WEBVTT 00:00:00.940 --> 00:00:07.740 So, our reading is from Hosea chapter 11, verses 12, to Hosea 12, verses 6, and then 00:00:07.740 --> 00:00:09.580 Hosea chapter 13, verses 4, verses 8. 00:00:10.400 --> 00:00:14.220 That's a lot to remember, but I'll tell you when we're moving. 00:00:14.560 --> 00:00:17.320 So we're starting at Hosea 11, verse 12. 00:00:24.920 --> 00:00:29.800 Ephraim has surrounded me with lies, the house of Israel with deceit. 00:00:30.559 --> 00:00:35.899 And Judah is unruly against God, even against the faithful Holy One. 00:00:37.520 --> 00:00:39.060 Ephraim feeds on the wind. 00:00:40.240 --> 00:00:44.960 He pursues the east wind all day and multiplies lies and violence. 00:00:45.560 --> 00:00:49.640 He makes a treaty with Assyria and sends olive oil to Egypt. 00:00:50.280 --> 00:00:52.519 The Lord has a charge to bring against Judah. 00:00:52.659 --> 00:00:56.820 He will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds. 00:00:56.820 --> 00:00:59.719 In the womb he grasped his brother's heel. 00:01:00.340 --> 00:01:02.020 As a man he struggled with God. 00:01:02.659 --> 00:01:06.120 He struggled with the angel and overcame him. 00:01:06.319 --> 00:01:07.840 He wept and begged for his favor. 00:01:09.099 --> 00:01:11.359 He found him at Bethel and talked with him there. 00:01:11.819 --> 00:01:13.120 The Lord God Almighty. 00:01:13.599 --> 00:01:15.500 The Lord in his name of renown. 00:01:16.939 --> 00:01:18.519 But you must return to your God. 00:01:18.519 --> 00:01:21.179 Maintain love and justice. 00:01:22.299 --> 00:01:24.659 And wait for your God always. 00:01:25.799 --> 00:01:28.619 So now we move to chapter 13, verses 4 to 8. 00:01:28.620 --> 00:01:34.240 But I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt. 00:01:35.180 --> 00:01:39.020 You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savior except me. 00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:42.760 I cared for you in the desert, in the land of burning heat. 00:01:42.760 --> 00:01:45.420 When I fed them, they were satisfied. 00:01:46.219 --> 00:01:49.200 When they were satisfied, they became proud, and then they forgot me. 00:01:50.160 --> 00:01:52.320 So I will come upon them like a lion. 00:01:52.820 --> 00:01:55.140 Like a leopard, I will lurk by the path. 00:01:55.960 --> 00:01:59.640 Like a bear robbed of her cubs, I will attack them and rip them open. 00:02:00.360 --> 00:02:02.140 Like a lion, I will devour them. 00:02:02.860 --> 00:02:05.560 A wild animal will tear them apart. 00:02:05.560 --> 00:02:20.740 Thanks very much, Sam. 00:02:20.819 --> 00:02:22.099 We'll have your Bibles there. 00:02:22.180 --> 00:02:25.520 We will need them because we're going to be looking at these two chapters. 00:02:25.860 --> 00:02:30.420 And we're also going to be looking at a couple of other passages alongside it. 00:02:30.500 --> 00:02:32.060 So keep your Bibles at the ready. 00:02:33.060 --> 00:02:34.980 And let's pray. 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:47.979 Father, would you please give us understanding of your word. 00:02:49.400 --> 00:02:52.120 We want to understand it with our minds. 00:02:53.900 --> 00:02:58.539 And we want to experience it in our hearts. 00:02:58.539 --> 00:03:07.539 Father, we come wanting to know and understand you better. 00:03:09.219 --> 00:03:15.459 And yet we also want to experience you more in our lives. 00:03:15.460 --> 00:03:27.480 So in your grace, give to each one of us, individually and together as your people, what we need. 00:03:28.960 --> 00:03:30.120 Teach us. 00:03:31.719 --> 00:03:34.580 Show us more of who you are. 00:03:34.580 --> 00:03:39.420 And how we should come to you. 00:03:41.540 --> 00:03:42.720 Help us, we pray. 00:03:43.260 --> 00:03:44.340 In Jesus' name. 00:03:45.140 --> 00:03:45.439 Amen. 00:03:45.439 --> 00:03:45.560 Amen. 00:03:50.120 --> 00:03:51.180 Thanks, Sam. 00:03:51.900 --> 00:03:52.960 Yeah, go ahead. 00:03:53.300 --> 00:03:56.460 There's pens and there's little notes inside there as well. 00:03:56.579 --> 00:03:57.859 So we'll just... 00:03:57.859 --> 00:04:00.300 I'll let Sam do that as we're waiting. 00:04:00.300 --> 00:04:04.680 If anybody wants to take notes, you can follow along. 00:04:04.680 --> 00:04:06.000 Thank you. 00:04:06.000 --> 00:04:06.719 Thank you. 00:04:06.719 --> 00:04:36.699 Thank you. 00:04:36.720 --> 00:05:06.700 Thank you. 00:05:06.720 --> 00:05:08.720 Thank you. 00:05:08.720 --> 00:05:10.720 Thank you. 00:05:10.720 --> 00:05:12.720 Thank you. 00:05:12.720 --> 00:05:14.720 Thank you. 00:05:14.720 --> 00:05:16.720 Thank you. 00:05:21.720 --> 00:05:22.940 Thanks, Sam. 00:05:23.660 --> 00:05:27.879 Well, let's look at these two chapters together. 00:05:27.879 --> 00:05:36.819 If you were to look back over the course of your life so far, just take a scan throughout 00:05:36.819 --> 00:05:39.759 those years, how would you describe it? 00:05:39.759 --> 00:05:45.199 Perhaps it's a life of contentment and happiness. 00:05:46.719 --> 00:05:50.740 Maybe it's a story of disappointment and regret. 00:05:50.740 --> 00:05:54.519 Or think of it this way. 00:05:55.480 --> 00:06:04.220 If you were to write an autobiography, what would be the theme of your life story? 00:06:04.220 --> 00:06:13.360 Well, in chapters 12 to 13, we have the life story of Israel, God's people. 00:06:13.360 --> 00:06:19.379 It's a history of where they came from and where they have got to. 00:06:20.120 --> 00:06:27.520 But throughout, the dominant theme that is flowing through their lives is God's grace. 00:06:27.519 --> 00:06:34.319 God's overflowing goodness and kindness and generosity. 00:06:35.199 --> 00:06:40.979 These two chapters cover almost 1,300 years of history. 00:06:40.980 --> 00:06:45.980 That's 1,300 years of continued grace. 00:06:45.980 --> 00:06:48.980 Century after century. 00:06:48.980 --> 00:06:51.160 Year after year. 00:06:51.540 --> 00:06:53.319 Day after day. 00:06:53.900 --> 00:06:58.600 God's grace endlessly flows to his people. 00:06:58.600 --> 00:07:04.540 But this is not just a story about Israel's life. 00:07:05.480 --> 00:07:08.160 This is the story of our life. 00:07:09.040 --> 00:07:14.439 The story of God and his grace towards people like you and me. 00:07:15.840 --> 00:07:21.820 So first, the blessing of rehearsing God's grace. 00:07:21.820 --> 00:07:26.960 These chapters, big and as difficult and as awkward as they may appear, 00:07:26.959 --> 00:07:32.899 cause us to look back and trace God's grace through our lives. 00:07:33.839 --> 00:07:37.219 Let's have a look at this in four stages. 00:07:38.139 --> 00:07:41.599 First, God gives grace at the beginning. 00:07:42.319 --> 00:07:45.359 Look at chapter 12 and verse 2. 00:07:47.299 --> 00:07:50.859 He says, the Lord has a charge to bring against Judah. 00:07:51.779 --> 00:07:53.799 He will punish Jacob. 00:07:53.800 --> 00:07:58.560 This is Judah and Jacob, of course, are names given to God's people. 00:07:59.020 --> 00:08:04.819 He will punish Jacob according to his ways and repay him according to his deeds. 00:08:06.080 --> 00:08:07.720 Well, you say, where's the grace in that? 00:08:08.580 --> 00:08:18.139 Well, referring to Jacob takes us back to the very beginning of how God's people began. 00:08:18.139 --> 00:08:27.240 All the way back in Genesis chapter 12, God promised Abraham that Abraham would become a great nation 00:08:27.240 --> 00:08:32.179 and that all the peoples on the earth, all the nations would be blessed through him. 00:08:33.000 --> 00:08:35.000 So Abraham had a son. 00:08:35.519 --> 00:08:36.039 Do you remember? 00:08:36.139 --> 00:08:37.899 And the son was called Isaac. 00:08:37.899 --> 00:08:42.059 Then Isaac had twin boys. 00:08:43.059 --> 00:08:45.879 The firstborn, his name was Esau. 00:08:46.360 --> 00:08:49.299 And the secondborn was Jacob. 00:08:50.639 --> 00:08:54.279 The blessings always went to the first son. 00:08:54.419 --> 00:08:58.139 So from Abraham to Isaac and to Esau. 00:08:58.720 --> 00:09:00.279 But what did Jacob do? 00:09:00.740 --> 00:09:01.720 Look at verse 3. 00:09:01.720 --> 00:09:08.220 We're told there that in the womb, he grasped his brother's heel. 00:09:08.899 --> 00:09:11.300 As a man, he struggled with God. 00:09:11.800 --> 00:09:17.820 It was like he was trying to get ahead of his brother, even in the womb, even before he was born. 00:09:18.139 --> 00:09:21.700 He was trying to be first, to get ahead. 00:09:21.700 --> 00:09:34.780 In fact, years later, when his father Isaac was old and blind and near death and ready to pass on the blessing to his firstborn, 00:09:35.940 --> 00:09:38.180 Jacob deceived his father. 00:09:38.860 --> 00:09:40.420 That's what Jacob means. 00:09:40.700 --> 00:09:42.780 His name means deceiver. 00:09:43.840 --> 00:09:47.620 He pretended to be his older brother to get the blessing. 00:09:47.620 --> 00:09:52.539 He was grasping and scheming for something that was not his. 00:09:55.639 --> 00:10:00.480 As history unfolds, the story tells us that Jacob tried to run from God. 00:10:01.799 --> 00:10:04.019 But God would not let him go. 00:10:04.200 --> 00:10:05.560 God chased him down. 00:10:05.960 --> 00:10:07.539 So look at the middle of verse 4. 00:10:08.519 --> 00:10:14.180 We're told there that God found him, God found Jacob at Bethel. 00:10:14.899 --> 00:10:16.759 And talked with him there. 00:10:16.759 --> 00:10:19.179 The Lord God Almighty. 00:10:19.379 --> 00:10:21.960 The Lord is his name of renown. 00:10:22.939 --> 00:10:24.939 God came and spoke. 00:10:25.080 --> 00:10:27.200 He had an encounter with Jacob. 00:10:28.100 --> 00:10:32.439 And if you were to go back to Genesis 28, we'd read about that encounter. 00:10:33.220 --> 00:10:36.340 Because at Bethel, Jacob had a dream. 00:10:37.319 --> 00:10:41.700 And in the dream, he sees heaven opened up. 00:10:41.700 --> 00:10:45.840 And there's like a stairway from heaven to earth all the way. 00:10:46.160 --> 00:10:48.020 And angels going up and down. 00:10:48.379 --> 00:10:53.480 It's a picture of the way being opened, of access being given to God. 00:10:53.560 --> 00:10:57.160 It's almost a picture of God's grace coming down to Jacob. 00:10:57.159 --> 00:11:00.259 And in the dream, this is what God says. 00:11:01.579 --> 00:11:07.199 All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. 00:11:07.899 --> 00:11:10.360 And I am with you wherever you go. 00:11:10.459 --> 00:11:12.839 And I will bring you back to this land. 00:11:12.840 --> 00:11:17.259 And I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you. 00:11:17.259 --> 00:11:25.500 All his life, Jacob has been scheming and grasping and deceiving people. 00:11:27.080 --> 00:11:29.919 Taking what does not belong to him. 00:11:30.980 --> 00:11:36.360 Now God responds and gives him what he does not deserve. 00:11:36.360 --> 00:11:40.500 This is how the family of God's people started. 00:11:40.779 --> 00:11:45.220 With a deceiver who receives God's grace. 00:11:45.740 --> 00:11:47.800 It's not what we expect. 00:11:48.919 --> 00:11:51.419 But it's how God acts. 00:11:53.879 --> 00:11:59.879 The second point in their story is that God intervenes in grace through childhood. 00:12:00.940 --> 00:12:03.159 Soon after this encounter with God, 00:12:03.639 --> 00:12:06.340 Jacob married a lady called Rachel. 00:12:06.919 --> 00:12:12.940 They had 12 sons who would become the 12 children or the 12 tribes of Israel. 00:12:13.700 --> 00:12:16.200 But like their father, they were not much better. 00:12:16.320 --> 00:12:17.960 We read about them in verse 7. 00:12:19.279 --> 00:12:20.600 We're told in verse 7, 00:12:20.720 --> 00:12:26.139 the merchant or the businessman uses dishonest scales. 00:12:26.639 --> 00:12:27.980 He loves to defraud. 00:12:27.980 --> 00:12:33.620 So he makes his wealth by swindling people and diddling people out of things. 00:12:33.620 --> 00:12:37.179 And God is saying, well, Israel is no better. 00:12:37.179 --> 00:12:40.200 Verse 8, Ephraim boasts. 00:12:40.659 --> 00:12:42.200 I am very rich. 00:12:42.620 --> 00:12:44.399 I have become wealthy. 00:12:45.480 --> 00:12:47.840 They became wealthy through dishonest means. 00:12:47.840 --> 00:12:54.300 With all my wealth, they will not find in me any iniquity or sin. 00:12:54.300 --> 00:12:59.540 Israel had become so proud of themselves that they thought they could do as they pleased 00:12:59.540 --> 00:13:02.100 without any consequences whatsoever. 00:13:02.100 --> 00:13:08.500 But as history records, Jacob's children end up as slaves in Egypt. 00:13:09.060 --> 00:13:11.600 But God doesn't forget his promise to bless. 00:13:11.980 --> 00:13:13.820 God reminds them, verse 9, 00:13:13.820 --> 00:13:19.100 I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt. 00:13:19.740 --> 00:13:22.960 I'm the one who intervened and rescued you. 00:13:23.379 --> 00:13:24.580 Verse 13, 00:13:25.080 --> 00:13:26.680 The Lord used a prophet, 00:13:27.400 --> 00:13:28.720 that was the prophet Moses, 00:13:29.100 --> 00:13:32.340 to bring Israel up from Egypt. 00:13:32.580 --> 00:13:34.800 By a prophet he cared for them. 00:13:35.160 --> 00:13:36.580 Literally, he shepherded them. 00:13:36.660 --> 00:13:38.300 He saw them as helpless people 00:13:38.300 --> 00:13:41.100 and he provided the help that they needed. 00:13:41.100 --> 00:13:44.620 God intervened by his grace 00:13:44.620 --> 00:13:47.040 in those early years. 00:13:47.920 --> 00:13:49.659 It's not what we expect, 00:13:50.220 --> 00:13:52.860 but it's how God acts. 00:13:54.560 --> 00:13:56.100 And it continues. 00:13:57.060 --> 00:14:00.360 God provides grace throughout their life. 00:14:01.399 --> 00:14:03.560 You would think that as God's people grew, 00:14:03.740 --> 00:14:05.940 they would now change their ways. 00:14:06.100 --> 00:14:08.320 They would turn in some ways. 00:14:08.320 --> 00:14:11.160 But the reality was not, was much worse. 00:14:11.879 --> 00:14:14.500 Even though God had brought them into a new land 00:14:14.500 --> 00:14:16.120 and had blessed them abundantly, 00:14:16.500 --> 00:14:17.680 look how they behaved. 00:14:18.020 --> 00:14:20.440 Chapter 13, verse 2. 00:14:21.560 --> 00:14:23.980 Now they sin more and more. 00:14:24.520 --> 00:14:26.340 They make idols for themselves. 00:14:26.780 --> 00:14:29.940 From their silver, cleverly fashioned images. 00:14:30.340 --> 00:14:32.320 All of them the work of craftsmen. 00:14:32.320 --> 00:14:35.220 Perhaps here it's going back to the time 00:14:35.220 --> 00:14:37.660 when they came out of Egypt 00:14:37.660 --> 00:14:40.160 and they made themselves a golden calf. 00:14:40.600 --> 00:14:41.100 And they said, 00:14:41.180 --> 00:14:42.960 here's your God who rescued you. 00:14:44.260 --> 00:14:46.460 They replaced God with idols 00:14:46.460 --> 00:14:47.860 and made their own gods. 00:14:48.160 --> 00:14:49.700 And if that was bad enough, 00:14:49.879 --> 00:14:51.340 look at the rest of verse 2. 00:14:52.400 --> 00:14:54.180 It is said of these people, 00:14:55.000 --> 00:14:57.580 they offer human sacrifice 00:14:57.580 --> 00:15:00.860 and kiss the calf idols. 00:15:02.300 --> 00:15:06.259 Child sacrifice was a common practice 00:15:06.259 --> 00:15:08.080 among the surrounding nations. 00:15:08.580 --> 00:15:10.460 Young children were offered, 00:15:10.940 --> 00:15:13.360 slaughtered on idols or on altars 00:15:13.360 --> 00:15:15.420 to appease the anger of the gods. 00:15:15.700 --> 00:15:17.960 It was brutal and cruel. 00:15:19.040 --> 00:15:21.580 And God's people who he had rescued 00:15:21.580 --> 00:15:26.100 were indulging in such terrible practices. 00:15:26.100 --> 00:15:31.800 But even in the midst of such evil, 00:15:32.580 --> 00:15:36.240 God in his grace continues to provide 00:15:36.240 --> 00:15:40.300 the very basic necessities of food and water 00:15:40.300 --> 00:15:41.259 for his people. 00:15:41.540 --> 00:15:42.540 Look at verse 4. 00:15:43.659 --> 00:15:45.200 Even though they'd done this, 00:15:45.320 --> 00:15:46.480 God reminds them again, 00:15:46.580 --> 00:15:48.220 but I am the Lord your God 00:15:48.220 --> 00:15:49.519 who brought you out of Egypt. 00:15:49.860 --> 00:15:52.240 You shall acknowledge no God but me. 00:15:52.540 --> 00:15:54.279 No saviour except me. 00:15:54.279 --> 00:15:57.179 I cared for you in the desert. 00:15:58.299 --> 00:16:00.740 In the land of the burning heat. 00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:02.759 When I fed them, 00:16:03.740 --> 00:16:05.000 they were satisfied. 00:16:07.879 --> 00:16:10.439 God in his grace provided. 00:16:10.860 --> 00:16:12.819 It's not what we expect, 00:16:13.319 --> 00:16:16.659 but it's how God responds. 00:16:16.659 --> 00:16:22.839 And God provides or promises grace 00:16:22.839 --> 00:16:24.339 at the end. 00:16:25.379 --> 00:16:27.019 The years roll on by, 00:16:27.459 --> 00:16:28.919 century after century, 00:16:29.779 --> 00:16:31.939 but God's people are no better, 00:16:32.079 --> 00:16:32.500 it seems. 00:16:33.059 --> 00:16:34.579 Chapter 13, verse 10. 00:16:36.579 --> 00:16:37.439 He cries out, 00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:39.240 Where is your king? 00:16:40.240 --> 00:16:42.120 That he may save you. 00:16:42.680 --> 00:16:45.340 Where are your rulers in all your towns? 00:16:45.900 --> 00:16:47.420 Of whom you said, 00:16:48.400 --> 00:16:50.460 Give me a king and princes. 00:16:51.800 --> 00:16:53.320 So in my anger, 00:16:53.460 --> 00:16:55.660 I gave you a king. 00:16:56.520 --> 00:16:59.760 Israel were not content with God as king. 00:17:00.280 --> 00:17:01.660 They wanted their own king. 00:17:01.740 --> 00:17:04.000 They wanted to be like all the other nations. 00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:08.180 1 Samuel records this very tragic event. 00:17:08.759 --> 00:17:10.460 Let me read it for you. 00:17:10.559 --> 00:17:12.380 It's 1 Samuel chapter 8, 00:17:12.920 --> 00:17:14.599 verses 6 to 8. 00:17:14.680 --> 00:17:15.960 I'll read it there for you. 00:17:17.400 --> 00:17:18.819 So here the people are saying, 00:17:18.920 --> 00:17:20.259 We don't want God as king. 00:17:21.619 --> 00:17:23.500 And they come to Samuel the prophet, 00:17:23.640 --> 00:17:24.700 and this is what they said, 00:17:24.980 --> 00:17:27.539 Give us a king to lead us. 00:17:28.420 --> 00:17:30.319 This displeased Samuel. 00:17:30.460 --> 00:17:31.720 So he prayed to the Lord. 00:17:31.720 --> 00:17:33.600 And the Lord said to Samuel, 00:17:34.220 --> 00:17:37.440 Listen to all that the people are saying to you. 00:17:37.799 --> 00:17:40.100 It is not you they have rejected, 00:17:40.839 --> 00:17:43.960 but they have rejected me as their king. 00:17:44.440 --> 00:17:48.700 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt 00:17:48.700 --> 00:17:50.259 until this day, 00:17:50.640 --> 00:17:53.440 forsaking me and serving other gods, 00:17:53.799 --> 00:17:56.420 so they are doing to you. 00:17:56.420 --> 00:18:05.120 They were determined to live out the rest of their days without God as king. 00:18:05.860 --> 00:18:07.640 And God's response was clear. 00:18:08.039 --> 00:18:10.000 God would take them off into exile, 00:18:10.340 --> 00:18:13.600 which was like taking them into a living death. 00:18:15.940 --> 00:18:19.180 But yet even in the face of such defiance, 00:18:19.740 --> 00:18:22.860 God still promised grace to them. 00:18:22.859 --> 00:18:26.419 Look at Hosea chapter 13, verse 14. 00:18:27.279 --> 00:18:28.000 God says, 00:18:28.139 --> 00:18:31.219 I will ransom them from the power of the grave. 00:18:31.419 --> 00:18:34.059 I will redeem them from death. 00:18:35.079 --> 00:18:36.679 Where, O death, are your plagues? 00:18:36.939 --> 00:18:39.419 Where, O grave, is your destruction? 00:18:39.799 --> 00:18:41.799 God would overcome it all 00:18:41.799 --> 00:18:45.259 and reverse their situation. 00:18:45.259 --> 00:18:50.379 In grace he would redeem them and free them from exile. 00:18:51.500 --> 00:18:53.559 It's not what we expect, 00:18:54.339 --> 00:18:57.700 but it's how God acts. 00:18:59.079 --> 00:19:01.480 Century after century, 00:19:02.079 --> 00:19:03.799 year after year, 00:19:04.200 --> 00:19:05.759 day after day, 00:19:06.099 --> 00:19:09.920 God's grace continues to flow to his people. 00:19:09.920 --> 00:19:13.320 This is 1,300 years 00:19:13.320 --> 00:19:15.360 of continuous, 00:19:15.840 --> 00:19:16.779 unfailing, 00:19:17.279 --> 00:19:19.000 sustaining grace. 00:19:21.620 --> 00:19:24.440 But let's remember that this is also 00:19:24.440 --> 00:19:26.200 our life story. 00:19:26.779 --> 00:19:28.500 This is our God. 00:19:28.779 --> 00:19:30.539 This is the kind of God 00:19:30.539 --> 00:19:32.460 that we are dealing with. 00:19:32.700 --> 00:19:35.300 Right from the beginning of our lives, 00:19:35.600 --> 00:19:37.660 right the way throughout our childhood, 00:19:37.660 --> 00:19:40.160 as we mature into adults, 00:19:40.640 --> 00:19:42.880 God has shown us grace 00:19:42.880 --> 00:19:45.560 at every stage of our life. 00:19:47.620 --> 00:19:51.340 Chosen before the creation of the world. 00:19:52.060 --> 00:19:53.960 Adopted into his family 00:19:53.960 --> 00:19:56.160 before we even knew him. 00:19:56.400 --> 00:19:57.920 All by his grace. 00:19:59.540 --> 00:20:02.640 We're told that we have the forgiveness of sins 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:05.519 all because of the riches of his grace. 00:20:05.519 --> 00:20:08.139 That Christ died for us 00:20:08.139 --> 00:20:09.639 while we were still sinners. 00:20:10.339 --> 00:20:12.579 Everything that we need for life 00:20:12.579 --> 00:20:13.579 and godliness 00:20:13.579 --> 00:20:17.019 is supplied and provided by God's grace. 00:20:17.819 --> 00:20:19.779 Year after year, 00:20:20.259 --> 00:20:21.559 day after day, 00:20:21.960 --> 00:20:22.839 continuous, 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:24.039 unfailing, 00:20:24.480 --> 00:20:25.799 sustaining grace. 00:20:27.519 --> 00:20:29.660 Even in death, 00:20:31.160 --> 00:20:33.059 grace continues to flow. 00:20:33.059 --> 00:20:35.179 Go with me please 00:20:35.179 --> 00:20:36.419 to 1 Corinthians 00:20:36.419 --> 00:20:38.299 chapter 15. 00:20:38.839 --> 00:20:39.639 It's on page 00:20:39.639 --> 00:20:41.559 1157. 00:20:42.819 --> 00:20:44.819 Page 1157. 00:20:49.039 --> 00:20:50.299 1 Corinthians 00:20:50.299 --> 00:20:52.240 chapter 15 00:20:52.240 --> 00:20:54.339 on page 00:20:54.339 --> 00:20:55.799 1157. 00:20:57.099 --> 00:20:59.000 1 Corinthians 15 00:20:59.000 --> 00:20:59.940 is all about 00:20:59.940 --> 00:21:01.700 the resurrection 00:21:01.700 --> 00:21:03.100 of Jesus Christ 00:21:03.100 --> 00:21:04.720 from the dead. 00:21:06.039 --> 00:21:06.900 And because 00:21:06.900 --> 00:21:08.259 Christ is risen, 00:21:09.180 --> 00:21:10.299 because Christ 00:21:10.299 --> 00:21:11.580 has defeated death 00:21:11.580 --> 00:21:13.019 and destroyed the grave, 00:21:14.340 --> 00:21:15.340 look at what it says 00:21:15.340 --> 00:21:16.539 in verse 54. 00:21:17.400 --> 00:21:18.480 We're going to pick it up 00:21:18.480 --> 00:21:20.160 at the middle of verse 54. 00:21:21.420 --> 00:21:22.660 So because 00:21:22.660 --> 00:21:24.279 Christ is risen, 00:21:24.420 --> 00:21:25.320 because Christ 00:21:25.320 --> 00:21:26.460 has defeated death, 00:21:27.500 --> 00:21:28.059 look at the middle 00:21:28.059 --> 00:21:28.899 of verse 54. 00:21:29.339 --> 00:21:30.619 Then the saying 00:21:30.619 --> 00:21:31.740 that is written 00:21:31.740 --> 00:21:33.539 will come true. 00:21:34.559 --> 00:21:34.859 Death 00:21:34.859 --> 00:21:35.899 has been defeated 00:21:35.899 --> 00:21:37.519 or death 00:21:37.519 --> 00:21:38.740 has been swallowed up 00:21:38.740 --> 00:21:39.579 in victory. 00:21:40.259 --> 00:21:41.419 The promise 00:21:41.419 --> 00:21:43.119 that God 00:21:43.119 --> 00:21:43.720 had made 00:21:43.720 --> 00:21:44.679 all the way back 00:21:44.679 --> 00:21:45.359 in Hosea 00:21:45.359 --> 00:21:46.440 chapter 13 00:21:46.440 --> 00:21:47.339 verse 14 00:21:47.339 --> 00:21:48.220 where God said 00:21:48.220 --> 00:21:49.460 I will ransom them 00:21:49.460 --> 00:21:50.200 from the power 00:21:50.200 --> 00:21:50.859 of the grave. 00:21:51.279 --> 00:21:52.159 I will redeem 00:21:52.159 --> 00:21:53.259 them from death. 00:21:53.799 --> 00:21:54.559 Where, O death, 00:21:54.599 --> 00:21:55.319 are your plagues? 00:21:55.559 --> 00:21:56.399 Where, O grave, 00:21:56.460 --> 00:21:57.299 is your destruction? 00:21:58.019 --> 00:21:58.960 All that God 00:21:58.960 --> 00:21:59.419 has said 00:21:59.419 --> 00:22:01.039 has now come true 00:22:01.039 --> 00:22:03.419 in the resurrection 00:22:03.419 --> 00:22:04.519 of Jesus Christ 00:22:04.519 --> 00:22:05.279 from the dead. 00:22:06.059 --> 00:22:07.180 So verse 55, 00:22:07.539 --> 00:22:08.339 Where, O death, 00:22:08.399 --> 00:22:09.159 is your victory? 00:22:09.579 --> 00:22:10.579 Where, O death, 00:22:10.619 --> 00:22:11.339 is your sting? 00:22:11.639 --> 00:22:12.759 The sting of death 00:22:12.759 --> 00:22:13.339 is sin 00:22:13.339 --> 00:22:14.039 and the power 00:22:14.039 --> 00:22:14.460 of sin 00:22:14.460 --> 00:22:15.099 is the law. 00:22:15.500 --> 00:22:17.180 But thanks be to God 00:22:17.180 --> 00:22:18.399 He gives us 00:22:18.399 --> 00:22:19.119 the victory 00:22:19.119 --> 00:22:20.539 through our Lord 00:22:20.539 --> 00:22:21.740 Jesus Christ. 00:22:22.079 --> 00:22:22.879 Here is the, 00:22:22.980 --> 00:22:23.579 if you like, 00:22:23.659 --> 00:22:24.440 the climax 00:22:24.440 --> 00:22:25.380 of grace, 00:22:26.200 --> 00:22:27.160 the promise 00:22:27.160 --> 00:22:28.519 for all those 00:22:28.519 --> 00:22:29.460 who are in Christ. 00:22:29.880 --> 00:22:31.460 Even when we die, 00:22:32.019 --> 00:22:33.180 death has no hold 00:22:33.180 --> 00:22:33.759 on us. 00:22:34.259 --> 00:22:35.660 Even though we deserve 00:22:35.660 --> 00:22:36.640 to die 00:22:36.640 --> 00:22:37.660 and be separated 00:22:37.660 --> 00:22:38.320 from God, 00:22:38.559 --> 00:22:39.840 we will rise 00:22:39.840 --> 00:22:40.840 victoriously. 00:22:41.440 --> 00:22:42.940 Grace continues 00:22:42.940 --> 00:22:43.799 to flow 00:22:43.799 --> 00:22:45.220 throughout our life 00:22:45.220 --> 00:22:46.259 from beginning 00:22:46.259 --> 00:22:47.480 to end, 00:22:47.720 --> 00:22:49.440 day after day, 00:22:49.880 --> 00:22:51.220 year after year, 00:22:51.220 --> 00:22:52.380 through life 00:22:52.380 --> 00:22:54.000 and through on 00:22:54.000 --> 00:22:55.519 into eternity. 00:22:56.660 --> 00:22:58.220 This is the God 00:22:58.220 --> 00:22:58.880 of grace 00:22:58.880 --> 00:23:01.759 that we can come to. 00:23:05.559 --> 00:23:06.720 But second, 00:23:07.799 --> 00:23:09.539 there is the danger 00:23:09.539 --> 00:23:10.779 of presuming 00:23:10.779 --> 00:23:11.660 on God's grace. 00:23:11.819 --> 00:23:12.460 Let's go back 00:23:12.460 --> 00:23:13.200 to Hosea 00:23:13.200 --> 00:23:14.819 chapter 12. 00:23:16.980 --> 00:23:18.059 The danger 00:23:18.059 --> 00:23:18.980 of presuming 00:23:18.980 --> 00:23:19.980 on God's grace. 00:23:21.220 --> 00:23:22.680 The true story 00:23:22.680 --> 00:23:23.279 was told 00:23:23.279 --> 00:23:24.120 of a priest 00:23:24.120 --> 00:23:25.600 who went 00:23:25.600 --> 00:23:26.100 to visit 00:23:26.100 --> 00:23:27.100 a dying man 00:23:27.100 --> 00:23:28.880 called Heinrich Hein. 00:23:29.000 --> 00:23:30.259 He was a German poet. 00:23:31.460 --> 00:23:32.160 And the priest 00:23:32.160 --> 00:23:32.880 asked him 00:23:32.880 --> 00:23:34.039 on his deathbed, 00:23:34.140 --> 00:23:35.240 he came to Heinrich 00:23:35.240 --> 00:23:36.400 and he said, 00:23:37.059 --> 00:23:37.500 Do you 00:23:37.500 --> 00:23:51.660 say, 00:23:51.660 --> 00:23:52.420 same 00:23:52.420 --> 00:23:52.619 from that. 00:23:55.299 --> 00:23:55.539 He came to me and 00:23:55.539 --> 00:23:56.059 that. 00:23:56.779 --> 00:23:57.480 He said, 00:23:57.559 --> 00:23:58.900 that's right. 00:23:58.960 --> 00:24:01.220 That's right. 00:24:01.440 --> 00:24:03.740 He said, 00:24:03.740 --> 00:24:33.720 Thank you. 00:24:33.740 --> 00:25:03.720 Thank you.