WEBVTT 00:00:00.280 --> 00:00:08.220 Well, the text that's before us is written somewhat as the conclusion to the first part 00:00:08.220 --> 00:00:09.320 of this introduction. 00:00:09.500 --> 00:00:10.560 Remember, we talked last night. 00:00:10.700 --> 00:00:14.200 The author of Judges introduces, we're using musical terms. 00:00:14.339 --> 00:00:18.740 If you're thinking of a musical composition, in the structure of the book, there is an 00:00:18.740 --> 00:00:19.320 overture. 00:00:19.679 --> 00:00:21.460 Then there is the variations. 00:00:21.719 --> 00:00:23.100 That's the main body of the text. 00:00:23.359 --> 00:00:27.120 And then there is the coda at the end, where they kind of rehearse and bring things to 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:27.660 a conclusion. 00:00:28.100 --> 00:00:33.380 This first part, this introduction or prologue or overture, however you want to think of 00:00:33.380 --> 00:00:35.560 it, is divided into two parts. 00:00:36.140 --> 00:00:41.280 The first part really goes from verse 1 of chapter 1 through the passage that we just 00:00:41.280 --> 00:00:41.640 read. 00:00:41.780 --> 00:00:48.159 This first five verses are functioning as the conclusion to the series of narratives that 00:00:48.159 --> 00:00:50.980 he delivers to us in the first chapter. 00:00:51.780 --> 00:00:56.620 And in the first chapter, he tells us that what's happening with Israel, very 00:00:56.619 --> 00:01:00.919 straightforwardly, what's happening regarding Israel's attempt to settle the land. 00:01:01.339 --> 00:01:08.859 And in the second chapter, he interprets those events in light of Israel's unfaithfulness 00:01:08.859 --> 00:01:10.039 to God. 00:01:10.579 --> 00:01:12.459 So chapter 1, here's what happened. 00:01:13.019 --> 00:01:18.579 Chapter 2, he interprets what happened based on the fact that they disobeyed. 00:01:18.840 --> 00:01:20.000 They were unfaithful. 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:25.079 And this section of verses that I just read, these first five verses, is really kind of 00:01:25.079 --> 00:01:27.579 functioning as a bridge between those two parts. 00:01:27.840 --> 00:01:29.060 It's linking together. 00:01:29.180 --> 00:01:34.219 It's bringing it together as a whole complete introduction to what's going to come later 00:01:34.219 --> 00:01:36.180 in the book as we continue in our study. 00:01:36.180 --> 00:01:39.860 Now, let's just briefly rehearse what happened in chapter 1. 00:01:40.380 --> 00:01:47.300 The narrative is arranged to emphasize what we call the downward spiral of disobedience. 00:01:47.960 --> 00:01:53.300 Things actually started out, if you remember quite well, the people gathered probably in 00:01:53.300 --> 00:01:59.680 Shiloh where the tabernacle was at that point, and they seek for God's direction on how to 00:01:59.680 --> 00:02:00.640 progress forward. 00:02:00.640 --> 00:02:07.099 The conquest with Joshua is now really at a conclusion, and now it's just left for the 00:02:07.099 --> 00:02:08.680 tribes to possess the land. 00:02:08.840 --> 00:02:10.520 And they start off on the right foot. 00:02:10.659 --> 00:02:11.560 They go to the Lord. 00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:13.039 They seek his wisdom. 00:02:13.740 --> 00:02:19.860 And the Lord chooses the tribe of Benjamin, or not Benjamin, excuse me, Judah, to lead the 00:02:19.860 --> 00:02:21.020 nation forward. 00:02:21.879 --> 00:02:26.560 And then as we read through the first chapter, we find that he blesses Judah in all of their 00:02:26.560 --> 00:02:31.259 exploits as they go through and they begin to conquer the land, or at least their allotment 00:02:31.259 --> 00:02:31.840 of land. 00:02:32.439 --> 00:02:37.180 But then we see some clues that not all is actually right with Judah. 00:02:38.439 --> 00:02:44.939 They seem to have adopted a Canaanite ethic in their treatment of Adani Bezek in chapter 00:02:44.939 --> 00:02:46.340 1 and verse 6. 00:02:47.400 --> 00:02:50.460 And then it's even worse when we get to verse 19. 00:02:50.460 --> 00:02:56.640 And we find that they actually lack the faith to drive out the inhabitants of the plain. 00:02:57.500 --> 00:03:04.200 So even the best of the Israelites from the very beginning have already failed to do what 00:03:04.200 --> 00:03:10.100 God had commanded them to do and to live in the way that God had commanded them to live. 00:03:10.099 --> 00:03:19.659 Then things just continually spiral out of control, spiraling downward as the narrator then describes 00:03:19.659 --> 00:03:21.939 the other tribes that are involved at this point. 00:03:22.680 --> 00:03:31.259 All of them, all of them broke God's command not to make covenants with the people of the 00:03:31.259 --> 00:03:31.599 land. 00:03:32.039 --> 00:03:35.419 Every single one of these tribes broke that commandment. 00:03:35.419 --> 00:03:41.139 And by the time we get to the end of the chapter, we find that at least one of those tribes has 00:03:41.139 --> 00:03:44.439 experienced a complete reversal of the conquest. 00:03:45.219 --> 00:03:47.759 So we start in verse 1 of chapter 1. 00:03:47.879 --> 00:03:48.519 Things are great. 00:03:48.599 --> 00:03:49.919 They're doing what they're supposed to do. 00:03:50.060 --> 00:03:54.819 Then they start to subtly slip in their disobedience. 00:03:54.939 --> 00:04:00.079 And by the time you get to the end, they've become so unfaithful to God that they've lost 00:04:00.079 --> 00:04:01.500 elements of the conquest. 00:04:01.679 --> 00:04:05.279 The tribe of Dan is not even going to receive their allotment at this point. 00:04:05.419 --> 00:04:11.560 They're completely forced out of their allotment of the land up to the northern part of Canaan. 00:04:11.939 --> 00:04:12.979 So huge problems. 00:04:13.259 --> 00:04:16.519 Huge problems are presented for us in chapter 1. 00:04:17.079 --> 00:04:18.099 But here's the thing. 00:04:19.000 --> 00:04:24.779 Israel could have viewed their settlement of the land as largely successful. 00:04:25.719 --> 00:04:28.979 And pragmatically speaking, it was successful. 00:04:28.980 --> 00:04:34.640 Things didn't turn out exactly like maybe they had anticipated them to turn out. 00:04:35.819 --> 00:04:39.040 But they hadn't expelled all of the Canaanite people. 00:04:40.080 --> 00:04:42.640 They hadn't destroyed the altars of Baal. 00:04:42.720 --> 00:04:50.480 They haven't destroyed the Astaroth, which was the female version of the Baal god that the Canaanites worshipped. 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:55.439 But they had undoubtedly become the dominant people group in the land. 00:04:55.900 --> 00:04:58.620 And it seems that the people of Israel were content with that. 00:04:59.240 --> 00:05:01.640 No, they hadn't done everything they were supposed to do. 00:05:01.939 --> 00:05:05.080 No, it didn't turn out exactly as they hoped it would turn out. 00:05:05.200 --> 00:05:08.040 But they were content with the way things were. 00:05:08.040 --> 00:05:19.420 For the most part, the remaining nations were either forced into labor or were just simply content to dwell peaceably with the Israelites. 00:05:20.040 --> 00:05:24.879 And by most human estimations, the campaign was a success. 00:05:25.379 --> 00:05:36.759 But what we learned at the end last week is that what we consider to be successful in this life does not always seem successful in the eyes of God. 00:05:36.759 --> 00:05:45.959 Sometimes we get a much more happy look at the way that things are going for us and the way that we're living. 00:05:46.659 --> 00:05:54.779 And then the truth is that God sees us as failing, failing in disobedience, failing in what he's called us to do. 00:05:56.000 --> 00:06:00.019 Then enters the angel of the Lord in verse 1 of chapter 2. 00:06:00.199 --> 00:06:02.180 Look at the verse with me again, verse 1. 00:06:02.180 --> 00:06:06.920 Now the angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Baquim. 00:06:07.759 --> 00:06:10.360 It's judgment day in Israel now. 00:06:11.259 --> 00:06:15.639 And how the people estimated their success was irrelevant at this point. 00:06:16.139 --> 00:06:24.480 Because now it's God's time to evaluate his people and to declare his judgments on what they had done. 00:06:24.480 --> 00:06:31.300 So he sends his messenger to proclaim what judgment he had, this angel of the Lord. 00:06:32.120 --> 00:06:37.939 Now all kinds of suggestions have been made about what the identity of this individual might be. 00:06:38.560 --> 00:06:44.020 Some consider it to be an angel from heaven that has actually come and been sent by God. 00:06:44.019 --> 00:06:54.000 Some people think that this very well could have just been a prophet in the nation that was known at that point but is unnamed to us in the text. 00:06:54.459 --> 00:07:01.099 Others believe that this was actually a pre-incarnate appearance of the Lord Jesus. 00:07:01.100 --> 00:07:08.160 But the fact is that the text gives us no further explanation about his identity. 00:07:08.420 --> 00:07:10.500 We don't know who this is really. 00:07:11.140 --> 00:07:18.060 But what is certain is that he speaks the words of God on behalf of God. 00:07:18.820 --> 00:07:25.780 And perhaps represents a manifestation of the very presence of God. 00:07:25.779 --> 00:07:31.699 You'll notice even as we get into the message that he delivers, he doesn't speak in the second person. 00:07:31.799 --> 00:07:33.179 He speaks in the first person. 00:07:33.639 --> 00:07:35.000 I brought you out of Egypt. 00:07:35.219 --> 00:07:36.279 I did these things. 00:07:36.479 --> 00:07:40.359 Whether it's a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus or not. 00:07:40.659 --> 00:07:46.079 Whoever this is, this angel of the Lord is speaking the words of God on behalf of God. 00:07:46.339 --> 00:07:47.479 So it's judgment day. 00:07:48.279 --> 00:07:49.839 God has sent his message. 00:07:50.479 --> 00:07:53.239 God is delivering his message to his people. 00:07:53.240 --> 00:08:04.180 And the author is particularly concerned with telling us that the angel of the Lord came from Gilgal to this place, Baquim, which was Bethel. 00:08:04.379 --> 00:08:08.660 And it became known as Baquim, which means weeping after this event unfolded. 00:08:08.680 --> 00:08:13.300 So really, this is the city of Bethel where all of this is unfolding. 00:08:14.000 --> 00:08:17.560 Now, Gilgal was outside of the city of Jericho. 00:08:17.680 --> 00:08:22.079 You'll remember that from the conquest of Joshua chapter 5. 00:08:22.079 --> 00:08:29.779 You remember the story of the city of Jericho and how the Israelites marched around the wall and God delivered this amazing supernatural victory. 00:08:30.419 --> 00:08:32.919 Just outside of Jericho is where Gilgal was. 00:08:33.019 --> 00:08:38.840 And Gilgal is where Joshua set up his headquarters for the conquest of the land. 00:08:39.139 --> 00:08:41.000 In fact, just flip back there with me real quick. 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:44.299 Just go back one book to Joshua chapter 5, would you? 00:08:44.299 --> 00:08:47.099 Joshua chapter 5. 00:08:49.099 --> 00:08:53.339 And I want to show you something that took place here with Joshua. 00:09:00.839 --> 00:09:03.559 Joshua chapter 5, verse 13. 00:09:07.339 --> 00:09:10.839 When Joshua was by Jericho, meaning he was at Gilgal. 00:09:11.039 --> 00:09:13.479 He's near Jericho, but Gilgal is where his headquarters are. 00:09:13.480 --> 00:09:16.440 He lifted up his eyes and looked. 00:09:16.879 --> 00:09:22.539 And behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword in his hand. 00:09:23.580 --> 00:09:25.680 Joshua went to him and said to him, 00:09:26.000 --> 00:09:28.740 Are you for us or for our adversaries? 00:09:29.440 --> 00:09:30.860 And he said, No. 00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:32.980 Which is a weird answer, isn't it? 00:09:34.360 --> 00:09:36.519 This wasn't a yes or no answer from Joshua. 00:09:36.519 --> 00:09:41.000 It was, Are you with us or are you with them? 00:09:41.579 --> 00:09:43.620 And this man says, No. 00:09:44.059 --> 00:09:46.279 In other words, I'm not like any of you. 00:09:46.840 --> 00:09:47.939 I'm not like any of you. 00:09:48.019 --> 00:09:48.980 I'm not one of you. 00:09:49.840 --> 00:09:51.919 Notice what he continues to go on and says. 00:09:51.919 --> 00:09:56.000 But I am the commander of the army of the Lord. 00:09:57.000 --> 00:09:58.360 Now I have come. 00:09:59.319 --> 00:10:02.659 And Joshua fell on his faith to the earth and worshiped and said to him, 00:10:02.819 --> 00:10:04.959 What does my Lord say to his servant? 00:10:05.639 --> 00:10:08.199 And the commander of the Lord's army said to Joshua, 00:10:08.379 --> 00:10:10.899 Take off your sandals from your feet, 00:10:11.159 --> 00:10:13.799 for the place where you are standing is holy. 00:10:14.500 --> 00:10:16.139 And so Joshua did so. 00:10:16.839 --> 00:10:19.639 This is an amazing moment in Joshua's experience, isn't it? 00:10:19.639 --> 00:10:23.019 This angel of the Lord, this commander of the Lord's army, 00:10:23.120 --> 00:10:25.039 speaks the words of God on behalf of God, 00:10:25.299 --> 00:10:27.139 comes to the leader of Israel at this point, 00:10:27.240 --> 00:10:29.120 and says, This is what I want you to do. 00:10:29.159 --> 00:10:31.519 And he gives very clear instructions for Joshua. 00:10:32.039 --> 00:10:33.319 Here's what you are to do. 00:10:34.000 --> 00:10:37.179 It seems to me that the author of Judges 00:10:37.179 --> 00:10:39.419 wants to make a connection for us 00:10:39.419 --> 00:10:41.580 from the angel of the Lord in chapter 2 00:10:41.580 --> 00:10:43.539 back to this angel of the Lord 00:10:43.539 --> 00:10:47.200 or this commander of the Lord's army in Joshua chapter 5. 00:10:47.200 --> 00:10:49.420 And the reason he makes that connection 00:10:49.420 --> 00:10:54.660 is this movement from Gilgal to Bethel or to Baacum. 00:10:55.120 --> 00:10:58.580 In other words, this is what Barry Webb had to say about it. 00:10:58.840 --> 00:11:01.220 To encounter him, that is the angel of the Lord, 00:11:01.759 --> 00:11:03.780 is to encounter God. 00:11:04.920 --> 00:11:06.980 The one who appeared to Joshua 00:11:06.980 --> 00:11:10.420 at the beginning of Israel's campaign to occupy Canaan 00:11:10.419 --> 00:11:15.120 now appears again to review how things have gone 00:11:15.120 --> 00:11:18.099 and to give his verdict on whether or not 00:11:18.099 --> 00:11:19.519 his orders have been followed. 00:11:20.259 --> 00:11:23.299 It's a tense moment for Israel, he says. 00:11:23.620 --> 00:11:25.039 This is what's happening here. 00:11:26.019 --> 00:11:27.539 This angel of the Lord, this messenger, 00:11:27.679 --> 00:11:28.620 comes to Joshua and says, 00:11:28.699 --> 00:11:29.719 Here's what you must do. 00:11:29.919 --> 00:11:31.459 Now he returns and he says, 00:11:31.599 --> 00:11:33.639 Now let's consider how have you done. 00:11:34.159 --> 00:11:35.259 What have you done? 00:11:35.259 --> 00:11:38.799 The text really should remind us 00:11:38.799 --> 00:11:40.840 of our own impending judgment. 00:11:42.340 --> 00:11:43.740 That's really what this is about. 00:11:44.779 --> 00:11:46.980 Of course, we consider our final judgment 00:11:46.980 --> 00:11:48.220 at the end of this life 00:11:48.220 --> 00:11:50.120 when we stand before our maker, 00:11:50.299 --> 00:11:51.799 we all will give an account 00:11:51.799 --> 00:11:53.980 to whether or not we received Christ 00:11:53.980 --> 00:11:55.539 now that we look back 00:11:55.539 --> 00:11:57.039 from a New Testament perspective. 00:11:57.659 --> 00:11:59.740 Of course, we want to keep that in mind as well. 00:12:00.240 --> 00:12:02.279 But I think there's something more to it than that. 00:12:02.279 --> 00:12:05.319 I think we need to remember and acknowledge 00:12:05.319 --> 00:12:08.439 that we face many judgment days 00:12:08.439 --> 00:12:10.659 throughout our lives, many of them. 00:12:11.679 --> 00:12:13.919 We are accountable to God 00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:16.860 every moment of every day 00:12:16.860 --> 00:12:20.220 and he is actively speaking to us 00:12:20.220 --> 00:12:22.839 by his spirit through his word. 00:12:24.100 --> 00:12:26.759 And whether or not we view our choices as successful 00:12:26.759 --> 00:12:29.059 ultimately is irrelevant 00:12:29.059 --> 00:12:30.899 when it comes to the pure 00:12:30.899 --> 00:12:35.059 and righteous evaluation of the Lord God. 00:12:35.839 --> 00:12:37.979 And what we need to do as we come to this text 00:12:37.979 --> 00:12:39.699 and any other text of scripture 00:12:39.699 --> 00:12:42.719 is we need to hear God's message 00:12:42.719 --> 00:12:44.559 and then we need to consider 00:12:44.559 --> 00:12:46.819 the true nature of our response. 00:12:47.379 --> 00:12:49.899 In fact, that's the two dynamics 00:12:49.899 --> 00:12:50.899 that I want to think about 00:12:50.899 --> 00:12:52.559 as we structure this passage 00:12:52.559 --> 00:12:53.739 in our sermon today. 00:12:54.199 --> 00:12:56.079 We want to look at the divine message 00:12:56.080 --> 00:12:59.300 and then we want to look at the human response. 00:12:59.520 --> 00:13:01.259 So first, let's look at the divine message. 00:13:01.480 --> 00:13:02.860 Look with me again at verse one. 00:13:04.000 --> 00:13:05.100 The angel of the Lord said, 00:13:05.180 --> 00:13:06.440 I brought you up from Egypt. 00:13:06.940 --> 00:13:08.800 I brought you into the land 00:13:08.800 --> 00:13:10.480 that I swore to give to your fathers. 00:13:11.420 --> 00:13:14.020 I said, I will never break my covenant with you 00:13:14.020 --> 00:13:15.879 and you shall make no covenant 00:13:15.879 --> 00:13:17.840 with the inhabitants of this land. 00:13:18.639 --> 00:13:20.340 You shall break down their altars, 00:13:20.720 --> 00:13:22.900 but you have not obeyed my voice. 00:13:23.660 --> 00:13:25.140 What is this that you have done? 00:13:25.139 --> 00:13:29.139 So now I say, I will not drive them out before you, 00:13:29.439 --> 00:13:32.720 but they shall become thorns in your sides. 00:13:33.960 --> 00:13:35.779 Their God shall be a snare to you. 00:13:37.139 --> 00:13:39.460 Before we get into the details of this message, 00:13:39.559 --> 00:13:41.439 I want you to carefully note here 00:13:41.439 --> 00:13:45.559 on what basis God makes these statements, 00:13:46.159 --> 00:13:48.299 what basis he makes his judgment. 00:13:49.120 --> 00:13:51.700 His reaction to Israel is not impulsive, 00:13:52.419 --> 00:13:53.899 nor is it arbitrary. 00:13:53.899 --> 00:13:57.919 It reflects his own faithfulness 00:13:57.919 --> 00:14:01.179 to what he's already told his people. 00:14:02.039 --> 00:14:05.039 In other words, God's perfect judgments 00:14:05.039 --> 00:14:08.919 are rooted in his perfect word. 00:14:09.579 --> 00:14:12.319 God's perfect judgments are rooted 00:14:12.319 --> 00:14:16.259 in his perfect word, in what he has said. 00:14:16.259 --> 00:14:17.259 God's perfect word. 00:14:17.259 --> 00:14:21.580 Says Daniel Block, the Israelites were never left guessing 00:14:21.580 --> 00:14:23.100 the will of their God. 00:14:23.799 --> 00:14:28.340 In his grace, Yahweh had entered into covenant relationship 00:14:28.340 --> 00:14:33.539 with them, and in his grace, he had revealed his will 00:14:33.539 --> 00:14:35.019 through the law. 00:14:35.779 --> 00:14:37.480 They had the law of Moses. 00:14:38.000 --> 00:14:40.439 They had the very desires of their God. 00:14:40.440 --> 00:14:44.160 They had the story of how they had come to be in a nation 00:14:44.160 --> 00:14:44.980 in and of themselves. 00:14:45.280 --> 00:14:47.480 They had the stories of the patriarchs. 00:14:47.520 --> 00:14:49.200 They had the covenants of the patriarchs. 00:14:49.260 --> 00:14:51.440 They had the law of God given at Sinai. 00:14:51.580 --> 00:14:53.520 They had everything that they needed 00:14:53.520 --> 00:14:56.520 in terms of knowing what God wanted for them 00:14:56.520 --> 00:14:58.640 and what God had promised for them, 00:14:58.720 --> 00:15:01.400 and it was all right there in his word. 00:15:01.780 --> 00:15:04.300 He hid nothing from them that they needed in that moment. 00:15:04.299 --> 00:15:09.159 It's there, and it reminds us that we must be careful 00:15:09.159 --> 00:15:13.539 to consult the scriptures because it's in the scriptures 00:15:13.539 --> 00:15:17.000 that we find God's true desires for us, 00:15:17.139 --> 00:15:21.259 and it is based on his revealed word in the Bible 00:15:21.259 --> 00:15:26.199 that God will ultimately deliver his evaluation of us. 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:29.539 He doesn't evaluate Israel in this message 00:15:29.539 --> 00:15:32.919 based on some new information that they did not have. 00:15:32.919 --> 00:15:34.959 No, he comes and he makes his judgment 00:15:34.959 --> 00:15:37.979 based on what he's already told them to do 00:15:37.979 --> 00:15:41.240 and what he's already revealed to them about his will. 00:15:42.399 --> 00:15:46.099 When wrestling with questions about what to do 00:15:46.099 --> 00:15:50.719 or what to believe, we should constantly be asking this, 00:15:51.459 --> 00:15:53.479 what does the Bible say? 00:15:54.319 --> 00:15:56.479 What does the text say? 00:15:57.319 --> 00:16:00.939 In the end, God will not judge our lives 00:16:00.939 --> 00:16:02.839 based on what we thought was best, 00:16:02.919 --> 00:16:07.279 or based on what we wished were true of him, 00:16:07.539 --> 00:16:11.519 but on what he has plainly revealed in the Bible. 00:16:12.299 --> 00:16:14.059 What he's plainly revealed about himself, 00:16:14.839 --> 00:16:17.679 what he's plainly revealed to us about his desires. 00:16:18.439 --> 00:16:21.379 And it's with that understanding as our foundation 00:16:21.379 --> 00:16:23.559 that I want us to look at this message 00:16:23.559 --> 00:16:24.659 that he gives to Israel. 00:16:25.199 --> 00:16:27.480 I want to look at three specific statements here. 00:16:27.480 --> 00:16:28.940 The first one is this. 00:16:29.180 --> 00:16:31.100 God says, I will. 00:16:31.720 --> 00:16:32.539 I will. 00:16:33.100 --> 00:16:34.360 Look with me again at verse one. 00:16:35.879 --> 00:16:37.100 I brought you out of Egypt. 00:16:37.360 --> 00:16:38.960 I brought you into the land 00:16:38.960 --> 00:16:40.899 that I swore to give to your fathers. 00:16:41.379 --> 00:16:43.840 And I said, this is coming from God. 00:16:43.920 --> 00:16:44.759 He's reminding Israel. 00:16:44.759 --> 00:16:51.360 I said, I will never break my covenant with you. 00:16:52.360 --> 00:16:54.799 I will never break my covenant with you. 00:16:55.360 --> 00:16:59.080 His message begins with what he had promised to do 00:16:59.080 --> 00:17:03.919 and how he had actually already fulfilled that promise. 00:17:03.919 --> 00:17:07.940 The particular covenant in view here 00:17:07.940 --> 00:17:11.039 is the covenant made with the patriarchs, 00:17:11.039 --> 00:17:13.339 Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. 00:17:13.980 --> 00:17:16.799 As you read through Genesis, you see what this covenant was. 00:17:16.879 --> 00:17:20.180 It was a covenant that God would make of their lineage 00:17:20.180 --> 00:17:21.299 a great nation. 00:17:21.960 --> 00:17:23.759 That in making them a great nation, 00:17:23.920 --> 00:17:26.159 he would give them the land of Canaan 00:17:26.159 --> 00:17:29.619 that Abraham and Isaac and Jacob wondered in. 00:17:29.619 --> 00:17:31.479 And that through that lineage, 00:17:31.479 --> 00:17:36.119 he would ultimately provide a savior to redeem them 00:17:36.119 --> 00:17:39.619 and to restore perfect fellowship with them. 00:17:41.299 --> 00:17:44.699 God has promised that he would never break that covenant 00:17:44.699 --> 00:17:46.519 with the children of Abraham. 00:17:47.179 --> 00:17:49.079 And he was true to his word. 00:17:49.759 --> 00:17:51.559 That's why he opens the way that he did. 00:17:51.639 --> 00:17:52.579 Look again at verse one. 00:17:52.719 --> 00:17:54.719 Before he even reminds them of the covenant, 00:17:54.859 --> 00:17:57.379 he says, I brought you up from Egypt. 00:17:57.380 --> 00:18:00.740 I brought you into the land that I swore to your fathers. 00:18:00.920 --> 00:18:02.760 I said I would never break the covenant 00:18:02.760 --> 00:18:04.540 and look at what has happened. 00:18:05.260 --> 00:18:06.960 I was true to my word. 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:08.680 I brought you from Egypt. 00:18:08.900 --> 00:18:10.140 I brought you to the land. 00:18:10.480 --> 00:18:13.340 I gave it into your hands. 00:18:13.920 --> 00:18:14.960 Here's the thing. 00:18:15.900 --> 00:18:20.200 God's faithfulness is not contingent upon ours. 00:18:21.460 --> 00:18:25.100 His faithfulness is never contingent upon ours. 00:18:25.099 --> 00:18:27.159 He fulfilled his promise, 00:18:27.359 --> 00:18:32.379 even though the people rebelled time and time again. 00:18:33.639 --> 00:18:35.419 Despite their many failures, 00:18:36.019 --> 00:18:38.959 God was always faithful to his word. 00:18:40.019 --> 00:18:41.939 And some of us, we struggle with this sometimes. 00:18:42.099 --> 00:18:46.159 We struggle with this idea of spiritual insecurity. 00:18:47.679 --> 00:18:49.619 And I think that perhaps sometimes 00:18:49.619 --> 00:18:51.759 we have this spiritual insecurity 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:55.059 because we have actually a very low view of God's character. 00:18:56.220 --> 00:18:59.200 We think that God will only be faithful to us 00:18:59.200 --> 00:19:01.059 and to the promise that he's made to us 00:19:01.059 --> 00:19:02.279 through the gospel 00:19:02.279 --> 00:19:05.900 so long as we are faithful first to him. 00:19:06.740 --> 00:19:10.160 But that's not what his faithfulness is contingent on. 00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:15.540 Some of us act as if God will only be faithful 00:19:15.540 --> 00:19:16.440 when we're faithful. 00:19:16.940 --> 00:19:19.560 And then you fight through this spiritual depression 00:19:19.560 --> 00:19:22.920 when you step back and you evaluate your own life. 00:19:23.320 --> 00:19:25.500 And you just look at how many times you fail. 00:19:26.340 --> 00:19:29.519 And you look at all the sins that you've amounted, 00:19:29.700 --> 00:19:31.500 that have begun to pile up in your life. 00:19:31.519 --> 00:19:33.580 And you look at maybe how you've failed as a parent 00:19:33.580 --> 00:19:34.759 or how you've failed as a spouse 00:19:34.759 --> 00:19:36.860 or how you've failed to follow this law 00:19:36.859 --> 00:19:37.939 and to do this thing. 00:19:38.119 --> 00:19:39.379 And you just think, 00:19:39.740 --> 00:19:41.519 God can't be faithful to me 00:19:41.519 --> 00:19:44.199 because I've been so unfaithful to him. 00:19:45.119 --> 00:19:47.059 And then we get here to a passage like this 00:19:47.059 --> 00:19:49.959 and we find Israel's faithfulness was irrelevant. 00:19:50.879 --> 00:19:52.439 God was gonna fulfill his promise. 00:19:53.619 --> 00:19:55.439 He was gonna bring them to the land. 00:19:56.240 --> 00:19:57.819 He was going to deliver them. 00:19:58.539 --> 00:20:00.819 He was gonna be faithful no matter what they did 00:20:00.819 --> 00:20:02.919 because his faithfulness is not contingent 00:20:02.919 --> 00:20:04.000 upon our faithfulness. 00:20:04.000 --> 00:20:09.440 His faithfulness is rooted in his perfect character. 00:20:10.480 --> 00:20:12.480 So rejoice, Christian. 00:20:13.420 --> 00:20:14.059 Rejoice. 00:20:15.019 --> 00:20:18.500 God's faithfulness to you is not based on who you are 00:20:18.500 --> 00:20:20.019 or what you've done. 00:20:21.039 --> 00:20:23.460 His faithfulness is based on who he is. 00:20:24.279 --> 00:20:26.920 And he will fulfill his gospel promise to you 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:30.299 just like he fulfilled this promise to Israel. 00:20:30.660 --> 00:20:31.799 So he begins with that. 00:20:32.259 --> 00:20:33.279 This is who I am. 00:20:33.279 --> 00:20:34.779 This is what I've done. 00:20:35.039 --> 00:20:36.359 This is what I've promised. 00:20:36.639 --> 00:20:37.899 And I fulfilled that promise. 00:20:37.980 --> 00:20:38.700 So I will. 00:20:39.440 --> 00:20:40.119 Second statement. 00:20:41.000 --> 00:20:41.720 You shall. 00:20:42.599 --> 00:20:43.399 You shall. 00:20:43.519 --> 00:20:44.359 This is in verse two. 00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:45.160 Look at it with me. 00:20:46.700 --> 00:20:48.859 And you shall make no covenant 00:20:48.859 --> 00:20:51.099 with the inhabitants of this land. 00:20:51.940 --> 00:20:53.660 You shall break down their altars. 00:20:54.440 --> 00:20:56.319 But you have not obeyed my voice. 00:20:56.319 --> 00:20:59.619 What is this that you have done? 00:20:59.619 --> 00:21:02.679 So in verse one, God says, I will. 00:21:03.240 --> 00:21:04.159 And he did. 00:21:05.059 --> 00:21:07.679 Verse two, God says, you shall. 00:21:08.939 --> 00:21:10.039 But they didn't. 00:21:12.379 --> 00:21:14.759 Israel was to make no covenant with the people. 00:21:15.519 --> 00:21:18.980 They were to eradicate Canaanite religion from the land. 00:21:18.980 --> 00:21:24.180 And every tribe failed miserably on both accounts. 00:21:24.339 --> 00:21:26.120 That's what we learn in chapter one. 00:21:27.160 --> 00:21:29.599 That's what this message is in reference to. 00:21:29.940 --> 00:21:31.440 They've broken the covenant. 00:21:31.440 --> 00:21:35.080 They did not obey the voice of the Lord. 00:21:35.660 --> 00:21:37.880 And despite their apparent successes, 00:21:38.400 --> 00:21:41.059 in God's eyes, they had failed. 00:21:42.420 --> 00:21:46.160 And becoming covenant makers with the people of the land, 00:21:46.519 --> 00:21:50.340 they became covenant breakers with God, 00:21:50.480 --> 00:21:52.660 who had been faithful to them, 00:21:53.080 --> 00:21:57.299 who had fulfilled every promise he had ever made to them. 00:21:57.299 --> 00:22:00.859 And the last phrase here, I think, is noteworthy. 00:22:01.500 --> 00:22:03.039 God asked this simple question. 00:22:03.919 --> 00:22:05.379 What is this you have done? 00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:07.019 What have you done? 00:22:07.839 --> 00:22:09.000 You ever said that to your kids? 00:22:09.799 --> 00:22:12.359 You've told them a hundred times not to do a particular thing, 00:22:12.399 --> 00:22:13.159 and then they do it, 00:22:13.299 --> 00:22:15.440 and they just make a mess of something. 00:22:16.039 --> 00:22:17.980 And you say something to the effect of, 00:22:18.399 --> 00:22:19.539 what have you done? 00:22:20.099 --> 00:22:21.279 What did you do? 00:22:22.299 --> 00:22:22.740 Why? 00:22:22.740 --> 00:22:22.859 Why? 00:22:24.839 --> 00:22:27.539 Except this isn't the first time God has said this. 00:22:28.640 --> 00:22:30.980 This is actually repeated in the Old Testament. 00:22:31.779 --> 00:22:33.000 It's a common phrase. 00:22:33.120 --> 00:22:36.380 God often uses it when he's confronting his people in their sin. 00:22:36.559 --> 00:22:38.099 He says, what is this that you have done? 00:22:38.259 --> 00:22:40.640 And I think there's something for us to see in that. 00:22:41.480 --> 00:22:44.880 The first place we see it is Genesis chapter three. 00:22:46.220 --> 00:22:47.720 God had told Adam and Eve, 00:22:47.720 --> 00:22:50.779 he gave them clear instructions about what to do 00:22:50.779 --> 00:22:52.160 and what not to do. 00:22:52.740 --> 00:22:56.299 And in response to Eve's sin in the Garden of Eden, 00:22:56.559 --> 00:22:58.579 God asked her in Genesis three, 00:22:59.160 --> 00:23:01.980 what is this that you have done? 00:23:03.900 --> 00:23:07.099 And it's a connection point, I think, here in Judges chapter one. 00:23:07.200 --> 00:23:09.019 We see it often in the Old Testament, 00:23:09.140 --> 00:23:11.539 these connections back to the patriarchs, 00:23:11.559 --> 00:23:12.400 back to the beginning. 00:23:12.640 --> 00:23:13.900 That's for a purpose. 00:23:15.019 --> 00:23:17.299 It reminds us of the nature of sin. 00:23:18.740 --> 00:23:20.759 God plainly tells Adam and Eve, 00:23:20.759 --> 00:23:23.400 this is what my will is for you. 00:23:23.720 --> 00:23:24.500 Do this. 00:23:24.900 --> 00:23:26.000 Don't do this. 00:23:26.819 --> 00:23:28.079 And they disobeyed. 00:23:29.720 --> 00:23:31.740 And just as did Adam and Eve, 00:23:31.960 --> 00:23:35.079 the people of Israel rebelled against God's clear command. 00:23:35.500 --> 00:23:36.819 He said, do this. 00:23:37.319 --> 00:23:38.559 Don't do this. 00:23:39.319 --> 00:23:40.599 And they disobeyed. 00:23:40.599 --> 00:23:44.379 We could draw all kinds of other parallels to here, 00:23:44.439 --> 00:23:47.879 but I think what we are meant to see is a new kind of fall. 00:23:48.899 --> 00:23:51.759 The promised land was supposed to be like for Israel, 00:23:51.959 --> 00:23:53.799 a new type of Garden of Eden. 00:23:54.759 --> 00:23:56.299 And just like Adam and Eve, 00:23:56.419 --> 00:23:57.500 God gives his word. 00:23:57.759 --> 00:23:58.899 He gives us clear message. 00:23:59.059 --> 00:24:01.319 They fall short of that message. 00:24:01.519 --> 00:24:03.099 They sin against God. 00:24:03.099 --> 00:24:04.279 And he comes and he says, 00:24:04.439 --> 00:24:05.319 what have you done? 00:24:05.639 --> 00:24:06.959 This is what sin is. 00:24:07.299 --> 00:24:09.659 God tells us clearly what to do and what not to do. 00:24:09.779 --> 00:24:10.759 And we disobey. 00:24:11.039 --> 00:24:12.039 And that's what's happening here. 00:24:12.159 --> 00:24:15.399 And he's confronting his people in their sin. 00:24:15.799 --> 00:24:18.259 Now, the order of these statements, 00:24:18.459 --> 00:24:19.639 I think is important. 00:24:19.640 --> 00:24:29.640 It's essential that we recognize God's faithfulness 00:24:29.640 --> 00:24:34.140 as preceding our obedience here. 00:24:35.120 --> 00:24:37.800 Notice the order that he gives this message. 00:24:38.820 --> 00:24:39.920 Here's who I am. 00:24:41.140 --> 00:24:43.200 Here's what I've done. 00:24:43.960 --> 00:24:46.480 And it's only after he deals with his own person, 00:24:46.600 --> 00:24:48.120 his own character, his own will, 00:24:48.440 --> 00:24:49.240 his own faithfulness, 00:24:49.240 --> 00:24:51.339 that he then deals with their unfaithfulness 00:24:51.339 --> 00:24:52.460 and their obedience. 00:24:52.759 --> 00:24:54.299 And I think there's something for us here. 00:24:58.500 --> 00:25:01.059 We do not love and obey God 00:25:01.059 --> 00:25:04.819 to provoke his faithfulness to us. 00:25:06.039 --> 00:25:08.859 We are to love and obey God 00:25:08.859 --> 00:25:13.000 because we have recognized his perfect faithfulness 00:25:13.000 --> 00:25:15.599 already at work in us. 00:25:17.200 --> 00:25:19.099 And we see it clearly again, 00:25:19.240 --> 00:25:21.120 just in the way that he speaks to his people. 00:25:21.500 --> 00:25:23.180 This has always been the case. 00:25:23.400 --> 00:25:25.240 It will always be the case. 00:25:25.920 --> 00:25:27.019 He is faithful. 00:25:27.900 --> 00:25:29.980 Therefore, be faithful. 00:25:29.980 --> 00:25:34.120 And as we get into the application of the gospel in this, 00:25:34.120 --> 00:25:36.900 we find it's the same as we come to Christ. 00:25:38.360 --> 00:25:41.180 We do not provoke Christ's love for us. 00:25:41.440 --> 00:25:44.920 We do not provoke his faithfulness to the gospel covenant, 00:25:45.079 --> 00:25:46.779 the new covenant in his blood, 00:25:46.779 --> 00:25:48.039 by doing something. 00:25:48.259 --> 00:25:49.160 We don't come and say, 00:25:49.380 --> 00:25:50.360 God, look, we did, 00:25:50.680 --> 00:25:51.839 Jesus, we did the thing. 00:25:51.980 --> 00:25:53.299 We did the baptism thing, 00:25:53.299 --> 00:25:54.680 and we took the bread and the juice, 00:25:54.680 --> 00:25:56.060 and we went to the church, 00:25:56.120 --> 00:25:58.960 even when it was in an elementary school cafeteria 00:25:58.960 --> 00:26:02.320 with all kinds of weird noises and lots of echoes. 00:26:02.460 --> 00:26:04.100 We did all this stuff, God. 00:26:04.400 --> 00:26:07.600 Jesus, hopefully we've made ourselves acceptable to you. 00:26:08.200 --> 00:26:09.420 No, you've got it backwards. 00:26:10.180 --> 00:26:10.980 We got it backwards. 00:26:11.340 --> 00:26:14.299 We don't come to Jesus to provoke his faithfulness. 00:26:14.500 --> 00:26:17.299 We come to Jesus because we already recognize it. 00:26:17.560 --> 00:26:19.420 God says, I was faithful. 00:26:19.900 --> 00:26:20.740 I was faithful. 00:26:20.940 --> 00:26:22.539 He deals with who he is first. 00:26:22.539 --> 00:26:25.859 They were to love and obey because of that faithfulness, 00:26:26.159 --> 00:26:27.500 but they rejected it. 00:26:27.859 --> 00:26:29.240 They turned their back on it. 00:26:29.659 --> 00:26:30.619 They ignored it, 00:26:30.759 --> 00:26:32.519 which is exactly what we do 00:26:32.519 --> 00:26:35.599 when we continually pursue sinful behaviors 00:26:35.599 --> 00:26:37.639 and sinful beliefs in our lives. 00:26:37.740 --> 00:26:40.279 We turn our eyes away from the faithfulness of God. 00:26:40.639 --> 00:26:42.559 We ignore his perfect character. 00:26:42.960 --> 00:26:45.819 We ignore the fact of his infinite love for us, 00:26:45.859 --> 00:26:48.460 and we choose to do what we want instead. 00:26:49.539 --> 00:26:51.559 He said, I will, and he did. 00:26:51.559 --> 00:26:54.339 He said, you shall, but they didn't, 00:26:54.659 --> 00:26:55.679 and now they're in a mess. 00:26:56.019 --> 00:26:57.539 Third statement, verse three. 00:26:58.179 --> 00:26:59.919 So now is the third one. 00:27:00.399 --> 00:27:01.079 So now. 00:27:01.259 --> 00:27:01.960 Look at verse three. 00:27:02.879 --> 00:27:03.899 So now I say, 00:27:04.460 --> 00:27:07.179 I will not drive them out before you, 00:27:07.679 --> 00:27:10.480 but they shall become thorns in your sides, 00:27:10.879 --> 00:27:14.460 and their God shall be a snare to you. 00:27:14.460 --> 00:27:19.799 This is as much a reminder of what God had already said 00:27:19.799 --> 00:27:23.420 as it was an announcement of further judgment. 00:27:24.240 --> 00:27:26.440 Let me read to you from Joshua 23. 00:27:26.539 --> 00:27:28.420 Actually, it's just a page over in your Bible probably. 00:27:28.700 --> 00:27:30.259 Go to Joshua 23. 00:27:35.059 --> 00:27:35.960 Joshua 23. 00:27:36.079 --> 00:27:36.980 Look at verse 12. 00:27:36.980 --> 00:27:42.200 God says through Joshua, 00:27:42.440 --> 00:27:49.039 if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you 00:27:49.039 --> 00:27:54.039 and make marriages with them so that you associate with them and they with you, 00:27:55.079 --> 00:28:01.839 know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, 00:28:01.839 --> 00:28:06.159 but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, 00:28:06.839 --> 00:28:10.279 a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes 00:28:10.279 --> 00:28:16.359 until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you. 00:28:17.039 --> 00:28:21.439 Again, God is speaking them based on what he's already said, right? 00:28:21.759 --> 00:28:23.699 That's how he makes his judgment here. 00:28:24.639 --> 00:28:28.359 Now, don't mistake this as God acting vindictively. 00:28:28.359 --> 00:28:33.679 It's better to understand this as the natural consequences of sin. 00:28:34.179 --> 00:28:35.199 That's what's happening. 00:28:36.039 --> 00:28:37.079 God told them, 00:28:37.719 --> 00:28:39.619 if you make a covenant with the people of the land, 00:28:39.779 --> 00:28:40.879 here's what will happen. 00:28:41.079 --> 00:28:42.819 You will not be able to drive them out. 00:28:43.159 --> 00:28:45.279 They will become a thorn to you. 00:28:46.619 --> 00:28:49.379 And this statement of judgment is just a rehearsal of that. 00:28:50.379 --> 00:28:53.779 They were to look back on the events of chapter one themselves 00:28:53.779 --> 00:29:00.019 and realize that their failures were the immediate product of their own sinfulness. 00:29:01.680 --> 00:29:04.720 Because they would have been tempted at this moment to say, 00:29:04.839 --> 00:29:06.639 God has been unfaithful to us. 00:29:06.859 --> 00:29:09.420 He was supposed to give all the people into our hands, 00:29:09.539 --> 00:29:10.619 but he hasn't done it. 00:29:11.480 --> 00:29:12.819 God's been unfaithful. 00:29:13.160 --> 00:29:14.399 No, he says, 00:29:14.519 --> 00:29:15.720 I've been faithful. 00:29:15.720 --> 00:29:17.119 I told you, 00:29:17.299 --> 00:29:19.099 if you didn't do it my way, 00:29:19.279 --> 00:29:20.700 this is what would happen. 00:29:20.700 --> 00:29:25.160 And now they're reaping the natural consequences of their sin. 00:29:27.220 --> 00:29:29.680 And so long as they continued in that sin, 00:29:30.039 --> 00:29:34.860 they would not experience the blessing of the land. 00:29:35.840 --> 00:29:40.900 Now, I want you to notice how everything about this message 00:29:40.900 --> 00:29:43.759 reveals God's perfect faithfulness. 00:29:44.559 --> 00:29:45.759 Everything about it. 00:29:45.759 --> 00:29:49.400 He is faithful in both his blessing 00:29:49.400 --> 00:29:52.920 and he is faithful to judge. 00:29:54.440 --> 00:29:58.579 He's not like the authority figures that we've had in our lives 00:29:58.579 --> 00:30:00.559 where we could mess up, 00:30:00.640 --> 00:30:02.379 but we know they're going to let us slide 00:30:02.379 --> 00:30:03.839 if we just say the right thing 00:30:03.839 --> 00:30:05.400 or we just act the right way, right? 00:30:05.480 --> 00:30:07.119 If you were one of the teacher's pets in school, 00:30:07.200 --> 00:30:08.079 you know what that's like. 00:30:10.599 --> 00:30:11.740 God can't do that. 00:30:13.759 --> 00:30:15.200 He's too perfect for that. 00:30:16.420 --> 00:30:18.680 He's too righteous and holy to do that. 00:30:20.140 --> 00:30:22.299 He's faithful to fulfill his promises. 00:30:23.680 --> 00:30:26.980 He's faithful to deliver his justice. 00:30:27.980 --> 00:30:29.980 And you see, this is a problem for us. 00:30:30.559 --> 00:30:31.720 It's a huge problem 00:30:31.720 --> 00:30:35.519 because the reality puts us 00:30:35.519 --> 00:30:38.539 in an utterly hopeless position. 00:30:40.539 --> 00:30:42.720 God's perfect faithfulness to his promise 00:30:42.720 --> 00:30:44.480 gives us hope for blessing, 00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:48.860 but God's perfect faithfulness in his justice 00:30:48.860 --> 00:30:51.980 keeps us from ever receiving 00:30:51.980 --> 00:30:54.360 that faithfulness and that blessing. 00:30:54.779 --> 00:30:55.640 Do you see the trend? 00:30:57.319 --> 00:30:58.620 Because we're sinful, 00:30:59.000 --> 00:31:01.440 we'll never get to experience the blessing. 00:31:02.440 --> 00:31:03.900 He's faithful to bless, 00:31:04.200 --> 00:31:05.460 but he's faithful to judge, 00:31:05.680 --> 00:31:07.220 and we're faithful to sin. 00:31:07.220 --> 00:31:12.019 Therefore, we routinely face his judgment. 00:31:13.059 --> 00:31:14.600 But it's only hopeless 00:31:14.600 --> 00:31:18.160 until you look at the cross. 00:31:19.000 --> 00:31:20.319 It's only hopeless 00:31:20.319 --> 00:31:21.559 until you look at the cross. 00:31:22.059 --> 00:31:23.759 God's perfect justice 00:31:23.759 --> 00:31:25.880 and God's perfect mercy 00:31:25.880 --> 00:31:29.180 meet together on the cross of Jesus. 00:31:29.180 --> 00:31:30.560 God's perfect son. 00:31:30.560 --> 00:31:31.500 And in doing that, 00:31:31.580 --> 00:31:33.560 he provides eternal salvation 00:31:34.120 --> 00:31:35.960 that cannot be lost. 00:31:38.180 --> 00:31:40.560 God judges his perfect son 00:31:40.560 --> 00:31:42.860 in our place. 00:31:43.560 --> 00:31:46.779 He pours out his wrath on him, 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:48.279 the sinless one, 00:31:48.680 --> 00:31:51.560 on behalf of our sins. 00:31:51.559 --> 00:31:52.980 And he does that 00:31:52.980 --> 00:31:56.019 so that he may still judge sin. 00:31:56.980 --> 00:31:58.980 But yet he may provide now 00:31:58.980 --> 00:32:00.559 perfect mercy 00:32:00.559 --> 00:32:02.619 to you and to me. 00:32:03.379 --> 00:32:03.740 Do you see? 00:32:06.559 --> 00:32:08.019 When God forgives our sins, 00:32:08.059 --> 00:32:09.019 I say this all the time 00:32:09.019 --> 00:32:10.519 and I think it's so helpful to remember. 00:32:11.480 --> 00:32:12.980 When God forgives our sins, 00:32:13.179 --> 00:32:15.179 it's not as if he's pretending 00:32:15.179 --> 00:32:16.259 that they never happened. 00:32:16.259 --> 00:32:19.160 That's often how we think 00:32:19.160 --> 00:32:20.099 about forgiveness, right? 00:32:20.160 --> 00:32:21.400 We think, well, 00:32:21.500 --> 00:32:22.680 if I'm going to forgive somebody, 00:32:22.740 --> 00:32:23.500 I've just got to pretend 00:32:23.500 --> 00:32:24.599 that they never wronged me. 00:32:25.200 --> 00:32:26.980 Or if I'm receiving forgiveness 00:32:26.980 --> 00:32:28.160 from Jesus for the sins 00:32:28.160 --> 00:32:28.619 I've committed, 00:32:28.819 --> 00:32:31.619 it's just because he's come to a point 00:32:31.619 --> 00:32:32.559 where I said the prayer 00:32:32.559 --> 00:32:33.220 and I did the thing 00:32:33.220 --> 00:32:33.900 and now he's just saying, 00:32:33.980 --> 00:32:34.940 okay, I'm just going to pretend 00:32:34.940 --> 00:32:35.859 like that never happened 00:32:35.859 --> 00:32:37.799 and we're just going to move on from here. 00:32:38.039 --> 00:32:39.619 That is not what happens 00:32:39.619 --> 00:32:40.920 for our salvation. 00:32:41.460 --> 00:32:42.460 That's not at all what happens. 00:32:42.680 --> 00:32:43.660 Can't happen that way. 00:32:44.500 --> 00:32:45.619 God must judge sin. 00:32:46.799 --> 00:32:47.879 What God does 00:32:47.879 --> 00:32:50.599 is he sends his perfectly sinless son. 00:32:50.859 --> 00:32:53.000 He himself becomes flesh. 00:32:53.299 --> 00:32:54.640 That's what we learn in John 1. 00:32:55.359 --> 00:32:56.660 And he goes to the cross. 00:32:56.779 --> 00:32:57.579 He lives the life 00:32:57.579 --> 00:32:58.799 that we were supposed to live 00:32:58.799 --> 00:32:59.960 and he dies the death 00:32:59.960 --> 00:33:01.180 that we deserve to die 00:33:01.180 --> 00:33:03.579 in order that God might judge sin 00:33:03.579 --> 00:33:05.539 finally at the cross. 00:33:05.660 --> 00:33:07.319 And for those who come to Christ 00:33:07.319 --> 00:33:09.960 to receive that atonement by faith, 00:33:09.960 --> 00:33:12.759 he then gives us life. 00:33:13.539 --> 00:33:15.119 Not because we said the prayer 00:33:15.119 --> 00:33:15.879 and we did the thing. 00:33:15.880 --> 00:33:16.960 He gives us life 00:33:16.960 --> 00:33:18.900 because of what Jesus did, 00:33:19.560 --> 00:33:20.720 because of what he did. 00:33:21.080 --> 00:33:22.380 Perfect justice, 00:33:22.980 --> 00:33:23.940 perfect mercy, 00:33:24.160 --> 00:33:25.180 coming together 00:33:25.180 --> 00:33:27.060 for the eternal salvation 00:33:27.060 --> 00:33:28.440 of God's people. 00:33:29.500 --> 00:33:31.100 God is faithful 00:33:31.100 --> 00:33:33.700 and his faithfulness 00:33:33.700 --> 00:33:36.540 is our only hope. 00:33:37.300 --> 00:33:38.700 Indeed, Christ 00:33:38.700 --> 00:33:42.000 is our only hope. 00:33:42.000 --> 00:33:43.920 2 Corinthians 5. 00:33:43.920 --> 00:33:44.500 2 Corinthians 5.21. 00:33:45.420 --> 00:33:46.619 For our sake, 00:33:47.160 --> 00:33:48.900 God made him to be sin 00:33:48.900 --> 00:33:50.440 who knew no sin 00:33:50.440 --> 00:33:52.480 so that in him 00:33:52.480 --> 00:33:54.500 we might become 00:33:54.500 --> 00:33:55.099 the righteousness 00:33:55.099 --> 00:33:56.359 of God. 00:33:56.680 --> 00:33:57.819 He is our hope. 00:33:58.180 --> 00:33:59.619 Look to Jesus today. 00:34:00.940 --> 00:34:02.140 That's the divine message. 00:34:02.480 --> 00:34:03.240 Let's quickly look 00:34:03.240 --> 00:34:04.819 at the human response, okay? 00:34:05.259 --> 00:34:06.119 The human response. 00:34:06.119 --> 00:34:07.399 Verse 4. 00:34:08.199 --> 00:34:09.339 As soon as the angel of the Lord 00:34:09.339 --> 00:34:10.119 spoke these words 00:34:10.119 --> 00:34:11.199 to all the people of Israel, 00:34:11.639 --> 00:34:13.619 the people lifted up their voices 00:34:13.619 --> 00:34:14.259 and wept. 00:34:15.199 --> 00:34:16.219 And they called the name 00:34:16.219 --> 00:34:16.759 of that place, 00:34:16.880 --> 00:34:17.219 Baquem. 00:34:18.079 --> 00:34:19.599 And they sacrificed there 00:34:19.599 --> 00:34:20.400 to the Lord. 00:34:21.799 --> 00:34:22.400 Now here's where 00:34:22.400 --> 00:34:24.059 the rubber meets the road, 00:34:24.139 --> 00:34:24.679 so to speak. 00:34:24.679 --> 00:34:27.960 A message from God 00:34:27.960 --> 00:34:30.379 always demands 00:34:30.379 --> 00:34:31.619 a response. 00:34:32.299 --> 00:34:32.779 Always. 00:34:33.899 --> 00:34:34.779 Whether it's in your 00:34:34.779 --> 00:34:36.239 personal Bible study at home, 00:34:36.559 --> 00:34:37.059 whether it's through 00:34:37.059 --> 00:34:37.940 a Sunday sermon 00:34:37.940 --> 00:34:38.879 that you may hear 00:34:38.879 --> 00:34:40.279 here at our church 00:34:40.279 --> 00:34:41.099 or another church, 00:34:41.179 --> 00:34:42.179 or whether it's just 00:34:42.179 --> 00:34:43.679 the conviction of God's spirit 00:34:43.679 --> 00:34:44.419 through his word 00:34:44.419 --> 00:34:45.319 as you're going about 00:34:45.319 --> 00:34:46.440 your daily life 00:34:46.440 --> 00:34:47.319 in a given moment. 00:34:47.940 --> 00:34:49.299 There will always be 00:34:49.299 --> 00:34:50.980 a response on our part. 00:34:51.319 --> 00:34:52.000 There has to be. 00:34:52.879 --> 00:34:54.419 Even indifference 00:34:54.420 --> 00:34:56.180 to that word spoken 00:34:56.180 --> 00:34:57.380 or that word read 00:34:57.380 --> 00:34:58.400 or that conviction 00:34:58.400 --> 00:34:59.119 of the Holy Spirit. 00:34:59.519 --> 00:35:00.940 Indifference is itself 00:35:00.940 --> 00:35:02.900 a response that conveys 00:35:02.900 --> 00:35:04.300 that the message of God 00:35:04.300 --> 00:35:05.340 is unimportant to you. 00:35:06.700 --> 00:35:08.960 So after examining God's word, 00:35:09.480 --> 00:35:11.159 you must now evaluate 00:35:11.159 --> 00:35:12.720 your response 00:35:12.720 --> 00:35:14.059 to that word. 00:35:15.180 --> 00:35:16.519 And Israel's response 00:35:16.519 --> 00:35:17.260 in this text 00:35:17.260 --> 00:35:18.220 is both positive 00:35:18.220 --> 00:35:19.300 and negative. 00:35:20.180 --> 00:35:21.220 On the one hand, 00:35:21.700 --> 00:35:22.579 they demonstrated 00:35:22.579 --> 00:35:24.019 genuine sorrow 00:35:24.019 --> 00:35:25.739 over their circumstances 00:35:25.739 --> 00:35:27.519 even reflected 00:35:27.519 --> 00:35:28.179 that sorrow 00:35:28.179 --> 00:35:29.219 in corporate worship. 00:35:29.219 --> 00:35:30.139 They wept. 00:35:30.579 --> 00:35:32.159 And they wept bitterly 00:35:32.159 --> 00:35:33.199 so much so 00:35:33.199 --> 00:35:34.059 that some people 00:35:34.059 --> 00:35:35.320 began to call Bethel 00:35:35.320 --> 00:35:36.380 Baquem, 00:35:36.460 --> 00:35:37.559 the word for weeping 00:35:37.559 --> 00:35:39.219 as a result of this event. 00:35:40.599 --> 00:35:41.880 That's a good thing. 00:35:42.440 --> 00:35:43.480 It's a good thing 00:35:43.480 --> 00:35:44.420 to weep over sin. 00:35:46.280 --> 00:35:48.000 Says Dale Ralph Davis, 00:35:48.000 --> 00:35:50.099 it's usually a good sign 00:35:50.099 --> 00:35:50.860 when God's people 00:35:50.860 --> 00:35:51.780 can still weep, 00:35:52.119 --> 00:35:53.260 when we can be moved 00:35:53.260 --> 00:35:53.920 to tears. 00:35:54.880 --> 00:35:56.099 Would that it would happen 00:35:56.099 --> 00:35:56.719 more often. 00:35:57.960 --> 00:35:58.639 But we are either 00:35:58.639 --> 00:35:59.460 too sophisticated, 00:36:00.159 --> 00:36:01.280 too refined, 00:36:01.760 --> 00:36:02.440 too hard-hearted, 00:36:02.539 --> 00:36:03.300 or what's worse, 00:36:03.739 --> 00:36:04.559 all of these, 00:36:05.139 --> 00:36:06.500 to cry over our sins. 00:36:08.139 --> 00:36:09.820 But while Israel mourned 00:36:09.820 --> 00:36:10.760 their circumstances, 00:36:12.039 --> 00:36:12.719 their grief 00:36:12.719 --> 00:36:14.460 never seems to 00:36:14.460 --> 00:36:15.519 make its way 00:36:15.519 --> 00:36:16.119 all the way 00:36:16.119 --> 00:36:17.480 to repentance. 00:36:18.079 --> 00:36:18.980 They wept. 00:36:19.940 --> 00:36:20.900 They went through 00:36:20.900 --> 00:36:21.460 the motions 00:36:21.460 --> 00:36:22.500 of corporate worship. 00:36:22.920 --> 00:36:23.920 They sacrificed 00:36:23.920 --> 00:36:24.679 there to the Lord. 00:36:25.480 --> 00:36:26.759 But as we read 00:36:26.759 --> 00:36:27.420 in the rest 00:36:27.420 --> 00:36:28.159 of this chapter, 00:36:28.639 --> 00:36:29.860 they did not turn away 00:36:29.860 --> 00:36:30.500 from their sin. 00:36:30.980 --> 00:36:32.360 They actually continued 00:36:32.360 --> 00:36:33.800 deeper and deeper 00:36:33.800 --> 00:36:34.960 and deeper 00:36:34.960 --> 00:36:36.119 in it. 00:36:37.219 --> 00:36:38.380 Says Matthew Henry, 00:36:39.099 --> 00:36:39.880 they wept, 00:36:40.380 --> 00:36:41.659 but we do not find 00:36:41.659 --> 00:36:42.759 that they reformed, 00:36:42.760 --> 00:36:44.900 that they went home 00:36:44.900 --> 00:36:45.580 and destroyed 00:36:45.580 --> 00:36:46.540 all the remains 00:36:46.540 --> 00:36:47.460 of idolatry 00:36:47.460 --> 00:36:48.640 and idolaters 00:36:48.640 --> 00:36:49.300 among them. 00:36:50.540 --> 00:36:51.720 Many are melted 00:36:51.720 --> 00:36:52.760 under the word, 00:36:52.860 --> 00:36:53.500 he says, 00:36:54.040 --> 00:36:55.580 that harden again 00:36:55.580 --> 00:36:56.880 before they're cast 00:36:56.880 --> 00:36:58.440 into a new mold. 00:36:59.200 --> 00:37:00.460 That's the difference here. 00:37:00.720 --> 00:37:02.080 They weep over their sin, 00:37:02.220 --> 00:37:03.460 but they never turn away 00:37:03.460 --> 00:37:04.120 from their sin. 00:37:04.640 --> 00:37:05.720 Still fall short 00:37:05.720 --> 00:37:06.260 of repentance. 00:37:07.700 --> 00:37:08.720 Martin Lloyd-Jones 00:37:08.720 --> 00:37:09.280 once said, 00:37:09.280 --> 00:37:11.640 you can very easily 00:37:11.640 --> 00:37:13.040 make a Welshman cry, 00:37:13.340 --> 00:37:15.000 but it takes an earthquake 00:37:15.000 --> 00:37:15.700 to make him 00:37:15.700 --> 00:37:16.540 change his mind. 00:37:18.300 --> 00:37:18.960 How many of you 00:37:18.960 --> 00:37:19.420 feel that way 00:37:19.420 --> 00:37:20.019 about your husbands? 00:37:24.340 --> 00:37:25.340 It's good to be brought 00:37:25.340 --> 00:37:26.460 to tears over your sin, 00:37:27.000 --> 00:37:29.480 but it only matters 00:37:29.480 --> 00:37:30.740 if it leads to repentance. 00:37:32.340 --> 00:37:34.140 The only proper response 00:37:34.140 --> 00:37:35.100 to God's word 00:37:35.100 --> 00:37:37.160 is to turn away 00:37:37.159 --> 00:37:38.739 from whatever it is 00:37:38.739 --> 00:37:40.339 that you're guilty of 00:37:40.339 --> 00:37:42.599 and turn instead 00:37:42.599 --> 00:37:43.239 to him. 00:37:44.299 --> 00:37:45.179 Turn in faith. 00:37:46.059 --> 00:37:46.759 Turn in love. 00:37:47.659 --> 00:37:48.399 Turn in obedience. 00:37:49.420 --> 00:37:50.359 This is the only 00:37:50.359 --> 00:37:51.699 truly Christian response. 00:37:52.099 --> 00:37:53.159 You can cry your eyes out 00:37:53.159 --> 00:37:53.859 and it won't matter 00:37:53.859 --> 00:37:54.659 if you don't turn. 00:37:55.899 --> 00:37:57.099 You can never miss 00:37:57.099 --> 00:37:57.759 another service 00:37:57.759 --> 00:37:58.579 in your life 00:37:58.579 --> 00:37:59.779 and it won't matter 00:37:59.779 --> 00:38:01.679 if you don't turn. 00:38:02.719 --> 00:38:04.179 That was Israel's problem. 00:38:04.819 --> 00:38:05.759 They wouldn't turn. 00:38:06.299 --> 00:38:07.079 They wouldn't repent. 00:38:07.159 --> 00:38:09.879 We need to remember 00:38:09.879 --> 00:38:10.779 Joel chapter 2. 00:38:10.879 --> 00:38:11.379 I think I have this 00:38:11.379 --> 00:38:12.279 on the screen for you. 00:38:13.119 --> 00:38:13.559 God says, 00:38:13.699 --> 00:38:14.339 Yet even now, 00:38:14.420 --> 00:38:15.279 declares the Lord, 00:38:16.239 --> 00:38:17.299 return to me 00:38:17.299 --> 00:38:18.379 with all your heart, 00:38:18.819 --> 00:38:19.879 with fasting 00:38:19.879 --> 00:38:20.719 and with weeping 00:38:20.719 --> 00:38:21.440 and with mourning. 00:38:22.619 --> 00:38:23.759 Rend your hearts, 00:38:24.559 --> 00:38:25.619 not your garments, 00:38:25.779 --> 00:38:26.519 which was a sign 00:38:26.519 --> 00:38:26.940 of mourning 00:38:26.940 --> 00:38:27.639 in their culture. 00:38:28.719 --> 00:38:29.719 Return to the Lord 00:38:29.719 --> 00:38:30.219 your God, 00:38:30.339 --> 00:38:31.460 for he is gracious 00:38:31.460 --> 00:38:32.739 and merciful, 00:38:33.420 --> 00:38:34.440 slow to anger 00:38:34.440 --> 00:38:35.619 and abounding 00:38:35.619 --> 00:38:37.039 in steadfast love. 00:38:37.159 --> 00:38:38.559 And he relents 00:38:38.559 --> 00:38:39.619 over disaster. 00:38:40.739 --> 00:38:41.619 You see, 00:38:41.659 --> 00:38:42.500 God isn't interested 00:38:42.500 --> 00:38:44.699 in mere displays 00:38:44.699 --> 00:38:45.359 of grief 00:38:45.359 --> 00:38:46.679 over our sin. 00:38:47.099 --> 00:38:48.159 That's why Joel says, 00:38:48.319 --> 00:38:49.440 rend not your garments. 00:38:50.440 --> 00:38:51.859 What he desires 00:38:51.859 --> 00:38:53.719 is that in response 00:38:53.719 --> 00:38:55.259 to his faithfulness, 00:38:55.799 --> 00:38:56.719 in response 00:38:56.719 --> 00:38:58.219 to his gospel 00:38:58.219 --> 00:38:59.899 through his son, 00:39:00.519 --> 00:39:02.399 we then turn away 00:39:02.399 --> 00:39:03.059 from sin 00:39:03.059 --> 00:39:04.299 and love him. 00:39:04.300 --> 00:39:06.100 that's why he says, 00:39:06.620 --> 00:39:08.200 rend your hearts. 00:39:09.500 --> 00:39:11.140 And the promise is 00:39:11.140 --> 00:39:12.640 that in turning, 00:39:13.200 --> 00:39:15.360 we will always find him 00:39:15.360 --> 00:39:16.080 to be gracious 00:39:16.080 --> 00:39:17.480 and merciful, 00:39:18.440 --> 00:39:19.519 slow to anger 00:39:19.519 --> 00:39:21.120 and abounding 00:39:21.120 --> 00:39:22.160 in steadfast love. 00:39:23.220 --> 00:39:24.019 Let's bring it 00:39:24.019 --> 00:39:24.480 to a close. 00:39:24.480 --> 00:39:27.400 since we've just heard 00:39:27.400 --> 00:39:28.199 from God's word, 00:39:28.760 --> 00:39:30.599 that makes today 00:39:30.599 --> 00:39:31.559 another judgment day. 00:39:32.360 --> 00:39:33.579 It's another judgment day. 00:39:34.179 --> 00:39:34.800 We've heard 00:39:34.800 --> 00:39:35.679 the divine message. 00:39:36.679 --> 00:39:37.880 Now we must consider 00:39:37.880 --> 00:39:38.900 the human response. 00:39:41.460 --> 00:39:42.159 Perhaps there's 00:39:42.159 --> 00:39:42.599 some areas 00:39:42.599 --> 00:39:43.240 of your life 00:39:43.240 --> 00:39:44.760 that seem successful, 00:39:45.760 --> 00:39:46.679 though you know 00:39:46.679 --> 00:39:47.420 you haven't been 00:39:47.420 --> 00:39:48.199 totally faithful. 00:39:50.440 --> 00:39:50.920 Remember, 00:39:51.039 --> 00:39:51.920 you can't escape 00:39:51.920 --> 00:39:52.820 the consequences 00:39:52.820 --> 00:39:53.460 of your sin 00:39:53.460 --> 00:39:54.300 any more than 00:39:54.300 --> 00:39:55.880 Israel could escape 00:39:55.880 --> 00:39:56.580 the consequences 00:39:56.580 --> 00:39:57.360 of their sin. 00:39:57.940 --> 00:39:58.360 In fact, 00:39:58.539 --> 00:39:59.320 you may already 00:39:59.320 --> 00:39:59.900 be dealing 00:39:59.900 --> 00:40:00.580 with some of those 00:40:00.580 --> 00:40:01.120 consequences 00:40:01.120 --> 00:40:02.440 even now. 00:40:03.440 --> 00:40:04.600 What you need to do 00:40:04.600 --> 00:40:05.960 is fix your eyes 00:40:05.960 --> 00:40:06.660 afresh 00:40:06.660 --> 00:40:07.860 on the faithfulness 00:40:07.860 --> 00:40:08.420 of God. 00:40:08.940 --> 00:40:09.960 Look to the cross. 00:40:10.519 --> 00:40:11.280 Look to the love 00:40:11.280 --> 00:40:11.840 of Christ. 00:40:12.280 --> 00:40:13.220 Consider his love. 00:40:13.380 --> 00:40:14.320 Consider his mercy. 00:40:14.700 --> 00:40:15.740 Consider his grace. 00:40:16.140 --> 00:40:17.840 And let that provoke you 00:40:17.840 --> 00:40:18.900 to obedience 00:40:18.900 --> 00:40:19.980 and love 00:40:19.980 --> 00:40:21.880 and faithfulness. 00:40:22.820 --> 00:40:23.980 Any other response 00:40:23.980 --> 00:40:24.660 than that 00:40:24.660 --> 00:40:25.840 is just going to 00:40:25.840 --> 00:40:26.600 take you deeper 00:40:26.600 --> 00:40:27.700 into your sin, 00:40:27.840 --> 00:40:28.559 which means it's 00:40:28.559 --> 00:40:29.120 going to take you 00:40:29.120 --> 00:40:30.160 deeper into the 00:40:30.160 --> 00:40:30.940 consequences 00:40:30.940 --> 00:40:32.680 of your sin. 00:40:33.720 --> 00:40:34.580 But I want to 00:40:34.580 --> 00:40:35.559 address as well 00:40:35.559 --> 00:40:36.800 and challenge 00:40:36.800 --> 00:40:37.600 those of you 00:40:37.600 --> 00:40:38.760 who still 00:40:38.760 --> 00:40:40.480 maybe seem to think 00:40:40.480 --> 00:40:41.559 that God will only 00:40:41.559 --> 00:40:42.220 be faithful 00:40:42.220 --> 00:40:43.160 in salvation 00:40:43.160 --> 00:40:44.800 once you've got 00:40:44.800 --> 00:40:45.720 your life together 00:40:45.720 --> 00:40:47.059 and you've got it 00:40:47.059 --> 00:40:47.780 all sorted out 00:40:47.780 --> 00:40:48.280 and you've got it 00:40:48.280 --> 00:40:48.780 figured out 00:40:48.780 --> 00:40:49.559 so that you might 00:40:49.559 --> 00:40:50.539 present yourself 00:40:50.539 --> 00:40:52.640 acceptable to him. 00:40:52.820 --> 00:40:54.019 Too many people 00:40:54.019 --> 00:40:54.700 think this way 00:40:54.700 --> 00:40:55.700 and if you think 00:40:55.700 --> 00:40:56.100 that way 00:40:56.100 --> 00:40:56.840 you've completely 00:40:56.840 --> 00:40:57.640 missed the gospel. 00:40:58.360 --> 00:40:59.059 You've completely 00:40:59.059 --> 00:40:59.920 missed the point. 00:41:01.519 --> 00:41:02.780 The good news 00:41:02.780 --> 00:41:04.300 is that God 00:41:04.300 --> 00:41:05.240 has demonstrated 00:41:05.240 --> 00:41:06.019 his perfect 00:41:06.019 --> 00:41:06.780 faithfulness 00:41:06.780 --> 00:41:08.280 in the death 00:41:08.280 --> 00:41:09.360 and resurrection 00:41:09.360 --> 00:41:10.260 of Jesus. 00:41:10.820 --> 00:41:12.120 That's the good news. 00:41:13.160 --> 00:41:14.059 You don't need 00:41:14.059 --> 00:41:14.740 to make yourself 00:41:14.740 --> 00:41:15.220 acceptable. 00:41:15.700 --> 00:41:16.600 You couldn't do it 00:41:16.600 --> 00:41:17.120 if you tried. 00:41:17.119 --> 00:41:19.659 You'll never be 00:41:19.659 --> 00:41:20.480 able to meet 00:41:20.480 --> 00:41:21.279 God's perfect 00:41:21.279 --> 00:41:21.759 standard. 00:41:22.079 --> 00:41:22.839 You're already 00:41:22.839 --> 00:41:23.420 a sinner. 00:41:24.460 --> 00:41:25.519 But the good news 00:41:25.519 --> 00:41:26.559 is you don't 00:41:26.559 --> 00:41:27.159 have to. 00:41:28.739 --> 00:41:29.659 All you need 00:41:29.659 --> 00:41:29.960 to do 00:41:29.960 --> 00:41:31.259 is recognize 00:41:31.259 --> 00:41:32.380 the faithfulness 00:41:32.380 --> 00:41:33.219 of God. 00:41:34.219 --> 00:41:35.139 Turn from sin 00:41:35.139 --> 00:41:36.940 and receive 00:41:36.940 --> 00:41:38.000 Christ by faith. 00:41:39.279 --> 00:41:40.179 Don't trust 00:41:40.179 --> 00:41:40.839 in what you can 00:41:40.839 --> 00:41:41.159 do. 00:41:42.039 --> 00:41:42.279 Believe 00:41:42.279 --> 00:41:43.139 on what he 00:41:43.139 --> 00:41:43.739 has already 00:41:43.739 --> 00:41:44.779 done. 00:41:44.780 --> 00:41:46.440 And just 00:41:46.440 --> 00:41:46.840 like the 00:41:46.840 --> 00:41:47.400 prophet Joel 00:41:47.400 --> 00:41:47.800 said, 00:41:48.080 --> 00:41:48.500 you will 00:41:48.500 --> 00:41:49.100 find him 00:41:49.100 --> 00:41:49.960 exclusively 00:41:49.960 --> 00:41:50.900 to be 00:41:50.900 --> 00:41:51.420 gracious 00:41:51.420 --> 00:41:52.660 and merciful, 00:41:53.540 --> 00:41:54.019 slow to 00:41:54.019 --> 00:41:54.420 anger, 00:41:55.300 --> 00:41:56.400 beyond your 00:41:56.400 --> 00:41:57.180 wildest dreams. 00:41:59.000 --> 00:41:59.800 And you 00:41:59.800 --> 00:42:00.360 better believe 00:42:00.360 --> 00:42:00.860 on Jesus 00:42:00.860 --> 00:42:01.519 before that 00:42:01.519 --> 00:42:02.300 final judgment 00:42:02.300 --> 00:42:02.620 day. 00:42:03.160 --> 00:42:04.060 Because we're 00:42:04.060 --> 00:42:04.600 all moving 00:42:04.600 --> 00:42:05.260 to that end 00:42:05.260 --> 00:42:06.600 and we'll 00:42:06.600 --> 00:42:07.000 all be 00:42:07.000 --> 00:42:07.420 accountable 00:42:07.420 --> 00:42:08.480 to him 00:42:08.480 --> 00:42:09.060 in that 00:42:09.060 --> 00:42:09.360 moment.