WEBVTT 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:01.150 I'm going to invite you to Romans. 00:00:01.480 --> 00:00:06.390 Chapter 15 is where we're at today, Romans chapter 15 that we're going to be looking at together. 00:00:06.460 --> 00:00:08.060 We're getting to the end of the book of Romans. 00:00:08.780 --> 00:00:15.460 And you can tell by the Apostle Paul's speech that he knows that he's about to conclude the book of Romans because it's in this section of scripture. 00:00:15.740 --> 00:00:22.740 He's reminiscing on the things that the church has learned and now looking forward to the future that the church has before them. 00:00:23.000 --> 00:00:30.220 And he's acknowledging the good things that God has done in Rome, in this church, and particularly because Paul's never visited 00:00:30.220 --> 00:00:33.270 this church, his heart has been to visit Rome. 00:00:33.340 --> 00:00:34.300 I mean, he's in the Roman Empire. 00:00:34.400 --> 00:00:41.520 Paul is one that went to the cities, the centers for what would bring about the change in 00:00:41.520 --> 00:00:42.240 culture. 00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:48.360 Paul went to the larger metropolitan population areas to then impact the country. 00:00:48.360 --> 00:00:55.440 That's the way Paul typically did his ministry and Rome is sort of like the pinnacle of all that Paul's heart has been to get to Rome. 00:00:55.440 --> 00:01:02.480 But to this point, he's not reached the city and wanting to encourage the believers there, knowing that, well, Rome started 00:01:02.480 --> 00:01:03.260 in Rome. 00:01:03.300 --> 00:01:03.460 Right. 00:01:03.520 --> 00:01:06.100 So he writes this letter to encourage them. 00:01:06.100 --> 00:01:11.230 And he's acknowledging the great things that God has done in this church, even though he hasn't been there firsthand. 00:01:11.780 --> 00:01:13.990 He's just heard of the reputation that they've had. 00:01:14.220 --> 00:01:17.140 But I think his heart is also that they would continue. 00:01:17.700 --> 00:01:24.720 Well, and, when I think about the history of ABC, I got to tell you guys, I am I am biased and the history 00:01:24.720 --> 00:01:25.540 of our church. 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:33.220 But when I look at the way that a life goes in ministries and for other churches, I feel like the history of our church has been 00:01:33.220 --> 00:01:40.420 one that God has just put us on a on a rocket of just enjoying doing ministry here and reaching our community and 00:01:40.420 --> 00:01:41.910 seeing what God grows. 00:01:42.020 --> 00:01:49.460 And we've done that as a church, really, when you look at starting churches, the expense to start a church, they 00:01:49.460 --> 00:01:51.740 estimate is somewhere anywhere in our country. 00:01:51.760 --> 00:01:58.760 The estimation for starting a church is about a quarter of $1 million that church will need to get off the ground and become independent. 00:01:59.380 --> 00:02:06.380 And for us to start ABC, we started on pennies and God has just been faithful and seeing what 00:02:06.380 --> 00:02:13.740 he has brought together for us to have a community to worship, we sometimes describe ourselves as just out of the side of the mountain. 00:02:13.980 --> 00:02:21.100 The Lord has hewn something here that's been beautiful and we sure there's bumps in the road, but for me, I would not have it any other way. 00:02:21.120 --> 00:02:28.260 It's been a delight and a wonderful journey to the point now that after when we started in 2008 as just a Bible 00:02:28.260 --> 00:02:35.590 study and I'm always bragging about what God has done here and just being able to be a part of it and seeing how God's moved through people. 00:02:35.940 --> 00:02:40.450 But it's getting to the point now where sometimes you just kind of look over your shoulder and you're like, When are bad things going to happen? 00:02:40.660 --> 00:02:41.020 Right? 00:02:41.020 --> 00:02:42.320 Like, where are the horror stories? 00:02:42.540 --> 00:02:43.600 It's not been that way. 00:02:43.600 --> 00:02:44.200 It's just been a delight. 00:02:44.580 --> 00:02:48.800 And I think about when Paul's writing this story to the to the Romans. 00:02:48.820 --> 00:02:51.080 He's acknowledging the great things that's happened. 00:02:51.460 --> 00:02:55.060 And he knows that at some point there's going to be a bump in the road. 00:02:55.060 --> 00:02:59.740 But he wants the church to remain focused on what God's called them to do. 00:02:59.740 --> 00:03:06.360 And so that's where we find ourselves in Romans 15 is really the backdrop of that story. 00:03:06.380 --> 00:03:12.920 In verse 14, Paul starts here by talking about the great things that the church has done. 00:03:12.920 --> 00:03:13.980 I don't know what just happened. 00:03:15.660 --> 00:03:16.170 Here we go. 00:03:16.220 --> 00:03:17.020 Verse 14. 00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:24.300 Thank you, verse 14, It says, I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness and 00:03:24.300 --> 00:03:27.300 filled with the knowledge and able to instruct one another. 00:03:28.040 --> 00:03:35.280 And so he's saying in these verses as he thinks about what he's heard and the reputation of the church, though he's not visited just the good things that God has done. 00:03:35.280 --> 00:03:42.360 And, as a as I reflected on this passage and thinking about where we are and the history of how God has done things, done 00:03:42.360 --> 00:03:48.220 things here, I just those words that Paul uses here, the goodness of the church filled with knowledge, able to instruct one another. 00:03:48.440 --> 00:03:50.000 It's a beautiful thing. 00:03:50.000 --> 00:03:57.080 Like, when I think about in terms of goodness, as Paul's described the church in Rome, thinking about the good 00:03:57.080 --> 00:03:59.390 things that God has done in this church. 00:03:59.580 --> 00:04:04.470 And, I think about just in our history how many people have come to know the Lord here. 00:04:05.260 --> 00:04:13.120 And many of people have come to that are a part of our church being first generation followers of Jesus. 00:04:13.200 --> 00:04:15.610 And maybe the only one within their family have known Christ. 00:04:15.880 --> 00:04:23.180 Just our history and seeing new people come to know the Lord for the first time, maybe coming from a family that doesn't claim 00:04:23.180 --> 00:04:29.840 to have followed after the biblical Christ and now pursuing Jesus and carrying that heart for others. 00:04:29.920 --> 00:04:37.260 And you just you see that reflected in our body, even in the last few months where we've taken trips to Uganda 00:04:37.260 --> 00:04:40.120 and really loved on them. 00:04:40.120 --> 00:04:44.580 Well, and sending thousands of dollars and serving the community there. 00:04:44.780 --> 00:04:51.800 And even the last couple of months we've held a church planters conference for our state here and invested in church 00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:59.000 planters because our heart is to see a healthy church in every town in our state and how we've just been moving to 00:04:59.000 --> 00:04:59.480 that. 00:04:59.660 --> 00:05:07.020 As a church and even our food pantry ministry that's growing and our Spanish ministries that we've just started 00:05:07.020 --> 00:05:12.540 recently with Robbie and Alexis leading that now and vacation Bible school. 00:05:12.560 --> 00:05:20.040 And every summer it's been our pattern as a church that we typically stop our most of our Bible studies to focus more outwardly 00:05:20.040 --> 00:05:23.340 as a as a church community to reach our community. 00:05:23.500 --> 00:05:26.860 Even while I was I was reflecting on this passage on Thursday evening. 00:05:26.920 --> 00:05:31.720 I'm sitting in my chair at my house and just looking over this and meditating on this passage. 00:05:31.720 --> 00:05:35.720 And as I'm reading this, you guys, a group of you are texting me. 00:05:35.720 --> 00:05:42.820 You don't know this, but at different times I'm getting different text messages from people in our church and you guys are telling me how you're sharing Christ with 00:05:42.820 --> 00:05:47.120 people in your community and some of you will know who you are if you've texted me on Thursday evening. 00:05:47.220 --> 00:05:50.420 But I'm just thinking I'm reflecting on the goodness of God and here I am. 00:05:50.460 --> 00:05:57.460 I don't have to think you guys are sending me messages about your concern for your neighbor and your friends and your family about what God's doing and how the Lord is 00:05:57.460 --> 00:05:58.160 using him. 00:05:58.160 --> 00:05:59.510 Just thinking this is incredible. 00:05:59.740 --> 00:06:01.280 I couldn't even I couldn't even plan this. 00:06:01.380 --> 00:06:04.000 How that was just taking place. 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:11.160 And, I think even in a couple of weeks, we'll have a group of churches from around the United States coming here for a missions 00:06:11.160 --> 00:06:18.160 camp that I lead in order to help people understand how to how to better connect to Utah ministry, how they can support it, how they 00:06:18.160 --> 00:06:20.410 can share the gospel here and be involved. 00:06:20.820 --> 00:06:24.220 And so the Lord is doing just a beautiful work. 00:06:24.220 --> 00:06:31.130 And not to mention we're still moving forward on a on a building project, which hopefully will get all of that lined up to share with you soon. 00:06:31.140 --> 00:06:37.510 It just feels like it's taken a bit with working with the city and the planning to be able to move that ball forward. 00:06:37.760 --> 00:06:45.140 But God's doing a beautiful work here, and not just in terms of seeing good things being done, 00:06:45.140 --> 00:06:49.400 but it's a church that cares about the truth of God, the knowledge of God. 00:06:49.500 --> 00:06:54.690 I think we started even in the book of Romans as an example, going verse by verse through Romans. 00:06:55.080 --> 00:06:55.140 Romans. 00:06:55.180 --> 00:06:57.890 I think we started in October of last year. 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:01.210 So you're about 32 lessons deep in the book of Romans now. 00:07:01.800 --> 00:07:07.300 And we've grown more as a church going through this series than really any other time in our history. 00:07:07.300 --> 00:07:10.240 I think our average attendance now on a Sunday is over 300 people. 00:07:10.940 --> 00:07:18.100 And it's just been beautiful, like the hunger of God's people to know the Word of God, because we recognize it transforms our life 00:07:18.100 --> 00:07:21.920 to then empower us to do the to do the work of God in this world. 00:07:22.000 --> 00:07:23.640 And so those things work in tandem. 00:07:23.900 --> 00:07:25.920 And so it's filled with the knowledge of God. 00:07:25.960 --> 00:07:33.920 And then you're able to instruct and this word instruct is a it's a really a difficult word to translate. 00:07:34.160 --> 00:07:41.360 The idea of instructing is a is a component of what this word means, but it also carries this word of encourage and admonish. 00:07:42.700 --> 00:07:49.900 It means not only do we understand how important God's word is, but we want to understand it so well that we can share it with others to the point 00:07:49.900 --> 00:07:56.420 that we were faithful in it, that we understand that sometimes we're not always faithful to what God's Word says. 00:07:56.460 --> 00:08:03.040 But in the confidence of that, we need to admonish other other brothers and sisters that may not be walking in alignment with what God's Word says. 00:08:03.100 --> 00:08:07.980 And we don't do that dominating over people, but rather coming alongside in order to encourage. 00:08:08.400 --> 00:08:11.720 Encourage literally means to pour encourage into someone else. 00:08:11.780 --> 00:08:16.660 And what God's word communicates to us to be out of all the things that you could be faithful to. 00:08:16.740 --> 00:08:19.920 While the world may pressure you want to be faithful to what Christ says. 00:08:20.700 --> 00:08:28.020 And so the Apostle Paul is looking at this church and really under the rule of Nero, who is about to persecute Christians. 00:08:28.320 --> 00:08:30.960 And he's reminding them they continue to be good. 00:08:30.980 --> 00:08:32.780 They continue to yearn to know God's word. 00:08:33.580 --> 00:08:40.909 And they're faithful to instruct and to admonish and to encourage just with this desire to want to see the community 00:08:41.000 --> 00:08:44.179 of Christ faithful in what God has called us to do. 00:08:44.260 --> 00:08:51.210 Because at the end of the day, that's what matters, because that's what transforms life both now and for all of eternity. 00:08:51.780 --> 00:08:59.540 You know, sometimes to follow after the Lord, it can be hard and we can we can move towards that timid over the consequence. 00:08:59.580 --> 00:09:05.460 But Paul is reminding us that this church there bold they care and they're standing in it. 00:09:06.200 --> 00:09:09.800 But now Paul's concern is and will they always be faithful to that? 00:09:11.300 --> 00:09:12.580 Is that enough? 00:09:13.540 --> 00:09:20.560 And so in the next part of verse 15, he goes on and says, But on some points I have written to you very boldly by 00:09:20.560 --> 00:09:22.760 way of reminder. 00:09:23.840 --> 00:09:31.120 And so what Paul is recognizing about our human nature is things that take place that are supernatural, which your life in Christ 00:09:31.120 --> 00:09:38.320 being made known in Jesus, being redeemed, and what Christ has done as you've surrendered to him, that new life that you have, that new birth 00:09:38.320 --> 00:09:40.180 that Scripture talks about that is supernatural. 00:09:40.360 --> 00:09:44.840 And so you when you first become a Christian, you step into that with this joy. 00:09:45.420 --> 00:09:52.500 But over time, what was supernatural tends to become sometimes ordinary, and you forget just how sacred and special 00:09:52.500 --> 00:09:59.720 that it that it is that you have the privilege to connect to God and to walk with God and to be a light for the Lord in this world. 00:09:59.720 --> 00:10:00.500 World. 00:10:00.640 --> 00:10:07.760 And so Paul, wanting to make the focus of what the church is about, to continue to be focused, to not get lost in the fray, 00:10:07.940 --> 00:10:10.730 to not to not get lost in the mundane. 00:10:10.800 --> 00:10:13.200 He reminds them of how important it is. 00:10:13.240 --> 00:10:19.840 And he says so in this letter, he spoke boldly about about that relationship in Christ and what that means. 00:10:19.880 --> 00:10:27.080 And so if you remember in the Book of Romans in the first 11 chapters, he lays out for us all of our identity in Jesus, 00:10:27.080 --> 00:10:29.980 not because of what we do, but because of what he's done for us. 00:10:30.260 --> 00:10:37.660 And then he talks about in 12 and on the outworking of the way that we should live in light of that, because of the grace given to us in 00:10:37.660 --> 00:10:38.210 Jesus. 00:10:38.680 --> 00:10:41.600 And now here he's reminding us, don't lose sight of that. 00:10:42.400 --> 00:10:48.620 I've spoken boldly about this so that in your life priority is given to what matters most. 00:10:48.820 --> 00:10:56.530 Because in the busyness of life we tend to lose perspective sometimes as to what we should be about as God's people. 00:10:57.960 --> 00:10:59.140 In fact. 00:11:00.500 --> 00:11:03.920 There's a there's a story that was written by J.R.R. 00:11:03.920 --> 00:11:11.040 Tolkien when he was writing The Lord of the Rings in the 1930, he and C.S Lewis decided 00:11:11.040 --> 00:11:16.950 they were going to write the kind of stories that they felt people should read, the kind of stories that would encourage others. 00:11:17.740 --> 00:11:18.420 And J.R.R. 00:11:18.420 --> 00:11:26.420 Tolkien and C.S Lewis were both Christians, and so their stories have biblical undertones in the way that they proclaim 00:11:26.420 --> 00:11:32.900 their stories about really who Christ is as you as you read their literature. 00:11:32.960 --> 00:11:34.100 But when J.R.R. 00:11:34.100 --> 00:11:39.740 Tolkien is writing The Lord of the Rings, he sees C.S Lewis just pouring out book after book, story after story. 00:11:39.840 --> 00:11:42.620 Chronicles of Narnia Screwtape Letters and J.R.R. 00:11:42.620 --> 00:11:44.280 Tolkien could not keep up with that pace. 00:11:44.320 --> 00:11:49.630 In fact, he got a little bit jealous about how C.S Lewis was able to write so quickly these stories. 00:11:50.260 --> 00:11:57.720 And he was just trying to work on the Lord of the Rings to the point that he at one point he got so discouraged he actually quit writing for a moment. 00:11:58.340 --> 00:12:05.460 And it said as he wrote The Lord of the Rings, some of the chapters, as he would write, he got so dissatisfied with him he would rewrite them 00:12:05.460 --> 00:12:06.620 and rewrite them and rewrite them. 00:12:06.620 --> 00:12:13.300 And they say some chapters, Lord Rings, he wrote ten times before he was he settled on what he wanted that chapter two to be about. 00:12:14.420 --> 00:12:19.160 And at one point in this discouragement, the story goes that Tolkien had a dream. 00:12:20.240 --> 00:12:22.820 And it was a story that he later wrote in a book. 00:12:22.880 --> 00:12:24.720 And it was called The Leaf by Niggle. 00:12:25.540 --> 00:12:33.120 And in this story, it was about a man who was an artist and the city had commissioned him where he lived to paint a beautiful mural. 00:12:34.000 --> 00:12:36.450 And he decided he wanted to paint a tree. 00:12:37.220 --> 00:12:44.640 And as he went to paint this tree, he got so fixated on trying to make this tree perfect that he really 00:12:44.640 --> 00:12:45.960 just began with a leaf. 00:12:46.020 --> 00:12:47.640 And he never got beyond the leaf. 00:12:47.640 --> 00:12:48.320 Over and over. 00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:50.400 He just focused on this leaf. 00:12:50.680 --> 00:12:57.850 And perfection was driving him crazy and trying to articulate the beauty of this tree for others to appreciate. 00:12:58.360 --> 00:13:04.730 And as he just works on this single leaf, all of a sudden life got busy and he got distracted. 00:13:05.740 --> 00:13:07.730 And at certain points he even got apathetic. 00:13:09.160 --> 00:13:16.180 But then niggle has this dream, and this dream is really a becomes this picture of heaven where 00:13:16.180 --> 00:13:21.720 he in this dream he jumps on a train and he rides this train to into eternity. 00:13:21.740 --> 00:13:27.570 And on his way into eternity, as he's driving, all of a sudden he looks out the window and he sees this tree. 00:13:28.960 --> 00:13:32.040 And he realizes it's the tree that he had been trying to paint. 00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:38.140 And he gets off the train and he runs towards this tree and he sees the beauty of this tree. 00:13:39.120 --> 00:13:43.480 And while he looks at the beauty of this tree, he recognizes he can see it with his eyes. 00:13:43.480 --> 00:13:48.940 But as he reflects on his own artwork, he realizes he can never fully capture the beauty of the tree. 00:13:50.400 --> 00:13:53.460 But he's been given the opportunity to attempt to do so. 00:13:54.220 --> 00:14:01.620 And while perfection had been stopping him, he realized that he just needed to take the talent that God had given him and began to express 00:14:01.620 --> 00:14:02.660 this beauty. 00:14:02.660 --> 00:14:10.180 And when Tolkien told this story, he used that story as the moment to recognize 00:14:10.180 --> 00:14:17.260 that perfection and the business of life was stopping him from telling the story of the Lord of the Rings. 00:14:18.000 --> 00:14:25.040 And after he wrote the story about Nigel, he then moves on and goes back to working on the story of the Lord of 00:14:25.040 --> 00:14:26.680 the Rings, which took him over a decade to complete. 00:14:28.540 --> 00:14:35.920 But the point of the story is to remind him of the sacredness of we as human beings have to use our talents 00:14:35.920 --> 00:14:38.780 and our abilities to reflect the beauty of who God is. 00:14:39.640 --> 00:14:40.710 And it's not going to be perfect. 00:14:42.180 --> 00:14:49.340 But we shouldn't lose sight of what Christ has done for us and forsake the opportunity that we have, even in our imperfections, 00:14:50.300 --> 00:14:52.100 to point to his glory. 00:14:53.760 --> 00:15:00.900 And the Apostle Paul, thinking about the life of the church, he's encouraging us to continue to 00:15:00.900 --> 00:15:06.040 move forward and to do so boldly, as he says in this passage of scripture. 00:15:06.080 --> 00:15:13.120 At some point, I have written to you very boldly by way of reminder, encouraging the church to move forward boldly and what God has 00:15:13.120 --> 00:15:14.780 called them to do. 00:15:14.800 --> 00:15:20.220 And so in three points this morning, this is what we want to talk about, is how do we boldly move forward as God's people? 00:15:21.600 --> 00:15:26.300 Not to lose sight, but rather to continue to drive forward. 00:15:26.340 --> 00:15:27.920 And what God has called us to. 00:15:27.920 --> 00:15:32.000 And point number one in your notes is this We move forward by position. 00:15:33.100 --> 00:15:33.950 We move forward by position. 00:15:34.120 --> 00:15:40.150 Our position is not one that we have earned, but rather one that we have we have received in Christ. 00:15:40.240 --> 00:15:47.880 This position is one of authority, not because of our authority, but because of Christ's authority in our lives. 00:15:48.080 --> 00:15:55.200 When we talk in terms of position, I think it's important to have an idea of a biblical picture of what position is about in Jesus versus what 00:15:55.200 --> 00:15:56.210 the world says. 00:15:56.840 --> 00:16:03.860 When we talk about worldly position, people see themselves as climbing a ladder in order to speak down to others, to get them to do what God or what they want them to do, 00:16:03.880 --> 00:16:06.160 and seeing themselves more as an authority, as God. 00:16:06.240 --> 00:16:07.860 They speak down to people. 00:16:09.040 --> 00:16:16.160 But in terms of biblical authority, what God calls us to in him is rather than climb the corporate ladder, to speak down to people, we become 00:16:16.160 --> 00:16:17.950 servants of servants. 00:16:18.380 --> 00:16:18.600 Really. 00:16:18.600 --> 00:16:21.800 It's a it's a not a top down kingdom, but a bottom up. 00:16:21.800 --> 00:16:26.880 We come beneath people in order to meet their need to help them become all that God has called them to be. 00:16:26.880 --> 00:16:30.110 We serve them in that capacity as Jesus served us. 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:33.980 Though he was king of kings, he became servant of servants. 00:16:34.020 --> 00:16:41.120 And in the second half of verse 15, Paul reminds us of this, that as he gets ready to talk about his position, it's not because 00:16:41.120 --> 00:16:43.840 of anything that he has done, but what God has done for him. 00:16:44.540 --> 00:16:50.740 And the same is true for all of us, that God gives us authority in this world, but it's not built on us. 00:16:50.840 --> 00:16:55.440 It's built on him that we are representatives of the position in which Christ has given to us. 00:16:55.440 --> 00:16:57.240 That's why the Bible uses the word. 00:16:57.340 --> 00:17:04.700 Often it describes us as in second Corinthians five terms, like you are an ambassador, an ambassador for Christ, meaning you represent 00:17:04.700 --> 00:17:06.500 this king called in this position. 00:17:06.500 --> 00:17:09.380 And it's not about what you want, it's about what he wants. 00:17:09.380 --> 00:17:11.619 That's the way that an ambassador works in this world. 00:17:11.839 --> 00:17:16.140 And in verse 15, he says this because of the grace given me by God. 00:17:17.819 --> 00:17:24.900 To be a minister of Christ, Jesus to the Gentiles and the priestly service of the Gospel of God, so that the offering of the Gentiles may 00:17:24.900 --> 00:17:28.930 be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. 00:17:30.380 --> 00:17:37.500 And what Paul is acknowledging in the beginning and in the end of this, that is only by the grace of God sanctified, sanctified by the Spirit of God, that any 00:17:37.500 --> 00:17:38.300 of this is enabled. 00:17:38.600 --> 00:17:44.230 It's not about me, but in the in-between, God chooses to work through me in order to accomplish this in this world. 00:17:44.360 --> 00:17:46.240 And Paul uses these titles for him. 00:17:46.240 --> 00:17:50.430 In this passage, he refers to himself as both a minister and a priest. 00:17:50.500 --> 00:17:54.880 And I want you to know this morning these aren't titles that are just unique to the Apostle Paul. 00:17:55.720 --> 00:18:02.720 These are titles that every Christian in Christ are given, that we are all ministers of the gospel and 00:18:02.720 --> 00:18:03.500 we are called. 00:18:03.720 --> 00:18:07.800 And in first Peter, chapter two Priests, Royal Priests in the Lord. 00:18:08.300 --> 00:18:15.300 Now, there is a uniqueness to the Apostle Paul's position in the fact that he's he is an apostle and he was called specifically to the Gentiles 00:18:15.300 --> 00:18:19.800 that when you think in terms of the New Testament, they were apostles and the apostles went to this world. 00:18:19.880 --> 00:18:24.530 And Paul specifically refers to himself as this apostle to the Gentiles, going to the ends of the earth. 00:18:25.040 --> 00:18:26.560 So there is some uniqueness to that. 00:18:26.600 --> 00:18:32.780 And I would say there's uniqueness to all of our calls because God has gifted us all individually for a particular purpose. 00:18:32.780 --> 00:18:38.280 He has called us to God has placed us in position and relationships that others may not be there. 00:18:39.100 --> 00:18:41.500 And so there is certainly the uniqueness to your call. 00:18:41.500 --> 00:18:48.600 There's also the sacredness of your call, meaning how important it is your work that you do in this world because you're called to be a light for 00:18:48.600 --> 00:18:50.340 Christ to represent Jesus. 00:18:50.620 --> 00:18:56.420 You think how much more important can it be than to than to be a spokesman for Christ in this world? 00:18:57.680 --> 00:19:04.200 But he's also acknowledging something that really all of us we have we have this importance of ministering where we are. 00:19:05.080 --> 00:19:12.600 You think about your roles that you might have in this world, whether you're married or you're a parent or you hold down some 00:19:12.600 --> 00:19:20.250 sort of job that wherever that you are in this world in terms of relationship, that is your place of influence to minister. 00:19:21.900 --> 00:19:26.900 And the way that we do that in this world is not to dominate over people. 00:19:29.120 --> 00:19:30.110 But to lead them to Christ. 00:19:31.300 --> 00:19:35.240 And that's exactly how Paul calls this position of a priest. 00:19:35.980 --> 00:19:43.000 And I think when he uses this word priest in this passage, he's not talking about a Jewish priest, but rather he's borrowing a word from the from the gentile pagan 00:19:43.000 --> 00:19:47.900 world, acknowledging how the religious beliefs of the day they all had these priests. 00:19:48.020 --> 00:19:55.220 But the way that he sees his position and sacredness before God is one that ministers to people and he brings people to 00:19:55.220 --> 00:19:55.700 the Lord. 00:19:57.020 --> 00:20:03.240 And meaning in your position in this world, you are this connector between heaven and earth. 00:20:04.520 --> 00:20:11.640 And how beautiful that position is to take the truth of what God has done for us as you've experienced it in the Book of 00:20:11.640 --> 00:20:14.640 Romans and now minister it to others. 00:20:16.160 --> 00:20:23.300 I think the most important place that should begin in our lives is here in the church and in your homes that we communicate 00:20:23.300 --> 00:20:26.520 what should be most important to us. 00:20:27.940 --> 00:20:32.740 And even think of the privilege it is to serve and to sacrifice for Christ. 00:20:34.100 --> 00:20:38.090 Now, I know in terms of sacrifice, we are creatures that like comfort. 00:20:38.260 --> 00:20:45.660 And if someone asks you, do you want to make a sacrifice, and really any aspect of your life where we are often reluctant to 00:20:45.660 --> 00:20:47.610 say, you know what, help me be uncomfortable. 00:20:47.840 --> 00:20:49.180 We like our comforts. 00:20:49.250 --> 00:20:53.470 We don't we don't necessarily want to want to get involved in sacrifice unless. 00:20:55.820 --> 00:20:56.900 Unless the call is important. 00:20:58.940 --> 00:21:06.220 And in which case we'll realign our lives in order to make a sacrifice for what we find is important in 00:21:06.220 --> 00:21:07.280 life. 00:21:08.560 --> 00:21:13.500 When someone lavishes love and generosity on you. 00:21:15.660 --> 00:21:22.700 It would be foolish and rude for you as a human being to accept that gift and just simply walk 00:21:22.700 --> 00:21:23.040 away. 00:21:24.100 --> 00:21:25.100 To not acknowledge it. 00:21:25.120 --> 00:21:30.160 To not be thankful for it, to not repay in some sort of kindness, whether it be in word and deed. 00:21:30.340 --> 00:21:37.500 If someone sees need in your life and they come to you in that need and they just pour out and lavish love upon you, for you to just 00:21:37.500 --> 00:21:39.360 simply embrace that and walk away. 00:21:39.360 --> 00:21:42.240 People would look at that and think something, something was wrong with you. 00:21:42.260 --> 00:21:42.580 Right? 00:21:42.580 --> 00:21:45.010 You're not appreciative, you're not respectful, you're not kind. 00:21:45.300 --> 00:21:47.760 Why would you respond in such a way? 00:21:48.100 --> 00:21:51.950 And I would think in terms of our relationship with Christ, it works in the same way. 00:21:52.260 --> 00:21:59.340 If God gave you the opportunity and said, He said to us today, I'm going to sacrifice really everything in order that you can find 00:21:59.340 --> 00:22:01.650 life in me by giving my life for you. 00:22:02.600 --> 00:22:03.630 But I'm going to give you a choice. 00:22:04.140 --> 00:22:05.560 You can respond to that. 00:22:06.460 --> 00:22:13.840 Having no opportunity to ever do anything or I will give you the privilege of reacting 00:22:13.840 --> 00:22:18.000 in some way by reciprocal dating the joy of what you've received. 00:22:18.000 --> 00:22:18.540 Right. 00:22:18.540 --> 00:22:21.570 And what I'm saying is, would you would you like to make a sacrifice in return? 00:22:21.740 --> 00:22:29.220 Like if you're given the choice of someone lavishing on you in that way and absolutely doing nothing or choosing to respond 00:22:29.220 --> 00:22:35.810 in some way in connection to that, not because you're obligated, but because you want to show your appreciation in love. 00:22:36.340 --> 00:22:44.180 As believers, we got to got to say, as in our lives, of course, of course we want to reciprocate in that and demonstrate 00:22:44.180 --> 00:22:50.380 our thankfulness in the way that we give our lives back to that person who gave so much for us. 00:22:52.280 --> 00:22:52.880 That God. 00:22:52.900 --> 00:22:53.390 King of kings. 00:22:55.620 --> 00:22:57.820 What becomes servant of servants to the point that. 00:22:59.960 --> 00:23:03.300 He would endure the weight of sin that we could find life in him. 00:23:04.800 --> 00:23:09.180 To rescue us from our darkest of hour and give everything that we could find. 00:23:09.180 --> 00:23:11.560 New life and forgiveness and reconciliation. 00:23:13.900 --> 00:23:15.180 And the beauty of that. 00:23:15.180 --> 00:23:18.140 Then he's giving you a platform to respond a place. 00:23:19.440 --> 00:23:23.540 To show how blessed and thankful you are. 00:23:24.780 --> 00:23:29.400 By the way, that you love on others through which Christ created in his image and gave his life for. 00:23:31.080 --> 00:23:38.300 And Paul is reminding us in these verses church not only has it defined us, but we can't lose perspective of how sacred 00:23:38.300 --> 00:23:45.300 that is, that we move forward by position, not by what we've earned, but rather what we've received in Jesus. 00:23:45.300 --> 00:23:49.120 And what a beautiful place it is for us to acknowledge the opportunity. 00:23:51.280 --> 00:23:52.580 It is to honor God. 00:23:54.540 --> 00:23:55.200 If you remember. 00:23:56.520 --> 00:23:58.680 This character, Alexander Graham Bell. 00:23:59.240 --> 00:24:05.490 You may not know what he did, but you'll be quickly reminded because everyone's got one of these probably in your pocket or purse this morning. 00:24:05.660 --> 00:24:07.980 The phone, he invented the telephone. 00:24:08.260 --> 00:24:12.460 How important that has become and how much of an idol it is and everyone's life at this point. 00:24:12.460 --> 00:24:12.880 Right. 00:24:13.000 --> 00:24:16.420 But Alexander Graham Bell, I don't know whether to thank him for that now or to curse, but. 00:24:16.640 --> 00:24:23.820 But the phone became an instrument he created because or in the 1800s he designed he designed the 00:24:23.820 --> 00:24:24.560 telephone. 00:24:24.600 --> 00:24:33.260 But one of the things when Alexander Graham Bell, when he when he died, he wanted to make sure happened on his tomb, on his gravestone, he 00:24:33.260 --> 00:24:37.040 is described as an inventor and a teacher on his gravestone. 00:24:37.140 --> 00:24:40.230 But what's interesting about Alexander Graham Bell, he was born in Scotland. 00:24:41.180 --> 00:24:42.460 He died in Canada. 00:24:43.300 --> 00:24:47.660 And on his gravestone, you can see he acknowledges where he's born in Edinburgh, in Scotland. 00:24:47.660 --> 00:24:47.880 Right. 00:24:48.280 --> 00:24:50.980 But he doesn't acknowledge where he died in Canada. 00:24:51.500 --> 00:24:55.770 Instead, he wanted labeled on his tombstone that he was a citizen of the United States. 00:24:58.060 --> 00:25:05.120 And the reason I think Alexander Graham Bell wanted to acknowledge that is because it was the freedom and the opportunity he found in 00:25:05.120 --> 00:25:08.540 the United States that gave him the privilege to create the telephone. 00:25:09.620 --> 00:25:16.180 It became what his identity was about, really, the way people would know him and so on the marker of his grave. 00:25:16.740 --> 00:25:18.060 That's what he wanted to acknowledge. 00:25:19.400 --> 00:25:25.040 The place that gave him the opportunity and the freedom to afford him the privilege to create the telephone. 00:25:26.220 --> 00:25:31.250 Now, as believers, we should go a little step further than just simply acknowledging a country, though it is important. 00:25:33.120 --> 00:25:36.880 To recognize the real reason we have any freedom of all at all. 00:25:36.940 --> 00:25:41.280 To do anything in this world isn't simply because of a country, but because of our creator. 00:25:43.180 --> 00:25:48.480 The privilege to recognize anything that we do in our lives is an opportunity given to us by God. 00:25:49.900 --> 00:25:57.220 Because of his grace poured into our hearts, which transforms us to give the opportunity to even sacrifice ourselves 00:25:57.220 --> 00:25:59.280 for His glory in this world. 00:26:01.460 --> 00:26:08.660 The Apostle Paul is heart towards us, is to remember what Christ has done and to walk in that sacred 00:26:08.660 --> 00:26:09.400 privilege. 00:26:09.400 --> 00:26:16.260 We move forward boldly by position in Jesus and point number two, by power. 00:26:16.300 --> 00:26:19.260 And again, it's not in our self, but it is in the Lord. 00:26:19.260 --> 00:26:22.540 And in verse 17, he goes on and says, In Christ Jesus. 00:26:22.740 --> 00:26:29.940 Then I have reason to be proud of my work for God, for I will not venture to speak of anything except what 00:26:29.940 --> 00:26:37.120 Christ has accomplished through me, to bring the Gentiles to obedience by word and deed, by the power of signs 00:26:37.120 --> 00:26:42.160 and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God. 00:26:42.360 --> 00:26:45.580 Again in this passage, just similar to verse 15 and 16. 00:26:45.640 --> 00:26:52.760 He starts by acknowledging what Jesus has done and he continues to recognize that it's through the Spirit of God, working in the people of God, that we are able to accomplish 00:26:52.760 --> 00:26:53.620 the will of God. 00:26:53.660 --> 00:26:55.130 This does not happen in our strength. 00:26:56.920 --> 00:26:58.780 It happens in his. 00:26:59.660 --> 00:27:06.140 I have no supernatural power apart from what's given to me in Christ to see God move in the hearts of people. 00:27:07.660 --> 00:27:09.500 Meaning I don't birth spiritual life. 00:27:10.940 --> 00:27:17.300 We as a church are simply called to point to the truth of God's word and allow God's truth to impact the lives of people around him. 00:27:17.400 --> 00:27:19.160 And this is what Paul is saying in this passage. 00:27:20.060 --> 00:27:22.180 Do you know where the power comes from? 00:27:23.180 --> 00:27:26.730 He says at the end of verse 18, It's in word and deed. 00:27:26.820 --> 00:27:29.340 It's demonstrated as God's word transforms our life. 00:27:29.340 --> 00:27:36.460 It's lived out through our hands, but it's an indication of the spirit of God that's moved within the people of God to accomplish his will as we as 00:27:36.460 --> 00:27:38.100 we have communicated God's word. 00:27:38.100 --> 00:27:39.810 It's God's Word that has life. 00:27:40.060 --> 00:27:46.160 It's God who calls us to be faithful to that word in order to deliver the truth of God, to impact our hearts to the Spirit of God. 00:27:47.300 --> 00:27:52.840 And some people, I think, look at a passage like this and they fixate not not on the word of God that transforms lives. 00:27:53.040 --> 00:28:00.040 But the result of that, which is what he says in verse 19 by the power and signs that make the whole point about 00:28:00.040 --> 00:28:01.120 power and signs. 00:28:01.160 --> 00:28:08.490 But can I can I encourage you, even though verse 19 talks about power in signs, just to be mindful of the way Scripture communicates about power and signs, 00:28:08.700 --> 00:28:10.880 I would say to you this morning, can God do supernatural things? 00:28:11.120 --> 00:28:12.200 Absolutely. 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:15.780 God can do whatever he wants whenever he wants, as long as it doesn't violate his nature. 00:28:16.000 --> 00:28:22.380 Meaning God can't lie because God is a God of truth and so God will not violate his own nature. 00:28:22.420 --> 00:28:27.220 But God has the capabilities of intervening and doing things at any time, any moment according to his will. 00:28:27.960 --> 00:28:28.300 Right. 00:28:28.480 --> 00:28:34.720 But when it comes to the idea of power and signs, it's also important to be mindful of the way it's communicated in Scripture. 00:28:34.800 --> 00:28:37.890 And I got just a few points written here, and I don't think these are in your notes. 00:28:38.620 --> 00:28:45.620 But Jesus reminded us, one that false prophets and teachers will also use signs and wonders, so they're not an end 00:28:45.620 --> 00:28:52.680 in and of themselves that Jesus and his ministry even criticize people that came to him specifically asking for 00:28:52.680 --> 00:28:56.680 miracles and signs as if he was some sort of show. 00:28:56.720 --> 00:28:59.340 Or the whole point was just simply about the signs and wonders. 00:29:00.500 --> 00:29:07.740 The apostles and prophets were excuse me, the apostles and Jesus, I should say, were the ones that we're told in Scripture who did the signs 00:29:07.740 --> 00:29:08.630 and wonders. 00:29:09.080 --> 00:29:16.160 There's one reference in Acts six where Stephen does it, but those signs and wonders were intended to be a marker to recognize the significance 00:29:16.160 --> 00:29:20.060 of who Jesus was and the apostles who were given the authority to communicate His message. 00:29:20.100 --> 00:29:23.080 It validated the apostles that were commissioned by Christ. 00:29:23.160 --> 00:29:28.580 But nowhere in the New Testament does it command us to perform signs and wonders, nor seek them, nor make them the priority. 00:29:29.420 --> 00:29:33.900 God can do whatever he wants and work whatever miracle he wants, but the point of it isn't the signs and wonders. 00:29:35.440 --> 00:29:38.760 The point of it is to know God and to walk with Him. 00:29:39.680 --> 00:29:41.940 The truth of God that sets us free. 00:29:41.960 --> 00:29:48.300 The truth of God that ministers to the soul, the truth of God that transforms our lives. 00:29:49.700 --> 00:29:57.000 And so the Apostle Paul wants us to recognize that the power of God's people are made known in the Word of God, to 00:29:57.000 --> 00:29:59.900 understand it and to read it and to grow in it. 00:30:01.140 --> 00:30:04.580 I had a friend that had done years of ministry in Utah. 00:30:04.640 --> 00:30:06.800 They passed away just a couple of years ago. 00:30:06.860 --> 00:30:13.900 But they said to me, whenever I find someone that's new in Christ, the first place in the Bible that I want to take them to is Psalm 00:30:13.900 --> 00:30:14.720 119. 00:30:16.340 --> 00:30:19.700 Some 119 is the longest chapter in all of the Bible. 00:30:20.420 --> 00:30:21.880 Do you know the focus of Psalm 119? 00:30:23.500 --> 00:30:24.080 It's the word of God. 00:30:25.520 --> 00:30:27.940 The longest chapter in the Bible is about the Bible. 00:30:28.940 --> 00:30:36.080 And they said, the reason I want to take them to Psalm 119 is because I want them to understand and appreciate how important the Word 00:30:36.080 --> 00:30:38.840 of God is, that the Bible would make a chapter on the Bible. 00:30:38.840 --> 00:30:40.280 The longest chapter in the Bible. 00:30:40.340 --> 00:30:47.740 Because once once a believer understands how important the Bible is, no matter where they go in life, as long as they cling to the Bible and 00:30:47.740 --> 00:30:52.660 learn from the Bible, God can continue to speak into their heart and shape their lives. 00:30:54.480 --> 00:31:01.620 God's Word is written in God's blood, written by God's love, so that you can understand who he is and 00:31:01.620 --> 00:31:02.720 walk with him. 00:31:04.900 --> 00:31:09.440 This is why the apostle Paul is writing this letter to the Romans, Right? 00:31:10.600 --> 00:31:17.660 So they can not only understand the sacredness of the position, but the God who wants to communicate to them so that he can make themselves known in their 00:31:17.660 --> 00:31:18.260 lives. 00:31:18.260 --> 00:31:25.260 When we talk in terms of theologically, there's two types of revelation that we can learn from as God's people. 00:31:25.260 --> 00:31:30.180 One is one is referred to general revelation, the other is referred to as special revelation. 00:31:30.180 --> 00:31:31.990 General revelation deals with things like creation. 00:31:33.020 --> 00:31:37.750 The Bible tells us in Psalm eight and Psalm 19, the evidence of God is made known through his creation. 00:31:38.080 --> 00:31:45.160 You have this general revelation, the idea of the existence of a Creator by the divine design and intelligent design shows an 00:31:45.160 --> 00:31:46.780 intelligent creator. 00:31:47.540 --> 00:31:54.740 So the evidence that God's there, you can use more arguments like the cosmological argument, the ontological argument, the this idea 00:31:54.740 --> 00:31:57.700 of something doesn't come from nothing and the cosmological argument. 00:31:57.700 --> 00:32:04.740 There has to be there has to be an uncaused cause that created it all, which theologians argue would be God. 00:32:04.800 --> 00:32:12.400 And furthermore, because you see an intelligent design, there's an intelligent designer and not just that God, 00:32:12.420 --> 00:32:16.380 there's the moral argument that we have this desire for good to win over evil. 00:32:17.540 --> 00:32:24.580 That there's this moral good that people adhere to, no matter where you are in this world, as if there's this moral lawgiver who 00:32:24.580 --> 00:32:26.060 tells us right from wrong. 00:32:26.120 --> 00:32:31.830 This is innate in our creation as human beings and theologians argue that points us to a god. 00:32:33.960 --> 00:32:36.780 But it's not simply enough to be pointed to a god. 00:32:38.040 --> 00:32:39.540 Butrillionather the one true God. 00:32:40.540 --> 00:32:47.640 And the way that you come to know this one, true God is through His Word and understanding who Christ is, that God became 00:32:47.640 --> 00:32:51.880 flesh in a tangible way, that we could experience Him and know him. 00:32:52.220 --> 00:32:55.110 And so theologians refer to those as special revelation. 00:32:56.540 --> 00:33:00.500 So it's great if you like, to go on hikes and connect to God in hiking. 00:33:00.500 --> 00:33:01.160 Beautiful. 00:33:01.180 --> 00:33:08.400 Do that this Memorial Day weekend when there's millions of people up in these mountains have at it right like go go enjoy the outdoors with the crowds 00:33:08.400 --> 00:33:15.400 but at the same time to recognize it's not this generic idea of who God is, but 00:33:15.400 --> 00:33:22.620 rather the special idea of God who became flesh, that you could know him intimately and personally and 00:33:22.620 --> 00:33:29.660 connect to him through his word that the power of God made known through the Word of God, that we find life in him and 00:33:29.660 --> 00:33:30.980 in it and breathe and move. 00:33:32.080 --> 00:33:35.500 And point number three, then purpose by purpose. 00:33:36.440 --> 00:33:39.140 We could say it also another way, responsibility. 00:33:40.280 --> 00:33:46.910 And Paul, he's using his life here as an example when he thinks about the church and he's trying to encourage the church to continue to move forward. 00:33:47.100 --> 00:33:49.520 The Apostle Paul's life was about moving forward. 00:33:49.640 --> 00:33:56.640 And Philippians chapter three, verse 14, he's saying, not that I've taken hold of it, but I press on to the mark that I have in Christ Jesus upward the 00:33:56.640 --> 00:33:58.320 calling that I have in him. 00:33:58.420 --> 00:34:02.540 He puts the past in the past, and he continues to move forward to know God and connect to God. 00:34:02.580 --> 00:34:09.620 He doesn't just simply live on the things that he's done, but he understands why, while he can appreciate the way God has moved in the past, he wants to move forward to 00:34:09.620 --> 00:34:11.540 what God has called him to more in him. 00:34:11.639 --> 00:34:17.980 And I would say the same is true for our church, that we could we could just settle and we could just simply celebrate on what God has accomplished. 00:34:18.020 --> 00:34:25.060 But we also understand in Jesus, our greatest days are still before us, that as God's people walk united in Him, that the purpose which God has 00:34:25.060 --> 00:34:29.000 called us to in this world, we can continue to glorify God the way that we live in this world. 00:34:29.060 --> 00:34:35.360 We don't just want to settle for what's been done, but we want to appreciate what God has done and continue to move forward in what Christ calls us to. 00:34:35.360 --> 00:34:40.500 Because God gives us purpose every day we get the opportunity to wake up with this purpose. 00:34:41.420 --> 00:34:48.520 And he says in the next half of verse 19, he says, In Christ Jesus, then I have reason to be proud of my 00:34:48.520 --> 00:34:51.300 work for God, for I've already read that. 00:34:51.300 --> 00:34:54.800 Let me skip forward, he says in verse the second half of verse 19. 00:34:54.800 --> 00:35:01.520 So that from Jerusalem and all the way to excuse me in Illyricum There we go. 00:35:01.520 --> 00:35:02.040 Illyricum. 00:35:02.360 --> 00:35:03.830 This is modern day Albania. 00:35:04.700 --> 00:35:11.800 I have fulfilled the Ministry of the Gospel of Christ, and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ 00:35:11.800 --> 00:35:16.300 has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation. 00:35:16.380 --> 00:35:23.080 But as it is written, those who have never been told of him will see, and those who have never heard will understand. 00:35:25.380 --> 00:35:32.560 The Apostle Paul sees the sacredness of the mission, which God has called him to into this world, to go to places where people may not know the Lord 00:35:32.560 --> 00:35:36.940 and to be able to share that John Piper has. 00:35:37.160 --> 00:35:41.340 I think it's in his book, Let the nations be glad he has this little statement he gives. 00:35:41.340 --> 00:35:44.040 He says missions exist because worship does not. 00:35:45.480 --> 00:35:47.180 Mission exists because worship does not. 00:35:47.440 --> 00:35:53.480 God has called his church on mission in this world because people aren't connected to God in worship. 00:35:54.260 --> 00:36:00.560 And we're made to be worship beings and we have the opportunity with a purpose to go into this world. 00:36:00.580 --> 00:36:07.780 And the message of what Christ has delivered to us, to share that with others, that as we live on mission, we can call people into worship, 00:36:07.840 --> 00:36:11.940 that they can know the reason for which they were created in Christ Jesus. 00:36:12.060 --> 00:36:19.360 And the apostle Paul is saying he's done this from Jerusalem all the way to Albania because he wants to seek after 00:36:19.360 --> 00:36:23.140 the loss that they would have the opportunity to know Christ. 00:36:24.240 --> 00:36:26.510 And I think for us as a church, that is our heart. 00:36:27.560 --> 00:36:32.860 We understand that we don't exist simply to serve ourselves, but rather to glorify God and bless others. 00:36:33.140 --> 00:36:40.600 That God calls us on a mission to continue to reach out to that others may be saved in the Lord and come to know him and walk with him and glorify 00:36:40.600 --> 00:36:41.800 him with their lives. 00:36:41.860 --> 00:36:49.720 I can think of no better place to spend my life than to be in Utah and to share the gospel with people around me that 00:36:49.720 --> 00:36:56.800 they would have the opportunity to know Christ, to and to live for him, to see the privilege it 00:36:56.800 --> 00:37:03.900 is to stand in the position God has given me, not not because of what I've accomplished, but because of what he's accomplished through his power, not because of what 00:37:03.900 --> 00:37:06.660 I've accomplished, but because of what he's accomplished. 00:37:06.660 --> 00:37:13.280 Standing on his word with a purpose in which God is leading me into this world, you and I. 00:37:14.660 --> 00:37:17.620 For the sake of the gospel to the benefit of others. 00:37:19.920 --> 00:37:20.730 There is a responsibility. 00:37:23.640 --> 00:37:28.020 That comes along with the calling that God gives his people. 00:37:29.720 --> 00:37:37.330 We have a position of authority representing Christ, but with authority always comes responsibility. 00:37:40.140 --> 00:37:42.440 To make Christ known in this world. 00:37:44.700 --> 00:37:45.740 Responsibility. 00:37:47.640 --> 00:37:48.930 To the needs of others. 00:37:49.740 --> 00:37:55.580 I don't think there's maybe a greater example that demonstrates that than the life of a of a soldier. 00:37:56.960 --> 00:38:04.140 I think about this being Memorial Day weekend and I think about the way that the apostle Paul often 00:38:04.140 --> 00:38:05.550 wrote in the New Testament. 00:38:05.960 --> 00:38:11.320 He repeatedly used the illustration of a soldier to reflect on the life of a Christian. 00:38:12.980 --> 00:38:20.040 And the reason I think the apostle Paul did this is because, just as a soldier might fight a battle because 00:38:20.040 --> 00:38:21.510 he sees it as worthy. 00:38:21.920 --> 00:38:29.180 So as Christians being soldiers in a sense before the Lord, we are called to fight a spiritual battle and to demonstrate 00:38:29.180 --> 00:38:36.380 the characteristics of what makes really a soldier a good soldier, one that is a person of dedication, one 00:38:36.380 --> 00:38:40.300 that is a person of service and valor and sacrifice. 00:38:42.120 --> 00:38:49.440 A Christian is called to live that sort of life before the Lord who is our king representing him in this world as we war 00:38:49.440 --> 00:38:51.680 against spiritual battles. 00:38:52.720 --> 00:39:00.100 I think in terms of soldiers, especially on Memorial Day weekend, one of the places I often think about is the Arlington 00:39:00.680 --> 00:39:03.880 Cemetery Cemetery just outside of Washington, D.C., in Arlington, Virginia. 00:39:04.860 --> 00:39:09.640 Arlington Cemetery today has over 400,000 soldiers that are buried there. 00:39:11.220 --> 00:39:17.320 And one of the things within Arlington Cemetery that I often think about is the soldier of the Unknown tomb. 00:39:18.720 --> 00:39:21.470 Or the Unknown Soldier and the Unknown woman. 00:39:21.660 --> 00:39:24.540 And this soldier represented here he was. 00:39:24.800 --> 00:39:28.200 There's three soldiers that are actually in this unknown tomb today. 00:39:28.200 --> 00:39:31.840 But the first soldier that was placed there was placed in 1918. 00:39:32.800 --> 00:39:39.960 And this soldier that was placed there was a reminder of men and women who have really sacrificed to the point that some of them 00:39:39.960 --> 00:39:42.820 were not even sure who they were. 00:39:42.820 --> 00:39:46.460 But we want to remember them and what they gave for us. 00:39:46.460 --> 00:39:54.220 Willing to show that valor for the sake of others, for protecting them and defending them and honoring honoring 00:39:54.220 --> 00:39:56.220 life by giving of their life. 00:39:56.240 --> 00:40:03.420 And so the soldier and this unknown tomb, they in 1936, they decided in 1937, they decided that while they 00:40:03.420 --> 00:40:10.520 had soldiers that watched over this tomb, that when it was built in 1918, they decided in 1937 that a soldier would always be present 24 hours 00:40:10.520 --> 00:40:17.760 a day, seven days a week, recognizing those that gave all for you and for me, and even 00:40:17.760 --> 00:40:24.760 to the point that you see in that top left, that's Hurricane Sandy that went past or went over the Arlington Cemetery and 00:40:24.760 --> 00:40:31.250 these soldiers stood outside of the tomb, even during Hurricane Sandy, to give honor to the life of this unknown soldier. 00:40:31.380 --> 00:40:38.760 But written on the inscription of this tomb, it says, This here is in honor honored glory, 00:40:39.400 --> 00:40:42.900 an American soldier known but to God. 00:40:45.680 --> 00:40:49.140 The soldier, the first soldier that was put within this tomb in 1918. 00:40:49.180 --> 00:40:51.460 Another one I think, in 19 in the 1950s. 00:40:51.460 --> 00:40:58.580 And again one more in the 1980s as a reminder of those who give their lives even when we don't remember their names. 00:40:58.640 --> 00:40:59.140 God does. 00:41:00.860 --> 00:41:06.820 And because I think in terms of the Christian life, that not everyone is always aware of the battle that you're fighting. 00:41:08.320 --> 00:41:11.240 And sometimes those battles seem difficult. 00:41:12.960 --> 00:41:14.080 But God knows. 00:41:16.160 --> 00:41:17.700 God knows the battles you face. 00:41:19.440 --> 00:41:26.060 And we know in Christ how important those battles are as we live for his glory in this world. 00:41:26.060 --> 00:41:33.600 And it's to remind us that even when we fight those battles, even when they may be difficult, God knows and 00:41:33.600 --> 00:41:37.140 he knows exactly where you are and he knows exactly what you need. 00:41:38.220 --> 00:41:43.800 And it's on the backdrop of the picture of a soldier that in second, Timothy the Apostle Paul writes it like this. 00:41:43.880 --> 00:41:44.820 You then my son. 00:41:46.280 --> 00:41:48.990 Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 00:41:50.080 --> 00:41:57.890 And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others. 00:41:58.380 --> 00:42:02.520 Join with me in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 00:42:03.380 --> 00:42:08.760 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 00:42:10.780 --> 00:42:12.200 Let me just summarize it like this. 00:42:14.660 --> 00:42:19.930 When a soldier is going into battle, the last thing that you want is for that soldier to get distracted. 00:42:21.840 --> 00:42:26.760 And the reason you don't want to get that soldier distracted is because life is on the line. 00:42:28.200 --> 00:42:33.800 His life, his fellow soldiers in arms with him and those he's fighting to protect. 00:42:36.020 --> 00:42:43.180 The call of the life of a soldier to defend in that moment is too sacred to get distracted because what they're doing matters 00:42:43.180 --> 00:42:48.720 and the defense of life and protection of their other brothers and sisters in arms they may be fighting with. 00:42:49.900 --> 00:42:51.810 You don't want to be in battle with someone that's distracted. 00:42:53.760 --> 00:42:56.200 You want their eyes to be on the goal. 00:42:57.580 --> 00:42:59.400 And guys, the same is true in the life of the believer. 00:43:01.280 --> 00:43:02.780 The mundane of life. 00:43:02.820 --> 00:43:06.440 The distractions of life can pull away from the sacredness of what Christ is about. 00:43:08.700 --> 00:43:14.540 What you're called to do in Jesus is paramount in comparison to anything else this world has to offer. 00:43:16.100 --> 00:43:20.060 To lose sight of that is to lose perspective of who we're called to be as God's people. 00:43:21.380 --> 00:43:22.860 That's Paul's concern for the church. 00:43:23.680 --> 00:43:24.060 Rome. 00:43:24.060 --> 00:43:25.880 You've done great things in Jesus. 00:43:26.480 --> 00:43:27.040 You're good. 00:43:27.120 --> 00:43:28.820 You're knowledgeable in Scripture. 00:43:29.020 --> 00:43:31.780 And God has done such a great work that we can appreciate. 00:43:33.440 --> 00:43:34.620 But don't lose sight. 00:43:35.960 --> 00:43:39.040 Of the sacredness it is to represent God in this world. 00:43:40.100 --> 00:43:47.200 And as your heart is reminded of the beauty of that position, the power of Christ made known through His word and then the privilege that is to 00:43:47.200 --> 00:43:49.520 live for that purpose Each and every day. 00:43:49.940 --> 00:43:51.740 You'll continue to make a difference in this world.