Global Success
Series: Mission Month 2013
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 26th May 2013
Passage: 2 Corinthians 5:10-21
00:00:00 --> 00:00:03 Gracious Lord, I pray that you would help us through your word tonight
00:00:03 --> 00:00:07 and by your spirit, give us a glimpse of not just our present life,
00:00:07 --> 00:00:08 but our future.
00:00:09 --> 00:00:13 And I pray that we would walk out of here transformed, changed,
00:00:14 --> 00:00:16 and deeply in love with the Lord Jesus.
00:00:16 --> 00:00:18 And we ask it for your glory. Amen.
00:00:20 --> 00:00:22 Keep your fingers in 2 Corinthians 5.
00:00:22 --> 00:00:26 And also, if you can flip back a couple of books into Romans 2,
00:00:27 --> 00:00:28 that would be really helpful.
00:00:28 --> 00:00:32 A young police cadet was taking his final exam
00:00:32 --> 00:00:34 at Hendon Police College in North London
00:00:34 --> 00:00:38 before being unleashed on the British public.
00:00:39 --> 00:00:42 And one of the questions in this exam paper was,
00:00:43 --> 00:00:45 you're out on a patrol in outer London
00:00:45 --> 00:00:49 when an explosion occurs in a gas main in a nearby street.
00:00:50 --> 00:00:53 Upon investigation, you discover that a large hole
00:00:53 --> 00:00:54 has been blown in the footpath
00:00:54 --> 00:00:59 and a nearby block of flats is on fire with people trying to escape.
00:01:00 --> 00:01:03 Beside the blast site is an overturned van.
00:01:04 --> 00:01:06 Inside the van, there is a strong smell of marijuana.
00:01:08 --> 00:01:10 The occupants of the van, a man and a woman,
00:01:10 --> 00:01:12 are half naked and injured.
00:01:13 --> 00:01:16 You'd notice that the woman is the wife of your divisional inspector
00:01:16 --> 00:01:19 who happens to be away at the moment in the United States.
00:01:19 --> 00:01:23 A passing motorist stops to offer assistance
00:01:23 --> 00:01:26 and you recognise him as a suspect in an armed robbery case.
00:01:27 --> 00:01:30 Then suddenly, a man runs out of a nearby house
00:01:30 --> 00:01:33 shouting that his wife, who was expecting a baby,
00:01:33 --> 00:01:35 has gone into labour due to the explosion.
00:01:37 --> 00:01:40 Another man, who's been blown into the adjacent canal,
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 is crying out for help because he can't swim.
00:01:42 --> 00:01:46 And by now, a crowd of onlookers has formed
00:01:46 --> 00:01:49 and there's a risk of a second explosion.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:51 Then comes the question.
00:01:52 --> 00:01:55 Bearing in mind the provision of the Mental Health Act,
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 describe in a few words what actions you would take.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:02 The officer thought for a moment
00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 and then picked up his pen and wrote,
00:02:05 --> 00:02:08 I would take off my uniform and mingle with the crowd.
00:02:08 --> 00:02:17 Let me just get a little bit serious with you just for a moment.
00:02:17 --> 00:02:18 2 Corinthians 4 and 5,
00:02:18 --> 00:02:20 which we've been looking at in our mission month
00:02:20 --> 00:02:23 over the last three weeks and today the fourth week,
00:02:24 --> 00:02:27 is designed by the Apostle Paul through God
00:02:27 --> 00:02:31 for us Christians not to take off our uniform
00:02:31 --> 00:02:32 and mingle with the crowd.
00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 He doesn't want us to lose heart.
00:02:35 --> 00:02:38 That's the purpose of 2 Corinthians 4 and 5.
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41 You see there, you can imagine it,
00:02:41 --> 00:02:44 the stakes are pretty high when in a moment like that,
00:02:44 --> 00:02:47 a police officer takes off their uniform
00:02:47 --> 00:02:48 and decides to mingle with the crowd.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:51 And I think what the Apostle Paul has been trying to tell us
00:02:51 --> 00:02:54 in 2 Corinthians 4 and 5 is the stakes are astronomical
00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 if the Christian takes off their uniform
00:02:56 --> 00:02:58 and decides to mingle with the crowd.
00:02:58 --> 00:03:00 That is, if we lose heart.
00:03:01 --> 00:03:05 We got a glimpse of exactly how high the stakes were last week.
00:03:05 --> 00:03:08 We only looked at it very quickly in chapter 5, verse 10.
00:03:08 --> 00:03:10 And I've included it again this week.
00:03:10 --> 00:03:12 And I want to dig a little bit deeper
00:03:12 --> 00:03:15 because the stakes are enormous when you look at this verse.
00:03:15 --> 00:03:17 So if you've got your Bibles open, have a look at it there.
00:03:17 --> 00:03:18 2 Corinthians 5, verse 10.
00:03:19 --> 00:03:22 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ
00:03:22 --> 00:03:25 that each one may receive what is due him
00:03:25 --> 00:03:27 for the things done while in the body,
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28 whether good or bad.
00:03:30 --> 00:03:32 That's how high the stakes are.
00:03:32 --> 00:03:36 It's saying there that God will hold us accountable
00:03:36 --> 00:03:38 for how we've lived.
00:03:38 --> 00:03:40 Notice that the judgment seat of Christ is universal.
00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 It says, we must all appear.
00:03:43 --> 00:03:44 That is, everyone.
00:03:44 --> 00:03:45 No exceptions.
00:03:47 --> 00:03:49 We will all give an account to the Lord Jesus for our lives.
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 And notice too that while it is everyone,
00:03:53 --> 00:03:55 we'll all be judged individually.
00:03:55 --> 00:03:57 Notice that each one must give an account.
00:03:57 --> 00:04:03 That is, it won't be me sort of being able to hide in the crowd
00:04:03 --> 00:04:04 at that point.
00:04:04 --> 00:04:06 It will be me and God,
00:04:07 --> 00:04:09 no one else giving an account for my life.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:11 All of my life will be brought to bear.
00:04:12 --> 00:04:13 And you won't be there to say,
00:04:13 --> 00:04:15 stand with me in that moment
00:04:15 --> 00:04:17 and sort of prop me up and put an arm and say,
00:04:17 --> 00:04:19 look, he wasn't such a bad bloke after all.
00:04:23 --> 00:04:24 Romans 2, if you've got your finger in that,
00:04:24 --> 00:04:25 just flick over there
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 because I think it gives a vivid account
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 of what that day will look like.
00:04:30 --> 00:04:32 A little bit clearer than verses,
00:04:32 --> 00:04:34 chapter 5 and 10 here.
00:04:34 --> 00:04:37 It says in verse 5 to 11,
00:04:38 --> 00:04:39 because of your stubbornness
00:04:39 --> 00:04:40 and your unrepentant heart,
00:04:40 --> 00:04:42 you were storing up wrath against yourself
00:04:42 --> 00:04:44 for the day of God's wrath
00:04:44 --> 00:04:47 when his righteous judgment will be revealed.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:48 God will give to each person
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 according to what he has done.
00:04:50 --> 00:04:52 There's the connection with 2 Corinthians 5 and 10.
00:04:52 --> 00:04:57 And then we read that there are only two outcomes
00:04:57 --> 00:04:59 for the final reckoning with the Lord Jesus.
00:04:59 --> 00:04:59 Verse 7,
00:04:59 --> 00:05:02 To those who by persistence in doing good
00:05:02 --> 00:05:05 seek glory, honor, and immortality,
00:05:05 --> 00:05:07 he will give eternal life.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:09 But for those who are self-seeking
00:05:09 --> 00:05:11 and who reject the truth and follow evil,
00:05:12 --> 00:05:13 there will be wrath and anger.
00:05:13 --> 00:05:15 There will be trouble and distress
00:05:15 --> 00:05:17 for every human being who does evil,
00:05:17 --> 00:05:17 first for the Jew,
00:05:17 --> 00:05:18 then for the Gentile.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:21 But glory, honor, and peace
00:05:21 --> 00:05:22 for everyone who does good.
00:05:23 --> 00:05:25 I see the description there.
00:05:25 --> 00:05:25 It says,
00:05:26 --> 00:05:29 Stubbornness and your unrepentant heart,
00:05:29 --> 00:05:30 self-seeking,
00:05:30 --> 00:05:32 who reject the truth and follow evil.
00:05:33 --> 00:05:34 And that is, I think,
00:05:34 --> 00:05:35 a really helpful description
00:05:35 --> 00:05:38 of what the Bible calls sin.
00:05:40 --> 00:05:42 Sin is a universal problem.
00:05:42 --> 00:05:43 It's not just, if you like,
00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 for the so-called bad people.
00:05:46 --> 00:05:48 It is a problem for everyone,
00:05:49 --> 00:05:51 even us clean, middle-class people
00:05:51 --> 00:05:53 who are deeply committed to nice boy,
00:05:53 --> 00:05:55 good girl, wickedness,
00:05:55 --> 00:05:56 of pride and unbelief
00:05:56 --> 00:05:58 and indifference and ingratitude
00:05:58 --> 00:05:59 and impurity of mind
00:05:59 --> 00:06:01 and personal ambition.
00:06:02 --> 00:06:04 God will hold us accountable for that.
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 And that is why Romans 3 says
00:06:07 --> 00:06:09 that everyone has sinned
00:06:09 --> 00:06:11 and fallen short of what God requires.
00:06:11 --> 00:06:14 No one has lived a perfect life
00:06:14 --> 00:06:16 except Jesus.
00:06:18 --> 00:06:19 And the terrible consequence
00:06:19 --> 00:06:20 of a life of sin
00:06:20 --> 00:06:21 is what Romans 2, 8
00:06:21 --> 00:06:23 calls wrath and anger from God.
00:06:24 --> 00:06:25 And that is referring there
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 to eternal punishment.
00:06:28 --> 00:06:30 And in all the reading
00:06:30 --> 00:06:31 that I have done,
00:06:32 --> 00:06:35 let me say that no one
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 has overstated the terrors
00:06:37 --> 00:06:39 of what wrath and anger
00:06:39 --> 00:06:40 from God actually mean.
00:06:43 --> 00:06:44 Last week,
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 the Apostle Paul painted a picture
00:06:47 --> 00:06:49 from early in 2 Corinthians 5
00:06:49 --> 00:06:53 painted a picture of eternal life.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:56 Eternal life is infinitely wonderful
00:06:56 --> 00:06:57 to imagine.
00:06:59 --> 00:07:00 Eternal life in the presence of Jesus
00:07:00 --> 00:07:03 is infinitely beautiful to contemplate.
00:07:04 --> 00:07:06 And it's hard for us to get a glimpse of it,
00:07:06 --> 00:07:08 but think of a moment in your life
00:07:08 --> 00:07:12 when you were bursting
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 because you were so happy.
00:07:15 --> 00:07:16 Think of a moment.
00:07:16 --> 00:07:17 Surely there's at least one.
00:07:19 --> 00:07:21 And multiply that a thousand times
00:07:21 --> 00:07:23 and let it increase continually
00:07:23 --> 00:07:25 for all of eternity
00:07:25 --> 00:07:29 and you got just some sort of a notion
00:07:29 --> 00:07:31 of what eternal life with Jesus
00:07:31 --> 00:07:32 would be like.
00:07:34 --> 00:07:36 And so if eternal life with God
00:07:36 --> 00:07:38 is the most glorious reality
00:07:38 --> 00:07:40 that we could even hope to imagine,
00:07:41 --> 00:07:42 eternity without God
00:07:42 --> 00:07:46 is the most appalling reality
00:07:46 --> 00:07:49 that you could possibly imagine.
00:07:50 --> 00:07:51 If heaven means that I'm raised
00:07:51 --> 00:07:53 with a body fit for life
00:07:53 --> 00:07:54 of joy and peace
00:07:54 --> 00:07:55 and painlessness and beauty
00:07:55 --> 00:07:56 that will never end
00:07:56 --> 00:07:57 in the presence of God,
00:07:58 --> 00:07:59 then hell means that I'm raised
00:07:59 --> 00:08:00 with a body fit for eternity
00:08:00 --> 00:08:03 of torment away from God.
00:08:04 --> 00:08:07 The suffering will never kill the body.
00:08:07 --> 00:08:11 It will just go on and on and on and on
00:08:11 --> 00:08:14 and no horror of suffering
00:08:14 --> 00:08:15 in human history
00:08:15 --> 00:08:19 will be compared with it at all.
00:08:21 --> 00:08:23 That's as close as I can get to it,
00:08:24 --> 00:08:24 what it will mean.
00:08:26 --> 00:08:28 Revelation 14.11
00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 is probably the most graphic
00:08:29 --> 00:08:30 New Testament judgment,
00:08:31 --> 00:08:31 a statement, sorry,
00:08:32 --> 00:08:33 of the eternal suffering
00:08:33 --> 00:08:36 of those who are unrepentant sinners.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:36 It says,
00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 The smoke of their torment
00:08:38 --> 00:08:39 rises forever and ever.
00:08:39 --> 00:08:40 There is no rest,
00:08:41 --> 00:08:42 day or night.
00:08:44 --> 00:08:45 The point of all this
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 is that when we read
00:08:46 --> 00:08:48 2 Corinthians 5.10,
00:08:48 --> 00:08:49 we're not just meant
00:08:49 --> 00:08:50 to sort of skim over it.
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 We're actually meant
00:08:51 --> 00:08:52 to feel something
00:08:52 --> 00:08:54 and we're meant to shudder
00:08:54 --> 00:08:57 is really what we're meant to do.
00:08:59 --> 00:09:00 To paraphrase a quote
00:09:00 --> 00:09:01 from John Piper,
00:09:02 --> 00:09:02 he says,
00:09:03 --> 00:09:03 we need to feel
00:09:03 --> 00:09:04 that we were once
00:09:04 --> 00:09:05 as close to hell
00:09:05 --> 00:09:07 as we are in the seats
00:09:07 --> 00:09:08 that we're now sitting on
00:09:08 --> 00:09:08 even closer.
00:09:09 --> 00:09:10 Its darkness like vapor
00:09:10 --> 00:09:11 had entered the soul
00:09:11 --> 00:09:12 and was luring us down.
00:09:13 --> 00:09:14 We must believe and feel
00:09:14 --> 00:09:15 that just like a rock climber
00:09:15 --> 00:09:16 who has slipped
00:09:16 --> 00:09:18 and perilously hangs
00:09:18 --> 00:09:19 on the edge of a cliff
00:09:19 --> 00:09:20 with his fingertips,
00:09:21 --> 00:09:23 so we used to hang over hell
00:09:23 --> 00:09:24 a mere heartbeat
00:09:24 --> 00:09:25 from eternal torment.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:27 The Bible says,
00:09:28 --> 00:09:28 it is a dreadful thing
00:09:28 --> 00:09:29 to fall into the hands
00:09:29 --> 00:09:30 of the living God
00:09:30 --> 00:09:32 and for the first 22 years
00:09:32 --> 00:09:33 of my life,
00:09:33 --> 00:09:34 I was but a heartbeat
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 from that.
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 For half of my life,
00:09:38 --> 00:09:39 I was a heartbeat
00:09:39 --> 00:09:39 from that.
00:09:44 --> 00:09:45 And so it says
00:09:45 --> 00:09:46 in verse 11,
00:09:46 --> 00:09:47 since then we know
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 what it is to fear the Lord.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 He's speaking to people
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 who are Christians here.
00:09:51 --> 00:09:51 He says,
00:09:51 --> 00:09:52 we try to persuade men.
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 The fear of God
00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 is a right motivation,
00:09:57 --> 00:10:00 but it isn't our only motivation.
00:10:01 --> 00:10:03 The fear of hell and God
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 is no proof
00:10:04 --> 00:10:05 that you actually love Christ.
00:10:07 --> 00:10:08 But if we do not believe
00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 in our hearts
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10 the awful truth
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 of the enmity
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 that is between God
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 and us
00:10:13 --> 00:10:15 and all the terrifying
00:10:15 --> 00:10:15 consequences
00:10:15 --> 00:10:16 that go along with that,
00:10:17 --> 00:10:17 then our love for Christ
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 will be shallow
00:10:18 --> 00:10:20 and it will be flawed.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 Without the fear
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 my love for Christ
00:10:24 --> 00:10:25 will be taken for granted.
00:10:25 --> 00:10:27 It will be passionless.
00:10:27 --> 00:10:28 And all those joys
00:10:28 --> 00:10:30 that I spoke about last week
00:10:30 --> 00:10:31 of the eternal kingdom
00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 in the presence of God,
00:10:33 --> 00:10:37 I'll just come to expect it
00:10:37 --> 00:10:38 to be the next thing.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:41 It's kind of a given
00:10:41 --> 00:10:43 that that's the next thing
00:10:43 --> 00:10:44 that I'm going to get.
00:10:46 --> 00:10:47 And so let us believe
00:10:47 --> 00:10:49 and feel the horror
00:10:49 --> 00:10:50 of eternal condemnation
00:10:50 --> 00:10:52 and flee from it
00:10:52 --> 00:10:54 into the loving arms of Jesus
00:10:54 --> 00:10:57 where there is no condemnation.
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 We are told in verse 14
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 that fear of judgment
00:11:00 --> 00:11:02 is not Paul's only motive.
00:11:02 --> 00:11:02 He says,
00:11:02 --> 00:11:05 because Christ's love compels us.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06 And these verses
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 that flow on from that
00:11:07 --> 00:11:09 are just rich
00:11:09 --> 00:11:10 with the wonder
00:11:10 --> 00:11:12 of the love of Christ for us.
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13 Verse 18,
00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 have a look at it.
00:11:14 --> 00:11:15 God,
00:11:15 --> 00:11:16 who reconciled us to himself
00:11:16 --> 00:11:17 through Christ.
00:11:17 --> 00:11:18 And again in verse 19,
00:11:18 --> 00:11:20 God was reconciling the world
00:11:20 --> 00:11:21 to himself in Christ.
00:11:21 --> 00:11:22 To reconcile
00:11:22 --> 00:11:25 is to render two parties
00:11:25 --> 00:11:26 to be no longer
00:11:26 --> 00:11:28 opposed to one another.
00:11:29 --> 00:11:30 It is to win over
00:11:30 --> 00:11:31 from hostility
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 and enmity
00:11:32 --> 00:11:33 into friendship
00:11:33 --> 00:11:34 is to make
00:11:34 --> 00:11:35 two opposites
00:11:35 --> 00:11:37 consistent
00:11:37 --> 00:11:37 and compatible.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:39 And these verses
00:11:39 --> 00:11:40 say that God
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 took the initiative
00:11:41 --> 00:11:43 so that we would not
00:11:43 --> 00:11:44 be rendered
00:11:44 --> 00:11:45 separated from one another
00:11:45 --> 00:11:46 for all of eternity.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 God took the initiative
00:11:48 --> 00:11:49 to reconcile
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 us to himself.
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 It is all the work of God.
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 See it there in verse 18.
00:11:53 --> 00:11:55 All this is from God.
00:11:56 --> 00:11:57 See it in verse 19.
00:11:58 --> 00:11:59 God was reconciling
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00 the world to himself.
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 Again in verse 21,
00:12:01 --> 00:12:03 God made him
00:12:03 --> 00:12:03 who had no sin
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04 to be sin for us.
00:12:05 --> 00:12:06 What it's saying there is
00:12:06 --> 00:12:07 that we are opposed
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 to God
00:12:08 --> 00:12:11 living a life of sin,
00:12:11 --> 00:12:12 living for ourselves
00:12:12 --> 00:12:14 and God took the initiative.
00:12:14 --> 00:12:16 It was the initiative,
00:12:16 --> 00:12:16 the momentum,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 the purpose
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 of reconciliation
00:12:18 --> 00:12:21 are all from God.
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 God does something
00:12:23 --> 00:12:24 about the sin
00:12:24 --> 00:12:25 that has caused
00:12:25 --> 00:12:26 the enmity
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 between us and him.
00:12:28 --> 00:12:28 Verse 19
00:12:28 --> 00:12:29 is the preliminary
00:12:29 --> 00:12:30 explanation
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 of how this reconciliation
00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 is brought about.
00:12:34 --> 00:12:34 Have a look at it.
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 God was reconciling
00:12:36 --> 00:12:37 the world to himself
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 in Christ,
00:12:38 --> 00:12:39 not counting men's
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 sins against them.
00:12:41 --> 00:12:41 And verse 21
00:12:41 --> 00:12:42 describes
00:12:42 --> 00:12:44 how it is possible
00:12:44 --> 00:12:45 that God doesn't
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 count our sins
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 against us.
00:12:47 --> 00:12:48 It says,
00:12:48 --> 00:12:49 God made him
00:12:49 --> 00:12:50 who had no sin
00:12:50 --> 00:12:52 to be sin for us
00:12:52 --> 00:12:53 so that in him
00:12:53 --> 00:12:55 we might become
00:12:55 --> 00:12:55 the righteousness
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 of God.
00:12:57 --> 00:12:58 The end of verse 19
00:12:58 --> 00:13:00 says that God
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 doesn't want to count
00:13:01 --> 00:13:02 our sins
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 against us.
00:13:04 --> 00:13:05 Frankly,
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 we don't want God
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 to count our sins
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 against us.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:10 And so picture here
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 if you like
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 an account book.
00:13:13 --> 00:13:14 The account book
00:13:14 --> 00:13:16 has written in it
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 everything that I've said,
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 everything that I've done,
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 everything that I've thought,
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 all that I am,
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 everything.
00:13:24 --> 00:13:26 That's a pretty frightening
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 thought really.
00:13:27 --> 00:13:29 And verse 21
00:13:29 --> 00:13:31 says that
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 my sin
00:13:32 --> 00:13:34 is not put
00:13:34 --> 00:13:35 into my account book
00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 but it's put
00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 into Jesus'
00:13:37 --> 00:13:38 account book
00:13:38 --> 00:13:39 instead.
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 My account
00:13:43 --> 00:13:43 of sin
00:13:43 --> 00:13:44 has been put
00:13:44 --> 00:13:45 by God
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 to the account
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 of his
00:13:47 --> 00:13:48 sinless son.
00:13:49 --> 00:13:50 Jesus has taken
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 my place
00:13:51 --> 00:13:51 and he's borne
00:13:51 --> 00:13:52 my sin
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 in his body
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 on the cross.
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 It means
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 that Jesus
00:13:56 --> 00:13:57 has been judged
00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 for my error,
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 for my sin.
00:14:02 --> 00:14:04 He was made sin,
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 the sin of the world,
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 that terrible burden
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 and offence to God,
00:14:07 --> 00:14:09 all the hostility
00:14:09 --> 00:14:09 and enmity
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 and filth
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 that separates
00:14:11 --> 00:14:12 me from God
00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 and for all of us
00:14:14 --> 00:14:14 from God.
00:14:16 --> 00:14:17 Everything that is
00:14:17 --> 00:14:18 the reason
00:14:18 --> 00:14:20 that I deserve
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 eternal punishment
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 has been placed
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 by God
00:14:23 --> 00:14:23 onto his son
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 the Lord Jesus
00:14:24 --> 00:14:25 and the Lord Jesus
00:14:25 --> 00:14:27 willingly accepts
00:14:27 --> 00:14:27 all that wrath
00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 and anger
00:14:28 --> 00:14:28 from God.
00:14:29 --> 00:14:30 He is judged
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 for my
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 and for our sin.
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 On the cross
00:14:34 --> 00:14:35 he suffered
00:14:35 --> 00:14:35 the torment
00:14:35 --> 00:14:37 and cried out,
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 my God,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:38 my God,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 why have you
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 forsaken me
00:14:40 --> 00:14:42 so that I might
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 not never
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 have to utter
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 those words
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 for all of eternity?
00:14:46 --> 00:14:51 but not only
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 is my sin
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 put into his account
00:14:53 --> 00:14:55 but his
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 perfect
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 unblemished
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 righteousness
00:14:58 --> 00:15:00 is put into
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 my account.
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 I can't be
00:15:06 --> 00:15:06 condemned
00:15:06 --> 00:15:08 if I trust
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 in Jesus
00:15:09 --> 00:15:09 because there
00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 is no proof.
00:15:11 --> 00:15:12 There is no debt,
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 there is no
00:15:13 --> 00:15:15 badness and sin
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 written up
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 in my book.
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 I open the book
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 on the day of judgment
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 and it reads
00:15:21 --> 00:15:23 perfect righteousness.
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 No wrong.
00:15:27 --> 00:15:29 The only thing
00:15:29 --> 00:15:29 that I contribute
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 to my reconciliation
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 with God
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 is the sins
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 for which I must
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 be redeemed.
00:15:35 --> 00:15:37 In a trivial way,
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 it's kind of like
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 the day I married Nat,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 not that that
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 was trivial.
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 As I exchanged
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 rings with Nat,
00:15:47 --> 00:15:49 I got a ring
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 and I put the ring
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 on her finger
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 and I said,
00:15:52 --> 00:15:52 Natalie,
00:15:52 --> 00:15:53 with this ring
00:15:53 --> 00:15:53 I wed you.
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 With all that I am
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 and all that I have,
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 I honour you.
00:15:59 --> 00:16:00 What I'm saying
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 there in that moment
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 is that everything
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 that's mine
00:16:03 --> 00:16:05 is now yours.
00:16:05 --> 00:16:09 The problem
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 with that was
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 after five years
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 as a student,
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 that included
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 a hex debt,
00:16:15 --> 00:16:17 a car loan
00:16:17 --> 00:16:19 and $2
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 that I had to borrow
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 from my father-in-law
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 in order to have
00:16:21 --> 00:16:21 a honeymoon.
00:16:22 --> 00:16:24 And I said to Nat,
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 it's now all yours.
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 All that I have,
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 all that debt
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 is now yours.
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 That's a trivial way
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 of putting it,
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 if you like.
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 That's what happens
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 when you become a Christian
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 or another moral,
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 realistic way
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 of putting it,
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 it's like getting
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 Nathan Tinkler's
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 bank account
00:16:45 --> 00:16:47 and changing
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 the name
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 at the top of it
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 with Bill Gates
00:16:50 --> 00:16:52 and getting
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 Bill Gates'
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 bank account
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 and putting
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 Nathan Tinkler's
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 name at the top of it,
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 a big swap
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 has happened.
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 All the debt
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 and the bankruptcies,
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 nearly there,
00:17:03 --> 00:17:05 has been swapped.
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 So that Bill Gates
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 takes the bankruptcy
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 and Nathan Tinkler
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 gets the bank account
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 and the richest man
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 in the world.
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 That's what happens
00:17:15 --> 00:17:15 when you become
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 a Christian.
00:17:16 --> 00:17:18 You bring all your sin
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 and moral bankruptcy
00:17:19 --> 00:17:19 to him
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 and he receives it
00:17:20 --> 00:17:22 and he counts them,
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 God counts
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 all of that stuff
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 to the Lord Jesus
00:17:25 --> 00:17:27 and Jesus'
00:17:27 --> 00:17:28 perfect record
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 is given to me.
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 And my friends,
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 if you're a Christian,
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 it is to fill you
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 with the wonder
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 and the gratitude
00:17:34 --> 00:17:36 and the thankfulness
00:17:36 --> 00:17:37 and the humility
00:17:37 --> 00:17:38 that the death
00:17:38 --> 00:17:39 of one man,
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 the God-man,
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 Jesus Christ,
00:17:41 --> 00:17:43 would bear the infinite penalty
00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 as a substitute
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 for everyone
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 who repents
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 and trusts in him.
00:17:47 --> 00:17:51 and it is essential
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 for your confidence
00:17:52 --> 00:17:54 in his finished work
00:17:54 --> 00:17:56 of reconciliation
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 that we see
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 the centrality
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 of the Lord Jesus
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 in it all.
00:18:00 --> 00:18:02 Notice in verse 18,
00:18:02 --> 00:18:04 it is all through Christ.
00:18:04 --> 00:18:04 Verse 19,
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 it is in Christ.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 The reconciliation
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 of the world
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 to God
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 happens through
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 the death
00:18:11 --> 00:18:11 and resurrection
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 of Christ.
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 It is something
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 that has happened
00:18:14 --> 00:18:14 in history.
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 It is something
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 that is finished
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 and we have no part
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 of it.
00:18:18 --> 00:18:20 And the word world
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 in verse 19
00:18:21 --> 00:18:23 is staggering.
00:18:24 --> 00:18:24 It says
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 that what God did
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 through the death
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 of the Lord Jesus
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 on a hill
00:18:28 --> 00:18:29 outside the city walls
00:18:29 --> 00:18:30 of Jerusalem
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 in around 30 AD
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 concerns
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 the reconciliation
00:18:34 --> 00:18:36 of the entire
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 human race
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 to its maker.
00:18:38 --> 00:18:43 It is the extraordinary
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 claim of the New Testament.
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 It is the claim
00:18:45 --> 00:18:47 of verses 14 and 15
00:18:47 --> 00:18:49 in 2 Corinthians 5.
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 We are convinced
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 that one died
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 for all
00:18:52 --> 00:18:54 and therefore
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 all died
00:18:55 --> 00:18:57 and he died
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 for all.
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 Jesus' death
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 has universal significance.
00:19:02 --> 00:19:02 He is
00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 the reconciler.
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 There is
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 no reconciliation
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 with God
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 outside of Jesus.
00:19:09 --> 00:19:10 You don't need
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 anything more
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 than Jesus
00:19:12 --> 00:19:12 but you can't
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 have anything
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 less than Jesus.
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 And this message
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 of reconciliation
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 with God
00:19:20 --> 00:19:20 through the Lord
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 Jesus Christ
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 is our message
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 for the city
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 of Chatswood
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 and beyond.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 That's what
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 mission month
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 is all about.
00:19:28 --> 00:19:28 The stakes
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 couldn't be high
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 my friends.
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 Separation
00:19:31 --> 00:19:31 from God
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 for all of eternity
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 and torment
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 or coming to Christ
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 and living for him.
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 Eternal life
00:19:36 --> 00:19:38 in his presence
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 and he calls us
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 with a real sense
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 of urgency
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 in 2 Corinthians 5
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 and 6
00:19:42 --> 00:19:44 to attend
00:19:44 --> 00:19:45 to this matter.
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 If you're not
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 someone who trusts
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 in the Lord Jesus
00:19:50 --> 00:19:52 then I want to say
00:19:52 --> 00:19:54 with all humility
00:19:54 --> 00:19:55 and with gentleness
00:19:55 --> 00:19:57 but with deliberateness
00:19:57 --> 00:19:57 the stakes
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 could not be higher
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 for you right now.
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 As chapter 2
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 verse
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 chapter 6
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 verse 2 says
00:20:06 --> 00:20:08 now is the time
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 of God's favour
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 now is the day
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 of salvation
00:20:11 --> 00:20:13 and I implore you
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 as the Apostle Paul
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 does for us
00:20:15 --> 00:20:17 in these verses
00:20:17 --> 00:20:19 to be reconciled
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 with God.
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 If he has
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 at all
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 twinged your heart
00:20:23 --> 00:20:23 tonight
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 do not ignore it.
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 Come and speak
00:20:27 --> 00:20:27 to me
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 or speak to Sam
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 or Rob
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 or a friend
00:20:30 --> 00:20:30 who's brought you
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 here tonight.
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 Attend to the matter
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 right now.
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 So the message
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 of reconciliation
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 of what God
00:20:39 --> 00:20:39 has done
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 and can only
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 do through Christ
00:20:41 --> 00:20:44 the ministry
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 of reconciliation
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 on the other hand
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 is what God
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 can only do
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 through us.
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 And so this bit
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 is for those
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 who receive
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 the message
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 of reconciliation.
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 This is what
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 God is calling you
00:20:57 --> 00:20:57 to.
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 The message
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 doesn't just
00:21:00 --> 00:21:02 shape our future
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 it actually
00:21:03 --> 00:21:03 shapes our
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 present as well.
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 So verse 20
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 we are therefore
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 Christ's ambassadors
00:21:08 --> 00:21:10 as though God
00:21:10 --> 00:21:10 were making
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 his appeal
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 through us.
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 The main thrust
00:21:13 --> 00:21:13 of verse 20
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 and onwards
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 is that what
00:21:15 --> 00:21:16 Christians
00:21:16 --> 00:21:18 the ones who
00:21:18 --> 00:21:18 have been
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 reconciled
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 must do
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 if the message
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 of reconciliation
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 is to be heard.
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 That is the message
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 of reconciliation
00:21:25 --> 00:21:27 is our ministry
00:21:27 --> 00:21:27 of reconciliation
00:21:27 --> 00:21:29 to the city
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 of Chatswood
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 and beyond.
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 This is what
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 God does
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 through us.
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 Verse 18
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 All this is
00:21:34 --> 00:21:34 from God
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 who reconciled
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 us to himself
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 through Christ
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 and gave us
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 the ministry
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 of reconciliation.
00:21:41 --> 00:21:41 The ministry
00:21:41 --> 00:21:43 is given to us
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 it's not given
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 to Christ
00:21:44 --> 00:21:44 it's not given
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 to the angels.
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 Verse 19
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 And he is
00:21:47 --> 00:21:49 committed to us
00:21:49 --> 00:21:49 the message
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 of reconciliation.
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 It's given to us
00:21:52 --> 00:21:52 not Christ
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 not the angels.
00:21:54 --> 00:21:54 Verse 20
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 We are therefore
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 Christ's ambassadors
00:21:56 --> 00:21:58 as though God
00:21:58 --> 00:21:58 were making his appeal
00:21:58 --> 00:22:00 through us.
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 He does it through us
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 not Christ
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 not the angels.
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 Then again
00:22:04 --> 00:22:04 in chapter 6
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 verse 1
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 As God's fellow workers
00:22:06 --> 00:22:08 we urge you
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 not to receive
00:22:09 --> 00:22:09 God's grace
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 in vain.
00:22:11 --> 00:22:11 We do the urging
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 not God
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 yes God does it
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 through the Holy Spirit
00:22:14 --> 00:22:16 but it is
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 our responsibility
00:22:17 --> 00:22:18 it is our task
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 it is our voice
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 it is our tongue.
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 Verse 20
00:22:23 --> 00:22:25 makes our ministry
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 very clear
00:22:26 --> 00:22:28 we are Christ's ambassadors.
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 And as an ambassador
00:22:30 --> 00:22:33 that job is
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 quite distinguished
00:22:34 --> 00:22:36 as an ambassador
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 the honour
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 of the Lord Jesus
00:22:38 --> 00:22:40 is at stake
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 that is an
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 overwhelming thought.
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 In his death
00:22:45 --> 00:22:47 Jesus represents us
00:22:47 --> 00:22:49 and in his absence
00:22:49 --> 00:22:51 we represent him.
00:22:53 --> 00:22:55 And so if you have
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 received the message
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 of reconciliation
00:22:56 --> 00:22:59 then the ministry
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 of reconciliation
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 is yours.
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 It's not just
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 reserved for people
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 like me.
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 It's yours.
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 Everyone who's
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 received the message
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 of reconciliation
00:23:08 --> 00:23:11 has been given
00:23:11 --> 00:23:11 the ministry
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 of reconciliation.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 See the connection
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 in verse 15?
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 He
00:23:17 --> 00:23:17 Christ
00:23:17 --> 00:23:19 died for all
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 that those who live
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 should no longer
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 live for themselves
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 but for him
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 who died for them
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 and was raised again.
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 As a recipient
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 of the message
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 of reconciliation
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 my whole life
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 has now been
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 redeployed
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 for diplomatic service.
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 I speak
00:23:37 --> 00:23:37 and I live
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 in such a way
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 that makes Jesus
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 look like the treasure
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 that he actually is.
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 And Paul shows us
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 in chapter 6
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 verses 3 to 10
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 that being an ambassador
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 is hard work.
00:23:49 --> 00:23:51 So when I talk
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 about diplomatic service
00:23:52 --> 00:23:52 don't think of
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 High Commissioner
00:23:53 --> 00:23:53 in New Zealand
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 for instance.
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 Think of being sent
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 to a hostile
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 foreign country
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 to speak on behalf
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 of your sovereign government.
00:24:01 --> 00:24:01 Let's have a look
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 at it there
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 in verses 3 and 4.
00:24:03 --> 00:24:05 We put no stumbling block
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 in anyone's path
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 so that our ministry
00:24:07 --> 00:24:09 will not be discredited.
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 Remember
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 we represent
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 the Lord Jesus.
00:24:13 --> 00:24:13 Our lifestyle
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 and our message
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 are to be consistent
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 with each other.
00:24:16 --> 00:24:18 It is absolutely essential
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 because if the ministry
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 is discredited
00:24:20 --> 00:24:22 the message
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 is discredited
00:24:22 --> 00:24:24 which means
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 that the Lord Jesus
00:24:25 --> 00:24:25 is discredited.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 That's an overwhelming thought.
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 Verse 4
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 rather
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 that is rather than
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 being a stumbling block
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 and discrediting
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 the ministry
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 and discrediting
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 the Lord Jesus
00:24:34 --> 00:24:36 as servants of God
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 we commend ourselves
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 in every way
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 and how does he
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 commend himself
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 in his service?
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 By taking off
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 his uniform
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 and mingling
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 with the crowd?
00:24:45 --> 00:24:47 Have a look
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 in great endurance
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 in troubles
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 hardship
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 and distresses
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 etc.
00:24:52 --> 00:24:52 etc.
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 etc.
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 As one
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 former minister
00:24:57 --> 00:24:59 or current minister
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 actually said
00:25:00 --> 00:25:02 the ministry
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 of reconciliation
00:25:02 --> 00:25:04 is sheer
00:25:04 --> 00:25:06 hard work.
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 Claypot expectations
00:25:08 --> 00:25:10 from earlier on.
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 Sheer hard work.
00:25:13 --> 00:25:13 It's not being
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 an ambassador
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 for the Lord Jesus
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 when it feels right
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 or when it seems
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 like the correct time
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 or when you think
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 people are going
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 to receive
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 what you're going
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 to say
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 favourably
00:25:22 --> 00:25:24 or when a
00:25:24 --> 00:25:26 positive response
00:25:26 --> 00:25:26 is guaranteed
00:25:26 --> 00:25:28 or when it's convenient
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 it shapes
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 your whole life.
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 I loved
00:25:33 --> 00:25:35 hearing the story
00:25:35 --> 00:25:35 recently
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 of an elderly
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 Christian man
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 who was dying
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 of cancer
00:25:38 --> 00:25:40 and his main
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 concern
00:25:40 --> 00:25:42 was to die
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 so well
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 around his
00:25:44 --> 00:25:44 carers
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 and his nurses
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 and his doctors
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 and his families
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 that Jesus
00:25:48 --> 00:25:50 looked great
00:25:50 --> 00:25:50 to them.
00:25:51 --> 00:25:52 That's what
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 shaped his life.
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 An ambassador
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 of the Lord Jesus
00:25:55 --> 00:25:57 right to the end.
00:25:57 --> 00:26:00 He hadn't
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 lost heart
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 in the troubles
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 and distresses
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 and hardships
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 of life.
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 He hadn't
00:26:05 --> 00:26:05 taken off
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 his uniform
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 and mingled
00:26:07 --> 00:26:07 with the crowd.
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 And so
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 friends
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 St. Paul's
00:26:11 --> 00:26:13 I want to
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 ask you
00:26:14 --> 00:26:16 do the
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 ministries
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 and particularly
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 this is for you
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 if you're
00:26:18 --> 00:26:20 in leadership
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 in any
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 capacity
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 at St. Paul's
00:26:22 --> 00:26:24 do the
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 ministries
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 of this church
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 make clear
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 the need
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 and the
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 message
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 of reconciliation.
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 I'm not
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 asking
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 did they
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 start
00:26:34 --> 00:26:34 with the
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 purpose
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 of the
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 ministry
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 being clear
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 I'm asking
00:26:38 --> 00:26:38 has it
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 continued
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 or has
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 there been
00:26:41 --> 00:26:41 a loss
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 of heart
00:26:42 --> 00:26:42 along the
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 way
00:26:43 --> 00:26:45 maybe
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 the
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 relationship
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 connection
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 has become
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 central
00:26:49 --> 00:26:51 rather than
00:26:51 --> 00:26:51 the message
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 of reconciliation
00:26:52 --> 00:26:54 or maybe
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 the maintenance
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 of the ministry
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 structure
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 has in fact
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 consumed the
00:26:58 --> 00:26:58 focus.
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 I can tell
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 you that for
00:27:02 --> 00:27:02 me
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 one of the
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 sure signs
00:27:04 --> 00:27:04 that I'm
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 starting to
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 disrobe my
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 uniform
00:27:06 --> 00:27:09 is
00:27:09 --> 00:27:11 when I
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 go about
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 activities of
00:27:13 --> 00:27:13 ministry
00:27:13 --> 00:27:15 and I
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 don't shed
00:27:16 --> 00:27:16 a tear
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 for those
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 who are
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 lost
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 Christ.
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 Or it's
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 possible to
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 year in
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 and year
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 out
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 just keep
00:27:27 --> 00:27:27 the
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 clogs
00:27:28 --> 00:27:28 moving
00:27:28 --> 00:27:30 balancing
00:27:30 --> 00:27:30 the
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 budgets
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 making sure
00:27:32 --> 00:27:32 people are
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 turning up
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 running out
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 the programs
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 week in
00:27:36 --> 00:27:37 week out
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 week in
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 week out
00:27:38 --> 00:27:40 and we
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 do it
00:27:41 --> 00:27:41 to make
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 ourselves
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 comfortable
00:27:42 --> 00:27:44 rather than
00:27:44 --> 00:27:44 do it for
00:27:44 --> 00:27:45 those who
00:27:45 --> 00:27:45 need to hear
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 Christ.
00:27:53 --> 00:27:53 Where we
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 can be more
00:27:54 --> 00:27:54 concerned about
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 the look of
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 this thing
00:27:55 --> 00:27:57 and the fact
00:27:57 --> 00:27:57 that it's
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 probably got
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 three tons of
00:27:59 --> 00:27:59 water in it
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 on a wooden
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 structure and
00:28:01 --> 00:28:01 will it
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 possibly stand
00:28:02 --> 00:28:02 up and put a
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 hole in the
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 building than
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 what it's
00:28:05 --> 00:28:05 actually here
00:28:05 --> 00:28:07 for and
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 celebrating what
00:28:08 --> 00:28:08 happened tonight.
00:28:08 --> 00:28:12 friends our
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 mission statements
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 written on the
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 back wall of
00:28:14 --> 00:28:14 our church
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 there tells
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 us that we
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 exist for
00:28:17 --> 00:28:17 this message
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 and for
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 this ministry.
00:28:21 --> 00:28:22 St. Paul's
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 exists to know
00:28:23 --> 00:28:23 Jesus, to
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 treasure Jesus
00:28:24 --> 00:28:24 and represent
00:28:24 --> 00:28:26 Jesus and it
00:28:26 --> 00:28:26 is not just
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 meant to be
00:28:27 --> 00:28:27 written on the
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 walls, it's
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 meant to be
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 written in
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 our hearts
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 and to be
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 shaping our
00:28:32 --> 00:28:32 lives.
00:28:34 --> 00:28:34 I believe the
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 more deeply
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 we feel how
00:28:36 --> 00:28:38 undeserved and
00:28:38 --> 00:28:38 free was the
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 grace of the
00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 Lord Jesus
00:28:39 --> 00:28:41 Christ that
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 plucked someone
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 like me at
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 the age of
00:28:43 --> 00:28:46 23 from the
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 flames of
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 eternal misery
00:28:47 --> 00:28:49 the more we
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 will treasure the
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 Lord Jesus and
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 the gift of
00:28:52 --> 00:28:52 grace that we
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 have in him.
00:28:54 --> 00:28:54 And the more
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 that we treasure
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 the Lord Jesus
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 I believe the
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 harder we'll
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 work, the
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 less we'll
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 regard everyone
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 from a worldly
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 point of view,
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 we will see them
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 as people in
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 need of Christ
00:29:06 --> 00:29:08 and the
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 freer our
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 love will be
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 in representing
00:29:10 --> 00:29:11 the Lord Jesus
00:29:11 --> 00:29:13 to those who
00:29:13 --> 00:29:13 need to
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 experience his
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 mercy.
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 Let's pray.
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 Gracious
00:29:21 --> 00:29:21 Father I pray
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 that you would
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 reshape our
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 priorities as we
00:29:24 --> 00:29:24 have gone
00:29:24 --> 00:29:26 through 2
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 Corinthians 4
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 and 5
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 over this
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 month of
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 refocusing
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 again on
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 your global
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 agenda and
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 your plans,
00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 the mission
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 that you've
00:29:35 --> 00:29:35 entrusted to
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 us.
00:29:37 --> 00:29:37 Lord if we
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 have been
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 tempted either
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 individually or
00:29:40 --> 00:29:42 corporately to
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 take off our
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 uniform and
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 mingle with the
00:29:45 --> 00:29:47 crowd, encourage
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 us in heart I
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 pray as again
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 we hear the
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 message of
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 reconciliation.
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 Help us Lord
00:29:54 --> 00:29:54 to be humbled,
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 to see that
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 we've contributed
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 nothing.
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 There's no good
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 and better people
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 but that we're
00:30:03 --> 00:30:03 all in deep
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 need of
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 reconciliation
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 with you
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 and we
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 thank you for
00:30:07 --> 00:30:07 what you've
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 done for us
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 in the Lord
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 Jesus.
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 May it shape
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 our lives we
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 pray day by
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 day.
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 Amen.