WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.060 Just bow your heads in prayer for a moment, please, while we remain standing. 00:00:07.839 --> 00:00:16.160 Father, we give you thanks and praise that your word has treasures for us to see and to hear. 00:00:16.899 --> 00:00:22.460 We give you thanks and praise that, Father, that as we read your word time and time and time again, 00:00:23.100 --> 00:00:27.000 that you continue to help us to notice new treasures in your word. 00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:33.480 We ask, Father, that you would do a wonderful and gentle but powerful work in our hearts this morning, 00:00:34.140 --> 00:00:38.759 that your Holy Spirit would bring the treasures of your word into our heart, 00:00:39.219 --> 00:00:46.039 that our hearts might treasure them, and that we might live upright, free lives 00:00:46.039 --> 00:00:49.460 to your honor and your glory and the furtherance of your kingdom. 00:00:49.980 --> 00:00:55.140 And we ask this in the precious name of Jesus, your Son and our Savior. Amen. 00:00:55.140 --> 00:00:56.920 Amen. Please be seated. 00:00:57.000 --> 00:00:57.060 Amen. 00:00:59.439 --> 00:01:06.859 So, I sometimes get to mentor people on how they speak and how they do sermons. 00:01:07.760 --> 00:01:13.659 And one of the things I tell people when I'm trying to help them learn how to give a sermon or a talk 00:01:13.659 --> 00:01:18.180 is I tell them that the sermon or talk always has to have a good introduction. 00:01:18.439 --> 00:01:22.079 It should have some type of an introduction that gets people's attention 00:01:22.640 --> 00:01:25.980 and sort of makes them curious about what's going to happen next. 00:01:27.000 --> 00:01:30.000 So, I'm here to tell you that I don't have such an introduction today. 00:01:31.140 --> 00:01:35.599 I also tell the young people, the young men or women that I'm helping, 00:01:36.040 --> 00:01:39.920 that you can get away with saying you have no introduction once or twice a year, 00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:45.019 but if you do it every week, then people will think that's a bit lame and you should work harder. 00:01:45.019 --> 00:01:46.019 I tried. 00:01:46.019 --> 00:01:49.859 I just couldn't come up with a good introduction for the sermon this week. 00:01:50.640 --> 00:01:54.560 Maybe after the sermon's over, when you have coffee, you can say, 00:01:54.619 --> 00:01:59.239 George, this would have been a perfect illustration to get people into the sermon. 00:01:59.799 --> 00:02:00.579 So, there you go. 00:02:00.579 --> 00:02:01.659 It's Psalm 33. 00:02:02.060 --> 00:02:06.219 If you have Bibles, it would be great if you could look in the Bibles yourselves. 00:02:06.920 --> 00:02:11.079 And for those of you who don't have Bibles with you, the text will be up on the screen. 00:02:12.379 --> 00:02:14.340 And here's how the Psalm begins. 00:02:14.939 --> 00:02:19.120 I'm going to sort of look at it in a group of chunks. 00:02:19.520 --> 00:02:20.979 And here's how the Psalm begins. 00:02:20.979 --> 00:02:27.659 And by the way, the Psalm begins by not really seeming like it says very much, 00:02:28.139 --> 00:02:34.039 but there's actually something in this which really messes with your head 00:02:34.039 --> 00:02:36.280 and sort of just blows up. 00:02:36.459 --> 00:02:38.759 Like, it's actually quite an astounding statement. 00:02:38.959 --> 00:02:42.879 But let's read it first, and I'll go back, and I don't know if you'll, maybe you'll notice it. 00:02:43.299 --> 00:02:43.939 Maybe you won't. 00:02:44.019 --> 00:02:44.659 We'll see. 00:02:44.739 --> 00:02:45.359 Here's how it goes. 00:02:45.639 --> 00:02:48.139 Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous. 00:02:48.139 --> 00:02:51.739 This praise befits the upright. 00:02:52.599 --> 00:02:54.399 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre. 00:02:54.919 --> 00:02:57.579 Make melody to him with the harp of ten strings. 00:02:58.259 --> 00:03:00.139 Sing to him a new song. 00:03:00.699 --> 00:03:04.939 Play skillfully on the strings with loud shouts. 00:03:05.319 --> 00:03:07.479 In other words, with exuberance. 00:03:09.019 --> 00:03:10.779 And that's what it says. 00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:14.299 Now, here's the thing which is actually quite astounding about this Psalm. 00:03:15.119 --> 00:03:17.959 Over the last couple of years, I've become aware of the fact 00:03:17.960 --> 00:03:20.560 that some of you know that I'm very interested in apologetics. 00:03:21.140 --> 00:03:23.560 And over the last couple of years, I've become aware of the fact 00:03:23.560 --> 00:03:26.439 that there's actually quite a powerful and persuasive argument 00:03:26.439 --> 00:03:31.420 for the existence and the truth of the Christian God from music. 00:03:32.400 --> 00:03:35.659 That's not something I had thought of before a couple of years ago, 00:03:35.740 --> 00:03:39.420 but I've now read a couple of articles or parts of books 00:03:39.420 --> 00:03:41.800 which make, I think, a quite convincing claim 00:03:41.800 --> 00:03:45.760 that only in Christianity is there an explanation of music. 00:03:45.759 --> 00:03:48.299 Now, here's the question, here's the issue. 00:03:49.299 --> 00:03:54.239 There used to be a fellow who'd come to the 8 o'clock service, 00:03:55.000 --> 00:03:57.299 and the reason he came to the 8 o'clock service 00:03:57.299 --> 00:03:59.799 was because there was no music at the 8 o'clock service. 00:04:00.259 --> 00:04:01.359 He really liked music. 00:04:01.560 --> 00:04:03.139 He just hated music in church. 00:04:03.519 --> 00:04:07.180 He thought all church music was just terrible 00:04:07.180 --> 00:04:08.840 and was only a distraction. 00:04:09.060 --> 00:04:10.280 And he came to realize one day 00:04:10.280 --> 00:04:12.699 that it's not a spiritual gift to be grumpy, 00:04:12.699 --> 00:04:15.780 so it would be just better if he only came to the 8 o'clock service 00:04:15.780 --> 00:04:17.019 and never had to hear any music. 00:04:17.459 --> 00:04:21.139 But most of us have had different types of experiences with music. 00:04:21.620 --> 00:04:23.560 Experiences with music, something like this. 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:26.459 We've heard a piece of music, we've been at a concert, 00:04:27.099 --> 00:04:30.439 and there's something about some pieces of music 00:04:30.439 --> 00:04:32.919 that are transcendent, 00:04:33.980 --> 00:04:37.379 that almost make you feel like you've left your body, 00:04:37.379 --> 00:04:40.839 that there's something about it just so, 00:04:41.600 --> 00:04:47.019 like you're touching something bigger than this physical reality, 00:04:47.480 --> 00:04:49.240 something bigger than this world, 00:04:49.879 --> 00:04:53.420 that there's some meaning here that you're entering into, 00:04:53.579 --> 00:04:56.379 there's something just sublime and beautiful and transcendent, 00:04:56.439 --> 00:04:59.719 and most of us have had some experiences like that with music. 00:04:59.779 --> 00:05:01.079 Not every piece of music we hear, 00:05:01.159 --> 00:05:03.279 but with some pieces of music that we hear. 00:05:03.279 --> 00:05:07.239 It's just that there's something powerful, beautiful, transcendent, 00:05:07.699 --> 00:05:10.139 uplifting, almost as if we've left our body. 00:05:10.839 --> 00:05:13.819 Now the question is, how do we explain this experience? 00:05:14.339 --> 00:05:16.519 Like, how does this experience make any sense? 00:05:17.119 --> 00:05:19.679 Now here's where the apologetic comes in. 00:05:19.739 --> 00:05:21.579 It's called an abductive argument. 00:05:21.839 --> 00:05:23.379 It's not something that it proves, 00:05:24.259 --> 00:05:25.579 it doesn't prove my point, 00:05:25.699 --> 00:05:26.819 but it's a pointer, 00:05:26.819 --> 00:05:33.779 it's a problem or a puzzle that only one viewpoint can sort of accurately explain it. 00:05:34.599 --> 00:05:37.519 If you accept the basic story of Canada, 00:05:38.000 --> 00:05:41.420 which is that ultimately everything came into existence 00:05:41.420 --> 00:05:44.019 through some type of evolutionary process, 00:05:44.839 --> 00:05:47.579 and what that means, it's a naturalistic process. 00:05:47.740 --> 00:05:49.740 There's no God, no designer, no creator. 00:05:50.939 --> 00:05:52.980 It's just, you know, when the Big Bang happened, 00:05:52.980 --> 00:05:57.120 just the very nature of the type of matter that got created 00:05:57.120 --> 00:06:01.980 and the way everything got propelled out of that, you know, massive bang, 00:06:02.379 --> 00:06:05.379 that sort of just inevitably one thing happens after another 00:06:05.379 --> 00:06:07.280 and after another and after another and after another, 00:06:07.360 --> 00:06:09.660 and eventually there's life and there's eventually you and me, 00:06:09.879 --> 00:06:12.560 but there's no purpose, there's no meaning, 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:14.520 there's no direction. 00:06:15.100 --> 00:06:17.200 It's just one thing that happens after another. 00:06:17.319 --> 00:06:20.180 It's all completely and utterly a coincidence and an accident 00:06:20.180 --> 00:06:22.920 that the things that we see in the world and exist 00:06:22.920 --> 00:06:24.500 are just the way they exist. 00:06:25.439 --> 00:06:29.720 Now, obviously, most people don't really think about that very much 00:06:29.720 --> 00:06:31.900 because if they thought about it very much, 00:06:31.939 --> 00:06:33.639 it's actually a very terrifying thought. 00:06:34.079 --> 00:06:36.480 It's actually a very terrifying way to understand the world 00:06:36.480 --> 00:06:37.500 and understand yourself. 00:06:38.120 --> 00:06:39.280 But think about music. 00:06:39.939 --> 00:06:42.819 If, in fact, that account is correct, 00:06:43.660 --> 00:06:45.620 that it's just one thing that happened after another, 00:06:45.720 --> 00:06:47.800 there's no design, no intent, no purpose, 00:06:47.800 --> 00:06:49.199 it's just cause and effect. 00:06:49.660 --> 00:06:52.960 If that is the case, then our experience of music, 00:06:54.879 --> 00:06:58.740 well, music and all is just an accident. 00:06:59.620 --> 00:07:00.560 That's all it is. 00:07:01.540 --> 00:07:03.360 If maybe at that big bang, 00:07:03.540 --> 00:07:06.879 things had been a billionth of a billionth of a billionth 00:07:06.879 --> 00:07:08.860 of a billionth of a billionth of something different, 00:07:08.960 --> 00:07:10.000 there wouldn't be any music, 00:07:10.060 --> 00:07:11.780 just like there wouldn't be any of us. 00:07:12.060 --> 00:07:14.580 It's just purely and utterly a coincidence and an accident. 00:07:14.579 --> 00:07:19.459 And that means that if you think there's something significant about music, 00:07:19.639 --> 00:07:22.079 if when you're hearing certain pieces of music, 00:07:22.219 --> 00:07:24.259 there's something in there that transports you, 00:07:24.859 --> 00:07:28.639 that gives you a sense of something more, 00:07:30.680 --> 00:07:33.659 then what you're experiencing is a delusion. 00:07:33.660 --> 00:07:40.200 By the way, you know, one of the best scenes that sort of partially captures that, 00:07:40.320 --> 00:07:42.080 one of my all-time favorite movies, 00:07:42.260 --> 00:07:44.560 like lots of other people, is The Shawshank Redemption. 00:07:45.520 --> 00:07:47.500 And it's not a movie for everybody. 00:07:47.620 --> 00:07:50.580 There's some really sort of very brutal types of scenes 00:07:50.580 --> 00:07:52.480 sort of about a third of the way into the movie. 00:07:53.280 --> 00:07:54.879 But if you've seen that movie, 00:07:54.960 --> 00:07:57.420 there's that time in the movie when he takes over 00:07:57.420 --> 00:08:00.720 the place where the intercom is. 00:08:01.020 --> 00:08:03.840 And he plays opera music. 00:08:04.220 --> 00:08:07.300 And it completely and utterly transfixes all of the inmates. 00:08:08.560 --> 00:08:11.600 And you see that for a while they're not in prison. 00:08:11.819 --> 00:08:12.600 They're transported. 00:08:12.780 --> 00:08:15.400 They experience something bigger than beyond themselves. 00:08:16.060 --> 00:08:18.120 But once again, our current philosophy 00:08:18.120 --> 00:08:21.100 basically says that those things are merely an accident. 00:08:21.639 --> 00:08:22.540 They have no meaning. 00:08:22.660 --> 00:08:23.800 And if you think they have a meaning, 00:08:23.900 --> 00:08:24.740 that's just an illusion. 00:08:24.740 --> 00:08:25.939 You fooled yourself. 00:08:27.420 --> 00:08:32.019 Only the Christian faith ultimately helps you to understand 00:08:32.019 --> 00:08:34.379 that your experience of music... 00:08:34.379 --> 00:08:36.240 Well, here, if you could put up the first point, Claire, 00:08:36.300 --> 00:08:37.200 that would be very helpful. 00:08:38.080 --> 00:08:40.879 Music is not a meaningless accident 00:08:40.879 --> 00:08:47.220 whose power is a delusion, a sin, or a trap. 00:08:48.039 --> 00:08:49.000 It's beyond that. 00:08:49.080 --> 00:08:51.340 But as you know, for many parts of Islam, 00:08:51.639 --> 00:08:53.580 music is something to be... 00:08:53.580 --> 00:08:55.639 When the Taliban come, music stops. 00:08:55.639 --> 00:08:58.759 In a sense, in a Buddhist and Hindu worldview, 00:08:58.759 --> 00:09:01.299 in some ways, music is a bit of a trap. 00:09:01.500 --> 00:09:02.919 It connects you to this world. 00:09:03.899 --> 00:09:06.559 And from a naturalistic perspective, it's a delusion. 00:09:07.860 --> 00:09:10.819 And I would say that music is not a meaningless accident 00:09:10.819 --> 00:09:13.759 whose power is a delusion, a sin, or a trap. 00:09:14.559 --> 00:09:16.559 In fact, if you could put up the next point, Claire, 00:09:16.659 --> 00:09:17.600 that would be very helpful. 00:09:17.600 --> 00:09:24.820 The triune God inextricably wove music into human beings. 00:09:25.460 --> 00:09:27.700 Now, not inexplicably, inextricably. 00:09:28.200 --> 00:09:31.440 Very similar sounding words, but they're something quite different. 00:09:32.560 --> 00:09:34.540 Inextricably means you can't remove it. 00:09:34.539 --> 00:09:37.740 That when God created human beings, 00:09:38.059 --> 00:09:40.759 he created us in such a way that music, 00:09:41.099 --> 00:09:45.719 the ability to appreciate music and understand music 00:09:45.719 --> 00:09:46.879 and want music, 00:09:47.419 --> 00:09:50.139 is something just woven into us 00:09:50.139 --> 00:09:52.059 that can't be removed from us. 00:09:52.839 --> 00:09:53.579 Where do I get that? 00:09:53.639 --> 00:09:56.319 Well, look at verse 1 again. 00:09:56.320 --> 00:09:59.400 Shout for joy in the Lord, O you righteous. 00:09:59.660 --> 00:10:04.020 Praise befits the upright. 00:10:05.280 --> 00:10:09.379 In other words, there's something about praise that fits. 00:10:10.320 --> 00:10:13.480 It fits with how God made human beings. 00:10:13.980 --> 00:10:16.780 It fits with how the universe is. 00:10:17.320 --> 00:10:18.660 And it's not just praise. 00:10:19.200 --> 00:10:21.080 It's praise involving music. 00:10:21.260 --> 00:10:23.040 Because it continues in verse 2. 00:10:23.140 --> 00:10:25.160 Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre. 00:10:25.159 --> 00:10:27.419 Or with the six-string guitar. 00:10:29.059 --> 00:10:31.339 Or however many strings there are in a piano. 00:10:31.519 --> 00:10:33.539 Make melody to him with the harp of ten strings. 00:10:33.759 --> 00:10:34.860 Sing to him a new song. 00:10:34.980 --> 00:10:37.839 Play skillfully on the strings with loud shouts. 00:10:38.240 --> 00:10:39.759 See, what the Bible is saying here 00:10:39.759 --> 00:10:45.319 is that God has woven music into human beings. 00:10:45.879 --> 00:10:48.439 And he's woven music into human beings 00:10:48.439 --> 00:10:51.419 so that there is a way to use music 00:10:51.419 --> 00:10:52.939 which connects us to him. 00:10:52.940 --> 00:10:55.620 In other words, it's very, very clear. 00:10:56.220 --> 00:10:58.040 Unlike what our culture says, 00:10:58.520 --> 00:11:00.500 when a person, any person, 00:11:00.580 --> 00:11:02.760 it doesn't matter if you're a Muslim, a Buddhist, an atheist, 00:11:03.120 --> 00:11:05.080 it doesn't matter if you're a Hindu, 00:11:05.280 --> 00:11:07.200 it doesn't matter who you are, 00:11:07.360 --> 00:11:09.320 but when you experience music, 00:11:09.400 --> 00:11:12.160 and when you're experiencing music in such a way 00:11:12.160 --> 00:11:13.680 that it sort of lifts you out of yourself, 00:11:13.780 --> 00:11:15.080 it's a bit transcendent, 00:11:15.440 --> 00:11:16.880 there's just something you feel 00:11:16.880 --> 00:11:18.340 that's beautiful and significant about it, 00:11:18.340 --> 00:11:22.960 you're having a window into what the real world is. 00:11:23.120 --> 00:11:25.360 God created you so that there would be times 00:11:25.360 --> 00:11:26.780 when you experience music 00:11:26.780 --> 00:11:30.580 and feel there's meaning and transcendence. 00:11:31.360 --> 00:11:36.060 And I actually think only the Christian view explains 00:11:36.060 --> 00:11:39.200 and makes that experience understandable. 00:11:39.200 --> 00:11:44.360 Now, it's also very interesting 00:11:44.360 --> 00:11:48.100 that it's not just music 00:11:48.100 --> 00:11:51.120 that God has woven into our nature, 00:11:51.680 --> 00:11:54.720 but also, in some ways, 00:11:54.940 --> 00:12:00.340 goodness and love and beauty and justice 00:12:00.340 --> 00:12:03.620 are somehow or another woven into us as human beings 00:12:03.620 --> 00:12:05.560 and woven into the created order. 00:12:05.559 --> 00:12:09.319 It used to be, you know, 00:12:09.379 --> 00:12:11.659 you can't have people who want to claim, 00:12:11.719 --> 00:12:13.319 you don't meet them very often right now 00:12:13.319 --> 00:12:14.279 because we're in a, 00:12:14.579 --> 00:12:18.279 we're in sort of like a witch-hunting, 00:12:18.479 --> 00:12:20.739 absolutist culture right now. 00:12:21.379 --> 00:12:23.279 Like we went from a relativist culture 00:12:23.279 --> 00:12:26.939 to a witch-hunting, absolutist culture, 00:12:27.539 --> 00:12:28.739 like in the blink of an eye. 00:12:29.979 --> 00:12:32.019 But when I used to have discussions 00:12:32.019 --> 00:12:34.679 with people who claimed they were moral relativists, 00:12:34.679 --> 00:12:38.719 they couldn't actually argue for moral relativism, 00:12:38.719 --> 00:12:42.419 nor could they argue for any type of thing at all in society 00:12:42.419 --> 00:12:46.620 without assuming the reality of moral truths 00:12:46.620 --> 00:12:48.719 and truths of justice 00:12:48.719 --> 00:12:50.759 and the demands of love. 00:12:50.839 --> 00:12:51.959 Like it was actually impossible. 00:12:52.299 --> 00:12:55.879 One wag put it that it's like trying to argue with somebody 00:12:55.879 --> 00:12:59.139 that, who claims that air doesn't exist, 00:12:59.299 --> 00:13:01.479 but they can't actually even say a single word to you 00:13:01.480 --> 00:13:02.340 without breathing air. 00:13:03.120 --> 00:13:04.980 But they're completely blind to it. 00:13:05.580 --> 00:13:08.340 And so the Bible actually shows something quite beautiful. 00:13:08.700 --> 00:13:11.080 It's for people outside of the Christian faith, 00:13:11.519 --> 00:13:15.300 it's, this gives a bit of an understanding 00:13:15.300 --> 00:13:18.759 about why as people grow within the Christian faith, 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:23.620 there's a type of beauty and power to it. 00:13:23.620 --> 00:13:25.879 Look at verses 4 to 9. 00:13:27.980 --> 00:13:29.320 It goes like this. 00:13:30.379 --> 00:13:31.940 For the word of the Lord is upright, 00:13:32.440 --> 00:13:35.139 and all his work is done in faithfulness. 00:13:35.639 --> 00:13:38.360 He loves righteousness and justice. 00:13:39.039 --> 00:13:43.539 The earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. 00:13:45.659 --> 00:13:48.039 You know, just before I pause, before I go any further, 00:13:48.200 --> 00:13:49.960 I mean, what this is saying here is that 00:13:49.960 --> 00:13:52.560 that God spoke the world into existence, 00:13:52.560 --> 00:13:54.500 and when he spoke the world into existence, 00:13:54.500 --> 00:13:56.460 not only did he design human beings 00:13:56.460 --> 00:13:59.620 so that music is something inextricable to them, 00:13:59.639 --> 00:14:01.139 and from music as well, art, 00:14:01.580 --> 00:14:05.920 but that also being right, like the goodness, 00:14:06.400 --> 00:14:09.019 and that type of justice or balance and fairness, 00:14:09.019 --> 00:14:12.840 and steadfast love was also woven into the created order. 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:14.759 Verse 6, 00:14:14.759 --> 00:14:42.120 If you could put up the third point, Claire, 00:14:42.120 --> 00:14:43.100 that would be very handy. 00:14:43.500 --> 00:14:45.279 What this text is saying very clearly 00:14:45.279 --> 00:14:48.060 is the triune God spoke, 00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:50.320 and the universe came into being. 00:14:52.000 --> 00:14:53.240 There's no necessity. 00:14:54.399 --> 00:14:57.220 Everything is, to use fancy philosophical language, 00:14:57.340 --> 00:14:58.519 everything is contingent. 00:14:59.460 --> 00:15:00.980 God just decided it would be good, 00:15:01.039 --> 00:15:02.440 and he spoke it into existence. 00:15:04.379 --> 00:15:06.940 Whether that ends up being a deep creation 00:15:06.940 --> 00:15:09.100 with a long history as seen in the Big Bang 00:15:09.100 --> 00:15:10.539 or some other type of mechanism, 00:15:10.539 --> 00:15:12.079 there's lots of different ways 00:15:12.079 --> 00:15:14.959 that Christians can easily connect this view 00:15:14.959 --> 00:15:17.199 with what science is discovering. 00:15:17.959 --> 00:15:18.599 In fact, actually, 00:15:19.279 --> 00:15:22.139 one of the things which you should, 00:15:22.299 --> 00:15:23.259 those of you who aren't familiar, 00:15:23.459 --> 00:15:25.699 you should watch some videos by James Tours, 00:15:26.599 --> 00:15:32.519 who's an award-winning chemist and engineer 00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:34.179 at the University of Houston, 00:15:34.179 --> 00:15:37.839 and one of the things which isn't talked about very much 00:15:37.839 --> 00:15:38.819 in academic circles, 00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:40.859 is that the great breakthroughs 00:15:40.859 --> 00:15:42.939 that have been happening in the fields of biology 00:15:42.939 --> 00:15:46.139 and biochemistry in the last several decades 00:15:46.139 --> 00:15:49.120 have come about because people on one level 00:15:49.120 --> 00:15:51.500 are fundamentally rejecting evolution, 00:15:52.179 --> 00:15:53.979 and rather than trying to figure out 00:15:53.979 --> 00:15:55.459 how this happened by chance, 00:15:55.519 --> 00:15:57.719 they now look at it as something designed 00:15:57.720 --> 00:16:00.300 and are trying to figure out how it's designed. 00:16:00.980 --> 00:16:02.519 And it's not talked about formally 00:16:02.519 --> 00:16:03.879 that they've rejected evolution, 00:16:04.100 --> 00:16:05.580 but they're functionally acting 00:16:05.580 --> 00:16:07.340 as if evolution doesn't exist, 00:16:07.460 --> 00:16:08.399 as if things are designed, 00:16:08.500 --> 00:16:09.540 looking for the design, 00:16:10.019 --> 00:16:11.220 and then trying to figure out 00:16:11.220 --> 00:16:12.580 all the features of it. 00:16:13.300 --> 00:16:15.259 So there's no problem with this statement 00:16:15.259 --> 00:16:17.180 with science, 00:16:17.360 --> 00:16:18.120 but you'll notice, 00:16:18.740 --> 00:16:20.279 if you could put up the next point, Claire, 00:16:20.320 --> 00:16:20.940 that would be handy. 00:16:20.940 --> 00:16:22.860 The created order reflects 00:16:22.860 --> 00:16:26.380 the goodness, justice, beauty, 00:16:26.820 --> 00:16:29.560 and love of the triune God. 00:16:30.300 --> 00:16:32.820 See, that's why love is so important to us. 00:16:32.920 --> 00:16:35.480 That's why truth is so important to us. 00:16:35.840 --> 00:16:36.680 A couple of years ago, 00:16:36.760 --> 00:16:38.280 I was at an apologetics event, 00:16:38.380 --> 00:16:39.320 and I was on the stage 00:16:39.320 --> 00:16:41.520 because I had done a very small presentation. 00:16:42.040 --> 00:16:43.680 That actually was the presentation on, 00:16:44.780 --> 00:16:45.580 it was a presentation 00:16:45.580 --> 00:16:47.300 when we did an apologetics conference 00:16:47.300 --> 00:16:48.480 on intelligent design. 00:16:49.000 --> 00:16:50.560 And one of the questions that came to me 00:16:50.559 --> 00:16:52.159 from the answer was, 00:16:52.819 --> 00:16:54.759 from the audience was, 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:56.399 one of the questions that came from the audience 00:16:56.399 --> 00:16:58.119 was that, George, 00:16:58.219 --> 00:17:00.279 don't you think it's impossible 00:17:00.279 --> 00:17:01.219 to know the truth? 00:17:01.699 --> 00:17:03.319 Don't you think just, you know, 00:17:03.359 --> 00:17:04.720 because of the way science works 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:06.259 and because of bias and all of these, 00:17:06.339 --> 00:17:07.700 it's impossible to know the truth 00:17:07.700 --> 00:17:08.579 and speak the truth? 00:17:09.139 --> 00:17:10.259 And that was the question, 00:17:10.259 --> 00:17:12.839 and my answer was very simple. 00:17:13.679 --> 00:17:14.579 Do you want me to give you 00:17:14.579 --> 00:17:15.720 a true answer or not? 00:17:16.720 --> 00:17:17.639 And everybody laughed. 00:17:18.460 --> 00:17:19.279 Because, of course, 00:17:19.279 --> 00:17:20.660 this individual wanted me 00:17:20.660 --> 00:17:21.460 to give a true answer, 00:17:21.539 --> 00:17:22.319 and they've already answered 00:17:22.319 --> 00:17:22.960 their question. 00:17:23.799 --> 00:17:25.119 They wanted a true answer, 00:17:25.200 --> 00:17:26.160 not a false answer. 00:17:26.720 --> 00:17:27.639 It was just a, 00:17:27.639 --> 00:17:31.059 it was a non-question, 00:17:31.480 --> 00:17:34.619 a question that we think 00:17:34.619 --> 00:17:36.079 we're being smart and clever with, 00:17:36.180 --> 00:17:37.180 but actually doesn't, 00:17:37.660 --> 00:17:39.079 it's not smart or clever. 00:17:39.079 --> 00:17:41.699 But we all know that human beings 00:17:41.699 --> 00:17:42.419 need love. 00:17:43.899 --> 00:17:45.279 Then we crave it. 00:17:45.919 --> 00:17:48.039 And we know that at the end of the day, 00:17:48.339 --> 00:17:49.980 we want to know the truth. 00:17:51.539 --> 00:17:53.720 I mean, that's really under attack 00:17:53.720 --> 00:17:55.480 in North America. 00:17:59.099 --> 00:18:00.179 Morris will tell you, 00:18:00.559 --> 00:18:02.399 if you come to the 8 o'clock service, 00:18:02.619 --> 00:18:03.899 I give a shorter sermon, 00:18:04.019 --> 00:18:05.859 but I also give some fairly politically 00:18:05.859 --> 00:18:06.939 incorrect comments 00:18:06.939 --> 00:18:08.119 at the 8 o'clock sermon 00:18:08.119 --> 00:18:09.740 because I know everybody's there 00:18:09.740 --> 00:18:10.740 and it's not on YouTube. 00:18:11.399 --> 00:18:13.539 And so I don't have to worry about it 00:18:13.539 --> 00:18:15.559 haunting me down the years. 00:18:16.259 --> 00:18:16.659 But, you know, 00:18:16.699 --> 00:18:17.939 increasingly in our culture, 00:18:18.099 --> 00:18:19.459 language is being changed 00:18:19.459 --> 00:18:20.240 in such a way 00:18:20.240 --> 00:18:22.079 not to help us know the truth, 00:18:22.159 --> 00:18:23.039 but to stop us 00:18:23.039 --> 00:18:23.959 from knowing the truth. 00:18:24.359 --> 00:18:24.979 It's one of the reasons 00:18:24.979 --> 00:18:26.879 our culture is increasingly in trouble, 00:18:27.139 --> 00:18:29.740 is that language is being changed 00:18:29.740 --> 00:18:31.899 to obscure the truth 00:18:31.899 --> 00:18:33.379 rather than helping us 00:18:33.379 --> 00:18:34.179 to know the truth. 00:18:34.180 --> 00:18:35.220 And if we don't know the truth, 00:18:35.279 --> 00:18:36.539 we can't solve problems. 00:18:37.160 --> 00:18:38.539 We need truth. 00:18:38.640 --> 00:18:39.580 We need justice. 00:18:39.820 --> 00:18:40.940 We need these things. 00:18:41.100 --> 00:18:42.340 And only the Christian, 00:18:42.640 --> 00:18:44.019 only the Christian scriptures 00:18:44.019 --> 00:18:46.220 explains why these are such deep needs 00:18:46.220 --> 00:18:47.279 and why we can't actually 00:18:47.279 --> 00:18:48.380 function without them. 00:18:49.840 --> 00:18:51.220 Even people who are acting 00:18:51.220 --> 00:18:52.860 profoundly unjustly 00:18:52.860 --> 00:18:55.620 try to frame what they're doing 00:18:55.620 --> 00:18:58.759 within the language of justice. 00:18:59.519 --> 00:19:03.000 Putin's invasion of Ukraine, 00:19:03.000 --> 00:19:04.380 completely unprovoked, 00:19:04.519 --> 00:19:06.759 a completely and utterly terrible act, 00:19:07.279 --> 00:19:08.059 he, of course, 00:19:08.099 --> 00:19:09.019 will try to give you 00:19:09.019 --> 00:19:10.960 a justice reason for it. 00:19:12.500 --> 00:19:13.799 And that's very telling. 00:19:14.960 --> 00:19:16.160 And it also shows you 00:19:16.160 --> 00:19:17.480 this next bit 00:19:17.480 --> 00:19:18.140 because, of course, 00:19:18.259 --> 00:19:18.480 you know, 00:19:18.519 --> 00:19:20.039 the thing that we might want to say, 00:19:20.099 --> 00:19:20.299 George, 00:19:20.460 --> 00:19:20.579 you know, 00:19:20.579 --> 00:19:21.220 that's all a very, 00:19:21.339 --> 00:19:22.240 very nice way of talking 00:19:22.240 --> 00:19:23.279 about the created world. 00:19:23.640 --> 00:19:24.940 But the fact of the matter is, 00:19:25.000 --> 00:19:25.279 George, 00:19:25.339 --> 00:19:25.779 that, you know, 00:19:25.779 --> 00:19:27.380 the world has elements like that. 00:19:27.519 --> 00:19:28.539 Partly you're true, 00:19:28.539 --> 00:19:29.119 but, I mean, 00:19:29.180 --> 00:19:30.740 there's the war in Ukraine, 00:19:30.920 --> 00:19:32.819 there's terrible injustices 00:19:32.819 --> 00:19:34.039 all around the world. 00:19:34.519 --> 00:19:35.440 Some of the people here 00:19:35.440 --> 00:19:36.299 in this congregation 00:19:36.299 --> 00:19:38.259 have been delivered 00:19:38.259 --> 00:19:39.839 from profound evil 00:19:39.839 --> 00:19:42.819 and profound injustices, 00:19:42.980 --> 00:19:43.700 death squads, 00:19:43.839 --> 00:19:44.680 terrible abuse. 00:19:45.339 --> 00:19:45.960 And so, George, 00:19:46.000 --> 00:19:46.740 just to talk about 00:19:46.740 --> 00:19:47.480 all of these things 00:19:47.480 --> 00:19:48.299 isn't very helpful. 00:19:48.680 --> 00:19:49.379 We might even say, 00:19:49.440 --> 00:19:49.599 George, 00:19:49.659 --> 00:19:50.420 that's the problem I have 00:19:50.420 --> 00:19:51.779 with religious people like you. 00:19:52.019 --> 00:19:53.119 And I would just say to them, 00:19:53.139 --> 00:19:53.639 well, that's fine, 00:19:53.680 --> 00:19:54.319 you can have problems 00:19:54.319 --> 00:19:55.299 with religious people, 00:19:55.299 --> 00:19:56.420 but you can't have problems 00:19:56.420 --> 00:19:57.100 with the Bible 00:19:57.100 --> 00:19:58.300 because those objections 00:19:58.300 --> 00:19:59.460 are anticipated 00:19:59.460 --> 00:20:00.640 in the very next movement 00:20:00.640 --> 00:20:01.480 of the psalm. 00:20:02.340 --> 00:20:03.019 They are. 00:20:03.200 --> 00:20:04.360 Look and see at verse 10. 00:20:05.100 --> 00:20:05.980 It doesn't just say, 00:20:06.060 --> 00:20:06.340 oh, yes, 00:20:06.380 --> 00:20:07.240 everything is just, 00:20:07.320 --> 00:20:07.700 you know, 00:20:08.200 --> 00:20:09.800 bluebells and happiness 00:20:09.800 --> 00:20:10.960 and, I don't know, 00:20:11.019 --> 00:20:12.140 little unicorns 00:20:12.140 --> 00:20:13.779 and all that. 00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:14.980 No, no, look at verse 10. 00:20:15.940 --> 00:20:16.759 The Lord brings 00:20:16.759 --> 00:20:18.640 the councils of the nations. 00:20:19.140 --> 00:20:20.039 Another way to understand 00:20:20.039 --> 00:20:20.740 the word nations 00:20:20.740 --> 00:20:21.779 is people groups. 00:20:22.340 --> 00:20:23.500 The Lord brings 00:20:23.500 --> 00:20:25.279 the council of the people groups 00:20:25.279 --> 00:20:25.880 to nothing. 00:20:26.420 --> 00:20:28.600 He frustrates 00:20:28.600 --> 00:20:29.920 the plans 00:20:29.920 --> 00:20:30.980 of the peoples. 00:20:32.360 --> 00:20:33.259 The council 00:20:33.259 --> 00:20:34.140 of the Lord 00:20:34.140 --> 00:20:35.120 stands forever. 00:20:35.820 --> 00:20:36.640 The plans 00:20:36.640 --> 00:20:37.860 of his heart 00:20:37.860 --> 00:20:39.380 to all generations. 00:20:40.500 --> 00:20:41.500 Blessed is the nation. 00:20:42.200 --> 00:20:43.440 Blessed is the people group. 00:20:44.039 --> 00:20:45.039 Blessed is the person 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:46.519 whose God is the Lord. 00:20:46.519 --> 00:20:47.519 The people 00:20:47.519 --> 00:20:48.519 whom he has chosen 00:20:49.039 --> 00:20:51.180 as his heritage. 00:20:52.740 --> 00:20:53.060 So, 00:20:53.740 --> 00:20:55.140 what this text 00:20:55.140 --> 00:20:56.000 is saying here 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:57.720 is that the reason 00:20:57.720 --> 00:20:59.020 that there is evil 00:20:59.020 --> 00:21:00.259 in the world, 00:21:00.680 --> 00:21:01.560 there are terrible 00:21:01.560 --> 00:21:02.860 injustices in the world, 00:21:03.360 --> 00:21:04.060 that in fact, 00:21:04.460 --> 00:21:05.320 there are people 00:21:05.320 --> 00:21:06.200 and people groups 00:21:06.200 --> 00:21:07.560 who desire things 00:21:07.560 --> 00:21:08.620 and plan things 00:21:08.620 --> 00:21:09.740 and organize things 00:21:09.740 --> 00:21:10.660 and seek things 00:21:10.660 --> 00:21:11.740 and pursue things, 00:21:11.740 --> 00:21:12.800 and the things 00:21:12.800 --> 00:21:13.480 that they seek 00:21:13.480 --> 00:21:13.960 and the things 00:21:13.960 --> 00:21:14.759 that they pursue 00:21:14.759 --> 00:21:16.259 are very contrary 00:21:16.259 --> 00:21:17.580 to how the purpose 00:21:17.579 --> 00:21:18.299 is that God 00:21:18.299 --> 00:21:19.619 is woven into human beings 00:21:19.619 --> 00:21:20.159 and he's woven 00:21:20.159 --> 00:21:21.179 into the created order. 00:21:21.779 --> 00:21:22.720 He's made us 00:21:22.720 --> 00:21:23.419 to know truth 00:21:23.419 --> 00:21:24.559 and we tell lies. 00:21:24.960 --> 00:21:25.720 He's made us 00:21:25.720 --> 00:21:27.720 to desire truth 00:21:27.720 --> 00:21:29.480 and we desire lies. 00:21:29.939 --> 00:21:30.960 He's made us 00:21:30.960 --> 00:21:32.859 to be faithful 00:21:32.859 --> 00:21:33.500 to each other 00:21:33.500 --> 00:21:34.759 and we betray each other. 00:21:35.139 --> 00:21:37.159 He's made sexuality 00:21:37.159 --> 00:21:37.759 to work 00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:38.699 in a particular way 00:21:38.699 --> 00:21:40.039 and we've rejected 00:21:40.039 --> 00:21:40.699 those ways 00:21:40.699 --> 00:21:41.740 that he's made sexuality 00:21:41.740 --> 00:21:42.159 to work. 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:43.540 and he's made us 00:21:43.540 --> 00:21:45.140 to love beauty 00:21:45.140 --> 00:21:46.860 and we love ugliness. 00:21:47.120 --> 00:21:48.000 He's made us 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:49.160 to encourage 00:21:49.160 --> 00:21:50.320 and we tear down. 00:21:50.660 --> 00:21:51.519 He's made us 00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:52.519 for these types of things 00:21:52.519 --> 00:21:53.220 and we do 00:21:53.220 --> 00:21:54.240 these types of things 00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:55.160 and sometimes 00:21:55.160 --> 00:21:56.040 we know why 00:21:56.040 --> 00:21:56.920 we're doing them 00:21:56.920 --> 00:21:57.340 and sometimes 00:21:57.340 --> 00:21:58.160 we don't know 00:21:58.160 --> 00:21:58.980 why we're doing them 00:21:58.980 --> 00:22:00.420 but that's what's going on 00:22:00.420 --> 00:22:01.300 in the earth 00:22:01.300 --> 00:22:02.620 and that's what's going on 00:22:02.620 --> 00:22:03.480 in people's hearts 00:22:03.480 --> 00:22:04.560 and one of the things 00:22:04.560 --> 00:22:05.400 that the psalm is saying, 00:22:05.519 --> 00:22:06.100 yes, I know 00:22:06.100 --> 00:22:07.279 these things are going on 00:22:07.279 --> 00:22:08.860 but you also need to know 00:22:08.860 --> 00:22:10.000 that you can never 00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:11.380 erase my purposes. 00:22:12.160 --> 00:22:14.740 Try as you might. 00:22:15.380 --> 00:22:16.680 You can't erase them. 00:22:18.360 --> 00:22:20.300 My purposes are unfailing. 00:22:20.460 --> 00:22:21.560 They're intergenerational. 00:22:21.720 --> 00:22:22.440 They will last 00:22:22.440 --> 00:22:23.500 until all things 00:22:23.500 --> 00:22:24.240 come to the end 00:22:24.240 --> 00:22:25.100 that I determine 00:22:25.100 --> 00:22:26.279 is the end. 00:22:26.660 --> 00:22:27.540 Not Apple. 00:22:27.700 --> 00:22:28.860 Not the Supreme Court. 00:22:29.140 --> 00:22:31.720 Not the Liberal Party 00:22:31.720 --> 00:22:32.940 or the Conservative Party 00:22:32.940 --> 00:22:33.640 or any party. 00:22:33.880 --> 00:22:35.779 It is my end 00:22:35.779 --> 00:22:36.640 which will be the end 00:22:36.640 --> 00:22:37.759 that ultimately comes. 00:22:38.880 --> 00:22:39.380 If you could put up 00:22:39.380 --> 00:22:39.900 the next point 00:22:39.900 --> 00:22:40.800 that would be very helpful. 00:22:41.259 --> 00:22:41.440 You see, 00:22:41.440 --> 00:22:42.460 the human problem 00:22:42.460 --> 00:22:43.440 is not 00:22:43.440 --> 00:22:45.500 that you have desires 00:22:45.500 --> 00:22:47.240 and pursue purposes. 00:22:48.360 --> 00:22:50.400 That's not the problem. 00:22:52.940 --> 00:22:53.240 I mean, 00:22:53.320 --> 00:22:54.160 here is where 00:22:54.160 --> 00:22:54.799 Christianity 00:22:54.799 --> 00:22:56.039 parts paths 00:22:56.039 --> 00:22:57.400 very profoundly 00:22:57.400 --> 00:22:58.279 with Buddhism 00:22:58.279 --> 00:23:00.299 at a very, 00:23:00.460 --> 00:23:01.180 very deep level. 00:23:01.420 --> 00:23:02.980 It says that 00:23:02.980 --> 00:23:04.640 there's so much 00:23:04.640 --> 00:23:05.620 noble and beautiful 00:23:05.620 --> 00:23:06.380 about Buddhism 00:23:06.380 --> 00:23:09.340 but at a very deep level. 00:23:09.340 --> 00:23:10.400 They're trying 00:23:10.400 --> 00:23:11.140 to do something 00:23:11.140 --> 00:23:12.400 which will erase you 00:23:12.400 --> 00:23:13.200 as a human being 00:23:13.200 --> 00:23:14.440 and take you 00:23:14.440 --> 00:23:14.960 in a desire 00:23:14.960 --> 00:23:15.700 and a direction 00:23:15.700 --> 00:23:16.540 that God does not 00:23:16.540 --> 00:23:17.840 want for you. 00:23:18.800 --> 00:23:19.020 You see, 00:23:19.100 --> 00:23:19.840 the problem isn't 00:23:19.840 --> 00:23:20.760 that you have desires 00:23:20.760 --> 00:23:22.600 and you pursue purposes. 00:23:22.980 --> 00:23:23.740 The problem is 00:23:23.740 --> 00:23:24.820 that you cannot 00:23:24.820 --> 00:23:25.940 have desires 00:23:25.940 --> 00:23:26.640 or purposes 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:27.480 without them 00:23:27.480 --> 00:23:28.420 being tainted 00:23:28.420 --> 00:23:29.940 by a rejection 00:23:29.940 --> 00:23:30.660 of God 00:23:30.660 --> 00:23:32.400 and an exalting 00:23:32.400 --> 00:23:33.279 of yourself. 00:23:33.560 --> 00:23:34.440 That's the problem. 00:23:35.580 --> 00:23:36.740 That's my problem. 00:23:39.640 --> 00:23:40.779 That's my problem. 00:23:42.500 --> 00:23:43.040 You know, 00:23:43.080 --> 00:23:43.620 when I'm preparing 00:23:43.620 --> 00:23:44.160 a sermon 00:23:44.160 --> 00:23:45.340 and that's something 00:23:45.340 --> 00:23:46.560 that God wants me to do 00:23:46.560 --> 00:23:48.660 and do I 00:23:48.660 --> 00:23:50.160 take a turn of phrase 00:23:50.160 --> 00:23:50.980 to try to make it 00:23:50.980 --> 00:23:52.080 look like I'm wise? 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:54.060 Do I even tell you 00:23:54.060 --> 00:23:54.440 that 00:23:54.440 --> 00:23:56.160 as a way of making it 00:23:56.160 --> 00:23:57.279 look that I'm wise 00:23:57.279 --> 00:23:57.940 that I know 00:23:57.940 --> 00:23:58.920 that I'm being foolish? 00:23:59.559 --> 00:24:00.200 And do I say 00:24:00.200 --> 00:24:01.100 that next thing? 00:24:02.299 --> 00:24:02.559 You know, 00:24:02.580 --> 00:24:02.920 you can have 00:24:02.920 --> 00:24:03.640 this endless loop 00:24:03.640 --> 00:24:04.279 and all you can say 00:24:04.279 --> 00:24:04.660 to that is 00:24:04.660 --> 00:24:05.380 shut up, Satan. 00:24:06.299 --> 00:24:07.340 Just keep going. 00:24:09.460 --> 00:24:11.500 It can taint, 00:24:11.720 --> 00:24:13.200 there's a tainting 00:24:13.200 --> 00:24:14.779 of even God's 00:24:14.779 --> 00:24:15.539 good purposes 00:24:15.539 --> 00:24:17.259 towards my exaltation. 00:24:17.380 --> 00:24:17.420 You know, 00:24:17.460 --> 00:24:18.640 they say that 00:24:18.640 --> 00:24:19.200 one of the things 00:24:19.200 --> 00:24:20.019 if God, 00:24:20.440 --> 00:24:21.380 when God eventually 00:24:21.380 --> 00:24:21.720 is, 00:24:22.059 --> 00:24:22.980 that's a terrible 00:24:22.980 --> 00:24:23.519 way to put it, 00:24:23.940 --> 00:24:24.500 some of us 00:24:24.500 --> 00:24:25.000 have been praying 00:24:25.000 --> 00:24:25.820 that God will give us 00:24:25.820 --> 00:24:26.920 a building of our own 00:24:26.920 --> 00:24:27.600 that we can use 00:24:27.599 --> 00:24:30.639 365 days a year, 00:24:31.139 --> 00:24:31.959 24-7. 00:24:32.559 --> 00:24:33.399 And one of the things 00:24:33.399 --> 00:24:34.279 that people who help 00:24:34.279 --> 00:24:35.339 you raise money say 00:24:35.339 --> 00:24:36.519 is that when you make, 00:24:36.579 --> 00:24:37.039 let's say you get 00:24:37.039 --> 00:24:37.719 a building 00:24:37.719 --> 00:24:38.579 or you get some land 00:24:38.579 --> 00:24:39.059 but you have to 00:24:39.059 --> 00:24:40.000 remodel the building 00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:41.219 or completely change 00:24:41.219 --> 00:24:41.619 the building 00:24:41.619 --> 00:24:42.099 or you have to 00:24:42.099 --> 00:24:42.779 build something 00:24:42.779 --> 00:24:43.199 on the land, 00:24:43.480 --> 00:24:44.079 one of the things 00:24:44.079 --> 00:24:44.939 that people always 00:24:44.939 --> 00:24:45.819 wonder first, 00:24:45.919 --> 00:24:46.639 whether they acknowledge 00:24:46.639 --> 00:24:47.179 it or not, 00:24:47.679 --> 00:24:48.759 is where will I 00:24:48.759 --> 00:24:49.519 be able to sit? 00:24:51.019 --> 00:24:51.379 Like, 00:24:51.419 --> 00:24:52.419 how does this fit me? 00:24:54.240 --> 00:24:54.699 And of course, 00:24:54.779 --> 00:24:55.519 nobody wants to say 00:24:55.519 --> 00:24:56.439 I'm opposed to the plan 00:24:56.440 --> 00:24:57.120 because there's not 00:24:57.120 --> 00:24:57.799 a place for me. 00:24:57.860 --> 00:24:59.200 Nobody's going to say that. 00:24:59.539 --> 00:25:00.180 We can come up 00:25:00.180 --> 00:25:01.360 with other reasons 00:25:01.360 --> 00:25:02.440 about cost 00:25:02.440 --> 00:25:03.480 or this or that, 00:25:03.580 --> 00:25:04.160 but that's just 00:25:04.160 --> 00:25:04.980 a very powerful 00:25:04.980 --> 00:25:05.960 human drive. 00:25:10.539 --> 00:25:11.259 You see, 00:25:12.380 --> 00:25:14.259 the Bible 00:25:14.259 --> 00:25:17.000 has a profound 00:25:17.000 --> 00:25:18.039 insight 00:25:18.039 --> 00:25:19.779 into the human heart, 00:25:19.779 --> 00:25:21.899 a profound insight 00:25:21.899 --> 00:25:23.000 into the human heart 00:25:23.000 --> 00:25:24.599 that doesn't leave us 00:25:24.599 --> 00:25:25.359 in despair 00:25:25.359 --> 00:25:27.500 but gives us hope. 00:25:28.139 --> 00:25:29.160 Look at this next 00:25:29.160 --> 00:25:30.200 long section 00:25:30.200 --> 00:25:31.039 which, 00:25:33.539 --> 00:25:33.779 well, 00:25:33.859 --> 00:25:34.259 just look, 00:25:34.420 --> 00:25:37.200 verses 13 to 19. 00:25:37.940 --> 00:25:39.220 The Lord looks down 00:25:39.220 --> 00:25:39.799 from heaven. 00:25:40.839 --> 00:25:42.039 He sees all the children 00:25:42.039 --> 00:25:42.619 of man 00:25:42.619 --> 00:25:44.660 from where he sits 00:25:44.660 --> 00:25:45.819 enthroned. 00:25:46.879 --> 00:25:47.660 He looks out 00:25:47.660 --> 00:25:48.879 on all the inhabitants 00:25:48.880 --> 00:25:49.580 of the earth. 00:25:50.620 --> 00:25:51.720 He who fashions 00:25:51.720 --> 00:25:52.900 the hearts of them all 00:25:52.900 --> 00:25:54.100 and observes 00:25:54.100 --> 00:25:55.120 all their deeds. 00:25:56.020 --> 00:25:56.720 The king 00:25:56.720 --> 00:25:57.600 is not saved 00:25:57.600 --> 00:25:58.620 by his great army. 00:25:59.740 --> 00:26:00.300 A warrior 00:26:00.300 --> 00:26:01.720 is not delivered 00:26:01.720 --> 00:26:03.020 by his great strength. 00:26:03.780 --> 00:26:04.680 The war horse 00:26:04.680 --> 00:26:06.060 is a false hope 00:26:06.060 --> 00:26:06.800 for salvation 00:26:06.800 --> 00:26:09.260 and by its great might 00:26:09.260 --> 00:26:11.680 it cannot rescue. 00:26:12.560 --> 00:26:13.620 Just sort of pause there. 00:26:13.680 --> 00:26:14.200 We'll just stop 00:26:14.200 --> 00:26:15.240 at verse 17. 00:26:15.240 --> 00:26:16.519 Now, 00:26:16.700 --> 00:26:16.880 you know, 00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:19.480 here's something 00:26:19.480 --> 00:26:19.859 which, 00:26:20.740 --> 00:26:22.160 just listen to this text. 00:26:22.259 --> 00:26:22.620 It's actually, 00:26:23.579 --> 00:26:24.839 if you ask my wife 00:26:24.839 --> 00:26:25.720 at coffee time, 00:26:26.660 --> 00:26:28.180 she'll tell you 00:26:28.180 --> 00:26:29.980 that in many ways 00:26:29.980 --> 00:26:31.059 I am still 00:26:31.059 --> 00:26:32.099 a mystery to her. 00:26:33.779 --> 00:26:34.799 We're going to be married 00:26:34.799 --> 00:26:36.339 42 years in October. 00:26:37.720 --> 00:26:38.500 She would say 00:26:38.500 --> 00:26:39.480 that in many ways, 00:26:40.359 --> 00:26:40.779 George, 00:26:41.079 --> 00:26:41.720 she'd say, 00:26:42.500 --> 00:26:43.680 he's a mystery to me. 00:26:43.680 --> 00:26:46.880 And maybe not 00:26:46.880 --> 00:26:47.580 with the same amount 00:26:47.580 --> 00:26:48.680 of forthrightness. 00:26:49.640 --> 00:26:49.980 I mean, 00:26:50.019 --> 00:26:50.759 in some ways, 00:26:51.100 --> 00:26:51.680 Louise is a bit 00:26:51.680 --> 00:26:52.539 of a mystery to me. 00:26:55.080 --> 00:26:55.640 And you know, 00:26:55.680 --> 00:26:56.420 if I'm honest, 00:26:56.580 --> 00:26:57.539 I'm a bit of a mystery 00:26:57.539 --> 00:26:57.960 to me. 00:26:59.060 --> 00:26:59.440 You know, 00:26:59.460 --> 00:27:00.240 when sometimes 00:27:00.240 --> 00:27:01.920 you ask yourself 00:27:01.920 --> 00:27:02.299 or think, 00:27:02.400 --> 00:27:03.299 why did you do that? 00:27:04.080 --> 00:27:04.320 I mean, 00:27:04.340 --> 00:27:04.799 there doesn't really 00:27:04.799 --> 00:27:05.820 seem to be a reason 00:27:05.820 --> 00:27:06.940 why sometimes 00:27:06.940 --> 00:27:07.840 you do what you do. 00:27:08.460 --> 00:27:09.299 Where the reason 00:27:09.299 --> 00:27:09.920 you realize 00:27:09.920 --> 00:27:10.580 is really like 00:27:10.580 --> 00:27:11.440 a stupid reason 00:27:11.440 --> 00:27:12.000 that you think, 00:27:12.120 --> 00:27:12.480 why on earth 00:27:12.480 --> 00:27:13.019 could I have been 00:27:13.019 --> 00:27:13.639 so stupid 00:27:13.639 --> 00:27:14.819 to do that? 00:27:16.579 --> 00:27:17.240 But you know, 00:27:17.359 --> 00:27:17.980 if you could put up 00:27:17.980 --> 00:27:18.940 the next point, 00:27:19.220 --> 00:27:19.680 that would be 00:27:19.680 --> 00:27:20.279 very helpful. 00:27:20.759 --> 00:27:21.599 You are a mystery 00:27:21.599 --> 00:27:22.480 to yourself, 00:27:22.839 --> 00:27:23.900 but you are not 00:27:23.900 --> 00:27:24.420 a mystery 00:27:24.420 --> 00:27:25.740 to the triune God. 00:27:26.259 --> 00:27:28.139 He sees your heart 00:27:28.139 --> 00:27:29.480 and your deeds. 00:27:30.039 --> 00:27:31.099 You are a mystery 00:27:31.099 --> 00:27:31.900 to yourself, 00:27:32.079 --> 00:27:32.879 but you are not 00:27:32.879 --> 00:27:33.359 a mystery 00:27:33.359 --> 00:27:34.599 to the triune God. 00:27:35.000 --> 00:27:36.500 He sees your heart 00:27:36.500 --> 00:27:37.720 and your deeds. 00:27:38.900 --> 00:27:39.099 Right? 00:27:39.180 --> 00:27:39.839 That's what was 00:27:39.839 --> 00:27:41.720 in verses 13 to 15. 00:27:41.720 --> 00:27:42.579 The Lord looks down 00:27:42.579 --> 00:27:43.000 from heaven. 00:27:43.120 --> 00:27:43.940 He sees the children 00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:44.460 of man. 00:27:44.880 --> 00:27:46.120 Where he's enthroned, 00:27:46.200 --> 00:27:46.680 he looks out 00:27:46.680 --> 00:27:47.640 on all the inhabitants 00:27:47.640 --> 00:27:48.180 of the earth. 00:27:48.380 --> 00:27:49.380 He sees Steve 00:27:49.380 --> 00:27:49.880 and Louise 00:27:49.880 --> 00:27:50.539 and me 00:27:50.539 --> 00:27:51.160 and Andrew 00:27:51.160 --> 00:27:51.720 and Lisa 00:27:51.720 --> 00:27:52.980 and Rachel 00:27:52.980 --> 00:27:54.019 and Diane 00:27:54.019 --> 00:27:54.700 and Morris. 00:27:54.839 --> 00:27:55.720 He sees each one 00:27:55.720 --> 00:27:56.140 of us. 00:27:56.860 --> 00:27:58.100 And he who fashions 00:27:58.100 --> 00:27:59.100 the hearts of them all 00:27:59.100 --> 00:27:59.600 and observes 00:27:59.600 --> 00:28:00.240 all their deeds. 00:28:00.339 --> 00:28:00.759 He's the one 00:28:00.759 --> 00:28:01.420 who created us 00:28:01.420 --> 00:28:02.960 to have a center, 00:28:03.120 --> 00:28:03.519 a heart. 00:28:04.019 --> 00:28:05.319 And he sees our hearts 00:28:05.319 --> 00:28:05.940 and he observes 00:28:05.940 --> 00:28:06.559 our deeds. 00:28:06.680 --> 00:28:07.620 It's why you and I 00:28:07.619 --> 00:28:08.399 are not mysteries 00:28:08.399 --> 00:28:08.979 to him. 00:28:10.799 --> 00:28:11.539 Which is why 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:11.919 the Bible 00:28:11.919 --> 00:28:13.079 can be so profound. 00:28:14.159 --> 00:28:15.199 Because it's ultimately 00:28:15.199 --> 00:28:16.399 he spoke the Bible 00:28:16.399 --> 00:28:17.199 into existence. 00:28:17.359 --> 00:28:17.479 I mean, 00:28:17.500 --> 00:28:18.179 obviously there was 00:28:18.179 --> 00:28:19.419 a human process 00:28:19.419 --> 00:28:20.019 to it. 00:28:20.979 --> 00:28:21.639 And notice 00:28:21.639 --> 00:28:23.219 how he, 00:28:23.599 --> 00:28:24.619 this psalm 00:28:24.619 --> 00:28:25.539 written, 00:28:25.679 --> 00:28:26.059 who knows, 00:28:26.179 --> 00:28:27.759 maybe 2,500 years ago, 00:28:27.879 --> 00:28:29.599 maybe 3,000 years ago, 00:28:29.819 --> 00:28:31.019 it nails 00:28:31.019 --> 00:28:32.759 the anthem 00:28:32.759 --> 00:28:34.259 of the average 00:28:34.259 --> 00:28:35.460 Canadian heart. 00:28:36.940 --> 00:28:38.019 There's a song 00:28:38.019 --> 00:28:38.799 that we sing 00:28:38.799 --> 00:28:39.599 to ourselves. 00:28:40.579 --> 00:28:41.640 And there's a song 00:28:41.640 --> 00:28:42.420 that television 00:28:42.420 --> 00:28:43.440 and media 00:28:43.440 --> 00:28:44.539 sings to us. 00:28:44.859 --> 00:28:46.119 And it's encapsulated 00:28:46.119 --> 00:28:47.879 in verses 18 to 17. 00:28:48.140 --> 00:28:49.099 16 to 17. 00:28:49.160 --> 00:28:49.819 We don't recognize 00:28:49.819 --> 00:28:50.339 it at first. 00:28:50.759 --> 00:28:51.740 The king is not saved 00:28:51.740 --> 00:28:52.619 by his great army. 00:28:52.720 --> 00:28:53.839 A warrior is not delivered 00:28:53.839 --> 00:28:54.980 by his great strength. 00:28:55.299 --> 00:28:56.039 The war horse 00:28:56.039 --> 00:28:56.819 is a false hope 00:28:56.819 --> 00:28:57.539 for salvation. 00:28:57.779 --> 00:28:58.579 By its great might 00:28:58.579 --> 00:28:59.400 it cannot rescue. 00:28:59.879 --> 00:29:00.559 But if you could put 00:29:00.559 --> 00:29:01.500 up the point, Claire, 00:29:01.500 --> 00:29:03.160 doesn't this sound familiar? 00:29:03.319 --> 00:29:03.720 The anthem 00:29:03.720 --> 00:29:04.619 of the Canadian heart? 00:29:04.980 --> 00:29:06.160 I need to be king. 00:29:08.680 --> 00:29:09.740 I need a more 00:29:09.740 --> 00:29:10.980 powerful entourage. 00:29:12.779 --> 00:29:13.680 I need to be 00:29:13.680 --> 00:29:14.779 a powerful warrior. 00:29:15.640 --> 00:29:16.799 I need powerful 00:29:16.799 --> 00:29:18.119 techniques and tools. 00:29:19.759 --> 00:29:19.960 You know, 00:29:20.019 --> 00:29:20.740 the problem I have 00:29:20.740 --> 00:29:21.160 in my night, 00:29:21.259 --> 00:29:21.380 right, 00:29:21.759 --> 00:29:22.079 you know, 00:29:22.140 --> 00:29:22.819 if the things 00:29:22.819 --> 00:29:23.319 that are going on 00:29:23.319 --> 00:29:24.599 in my family 00:29:24.599 --> 00:29:25.599 or in my workplace 00:29:25.599 --> 00:29:26.380 are all right now, 00:29:26.440 --> 00:29:27.339 if I could only be 00:29:27.339 --> 00:29:28.059 like the king, 00:29:28.140 --> 00:29:28.619 if I could only 00:29:28.619 --> 00:29:29.579 have more power, 00:29:30.240 --> 00:29:31.240 and the fact 00:29:31.240 --> 00:29:31.500 the matter, 00:29:31.579 --> 00:29:32.019 not only do I 00:29:32.019 --> 00:29:32.720 need more power, 00:29:32.819 --> 00:29:34.240 but I need more people 00:29:34.240 --> 00:29:35.380 to get around me 00:29:35.380 --> 00:29:35.980 and to gather 00:29:35.980 --> 00:29:37.279 to be like my entourage 00:29:37.279 --> 00:29:39.160 to help with this project. 00:29:40.120 --> 00:29:40.380 I mean, 00:29:41.039 --> 00:29:41.299 you know, 00:29:41.319 --> 00:29:42.079 one of the problems 00:29:42.079 --> 00:29:43.500 with people nowadays 00:29:43.500 --> 00:29:45.259 when we talk about romance 00:29:45.259 --> 00:29:46.880 and part of the problem 00:29:46.880 --> 00:29:47.440 with saying 00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:48.839 that we have a soul friend, 00:29:49.539 --> 00:29:51.140 and there's real truth 00:29:51.140 --> 00:29:51.500 in that, 00:29:51.579 --> 00:29:52.180 but there's also 00:29:52.180 --> 00:29:53.120 a trap in it 00:29:53.120 --> 00:29:53.819 because what we're 00:29:53.819 --> 00:29:54.859 really looking at 00:29:54.859 --> 00:29:55.480 is somebody 00:29:55.480 --> 00:29:56.079 who's going to be 00:29:56.079 --> 00:29:57.259 part of our entourage 00:29:57.259 --> 00:30:00.400 who's just supporting, 00:30:01.299 --> 00:30:01.519 like, 00:30:02.000 --> 00:30:03.200 we say we want 00:30:03.200 --> 00:30:03.799 like somebody 00:30:03.799 --> 00:30:04.500 who's like a, 00:30:04.900 --> 00:30:05.279 like we have 00:30:05.279 --> 00:30:06.079 a soul connection, 00:30:06.180 --> 00:30:06.980 but really what we want 00:30:06.980 --> 00:30:07.319 is somebody 00:30:07.319 --> 00:30:08.220 who's just going to 00:30:08.220 --> 00:30:10.099 help me be me, 00:30:11.480 --> 00:30:13.019 and you can see it 00:30:13.019 --> 00:30:13.680 just in the whole way, 00:30:13.799 --> 00:30:14.000 you know, 00:30:14.099 --> 00:30:14.359 anyway, 00:30:14.640 --> 00:30:14.879 you know, 00:30:15.039 --> 00:30:16.240 but I need to have 00:30:16.240 --> 00:30:17.059 more people around me 00:30:17.059 --> 00:30:17.599 who are powerful, 00:30:17.740 --> 00:30:18.259 I need to, 00:30:18.599 --> 00:30:19.420 and I need to be 00:30:19.420 --> 00:30:20.900 a more powerful warrior, 00:30:21.039 --> 00:30:21.900 I need to be able 00:30:21.900 --> 00:30:23.379 to handle these things, 00:30:23.480 --> 00:30:24.000 I need to be able 00:30:24.000 --> 00:30:24.839 to handle the boss, 00:30:24.839 --> 00:30:25.299 I need to be able 00:30:25.299 --> 00:30:26.959 to handle my neighbors, 00:30:27.220 --> 00:30:27.939 I just need to be 00:30:27.939 --> 00:30:28.659 more powerful, 00:30:28.819 --> 00:30:29.339 I need to have, 00:30:29.419 --> 00:30:30.159 sort of be like the king, 00:30:30.220 --> 00:30:31.079 I need to have people 00:30:31.079 --> 00:30:31.759 around me who are 00:30:31.759 --> 00:30:32.279 going to help me 00:30:32.279 --> 00:30:32.859 be powerful, 00:30:32.980 --> 00:30:33.539 who are powerful, 00:30:33.919 --> 00:30:34.639 and I need to be 00:30:34.639 --> 00:30:35.279 more powerful, 00:30:35.759 --> 00:30:36.539 and dang it all, 00:30:36.599 --> 00:30:37.480 I need more powerful 00:30:37.480 --> 00:30:38.419 techniques and tools, 00:30:38.519 --> 00:30:40.139 like I need the newest iPhone, 00:30:40.339 --> 00:30:42.199 I need the newest laptop, 00:30:42.439 --> 00:30:44.179 I need the newest sound system, 00:30:44.179 --> 00:30:46.079 I need these things, 00:30:46.519 --> 00:30:48.240 and what are we told 00:30:48.240 --> 00:30:48.879 all of the time, 00:30:49.019 --> 00:30:50.199 not only do you need 00:30:50.199 --> 00:30:50.759 these things, 00:30:50.859 --> 00:30:52.019 you deserve these things, 00:30:52.079 --> 00:30:54.500 you deserve that F-150 truck, 00:30:54.500 --> 00:30:55.819 you deserve that Audi, 00:30:55.980 --> 00:30:57.900 you deserve that technology, 00:30:58.279 --> 00:31:00.119 you deserve this holiday, 00:31:00.319 --> 00:31:01.339 and that's the message 00:31:01.339 --> 00:31:01.980 of our culture, 00:31:02.099 --> 00:31:02.779 it's the anthem 00:31:02.779 --> 00:31:04.039 of the Canadian heart, 00:31:04.440 --> 00:31:06.299 that's what God sees, 00:31:07.019 --> 00:31:08.240 he sees your heart, 00:31:08.619 --> 00:31:09.859 he sees the anthem 00:31:09.859 --> 00:31:11.420 that you sing to yourself, 00:31:11.420 --> 00:31:12.740 and that you like it 00:31:12.740 --> 00:31:14.599 when others sing this anthem, 00:31:15.440 --> 00:31:18.720 and we just sort of 00:31:18.720 --> 00:31:19.420 automatically assume 00:31:20.099 --> 00:31:21.279 that it's those, 00:31:21.660 --> 00:31:22.859 this anthem reflects 00:31:22.859 --> 00:31:24.619 how God understands 00:31:24.619 --> 00:31:25.399 and sees the world, 00:31:25.459 --> 00:31:26.199 when we have any time 00:31:26.199 --> 00:31:27.159 to think of God 00:31:27.159 --> 00:31:27.839 as maybe having 00:31:27.839 --> 00:31:28.719 some type of place 00:31:28.719 --> 00:31:29.879 in our life, 00:31:30.459 --> 00:31:31.699 but it's a complete 00:31:31.699 --> 00:31:32.539 and utter shock 00:31:32.539 --> 00:31:33.979 that God completely 00:31:33.979 --> 00:31:35.439 ignores these people, 00:31:36.459 --> 00:31:37.879 look at what it says, 00:31:38.479 --> 00:31:38.740 in fact, 00:31:38.799 --> 00:31:39.919 you could put up point eight, 00:31:40.000 --> 00:31:41.219 point eight is just 00:31:41.219 --> 00:31:42.079 a quoting 00:31:42.079 --> 00:31:44.599 of verses 18 to 19, 00:31:45.779 --> 00:31:47.259 it's my final point, 00:31:47.259 --> 00:31:48.519 but it's just quoting 00:31:48.519 --> 00:31:49.659 18 and 19, 00:31:49.660 --> 00:31:50.180 behold, 00:31:50.320 --> 00:31:51.200 the eye of the Lord 00:31:51.200 --> 00:31:52.900 is on those who fear him, 00:31:53.340 --> 00:31:54.720 on those who hope 00:31:54.720 --> 00:31:56.340 in his steadfast love, 00:31:56.540 --> 00:31:57.840 that he may deliver 00:31:57.840 --> 00:31:59.180 their soul from death 00:31:59.180 --> 00:32:00.300 and keep them alive 00:32:00.300 --> 00:32:01.180 in famine, 00:32:02.019 --> 00:32:02.800 what is famine? 00:32:02.960 --> 00:32:03.740 Famine is when you don't 00:32:03.740 --> 00:32:04.600 have the entourage, 00:32:05.000 --> 00:32:05.500 you don't have 00:32:05.500 --> 00:32:06.519 the powerful warrior, 00:32:06.860 --> 00:32:07.440 you don't have 00:32:07.440 --> 00:32:08.720 the powerful tools, 00:32:08.900 --> 00:32:10.160 and you're not king, 00:32:10.480 --> 00:32:11.680 and it's a famine, 00:32:12.380 --> 00:32:14.000 and his eyes are on you, 00:32:14.540 --> 00:32:16.519 his eyes are on you, 00:32:16.519 --> 00:32:18.160 and me, 00:32:19.079 --> 00:32:20.279 when we call out to him 00:32:20.279 --> 00:32:21.460 that he would deliver us. 00:32:24.019 --> 00:32:25.240 Just to start 00:32:25.240 --> 00:32:26.299 to wrap things up, 00:32:27.799 --> 00:32:28.039 you know, 00:32:28.879 --> 00:32:30.940 you look at that verse 19, 00:32:31.339 --> 00:32:31.819 that he may, 00:32:32.019 --> 00:32:32.859 18 and 19, 00:32:32.960 --> 00:32:33.200 behold, 00:32:33.299 --> 00:32:33.839 the eye of the Lord 00:32:33.839 --> 00:32:34.920 is on those who fear him 00:32:34.920 --> 00:32:35.599 and those who hope 00:32:35.599 --> 00:32:36.660 in his steadfast love, 00:32:37.079 --> 00:32:37.859 that he may deliver 00:32:37.859 --> 00:32:38.980 their soul from death 00:32:38.980 --> 00:32:39.819 and keep them alive 00:32:39.819 --> 00:32:40.359 in famine, 00:32:40.500 --> 00:32:42.119 it's this picture 00:32:42.119 --> 00:32:43.160 of people who've come 00:32:43.160 --> 00:32:44.299 to realize that they, 00:32:44.299 --> 00:32:48.319 it's like the anthem 00:32:48.319 --> 00:32:50.000 of the Canadian heart 00:32:50.000 --> 00:32:51.220 is playing all of the time 00:32:51.220 --> 00:32:51.960 and all of the time 00:32:51.960 --> 00:32:52.680 and all of the time 00:32:52.680 --> 00:32:53.500 and all of the time, 00:32:54.059 --> 00:32:54.819 and in the midst 00:32:54.819 --> 00:32:55.460 of all of it, 00:32:56.740 --> 00:32:57.839 sort of in between it, 00:32:57.940 --> 00:32:59.079 you realize that 00:32:59.079 --> 00:33:00.879 you need mercy 00:33:00.879 --> 00:33:02.899 from God, 00:33:03.339 --> 00:33:06.180 and it has this, 00:33:06.279 --> 00:33:06.519 you know, 00:33:06.579 --> 00:33:07.539 beautiful promise 00:33:07.539 --> 00:33:08.319 of his delivery 00:33:08.319 --> 00:33:09.039 from death. 00:33:10.240 --> 00:33:11.799 If you have Bibles 00:33:11.799 --> 00:33:12.379 and you turn 00:33:12.380 --> 00:33:14.100 to 2 Timothy chapter 1, 00:33:15.780 --> 00:33:17.220 verses 8 to 14, 00:33:17.340 --> 00:33:17.880 I think it's, 00:33:18.180 --> 00:33:19.160 I think it'll be up 00:33:19.160 --> 00:33:19.720 on the screen 00:33:19.720 --> 00:33:20.300 for those of you 00:33:20.300 --> 00:33:21.000 who don't have Bibles. 00:33:21.720 --> 00:33:22.520 Listen to this, 00:33:22.740 --> 00:33:23.880 these words of Paul 00:33:23.880 --> 00:33:24.520 written towards 00:33:24.520 --> 00:33:25.360 the end of his life. 00:33:26.500 --> 00:33:26.820 Therefore, 00:33:26.960 --> 00:33:27.740 do not be ashamed 00:33:27.740 --> 00:33:28.460 of the testimony 00:33:28.460 --> 00:33:29.360 about our Lord, 00:33:29.540 --> 00:33:30.080 nor of me, 00:33:30.140 --> 00:33:30.680 his prisoner, 00:33:31.260 --> 00:33:32.640 but share in suffering 00:33:32.640 --> 00:33:33.840 for the gospel 00:33:33.840 --> 00:33:35.180 by the power of God. 00:33:35.860 --> 00:33:36.620 Here's the thing, 00:33:37.000 --> 00:33:38.000 who saved us 00:33:38.000 --> 00:33:39.320 and called us 00:33:39.320 --> 00:33:40.500 to a holy calling, 00:33:40.500 --> 00:33:42.900 not because of our works, 00:33:43.460 --> 00:33:44.579 but because of his own 00:33:44.579 --> 00:33:45.700 purpose and grace, 00:33:46.180 --> 00:33:47.440 which he gave us 00:33:47.440 --> 00:33:48.519 in Christ Jesus 00:33:48.519 --> 00:33:50.140 before the ages began, 00:33:51.099 --> 00:33:52.779 and which now 00:33:52.779 --> 00:33:53.799 has been manifested 00:33:53.799 --> 00:33:54.680 through the appearing 00:33:54.680 --> 00:33:56.500 of our Savior Christ Jesus, 00:33:57.220 --> 00:33:58.579 who abolished death 00:33:58.579 --> 00:33:59.660 and brought life 00:33:59.660 --> 00:34:00.559 and immortality 00:34:00.559 --> 00:34:01.180 to light 00:34:01.180 --> 00:34:02.279 through the gospel, 00:34:02.279 --> 00:34:04.639 for which I was 00:34:04.639 --> 00:34:05.920 appointed a teacher, 00:34:06.599 --> 00:34:07.740 which is why 00:34:07.740 --> 00:34:08.840 I suffer as I do, 00:34:09.460 --> 00:34:10.480 but I am not ashamed, 00:34:11.099 --> 00:34:11.599 for I know 00:34:11.599 --> 00:34:12.559 whom I have believed, 00:34:12.940 --> 00:34:13.860 and I am convinced 00:34:13.860 --> 00:34:14.599 that he is able 00:34:14.599 --> 00:34:16.460 to guard until that day 00:34:16.460 --> 00:34:17.800 what has been 00:34:17.800 --> 00:34:18.679 entrusted to me. 00:34:20.739 --> 00:34:21.860 Follow the pattern 00:34:21.860 --> 00:34:22.860 of the sound words 00:34:22.860 --> 00:34:23.559 that you have heard 00:34:23.559 --> 00:34:24.059 from me 00:34:24.059 --> 00:34:25.239 in the faith and love 00:34:25.239 --> 00:34:26.400 that are in Christ Jesus 00:34:26.400 --> 00:34:28.239 by the Holy Spirit 00:34:28.239 --> 00:34:29.460 who dwells within us. 00:34:29.960 --> 00:34:31.139 Guard the good deposit 00:34:31.139 --> 00:34:32.219 entrusted to you. 00:34:33.539 --> 00:34:34.759 Back in the psalm, 00:34:34.839 --> 00:34:36.440 they hope that God 00:34:36.440 --> 00:34:37.099 will deliver them 00:34:37.099 --> 00:34:37.679 from death, 00:34:37.799 --> 00:34:39.299 and they're looking forward 00:34:39.299 --> 00:34:40.400 to that great deliverance 00:34:40.400 --> 00:34:40.759 of death 00:34:40.759 --> 00:34:41.719 that will come in Christ. 00:34:44.319 --> 00:34:45.440 So how should we live? 00:34:47.119 --> 00:34:48.819 Turn back to Psalm 33. 00:34:49.500 --> 00:34:50.619 The first thing is, 00:34:51.019 --> 00:34:52.819 if we spend our week 00:34:52.819 --> 00:34:53.619 and our time 00:34:53.619 --> 00:34:54.980 singing the anthem 00:34:54.980 --> 00:34:56.799 of the Canadian heart, 00:34:57.759 --> 00:34:58.719 then we need to, 00:34:58.719 --> 00:35:01.599 we either need to come 00:35:01.599 --> 00:35:02.519 into that relationship 00:35:02.519 --> 00:35:03.119 with God 00:35:03.119 --> 00:35:04.199 where we call out to him 00:35:04.199 --> 00:35:05.119 to save us 00:35:05.119 --> 00:35:05.819 and deliver us, 00:35:07.359 --> 00:35:08.959 but once we've done that, 00:35:09.019 --> 00:35:09.639 we need to come 00:35:09.639 --> 00:35:10.359 and recommit. 00:35:10.519 --> 00:35:12.039 We need to hear God's word 00:35:12.039 --> 00:35:13.639 to remind us 00:35:13.639 --> 00:35:14.379 of what's true. 00:35:14.500 --> 00:35:15.239 We need to gather 00:35:15.239 --> 00:35:16.480 around the Lord's table 00:35:16.480 --> 00:35:17.059 to remember 00:35:17.059 --> 00:35:17.879 what Jesus did 00:35:17.879 --> 00:35:18.839 for us on the cross, 00:35:19.099 --> 00:35:20.359 and in a sense, 00:35:20.459 --> 00:35:21.219 every Sunday 00:35:21.219 --> 00:35:21.980 is a time 00:35:21.980 --> 00:35:22.879 for us to gather 00:35:22.879 --> 00:35:23.359 and say, 00:35:23.439 --> 00:35:24.399 some of us will say, 00:35:24.400 --> 00:35:26.000 I've been at best 00:35:26.000 --> 00:35:27.119 an ordinary Christian 00:35:27.119 --> 00:35:27.760 this week, 00:35:28.200 --> 00:35:29.880 and some of us 00:35:29.880 --> 00:35:31.280 might come and say, 00:35:31.500 --> 00:35:32.980 I've been a terrible, 00:35:33.240 --> 00:35:34.840 crappy, horrible Christian 00:35:34.840 --> 00:35:35.539 this week, 00:35:36.200 --> 00:35:37.420 and I really need 00:35:37.420 --> 00:35:37.920 to come 00:35:37.920 --> 00:35:39.180 to recommit, 00:35:39.960 --> 00:35:41.059 not to be saved 00:35:41.059 --> 00:35:42.019 again 00:35:42.019 --> 00:35:42.980 and again 00:35:42.980 --> 00:35:43.400 and again, 00:35:43.480 --> 00:35:44.240 but to recommit, 00:35:45.059 --> 00:35:47.059 to affirm the creed, 00:35:47.160 --> 00:35:48.119 to hear God's word, 00:35:48.220 --> 00:35:49.320 to remember who Jesus is 00:35:49.320 --> 00:35:49.720 and what he did 00:35:49.720 --> 00:35:50.360 for me on the cross. 00:35:50.420 --> 00:35:51.180 I need that. 00:35:51.179 --> 00:35:55.099 Listen to verses 20 and 21. 00:35:55.219 --> 00:35:56.519 Our soul waits for the Lord. 00:35:56.679 --> 00:35:57.319 He is our help 00:35:57.319 --> 00:35:57.919 and our shield. 00:35:58.039 --> 00:35:59.299 Our heart is glad in him 00:35:59.299 --> 00:36:00.599 because we trust 00:36:00.599 --> 00:36:01.359 in his holy name. 00:36:01.399 --> 00:36:02.339 We need to recommit. 00:36:03.239 --> 00:36:04.179 And the second thing 00:36:04.179 --> 00:36:04.699 we need to do 00:36:04.699 --> 00:36:05.139 is pray. 00:36:05.339 --> 00:36:06.579 The psalm ends 00:36:06.579 --> 00:36:09.059 with a one-sentence prayer. 00:36:10.500 --> 00:36:12.219 The psalmist turns to God 00:36:12.219 --> 00:36:12.679 and says, 00:36:12.899 --> 00:36:14.119 let your steadfast love 00:36:14.119 --> 00:36:15.039 be upon us 00:36:15.039 --> 00:36:16.940 even as we hope in you. 00:36:18.480 --> 00:36:18.699 I mean, 00:36:18.719 --> 00:36:19.319 we need to gather 00:36:19.319 --> 00:36:19.940 to recommit 00:36:19.940 --> 00:36:20.559 and we need to learn 00:36:20.559 --> 00:36:21.119 how to pray. 00:36:21.179 --> 00:36:23.659 He's made us 00:36:23.659 --> 00:36:24.440 to talk to him 00:36:24.440 --> 00:36:26.019 and we need to gather 00:36:26.019 --> 00:36:26.519 and say, 00:36:26.859 --> 00:36:27.559 Father, 00:36:28.199 --> 00:36:28.679 Lord, 00:36:29.199 --> 00:36:30.639 let your steadfast love 00:36:30.639 --> 00:36:31.500 be upon us, 00:36:31.599 --> 00:36:32.339 be upon me 00:36:32.339 --> 00:36:34.319 even as I hope in you. 00:36:34.440 --> 00:36:35.480 Help me to hope in you. 00:36:38.899 --> 00:36:40.119 And then the final thing 00:36:40.119 --> 00:36:40.599 is actually 00:36:40.599 --> 00:36:41.139 if you put up 00:36:41.139 --> 00:36:42.099 the first three verses, 00:36:43.259 --> 00:36:45.719 we need to gather 00:36:45.719 --> 00:36:46.440 and sing. 00:36:47.679 --> 00:36:48.699 We need to sing 00:36:48.699 --> 00:36:49.579 God's praises. 00:36:49.579 --> 00:36:52.420 We need to come together 00:36:52.420 --> 00:36:53.579 and shout for joy 00:36:53.579 --> 00:36:54.039 in the Lord, 00:36:54.139 --> 00:36:54.699 O you righteous. 00:36:54.699 --> 00:36:56.159 Praise befits the upright. 00:36:56.319 --> 00:36:57.239 Give thanks to the Lord 00:36:57.239 --> 00:36:57.900 with the lyre. 00:36:58.000 --> 00:36:59.000 Make melody to him 00:36:59.000 --> 00:37:00.380 with the harp 00:37:00.380 --> 00:37:01.099 of ten strings. 00:37:01.279 --> 00:37:01.759 Sing to him 00:37:01.759 --> 00:37:02.440 a new song. 00:37:02.779 --> 00:37:03.579 Play skillfully 00:37:03.579 --> 00:37:04.279 on the strings 00:37:04.279 --> 00:37:05.019 with loud shouts. 00:37:05.119 --> 00:37:05.900 We need that. 00:37:06.319 --> 00:37:07.139 God's made us 00:37:07.139 --> 00:37:08.319 to sing his praises. 00:37:09.319 --> 00:37:10.519 Just in closing, 00:37:10.519 --> 00:37:15.079 as I finished working 00:37:15.079 --> 00:37:15.840 through the outline 00:37:15.840 --> 00:37:17.239 of my sermon last night, 00:37:18.000 --> 00:37:19.719 we had some people over, 00:37:19.840 --> 00:37:20.780 some of my grandkids. 00:37:20.860 --> 00:37:22.179 I had some sound-cancelling 00:37:22.179 --> 00:37:23.619 headphones on 00:37:23.619 --> 00:37:25.039 and I'd finished working 00:37:25.039 --> 00:37:25.420 and I, 00:37:25.900 --> 00:37:26.619 while I was working 00:37:26.619 --> 00:37:27.599 on this sermon, 00:37:27.800 --> 00:37:29.139 I listened to Arvo Part. 00:37:30.139 --> 00:37:30.759 I don't know how many 00:37:30.759 --> 00:37:31.719 of you are familiar with him. 00:37:31.759 --> 00:37:32.500 He's an Estonian 00:37:32.500 --> 00:37:33.599 Christian composer. 00:37:34.259 --> 00:37:35.519 He might have just died recently, 00:37:35.579 --> 00:37:35.820 if not, 00:37:35.840 --> 00:37:36.519 he's very old. 00:37:36.639 --> 00:37:37.659 And his music is just 00:37:37.659 --> 00:37:38.920 transcendently beautiful. 00:37:40.359 --> 00:37:40.899 And as I, 00:37:40.940 --> 00:37:41.379 as I, 00:37:41.440 --> 00:37:43.000 as I finished the preparation, 00:37:43.199 --> 00:37:43.579 I just, 00:37:44.319 --> 00:37:44.539 I mean, 00:37:44.579 --> 00:37:45.239 how could I not? 00:37:45.319 --> 00:37:46.279 I just was convicted 00:37:46.279 --> 00:37:47.440 that I just really needed 00:37:47.440 --> 00:37:49.179 to hear God's praises 00:37:49.179 --> 00:37:49.980 being sung. 00:37:50.779 --> 00:37:51.579 And so, 00:37:51.759 --> 00:37:52.579 one of my favorite, 00:37:52.639 --> 00:37:53.699 over the last couple of years, 00:37:53.819 --> 00:37:56.420 I love Austin Stone Worship's 00:37:56.420 --> 00:37:57.879 live version 00:37:57.879 --> 00:37:59.199 of Great is Thy Faithfulness. 00:38:00.699 --> 00:38:01.299 And I, 00:38:01.299 --> 00:38:01.719 I just, 00:38:01.819 --> 00:38:03.099 I just had to put it on. 00:38:04.579 --> 00:38:05.699 And my grandkids 00:38:05.699 --> 00:38:06.779 probably thought I was weird 00:38:06.780 --> 00:38:08.320 because my eyes were all moist. 00:38:09.920 --> 00:38:11.100 Because I just loved 00:38:11.100 --> 00:38:12.360 hearing them sing 00:38:12.360 --> 00:38:13.720 Great is Thy Faithfulness, 00:38:13.720 --> 00:38:14.820 their live version 00:38:14.820 --> 00:38:16.040 at the Gospel Coalition 00:38:16.040 --> 00:38:17.620 Women's Conference 00:38:17.620 --> 00:38:18.680 in 2018. 00:38:19.820 --> 00:38:20.960 And that's how I finished 00:38:20.960 --> 00:38:21.940 preparing for the sermon. 00:38:23.900 --> 00:38:24.860 And if I could have 00:38:24.860 --> 00:38:25.960 waved a magic wand, 00:38:26.040 --> 00:38:26.880 we'd all stand up 00:38:26.880 --> 00:38:27.920 and watch it right now 00:38:27.920 --> 00:38:28.540 on the screen 00:38:28.540 --> 00:38:29.300 and sing along. 00:38:29.580 --> 00:38:30.280 But we won't. 00:38:30.380 --> 00:38:31.120 We're just going to stand 00:38:31.120 --> 00:38:32.120 and close with prayer 00:38:32.120 --> 00:38:32.800 and then we're going to go 00:38:32.800 --> 00:38:33.580 into intercession. 00:38:34.140 --> 00:38:35.440 And we're going to sing 00:38:35.440 --> 00:38:36.140 some more later 00:38:36.139 --> 00:38:37.659 and we're going to recommit 00:38:37.659 --> 00:38:39.019 around the Lord's table. 00:38:39.119 --> 00:38:40.059 Let's stand in closing 00:38:40.059 --> 00:38:40.559 in prayer. 00:38:44.759 --> 00:38:46.199 You might not like the version, 00:38:46.339 --> 00:38:46.920 but if you're looking 00:38:46.920 --> 00:38:47.460 for a really, 00:38:47.579 --> 00:38:48.039 to my mind, 00:38:48.139 --> 00:38:48.980 powerful version 00:38:48.980 --> 00:38:50.059 of Great is Thy Faithfulness, 00:38:50.259 --> 00:38:51.279 check out Austin Stone 00:38:51.279 --> 00:38:52.839 Worship's live version 00:38:52.839 --> 00:38:53.579 of that song. 00:38:54.019 --> 00:38:54.539 Let's pray. 00:38:54.539 --> 00:38:54.900 Father, 00:38:55.539 --> 00:38:57.639 we give you thanks 00:38:57.639 --> 00:38:58.159 and praise 00:38:58.159 --> 00:38:59.219 that you know our hearts, 00:38:59.500 --> 00:39:00.380 you know our deeds 00:39:00.380 --> 00:39:01.539 and still you love us. 00:39:02.400 --> 00:39:03.219 We give you thanks 00:39:03.219 --> 00:39:03.659 and praise 00:39:03.659 --> 00:39:04.519 that you know our hearts 00:39:04.519 --> 00:39:05.099 and deeds 00:39:05.099 --> 00:39:06.019 and you sent your Son 00:39:06.019 --> 00:39:07.039 to die for us, 00:39:07.800 --> 00:39:09.019 that we might hope in you 00:39:09.019 --> 00:39:10.159 and in hope in you 00:39:10.159 --> 00:39:11.239 that we might have 00:39:11.239 --> 00:39:12.019 eternal life, 00:39:12.519 --> 00:39:13.219 an eternal life 00:39:13.219 --> 00:39:14.400 that begins on this side 00:39:14.400 --> 00:39:14.840 of the grave 00:39:14.840 --> 00:39:16.079 and will continue 00:39:16.079 --> 00:39:16.779 through the valley 00:39:16.779 --> 00:39:17.920 of the shadow of death 00:39:17.920 --> 00:39:19.259 into the new heaven 00:39:19.259 --> 00:39:19.960 and the new earth. 00:39:20.519 --> 00:39:21.739 We thank and praise you, 00:39:21.880 --> 00:39:22.059 Father, 00:39:22.059 --> 00:39:23.219 that your word helps us 00:39:23.219 --> 00:39:24.059 to understand 00:39:24.059 --> 00:39:25.539 why love and justice 00:39:25.539 --> 00:39:26.259 and righteousness 00:39:26.259 --> 00:39:27.779 is so important to us. 00:39:28.380 --> 00:39:28.920 We thank you 00:39:28.920 --> 00:39:29.980 that your word helps us 00:39:29.980 --> 00:39:30.719 to understand 00:39:30.719 --> 00:39:32.519 why music can have such power 00:39:32.519 --> 00:39:34.279 and we ask, Lord, 00:39:34.420 --> 00:39:35.820 that you help us 00:39:35.820 --> 00:39:37.440 to sing lustily unto you, 00:39:37.559 --> 00:39:38.159 that you help us 00:39:38.159 --> 00:39:39.539 to recommit every week 00:39:39.539 --> 00:39:40.239 when we gather 00:39:40.239 --> 00:39:41.420 with your people 00:39:41.420 --> 00:39:42.420 and that we might learn 00:39:42.420 --> 00:39:43.679 to pray as you have prayed. 00:39:43.900 --> 00:39:44.099 Father, 00:39:44.179 --> 00:39:45.880 we ask that your steadfast love 00:39:45.880 --> 00:39:47.360 would fall upon us 00:39:47.360 --> 00:39:48.299 and rest upon us 00:39:48.299 --> 00:39:49.619 and move deep within us 00:39:49.619 --> 00:39:50.840 as we hope more 00:39:50.840 --> 00:39:51.579 and more in you. 00:39:51.579 --> 00:39:52.960 And we ask these things 00:39:52.960 --> 00:39:53.860 in the name of Jesus, 00:39:54.039 --> 00:39:55.719 your Son and our Savior. 00:39:56.380 --> 00:39:56.779 Amen.