WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.560 All right, good morning, CFC. 00:00:04.560 --> 00:00:09.960 We'll be in the book of James, chapter 5, starting in verse 13. 00:00:09.960 --> 00:00:12.439 ! 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:33.960 So James writes, 00:00:33.960 --> 00:00:40.299 Let no one say when he is tempted, I am being tempted by God. 00:00:41.219 --> 00:00:45.719 For God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 00:00:46.719 --> 00:00:51.900 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 00:00:52.980 --> 00:00:57.780 Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin. 00:00:57.780 --> 00:01:03.820 And sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death. 00:01:06.260 --> 00:01:13.060 In seventh grade, I remember getting caught cheating on a homework assignment for a science class. 00:01:13.140 --> 00:01:15.579 I don't even remember what science we were studying. 00:01:16.079 --> 00:01:17.700 It shows you how much I cared about that class. 00:01:18.480 --> 00:01:22.379 But we had an assignment where we had to go home and read this chapter 00:01:22.379 --> 00:01:27.340 and look for sentences on the page that were on our sheet, you know, and fill in the blank. 00:01:27.340 --> 00:01:28.820 Just to prove we had read it. 00:01:28.859 --> 00:01:31.359 And I kind of thought, it's kind of a waste of time, you know. 00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:33.820 And so I didn't feel like doing it. 00:01:33.939 --> 00:01:36.939 And so I thought, you know, in all my seventh grade wisdom, I thought, 00:01:37.020 --> 00:01:39.920 Well, I'll just copy my friend Alexander tomorrow. 00:01:40.020 --> 00:01:40.859 He's a smart kid. 00:01:40.960 --> 00:01:41.840 You know, he's in the orchestra. 00:01:42.180 --> 00:01:43.640 Like, he's going places. 00:01:44.900 --> 00:01:46.219 I'll just copy him. 00:01:46.280 --> 00:01:47.480 He'll have it, because he's a book winner. 00:01:48.379 --> 00:01:50.080 And so that's exactly what I did. 00:01:50.079 --> 00:01:55.840 And the parapro caught me, and she didn't really like me. 00:01:56.819 --> 00:01:58.739 And I was kind of a brat. 00:01:58.819 --> 00:02:00.159 This is before I was a believer, by the way. 00:02:00.799 --> 00:02:04.219 But Mr. Brown, the actual teacher, he did like me. 00:02:04.259 --> 00:02:05.640 I'm not sure why, but he did. 00:02:06.500 --> 00:02:09.599 And I knew I could talk my way out of it with him. 00:02:10.340 --> 00:02:14.379 So when she caught me, she brought me up, you know, showed my homework assignment, all this kind of stuff. 00:02:15.340 --> 00:02:20.000 And I just said, Well, you know, Mr. Brown, you assigned this thing, okay? 00:02:20.139 --> 00:02:21.780 You told me to copy from the book. 00:02:21.859 --> 00:02:24.299 I see no difference copying from my friend. 00:02:24.400 --> 00:02:26.079 What's the issue here? 00:02:26.519 --> 00:02:27.419 I had to read the sentences. 00:02:27.599 --> 00:02:28.120 They're right here. 00:02:28.979 --> 00:02:33.300 And he laughed, looked at the parapro, and said, Well, you know, he's got a point. 00:02:33.439 --> 00:02:34.099 And it counted. 00:02:34.699 --> 00:02:36.639 So that's how I'm here today. 00:02:38.599 --> 00:02:39.419 Past seventh grade. 00:02:40.500 --> 00:02:42.900 But, yeah, I essentially turned it on him, though. 00:02:42.900 --> 00:02:44.319 I'm giving you the short version. 00:02:44.520 --> 00:02:50.060 But when I really was kind of arguing with him, which is more playful, I basically turned it on him. 00:02:50.120 --> 00:02:53.520 I said, You know, this is really your fault for giving me such a dumb assignment. 00:02:53.700 --> 00:02:54.759 I didn't use that word at the time. 00:02:55.379 --> 00:02:57.360 But, you know, I just thought, This is so ridiculous. 00:02:57.520 --> 00:02:58.560 This is really your fault. 00:02:58.640 --> 00:03:02.939 If you really wanted me to learn something here, do something right, or do something profitable, 00:03:03.040 --> 00:03:06.599 you should have assigned a different type of homework. 00:03:06.599 --> 00:03:10.979 And so I essentially blamed him for what I had done. 00:03:11.780 --> 00:03:12.159 Right? 00:03:12.180 --> 00:03:13.419 And I turned it on him. 00:03:14.400 --> 00:03:16.879 And obviously, you all know the reality. 00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:19.019 What I did that day was wrong. 00:03:19.099 --> 00:03:22.939 My actions, my desires, my decisions were deceitful. 00:03:23.079 --> 00:03:25.060 They were sinful in that moment. 00:03:26.500 --> 00:03:27.900 But it's really telling, though. 00:03:27.959 --> 00:03:31.419 I mean, this has been, to put it in the more abstract statement, right, 00:03:31.419 --> 00:03:33.799 this has been the pattern of man forever. 00:03:33.799 --> 00:03:37.919 We always shift blame throughout all of history. 00:03:38.099 --> 00:03:44.099 The rebel left to himself never admits responsibility for rebelling. 00:03:44.859 --> 00:03:48.060 And this is as old as the Garden of Eden. 00:03:49.379 --> 00:03:53.979 When Adam is approached for his sin, he does not admit his wrongdoing to God. 00:03:54.079 --> 00:03:56.159 Rather, he shifts the blame. 00:03:56.699 --> 00:03:57.699 But not to Eve. 00:03:57.699 --> 00:04:03.500 Specifically, he says in Genesis 3, chapter 3, verse 12, 00:04:03.859 --> 00:04:04.259 he says, 00:04:04.379 --> 00:04:06.439 The woman whom you gave me, God, 00:04:06.599 --> 00:04:08.579 the woman whom you gave to be with me, 00:04:08.939 --> 00:04:10.579 is the reason I sinned. 00:04:11.819 --> 00:04:16.039 So he's saying, God, this broken vessel that you created did this evil. 00:04:16.300 --> 00:04:17.959 With the subtle implication being, 00:04:18.699 --> 00:04:21.459 God, you are responsible for what I did. 00:04:21.919 --> 00:04:23.019 If you didn't want me to do this, 00:04:23.039 --> 00:04:25.399 you shouldn't have given me this woman who made me do these things. 00:04:25.399 --> 00:04:29.319 And everything that led to me committing this sin is external to me. 00:04:29.399 --> 00:04:32.379 It's all you, not me. 00:04:34.560 --> 00:04:36.799 Adam, essentially in that moment, was saying, 00:04:36.879 --> 00:04:39.799 God does tempt, and he tempted me. 00:04:41.139 --> 00:04:43.919 And of course, that is a blasphemous lie, 00:04:43.979 --> 00:04:46.399 but a blasphemous lie that Adam believed nonetheless, 00:04:46.679 --> 00:04:49.959 and a lie that all of us prior to Christ believed. 00:04:49.959 --> 00:04:54.739 And this pattern didn't stop with Adam and Eve. 00:04:54.819 --> 00:04:58.639 It continued all throughout the Bible and all throughout history. 00:04:59.579 --> 00:05:01.459 Job chapter 2, verse 9, 00:05:01.839 --> 00:05:05.379 Job's wife was ready to curse God and die 00:05:05.379 --> 00:05:08.359 as she exhorted her husband to do likewise. 00:05:08.360 --> 00:05:13.259 In Ezekiel chapter 18, verses 25 through 26, 00:05:13.460 --> 00:05:17.680 the Lord rebukes the whole nation of Israel in the midst of her sin. 00:05:18.480 --> 00:05:19.540 And he says of them, 00:05:19.960 --> 00:05:21.520 Yet you, Israel, say, 00:05:21.660 --> 00:05:23.000 So Israel says to God, 00:05:23.540 --> 00:05:25.660 The way of the Lord is not just. 00:05:26.060 --> 00:05:26.939 Hear you, Israelites. 00:05:27.080 --> 00:05:27.720 God responds, 00:05:27.860 --> 00:05:28.879 Hear you, Israelites. 00:05:29.000 --> 00:05:30.100 Is my way unjust? 00:05:30.500 --> 00:05:32.439 Is it not your ways that are unjust? 00:05:33.180 --> 00:05:36.259 If a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sins, 00:05:36.259 --> 00:05:39.759 they will die for it because of the sin they have committed, 00:05:40.319 --> 00:05:42.319 they will die. 00:05:44.779 --> 00:05:49.120 And this pattern of shifting blame has always been true of fallen man. 00:05:49.199 --> 00:05:52.560 This is why James is addressing the issue in his epistle, 00:05:52.659 --> 00:05:54.480 because it's still an issue at his time. 00:05:54.560 --> 00:05:57.019 It's still an issue in our time. 00:05:57.019 --> 00:06:03.680 And he was clearly concerned that his audience was susceptible to such sin 00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:06.379 during a time in which they are being trialed, 00:06:07.079 --> 00:06:09.459 which we've talked about in the weeks past. 00:06:10.579 --> 00:06:12.899 And so to start this text, James, what does he do? 00:06:12.939 --> 00:06:17.039 He starts with a strong affirmation of God's holiness, 00:06:17.240 --> 00:06:18.959 that God is without blame. 00:06:20.240 --> 00:06:22.079 And that's point number one for this morning. 00:06:22.199 --> 00:06:24.159 God is holy. 00:06:24.160 --> 00:06:27.640 Point number one, God is holy. 00:06:29.040 --> 00:06:30.480 He says in verse 13, 00:06:30.620 --> 00:06:32.939 Let no one say when he is tempted, 00:06:33.580 --> 00:06:35.220 I am being tempted by God. 00:06:35.960 --> 00:06:38.820 For God cannot be tempted with evil, 00:06:38.940 --> 00:06:41.860 and he himself tempts no one. 00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:45.420 It's a firm affirmation. 00:06:46.560 --> 00:06:49.000 Holiness means to be separated from sin 00:06:49.000 --> 00:06:52.480 and totally, entirely committed to God. 00:06:52.480 --> 00:06:55.000 And that is exactly who God is. 00:06:55.040 --> 00:06:57.300 The one who is perfectly committed to himself 00:06:57.300 --> 00:06:59.000 and without sin. 00:06:59.080 --> 00:06:59.840 Totally separate. 00:07:00.420 --> 00:07:01.220 There's no blurring. 00:07:01.319 --> 00:07:02.240 There's no lines touching. 00:07:02.460 --> 00:07:04.980 Totally, totally separate. 00:07:06.780 --> 00:07:07.600 The phrase, 00:07:07.720 --> 00:07:09.140 God cannot be tempted with evil, 00:07:09.259 --> 00:07:11.280 literally translates from Greek as something like, 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:14.040 God is inexperienced with evil. 00:07:14.860 --> 00:07:16.840 He doesn't even experience it. 00:07:16.900 --> 00:07:17.640 He's never sinned. 00:07:17.680 --> 00:07:18.540 He will not sin. 00:07:18.960 --> 00:07:20.480 And he has not sinned. 00:07:20.480 --> 00:07:23.060 It is against his nature. 00:07:25.100 --> 00:07:28.480 Now recall that James is writing to dispersed Christian Jews 00:07:28.480 --> 00:07:30.660 throughout the Greco-Roman world. 00:07:31.360 --> 00:07:33.560 These believers were facing hardships, 00:07:33.980 --> 00:07:37.180 persecution, and trials of various kinds. 00:07:37.860 --> 00:07:41.819 It could be easy for them to face that temptation at such a time, 00:07:41.879 --> 00:07:43.660 such a time to blame God. 00:07:43.660 --> 00:07:46.360 Well, I'm feeling angry because of my circumstance, 00:07:46.520 --> 00:07:48.020 which sovereign God brought on me. 00:07:49.840 --> 00:07:53.580 How often do believers question God in the midst of crisis? 00:07:53.720 --> 00:07:56.160 How often do we try to shift blame to God in our hearts 00:07:56.160 --> 00:08:00.180 when we cannot believe the evil we so quickly run to? 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:03.780 And it seems that James is concerned 00:08:03.780 --> 00:08:07.200 that his audience would be tempted to do such a thing. 00:08:07.199 --> 00:08:13.000 And so he reminds them of God's holiness to avoid any such foolish thinking. 00:08:14.819 --> 00:08:17.199 I think one of the great proofs of God's holiness 00:08:17.199 --> 00:08:21.199 and our sinfulness is found in Isaiah chapter 6. 00:08:21.819 --> 00:08:23.159 Go ahead and turn with me there. 00:08:23.219 --> 00:08:24.500 We're going to be there for just a minute. 00:08:25.680 --> 00:08:26.899 So keep your thumb in James. 00:08:27.099 --> 00:08:30.939 But Isaiah chapter 6, starting in verse 1. 00:08:30.939 --> 00:08:43.080 Isaiah writes, again, chapter 6, verse 1. 00:08:43.139 --> 00:08:43.559 He writes, 00:08:44.200 --> 00:08:46.259 In the year that King Uzziah died, 00:08:46.360 --> 00:08:48.960 I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, 00:08:49.740 --> 00:08:51.080 high and lifted up. 00:08:52.100 --> 00:08:56.419 And the train of his robe filled the temple. 00:08:57.039 --> 00:08:59.980 Above him stood the seraphim, each had six wings. 00:08:59.980 --> 00:09:02.379 With two he covered his face, 00:09:02.580 --> 00:09:04.779 and with two he covered his feet, 00:09:04.899 --> 00:09:06.000 and with two he flew. 00:09:07.259 --> 00:09:09.159 And one called to another and said, 00:09:09.659 --> 00:09:12.720 Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. 00:09:13.139 --> 00:09:15.700 The whole earth is full of his glory. 00:09:16.920 --> 00:09:19.039 And the foundations of the threshold shook 00:09:19.039 --> 00:09:20.879 at the voice of him who called, 00:09:21.019 --> 00:09:22.860 and the house was filled with smoke. 00:09:23.659 --> 00:09:24.779 And Isaiah said, 00:09:25.519 --> 00:09:28.100 Woe is me, for I am lost, 00:09:28.100 --> 00:09:30.000 for I am a man of unclean lips, 00:09:30.060 --> 00:09:32.360 and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips, 00:09:32.620 --> 00:09:34.560 for my eyes have seen the King, 00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:36.680 the Lord of hosts. 00:09:38.840 --> 00:09:40.580 So it's important to understand 00:09:40.580 --> 00:09:42.300 when we're looking at this text 00:09:42.300 --> 00:09:44.560 what a Hebrew thinks of 00:09:44.560 --> 00:09:46.920 when he thinks about knowing something. 00:09:47.620 --> 00:09:49.300 I'm talking about epistemology, 00:09:49.420 --> 00:09:50.139 if you like big words. 00:09:50.220 --> 00:09:51.700 How do you know what you know, right? 00:09:51.700 --> 00:09:53.759 To know something was not merely 00:09:53.759 --> 00:09:57.700 an abstract intellectual ascent for a Hebrew, 00:09:57.820 --> 00:09:59.600 this kind of thing that you just have in the mind, 00:09:59.640 --> 00:10:00.560 and now I know it. 00:10:01.500 --> 00:10:04.820 Rather, it included the totality of the person 00:10:04.820 --> 00:10:06.879 as an embodied creature. 00:10:07.000 --> 00:10:09.080 To know something was to understand it 00:10:09.080 --> 00:10:10.420 in the mind, in the heart, 00:10:10.520 --> 00:10:12.140 in the eyes, and in the body. 00:10:13.220 --> 00:10:15.700 This is why Moses often uses euphemisms 00:10:16.360 --> 00:10:18.420 like Adam knew his wife Eve, 00:10:18.419 --> 00:10:20.479 in the wholeness of his body, 00:10:20.559 --> 00:10:21.839 in his person, in his mind, 00:10:22.199 --> 00:10:23.000 in his heart. 00:10:23.740 --> 00:10:25.740 This is why we are called to love the Lord, 00:10:25.819 --> 00:10:26.339 our God, 00:10:26.539 --> 00:10:28.399 with all of our heart, mind, soul, 00:10:28.519 --> 00:10:31.079 and strength in Deuteronomy 6, 5. 00:10:31.459 --> 00:10:32.740 Because we are to love him 00:10:32.740 --> 00:10:34.319 in our totality, 00:10:34.639 --> 00:10:35.979 or wholeness, 00:10:36.079 --> 00:10:38.339 as Jane puts it in chapter 1, verse 4. 00:10:40.199 --> 00:10:42.719 So we have Isaiah before the throne of God, 00:10:42.719 --> 00:10:45.759 and Isaiah in verse 1 saw God. 00:10:45.759 --> 00:10:49.799 Isaiah is beginning to know God as he is, 00:10:49.879 --> 00:10:51.460 and this causes Isaiah to cry out, 00:10:51.819 --> 00:10:52.740 Woe is me! 00:10:52.799 --> 00:10:54.080 And this literally means, 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:56.120 Damn me to hell for all eternity. 00:10:57.159 --> 00:10:58.360 And why would he say that? 00:10:59.059 --> 00:11:01.860 Because that is the only response one can have 00:11:01.860 --> 00:11:04.939 who encounters the Lord in his glory. 00:11:06.700 --> 00:11:09.960 Isaiah didn't even see the Lord's face or feet, 00:11:10.439 --> 00:11:11.379 only a glimpse, 00:11:11.539 --> 00:11:13.200 and yet it was enough. 00:11:13.200 --> 00:11:15.640 And the angels sing out, 00:11:15.980 --> 00:11:17.920 Holy, holy, holy. 00:11:18.040 --> 00:11:19.740 This is a grammatical function. 00:11:19.960 --> 00:11:20.940 To write it in this way 00:11:20.940 --> 00:11:22.980 takes it to the superlative degree, 00:11:23.060 --> 00:11:26.460 meaning God is holy, holier, and holiest. 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:27.520 No one holier. 00:11:30.379 --> 00:11:31.259 I can't help but say, 00:11:31.360 --> 00:11:32.600 but anytime I hear that, 00:11:32.640 --> 00:11:34.140 I hear that in Steve Lawson's voice. 00:11:34.220 --> 00:11:34.660 Anybody else? 00:11:34.780 --> 00:11:34.900 You know? 00:11:35.000 --> 00:11:36.680 This takes it to the superlative degree. 00:11:38.780 --> 00:11:39.500 Can't help it. 00:11:39.500 --> 00:11:45.840 But by learning how holy God truly is, 00:11:47.399 --> 00:11:49.620 Isaiah's only response could have been 00:11:49.620 --> 00:11:53.779 to recognize that he himself is unholy. 00:11:54.360 --> 00:11:57.139 That Isaiah deserves to be cut off from God, 00:11:57.279 --> 00:11:59.360 who is clean and without sin. 00:11:59.840 --> 00:12:03.519 Unlike Isaiah, who is dirty and filthy, 00:12:03.759 --> 00:12:05.340 a filthy rag at best, 00:12:05.340 --> 00:12:07.960 as he puts it later on in his book. 00:12:07.960 --> 00:12:11.440 Isaiah did not say to himself, 00:12:11.660 --> 00:12:13.060 I have been tempted by God. 00:12:13.300 --> 00:12:15.680 He knew better than to say that. 00:12:17.139 --> 00:12:19.060 And you can turn back to James with me. 00:12:25.720 --> 00:12:27.340 So God is holy. 00:12:27.560 --> 00:12:28.980 He is without sin, 00:12:29.080 --> 00:12:31.860 totally separate from all evil and wickedness, 00:12:32.480 --> 00:12:33.960 which is why it would be so foolish 00:12:34.519 --> 00:12:36.200 for James' audience to say to themselves, 00:12:36.200 --> 00:12:40.020 we are being tempted by God. 00:12:40.759 --> 00:12:42.920 God cannot offer or entice 00:12:42.920 --> 00:12:45.780 that which he has never experienced. 00:12:47.580 --> 00:12:49.860 Now you all can imagine how James' audience 00:12:49.860 --> 00:12:51.400 might have reasoned like Adam. 00:12:51.480 --> 00:12:52.000 They might have said, 00:12:52.080 --> 00:12:53.480 well, God is sovereign 00:12:53.480 --> 00:12:56.379 and he has allowed these difficulties to surround us. 00:12:56.879 --> 00:12:59.480 Therefore, he is behind the temptations I face. 00:12:59.940 --> 00:13:01.140 He's the cause of it. 00:13:01.620 --> 00:13:02.980 It is actually God's fault 00:13:02.980 --> 00:13:04.980 that I'm thinking evil in this way. 00:13:04.980 --> 00:13:08.100 And this would be wrong for them to do so, 00:13:08.159 --> 00:13:10.139 as you have already seen. 00:13:11.259 --> 00:13:12.720 But this raises the question, 00:13:12.879 --> 00:13:14.580 where does temptation come from? 00:13:14.680 --> 00:13:16.460 Who or what tempts us? 00:13:17.340 --> 00:13:18.200 Is it Satan? 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:22.320 And this leads me to our second point, 00:13:22.420 --> 00:13:23.200 point number two. 00:13:23.920 --> 00:13:25.659 Man's nature is sinful. 00:13:26.440 --> 00:13:27.019 Point number two. 00:13:27.100 --> 00:13:29.080 Man's nature is sinful. 00:13:29.080 --> 00:13:32.580 Looking back at verse 14 in James, 00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:34.040 James writes, 00:13:34.139 --> 00:13:35.360 but each person is tempted 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:37.780 when he is lured and enticed 00:13:37.780 --> 00:13:39.740 by his own desire. 00:13:40.560 --> 00:13:42.639 Then desire, when it has conceived, 00:13:42.940 --> 00:13:44.440 gives birth to sin. 00:13:47.000 --> 00:13:48.460 James seems to be saying 00:13:48.460 --> 00:13:51.100 that we are the source of our own temptation. 00:13:51.600 --> 00:13:53.600 We are tempted when we are lured 00:13:53.600 --> 00:13:56.220 and enticed by our own desire. 00:13:56.220 --> 00:13:57.740 What he's saying here 00:13:57.740 --> 00:14:00.340 is that we are born with a sin nature. 00:14:01.259 --> 00:14:02.899 And this is all throughout the Bible. 00:14:03.500 --> 00:14:04.300 David put it this way. 00:14:04.399 --> 00:14:06.600 He said in Psalm 51, verse 5, 00:14:07.180 --> 00:14:09.620 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity 00:14:09.620 --> 00:14:13.040 and in sin did my mother conceive me. 00:14:14.420 --> 00:14:15.899 The Apostle Paul said it this way 00:14:15.899 --> 00:14:16.779 in Ephesians 2, 3. 00:14:16.879 --> 00:14:18.660 He says that mankind is, quote, 00:14:19.100 --> 00:14:21.660 by nature, children of wrath, 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:24.540 meaning our very nature is wicked and sinful. 00:14:24.539 --> 00:14:28.059 God himself, who is all-knowing, 00:14:28.159 --> 00:14:29.879 all-wise, and perfect judge 00:14:29.879 --> 00:14:30.879 over the universe, 00:14:31.219 --> 00:14:33.000 has said in Genesis 5, 6, 00:14:33.219 --> 00:14:34.360 when he looked over the earth, 00:14:34.419 --> 00:14:34.759 he said, 00:14:35.120 --> 00:14:37.439 The Lord saw that the wickedness of man 00:14:37.439 --> 00:14:39.599 was great in the earth 00:14:39.599 --> 00:14:43.539 and that he only saw evil continually. 00:14:45.419 --> 00:14:46.839 From beginning to end, 00:14:47.279 --> 00:14:50.959 mankind is only evil continually. 00:14:50.960 --> 00:14:54.680 But just sticking with James' wording to continue, 00:14:54.820 --> 00:14:57.080 James says that we have these desires 00:14:57.080 --> 00:14:59.940 as your ESV probably translates it 00:14:59.940 --> 00:15:02.360 or other translations use that word as well. 00:15:03.320 --> 00:15:05.580 The Greek word here is epithumies. 00:15:06.519 --> 00:15:08.660 It is the same word that English translations 00:15:08.660 --> 00:15:10.920 often translate as lust. 00:15:12.060 --> 00:15:13.360 And typically when doing so, 00:15:13.700 --> 00:15:16.379 it is because the translators identify the word 00:15:16.379 --> 00:15:18.820 as specifically related to some sort of 00:15:18.820 --> 00:15:20.700 sexual temptation or desire. 00:15:20.840 --> 00:15:23.439 And this is often the case in Paul's writings. 00:15:24.980 --> 00:15:27.539 However, it can be applied to anything. 00:15:27.740 --> 00:15:29.519 And in its most basic sense, 00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:31.379 it really just carries the idea of 00:15:31.379 --> 00:15:34.779 a strong desire for anything, 00:15:34.899 --> 00:15:36.559 whether that be food, drink, clothes, 00:15:36.600 --> 00:15:37.299 or what have you. 00:15:38.600 --> 00:15:40.740 In fact, in pre-Koine Greek, 00:15:40.820 --> 00:15:41.899 which is the Greek of the Bible, 00:15:41.899 --> 00:15:44.639 this word was used to describe 00:15:44.639 --> 00:15:47.379 the sudden violence found in nature. 00:15:47.579 --> 00:15:49.519 So a hurricane, a flash flood, 00:15:49.699 --> 00:15:51.120 a volcano, earthquake, 00:15:51.679 --> 00:15:52.879 these kind of things. 00:15:53.439 --> 00:15:55.819 This violent, sudden urging, 00:15:56.240 --> 00:15:57.159 this movement. 00:15:59.120 --> 00:16:01.100 And furthermore, this word epithumies, 00:16:01.240 --> 00:16:02.360 this word desires, 00:16:03.600 --> 00:16:06.360 it can be understood as a strong, 00:16:06.579 --> 00:16:08.759 violent urging that comes from within. 00:16:08.899 --> 00:16:10.079 So it's not coming from without, 00:16:10.080 --> 00:16:11.560 but from within, right? 00:16:11.600 --> 00:16:12.820 Which is why it could be used to describe 00:16:12.820 --> 00:16:15.259 an earthquake from within the earth, right? 00:16:15.280 --> 00:16:16.800 A hurricane from within the earth 00:16:16.800 --> 00:16:18.680 and the sky. 00:16:19.720 --> 00:16:21.879 It is this powerful, quick, 00:16:22.060 --> 00:16:23.820 seemingly dominating force 00:16:23.820 --> 00:16:26.740 that has to be reckoned with. 00:16:26.780 --> 00:16:28.900 It cannot be ignored. 00:16:30.820 --> 00:16:32.220 So what is James saying? 00:16:33.580 --> 00:16:34.500 He's saying that 00:16:34.500 --> 00:16:36.560 when we have these sudden urges, 00:16:36.820 --> 00:16:37.820 these strong desires, 00:16:37.920 --> 00:16:38.820 and when we are enticed 00:16:38.820 --> 00:16:39.840 and lured by them, 00:16:39.980 --> 00:16:41.420 then at that moment, 00:16:42.120 --> 00:16:43.100 we are being tempted. 00:16:44.060 --> 00:16:45.379 And we are being tempted 00:16:45.379 --> 00:16:47.400 because we are by nature sinners 00:16:47.400 --> 00:16:49.120 who desire sin. 00:16:51.180 --> 00:16:53.500 And sin occurs in verse 15 00:16:53.500 --> 00:16:56.200 after we have gone through the process 00:16:56.200 --> 00:16:57.420 of this enticement, 00:16:57.560 --> 00:16:58.280 this desire, 00:16:58.879 --> 00:17:01.200 and allow ourselves to be lured. 00:17:01.200 --> 00:17:03.280 At this point, 00:17:03.379 --> 00:17:05.200 we give birth to sin, 00:17:05.279 --> 00:17:06.200 which we conceived 00:17:06.200 --> 00:17:08.680 when we desired sin. 00:17:09.720 --> 00:17:11.120 Just think about the implications 00:17:11.120 --> 00:17:11.759 of this truth. 00:17:13.920 --> 00:17:14.980 This means that 00:17:14.980 --> 00:17:16.519 we are not murderers 00:17:16.519 --> 00:17:17.840 the minute we have killed someone. 00:17:18.519 --> 00:17:18.920 Rather, 00:17:19.019 --> 00:17:19.660 we are murderers 00:17:19.660 --> 00:17:21.080 the moment we are angry enough 00:17:21.080 --> 00:17:22.779 to desire to murder someone. 00:17:22.920 --> 00:17:24.680 We have already conceived murder. 00:17:24.759 --> 00:17:27.380 Now murder is going to be born. 00:17:27.380 --> 00:17:29.220 This means that 00:17:29.220 --> 00:17:30.320 we are not adulterers 00:17:30.320 --> 00:17:32.240 the minute we have slept with someone. 00:17:32.360 --> 00:17:32.540 Rather, 00:17:32.660 --> 00:17:33.660 we are adulterers 00:17:33.660 --> 00:17:35.620 the minute we lust after someone. 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:37.660 We have already conceived adultery. 00:17:37.780 --> 00:17:41.360 Now adultery is going to be born. 00:17:43.020 --> 00:17:45.100 And this should all sound familiar. 00:17:45.200 --> 00:17:46.280 It is what Jesus taught 00:17:46.280 --> 00:17:47.760 in the Sermon on the Mount. 00:17:48.000 --> 00:17:48.500 Jesus said, 00:17:48.940 --> 00:17:49.560 Matthew 5, 00:17:49.600 --> 00:17:50.660 verse 21 through 22, 00:17:50.660 --> 00:17:52.900 You have heard that it was said 00:17:52.900 --> 00:17:53.759 to those of old, 00:17:53.860 --> 00:17:54.920 You shall not murder, 00:17:55.380 --> 00:17:56.360 and whoever murders 00:17:56.360 --> 00:17:57.580 will be liable to judgment. 00:17:58.340 --> 00:17:59.480 But I say to you 00:17:59.480 --> 00:18:00.779 that everyone who is angry 00:18:00.779 --> 00:18:01.580 with his brother 00:18:01.580 --> 00:18:03.519 will be liable to judgment. 00:18:04.700 --> 00:18:05.720 Jesus also said 00:18:05.720 --> 00:18:06.500 in Matthew 5, 00:18:06.580 --> 00:18:07.600 27 through 28, 00:18:07.960 --> 00:18:09.259 You have heard that it was said 00:18:09.259 --> 00:18:11.820 you shall not commit adultery. 00:18:12.700 --> 00:18:13.940 But I say to you 00:18:13.940 --> 00:18:15.000 that everyone who looks 00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:16.640 at a woman with lustful intent 00:18:16.640 --> 00:18:18.540 has already committed adultery 00:18:18.540 --> 00:18:20.640 with her in his heart. 00:18:20.660 --> 00:18:23.640 Now all of this means 00:18:23.640 --> 00:18:24.779 that there is nobody 00:18:24.779 --> 00:18:26.040 to point the finger at, 00:18:26.120 --> 00:18:27.200 nobody to blame, 00:18:27.800 --> 00:18:29.320 except ourselves. 00:18:30.279 --> 00:18:31.380 Our greatest enemy, 00:18:31.519 --> 00:18:32.400 our greatest opposition 00:18:32.400 --> 00:18:34.259 in terms of temptation 00:18:34.259 --> 00:18:35.519 is certainly not God, 00:18:36.500 --> 00:18:38.120 but neither is it Satan, 00:18:38.800 --> 00:18:39.500 the culture, 00:18:40.100 --> 00:18:41.060 a political party, 00:18:41.400 --> 00:18:43.700 or anyone or anything else. 00:18:43.820 --> 00:18:45.240 It is us, ourselves. 00:18:46.240 --> 00:18:47.340 We alone bear 00:18:47.340 --> 00:18:49.620 the responsibility for our sins 00:18:49.619 --> 00:18:51.479 and rightfully so. 00:18:53.479 --> 00:18:56.119 Now this is horrifying news. 00:18:56.859 --> 00:18:58.219 We are born as sinners. 00:18:58.379 --> 00:18:59.119 We desire sin, 00:18:59.199 --> 00:19:01.239 which means we cannot desire God 00:19:01.239 --> 00:19:03.559 who is entirely separate from sin, 00:19:03.599 --> 00:19:05.879 who is the entire opposite of sin. 00:19:06.599 --> 00:19:07.939 And this news gets worse 00:19:07.939 --> 00:19:09.159 because sin doesn't stop 00:19:09.159 --> 00:19:10.479 at being born. 00:19:10.599 --> 00:19:12.559 No, when sin is fully grown, 00:19:12.659 --> 00:19:13.979 it produces something. 00:19:13.980 --> 00:19:16.940 And this leads us 00:19:16.940 --> 00:19:18.360 to the final point 00:19:18.360 --> 00:19:19.240 for this morning, 00:19:19.360 --> 00:19:20.200 point number three. 00:19:22.339 --> 00:19:24.500 Sin results in death. 00:19:25.299 --> 00:19:26.160 Point number three, 00:19:26.360 --> 00:19:29.039 sin results in death. 00:19:30.039 --> 00:19:31.460 I'm going to reread verse 14 00:19:31.460 --> 00:19:32.559 through the end of our text. 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:35.019 James writes, 00:19:35.419 --> 00:19:37.879 But each person is tempted 00:19:37.879 --> 00:19:40.119 when he is lured 00:19:40.119 --> 00:19:40.980 and enticed 00:19:40.980 --> 00:19:42.279 by his own desire. 00:19:43.720 --> 00:19:44.720 Then desire, 00:19:44.940 --> 00:19:45.839 when it has conceived 00:19:45.839 --> 00:19:47.119 its birth to sin, 00:19:47.359 --> 00:19:47.980 and sin, 00:19:48.919 --> 00:19:50.039 when it is fully grown, 00:19:50.259 --> 00:19:52.279 brings forth death. 00:19:54.220 --> 00:19:54.960 Now those terms, 00:19:55.119 --> 00:19:56.200 lured and enticed, 00:19:56.319 --> 00:19:57.659 were predominantly used 00:19:57.659 --> 00:19:59.279 as fishing terms 00:19:59.279 --> 00:20:01.119 in the Greco-Roman world. 00:20:01.119 --> 00:20:01.599 In other words, 00:20:01.679 --> 00:20:02.199 James is saying 00:20:02.199 --> 00:20:03.659 that we, like fish, 00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:06.039 will gladly bite the bait 00:20:06.039 --> 00:20:07.159 and be carried off 00:20:07.159 --> 00:20:09.439 by our own desires to death. 00:20:10.679 --> 00:20:12.879 And that is a perfect picture 00:20:12.879 --> 00:20:13.899 of this process. 00:20:15.099 --> 00:20:17.859 We see something with our eyes. 00:20:18.119 --> 00:20:19.779 We find it attractive in some way. 00:20:19.839 --> 00:20:21.319 And then we go after it. 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:22.000 And to be honest, 00:20:22.039 --> 00:20:23.799 there is a source of joy, 00:20:23.899 --> 00:20:25.059 a source of pleasure 00:20:25.059 --> 00:20:26.819 in that moment. 00:20:27.739 --> 00:20:29.119 But it is just that 00:20:29.119 --> 00:20:29.639 that, 00:20:29.779 --> 00:20:31.599 a fleeting moment. 00:20:32.519 --> 00:20:33.519 You can imagine 00:20:33.519 --> 00:20:34.699 the fish enjoys 00:20:34.699 --> 00:20:35.859 eating the worm so much 00:20:35.859 --> 00:20:37.559 that the fish doesn't realize 00:20:37.559 --> 00:20:39.119 it is hooked right away 00:20:39.119 --> 00:20:41.779 until it is too late 00:20:41.779 --> 00:20:44.419 and that fish is flailing about 00:20:44.419 --> 00:20:46.579 as it dies a miserable death. 00:20:48.819 --> 00:20:49.599 James is saying 00:20:49.599 --> 00:20:51.559 that this is true of us. 00:20:51.759 --> 00:20:53.099 We bite at what we see. 00:20:53.639 --> 00:20:54.779 We are slaves to this. 00:20:54.899 --> 00:20:55.599 And this is why 00:20:55.599 --> 00:20:56.739 we will all die 00:20:56.739 --> 00:20:58.279 apart from Christ. 00:20:59.119 --> 00:21:00.299 Because our desires 00:21:00.299 --> 00:21:01.500 lead only to death, 00:21:02.259 --> 00:21:02.479 ruin, 00:21:03.119 --> 00:21:03.839 and destruction. 00:21:05.599 --> 00:21:06.859 This is what we see 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:08.139 in Genesis chapter 3, 00:21:08.219 --> 00:21:08.679 verse 6, 00:21:08.759 --> 00:21:10.099 when Eve first sins. 00:21:11.539 --> 00:21:12.519 Now this text is 00:21:12.519 --> 00:21:13.779 written in what's called 00:21:13.779 --> 00:21:14.479 the grammatical 00:21:14.479 --> 00:21:15.459 va construction 00:21:15.459 --> 00:21:16.119 for Hebrews. 00:21:16.359 --> 00:21:17.459 So all you need to remember 00:21:17.459 --> 00:21:18.439 with me mentioning this 00:21:18.439 --> 00:21:19.339 is that is a cue 00:21:19.339 --> 00:21:19.839 to the reader 00:21:19.839 --> 00:21:21.039 to read quickly. 00:21:21.599 --> 00:21:21.799 Right? 00:21:21.819 --> 00:21:22.539 It's a way of saying 00:21:22.539 --> 00:21:24.479 read this passage fast. 00:21:24.819 --> 00:21:26.099 Because that's how quickly 00:21:26.099 --> 00:21:27.079 this passage occurred 00:21:27.079 --> 00:21:27.819 in real time. 00:21:27.819 --> 00:21:28.500 Right? 00:21:28.539 --> 00:21:29.539 That's the idea here. 00:21:29.899 --> 00:21:31.019 So reading Genesis 3, 00:21:31.139 --> 00:21:32.079 6 quickly, 00:21:32.960 --> 00:21:33.659 Moses writes, 00:21:34.200 --> 00:21:35.119 So when the woman saw 00:21:35.119 --> 00:21:35.879 that the tree was good 00:21:35.879 --> 00:21:36.299 for food 00:21:36.299 --> 00:21:37.059 and that it was a delight 00:21:37.059 --> 00:21:37.619 to the eyes 00:21:37.619 --> 00:21:38.079 and that the tree 00:21:38.079 --> 00:21:38.879 was to be desired 00:21:38.879 --> 00:21:39.659 to make one wise, 00:21:39.919 --> 00:21:40.779 she took of its fruit 00:21:40.779 --> 00:21:41.079 and ate 00:21:41.079 --> 00:21:41.960 and she also gave some 00:21:41.960 --> 00:21:42.460 to her husband 00:21:42.460 --> 00:21:43.059 who was with her 00:21:43.059 --> 00:21:44.000 and he ate. 00:21:44.960 --> 00:21:45.039 Right? 00:21:45.200 --> 00:21:45.419 Sin, 00:21:45.659 --> 00:21:45.879 sin, 00:21:46.099 --> 00:21:46.319 sin, 00:21:46.419 --> 00:21:46.779 moving, 00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:48.159 rationalist, 00:21:48.299 --> 00:21:48.599 evil, 00:21:48.919 --> 00:21:49.200 wicked. 00:21:50.460 --> 00:21:51.439 And it happens quick 00:21:51.439 --> 00:21:52.059 in a moment, 00:21:52.299 --> 00:21:53.019 fleeting moment, 00:21:53.439 --> 00:21:54.099 the pleasure of eating 00:21:54.099 --> 00:21:55.039 the apple and dead. 00:21:55.039 --> 00:21:56.700 just like that. 00:21:58.819 --> 00:21:59.960 And we already know 00:21:59.960 --> 00:22:00.839 that God's word 00:22:00.839 --> 00:22:01.500 of warning 00:22:01.500 --> 00:22:02.659 to Adam and Eve 00:22:02.659 --> 00:22:03.659 came true that day. 00:22:03.740 --> 00:22:04.399 He said to them, 00:22:04.500 --> 00:22:06.980 you shall surely die. 00:22:07.039 --> 00:22:07.599 And when they ate 00:22:07.599 --> 00:22:08.059 of the tree, 00:22:09.259 --> 00:22:09.940 they did die. 00:22:11.460 --> 00:22:12.000 Romans 6, 00:22:12.059 --> 00:22:12.420 23, 00:22:12.559 --> 00:22:13.099 for the wages 00:22:13.099 --> 00:22:13.759 of sin 00:22:13.759 --> 00:22:15.879 is death. 00:22:15.880 --> 00:22:19.720 God's reaction 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:20.240 to sin 00:22:20.240 --> 00:22:21.100 might seem like 00:22:21.100 --> 00:22:22.540 an overreaction 00:22:22.540 --> 00:22:24.180 to you at first. 00:22:24.300 --> 00:22:25.060 It might seem like 00:22:25.060 --> 00:22:26.080 God is making 00:22:26.080 --> 00:22:26.800 a big deal 00:22:26.800 --> 00:22:28.200 about something 00:22:28.200 --> 00:22:29.020 that is small. 00:22:30.180 --> 00:22:31.320 We can all see 00:22:31.320 --> 00:22:32.140 why murderers 00:22:32.140 --> 00:22:32.840 or adulterers 00:22:32.840 --> 00:22:34.140 might need to be punished 00:22:34.140 --> 00:22:35.040 to some degree. 00:22:36.040 --> 00:22:36.180 Right? 00:22:36.240 --> 00:22:36.660 But the person 00:22:36.660 --> 00:22:38.000 who tells a little white lies, 00:22:38.120 --> 00:22:39.160 is he really that bad? 00:22:39.920 --> 00:22:40.860 The person who maybe 00:22:40.860 --> 00:22:41.800 skimped on taxes 00:22:41.800 --> 00:22:42.960 a little unknowingly, 00:22:43.520 --> 00:22:44.760 are they really that bad? 00:22:44.759 --> 00:22:46.519 The person who jokes 00:22:46.519 --> 00:22:47.960 inappropriately now and then, 00:22:48.079 --> 00:22:49.720 are they really deserving 00:22:49.720 --> 00:22:51.400 of eternal conscious torment? 00:22:53.379 --> 00:22:54.400 And don't get me wrong, 00:22:54.460 --> 00:22:55.720 I do think some sins 00:22:55.720 --> 00:22:57.619 are worse than others, 00:22:58.339 --> 00:22:59.480 but at the same time, 00:22:59.559 --> 00:23:00.240 I believe Paul, 00:23:00.420 --> 00:23:00.859 when he says 00:23:00.859 --> 00:23:01.420 the punishment 00:23:01.420 --> 00:23:03.140 of every type of sin 00:23:03.140 --> 00:23:04.579 is the same, 00:23:04.920 --> 00:23:06.579 eternal conscious torment 00:23:06.579 --> 00:23:07.740 in hell. 00:23:08.680 --> 00:23:09.839 The wages of sin 00:23:09.839 --> 00:23:11.039 is death. 00:23:13.019 --> 00:23:14.299 But back to the question 00:23:14.299 --> 00:23:14.940 I posed, 00:23:15.299 --> 00:23:16.779 how is God's reaction 00:23:16.779 --> 00:23:19.039 not an overreaction? 00:23:21.039 --> 00:23:21.879 And this is where 00:23:21.879 --> 00:23:22.619 we have to remember 00:23:22.619 --> 00:23:24.919 the creator-creature distinction. 00:23:25.259 --> 00:23:26.419 God is the creator 00:23:26.419 --> 00:23:28.079 who created us, 00:23:28.319 --> 00:23:28.940 the creation. 00:23:30.279 --> 00:23:32.139 We exist by his will 00:23:32.139 --> 00:23:33.659 and for the purpose 00:23:33.659 --> 00:23:34.500 of his will, 00:23:34.940 --> 00:23:36.039 which is chiefly 00:23:36.039 --> 00:23:37.680 to glorify him. 00:23:39.919 --> 00:23:40.539 Sin, then, 00:23:40.599 --> 00:23:41.879 is doing the very things 00:23:41.880 --> 00:23:42.720 for which we are 00:23:42.720 --> 00:23:44.100 not created. 00:23:44.800 --> 00:23:46.020 Every time we sin, 00:23:46.580 --> 00:23:47.520 we are rejecting 00:23:47.520 --> 00:23:49.000 God's rule as creator, 00:23:49.160 --> 00:23:49.820 we are rejecting 00:23:49.820 --> 00:23:51.480 our rule as creation, 00:23:51.660 --> 00:23:52.460 and we are spitting 00:23:52.460 --> 00:23:53.660 in his face. 00:23:55.360 --> 00:23:56.380 Can you imagine 00:23:56.380 --> 00:23:57.900 if a fork in your kitchen 00:23:57.900 --> 00:23:58.700 wouldn't let you eat, 00:23:58.780 --> 00:23:59.560 but it smacked you 00:23:59.560 --> 00:24:00.520 every time you tried 00:24:00.520 --> 00:24:01.140 to put something 00:24:01.140 --> 00:24:01.760 in your mouth? 00:24:03.340 --> 00:24:03.660 I mean, 00:24:03.700 --> 00:24:04.420 what would you do 00:24:04.420 --> 00:24:05.120 to that fork? 00:24:05.200 --> 00:24:06.120 How would you feel? 00:24:06.800 --> 00:24:07.940 Who is this little fork 00:24:07.940 --> 00:24:08.600 that you bought 00:24:08.599 --> 00:24:09.980 and maybe even you created 00:24:09.980 --> 00:24:11.659 who thinks he has a right 00:24:11.659 --> 00:24:12.939 to reject the purpose 00:24:12.939 --> 00:24:14.740 for which it was created? 00:24:16.480 --> 00:24:18.579 That fork would become worthless, 00:24:18.779 --> 00:24:20.379 only good for burning. 00:24:21.980 --> 00:24:23.079 I would be livid. 00:24:23.159 --> 00:24:24.279 I would want to destroy 00:24:24.279 --> 00:24:25.439 that fork in a heartbeat. 00:24:25.519 --> 00:24:26.619 That would be so annoying. 00:24:29.919 --> 00:24:30.319 Again, 00:24:30.399 --> 00:24:30.959 we are created 00:24:30.959 --> 00:24:32.119 to glorify God 00:24:32.119 --> 00:24:34.919 by being his image bearers. 00:24:35.919 --> 00:24:36.480 In other words, 00:24:36.480 --> 00:24:37.279 we are to reflect 00:24:37.279 --> 00:24:38.779 his glorious, 00:24:39.120 --> 00:24:40.539 perfect image. 00:24:41.019 --> 00:24:42.360 This image that has never 00:24:42.360 --> 00:24:44.779 experienced evil. 00:24:47.539 --> 00:24:48.700 And you're starting to see 00:24:48.700 --> 00:24:49.620 how egregious 00:24:49.620 --> 00:24:51.880 every sin of ours is. 00:24:53.960 --> 00:24:55.039 And you're starting to see 00:24:55.039 --> 00:24:56.339 that it's not just our sins 00:24:56.339 --> 00:24:57.880 that God hates. 00:24:58.019 --> 00:25:01.220 He hates our very sin nature. 00:25:02.160 --> 00:25:02.980 Our being, 00:25:03.099 --> 00:25:03.880 which is a result 00:25:03.880 --> 00:25:04.880 of the fall. 00:25:06.480 --> 00:25:08.140 And this is why sin 00:25:08.140 --> 00:25:09.900 results in death 00:25:09.900 --> 00:25:11.019 and rightfully so. 00:25:12.720 --> 00:25:14.039 If we are not living up 00:25:14.039 --> 00:25:15.099 to our intended purpose, 00:25:15.160 --> 00:25:16.380 then we should not live 00:25:16.380 --> 00:25:17.640 because we are worthless 00:25:17.640 --> 00:25:18.740 in this state. 00:25:19.500 --> 00:25:20.620 God makes this plain 00:25:20.620 --> 00:25:21.420 in the Old Testament 00:25:21.420 --> 00:25:23.680 and Paul tapes it all together 00:25:23.680 --> 00:25:24.519 in Romans 3, 00:25:24.640 --> 00:25:25.559 verses 10 through 12. 00:25:25.640 --> 00:25:26.000 God says, 00:25:26.079 --> 00:25:26.819 of all mankind, 00:25:27.559 --> 00:25:28.660 none is righteous, 00:25:28.900 --> 00:25:29.660 no, not one, 00:25:29.819 --> 00:25:30.759 no one understands, 00:25:31.259 --> 00:25:32.599 no one seeks for God, 00:25:32.920 --> 00:25:34.279 all have turned aside, 00:25:34.279 --> 00:25:35.799 together they have become 00:25:35.799 --> 00:25:36.420 worthless, 00:25:36.759 --> 00:25:37.619 no one does good, 00:25:37.700 --> 00:25:39.359 not even one. 00:25:42.240 --> 00:25:43.599 In so many ways, 00:25:43.700 --> 00:25:44.899 death is the opposite 00:25:44.899 --> 00:25:46.259 of holiness. 00:25:46.440 --> 00:25:47.660 That is why it is so offensive 00:25:47.660 --> 00:25:48.539 to our holy 00:25:48.539 --> 00:25:49.740 and living God 00:25:49.740 --> 00:25:50.940 to be with the unholy 00:25:50.940 --> 00:25:51.639 and the dead. 00:25:51.839 --> 00:25:52.859 That is why in the Old Testament, 00:25:53.259 --> 00:25:54.559 man could not approach God 00:25:54.559 --> 00:25:55.480 at their own whim 00:25:55.480 --> 00:25:56.859 in the holy of holies. 00:25:56.859 --> 00:25:58.179 The veil separated 00:25:58.179 --> 00:25:59.159 dead men 00:25:59.159 --> 00:26:00.939 from the living God. 00:26:02.059 --> 00:26:03.139 To truly live 00:26:03.139 --> 00:26:04.079 is to obey God 00:26:04.079 --> 00:26:05.139 and to not obey God 00:26:05.139 --> 00:26:05.959 is to die 00:26:05.959 --> 00:26:07.359 because disobedience 00:26:07.359 --> 00:26:09.240 is not living. 00:26:12.479 --> 00:26:13.639 You want the good life? 00:26:13.740 --> 00:26:14.679 And I don't mean that 00:26:14.679 --> 00:26:15.699 in a health, wealth, 00:26:15.879 --> 00:26:16.659 prosperity sense, 00:26:16.779 --> 00:26:17.719 but if you want 00:26:17.719 --> 00:26:18.359 the good life, 00:26:18.419 --> 00:26:19.359 you have to learn 00:26:19.359 --> 00:26:20.679 to obey God 00:26:20.679 --> 00:26:21.339 for the joy 00:26:21.339 --> 00:26:22.779 that is found in him 00:26:22.779 --> 00:26:23.859 only. 00:26:23.859 --> 00:26:28.259 Now, believe it or not, 00:26:28.959 --> 00:26:29.479 I'm entering 00:26:29.479 --> 00:26:30.599 the closing application. 00:26:31.219 --> 00:26:32.379 It's kind of a downer note. 00:26:33.099 --> 00:26:34.639 But three applications 00:26:34.639 --> 00:26:35.459 and then there will be 00:26:35.459 --> 00:26:36.819 one just concluding thought 00:26:36.819 --> 00:26:38.379 because I do think 00:26:38.379 --> 00:26:39.179 this text 00:26:39.179 --> 00:26:40.240 sheds light 00:26:40.240 --> 00:26:41.019 on the gospel 00:26:41.019 --> 00:26:41.959 and should be cause 00:26:41.959 --> 00:26:42.459 for us 00:26:42.459 --> 00:26:44.319 to have great hope. 00:26:45.459 --> 00:26:46.339 But I want to give 00:26:46.339 --> 00:26:47.699 the three applications first 00:26:47.699 --> 00:26:48.199 because I think 00:26:48.199 --> 00:26:49.000 it would be more fitting. 00:26:50.899 --> 00:26:52.079 Application number one, 00:26:52.079 --> 00:26:53.980 do not play 00:26:53.980 --> 00:26:55.179 the victim card 00:26:55.179 --> 00:26:56.579 like our culture. 00:26:58.059 --> 00:26:59.159 It is hard to go 00:26:59.159 --> 00:27:00.500 anywhere in society 00:27:00.500 --> 00:27:01.159 without everyone 00:27:01.159 --> 00:27:01.720 telling you 00:27:01.720 --> 00:27:02.460 that your actions 00:27:02.460 --> 00:27:03.379 are the result 00:27:03.379 --> 00:27:04.079 of something 00:27:04.079 --> 00:27:05.879 external to you. 00:27:07.480 --> 00:27:08.359 Oh, you were just 00:27:08.359 --> 00:27:09.119 trained to do that 00:27:09.119 --> 00:27:10.299 by your bad parents. 00:27:10.539 --> 00:27:11.159 That's why you're 00:27:11.159 --> 00:27:11.939 the way that you are. 00:27:12.679 --> 00:27:13.419 Oh, that's your 00:27:13.419 --> 00:27:14.259 classmates' fault 00:27:14.259 --> 00:27:15.139 for enticing you. 00:27:15.339 --> 00:27:15.919 That's why you did 00:27:15.919 --> 00:27:16.740 that stupid thing. 00:27:17.899 --> 00:27:18.859 Oh, you lose control 00:27:18.859 --> 00:27:19.839 sometimes because 00:27:19.839 --> 00:27:21.399 you face systemic issues 00:27:21.400 --> 00:27:21.900 that are beyond 00:27:21.900 --> 00:27:22.500 your control. 00:27:23.180 --> 00:27:23.940 Not your fault. 00:27:25.600 --> 00:27:26.680 Oh, that word 00:27:26.680 --> 00:27:27.420 is a trigger for me. 00:27:27.480 --> 00:27:28.140 That's why I'm angry 00:27:28.140 --> 00:27:28.740 and I want to kill you 00:27:28.740 --> 00:27:29.140 right now. 00:27:31.100 --> 00:27:31.900 Or how about this? 00:27:31.920 --> 00:27:32.580 I can't help it. 00:27:32.620 --> 00:27:33.640 I was born this way. 00:27:35.100 --> 00:27:36.840 And that's the age-old lie 00:27:36.840 --> 00:27:38.200 again and again 00:27:38.200 --> 00:27:39.000 and again. 00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:41.540 But on judgment day, 00:27:42.019 --> 00:27:42.880 God will not 00:27:42.880 --> 00:27:43.940 allow anyone 00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:45.340 to squeeze out 00:27:45.340 --> 00:27:46.519 of anything. 00:27:46.519 --> 00:27:48.920 He knows the heart 00:27:48.920 --> 00:27:49.839 and He will judge 00:27:49.839 --> 00:27:51.680 based off the heart. 00:27:51.859 --> 00:27:52.539 It cannot play 00:27:52.539 --> 00:27:53.819 the victim card. 00:27:53.920 --> 00:27:54.279 It loses 00:27:54.279 --> 00:27:55.500 every time. 00:27:57.220 --> 00:27:57.980 Application two, 00:27:58.059 --> 00:27:58.599 and this goes right 00:27:58.599 --> 00:27:59.519 along with the first one, 00:27:59.920 --> 00:28:00.180 repent. 00:28:01.900 --> 00:28:02.940 And this is simple, right? 00:28:03.339 --> 00:28:04.099 Simple to understand, 00:28:04.180 --> 00:28:04.940 maybe hard to do. 00:28:06.539 --> 00:28:07.559 By God's grace, 00:28:07.759 --> 00:28:08.839 which He gladly 00:28:08.839 --> 00:28:10.240 lavishes on His church, 00:28:10.799 --> 00:28:12.180 we are able to repent 00:28:12.180 --> 00:28:13.359 of our sins. 00:28:14.339 --> 00:28:15.579 We are able to recognize 00:28:15.579 --> 00:28:17.459 that we rightly deserve 00:28:17.459 --> 00:28:18.179 to be punished, 00:28:18.279 --> 00:28:19.279 to die as a result 00:28:19.279 --> 00:28:19.759 of our sin, 00:28:19.819 --> 00:28:20.939 which we desired. 00:28:22.479 --> 00:28:23.859 But we are atoned for 00:28:23.859 --> 00:28:24.719 by Christ, 00:28:25.299 --> 00:28:26.299 who knew no sin, 00:28:27.139 --> 00:28:28.240 that He bore the wrath 00:28:28.240 --> 00:28:29.219 of God that we 00:28:29.219 --> 00:28:30.379 deserve. 00:28:31.539 --> 00:28:32.459 Jesus was not 00:28:32.459 --> 00:28:34.119 responsible for our sin, 00:28:34.299 --> 00:28:34.879 and yet He took 00:28:34.879 --> 00:28:35.659 the consequence 00:28:35.659 --> 00:28:36.839 on Himself, 00:28:37.000 --> 00:28:37.699 and He died. 00:28:39.179 --> 00:28:39.979 He died, 00:28:40.059 --> 00:28:40.759 which means we 00:28:40.759 --> 00:28:42.459 won't die 00:28:42.460 --> 00:28:43.720 in the eternal sense, 00:28:44.160 --> 00:28:45.720 because He was raised 00:28:45.720 --> 00:28:46.740 on the third day. 00:28:48.160 --> 00:28:49.180 And for those of you 00:28:49.180 --> 00:28:50.180 who are not in Christ, 00:28:50.279 --> 00:28:51.460 I urge you to repent 00:28:51.460 --> 00:28:52.579 and believe in Him 00:28:52.579 --> 00:28:54.160 as Lord and Savior. 00:28:54.279 --> 00:28:55.500 This is your only way 00:28:55.500 --> 00:28:56.240 of escape 00:28:56.240 --> 00:28:57.680 from the wrath 00:28:57.680 --> 00:28:58.220 to come. 00:28:59.940 --> 00:29:01.120 But for the rest of us 00:29:01.120 --> 00:29:01.680 who are already 00:29:01.680 --> 00:29:02.279 in Christ, 00:29:03.500 --> 00:29:04.740 I urge you still, 00:29:04.840 --> 00:29:04.940 right? 00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:05.960 The command to repent 00:29:05.960 --> 00:29:07.380 still stands. 00:29:08.420 --> 00:29:08.900 Repentance 00:29:08.900 --> 00:29:10.019 is obedience. 00:29:10.019 --> 00:29:11.819 So if we do not 00:29:11.819 --> 00:29:12.799 continually repent 00:29:12.799 --> 00:29:13.500 of our sin, 00:29:14.180 --> 00:29:15.279 then our disobedience 00:29:15.279 --> 00:29:17.019 is compounded. 00:29:17.859 --> 00:29:17.960 Right? 00:29:18.000 --> 00:29:18.680 As John says, 00:29:19.079 --> 00:29:19.920 if we say we have 00:29:19.920 --> 00:29:20.400 no sin, 00:29:20.519 --> 00:29:21.299 we are liars. 00:29:22.160 --> 00:29:23.099 So confess sin, 00:29:23.379 --> 00:29:24.279 and we have an advocate 00:29:24.279 --> 00:29:25.079 with the Father. 00:29:27.339 --> 00:29:27.460 Now, 00:29:27.460 --> 00:29:28.519 application number three, 00:29:29.279 --> 00:29:30.220 prepare yourselves 00:29:30.220 --> 00:29:31.019 for trials 00:29:31.019 --> 00:29:32.019 and temptations. 00:29:32.019 --> 00:29:32.680 temptations. 00:29:34.420 --> 00:29:35.440 The Greek word 00:29:35.440 --> 00:29:35.920 for tempted 00:29:35.920 --> 00:29:36.519 that we saw 00:29:36.519 --> 00:29:37.460 in verse 13, 00:29:37.819 --> 00:29:38.639 we have actually 00:29:38.639 --> 00:29:39.599 already seen 00:29:39.599 --> 00:29:40.700 in the book of James. 00:29:42.039 --> 00:29:43.000 In chapter 1, 00:29:43.059 --> 00:29:43.559 verse 2, 00:29:43.639 --> 00:29:44.200 text I preached 00:29:44.200 --> 00:29:44.960 on a couple weeks, 00:29:45.099 --> 00:29:45.859 the word appears. 00:29:46.000 --> 00:29:47.240 It is perasmos. 00:29:47.559 --> 00:29:48.079 It can mean 00:29:48.079 --> 00:29:49.339 either temptation 00:29:49.339 --> 00:29:49.879 to sin 00:29:49.879 --> 00:29:50.240 from, 00:29:50.400 --> 00:29:50.579 with, 00:29:50.619 --> 00:29:51.200 or without. 00:29:51.859 --> 00:29:52.359 And sometimes 00:29:52.359 --> 00:29:53.240 it only means 00:29:53.240 --> 00:29:54.819 trial or testing. 00:29:56.059 --> 00:29:56.879 In chapter 1, 00:29:56.940 --> 00:29:57.440 verse 2, 00:29:57.879 --> 00:29:58.680 and in Clay's text 00:29:58.680 --> 00:29:59.400 from last week, 00:29:59.440 --> 00:30:00.359 it clearly means 00:30:00.359 --> 00:30:01.059 trial. 00:30:01.059 --> 00:30:02.980 In our text today, 00:30:03.059 --> 00:30:03.779 it clearly means 00:30:03.779 --> 00:30:04.399 to be tempted 00:30:04.399 --> 00:30:05.019 to sin. 00:30:07.359 --> 00:30:08.319 I mention this 00:30:08.319 --> 00:30:08.919 all to say, 00:30:09.379 --> 00:30:10.319 we prepare ourselves 00:30:10.319 --> 00:30:11.379 for both temptation 00:30:11.379 --> 00:30:12.220 and trials 00:30:12.220 --> 00:30:13.419 in the same way, 00:30:13.700 --> 00:30:14.240 though they are 00:30:14.240 --> 00:30:15.819 different things. 00:30:16.700 --> 00:30:17.940 We fill our hearts 00:30:17.940 --> 00:30:18.339 and minds 00:30:18.339 --> 00:30:18.859 with Scripture 00:30:18.859 --> 00:30:20.379 to remain hopeful 00:30:20.379 --> 00:30:21.099 in the midst 00:30:21.099 --> 00:30:21.679 of trials. 00:30:22.700 --> 00:30:23.639 And we fill our hearts 00:30:23.639 --> 00:30:23.980 and minds 00:30:23.980 --> 00:30:24.379 with Scripture 00:30:24.379 --> 00:30:25.440 to remain faithful 00:30:25.440 --> 00:30:26.720 in the midst 00:30:26.720 --> 00:30:28.000 of temptation. 00:30:29.359 --> 00:30:30.579 Easy to understand, 00:30:30.579 --> 00:30:31.579 hard to do, 00:30:32.259 --> 00:30:33.019 but we have 00:30:33.019 --> 00:30:33.980 to do it. 00:30:36.359 --> 00:30:37.179 So repent, 00:30:37.819 --> 00:30:38.619 prepare yourself 00:30:38.619 --> 00:30:39.019 for trials 00:30:39.019 --> 00:30:39.699 and temptations, 00:30:40.179 --> 00:30:41.359 fill your mind, 00:30:41.439 --> 00:30:41.819 your heart 00:30:41.819 --> 00:30:42.859 with God's word, 00:30:43.559 --> 00:30:44.539 so that in the midst 00:30:44.539 --> 00:30:44.759 of it, 00:30:44.799 --> 00:30:45.359 you'll never be 00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:46.299 tempted to question 00:30:46.299 --> 00:30:47.439 God's goodness 00:30:47.439 --> 00:30:48.159 or his holiness, 00:30:48.379 --> 00:30:48.980 and you'll see 00:30:48.980 --> 00:30:49.659 in his word 00:30:49.659 --> 00:30:51.119 just how good 00:30:51.119 --> 00:30:52.839 he is. 00:30:52.839 --> 00:30:55.299 Now, as I said, 00:30:55.339 --> 00:30:55.939 before we pray, 00:30:56.000 --> 00:30:56.559 I want to offer 00:30:56.559 --> 00:30:57.439 one more thought. 00:30:58.399 --> 00:30:59.419 It is an encouragement 00:30:59.419 --> 00:31:00.399 or perhaps better 00:31:00.399 --> 00:31:00.779 to think of it 00:31:00.779 --> 00:31:01.559 as a devotional 00:31:01.559 --> 00:31:02.839 to conclude the sermon. 00:31:03.839 --> 00:31:04.519 When I was assigned 00:31:04.519 --> 00:31:04.859 a text, 00:31:04.939 --> 00:31:05.259 I thought, 00:31:05.359 --> 00:31:05.480 man, 00:31:05.539 --> 00:31:06.319 this is going 00:31:06.319 --> 00:31:07.099 to be a downer. 00:31:09.379 --> 00:31:10.259 But it's true 00:31:10.259 --> 00:31:10.879 and we have 00:31:10.879 --> 00:31:11.899 to reflect on it. 00:31:12.179 --> 00:31:13.079 It's important, 00:31:13.419 --> 00:31:13.559 right? 00:31:13.619 --> 00:31:14.199 All Scripture 00:31:14.199 --> 00:31:15.119 is profitable, 00:31:15.119 --> 00:31:16.480 so this is good 00:31:16.480 --> 00:31:17.359 for us to hear 00:31:17.359 --> 00:31:18.859 these hard things. 00:31:18.859 --> 00:31:21.479 So you've heard me 00:31:21.479 --> 00:31:22.000 talk about 00:31:22.000 --> 00:31:22.619 how we are all 00:31:22.619 --> 00:31:24.159 sinners by nature, 00:31:24.259 --> 00:31:25.339 that God hates 00:31:25.339 --> 00:31:25.839 our sin 00:31:25.839 --> 00:31:27.259 and our sin nature, 00:31:27.399 --> 00:31:28.919 how we are worthless 00:31:28.919 --> 00:31:31.259 apart from Christ. 00:31:31.359 --> 00:31:31.839 And that is 00:31:31.839 --> 00:31:33.139 biblical truth, 00:31:33.240 --> 00:31:34.359 but oh so hard 00:31:34.359 --> 00:31:35.259 to swallow. 00:31:37.099 --> 00:31:38.559 And there is good news, 00:31:39.139 --> 00:31:39.319 right? 00:31:39.359 --> 00:31:39.959 This is only 00:31:39.959 --> 00:31:41.879 one side of the coin, 00:31:41.879 --> 00:31:42.699 and the other side 00:31:42.699 --> 00:31:43.719 of the coin is this. 00:31:44.899 --> 00:31:46.159 God loves us 00:31:46.159 --> 00:31:47.359 despite ourselves. 00:31:47.359 --> 00:31:48.819 Now you can call 00:31:48.819 --> 00:31:49.579 this point four 00:31:49.579 --> 00:31:50.099 if you want. 00:31:50.199 --> 00:31:51.159 It doesn't necessarily 00:31:51.159 --> 00:31:52.139 come out of our text 00:31:52.139 --> 00:31:52.659 directly, 00:31:52.839 --> 00:31:54.559 but it's biblically 00:31:54.559 --> 00:31:55.279 true nonetheless. 00:31:56.439 --> 00:31:57.459 Romans 5, 8, 00:31:57.519 --> 00:31:58.339 Paul says, 00:31:58.500 --> 00:32:00.500 Christ died for us 00:32:00.500 --> 00:32:02.219 while we were yet 00:32:02.219 --> 00:32:02.559 sinners. 00:32:04.079 --> 00:32:05.119 While we were yet 00:32:05.119 --> 00:32:06.459 lured and enticed. 00:32:09.059 --> 00:32:10.000 While we were yet 00:32:10.000 --> 00:32:10.279 sinners, 00:32:10.399 --> 00:32:11.079 Christ loved us. 00:32:11.139 --> 00:32:11.919 He died for us. 00:32:12.479 --> 00:32:13.379 You can read into that 00:32:13.379 --> 00:32:14.179 while we were yet 00:32:14.179 --> 00:32:14.939 worthless, 00:32:15.240 --> 00:32:15.559 evil, 00:32:15.759 --> 00:32:16.359 rebellious, 00:32:16.359 --> 00:32:17.459 and so on. 00:32:17.639 --> 00:32:18.119 You've heard me 00:32:18.119 --> 00:32:19.639 reference this verse 00:32:19.639 --> 00:32:20.459 many times. 00:32:20.539 --> 00:32:21.139 It is a personal 00:32:21.139 --> 00:32:21.559 favorite. 00:32:21.699 --> 00:32:22.959 I've not had the 00:32:22.959 --> 00:32:24.059 chance to unpack it, 00:32:24.139 --> 00:32:25.019 and I still won't 00:32:25.019 --> 00:32:26.039 today, unfortunately. 00:32:27.279 --> 00:32:28.500 But just consider 00:32:28.500 --> 00:32:29.219 this. 00:32:30.759 --> 00:32:31.959 There's no reason 00:32:31.959 --> 00:32:33.379 for God to love us 00:32:33.379 --> 00:32:35.240 that is in us. 00:32:36.879 --> 00:32:38.259 It's not our hair, 00:32:38.379 --> 00:32:39.139 it's not our gender, 00:32:39.359 --> 00:32:40.079 it's not our ethnicity, 00:32:40.399 --> 00:32:41.259 it's not our intelligence, 00:32:41.539 --> 00:32:42.500 it's not our wealth, 00:32:42.699 --> 00:32:43.699 or our poverty. 00:32:43.700 --> 00:32:45.539 And it's not even 00:32:45.539 --> 00:32:46.380 our obedience 00:32:46.380 --> 00:32:47.720 that stirs up 00:32:47.720 --> 00:32:49.340 God to love us. 00:32:49.420 --> 00:32:51.080 So what stirs up 00:32:51.080 --> 00:32:52.960 God to love us? 00:32:54.299 --> 00:32:55.200 And it's this, 00:32:55.400 --> 00:32:56.860 God stirs himself 00:32:56.860 --> 00:32:59.140 up to love us, 00:32:59.200 --> 00:32:59.920 and that is such 00:32:59.920 --> 00:33:01.480 good and freeing 00:33:01.480 --> 00:33:02.819 news. 00:33:04.019 --> 00:33:04.880 Zephaniah 3, 00:33:05.019 --> 00:33:05.819 verse 17, 00:33:05.819 --> 00:33:08.240 The Lord your God 00:33:08.240 --> 00:33:08.939 is with you. 00:33:09.039 --> 00:33:10.259 He is mighty to save. 00:33:10.700 --> 00:33:11.299 And notice this, 00:33:11.419 --> 00:33:12.740 He will take 00:33:12.740 --> 00:33:14.000 great delight 00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:14.759 in you. 00:33:15.339 --> 00:33:16.439 He will quiet you 00:33:16.439 --> 00:33:17.079 with His love. 00:33:17.159 --> 00:33:17.879 He will rejoice 00:33:17.879 --> 00:33:18.639 over you 00:33:18.639 --> 00:33:19.319 with singing. 00:33:20.519 --> 00:33:21.720 It's not on account 00:33:21.720 --> 00:33:22.819 of us that He loves us, 00:33:22.899 --> 00:33:23.179 rather, 00:33:23.319 --> 00:33:24.220 it's on account 00:33:24.220 --> 00:33:25.679 of Christ in us 00:33:25.679 --> 00:33:27.359 that He loves us. 00:33:28.439 --> 00:33:29.559 And this is why 00:33:29.559 --> 00:33:30.960 His love cannot fail, 00:33:31.000 --> 00:33:31.939 because He loves Christ, 00:33:32.000 --> 00:33:33.019 and Christ abides 00:33:33.019 --> 00:33:35.940 in us who are saved. 00:33:38.440 --> 00:33:39.400 Just as you should 00:33:39.400 --> 00:33:40.019 not question 00:33:40.019 --> 00:33:41.180 God's inability 00:33:41.180 --> 00:33:42.079 to tempt us 00:33:42.079 --> 00:33:42.700 with sin, 00:33:43.500 --> 00:33:44.139 you should not 00:33:44.139 --> 00:33:45.019 question God's 00:33:45.019 --> 00:33:46.160 unfailing love 00:33:46.160 --> 00:33:47.579 for His church, 00:33:47.660 --> 00:33:49.759 for Christ's pride. 00:33:51.119 --> 00:33:52.039 I didn't plan this, 00:33:52.119 --> 00:33:52.960 but it worked out. 00:33:53.139 --> 00:33:53.859 Nathan mentioned 00:33:53.859 --> 00:33:55.460 Luke 22 this morning. 00:33:56.180 --> 00:33:56.920 I was talking about 00:33:56.920 --> 00:33:58.240 that word desire earlier, 00:33:58.339 --> 00:33:59.119 how it's usually 00:33:59.119 --> 00:34:00.220 translated as lust, 00:34:00.279 --> 00:34:01.180 but it can be broad. 00:34:01.240 --> 00:34:02.279 It's not necessarily 00:34:02.279 --> 00:34:03.639 an evil word. 00:34:04.160 --> 00:34:05.359 You could use this word 00:34:05.359 --> 00:34:06.319 rightly to describe 00:34:06.319 --> 00:34:07.559 your desire for God. 00:34:08.840 --> 00:34:10.460 And it was a curious thing, 00:34:10.500 --> 00:34:11.259 I never knew this, 00:34:11.340 --> 00:34:12.119 but that's the word 00:34:12.119 --> 00:34:12.940 Jesus used 00:34:12.940 --> 00:34:13.659 that's translated 00:34:13.659 --> 00:34:14.880 as earnestly desired. 00:34:15.619 --> 00:34:16.440 So with that desire 00:34:16.440 --> 00:34:17.420 and that extent 00:34:17.420 --> 00:34:18.519 to which we seek sin, 00:34:19.119 --> 00:34:20.900 Christ desires to partake 00:34:20.900 --> 00:34:21.820 of the supper with us, 00:34:21.880 --> 00:34:23.739 to be with us. 00:34:25.400 --> 00:34:27.400 His love is for real 00:34:27.400 --> 00:34:28.159 in that sense. 00:34:28.279 --> 00:34:29.219 It's sincere. 00:34:29.420 --> 00:34:30.099 It's genuine. 00:34:32.960 --> 00:34:33.940 And turn with me, 00:34:34.040 --> 00:34:35.120 this is our last text 00:34:35.120 --> 00:34:35.600 and I'm not going 00:34:35.600 --> 00:34:36.260 to comment on it. 00:34:36.320 --> 00:34:37.160 I just want to close out 00:34:37.160 --> 00:34:37.960 with reading this. 00:34:39.019 --> 00:34:39.640 But turn with me 00:34:39.640 --> 00:34:41.280 to 1 John 4, 16. 00:34:43.340 --> 00:34:44.120 Again, I just want 00:34:44.120 --> 00:34:45.340 to leave us on this note 00:34:45.340 --> 00:34:46.560 of this gospel hope 00:34:46.560 --> 00:34:47.280 that we have. 00:34:47.280 --> 00:34:55.120 John writes, 00:34:55.420 --> 00:34:57.300 so we have come 00:34:57.300 --> 00:34:58.100 to know 00:34:58.100 --> 00:34:59.800 and to believe 00:34:59.800 --> 00:35:00.740 the love 00:35:00.740 --> 00:35:02.320 that God has for us. 00:35:03.240 --> 00:35:04.200 They believe 00:35:04.200 --> 00:35:04.920 in his love. 00:35:05.420 --> 00:35:06.720 God is love. 00:35:07.660 --> 00:35:08.660 And whoever abides 00:35:08.660 --> 00:35:09.260 in love 00:35:09.260 --> 00:35:10.880 abides in God 00:35:10.880 --> 00:35:12.040 and God abides 00:35:12.040 --> 00:35:13.019 in him. 00:35:13.019 --> 00:35:15.039 by this 00:35:15.039 --> 00:35:15.599 is love 00:35:15.599 --> 00:35:16.860 perfected with us 00:35:16.860 --> 00:35:18.239 so that we may 00:35:18.239 --> 00:35:19.079 have confidence 00:35:19.079 --> 00:35:19.960 for the day 00:35:19.960 --> 00:35:21.039 of judgment. 00:35:22.199 --> 00:35:23.579 Because as he is, 00:35:23.659 --> 00:35:24.739 so also are we 00:35:24.739 --> 00:35:25.579 in this world. 00:35:26.420 --> 00:35:27.480 There is no fear 00:35:27.480 --> 00:35:28.019 in love, 00:35:28.119 --> 00:35:29.340 but perfect love 00:35:29.340 --> 00:35:30.780 casts out fear. 00:35:31.699 --> 00:35:32.219 For fear 00:35:32.219 --> 00:35:32.940 has to do 00:35:32.940 --> 00:35:33.880 with punishment. 00:35:34.880 --> 00:35:36.079 And whoever fears 00:35:36.079 --> 00:35:36.719 has not been 00:35:36.719 --> 00:35:37.480 perfected 00:35:37.480 --> 00:35:38.420 in love. 00:35:38.420 --> 00:35:40.200 We love 00:35:40.200 --> 00:35:40.840 because 00:35:40.840 --> 00:35:42.019 he first 00:35:42.019 --> 00:35:42.559 loved 00:35:42.559 --> 00:35:43.860 us. 00:35:44.900 --> 00:35:45.579 Let's pray.