WEBVTT 00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:07.259 Where would you place yourself on the spectrum between idealism and cynicism? 00:00:09.000 --> 00:00:13.439 In your normal orientation to life, the way you make sense of your experiences, your thoughts 00:00:13.439 --> 00:00:17.760 about the future, are you more the kind of person who is an optimist, you assume the 00:00:17.760 --> 00:00:23.379 best about things, you have a confidence that things will work out, or are you more the 00:00:23.379 --> 00:00:31.160 kind of person who sees through things, who perhaps assumes the worst about people and 00:00:31.160 --> 00:00:31.939 their motivations? 00:00:33.179 --> 00:00:36.840 I think maybe some of us have a clear sense that we're on one side or the other. 00:00:36.960 --> 00:00:41.039 Certainly, I think we live in a culture that's a little more cynical, so perhaps the majority 00:00:41.039 --> 00:00:42.980 of you might place yourselves there. 00:00:44.140 --> 00:00:48.899 Or perhaps most of us are a combination of both of these. 00:00:48.899 --> 00:00:58.239 The late comedian George Carlin said that every cynic, inside every cynic, is a disappointed 00:00:58.239 --> 00:00:59.479 idealist. 00:01:00.239 --> 00:01:08.359 In other words, life crushes our idealism one too many times, and we begin to take comfort 00:01:08.359 --> 00:01:09.939 in cynicism. 00:01:10.120 --> 00:01:17.420 We begin to put it on and wear it like a protective armor to guard against the pain of disillusionment. 00:01:18.900 --> 00:01:25.120 I remember when I was in third grade, and one of my friends came up to me, and in a very 00:01:25.120 --> 00:01:31.660 quiet, confiding voice, he said, Tommy, you still believe in Santa, don't you? 00:01:32.360 --> 00:01:37.500 And I said, yeah, of course I do. 00:01:38.000 --> 00:01:42.740 And I put my hand on his shoulder, because it was obvious that he was struggling with unbelief. 00:01:42.739 --> 00:01:50.319 And right then, he turned and he yelled to the whole class, Tommy still believes in Santa 00:01:50.319 --> 00:01:51.099 Claus. 00:01:51.359 --> 00:01:53.140 And everybody laughed. 00:01:53.739 --> 00:01:56.379 And for the rest of the year, the class made fun of me. 00:01:59.099 --> 00:02:00.699 And here I am today. 00:02:00.700 --> 00:02:12.780 But I remember as a third grader getting, for the first time, a taste of that, that shame 00:02:12.780 --> 00:02:18.420 that comes with realizing that you've been naive, or that you've been taken as a fool. 00:02:18.640 --> 00:02:23.539 And I remember, for the first time, deciding, that will never happen to me again. 00:02:24.140 --> 00:02:26.719 I will never allow myself to be that naive. 00:02:26.719 --> 00:02:34.300 And I began to recognize the comfort that cynicism can provide, the protective coating that it 00:02:34.300 --> 00:02:35.079 can become. 00:02:36.860 --> 00:02:40.060 No one in this room wants to be taken for a fool. 00:02:42.159 --> 00:02:42.379 Right? 00:02:42.460 --> 00:02:47.659 So given the world that we live in, the state of our country, the state of our culture, it's 00:02:47.659 --> 00:02:52.719 worth asking, as we come to Easter and the claims of Easter, it's worth asking, what kind 00:02:52.719 --> 00:02:54.379 of outlook should we have? 00:02:54.379 --> 00:02:57.099 Should we be more idealistic? 00:02:57.460 --> 00:02:58.539 Should we be more cynical? 00:02:59.299 --> 00:02:59.400 Right? 00:02:59.519 --> 00:03:01.599 Idealism feels really good. 00:03:01.699 --> 00:03:05.719 It feels good to have such a pleasant outlook, such optimism. 00:03:07.099 --> 00:03:08.979 But we risk being naive. 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:16.379 And worse than that, we risk losing touch with the fact that there is real brokenness and 00:03:16.379 --> 00:03:17.639 darkness in the world. 00:03:18.300 --> 00:03:18.819 Right? 00:03:18.819 --> 00:03:22.900 We've been reminded this week that it takes more than Kendall Jenner and a can of Pepsi 00:03:22.900 --> 00:03:25.560 to heal the brokenness of society. 00:03:25.840 --> 00:03:25.959 Right? 00:03:27.479 --> 00:03:36.199 On the other side, cynicism allows us to really take an unflinching look at the brokenness in 00:03:36.199 --> 00:03:36.599 the world. 00:03:37.859 --> 00:03:41.019 And yet, it can only deconstruct. 00:03:41.159 --> 00:03:43.099 It doesn't offer anything. 00:03:43.099 --> 00:03:47.319 And it brings with it a hopelessness that makes life unbearable. 00:03:48.579 --> 00:03:53.379 So this is where Easter comes in and why Easter is such a big deal. 00:03:53.759 --> 00:04:02.240 Because Easter, and specifically the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, brings with it 00:04:02.240 --> 00:04:06.860 not only a promise, but an entirely new outlook on life. 00:04:06.939 --> 00:04:09.860 An outlook that is utterly unique to Christians. 00:04:11.320 --> 00:04:11.719 Right? 00:04:11.800 --> 00:04:14.360 It's neither idealism nor is it cynicism. 00:04:14.560 --> 00:04:17.199 It's what you might call hopeful realism. 00:04:18.199 --> 00:04:18.420 Right? 00:04:18.460 --> 00:04:27.960 It allows Christians to be simultaneously more based in reality, more realistic than the most 00:04:27.960 --> 00:04:28.740 hardened cynic. 00:04:28.740 --> 00:04:34.860 And at the same time, we can be more wildly hopeful than the most deluded idealist. 00:04:34.939 --> 00:04:37.040 We're able to be both at the same time. 00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:42.860 And I really believe that this is only possible if you believe in the resurrection and understand 00:04:42.860 --> 00:04:45.620 the meaning of it for those of us here. 00:04:45.680 --> 00:04:47.000 And so that's what we're going to talk about. 00:04:47.500 --> 00:04:51.540 How this perspective is possible because of the resurrection and what difference that makes. 00:04:52.100 --> 00:04:53.639 We're going to look at Romans chapter 8. 00:04:53.879 --> 00:04:55.560 This is a very rich passage. 00:04:55.780 --> 00:04:57.699 It's many people's favorite chapter in the Bible. 00:04:57.699 --> 00:05:02.180 We're admittedly not going to be able to touch on everything that is referenced in this reading. 00:05:02.319 --> 00:05:04.439 We're going to focus in on this perspective. 00:05:04.680 --> 00:05:07.879 But at this point in the letter, Paul has laid out the gospel. 00:05:08.279 --> 00:05:12.879 And he's trying to convince us, his readers, about the truth and the power of the gospel. 00:05:13.399 --> 00:05:15.319 Which is centered on the resurrection of Jesus. 00:05:15.740 --> 00:05:18.339 And what that means for us right here and now. 00:05:18.339 --> 00:05:20.879 So Romans 8, 18 to 28. 00:05:21.219 --> 00:05:23.479 First realism in light of the resurrection. 00:05:24.039 --> 00:05:25.419 And then hopefulness. 00:05:25.859 --> 00:05:27.859 And how they come together in Easter. 00:05:28.119 --> 00:05:28.479 Let's pray. 00:05:29.719 --> 00:05:39.399 Our Father, we do recognize that this day, the very existence of this church, is because of the resurrection of your son, Jesus. 00:05:39.399 --> 00:05:43.579 And it's because of his resurrection that we believe the Bible. 00:05:43.779 --> 00:05:50.939 We don't have any reason to trust the Bible other than the fact that you rose from the grave. 00:05:51.379 --> 00:05:55.259 And that makes your words the most important words in existence. 00:05:55.259 --> 00:06:00.399 And so, Lord, we ask that for right now you would remove all other words from our minds. 00:06:00.519 --> 00:06:02.159 All other claims from our minds. 00:06:02.539 --> 00:06:07.899 And that you would allow us to focus solely on what you have to say to us this evening. 00:06:08.599 --> 00:06:12.139 That these written words would reveal to us the living word, Jesus Christ. 00:06:12.420 --> 00:06:13.839 And it's in his name that we pray. 00:06:14.360 --> 00:06:14.680 Amen. 00:06:15.800 --> 00:06:19.639 So first of all, we're going to focus in on realism. 00:06:19.639 --> 00:06:27.740 How does the resurrection and what does scripture tell us about the reality, the hard truth of the world that we live in? 00:06:27.819 --> 00:06:34.139 And Romans 8 has a couple of very hard truths that we have to accept about life here and now. 00:06:34.240 --> 00:06:39.959 So if you're looking for an uplifting Easter sermon, it's not going to happen right now. 00:06:40.219 --> 00:06:44.319 We'll get to that, but we've got some hard plowing ahead before we get there. 00:06:45.039 --> 00:06:48.819 The Bible uses two pretty striking words here to describe our condition. 00:06:49.639 --> 00:06:52.219 Futility and corruption. 00:06:53.680 --> 00:06:54.899 Futility and corruption. 00:06:56.060 --> 00:06:59.180 Futility, that word actually first shows up in Romans chapter 1. 00:06:59.180 --> 00:07:11.419 And Paul is describing how human beings who were created by God have exchanged the glory of God for the love and the worship of created things. 00:07:11.560 --> 00:07:16.579 And as a result of that great exchange, we've been subjected to futility. 00:07:17.560 --> 00:07:18.419 Now, what does that mean? 00:07:18.420 --> 00:07:20.439 Well, there's a lot of ways to define futility. 00:07:20.660 --> 00:07:22.680 Emptiness, fruitlessness, right? 00:07:22.920 --> 00:07:24.360 Meaninglessness, all of those things. 00:07:25.100 --> 00:07:27.360 Vanity is often used in the Old Testament. 00:07:28.660 --> 00:07:30.379 But a way of thinking about it is this. 00:07:31.340 --> 00:07:39.340 Futility means that our longings will never be fulfilled in this life. 00:07:39.339 --> 00:07:43.179 I told you, not too uplifting, but bear with me. 00:07:44.000 --> 00:07:45.759 Our longings will never be fulfilled. 00:07:47.699 --> 00:07:52.139 The word futility shows up 36 times in the book of Ecclesiastes. 00:07:53.019 --> 00:07:57.099 We're introduced to a man named Solomon who's tried everything to find fulfillment. 00:07:57.719 --> 00:07:57.919 Right? 00:07:57.959 --> 00:07:58.679 He's tried wealth. 00:07:59.339 --> 00:08:00.399 He's tried success. 00:08:00.759 --> 00:08:02.839 He's tried the beauty of his homes and his gardens. 00:08:02.839 --> 00:08:06.119 He's tried knowledge and learning and intellectual achievement. 00:08:06.599 --> 00:08:11.359 He's tried pleasure from food and from art and from music and from sex. 00:08:11.739 --> 00:08:13.779 He's tried everything he can think of. 00:08:14.039 --> 00:08:15.599 And none of it satisfies. 00:08:15.959 --> 00:08:17.439 None of it fulfills him. 00:08:17.439 --> 00:08:22.920 And what this shows us is that none of our longings will ever be fulfilled in this life. 00:08:23.019 --> 00:08:25.839 Our spiritual longing will never be satisfied. 00:08:26.719 --> 00:08:26.839 Right? 00:08:26.939 --> 00:08:28.399 Even for those of us who are Christians. 00:08:30.439 --> 00:08:32.259 There will always be a sense of disconnect. 00:08:32.580 --> 00:08:34.279 There will always be a sense of distance. 00:08:34.779 --> 00:08:40.600 There will always be periods in the Christian life of drought, of wilderness wandering, of questioning. 00:08:40.600 --> 00:08:47.399 For some of us, our entire faith from here to when we meet Jesus face to face will be a tooth and nail battle of doubt. 00:08:49.159 --> 00:08:50.379 That that's the reality. 00:08:51.279 --> 00:08:52.740 We have a foretaste. 00:08:54.440 --> 00:08:56.320 But we live in a condition of futility. 00:08:56.580 --> 00:08:56.680 Right? 00:08:57.279 --> 00:09:00.100 Our sexual longings will never be fully satisfied. 00:09:00.220 --> 00:09:01.500 And I mean that broadly speaking. 00:09:01.600 --> 00:09:02.519 The desire for intimacy. 00:09:02.899 --> 00:09:03.740 The desire for love. 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:04.820 The desire to be known. 00:09:05.120 --> 00:09:06.139 The desire to belong. 00:09:06.139 --> 00:09:11.919 The desire to be fully connected and intermingled, co-mingled with another human being. 00:09:12.080 --> 00:09:13.500 That will never be fully satisfied. 00:09:14.600 --> 00:09:18.819 Even if you have a really great marriage and really great kids and a really great family. 00:09:19.220 --> 00:09:24.220 You will go through periods of loneliness and disconnect and relational breakdown. 00:09:25.159 --> 00:09:27.559 It will happen because of futility. 00:09:28.500 --> 00:09:31.279 Our professional longings will never be fully satisfied. 00:09:31.279 --> 00:09:40.139 Simply put, we will always be able to imagine and envision more than we can actually accomplish. 00:09:41.360 --> 00:09:42.839 I don't know if you know anything about that. 00:09:43.620 --> 00:09:45.959 The sense of what you would like to be able to do. 00:09:46.059 --> 00:09:47.879 What you imagine yourself accomplishing. 00:09:48.220 --> 00:09:49.980 And the reality of what you can actually do. 00:09:50.500 --> 00:09:51.539 There will always be a gap. 00:09:51.600 --> 00:09:51.980 A disconnect. 00:09:52.319 --> 00:09:52.439 Right? 00:09:53.419 --> 00:09:53.860 Futility. 00:09:54.019 --> 00:09:54.860 It's all futility. 00:09:55.939 --> 00:09:58.659 Thorns and thistles, Genesis 3 says. 00:09:58.839 --> 00:10:00.360 We will always meet resistance. 00:10:00.360 --> 00:10:01.879 It will always be a struggle. 00:10:02.940 --> 00:10:06.399 So we can try everything out there like Solomon did, but we're never going to find it. 00:10:07.940 --> 00:10:09.060 So that's the first thing. 00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:09.720 Second thing. 00:10:11.120 --> 00:10:12.440 Add to this corruption. 00:10:13.419 --> 00:10:13.980 Verse 21. 00:10:15.720 --> 00:10:17.320 Corruption not like political corruption. 00:10:17.840 --> 00:10:19.039 Corruption in the sense of decay. 00:10:19.240 --> 00:10:20.480 Everything breaks down. 00:10:21.620 --> 00:10:21.779 Right? 00:10:21.919 --> 00:10:23.379 Second law of thermodynamics. 00:10:24.899 --> 00:10:28.360 Everything in creation is expending more energy than it can replenish. 00:10:29.159 --> 00:10:29.759 Things decay. 00:10:29.759 --> 00:10:31.279 They come apart. 00:10:31.279 --> 00:10:32.840 They return to dust. 00:10:33.720 --> 00:10:39.200 And not just us, but it says all of creation is subjected to corruption. 00:10:39.399 --> 00:10:41.220 In bondage to corruption. 00:10:41.559 --> 00:10:41.659 Right? 00:10:43.019 --> 00:10:46.319 So cosmically, socially, emotionally, psychologically. 00:10:47.779 --> 00:10:48.879 Governments collapse. 00:10:50.279 --> 00:10:52.519 One day the United States will collapse. 00:10:52.860 --> 00:10:53.899 Could be a hundred years from now. 00:10:54.000 --> 00:10:54.779 Could be next year. 00:10:54.779 --> 00:10:58.899 I won't say anything else. 00:10:59.539 --> 00:11:00.159 Could be. 00:11:00.319 --> 00:11:00.740 Who knows? 00:11:02.699 --> 00:11:03.459 We don't know. 00:11:04.339 --> 00:11:04.500 Right? 00:11:05.240 --> 00:11:05.980 Economies crash. 00:11:06.059 --> 00:11:07.079 We've been reminded of that. 00:11:08.240 --> 00:11:08.419 Right? 00:11:09.240 --> 00:11:10.139 Friendships fade. 00:11:10.139 --> 00:11:13.519 You have a BFF. 00:11:14.019 --> 00:11:16.139 You can't imagine ever not being friends with that person. 00:11:16.259 --> 00:11:18.220 Life changes and you grow apart. 00:11:18.539 --> 00:11:20.939 And you put more and more and more effort and it just doesn't. 00:11:21.019 --> 00:11:23.840 You just go grow in separate directions. 00:11:23.980 --> 00:11:24.139 Right? 00:11:24.419 --> 00:11:25.699 Your body wastes away. 00:11:25.699 --> 00:11:26.100 Right? 00:11:26.100 --> 00:11:27.920 Things fade. 00:11:28.080 --> 00:11:28.500 Corruption. 00:11:29.879 --> 00:11:36.740 So essentially, to summarize these things in Romans 8, it says here's the cold, hard reality of the world that we live in. 00:11:37.259 --> 00:11:40.360 Life is hard and nothing lasts. 00:11:40.360 --> 00:11:45.879 And this is an extremely hard pill to swallow. 00:11:46.060 --> 00:11:49.259 And so our culture is full of things that help us cope. 00:11:49.580 --> 00:11:54.919 Mythologies and ideologies and philosophies and religions that help us cope with these realities. 00:11:55.139 --> 00:11:55.240 Right? 00:11:55.300 --> 00:11:58.940 So our culture in particular loves the idea of the power of positive thinking. 00:11:59.180 --> 00:11:59.279 Right? 00:11:59.360 --> 00:12:00.360 Norman Vincent Peale. 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:06.240 Now you may not know who that is, but you've been around this way of thinking because it infuses our culture. 00:12:06.440 --> 00:12:08.840 It infuses large swaths of the Christian church. 00:12:09.420 --> 00:12:09.720 Right? 00:12:09.720 --> 00:12:19.300 If I believe it enough, if I want it enough, if I send enough positive thoughts out into the world, the universe or the divine or God will return it back to me. 00:12:19.379 --> 00:12:22.519 I will get what I want if I want it and believe it enough. 00:12:22.639 --> 00:12:22.759 Right? 00:12:23.200 --> 00:12:24.519 The power of positive thinking. 00:12:26.340 --> 00:12:34.259 In addition, most religions are, broadly speaking, karma-based religions in the sense that in some way or another, 00:12:34.259 --> 00:12:41.439 they say that good things ultimately happen to good people and bad things ultimately happen to bad people. 00:12:41.559 --> 00:12:41.759 Right? 00:12:42.519 --> 00:12:48.860 So eventually it all comes around and you get what's coming to you for better or for worse. 00:12:49.120 --> 00:12:51.720 Broadly speaking, karma-based religions. 00:12:51.720 --> 00:12:58.740 And ideas like this, power of positive thinking and karma, they're comforting because they give us some sense of control 00:12:58.740 --> 00:13:04.360 or some sense that we can do something to affect the futility and the corruption. 00:13:04.360 --> 00:13:06.779 But I think we're all adults here. 00:13:07.899 --> 00:13:09.300 And we've all lived some life. 00:13:10.200 --> 00:13:15.500 And I think we can admit that that's not the world that we live in. 00:13:16.340 --> 00:13:18.120 That's just simply not reality. 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:23.320 We live in a world where really bad things sometimes happen to good people. 00:13:24.279 --> 00:13:28.019 And frustratingly good things happen to really bad people. 00:13:28.019 --> 00:13:32.299 And we see that all of the time, even in our justice system. 00:13:32.740 --> 00:13:32.840 Right? 00:13:33.600 --> 00:13:36.159 Our best human attempts at fairness and justice. 00:13:36.939 --> 00:13:39.699 Often we see really bad things happening to good people. 00:13:40.379 --> 00:13:41.360 And vice versa. 00:13:43.059 --> 00:13:46.480 So these are nice ideas, but I'm not sure they align with reality. 00:13:46.620 --> 00:13:50.899 Sometimes you can want something with all of your might and the job still doesn't come through. 00:13:51.279 --> 00:13:52.600 The cancer still isn't cured. 00:13:53.299 --> 00:13:54.819 The family doesn't get back together. 00:13:55.179 --> 00:13:55.340 Right? 00:13:55.340 --> 00:14:00.040 So ultimately life is hard and everything is breaking down. 00:14:00.180 --> 00:14:03.320 And on our own we have no control over these things. 00:14:03.600 --> 00:14:05.519 And nothing we do will make any difference. 00:14:06.220 --> 00:14:07.759 I think I should be a motivational speaker. 00:14:08.320 --> 00:14:08.460 I think. 00:14:09.500 --> 00:14:10.780 But this is point one. 00:14:10.860 --> 00:14:11.740 Hard pill to swallow. 00:14:11.920 --> 00:14:12.100 Right? 00:14:12.780 --> 00:14:15.600 So this is the intense realism of Christianity. 00:14:16.700 --> 00:14:18.340 I mean this is more realistic. 00:14:19.400 --> 00:14:23.680 This is more unflinching realism than you'll see even in the most hardened cynic. 00:14:25.340 --> 00:14:27.740 But that's only half of the story. 00:14:28.720 --> 00:14:30.420 Because Easter changes everything. 00:14:31.500 --> 00:14:36.720 And this leads us into the second half of our uniquely Christian resurrection perspective. 00:14:37.700 --> 00:14:40.600 The hopefulness that Easter offers. 00:14:40.800 --> 00:14:43.840 And you see that in verse 18 of Romans 8. 00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:54.600 Paul says, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 00:14:55.540 --> 00:15:01.879 Paul's saying, I consider all of this suffering, it's not even worth comparing to the future glory. 00:15:01.879 --> 00:15:04.960 And you may think, well that's easy for Paul to say. 00:15:05.080 --> 00:15:08.960 He probably just sat in an ivory tower somewhere praying and thinking and writing. 00:15:09.120 --> 00:15:12.720 But in fact, Paul had faced some pretty extreme suffering. 00:15:12.960 --> 00:15:15.559 He's a man who knows suffering intimately. 00:15:15.779 --> 00:15:16.700 He had been whipped. 00:15:16.840 --> 00:15:17.600 He had been beaten. 00:15:17.919 --> 00:15:18.899 He had been stoned. 00:15:19.059 --> 00:15:19.879 He had been shipwrecked. 00:15:20.679 --> 00:15:21.240 Robbed. 00:15:21.539 --> 00:15:22.740 Betrayed by his friends. 00:15:23.220 --> 00:15:24.779 Imprisoned multiple times. 00:15:25.159 --> 00:15:28.320 And subjected to hunger and thirst and homelessness. 00:15:28.320 --> 00:15:28.760 Right? 00:15:29.660 --> 00:15:31.879 This is a man who knows something about suffering. 00:15:33.280 --> 00:15:36.680 But then he goes on to use a metaphor about suffering in verse 22. 00:15:37.000 --> 00:15:42.720 For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. 00:15:42.780 --> 00:15:44.260 So listen to what he's saying there. 00:15:44.440 --> 00:15:54.160 He's saying that all of the suffering, all of the futility, all of the corruption and decay and breakdown and unfulfillment, all of that. 00:15:54.159 --> 00:15:59.939 He likens to labor pains. 00:16:01.879 --> 00:16:05.679 Now, women know a little bit more about this than I do. 00:16:06.199 --> 00:16:13.379 But from what I hear, labor pain is some of the worst pain you can possibly feel. 00:16:14.120 --> 00:16:15.559 And I've actually had a number of women. 00:16:16.740 --> 00:16:18.279 A lot of people have had babies in our church. 00:16:18.279 --> 00:16:30.839 And some people have told me, in fact, that during that moment where they were at the peak pain, right, they had moments of actually thinking that they were going to die. 00:16:31.539 --> 00:16:33.240 That it can be that extreme. 00:16:34.539 --> 00:16:34.720 Right? 00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:43.680 And yet, out of this experience of suffering and death, you have a new life that emerges and enters into the world. 00:16:44.200 --> 00:16:51.720 And there's no comparison between the glory and the joy of that new life and the suffering that came before it. 00:16:51.720 --> 00:16:59.980 And even as the child is laid in the mother's arms already, the memory of that suffering is beginning to simply melt away. 00:16:59.980 --> 00:17:04.600 It's melting in the light of the glory of this new life. 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:17.259 And so Paul is saying, Easter changes everything because Easter shows us that all of our suffering and all of our struggle against futility and corruption, all of that is like labor pains. 00:17:17.259 --> 00:17:35.779 And that one day we will experience a renewal so profound, so utterly, incomprehensibly more, that it will be as though all of this life was a time of gestation in the womb. 00:17:35.779 --> 00:17:43.019 Before we actually entered into the real world. 00:17:43.279 --> 00:17:52.319 I don't know if you saw this viral video that went around the last couple of weeks of a grandfather who had only been able to see in black and white his whole life. 00:17:52.420 --> 00:17:53.819 He had been totally colorblind. 00:17:53.899 --> 00:17:54.700 Anybody see this video? 00:17:54.700 --> 00:18:04.400 And the family gets some special glasses that they give him, these glasses that will allow him to see the full range of color for the first time in like 66 years. 00:18:05.019 --> 00:18:07.000 And he's kind of playing it down and laughing. 00:18:07.140 --> 00:18:08.740 And oh, this is so sweet and thoughtful. 00:18:09.080 --> 00:18:11.059 And opens it and they're all sitting around. 00:18:11.180 --> 00:18:15.500 And he puts the glasses up to his face and immediately breaks into tears. 00:18:16.319 --> 00:18:19.680 And immediately pulls the glasses off because he can't handle the beauty. 00:18:19.680 --> 00:18:25.560 And then he puts them back on and then he takes them off and the tears just begin to flow down his face. 00:18:25.880 --> 00:18:27.039 All family starts crying. 00:18:27.200 --> 00:18:28.180 It's a really moving video. 00:18:29.039 --> 00:18:32.279 And you see him gradually, he's able to tolerate the beauty. 00:18:32.480 --> 00:18:34.279 He puts it on a little more and a little more. 00:18:34.460 --> 00:18:42.880 And then he begins to look and to see as though for the first time his family and the trees and the rocks and the sky and all of the colors around him. 00:18:43.019 --> 00:18:46.420 And it's as though he's looking at everything for the very first time. 00:18:46.420 --> 00:18:53.180 And I think that's what Paul is saying that one day we will realize that we've been living all of our lives in black and white. 00:18:53.660 --> 00:18:56.320 That we'll realize that we've been living all of our lives in two dimensions. 00:18:57.160 --> 00:18:57.320 Right? 00:18:57.480 --> 00:19:03.680 That at some point this renewal is going to happen and it will be like an entirely new mode of existence. 00:19:05.140 --> 00:19:07.240 And all of this will be like time spent in the womb. 00:19:07.960 --> 00:19:10.060 Just a preparation for that day. 00:19:10.180 --> 00:19:10.380 Right? 00:19:11.400 --> 00:19:14.620 And then he goes on to say something really profound that we need to think about. 00:19:14.619 --> 00:19:20.099 He says not only is creation groaning in anticipation of this renewal. 00:19:20.199 --> 00:19:24.539 But he says we ourselves are groaning in anticipation of this. 00:19:25.839 --> 00:19:30.339 He's saying on some deep level you know in your guts that this is happening. 00:19:31.539 --> 00:19:32.659 We know it. 00:19:32.879 --> 00:19:33.939 And we long for it. 00:19:34.359 --> 00:19:35.459 We yearn for it. 00:19:35.460 --> 00:19:41.940 There's a beloved 19th century Japanese haiku poet known as Isa. 00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:48.759 And when Isa was a young child his mother died very tragically. 00:19:49.779 --> 00:19:53.840 And then over the course of his life he faced a number of really hard tragedies. 00:19:54.779 --> 00:19:56.880 And then he ended up having a daughter. 00:19:57.000 --> 00:19:58.220 And then he lost his daughter. 00:19:59.160 --> 00:19:59.600 Tragically. 00:19:59.599 --> 00:20:03.299 And so he was in deep grief and mourning. 00:20:04.179 --> 00:20:05.419 He was a committed Buddhist. 00:20:06.119 --> 00:20:10.559 And so he went to a Zen master looking for comfort or solace of some kind. 00:20:11.419 --> 00:20:15.099 And the Zen master reminded Isa what Zen Buddhism teaches. 00:20:15.899 --> 00:20:18.799 Which is that all of the world is an illusion. 00:20:20.079 --> 00:20:25.439 And that one day all of this will evaporate like the morning dew. 00:20:25.440 --> 00:20:28.519 All of this is like the morning dew. 00:20:28.880 --> 00:20:33.920 And it will simply one day evaporate as the sun rises into the sky. 00:20:35.580 --> 00:20:41.200 So Isa returns home and he sits down and he writes a short poem after this visit. 00:20:41.320 --> 00:20:42.059 And here's the poem. 00:20:43.720 --> 00:20:45.120 The world is due. 00:20:46.320 --> 00:20:47.799 The world is due. 00:20:48.960 --> 00:20:49.860 And yet. 00:20:51.440 --> 00:20:52.460 And yet. 00:20:52.460 --> 00:20:57.960 And here's what Osginas says about this man. 00:20:58.900 --> 00:21:03.039 Isa, the Orthodox Zen believer, must say that life is only due. 00:21:04.240 --> 00:21:11.259 But Isa, the father, the husband, the human being, with his agonized grief and tortured love, 00:21:11.519 --> 00:21:15.940 can only cry into the unfulfilled darkness where Zen sheds no light. 00:21:16.600 --> 00:21:17.340 And yet. 00:21:17.339 --> 00:21:26.919 He feels the inescapable tension between the logic of what he believes and the logic of who he is. 00:21:27.339 --> 00:21:27.980 In other words. 00:21:28.579 --> 00:21:31.740 There's the logical part of him that doesn't believe in Christianity. 00:21:31.899 --> 00:21:32.679 Doesn't believe in Jesus. 00:21:32.839 --> 00:21:33.519 Doesn't believe in Easter. 00:21:33.619 --> 00:21:34.359 Doesn't believe in resurrection. 00:21:34.519 --> 00:21:35.220 Doesn't believe any of that. 00:21:35.319 --> 00:21:35.699 Believes. 00:21:36.019 --> 00:21:36.399 Logically. 00:21:36.500 --> 00:21:38.079 All life is due. 00:21:38.240 --> 00:21:39.379 That's what I've been taught. 00:21:39.459 --> 00:21:40.599 That's my world view. 00:21:40.699 --> 00:21:42.579 And yet there's something underneath that. 00:21:42.619 --> 00:21:43.240 In his guts. 00:21:43.299 --> 00:21:44.039 In his marrow. 00:21:45.039 --> 00:21:46.939 That says that's got to be wrong. 00:21:46.940 --> 00:21:48.420 There has to be more to this. 00:21:49.360 --> 00:21:50.860 My mother was not due. 00:21:51.240 --> 00:21:52.660 My daughter is not due. 00:21:52.960 --> 00:21:54.120 They don't just evaporate. 00:21:54.180 --> 00:21:55.039 They're not just gone. 00:21:55.279 --> 00:21:57.299 There has to be something beyond this. 00:21:58.059 --> 00:21:59.080 And he knows it. 00:22:00.100 --> 00:22:01.080 He's groaning. 00:22:02.120 --> 00:22:03.279 That's the groaning. 00:22:04.259 --> 00:22:05.400 That's the groaning. 00:22:06.320 --> 00:22:09.559 And what Easter tells us is Easter says this. 00:22:09.820 --> 00:22:10.519 Good news. 00:22:12.840 --> 00:22:14.400 Your groaning is appropriate. 00:22:14.400 --> 00:22:19.900 It's perfect as a response to these tragedies. 00:22:20.660 --> 00:22:22.060 In fact, all of your longings. 00:22:22.200 --> 00:22:22.940 Not just your grief. 00:22:23.220 --> 00:22:24.560 But all of your longings. 00:22:24.660 --> 00:22:25.700 Your spiritual longing. 00:22:26.000 --> 00:22:28.180 For once and for all connection with God. 00:22:28.259 --> 00:22:29.340 Your sexual longing. 00:22:29.460 --> 00:22:31.600 To finally have an end to your loneliness. 00:22:31.800 --> 00:22:34.620 And to be totally perfectly joined to another. 00:22:34.780 --> 00:22:36.019 Your professional longings. 00:22:36.100 --> 00:22:36.720 Your psychological. 00:22:37.080 --> 00:22:37.400 Your emotional. 00:22:38.180 --> 00:22:39.280 All of those longings. 00:22:39.360 --> 00:22:40.560 Your physical longings. 00:22:40.559 --> 00:22:44.240 Those longings are there for a reason. 00:22:44.359 --> 00:22:46.619 They're meant to point you toward someone. 00:22:47.000 --> 00:22:47.159 Right? 00:22:47.899 --> 00:22:49.240 See, Christians get a bad rap. 00:22:49.319 --> 00:22:52.220 We're often misunderstood as people who are anti-desire. 00:22:53.079 --> 00:22:54.599 You know, that we don't like desire. 00:22:54.720 --> 00:22:56.519 That we want to keep all of our desires in check. 00:22:56.579 --> 00:22:59.619 And we'd be very regimented about not liking or enjoying anything too much. 00:22:59.700 --> 00:23:01.759 We don't want to have too much fun or any of those things. 00:23:01.759 --> 00:23:04.640 Now, there is something to be said for self-control. 00:23:05.119 --> 00:23:07.039 For the cultivation of character and virtue. 00:23:08.079 --> 00:23:11.779 But I'll tell you, the problem is not the fact that we have desires. 00:23:11.900 --> 00:23:13.619 We have those for a very good reason. 00:23:14.519 --> 00:23:19.740 Where we go wrong is when we actually begin to think that those desires can be fully satisfied here. 00:23:20.579 --> 00:23:23.319 Or anywhere other than God himself. 00:23:24.200 --> 00:23:27.440 Other than when we see Jesus Christ face to face. 00:23:27.440 --> 00:23:34.940 So, this is why Christians, as we step back out from this, can be so wildly hopeful. 00:23:36.019 --> 00:23:39.580 And I think more hopeful than the most idealistic idealist. 00:23:40.200 --> 00:23:46.660 It's because when we look at the evidence of the resurrection, there's a compelling case that it actually happened. 00:23:46.779 --> 00:23:51.519 And if it actually happened, then my yearning and my groaning has an end. 00:23:51.799 --> 00:23:52.759 It has a telos. 00:23:53.440 --> 00:23:55.880 It has an aim that it will one day encounter. 00:23:55.880 --> 00:23:56.600 Right? 00:23:57.380 --> 00:24:02.400 And so, I look at the resurrection and we recognize, as Christians, that there's compelling evidence for the resurrection. 00:24:03.520 --> 00:24:07.080 You know, the resurrection is interesting because it's actually based on eyewitness accounts. 00:24:07.140 --> 00:24:08.500 And we know that more than we used to. 00:24:08.660 --> 00:24:15.440 For a long time, most people said in scholarship that, well, you know, Jesus died and he had a lot of loyal followers. 00:24:15.560 --> 00:24:16.460 And they didn't know what to do. 00:24:16.640 --> 00:24:17.580 And they were very disappointed. 00:24:17.760 --> 00:24:21.700 And then, in the centuries that followed, a mythology grew up around Jesus. 00:24:21.700 --> 00:24:24.759 And the idea of resurrection began to become popular. 00:24:24.920 --> 00:24:27.220 And then they began to write these accounts of the resurrection. 00:24:27.380 --> 00:24:30.059 But they were written several centuries after Jesus. 00:24:30.279 --> 00:24:33.200 And so, really, most of it is just fabricated. 00:24:33.200 --> 00:24:45.340 But actually, more recent scholarship has actually discovered that it's much more likely that these accounts were written a lot earlier than we previously thought. 00:24:45.920 --> 00:24:59.759 If you want to read into that, Richard Baucom's Jesus and the Eyewitnesses is a fantastic sort of survey of this scholarship that shows that these accounts were actually written within the lifetime of people who were around when all of this happens. 00:24:59.759 --> 00:25:06.960 And that's a point that, for those of us here who are Christians, we should think about that very seriously. 00:25:07.700 --> 00:25:15.039 Because if you think about most religions and the way they start, most religions start with a founder, you know, Joseph Smith, Prophet Muhammad, somebody like that. 00:25:15.240 --> 00:25:19.680 And that founder gets a private revelation from God or some kind of private experience of the divine. 00:25:20.339 --> 00:25:20.960 They're alone. 00:25:21.059 --> 00:25:21.539 They're in the woods. 00:25:21.640 --> 00:25:22.180 They're on a mountain. 00:25:22.420 --> 00:25:23.500 They're by themselves. 00:25:23.960 --> 00:25:24.640 This happens. 00:25:24.640 --> 00:25:33.360 And then they take that experience and they go to a bunch of other people and they say, this is what happened to me and it was amazing and you need to follow me now. 00:25:33.580 --> 00:25:35.340 And people say, okay, and they follow the teacher. 00:25:35.620 --> 00:25:37.140 But it's all based on that one testimony. 00:25:38.960 --> 00:25:41.340 But Christianity is radically different from that. 00:25:41.480 --> 00:25:46.540 In fact, it's the only religion I know where the entire founding of the religion was a very public affair. 00:25:47.160 --> 00:25:48.640 Jesus was a very public figure. 00:25:48.640 --> 00:25:55.780 He had a public life, public ministry, a public trial, public execution, public resurrection. 00:25:55.920 --> 00:25:57.360 It was all very public. 00:25:58.160 --> 00:25:58.300 Right? 00:25:58.560 --> 00:26:03.840 After his resurrection, Paul says, there were over 500 witnesses who saw Jesus. 00:26:03.960 --> 00:26:06.140 So Paul is not saying, I had this encounter with Jesus. 00:26:06.360 --> 00:26:07.580 I know you didn't, but I did. 00:26:07.800 --> 00:26:08.960 Believe me, it actually happened. 00:26:09.060 --> 00:26:09.900 Trust me, follow me. 00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:11.380 That's not the story of Christianity. 00:26:12.480 --> 00:26:15.660 Paul's saying all of these people saw it. 00:26:15.660 --> 00:26:22.360 And in fact, none of the critics, none of the enemies of Christianity in the early centuries, none of them were trying to deny the resurrection. 00:26:23.500 --> 00:26:25.460 It was just too out there. 00:26:25.640 --> 00:26:25.779 Right? 00:26:26.300 --> 00:26:31.880 And it's interesting, even when you read the accounts, you have all of these different accounts of the resurrection in Scripture. 00:26:31.980 --> 00:26:35.759 And people say, well, why are the details all different and jumbled? 00:26:35.800 --> 00:26:39.519 Well, it's because you have all of these eyewitnesses trying to write down what they saw. 00:26:40.240 --> 00:26:40.640 Right? 00:26:40.680 --> 00:26:41.400 What they heard. 00:26:42.300 --> 00:26:42.700 Right? 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:47.319 So if this was a mythology that developed, you would have much more uniformity in the accounts. 00:26:47.500 --> 00:26:47.559 Right? 00:26:47.580 --> 00:26:50.319 If it was a myth, then all of the accounts would be the same. 00:26:50.580 --> 00:26:52.620 Once upon a time, Mary was walking along. 00:26:52.740 --> 00:26:52.920 She came. 00:26:53.120 --> 00:26:53.279 Right? 00:26:53.380 --> 00:26:55.740 That would be the, but no, the details are different. 00:26:55.819 --> 00:26:56.000 Right? 00:26:56.080 --> 00:26:59.400 And this person says, well, he ate broiled fish. 00:26:59.440 --> 00:27:03.799 And this person says, well, there were two disciples and one of them was named Cleopas. 00:27:03.880 --> 00:27:04.080 Right? 00:27:04.299 --> 00:27:08.460 And this person says, well, there was this Mary and then there was the other Mary. 00:27:08.539 --> 00:27:08.720 Right? 00:27:08.759 --> 00:27:10.759 And why are they using those kinds of references? 00:27:10.759 --> 00:27:14.019 Well, they're like first century footnotes. 00:27:14.599 --> 00:27:15.000 Right? 00:27:15.039 --> 00:27:17.400 They're saying, oh, the servant's name was Malchus. 00:27:17.640 --> 00:27:17.799 Right? 00:27:18.039 --> 00:27:18.400 Oh, okay. 00:27:18.440 --> 00:27:21.319 So if you don't believe, go and ask Malchus and he'll tell you more. 00:27:22.259 --> 00:27:22.680 Right? 00:27:22.720 --> 00:27:24.059 These are first century footnotes. 00:27:25.940 --> 00:27:30.839 Even Paul, when he, in Acts chapter 26, when he's talking to King Agrippa, he's making his defense. 00:27:30.839 --> 00:27:40.119 And he says at one point, very interestingly, he says, he says, oh, King, you know that these things are true because they didn't happen in a closet. 00:27:41.139 --> 00:27:42.500 They didn't happen in a corner. 00:27:43.139 --> 00:27:43.240 Right? 00:27:43.259 --> 00:27:45.379 He's saying, he's saying, you know this happened. 00:27:45.679 --> 00:27:49.059 I don't have to convince you because it happened in full view of everybody. 00:27:50.179 --> 00:27:51.399 And Agrippa doesn't disagree. 00:27:51.400 --> 00:28:00.640 So the thing is, if the resurrection happened, that's actually a guarantee that the same resurrection is going to happen to us. 00:28:01.380 --> 00:28:02.440 And that's why it matters. 00:28:03.480 --> 00:28:07.120 It's a guarantee that the same thing is actually going to happen to the whole world. 00:28:08.200 --> 00:28:12.840 All of creation, the cosmos, will go through a cosmic resurrection. 00:28:12.839 --> 00:28:13.839 Right? 00:28:14.639 --> 00:28:21.699 So this is why Christians, as a result of Easter, are able to have a very unique outlook on life. 00:28:21.839 --> 00:28:24.699 I don't think you're going to find this in any other philosophy or religion anywhere. 00:28:25.759 --> 00:28:27.659 What I would call hopeful realism. 00:28:28.579 --> 00:28:35.779 It allows us to be simultaneously more realistic than the cynics and more hopeful than the idealists. 00:28:36.519 --> 00:28:38.399 We can be both at the same time. 00:28:38.759 --> 00:28:40.240 Things that shouldn't be able to coexist. 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:49.220 And the great thing about this is that it's an outlook that makes it possible to maintain balance and perspective and to stay even keel, 00:28:49.500 --> 00:28:52.519 regardless of whatever craziness is happening. 00:28:52.660 --> 00:28:55.900 And right now, with our country and our culture and the world the way it is, 00:28:56.099 --> 00:29:00.019 that is the kind of perspective that the world is desperately in need of. 00:29:00.559 --> 00:29:02.480 People who can maintain perspective. 00:29:04.380 --> 00:29:04.859 Regardless. 00:29:04.859 --> 00:29:10.899 Christians are able to face tremendous suffering without losing hope. 00:29:11.579 --> 00:29:14.399 And we're able to face tremendous blessing without losing touch. 00:29:15.479 --> 00:29:16.439 And that's a great gift. 00:29:17.559 --> 00:29:22.679 And by the way, this is why when you go to different parts of the world where there is a lot of suffering and injustice, 00:29:23.000 --> 00:29:24.819 this is why you always see Christians there. 00:29:26.599 --> 00:29:27.039 Right? 00:29:27.039 --> 00:29:27.480 It's interesting. 00:29:27.619 --> 00:29:29.960 I like to quote Nicholas Kristof every now and then. 00:29:29.980 --> 00:29:30.619 He's not a Christian. 00:29:30.740 --> 00:29:34.240 But every now and then, in the Times, he writes an article about Christians. 00:29:34.720 --> 00:29:38.240 And it's because as a reporter, he has to travel to some of the worst places, 00:29:38.379 --> 00:29:42.019 the most broken, awful places where people are suffering and dying. 00:29:43.019 --> 00:29:47.019 And he says everywhere he goes, the worst places he goes, 00:29:47.700 --> 00:29:52.700 when all of the aid groups have pulled out and everybody is gone, it's just gotten too bad, 00:29:52.700 --> 00:29:54.860 he says, you always find Christians there. 00:29:56.120 --> 00:29:58.580 He says, many times they're the only ones there. 00:29:59.700 --> 00:30:00.940 Now why is that? 00:30:02.759 --> 00:30:03.640 Hopeful realism. 00:30:04.240 --> 00:30:10.180 It's because Christians are able to face tremendous suffering and darkness and never lose hope. 00:30:11.860 --> 00:30:14.860 And it's because that's exactly what God has done for us. 00:30:15.700 --> 00:30:17.900 That's exactly what God has done for us. 00:30:18.360 --> 00:30:22.140 It's a reflection of his heart through us in the world. 00:30:23.700 --> 00:30:27.559 So back to our original question as we bring this to a close. 00:30:30.640 --> 00:30:31.640 Are you a cynic? 00:30:32.080 --> 00:30:33.259 Are you an idealist? 00:30:33.600 --> 00:30:37.519 Are you an idealist hiding behind an armor of cynicism? 00:30:38.860 --> 00:30:41.080 You want to know the real reason I think most of us are cynical? 00:30:42.299 --> 00:30:45.500 The real reason I think, I mean, the reason I know I struggle with cynicism? 00:30:47.559 --> 00:30:49.380 Especially when it comes to something like Easter. 00:30:50.500 --> 00:30:52.039 You hear claims about the resurrection. 00:30:52.039 --> 00:30:53.399 You say, I just don't know. 00:30:53.559 --> 00:30:54.759 I just don't know if I can go there. 00:30:55.680 --> 00:30:56.159 We're cynical. 00:30:56.339 --> 00:30:57.259 I want to see through it. 00:30:57.659 --> 00:30:58.920 I want to think my way around it. 00:30:59.920 --> 00:31:00.879 Why are we like that? 00:31:00.880 --> 00:31:08.520 I think it's because we live in a world that makes promises that are full of emptiness. 00:31:08.519 --> 00:31:11.619 Again and again and again. 00:31:11.619 --> 00:31:12.180 A platform. 00:31:12.980 --> 00:31:13.940 A product. 00:31:15.039 --> 00:31:16.019 Some proposition. 00:31:17.079 --> 00:31:18.000 And we buy it. 00:31:18.299 --> 00:31:19.160 And we try it. 00:31:19.519 --> 00:31:20.680 And it lets us down. 00:31:21.180 --> 00:31:21.940 And that hurts. 00:31:22.440 --> 00:31:23.379 And we feel stupid. 00:31:23.740 --> 00:31:24.420 And naive. 00:31:24.759 --> 00:31:26.059 And we say, that's not going to happen again. 00:31:26.299 --> 00:31:28.379 And it happens again and again and again. 00:31:28.539 --> 00:31:29.700 Promises full of emptiness. 00:31:29.700 --> 00:31:35.200 But what we need to understand is that Easter is completely different. 00:31:35.200 --> 00:31:39.500 Because unlike the world that gives us promises full of emptiness. 00:31:40.259 --> 00:31:43.000 Easter gives us emptiness full of promise. 00:31:45.059 --> 00:31:46.140 Empty cross. 00:31:47.279 --> 00:31:48.160 Empty tomb. 00:31:49.559 --> 00:31:50.519 Empty grave clothes. 00:31:51.920 --> 00:31:52.519 Emptiness. 00:31:53.180 --> 00:31:56.840 Full of the promise that one day all of this will be renewed. 00:31:56.839 --> 00:31:58.519 In all of creation. 00:31:59.299 --> 00:32:04.759 Will be full of the knowledge and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:32:05.919 --> 00:32:09.099 And it's in his name that we speak these words. 00:32:09.299 --> 00:32:16.119 And Lord, as we ask you today to help us grasp the truth of your resurrection. 00:32:16.619 --> 00:32:19.459 What that means about the kind of God that you are. 00:32:19.519 --> 00:32:21.259 About your heart and your character. 00:32:22.059 --> 00:32:24.859 What that means for us here and now, Lord. 00:32:24.859 --> 00:32:29.579 I do ask that you would subvert our cynicism, Lord. 00:32:30.539 --> 00:32:38.039 That you would invite us into the hopeful realism of knowing that no matter how hard things may be here and now. 00:32:38.379 --> 00:32:41.240 That we have an unbreakable promise. 00:32:42.459 --> 00:32:43.379 A sure hope. 00:32:44.259 --> 00:32:48.579 Lord, I pray for those who are here who are enjoying a time of blessing and ease. 00:32:49.419 --> 00:32:52.459 Lord, I pray that you would remind them of the reality of suffering. 00:32:52.559 --> 00:32:53.579 That they wouldn't lose touch. 00:32:53.579 --> 00:32:56.839 And for those who are here who are struggling. 00:32:57.199 --> 00:32:59.639 Who are facing futility and corruption. 00:32:59.859 --> 00:33:01.179 Who feel hopeless. 00:33:02.460 --> 00:33:04.740 Lord, that your resurrection would offer them hope. 00:33:04.819 --> 00:33:06.899 That would lift them out of that dark place. 00:33:07.339 --> 00:33:10.179 And give them a vision of the life that is to come. 00:33:10.980 --> 00:33:12.460 Lord, we pray all of this for our good. 00:33:12.519 --> 00:33:13.240 And for your glory. 00:33:13.339 --> 00:33:14.119 In your son's name. 00:33:14.359 --> 00:33:14.599 Amen. 00:33:14.599 --> 00:33:14.699 Amen. 00:33:14.699 --> 00:33:14.759 Amen. 00:33:14.759 --> 00:33:14.799 Amen. 00:33:14.799 --> 00:33:14.839 Amen. 00:33:14.839 --> 00:33:14.859 Amen. 00:33:14.859 --> 00:33:14.879 Amen. 00:33:14.879 --> 00:33:14.919 Amen. 00:33:14.919 --> 00:33:16.759 Amen. 00:33:16.759 --> 00:33:16.799 Amen.