00:00:00 --> 00:00:04 You might like to keep that passage open.
00:00:05 --> 00:00:07 Sure, that's probably the habit of many of you.
00:00:08 --> 00:00:09 I'm going to pray for us before we begin.
00:00:10 --> 00:00:13 I'm going to ask God that he might help us as we get into his word.
00:00:13 --> 00:00:15 He might open our hearts, that he might open our ears,
00:00:15 --> 00:00:16 he might open his word to us.
00:00:16 --> 00:00:17 So please pray with me.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:24 Our Father, your word has so many great things for us to hear,
00:00:24 --> 00:00:28 but my mouth is unworthy to speak of them
00:00:28 --> 00:00:30 and our ears are unworthy to hear them.
00:00:30 --> 00:00:33 So Lord, when we come here tonight and we open up your word,
00:00:34 --> 00:00:35 we need your grace.
00:00:36 --> 00:00:38 We need your generosity to us
00:00:38 --> 00:00:43 to be a God who gives to people who don't deserve.
00:00:43 --> 00:00:45 Lord, please do that tonight amongst us.
00:00:45 --> 00:00:48 And we thank you so much for the assurance of your grace
00:00:48 --> 00:00:50 that we've seen in your son Jesus,
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 giving not only his words,
00:00:53 --> 00:00:57 but his life for people who didn't deserve it.
00:00:57 --> 00:00:58 Lord, please be with us tonight.
00:00:59 --> 00:01:00 I pray that you might help me to speak words,
00:01:00 --> 00:01:04 only words that are true and helpful and glorifying to you.
00:01:05 --> 00:01:07 And Lord, we pray all of this in the name of your son.
00:01:08 --> 00:01:08 Amen.
00:01:10 --> 00:01:11 Now, we just got married, as you heard before,
00:01:12 --> 00:01:13 three months ago to the day,
00:01:13 --> 00:01:14 which is very exciting for us.
00:01:15 --> 00:01:19 We're living in Kate's parents' granny flat
00:01:19 --> 00:01:20 until the end of the year,
00:01:20 --> 00:01:22 which is an interesting place to live.
00:01:22 --> 00:01:24 Now, occasionally, Kate's parents go away.
00:01:25 --> 00:01:27 They do some stuff in Queensland,
00:01:27 --> 00:01:28 and they're away right now,
00:01:29 --> 00:01:32 which means that we can kind of take charge of the entire house,
00:01:32 --> 00:01:33 which is really quite exciting.
00:01:33 --> 00:01:35 We get to rein the whole property.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:39 So we like to invade the upstairs of their house
00:01:39 --> 00:01:40 when they go away,
00:01:40 --> 00:01:44 and when we're on college holidays and stuff like that,
00:01:44 --> 00:01:47 and set up a fortress at their dining table.
00:01:47 --> 00:01:49 And we do really exciting and fun stuff there,
00:01:49 --> 00:01:50 like study.
00:01:51 --> 00:01:52 So we set up.
00:01:52 --> 00:01:54 And this dining room is really cool
00:01:54 --> 00:01:55 because you can kind of see
00:01:55 --> 00:01:58 all the way to the back fence of the backyard.
00:01:58 --> 00:01:59 You can see the driveway,
00:01:59 --> 00:02:01 and then you can see the side fence as well.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 So one day, a couple of weeks ago, actually,
00:02:04 --> 00:02:07 we're sitting there, we're studying, working really hard,
00:02:07 --> 00:02:09 and Kate looks up from the book that she's reading
00:02:09 --> 00:02:13 to see a guy about 15 years old.
00:02:13 --> 00:02:15 And he's walked up the vacant block,
00:02:15 --> 00:02:17 up the hill in the vacant block next door,
00:02:17 --> 00:02:19 and he's jumped over our fence.
00:02:19 --> 00:02:21 He's kind of climbed over the fence
00:02:21 --> 00:02:23 into our little carport area,
00:02:23 --> 00:02:25 and he's kind of scooted up the driveway.
00:02:25 --> 00:02:26 And Kate said,
00:02:27 --> 00:02:29 there's a guy climbing over our fence
00:02:29 --> 00:02:31 and going up our driveway.
00:02:31 --> 00:02:32 And I was like, okay.
00:02:33 --> 00:02:33 And Kate was like,
00:02:33 --> 00:02:34 now you've got to understand,
00:02:34 --> 00:02:39 Kate is the sweetest, loveliest, gentlest,
00:02:39 --> 00:02:41 most patient and understanding girl ever.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:43 And Kate sees this guy,
00:02:43 --> 00:02:43 and she's like,
00:02:44 --> 00:02:45 that's it.
00:02:45 --> 00:02:48 I'm declaring war on teenagers everywhere.
00:02:48 --> 00:02:51 And so she calls up her dad,
00:02:51 --> 00:02:51 and she says,
00:02:51 --> 00:02:53 we need to get the fence built higher
00:02:53 --> 00:02:54 because there's 14-year-old kids
00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 climbing over a fence onto our property.
00:02:57 --> 00:02:58 They have no right to do this.
00:02:58 --> 00:02:59 Who do they think they are?
00:02:59 --> 00:03:00 This is our property.
00:03:00 --> 00:03:01 And so I'm kind of thinking,
00:03:01 --> 00:03:02 well, you know,
00:03:02 --> 00:03:04 I'm sure this kid has good reasons.
00:03:04 --> 00:03:06 He might have a long walk to get around.
00:03:06 --> 00:03:06 And Kate said,
00:03:06 --> 00:03:08 I don't care how far he has to walk.
00:03:08 --> 00:03:10 He can't go on our property whatsoever.
00:03:10 --> 00:03:11 And then as we kind of,
00:03:11 --> 00:03:12 we calm down,
00:03:12 --> 00:03:14 Kate picks up a book again
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 and goes back to writing her talk
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 on Matthew 5, 7.
00:03:19 --> 00:03:20 Blessed are the merciful.
00:03:21 --> 00:03:22 And then we both thought,
00:03:23 --> 00:03:23 oh.
00:03:24 --> 00:03:27 Now, I think I've actually misrepresented Kate.
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28 I don't think she was as angry as that.
00:03:28 --> 00:03:29 But I mean,
00:03:29 --> 00:03:30 it makes for a good story.
00:03:31 --> 00:03:32 Now, I haven't lived in the neighborhood
00:03:32 --> 00:03:33 for very long.
00:03:33 --> 00:03:34 I've lived there for three months.
00:03:34 --> 00:03:36 I don't know who the people
00:03:36 --> 00:03:37 who live on the street are yet.
00:03:37 --> 00:03:39 I don't know who my neighbors are.
00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 If it was the next door neighbor's kid
00:03:42 --> 00:03:42 jumping the fence,
00:03:42 --> 00:03:43 I'd be fine with that.
00:03:43 --> 00:03:45 Because I grew up playing backyard cricket,
00:03:46 --> 00:03:48 constantly hitting sixes and outs
00:03:48 --> 00:03:49 over the next door neighbor's fence
00:03:49 --> 00:03:50 and having to climb the fence
00:03:50 --> 00:03:51 and go next door.
00:03:51 --> 00:03:52 I understand what it's like
00:03:52 --> 00:03:53 to be a kid in the neighborhood
00:03:53 --> 00:03:55 chasing his tennis balls
00:03:55 --> 00:03:56 around everyone's house.
00:03:56 --> 00:03:58 Now, if it was the next door neighbor's kid
00:03:58 --> 00:03:58 chasing his ball,
00:03:58 --> 00:03:59 I'd be fine.
00:03:59 --> 00:04:03 If they live near me,
00:04:03 --> 00:04:04 it's fine.
00:04:05 --> 00:04:07 But if they don't,
00:04:08 --> 00:04:09 well, what are they doing
00:04:09 --> 00:04:12 on my parents' property?
00:04:12 --> 00:04:14 Now, where do you draw the line?
00:04:14 --> 00:04:15 Where do you draw the line?
00:04:17 --> 00:04:18 And as a Christian,
00:04:18 --> 00:04:21 who do I have to be nice to
00:04:21 --> 00:04:23 and who can I just forget about?
00:04:24 --> 00:04:25 Where do you draw the line there?
00:04:25 --> 00:04:26 Do I have to look after
00:04:26 --> 00:04:28 every beggar that I see?
00:04:28 --> 00:04:30 Do I have to soothe every baby
00:04:30 --> 00:04:32 that I hear crying?
00:04:32 --> 00:04:35 Do I have to pay every window cleaner
00:04:35 --> 00:04:37 that I kind of pull up next to?
00:04:37 --> 00:04:38 Where do you draw the line?
00:04:39 --> 00:04:41 How close does a person
00:04:41 --> 00:04:42 have to be to you
00:04:42 --> 00:04:46 for you to be compassionate towards them?
00:04:48 --> 00:04:50 So I guess what I'm still trying
00:04:50 --> 00:04:51 to figure out on my street
00:04:51 --> 00:04:52 and I guess more existentially
00:04:52 --> 00:04:54 in my life is
00:04:54 --> 00:04:56 who is my neighbor?
00:04:56 --> 00:04:59 We know that question, don't we?
00:05:00 --> 00:05:02 But exactly who is my neighbor?
00:05:02 --> 00:05:04 Well, a man asked Jesus
00:05:04 --> 00:05:05 the exact same question
00:05:05 --> 00:05:06 in the passage that we just read.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:08 And it's an important question.
00:05:08 --> 00:05:10 It's important because it's asked
00:05:10 --> 00:05:13 in the context of life and death,
00:05:13 --> 00:05:14 heaven or hell.
00:05:14 --> 00:05:18 Who inherits eternal life
00:05:18 --> 00:05:18 and who doesn't?
00:05:19 --> 00:05:20 It's an important question.
00:05:21 --> 00:05:23 Who exactly is my neighbor?
00:05:23 --> 00:05:27 Now there's a bit of a background clash
00:05:27 --> 00:05:29 to the parable that Jesus tells you.
00:05:29 --> 00:05:30 So if you look in verse 25
00:05:30 --> 00:05:31 in your Bibles there,
00:05:31 --> 00:05:33 there's an expert in the law,
00:05:33 --> 00:05:35 a lawyer who comes up to Jesus
00:05:35 --> 00:05:35 and he says,
00:05:35 --> 00:05:36 what must I do
00:05:36 --> 00:05:37 to inherit eternal life?
00:05:38 --> 00:05:38 And it's a good question.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:40 But the problem is,
00:05:41 --> 00:05:43 he's trying to test Jesus.
00:05:43 --> 00:05:44 Straight off,
00:05:44 --> 00:05:45 we're dealing with a guy here
00:05:45 --> 00:05:47 who doesn't really honestly
00:05:47 --> 00:05:48 ask this question.
00:05:48 --> 00:05:51 He just wants to satisfy himself
00:05:51 --> 00:05:52 and prove himself to be right
00:05:52 --> 00:05:53 in his own position.
00:05:54 --> 00:05:56 And Jesus sees straight through that.
00:05:56 --> 00:05:57 And he basically says,
00:05:57 --> 00:05:57 okay, lawyer,
00:05:57 --> 00:05:59 let's play your game.
00:06:00 --> 00:06:02 What's written in the law
00:06:02 --> 00:06:03 about this kind of thing?
00:06:04 --> 00:06:05 And so the lawyer's response,
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 if you look in verse 27,
00:06:07 --> 00:06:08 he says,
00:06:08 --> 00:06:10 love the Lord your God
00:06:10 --> 00:06:11 with all your heart
00:06:11 --> 00:06:12 and all of your soul
00:06:12 --> 00:06:14 and all of your strength
00:06:14 --> 00:06:15 and with all of your mind
00:06:15 --> 00:06:17 and love your neighbor
00:06:17 --> 00:06:19 as yourself.
00:06:21 --> 00:06:22 And Jesus says,
00:06:22 --> 00:06:22 yeah, that's right.
00:06:23 --> 00:06:25 If you do this,
00:06:25 --> 00:06:26 you will live.
00:06:26 --> 00:06:27 Do this and you will live
00:06:27 --> 00:06:28 there in verse 28.
00:06:29 --> 00:06:29 But you notice
00:06:29 --> 00:06:31 that's all he says there.
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 He doesn't give any exceptions.
00:06:35 --> 00:06:35 He doesn't say,
00:06:35 --> 00:06:36 oh, well, yeah, yeah, yeah,
00:06:36 --> 00:06:37 there's all that.
00:06:37 --> 00:06:38 But really, you know,
00:06:38 --> 00:06:39 if it's a Tuesday
00:06:39 --> 00:06:40 and you've had four nights
00:06:40 --> 00:06:41 sleep the night before,
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 I'll give you a break.
00:06:42 --> 00:06:42 You know,
00:06:42 --> 00:06:44 he doesn't leave any wiggle room.
00:06:44 --> 00:06:44 He just says,
00:06:44 --> 00:06:45 yes, that's it.
00:06:46 --> 00:06:47 And so the lawyer
00:06:47 --> 00:06:48 gets a little bit nervous.
00:06:48 --> 00:06:49 He thinks, well, surely
00:06:49 --> 00:06:50 there are people
00:06:50 --> 00:06:53 who I don't have to love.
00:06:53 --> 00:06:54 Surely there are people
00:06:54 --> 00:06:56 who aren't my neighbors.
00:06:56 --> 00:06:57 And so you remember
00:06:57 --> 00:06:58 that he's trying
00:06:58 --> 00:06:59 to test Jesus.
00:06:59 --> 00:06:59 Now the shoe's
00:06:59 --> 00:07:00 on the other foot.
00:07:00 --> 00:07:01 He's the one
00:07:01 --> 00:07:01 that looks bad.
00:07:01 --> 00:07:03 He wants to justify himself
00:07:03 --> 00:07:04 is what Luke says
00:07:04 --> 00:07:05 in verse 29.
00:07:06 --> 00:07:07 And so he asks Jesus,
00:07:08 --> 00:07:09 and just who is
00:07:09 --> 00:07:10 my neighbor then, Jesus?
00:07:10 --> 00:07:11 If I need to love
00:07:11 --> 00:07:12 my neighbor,
00:07:12 --> 00:07:13 who is that?
00:07:14 --> 00:07:15 Back on you.
00:07:16 --> 00:07:17 You've got to do
00:07:17 --> 00:07:18 the accusing now.
00:07:19 --> 00:07:19 And so Jesus,
00:07:20 --> 00:07:20 to answer that question,
00:07:20 --> 00:07:21 he tells a story.
00:07:22 --> 00:07:23 It's a famous story.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:24 We know it really well.
00:07:24 --> 00:07:25 It's enshrined in,
00:07:26 --> 00:07:27 what do you call it?
00:07:27 --> 00:07:28 Stained glass window
00:07:28 --> 00:07:29 right over here.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:30 You can check it out
00:07:30 --> 00:07:30 after the service
00:07:30 --> 00:07:30 if you like.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:31 It's quite a nice window.
00:07:33 --> 00:07:33 There you go.
00:07:33 --> 00:07:33 It's very colorful.
00:07:34 --> 00:07:35 Jesus tells a story
00:07:35 --> 00:07:37 about a man
00:07:37 --> 00:07:38 who goes down
00:07:38 --> 00:07:39 from Jerusalem to Jericho.
00:07:39 --> 00:07:40 Now when we say that,
00:07:40 --> 00:07:40 Jericho's actually
00:07:40 --> 00:07:41 north of Jerusalem,
00:07:41 --> 00:07:42 but we're going down
00:07:42 --> 00:07:43 because Jerusalem's
00:07:43 --> 00:07:44 on a massive mountain.
00:07:44 --> 00:07:46 And so they're coming down.
00:07:46 --> 00:07:47 Now it's a gnarly road.
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 It's a really rough road
00:07:49 --> 00:07:51 that goes from Jerusalem
00:07:51 --> 00:07:52 to Jericho.
00:07:52 --> 00:07:52 It descends
00:07:52 --> 00:07:53 a thousand meters
00:07:53 --> 00:07:54 in altitude,
00:07:54 --> 00:07:55 a kilometer in altitude,
00:07:56 --> 00:07:58 all in about 27 kilometers.
00:07:58 --> 00:08:00 And there are bandits
00:08:00 --> 00:08:01 hiding in caves everywhere
00:08:01 --> 00:08:02 just waiting to come out
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 and get you.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:04 Now have you ever been
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 on a road like that?
00:08:07 --> 00:08:08 I was on a road
00:08:08 --> 00:08:09 similar to that one.
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 So when I was in year 11,
00:08:10 --> 00:08:11 I went to South Africa
00:08:11 --> 00:08:12 for a couple of weeks.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:14 We were going to be picked up
00:08:14 --> 00:08:15 by some friends
00:08:15 --> 00:08:16 from the airport
00:08:16 --> 00:08:17 in Cape Town,
00:08:17 --> 00:08:18 but our plane was delayed.
00:08:18 --> 00:08:20 We got delayed in Perth
00:08:20 --> 00:08:21 by about four or five hours
00:08:21 --> 00:08:22 because, well,
00:08:22 --> 00:08:23 they never told us
00:08:23 --> 00:08:25 why we had to stop in Perth
00:08:25 --> 00:08:26 and maybe someone
00:08:26 --> 00:08:26 lost the keys
00:08:26 --> 00:08:27 to the plane or something.
00:08:27 --> 00:08:28 Anyway,
00:08:28 --> 00:08:29 we get delayed
00:08:29 --> 00:08:30 for hours and hours and hours
00:08:30 --> 00:08:31 and we miss our connecting
00:08:31 --> 00:08:33 flight in Johannesburg
00:08:33 --> 00:08:34 and so we get to Cape Town
00:08:34 --> 00:08:36 at midnight.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:37 We were supposed to get there
00:08:37 --> 00:08:38 while the sun was still up
00:08:38 --> 00:08:39 and we're really late.
00:08:40 --> 00:08:40 And so we're like,
00:08:40 --> 00:08:41 I said to my friend,
00:08:41 --> 00:08:41 we've got to get in touch
00:08:41 --> 00:08:42 with Scott
00:08:42 --> 00:08:43 because he's got to come
00:08:43 --> 00:08:43 and pick us up.
00:08:44 --> 00:08:44 So I'm looking around
00:08:44 --> 00:08:46 everywhere for a pay phone.
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 I find a pay phone
00:08:47 --> 00:08:48 and look in my wallet
00:08:48 --> 00:08:48 and realise,
00:08:49 --> 00:08:50 I don't have any
00:08:50 --> 00:08:51 South African money.
00:08:51 --> 00:08:52 I just have travellers checks
00:08:52 --> 00:08:54 and 25 cents Australian.
00:08:54 --> 00:08:55 So there I am trying
00:08:55 --> 00:08:56 to ram Australian coins
00:08:56 --> 00:08:57 into this South African pay phone
00:08:57 --> 00:08:59 when a security guard
00:08:59 --> 00:09:00 notices us
00:09:00 --> 00:09:01 and our stupidity
00:09:01 --> 00:09:02 and he comes over
00:09:02 --> 00:09:04 and gives us 25 rand cents
00:09:04 --> 00:09:04 or whatever they are.
00:09:05 --> 00:09:05 And so we call Scott
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 and we say,
00:09:06 --> 00:09:06 Scott,
00:09:06 --> 00:09:07 we're at the airport,
00:09:07 --> 00:09:08 we're late,
00:09:08 --> 00:09:08 you've got to come
00:09:08 --> 00:09:09 pick us up.
00:09:09 --> 00:09:09 Scott,
00:09:09 --> 00:09:10 and so he says,
00:09:10 --> 00:09:10 yeah,
00:09:10 --> 00:09:11 yeah,
00:09:11 --> 00:09:11 okay.
00:09:11 --> 00:09:11 And then we hear
00:09:11 --> 00:09:12 some talking,
00:09:13 --> 00:09:13 some kind of heated
00:09:13 --> 00:09:15 discussion in the background
00:09:15 --> 00:09:16 and so Scott's kind of
00:09:16 --> 00:09:17 talking to his wife
00:09:17 --> 00:09:18 about whether or not
00:09:18 --> 00:09:19 it's a good idea
00:09:19 --> 00:09:19 to come and pick us up
00:09:19 --> 00:09:20 at this hour.
00:09:21 --> 00:09:21 And I said,
00:09:21 --> 00:09:22 Scott,
00:09:22 --> 00:09:22 what's going on?
00:09:23 --> 00:09:23 And he said,
00:09:23 --> 00:09:23 oh,
00:09:23 --> 00:09:23 it's alright,
00:09:24 --> 00:09:24 it's alright.
00:09:24 --> 00:09:24 We're going to come
00:09:24 --> 00:09:25 and pick you up.
00:09:25 --> 00:09:26 It's just,
00:09:26 --> 00:09:26 you know,
00:09:27 --> 00:09:27 Hayley and I
00:09:27 --> 00:09:28 are a little bit worried
00:09:28 --> 00:09:29 because the road
00:09:29 --> 00:09:30 from the airport
00:09:30 --> 00:09:31 goes through
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 Kailicha.
00:09:33 --> 00:09:33 Dun,
00:09:33 --> 00:09:33 dun,
00:09:33 --> 00:09:34 dun.
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 Now,
00:09:35 --> 00:09:35 if you've never
00:09:35 --> 00:09:36 heard of Kailicha,
00:09:36 --> 00:09:37 Kailicha is like
00:09:37 --> 00:09:38 a massive,
00:09:38 --> 00:09:39 large parts of it
00:09:39 --> 00:09:40 or a massive slum
00:09:40 --> 00:09:43 all in this big part
00:09:43 --> 00:09:43 of Cape Town.
00:09:44 --> 00:09:44 It's got about
00:09:44 --> 00:09:46 2.1 million people
00:09:46 --> 00:09:47 living there
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 and it's really,
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 really super dangerous.
00:09:50 --> 00:09:50 Now,
00:09:50 --> 00:09:51 Cape Town,
00:09:51 --> 00:09:52 two months ago
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 in August,
00:09:53 --> 00:09:54 Cape Town was rated
00:09:54 --> 00:09:56 the fifth deadliest
00:09:56 --> 00:09:57 city in the world.
00:09:58 --> 00:09:58 Now,
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 the area that we
00:09:59 --> 00:10:00 had to drive through
00:10:00 --> 00:10:01 to get out of the airport
00:10:01 --> 00:10:02 is responsible
00:10:02 --> 00:10:04 for 35%
00:10:04 --> 00:10:05 of the carjacking
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 in the fifth most
00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 deadliest city
00:10:08 --> 00:10:09 in the world
00:10:09 --> 00:10:10 and that's our road
00:10:10 --> 00:10:11 that we're going to go through.
00:10:11 --> 00:10:11 Now,
00:10:11 --> 00:10:12 picture that.
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 That's our road here.
00:10:13 --> 00:10:14 It's a road where people
00:10:14 --> 00:10:16 get carjacked
00:10:16 --> 00:10:16 and mugged
00:10:16 --> 00:10:17 and all that kind of stuff
00:10:17 --> 00:10:19 and it happens to this guy
00:10:19 --> 00:10:20 who's going down
00:10:20 --> 00:10:20 from Jerusalem
00:10:20 --> 00:10:21 to Jericho.
00:10:22 --> 00:10:23 It says,
00:10:23 --> 00:10:24 when he fell into
00:10:24 --> 00:10:25 the hands of robbers,
00:10:25 --> 00:10:25 they stripped him
00:10:25 --> 00:10:26 of his clothes,
00:10:27 --> 00:10:27 beat him
00:10:27 --> 00:10:28 and went away
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 leaving him half dead.
00:10:31 --> 00:10:32 Now,
00:10:32 --> 00:10:32 a priest
00:10:32 --> 00:10:34 just happens
00:10:34 --> 00:10:35 to be going
00:10:35 --> 00:10:36 down that road
00:10:36 --> 00:10:37 and he sees
00:10:37 --> 00:10:37 the beaten man.
00:10:38 --> 00:10:38 Now,
00:10:38 --> 00:10:39 the priest
00:10:39 --> 00:10:39 is like the pillar
00:10:39 --> 00:10:41 of religion
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 in Jewish society.
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 He works at the temple
00:10:44 --> 00:10:44 in Jerusalem.
00:10:45 --> 00:10:45 He's the guy
00:10:45 --> 00:10:46 responsible
00:10:46 --> 00:10:48 for making sacrifices
00:10:48 --> 00:10:50 for your evil deeds
00:10:50 --> 00:10:52 so that you can be okay.
00:10:53 --> 00:10:54 He's God's servant
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 in the world
00:10:55 --> 00:10:56 and it just so happened
00:10:56 --> 00:10:57 that he's going
00:10:57 --> 00:10:58 by and you think,
00:10:58 --> 00:10:58 oh,
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 he happens upon
00:10:59 --> 00:11:00 this man,
00:11:00 --> 00:11:00 he's been beaten.
00:11:00 --> 00:11:00 You think,
00:11:01 --> 00:11:01 oh yeah,
00:11:01 --> 00:11:02 help is around
00:11:02 --> 00:11:02 the corner
00:11:02 --> 00:11:05 and then he just
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06 walks past
00:11:06 --> 00:11:08 on the other side
00:11:08 --> 00:11:08 and then
00:11:08 --> 00:11:10 a Levite
00:11:10 --> 00:11:11 comes along.
00:11:11 --> 00:11:12 A Levite
00:11:12 --> 00:11:12 is kind of like
00:11:12 --> 00:11:13 the priest's assistant
00:11:13 --> 00:11:14 and you kind of think,
00:11:14 --> 00:11:15 oh well,
00:11:15 --> 00:11:15 you know,
00:11:15 --> 00:11:16 snooty priest,
00:11:16 --> 00:11:17 high and mighty
00:11:17 --> 00:11:18 above all the regular people.
00:11:18 --> 00:11:19 The Levite,
00:11:19 --> 00:11:20 he's a bit closer
00:11:20 --> 00:11:21 to the common man
00:11:21 --> 00:11:21 so,
00:11:21 --> 00:11:21 you know,
00:11:21 --> 00:11:22 he's got his finger
00:11:22 --> 00:11:23 on the pulse
00:11:23 --> 00:11:23 of the people,
00:11:23 --> 00:11:24 he's going to come along,
00:11:24 --> 00:11:24 he's going to help
00:11:24 --> 00:11:26 and he just walks past.
00:11:29 --> 00:11:29 Now,
00:11:29 --> 00:11:31 these guys worked
00:11:31 --> 00:11:31 in Jerusalem
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 but evidently
00:11:32 --> 00:11:33 there were so many
00:11:33 --> 00:11:34 priests and Levites
00:11:34 --> 00:11:35 at the time
00:11:35 --> 00:11:35 that not all of them
00:11:35 --> 00:11:36 lived in Jerusalem.
00:11:36 --> 00:11:37 They kind of had to
00:11:37 --> 00:11:38 commute to Jerusalem.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:39 We know what that's like.
00:11:39 --> 00:11:40 Now,
00:11:40 --> 00:11:40 if you notice,
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 they're coming down
00:11:41 --> 00:11:42 from Jerusalem,
00:11:42 --> 00:11:43 they're heading away
00:11:43 --> 00:11:43 from Jerusalem.
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 They're not going to work
00:11:46 --> 00:11:46 and they're not in a hurry,
00:11:46 --> 00:11:47 they're going home.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 There's nothing
00:11:48 --> 00:11:50 that they have to
00:11:50 --> 00:11:51 worry about
00:11:51 --> 00:11:52 being late for.
00:11:53 --> 00:11:53 They're just
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 kind of leisurely going
00:11:54 --> 00:11:55 on their home
00:11:55 --> 00:11:57 after a day's work.
00:11:57 --> 00:11:58 They have no,
00:11:58 --> 00:11:59 there's no reason
00:11:59 --> 00:12:00 given in the text for us
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 that they walked by,
00:12:01 --> 00:12:03 they just went
00:12:03 --> 00:12:04 without excuse.
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 Now,
00:12:08 --> 00:12:09 Jewish society
00:12:09 --> 00:12:10 and Australian society
00:12:10 --> 00:12:11 are really different
00:12:11 --> 00:12:13 in so many ways
00:12:13 --> 00:12:13 between
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 first century
00:12:14 --> 00:12:15 Jewish society
00:12:15 --> 00:12:17 and 21st century
00:12:17 --> 00:12:17 Australian society
00:12:17 --> 00:12:18 but
00:12:18 --> 00:12:20 there is one thing
00:12:20 --> 00:12:21 that they have in common
00:12:21 --> 00:12:22 which I think is really cool.
00:12:22 --> 00:12:23 They love
00:12:23 --> 00:12:24 the underdog.
00:12:24 --> 00:12:26 We love the underdog.
00:12:26 --> 00:12:27 They love the underdog
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 back in the first century
00:12:28 --> 00:12:29 in the Jewish world.
00:12:29 --> 00:12:30 Now,
00:12:30 --> 00:12:31 we love
00:12:31 --> 00:12:31 trashing
00:12:31 --> 00:12:33 famous people
00:12:33 --> 00:12:34 and our leaders
00:12:34 --> 00:12:35 and all that kind of stuff.
00:12:35 --> 00:12:36 There's just something
00:12:36 --> 00:12:37 inherently Australian
00:12:37 --> 00:12:37 about that
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 tall poppy syndrome.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 Every day
00:12:40 --> 00:12:42 when the little person
00:12:42 --> 00:12:42 triumphs,
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 we celebrate that.
00:12:44 --> 00:12:44 Now,
00:12:44 --> 00:12:45 it was the same
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 in Jewish society.
00:12:46 --> 00:12:47 Apparently,
00:12:47 --> 00:12:47 they had this way
00:12:47 --> 00:12:48 of telling stories
00:12:48 --> 00:12:50 where they'd grab
00:12:50 --> 00:12:51 two big time
00:12:51 --> 00:12:53 kind of central figures
00:12:53 --> 00:12:54 in Jewish society,
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 two big celebrities
00:12:55 --> 00:12:56 and they'd tell a story
00:12:56 --> 00:12:57 about how those two people
00:12:57 --> 00:12:58 fail
00:12:58 --> 00:13:00 and then this everyday
00:13:00 --> 00:13:01 Jewish guy,
00:13:02 --> 00:13:03 kind of your everyday
00:13:03 --> 00:13:04 Sam or whatever,
00:13:05 --> 00:13:05 he succeeds.
00:13:06 --> 00:13:06 So,
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 say you've got a woman
00:13:07 --> 00:13:08 who has some kind of
00:13:08 --> 00:13:09 problem or dilemma
00:13:09 --> 00:13:10 and she can't solve it.
00:13:10 --> 00:13:11 Now,
00:13:11 --> 00:13:12 the king comes along,
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 fail,
00:13:13 --> 00:13:14 he can't solve the problem
00:13:14 --> 00:13:16 and a prophet comes along,
00:13:16 --> 00:13:17 fail,
00:13:17 --> 00:13:18 he can't solve the problem
00:13:18 --> 00:13:19 and then your everyday
00:13:19 --> 00:13:20 Goldstein guy
00:13:20 --> 00:13:21 comes along
00:13:21 --> 00:13:23 and he has the problem,
00:13:23 --> 00:13:24 he has a solution
00:13:24 --> 00:13:24 for the problem.
00:13:25 --> 00:13:25 It's amazing.
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 Triumph of the little guy,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:27 it's great.
00:13:27 --> 00:13:27 Now,
00:13:27 --> 00:13:29 that's a typical Jewish way
00:13:29 --> 00:13:30 of telling stories.
00:13:31 --> 00:13:31 Now,
00:13:31 --> 00:13:32 if you've had this priest
00:13:32 --> 00:13:33 come past,
00:13:33 --> 00:13:34 fail,
00:13:34 --> 00:13:35 Levite comes past,
00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 he fails,
00:13:36 --> 00:13:38 your audience,
00:13:38 --> 00:13:39 the Jewish lawyer
00:13:39 --> 00:13:40 and all the people
00:13:40 --> 00:13:41 around him
00:13:41 --> 00:13:41 are thinking,
00:13:41 --> 00:13:41 oh,
00:13:41 --> 00:13:42 I know this one.
00:13:42 --> 00:13:43 This is where an everyday guy
00:13:43 --> 00:13:45 like me comes along
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 and saves the day.
00:13:47 --> 00:13:47 Now,
00:13:47 --> 00:13:49 you can imagine their shock
00:13:49 --> 00:13:50 when Jesus bursts
00:13:50 --> 00:13:52 that little daydream bubble
00:13:52 --> 00:13:53 with the next person
00:13:53 --> 00:13:54 who comes along
00:13:54 --> 00:13:56 who isn't your Jewish battler.
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 He's a Samaritan.
00:14:00 --> 00:14:00 Now,
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 you've got to realise,
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 Jews and Samaritans
00:14:04 --> 00:14:04 aren't the best of friends.
00:14:05 --> 00:14:05 Because this parable
00:14:05 --> 00:14:06 has been told
00:14:06 --> 00:14:07 for 2 years,
00:14:08 --> 00:14:09 we've kind of come
00:14:09 --> 00:14:10 to associate Samaritan
00:14:10 --> 00:14:12 with good stuff.
00:14:12 --> 00:14:12 You know,
00:14:12 --> 00:14:13 we've got the charity
00:14:13 --> 00:14:14 Samaritan's Purse.
00:14:14 --> 00:14:15 When we hear Samaritan,
00:14:15 --> 00:14:17 we think good person.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:19 In actual fact,
00:14:19 --> 00:14:20 in the first century,
00:14:20 --> 00:14:21 Jews and Samaritans
00:14:21 --> 00:14:22 hated each other.
00:14:23 --> 00:14:23 The Samaritans
00:14:23 --> 00:14:25 set up a rival religion
00:14:25 --> 00:14:26 to the Jews
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 in Jerusalem
00:14:27 --> 00:14:28 and they claim
00:14:28 --> 00:14:29 that it's the only true,
00:14:30 --> 00:14:30 pure way
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 to worship God.
00:14:31 --> 00:14:32 And if you're a Jew,
00:14:32 --> 00:14:33 that is a slap
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 in the face
00:14:34 --> 00:14:35 in the first century.
00:14:36 --> 00:14:36 And so,
00:14:36 --> 00:14:37 from the Jewish perspective,
00:14:37 --> 00:14:38 they say,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:38 no, no, no,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:39 we've got the temple,
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 God lives with us.
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 These Samaritans
00:14:41 --> 00:14:42 are liars.
00:14:42 --> 00:14:43 They're sinful.
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 They're evil.
00:14:46 --> 00:14:46 And so,
00:14:46 --> 00:14:47 they absolutely hate
00:14:47 --> 00:14:49 the Samaritans.
00:14:52 --> 00:14:53 And you see that
00:14:53 --> 00:14:54 at the end of the story.
00:14:54 --> 00:14:54 You get to the point
00:14:54 --> 00:14:55 where the lawyer
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 gets to the point
00:14:56 --> 00:14:56 where he can't even
00:14:56 --> 00:14:57 say the word Samaritan.
00:14:58 --> 00:14:59 He has to substitute
00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 the one who had mercy.
00:15:01 --> 00:15:01 We'll come to that
00:15:01 --> 00:15:02 a bit later on.
00:15:03 --> 00:15:03 Now,
00:15:03 --> 00:15:04 the Samaritan person
00:15:04 --> 00:15:05 is the hated one,
00:15:06 --> 00:15:07 the distrusted one,
00:15:07 --> 00:15:09 the outcast one.
00:15:10 --> 00:15:10 Now,
00:15:10 --> 00:15:11 who is that
00:15:11 --> 00:15:12 when you look at Sydney?
00:15:13 --> 00:15:15 Who's that in Sydney?
00:15:16 --> 00:15:17 Is that the person
00:15:17 --> 00:15:17 with the kind of
00:15:17 --> 00:15:18 painted black face
00:15:18 --> 00:15:19 on hey-hey?
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 Or is it the person
00:15:20 --> 00:15:21 whose colour
00:15:21 --> 00:15:21 is a little bit
00:15:21 --> 00:15:22 harder to wash off?
00:15:23 --> 00:15:25 Is it the sex offender
00:15:25 --> 00:15:25 in Sydney?
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 Is it the loud,
00:15:27 --> 00:15:28 violent teenager
00:15:28 --> 00:15:29 from another country?
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 Who is that in Sydney?
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 The person who is hated,
00:15:33 --> 00:15:33 distrusted,
00:15:33 --> 00:15:34 and outcast
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 in our society.
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 Plonk that person
00:15:37 --> 00:15:37 in your mind
00:15:37 --> 00:15:38 in this story.
00:15:39 --> 00:15:40 And then look
00:15:40 --> 00:15:42 at what this person
00:15:42 --> 00:15:43 does.
00:15:43 --> 00:15:43 Have a look at
00:15:43 --> 00:15:44 verse 33
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 through to 35.
00:15:45 --> 00:15:45 Now,
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 I want you to
00:15:46 --> 00:15:46 kind of,
00:15:47 --> 00:15:48 with your eyes,
00:15:48 --> 00:15:48 this might be hard
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 to do unless you've
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 got x-ray vision,
00:15:51 --> 00:15:52 just kind of circle
00:15:52 --> 00:15:53 with your eyes
00:15:53 --> 00:15:53 every time you see
00:15:53 --> 00:15:55 a verb in these verses.
00:15:55 --> 00:15:55 Now,
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 you remember the verbs
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 from English?
00:15:57 --> 00:15:58 They're doing words
00:15:58 --> 00:15:59 like go.
00:15:59 --> 00:15:59 Now,
00:15:59 --> 00:16:00 have a look at this.
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 In verse 33,
00:16:01 --> 00:16:01 I'll read it.
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 Have a look for your verbs.
00:16:02 --> 00:16:03 But as the Samaritan
00:16:03 --> 00:16:04 travelled,
00:16:04 --> 00:16:05 but a Samaritan,
00:16:06 --> 00:16:06 as he travelled,
00:16:06 --> 00:16:08 came where the man was
00:16:08 --> 00:16:10 and when he saw him,
00:16:10 --> 00:16:11 he took pity on him.
00:16:12 --> 00:16:13 He went to him
00:16:13 --> 00:16:15 and bandaged his wounds,
00:16:15 --> 00:16:17 pouring oil and wine
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 and then,
00:16:18 --> 00:16:19 he put the man
00:16:19 --> 00:16:20 on his own donkey,
00:16:20 --> 00:16:21 he took him to an inn
00:16:21 --> 00:16:22 and took care of him.
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 The next day,
00:16:23 --> 00:16:24 he took out two silver coins
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 and he gave them
00:16:25 --> 00:16:26 to the innkeeper.
00:16:27 --> 00:16:27 Look after him,
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 he said.
00:16:29 --> 00:16:29 And when I return,
00:16:29 --> 00:16:31 I will reimburse you
00:16:31 --> 00:16:33 for any extra expense
00:16:33 --> 00:16:33 you may have had.
00:16:33 --> 00:16:35 You've got the priest
00:16:35 --> 00:16:35 and the Levite
00:16:35 --> 00:16:37 who just walk past,
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 walk past
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 and that's all they do.
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 But the Samaritan
00:16:40 --> 00:16:42 does not stop doing.
00:16:43 --> 00:16:44 He just gives
00:16:44 --> 00:16:45 and does
00:16:45 --> 00:16:47 and cares
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 and pours
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 and looks after
00:16:49 --> 00:16:50 and takes
00:16:50 --> 00:16:51 and reimburses
00:16:51 --> 00:16:52 all the way through there.
00:16:52 --> 00:16:54 He doesn't stop.
00:16:54 --> 00:16:55 Luke is at pains
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 to draw this out
00:16:56 --> 00:16:58 that this guy
00:16:58 --> 00:17:00 is an action man.
00:17:00 --> 00:17:02 He just keeps going.
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 And you remember,
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 this Samaritan
00:17:08 --> 00:17:08 is,
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 in the Jewish mind,
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 the dirtiest,
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 the lowest,
00:17:12 --> 00:17:14 the most hated.
00:17:14 --> 00:17:17 Now,
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 Jesus asked in verse 36
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 to the lawyer
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 that he's talking to,
00:17:20 --> 00:17:21 which of these three
00:17:21 --> 00:17:22 do you think was
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 the neighbour?
00:17:24 --> 00:17:24 And the lawyer
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 is so disgusted,
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 so unwilling
00:17:26 --> 00:17:27 to accept the premise
00:17:27 --> 00:17:28 of what Jesus
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 is suggesting here
00:17:29 --> 00:17:29 that,
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 as we said,
00:17:30 --> 00:17:31 he doesn't even say
00:17:31 --> 00:17:31 Samaritan,
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 he just says,
00:17:32 --> 00:17:32 oh,
00:17:32 --> 00:17:34 the guy who had mercy on him.
00:17:35 --> 00:17:36 Now,
00:17:36 --> 00:17:36 that's the story.
00:17:36 --> 00:17:38 So,
00:17:38 --> 00:17:39 what's Jesus
00:17:39 --> 00:17:42 telling this lawyer guy?
00:17:43 --> 00:17:43 What's he trying
00:17:43 --> 00:17:44 to teach here?
00:17:45 --> 00:17:45 Well,
00:17:45 --> 00:17:46 there are two big questions
00:17:46 --> 00:17:47 that we came across in there
00:17:47 --> 00:17:49 and there's two big lessons,
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 I think.
00:17:50 --> 00:17:51 And the first one
00:17:51 --> 00:17:51 isn't the one
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 that jumps out at you
00:17:52 --> 00:17:54 the fastest
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 and the most dramatically.
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 It wasn't the first one
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 that jumped out at me.
00:17:58 --> 00:17:59 But it has to do
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 with that first question
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 that the lawyer asks
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 up in verse 25.
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 Teacher,
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 what must I do
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 to inherit eternal life?
00:18:05 --> 00:18:07 The first lesson
00:18:07 --> 00:18:09 that this lawyer
00:18:09 --> 00:18:10 needs to learn
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 is actually
00:18:11 --> 00:18:13 from the man
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 in the ditch.
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 This lesson
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 is that he needs
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 to accept
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 compassion.
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 And that's exactly
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 what this lawyer
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 didn't get.
00:18:25 --> 00:18:25 He didn't get
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 that he had to accept
00:18:26 --> 00:18:27 compassion,
00:18:27 --> 00:18:27 mercy,
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 love
00:18:28 --> 00:18:30 from someone else.
00:18:30 --> 00:18:30 Now,
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 have a look at
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 what he suggests
00:18:32 --> 00:18:33 that the law says
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 he has to do
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 to inherit eternal life
00:18:35 --> 00:18:35 in verse 27.
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 Love the Lord your God
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 with all your heart,
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 mind,
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 soul,
00:18:38 --> 00:18:38 strength,
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 and love your neighbour
00:18:40 --> 00:18:40 as yourself.
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 Now,
00:18:41 --> 00:18:41 the first one,
00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 loving God,
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 that's exactly what
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 every Jew,
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 it's called the Shema,
00:18:46 --> 00:18:47 it comes from
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 Deuteronomy 6.5,
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 it's what every Jew
00:18:49 --> 00:18:49 had to say,
00:18:50 --> 00:18:50 recite every day.
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 He knew it backwards.
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 And the second one there
00:18:53 --> 00:18:55 is from Leviticus 19.18,
00:18:55 --> 00:18:55 love your neighbour
00:18:55 --> 00:18:56 as yourself.
00:18:56 --> 00:18:58 They are deeply ingrained
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 in what it means
00:18:59 --> 00:18:59 to be a Jew
00:18:59 --> 00:19:01 who lives by the law.
00:19:01 --> 00:19:01 Now,
00:19:02 --> 00:19:02 this is the one thing
00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 that I think he's forgotten.
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 Those laws that he quoted
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 to Jesus
00:19:06 --> 00:19:07 were given to God,
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 given by God
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 to Israel
00:19:09 --> 00:19:10 and they assume
00:19:10 --> 00:19:11 that something
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 has already happened.
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 You remember the story
00:19:14 --> 00:19:15 back in Exodus.
00:19:15 --> 00:19:17 God brings Israel
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 out of Egypt,
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 out of slavery
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 and brings them
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 into a new land
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 and he gives them
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 these laws.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:25 Now,
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 when these instructions
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 were given,
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 God had already
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 saved them
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 from slavery.
00:19:30 --> 00:19:32 He'd already delivered them,
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 already given them life.
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 These instructions
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 that God gave them,
00:19:35 --> 00:19:36 love me,
00:19:36 --> 00:19:38 love your neighbours,
00:19:38 --> 00:19:40 were a response
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 to what God
00:19:41 --> 00:19:43 had already done.
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 The mercy
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 and compassion
00:19:47 --> 00:19:48 and love
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 and generosity
00:19:48 --> 00:19:50 that he'd already
00:19:50 --> 00:19:50 give them.
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 These laws
00:19:51 --> 00:19:52 were never a way
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 to say,
00:19:52 --> 00:19:53 please God,
00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 save us.
00:19:55 --> 00:19:56 They were always
00:19:56 --> 00:19:57 meant to be a way
00:19:57 --> 00:19:57 of saying,
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 God,
00:19:58 --> 00:19:58 thank you
00:19:58 --> 00:20:00 for saving us.
00:20:00 --> 00:20:00 thank you
00:20:00 --> 00:20:01 for drawing us out.
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 Now we belong
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 to you.
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 They were never
00:20:07 --> 00:20:07 a way
00:20:07 --> 00:20:08 to get salvation.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 They were never
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 a way
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 to impress God
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 or get his favour.
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 They were always
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 a way of saying,
00:20:15 --> 00:20:15 thank you
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 for having mercy
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 on me.
00:20:17 --> 00:20:17 Thank you
00:20:17 --> 00:20:19 for having compassion
00:20:19 --> 00:20:19 on me
00:20:19 --> 00:20:21 and rescuing me
00:20:21 --> 00:20:21 when I'd done
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 nothing
00:20:22 --> 00:20:24 to earn that.
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 Obedience
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 is not a please.
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 It's a thank you.
00:20:30 --> 00:20:30 Thank you,
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 God,
00:20:31 --> 00:20:31 for your generosity.
00:20:33 --> 00:20:34 So if you believe
00:20:34 --> 00:20:34 God has done
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 something for you,
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 had compassion
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 on you,
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 been generous
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 towards you,
00:20:39 --> 00:20:40 then you'll live
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 a life of obedience.
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 But the lawyer
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 didn't get that.
00:20:43 --> 00:20:45 He didn't get
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 that forgiveness,
00:20:46 --> 00:20:46 adoption,
00:20:47 --> 00:20:47 new life,
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 eternal life
00:20:48 --> 00:20:51 are available
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 as a free gift
00:20:52 --> 00:20:52 from God.
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 That they're given
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 when you come
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 to Jesus
00:20:55 --> 00:20:58 and you say,
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 I belong to you.
00:21:01 --> 00:21:01 Now,
00:21:02 --> 00:21:02 refusing to keep
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 those commands
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 to love God
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 and to love others
00:21:05 --> 00:21:05 is like turning
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 around to God
00:21:06 --> 00:21:06 and saying,
00:21:06 --> 00:21:08 you've done
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 nothing for me.
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 You've done
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 nothing.
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 And that's
00:21:13 --> 00:21:13 where the lawyer
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 is at.
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 Jesus says to him,
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 the neighbours
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 that you're supposed
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 to love
00:21:21 --> 00:21:21 in that command,
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 love your neighbours,
00:21:22 --> 00:21:24 they're not
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 just your buddies.
00:21:26 --> 00:21:26 They're not
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 just Christians
00:21:27 --> 00:21:29 or in that day
00:21:29 --> 00:21:30 followers of God,
00:21:30 --> 00:21:31 Yahweh.
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 They're not
00:21:33 --> 00:21:33 just people
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 who obey
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 the laws
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 of our society.
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 They're people
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 like the Samaritan
00:21:40 --> 00:21:43 who normally
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 you hate
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 with everything
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 that you're
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 made of.
00:21:49 --> 00:21:49 But the lawyer
00:21:49 --> 00:21:50 can't accept that.
00:21:50 --> 00:21:52 And you can see
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 once again
00:21:53 --> 00:21:53 by the way
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 that he answers
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 Jesus in the end,
00:21:55 --> 00:21:55 he just does not
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 accept that he
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 has to love
00:21:57 --> 00:21:59 the Samaritan,
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 people who are
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 different from him.
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 He can't do it.
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 And he's
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 effectively saying
00:22:08 --> 00:22:08 to God,
00:22:09 --> 00:22:09 whatever you may
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 have done for me,
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 whatever you may
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 be offering me,
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 it's not enough
00:22:17 --> 00:22:19 for me
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 to love people
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 like that.
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 He doesn't
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 get
00:22:25 --> 00:22:28 that love,
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 obedience,
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 compassion
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 aren't a please.
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 They're a thank you
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 God for what
00:22:34 --> 00:22:34 you've done
00:22:34 --> 00:22:35 for me.
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 And if you've
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 done this for me,
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 I'll do anything
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 for you.
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 So what about you?
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 The rest of the book
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 of Luke goes on
00:22:46 --> 00:22:46 and tells us about
00:22:46 --> 00:22:48 how Jesus is like
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 that Samaritan.
00:22:49 --> 00:22:49 He came into this
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 world because he
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 has compassion.
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 He looked at us
00:22:52 --> 00:22:54 and saw the pain
00:22:54 --> 00:22:55 and the injustice
00:22:55 --> 00:22:56 and the brokenness
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 and the unhappiness
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 of this world,
00:22:57 --> 00:22:58 the sinfulness
00:22:58 --> 00:22:59 of this world
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 and how it's
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 become lost
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 from God.
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 And he saw
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 that that was
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 caused by our
00:23:09 --> 00:23:11 self-centeredness,
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 by a history
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 of something like
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 12 billion people
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 apparently who have
00:23:15 --> 00:23:15 ever lived,
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 who have chosen
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 to live without
00:23:18 --> 00:23:18 God.
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 And so look
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 around at the
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 results of that
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 in our world
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 today.
00:23:25 --> 00:23:26 Not only that,
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 but God waits
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 to judge mankind
00:23:28 --> 00:23:30 for rejecting
00:23:30 --> 00:23:30 him.
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 Jesus saw us
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 there on that
00:23:32 --> 00:23:32 road,
00:23:33 --> 00:23:33 keeled up
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 and waiting
00:23:34 --> 00:23:34 to die.
00:23:37 --> 00:23:37 And he had
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 compassion and
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 brought healing.
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 He brought
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 healing by living
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 a perfect,
00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 God-centered,
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 God-loving,
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 others-loving
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 life and
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 then dying
00:23:47 --> 00:23:49 as a
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 criminal,
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 complete opposite.
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 And when he
00:23:53 --> 00:23:53 died,
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 he took all
00:23:54 --> 00:23:54 of our guilt
00:23:54 --> 00:23:56 to himself
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 and with
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 himself into
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 the ground.
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 And when he
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 came back
00:23:59 --> 00:24:00 from the dead,
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 he defeated
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 the power,
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 the ownership,
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 the slavery
00:24:04 --> 00:24:05 that sin has
00:24:05 --> 00:24:06 over us.
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 And now he
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 offers us a new
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 start.
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 We are not a
00:24:10 --> 00:24:10 slave to
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 selfishness anymore.
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 You can
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 escape that.
00:24:14 --> 00:24:14 You can
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 escape a
00:24:15 --> 00:24:15 life which
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 is just about
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 empty gain
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 and clawing at
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 other people
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 so that you
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 get stuff
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 before you
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 die.
00:24:25 --> 00:24:26 Now that's
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 that first
00:24:27 --> 00:24:27 lesson there
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 for the lawyer
00:24:28 --> 00:24:28 that he didn't
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 get, but we
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 have to get
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 it.
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 Loving your
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 neighbor is
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 not what you
00:24:33 --> 00:24:35 do to earn
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 eternal life.
00:24:36 --> 00:24:41 It's what
00:24:41 --> 00:24:41 you do to
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 say thank
00:24:42 --> 00:24:44 you to
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 the God
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 who gives
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 freely.
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 What do
00:24:52 --> 00:24:52 you do when
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 you know
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 that God
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 has shown
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 mercy to
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 you?
00:24:55 --> 00:24:55 If you
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 believe that,
00:24:57 --> 00:24:57 you say
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 thanks.
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 Romans 12
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 1 says,
00:25:01 --> 00:25:01 in view of
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 God's mercy,
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 offer yourself
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 as a living
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 sacrifice.
00:25:05 --> 00:25:05 If there's
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 no obedience
00:25:06 --> 00:25:06 in our
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 lives,
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 there's no
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 compassion in
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 our lives,
00:25:09 --> 00:25:09 there's no
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 loving our
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 neighbors,
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 it's like
00:25:12 --> 00:25:12 we're saying
00:25:12 --> 00:25:12 to Jesus,
00:25:13 --> 00:25:13 you've done
00:25:13 --> 00:25:15 nothing for
00:25:15 --> 00:25:15 me.
00:25:17 --> 00:25:17 Now that
00:25:17 --> 00:25:17 was the
00:25:17 --> 00:25:19 first big
00:25:19 --> 00:25:19 lesson there
00:25:19 --> 00:25:19 for us,
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 and it came
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 from that
00:25:20 --> 00:25:20 question,
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 what I've
00:25:21 --> 00:25:21 got to do
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 to inherit
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 eternal life.
00:25:23 --> 00:25:23 The big
00:25:23 --> 00:25:25 lesson for
00:25:25 --> 00:25:25 us was we
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 need to
00:25:26 --> 00:25:29 learn how
00:25:29 --> 00:25:29 to accept
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 God's
00:25:30 --> 00:25:30 compassion.
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 Now there's
00:25:32 --> 00:25:32 another big
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 question there
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 remember as
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 well.
00:25:33 --> 00:25:36 who is
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 my
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 neighbor?
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 You
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 remember
00:25:37 --> 00:25:37 that from
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 verse 29.
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 Now there's
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 another big
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 lesson that
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 kind of
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 matches up
00:25:41 --> 00:25:42 with this
00:25:42 --> 00:25:42 question.
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 And that
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 big lesson
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 for us is
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 that we
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 need to
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 be
00:25:45 --> 00:25:46 compassionate.
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 We need
00:25:47 --> 00:25:48 to love
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 our neighbor.
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 Let me
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 explain that.
00:25:50 --> 00:25:50 Now we're
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 learning this
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 one from
00:25:51 --> 00:25:52 the Samaritan
00:25:52 --> 00:25:52 who was a
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 neighbor to
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 the man in
00:25:54 --> 00:25:54 the ditch.
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 Now the
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 lawyer has
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 asked the
00:25:58 --> 00:25:58 question,
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 he's looking
00:25:59 --> 00:25:59 for a bare
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 minimum,
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 who is my
00:26:01 --> 00:26:01 neighbor?
00:26:01 --> 00:26:01 But Jesus
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 gives him
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 a different
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 answer.
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 Now a
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 neighbor,
00:26:07 --> 00:26:07 we have to
00:26:07 --> 00:26:08 think of
00:26:08 --> 00:26:08 a neighbor as
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 someone close
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 by.
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 But these
00:26:10 --> 00:26:10 days I think
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 because we
00:26:11 --> 00:26:11 live in
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 streets,
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 which they
00:26:13 --> 00:26:13 didn't
00:26:13 --> 00:26:13 necessarily
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 live in
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 in the
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 camp when
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 Israel was
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 in the
00:26:17 --> 00:26:17 desert,
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 when they
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 started
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 thinking about
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 this in
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 Leviticus 19.
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 Because we
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 live in
00:26:21 --> 00:26:21 streets,
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 we tend to
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 think of
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 our neighbors
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 as the
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 people on
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 that same
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 row.
00:26:24 --> 00:26:24 And it
00:26:24 --> 00:26:24 kind of has
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 the same
00:26:25 --> 00:26:25 meaning because
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 they're the
00:26:26 --> 00:26:26 people who
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 live close
00:26:27 --> 00:26:27 to us.
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 But back
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 in Leviticus
00:26:29 --> 00:26:29 19,
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 when we're
00:26:30 --> 00:26:30 talking about
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 neighbors,
00:26:31 --> 00:26:31 we're talking
00:26:31 --> 00:26:32 about all
00:26:32 --> 00:26:32 the people
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 who are
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 close to
00:26:33 --> 00:26:34 us,
00:26:34 --> 00:26:34 not just
00:26:34 --> 00:26:34 the people
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 who we
00:26:35 --> 00:26:35 share a
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 fence with.
00:26:38 --> 00:26:39 And we
00:26:39 --> 00:26:41 don't really
00:26:41 --> 00:26:41 think about
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 this with our
00:26:42 --> 00:26:42 neighbors on
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 our streets
00:26:43 --> 00:26:43 these days,
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 but the
00:26:44 --> 00:26:45 force behind
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 that word
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 when the
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 Bible uses
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 neighbor is
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 the person
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 who is in
00:26:48 --> 00:26:49 your inner
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 circle,
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 the person
00:26:50 --> 00:26:50 who is in
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 your in
00:26:51 --> 00:26:51 group,
00:26:52 --> 00:26:52 the people
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 who are
00:26:53 --> 00:26:53 closest around
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 you.
00:26:54 --> 00:26:54 We certainly
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 don't think
00:26:55 --> 00:26:57 that way about
00:26:57 --> 00:26:57 most of our
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 neighbors these
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 days.
00:26:59 --> 00:27:02 Now,
00:27:02 --> 00:27:02 it's a little
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 bit like
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 when we
00:27:04 --> 00:27:05 started school,
00:27:06 --> 00:27:07 the way that
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 the Bible
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 thinks about
00:27:07 --> 00:27:08 neighbors.
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 When you
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 started school,
00:27:10 --> 00:27:10 you didn't
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 kind of go
00:27:11 --> 00:27:11 around,
00:27:12 --> 00:27:12 well,
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 at least this
00:27:13 --> 00:27:13 wasn't the
00:27:13 --> 00:27:13 case for me.
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 I didn't go
00:27:14 --> 00:27:14 around and
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 look at
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 everyone and
00:27:16 --> 00:27:16 look through
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 their bag and
00:27:17 --> 00:27:20 see if they
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 had a pool
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 and look at
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 their dad's
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 car and if it
00:27:23 --> 00:27:23 was fun to
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 ride around
00:27:24 --> 00:27:24 with.
00:27:24 --> 00:27:24 I used to
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 like arm
00:27:25 --> 00:27:25 rest in
00:27:25 --> 00:27:25 cars.
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 It made me
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 feel like I
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 was in a
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 spaceship.
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 I didn't
00:27:28 --> 00:27:28 check out
00:27:28 --> 00:27:28 when my
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 friends'
00:27:29 --> 00:27:29 dads had
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 cars with
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 armrests
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 before I
00:27:32 --> 00:27:32 decided to
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 be their
00:27:33 --> 00:27:33 friend.
00:27:35 --> 00:27:35 See,
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 when you're
00:27:36 --> 00:27:36 in school,
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 you rock up.
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 You don't
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 know anybody.
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 The first day
00:27:41 --> 00:27:41 you go to
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 kindergarten or
00:27:42 --> 00:27:42 if you change
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 schools when you
00:27:43 --> 00:27:43 go to high
00:27:43 --> 00:27:43 school,
00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 in year seven,
00:27:44 --> 00:27:45 that first day
00:27:45 --> 00:27:45 you don't know
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 anyone.
00:27:46 --> 00:27:46 And so you're
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 just praying that
00:27:47 --> 00:27:48 you get to sit
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 next to someone
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 at lunchtime and
00:27:50 --> 00:27:50 you're going to
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 hold on to those
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 people for the
00:27:52 --> 00:27:53 next six to
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 twelve years and
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 they're your
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 friends.
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 And that
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 becomes your
00:27:56 --> 00:27:56 group,
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 the phenomenon
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 of a group
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 in school.
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 That's how
00:28:00 --> 00:28:01 they're formed.
00:28:01 --> 00:28:01 They're just the
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 people that you
00:28:02 --> 00:28:02 happen to be
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 sitting next to
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 that particular
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 first day and
00:28:05 --> 00:28:05 they become your
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 friends for the
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 next six years.
00:28:07 --> 00:28:08 Now that's kind
00:28:08 --> 00:28:09 of the way
00:28:09 --> 00:28:09 neighbours work
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 in the Bible.
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 They're the
00:28:11 --> 00:28:11 people that
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 you're close
00:28:12 --> 00:28:12 to.
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 They're the
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 people that
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 are around
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 you in your
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 everyday life
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 and not
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 necessarily
00:28:16 --> 00:28:16 because you
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 just assess
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 them upon
00:28:18 --> 00:28:18 how good
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 friends they
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 might be.
00:28:20 --> 00:28:20 They're just
00:28:20 --> 00:28:20 the people
00:28:20 --> 00:28:21 who are nearby
00:28:21 --> 00:28:22 and so they
00:28:22 --> 00:28:22 become the
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 people who are
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 part of your
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 inner
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 circle of
00:28:26 --> 00:28:26 friends.
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 The people
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 that are
00:28:28 --> 00:28:28 with you,
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 the people
00:28:29 --> 00:28:29 that you
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 love and
00:28:30 --> 00:28:30 take care of
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 and cherish.
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 That's what
00:28:32 --> 00:28:32 we're thinking
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 about when
00:28:33 --> 00:28:33 we're talking
00:28:33 --> 00:28:34 about neighbours
00:28:34 --> 00:28:34 in the
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 Bible.
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 And the
00:28:38 --> 00:28:38 lawyer is
00:28:38 --> 00:28:38 saying,
00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 listen,
00:28:39 --> 00:28:39 who is that
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 for me?
00:28:40 --> 00:28:40 Who am I
00:28:40 --> 00:28:40 supposed to
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 be taking
00:28:41 --> 00:28:41 care of?
00:28:41 --> 00:28:43 Who is in
00:28:43 --> 00:28:43 that inner
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 circle for
00:28:44 --> 00:28:44 me?
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 Because really
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 I just want
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 to focus on
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 them and
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 forget about
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 everybody else.
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 Who is
00:28:49 --> 00:28:49 supposed to
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 be my
00:28:50 --> 00:28:50 neighbour?
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 Who I'm
00:28:53 --> 00:28:53 supposed to
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 love?
00:28:54 --> 00:28:54 And you
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 notice that
00:28:55 --> 00:28:55 Jesus changes
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 the question
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 a little bit
00:28:57 --> 00:28:57 towards the
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 end of the
00:28:58 --> 00:28:58 parable.
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 Have a look
00:28:59 --> 00:28:59 down in
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 verse 36.
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 Now compare
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 this to what
00:29:01 --> 00:29:01 the guy
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 originally asked
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 in verse 29.
00:29:04 --> 00:29:04 Who is my
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 neighbour?
00:29:05 --> 00:29:05 By the time
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 we get down
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 to verse 36,
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 Jesus says
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 something a
00:29:08 --> 00:29:08 little bit
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 different.
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 Which of
00:29:10 --> 00:29:11 these three,
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 so the
00:29:11 --> 00:29:11 priest,
00:29:12 --> 00:29:12 the Levite
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 and the
00:29:13 --> 00:29:13 Samaritan,
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 do you think
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 was a neighbour
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 to the man
00:29:16 --> 00:29:16 who fell in
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 the hands
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 of robbers?
00:29:18 --> 00:29:20 Now we're
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 not talking
00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 about who
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 is my
00:29:24 --> 00:29:24 neighbour
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 anymore.
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 Jesus has
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 changed the
00:29:27 --> 00:29:27 question.
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 Who are you
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 going to be
00:29:30 --> 00:29:30 a neighbour
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 to?
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 Jesus isn't
00:29:34 --> 00:29:35 thinking about
00:29:35 --> 00:29:36 who's that
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 select few
00:29:37 --> 00:29:37 people that
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 have been
00:29:38 --> 00:29:38 close to you
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 for a little
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 while that
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 you're going
00:29:41 --> 00:29:41 to think
00:29:41 --> 00:29:42 about loving
00:29:42 --> 00:29:42 and you're
00:29:42 --> 00:29:42 going to
00:29:42 --> 00:29:42 make sure
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 you take
00:29:43 --> 00:29:43 care of
00:29:43 --> 00:29:43 them.
00:29:44 --> 00:29:44 He's blown
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 it wide
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 open and
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 he's now
00:29:46 --> 00:29:46 saying,
00:29:47 --> 00:29:47 now who
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 are you
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 going to
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 be a
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 neighbour
00:29:49 --> 00:29:49 to?
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 Who are
00:29:51 --> 00:29:51 you going
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 to treat
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 as if
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 they are
00:29:54 --> 00:29:54 in your
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 inner circle?
00:29:56 --> 00:29:56 Who are
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 you going
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 to speak
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 to just
00:29:59 --> 00:29:59 as if
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 they were
00:30:00 --> 00:30:00 your closest?
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 Who are
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 you going
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 to have
00:30:02 --> 00:30:02 compassion
00:30:02 --> 00:30:04 on just
00:30:04 --> 00:30:04 as if
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 they were
00:30:05 --> 00:30:06 your closest
00:30:06 --> 00:30:08 friends?
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 Being a
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 neighbour
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 means
00:30:12 --> 00:30:13 treating
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 people even
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 enemies
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 Samaritans
00:30:16 --> 00:30:18 as those
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 people who
00:30:19 --> 00:30:19 are in
00:30:19 --> 00:30:21 your
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 group
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 click
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 circle
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 and amongst
00:30:25 --> 00:30:26 many things
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 compassion is
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 how we treat
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 our closest
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 friends,
00:30:29 --> 00:30:29 isn't it?
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 If we hear
00:30:30 --> 00:30:30 that our
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 friend is
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 sick or
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 if there
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 is massive
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 tragedy in
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 the family
00:30:35 --> 00:30:35 of one of
00:30:35 --> 00:30:35 our particularly
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 close friends,
00:30:37 --> 00:30:37 we're prepared
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 to drop
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 stuff for
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 that,
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 aren't we?
00:30:39 --> 00:30:39 We're prepared
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 to drop
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 our business
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 to be there
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 for them,
00:30:43 --> 00:30:43 to let
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 things that
00:30:44 --> 00:30:44 we're working
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 on be
00:30:45 --> 00:30:45 late,
00:30:45 --> 00:30:45 to let
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 them not
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 get done
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 because we're
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 prepared to
00:30:48 --> 00:30:48 have compassion
00:30:48 --> 00:30:49 on them.
00:30:50 --> 00:30:51 Now that's
00:30:51 --> 00:30:51 what we're
00:30:51 --> 00:30:51 talking about
00:30:51 --> 00:30:52 when Jesus
00:30:52 --> 00:30:52 says,
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 who are you
00:30:53 --> 00:30:53 going to
00:30:53 --> 00:30:54 be a
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 neighbour
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 to?
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 Who are
00:30:58 --> 00:30:58 you going
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 to extend
00:30:59 --> 00:31:00 your
00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 closeness
00:31:01 --> 00:31:01 to?
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 And we're
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 not talking
00:31:03 --> 00:31:03 about everyone
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 in the world
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 being your
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 closest friend
00:31:05 --> 00:31:05 with whom
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 you share
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 everything
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 about you,
00:31:07 --> 00:31:09 but who
00:31:09 --> 00:31:09 are you
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 going to
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 extend
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 the
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 compassion
00:31:11 --> 00:31:13 that you
00:31:13 --> 00:31:13 would have
00:31:13 --> 00:31:13 on your
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 closest
00:31:14 --> 00:31:14 people
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 to?
00:31:18 --> 00:31:18 Who are
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 you going
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 to be
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 a neighbour
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 to?
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 Kate and
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 I know
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 a family
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 very well
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 actually,
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 in which
00:31:27 --> 00:31:27 there's been
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 a lot of
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 strife.
00:31:29 --> 00:31:29 Two brothers
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 are involved.
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 One brother
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 was looking
00:31:32 --> 00:31:32 after a bunch
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 of cash
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 for missionaries
00:31:34 --> 00:31:36 and this
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 guy decided
00:31:37 --> 00:31:37 that,
00:31:37 --> 00:31:37 well,
00:31:37 --> 00:31:37 to make
00:31:37 --> 00:31:38 some more
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 money for
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 these
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 missionaries
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 and really
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 impress them
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 and support
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 them,
00:31:41 --> 00:31:41 I'm going
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 to invest
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 it in
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 some really
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 high-risk
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 investments
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 and he
00:31:45 --> 00:31:45 loses
00:31:45 --> 00:31:46 everything.
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 But he
00:31:48 --> 00:31:48 doesn't tell
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 anybody
00:31:49 --> 00:31:50 because he
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 doesn't get
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 in trouble.
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 So he
00:31:52 --> 00:31:53 looks for
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 ways to
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 get it
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 back.
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 He looks
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 for other
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 risky
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 business
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 ventures
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 and business
00:31:58 --> 00:31:58 ventures
00:31:58 --> 00:31:58 are even
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 riskier than
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 that,
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 to try and
00:31:59 --> 00:32:00 get this
00:32:00 --> 00:32:00 money back
00:32:00 --> 00:32:01 so no one
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 will find
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 out.
00:32:03 --> 00:32:03 But someone
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 does find
00:32:04 --> 00:32:04 out,
00:32:05 --> 00:32:05 the Sydney
00:32:05 --> 00:32:05 Morning
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 Herald
00:32:06 --> 00:32:06 finds out
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 on the
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 front page
00:32:08 --> 00:32:09 and so
00:32:09 --> 00:32:09 it gets
00:32:09 --> 00:32:10 blown wide
00:32:10 --> 00:32:10 open.
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 So this
00:32:12 --> 00:32:12 guy and his
00:32:12 --> 00:32:13 family get
00:32:13 --> 00:32:13 torn apart
00:32:13 --> 00:32:15 but his
00:32:15 --> 00:32:16 brother at
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 that point
00:32:17 --> 00:32:17 has a
00:32:17 --> 00:32:18 choice,
00:32:18 --> 00:32:19 has to
00:32:19 --> 00:32:19 say normally
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 in our
00:32:20 --> 00:32:22 society it
00:32:22 --> 00:32:22 would be
00:32:22 --> 00:32:22 understandable
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 for me to
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 disown this
00:32:24 --> 00:32:24 brother of
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 mine,
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 to say that
00:32:26 --> 00:32:27 he's not
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 my brother
00:32:28 --> 00:32:28 anymore,
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 that he's
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 not part of
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 this family
00:32:30 --> 00:32:30 anymore.
00:32:31 --> 00:32:32 That happens
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 in society
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 and no
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 one seems
00:32:34 --> 00:32:34 to wave
00:32:34 --> 00:32:34 their finger
00:32:34 --> 00:32:35 at that,
00:32:35 --> 00:32:35 it's
00:32:35 --> 00:32:35 acceptable.
00:32:36 --> 00:32:36 He could
00:32:36 --> 00:32:36 do that.
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 But instead
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 he takes
00:32:41 --> 00:32:41 his brother
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 and his
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 brother's
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 immediate
00:32:42 --> 00:32:43 family and
00:32:43 --> 00:32:43 he cares
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 for them,
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 he houses
00:32:45 --> 00:32:45 them,
00:32:46 --> 00:32:47 he has
00:32:47 --> 00:32:48 them over
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 to be in
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 his family
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 and he
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 calls this
00:32:52 --> 00:32:53 man still
00:32:53 --> 00:32:55 brother.
00:32:55 --> 00:32:55 brother,
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 he extends
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 his
00:32:58 --> 00:32:58 compassion
00:32:58 --> 00:33:00 to someone
00:33:00 --> 00:33:01 who does
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 not deserve
00:33:02 --> 00:33:02 it.
00:33:04 --> 00:33:04 That's the
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 question Jesus
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 asks,
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 who are you
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 a neighbour
00:33:08 --> 00:33:09 to?
00:33:09 --> 00:33:10 Who do you
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 extend your
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 compassionate arms
00:33:12 --> 00:33:12 out to even
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 though they
00:33:13 --> 00:33:14 don't deserve
00:33:14 --> 00:33:14 it?
00:33:15 --> 00:33:15 Now sometimes
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 it is very
00:33:16 --> 00:33:16 hard to be
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 compassionate,
00:33:17 --> 00:33:18 isn't it?
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 It's strange
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 but it's true.
00:33:20 --> 00:33:20 It's strange
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 because we
00:33:21 --> 00:33:21 kind of associate
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 compassion with
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 something,
00:33:23 --> 00:33:24 some tug of
00:33:24 --> 00:33:24 your heart
00:33:24 --> 00:33:25 that irresistibly
00:33:25 --> 00:33:26 pulls you
00:33:26 --> 00:33:26 towards somebody
00:33:26 --> 00:33:27 and you
00:33:27 --> 00:33:28 can't control
00:33:28 --> 00:33:28 it.
00:33:28 --> 00:33:28 That's compassion,
00:33:29 --> 00:33:29 it's an emotion.
00:33:30 --> 00:33:30 But it is
00:33:30 --> 00:33:32 hard because
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 sometimes we
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 feel alongside
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 the tug of
00:33:35 --> 00:33:36 compassion,
00:33:36 --> 00:33:37 we feel the
00:33:37 --> 00:33:38 tug of
00:33:38 --> 00:33:39 busyness and
00:33:39 --> 00:33:41 inconvenience and
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 not knowing
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 quite how to
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 help and
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 well just
00:33:45 --> 00:33:47 greed and
00:33:47 --> 00:33:48 laziness.
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 Being compassionate
00:33:50 --> 00:33:50 is a hard
00:33:50 --> 00:33:52 thing a lot
00:33:52 --> 00:33:52 of the time.
00:33:54 --> 00:33:57 sometimes you
00:33:57 --> 00:33:57 need a bit
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 of a nudge
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 to get on
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 and do
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 hard things
00:34:00 --> 00:34:02 which strangely
00:34:02 --> 00:34:02 enough is why
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 two young
00:34:03 --> 00:34:04 teenage guys
00:34:04 --> 00:34:05 recently wrote
00:34:05 --> 00:34:05 a book called
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 Do Hard
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 Things,
00:34:07 --> 00:34:08 great title.
00:34:08 --> 00:34:08 I don't know
00:34:08 --> 00:34:09 if you've
00:34:09 --> 00:34:09 read this
00:34:09 --> 00:34:09 book,
00:34:09 --> 00:34:09 has anyone
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 read this
00:34:10 --> 00:34:10 book Do
00:34:10 --> 00:34:11 Hard
00:34:11 --> 00:34:11 Things?
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 There you
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 go,
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 I can tell
00:34:13 --> 00:34:13 you whatever
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 I like.
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 I think
00:34:15 --> 00:34:15 it's a fair
00:34:15 --> 00:34:16 enough book,
00:34:16 --> 00:34:17 it came from
00:34:17 --> 00:34:17 a couple of
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 teenage guys
00:34:18 --> 00:34:18 who looked
00:34:18 --> 00:34:19 around at
00:34:19 --> 00:34:19 their generation
00:34:19 --> 00:34:20 and said
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 huh,
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 you know
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 we really
00:34:23 --> 00:34:23 don't do
00:34:23 --> 00:34:25 much apart
00:34:25 --> 00:34:26 from study
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 and Playstation
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 and then they
00:34:28 --> 00:34:28 looked around
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 at society
00:34:29 --> 00:34:31 and they
00:34:31 --> 00:34:31 thought huh,
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 you know society
00:34:33 --> 00:34:33 doesn't actually
00:34:33 --> 00:34:34 expect much
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 of us apart
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 from study
00:34:36 --> 00:34:37 and Playstation
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 and maybe
00:34:38 --> 00:34:38 taking out
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 the trash.
00:34:40 --> 00:34:40 That might be
00:34:40 --> 00:34:41 an unfair
00:34:41 --> 00:34:41 caricature of
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 you if you're
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 a teenager
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 so I really
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 apologise.
00:34:43 --> 00:34:44 But they
00:34:44 --> 00:34:44 wrote a book
00:34:44 --> 00:34:45 to say hey
00:34:45 --> 00:34:47 let's pick
00:34:47 --> 00:34:47 some hard
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 good things
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 to do.
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 Things that
00:34:50 --> 00:34:50 aren't just
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 study,
00:34:52 --> 00:34:52 that aren't
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 just recreation
00:34:53 --> 00:34:53 and that aren't
00:34:53 --> 00:34:55 just doing
00:34:55 --> 00:34:55 what our parents
00:34:55 --> 00:34:56 kind of asked
00:34:56 --> 00:34:56 us to do
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 around the
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 house.
00:34:57 --> 00:34:57 Let's pick
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 some big
00:34:58 --> 00:34:58 stuff.
00:34:59 --> 00:34:59 Let's pick
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 some across
00:35:00 --> 00:35:00 the country
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 stuff.
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 Let's pick
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 some stuff
00:35:02 --> 00:35:03 that's not
00:35:03 --> 00:35:03 getting done
00:35:03 --> 00:35:03 by anybody
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 else and
00:35:04 --> 00:35:04 do it.
00:35:05 --> 00:35:05 And so they
00:35:05 --> 00:35:06 write this
00:35:06 --> 00:35:06 book to
00:35:06 --> 00:35:07 encourage young
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 people and
00:35:08 --> 00:35:08 all the like
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 to get on
00:35:09 --> 00:35:09 and do that
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 kind of stuff.
00:35:11 --> 00:35:11 Now if you
00:35:11 --> 00:35:11 ask me I
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 think at
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 certain times
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 the book
00:35:14 --> 00:35:14 probably goes
00:35:14 --> 00:35:15 a little bit
00:35:15 --> 00:35:15 too far
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 down the
00:35:16 --> 00:35:16 line of
00:35:16 --> 00:35:17 the best
00:35:17 --> 00:35:17 thing you
00:35:17 --> 00:35:17 can do
00:35:17 --> 00:35:18 with your
00:35:18 --> 00:35:18 life is
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 just be
00:35:19 --> 00:35:19 productive.
00:35:20 --> 00:35:21 But apart
00:35:21 --> 00:35:21 from that
00:35:21 --> 00:35:21 they have
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 one section
00:35:22 --> 00:35:22 kind of
00:35:22 --> 00:35:22 like a
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 third of
00:35:23 --> 00:35:23 the book
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 which is
00:35:24 --> 00:35:24 I think
00:35:24 --> 00:35:25 really good.
00:35:25 --> 00:35:25 It's got
00:35:25 --> 00:35:26 some helpful
00:35:26 --> 00:35:26 stuff.
00:35:27 --> 00:35:27 It's called
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 five kinds
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 of hard
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 things.
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 Five kinds
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 of hard
00:35:32 --> 00:35:32 things that
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 there are
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 in the world
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 to do.
00:35:34 --> 00:35:34 They say
00:35:34 --> 00:35:35 there are
00:35:35 --> 00:35:36 hard things
00:35:36 --> 00:35:36 that take
00:35:36 --> 00:35:37 you outside
00:35:37 --> 00:35:37 your comfort
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 zone.
00:35:39 --> 00:35:39 There are
00:35:39 --> 00:35:40 hard things
00:35:40 --> 00:35:40 that go
00:35:40 --> 00:35:41 beyond what's
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 expected or
00:35:42 --> 00:35:43 required of
00:35:43 --> 00:35:43 you.
00:35:43 --> 00:35:45 there are
00:35:45 --> 00:35:46 hard things
00:35:46 --> 00:35:48 that are too
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 big for you
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 to do by
00:35:50 --> 00:35:50 yourself.
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 There are
00:35:52 --> 00:35:52 hard things
00:35:52 --> 00:35:53 that don't
00:35:53 --> 00:35:53 pay off
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 immediately
00:35:54 --> 00:35:55 and there
00:35:55 --> 00:35:56 are also
00:35:56 --> 00:35:56 hard things
00:35:56 --> 00:35:57 that go
00:35:57 --> 00:35:57 against the
00:35:57 --> 00:35:58 crowd.
00:35:59 --> 00:36:00 So we've
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 got outside
00:36:01 --> 00:36:01 of comfort
00:36:01 --> 00:36:02 zone, beyond
00:36:02 --> 00:36:03 what's expected,
00:36:03 --> 00:36:03 too big for
00:36:03 --> 00:36:04 you to do
00:36:04 --> 00:36:04 alone.
00:36:06 --> 00:36:06 Excuse me.
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 They don't pay
00:36:08 --> 00:36:08 off immediately
00:36:08 --> 00:36:10 and they
00:36:10 --> 00:36:10 go against
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 the crowd.
00:36:11 --> 00:36:11 And obviously
00:36:11 --> 00:36:13 you've got a
00:36:13 --> 00:36:13 mix of those
00:36:13 --> 00:36:14 things and a
00:36:14 --> 00:36:14 lot of
00:36:14 --> 00:36:14 different things
00:36:14 --> 00:36:14 we look
00:36:14 --> 00:36:15 around and
00:36:15 --> 00:36:15 think are
00:36:15 --> 00:36:15 hard.
00:36:16 --> 00:36:16 Now do
00:36:16 --> 00:36:16 they sound
00:36:16 --> 00:36:17 familiar to
00:36:17 --> 00:36:17 you?
00:36:19 --> 00:36:20 Because they
00:36:20 --> 00:36:20 sound familiar
00:36:20 --> 00:36:20 to me.
00:36:21 --> 00:36:21 Because they
00:36:21 --> 00:36:22 are five
00:36:22 --> 00:36:22 reasons why
00:36:22 --> 00:36:23 I'm not
00:36:23 --> 00:36:23 compassionate.
00:36:25 --> 00:36:25 Because
00:36:25 --> 00:36:26 sometimes
00:36:26 --> 00:36:27 showing compassion
00:36:27 --> 00:36:28 to someone
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 who I see
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 on the way
00:36:30 --> 00:36:31 from A to
00:36:31 --> 00:36:31 B, someone
00:36:31 --> 00:36:32 on the street,
00:36:33 --> 00:36:34 someone in a
00:36:34 --> 00:36:36 fight with
00:36:36 --> 00:36:37 somebody, you
00:36:37 --> 00:36:38 see these
00:36:38 --> 00:36:38 people and
00:36:38 --> 00:36:38 you think
00:36:38 --> 00:36:39 well it's
00:36:39 --> 00:36:39 just outside
00:36:39 --> 00:36:40 of my
00:36:40 --> 00:36:40 comfort zone.
00:36:40 --> 00:36:40 I don't
00:36:40 --> 00:36:41 want to get
00:36:41 --> 00:36:41 involved in
00:36:41 --> 00:36:41 that.
00:36:42 --> 00:36:43 Sometimes I
00:36:43 --> 00:36:43 think well
00:36:43 --> 00:36:44 no one really
00:36:44 --> 00:36:45 expects me to
00:36:45 --> 00:36:47 do this, to
00:36:47 --> 00:36:48 help here, to
00:36:48 --> 00:36:50 give there, to
00:36:50 --> 00:36:50 give time
00:36:50 --> 00:36:51 somewhere else.
00:36:51 --> 00:36:52 No one expects
00:36:52 --> 00:36:52 me to do that
00:36:52 --> 00:36:53 so I can get
00:36:53 --> 00:36:54 away with not
00:36:54 --> 00:36:54 doing it.
00:36:55 --> 00:36:55 It's too big
00:36:55 --> 00:36:56 for me to do
00:36:56 --> 00:36:56 alone.
00:36:57 --> 00:36:58 I can't fix
00:36:58 --> 00:36:58 the problems
00:36:58 --> 00:36:59 of the Dalit
00:36:59 --> 00:37:01 caste in
00:37:01 --> 00:37:01 India, the
00:37:01 --> 00:37:03 untouchables, who
00:37:03 --> 00:37:04 it's an insult
00:37:04 --> 00:37:05 for their shadow
00:37:05 --> 00:37:06 to fall on other
00:37:06 --> 00:37:07 people in the
00:37:07 --> 00:37:07 country.
00:37:07 --> 00:37:08 That's too
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 big for me to
00:37:09 --> 00:37:10 fix by myself.
00:37:11 --> 00:37:12 So I won't
00:37:12 --> 00:37:13 worry about that.
00:37:14 --> 00:37:15 They don't pay
00:37:15 --> 00:37:15 off immediately.
00:37:16 --> 00:37:17 I won't even
00:37:17 --> 00:37:17 see the end of
00:37:17 --> 00:37:18 this problem
00:37:18 --> 00:37:19 before I die.
00:37:21 --> 00:37:21 And they go
00:37:21 --> 00:37:22 against the
00:37:22 --> 00:37:22 crowd.
00:37:22 --> 00:37:22 You know how
00:37:22 --> 00:37:23 bad I'm going
00:37:23 --> 00:37:25 to look if I
00:37:25 --> 00:37:26 associate with
00:37:26 --> 00:37:27 this guy, if I
00:37:27 --> 00:37:28 break off from
00:37:28 --> 00:37:29 my friends to
00:37:29 --> 00:37:30 go over there
00:37:30 --> 00:37:32 and be with
00:37:32 --> 00:37:32 that woman.
00:37:32 --> 00:37:39 now if those
00:37:39 --> 00:37:39 things do sound
00:37:39 --> 00:37:40 familiar to you
00:37:40 --> 00:37:42 as they do
00:37:42 --> 00:37:43 to me, then
00:37:43 --> 00:37:44 we need to
00:37:44 --> 00:37:45 remember the
00:37:45 --> 00:37:46 cross of
00:37:46 --> 00:37:47 Jesus.
00:37:48 --> 00:37:48 We need to
00:37:48 --> 00:37:49 remember that
00:37:49 --> 00:37:51 that was hard.
00:37:52 --> 00:37:52 We need to
00:37:52 --> 00:37:53 remember how
00:37:53 --> 00:37:55 generous Jesus
00:37:55 --> 00:37:57 was to bleed
00:37:57 --> 00:37:59 away for us.
00:37:59 --> 00:38:00 we need to
00:38:00 --> 00:38:01 remember that
00:38:01 --> 00:38:01 when he was
00:38:01 --> 00:38:02 nailed to that
00:38:02 --> 00:38:03 cross, our
00:38:03 --> 00:38:05 sin and fear
00:38:05 --> 00:38:07 of being
00:38:07 --> 00:38:08 lowered in
00:38:08 --> 00:38:09 society and
00:38:09 --> 00:38:10 our selfishness
00:38:10 --> 00:38:11 and greed and
00:38:11 --> 00:38:12 unwillingness to be
00:38:12 --> 00:38:13 compassionate was
00:38:13 --> 00:38:14 nailed with him
00:38:14 --> 00:38:15 up there.
00:38:15 --> 00:38:18 and we need to
00:38:18 --> 00:38:18 remember that
00:38:18 --> 00:38:19 when he came
00:38:19 --> 00:38:20 back to life, he
00:38:20 --> 00:38:21 gave us new
00:38:21 --> 00:38:22 life in his
00:38:22 --> 00:38:24 image, his
00:38:24 --> 00:38:26 perfect God
00:38:26 --> 00:38:27 loving image and
00:38:27 --> 00:38:28 he gives us the
00:38:28 --> 00:38:31 strength to go
00:38:31 --> 00:38:32 on being
00:38:32 --> 00:38:33 compassionate,
00:38:34 --> 00:38:35 being merciful and
00:38:35 --> 00:38:37 loving, to
00:38:37 --> 00:38:38 break those
00:38:38 --> 00:38:41 hard barriers of
00:38:41 --> 00:38:42 comfort zones and
00:38:42 --> 00:38:44 expectations and
00:38:44 --> 00:38:45 too big to do
00:38:45 --> 00:38:45 alone.
00:38:46 --> 00:38:47 He breaks
00:38:47 --> 00:38:47 that.
00:38:51 --> 00:38:52 Now, time and
00:38:52 --> 00:38:53 time again, when I
00:38:53 --> 00:38:54 talk to people who
00:38:54 --> 00:38:55 don't know Jesus
00:38:55 --> 00:38:57 and I ask them
00:38:57 --> 00:38:58 what they think
00:38:58 --> 00:38:59 about Christianity,
00:38:59 --> 00:39:00 what they think
00:39:00 --> 00:39:00 about the church,
00:39:01 --> 00:39:02 time and time
00:39:02 --> 00:39:02 again, what
00:39:02 --> 00:39:03 surprises me and
00:39:03 --> 00:39:04 disappoints me is
00:39:04 --> 00:39:05 they can tell me a
00:39:05 --> 00:39:06 lot more about what
00:39:06 --> 00:39:06 the church is
00:39:06 --> 00:39:09 against than
00:39:09 --> 00:39:10 what it's for.
00:39:14 --> 00:39:15 Now, let's
00:39:15 --> 00:39:16 break that, eh?
00:39:17 --> 00:39:19 Let's break that
00:39:19 --> 00:39:20 perception.
00:39:20 --> 00:39:21 Now, I know a lot
00:39:21 --> 00:39:21 of it is because the
00:39:21 --> 00:39:22 devil really doesn't
00:39:22 --> 00:39:23 want the world to
00:39:23 --> 00:39:24 realise that Jesus'
00:39:24 --> 00:39:26 people are his and
00:39:26 --> 00:39:27 are like him and
00:39:27 --> 00:39:28 will change the
00:39:28 --> 00:39:29 world on his
00:39:29 --> 00:39:31 behalf through his
00:39:31 --> 00:39:31 spirit.
00:39:33 --> 00:39:34 But at the same
00:39:34 --> 00:39:37 time, let's not
00:39:37 --> 00:39:38 give people a
00:39:38 --> 00:39:40 reason to think
00:39:40 --> 00:39:42 that the church
00:39:42 --> 00:39:43 isn't for helping
00:39:43 --> 00:39:46 people, that the
00:39:46 --> 00:39:47 church isn't for
00:39:47 --> 00:39:48 going out of its
00:39:48 --> 00:39:49 way, that the
00:39:49 --> 00:39:51 church isn't really
00:39:51 --> 00:39:53 about being
00:39:53 --> 00:39:54 generous.
00:39:55 --> 00:39:57 Let's stop people
00:39:57 --> 00:39:57 from having that
00:39:57 --> 00:39:59 excuse to think
00:39:59 --> 00:40:00 that way.
00:40:02 --> 00:40:03 What's the last
00:40:03 --> 00:40:05 verse in the
00:40:05 --> 00:40:05 passage that was
00:40:05 --> 00:40:06 read out to us?
00:40:07 --> 00:40:08 Go and do
00:40:08 --> 00:40:09 likewise.
00:40:10 --> 00:40:11 Why don't we
00:40:11 --> 00:40:11 pray?
00:40:20 --> 00:40:21 Our Lord Jesus,
00:40:21 --> 00:40:22 when we look at
00:40:22 --> 00:40:23 your life and
00:40:23 --> 00:40:24 your death and
00:40:24 --> 00:40:25 your resurrection,
00:40:25 --> 00:40:26 we're blown away
00:40:26 --> 00:40:28 by the
00:40:28 --> 00:40:29 generosity and
00:40:29 --> 00:40:30 the compassion
00:40:30 --> 00:40:31 that you've had
00:40:31 --> 00:40:31 on us.
00:40:32 --> 00:40:33 And Lord, we
00:40:33 --> 00:40:34 praise you for
00:40:34 --> 00:40:36 the new life that
00:40:36 --> 00:40:36 we have in you
00:40:36 --> 00:40:37 and how through
00:40:37 --> 00:40:38 your spirit you
00:40:38 --> 00:40:39 are making us
00:40:39 --> 00:40:40 in your image.
00:40:40 --> 00:40:41 Lord, we pray
00:40:41 --> 00:40:42 that we might
00:40:42 --> 00:40:43 step out this
00:40:43 --> 00:40:44 week looking
00:40:44 --> 00:40:45 like you in
00:40:45 --> 00:40:46 how compassionate
00:40:46 --> 00:40:47 we are, in
00:40:47 --> 00:40:49 turning away from
00:40:49 --> 00:40:50 the temptations
00:40:50 --> 00:40:52 that we don't
00:40:52 --> 00:40:52 need to be
00:40:52 --> 00:40:54 compassionate and
00:40:54 --> 00:40:55 the fears of
00:40:55 --> 00:40:56 how difficult
00:40:56 --> 00:40:57 being compassionate
00:40:57 --> 00:40:59 is sometimes.
00:41:00 --> 00:41:00 And Lord, we
00:41:00 --> 00:41:02 pray that as we
00:41:02 --> 00:41:03 reflect on the
00:41:03 --> 00:41:04 gospel of how
00:41:04 --> 00:41:05 you've saved us,
00:41:05 --> 00:41:06 that you would
00:41:06 --> 00:41:07 drive us out
00:41:07 --> 00:41:09 to live as
00:41:09 --> 00:41:10 people who
00:41:10 --> 00:41:12 love you with
00:41:12 --> 00:41:12 all of our
00:41:12 --> 00:41:13 heart and our
00:41:13 --> 00:41:14 soul and our
00:41:14 --> 00:41:15 mind and our
00:41:15 --> 00:41:16 strength and
00:41:16 --> 00:41:18 who love our
00:41:18 --> 00:41:18 neighbours.
00:41:20 --> 00:41:21 Amen.
00:41:21 --> 00:41:26 Let's pray will
00:41:26 --> 00:41:29 pray 2 and
00:41:29 --> 00:41:31 pray 2 again.
00:41:31 --> 00:41:34 Thank you.