WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.800 Father God, we thank you for the opportunity to gather tonight. 00:00:02.899 --> 00:00:07.660 We thank you for your word, and we thank you for this passage that we're looking at tonight, 00:00:07.780 --> 00:00:11.419 that you have put it there because you want to teach us something about yourself. 00:00:12.040 --> 00:00:15.519 God, I pray that you would help us to understand it, 00:00:15.700 --> 00:00:20.160 and I pray that as we understand this truth, that it would shape who we are. Amen. 00:00:22.300 --> 00:00:26.660 Who you are, sorry, who you're with makes all the difference. 00:00:27.359 --> 00:00:30.600 When I was growing up, I think I might have shared with some of you before 00:00:30.600 --> 00:00:33.719 that my family moved to Paris at one point. 00:00:34.240 --> 00:00:38.820 It was cheaper for them to stick my dad into Paris because he was working in Africa a lot, 00:00:38.820 --> 00:00:41.340 and it was cheaper to fly from Paris to Africa than Sydney to Africa. 00:00:41.939 --> 00:00:44.140 So being a kid, we just got dragged along. 00:00:44.879 --> 00:00:50.100 So me, and at that point, my one brother and two sisters all went with my parents to Paris. 00:00:50.579 --> 00:00:54.000 We moved into a small one-bedroom apartment with the six of us, 00:00:54.000 --> 00:01:01.100 and I was four at the time, and so my brother was six, sister five, me four, another sister three. 00:01:02.000 --> 00:01:04.859 And so that meant my older brother went into kindergarten, 00:01:05.379 --> 00:01:09.819 and me and my older sister went to preschool while my younger sister won the prize 00:01:09.819 --> 00:01:12.120 and got to stay at home where everybody spoke English. 00:01:12.900 --> 00:01:15.060 And I remember going to preschool. 00:01:15.519 --> 00:01:19.659 I was always a fairly big kid, so me and my brother are both quite tall, 00:01:19.659 --> 00:01:23.899 but my older sister is adopted, and even aside from that, she probably would have been shorter than us, 00:01:23.959 --> 00:01:27.159 but my older sister now is literally about this tall. 00:01:27.659 --> 00:01:29.959 She's absolutely tiny, and has been small her whole life. 00:01:30.399 --> 00:01:34.679 And I remember going to this preschool, and we both basically couldn't talk to anyone. 00:01:35.219 --> 00:01:39.500 We could fumble about in French, but not to the point where anybody understood what we were saying, 00:01:39.900 --> 00:01:40.840 including the teachers. 00:01:41.039 --> 00:01:43.379 So when we would try and talk to them, they had no idea. 00:01:43.459 --> 00:01:46.159 They'd just smile, pat us on the head, and then move on to someone they understood. 00:01:46.159 --> 00:01:51.099 And look, it wouldn't have been so bad, because preschool basically consisted of painting. 00:01:51.719 --> 00:01:54.700 I remember we had to wear ballet shoes and run around on some padded castle. 00:01:54.819 --> 00:01:55.519 That was all fun. 00:01:56.019 --> 00:01:57.819 I don't know why, but that was part of preschool. 00:01:58.399 --> 00:02:03.479 But the thing that killed it for me was a kid who, in my life, 00:02:03.539 --> 00:02:05.939 became affectionately known as the black jacket boy. 00:02:08.060 --> 00:02:09.219 He wore a black jacket. 00:02:09.319 --> 00:02:10.419 It's not more creative than that. 00:02:11.180 --> 00:02:14.439 But the reason he was so significant for me is because every day, 00:02:14.439 --> 00:02:18.740 he would come and find the weird Australian kid who didn't speak French, 00:02:19.139 --> 00:02:20.439 beat me up and take my food. 00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:24.219 He had a bunch of his friends with him, so they would do it day after day. 00:02:24.340 --> 00:02:26.939 And I'd go to the teachers, and I couldn't even explain what was going on. 00:02:27.280 --> 00:02:30.419 And I'd go home and tell my mum, and she couldn't explain to the teacher what was going on. 00:02:30.479 --> 00:02:34.879 So every day, I went to school and got my lunch taken, and this kid would pick on me. 00:02:35.280 --> 00:02:38.419 I developed a fairly significant hatred for this kid, 00:02:38.719 --> 00:02:39.800 but there was nothing I could do. 00:02:40.060 --> 00:02:41.659 There was him and his friends. 00:02:41.900 --> 00:02:42.879 I was by myself. 00:02:43.060 --> 00:02:43.819 They were bigger than me. 00:02:43.819 --> 00:02:47.739 And so every day, day after day, they would pick on me and pick on me and pick on me. 00:02:48.239 --> 00:02:52.500 And one day, my sister noticed that this was going on. 00:02:52.699 --> 00:02:55.939 Now, again, I was four, so you've got me down here somewhere. 00:02:56.340 --> 00:02:58.519 My sister was five, so she's down here somewhere. 00:02:59.579 --> 00:03:01.939 And she's noticed what was going on, and she's like, 00:03:02.019 --> 00:03:02.939 you know, are you okay? 00:03:03.060 --> 00:03:04.400 And I said, yeah, there's nothing I can do. 00:03:04.699 --> 00:03:05.479 She's like, sure there is. 00:03:05.939 --> 00:03:08.620 And she walks over and kicks this kid fair in the shins, 00:03:08.859 --> 00:03:12.159 and never once after that point did I get attacked by the black jacket boy. 00:03:12.159 --> 00:03:16.280 So, who you're with makes all the difference. 00:03:17.060 --> 00:03:22.500 My intimidating little sister had rescued me, because up to that point, all I'd had was myself. 00:03:23.280 --> 00:03:29.460 Now, last week, in 1 Samuel 4, we found Israel having just lost a battle. 00:03:29.960 --> 00:03:36.019 Just lost 4,000 soldiers, feeling kind of terrible, but then they suddenly regain their confidence, 00:03:36.020 --> 00:03:38.880 because the ark of God is carried into camp. 00:03:39.460 --> 00:03:42.219 They figure ark of God means automatic victory. 00:03:42.400 --> 00:03:46.860 For them, that's the same as God walking into camp with them, armor on, ready to go. 00:03:46.860 --> 00:03:49.300 They figure we're set now. 00:03:49.939 --> 00:03:51.600 Now, it turned out to be false confidence. 00:03:51.780 --> 00:03:53.040 We saw that last week as well. 00:03:53.420 --> 00:03:56.560 But it wasn't false confidence because God couldn't deliver. 00:03:56.560 --> 00:04:03.580 However, it was false confidence because Israel had failed to grasp just how powerful God was. 00:04:04.259 --> 00:04:08.259 They'd failed to understand that his power was about more than just protecting them. 00:04:08.879 --> 00:04:10.800 His power had a bigger agenda. 00:04:11.280 --> 00:04:16.459 They'd kind of limited him down to hurting their enemies and being good to them. 00:04:17.120 --> 00:04:21.620 But they hadn't understood that there was more to God than just being their genie rescuer. 00:04:21.620 --> 00:04:26.420 And, of course, the result last week, they had an even more significant loss. 00:04:26.879 --> 00:04:32.680 4,000 dead, God comes in, they're feeling really confident, and then they lose 30,000. 00:04:34.120 --> 00:04:37.319 And then we get to the passage that Gus just read out for us. 00:04:37.620 --> 00:04:43.819 Having lost the battle, now a messenger arrives from the front line back at Shiloh to deliver the bad news. 00:04:44.300 --> 00:04:45.680 Have a look at verse 12 with me. 00:04:46.459 --> 00:04:50.420 That same day, a Benjamite ran from the battle line and went to Shiloh. 00:04:50.420 --> 00:04:52.840 His clothes were torn and dust on his head. 00:04:53.480 --> 00:04:57.420 When he arrived, there was Eli sitting on his chair by the side of the road, watching, 00:04:57.879 --> 00:05:00.040 because his heart feared for the ark of God. 00:05:00.520 --> 00:05:05.700 When the man entered the town and told what had happened, the whole town sent up a cry. 00:05:07.280 --> 00:05:08.720 Sorry, I've managed to lose a page there. 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:11.220 Now, it's only a few verses ago. 00:05:11.220 --> 00:05:17.020 If you flick back to verse 5, the ark of the Lord's covenant comes into the camp, 00:05:17.380 --> 00:05:21.120 and Israel raises a huge shout that shakes the ground, 00:05:21.180 --> 00:05:23.800 because they are so confident that they're going to win now. 00:05:25.080 --> 00:05:30.620 And then we get down to verse 13, and another shout is raised, but this one's a little bit different. 00:05:30.620 --> 00:05:35.220 This is the shout of widows and orphans. 00:05:35.939 --> 00:05:39.579 This is the shout of a country that no longer has an identity. 00:05:40.459 --> 00:05:42.879 The thing that made Israel was God. 00:05:43.540 --> 00:05:44.459 He chose them. 00:05:44.639 --> 00:05:45.480 He called them. 00:05:45.639 --> 00:05:46.639 He rescued them. 00:05:46.720 --> 00:05:47.740 He protected them. 00:05:47.879 --> 00:05:51.480 And now they had lost the symbol that made them his. 00:05:52.220 --> 00:05:54.519 They have lost the thing that makes them unique. 00:05:55.319 --> 00:06:00.519 Now, I was reading this this week and trying to wonder what it would have been like as this messenger arrived. 00:06:01.639 --> 00:06:08.000 I mean, if all of Israel is as misguided as the soldiers were when the ark arrived a few verses ago, 00:06:08.379 --> 00:06:11.000 they probably assumed that the army was going to win. 00:06:11.959 --> 00:06:13.339 I mean, that's what the soldiers assumed, 00:06:13.339 --> 00:06:17.019 so I'm sure that their wives and their kids and their cousins and their aunties and their uncles 00:06:17.019 --> 00:06:19.219 just assumed that victory was guaranteed. 00:06:19.779 --> 00:06:22.339 They probably weren't waiting eagerly to find out what had happened, 00:06:22.399 --> 00:06:23.680 because they figured, we're going to win. 00:06:23.680 --> 00:06:27.620 They might have been even making preparations for a victory celebration. 00:06:29.379 --> 00:06:33.319 And then in the middle of that, instead of a victory march arriving through the gate, 00:06:33.920 --> 00:06:39.680 one disheveled soldier with torn clothes comes running through, out of breath, 00:06:40.800 --> 00:06:46.340 to deliver news not only of defeat, but the ark is gone. 00:06:47.319 --> 00:06:49.740 The center of their nation is gone. 00:06:49.740 --> 00:06:54.360 Now, in this story, Eli is kind of a confusing character. 00:06:54.500 --> 00:06:56.300 This has happened a couple of times in 1 Samuel. 00:06:56.860 --> 00:07:00.720 We know that Eli is under the judgment of God, because that came up in chapter 3. 00:07:01.319 --> 00:07:04.840 But every now and then, we get kind of glimpses as if he's doing the right thing. 00:07:05.500 --> 00:07:07.400 And this is one of those confusing bits, I think. 00:07:07.480 --> 00:07:10.840 Everyone else might have been thinking, this is a sure thing. 00:07:10.960 --> 00:07:11.680 We're going to win. 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:16.740 But Eli is sitting next to the road, waiting and watching, scared. 00:07:17.639 --> 00:07:19.040 He fears for the ark. 00:07:20.840 --> 00:07:23.600 But I wonder if it's not as noble as it first looks. 00:07:24.600 --> 00:07:26.379 What was Eli worried about? 00:07:26.379 --> 00:07:31.980 Was he fearing that the ark would get captured by the Philistines like it did? 00:07:33.959 --> 00:07:38.719 Or did he fear something that was maybe a little bit more selfish? 00:07:40.219 --> 00:07:41.699 I mean, think about it. 00:07:42.339 --> 00:07:46.219 So far in 1 Samuel, Eli has been told twice, explicitly, 00:07:47.259 --> 00:07:50.040 your two sons will die on the same day. 00:07:50.480 --> 00:07:52.199 God has told him this twice. 00:07:52.199 --> 00:07:57.620 He has just watched his two sons carry the ark of God off into battle. 00:07:59.740 --> 00:08:02.779 Maybe he figured out that that wasn't a good idea. 00:08:03.719 --> 00:08:06.779 Maybe what he feared wasn't that the ark would get taken, 00:08:07.139 --> 00:08:10.719 but that the ark was going to deliver the judgment that God had been promising. 00:08:12.180 --> 00:08:15.879 Maybe his issue isn't so much that he fears for the ark, 00:08:16.139 --> 00:08:19.680 but he actually fears the ark. 00:08:20.480 --> 00:08:21.500 He fears God. 00:08:21.500 --> 00:08:24.839 He fears the judgment that the ark will represent. 00:08:26.060 --> 00:08:29.680 Could it be that Eli had sensed God's about to do what he's been promising? 00:08:30.139 --> 00:08:32.840 God is about to judge his two sons. 00:08:35.240 --> 00:08:38.519 I mean, Eli's a priest. 00:08:39.919 --> 00:08:41.940 He hasn't done a great job of it, 00:08:42.019 --> 00:08:44.700 but on some level he knows who his God is. 00:08:45.720 --> 00:08:48.320 He knows what his God has done in the past. 00:08:48.320 --> 00:08:53.540 And even a small understanding of God would have meant that Eli wasn't worried about the Philistines. 00:08:54.080 --> 00:08:58.580 He knows that if God wants to, all he has to do is think it and the army falls over dead. 00:09:00.320 --> 00:09:02.960 I don't think Eli is worried about the ark here. 00:09:04.160 --> 00:09:06.700 I think he's worried about what God is about to do. 00:09:06.700 --> 00:09:12.820 Finally, at this late stage, it's almost as if Eli recognizes that God is to be feared, 00:09:13.340 --> 00:09:15.259 but it's too little and it's too late. 00:09:16.200 --> 00:09:16.920 Verse 14. 00:09:18.040 --> 00:09:19.820 Eli heard the outcry and asked, 00:09:19.820 --> 00:09:21.360 What's the meaning of this uproar? 00:09:21.860 --> 00:09:27.320 The man hurried over to Eli, who was 98 years old and whose eyes were so set that he could not see. 00:09:28.100 --> 00:09:29.320 Does that... 00:09:29.320 --> 00:09:32.420 Eli is sitting by the road watching, but he's blind. 00:09:34.180 --> 00:09:38.700 He's so helpless at this stage, all he can do is sit and look, even though he can't see. 00:09:39.960 --> 00:09:42.860 He was 98 years old and the man tells Eli, 00:09:42.860 --> 00:09:44.539 Eli, I've just come from the battle line. 00:09:44.639 --> 00:09:46.340 I've fled from it this very day. 00:09:46.659 --> 00:09:47.800 And Eli asked, 00:09:48.360 --> 00:09:49.039 What happened? 00:09:50.419 --> 00:09:51.960 The man who brought the news replied, 00:09:52.360 --> 00:09:55.899 Israel fled before the Philistines and the army has suffered heavy losses. 00:09:56.379 --> 00:10:01.879 Also, your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead and the ark of God has been captured. 00:10:02.800 --> 00:10:07.420 When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. 00:10:07.940 --> 00:10:11.360 His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man and heavy. 00:10:11.360 --> 00:10:13.879 He had led Israel 40 years. 00:10:15.159 --> 00:10:17.379 So Eli is blind when this guy comes running in. 00:10:17.480 --> 00:10:21.659 He doesn't get to see a guy who is torn clothes, dirty, out of breath. 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:25.680 But his clue comes when everybody else starts crying out. 00:10:26.279 --> 00:10:29.440 His clue that something is wrong comes because everybody else screams. 00:10:29.960 --> 00:10:32.519 And so the messenger comes to Eli individually 00:10:32.519 --> 00:10:35.899 and delivers the report of what's happened at the front line. 00:10:35.980 --> 00:10:38.779 And listen really carefully to what this messenger says. 00:10:38.779 --> 00:10:42.100 And listen closely to the order that he says it. 00:10:42.799 --> 00:10:43.480 Verse 17. 00:10:45.000 --> 00:10:46.639 The man who brought the news replied, 00:10:47.120 --> 00:10:49.720 Israel fled before the Philistines. 00:10:50.159 --> 00:10:52.379 The army has suffered heavy losses. 00:10:53.019 --> 00:10:54.720 Your two sons are dead. 00:10:55.639 --> 00:10:58.279 And the ark of God has been captured. 00:10:58.279 --> 00:11:04.720 There's almost a crescendo in the way he says it. 00:11:05.220 --> 00:11:09.659 You would assume that the worst thing for Eli to happen would be to lose his two sons. 00:11:10.899 --> 00:11:13.240 But the crescendo from the messenger is, 00:11:13.740 --> 00:11:14.879 the army fled. 00:11:16.959 --> 00:11:18.339 Suffered heavy losses. 00:11:19.240 --> 00:11:20.459 Your sons are dead. 00:11:20.460 --> 00:11:23.139 And the ark is gone. 00:11:24.480 --> 00:11:26.379 The ark is the issue here. 00:11:26.680 --> 00:11:29.120 When Eli hears of the ark, not of his sons, 00:11:29.420 --> 00:11:31.259 he falls over and dies. 00:11:31.759 --> 00:11:34.700 It's a pretty undignified end to Eli's life. 00:11:35.080 --> 00:11:38.820 He dies because he's so fat that when he falls over, his neck breaks. 00:11:39.800 --> 00:11:41.220 That's basically what it's saying. 00:11:41.860 --> 00:11:42.460 He's 98. 00:11:42.680 --> 00:11:43.259 He's blind. 00:11:43.379 --> 00:11:43.800 He's heavy. 00:11:43.879 --> 00:11:44.500 He falls over. 00:11:44.560 --> 00:11:46.180 And his neck can't support the weight. 00:11:46.179 --> 00:11:47.859 And so it's all over. 00:11:48.099 --> 00:11:51.479 God has poured out the judgment that he promised in chapter 3. 00:11:52.159 --> 00:11:54.359 God had said Hophni and Phinehas would die. 00:11:55.000 --> 00:11:58.219 And God had said Eli too would face his judgment. 00:11:59.399 --> 00:12:03.599 And the fact that the ark is mentioned right there in that list 00:12:03.599 --> 00:12:06.839 means that we're in no doubt God did this. 00:12:07.979 --> 00:12:11.719 This isn't the Philistines coming up with an amazing new battle plan. 00:12:12.459 --> 00:12:13.819 God did this. 00:12:13.820 --> 00:12:17.580 Now God might have used the Philistines. 00:12:18.760 --> 00:12:21.300 But ultimately this is God doing what he said he would do. 00:12:21.879 --> 00:12:23.879 He said he would kill Hophni and Phinehas. 00:12:24.060 --> 00:12:25.760 He said that he would judge Eli. 00:12:27.100 --> 00:12:30.580 And into this judgment being poured out one after the other, 00:12:31.120 --> 00:12:33.140 there's a strange little bit at the end of this story. 00:12:33.800 --> 00:12:35.000 A baby gets born. 00:12:36.500 --> 00:12:39.240 One of the hardest things about becoming a parent, I think, 00:12:39.420 --> 00:12:40.900 is naming your baby. 00:12:40.899 --> 00:12:44.959 There is an absolute plethora of options. 00:12:45.860 --> 00:12:48.399 And as celebrities get more and more creative, 00:12:48.659 --> 00:12:51.459 it's really hard to have an individual sounding name 00:12:51.459 --> 00:12:52.519 that doesn't sound weird. 00:12:53.120 --> 00:12:55.019 Now that Apple has become okay, 00:12:55.220 --> 00:12:56.919 there's not really anywhere else to go from there. 00:12:57.500 --> 00:13:00.840 I did a bit of research on some terrible baby names. 00:13:00.840 --> 00:13:02.540 A few for your entertainment. 00:13:03.259 --> 00:13:04.240 Harry Pitts. 00:13:05.220 --> 00:13:06.320 Emma Royd. 00:13:07.340 --> 00:13:10.620 And a genuine one that my parents considered for my older brother 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:11.800 was Job. 00:13:12.460 --> 00:13:14.040 Which would have made him Job Low. 00:13:16.200 --> 00:13:17.620 And I'm not joking. 00:13:17.740 --> 00:13:18.519 That's the sad part. 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:20.980 I even discovered that in New Zealand 00:13:20.980 --> 00:13:23.980 there are 71 names that are illegal to name your baby. 00:13:24.399 --> 00:13:25.280 People have tried. 00:13:25.379 --> 00:13:27.060 They've submitted these as genuine names 00:13:27.060 --> 00:13:27.940 and they've been rejected. 00:13:27.940 --> 00:13:30.180 Some of them I can't tell you. 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:34.020 But some of them are things like an asterisk 00:13:34.020 --> 00:13:36.000 or a full stop, 00:13:36.260 --> 00:13:38.520 which on the list was in brackets as a period. 00:13:41.120 --> 00:13:44.240 There are a lot of really bad baby names out there. 00:13:45.020 --> 00:13:47.020 But I think this one might take the cake. 00:13:47.680 --> 00:13:49.520 Not because it sounds ridiculous, 00:13:49.700 --> 00:13:52.140 although that's potentially true. 00:13:52.139 --> 00:13:54.259 But listen. 00:13:55.159 --> 00:13:55.939 Verse 19. 00:13:55.940 --> 00:13:58.560 His daughter-in-law, this is Eli, 00:13:58.720 --> 00:13:59.660 the wife of Phineas, 00:13:59.880 --> 00:14:01.960 was pregnant and near the time of delivery. 00:14:02.620 --> 00:14:05.520 When she heard the news that the Ark of God had been captured 00:14:05.520 --> 00:14:08.260 and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, 00:14:08.640 --> 00:14:10.260 she went into labor and gave birth, 00:14:10.560 --> 00:14:12.460 but was overcome by her labor pains. 00:14:12.940 --> 00:14:13.840 As she was dying, 00:14:13.920 --> 00:14:15.120 the woman attending her said, 00:14:15.240 --> 00:14:15.860 Don't despair. 00:14:15.980 --> 00:14:17.360 You have given birth to a son. 00:14:17.520 --> 00:14:19.740 But she did not respond or pay any attention. 00:14:19.740 --> 00:14:21.740 She named the boy Ichabod, 00:14:23.259 --> 00:14:25.340 saying the glory has departed from Israel 00:14:25.340 --> 00:14:27.259 because of the capture of the Ark of God 00:14:27.259 --> 00:14:29.799 and the deaths of her father-in-law and her husband. 00:14:30.159 --> 00:14:30.779 She said, 00:14:31.180 --> 00:14:33.560 The glory has departed from Israel 00:14:33.560 --> 00:14:36.960 for the Ark of God has been captured. 00:14:38.779 --> 00:14:40.120 The wife of Phineas, 00:14:40.200 --> 00:14:42.560 after finding out that her husband and father-in-law are dead, 00:14:43.039 --> 00:14:44.879 gives birth and dies herself, 00:14:45.539 --> 00:14:48.899 only surviving long enough to name her child Ichabod. 00:14:49.740 --> 00:14:52.919 which means no glory. 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:55.940 For the rest of this kid's life, 00:14:56.639 --> 00:14:57.720 he will be remembered 00:14:57.720 --> 00:15:01.039 as marking the occasion when God left. 00:15:02.820 --> 00:15:04.860 He may as well have been called hopeless. 00:15:06.860 --> 00:15:09.039 I mean, it's like calling the kid genocide. 00:15:13.440 --> 00:15:15.899 It's almost as if she's given up 00:15:15.899 --> 00:15:17.940 and she's given him a name 00:15:17.940 --> 00:15:19.419 that is like a curse, 00:15:19.419 --> 00:15:21.659 because God's left and there's no hope anyway. 00:15:22.959 --> 00:15:25.339 But listen to the way she words it in verse 22. 00:15:25.459 --> 00:15:26.120 It's really important. 00:15:26.740 --> 00:15:30.179 That glory has departed from Israel. 00:15:32.899 --> 00:15:35.360 Both this woman, when she's giving birth, 00:15:35.459 --> 00:15:36.599 and Eli know 00:15:36.599 --> 00:15:39.839 that what's going on here is God is leaving. 00:15:40.579 --> 00:15:41.360 This is judgment. 00:15:41.360 --> 00:15:43.139 God hasn't been kidnapped. 00:15:44.039 --> 00:15:45.500 God's not trapped in the Ark, 00:15:45.720 --> 00:15:47.379 wishing that Israel had a better army. 00:15:48.620 --> 00:15:49.879 God has departed 00:15:49.879 --> 00:15:53.620 as an act of judgment on sinful and unworthy people. 00:15:53.680 --> 00:15:54.399 This is active. 00:15:54.940 --> 00:15:57.419 God's not just getting carried along by other people's action. 00:15:57.659 --> 00:15:58.820 He's in control here. 00:15:58.820 --> 00:16:00.800 But, 00:16:00.800 --> 00:16:03.480 in the judgment, 00:16:04.260 --> 00:16:06.080 this is grace. 00:16:07.240 --> 00:16:09.220 Now, I've been wrestling with this passage all week 00:16:09.220 --> 00:16:11.580 and it took me until yesterday to figure this out. 00:16:12.360 --> 00:16:15.420 It took me until yesterday to understand how significant this is. 00:16:15.780 --> 00:16:19.820 God departs in judgment on a people who are unworthy of his presence. 00:16:20.280 --> 00:16:22.800 He leaves because they don't deserve to have him around. 00:16:22.799 --> 00:16:26.919 But, that departure is a gift. 00:16:28.299 --> 00:16:31.299 It's actually an act of love on the heart part of God. 00:16:31.579 --> 00:16:33.319 I mean, if God were to stay, 00:16:34.199 --> 00:16:37.379 if he were to remain among these sinful, disobedient people, 00:16:38.039 --> 00:16:40.620 his holiness would consume them. 00:16:41.599 --> 00:16:44.259 His perfection would destroy them. 00:16:44.819 --> 00:16:49.019 As fewer and fewer of them recognize his power and significance, 00:16:49.019 --> 00:16:53.000 then more and more of them would have died. 00:16:53.840 --> 00:16:56.759 Something similar to the way that Hophni and Phinehas and Eli did. 00:16:57.960 --> 00:17:00.779 It's quite similar to what happens at the beginning of the Bible 00:17:00.779 --> 00:17:01.659 in the Garden of Eden. 00:17:02.500 --> 00:17:04.039 If you're familiar with the story, 00:17:04.160 --> 00:17:05.639 you've got Adam and Eve in the garden. 00:17:05.779 --> 00:17:07.660 They've been given everything they possibly need. 00:17:07.759 --> 00:17:09.200 They're in a relationship with God. 00:17:09.400 --> 00:17:10.240 They've got food. 00:17:10.379 --> 00:17:12.160 They've got, basically, freedom to do it. 00:17:12.200 --> 00:17:12.619 They want everything. 00:17:12.740 --> 00:17:13.359 Everything's fantastic. 00:17:13.879 --> 00:17:15.420 And they go and eat of the tree, 00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:18.240 the one tree that God has instructed them not to. 00:17:18.240 --> 00:17:18.960 They sin. 00:17:19.519 --> 00:17:23.019 They reject God as the one who is in charge and in control. 00:17:23.380 --> 00:17:26.039 And at that point, they get kicked out of the garden. 00:17:27.059 --> 00:17:29.160 They get separated out from one other tree, 00:17:29.240 --> 00:17:31.440 which is equally important, the tree of life. 00:17:31.779 --> 00:17:33.599 Now, that is judgment, plain and simple. 00:17:33.960 --> 00:17:34.859 They did the wrong thing. 00:17:34.940 --> 00:17:37.400 They did the one wrong thing that God said not to do. 00:17:37.559 --> 00:17:38.759 And so they get kicked out. 00:17:38.839 --> 00:17:40.620 But it is also grace. 00:17:41.480 --> 00:17:43.900 If God leaves them in the garden at that point, 00:17:43.920 --> 00:17:45.579 and they eat from the tree of life, 00:17:45.579 --> 00:17:46.799 they live forever, 00:17:47.599 --> 00:17:50.319 but they live forever in a damaged relationship with God 00:17:50.319 --> 00:17:51.619 because they are disobedient. 00:17:52.339 --> 00:17:55.399 So God kicks them out and begins a rescue plan, 00:17:55.480 --> 00:17:57.000 which ultimately ends in Jesus. 00:17:57.460 --> 00:17:58.419 In his judgment, 00:17:58.559 --> 00:18:03.019 he actually shows grace and love and generosity to his people. 00:18:03.819 --> 00:18:06.139 And the same thing is going on here. 00:18:06.140 --> 00:18:10.520 God actually takes them out of the firing line 00:18:10.520 --> 00:18:14.940 because his righteous anger is rightly burning against them. 00:18:15.800 --> 00:18:18.640 And he departs to spare them. 00:18:20.020 --> 00:18:23.160 He still pours out his judgment on Hophni and Phinehas and Eli 00:18:23.160 --> 00:18:26.340 and ultimately still on 30,000 soldiers. 00:18:26.339 --> 00:18:31.759 But he saves so many more. 00:18:33.039 --> 00:18:37.240 If he stayed, 30,000 would seem like a fairly insignificant number. 00:18:38.439 --> 00:18:42.220 And this is what Eli is worried about as he sits by the road. 00:18:42.859 --> 00:18:45.000 Not that somebody is going to pinch the ark, 00:18:46.500 --> 00:18:48.899 but he knows that the power of God, 00:18:49.039 --> 00:18:51.519 which has been used for Israel's good for so long, 00:18:51.519 --> 00:18:54.660 is about to be poured out in judgment 00:18:54.660 --> 00:18:58.819 on his two sons and on Israel as a nation. 00:19:00.680 --> 00:19:04.160 For Israel, the presence of God was who they were. 00:19:05.139 --> 00:19:08.279 His power was central to them existing. 00:19:10.139 --> 00:19:13.299 But they need to realize that it's something outside of their control. 00:19:14.920 --> 00:19:17.319 That's why God gave them priests in the first place. 00:19:17.400 --> 00:19:19.299 That's why they've got sacrifices in a temple. 00:19:19.299 --> 00:19:23.559 It's a buffer for sinful people and a holy God. 00:19:23.659 --> 00:19:25.139 It's a safety thing 00:19:25.139 --> 00:19:29.480 so that Israel can have the benefits of God being around, 00:19:29.700 --> 00:19:32.259 the benefits of his power, the benefits of his love, 00:19:33.119 --> 00:19:35.879 without being destroyed by his holiness. 00:19:37.259 --> 00:19:40.539 But instead, the temple and the ark 00:19:40.539 --> 00:19:42.599 has just become a way of domesticating God. 00:19:43.419 --> 00:19:45.539 It's become a way of kind of putting him in a box 00:19:45.539 --> 00:19:47.599 that they can manage and they can carry around 00:19:47.599 --> 00:19:49.699 to pull out as they think is helpful. 00:19:50.159 --> 00:19:51.799 They've basically reduced him 00:19:51.799 --> 00:19:55.639 so that when they want him, they can wheel him out 00:19:55.639 --> 00:19:58.119 and when they don't, they can do whatever they want. 00:19:59.839 --> 00:20:02.559 Now, I just want to throw a warning in here 00:20:02.559 --> 00:20:04.299 that there is a possibility 00:20:04.299 --> 00:20:06.980 that we can do this to God now. 00:20:06.980 --> 00:20:11.920 We can actually take a God who created everything, 00:20:12.819 --> 00:20:14.660 a God who is in control of everything, 00:20:14.779 --> 00:20:16.360 a God who sustains everything, 00:20:16.660 --> 00:20:19.360 and we can just kind of shrink him down into church, 00:20:20.559 --> 00:20:23.759 into something that we do and gather around for an hour on a Sunday. 00:20:24.759 --> 00:20:26.680 Important, but not so important. 00:20:27.980 --> 00:20:29.779 Significant, but only for a little bit of time. 00:20:30.740 --> 00:20:33.120 And so when I'm stressed, God, I need you. 00:20:33.119 --> 00:20:36.119 When I'm in danger, God, I need you. 00:20:37.339 --> 00:20:39.219 But when I want to do something 00:20:39.219 --> 00:20:40.839 and God has told me it's wrong, 00:20:41.359 --> 00:20:43.359 I can just put him back in the Sunday box. 00:20:44.139 --> 00:20:46.919 I can put him back in the when it's convenient box. 00:20:49.299 --> 00:20:51.399 Israel's done it, but I wonder if you've done it as well. 00:20:53.299 --> 00:20:55.079 Have you domesticated God 00:20:55.079 --> 00:20:59.379 to the point where not only do you endanger yourself, 00:20:59.380 --> 00:21:01.540 but you actually reject the good stuff 00:21:01.540 --> 00:21:02.760 that he wants to give you as well? 00:21:03.380 --> 00:21:06.080 This isn't just about fleeing the judgment of God. 00:21:06.200 --> 00:21:08.100 God's not just some angry guy in the background 00:21:08.100 --> 00:21:10.240 looking for an excuse to pour out his wrath. 00:21:10.960 --> 00:21:13.220 But Israel is actually cutting God out 00:21:13.220 --> 00:21:14.340 of their day-to-day life 00:21:14.340 --> 00:21:15.840 and they're missing out on the good gifts 00:21:15.840 --> 00:21:16.720 that he's got for them. 00:21:17.680 --> 00:21:19.840 They're missing out on the guidance that he has for them 00:21:19.840 --> 00:21:20.500 and ultimately, 00:21:21.040 --> 00:21:24.300 it costs them the blessing of his presence altogether. 00:21:24.299 --> 00:21:27.240 Even in his judgment, 00:21:27.500 --> 00:21:31.099 God graciously spares Israel complete annihilation. 00:21:31.980 --> 00:21:32.819 Don't get me wrong, 00:21:32.960 --> 00:21:35.139 30,000 people dying is huge, 00:21:36.019 --> 00:21:38.159 but it would have seemed pretty insignificant 00:21:38.159 --> 00:21:39.259 if God had stayed 00:21:39.259 --> 00:21:42.019 and Israel had continued to reject him. 00:21:43.639 --> 00:21:47.279 God is supposed to be the defining reality for Israel. 00:21:47.759 --> 00:21:49.259 That's why he was in the ark, 00:21:49.359 --> 00:21:51.039 which was in the center of the temple, 00:21:51.359 --> 00:21:52.859 which was in the center of Shiloh, 00:21:52.859 --> 00:21:54.459 which was the center of Israel. 00:21:55.439 --> 00:21:58.419 He was supposed to flow out into all parts of their life. 00:21:58.659 --> 00:22:01.500 Everything was to revolve around him and his law. 00:22:01.679 --> 00:22:04.639 It was what was supposed to make them different. 00:22:05.899 --> 00:22:08.219 He was supposed to define how they used their money, 00:22:08.359 --> 00:22:09.439 how they treated one another, 00:22:09.539 --> 00:22:10.719 how they settled disputes. 00:22:11.619 --> 00:22:13.579 He was supposed to be what made them different. 00:22:15.099 --> 00:22:19.839 But now, it's his absence that defines Israel. 00:22:20.359 --> 00:22:21.939 They're the people without a God. 00:22:22.859 --> 00:22:26.279 Now, for us as Christians, 00:22:26.479 --> 00:22:28.859 we don't have a temple building or a tent like they did. 00:22:28.939 --> 00:22:30.179 There's no ark for us. 00:22:30.279 --> 00:22:31.519 There's no priestly system. 00:22:32.559 --> 00:22:34.319 We are the temple of God. 00:22:35.059 --> 00:22:37.599 I want to read to you two verses really quickly out of Corinthians. 00:22:38.219 --> 00:22:39.779 One's out of 1 Corinthians 3, 00:22:39.879 --> 00:22:40.719 and it says this, 00:22:40.720 --> 00:22:44.839 Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple? 00:22:44.839 --> 00:22:46.440 This is talking to the church as a group, 00:22:46.519 --> 00:22:48.660 and that God's spirit lives in you. 00:22:49.120 --> 00:22:51.660 The second one is in 2 Corinthians 6, 00:22:52.539 --> 00:22:54.420 in verse 16, 00:22:54.519 --> 00:22:54.980 it says, 00:22:55.339 --> 00:22:57.319 We are the temple of the living God. 00:22:57.319 --> 00:23:08.299 Those are the same promises that God made to Israel. 00:23:08.819 --> 00:23:10.359 But for us as Christians, 00:23:10.619 --> 00:23:12.439 we get the fuller version of it. 00:23:12.779 --> 00:23:13.839 We get the better version of it. 00:23:13.839 --> 00:23:34.819 If you are a Christian, 00:23:34.819 --> 00:23:36.559 let that sit for a second, 00:23:37.299 --> 00:23:41.480 the power of God lives in you. 00:23:42.559 --> 00:23:44.539 The same power that created, 00:23:45.879 --> 00:23:48.539 the power of God in your life, 00:23:48.919 --> 00:23:50.359 working through you. 00:23:51.179 --> 00:23:52.059 What a blessing. 00:23:52.059 --> 00:23:57.399 But is it something that's scary as well? 00:23:58.500 --> 00:24:00.299 Is it something we should be afraid of? 00:24:01.379 --> 00:24:03.559 I mean, what if we stuff up like Eli did? 00:24:04.720 --> 00:24:06.960 Do we have to fear that God is going to turn around 00:24:06.960 --> 00:24:07.960 and do what he did to them? 00:24:09.339 --> 00:24:12.359 What about when we do things that are shameful and rebellious? 00:24:12.980 --> 00:24:15.819 What will happen to us if God's there in that moment? 00:24:18.879 --> 00:24:22.000 Well, there might not be a tent or an ark, 00:24:22.579 --> 00:24:23.879 but there is a priest. 00:24:25.720 --> 00:24:27.119 In Hebrews chapter 10, 00:24:27.200 --> 00:24:28.019 we are encouraged, 00:24:28.539 --> 00:24:31.619 since we have confidence to enter the most holy place 00:24:31.619 --> 00:24:32.899 by the blood of Jesus, 00:24:33.440 --> 00:24:35.099 by a new and living way 00:24:35.099 --> 00:24:36.700 opened up for us through the curtain, 00:24:36.799 --> 00:24:37.579 that's his body. 00:24:37.899 --> 00:24:40.720 Since we have a great priest over the house of God, 00:24:40.980 --> 00:24:41.720 he's the key bit, 00:24:41.799 --> 00:24:44.480 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart 00:24:44.480 --> 00:24:47.119 in full assurance of faith, 00:24:47.559 --> 00:24:49.599 having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us 00:24:49.599 --> 00:24:50.679 from a guilty conscience, 00:24:50.680 --> 00:24:54.180 having our bodies washed with pure water. 00:24:54.180 --> 00:24:59.500 Jesus makes God's presence with sinful people possible. 00:24:59.500 --> 00:25:04.200 Jesus takes away that fear that Eli rightly felt 00:25:04.200 --> 00:25:06.980 because in Jesus, 00:25:07.579 --> 00:25:10.460 God's judgment is satisfied. 00:25:11.319 --> 00:25:12.759 God's judgment for sin, 00:25:12.859 --> 00:25:13.440 for your sin, 00:25:13.500 --> 00:25:14.160 for my sin, 00:25:14.220 --> 00:25:17.740 is poured out on Jesus completely and fully 00:25:17.740 --> 00:25:19.359 so that for us, 00:25:19.440 --> 00:25:21.619 the presence of God is still powerful, 00:25:21.619 --> 00:25:23.739 but it's a blessing. 00:25:24.199 --> 00:25:25.959 It's not something to be feared. 00:25:26.399 --> 00:25:28.399 I think one of the reasons that we wrestle with this 00:25:28.399 --> 00:25:29.819 is because when we talk about the cross, 00:25:29.879 --> 00:25:30.979 when we go to Easter, 00:25:31.500 --> 00:25:33.619 it's really easy to be distracted by the fact 00:25:33.619 --> 00:25:35.699 that Jesus is bleeding on the cross. 00:25:36.039 --> 00:25:38.099 It's really easy to be distracted by the fact 00:25:38.099 --> 00:25:40.659 that he's in excruciating physical pain, 00:25:40.739 --> 00:25:42.939 that Roman crucifixion is brutal, 00:25:42.940 --> 00:25:44.840 but you've got to understand 00:25:44.840 --> 00:25:46.259 there is more going on there 00:25:46.259 --> 00:25:48.320 than Jesus suffering physically. 00:25:49.440 --> 00:25:50.519 On the cross, 00:25:51.240 --> 00:25:53.360 Jesus bears the full weight 00:25:53.360 --> 00:25:55.259 of God's judgment. 00:25:56.299 --> 00:25:58.660 That's not about physical affliction. 00:25:59.920 --> 00:26:01.360 The judgment for sin 00:26:01.360 --> 00:26:03.400 is a break in relationship. 00:26:03.400 --> 00:26:08.360 That's why God departs from Israel in this passage. 00:26:09.380 --> 00:26:10.980 And the judgment that Jesus cops 00:26:10.980 --> 00:26:13.580 is the judgment that all of us deserve. 00:26:14.120 --> 00:26:15.320 Jesus doesn't go to the cross 00:26:15.320 --> 00:26:16.820 to take your crucifixion. 00:26:17.720 --> 00:26:19.500 That's not the swap that's going on. 00:26:20.320 --> 00:26:21.640 Jesus goes to the cross 00:26:21.640 --> 00:26:23.100 to take your punishment, 00:26:23.480 --> 00:26:24.720 to take God's judgment, 00:26:24.900 --> 00:26:26.259 and he makes it possible for you 00:26:26.259 --> 00:26:28.100 to stand confident in the presence 00:26:28.100 --> 00:26:30.200 of a God who is holy and powerful 00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:32.140 and who will not tolerate sin. 00:26:33.400 --> 00:26:35.380 Because Jesus has taken 00:26:35.380 --> 00:26:36.540 all that is required. 00:26:36.820 --> 00:26:37.620 There is no more. 00:26:37.700 --> 00:26:38.700 There's nothing extra. 00:26:40.220 --> 00:26:41.720 And so we can look forward 00:26:41.720 --> 00:26:44.000 to the day when Jesus comes back 00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:45.000 to judge the earth. 00:26:45.840 --> 00:26:47.759 Because our judgment is paid for. 00:26:48.320 --> 00:26:49.060 It's satisfied. 00:26:49.280 --> 00:26:49.980 It's dealt with. 00:26:50.580 --> 00:26:52.060 We still wrestle with sin 00:26:52.060 --> 00:26:53.620 in our lives now as Christians. 00:26:54.940 --> 00:26:56.640 And so we look forward to the day 00:26:56.640 --> 00:26:58.540 when that's finally and completely gone 00:26:58.540 --> 00:27:00.680 and we get to know Jesus fully and forever. 00:27:01.180 --> 00:27:02.320 But even now, 00:27:02.319 --> 00:27:04.220 if you are a Christian, 00:27:04.399 --> 00:27:05.720 the power of God, 00:27:05.859 --> 00:27:06.899 God himself, 00:27:07.339 --> 00:27:08.779 dwells in you. 00:27:09.500 --> 00:27:10.519 Not near you, 00:27:10.919 --> 00:27:12.139 not around you, 00:27:12.599 --> 00:27:13.460 not occasionally, 00:27:14.460 --> 00:27:17.460 but God dwells in you 00:27:17.460 --> 00:27:18.779 always. 00:27:20.240 --> 00:27:21.700 Now that has got to shape 00:27:21.700 --> 00:27:22.599 the way that we live. 00:27:23.899 --> 00:27:25.439 That's got to impact who we are 00:27:25.439 --> 00:27:26.679 even when no one else is around. 00:27:27.539 --> 00:27:28.820 I remember when I was growing up 00:27:28.820 --> 00:27:29.480 in high school, 00:27:29.640 --> 00:27:31.060 I had a fairly foul mouth. 00:27:31.759 --> 00:27:32.560 I don't know why, 00:27:32.620 --> 00:27:33.620 I just swore a lot. 00:27:33.680 --> 00:27:34.900 And I remember one of the teacher's 00:27:34.900 --> 00:27:36.279 strategies was to ask me, 00:27:36.380 --> 00:27:36.960 would you say that 00:27:36.960 --> 00:27:37.720 if your mum was here? 00:27:38.860 --> 00:27:39.860 My first reaction was, 00:27:39.920 --> 00:27:40.019 yeah, 00:27:40.060 --> 00:27:40.740 what's she going to do? 00:27:40.799 --> 00:27:41.620 But if she'd asked dad, 00:27:41.680 --> 00:27:42.120 then I would have been 00:27:42.120 --> 00:27:42.799 a little bit more scared. 00:27:43.880 --> 00:27:45.480 But sometimes I think 00:27:45.480 --> 00:27:46.440 we approach the presence 00:27:46.440 --> 00:27:47.400 of God like that. 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:49.420 We think that the presence of God, 00:27:49.480 --> 00:27:50.039 would you do that 00:27:50.039 --> 00:27:50.799 if God was here, 00:27:50.820 --> 00:27:52.320 is a way to kind of remind us 00:27:52.320 --> 00:27:52.980 or guilt us 00:27:52.980 --> 00:27:54.080 into doing the right thing. 00:27:54.079 --> 00:27:55.519 But it's more than that. 00:27:57.720 --> 00:27:59.299 It sounds simple, 00:27:59.419 --> 00:28:00.619 but we need to sit in this 00:28:00.619 --> 00:28:01.460 because we forget. 00:28:03.619 --> 00:28:05.639 If the power of God 00:28:05.639 --> 00:28:06.939 dwells in you, 00:28:08.000 --> 00:28:09.960 and God's word says that it does, 00:28:10.779 --> 00:28:13.279 that should give us confidence. 00:28:14.059 --> 00:28:15.480 Not just confidence 00:28:15.480 --> 00:28:16.779 that one day we will spend 00:28:16.779 --> 00:28:17.839 forever with God, 00:28:18.159 --> 00:28:20.480 but confidence that there is nothing 00:28:20.480 --> 00:28:22.579 that we cannot achieve 00:28:22.579 --> 00:28:23.319 with God's help. 00:28:24.079 --> 00:28:25.779 confidence that there is 00:28:25.779 --> 00:28:28.000 no insurmountable task. 00:28:29.359 --> 00:28:30.659 It should give us peace 00:28:30.659 --> 00:28:32.679 when we face unknown situations. 00:28:33.779 --> 00:28:35.419 In our stress and uncertainty, 00:28:35.659 --> 00:28:37.179 we know that the power in us, 00:28:37.259 --> 00:28:38.099 the God in us, 00:28:38.439 --> 00:28:39.139 is certain, 00:28:39.519 --> 00:28:40.179 is sure, 00:28:40.919 --> 00:28:41.819 is in control. 00:28:42.539 --> 00:28:43.919 It should give us security 00:28:43.919 --> 00:28:44.740 when we feel like 00:28:44.740 --> 00:28:46.179 no one else around us cares 00:28:46.179 --> 00:28:48.379 because His love is unfailing. 00:28:49.519 --> 00:28:50.339 He's proved it. 00:28:51.099 --> 00:28:52.319 He sent His only Son. 00:28:52.319 --> 00:28:55.619 God has promised us in His word, 00:28:55.720 --> 00:28:56.599 in Matthew 28, 00:28:56.740 --> 00:28:58.480 surely I am with you always, 00:28:58.679 --> 00:29:00.279 to the very end of the age. 00:29:00.500 --> 00:29:01.559 In Hebrews 13, 00:29:01.899 --> 00:29:03.039 never will I leave you, 00:29:03.279 --> 00:29:04.639 never will I forsake you. 00:29:04.980 --> 00:29:07.019 God is with you. 00:29:08.619 --> 00:29:09.679 If you are a Christian, 00:29:10.099 --> 00:29:11.679 the same God that spoke 00:29:11.679 --> 00:29:13.299 the earth into motion, 00:29:14.079 --> 00:29:15.700 the same God that put breath 00:29:15.700 --> 00:29:17.159 in your lungs when you were born, 00:29:17.599 --> 00:29:19.000 walks in every situation 00:29:19.000 --> 00:29:20.220 and every circumstance 00:29:20.220 --> 00:29:22.200 for your good. 00:29:23.920 --> 00:29:25.420 In verse 5 of the passage 00:29:25.420 --> 00:29:26.759 we read last week, 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:28.039 Israel lets out a cry 00:29:28.039 --> 00:29:29.359 that shakes the ground. 00:29:30.400 --> 00:29:31.480 Faced with an army 00:29:31.480 --> 00:29:32.519 that had just killed 00:29:32.519 --> 00:29:33.940 4,000 of their soldiers, 00:29:35.400 --> 00:29:37.779 they let out a cry of confidence 00:29:37.779 --> 00:29:40.259 because they think God is with them. 00:29:41.900 --> 00:29:42.799 And who you're with 00:29:42.799 --> 00:29:43.920 makes all the difference. 00:29:43.920 --> 00:29:47.100 Israel's false confidence 00:29:47.100 --> 00:29:47.820 in battle 00:29:47.820 --> 00:29:51.259 is now our rock-solid assurance. 00:29:52.300 --> 00:29:53.660 There's nothing false 00:29:53.660 --> 00:29:54.519 about it for us 00:29:54.519 --> 00:29:55.900 because we know that Jesus 00:29:55.900 --> 00:29:57.320 came, 00:29:58.060 --> 00:29:58.480 died, 00:29:58.900 --> 00:29:59.759 and rose again, 00:30:00.480 --> 00:30:01.940 and that God has given us 00:30:01.940 --> 00:30:02.960 His Holy Spirit. 00:30:03.960 --> 00:30:05.759 We stand before God 00:30:05.759 --> 00:30:06.580 confident 00:30:06.580 --> 00:30:08.080 in the forgiveness 00:30:08.080 --> 00:30:09.100 that He offers 00:30:09.100 --> 00:30:10.039 in Jesus. 00:30:10.039 --> 00:30:13.240 We stand before exams, 00:30:13.500 --> 00:30:14.059 unemployment, 00:30:14.359 --> 00:30:15.440 relationship struggles, 00:30:15.599 --> 00:30:16.139 temptation, 00:30:16.420 --> 00:30:17.319 financial stress, 00:30:17.440 --> 00:30:17.960 anxiety, 00:30:18.420 --> 00:30:19.779 whatever we stand before, 00:30:19.879 --> 00:30:21.139 we stand with confidence 00:30:21.139 --> 00:30:23.480 because the God of heaven 00:30:23.480 --> 00:30:24.759 stands with us. 00:30:26.519 --> 00:30:28.240 There'll still be hard times, 00:30:29.000 --> 00:30:30.559 there'll still be moments 00:30:30.559 --> 00:30:32.460 where suffering comes 00:30:32.460 --> 00:30:34.700 so that God can open your eyes 00:30:34.700 --> 00:30:36.359 to understand just how sufficient 00:30:36.359 --> 00:30:36.960 He is. 00:30:36.960 --> 00:30:40.100 But in all of that, 00:30:40.640 --> 00:30:42.279 He will never leave you. 00:30:43.539 --> 00:30:44.059 In Him, 00:30:45.039 --> 00:30:45.880 there is 00:30:45.880 --> 00:30:47.500 and there will never be 00:30:47.500 --> 00:30:49.259 anything to fear. 00:30:50.680 --> 00:30:51.660 Let me finish 00:30:51.660 --> 00:30:52.319 with the words 00:30:52.319 --> 00:30:53.319 of Psalm 27. 00:30:54.420 --> 00:30:56.120 The Lord is my light 00:30:56.120 --> 00:30:57.120 and my salvation, 00:30:57.480 --> 00:30:58.480 whom shall I fear? 00:30:58.900 --> 00:31:00.600 The Lord is the stronghold 00:31:00.600 --> 00:31:01.340 of my life, 00:31:01.360 --> 00:31:02.740 of whom shall I be afraid? 00:31:03.340 --> 00:31:04.660 When evil men advance 00:31:04.660 --> 00:31:05.240 against me 00:31:05.240 --> 00:31:06.579 to devour my flesh, 00:31:06.579 --> 00:31:07.599 when my enemies 00:31:07.599 --> 00:31:08.899 and my foes attack me, 00:31:08.960 --> 00:31:10.259 they will stumble and fall. 00:31:10.339 --> 00:31:11.819 Though an army besiege me, 00:31:12.099 --> 00:31:13.500 my heart will not fear. 00:31:14.000 --> 00:31:15.720 Though war break out against me, 00:31:15.859 --> 00:31:16.480 even then, 00:31:17.220 --> 00:31:18.079 I will be confident. 00:31:19.539 --> 00:31:20.099 Amen. 00:31:20.099 --> 00:31:21.079 Samson 7000 seanger, 00:31:21.079 --> 00:31:22.099 le Dolyn 00:31:22.099 --> 00:31:24.819 was the 00:31:25.819 --> 00:31:39.199 S-T-G 00:31:39.199 --> 00:31:39.599 aae, 00:31:39.599 --> 00:31:41.379 Heo, 00:31:41.379 --> 00:31:43.379 I