WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:04.059 I want to invite you this morning to Psalm 145 is where we're going to be at together today. 00:00:04.920 --> 00:00:06.360 Psalm 145. 00:00:06.380 --> 00:00:12.240 As we get to the end of our series on the Psalms for the summer, we're going to kick off here in two weeks in the book of Thessalonians. 00:00:13.280 --> 00:00:15.870 And then when the school year starts, will be in the book of Acts together. 00:00:16.640 --> 00:00:21.100 But we're going to conclude today in our summer series on the Book of Psalms in Psalm 145. 00:00:21.260 --> 00:00:28.300 I don't know if you've if you've captured this as we've gone through our Psalms together, I have I have started the Psalms off with what I would say is more of a 00:00:28.300 --> 00:00:28.960 negative psalm. 00:00:29.680 --> 00:00:31.600 And then the following week I do more of a positive psalm. 00:00:31.940 --> 00:00:39.030 So that's the way last week we looked at a very heavy psalm that is more of a negative psalm, and it ended in a very with a very negative verse. 00:00:39.520 --> 00:00:40.980 This week we're going to go more positive. 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:43.140 That's what we're going to be is a more positive psalm. 00:00:43.440 --> 00:00:50.520 And so I really try to temper this for no matter how you are encouraged and spurred on in the faith, sometimes as people, we like to 00:00:50.520 --> 00:00:52.720 look at a problem in order to seek a solution. 00:00:52.940 --> 00:00:56.340 So we kind of like we want to be motivated, to make things different. 00:00:56.400 --> 00:00:58.120 So we start in the negative and want to move to the positive. 00:00:58.560 --> 00:01:00.510 And some of us just prefer to never say anything negative. 00:01:00.640 --> 00:01:01.000 We just. 00:01:01.260 --> 00:01:02.410 We just want to live in the positive. 00:01:02.580 --> 00:01:04.819 Just keep encouraging me and inspiring me. 00:01:05.140 --> 00:01:07.790 And I want you to know we're going to look at more of a positive Psalm today. 00:01:07.960 --> 00:01:09.710 But I'm actually going to start from the negative. 00:01:09.980 --> 00:01:10.180 Okay. 00:01:10.220 --> 00:01:17.050 So no matter where you are in this, in your faith journey, whatever motivates you, you're going to get both both of those today. 00:01:17.120 --> 00:01:24.400 Because this particular psalm, Psalm one 145 is thinking about not only the current generation, but future generations to 00:01:24.400 --> 00:01:30.780 come, spurring them on the faith and the impact that it can make and in the world around us for generations to come. 00:01:31.300 --> 00:01:32.720 Like, what does God have for us? 00:01:32.780 --> 00:01:35.880 And how can we see what God has for us be passed on to that next generation? 00:01:36.420 --> 00:01:38.430 I mean, truth be told, that's why all of us are here. 00:01:39.200 --> 00:01:42.490 As Jesus built his church for a purpose. 00:01:42.780 --> 00:01:47.120 There were saints that have gone on before us who are faithful to their own relationship with the Lord. 00:01:47.140 --> 00:01:54.180 That made some sort of impact in our own life to lead us to the place that we're in, that we can hand the torch off to the next generation, which 00:01:54.180 --> 00:02:01.220 should be important for all of us to think about, because we're always one generation away from the gospel, dying within our country, our 00:02:01.220 --> 00:02:02.260 community. 00:02:02.260 --> 00:02:08.080 And so thinking about how my own relationship with God impacts generations around me and the people around me is important. 00:02:08.740 --> 00:02:12.600 And this Psalm is one that reflects on that from more of a positive light. 00:02:13.200 --> 00:02:17.560 But in relationship to that, it reminded me as I was I was going through this Psalm. 00:02:17.560 --> 00:02:21.000 It reminded me of something I have known about for a while. 00:02:21.660 --> 00:02:27.620 From comments that if you remember the legend Paul Harvey made in the late 90s. 00:02:27.740 --> 00:02:31.510 He read in 1996, the rest of the story. 00:02:31.840 --> 00:02:34.350 He read something called if I Were the Devil. 00:02:34.860 --> 00:02:42.220 And this, the reading that he did on the radio in 1996 was actually a repeating of something that he read in 1965. 00:02:42.440 --> 00:02:42.600 Right. 00:02:42.680 --> 00:02:45.100 I'm old enough to remember 1996. 00:02:45.220 --> 00:02:52.460 I am not old enough to remember 1965, but it has been known as somewhat of an interesting reading 00:02:52.460 --> 00:02:59.720 that Paul Harvey did online, because it deals with where he sees the direction of America going and thinking 00:02:59.720 --> 00:03:02.890 and wanting to wake us up in the negative trajectory. 00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:06.250 He sees it in order for us to correct course. 00:03:06.720 --> 00:03:08.580 So what he writes is more from the negative side. 00:03:08.580 --> 00:03:12.430 We'll look at Psalm 145, dealing more from the positive side in a minute. 00:03:12.780 --> 00:03:14.480 But I want you to, as I get ready to read this. 00:03:14.960 --> 00:03:17.160 Remember he said this in 1965. 00:03:17.220 --> 00:03:19.210 So this is we're dealing with something 60 years ago. 00:03:20.080 --> 00:03:23.380 And it's interesting how he sees the course of history playing itself out. 00:03:23.480 --> 00:03:25.260 Now I will tell you everything I'm going to read. 00:03:25.280 --> 00:03:32.460 I don't necessarily agree with every component of what he says, because I think there's some parts of it that tends on the or flirt with 00:03:32.460 --> 00:03:34.680 the idea of legalism, which I am not a fan of. 00:03:34.800 --> 00:03:35.500 Right. 00:03:35.660 --> 00:03:39.600 But what he says is, I think, important for just any generation to think of. 00:03:39.720 --> 00:03:44.860 And I hope for all of us that we have the kind of mind that we're willing to listen to people, even if we disagree with them. 00:03:45.120 --> 00:03:49.560 I mean, it's okay to disagree with people when you think about the wisdom of past generations. 00:03:50.180 --> 00:03:57.420 I think with every generation, we kind of we kind of sometimes think we finally got it figured out, and we looked back at previous generations and think, I'm 00:03:57.420 --> 00:03:59.390 glad we finally figured it out today. 00:03:59.480 --> 00:04:04.320 But I want you to know, in 60 years from now, people are going to look back at you and be like, man, those guys, right? 00:04:04.320 --> 00:04:10.260 Like, that's the tendency of every generation is to finally think that they're the ones that have that have arrived. 00:04:10.400 --> 00:04:16.380 And so there should be this humility in our hearts to want to learn what do what do our past generations think? 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:17.880 What are what are their concerns? 00:04:18.279 --> 00:04:19.570 What are their hopes for our future? 00:04:20.079 --> 00:04:22.540 Paul Harvey's been dead now, I think, for at least 15 years. 00:04:23.300 --> 00:04:25.380 But this is what he said in 1965. 00:04:25.380 --> 00:04:32.420 He said, if I were the devil, if I were the prince of darkness, if I wanted to engulf 00:04:32.420 --> 00:04:39.520 the whole world in darkness, and I'd have a third of its real estate and 4/5 of its population, but I wouldn't be happy until I had 00:04:39.520 --> 00:04:41.990 seized the ripest apple on the tree. 00:04:42.560 --> 00:04:45.370 So I'd set out, however necessary, to take over the United States. 00:04:46.120 --> 00:04:47.760 I'd subvert the churches first. 00:04:47.760 --> 00:04:51.280 I'd begin with a campaign of whispers with the wisdom of a serpent. 00:04:51.560 --> 00:04:54.780 I would whisper to you as I whisper to Eve, do as you please. 00:04:55.560 --> 00:04:57.920 To the young I would whisper that the Bible is a myth. 00:04:58.340 --> 00:05:01.650 I would convince them that man created God instead of the other way around. 00:05:02.280 --> 00:05:06.290 I would confide that what's what's bad is good, and what's good is square. 00:05:06.860 --> 00:05:10.020 And the old I would teach to pray after me. 00:05:10.020 --> 00:05:12.900 Our father which art in Washington. 00:05:13.020 --> 00:05:20.220 And then I'd get organized and educate authors and how to make Lord literature exciting so that anything else would appear full 00:05:20.220 --> 00:05:23.100 or, excuse me, appear dull and uninteresting. 00:05:23.760 --> 00:05:26.680 I threaten TV with dirtier movies and vice versa. 00:05:27.260 --> 00:05:29.160 I'd peddle narcotics to whom I could. 00:05:29.160 --> 00:05:31.850 I'd sell alcohol to ladies and gentlemen of distinction. 00:05:32.280 --> 00:05:34.240 I'd tranquilize the rest with pills. 00:05:34.860 --> 00:05:35.770 If I were the devil. 00:05:36.240 --> 00:05:38.600 I'd soon have families at war with themselves. 00:05:38.960 --> 00:05:46.120 At churches at war with themselves and nations at war with themselves, until each in its turn had consumed, and with promises 00:05:46.120 --> 00:05:47.060 of higher ratings. 00:05:47.360 --> 00:05:47.680 I'd. 00:05:47.900 --> 00:05:50.820 I'd give Mesmerizing media. 00:05:50.820 --> 00:05:58.390 Fanning the Flames and if I Were the Devil, I would encourage schools to refine young intellectuals but neglect to discipline emotions. 00:05:58.860 --> 00:06:00.140 Just let those run wild. 00:06:00.200 --> 00:06:07.180 Until before you knew it, I'd have to have drug sniffing dogs and metal detectors at every schoolhouse door. 00:06:07.680 --> 00:06:09.580 Within a decade, I'd have prisons overflowing. 00:06:10.600 --> 00:06:17.720 I'd have judges promoting pornography, and soon I could evict God from the courthouse, then from the schoolhouse, and then from 00:06:17.720 --> 00:06:20.510 the houses of Congress and in his own churches. 00:06:20.740 --> 00:06:24.590 I would substitute psychology for religion and deify science. 00:06:24.960 --> 00:06:29.020 I would lure priests and pastors into misusing boys and girls and church money. 00:06:29.480 --> 00:06:35.040 And if I were the devil, I'd make the symbol of Easter an egg and the symbol of Christmas a bottle. 00:06:35.440 --> 00:06:40.240 If I were the devil, I would take from those who have, and give to those who want. 00:06:40.260 --> 00:06:42.840 Until I have killed the incentive of the ambitious. 00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:48.520 What will you bet I could get whole states to promote gambling as a way to get rich. 00:06:48.520 --> 00:06:52.920 I would caution against extremes and hard work and patriotism and moral conduct. 00:06:53.060 --> 00:07:00.200 I would convince the young that marriage is old fashioned fashion, that swinging is fun, that what you see on TV is the way 00:07:00.200 --> 00:07:00.680 to be. 00:07:00.680 --> 00:07:06.500 And thus I could undress you in public and I could lure you into bed with diseases for which there is no cure. 00:07:06.960 --> 00:07:12.240 In other words, if I were the devil, I'd just keep right on doing what I'm already doing. 00:07:14.280 --> 00:07:17.280 That's a little shocking and telling. 00:07:17.280 --> 00:07:24.300 Even from the 1960s, some of the concerns that Paul Harvey had for us as a country and maybe even just 00:07:24.300 --> 00:07:26.020 for us as individuals. 00:07:28.040 --> 00:07:35.040 But I want us to know that when we gather as a church, our desire and goal is not to just avoid the negative or run away 00:07:35.040 --> 00:07:42.040 from the bad, but to understand what Jesus wants to do in us and through us is far more beautiful, and a 00:07:42.040 --> 00:07:48.600 path with him is far more significant than just walking away from things that can be harmful. 00:07:49.720 --> 00:07:56.720 And as you look at the idea of what Paul Harvey is saying, I want us to consider now the pages of Scripture and what David is declaring 00:07:56.720 --> 00:08:03.940 to us, because David is really saying to us the other side of the coin from the positive perspective, as he considers the future 00:08:03.940 --> 00:08:10.520 generations and the impact that God can do in his own life for the for the benefit of those around him. 00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:19.160 When you look at Psalm 145, I want you to know this is a psalm that's 3000 years old, but the truth of what's contained in 00:08:19.160 --> 00:08:21.620 it still, still ring true for us today. 00:08:21.680 --> 00:08:23.880 In fact, that's the case for all of Scripture. 00:08:23.880 --> 00:08:25.090 That truth is timeless. 00:08:25.960 --> 00:08:32.960 But this particular psalm has been so significant throughout history that the Jewish people have especially included it in their regular 00:08:32.960 --> 00:08:34.620 daily liturgy. 00:08:35.020 --> 00:08:42.500 And what I mean that there's even a sections of the Talmud that promote this psalm in such a way that it says that anyone that is considered a faithful Jew should 00:08:42.500 --> 00:08:45.160 read this psalm no less than three times a day. 00:08:45.340 --> 00:08:48.820 And when you do, there is a special blessing that comes along with it. 00:08:49.060 --> 00:08:51.650 Now, I want you to know that that's the way of traditionalism. 00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:52.780 Scripture doesn't say. 00:08:52.820 --> 00:08:57.780 You know, read this one psalm and incentivizes you with, certain things that you might want. 00:08:57.800 --> 00:08:57.980 Right. 00:08:58.000 --> 00:09:04.530 But rather it is speaking to the uniqueness and power of what this Psalm is and living it out with our lives. 00:09:05.340 --> 00:09:09.040 When David's perspective here is critical for all of us. 00:09:09.040 --> 00:09:14.980 And when you look at the Psalms, this is the last recorded Psalm that we have that King David wrote. 00:09:15.480 --> 00:09:16.480 Now, I don't mean that chronologically. 00:09:17.600 --> 00:09:24.820 Like when you read the Psalms, it's important to know that the order of these Psalms are placed for us are not necessarily the order that they were written in, but rather, 00:09:24.900 --> 00:09:29.780 as you read through the Psalms, you find that Psalm 145 is the last psalm that's attributed to King David. 00:09:30.220 --> 00:09:35.990 And so here's a psalm some 3000 years old, the truth of it still ringing, ringing for us today. 00:09:36.340 --> 00:09:43.170 And the idea of what we want to focus on in this chapter is finding a brighter future, a call to generational worship. 00:09:44.280 --> 00:09:51.400 To think about the whole scope of my own relationship with the Lord, and how what God is doing in me is intended to 00:09:51.400 --> 00:09:55.540 not only impact me, but those around me for generations to come. 00:09:55.760 --> 00:09:58.720 And so what does that look like for you and for me to step into it? 00:09:58.720 --> 00:10:01.500 Let me let me give you point number one in your notes, and we'll read this together. 00:10:01.980 --> 00:10:05.500 Number one is this pass on the praise. 00:10:06.380 --> 00:10:08.980 Fuel faith for the next generation. 00:10:10.000 --> 00:10:11.030 Pass on the praise. 00:10:11.100 --> 00:10:12.850 Fuel faith for the next generation. 00:10:13.740 --> 00:10:18.500 This is something I certainly love as a pastor at Alpine Bible Church. 00:10:18.520 --> 00:10:24.180 Is the fact that we are a multigenerational church, and I often refer to our classics group. 00:10:24.260 --> 00:10:29.100 I don't know if all of you have ever heard me say this, but I just call you guys the backbone of our church, right? 00:10:29.120 --> 00:10:36.180 Because I think you guys set the tone for what we're moving towards as a congregation of God's 00:10:36.180 --> 00:10:37.860 people, what God has for us. 00:10:38.220 --> 00:10:42.400 But at the same time, if you might consider yourself an older generation or. 00:10:42.720 --> 00:10:49.980 Or maybe a wiser generation or whatever you want, whatever terminology you want to put on that to also see how critical it is to 00:10:49.980 --> 00:10:55.980 take what Jesus has done in you and invested in the next generation and future generations to come. 00:10:56.820 --> 00:11:03.960 Because what we want to see here is something that perpetuates with all people that come through our doors throughout the years of Alpine 00:11:03.960 --> 00:11:05.640 Bible Church's existence. 00:11:06.440 --> 00:11:13.840 And so in order to do that, we've got to begin with the mentality of passing on the praise to fuel that faith for future generations. 00:11:14.260 --> 00:11:21.340 And when David starts off this Psalm, he wants you to know that begins in you, to understand the critical ness of what God wants 00:11:21.340 --> 00:11:26.660 to do in this church by seeing the singularity of my own personal relationship in Jesus. 00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:33.380 He says, I will extoll you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. 00:11:33.380 --> 00:11:37.600 Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. 00:11:37.600 --> 00:11:43.690 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable. 00:11:44.980 --> 00:11:48.160 And what David is essentially saying to us is our effectiveness. 00:11:48.920 --> 00:11:52.300 For God starts with praise in my own life. 00:11:53.240 --> 00:11:57.180 Seeing the significance of who Christ is and not straying from that. 00:11:57.680 --> 00:11:59.200 And so David is starting off. 00:11:59.200 --> 00:12:03.840 He's going to move into this thinking generationally and corporately as God's people. 00:12:03.840 --> 00:12:07.820 But he says, for all of us, it starts in the ownership of my own faith journey in the Lord. 00:12:07.860 --> 00:12:11.950 And so maybe we should just stop and ask, how is your own faith journey in the Lord? 00:12:13.260 --> 00:12:15.760 Because I just want to encourage you and say it is. 00:12:15.920 --> 00:12:20.620 It is invaluable that we see the significance of gathering as God's people corporately. 00:12:20.960 --> 00:12:21.040 Right. 00:12:21.040 --> 00:12:23.390 And I'm thankful that you're here this morning. 00:12:23.560 --> 00:12:30.760 In fact, sometimes when you think about the things that we experience here at church and we lift our voices and praise to God, and we pray before the Lord and 00:12:30.760 --> 00:12:32.100 we open up his word. 00:12:32.140 --> 00:12:34.500 And we listen to a message from the Lord. 00:12:34.500 --> 00:12:36.190 And all those things are important. 00:12:36.940 --> 00:12:40.250 But can I tell you technology is such today that you can also do that anywhere? 00:12:41.220 --> 00:12:48.340 I mean, you can turn on your radio and lift your voice and worship to the Lord and songs of praise and you can study God's 00:12:48.340 --> 00:12:49.420 Word outside of something. 00:12:49.420 --> 00:12:50.730 You can even listen to a sermon. 00:12:51.120 --> 00:12:54.340 May I hope tomorrow morning, like today, is important in your own faith journey. 00:12:54.700 --> 00:12:58.710 I hope tomorrow morning you can appreciate the gift that it is that God wants to communicate to you. 00:12:58.880 --> 00:13:00.860 And he's demonstrated that in such a way. 00:13:00.860 --> 00:13:08.060 He's given you his word that you can know him and walk with him, that this is not just a Sunday activity that you do, but you learn the rhythms of trying 00:13:08.060 --> 00:13:14.500 to enjoy that every day that God wants to be known in your life and appreciating the richness of who he is. 00:13:15.240 --> 00:13:22.240 But can I tell you one thing that you cannot fabricate through technology is the importance of fellowship, the intimacy of 00:13:22.240 --> 00:13:27.230 community in Jesus, and how God wants to navigate through us together. 00:13:27.280 --> 00:13:34.380 Now that amplifies the importance of God's Word, because as we look at a message here, we are looking at this collectively, which aligns our hearts. 00:13:34.400 --> 00:13:41.500 And sometimes as a pastor, when I say things like I give an announcement or something, I in my mind think, man, how many more times I'm 00:13:41.500 --> 00:13:42.520 going to have to repeat that? 00:13:42.540 --> 00:13:44.040 So everybody hears that, right? 00:13:44.080 --> 00:13:51.020 Because I know sometimes that I can say things and I can be in so many different gatherings saying things that there still could be members of our church not there. 00:13:51.240 --> 00:13:55.820 I'm like, man, I gotta I have to repeat this so many times just to get us all on the same page, right? 00:13:55.960 --> 00:14:02.700 But when we're together collectively, hearing God's Word collectively, it's shaping us in a corporate identity to which is which is critical, right? 00:14:02.700 --> 00:14:07.780 So the idea of fellowship, when you think about your own personal relationship with Jesus, it is important. 00:14:08.860 --> 00:14:09.700 But don't let it. 00:14:09.760 --> 00:14:15.660 Don't let it isolate for from the idea of how that becomes meaningful to corporate identity in Christ. 00:14:15.700 --> 00:14:16.000 Right. 00:14:16.100 --> 00:14:17.940 Or community identity in Christ. 00:14:17.980 --> 00:14:19.280 Collective identity in Christ. 00:14:19.280 --> 00:14:19.950 I don't like the word corporate. 00:14:20.520 --> 00:14:21.480 Let's, let's let's say community. 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:22.340 Right. 00:14:22.340 --> 00:14:23.540 Community identity in Christ. 00:14:23.560 --> 00:14:25.610 Like what God wants to do in us together. 00:14:25.900 --> 00:14:28.720 It's far more powerful, right? 00:14:28.720 --> 00:14:33.160 And so when we're walking united, what Jesus can do in that community is a gift. 00:14:33.160 --> 00:14:40.640 And so gathering as God's people and encouraging one another is vital to the health of the church, both now and for future generations. 00:14:41.200 --> 00:14:47.040 But it starts in this place of understanding, the intimacy of my own relationship in him. 00:14:48.120 --> 00:14:50.690 Now, sometimes we might ask ourselves, well, how do I know? 00:14:51.860 --> 00:14:53.080 How do I know? 00:14:53.160 --> 00:14:55.600 My relationship with the Lord is healthy, right? 00:14:55.600 --> 00:14:59.230 Like, we may be in that spot where we might think, but we're not sure. 00:14:59.320 --> 00:15:06.320 And can I just tell you maybe one component, David, is identifying here that we could use to kind of go back and evaluate 00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:07.160 my own life. 00:15:08.060 --> 00:15:10.100 It's the idea of thankfulness and praise. 00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:13.290 It's the heart of thankfulness and praise. 00:15:14.080 --> 00:15:19.210 When you think about your own week before the Lord, how much did you stop and just give thanks and praise? 00:15:19.460 --> 00:15:26.560 It doesn't necessarily mean you have to be thankful for everything that you go through in life, because sometimes we go through hard things, but there is a place to be thankful in 00:15:26.560 --> 00:15:27.230 those things. 00:15:28.400 --> 00:15:33.910 And David is starting off at this place of praising God for his greatness. 00:15:34.860 --> 00:15:41.960 But then in that place, he then leads in verse 4 to 7 to help us quickly realize how that should connect for us, like what 00:15:41.960 --> 00:15:49.360 that should build, not just for me, but when I'm walking with the Lord and you're walking with the Lord to understand what that looks like and 00:15:49.360 --> 00:15:50.960 Jesus community together. 00:15:51.240 --> 00:15:56.100 Because what God wants to do through our lives is far more important, and we need each other to do that. 00:15:56.460 --> 00:16:00.100 You think of the way that God has blessed your life and gifted your life the fruits of the spirit. 00:16:00.100 --> 00:16:02.580 I mean, those things are only displayed in community. 00:16:02.600 --> 00:16:02.880 Love. 00:16:02.880 --> 00:16:03.220 Joy. 00:16:03.220 --> 00:16:03.520 Peace. 00:16:03.540 --> 00:16:04.080 Patience. 00:16:04.160 --> 00:16:04.540 Kindness. 00:16:04.600 --> 00:16:07.740 You have to have people around you to demonstrate that. 00:16:07.940 --> 00:16:11.280 And who better to have the way that God is transforming your life? 00:16:11.280 --> 00:16:18.400 Who better to have around you to demonstrate that than than his own people that desire to live on mission in the same way what God 00:16:18.400 --> 00:16:19.870 has called us for. 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:27.480 And so in verse four he goes, one generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts on the 00:16:27.480 --> 00:16:31.380 glorious splendor of your majesty and on your wondrous works I will meditate. 00:16:32.020 --> 00:16:35.560 They shall speak of the mighty of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness. 00:16:35.940 --> 00:16:40.820 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness, and shall sing aloud of your righteousness. 00:16:41.920 --> 00:16:44.520 I mean, you see David vacillating in this section, right? 00:16:44.540 --> 00:16:48.160 He's talking about his own faith journey, continuing to meditate on this. 00:16:48.200 --> 00:16:49.460 Don't to focus on this. 00:16:49.460 --> 00:16:52.320 And I'll deal with that phrase, mighty act in just a moment. 00:16:52.780 --> 00:16:55.810 But I want you to see how David also has in mind the greater picture. 00:16:56.620 --> 00:16:59.080 I mean, this is something we constantly want to press into as a church. 00:16:59.160 --> 00:17:06.400 Remind ourselves of the reason God created this church is and not just this local church, but the church broadly is 00:17:06.400 --> 00:17:08.040 for a greater purpose than ourselves. 00:17:08.400 --> 00:17:08.780 Right? 00:17:08.800 --> 00:17:12.420 But that discovery living in that only begins as we walk with him. 00:17:13.119 --> 00:17:13.839 And so here he is. 00:17:13.839 --> 00:17:21.020 He's vacillating between his own personal journey and therefore stretching that beyond himself, beyond his walls, to those around him, making 00:17:21.020 --> 00:17:26.300 a generational impact and how critical that is to make a meaningful difference in this world. 00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:34.520 You know, when I, when I look at this idea of David wanting to pass on to the next generation for me, I think about our church for sure. 00:17:35.420 --> 00:17:41.270 But even I become a little bit more refined and thinking about, first off, in my own home. 00:17:42.120 --> 00:17:43.220 You know, I think about my own kids. 00:17:44.780 --> 00:17:49.040 And I think, man, just to see what God can do passed on to the next generation. 00:17:50.300 --> 00:17:53.270 You know, as a parent, sometimes you think about maybe your own children there. 00:17:53.420 --> 00:17:55.700 There can be this sense of worry for their future. 00:17:56.660 --> 00:18:02.700 You know, you think about what Paul Harvey said in the beginning, and maybe you just look at the trajectory of life through a negative lens. 00:18:02.700 --> 00:18:05.990 You think, oh my gosh, you just want to be there for your kids every step of the way. 00:18:06.580 --> 00:18:12.740 Like in each encounter, they have to be that person that's able to impart wisdom for them as they journey on in life. 00:18:12.740 --> 00:18:19.860 And as a parent, maybe that want to kind of helicopter and you don't know if you know, how do you do that the right way and then you 00:18:19.860 --> 00:18:23.990 even hope as a parent, like, sometimes your kids don't always want to listen to what you have to say. 00:18:24.260 --> 00:18:27.500 So you want to be able to have that voice in their life. 00:18:27.540 --> 00:18:29.270 And so you have this concern, right? 00:18:29.860 --> 00:18:30.860 Just wanting to be there. 00:18:30.860 --> 00:18:35.830 But can I can I tell you reality as we all recognize that we can't always be there for everything. 00:18:37.140 --> 00:18:41.720 And so as a parent in that moment, like you can come to a place of despair, oh my gosh, my poor kids. 00:18:42.920 --> 00:18:51.440 But can I tell you what the greater gift that you can give them in all things is the one that you know will be there with them and everything, and 00:18:51.440 --> 00:18:55.750 that's the Lord, and more than be there to try to help them solve every problem. 00:18:57.200 --> 00:19:04.640 If you can just help them learn to walk with Jesus, and Jesus promises to be with them through everything, and 00:19:04.640 --> 00:19:06.940 so that relationship with Christ becomes critical. 00:19:06.940 --> 00:19:09.480 Now, let me just tell you, that's from a negative perspective, right? 00:19:09.480 --> 00:19:16.520 My kids are going to go through bad things, and I don't want them to, just to be lost in the midst of that, but just to have wisdom to navigate that and for them to see Jesus. 00:19:16.660 --> 00:19:18.540 But how do they walk with Jesus? 00:19:18.600 --> 00:19:19.620 That's important. 00:19:19.660 --> 00:19:19.980 Right? 00:19:20.740 --> 00:19:24.530 But can I tell you that God doesn't call us to live on the defense. 00:19:24.660 --> 00:19:26.690 I mean, he said, I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail. 00:19:28.440 --> 00:19:34.530 And so what he's saying is he's painting a far more picture, far greater picture than just trying to respond to every problem. 00:19:35.460 --> 00:19:43.980 He's saying when the next generation grabs Ahold of the greatness of who Christ is, the impact that they make for the Lord is unstoppable, right? 00:19:43.980 --> 00:19:48.120 The movement of Jesus through those people collectively as they work with him. 00:19:48.120 --> 00:19:49.910 God can do an incredible thing. 00:19:50.840 --> 00:19:57.860 And this is what he's saying about the next generation, that David has seen this in his life and he wants to see the next generation thriving in 00:19:57.860 --> 00:19:59.220 the richness of who Christ is. 00:19:59.360 --> 00:20:06.420 So not only does it amplify the importance of their relationship in Jesus for their own faith journey because of difficult days that'll come, but 00:20:06.420 --> 00:20:12.490 to move forward in a powerful way and the richness of who Christ is to make a difference in this world. 00:20:13.220 --> 00:20:15.140 And so this whole journey begins. 00:20:15.140 --> 00:20:18.040 And David expressing his own relationship to the Lord. 00:20:18.080 --> 00:20:19.940 And now he's spurring on these next generations. 00:20:20.440 --> 00:20:23.470 And then he comes to this phrase, this idea of mighty acts. 00:20:24.600 --> 00:20:28.460 Now, this particular phrase is a common vernacular in the Old Testament. 00:20:28.540 --> 00:20:33.610 It doesn't always necessarily come across with the words mighty acts, but I'm going to show you some similar ideas that are expressed. 00:20:34.160 --> 00:20:42.190 And the reason David is using this word is because he's using this as a core identity word for a community, 00:20:42.560 --> 00:20:43.720 or a core memory word. 00:20:43.720 --> 00:20:45.220 I should say it like that for a community. 00:20:46.460 --> 00:20:53.700 If you're familiar with the idea of core memories, you think in terms of parenting you want to go with your children and, help them develop 00:20:53.700 --> 00:20:55.920 those positive core memories in life. 00:20:55.920 --> 00:21:00.400 And hopefully they forget when you don't always do it the greatest of ways, right? 00:21:01.040 --> 00:21:03.820 Like, sometimes you mess up like, oh, that'll make a core memory out of that, right? 00:21:03.840 --> 00:21:11.320 Like, there's certain things in your life when you think back to, in your own life that pinnacle moments that really 00:21:11.320 --> 00:21:13.520 shaped and developed who you are today. 00:21:14.220 --> 00:21:16.680 You know, we don't always remember every detail of our life. 00:21:16.700 --> 00:21:22.520 And I don't know that we necessarily should, but you can certainly look back and say, yeah, these are these were profound moments in my life. 00:21:22.520 --> 00:21:24.380 Good or bad, that really shaped who I am. 00:21:25.240 --> 00:21:29.260 And this is what David is doing with this phrase, mighty acts. 00:21:29.360 --> 00:21:36.000 He's saying, look, I want this generation to continue to be shaped for what is, what is defined our community. 00:21:36.820 --> 00:21:41.780 And this idea of mighty acts is a phrase that's expressing what God has done for the Jewish people. 00:21:42.680 --> 00:21:49.730 If you remember in the Old Testament, there was this time period in the book of Exodus, where Israel found themselves as slaves for hundreds of years. 00:21:50.540 --> 00:21:57.560 And in this place of slavery, when they had no power to rescue themselves, God freed them from a place of slavery 00:21:57.560 --> 00:22:01.970 and brought them into a place of promise in relationship with him. 00:22:02.360 --> 00:22:04.390 And so for Israel, this became their identity. 00:22:04.540 --> 00:22:11.640 When they had they had no ability to free themselves, that God would step in his mercy and love, and rescue them and 00:22:11.640 --> 00:22:17.640 call them his own, and give them this place of promise and blessing in relationship to him. 00:22:17.700 --> 00:22:24.880 In fact, when you look throughout the Old Testament, you'll see this phrase and mention or the idea of it in different ways in Deuteronomy 26 verse eight, 00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:32.110 and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great deeds of terror, and with signs and wonders. 00:22:32.500 --> 00:22:34.640 So you see this the idea of great deeds or mighty acts. 00:22:34.680 --> 00:22:36.200 It's that event of Exodus. 00:22:36.280 --> 00:22:39.840 And again Exodus seven, verse four, he says, Pharaoh will not listen to you. 00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:47.400 Then I will lay my hand of Egypt and bring my hosts, my people, the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt, by great acts 00:22:47.580 --> 00:22:48.240 of judgment. 00:22:48.880 --> 00:22:52.730 Again, a similar phrase, but it's this defining moment that helped shape who we are. 00:22:53.860 --> 00:23:00.900 And this is what God is saying to us that provokes the praise of us as his people is 00:23:00.900 --> 00:23:08.100 to understand what it means to truly be free in our identity with the Lord and not just live on the defensive, but rather become 00:23:08.100 --> 00:23:09.820 conquerors in Christ. 00:23:10.780 --> 00:23:14.520 To see a difference made in the life around us because of what God has done for us. 00:23:14.520 --> 00:23:18.800 I mean, when you think about the image of this thought, this idea of this exodus. 00:23:19.120 --> 00:23:21.530 This is a theme that's played throughout all the Bible. 00:23:22.100 --> 00:23:29.820 I mean, even when you go back to the beginning of Genesis and you understand that book of the Bible was written to people who found themselves as slaves and 00:23:29.820 --> 00:23:36.940 all the ways that could warp your perspective of who you are, your identity, that your worth is simply based on what you 00:23:36.940 --> 00:23:37.540 do. 00:23:38.720 --> 00:23:45.340 And then you read the book of Genesis and you realize that from the very beginning, God begins to reshape that identity by calling them in the image of God. 00:23:46.380 --> 00:23:50.100 And God is helping them begin to understand that their worth is not based on what they do. 00:23:50.200 --> 00:23:53.240 Their worth is given to them intrinsically because of who God is. 00:23:54.940 --> 00:24:02.100 And this now identity of moving from this place of despair, brokenness, and slaved is now being expressed as 00:24:02.100 --> 00:24:07.210 this core memory of shaping who they are and the motivation for what they do in this world. 00:24:08.600 --> 00:24:09.530 Finding a better future. 00:24:10.140 --> 00:24:12.880 This call to generational worship is one pass on the praise. 00:24:13.020 --> 00:24:16.580 Fuel the faith for the next generation Incineration so that we can get to number two. 00:24:17.600 --> 00:24:18.500 Make it personal. 00:24:19.840 --> 00:24:23.030 Live as a saint, not as a spectator. 00:24:24.940 --> 00:24:25.780 Make it personal. 00:24:26.840 --> 00:24:28.450 Live as a saint, not as a spectator. 00:24:29.620 --> 00:24:30.860 And this is what David's doing. 00:24:31.840 --> 00:24:34.620 And he's starting the psalm describing what God's happened to him. 00:24:34.980 --> 00:24:35.360 He's. 00:24:35.360 --> 00:24:42.540 He's reminding them of the identity they have because of the Lord, because he wants that next generation to do that very thing, to make 00:24:42.540 --> 00:24:43.260 it personal. 00:24:44.220 --> 00:24:46.200 Live as a saint, not as a spectator. 00:24:47.120 --> 00:24:48.230 Now, I want you to know this morning. 00:24:49.000 --> 00:24:56.620 That is the call of everyone in this room to see your sainthood and perspective of who God is. 00:24:56.800 --> 00:25:02.260 And some of us might look at our life and be like, if I could be many things people could call me. 00:25:02.400 --> 00:25:05.820 But one thing they ain't ever going to call me is a saint, right? 00:25:05.840 --> 00:25:07.540 We might think of our life that way, but. 00:25:07.700 --> 00:25:13.810 But I think it's critical to understand a biblical perspective of what the Bible means when it refers to us in that regard. 00:25:14.280 --> 00:25:17.740 When you look in Psalm 145 verse eight, God says this. 00:25:18.120 --> 00:25:22.780 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love. 00:25:23.940 --> 00:25:28.360 The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made. 00:25:30.000 --> 00:25:37.580 Let me stop right there before I read this next verse, and I just want you to recognize how critical it is to have a healthy 00:25:37.580 --> 00:25:39.480 understanding who God is. 00:25:41.260 --> 00:25:47.100 Understanding who God is helps you understand who you are and therefore leads you in this world. 00:25:47.160 --> 00:25:48.740 How you choose to conduct your life. 00:25:50.280 --> 00:25:53.700 And there are many people in life that have a very warped view of God. 00:25:53.780 --> 00:26:00.940 I don't think anyone in this world has a perfect view of God, but it is important that we move towards a healthy 00:26:00.940 --> 00:26:01.840 view of God. 00:26:03.080 --> 00:26:06.300 God, don't just let me embrace who I think you are. 00:26:06.380 --> 00:26:08.840 Don't let me embrace who other people tell me you are. 00:26:09.900 --> 00:26:12.360 Lord, let me receive who you say you are. 00:26:13.720 --> 00:26:20.240 And when you look throughout the Bible, there is a particular descriptor about God that I think is most critical for you to receive. 00:26:21.300 --> 00:26:24.500 And that is the verses that you're reading here in verse eight and nine. 00:26:25.520 --> 00:26:32.910 And the reason I say that is because these verses aren't made up by David, like David wasn't inspired by the Lord to be the inventor of these verses. 00:26:34.000 --> 00:26:39.970 What David is actually doing is quoting a phrase that was already found in the book of Exodus, chapter 34, verse five and six. 00:26:41.400 --> 00:26:48.480 And that phrase in Exodus 34, verse five and six that describes God to us has been considered by the writers of the Old New 00:26:48.480 --> 00:26:51.820 Testament to be such a critical understanding of God. 00:26:51.880 --> 00:26:59.440 That this statement in Psalm verse eight and nine here that we're reading is the most repeated phrase about God in all of Scripture. 00:27:00.560 --> 00:27:06.260 It's as if to say, if you're going to let something take precedent in your life and your own understanding of God, you need to let this one be preeminent. 00:27:07.880 --> 00:27:09.760 Because when you understand God in this way? 00:27:09.760 --> 00:27:16.760 You understand the way that God is going to receive you as one who might turn to him, that God's hope for you is to have 00:27:16.760 --> 00:27:18.940 your heart, that he could change your life. 00:27:19.360 --> 00:27:26.820 And this identity of God is a very inviting identity, and it helps us be able to put the right foot forward in our own relationship 00:27:26.820 --> 00:27:32.380 with God, to know that he's gracious and merciful, that his love is abounding, abounding. 00:27:32.380 --> 00:27:33.080 It doesn't change. 00:27:33.080 --> 00:27:40.420 It's steadfast that he's slow to anger, because sometimes our perspective of God is a very vengeful 00:27:40.420 --> 00:27:43.020 and vicious and wrathful God. 00:27:43.240 --> 00:27:48.520 And it's true, there is a just side of the Lord that is important for us to know he is a just God. 00:27:49.540 --> 00:27:55.120 But when it comes to you and me and understand the reason for which we are created, and when we turn to the Lord, we need to know how God's going to receive us. 00:27:56.180 --> 00:28:03.400 And so this particular identity is critical for us, because in verse ten he goes on and says this, all your work shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all 00:28:03.400 --> 00:28:05.440 your saints shall bless you. 00:28:06.560 --> 00:28:13.090 And the idea of sainthood is very much wrapped up in what these verse eight and nine is described to us now when it comes to the sainthood. 00:28:14.300 --> 00:28:21.920 There is a way that some Christians have learned sainthood related to tradition, church tradition. 00:28:21.920 --> 00:28:22.060 Right? 00:28:22.860 --> 00:28:28.420 But then there is a way in which sainthood is referenced in Scripture according to what the Bible says. 00:28:29.160 --> 00:28:36.630 And I want you to know, there are some things that we do in churches based on tradition that don't always have a biblical basis. 00:28:37.320 --> 00:28:39.380 I'm not saying tradition is a bad thing. 00:28:39.380 --> 00:28:45.450 There's always a place for tradition, but at some point tradition can even run contrary to the Bible. 00:28:45.920 --> 00:28:48.710 And it's more important to follow the Bible than it is tradition. 00:28:49.780 --> 00:28:54.930 And when it comes to the idea of sainthood, it can be one of those things that we have learned more traditionally than biblically. 00:28:55.320 --> 00:28:58.810 So some of us might think, well, sainthood is what you become when you die. 00:28:59.160 --> 00:29:00.800 And it's only if you've done really good things. 00:29:00.820 --> 00:29:03.630 And then somebody, somewhere that's got some kind of power makes you a saint. 00:29:04.640 --> 00:29:12.040 And in fact, sometimes we we'll refer to them as patron saints, and people might even, like, bow down to them and even pray to them like there's can be some, some 00:29:12.040 --> 00:29:14.860 teaching that's so reverent to sainthood that it becomes that. 00:29:14.900 --> 00:29:17.840 Now I have seen traditions that do that. 00:29:17.840 --> 00:29:21.920 And I want you to know there's not necessarily a biblical basis for it, but just for funsies. 00:29:22.340 --> 00:29:26.980 I mean, I picked my favorite, like, if you want to know my favorite saint, it's definitely Saint Nicholas, right? 00:29:26.980 --> 00:29:29.940 Because for obvious reasons, he is the giver of gifts. 00:29:29.940 --> 00:29:34.840 So if you're going to pick one Saint Nick, like, just give me what I want, right? 00:29:35.000 --> 00:29:42.540 But when it comes to the idea of sainthood, one of one of the interesting things that I also find shocking about Saint Nick, if you ever study him Saint 00:29:42.540 --> 00:29:46.590 Nick is considered the patron saint of pawnshops. 00:29:46.820 --> 00:29:49.140 It's like, man, it started off so good for him. 00:29:49.140 --> 00:29:50.450 And they went really bad quick. 00:29:50.460 --> 00:29:52.660 Like to be the patron saint of pawn shops. 00:29:52.660 --> 00:29:55.620 I would haunt people like I really change who I am, right? 00:29:55.690 --> 00:29:57.390 Like, I don't even know if you can do that, but. 00:30:00.180 --> 00:30:07.300 But when you think about the idea of pawn shops, like I think it's important to know, like if you ever look at a pawn shop, the icons of 00:30:07.300 --> 00:30:10.160 a pawn shop are three bags of gold. 00:30:10.840 --> 00:30:18.230 And the tradition for that actually comes from Saint Nick, who a story goes in his town, there were three young ladies that wanted to get married, couldn't because they couldn't afford the dowry. 00:30:18.960 --> 00:30:24.100 And so Saint Nick visited the family and just dropped off three bags of gold without making himself known. 00:30:24.660 --> 00:30:26.160 But the family knew where it came from. 00:30:26.540 --> 00:30:28.270 And so that became the image of pawn shops. 00:30:28.340 --> 00:30:35.460 But the idea of pawn shops really started with Franciscan monks for families that were experiencing hardship as a way for them to get back on their 00:30:35.460 --> 00:30:35.810 feet. 00:30:36.340 --> 00:30:40.100 Now, over time, the world grabbed Ahold of that, monetized it, and made what pawnshops are today. 00:30:40.240 --> 00:30:41.160 Which isn't great, right? 00:30:41.280 --> 00:30:46.030 But it really started as a ministry within within the church and trying to help people in difficult positions. 00:30:46.060 --> 00:30:48.680 And so that's why Saint Nick was picked as that patron saint. 00:30:48.940 --> 00:30:53.140 But either way, I want you to know, there's tradition and there's what the Bible says. 00:30:54.040 --> 00:31:00.860 And when it comes to the idea of sainthood, here's what the Bible says about you and me is if that we're if we're in Jesus, we're all saints in Christ. 00:31:02.160 --> 00:31:09.220 Because the idea of sainthood carries in both the Old Testament and New Testament, that word is chosen one or the set 00:31:09.220 --> 00:31:09.920 apart one. 00:31:11.100 --> 00:31:18.220 And so what it's saying for us is that we have a different lens by which we look and view the world because of our relationship with Jesus, because we have a new 00:31:18.220 --> 00:31:19.260 identity in him. 00:31:20.180 --> 00:31:23.020 And this is critical for all of us, especially when we think about the future generation. 00:31:23.300 --> 00:31:31.140 There was a study done by Barna and with impact 360 on generation Z and 00:31:31.140 --> 00:31:37.310 studying generation Z, they said only 4% of generation Z have a biblical worldview. 00:31:38.660 --> 00:31:45.740 And from a biblical worldview, what it is, it's to believe that God's Word is sufficient and truthful for what I need in matters of 00:31:45.740 --> 00:31:46.180 life. 00:31:46.420 --> 00:31:50.460 And therefore, because of that, it creates for me the lens by which I view the world. 00:31:50.460 --> 00:31:57.700 It's the lens by which I view God myself, those around me and the world I walk in, whether whether it's economically, politically, 00:31:57.800 --> 00:32:01.640 educationally, it's the lens by which I receive those things. 00:32:02.860 --> 00:32:07.040 And so it becomes critical for us to understand our identity and relationship with the Lord. 00:32:07.040 --> 00:32:13.370 And the idea of Saint is one of those words that helps you and me realize who I really am because of what Christ has done. 00:32:14.520 --> 00:32:19.100 Now, when we hear the word saint, I want you to see in Scripture, it's repeated over and over again. 00:32:19.100 --> 00:32:26.180 And when you read the epistles like Romans one two, to all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints, first Corinthians one through 00:32:26.180 --> 00:32:33.220 the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus called to be saints, I want you to know the church of Corinth was the first church in the 00:32:33.220 --> 00:32:33.770 New Testament. 00:32:34.120 --> 00:32:38.100 And if they're going to be called saints, nobody here has a problem with the idea of being called a saint. 00:32:38.140 --> 00:32:38.640 Right? 00:32:38.680 --> 00:32:42.650 But here's what's critical when it comes to sainthood. 00:32:44.000 --> 00:32:48.940 It's to recognize that the reason I receive that position in Jesus is not because of me. 00:32:50.320 --> 00:32:53.230 It's not because I'm here to impress God with who I am. 00:32:54.380 --> 00:32:58.280 It's because my life has been impressed with the greatness of who he is. 00:32:59.180 --> 00:33:01.260 It's because of what he's done for me. 00:33:02.220 --> 00:33:06.580 I get to receive the richness of my own life being freed because of him. 00:33:06.640 --> 00:33:14.020 That's why this understanding of who God is in verse eight and nine is so critical for us, because the position that he's about to place on us in verse ten is 00:33:14.020 --> 00:33:15.050 to walk with the understanding. 00:33:15.140 --> 00:33:18.520 It's not because of what I've done, but because of what Christ has done on my behalf. 00:33:18.580 --> 00:33:21.800 So let me let me give you point number three, because I need to move this a little more quickly. 00:33:21.860 --> 00:33:23.800 Number three is this stay on the path. 00:33:24.600 --> 00:33:26.700 Humbly trust God's character. 00:33:27.840 --> 00:33:28.720 Stay on the path. 00:33:28.720 --> 00:33:30.060 Humbly trust God's character. 00:33:30.540 --> 00:33:35.440 Because when we think of the term sane, I know many of us would be reluctant to say, man, I can never take that title. 00:33:36.480 --> 00:33:43.640 I can think of what I've done and can I tell you, when you think about that kind of a title and what you've done, your eyes are already on the wrong thing 00:33:45.380 --> 00:33:47.000 because it's not about what you've done. 00:33:48.780 --> 00:33:49.840 It's about what he's done. 00:33:49.840 --> 00:33:56.520 In fact, verse 14, this is what David says the Lord upholds all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down. 00:33:57.120 --> 00:33:59.540 The eyes of all look to you and give you their. 00:33:59.720 --> 00:34:01.120 Them their food and due season. 00:34:01.140 --> 00:34:02.120 You open your hand. 00:34:02.120 --> 00:34:04.350 You satisfy the desires of every living thing. 00:34:04.980 --> 00:34:07.980 The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind and all his works. 00:34:08.000 --> 00:34:11.540 The Lord is near to all who call in him, to all who call on him. 00:34:11.580 --> 00:34:14.960 In truth, he fulfills the desires of those who fear him. 00:34:15.020 --> 00:34:17.199 He also hears their cry and saves them. 00:34:17.560 --> 00:34:20.679 The Lord preserves all who love them, but the wicked he will destroy. 00:34:22.100 --> 00:34:22.860 Here's what it's saying. 00:34:24.360 --> 00:34:31.900 Those that are closest to the Lord are the ones that are humble of heart, who surrender to him, who 00:34:31.900 --> 00:34:37.060 realize that the greatness they receive is not achieved in their own merit, but God's merit on their behalf. 00:34:38.480 --> 00:34:45.900 In fact, as we looked at the idea of the core memory for the Jews and being rescued from slavery in Egypt, 00:34:46.460 --> 00:34:52.219 I want you to know that was just simply a picture of the greater rescue that God had in mind for all of us. 00:34:53.300 --> 00:35:01.100 Because as you read throughout the rest of the Bible, you begin to realize that story of redemption from slavery in Egypt to promises of the Lord was 00:35:01.100 --> 00:35:04.000 a greater illustration of what all of us could receive in Jesus. 00:35:04.060 --> 00:35:06.190 Not because we're great, but because he is. 00:35:06.920 --> 00:35:12.820 In fact, when you read throughout the rest of the New Testament, that's what you discover is the image of that core memory for the Jews. 00:35:12.880 --> 00:35:20.120 And that redemption story becomes the image for the church and what we receive because of what Christ has done, that the greater slavery 00:35:20.120 --> 00:35:23.920 that we're all a part of in our own sin we've been rescued from because of Jesus. 00:35:24.600 --> 00:35:26.000 In Romans six he says, like this. 00:35:26.100 --> 00:35:33.260 Verse six, we know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 00:35:33.900 --> 00:35:36.660 For one who has died has been set free from sin. 00:35:37.340 --> 00:35:39.980 Or for time's sake, skip down to Galatians five for freedom. 00:35:39.980 --> 00:35:40.930 Christ has set us free. 00:35:41.340 --> 00:35:44.450 Stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. 00:35:45.620 --> 00:35:52.750 I mean, it's the same picture of Israel and slavery in Egypt, but now he's got a greater picture of all the people of the world. 00:35:52.860 --> 00:35:59.820 And we're captivated and we're made captive to sin and the consequence it can bring. 00:35:59.940 --> 00:36:06.320 But Jesus came on the greatest deliverance journey to give his life for you and for me, that we could find freedom in him. 00:36:07.520 --> 00:36:14.660 The idea of sainthood is not because of what I've done, or because of what you've done in proving anything to God, but rather because of what 00:36:14.660 --> 00:36:16.340 he's done for you and for me. 00:36:17.400 --> 00:36:18.050 And so for us. 00:36:18.100 --> 00:36:23.980 It brings us this place of humility for sure, because we recognize the greatness of who God is. 00:36:24.040 --> 00:36:26.520 But at the same time, it lifts our voices in praise. 00:36:26.560 --> 00:36:27.960 Let me give you this last point. 00:36:28.260 --> 00:36:30.580 It's this join the chorus. 00:36:31.060 --> 00:36:32.600 Worship missionary. 00:36:33.680 --> 00:36:36.840 Join the chorus worship missionary. 00:36:38.000 --> 00:36:45.320 It's to say that the most obvious response within our souls should be one of rejoicing, based on this identity that we have as this community 00:36:45.320 --> 00:36:48.960 collectively to sing his praises forever. 00:36:49.340 --> 00:36:56.600 In verse 21, this is what David says My mouth will speak the praise of the Lord, and let all flesh bless his holy name forever 00:36:56.600 --> 00:36:57.860 and ever. 00:36:59.180 --> 00:37:01.780 And so this is this is David reflecting what we have. 00:37:01.820 --> 00:37:06.220 We truly have the uniqueness of what God has done in us because of what he's done for us. 00:37:06.540 --> 00:37:07.950 This is the response that we would worship. 00:37:08.840 --> 00:37:14.000 There's a book that John Piper wrote called Let the Nations Be Glad, and he says this. 00:37:14.100 --> 00:37:16.650 It's a missions minded book, the Church Compelled to Live on Mission. 00:37:16.960 --> 00:37:21.390 He says that missions exist because worship does not. 00:37:21.600 --> 00:37:26.440 Meaning we're all created to be worship beings, to connect to our God, to find our identity in him. 00:37:26.740 --> 00:37:28.920 But because we don't do that, we walk contrary to that. 00:37:28.920 --> 00:37:30.400 God has created the idea of mission. 00:37:30.820 --> 00:37:38.240 God's people live on mission that others may have the opportunity to worship, and in so doing that really mission becomes a way of worshiping 00:37:38.240 --> 00:37:38.800 the Lord. 00:37:40.120 --> 00:37:47.600 And so we think, we think in terms of joining the chorus, we as God's people recognize the critical place of not only our own relationship, but how 00:37:47.600 --> 00:37:51.520 that relationship Blossoms and spurs future generations. 00:37:51.520 --> 00:37:58.380 For the glory of God begins with us and it passes beyond us. 00:37:59.140 --> 00:38:01.840 How close with this and be done as time is running short here. 00:38:01.860 --> 00:38:08.980 But there's a story from the second century church in the year about 180 A.D., where there was a group of 00:38:08.980 --> 00:38:13.340 Christians in a town called silly that were it's a silly town. 00:38:13.440 --> 00:38:14.420 It is a town called Scilly. 00:38:14.500 --> 00:38:21.600 And what is in modern day Tunisia, and in this particular area of the world, it was illegal to be a Christian, and there were a half a dozen 00:38:21.600 --> 00:38:27.550 Christians that were arrested in this town, and they were brought to Carthage, which you see pictured in the image above. 00:38:28.280 --> 00:38:31.940 And they were brought to Carthage, and they were brought before the proconsul under Roman authority. 00:38:32.060 --> 00:38:39.130 And they were told to renounce their faith or face the consequences and declare that Jesus isn't Lord, but rather Caesar is. 00:38:39.660 --> 00:38:43.420 And the Christians that were drugged to Carthage before the proconsul refused. 00:38:43.460 --> 00:38:50.520 And so, wanting to give them another opportunity, they threw them back in the dungeons, and 30 days later brought them back out and said, renounce your faith in Christ. 00:38:51.920 --> 00:38:59.040 And once again, the Christians refused, of which the Roman leaders at the time looked at them and said, if you do not renounce your faith in Christ, 00:38:59.120 --> 00:39:00.680 we will execute you. 00:39:00.940 --> 00:39:04.860 I was going to show you the pictures that have been drawn in history throughout that, but the really gory. 00:39:04.860 --> 00:39:06.830 So I decided to just go with this one instead. 00:39:07.500 --> 00:39:13.520 But the Christian said, Praise God, today we become his martyrs and they met the end of their life. 00:39:15.580 --> 00:39:22.620 Guys, can I tell you on the backbone of the faithfulness of those believers in Northern 00:39:22.620 --> 00:39:30.020 Africa, that it became the tip of the spear for the power of the Christian movement as it led into the second, 00:39:30.140 --> 00:39:33.120 third, fourth generation, or centuries of Christianity. 00:39:33.940 --> 00:39:41.140 And if you study the church and the Roman Empire, eventually Rome fell and Christians fled from Rome and they moved to 00:39:41.140 --> 00:39:41.960 North Africa. 00:39:43.340 --> 00:39:45.900 And on the backdrop of these faithful saints, of which many. 00:39:45.920 --> 00:39:53.460 We don't even know their name gave way to leaders like an individual named Tertullian or Cyprian or even Augustine. 00:39:54.000 --> 00:39:55.450 They all came out of North Africa. 00:39:56.600 --> 00:39:57.440 How did that happen? 00:39:58.940 --> 00:40:06.360 There was a group of people in Jesus who found their core memory, their core identity in who Christ was, and 00:40:06.360 --> 00:40:11.400 they would not go into the night silent over the richness that they had in Jesus. 00:40:12.040 --> 00:40:16.800 And because of that, God not only made an impact in their life, but for generations to come. 00:40:17.700 --> 00:40:19.450 Now comes a place for our opportunity. 00:40:20.460 --> 00:40:25.570 Psalm 145 reminds us of the uniqueness and the importance of the praise of your own. 00:40:25.680 --> 00:40:31.460 Walk with Jesus, not just as an individual, but as a church collectively found in him.