WEBVTT 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:04.540 Thank you very much, Ruth. Good afternoon, everyone. Really good, as Paul said, to have you with us today. 00:00:06.919 --> 00:00:10.240 Are there some people you find who bring out the worst in you? 00:00:11.000 --> 00:00:16.440 You want to like them, you want to get on with them, but they constantly irritate you, 00:00:16.839 --> 00:00:21.780 and whenever you're with them, you seem to say the wrong thing, and that makes things even worse. 00:00:21.839 --> 00:00:24.480 I'm sure we've all come across people like that. 00:00:25.219 --> 00:00:28.140 On the other hand, are there some people who bring out the best in you? 00:00:28.800 --> 00:00:35.079 They're really encouraging and friendly, and they show a real interest in you, 00:00:35.399 --> 00:00:40.640 and actually you want to do well in things just so that you can please them. 00:00:40.679 --> 00:00:43.760 I'm sure we've all come across people like that as well. 00:00:44.859 --> 00:00:48.219 Quite a few years ago in my work, I had a new boss, 00:00:48.439 --> 00:00:52.719 and as new bosses do, he came in and he wanted to make changes. 00:00:52.719 --> 00:01:01.060 And I felt that the changes that he imposed on us were unhelpful and were really quite demotivating for the staff. 00:01:01.560 --> 00:01:06.739 I didn't feel it was for the good of the department or indeed of the company. 00:01:07.939 --> 00:01:12.819 He in turn, I think, found me quite negative and perhaps felt I was a bit awkward, 00:01:12.939 --> 00:01:15.420 and probably he was right in that. 00:01:15.420 --> 00:01:19.680 That same year, I was involved in a big project. 00:01:19.920 --> 00:01:22.599 It was one of these projects where if you don't get it right, 00:01:22.859 --> 00:01:25.019 you're going to get a very big fine from the regulator, 00:01:25.200 --> 00:01:26.960 at least potentially even get shut down. 00:01:27.040 --> 00:01:29.079 It really needed to be done right. 00:01:29.640 --> 00:01:32.820 And I was responsible for delivering half of that project. 00:01:32.819 --> 00:01:38.019 And I got on really well with the person who was in overall charge. 00:01:38.559 --> 00:01:41.459 He made it clear that he trusted me, he bowed my expertise, 00:01:41.979 --> 00:01:47.239 and he was happy to let me get on with my part with as little interference as possible. 00:01:47.739 --> 00:01:49.799 And that project was a great success. 00:01:50.280 --> 00:01:53.139 I flourished under the trust that was given to me, 00:01:53.280 --> 00:01:56.019 and we delivered what we needed to. 00:01:57.000 --> 00:01:59.560 So my end of year appraisal that year was quite interesting. 00:01:59.560 --> 00:02:04.219 On the one hand, I had a boss who clearly didn't rate me and didn't think much of me. 00:02:04.680 --> 00:02:08.080 On the other hand, he was being told by the project that I'd done a good job, 00:02:08.360 --> 00:02:09.300 and we delivered. 00:02:10.280 --> 00:02:13.140 And I can remember saying to him during my appraisal interview, 00:02:13.659 --> 00:02:19.159 I'm not a different person when I'm doing the project from when I'm working for you. 00:02:19.819 --> 00:02:21.879 Now, one said, of course, that was absolutely right. 00:02:21.920 --> 00:02:23.379 I was exactly the same person. 00:02:24.400 --> 00:02:28.159 But actually, in the way I approached it, in my feelings about it, 00:02:28.159 --> 00:02:32.400 in my attitudes, you could argue I was a different person. 00:02:33.120 --> 00:02:35.039 One was bringing out the worst in me, 00:02:35.359 --> 00:02:38.500 and making me feel in many ways quite resentful and unhappy. 00:02:39.099 --> 00:02:40.879 The other was bringing out the best in me, 00:02:41.139 --> 00:02:45.439 and giving me the opportunity and the freedom to do well. 00:02:46.680 --> 00:02:50.219 Well, I think that these pictures are a quite good way 00:02:50.219 --> 00:02:53.620 for us to get into Romans chapter 7 and 8, 00:02:53.819 --> 00:02:56.599 that we're going to look at over the next few weeks. 00:02:56.599 --> 00:02:59.180 Because Paul says in these chapters, 00:02:59.680 --> 00:03:01.919 there's something that brings out the worst in us, 00:03:02.359 --> 00:03:05.579 and there's something that brings out the best in us. 00:03:06.060 --> 00:03:08.719 What brings out the worst in us is the law, 00:03:08.819 --> 00:03:11.959 and we'll talk about what the law is and means in a minute. 00:03:12.599 --> 00:03:15.199 And what brings out the best in us is the Spirit, 00:03:15.599 --> 00:03:20.479 the Holy Spirit that Jesus sent to his disciples. 00:03:20.479 --> 00:03:23.479 I could like equations, 00:03:23.639 --> 00:03:24.759 so let's have a couple of equations, 00:03:24.899 --> 00:03:26.759 and I think probably help illustrate that. 00:03:26.899 --> 00:03:28.979 Paul says the law plus the flesh, 00:03:29.299 --> 00:03:30.439 or the sinful nature, 00:03:30.519 --> 00:03:31.919 as I said in the version that Ruth read, 00:03:32.259 --> 00:03:34.479 our natural incarnations, 00:03:35.479 --> 00:03:37.859 leads to sin and death. 00:03:37.899 --> 00:03:40.579 That's very clearly in the passage that Ruth read to us. 00:03:40.639 --> 00:03:42.799 The law plus our sinful nature 00:03:42.799 --> 00:03:45.019 leads to sin and death. 00:03:45.020 --> 00:03:45.540 In other words, 00:03:45.640 --> 00:03:48.640 the law brings out the worst in us. 00:03:50.020 --> 00:03:52.439 But Paul also says that the grace of God 00:03:52.439 --> 00:03:53.600 plus the Spirit, 00:03:53.719 --> 00:03:54.620 the Holy Spirit, 00:03:55.000 --> 00:03:57.980 leads to righteousness and life. 00:03:58.439 --> 00:03:59.000 In other words, 00:03:59.080 --> 00:04:02.360 the Spirit brings out the best in us. 00:04:03.219 --> 00:04:06.080 If we know that God has worked in our lives 00:04:06.080 --> 00:04:06.939 through the Lord Jesus, 00:04:07.080 --> 00:04:08.680 and by his grace we've been forgiven 00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:10.760 for all of the wrong that we've done, 00:04:10.759 --> 00:04:13.019 and we want to please Jesus, 00:04:13.139 --> 00:04:14.079 then through the Spirit, 00:04:14.359 --> 00:04:15.399 we can do that, 00:04:15.500 --> 00:04:17.039 and we know that we have righteousness, 00:04:17.659 --> 00:04:20.959 and we have life through faith in Jesus. 00:04:22.420 --> 00:04:23.899 Now just to plan ahead, 00:04:24.000 --> 00:04:25.839 for the next couple of weeks in chapter 7, 00:04:25.879 --> 00:04:27.639 we're going to be looking mainly at the law, 00:04:28.039 --> 00:04:29.459 and then we go into chapter 8, 00:04:29.519 --> 00:04:30.860 and everything really brightens up, 00:04:31.139 --> 00:04:32.599 and that's about the Spirit 00:04:32.599 --> 00:04:35.920 and the difference that he makes in our lives. 00:04:36.399 --> 00:04:38.920 But today we're thinking particularly about the law 00:04:38.920 --> 00:04:41.980 and about our relationship with it. 00:04:42.259 --> 00:04:43.300 So maybe worth a minute, 00:04:43.540 --> 00:04:46.600 just thinking about what do we mean by the law. 00:04:47.759 --> 00:04:50.439 Paul is writing in the context of people, 00:04:50.560 --> 00:04:51.960 mainly as readers who were Jews, 00:04:52.040 --> 00:04:54.580 or who certainly knew the Jewish faith, 00:04:54.920 --> 00:04:57.420 and he is writing about the Jewish law. 00:04:57.879 --> 00:05:00.660 The law that was given to Moses on Mount Sinai, 00:05:01.220 --> 00:05:02.759 and that's recorded for us, 00:05:02.960 --> 00:05:05.220 particularly in the first five books of the Old Testament, 00:05:05.220 --> 00:05:07.220 but actually throughout the Old Testament. 00:05:07.220 --> 00:05:08.620 The law of Moses, 00:05:09.060 --> 00:05:13.480 the law that was given to the people of Israel. 00:05:13.720 --> 00:05:14.220 Now we might say, 00:05:14.280 --> 00:05:15.960 well that's not very relevant to us today, 00:05:16.020 --> 00:05:17.140 in one sense it's not, 00:05:17.560 --> 00:05:19.400 but so we could extend it a bit wider, 00:05:19.800 --> 00:05:21.520 and we could say it as instructions 00:05:21.520 --> 00:05:22.960 about how we should live, 00:05:23.260 --> 00:05:25.340 that we might try to keep to the letter, 00:05:25.760 --> 00:05:27.620 and try to be good, 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:30.880 and to please God through the things that we do. 00:05:31.000 --> 00:05:32.520 That was the law that was about, 00:05:32.620 --> 00:05:33.380 if you kept the law, 00:05:33.480 --> 00:05:34.760 said God you will live, 00:05:34.759 --> 00:05:36.420 if you don't keep the law, 00:05:36.639 --> 00:05:37.279 you'll die. 00:05:37.379 --> 00:05:38.339 The problem being of course, 00:05:38.639 --> 00:05:40.360 that no one could keep it completely, 00:05:40.819 --> 00:05:42.219 until Jesus came. 00:05:43.480 --> 00:05:45.560 The first thing I want to say about the law, 00:05:45.959 --> 00:05:48.180 is that the law is good. 00:05:48.759 --> 00:05:50.680 Now you might read the verse we read today, 00:05:50.759 --> 00:05:51.740 and quite a number of others, 00:05:51.980 --> 00:05:53.139 in the book of Romans, 00:05:53.339 --> 00:05:54.319 and think this law, 00:05:54.399 --> 00:05:55.599 it was a really bad thing. 00:05:55.680 --> 00:05:56.659 It held people back, 00:05:56.899 --> 00:05:59.000 it wasn't a good thing. 00:05:59.000 --> 00:06:01.459 If you're tempted to think that, 00:06:01.740 --> 00:06:03.319 can I suggest that you go home, 00:06:03.439 --> 00:06:05.220 and you read either Psalm 119, 00:06:05.459 --> 00:06:07.279 or if you feel that's going to take a bit too long, 00:06:07.540 --> 00:06:08.459 read Psalm 19, 00:06:09.040 --> 00:06:11.220 because both of them speak very positively, 00:06:11.620 --> 00:06:13.639 about God's law. 00:06:15.040 --> 00:06:16.579 Let me just read a few verses, 00:06:16.879 --> 00:06:17.759 from these Psalms. 00:06:17.819 --> 00:06:18.980 So Psalm 19 says, 00:06:19.120 --> 00:06:21.339 the law of the Lord is perfect, 00:06:22.000 --> 00:06:23.879 refreshing the soul. 00:06:24.879 --> 00:06:25.819 Psalm 119, 00:06:25.819 --> 00:06:28.240 Oh how I love your law, 00:06:28.719 --> 00:06:31.139 I meditate on it all day long. 00:06:31.219 --> 00:06:33.399 My soul is consumed with longing, 00:06:33.939 --> 00:06:37.079 for your laws at all times. 00:06:37.839 --> 00:06:39.439 So the psalmist tells us, 00:06:39.719 --> 00:06:40.920 that God's law is good, 00:06:40.980 --> 00:06:42.199 if we meditate on it, 00:06:42.439 --> 00:06:43.740 if we love it, 00:06:43.939 --> 00:06:45.360 then it's a good thing, 00:06:45.639 --> 00:06:48.480 and it can bring great delight to us. 00:06:49.500 --> 00:06:50.600 But the problem was, 00:06:50.680 --> 00:06:52.560 that the experience of people of the law, 00:06:52.980 --> 00:06:54.579 didn't always reflect that, 00:06:54.579 --> 00:06:56.459 and particularly by the time Paul was writing, 00:06:56.579 --> 00:06:57.259 the time of Jesus, 00:06:57.259 --> 00:06:59.019 and that kind of time, 00:06:59.459 --> 00:07:00.959 the law had come to mean something, 00:07:01.099 --> 00:07:02.759 that perhaps was a little bit different. 00:07:02.899 --> 00:07:04.859 It was something that was imposed on the people, 00:07:05.159 --> 00:07:06.459 we read about the Pharisees, 00:07:06.560 --> 00:07:07.259 and the Gospels, 00:07:08.120 --> 00:07:09.879 who would add to the law, 00:07:09.979 --> 00:07:11.180 or would interpret the law, 00:07:11.439 --> 00:07:13.139 and it became a real burden, 00:07:13.599 --> 00:07:14.379 for people. 00:07:15.379 --> 00:07:17.519 And although the law itself is good, 00:07:17.519 --> 00:07:19.699 Paul tells us, 00:07:20.399 --> 00:07:23.740 that it brings out the bad in us. 00:07:24.419 --> 00:07:25.439 The law is good, 00:07:25.979 --> 00:07:29.339 but actually because we have a sinful nature, 00:07:29.439 --> 00:07:30.539 because our natural inclination, 00:07:30.659 --> 00:07:31.899 is not to do what is right, 00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:33.359 and to obey the law, 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:36.579 it brings out the worst in us. 00:07:37.279 --> 00:07:40.259 So a few verses that Paul writes a bit earlier, 00:07:40.259 --> 00:07:41.060 in the book of Romans. 00:07:41.139 --> 00:07:42.259 Romans chapter 3, 00:07:42.259 --> 00:07:44.740 No one will be declared righteous, 00:07:45.079 --> 00:07:46.079 in God's sight, 00:07:46.159 --> 00:07:47.420 by the works of the law, 00:07:48.099 --> 00:07:49.639 rather through the law, 00:07:49.899 --> 00:07:52.579 we become conscious of our sin. 00:07:53.519 --> 00:07:54.519 When we see the law, 00:07:54.599 --> 00:07:55.719 and the kind of standards, 00:07:55.719 --> 00:07:58.000 that the law imposes on us, 00:07:58.399 --> 00:08:00.719 we recognize that we can't keep it, 00:08:00.939 --> 00:08:02.120 and we become aware, 00:08:02.360 --> 00:08:04.639 of just how sinful we are. 00:08:04.719 --> 00:08:06.139 So in the next verse after that, 00:08:06.240 --> 00:08:06.639 Paul says, 00:08:06.740 --> 00:08:08.060 Now apart from the law, 00:08:08.060 --> 00:08:09.800 the righteousness of God, 00:08:09.879 --> 00:08:11.779 has been made known. 00:08:11.779 --> 00:08:13.099 And that righteousness is through, 00:08:13.299 --> 00:08:14.339 the Lord Jesus. 00:08:14.959 --> 00:08:16.239 But later on chapter 4, 00:08:16.359 --> 00:08:16.799 Paul writes, 00:08:16.899 --> 00:08:18.139 The law brings wrath, 00:08:18.719 --> 00:08:20.339 and where there is no law, 00:08:20.759 --> 00:08:23.059 there is no transgression. 00:08:24.479 --> 00:08:25.799 Paul in the next few verses, 00:08:25.919 --> 00:08:26.859 in Romans chapter 7, 00:08:26.899 --> 00:08:28.599 is going to write a bit more about the law, 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:30.539 and how just knowing the law, 00:08:30.639 --> 00:08:32.059 and knowing what we shouldn't do, 00:08:32.500 --> 00:08:34.279 in many ways encourages us, 00:08:34.360 --> 00:08:35.500 to do the very things, 00:08:35.500 --> 00:08:36.779 we wouldn't want to do, 00:08:37.039 --> 00:08:38.600 because of the sinful nature, 00:08:38.740 --> 00:08:41.279 because of our natural inclinations. 00:08:41.779 --> 00:08:43.220 So the law says, 00:08:43.360 --> 00:08:44.419 Paul is good, 00:08:45.059 --> 00:08:46.360 but it brings out, 00:08:46.360 --> 00:08:48.399 the bad in us. 00:08:49.059 --> 00:08:50.559 The law brings out, 00:08:50.779 --> 00:08:52.480 the worst in us. 00:08:53.659 --> 00:08:54.199 And so, 00:08:54.439 --> 00:08:55.860 being free from the law, 00:08:56.179 --> 00:08:56.899 Paul says, 00:08:57.120 --> 00:08:58.299 is a really important, 00:08:59.299 --> 00:09:00.659 and valuable thing. 00:09:00.699 --> 00:09:01.779 And that's what these verses, 00:09:01.879 --> 00:09:03.059 that we're looking at this morning, 00:09:03.360 --> 00:09:05.079 are especially about. 00:09:05.600 --> 00:09:06.839 Paul is saying to us, 00:09:06.840 --> 00:09:08.660 you are not bound by the law, 00:09:08.720 --> 00:09:09.360 and you have to look and say, 00:09:09.420 --> 00:09:10.100 have I got this right, 00:09:10.139 --> 00:09:11.080 have I got that right, 00:09:11.379 --> 00:09:13.240 and am I justified before God, 00:09:13.320 --> 00:09:14.500 for all that I've done. 00:09:15.240 --> 00:09:15.660 Rather, 00:09:15.800 --> 00:09:16.600 you can have a freedom, 00:09:16.600 --> 00:09:17.940 to be free from the law, 00:09:18.220 --> 00:09:19.519 and to please God, 00:09:19.920 --> 00:09:21.360 through his spirit. 00:09:22.500 --> 00:09:23.280 So let's just walk through, 00:09:23.280 --> 00:09:24.300 these verses quickly, 00:09:24.740 --> 00:09:26.160 and then we'll bring together, 00:09:26.300 --> 00:09:27.620 a few applications. 00:09:29.160 --> 00:09:30.060 So on verse 1, 00:09:30.180 --> 00:09:30.800 Paul states, 00:09:30.860 --> 00:09:31.920 a rather obvious, 00:09:32.120 --> 00:09:32.900 legal principle. 00:09:33.659 --> 00:09:34.600 The principle is, 00:09:34.879 --> 00:09:35.720 if you die, 00:09:36.000 --> 00:09:37.379 you're no longer subject, 00:09:37.379 --> 00:09:38.500 to the law. 00:09:38.860 --> 00:09:39.519 And that could apply, 00:09:39.659 --> 00:09:40.480 to any kind of law, 00:09:40.539 --> 00:09:41.779 not just the Jewish law, 00:09:42.199 --> 00:09:43.039 if you die, 00:09:43.360 --> 00:09:44.799 you're no longer subject, 00:09:45.340 --> 00:09:46.059 to the law. 00:09:47.480 --> 00:09:47.819 It is, 00:09:47.919 --> 00:09:48.799 I think for many people, 00:09:48.799 --> 00:09:50.039 who have been victims of crimes, 00:09:50.600 --> 00:09:52.139 a great burden, 00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:52.860 that the people, 00:09:53.220 --> 00:09:54.879 who committed these crimes, 00:09:54.939 --> 00:09:55.639 against them, 00:09:55.919 --> 00:09:56.679 weren't discovered, 00:09:56.779 --> 00:09:58.000 until they had died, 00:09:58.120 --> 00:09:58.919 and they were beyond, 00:09:59.039 --> 00:09:59.980 the reach of the law, 00:10:00.340 --> 00:10:01.360 and therefore couldn't, 00:10:01.419 --> 00:10:02.100 in this world, 00:10:02.100 --> 00:10:03.820 be punished appropriately, 00:10:04.139 --> 00:10:05.159 for what they'd done. 00:10:05.240 --> 00:10:06.379 Because they died, 00:10:06.800 --> 00:10:08.019 they were beyond, 00:10:08.340 --> 00:10:08.840 the law. 00:10:08.980 --> 00:10:09.860 So once you die, 00:10:10.180 --> 00:10:11.340 you're not subject, 00:10:11.899 --> 00:10:12.460 to the law. 00:10:14.159 --> 00:10:14.659 Paul then, 00:10:14.820 --> 00:10:15.700 illustrates this, 00:10:15.980 --> 00:10:17.019 by writing about, 00:10:17.360 --> 00:10:17.860 marriage. 00:10:18.460 --> 00:10:20.360 And about the lifelong bond, 00:10:20.440 --> 00:10:21.180 that is marriage, 00:10:21.540 --> 00:10:22.500 but that stops, 00:10:22.860 --> 00:10:23.980 on death. 00:10:25.040 --> 00:10:25.580 Now I want to say, 00:10:25.659 --> 00:10:26.120 two things, 00:10:26.200 --> 00:10:26.940 by way of warning, 00:10:27.040 --> 00:10:28.139 before we start looking, 00:10:28.460 --> 00:10:29.779 at these verses. 00:10:30.540 --> 00:10:31.700 The first thing is, 00:10:31.700 --> 00:10:33.000 we shouldn't treat this, 00:10:33.000 --> 00:10:34.060 as an allegory, 00:10:34.180 --> 00:10:34.680 it's an illustration. 00:10:35.440 --> 00:10:36.259 So we shouldn't look at, 00:10:36.320 --> 00:10:37.580 everything that Paul says, 00:10:37.820 --> 00:10:38.379 and think, 00:10:38.640 --> 00:10:39.740 this has some kind of, 00:10:39.780 --> 00:10:40.800 direct application, 00:10:41.220 --> 00:10:43.060 over to my situation. 00:10:43.860 --> 00:10:44.680 In particular, 00:10:44.800 --> 00:10:45.379 if you think through, 00:10:45.460 --> 00:10:46.520 what Paul's writing about, 00:10:46.640 --> 00:10:47.759 he talks about a wife, 00:10:48.040 --> 00:10:48.940 whose husband dies, 00:10:48.980 --> 00:10:49.660 and she's free, 00:10:49.980 --> 00:10:51.540 from the law of marriage. 00:10:51.980 --> 00:10:52.680 And then he goes on, 00:10:52.700 --> 00:10:53.879 to talk about us dying, 00:10:54.180 --> 00:10:54.879 and being free, 00:10:54.980 --> 00:10:56.080 to be related to Christ. 00:10:56.160 --> 00:10:56.720 So it's the person, 00:10:56.780 --> 00:10:57.480 who's died now, 00:10:57.520 --> 00:10:58.120 rather than the person, 00:10:58.160 --> 00:10:58.900 who's still alive, 00:10:58.899 --> 00:11:00.759 that is in the relationship. 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:02.539 Paul isn't making a mistake, 00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:03.659 or getting muddled here, 00:11:03.919 --> 00:11:04.600 he's just using, 00:11:04.639 --> 00:11:05.559 a simple illustration, 00:11:06.039 --> 00:11:07.319 and then taking something, 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:09.059 on from it. 00:11:10.019 --> 00:11:10.500 Second thing, 00:11:10.579 --> 00:11:10.899 I think we need, 00:11:10.939 --> 00:11:11.819 to be careful about, 00:11:12.139 --> 00:11:13.240 is this is not, 00:11:13.379 --> 00:11:14.259 Paul expounding, 00:11:14.439 --> 00:11:15.360 everything you need, 00:11:15.419 --> 00:11:16.720 to know about marriage. 00:11:17.299 --> 00:11:17.980 He's just using, 00:11:18.059 --> 00:11:19.079 a simple illustration, 00:11:19.639 --> 00:11:20.600 and in particular, 00:11:20.699 --> 00:11:21.199 he's not saying, 00:11:21.299 --> 00:11:22.699 anything about divorce. 00:11:23.659 --> 00:11:24.259 The Lord Jesus, 00:11:24.360 --> 00:11:25.059 gives us teaching, 00:11:25.179 --> 00:11:25.659 on divorce, 00:11:25.759 --> 00:11:26.600 and particularly divorce, 00:11:26.600 --> 00:11:28.279 is valid in the case of, 00:11:28.460 --> 00:11:28.860 where there's been, 00:11:28.920 --> 00:11:29.500 unfaithfulness, 00:11:29.879 --> 00:11:31.040 in the marriage. 00:11:31.460 --> 00:11:32.159 Paul is not, 00:11:32.259 --> 00:11:32.779 in any way, 00:11:32.899 --> 00:11:34.040 contradicting that. 00:11:34.399 --> 00:11:35.019 He's giving us, 00:11:35.060 --> 00:11:36.139 a general principle, 00:11:36.519 --> 00:11:37.620 that applies to marriage. 00:11:38.040 --> 00:11:38.820 He's not trying, 00:11:38.820 --> 00:11:39.320 to give us, 00:11:39.379 --> 00:11:40.300 all the details, 00:11:40.639 --> 00:11:41.920 and all the rules, 00:11:42.139 --> 00:11:43.580 that might apply. 00:11:44.500 --> 00:11:45.240 Having said that, 00:11:45.420 --> 00:11:46.680 what does his illustration, 00:11:47.200 --> 00:11:47.840 teach us? 00:11:49.220 --> 00:11:50.360 So Paul says, 00:11:50.960 --> 00:11:51.779 when you're married, 00:11:52.300 --> 00:11:53.000 you're married, 00:11:53.340 --> 00:11:54.100 for life. 00:11:54.800 --> 00:11:55.259 And the way, 00:11:55.340 --> 00:11:56.519 we put it these days, 00:11:56.600 --> 00:11:57.360 you're married, 00:11:57.480 --> 00:11:58.000 for better, 00:11:58.519 --> 00:11:59.200 for worse. 00:12:00.019 --> 00:12:00.960 Some of us are blessed, 00:12:01.080 --> 00:12:01.960 with happy marriages, 00:12:02.420 --> 00:12:04.100 and with wonderful spouses, 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:05.080 with all of our moments, 00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:05.940 but generally, 00:12:06.040 --> 00:12:07.180 our marriage is very happy. 00:12:07.840 --> 00:12:08.560 Other people, 00:12:08.680 --> 00:12:09.600 marriages are not, 00:12:09.600 --> 00:12:10.420 so happy. 00:12:11.060 --> 00:12:11.720 And marriage, 00:12:11.800 --> 00:12:12.440 can become, 00:12:12.700 --> 00:12:14.080 a real burden. 00:12:14.800 --> 00:12:15.519 Perhaps the person, 00:12:15.620 --> 00:12:15.940 you married, 00:12:16.080 --> 00:12:16.460 changes. 00:12:17.159 --> 00:12:18.100 Or perhaps, 00:12:18.200 --> 00:12:18.600 you realize, 00:12:18.659 --> 00:12:19.360 you made a mistake, 00:12:19.440 --> 00:12:19.940 at the beginning, 00:12:20.100 --> 00:12:21.279 and they weren't quite, 00:12:21.279 --> 00:12:21.940 the person, 00:12:22.220 --> 00:12:22.820 you thought, 00:12:23.139 --> 00:12:23.800 they were. 00:12:24.799 --> 00:12:25.939 And that is very sad, 00:12:25.979 --> 00:12:26.879 when that happens, 00:12:27.199 --> 00:12:28.519 but it doesn't break down, 00:12:28.599 --> 00:12:29.599 the basic principle, 00:12:30.159 --> 00:12:30.879 that marriage, 00:12:31.000 --> 00:12:32.399 is for life. 00:12:33.419 --> 00:12:33.659 Now, 00:12:33.699 --> 00:12:34.579 if we expand a little on that, 00:12:34.759 --> 00:12:35.439 we can imagine, 00:12:35.559 --> 00:12:36.479 Paul thinking here, 00:12:36.559 --> 00:12:37.139 about a woman, 00:12:37.259 --> 00:12:38.319 who's gotten to a marriage, 00:12:38.519 --> 00:12:39.240 that has turned out, 00:12:39.279 --> 00:12:40.099 to be quite unhappy. 00:12:40.179 --> 00:12:40.579 It's turned out, 00:12:40.579 --> 00:12:41.339 to be quite unhappy, 00:12:41.679 --> 00:12:42.620 because her husband, 00:12:42.740 --> 00:12:44.139 is so demanding. 00:12:44.859 --> 00:12:45.699 He's telling her, 00:12:45.699 --> 00:12:46.799 all sorts of things, 00:12:46.839 --> 00:12:47.740 that she has to do, 00:12:47.779 --> 00:12:48.599 and can't do, 00:12:48.600 --> 00:12:49.899 and she finds it, 00:12:49.920 --> 00:12:50.960 a real burden. 00:12:51.700 --> 00:12:52.879 She just can't do, 00:12:52.879 --> 00:12:54.159 anything that seems, 00:12:54.540 --> 00:12:55.300 to please him. 00:12:55.680 --> 00:12:57.120 However hard she tries, 00:12:57.399 --> 00:12:58.519 she falls short, 00:12:58.779 --> 00:13:00.100 and she's not able, 00:13:00.460 --> 00:13:01.960 to give him, 00:13:02.040 --> 00:13:02.820 the satisfaction, 00:13:03.340 --> 00:13:04.080 that she really, 00:13:04.440 --> 00:13:05.759 would like to. 00:13:06.519 --> 00:13:07.300 Paul says, 00:13:07.600 --> 00:13:08.159 that person, 00:13:08.259 --> 00:13:08.680 in the marriage, 00:13:08.740 --> 00:13:09.440 which in many ways, 00:13:09.480 --> 00:13:09.980 is unhappy, 00:13:10.060 --> 00:13:10.560 if the husband, 00:13:10.560 --> 00:13:11.500 should then die, 00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:12.420 she's freed, 00:13:12.420 --> 00:13:13.080 from the marriage, 00:13:13.160 --> 00:13:13.460 no doubt, 00:13:13.540 --> 00:13:14.420 mourning her husband, 00:13:14.840 --> 00:13:15.700 but at the same time, 00:13:15.740 --> 00:13:16.279 perhaps feeling, 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:16.820 liberated, 00:13:16.820 --> 00:13:18.840 by the fact, 00:13:18.940 --> 00:13:20.160 that she's free, 00:13:20.400 --> 00:13:21.320 herself now, 00:13:21.700 --> 00:13:22.420 and particularly, 00:13:22.600 --> 00:13:23.620 if she finds someone else, 00:13:23.660 --> 00:13:24.760 she falls in love with, 00:13:24.980 --> 00:13:26.860 she's free to marry them. 00:13:27.440 --> 00:13:27.879 Marriage, 00:13:28.120 --> 00:13:29.020 is for life, 00:13:29.700 --> 00:13:31.080 but when one partner dies, 00:13:31.360 --> 00:13:32.220 the other partner, 00:13:32.500 --> 00:13:33.240 is free, 00:13:33.600 --> 00:13:34.900 to marry again. 00:13:35.320 --> 00:13:35.620 Again, 00:13:35.700 --> 00:13:36.420 very obvious, 00:13:36.580 --> 00:13:37.800 and in many ways, 00:13:37.879 --> 00:13:38.660 quite straightforward. 00:13:40.080 --> 00:13:41.020 So Paul then, 00:13:41.300 --> 00:13:42.180 applies that. 00:13:42.800 --> 00:13:43.560 So verse 4, 00:13:43.800 --> 00:13:45.600 is key to the passage here. 00:13:45.600 --> 00:13:48.000 So Paul says to us, 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:49.320 the law, 00:13:49.580 --> 00:13:50.259 is like, 00:13:50.620 --> 00:13:52.080 a married partner to us, 00:13:52.519 --> 00:13:53.759 or was to him, 00:13:53.820 --> 00:13:54.879 and to the other Jews. 00:13:55.700 --> 00:13:56.519 While the law, 00:13:56.800 --> 00:13:57.560 still applied, 00:13:57.680 --> 00:13:58.580 while both were, 00:13:58.680 --> 00:14:00.220 alive if you like, 00:14:00.600 --> 00:14:01.519 they had to try, 00:14:01.659 --> 00:14:02.639 to obey the law, 00:14:02.940 --> 00:14:04.680 and to satisfy its demands, 00:14:05.080 --> 00:14:05.960 even knowing, 00:14:06.139 --> 00:14:07.300 that they never actually, 00:14:07.300 --> 00:14:08.320 could do it. 00:14:09.040 --> 00:14:10.180 Because the demands, 00:14:10.220 --> 00:14:10.660 of the law, 00:14:10.779 --> 00:14:11.759 were so strong, 00:14:11.759 --> 00:14:12.819 and so, 00:14:13.080 --> 00:14:14.819 against our natural, 00:14:14.819 --> 00:14:16.039 inclinations, 00:14:16.460 --> 00:14:17.120 it was, 00:14:17.299 --> 00:14:17.980 impossible, 00:14:18.620 --> 00:14:19.620 to be completely, 00:14:19.620 --> 00:14:20.539 obedient, 00:14:21.200 --> 00:14:21.799 to the law. 00:14:23.080 --> 00:14:24.100 But says Paul, 00:14:24.600 --> 00:14:25.379 there's been a death. 00:14:26.319 --> 00:14:26.799 And the death, 00:14:26.919 --> 00:14:28.019 is not of the law, 00:14:28.360 --> 00:14:29.419 that the law, 00:14:29.659 --> 00:14:30.100 has changed, 00:14:30.179 --> 00:14:31.000 in that sense. 00:14:31.480 --> 00:14:32.019 The death, 00:14:32.159 --> 00:14:32.899 is of me, 00:14:33.179 --> 00:14:34.259 as a Christian. 00:14:35.299 --> 00:14:35.860 That as Paul, 00:14:35.899 --> 00:14:37.080 is explained in chapter 6, 00:14:37.139 --> 00:14:37.879 and comes elsewhere, 00:14:38.379 --> 00:14:39.899 in the New Testament, 00:14:39.899 --> 00:14:41.819 when we become a Christian, 00:14:42.319 --> 00:14:43.199 it is as if, 00:14:43.340 --> 00:14:44.360 we died, 00:14:44.600 --> 00:14:45.240 with Christ. 00:14:45.299 --> 00:14:45.759 Now obviously, 00:14:45.860 --> 00:14:47.220 we didn't literally die, 00:14:47.519 --> 00:14:48.600 with Christ, 00:14:48.659 --> 00:14:49.439 with his body, 00:14:49.759 --> 00:14:50.779 or on the cross. 00:14:51.299 --> 00:14:51.799 But nevertheless, 00:14:52.120 --> 00:14:52.840 Paul says, 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:53.799 we have died, 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:54.360 to the law, 00:14:54.419 --> 00:14:54.639 and grace, 00:14:54.720 --> 00:14:54.879 he says, 00:14:55.019 --> 00:14:56.220 I've been crucified, 00:14:56.439 --> 00:14:56.919 with Christ, 00:14:57.039 --> 00:14:58.299 nevertheless I live, 00:14:58.939 --> 00:14:59.419 not I, 00:14:59.480 --> 00:15:00.759 but Christ lives in me. 00:15:01.340 --> 00:15:01.959 And he says, 00:15:01.959 --> 00:15:02.319 now, 00:15:02.500 --> 00:15:03.899 you have died in Christ, 00:15:04.419 --> 00:15:05.679 you have been raised in Christ, 00:15:05.740 --> 00:15:06.539 and we came across that, 00:15:06.600 --> 00:15:07.460 in chapter 6. 00:15:08.419 --> 00:15:09.799 So you now belong, 00:15:10.240 --> 00:15:11.279 to Christ. 00:15:12.079 --> 00:15:12.740 You don't belong, 00:15:12.860 --> 00:15:13.340 to the law, 00:15:13.419 --> 00:15:14.059 you're not subject, 00:15:14.059 --> 00:15:14.720 to the law, 00:15:15.100 --> 00:15:16.299 you belong to Christ, 00:15:16.519 --> 00:15:17.679 and because you belong, 00:15:17.819 --> 00:15:18.379 to Christ, 00:15:18.720 --> 00:15:20.199 you can bear fruit, 00:15:20.639 --> 00:15:21.799 for God. 00:15:22.279 --> 00:15:22.779 You are able, 00:15:22.899 --> 00:15:24.120 to do what is right, 00:15:24.459 --> 00:15:25.860 and pleasing to God, 00:15:26.139 --> 00:15:27.459 and what is really helpful, 00:15:27.459 --> 00:15:28.559 to others as well, 00:15:28.899 --> 00:15:30.259 and will help them, 00:15:30.259 --> 00:15:31.299 in their Christian life, 00:15:31.500 --> 00:15:32.179 or help them, 00:15:32.259 --> 00:15:33.079 to come to know, 00:15:33.220 --> 00:15:33.779 God, 00:15:33.899 --> 00:15:34.899 for themselves. 00:15:35.620 --> 00:15:36.159 You've died, 00:15:36.279 --> 00:15:36.860 to the law, 00:15:37.299 --> 00:15:38.019 you're alive, 00:15:38.120 --> 00:15:38.740 in Christ, 00:15:38.740 --> 00:15:39.580 and now, 00:15:39.680 --> 00:15:40.659 your allegiance is to Christ, 00:15:40.700 --> 00:15:41.779 not to try and do, 00:15:41.779 --> 00:15:42.919 the letter of the law, 00:15:43.159 --> 00:15:43.940 to do exactly, 00:15:43.940 --> 00:15:45.740 what the Old Testament law said, 00:15:46.019 --> 00:15:47.279 but to please Christ, 00:15:47.720 --> 00:15:48.580 and to live, 00:15:49.000 --> 00:15:49.620 for him. 00:15:51.659 --> 00:15:52.000 And so, 00:15:52.080 --> 00:15:53.220 that is the new reality, 00:15:53.700 --> 00:15:54.560 that we read about, 00:15:54.700 --> 00:15:55.740 in verses 5, 00:15:56.039 --> 00:15:56.700 and 6. 00:15:57.379 --> 00:15:57.580 So, 00:15:57.659 --> 00:15:58.360 Paul says, 00:15:58.480 --> 00:15:58.860 when we are, 00:15:58.899 --> 00:15:59.419 my verse says, 00:15:59.500 --> 00:16:00.539 in the realm of the flesh, 00:16:00.620 --> 00:16:01.820 or in our sinful nature, 00:16:01.820 --> 00:16:03.000 and, 00:16:03.240 --> 00:16:04.720 the sinful passions, 00:16:04.800 --> 00:16:05.760 that the law aroused, 00:16:05.840 --> 00:16:06.640 were working us, 00:16:06.680 --> 00:16:06.840 so, 00:16:07.000 --> 00:16:07.820 we saw the law, 00:16:07.900 --> 00:16:09.200 we saw what we had to do, 00:16:09.540 --> 00:16:10.780 and we didn't do it. 00:16:11.540 --> 00:16:12.800 Because our sinful nature, 00:16:12.920 --> 00:16:13.600 is so opposed, 00:16:13.700 --> 00:16:14.860 to what the law demanded, 00:16:15.160 --> 00:16:16.560 we just couldn't keep it, 00:16:16.840 --> 00:16:17.580 we couldn't, 00:16:17.580 --> 00:16:18.600 please God, 00:16:18.920 --> 00:16:19.620 through it. 00:16:20.540 --> 00:16:21.400 But now, 00:16:22.060 --> 00:16:22.540 now, 00:16:23.000 --> 00:16:23.680 we've died, 00:16:23.780 --> 00:16:24.740 to what once bound us, 00:16:24.800 --> 00:16:25.340 we've died, 00:16:25.340 --> 00:16:26.100 to the law, 00:16:26.620 --> 00:16:27.780 and we've been released, 00:16:28.000 --> 00:16:28.520 from the law, 00:16:28.900 --> 00:16:29.940 so that we serve, 00:16:30.260 --> 00:16:31.640 in the spirit. 00:16:32.240 --> 00:16:32.720 And we serve, 00:16:32.840 --> 00:16:34.340 not because we have to, 00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:35.820 because that is the thing, 00:16:35.879 --> 00:16:36.580 that is going to, 00:16:36.780 --> 00:16:37.379 bring us, 00:16:37.600 --> 00:16:38.980 forgiveness from God, 00:16:39.120 --> 00:16:40.860 or make us please God, 00:16:41.100 --> 00:16:42.620 and be saved through it. 00:16:42.960 --> 00:16:43.580 We serve, 00:16:43.680 --> 00:16:44.840 because we want to, 00:16:45.300 --> 00:16:46.640 because the Holy Spirit, 00:16:46.740 --> 00:16:47.680 and our love for Jesus, 00:16:47.780 --> 00:16:48.540 and our desire, 00:16:48.879 --> 00:16:50.700 to do what he wants us to do, 00:16:51.020 --> 00:16:51.860 helps us to do, 00:16:51.940 --> 00:16:52.640 what is right, 00:16:53.060 --> 00:16:54.060 rather than to do, 00:16:54.060 --> 00:16:54.960 what was wrong, 00:16:55.300 --> 00:16:56.360 as we used to, 00:16:56.700 --> 00:16:57.700 in the past. 00:16:58.660 --> 00:16:59.480 The law is good, 00:17:00.500 --> 00:17:01.580 but it brings out the bad, 00:17:01.580 --> 00:17:02.020 in us. 00:17:02.720 --> 00:17:03.639 We have been freed, 00:17:03.759 --> 00:17:04.420 says Paul, 00:17:04.579 --> 00:17:05.519 from the law, 00:17:05.880 --> 00:17:06.700 by our faith, 00:17:07.079 --> 00:17:08.160 in the Lord Jesus. 00:17:09.000 --> 00:17:10.319 And because of that, 00:17:10.660 --> 00:17:11.460 we are able, 00:17:11.600 --> 00:17:12.539 to serve God, 00:17:12.880 --> 00:17:14.079 and to please him, 00:17:14.500 --> 00:17:15.360 and to live, 00:17:15.940 --> 00:17:16.480 for him. 00:17:17.960 --> 00:17:18.559 Now what does that mean, 00:17:18.620 --> 00:17:19.000 for us? 00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:20.960 Let's talk, 00:17:21.059 --> 00:17:21.680 for a little bit, 00:17:21.920 --> 00:17:22.640 about, 00:17:23.039 --> 00:17:23.299 me, 00:17:23.640 --> 00:17:24.360 and the law. 00:17:24.519 --> 00:17:24.940 And I said, 00:17:25.019 --> 00:17:25.440 at the beginning, 00:17:25.740 --> 00:17:26.640 for most of us, 00:17:27.000 --> 00:17:27.900 that the law of Moses, 00:17:27.900 --> 00:17:28.559 isn't something, 00:17:28.559 --> 00:17:29.700 that's on our minds. 00:17:29.779 --> 00:17:30.720 We don't spend our days, 00:17:30.779 --> 00:17:31.240 going through, 00:17:31.319 --> 00:17:31.759 Leviticus, 00:17:31.960 --> 00:17:32.619 and Numbers, 00:17:32.940 --> 00:17:33.799 and saying, 00:17:34.079 --> 00:17:35.399 am I doing exactly, 00:17:35.440 --> 00:17:36.839 what the law says here? 00:17:37.039 --> 00:17:38.240 Am I being obedient, 00:17:38.240 --> 00:17:39.039 to it? 00:17:39.039 --> 00:17:39.940 Of course we don't. 00:17:40.319 --> 00:17:41.519 So from that point of view, 00:17:41.799 --> 00:17:42.740 the law that Paul, 00:17:42.740 --> 00:17:43.460 talks about, 00:17:43.839 --> 00:17:44.839 isn't directly, 00:17:44.839 --> 00:17:46.480 relevant to us. 00:17:48.139 --> 00:17:48.480 And yet, 00:17:48.539 --> 00:17:49.220 it's not true, 00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:49.639 either, 00:17:49.700 --> 00:17:50.319 to say, 00:17:50.579 --> 00:17:51.339 that we have, 00:17:51.579 --> 00:17:52.319 no standards. 00:17:53.119 --> 00:17:54.200 That there is nothing, 00:17:54.200 --> 00:17:55.279 that should guide us, 00:17:55.480 --> 00:17:56.659 and direct us, 00:17:56.859 --> 00:17:57.379 in our, 00:17:57.379 --> 00:17:58.619 Christian lives. 00:17:59.399 --> 00:18:00.399 Although we may say, 00:18:00.480 --> 00:18:02.000 the law of the Old Testament, 00:18:02.439 --> 00:18:03.259 no longer, 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:04.159 binds us. 00:18:04.740 --> 00:18:05.480 As we read, 00:18:05.599 --> 00:18:06.599 through the New Testament, 00:18:07.079 --> 00:18:07.740 we find that, 00:18:07.879 --> 00:18:08.700 many of the things, 00:18:08.799 --> 00:18:10.079 almost all of the commandments, 00:18:10.579 --> 00:18:11.740 in the Old Testament, 00:18:12.159 --> 00:18:12.740 are repeated, 00:18:12.859 --> 00:18:13.939 in one form or another, 00:18:14.339 --> 00:18:15.099 for Christians. 00:18:15.159 --> 00:18:16.220 Because they are good, 00:18:16.339 --> 00:18:17.599 they represent to us, 00:18:17.899 --> 00:18:18.859 God's way of living, 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:20.519 and how we should live, 00:18:20.519 --> 00:18:22.500 for one another, 00:18:22.700 --> 00:18:23.400 and particularly, 00:18:23.960 --> 00:18:25.400 for the Lord Jesus. 00:18:27.279 --> 00:18:27.839 And so, 00:18:27.940 --> 00:18:28.720 if we are thinking about, 00:18:28.839 --> 00:18:29.139 the law, 00:18:29.220 --> 00:18:30.359 and how it applies to us, 00:18:30.900 --> 00:18:31.839 let's think about, 00:18:32.000 --> 00:18:33.160 what we might do, 00:18:33.480 --> 00:18:34.339 that is good, 00:18:34.779 --> 00:18:35.900 that is in keeping, 00:18:36.279 --> 00:18:37.180 with what God, 00:18:37.299 --> 00:18:38.279 wants us to do, 00:18:38.579 --> 00:18:39.579 and what our attitude, 00:18:39.819 --> 00:18:41.079 to that is. 00:18:43.599 --> 00:18:44.079 So, 00:18:44.200 --> 00:18:44.680 first attitude, 00:18:44.819 --> 00:18:45.660 might be what I've called, 00:18:45.819 --> 00:18:47.279 guilty legalism. 00:18:48.099 --> 00:18:49.299 We might say, 00:18:49.639 --> 00:18:50.500 I see what the Bible, 00:18:50.519 --> 00:18:51.119 says, 00:18:51.200 --> 00:18:52.599 I see the kind of instructions, 00:18:52.599 --> 00:18:54.180 that God gives us here, 00:18:54.599 --> 00:18:55.799 I know in my heart, 00:18:55.859 --> 00:18:56.960 a lot of what's right, 00:18:57.180 --> 00:18:58.299 and what's wrong, 00:18:58.619 --> 00:19:00.720 and I need to do right, 00:19:00.920 --> 00:19:02.539 so that I can earn, 00:19:02.779 --> 00:19:04.220 God's forgiveness, 00:19:04.720 --> 00:19:06.119 and have a relationship, 00:19:06.559 --> 00:19:07.119 with him. 00:19:07.460 --> 00:19:08.799 I need to try, 00:19:08.980 --> 00:19:09.799 really hard, 00:19:10.059 --> 00:19:11.299 to do my best, 00:19:11.539 --> 00:19:12.099 so that, 00:19:12.200 --> 00:19:13.039 I can win, 00:19:13.160 --> 00:19:14.339 God's favor. 00:19:15.660 --> 00:19:16.220 I've called it, 00:19:16.259 --> 00:19:17.200 guilty legalism, 00:19:17.480 --> 00:19:18.960 because if we do that, 00:19:18.960 --> 00:19:20.779 we're going to fail. 00:19:21.400 --> 00:19:22.480 As all the people, 00:19:22.660 --> 00:19:23.420 in the Old Testament, 00:19:23.620 --> 00:19:23.860 fails, 00:19:23.940 --> 00:19:24.799 and we have this long, 00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:25.900 catalogue, 00:19:26.000 --> 00:19:27.180 of the failures of Israel, 00:19:27.539 --> 00:19:28.460 as we read through, 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:29.279 the Old Testament. 00:19:30.420 --> 00:19:31.539 If we have the same, 00:19:31.600 --> 00:19:32.220 kind of attitude, 00:19:32.380 --> 00:19:32.660 and we think, 00:19:32.759 --> 00:19:33.500 I must do, 00:19:33.640 --> 00:19:34.620 certain things, 00:19:34.740 --> 00:19:35.860 and if I do them, 00:19:36.039 --> 00:19:37.299 I will please God, 00:19:37.440 --> 00:19:38.059 and everything, 00:19:38.059 --> 00:19:39.059 will be all right, 00:19:39.240 --> 00:19:40.360 we're going to fail, 00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:41.460 because we just, 00:19:41.700 --> 00:19:43.039 can't do it. 00:19:43.639 --> 00:19:44.539 We're going to end up, 00:19:44.619 --> 00:19:45.460 full of guilt, 00:19:45.799 --> 00:19:47.220 and full of remorse, 00:19:47.599 --> 00:19:48.940 and wondering, 00:19:49.119 --> 00:19:50.500 what can we possibly do, 00:19:50.720 --> 00:19:51.920 that will put things, 00:19:52.139 --> 00:19:52.619 right. 00:19:54.220 --> 00:19:55.480 Trying to please God, 00:19:55.559 --> 00:19:56.700 through our own efforts, 00:19:57.059 --> 00:19:58.139 and to win our way, 00:19:58.220 --> 00:19:58.700 to heaven, 00:19:59.000 --> 00:20:00.279 is not at all, 00:20:00.339 --> 00:20:01.019 what the Bible, 00:20:01.559 --> 00:20:02.359 teaches us. 00:20:05.079 --> 00:20:05.759 Second aspect, 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:06.339 we might have, 00:20:06.379 --> 00:20:07.240 is what I've called, 00:20:07.399 --> 00:20:08.579 false liberty. 00:20:08.779 --> 00:20:09.579 So we've got this chap, 00:20:09.619 --> 00:20:10.119 we're sitting back, 00:20:10.180 --> 00:20:10.500 in his chair, 00:20:10.599 --> 00:20:10.920 and saying, 00:20:11.240 --> 00:20:12.960 I love this grace thing. 00:20:13.899 --> 00:20:15.079 Because I'm a Christian, 00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:16.299 because Jesus has, 00:20:16.659 --> 00:20:17.539 taken all my sins, 00:20:17.579 --> 00:20:18.279 on the cross, 00:20:18.440 --> 00:20:20.200 I can do what I like, 00:20:20.420 --> 00:20:21.980 I don't need to worry, 00:20:22.119 --> 00:20:23.619 at all about God's command, 00:20:23.720 --> 00:20:25.139 or what God wants me to do, 00:20:25.379 --> 00:20:26.279 it's all forgiven, 00:20:26.779 --> 00:20:28.099 I'm okay. 00:20:29.460 --> 00:20:29.779 And Paul, 00:20:29.839 --> 00:20:31.220 I think makes very clear, 00:20:31.599 --> 00:20:32.659 in these chapters, 00:20:32.779 --> 00:20:33.180 in Romans, 00:20:33.279 --> 00:20:34.139 that we're looking at, 00:20:34.440 --> 00:20:35.359 that that is a, 00:20:35.359 --> 00:20:37.460 totally false attitude. 00:20:38.639 --> 00:20:40.159 If we have experienced, 00:20:40.279 --> 00:20:41.279 the grace of God, 00:20:41.359 --> 00:20:42.180 in our lives, 00:20:42.180 --> 00:20:43.519 if we have come, 00:20:43.519 --> 00:20:44.400 to the Lord Jesus, 00:20:44.519 --> 00:20:45.400 and trusted him, 00:20:45.480 --> 00:20:46.220 for salvation, 00:20:46.759 --> 00:20:47.940 and for forgiveness, 00:20:48.519 --> 00:20:49.340 from sins. 00:20:49.920 --> 00:20:51.220 We don't want, 00:20:51.220 --> 00:20:51.860 to be keeping, 00:20:52.039 --> 00:20:53.440 doing all the wrong things, 00:20:53.700 --> 00:20:54.560 that we know, 00:20:54.860 --> 00:20:56.440 are grieving to God. 00:20:56.880 --> 00:20:57.519 These things, 00:20:57.580 --> 00:20:58.700 have led to the Lord Jesus, 00:20:58.820 --> 00:21:00.080 being nailed to the cross, 00:21:00.420 --> 00:21:01.360 and suffering, 00:21:01.480 --> 00:21:02.380 that awful death, 00:21:02.460 --> 00:21:02.820 for us, 00:21:02.900 --> 00:21:03.940 and being separated, 00:21:04.060 --> 00:21:04.700 from his father, 00:21:04.799 --> 00:21:05.820 as he bore our sins. 00:21:06.140 --> 00:21:07.120 We don't want, 00:21:07.120 --> 00:21:07.820 to be continuing, 00:21:07.820 --> 00:21:08.620 with that. 00:21:08.619 --> 00:21:09.519 We want, 00:21:09.579 --> 00:21:10.159 to be doing, 00:21:10.279 --> 00:21:11.299 what pleases him, 00:21:11.599 --> 00:21:12.459 and to live, 00:21:12.759 --> 00:21:14.199 better lives. 00:21:15.099 --> 00:21:15.619 And frankly, 00:21:15.719 --> 00:21:16.500 if we take the attitude, 00:21:16.599 --> 00:21:17.739 I can do what I like now, 00:21:17.799 --> 00:21:18.539 because my sins, 00:21:18.579 --> 00:21:19.119 are forgiven, 00:21:19.559 --> 00:21:20.539 we haven't begun, 00:21:20.539 --> 00:21:21.519 to understand, 00:21:21.679 --> 00:21:22.639 God's grace, 00:21:22.959 --> 00:21:23.859 or what it means, 00:21:24.179 --> 00:21:25.019 to be a Christian. 00:21:25.679 --> 00:21:26.359 Being a Christian, 00:21:26.519 --> 00:21:27.419 isn't all about, 00:21:27.599 --> 00:21:28.500 doing what I like, 00:21:28.679 --> 00:21:29.279 and ignoring, 00:21:29.419 --> 00:21:30.919 what God might want me to do. 00:21:31.399 --> 00:21:32.379 It is about, 00:21:32.579 --> 00:21:33.099 obedience, 00:21:33.500 --> 00:21:34.139 but obedience, 00:21:34.399 --> 00:21:34.919 because, 00:21:34.920 --> 00:21:36.180 we want to. 00:21:38.820 --> 00:21:40.039 That's the final thing, 00:21:40.320 --> 00:21:42.000 in the application here, 00:21:42.320 --> 00:21:43.480 that there should be, 00:21:43.620 --> 00:21:44.080 in us, 00:21:44.480 --> 00:21:45.160 a joyful, 00:21:45.840 --> 00:21:46.440 obedience. 00:21:47.700 --> 00:21:48.180 It should be like, 00:21:48.220 --> 00:21:48.720 that situation, 00:21:48.779 --> 00:21:49.400 I was talking about, 00:21:49.480 --> 00:21:49.880 where I had, 00:21:50.100 --> 00:21:50.900 the person who was running, 00:21:51.000 --> 00:21:51.420 the project, 00:21:51.560 --> 00:21:52.400 and he trusted me, 00:21:52.680 --> 00:21:54.000 and he let me get on, 00:21:54.080 --> 00:21:54.560 with things, 00:21:54.779 --> 00:21:55.920 and I was really pleased, 00:21:55.920 --> 00:21:56.460 with that, 00:21:56.640 --> 00:21:57.920 and I did my best, 00:21:58.039 --> 00:21:58.880 because I wanted, 00:21:58.880 --> 00:21:59.580 to please him, 00:21:59.700 --> 00:22:00.200 as well as to, 00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:01.500 do good for the company. 00:22:02.560 --> 00:22:03.759 If we truly know, 00:22:03.880 --> 00:22:04.539 the Lord Jesus, 00:22:04.539 --> 00:22:05.980 if our trust is in him, 00:22:06.639 --> 00:22:07.819 then we serve him, 00:22:08.019 --> 00:22:09.579 and we do what is right, 00:22:10.039 --> 00:22:11.579 not because we have to, 00:22:11.659 --> 00:22:12.379 because we're looking, 00:22:12.500 --> 00:22:13.720 at the letter of the law, 00:22:13.799 --> 00:22:14.339 and what it says, 00:22:14.379 --> 00:22:14.720 in the Bible, 00:22:14.819 --> 00:22:15.720 saying have I got that right, 00:22:15.759 --> 00:22:16.680 have I got that wrong? 00:22:17.180 --> 00:22:18.059 We're doing it, 00:22:18.079 --> 00:22:18.819 because we want, 00:22:18.899 --> 00:22:19.740 to please Jesus, 00:22:20.220 --> 00:22:20.960 we recognize, 00:22:21.079 --> 00:22:21.839 all that he's done, 00:22:22.000 --> 00:22:22.599 for us, 00:22:22.980 --> 00:22:23.799 and we want, 00:22:23.899 --> 00:22:25.279 to be like him. 00:22:26.159 --> 00:22:27.119 This person, 00:22:27.220 --> 00:22:28.359 who came into our world, 00:22:28.539 --> 00:22:29.240 son of God, 00:22:29.500 --> 00:22:30.579 living among us, 00:22:30.899 --> 00:22:32.240 lived a perfect life, 00:22:32.740 --> 00:22:33.440 taught so many, 00:22:33.440 --> 00:22:34.440 wonderful things, 00:22:34.539 --> 00:22:35.639 helped so many people, 00:22:36.039 --> 00:22:37.599 ultimately died on the cross, 00:22:37.639 --> 00:22:38.420 for our sins, 00:22:38.740 --> 00:22:39.899 and rose again. 00:22:40.740 --> 00:22:41.779 If we know him, 00:22:42.399 --> 00:22:43.480 and we love him, 00:22:43.940 --> 00:22:45.500 we want to serve him, 00:22:45.879 --> 00:22:47.319 and we want to become, 00:22:47.319 --> 00:22:48.440 like him. 00:22:49.019 --> 00:22:49.720 That's what we're thinking, 00:22:49.799 --> 00:22:50.220 next week, 00:22:50.319 --> 00:22:50.859 none of us, 00:22:50.920 --> 00:22:51.659 is going to become, 00:22:51.659 --> 00:22:52.319 perfect, 00:22:52.659 --> 00:22:53.819 in this world, 00:22:54.200 --> 00:22:55.519 we still are subject, 00:22:55.700 --> 00:22:56.039 to sin, 00:22:56.099 --> 00:22:56.819 we still have that, 00:22:56.980 --> 00:22:57.879 desire for sin, 00:22:58.240 --> 00:22:59.480 that's in us. 00:23:00.059 --> 00:23:00.900 But nevertheless, 00:23:01.220 --> 00:23:01.759 our lives, 00:23:01.819 --> 00:23:03.059 should be being transformed, 00:23:03.500 --> 00:23:04.279 by the power, 00:23:04.319 --> 00:23:05.240 of the Holy Spirit, 00:23:05.799 --> 00:23:06.839 as we seek, 00:23:06.920 --> 00:23:07.839 to become more, 00:23:08.079 --> 00:23:09.500 and more like Christ, 00:23:10.079 --> 00:23:11.039 and to obey him, 00:23:11.079 --> 00:23:11.759 and to do it, 00:23:11.880 --> 00:23:13.299 not grudgingly, 00:23:13.700 --> 00:23:14.299 not because, 00:23:14.420 --> 00:23:15.220 we feel bound, 00:23:15.299 --> 00:23:16.140 by it, 00:23:16.539 --> 00:23:17.220 but to do it, 00:23:17.259 --> 00:23:18.319 because we love him, 00:23:18.720 --> 00:23:19.400 and because, 00:23:19.539 --> 00:23:20.259 we have a real, 00:23:20.759 --> 00:23:21.099 joy, 00:23:21.519 --> 00:23:22.099 in him. 00:23:23.299 --> 00:23:23.940 The message, 00:23:23.940 --> 00:23:24.660 of the gospel, 00:23:24.819 --> 00:23:25.720 the Christian message, 00:23:25.720 --> 00:23:27.620 is that we can't, 00:23:27.620 --> 00:23:28.559 save ourselves, 00:23:28.660 --> 00:23:29.660 what we do, 00:23:30.079 --> 00:23:30.620 doesn't, 00:23:31.100 --> 00:23:31.700 save us. 00:23:32.420 --> 00:23:33.180 We don't, 00:23:33.180 --> 00:23:34.500 become Christians, 00:23:34.779 --> 00:23:36.100 by doing our best, 00:23:36.519 --> 00:23:37.720 and by hoping, 00:23:37.880 --> 00:23:38.400 that that's, 00:23:38.600 --> 00:23:39.319 good enough. 00:23:40.019 --> 00:23:40.500 We're saved, 00:23:40.579 --> 00:23:41.579 by God's grace, 00:23:41.860 --> 00:23:42.539 by the death, 00:23:42.579 --> 00:23:43.339 of the Lord Jesus, 00:23:43.559 --> 00:23:44.700 by putting our trust, 00:23:44.799 --> 00:23:45.180 in him, 00:23:45.559 --> 00:23:46.220 and seeking, 00:23:46.380 --> 00:23:47.160 to follow him, 00:23:47.620 --> 00:23:48.240 and to live, 00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:49.140 and then, 00:23:49.279 --> 00:23:49.720 to live, 00:23:50.059 --> 00:23:50.600 for him. 00:23:51.140 --> 00:23:51.920 But it's the grace, 00:23:52.000 --> 00:23:52.700 that comes first, 00:23:52.779 --> 00:23:53.240 the forgiveness, 00:23:53.420 --> 00:23:53.860 for Jesus, 00:23:54.460 --> 00:23:55.120 and then, 00:23:55.119 --> 00:23:56.159 the following. 00:23:57.139 --> 00:23:57.779 It's not that, 00:23:57.899 --> 00:23:58.459 our obedience, 00:23:59.139 --> 00:24:00.179 leads to salvation, 00:24:00.839 --> 00:24:01.919 rather the salvation, 00:24:01.919 --> 00:24:02.779 that we have, 00:24:03.139 --> 00:24:04.079 through the Lord Jesus, 00:24:04.639 --> 00:24:05.379 should lead us, 00:24:05.459 --> 00:24:06.139 to be obedient, 00:24:06.799 --> 00:24:08.879 and to follow him. 00:24:10.239 --> 00:24:10.839 So the challenge, 00:24:10.919 --> 00:24:11.339 this morning, 00:24:11.699 --> 00:24:12.079 I guess, 00:24:12.159 --> 00:24:13.159 for everyone here, 00:24:13.259 --> 00:24:14.239 first challenge is, 00:24:14.539 --> 00:24:15.639 have you experienced, 00:24:15.639 --> 00:24:16.479 that grace, 00:24:16.819 --> 00:24:17.919 of the Lord Jesus? 00:24:18.899 --> 00:24:19.819 Are you trying, 00:24:19.959 --> 00:24:20.659 to do it all, 00:24:20.719 --> 00:24:21.379 for yourself, 00:24:21.739 --> 00:24:22.539 or have you come, 00:24:22.639 --> 00:24:23.379 to recognize, 00:24:23.739 --> 00:24:24.459 that it is only, 00:24:24.460 --> 00:24:25.160 through Jesus, 00:24:25.360 --> 00:24:25.920 through his death, 00:24:25.960 --> 00:24:26.600 on the cross, 00:24:26.920 --> 00:24:27.700 that we can have, 00:24:27.740 --> 00:24:28.180 forgiveness, 00:24:28.380 --> 00:24:29.100 and a relationship, 00:24:29.299 --> 00:24:29.779 with God, 00:24:30.000 --> 00:24:31.000 and then go on, 00:24:31.440 --> 00:24:32.200 to serve him? 00:24:33.160 --> 00:24:34.140 And if you do know Jesus, 00:24:34.259 --> 00:24:34.700 if you have, 00:24:35.039 --> 00:24:35.740 trusted him, 00:24:37.059 --> 00:24:37.920 where are you today? 00:24:37.980 --> 00:24:38.740 Are you still, 00:24:38.740 --> 00:24:39.279 trying, 00:24:39.279 --> 00:24:40.640 to obey laws, 00:24:40.880 --> 00:24:41.819 because you have to, 00:24:41.900 --> 00:24:42.819 and have a real, 00:24:43.120 --> 00:24:44.660 difficulty, 00:24:44.819 --> 00:24:45.680 in your Christian life, 00:24:45.860 --> 00:24:46.579 because you're, 00:24:46.620 --> 00:24:47.100 constantly, 00:24:47.100 --> 00:24:48.319 worrying about guilt, 00:24:48.579 --> 00:24:49.340 and are you keeping, 00:24:49.519 --> 00:24:50.640 the particular laws, 00:24:50.640 --> 00:24:51.740 that you, 00:24:51.980 --> 00:24:52.400 I think, 00:24:52.460 --> 00:24:53.080 are important? 00:24:53.720 --> 00:24:54.140 Or have you, 00:24:54.220 --> 00:24:54.980 gone the other extreme, 00:24:55.080 --> 00:24:55.200 and think, 00:24:55.280 --> 00:24:55.740 well I'll just do, 00:24:55.840 --> 00:24:56.400 what I like, 00:24:56.700 --> 00:24:57.660 and I won't bother, 00:24:57.740 --> 00:24:58.360 about God, 00:24:58.660 --> 00:24:59.960 or about his law? 00:25:01.000 --> 00:25:01.960 For the Christian, 00:25:02.080 --> 00:25:02.580 we should have, 00:25:02.740 --> 00:25:04.400 that same kind of joy, 00:25:04.420 --> 00:25:05.020 in the law, 00:25:05.120 --> 00:25:06.259 that the psalmist had, 00:25:06.640 --> 00:25:07.340 but joy not, 00:25:07.400 --> 00:25:07.759 in keeping, 00:25:07.920 --> 00:25:08.920 the letter of the law, 00:25:09.280 --> 00:25:10.420 but in having, 00:25:10.520 --> 00:25:11.460 the spirit in us, 00:25:11.720 --> 00:25:12.300 helping us, 00:25:12.380 --> 00:25:12.880 to obey, 00:25:13.259 --> 00:25:14.000 and to become, 00:25:14.100 --> 00:25:14.640 like Jesus, 00:25:15.180 --> 00:25:16.160 and to represent, 00:25:16.480 --> 00:25:16.759 him, 00:25:17.259 --> 00:25:17.900 to others. 00:25:17.900 --> 00:25:20.160 Started with the, 00:25:20.340 --> 00:25:21.519 situation from work, 00:25:21.780 --> 00:25:22.640 perhaps I should tell you, 00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:23.040 how it ended, 00:25:23.420 --> 00:25:24.759 I had that job, 00:25:25.060 --> 00:25:25.940 for about a year, 00:25:26.420 --> 00:25:27.340 and then someone, 00:25:27.440 --> 00:25:28.380 who was a bit more powerful, 00:25:28.540 --> 00:25:28.960 changed things, 00:25:29.019 --> 00:25:30.120 from my boss's boss, 00:25:30.460 --> 00:25:31.280 recognized that, 00:25:31.519 --> 00:25:32.340 it wasn't working out, 00:25:32.420 --> 00:25:32.900 for me, 00:25:33.259 --> 00:25:34.320 or for probably, 00:25:34.440 --> 00:25:35.280 for my boss either, 00:25:35.660 --> 00:25:36.500 and he decided, 00:25:36.680 --> 00:25:37.180 move me on, 00:25:37.240 --> 00:25:37.740 to something, 00:25:38.100 --> 00:25:39.000 that was more, 00:25:39.080 --> 00:25:39.680 appropriate, 00:25:40.240 --> 00:25:40.780 for me, 00:25:41.080 --> 00:25:41.560 where I could, 00:25:41.759 --> 00:25:42.740 do better, 00:25:43.080 --> 00:25:44.780 and could be encouraged, 00:25:45.140 --> 00:25:46.160 in my work. 00:25:46.640 --> 00:25:47.360 He took me out, 00:25:47.359 --> 00:25:48.339 of that situation, 00:25:48.839 --> 00:25:49.519 and put me, 00:25:49.519 --> 00:25:50.839 into a better, 00:25:50.839 --> 00:25:51.899 situation. 00:25:52.719 --> 00:25:53.500 That's exactly, 00:25:53.719 --> 00:25:54.240 what God, 00:25:54.519 --> 00:25:55.519 does for us, 00:25:55.740 --> 00:25:56.799 when we come to Jesus. 00:25:57.559 --> 00:25:58.000 He takes us, 00:25:58.039 --> 00:25:59.119 out of the situation, 00:25:59.279 --> 00:25:59.859 where we're stuck, 00:25:59.959 --> 00:26:00.679 with our sin, 00:26:01.079 --> 00:26:01.619 and perhaps we're, 00:26:01.679 --> 00:26:02.439 trying to do good, 00:26:02.500 --> 00:26:03.419 but failing in it. 00:26:03.839 --> 00:26:04.359 He puts us, 00:26:04.399 --> 00:26:05.299 in a new position, 00:26:05.679 --> 00:26:06.619 where we have a real, 00:26:06.939 --> 00:26:07.759 living relationship, 00:26:08.079 --> 00:26:08.799 with Jesus, 00:26:08.939 --> 00:26:09.979 like a marriage relationship, 00:26:10.079 --> 00:26:10.679 if you like, 00:26:10.719 --> 00:26:11.339 in the love, 00:26:11.639 --> 00:26:12.659 and the care, 00:26:12.939 --> 00:26:13.819 that is there. 00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:15.459 And in that relationship, 00:26:15.659 --> 00:26:16.879 we're able to do well, 00:26:16.880 --> 00:26:18.360 and to flourish, 00:26:18.740 --> 00:26:19.500 but we do it, 00:26:19.560 --> 00:26:21.060 not because we have to, 00:26:21.600 --> 00:26:23.000 but because we want to, 00:26:23.240 --> 00:26:24.600 we want to please Jesus, 00:26:25.160 --> 00:26:26.160 and to be obedient, 00:26:26.720 --> 00:26:27.220 to him. 00:26:28.160 --> 00:26:28.360 Let's pray, 00:26:28.440 --> 00:26:28.880 to all of us, 00:26:28.920 --> 00:26:29.940 have that relationship, 00:26:30.320 --> 00:26:30.940 with Jesus, 00:26:31.140 --> 00:26:31.760 that salvation, 00:26:31.900 --> 00:26:32.760 that comes through him, 00:26:33.020 --> 00:26:34.120 and have a real joy, 00:26:34.180 --> 00:26:35.200 in our Christian lives, 00:26:35.320 --> 00:26:36.800 as we seek to serve him, 00:26:37.120 --> 00:26:38.140 and live for him. 00:26:38.460 --> 00:26:39.240 Let's pray together. 00:26:40.920 --> 00:26:41.320 Father, 00:26:41.360 --> 00:26:41.700 we thank you, 00:26:41.760 --> 00:26:42.100 for your word, 00:26:42.160 --> 00:26:42.820 to us this morning. 00:26:43.700 --> 00:26:44.439 We recognize, 00:26:44.559 --> 00:26:45.139 that some of these, 00:26:45.200 --> 00:26:45.939 pastors and Romans, 00:26:46.059 --> 00:26:46.919 are quite difficult, 00:26:47.599 --> 00:26:48.839 and in some ways, 00:26:48.899 --> 00:26:49.980 quite obscure to us, 00:26:50.299 --> 00:26:51.419 in situations, 00:26:51.619 --> 00:26:52.379 that perhaps, 00:26:52.460 --> 00:26:53.519 aren't directly applicable. 00:26:53.980 --> 00:26:54.559 But we thank you, 00:26:54.599 --> 00:26:54.980 that your word, 00:26:55.019 --> 00:26:56.159 is always valuable, 00:26:56.559 --> 00:26:57.919 and helpful to us. 00:26:58.599 --> 00:26:59.279 And we thank you, 00:26:59.359 --> 00:27:00.119 that you do give us, 00:27:00.179 --> 00:27:00.899 the opportunity, 00:27:01.500 --> 00:27:03.579 to experience your grace, 00:27:03.839 --> 00:27:04.740 through the Lord Jesus, 00:27:04.939 --> 00:27:05.579 through his death, 00:27:05.619 --> 00:27:06.740 on the cross for us, 00:27:07.439 --> 00:27:08.679 and then joyfully, 00:27:08.679 --> 00:27:09.679 to live for him, 00:27:09.680 --> 00:27:11.500 and to seek to serve him, 00:27:11.840 --> 00:27:12.820 and to please him. 00:27:13.000 --> 00:27:13.720 We pray that all of us, 00:27:13.779 --> 00:27:14.840 will come to know him, 00:27:15.080 --> 00:27:16.120 if we haven't already, 00:27:16.720 --> 00:27:17.820 and then may be able, 00:27:17.920 --> 00:27:18.680 to serve him, 00:27:19.060 --> 00:27:20.240 and to live well, 00:27:20.580 --> 00:27:21.060 for him. 00:27:21.799 --> 00:27:22.220 We pray now, 00:27:22.240 --> 00:27:22.759 you'll be with us, 00:27:22.779 --> 00:27:23.680 as we move into a time, 00:27:23.700 --> 00:27:24.240 of communion, 00:27:24.700 --> 00:27:25.340 as we thank you, 00:27:25.360 --> 00:27:26.120 particularly of all, 00:27:26.180 --> 00:27:26.860 that the Lord Jesus, 00:27:27.000 --> 00:27:27.940 has done for us. 00:27:28.340 --> 00:27:29.120 Help us truly, 00:27:29.279 --> 00:27:30.140 to worship him, 00:27:30.600 --> 00:27:31.519 and to give you, 00:27:31.580 --> 00:27:32.460 our praise for him. 00:27:32.840 --> 00:27:33.560 We give you thanks, 00:27:33.640 --> 00:27:34.279 in Jesus name. 00:27:35.000 --> 00:27:35.240 Amen.