WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.740 I thought we would kick off today with a quiz. 00:00:04.520 --> 00:00:09.480 I'll mention a date and a place and see if you know what it represents. 00:00:10.000 --> 00:00:11.099 Fourth of July, USA. 00:00:13.480 --> 00:00:14.080 Good. 00:00:15.000 --> 00:00:16.359 First of March, Wales. 00:00:19.420 --> 00:00:20.780 St. David's Day. 00:00:21.019 --> 00:00:21.780 St. David's Day. 00:00:23.100 --> 00:00:24.719 26th of February, Kuwait. 00:00:24.719 --> 00:00:54.700 St. David's Day. 00:00:54.719 --> 00:01:00.079 What about this one? 00:01:01.719 --> 00:01:04.939 29th of September, 2017, Israel. 00:01:09.739 --> 00:01:10.780 Yom Kippur. 00:01:11.700 --> 00:01:12.840 It's the Day of Atonement. 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:17.200 It was the heart of Israel's calendar and life as it is today. 00:01:17.719 --> 00:01:20.759 This is the Good Friday of the Old Testament. 00:01:21.259 --> 00:01:23.620 It is the annual sacrifice for Israel. 00:01:23.620 --> 00:01:28.079 It became known by the rabbis as just simply as the day. 00:01:29.280 --> 00:01:33.500 It's the focus of the entire sacrificial system in the center of the book of Leviticus. 00:01:34.000 --> 00:01:35.320 And we're going to get to it in a moment. 00:01:35.319 --> 00:01:45.899 As you're aware of, we are halfway through, or today marks halfway through our six weeks in this strange world of Leviticus. 00:01:46.439 --> 00:01:57.479 Leviticus addresses the issue of how it's possible for the infinitely pure, sovereign God to have an intimate relationship with sinful, finite creatures like us. 00:01:57.480 --> 00:02:13.180 And the first nine chapters of Leviticus have outlined God's gracious provision of a way to life and fellowship with their maker via a detailed system of sacrifices, as well as priests who mediate between the people and God. 00:02:13.180 --> 00:02:23.159 And the climax of the first nine chapters of Leviticus came as we saw last week when the crisis, which is the end of Exodus, is resolved. 00:02:23.379 --> 00:02:29.240 The crisis being Moses, God's presence is there, but Moses is not allowed into the presence of God. 00:02:29.240 --> 00:02:39.240 And in chapter 9, verses 22 to 24, two people for the first time since the flood walk into the very presence of God and walk out again unscathed. 00:02:40.900 --> 00:02:47.780 But then, as we saw last week, a new crisis emerges in the very next moment. 00:02:47.780 --> 00:02:58.620 In chapter 10, verses 1 to 3, 1 and 2, immediately, Israel is reminded by the sudden and sobering deaths of Nadab and Abihu, 00:02:59.259 --> 00:03:04.259 that this new access that they have to God comes with a very significant threat. 00:03:05.740 --> 00:03:10.960 And there are two big problems now at the beginning of chapter 10, this new crisis which has emerged. 00:03:10.960 --> 00:03:16.680 Firstly, the tent of meeting, the dwelling place of God, the God who exists, always exists, 00:03:16.780 --> 00:03:22.659 the God who is the source of life, has now been polluted with two corpses in His very presence. 00:03:23.240 --> 00:03:30.180 And this place of meeting needs to be cleansed because life cannot dwell with death. 00:03:32.200 --> 00:03:36.180 How can the source of life be in the presence of death? 00:03:36.180 --> 00:03:46.740 And the second problem relates to the question of how near can a person approach the presence of God? 00:03:47.659 --> 00:03:55.800 You see, the deaths of Nadab and Abihu tell us that while the sacrificial system that God has put in place 00:03:55.800 --> 00:04:00.260 bridges the gap between God and people, between the infinite and then the finite, 00:04:00.259 --> 00:04:07.699 between the pure and the sinful, God hasn't removed the gap. 00:04:08.659 --> 00:04:11.620 The gap's still there. It's been bridged, but the gap is still there. 00:04:13.120 --> 00:04:17.839 And so the question is, is a personal encounter with God even possible? 00:04:19.360 --> 00:04:26.439 The good news is that the crisis that arises at the beginning of chapter 10 finds its resolution in chapter 16, 00:04:26.560 --> 00:04:27.939 which was just read out for us. 00:04:27.939 --> 00:04:35.459 The opening verses of Leviticus 16 bring us straight back into the events of the beginning of chapter 10 00:04:35.459 --> 00:04:37.459 with the deaths of Nadab and Abihu. 00:04:38.279 --> 00:04:41.120 And so get this. This is really crucial for you to understand. 00:04:42.339 --> 00:04:46.600 It takes a while. If you're reading through Leviticus, it takes you a while to get through all the details. 00:04:47.800 --> 00:04:54.399 The euphoria of the end of chapter 9 is immediately turned to the agony of chapter 10 00:04:54.399 --> 00:05:02.199 and the resolution of the crisis of chapter 10 is immediately resolved by God 00:05:02.199 --> 00:05:04.399 and the day of atonement in chapter 16. 00:05:04.579 --> 00:05:06.979 That is, it all happens on the same day. 00:05:08.979 --> 00:05:14.939 Everything from the end of chapter 9 to the end of chapter 16 all happens on the same day. 00:05:14.939 --> 00:05:19.160 However, however else you might read the book of Leviticus, 00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:28.600 it surely is telling us that God really, really desires to be in an intimate relationship with his creatures. 00:05:28.600 --> 00:05:39.280 And so if chapters 10 to 16, chapter 10 and then chapter 16 are the bookends, if you like, 00:05:39.879 --> 00:05:41.920 to this new crisis, 00:05:42.580 --> 00:05:50.540 then it puts a certain amount of urgency to the strangeness of chapters 11 to 15. 00:05:50.540 --> 00:05:59.620 You see, chapters 11 to 15 come within the context of the crisis of chapter 10 is resolution of chapter 16. 00:06:00.800 --> 00:06:08.600 And what we see as you move into chapter 11 is the strangeness of the world of Leviticus. 00:06:09.460 --> 00:06:13.580 Chapter 11 is a series of food laws which distinguish between clean and unclean. 00:06:13.939 --> 00:06:17.480 They're the two words that characterize chapters 11 to 15. 00:06:17.900 --> 00:06:20.080 I'll read a few verses so you get a flavor for it. 00:06:20.079 --> 00:06:22.180 Chapter 11, verse 1. 00:06:22.240 --> 00:06:23.339 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 00:06:23.500 --> 00:06:26.599 Say to the Israelites, of all the animals that live on the land, these are the ones you may eat. 00:06:26.680 --> 00:06:30.479 You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud. 00:06:30.939 --> 00:06:36.379 There are some that only chew the cud or only have a divided hoof, but you must not eat them. 00:06:36.639 --> 00:06:39.979 The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof. 00:06:40.519 --> 00:06:43.139 It is ceremonially unclean for you. 00:06:43.319 --> 00:06:47.079 The hyrax, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof. 00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:48.379 It is unclean for you. 00:06:48.379 --> 00:06:51.600 The rabbit, though it chews the cud, but does not have a divided hoof. 00:06:51.680 --> 00:06:52.620 It is unclean for you. 00:06:52.680 --> 00:06:54.980 And the pig, though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud. 00:06:55.040 --> 00:06:56.439 It is unclean for you. 00:06:56.920 --> 00:06:59.319 You must not eat the meat or touch their carcasses. 00:06:59.439 --> 00:07:00.240 They are unclean for you. 00:07:00.279 --> 00:07:02.219 And on it goes and on and on and on. 00:07:02.220 --> 00:07:06.980 What are the rationale of these laws? 00:07:06.980 --> 00:07:12.840 What makes some food clean and others unclean? 00:07:13.520 --> 00:07:16.800 Are some animals, for instance, more sacred than others? 00:07:17.040 --> 00:07:21.580 You know, for instance, next time you hoe into your hamburger or your barbecue steak, 00:07:22.220 --> 00:07:29.259 remember that eating that animal in some parts of our world and in some cultures, in fact, is sacred. 00:07:29.259 --> 00:07:33.159 Or is it simply a cultural thing? 00:07:33.939 --> 00:07:38.800 You know, a former neighbor of mine spent some time working in a third world country as a vet. 00:07:39.560 --> 00:07:43.879 He went to a restaurant one day and ordered the thing that he recognized, which was duck. 00:07:43.879 --> 00:07:46.959 And they brought the duck out. 00:07:47.180 --> 00:07:49.860 And he said to the waiter, I ordered the duck. 00:07:50.000 --> 00:07:51.139 And the waiter said, yes, we know. 00:07:51.519 --> 00:07:52.620 He said, but this is not duck. 00:07:52.779 --> 00:07:53.680 And he says, yes, it is. 00:07:53.899 --> 00:07:56.819 And my friend said, no, it's not the duck. 00:07:57.120 --> 00:08:00.579 He said, I happen to know that ducks don't have shoulder blades. 00:08:01.180 --> 00:08:03.219 And there's a shoulder blade in my meal. 00:08:04.079 --> 00:08:09.639 And the waiter goes off to the chef, comes back and says, well, as it turns out, we've run out of duck. 00:08:09.639 --> 00:08:20.439 So being a Westerner in this third world country, the chef thought he'd go up the menu rather than down the menu and give you a delicacy. 00:08:20.779 --> 00:08:22.039 You've been served cat. 00:08:24.500 --> 00:08:26.699 And my friend said, I don't eat cat. 00:08:27.979 --> 00:08:31.439 It might be a delicacy to you, but it's not to me. 00:08:32.899 --> 00:08:35.100 And so that's what's going on. 00:08:35.100 --> 00:08:39.139 It's a cultural thing where some things are regarded as delicacy and other things are not. 00:08:39.139 --> 00:08:44.059 Or is it just simply that some things are just purely disgusting and you shouldn't eat? 00:08:44.559 --> 00:08:46.039 I was out fishing with a mate one day. 00:08:46.139 --> 00:08:48.240 Not a lot was happening, which generally happens when I go fishing. 00:08:48.860 --> 00:08:55.559 And my friend said to me, I'll give you $10 if you eat this earthworm, which was what we're using for bait. 00:08:56.139 --> 00:08:57.460 He said, I'll give you $10 for that. 00:08:57.819 --> 00:09:03.539 And so I got my bottle of Coke and I washed off the dirt, gave it a bit of spit to give it some lubrication, 00:09:03.539 --> 00:09:09.000 and went straight down until it got to here. 00:09:11.500 --> 00:09:18.379 And then it was okay up until the point when you can feel an earthworm moving inside your chest cavity. 00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:22.039 And so I guggled down the rest of the Coke. 00:09:22.120 --> 00:09:26.939 So is it just a case of, frankly, it's just disgusting. 00:09:27.179 --> 00:09:28.939 You should not eat this sort of stuff. 00:09:28.940 --> 00:09:31.260 Now, let's have a look here. 00:09:31.580 --> 00:09:32.560 What's going on here? 00:09:32.840 --> 00:09:37.160 We need to understand these laws within the context of chapters 10 and 16. 00:09:37.280 --> 00:09:39.200 By the way, that's not the worst thing I've eaten. 00:09:41.660 --> 00:09:45.820 In verse 2, it says, of all the animals that live on the land. 00:09:45.940 --> 00:09:49.620 Verse 9, it says, all the creatures living in the waters of the sea. 00:09:49.940 --> 00:09:52.120 Verse 13 is about the birds of the air. 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:55.940 These are all part of God's good creation. 00:09:55.940 --> 00:10:03.220 When these animals are being presented, they're being presented as God's creation. 00:10:03.800 --> 00:10:09.620 And so, therefore, it's difficult to conclude that there's something intrinsically wrong with a pig. 00:10:10.160 --> 00:10:16.880 I have problems with pigs, but there's nothing intrinsically wrong with a pig or disgusting about a camel. 00:10:18.220 --> 00:10:22.780 It's more what these animals represent to the Israelites. 00:10:22.779 --> 00:10:28.480 God has given these animals as an educational tool. 00:10:29.120 --> 00:10:33.519 So let me try to illustrate this in a trivial kind of way. 00:10:34.579 --> 00:10:42.120 You're a middle-aged man, which I am, and you're reading a men's fashion magazine in the doctor's surgery. 00:10:42.740 --> 00:10:48.279 And one article in the fashion magazine is titled, Clean and Unclean Trousers. 00:10:48.279 --> 00:10:51.279 So, and the article says this, 00:10:51.279 --> 00:11:16.759 Trousers that are loose-fitting, covering the ankles, but have a very high hem, are unclean for you. 00:11:16.759 --> 00:11:24.120 Trousers that sit below the waist skinny fit and reveal the ankles are regarded as unclean for middle-aged men. 00:11:24.819 --> 00:11:29.899 Trousers worn with white socks are regarded as unclean for you. 00:11:30.240 --> 00:11:36.279 And anything to do with lycra bike shorts is utterly detestable in your sight. 00:11:36.279 --> 00:11:44.259 Now, there's nothing intrinsically wrong with any pair of trousers in themselves, 00:11:44.500 --> 00:11:57.240 but to wear the unclean ones might result in some form of expulsion from middle-aged fashion groups of people. 00:11:57.240 --> 00:12:01.680 That is, you may be cut off socially or professionally. 00:12:01.980 --> 00:12:07.320 You go to a job interview and they immediately assess you on the cut of your suit and go, 00:12:07.379 --> 00:12:08.279 Well, that guy's unclean. 00:12:11.180 --> 00:12:16.180 Now, that's my trivial attempt to get to the point of the clean and unclean distinction. 00:12:16.460 --> 00:12:19.820 It's what they represent which is the danger. 00:12:19.820 --> 00:12:23.700 And we see that in verses 24 to 28. 00:12:24.140 --> 00:12:28.520 They represent the danger of becoming unclean and cut off. 00:12:29.660 --> 00:12:31.860 You'll make yourselves unclean by these. 00:12:31.960 --> 00:12:34.200 Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. 00:12:34.300 --> 00:12:38.600 Whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash their clothes and they'll be unclean till evening. 00:12:38.940 --> 00:12:43.720 Every animal that does not have a divided hoof or that does not chew the card is unclean for you. 00:12:43.780 --> 00:12:46.340 Whoever touches the carcass of any of them will be unclean. 00:12:46.340 --> 00:12:50.580 Of all the animals that walk on all falls, those that walk on their paws are unclean for you. 00:12:50.840 --> 00:12:53.320 Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. 00:12:53.580 --> 00:12:58.340 Anyone who picks up their carcasses must wash their clothes and they'll be unclean till evening. 00:12:58.800 --> 00:13:00.519 These animals are unclean for you. 00:13:01.620 --> 00:13:05.940 And so the prohibition here is that you'll become unclean. 00:13:06.620 --> 00:13:09.420 And we sit here in Chatswood in 2017 and wonder, 00:13:09.420 --> 00:13:15.840 What is so detestable about becoming unclean until evening? 00:13:16.340 --> 00:13:19.580 Why would they consider it so dangerous? 00:13:21.060 --> 00:13:29.639 And the danger in all of this for the Israelites is that if you are unclean, you cannot approach the tabernacle. 00:13:31.500 --> 00:13:36.860 You can't go to where God is. 00:13:38.139 --> 00:13:40.500 And He is the source of life. 00:13:40.500 --> 00:13:46.840 Becoming unclean cuts you off from life. 00:13:48.840 --> 00:13:52.340 To become unclean is to carry the symbolism of death. 00:13:52.340 --> 00:14:04.680 And if you look at verse 29 and onwards, you'll notice eight animals that go about the ground that gives us a clue as to why being unclean is so detestable. 00:14:06.480 --> 00:14:09.399 These are not animals that are in danger of eating. 00:14:09.600 --> 00:14:11.960 You know, they're not tempted to eat these things. 00:14:11.960 --> 00:14:15.160 These animals are animals that get into your kitchen. 00:14:15.680 --> 00:14:16.400 They die. 00:14:16.780 --> 00:14:20.540 They touch something which is normally clean and make it unclean. 00:14:21.320 --> 00:14:24.259 And see the symbolism that's going on here in this chapter? 00:14:25.160 --> 00:14:31.660 The verb to crawl on one's belly, which is there at the end of Leviticus 11, 00:14:31.659 --> 00:14:37.399 only occurs in one other place in the Bible apart from here. 00:14:39.240 --> 00:14:46.100 It's in the Garden of Eden when God curses the serpent for deceiving Adam and Eve and leading him into sin. 00:14:46.199 --> 00:14:48.839 It says, from here on in you will crawl on your belly. 00:14:51.379 --> 00:14:54.799 You see, what God's doing here with these laws is calling His people to be on guard. 00:14:54.799 --> 00:15:07.259 Don't turn your backs on me in the way that Adam and Eve once did when they ate of food that I said they should not eat, 00:15:08.459 --> 00:15:11.719 lest they would surely die. 00:15:13.039 --> 00:15:14.179 And they ignored God. 00:15:15.519 --> 00:15:16.759 It's a piece of fruit. 00:15:17.419 --> 00:15:18.279 It doesn't matter. 00:15:21.279 --> 00:15:22.699 They ignored God. 00:15:22.700 --> 00:15:25.800 They ate of what God told them not to eat. 00:15:26.320 --> 00:15:28.360 And they were excluded from paradise. 00:15:29.100 --> 00:15:31.259 They went from the source of life to death. 00:15:32.040 --> 00:15:33.440 They did in fact die. 00:15:35.259 --> 00:15:39.620 And it's a death that is hung over into the human race from that moment on. 00:15:40.600 --> 00:15:43.640 We are all dead in our transgressions and sin. 00:15:46.259 --> 00:15:51.520 See, these laws are held out as a warning to Israel not to turn their backs on God in the way that Adam and Eve did, 00:15:51.519 --> 00:15:59.559 to become unclean is to become a walking advertisement of Adam and Eve's fate when they lost the presence of God. 00:16:00.220 --> 00:16:08.460 The contrast between life and death is at the heart of all these clean and unclean laws in chapters 11 to 15. 00:16:08.799 --> 00:16:14.159 And the nearer one gets to God, the nearer one gets to abundant life. 00:16:14.159 --> 00:16:17.500 That is, that's the process of becoming clean. 00:16:18.339 --> 00:16:22.620 The more unclean someone becomes, the more they move towards death. 00:16:22.620 --> 00:16:29.480 And that's the very purpose that becomes clear for us at the end of the chapter, verses 44 to 45. 00:16:29.580 --> 00:16:30.360 I am the Lord your God. 00:16:30.480 --> 00:16:33.620 Consecrate yourself and be holy because I am holy. 00:16:34.039 --> 00:16:37.600 Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground. 00:16:38.019 --> 00:16:42.399 I am the Lord who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God. 00:16:42.899 --> 00:16:45.899 Therefore be holy because I am holy. 00:16:45.899 --> 00:16:55.079 You see, the journey from rescue out of Egypt right through to Leviticus is one of increasing closeness and intimacy to God. 00:16:55.939 --> 00:17:02.620 The goal is to be holy as God is holy. 00:17:02.620 --> 00:17:19.740 As they would sit down and they would eat their evening meal, they would be reminded to not turn their backs against God as Adam and Eve did and as Nadab and Abihu just did. 00:17:19.740 --> 00:17:35.400 They would be reminded to look at all the words of God, all of his commands, to embrace them, to do them and to enjoy life and joy and freedom. 00:17:37.079 --> 00:17:44.500 That's the projection that heads here, that sees its climax into Leviticus 16. 00:17:44.500 --> 00:17:51.660 The climax of all these laws of clean and unclean come in chapter 16, the Day of Atonement. 00:17:52.059 --> 00:17:56.900 The Day of Atonement is the annual spring cleaning for Israel. 00:17:58.119 --> 00:18:03.039 Every other sacrifice of Israel has its basis in this Day of Atonement. 00:18:03.380 --> 00:18:11.279 Without this sacrifice, all the other daily sacrifices, which we saw in the first bit of Leviticus, would not work. 00:18:11.279 --> 00:18:18.379 The Day of Atonement was, if you like, the annual subscription to an exclusive country club. 00:18:19.319 --> 00:18:27.339 Once you pay the huge amount of money, you and your family can enjoy the restaurants and the facilities and stuff like that. 00:18:28.079 --> 00:18:30.899 You still have to pay for a round of golf. 00:18:31.460 --> 00:18:34.859 You still have to pay for the beer at the bar. 00:18:35.180 --> 00:18:37.660 You still have to pay for something to be used at the gym. 00:18:37.660 --> 00:18:40.860 But it only makes sense. 00:18:41.000 --> 00:18:46.640 You can own, they will only allow you to part for your money in the country club as long as the annual subscriptions pay. 00:18:49.680 --> 00:18:51.980 The Day of Atonement was the annual subscription fee. 00:18:52.100 --> 00:18:59.740 It was the annual cleansing that meant the rest of the sacrificial system would work for one more year. 00:18:59.740 --> 00:19:05.700 It was essential for life. 00:19:07.620 --> 00:19:08.660 See the importance of it? 00:19:08.660 --> 00:19:14.120 Verse 1, the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron who died when they approached the Lord. 00:19:14.579 --> 00:19:15.400 And the Lord said to Moses, 00:19:15.519 --> 00:19:24.980 Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses into the most holy place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover of the ark, 00:19:25.279 --> 00:19:27.420 or else he will die. 00:19:27.420 --> 00:19:41.940 See the instructions for this annual spring cleaning are prefaced by a solemn warning that links this day back to the sins of Nadab and Abihu, 00:19:42.400 --> 00:19:49.279 who were fired by God from their role as priests on that very same day. 00:19:49.279 --> 00:19:53.000 There was no one holier in the land than Aaron, 00:19:53.859 --> 00:20:01.240 but even for him an enormous amount of care was needed in approaching God. 00:20:02.519 --> 00:20:07.819 It was to be exactly as the Lord prescribed it. 00:20:07.819 --> 00:20:14.139 The day's ritual involved two pairs of offerings, 00:20:14.639 --> 00:20:15.339 one for Aaron, 00:20:15.980 --> 00:20:19.139 one for extended family of priests, 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:20.740 one for the nation, 00:20:20.980 --> 00:20:24.679 one for the cleansing of the tabernacle area. 00:20:25.599 --> 00:20:29.500 Bloods of bulls and goats were sacrificed and mixed. 00:20:29.500 --> 00:20:33.720 You might be wondering when we get to this point, 00:20:33.880 --> 00:20:39.720 Sam read it through and also in the early chapters of Leviticus, 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:43.059 as to why all this blood and gore? 00:20:43.599 --> 00:20:45.200 Why does God need blood? 00:20:46.099 --> 00:20:47.920 And the answer is he doesn't. 00:20:48.680 --> 00:20:49.920 He doesn't need blood. 00:20:50.019 --> 00:20:55.420 All these sacrifices were not to satisfy some kind of blood lust that God has. 00:20:55.420 --> 00:20:58.019 You know, he's not one of those people, 00:20:58.160 --> 00:20:59.279 you see a massive accident, 00:20:59.400 --> 00:21:00.900 he pulls up just to walk at it. 00:21:01.220 --> 00:21:03.840 Not one of those kind of issues there. 00:21:04.420 --> 00:21:08.740 The blood symbolizes what sin does to us. 00:21:09.900 --> 00:21:13.620 Leviticus 17 verse 11 gives us an explanation of why the blood. 00:21:14.080 --> 00:21:14.380 It says, 00:21:14.519 --> 00:21:17.279 For the life of a creature is in the blood, 00:21:17.620 --> 00:21:19.340 and I have given it to you, 00:21:19.560 --> 00:21:22.560 that is, given it the life of blood of an animal, 00:21:22.559 --> 00:21:26.059 to you, to atone for yourselves on the altar, 00:21:26.519 --> 00:21:30.279 it is blood that makes atonement for one's life. 00:21:30.779 --> 00:21:34.539 You see, all the clean and unclean laws of chapters 11 to 15 00:21:34.539 --> 00:21:40.619 that deal with childbirth, periods, bodily discharge, 00:21:40.899 --> 00:21:43.399 are all to do with the threat of death 00:21:43.399 --> 00:21:47.339 because of the loss of lifeblood. 00:21:48.299 --> 00:21:49.659 That's what they're all about. 00:21:49.660 --> 00:21:53.779 The central focus of this ceremony, 00:21:53.960 --> 00:21:56.120 the high point of its tension and drama, 00:21:56.720 --> 00:22:03.560 is as the high priest enters into the Holy of Holies with the blood 00:22:03.560 --> 00:22:07.100 because it represents death. 00:22:09.620 --> 00:22:11.060 It represents death. 00:22:11.059 --> 00:22:17.099 This is the most special place of the tabernacle, 00:22:17.220 --> 00:22:17.940 the Holy of Holies. 00:22:17.980 --> 00:22:20.240 This is where God says His presence will dwell. 00:22:20.759 --> 00:22:24.200 This is most likely the place that Nadab and Abihu 00:22:24.200 --> 00:22:27.139 attempted to sneak behind the curtain and have a look, 00:22:27.879 --> 00:22:29.099 get a glimpse of God, 00:22:29.359 --> 00:22:31.000 and God fired them immediately. 00:22:33.000 --> 00:22:36.960 The unclean cannot be in the presence of the infinitely holy. 00:22:36.960 --> 00:22:40.259 And so here is Aaron all alone. 00:22:41.380 --> 00:22:45.360 He had to enter the presence of God in the right way at the right time. 00:22:45.880 --> 00:22:47.319 One atonement for all the people. 00:22:47.460 --> 00:22:48.960 If not, he too would be fired. 00:22:50.039 --> 00:22:52.799 So imagine there you're an Israelite on that day. 00:22:52.920 --> 00:22:54.600 You're camped on the Sinai Peninsula. 00:22:55.360 --> 00:22:57.200 The whole nation is gathered around. 00:22:57.259 --> 00:22:58.079 It's like an amphitheater. 00:22:58.220 --> 00:22:58.660 Imagine that. 00:22:58.819 --> 00:22:59.920 The day, you know, tent of meeting, 00:23:00.180 --> 00:23:04.180 they're all camped around the outside of the tent of meeting. 00:23:04.180 --> 00:23:06.380 They're all looking in on this day. 00:23:07.000 --> 00:23:09.340 And they're watching one solitary figure, 00:23:10.140 --> 00:23:11.220 one guy, 00:23:12.140 --> 00:23:13.940 go about all the tarks, 00:23:14.519 --> 00:23:16.259 making all the sacrifices, 00:23:16.840 --> 00:23:18.360 dressed up, amazingly, 00:23:19.060 --> 00:23:21.820 not in his ornamental priestly robes. 00:23:21.880 --> 00:23:23.680 They're being taken off and laid to one side. 00:23:24.100 --> 00:23:26.580 When he goes in to represent the people to God, 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:28.680 he puts on the clothing of a slave. 00:23:31.299 --> 00:23:33.960 And then the moment comes for him to enter the Holy of Holies. 00:23:34.700 --> 00:23:36.539 Right into the very existence, 00:23:36.680 --> 00:23:38.900 the very place where God dwells. 00:23:39.860 --> 00:23:42.880 He disappears out of sight behind the curtain. 00:23:43.920 --> 00:23:48.440 And the question on your mind as an Israelite watching all this is, 00:23:49.740 --> 00:23:51.820 will he come out? 00:23:53.200 --> 00:23:54.360 Will he come out? 00:23:55.560 --> 00:23:58.060 Or will he die in the presence of God? 00:23:59.180 --> 00:24:01.519 Will he survive this encounter with God? 00:24:01.519 --> 00:24:04.180 And the hope of the nation hangs on this moment. 00:24:05.000 --> 00:24:08.119 For the high priest to die would mean the tabernacle is unclean, 00:24:08.279 --> 00:24:10.119 and the people would remain unclean. 00:24:10.359 --> 00:24:12.700 That means that they would be cut off from the source of life, 00:24:12.839 --> 00:24:14.259 and they would walk in death. 00:24:14.259 --> 00:24:22.200 So there must have been overwhelming relief as you get to verse 18, 00:24:22.299 --> 00:24:22.859 and it says, 00:24:23.220 --> 00:24:25.400 then he shall come out. 00:24:25.400 --> 00:24:28.480 When the high priest came out, 00:24:28.480 --> 00:24:33.480 that was the moment that the nation knew that the sacrifice had been accepted by God. 00:24:34.000 --> 00:24:35.780 And we get to go for another year. 00:24:35.880 --> 00:24:36.300 We're clean. 00:24:36.380 --> 00:24:37.580 Our sins are dealt with. 00:24:39.140 --> 00:24:40.340 God is pleased. 00:24:42.080 --> 00:24:43.060 Sin is atoned for. 00:24:43.140 --> 00:24:44.440 The relationship continues. 00:24:45.480 --> 00:24:47.460 That's the first big thing that happens on the day of atonement. 00:24:47.460 --> 00:24:50.559 The second big thing is verse 20. 00:24:50.720 --> 00:24:51.539 The scapegoat. 00:24:52.539 --> 00:24:54.920 When Aaron had finished making atonement for the most holy place, 00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:56.519 attend a meeting and the altar, 00:24:56.740 --> 00:24:59.299 he shall bring forward the live goat. 00:24:59.840 --> 00:25:02.180 He used to lay both hands on the head of the live goat 00:25:02.180 --> 00:25:05.140 and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites, 00:25:05.660 --> 00:25:06.759 all their sins, 00:25:07.240 --> 00:25:08.900 and put them on the goat's head. 00:25:09.500 --> 00:25:11.519 He shall send the goat away into the wilderness, 00:25:11.880 --> 00:25:14.180 into the care of someone appointed for the task. 00:25:14.180 --> 00:25:17.980 The goat will carry on itself all the sins to a remote place 00:25:17.980 --> 00:25:20.900 and the man shall release it in the wilderness. 00:25:23.799 --> 00:25:29.840 What happened to Aaron and with Aaron behind the curtain, 00:25:30.360 --> 00:25:32.680 in the tabernacle, in the Holy of Holies, 00:25:33.140 --> 00:25:35.940 is hidden from the eyes of the people. 00:25:37.759 --> 00:25:41.080 The scapegoat is entirely public. 00:25:41.079 --> 00:25:44.480 Notice the identification that takes here. 00:25:45.399 --> 00:25:49.679 One goat has the sins of the whole nation laid on it. 00:25:50.039 --> 00:25:53.679 A single figure for the sake of the whole nation. 00:25:54.379 --> 00:25:55.199 For the sake of many. 00:25:56.699 --> 00:25:59.059 The goat is then led away from God's people 00:25:59.059 --> 00:26:02.240 into the symbolic nothingness 00:26:02.240 --> 00:26:05.559 of uncleanness, 00:26:05.699 --> 00:26:09.000 of expulsion as far away as possible 00:26:09.000 --> 00:26:10.399 from the presence of God. 00:26:10.400 --> 00:26:15.360 It is literally to a land of cutting off 00:26:15.360 --> 00:26:19.060 from which it's meant to never return. 00:26:20.860 --> 00:26:24.400 It is a brilliant illustration of what happens for Israel. 00:26:25.060 --> 00:26:27.340 Their sin will be never seen again. 00:26:27.540 --> 00:26:30.220 Psalm 103 verse 2 is a commentary on this. 00:26:30.600 --> 00:26:32.480 As far as the east is from the west, 00:26:32.780 --> 00:26:35.540 so far has he removed our transgressions from us. 00:26:35.880 --> 00:26:39.100 The goat symbolically carries the sins of the nation away 00:26:39.099 --> 00:26:43.819 to a place as far away as you could possibly conceive. 00:26:43.819 --> 00:26:49.379 And at the end of the day of atonement, 00:26:49.460 --> 00:26:51.279 there was great rejoicing in the nation. 00:26:52.179 --> 00:26:55.839 God has resolved the issue of the uncleanness 00:26:55.839 --> 00:26:58.919 and the failure of Nadab and Abihu 00:26:58.920 --> 00:27:04.140 and made access into his presence a possibility. 00:27:05.279 --> 00:27:08.320 And yet, in amongst all this rejoicing, 00:27:08.480 --> 00:27:11.580 there's a little bit that just takes the edge off it. 00:27:12.519 --> 00:27:13.800 And the little bit's a big bit. 00:27:14.519 --> 00:27:15.279 Verse 34, 00:27:15.279 --> 00:27:25.899 Access to God was incomplete and it was limited. 00:27:26.680 --> 00:27:30.059 One priest, once a year, in great danger. 00:27:30.059 --> 00:27:32.599 And what if you woke up one morning, 00:27:32.700 --> 00:27:34.279 the day after the Day of Atonement, 00:27:34.779 --> 00:27:38.259 and to hear the pathetic bleeding of this scapegoat, 00:27:38.700 --> 00:27:44.059 this stupid goat has made its way back into the camp. 00:27:44.799 --> 00:27:46.619 What does that mean for my sin? 00:27:47.480 --> 00:27:48.779 What does that mean for my guilt? 00:27:50.039 --> 00:27:51.419 The stupid goat's return. 00:27:51.420 --> 00:27:56.440 And as you read through the Old Testament, 00:27:56.600 --> 00:27:59.039 Israel suffers the fate of the threat 00:27:59.039 --> 00:28:03.380 that stood behind becoming unclean until evening. 00:28:03.960 --> 00:28:05.660 God sends them into exile 00:28:05.660 --> 00:28:07.340 for their continual disobedience. 00:28:07.440 --> 00:28:09.740 He removes them from his new paradise. 00:28:10.160 --> 00:28:12.200 They're kicked out of Canaan. 00:28:13.380 --> 00:28:15.800 The tabernacle which became the temple is destroyed. 00:28:15.940 --> 00:28:16.820 It's obliterated. 00:28:18.759 --> 00:28:20.500 They just could not be holy. 00:28:21.960 --> 00:28:23.240 And yet, at the same time, 00:28:23.320 --> 00:28:24.539 these laws didn't fail. 00:28:25.680 --> 00:28:28.420 These laws were like a scaffolding on a building. 00:28:29.300 --> 00:28:31.200 Over Christmas, just down the road here, 00:28:31.220 --> 00:28:33.140 Chastain Public School had scaffolding 00:28:33.140 --> 00:28:35.519 on the front of its building along the Pacific Highway. 00:28:36.180 --> 00:28:37.740 In fact, it still has got some there. 00:28:38.100 --> 00:28:40.519 And you couldn't see what was going on behind it, 00:28:41.519 --> 00:28:43.759 but you knew that work was going on there. 00:28:45.440 --> 00:28:48.759 In one sense, scaffolding here is prophesying 00:28:48.759 --> 00:28:54.259 that one day something greater is going to be revealed. 00:28:55.640 --> 00:28:57.779 There's something that lies behind all this 00:28:57.779 --> 00:28:58.879 which will be revealed, 00:28:59.259 --> 00:29:01.740 and it will be infinitely better than scaffolding. 00:29:03.740 --> 00:29:04.819 And the writer of the Hebrews 00:29:04.819 --> 00:29:06.460 is looking back to the day atonement 00:29:06.460 --> 00:29:08.539 when he writes in chapter 10, verse 19, 00:29:08.859 --> 00:29:09.960 therefore, brothers and sisters, 00:29:10.319 --> 00:29:13.259 since we have confidence to enter the most holy place 00:29:13.259 --> 00:29:15.940 by the blood of Jesus. 00:29:17.879 --> 00:29:18.680 What does that mean? 00:29:20.119 --> 00:29:23.879 It means the scaffolding has fallen away, 00:29:23.880 --> 00:29:26.900 and what's been revealed is Jesus. 00:29:31.000 --> 00:29:34.240 We get to do what the ancient Hebrew 00:29:34.240 --> 00:29:38.160 on the hillside could never imagine possible. 00:29:41.980 --> 00:29:44.300 To come into the very presence of God through Jesus 00:29:44.300 --> 00:29:45.380 and not die, 00:29:46.140 --> 00:29:47.600 but in fact be welcomed. 00:29:47.599 --> 00:29:51.559 On the very first Easter, 00:29:51.719 --> 00:29:54.679 Jesus is on the cross shedding his lifeblood for humanity. 00:29:56.339 --> 00:29:57.879 And just before he dies, 00:29:58.459 --> 00:29:59.339 he cries out, 00:30:00.079 --> 00:30:01.759 it is finished. 00:30:03.279 --> 00:30:04.299 And in that moment, 00:30:04.399 --> 00:30:06.539 the cameraman pans across 00:30:06.539 --> 00:30:10.000 to the temple in Jerusalem. 00:30:10.000 --> 00:30:12.759 And in that moment, 00:30:12.859 --> 00:30:14.099 in the temple of Jerusalem, 00:30:15.160 --> 00:30:19.519 the curtain that separates the Holy of Holies 00:30:19.519 --> 00:30:20.519 from the rest of the temple 00:30:20.519 --> 00:30:22.599 is torn from top to bottom. 00:30:24.279 --> 00:30:26.440 Its access is now there. 00:30:27.079 --> 00:30:27.920 This curtain, 00:30:28.059 --> 00:30:30.000 which is 20 metres high, 00:30:30.400 --> 00:30:32.079 is as thick as my hand, 00:30:32.359 --> 00:30:34.319 which has a big no entry sign 00:30:34.319 --> 00:30:35.579 written all over it. 00:30:35.720 --> 00:30:37.119 It's the curtain that separated 00:30:37.119 --> 00:30:39.359 the presence of an infinitely holy God 00:30:39.359 --> 00:30:40.799 from a sinful people. 00:30:42.219 --> 00:30:43.779 And God himself, 00:30:43.979 --> 00:30:44.899 from the top to bottom, 00:30:45.000 --> 00:30:45.979 has ripped it, 00:30:47.179 --> 00:30:47.959 opened it up. 00:30:51.339 --> 00:30:52.639 Access to him is now 00:30:52.639 --> 00:30:53.659 through the blood of Jesus. 00:30:54.819 --> 00:30:56.199 Jesus lived a perfect life. 00:30:56.299 --> 00:30:57.939 He died an atoning death for us. 00:30:58.019 --> 00:30:59.159 He became unclean 00:30:59.159 --> 00:31:01.059 by taking our sin upon himself 00:31:01.059 --> 00:31:03.099 and was cast out of the presence of God. 00:31:03.319 --> 00:31:05.279 He descended into the place of the dead, 00:31:05.359 --> 00:31:06.259 in the place of hell. 00:31:06.559 --> 00:31:07.799 His disciples at that moment 00:31:07.799 --> 00:31:08.740 thought it was all over 00:31:08.740 --> 00:31:10.599 as they saw the tomb get closed over. 00:31:10.799 --> 00:31:11.759 They thought it was done. 00:31:11.839 --> 00:31:12.880 They went and hid themselves 00:31:12.880 --> 00:31:14.220 in a room locked away. 00:31:16.380 --> 00:31:18.019 And then our great high priest 00:31:18.019 --> 00:31:20.779 appears for all to see. 00:31:23.680 --> 00:31:25.380 God is pleased. 00:31:25.799 --> 00:31:26.880 He has done it. 00:31:26.940 --> 00:31:27.160 Jesus, 00:31:27.319 --> 00:31:28.120 it is finished. 00:31:28.120 --> 00:31:28.200 Jesus, 00:31:28.200 --> 00:31:28.220 it is finished. 00:31:28.220 --> 00:31:35.259 as he triumphantly comes back to life. 00:31:36.960 --> 00:31:38.680 And he has made us clean. 00:31:39.339 --> 00:31:41.120 He's made it possible for us to dwell 00:31:41.120 --> 00:31:41.860 in the presence 00:31:41.860 --> 00:31:44.180 of the creator of heaven and earth. 00:31:44.279 --> 00:31:44.920 And Romans 8, 00:31:44.980 --> 00:31:45.559 chapter 1, 00:31:45.900 --> 00:31:46.079 sorry, 00:31:46.160 --> 00:31:46.779 Romans 8, 00:31:46.940 --> 00:31:48.500 verse 1 says that there is now 00:31:48.500 --> 00:31:50.500 no condemnation 00:31:50.500 --> 00:31:53.420 for those who are in Christ Jesus. 00:31:53.420 --> 00:31:55.420 If you're in Christ Jesus, 00:31:55.600 --> 00:31:57.940 do not let the evil one 00:31:57.940 --> 00:31:58.920 throw your sin 00:31:58.920 --> 00:31:59.700 and your failure 00:31:59.700 --> 00:32:00.720 into your face. 00:32:01.259 --> 00:32:03.180 Do not let people remind you 00:32:03.180 --> 00:32:04.820 that you don't stack up 00:32:04.820 --> 00:32:06.539 to be in the presence of God 00:32:06.539 --> 00:32:07.600 in a relationship with God. 00:32:07.720 --> 00:32:08.940 Don't let your own conscience 00:32:08.940 --> 00:32:10.039 condemn you to say, 00:32:10.039 --> 00:32:10.480 I can't, 00:32:10.539 --> 00:32:12.680 I'm not worthy. 00:32:15.399 --> 00:32:16.720 Hebrews 10, 00:32:16.799 --> 00:32:17.240 22 00:32:17.240 --> 00:32:20.119 is what we are to do 00:32:20.119 --> 00:32:21.819 when our conscience convicts us. 00:32:22.339 --> 00:32:23.579 Let us draw near to God 00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:24.700 with a sincere heart 00:32:24.700 --> 00:32:26.059 and with full assurance 00:32:26.059 --> 00:32:27.180 that faith brings. 00:32:27.859 --> 00:32:29.119 Having our hearts sprinkled 00:32:29.119 --> 00:32:29.799 to cleanse us 00:32:29.799 --> 00:32:31.159 from the guilty conscience 00:32:31.159 --> 00:32:33.019 and having our bodies 00:32:33.019 --> 00:32:34.359 washed with pure water. 00:32:35.220 --> 00:32:36.839 The death of Jesus on the cross 00:32:36.839 --> 00:32:39.399 has atoned for your sin 00:32:39.400 --> 00:32:41.960 it has cleansed your conscience. 00:32:42.860 --> 00:32:43.440 In the West, 00:32:43.620 --> 00:32:46.519 we atone for our sins 00:32:46.519 --> 00:32:47.380 through guilt. 00:32:48.700 --> 00:32:49.180 Eastern, 00:32:49.480 --> 00:32:50.860 this is general statements, 00:32:51.200 --> 00:32:53.040 Eastern cultures 00:32:53.040 --> 00:32:54.640 tend to atone for guilt, 00:32:55.300 --> 00:32:56.840 tend to atone for sin 00:32:56.840 --> 00:32:57.759 through shame. 00:32:58.540 --> 00:32:59.300 So in the West, 00:32:59.460 --> 00:33:00.160 we feel guilty, 00:33:00.400 --> 00:33:01.120 atone for sin. 00:33:01.259 --> 00:33:01.740 In the East, 00:33:01.820 --> 00:33:02.500 you feel shame, 00:33:02.620 --> 00:33:03.380 atone for sin. 00:33:04.720 --> 00:33:05.580 That's how 00:33:05.580 --> 00:33:07.759 Western society works. 00:33:07.759 --> 00:33:09.460 You want to get 00:33:09.460 --> 00:33:10.839 a lesser conviction 00:33:10.839 --> 00:33:11.500 in court? 00:33:12.019 --> 00:33:12.980 Make sure 00:33:12.980 --> 00:33:14.119 you look guilty. 00:33:17.119 --> 00:33:17.920 A judge, 00:33:17.980 --> 00:33:18.579 you'll often hear 00:33:18.579 --> 00:33:19.420 a judge say, 00:33:19.619 --> 00:33:20.700 there was no contrition, 00:33:20.900 --> 00:33:21.400 no guilt, 00:33:21.500 --> 00:33:22.480 and so maximum sentence, 00:33:22.660 --> 00:33:23.000 bang. 00:33:24.019 --> 00:33:25.019 You can atone 00:33:25.019 --> 00:33:25.740 for your sin. 00:33:26.759 --> 00:33:28.059 In Western culture, 00:33:28.220 --> 00:33:28.920 if you feel a little bit 00:33:28.920 --> 00:33:29.460 more guilty 00:33:29.460 --> 00:33:30.579 and in the East, 00:33:30.619 --> 00:33:31.500 if you feel shame. 00:33:31.879 --> 00:33:32.720 And Jesus stands 00:33:32.720 --> 00:33:33.539 before the judge, 00:33:33.940 --> 00:33:34.640 takes the punishment 00:33:34.640 --> 00:33:35.279 we deserve, 00:33:35.279 --> 00:33:36.279 he removes our guilt, 00:33:36.359 --> 00:33:37.180 he removes the shame 00:33:37.180 --> 00:33:38.019 and he makes us right 00:33:38.019 --> 00:33:38.500 with God. 00:33:38.839 --> 00:33:39.720 He makes us clean 00:33:39.720 --> 00:33:40.200 and beautiful 00:33:40.200 --> 00:33:41.160 in the sight of God. 00:33:41.639 --> 00:33:43.420 There is not a single religion, 00:33:43.799 --> 00:33:44.279 there's not a single 00:33:44.279 --> 00:33:45.339 philosophy of life 00:33:45.339 --> 00:33:46.440 or a relationship 00:33:46.440 --> 00:33:47.420 that works like this 00:33:47.420 --> 00:33:48.039 in this world. 00:33:48.259 --> 00:33:49.359 Even the most intimate 00:33:49.359 --> 00:33:50.720 relationship in this world, 00:33:50.819 --> 00:33:51.480 marriage relationships, 00:33:51.839 --> 00:33:52.819 parents and stuff like that, 00:33:53.139 --> 00:33:54.500 you are loved 00:33:54.500 --> 00:33:55.240 on the basis 00:33:55.240 --> 00:33:56.160 of your performance. 00:33:58.019 --> 00:33:59.160 You'll find acceptance 00:33:59.160 --> 00:34:00.079 on the basis 00:34:00.079 --> 00:34:01.339 of your acceptability. 00:34:02.240 --> 00:34:03.019 Every one of us 00:34:03.019 --> 00:34:03.619 was brought up 00:34:03.619 --> 00:34:04.740 in families like that. 00:34:05.279 --> 00:34:07.839 everything works 00:34:07.839 --> 00:34:08.840 like that in this world 00:34:08.840 --> 00:34:10.920 except Christianity. 00:34:13.779 --> 00:34:14.960 If you're sitting here today 00:34:14.960 --> 00:34:15.960 and you don't know Jesus, 00:34:16.119 --> 00:34:16.779 can I tell you, 00:34:16.960 --> 00:34:18.000 can I encourage you, 00:34:18.139 --> 00:34:19.259 investigate Jesus. 00:34:21.980 --> 00:34:23.380 Now, if you are a Christian, 00:34:23.519 --> 00:34:24.219 that doesn't mean 00:34:24.219 --> 00:34:25.340 that these laws 00:34:25.340 --> 00:34:26.960 in Leviticus 11 to 15 00:34:26.960 --> 00:34:28.699 has no implication 00:34:28.699 --> 00:34:29.619 for you today. 00:34:31.559 --> 00:34:32.320 God's requirement 00:34:32.320 --> 00:34:32.860 to be holy 00:34:32.860 --> 00:34:33.679 because he is holy 00:34:33.679 --> 00:34:34.440 still stands. 00:34:34.440 --> 00:34:35.820 1 Peter 1 quotes 00:34:35.820 --> 00:34:37.440 from Leviticus 11 00:34:37.440 --> 00:34:38.960 and calls Christians 00:34:38.960 --> 00:34:39.920 to be holy 00:34:39.920 --> 00:34:41.360 when giving the instructions 00:34:41.360 --> 00:34:41.840 to us 00:34:41.840 --> 00:34:43.260 to rid ourselves 00:34:43.260 --> 00:34:44.139 of all malice 00:34:44.139 --> 00:34:45.380 and all deceit, 00:34:46.000 --> 00:34:46.679 hypocrisy, 00:34:46.960 --> 00:34:47.220 envy, 00:34:47.460 --> 00:34:48.380 slant of every kind 00:34:48.380 --> 00:34:48.980 and a whole bunch 00:34:48.980 --> 00:34:49.659 of other stuff. 00:34:51.139 --> 00:34:51.440 And so, 00:34:51.639 --> 00:34:52.920 the first implication 00:34:52.920 --> 00:34:55.840 is that holiness 00:34:55.840 --> 00:34:55.860 is that holiness 00:34:55.860 --> 00:34:58.599 follows redemption. 00:35:01.000 --> 00:35:01.619 That is, 00:35:01.700 --> 00:35:02.740 God didn't send 00:35:02.740 --> 00:35:03.480 his law, 00:35:03.639 --> 00:35:04.700 all his food laws 00:35:04.700 --> 00:35:05.119 and stuff 00:35:05.119 --> 00:35:06.300 into Egypt 00:35:06.300 --> 00:35:06.940 and says, 00:35:07.300 --> 00:35:08.159 you obey those 00:35:08.159 --> 00:35:08.599 and I'll come 00:35:08.599 --> 00:35:09.360 and rescue you. 00:35:13.079 --> 00:35:13.760 And so, 00:35:13.860 --> 00:35:14.079 therefore, 00:35:14.240 --> 00:35:14.519 Christian, 00:35:14.639 --> 00:35:15.680 you ought not expect 00:35:15.680 --> 00:35:16.139 a person 00:35:16.139 --> 00:35:17.079 who doesn't know Jesus 00:35:17.079 --> 00:35:17.700 to live a life 00:35:17.700 --> 00:35:18.260 of conformity 00:35:18.260 --> 00:35:18.980 to Jesus. 00:35:18.980 --> 00:35:22.039 You ought not expect 00:35:22.039 --> 00:35:22.639 a society 00:35:22.639 --> 00:35:23.840 to live in conformity 00:35:23.840 --> 00:35:24.300 to Jesus 00:35:24.300 --> 00:35:25.320 that rejects Jesus. 00:35:26.960 --> 00:35:28.460 That's the first implication. 00:35:29.840 --> 00:35:31.199 Holiness follows redemption. 00:35:31.360 --> 00:35:32.260 Redemption comes first. 00:35:32.559 --> 00:35:33.679 The second implication 00:35:33.679 --> 00:35:34.579 is this. 00:35:35.579 --> 00:35:37.099 Holiness follows redemption. 00:35:37.099 --> 00:35:40.759 God expects those 00:35:40.759 --> 00:35:41.739 who trust in Jesus 00:35:41.739 --> 00:35:42.400 to be holy 00:35:42.400 --> 00:35:43.619 because he has made 00:35:43.619 --> 00:35:44.480 you holy. 00:35:44.599 --> 00:35:45.440 Jesus himself said 00:35:45.440 --> 00:35:46.739 in John 14, 00:35:46.839 --> 00:35:47.460 if you love me, 00:35:47.500 --> 00:35:47.880 you will obey 00:35:47.880 --> 00:35:48.559 what I command. 00:35:50.099 --> 00:35:50.619 Grace, 00:35:50.739 --> 00:35:51.299 God's grace 00:35:51.299 --> 00:35:52.039 and his mercy 00:35:52.039 --> 00:35:52.480 to us 00:35:52.480 --> 00:35:53.519 should not make 00:35:53.519 --> 00:35:54.639 obedience optional. 00:35:55.839 --> 00:35:56.500 God never 00:35:56.500 --> 00:35:57.619 had good works 00:35:57.619 --> 00:35:58.179 as a condition 00:35:58.179 --> 00:35:59.599 of his acceptance, 00:36:00.500 --> 00:36:01.400 but he hasn't 00:36:01.400 --> 00:36:02.360 removed holiness 00:36:02.360 --> 00:36:03.179 as a requirement 00:36:03.179 --> 00:36:04.099 of life either. 00:36:05.880 --> 00:36:06.900 Resting on the 00:36:06.900 --> 00:36:07.880 finished work 00:36:07.880 --> 00:36:08.720 of Jesus 00:36:08.720 --> 00:36:10.220 to make us 00:36:10.220 --> 00:36:11.180 clean and pure 00:36:11.180 --> 00:36:11.800 to God 00:36:11.800 --> 00:36:13.320 does not relieve us 00:36:13.320 --> 00:36:15.059 of our obligation 00:36:15.059 --> 00:36:16.019 to live out 00:36:16.019 --> 00:36:17.059 who we are 00:36:17.059 --> 00:36:18.059 in our new status 00:36:18.059 --> 00:36:18.740 before him. 00:36:20.039 --> 00:36:20.820 In fact, 00:36:21.059 --> 00:36:21.680 I'd say 00:36:21.680 --> 00:36:22.519 it enables us 00:36:22.519 --> 00:36:23.139 to fulfill it. 00:36:25.000 --> 00:36:26.880 Grace overwhelms us 00:36:26.880 --> 00:36:27.840 with God's love 00:36:27.840 --> 00:36:29.940 and as a result 00:36:29.940 --> 00:36:31.240 our hearts resonate 00:36:31.240 --> 00:36:32.860 with the desires 00:36:32.860 --> 00:36:33.559 of God. 00:36:34.280 --> 00:36:35.039 His purposes 00:36:35.039 --> 00:36:36.139 become ours. 00:36:36.900 --> 00:36:38.160 Our soul's delight 00:36:38.160 --> 00:36:40.340 is his service 00:36:40.340 --> 00:36:42.760 as love for him 00:36:42.760 --> 00:36:43.760 and thanksgiving 00:36:43.760 --> 00:36:44.700 for his mercy 00:36:44.700 --> 00:36:46.320 causes us 00:36:46.320 --> 00:36:47.139 to honor him. 00:36:48.079 --> 00:36:48.780 His grace 00:36:48.780 --> 00:36:49.480 and his mercy 00:36:49.480 --> 00:36:50.260 to us 00:36:50.260 --> 00:36:52.019 produces joyful 00:36:52.019 --> 00:36:52.820 obedience 00:36:52.820 --> 00:36:54.700 and holiness 00:36:54.700 --> 00:36:55.380 of life. 00:36:56.500 --> 00:36:57.260 Be holy 00:36:57.260 --> 00:36:58.720 because I am 00:36:58.720 --> 00:36:59.079 holy. 00:37:00.420 --> 00:37:00.720 Amen. 00:37:00.720 --> 00:37:00.820 Amen. 00:37:00.820 --> 00:37:00.860 Amen. 00:37:00.860 --> 00:37:00.880 Amen. 00:37:00.880 --> 00:37:00.900 Amen. 00:37:00.900 --> 00:37:00.920 Amen. 00:37:00.920 --> 00:37:00.940 Amen. 00:37:00.940 --> 00:37:00.960 Amen. 00:37:00.960 --> 00:37:01.000 Amen. 00:37:01.000 --> 00:37:01.019 Amen. 00:37:01.019 --> 00:37:01.079 Amen. 00:37:01.079 --> 00:37:01.099 Amen. 00:37:01.099 --> 00:37:01.119 Amen. 00:37:01.119 --> 00:37:02.900 Amen. 00:37:02.900 --> 00:37:02.920 Amen. 00:37:02.920 --> 00:37:02.940 Amen. 00:37:02.940 --> 00:37:02.960 Amen. 00:37:02.960 --> 00:37:03.019 Amen. 00:37:03.019 --> 00:37:03.039 Amen. 00:37:03.039 --> 00:37:03.079 Amen. 00:37:03.079 --> 00:37:05.039 Amen. 00:37:05.039 --> 00:37:06.880 Amen.