Character to Serve
Series: SERVE
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 2nd November 2019
Passage: Ephesians 4:1-16
00:00:00 --> 00:00:06 everyone. Great to be in church with you today. You have already blessed me with your singing.
00:00:06 --> 00:00:11 It was phenomenal to be at the front this morning and to hear you sing those songs with a great deal
00:00:11 --> 00:00:18 of gusto and obviously with a great deal of connection in terms of what we're seeking to do
00:00:18 --> 00:00:23 as a church. So thank you for that, for serving me and serving each other in that way. Hopefully
00:00:23 --> 00:00:28 you've got to serve an outline in front of you. It's got some Bible passages in front of it.
00:00:28 --> 00:00:32 If you haven't got that, you can also get on the St. Paul's app or stick your hand up and someone
00:00:32 --> 00:00:41 will get one to you. The great English theologian and pastor John Stott captured the urgent need
00:00:41 --> 00:00:48 for unity in diversity for the local church in his commentary on the book of Ephesians,
00:00:48 --> 00:00:54 which I've been reading in process of preparing these messages through Ephesians.
00:00:54 --> 00:00:56 He wrote,
00:00:56 --> 00:01:04 It is simply impossible with any shred of Christian integrity to go on proclaiming that Jesus,
00:01:05 --> 00:01:11 by his cross, has abolished the old divisions and created a single new humanity of love,
00:01:12 --> 00:01:19 while at the same time we are contradicting our message by tolerating social, racial,
00:01:19 --> 00:01:26 or other barriers within the church fellowship. We need to get the failures of the church on our
00:01:26 --> 00:01:34 conscience to feel the offense to Christ, to weep over the credibility gap between the church's talk
00:01:34 --> 00:01:43 and the church's walk, to repent of our readiness to excuse and even condone our failures,
00:01:43 --> 00:01:53 and to determine to do something about it. I wonder if anything is more urgent today for the honor of Christ
00:01:53 --> 00:02:00 and for the spread of the gospel than that the church should be and should be seen to be
00:02:00 --> 00:02:10 what by God's purpose and Christ's achievement it already is. A single new humanity,
00:02:10 --> 00:02:19 a model of human community, a family of reconciled brothers and sisters who love their father
00:02:19 --> 00:02:28 and love each other, the evident dwelling place of God by his spirit. Only then will the world believe
00:02:28 --> 00:02:38 in Christ as peacemaker. Only then will God receive the glory due his name. I just read that and just want
00:02:38 --> 00:02:46 to applaud it. Absolutely, fundamentally true and something that we are deliberately working towards
00:02:46 --> 00:02:53 as a church here at St. Paul's. In the next few weeks, we're looking at Ephesians 4, 1 to 16.
00:02:53 --> 00:03:02 To discover the means that God uses to maintain the unity of such a diverse bunch of people.
00:03:03 --> 00:03:10 If you've just joined us today, we are in our annual vision series. We're in Ephesians because this
00:03:10 --> 00:03:18 letter is about the church, it's about who the church is. And we're also looking at the year ahead
00:03:18 --> 00:03:26 and aligning ourselves to what God has in store for us next as we plan to move forward in our life
00:03:26 --> 00:03:34 together in this setting. So first of all, as we looked at last week on your service outline,
00:03:35 --> 00:03:44 gospel-centered unity is who God has made us to be. Over the last two weeks, we've seen that God,
00:03:44 --> 00:03:51 the creator, the God of the Bible, the creator of all things, has overwhelmed us by his grace and his mercy
00:03:51 --> 00:03:59 by giving us every spiritual blessing in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is, God has held no blessing back
00:03:59 --> 00:04:07 from us at all. He has lavished his grace on us in Jesus. We have been redeemed, we've been adopted,
00:04:07 --> 00:04:14 we've been given eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We've seen again and
00:04:14 --> 00:04:22 again the heart of the Christian message which separates Christianity from every other religion in the world
00:04:22 --> 00:04:31 and it's the gospel. It's on the back of your service sheet and it is about everything that God has
00:04:31 --> 00:04:39 achieved for you without a single bit of effort on your behalf. And the effect of the gospel is it so
00:04:39 --> 00:04:50 breaks us down that it also breaks down the barriers of hostility that we have built up between us and
00:04:50 --> 00:04:58 God and us and other people. The pride that causes humanity to reject God and to live independent of
00:04:58 --> 00:05:09 him has been dealt with as the son of God himself humbled himself, became one of us, takes God's judgment
00:05:09 --> 00:05:18 for our sin upon himself. And because of his work of humility on our behalf, we have been liberated from
00:05:18 --> 00:05:27 selfishness and the ego to live, to praise and to serve. We've been set free to be who God has called us
00:05:27 --> 00:05:35 to be, who God made us to be in the first place. And the gospel also breaks down the deep divisions
00:05:35 --> 00:05:45 within humanity. In the gospel, Jesus has broken down the walls of hostility and he's building up a new
00:05:45 --> 00:05:53 eternal and united family of love and peace. It's called the church in Ephesians chapter 3.
00:05:55 --> 00:06:05 People with centuries of hatred have now been united in Jesus because they're making Jesus the main
00:06:05 --> 00:06:22 thing. They can do it because they've been given a much more significant identity in Jesus. In Jesus, we receive
00:06:22 --> 00:06:33 the praise and the affirmation of the praiseworthy. No higher praise can you get than the praise of the
00:06:33 --> 00:06:43 praiseworthy. This changes your life. Our new identity as God's much loved children means it changes us from the
00:06:43 --> 00:06:51 inside out because it fills us up on the inside, gives us everything that we want for in life.
00:06:51 --> 00:07:02 And because of the amazing theological realities of chapters 1 through to 3, Paul urges the Ephesians in
00:07:02 --> 00:07:12 chapter 4 at the very beginning and us to live a life worthy of the calling that you have received.
00:07:12 --> 00:07:26 He's calling us to be who we've been saved to be. The word worthy in verse 1 is translated from the word
00:07:26 --> 00:07:35 axios in the original New Testament language. This is the word from which we get our English word
00:07:35 --> 00:07:48 axiom, which means to be of equal weight. Paul is saying we should live lives equal to the great blessings
00:07:48 --> 00:08:01 described in chapters 1 to 3. How are we to live lives worthy of having every spiritual blessing in the
00:08:01 --> 00:08:08 gospel of the gospel of the Lord Jesus? Well, the remainder of Ephesians unpacks that for us as we go
00:08:08 --> 00:08:16 through. But the immediate charge in chapter 4 verses 1 to 16 is to live lives worthy of our calling by
00:08:16 --> 00:08:29 living in unity as God's new family. See in verse 3, make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit
00:08:29 --> 00:08:36 through the bond of peace. There is one body and one spirit just as you were called to one hope when you were
00:08:36 --> 00:08:47 called. One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
00:08:49 --> 00:08:57 Now, Paul has already been emphasizing our unity in this letter. In chapter 2, he uses the language of household
00:08:57 --> 00:09:03 household to describe it, which is the image of family. It's family language in the New Testament.
00:09:04 --> 00:09:12 He also uses the image of a building to stress our unity, our togetherness, our oneness. We're cemented
00:09:12 --> 00:09:21 together like blocks. Now, he takes us a step further and uses the image of the body to emphasize
00:09:21 --> 00:09:30 our unity. We are one body. And it's an image of intimate connection.
00:09:32 --> 00:09:39 There are very few certainties in life. I mean, people say death and taxes are a certainty.
00:09:40 --> 00:09:46 There's another certainty that I generally operate with day by day, was when I went to bed last night,
00:09:46 --> 00:09:52 I didn't have the expectation that when I woke up in the morning, my hand wasn't going to be there.
00:09:54 --> 00:09:59 I just assumed when I went to bed at night, my hand was going to be there in the morning
00:09:59 --> 00:10:02 that it hadn't just decided,
00:10:03 --> 00:10:06 I'm off to get my nails done.
00:10:06 --> 00:10:11 And it just left the body. It just doesn't do that.
00:10:13 --> 00:10:20 Intimately connected. Your body is not sewn together. It's not stapled together. It grows together.
00:10:22 --> 00:10:29 And that's what happens when you have new life in Christ. It's an image of intimate connection.
00:10:29 --> 00:10:33 And he uses the same image in other parts of the New Testament, like 1 Corinthians.
00:10:34 --> 00:10:41 Notice Paul calls us here to keep the unity that we have.
00:10:44 --> 00:10:49 He's saying that the unity that we have together isn't something that we can attain.
00:10:49 --> 00:10:51 It's not something that we gain.
00:10:51 --> 00:10:53 We only keep it.
00:10:53 --> 00:10:56 We are called into unity.
00:10:56 --> 00:11:00 And Paul alludes to this when he says,
00:11:00 --> 00:11:04 You were called to one hope when you were called.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:09 What he's saying is that our experience of new life in Jesus
00:11:09 --> 00:11:14 is what creates the unity that we have to keep.
00:11:16 --> 00:11:19 There is only one hope for humanity.
00:11:20 --> 00:11:24 There's one hope and the only hope is salvation in Jesus.
00:11:24 --> 00:11:25 New life in him.
00:11:25 --> 00:11:31 Acts 4 says there is no other name by which people can be saved than the name of Jesus.
00:11:33 --> 00:11:38 But our unity is also grounded in the nature of God himself.
00:11:39 --> 00:11:42 This is about who God is in and of his essence.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:48 Our God who made us in his image is himself unified.
00:11:48 --> 00:11:55 Three persons of the Godhead but operating as one in total perfect unity.
00:11:56 --> 00:12:01 The very nature of their operation is mutual love relationships.
00:12:02 --> 00:12:08 Each member of the Godhead exists for the other members of the Godhead serving the other.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:13 Technical term is perichoresis.
00:12:14 --> 00:12:17 Which means mutual indwelling.
00:12:17 --> 00:12:21 Mutual love sacrifice and service for the other.
00:12:21 --> 00:12:27 The Holy Trinity is mentioned here.
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 Spirit verse 4.
00:12:28 --> 00:12:29 Lord verse 5.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 God the Father verse 6.
00:12:32 --> 00:12:37 Each of the seven great unities mentioned in verses 4 to 6
00:12:37 --> 00:12:42 is connected to one of the persons of the Trinity.
00:12:42 --> 00:12:50 After all is said and done, in all of our diversity, in all of our difference,
00:12:50 --> 00:12:56 we have the same Father being rescued by the same Son and indwelled by the same Spirit.
00:12:58 --> 00:12:59 We are his family.
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 We are his temple.
00:13:01 --> 00:13:02 We are his body.
00:13:04 --> 00:13:06 Our unity is eternal.
00:13:06 --> 00:13:11 It is unbreakable because we have been united with the eternal and the unbreakable.
00:13:13 --> 00:13:16 And even though our unity is a gift,
00:13:17 --> 00:13:23 verse 3 calls us to be diligent in working every effort to keep it.
00:13:24 --> 00:13:28 Make every effort means to spare no effort.
00:13:29 --> 00:13:33 It is a matter for urgent, diligent and continuous activity.
00:13:36 --> 00:13:45 Unity is not something that gets worked out through committees and task force.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:52 Chapter 4 reveals two means that God works in us
00:13:52 --> 00:13:54 so that we keep the unity that we have been given.
00:13:55 --> 00:13:57 The rest of the New Testament,
00:13:57 --> 00:14:00 I want to use the rest of the New Testament to back up some of this
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 over the next couple of weeks.
00:14:01 --> 00:14:06 Those two things are spiritual fruit and spiritual gifts.
00:14:07 --> 00:14:09 As members of God's family,
00:14:09 --> 00:14:14 he's in the process of changing who we are and what we do
00:14:14 --> 00:14:18 so that it more reflects his family values.
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 So over the next three weeks,
00:14:21 --> 00:14:24 I want to talk about being a community that serves,
00:14:25 --> 00:14:28 serves God, serves each other, serves the world.
00:14:28 --> 00:14:34 And it's essential, however, that I begin where God begins.
00:14:35 --> 00:14:37 The fruit of the Spirit.
00:14:38 --> 00:14:38 Not the gifts.
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 We want to talk about gifts.
00:14:40 --> 00:14:42 We want to talk about my talents, my abilities,
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 what I can bring to the table.
00:14:45 --> 00:14:47 God doesn't start there.
00:14:48 --> 00:14:50 He starts with your character.
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 He starts with who you are.
00:14:53 --> 00:14:55 Galatians 5, it's on your service sheet.
00:14:55 --> 00:14:57 Galatians 5 is a list of the fruit.
00:14:58 --> 00:15:03 The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness,
00:15:04 --> 00:15:06 faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
00:15:07 --> 00:15:14 Notice the word fruit is singular in its original language,
00:15:14 --> 00:15:16 which means there is one fruit,
00:15:16 --> 00:15:20 one fruit that has seven components to it.
00:15:20 --> 00:15:25 Every Christian should have the fruit of the Spirit
00:15:25 --> 00:15:30 as they're outlined in Galatians 5 verses 22 to 23.
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 Every single one of the components.
00:15:35 --> 00:15:39 Some of us are naturally default to being more patient than others,
00:15:39 --> 00:15:42 but not necessarily courageous.
00:15:44 --> 00:15:47 Every Christian must be balanced in all the fruit.
00:15:47 --> 00:15:50 There's one fruit with seven different components.
00:15:50 --> 00:15:53 You're meant to be growing in all of them, collectively.
00:15:56 --> 00:15:59 But no Christian, apart from Jesus,
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 if you want to call him a Christian,
00:16:02 --> 00:16:05 has all the gifts of the Spirit.
00:16:07 --> 00:16:10 We must all have all fruit,
00:16:11 --> 00:16:13 but we don't all have all gifts.
00:16:13 --> 00:16:17 Spiritual fruit is something we are,
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 but a spiritual gift is something we do.
00:16:20 --> 00:16:24 That's why fruit has supremacy over gifts in the New Testament.
00:16:25 --> 00:16:27 And it's why we need to talk about it first.
00:16:28 --> 00:16:30 But that's not what our culture wants to do.
00:16:30 --> 00:16:33 Our culture values gifts, talents, abilities,
00:16:34 --> 00:16:37 as unfortunately the church often does.
00:16:37 --> 00:16:40 We often get blamed by gifts and talents and abilities.
00:16:40 --> 00:16:45 It is perilous to honor gifts over godly character,
00:16:45 --> 00:16:50 or for gifts to be mistaken for godly character.
00:16:51 --> 00:16:54 The Bible indicates it's possible to...
00:16:54 --> 00:16:56 So hear this.
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 Very important.
00:16:58 --> 00:17:05 The Bible indicates it is possible to touch lives through gifts,
00:17:05 --> 00:17:11 while your own spiritual growth is in a downward spiral.
00:17:14 --> 00:17:18 In fact, there have been unregenerated people,
00:17:19 --> 00:17:22 like Judas Iscariot and those mentioned in Matthew 7,
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 verses 22 and 23,
00:17:24 --> 00:17:26 who come into the church,
00:17:26 --> 00:17:30 and whose natural talents God used
00:17:30 --> 00:17:33 to convert and to build up,
00:17:35 --> 00:17:37 but who later showed that they were never really Christian,
00:17:37 --> 00:17:40 according to 1 John 2, verse 19.
00:17:41 --> 00:17:43 1 Corinthians 13.
00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 I've got that in front of you as well.
00:17:44 --> 00:17:46 We see a clear example of the need
00:17:46 --> 00:17:49 for Christian character over Christian giftedness.
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 Church of Corinth.
00:17:51 --> 00:17:53 We've just spent a bit of time in Corinthians,
00:17:53 --> 00:17:55 but the Church of Corinth in 1 Corinthians
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 was a growing congregation,
00:17:57 --> 00:17:59 blessed with abundant gifts in tongues,
00:18:00 --> 00:18:00 verse 1,
00:18:00 --> 00:18:02 prophecy, verse 2,
00:18:02 --> 00:18:04 teaching generosity and social concern,
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 in verse 3,
00:18:05 --> 00:18:07 and yet the chapter also reveals
00:18:07 --> 00:18:11 all the ways in which this Corinthian church
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 was ungodly.
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 They were impatient and proud,
00:18:15 --> 00:18:15 verse 4,
00:18:16 --> 00:18:19 envious, critical, rude, jealous,
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 self-absorbed, egotistical,
00:18:22 --> 00:18:25 and Paul went on to so far as to say
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 that it was possible
00:18:26 --> 00:18:28 to have all of these gifts
00:18:28 --> 00:18:30 in a dynamic church
00:18:30 --> 00:18:32 and yet, in his words,
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 to be nothing.
00:18:38 --> 00:18:40 Most Bible commentators agree
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 that Paul is saying
00:18:41 --> 00:18:43 it is possible
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 to do miracles
00:18:44 --> 00:18:47 by the power of God
00:18:47 --> 00:18:49 and have revelations
00:18:49 --> 00:18:51 and not even to be a Christian.
00:18:52 --> 00:18:54 To have no character at all.
00:18:54 --> 00:18:57 No inward work of the Spirit at all.
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 In other words,
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 it's possible for you
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 to do ministry
00:19:01 --> 00:19:03 through the power of God
00:19:03 --> 00:19:05 without any grace in your heart
00:19:05 --> 00:19:08 or without knowing,
00:19:08 --> 00:19:10 as verse 8 says,
00:19:10 --> 00:19:12 his true love that never fails.
00:19:14 --> 00:19:16 That's why Jesus said,
00:19:16 --> 00:19:20 by their fruit,
00:19:20 --> 00:19:23 you will know his disciples
00:19:23 --> 00:19:26 rather than by their gifts.
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 By their fruit,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:31 you will know his disciples.
00:19:31 --> 00:19:33 Love, joy, peace,
00:19:34 --> 00:19:37 humility cannot grow and flourish
00:19:37 --> 00:19:39 when our hearts are far from God.
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 But teaching,
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 evangelism,
00:19:43 --> 00:19:43 counselling,
00:19:44 --> 00:19:45 leading,
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 can.
00:19:50 --> 00:19:52 So friends,
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 the danger is
00:19:53 --> 00:19:55 that we look to our ministry activity
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 as evidence
00:19:56 --> 00:19:58 that God is with us
00:19:58 --> 00:20:01 or as a way to earn God's favour.
00:20:01 --> 00:20:03 If, however,
00:20:03 --> 00:20:05 we are remembering the gospel,
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 if we're rejoicing
00:20:07 --> 00:20:09 in having received
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 every spiritual blessing in Jesus,
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 then our ministry
00:20:11 --> 00:20:13 will be a sacrifice
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 of thanksgiving.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:15 And the result
00:20:15 --> 00:20:17 will be acts done in love,
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 humility,
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 patience and tenderness.
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 If our hearts
00:20:21 --> 00:20:23 are not solely centred
00:20:23 --> 00:20:26 in the saving work of Jesus
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 and if we're not speaking
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 the gospel
00:20:28 --> 00:20:30 into our hearts regularly,
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 we will,
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 by default,
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 seek to control God,
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 to attract his favour
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 with,
00:20:39 --> 00:20:41 and I'll use the language
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 of 1 Corinthians 13,
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 attract his favour
00:20:43 --> 00:20:45 with our clanging symbols
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 of service,
00:20:46 --> 00:20:50 noted by the telltale signs
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 of impatience,
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 irritability,
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 pride,
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 hurt feelings,
00:20:58 --> 00:20:58 generosity,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 jealousy,
00:21:01 --> 00:21:01 sorry,
00:21:02 --> 00:21:02 not generosity,
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 lack of generosity,
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 jealousy,
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 and boasting.
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 We will identify
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 with our ministry
00:21:12 --> 00:21:14 and we will make
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 our ministry
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 an extension
00:21:15 --> 00:21:17 of ourselves.
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 We will be driven,
00:21:23 --> 00:21:23 scared,
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 we'll either be
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 too timid
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 or too brash,
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 and the end result
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 will be disunity
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 and fracturing
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 of the family.
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 We will shut down
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 anyone
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 who attempts
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 to interfere
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 with my ministry.
00:21:41 --> 00:21:43 We will shut down
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 anyone who tries
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 to take a little bit
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 away from me.
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 Our character
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 is of supreme
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 importance.
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 Scottish minister
00:21:57 --> 00:21:59 Robert Murray
00:21:59 --> 00:21:59 Mishane
00:21:59 --> 00:22:01 was a remarkably
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 gifted man,
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 remarkably gifted
00:22:04 --> 00:22:04 man,
00:22:05 --> 00:22:05 especially
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 as a preacher
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 of God's word.
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 There's hardly
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 anyone,
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 apart from
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 probably John Knox,
00:22:12 --> 00:22:12 who's had
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 as much
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 of an impact
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 on the Church
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 of Scotland
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 historically
00:22:16 --> 00:22:16 than Robert
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 Murray Mishane,
00:22:17 --> 00:22:18 and he was
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 dead by the time
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 he was 31.
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 Remarkably gifted.
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 He's quoted
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 as saying,
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 the greatest
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 need of my
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 people
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 is my
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 personal
00:22:32 --> 00:22:32 holiness.
00:22:32 --> 00:22:32 holiness.
00:22:35 --> 00:22:35 That is
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 his character
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 in Christ.
00:22:39 --> 00:22:39 Before
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 his death
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 in 1841,
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 Mishane
00:22:42 --> 00:22:42 preached
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 his last
00:22:43 --> 00:22:43 sermon
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 on Isaiah
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 chapter 60
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 verse 1.
00:22:48 --> 00:22:48 Arise,
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 Shane,
00:22:49 --> 00:22:49 for thy
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 light is
00:22:50 --> 00:22:50 come,
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 and the
00:22:52 --> 00:22:52 glory of
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 the Lord
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 is risen
00:22:54 --> 00:22:54 upon thee.
00:22:54 --> 00:22:56 He preached
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 the sermon,
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 went home
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 to bed
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 with a
00:22:59 --> 00:22:59 fever,
00:22:59 --> 00:22:59 he was
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 feeling
00:23:00 --> 00:23:00 unwell,
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 and he
00:23:01 --> 00:23:01 died a
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 week later.
00:23:03 --> 00:23:03 After
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 his death,
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 a letter
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 was found
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 in his
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 bedroom
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 beside his
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 bed.
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 Part of
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 it,
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 that letter
00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 which read
00:23:11 --> 00:23:11 this,
00:23:12 --> 00:23:14 I hope
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 you will
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 pardon a
00:23:15 --> 00:23:15 stranger
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 for addressing
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 to you in
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 such few
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 lines.
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 I heard
00:23:20 --> 00:23:20 you preach
00:23:20 --> 00:23:22 last Sunday
00:23:22 --> 00:23:22 evening,
00:23:22 --> 00:23:24 and it
00:23:24 --> 00:23:24 pleased God
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 to bless
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 that sermon
00:23:25 --> 00:23:26 to my
00:23:26 --> 00:23:26 soul.
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 It was
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 not so
00:23:29 --> 00:23:29 much what
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 you said
00:23:30 --> 00:23:32 as your
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 manner of
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 speaking that
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 struck me.
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 I saw
00:23:37 --> 00:23:37 in you a
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 beauty of
00:23:38 --> 00:23:38 holiness
00:23:38 --> 00:23:40 that I
00:23:40 --> 00:23:40 never saw
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 before.
00:23:43 --> 00:23:43 You also
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 said something
00:23:44 --> 00:23:44 in your
00:23:44 --> 00:23:46 prayer that
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 struck me
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 very much.
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 It was
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 this.
00:23:52 --> 00:23:54 thou
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 knowest
00:23:55 --> 00:23:55 that we
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 love thee.
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 Oh,
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 sir,
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 what would
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 I give
00:24:01 --> 00:24:03 that I
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 could say
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 to my
00:24:04 --> 00:24:04 blessed
00:24:04 --> 00:24:05 saviour,
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 thou
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 knowest
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 that I
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 love thee.
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 His
00:24:12 --> 00:24:12 character
00:24:12 --> 00:24:14 shone
00:24:14 --> 00:24:16 even more
00:24:16 --> 00:24:16 than his
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 remarkable
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 gifting.
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 He
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 unity.
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 The unity
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 which Paul
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 urges upon
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 us
00:24:27 --> 00:24:29 is
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 maintained
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 as we
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 get
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 reshaped
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 into the
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 character
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 of the
00:24:35 --> 00:24:35 Lord
00:24:35 --> 00:24:35 Jesus
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 Christ.
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 Before he
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 gets to
00:24:38 --> 00:24:38 any gifts,
00:24:39 --> 00:24:39 he says
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 this in
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 verse 2,
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 be
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 completely
00:24:43 --> 00:24:43 humble
00:24:43 --> 00:24:46 and gentle,
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 being patient,
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 bearing one
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 other in
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 love.
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 The key
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 here is
00:24:51 --> 00:24:51 humility.
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 Humility
00:24:53 --> 00:24:55 will lead
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 to gentleness
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 and patience
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 and forbearing
00:24:57 --> 00:24:57 with each
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 other in
00:24:58 --> 00:24:58 love.
00:24:59 --> 00:24:59 In the
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 ancient
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 Greco-Roman
00:25:01 --> 00:25:01 world,
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 when Paul
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 first wrote
00:25:03 --> 00:25:03 this letter,
00:25:04 --> 00:25:04 humility
00:25:04 --> 00:25:06 was despised.
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 It was
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 what was
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 regarded as
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 a slave-like
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 quality.
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 What was
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 admired
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 was the
00:25:15 --> 00:25:17 mega-souled
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 man or
00:25:18 --> 00:25:20 the great-souled
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 man,
00:25:21 --> 00:25:23 the self-made
00:25:23 --> 00:25:23 man
00:25:23 --> 00:25:25 who was
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 complete,
00:25:27 --> 00:25:27 self-sufficient.
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 That's what
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 was admired
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 as much as
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 power and
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 influence is
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 admired today.
00:25:36 --> 00:25:39 pride is
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 the opposite
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 of humility.
00:25:42 --> 00:25:42 Pride not
00:25:42 --> 00:25:44 only appears
00:25:44 --> 00:25:44 to be the
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 earliest of
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 sin, but
00:25:46 --> 00:25:46 it's also
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 the core
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 of all
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 sin.
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 Maybe
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 that's why
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 God hates
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 the sin of
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 pride so
00:25:51 --> 00:25:52 much.
00:25:53 --> 00:25:53 Proverbs
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 8 verse
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 13 quotes
00:25:55 --> 00:25:55 God as
00:25:55 --> 00:25:56 saying,
00:25:56 --> 00:25:56 to fear
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 the Lord
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 is to
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 hate evil.
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 I hate
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 pride and
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 arrogance.
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 Of course
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 he hates
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 all sin,
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 but pride
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 seems to
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 be particularly
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 offensive to
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 him.
00:26:11 --> 00:26:11 Why does
00:26:11 --> 00:26:11 God hate
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 pride so
00:26:12 --> 00:26:12 much?
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 It's because
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 pride is
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 when sinful
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 human beings
00:26:16 --> 00:26:18 aspire to
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 the status
00:26:19 --> 00:26:19 and the
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 position of
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 God and
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 refuse to
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 acknowledge
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 dependence upon
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 God.
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 Pride is the
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 essence of
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 sin, it's the
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 foundation of
00:26:27 --> 00:26:27 it.
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 Pride takes
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 many forms
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 but it all
00:26:30 --> 00:26:32 has it all
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 directed towards
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 one end.
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 self
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 glorification,
00:26:39 --> 00:26:39 the
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 self
00:26:40 --> 00:26:40 made
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 person.
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 Pride is
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 so dangerous
00:26:44 --> 00:26:44 for a
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 church.
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 Pride works
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 to undermine
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 the unity
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 of a
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 church.
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 It elevates
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 individual,
00:26:49 --> 00:26:49 it elevates
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 groups,
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 cultural
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 groups above
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 others.
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 Pride brings
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 down leaders.
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 Spiritual
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 pride sets
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 us up against
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 the world
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 as well.
00:26:57 --> 00:26:59 and the
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 truth which
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 radiates from
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 verse 2 is
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 that Christian
00:27:03 --> 00:27:05 unity doesn't
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 begin with
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 external
00:27:06 --> 00:27:09 structures but
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 it begins
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 with attitudes
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 of the heart.
00:27:13 --> 00:27:15 Humility and
00:27:15 --> 00:27:17 mildness and
00:27:17 --> 00:27:19 patience and
00:27:19 --> 00:27:20 loving tolerance
00:27:20 --> 00:27:20 of one another.
00:27:20 --> 00:27:20 power.
00:27:23 --> 00:27:23 And a
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 character of
00:27:24 --> 00:27:26 humility means
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 that we will
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 hold any
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 gifting that
00:27:28 --> 00:27:28 we have
00:27:28 --> 00:27:30 received as
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 simply that.
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 It's a
00:27:33 --> 00:27:33 gift.
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 It's a
00:27:36 --> 00:27:36 gift.
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 Any ability
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 that we have,
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 any talent that
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 we have,
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 anything that
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 we have,
00:27:41 --> 00:27:41 any name that
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 we have for
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 ourselves,
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 it is a
00:27:43 --> 00:27:43 gift.
00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 gift.
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 They are
00:27:50 --> 00:27:50 gifts from
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 God for
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 his glory and
00:27:52 --> 00:27:52 for the good
00:27:52 --> 00:27:52 of others.
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 Our gifting
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 will not be
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 about serving
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 our ego,
00:27:58 --> 00:27:58 our need for
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 approval,
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 or the
00:28:01 --> 00:28:01 building up
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 of positions
00:28:02 --> 00:28:02 of power and
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 influence.
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 Pride and
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 self-promoting
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 arrogance
00:28:07 --> 00:28:09 sow seeds
00:28:09 --> 00:28:09 of disunity
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 but a
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 humble,
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 gentle person
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 is like a
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 cool breeze
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 on a hot
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 day.
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 They're a
00:28:17 --> 00:28:17 delight.
00:28:20 --> 00:28:21 Charles Simeon,
00:28:22 --> 00:28:22 the great
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 preacher of
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 King's College
00:28:24 --> 00:28:24 and Holy
00:28:24 --> 00:28:24 Trinity
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 Cambridge,
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 was one
00:28:27 --> 00:28:29 humble man
00:28:29 --> 00:28:31 who over
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 a long
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 course of
00:28:33 --> 00:28:33 time,
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 God
00:28:36 --> 00:28:38 beat him
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 into
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 humility.
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 He was
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 highly
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 influential
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 very
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 successful
00:28:45 --> 00:28:45 in
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 ministry.
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 However,
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 in
00:28:47 --> 00:28:49 1801,
00:28:50 --> 00:28:50 Simeon's
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 health
00:28:51 --> 00:28:51 broke
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 down.
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 Sorry,
00:28:54 --> 00:28:54 1808,
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 his health
00:28:55 --> 00:28:55 broke
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 down and
00:28:56 --> 00:28:56 he had to
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 spend about
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 eight months
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 recuperating on
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 the Isle of
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 White.
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 His assistant
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 stepped into
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 the gap to
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 preach as
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 many as
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 five times on
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 a Sunday in
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 Holy Trinity
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 and another
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 church in
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 stable foot.
00:29:11 --> 00:29:13 The assistant
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 surprised
00:29:14 --> 00:29:16 himself and
00:29:16 --> 00:29:16 as it
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 turns out,
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 the
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 congregations
00:29:19 --> 00:29:19 as well,
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 by developing
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 a preaching
00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 ability almost
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 equal and
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 some would
00:29:25 --> 00:29:25 say better
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 than Simeon's.
00:29:26 --> 00:29:30 someone reported
00:29:30 --> 00:29:30 to Simeon
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 while he's
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 on the
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 Isle of
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 White,
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 recuperating
00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 from,
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 oh,
00:29:36 --> 00:29:36 by the
00:29:36 --> 00:29:36 way,
00:29:37 --> 00:29:37 no need
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 to rush
00:29:38 --> 00:29:38 back,
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 your assistant's
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 doing a
00:29:40 --> 00:29:40 fantastic
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 job.
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 Totally
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 free from
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 any suggestion
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 of pride or
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 professional
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 jealousy,
00:29:49 --> 00:29:49 Simeon
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 greatly
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 rejoiced.
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 He quoted
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 this scripture,
00:29:53 --> 00:29:53 Peter,
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 he must
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 increase,
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 but I
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 must
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 decrease.
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 And he
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 told a
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 friend,
00:30:00 --> 00:30:00 ah,
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 now I
00:30:02 --> 00:30:04 see why
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 I have
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 been laid
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 aside with
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 this illness
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 for this
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 time and
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 I bless
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 God for
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 it.
00:30:16 --> 00:30:16 Some of
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 you may
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 still be
00:30:18 --> 00:30:18 seething,
00:30:20 --> 00:30:20 still holding
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 on to
00:30:21 --> 00:30:23 issues
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 because
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 you've
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 been laid
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 aside by
00:30:26 --> 00:30:26 somebody.
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 So how
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 did Simeon
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 get to the
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 position where
00:30:35 --> 00:30:35 he had
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 grown in
00:30:36 --> 00:30:36 humility to
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 the point
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 where he
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 was rejoicing
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 in the
00:30:40 --> 00:30:40 gifting of
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 others in
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 such a way
00:30:42 --> 00:30:42 that even
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 that gifting
00:30:43 --> 00:30:43 was surpassing
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 his own?
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 After Simeon
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 had been a
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 Christian for
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 40 years,
00:30:48 --> 00:30:48 he wrote
00:30:48 --> 00:30:48 this.
00:30:48 --> 00:31:12 Simeon
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 spent 40
00:31:13 --> 00:31:15 years of
00:31:15 --> 00:31:15 applying the
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 good news
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 of the
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 gospel to
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 his life
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 in such
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 a way
00:31:20 --> 00:31:20 that it
00:31:20 --> 00:31:20 humbled
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 him.
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 He never
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 let go of
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 the fact
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 that everything
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 was a gift.
00:31:27 --> 00:31:27 Never let
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 go of the
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 fact that he
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 was sinful.
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 He's quoted
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 as saying,
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 I spend
00:31:33 --> 00:31:33 my days
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 mining,
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 mining the
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 depths of
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 my sinfulness
00:31:37 --> 00:31:39 and at the
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 same time
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 clutching to
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 the grace of
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 God in
00:31:43 --> 00:31:43 Jesus Christ.
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 The deeper
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 I go in
00:31:46 --> 00:31:47 understanding
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 my sin,
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 the greater
00:31:49 --> 00:31:49 I see his
00:31:49 --> 00:31:50 glory and
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 grace to
00:31:51 --> 00:31:51 me.
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 He labored,
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 labored to
00:31:57 --> 00:31:57 know the
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 God in
00:31:58 --> 00:31:58 the Bible
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 and also
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 to know
00:31:59 --> 00:32:00 his true
00:32:00 --> 00:32:01 vileness
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 at the
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 same time.
00:32:02 --> 00:32:03 And this
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 clicked him
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 close to
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 God through
00:32:05 --> 00:32:05 the many,
00:32:06 --> 00:32:06 many difficult
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 seasons of
00:32:07 --> 00:32:07 life and
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 ministry that
00:32:08 --> 00:32:09 he faced.
00:32:13 --> 00:32:14 But that's
00:32:14 --> 00:32:14 not all.
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 He didn't
00:32:17 --> 00:32:17 labor by
00:32:17 --> 00:32:18 himself.
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 As I said
00:32:20 --> 00:32:20 last week,
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 we cannot
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 know an
00:32:22 --> 00:32:22 individual by
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 ourselves.
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 We cannot
00:32:24 --> 00:32:24 even know
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 ourselves by
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 ourselves.
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 One of the
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 remarkable things
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 about Simeon
00:32:30 --> 00:32:32 was that he
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 could take a
00:32:32 --> 00:32:35 rebuke and
00:32:35 --> 00:32:36 he grew from
00:32:36 --> 00:32:36 it.
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 I could go
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 on and on
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 and on
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 about it.
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 But back
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 in 2009,
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 I wrote a
00:32:46 --> 00:32:46 core value
00:32:46 --> 00:32:48 for us to
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 address this
00:32:49 --> 00:32:49 issue.
00:32:52 --> 00:32:53 If there is
00:32:53 --> 00:32:54 one thing
00:32:54 --> 00:32:54 that I'd
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 love us
00:32:55 --> 00:32:55 at St.
00:32:55 --> 00:32:56 Paul's to
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 be known
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 for, it
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 would be
00:32:57 --> 00:32:57 this,
00:32:58 --> 00:32:58 humble
00:32:58 --> 00:32:59 authenticity.
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 I'll read
00:33:02 --> 00:33:02 it to you.
00:33:03 --> 00:33:04 We seek
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 our words
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 and actions
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 to be what
00:33:06 --> 00:33:06 we believe
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 and teach
00:33:07 --> 00:33:07 from God's
00:33:07 --> 00:33:07 word.
00:33:08 --> 00:33:09 We desire
00:33:09 --> 00:33:09 for our
00:33:09 --> 00:33:10 lives,
00:33:10 --> 00:33:10 ministries,
00:33:11 --> 00:33:11 and church
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 policies to
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 give explicit
00:33:13 --> 00:33:14 evidence that
00:33:14 --> 00:33:14 we treasure
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 Jesus Christ
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 above everything
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 else.
00:33:17 --> 00:33:18 We will
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 pursue loving
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 honesty in
00:33:20 --> 00:33:20 all our
00:33:20 --> 00:33:20 communication.
00:33:21 --> 00:33:21 We will
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 seek to
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 serve others
00:33:23 --> 00:33:23 and consider
00:33:23 --> 00:33:24 them more
00:33:24 --> 00:33:24 important than
00:33:24 --> 00:33:25 ourselves.
00:33:25 --> 00:33:25 In
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 disagreements,
00:33:26 --> 00:33:27 we'll assume
00:33:27 --> 00:33:27 the best of
00:33:27 --> 00:33:28 others and
00:33:28 --> 00:33:29 ask clarifying
00:33:29 --> 00:33:29 questions before
00:33:29 --> 00:33:30 making judgments.
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 When we have
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 offended another,
00:33:33 --> 00:33:33 we will be
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 quick to confess
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 error and
00:33:35 --> 00:33:35 sin.
00:33:36 --> 00:33:36 We will
00:33:36 --> 00:33:37 pursue
00:33:37 --> 00:33:38 reconciliation
00:33:38 --> 00:33:39 and we
00:33:39 --> 00:33:39 will work
00:33:39 --> 00:33:40 towards
00:33:40 --> 00:33:40 change.
00:33:41 --> 00:33:41 We will
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 not tolerate
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 contention.
00:33:44 --> 00:33:44 We value
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 unity in
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 Christ and
00:33:46 --> 00:33:46 so we
00:33:46 --> 00:33:47 work together
00:33:47 --> 00:33:48 as one
00:33:48 --> 00:33:48 team to
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 fulfill our
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 mission.
00:33:50 --> 00:33:51 We are
00:33:51 --> 00:33:52 committed to
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 being rigorously
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 honest,
00:33:55 --> 00:33:55 financially
00:33:55 --> 00:33:56 accountable,
00:33:57 --> 00:33:57 and above
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 approach in
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 all of our
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 dealings.
00:33:59 --> 00:34:01 I could go
00:34:01 --> 00:34:01 on and
00:34:01 --> 00:34:01 on and
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 unpack that
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 for you,
00:34:03 --> 00:34:03 but I've
00:34:03 --> 00:34:04 got a gift
00:34:04 --> 00:34:04 instead.
00:34:05 --> 00:34:05 I wrote
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 this in
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 2010,
00:34:07 --> 00:34:08 humble
00:34:08 --> 00:34:08 authenticity,
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 over a
00:34:10 --> 00:34:11 series of
00:34:11 --> 00:34:13 posts for
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 a church
00:34:14 --> 00:34:14 bulletin that
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 we had at
00:34:15 --> 00:34:15 the time.
00:34:16 --> 00:34:17 I wanted
00:34:17 --> 00:34:17 to unpack
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 what it
00:34:18 --> 00:34:18 might look
00:34:18 --> 00:34:20 for us to
00:34:20 --> 00:34:20 shape our
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 corporate life
00:34:21 --> 00:34:22 together.
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 It's not the
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 final word on
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 humility.
00:34:24 --> 00:34:24 What is the
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 final word on
00:34:25 --> 00:34:25 humility?
00:34:26 --> 00:34:26 And it would
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 be somewhat
00:34:27 --> 00:34:27 ironic if I
00:34:27 --> 00:34:29 actually wrote
00:34:29 --> 00:34:29 the final word
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 on humility.
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 But I gave
00:34:33 --> 00:34:33 a go at it
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 anyway.
00:34:35 --> 00:34:37 I was
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 thoroughly
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 convinced then,
00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 I am even
00:34:40 --> 00:34:40 more thoroughly
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 convinced now,
00:34:41 --> 00:34:41 if it's
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 possibly more
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 thoroughly
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 convinced,
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 that there is
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 no effective
00:34:45 --> 00:34:45 service,
00:34:46 --> 00:34:46 there is no
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 effective mission
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 without the
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 cultivation of
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 humility in
00:34:50 --> 00:34:50 the heart and
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 the weakening
00:34:51 --> 00:34:51 of pride in
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 our life.
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 It is the
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 very foundation
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 before we move
00:34:55 --> 00:34:55 on to any
00:34:55 --> 00:34:56 talk about
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 giftings.
00:34:57 --> 00:34:59 character
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 comes
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 first.
00:35:06 --> 00:35:06 May we
00:35:06 --> 00:35:07 all,
00:35:07 --> 00:35:07 like the
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 Lord Jesus,
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 descend into
00:35:09 --> 00:35:09 greatness,
00:35:12 --> 00:35:12 laid aside,
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 his glory
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 became one
00:35:14 --> 00:35:14 of us,
00:35:15 --> 00:35:15 and now
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 been ascended
00:35:16 --> 00:35:16 to the
00:35:16 --> 00:35:18 highest heights
00:35:18 --> 00:35:18 that every
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 name will
00:35:19 --> 00:35:20 bow to
00:35:20 --> 00:35:20 him and
00:35:20 --> 00:35:21 confess him.
00:35:21 --> 00:35:24 The last
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 word on
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 this goes
00:35:24 --> 00:35:25 to God
00:35:25 --> 00:35:25 himself.
00:35:27 --> 00:35:27 This is
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 for all
00:35:28 --> 00:35:28 of us
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 who think
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 that through
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 our good
00:35:29 --> 00:35:30 works we
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 can earn
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 God's
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 attention,
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 his gaze.
00:35:34 --> 00:35:35 The last
00:35:35 --> 00:35:35 word goes
00:35:35 --> 00:35:36 to God
00:35:36 --> 00:35:36 himself,
00:35:36 --> 00:35:38 Isaiah 66
00:35:38 --> 00:35:38 verse 2.
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 This is the
00:35:40 --> 00:35:40 one I
00:35:40 --> 00:35:41 esteem.
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 This is
00:35:42 --> 00:35:43 what draws
00:35:43 --> 00:35:44 my attention.
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 This is
00:35:45 --> 00:35:46 the one I
00:35:46 --> 00:35:46 notice.
00:35:47 --> 00:35:48 He who is
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 humble and
00:35:49 --> 00:35:49 contrite in
00:35:49 --> 00:35:51 spirit and
00:35:51 --> 00:35:51 trembles at
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 my word.