the word of God and all three spheres of life will 318 00:15:46,000 --> 00:15:47,720 always bring good fruit and blessing. 319 00:15:47,720 --> 00:15:51,240 But it requires that the truth is spoken, because there can be 320 00:15:51,240 --> 00:15:52,920 no progress if there is no repentance. 321 00:15:53,040 --> 00:15:55,760 There can be no repentance if there is no preaching. 322 00:15:56,480 --> 00:15:58,760 And if there is no conviction, then there will be no preaching. 323 00:15:59,160 --> 00:16:01,640 So you need to know that we have a place, we have a voice to 324 00:16:01,640 --> 00:16:04,440 speak, even though you'll be told, of course, by many that 325 00:16:04,440 --> 00:16:09,520 you're not supposed to love for God and love for others makes us 326 00:16:09,520 --> 00:16:14,720 speak up without apology. This is not a, a, this is not an 327 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:17,960 angry message. You might have anger in it. 328 00:16:17,960 --> 00:16:19,920 It wouldn't be sinful to have anger necessarily. 329 00:16:19,920 --> 00:16:23,240 You can be angry and not sin, but the heart of it is not a, 330 00:16:23,600 --> 00:16:27,480 it's not an excluding message. It's a message that is a call to 331 00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:30,600 repentance. I want you drawn in to Jesus. 332 00:16:30,600 --> 00:16:33,680 I want you drawn in to His will and His ways. 333 00:16:34,800 --> 00:16:39,760 Love for God, love for others makes us speak up without 334 00:16:39,760 --> 00:16:44,600 apology. We have a bold love that won't 335 00:16:44,600 --> 00:16:47,720 compromise. What won't we compromise? 336 00:16:47,880 --> 00:16:49,680 I won't compromise to keep this relationship. 337 00:16:51,000 --> 00:16:53,640 That's the hardest one, I think. I won't compromise to keep this 338 00:16:53,640 --> 00:16:58,560 job or in John's case, I won't compromise to keep my own life. 339 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:02,520 What is my life? What does that matter? 340 00:17:05,319 --> 00:17:07,440 I won't compromise to keep this relationship. 341 00:17:08,839 --> 00:17:12,240 I think that's the toughest one that we face because this loved 342 00:17:12,240 --> 00:17:16,680 one, this brother, this sister, this mom, this dad, this son, 343 00:17:16,680 --> 00:17:19,319 this daughter. They said these are the new 344 00:17:19,319 --> 00:17:21,960 terms of engagement in our relationship. 345 00:17:22,319 --> 00:17:25,839 And if I love them, I will. And now they've given me these 346 00:17:25,839 --> 00:17:28,720 hoops to jump through, but these hoops violate my conscience and 347 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:30,040 they violate the will of the Lord. 348 00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:33,360 So the conviction to the Lord says I choose Jesus over 349 00:17:33,360 --> 00:17:36,080 everybody. I choose Jesus over everybody. 350 00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:39,240 I choose Jesus over everybody. And I still love them and still 351 00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:41,240 pray for them. But I will use the Christian 352 00:17:41,240 --> 00:17:44,160 kind of love, not the worldly kind of love that says you must 353 00:17:44,160 --> 00:17:48,280 approve, you must approve, you must approve. 354 00:17:50,040 --> 00:17:52,760 We must live our lives so that they're worthy of following. 355 00:17:53,000 --> 00:17:57,200 And we must speak truthfully When the emperor shows off his 356 00:17:57,200 --> 00:17:59,160 new clothes, but we know that he's naked. 357 00:18:00,040 --> 00:18:03,000 Remember the story. The guys come into town. 358 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:05,600 We're going to weave you these fancy clothes and they weave him 359 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:08,560 nothing. But his pride won't allow him to 360 00:18:08,560 --> 00:18:10,200 acknowledge that. And he goes, hey everybody, how 361 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:12,000 do I look? And they go, all of his yes 362 00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:15,040 means that you look incredible. The you're the most handsome. 363 00:18:15,160 --> 00:18:16,680 No one's ever seen anything like it. 364 00:18:17,080 --> 00:18:19,880 So now they recommend what you should have a parade and he's 365 00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:22,440 out in front of the whole city. This guy's naked, but 366 00:18:23,360 --> 00:18:24,720 everybody's going. He looks awesome. 367 00:18:24,760 --> 00:18:27,000 He looks great. Everybody's just playing along 368 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:29,440 with the lie. And finally one small child 369 00:18:29,440 --> 00:18:32,760 says, but he has on nothing at all, which is Hudson's favorite 370 00:18:32,760 --> 00:18:34,160 part of the book. When we would get to that story, 371 00:18:34,880 --> 00:18:36,640 that's every kids. That's my favorite part. 372 00:18:37,080 --> 00:18:39,600 Finally somebody said it. Dude's naked. 373 00:18:40,640 --> 00:18:42,240 So that's that's the voice of the prophet. 374 00:18:42,240 --> 00:18:43,640 That's the voice of the church and the earth. 375 00:18:43,640 --> 00:18:45,560 You go hang on a second. That's naked. 376 00:18:46,720 --> 00:18:49,000 Sometimes we literally need to say that these people are 377 00:18:49,000 --> 00:18:52,160 parading naked in the street and this is immoral and wicked and 378 00:18:52,160 --> 00:18:57,840 filthy and wrong and not good. Isn't that fascinating? 379 00:18:57,840 --> 00:18:59,960 I read that book as a kid. I remember thinking that could 380 00:18:59,960 --> 00:19:02,280 never happen. Now it literally does. 381 00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:05,560 What else do we see in this passage? 382 00:19:05,680 --> 00:19:08,680 We see in this passage the ongoing war between 383 00:19:08,680 --> 00:19:10,360 righteousness and unrighteousness. 384 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,960 It's been happening from Cain and Abel, from Lot and Sodom, 385 00:19:14,960 --> 00:19:18,640 from Israel and her enemies, from John and Herod, and still 386 00:19:18,640 --> 00:19:23,600 today in our own lives, the wicked Herod and Herodias 387 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:27,480 represent the filth of sin, and John represents the holiness of 388 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:29,320 God. He's bringing the medicine that 389 00:19:29,320 --> 00:19:31,720 will heal them, but they hate his aroma. 390 00:19:32,120 --> 00:19:34,960 Remember how we talked about the aroma of Christ? 391 00:19:35,240 --> 00:19:38,960 We all the world says you smell like Christ's sacrifice unto 392 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:42,880 God, but some say and it's wonderful and some say it stinks 393 00:19:42,880 --> 00:19:47,240 like death. So they smell the fragrance of 394 00:19:47,320 --> 00:19:50,840 Jesus's sacrifice to the Father, and it's not wonderful to them. 395 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:53,520 It smells like death to those who won't repent. 396 00:19:55,600 --> 00:19:58,640 The holiness of John is still haunting Herod, even though 397 00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:01,040 John, even though Herod had murdered him. 398 00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:04,200 You see his conscience here back in, in verse one. 399 00:20:04,200 --> 00:20:07,320 At that time, Herod heard about the fame of Jesus and he said to 400 00:20:07,320 --> 00:20:09,280 his servants, this is John the Baptist. 401 00:20:09,360 --> 00:20:10,640 He has been raised from the dead. 402 00:20:10,760 --> 00:20:13,040 That's why these miraculous powers are at work in him. 403 00:20:13,400 --> 00:20:16,920 He's afraid his conscience is still pricked by that guy that 404 00:20:16,920 --> 00:20:22,320 he murdered. He worries that John has come 405 00:20:22,320 --> 00:20:25,720 back as another man. And he realizes there are some 406 00:20:25,720 --> 00:20:27,320 similarities between John and Jesus. 407 00:20:27,320 --> 00:20:29,880 So his superstition kicks in and he's worried. 408 00:20:30,040 --> 00:20:33,360 Scripture says the wicked flees, although no one even pursues 409 00:20:33,360 --> 00:20:35,880 them. But the righteous are as bold as 410 00:20:35,880 --> 00:20:38,360 a lion. It's a perfect example, perfect 411 00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:40,000 representation of Herod and John. 412 00:20:40,640 --> 00:20:43,640 Herod running away, although no one is even pursuing him anymore 413 00:20:43,640 --> 00:20:47,400 at this point. John bold as a lion, faithful to 414 00:20:47,400 --> 00:20:51,320 God until the end. But look at the power of Jesus, 415 00:20:51,320 --> 00:20:53,600 even though he's not even messing with Herod, even though 416 00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:56,360 he's not messing with the demons that remember the story where 417 00:20:56,360 --> 00:20:58,520 they come and beg him for mercy there. 418 00:20:58,520 --> 00:21:01,800 Everybody gets bent out of shape when Jesus comes around because 419 00:21:01,800 --> 00:21:05,840 he has all power, because He is coming to judge the living and 420 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:09,400 the dead, because He will hold everyone accountable and no one 421 00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:12,240 is getting away with anything unless they come through the 422 00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:15,360 blood of the Lamb. That's good news for you and I. 423 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:19,360 We never have a prideful attitude about our 424 00:21:19,360 --> 00:21:21,400 righteousness. We always have a grateful one. 425 00:21:21,760 --> 00:21:24,000 Gratitude is always the appropriate response. 426 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:26,520 I'm so thankful. And I got to tell you too. 427 00:21:26,760 --> 00:21:29,600 Oh, I'll say it with volume. Oh, I'll say it with conviction. 428 00:21:30,680 --> 00:21:34,560 I can say it all kinds of ways, but I am excited about Jesus's 429 00:21:34,560 --> 00:21:38,040 righteousness, not mine. I'm not comparing me to you. 430 00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:39,640 I'm comparing me to the Word of God. 431 00:21:39,640 --> 00:21:41,440 I'm comparing you to the Word of God. 432 00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:44,320 The Word of God is the standard. And by the way, we all fall 433 00:21:44,320 --> 00:21:48,040 short of His glory and His standard and His expectations. 434 00:21:48,680 --> 00:21:50,800 This is why we've got to tell the truth and the whole truth 435 00:21:50,800 --> 00:21:54,720 when we share the gospel. The whole thing is that I was 436 00:21:54,720 --> 00:21:58,240 dead in my sin, in my trespasses, but God made us 437 00:21:58,240 --> 00:22:02,240 alive in Christ. It's both and it's not one or 438 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:04,920 the other. People need the whole truth so 439 00:22:04,920 --> 00:22:06,760 they can experience the grace of God fully. 440 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:18,080 We must come under the blood. And like Psalms two said, we 441 00:22:18,080 --> 00:22:22,880 must kiss the son, let's he be angry, or like we're also told, 442 00:22:22,880 --> 00:22:27,000 let's they become his footstool. But we see the battle rage on, 443 00:22:27,000 --> 00:22:29,680 and it's going to continue to rage on until Jesus settles 444 00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:34,520 things permanently. In John's day, people loved in 445 00:22:34,520 --> 00:22:37,800 particular their sexual sin in this case, so much that they 446 00:22:37,800 --> 00:22:41,520 would kill to protect it. That's exactly what Herodias 447 00:22:41,520 --> 00:22:44,400 manipulated Herod to do. They did then and they do now as 448 00:22:44,400 --> 00:22:46,520 well. This is obvious in the case of 449 00:22:46,520 --> 00:22:49,280 abortion. Culture wants sinful 450 00:22:49,280 --> 00:22:52,600 fornication, but not the good and fruitful outcome of 451 00:22:52,600 --> 00:22:56,400 children, so they kill. I heard recently it was said 452 00:22:56,400 --> 00:22:59,640 that abortion is the sacrament of Satanism. 453 00:23:00,640 --> 00:23:03,440 We think about sacrament as communion, but it's it's the 454 00:23:03,440 --> 00:23:05,280 complete opposite of what Christ says. 455 00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:10,720 This is my body broken for you. Abortion says this is my body 456 00:23:10,720 --> 00:23:16,800 and I'll break yours for mine. I'll keep myself myself and 457 00:23:16,800 --> 00:23:19,040 I'll, I'm willing to sacrifice you. 458 00:23:19,400 --> 00:23:23,040 So it's, it's the, it's an inversion of what the Lord Jesus 459 00:23:23,040 --> 00:23:25,720 does for all of us, The grace and the kindness. 460 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:27,960 He says, this is my body. I'm breaking it. 461 00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:30,560 I'm tearing it to pieces so that you can be spared. 462 00:23:30,720 --> 00:23:36,800 That's what love does. Herodias and Herod probably said 463 00:23:36,800 --> 00:23:39,480 the same things about John that we hear today. 464 00:23:39,480 --> 00:23:41,520 If you don't like adultery, then don't commit adultery. 465 00:23:41,800 --> 00:23:44,160 But it's none of your business. Just like you and I here, if you 466 00:23:44,160 --> 00:23:46,240 don't want an abortion, don't get an abortion. 467 00:23:46,640 --> 00:23:49,200 But these are the desperate attempts of lost souls who are 468 00:23:49,200 --> 00:23:53,080 hungry for their sexual sin. We see vile displays of 469 00:23:53,080 --> 00:23:56,800 perversion in public, celebrated with pride, protected by law. 470 00:23:57,000 --> 00:23:58,680 And if we're silent, then we aren't faithful. 471 00:23:59,600 --> 00:24:03,000 We must be loving enough to be bold and staying firm like Jon 472 00:24:03,000 --> 00:24:04,480 Stewart as a lighthouse in the storm. 473 00:24:05,080 --> 00:24:09,320 But we cannot be surprised when they ask for our heads on a 474 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:13,640 platter. Which brings us to our last 475 00:24:13,640 --> 00:24:16,760 point, which is this, that we must suffer. 476 00:24:16,760 --> 00:24:20,640 Well, we talked before about John. 477 00:24:22,000 --> 00:24:24,520 Whenever he came, he sent his disciples to Jesus. 478 00:24:24,520 --> 00:24:30,080 Remember, he was wondering, he had some doubts. 479 00:24:30,080 --> 00:24:32,640 Do you remember that? John's suffering? 480 00:24:32,640 --> 00:24:33,960 But what did he do with his suffering? 481 00:24:34,320 --> 00:24:37,040 He took it to Jesus. That was our application from 482 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:38,680 that. Do you have struggles? 483 00:24:38,880 --> 00:24:41,560 Do you have doubts? Oh, welcome to being a human, 484 00:24:42,240 --> 00:24:46,480 but take those to Jesus. But as Christians, we've got to 485 00:24:46,480 --> 00:24:48,960 be able to suffer well. This is an important area for us 486 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:53,000 to grow in as believers. A mark of immaturity in us as 487 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:57,600 believers is the inability to endure pain or struggle or 488 00:24:57,600 --> 00:25:00,280 disappointment. But we should be able to endure 489 00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:03,440 these things because our Lord endured these things and He will 490 00:25:03,440 --> 00:25:07,560 equip us to do the same. Last week we talked about faith 491 00:25:08,200 --> 00:25:11,520 and we looked at the importance of believing God so He can do 492 00:25:11,520 --> 00:25:16,040 works of power in our lives. And I won't take back anything 493 00:25:16,040 --> 00:25:18,480 that I said last week. I'm not walking it back at all. 494 00:25:19,000 --> 00:25:22,920 And also, we need to be able to stand faithful when our prayers 495 00:25:22,920 --> 00:25:26,720 are not answered. Yes, we need to be able to stand 496 00:25:26,760 --> 00:25:28,840 and say, I'm still walking with the Lord. 497 00:25:28,840 --> 00:25:30,920 Amen. I'm still walking with the Lord. 498 00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:33,720 I've got struggles, I've got challenges, I've got questions. 499 00:25:33,960 --> 00:25:36,360 The Word is the Word, and I'm going to stand on His promises. 500 00:25:36,520 --> 00:25:39,280 But what do I do in suffering? I need to be able to suffer 501 00:25:39,280 --> 00:25:41,760 well. How do I suffer well? 502 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:45,640 The only way to suffer well is to suffer with Him, to join Him 503 00:25:46,320 --> 00:25:48,880 and partake in the fellowship of His sufferings. 504 00:25:51,040 --> 00:25:53,520 So we have our questions too, just like John did. 505 00:25:53,720 --> 00:25:56,920 We have our weaknesses just like John did, but we should take 506 00:25:56,920 --> 00:25:59,840 them to Jesus. This is what it means to suffer 507 00:25:59,840 --> 00:26:01,800 well. No matter what your experience, 508 00:26:01,960 --> 00:26:04,560 you stay close to and trust Jesus. 509 00:26:05,520 --> 00:26:08,160 I've had anybody else had moments and seasons where you 510 00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:11,880 did not suffer well, where you just suffered but didn't do it 511 00:26:11,880 --> 00:26:14,000 well. Somebody with two hands up over 512 00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:16,680 here. I mean, there have been times 513 00:26:16,680 --> 00:26:19,560 where I suffered, but my all I could think on, all I could see 514 00:26:19,560 --> 00:26:22,240 was Get Me Out of this. And by the way, that is the 515 00:26:22,240 --> 00:26:24,880 natural response. We're not to be condemned for 516 00:26:24,880 --> 00:26:26,400 that. The word doesn't say enjoy it. 517 00:26:26,800 --> 00:26:28,520 That's not the message of the Scriptures. 518 00:26:28,800 --> 00:26:31,600 He never commands that of us. And yet I think there's a way to 519 00:26:31,840 --> 00:26:35,160 to suffer well, where our soul is still stabilized instead of 520 00:26:35,160 --> 00:26:38,080 in turmoil. Can my soul be stabilized with 521 00:26:38,080 --> 00:26:39,800 the Lord? Well, it still hurts. 522 00:26:39,800 --> 00:26:40,640 Yeah. Yeah, it still hurts. 523 00:26:40,640 --> 00:26:42,080 I'm not talking about the pain removal. 524 00:26:42,440 --> 00:26:44,840 But can your soul be stabilized in the presence of the Lord? 525 00:26:45,080 --> 00:26:46,640 Is that something that you've learned to do? 526 00:26:47,040 --> 00:26:48,640 Oh, yeah. And maybe you've done it well, 527 00:26:48,640 --> 00:26:50,400 and then you did it poorly, and then you've done it well and 528 00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:53,000 then you did it poorly. But this is something the Lord 529 00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:56,920 wants to grow us in. So even in spite of things going 530 00:26:56,920 --> 00:27:01,200 wrong, the world is broken, the devil is bad, people are foolish 531 00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:03,600 and sinful, You add those things up, we're going to end up with 532 00:27:03,600 --> 00:27:07,080 suffering in our lives. And yet it can be done well. 533 00:27:07,360 --> 00:27:11,120 The Lord will stabilize us and strengthen us no matter what, 534 00:27:12,040 --> 00:27:14,440 when we're praying, when we're faith, when we're facing 535 00:27:14,680 --> 00:27:18,720 anything. And then you look at verse 12, 536 00:27:20,760 --> 00:27:24,320 the sweetness of John's disciples and his disciples came 537 00:27:24,640 --> 00:27:26,440 and they took the body and they buried it. 538 00:27:27,560 --> 00:27:30,880 And then they went and told Jesus. 539 00:27:32,040 --> 00:27:34,000 Just look at the faithfulness of these men as well. 540 00:27:34,800 --> 00:27:38,240 They buried John's body, trusting for the future 541 00:27:38,240 --> 00:27:41,200 resurrection of that body. And then they go and tell Jesus, 542 00:27:41,200 --> 00:27:43,960 which is always the right response when you're suffering, 543 00:27:43,960 --> 00:27:46,640 when you're weeping, when you're mourning, knowing that 544 00:27:46,640 --> 00:27:49,680 eventually Jesus is going to turn it all into rejoicing. 545 00:27:52,200 --> 00:27:56,040 The Christian who has the proper view of God and eternal life has 546 00:27:56,040 --> 00:27:58,040 this attitude that says I don't have to survive. 547 00:28:00,760 --> 00:28:02,200 I don't have to make it out of this thing. 548 00:28:02,560 --> 00:28:04,960 I'm not the most important piece to this puzzle. 549 00:28:05,720 --> 00:28:08,280 What is my life that it couldn't be poured out? 550 00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:14,160 What is my life that it couldn't be used by the King in this way? 551 00:28:16,280 --> 00:28:19,080 I don't have to survive. I'm just thankful the King let 552 00:28:19,080 --> 00:28:21,160 me have any part in his Kingdom at all. 553 00:28:21,600 --> 00:28:25,120 I'm just grateful because Christians, we're not afraid of 554 00:28:25,120 --> 00:28:27,720 death. Well, I've felt that fear 555 00:28:27,720 --> 00:28:28,760 before. Yeah, me too. 556 00:28:29,280 --> 00:28:34,040 But we don't have to fear death. The closest, the closer we get 557 00:28:34,040 --> 00:28:37,560 to Jesus, the more assurance we have, the more peace comes upon 558 00:28:37,560 --> 00:28:41,720 us, and we just go. We have eternal life, not just 559 00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:45,520 living forever, but also quality of life because we're with Him. 560 00:28:47,360 --> 00:28:49,960 I don't want to live forever. There's if without Jesus anyway. 561 00:28:50,560 --> 00:28:53,840 That's what hell is. It's the torment, it is the 562 00:28:53,840 --> 00:28:56,760 pain, but it's without the presence of the Lord. 563 00:28:58,920 --> 00:29:03,080 But what an honor for my life to serve Him. 564 00:29:04,000 --> 00:29:08,400 Whatever the King wants. I always think about it when I'm 565 00:29:08,400 --> 00:29:12,760 watching the big war movies, old wars, you know, when they're 566 00:29:12,760 --> 00:29:14,640 just it's just the masses meeting in the field. 567 00:29:14,640 --> 00:29:17,440 You know, the Braveheart kind of scenes, the gladiator kind of 568 00:29:17,440 --> 00:29:21,000 scenes, Napoleonic wars, just just send everybody and whatever 569 00:29:21,000 --> 00:29:24,920 happens, like man, you know, you know, those dudes in the front 570 00:29:24,920 --> 00:29:27,560 row are dead. Like they got the like, send 571 00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:29,320 them in Here comes the cavalry facing. 572 00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:33,240 I'm like, man, dudes, dudes are goners. 573 00:29:33,400 --> 00:29:34,960 It's not going to be good for them. 574 00:29:35,360 --> 00:29:38,840 And yet when it comes to Christ Kingdom, like Jesus gave the 575 00:29:38,840 --> 00:29:40,480 order. That's all I needed to hear. 576 00:29:40,800 --> 00:29:42,920 It's my pleasure. You're only carrying a 577 00:29:42,920 --> 00:29:45,640 pitchfork. I'll be fine whatever happens to 578 00:29:45,640 --> 00:29:46,960 me. What a joy. 579 00:29:47,120 --> 00:29:48,960 What an honor. If this is what the King wants, 580 00:29:49,240 --> 00:29:52,320 if this is where the king would send me, then everything's going 581 00:29:52,400 --> 00:29:53,920 to be OK. Well, they might kill you. 582 00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:55,440 Oh, yeah. And then what are they going to 583 00:29:55,440 --> 00:29:58,520 do? Jesus said don't fear man. 584 00:29:59,200 --> 00:30:01,840 He can only kill your body. Oh, very comforting, Jesus. 585 00:30:02,320 --> 00:30:04,760 He can only kill your body. After that, he can't do anything 586 00:30:04,760 --> 00:30:07,920 else to you. Fear God, who can kill your body 587 00:30:08,160 --> 00:30:11,560 and throw your soul into hell. Is that supposed to comfort me, 588 00:30:11,560 --> 00:30:12,640 Jesus? Absolutely. 589 00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:15,160 Because when you know the nature and character of your God and 590 00:30:15,160 --> 00:30:18,320 your Father and your Savior, what a peace, what a relief. 591 00:30:18,320 --> 00:30:22,640 You can go anywhere, any dungeon that you face, any message that 592 00:30:22,640 --> 00:30:26,400 you need to say, any relationship that you need to 593 00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:30,960 speak truth into. The Lord will equip you to 594 00:30:30,960 --> 00:30:36,760 handle what comes next. I'm not giving you a script. 595 00:30:37,240 --> 00:30:40,480 I'm not telling you that you need to go drop a nuclear bomb 596 00:30:40,480 --> 00:30:43,520 in that relationship today. But I'm telling you, you need to 597 00:30:43,520 --> 00:30:47,440 be open to the direction of the Holy Spirit, whatever the Holy 598 00:30:47,440 --> 00:30:49,240 Spirit would say, whatever the Holy Spirit would want. 599 00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:53,200 And we have to, we have to make sure that we're not kidding 600 00:30:53,200 --> 00:30:56,600 ourselves on keeping the peace. Is there really peace? 601 00:30:56,600 --> 00:31:00,040 Is the question? Is that actually peace or have 602 00:31:00,040 --> 00:31:06,960 you just submitted? We should be agreeable folks in 603 00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:11,320 every area that we can be, in every area that we can be. 604 00:31:11,320 --> 00:31:13,960 We should be agreeable people. We should seek. 605 00:31:14,000 --> 00:31:16,680 We should, as far as our part is concerned, do all that we can to 606 00:31:16,680 --> 00:31:19,600 get along well with everyone. We should be the most wonderful 607 00:31:19,600 --> 00:31:21,560 people on earth and the churches. 608 00:31:23,360 --> 00:31:27,680 And there also comes a time and a place where people should say, 609 00:31:28,520 --> 00:31:30,200 you're not the most wonderful person on earth. 610 00:31:31,360 --> 00:31:37,320 If we have no enemies, that should bring pause. 611 00:31:38,400 --> 00:31:39,680 Jesus told us to love our enemies. 612 00:31:39,680 --> 00:31:41,120 That implies that we will have them right? 613 00:31:42,240 --> 00:31:44,280 Implies that some people aren't going to think that we're so 614 00:31:44,280 --> 00:31:47,760 great. What an honor to belong to King 615 00:31:47,760 --> 00:31:49,320 Jesus. He's everything that King Herod 616 00:31:49,320 --> 00:31:52,800 is not. Herod is devoted to his own 617 00:31:52,800 --> 00:31:55,720 interests. Jesus is devoted to God and to 618 00:31:55,720 --> 00:31:57,680 others. Herod is willing to sacrifice 619 00:31:57,680 --> 00:32:00,960 others to maintain his power. Jesus is willing to sacrifice 620 00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:06,360 himself to save us, to give us power over sin, to give us 621 00:32:06,360 --> 00:32:12,880 victory over the devil. Jesus has overcome the world, so 622 00:32:12,880 --> 00:32:15,200 we will overcome the world with him. 623 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:20,040 Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for the assurance that you 624 00:32:20,040 --> 00:32:22,960 bring through your word, the encouragement you bring to us. 625 00:32:24,640 --> 00:32:28,320 God, I pray that you would give us clarity, boldness, and 626 00:32:28,320 --> 00:32:30,480 wisdom. Keep us innocent as doves, but 627 00:32:30,480 --> 00:32:35,320 God make us wise as serpents and make us as bold as a lion. 628 00:32:35,320 --> 00:32:42,000 The righteous are as bold as a lion when it comes to every 629 00:32:42,000 --> 00:32:45,160 sphere of life, so that we can be the pillar of truth. 630 00:32:45,160 --> 00:32:50,280 That will be a blessing. Not a rebuke for rebuke's sake, 631 00:32:50,440 --> 00:32:54,520 but a rebuke for blessing's sake, a rebuke for relief's 632 00:32:54,520 --> 00:33:00,120 sake, a rebuke for Love's sake. Open the eyes of our hearts so 633 00:33:00,120 --> 00:33:05,560 we would see and know and understand the war that we're 634 00:33:05,560 --> 00:33:08,480 in, righteousness and unrighteousness. 635 00:33:10,360 --> 00:33:13,080 And first and foremost, God, help us to crucify our own flesh 636 00:33:14,800 --> 00:33:19,640 to continually, continually, especially in the areas where I 637 00:33:19,640 --> 00:33:21,040 think I've already grown past it. 638 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:24,720 Show me again how I can look more like you. 639 00:33:26,520 --> 00:33:27,680 Thank God. We pray that you would help us 640 00:33:27,680 --> 00:33:33,960 to suffer well, that we would be people of mighty faith who 641 00:33:33,960 --> 00:33:38,200 believe you for mighty works, who expect you to keep your 642 00:33:38,200 --> 00:33:41,560 word. And also people who, when 643 00:33:41,560 --> 00:33:45,000 prayers go seemingly unanswered and when suffering is great, 644 00:33:45,800 --> 00:33:48,880 that our souls will be stable in you and that we would still walk 645 00:33:48,880 --> 00:33:53,320 in close fellowship with you. Keep us close and strengthen us 646 00:33:53,320 --> 00:33:59,680 by your spirit in Jesus name. Now the Lord bless you and keep 647 00:33:59,680 --> 00:34:02,800 you. The Lord make his face Shinedown 648 00:34:02,800 --> 00:34:07,200 upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance 649 00:34:07,200 --> 00:34:12,440 upon you and give you great peace in Jesus name, Amen.