Race, Cross, and the Christian
Series: Bloodlines
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 2nd August 2015
00:00:00 --> 00:00:05 A couple of years ago, I was sitting with one of my girls watching a documentary in Africa,
00:00:05 --> 00:00:07 and you've got all the animals and stuff like that.
00:00:07 --> 00:00:08 They're kind of fascinated by that.
00:00:09 --> 00:00:15 And at one point of the documentary, it showed a tribal group, an African tribal group,
00:00:16 --> 00:00:21 colorfully dressed black people doing some activity, I don't know, dancing or something.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:22 I'm not really sure exactly what it was.
00:00:22 --> 00:00:28 But at that point, my daughter jumped up off the lounge, ran over to the TV,
00:00:28 --> 00:00:31 and pointed at the people and said, I know those people.
00:00:32 --> 00:00:36 And I'm like, well, no, I don't think that's quite true.
00:00:38 --> 00:00:39 And she was at it, yes, I have.
00:00:40 --> 00:00:41 Those people play drums.
00:00:42 --> 00:00:44 And really?
00:00:45 --> 00:00:47 I really couldn't have any idea what she was talking about.
00:00:47 --> 00:00:50 And then Nat calls out from the kitchen and said, yeah,
00:00:50 --> 00:00:54 they had an African drum troupe come through kindy in this last week.
00:00:55 --> 00:00:58 And so it's the first time she'd ever seen a black person.
00:00:58 --> 00:01:01 When she was at kindy, she was fascinated by that.
00:01:01 --> 00:01:05 And she talked about it for some time after this TV program.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:09 And of course, seeing the black people on the TV, she just assumed they were the same people.
00:01:10 --> 00:01:14 And naturally, what black people do is they play drums, which is partly true.
00:01:14 --> 00:01:15 But they're not the only ones who play drums.
00:01:15 --> 00:01:17 Ian Francis played drums as well.
00:01:19 --> 00:01:23 Another time, one of my girls, who was learning a little bit of Mandarin at the time,
00:01:23 --> 00:01:27 was fascinated by different languages that people speak,
00:01:27 --> 00:01:32 asked a member of our Cantonese congregation whether they spoke Cantonese.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:34 And the answer was, yes, I do.
00:01:35 --> 00:01:38 And then, after a bit of a pause, came the qualifying question.
00:01:39 --> 00:01:43 So, you speak Cantonese and normal?
00:01:43 --> 00:01:50 And the gentle response was, no, I speak Cantonese and English.
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 Out of the mouths of babies.
00:01:53 --> 00:01:54 I could keep going on with stories like that.
00:01:55 --> 00:01:59 We notice difference from a very young age.
00:02:00 --> 00:02:02 Our prejudices begin early.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:07 We work on the assumption that our way of thinking, our way of doing is normal.
00:02:08 --> 00:02:10 And other people are not normal.
00:02:11 --> 00:02:13 They are just different.
00:02:13 --> 00:02:16 Now, on one level, it can be intriguing.
00:02:16 --> 00:02:22 At worst, it becomes rampant racism, which demeans and segregates.
00:02:22 --> 00:02:25 And so, over the next five weeks, as Sam has said,
00:02:25 --> 00:02:30 I'm going to take a look at a very complex issue, race and ethnocentricity.
00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 That's our topic for the next five weeks.
00:02:34 --> 00:02:41 And to kick us off, I've got a bunch of stuff that I want to say by way of orientation
00:02:41 --> 00:02:43 before we get to the Bible.
00:02:44 --> 00:02:48 So, firstly, defining racism and ethnocentricity is not easy.
00:02:49 --> 00:02:52 In most cases, they are used interchangeably,
00:02:53 --> 00:02:55 which is basically what I will do throughout this series,
00:02:55 --> 00:02:59 unless I say, no, no, no, when I say racism, I mean like this.
00:02:59 --> 00:03:01 That's quite specific about it.
00:03:01 --> 00:03:05 But generally, I'll be using them interchangeably, but they are different.
00:03:06 --> 00:03:12 Racism is an explicit or implicit belief or practice
00:03:12 --> 00:03:21 that qualitatively distinguishes or values one race over other races.
00:03:21 --> 00:03:29 So, in that definition, I'm thinking of race primarily.
00:03:29 --> 00:03:33 I'll talk about this probably more next week when I talk about race a bit more.
00:03:34 --> 00:03:39 Is that race is primarily in terms of physical features.
00:03:41 --> 00:03:46 Racism is therefore making judgments based on physical features.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:52 So, the focus of that particular definition is both the heart and behavior.
00:03:52 --> 00:03:57 The heart that believes that one race is more valuable than another race
00:03:57 --> 00:04:01 is a sinful heart and that sin is called racism.
00:04:02 --> 00:04:06 The behavior that distinguishes one race is more valuable than another
00:04:06 --> 00:04:12 is a sinful behavior and that sin is racism.
00:04:12 --> 00:04:21 It is always wrong to treat a person with disrespect on the basis of their physical appearance.
00:04:21 --> 00:04:22 That's it.
00:04:22 --> 00:04:23 You know, always wrong.
00:04:23 --> 00:04:25 No qualification to that at all.
00:04:27 --> 00:04:29 Ethnicity is a little different.
00:04:30 --> 00:04:37 It's a term that's used to stress the cultural rather than the physical aspects of group identity,
00:04:37 --> 00:04:42 such as language, dress, food, customs, values, and sometimes religion.
00:04:43 --> 00:04:45 The two are different, although they are connected.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:55 Ethnocentricity is when I say my ethnic group is the most valuable ethnic group
00:04:55 --> 00:04:59 and the way we do things is the way things ought to be done.
00:05:00 --> 00:05:05 That is, I'm normal and you're not if you don't do it my way.
00:05:05 --> 00:05:07 That's ethnocentricity.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:12 So the two are different, racism and ethnocentricity, but they are connected.
00:05:13 --> 00:05:16 Where it is always wrong to judge a person on their appearance,
00:05:16 --> 00:05:24 I think we are biblically and morally bound to value some aspects of ethnicities
00:05:24 --> 00:05:27 over other aspects of ethnicities.
00:05:28 --> 00:05:33 And where that valuing is rooted in biblical teaching about good and evil,
00:05:33 --> 00:05:38 that should not be called racism at that point.
00:05:38 --> 00:05:43 There are aspects of every culture, such as mine,
00:05:43 --> 00:05:47 which are sinful and need of gospel transformation.
00:05:49 --> 00:05:52 Secondly, why I think this series is important for us.
00:05:52 --> 00:05:58 I think it's important because Australia has always struggled with multiculturalism.
00:06:00 --> 00:06:07 As a multicultural society, Australia on the one hand has been remarkably hospitable
00:06:07 --> 00:06:11 towards migrants from different cultures,
00:06:11 --> 00:06:17 although there have always throughout our history been outbreaks of racial prejudice
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 against the latest wave of migrants.
00:06:20 --> 00:06:25 The traditional Australian attitude towards migrants from other cultures
00:06:25 --> 00:06:27 and particularly people from different races
00:06:27 --> 00:06:35 is that they have come here to become part of the Australian way of life.
00:06:35 --> 00:06:41 And that therefore means that they should be assimilated as quickly as possible.
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 That's our thinking.
00:06:43 --> 00:06:46 The Australian psyche is we live in the greatest country in the world,
00:06:46 --> 00:06:49 apart from the United States, which says it's the greatest country in the world,
00:06:49 --> 00:06:50 but we live in the greatest country in the world.
00:06:51 --> 00:06:54 And if you want to come to be part of this country,
00:06:54 --> 00:06:57 you're coming here to be part of the Australian way of life.
00:06:59 --> 00:07:02 You know, we are so ethnocentric.
00:07:02 --> 00:07:08 We don't even register that people might want to come to this country
00:07:08 --> 00:07:11 because they're escaping a war-torn country, for instance,
00:07:11 --> 00:07:16 and we just happen to be the closest one or the cheapest ticket or something like that.
00:07:16 --> 00:07:18 It doesn't even come into our way of thinking.
00:07:18 --> 00:07:19 We just think the Australian way of life,
00:07:20 --> 00:07:23 that is why the whole world wants to live here.
00:07:24 --> 00:07:30 And what that means in translation is that you are welcome,
00:07:30 --> 00:07:37 we welcome you, providing that you are prepared to embrace the Australian way of life and its values,
00:07:38 --> 00:07:43 providing that you make the learning of the English language the top priority when you come,
00:07:44 --> 00:07:50 that you don't rob Australians of jobs or other opportunities like education.
00:07:51 --> 00:07:54 That's been in the papers recently on the North Shore.
00:07:54 --> 00:08:00 Providing that you leave all of your racial and cultural tensions behind
00:08:00 --> 00:08:03 and don't import any sort of prejudices and conflict.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 We've got enough of our own.
00:08:05 --> 00:08:08 Providing that you are basically assimilated.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:17 However, there is some tolerance for the preservation of harmless ethnical customs and behaviours.
00:08:18 --> 00:08:19 We can put up with some things.
00:08:19 --> 00:08:22 You are welcome, provided you import your food.
00:08:23 --> 00:08:27 You are welcome that you do not lower the Australian standard of living
00:08:27 --> 00:08:33 by imposing too much strain upon the urban infrastructure and upon the welfare system.
00:08:34 --> 00:08:41 Therefore, assimilation is the key to a successful immigration program.
00:08:42 --> 00:08:49 Migrants should become as invisible as possible, as quickly as possible.
00:08:49 --> 00:08:54 We even had a term for it, the term new Australians.
00:08:55 --> 00:08:58 It was in vogue back in the 1950s and 60s, new Australians.
00:08:59 --> 00:09:04 And it implied that the goal of assimilation, of immigration, was assimilation.
00:09:04 --> 00:09:06 That is, you are now Australian.
00:09:07 --> 00:09:10 So dump all of your cultural heritage.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:12 You're Australian now.
00:09:12 --> 00:09:19 And so while we might be hospitable and welcoming,
00:09:20 --> 00:09:27 we struggle to embrace and we significantly push back on any people group that comes here
00:09:27 --> 00:09:30 and doesn't assimilate.
00:09:30 --> 00:09:33 Why would you not want to assimilate?
00:09:34 --> 00:09:36 We struggle with that concept.
00:09:36 --> 00:09:47 I see traits of that general Australian attitude at St. Paul's.
00:09:47 --> 00:09:49 When I first came to St. Paul's six and a while years ago,
00:09:49 --> 00:09:52 I remember speaking to a number of long-termers who said,
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 the Chinese are taken over.
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 They didn't just mean Chatswood.
00:09:56 --> 00:09:56 That had already happened.
00:09:56 --> 00:09:59 They were referring to here at St. Paul's.
00:09:59 --> 00:10:01 The Chinese are taken over St. Paul's.
00:10:01 --> 00:10:10 And so I want us to be thinking about this issue for our holiness
00:10:10 --> 00:10:16 and because our church obviously is living in a very diverse neighbourhood.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:20 I think racial struggles are an ever-present issue
00:10:20 --> 00:10:22 and I believe that we need to keep our finger on the pulse
00:10:22 --> 00:10:26 in terms of racial harmony for the glory of God,
00:10:26 --> 00:10:28 for the sake of the gospel of where we are.
00:10:28 --> 00:10:33 Now, I don't think that it's an explicit discrimination.
00:10:34 --> 00:10:37 As Sam just said, if you're a white person,
00:10:37 --> 00:10:38 yeah, I'm not racist.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:43 It's an implicit discrimination.
00:10:43 --> 00:10:46 It's an inadvertent discrimination is what happens.
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50 And so I want us to even be aware of that
00:10:50 --> 00:10:53 so that we're a church that treasures Jesus together
00:10:53 --> 00:10:57 for the joy of all people.
00:10:57 --> 00:10:59 That's the last bit of our mission statement.
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 All people.
00:11:02 --> 00:11:04 Thirdly, by way of orientation,
00:11:05 --> 00:11:08 I don't think I'm the best person to speak on this topic.
00:11:08 --> 00:11:11 I wrote our core values,
00:11:12 --> 00:11:14 core values like treasuring Jesus together,
00:11:15 --> 00:11:19 but I'm acutely aware of my own failure in this issue.
00:11:19 --> 00:11:21 I grew up in a country town
00:11:21 --> 00:11:25 dominated by white Australian rural culture.
00:11:25 --> 00:11:31 There we had a few aboriginals that I engaged with at school.
00:11:31 --> 00:11:34 There was the Greek family that owned the cafe
00:11:34 --> 00:11:36 and the Chinese family that owned the restaurant,
00:11:36 --> 00:11:38 the Chinese restaurant, that is.
00:11:39 --> 00:11:43 And, you know, that's probably a little bit oversimplistic,
00:11:44 --> 00:11:45 but you get the picture.
00:11:45 --> 00:11:50 You know, I grew up in a monocultural place
00:11:50 --> 00:11:57 as a camo-wearing, gun-totering.
00:11:59 --> 00:12:01 You know, I've eaten the national emblems.
00:12:01 --> 00:12:06 And, you know, I wouldn't exactly call me a redneck,
00:12:06 --> 00:12:07 but maybe you would.
00:12:07 --> 00:12:14 I, you know, I now wear, I wore a pink shirt this morning.
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 So, you know, so I think, you know,
00:12:15 --> 00:12:19 but I've never, I've never worn a swastika armband.
00:12:20 --> 00:12:24 I've never regarded myself as neo-Nazi or anything.
00:12:24 --> 00:12:26 I never had a shaved head or anything like that.
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 I've never done that.
00:12:27 --> 00:12:29 I've just been monocultural.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 And so my way of doing things is the way of doing things.
00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 That's where I was.
00:12:33 --> 00:12:36 And so gradually, you know, being introduced
00:12:36 --> 00:12:38 that there are more people in the world
00:12:38 --> 00:12:41 than the 8 people in Narrabri
00:12:41 --> 00:12:45 has been, you know, quite a big exposure of things
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 over the time.
00:12:46 --> 00:12:50 And so my kids are growing up in a very different background
00:12:50 --> 00:12:50 than what I grew up on.
00:12:50 --> 00:12:52 But let me say that growing up where I did,
00:12:53 --> 00:12:56 I grew up, when I look back on it now,
00:12:56 --> 00:13:01 is I realized I was a racist through and through.
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 I still am.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:09 Been working on it since 2005.
00:13:09 --> 00:13:11 And I might get to that at one point
00:13:11 --> 00:13:15 in this next four weeks, what happened in 2005.
00:13:16 --> 00:13:21 And I grew up a racist, particularly towards Aboriginals.
00:13:21 --> 00:13:24 That was the cultural group that we bucked against the most,
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 where I was.
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 You know, we didn't have many Greeks or Chinese,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:29 so they, you know, didn't care.
00:13:29 --> 00:13:30 But Aboriginals.
00:13:31 --> 00:13:34 And when I think of the jokes that I told
00:13:34 --> 00:13:37 and the demeaning way that I treated them
00:13:37 --> 00:13:38 and spoke about them,
00:13:38 --> 00:13:42 I don't really feel like I should be up here
00:13:42 --> 00:13:45 saying this on this topic.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:48 There are those amongst you,
00:13:48 --> 00:13:50 and probably I would say more likely
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 amongst the younger generation
00:13:51 --> 00:13:53 who have grown up like my kids will
00:13:53 --> 00:13:56 in a very diverse kind of world
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 who are probably more advanced in your thinking,
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 in your practice,
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 in this than I am.
00:14:02 --> 00:14:05 You know, let me just pause at that point.
00:14:05 --> 00:14:07 This is sort of point number four,
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 but I'll make it point number three.
00:14:10 --> 00:14:13 I, in the next bunch of weeks,
00:14:13 --> 00:14:15 are going to say some wrong stuff.
00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 I'm going to say some silly stuff.
00:14:17 --> 00:14:19 I'm going to say some racist stuff,
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 and I'm not even aware of it.
00:14:22 --> 00:14:22 Okay?
00:14:23 --> 00:14:25 Just be aware of that.
00:14:27 --> 00:14:29 It won't be deliberate.
00:14:30 --> 00:14:32 It will be inadvertent,
00:14:32 --> 00:14:35 because I'm learning in this stuff.
00:14:37 --> 00:14:39 And so if you need to,
00:14:39 --> 00:14:42 take a chill pill before you come to church.
00:14:43 --> 00:14:43 Okay?
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 I'm going to say some stuff,
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 but for some of you,
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 you're going to go,
00:14:48 --> 00:14:49 Steve, you've just gone too political.
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 And for some of you,
00:14:51 --> 00:14:51 it's just like,
00:14:51 --> 00:14:51 hang on a bit,
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 you haven't gone political enough.
00:14:54 --> 00:14:54 You know,
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 affirmative action is what we need.
00:14:57 --> 00:14:57 Let's,
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 for some of you,
00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 I'm not going to be biblical enough.
00:15:01 --> 00:15:01 Some of you,
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 I'm going to be too biblical.
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 Some of you,
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 I've just missed the point altogether.
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 Just, if you need to,
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 take a chill pill
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 before you come to church.
00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 I'm not sure if that's an actual thing
00:15:11 --> 00:15:13 that you can buy,
00:15:13 --> 00:15:14 but you know the point.
00:15:16 --> 00:15:18 The one thing I've got going for me
00:15:18 --> 00:15:20 is that I'm the senior minister
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 of this church.
00:15:22 --> 00:15:23 And when it's my burden,
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 as it is,
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 I can influence it
00:15:27 --> 00:15:29 to become your burden.
00:15:29 --> 00:15:31 And it is my burden.
00:15:31 --> 00:15:31 I wrote,
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 Treasuring Jesus Together.
00:15:33 --> 00:15:35 And that is my burden.
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 Fourthly,
00:15:37 --> 00:15:39 this is a hot issue right now.
00:15:39 --> 00:15:42 And I think that in terms of our wider society,
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 I mean,
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 the newspapers even this weekend,
00:15:46 --> 00:15:49 I think that the Christian faith
00:15:49 --> 00:15:51 has got something very significant to say
00:15:51 --> 00:15:53 to our society on this issue,
00:15:54 --> 00:15:57 although I'm not convinced
00:15:57 --> 00:15:59 that they will listen to us,
00:15:59 --> 00:16:00 the church.
00:16:02 --> 00:16:04 Australia's Race Discrimination Commission
00:16:04 --> 00:16:05 has said a couple of weeks ago
00:16:05 --> 00:16:08 that this is the most volatile time
00:16:08 --> 00:16:10 of the past 30 years
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 for racial tension in this country.
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 And I want to say
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 the Christian faith
00:16:14 --> 00:16:16 has got a contribution to make.
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 In fact,
00:16:17 --> 00:16:17 I want to say
00:16:17 --> 00:16:19 the contribution to make
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 to this issue
00:16:20 --> 00:16:22 in a secular society.
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 But I also acknowledge
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 that the institutional church
00:16:25 --> 00:16:29 has an awful track record
00:16:29 --> 00:16:32 in such a way
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 that no one
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 might in fact
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 want to listen to us.
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 I'll give you an example
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 of what I mean
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 by a great contribution
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 to the Christian faith.
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 The Christian faith
00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 has got a great contribution to make.
00:16:43 --> 00:16:45 W.H. Auden,
00:16:45 --> 00:16:47 he was one of the most influential writers
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 of the 20th centuries
00:16:48 --> 00:16:50 in the English-speaking world.
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 I want to clarify that
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 from my group.
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 20th century.
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 He was converted
00:16:56 --> 00:17:00 from intellectual secular humanism
00:17:00 --> 00:17:03 to Christianity in 1940
00:17:03 --> 00:17:04 in one event.
00:17:05 --> 00:17:07 He went to a movie theater
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 in Manhattan
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 where he saw a movie
00:17:10 --> 00:17:12 produced by Hitler's Third Reich.
00:17:13 --> 00:17:15 The movie followed
00:17:15 --> 00:17:18 the Blitzkrieg through Poland
00:17:18 --> 00:17:20 and it was a propaganda piece
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 by the Third Reich
00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 of their great victory in Poland.
00:17:23 --> 00:17:28 And in recounting the incident,
00:17:28 --> 00:17:30 he said that there were
00:17:30 --> 00:17:32 many German immigrants
00:17:32 --> 00:17:34 who had come to the U.S.
00:17:34 --> 00:17:37 sitting in the theater with him.
00:17:39 --> 00:17:39 Now remember,
00:17:39 --> 00:17:42 this is pre-the U.S.
00:17:42 --> 00:17:45 being involved in World War II.
00:17:46 --> 00:17:46 And so,
00:17:47 --> 00:17:47 showing the movie
00:17:47 --> 00:17:49 is probably neither here nor there
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 in some ways.
00:17:50 --> 00:17:54 And he's sitting in the movie theater,
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 watching the movie,
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 and he says,
00:17:56 --> 00:17:58 whenever a Polish person
00:17:58 --> 00:18:00 was brought onto the screen,
00:18:00 --> 00:18:02 normally carted around
00:18:02 --> 00:18:04 by a Nazi German,
00:18:05 --> 00:18:07 the audience would call out
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 in one voice,
00:18:08 --> 00:18:08 kill him!
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 Kill him!
00:18:09 --> 00:18:09 Kill him!
00:18:09 --> 00:18:17 And Auden was so shocked
00:18:17 --> 00:18:19 by the response
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 of these Germans
00:18:21 --> 00:18:23 in this movie theater
00:18:23 --> 00:18:26 that he walked out stunned.
00:18:27 --> 00:18:29 And one question
00:18:29 --> 00:18:30 ran through his mind.
00:18:30 --> 00:18:33 What response
00:18:33 --> 00:18:36 can my enlightened,
00:18:37 --> 00:18:39 secular humanism
00:18:39 --> 00:18:42 give to that evil?
00:18:43 --> 00:18:45 To those who cry out
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 for the blood
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 of innocent man?
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 And what he saw
00:18:51 --> 00:18:51 at that moment
00:18:51 --> 00:18:53 was the bankruptcy
00:18:53 --> 00:18:55 of his secular humanism,
00:18:55 --> 00:18:57 and he began to sense
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 that the only answer
00:18:58 --> 00:19:00 to this evil
00:19:00 --> 00:19:02 can be found in God.
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 He was convicted
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 of God's holiness,
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 his own sinfulness,
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 and he became a Christian
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 in 1940,
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 not long after
00:19:09 --> 00:19:09 that event.
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 And so here's a man
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 who sees an ethnic
00:19:12 --> 00:19:14 hatred happening,
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 person to person,
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 ethnic hatred,
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 in such a way
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 they're wanting to kill.
00:19:18 --> 00:19:20 And he gropes around
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 in his system of thought,
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 his system of secular
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 humanistic thought,
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 which leaves God
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 out of the picture
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 and puts all the answers
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 there in front of him
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 as a human being,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 and thought of an,
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 to come up with
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 an explanation
00:19:32 --> 00:19:34 as to how can you
00:19:34 --> 00:19:36 deal with this evil,
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 how can you fix
00:19:37 --> 00:19:37 this evil?
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 And he makes his way
00:19:40 --> 00:19:42 away from secular humanism
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 to the Christian faith
00:19:43 --> 00:19:43 because he said,
00:19:43 --> 00:19:45 God's the only answer.
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 And having said that,
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 there are people
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 making the exact
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 opposite move
00:19:54 --> 00:19:55 in the exact
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 opposite direction
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 because of the
00:19:57 --> 00:19:59 awful track record
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 of the institutional
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 church on this issue.
00:20:01 --> 00:20:05 They're making their way
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 into humanism
00:20:06 --> 00:20:08 because they look
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 at the church
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 and go,
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 well,
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 they've got nothing
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 to contribute here.
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 It's nice to hear
00:20:14 --> 00:20:16 the story of people
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 like Auden's move
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 into Christianity
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 as a solution
00:20:19 --> 00:20:19 to racism,
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 and yet there are others
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 who are moving
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 away from it
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 because there have
00:20:23 --> 00:20:25 been so many
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 professing Christians
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 Christians
00:20:27 --> 00:20:30 and churches
00:20:30 --> 00:20:32 who have long
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 held membership
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 in the church
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 and denominations
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 and the Ku Klux Klan
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 at exactly the same time.
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 That is,
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 the church
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 has a terrible
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 track record
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 in supporting racism,
00:20:45 --> 00:20:47 and so what do you do
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 when you find stories
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 that give you comfort
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 that Christianity's
00:20:50 --> 00:20:50 got something
00:20:50 --> 00:20:50 to contribute?
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 In fact,
00:20:52 --> 00:20:52 I want to say
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 the solution
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 to ethnic pride
00:20:54 --> 00:20:56 and other stories
00:20:56 --> 00:20:56 that show you
00:20:56 --> 00:20:56 that Christianity
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 was part of the problem.
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 What you do
00:21:00 --> 00:21:00 is you go to the Bible
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 and ask whether
00:21:01 --> 00:21:03 they got Christianity
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 right
00:21:04 --> 00:21:06 or whether,
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 on the other hand,
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 they got humanism
00:21:08 --> 00:21:08 right
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 and Christianity
00:21:09 --> 00:21:10 wrong.
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 And when I ask
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 those questions,
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 I don't see that
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 secular humanism
00:21:13 --> 00:21:15 has got any answers
00:21:15 --> 00:21:17 to this solution,
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 although I want to say
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 that secular humanism,
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 which is the dominant
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 philosophy of our culture
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 in which we live
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 here in Australia,
00:21:23 --> 00:21:25 it has a bunch
00:21:25 --> 00:21:27 of great aims.
00:21:27 --> 00:21:29 It does want to see
00:21:29 --> 00:21:31 people as equals.
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 It does want to promote
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 a selfless morality
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 and the equality
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 of all people.
00:21:35 --> 00:21:37 It desires a more
00:21:37 --> 00:21:39 humane society.
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 Secular humanism
00:21:41 --> 00:21:44 is behind gay marriage
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 and the equality
00:21:45 --> 00:21:45 of all people
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 and everyone have love.
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 That's secular humanism.
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 But I'm not convinced
00:21:51 --> 00:21:54 that they can deliver
00:21:54 --> 00:21:56 on what they want,
00:21:56 --> 00:21:59 on a more equal humanity
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 when you embrace
00:22:00 --> 00:22:02 at the same time
00:22:02 --> 00:22:05 an atheistic evolutionary theory
00:22:05 --> 00:22:05 that suggests
00:22:05 --> 00:22:07 that humans came from
00:22:07 --> 00:22:09 lower life forms.
00:22:09 --> 00:22:15 It's not a big jump
00:22:15 --> 00:22:17 when your foundational view
00:22:17 --> 00:22:18 of the human race
00:22:18 --> 00:22:21 is simply that we have
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 come from lower life forms.
00:22:22 --> 00:22:24 It's not a big jump
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 from there into racism.
00:22:25 --> 00:22:27 All you need to do
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 is to describe
00:22:28 --> 00:22:30 all the differences
00:22:30 --> 00:22:30 around the world
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 as well those people
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 are less evolved
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 than I am.
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 Those people have got
00:22:34 --> 00:22:34 a little way to go.
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 They're somewhere partly
00:22:35 --> 00:22:37 between monkeys and people.
00:22:37 --> 00:22:39 That's all you need to do.
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 And that's exactly
00:22:42 --> 00:22:44 what has happened
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 throughout history.
00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 That's exactly
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 what Hitler did
00:22:48 --> 00:22:50 with the Germans.
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 He was a great fan
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 of Friedrich Nietzsche.
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 So while I agree
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 with some of the outcomes,
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 I don't think
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 that secular humanism
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 has got the framework
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 that enables it
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 to deal with racism.
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 Having said that,
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 I go to the Bible
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 and I see a totally
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 different thing
00:23:09 --> 00:23:10 than the version
00:23:10 --> 00:23:10 of Christianity
00:23:10 --> 00:23:12 that supports racism
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 and ethnic pride.
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 And so I think
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 we've got to be honest,
00:23:15 --> 00:23:15 frankly,
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 right up for the front,
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 be honest about our history
00:23:17 --> 00:23:19 as part of the institutional church
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 and say that
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 we have blown it
00:23:21 --> 00:23:23 over and over
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 and over again
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 on this issue.
00:23:25 --> 00:23:27 Almost every people group
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 has got a story to tell
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 of the failure
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 of the institutional church
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 and I don't think
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 we need to fight that.
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 I don't think
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 we should fight that.
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 I think all we need
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 to say is to say,
00:23:36 --> 00:23:36 I know
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 and I'm sorry
00:23:37 --> 00:23:39 not all those
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 who profess to be followers
00:23:40 --> 00:23:40 of Jesus
00:23:40 --> 00:23:42 are followers of Jesus
00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 and those of us
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 who are followers of Jesus
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 like me
00:23:45 --> 00:23:47 are so imperfect
00:23:47 --> 00:23:50 that I'm going to blow it
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 again
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 and again
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 and again.
00:23:53 --> 00:23:55 But can we please
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 at the very least
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 let the Bible
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 and Jesus
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 have its say here.
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 And so that's
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 what we're going to do
00:24:01 --> 00:24:03 over the next five weeks.
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 That's all introduction
00:24:04 --> 00:24:05 to the series.
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 So let's go to the Bible
00:24:08 --> 00:24:10 and dig into it.
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 One more point
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 before I do that.
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 For those of you
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 who got your sermon
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 scorecards with you
00:24:16 --> 00:24:19 and particularly waiting
00:24:19 --> 00:24:21 for me to get to Jesus
00:24:21 --> 00:24:23 I'm not going to get to Jesus
00:24:23 --> 00:24:25 in a hurry tonight.
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 So just relax
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 put your scorecard down
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 or put it up.
00:24:27 --> 00:24:30 I'm not going to get to Jesus
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 tonight
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 in any big way
00:24:32 --> 00:24:34 but this is a five part series
00:24:34 --> 00:24:36 and each bit's building
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 on the next bit.
00:24:37 --> 00:24:39 Jesus is going to dominate
00:24:39 --> 00:24:41 probably from next week onwards
00:24:41 --> 00:24:43 he will dominate
00:24:43 --> 00:24:45 but he's there
00:24:45 --> 00:24:47 and all the framework's there.
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 Okay.
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 We're going to start
00:24:49 --> 00:24:49 with creation
00:24:49 --> 00:24:51 then look at the fall
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 then look at redemption
00:24:52 --> 00:24:54 and then we're going to look
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 at the consummation
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 of all things.
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 The unfolding Bible story
00:24:56 --> 00:24:58 we're going to look at how race
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 fits in with that.
00:24:59 --> 00:24:59 Okay.
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 Let's get that clear.
00:25:01 --> 00:25:01 Let's dive in.
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 We're going to begin today
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 with creation
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 and I will get to Jesus
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 eventually
00:25:07 --> 00:25:09 but what we see today
00:25:09 --> 00:25:11 is a very significant point
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 in dealing with racism
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 and ethnic pride.
00:25:14 --> 00:25:14 First man and woman
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 created the image of God.
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 Genesis chapter 1
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 verse 27.
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 Now in case you're thinking
00:25:19 --> 00:25:21 I'm just starting my sermon now
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 just relax.
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 That was all
00:25:23 --> 00:25:23 all the introductions
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 part of it.
00:25:24 --> 00:25:24 Okay.
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 It's all part of it
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 and we're going to get there
00:25:27 --> 00:25:27 real quick.
00:25:28 --> 00:25:28 Okay.
00:25:28 --> 00:25:30 God created man
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 in his own image
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 in the image of God
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 he created him
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 male and female
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 he created them.
00:25:35 --> 00:25:37 That verse is utterly profound
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 and significant
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 and full of implications
00:25:39 --> 00:25:41 on this issue
00:25:41 --> 00:25:42 of racism
00:25:42 --> 00:25:44 and ethnic pride.
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 Adam and Eve
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 were created
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 in the image of God.
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 Subsequent human beings
00:25:47 --> 00:25:49 born from Adam and Eve
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 are also
00:25:50 --> 00:25:52 in the image of God.
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 Genesis 5 verse 3
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 says when Adam had lived
00:25:54 --> 00:25:57 130 years
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 he had a son
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 in his own likeness
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 in his own image
00:26:00 --> 00:26:02 and he named him Seth.
00:26:02 --> 00:26:04 The words likeness
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 and image there
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 in Genesis 5
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 are the same two words
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 that are back there
00:26:07 --> 00:26:09 in Genesis chapter 1.
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 The point is
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 the image of God
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 keeps going on
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 and on
00:26:13 --> 00:26:13 and on
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 and on
00:26:14 --> 00:26:14 and on.
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 The first pair
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 Adam and Eve
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 are not the only ones
00:26:17 --> 00:26:19 in the image of God.
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 Those who come from them
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 are also
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 in the image of God
00:26:22 --> 00:26:24 and the implication
00:26:24 --> 00:26:26 is the unity
00:26:26 --> 00:26:28 of the human race.
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 That's the implication.
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 Every human
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 that flows
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 from Adam and Eve
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 is created
00:26:33 --> 00:26:35 in the image of God
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 and there is
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 no human
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 that doesn't flow
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 from Adam and Eve.
00:26:38 --> 00:26:40 That's the biblical premise
00:26:40 --> 00:26:40 right there
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 from the beginning
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 of the Bible
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 in Genesis chapter 1.
00:26:44 --> 00:26:44 Now I don't want
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 to go into all the detail
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 of what it means
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 to be
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 in the image of God.
00:26:48 --> 00:26:50 We could argue
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 till we are blue
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 in the face
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 about rationality
00:26:53 --> 00:26:53 and morality
00:26:53 --> 00:26:55 and free will
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 and all these other things
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 that would distinguish us
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 from the monkeys
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 and dogs and cats
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 and other stuff like that
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 and unfortunately
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 the Bible at this point
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 doesn't put a big footnote
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 underneath to say
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 just to clarify
00:27:05 --> 00:27:05 what I mean
00:27:05 --> 00:27:07 by the image of God.
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 Possibly
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 a better thing to do
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 rather than pick
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 one of these
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 wonderful human traits
00:27:13 --> 00:27:15 is to say
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 that all of them
00:27:16 --> 00:27:18 whatever they are
00:27:18 --> 00:27:20 are designed
00:27:20 --> 00:27:23 to image forth
00:27:23 --> 00:27:25 God
00:27:25 --> 00:27:27 in a way
00:27:27 --> 00:27:29 that no other
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 created being can.
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 That's what it means.
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 We display
00:27:34 --> 00:27:36 we image forth God
00:27:36 --> 00:27:38 we mirror God
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 in a way
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 that no other
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 created thing can.
00:27:43 --> 00:27:45 What that means is
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 being made in the image
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 of God
00:27:47 --> 00:27:48 is not just a status
00:27:48 --> 00:27:50 it's a mission.
00:27:51 --> 00:27:53 It has a purpose
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 attached to it.
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 That is
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 for the glory of God.
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 Human traits
00:27:58 --> 00:27:58 like God
00:27:58 --> 00:28:00 that display
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 His glory
00:28:00 --> 00:28:02 that's what they're there for.
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 And so rather than argue
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 about the details
00:28:04 --> 00:28:06 let's take it
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 as a mission
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 to mirror God
00:28:08 --> 00:28:10 to live in such a way
00:28:10 --> 00:28:10 that when people
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 see us
00:28:11 --> 00:28:13 they see a reflection
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 of the character
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 of the quality
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 of God
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 and that is
00:28:16 --> 00:28:18 a huge calling.
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 The extreme
00:28:20 --> 00:28:21 dignity
00:28:21 --> 00:28:23 of human beings
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 above all
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 other creatures
00:28:25 --> 00:28:27 is for the sake
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 of magnifying
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 the majesty
00:28:29 --> 00:28:31 of God.
00:28:33 --> 00:28:34 And I think
00:28:34 --> 00:28:34 that's the point
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 of Psalm 8
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 which was read out
00:28:36 --> 00:28:36 to us
00:28:36 --> 00:28:37 right at the beginning
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 by Gary.
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 It begins with
00:28:40 --> 00:28:42 O Lord
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 our Lord
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 how majestic
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 is your name
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 in all the earth.
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 And it ends
00:28:48 --> 00:28:48 in the same way
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 in verse 9
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 O Lord
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 our Lord
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 how majestic
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 is your name
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 in all the earth.
00:28:54 --> 00:28:56 God is majestic.
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 They're the bookends
00:28:57 --> 00:28:57 of Psalm 8.
00:28:58 --> 00:28:58 There's the beginning
00:28:58 --> 00:28:58 there's the end.
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 That's what it's all about.
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 It's about
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 the majesty
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 of God.
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 And so it's interesting
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 about how the rest
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 of the Psalm
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 fits into
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 that theme.
00:29:09 --> 00:29:11 You have set
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 your glory
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 above the heavens
00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 from the lips
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 of children
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 and infants
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 you have
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 ordained praise
00:29:15 --> 00:29:17 because of your enemies
00:29:17 --> 00:29:17 to silence
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 the foe and the avenger
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 when I consider
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 your heavens
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 and the work
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 of your fingers
00:29:22 --> 00:29:22 the moon
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 and the stars
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 which you have
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 set in place
00:29:25 --> 00:29:27 what is man
00:29:27 --> 00:29:27 that you are
00:29:27 --> 00:29:29 mindful of him
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 the son of man
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 that you care
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 for him
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 and what's
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 the answer
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 to that question
00:29:35 --> 00:29:37 in Psalm 8
00:29:37 --> 00:29:40 you made him
00:29:40 --> 00:29:40 a little lower
00:29:40 --> 00:29:42 than the heavenly
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 beings
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 and crowned him
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 with glory
00:29:45 --> 00:29:45 and honour
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 or a better
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 translation
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 you have crowned him
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 with glory
00:29:49 --> 00:29:51 and majesty
00:29:51 --> 00:29:55 and then the
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 psalmist
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 goes on
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 describing
00:29:57 --> 00:29:57 the uniqueness
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 of man
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 you made him
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 ruler over
00:30:00 --> 00:30:00 the works
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 of your hands
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 you put everything
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 under his feet
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 all flocks
00:30:03 --> 00:30:03 and herds
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 and the beasts
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 of the field
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 the birds
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 of the air
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 the fish
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 of the sea
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 all that swim
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 the paths
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 of the seas
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 that's
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 the
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 mandate
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 from Genesis 1
00:30:12 --> 00:30:13 coming out
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 there
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 to
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 created
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 and exercise
00:30:15 --> 00:30:15 dominion
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 over the
00:30:16 --> 00:30:16 created order
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 but the psalm
00:30:17 --> 00:30:19 having described
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 the majesty
00:30:20 --> 00:30:20 of man
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 the psalm
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 doesn't finish
00:30:22 --> 00:30:22 with
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 oh Lord
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 how majestic
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 are people
00:30:25 --> 00:30:29 he did say
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 that
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 a bit earlier
00:30:31 --> 00:30:33 but that's not
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 the point
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 of the psalm
00:30:34 --> 00:30:34 the psalm
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 ends with
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 oh Lord
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 our Lord
00:30:37 --> 00:30:37 how majestic
00:30:37 --> 00:30:39 is your name
00:30:39 --> 00:30:41 in all the earth
00:30:41 --> 00:30:44 the psalm
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 ends with
00:30:45 --> 00:30:45 a point
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 of praise
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 to God
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 which means
00:30:48 --> 00:30:49 the point
00:30:49 --> 00:30:50 of our
00:30:50 --> 00:30:52 subordinate
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 majesty
00:30:53 --> 00:30:54 the majesty
00:30:54 --> 00:30:54 that sits
00:30:54 --> 00:30:56 under God's majesty
00:30:56 --> 00:30:58 above all
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 the other creation
00:30:59 --> 00:30:59 of the world
00:30:59 --> 00:31:00 all the creatures
00:31:00 --> 00:31:00 the fish
00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 and the birds
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 the point
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 of it all
00:31:02 --> 00:31:04 is for the praise
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 of the majesty
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 of God
00:31:06 --> 00:31:09 that's why
00:31:09 --> 00:31:09 we're made
00:31:09 --> 00:31:09 in the image
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 of God
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 is for his
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 glory
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 and his majesty
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 his praise
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 which means
00:31:14 --> 00:31:16 at the very least
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 that if you
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 demean
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 and belittle
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 anyone created
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 for that
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 end
00:31:22 --> 00:31:24 you demean
00:31:24 --> 00:31:24 God
00:31:24 --> 00:31:27 you rupture
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 his purpose
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 for all people
00:31:28 --> 00:31:30 creating his image
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 to show him
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 as majestic
00:31:32 --> 00:31:35 and so
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 this creation
00:31:36 --> 00:31:36 doctrine
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 of the image
00:31:37 --> 00:31:37 of God
00:31:37 --> 00:31:39 even apart
00:31:39 --> 00:31:39 from redemption
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 in Jesus
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 has massive
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 implications
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 for example
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 the horror
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 of unjustly
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 destroying
00:31:46 --> 00:31:46 or harming
00:31:46 --> 00:31:47 another human
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 being
00:31:48 --> 00:31:48 in Genesis
00:31:48 --> 00:31:51 9-6
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 whoever sheds
00:31:52 --> 00:31:52 the blood
00:31:52 --> 00:31:53 of man
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 by man
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 shall his
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 blood be shed
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 for in
00:31:55 --> 00:31:57 the image
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 of God
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 has God
00:31:59 --> 00:32:00 made
00:32:00 --> 00:32:00 man
00:32:00 --> 00:32:02 there's a sermon
00:32:02 --> 00:32:03 there in and of
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 itself
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 to do with
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 capital punishment
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 abortion
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 and euthanasia
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 all there
00:32:08 --> 00:32:12 and the point
00:32:12 --> 00:32:12 there is
00:32:12 --> 00:32:14 taking the life
00:32:14 --> 00:32:14 of another man
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 is not
00:32:15 --> 00:32:18 to show you
00:32:18 --> 00:32:20 how invaluable
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 a human life
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 is
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 is to put
00:32:22 --> 00:32:22 the value
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 of human life
00:32:23 --> 00:32:23 as
00:32:23 --> 00:32:27 there's only
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 one thing
00:32:28 --> 00:32:28 that can be done
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 for a person
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 who deliberately
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 takes the life
00:32:30 --> 00:32:30 of another person
00:32:30 --> 00:32:32 that is
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 for their life
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 to be taken
00:32:33 --> 00:32:33 now
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 that's the principle
00:32:34 --> 00:32:37 trying to work out
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 how to do it
00:32:38 --> 00:32:38 justly
00:32:38 --> 00:32:39 that's another matter
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 all together
00:32:40 --> 00:32:40 I won't kind of
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 get into that bit
00:32:41 --> 00:32:43 the image of God
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 has massive implications
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 for the way we speak
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 to another human being
00:32:46 --> 00:32:48 James chapter 3
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 with the tongue
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 we praise our Lord
00:32:50 --> 00:32:50 and Father
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 and with it
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 we curse men
00:32:52 --> 00:32:53 who have been made
00:32:53 --> 00:32:54 in God's likeness
00:32:54 --> 00:32:57 and he ends it there
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 with how can that be
00:32:58 --> 00:33:00 you cannot speak
00:33:00 --> 00:33:01 to another human being
00:33:01 --> 00:33:01 like that
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 because of the image
00:33:02 --> 00:33:02 of God
00:33:02 --> 00:33:04 and both of those
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 arguments
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 are straight out
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 of creation
00:33:06 --> 00:33:06 apart from
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 redemption
00:33:07 --> 00:33:07 in Jesus
00:33:07 --> 00:33:09 the image of God
00:33:09 --> 00:33:11 has massive implications
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 for racial pride
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 and ethnocentricity
00:33:13 --> 00:33:15 in Acts chapter 17
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 which is read out to us
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 Paul makes
00:33:17 --> 00:33:18 the common origins
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 of human beings
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 the ground
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 of equality
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 and the end
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 of ethnic arrogance
00:33:23 --> 00:33:25 Paul is here
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 he's in Athens
00:33:26 --> 00:33:26 he's speaking
00:33:26 --> 00:33:27 to the Athenians
00:33:27 --> 00:33:29 and they were
00:33:29 --> 00:33:30 very very proud people
00:33:30 --> 00:33:33 they had two classes
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 of people
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 the Athenians
00:33:35 --> 00:33:37 and everyone else
00:33:37 --> 00:33:38 they were all
00:33:38 --> 00:33:39 barbarians
00:33:39 --> 00:33:40 that's what they regarded
00:33:40 --> 00:33:41 cavemen sort of stuff
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 you know barbarians
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 that was everyone else
00:33:43 --> 00:33:45 everyone else
00:33:45 --> 00:33:45 was lower
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 than what they were
00:33:46 --> 00:33:48 and Paul gets
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 one sermon
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 to this group
00:33:50 --> 00:33:52 and what does he say
00:33:52 --> 00:33:52 to them
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 I'll pick it up
00:33:53 --> 00:33:53 in verse 24
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 the God who made
00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 the world
00:33:55 --> 00:33:56 and everything in it
00:33:56 --> 00:33:57 is the Lord
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 of heaven and earth
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 and does not live
00:33:59 --> 00:33:59 in temples
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 made by hands
00:34:00 --> 00:34:02 and he is not
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 served by human hands
00:34:03 --> 00:34:04 as if he needed
00:34:04 --> 00:34:04 anything
00:34:04 --> 00:34:06 because he himself
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 gives all men
00:34:07 --> 00:34:08 life and breath
00:34:08 --> 00:34:09 and everything else
00:34:09 --> 00:34:11 from one man
00:34:11 --> 00:34:12 he made
00:34:12 --> 00:34:14 every nation
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 of men
00:34:15 --> 00:34:18 why does he say that
00:34:18 --> 00:34:19 I mean he could have
00:34:19 --> 00:34:20 said a thousand things
00:34:20 --> 00:34:20 to him
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 why does he say this
00:34:21 --> 00:34:22 from one man
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 he made every nation
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 of men
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 that they should
00:34:24 --> 00:34:26 inhabit the whole earth
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 and he determined
00:34:27 --> 00:34:29 the time set for them
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 and the exact places
00:34:30 --> 00:34:32 where they should live
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 see what he's doing
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 Paul walks in here
00:34:34 --> 00:34:34 to these Athenians
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 and he says
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 you Athenians
00:34:36 --> 00:34:37 you think you're
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 so special
00:34:38 --> 00:34:40 you think
00:34:40 --> 00:34:40 that you
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 have got
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 some unique
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 origin
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 they thought
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 they popped
00:34:44 --> 00:34:44 out of the soil
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 like carrots
00:34:45 --> 00:34:47 they weren't
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 connected
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 to anyone else
00:34:49 --> 00:34:53 you think
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 that the barbarians
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 are so
00:34:55 --> 00:34:56 inferior to you
00:34:56 --> 00:34:58 I got something
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 to tell you
00:34:59 --> 00:35:01 you and the barbarians
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 are you hate
00:35:02 --> 00:35:03 you've got
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 the same daddy
00:35:04 --> 00:35:10 and God decides
00:35:10 --> 00:35:10 where you're going
00:35:10 --> 00:35:11 to end up
00:35:11 --> 00:35:13 and God decides
00:35:13 --> 00:35:13 how you're going
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 to look
00:35:14 --> 00:35:15 and he's going
00:35:15 --> 00:35:15 to decide
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 the way you're
00:35:16 --> 00:35:17 going to talk
00:35:17 --> 00:35:20 you're all connected
00:35:20 --> 00:35:25 what's God's goal
00:35:25 --> 00:35:26 in making all
00:35:26 --> 00:35:26 this diversity
00:35:26 --> 00:35:27 God did this
00:35:27 --> 00:35:27 so that men
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 would seek him
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 and perhaps
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 reach out for him
00:35:29 --> 00:35:30 and find him
00:35:30 --> 00:35:32 just like
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 W.H. Auden did
00:35:33 --> 00:35:37 though he is not
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 far from each
00:35:38 --> 00:35:38 of us
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 for in him
00:35:39 --> 00:35:39 we live
00:35:39 --> 00:35:39 we move
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 and have our
00:35:40 --> 00:35:40 being
00:35:40 --> 00:35:41 and some
00:35:41 --> 00:35:41 of our
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 own poets
00:35:42 --> 00:35:43 have said
00:35:43 --> 00:35:44 we are his
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 offspring
00:35:45 --> 00:35:46 a glance
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 against the
00:35:47 --> 00:35:47 claims of
00:35:47 --> 00:35:49 racial superiority
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 Paul here
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 asserts the
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 unity of
00:35:52 --> 00:35:52 all people
00:35:52 --> 00:35:53 it is
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 fundamental
00:35:54 --> 00:35:55 to his
00:35:55 --> 00:35:55 theology
00:35:55 --> 00:35:57 he's using
00:35:57 --> 00:35:57 this theology
00:35:57 --> 00:35:58 here to
00:35:58 --> 00:35:58 undermine
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 pride
00:35:59 --> 00:36:00 and arrogance
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 and segregation
00:36:01 --> 00:36:02 and superiority
00:36:02 --> 00:36:03 and oppression
00:36:03 --> 00:36:04 and instead
00:36:04 --> 00:36:05 to turn it
00:36:05 --> 00:36:05 around
00:36:05 --> 00:36:07 see the
00:36:07 --> 00:36:07 common origins
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 of all
00:36:08 --> 00:36:08 people
00:36:08 --> 00:36:10 the unity
00:36:10 --> 00:36:10 of all
00:36:10 --> 00:36:10 people
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 and especially
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 the unity
00:36:12 --> 00:36:12 of all
00:36:12 --> 00:36:12 people
00:36:12 --> 00:36:13 under God
00:36:13 --> 00:36:15 God wants
00:36:15 --> 00:36:16 all people
00:36:16 --> 00:36:17 to be unified
00:36:17 --> 00:36:17 in their
00:36:17 --> 00:36:18 seeking of him
00:36:18 --> 00:36:19 through the
00:36:19 --> 00:36:19 Lord Jesus
00:36:19 --> 00:36:20 so my point
00:36:20 --> 00:36:20 today
00:36:20 --> 00:36:21 is that the
00:36:21 --> 00:36:22 Christian doctrine
00:36:22 --> 00:36:22 of creation
00:36:22 --> 00:36:23 itself
00:36:23 --> 00:36:25 apart from
00:36:25 --> 00:36:25 redemption
00:36:25 --> 00:36:26 in Jesus
00:36:26 --> 00:36:28 makes a
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 very significant
00:36:29 --> 00:36:29 contribution
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 to dealing
00:36:30 --> 00:36:31 with racism
00:36:31 --> 00:36:32 and ethnic
00:36:32 --> 00:36:32 pride
00:36:32 --> 00:36:33 God
00:36:33 --> 00:36:34 himself
00:36:34 --> 00:36:35 this is what
00:36:35 --> 00:36:35 we're going
00:36:35 --> 00:36:35 to look at
00:36:35 --> 00:36:36 more as we
00:36:36 --> 00:36:36 go in the
00:36:36 --> 00:36:36 weeks
00:36:36 --> 00:36:37 God himself
00:36:37 --> 00:36:39 affirms it
00:36:39 --> 00:36:40 by coming
00:36:40 --> 00:36:40 to his
00:36:40 --> 00:36:41 creation
00:36:41 --> 00:36:41 in the
00:36:41 --> 00:36:42 person of
00:36:42 --> 00:36:42 Jesus
00:36:42 --> 00:36:42 Christ
00:36:42 --> 00:36:44 the image
00:36:44 --> 00:36:45 bearer of
00:36:45 --> 00:36:45 the father
00:36:45 --> 00:36:46 in such a way
00:36:46 --> 00:36:46 that he says
00:36:46 --> 00:36:47 you see me
00:36:47 --> 00:36:47 you see God
00:36:47 --> 00:36:48 he is the
00:36:48 --> 00:36:49 image bearer
00:36:49 --> 00:36:50 of the father
00:36:50 --> 00:36:51 he goes to
00:36:51 --> 00:36:51 the cross
00:36:51 --> 00:36:52 to right
00:36:52 --> 00:36:54 all of
00:36:54 --> 00:36:54 our
00:36:54 --> 00:36:55 wrongs
00:36:55 --> 00:36:56 to bring us
00:36:56 --> 00:36:57 together in
00:36:57 --> 00:36:57 unity
00:36:57 --> 00:36:59 but that's
00:36:59 --> 00:36:59 for another
00:36:59 --> 00:37:00 day
00:37:00 --> 00:37:01 friends
00:37:01 --> 00:37:02 for us
00:37:02 --> 00:37:02 right now
00:37:02 --> 00:37:03 really simply
00:37:03 --> 00:37:04 the diversity
00:37:04 --> 00:37:04 at St.
00:37:04 --> 00:37:04 Paul's
00:37:04 --> 00:37:05 is really
00:37:05 --> 00:37:07 really obvious
00:37:07 --> 00:37:07 there is
00:37:07 --> 00:37:08 always a
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 threat that
00:37:09 --> 00:37:09 this diversity
00:37:09 --> 00:37:10 could fracture
00:37:10 --> 00:37:11 us rather
00:37:11 --> 00:37:12 than create
00:37:12 --> 00:37:13 a marvellous
00:37:13 --> 00:37:14 gospel unity
00:37:14 --> 00:37:15 St.
00:37:15 --> 00:37:16 Paul's
00:37:16 --> 00:37:16 mission statement
00:37:16 --> 00:37:17 says it
00:37:17 --> 00:37:18 exists to
00:37:18 --> 00:37:19 know Jesus
00:37:19 --> 00:37:20 treasure Jesus
00:37:20 --> 00:37:21 and represent
00:37:21 --> 00:37:22 Jesus for
00:37:22 --> 00:37:24 God's glory
00:37:24 --> 00:37:25 and the joy
00:37:25 --> 00:37:27 of all
00:37:27 --> 00:37:28 people
00:37:28 --> 00:37:29 the all
00:37:29 --> 00:37:29 people
00:37:29 --> 00:37:31 is deliberate
00:37:31 --> 00:37:34 our mission
00:37:34 --> 00:37:34 statement is
00:37:34 --> 00:37:35 represented
00:37:35 --> 00:37:36 visibly
00:37:36 --> 00:37:37 in our
00:37:37 --> 00:37:37 church
00:37:37 --> 00:37:38 logo
00:37:38 --> 00:37:40 it
00:37:40 --> 00:37:41 represents
00:37:41 --> 00:37:41 a racial
00:37:41 --> 00:37:42 diversity
00:37:42 --> 00:37:43 people from
00:37:43 --> 00:37:44 every tribe
00:37:44 --> 00:37:45 and language
00:37:45 --> 00:37:45 and people
00:37:45 --> 00:37:46 and nation
00:37:46 --> 00:37:47 at all
00:37:47 --> 00:37:48 different stages
00:37:48 --> 00:37:48 of being
00:37:48 --> 00:37:49 united together
00:37:49 --> 00:37:50 around
00:37:50 --> 00:37:51 Jesus
00:37:51 --> 00:37:52 so we're
00:37:52 --> 00:37:52 going to get
00:37:52 --> 00:37:52 to Jesus
00:37:52 --> 00:37:53 around
00:37:53 --> 00:37:53 Jesus
00:37:53 --> 00:37:55 that is
00:37:55 --> 00:37:56 our mission
00:37:56 --> 00:37:59 it's our
00:37:59 --> 00:38:00 mission now
00:38:00 --> 00:38:01 because that
00:38:01 --> 00:38:02 is our
00:38:02 --> 00:38:03 future
00:38:03 --> 00:38:04 together
00:38:04 --> 00:38:05 for all of
00:38:05 --> 00:38:05 eternity
00:38:05 --> 00:38:06 but that's
00:38:06 --> 00:38:07 week five
00:38:07 --> 00:38:08 let me pray
00:38:08 --> 00:38:09 and
00:38:09 --> 00:38:10 exactly
00:38:10 --> 00:38:18 so we pray
00:38:24 --> 00:38:25 we pray
00:38:25 --> 00:38:26 we pat
00:38:26 --> 00:38:28 remember
00:38:28 --> 00:38:29 we pray
00:38:29 --> 00:38:29 we pray
00:38:29 --> 00:38:30 we pray
00:38:30 --> 00:38:31 we had
00:38:31 --> 00:38:31 our
00:38:31 --> 00:38:32 我enti
00:38:32 --> 00:38:33 rib