WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.419 It's 2 Corinthians 11, verse 30, and we go on to 12, chapter 12 and verse 10. 00:00:14.900 --> 00:00:20.359 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 00:00:21.219 --> 00:00:28.080 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. 00:00:28.079 --> 00:00:37.420 In Damascus, the governor under King Arthas had the city of Damascus gathered in order to arrest me, 00:00:37.960 --> 00:00:44.000 but I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands. 00:00:45.579 --> 00:00:47.359 I must go on boasting. 00:00:48.159 --> 00:00:55.759 Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 00:00:55.759 --> 00:01:01.839 I know a man in Christ who 14 years ago was caught up to the third heaven. 00:01:02.780 --> 00:01:08.259 Whether it was in the body or out of the body, I do not know. 00:01:08.519 --> 00:01:09.039 God knows. 00:01:09.040 --> 00:01:16.680 And I know that this man, whether in the body or part from the body, I do not know, but God knows, 00:01:17.240 --> 00:01:26.520 was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. 00:01:26.519 --> 00:01:35.699 I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself except about my weaknesses. 00:01:35.700 --> 00:01:44.359 Even if I should choose to boast, I would not be a fool because I would be speaking the truth. 00:01:45.100 --> 00:01:53.700 But I refrain so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, 00:01:54.460 --> 00:01:59.700 or because of these surpassingly great revelations. 00:01:59.700 --> 00:02:07.799 Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, 00:02:08.800 --> 00:02:12.620 a messenger of Satan, to torment me. 00:02:13.699 --> 00:02:17.259 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 00:02:18.180 --> 00:02:19.240 But he said to me, 00:02:19.240 --> 00:02:26.300 My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. 00:02:27.200 --> 00:02:35.379 Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 00:02:36.520 --> 00:02:45.960 That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. 00:02:45.960 --> 00:02:50.240 For when I am weak, then I am strong. 00:02:54.480 --> 00:02:56.080 Thanks, Lucia. That's great. 00:02:57.060 --> 00:03:07.500 I don't know whether you saw in the news this week the Lionesses returning to the UK after losing the Women's World Cup final. 00:03:07.659 --> 00:03:08.860 Did you see that? 00:03:08.860 --> 00:03:13.780 They came back to the airport, and a small group of people were there to greet them, 00:03:14.080 --> 00:03:19.780 but they didn't get to see any of them because they skulked out of a back exit of the airport, 00:03:20.020 --> 00:03:21.860 so that they didn't have to meet the crowds. 00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:26.700 It's not really hard, I suppose, to see why they did it, is it? 00:03:26.900 --> 00:03:31.380 If they'd won, of course, they would have walked through the airport holding the trophy high, 00:03:31.379 --> 00:03:34.379 and everyone would have been cheering and celebrating. 00:03:34.840 --> 00:03:35.819 But they didn't win. 00:03:36.560 --> 00:03:37.479 They lost. 00:03:38.599 --> 00:03:44.340 And while we love success, we hate weakness, don't we, and failure. 00:03:45.719 --> 00:03:47.259 We're embarrassed for losers. 00:03:48.379 --> 00:03:51.639 And it's not just the England women's football team, either, is it? 00:03:51.639 --> 00:03:54.300 It works for us personally, too, doesn't it? 00:03:54.300 --> 00:03:59.780 You know, I am very proud of the A that I got in A-level general studies. 00:04:00.480 --> 00:04:05.620 I'm happy to talk to you about it, that general studies is a proper A-level, even if you don't think so. 00:04:05.680 --> 00:04:11.500 And I am slightly embarrassed of the grade that I got in my geography, and I will avoid talking to you about that. 00:04:12.240 --> 00:04:17.019 Or I will happily tell you that I passed my driving test on the very first attempt, 00:04:17.139 --> 00:04:20.580 but I won't tell you that I've never passed a single music exam. 00:04:20.579 --> 00:04:25.620 I'll tell you that I played cricket for the school and be very proud about that, 00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:29.879 but I will not tell you that on one trial for another sport, 00:04:30.039 --> 00:04:34.219 I was told, Palferman, you'll be never good enough to play for us. 00:04:35.060 --> 00:04:39.079 I'm happy to post beautiful photos of my family on social media, 00:04:39.219 --> 00:04:41.219 but I won't share that we don't always get on, 00:04:41.860 --> 00:04:45.539 and that sometimes voices are raised, doors slam, tempers frayed, 00:04:45.959 --> 00:04:48.279 and that's not everybody else in the family, that's just me. 00:04:48.279 --> 00:04:55.379 You see, the point is, isn't it, we love strength and we hate weakness. 00:04:56.359 --> 00:04:59.299 And in church life, it's just exactly the same as that. 00:04:59.379 --> 00:05:03.619 So in Corinth, they loved a group called the Super Apostles. 00:05:04.379 --> 00:05:07.759 These guys were the impressive public speakers. 00:05:08.219 --> 00:05:11.379 These were the ones who would have had a blue tick on their Instagram account 00:05:11.379 --> 00:05:13.179 and monetized YouTube channels. 00:05:13.279 --> 00:05:16.179 They had nice clothes, they had funny stories, 00:05:16.180 --> 00:05:18.160 they had big crowds every time they preached. 00:05:18.879 --> 00:05:22.540 They were always talking about how impressive their Christian lives were, 00:05:23.100 --> 00:05:25.480 how amazing their spiritual experiences were. 00:05:25.780 --> 00:05:28.360 They were talking about the blessings that had come their way, 00:05:28.860 --> 00:05:32.280 the good life that was theirs because Christ loves a winner, 00:05:33.060 --> 00:05:35.079 and they despised Paul. 00:05:36.120 --> 00:05:37.500 They pitied him, really. 00:05:38.259 --> 00:05:40.240 Paul was apparently unimpressive physically. 00:05:40.240 --> 00:05:42.980 He was probably short. 00:05:43.819 --> 00:05:45.660 He didn't wear fine clothes. 00:05:45.759 --> 00:05:46.800 He never took money. 00:05:47.519 --> 00:05:49.439 They loved speakers who took money from them, 00:05:49.519 --> 00:05:50.560 which I know is weird to us, 00:05:50.639 --> 00:05:53.800 but it was a sign then that the speaker was important if he took your money, 00:05:53.879 --> 00:05:55.560 and Paul always refused to take money. 00:05:56.680 --> 00:06:00.220 He didn't speak in the rhetoric that the Greeks loved so much, 00:06:00.300 --> 00:06:02.579 and while he wrote impressive letters, 00:06:02.740 --> 00:06:06.420 the word was that in person he was a lot more disappointing than his letters. 00:06:06.420 --> 00:06:10.560 But here's our point for this morning. 00:06:10.980 --> 00:06:13.120 What we'll find in 2 Corinthians chapter 12 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.759 is that the Corinthians were wrong to think in that way about Paul. 00:06:17.680 --> 00:06:20.680 They were wrong because the big truth of the universe 00:06:20.680 --> 00:06:24.819 is not that God loves success in the way that we do, 00:06:25.500 --> 00:06:28.439 but it's this, that weakness, not strength, 00:06:28.700 --> 00:06:31.300 is the qualification for Christ's power. 00:06:31.720 --> 00:06:34.300 Weakness, not strength, is the qualification for Christ's power. 00:06:34.300 --> 00:06:37.579 In other words, our thinking on this is completely upside down. 00:06:37.680 --> 00:06:38.460 It's back to front. 00:06:39.180 --> 00:06:41.259 Amazing stories about spiritual experiences, 00:06:41.500 --> 00:06:44.759 huge followings, World Cup trophies, lots of money, 00:06:44.900 --> 00:06:46.699 even an A grade in general studies, 00:06:46.879 --> 00:06:50.379 are neither essential signs of God's blessing 00:06:50.379 --> 00:06:53.900 nor qualifications for God's blessing. 00:06:54.699 --> 00:06:57.699 Instead, what we find is that it's an awareness of our weakness, 00:06:58.139 --> 00:06:59.939 our unworthiness, our failures, 00:06:59.939 --> 00:07:04.480 that is a sign of God's blessing and a qualification for it. 00:07:05.939 --> 00:07:08.240 Now, let me try and show you that from the passage if I can. 00:07:08.319 --> 00:07:10.980 So look down in your Bibles, chapter 11, verse 30. 00:07:11.100 --> 00:07:12.180 What does Paul start with? 00:07:12.240 --> 00:07:14.259 He says, if I must boast, he says, 00:07:14.519 --> 00:07:17.259 listen, if I'm going to engage in the kind of language 00:07:17.259 --> 00:07:19.620 that the super apostles are so engaged with, 00:07:19.659 --> 00:07:21.759 if I'm going to join in with the boasting, 00:07:22.300 --> 00:07:25.220 I will boast, he says, of things that show my weakness. 00:07:26.339 --> 00:07:27.720 He says, turning it on its head, 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:29.840 boasting not in strength but in weaknesses. 00:07:30.440 --> 00:07:32.140 And he immediately gives us an example. 00:07:32.260 --> 00:07:33.340 Look down at verse 32. 00:07:34.220 --> 00:07:37.140 In Damascus, the governor under King Aratas 00:07:37.140 --> 00:07:40.720 had the city of the Damasians guarded in order to arrest me, 00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:43.180 but I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall 00:07:43.180 --> 00:07:44.200 and slipped through his hands. 00:07:44.320 --> 00:07:45.440 Here he goes, I'm going to boast for you. 00:07:46.080 --> 00:07:48.120 Let me tell you of a great spiritual experience I've had. 00:07:48.360 --> 00:07:49.760 I ran away, he said. 00:07:50.140 --> 00:07:51.720 I was so scared, I ran away. 00:07:52.600 --> 00:07:54.120 It's a sign of weakness, isn't it? 00:07:54.120 --> 00:07:57.879 I was hidden in a basket, dropped from the wall and legged it. 00:07:57.939 --> 00:07:59.259 That doesn't sound impressive, does it? 00:07:59.300 --> 00:08:00.519 But that's my point, says Paul. 00:08:00.600 --> 00:08:02.959 Let me tell you about my weakness, he says. 00:08:03.620 --> 00:08:05.639 Then in chapter 12, he carries on. 00:08:05.980 --> 00:08:09.199 But now he talks as if he's talking about somebody else, doesn't he? 00:08:09.540 --> 00:08:11.879 He is really talking about himself here, 00:08:11.899 --> 00:08:14.199 but he talks in the third person about himself 00:08:14.199 --> 00:08:16.840 to make this same point about boasting. 00:08:18.199 --> 00:08:21.079 See, it's not that Paul hasn't had great spiritual experiences. 00:08:21.079 --> 00:08:24.500 He has had them, he's just not talking about them. 00:08:25.800 --> 00:08:29.399 See, he says that he knows a man who was, which was him, 00:08:29.699 --> 00:08:32.000 caught up into the third heaven, verse 2. 00:08:32.659 --> 00:08:34.220 The third heaven being where God is. 00:08:34.379 --> 00:08:35.919 The first heaven being the atmosphere, 00:08:36.079 --> 00:08:38.980 the second being space, and the third where God dwells. 00:08:39.079 --> 00:08:42.919 Not that Paul's teaching science, it's just a turn of phrase. 00:08:44.100 --> 00:08:45.759 But the point is, says Paul, 00:08:45.840 --> 00:08:48.019 I've had some incredible spiritual experiences, 00:08:48.240 --> 00:08:49.480 but I'm not going to boast about them. 00:08:49.480 --> 00:08:51.600 In fact, I won't even speak about them. 00:08:51.700 --> 00:08:53.639 I may not tell them, verse 4. 00:08:53.980 --> 00:08:55.180 Instead, when I tell them, 00:08:55.220 --> 00:08:56.940 I'm going to tell you them in the third person, 00:08:57.139 --> 00:08:58.379 just to make this point. 00:08:58.759 --> 00:09:01.000 Because if I'm going to talk in the first person, 00:09:01.480 --> 00:09:03.899 verse 5, I'm going to boast about my weakness. 00:09:05.080 --> 00:09:06.159 And why does he do that? 00:09:06.779 --> 00:09:08.180 Well, because, verse 6, 00:09:08.539 --> 00:09:10.759 even though these stories of great experiences are true, 00:09:10.980 --> 00:09:13.039 still, verse 6, what do you say? 00:09:13.039 --> 00:09:17.620 I refrain so that no one will think more of me 00:09:17.620 --> 00:09:20.939 than is warranted by what I do or say. 00:09:22.439 --> 00:09:23.980 It's just worth pausing on that, isn't it? 00:09:23.980 --> 00:09:25.620 Just to make sure we know what Paul is saying. 00:09:25.740 --> 00:09:28.299 I refrain so that no one will think more of me 00:09:28.299 --> 00:09:30.819 than is warranted by what I do or say. 00:09:32.459 --> 00:09:34.699 Paul is really concerned here, isn't he? 00:09:34.700 --> 00:09:37.200 That his reputation amongst the Corinthians 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:41.020 is based on his words and his actions. 00:09:41.379 --> 00:09:43.440 Not an impression of him that they've had 00:09:43.440 --> 00:09:44.560 from the stories that he tells 00:09:44.560 --> 00:09:45.940 about experiences that he's had, 00:09:46.240 --> 00:09:48.640 whether they have no idea whether those are true or not. 00:09:49.460 --> 00:09:51.080 If Paul were writing today, he'd say, 00:09:51.140 --> 00:09:53.500 listen, I want you to know the real me. 00:09:53.980 --> 00:09:55.220 I want you to know the real me. 00:09:55.259 --> 00:09:58.120 Not the Instagram me, but the real me. 00:09:58.440 --> 00:10:00.600 I want you to know me not by a projection 00:10:00.600 --> 00:10:01.940 that I've put out there 00:10:01.940 --> 00:10:03.740 of what I'd like you to think about me, 00:10:03.740 --> 00:10:05.879 not by a bunch of edited photos 00:10:05.879 --> 00:10:07.779 of a tidy flat or a sunset holiday 00:10:07.779 --> 00:10:10.639 or a zen moment in a caravan by a Swiss mountain. 00:10:11.060 --> 00:10:12.019 No, I want you to know me 00:10:12.019 --> 00:10:14.980 by what I actually say and do. 00:10:17.139 --> 00:10:20.279 My life is not the fake life of an influencer, 00:10:20.460 --> 00:10:21.720 the half million followers, 00:10:22.120 --> 00:10:23.680 L'Oreal sponsored super apostle. 00:10:23.799 --> 00:10:24.500 That's not me. 00:10:24.899 --> 00:10:27.120 I'm real, says Paul, not fake. 00:10:27.600 --> 00:10:28.580 Look at what I've done. 00:10:29.180 --> 00:10:30.259 Listen to what I say. 00:10:30.720 --> 00:10:32.940 I'm not interested in projecting 00:10:32.940 --> 00:10:35.620 an impression outside of my words and actions. 00:10:36.980 --> 00:10:38.920 Now, let me just say here in passing, 00:10:39.100 --> 00:10:42.120 our world is crying out for that kind of honesty, isn't it? 00:10:43.360 --> 00:10:45.800 We are, I think, becoming more and more fed up 00:10:45.800 --> 00:10:46.900 with the fake and the pretend. 00:10:48.420 --> 00:10:49.740 You know, the celebrity who pretends 00:10:49.740 --> 00:10:51.840 to be happily married whilst it turns out 00:10:51.840 --> 00:10:54.240 paying to have sex with somebody else. 00:10:54.400 --> 00:10:56.920 It makes us all the more cynical all the time. 00:10:57.340 --> 00:10:58.540 And Paul says, listen, that's not me. 00:10:59.120 --> 00:11:00.440 You know, if you want to know my weaknesses, 00:11:00.440 --> 00:11:02.340 says Paul, you want to know about my weaknesses? 00:11:02.740 --> 00:11:04.180 Just listen to me because I'll tell you them. 00:11:05.380 --> 00:11:06.580 You want to know what I'm like? 00:11:07.120 --> 00:11:07.980 I'll tell you. 00:11:08.440 --> 00:11:09.420 You want to know what I do? 00:11:09.900 --> 00:11:10.520 Watch me. 00:11:11.220 --> 00:11:12.000 You'll see it. 00:11:13.140 --> 00:11:14.460 If you look down again at the passage, 00:11:14.580 --> 00:11:16.340 you'll see that this realness of Paul, 00:11:16.400 --> 00:11:17.800 if you like, is not something 00:11:17.800 --> 00:11:19.340 that he's just arrived at himself. 00:11:19.920 --> 00:11:23.060 It has, in a sense, been imposed on him by God. 00:11:23.680 --> 00:11:26.280 Probably better to say taught to him by God. 00:11:26.760 --> 00:11:27.900 Look at verse seven. 00:11:27.899 --> 00:11:30.000 Let me read verses seven and eight to you again. 00:11:30.959 --> 00:11:31.439 Paul writes this, 00:11:31.779 --> 00:11:35.019 therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, 00:11:35.879 --> 00:11:37.699 conceited, literally, I guess, 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:39.100 it would be kind of boasting 00:11:39.100 --> 00:11:40.720 in the way the super apostles boast. 00:11:40.959 --> 00:11:41.980 Therefore, in order to keep me 00:11:41.980 --> 00:11:44.100 from becoming conceited, 00:11:44.159 --> 00:11:45.860 I was given a thorn in my flesh, 00:11:46.179 --> 00:11:48.299 a messenger of Satan to torment me. 00:11:48.799 --> 00:11:50.620 Three times I pleaded with the Lord 00:11:50.620 --> 00:11:51.639 to take it away from me. 00:11:52.620 --> 00:11:54.620 Now, we have no idea, really, 00:11:54.679 --> 00:11:56.340 what this thorn in the flesh was for Paul. 00:11:56.340 --> 00:11:57.920 It could have been a physical illness. 00:11:58.360 --> 00:12:00.500 It might even have been a difficult relationship, 00:12:00.700 --> 00:12:02.259 perhaps even a difficult relationship 00:12:02.259 --> 00:12:04.800 with the Corinthian church themselves. 00:12:05.800 --> 00:12:08.100 But what we do know is that it is something wicked 00:12:08.100 --> 00:12:11.560 and difficult, a thorn that's a messenger of Satan, 00:12:12.399 --> 00:12:13.980 tormenting him, he says. 00:12:14.440 --> 00:12:16.639 So much so that he's longed to get rid of it 00:12:16.639 --> 00:12:18.660 and has prayed, and not just prayed, 00:12:18.740 --> 00:12:21.019 but pleaded with the Lord to take it away. 00:12:21.019 --> 00:12:22.620 But God says no. 00:12:23.279 --> 00:12:24.079 God says no. 00:12:25.019 --> 00:12:27.740 Which means, and I think this blows the categories 00:12:27.740 --> 00:12:28.919 of lots of people's understanding 00:12:28.919 --> 00:12:30.000 of the Christian life. 00:12:30.539 --> 00:12:32.779 It means, doesn't it, that Paul has been 00:12:32.779 --> 00:12:35.019 deliberately made weak by God. 00:12:35.579 --> 00:12:38.879 God intends Paul to be weak, 00:12:40.360 --> 00:12:43.199 allowing Satan to torment him with a thorn. 00:12:43.799 --> 00:12:44.139 And why? 00:12:44.220 --> 00:12:47.699 Why would God do such a thing to his servant? 00:12:48.000 --> 00:12:48.919 Is God cruel? 00:12:48.919 --> 00:12:50.779 Does he love hurting people? 00:12:50.879 --> 00:12:51.459 Well, no. 00:12:52.099 --> 00:12:54.240 Instead, it's so that Paul might understand 00:12:54.240 --> 00:12:57.159 and know the truth of Jesus' words in verse nine, 00:12:57.259 --> 00:12:58.039 when Jesus says, 00:12:58.539 --> 00:13:00.419 my grace is sufficient for you, 00:13:00.479 --> 00:13:02.479 for my power is made perfect in weakness. 00:13:03.559 --> 00:13:09.240 In other words, known, felt, expressed, 00:13:09.599 --> 00:13:12.019 even tormenting weakness, 00:13:12.579 --> 00:13:16.559 is the canvas for God's power, for Christ's power. 00:13:16.559 --> 00:13:19.839 It's the foundation of Christ's work in Paul's life. 00:13:20.379 --> 00:13:22.639 So much so that Paul concludes in verse nine, 00:13:22.799 --> 00:13:26.259 therefore, I will boast all the more gladly 00:13:26.259 --> 00:13:27.259 about my weaknesses, 00:13:27.859 --> 00:13:30.539 so that Christ's power may rest on me. 00:13:31.079 --> 00:13:33.179 That is why, for Christ's sake, 00:13:33.679 --> 00:13:35.159 literally, I delight in, 00:13:35.219 --> 00:13:37.159 I think the ESV puts, I'm content with. 00:13:37.219 --> 00:13:38.559 It's not just I put up with. 00:13:38.679 --> 00:13:40.479 It's actually I am happy with. 00:13:40.480 --> 00:13:43.240 I am delighting in weaknesses, 00:13:43.580 --> 00:13:45.279 in insults, in hardships, 00:13:45.480 --> 00:13:47.340 in persecutions, in difficulties, 00:13:47.480 --> 00:13:49.180 for when I am weak, then I am strong. 00:13:51.019 --> 00:13:52.360 See, here's our point for this morning. 00:13:52.539 --> 00:13:53.519 Weakness, not strength, 00:13:53.519 --> 00:13:55.279 is the qualification for Christ's power. 00:13:56.000 --> 00:13:57.560 And because that's true, 00:13:58.519 --> 00:14:00.320 God will even allow Satan 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:01.700 to attack his servants, 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:02.940 to weaken them, 00:14:03.379 --> 00:14:05.060 so that he can teach it to them, 00:14:05.059 --> 00:14:07.379 and they can experience this power. 00:14:08.359 --> 00:14:09.679 This is how one commentary 00:14:09.679 --> 00:14:11.479 summarizes this passage. 00:14:11.599 --> 00:14:12.079 It says this, 00:14:12.159 --> 00:14:13.339 some people tell us 00:14:13.339 --> 00:14:14.439 that as Christians, 00:14:14.619 --> 00:14:15.939 we have a right to be healed, 00:14:16.619 --> 00:14:18.439 and that if we're sick and not healed, 00:14:18.519 --> 00:14:19.319 there must be something 00:14:19.319 --> 00:14:20.839 spiritually wrong with us. 00:14:21.579 --> 00:14:23.119 It is not so. 00:14:23.879 --> 00:14:26.219 There is an expectation of suffering 00:14:26.219 --> 00:14:27.339 in the Christian life. 00:14:27.839 --> 00:14:29.659 Of course, we pray for relief, 00:14:30.159 --> 00:14:32.379 but if our prayers are persistently declined, 00:14:32.500 --> 00:14:34.039 then we must eventually conclude 00:14:34.039 --> 00:14:35.439 that God is saying to us, 00:14:36.659 --> 00:14:37.899 you are more useful to me 00:14:37.899 --> 00:14:39.439 with suffering than without it. 00:14:42.139 --> 00:14:43.219 Now, I want to come on 00:14:43.219 --> 00:14:44.000 and say some things 00:14:44.000 --> 00:14:45.019 about how this applies to us 00:14:45.019 --> 00:14:45.559 as a church, 00:14:45.559 --> 00:14:46.399 but before I do that, 00:14:46.459 --> 00:14:47.419 I want to try and be 00:14:47.419 --> 00:14:49.659 a good pastor this morning to you 00:14:49.659 --> 00:14:50.459 if you're suffering. 00:14:51.740 --> 00:14:53.339 I know that for a number of you here, 00:14:53.980 --> 00:14:54.839 and especially for those, 00:14:54.879 --> 00:14:56.559 I guess, following on Zoom 00:14:56.559 --> 00:14:57.899 who are stuck at home this morning, 00:14:58.399 --> 00:15:00.879 life is particularly tough. 00:15:01.659 --> 00:15:03.419 I was talking to one church member this week 00:15:03.419 --> 00:15:04.379 who was just telling me 00:15:04.379 --> 00:15:06.839 of persistent, unexplained, 00:15:07.240 --> 00:15:08.159 physical pain, 00:15:08.959 --> 00:15:11.019 a real thorn in the flesh. 00:15:12.459 --> 00:15:13.279 Now, listen, 00:15:13.439 --> 00:15:15.120 nothing in this passage this morning 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:16.219 is trying to minimize 00:15:16.219 --> 00:15:18.139 the reality of that pain. 00:15:19.599 --> 00:15:21.599 This isn't victory Christianity, 00:15:21.860 --> 00:15:22.059 you know, 00:15:22.120 --> 00:15:23.879 where we pretend that nothing hurts. 00:15:24.019 --> 00:15:24.179 You know, 00:15:24.259 --> 00:15:25.819 oh, I've lost an arm. 00:15:25.939 --> 00:15:26.339 Praise the Lord, 00:15:26.379 --> 00:15:26.959 I've got another one. 00:15:27.039 --> 00:15:27.919 Oh, I've lost that too. 00:15:28.019 --> 00:15:28.439 Praise the Lord, 00:15:28.480 --> 00:15:28.959 I've got two legs. 00:15:29.279 --> 00:15:30.279 No, it's not that, is it? 00:15:30.279 --> 00:15:35.240 No, thorns here are satanic tormentors, 00:15:35.819 --> 00:15:35.980 right? 00:15:36.059 --> 00:15:39.539 They are painful and hard and difficult, 00:15:39.539 --> 00:15:41.100 and the pain is real, 00:15:41.159 --> 00:15:42.339 and it's to be expressed. 00:15:43.100 --> 00:15:43.959 Rather, here, I think, 00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:44.699 is the point 00:15:44.699 --> 00:15:47.360 that as well as looking for relief 00:15:47.360 --> 00:15:48.299 from the suffering, 00:15:48.500 --> 00:15:49.879 we do look for relief, 00:15:49.959 --> 00:15:50.179 don't we, 00:15:50.199 --> 00:15:50.759 from our suffering. 00:15:50.919 --> 00:15:51.899 That's natural, 00:15:51.980 --> 00:15:52.439 and we should do it. 00:15:52.620 --> 00:15:53.919 We look for relief from our suffering, 00:15:53.919 --> 00:15:56.759 but God may or may not grant us 00:15:56.759 --> 00:15:57.979 the relief that we look for. 00:15:58.579 --> 00:15:59.919 What we should also look for 00:15:59.919 --> 00:16:00.879 at the same time 00:16:00.879 --> 00:16:03.139 is for grace in the suffering 00:16:03.139 --> 00:16:05.199 and power to face the suffering. 00:16:07.559 --> 00:16:08.839 And we know, don't we, 00:16:08.860 --> 00:16:11.139 that God will provide us with that. 00:16:12.139 --> 00:16:12.759 In other words, 00:16:12.839 --> 00:16:14.259 it's often in our moments 00:16:14.259 --> 00:16:15.639 of greatest pain 00:16:15.639 --> 00:16:17.059 that we know most clearly 00:16:17.059 --> 00:16:18.679 the love and power of Christ. 00:16:19.419 --> 00:16:20.919 It's when others betray us 00:16:20.919 --> 00:16:21.639 and let us down 00:16:21.639 --> 00:16:22.839 that we know most clearly 00:16:22.840 --> 00:16:24.080 the faithfulness 00:16:24.080 --> 00:16:24.720 of the Lord Jesus. 00:16:25.780 --> 00:16:26.440 It's at moments 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:27.420 of great weakness 00:16:27.420 --> 00:16:28.820 when we rely most heavily 00:16:28.820 --> 00:16:29.620 on God's grace, 00:16:29.680 --> 00:16:30.820 which makes us stronger 00:16:30.820 --> 00:16:31.660 than we ever were 00:16:31.660 --> 00:16:33.040 without the suffering. 00:16:34.540 --> 00:16:34.720 You know, 00:16:34.740 --> 00:16:35.399 you might be suffering 00:16:35.399 --> 00:16:35.740 this morning 00:16:35.740 --> 00:16:36.480 in whatever way 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:37.259 that might be. 00:16:37.759 --> 00:16:38.660 It might be physically, 00:16:38.940 --> 00:16:39.860 it might be emotionally, 00:16:40.139 --> 00:16:40.820 it might just be 00:16:40.820 --> 00:16:42.360 a circumstance in your life. 00:16:42.660 --> 00:16:43.660 Listen, don't be afraid 00:16:43.660 --> 00:16:44.700 to join Paul 00:16:44.700 --> 00:16:45.820 in crying out to God 00:16:45.820 --> 00:16:46.820 and pleading with him, 00:16:46.820 --> 00:16:48.860 please take this away from me. 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:51.900 But know that God's purpose 00:16:51.899 --> 00:16:52.799 is not always 00:16:52.799 --> 00:16:53.980 to bring relief 00:16:53.980 --> 00:16:55.079 from suffering, 00:16:55.340 --> 00:16:56.299 but it is always 00:16:56.299 --> 00:16:57.459 to provide grace 00:16:57.459 --> 00:16:58.259 and power 00:16:58.259 --> 00:16:59.379 in suffering. 00:17:01.100 --> 00:17:01.539 Because, 00:17:02.000 --> 00:17:02.399 why? 00:17:03.559 --> 00:17:04.039 Weakness, 00:17:04.119 --> 00:17:04.720 not strength, 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:05.480 is the qualification 00:17:05.480 --> 00:17:06.579 for Christ's power. 00:17:09.139 --> 00:17:09.359 Now, 00:17:09.420 --> 00:17:09.859 if that's something 00:17:09.859 --> 00:17:10.539 that you're particularly 00:17:10.539 --> 00:17:11.019 struggling with, 00:17:11.059 --> 00:17:11.980 please come and talk to me 00:17:11.980 --> 00:17:12.279 at the end. 00:17:12.359 --> 00:17:13.299 I'd love to talk with you 00:17:13.299 --> 00:17:13.879 and pray with you 00:17:13.879 --> 00:17:14.599 more about that. 00:17:15.240 --> 00:17:16.039 But let's think about 00:17:16.039 --> 00:17:16.819 some ways that this might 00:17:16.819 --> 00:17:18.099 apply to our church corporately. 00:17:18.180 --> 00:17:19.839 I've got three brief points 00:17:19.839 --> 00:17:21.000 as we finish off this morning. 00:17:21.919 --> 00:17:22.779 First one is this, 00:17:23.299 --> 00:17:24.399 when God is at work, 00:17:24.819 --> 00:17:25.500 we should expect 00:17:25.500 --> 00:17:26.500 to be more, 00:17:26.839 --> 00:17:27.500 not less, 00:17:27.859 --> 00:17:28.119 more, 00:17:28.259 --> 00:17:28.839 not less, 00:17:28.980 --> 00:17:30.259 conscious of our weakness. 00:17:32.639 --> 00:17:33.980 I wonder if it's maybe 00:17:33.980 --> 00:17:35.679 just me that thinks like this, 00:17:36.019 --> 00:17:36.699 but I think it's been 00:17:36.699 --> 00:17:37.220 my assumption 00:17:37.220 --> 00:17:38.939 for most of my Christian life 00:17:38.939 --> 00:17:40.899 that the more you grow 00:17:40.899 --> 00:17:41.619 as a Christian, 00:17:41.859 --> 00:17:43.579 the stronger you will feel. 00:17:43.579 --> 00:17:44.019 Right? 00:17:44.439 --> 00:17:45.619 I think I've assumed 00:17:45.619 --> 00:17:46.459 in my Christian life 00:17:46.460 --> 00:17:48.019 that the mature Christian 00:17:48.019 --> 00:17:50.000 must spend most of their time 00:17:50.000 --> 00:17:50.880 feeling sorted. 00:17:52.279 --> 00:17:52.440 You know, 00:17:52.519 --> 00:17:53.660 they might have a battle 00:17:53.660 --> 00:17:54.140 with sin, 00:17:54.380 --> 00:17:55.920 but it's a very low-level battle 00:17:55.920 --> 00:17:56.920 that they win every day 00:17:56.920 --> 00:17:57.640 and every moment. 00:17:58.480 --> 00:17:59.740 They're successful all the time. 00:17:59.860 --> 00:17:59.980 You know, 00:18:00.019 --> 00:18:01.079 they're not fighting 00:18:01.079 --> 00:18:01.880 for godly thoughts 00:18:01.880 --> 00:18:02.600 because their brain 00:18:02.600 --> 00:18:04.039 somehow has become hardwired 00:18:04.039 --> 00:18:05.039 to think in a godly way. 00:18:05.860 --> 00:18:06.079 You know, 00:18:06.100 --> 00:18:07.360 they don't doubt, 00:18:07.579 --> 00:18:08.279 they don't worry, 00:18:08.420 --> 00:18:09.400 they don't feel anxious 00:18:09.400 --> 00:18:11.220 in the face of death. 00:18:11.220 --> 00:18:12.620 They're victorious 00:18:12.620 --> 00:18:13.460 all the time. 00:18:14.100 --> 00:18:15.120 But then you read passages 00:18:15.119 --> 00:18:16.019 like this one 00:18:16.019 --> 00:18:16.419 and you think, 00:18:16.500 --> 00:18:16.559 well, 00:18:16.599 --> 00:18:16.939 wait a minute, 00:18:17.000 --> 00:18:17.939 that's perhaps not right. 00:18:18.839 --> 00:18:20.659 Maybe the truth is 00:18:20.659 --> 00:18:22.059 if Paul is expressing 00:18:22.059 --> 00:18:23.459 Christian growth here 00:18:23.459 --> 00:18:25.500 that as I grow as a Christian, 00:18:25.500 --> 00:18:27.719 I won't begin to feel stronger, 00:18:27.739 --> 00:18:29.399 but I'll begin to feel weaker 00:18:29.399 --> 00:18:31.739 even as I grow as a Christian. 00:18:32.319 --> 00:18:33.679 The more I grow, 00:18:33.779 --> 00:18:34.879 the more I'll recognize 00:18:34.879 --> 00:18:35.559 the limitations 00:18:35.559 --> 00:18:36.399 on my understanding. 00:18:37.159 --> 00:18:38.679 The more I grow as a Christian, 00:18:38.759 --> 00:18:39.379 the more I'll know 00:18:39.379 --> 00:18:40.179 I don't know. 00:18:40.759 --> 00:18:42.000 The more I grow as a Christian, 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:42.579 the more I'll know 00:18:42.579 --> 00:18:44.779 I can't be trusted in myself. 00:18:45.119 --> 00:18:46.639 The more I grow as a Christian, 00:18:46.719 --> 00:18:47.159 the more I know 00:18:47.159 --> 00:18:47.959 that my desires 00:18:47.959 --> 00:18:48.719 and my longings 00:18:48.719 --> 00:18:49.839 given half the chance 00:18:49.839 --> 00:18:51.439 would kill my Christian life 00:18:51.439 --> 00:18:53.139 and destroy my witness. 00:18:53.699 --> 00:18:54.500 That's certainly 00:18:54.500 --> 00:18:55.459 Paul's experience, 00:18:55.539 --> 00:18:56.039 isn't it? 00:18:56.739 --> 00:18:58.119 It will be ours too, 00:18:59.079 --> 00:19:00.639 individually and corporately. 00:19:01.959 --> 00:19:02.699 So individually, 00:19:03.059 --> 00:19:04.579 I really hope and pray 00:19:04.579 --> 00:19:07.199 that church revitalization 00:19:07.199 --> 00:19:09.099 means a personal revitalization 00:19:09.099 --> 00:19:09.859 for all of us 00:19:09.859 --> 00:19:10.979 in our Christian lives. 00:19:10.980 --> 00:19:13.500 But we mustn't expect 00:19:13.500 --> 00:19:14.200 that to come 00:19:14.200 --> 00:19:15.920 by making us more self-reliant 00:19:15.920 --> 00:19:16.660 and more impressive 00:19:16.660 --> 00:19:17.779 to those around us. 00:19:18.740 --> 00:19:20.819 The opposite will be true. 00:19:22.200 --> 00:19:23.180 And for us as a church, 00:19:23.259 --> 00:19:24.240 if our church grows 00:19:24.240 --> 00:19:25.640 in strength and maturity, 00:19:25.779 --> 00:19:26.620 we can expect 00:19:26.620 --> 00:19:28.299 that it will be marked 00:19:28.299 --> 00:19:29.799 by a collective appreciation 00:19:29.799 --> 00:19:30.799 of our weakness, 00:19:31.000 --> 00:19:31.839 not our strength. 00:19:32.339 --> 00:19:33.259 Are you ready for that? 00:19:33.259 --> 00:19:35.980 In fact, 00:19:36.099 --> 00:19:36.900 so essential 00:19:36.900 --> 00:19:38.500 is that partnership 00:19:38.500 --> 00:19:39.960 that we can expect God 00:19:39.960 --> 00:19:41.019 to put things 00:19:41.019 --> 00:19:42.099 in our way 00:19:42.099 --> 00:19:43.259 as a church 00:19:43.259 --> 00:19:44.539 that will make us 00:19:44.539 --> 00:19:45.420 know our weakness 00:19:45.420 --> 00:19:47.180 and feel it more acutely. 00:19:47.859 --> 00:19:48.839 Whether that be 00:19:48.839 --> 00:19:49.920 financial hardship, 00:19:50.700 --> 00:19:51.180 illness, 00:19:51.599 --> 00:19:51.900 trouble, 00:19:52.640 --> 00:19:53.539 a leaking roof, 00:19:54.119 --> 00:19:54.940 false accusations, 00:19:55.559 --> 00:19:56.519 whatever it might be. 00:19:56.960 --> 00:19:58.220 Because the road up 00:19:58.220 --> 00:19:59.720 is the road down, 00:19:59.960 --> 00:20:00.500 isn't it? 00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:02.019 And so like Paul, 00:20:02.099 --> 00:20:02.420 we're to learn 00:20:02.420 --> 00:20:03.539 to delight in those things. 00:20:05.360 --> 00:20:06.220 I don't like telling 00:20:06.220 --> 00:20:06.980 too many stories 00:20:06.980 --> 00:20:08.259 about Egberth, 00:20:08.320 --> 00:20:09.140 which is where we were before. 00:20:09.380 --> 00:20:10.160 I think sometimes 00:20:10.160 --> 00:20:10.920 pastors who bang on 00:20:10.920 --> 00:20:11.539 where they were before 00:20:11.539 --> 00:20:12.539 can give a wrong impression. 00:20:12.620 --> 00:20:13.360 But if you'll forgive me 00:20:13.360 --> 00:20:13.900 for one story, 00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:14.779 let me tell you one now. 00:20:15.440 --> 00:20:16.160 I think it makes 00:20:16.160 --> 00:20:17.019 this point really well. 00:20:17.400 --> 00:20:18.480 Two years before COVID, 00:20:18.759 --> 00:20:20.259 we moved our church 00:20:20.259 --> 00:20:21.620 into a local school. 00:20:22.400 --> 00:20:23.019 The local school 00:20:23.019 --> 00:20:24.140 had a big car park 00:20:24.140 --> 00:20:25.220 and some outdoor space 00:20:25.220 --> 00:20:25.580 for the kids 00:20:25.580 --> 00:20:26.279 to run around in, 00:20:26.680 --> 00:20:27.840 more rooms for Sunday school. 00:20:27.920 --> 00:20:28.460 So it seemed to make 00:20:28.460 --> 00:20:29.019 a lot of sense 00:20:29.019 --> 00:20:29.700 for us to move 00:20:29.700 --> 00:20:31.019 from the smaller building 00:20:31.019 --> 00:20:31.460 that we're in 00:20:31.460 --> 00:20:32.920 to this bigger school building. 00:20:33.700 --> 00:20:35.000 What became very clear 00:20:35.000 --> 00:20:36.200 as we started meeting there 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:37.299 was that the neighbours 00:20:37.299 --> 00:20:38.600 hated us. 00:20:39.240 --> 00:20:39.880 They were cross 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:40.460 with the school 00:20:40.460 --> 00:20:41.220 for allowing people 00:20:41.220 --> 00:20:41.799 to use the building 00:20:41.799 --> 00:20:42.400 on a Sunday 00:20:42.400 --> 00:20:44.079 because it made extra traffic 00:20:44.079 --> 00:20:44.759 on their street 00:20:44.759 --> 00:20:45.460 and people walking 00:20:45.460 --> 00:20:45.980 down their road 00:20:45.980 --> 00:20:46.799 and they didn't like that. 00:20:47.200 --> 00:20:48.000 The fact that we were 00:20:48.000 --> 00:20:48.759 a church 00:20:48.759 --> 00:20:49.980 made it even more difficult 00:20:49.980 --> 00:20:50.880 because they hated 00:20:50.880 --> 00:20:51.840 the idea of a church 00:20:51.840 --> 00:20:52.880 meeting in the local school. 00:20:54.000 --> 00:20:55.259 So on a Sunday morning, 00:20:55.980 --> 00:20:56.779 we would be greeted 00:20:56.779 --> 00:20:57.840 coming to church 00:20:57.840 --> 00:20:58.880 by protesters, 00:20:58.880 --> 00:21:00.940 people with placards, 00:21:01.620 --> 00:21:02.020 some of them 00:21:02.020 --> 00:21:03.220 with my name on them, 00:21:03.640 --> 00:21:04.200 telling people 00:21:04.200 --> 00:21:05.220 on their way into church, 00:21:05.620 --> 00:21:06.500 your pastor's a liar, 00:21:06.600 --> 00:21:07.360 don't trust him. 00:21:08.620 --> 00:21:10.260 They parked their cars 00:21:10.260 --> 00:21:10.980 so that we couldn't 00:21:10.980 --> 00:21:11.980 quite get down the street. 00:21:12.080 --> 00:21:12.560 You had to go 00:21:12.560 --> 00:21:13.520 really, really slowly. 00:21:15.040 --> 00:21:16.720 On a particularly bad week, 00:21:17.000 --> 00:21:17.860 the local police 00:21:17.860 --> 00:21:18.720 had to escort me 00:21:18.720 --> 00:21:19.280 off the premises 00:21:19.280 --> 00:21:19.900 because they were 00:21:19.900 --> 00:21:20.940 waiting outside 00:21:20.940 --> 00:21:21.600 to hassle me 00:21:21.600 --> 00:21:22.400 on my way out. 00:21:23.180 --> 00:21:24.360 And all of a sudden, 00:21:24.480 --> 00:21:24.920 our church, 00:21:25.000 --> 00:21:25.800 which we thought 00:21:25.800 --> 00:21:27.200 everybody loved, 00:21:27.200 --> 00:21:28.160 we realized 00:21:28.160 --> 00:21:29.640 that we were hated. 00:21:31.220 --> 00:21:32.700 We weren't strong. 00:21:33.100 --> 00:21:34.000 We're weak. 00:21:34.700 --> 00:21:35.580 We're not loved. 00:21:36.100 --> 00:21:37.000 We're disliked. 00:21:37.059 --> 00:21:38.059 We're not influential. 00:21:38.319 --> 00:21:39.819 We're disregarded. 00:21:40.860 --> 00:21:41.340 And what was 00:21:41.340 --> 00:21:42.299 the effect of that? 00:21:42.620 --> 00:21:42.900 What do you think 00:21:42.900 --> 00:21:43.660 the effect of that 00:21:43.660 --> 00:21:45.920 was on our local church? 00:21:46.880 --> 00:21:48.000 Well, let me tell you this. 00:21:49.299 --> 00:21:49.819 Amazingly, 00:21:50.140 --> 00:21:51.620 more people were converted 00:21:51.620 --> 00:21:52.420 in the two years 00:21:52.420 --> 00:21:53.059 that we were meeting 00:21:53.059 --> 00:21:53.779 in that school 00:21:53.779 --> 00:21:55.279 than any other time 00:21:55.279 --> 00:21:56.819 in my pastorate there. 00:21:57.860 --> 00:21:58.640 A bunch of students 00:21:58.640 --> 00:21:59.039 turned up 00:21:59.039 --> 00:22:00.299 from one of the local universities 00:22:00.299 --> 00:22:01.400 and two of them 00:22:01.400 --> 00:22:02.100 were just converted 00:22:02.100 --> 00:22:02.779 just by sitting 00:22:02.779 --> 00:22:03.779 and listening to the preaching 00:22:03.779 --> 00:22:04.660 week in, week out. 00:22:05.580 --> 00:22:06.440 Another guy came to me 00:22:06.440 --> 00:22:06.840 in tears 00:22:06.840 --> 00:22:07.440 after I preached 00:22:07.440 --> 00:22:08.500 a not very good sermon, 00:22:08.819 --> 00:22:09.400 I don't think, 00:22:09.660 --> 00:22:10.840 on Matthew 26. 00:22:11.380 --> 00:22:12.120 He came to me 00:22:12.120 --> 00:22:12.799 after the sermon, 00:22:13.440 --> 00:22:14.519 tears flowing down his face. 00:22:14.600 --> 00:22:15.500 He'd just become a Christian. 00:22:16.940 --> 00:22:18.039 It's weird, isn't it? 00:22:18.779 --> 00:22:19.680 It turns out 00:22:19.680 --> 00:22:20.900 that it's not the strength 00:22:20.900 --> 00:22:21.819 of the church 00:22:21.819 --> 00:22:23.039 but the weakness 00:22:23.039 --> 00:22:24.500 of the church. 00:22:24.500 --> 00:22:26.519 as we see 00:22:26.519 --> 00:22:27.960 our corporate reliance 00:22:27.960 --> 00:22:28.799 on Christ 00:22:28.799 --> 00:22:29.960 and leaning on him 00:22:29.960 --> 00:22:32.079 so this reversal happens. 00:22:32.299 --> 00:22:33.140 Are you ready for that? 00:22:34.980 --> 00:22:35.420 Secondly, 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:37.400 success won't be measured 00:22:37.400 --> 00:22:38.099 on a graph. 00:22:39.519 --> 00:22:40.160 This, of course, 00:22:40.200 --> 00:22:41.019 is how all success 00:22:41.019 --> 00:22:41.680 is normally measured. 00:22:41.759 --> 00:22:42.900 You have a graph 00:22:42.900 --> 00:22:43.859 of growth, don't you? 00:22:43.960 --> 00:22:44.779 Growth in money, 00:22:44.980 --> 00:22:45.740 growth in customers, 00:22:46.000 --> 00:22:46.779 growth in profit. 00:22:47.420 --> 00:22:48.579 But in church life 00:22:48.579 --> 00:22:49.559 it's not quite the same. 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:50.259 Of course, 00:22:50.299 --> 00:22:50.919 we do long, 00:22:51.019 --> 00:22:51.240 don't we, 00:22:51.259 --> 00:22:51.740 for this building 00:22:51.740 --> 00:22:53.059 to become that rammed 00:22:53.059 --> 00:22:53.639 full of people 00:22:53.639 --> 00:22:54.240 who've just come 00:22:54.240 --> 00:22:55.059 to know the Lord Jesus. 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:56.159 I'm praying for that. 00:22:56.519 --> 00:22:57.240 I'm praying that we have 00:22:57.240 --> 00:22:59.099 to open the balcony soon, 00:22:59.899 --> 00:23:01.019 that Jeff has to move 00:23:01.019 --> 00:23:01.779 his ladders, right? 00:23:02.139 --> 00:23:02.980 I long for that. 00:23:03.019 --> 00:23:04.000 That's what we're praying for. 00:23:04.980 --> 00:23:06.539 But it might not happen. 00:23:07.279 --> 00:23:08.859 We might be successful 00:23:08.859 --> 00:23:10.539 and that not happen 00:23:10.539 --> 00:23:12.119 because success 00:23:12.119 --> 00:23:13.200 in 2 Corinthians 12, 00:23:13.319 --> 00:23:13.940 success for us 00:23:13.940 --> 00:23:14.639 as a church 00:23:14.639 --> 00:23:15.720 is not so much 00:23:15.720 --> 00:23:16.919 growth in numbers 00:23:16.920 --> 00:23:18.180 as it is growth 00:23:18.180 --> 00:23:19.060 in reliance 00:23:19.060 --> 00:23:19.880 and confidence 00:23:19.880 --> 00:23:21.820 in the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:23:22.980 --> 00:23:24.080 Let me try and explain 00:23:24.080 --> 00:23:24.700 why that's the case. 00:23:24.740 --> 00:23:25.500 Let me ask you a question. 00:23:26.180 --> 00:23:27.640 Why do you think it is 00:23:27.640 --> 00:23:28.980 that Paul thinks 00:23:28.980 --> 00:23:30.080 human weakness 00:23:30.080 --> 00:23:31.680 experiences Christ's power? 00:23:32.680 --> 00:23:33.259 Think about that. 00:23:33.500 --> 00:23:34.460 Why does Paul think 00:23:34.460 --> 00:23:35.519 human weakness 00:23:35.519 --> 00:23:37.240 experiences Christ's power? 00:23:37.880 --> 00:23:38.300 Now, there might be 00:23:38.300 --> 00:23:38.860 a lot of reasons, 00:23:38.940 --> 00:23:39.220 mightn't there? 00:23:39.880 --> 00:23:40.720 Perhaps he thinks 00:23:40.720 --> 00:23:41.700 that weakness 00:23:41.700 --> 00:23:43.060 in some sense 00:23:43.060 --> 00:23:44.220 is a key 00:23:44.220 --> 00:23:45.480 that unlocks 00:23:45.480 --> 00:23:46.259 Christ's power. 00:23:46.259 --> 00:23:46.839 I don't think 00:23:46.839 --> 00:23:47.619 that's quite right. 00:23:48.519 --> 00:23:48.859 I mean, the Bible 00:23:48.859 --> 00:23:49.559 does say that God 00:23:49.559 --> 00:23:50.400 opposes the proud 00:23:50.400 --> 00:23:50.980 but gives grace 00:23:50.980 --> 00:23:51.599 to the humble 00:23:51.599 --> 00:23:52.500 but it's not 00:23:52.500 --> 00:23:53.920 that their humility 00:23:53.920 --> 00:23:54.839 itself is the key 00:23:54.839 --> 00:23:55.640 that unlocks the door, 00:23:55.700 --> 00:23:56.059 is it? 00:23:56.400 --> 00:23:56.759 I don't think 00:23:56.759 --> 00:23:57.339 it's that at all. 00:23:59.119 --> 00:23:59.799 It might be 00:23:59.799 --> 00:24:00.759 that human weakness 00:24:00.759 --> 00:24:02.019 makes us especially 00:24:02.019 --> 00:24:03.720 reliant on Christ's strength, 00:24:04.099 --> 00:24:04.220 you know, 00:24:04.240 --> 00:24:04.960 that we know 00:24:04.960 --> 00:24:05.779 we can't do 00:24:05.779 --> 00:24:07.220 so we rely on Christ. 00:24:07.319 --> 00:24:08.160 And I think that's true 00:24:08.160 --> 00:24:09.119 to a sense, isn't it? 00:24:09.160 --> 00:24:10.200 But there's something 00:24:10.200 --> 00:24:11.480 more to it than that. 00:24:12.019 --> 00:24:12.799 Why is it that 00:24:12.799 --> 00:24:13.720 human weakness 00:24:13.720 --> 00:24:14.460 is the key 00:24:14.460 --> 00:24:15.160 to experiencing 00:24:15.160 --> 00:24:15.900 Christ's power? 00:24:16.259 --> 00:24:17.240 What is it? 00:24:18.220 --> 00:24:19.819 Well, I think it's this. 00:24:20.259 --> 00:24:21.259 It's because it is 00:24:21.259 --> 00:24:23.119 in human weakness 00:24:23.119 --> 00:24:24.759 that Christ saves 00:24:24.759 --> 00:24:25.279 his people. 00:24:26.259 --> 00:24:27.200 This is the story 00:24:27.200 --> 00:24:27.980 of the Bible, right? 00:24:28.420 --> 00:24:29.799 It is God the Father, 00:24:29.940 --> 00:24:30.480 Son and Spirit 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:31.940 sending the Son 00:24:31.940 --> 00:24:32.819 into the world 00:24:32.819 --> 00:24:33.599 that they made 00:24:33.599 --> 00:24:34.559 in order to save 00:24:34.559 --> 00:24:35.680 a people for himself. 00:24:36.400 --> 00:24:38.480 How does the Son say 00:24:38.480 --> 00:24:39.500 as he comes 00:24:39.500 --> 00:24:40.039 into the world 00:24:40.039 --> 00:24:40.759 in which he's made? 00:24:41.379 --> 00:24:42.079 He doesn't come 00:24:42.079 --> 00:24:43.339 in a blaze of glory, 00:24:43.420 --> 00:24:43.759 does he? 00:24:43.759 --> 00:24:45.379 on a great chariot 00:24:45.379 --> 00:24:46.240 without riders. 00:24:46.420 --> 00:24:47.140 No, he comes 00:24:47.140 --> 00:24:47.879 as a baby 00:24:47.879 --> 00:24:49.759 into a manger, 00:24:50.879 --> 00:24:51.539 life hanging 00:24:51.539 --> 00:24:52.640 in the balance. 00:24:54.859 --> 00:24:56.359 And how does he save? 00:24:57.879 --> 00:24:59.180 Well, faces terrible 00:24:59.180 --> 00:25:00.119 opposition before 00:25:00.119 --> 00:25:01.019 dying on a cross 00:25:01.019 --> 00:25:01.720 as a sacrifice 00:25:01.720 --> 00:25:02.400 for our sins 00:25:02.400 --> 00:25:03.279 so that we can be forgiven. 00:25:03.279 --> 00:25:06.480 there hanging naked 00:25:06.480 --> 00:25:07.359 on the cross, 00:25:07.819 --> 00:25:08.779 the power of God 00:25:08.779 --> 00:25:10.019 takes the weakness 00:25:10.019 --> 00:25:10.859 of humanity 00:25:10.859 --> 00:25:13.559 and conquers humanity's 00:25:13.559 --> 00:25:14.639 greatest opponents, 00:25:15.339 --> 00:25:17.639 death, sin, the devil. 00:25:18.779 --> 00:25:20.420 Of course, Paul rejoices 00:25:20.420 --> 00:25:20.920 in weakness. 00:25:21.599 --> 00:25:22.619 Of course, we can't measure 00:25:22.619 --> 00:25:23.660 success on a graph 00:25:23.660 --> 00:25:24.639 because weakness 00:25:24.639 --> 00:25:25.680 is essentially 00:25:25.680 --> 00:25:26.279 Christ-likeness, 00:25:27.079 --> 00:25:27.619 isn't it? 00:25:28.279 --> 00:25:29.059 And weakness 00:25:29.059 --> 00:25:30.299 where we really appreciate 00:25:30.299 --> 00:25:31.139 the power of God 00:25:31.140 --> 00:25:33.180 because when we come 00:25:33.180 --> 00:25:33.740 to the point 00:25:33.740 --> 00:25:35.560 that we can't do anything, 00:25:36.820 --> 00:25:37.860 when we come to the point 00:25:37.860 --> 00:25:38.140 of knowing, 00:25:38.360 --> 00:25:38.900 I'm so weak, 00:25:38.940 --> 00:25:39.920 I can't do anything, 00:25:40.000 --> 00:25:41.259 we've arrived at the point 00:25:41.259 --> 00:25:41.960 at which Christ 00:25:41.960 --> 00:25:43.620 has done everything. 00:25:43.920 --> 00:25:44.300 Do you understand? 00:25:46.440 --> 00:25:48.280 Christ takes human weakness 00:25:48.280 --> 00:25:49.320 at which point 00:25:49.320 --> 00:25:49.980 we are right 00:25:49.980 --> 00:25:50.759 at the very end 00:25:50.759 --> 00:25:51.180 of ourselves 00:25:51.180 --> 00:25:52.400 and unable to do anything 00:25:52.400 --> 00:25:53.300 to save ourselves 00:25:53.300 --> 00:25:54.120 or help ourselves. 00:25:54.620 --> 00:25:55.380 Christ is at that 00:25:55.380 --> 00:25:56.560 very same point 00:25:56.560 --> 00:25:58.080 and is able to conquer 00:25:58.080 --> 00:25:59.340 everything that stands 00:25:59.340 --> 00:25:59.980 in our way. 00:26:00.400 --> 00:26:01.060 Isn't that incredible? 00:26:01.140 --> 00:26:05.280 And so, of course, 00:26:05.880 --> 00:26:06.540 human weakness 00:26:06.540 --> 00:26:07.020 is the key 00:26:07.020 --> 00:26:07.600 to experiencing 00:26:07.600 --> 00:26:08.640 the power of Christ 00:26:08.640 --> 00:26:09.520 because that's where 00:26:09.520 --> 00:26:10.220 the power of Christ 00:26:10.220 --> 00:26:10.840 is met. 00:26:12.620 --> 00:26:13.460 Listen, this morning, 00:26:13.600 --> 00:26:14.220 if you've never 00:26:14.220 --> 00:26:15.180 thought about that, 00:26:15.220 --> 00:26:16.040 if you've never understood 00:26:16.040 --> 00:26:16.960 Christ's work in that way, 00:26:17.020 --> 00:26:17.500 if you thought 00:26:17.500 --> 00:26:18.280 that being a Christian 00:26:18.280 --> 00:26:19.340 is about taking out 00:26:19.340 --> 00:26:20.680 a spiritual insurance policy 00:26:20.680 --> 00:26:21.940 that you cash in 00:26:21.940 --> 00:26:22.620 when you die, 00:26:23.900 --> 00:26:25.220 or maybe if you thought 00:26:25.220 --> 00:26:25.960 being a Christian 00:26:25.960 --> 00:26:26.500 is about having 00:26:26.500 --> 00:26:27.220 lots of answers 00:26:27.220 --> 00:26:28.480 to the big questions 00:26:28.480 --> 00:26:29.140 in life 00:26:29.140 --> 00:26:29.920 so that you're 00:26:29.920 --> 00:26:30.759 kind of smart, 00:26:30.759 --> 00:26:32.819 well, let me invite 00:26:32.819 --> 00:26:33.759 you to meet Jesus 00:26:33.759 --> 00:26:34.779 for the first time 00:26:34.779 --> 00:26:35.339 off the pages 00:26:35.339 --> 00:26:35.839 of the Bible. 00:26:37.099 --> 00:26:38.039 He comes to you 00:26:38.039 --> 00:26:39.259 in the weakness 00:26:39.259 --> 00:26:40.259 of human flesh, 00:26:41.000 --> 00:26:42.079 in the frailty 00:26:42.079 --> 00:26:43.039 of a human body, 00:26:44.319 --> 00:26:45.180 blood stained 00:26:45.180 --> 00:26:46.019 and sacrificed 00:26:46.019 --> 00:26:46.720 for our sin, 00:26:46.920 --> 00:26:47.480 and he says, 00:26:47.539 --> 00:26:47.799 listen, 00:26:48.319 --> 00:26:49.500 in my weakness 00:26:49.500 --> 00:26:49.799 darkness. 00:26:49.799 --> 00:26:51.380 I have the power 00:26:51.380 --> 00:26:52.299 to rescue 00:26:52.299 --> 00:26:53.579 and save you 00:26:53.579 --> 00:26:54.839 for all eternity. 00:26:55.839 --> 00:26:56.480 Turn to me. 00:26:57.160 --> 00:26:57.779 Come to me. 00:27:00.160 --> 00:27:00.880 Finally then, 00:27:00.960 --> 00:27:01.619 and more briefly, 00:27:02.180 --> 00:27:03.480 we will avoid 00:27:03.480 --> 00:27:04.880 being over-spiritual. 00:27:06.039 --> 00:27:06.720 Now, I want to 00:27:06.720 --> 00:27:07.359 be careful 00:27:07.359 --> 00:27:07.940 how I put this, 00:27:08.000 --> 00:27:08.299 but I think 00:27:08.299 --> 00:27:09.200 there's an important sense 00:27:09.200 --> 00:27:09.799 in which we must 00:27:09.799 --> 00:27:11.059 follow Paul's example 00:27:11.059 --> 00:27:11.480 in the way 00:27:11.480 --> 00:27:12.160 that we speak. 00:27:13.359 --> 00:27:14.480 Paul is very conscious 00:27:14.480 --> 00:27:15.200 that he doesn't want 00:27:15.200 --> 00:27:15.839 people to think 00:27:15.839 --> 00:27:16.900 of him in a certain way 00:27:16.900 --> 00:27:18.320 because of what he says 00:27:18.320 --> 00:27:18.900 about his own 00:27:18.900 --> 00:27:20.340 personal spiritual experiences. 00:27:21.740 --> 00:27:22.640 He's very, 00:27:22.820 --> 00:27:23.540 very careful 00:27:23.540 --> 00:27:25.720 not to market himself. 00:27:26.720 --> 00:27:28.000 He really doesn't 00:27:28.000 --> 00:27:28.780 want to appear 00:27:28.780 --> 00:27:29.380 as someone 00:27:29.380 --> 00:27:30.120 who he's not. 00:27:30.880 --> 00:27:31.560 He doesn't want 00:27:31.560 --> 00:27:32.400 people thinking 00:27:32.400 --> 00:27:33.759 that he is more 00:27:33.759 --> 00:27:34.700 than he really is. 00:27:35.120 --> 00:27:36.200 He wants his words 00:27:36.200 --> 00:27:36.800 and his actions 00:27:36.800 --> 00:27:37.800 to speak for themselves, 00:27:37.840 --> 00:27:38.580 not to build up 00:27:38.580 --> 00:27:40.560 an impression of him, 00:27:41.759 --> 00:27:42.540 not spiritually 00:27:42.540 --> 00:27:43.820 talking himself up, 00:27:44.519 --> 00:27:45.640 but being real 00:27:45.640 --> 00:27:46.320 and honest. 00:27:47.019 --> 00:27:47.880 And so for us, 00:27:48.259 --> 00:27:49.120 I think it's possible, 00:27:49.220 --> 00:27:49.440 isn't it, 00:27:49.460 --> 00:27:50.420 for us in church life, 00:27:50.460 --> 00:27:51.180 I'm sure you've met 00:27:51.180 --> 00:27:51.880 people like this 00:27:51.880 --> 00:27:53.060 who talk a really 00:27:53.060 --> 00:27:53.600 good game. 00:27:54.340 --> 00:27:55.460 This is certainly 00:27:55.460 --> 00:27:55.759 the thing, 00:27:55.900 --> 00:27:56.960 I think in church 00:27:56.960 --> 00:27:57.400 youth groups 00:27:57.400 --> 00:27:57.960 it can be the case, 00:27:58.040 --> 00:27:58.259 can't it? 00:27:58.340 --> 00:27:58.519 You know, 00:27:59.120 --> 00:27:59.820 young people 00:27:59.820 --> 00:28:00.120 are having their 00:28:00.120 --> 00:28:00.860 hands in the air 00:28:00.860 --> 00:28:01.480 while they're singing, 00:28:01.800 --> 00:28:02.759 having an awesome 00:28:02.759 --> 00:28:03.920 spiritual experience. 00:28:04.440 --> 00:28:05.259 They have all the answers, 00:28:05.560 --> 00:28:06.220 the right answers 00:28:06.220 --> 00:28:07.019 in the Bible study, 00:28:07.920 --> 00:28:09.380 but then really 00:28:09.380 --> 00:28:10.140 as they walk out there 00:28:10.140 --> 00:28:10.759 they know that's not 00:28:10.759 --> 00:28:11.580 really the Christian life 00:28:11.580 --> 00:28:11.960 that they're living. 00:28:13.960 --> 00:28:14.759 Gives the impression 00:28:14.759 --> 00:28:15.580 of looking like 00:28:15.580 --> 00:28:16.320 a serious Christian, 00:28:16.319 --> 00:28:16.980 but not really. 00:28:17.779 --> 00:28:18.339 It's not just young 00:28:18.339 --> 00:28:18.579 people, 00:28:18.639 --> 00:28:18.819 is it? 00:28:18.879 --> 00:28:19.619 Leaders will tell you 00:28:19.619 --> 00:28:19.859 when they, 00:28:19.939 --> 00:28:20.039 oh, 00:28:20.339 --> 00:28:21.039 this is what I was 00:28:21.039 --> 00:28:21.460 reading in my 00:28:21.460 --> 00:28:22.439 devotions this morning 00:28:22.439 --> 00:28:24.200 for a couple of hours. 00:28:24.779 --> 00:28:25.599 What they won't tell you 00:28:25.599 --> 00:28:26.220 is that they struggle 00:28:26.220 --> 00:28:26.899 to have them. 00:28:28.439 --> 00:28:29.259 People will tell you 00:28:29.259 --> 00:28:29.879 that they're praying 00:28:29.879 --> 00:28:30.519 for you, 00:28:31.179 --> 00:28:31.919 but they won't never 00:28:31.919 --> 00:28:32.419 tell you is that 00:28:32.419 --> 00:28:33.339 they forgot to pray 00:28:33.339 --> 00:28:33.819 for you. 00:28:35.819 --> 00:28:36.779 People will give you 00:28:36.779 --> 00:28:38.179 spiritual sounding advice 00:28:38.179 --> 00:28:38.879 that they blatantly 00:28:38.879 --> 00:28:39.879 ignore for themselves. 00:28:39.880 --> 00:28:41.720 so much so that 00:28:41.720 --> 00:28:42.600 our spiritual lives 00:28:42.600 --> 00:28:43.100 can take on 00:28:43.100 --> 00:28:44.220 a sort of unreality 00:28:44.220 --> 00:28:45.540 that we step 00:28:45.540 --> 00:28:46.240 through those doors 00:28:46.240 --> 00:28:46.980 at the back of church 00:28:46.980 --> 00:28:47.580 and we pretend 00:28:47.580 --> 00:28:48.080 to be someone 00:28:48.080 --> 00:28:48.720 we're not really 00:28:48.720 --> 00:28:49.640 the rest of the week. 00:28:50.740 --> 00:28:52.140 We mustn't be like that 00:28:52.140 --> 00:28:54.020 because actually 00:28:54.020 --> 00:28:55.040 it's our weakness 00:28:55.040 --> 00:28:56.300 and our struggles 00:28:56.300 --> 00:28:58.020 where we meet Christ. 00:28:59.520 --> 00:29:00.660 I worked for a few years 00:29:00.660 --> 00:29:01.600 for a church 00:29:01.600 --> 00:29:02.520 which was in a city centre 00:29:02.520 --> 00:29:03.640 with lots of students. 00:29:04.220 --> 00:29:04.780 We had a visit 00:29:04.780 --> 00:29:06.420 from an American pastor 00:29:06.420 --> 00:29:07.180 who had got to know 00:29:07.180 --> 00:29:08.000 one of the other pastors 00:29:08.000 --> 00:29:08.519 of the church 00:29:08.519 --> 00:29:09.240 at a conference 00:29:09.240 --> 00:29:10.200 and said come to visit. 00:29:11.339 --> 00:29:11.960 I spoke to him 00:29:11.960 --> 00:29:12.799 after the morning service 00:29:12.799 --> 00:29:13.240 and said oh 00:29:13.240 --> 00:29:14.619 what did you think to that? 00:29:15.240 --> 00:29:15.799 And he looked at me 00:29:15.799 --> 00:29:16.279 a bit puzzled 00:29:16.279 --> 00:29:16.920 and he goes well 00:29:16.920 --> 00:29:18.940 the church isn't as big 00:29:18.940 --> 00:29:19.900 as I thought it was. 00:29:20.819 --> 00:29:21.819 What turned out 00:29:21.819 --> 00:29:22.319 to be the case 00:29:22.319 --> 00:29:23.720 is that the other pastor 00:29:23.720 --> 00:29:24.460 had been talking up 00:29:24.460 --> 00:29:25.299 the church so much 00:29:25.299 --> 00:29:25.900 this guy thought 00:29:25.900 --> 00:29:26.880 it was quite an amazing place 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:27.380 and then came 00:29:27.380 --> 00:29:28.380 and the reality 00:29:28.380 --> 00:29:29.400 was quite a lot 00:29:29.400 --> 00:29:30.099 more disappointing. 00:29:31.579 --> 00:29:32.539 Now that's a shame 00:29:32.539 --> 00:29:33.059 isn't it? 00:29:33.259 --> 00:29:34.180 Because the truth is 00:29:34.180 --> 00:29:34.839 we don't want to give 00:29:34.839 --> 00:29:35.279 an impression 00:29:35.279 --> 00:29:35.819 that's better 00:29:35.819 --> 00:29:36.900 than the reality do we? 00:29:36.900 --> 00:29:38.160 We want to be real 00:29:38.160 --> 00:29:39.500 and honest 00:29:39.500 --> 00:29:40.620 and honest about 00:29:40.620 --> 00:29:41.120 our weaknesses 00:29:41.120 --> 00:29:43.080 because we just don't 00:29:43.080 --> 00:29:44.500 need to be like that. 00:29:44.580 --> 00:29:45.019 It's not just that 00:29:45.019 --> 00:29:46.660 we should not be like that 00:29:46.660 --> 00:29:47.820 we don't need 00:29:47.820 --> 00:29:48.759 to be like that do we? 00:29:49.060 --> 00:29:49.540 It's not just that 00:29:49.540 --> 00:29:50.540 we should not create 00:29:50.540 --> 00:29:51.240 a false impression 00:29:51.240 --> 00:29:52.780 it's that we don't need to. 00:29:53.200 --> 00:29:53.440 Why? 00:29:53.660 --> 00:29:54.380 Because the gospel 00:29:54.380 --> 00:29:55.200 has liberated you 00:29:55.200 --> 00:29:56.220 from all of that nonsense. 00:29:57.540 --> 00:29:58.920 The gospel of Christ's power 00:29:58.920 --> 00:29:59.740 and human weakness 00:29:59.740 --> 00:30:01.120 has liberated us 00:30:01.120 --> 00:30:01.700 from the need 00:30:01.700 --> 00:30:02.500 to always give 00:30:02.500 --> 00:30:03.080 a good impression. 00:30:04.840 --> 00:30:05.540 Okay you've found 00:30:05.540 --> 00:30:05.920 another way 00:30:05.920 --> 00:30:06.400 that we're weak 00:30:06.400 --> 00:30:06.860 as a church. 00:30:07.240 --> 00:30:08.019 Praise the Lord. 00:30:09.100 --> 00:30:09.660 Christ works 00:30:09.660 --> 00:30:10.519 in weak churches. 00:30:12.600 --> 00:30:13.240 The gospel 00:30:13.240 --> 00:30:14.400 is great news 00:30:14.400 --> 00:30:15.160 for weak people. 00:30:16.300 --> 00:30:16.840 We don't need 00:30:16.840 --> 00:30:17.740 to desire 00:30:17.740 --> 00:30:18.220 to appear 00:30:18.220 --> 00:30:18.700 more holy 00:30:18.700 --> 00:30:19.540 than we really are 00:30:19.540 --> 00:30:20.620 because Christ's power 00:30:20.620 --> 00:30:21.220 in my weakness 00:30:21.220 --> 00:30:22.800 means that perhaps 00:30:22.800 --> 00:30:24.140 for the very first time 00:30:24.140 --> 00:30:25.080 you and I 00:30:25.080 --> 00:30:26.080 can be real people 00:30:26.080 --> 00:30:27.240 really honest 00:30:27.240 --> 00:30:27.740 with one another. 00:30:27.840 --> 00:30:28.680 This is not a performance 00:30:28.680 --> 00:30:29.440 this morning. 00:30:29.540 --> 00:30:30.500 We're not putting on a show. 00:30:31.080 --> 00:30:31.580 This is us 00:30:31.580 --> 00:30:32.420 with all of our weakness 00:30:32.420 --> 00:30:33.080 not banging on 00:30:33.080 --> 00:30:34.060 about how great we are 00:30:34.060 --> 00:30:34.560 but instead 00:30:34.560 --> 00:30:35.920 knowing with the apostle Paul 00:30:35.920 --> 00:30:37.240 that it's not strength 00:30:37.240 --> 00:30:38.259 but weakness 00:30:38.259 --> 00:30:39.580 that qualifies us 00:30:39.580 --> 00:30:41.200 for the power of Christ. 00:30:41.440 --> 00:30:42.259 That is why 00:30:42.259 --> 00:30:43.940 for Christ's sake 00:30:43.940 --> 00:30:45.680 we delight in weakness 00:30:45.680 --> 00:30:47.000 in insults 00:30:47.000 --> 00:30:47.580 in hardships 00:30:47.580 --> 00:30:48.580 in persecutions 00:30:48.580 --> 00:30:49.300 in difficulties 00:30:49.300 --> 00:30:50.840 for when we are weak 00:30:50.840 --> 00:30:52.600 then we are strong. 00:30:52.600 --> 00:30:53.680 Let me pray. 00:30:53.680 --> 00:31:04.279 Heavenly Father 00:31:04.279 --> 00:31:05.759 we want to ask 00:31:05.759 --> 00:31:06.740 for your forgiveness 00:31:06.740 --> 00:31:08.759 for where we've 00:31:08.759 --> 00:31:09.400 pretended 00:31:09.400 --> 00:31:10.440 to be stronger 00:31:10.440 --> 00:31:11.440 than we really are. 00:31:12.720 --> 00:31:13.539 We acknowledge 00:31:13.539 --> 00:31:13.799 Lord 00:31:13.799 --> 00:31:14.400 that we've never 00:31:14.400 --> 00:31:15.060 fooled you 00:31:15.060 --> 00:31:15.759 for a moment. 00:31:16.539 --> 00:31:17.019 We might have 00:31:17.019 --> 00:31:17.620 tricked others 00:31:17.620 --> 00:31:18.200 but we've never 00:31:18.200 --> 00:31:18.799 fooled you. 00:31:19.740 --> 00:31:20.200 So Lord 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:20.779 we come to you 00:31:20.779 --> 00:31:21.220 this morning 00:31:21.220 --> 00:31:22.160 in all of our weakness 00:31:22.160 --> 00:31:23.940 whether that's 00:31:23.940 --> 00:31:24.440 because of 00:31:24.440 --> 00:31:25.820 physical suffering 00:31:25.820 --> 00:31:26.580 that we're facing 00:31:26.580 --> 00:31:27.500 or difficulties 00:31:27.500 --> 00:31:28.420 or hardships. 00:31:29.380 --> 00:31:30.320 We come to you 00:31:30.320 --> 00:31:31.420 in all of that weakness 00:31:31.420 --> 00:31:33.100 saying that we find it 00:31:33.100 --> 00:31:34.040 very hard to say 00:31:34.040 --> 00:31:35.100 that we delight in it 00:31:35.100 --> 00:31:37.259 but we want to know 00:31:37.259 --> 00:31:38.759 the power of Christ 00:31:38.759 --> 00:31:39.980 resting on us. 00:31:40.660 --> 00:31:41.779 We want to know 00:31:41.779 --> 00:31:43.000 that when we are weak 00:31:43.000 --> 00:31:44.100 we are strong 00:31:44.100 --> 00:31:45.640 because Christ 00:31:45.640 --> 00:31:46.220 meets us 00:31:46.220 --> 00:31:46.840 in our weakness 00:31:46.839 --> 00:31:48.459 because in great 00:31:48.459 --> 00:31:49.459 human weakness 00:31:49.459 --> 00:31:52.199 he died on the cross 00:31:52.199 --> 00:31:53.519 with the power 00:31:53.519 --> 00:31:54.240 to save us 00:31:54.240 --> 00:31:55.299 from all of our sin 00:31:55.299 --> 00:31:57.039 and liberate us 00:31:57.039 --> 00:31:58.379 for a world remade 00:31:58.379 --> 00:31:59.619 by your power 00:31:59.619 --> 00:32:00.259 and your glory 00:32:00.259 --> 00:32:01.220 for all eternity. 00:32:02.119 --> 00:32:03.000 So we say together 00:32:03.000 --> 00:32:04.179 come Lord Jesus 00:32:04.179 --> 00:32:06.259 and pray in his name. 00:32:06.779 --> 00:32:07.099 Amen. 00:32:07.099 --> 00:32:07.319 Amen. 00:32:07.319 --> 00:32:08.139 Amen.