00:00:00 --> 00:00:01 Well, good morning, everyone.
00:00:01 --> 00:00:06 It's appropriate to start a sermon like this,
00:00:06 --> 00:00:08 quoting the great John Stott,
00:00:08 --> 00:00:11 a British pastor and theologian,
00:00:11 --> 00:00:13 on this issue that we've been wrestling with
00:00:13 --> 00:00:14 over the last number of weeks.
00:00:16 --> 00:00:17 He has written,
00:00:17 --> 00:00:21 it is simply impossible with any shred of Christian integrity
00:00:21 --> 00:00:23 to go on proclaiming that Jesus, by his cross,
00:00:24 --> 00:00:26 has abolished the old divisions
00:00:26 --> 00:00:30 and created a single new humanity of love,
00:00:30 --> 00:00:32 while at the same time,
00:00:32 --> 00:00:34 we are contradicting our message
00:00:34 --> 00:00:38 by tolerating racial or social
00:00:38 --> 00:00:41 or any other barrier within our church fellowships.
00:00:42 --> 00:00:46 I wonder if anything is more urgent today
00:00:46 --> 00:00:48 for the honour of Christ,
00:00:49 --> 00:00:50 for the spread of the gospel,
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 than for the church to be,
00:00:54 --> 00:00:55 and should be seen to be,
00:00:55 --> 00:00:59 what by God's purpose and Christ's achievement
00:00:59 --> 00:01:01 it already is,
00:01:02 --> 00:01:04 a single new humanity,
00:01:05 --> 00:01:07 a model of human community,
00:01:08 --> 00:01:11 a family of reconciled brothers and sisters
00:01:11 --> 00:01:15 who love their father and love each other,
00:01:16 --> 00:01:19 the evident dwelling place of God by his spirit.
00:01:20 --> 00:01:21 And then he says,
00:01:21 --> 00:01:25 only then will the world believe in Christ as peacemaker.
00:01:26 --> 00:01:31 Only then will God receive the glory due to his name.
00:01:32 --> 00:01:35 That's from his commentary on the book of Ephesians,
00:01:35 --> 00:01:37 written in 1979.
00:01:38 --> 00:01:39 Let's pray.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:41 Gracious Father,
00:01:41 --> 00:01:44 we pray that as your word is open to us this morning,
00:01:44 --> 00:01:49 we ask for the grace to,
00:01:50 --> 00:01:52 and the presence of your Holy Spirit,
00:01:52 --> 00:01:54 to search our hearts.
00:01:55 --> 00:01:57 Help us to be mindful of our own heart,
00:01:58 --> 00:02:02 and not dare to search the heart of another person across the room,
00:02:03 --> 00:02:05 or someone who immediately comes to mind.
00:02:05 --> 00:02:08 And we ask it so that you might be glorified,
00:02:09 --> 00:02:13 and our world might see that Christ is the peacemaker.
00:02:14 --> 00:02:15 Amen.
00:02:17 --> 00:02:19 This vision series that we're in
00:02:19 --> 00:02:22 is about us taking the next steps
00:02:22 --> 00:02:25 to bring glory to God by treasuring Jesus together,
00:02:25 --> 00:02:27 so that our world may come to know,
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 and to see and believe that Jesus is in fact the peacemaker.
00:02:30 --> 00:02:36 And if you just joined us for the first time,
00:02:36 --> 00:02:36 maybe on stream,
00:02:36 --> 00:02:38 on live stream for the first time,
00:02:38 --> 00:02:43 we have been discovering over the past number of weeks
00:02:43 --> 00:02:47 the necessary foundation to such a corporate life
00:02:47 --> 00:02:48 as we've journeyed through the Bible.
00:02:49 --> 00:02:51 That is, what we've been trying to lay out in front of us
00:02:51 --> 00:02:53 is a Christian worldview,
00:02:53 --> 00:02:56 and the way that it impacts our daily experience,
00:02:57 --> 00:02:59 and therefore how we understand the world,
00:02:59 --> 00:03:02 and how we understand other people and issues within our world.
00:03:03 --> 00:03:05 We started off by seeing that all of humanity
00:03:05 --> 00:03:08 is made in the image of God to show forth His glory,
00:03:08 --> 00:03:11 that is, there's a purpose to the image of God.
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14 We've also seen that right from the very first people,
00:03:14 --> 00:03:15 we have rejected that purpose,
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 and we lived without God as our ruler,
00:03:18 --> 00:03:20 and therefore we pursued another purpose,
00:03:21 --> 00:03:23 and that is our own personal glory.
00:03:24 --> 00:03:26 The Bible calls that sin.
00:03:26 --> 00:03:31 All people are not just united in carrying the image of God,
00:03:31 --> 00:03:33 but also united in their rejection of God.
00:03:33 --> 00:03:36 And then we saw how God, the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ,
00:03:37 --> 00:03:38 the perfect image of God,
00:03:40 --> 00:03:45 came into His creation as one of us.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:46 Humanity.
00:03:47 --> 00:03:49 He started with us in order to redeem us.
00:03:49 --> 00:03:53 He paid the price for our rebellion against God
00:03:53 --> 00:03:55 by His death on the cross.
00:03:56 --> 00:03:58 And His work on our behalf
00:03:58 --> 00:04:03 restores our image as God's much-loved children,
00:04:03 --> 00:04:05 but also sets us free from sin
00:04:05 --> 00:04:10 in order to pursue the original purpose that God has for us,
00:04:10 --> 00:04:14 and that is to bring glory to Him in all of life,
00:04:14 --> 00:04:15 and not just as individuals,
00:04:15 --> 00:04:18 but as a radical new humanity.
00:04:19 --> 00:04:21 Last week, James unpacked the implications
00:04:21 --> 00:04:24 for each one of us in relation to God
00:04:24 --> 00:04:26 and our understanding of ourselves
00:04:26 --> 00:04:28 and our sense of identity and self.
00:04:29 --> 00:04:35 Jesus gives us the only identity that is secure,
00:04:36 --> 00:04:40 the only identity that you don't have to work for,
00:04:41 --> 00:04:43 and it's a perfect identity.
00:04:43 --> 00:04:48 It's a full identity that is meant to fill us up in every way.
00:04:49 --> 00:04:50 Now, in the next couple of weeks,
00:04:50 --> 00:04:53 I plan to unpack what the implications are
00:04:53 --> 00:04:55 for our relationship with each other as a local church,
00:04:56 --> 00:04:58 particularly around the issue of our unity and diversity
00:04:58 --> 00:05:01 as people from different generations, ethnicities,
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 cultures, preferences, et cetera, et cetera.
00:05:04 --> 00:05:06 If you've got the St. Paul's app, you can open up.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:08 There's a few points there that I want to go through
00:05:08 --> 00:05:11 in this morning's message.
00:05:11 --> 00:05:15 Now, first of all, gospel thinking is the first point there.
00:05:16 --> 00:05:18 The theology of the apostle Paul
00:05:18 --> 00:05:23 helps us to move in the right direction
00:05:23 --> 00:05:26 of ending racial pride and ethnocentricity
00:05:26 --> 00:05:30 as he brings the gospel to bear on this particular topic.
00:05:30 --> 00:05:32 Paul leaves little doubt
00:05:32 --> 00:05:36 what the heart of the gospel is.
00:05:36 --> 00:05:39 You don't have to go any further than Galatians.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:43 The passage in Galatians, which is read out, verse 16.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 We see it there.
00:05:45 --> 00:05:50 We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners
00:05:50 --> 00:05:54 know that a man is not justified by observing the law,
00:05:54 --> 00:05:57 but by faith in Jesus Christ.
00:05:57 --> 00:06:02 So we too have put our faith in Christ Jesus,
00:06:02 --> 00:06:05 that we may be justified by faith in Christ
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 and not by observing the law,
00:06:07 --> 00:06:10 because by observing the law, no one is justified.
00:06:11 --> 00:06:15 So the heart of the gospel for the apostle Paul
00:06:15 --> 00:06:18 is what we call the doctrine of justification by faith.
00:06:18 --> 00:06:22 And it's justification by faith alone,
00:06:23 --> 00:06:26 apart from any works that we might contribute,
00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 any good thing that we might do.
00:06:30 --> 00:06:33 Now, justification is what a judge does in a courtroom.
00:06:34 --> 00:06:39 It is a declaration that a defendant is found innocent
00:06:39 --> 00:06:42 because they actually are innocent.
00:06:42 --> 00:06:44 They are truly innocent.
00:06:44 --> 00:06:48 The defendant is declared to be just
00:06:48 --> 00:06:51 because they're found to be just.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 And so the question is,
00:06:54 --> 00:06:58 how can God, the judge, the true judge, the just judge,
00:06:58 --> 00:07:02 declare us righteous and innocent and just
00:07:02 --> 00:07:04 when we're clearly not?
00:07:06 --> 00:07:11 And the answer is, is what we saw a couple of weeks ago,
00:07:11 --> 00:07:15 that Jesus Christ lived and died
00:07:15 --> 00:07:19 to provide our righteousness and to bear our punishment.
00:07:20 --> 00:07:24 Justification by faith puts every single person
00:07:24 --> 00:07:27 on a level playing field, level ground,
00:07:27 --> 00:07:30 in utter dependence on grace, God's grace.
00:07:30 --> 00:07:35 None of us contribute anything to our salvation.
00:07:36 --> 00:07:39 And therefore, justification by faith
00:07:39 --> 00:07:42 has to smash pride in the human heart.
00:07:43 --> 00:07:45 There is no room for pride in the human heart.
00:07:48 --> 00:07:50 That's the heart of the gospel.
00:07:51 --> 00:07:57 And many new, sweet, tender, deep, strong,
00:07:58 --> 00:08:03 beautiful, noble, humble, kind, wise, patient,
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 caring, servant attitudes and behaviors
00:08:06 --> 00:08:08 flow out from that.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:13 And one of which is the breaking down
00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 of ethnic hostilities and suspicion
00:08:16 --> 00:08:18 and creating unity and harmony.
00:08:20 --> 00:08:22 Justification by faith alone
00:08:22 --> 00:08:26 has overcome all the divisions,
00:08:27 --> 00:08:29 all the divisions
00:08:29 --> 00:08:35 that exist between those who are in God's new humanity,
00:08:35 --> 00:08:36 his people, his church.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:40 Galatians 3, 26.
00:08:41 --> 00:08:42 He's very clear on that.
00:08:44 --> 00:08:47 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
00:08:47 --> 00:08:50 For all of you who were baptized into Christ
00:08:50 --> 00:08:54 have clothed yourselves with Christ.
00:08:55 --> 00:08:57 There is neither Jew nor Greek,
00:08:57 --> 00:08:58 slave nor free,
00:08:59 --> 00:09:00 male nor female,
00:09:00 --> 00:09:04 for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 If you belong to Christ,
00:09:07 --> 00:09:10 then you are all Abraham's seed and heirs
00:09:10 --> 00:09:11 according to the promise.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:15 Now I'm going to come back in a little while,
00:09:15 --> 00:09:17 like in a couple of weeks probably,
00:09:17 --> 00:09:19 and explain that there's neither Jew nor Greek,
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 explain what that means.
00:09:21 --> 00:09:22 But basically what it means here
00:09:22 --> 00:09:23 is very simply,
00:09:24 --> 00:09:25 it's a level playing field.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:27 Your heritage contributes nothing.
00:09:29 --> 00:09:31 I'll unpack a little bit more.
00:09:31 --> 00:09:34 You see,
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 when Paul says here
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 to this group of the Galatians
00:09:37 --> 00:09:39 there is neither Jew nor Greek,
00:09:39 --> 00:09:40 slave nor free,
00:09:40 --> 00:09:41 male or female,
00:09:42 --> 00:09:43 what he does is he strikes
00:09:43 --> 00:09:48 at the three major barrier-forming divisions
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 of human society,
00:09:49 --> 00:09:51 and certainly in the human society in the first century,
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 and certainly first century for the Jew.
00:09:56 --> 00:09:56 Ethnicity,
00:09:57 --> 00:09:58 economic capacity,
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 and sexuality.
00:09:59 --> 00:10:02 There was a Jewish prayer
00:10:02 --> 00:10:03 in the first century
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 that went like this.
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 Blessed be he
00:10:06 --> 00:10:09 that he did not make me a Gentile.
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 Blessed be he
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 that he did not make me a slave
00:10:12 --> 00:10:14 or an ignorant peasant.
00:10:15 --> 00:10:16 Blessed be he
00:10:16 --> 00:10:17 that he did not make me a woman.
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 Now I imagine a prayer
00:10:20 --> 00:10:21 that was only said
00:10:21 --> 00:10:23 at the bacon-free men's breakfast
00:10:23 --> 00:10:24 on a Saturday morning.
00:10:25 --> 00:10:26 The Christian gospel
00:10:26 --> 00:10:28 smashes those barriers.
00:10:29 --> 00:10:34 And it forms a radical new society.
00:10:34 --> 00:10:37 But it does not obliterate the differences.
00:10:38 --> 00:10:39 Greeks are still Greeks.
00:10:39 --> 00:10:40 Slaves are still slaves.
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 Females are still females.
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 What's obliterated here
00:10:44 --> 00:10:45 are the barriers
00:10:45 --> 00:10:47 that formed by those differences.
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50 And a person's status
00:10:50 --> 00:10:51 among the people of God
00:10:51 --> 00:10:53 based on those differences.
00:10:53 --> 00:10:56 That is,
00:10:56 --> 00:10:57 no race,
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 no nation,
00:10:59 --> 00:10:59 no class,
00:11:00 --> 00:11:00 no gender
00:11:00 --> 00:11:02 has a favoured status
00:11:02 --> 00:11:04 with God.
00:11:06 --> 00:11:08 That was a radical theology
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 in the first century.
00:11:10 --> 00:11:15 because it flew in the face
00:11:15 --> 00:11:16 of all traditional
00:11:16 --> 00:11:17 cultural norms
00:11:17 --> 00:11:21 and it set people free.
00:11:25 --> 00:11:26 And it continues
00:11:26 --> 00:11:28 to be a radical theology today
00:11:28 --> 00:11:30 because it conflicts
00:11:30 --> 00:11:32 with many of our cultural norms
00:11:32 --> 00:11:32 as well.
00:11:32 --> 00:11:35 The gospel
00:11:35 --> 00:11:36 brings unity
00:11:36 --> 00:11:39 not uniformity.
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 Secondly,
00:11:41 --> 00:11:42 what the gospel does
00:11:42 --> 00:11:44 is it produces gospel living.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 So let's go to Galatians 2
00:11:46 --> 00:11:49 verse 11 to 16.
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 Just read out for us.
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 The key phrase
00:11:52 --> 00:11:54 that I want to focus on
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 is verse 14.
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 When I saw
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 that they were not acting
00:11:59 --> 00:11:59 in line
00:11:59 --> 00:12:01 with the truth
00:12:01 --> 00:12:02 of the gospel.
00:12:03 --> 00:12:05 That verse
00:12:05 --> 00:12:06 implies
00:12:06 --> 00:12:07 that there is
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 a conduct,
00:12:09 --> 00:12:10 there is a behaviour,
00:12:10 --> 00:12:11 there are actions,
00:12:12 --> 00:12:13 things that we can do
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 that are
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 out of step
00:12:15 --> 00:12:16 with the truth
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 of the gospel.
00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 Or to put it another way,
00:12:19 --> 00:12:20 the gospel
00:12:20 --> 00:12:21 governs
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 not just
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 our belief
00:12:23 --> 00:12:23 structures,
00:12:23 --> 00:12:26 but all of our behaviours
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 as well.
00:12:28 --> 00:12:30 All of our actions,
00:12:30 --> 00:12:31 our attitudes.
00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 There is
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 gospel belief
00:12:34 --> 00:12:36 that must be grasped
00:12:36 --> 00:12:37 but there is also
00:12:37 --> 00:12:39 gospel action
00:12:39 --> 00:12:39 that must be lived.
00:12:41 --> 00:12:42 Some beliefs
00:12:42 --> 00:12:44 contradict the gospel
00:12:44 --> 00:12:46 and some actions
00:12:46 --> 00:12:48 contradict the gospel.
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 And Peter's actions
00:12:51 --> 00:12:53 here in Galatians 2
00:12:53 --> 00:12:55 was a contradiction
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 of the gospel.
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 And that's an important
00:13:01 --> 00:13:02 question
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 that we can ask
00:13:03 --> 00:13:04 about any of our
00:13:04 --> 00:13:04 habits,
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 any of our actions,
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 any of our behaviours.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:09 Do they contradict
00:13:09 --> 00:13:09 the gospel
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 that I say
00:13:10 --> 00:13:10 that I believe?
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 Or positively,
00:13:14 --> 00:13:16 is this in step
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 with the truth
00:13:17 --> 00:13:17 of the gospel?
00:13:18 --> 00:13:19 Does this attitude
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 and action
00:13:20 --> 00:13:22 say true things
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 and bring glory
00:13:23 --> 00:13:23 to Jesus?
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 Does it do that?
00:13:28 --> 00:13:29 Does it reflect
00:13:29 --> 00:13:29 the gospel?
00:13:30 --> 00:13:31 Does it look like
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 the kind of action
00:13:32 --> 00:13:33 that flows
00:13:33 --> 00:13:34 from the gospel?
00:13:34 --> 00:13:34 gospel?
00:13:37 --> 00:13:38 But at the end
00:13:38 --> 00:13:38 of Galatians 2
00:13:38 --> 00:13:39 12 we see
00:13:39 --> 00:13:40 that Peter
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 was governed
00:13:41 --> 00:13:42 by fear
00:13:42 --> 00:13:42 and not
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 the gospel.
00:13:44 --> 00:13:44 And Paul
00:13:44 --> 00:13:45 rebukes him
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 for it.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 Verse 11,
00:13:48 --> 00:13:48 when Peter
00:13:48 --> 00:13:49 came to Antioch
00:13:49 --> 00:13:50 I opposed him
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 to his face
00:13:51 --> 00:13:52 because he was
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 clearly in the wrong.
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 Before certain
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 men came
00:13:56 --> 00:13:56 from James
00:13:56 --> 00:13:57 he used
00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 to eat
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 with the Gentiles
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 but when
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 they arrived
00:14:01 --> 00:14:01 he began
00:14:01 --> 00:14:02 to draw back
00:14:02 --> 00:14:04 and separate
00:14:04 --> 00:14:04 himself
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 from the Gentiles
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 because he
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 was afraid
00:14:07 --> 00:14:07 of those
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 who belonged
00:14:08 --> 00:14:08 to the circumcision
00:14:08 --> 00:14:09 group.
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 The other Jews
00:14:11 --> 00:14:12 joined him
00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 in his hypocrisy
00:14:14 --> 00:14:15 and so
00:14:15 --> 00:14:15 that by
00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 their hypocrisy
00:14:17 --> 00:14:19 even
00:14:19 --> 00:14:21 Barnabas
00:14:21 --> 00:14:21 was led
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 astray.
00:14:23 --> 00:14:24 The son
00:14:24 --> 00:14:24 of encouragement
00:14:24 --> 00:14:26 was led
00:14:26 --> 00:14:26 astray.
00:14:28 --> 00:14:28 You see
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 Peter had been
00:14:29 --> 00:14:30 experiencing
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 the freedom
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 of the gospel
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 as a Jew.
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 He was crossing
00:14:34 --> 00:14:35 ethnic and
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 religious barriers
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 to eat
00:14:37 --> 00:14:37 with Gentiles
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 something that
00:14:38 --> 00:14:38 was forbidden
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 and then
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 it says
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 in verse 12
00:14:41 --> 00:14:42 that certain
00:14:42 --> 00:14:42 men came
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 from James.
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 They were
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 Jerusalem
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 conservatives
00:14:47 --> 00:14:50 who believed
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 that Gentiles
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 because of
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 their uncircumcision
00:14:53 --> 00:14:53 and their
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 unkosher
00:14:54 --> 00:14:54 food
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 you know
00:14:55 --> 00:14:55 they
00:14:55 --> 00:14:57 ate
00:14:57 --> 00:14:57 prawns
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 for instance
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 their
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 dietary
00:15:00 --> 00:15:00 habits
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 their
00:15:01 --> 00:15:01 failure
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 to keep
00:15:02 --> 00:15:02 holy
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 days
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 meant
00:15:04 --> 00:15:04 that they
00:15:04 --> 00:15:05 were off
00:15:05 --> 00:15:05 limits
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 to associate
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 with
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 even
00:15:08 --> 00:15:08 if
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 they
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 were
00:15:10 --> 00:15:10 Christian
00:15:10 --> 00:15:13 religious
00:15:13 --> 00:15:15 and ethnic
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 issues
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 were
00:15:15 --> 00:15:17 inseparable
00:15:17 --> 00:15:17 for them
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 they
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 were
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 not
00:15:20 --> 00:15:20 they
00:15:20 --> 00:15:20 were
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 afraid
00:15:21 --> 00:15:23 of
00:15:23 --> 00:15:25 maybe
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 his
00:15:26 --> 00:15:26 own
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 group
00:15:27 --> 00:15:29 maybe
00:15:29 --> 00:15:29 his
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 mates
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 back
00:15:31 --> 00:15:31 in
00:15:31 --> 00:15:31 Jerusalem
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 or something
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 but
00:15:33 --> 00:15:34 what's
00:15:34 --> 00:15:34 clear
00:15:34 --> 00:15:34 is
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 that
00:15:35 --> 00:15:35 fear
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 in
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 this
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00:15:38 --> 00:15:39 ruined
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 practical
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 gospel
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 faithfulness
00:15:42 --> 00:15:44 fear
00:15:44 --> 00:15:44 did it
00:15:44 --> 00:15:46 he
00:15:46 --> 00:15:46 was
00:15:46 --> 00:15:46 free
00:15:46 --> 00:15:48 he
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00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 eating
00:15:49 --> 00:15:49 with
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00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 brothers
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 across
00:15:51 --> 00:15:51 ethnic
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 lines
00:15:52 --> 00:15:53 and
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 fear
00:15:54 --> 00:15:54 at least
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 in this
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00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 moment
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 fear
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 destroyed
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00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 diversity
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 and the
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00:15:59 --> 00:16:05 and so
00:16:05 --> 00:16:06 I think
00:16:06 --> 00:16:06 at the
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 very least
00:16:07 --> 00:16:07 what I
00:16:07 --> 00:16:07 can say
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 from this
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 passage
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 is
00:16:10 --> 00:16:10 don't
00:16:10 --> 00:16:10 let
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 fear
00:16:11 --> 00:16:12 ruin
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 your
00:16:13 --> 00:16:14 joyful
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 freedom
00:16:14 --> 00:16:15 in living
00:16:15 --> 00:16:16 and working
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 and worshipping
00:16:17 --> 00:16:17 and relaxing
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 and eating
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 with brothers
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 and sisters
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 different
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 from you
00:16:21 --> 00:16:25 or to
00:16:25 --> 00:16:25 put it
00:16:25 --> 00:16:25 positively
00:16:25 --> 00:16:29 fall in
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 love again
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 with the
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 gospel
00:16:30 --> 00:16:36 rejoice
00:16:36 --> 00:16:36 all over
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 again
00:16:37 --> 00:16:37 that you
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 were justified
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 by faith
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 alone
00:16:39 --> 00:16:41 justification
00:16:41 --> 00:16:41 by faith
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 alone
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 means that
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 this
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 faith
00:16:43 --> 00:16:45 and nothing
00:16:45 --> 00:16:45 else
00:16:45 --> 00:16:46 is the
00:16:46 --> 00:16:47 great
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00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 unifier
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00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 peoples of the
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00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 Christ
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 we need
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 to keep
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00:16:56 --> 00:16:56 center
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 in our
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00:16:58 --> 00:16:59 as a
00:16:59 --> 00:16:59 church
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00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 for Jesus
00:17:01 --> 00:17:01 to be
00:17:01 --> 00:17:01 our
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 greatest
00:17:02 --> 00:17:02 treasure
00:17:02 --> 00:17:02 we need
00:17:02 --> 00:17:03 to remember
00:17:03 --> 00:17:04 that the
00:17:04 --> 00:17:04 divide
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 could not
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 have been
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 larger
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 between
00:17:07 --> 00:17:07 sinful
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 human
00:17:08 --> 00:17:08 beings
00:17:08 --> 00:17:09 and the
00:17:09 --> 00:17:09 infinitely
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 holy
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 God
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 but Jesus
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 did not
00:17:13 --> 00:17:13 despise
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 us
00:17:14 --> 00:17:16 he came
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 to us
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 he loved
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 us
00:17:19 --> 00:17:19 he died
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 in our
00:17:20 --> 00:17:20 place
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 to give
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 us
00:17:22 --> 00:17:22 life
00:17:22 --> 00:17:25 and he
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 did that
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 for us
00:17:27 --> 00:17:28 when we
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 were more
00:17:29 --> 00:17:29 alien to
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 him
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 than
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 anyone
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 has ever
00:17:33 --> 00:17:33 been alien
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 to you
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00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 me
00:17:35 --> 00:17:37 anyone
00:17:37 --> 00:17:40 even
00:17:40 --> 00:17:40 across
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00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 us
00:17:44 --> 00:17:48 when we
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 think
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 or feel
00:17:50 --> 00:17:52 or act
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00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 disdain
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 or disrespect
00:17:55 --> 00:17:57 or avoidance
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 or exclusion
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 or malice
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 towards a
00:18:00 --> 00:18:00 person
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 simply
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 because
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 he or she
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 is from
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 another race
00:18:05 --> 00:18:05 another
00:18:05 --> 00:18:06 ethnic group
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 another
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 political
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 viewpoint
00:18:09 --> 00:18:11 we are
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 ineffective
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 saying
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 that Jesus
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 acted
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 foolishly
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 in the
00:18:17 --> 00:18:17 way he
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 did
00:18:18 --> 00:18:18 coming to
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 the earth
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 to the
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 cross
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 for us
00:18:21 --> 00:18:23 and you
00:18:23 --> 00:18:23 don't
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 ever want
00:18:24 --> 00:18:24 to say
00:18:24 --> 00:18:24 that
00:18:24 --> 00:18:30 and so
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 what does
00:18:31 --> 00:18:31 it mean
00:18:31 --> 00:18:31 for us
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 to develop
00:18:32 --> 00:18:32 a gospel
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 shaped
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 heart
00:18:33 --> 00:18:35 now this
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 church
00:18:36 --> 00:18:36 faces
00:18:36 --> 00:18:36 divisions
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 of all
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 kinds
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 ethnicity
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 age
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00:18:41 --> 00:18:41 theological
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00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 historical
00:18:43 --> 00:18:43 connection
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 political
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 ideology
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 we don't
00:18:46 --> 00:18:46 have
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 signs up
00:18:48 --> 00:18:48 anywhere
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 here at
00:18:49 --> 00:18:49 St Paul
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 segregating
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00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 depending
00:18:51 --> 00:18:51 on what
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 political
00:18:52 --> 00:18:52 group
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 you vote
00:18:53 --> 00:18:53 for
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 what race
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 you come
00:18:55 --> 00:18:55 from
00:18:55 --> 00:18:56 what generation
00:18:56 --> 00:18:56 you want
00:18:56 --> 00:18:57 we don't
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 have any
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 of those
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00:18:58 --> 00:18:58 up here
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 structurally
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 segregating
00:19:00 --> 00:19:00 people
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 at all
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 in fact
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 we've done
00:19:03 --> 00:19:03 multiple
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 things over
00:19:04 --> 00:19:04 the years
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 to break
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 down
00:19:06 --> 00:19:06 structural
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 segregation
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 as a
00:19:08 --> 00:19:08 church
00:19:08 --> 00:19:11 the issue
00:19:11 --> 00:19:11 of this
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 series
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 is the
00:19:13 --> 00:19:13 prejudice
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 and the
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 implicit
00:19:15 --> 00:19:16 beliefs
00:19:16 --> 00:19:17 that linger
00:19:17 --> 00:19:17 in our
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 hearts
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 that can
00:19:19 --> 00:19:19 lead to
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 anti-gospel
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 actions
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 and behaviours
00:19:22 --> 00:19:22 that's what
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 this series
00:19:23 --> 00:19:23 is about
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 it's about
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 searching
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 the heart
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 it's about
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 looking at
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 the implications
00:19:28 --> 00:19:28 of my
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 heart
00:19:29 --> 00:19:29 and your
00:19:29 --> 00:19:29 heart
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 that's
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 what it's
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 about
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 it's
00:19:31 --> 00:19:31 sort of
00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 like a
00:19:32 --> 00:19:32 you know
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 a motor
00:19:33 --> 00:19:33 mechanic
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 implicitly
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 assuming
00:19:35 --> 00:19:35 that girls
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 can't fix
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 cars as well
00:19:37 --> 00:19:37 as boys
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 and therefore
00:19:38 --> 00:19:39 gives less
00:19:39 --> 00:19:39 attention
00:19:39 --> 00:19:40 and fewer
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 opportunities
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 to the
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 female
00:19:42 --> 00:19:42 apprentices
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 it's that
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 kind of
00:19:44 --> 00:19:44 thing
00:19:44 --> 00:19:44 it's the
00:19:44 --> 00:19:44 implicit
00:19:44 --> 00:19:45 stuff
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 that happens
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 that's what
00:19:47 --> 00:19:47 we're seeking
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 to address
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 and my
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 hope is
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 that this
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 series
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 is that
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 we will
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 put to
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 death
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 the remaining
00:19:53 --> 00:19:54 corruption
00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 in our
00:19:54 --> 00:19:55 hearts
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 that thinks
00:19:56 --> 00:19:56 or feels
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 or acts
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 with ill
00:19:58 --> 00:19:58 will
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 towards
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 others
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 because of
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 difference
00:20:01 --> 00:20:03 and in
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 particular
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 in ethnic
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 and racial
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 difference
00:20:06 --> 00:20:09 so what
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 I want
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 to do
00:20:10 --> 00:20:10 here
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 right
00:20:11 --> 00:20:11 now
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 is try
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 to help
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 us to
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 see
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 and remove
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 one of
00:20:15 --> 00:20:15 the
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 subtle
00:20:16 --> 00:20:18 sinful
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 prejudices
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 in our
00:20:20 --> 00:20:20 hearts
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 and it's
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 subtle
00:20:21 --> 00:20:23 it's that
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 subtle
00:20:24 --> 00:20:26 I don't
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 think
00:20:27 --> 00:20:27 another
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 person
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 can see
00:20:29 --> 00:20:29 it
00:20:29 --> 00:20:30 this is
00:20:30 --> 00:20:30 for your
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 heart
00:20:31 --> 00:20:31 to assess
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 it's
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 that
00:20:33 --> 00:20:33 subtle
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 but I
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 want to
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 do it
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 anyway
00:20:36 --> 00:20:36 I want
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 to focus
00:20:37 --> 00:20:37 on John
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 chapter
00:20:38 --> 00:20:38 one
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 that
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 passage
00:20:40 --> 00:20:40 is read
00:20:40 --> 00:20:40 out to
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 us
00:20:41 --> 00:20:41 in verse
00:20:41 --> 00:20:41 43
00:20:41 --> 00:20:43 Jesus
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 calls
00:20:44 --> 00:20:44 Philip
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 to be
00:20:45 --> 00:20:45 his
00:20:45 --> 00:20:45 disciple
00:20:45 --> 00:20:47 in
00:20:47 --> 00:20:47 verse
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 45
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 Philip
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 finds
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 Nathaniel
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 and says
00:20:51 --> 00:20:51 to him
00:20:51 --> 00:20:53 we have
00:20:53 --> 00:20:53 found
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 the one
00:20:54 --> 00:20:54 Moses
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 wrote
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 about
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 in
00:20:55 --> 00:20:56 the
00:20:56 --> 00:20:56 law
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 and
00:20:57 --> 00:20:57 about
00:20:57 --> 00:20:58 whom
00:20:58 --> 00:20:58 the
00:20:58 --> 00:20:58 prophets
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 also
00:20:59 --> 00:20:59 wrote
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 Jesus
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 of
00:21:01 --> 00:21:01 Nazareth
00:21:01 --> 00:21:01 the son
00:21:01 --> 00:21:01 of
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 Joseph
00:21:02 --> 00:21:04 in
00:21:04 --> 00:21:04 other
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 words
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 Philip
00:21:06 --> 00:21:06 in
00:21:06 --> 00:21:06 this
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 moment
00:21:07 --> 00:21:07 has
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 believed
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 in
00:21:09 --> 00:21:10 Jesus
00:21:10 --> 00:21:10 as
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 the
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 Messiah
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 and
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 he's
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 eager
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 here
00:21:13 --> 00:21:13 for
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 Nathaniel
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 to
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 know
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 him
00:21:15 --> 00:21:15 too
00:21:15 --> 00:21:17 he
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 identifies
00:21:18 --> 00:21:18 this
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 one
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 written
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 about
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 by
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 Moses
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 and
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 the
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 prophets
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 by
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 calling
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 him
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 Jesus
00:21:23 --> 00:21:23 of
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 Nazareth
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 he
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 identifies
00:21:26 --> 00:21:26 Jesus
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 with
00:21:27 --> 00:21:27 a
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 town
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 a
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 group
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 of
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 people
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 who
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 live
00:21:29 --> 00:21:29 in
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 that
00:21:30 --> 00:21:30 town
00:21:30 --> 00:21:32 and
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 for
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 whatever
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 reason
00:21:33 --> 00:21:33 we're
00:21:33 --> 00:21:33 not
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 told
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 Nathaniel
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 responds
00:21:36 --> 00:21:36 to
00:21:36 --> 00:21:36 Philip
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 in
00:21:37 --> 00:21:38 verse
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 46
00:21:39 --> 00:21:41 Nazareth
00:21:41 --> 00:21:42 can
00:21:42 --> 00:21:42 anything
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 good
00:21:43 --> 00:21:43 come
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 from
00:21:44 --> 00:21:44 there
00:21:44 --> 00:21:48 his
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 question
00:21:49 --> 00:21:49 in
00:21:49 --> 00:21:49 this
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 moment
00:21:50 --> 00:21:50 amounts
00:21:50 --> 00:21:50 to a
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 foregone
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00:21:51 --> 00:21:54 nothing
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 good
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 can
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 come
00:21:57 --> 00:21:57 from
00:21:57 --> 00:21:57 Nazareth
00:21:57 --> 00:22:01 what
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 was the
00:22:02 --> 00:22:02 nature
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 of
00:22:03 --> 00:22:03 Nathaniel's
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 mistake
00:22:04 --> 00:22:06 now
00:22:06 --> 00:22:06 one way
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 to describe
00:22:07 --> 00:22:07 it would
00:22:07 --> 00:22:07 be to
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 say
00:22:08 --> 00:22:08 that it
00:22:08 --> 00:22:08 was sinful
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 prejudice
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 because of
00:22:10 --> 00:22:10 the people
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 of Nazareth
00:22:11 --> 00:22:13 he had
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 what we
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 call
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 a
00:22:15 --> 00:22:18 stereotypical
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 view of
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 the people
00:22:18 --> 00:22:19 of Nazareth
00:22:19 --> 00:22:19 and he
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 made this
00:22:20 --> 00:22:20 judgment
00:22:20 --> 00:22:20 about
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 Jesus
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 based on
00:22:22 --> 00:22:22 that negative
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 stereotype
00:22:23 --> 00:22:27 another way
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 to look
00:22:28 --> 00:22:28 at it
00:22:28 --> 00:22:30 is that
00:22:30 --> 00:22:30 Nathaniel
00:22:30 --> 00:22:32 did
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 what
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 every one
00:22:34 --> 00:22:34 of us
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 does
00:22:35 --> 00:22:35 every
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 single
00:22:36 --> 00:22:38 day
00:22:38 --> 00:22:41 he made
00:22:41 --> 00:22:41 a
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 generalization
00:22:42 --> 00:22:45 based on
00:22:45 --> 00:22:45 multiple
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 experiences
00:22:46 --> 00:22:48 and in
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 this case
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 biblical
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 evidence
00:22:51 --> 00:22:54 and then
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 formed a
00:22:55 --> 00:22:55 probability
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 conclusion
00:22:56 --> 00:22:58 based on
00:22:58 --> 00:22:58 that
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 generalization
00:22:59 --> 00:23:01 so let me
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 try and
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 reword
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 Nathaniel's
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 response
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 if you
00:23:06 --> 00:23:06 like
00:23:06 --> 00:23:09 my
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 experience
00:23:09 --> 00:23:10 is that
00:23:10 --> 00:23:10 the people
00:23:10 --> 00:23:11 of Nazareth
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 are ordinary
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 I don't
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 see in
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 the Old
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 Testament
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 anywhere
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 that the
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 Messiah
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 can come
00:23:19 --> 00:23:19 from
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 Nazareth
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 therefore
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 from
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 that
00:23:23 --> 00:23:23 biblical
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 evidence
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 and my
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 experience
00:23:25 --> 00:23:26 my
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 general
00:23:27 --> 00:23:27 observations
00:23:27 --> 00:23:29 I think
00:23:29 --> 00:23:29 it's
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 highly
00:23:30 --> 00:23:30 improbable
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 if not
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 impossible
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 that this
00:23:33 --> 00:23:33 Jesus
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 is the
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 Messiah
00:23:35 --> 00:23:39 now
00:23:39 --> 00:23:39 before we
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 go any
00:23:40 --> 00:23:40 further
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 I should
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 say
00:23:41 --> 00:23:43 generalizing
00:23:43 --> 00:23:43 from our
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 experience
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 and drawing
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 a probability
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 conclusion
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 is both
00:23:48 --> 00:23:48 inevitable
00:23:48 --> 00:23:50 and good
00:23:50 --> 00:23:52 inevitable
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 and good
00:23:53 --> 00:23:55 the human
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 brain works
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 that way
00:23:57 --> 00:23:57 it's part of
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 God's good
00:23:58 --> 00:23:58 gift to us
00:23:58 --> 00:24:00 it works
00:24:00 --> 00:24:00 that way
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 and in
00:24:01 --> 00:24:01 fact
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 I would
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 go as far
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 as saying
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 that your
00:24:04 --> 00:24:05 life depends
00:24:05 --> 00:24:05 on your
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 brain
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 working
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 that way
00:24:07 --> 00:24:11 for instance
00:24:11 --> 00:24:13 you observe
00:24:13 --> 00:24:15 that
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 mushrooms
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 with certain
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 features
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 such as
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 yellow
00:24:19 --> 00:24:19 with purple
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 dots
00:24:20 --> 00:24:22 are
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 poisonous
00:24:23 --> 00:24:27 never
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 personally
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 tasted
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 one
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 but there's
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 enough
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 evidence
00:24:31 --> 00:24:31 to say
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 that's
00:24:32 --> 00:24:32 true
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 and when
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 someone
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 offers
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 you a
00:24:34 --> 00:24:34 mushroom
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 that's
00:24:35 --> 00:24:35 yellow
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 with purple
00:24:36 --> 00:24:36 dots on
00:24:36 --> 00:24:36 it
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 you turn
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 it down
00:24:38 --> 00:24:41 you don't
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 go
00:24:42 --> 00:24:44 well I
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 shouldn't be
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 prejudiced here
00:24:45 --> 00:24:45 against this
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 mushroom
00:24:46 --> 00:24:49 you've
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 never
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 you've
00:24:51 --> 00:24:51 never
00:24:51 --> 00:24:51 tested the
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 mushroom
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 but you
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 see it
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 and it
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 belongs to
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 a general
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 class
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 that raises
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 alarm bells
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 that says
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 poisonous
00:24:58 --> 00:25:00 and so you
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 form a
00:25:01 --> 00:25:01 probability
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 conclusion
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 and you
00:25:03 --> 00:25:03 refuse to
00:25:03 --> 00:25:03 eat it
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 your life
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 depends
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 on you
00:25:06 --> 00:25:06 not treating
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 that individual
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 mushroom
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 in isolation
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 from your
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 experience
00:25:11 --> 00:25:11 of what
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 others
00:25:12 --> 00:25:12 have done
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 when they've
00:25:13 --> 00:25:13 eaten
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 that mushroom
00:25:14 --> 00:25:17 now of
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 course
00:25:18 --> 00:25:18 sometimes
00:25:18 --> 00:25:18 our
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 judgment
00:25:19 --> 00:25:19 seems
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 totally
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 legitimate
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 and proves
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 to be
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 dead
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 wrong
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 and so
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 what about
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 Nathaniel
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 was his
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 a
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 non sinful
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 fully
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 warranted
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 probability
00:25:30 --> 00:25:30 judgment
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 that proved
00:25:31 --> 00:25:31 to be
00:25:31 --> 00:25:31 wrong
00:25:31 --> 00:25:33 or is
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 Nathaniel
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 guilty
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 of sinful
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 prejudice
00:25:35 --> 00:25:39 I think
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 he's
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 guilty
00:25:39 --> 00:25:41 because
00:25:41 --> 00:25:43 he doesn't
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 say
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 can
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 the
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 Messiah
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 come
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 from
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 Nazareth
00:25:49 --> 00:25:52 it wasn't
00:25:52 --> 00:25:52 a biblical
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 conclusion
00:25:53 --> 00:25:55 he says
00:25:55 --> 00:25:56 Nazareth
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 can
00:25:57 --> 00:25:57 anything
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 good
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 come
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 from
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 Nazareth
00:25:59 --> 00:26:01 now if
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 his heart
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 was right
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 gracious
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 loving
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 patient
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 hopeful
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 towards
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 the people
00:26:05 --> 00:26:05 of
00:26:05 --> 00:26:05 Nazareth
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 he might
00:26:06 --> 00:26:06 have been
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 legitimately
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 skeptical
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 about
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 whether
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 the
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 Messiah
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 could
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 come
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 from
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 Nazareth
00:26:11 --> 00:26:13 and so
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 he would
00:26:14 --> 00:26:14 not
00:26:14 --> 00:26:14 have
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 likely
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 said
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 at
00:26:15 --> 00:26:15 that
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 point
00:26:16 --> 00:26:16 Nazareth
00:26:16 --> 00:26:16 can
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 anything
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 good
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 come
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 from
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 there
00:26:18 --> 00:26:21 you see
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 Nathaniel
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 has moved
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 from a
00:26:24 --> 00:26:24 legitimate
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 probability
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 conclusion
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 to a
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 sinful
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 prejudice
00:26:27 --> 00:26:27 at that
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 point
00:26:28 --> 00:26:31 his
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 view
00:26:32 --> 00:26:32 of these
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 people
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 is so
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 negative
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 that he
00:26:35 --> 00:26:35 sweeps
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 all of
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 them
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 into
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 a
00:26:37 --> 00:26:38 stereotype
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 including
00:26:39 --> 00:26:40 the one
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 perfect
00:26:41 --> 00:26:41 human
00:26:41 --> 00:26:41 being
00:26:41 --> 00:26:43 Jesus
00:26:43 --> 00:26:43 of
00:26:43 --> 00:26:43 Nazareth
00:26:43 --> 00:26:47 notice
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 too that
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 his
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 reaction
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 to what
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 Philip
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 says
00:26:49 --> 00:26:49 is
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 immediate
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 does
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 not
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 consider
00:26:51 --> 00:26:51 the
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 possibility
00:26:52 --> 00:26:52 that
00:26:52 --> 00:26:52 Philip
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 might
00:26:53 --> 00:26:53 know
00:26:53 --> 00:26:53 what
00:26:53 --> 00:26:53 he's
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 talking
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 about
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 he's
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 temporarily
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 blinded
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 by his
00:26:56 --> 00:26:56 prejudice
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 at this
00:26:57 --> 00:26:57 point
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 and
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 notice
00:26:59 --> 00:26:59 Philip's
00:26:59 --> 00:27:00 response
00:27:00 --> 00:27:00 here
00:27:00 --> 00:27:03 he doesn't
00:27:03 --> 00:27:03 go
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 racist
00:27:04 --> 00:27:10 doesn't
00:27:10 --> 00:27:10 jump on
00:27:10 --> 00:27:10 his
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 Facebook
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 feed
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 and
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 immediately
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 call him
00:27:13 --> 00:27:13 out
00:27:13 --> 00:27:13 for his
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 racism
00:27:14 --> 00:27:16 simply
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 says in
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 verse 46
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 hey
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 come and
00:27:19 --> 00:27:19 see
00:27:19 --> 00:27:20 let me
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 challenge
00:27:21 --> 00:27:21 your
00:27:21 --> 00:27:21 probability
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 statement
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 come and
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 see
00:27:22 --> 00:27:24 come and
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 see the
00:27:25 --> 00:27:25 potentially
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 the one
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 Nazarene
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 who doesn't
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 fit your
00:27:29 --> 00:27:29 bill
00:27:29 --> 00:27:32 give this
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 man a
00:27:33 --> 00:27:33 chance
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 judge him
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 by his
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 glory
00:27:36 --> 00:27:37 not his
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 group
00:27:37 --> 00:27:41 now here's
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 the point
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 I want to
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 make
00:27:42 --> 00:27:44 there is a
00:27:44 --> 00:27:45 fine
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 line
00:27:46 --> 00:27:48 between
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 legitimate
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 probability
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 judgments
00:27:51 --> 00:27:53 and sinful
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 prejudice
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 it is a
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 real line
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 and it's a
00:27:57 --> 00:27:57 real line
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 that often
00:27:58 --> 00:28:00 in fact
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 in every
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 instance
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 God sees
00:28:02 --> 00:28:02 it
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 even if
00:28:03 --> 00:28:03 we don't
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 always see
00:28:04 --> 00:28:04 it
00:28:04 --> 00:28:07 we do
00:28:07 --> 00:28:07 need to be
00:28:07 --> 00:28:07 careful
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 to not
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 allow genuine
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 and rightful
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 assessments of
00:28:11 --> 00:28:11 people and
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 circumstances
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 to function
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 in our
00:28:14 --> 00:28:14 heart
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 in such
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 a way
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 that it
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 makes the
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 shift
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 and sometimes
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 it's a
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 subtle shift
00:28:20 --> 00:28:21 towards a
00:28:21 --> 00:28:22 self
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 justification
00:28:23 --> 00:28:25 for sinful
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 prejudice
00:28:26 --> 00:28:26 us
00:28:26 --> 00:28:29 now my
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 sin as I
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 mentioned a
00:28:31 --> 00:28:31 few weeks
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 ago was to
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 allow past
00:28:33 --> 00:28:34 experiences to
00:28:34 --> 00:28:36 assess every
00:28:36 --> 00:28:36 person in a
00:28:36 --> 00:28:37 particular racial
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 group in such a
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 way that I
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 treated them all
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 with suspicion
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 and even
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 contempt
00:28:42 --> 00:28:46 our hearts
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 are deceitful
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 still
00:28:47 --> 00:28:49 and corruption
00:28:49 --> 00:28:49 remains
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 and we must
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 put it to
00:28:51 --> 00:28:51 death
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 and may the
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 Lord give us
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 absolute honesty
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 with ourselves
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 and him
00:28:56 --> 00:28:58 may he expose
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 every remnant
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 of sinful
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 prejudice
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 in our
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 hearts
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 and may
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 we never
00:29:04 --> 00:29:04 use the
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 legitimacy
00:29:05 --> 00:29:07 of generalizing
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 to cloak
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 the sin of
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 prejudice
00:29:09 --> 00:29:14 so I
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 think it's
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 important to
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 clarify something
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 here
00:29:16 --> 00:29:18 after speaking
00:29:18 --> 00:29:18 of my
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 experience
00:29:19 --> 00:29:19 that night
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 in Alice
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 Springs
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 one of our
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 church family
00:29:22 --> 00:29:24 rightfully and
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 helpfully pointed
00:29:25 --> 00:29:25 out to me
00:29:25 --> 00:29:27 that while they
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 don't have a
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 particular
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 you know
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 racial prejudice
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 towards the
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 group that I
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 was mentioning
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 they likewise
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 like me
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 would have felt
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 threatened in
00:29:37 --> 00:29:37 that moment
00:29:37 --> 00:29:39 but it wasn't
00:29:39 --> 00:29:39 a racial
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 prejudice that
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 would cause
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 them to be
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 threatened in
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 that moment
00:29:42 --> 00:29:46 that is
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 a quick
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 assessment of
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 that scenario
00:29:48 --> 00:29:51 is a feeling
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 of powerlessness
00:29:52 --> 00:29:52 and threat
00:29:52 --> 00:29:56 that's helpful
00:29:56 --> 00:29:58 that's a
00:29:58 --> 00:29:58 helpful
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 probability
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 assessment at
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 that point
00:30:01 --> 00:30:04 they were
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 right
00:30:04 --> 00:30:07 and so we
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 need to be
00:30:08 --> 00:30:08 careful of
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 just calling
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 out situations
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 as racial
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 prejudice
00:30:12 --> 00:30:13 when it just
00:30:13 --> 00:30:13 might simply
00:30:13 --> 00:30:15 be an
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 appropriate
00:30:16 --> 00:30:18 reflection
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 on experience
00:30:19 --> 00:30:21 and there
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 may be
00:30:22 --> 00:30:22 another
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 explanation
00:30:23 --> 00:30:26 that is
00:30:26 --> 00:30:26 we need
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 to be
00:30:27 --> 00:30:27 more like
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 the
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 Philip
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 and say
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 come and
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 see
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 rather than
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 racist
00:30:30 --> 00:30:33 come and
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 see
00:30:33 --> 00:30:39 we need
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 to be
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 so careful
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 of making
00:30:42 --> 00:30:42 assessments
00:30:42 --> 00:30:44 of each
00:30:44 --> 00:30:44 other's
00:30:44 --> 00:30:44 hearts
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 and motives
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 when we
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 just see
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 practice
00:30:47 --> 00:30:54 and I
00:30:54 --> 00:30:54 am
00:30:54 --> 00:30:54 therefore
00:30:54 --> 00:30:57 apologising
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 for overstating
00:30:58 --> 00:30:58 my case
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 several weeks
00:30:59 --> 00:30:59 ago
00:30:59 --> 00:31:05 I
00:31:05 --> 00:31:05 believe
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 that
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 sin
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 has
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 ruined
00:31:07 --> 00:31:07 every
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 heart
00:31:08 --> 00:31:09 but we
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 are not
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 ruined
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 in all
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 the same
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 way
00:31:12 --> 00:31:15 if you
00:31:15 --> 00:31:15 were an
00:31:15 --> 00:31:15 onlooker
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 with me
00:31:16 --> 00:31:16 in that
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 moment
00:31:17 --> 00:31:17 in Alice
00:31:17 --> 00:31:17 Springs
00:31:17 --> 00:31:19 in 2005
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 you
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 couldn't
00:31:21 --> 00:31:21 tell
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 on that
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 moment
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 by my
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 behaviour
00:31:24 --> 00:31:24 what was
00:31:24 --> 00:31:24 happening
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 in my
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 heart
00:31:25 --> 00:31:27 can I
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 also
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 add
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 I
00:31:29 --> 00:31:29 didn't
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 understand
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 my
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 heart
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 fully
00:31:31 --> 00:31:31 in that
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 moment
00:31:32 --> 00:31:32 either
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 I
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 wasn't
00:31:34 --> 00:31:34 aware
00:31:34 --> 00:31:38 I
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 was
00:31:39 --> 00:31:39 threatened
00:31:39 --> 00:31:39 by my
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 circumstances
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 which
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 led
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 into
00:31:43 --> 00:31:43 a
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 sinful
00:31:44 --> 00:31:44 prejudice
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 a
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 right
00:31:46 --> 00:31:47 threatening
00:31:47 --> 00:31:47 of
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 circumstance
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 in an
00:31:49 --> 00:31:50 area
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 that I
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 didn't
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 know
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 which
00:31:52 --> 00:31:53 most
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 people
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 would
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 have
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 but it
00:31:54 --> 00:31:54 led
00:31:54 --> 00:31:54 into
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 a
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 sinful
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 prejudice
00:31:55 --> 00:31:59 and it
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 was so
00:31:59 --> 00:32:00 easy
00:32:00 --> 00:32:00 for me
00:32:00 --> 00:32:00 in that
00:32:00 --> 00:32:01 moment
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 to
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 justify
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 my
00:32:02 --> 00:32:02 response
00:32:02 --> 00:32:03 simply
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 as
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 self
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 preservation
00:32:04 --> 00:32:09 how did
00:32:09 --> 00:32:09 I know
00:32:09 --> 00:32:09 that I'd
00:32:09 --> 00:32:10 slipped over
00:32:10 --> 00:32:11 into
00:32:11 --> 00:32:11 sinful
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 prejudice
00:32:12 --> 00:32:14 the next
00:32:14 --> 00:32:14 morning
00:32:14 --> 00:32:16 the next
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 morning
00:32:17 --> 00:32:17 it was
00:32:17 --> 00:32:18 so
00:32:18 --> 00:32:18 it was
00:32:18 --> 00:32:20 it wasn't
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 so easy
00:32:21 --> 00:32:21 to justify
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 my
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 heart
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 when
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 the
00:32:25 --> 00:32:25 tables
00:32:25 --> 00:32:25 are
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 turned
00:32:26 --> 00:32:27 and
00:32:27 --> 00:32:27 I
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 was
00:32:28 --> 00:32:28 in
00:32:28 --> 00:32:28 a
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 position
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 of
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 power
00:32:29 --> 00:32:31 the
00:32:31 --> 00:32:31 next
00:32:31 --> 00:32:31 morning
00:32:31 --> 00:32:31 I was
00:32:31 --> 00:32:32 preaching
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 in a
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 local
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 church
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 I was
00:32:34 --> 00:32:34 doing
00:32:34 --> 00:32:34 what I
00:32:34 --> 00:32:35 do
00:32:35 --> 00:32:35 here
00:32:35 --> 00:32:37 there
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 were no
00:32:38 --> 00:32:38 signs up
00:32:38 --> 00:32:38 in this
00:32:38 --> 00:32:39 particular
00:32:39 --> 00:32:39 church
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 saying
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 segregation
00:32:41 --> 00:32:41 black
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 people at
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 the back
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 white
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 people at
00:32:42 --> 00:32:43 the front
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 there was
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 formal
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 indication
00:32:46 --> 00:32:47 that this
00:32:47 --> 00:32:47 is how
00:32:47 --> 00:32:48 you sit
00:32:48 --> 00:32:48 but that's
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 what
00:32:49 --> 00:32:49 happened
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 white
00:32:50 --> 00:32:50 people at
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 the front
00:32:51 --> 00:32:51 black
00:32:51 --> 00:32:51 people at
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 the back
00:32:52 --> 00:32:53 I was
00:32:53 --> 00:32:53 the guest
00:32:53 --> 00:32:53 of
00:32:53 --> 00:32:54 honor
00:32:54 --> 00:32:54 I was
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 the preacher
00:32:55 --> 00:32:55 I was
00:32:55 --> 00:32:55 the
00:32:55 --> 00:32:56 in my
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 domain
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 the position
00:32:58 --> 00:32:59 of power
00:32:59 --> 00:33:00 no threats
00:33:00 --> 00:33:01 were happening
00:33:01 --> 00:33:01 to me in that
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 moment at
00:33:02 --> 00:33:02 all
00:33:02 --> 00:33:05 and when it
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 came time
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 in the middle
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 of the service
00:33:08 --> 00:33:08 for us to
00:33:08 --> 00:33:08 greet one
00:33:08 --> 00:33:09 another
00:33:09 --> 00:33:10 I found
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 it so hard
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 to cross
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 the imaginary
00:33:13 --> 00:33:14 divide which
00:33:14 --> 00:33:14 was existing
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 in the room
00:33:15 --> 00:33:19 not a
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 single person
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 in that
00:33:21 --> 00:33:21 room
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 in that
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 moment
00:33:23 --> 00:33:24 would have
00:33:24 --> 00:33:24 questioned
00:33:24 --> 00:33:25 my actions
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 not a
00:33:26 --> 00:33:26 single
00:33:26 --> 00:33:26 person
00:33:26 --> 00:33:30 I walked
00:33:30 --> 00:33:31 around the
00:33:31 --> 00:33:31 room
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 I greeted
00:33:32 --> 00:33:32 people as
00:33:32 --> 00:33:32 the preacher
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 I had other
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 things happening
00:33:34 --> 00:33:34 on
00:33:34 --> 00:33:37 they couldn't
00:33:37 --> 00:33:38 see my
00:33:38 --> 00:33:38 heart
00:33:38 --> 00:33:42 but when I
00:33:42 --> 00:33:42 finally did
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 cross the
00:33:43 --> 00:33:43 imaginary
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 divide
00:33:44 --> 00:33:46 the response
00:33:46 --> 00:33:47 I received
00:33:47 --> 00:33:47 from the
00:33:47 --> 00:33:48 two individuals
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 that I shook
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 hands with
00:33:50 --> 00:33:52 started to
00:33:52 --> 00:33:52 break my
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 heart on
00:33:53 --> 00:33:53 this issue
00:33:53 --> 00:33:56 God was
00:33:56 --> 00:33:57 revealing
00:33:57 --> 00:33:57 something to
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 me in
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 my heart
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 unbeknownst
00:34:00 --> 00:34:00 to anyone
00:34:00 --> 00:34:01 else in
00:34:01 --> 00:34:01 that room
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 in that
00:34:02 --> 00:34:02 moment
00:34:02 --> 00:34:05 I performed
00:34:05 --> 00:34:05 in a way
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 that everyone
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 expected me
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 to perform
00:34:07 --> 00:34:07 on that
00:34:07 --> 00:34:07 day
00:34:07 --> 00:34:12 I want to
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 keep coming
00:34:13 --> 00:34:13 back to
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 this point
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 it's about
00:34:15 --> 00:34:16 your heart
00:34:16 --> 00:34:19 my heart
00:34:19 --> 00:34:22 don't
00:34:22 --> 00:34:22 assume to
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 know someone
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 else's
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 heart
00:34:23 --> 00:34:26 come and
00:34:26 --> 00:34:26 see
00:34:26 --> 00:34:29 so let
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 me close
00:34:30 --> 00:34:30 with three
00:34:30 --> 00:34:33 indications
00:34:33 --> 00:34:33 of a good
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 heart as we
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 struggle with
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 the line
00:34:36 --> 00:34:37 between
00:34:37 --> 00:34:37 inevitable
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 generalizations
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 and sinful
00:34:39 --> 00:34:39 prejudice
00:34:39 --> 00:34:40 forgiveness
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 it's a
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 heart that
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 has received
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 Christ
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 knows
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 forgiveness
00:34:45 --> 00:34:45 and is
00:34:45 --> 00:34:46 indwelt by
00:34:46 --> 00:34:46 the Holy
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 Spirit
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 so this
00:34:48 --> 00:34:48 is very
00:34:48 --> 00:34:48 brief
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 number one
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 the good
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 heart
00:34:51 --> 00:34:51 desires to
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 know people
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 and to
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 treat people
00:34:54 --> 00:34:54 for who
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 they really
00:34:55 --> 00:34:56 are as
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 individuals
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 not simply
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 as a
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 representative
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 of a
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 class
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 or a
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 group
00:35:02 --> 00:35:07 if this
00:35:07 --> 00:35:07 were not
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 so
00:35:08 --> 00:35:10 Jesus
00:35:10 --> 00:35:10 could never
00:35:10 --> 00:35:11 be
00:35:11 --> 00:35:11 recognized
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 for who
00:35:12 --> 00:35:12 he truly
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 is as
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 the son
00:35:14 --> 00:35:14 of God
00:35:14 --> 00:35:17 and so
00:35:17 --> 00:35:18 my question
00:35:18 --> 00:35:18 for us
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 as a
00:35:19 --> 00:35:19 church
00:35:19 --> 00:35:19 is do
00:35:19 --> 00:35:20 you
00:35:20 --> 00:35:21 desire
00:35:21 --> 00:35:21 I mean
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 really
00:35:22 --> 00:35:22 desire
00:35:22 --> 00:35:22 to know
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 people
00:35:23 --> 00:35:23 and treat
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 people
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 as
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 individuals
00:35:24 --> 00:35:25 not merely
00:35:25 --> 00:35:26 as samples
00:35:26 --> 00:35:26 of a
00:35:26 --> 00:35:27 group
00:35:27 --> 00:35:30 number
00:35:30 --> 00:35:30 two
00:35:30 --> 00:35:32 this good
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 heart
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 is willing
00:35:33 --> 00:35:34 to take
00:35:34 --> 00:35:34 risks
00:35:34 --> 00:35:35 to act
00:35:35 --> 00:35:36 against
00:35:36 --> 00:35:36 negative
00:35:36 --> 00:35:37 expectations
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 and belittling
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 stereotypes
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 when dealing
00:35:40 --> 00:35:41 with another
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 person
00:35:42 --> 00:35:44 Paul said
00:35:44 --> 00:35:46 1 Corinthians
00:35:46 --> 00:35:46 13
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 love
00:35:47 --> 00:35:47 believes
00:35:47 --> 00:35:48 all
00:35:48 --> 00:35:48 things
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 and it
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 hopes
00:35:50 --> 00:35:50 all
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 things
00:35:51 --> 00:35:53 I think
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 he meant
00:35:54 --> 00:35:54 that love
00:35:54 --> 00:35:56 strives
00:35:56 --> 00:35:56 to believe
00:35:56 --> 00:35:57 and hope
00:35:57 --> 00:35:57 for the
00:35:57 --> 00:35:58 best
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 and not
00:35:59 --> 00:35:59 the worst
00:35:59 --> 00:36:01 and thirdly
00:36:01 --> 00:36:01 the good
00:36:01 --> 00:36:01 heart
00:36:01 --> 00:36:02 is ready
00:36:02 --> 00:36:03 like
00:36:03 --> 00:36:04 Nathaniel
00:36:04 --> 00:36:05 to repent
00:36:05 --> 00:36:06 quickly
00:36:06 --> 00:36:07 and fully
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 when we
00:36:08 --> 00:36:09 have made
00:36:09 --> 00:36:09 a mistake
00:36:09 --> 00:36:10 and judged
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 someone
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 wrongly
00:36:12 --> 00:36:15 this is
00:36:15 --> 00:36:16 what
00:36:16 --> 00:36:17 I want
00:36:17 --> 00:36:17 for my
00:36:17 --> 00:36:17 heart
00:36:17 --> 00:36:19 to be
00:36:19 --> 00:36:21 towards
00:36:21 --> 00:36:21 you
00:36:21 --> 00:36:23 yours
00:36:23 --> 00:36:23 towards
00:36:23 --> 00:36:24 me
00:36:24 --> 00:36:25 and
00:36:25 --> 00:36:26 ours
00:36:26 --> 00:36:26 towards
00:36:26 --> 00:36:27 all
00:36:27 --> 00:36:27 people
00:36:27 --> 00:36:41 you
00:36:41 --> 00:36:42 across