WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 The girl says to you, I really like you but just want to be good friends. 00:00:06.459 --> 00:00:10.419 And then you discover that they've been texting and messaging your best friend 00:00:10.419 --> 00:00:13.640 behind your back and carrying on a relationship with them. 00:00:13.839 --> 00:00:14.560 How do you feel? 00:00:16.640 --> 00:00:17.080 Angry. 00:00:19.580 --> 00:00:24.519 And the question is, when the anger flares, what do you do with the hostility? 00:00:24.519 --> 00:00:24.620 Angry. 00:00:25.960 --> 00:00:30.559 What do you do with the anger that you feel towards this person who was before your friend? 00:00:30.699 --> 00:00:35.500 Or when you're married, your spouse has a credit card. 00:00:36.379 --> 00:00:38.159 Maybe you've seen your mum and dad do this. 00:00:38.600 --> 00:00:41.399 And they go on a shopping trip and they load up the credit card. 00:00:41.460 --> 00:00:45.379 They just come back from the shops having spent a lot more than they were meant to have spent 00:00:45.379 --> 00:00:46.219 on the credit card. 00:00:46.280 --> 00:00:50.739 And mum or dad suddenly realises that the other one has caused the family huge problems for 00:00:50.740 --> 00:00:56.000 the next few months as they grapple with paying a debt which they're otherwise unable to afford. 00:00:56.440 --> 00:00:59.460 And so one of them is very, very angry with the other. 00:01:00.800 --> 00:01:02.100 What do you do with the hostility? 00:01:02.980 --> 00:01:04.060 What do you do with the anger? 00:01:06.700 --> 00:01:08.540 Well, you've got your mum and dad's car. 00:01:08.799 --> 00:01:09.719 They've given it to you. 00:01:09.719 --> 00:01:10.799 You're on your red peas. 00:01:11.320 --> 00:01:13.620 And you do what you know you shouldn't have done. 00:01:13.760 --> 00:01:15.219 You've had a couple of drinks. 00:01:15.219 --> 00:01:21.260 It's not very intoxicated but you have an accident. 00:01:22.959 --> 00:01:25.519 And the car's not covered by insurance. 00:01:27.459 --> 00:01:28.939 And you've got to go home. 00:01:29.780 --> 00:01:35.519 Well, the policeman takes you home to tell your mum and dad the story of what has happened. 00:01:38.019 --> 00:01:38.859 They're furious. 00:01:40.739 --> 00:01:43.500 What does it take to remove the hostility? 00:01:43.500 --> 00:01:45.640 Now, I can give you Ephesians 2 in a nutshell. 00:01:45.900 --> 00:01:48.040 So let me tell you Ephesians 2 in a nutshell. 00:01:48.780 --> 00:01:54.560 The first half which Deb preached last week is about how God removes hostility between him 00:01:54.560 --> 00:01:55.000 and people. 00:01:55.960 --> 00:01:59.920 And the second part where I'm particularly focusing tonight but I want to spend a little 00:01:59.920 --> 00:02:05.920 bit of time in the first part is how God deals with hostility between people. 00:02:05.920 --> 00:02:11.259 So between us and God and between us and one another. 00:02:12.060 --> 00:02:14.560 And he uses a particular example to make that. 00:02:14.620 --> 00:02:18.120 So if you remember that, you've got the thruster tonight but it's quite another thing to take 00:02:18.120 --> 00:02:20.840 it to heart and apply it to yourself and what that means. 00:02:21.800 --> 00:02:25.500 So Ephesians chapter 2 is written against a background of hostility. 00:02:26.159 --> 00:02:28.379 And the hostility is on those two different fronts. 00:02:28.500 --> 00:02:32.460 And Deb preached to us last week from verses 1 to 10 which is a fantastic passage. 00:02:32.460 --> 00:02:36.680 And in that passage, the hostility which is described is justified. 00:02:36.980 --> 00:02:41.219 It's between good people and God and it's about us giving offence to God and God being 00:02:41.219 --> 00:02:42.100 angry with us. 00:02:43.100 --> 00:02:44.340 And in verse 1 it says, 00:02:44.340 --> 00:03:13.259 Now that's a mouthful if you've never heard it before but let me tell you it's very simple. 00:03:13.259 --> 00:03:19.679 You, me and everybody else dead in transgressions and sin. 00:03:22.000 --> 00:03:29.259 God is justifiably angry and we are described as by nature objects of his anger. 00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:39.719 So people who have rejected God, which is the whole lot of us, are dead meat as far as God 00:03:39.719 --> 00:03:41.280 is concerned without Christ. 00:03:43.259 --> 00:03:49.239 And it's a problem because when you're dead, you can't do anything to change your circumstance. 00:03:49.419 --> 00:03:52.459 Death is the ultimate description of helplessness. 00:03:52.460 --> 00:04:00.740 So the big message of the first half of Ephesians is what God has done about this situation. 00:04:00.920 --> 00:04:07.680 So in verses 4 and 5 he declares the great news, the great thing that God has done. 00:04:07.740 --> 00:04:10.920 He's taken the initiative, he's stepped into this situation and it says, 00:04:10.919 --> 00:04:29.560 And so it says that God has actually stepped into the middle of this hostility himself, even though it's his own anger. 00:04:29.560 --> 00:04:33.879 He stepped into the ring, he's struck a death blow to sin and death. 00:04:33.879 --> 00:04:43.199 He died for us, he's brought us out from under his anger and we have been brought from death to life and this is described, it is by grace you have been saved. 00:04:43.199 --> 00:04:48.379 But the second half of Ephesians is about a different kind of hostility. 00:04:48.379 --> 00:05:00.240 Hostility is something that we all understand, we participate in, we've been in both sides of it, we've been really angry with somebody ourselves, we know that experience. 00:05:00.759 --> 00:05:07.819 And we also know the other experiences, which is quite a helpless experience sometimes, is to be on the receiving end of another person's anger. 00:05:07.819 --> 00:05:15.560 They're angry with me and I can't control their anger, they're just dumping on me and I'm feeling it and I'm crushed by it. 00:05:22.300 --> 00:05:34.659 God has been keeping his promises and working his purposes out through the Old Testament part of the Bible, through the descendants of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob for nearly 2,000 years before this is written. 00:05:34.660 --> 00:05:40.640 And in the words of Isaiah, God's people, the Jews were meant to be a light to the Gentiles. 00:05:41.640 --> 00:05:44.620 And the goodness of God was supposed to be seen in them. 00:05:45.700 --> 00:05:52.220 And nations were intended to be drawn to the Lord God Almighty who had been so kind and faithful to his people. 00:05:52.320 --> 00:05:55.540 People were meant to look on and say, I want to be part of that. 00:05:57.980 --> 00:05:59.740 But the reality was different. 00:05:59.740 --> 00:06:10.620 And the Jews had received all this goodness from God and instead of holding it with humility and holding it out in an embracing way to the nations, 00:06:11.000 --> 00:06:14.800 they had this great sense of entitlement and privilege. 00:06:15.780 --> 00:06:19.180 And they're proud of the special status that God gave them. 00:06:19.879 --> 00:06:24.240 And they looked down their noses, they despised those that didn't share it. 00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:26.100 You know, we sit in church, don't we, tonight? 00:06:26.100 --> 00:06:26.220 Right. 00:06:26.660 --> 00:06:31.780 And for those of us who understand the salvation that we've received, it is a very great thing. 00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:35.820 But what an appalling thing to hold it to ourselves and not want to share it with others. 00:06:36.020 --> 00:06:38.960 It's the grace of God that we've come under in the first place. 00:06:42.100 --> 00:06:46.240 So the Jews had a name for everybody else in the world who wasn't a Jew. 00:06:46.240 --> 00:06:50.300 They called them, our translation, Gentile. 00:06:50.660 --> 00:06:53.100 But in Greek, it's ethnos, the ethnics. 00:06:55.060 --> 00:06:56.519 We translate it nations. 00:06:56.680 --> 00:07:01.960 And when you use the word nations, we probably think of that as quite a good, a positive sort of translation. 00:07:02.460 --> 00:07:07.240 But for Jews to refer to the ethnos, it was a term of derision and hate. 00:07:07.240 --> 00:07:11.100 So if you weren't a Jew, you're an ethnic. 00:07:13.480 --> 00:07:18.120 John Stott, in his commentary, wrote that the Jew had an immense contempt for the Gentile. 00:07:18.500 --> 00:07:22.759 The Gentile said the Jews were created by God to be fuel for the fires of hell. 00:07:24.420 --> 00:07:25.600 That's what you were made for. 00:07:25.720 --> 00:07:28.180 Is anybody here tonight from a Jewish background, if you want to say? 00:07:28.220 --> 00:07:28.720 You don't have to. 00:07:29.579 --> 00:07:32.240 My presumption is that most of us aren't. 00:07:32.240 --> 00:07:40.639 And so for the Jews, we are fodder for the fires of hell. 00:07:41.199 --> 00:07:41.699 Back here. 00:07:43.259 --> 00:07:48.079 And God said, God, they said, loves only Israel of all the nations that he has made. 00:07:48.379 --> 00:07:52.660 It was not even lawful to render help to a Gentile mother in childbirth. 00:07:53.240 --> 00:07:57.439 For that would simply be to bring another Gentile into the world. 00:07:57.439 --> 00:08:02.699 And until Christ came, the Gentiles were an object of contempt to the Jews. 00:08:03.000 --> 00:08:04.439 The barrier between them was absolute. 00:08:05.660 --> 00:08:09.920 If a Jewish boy married a Gentile girl or a Gentile girl married a Jewish boy, 00:08:10.360 --> 00:08:12.439 the family would have the funeral for them. 00:08:13.560 --> 00:08:17.259 Such contact with a Gentile was the equivalent of death. 00:08:19.519 --> 00:08:22.980 The separation between Jew and Gentile was seen in the temple. 00:08:24.519 --> 00:08:26.199 God didn't actually live in the temple, 00:08:26.199 --> 00:08:29.479 but the centre of the temple was the symbol of where God's name was 00:08:29.479 --> 00:08:31.680 and his place was and how he dwelt with his people. 00:08:32.220 --> 00:08:34.179 And the Jews could come fairly close, 00:08:34.319 --> 00:08:36.860 but the Gentiles had to stand at a distance and look, 00:08:37.220 --> 00:08:40.559 stand outside the gate, stand outside the wall and look into the temple, 00:08:41.120 --> 00:08:43.080 but not come close into the temple. 00:08:45.159 --> 00:08:48.179 And archaeologists have actually found some of the signs 00:08:48.179 --> 00:08:51.080 which were around the temple, saying, stop. 00:08:51.080 --> 00:08:55.060 And they said these words exactly, 00:08:55.060 --> 00:08:59.360 no foreigner may enter within the barrier and enclosure around the temple. 00:08:59.800 --> 00:09:04.060 Anyone who is caught doing so will have himself to blame for his own ensuing death. 00:09:05.820 --> 00:09:07.840 Stop or die. 00:09:07.840 --> 00:09:12.500 Really interesting, you catch a glimpse of it in the book, 00:09:12.660 --> 00:09:13.780 in Acts of the Apostles, 00:09:13.860 --> 00:09:18.040 because there's a place there where Paul is in serious trouble with the Jewish authority 00:09:18.040 --> 00:09:21.300 because they heard a rumour that he'd actually desecrated the temple 00:09:21.300 --> 00:09:23.100 by taking Jews into the temple area. 00:09:23.440 --> 00:09:25.600 Something he shouldn't, he didn't do it, but that's what they thought he did. 00:09:25.600 --> 00:09:30.300 So these guys really hated one another. 00:09:31.759 --> 00:09:35.759 And the hatred is particularly driven by the Jew towards the Gentile. 00:09:37.860 --> 00:09:40.960 There is a state of enmity between two groups of people 00:09:40.960 --> 00:09:44.000 that God had always intended to draw to himself. 00:09:47.820 --> 00:09:49.320 Now we understand hostility. 00:09:49.399 --> 00:09:50.580 We played with that at the beginning. 00:09:50.740 --> 00:09:52.519 We engage in it one way or another. 00:09:52.519 --> 00:09:56.799 We've been on the giving and we've been on the receiving end, I presume. 00:09:59.399 --> 00:10:00.600 When people are fighting, 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:03.299 when they're having a quarrel with one another, 00:10:04.620 --> 00:10:07.759 we have to be very careful when we listen to one another's stories. 00:10:07.840 --> 00:10:08.840 Who do we listen to first? 00:10:08.919 --> 00:10:10.120 We listen to our friend, don't we? 00:10:12.159 --> 00:10:13.159 In my family, 00:10:14.460 --> 00:10:15.620 the kids when they're younger, 00:10:15.720 --> 00:10:16.559 they don't do it anymore, 00:10:16.699 --> 00:10:18.139 but they have a spat with one another. 00:10:18.139 --> 00:10:23.460 And sometimes they come running to mum or dad 00:10:23.460 --> 00:10:25.460 and both of them may be trying to tell their story 00:10:25.460 --> 00:10:26.980 and win their case and win you over 00:10:26.980 --> 00:10:29.819 and help you to understand why the other one got it exactly wrong 00:10:29.819 --> 00:10:30.620 and I was right. 00:10:31.580 --> 00:10:32.960 And Kerry and I get involved 00:10:32.960 --> 00:10:33.759 and all of a sudden, 00:10:33.899 --> 00:10:35.919 Kerry and I are arguing and fighting with one another 00:10:35.919 --> 00:10:37.419 and the kids patch it up over here. 00:10:39.019 --> 00:10:40.220 And you look back afterwards 00:10:40.220 --> 00:10:41.319 and you scratch your head and think, 00:10:41.379 --> 00:10:42.600 how did I get involved in that? 00:10:42.600 --> 00:10:46.200 And it's the same with adults. 00:10:46.340 --> 00:10:47.600 We listen to our friends. 00:10:49.200 --> 00:10:51.800 We know that they always tell us the truth. 00:10:53.500 --> 00:10:55.360 But we know that they tell us their hurts 00:10:55.360 --> 00:10:57.279 from their perspective and with their flavour. 00:10:58.360 --> 00:11:03.259 And most of us shade ourselves in a better light 00:11:03.259 --> 00:11:05.659 than the person that we disagree with 00:11:05.659 --> 00:11:07.300 because we probably want to convince you 00:11:07.300 --> 00:11:08.759 that we're right and they're wrong, don't we? 00:11:08.759 --> 00:11:13.000 One thing's absolutely certain. 00:11:14.200 --> 00:11:15.639 There's always another side. 00:11:17.080 --> 00:11:19.439 And sometimes it's come from a really simple thing 00:11:19.439 --> 00:11:20.980 at the beginning of one person 00:11:20.980 --> 00:11:22.700 just not understanding clearly 00:11:22.700 --> 00:11:25.759 what the other person was trying to communicate. 00:11:29.659 --> 00:11:31.860 I said something to a friend the other week 00:11:31.860 --> 00:11:33.679 and it muddied the waters for me 00:11:33.679 --> 00:11:36.759 and it created feelings of distress and alienation, 00:11:36.879 --> 00:11:37.759 all sorts of things. 00:11:37.759 --> 00:11:39.539 And then we talked about it. 00:11:40.879 --> 00:11:42.460 And when we talked about it, 00:11:42.860 --> 00:11:46.200 I realised that I'd distorted things in my mind 00:11:46.200 --> 00:11:49.000 and gone to places on my own 00:11:49.000 --> 00:11:50.419 where I'd got it wrong. 00:11:53.340 --> 00:11:55.159 Ephesians chapter 2 is a wonderful chapter 00:11:55.159 --> 00:11:57.200 and verses 11 to 22 in particular 00:11:57.200 --> 00:12:00.639 because it declares that God has engaged 00:12:00.639 --> 00:12:04.220 in a great exercise in conflict resolution between people. 00:12:04.220 --> 00:12:10.879 God is in the business of repairing and restoring relationships. 00:12:12.879 --> 00:12:16.000 And he addresses both sides of this Jew-Gentile divide 00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:16.800 one at a time. 00:12:16.940 --> 00:12:18.200 He goes to the Gentile first, 00:12:18.820 --> 00:12:19.800 the ethnic, the ethnos. 00:12:20.940 --> 00:12:22.399 And in verse 12 he says, 00:12:22.399 --> 00:12:41.199 Now let's put ourselves in those shoes because that's us. 00:12:41.200 --> 00:12:44.780 Before Christ, 00:12:45.300 --> 00:12:47.860 you were destitute. 00:12:48.120 --> 00:12:49.080 We were destitute. 00:12:50.800 --> 00:12:52.780 We weren't part of the covenants 00:12:52.780 --> 00:12:55.620 or the deals that God had done with people. 00:12:55.620 --> 00:12:58.299 They didn't know him. 00:12:59.740 --> 00:13:01.539 We were genuine no-hopers, 00:13:01.639 --> 00:13:03.299 no relationship with God's people, 00:13:03.399 --> 00:13:04.820 no relationship with God. 00:13:05.179 --> 00:13:06.740 We stood outside his promises. 00:13:06.940 --> 00:13:08.580 We had nothing to look forward to 00:13:08.580 --> 00:13:11.200 except judgment and rejection, 00:13:12.340 --> 00:13:14.159 fodders for the fires of hell, 00:13:15.060 --> 00:13:17.340 as our Jewish enemies would say. 00:13:17.340 --> 00:13:23.620 But it's not where God wants things to remain. 00:13:24.899 --> 00:13:26.240 And in verse 13 it says, 00:13:26.440 --> 00:13:28.759 But now in Christ you who were once far off 00:13:28.759 --> 00:13:31.980 have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 00:13:33.759 --> 00:13:37.500 God has acted to bring those who were far off near. 00:13:37.639 --> 00:13:38.519 He's brought us in. 00:13:39.320 --> 00:13:41.460 And he's brought us in from a long way out. 00:13:44.300 --> 00:13:46.759 And he didn't do it by making us Jews. 00:13:47.340 --> 00:13:51.700 We are brought near to God by the blood of Christ 00:13:51.700 --> 00:13:53.280 shed on the cross for our sins. 00:13:54.560 --> 00:13:55.899 We have been forgiven 00:13:55.899 --> 00:13:59.480 through the undeserved kindness and grace of God. 00:13:59.560 --> 00:14:00.480 It's a wonderful message. 00:14:00.660 --> 00:14:02.780 It's a wonderful place that we've been brought to. 00:14:06.600 --> 00:14:08.240 But this is not a hostility. 00:14:08.399 --> 00:14:09.420 This is not a divide 00:14:09.420 --> 00:14:11.400 which is about one side being really wrong 00:14:11.400 --> 00:14:13.200 and the other side being right. 00:14:14.120 --> 00:14:16.900 Both sides have to move in their thinking 00:14:16.899 --> 00:14:18.220 and in their stance. 00:14:18.639 --> 00:14:21.139 They both have to understand God in a new way 00:14:21.139 --> 00:14:23.179 for true reconciliation to occur. 00:14:23.720 --> 00:14:25.879 And so he turns and he speaks to the Jews 00:14:25.879 --> 00:14:28.980 and he says in verse 15, 00:14:30.120 --> 00:14:31.899 Christ has abolished the law 00:14:31.899 --> 00:14:34.220 with its commandments and ordinances. 00:14:34.220 --> 00:14:38.580 that he might create in himself one new humanity 00:14:38.580 --> 00:14:39.840 in the place of the two 00:14:39.840 --> 00:14:41.660 thus making peace. 00:14:43.100 --> 00:14:45.960 And he might reconcile both groups to God 00:14:45.960 --> 00:14:47.759 in one body through the cross 00:14:47.759 --> 00:14:51.600 thus putting to death that hostility through it. 00:14:51.600 --> 00:14:55.540 It's a big statement. 00:14:55.540 --> 00:14:59.779 The commandments and the laws have been abolished. 00:15:02.720 --> 00:15:06.440 That is a bombshell which was dropped by the Lord Jesus himself 00:15:06.440 --> 00:15:07.740 and it got him executed. 00:15:09.639 --> 00:15:12.200 It's continued in the lives of the apostles 00:15:12.200 --> 00:15:15.740 and some of them are losing their lives for it as well. 00:15:15.740 --> 00:15:20.340 Because I think if you're a Jew 00:15:20.340 --> 00:15:21.740 and you hear somebody come along 00:15:21.740 --> 00:15:24.259 and say the commandments and the laws have been abolished 00:15:24.259 --> 00:15:26.080 then what you really hear 00:15:26.080 --> 00:15:27.620 when that is said 00:15:27.620 --> 00:15:29.200 you hear something said like 00:15:29.200 --> 00:15:31.120 it's now okay to lie 00:15:31.120 --> 00:15:32.279 and steal 00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:33.480 and commit adultery 00:15:33.480 --> 00:15:34.299 and do murder 00:15:34.299 --> 00:15:35.299 and do whatever you like 00:15:35.299 --> 00:15:36.259 go for it 00:15:36.259 --> 00:15:39.320 because these guys are saying 00:15:39.320 --> 00:15:41.080 the law has been abolished. 00:15:41.080 --> 00:15:46.680 But that's not what it's about. 00:15:50.120 --> 00:15:52.220 The law has been abolished 00:15:52.220 --> 00:15:53.000 but in a sense 00:15:53.000 --> 00:15:55.120 it has been completely superseded. 00:15:55.320 --> 00:15:57.480 Everything that the law was designed to do 00:15:57.480 --> 00:15:59.000 has been met in Christ. 00:15:59.139 --> 00:16:01.460 It has been completely fulfilled in Christ. 00:16:02.940 --> 00:16:03.900 When I was a child 00:16:03.900 --> 00:16:04.759 I'd go with my mum 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:06.660 and do the shops in D.Y. 00:16:06.759 --> 00:16:07.840 Deb probably did this too. 00:16:07.840 --> 00:16:08.280 Hmm. 00:16:10.500 --> 00:16:12.120 All the banks in the northern beaches 00:16:12.120 --> 00:16:13.040 were down in D.Y. 00:16:13.180 --> 00:16:14.480 even before Inghamall. 00:16:15.480 --> 00:16:17.220 That says how old I am doesn't it? 00:16:18.600 --> 00:16:18.960 And 00:16:18.960 --> 00:16:22.660 my mum would queue up 00:16:22.660 --> 00:16:24.080 one after another 00:16:24.080 --> 00:16:25.700 at three or four different banks 00:16:25.700 --> 00:16:26.740 moving money around 00:16:26.740 --> 00:16:30.320 and she'd have me and my brother and sister in tow 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:32.019 and we were really little 00:16:32.019 --> 00:16:33.960 and we'd go from one bank to another 00:16:33.960 --> 00:16:35.240 getting bored stiff 00:16:35.240 --> 00:16:36.900 while she waited in queues 00:16:36.899 --> 00:16:38.559 while they counted money 00:16:38.559 --> 00:16:39.899 and sometimes going back 00:16:39.899 --> 00:16:40.579 to the first bank 00:16:40.579 --> 00:16:41.419 that she started with 00:16:41.419 --> 00:16:42.919 because she had to take something back there 00:16:42.919 --> 00:16:43.980 after she'd gone to that one. 00:16:46.079 --> 00:16:48.480 I got sick of writing on those bank slips. 00:16:52.439 --> 00:16:53.779 You don't do that anymore. 00:16:55.259 --> 00:16:56.199 You sit at home 00:16:56.199 --> 00:16:58.759 you push a few buttons on the internet 00:16:58.759 --> 00:16:59.959 we still love money don't we? 00:16:59.980 --> 00:17:00.579 We move it around 00:17:00.579 --> 00:17:01.819 we haven't got the tax for money 00:17:01.819 --> 00:17:03.960 but you do it on the internet 00:17:03.960 --> 00:17:05.259 it's all done in five minutes 00:17:05.259 --> 00:17:06.640 and you go home 00:17:06.640 --> 00:17:09.120 old ways are made completely obsolete 00:17:09.120 --> 00:17:09.819 by the new 00:17:09.819 --> 00:17:10.860 and thank God for it. 00:17:12.400 --> 00:17:14.059 You guys and girls have got it easy. 00:17:19.380 --> 00:17:21.579 So Jesus has made the old way obsolete 00:17:21.579 --> 00:17:26.180 and even the Jews have to move ground 00:17:26.180 --> 00:17:27.039 in their understanding 00:17:27.039 --> 00:17:28.620 of this process of reconciliation. 00:17:29.259 --> 00:17:31.220 They can't cling to the things they used to. 00:17:31.220 --> 00:17:33.200 So when Jesus died on the cross 00:17:33.200 --> 00:17:34.880 the Jews long awaited Messiah 00:17:34.880 --> 00:17:36.519 became the perfect sacrifice 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:38.920 that never needed to be offered again. 00:17:39.660 --> 00:17:41.799 He died for the sins of his own people 00:17:41.799 --> 00:17:42.519 the Jews 00:17:42.519 --> 00:17:45.900 but he also died for the sins 00:17:45.900 --> 00:17:47.460 of people in the world 00:17:47.460 --> 00:17:48.799 who knew nothing of God 00:17:48.799 --> 00:17:51.039 and nothing of his people Israel. 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:53.420 He died for the nations as well. 00:17:53.420 --> 00:17:57.160 And that's why he writes 00:17:57.160 --> 00:17:58.740 in verses 17 and 18 00:17:58.740 --> 00:18:01.160 he came and proclaimed 00:18:01.160 --> 00:18:03.340 peace to you who were far off 00:18:03.340 --> 00:18:06.259 and peace to those who were near 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:09.980 for through him both of us 00:18:09.980 --> 00:18:12.360 have access in one spirit to the father 00:18:12.360 --> 00:18:15.220 peace to the far off the Gentiles 00:18:15.220 --> 00:18:17.759 peace to those who were near the Jews 00:18:17.759 --> 00:18:20.960 the hostility that existed between them 00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:22.200 and that kept them separated 00:18:22.200 --> 00:18:24.680 has been completely extinguished 00:18:24.680 --> 00:18:26.059 and dealt with in Christ. 00:18:26.680 --> 00:18:28.100 We have been brought together 00:18:28.100 --> 00:18:29.420 by the Lord Jesus Christ 00:18:29.420 --> 00:18:30.700 he has made us one 00:18:30.700 --> 00:18:31.740 through Jesus 00:18:31.740 --> 00:18:33.579 we have access to God 00:18:33.579 --> 00:18:34.579 through his spirit. 00:18:38.420 --> 00:18:40.019 And you get this picture 00:18:40.019 --> 00:18:43.220 of God being the most amazing reconciler 00:18:43.220 --> 00:18:45.600 bringing people who absolutely hated 00:18:45.600 --> 00:18:47.319 one another's guts together 00:18:47.319 --> 00:18:50.740 and it happened through the death of his son 00:18:50.740 --> 00:18:52.859 by the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ 00:18:52.859 --> 00:18:55.720 and God extinguished hostility 00:18:55.720 --> 00:18:57.220 between himself and people 00:18:57.220 --> 00:18:59.099 he removed hostility 00:18:59.099 --> 00:19:00.460 between people and people 00:19:00.460 --> 00:19:01.159 you and me 00:19:01.159 --> 00:19:05.439 that we can be in relationship again. 00:19:08.559 --> 00:19:10.220 And it's God's church 00:19:10.220 --> 00:19:12.079 that bears witness to that reality. 00:19:12.939 --> 00:19:14.000 Verse 19 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:16.240 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens 00:19:16.240 --> 00:19:19.680 but you are citizens with the saints 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:22.259 and also members of the household of God 00:19:22.259 --> 00:19:25.980 built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets 00:19:25.980 --> 00:19:28.759 with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone 00:19:28.759 --> 00:19:32.420 and in him the whole structure is joined together 00:19:32.420 --> 00:19:34.599 and grows into a holy temple in the Lord 00:19:34.599 --> 00:19:38.259 in whom you also are built together spiritually 00:19:38.259 --> 00:19:40.559 into a dwelling place for God. 00:19:40.559 --> 00:19:44.000 You get this magnificent picture 00:19:44.000 --> 00:19:45.980 of God doing something quite glorious 00:19:45.980 --> 00:19:47.240 in building his church. 00:19:47.879 --> 00:19:49.639 People who were once deadly enemies 00:19:49.639 --> 00:19:51.559 are brought together by the blood of Christ. 00:19:52.359 --> 00:19:54.359 Outsiders are now regarded as citizens 00:19:54.359 --> 00:19:55.779 and members with the saints. 00:19:56.500 --> 00:19:57.319 In fact it says 00:19:57.319 --> 00:19:58.839 we're built upon the foundations 00:19:58.839 --> 00:20:00.500 of the apostles and prophets. 00:20:01.779 --> 00:20:03.119 That's a great description 00:20:03.119 --> 00:20:04.679 because the apostolic preaching 00:20:04.679 --> 00:20:06.500 which is recorded in the New Testament 00:20:06.500 --> 00:20:08.879 as well as the prophets of the Old Testament 00:20:08.880 --> 00:20:11.220 the scriptures anticipating the coming of Christ 00:20:11.220 --> 00:20:13.280 it's really saying 00:20:13.280 --> 00:20:13.980 in a funny way 00:20:13.980 --> 00:20:15.040 that the church is founded 00:20:15.040 --> 00:20:15.900 on the word of God. 00:20:18.760 --> 00:20:20.160 And so word based ministry 00:20:20.160 --> 00:20:21.640 is at the heart of what we do 00:20:21.640 --> 00:20:23.460 it brings the dead to life. 00:20:25.320 --> 00:20:26.200 And the cornerstone 00:20:26.200 --> 00:20:27.520 of this magnificent building 00:20:27.520 --> 00:20:28.540 is Christ himself. 00:20:30.140 --> 00:20:31.340 We keep proclaiming 00:20:31.340 --> 00:20:32.580 the life saving message 00:20:32.580 --> 00:20:34.940 of a crucified and resurrected saviour. 00:20:35.020 --> 00:20:35.540 We believe 00:20:35.540 --> 00:20:36.640 if you believe in Jesus 00:20:36.640 --> 00:20:38.060 you respond to that message 00:20:38.060 --> 00:20:39.780 and trust Jesus Christ as Lord 00:20:39.780 --> 00:20:40.860 you are saved. 00:20:45.000 --> 00:20:46.180 So it's talking about 00:20:46.180 --> 00:20:47.420 God's people together. 00:20:47.520 --> 00:20:49.040 This is not you just in your seat 00:20:49.040 --> 00:20:49.680 by yourself. 00:20:49.820 --> 00:20:51.340 This is us as a group of people 00:20:51.340 --> 00:20:51.940 together 00:20:51.940 --> 00:20:55.240 that God is corporately 00:20:55.240 --> 00:20:56.940 building into a spiritual building 00:20:56.940 --> 00:20:58.860 in which his spirit dwells. 00:21:00.020 --> 00:21:00.860 I would think that 00:21:00.860 --> 00:21:01.780 before I came tonight 00:21:01.780 --> 00:21:02.920 if I asked many of you 00:21:02.920 --> 00:21:04.800 where does the Holy Spirit dwell 00:21:04.799 --> 00:21:05.899 if you're a Christian believer 00:21:05.899 --> 00:21:07.139 you would have said in my heart 00:21:07.139 --> 00:21:08.180 he indwells me 00:21:08.180 --> 00:21:09.559 and he empowers my life 00:21:09.559 --> 00:21:10.659 and that's a true thing to say. 00:21:11.720 --> 00:21:12.960 But the language here 00:21:12.960 --> 00:21:13.680 in this passage 00:21:13.680 --> 00:21:14.899 is not focused on you 00:21:14.899 --> 00:21:15.799 and your individual experience 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:17.859 it's focused on 00:21:17.859 --> 00:21:19.240 the powerful effect 00:21:19.240 --> 00:21:20.259 of the spirit of God 00:21:20.259 --> 00:21:20.879 being at work 00:21:20.879 --> 00:21:22.000 in the body of his people. 00:21:27.720 --> 00:21:29.440 If you understand this teaching 00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:31.799 it should completely transform 00:21:31.799 --> 00:21:33.559 the way you view church. 00:21:34.639 --> 00:21:35.399 I've got a hunch 00:21:35.399 --> 00:21:36.680 that a lot of people 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:37.379 at 5 o'clock 00:21:37.379 --> 00:21:38.159 or 5.30 00:21:38.159 --> 00:21:39.099 don't have the same 00:21:39.099 --> 00:21:40.059 sorts of problems 00:21:40.059 --> 00:21:40.980 as some of the people 00:21:40.980 --> 00:21:41.539 in the morning. 00:21:44.460 --> 00:21:46.379 I think people 00:21:46.379 --> 00:21:48.519 and some of us 00:21:48.519 --> 00:21:49.960 have good theology 00:21:49.960 --> 00:21:51.319 have good Bible understanding 00:21:51.319 --> 00:21:52.579 when we read these things 00:21:52.579 --> 00:21:53.899 but our passions 00:21:53.899 --> 00:21:54.940 and our feelings 00:21:54.940 --> 00:21:56.059 lead us to places 00:21:56.059 --> 00:21:57.419 that don't really reflect it. 00:21:59.559 --> 00:22:00.819 Probably an example of that 00:22:00.819 --> 00:22:01.359 a while back 00:22:01.359 --> 00:22:02.099 talking about 00:22:02.099 --> 00:22:03.659 if you changed the church around 00:22:03.659 --> 00:22:04.259 and changed it 00:22:04.259 --> 00:22:04.960 from one direction 00:22:04.960 --> 00:22:05.460 to another 00:22:05.460 --> 00:22:06.720 and one person said 00:22:06.720 --> 00:22:08.220 but this is the church 00:22:08.220 --> 00:22:09.079 and it's so important 00:22:09.079 --> 00:22:10.480 that we've got the long aisle 00:22:10.480 --> 00:22:11.259 and why is it important 00:22:11.259 --> 00:22:12.319 that we've got the long aisle? 00:22:13.439 --> 00:22:14.460 So it's there for us 00:22:14.460 --> 00:22:15.220 to have a long aisle 00:22:15.220 --> 00:22:15.799 to walk down 00:22:15.799 --> 00:22:16.619 when we do weddings. 00:22:18.139 --> 00:22:19.439 And the notion of church 00:22:19.439 --> 00:22:20.059 and the importance 00:22:20.059 --> 00:22:20.599 of the building 00:22:20.599 --> 00:22:21.619 anyway gets distorted 00:22:21.619 --> 00:22:22.740 and we go to funny places 00:22:22.740 --> 00:22:23.200 with it. 00:22:23.980 --> 00:22:24.899 The church of God 00:22:24.899 --> 00:22:25.799 is not the building 00:22:25.799 --> 00:22:27.240 it's a spiritual community 00:22:27.240 --> 00:22:29.519 and so the church 00:22:29.519 --> 00:22:30.319 is not the building 00:22:30.319 --> 00:22:30.859 as beautiful 00:22:30.859 --> 00:22:31.460 or as ugly 00:22:31.460 --> 00:22:32.319 as you think this is 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:33.000 everybody will have 00:22:33.000 --> 00:22:33.639 their own opinions 00:22:33.639 --> 00:22:34.379 about what they think 00:22:34.379 --> 00:22:35.119 about the building 00:22:35.119 --> 00:22:36.399 this is a space 00:22:36.399 --> 00:22:37.679 in which the people of God 00:22:37.679 --> 00:22:38.960 gather to worship God 00:22:38.960 --> 00:22:39.899 and to encourage 00:22:39.899 --> 00:22:40.980 each other in Christ. 00:22:42.539 --> 00:22:43.480 And if this building 00:22:43.480 --> 00:22:44.119 wasn't here 00:22:44.119 --> 00:22:44.839 or if our government 00:22:44.839 --> 00:22:45.379 said to us 00:22:45.379 --> 00:22:46.000 in a few years 00:22:46.000 --> 00:22:46.579 down the track 00:22:46.579 --> 00:22:47.480 you can't meet there 00:22:47.480 --> 00:22:47.939 you're not allowed 00:22:47.939 --> 00:22:48.919 to gather as Christians 00:22:48.919 --> 00:22:50.099 I hope that you 00:22:50.099 --> 00:22:51.000 would ignore the government 00:22:51.000 --> 00:22:51.599 at that point 00:22:51.599 --> 00:22:52.279 and maybe not come 00:22:52.279 --> 00:22:52.839 to this building 00:22:52.839 --> 00:22:53.399 because it might be 00:22:53.399 --> 00:22:54.179 dangerous for you 00:22:54.179 --> 00:22:55.099 but go and meet 00:22:55.099 --> 00:22:56.159 down in Blue Gum Forest 00:22:56.159 --> 00:22:57.039 or Beach and Park 00:22:57.039 --> 00:22:58.420 devil provide the toilets 00:22:58.420 --> 00:22:58.899 and the food 00:22:58.899 --> 00:22:59.720 but Beach and Park 00:22:59.720 --> 00:23:01.159 or somebody's home 00:23:01.159 --> 00:23:02.839 but go somewhere 00:23:02.839 --> 00:23:03.460 meet together 00:23:03.460 --> 00:23:04.379 and do the same sorts 00:23:04.379 --> 00:23:04.680 of things 00:23:04.680 --> 00:23:05.159 that we're doing 00:23:05.159 --> 00:23:06.000 tonight in this building 00:23:06.000 --> 00:23:09.720 and you see the beauty 00:23:09.720 --> 00:23:10.359 and the miracle 00:23:10.359 --> 00:23:11.279 of what God has done 00:23:11.279 --> 00:23:12.119 he gathers people 00:23:12.119 --> 00:23:14.079 from whom his hostility 00:23:14.079 --> 00:23:15.059 has been removed 00:23:15.059 --> 00:23:15.899 and from that 00:23:15.899 --> 00:23:16.819 he opens the door 00:23:16.819 --> 00:23:17.319 to relating 00:23:17.319 --> 00:23:18.180 without hostility 00:23:18.180 --> 00:23:18.940 to one another 00:23:18.940 --> 00:23:20.799 we've already said 00:23:20.799 --> 00:23:21.319 most of us 00:23:21.319 --> 00:23:21.920 don't come from 00:23:21.920 --> 00:23:22.559 Jewish backgrounds 00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:23.480 this is about us 00:23:23.480 --> 00:23:24.200 where we've come 00:23:24.200 --> 00:23:25.180 we've been brought in 00:23:25.180 --> 00:23:26.980 we are privileged outsiders 00:23:26.980 --> 00:23:28.000 who have been invited 00:23:28.000 --> 00:23:28.799 into the family 00:23:28.799 --> 00:23:30.259 by the blood of Christ 00:23:30.259 --> 00:23:32.279 maybe not so much 00:23:32.279 --> 00:23:32.700 tonight 00:23:32.700 --> 00:23:33.759 but in the morning 00:23:33.759 --> 00:23:34.720 there are so many 00:23:34.720 --> 00:23:36.039 different ethnicities 00:23:36.039 --> 00:23:37.039 which are represented 00:23:37.039 --> 00:23:38.339 in our church family 00:23:38.339 --> 00:23:39.819 and we gather 00:23:39.819 --> 00:23:40.900 as the people of God 00:23:40.900 --> 00:23:41.579 and when we gather 00:23:41.579 --> 00:23:42.500 as the people of God 00:23:42.500 --> 00:23:43.599 we gather as one 00:23:43.599 --> 00:23:45.099 because God has dealt 00:23:45.099 --> 00:23:46.000 with our hostilities 00:23:46.000 --> 00:23:46.620 in the cross 00:23:46.620 --> 00:23:47.839 of the Lord Jesus Christ 00:23:47.839 --> 00:23:49.099 no one culture 00:23:49.099 --> 00:23:50.160 stands over another 00:23:50.160 --> 00:23:51.500 we need the blood 00:23:51.500 --> 00:23:52.660 of the Lord Jesus Christ 00:23:52.660 --> 00:23:53.540 to make us one 00:23:53.540 --> 00:23:56.840 it's not just in house 00:23:56.840 --> 00:23:58.100 that this teaching applies 00:23:58.100 --> 00:24:00.940 or it's not just in house 00:24:00.940 --> 00:24:02.500 that this remarkable building 00:24:02.500 --> 00:24:03.420 has an impact 00:24:03.420 --> 00:24:03.900 and remember 00:24:03.900 --> 00:24:05.040 this remarkable building 00:24:05.040 --> 00:24:06.360 is a spiritual community 00:24:06.360 --> 00:24:09.000 it impacts God's world 00:24:09.000 --> 00:24:09.600 as well 00:24:09.600 --> 00:24:11.840 we as a body 00:24:11.840 --> 00:24:12.460 in the sermon 00:24:12.460 --> 00:24:12.880 on the mount 00:24:12.880 --> 00:24:13.800 Jesus calls us 00:24:13.800 --> 00:24:14.920 to be salt and light 00:24:14.920 --> 00:24:16.180 not just as individuals 00:24:16.180 --> 00:24:17.100 but as the body 00:24:17.100 --> 00:24:17.620 of believers 00:24:17.620 --> 00:24:18.279 that we are 00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:19.320 in the world 00:24:19.320 --> 00:24:20.200 in which we live 00:24:20.200 --> 00:24:22.259 I had a fantastic time 00:24:22.259 --> 00:24:23.119 over the last week 00:24:23.119 --> 00:24:23.960 reading a book 00:24:23.960 --> 00:24:25.059 by Michael Cassidy 00:24:25.059 --> 00:24:26.680 who was the long term 00:24:26.680 --> 00:24:27.579 leader of African 00:24:27.579 --> 00:24:28.839 Evangelistic Enterprise 00:24:28.839 --> 00:24:30.259 which is the organisation 00:24:30.259 --> 00:24:31.339 that Darian and Vanessa 00:24:31.339 --> 00:24:32.519 serve with in Africa 00:24:32.519 --> 00:24:34.660 and he wrote a book 00:24:34.660 --> 00:24:35.319 he's written a number 00:24:35.319 --> 00:24:35.660 of books 00:24:35.660 --> 00:24:36.579 but one of the books 00:24:36.579 --> 00:24:36.980 he wrote 00:24:36.980 --> 00:24:37.420 was called 00:24:37.420 --> 00:24:38.259 A Witness Forever 00:24:38.259 --> 00:24:40.180 and it's an account 00:24:40.180 --> 00:24:41.740 of South Africa's transition 00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:42.779 from apartheid 00:24:42.779 --> 00:24:43.480 to democracy 00:24:43.480 --> 00:24:45.640 which is in the early 1990s 00:24:45.640 --> 00:24:48.140 the year was 1994 00:24:48.140 --> 00:24:50.000 and at the beginning 00:24:50.000 --> 00:24:50.600 of April 00:24:50.600 --> 00:24:51.560 a civil war 00:24:51.560 --> 00:24:52.600 began in Rwanda 00:24:52.600 --> 00:24:54.500 that led to genocide 00:24:54.500 --> 00:24:56.259 which claimed 00:24:56.259 --> 00:24:57.960 800,000 lives 00:24:57.960 --> 00:24:59.360 in 100 days 00:24:59.360 --> 00:25:02.000 it's one of the most 00:25:02.000 --> 00:25:02.740 appalling things 00:25:02.740 --> 00:25:03.320 that's happened 00:25:03.320 --> 00:25:04.460 in my own lifetime 00:25:04.460 --> 00:25:07.740 and at the same time 00:25:07.740 --> 00:25:08.480 South Africa 00:25:08.480 --> 00:25:09.100 was sitting 00:25:09.100 --> 00:25:10.120 on a powder keg 00:25:10.120 --> 00:25:11.160 and people believed 00:25:11.160 --> 00:25:12.200 that something similar 00:25:12.200 --> 00:25:12.920 might happen 00:25:12.920 --> 00:25:16.519 the first post-apartheid 00:25:16.519 --> 00:25:17.660 democratic election 00:25:17.660 --> 00:25:18.800 where Nelson Mandela 00:25:18.800 --> 00:25:19.779 became the president 00:25:19.779 --> 00:25:21.039 was scheduled 00:25:21.039 --> 00:25:22.100 for the end of April 00:25:22.100 --> 00:25:24.960 and one of the major 00:25:24.960 --> 00:25:26.240 black African parties 00:25:26.240 --> 00:25:27.100 was refusing 00:25:27.100 --> 00:25:27.820 to take part 00:25:27.820 --> 00:25:28.460 in the election 00:25:28.460 --> 00:25:30.600 so it wasn't just 00:25:30.600 --> 00:25:31.820 black white apartheid 00:25:31.820 --> 00:25:32.580 all that sort of stuff 00:25:32.580 --> 00:25:33.539 it was black on black 00:25:33.539 --> 00:25:34.420 and there were all sorts 00:25:34.420 --> 00:25:35.660 of groups and rivalries 00:25:35.660 --> 00:25:36.940 all over the place 00:25:36.940 --> 00:25:39.340 and the consequence 00:25:39.340 --> 00:25:40.920 could only be 00:25:40.920 --> 00:25:41.840 civil war 00:25:41.839 --> 00:25:42.839 if the election 00:25:42.839 --> 00:25:43.539 went ahead 00:25:43.539 --> 00:25:46.659 and it could only be 00:25:46.659 --> 00:25:47.500 civil war 00:25:47.500 --> 00:25:49.000 if it didn't go ahead 00:25:49.000 --> 00:25:53.079 and the world 00:25:53.079 --> 00:25:53.899 was watching 00:25:53.899 --> 00:25:55.919 and everyone knew 00:25:55.919 --> 00:25:56.859 that a bloodbath 00:25:56.859 --> 00:25:57.639 was likely 00:25:57.639 --> 00:26:00.639 now the international 00:26:00.639 --> 00:26:01.319 mediators 00:26:01.319 --> 00:26:02.059 Henry Kissinger 00:26:02.059 --> 00:26:03.039 who was really famous 00:26:03.039 --> 00:26:04.159 for his mediation 00:26:04.159 --> 00:26:05.179 in the Middle East 00:26:05.179 --> 00:26:06.619 and Lord Carrington 00:26:06.619 --> 00:26:07.899 from 00:26:07.899 --> 00:26:10.000 Kissinger was from the US 00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:10.639 and Carrington 00:26:10.639 --> 00:26:11.500 was from Britain 00:26:11.500 --> 00:26:13.940 arrived in South Africa 00:26:13.940 --> 00:26:15.599 on April 12 00:26:15.599 --> 00:26:16.180 and these were 00:26:16.180 --> 00:26:17.400 two big world 00:26:17.400 --> 00:26:18.019 hot shots 00:26:18.019 --> 00:26:19.319 at conflict resolution 00:26:19.319 --> 00:26:21.500 and they spent 00:26:21.500 --> 00:26:22.079 no more than 00:26:22.079 --> 00:26:22.880 48 hours 00:26:22.880 --> 00:26:23.819 meeting all the main 00:26:23.819 --> 00:26:24.380 players 00:26:24.380 --> 00:26:26.779 and they got back 00:26:26.779 --> 00:26:27.519 on their planes 00:26:27.519 --> 00:26:28.960 and they flew home 00:26:28.960 --> 00:26:30.319 on April 15 00:26:30.319 --> 00:26:31.980 having made 00:26:31.980 --> 00:26:33.140 zero progress 00:26:33.140 --> 00:26:35.160 and with Kissinger 00:26:35.160 --> 00:26:35.920 predicting 00:26:35.920 --> 00:26:36.900 Armageddon 00:26:36.900 --> 00:26:38.019 election in South Africa 00:26:38.019 --> 00:26:40.740 election day 00:26:40.740 --> 00:26:41.860 loomed only two weeks 00:26:41.860 --> 00:26:42.120 ahead 00:26:42.120 --> 00:26:42.980 April 27 00:26:42.980 --> 00:26:44.480 12 days in fact 00:26:44.480 --> 00:26:45.660 and still 00:26:45.660 --> 00:26:46.780 with no solution 00:26:46.780 --> 00:26:49.120 no man made solution 00:26:49.120 --> 00:26:52.640 long story 00:26:52.640 --> 00:26:54.040 many twists and turns 00:26:54.040 --> 00:26:55.280 great book to read 00:26:55.280 --> 00:26:58.560 but 12 days later 00:26:58.560 --> 00:26:59.560 when a relatively 00:26:59.560 --> 00:27:00.920 peaceful election 00:27:00.920 --> 00:27:01.680 occurred 00:27:01.680 --> 00:27:03.860 most of the 00:27:03.860 --> 00:27:04.920 secular media 00:27:04.920 --> 00:27:06.500 the people 00:27:06.500 --> 00:27:07.080 who don't give 00:27:07.080 --> 00:27:07.480 Christians 00:27:07.480 --> 00:27:08.340 a very good run 00:27:08.340 --> 00:27:09.060 most of the 00:27:09.060 --> 00:27:10.660 secular media 00:27:10.660 --> 00:27:12.480 was talking 00:27:12.480 --> 00:27:13.640 about this event 00:27:13.640 --> 00:27:14.580 in terms of 00:27:14.580 --> 00:27:15.180 a miracle 00:27:15.180 --> 00:27:15.960 that God 00:27:15.960 --> 00:27:16.860 had intervened 00:27:16.860 --> 00:27:17.820 and talking 00:27:17.820 --> 00:27:19.160 about the glory 00:27:19.160 --> 00:27:19.820 of what had 00:27:19.820 --> 00:27:20.340 occurred 00:27:20.340 --> 00:27:23.900 two weeks 00:27:23.900 --> 00:27:24.519 before 00:27:24.519 --> 00:27:25.320 Kissinger 00:27:25.320 --> 00:27:25.740 had walked 00:27:25.740 --> 00:27:26.400 past Michael 00:27:26.400 --> 00:27:27.380 Cassidy 00:27:27.380 --> 00:27:28.140 and scoffed 00:27:28.140 --> 00:27:28.360 at him 00:27:28.360 --> 00:27:28.840 when he said 00:27:28.840 --> 00:27:29.259 I'm praying 00:27:29.259 --> 00:27:29.740 for you 00:27:29.740 --> 00:27:32.359 what happened 00:27:32.359 --> 00:27:34.779 well a lot 00:27:34.779 --> 00:27:35.119 of things 00:27:35.119 --> 00:27:35.480 happened 00:27:35.480 --> 00:27:38.619 and many 00:27:38.619 --> 00:27:38.920 of them 00:27:38.920 --> 00:27:39.599 over a period 00:27:39.599 --> 00:27:40.119 of time 00:27:40.119 --> 00:27:40.740 but God 00:27:40.740 --> 00:27:41.279 pulled the 00:27:41.279 --> 00:27:41.640 strings 00:27:41.640 --> 00:27:42.160 in quite 00:27:42.160 --> 00:27:42.759 miraculous 00:27:42.759 --> 00:27:43.240 ways 00:27:43.240 --> 00:27:43.680 to draw 00:27:43.680 --> 00:27:44.220 them together 00:27:44.220 --> 00:27:44.640 in these 00:27:44.640 --> 00:27:45.160 next 10 00:27:45.160 --> 00:27:45.599 days 00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:49.819 and people 00:27:49.819 --> 00:27:50.359 were able 00:27:50.359 --> 00:27:51.079 to see 00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:52.740 that God 00:27:52.740 --> 00:27:53.200 brought 00:27:53.200 --> 00:27:54.059 reconciliation 00:27:54.059 --> 00:27:54.779 God 00:27:54.779 --> 00:27:55.500 ended 00:27:55.500 --> 00:27:56.339 hostility 00:27:56.339 --> 00:27:58.000 in his 00:27:58.000 --> 00:27:58.799 own way 00:27:58.799 --> 00:27:59.940 when the 00:27:59.940 --> 00:28:00.940 very best 00:28:00.940 --> 00:28:01.480 efforts 00:28:01.480 --> 00:28:01.980 of the 00:28:01.980 --> 00:28:02.460 world's 00:28:02.460 --> 00:28:02.839 biggest 00:28:02.839 --> 00:28:03.399 minds 00:28:03.399 --> 00:28:03.680 had 00:28:03.680 --> 00:28:04.359 completely 00:28:04.359 --> 00:28:04.980 failed 00:28:04.980 --> 00:28:08.399 there'd 00:28:08.399 --> 00:28:08.680 been a 00:28:08.680 --> 00:28:09.059 process 00:28:09.059 --> 00:28:09.500 which had 00:28:09.500 --> 00:28:09.940 been going 00:28:09.940 --> 00:28:10.299 on for 00:28:10.299 --> 00:28:10.599 several 00:28:10.599 --> 00:28:11.039 years 00:28:11.039 --> 00:28:12.539 where God's 00:28:12.539 --> 00:28:12.799 people 00:28:12.799 --> 00:28:13.099 a group 00:28:13.099 --> 00:28:13.220 of 00:28:13.220 --> 00:28:13.599 Christians 00:28:13.599 --> 00:28:14.180 had hosted 00:28:14.180 --> 00:28:14.819 meetings 00:28:14.819 --> 00:28:15.599 at a 00:28:15.599 --> 00:28:16.220 game lodge 00:28:16.220 --> 00:28:16.599 in a 00:28:16.599 --> 00:28:17.099 quiet part 00:28:17.099 --> 00:28:17.440 of South 00:28:17.440 --> 00:28:17.859 Africa 00:28:17.859 --> 00:28:19.220 where over 00:28:19.220 --> 00:28:19.599 a period 00:28:19.599 --> 00:28:20.119 of time 00:28:20.119 --> 00:28:20.879 numbers of 00:28:20.879 --> 00:28:21.480 significant 00:28:21.480 --> 00:28:22.039 political 00:28:22.039 --> 00:28:22.500 leaders 00:28:22.500 --> 00:28:22.919 had come 00:28:22.919 --> 00:28:23.339 and they'd 00:28:23.339 --> 00:28:23.720 met with 00:28:23.720 --> 00:28:24.279 one another 00:28:24.279 --> 00:28:25.079 with their 00:28:25.079 --> 00:28:25.799 guns under 00:28:25.799 --> 00:28:26.440 their pillows 00:28:26.440 --> 00:28:27.099 but they'd 00:28:27.099 --> 00:28:27.480 met with 00:28:27.480 --> 00:28:28.000 one another 00:28:28.000 --> 00:28:28.579 face to 00:28:28.579 --> 00:28:28.960 face 00:28:28.960 --> 00:28:29.779 man to 00:28:29.779 --> 00:28:30.180 man 00:28:30.180 --> 00:28:31.360 and they 00:28:31.360 --> 00:28:31.940 told their 00:28:31.940 --> 00:28:32.539 stories to 00:28:32.539 --> 00:28:33.000 each other 00:28:33.000 --> 00:28:33.339 of where 00:28:33.339 --> 00:28:33.839 they'd come 00:28:33.839 --> 00:28:34.220 from and 00:28:34.220 --> 00:28:34.920 expressed their 00:28:34.920 --> 00:28:35.980 difference and 00:28:35.980 --> 00:28:36.799 talked about the 00:28:36.799 --> 00:28:37.420 things that they 00:28:37.420 --> 00:28:38.180 had been grappling 00:28:38.180 --> 00:28:39.360 with and so they 00:28:39.360 --> 00:28:40.019 could no longer 00:28:40.019 --> 00:28:40.900 hide behind their 00:28:40.900 --> 00:28:41.740 opinions and their 00:28:41.740 --> 00:28:43.079 ideologies they 00:28:43.079 --> 00:28:43.900 had to face one 00:28:43.900 --> 00:28:44.759 another as people 00:28:44.759 --> 00:28:46.099 and talk as 00:28:46.099 --> 00:28:48.839 people and many 00:28:48.839 --> 00:28:49.860 of them discovered 00:28:49.860 --> 00:28:51.700 that their deadly 00:28:51.700 --> 00:28:52.759 enemy was in 00:28:52.759 --> 00:28:54.299 fact a Christian 00:28:54.299 --> 00:28:55.640 person who shared 00:28:55.640 --> 00:28:56.520 a deep Christian 00:28:56.520 --> 00:28:59.940 faith and they 00:28:59.940 --> 00:29:00.700 became able to 00:29:00.700 --> 00:29:01.320 listen to one 00:29:01.320 --> 00:29:02.020 another because 00:29:02.020 --> 00:29:02.900 God in Christ 00:29:02.900 --> 00:29:03.759 had removed the 00:29:03.759 --> 00:29:04.780 hostility that they 00:29:04.780 --> 00:29:05.380 had with one 00:29:05.380 --> 00:29:08.100 another and the 00:29:08.100 --> 00:29:08.640 other thing that 00:29:08.640 --> 00:29:09.340 was going on there 00:29:09.340 --> 00:29:09.840 are many other 00:29:09.840 --> 00:29:10.700 things going on but 00:29:10.700 --> 00:29:11.340 one of the things 00:29:11.340 --> 00:29:12.240 going on was that 00:29:12.240 --> 00:29:13.160 the church was in 00:29:13.160 --> 00:29:15.000 earnest prayer all 00:29:15.000 --> 00:29:15.960 across the nation 00:29:15.960 --> 00:29:18.380 our people from all 00:29:18.380 --> 00:29:18.880 sides and 00:29:18.880 --> 00:29:19.540 backgrounds were 00:29:19.540 --> 00:29:21.120 praying it 00:29:21.120 --> 00:29:22.000 culminated in a 00:29:22.000 --> 00:29:22.880 weekend where 30 00:29:22.880 --> 00:29:24.020 thousand people came 00:29:24.019 --> 00:29:24.879 and prayed in one 00:29:24.879 --> 00:29:26.139 place they wanted 00:29:26.139 --> 00:29:27.000 double that number 00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:27.740 but people with 00:29:27.740 --> 00:29:28.579 guns stopped many 00:29:28.579 --> 00:29:29.339 of them even getting 00:29:29.339 --> 00:29:30.559 there but people 00:29:30.559 --> 00:29:31.539 broke into smaller 00:29:31.539 --> 00:29:33.000 gatherings all over 00:29:33.000 --> 00:29:33.900 Africa and were 00:29:33.900 --> 00:29:35.740 praying for their 00:29:35.740 --> 00:29:38.460 nation and the 00:29:38.460 --> 00:29:39.700 crazy thing was that 00:29:39.700 --> 00:29:40.379 the rest of the 00:29:40.379 --> 00:29:42.019 world the first world 00:29:42.019 --> 00:29:43.000 was sending in their 00:29:43.000 --> 00:29:45.000 top journalists their 00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:45.879 top conflict 00:29:45.879 --> 00:29:47.759 journalists to film a 00:29:47.759 --> 00:29:50.740 bloodbath and God's 00:29:50.740 --> 00:29:51.680 people were on their 00:29:51.680 --> 00:29:52.779 knees in a most 00:29:52.779 --> 00:29:56.160 dramatic way but the 00:29:56.160 --> 00:29:57.059 cross of the Lord 00:29:57.059 --> 00:29:59.220 Jesus Christ is what 00:29:59.220 --> 00:30:00.799 removes God's anger 00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:04.139 from us it humbles 00:30:04.139 --> 00:30:05.079 our own hearts when 00:30:05.079 --> 00:30:06.420 we realize how much 00:30:06.420 --> 00:30:07.440 we have been forgiven 00:30:07.440 --> 00:30:09.359 and it gives us the 00:30:09.359 --> 00:30:10.299 starting point for 00:30:10.299 --> 00:30:11.379 beginning to forgive 00:30:11.379 --> 00:30:16.879 another friends the 00:30:16.879 --> 00:30:18.139 gospel of the Lord 00:30:18.139 --> 00:30:19.160 Jesus Christ should 00:30:19.160 --> 00:30:20.440 transform each one of 00:30:20.440 --> 00:30:23.519 us first so if you 00:30:23.519 --> 00:30:24.460 don't know Christ 00:30:24.460 --> 00:30:25.220 you're not in a 00:30:25.220 --> 00:30:26.180 position to be able 00:30:26.180 --> 00:30:27.700 to begin reconciling 00:30:27.700 --> 00:30:28.420 with other people 00:30:28.420 --> 00:30:29.160 because you need to 00:30:29.160 --> 00:30:29.940 have your own sins 00:30:29.940 --> 00:30:30.840 dealt with first 00:30:30.840 --> 00:30:34.620 but having had your 00:30:34.620 --> 00:30:35.880 sins dealt with it 00:30:35.880 --> 00:30:36.900 should then become the 00:30:36.900 --> 00:30:38.779 transforming power in 00:30:38.779 --> 00:30:39.860 the relationships that 00:30:39.860 --> 00:30:40.559 we have with one 00:30:40.559 --> 00:30:43.080 another I loved reading 00:30:43.080 --> 00:30:44.140 Michael Cassidy's book 00:30:44.140 --> 00:30:45.019 it had me in tears at 00:30:45.019 --> 00:30:46.660 many points because it 00:30:46.660 --> 00:30:47.920 reminded me again that 00:30:47.920 --> 00:30:51.180 God is powerful in 00:30:51.180 --> 00:30:53.019 prayer and by his 00:30:53.019 --> 00:30:55.019 spirit to remove 00:30:55.019 --> 00:30:56.019 hostility between 00:30:56.019 --> 00:30:57.320 people even nations 00:30:57.320 --> 00:31:00.340 for us to be able to 00:31:00.340 --> 00:31:01.360 sit with a brother or 00:31:01.360 --> 00:31:02.640 sister in Christ and 00:31:02.640 --> 00:31:04.640 hear what life and the 00:31:04.640 --> 00:31:05.980 world is like for them 00:31:05.980 --> 00:31:08.060 before we begin to 00:31:08.060 --> 00:31:09.019 judge them and push 00:31:09.019 --> 00:31:10.420 our genders and our 00:31:10.420 --> 00:31:11.720 grievances on them 00:31:11.720 --> 00:31:14.500 it comes back in a 00:31:14.500 --> 00:31:15.500 really practical way 00:31:15.500 --> 00:31:16.460 it comes back into our 00:31:16.460 --> 00:31:17.640 families it comes back 00:31:17.640 --> 00:31:19.840 into marriages perhaps 00:31:19.840 --> 00:31:20.799 marriages which are 00:31:20.799 --> 00:31:22.579 struggling relationships 00:31:22.579 --> 00:31:23.620 which are struggling 00:31:23.620 --> 00:31:26.799 if you are married to a 00:31:26.799 --> 00:31:27.759 Christian person if 00:31:27.759 --> 00:31:28.620 you're planning to get 00:31:28.620 --> 00:31:29.480 married to a Christian 00:31:29.480 --> 00:31:30.519 person and I hope that 00:31:30.519 --> 00:31:34.880 you are when you marry 00:31:34.880 --> 00:31:37.079 they're not just your 00:31:37.079 --> 00:31:41.460 spouse they're also your 00:31:41.460 --> 00:31:42.940 brother or sister in 00:31:42.940 --> 00:31:44.100 Christ whom he has 00:31:44.100 --> 00:31:44.660 redeemed 00:31:44.660 --> 00:31:48.340 marriage counsellor said 00:31:48.340 --> 00:31:49.360 to me once he said 00:31:49.360 --> 00:31:50.600 they said don't stop 00:31:50.600 --> 00:31:51.560 talking and listening to 00:31:51.560 --> 00:31:54.259 one another and some 00:31:54.259 --> 00:31:55.060 marriages some 00:31:55.060 --> 00:31:56.440 relationships wither on 00:31:56.440 --> 00:31:58.560 the vine as we retreat 00:31:58.560 --> 00:31:59.800 into hurt shells and 00:31:59.800 --> 00:32:02.720 stop communicating and 00:32:02.720 --> 00:32:03.880 what happens is tenderness 00:32:03.880 --> 00:32:06.180 gets lost guilt and 00:32:06.180 --> 00:32:09.440 resentment grows but God 00:32:09.440 --> 00:32:11.160 has given us great tools 00:32:11.160 --> 00:32:12.519 in Christ for dealing 00:32:12.519 --> 00:32:14.500 with hostility and 00:32:14.500 --> 00:32:16.779 resentment and finding a 00:32:16.779 --> 00:32:17.799 true and rich 00:32:17.799 --> 00:32:19.139 reconciliation which 00:32:19.139 --> 00:32:20.039 glorifies God 00:32:20.039 --> 00:32:22.700 it's the same in our 00:32:22.700 --> 00:32:23.420 church family 00:32:23.420 --> 00:32:26.440 things happen sometimes 00:32:26.440 --> 00:32:27.519 which hurt and wound 00:32:27.519 --> 00:32:28.059 deeply 00:32:28.059 --> 00:32:33.539 wrongs occur between 00:32:33.539 --> 00:32:35.139 people how we speak 00:32:35.139 --> 00:32:36.799 what we say what we 00:32:36.799 --> 00:32:40.220 thought we withdraw from 00:32:40.220 --> 00:32:41.880 one another we no longer 00:32:41.880 --> 00:32:44.259 talk to that person and 00:32:44.259 --> 00:32:45.940 all that does is confirm 00:32:45.940 --> 00:32:50.000 the fractures but God 00:32:50.000 --> 00:32:51.799 has given us the tools to 00:32:51.799 --> 00:32:53.140 keep communicating in 00:32:53.140 --> 00:32:55.779 Christ to love one 00:32:55.779 --> 00:32:58.140 another and to experience 00:32:58.140 --> 00:33:00.660 deep reconciliation which 00:33:00.660 --> 00:33:03.940 gives him glory he gives 00:33:03.940 --> 00:33:06.380 us the power to be able to 00:33:06.380 --> 00:33:09.580 begin to forgive and to lay 00:33:09.580 --> 00:33:11.860 aside the anger and the 00:33:11.860 --> 00:33:16.380 hostility so I want to say 00:33:16.380 --> 00:33:17.800 if God can save a nation 00:33:17.800 --> 00:33:19.020 heal and save a nation 00:33:19.020 --> 00:33:20.280 which I think he did do in 00:33:20.280 --> 00:33:21.860 South Africa not the end of 00:33:21.860 --> 00:33:22.860 the story but he certainly 00:33:22.860 --> 00:33:26.680 did back in 94 surely he is 00:33:26.680 --> 00:33:29.640 powerful to deal with 00:33:29.640 --> 00:33:31.780 hostility that we have and 00:33:31.780 --> 00:33:33.300 experience in in our 00:33:33.299 --> 00:33:36.079 families and in our church 00:33:36.079 --> 00:33:38.799 family in Ephesians 00:33:38.799 --> 00:33:40.059 chapter 2 it says in 00:33:40.059 --> 00:33:43.200 Christ Jesus we who were 00:33:43.200 --> 00:33:45.659 far away have been brought 00:33:45.659 --> 00:33:46.700 near by the blood of 00:33:46.700 --> 00:33:49.379 Christ we've been brought 00:33:49.379 --> 00:33:51.659 near to Christ we've also 00:33:51.659 --> 00:33:53.180 been brought near to one 00:33:53.180 --> 00:33:55.919 another and Christ binds us 00:33:55.919 --> 00:33:57.559 together or builds us 00:33:57.559 --> 00:33:59.940 together into a dwelling in 00:33:59.940 --> 00:34:02.200 which God lives by his 00:34:02.200 --> 00:34:08.639 spirit let me pray we do 00:34:08.639 --> 00:34:09.920 pray heavenly father that 00:34:09.920 --> 00:34:11.199 you would help us to grow 00:34:11.199 --> 00:34:13.380 in our understanding of 00:34:13.380 --> 00:34:15.139 what it means to be indwelt 00:34:15.139 --> 00:34:16.480 by your spirit in a 00:34:16.480 --> 00:34:19.440 corporate way we cherish 00:34:19.440 --> 00:34:21.420 you we we thank you for 00:34:21.420 --> 00:34:23.099 your mercy where you have 00:34:23.099 --> 00:34:24.199 saved us and where 00:34:24.199 --> 00:34:25.480 individually we know 00:34:25.480 --> 00:34:27.260 something of your spirit at 00:34:27.260 --> 00:34:29.800 work within us but we pray 00:34:29.800 --> 00:34:31.539 here at St Paul's that we 00:34:31.539 --> 00:34:32.739 might know something even 00:34:32.739 --> 00:34:35.340 greater which is the power 00:34:35.340 --> 00:34:37.039 of your spirit at work in 00:34:37.039 --> 00:34:38.699 us as a body as a body 00:34:38.699 --> 00:34:41.039 that we would be a 00:34:41.039 --> 00:34:43.559 transforming influence in 00:34:43.559 --> 00:34:45.199 this community in which we 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:47.380 live and we pray this in 00:34:47.380 --> 00:34:49.019 Jesus precious name and for 00:34:49.019 --> 00:34:50.480 his sake amen 00:34:50.480 --> 00:34:52.179 him 00:34:53.179 --> 00:34:56.599 so 00:34:56.599 --> 00:35:11.420 us