WEBVTT 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:05.820 Good morning, church. As Tom mentioned, there is overflow downstairs, so if you get a little hot 00:00:05.820 --> 00:00:10.500 during the midst of the sermon, feel free, if you go down these stairs, right down the hallway, 00:00:10.679 --> 00:00:15.860 there's an overflow with a screen and we're streaming, so I won't be offended if you get up 00:00:15.860 --> 00:00:20.059 in the middle of my sermon and head for the exit, as long as you're heading downstairs to cool off. 00:00:20.600 --> 00:00:28.600 Good. Well, our sermon text today is 1 John chapter 2, verses 12 through 17. 1 John chapter 2, 00:00:28.600 --> 00:00:36.120 verses 12 through 17. That's page 959 in the Pew Bible, and let me encourage you to turn there 00:00:36.120 --> 00:00:41.300 so that you can follow along as we work through this passage together today. 00:00:42.280 --> 00:00:46.060 And as we turn there, let me pray for us as we come to God's Word. 00:00:46.060 --> 00:01:02.380 Father, we are grateful for your great hold upon us, that we find that as we cling to Christ, 00:01:02.579 --> 00:01:09.439 it is actually you holding fast to us. We are grateful for your faithfulness, God, and for your 00:01:09.439 --> 00:01:16.379 love for us. And we ask that as we come to your Word today, we would continue to see your faithfulness 00:01:16.379 --> 00:01:22.340 and your love as you show us through your Word more and more what it means to be known and loved by you 00:01:22.340 --> 00:01:29.299 and what it means to be your people in the midst of the world, to be the people of Christ, following Him. 00:01:29.299 --> 00:01:34.179 We ask that you would do this through your Spirit. Amen. 00:01:35.739 --> 00:01:40.159 All right, let me read for us 1 John chapter 2, verses 12 through 17. 00:01:41.459 --> 00:01:43.019 The Apostle John writes this. He says, 00:01:43.019 --> 00:01:56.840 I write to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. 00:01:58.119 --> 00:02:00.659 I write to you, children, because you know the Father. 00:02:01.399 --> 00:02:04.739 I write to you, fathers, because you know Him who is from the beginning. 00:02:05.500 --> 00:02:08.280 I write to you, young men, because you are strong, 00:02:08.699 --> 00:02:12.840 and the Word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one. 00:02:13.020 --> 00:02:20.780 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father 00:02:20.780 --> 00:02:28.120 is not in him. For all that is in the world, the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes 00:02:28.120 --> 00:02:36.660 and pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world is passing away 00:02:36.659 --> 00:02:44.120 along with its desires. But whoever does the will of God abides forever. 00:02:47.060 --> 00:02:52.400 In John Bunyan's allegory, The Pilgrim's Progress, there's a memorable scene where Christian 00:02:52.400 --> 00:02:56.840 and his companion, Faithful, in the midst of their pilgrimage to the heavenly city, 00:02:57.000 --> 00:03:05.079 come upon a town, a town called Vanity. And every day of the year, this city, this town, 00:03:05.080 --> 00:03:13.200 holds a festival, a fair called Vanity Fair, where the booths and the stalls are filled with 00:03:13.200 --> 00:03:21.380 every manner of earthly wealth and pleasure and power and applause. And for Christian and faithful, 00:03:21.600 --> 00:03:28.280 and for every pilgrim to the heavenly city, their road runs straight through it. There's no way around 00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:36.000 Vanity Fair. Vanity Fair, of course, is Bunyan's allegory for what the Apostle John calls here 00:03:36.000 --> 00:03:45.819 the world. That is, human society arranged without any reference to God. And the Apostle John here is 00:03:45.819 --> 00:03:52.560 giving us his counsel on how we should approach our pilgrimage as the church in the midst of the world. 00:03:52.560 --> 00:04:01.520 And we need this counsel because the world is attractive, isn't it? It promises satisfaction 00:04:01.520 --> 00:04:07.120 and joy, significance and power. The world promises that it can fulfill the deep longings of our hearts. 00:04:07.340 --> 00:04:11.960 And oftentimes, we look at those who are living according to the world or living for the things 00:04:11.960 --> 00:04:16.620 of the world, and it seems like they are happy and content. It seems like the world's promises 00:04:16.620 --> 00:04:25.439 might just be true. And so, we are tempted to peruse the stalls and maybe buy the wares or even set up 00:04:25.439 --> 00:04:35.720 our own shop in Vanity Fair. But how do we break the spell? How can we live as Christians in the world 00:04:35.720 --> 00:04:40.660 but not of the world? After all, as Bunyan's allegory points out, and more importantly, as the New Testament 00:04:40.660 --> 00:04:47.160 teaches again and again, we cannot escape the world. The path of the Christian is not in retreat or removal 00:04:47.160 --> 00:04:53.780 from the world. No, the path always leads straight through it. After all, how else could we be salt and 00:04:53.780 --> 00:05:00.940 light in the world unless we remain in it? But at the same time, how do we not simply conform and 00:05:00.940 --> 00:05:08.300 compromise to the world? How can we traverse our pilgrimage being in the world but not of the world 00:05:08.300 --> 00:05:17.180 so that we might actually do good for those in the world? Well, John has two main things to say to us 00:05:17.180 --> 00:05:23.980 this morning along these lines. The first is this. In the midst of the world, he says, remember who you 00:05:23.980 --> 00:05:31.699 are. Christian, remember who you are. We see this in verses 12 through 14 of our passage. John's point in 00:05:31.699 --> 00:05:37.900 these verses, these first three verses, is to affirm and encourage his readers by reminding them of all the 00:05:37.899 --> 00:05:42.579 gospel realities that they enjoy in Christ. The false teachers in John's day wanted the church to 00:05:42.579 --> 00:05:51.819 believe or to forget all that they truly had in Christ, who they truly were in Him. The world, too, 00:05:51.939 --> 00:05:59.319 causes us to forget who we are, to experience spiritual amnesia, to undergo an identity crisis of the heart. 00:06:00.779 --> 00:06:07.039 Just think about nearly every advertisement you've ever seen, right? What's the point? The point is to 00:06:07.040 --> 00:06:14.180 convince you that your life will somehow be poorer, sadder, and less fulfilling unless you have this thing, 00:06:14.300 --> 00:06:22.939 right? I mean, really, who are you if you don't have an iPhone or a great new pair of Nikes or a bigger 00:06:22.939 --> 00:06:29.800 house or a nicer car? Surely your life will be sadder, poorer, and less fulfilling without these things. 00:06:29.800 --> 00:06:38.980 And we get swept up into an alternate story. We get swept up into a story where my identity 00:06:38.980 --> 00:06:45.400 is finally completed by being a consumer of a particular product. 00:06:46.879 --> 00:06:52.860 And getting swept up in that story, we suddenly forget what's already true of ourselves, what's 00:06:52.860 --> 00:07:01.280 really true of us in Christ. And so we need to be reminded. We need to be re-storied in what the 00:07:01.280 --> 00:07:06.120 gospel says is really real about who we are and where real life is actually found. 00:07:08.460 --> 00:07:12.500 John does this by repeating himself twice to the same three groups of Christians 00:07:12.500 --> 00:07:19.500 in verses 12, 13, 14. Of course, it's not hard to figure out why John repeats himself. You know, 00:07:19.500 --> 00:07:24.240 remember, ancient letters like this one would have been read aloud to the recipients, so John was 00:07:24.240 --> 00:07:29.000 probably repeating himself for emphasis. He wanted them to hear it and then hear it again. 00:07:29.939 --> 00:07:35.800 He was repeating himself for emphasis, like I just did, right? It's not that hard to figure out. 00:07:36.959 --> 00:07:41.759 But what's a little less clear is the significance of these three groups, little children, fathers, 00:07:41.959 --> 00:07:48.939 young men. Did John have in mind maybe three stages of spiritual maturity? Brand new believers, 00:07:48.939 --> 00:07:54.719 little children, mature believers, fathers and mothers, and those somewhere in the middle, 00:07:54.899 --> 00:08:02.839 young men and women? Or perhaps little children is a reference to everyone in the church. After all, 00:08:02.879 --> 00:08:07.100 throughout this letter, John calls his readers, all of them, my little children again and again. 00:08:08.300 --> 00:08:14.100 If so, then maybe John only had two distinct groups in mind, older Christians, fathers and mothers, 00:08:14.100 --> 00:08:20.980 younger Christians, young men and women. And all of them, for John, were his little children, 00:08:21.100 --> 00:08:28.280 his beloved. Either way, I think the effect of the whole passage is the same. John wants to include 00:08:28.280 --> 00:08:33.420 everyone in the church in what he's saying. Whether you're young or old, whether you're new in the faith, 00:08:33.740 --> 00:08:38.940 or whether you've been following Jesus for many years, this affirmation, this reminder is for you. 00:08:38.940 --> 00:08:46.500 So don't think that you're too young to qualify, and don't think that you're too old to need it. 00:08:48.200 --> 00:08:53.100 So what does the Apostle John want us to remember? What are the great gospel realities that are true 00:08:53.100 --> 00:09:03.840 of us in Christ? Well, there are three. Peace, wisdom, and power. Peace. Look at what John says to the 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:09.660 little children in verses 12 and 13. In 12, he says, I'm writing to you, little children, because your sins 00:09:09.660 --> 00:09:16.139 are forgiven for his namesake. And then at the end of 13, I write to you, children, because you know the Father. 00:09:17.519 --> 00:09:24.320 Here are two sides of the peace that we have in Christ. On one side, our sins are forgiven. 00:09:25.139 --> 00:09:30.780 Every thought, word, or deed that we've committed that is against God's perfect law, 00:09:30.779 --> 00:09:37.860 every moral failure that keeps us awake at night in guilt or shame, every misstep that makes us not 00:09:37.860 --> 00:09:47.679 want to look at our own reflection in the mirror, it's all been forgiven. All of it. The reign of God's 00:09:47.679 --> 00:09:56.000 mercy has come down upon you. Through the cross, it has all been washed away. You're clean. You're forgiven. 00:09:56.000 --> 00:10:04.159 That's one side of the peace we have in Christ. The other side is this, that we are perfectly accepted. 00:10:05.120 --> 00:10:12.759 We know the Father. He embraces us as his own beloved sons and daughters. In other words, the same favor, 00:10:12.899 --> 00:10:19.500 the same delight that God the Father has for Jesus, his eternal son, he now bestows on you, his adopted 00:10:19.500 --> 00:10:27.139 son, his adopted daughter. You see, this is the wonder of the gospel. God forgives our sins. There's 00:10:27.139 --> 00:10:32.539 no more record against us. But he doesn't just leave us there as if we were in some sort of now spiritual 00:10:32.539 --> 00:10:39.279 neutral state, right? No, God actually then imputes Christ's own righteousness to us, Christ's own 00:10:39.279 --> 00:10:45.460 positive record to us. Now we have a positive standing with God. God doesn't just cancel our debts. 00:10:45.460 --> 00:10:51.860 He fills our account with the supreme wealth of Jesus' own righteousness. And now, in light of all 00:10:51.860 --> 00:11:01.860 that, God regards us not with the neutrality of a judge, but with the active, pursuing love of a Father. 00:11:04.180 --> 00:11:14.700 And that means we have something the world cannot actually offer. Peace. Lasting peace. Peace with God 00:11:14.700 --> 00:11:24.780 that nothing can take away. Like the sea on a calm day, ebbing and flowing beneath the bright summer sky. 00:11:24.780 --> 00:11:34.940 That is our soul in the peace of Christ. Our sins are forgiven, and we know the Father's love. 00:11:34.940 --> 00:11:44.260 God bless you. But there's not just peace. There's wisdom, John says. Look at what John says to the 00:11:44.260 --> 00:11:48.060 fathers and mothers, those who have been following Christ for some time. I'm writing to you, fathers, 00:11:48.160 --> 00:11:54.660 because you know him who is from the beginning. I wonder, do you think becoming a Christian 00:11:54.660 --> 00:12:03.280 is a shallow thing? Do you think that it makes you or makes a person simplistic or two-dimensional? 00:12:03.279 --> 00:12:10.419 Well, friend, think again. Who is it that we've come to know in the gospel of Jesus Christ? 00:12:11.720 --> 00:12:22.059 None other than him who is from the beginning. The world is full of passing fads and trends. 00:12:22.860 --> 00:12:28.179 And the passing fads and trends of the world are not just the ephemeral ones of pop music or fashion. 00:12:28.179 --> 00:12:33.979 Yes, those come and go quicker than a summer rainstorm, right? But even intellectual movements, 00:12:34.379 --> 00:12:43.299 philosophical trends, cultural tides, these come and go. One day, very few people will be excited or 00:12:43.299 --> 00:12:50.979 animated about critical theory or whatever the philosophical fad happens to be. Not that Christians 00:12:50.980 --> 00:12:57.240 shouldn't learn and engage with these trends. We should. But the wisdom that we have goes so much 00:12:57.240 --> 00:13:03.340 deeper, and it will never pass away because the one that we know is from the beginning. 00:13:04.899 --> 00:13:11.279 He ordered the planets and stars. He designed the human mind and heart. He created and sustains the 00:13:11.279 --> 00:13:19.740 human will and desires. Here is the most profound philosophy. Here is the clearest and most illuminating 00:13:19.740 --> 00:13:28.399 science. Knowledge of God, the Holy One, our triune Creator and Redeemer who is from the beginning 00:13:28.399 --> 00:13:36.779 and who will have no end. If you walk with this God, you walk with very wisdom itself. 00:13:38.860 --> 00:13:45.320 But there's not just peace and not just wisdom. There's also power. Consider what John says to the 00:13:45.320 --> 00:13:49.560 young Christians. I'm writing to you, young men, young women, because you have overcome the evil 00:13:49.559 --> 00:13:54.799 one. I write to you because you are strong and the Word of God abides in you, and you have overcome 00:13:54.799 --> 00:14:00.699 the evil one. John is saying a great spiritual battle has been won. When Christ died on the cross, 00:14:00.819 --> 00:14:07.199 everything looked like defeat, did it not? But in that moment, in what looks to the world's eyes like 00:14:07.199 --> 00:14:14.359 utter defeat, utter failure, that moment was actually the moment of God's greatest triumph. The spiritual 00:14:14.360 --> 00:14:20.120 forces of evil that held the world captive, the accuser who brought all of our sins before God, 00:14:20.120 --> 00:14:26.879 asking for our condemnation, in that moment at the cross, all was overcome. The evil one had lost. 00:14:28.419 --> 00:14:31.620 He thought that the death of Christ would mean a failure of God's plan. 00:14:32.720 --> 00:14:38.680 But in dying, Christ put death to death. He swallowed up death in victory, 00:14:38.679 --> 00:14:46.059 and the sting of death. Our sin was once and for all taken into the grave, never more to rise, 00:14:46.679 --> 00:14:53.439 paid in full. And three days later, to prove that victory had been won, that the sacrifice was complete, 00:14:54.000 --> 00:15:00.239 that death could not hold Him, Christ rose from the grave. The new creation began on Easter Sunday, 00:15:00.519 --> 00:15:05.079 and on Pentecost, just a few weeks later, having ascended to the Father, Jesus poured out the Holy 00:15:05.080 --> 00:15:11.440 Spirit on all who believe. So now, united to the risen Christ through the Holy Spirit by faith, 00:15:12.000 --> 00:15:19.960 we too are risen with Him. The evil one, His lies, His accusations, His shame, no longer has a claim 00:15:19.960 --> 00:15:30.580 on those in Christ. In Christ we have indeed overcome. You see, friends, there is very real spiritual 00:15:30.580 --> 00:15:40.360 power in the gospel. Not worldly power. Not worldly power that seeks to dominate others or 00:15:40.360 --> 00:15:45.080 subjugate others or goes to war on behalf of greed and fear. Not that kind of power. 00:15:46.240 --> 00:15:52.080 No, this is a different sort of power, a power that actually brings change from the inside out, 00:15:52.180 --> 00:15:57.879 the power of God for salvation to all who believe, as Paul says in Romans. 00:16:00.580 --> 00:16:06.720 Doesn't the world promise that if you buy this or that product or get on the inside with this or that 00:16:06.720 --> 00:16:13.520 social circle or achieve this or that professional goal, that you'll then finally sort of be different, 00:16:13.600 --> 00:16:18.100 that you'll achieve that change you're looking for, that you'll finally feel like you've arrived? 00:16:18.220 --> 00:16:27.340 Isn't that what the world promises? But friends, listen to nearly every celebrity who's ever made it big 00:16:27.340 --> 00:16:31.399 or every athlete who's ever won the big game, and what do they tell you? 00:16:32.800 --> 00:16:36.340 I achieved success. I made it big. I had the world at my fingertips. 00:16:38.320 --> 00:16:43.780 But I was still the same old me, still struggling with the same old fears and insecurities, 00:16:45.060 --> 00:16:47.860 still hampered by the same old anxieties and addictions. 00:16:47.860 --> 00:16:55.759 Many of us have a desire to change the world, and yet we can barely change ourselves. 00:16:58.180 --> 00:17:04.420 But for those in Christ, there is real spiritual power. 00:17:05.360 --> 00:17:13.460 You have overcome the evil one. God is at work in you, completing the good work He started 00:17:13.460 --> 00:17:19.759 to make you more like Christ. And nothing limits the tools that God can use in your life. 00:17:20.340 --> 00:17:27.180 God can use even hardships, even trials, even losses. Those things are like instruments in His hands. 00:17:28.200 --> 00:17:35.680 And like a perfect surgeon, God can take the sharpest knife and bring healing. 00:17:35.680 --> 00:17:46.220 And you know, when a community embraces not the way of the world's power, but the way of the cross, 00:17:47.299 --> 00:17:50.840 then yes, even cultures can change. 00:17:52.620 --> 00:17:57.960 In the Greco-Roman world of John's day, a world where honor and protecting one's own was the key virtue, 00:17:58.120 --> 00:18:02.500 Christianity spread the radical ethic of humility and loving your enemies. 00:18:02.500 --> 00:18:08.099 When the Roman Empire collapsed, it was Christians who started schools and hospitals, 00:18:08.279 --> 00:18:10.819 who cared for the sick and who educated the poor. 00:18:12.660 --> 00:18:15.519 Christian history, of course, is checkered with sins and failures. 00:18:15.559 --> 00:18:18.200 When the church did not live up to its own message, 00:18:19.059 --> 00:18:22.019 when the church proved that it too needed and will always need 00:18:22.019 --> 00:18:26.180 the radical grace of God's forgiveness and mercy, like everyone. 00:18:27.640 --> 00:18:29.759 But the words of Jesus are still true. 00:18:29.759 --> 00:18:33.099 As we stay close to the Word of God, 00:18:33.680 --> 00:18:37.240 as we stay close to the message of the Gospel of Christ incarnate, 00:18:37.339 --> 00:18:38.940 crucified, risen, and coming again, 00:18:38.980 --> 00:18:41.619 as we walk in utter dependence on Him and His grace, 00:18:41.700 --> 00:18:45.779 yes, as we walk in what looks like to the world the weakness of faith, 00:18:47.339 --> 00:18:48.640 then we will be strong. 00:18:49.700 --> 00:18:51.779 Then we will be salt and light. 00:18:51.779 --> 00:18:59.319 And perhaps, perhaps at the end of the day, cultures won't change. 00:19:01.059 --> 00:19:02.920 Perhaps outwardly we will waste away. 00:19:04.420 --> 00:19:08.579 After all, there are no promises of earthly triumph or health or wealth or influence 00:19:08.579 --> 00:19:11.059 to the Christian or to the church in this age. 00:19:13.039 --> 00:19:15.259 But as the Apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians, 00:19:15.259 --> 00:19:18.000 even so, we do not lose heart. 00:19:19.180 --> 00:19:20.980 Though our outer self is wasting away, 00:19:21.039 --> 00:19:23.539 our inner self is being renewed day by day. 00:19:24.319 --> 00:19:26.960 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us 00:19:26.960 --> 00:19:29.980 an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 00:19:30.599 --> 00:19:32.779 as we look not to the things that are seen, 00:19:33.059 --> 00:19:34.839 but to the things that are unseen. 00:19:35.539 --> 00:19:37.539 For the things that are seen are transient, 00:19:38.539 --> 00:19:41.160 but the things that are unseen are eternal. 00:19:41.160 --> 00:19:45.700 So as we walk this pilgrimage through the world, 00:19:45.940 --> 00:19:48.700 John 1 wants us to remember who we are, 00:19:49.400 --> 00:19:51.080 to remember what's ours in Christ, 00:19:51.200 --> 00:19:54.180 to remember all the realities that are ours in the gospel, 00:19:54.340 --> 00:19:56.620 peace and wisdom and true power, 00:19:57.440 --> 00:19:58.900 the forgiveness of our sins, 00:19:59.540 --> 00:20:01.320 the knowledge of Him who's from the beginning, 00:20:02.220 --> 00:20:03.720 the overcoming of the evil one. 00:20:05.820 --> 00:20:06.880 Now, before we move on, 00:20:06.940 --> 00:20:08.600 let me mention just two brief applications. 00:20:08.599 --> 00:20:11.819 First, I think we should all strive 00:20:11.819 --> 00:20:13.559 to follow John's example here. 00:20:14.459 --> 00:20:16.359 That is, we should seek to remind each other, 00:20:16.439 --> 00:20:18.859 to encourage one another with these same realities. 00:20:19.740 --> 00:20:22.500 As we consider our homes, our spouses, our children, 00:20:22.639 --> 00:20:23.339 our Christian roommates, 00:20:23.579 --> 00:20:26.339 as we consider our small group and our Christian friends, 00:20:26.459 --> 00:20:28.519 as we even consider our Christian co-workers, 00:20:28.599 --> 00:20:29.419 as we get the chance, 00:20:29.459 --> 00:20:32.079 we should pray that God would allow us 00:20:32.079 --> 00:20:34.619 and empower us to remind each other 00:20:34.619 --> 00:20:36.539 of all that we enjoy in Christ. 00:20:36.539 --> 00:20:40.200 We have to confess that it is easier sometimes 00:20:40.200 --> 00:20:41.059 to talk about the weather 00:20:41.059 --> 00:20:42.659 or the latest sports game 00:20:42.659 --> 00:20:44.599 or the latest series streaming on Netflix 00:20:44.599 --> 00:20:46.920 than it is to talk about the things of the gospel. 00:20:48.460 --> 00:20:50.159 And while there's nothing necessarily wrong 00:20:50.159 --> 00:20:52.220 with those things or with casual conversation, 00:20:52.480 --> 00:20:55.180 let's pray that God would also deepen our conversation 00:20:55.180 --> 00:20:59.100 and give us grace to speak life-giving words 00:20:59.100 --> 00:21:01.299 rich with this kind of encouragement. 00:21:04.019 --> 00:21:05.820 A simple way to begin 00:21:05.820 --> 00:21:08.560 might be by just asking a simple question 00:21:08.560 --> 00:21:09.640 when you're in conversation. 00:21:10.820 --> 00:21:12.820 How has God been encouraging you lately? 00:21:14.340 --> 00:21:16.880 Where have you seen God at work in your life these days? 00:21:18.240 --> 00:21:20.500 What's new or fresh in your walk with God? 00:21:20.500 --> 00:21:24.720 And then you can begin to talk about the things of God 00:21:24.720 --> 00:21:26.380 and encourage each other. 00:21:29.039 --> 00:21:30.680 Second application, if these things are true, 00:21:30.799 --> 00:21:33.200 if in Christ we have peace and wisdom and power, 00:21:33.319 --> 00:21:35.579 then we should also be a people of joy. 00:21:37.059 --> 00:21:38.680 Of course, there will be seasons of grief 00:21:38.680 --> 00:21:40.299 for every Christian in this fallen world. 00:21:41.019 --> 00:21:42.259 Sin and death are still at work 00:21:42.259 --> 00:21:43.519 and they still break our hearts. 00:21:43.599 --> 00:21:46.259 But though we may at times be brokenhearted, 00:21:46.259 --> 00:21:51.079 we will not and we cannot lose the deeper well of joy 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:52.900 that we have in Christ. 00:21:53.379 --> 00:21:56.420 And what is it that feeds those deeper wells of joy? 00:21:57.220 --> 00:21:59.220 Is it not what John is reminding us of here? 00:21:59.460 --> 00:22:01.420 The peace of knowing God as Father. 00:22:02.019 --> 00:22:04.099 The depth of knowing Him who is from the beginning. 00:22:04.220 --> 00:22:07.180 The strength of knowing Him who overcame the evil one. 00:22:08.180 --> 00:22:09.420 And who one day will put an end 00:22:09.420 --> 00:22:11.339 to all sickness and death and sorrow. 00:22:11.339 --> 00:22:16.459 And with this joy that springs forth from these truths, 00:22:17.659 --> 00:22:20.980 as a church we can stand in the midst of Vanity Fair. 00:22:21.119 --> 00:22:23.259 We can walk through this world 00:22:23.259 --> 00:22:26.199 and with that joy springing up from underneath, 00:22:26.539 --> 00:22:28.500 we can walk through Vanity Fair 00:22:28.500 --> 00:22:31.679 and not be tempted to turn aside 00:22:31.679 --> 00:22:34.339 and to buy that which cannot satisfy. 00:22:34.339 --> 00:22:40.000 Because we have a joy that nothing in this world can give 00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:42.839 and that nothing in this world can take away. 00:22:44.779 --> 00:22:46.619 So Christians, remember who you are. 00:22:47.159 --> 00:22:48.779 That's John's first counsel to us. 00:22:50.099 --> 00:22:52.559 His second is this in verses 15 through 17. 00:22:53.279 --> 00:22:54.679 As you travel through this world, 00:22:54.819 --> 00:22:57.599 John says, guard your heart. 00:22:58.359 --> 00:23:01.859 Or more bluntly, don't love the world. 00:23:01.859 --> 00:23:06.159 If John begins with encouragement in verses 12 through 14, 00:23:06.359 --> 00:23:09.079 he continues with a warning in verses 15 through 17. 00:23:09.479 --> 00:23:11.000 Anyone who loves the world, he says, 00:23:11.139 --> 00:23:13.159 doesn't truly love the Father. 00:23:13.919 --> 00:23:15.699 Or as James will say in his letter, 00:23:16.039 --> 00:23:18.979 friendship with the world is enmity with God. 00:23:20.079 --> 00:23:23.559 Love of the world and love of the Father are incompatible. 00:23:26.079 --> 00:23:28.399 But as John continues with his warning here, 00:23:28.459 --> 00:23:31.759 he gives us what's really an analysis of the world. 00:23:32.199 --> 00:23:36.099 He gives us an analysis that's meant to unmask the world 00:23:36.099 --> 00:23:37.419 for what it really is. 00:23:37.959 --> 00:23:40.139 And why does he do this unmasking? 00:23:40.219 --> 00:23:42.459 He does this unmasking so that we can see it 00:23:42.459 --> 00:23:44.740 for what it really is and so our hearts won't be tempted 00:23:44.740 --> 00:23:47.859 to go after it like we know they so often are. 00:23:50.979 --> 00:23:53.699 In these verses, John unmasks three things. 00:23:53.699 --> 00:23:57.740 He unmasks what the world is and where it's from 00:23:57.740 --> 00:23:59.120 and where it's going. 00:23:59.759 --> 00:24:02.640 He unmasks the world's nature, its origin, and its end. 00:24:04.740 --> 00:24:07.039 John first unmasks the nature of all that's in the world 00:24:07.039 --> 00:24:11.539 in verse 16, where he describes it as the desires of the flesh 00:24:11.539 --> 00:24:14.240 and the desires of the eyes and the pride of life. 00:24:15.180 --> 00:24:18.039 This is how John describes all that's in the world, 00:24:18.140 --> 00:24:19.240 what makes it up. 00:24:19.240 --> 00:24:22.500 Now, this verse is important to help us realize 00:24:22.500 --> 00:24:25.319 what John is referring to here when he talks about the world 00:24:25.319 --> 00:24:26.339 and not loving the world. 00:24:26.799 --> 00:24:29.559 John's not talking about the created order, right? 00:24:29.579 --> 00:24:30.759 The material creation. 00:24:31.900 --> 00:24:33.039 John isn't talking about that. 00:24:33.079 --> 00:24:35.099 He's not talking about forests and mountains and skies 00:24:35.099 --> 00:24:38.220 and stars and bodies and minds and music and poetry. 00:24:38.460 --> 00:24:39.880 The created order is good. 00:24:39.880 --> 00:24:42.140 Very good, God says in Genesis 1. 00:24:43.420 --> 00:24:47.180 Neither is John necessarily talking about the people in the world 00:24:47.180 --> 00:24:49.820 when he says don't love the world. 00:24:49.980 --> 00:24:52.960 After all, in this sense, the people in the world, 00:24:53.400 --> 00:24:55.060 in that sense, God loves the world 00:24:55.060 --> 00:24:58.600 and gave his only son that whoever believes in him 00:24:58.600 --> 00:25:00.440 should not perish but have eternal life. 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:04.620 Jesus came to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins 00:25:04.620 --> 00:25:07.140 and not for ours only, but for the whole world. 00:25:09.880 --> 00:25:13.720 So in what sense does John warn us not to love the world? 00:25:14.980 --> 00:25:16.740 Well, as we said earlier, for John, 00:25:16.820 --> 00:25:21.760 the world means something like human society arranged 00:25:21.760 --> 00:25:23.860 without any reference to God, 00:25:23.980 --> 00:25:26.540 like a power of its own. 00:25:29.120 --> 00:25:32.420 And what is it that makes up the world in this sense? 00:25:34.060 --> 00:25:36.760 Well, first, John says, what makes it up 00:25:36.760 --> 00:25:38.340 are the desires of the flesh. 00:25:38.339 --> 00:25:41.379 Now, flesh here doesn't mean our material bodies. 00:25:41.559 --> 00:25:43.359 It means our inward sinful nature. 00:25:43.599 --> 00:25:46.220 From Adam, we have all inherited a sinful nature. 00:25:46.359 --> 00:25:50.839 And this sinful nature desires to gratify and serve 00:25:50.839 --> 00:25:53.220 not God, not others, but the self. 00:25:53.559 --> 00:25:57.259 We're all just turned in, bent in on ourselves. 00:25:57.439 --> 00:25:59.659 That's the flesh in the New Testament. 00:26:01.039 --> 00:26:04.139 And how do the desires of the flesh express themselves, 00:26:04.240 --> 00:26:05.819 these inwardly bent desires? 00:26:05.819 --> 00:26:08.240 Well, John then pinpoints two things. 00:26:08.339 --> 00:26:10.779 He says, first, the desires of the eyes. 00:26:11.139 --> 00:26:13.659 In other words, what we see is what we want. 00:26:14.299 --> 00:26:17.819 If it looks pleasing, pleasurable, useful, we covet it. 00:26:19.240 --> 00:26:21.419 And this coveting what we see, 00:26:22.299 --> 00:26:24.799 in turn, leads to all sorts of conflicts. 00:26:26.220 --> 00:26:28.559 Again, listen to how the Apostle James describes it. 00:26:28.639 --> 00:26:30.740 He says, what causes quarrels and fights among you? 00:26:30.740 --> 00:26:34.000 Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 00:26:34.319 --> 00:26:36.700 You desire and don't have, so you murder. 00:26:36.839 --> 00:26:39.680 You covet and can't obtain, so you fight and quarrel. 00:26:40.059 --> 00:26:42.059 You don't have because you don't ask. 00:26:42.440 --> 00:26:45.039 You ask and don't receive because you ask wrongly 00:26:45.039 --> 00:26:46.700 to spend it on your passions. 00:26:48.339 --> 00:26:50.400 The desires of the eyes, James says, 00:26:50.440 --> 00:26:53.000 it leads to all sorts of conflict and quarreling. 00:26:53.000 --> 00:26:58.079 Then John, back in our passage, also pinpoints 00:26:58.079 --> 00:26:59.259 not just the desires of the eyes, 00:26:59.339 --> 00:27:00.859 but also the pride of life. 00:27:01.740 --> 00:27:04.380 Now, that word life here is a particular word 00:27:04.380 --> 00:27:06.599 in the New Testament that means something like 00:27:06.599 --> 00:27:09.079 your livelihood or what sustained your life. 00:27:09.119 --> 00:27:11.480 In other words, it's often translated in the New Testament 00:27:11.480 --> 00:27:15.220 as your possessions, your property, what you own. 00:27:15.220 --> 00:27:20.079 So John is saying, it's not just sort of pride 00:27:20.079 --> 00:27:23.740 in being alive, but boasting in what you have. 00:27:26.940 --> 00:27:29.100 So John's saying, this is what makes up the world 00:27:29.100 --> 00:27:30.039 and all that's in it. 00:27:31.180 --> 00:27:35.519 Self-centered desire, wanting what you don't have, 00:27:36.360 --> 00:27:38.200 and boasting in what you do. 00:27:41.100 --> 00:27:42.940 Now, that may seem like a stark description, 00:27:42.940 --> 00:27:46.680 but if human society is arranged 00:27:46.680 --> 00:27:49.720 without any reference to God, what's left? 00:27:52.160 --> 00:27:54.279 Of course, thanks to God's common grace, 00:27:54.420 --> 00:27:57.440 this isn't how we see things absolutely all the time, is it? 00:27:57.700 --> 00:28:00.779 We still see glimmers of kindness and truth and integrity, 00:28:01.259 --> 00:28:04.160 and we should thank God for His common grace. 00:28:06.559 --> 00:28:09.320 But take away God's common grace, and what would be left? 00:28:09.319 --> 00:28:13.460 You know, I don't need to look outside 00:28:13.460 --> 00:28:14.980 to answer that question. 00:28:15.079 --> 00:28:16.559 I can simply look in my own heart. 00:28:18.240 --> 00:28:20.559 Take away God's grace, take away the knowledge of God, 00:28:20.659 --> 00:28:23.980 leave me on my own, and what do I have left? 00:28:25.980 --> 00:28:27.939 Where will I find satisfaction? 00:28:29.779 --> 00:28:31.899 Where will I find significance? 00:28:31.900 --> 00:28:36.180 With the God-shaped hole left in my heart, 00:28:36.320 --> 00:28:37.600 what's left for me? 00:28:39.440 --> 00:28:42.200 What's left but wanting what I don't have, 00:28:43.120 --> 00:28:47.200 and boasting, building my identity on what I do? 00:28:49.800 --> 00:28:52.780 And even if I do a good job covering those things up, 00:28:52.960 --> 00:28:54.700 because I know I'm supposed to be content, 00:28:54.900 --> 00:28:57.340 and I know I'm supposed to not be proud or brag, 00:28:57.339 --> 00:28:59.919 even if I try to cover those things up, 00:29:00.519 --> 00:29:02.519 it's still all that's left. 00:29:05.720 --> 00:29:08.199 So see the world for what it really is, John says. 00:29:09.419 --> 00:29:10.500 Don't love the world. 00:29:11.199 --> 00:29:11.959 It's empty. 00:29:12.879 --> 00:29:16.699 It's nothing but a craving for something that's not there. 00:29:19.500 --> 00:29:21.220 After unmasking the nature of the world, 00:29:21.359 --> 00:29:23.439 John then unmasks the origin of it. 00:29:23.559 --> 00:29:25.000 Notice the end of verse 16. 00:29:25.000 --> 00:29:27.759 All this, he says, is not from the Father, 00:29:28.019 --> 00:29:29.220 but is from the world. 00:29:29.339 --> 00:29:31.279 All that's in the world, as he just defined it, 00:29:31.339 --> 00:29:33.200 doesn't come from the Father. 00:29:33.279 --> 00:29:35.039 It doesn't spring from his will and desire. 00:29:35.380 --> 00:29:36.259 So don't love it. 00:29:37.059 --> 00:29:38.180 If you love the Father, 00:29:38.299 --> 00:29:40.119 don't love something that doesn't come from him. 00:29:40.220 --> 00:29:41.339 Don't give it your allegiance. 00:29:41.579 --> 00:29:43.700 Don't structure your life around it. 00:29:44.619 --> 00:29:46.619 Because all those things, they don't come from God. 00:29:46.700 --> 00:29:47.359 They come where? 00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:49.680 They come from the world, John says. 00:29:51.200 --> 00:29:53.160 Now that kind of seems a bit circular and redundant, 00:29:53.160 --> 00:29:53.720 doesn't it? 00:29:53.720 --> 00:29:55.759 All that's in the world comes from the world. 00:29:55.860 --> 00:29:56.600 Okay, thanks, John. 00:29:56.640 --> 00:29:58.360 That was a very deep analysis, right? 00:30:00.240 --> 00:30:03.600 But I think John isn't actually being circular or simplistic. 00:30:04.839 --> 00:30:07.839 Again, remember, he's unmasking the world for what it is. 00:30:09.140 --> 00:30:11.200 And you see, the world can't help, 00:30:11.440 --> 00:30:16.360 the world can't help but make transcendent claims. 00:30:16.359 --> 00:30:21.859 The world all the time is making transcendent claims. 00:30:22.399 --> 00:30:25.359 Buy this and you'll know real satisfaction. 00:30:26.319 --> 00:30:29.359 Achieve this great feat and you'll be immortal, 00:30:29.579 --> 00:30:30.500 remembered forever. 00:30:31.500 --> 00:30:35.240 Find the right partner to sleep with and you'll be enraptured. 00:30:36.559 --> 00:30:38.059 What is the world promising? 00:30:38.059 --> 00:30:42.440 Satisfaction, immortality, bliss. 00:30:45.440 --> 00:30:46.919 That's what the world promises. 00:30:48.639 --> 00:30:54.079 But can it actually give those transcendent things? 00:30:55.200 --> 00:30:57.039 Immortality, bliss. 00:30:57.039 --> 00:30:59.720 Of course not. 00:31:02.099 --> 00:31:06.619 If I put $3 into a jar, screw the lid on tight and shake it around, 00:31:07.519 --> 00:31:09.599 maybe I just shake it for days and for weeks, 00:31:09.659 --> 00:31:11.279 you know what I'm going to pull out of that jar? 00:31:13.180 --> 00:31:13.619 $3. 00:31:15.299 --> 00:31:18.000 It's never going to become anything more. 00:31:18.000 --> 00:31:22.160 And it's the same with the things in the world. 00:31:22.559 --> 00:31:24.759 The glitz, the glamour, the achievements, 00:31:25.019 --> 00:31:27.019 no matter how noble or good they seem, 00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:29.440 they won't amount to anything more. 00:31:29.720 --> 00:31:33.740 They can't deliver because it all just comes from the world. 00:31:36.339 --> 00:31:37.460 It won't deliver. 00:31:38.839 --> 00:31:39.980 So don't love it. 00:31:42.000 --> 00:31:43.799 And that brings us to John's third point. 00:31:44.539 --> 00:31:46.740 He's unmasked the nature of the world and the origin of it, 00:31:46.740 --> 00:31:47.980 and now he talks about the end. 00:31:48.079 --> 00:31:49.099 Where is it all going? 00:31:49.460 --> 00:31:50.400 Verse 17, he says, 00:31:50.480 --> 00:31:54.440 And the world is passing away along with its desires, 00:31:55.279 --> 00:32:00.500 but whoever does the will of God abides forever. 00:32:03.920 --> 00:32:06.059 This world won't last, John says. 00:32:07.079 --> 00:32:09.700 The world is passing away. 00:32:11.960 --> 00:32:14.160 Now, materially speaking, this is, of course, 00:32:14.240 --> 00:32:15.559 true on a scientific level, right? 00:32:15.559 --> 00:32:17.679 The universe is expanding, we're told, 00:32:17.799 --> 00:32:19.879 and eventually it's not going to last forever. 00:32:20.000 --> 00:32:21.480 If it just keeps going and going and going, 00:32:21.559 --> 00:32:23.819 we all freeze and end up in darkness and nihilism. 00:32:24.059 --> 00:32:25.259 And in light of that, 00:32:25.279 --> 00:32:27.079 no matter how much you gain and gather in this life, 00:32:27.119 --> 00:32:28.659 no matter how many achievements you amass, 00:32:28.700 --> 00:32:31.799 no matter how many altruistic ventures you start and fulfill, 00:32:32.200 --> 00:32:33.099 you know, if there isn't a God, 00:32:33.139 --> 00:32:34.980 it literally all means nothing. 00:32:34.980 --> 00:32:40.259 As Psalm 1 says, 00:32:40.319 --> 00:32:42.599 it's like chaff that the wind drives away. 00:32:44.660 --> 00:32:47.559 Chaff, you know, is the sort of outer shell of a wheat kernel. 00:32:48.259 --> 00:32:49.279 And in the ancient world, 00:32:49.360 --> 00:32:51.400 they would take a stick or a rake, 00:32:51.440 --> 00:32:53.200 and they would put all the wheat on the ground 00:32:53.200 --> 00:32:53.799 that they had harvested, 00:32:53.920 --> 00:32:57.400 and they would start to pound the wheat with their tool, 00:32:57.640 --> 00:33:00.819 and that would start to separate the kernel from the chaff, 00:33:00.819 --> 00:33:02.799 and then they would toss it up into the air. 00:33:03.819 --> 00:33:04.679 And what would happen is, 00:33:04.700 --> 00:33:06.639 is that the heavier wheat kernel would fall to the ground, 00:33:06.740 --> 00:33:09.980 but that outer shell, that chaff, would be blown away. 00:33:12.879 --> 00:33:14.419 The wind would pick it up, 00:33:14.799 --> 00:33:16.759 and it would be gone. 00:33:19.899 --> 00:33:22.460 Friends, the world is like the chaff. 00:33:22.460 --> 00:33:24.759 It just passes away. 00:33:25.379 --> 00:33:27.099 It's not going to last. 00:33:30.819 --> 00:33:32.559 But the fact that the world is passing away 00:33:32.559 --> 00:33:34.939 is more importantly true theologically. 00:33:37.039 --> 00:33:38.759 There is a God who made all things. 00:33:38.879 --> 00:33:42.279 The universe isn't just running on its own steam towards oblivion. 00:33:43.139 --> 00:33:46.119 There is a God who has a plan and purpose for His creation, 00:33:46.119 --> 00:33:49.000 and that plan is permanent, lasting, and enduring. 00:33:49.159 --> 00:33:51.599 He has a plan to make all things new. 00:33:53.439 --> 00:33:55.359 And the turning point of that plan 00:33:55.359 --> 00:33:56.839 was the work of Jesus Christ. 00:33:58.240 --> 00:34:00.039 When Jesus Christ died on the cross, 00:34:00.039 --> 00:34:03.180 the world was exposed in all of its weakness. 00:34:04.200 --> 00:34:04.559 Why? 00:34:04.680 --> 00:34:06.899 Because at the cross, the world did its worst to Jesus. 00:34:07.019 --> 00:34:09.400 All of its hatred, all of its jealousy and envy, 00:34:09.500 --> 00:34:11.320 all of its desire to live in its own terms, 00:34:11.380 --> 00:34:11.960 in its own way, 00:34:12.139 --> 00:34:14.619 all of this was unleashed on Jesus at the cross. 00:34:14.699 --> 00:34:16.759 But though the world unleashed its worst, 00:34:16.840 --> 00:34:17.559 it could not win. 00:34:18.840 --> 00:34:20.519 Christ triumphed at the cross. 00:34:21.119 --> 00:34:21.779 And as we've said, 00:34:21.820 --> 00:34:23.400 His death was not a defeat, but a victory, 00:34:23.480 --> 00:34:26.400 a victory that exhausted the evil world, 00:34:26.400 --> 00:34:27.279 and the evil won. 00:34:27.280 --> 00:34:33.140 And like a boxer that has swung all his punches, 00:34:33.380 --> 00:34:37.600 the world now reels and rocks without the strength to last. 00:34:39.280 --> 00:34:44.980 But the risen Christ lives never to die again. 00:34:45.860 --> 00:34:48.820 The world and its desires won't last forever. 00:34:50.160 --> 00:34:53.220 The risen Christ will one day render a final verdict, 00:34:53.219 --> 00:34:56.699 and the battle will finally be over. 00:34:59.039 --> 00:35:00.699 And so John exhorts us, 00:35:01.619 --> 00:35:02.719 don't love the world. 00:35:03.639 --> 00:35:06.339 Those desires won't last. 00:35:07.359 --> 00:35:11.319 They will pass away and be gone like chaff in the wind. 00:35:11.320 --> 00:35:15.980 Instead, seek God's will. 00:35:17.220 --> 00:35:18.760 Seek God's desires. 00:35:19.740 --> 00:35:23.680 Because the one who does God's will abides forever. 00:35:23.860 --> 00:35:25.080 And what is God's will? 00:35:25.780 --> 00:35:27.059 John will write later in this letter, 00:35:27.180 --> 00:35:28.320 this is God's commandment, 00:35:28.360 --> 00:35:30.820 that we believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, 00:35:30.960 --> 00:35:34.500 and love one another just as He has commanded us. 00:35:34.500 --> 00:35:39.460 Those who believe in Christ will abide forever. 00:35:41.960 --> 00:35:45.679 St. Augustine, preaching on this same passage many, many years ago, 00:35:46.820 --> 00:35:47.139 wrote, 00:35:47.320 --> 00:35:49.760 Hold fast to Christ. 00:35:51.340 --> 00:35:54.119 For Christ became temporal, 00:35:54.780 --> 00:35:58.280 so that you might partake of eternity. 00:35:59.079 --> 00:36:02.179 The Eternal One entered into this passing world, 00:36:02.179 --> 00:36:04.559 and He faced all of its temptations, 00:36:05.000 --> 00:36:07.179 and He persisted and prevailed. 00:36:07.519 --> 00:36:09.299 The Eternal One became temporal, 00:36:09.419 --> 00:36:10.480 so that you, friends, 00:36:11.500 --> 00:36:12.179 and me, 00:36:12.299 --> 00:36:14.419 we might partake of eternity 00:36:14.419 --> 00:36:16.539 and abide forever. 00:36:18.960 --> 00:36:20.719 So remember who you are, Christian. 00:36:21.919 --> 00:36:23.739 Remember what Christ has done for you. 00:36:23.859 --> 00:36:25.699 Remember all that's yours now in Him. 00:36:26.659 --> 00:36:28.039 And don't love the world. 00:36:28.739 --> 00:36:29.960 It's passing away. 00:36:29.960 --> 00:36:32.960 But the one who does the will of God 00:36:32.960 --> 00:36:34.420 remains forever. 00:36:34.619 --> 00:36:35.860 Christ remains forever. 00:36:36.720 --> 00:36:37.740 And so will you, 00:36:38.500 --> 00:36:39.659 because you are in Him. 00:36:40.619 --> 00:36:41.340 Let's pray. 00:36:48.079 --> 00:36:50.280 Father, we take just a moment on this morning 00:36:50.280 --> 00:36:54.260 to open our hearts and open our hands before You 00:36:54.260 --> 00:36:57.320 and ask that You would begin, 00:36:57.480 --> 00:36:58.360 from the inside out, 00:36:58.480 --> 00:37:00.360 to change our desires. 00:37:02.300 --> 00:37:05.920 Lord, it's so easy to become enamored 00:37:05.920 --> 00:37:08.580 with the glitz and the glamour 00:37:08.580 --> 00:37:10.240 and the promises of this world. 00:37:11.720 --> 00:37:13.820 Lord, it's so easy to become distracted 00:37:13.820 --> 00:37:15.660 and dissipated 00:37:15.660 --> 00:37:18.220 and just caught up in something 00:37:18.220 --> 00:37:19.960 that isn't from You 00:37:19.960 --> 00:37:22.320 and doesn't lead to You. 00:37:23.699 --> 00:37:24.699 Forgive us, God, 00:37:25.360 --> 00:37:26.039 as a church, 00:37:26.119 --> 00:37:27.000 for the ways in which 00:37:27.000 --> 00:37:27.920 we have been captive 00:37:27.920 --> 00:37:29.380 to worldliness. 00:37:32.539 --> 00:37:34.360 And Lord, free us from these things. 00:37:36.559 --> 00:37:37.960 Help us to long for 00:37:37.960 --> 00:37:38.679 and to love 00:37:38.679 --> 00:37:40.039 that which lasts forever, 00:37:40.240 --> 00:37:41.340 You and Your Word. 00:37:43.039 --> 00:37:45.159 Help us to not become like the world 00:37:45.159 --> 00:37:47.359 so that we might be salt and light 00:37:47.359 --> 00:37:48.259 in the world. 00:37:51.619 --> 00:37:53.119 Lord, we need Your Spirit to do this, 00:37:53.159 --> 00:37:53.599 so come. 00:37:53.859 --> 00:37:55.359 Fill us with Your Spirit, we pray, 00:37:56.000 --> 00:37:57.299 that we might go out this week 00:37:57.299 --> 00:37:59.920 being in the world 00:37:59.920 --> 00:38:00.839 but not of the world 00:38:00.839 --> 00:38:03.059 to the praise of Your name. 00:38:04.119 --> 00:38:05.599 We pray this in Jesus' name. 00:38:06.000 --> 00:38:06.279 Amen.