Is God really 'Almighty'?
Series: WE BELIEVE
Speaker: Jacob Sarkodee
Date: 8th February 2020
Passage: Psalm 1:1-150:6
00:00:00 --> 00:00:04 Suffering. Is God really almighty?
00:00:06 --> 00:00:09 It was January 2006.
00:00:10 --> 00:00:17 I was 18 and had been selected as the New South Wales Youth Ambassador for World Vision Australia.
00:00:17 --> 00:00:26 Now, as part of this year of volunteering, I took up, during my undergraduate degree,
00:00:26 --> 00:00:31 I travelled to the very newly independent nation of Timor-Leste.
00:00:33 --> 00:00:36 Now, prior to going, I really knew nothing about Timor-Leste.
00:00:38 --> 00:00:41 I mean, what would an 18-year-old boy really think about?
00:00:42 --> 00:00:43 He'd never heard of the term.
00:00:44 --> 00:00:51 I recall I had to look it up, this country, on a map, just to confirm where in the world was it.
00:00:51 --> 00:00:59 And to my surprise, it was only a very short distance from Australia's northernmost city, Darwin.
00:01:00 --> 00:01:08 Now, the reason for myself and five others going was to reveal the story of Timor and its current suffering
00:01:08 --> 00:01:14 to a nation of teenagers and children more interested in the next PlayStation.
00:01:14 --> 00:01:19 Timor's history is one of profound suffering.
00:01:20 --> 00:01:26 Hundreds of years of colonial rule by the Portuguese, World War II invasion by the Japanese,
00:01:26 --> 00:01:31 and 24 years of brutal Indonesian occupation.
00:01:33 --> 00:01:39 During the Indonesian occupation that started nine days after the Portuguese rolled out in 1975,
00:01:39 --> 00:01:46 as many as a quarter of the population, or 250 people,
00:01:47 --> 00:01:54 had died from violence, famine, or diseases over the next two and a half decades.
00:01:56 --> 00:02:03 After a famous UN administered successful independence vote in September 1999,
00:02:04 --> 00:02:06 the country was torched to the ground.
00:02:06 --> 00:02:10 Some of you may remember this, by pro-Indonesian militia.
00:02:11 --> 00:02:14 Some 1 people died in a few weeks,
00:02:15 --> 00:02:19 and 80% of the country's infrastructure was destroyed.
00:02:21 --> 00:02:23 When we arrived just over five years later,
00:02:24 --> 00:02:28 the then youngest nation in the world was in the midst of a severe hunger crisis.
00:02:29 --> 00:02:32 The rate of malnutrition was the highest in Southeast Asia.
00:02:32 --> 00:02:37 The maternal mortality rate was the highest in the world.
00:02:38 --> 00:02:42 And here was a now free nation,
00:02:43 --> 00:02:47 covered in a cloak of silent suffering,
00:02:48 --> 00:02:49 every hungry season,
00:02:49 --> 00:02:55 where people would have literally nothing to eat for months and months.
00:02:55 --> 00:03:00 And all of this, just one hour flight from Darwin.
00:03:01 --> 00:03:05 This photo will stay with me for a very long time.
00:03:06 --> 00:03:08 It was taken in the district of Aliu,
00:03:09 --> 00:03:12 just about an hour south of Dili, the capital.
00:03:13 --> 00:03:16 We had just met a mother named Isabel,
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 and met some of her children.
00:03:20 --> 00:03:21 They were a poor family
00:03:21 --> 00:03:26 that lived on maize and cassava.
00:03:27 --> 00:03:29 There was no electricity in their community.
00:03:31 --> 00:03:32 And she told us the story
00:03:32 --> 00:03:35 of how three of her own children had died
00:03:35 --> 00:03:37 because of hunger.
00:03:37 --> 00:03:41 One was just eight months
00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 and had not died long ago.
00:03:45 --> 00:03:47 This was the grave site
00:03:47 --> 00:03:49 behind their house
00:03:49 --> 00:03:52 and their three children
00:03:52 --> 00:03:56 under a small set of stones.
00:03:56 --> 00:04:00 This was me
00:04:00 --> 00:04:01 at that moment,
00:04:03 --> 00:04:05 hit by the silence
00:04:05 --> 00:04:06 of suffering.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:11 We learned that the village was unusual
00:04:11 --> 00:04:13 in that it had a Protestant church.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:14 The majority of Timor is
00:04:14 --> 00:04:16 Catholic.
00:04:17 --> 00:04:19 And the mother, Isabel, said,
00:04:19 --> 00:04:21 and I remember her saying this,
00:04:22 --> 00:04:23 that life is short
00:04:23 --> 00:04:25 and that the children
00:04:25 --> 00:04:26 who had died
00:04:26 --> 00:04:28 were happy
00:04:28 --> 00:04:29 with their Father in heaven.
00:04:34 --> 00:04:35 This morning,
00:04:35 --> 00:04:36 I want us to come before the Lord
00:04:36 --> 00:04:37 in the recognition
00:04:37 --> 00:04:40 that things in our world
00:04:40 --> 00:04:41 are not right.
00:04:42 --> 00:04:43 They're not just.
00:04:45 --> 00:04:46 And yet,
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 the Lord is here
00:04:48 --> 00:04:49 with us
00:04:49 --> 00:04:50 in it.
00:04:51 --> 00:04:53 He knows Isabel's suffering.
00:04:53 --> 00:04:56 He knows our suffering.
00:04:57 --> 00:04:59 And He is inviting
00:04:59 --> 00:05:00 our community
00:05:00 --> 00:05:01 in Chatswood
00:05:01 --> 00:05:02 to resist
00:05:02 --> 00:05:03 what suffering
00:05:03 --> 00:05:04 and evil does
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 and to remind ourselves
00:05:06 --> 00:05:06 that God stands
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 in solidarity with us.
00:05:08 --> 00:05:09 Not only that,
00:05:10 --> 00:05:11 but He takes responsibility
00:05:11 --> 00:05:12 for the evil
00:05:12 --> 00:05:13 and suffering
00:05:13 --> 00:05:14 in the world
00:05:14 --> 00:05:16 as creation awaits
00:05:16 --> 00:05:17 its complete
00:05:17 --> 00:05:17 transformation
00:05:18 --> 00:05:19 and redemption.
00:05:19 --> 00:05:23 As we open ourselves up
00:05:23 --> 00:05:24 this morning,
00:05:24 --> 00:05:25 our hearts
00:05:25 --> 00:05:26 and the word today,
00:05:27 --> 00:05:27 I want us,
00:05:28 --> 00:05:30 I want to remind us
00:05:30 --> 00:05:31 that in the context
00:05:31 --> 00:05:32 of suffering
00:05:32 --> 00:05:34 and the sovereignty
00:05:34 --> 00:05:35 of God,
00:05:35 --> 00:05:36 there are these great words
00:05:36 --> 00:05:37 from Paul.
00:05:38 --> 00:05:39 For now we see
00:05:39 --> 00:05:40 only a reflection
00:05:40 --> 00:05:41 as in a mirror.
00:05:43 --> 00:05:44 Then we shall see
00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 face to face.
00:05:45 --> 00:05:47 Now I know
00:05:47 --> 00:05:48 in part,
00:05:49 --> 00:05:51 then I shall know
00:05:51 --> 00:05:51 fully,
00:05:52 --> 00:05:53 even as I am
00:05:53 --> 00:05:54 fully known
00:05:54 --> 00:05:56 from 1 Corinthians 13.
00:05:57 --> 00:05:58 So can we just
00:05:58 --> 00:05:58 take this moment
00:05:58 --> 00:05:59 to pray
00:05:59 --> 00:06:01 as we explore
00:06:01 --> 00:06:01 God's Word,
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04 which is our only
00:06:04 --> 00:06:05 source of light
00:06:05 --> 00:06:06 and truth.
00:06:06 --> 00:06:13 Heavenly Father,
00:06:15 --> 00:06:17 King of Kings,
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 we thank you,
00:06:20 --> 00:06:21 Lord,
00:06:21 --> 00:06:22 that you are present
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 this morning with us
00:06:24 --> 00:06:26 in all of our griefs,
00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 in all of our heartbreaks,
00:06:29 --> 00:06:32 in all of our sufferings.
00:06:32 --> 00:06:35 Lord,
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 help us to see
00:06:37 --> 00:06:38 your light,
00:06:39 --> 00:06:40 your truth
00:06:40 --> 00:06:42 in the darkness,
00:06:43 --> 00:06:45 and may we bring you
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 unending glory.
00:06:48 --> 00:06:49 In Jesus' name,
00:06:49 --> 00:06:50 Amen.
00:06:52 --> 00:06:53 So,
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 as you know,
00:06:54 --> 00:06:54 we're going through
00:06:54 --> 00:06:55 the Apostles' Creed,
00:06:56 --> 00:06:57 and particularly
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 the first sentence,
00:06:58 --> 00:06:59 which talks about
00:06:59 --> 00:07:01 Father Almighty
00:07:01 --> 00:07:04 creator of heaven
00:07:04 --> 00:07:05 and earth.
00:07:05 --> 00:07:06 So firstly,
00:07:06 --> 00:07:08 who is Father Almighty?
00:07:08 --> 00:07:09 These two powerful
00:07:09 --> 00:07:10 words together,
00:07:10 --> 00:07:12 words to describe God,
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 that He is both
00:07:13 --> 00:07:14 our heavenly Father,
00:07:16 --> 00:07:16 the one we refer,
00:07:17 --> 00:07:18 that Jesus refers to
00:07:18 --> 00:07:19 as Abba,
00:07:19 --> 00:07:20 Abba Father,
00:07:21 --> 00:07:22 reflecting that sense
00:07:22 --> 00:07:23 of being known
00:07:23 --> 00:07:25 personally by your Father,
00:07:25 --> 00:07:26 as well as,
00:07:26 --> 00:07:26 on the other hand,
00:07:27 --> 00:07:27 Almighty.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:29 Almighty,
00:07:30 --> 00:07:30 something you would
00:07:30 --> 00:07:31 normally attribute
00:07:31 --> 00:07:32 to a king.
00:07:33 --> 00:07:33 Often,
00:07:33 --> 00:07:35 perhaps in Australia,
00:07:36 --> 00:07:37 a sporting icon
00:07:37 --> 00:07:39 is the closest reference
00:07:39 --> 00:07:40 to Almighty.
00:07:40 --> 00:07:41 In Melbourne,
00:07:42 --> 00:07:43 where Kate and I
00:07:43 --> 00:07:44 spent six years,
00:07:44 --> 00:07:45 there is only one person
00:07:45 --> 00:07:47 in sporting terms,
00:07:47 --> 00:07:48 at least,
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 who meets the criteria
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 of the Almighty,
00:07:51 --> 00:07:51 Almighty.
00:07:52 --> 00:07:53 And his name is
00:07:53 --> 00:07:54 Sir Gary Ablett.
00:07:55 --> 00:07:55 Now,
00:07:56 --> 00:07:57 I may imagine
00:07:57 --> 00:07:58 that you're not all
00:07:58 --> 00:07:59 AFL aficionados,
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 but this man
00:08:01 --> 00:08:02 was known
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 and referred to
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 widely
00:08:04 --> 00:08:05 as God.
00:08:06 --> 00:08:07 He was called
00:08:07 --> 00:08:08 God,
00:08:08 --> 00:08:10 because he could do
00:08:10 --> 00:08:11 all things.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:12 Apparently,
00:08:13 --> 00:08:14 things that no other
00:08:14 --> 00:08:15 person could do,
00:08:15 --> 00:08:16 like mark a ball
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 on top of the shoulders
00:08:17 --> 00:08:18 of someone else.
00:08:18 --> 00:08:18 I mean,
00:08:18 --> 00:08:19 who can do that?
00:08:20 --> 00:08:21 But apart from Gary,
00:08:22 --> 00:08:22 I would suspect
00:08:22 --> 00:08:24 very few people
00:08:24 --> 00:08:25 get such a title
00:08:25 --> 00:08:26 in Australia.
00:08:27 --> 00:08:27 In Australia,
00:08:27 --> 00:08:28 at least,
00:08:28 --> 00:08:30 they would be humiliated
00:08:30 --> 00:08:30 pretty quickly
00:08:30 --> 00:08:31 by those around them,
00:08:31 --> 00:08:32 like brought down
00:08:32 --> 00:08:32 to size.
00:08:33 --> 00:08:33 You are not
00:08:33 --> 00:08:34 Almighty.
00:08:35 --> 00:08:36 Let's remind
00:08:36 --> 00:08:36 ourselves of that.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:40 So,
00:08:40 --> 00:08:41 what are we
00:08:41 --> 00:08:42 to make
00:08:42 --> 00:08:43 of God's
00:08:43 --> 00:08:44 Almighty character?
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 In what way
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 does this go together
00:08:47 --> 00:08:48 with him
00:08:48 --> 00:08:50 as our Heavenly Father
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 who loves his children?
00:08:51 --> 00:08:52 And to help us
00:08:52 --> 00:08:53 consider this,
00:08:53 --> 00:08:54 we're looking at Psalm 33.
00:08:55 --> 00:08:55 So,
00:08:55 --> 00:08:55 please,
00:08:55 --> 00:08:56 I encourage you,
00:08:56 --> 00:08:57 take your sheets out
00:08:57 --> 00:08:58 or find a Bible
00:08:58 --> 00:08:59 and open Psalm 33.
00:09:00 --> 00:09:01 The first thing
00:09:01 --> 00:09:02 to notice about this psalm
00:09:02 --> 00:09:04 is that it celebrates
00:09:04 --> 00:09:04 the Lord
00:09:04 --> 00:09:05 as Redeemer,
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 Creator,
00:09:07 --> 00:09:07 Judge,
00:09:08 --> 00:09:09 and Savior,
00:09:09 --> 00:09:10 all in one psalm.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:12 It is a song
00:09:12 --> 00:09:13 that is a reflection
00:09:13 --> 00:09:14 of the whole history
00:09:14 --> 00:09:15 of God's people,
00:09:16 --> 00:09:16 in particular,
00:09:17 --> 00:09:17 his sovereignty
00:09:17 --> 00:09:19 in and through history
00:09:19 --> 00:09:20 in delivering
00:09:20 --> 00:09:21 on his promises.
00:09:22 --> 00:09:23 It looks back
00:09:23 --> 00:09:25 into the covenantal history,
00:09:26 --> 00:09:27 the agreement
00:09:27 --> 00:09:28 or the covenant
00:09:28 --> 00:09:29 between God
00:09:29 --> 00:09:29 and his people,
00:09:30 --> 00:09:31 Israel,
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 and declares
00:09:32 --> 00:09:33 in verse 4,
00:09:33 --> 00:09:34 for the word
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 of the Lord
00:09:35 --> 00:09:36 is right
00:09:36 --> 00:09:37 and true.
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 He is faithful
00:09:38 --> 00:09:39 in all
00:09:39 --> 00:09:40 he does.
00:09:42 --> 00:09:43 The psalm
00:09:43 --> 00:09:44 reveals these
00:09:44 --> 00:09:45 three key things
00:09:45 --> 00:09:46 that illuminate
00:09:46 --> 00:09:47 him as Father
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 Almighty.
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 The first,
00:09:51 --> 00:09:51 the unmatchable
00:09:51 --> 00:09:52 power of his word.
00:09:53 --> 00:09:54 Verse 6,
00:09:54 --> 00:09:56 by the word
00:09:56 --> 00:09:57 of the Lord,
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 by the breath
00:09:59 --> 00:10:01 of his mouth.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:03 He need only
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 speak
00:10:04 --> 00:10:05 and it is.
00:10:07 --> 00:10:08 This echoes
00:10:08 --> 00:10:08 for us,
00:10:08 --> 00:10:08 surely,
00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 Jesus,
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10 who in the gospel
00:10:10 --> 00:10:10 of Luke,
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 chapter 8,
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 speaks and calms
00:10:13 --> 00:10:14 the storm
00:10:14 --> 00:10:15 in the presence
00:10:15 --> 00:10:16 of his terrified
00:10:16 --> 00:10:17 disciples.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 All he has to do
00:10:18 --> 00:10:20 is speak.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 There is such power.
00:10:22 --> 00:10:25 number 2.2,
00:10:25 --> 00:10:26 he sees and knows
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 all people.
00:10:28 --> 00:10:28 He has formed
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 the hearts
00:10:29 --> 00:10:30 of all
00:10:30 --> 00:10:31 on the earth.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 Verse 13
00:10:32 --> 00:10:33 to 15,
00:10:33 --> 00:10:34 from heaven
00:10:34 --> 00:10:35 the Lord looks
00:10:35 --> 00:10:36 down and sees
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 all mankind.
00:10:37 --> 00:10:38 From his dwelling
00:10:38 --> 00:10:39 place he watches
00:10:39 --> 00:10:40 all who live
00:10:40 --> 00:10:41 on earth.
00:10:42 --> 00:10:42 He forms
00:10:42 --> 00:10:43 the hearts
00:10:43 --> 00:10:44 of all
00:10:44 --> 00:10:46 who considers
00:10:46 --> 00:10:46 everything
00:10:46 --> 00:10:47 they do.
00:10:47 --> 00:10:50 There is no one
00:10:50 --> 00:10:51 in the world
00:10:51 --> 00:10:52 the Lord
00:10:52 --> 00:10:52 does not know.
00:10:53 --> 00:10:54 In the whole
00:10:54 --> 00:10:54 world,
00:10:55 --> 00:10:55 in whole
00:10:55 --> 00:10:56 of human history,
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 in that sense,
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 we see another
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 reflection of
00:11:00 --> 00:11:01 his mighty power.
00:11:02 --> 00:11:02 No one
00:11:02 --> 00:11:03 falls out
00:11:03 --> 00:11:04 of his
00:11:04 --> 00:11:05 understanding.
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 And point 3,
00:11:08 --> 00:11:08 finally,
00:11:09 --> 00:11:10 no king,
00:11:10 --> 00:11:11 not even
00:11:11 --> 00:11:11 the greatest
00:11:11 --> 00:11:12 powers or
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13 armies on
00:11:13 --> 00:11:13 earth,
00:11:14 --> 00:11:14 is outside
00:11:14 --> 00:11:16 the reach
00:11:16 --> 00:11:17 or power
00:11:17 --> 00:11:18 of the Lord.
00:11:19 --> 00:11:20 Verse 16,
00:11:21 --> 00:11:21 no king
00:11:21 --> 00:11:22 is saved
00:11:22 --> 00:11:23 by the size
00:11:23 --> 00:11:23 of his army,
00:11:24 --> 00:11:24 no warrior
00:11:24 --> 00:11:25 escapes by
00:11:25 --> 00:11:27 his great
00:11:27 --> 00:11:27 strength.
00:11:29 --> 00:11:30 In the
00:11:30 --> 00:11:31 context of
00:11:31 --> 00:11:31 when this
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 was written,
00:11:33 --> 00:11:34 a king
00:11:34 --> 00:11:35 had all
00:11:35 --> 00:11:36 power,
00:11:36 --> 00:11:36 you could
00:11:36 --> 00:11:36 imagine.
00:11:37 --> 00:11:38 And the
00:11:38 --> 00:11:38 psalmist
00:11:38 --> 00:11:39 is saying,
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 even God
00:11:41 --> 00:11:43 has greater
00:11:43 --> 00:11:44 power.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:44 power.
00:11:45 --> 00:11:46 No world
00:11:46 --> 00:11:47 superpower in
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 all human
00:11:48 --> 00:11:48 history matches
00:11:48 --> 00:11:49 the strength
00:11:49 --> 00:11:51 of God.
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 He is the
00:11:52 --> 00:11:52 king of kings.
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 And so,
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 we hold in
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 one hand that
00:11:55 --> 00:11:55 he is
00:11:55 --> 00:11:56 father almighty,
00:11:56 --> 00:11:58 and when we
00:11:58 --> 00:11:59 learn he is
00:11:59 --> 00:11:59 also creator
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00 of all.
00:12:01 --> 00:12:01 He is the
00:12:01 --> 00:12:02 creator of
00:12:02 --> 00:12:02 the heavens
00:12:02 --> 00:12:02 and the
00:12:02 --> 00:12:03 earth,
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04 of galaxies,
00:12:05 --> 00:12:05 of the
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07 hundreds of
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 billions of
00:12:08 --> 00:12:08 galaxies,
00:12:09 --> 00:12:12 and also of
00:12:12 --> 00:12:12 nanoparticles.
00:12:12 --> 00:12:14 verse 6
00:12:14 --> 00:12:14 and 7.
00:12:15 --> 00:12:16 By the
00:12:16 --> 00:12:16 word of
00:12:16 --> 00:12:16 the Lord
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 were the
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 heavens made,
00:12:18 --> 00:12:19 their starry
00:12:19 --> 00:12:19 host by
00:12:19 --> 00:12:20 the breath
00:12:20 --> 00:12:20 of his
00:12:20 --> 00:12:20 mouth.
00:12:20 --> 00:12:21 He gathers
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 the waters
00:12:22 --> 00:12:22 of the
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 seas into
00:12:23 --> 00:12:24 jars.
00:12:24 --> 00:12:25 He puts
00:12:25 --> 00:12:26 the deep
00:12:26 --> 00:12:26 into
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 storehouses.
00:12:29 --> 00:12:29 To him,
00:12:29 --> 00:12:30 all of the
00:12:30 --> 00:12:30 waters of
00:12:30 --> 00:12:31 the sea
00:12:31 --> 00:12:33 are as if
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 they would
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 fall into
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 a simple
00:12:36 --> 00:12:36 jar,
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 or the
00:12:38 --> 00:12:38 deep of
00:12:38 --> 00:12:39 the ocean
00:12:39 --> 00:12:41 into a
00:12:41 --> 00:12:41 simple
00:12:41 --> 00:12:42 garage.
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 a
00:12:43 --> 00:12:44 storehouse.
00:12:45 --> 00:12:45 The
00:12:45 --> 00:12:45 psalmist is
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 declaring the
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 divine ownership
00:12:47 --> 00:12:47 of the
00:12:47 --> 00:12:48 whole earth,
00:12:48 --> 00:12:49 the whole
00:12:49 --> 00:12:49 universe,
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 to God.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 But God
00:12:52 --> 00:12:52 did not just
00:12:52 --> 00:12:53 create the
00:12:53 --> 00:12:53 heavens and
00:12:53 --> 00:12:54 the earth
00:12:54 --> 00:12:54 and then
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 stand to
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 one side
00:12:56 --> 00:12:57 and say,
00:12:57 --> 00:12:58 okay,
00:12:58 --> 00:12:58 done.
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 He sustains
00:13:00 --> 00:13:00 it.
00:13:01 --> 00:13:02 Every moment
00:13:02 --> 00:13:02 of every
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 day,
00:13:03 --> 00:13:04 as we gather
00:13:04 --> 00:13:04 at this
00:13:04 --> 00:13:05 very time,
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 the Lord
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 is sustaining
00:13:07 --> 00:13:07 creation.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:08 Christopher
00:13:08 --> 00:13:08 Wright
00:13:08 --> 00:13:10 helpfully
00:13:10 --> 00:13:10 puts it
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 like this.
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 He says,
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 creation then
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 is distinct
00:13:13 --> 00:13:14 from God
00:13:14 --> 00:13:14 its creator,
00:13:15 --> 00:13:15 but it
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 also is
00:13:16 --> 00:13:16 totally
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 dependent
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 upon God.
00:13:20 --> 00:13:21 Creation
00:13:21 --> 00:13:21 is not
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 independent
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 or co-eternal,
00:13:24 --> 00:13:24 rather,
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 God is
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 actively and
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 unceasingly
00:13:27 --> 00:13:28 sustaining its
00:13:28 --> 00:13:29 existence and
00:13:29 --> 00:13:29 its functions
00:13:29 --> 00:13:31 at macro
00:13:31 --> 00:13:31 and micro
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 levels.
00:13:33 --> 00:13:33 It's just
00:13:33 --> 00:13:34 the sheer
00:13:34 --> 00:13:36 power and
00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 might of
00:13:37 --> 00:13:37 God as
00:13:37 --> 00:13:38 creator.
00:13:39 --> 00:13:40 So this
00:13:40 --> 00:13:40 is the
00:13:40 --> 00:13:40 sovereign
00:13:40 --> 00:13:42 Lord of
00:13:42 --> 00:13:42 the universe.
00:13:43 --> 00:13:43 This is what
00:13:43 --> 00:13:44 we mean when
00:13:44 --> 00:13:44 we understand
00:13:44 --> 00:13:45 his sovereignty,
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 creator of
00:13:47 --> 00:13:47 galaxies,
00:13:48 --> 00:13:49 who knows
00:13:49 --> 00:13:49 the hearts
00:13:49 --> 00:13:50 of everyone
00:13:50 --> 00:13:50 who walked
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 on the
00:13:51 --> 00:13:51 earth.
00:13:52 --> 00:13:52 And what's
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 most profound
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 to me is
00:13:54 --> 00:13:54 that this
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 creator of
00:13:55 --> 00:13:55 galaxies,
00:13:56 --> 00:13:57 he loves
00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 you.
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 You know,
00:14:01 --> 00:14:01 let's just
00:14:01 --> 00:14:02 sit on that.
00:14:02 --> 00:14:03 The creator
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 of the
00:14:04 --> 00:14:04 universe
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 loves
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 you.
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 He loves
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 you.
00:14:08 --> 00:14:09 I want
00:14:09 --> 00:14:09 everyone to
00:14:09 --> 00:14:09 say that.
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 He loves
00:14:10 --> 00:14:10 me.
00:14:12 --> 00:14:12 Amen.
00:14:13 --> 00:14:13 It's no
00:14:13 --> 00:14:14 small thing.
00:14:16 --> 00:14:16 It is a
00:14:16 --> 00:14:17 gift of
00:14:17 --> 00:14:17 love revealed
00:14:17 --> 00:14:18 most perfectly
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 in the
00:14:19 --> 00:14:19 person of
00:14:19 --> 00:14:19 Jesus.
00:14:20 --> 00:14:20 And all
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 we have
00:14:21 --> 00:14:21 to do
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 is accept
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 his love.
00:14:24 --> 00:14:24 And what
00:14:24 --> 00:14:25 you find,
00:14:26 --> 00:14:26 and what
00:14:26 --> 00:14:26 you will
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 find,
00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 is that
00:14:28 --> 00:14:28 when you
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 accept that
00:14:29 --> 00:14:29 love,
00:14:29 --> 00:14:30 your love
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 for him
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 will be
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 greater than
00:14:32 --> 00:14:32 you can
00:14:32 --> 00:14:33 possibly
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 imagine.
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 So let's
00:14:36 --> 00:14:36 turn now
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 to suffering,
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 which we've
00:14:38 --> 00:14:38 been talking
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 about a
00:14:39 --> 00:14:39 little bit
00:14:39 --> 00:14:39 already.
00:14:42 --> 00:14:42 The question
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 I want us
00:14:43 --> 00:14:43 to consider
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 is,
00:14:44 --> 00:14:44 how do we
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 live in
00:14:45 --> 00:14:45 the reality
00:14:45 --> 00:14:45 of an
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 almighty
00:14:46 --> 00:14:46 God
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 in the
00:14:47 --> 00:14:47 midst
00:14:47 --> 00:14:48 of
00:14:48 --> 00:14:48 suffering
00:14:48 --> 00:14:49 and a
00:14:49 --> 00:14:49 broken
00:14:49 --> 00:14:50 world?
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 You see,
00:14:51 --> 00:14:51 when we
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 truly face
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 the tragic
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 reality of
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 suffering and
00:14:55 --> 00:14:55 evil in
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 our world,
00:14:57 --> 00:14:57 our answer
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 for everything
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 culture
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 that we
00:15:00 --> 00:15:00 live in
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 and inhabit
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 screams the
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 question,
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 why?
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 Why does
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 God allow
00:15:07 --> 00:15:07 this?
00:15:08 --> 00:15:08 This
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 suffering?
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 This
00:15:10 --> 00:15:10 evil?
00:15:12 --> 00:15:12 Something that
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 really hit me
00:15:13 --> 00:15:15 this week,
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 and in fact it
00:15:16 --> 00:15:16 was as we
00:15:16 --> 00:15:16 were sitting
00:15:16 --> 00:15:17 here last
00:15:17 --> 00:15:17 Sunday,
00:15:18 --> 00:15:18 and I was
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 preparing,
00:15:19 --> 00:15:19 the Lord was
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 preparing this
00:15:20 --> 00:15:20 word,
00:15:21 --> 00:15:22 this sermon
00:15:22 --> 00:15:23 for this
00:15:23 --> 00:15:23 Sunday,
00:15:24 --> 00:15:24 I was
00:15:24 --> 00:15:24 reflecting,
00:15:25 --> 00:15:25 and I'm
00:15:25 --> 00:15:25 sure many
00:15:25 --> 00:15:25 of you
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 have,
00:15:26 --> 00:15:26 on the
00:15:26 --> 00:15:26 terrible
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 deaths of
00:15:27 --> 00:15:28 four children
00:15:28 --> 00:15:29 by a
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 drunk
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 29-year-old
00:15:31 --> 00:15:33 driver in
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 Western
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 Sydney.
00:15:35 --> 00:15:35 This is
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 truly a
00:15:36 --> 00:15:36 weighty
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 matter.
00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 I was
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 grieving this
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 all last
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 week.
00:15:41 --> 00:15:43 I lamented.
00:15:44 --> 00:15:44 I said,
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 how Lord,
00:15:46 --> 00:15:47 these children,
00:15:48 --> 00:15:48 I saw my
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 children in
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 these children,
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 I saw
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 myself in
00:15:52 --> 00:15:52 the father,
00:15:52 --> 00:15:53 I saw
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 Kate in
00:15:54 --> 00:15:54 the mother.
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 Can I
00:15:57 --> 00:15:57 encourage you,
00:15:57 --> 00:15:57 if you
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 haven't had a
00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 chance to
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 watch the
00:15:59 --> 00:16:00 video of
00:16:00 --> 00:16:00 Leela,
00:16:01 --> 00:16:01 the mother,
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 speaking after
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 the incident,
00:16:03 --> 00:16:03 inspired by
00:16:03 --> 00:16:04 her Lebanese
00:16:04 --> 00:16:05 Orthodox faith
00:16:05 --> 00:16:05 in Jesus,
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 she speaks
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 as a mother
00:16:08 --> 00:16:08 who knows
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 the resurrection
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 of Jesus
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 is her only
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 hope in
00:16:12 --> 00:16:12 the face
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 of profound
00:16:13 --> 00:16:15 suffering and
00:16:15 --> 00:16:15 grief.
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 Some of you
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 may be aware
00:16:17 --> 00:16:19 that I serve
00:16:19 --> 00:16:19 at International
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 Justice Mission
00:16:20 --> 00:16:22 Australia.
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 IJM is an
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 organization that
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 considers itself
00:16:26 --> 00:16:28 first and
00:16:28 --> 00:16:28 before anything
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 a community
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 of Christian
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 spiritual
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 formation.
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 That is the
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 primary thing
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 that we are
00:16:36 --> 00:16:38 as a body.
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 But we
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 are also the
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 largest
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 anti-slavery
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 organization in
00:16:43 --> 00:16:43 the world.
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 And it's
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 founder Gary
00:16:44 --> 00:16:46 Haugen writes
00:16:46 --> 00:16:46 on the subject
00:16:46 --> 00:16:47 an extremely
00:16:47 --> 00:16:47 helpful book
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 and I
00:16:48 --> 00:16:48 encourage you
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 if you would
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 like to
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 read,
00:16:50 --> 00:16:50 I've got
00:16:50 --> 00:16:50 one,
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 I'm happy
00:16:51 --> 00:16:51 to share
00:16:51 --> 00:16:51 it,
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 good news
00:16:52 --> 00:16:52 about
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 injustice.
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 He writes
00:16:55 --> 00:16:55 about being
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 the lead
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 UN investigator
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 to the
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 Rwandan
00:16:58 --> 00:16:59 genocide
00:16:59 --> 00:16:59 in 1994
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 that saw
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 almost 1
00:17:01 --> 00:17:01 million people
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 killed in
00:17:02 --> 00:17:03 100 days
00:17:03 --> 00:17:04 in state
00:17:04 --> 00:17:04 sponsored
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 genocide
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 and crimes
00:17:06 --> 00:17:06 against
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 humanity.
00:17:09 --> 00:17:09 Gary
00:17:09 --> 00:17:09 himself
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 waded
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 through
00:17:11 --> 00:17:11 thousands
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 of bodies
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 to identify
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 how they
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 were killed
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 so that
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 someday
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 their families
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 might receive
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 justice.
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 And he
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 reflects on
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 the typical
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 question,
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 quote,
00:17:26 --> 00:17:28 why does
00:17:28 --> 00:17:28 God allow
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 so much
00:17:29 --> 00:17:29 injustice
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 in the
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 world as
00:17:31 --> 00:17:31 it was
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 many times
00:17:32 --> 00:17:32 put to
00:17:32 --> 00:17:32 him?
00:17:33 --> 00:17:33 He
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 responds,
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 I believe
00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 I've heard
00:17:35 --> 00:17:36 most of
00:17:36 --> 00:17:36 the neat
00:17:36 --> 00:17:37 answers to
00:17:37 --> 00:17:37 these
00:17:37 --> 00:17:38 questions,
00:17:39 --> 00:17:39 a set of
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 answers which
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 in Christian
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 circles often
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 explode in
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 a discussion
00:17:43 --> 00:17:45 like an
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 emergency
00:17:46 --> 00:17:46 ejection
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 seat,
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 rescuing
00:17:48 --> 00:17:48 relieved
00:17:48 --> 00:17:48 passages
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 from a
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 crush
00:17:50 --> 00:17:50 from a
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 crash and
00:17:51 --> 00:17:51 burn
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 confrontation
00:17:52 --> 00:17:52 with
00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 unpleasant
00:17:53 --> 00:17:53 mysteries.
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 Frankly,
00:17:55 --> 00:17:55 the pat
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 answers
00:17:56 --> 00:17:56 don't
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 work
00:17:57 --> 00:17:57 and the
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 insensitivity
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 that I
00:17:59 --> 00:17:59 have seen
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 in myself
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 and in
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 others as
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 we have
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 addressed
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 others'
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 pain has
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 bordered at
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 times on
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 cruelty.
00:18:08 --> 00:18:08 Let's be
00:18:08 --> 00:18:08 honest,
00:18:09 --> 00:18:09 this is
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 hard.
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 As Irving
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 Greenberg,
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 a writer of
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 the Holocaust,
00:18:15 --> 00:18:15 has said,
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 no statement,
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 theological or
00:18:18 --> 00:18:18 otherwise,
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 should be
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 made that
00:18:20 --> 00:18:21 would not
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 be credible
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 in the
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 presence of
00:18:23 --> 00:18:23 burning
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 children.
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 That is
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 very heavy.
00:18:31 --> 00:18:31 And maybe
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 for you,
00:18:32 --> 00:18:32 you've had
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 your own
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 personal
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 experience of
00:18:34 --> 00:18:34 this,
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 this level
00:18:36 --> 00:18:36 of suffering
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 and not
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 being able
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 to know
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 what to
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 say,
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 how to
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 explain
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 what is
00:18:40 --> 00:18:40 happening.
00:18:40 --> 00:18:44 I have
00:18:44 --> 00:18:44 my own
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 personal
00:18:45 --> 00:18:45 experience,
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 family
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 memory,
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 where
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 sometimes no
00:18:50 --> 00:18:50 simple
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 statement will
00:18:51 --> 00:18:51 suffice.
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 For me,
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 I bring
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 forward my
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 grandfather I
00:18:54 --> 00:18:54 never met.
00:18:56 --> 00:18:57 Here's a
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 photo of me
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 and my
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 father from
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 November last
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 year,
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 standing at
00:19:01 --> 00:19:01 his grave
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 site.
00:19:03 --> 00:19:03 He was a
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 judge in
00:19:04 --> 00:19:04 the highest
00:19:04 --> 00:19:04 court in
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 Ghana,
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 my father's
00:19:06 --> 00:19:06 homeland,
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 and on
00:19:07 --> 00:19:07 June 30,
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 1982,
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 in the
00:19:09 --> 00:19:09 context of
00:19:09 --> 00:19:10 political
00:19:10 --> 00:19:10 corruption
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 and a
00:19:11 --> 00:19:11 coup,
00:19:12 --> 00:19:12 my father
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 witnessed
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 his own
00:19:14 --> 00:19:14 father's,
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 my
00:19:15 --> 00:19:15 grandfather's
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 abduction
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 out the
00:19:17 --> 00:19:17 front of
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 his house.
00:19:19 --> 00:19:19 The next
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 day he
00:19:20 --> 00:19:20 found out
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 that his
00:19:21 --> 00:19:21 father had
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 been shot,
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 he had
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 been
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 assassinated
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 alongside
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 two other
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 judges and
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 a retired
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 army general,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:29 all in the
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 pursuit of
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 power.
00:19:34 --> 00:19:34 Last
00:19:34 --> 00:19:34 November,
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 my father
00:19:35 --> 00:19:35 and all
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 my aunties
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 and uncles,
00:19:37 --> 00:19:37 we visited
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 his grave
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 site and
00:19:38 --> 00:19:38 it was the
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 first time
00:19:39 --> 00:19:39 the family
00:19:39 --> 00:19:39 had
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 gone and
00:19:40 --> 00:19:40 returned to
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 that place
00:19:41 --> 00:19:41 of grief
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 and suffering
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 in 37
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 years.
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 I realised
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 even for
00:19:47 --> 00:19:47 myself,
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 having never
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 met him,
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 I carried
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 this weight
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 of his
00:19:51 --> 00:19:53 suffering my
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 whole lifetime
00:19:54 --> 00:19:56 and I had
00:19:56 --> 00:19:56 not given
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 it over
00:19:57 --> 00:19:57 to the
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 Lord.
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 And I
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 want to
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 invite us
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 this moment
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 just now,
00:20:03 --> 00:20:03 here and
00:20:03 --> 00:20:03 now,
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 to bring
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 to mind
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 perhaps your
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 own
00:20:07 --> 00:20:08 weighty
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 suffering
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 in your
00:20:11 --> 00:20:11 family,
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 in your
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 history.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 And I
00:20:16 --> 00:20:16 want to
00:20:16 --> 00:20:16 ask you
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 the question,
00:20:17 --> 00:20:17 will you
00:20:17 --> 00:20:17 do that?
00:20:23 --> 00:20:23 Will you
00:20:23 --> 00:20:23 take that
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 moment just
00:20:24 --> 00:20:24 now,
00:20:25 --> 00:20:25 in your
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 heart,
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 bring it
00:20:28 --> 00:20:28 to mind?
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 moment.
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 The Psalms
00:20:32 --> 00:20:32 reveal a
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 pattern of
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 believers,
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 a pattern
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 for believers
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 of not
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 hiding this
00:20:38 --> 00:20:38 suffering that
00:20:38 --> 00:20:40 is heavy on
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 your heart
00:20:41 --> 00:20:41 now,
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 not hiding
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 that suffering
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 away,
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 but bringing
00:20:45 --> 00:20:45 it forward,
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 open-handed
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 and saying,
00:20:48 --> 00:20:48 Lord,
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 here I am.
00:20:49 --> 00:20:52 I place
00:20:52 --> 00:20:52 this at
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 the foot
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 of the
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 cross
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 before you.
00:20:57 --> 00:20:58 And friends,
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 I want us
00:20:59 --> 00:20:59 to hear
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 this,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 this,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 this,
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 that we
00:21:02 --> 00:21:02 are bringing
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 forward,
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 is God's
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 weight.
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 I had
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 to pray,
00:21:10 --> 00:21:10 Lord,
00:21:10 --> 00:21:12 I am
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 handing this
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 suffering of
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 my grandfather
00:21:15 --> 00:21:16 and putting
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 it at the
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 foot of
00:21:18 --> 00:21:18 the cross.
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 because it
00:21:20 --> 00:21:20 is too
00:21:20 --> 00:21:20 much for
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 me to
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 carry.
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 So let
00:21:26 --> 00:21:26 him take
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 it.
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 He has
00:21:30 --> 00:21:30 let us
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 share a
00:21:31 --> 00:21:31 little bit
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 of his
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 heart,
00:21:33 --> 00:21:35 his own
00:21:35 --> 00:21:35 pain.
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 He knows
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 it, but
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 he also has
00:21:39 --> 00:21:39 a passion
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 for healing
00:21:40 --> 00:21:40 and for
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 justice.
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 And God
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 carries the
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 weight of
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 the world
00:21:45 --> 00:21:45 suffering more
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 than we
00:21:46 --> 00:21:46 could ever
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 understand.
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 And so
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 the next
00:21:51 --> 00:21:51 question
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 sometimes
00:21:52 --> 00:21:52 goes is,
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 are we
00:21:53 --> 00:21:53 asking the
00:21:53 --> 00:21:53 right
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 question?
00:21:55 --> 00:21:55 What does
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 God do
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 in response
00:21:57 --> 00:21:57 to evil?
00:21:58 --> 00:21:58 You see,
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 so often
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 I see,
00:22:02 --> 00:22:02 I would
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 like us
00:22:03 --> 00:22:03 to think
00:22:03 --> 00:22:03 about
00:22:03 --> 00:22:07 whether we
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 can put
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 down the
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 why question
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 and consider
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 this from a
00:22:12 --> 00:22:12 different angle.
00:22:13 --> 00:22:13 The why
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 question does
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 not take
00:22:15 --> 00:22:15 the view
00:22:15 --> 00:22:16 of the
00:22:16 --> 00:22:16 many
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 specific
00:22:17 --> 00:22:17 actions
00:22:17 --> 00:22:18 in history
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 of God
00:22:19 --> 00:22:19 in response
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 to evil,
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 particularly
00:22:21 --> 00:22:21 the life,
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 death,
00:22:22 --> 00:22:22 and resurrection
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 of Jesus
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 Christ.
00:22:24 --> 00:22:24 You see,
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 we are
00:22:25 --> 00:22:25 completely
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 at risk
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 of ignoring
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 the all
00:22:28 --> 00:22:28 powerful
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 actions
00:22:29 --> 00:22:29 of God
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 throughout
00:22:30 --> 00:22:30 his word
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 when we
00:22:31 --> 00:22:31 ask,
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 why does
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 God
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 allow evil
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 and suffering
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 rather than
00:22:36 --> 00:22:38 what does
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 God do
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 in response
00:22:40 --> 00:22:42 to evil?
00:22:42 --> 00:22:42 evil?
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 The question
00:22:44 --> 00:22:44 we need
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 to consider
00:22:45 --> 00:22:47 is what
00:22:47 --> 00:22:47 does suffering
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 or further
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 evil,
00:22:49 --> 00:22:49 what does
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 it do
00:22:50 --> 00:22:50 to you?
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 What does
00:22:51 --> 00:22:51 it do
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 to us?
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 And what
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 it almost
00:22:54 --> 00:22:54 instantly
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 does is
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 that it
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 causes us
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 to lose
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 our hope
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 in the
00:22:59 --> 00:22:59 true,
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 living,
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 and active
00:23:02 --> 00:23:02 God.
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 For this
00:23:04 --> 00:23:04 message,
00:23:04 --> 00:23:04 I spent
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 some time
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 reading this
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 terrific book,
00:23:07 --> 00:23:07 Raging
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 with Compassion,
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 pastoral
00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 responses to
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 the problem
00:23:12 --> 00:23:12 of evil
00:23:12 --> 00:23:14 by a man
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 named John
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 Swinton.
00:23:15 --> 00:23:15 I found
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 it to be
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 extremely
00:23:17 --> 00:23:17 helpful.
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 And he
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 says,
00:23:19 --> 00:23:19 quote,
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 above all
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 else,
00:23:21 --> 00:23:21 what evil
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 does is
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 to separate
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 human beings
00:23:24 --> 00:23:24 from their
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 primary source
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 of hope,
00:23:26 --> 00:23:26 God.
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 The problem
00:23:28 --> 00:23:28 of evil
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 is its
00:23:29 --> 00:23:29 propensity
00:23:29 --> 00:23:31 to tear
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 human beings
00:23:32 --> 00:23:32 asunder
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 from their
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 identity
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 and purpose
00:23:35 --> 00:23:36 as creatures
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 made in the
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 image of God
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 and loved
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 by God
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 beyond all
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 things.
00:23:42 --> 00:23:44 beyond all
00:23:44 --> 00:23:44 things.
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 Remember,
00:23:46 --> 00:23:46 friends,
00:23:47 --> 00:23:47 that it
00:23:47 --> 00:23:47 is,
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 as we
00:23:49 --> 00:23:51 say in
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 our series
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 title,
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 We Believe,
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 the Apostles'
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 Creed reminds
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 us that we
00:23:57 --> 00:23:57 are not
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 alone.
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 Yes,
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 we live in
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 the presence
00:24:02 --> 00:24:02 of evil
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 and suffering,
00:24:03 --> 00:24:05 but this
00:24:05 --> 00:24:07 place belongs
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 to God.
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 God.
00:24:08 --> 00:24:08 This
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 creation
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 is sustained
00:24:10 --> 00:24:10 by him
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 and will
00:24:11 --> 00:24:11 ultimately
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 be redeemed
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 by him.
00:24:14 --> 00:24:14 A man
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 who experienced
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 severe suffering
00:24:16 --> 00:24:16 once said,
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 I consider
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 that our
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 present sufferings
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 are not worth
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 comparing with
00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 the glory
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 that will be
00:24:23 --> 00:24:23 revealed in
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 us,
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 for the creation
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 waits in eager
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 expectation for
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 the children of
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 God to be
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 revealed.
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 For the creation
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 was subjected
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 to frustration,
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 not by its
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 own choice,
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 but by the
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 will of the
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 one who
00:24:38 --> 00:24:38 subjected it,
00:24:39 --> 00:24:39 in hope that
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 the creation
00:24:40 --> 00:24:42 itself will be
00:24:42 --> 00:24:42 liberated from
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 its bondage to
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 decay and
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 brought into
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 the freedom and
00:24:46 --> 00:24:46 glory of the
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 children of God.
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 The Apostle
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 Paul wrote
00:24:51 --> 00:24:51 this.
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 You see,
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 Paul reminds
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 us that
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 through Christ
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 the creation
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 is being
00:24:58 --> 00:24:58 redeemed.
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 John Swinton
00:25:00 --> 00:25:00 adds,
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 all suffering
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 and death
00:25:03 --> 00:25:03 has been
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 atoned for
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 and indeed
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 conquered in
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 the sacrifice
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 of Christ
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 in spite of
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 the continuing
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 presence of
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 evil and
00:25:12 --> 00:25:12 suffering.
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 So, my
00:25:15 --> 00:25:15 brothers and
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 sisters, we
00:25:16 --> 00:25:16 can be assured
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 that God
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 sits in
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 solidarity with
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 us and his
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 presence is
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 with us in
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 the midst of
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 suffering.
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 We have this
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 living and
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 real hope
00:25:27 --> 00:25:29 of what is
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 to come
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 because of
00:25:31 --> 00:25:31 the risen
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 Jesus.
00:25:32 --> 00:25:32 Jesus.
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 And not
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 only do
00:25:34 --> 00:25:36 we now
00:25:36 --> 00:25:38 have the
00:25:38 --> 00:25:38 joy of
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 receiving the
00:25:39 --> 00:25:41 free gift of
00:25:41 --> 00:25:42 Jesus in
00:25:42 --> 00:25:42 the midst of
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 our and our
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 neighbours'
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 suffering,
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 but we can
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 be assured
00:25:46 --> 00:25:46 that the
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 Lord is at
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 work making
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 the world
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 right.
00:25:51 --> 00:25:52 He is at
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 work today
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 making the
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 world right.
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 Turning to
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 perhaps one of
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 the boldest
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 statements in
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 the Old
00:26:00 --> 00:26:00 Testament falls
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 within Psalm
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 33, this
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 morning's
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 reading.
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 Did you see
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 it?
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 In verse
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 5?
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 The Lord
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 loves righteousness
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 and justice.
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 The earth is
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 full of his
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 unfailing love.
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 In the
00:26:14 --> 00:26:14 original context,
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 the people
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 hearing this
00:26:16 --> 00:26:18 knew all
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 too well
00:26:19 --> 00:26:21 injustice and
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 suffering.
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 It was their
00:26:21 --> 00:26:23 daily experience.
00:26:24 --> 00:26:24 And yet,
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 this is a
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 declaration that
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 in a world
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 where the
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 Lord is
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 almighty,
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 all-powerful,
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 he actively
00:26:32 --> 00:26:34 loves pursuing
00:26:34 --> 00:26:36 making things
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 right.
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 You see,
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 in the context
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 of brokenness
00:26:41 --> 00:26:41 and evil
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 actions of
00:26:42 --> 00:26:42 men and
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 women in
00:26:43 --> 00:26:43 the world,
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 we see God
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 working today
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 to bring all
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 things in
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 alignment with
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 his perfect
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 will.
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 And we
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 also learn
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 something about
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 God's heart.
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 We actually
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 discover something
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 about God's
00:26:58 --> 00:26:58 heart.
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 Christopher
00:26:59 --> 00:26:59 Wright says
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 again about
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 Psalm 33
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 verse 5
00:27:02 --> 00:27:02 revealing,
00:27:02 --> 00:27:04 The justice
00:27:04 --> 00:27:04 of God
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 is the
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 justice
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 of the
00:27:06 --> 00:27:07 God
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 who sees
00:27:07 --> 00:27:08 and hears
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 the cry
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 of the
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 weak and
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 oppressed,
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 cares about
00:27:13 --> 00:27:13 them,
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 and takes
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 action on
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 their behalf.
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 At IJM,
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 over the last
00:27:19 --> 00:27:20 22 years,
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 we have seen
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 God doing
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 this.
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 50
00:27:25 --> 00:27:27 people rescued
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 from violence
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 and slavery,
00:27:30 --> 00:27:30 millions more
00:27:30 --> 00:27:32 protected by
00:27:32 --> 00:27:32 strengthened
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 justice
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 systems,
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 all through
00:27:35 --> 00:27:35 the power
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 of God
00:27:36 --> 00:27:38 revealed in
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 his children
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 who see
00:27:40 --> 00:27:40 another kingdom,
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 a kingdom
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 of light,
00:27:44 --> 00:27:44 truth,
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 and justice.
00:27:46 --> 00:27:48 But brothers
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 and sisters,
00:27:49 --> 00:27:49 can I stress
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 again this
00:27:50 --> 00:27:50 point?
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 Answering the
00:27:52 --> 00:27:52 question,
00:27:53 --> 00:27:53 is God
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 really
00:27:54 --> 00:27:54 almighty,
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 is not an
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 intellectual
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 exercise.
00:27:58 --> 00:28:01 the challenge
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 is, how
00:28:02 --> 00:28:02 can we,
00:28:03 --> 00:28:03 as the
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 community
00:28:04 --> 00:28:04 here,
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 live faithfully
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 despite the
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 presence of
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 evil?
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 How can
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 we, as a
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 community of
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 believers from
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 all nations,
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 who gather in
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 this place now
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 called Chatswood,
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 create a
00:28:20 --> 00:28:21 community within
00:28:21 --> 00:28:22 which the
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 impacts of
00:28:23 --> 00:28:23 evil and
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 suffering can
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 be absorbed,
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 resisted,
00:28:28 --> 00:28:30 and transformed
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 as we await
00:28:31 --> 00:28:33 for Christ's
00:28:33 --> 00:28:33 return?
00:28:37 --> 00:28:39 So, we
00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 could spend
00:28:39 --> 00:28:42 months in
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 this topic,
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 but we have a
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 short time,
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 and I don't
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 want to,
00:28:47 --> 00:28:49 I don't,
00:28:49 --> 00:28:49 I don't want
00:28:49 --> 00:28:51 to, I
00:28:51 --> 00:28:51 don't want
00:28:51 --> 00:28:51 to, I
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 suppose,
00:28:53 --> 00:28:56 go too
00:28:56 --> 00:28:56 quickly,
00:28:56 --> 00:28:56 too fast.
00:28:57 --> 00:28:57 What we've
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 explored today
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 is a heavy
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 subject,
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 a heavy and
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 weighty matter,
00:29:02 --> 00:29:02 but the
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 following
00:29:03 --> 00:29:03 suggestions
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 come from
00:29:04 --> 00:29:04 a place
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 that I
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 pray will
00:29:06 --> 00:29:06 build and
00:29:06 --> 00:29:08 restore and
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 strengthen our
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 hope, and
00:29:10 --> 00:29:10 most importantly,
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 our love for
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 the Lord.
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 And I say
00:29:17 --> 00:29:17 the love,
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 your love for
00:29:18 --> 00:29:18 the Lord,
00:29:18 --> 00:29:20 because in
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 the last few
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 years, in
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 the joy of the
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 ministry that I've
00:29:23 --> 00:29:23 been able to
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 serve in at
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 IJM, I can
00:29:25 --> 00:29:27 absolutely say
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 that my love
00:29:28 --> 00:29:28 for the Lord
00:29:28 --> 00:29:30 has skyrocketed
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 in the midst
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 of daily
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 readings of
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 people being
00:29:34 --> 00:29:34 trafficked,
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 forced labour,
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 online sexual
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 exploitation of
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 children, and
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 yet my love
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 for the Lord
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 and what he
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 is doing,
00:29:42 --> 00:29:42 and what he
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 has done,
00:29:44 --> 00:29:44 and what he
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 will do,
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 has grown,
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 and grown,
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 and grown.
00:29:48 --> 00:29:51 But always
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 in the
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 community of
00:29:53 --> 00:29:53 spiritual
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 formation.
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 So in the
00:29:55 --> 00:29:55 midst of
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 resisting evil,
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 our ability
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 to love God
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 and continue
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 finding ways
00:29:59 --> 00:29:59 to love God
00:29:59 --> 00:30:01 will be our
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 primary mode
00:30:02 --> 00:30:02 of resistance.
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 In growing
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 in love for
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 God, we can
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 move to the
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 following Christian
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 practices, and
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 there's just a
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 couple of
00:30:10 --> 00:30:12 suggestions that
00:30:12 --> 00:30:12 I've got here,
00:30:12 --> 00:30:13 and what I
00:30:13 --> 00:30:15 mean is how
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 are our hearts
00:30:16 --> 00:30:16 being formed?
00:30:16 --> 00:30:18 How are your
00:30:18 --> 00:30:18 hearts being
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 transformed,
00:30:20 --> 00:30:20 modelled, and
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 shaped by the
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 Holy Spirit in
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 the midst of
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 this suffering?
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 So again,
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 borrowing from
00:30:26 --> 00:30:26 Swinton, he
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 has a couple
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 of practices
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 which I think
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 have been
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 particularly
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 helpful, and
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 I've got a
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 small table
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 on the screen.
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 You may be
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 able to read
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 it, it's a
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 bit small,
00:30:34 --> 00:30:34 hopefully you
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 can see some
00:30:35 --> 00:30:35 of it.
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 The first
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 one is
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 listening to
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 silence.
00:30:40 --> 00:30:40 Have you
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 ever been in
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 the presence of
00:30:42 --> 00:30:42 someone suffering?
00:30:45 --> 00:30:45 And can
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 you,
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 you sit
00:30:47 --> 00:30:49 and listen?
00:30:50 --> 00:30:50 Can you
00:30:50 --> 00:30:51 be with
00:30:51 --> 00:30:52 them in
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 the silence?
00:30:55 --> 00:30:56 Something that
00:30:56 --> 00:30:56 often goes
00:30:56 --> 00:30:58 unnoticed is
00:30:58 --> 00:30:58 the silence of
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 Jesus, his
00:30:59 --> 00:31:00 experience on
00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 and leading up
00:31:01 --> 00:31:01 to the cross.
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 Have you
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 noticed that
00:31:02 --> 00:31:04 in Mark's
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 gospel?
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 Go home
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 today and
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 read the
00:31:07 --> 00:31:07 last few
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 chapters,
00:31:08 --> 00:31:10 because you
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 see Jesus'
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 ordeal lasted
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 roughly six
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 hours, and
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 yet in that
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 whole time,
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 we only
00:31:16 --> 00:31:18 have seven
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 sentences that
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 we hear from
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 him.
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 When he
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 speaks,
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 though, his
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 words are
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 powerful and
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 compassionate.
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 There's
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 something in
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 that silence,
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 the weight of
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 the suffering,
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 and friends,
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 we must learn
00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 the practice of
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 listening to
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 silences.
00:31:36 --> 00:31:36 Jesus.
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 As we
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 listen to the
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 silence of
00:31:41 --> 00:31:41 Jesus, we
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 recognize that
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 the sufferer's
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 experience of
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 distance from
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 God is not
00:31:46 --> 00:31:46 necessarily a
00:31:46 --> 00:31:47 mark of
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 faithlessness.
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 Rather, it is
00:31:52 --> 00:31:52 an experience
00:31:52 --> 00:31:54 closely identified
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 with the
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 experience of
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 Christ on
00:31:56 --> 00:31:56 the cross.
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 And that's
00:31:59 --> 00:32:01 okay, to
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 be in that
00:32:02 --> 00:32:05 place, to
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 pray in
00:32:06 --> 00:32:06 that place.
00:32:08 --> 00:32:09 Speaking of
00:32:09 --> 00:32:10 prayer, the
00:32:10 --> 00:32:10 next point,
00:32:10 --> 00:32:11 lament.
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 Not often
00:32:12 --> 00:32:13 practiced in
00:32:13 --> 00:32:13 the modern
00:32:13 --> 00:32:14 church, but
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 throughout the
00:32:15 --> 00:32:16 Psalms, lament
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 has a purpose
00:32:17 --> 00:32:18 and an end
00:32:18 --> 00:32:18 point beyond
00:32:18 --> 00:32:19 the simple
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 expression of
00:32:20 --> 00:32:20 pain to
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 God and
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 saying, God
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 is so painful,
00:32:22 --> 00:32:22 it's more
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 than that.
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 It's actually
00:32:25 --> 00:32:25 an act of
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 reconciliation
00:32:26 --> 00:32:29 with and a
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 deeper love
00:32:30 --> 00:32:30 of God.
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 As
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 Christians, when
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 we lament,
00:32:34 --> 00:32:35 we locate
00:32:35 --> 00:32:36 and interpret
00:32:36 --> 00:32:37 our sufferings
00:32:37 --> 00:32:37 within the
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 narrative of
00:32:38 --> 00:32:39 the life,
00:32:39 --> 00:32:39 death, and
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 resurrection of
00:32:40 --> 00:32:40 Jesus.
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 Lament gives
00:32:42 --> 00:32:43 voice to
00:32:43 --> 00:32:45 suffering and
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 provides a
00:32:46 --> 00:32:47 faithful language
00:32:47 --> 00:32:48 through which
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 we can bring
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 our pain before
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 God.
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 Look at
00:32:52 --> 00:32:53 Psalm 75,
00:32:53 --> 00:32:54 look at
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 Psalm 79,
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 look at
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 Psalm 88,
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 Psalm 13,
00:32:58 --> 00:32:59 it's all
00:32:59 --> 00:32:59 there,
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 allowing us
00:33:02 --> 00:33:02 to speak
00:33:02 --> 00:33:03 to God
00:33:03 --> 00:33:03 out of
00:33:03 --> 00:33:04 our pain.
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 Point
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 three,
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 forgiveness.
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 The German
00:33:08 --> 00:33:09 pastor Bonhoeffer
00:33:09 --> 00:33:09 explains that
00:33:09 --> 00:33:10 suffering is a
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 mode of
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 sharing in,
00:33:13 --> 00:33:13 that forgiveness
00:33:13 --> 00:33:14 is a mode of
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 sharing in the
00:33:15 --> 00:33:15 suffering of
00:33:15 --> 00:33:15 Christ.
00:33:16 --> 00:33:16 Forgiving
00:33:16 --> 00:33:19 sins is the
00:33:19 --> 00:33:19 Christian,
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 is the
00:33:21 --> 00:33:21 Christ
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 suffering
00:33:22 --> 00:33:22 required of
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 his disciples.
00:33:24 --> 00:33:25 It is
00:33:25 --> 00:33:25 required of
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 all Christians.
00:33:26 --> 00:33:27 All Christians
00:33:27 --> 00:33:27 are to
00:33:27 --> 00:33:28 forgive.
00:33:29 --> 00:33:29 And forgiveness
00:33:29 --> 00:33:30 is perhaps one
00:33:30 --> 00:33:30 of the most
00:33:30 --> 00:33:31 radical gifts
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 God calls
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 us to
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 as we
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 struggle to
00:33:35 --> 00:33:36 resist the
00:33:36 --> 00:33:36 evil and
00:33:36 --> 00:33:37 suffering around
00:33:37 --> 00:33:37 us.
00:33:40 --> 00:33:41 And I've
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 seen this in
00:33:42 --> 00:33:42 the cases of
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 IJM where
00:33:43 --> 00:33:45 a perpetrator
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 of sexual
00:33:46 --> 00:33:46 violence to
00:33:46 --> 00:33:47 a child,
00:33:48 --> 00:33:52 where that
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 person has
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 been somehow
00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 miraculously
00:33:55 --> 00:33:56 transformed in
00:33:56 --> 00:33:57 the process of
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 the trial and
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 has sought
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 forgiveness.
00:34:00 --> 00:34:01 They're about
00:34:01 --> 00:34:01 to be sent
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 to jail for
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 20 years.
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 How do I
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 even deal
00:34:07 --> 00:34:07 with that?
00:34:07 --> 00:34:08 It's too
00:34:08 --> 00:34:08 heavy, it's
00:34:08 --> 00:34:09 too hard.
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 But yet,
00:34:10 --> 00:34:11 God works
00:34:11 --> 00:34:12 even in
00:34:12 --> 00:34:14 those most
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 despised
00:34:15 --> 00:34:16 sometimes.
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 Point
00:34:18 --> 00:34:18 for number
00:34:18 --> 00:34:18 four,
00:34:19 --> 00:34:19 thoughtfulness.
00:34:20 --> 00:34:20 Friends,
00:34:21 --> 00:34:22 often reflect,
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 let us pray,
00:34:24 --> 00:34:26 as Paul says
00:34:26 --> 00:34:26 in Romans
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 12, that
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 we be
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 transformed by
00:34:29 --> 00:34:29 the renewing
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 of your
00:34:30 --> 00:34:31 mind.
00:34:31 --> 00:34:32 In a
00:34:32 --> 00:34:32 world where
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 thoughtlessness
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 allows for
00:34:34 --> 00:34:34 so much
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 evil and
00:34:35 --> 00:34:35 suffering,
00:34:36 --> 00:34:37 to carry
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 on just
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 unhindered,
00:34:39 --> 00:34:39 without
00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 thinking,
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 no one
00:34:41 --> 00:34:41 even
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 thinking,
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 how can
00:34:43 --> 00:34:43 we allow
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 the Holy
00:34:44 --> 00:34:44 Spirit to
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 form and
00:34:45 --> 00:34:46 transform our
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 values and
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 our thoughts?
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 The phone
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 is a classic
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 experience of
00:34:53 --> 00:34:53 this.
00:34:53 --> 00:34:53 It just
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 leads to
00:34:54 --> 00:34:54 thoughtlessness.
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 forgiveness.
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 The Word
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 of God
00:34:57 --> 00:34:59 inspires the
00:34:59 --> 00:34:59 renewing of
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 our minds.
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 Point
00:35:04 --> 00:35:04 number five,
00:35:05 --> 00:35:05 the church
00:35:05 --> 00:35:07 is called to
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 share everything
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 we have with
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 the stranger,
00:35:10 --> 00:35:11 because everything
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 that we have is
00:35:12 --> 00:35:12 not our own.
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 Hospitality.
00:35:14 --> 00:35:15 One of the
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 greatest gifts,
00:35:16 --> 00:35:17 if you ever
00:35:17 --> 00:35:17 experience someone's
00:35:17 --> 00:35:18 hospitality and
00:35:18 --> 00:35:18 they give you
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 hospitality,
00:35:19 --> 00:35:21 it is a gift
00:35:21 --> 00:35:21 from God.
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 It's so amazing
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 to experience that.
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 And it's
00:35:24 --> 00:35:25 because it's
00:35:25 --> 00:35:26 not theirs,
00:35:26 --> 00:35:27 it's God's.
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 Everything is a
00:35:28 --> 00:35:28 gift.
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 Life,
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 creation,
00:35:30 --> 00:35:30 children,
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 it's all a
00:35:31 --> 00:35:31 gift.
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 And when we
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 think of
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 hospitality,
00:35:33 --> 00:35:34 we think of
00:35:34 --> 00:35:34 friendship.
00:35:35 --> 00:35:35 And you
00:35:35 --> 00:35:35 see,
00:35:36 --> 00:35:36 suffering,
00:35:36 --> 00:35:37 and particularly
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 suffering that
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 is evil,
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 that is
00:35:40 --> 00:35:43 inspired by
00:35:43 --> 00:35:43 evil,
00:35:43 --> 00:35:44 separates us
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 not only from
00:35:45 --> 00:35:46 God, but
00:35:46 --> 00:35:46 also from one
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 another.
00:35:47 --> 00:35:47 It creates
00:35:47 --> 00:35:48 distance from
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 each other.
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 So let us
00:35:52 --> 00:35:52 not allow
00:35:52 --> 00:35:53 evil to
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 present us
00:35:54 --> 00:35:55 loving the
00:35:55 --> 00:35:55 stranger in
00:35:55 --> 00:35:56 our midst
00:35:56 --> 00:35:56 in the
00:35:56 --> 00:35:57 church,
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 in Chatswood,
00:35:59 --> 00:36:00 and in the
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 wider world.
00:36:03 --> 00:36:04 So let me
00:36:04 --> 00:36:05 close this
00:36:05 --> 00:36:06 with a
00:36:06 --> 00:36:06 prayer,
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 Psalm 33
00:36:08 --> 00:36:08 and Psalm
00:36:08 --> 00:36:09 10.
00:36:10 --> 00:36:10 And then I
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 want us to
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 move into a
00:36:12 --> 00:36:12 time of
00:36:12 --> 00:36:13 stillness as
00:36:13 --> 00:36:14 we approach
00:36:14 --> 00:36:17 God and
00:36:17 --> 00:36:18 think of what
00:36:18 --> 00:36:18 He has called
00:36:18 --> 00:36:19 us to do
00:36:19 --> 00:36:21 today together.
00:36:22 --> 00:36:23 So would
00:36:23 --> 00:36:24 you pray
00:36:24 --> 00:36:24 with me?
00:36:24 --> 00:36:25 And then
00:36:25 --> 00:36:25 we're going
00:36:25 --> 00:36:25 to have a
00:36:25 --> 00:36:26 time of
00:36:26 --> 00:36:26 just some
00:36:26 --> 00:36:28 solitude for
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 you to
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 consider this,
00:36:30 --> 00:36:30 to bring it
00:36:30 --> 00:36:31 before the
00:36:31 --> 00:36:32 Lord, and
00:36:32 --> 00:36:32 then Nick's
00:36:32 --> 00:36:32 going to
00:36:32 --> 00:36:33 lead us.
00:36:42 --> 00:36:43 You,
00:36:43 --> 00:36:44 Lord,
00:36:44 --> 00:36:44 Lord,
00:36:45 --> 00:36:49 you hear the
00:36:49 --> 00:36:49 desire of the
00:36:49 --> 00:36:50 afflicted.
00:36:52 --> 00:36:54 You encourage
00:36:54 --> 00:36:56 them, and
00:36:56 --> 00:36:57 you listen to
00:36:57 --> 00:36:58 their cry,
00:36:59 --> 00:37:01 defending the
00:37:01 --> 00:37:02 fatherless and
00:37:02 --> 00:37:03 the oppressed,
00:37:03 --> 00:37:05 so that mere
00:37:05 --> 00:37:06 earthly mortals
00:37:06 --> 00:37:07 will never
00:37:07 --> 00:37:08 again strike
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 terror.
00:37:11 --> 00:37:13 We wait in
00:37:13 --> 00:37:14 hope for the
00:37:14 --> 00:37:15 Lord.
00:37:16 --> 00:37:17 He is our
00:37:17 --> 00:37:18 help and our
00:37:18 --> 00:37:18 shield.
00:37:18 --> 00:37:21 in Him our
00:37:21 --> 00:37:23 hearts rejoice,
00:37:23 --> 00:37:24 for we trust
00:37:24 --> 00:37:25 in His
00:37:25 --> 00:37:26 holy name.
00:37:29 --> 00:37:29 May your
00:37:29 --> 00:37:31 unfailing love
00:37:31 --> 00:37:32 be with us,
00:37:32 --> 00:37:33 Lord,
00:37:34 --> 00:37:35 even as we
00:37:35 --> 00:37:36 put our
00:37:36 --> 00:37:38 hope in
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 you.
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 Amen.
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 Amen.
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 Amen.
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 Amen.
00:37:38 --> 00:37:38 Amen.
00:37:38 --> 00:37:39 Amen.
00:37:39 --> 00:37:39 Amen.
00:37:39 --> 00:37:40 Amen.
00:37:40 --> 00:37:40 Amen.