1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:03,920 So if you wanted a title for this evening sermon, it would be 2 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:07,000 this. It's a sermon for busy people. 3 00:00:07,360 --> 00:00:10,000 Now you're all busy. I've got about half an hour of 4 00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:12,320 your time. So I want to preach to busy 5 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:17,220 people right now and what you'll notice in Luke 10 there's a ton 6 00:00:17,220 --> 00:00:20,100 of activity that goes on. There's loads of activity that's 7 00:00:20,100 --> 00:00:22,180 going on at the beginning of the passage. 8 00:00:22,500 --> 00:00:26,540 Jesus sends out the 72 and they go out and they heal the sick. 9 00:00:26,860 --> 00:00:29,900 They cast out demons. They they preach the gospel. 10 00:00:30,260 --> 00:00:33,260 And then after what we just read is the the parable of the Good 11 00:00:33,260 --> 00:00:36,820 Samaritan who sees this man who's who's wounded on the side 12 00:00:36,820 --> 00:00:39,820 and and he looks after him and he he closed him and he he puts 13 00:00:39,820 --> 00:00:42,340 him on the back of his animal and he he pays him in this 14 00:00:42,340 --> 00:00:44,940 hotel. And then after all this 15 00:00:44,940 --> 00:00:51,900 activity, Luke chapter 10 closes with Mary sitting at the feet of 16 00:00:52,020 --> 00:00:55,500 Jesus. Isn't that interesting? 17 00:00:56,260 --> 00:01:00,480 Isn't that very interesting? And I think the Lord's trying to 18 00:01:00,480 --> 00:01:03,760 say something to us there, that that that's not an accident, 19 00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:06,600 that that it finishes with Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus. 20 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:09,760 Because I think what the Lord's saying to us is if we miss the 21 00:01:09,760 --> 00:01:13,240 one thing which energizes us, if we miss the one thing which is 22 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:16,480 spending much time with Jesus Christ, we can't do all of these 23 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:18,520 activities. We can't do all of our work. 24 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:22,480 We need to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to what he's 25 00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:25,630 got to say to us. So let's get busy with this 26 00:01:25,630 --> 00:01:28,270 sermon then. I've got 4 headings for you like 27 00:01:28,270 --> 00:01:33,150 this morning 4 headings for you. My first heading is Martha was 28 00:01:33,150 --> 00:01:37,550 welcoming. My second heading is Martha was 29 00:01:37,550 --> 00:01:44,110 busy, my third heading is Martha was anxious and my 4th and final 30 00:01:44,110 --> 00:01:50,670 heading is Mary was better. OK firstly Martha was welcoming. 31 00:01:50,670 --> 00:01:56,600 March over to verse 38 with me. Now what happened as they went 32 00:01:56,720 --> 00:01:59,560 that he entered a certain village and a certain woman 33 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:03,000 named Martha welcomed him into her house. 34 00:02:03,680 --> 00:02:07,080 Now, I'm guessing many of you in this room, you've heard this 35 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:08,919 passage preach before, haven't you? 36 00:02:08,919 --> 00:02:11,560 And, and we sort of look at this and we've heard the story and we 37 00:02:11,920 --> 00:02:15,120 often we sort of look at Martha and we sort of frown and we say, 38 00:02:15,480 --> 00:02:18,920 oh, Martha, what are you doing? Here's the Lord Jesus is this 39 00:02:18,920 --> 00:02:21,880 man has done all these miracles and you're busy in the kitchen 40 00:02:22,120 --> 00:02:24,160 and you're anxious and you're loaded with lots of care. 41 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:26,800 And we sort of frown on Martha and we looked down on her a 42 00:02:26,800 --> 00:02:29,360 little bit. But we need to remember about 43 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:33,160 Martha is he was a woman who deeply loved Jesus. 44 00:02:33,280 --> 00:02:36,680 He was a woman who cared so much about Jesus and showed 45 00:02:36,720 --> 00:02:40,400 hospitality to him and welcomed him into her home. 46 00:02:41,880 --> 00:02:45,120 I'm going to tell you a bit of an embarrassing story, a bit of 47 00:02:45,120 --> 00:02:46,720 an embarrassing story about myself. 48 00:02:46,920 --> 00:02:50,680 Many of you know every year I go down to Saint Ives to do beach 49 00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:53,680 missions to share the gospel with children and to share the 50 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:56,000 gospel on the Piers. And all around St. 51 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:00,000 Times and one year I was on the team and you sort of get to know 52 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:03,560 each team member and there was a Northern Irish man who was on 53 00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:06,890 the team. And I am going to do the accent. 54 00:03:06,890 --> 00:03:09,010 I'm going to be brave and I'll do an impression of him knowing 55 00:03:09,010 --> 00:03:11,010 that there is a number of Northern Irish people in the 56 00:03:11,010 --> 00:03:14,730 room, but my dad's Northern Irish, so I think I can get away 57 00:03:14,730 --> 00:03:16,730 with it. But he said to me, he looked at 58 00:03:16,730 --> 00:03:18,890 me and he said, how old are you, Joe? 59 00:03:19,370 --> 00:03:25,090 And I said, well, I'm, I'm 24, so it's three years ago, I'm 24. 60 00:03:25,570 --> 00:03:30,250 And he said no way, are you 24? I thought you were 34. 61 00:03:31,060 --> 00:03:33,620 And I thought, OK, well, thanks for your fellowship, brother. 62 00:03:33,740 --> 00:03:37,220 You know, OK, the accent wasn't that great, I appreciate that. 63 00:03:37,780 --> 00:03:42,100 But we all led to believe that our Lord Jesus Christ, he 64 00:03:42,100 --> 00:03:43,860 actually looked older than he was. 65 00:03:43,860 --> 00:03:47,300 Do you remember that time when when the Pharisees are heckling 66 00:03:47,300 --> 00:03:49,540 him, OK, and they're throwing out all of these things? 67 00:03:49,540 --> 00:03:54,700 And then that famous verse Jesus said before Abraham was I am. 68 00:03:55,370 --> 00:03:57,730 And then they say, what were you doing talking about Abraham? 69 00:03:57,730 --> 00:04:00,450 You cannot yet be a man who is older than 50. 70 00:04:00,770 --> 00:04:04,210 And here's a man in his 30s and they're putting Jesus at the age 71 00:04:04,210 --> 00:04:06,490 of 50. They didn't say, you know, you 72 00:04:06,490 --> 00:04:08,770 look about 35, You can't yet be 35. 73 00:04:08,930 --> 00:04:11,770 You can't yet be 40. They said he looked 50. 74 00:04:11,770 --> 00:04:14,130 You can't yet be 50. Now, I don't know about you, but 75 00:04:14,130 --> 00:04:17,050 if you were 30 years older and someone said you were 50, you'd 76 00:04:17,050 --> 00:04:21,050 be quite offended, wouldn't you? But perhaps, our Lord, perhaps 77 00:04:21,290 --> 00:04:24,630 he did look haggard. Perhaps the cares of his 78 00:04:24,630 --> 00:04:26,910 ministry had taken a toll on his face. 79 00:04:26,910 --> 00:04:30,790 Perhaps he did look worn out, and everyone could see how tired 80 00:04:30,790 --> 00:04:33,790 Jesus looked. And Martha also saw that, and 81 00:04:33,790 --> 00:04:35,990 she looked at him and that motherly care which dwells 82 00:04:35,990 --> 00:04:36,910 within all mothers. She. 83 00:04:37,110 --> 00:04:39,350 She, maybe she looked and thought, I just want to give 84 00:04:39,470 --> 00:04:42,590 Jesus one afternoon, just one afternoon to to give him an 85 00:04:42,590 --> 00:04:44,710 Oasis. To just let him put his feet up 86 00:04:44,710 --> 00:04:46,270 one afternoon and I'll look after him. 87 00:04:46,470 --> 00:04:49,510 And then he can go back into his ministry and work hard. 88 00:04:50,890 --> 00:04:54,770 It's essential that we remember the Lord deserves your best. 89 00:04:55,370 --> 00:04:58,610 We should be like Martha, careful in all of our Christian 90 00:04:58,610 --> 00:05:01,290 activities. I can confess at times, You 91 00:05:01,290 --> 00:05:04,810 know, when I do some activities, at times I've been I I do wing 92 00:05:04,810 --> 00:05:06,410 it. You sort of think I'll be okay. 93 00:05:06,410 --> 00:05:09,210 I think I can do this. But we should take a leaf out of 94 00:05:09,210 --> 00:05:11,090 Martha's book. And we should be careful. 95 00:05:12,010 --> 00:05:13,570 Now. I can promise you this. 96 00:05:13,970 --> 00:05:17,850 We need Martha's, don't we? We need Martha's in the church. 97 00:05:17,850 --> 00:05:21,650 Someone has to do the dishes, Someone has to brew the tea, 98 00:05:22,010 --> 00:05:24,410 Someone has to stack the chair, Someone has to go up the ladder, 99 00:05:24,570 --> 00:05:26,290 Someone has to change the light bulb. 100 00:05:26,530 --> 00:05:28,970 We can't all listen to sermons all day, can we? 101 00:05:29,570 --> 00:05:33,210 Someone has to play the servant while the Marys of this world 102 00:05:33,370 --> 00:05:37,890 get their spiritual foods. I remember a number of years 103 00:05:37,890 --> 00:05:40,690 ago, and there's a few people who also were there for this. 104 00:05:41,010 --> 00:05:44,220 And a number of years ago, when I was a sweaty student, we used 105 00:05:44,220 --> 00:05:48,060 to go to a Bible study in Ormskirk in a Christian family, 106 00:05:48,060 --> 00:05:51,540 and here we are. So Vinnie Commons is involved in 107 00:05:51,540 --> 00:05:53,900 it and Food's involved with it. So it's the same same 108 00:05:53,980 --> 00:05:56,820 illustration as this morning. But what would happen is Vinnie 109 00:05:56,820 --> 00:05:59,340 Commons would do it, would go through John's Gospel with us 110 00:05:59,340 --> 00:06:02,420 every, every single week. And there was a lady and she'd 111 00:06:02,420 --> 00:06:05,100 open up a home and she would just do one meal. 112 00:06:05,100 --> 00:06:07,860 She'd do three choices. She'd do like lasagna. 113 00:06:07,860 --> 00:06:10,420 She'd do chili con carne, She'd do fajitas. 114 00:06:10,420 --> 00:06:13,580 And all these 20 sweaty students, young people, they go 115 00:06:13,580 --> 00:06:16,540 in and they eat all this food and we have the word of God and 116 00:06:16,540 --> 00:06:18,700 it was wonderful. And while we were listening to 117 00:06:18,700 --> 00:06:22,500 the word of God, this lady was in the kitchen doing the dishes. 118 00:06:22,940 --> 00:06:25,580 Now there's a Martha, there's a servant heart. 119 00:06:26,500 --> 00:06:28,860 Do you think it's amazing that in every church we have the 120 00:06:28,860 --> 00:06:30,940 Martha? Do you not think that's amazing 121 00:06:30,940 --> 00:06:32,940 that every church we have Martha's. 122 00:06:33,510 --> 00:06:35,870 Do you think it's amazing that in every church we have a 123 00:06:35,870 --> 00:06:38,110 peonist, someone with a musical gift? 124 00:06:38,350 --> 00:06:41,190 Suppose we go out on the streets of Liverpool tomorrow and we 125 00:06:41,190 --> 00:06:44,390 pull aside at 100 people and we say, how many of you can play 126 00:06:44,390 --> 00:06:46,390 the piano? How many do you think would say, 127 00:06:46,390 --> 00:06:49,430 yeah, I can play it, I think there'd be just a handful of 128 00:06:49,430 --> 00:06:51,550 people. And yet in every church, you 129 00:06:51,550 --> 00:06:54,110 know, I go to different churches, some there's only 20, 130 00:06:54,350 --> 00:06:56,910 less than 20. And in every single church, 131 00:06:57,150 --> 00:06:58,670 there's someone who can play the piano. 132 00:06:58,670 --> 00:07:01,670 There's someone who can play the organ who has a musical gift. 133 00:07:02,310 --> 00:07:04,830 Johnny, it's interested in every church to someone with an 134 00:07:04,830 --> 00:07:09,030 administrative gift who can do the the sort of admin of the 135 00:07:09,030 --> 00:07:11,150 church. Every church has a techie. 136 00:07:11,350 --> 00:07:15,310 It's wonderful that God saves the right people to serve in his 137 00:07:15,310 --> 00:07:18,190 church. So we need to praise God that 138 00:07:18,190 --> 00:07:21,270 that we've got Martha's who serve like mothers who put their 139 00:07:21,270 --> 00:07:23,790 needs last. And I do just want to say 140 00:07:23,790 --> 00:07:26,670 something. Now you might be serving the 141 00:07:26,670 --> 00:07:30,240 church a great deal and you might feel like it goes 142 00:07:30,240 --> 00:07:32,960 unnoticed and people don't see what you do and you might feel 143 00:07:32,960 --> 00:07:35,200 at times, you know, I feel like people are taking me for 144 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:37,280 granted. But I just want to say this. 145 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:39,760 The Lord sees. It doesn't go unnoticed. 146 00:07:39,760 --> 00:07:42,760 The Lord sees everything that you do, and He's pleased and 147 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:45,840 He's delighted when we as the body of believers are working 148 00:07:45,840 --> 00:07:48,840 together as his workmanship to advance his Kingdom. 149 00:07:49,040 --> 00:07:52,560 So just know that He sees it. And after all, he's the real one 150 00:07:52,560 --> 00:07:56,560 we want to please, isn't he? But I do believe now there is a 151 00:07:57,820 --> 00:08:01,140 a critical spirit which has swept through the church. 152 00:08:01,660 --> 00:08:04,900 So we judge the Martha that we read in the pages of Luke 10. 153 00:08:05,100 --> 00:08:07,700 But we also judge the Martha who sits on row 10. 154 00:08:08,860 --> 00:08:11,420 It's easy to pick floors with one another, isn't it? 155 00:08:11,620 --> 00:08:14,580 It's easy to pick floors with other Christians, about how they 156 00:08:14,580 --> 00:08:18,340 raise their children, about how they spend their Saturdays, 157 00:08:18,650 --> 00:08:21,490 about how they they they they spend their money, about how 158 00:08:21,490 --> 00:08:24,690 they do this, how they serve at this part or or even how they 159 00:08:24,690 --> 00:08:26,410 tie their tie. You know, we look at that 160 00:08:26,410 --> 00:08:29,170 sometimes. But my question to you is, do 161 00:08:29,170 --> 00:08:32,409 you see the positive things about your brothers and sisters 162 00:08:32,409 --> 00:08:35,570 in Christ? Now, I wouldn't do this because 163 00:08:35,730 --> 00:08:37,610 I'd probably get arrested for doing it. 164 00:08:37,610 --> 00:08:42,250 But suppose I snuck into your house and I hid behind your sofa 165 00:08:42,250 --> 00:08:46,010 for a week, and I just listened to to everything that went on in 166 00:08:46,010 --> 00:08:48,570 your family home. What would I hear? 167 00:08:49,210 --> 00:08:53,370 What would I see in your home? I think I would see a completely 168 00:08:53,370 --> 00:08:55,530 different person to the person in front of me. 169 00:08:55,530 --> 00:08:58,970 Now, we do sort of have our church closed, don't we? 170 00:08:59,090 --> 00:09:03,050 We do sort of have a front that we sort of put up at church. 171 00:09:03,490 --> 00:09:05,250 But why is it different in our home? 172 00:09:05,490 --> 00:09:08,090 Because when we're at home, when I'm with Emma, I can be totally 173 00:09:08,090 --> 00:09:10,970 relaxed because I know Emma isn't going to judge me. 174 00:09:11,090 --> 00:09:13,890 I can be a place where there's a fear of no judgment. 175 00:09:14,010 --> 00:09:18,340 I can be totally myself. Wouldn't it be beautiful if the 176 00:09:18,340 --> 00:09:21,300 church could be like that? A place where we know we're 177 00:09:21,300 --> 00:09:24,420 coming here, where there's a fear of no judgment whatsoever 178 00:09:24,660 --> 00:09:28,380 will accept me for who I am. I'm going to quote someone 179 00:09:28,380 --> 00:09:31,180 famous now, and I want you to fill in the blank of what this 180 00:09:31,180 --> 00:09:34,660 famous person said, Oliver Cromwell once said. 181 00:09:34,660 --> 00:09:36,700 Paint me what? And all. 182 00:09:38,290 --> 00:09:39,930 Hate me, warts and all. That's right. 183 00:09:40,210 --> 00:09:42,450 And I don't know about you, but I've got warts. 184 00:09:42,450 --> 00:09:44,730 You've got warts. We've all got problems, haven't 185 00:09:44,730 --> 00:09:46,370 we? And wouldn't it be a wonderful 186 00:09:46,370 --> 00:09:49,330 place if it's in the church? We could say, you know, I'm not 187 00:09:49,330 --> 00:09:51,410 perfect. I've got these problems, I share 188 00:09:51,410 --> 00:09:54,370 it here with you of 1 body of believers, and I want you to 189 00:09:54,370 --> 00:09:56,730 help me with this. That would be a wonderful thing, 190 00:09:56,730 --> 00:09:59,250 wouldn't it? And another reason why I do 191 00:09:59,250 --> 00:10:02,970 think that we can sort of look at Martha and say, you know, she 192 00:10:02,970 --> 00:10:06,330 was a good godly lady. One thing we can notice is if 193 00:10:06,330 --> 00:10:11,740 you look at verse 40, she took her quarrel straight to Jesus. 194 00:10:12,060 --> 00:10:14,340 She went straight to Jesus with her problem. 195 00:10:14,540 --> 00:10:17,740 She didn't say Mary. Excuse me, Mary, could you step 196 00:10:17,740 --> 00:10:19,580 outside for a minute? I'd like to have a word with 197 00:10:19,580 --> 00:10:20,940 you. And then they go out and have an 198 00:10:20,940 --> 00:10:24,700 argument on the grass. No, she she took her problem 199 00:10:24,700 --> 00:10:27,600 straight to Jesus. That's a good way to live, isn't 200 00:10:27,600 --> 00:10:29,720 it, Friends? How often do do we tell our 201 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:31,600 friends? We tell our family members. 202 00:10:31,600 --> 00:10:34,000 We go to the Leeds of the church, we tell everyone, but 203 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:36,320 then we forget to tell the one person who can make a 204 00:10:36,320 --> 00:10:39,560 difference, and that's Jesus. By all means tell these people 205 00:10:39,560 --> 00:10:42,000 we need to to tell other people we need that help. 206 00:10:42,200 --> 00:10:45,520 But we must not forget to take our quarrels, our problems to 207 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:50,680 the Lord Jesus. OK, Secondly, Martha was busy. 208 00:10:50,680 --> 00:10:56,870 Bounce over to verse 40 with me. But Martha was distracted with 209 00:10:56,870 --> 00:11:00,790 much serving and she approached him and said, Lord, do you not 210 00:11:00,790 --> 00:11:05,230 care that my sister has left me to serve alone, therefore tell 211 00:11:05,230 --> 00:11:09,150 her to help me. Now I think that the words which 212 00:11:09,150 --> 00:11:14,190 sums up all of these 4 verses is that keyword distracted, 213 00:11:15,110 --> 00:11:18,990 distracted. And in the Greek, it's the word 214 00:11:18,990 --> 00:11:21,750 distracted means every direction. 215 00:11:22,600 --> 00:11:26,920 So in other words, Martha feels like she's being pulled in every 216 00:11:26,920 --> 00:11:29,200 direction. I wonder if there's anyone in 217 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:32,040 this room tonight who feels like they're being pulled in every 218 00:11:32,040 --> 00:11:34,920 direction. It's like you've got your work 219 00:11:34,920 --> 00:11:36,920 commitments and you've got to meet this deadline here. 220 00:11:36,920 --> 00:11:39,280 You've got to do this and you've got to please your boss and 221 00:11:39,280 --> 00:11:40,880 you've being pulled in that direction. 222 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:43,480 And then you've got all of your church commitments and you've 223 00:11:43,480 --> 00:11:45,680 being pulled in this direction. You've got to do this activity, 224 00:11:45,840 --> 00:11:47,360 help here and all of your service there. 225 00:11:47,680 --> 00:11:50,480 And then you've got your family commitments, husband, wife, 226 00:11:50,520 --> 00:11:52,640 fathers, daughters. You know, you've got all these 227 00:11:52,640 --> 00:11:54,400 commitments and you've been pulled in this direction. 228 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:56,920 And do you remember those toys that we used to have when we 229 00:11:56,920 --> 00:11:58,880 were kids? Well, our age group sort of did 230 00:11:58,880 --> 00:12:01,760 called Mr. Stretch, and you know, I could give it to Emma 231 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:03,160 and we could stretch them all that way. 232 00:12:03,160 --> 00:12:04,760 And we stretched all the way like that. 233 00:12:04,760 --> 00:12:07,280 Really elastic. That's what we can feel like at 234 00:12:07,280 --> 00:12:09,000 times. We feel like Mr. Stretch, like 235 00:12:09,160 --> 00:12:11,960 we're being pulled so, so far. And you think I can't be pulled 236 00:12:11,960 --> 00:12:14,240 anymore? I can't be stretched anymore. 237 00:12:15,040 --> 00:12:16,920 Am I speaking to anyone here today? 238 00:12:17,800 --> 00:12:21,440 You see, Martha wasn't doing anything inherently evil, but 239 00:12:21,440 --> 00:12:24,280 she was distracted with many good things. 240 00:12:24,440 --> 00:12:28,520 She was distracted from keeping the main thing, the main thing. 241 00:12:28,800 --> 00:12:31,610 And what's the main thing? Jesus. 242 00:12:31,690 --> 00:12:34,650 Spending time with him, worshipping him, giving our 243 00:12:34,650 --> 00:12:39,050 lives to him and some of you. Yes, we are busy with good 244 00:12:39,050 --> 00:12:40,250 things. We're busy looking after 245 00:12:40,250 --> 00:12:41,770 grandchildren, elderly relatives. 246 00:12:42,010 --> 00:12:44,050 But my question to you is, are you like Martha? 247 00:12:44,050 --> 00:12:47,250 Are you so busy with dinner that you're giving Jesus the 248 00:12:47,250 --> 00:12:53,970 spiritual leftovers? In 2017 and 2018, they were the 249 00:12:53,970 --> 00:12:58,410 two busiest years of my life. I was working for four churches. 250 00:12:58,970 --> 00:13:01,290 I was doing two days a week for young life. 251 00:13:01,890 --> 00:13:03,770 I had all the responsibilities as a husband. 252 00:13:03,770 --> 00:13:06,250 And at points, you know, I've got to say, the home often 253 00:13:06,250 --> 00:13:09,010 suffers when we get very busy, doesn't it? 254 00:13:09,010 --> 00:13:10,730 We had our own youth theater, me and Emma. 255 00:13:10,730 --> 00:13:14,130 We were in a business. I had this YouTube channel and I 256 00:13:14,130 --> 00:13:17,170 just became so, so busy. Do you know what happened in all 257 00:13:17,170 --> 00:13:20,250 this busyness? I began complaining. 258 00:13:21,140 --> 00:13:24,220 I started thinking, am I the only one who cares about these 259 00:13:24,220 --> 00:13:25,220 people? Am I the only one who has a 260 00:13:25,220 --> 00:13:27,660 heart for the Lost? I became arrogant, I became 261 00:13:27,660 --> 00:13:31,260 proud, and I got so so busy that I've started to become 262 00:13:31,460 --> 00:13:35,020 self-centered. Isn't that interesting that the 263 00:13:35,020 --> 00:13:39,220 more busy we become serving, the more self-centered we become? 264 00:13:40,220 --> 00:13:44,780 And here Martha's complaining that Mary has left me to serve 265 00:13:44,780 --> 00:13:47,300 alone. You know, it's nice to be 266 00:13:47,300 --> 00:13:50,260 appreciated, isn't it? It's nice when someone notices 267 00:13:50,260 --> 00:13:52,860 you've done something well. But on the flip side, when it 268 00:13:52,860 --> 00:13:56,180 goes unnoticed, often we can feel abused, don't we? 269 00:13:56,340 --> 00:13:59,740 We sort of get a bitter spirit where it's us versus them and we 270 00:13:59,740 --> 00:14:02,740 get frustrated with other Christians who don't have the 271 00:14:02,740 --> 00:14:05,820 same priorities as we. We say why do they not see that? 272 00:14:05,820 --> 00:14:07,060 Why are they not pulling the weight? 273 00:14:07,060 --> 00:14:09,500 Why? But let me just put this out 274 00:14:09,500 --> 00:14:11,460 there. I could be wrong about this, but 275 00:14:11,540 --> 00:14:14,540 let me just say this. Perhaps actually the the 276 00:14:14,540 --> 00:14:17,020 Christians that we judge in our minds and we shouldn't. 277 00:14:17,380 --> 00:14:19,540 And we we look at them and say why do they not have the same 278 00:14:19,540 --> 00:14:22,540 priorities? Perhaps they're the ones that 279 00:14:22,540 --> 00:14:25,980 have chosen that which is better and you need to take a step back 280 00:14:26,180 --> 00:14:27,940 and you need to take a leaf out of their book. 281 00:14:29,540 --> 00:14:32,220 Now I kind of assure you of one thing. 282 00:14:32,260 --> 00:14:35,180 The devil loves it when you're crazy busy. 283 00:14:35,940 --> 00:14:38,860 The devil loves it when you're crazy, mad busy. 284 00:14:38,860 --> 00:14:41,140 He wants you always to be in a hurry. 285 00:14:41,460 --> 00:14:44,660 The devil wants to get you into a position where you're too busy 286 00:14:44,660 --> 00:14:47,440 to pray. He knows the power of silence. 287 00:14:47,560 --> 00:14:50,960 He knows how many revivals have started from a little old woman 288 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:54,720 just locked away in a in a room and she just kept praying for a 289 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:56,320 nation. And she knows that God answered 290 00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:59,100 the prayers. He knows the power of of a group 291 00:14:59,100 --> 00:15:01,660 of men sat in a room and and like Rachel they cried. 292 00:15:01,660 --> 00:15:04,820 Give us children or we die. Give us spiritual children or 293 00:15:04,820 --> 00:15:07,380 else we die. Like John Knox cried, Give me 294 00:15:07,380 --> 00:15:10,740 Scotland or else I die. He knows the power of men and 295 00:15:10,740 --> 00:15:14,140 women who cried out to God. And he wants to get you into a 296 00:15:14,140 --> 00:15:16,580 position where you don't have time to pray. 297 00:15:18,980 --> 00:15:20,660 So come on now. Talk to me. 298 00:15:22,580 --> 00:15:24,780 What have your quiet times look like this week? 299 00:15:26,390 --> 00:15:29,150 Have you been doing the most dangerous thing in the world as 300 00:15:29,150 --> 00:15:31,510 a Christian? Have you been spending time in 301 00:15:31,510 --> 00:15:35,030 prayer this week? Have I been doing the most 302 00:15:35,270 --> 00:15:38,110 dangerous thing in the world? Have I been spending time in 303 00:15:38,110 --> 00:15:41,550 prayer? Am I giving God the very best 304 00:15:41,590 --> 00:15:44,310 hours of my day, the very creme de la creme? 305 00:15:45,150 --> 00:15:47,430 Or am I giving him the the cigarette books of the day as 306 00:15:47,430 --> 00:15:50,430 Spurgeon would put it, Just slotting him in here where where 307 00:15:50,430 --> 00:15:53,110 it fits and and just making it all small and easy. 308 00:15:53,870 --> 00:16:00,430 Are we cheating the Lord Jesus of our devotion, Dear precious 309 00:16:00,430 --> 00:16:03,190 brother and sister in Christ? Are you keeping everyone else's 310 00:16:03,190 --> 00:16:06,230 garden in order? But your own is a mess? 311 00:16:07,750 --> 00:16:09,550 Now for those of you who are writing notes down, would you 312 00:16:09,550 --> 00:16:11,790 just write this down? Write this. 313 00:16:12,230 --> 00:16:15,430 Minutes are better than sporadic hours. 314 00:16:16,020 --> 00:16:18,620 Minutes are better than sporadic hours. 315 00:16:18,900 --> 00:16:22,020 It's better to pray for 5-10 minutes every single day and do 316 00:16:22,020 --> 00:16:25,540 it consistently than to do a three hour quiet time on the 8th 317 00:16:25,540 --> 00:16:28,420 of June and then not open your Bible again till July. 318 00:16:29,060 --> 00:16:32,500 If I say to you tomorrow I'm going to run a marathon, what do 319 00:16:32,500 --> 00:16:33,780 you what are you going to think of me? 320 00:16:34,740 --> 00:16:36,620 You've not really got much chance there Joe. 321 00:16:36,620 --> 00:16:39,620 You've not done any training. And likewise if we think that we 322 00:16:39,620 --> 00:16:42,580 can just go into, we'll open our Bibles and we'll do 2 hour quiet 323 00:16:42,580 --> 00:16:45,220 times and that'll be it forever. It doesn't work like that. 324 00:16:45,220 --> 00:16:47,140 We have to build ourselves up to that. 325 00:16:47,420 --> 00:16:50,620 But I'm saying do something which is realistic and minutes 326 00:16:50,660 --> 00:16:55,140 are better than sporadic hours. A wiser man than me once said of 327 00:16:55,140 --> 00:16:58,820 what use is it to have many irons in the fire if the fire is 328 00:16:58,820 --> 00:17:01,740 going out? Of what use is it to have many 329 00:17:01,740 --> 00:17:05,569 irons in the fire if the fire is going out OK. 330 00:17:05,569 --> 00:17:13,089 Thirdly, Martha was anxious dive into verse 41 with me, and Jesus 331 00:17:13,089 --> 00:17:18,770 answered and said to her, Martha, Martha, you are worried 332 00:17:19,010 --> 00:17:24,130 and troubled about many things. And again in the Greek, do you 333 00:17:24,130 --> 00:17:25,730 know what that word anxious means? 334 00:17:26,089 --> 00:17:32,050 It means peace or pieces. So in other words, Martha is 335 00:17:32,050 --> 00:17:34,830 falling to pieces. I don't know if there's anyone 336 00:17:34,830 --> 00:17:37,230 in the room tonight who is a fan of the game Jenga. 337 00:17:37,230 --> 00:17:39,630 Do you like that game, Jenga? We all know how to play it, 338 00:17:39,630 --> 00:17:41,230 don't we? And you know, you, you've got an 339 00:17:41,230 --> 00:17:43,590 opponent and you've got all of these blocks and and one of you 340 00:17:43,590 --> 00:17:46,910 has to just push one of the blocks out and you place it on 341 00:17:46,910 --> 00:17:48,510 the top. And then your opponent goes and 342 00:17:48,870 --> 00:17:51,110 they they put one out and they're just so careful not to 343 00:17:51,110 --> 00:17:51,510 do it. And. 344 00:17:51,630 --> 00:17:54,630 And when it's there turn, you sort of blow in it and you sort 345 00:17:54,630 --> 00:17:59,350 of go 1015 times, don't you? Until just that one final block, 346 00:17:59,390 --> 00:18:01,670 just that last block, it goes on the top. 347 00:18:01,710 --> 00:18:06,340 And then what happens? The whole thing falls to pieces. 348 00:18:07,220 --> 00:18:10,260 When I was a kid, me and my friends used to talk about our 349 00:18:10,260 --> 00:18:13,220 parents and the way our parents used to discipline us. 350 00:18:13,220 --> 00:18:16,660 So letting you into a bit of a secret now and what we said that 351 00:18:17,260 --> 00:18:20,540 our moms were quite similar. Our moms sort of consistently 352 00:18:20,700 --> 00:18:22,620 nagged us. You know, they were consistently 353 00:18:22,620 --> 00:18:26,020 like go to your room, do your homework, make sure you do your 354 00:18:26,020 --> 00:18:27,460 tie. Don't answer back, don't be 355 00:18:27,460 --> 00:18:29,260 cheeky. It's just this constant source 356 00:18:29,260 --> 00:18:32,340 of nagging, if you like. But we found is that our fathers 357 00:18:32,340 --> 00:18:34,740 were also exactly the same, same in a lot of ways. 358 00:18:34,980 --> 00:18:38,260 Our fathers, you know, you could get away with a lot of cheeky 359 00:18:38,260 --> 00:18:40,220 behavior. You could get away with a lot of 360 00:18:40,220 --> 00:18:43,540 stuff over a period of time. And then it would just seem like 361 00:18:43,540 --> 00:18:47,780 just one thing, just one tiny minor thing and and you just do 362 00:18:47,780 --> 00:18:52,020 one thing wrong. And then suddenly Montserrat and 363 00:18:52,300 --> 00:18:54,780 he just explode and he, you know, he'd be very crossing. 364 00:18:54,780 --> 00:18:56,900 And you think, where did that come from? 365 00:18:56,980 --> 00:19:00,540 And what happened is it was just that final thing, that one final 366 00:19:00,540 --> 00:19:03,180 thing, and the whole thing had fallen to pieces. 367 00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:07,160 And here Martha has fallen to pieces. 368 00:19:07,400 --> 00:19:10,280 Why? Perhaps the pan boiled over. 369 00:19:10,880 --> 00:19:14,000 Perhaps she dropped a plate. But that one extra thing has 370 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:16,760 just caused everything to to collapse. 371 00:19:17,560 --> 00:19:20,760 I wonder how many of you in the room are overthinkers. 372 00:19:21,840 --> 00:19:24,000 Is there anyone in the room? I'm an overthinker, I'll be 373 00:19:24,000 --> 00:19:24,520 honest. I'm. 374 00:19:24,680 --> 00:19:25,920 I'm an. And some of you are 375 00:19:25,920 --> 00:19:27,240 overthinkers. And you're thinking, I'm 376 00:19:27,240 --> 00:19:30,160 overthinking this now and I don't want to think about that, 377 00:19:31,100 --> 00:19:32,820 but I think Martha was an overthinker. 378 00:19:33,220 --> 00:19:35,460 I also think Martha was a perfectionist. 379 00:19:35,900 --> 00:19:38,660 And I don't want to take away from what I said earlier, but it 380 00:19:38,660 --> 00:19:42,380 is interesting how it says my sister has left me. 381 00:19:42,940 --> 00:19:45,380 So in other words, that leads us to think that that Mary and 382 00:19:45,380 --> 00:19:48,540 Martha, they knew Jesus was coming this afternoon and they 383 00:19:48,540 --> 00:19:51,900 were working together as as a as a unit, if you like, working 384 00:19:51,900 --> 00:19:55,110 together to get everything ready and then suddenly knock on the 385 00:19:55,110 --> 00:19:58,750 door and Jesus and perhaps the disciples came in and Mary 386 00:19:58,750 --> 00:19:59,870 thought, you know, I've done enough. 387 00:19:59,870 --> 00:20:02,510 Now we've got everything ready. I think we'll be okay. 388 00:20:02,790 --> 00:20:05,590 And she goes and sits at the feet of Jesus. 389 00:20:06,550 --> 00:20:09,510 But Martha lingers. Martha stays back. 390 00:20:10,110 --> 00:20:12,390 And the question does need to be asked about Martha. 391 00:20:12,510 --> 00:20:16,070 Is was such an elaborate meal really necessary? 392 00:20:16,910 --> 00:20:20,830 You know, one day I would like to do a study of the diets of 393 00:20:20,910 --> 00:20:22,510 Jesus Christ. Wouldn't that be an interesting 394 00:20:22,510 --> 00:20:25,510 study to do one day? You see, we noticed at times 395 00:20:25,590 --> 00:20:27,390 Jesus was called a glutton, wasn't he? 396 00:20:27,670 --> 00:20:30,910 But then at other times we noticed that that what did Jesus 397 00:20:30,910 --> 00:20:33,070 eat? He was he was totally contented 398 00:20:33,070 --> 00:20:36,230 with with five loaves and and two pieces of fish. 399 00:20:36,870 --> 00:20:38,750 After he rose from the dead, what was his? 400 00:20:39,150 --> 00:20:42,270 We we read about it stays in the sort of divider in the passage. 401 00:20:42,270 --> 00:20:44,230 Breakfast by the sea. What was his breakfast that 402 00:20:44,230 --> 00:20:46,150 morning? A piece of fish. 403 00:20:46,640 --> 00:20:49,760 Our Lord was contented with something simple, and he would 404 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:52,400 have been contented that that afternoon with with something 405 00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:55,840 simple. Now I wonder what I'm going to 406 00:20:55,840 --> 00:20:57,840 say next. I think gets to the the very 407 00:20:57,920 --> 00:21:01,200 heart of the matter, and I think This is why we often say yes, 408 00:21:01,200 --> 00:21:04,040 when we've got a plate full of food, when everything's so busy. 409 00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:08,200 I think This is why we say yes. I think there is a danger in all 410 00:21:08,200 --> 00:21:12,850 of our service to put on a show, whether it's our secular work or 411 00:21:12,850 --> 00:21:15,290 our Christian work. There is a danger for us to put 412 00:21:15,290 --> 00:21:17,410 on a show. And that's why we become worried 413 00:21:17,410 --> 00:21:20,530 about every single detail. That praise might be associated 414 00:21:20,530 --> 00:21:22,530 with our with our name, with our home. 415 00:21:23,050 --> 00:21:26,570 Oh, you know, if you go to to that Lady Martha's house, she 416 00:21:26,570 --> 00:21:28,930 does the best pee and ham suit in all of town. 417 00:21:28,930 --> 00:21:32,150 You need to try that sometime. You know, if I ring my work 418 00:21:32,150 --> 00:21:35,790 colleague Tim, if I ring him at 3:00 in the morning, he will be 419 00:21:35,790 --> 00:21:37,230 there. He'll come straight away. 420 00:21:37,390 --> 00:21:40,230 Now, there's the man who's dedicated to our business. 421 00:21:41,110 --> 00:21:43,710 And the question needs to be asked, why is it we're the first 422 00:21:43,710 --> 00:21:46,590 to volunteer for things? Why are we the first to do our 423 00:21:46,590 --> 00:21:49,670 activities? Are we meticulous that Christ's 424 00:21:49,670 --> 00:21:52,830 name might be lifted up? Or are we meticulous and careful 425 00:21:53,030 --> 00:21:54,630 that our name might be lifted up? 426 00:21:55,870 --> 00:22:00,220 It's all about our motive. You know, the former pastor of 427 00:22:00,220 --> 00:22:03,500 our church, a man called Alan White, who I know many of you 428 00:22:03,500 --> 00:22:05,580 know very well, blessed me a lot. 429 00:22:05,620 --> 00:22:07,220 I really learned a lot from that man. 430 00:22:07,860 --> 00:22:10,620 And Alan White said something once very profound when he was 431 00:22:10,620 --> 00:22:12,060 preaching. I've never forgot it. 432 00:22:12,380 --> 00:22:14,540 And this is a younger man before I've done any ministry. 433 00:22:14,540 --> 00:22:17,860 He said this. He said a lot of men go into the 434 00:22:17,860 --> 00:22:21,300 ministry in hopes of making a name for themselves. 435 00:22:22,540 --> 00:22:25,490 Isn't that interesting? Now, whether you're thinking 436 00:22:25,490 --> 00:22:28,090 about going into the ministry or whether it's any service in your 437 00:22:28,090 --> 00:22:31,530 secular work, are you doing it That you might make a name for 438 00:22:31,530 --> 00:22:34,530 yourself or are you doing it that you might exalt Christ's 439 00:22:34,530 --> 00:22:37,250 name? We must all check our motives 440 00:22:37,250 --> 00:22:39,930 very sincerely. OK, Fourthly. 441 00:22:40,050 --> 00:22:45,010 And finally, Mary was better took into verse 42 with me. 442 00:22:45,770 --> 00:22:50,570 But one thing is needed and Mary has chosen that good part which 443 00:22:50,570 --> 00:22:54,630 will not be taken away from her. So what was Jesus cure for? 444 00:22:54,750 --> 00:22:57,070 For busy, broken, anxious people. 445 00:22:57,070 --> 00:22:59,030 What was this cure for these kind of people? 446 00:23:00,030 --> 00:23:03,230 Him. He was the cure, Charles Virgin 447 00:23:03,230 --> 00:23:05,550 said. You might rise up early and sit 448 00:23:05,550 --> 00:23:09,070 up late and eat the bread of sorrows, but unless you trust 449 00:23:09,070 --> 00:23:11,510 the Lord your God, you shall not prosper. 450 00:23:12,270 --> 00:23:15,030 And we've chatted a lot about Martha's strengths. 451 00:23:15,390 --> 00:23:19,430 But let's not forget, Mary did choose that which was better, 452 00:23:19,550 --> 00:23:22,850 didn't she? What do you think that the woman 453 00:23:22,850 --> 00:23:27,930 of Samaria, Nicodemus, the rich young ruler, and Martha all have 454 00:23:27,930 --> 00:23:30,050 in common? What do you think those four 455 00:23:30,050 --> 00:23:35,130 people all have in common? Let me tell you, Jesus dealt 456 00:23:35,130 --> 00:23:38,410 with them all the same. They came with sort of an issue, 457 00:23:38,690 --> 00:23:42,570 a sort of a problem, and he ignored it and he went straight 458 00:23:42,570 --> 00:23:47,250 to the heart of the matter. Martha, Martha, what do you care 459 00:23:47,250 --> 00:23:52,260 more about this meal or me? You see, the only thing which is 460 00:23:52,260 --> 00:23:56,220 necessary for the soul of man is for us to worship Christ. 461 00:23:56,460 --> 00:23:59,620 Family is important, and I'm excited about being a father 462 00:23:59,620 --> 00:24:01,220 soon. I'm so excited about that. 463 00:24:01,540 --> 00:24:05,260 Family is important, but family is not the most important thing. 464 00:24:05,620 --> 00:24:07,180 Career, work. You've got to. 465 00:24:07,180 --> 00:24:10,380 It's important to love your work and to work hard for the Lord. 466 00:24:10,580 --> 00:24:14,500 But your work is not the most important thing at your very 467 00:24:14,500 --> 00:24:18,620 epicenter, at your very core, you were designed to worship 468 00:24:18,620 --> 00:24:21,140 Christ Jesus. You were designed to lift up, 469 00:24:21,140 --> 00:24:24,060 honor and praise to him. And if you do anything apart 470 00:24:24,060 --> 00:24:26,380 from that, if you live for anything else, apart from 471 00:24:26,380 --> 00:24:29,180 worshiping Christ, apart from absorbing him, apart from 472 00:24:29,380 --> 00:24:32,620 saturating yourself with him, you're going to be miserable. 473 00:24:32,780 --> 00:24:34,940 And it's not going to be God's will for your life. 474 00:24:34,940 --> 00:24:37,860 That is his will for your life. People say, what's the will for 475 00:24:37,860 --> 00:24:40,700 God, for me in God's? What's God's will for my life? 476 00:24:41,060 --> 00:24:44,420 And it's to worship Christ. He wants you to, to worship him. 477 00:24:45,060 --> 00:24:47,900 And that's why Mary chose that which was better. 478 00:24:48,600 --> 00:24:52,720 Here she is that that same woman who's in that same position she 479 00:24:52,720 --> 00:24:57,560 was when she entered that day as a broken woman, And that broken 480 00:24:57,560 --> 00:25:01,400 alabaster jar represented her heart and the blessing filled 481 00:25:01,400 --> 00:25:03,200 the room. And we know the story. 482 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:07,080 She she was weeping, she was crying, and she washed Jesus 483 00:25:07,080 --> 00:25:11,760 feet with her hair. And here she is again, in that 484 00:25:11,760 --> 00:25:14,400 same position, sitting at Jesus feet. 485 00:25:15,080 --> 00:25:19,500 Except for this time, it's not Mary who's doing the washing. 486 00:25:20,020 --> 00:25:21,820 It's Jesus who's doing the washing. 487 00:25:22,540 --> 00:25:25,220 He's washing her with the sanctifying word of God. 488 00:25:27,140 --> 00:25:30,220 If you leave with one thought tonight, I want you to leave 489 00:25:30,220 --> 00:25:32,740 with this. In all of our work, in all of 490 00:25:32,740 --> 00:25:36,060 our busyness, in this rat race we like to call life, we must 491 00:25:36,060 --> 00:25:39,140 remember our inner life must not be forgotten. 492 00:25:39,810 --> 00:25:44,210 Because as Jesus bluntly said in the last word in verse 41, what 493 00:25:44,210 --> 00:25:46,250 is it all look at? Look at the last word in verse 494 00:25:46,250 --> 00:25:47,770 41. What is it all? 495 00:25:49,290 --> 00:25:51,410 They're just things. They're just things that they 496 00:25:51,410 --> 00:25:52,930 don't matter. They're just things. 497 00:25:53,210 --> 00:25:55,170 And there is only one thing which is needful. 498 00:25:55,170 --> 00:25:58,130 There's only one thing that matters, and that's our devotion 499 00:25:58,290 --> 00:26:01,570 to the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me leave you with one final 500 00:26:01,570 --> 00:26:04,130 thoughts. There is one final reason why I 501 00:26:04,130 --> 00:26:07,250 think we can commend Martha. There is one final strength I 502 00:26:07,250 --> 00:26:10,670 think Martha has. You'll notice that there's no 503 00:26:10,670 --> 00:26:13,630 verse 43 Can anyone see in their Bibles? 504 00:26:13,630 --> 00:26:16,790 A verse 43, There isn't, is there? 505 00:26:17,550 --> 00:26:18,550 You see? Why is that? 506 00:26:18,550 --> 00:26:21,590 Because Martha didn't question Jesus. 507 00:26:21,910 --> 00:26:23,230 She didn't say. But Jesus. 508 00:26:23,550 --> 00:26:25,510 That's not fair. Jesus, you don't understand. 509 00:26:25,510 --> 00:26:27,830 I've been doing this. There was no ifs, no buts. 510 00:26:28,030 --> 00:26:31,150 She accepted Jesus answer right away. 511 00:26:31,390 --> 00:26:35,390 Total obedience. So let me ask you a question 512 00:26:35,390 --> 00:26:37,960 now. Have you accepted Jesus? 513 00:26:37,960 --> 00:26:42,320 Answer right away when he says I am the way, the truth in the 514 00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:44,600 life. No man can come to the Father 515 00:26:44,760 --> 00:26:47,680 except through me. Friends, it's only through the 516 00:26:47,680 --> 00:26:50,960 foolishness of the cross by which we can be saved. 517 00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:53,200 And you might say, but Joe, I'm a good person. 518 00:26:53,200 --> 00:26:55,720 I've done this. The only way to be saved is 519 00:26:55,720 --> 00:26:59,510 through Jesus Christ, is through that those feet which Mary sat 520 00:26:59,510 --> 00:27:01,270 at. Those same feet were pierced. 521 00:27:01,270 --> 00:27:04,470 His hands were pierced. He had a crown of thorns in his 522 00:27:04,470 --> 00:27:06,710 skull. He was clothed with nothing but 523 00:27:06,710 --> 00:27:09,950 spittle and blood. And there on that cross he bore 524 00:27:09,950 --> 00:27:13,390 in his body the sins of you and me, so that you and I could be 525 00:27:13,390 --> 00:27:15,790 forgiven. The Bible puts it like this. 526 00:27:15,790 --> 00:27:19,910 It says he is the propitiation for our sins and not just for 527 00:27:19,910 --> 00:27:22,390 our sins, but for the sins of the whole world. 528 00:27:23,070 --> 00:27:26,430 No, I'm not an engineer, but I've been told that if you go 529 00:27:26,430 --> 00:27:29,150 out and you look at the Concorde, you know that plane 530 00:27:29,310 --> 00:27:32,230 that could travel at the speed of sound that that's such fast 531 00:27:32,230 --> 00:27:33,630 plane. And when we were kids that 532 00:27:33,750 --> 00:27:34,670 because they stopped running it now. 533 00:27:34,670 --> 00:27:36,750 But I remember it was like an 8 year old kid just looking at the 534 00:27:36,750 --> 00:27:40,070 sky and go seeing it at the sky and you look at it, you remember 535 00:27:40,070 --> 00:27:42,310 the Concorde. Well, I've been told that if you 536 00:27:42,310 --> 00:27:45,990 look at the Concorde, on the end of its nose is something called 537 00:27:46,230 --> 00:27:49,400 the propisiator. I wonder if it was a Christian 538 00:27:49,400 --> 00:27:51,040 who invented that. But do you know what the 539 00:27:51,040 --> 00:27:53,040 propitiator does on the Concorde? 540 00:27:53,400 --> 00:27:56,920 As the Concorde's going so, so fast, it picks up all of this 541 00:27:56,920 --> 00:27:59,440 speed. It picks up all of this heat and 542 00:27:59,440 --> 00:28:01,240 all of this friction on the plane. 543 00:28:01,560 --> 00:28:05,080 And the propitiator, It absorbs all of the heat, all of the 544 00:28:05,080 --> 00:28:08,960 friction, to protect the rest of the plane from the damaging 545 00:28:08,960 --> 00:28:13,040 effects of that heat. And friends, my dear friends, 546 00:28:13,400 --> 00:28:17,400 Jesus Christ on the cross, absorb the heat of God's wrath 547 00:28:17,760 --> 00:28:21,480 for your sin so that you could be forgiven, so that your you 548 00:28:21,480 --> 00:28:24,400 can be reconciled with God. And know that if you come to 549 00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:28,120 him, you bow the knee, you obey him and repent and turn from 550 00:28:28,120 --> 00:28:30,320 your sins. You know that you have eternal 551 00:28:30,320 --> 00:28:34,680 life because Jesus dealt with your sin that day on the cross. 552 00:28:37,000 --> 00:28:38,560 I just want to say one more thing. 553 00:28:39,780 --> 00:28:43,140 I guess what I'm trying to say in all of this message is to the 554 00:28:43,140 --> 00:28:45,940 Christians, I'm trying to say this sorry to the non 555 00:28:45,940 --> 00:28:47,420 Christians. I'm trying to say this. 556 00:28:48,940 --> 00:28:51,060 Have you fallen in love with Jesus yet? 557 00:28:51,700 --> 00:28:54,340 Have you fallen in love with Jesus Christ? 558 00:28:55,300 --> 00:28:58,460 And then to the to the Christians in the room. 559 00:28:58,900 --> 00:29:00,980 I've been told you might have heard it before. 560 00:29:01,260 --> 00:29:04,940 The key to a successful marriage is to fall in love many 561 00:29:04,940 --> 00:29:08,730 different times, but not with different people, always with 562 00:29:08,730 --> 00:29:11,370 the same person. And perhaps, as some of us in 563 00:29:11,370 --> 00:29:14,650 this room tonight as Christians, we need to fall in love with 564 00:29:14,770 --> 00:29:16,610 Jesus Christ once again.