Revelation
Speaker: Chris Jones
Date: 14th September 2014
Passage: Revelation 3:14-22
00:00:00 --> 00:00:11 And he says,
00:00:11 --> 00:00:15 I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot.
00:00:15 --> 00:00:17 I wish that you were cold or hot.
00:00:17 --> 00:00:20 So because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold,
00:00:20 --> 00:00:21 I'm going to vomit you out of my mouth.
00:00:23 --> 00:00:27 And I've got to tell you, when the subject of vomit comes up,
00:00:27 --> 00:00:32 I cannot get past the memory of our family going home to Weewar
00:00:32 --> 00:00:34 after holidays in Yamba.
00:00:35 --> 00:00:38 We were inland, we had to travel over the Great Dividing Range to get home
00:00:38 --> 00:00:43 and that meant five children in the car, winding roads and gentle heat.
00:00:45 --> 00:00:50 And one of our kids didn't handle warm days and winding roads very well
00:00:50 --> 00:00:52 and neither did I when I was a kid.
00:00:53 --> 00:00:56 A lot of experiences won't even tell you about me.
00:00:56 --> 00:00:58 You can ask my mum and I won't let her tell you.
00:00:59 --> 00:01:02 But Kerry was prepared for the journey ahead.
00:01:03 --> 00:01:05 She gave the child an ice cream bucket.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:11 She gave them some chewing gum to keep them occupied and away we went.
00:01:12 --> 00:01:15 And halfway up the mountain, the inevitable happened,
00:01:16 --> 00:01:18 the pale and clammy expression,
00:01:19 --> 00:01:24 the sudden noise and vomit all through the back of the car.
00:01:26 --> 00:01:30 When I was at high school, we called that a technicolour yawn.
00:01:33 --> 00:01:35 Why didn't you use the bucket?
00:01:38 --> 00:01:39 Well, they did.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 They took the chewing gum out of their mouth
00:01:42 --> 00:01:45 and put it in the bucket for safekeeping
00:01:45 --> 00:01:47 and vomited into the car.
00:01:52 --> 00:01:54 Policeman pulled us over a few hours later.
00:01:54 --> 00:01:55 One of the lights on the trailer wasn't on.
00:01:56 --> 00:01:57 He stuck his head through the window.
00:01:57 --> 00:01:58 He pulled his nose back and he said,
00:01:59 --> 00:01:59 go.
00:01:59 --> 00:02:06 Now, despite the humour,
00:02:07 --> 00:02:09 there is nothing funny
00:02:09 --> 00:02:13 about how the Lord Jesus describes his church at Laodicea.
00:02:13 --> 00:02:19 You make me want to vomit.
00:02:20 --> 00:02:22 You make me sick.
00:02:25 --> 00:02:27 And it's pretty hard to understand at first
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 because Laodicea in those days was a very modern city.
00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 Deb Gould's been there, she told us, the other day.
00:02:32 --> 00:02:37 And she said that up the top of the hill
00:02:37 --> 00:02:39 and the city above Laodicea,
00:02:39 --> 00:02:40 there's another city called Hierapolis.
00:02:41 --> 00:02:45 And up there, there's hot Turkish steam baths
00:02:45 --> 00:02:46 fed by the natural spring water
00:02:46 --> 00:02:48 that comes up out of the ground.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:51 And down at the bottom of the mountain,
00:02:51 --> 00:02:52 down below Laodicea,
00:02:53 --> 00:02:56 there's a beautiful, fresh water river
00:02:56 --> 00:02:58 with the water running from the snow melt
00:02:58 --> 00:03:00 in mountains far away.
00:03:00 --> 00:03:01 Beautiful water for drinking.
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 And the Laodiceans lived between the two,
00:03:05 --> 00:03:06 halfway up the hill.
00:03:09 --> 00:03:10 And they were very clever.
00:03:11 --> 00:03:13 And they built a series of pipes and pumps
00:03:13 --> 00:03:15 to carry the colder water up the hill
00:03:15 --> 00:03:18 to meet the hotter water that was coming down the hill.
00:03:18 --> 00:03:22 And so they gave themselves a diluted water supply,
00:03:22 --> 00:03:22 a mix of the two,
00:03:22 --> 00:03:27 lukewarm water to provide water for their town,
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28 their city.
00:03:28 --> 00:03:30 And people who were very clever,
00:03:30 --> 00:03:32 good at taking care of their comfort
00:03:32 --> 00:03:34 and looking after themselves.
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 But in mixing that water,
00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 the Laodiceans had a reputation for water
00:03:42 --> 00:03:44 which tasted disgusting.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:48 Lots of minerals, terrible taste,
00:03:49 --> 00:03:51 terrible smell, lukewarm.
00:03:51 --> 00:03:53 Now Westfield warms their water.
00:03:53 --> 00:03:54 You go to Westfield,
00:03:54 --> 00:03:55 you want to refill your water bottle.
00:03:56 --> 00:03:57 Lukewarm water tastes disgusting,
00:03:58 --> 00:03:59 except it hasn't got the taste of minerals.
00:04:01 --> 00:04:03 So when John writes that the Lord Jesus
00:04:03 --> 00:04:06 would want to spit them out of his mouth,
00:04:07 --> 00:04:11 they knew exactly what Laodicean water tasted like
00:04:11 --> 00:04:14 and they knew exactly why he had written it like this.
00:04:16 --> 00:04:18 And he's no longer talking about water,
00:04:18 --> 00:04:20 he's changed from walking to talking about,
00:04:20 --> 00:04:21 talking,
00:04:21 --> 00:04:22 he's changed from water
00:04:22 --> 00:04:25 to talking about people
00:04:25 --> 00:04:27 who called themselves God's people in that place.
00:04:29 --> 00:04:31 And so John is writing to a proud,
00:04:31 --> 00:04:32 self-sufficient church
00:04:32 --> 00:04:35 and he gives them this really frightening serve.
00:04:36 --> 00:04:38 This is the only church of the seven
00:04:38 --> 00:04:40 that he has absolutely nothing good
00:04:40 --> 00:04:42 to commend them for.
00:04:42 --> 00:04:45 I know your works.
00:04:45 --> 00:04:46 Verse 15,
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 you are neither cold nor hot.
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 I wish that you were cold or hot
00:04:50 --> 00:04:51 and because you're lukewarm
00:04:51 --> 00:04:52 and neither hot nor cold,
00:04:52 --> 00:04:54 I'm going to vomit you out of my mouth.
00:04:56 --> 00:04:58 Laodicea is a proud city.
00:04:58 --> 00:05:01 They are like a few of the others in Revelation.
00:05:01 --> 00:05:04 They are a city that was absolutely destroyed
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 by a massive earthquake in AD 60.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:09 But they were different from the other cities
00:05:09 --> 00:05:11 because the other cities accepted
00:05:11 --> 00:05:13 the emperor's help to rebuild their city.
00:05:13 --> 00:05:14 Money from him,
00:05:14 --> 00:05:16 you know the disaster relief fund
00:05:16 --> 00:05:17 that rebuilt their city.
00:05:17 --> 00:05:18 Well the Laodiceans said,
00:05:19 --> 00:05:20 thanks but no thanks.
00:05:21 --> 00:05:22 We're rich,
00:05:22 --> 00:05:23 they're skilled,
00:05:24 --> 00:05:25 they're self-starters,
00:05:25 --> 00:05:26 they're initiators,
00:05:26 --> 00:05:27 they're independent people
00:05:27 --> 00:05:29 who achieve much by their own effort,
00:05:29 --> 00:05:31 self-made men and women
00:05:31 --> 00:05:33 who did not need handouts
00:05:33 --> 00:05:35 even when confronted by natural disaster.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:37 And so they would be getting
00:05:37 --> 00:05:39 award after award in Australia
00:05:39 --> 00:05:40 for their can-do attitude
00:05:40 --> 00:05:42 in facing such a disaster
00:05:42 --> 00:05:44 and incredibly difficult times.
00:05:46 --> 00:05:48 But the huge problem in this passage,
00:05:48 --> 00:05:49 and this is the crux,
00:05:51 --> 00:05:53 was their self-assessment
00:05:53 --> 00:05:57 was different from God's evaluation of them.
00:05:59 --> 00:06:00 So verse 17,
00:06:00 --> 00:06:00 you say,
00:06:01 --> 00:06:02 I'm rich,
00:06:02 --> 00:06:04 I have become wealthy,
00:06:04 --> 00:06:05 I need nothing.
00:06:05 --> 00:06:08 And you don't know
00:06:08 --> 00:06:10 that you are wretched,
00:06:11 --> 00:06:11 pitiful,
00:06:12 --> 00:06:12 poor,
00:06:13 --> 00:06:14 blind,
00:06:14 --> 00:06:15 and naked.
00:06:18 --> 00:06:19 They filled out a survey,
00:06:20 --> 00:06:21 they've given themselves
00:06:21 --> 00:06:22 nine out of ten,
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 and God fills out his survey
00:06:24 --> 00:06:25 and he gives them two.
00:06:25 --> 00:06:31 And this church is described
00:06:31 --> 00:06:32 as incredibly needy
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 and desperate for charity.
00:06:36 --> 00:06:37 My first four years
00:06:37 --> 00:06:38 out of Mill College,
00:06:39 --> 00:06:40 I was serving in a church
00:06:40 --> 00:06:42 in the Campbelltown Valley
00:06:42 --> 00:06:43 and it was probably
00:06:43 --> 00:06:44 one of the neediest suburbs
00:06:44 --> 00:06:45 in Sydney at the time
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 and to some extent still is.
00:06:48 --> 00:06:49 And we were very dependent
00:06:49 --> 00:06:51 on Anglicare's support
00:06:51 --> 00:06:52 for ministry positions
00:06:52 --> 00:06:53 at church,
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 for food,
00:06:55 --> 00:06:57 for gas and electricity bills
00:06:57 --> 00:06:57 for some of the people
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 in the congregation,
00:06:58 --> 00:07:00 for counselling support.
00:07:01 --> 00:07:02 In that parish,
00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 people's neediness
00:07:04 --> 00:07:05 was incredibly obvious,
00:07:05 --> 00:07:06 everybody could see it,
00:07:06 --> 00:07:07 and it was something
00:07:07 --> 00:07:08 that had to be dealt with.
00:07:08 --> 00:07:11 We as a parish,
00:07:11 --> 00:07:11 we as people,
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 we knew we were needy
00:07:13 --> 00:07:16 and we were hungry for help.
00:07:18 --> 00:07:19 But I've also been
00:07:19 --> 00:07:21 in wealthy churches
00:07:21 --> 00:07:22 where need was hidden,
00:07:24 --> 00:07:25 where people have problems
00:07:25 --> 00:07:26 in their families
00:07:26 --> 00:07:27 and their homes.
00:07:28 --> 00:07:29 Sometimes we have the wealth
00:07:29 --> 00:07:30 to hide them,
00:07:30 --> 00:07:31 they're not obvious
00:07:31 --> 00:07:32 and not easy to see.
00:07:33 --> 00:07:34 Gambling addictions,
00:07:34 --> 00:07:36 destroying family finances.
00:07:36 --> 00:07:39 Drug and alcohol abuse
00:07:39 --> 00:07:41 to cope with unsustainable lives.
00:07:42 --> 00:07:43 Uncontrolled temper,
00:07:43 --> 00:07:44 somebody loses their temper
00:07:44 --> 00:07:45 in the family
00:07:45 --> 00:07:46 and somebody else lives
00:07:46 --> 00:07:47 with dreadful fear
00:07:47 --> 00:07:48 of them going off again.
00:07:50 --> 00:07:51 Hidden addiction
00:07:51 --> 00:07:52 to pornography
00:07:52 --> 00:07:53 that many of us
00:07:53 --> 00:07:54 have grappled with
00:07:54 --> 00:07:56 where we pursue deep
00:07:56 --> 00:07:56 inner need
00:07:56 --> 00:07:57 in empty
00:07:57 --> 00:07:59 and harmful ways.
00:08:00 --> 00:08:01 We hide it,
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 we get trapped
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 in secrets,
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 and we all
00:08:06 --> 00:08:07 have very deep
00:08:07 --> 00:08:09 need and brokenness
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 and even for myself
00:08:10 --> 00:08:11 I go back a few years
00:08:11 --> 00:08:13 I needed two years
00:08:13 --> 00:08:15 of fairly significant
00:08:15 --> 00:08:16 support in counselling
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 for some of the things
00:08:17 --> 00:08:18 that were going on
00:08:18 --> 00:08:18 in my life.
00:08:19 --> 00:08:20 We are broken
00:08:20 --> 00:08:21 and we are needy.
00:08:24 --> 00:08:25 Now privately
00:08:25 --> 00:08:26 we know that we're
00:08:26 --> 00:08:27 in desperate trouble
00:08:27 --> 00:08:29 but publicly
00:08:29 --> 00:08:32 we're too scared
00:08:32 --> 00:08:32 to admit it.
00:08:32 --> 00:08:35 and so we fake it.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:38 Surely those things
00:08:38 --> 00:08:38 couldn't be a problem
00:08:38 --> 00:08:39 amongst the people of God.
00:08:40 --> 00:08:40 We don't feel like
00:08:40 --> 00:08:42 we can reveal those things
00:08:42 --> 00:08:43 when we come into a group
00:08:43 --> 00:08:44 of people like this.
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 We put on a face,
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 we don't cry out
00:08:47 --> 00:08:48 needy for help.
00:08:49 --> 00:08:50 We try to present
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 as though we're holding it
00:08:51 --> 00:08:53 together in a self-sufficient way.
00:08:53 --> 00:08:57 And Jesus speaks
00:08:57 --> 00:08:58 to his church
00:08:58 --> 00:09:00 and he says,
00:09:00 --> 00:09:01 you say
00:09:01 --> 00:09:03 I'm rich.
00:09:04 --> 00:09:05 I've become wealthy.
00:09:06 --> 00:09:08 I need nothing.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:13 But you don't know
00:09:13 --> 00:09:14 that you are
00:09:14 --> 00:09:15 wretched,
00:09:16 --> 00:09:16 pitiful,
00:09:17 --> 00:09:18 poor,
00:09:19 --> 00:09:19 blind,
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 and naked.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:28 And the incredible
00:09:28 --> 00:09:29 gospel truth
00:09:29 --> 00:09:30 here is that
00:09:30 --> 00:09:31 Jesus does not
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 condemn them
00:09:32 --> 00:09:33 for being wretched,
00:09:33 --> 00:09:34 pitiful,
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 poor,
00:09:35 --> 00:09:36 blind and naked.
00:09:37 --> 00:09:37 He's merely
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 pointing it out.
00:09:38 --> 00:09:41 This is a universal
00:09:41 --> 00:09:42 condition.
00:09:42 --> 00:09:43 The gospel's
00:09:43 --> 00:09:43 starting point
00:09:43 --> 00:09:44 is that all people
00:09:44 --> 00:09:45 are fallen.
00:09:46 --> 00:09:47 All people have sinned
00:09:47 --> 00:09:47 and fall short
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 of the glory of God.
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 Romans 3.23
00:09:49 --> 00:09:51 The same gospel
00:09:51 --> 00:09:52 is wonderfully
00:09:52 --> 00:09:54 expressed in Ephesians 2.
00:09:54 --> 00:09:54 As for you,
00:09:55 --> 00:09:55 talking to us,
00:09:56 --> 00:09:57 you were dead
00:09:57 --> 00:09:58 in your transgressions
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 and sins
00:09:59 --> 00:09:59 in which you used
00:09:59 --> 00:10:00 to walk.
00:10:01 --> 00:10:03 And then further down,
00:10:03 --> 00:10:03 because of his
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 great love for us,
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 God who is rich
00:10:06 --> 00:10:06 in mercy
00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 made us alive
00:10:08 --> 00:10:08 in Christ
00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 even when we were
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10 dead in our
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 trespasses
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 and sin.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 I think some
00:10:18 --> 00:10:18 of the saddest
00:10:18 --> 00:10:19 and most difficult
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 people I meet
00:10:20 --> 00:10:21 in ministry
00:10:21 --> 00:10:23 are self-made
00:10:23 --> 00:10:25 men and women,
00:10:25 --> 00:10:25 often rich,
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 people that perhaps
00:10:27 --> 00:10:28 we put up on
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 pedestals because
00:10:29 --> 00:10:30 of their wealth.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 I think of a man
00:10:32 --> 00:10:33 I loved and respected,
00:10:33 --> 00:10:34 a man who was
00:10:34 --> 00:10:35 kind to me,
00:10:35 --> 00:10:36 who was more moral
00:10:36 --> 00:10:36 than some of the
00:10:36 --> 00:10:38 Christians that he
00:10:38 --> 00:10:39 dealt with in business
00:10:39 --> 00:10:39 and some of the
00:10:39 --> 00:10:41 moral issues that
00:10:41 --> 00:10:41 were even going on
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 in our church family.
00:10:44 --> 00:10:45 He was rich.
00:10:46 --> 00:10:47 It was a principle
00:10:47 --> 00:10:48 of his never
00:10:48 --> 00:10:48 to borrow money.
00:10:50 --> 00:10:51 He paid in cash
00:10:51 --> 00:10:53 and he was a man
00:10:53 --> 00:10:53 who bought some
00:10:53 --> 00:10:55 really big stuff.
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 He was the biggest
00:10:58 --> 00:11:00 giver to a new
00:11:00 --> 00:11:01 church building
00:11:01 --> 00:11:02 in the parish
00:11:02 --> 00:11:03 that I was in.
00:11:03 --> 00:11:05 And he died
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06 earlier this year
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 as far as I know
00:11:07 --> 00:11:07 he died without
00:11:07 --> 00:11:08 Christ.
00:11:10 --> 00:11:11 But brothers and
00:11:11 --> 00:11:11 sisters,
00:11:12 --> 00:11:12 he had a way
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13 of life
00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 that we would
00:11:14 --> 00:11:14 sell ourselves
00:11:14 --> 00:11:15 for.
00:11:19 --> 00:11:20 Outwardly,
00:11:20 --> 00:11:20 really connected
00:11:20 --> 00:11:21 to church
00:11:21 --> 00:11:24 but he didn't
00:11:24 --> 00:11:24 know Jesus
00:11:24 --> 00:11:25 and he built
00:11:25 --> 00:11:26 walls around
00:11:26 --> 00:11:27 himself that
00:11:27 --> 00:11:27 stopped anyone
00:11:27 --> 00:11:28 really knowing
00:11:28 --> 00:11:29 him and getting
00:11:29 --> 00:11:29 near what was
00:11:29 --> 00:11:30 deep inside.
00:11:30 --> 00:11:31 I loved him.
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 Jesus loved him
00:11:32 --> 00:11:32 even more
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 but my friend
00:11:34 --> 00:11:34 did not know
00:11:34 --> 00:11:35 Jesus.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:38 See,
00:11:38 --> 00:11:39 we fear being
00:11:39 --> 00:11:40 laid bare.
00:11:41 --> 00:11:42 We fear rejection.
00:11:42 --> 00:11:43 If other people
00:11:43 --> 00:11:44 really knew what
00:11:44 --> 00:11:44 was going on
00:11:44 --> 00:11:45 inside us,
00:11:45 --> 00:11:46 do they really
00:11:46 --> 00:11:46 know how anxious
00:11:46 --> 00:11:47 I am about
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 these exams
00:11:48 --> 00:11:48 coming up?
00:11:49 --> 00:11:49 Do they know
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 how difficult
00:11:50 --> 00:11:51 it is for me
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 not to have
00:11:52 --> 00:11:52 the boyfriend
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 or the girlfriend
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 that I've really
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 been hoping for
00:11:55 --> 00:11:56 or the struggle
00:11:56 --> 00:11:56 which is going
00:11:56 --> 00:11:57 on in my family?
00:12:01 --> 00:12:02 And we hide
00:12:02 --> 00:12:04 although some
00:12:04 --> 00:12:04 of us have
00:12:04 --> 00:12:05 places that
00:12:05 --> 00:12:06 we can share.
00:12:09 --> 00:12:10 The Bible
00:12:10 --> 00:12:11 is consistently
00:12:11 --> 00:12:12 scathing of
00:12:12 --> 00:12:12 our efforts
00:12:12 --> 00:12:13 to present
00:12:13 --> 00:12:13 ourselves as
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 something to
00:12:14 --> 00:12:14 God,
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 faking it
00:12:15 --> 00:12:15 with him.
00:12:15 --> 00:12:16 Isaiah
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 chapter 64
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 verse 6
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 says,
00:12:18 --> 00:12:19 all of us
00:12:19 --> 00:12:20 have become
00:12:20 --> 00:12:20 like one
00:12:20 --> 00:12:20 who is
00:12:20 --> 00:12:21 unclean
00:12:21 --> 00:12:21 and all
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 our righteous
00:12:22 --> 00:12:22 acts are
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 like filthy
00:12:23 --> 00:12:23 rags.
00:12:24 --> 00:12:25 God wants
00:12:25 --> 00:12:25 our hearts
00:12:25 --> 00:12:26 and throughout
00:12:26 --> 00:12:26 the Bible
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 he calls us
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 to humble
00:12:28 --> 00:12:28 ourselves
00:12:28 --> 00:12:29 before him.
00:12:29 --> 00:12:30 So in Isaiah
00:12:30 --> 00:12:31 66 it says
00:12:31 --> 00:12:32 this is the
00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 one I esteem
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 he who is
00:12:34 --> 00:12:34 humble and
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 contrite in
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 spirit and
00:12:36 --> 00:12:36 trembles at
00:12:36 --> 00:12:37 my word.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:39 And you come
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 into the pages
00:12:40 --> 00:12:40 of the Bible
00:12:40 --> 00:12:41 and you see
00:12:41 --> 00:12:42 that the way
00:12:42 --> 00:12:45 of the cross
00:12:45 --> 00:12:45 is a journey
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 from independence
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 and self-sufficiency
00:12:47 --> 00:12:48 to dependence
00:12:48 --> 00:12:49 and complete
00:12:49 --> 00:12:50 reliance on
00:12:50 --> 00:12:50 Christ.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 Jesus speaks
00:12:52 --> 00:12:53 to this proud
00:12:53 --> 00:12:54 church with
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 an incredible
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 invitation.
00:12:56 --> 00:12:56 He says in
00:12:56 --> 00:12:57 verse 18
00:12:57 --> 00:12:58 I advise you
00:12:58 --> 00:12:59 to buy
00:12:59 --> 00:12:59 from me
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 gold refined
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 in the fire
00:13:01 --> 00:13:02 so that you
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 might be
00:13:03 --> 00:13:03 rich
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 and white
00:13:05 --> 00:13:05 clothes so
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 that you
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 may be
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 dressed
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 and your
00:13:07 --> 00:13:07 shameful
00:13:07 --> 00:13:08 nakedness
00:13:08 --> 00:13:08 not be
00:13:08 --> 00:13:09 exposed
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 and ointment
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 to spread
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 on your
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 eyes so
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 that you
00:13:12 --> 00:13:12 may see
00:13:12 --> 00:13:15 this is a
00:13:15 --> 00:13:15 rich trading
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 city
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 and these
00:13:17 --> 00:13:17 people are
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 the Chinese
00:13:18 --> 00:13:19 of Chatswood
00:13:19 --> 00:13:19 and I'm
00:13:19 --> 00:13:19 not using
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 it in a
00:13:20 --> 00:13:20 derogatory
00:13:20 --> 00:13:21 way they
00:13:21 --> 00:13:21 know about
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 money they
00:13:22 --> 00:13:22 know how
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 to do a
00:13:23 --> 00:13:23 good deal
00:13:23 --> 00:13:25 and they
00:13:25 --> 00:13:25 have gold
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 supplies and
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 they're famous
00:13:27 --> 00:13:27 for their
00:13:27 --> 00:13:28 black woolen
00:13:28 --> 00:13:28 rugs
00:13:28 --> 00:13:29 they're sold
00:13:29 --> 00:13:29 all around
00:13:29 --> 00:13:30 the world
00:13:30 --> 00:13:30 and their
00:13:30 --> 00:13:31 ear and
00:13:31 --> 00:13:31 their eye
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 treatments
00:13:32 --> 00:13:33 everybody knows
00:13:33 --> 00:13:33 about them
00:13:33 --> 00:13:34 and Jesus
00:13:34 --> 00:13:35 offers them
00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 something that
00:13:36 --> 00:13:36 they already
00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 feel self
00:13:37 --> 00:13:37 sufficient in
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 what do you
00:13:39 --> 00:13:39 do when
00:13:39 --> 00:13:40 somebody offers
00:13:40 --> 00:13:40 you something
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 which you
00:13:41 --> 00:13:41 already think
00:13:41 --> 00:13:42 you have
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 enough of
00:13:43 --> 00:13:43 you don't
00:13:43 --> 00:13:44 want anymore
00:13:44 --> 00:13:46 you say
00:13:46 --> 00:13:46 something like
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 what do I need
00:13:47 --> 00:13:47 that for
00:13:47 --> 00:13:47 I've already
00:13:47 --> 00:13:48 got it
00:13:48 --> 00:13:51 and it's
00:13:51 --> 00:13:51 almost an
00:13:51 --> 00:13:52 expression of
00:13:52 --> 00:13:52 pride of
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 self sufficiency
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 of saying I'm
00:13:54 --> 00:13:54 okay thanks
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 I don't need
00:13:55 --> 00:13:55 it
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 and Jesus
00:13:56 --> 00:13:57 looks deeper
00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 than they are
00:13:58 --> 00:13:58 capable of
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 looking he
00:13:59 --> 00:13:59 knows their
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 need and he
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 says he says
00:14:02 --> 00:14:02 to them he
00:14:02 --> 00:14:03 says that you
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 are wretched you
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 are pitiful you
00:14:05 --> 00:14:05 are poor you
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 are blind you
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 are naked
00:14:07 --> 00:14:10 come to me and
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 receive real
00:14:11 --> 00:14:12 wealth true
00:14:12 --> 00:14:13 cleansing removal
00:14:13 --> 00:14:14 of shame he can
00:14:14 --> 00:14:15 help them to see
00:14:15 --> 00:14:16 what they are
00:14:16 --> 00:14:17 completely blind
00:14:17 --> 00:14:17 to
00:14:17 --> 00:14:21 it's the
00:14:21 --> 00:14:21 gospel
00:14:21 --> 00:14:24 it's the
00:14:24 --> 00:14:25 cleansing power
00:14:25 --> 00:14:25 of the cross
00:14:25 --> 00:14:26 it's the work
00:14:26 --> 00:14:26 of the Holy
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 Spirit which
00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 takes the
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 eye scales
00:14:29 --> 00:14:29 away and
00:14:29 --> 00:14:30 helps us to
00:14:30 --> 00:14:30 see
00:14:30 --> 00:14:35 can you see
00:14:35 --> 00:14:35 the dynamic
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 Jesus has
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 absolutely nothing
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 good to say
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 about this
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 church and
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 yet he stands
00:14:41 --> 00:14:42 there and he
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 offers them the
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 most magnificent
00:14:44 --> 00:14:44 and generous
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 invitation
00:14:45 --> 00:14:47 verse 8
00:14:47 --> 00:14:47 19 as
00:14:47 --> 00:14:48 many as I
00:14:48 --> 00:14:49 love I
00:14:49 --> 00:14:50 rebuke and
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 discipline so
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 be committed
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 and repent
00:14:53 --> 00:14:55 listen I
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 stand at the
00:14:56 --> 00:14:56 door and
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 knock if
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 anyone hears
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 my voice and
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 opens the door I
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 will come into
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 him and have
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 dinner with him
00:15:03 --> 00:15:03 and he with
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 me
00:15:04 --> 00:15:06 Jesus is
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 speaking to a
00:15:07 --> 00:15:07 church he's
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 speaking to church
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 people you and
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 me people who
00:15:10 --> 00:15:11 call themselves
00:15:11 --> 00:15:12 Christians who
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 hang around
00:15:13 --> 00:15:14 churches who are
00:15:14 --> 00:15:14 proud of their
00:15:14 --> 00:15:15 standing in the
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 church community
00:15:15 --> 00:15:17 speaks as a
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 father to a
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 wayward son or
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 daughter that he
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 is still in
00:15:21 --> 00:15:22 relationship with he
00:15:22 --> 00:15:23 has not given up on
00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 relationship yet
00:15:24 --> 00:15:27 those I love I
00:15:27 --> 00:15:27 rebuke and I
00:15:27 --> 00:15:30 discipline wake up
00:15:30 --> 00:15:32 he speaks a word to
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 insiders not to
00:15:33 --> 00:15:34 outsiders and he
00:15:34 --> 00:15:36 says let me in
00:15:36 --> 00:15:40 last week when I
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 preached on the
00:15:41 --> 00:15:41 letter to the
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 church in
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 Philadelphia Jesus
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 was portrayed as
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 the faithful steward
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 of God's house he
00:15:46 --> 00:15:48 has the swipe card to
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 every room in heaven
00:15:49 --> 00:15:51 and he opens and he
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 closes doors of
00:15:52 --> 00:15:54 opportunity to ministry
00:15:54 --> 00:15:54 and ultimately to
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 heaven itself if he
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 opens it you can't
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 close and if he
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 closes it you can't
00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 open it awesome
00:15:59 --> 00:16:01 power but the door
00:16:01 --> 00:16:03 here in Laodicea is
00:16:03 --> 00:16:04 different this door is
00:16:04 --> 00:16:06 a door that we have
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 the ability to open
00:16:07 --> 00:16:09 and that we are
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 ultimately held
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 responsible for if we
00:16:12 --> 00:16:15 don't open it and
00:16:15 --> 00:16:17 Jesus says to us to
00:16:17 --> 00:16:17 his church be
00:16:17 --> 00:16:20 committed and repent
00:16:20 --> 00:16:23 it's a call to
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 commitment to stand
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 in Christ to move
00:16:25 --> 00:16:27 from lukewarm fence
00:16:27 --> 00:16:27 sitting and
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 half-heartedness to a
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 life which is devoted
00:16:29 --> 00:16:31 to Christ to repentance
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 to a turning back to
00:16:32 --> 00:16:33 what we already know
00:16:33 --> 00:16:34 a turning back to the
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 gospel giving up the
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 faking it and allowing
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 Jesus to do his
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 cleansing work in us
00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 it's a call to humble
00:16:41 --> 00:16:43 dependence and
00:16:43 --> 00:16:46 repentance and it's a
00:16:46 --> 00:16:47 completely undeserved
00:16:47 --> 00:16:49 invitation into a
00:16:49 --> 00:16:51 renewed and refreshed
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 relationship with Jesus
00:16:52 --> 00:16:57 I will come into him
00:16:57 --> 00:17:00 or her and I will have
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 dinner with him or her
00:17:01 --> 00:17:03 and they with me
00:17:03 --> 00:17:07 it's the intimacy of
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 knowing Jesus the
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 closeness of having a
00:17:10 --> 00:17:10 meal together
00:17:10 --> 00:17:12 real relationship with
00:17:12 --> 00:17:12 him
00:17:12 --> 00:17:14 being able to pour
00:17:14 --> 00:17:15 your heart out to him
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 and knowing him
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 personally and knowing
00:17:17 --> 00:17:19 that he cares for you
00:17:19 --> 00:17:25 it's not about doing
00:17:25 --> 00:17:27 and performing
00:17:27 --> 00:17:30 it's about abiding
00:17:30 --> 00:17:32 and resting
00:17:32 --> 00:17:34 and refreshing
00:17:34 --> 00:17:37 in joyful obedience
00:17:37 --> 00:17:38 of our saviour
00:17:38 --> 00:17:39 Jesus Christ
00:17:39 --> 00:17:45 I thank God for the
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 man who taught me
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 when I was first a
00:17:47 --> 00:17:49 believer to relate to
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 God in a real and
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 intimate way every day
00:17:51 --> 00:17:53 in coming to his word
00:17:53 --> 00:17:53 and speaking with him
00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 in prayer and also
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 sharing the faith with
00:17:55 --> 00:17:56 my friends
00:17:56 --> 00:18:01 and I grew
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 and I was refreshed in
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 my relationship with
00:18:03 --> 00:18:05 Jesus and I felt alive
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 and I felt dependent on
00:18:06 --> 00:18:08 him and it was just a
00:18:08 --> 00:18:10 deep thrill being his
00:18:10 --> 00:18:10 person
00:18:10 --> 00:18:14 and after a few years
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 and some of them in
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 theological college and
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 it's not college's fault
00:18:17 --> 00:18:19 but it became a chore
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 and a task
00:18:20 --> 00:18:22 and a duty
00:18:22 --> 00:18:24 and more about getting
00:18:24 --> 00:18:26 over my guilt
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 than enjoying Jesus
00:18:27 --> 00:18:30 and I was very
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 half-hearted
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 and lukewarm
00:18:32 --> 00:18:34 in coming to the
00:18:34 --> 00:18:34 scriptures
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 and I used the
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 language of commitment
00:18:36 --> 00:18:39 but was trading on the
00:18:39 --> 00:18:39 past not on the
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 present
00:18:40 --> 00:18:43 and it's a really
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 lonely place to be
00:18:44 --> 00:18:48 and Jesus invites us
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 into something which
00:18:49 --> 00:18:51 is rich and
00:18:51 --> 00:18:53 intimate and
00:18:53 --> 00:18:55 relational with him
00:18:55 --> 00:18:58 and so I thank God
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 for the woman and
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 not Kerry another
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 woman I thank God
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 for Kerry let me tell
00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 you but this other
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 woman who 25 years
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 later helped me back
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 into joyous times with
00:19:07 --> 00:19:10 Jesus in his word
00:19:10 --> 00:19:12 and in prayer and in
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 understanding that I
00:19:13 --> 00:19:16 was his son and who
00:19:16 --> 00:19:16 helped me to
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 experiencing the
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 intimacy and the
00:19:19 --> 00:19:21 grace and the
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 exceeding joy of
00:19:22 --> 00:19:24 dining with him and
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 living for him
00:19:25 --> 00:19:28 of being able to
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 come safely into his
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 presence despite being
00:19:30 --> 00:19:32 a person who was
00:19:32 --> 00:19:32 wretched
00:19:32 --> 00:19:34 pitiful
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 poor
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 blind
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 and naked
00:19:37 --> 00:19:42 it's the greatest
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 thing in life to
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 know that we are
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 loved by Jesus
00:19:44 --> 00:19:47 it's an enormous
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 privilege to treasure
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 him together
00:19:49 --> 00:19:52 there's incredible
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 encouragement from
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 coming together as
00:19:54 --> 00:19:56 the people of God who
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 just love him
00:19:57 --> 00:20:04 and Jesus stands here
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 with this church that he
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 has nothing to commend
00:20:06 --> 00:20:09 to or to commend them
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 for and he offers them
00:20:11 --> 00:20:13 extraordinary grace and
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 mercy and kindness
00:20:14 --> 00:20:19 I think it's
00:20:19 --> 00:20:21 incredibly similar to
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 the sort of teaching
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 which is going on in
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 Luke's gospel from
00:20:24 --> 00:20:25 round about Luke
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 chapter 18
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 you know the rich
00:20:27 --> 00:20:29 young man who comes
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 up to Jesus and he
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 says to Jesus what's
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 the what's the good
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 thing what's the one
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 good thing that I must
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 do to inherit eternal
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 life
00:20:37 --> 00:20:41 and he says Jesus
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 says we know the
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 commandments he said
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 I've kept all the
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 relational commandments
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 look I've never
00:20:45 --> 00:20:47 committed adultery I've
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 never murdered anybody
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 I've never lied I don't
00:20:49 --> 00:20:51 steal and I really
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 honour my mum and dad
00:20:52 --> 00:20:54 and the whole community
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 listening on they would
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 have looked at the
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 bloke they would have
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 known his history and
00:20:57 --> 00:20:57 they would have said
00:20:57 --> 00:20:58 yeah he is like that
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 that's the sort of bloke
00:20:59 --> 00:21:01 he is but Jesus drew
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 out his heart and he
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 said you still lack
00:21:03 --> 00:21:05 just one thing sell
00:21:05 --> 00:21:07 everything you have
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 and give to the poor
00:21:08 --> 00:21:08 and you will have
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 treasure in heaven and
00:21:09 --> 00:21:10 then come and follow
00:21:10 --> 00:21:14 me and he walked
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 away from Jesus very
00:21:15 --> 00:21:16 sad because he had
00:21:16 --> 00:21:18 great wealth he would
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 not let go of one
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 treasure to lay hold
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 of a better treasure
00:21:21 --> 00:21:26 the Laodiceans are
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 being called to let go
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 of something which was
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 a treasure to them but
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 which made the Lord
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 Jesus want to vomit
00:21:31 --> 00:21:35 and in his great grace
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 he wasn't just calling
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 them to leave something
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 precious or what was
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 precious to them he
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 was calling them to
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 something precious
00:21:41 --> 00:21:42 something far more
00:21:42 --> 00:21:46 precious he wanted
00:21:46 --> 00:21:46 them to have something
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 so much better he
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 wanted these wealthy
00:21:48 --> 00:21:50 self-satisfied people
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 to have him as their
00:21:51 --> 00:21:53 greatest treasure to
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 repent to see that
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 they needed to let go
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 of the false treasure
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 and lay hold of him
00:21:57 --> 00:22:00 and Jesus was very sad
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 when that man walked
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 away from him a great
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 gift was being offered
00:22:03 --> 00:22:05 and he didn't take it
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 because he thought he
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 had something better
00:22:07 --> 00:22:09 no thanks I don't need
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 it really is what he's
00:22:10 --> 00:22:10 saying even though he
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 didn't say it like that
00:22:11 --> 00:22:18 and Jesus said how hard
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 it is for a rich person
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 to enter the kingdom of
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 heaven it is easier for a
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 camel to go through the
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 eye of a needle than for a
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 rich person to get into
00:22:24 --> 00:22:26 heaven and the people who
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 were listening and the
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 people were looking on
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 they were astonished at
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 what Jesus said they were
00:22:30 --> 00:22:32 shocked and the disciples
00:22:32 --> 00:22:34 who can be saved
00:22:34 --> 00:22:40 and the question gets an
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 astonishing answer with
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 the encounter with the
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 chief tax collector
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 Zacchaeus in Luke chapter
00:22:44 --> 00:22:47 19 wealthy greedy rip off
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 merchant trader he's all
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 those things a great story
00:22:49 --> 00:22:51 for a current affair you
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 know do one of those
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 ambush interviews with
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 Zacchaeus coming out the
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 corner in Jericho up the
00:22:55 --> 00:22:57 tree gotcha Zacchaeus as he
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 gets out of his filthy
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 looking Mercedes Benz or
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 whatever it is to climb the
00:23:00 --> 00:23:02 tree what's it like to
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 live the high life on
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 what you've stolen from
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 other people in Jericho you
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 dog
00:23:06 --> 00:23:08 that's how you do it
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 isn't it
00:23:09 --> 00:23:14 he's a true Laodicean
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 wretched
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 pitiful
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 poor
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 blind
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 and naked
00:23:18 --> 00:23:20 and he encounters Jesus
00:23:20 --> 00:23:22 and he is transformed
00:23:22 --> 00:23:24 isn't that incredible
00:23:24 --> 00:23:27 Lord I give back half of my
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 possessions to the poor
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 and if I've ripped off
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 anybody in the year I have
00:23:30 --> 00:23:32 I will pay back four times
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 what I've stolen from them
00:23:33 --> 00:23:38 so he does he exchanges one
00:23:38 --> 00:23:42 treasure for another he is
00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 received and accepted and
00:23:43 --> 00:23:45 loved by Jesus shame is
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 removed his eyes are open
00:23:46 --> 00:23:48 he's loved by Jesus who
00:23:48 --> 00:23:49 declares the impossible
00:23:49 --> 00:23:51 Jesus says today salvation
00:23:52 --> 00:23:54 has come to this house this
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 guy gets it
00:23:56 --> 00:24:06 church in Laodicea is called to
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 exchange one treasure for
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 another they're called to
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 overcome
00:24:09 --> 00:24:13 you see the starting point
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 the starting point for all of
00:24:14 --> 00:24:16 us here is one of our value
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 statement humble authenticity
00:24:17 --> 00:24:21 seeing ourselves as Christ sees us
00:24:21 --> 00:24:23 and the way that Christ sees us
00:24:23 --> 00:24:25 is all we've begun at this point
00:24:25 --> 00:24:25 wretched
00:24:25 --> 00:24:27 pitiful
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 poor
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 blind
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 naked
00:24:30 --> 00:24:33 incredibly needy
00:24:33 --> 00:24:37 somebody asked me a question
00:24:37 --> 00:24:39 the other day about how I would
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 cope as a minister if I was
00:24:40 --> 00:24:42 leading a church with a number of
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 attenders who live
00:24:43 --> 00:24:46 an openly gay lifestyle
00:24:46 --> 00:24:51 and it threw me for a bit
00:24:51 --> 00:24:54 and I spent quite a bit of time
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 reflecting on the question I'm
00:24:55 --> 00:24:57 going to continue to do so
00:24:57 --> 00:25:02 but part of the answers in this
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 passage
00:25:02 --> 00:25:07 to see myself as Jesus assesses me
00:25:07 --> 00:25:11 to see me before I see them to
00:25:11 --> 00:25:13 see me as wretched pitiful poor
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 blind
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 naked
00:25:15 --> 00:25:18 very needy of the grace of
00:25:18 --> 00:25:18 Christ
00:25:18 --> 00:25:21 starting point for us all
00:25:21 --> 00:25:23 because it puts us in a place
00:25:23 --> 00:25:25 where we won't be too quick to
00:25:25 --> 00:25:27 exalt ourselves over others and it
00:25:27 --> 00:25:29 reminds us of the grace that we
00:25:29 --> 00:25:29 all need
00:25:29 --> 00:25:33 that's not a complete answer to
00:25:33 --> 00:25:35 that question but it is a
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 starting point
00:25:36 --> 00:25:40 and I think going with that I
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 hope that our church and I think
00:25:41 --> 00:25:43 that our church is a safe place
00:25:43 --> 00:25:45 for people from all sorts of
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 places and struggles
00:25:46 --> 00:25:49 to consider the claims of the
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 Lord Jesus Christ
00:25:50 --> 00:25:54 a church where we understand that
00:25:54 --> 00:25:56 we are all a work in progress
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 that we haven't arrived
00:25:57 --> 00:26:00 and that we're at the mercy of the
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 Lord Jesus Christ and he is the
00:26:01 --> 00:26:03 one who has lifted us up from
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 where we were
00:26:03 --> 00:26:08 where the Lord Jesus looked on us
00:26:08 --> 00:26:10 and saw us as wretched pitiful
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 poor blind
00:26:11 --> 00:26:11 naked
00:26:11 --> 00:26:13 deeply broken before him
00:26:13 --> 00:26:17 I've only got to go to the
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 Sermon on the Mount to expose my
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 heart
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 and reveal me to be
00:26:20 --> 00:26:22 I read the Sermon on the Mount
00:26:22 --> 00:26:24 and I see straight away that I'm
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 in God's eyes a thief
00:26:25 --> 00:26:27 a murderer
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 an adulterer
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 an immoral man
00:26:29 --> 00:26:33 and I don't glory in that
00:26:33 --> 00:26:36 but it drives us to be like the
00:26:36 --> 00:26:38 tax collector in the temple in
00:26:38 --> 00:26:40 Luke 18 whose starting point in
00:26:40 --> 00:26:42 relationship with Christ
00:26:42 --> 00:26:45 is to beat his breast and to cry
00:26:45 --> 00:26:47 out Lord have mercy on me the
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 sinner
00:26:48 --> 00:26:53 Revelation 3 finishes with the
00:26:53 --> 00:26:55 words of Jesus to this church
00:26:55 --> 00:26:58 to the one who overcomes
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 verse 21
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 to the one who overcomes I will
00:27:00 --> 00:27:02 give the right to sit with me on
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 my throne
00:27:03 --> 00:27:06 just as I also won the victory
00:27:06 --> 00:27:08 and sat down with the father on
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 his throne
00:27:09 --> 00:27:12 now it's pretty clear through this
00:27:12 --> 00:27:15 passage that the the overcomer is
00:27:15 --> 00:27:17 not the self-made man or woman
00:27:17 --> 00:27:19 they are the person who takes up
00:27:19 --> 00:27:20 Jesus invitation
00:27:20 --> 00:27:23 and buys from him gold refined in
00:27:23 --> 00:27:25 the fire so that they may be rich
00:27:25 --> 00:27:27 and white clothes so that they may
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 be dressed and their shameful
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 nakedness hidden
00:27:29 --> 00:27:32 and ointment to spread on their
00:27:32 --> 00:27:34 eyes that they might see
00:27:34 --> 00:27:38 so the overcomer that we are
00:27:38 --> 00:27:41 called to be is the one who turns
00:27:41 --> 00:27:45 to Jesus who comes to Jesus who
00:27:45 --> 00:27:47 receives from Jesus who depends on
00:27:47 --> 00:27:47 Jesus
00:27:47 --> 00:27:53 and we can do that because he is the
00:27:53 --> 00:27:56 great overcomer he is the one who
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 has overcome for us
00:27:57 --> 00:28:00 and he says
00:28:00 --> 00:28:03 I also won the victory and sat down
00:28:03 --> 00:28:05 with my father on his throne
00:28:05 --> 00:28:09 he overcame
00:28:09 --> 00:28:12 God in the flesh
00:28:12 --> 00:28:15 allowed his creation to reject him in
00:28:15 --> 00:28:17 the most wicked and final way that
00:28:17 --> 00:28:19 they could at the cross
00:28:19 --> 00:28:23 he overcame he is the resurrected
00:28:23 --> 00:28:25 Christ the first to overcome sin and
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 death
00:28:26 --> 00:28:30 he overcame right now he sits with
00:28:30 --> 00:28:32 his father on the throne of heaven
00:28:32 --> 00:28:34 ruling over the universe
00:28:34 --> 00:28:41 we overcome when we give way to him
00:28:41 --> 00:28:45 when we see ourselves as God sees us
00:28:45 --> 00:28:49 as wretched as pitiful as poor as blind
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 and as naked
00:28:50 --> 00:28:53 we overcome when we turn from
00:28:53 --> 00:28:55 self-sufficiency to independence
00:28:55 --> 00:28:59 to turn from self-sufficient independence
00:28:59 --> 00:29:02 and we overcome when we humbly receive
00:29:02 --> 00:29:04 the grace that God wants to shower
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 us with
00:29:05 --> 00:29:09 we overcome when we treasure Jesus
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 Amen
00:29:10 --> 00:29:23 Amen
00:29:23 --> 00:29:28 wam
00:29:28 --> 00:29:28 Maps
00:29:28 --> 00:29:28 master
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 os