Vision Series 2023
Series: Jesus. All about Hope
Speaker: John Lau
Date: 2nd April 2023
00:00:00 --> 00:00:02 As Steve has already mentioned,
00:00:02 --> 00:00:06 a few more days will be Good Friday and Easter,
00:00:06 --> 00:00:09 marking the suffering and death of Christ Jesus
00:00:09 --> 00:00:13 on the cross and his burial and resurrection.
00:00:14 --> 00:00:17 The event of Easter is significant not just for Christians,
00:00:17 --> 00:00:19 but for every human.
00:00:20 --> 00:00:22 It's the heart of the gospel,
00:00:23 --> 00:00:25 the good news that Christians proclaim.
00:00:25 --> 00:00:29 It's where humans find hope to face the most unchangeable,
00:00:30 --> 00:00:34 and inevitable threats of human life, our destiny.
00:00:36 --> 00:00:41 Humans all want to know where we are going and heading.
00:00:42 --> 00:00:47 Our ability to put up with the journey increases
00:00:47 --> 00:00:53 according to how desirable the destiny is.
00:00:54 --> 00:00:57 That ability increases as we age,
00:00:58 --> 00:01:01 but our entitlement to the question,
00:01:02 --> 00:01:02 are we there yet,
00:01:03 --> 00:01:04 decreases.
00:01:05 --> 00:01:07 Repeated by a three-year-old,
00:01:07 --> 00:01:09 which is over there joining his church,
00:01:10 --> 00:01:13 that question is cute but irritating.
00:01:13 --> 00:01:17 However, if a 50-year-old man like myself,
00:01:17 --> 00:01:18 growing up,
00:01:18 --> 00:01:19 keep asking this question,
00:01:20 --> 00:01:22 it's just irritable,
00:01:22 --> 00:01:24 and most likely will kick me out of your car.
00:01:25 --> 00:01:27 Humans need to organize
00:01:27 --> 00:01:30 the sequence of individual sensations
00:01:30 --> 00:01:31 and life experience
00:01:31 --> 00:01:34 into a particular story.
00:01:34 --> 00:01:38 When that story leads somewhere,
00:01:38 --> 00:01:39 it gives us hope.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:42 Making sense of our destination
00:01:42 --> 00:01:43 gives us meaning.
00:01:45 --> 00:01:47 What we believe about our future
00:01:47 --> 00:01:50 completely controls how we experience our present.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:53 So how do we make sense
00:01:53 --> 00:01:56 of the unchangeable and inevitable fact
00:01:56 --> 00:01:59 that people are destined to die once?
00:01:59 --> 00:02:01 How do we have a human hope
00:02:01 --> 00:02:03 that can make sense of death
00:02:03 --> 00:02:04 and stand up to it
00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 and help us to face a fear of death,
00:02:07 --> 00:02:10 even triumph over it?
00:02:10 --> 00:02:13 Christians believe Jesus is all about hope,
00:02:13 --> 00:02:16 and in Jesus is a hope
00:02:16 --> 00:02:17 that can face anything.
00:02:18 --> 00:02:20 One of the crucial parts
00:02:20 --> 00:02:22 of the Christian story
00:02:22 --> 00:02:24 has always been deliverance
00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 from death through Christ.
00:02:27 --> 00:02:29 The Bible is full of passage,
00:02:29 --> 00:02:30 like what we have just read
00:02:30 --> 00:02:32 from Romans 8 and 2 Timothy 1.
00:02:33 --> 00:02:35 Jesus is a savior of the world
00:02:35 --> 00:02:37 who has destroyed death
00:02:37 --> 00:02:39 and has brought life and immortality
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41 to light through the gospel.
00:02:41 --> 00:02:43 He saved humans in the hope
00:02:43 --> 00:02:45 of redemption and adoption
00:02:45 --> 00:02:47 to be God's children.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:50 But before we look at Christian hope,
00:02:50 --> 00:02:52 let's look at how our society
00:02:52 --> 00:02:54 addresses the topic of hope
00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 or the lack of it,
00:02:57 --> 00:02:58 in particular with death.
00:02:59 --> 00:03:00 And after that,
00:03:00 --> 00:03:01 we'll look at three characters
00:03:01 --> 00:03:02 of Christian hope.
00:03:04 --> 00:03:07 So, when it comes to hope
00:03:07 --> 00:03:11 and comes to our life
00:03:11 --> 00:03:14 and the inevitable destination of death,
00:03:14 --> 00:03:19 not many people will be chomping at the beat
00:03:19 --> 00:03:21 to ask, are we there yet?
00:03:22 --> 00:03:23 Death is a topic
00:03:23 --> 00:03:25 that many people would like to avoid
00:03:25 --> 00:03:27 because generally,
00:03:27 --> 00:03:31 we feel fearful and sad
00:03:31 --> 00:03:33 and hopeless about the matter.
00:03:33 --> 00:03:36 I came across a TED Talk
00:03:36 --> 00:03:37 by Stephen Cave.
00:03:38 --> 00:03:39 He's a philosopher
00:03:39 --> 00:03:41 and the author of the book
00:03:41 --> 00:03:42 Immortality,
00:03:43 --> 00:03:44 The Quest to Live Forever
00:03:44 --> 00:03:46 and How It Drives Civilization.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:47 His TED Talk
00:03:47 --> 00:03:50 talks about four stories
00:03:50 --> 00:03:52 humans tell themselves
00:03:52 --> 00:03:54 to help us cope with the fear of death.
00:03:55 --> 00:03:57 Every culture in human history
00:03:57 --> 00:03:59 has some story about some magic potion
00:03:59 --> 00:04:01 of fountains of youth
00:04:01 --> 00:04:03 that promise we can live forever.
00:04:04 --> 00:04:07 Ancient Egypt, India, and the Chinese
00:04:07 --> 00:04:09 have this kind of story.
00:04:10 --> 00:04:10 And the contemporary
00:04:10 --> 00:04:12 will tell this story
00:04:12 --> 00:04:14 on the belief that science
00:04:14 --> 00:04:16 will conquer death.
00:04:17 --> 00:04:18 But if you look through history,
00:04:19 --> 00:04:20 the only thing in common
00:04:20 --> 00:04:21 for all those people
00:04:21 --> 00:04:22 that have taken the potion
00:04:22 --> 00:04:25 is that they're all still lying in the grave.
00:04:26 --> 00:04:29 Realizing we cannot escape death
00:04:29 --> 00:04:31 that we tell a restoration story
00:04:31 --> 00:04:34 of somehow people can raise up
00:04:34 --> 00:04:35 and live again.
00:04:36 --> 00:04:38 Christians, Jews, and Muslims
00:04:38 --> 00:04:40 share these orthodox beliefs.
00:04:42 --> 00:04:44 And we invent this story
00:04:44 --> 00:04:46 in the scientific age
00:04:46 --> 00:04:48 into freezing our body
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 until technology and medicine
00:04:50 --> 00:04:52 is advanced enough
00:04:52 --> 00:04:53 to deal with our ill body.
00:04:55 --> 00:04:57 Too many people
00:04:57 --> 00:04:59 who tell this story
00:04:59 --> 00:05:02 religion is a coping mechanism
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 for our hopeless world.
00:05:06 --> 00:05:07 Another story
00:05:07 --> 00:05:09 that we tell ourselves
00:05:09 --> 00:05:11 is that we get to leave
00:05:11 --> 00:05:12 our body behind,
00:05:13 --> 00:05:14 to live on
00:05:14 --> 00:05:16 as a spirit or soul
00:05:16 --> 00:05:18 to avoid the messiness
00:05:18 --> 00:05:19 and problems
00:05:19 --> 00:05:21 of having a physical body.
00:05:22 --> 00:05:23 And again,
00:05:23 --> 00:05:24 in our digital age,
00:05:24 --> 00:05:27 we upload our mind
00:05:27 --> 00:05:28 on the computer
00:05:28 --> 00:05:30 to live as an avatar
00:05:30 --> 00:05:31 after we die.
00:05:32 --> 00:05:33 Or lastly,
00:05:33 --> 00:05:34 we can live on
00:05:34 --> 00:05:37 to immortality
00:05:37 --> 00:05:38 in our legacy
00:05:38 --> 00:05:40 through people thinking
00:05:40 --> 00:05:42 or telling about us.
00:05:42 --> 00:05:43 Living on
00:05:43 --> 00:05:44 in the memories
00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 of the living.
00:05:46 --> 00:05:46 I remember
00:05:46 --> 00:05:47 this perspective.
00:05:48 --> 00:05:50 This is the perspective
00:05:50 --> 00:05:50 of my parents
00:05:50 --> 00:05:51 as I grew up.
00:05:51 --> 00:05:53 the demand
00:05:53 --> 00:05:54 of the living
00:05:54 --> 00:05:56 to keep the dead alive
00:05:56 --> 00:05:58 knows no cultural difference.
00:05:59 --> 00:06:00 Many cultures
00:06:00 --> 00:06:02 emphasize the importance
00:06:02 --> 00:06:03 of getting married
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04 and having children
00:06:04 --> 00:06:06 or for having
00:06:06 --> 00:06:07 a biological legacy.
00:06:09 --> 00:06:10 Suppose you're single
00:06:10 --> 00:06:11 or a parent
00:06:11 --> 00:06:13 with mature kids.
00:06:14 --> 00:06:15 Have you bought
00:06:15 --> 00:06:16 into this idea
00:06:16 --> 00:06:18 of the secular society
00:06:18 --> 00:06:19 which feeds
00:06:19 --> 00:06:20 our hopelessness?
00:06:22 --> 00:06:23 All these stories
00:06:23 --> 00:06:24 are humans
00:06:24 --> 00:06:26 trying to create hope
00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 with their actions.
00:06:29 --> 00:06:30 Hope by doing.
00:06:31 --> 00:06:32 Cave's conclusion
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 is very typical
00:06:34 --> 00:06:36 of many philosophers
00:06:36 --> 00:06:37 of our day and age.
00:06:38 --> 00:06:39 He used the method
00:06:39 --> 00:06:39 of a book.
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 Just as a book
00:06:42 --> 00:06:43 is spun by its cover
00:06:43 --> 00:06:44 by the beginning
00:06:44 --> 00:06:45 and end,
00:06:45 --> 00:06:47 so are life
00:06:47 --> 00:06:47 are bound
00:06:47 --> 00:06:50 by birth and death.
00:06:51 --> 00:06:52 The characters
00:06:52 --> 00:06:52 within it
00:06:52 --> 00:06:54 know no horizon.
00:06:55 --> 00:06:55 They only know
00:06:55 --> 00:06:56 the moment
00:06:56 --> 00:06:57 that make up
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 their story
00:06:58 --> 00:06:59 even when the book
00:06:59 --> 00:07:00 is closed.
00:07:01 --> 00:07:02 It makes no sense
00:07:02 --> 00:07:02 for you
00:07:02 --> 00:07:03 to feel
00:07:03 --> 00:07:05 what is outside
00:07:05 --> 00:07:05 of this cover
00:07:05 --> 00:07:07 whether before your birth
00:07:07 --> 00:07:09 or after your death.
00:07:09 --> 00:07:11 And you needn't worry
00:07:11 --> 00:07:11 how long
00:07:11 --> 00:07:12 the book is
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 or whether
00:07:13 --> 00:07:14 it's a comic strip
00:07:14 --> 00:07:15 or an epic.
00:07:16 --> 00:07:17 The only thing
00:07:17 --> 00:07:17 that matters
00:07:17 --> 00:07:19 is that you make
00:07:19 --> 00:07:20 it a good story.
00:07:21 --> 00:07:22 When dealing
00:07:22 --> 00:07:23 with the terror
00:07:23 --> 00:07:24 of death
00:07:24 --> 00:07:25 many people
00:07:25 --> 00:07:26 have taken on
00:07:26 --> 00:07:26 to live out
00:07:26 --> 00:07:27 a good life story
00:07:27 --> 00:07:29 by living out
00:07:29 --> 00:07:30 their life's desires.
00:07:32 --> 00:07:32 Others
00:07:32 --> 00:07:33 will focus
00:07:33 --> 00:07:33 on the part
00:07:33 --> 00:07:34 of life
00:07:34 --> 00:07:34 that they can
00:07:34 --> 00:07:35 control to live
00:07:35 --> 00:07:36 every day
00:07:36 --> 00:07:37 to the fullest.
00:07:38 --> 00:07:39 What is your
00:07:39 --> 00:07:40 approach to life?
00:07:40 --> 00:07:43 people may be
00:07:43 --> 00:07:43 willing
00:07:43 --> 00:07:45 to agree
00:07:45 --> 00:07:45 that death
00:07:45 --> 00:07:46 remains something
00:07:46 --> 00:07:47 to be feared
00:07:47 --> 00:07:48 because it's the end
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 of our existence
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 and all that we have
00:07:51 --> 00:07:52 worked for in life.
00:07:53 --> 00:07:54 Death
00:07:54 --> 00:07:55 is violently
00:07:55 --> 00:07:57 imposing
00:07:57 --> 00:07:58 unconsciousness
00:07:58 --> 00:07:59 on someone
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 which is considered
00:08:01 --> 00:08:01 a crime.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:03 Death
00:08:03 --> 00:08:03 is an
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 intuition
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 of life
00:08:06 --> 00:08:07 that somewhat
00:08:07 --> 00:08:08 and always
00:08:08 --> 00:08:09 only
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 appears
00:08:10 --> 00:08:11 because something
00:08:11 --> 00:08:12 has gone wrong.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:13 There's nothing
00:08:13 --> 00:08:14 natural about death.
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 Some contemporary
00:08:17 --> 00:08:18 thinkers
00:08:18 --> 00:08:19 try to neutralize
00:08:19 --> 00:08:20 the terror
00:08:20 --> 00:08:21 of death
00:08:21 --> 00:08:22 by treating it
00:08:22 --> 00:08:23 as an inevitable
00:08:23 --> 00:08:25 step of life.
00:08:26 --> 00:08:27 This account's
00:08:27 --> 00:08:28 most favorite
00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 popular
00:08:29 --> 00:08:31 culture expression
00:08:31 --> 00:08:31 is in
00:08:31 --> 00:08:32 The Lion King.
00:08:33 --> 00:08:34 A young lion
00:08:34 --> 00:08:35 is told that
00:08:35 --> 00:08:36 though lion
00:08:36 --> 00:08:37 eat the antelope
00:08:37 --> 00:08:39 they eventually
00:08:39 --> 00:08:40 die and fertilize
00:08:40 --> 00:08:40 the grass
00:08:40 --> 00:08:42 and the antelope
00:08:42 --> 00:08:42 eat the grass.
00:08:43 --> 00:08:44 So it all
00:08:44 --> 00:08:45 connected
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 in a great
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 circle of life.
00:08:49 --> 00:08:50 On the surface
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 there is
00:08:51 --> 00:08:52 something attractive
00:08:52 --> 00:08:52 about this
00:08:52 --> 00:08:53 circle of life
00:08:53 --> 00:08:53 approach.
00:08:54 --> 00:08:55 Our life
00:08:55 --> 00:08:56 will contribute
00:08:56 --> 00:08:57 to something
00:08:57 --> 00:08:58 to value something
00:08:58 --> 00:08:59 no matter how
00:08:59 --> 00:09:00 many failures
00:09:00 --> 00:09:01 or mistakes
00:09:01 --> 00:09:02 we have made.
00:09:03 --> 00:09:03 But if you
00:09:03 --> 00:09:04 think deeply
00:09:04 --> 00:09:05 think deeper
00:09:05 --> 00:09:07 it's being
00:09:07 --> 00:09:08 recycled
00:09:08 --> 00:09:08 fertilizer
00:09:08 --> 00:09:09 how you want
00:09:09 --> 00:09:10 others
00:09:10 --> 00:09:10 to summarize
00:09:10 --> 00:09:11 your life.
00:09:12 --> 00:09:13 But that is
00:09:13 --> 00:09:14 what our
00:09:14 --> 00:09:15 popular culture
00:09:15 --> 00:09:16 encourages us to do
00:09:16 --> 00:09:17 to deal with
00:09:17 --> 00:09:18 the unchangeable
00:09:18 --> 00:09:19 inevitable
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 effects of
00:09:21 --> 00:09:22 human destiny
00:09:22 --> 00:09:26 or to accept
00:09:26 --> 00:09:27 hope
00:09:27 --> 00:09:29 or to have hope
00:09:29 --> 00:09:29 is just to
00:09:29 --> 00:09:30 accept the
00:09:30 --> 00:09:31 inevitability
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 of life.
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 atheists
00:09:34 --> 00:09:34 philosophers
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 often consider
00:09:35 --> 00:09:37 religious people
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 less enlightened
00:09:38 --> 00:09:39 and primitive
00:09:39 --> 00:09:40 because they
00:09:40 --> 00:09:41 rely on something
00:09:41 --> 00:09:42 supernatural
00:09:42 --> 00:09:43 that cannot
00:09:43 --> 00:09:45 empirically
00:09:45 --> 00:09:46 prove to exist.
00:09:47 --> 00:09:47 However
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 they also
00:09:48 --> 00:09:49 cannot verify
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 that God
00:09:50 --> 00:09:51 does not exist.
00:09:52 --> 00:09:52 Secular
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 thinkers
00:09:53 --> 00:09:54 seem to believe
00:09:54 --> 00:09:55 we can rationalize
00:09:55 --> 00:09:56 the terror
00:09:56 --> 00:09:56 and fear
00:09:56 --> 00:09:57 we feel
00:09:57 --> 00:09:58 about death
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 by insisting
00:09:59 --> 00:10:00 that death
00:10:00 --> 00:10:00 is nothing
00:10:00 --> 00:10:01 to be afraid
00:10:01 --> 00:10:01 of.
00:10:02 --> 00:10:03 But even
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 a very young
00:10:04 --> 00:10:05 kid
00:10:05 --> 00:10:05 realizes
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 death is
00:10:06 --> 00:10:06 fearful
00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 because it
00:10:08 --> 00:10:08 means the
00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 end of love.
00:10:10 --> 00:10:10 Death
00:10:10 --> 00:10:12 tears us away
00:10:12 --> 00:10:12 from those
00:10:12 --> 00:10:12 we love
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 from the
00:10:13 --> 00:10:14 relationships
00:10:14 --> 00:10:14 that make
00:10:14 --> 00:10:15 life meaningful.
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 We feel
00:10:18 --> 00:10:18 death
00:10:18 --> 00:10:19 because
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 also because
00:10:20 --> 00:10:21 we are not
00:10:21 --> 00:10:21 sure
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 that death
00:10:22 --> 00:10:24 is the end.
00:10:25 --> 00:10:25 No one
00:10:25 --> 00:10:26 has been
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 through death
00:10:27 --> 00:10:28 and come
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 back to
00:10:29 --> 00:10:29 tell us
00:10:29 --> 00:10:30 what is
00:10:30 --> 00:10:30 on the
00:10:30 --> 00:10:30 other
00:10:30 --> 00:10:31 side.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 All is
00:10:32 --> 00:10:32 there,
00:10:32 --> 00:10:33 no one.
00:10:35 --> 00:10:35 Christianity
00:10:35 --> 00:10:36 tells a
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 different
00:10:37 --> 00:10:37 resurrection
00:10:37 --> 00:10:38 story
00:10:38 --> 00:10:39 because
00:10:39 --> 00:10:39 Jesus
00:10:39 --> 00:10:40 is the
00:10:40 --> 00:10:40 person
00:10:40 --> 00:10:41 that
00:10:41 --> 00:10:41 has
00:10:41 --> 00:10:41 conquered
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 death.
00:10:43 --> 00:10:43 Christian
00:10:43 --> 00:10:44 hope
00:10:44 --> 00:10:44 explains
00:10:44 --> 00:10:45 why we
00:10:45 --> 00:10:45 feel
00:10:45 --> 00:10:46 death
00:10:46 --> 00:10:46 is so
00:10:46 --> 00:10:47 unnatural
00:10:47 --> 00:10:47 and
00:10:47 --> 00:10:48 help us
00:10:48 --> 00:10:49 to face
00:10:49 --> 00:10:49 even
00:10:49 --> 00:10:50 triumph
00:10:50 --> 00:10:51 over it.
00:10:52 --> 00:10:53 Death
00:10:53 --> 00:10:53 feels
00:10:53 --> 00:10:54 unnatural
00:10:54 --> 00:10:54 because
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 it's not
00:10:55 --> 00:10:55 part of
00:10:55 --> 00:10:56 God's
00:10:56 --> 00:10:56 original
00:10:56 --> 00:10:57 design.
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 The book
00:10:58 --> 00:10:58 of Genesis
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 explains
00:10:59 --> 00:10:59 that
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 God
00:11:00 --> 00:11:01 did not
00:11:01 --> 00:11:01 create
00:11:01 --> 00:11:02 humans
00:11:02 --> 00:11:02 to age,
00:11:03 --> 00:11:03 weaken,
00:11:04 --> 00:11:04 fade,
00:11:04 --> 00:11:05 or die.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06 We were
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 not made
00:11:07 --> 00:11:08 for love
00:11:08 --> 00:11:09 relationship
00:11:09 --> 00:11:10 that ends
00:11:10 --> 00:11:11 in death.
00:11:12 --> 00:11:12 Death
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13 is an
00:11:13 --> 00:11:13 intrusion
00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 resulting
00:11:14 --> 00:11:15 from sin
00:11:15 --> 00:11:15 and our
00:11:15 --> 00:11:16 human race
00:11:16 --> 00:11:17 turning away
00:11:17 --> 00:11:18 from God.
00:11:18 --> 00:11:19 But God
00:11:19 --> 00:11:19 has not
00:11:19 --> 00:11:20 turned away
00:11:20 --> 00:11:21 from us.
00:11:22 --> 00:11:22 The New
00:11:22 --> 00:11:23 Testament
00:11:23 --> 00:11:23 letter
00:11:23 --> 00:11:24 to the
00:11:24 --> 00:11:24 Hebrews
00:11:24 --> 00:11:25 explains
00:11:25 --> 00:11:25 that
00:11:25 --> 00:11:26 God
00:11:26 --> 00:11:26 sent
00:11:26 --> 00:11:26 Jesus
00:11:26 --> 00:11:27 the
00:11:27 --> 00:11:28 immortal
00:11:28 --> 00:11:28 son
00:11:28 --> 00:11:28 of God
00:11:28 --> 00:11:29 into
00:11:29 --> 00:11:29 the
00:11:29 --> 00:11:30 world.
00:11:30 --> 00:11:31 Shame
00:11:31 --> 00:11:31 is
00:11:31 --> 00:11:31 in
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 our
00:11:32 --> 00:11:32 humanity
00:11:32 --> 00:11:33 and
00:11:33 --> 00:11:33 becoming
00:11:33 --> 00:11:34 subject
00:11:34 --> 00:11:34 to
00:11:34 --> 00:11:34 weakness
00:11:34 --> 00:11:35 and
00:11:35 --> 00:11:35 death
00:11:35 --> 00:11:36 so that
00:11:36 --> 00:11:37 by his
00:11:37 --> 00:11:37 death
00:11:37 --> 00:11:38 he
00:11:38 --> 00:11:38 may
00:11:38 --> 00:11:39 break
00:11:39 --> 00:11:39 the
00:11:39 --> 00:11:39 power
00:11:39 --> 00:11:40 of him
00:11:40 --> 00:11:40 who holds
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 the power
00:11:41 --> 00:11:41 of death
00:11:41 --> 00:11:42 and free
00:11:42 --> 00:11:43 those
00:11:43 --> 00:11:43 who
00:11:43 --> 00:11:45 all their
00:11:45 --> 00:11:45 lives
00:11:45 --> 00:11:46 were held
00:11:46 --> 00:11:46 in slavery
00:11:46 --> 00:11:47 by their
00:11:47 --> 00:11:47 fear of
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 death.
00:11:49 --> 00:11:49 God
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 solved
00:11:50 --> 00:11:50 our
00:11:50 --> 00:11:51 dilemma
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 of being
00:11:52 --> 00:11:52 trapped
00:11:52 --> 00:11:53 in sin
00:11:53 --> 00:11:53 and death
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 by becoming
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 our
00:11:55 --> 00:11:55 substitute.
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 Jesus
00:11:57 --> 00:11:57 went
00:11:57 --> 00:11:57 before
00:11:57 --> 00:11:58 us
00:11:58 --> 00:11:58 to
00:11:58 --> 00:11:58 the
00:11:58 --> 00:11:59 cross
00:11:59 --> 00:11:59 to
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00 pay
00:12:00 --> 00:12:00 for
00:12:00 --> 00:12:00 the
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 punishment
00:12:01 --> 00:12:01 of
00:12:01 --> 00:12:01 us
00:12:01 --> 00:12:02 turning
00:12:02 --> 00:12:02 away
00:12:02 --> 00:12:02 from
00:12:02 --> 00:12:03 God.
00:12:04 --> 00:12:04 This
00:12:04 --> 00:12:05 coming
00:12:05 --> 00:12:05 Friday
00:12:05 --> 00:12:06 is
00:12:06 --> 00:12:06 Good
00:12:06 --> 00:12:07 Friday
00:12:07 --> 00:12:07 followed
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 by
00:12:08 --> 00:12:08 Easter
00:12:08 --> 00:12:08 Sunday.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:09 We'll
00:12:09 --> 00:12:09 speak
00:12:09 --> 00:12:09 more
00:12:09 --> 00:12:10 about
00:12:10 --> 00:12:10 the
00:12:10 --> 00:12:10 Christian
00:12:10 --> 00:12:11 resurrection
00:12:11 --> 00:12:11 story
00:12:11 --> 00:12:12 and how
00:12:12 --> 00:12:13 Jesus
00:12:13 --> 00:12:13 broke
00:12:13 --> 00:12:13 death
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 and
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 power
00:12:15 --> 00:12:15 over
00:12:15 --> 00:12:15 us
00:12:15 --> 00:12:16 by
00:12:16 --> 00:12:16 dying
00:12:16 --> 00:12:17 in
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 our
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 place
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 and
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 pay
00:12:18 --> 00:12:18 our
00:12:18 --> 00:12:18 penalty.
00:12:18 --> 00:12:21 God
00:12:21 --> 00:12:21 saved
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 Christian
00:12:22 --> 00:12:22 in the
00:12:22 --> 00:12:22 hope
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 of
00:12:23 --> 00:12:23 being
00:12:23 --> 00:12:24 fully
00:12:24 --> 00:12:24 adopted
00:12:24 --> 00:12:25 as
00:12:25 --> 00:12:25 his
00:12:25 --> 00:12:25 children
00:12:25 --> 00:12:27 and
00:12:27 --> 00:12:27 in
00:12:27 --> 00:12:27 the
00:12:27 --> 00:12:27 hope
00:12:27 --> 00:12:27 of
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 full
00:12:28 --> 00:12:29 redemption
00:12:29 --> 00:12:29 of
00:12:29 --> 00:12:29 our
00:12:29 --> 00:12:30 bodies.
00:12:31 --> 00:12:31 Christian
00:12:31 --> 00:12:32 hope
00:12:32 --> 00:12:33 does not
00:12:33 --> 00:12:33 only
00:12:33 --> 00:12:33 address
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 where
00:12:34 --> 00:12:34 we
00:12:34 --> 00:12:34 are
00:12:34 --> 00:12:34 going
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 and
00:12:35 --> 00:12:35 give
00:12:35 --> 00:12:35 us
00:12:35 --> 00:12:35 hope
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 for
00:12:36 --> 00:12:36 life
00:12:36 --> 00:12:36 after
00:12:36 --> 00:12:37 death.
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 Christian
00:12:38 --> 00:12:38 hope
00:12:38 --> 00:12:39 has
00:12:39 --> 00:12:39 also
00:12:39 --> 00:12:39 three
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 distinct
00:12:40 --> 00:12:40 and
00:12:40 --> 00:12:41 unique
00:12:41 --> 00:12:41 characteristics.
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 It is
00:12:43 --> 00:12:44 personal,
00:12:44 --> 00:12:45 concrete,
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 and
00:12:46 --> 00:12:46 fulfilling.
00:12:46 --> 00:12:50 Christian
00:12:50 --> 00:12:50 hope
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 is
00:12:51 --> 00:12:51 personal
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 because
00:12:52 --> 00:12:52 Jesus
00:12:52 --> 00:12:53 told us
00:12:53 --> 00:12:53 in
00:12:53 --> 00:12:54 John
00:12:54 --> 00:12:54 14
00:12:54 --> 00:12:54 2
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 that
00:12:55 --> 00:12:55 he
00:12:55 --> 00:12:55 was
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 going
00:12:56 --> 00:12:56 to
00:12:56 --> 00:12:56 his
00:12:56 --> 00:12:57 father's
00:12:57 --> 00:12:57 house
00:12:57 --> 00:12:57 to
00:12:57 --> 00:12:58 prepare
00:12:58 --> 00:12:58 a
00:12:58 --> 00:12:58 place
00:12:58 --> 00:12:58 for
00:12:58 --> 00:12:59 us.
00:12:59 --> 00:13:00 We
00:13:00 --> 00:13:00 call
00:13:00 --> 00:13:00 that
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 place
00:13:01 --> 00:13:01 heaven.
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 What
00:13:03 --> 00:13:03 mean
00:13:03 --> 00:13:04 imagery
00:13:04 --> 00:13:05 do you
00:13:05 --> 00:13:05 have
00:13:05 --> 00:13:06 when
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 you
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 think
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 of
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 heaven?
00:13:09 --> 00:13:09 Would
00:13:09 --> 00:13:09 it be
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 a
00:13:10 --> 00:13:10 picture
00:13:10 --> 00:13:10 of
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 people
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 dressed
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 in
00:13:11 --> 00:13:11 white
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 robe
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 floating
00:13:13 --> 00:13:13 on
00:13:13 --> 00:13:13 clouds
00:13:13 --> 00:13:14 with
00:13:14 --> 00:13:14 halves?
00:13:15 --> 00:13:16 There's
00:13:16 --> 00:13:16 the common
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 misunderstanding
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 of
00:13:18 --> 00:13:18 heaven
00:13:18 --> 00:13:19 being a
00:13:19 --> 00:13:19 consumer
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 paradise
00:13:20 --> 00:13:21 where
00:13:21 --> 00:13:21 all the
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 pleasure
00:13:22 --> 00:13:22 and comfort
00:13:22 --> 00:13:23 human
00:13:23 --> 00:13:23 thoughts
00:13:23 --> 00:13:24 to buy
00:13:24 --> 00:13:25 on
00:13:25 --> 00:13:25 earth
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 are now
00:13:26 --> 00:13:26 free
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 for grabs
00:13:27 --> 00:13:28 and
00:13:28 --> 00:13:28 popular
00:13:28 --> 00:13:30 religious
00:13:30 --> 00:13:31 imagination
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 thinks
00:13:32 --> 00:13:33 of heaven
00:13:33 --> 00:13:33 as a
00:13:33 --> 00:13:34 trouble-free
00:13:34 --> 00:13:35 place
00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 of
00:13:36 --> 00:13:36 ease.
00:13:38 --> 00:13:39 I
00:13:39 --> 00:13:39 believe
00:13:39 --> 00:13:39 secular
00:13:39 --> 00:13:40 thinkers
00:13:40 --> 00:13:40 have some
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 merit
00:13:41 --> 00:13:42 in
00:13:42 --> 00:13:42 challenging
00:13:42 --> 00:13:42 the
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 religious
00:13:43 --> 00:13:43 view
00:13:43 --> 00:13:43 of
00:13:43 --> 00:13:43 heaven
00:13:43 --> 00:13:45 especially
00:13:45 --> 00:13:45 since
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 many
00:13:46 --> 00:13:46 religious
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 people
00:13:47 --> 00:13:48 live
00:13:48 --> 00:13:48 a
00:13:48 --> 00:13:48 moral
00:13:48 --> 00:13:49 life
00:13:49 --> 00:13:50 legalistically
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 mainly
00:13:51 --> 00:13:51 to have
00:13:51 --> 00:13:52 entry
00:13:52 --> 00:13:52 to
00:13:52 --> 00:13:52 heaven
00:13:52 --> 00:13:54 but
00:13:54 --> 00:13:54 secular
00:13:54 --> 00:13:55 thinkers
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 and
00:13:56 --> 00:13:56 religious
00:13:56 --> 00:13:56 people
00:13:56 --> 00:13:57 do not
00:13:57 --> 00:13:57 know
00:13:57 --> 00:13:57 what
00:13:57 --> 00:13:58 heaven
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 or
00:13:59 --> 00:13:59 Christian
00:13:59 --> 00:13:59 hope
00:13:59 --> 00:14:00 is
00:14:00 --> 00:14:00 about.
00:14:01 --> 00:14:02 18th
00:14:02 --> 00:14:02 century
00:14:02 --> 00:14:03 philosopher
00:14:03 --> 00:14:03 and
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 preacher
00:14:04 --> 00:14:04 Jonathan
00:14:04 --> 00:14:05 Edward
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 wrote
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 a
00:14:07 --> 00:14:07 sermon
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 titled
00:14:08 --> 00:14:08 Heaven
00:14:08 --> 00:14:09 is a
00:14:09 --> 00:14:09 world
00:14:09 --> 00:14:09 of
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 love
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 which
00:14:11 --> 00:14:11 powerfully
00:14:11 --> 00:14:12 conveys
00:14:12 --> 00:14:13 what
00:14:13 --> 00:14:13 Christian
00:14:13 --> 00:14:13 hope
00:14:13 --> 00:14:13 is
00:14:13 --> 00:14:14 about.
00:14:15 --> 00:14:15 I
00:14:15 --> 00:14:15 have
00:14:15 --> 00:14:15 included
00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 a link
00:14:17 --> 00:14:18 to this
00:14:18 --> 00:14:18 address
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 in the
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 description
00:14:20 --> 00:14:20 of our
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 live stream.
00:14:21 --> 00:14:21 I also
00:14:21 --> 00:14:21 have a
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 couple
00:14:22 --> 00:14:22 of
00:14:22 --> 00:14:22 copies
00:14:22 --> 00:14:22 at the
00:14:22 --> 00:14:23 back.
00:14:25 --> 00:14:25 You
00:14:25 --> 00:14:26 must
00:14:26 --> 00:14:26 read
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 this
00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 sermon
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 to
00:14:29 --> 00:14:29 ensure
00:14:29 --> 00:14:29 you
00:14:29 --> 00:14:30 do not
00:14:30 --> 00:14:30 mistake
00:14:30 --> 00:14:30 what
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 Christian
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 hope
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 is
00:14:31 --> 00:14:31 all
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 about.
00:14:33 --> 00:14:33 The
00:14:33 --> 00:14:33 ultimate
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 Christian
00:14:34 --> 00:14:34 hope
00:14:34 --> 00:14:34 is
00:14:34 --> 00:14:35 not
00:14:35 --> 00:14:35 some
00:14:35 --> 00:14:36 radiance
00:14:36 --> 00:14:36 or
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 immortality
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 but a
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 relationship.
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 At the
00:14:41 --> 00:14:41 center
00:14:41 --> 00:14:41 of
00:14:41 --> 00:14:42 heaven
00:14:42 --> 00:14:42 is
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 a
00:14:43 --> 00:14:43 triune
00:14:43 --> 00:14:43 God.
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 One
00:14:45 --> 00:14:45 God
00:14:45 --> 00:14:45 in
00:14:45 --> 00:14:45 three
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 persons
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 Father
00:14:47 --> 00:14:48 Son
00:14:48 --> 00:14:48 and
00:14:48 --> 00:14:48 Holy
00:14:48 --> 00:14:49 Spirit
00:14:49 --> 00:14:51 united
00:14:51 --> 00:14:52 in
00:14:52 --> 00:14:52 infinitely
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 dear
00:14:53 --> 00:14:53 and
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 incomprehensible
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 mutual
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 love.
00:14:58 --> 00:14:58 The
00:14:58 --> 00:14:58 three
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 in
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 one
00:14:59 --> 00:14:59 God
00:14:59 --> 00:15:00 continuously
00:15:00 --> 00:15:01 pour
00:15:01 --> 00:15:01 love
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 into
00:15:02 --> 00:15:02 one
00:15:02 --> 00:15:02 another
00:15:02 --> 00:15:03 in
00:15:03 --> 00:15:03 joy
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 and
00:15:04 --> 00:15:04 delight
00:15:04 --> 00:15:06 becoming
00:15:06 --> 00:15:06 like a
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 fountain
00:15:07 --> 00:15:07 of
00:15:07 --> 00:15:08 love
00:15:08 --> 00:15:08 that
00:15:08 --> 00:15:09 open
00:15:09 --> 00:15:09 without
00:15:09 --> 00:15:09 any
00:15:09 --> 00:15:10 obstacle
00:15:10 --> 00:15:11 to
00:15:11 --> 00:15:11 hinder
00:15:11 --> 00:15:12 access
00:15:12 --> 00:15:12 and
00:15:12 --> 00:15:12 overflow
00:15:12 --> 00:15:13 to
00:15:13 --> 00:15:13 the
00:15:13 --> 00:15:13 world.
00:15:15 --> 00:15:15 At
00:15:15 --> 00:15:16 work
00:15:16 --> 00:15:17 characterise
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 the most
00:15:18 --> 00:15:18 loving
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 relationship
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 you have
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 experienced
00:15:21 --> 00:15:21 in this
00:15:21 --> 00:15:21 world
00:15:21 --> 00:15:22 as a
00:15:22 --> 00:15:23 highly
00:15:23 --> 00:15:23 clogged
00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 pipe
00:15:24 --> 00:15:25 compared
00:15:25 --> 00:15:25 to
00:15:25 --> 00:15:26 heaven.
00:15:27 --> 00:15:28 All
00:15:28 --> 00:15:28 earthly
00:15:28 --> 00:15:29 relationship
00:15:29 --> 00:15:30 are
00:15:30 --> 00:15:30 clogged
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 plight
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 that only
00:15:32 --> 00:15:32 a tiny
00:15:32 --> 00:15:33 amount
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 of
00:15:33 --> 00:15:34 polluted
00:15:34 --> 00:15:34 water
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 comes
00:15:35 --> 00:15:35 through
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 because
00:15:36 --> 00:15:36 of our
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 sin and
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 weakness.
00:15:37 --> 00:15:39 we
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 will
00:15:39 --> 00:15:39 see
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 the
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 great
00:15:41 --> 00:15:41 fountain
00:15:41 --> 00:15:41 of
00:15:41 --> 00:15:42 love
00:15:42 --> 00:15:42 in
00:15:42 --> 00:15:42 Christ
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 in
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 person.
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 We
00:15:45 --> 00:15:45 shall
00:15:45 --> 00:15:45 know
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 Christ
00:15:46 --> 00:15:46 Jesus'
00:15:46 --> 00:15:46 love
00:15:46 --> 00:15:47 far
00:15:47 --> 00:15:47 beyond
00:15:47 --> 00:15:48 what
00:15:48 --> 00:15:48 we
00:15:48 --> 00:15:48 have
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 perceived
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 and
00:15:50 --> 00:15:50 he
00:15:50 --> 00:15:50 has
00:15:50 --> 00:15:51 loved
00:15:51 --> 00:15:51 us
00:15:51 --> 00:15:51 with
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 a
00:15:52 --> 00:15:52 dying
00:15:52 --> 00:15:52 love.
00:15:53 --> 00:15:54 The
00:15:54 --> 00:15:54 love
00:15:54 --> 00:15:54 between
00:15:54 --> 00:15:55 the
00:15:55 --> 00:15:55 triune
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 God
00:15:56 --> 00:15:56 one
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 God
00:15:57 --> 00:15:57 in
00:15:57 --> 00:15:57 three
00:15:57 --> 00:15:57 persons
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 and
00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 the
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 love
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 between
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 God
00:15:59 --> 00:16:00 and
00:16:00 --> 00:16:00 every
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 human
00:16:01 --> 00:16:01 is
00:16:01 --> 00:16:01 the
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 heart
00:16:02 --> 00:16:02 and
00:16:02 --> 00:16:02 core
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 of
00:16:03 --> 00:16:03 Christian
00:16:03 --> 00:16:03 hope.
00:16:03 --> 00:16:05 nothing
00:16:05 --> 00:16:05 is
00:16:05 --> 00:16:06 more
00:16:06 --> 00:16:06 transforming
00:16:06 --> 00:16:07 than
00:16:07 --> 00:16:07 when
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 someone
00:16:08 --> 00:16:08 makes
00:16:08 --> 00:16:08 a
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 powerful
00:16:09 --> 00:16:09 decoration
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 to
00:16:10 --> 00:16:10 express
00:16:10 --> 00:16:12 an
00:16:12 --> 00:16:12 expression
00:16:12 --> 00:16:12 of
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 love
00:16:13 --> 00:16:13 towards
00:16:13 --> 00:16:13 us.
00:16:14 --> 00:16:15 And
00:16:15 --> 00:16:15 Jesus
00:16:15 --> 00:16:15 did
00:16:15 --> 00:16:15 that
00:16:15 --> 00:16:16 two
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 thousand
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 years
00:16:16 --> 00:16:16 ago.
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 In
00:16:18 --> 00:16:18 this
00:16:18 --> 00:16:18 world
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 we do
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 not
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 have
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 a
00:16:20 --> 00:16:20 perfect
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 holy
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 and
00:16:22 --> 00:16:22 utterly
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 other
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 centered
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 relationship.
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 So it
00:16:26 --> 00:16:27 is suitable
00:16:27 --> 00:16:27 for us
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 to hope
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 and long
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 for one.
00:16:30 --> 00:16:31 We hope
00:16:31 --> 00:16:31 for it
00:16:31 --> 00:16:32 because we
00:16:32 --> 00:16:32 have not
00:16:32 --> 00:16:33 seen it.
00:16:33 --> 00:16:34 Like
00:16:34 --> 00:16:34 Romans
00:16:34 --> 00:16:34 8
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 24
00:16:35 --> 00:16:35 to
00:16:35 --> 00:16:35 25
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 say
00:16:36 --> 00:16:37 hope
00:16:37 --> 00:16:37 that
00:16:37 --> 00:16:37 is
00:16:37 --> 00:16:37 seen
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 is
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 not
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 hope
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 at
00:16:38 --> 00:16:38 all.
00:16:39 --> 00:16:39 Who
00:16:39 --> 00:16:39 hopes
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 for
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 what
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 they
00:16:40 --> 00:16:40 already
00:16:40 --> 00:16:41 have?
00:16:41 --> 00:16:41 But
00:16:41 --> 00:16:41 if
00:16:41 --> 00:16:41 you
00:16:41 --> 00:16:42 hope
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 for
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 what
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 we
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 do
00:16:42 --> 00:16:42 not
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 yet
00:16:43 --> 00:16:43 have,
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 wait
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 for
00:16:44 --> 00:16:44 it
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 patiently.
00:16:46 --> 00:16:46 In
00:16:46 --> 00:16:46 Christ,
00:16:47 --> 00:16:47 God
00:16:47 --> 00:16:47 demonstrates
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 his
00:16:48 --> 00:16:48 love
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 and
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 acceptance
00:16:49 --> 00:16:49 for
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 you
00:16:50 --> 00:16:50 beyond
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00:16:51 --> 00:16:51 can
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00:16:52 --> 00:16:52 imagine.
00:16:53 --> 00:16:53 He
00:16:53 --> 00:16:54 personally
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 ensured
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 our
00:16:56 --> 00:16:56 entry
00:16:56 --> 00:16:56 to
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 heaven
00:16:57 --> 00:16:57 so
00:16:57 --> 00:16:58 that
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 we
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 can
00:16:58 --> 00:16:58 experience
00:16:58 --> 00:16:59 the
00:16:59 --> 00:16:59 divine
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 love.
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 Christ
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 has
00:17:02 --> 00:17:02 spoken
00:17:02 --> 00:17:02 the
00:17:02 --> 00:17:03 claim
00:17:03 --> 00:17:04 of
00:17:04 --> 00:17:04 sin
00:17:04 --> 00:17:04 on
00:17:04 --> 00:17:04 us
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 through
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 his
00:17:05 --> 00:17:05 suffering
00:17:05 --> 00:17:06 and
00:17:06 --> 00:17:06 death.
00:17:07 --> 00:17:07 We
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 might
00:17:08 --> 00:17:08 physically
00:17:08 --> 00:17:09 die,
00:17:09 --> 00:17:09 but
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 death
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00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 entry
00:17:12 --> 00:17:12 way
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00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 eternal
00:17:13 --> 00:17:13 life
00:17:13 --> 00:17:13 with
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 Christ.
00:17:16 --> 00:17:16 Christian
00:17:16 --> 00:17:17 hope
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 is also
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 concrete.
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 We
00:17:21 --> 00:17:21 must
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 also
00:17:22 --> 00:17:22 remember
00:17:22 --> 00:17:22 that
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 eternal
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 life
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 that
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00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 Bible
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 promised
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00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 not
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00:17:27 --> 00:17:27 live
00:17:27 --> 00:17:28 forever
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 in
00:17:29 --> 00:17:29 an
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 immaterial
00:17:30 --> 00:17:30 spiritual
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 paradise,
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 removed
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00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 world.
00:17:34 --> 00:17:34 The
00:17:34 --> 00:17:35 salvation
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00:17:37 --> 00:17:37 live
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00:17:38 --> 00:17:38 Christians
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00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 along
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00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 concrete.
00:17:47 --> 00:17:47 Chapter
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 21 and
00:17:48 --> 00:17:48 22 of
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 Revelation
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00:17:49 --> 00:17:49 Steve
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00:17:50 --> 00:17:50 just stand
00:17:50 --> 00:17:50 in
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00:17:52 --> 00:17:52 end
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00:17:52 --> 00:17:53 history.
00:17:55 --> 00:17:55 We
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00:17:56 --> 00:17:56 ascend
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 to
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00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 but
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00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 and
00:18:00 --> 00:18:00 purifying
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00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 descend
00:18:02 --> 00:18:03 to
00:18:03 --> 00:18:03 renew
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 this
00:18:04 --> 00:18:04 material
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 world.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 Evil,
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 suffering,
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 aging,
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 disease,
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 poverty,
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 injustice,
00:18:12 --> 00:18:12 and pain
00:18:12 --> 00:18:13 are forever
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 removed.
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 Christians
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 look forward
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00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 redemption
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 of their
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00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 8.23
00:18:22 --> 00:18:24 resurrecting
00:18:24 --> 00:18:24 into a
00:18:24 --> 00:18:24 new body
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 as Jesus
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00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 that
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00:18:28 --> 00:18:28 not
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00:18:39 --> 00:18:39 Christianity
00:18:39 --> 00:18:41 is the
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 only religion
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00:18:43 --> 00:18:43 our hope
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00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 along with
00:18:47 --> 00:18:47 our souls
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 and body
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 and it's
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 not a
00:18:50 --> 00:18:51 thing that
00:18:51 --> 00:18:51 will get
00:18:51 --> 00:18:51 even
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 better
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00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 better
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00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 is
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00:19:00 --> 00:19:00 concrete
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 as
00:19:01 --> 00:19:01 the
00:19:01 --> 00:19:02 resurrection
00:19:02 --> 00:19:02 event
00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 a couple
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 thousand
00:19:05 --> 00:19:05 years ago
00:19:05 --> 00:19:07 Jesus
00:19:07 --> 00:19:07 Christ
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 resurrection
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 has
00:19:09 --> 00:19:09 torn
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00:19:10 --> 00:19:10 barrier
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 between
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00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 and
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00:19:16 --> 00:19:16 old
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00:19:18 --> 00:19:18 helps
00:19:18 --> 00:19:18 them
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00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 now
00:19:20 --> 00:19:20 I
00:19:20 --> 00:19:20 have
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 got
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00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 for
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00:19:24 --> 00:19:24 future
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 in
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 Jesus
00:19:26 --> 00:19:26 the
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 reality
00:19:27 --> 00:19:27 of
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 resurrection
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00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 downtrodden
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 of the
00:19:30 --> 00:19:30 world
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 to
00:19:31 --> 00:19:31 get
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00:19:31 --> 00:19:32 justice
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00:19:35 --> 00:19:35 oppressed
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00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 because
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00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 2
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 28
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 tell us
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 that
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 the
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 Spirit
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 help us
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 in our
00:20:04 --> 00:20:04 weakness
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 and the
00:20:05 --> 00:20:05 Spirit
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 himself
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 intercedes
00:20:07 --> 00:20:07 for us
00:20:07 --> 00:20:08 and also
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 in 2
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 Timothy
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 1
00:20:10 --> 00:20:10 7
00:20:10 --> 00:20:10 says
00:20:10 --> 00:20:11 for
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00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 Spirit
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 God
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 gave
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