1 00:00:00,280 --> 00:00:02,520 Well, good morning, welcome to church. 2 00:00:02,520 --> 00:00:05,440 We're glad you're here. I'm glad to be here. 3 00:00:05,960 --> 00:00:10,880 My name is Nick in visiting from Grand Rapids and just a special 4 00:00:10,880 --> 00:00:15,040 thank you to Pastor Kurt and Jace for sharing the pulpit with 5 00:00:15,040 --> 00:00:19,040 me again this morning. I was here a few weeks back, the 6 00:00:19,040 --> 00:00:24,320 week after Easter and I kind of showed my hand a little bit then 7 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:27,800 to, to go. I'm, I'm a lover of the church 8 00:00:27,800 --> 00:00:29,840 calendar. And today, this weekend isn't 9 00:00:29,840 --> 00:00:32,200 just Memorial Day weekend. This is actually the day of 10 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:37,440 Pentecost, Pentecost Sunday. And I just thank you guys for 11 00:00:37,440 --> 00:00:41,000 coming into to church on this weekend and for us to be able to 12 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:45,440 live into the Pentecost story. Last time I talked about the 13 00:00:45,440 --> 00:00:50,360 three movements from Easter all the way reaching forward to 50 14 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:54,640 days afterwards to Pentecost and today being Pentecost. 15 00:00:54,640 --> 00:00:57,600 I had no clue I was going to be here last time for this. 16 00:00:57,600 --> 00:01:04,120 It's such a joy to be able to close out the Easter tide space 17 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:07,760 of of time, 50 days with you guys to be able to go, hey, 18 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:10,400 what's what is Christ doing at the the start? 19 00:01:10,400 --> 00:01:14,920 He's resurrecting from the dead, bursting forth new creation. 20 00:01:15,320 --> 00:01:20,120 Then in the Ascension, which was 2 Thursdays ago, he's raising up 21 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:23,240 to the heavenly realms to establish his authority over 22 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:25,640 this new creation. And then in the day of 23 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:29,440 Pentecost, we'll see today he's pouring out this new creation 24 00:01:29,440 --> 00:01:32,680 into his people. And it's a beautiful, beautiful 25 00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:35,400 movement, The early church father. 26 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:38,840 I also showed last time that I was a lover of the early church 27 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:43,080 in the 3rd century. So late 1 hundreds, in early 2 28 00:01:43,080 --> 00:01:46,400 hundreds. AD the church father Irenaeus, 29 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:49,960 who was disciple of Polycarp, who was disciple of John, the 30 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:54,280 disciple in whom Jesus loved. So just two generations after 31 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:57,200 the apostles, after the disciples themselves. 32 00:01:57,200 --> 00:02:00,560 Irenaeus is talking about the What do you call the great 33 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:04,840 recapitulation of Christ, a big word that we've shortened down 34 00:02:04,840 --> 00:02:07,800 to recap the great recap of Christ. 35 00:02:07,800 --> 00:02:10,919 That Christ would take up the entire sweep of the Old 36 00:02:10,919 --> 00:02:14,560 Testament in his own life and not just replay it out, but 37 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:19,760 actually unravel it and replay it in its proper orientation, in 38 00:02:19,760 --> 00:02:23,440 its fulfilment. Christ took up the brokenness of 39 00:02:23,440 --> 00:02:27,560 humanity into himself and then plays it out in the perfection 40 00:02:27,560 --> 00:02:31,840 of humanity and then delivers it to us on the day of Pentecost, 41 00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:35,000 which is glorious, glorious good news. 42 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:36,280 And we're going to go there today. 43 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:39,480 I'm going to stick to my notes a little bit more today. 44 00:02:39,480 --> 00:02:42,760 It's going to be less like the anecdotal kind of sermon and 45 00:02:43,160 --> 00:02:46,720 it's going to be much more watching how Scripture rhymes, 46 00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:51,240 how poetic Scripture is that the Old Testament is taken up by the 47 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:53,760 New Testament and brought to its fulfillment. 48 00:02:53,760 --> 00:02:56,520 And I hope you guys will get a beautiful picture of that by the 49 00:02:56,520 --> 00:02:59,200 time we're done today. But it means I, I need to stick 50 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:02,520 to my notes because if I'm going to to make it through all that 51 00:03:02,520 --> 00:03:06,240 we're going to get through, I got to stay on on point with, 52 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:11,320 with what I wrote. So we'll start here in Acts 2, 53 00:03:11,320 --> 00:03:14,320 but let me let me pray before we we dive into it. 54 00:03:15,200 --> 00:03:18,360 Jesus Christ, Lord, we thank you. 55 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:20,880 We thank you for gathering us here today. 56 00:03:21,800 --> 00:03:25,400 We didn't only come to church on our own accord today, but we 57 00:03:25,400 --> 00:03:27,480 came because you called us and we responded. 58 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:32,880 We recognize that we're already listening to and abiding in your 59 00:03:32,880 --> 00:03:35,240 voice. And I pray that today your, your 60 00:03:35,240 --> 00:03:39,600 word, your voice would be made clearly evident both through the 61 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:43,000 Old Testament and then through the New Testament through and 62 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:46,920 the movement of God and his people and God being for his 63 00:03:46,920 --> 00:03:50,520 people. Pierce our hearts, open our 64 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:54,960 hearts, and let us receive the word that you have for us today. 65 00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:58,840 God, we love you and we praise you. 66 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:03,440 And it's in Jesus mighty name. And we pray in Jesus mighty 67 00:04:03,440 --> 00:04:07,600 name, Amen. I'm going to do I ask you to 68 00:04:07,600 --> 00:04:10,320 lock in here. We're going to go through Acts 2 69 00:04:10,960 --> 00:04:16,040 for most of the chapter just to be able to kind of fuel our 70 00:04:16,040 --> 00:04:19,519 imaginations, to be able to have eyes to see when we go back to 71 00:04:19,519 --> 00:04:23,200 the Old Testament. So it's a bit longer, but stay 72 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:25,440 tuned. I might point out some of the 73 00:04:25,480 --> 00:04:29,800 the moments that you want to kind of lock in so that way we 74 00:04:29,800 --> 00:04:33,360 can understand what's going on. Acts 2, one through 24, and then 75 00:04:33,360 --> 00:04:36,800 32 through 41. When the day of Pentecost 76 00:04:36,800 --> 00:04:40,640 arrived, they were all together in one place, other translations 77 00:04:40,640 --> 00:04:44,200 say in one accord. And suddenly there came from 78 00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:47,520 heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the 79 00:04:47,520 --> 00:04:49,800 entire house where they were sitting. 80 00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:55,080 And divided tongues, as of fire, appeared to them, and rested on 81 00:04:55,080 --> 00:04:58,200 each one of them. And they were all filled with 82 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:02,320 the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other tongues as the 83 00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:05,800 Spirit gave utterance. Now they were dwelling in 84 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:09,760 Jerusalem. Jews and devout men from every 85 00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:12,920 nation under heaven hear that, every nation under heaven, 86 00:05:12,920 --> 00:05:14,200 that's going to come up later on. 87 00:05:15,240 --> 00:05:19,080 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were 88 00:05:19,080 --> 00:05:22,320 bewildered because each one was hearing them speak in his own 89 00:05:22,320 --> 00:05:24,280 language. And they were amazed and 90 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:27,000 astonished, saying, Are not all these who are speaking 91 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:30,200 Galileans? How is it that we hear, each of 92 00:05:30,200 --> 00:05:34,360 us in our own native language, Parthians and Medes and 93 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:38,560 Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, 94 00:05:38,880 --> 00:05:45,160 Pontus, Asia, Fragria, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the parts 95 00:05:45,160 --> 00:05:48,960 of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both 96 00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:53,800 Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling 97 00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:56,720 in our own tongue the mighty works of God. 98 00:05:57,640 --> 00:05:59,960 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one 99 00:05:59,960 --> 00:06:05,520 another, What does this mean? But others mockingly said, 100 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:08,000 They're just filled with new wine. 101 00:06:08,640 --> 00:06:12,120 But Peter, standing with the 11 disciples and apostles, lifted 102 00:06:12,120 --> 00:06:15,320 up his voice and address the men of Judea and all who have 103 00:06:15,320 --> 00:06:17,720 dwelled in Jerusalem. Let this be known to you. 104 00:06:18,000 --> 00:06:22,040 Give ear to my words. These people are not drunk, for 105 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:24,040 it is only the third hour of the day. 106 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:28,440 But this is what was uttered through the Prophet Jewel. 107 00:06:29,240 --> 00:06:30,760 And in the last days it shall be. 108 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:36,320 God declares to you that I will pour out on my out my Spirit on 109 00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:39,280 all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophecy. 110 00:06:39,280 --> 00:06:42,120 Your young men shall see visions, your old men shall 111 00:06:42,120 --> 00:06:44,960 dream dreams. Even my male servants and female 112 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:49,240 servants in those days, I will pour out my Spirit and they will 113 00:06:49,240 --> 00:06:52,480 prophecy, and I will show wonders in the heavens above and 114 00:06:52,480 --> 00:06:56,240 signs on the earth below. Blood and fire, vapor of smoke. 115 00:06:56,240 --> 00:06:59,800 The sun shall be turned to darkness, in the moon to blood. 116 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:03,800 Before the day of the Lord comes the great and magnificent day. 117 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:08,000 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name 118 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:11,800 of the Lord shall be saved. Men of Israel, hear these words. 119 00:07:12,360 --> 00:07:16,920 Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God, with 120 00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:20,120 mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him 121 00:07:20,360 --> 00:07:24,840 in your midst, as you yourselves know, this Jesus delivered up 122 00:07:24,880 --> 00:07:28,880 according to the definite and for now definite plan for 123 00:07:28,880 --> 00:07:32,080 knowledge of God. You crucified and killed him by 124 00:07:32,080 --> 00:07:37,040 the hands of lawless men, but God raised him up, losing the 125 00:07:37,040 --> 00:07:41,640 pains of death, because it was not possible for him to be held 126 00:07:41,640 --> 00:07:45,800 by it. This Jesus God raised up, and of 127 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:49,640 that we are all witnesses. Being therefore exalted to the 128 00:07:49,640 --> 00:07:52,840 right hand of God, and having received from the Father the 129 00:07:52,840 --> 00:07:57,560 promise of the Spirit, he has poured out, this that you set 130 00:07:57,560 --> 00:08:00,360 yourselves are seeing and hearing today. 131 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,520 For David did not ascend to heaven, but he himself said, The 132 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:07,840 Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand, until I make the 133 00:08:07,840 --> 00:08:09,960 enemies, your enemies your footstool. 134 00:08:10,680 --> 00:08:14,560 Let all the House of Israel therefore know for certain that 135 00:08:14,560 --> 00:08:19,400 God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you 136 00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:23,160 crucified. Now when they heard this, their 137 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:28,160 hearts were cut deep, and they said to Peter and the rest of 138 00:08:28,160 --> 00:08:30,520 the apostles, brothers, what shall we do? 139 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:34,360 And Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized, each and 140 00:08:34,360 --> 00:08:37,880 everyone of you at the name of Jesus for the forgiveness of 141 00:08:37,880 --> 00:08:42,400 sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 142 00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:48,200 For this promise is for you, for your children, and for all who 143 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:51,800 are afar off. That's both locationally and 144 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:56,880 then also timely for all those who are far off Peter's pointing 145 00:08:56,880 --> 00:09:01,120 towards us even today. For this promise is for you and 146 00:09:01,120 --> 00:09:03,560 your children. And with many other words, he 147 00:09:03,560 --> 00:09:06,280 bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, Save 148 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:08,880 yourselves from this crooked generation. 149 00:09:09,360 --> 00:09:12,760 So those who received his word were baptized and they were 150 00:09:12,760 --> 00:09:19,360 added that day about 3000 souls. A lot of movements there. 151 00:09:19,360 --> 00:09:22,440 But as we go through the Old Testament, we're going to again 152 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:25,440 kind of race through a little bit the Old Testament and start 153 00:09:25,440 --> 00:09:28,440 to see how are the the Jews of this age? 154 00:09:28,440 --> 00:09:33,040 How are the 1st century hearers of this age and experiencers of 155 00:09:33,040 --> 00:09:37,720 this day, Pentecost 2000 years ago, What were they thinking? 156 00:09:37,720 --> 00:09:41,640 How was their imagination receiving this proclamation, 157 00:09:41,640 --> 00:09:45,160 receiving this experience? Because our modern minds can 158 00:09:45,160 --> 00:09:47,400 actually miss much of what's going on. 159 00:09:47,920 --> 00:09:51,560 It's taking up the Old Testament in beautiful and remarkable ways 160 00:09:51,560 --> 00:09:55,520 that unlock it in beautiful and remarkable ways and give it some 161 00:09:55,520 --> 00:09:58,880 substance for us today. So you guys ready to go through 162 00:09:58,880 --> 00:10:02,800 this, this journey of the Old Testament before we go there, I 163 00:10:02,800 --> 00:10:07,720 want to say Pentecost is not merely a just spiritual 164 00:10:07,720 --> 00:10:13,600 experience for a select handful. Sometimes we can almost we can 165 00:10:13,600 --> 00:10:17,640 almost shrink Pentecost down to this, this day when yes, power 166 00:10:17,640 --> 00:10:22,000 dunamis comes in, but we we tend to make it this experiential 167 00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:24,720 kind of thing. It is that, but it's also so 168 00:10:24,720 --> 00:10:27,480 much more. Something cosmic is happening on 169 00:10:27,480 --> 00:10:32,600 the day of Pentecost and and Paul and you know, Jesus or 170 00:10:32,920 --> 00:10:35,280 Jesus pointing to Paul's going to draw back from Peter's 171 00:10:35,280 --> 00:10:38,720 declaring the day of in remarkable ways. 172 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:42,800 I'd said at the the start of the sermon here, but Pentecost is 173 00:10:42,800 --> 00:10:47,160 actually the third act in the story of Christ securing and 174 00:10:47,160 --> 00:10:52,320 delivering of new creation, resurrection secured ascension 175 00:10:52,320 --> 00:10:56,880 positioned for him to outpour on us and for us to receive that 176 00:10:56,880 --> 00:11:01,720 new creation into our bones. It is the story of God restoring 177 00:11:01,720 --> 00:11:06,080 humanity to communion with himself through Jesus Christ by 178 00:11:06,080 --> 00:11:09,120 the power of the Spirit. I will say, I don't think I've 179 00:11:09,120 --> 00:11:12,080 said yet in this service, if you haven't grabbed a sheet, you're 180 00:11:12,080 --> 00:11:15,240 welcome to to get up and move and grab a sheet in the back. 181 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:17,600 It's going to show you a bit of the juxtaposition that we're 182 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:20,640 playing with today. So that way you can move along 183 00:11:20,640 --> 00:11:22,680 with us. But if you don't grab one now, 184 00:11:22,680 --> 00:11:25,760 grab one on the way out. It's going to help to to keep 185 00:11:25,760 --> 00:11:29,960 Pentecost open for you as you move forward in seasons to come. 186 00:11:31,280 --> 00:11:36,040 We will also see this morning that Pentecost is the story of 187 00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:40,760 the breath of God returning to humanity, the breath of God 188 00:11:40,760 --> 00:11:43,280 returning to humanity. It's the story of hardened 189 00:11:43,280 --> 00:11:46,080 hearts becoming living hearts again. 190 00:11:46,640 --> 00:11:50,000 And it's the story of scattered humanity being gathered back 191 00:11:50,000 --> 00:11:54,160 under the lordship of Jesus Christ, the word of God, and by 192 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:58,480 the power of the Holy Spirit. And to understand this we need 193 00:11:58,480 --> 00:12:01,440 to go back to actually the very beginning. 194 00:12:01,520 --> 00:12:06,800 In Genesis 126 and 27 it says God formed man and woman in his 195 00:12:06,800 --> 00:12:13,080 own image and likeness and gave them rule and dominion over all 196 00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:17,480 the earth, that they would be vice Regents under his rulership 197 00:12:17,800 --> 00:12:21,840 and listening to his word in the proclaiming his word and acting 198 00:12:21,840 --> 00:12:25,400 His word out over the globe. But then in Genesis 2 we 199 00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:28,120 actually have a replay of the creation account. 200 00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:31,040 And this time around it gives us a little bit of a different 201 00:12:31,040 --> 00:12:33,280 picture. First time it just says God made 202 00:12:33,280 --> 00:12:36,520 man and woman of his own image and likeness. 203 00:12:36,520 --> 00:12:40,880 In Genesis 2 it says then the Lord is 27. 204 00:12:41,560 --> 00:12:45,520 The Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and 205 00:12:45,520 --> 00:12:50,080 breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man 206 00:12:50,080 --> 00:12:56,160 became a living creature. The point here is mankind was 207 00:12:56,200 --> 00:13:00,720 formed of the dust of the earth, but they weren't full of life in 208 00:13:00,720 --> 00:13:06,080 in their proper orientation until they were filled with the 209 00:13:06,080 --> 00:13:09,320 breath of God. And when they were filled with 210 00:13:09,320 --> 00:13:14,600 the breath of God, they became living beings in relationship 211 00:13:14,600 --> 00:13:18,600 with God, in communion with God under His rule, in reign, and 212 00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:23,400 moving forward as a royal priesthood on His behalf. 213 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:26,680 This is beautiful. This is also the beautiful 214 00:13:27,160 --> 00:13:31,120 dignity that humanity has that nobody else has. 215 00:13:31,120 --> 00:13:34,800 The angels were never filled with the breath of God. 216 00:13:34,800 --> 00:13:37,640 This is humanity and humanity alone. 217 00:13:37,640 --> 00:13:41,720 We are the crown of His creation in order to rule and reign with 218 00:13:41,720 --> 00:13:46,280 Him. Which shows why Genesis 3 is so 219 00:13:46,280 --> 00:13:50,680 heartbreaking that when mankind they were meant to move forward 220 00:13:50,680 --> 00:13:54,280 with the voice of God, the Word of God ruling and reigning in 221 00:13:54,280 --> 00:13:59,360 their life, open to his movement and then replaying his movement 222 00:13:59,360 --> 00:14:03,120 out over creation. In Genesis 3, mankind turns from 223 00:14:03,120 --> 00:14:07,440 the Word of God and sets their ear and then ultimately their 224 00:14:07,440 --> 00:14:12,000 heart on a word of deception. The enemy comes in like a 225 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:16,680 serpent and starts spitting his lies, and as a serpent does like 226 00:14:16,680 --> 00:14:22,160 venom started piercing to the core of their being, their heart 227 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:27,920 is influenced now by the venom of the lie, and man starts 228 00:14:27,920 --> 00:14:33,080 turning inward on self. The great Augustine from the the 229 00:14:33,080 --> 00:14:36,480 5th and 6th century and then Martin Luther, the great 230 00:14:36,480 --> 00:14:41,480 reformer would talk about sin as the Latin phrase incurvatus in 231 00:14:41,480 --> 00:14:46,120 say that man was turned inward on self, that they were closed 232 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:47,840 off. There's actually a a beautiful 233 00:14:47,840 --> 00:14:50,880 sculpture if you ever make it down to Grand Rapids. 234 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:53,800 We have Frederick Meyer Gardens down there, beautiful sculpture 235 00:14:53,800 --> 00:14:57,160 garden. And Auguste Rodin has one of his 236 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:01,280 sculptures in there and it's Eve after the fall, and her hand is 237 00:15:01,280 --> 00:15:04,880 up against the the voice of God. She's stopping her ear and she's 238 00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:07,680 closed inward. Her hand on her side is actually 239 00:15:07,680 --> 00:15:10,400 kind of beast like he never finished out her fingers. 240 00:15:10,400 --> 00:15:13,120 So she's actually almost tearing into herself. 241 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:17,520 Mankind turned inward always moves towards destruction. 242 00:15:17,840 --> 00:15:20,960 From dust you came to dust. You shall return when we've 243 00:15:20,960 --> 00:15:26,720 given up the breath of God. Praise the Lord that Christ 244 00:15:26,720 --> 00:15:28,760 steps into. It's a beautiful sculpture at 245 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:31,400 Frederick Meyer. Not because the grotesque, you 246 00:15:31,400 --> 00:15:35,120 know, shame filled existence of mankind is beautiful, but 247 00:15:35,120 --> 00:15:38,560 because of what Christ has done with that, that he steps right 248 00:15:38,560 --> 00:15:42,920 into that curved inward sense and bends us back upon himself, 249 00:15:43,320 --> 00:15:47,360 ultimately to the cross and opens us up to communion with 250 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:52,560 God, life with God. I hear that, but Genesis 3 is 251 00:15:52,560 --> 00:15:57,600 the great fall, the great turning inward, the giving up of 252 00:15:57,600 --> 00:16:01,400 the Spirit of God, the voice of God, the breath of God. 253 00:16:01,760 --> 00:16:06,240 In Genesis 2, when it says that the breath of God fills us, it's 254 00:16:06,360 --> 00:16:10,200 ruach. It could be breath, wind, or 255 00:16:10,200 --> 00:16:14,400 spirit that God placed His very spirit within us. 256 00:16:14,560 --> 00:16:17,240 He breathed on us, He covered us with His wind. 257 00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:20,520 Scripture is always trying to give us this picture of being 258 00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:25,320 fully submerged with God, that mankind's proper condition in 259 00:16:25,320 --> 00:16:28,760 Christ ultimately, But what we were originally created for is 260 00:16:28,760 --> 00:16:34,320 to be filled with God, clothed with God, and walking with God. 261 00:16:34,600 --> 00:16:36,720 It's almost like we're drowning in God's presence. 262 00:16:36,720 --> 00:16:40,160 It's both encompassing us on the outside and filling us to the 263 00:16:40,560 --> 00:16:45,800 the brim on the inside. And mankind offers it up to the 264 00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:49,960 lie and replaces it for being led by self. 265 00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:55,000 Now they're in self exaltation mode, self preservation mode, 266 00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:57,680 self protection mode, self comforting mode. 267 00:16:58,200 --> 00:17:00,840 They're ego driven versus God driven. 268 00:17:04,800 --> 00:17:08,640 So the image bearers meant a steward, creation under God 269 00:17:09,800 --> 00:17:12,599 become in the fall governed by the flesh. 270 00:17:13,240 --> 00:17:16,200 They reject the spirit breath of God and begin to perish towards 271 00:17:16,200 --> 00:17:20,040 the dust they were formed. And their hearts begin to harden 272 00:17:20,800 --> 00:17:25,480 and here realize that dust that were formed from when our hearts 273 00:17:25,480 --> 00:17:28,600 are made of that and they're devoid the Holy Spirit. 274 00:17:28,960 --> 00:17:32,640 Now our hearts are dust. And as it hardens, what happens 275 00:17:32,640 --> 00:17:36,040 to dust? It becomes solidified overtime, 276 00:17:36,240 --> 00:17:39,760 rocky, Stony hearts. And we're going to see that play 277 00:17:39,760 --> 00:17:43,880 out through the rest of the Old Testament narrative because this 278 00:17:43,880 --> 00:17:47,680 then pushes forward towards Genesis 11 with the Tower of 279 00:17:47,680 --> 00:17:50,360 Babel. The Tower of Babel, mankind 280 00:17:50,360 --> 00:17:53,960 comes together and they say, let us make a name for ourselves. 281 00:17:54,160 --> 00:17:57,160 They're turned inward, they're focused on themselves, and now 282 00:17:57,160 --> 00:17:58,960 they're trying to exalt themselves. 283 00:17:59,480 --> 00:18:02,880 So the one act of unity is for humanity to try and exalt 284 00:18:02,880 --> 00:18:08,960 themselves up to God's level. One of the ways that Scripture 285 00:18:08,960 --> 00:18:12,600 starts using the Garden of Eden is it's kind of three different 286 00:18:12,600 --> 00:18:14,680 movements. It's the start of what was 287 00:18:14,680 --> 00:18:17,600 supposed to be the holy city in in Genesis. 288 00:18:17,600 --> 00:18:21,360 It's a garden in Revelation, when we get a picture of Eden 289 00:18:21,360 --> 00:18:23,280 again now it's actually a holy city. 290 00:18:23,680 --> 00:18:25,760 The other thing is it's a it's the holy mountain. 291 00:18:25,760 --> 00:18:29,120 It's the meeting place of God. And then thirdly is it's 292 00:18:29,120 --> 00:18:31,400 actually a temple. It's temple language. 293 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:34,280 I don't have time to work that out for you, but it's the first 294 00:18:34,280 --> 00:18:37,240 temple Tabernacle that God makes for mankind. 295 00:18:37,800 --> 00:18:40,400 And now mankind turned inward on self devoid. 296 00:18:40,400 --> 00:18:43,440 The Holy Spirit trying to do life on their own accord, is now 297 00:18:43,440 --> 00:18:46,800 trying to build their own holy mountain, the Tower of Babel, 298 00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,880 their own holy city that they're going to rule and reign over. 299 00:18:51,120 --> 00:18:55,560 And then their own temple that they would be priests in. 300 00:18:56,320 --> 00:18:59,360 And God sees it, and it would be the absolute demise of His 301 00:18:59,360 --> 00:19:01,080 people for them to try and do so. 302 00:19:01,080 --> 00:19:04,880 They're trying to gain access to heaven apart from God. 303 00:19:05,200 --> 00:19:09,520 They're trying to exhort and exalt themselves apart from God. 304 00:19:09,520 --> 00:19:13,840 So God actually scatters them and then diversifies their 305 00:19:13,840 --> 00:19:15,840 language. This is how we'd see the 306 00:19:15,840 --> 00:19:18,640 nation's populated all throughout. 307 00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:21,840 Now humanity is already fractured at this point, so it's 308 00:19:21,840 --> 00:19:27,240 not God fracturing humanity, but it is him scattering causing 309 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:30,840 something of division less they think they could do it on their 310 00:19:30,840 --> 00:19:34,320 own. That's Genesis 11, but then the 311 00:19:34,320 --> 00:19:38,920 next chapter, Genesis 12, we see God calling Abraham to himself 312 00:19:39,600 --> 00:19:45,480 and giving Abraham a special promise 12/2 through three. 313 00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:50,840 I will make for you of you a great nation, and I will bless 314 00:19:50,840 --> 00:19:54,680 you and make your name great. Hear the echo there before 315 00:19:54,680 --> 00:19:57,640 humanities trying to make their own name great. 316 00:19:58,320 --> 00:20:02,560 Now here God saying to Abraham, I God, I'm going to make your 317 00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:05,240 name great. You can't do it on your own. 318 00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:08,760 We were made for greatness. We were made to rule and reign 319 00:20:09,040 --> 00:20:11,640 with God. We were made to rule and reign 320 00:20:11,640 --> 00:20:15,000 over the angels. That's what we're told in the 321 00:20:15,000 --> 00:20:17,560 New Testament, kind of baffles our minds. 322 00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:20,880 God's promising, I will make your name great. 323 00:20:20,880 --> 00:20:24,080 You don't have to do it on your own accord and then through you. 324 00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:29,120 You will be a blessing and all the families of the earth shall 325 00:20:29,120 --> 00:20:32,200 be blessed. God is promising Abraham that 326 00:20:32,200 --> 00:20:35,640 the scattering that just happened in Genesis 11 will be 327 00:20:35,640 --> 00:20:38,520 gathered back on a great day in the future. 328 00:20:38,720 --> 00:20:45,240 In Genesis 12, the story moves forward with the people of God 329 00:20:45,640 --> 00:20:50,120 continuing to operate in their own selfish, self protecting, 330 00:20:50,120 --> 00:20:54,200 self-guided ways, and they find themselves in bondage in 331 00:20:54,200 --> 00:20:59,480 captivity to Egypt and Pharaoh, who is ultimately a leader who 332 00:20:59,480 --> 00:21:04,880 shows forth what the human condition the Babel Tower of 333 00:21:05,040 --> 00:21:08,240 Babylonian heart posture will do. 334 00:21:08,440 --> 00:21:12,160 Man turned inward on self rejects the Word of God and 335 00:21:12,160 --> 00:21:18,320 hardens their heart. So God raises up Moses, and he 336 00:21:18,320 --> 00:21:22,320 sends Moses, who is a type and shadow of Christ Jesus to come 337 00:21:23,560 --> 00:21:26,640 to go over to Pharaoh and to declare the word of God to him. 338 00:21:26,760 --> 00:21:30,960 Let my people go gives them ample opportunity. 339 00:21:30,960 --> 00:21:35,640 In every single opportunity that Pharaoh gets, he closes his 340 00:21:35,640 --> 00:21:41,160 heart down, stops his ear from the Word and Spirit of God, and 341 00:21:41,200 --> 00:21:44,480 demands that the Israelites would serve him rather than 342 00:21:44,480 --> 00:21:47,240 Yahweh. And in so doing the scripture 343 00:21:47,240 --> 00:21:50,280 says, and he hardened his heart again. 344 00:21:50,280 --> 00:21:54,560 The dust is getting compacted and his heart is becoming hard. 345 00:21:54,560 --> 00:21:59,880 He cannot hear the word of God. So God liberates Israel through 346 00:21:59,880 --> 00:22:03,240 the day of Passover in the blood of the lamb sends them through 347 00:22:03,240 --> 00:22:06,000 the waters of the Red Sea. The Red Sea parts and the 348 00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:10,440 Israelites move from their captivity in Egypt and then the 349 00:22:10,440 --> 00:22:16,400 waters crash on all of Egypt. That was causing them to fear 350 00:22:16,400 --> 00:22:19,520 God, that was trying to keep them in bondage, that was trying 351 00:22:19,520 --> 00:22:23,960 to ultimately kill them. The waters take over and cleanse 352 00:22:23,960 --> 00:22:30,560 Israel of as they move not just from bondage, but into God's 353 00:22:30,560 --> 00:22:35,320 desire to draw them in as a covenantal people, to know His 354 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:38,600 heart, and to be a blessing for the nations around them. 355 00:22:39,840 --> 00:22:44,360 So seven weeks later, this is actually where we end up. 356 00:22:45,160 --> 00:22:51,320 Seven weeks after the Passover is 49 days, Israel comes up to 357 00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:55,000 the Mount Sinai, the new holy mountain of God that he's 358 00:22:55,000 --> 00:22:58,880 calling them up to, and God's heart and desire, his posture is 359 00:22:58,880 --> 00:23:00,840 to go. I want to be your God. 360 00:23:01,040 --> 00:23:05,080 I want you to be my people. Ascend up this holy mountain. 361 00:23:05,080 --> 00:23:09,320 Meet me up here that I would be able to put my covenant within 362 00:23:09,320 --> 00:23:10,520 you. We would be able to. 363 00:23:10,760 --> 00:23:13,640 He's saying all this to Moses. Moses, have them consecrate 364 00:23:13,640 --> 00:23:16,120 their hearts. Get them ready to be able to 365 00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:20,120 meet me on the holy mountains. Then I could pour myself in to 366 00:23:20,120 --> 00:23:22,000 them. But you also have to get the 367 00:23:22,000 --> 00:23:23,800 picture of what the Israelites are seeing. 368 00:23:24,000 --> 00:23:28,920 God has descended onto the mountain like thunderish rushing 369 00:23:28,920 --> 00:23:33,040 wind, and then also the the entire mountain is just a flame, 370 00:23:33,040 --> 00:23:37,600 a blaze of fire. As the glory of God is dwelling 371 00:23:37,600 --> 00:23:42,760 on this mountain in Israel, so formed by Pharaoh in Egypt, is 372 00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:45,840 terrified of God. They don't trust that this would 373 00:23:45,840 --> 00:23:48,200 be a good thing. They're shaking at the knees and 374 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:51,080 they go, no, Moses, you go up there because I'm we're going to 375 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:53,080 die. It's literally what they say. 376 00:23:53,080 --> 00:23:59,240 Moses, you go up lest we die. And Israel rejects God's 377 00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:03,440 invitation to meet them and to make covenant with them. 378 00:24:04,080 --> 00:24:06,600 Their hearts are showing themselves hardened. 379 00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:11,960 That's 49 days in. Now on the 50th day, the day of 380 00:24:11,960 --> 00:24:16,320 Shavat in the Old Testament, which is the Hebrew for the 381 00:24:16,320 --> 00:24:19,640 Greek equivalent of the day of Pentecost. 382 00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:22,200 Did you know that the Old Testament had a day of 383 00:24:22,200 --> 00:24:26,320 Pentecost? And it's the day that Moses goes 384 00:24:26,320 --> 00:24:30,400 up, ascends the holy mountain as the mediator between God and 385 00:24:30,400 --> 00:24:33,560 man. God meets Moses on the mountain 386 00:24:33,560 --> 00:24:38,640 again, covered in fire and rushing wind, and then God 387 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:45,120 writes with the finger of him, the law of the covenant, the law 388 00:24:45,120 --> 00:24:49,520 of love of God and love of neighbor unto the stone tablets. 389 00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:55,080 And see what God's doing here. He's offering to Moses a mirror 390 00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:59,480 for Israel. God said I I desire to draw 391 00:24:59,480 --> 00:25:02,680 Israel up so that I could write my law on the tablets of their 392 00:25:02,680 --> 00:25:04,640 heart. But their hearts are so hard and 393 00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:08,000 they've rejected me. So I'm going to write them on 394 00:25:08,000 --> 00:25:11,520 these external tablets of stone to show you your current 395 00:25:11,520 --> 00:25:14,680 condition. That's why it's a law and a 396 00:25:14,680 --> 00:25:19,160 tutor unto us. By the time Moses, yeah, Moses 397 00:25:19,160 --> 00:25:21,680 gets down to the bottom of the mountain, Israel has already 398 00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:25,480 turned to another God. They're turning back to the 399 00:25:25,480 --> 00:25:28,360 patterns of Egypt. They've taken all the gold that 400 00:25:28,360 --> 00:25:31,760 they had, and they melt it down, and they make into a golden 401 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,840 calf, and they're calling it by the most holy Name, Yahweh. 402 00:25:34,840 --> 00:25:36,600 Here's Yahweh that has delivered us. 403 00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:39,440 We don't know what's happened to Moses, but here's Yahweh. 404 00:25:40,240 --> 00:25:44,280 And Moses gets down with the law of God on these stone tablets, 405 00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:48,400 showing forth the Stony hearts. And Moses is so enraged, he 406 00:25:48,400 --> 00:25:52,560 shatters the stone tablets, which he doesn't realize is 407 00:25:52,560 --> 00:25:55,320 actually a prophetic move for what happens when the Holy 408 00:25:55,320 --> 00:25:58,840 Spirit pierces into our rocky heart? 409 00:25:59,520 --> 00:26:02,440 He shatters us. He makes us new. 410 00:26:02,800 --> 00:26:07,160 We'll see that here in a moment. And because of the idolatrous 411 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:11,360 hardened hearts of Israel. Hear this on the day of 412 00:26:11,360 --> 00:26:17,920 Pentecost in the Old Testament 3000, died because of their 413 00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:20,960 hardened hearts, because of their idolatry. 414 00:26:23,040 --> 00:26:25,840 And you would think that waking them up, but it doesn't. 415 00:26:27,320 --> 00:26:29,920 As we go through the rest of the Old Testament narrative, 416 00:26:31,680 --> 00:26:34,400 Israel's just replaying this story over and over and over 417 00:26:34,400 --> 00:26:37,920 again, turning to their own devices, turning away from the 418 00:26:37,920 --> 00:26:41,960 voice, Word, and Spirit of God and trying to do things on their 419 00:26:41,960 --> 00:26:45,520 own accord. But God does not forsake his 420 00:26:45,520 --> 00:26:47,560 people. He does not forsake the people 421 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:51,120 of the earth that He wants to gather back. 422 00:26:54,840 --> 00:26:58,360 So through the prophets he starts speaking in Ezekiel, 423 00:26:58,520 --> 00:27:05,400 Ezekiel 3626 through 27, God says I will give you a new heart 424 00:27:06,080 --> 00:27:08,880 and a new spirit I will put within you. 425 00:27:08,880 --> 00:27:12,840 I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh, and I will give 426 00:27:12,840 --> 00:27:17,800 you a heart of flesh, and I will put my very spirit in you. 427 00:27:19,440 --> 00:27:23,720 Oh, what good news. I will take out of you the heart 428 00:27:23,720 --> 00:27:26,840 of stone. I will smash it, shatter it to 429 00:27:26,840 --> 00:27:30,160 restore to you a heart of flesh. Now this isn't fleshly as in 430 00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:34,080 we're moving after the flesh. This is fleshly as in malleable, 431 00:27:34,880 --> 00:27:38,040 receptive to the very word of God. 432 00:27:38,640 --> 00:27:41,000 Softened would be a good way of saying that. 433 00:27:41,160 --> 00:27:45,600 Alive again in the hands of God. Then Ezekiel starts to see this 434 00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:48,360 picture of this valley of dry bones. 435 00:27:48,360 --> 00:27:51,880 He he sees that he walks forward and it's just dry bones 436 00:27:51,880 --> 00:27:55,160 scattered, these dead corpses all around. 437 00:27:55,360 --> 00:27:58,120 And God starts speaking to him because I have no idea what's 438 00:27:58,120 --> 00:28:01,920 going on, Lord, what's going on? How do I, what do I do in this 439 00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:04,960 moment in Ezekiel 37, nine through 10? 440 00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:11,600 Then he said to me, prophesied to the breath, and breathe on 441 00:28:11,600 --> 00:28:16,680 the slain, that they may live, And the breath came into them, 442 00:28:17,200 --> 00:28:19,880 and they lived and stood up on their feet. 443 00:28:20,880 --> 00:28:28,000 You hear that the ruach wind, breath spirit breathe over them 444 00:28:28,280 --> 00:28:32,840 in these dry bones who were once alive will now actually come to 445 00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:35,880 fullness of life. And he does. 446 00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:40,280 And he watches them come together, sinew and muscle and 447 00:28:40,280 --> 00:28:43,440 skeletor in the skin over top and it's beautiful. 448 00:28:44,000 --> 00:28:47,240 The breath of God fills the lifeless bodies until they stand 449 00:28:47,520 --> 00:28:50,560 alive again. And through Joel, God says, in 450 00:28:50,560 --> 00:28:53,720 the last days I will pour out my spirit on all flesh. 451 00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:57,000 It will come to pass. I will pour out my spirit on all 452 00:28:57,000 --> 00:28:58,440 flesh. Your sons and your daughters 453 00:28:58,440 --> 00:29:01,000 will prophecy. It's not just that He's going to 454 00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:03,160 pour out His Spirit and bring us to life. 455 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:04,880 Now. He actually incorporates us in 456 00:29:04,880 --> 00:29:08,480 His movement that we wouldn't just be dead men walking, but we 457 00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:12,200 would actually be living with God, prophesying, declaring His 458 00:29:12,200 --> 00:29:16,320 very word out to the world, cooperating and participating in 459 00:29:16,320 --> 00:29:19,120 His great life, moving through our life. 460 00:29:20,320 --> 00:29:24,840 Jeremiah tells us that the Spirit will write the law of God 461 00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:28,720 on the tablets of our heart. You see where the prophets, 462 00:29:28,920 --> 00:29:32,000 because God speaking through them, are picking up all these 463 00:29:32,040 --> 00:29:35,600 Old Testament movements and declaring forth, there will be a 464 00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:38,960 day that will come when all of this will be fulfilled. 465 00:29:39,720 --> 00:29:45,480 Jeremiah 31 through 303133 For this is the covenant I will make 466 00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:48,280 with the House of Israel. After those days, declares the 467 00:29:48,280 --> 00:29:52,600 Lord, I will put my law within them, and I will write it on 468 00:29:52,600 --> 00:29:55,200 their hearts. I will be their God and they 469 00:29:55,200 --> 00:29:58,440 shall be my people. Watch how many times throughout 470 00:29:58,440 --> 00:30:02,320 all of Scripture God is just declaring this I will be your 471 00:30:02,320 --> 00:30:03,880 God. You will be my people. 472 00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:09,320 Even in all of our our sin and deception and our rejecting God, 473 00:30:09,320 --> 00:30:15,440 killing him on the cross. God's calling out, I want to be 474 00:30:15,440 --> 00:30:17,520 your God. Will you be my people? 475 00:30:18,080 --> 00:30:19,880 He knows we cannot do it on our own. 476 00:30:20,520 --> 00:30:23,920 So thus he's promising. I will take out of your Stony 477 00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:25,360 heart. I will put in a heart of flesh. 478 00:30:25,600 --> 00:30:28,200 On that heart of flesh I will write inside of you. 479 00:30:28,360 --> 00:30:33,640 I will transcribe my life, my heart, my law, my love into the 480 00:30:33,640 --> 00:30:37,280 depths of your beings so that you could go and walk it out. 481 00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:41,880 You could be my covenant people. You could participate with what 482 00:30:41,880 --> 00:30:46,920 I'm doing all over again. And all of these rivers are 483 00:30:46,920 --> 00:30:51,440 rushing towards and converging into the New Testament reality. 484 00:30:52,800 --> 00:30:56,160 Here's some of these movements again already in the early 485 00:30:56,160 --> 00:30:59,520 Easter tide, with the death, burial, resurrection, and 486 00:30:59,520 --> 00:31:02,080 ascension. We already see Christ taking 487 00:31:02,080 --> 00:31:07,240 this up, recapping, unwinding the terrible story of the human 488 00:31:07,240 --> 00:31:10,280 condition and retelling it through its proper completion. 489 00:31:10,640 --> 00:31:13,520 Jesus comes as the true and better Adam. 490 00:31:14,320 --> 00:31:17,240 He comes as the true and better Moses. 491 00:31:17,760 --> 00:31:21,200 And we can fill in others, David, Abraham. 492 00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:27,480 He comes as the true and perfect one of God, the true Israel, the 493 00:31:27,480 --> 00:31:32,800 true image of God, the true mediator between God and man. 494 00:31:33,800 --> 00:31:38,160 He's a mediator over and above Moses because Moses was merely 495 00:31:38,160 --> 00:31:42,200 man led by God. Christ is both God and man in 496 00:31:42,200 --> 00:31:44,360 one person. He's the perfect. 497 00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:47,720 He's the reliable one. We know that what He says is 498 00:31:47,720 --> 00:31:51,760 true and firm and believable because it is also God at work 499 00:31:51,760 --> 00:31:55,600 in Him as He is representing us as a human. 500 00:31:58,360 --> 00:32:01,720 Christ sheds his blood, is the true and perfect Passover lamb. 501 00:32:02,920 --> 00:32:06,720 Christ descends into death itself, and then Christ rises 502 00:32:06,720 --> 00:32:10,640 again in victory as first born over the new creation. 503 00:32:11,480 --> 00:32:14,400 Christ ascends the holy mountain, but not just to the 504 00:32:14,400 --> 00:32:18,520 top of the mountain. Like Moses or David or the 505 00:32:18,520 --> 00:32:22,360 prophets. He goes all the way up into the 506 00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:27,680 heavenly realms, takes his seat at the right hand of the Father, 507 00:32:27,920 --> 00:32:32,680 and now mediates on our behalf in a perfect and ever present 508 00:32:33,040 --> 00:32:39,480 way. And then Acts 2 arrives in the 509 00:32:39,480 --> 00:32:43,000 literal sense, Luke 2. When Luke's writing, he says 510 00:32:43,200 --> 00:32:46,480 when the fullness of Pentecost arrived. 511 00:32:47,560 --> 00:32:51,200 Or we could also read it as when the fulfilment of Pentecost 512 00:32:51,200 --> 00:32:54,840 arrived and the Old Testament Pentecost pointed forward 513 00:32:55,280 --> 00:32:57,920 towards a day when the fullness would come. 514 00:32:58,520 --> 00:33:01,760 Now we have the fullness. We don't have to worry about and 515 00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:04,160 wait on another Pentecost to come. 516 00:33:04,720 --> 00:33:07,800 God has established this in its perfection. 517 00:33:08,400 --> 00:33:11,800 This is not mere arrival. This is absolute fulfilment. 518 00:33:12,520 --> 00:33:16,880 And then suddenly the Spirit descends upon the people of God 519 00:33:17,160 --> 00:33:22,960 like the mighty rushing wind of Mount Sinai, and I will start to 520 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:27,520 see all of this imagery picked back up in what God's doing in 521 00:33:27,520 --> 00:33:29,160 his people. Hear it again. 522 00:33:29,560 --> 00:33:33,800 The ruach, the wind, the breath, the spirit has come. 523 00:33:35,520 --> 00:33:39,120 Not only is this a fulfillment of Sanaa's foreshadowing, but 524 00:33:39,120 --> 00:33:42,640 it's also the restoration of the human soul. 525 00:33:43,360 --> 00:33:47,840 Now the rock breath of God has come in and filled us, rested 526 00:33:47,840 --> 00:33:51,920 upon us to restore us back to what we were meant to be in the 527 00:33:51,920 --> 00:33:56,760 1st place. Restoration of humanity all the 528 00:33:56,760 --> 00:34:00,880 way back to Genesis 2. But actually it's all the 529 00:34:00,880 --> 00:34:05,160 greater because in Genesis 2, God had made mankind in His 530 00:34:05,160 --> 00:34:08,760 image and likeness, but He had not yet come in our image and 531 00:34:08,760 --> 00:34:12,120 likeness. So the restoration that Christ 532 00:34:12,120 --> 00:34:15,400 is doing by sending out his very Spirit in US is actually 533 00:34:15,400 --> 00:34:20,199 establishing up a better royal priesthood, a more perfect royal 534 00:34:20,199 --> 00:34:23,880 priesthood, because now we're linked to His life working in 535 00:34:23,880 --> 00:34:27,679 and through US. The breath of God filling our 536 00:34:28,320 --> 00:34:35,520 Stony dust filled lives to bring us back to life, brought to life 537 00:34:35,520 --> 00:34:38,679 again by the breath of God, the Holy Spirit filling us at our 538 00:34:38,679 --> 00:34:40,760 core. The very life of Christ, the 539 00:34:40,760 --> 00:34:44,639 true and perfect image bearer of God is now living in us. 540 00:34:44,639 --> 00:34:47,000 This is a bit of where I went last time I was here with you 541 00:34:47,000 --> 00:34:50,520 guys, but it's so crucial. This is what Scripture is doing 542 00:34:50,520 --> 00:34:54,400 as it's offering up to us, the story of God and his people as 543 00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:57,240 it's inviting us into recognizing what Christ has done 544 00:34:57,240 --> 00:34:59,280 with the entire Old Testament narrative. 545 00:34:59,600 --> 00:35:04,320 Our lives included the lives of mankind turned inward and 546 00:35:04,320 --> 00:35:09,160 restores us, unravels us, and He builds us into new creation 547 00:35:09,440 --> 00:35:14,640 under God's rulership. And then tongues of fire rest 548 00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:18,440 upon the disciples, just as the fire of God descended upon 549 00:35:18,440 --> 00:35:20,800 Sinai. But realize the difference. 550 00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:24,880 Here at Sinai, the fire comes down and rests on the holy 551 00:35:24,880 --> 00:35:27,000 mountain. At the day of Pentecost in the 552 00:35:27,000 --> 00:35:30,680 New Testament, the fire of God comes down and rests on his holy 553 00:35:30,680 --> 00:35:36,080 people. And get this right, I don't 554 00:35:36,080 --> 00:35:37,720 remember if I've said this in this service yet. 555 00:35:38,120 --> 00:35:41,440 Moses ascends up. He wants the the Israelites to 556 00:35:41,440 --> 00:35:43,360 come with them. This is what God's calling him. 557 00:35:44,120 --> 00:35:47,600 And the Israelites reject. Christ ascends. 558 00:35:48,160 --> 00:35:51,800 And this is interesting, though disciples are gathering in 559 00:35:51,800 --> 00:35:54,960 what's called the upper room as they're waiting on the coming of 560 00:35:54,960 --> 00:35:59,760 the Spirit, they have also ascended up with Christ in pure 561 00:35:59,880 --> 00:36:04,200 desperation, in waiting on what God is going to do to fulfill 562 00:36:04,200 --> 00:36:07,800 his promises. Christ says wait, do not leave 563 00:36:07,800 --> 00:36:11,520 Jerusalem until power from on high, until new creation power, 564 00:36:11,600 --> 00:36:14,920 the power of love. My own life has come and filled 565 00:36:14,920 --> 00:36:18,840 you to your very core. Now the fire of God is resting 566 00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:25,240 upon his people because through Jesus Christ, humanity itself is 567 00:36:25,240 --> 00:36:29,880 becoming the dwelling place of God, the temple of the living 568 00:36:29,880 --> 00:36:32,440 God. New Testament tells us this all 569 00:36:32,440 --> 00:36:36,160 throughout. And God desperately desires to 570 00:36:36,320 --> 00:36:40,920 dwell with us and in us. He desperately desires for us to 571 00:36:40,920 --> 00:36:44,680 be able to come alongside Him, do life with Him, and for us to 572 00:36:44,680 --> 00:36:47,520 participate in what it is that He is doing. 573 00:36:48,800 --> 00:36:51,640 And then the disciples start speaking in many languages in 574 00:36:51,640 --> 00:36:56,000 the scattered nations are gathered again in Jerusalem. 575 00:36:56,520 --> 00:36:59,800 They hear the mighty works of God through their own tongues. 576 00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:06,560 Babel is now being reversed. The scattered are being gathered 577 00:37:06,560 --> 00:37:10,440 in through the Holy Spirit and the Spirit of tongues working 578 00:37:10,440 --> 00:37:12,520 out. All of a sudden now everyone is 579 00:37:12,520 --> 00:37:16,600 hearing the mighty works of God, the declarations of God in their 580 00:37:16,600 --> 00:37:20,920 own tongue for them to be able to receive in their own hearts 581 00:37:22,440 --> 00:37:26,560 and then get this other great reversal on the day of Pentecost 582 00:37:26,560 --> 00:37:30,240 in the Old Testament because of the hardness of their hearts and 583 00:37:30,240 --> 00:37:35,440 the deceitfulness of idolatry. 3000 die on the day of Pentecost 584 00:37:35,440 --> 00:37:38,360 in the New Testament as the Spirit comes and starts 585 00:37:38,360 --> 00:37:43,160 proclaiming the works of God in their own tongues, they are cut 586 00:37:43,160 --> 00:37:50,320 to the quick and 3000 come to life in God by the Spirit that 587 00:37:50,320 --> 00:37:54,840 very day. It's the reversal old creation 588 00:37:55,200 --> 00:37:58,920 that was sweeping off into non existence and ruin because of 589 00:37:58,920 --> 00:38:02,800 mankind's sinfulness. Turning from the voice of God to 590 00:38:02,800 --> 00:38:07,760 another voice is now being restored through Christ, His 591 00:38:07,760 --> 00:38:13,360 work, and His sending forth His life into our existence. 592 00:38:14,360 --> 00:38:18,600 And then Peter stands and starts proclaiming, repent, turn, be 593 00:38:18,600 --> 00:38:23,040 baptized, pass through the waters, leave Egypt behind. 594 00:38:23,240 --> 00:38:26,120 Allow everything that's been selling you lies, that's been 595 00:38:26,120 --> 00:38:29,320 holding you in bondage, that's been trying to take your life. 596 00:38:29,480 --> 00:38:34,080 Allow it to go to death in the water as you are conjoined to 597 00:38:34,080 --> 00:38:36,840 Christ's death. And then raise as you are 598 00:38:36,840 --> 00:38:41,680 conjoined to Christ's life in resurrection life, in newness of 599 00:38:41,680 --> 00:38:46,880 life in new creation. Life died to the old twisted 600 00:38:46,880 --> 00:38:51,720 humanity that turned inward self in rise in the new creation 601 00:38:51,720 --> 00:38:56,080 secured and now delivered by Jesus Christ, filled with 602 00:38:56,080 --> 00:38:59,080 everlasting life. This is glorious good news. 603 00:38:59,080 --> 00:39:03,000 Isn't aren't the scriptures beautiful and how they they're 604 00:39:03,000 --> 00:39:06,240 just rhyming back and forth. And now when we see what Christ 605 00:39:06,240 --> 00:39:10,120 was doing of taking all of this up, this stuff that as you go 606 00:39:10,120 --> 00:39:15,720 through the Old Testament, you should weep and cry and go, this 607 00:39:15,720 --> 00:39:19,560 is my story as well. This is heartbreaking. 608 00:39:20,000 --> 00:39:23,440 The Lord continues to show up. And in my life, I've 609 00:39:23,440 --> 00:39:27,200 continuously rejected the Lord. And Israel was rejecting and 610 00:39:27,200 --> 00:39:30,480 rejecting and rejecting over and over and over again. 611 00:39:30,480 --> 00:39:34,640 But God did not abandon Israel or the human race to their own 612 00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:37,440 devices. He's done everything on our 613 00:39:37,440 --> 00:39:41,800 behalf to make life in life abundantly available to us. 614 00:39:44,640 --> 00:39:49,960 And this is where Pentecost becomes deeply personal for us, 615 00:39:50,560 --> 00:39:53,600 because this isn't just a word for them 2000 years ago. 616 00:39:53,600 --> 00:39:57,520 This is a promise and a word delivered to us in our hearing 617 00:39:57,520 --> 00:40:03,120 today. Would our hearts be smashed and 618 00:40:03,120 --> 00:40:06,320 shattered and pierced by the Holy Spirit today to be able to 619 00:40:06,320 --> 00:40:13,080 receive this Word fresh and new? Would we allow it to to Pierce 620 00:40:13,080 --> 00:40:18,080 into us and start to remake us into His image and likeness, to 621 00:40:18,080 --> 00:40:21,720 be conformed not to the patterns of Egypt, but to the patterns of 622 00:40:21,720 --> 00:40:25,520 Christ, who is the perfect image and likeness of God? 623 00:40:25,680 --> 00:40:28,560 Would our lives be shaped into Him by His Spirit? 624 00:40:28,560 --> 00:40:30,200 Would we allow Him to do that today? 625 00:40:30,760 --> 00:40:36,080 Because if we do, life does transform at the end of Acts 2. 626 00:40:36,680 --> 00:40:39,760 It's not just the the demonstration of the power of 627 00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:42,480 the Spirit coming on and people turning their hearts. 628 00:40:42,480 --> 00:40:46,000 That's beautiful and glorious. But Luke gives us more. 629 00:40:46,400 --> 00:40:51,760 Closing out Acts 242 through 47, we start to see now what the 630 00:40:51,760 --> 00:40:58,040 life of those believers looked like right after 3000 came to 631 00:40:58,040 --> 00:41:01,160 know the Lord, and then more were gathered to them on a daily 632 00:41:01,160 --> 00:41:03,560 basis. This is how it describes this 633 00:41:03,560 --> 00:41:07,440 holy community of believers and covenant with the Lord. 634 00:41:08,440 --> 00:41:11,760 They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to 635 00:41:11,760 --> 00:41:15,440 fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers, and 636 00:41:15,480 --> 00:41:18,640 all came upon every soul in many wonders. 637 00:41:18,640 --> 00:41:22,640 And signs were being done throughout the apostles, and all 638 00:41:22,640 --> 00:41:27,360 were who believed were together and had all things in common. 639 00:41:27,600 --> 00:41:29,840 Do you see what's happening? The Lord is writing. 640 00:41:29,840 --> 00:41:34,400 He's transcribing the law of God, the law of love, the love 641 00:41:34,400 --> 00:41:37,120 of God, the love of neighbor unto their hearts. 642 00:41:37,600 --> 00:41:40,680 And their hearts are coming alive to God, but also to 643 00:41:40,680 --> 00:41:42,920 neighbor. And they're putting aside their 644 00:41:42,920 --> 00:41:48,160 selfish gain, their selfishness. They're selling off their own 645 00:41:48,440 --> 00:41:53,800 property in order for the love and betterment of the entire 646 00:41:53,800 --> 00:41:56,960 community. They were selling their 647 00:41:56,960 --> 00:42:00,400 possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all 648 00:42:00,840 --> 00:42:05,520 as any had need. And day by day attending the 649 00:42:05,520 --> 00:42:08,480 temple together, breaking bread in their homes. 650 00:42:08,480 --> 00:42:12,560 They received their food with gladness and generous hearts, 651 00:42:13,080 --> 00:42:16,720 praising God and having favor with all the people. 652 00:42:17,160 --> 00:42:21,600 And the Lord added to their number day by day, those who 653 00:42:21,600 --> 00:42:26,440 were being saved. Paul goes on in Romans 8 to tell 654 00:42:26,440 --> 00:42:29,720 us that the the righteous requirement of the law by the 655 00:42:29,720 --> 00:42:32,160 Holy Spirit would actually start to become worked out in our 656 00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:35,480 life, that the law was previously a tutor. 657 00:42:35,800 --> 00:42:39,760 He says in Galatians, something that we would be smashed against 658 00:42:39,760 --> 00:42:44,160 to realize we need a Savior. But in receiving our Savior and 659 00:42:44,160 --> 00:42:46,960 then even more on the day of Pentecost in the great reality 660 00:42:46,960 --> 00:42:50,720 that moves forward from there on receiving his very Spirit. 661 00:42:52,520 --> 00:42:55,040 Now the law of love would actually get worked out in our 662 00:42:55,040 --> 00:42:58,600 lives. You can think about it this way. 663 00:42:59,120 --> 00:43:03,600 If the the spirit of Pastor Nick was able to be put on you, your 664 00:43:03,600 --> 00:43:06,040 life would start to look more like my life. 665 00:43:06,040 --> 00:43:08,080 You'd start to love the things that I love. 666 00:43:08,080 --> 00:43:12,000 You'd have a a special affection and affinity towards my family 667 00:43:12,000 --> 00:43:15,760 and you'd start reading books and you'd have really bad dad 668 00:43:15,760 --> 00:43:17,960 jokes and you'd really like Thai food. 669 00:43:17,960 --> 00:43:19,800 All these things that start working them out. 670 00:43:20,440 --> 00:43:23,160 If we could take the spirit of Michael Jordan and put it on 671 00:43:23,160 --> 00:43:26,600 you, you'd probably expect to show up on the basketball court 672 00:43:26,600 --> 00:43:29,160 in a different way tomorrow than you did today. 673 00:43:30,680 --> 00:43:32,840 In the same way, but infinitely greater. 674 00:43:32,840 --> 00:43:38,400 When the Spirit of Christ gets put onto our lives, we start to 675 00:43:38,400 --> 00:43:42,320 love the things that He loves. We start to despise the things 676 00:43:42,320 --> 00:43:45,840 that He despises. We start to move in accordance 677 00:43:45,840 --> 00:43:50,240 with His own being and the law of love, the law of God, the 678 00:43:50,240 --> 00:43:54,640 life of God starts to move in and through our life. 679 00:43:54,640 --> 00:43:56,920 And this is glorious, glorious good news. 680 00:43:57,480 --> 00:44:02,800 So if you would bow your heads, close your eyes, I want to stand 681 00:44:02,800 --> 00:44:05,480 before you. And you're hearing in the way 682 00:44:05,480 --> 00:44:11,440 that Peter stood before those in Jerusalem that day of Pentecost 683 00:44:11,440 --> 00:44:16,440 and say, we save from this crooked and perverse generation, 684 00:44:16,440 --> 00:44:19,960 and we do still live in a crooked and perverse generation. 685 00:44:20,960 --> 00:44:26,120 Repent, turn your hearts towards the Lord and allow His Spirit to 686 00:44:26,120 --> 00:44:31,760 Pierce you to your core and take Christ on as your Lord. 687 00:44:32,600 --> 00:44:34,400 You cannot do this life on your own. 688 00:44:35,480 --> 00:44:38,720 It's us trying to do our life on our an accord that sets us up in 689 00:44:38,720 --> 00:44:43,080 such despair in the 1st place. All we have at that point is 690 00:44:43,080 --> 00:44:46,360 moving back to the dust from which we came. 691 00:44:48,480 --> 00:44:52,600 But the good news, my friends, is that Christ has come to 692 00:44:52,600 --> 00:44:56,280 restore you from dust and bring you into glory. 693 00:44:56,640 --> 00:44:59,480 The glory of God working out in your life. 694 00:44:59,840 --> 00:45:04,160 And this glory is eternal. So I invite you, whether you've 695 00:45:04,160 --> 00:45:07,200 prayed this prayer or a prayer like this over and over and 696 00:45:07,200 --> 00:45:10,680 over, or if this is your first time ever coming to the lordship 697 00:45:10,680 --> 00:45:13,960 of Jesus Christ, if you all would pray out loud with me. 698 00:45:14,360 --> 00:45:25,640 Lord Jesus, I turn from my old life to you to receive you, to 699 00:45:25,640 --> 00:45:28,960 receive your life, to receive your law. 700 00:45:30,600 --> 00:45:34,760 Forgive me Lord for trying to do this life on my own. 701 00:45:37,200 --> 00:45:41,360 Lord, I need you. Would you save me today? 702 00:45:43,320 --> 00:45:45,600 And there's a reality we need to be saved every day. 703 00:45:45,600 --> 00:45:50,080 Salvation is an ongoing act. Would you feel me today? 704 00:45:50,080 --> 00:46:00,480 Lord you are Lord, you are King and I am not in Jesus mighty 705 00:46:00,480 --> 00:46:05,280 name, Amen. Also stay in that posture. 706 00:46:05,720 --> 00:46:08,040 I'd be remiss and we did it a little bit in this prayer, but I 707 00:46:08,040 --> 00:46:11,720 would be remiss if I didn't also do what Paul does later on in in 708 00:46:11,720 --> 00:46:15,240 Acts 16 or 19 somewhere in there where he says to those who are 709 00:46:15,240 --> 00:46:18,520 believers and he says, have you received the Holy Spirit since 710 00:46:18,520 --> 00:46:21,120 you believed? We've just prayed in a general 711 00:46:21,120 --> 00:46:23,280 way, but I also want to give you an opportunity. 712 00:46:24,280 --> 00:46:28,720 Christ, when he's he's talking, he says a good father, even on 713 00:46:28,720 --> 00:46:32,280 earth, a broken Father knows that when his son asks for a 714 00:46:32,280 --> 00:46:35,880 loaf of bread, he won't give him a stone or a serpent. 715 00:46:36,160 --> 00:46:39,560 How much greater is the heavenly Father who is perfect to his 716 00:46:39,600 --> 00:46:42,520 absolute core, loving to his absolute core? 717 00:46:42,520 --> 00:46:47,320 How much more will he give to you the gift of the Spirit for 718 00:46:47,320 --> 00:46:50,200 those who ask. So again, posture yourself in a 719 00:46:50,200 --> 00:46:53,480 position of receiving and we're just going to ask the Lord, 720 00:46:54,360 --> 00:46:58,280 We're going to do exactly what Jesus said and say, Lord Jesus, 721 00:46:59,960 --> 00:47:07,520 send out your spirit. Heavenly Father, send me your 722 00:47:07,520 --> 00:47:13,680 spirit. Yes, Lord, I just pray. 723 00:47:13,880 --> 00:47:17,600 I pray that as we're about to go out these doors and into the 724 00:47:17,600 --> 00:47:21,920 world go, that each of us, whether we've been filled once, 725 00:47:22,800 --> 00:47:27,200 100 * 1000 times, or if this is a new experience, Lord, that you 726 00:47:27,200 --> 00:47:31,160 would meet us like the day of Pentecost that goes on Paul's 727 00:47:31,160 --> 00:47:33,960 word said to be being filled by the Spirit. 728 00:47:33,960 --> 00:47:38,240 So Lord, we just ask for you to fill us fresh and new as we go 729 00:47:38,240 --> 00:47:40,880 out into the world. We'd be empowered by your life 730 00:47:40,880 --> 00:47:45,160 teeming within our being, and we would be witnesses, martyrs on 731 00:47:45,160 --> 00:47:49,320 your behalf, those who would proclaim to the goodness of 732 00:47:49,360 --> 00:47:52,760 Jesus Christ the word of God, and we would testify with their 733 00:47:52,760 --> 00:47:56,840 own lives as written testimonies, as living letters 734 00:47:57,200 --> 00:48:00,840 to your goodness, your work, your ministry. 735 00:48:01,240 --> 00:48:04,160 May it be so You're a good Father, and we can trust that 736 00:48:04,160 --> 00:48:07,840 you will give and have given what you have promised to give. 737 00:48:08,520 --> 00:48:14,160 So, Lord, we receive it here and now in Jesus mighty name, Amen. 738 00:48:15,280 --> 00:48:18,040 Amen. Well, as I send you off, let me 739 00:48:18,040 --> 00:48:21,760 send you off with a blessing. You are one in whom Christ 740 00:48:21,760 --> 00:48:24,640 dwells in delights. You are living in the all 741 00:48:24,640 --> 00:48:28,160 powerful, unshakable Kingdom of the Triune God of grace. 742 00:48:29,200 --> 00:48:33,160 His Kingdom is not in need, it's not in lack, and it's not in 743 00:48:33,160 --> 00:48:35,160 fear. Neither are you. 744 00:48:36,040 --> 00:48:39,320 Go and share this good news with the world you come in counter in 745 00:48:39,480 --> 00:48:43,960 to encounter with and may the Lord bless you and keep you may 746 00:48:43,960 --> 00:48:46,520 make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. 747 00:48:46,600 --> 00:48:51,240 May He give you his favor and his peace in Jesus mighty name. 748 00:48:52,280 --> 00:48:53,600 Amen. Go and be the church. 749 00:48:54,160 --> 00:48:54,880 Thank you guys.