Begins Easter Friday 2017
Series: The Journey Home
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 14th April 2017
Passage: Ephesians 2:1-10
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 Father, thank you for your love for us in the Lord Jesus.
00:00:02 --> 00:00:03 Thank you for this passage.
00:00:05 --> 00:00:11 Lord, you need to break through so we can understand how deeply, deeply, deeply we need you.
00:00:12 --> 00:00:15 And what you've done to bring us home to you.
00:00:15 --> 00:00:19 So help us to come home to you today and we ask it for your sake.
00:00:19 --> 00:00:20 Amen.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:23 Many years ago, I worked at a place.
00:00:24 --> 00:00:26 It was one of the best jobs in the world as far as I was concerned.
00:00:26 --> 00:00:28 It was Mount Capitan National Park.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:31 I worked for the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
00:00:31 --> 00:00:39 And Mount Capitan's claim to fame is that it is the highest peak in Australia outside of the Snowy Mountains.
00:00:40 --> 00:00:43 It's not a massive claim to fame if you live in Europe, but it's a claim to fame.
00:00:44 --> 00:00:47 It's 1 metres above sea level.
00:00:48 --> 00:00:50 It's hardly even called a mountain, really.
00:00:50 --> 00:00:51 It's really a hill.
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 But it's not so impressive.
00:00:53 --> 00:01:01 But what makes it impressive is it stands beside the total contrast of the northwest slopes and plains of New South Wales.
00:01:02 --> 00:01:08 Just 55 kilometres west of Mount Capitan is the town of Narrabri, where I grew up.
00:01:08 --> 00:01:13 And it stands at a staggering 200 metres above sea level.
00:01:13 --> 00:01:18 And it's on the edge of the vast plains of western New South Wales.
00:01:18 --> 00:01:24 And the contrast between Capitan and Narrabri is quite staggering and very significant.
00:01:24 --> 00:01:27 You see, the view from Narrabri is pretty pathetic, really.
00:01:28 --> 00:01:29 You can't really see anything at all.
00:01:30 --> 00:01:36 But on a good day, at the top of Mount Capitan, you can see 11% of New South Wales.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:39 That's even more than what you can see from the top of Mount Kosciuszko.
00:01:41 --> 00:01:46 Mount Capitan is at least 10 degrees cooler than Narrabri.
00:01:46 --> 00:01:51 And it got almost twice the amount of rain that Narrabri received.
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 A wonderful oasis.
00:01:54 --> 00:02:04 And there is a similar staggering contrast when you look at the passages that Sam just read to us that's on our sheet this morning.
00:02:04 --> 00:02:11 The contrast is from death to life, from hell to heaven, from slavery to freedom, from pessimism to hope.
00:02:12 --> 00:02:14 It's a staggering contrast.
00:02:15 --> 00:02:20 The contrast from who we are without Jesus and who we are in Jesus.
00:02:22 --> 00:02:29 For those of us who have joined us for today, the theme over the past few weeks we've been working through here at St. Paul's is the journey home.
00:02:29 --> 00:02:38 And it might seem a bit strange, after several weeks into that theme, that my goal today is to take us back to the beginning.
00:02:38 --> 00:02:40 And where the journey begins.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:45 But Good Friday is where the journey begins.
00:02:47 --> 00:02:48 For all of us.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:54 And there are three things that I want you to see in these verses this morning from the Bible.
00:02:54 --> 00:02:58 Firstly, the journey that we need rescuing from.
00:02:59 --> 00:03:02 Secondly, the journey that we're rescued for.
00:03:03 --> 00:03:07 And thirdly, how you begin that journey home.
00:03:08 --> 00:03:10 So, first of all, the journey we need rescuing from.
00:03:10 --> 00:03:12 It's in verses 1 to 3.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:19 And it's really important as we get into this that if you've got an illness, you need a correct diagnosis.
00:03:20 --> 00:03:22 On the side here, I've got an insulin pump.
00:03:22 --> 00:03:22 I'm a diabetic.
00:03:22 --> 00:03:27 It's no good me going to a doctor and a doctor saying to me, what you need is some Panadol.
00:03:27 --> 00:03:37 You need to understand the illness you've got in order to get the correct medicine to deal with the disease you've got or the issue that you've got.
00:03:38 --> 00:03:48 And the first three verses are a comprehensive panoramic picture of the human condition outside of God.
00:03:48 --> 00:03:57 And it says quite bluntly, dead, dead in transgressions and sins.
00:03:58 --> 00:04:03 Now, the Apostle Paul, who wrote these words, is making an absolute statement.
00:04:03 --> 00:04:08 He doesn't mean that the Christians at Ephesus were merely in danger of death,
00:04:08 --> 00:04:14 but that they were in a state of real and present death before Jesus intervened.
00:04:14 --> 00:04:16 Death is not a figure of speech here.
00:04:16 --> 00:04:18 He's not using hyperbole.
00:04:18 --> 00:04:21 These people are absolutely dead.
00:04:22 --> 00:04:27 Now, although he speaks of Gentiles in verse 1,
00:04:28 --> 00:04:31 he includes his fellow Jews in verse 3.
00:04:31 --> 00:04:36 The state of spiritual death is universal, is what he's saying.
00:04:36 --> 00:04:42 He's not describing some decadent, depraved segment of society,
00:04:43 --> 00:04:48 but all of humanity from top to bottom,
00:04:49 --> 00:04:51 dead in transgressions and sins.
00:04:51 --> 00:04:54 All people are spiritually dead apart from Jesus.
00:04:54 --> 00:05:03 And when Paul says dead, he means it to have universal and an absolute application.
00:05:03 --> 00:05:04 No exceptions here.
00:05:05 --> 00:05:06 No exceptions.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:10 So what does it mean to be dead in transgressions and sins?
00:05:11 --> 00:05:14 After all, you know, look at us here today.
00:05:14 --> 00:05:18 You know, people whose bodies are active and minds are sharp
00:05:18 --> 00:05:19 and whose personalities are brimming.
00:05:20 --> 00:05:21 What does it mean?
00:05:21 --> 00:05:25 It means to be enslaved.
00:05:27 --> 00:05:31 Notice the word followed in verse 2,
00:05:31 --> 00:05:33 and it's there again in verse 3.
00:05:34 --> 00:05:35 It says in verse 2,
00:05:35 --> 00:05:38 you followed the ways of the world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:40 And then again in verse 3, it says,
00:05:40 --> 00:05:46 gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.
00:05:46 --> 00:05:49 And the word followed there means to be mastered.
00:05:49 --> 00:05:53 It means to be controlled by something.
00:05:53 --> 00:05:57 The reason we are dead in trespasses and sins
00:05:57 --> 00:06:02 is that we are as helpless as a dead body.
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04 Completely controlled.
00:06:05 --> 00:06:06 Totally mastered.
00:06:06 --> 00:06:07 Unable to move.
00:06:08 --> 00:06:11 Unable to act on our own.
00:06:11 --> 00:06:18 There are three things here that we are enslaved to.
00:06:18 --> 00:06:19 Verse 2, it says,
00:06:19 --> 00:06:21 we're enslaved to the ways of this world.
00:06:22 --> 00:06:25 Verse 2 also says that we're enslaved to the ruler of the kingdom of the air.
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 That's talking about Satan, devil.
00:06:29 --> 00:06:31 This morning I want to notice just the key idea.
00:06:31 --> 00:06:32 It's in verse 3.
00:06:32 --> 00:06:44 Now, the term flesh there in verse 3 doesn't mean human flesh and bones.
00:06:44 --> 00:06:46 Like, you know, that stuff.
00:06:47 --> 00:06:53 It literally refers to self-centered human nature.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:56 It's the self-centered human nature which drives us,
00:06:56 --> 00:06:59 which masters us, which controls us.
00:07:00 --> 00:07:01 According to the Bible,
00:07:01 --> 00:07:03 the reason we are dead in trespassions and sins,
00:07:04 --> 00:07:06 the reason we are enslaved to sin,
00:07:07 --> 00:07:12 is because the human heart is profoundly self-centered.
00:07:12 --> 00:07:14 Every one of us.
00:07:15 --> 00:07:19 The 16th century church reformer and theologian Martin Luther
00:07:19 --> 00:07:23 put the condition of the human heart quite succinctly.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:29 He described it as curved in on itself.
00:07:30 --> 00:07:32 Curved in on itself.
00:07:35 --> 00:07:37 Absorbed in self.
00:07:37 --> 00:07:39 Looking inside self-centered.
00:07:39 --> 00:07:43 That is what it means to be human apart from God.
00:07:43 --> 00:07:49 And Luther said that our nature is so deeply curved in on itself
00:07:49 --> 00:07:52 that it, to quote him,
00:07:52 --> 00:07:57 wickedly, curvedly, and viciously,
00:07:57 --> 00:08:04 seeks to use all things, even God, for its own sake.
00:08:04 --> 00:08:09 It's like all of us had this little computer
00:08:09 --> 00:08:12 in the center of our heart
00:08:12 --> 00:08:18 that never, ever, ever stops.
00:08:19 --> 00:08:23 It is constantly analyzing everything,
00:08:23 --> 00:08:25 every person, every object,
00:08:25 --> 00:08:28 every interaction, every event,
00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 every setting.
00:08:29 --> 00:08:32 It's analyzing the basic question,
00:08:33 --> 00:08:35 what's in it for me?
00:08:38 --> 00:08:39 Everything is being analyzed
00:08:39 --> 00:08:41 by how it benefits my happiness,
00:08:42 --> 00:08:43 how it benefits my glory,
00:08:43 --> 00:08:45 how it benefits my comfort,
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 my reputation,
00:08:46 --> 00:08:48 my control of all things.
00:08:48 --> 00:08:49 How does this help me?
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 How does it serve my interests
00:08:51 --> 00:08:52 and fit my interests?
00:08:52 --> 00:08:54 How does this make me happy?
00:08:54 --> 00:08:58 Everything gets put through that grid
00:08:58 --> 00:09:02 and the computer never stops.
00:09:05 --> 00:09:07 Now, it's obvious to most of us, I think,
00:09:07 --> 00:09:10 that self-centeredness can make us a pretty cruel person.
00:09:10 --> 00:09:14 You know, it's not hard to identify the dictators
00:09:14 --> 00:09:17 and the tyrants who were egotistical and proud
00:09:17 --> 00:09:20 and self-centered and murderous
00:09:20 --> 00:09:22 and they want to get their own way
00:09:22 --> 00:09:24 and they will do whatever it takes,
00:09:24 --> 00:09:26 even immoral things,
00:09:26 --> 00:09:28 in order to get their own way.
00:09:30 --> 00:09:32 More often than not, though, however,
00:09:33 --> 00:09:35 self-centeredness actually makes you
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 a really moral person.
00:09:38 --> 00:09:40 It makes you a good person.
00:09:41 --> 00:09:44 If everything is about my need
00:09:44 --> 00:09:46 to feel good about myself,
00:09:46 --> 00:09:49 then there is no better way
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 for that to happen
00:09:50 --> 00:09:53 than for me to be a good person,
00:09:54 --> 00:09:56 a moral person.
00:09:57 --> 00:10:00 You see, self-centeredness drives most people
00:10:00 --> 00:10:03 towards attempting to live a good life,
00:10:04 --> 00:10:06 trying really hard to serve the needy,
00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 to be a good child to a parent,
00:10:08 --> 00:10:10 to honor my parents in some way,
00:10:10 --> 00:10:14 to be a good parent to my children,
00:10:14 --> 00:10:16 a good friend who assists wherever they possibly can,
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 a good person,
00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 a dutiful person who does what's expected of them.
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 And what lies beneath all of that
00:10:24 --> 00:10:26 is a self-centeredness
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 where we do it for ourselves,
00:10:28 --> 00:10:30 where we do it to help ourselves.
00:10:32 --> 00:10:34 We do good things to be noticed by people,
00:10:35 --> 00:10:37 to receive the applause of people.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:43 It's so we can feel like we've got a meaningful life.
00:10:44 --> 00:10:46 We feel like we're a good person
00:10:46 --> 00:10:49 when we've got the acclaim of others.
00:10:49 --> 00:10:50 Now, I'm not sure if you remember
00:10:50 --> 00:10:52 one of the greatest Hollywood classics
00:10:52 --> 00:10:53 of the last century,
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 the first Rocky movie,
00:10:56 --> 00:10:58 starring Sylvester Stallone.
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 Now, quite frankly,
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 he's an underrated actor
00:11:00 --> 00:11:03 who should have by now won an Academy Award.
00:11:04 --> 00:11:05 Nominated three times,
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06 pipped at the post each time.
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 Poor guy.
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 It's amazing he was nominated three times, frankly.
00:11:10 --> 00:11:14 His love interest in that movie
00:11:14 --> 00:11:17 asked him why he was fighting
00:11:17 --> 00:11:19 the world champion, Apollo Creed.
00:11:20 --> 00:11:21 It was a spectacle fight.
00:11:22 --> 00:11:25 He was not expected to win in any sort of way.
00:11:26 --> 00:11:27 And his reply,
00:11:28 --> 00:11:30 if you can get through the mumbling
00:11:30 --> 00:11:31 and get the translation right,
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 his reply is,
00:11:34 --> 00:11:37 I want to go the distance.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:41 Then I'll know I'm not a bum.
00:11:43 --> 00:11:45 Now, deep down inside of us,
00:11:45 --> 00:11:48 if we ever allow ourselves to go
00:11:48 --> 00:11:50 to that recess of our hearts,
00:11:51 --> 00:11:53 we all feel like bums.
00:11:53 --> 00:11:56 We're trying to do something
00:11:56 --> 00:11:57 to convince ourselves
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 and to convince the world
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00 that we're not
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 and that we're good.
00:12:04 --> 00:12:05 And so we evaluate everything
00:12:05 --> 00:12:08 in terms of whether it makes me look good
00:12:08 --> 00:12:10 or whether it doesn't make me look good.
00:12:10 --> 00:12:12 Self-centeredness can make you a tyrant.
00:12:13 --> 00:12:15 Self-centeredness can make you
00:12:15 --> 00:12:16 a moral and a good person.
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 But self-centeredness can almost,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 so make you a very religious person.
00:12:19 --> 00:12:23 We can devote ourselves to obeying God
00:12:23 --> 00:12:24 and turning up to church
00:12:24 --> 00:12:25 and reading the Bible
00:12:25 --> 00:12:25 and praying and giving
00:12:25 --> 00:12:27 and doing all the sorts of things
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 that we've been doing right here,
00:12:28 --> 00:12:28 right now,
00:12:29 --> 00:12:31 all good things and right things to do.
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 So how do I know
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 when I'm doing it for me?
00:12:37 --> 00:12:40 When things aren't going well
00:12:40 --> 00:12:41 for you in life,
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 you start to pull away
00:12:43 --> 00:12:45 from these good things.
00:12:45 --> 00:12:47 It's because you're doing these things
00:12:47 --> 00:12:48 in order to do,
00:12:48 --> 00:12:49 as Luther says,
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 use God.
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 We do good things
00:12:55 --> 00:12:57 and expect God to come through for us.
00:12:58 --> 00:12:59 Be generous to someone.
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 God's going to be generous to me.
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 It means it's all about us.
00:13:06 --> 00:13:08 It's awful to think about it,
00:13:08 --> 00:13:10 but it's possible to, in fact,
00:13:10 --> 00:13:12 even to get into Christianity
00:13:12 --> 00:13:15 to have God serve us
00:13:15 --> 00:13:18 rather than for us to serve God.
00:13:18 --> 00:13:20 It's astounding.
00:13:23 --> 00:13:26 Self-centeredness clings to everything
00:13:26 --> 00:13:28 in our lives
00:13:28 --> 00:13:29 like a rash.
00:13:31 --> 00:13:33 Verse 3 uses the word craving
00:13:33 --> 00:13:35 to describe our self-centeredness.
00:13:35 --> 00:13:37 It's a word that means inordinate desire.
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 It means that our egos
00:13:39 --> 00:13:41 are addictive.
00:13:44 --> 00:13:46 The little computer is addictive.
00:13:48 --> 00:13:51 It means that we are living for our own glory
00:13:51 --> 00:13:53 and it will never be enough
00:13:53 --> 00:13:56 in the same way that a shot of heroin
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 for an addict will never be enough.
00:13:58 --> 00:14:00 There's got to be more.
00:14:01 --> 00:14:03 The little computer in us
00:14:03 --> 00:14:05 is in overdrive,
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 running evaluations,
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 but no amount of glory,
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 no amount of acclaim,
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 recognition,
00:14:11 --> 00:14:11 comfort
00:14:11 --> 00:14:14 will ever be enough.
00:14:14 --> 00:14:14 It's addictive.
00:14:14 --> 00:14:18 And it's never satisfying.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 And it makes you miserable.
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 C.S. Lewis,
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 the Oxford professor
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 and author,
00:14:24 --> 00:14:25 wrote that there is nothing more
00:14:25 --> 00:14:27 enslaving and miserable
00:14:27 --> 00:14:29 than self-centeredness.
00:14:29 --> 00:14:34 He wrote that it is hell
00:14:34 --> 00:14:35 begun in us
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 that will eventually
00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 take us to hell
00:14:38 --> 00:14:40 because it's taking us
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 towards the person
00:14:41 --> 00:14:44 that we are becoming.
00:14:44 --> 00:14:47 The ruler of the kingdom of the air
00:14:47 --> 00:14:48 as Ephesians 2 says.
00:14:50 --> 00:14:52 The framework that every human being
00:14:52 --> 00:14:54 begins with without Jesus
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 is that if you,
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 is that you
00:14:57 --> 00:14:59 give your life
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 for me.
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 It's me first.
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 You serve my interests.
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 That's even how we relate
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 to our creator,
00:15:10 --> 00:15:11 our sustainer,
00:15:11 --> 00:15:11 our God.
00:15:12 --> 00:15:12 It's me first.
00:15:14 --> 00:15:15 And the Bible's view of sin
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 is that every part
00:15:16 --> 00:15:17 of the human person
00:15:17 --> 00:15:17 is tainted by sin.
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 It doesn't mean that humans
00:15:19 --> 00:15:19 are not capable
00:15:19 --> 00:15:21 of any good.
00:15:21 --> 00:15:23 It doesn't mean that
00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 there's no dignity
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 in human beings.
00:15:25 --> 00:15:25 In fact,
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 I would argue
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 the Bible places
00:15:27 --> 00:15:29 more than any other world
00:15:29 --> 00:15:29 worldview,
00:15:29 --> 00:15:31 supreme value
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 on human dignity.
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 But it means
00:15:35 --> 00:15:37 that no part
00:15:37 --> 00:15:38 of the human being,
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 the mind,
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 the emotions,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:40 the heart,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:40 the will,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 is left untouched
00:15:41 --> 00:15:43 by sin and self-centeredness.
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 And so the consequences
00:15:44 --> 00:15:46 at the end of verse 3
00:15:46 --> 00:15:47 is shocking
00:15:47 --> 00:15:48 to our modern context
00:15:48 --> 00:15:48 that says
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 we want to be able
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 to live how we want
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 without any consequences.
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 Not only dead,
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 but condemned.
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 That's the consequence.
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 Not only dead,
00:16:00 --> 00:16:00 but condemned.
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 Verse 3,
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 like the rest,
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 we were by nature
00:16:03 --> 00:16:05 deserving of wrath.
00:16:05 --> 00:16:06 That's God's anger.
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 God's anger
00:16:07 --> 00:16:09 is not like human anger.
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 It's not a bad temper.
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 It's not spite.
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 It's not malice.
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 It's not animosity.
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 It's not revenge.
00:16:14 --> 00:16:15 It's not arbitrary.
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 It is predictable.
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 And it's not governed
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 by mood
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 or by whim.
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 It is God's personal,
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 righteous,
00:16:24 --> 00:16:26 constant hostility
00:16:26 --> 00:16:27 towards all
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 that is evil,
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 unjust,
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 and sin.
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 It is his settled
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 refusal
00:16:32 --> 00:16:33 to compromise
00:16:33 --> 00:16:34 with it
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 and his resolve
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 to condemn it.
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 And that is
00:16:37 --> 00:16:39 the life journey,
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 the trajectory
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 that we are all on
00:16:42 --> 00:16:44 and that we need
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 rescuing from.
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 Now in a moment,
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 I'm going to talk
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 about how God
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 saves us
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 from that life.
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 But first,
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 I want to take us
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 to the end
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 of these verses
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 where it talks briefly
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 about the life
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 that we are
00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 rescued for.
00:17:02 --> 00:17:03 This is the kind
00:17:03 --> 00:17:03 of life
00:17:03 --> 00:17:04 that God wants
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 to give us
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 and this is the life
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 he wants to bring
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 us into.
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 Starting at verse 8,
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 for it is by grace
00:17:11 --> 00:17:13 you have been saved
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 through faith.
00:17:14 --> 00:17:14 This is not
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 from yourselves.
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 It is a gift
00:17:16 --> 00:17:16 from God,
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 not by work
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 so that no one
00:17:18 --> 00:17:18 can boast.
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 For we are
00:17:19 --> 00:17:21 God's handiwork
00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 created in Christ
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 Jesus to do good
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 works which God
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 prepared in advance
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 for us to do.
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 Now there are a couple
00:17:27 --> 00:17:28 of fascinating terms
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 right in there.
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 The first is in verse 8,
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 it is by grace
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 you've been saved
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 through faith
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 and this is not
00:17:34 --> 00:17:34 from yourselves,
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 as a gift
00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 from God.
00:17:36 --> 00:17:36 It is saying
00:17:36 --> 00:17:38 that we are not
00:17:38 --> 00:17:38 saved,
00:17:39 --> 00:17:41 we do not
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 give ourselves
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 the evaluation
00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 of being a good
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 person by doing
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 good things
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 and being moral.
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 We are not saved
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 by anything
00:17:50 --> 00:17:50 that we do.
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 God's salvation,
00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 his gift
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 is a gift.
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 This new life
00:17:57 --> 00:17:57 that he wants
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 to bring us into
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 is a gift
00:17:59 --> 00:18:01 and once we get
00:18:01 --> 00:18:01 this gift
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 we start to see
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 everything in life
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 as a gift.
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 It's not my
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 entitlement,
00:18:06 --> 00:18:06 it's not there
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 to serve me.
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 Even faith
00:18:09 --> 00:18:09 is something
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 that God gives us.
00:18:11 --> 00:18:11 The life
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 that God
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 wants us to have
00:18:13 --> 00:18:13 is a life
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 where we see
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 everything as a gift.
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 It's not a life
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 where we divide
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 the world up to
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 into makers
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 and takers
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 to quote
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 a taxi driver
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 that we had
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 in the United States.
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 Everything
00:18:28 --> 00:18:29 is a gift.
00:18:29 --> 00:18:30 We don't
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 deserve anything.
00:18:31 --> 00:18:31 It's a life
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 that is lived
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 through faith
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 as we're told
00:18:34 --> 00:18:34 here
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 and faith
00:18:35 --> 00:18:35 isn't just
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 about intellectual
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 belief.
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 It means that
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 but it means
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 much more
00:18:40 --> 00:18:40 than that.
00:18:41 --> 00:18:41 Faith
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 means trust.
00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 It means
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 resting.
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 See,
00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 a Christian person
00:18:47 --> 00:18:47 is a person
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 who's at rest.
00:18:49 --> 00:18:49 They are
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 characterised
00:18:50 --> 00:18:50 by what
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 verse 9
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 says,
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 no longer
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 boasting.
00:18:54 --> 00:18:54 They're not
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 boasting
00:18:55 --> 00:18:56 anymore.
00:18:56 --> 00:18:59 Now,
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 when we hear
00:19:00 --> 00:19:00 the word
00:19:00 --> 00:19:00 boast,
00:19:01 --> 00:19:01 we hear
00:19:01 --> 00:19:03 bragging.
00:19:04 --> 00:19:04 You know,
00:19:04 --> 00:19:04 look at the
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 things I've
00:19:05 --> 00:19:05 done and
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 achieved.
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 Now,
00:19:07 --> 00:19:07 boasting
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 meant something
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 a bit
00:19:09 --> 00:19:09 different
00:19:09 --> 00:19:11 and probably
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 more profound
00:19:12 --> 00:19:12 in the first
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 century.
00:19:14 --> 00:19:14 Boasting
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 for them
00:19:15 --> 00:19:15 was to
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 give yourself
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 confidence,
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 to gee
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 yourself up,
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 to face
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 something really
00:19:22 --> 00:19:22 hard.
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 That's what
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 boasting
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 was in the
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 first century.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 So,
00:19:26 --> 00:19:26 imagine a
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 military leader
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 got his
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 troops there,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 rallying his
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 troops,
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 getting them
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 pumped up
00:19:32 --> 00:19:32 because they're
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 about to run
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 in and face
00:19:34 --> 00:19:34 death.
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 He would
00:19:35 --> 00:19:35 stand there
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 and he'd
00:19:36 --> 00:19:36 boast,
00:19:36 --> 00:19:36 look at the
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 size of
00:19:37 --> 00:19:37 our spears,
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 weeny little
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 spears,
00:19:39 --> 00:19:39 these guys,
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 and look at
00:19:40 --> 00:19:40 how many guys
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 we've got.
00:19:41 --> 00:19:41 They've only
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 got a few
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 over there.
00:19:44 --> 00:19:45 Look at
00:19:45 --> 00:19:45 our tactics.
00:19:46 --> 00:19:46 We've been
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 winning all,
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 our tactics
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 are much
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 better than
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 their tactics.
00:19:49 --> 00:19:49 The soldiers
00:19:49 --> 00:19:49 would go,
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 yeah,
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 grab these
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 spears,
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 yeah,
00:19:53 --> 00:19:53 I'm going
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 to die.
00:19:55 --> 00:19:55 That's what
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 boasting
00:19:56 --> 00:19:56 is.
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 This is the
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 sense here.
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 The boasting
00:20:02 --> 00:20:02 here is
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 about
00:20:03 --> 00:20:05 where your
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 confidence
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 is placed.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 And we
00:20:10 --> 00:20:10 are told
00:20:10 --> 00:20:10 here that
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 one of the
00:20:11 --> 00:20:11 great things
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 about the
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 Christian life
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 is it
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 brings to
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 an end
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 of all
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 boasting
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 in self
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 and into
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 placing my
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 confidence
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 in my
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 fickle
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 personal
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 hope that
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 I'm trying
00:20:23 --> 00:20:23 to build
00:20:23 --> 00:20:23 for myself.
00:20:23 --> 00:20:26 everyone
00:20:26 --> 00:20:29 is looking
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 around for
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 something to
00:20:31 --> 00:20:31 boast in,
00:20:31 --> 00:20:31 to have
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 confidence in,
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 to trust in,
00:20:33 --> 00:20:33 to rest in,
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 in order to
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 face life.
00:20:38 --> 00:20:38 Everyone is
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 trying to find
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 something to
00:20:40 --> 00:20:40 give us that
00:20:40 --> 00:20:40 sense of
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 value,
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 that sense
00:20:42 --> 00:20:42 of worth.
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 Some of us
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 look to
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 careers,
00:20:44 --> 00:20:44 some of us
00:20:44 --> 00:20:44 look to
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 our family,
00:20:45 --> 00:20:45 some of us
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 look to
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 salaries,
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 some of us
00:20:47 --> 00:20:47 look to
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 moral decency,
00:20:48 --> 00:20:48 some of us
00:20:48 --> 00:20:48 look to
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 religious
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 performance.
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 A life
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 looking at
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 things to
00:20:52 --> 00:20:52 boast in is
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 a life
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 that's
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 scrambling,
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 scrambling
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 for identity,
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 scrambling
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 for self
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 worth,
00:21:01 --> 00:21:03 and it
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 is
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 exhausting.
00:21:07 --> 00:21:07 And as
00:21:07 --> 00:21:07 C.S.
00:21:08 --> 00:21:08 Lewis says,
00:21:08 --> 00:21:08 it makes you
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 miserable.
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 And the
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 new life
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 that God
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 gives us
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 is a gift,
00:21:13 --> 00:21:13 and because
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 it's a gift,
00:21:14 --> 00:21:14 we are set
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 free from
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 that,
00:21:16 --> 00:21:16 liberated from
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 trying to
00:21:17 --> 00:21:17 find our
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 boast,
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 trying to
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 find our
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 confidence,
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 from within
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 ourselves to
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 pin our
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 hopes on,
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 and in
00:21:23 --> 00:21:23 verse 10
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 it says
00:21:24 --> 00:21:24 this wonderful
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 vision of
00:21:25 --> 00:21:25 the new
00:21:25 --> 00:21:25 life,
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 he says,
00:21:26 --> 00:21:26 we are
00:21:26 --> 00:21:26 God's
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 handiwork,
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 created in
00:21:28 --> 00:21:28 Christ Jesus
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 to do
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 good works,
00:21:30 --> 00:21:30 which God
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 prepared in
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 advance for
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 us to
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 do.
00:21:33 --> 00:21:33 In the
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 old life,
00:21:34 --> 00:21:34 we are
00:21:34 --> 00:21:34 dead in
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 our sins,
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 but the
00:21:36 --> 00:21:36 new life
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 is described
00:21:37 --> 00:21:37 as God's
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 handiwork,
00:21:38 --> 00:21:38 we are
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 his artwork,
00:21:39 --> 00:21:39 his
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 masterpiece.
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 No longer
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 dead,
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 but instead
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 remade,
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 set free to
00:21:46 --> 00:21:46 do good
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 works without
00:21:47 --> 00:21:47 the constant
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 calculation of
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 whether I've
00:21:49 --> 00:21:49 done enough
00:21:49 --> 00:21:51 to get the
00:21:51 --> 00:21:51 applause that
00:21:51 --> 00:21:51 I so
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 desperately
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 desire.
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 God's
00:21:55 --> 00:21:55 greatest
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 masterpiece is
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 humanity
00:21:57 --> 00:21:57 saved from
00:21:57 --> 00:21:58 condemnation,
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 made alive and
00:22:00 --> 00:22:00 set free from
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 slavery.
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 The old life
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 means we work
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 hard in the
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 hope of getting
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 the applause,
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 the praise of
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 the praiseworthy,
00:22:10 --> 00:22:10 the new life
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 because we have
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 the praise of
00:22:12 --> 00:22:12 the most
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 praiseworthy
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 already.
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 We are set
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 free to serve
00:22:16 --> 00:22:16 and love with
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 free abandon.
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 So we've
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 seen the
00:22:21 --> 00:22:21 life that we
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 need to be
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 saved from
00:22:23 --> 00:22:25 and the
00:22:25 --> 00:22:25 life that we
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 are saved
00:22:26 --> 00:22:26 for.
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 So how do
00:22:28 --> 00:22:28 we begin
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 this journey?
00:22:30 --> 00:22:30 Where does
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 it start?
00:22:32 --> 00:22:32 And the
00:22:32 --> 00:22:32 answer to
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 that is
00:22:33 --> 00:22:35 both profound
00:22:35 --> 00:22:37 and simple.
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 It says in
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 verses 4 to 7
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 that God has
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 done something
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 incredible in
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 Jesus.
00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 It says,
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 because of his
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 great love for
00:22:49 --> 00:22:49 us,
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 God who is
00:22:50 --> 00:22:50 rich in
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 mercy made
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 us alive
00:22:52 --> 00:22:52 with Christ
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 even when we
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 were dead in
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 transgressions.
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 It is by
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 grace you've
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 been saved.
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 And God
00:23:00 --> 00:23:00 raised us up
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 with Christ
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 and seated us
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 with him in
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 the heavenly
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 realms in
00:23:04 --> 00:23:04 Christ Jesus.
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 Notice the
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 last verse in
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 verse 6.
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 God has
00:23:09 --> 00:23:10 raised us up
00:23:10 --> 00:23:11 with Christ
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 and seated us
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 with him in
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 the heavenly
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 realms.
00:23:17 --> 00:23:17 Now the
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 first recipients
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 of this
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 letter knew
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 exactly what
00:23:20 --> 00:23:20 that meant
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 in the
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 Roman world.
00:23:24 --> 00:23:24 You see,
00:23:24 --> 00:23:24 in the first
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 century Roman
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 world,
00:23:26 --> 00:23:26 the conquering
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 war,
00:23:27 --> 00:23:27 the general
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 would return
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 from a great
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 victory and
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 he was given
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 as a reward
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 the greatest
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 place of
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 honour in the
00:23:35 --> 00:23:36 capital city.
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 And that is
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 the seat
00:23:39 --> 00:23:41 beside the
00:23:41 --> 00:23:42 throne of the
00:23:42 --> 00:23:42 emperor.
00:23:42 --> 00:23:45 right hand
00:23:45 --> 00:23:45 seat.
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 Jesus died,
00:23:48 --> 00:23:48 he was
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 raised again
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 and he was
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 given the
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 place of
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 greatest honour,
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 the seat on
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 the right hand
00:23:55 --> 00:23:55 throne in the
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 heaven.
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 It can't
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 mean that we
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 are raised
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 from dead
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 literally
00:24:01 --> 00:24:03 because I
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 don't think
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 that I've
00:24:04 --> 00:24:04 died just
00:24:04 --> 00:24:05 yet.
00:24:05 --> 00:24:05 I'm jet
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 lagged but
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 I'm not
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 dead.
00:24:06 --> 00:24:09 It can't
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 mean that
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 I'm in
00:24:10 --> 00:24:12 heaven because
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 I'm still
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 here.
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 It doesn't
00:24:15 --> 00:24:15 mean that we
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 are literally
00:24:16 --> 00:24:16 seated with
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 him there
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 just yet.
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 It means
00:24:19 --> 00:24:19 that we are
00:24:19 --> 00:24:21 legally seated
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 with him
00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 there right
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 now in
00:24:23 --> 00:24:23 Jesus.
00:24:24 --> 00:24:24 You see,
00:24:24 --> 00:24:24 when you
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 believe in
00:24:25 --> 00:24:25 Jesus,
00:24:26 --> 00:24:26 all your
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 sins are
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 so hidden,
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 they are
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 so covered
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 that you
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 are treated
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 as if you
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 have done
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 everything
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 that Jesus
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 has ever
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 done.
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 Through
00:24:39 --> 00:24:39 Jesus,
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 God delights,
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 he honours,
00:24:43 --> 00:24:45 he accepts
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 and he
00:24:45 --> 00:24:47 rejoices over
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 us in the
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 way that he
00:24:49 --> 00:24:49 has his
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 perfect
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 obedient son.
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 How can
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 that be when
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 we have
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 been so,
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 so self-centered?
00:24:57 --> 00:24:57 The key
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 there is in
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 verse 7,
00:25:00 --> 00:25:00 he might
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 show the
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 incomparable
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 riches of
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 his grace
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 expressed in
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 his
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 kindness
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 to us
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 in Christ
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 Jesus.
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 The word
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 kindness
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 there of
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 Christ
00:25:11 --> 00:25:11 Jesus
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 literally
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 means a
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 costly
00:25:14 --> 00:25:14 action.
00:25:15 --> 00:25:15 It's more
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 than just
00:25:16 --> 00:25:16 saying,
00:25:16 --> 00:25:16 you know,
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 I love
00:25:17 --> 00:25:17 you.
00:25:18 --> 00:25:18 It is
00:25:18 --> 00:25:20 putting your
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 money where
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 your mouth
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 is,
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 as we say,
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 or for
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 Jesus'
00:25:23 --> 00:25:23 sake,
00:25:23 --> 00:25:23 it is
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 putting his
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 life where
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 his mouth
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 is.
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 The first
00:25:29 --> 00:25:29 three verses
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 tell us
00:25:30 --> 00:25:30 that the
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 essence of
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 sin,
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 which is the
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 reason why
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 we are
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 dead,
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 is putting
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 ourselves
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 where only
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 God should
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 be,
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 the center
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 of our
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 lives,
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 on the
00:25:41 --> 00:25:41 throne of
00:25:41 --> 00:25:42 our lives,
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 in control
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 of our
00:25:44 --> 00:25:44 lives.
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 That is
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 what sin
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 is,
00:25:46 --> 00:25:46 is putting
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 ourselves
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 where only
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 God
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 deserves
00:25:50 --> 00:25:50 to be.
00:25:52 --> 00:25:52 Salvation,
00:25:53 --> 00:25:53 according to
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 the Christian
00:25:54 --> 00:25:54 faith,
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 is the
00:25:55 --> 00:25:55 exact opposite.
00:25:56 --> 00:25:56 And salvation
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 is God
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 putting himself
00:25:58 --> 00:26:00 where we
00:26:00 --> 00:26:02 deserve to
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 be,
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 on the
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 cross.
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 That's
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 what Good
00:26:08 --> 00:26:08 Friday is
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 all about.
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 Jesus took
00:26:11 --> 00:26:11 the just
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 and the
00:26:12 --> 00:26:12 righteous
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 punishment
00:26:13 --> 00:26:13 from God
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 that we
00:26:14 --> 00:26:14 deserve for
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 putting
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 ourselves
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 in the
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 place where
00:26:16 --> 00:26:16 only God
00:26:16 --> 00:26:18 belongs,
00:26:19 --> 00:26:19 on the
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 throne as
00:26:20 --> 00:26:20 rulers of
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 our lives.
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 The punishment
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 he took on
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 the cross
00:26:23 --> 00:26:25 was much
00:26:25 --> 00:26:25 more than
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 the cruel
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 and the
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 excruciating
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 physical
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 punishment
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 of
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 crucifixion.
00:26:30 --> 00:26:30 It was
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 a cruel
00:26:31 --> 00:26:31 way to
00:26:31 --> 00:26:31 die.
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 He took
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 the wrath
00:26:34 --> 00:26:34 of God
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 that verse
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 3 says
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 we deserve.
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 He was
00:26:38 --> 00:26:38 cut off
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 from his
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 father and
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 he experienced
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 the agony
00:26:42 --> 00:26:42 that we
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 would experience
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 if we were
00:26:44 --> 00:26:44 cut off
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 from God
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 for all
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 of eternity.
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 And I
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 cannot
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 imagine,
00:26:49 --> 00:26:49 even begin
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 to imagine
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 what that
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 was like
00:26:52 --> 00:26:52 for him.
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 He sat
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 in our
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 seat so
00:26:55 --> 00:26:55 that we
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 now can
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 sit in
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 his seat.
00:26:59 --> 00:26:59 One
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 person put
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 it so,
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 so succinctly,
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 the essence
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 of sin
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 is us
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 substituting
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 ourselves for
00:27:06 --> 00:27:06 God,
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 while the
00:27:07 --> 00:27:08 essence of
00:27:08 --> 00:27:08 salvation
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 is God
00:27:09 --> 00:27:09 substituting
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 himself for
00:27:10 --> 00:27:10 us.
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 And that's
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 what Good
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 Friday is
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 all about.
00:27:15 --> 00:27:15 We have
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 put ourselves
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 where only
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 God deserves
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 to be and
00:27:18 --> 00:27:18 so God
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 chooses to
00:27:19 --> 00:27:19 put himself
00:27:19 --> 00:27:22 where we
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 deserve to
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 be.
00:27:22 --> 00:27:24 And so
00:27:24 --> 00:27:24 the way
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 to be
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 blasted
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 out of
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 our
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 self-centeredness
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 is to
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 see that
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 Jesus saved
00:27:30 --> 00:27:30 us by
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 doing the
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 exact opposite
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 of us.
00:27:34 --> 00:27:34 He saved
00:27:34 --> 00:27:34 us through
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 the most
00:27:35 --> 00:27:35 radically
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 unselfish
00:27:36 --> 00:27:37 thing anyone
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 has ever
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 done.
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 Though he
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 is equal
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 with God,
00:27:40 --> 00:27:40 he emptied
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 himself of
00:27:41 --> 00:27:41 his glory,
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 he came
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 down,
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 he took
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 our place
00:27:43 --> 00:27:43 as a
00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 servant,
00:27:44 --> 00:27:44 he traded
00:27:44 --> 00:27:45 his life
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 for ours,
00:27:46 --> 00:27:46 and the
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 contrast of
00:27:47 --> 00:27:48 these verses
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 is startling.
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 The very
00:27:50 --> 00:27:50 next words
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 after verse
00:27:51 --> 00:27:53 3 that
00:27:53 --> 00:27:53 says that
00:27:53 --> 00:27:53 we are
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 deserving of
00:27:54 --> 00:27:54 God's
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 wrath says,
00:27:56 --> 00:27:56 but because
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 of his
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 great love
00:27:58 --> 00:27:58 for us,
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 God who
00:27:59 --> 00:27:59 is rich
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 in mercy
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 made us
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 alive with
00:28:01 --> 00:28:01 Christ.
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 Even when
00:28:03 --> 00:28:03 we were
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 dead in
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 transgressions,
00:28:05 --> 00:28:05 it's by
00:28:05 --> 00:28:05 grace you've
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 been saved.
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 We were
00:28:07 --> 00:28:07 dead in
00:28:07 --> 00:28:07 our
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 transgressions,
00:28:08 --> 00:28:08 but God
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 intervened.
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 We were
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 bondage to
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 sin, but
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 God intervened.
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 We were
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 objects of
00:28:14 --> 00:28:14 wrath, but
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 God intervened.
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 God who
00:28:16 --> 00:28:16 is rich in
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 mercy intervened.
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 Our condition
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 was hopeless,
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 but God
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 intervened in
00:28:20 --> 00:28:20 grace.
00:28:20 --> 00:28:22 From hell to
00:28:22 --> 00:28:22 heaven, from
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 bondage to
00:28:23 --> 00:28:23 freedom, from
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 gloom to
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 light, from
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 despair to
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 hope, from
00:28:27 --> 00:28:27 wrath to
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 glory, from
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 death to
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 life, that
00:28:29 --> 00:28:29 is the
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 glory and
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 the magnificence
00:28:31 --> 00:28:31 of Good
00:28:31 --> 00:28:31 Friday.
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 That's why
00:28:33 --> 00:28:33 it's called
00:28:33 --> 00:28:34 Good Friday.
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 And when
00:28:38 --> 00:28:38 we see him
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 doing that,
00:28:40 --> 00:28:40 when we know
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 he has done
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 that, when
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 we see his
00:28:42 --> 00:28:44 mercy, his
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 love, his
00:28:45 --> 00:28:47 grace, then
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 it helps us to
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 see that our
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 sense of who
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 we are is
00:28:50 --> 00:28:52 already filled
00:28:52 --> 00:28:52 up.
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 You can
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 disconnect the
00:28:55 --> 00:28:55 computer.
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 His
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 selflessness has
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 overcome our
00:29:02 --> 00:29:02 selfishness.
00:29:03 --> 00:29:03 We see
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 ourselves as
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 complete because
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 we are seated
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 with God in the
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 place of honour.
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 We have all the
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 acclaim, all the
00:29:10 --> 00:29:11 honour, all the
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 approval, all the
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 acceptance that you
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 could possibly want.
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 There is only one
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 boast that will
00:29:15 --> 00:29:17 stop all boasting.
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 One boast that
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 stops us scrambling
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 through life trying
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 to figure out a
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 way to find the
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 confidence that we
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 need in order to
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 face life, whatever
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 it's going to throw
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 at us.
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 And it's the same
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 Apostle Paul who
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 wrote in Galatians
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 chapter 6,
00:29:30 --> 00:29:32 may I never boast in
00:29:32 --> 00:29:34 anything else but
00:29:34 --> 00:29:36 the cross of our
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 Lord Jesus Christ
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 through which the
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 world has been
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 crucified to me and
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 I to the world.
00:29:41 --> 00:29:46 Now I'm assuming
00:29:46 --> 00:29:48 that there are some
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 people in this room
00:29:49 --> 00:29:51 today and you may
00:29:51 --> 00:29:53 even have been a
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 regular in this
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 church for decades
00:29:55 --> 00:29:57 but you need to
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 start that journey
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 today.
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 The journey needs to
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 begin for you today.
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 You need to get off
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 one road and on to
00:30:02 --> 00:30:02 the other.
00:30:03 --> 00:30:03 You need to switch
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 roads, stop looking
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 to self, start looking
00:30:05 --> 00:30:07 to God and whatever
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 you've done, whatever
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 you've become on this
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 good Friday,
00:30:11 --> 00:30:13 day Jesus has
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 possible for you to
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 come home to him.
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 Make this good Friday
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 the day that you come
00:30:18 --> 00:30:21 to Jesus and experience
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 his love and his grace
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 and his mercy the day
00:30:23 --> 00:30:25 you go from hell to
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 heaven, from bondage to
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 freedom, from gloom to
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 light, from despair to
00:30:28 --> 00:30:30 hope, from glory to
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 wrath, from death to
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 life.
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 Sorry, from wrath to
00:30:34 --> 00:30:36 glory, death to life.
00:30:36 --> 00:30:41 If that's you, then
00:30:41 --> 00:30:41 there's a really
00:30:41 --> 00:30:43 crucial prayer for you
00:30:43 --> 00:30:46 on the back of our
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 service sheet.
00:30:46 --> 00:30:48 It's called the
00:30:48 --> 00:30:49 prayer for belief.
00:30:50 --> 00:30:50 I want to encourage
00:30:50 --> 00:30:51 everyone to pick one
00:30:51 --> 00:30:51 up.
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 Pick one up and look
00:30:53 --> 00:30:54 at that prayer at the
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 end of the back of the
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 service sheet.
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 It's really simple.
00:30:58 --> 00:31:03 Lord Jesus, I admit that
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 I'm weaker and more
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 sinful than I've ever
00:31:05 --> 00:31:07 dared to admit, but
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 through you I'm more
00:31:08 --> 00:31:09 loved and accepted than
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 I ever dared to hope.
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 I thank you for praying
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 my debt on the cross,
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 taking what I deserve in
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 order to offer me
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 complete forgiveness,
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 knowing that you've been
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 raised from the dead.
00:31:19 --> 00:31:21 I turn from my sins and
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 receive you as my Lord
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 and Saviour.
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 Amen.
00:31:24 --> 00:31:26 We're going to, Sam's
00:31:26 --> 00:31:26 going to lead us right
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 now.
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 Come on up, Sam.
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 He's going to lead us
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 into the Lord's Supper
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 right now, which is
00:31:31 --> 00:31:33 again a reminder of
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 what Christ has done for
00:31:34 --> 00:31:34 us.
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 And as he does that, as
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 we go through this, can
00:31:37 --> 00:31:40 I just encourage you to
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 ponder over the words of
00:31:41 --> 00:31:43 that prayer and whether
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 or not that prayer is a
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 prayer for you to pray
00:31:45 --> 00:31:47 today and to begin the
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 journey to follow
00:31:48 --> 00:31:48 Jesus.