WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.100 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.280 --> 00:00:09.519 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, 00:00:09.880 --> 00:00:15.300 redistribution, or any other use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.660 --> 00:00:22.100 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:22.100 --> 00:00:35.320 Good morning. My name is Carrie Moulton, and I'm a member of the Oakland Women's Little Faith Group. 00:00:35.679 --> 00:00:45.000 And today's reading is from Paul's letter to the Philippians, chapter 3, verses 7 through 14, as printed in the liturgy. 00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:55.480 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 00:00:56.700 --> 00:01:02.740 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. 00:01:03.719 --> 00:01:09.000 For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, 00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:13.400 in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him. 00:01:13.400 --> 00:01:17.500 Not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, 00:01:18.380 --> 00:01:21.340 but from that which comes through faith in Christ, 00:01:21.940 --> 00:01:24.680 the righteousness from God that depends on faith. 00:01:25.460 --> 00:01:28.740 That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, 00:01:29.480 --> 00:01:33.600 and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 00:01:34.560 --> 00:01:38.480 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. 00:01:38.480 --> 00:01:44.040 Not that I have already obtained this, or am already perfect, 00:01:44.640 --> 00:01:47.020 but I press on to make it my own, 00:01:47.219 --> 00:01:50.579 because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 00:01:51.620 --> 00:01:54.680 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own, 00:01:55.379 --> 00:01:57.080 but one thing I do, 00:01:58.120 --> 00:01:59.780 forgetting what lies behind, 00:02:00.520 --> 00:02:03.320 and straining forward to what lies ahead, 00:02:03.319 --> 00:02:05.500 I press on toward the goal 00:02:05.500 --> 00:02:08.180 for the prize of the upward call of God 00:02:08.180 --> 00:02:09.799 in Jesus Christ. 00:02:10.539 --> 00:02:11.840 This is the word of the Lord. 00:02:12.900 --> 00:02:14.579 Thank you for that scripture reading, Carrie. 00:02:15.060 --> 00:02:16.900 It's just a text that's so beautiful. 00:02:17.659 --> 00:02:18.659 It just preaches itself. 00:02:23.659 --> 00:02:24.840 Will you join me in prayer? 00:02:24.840 --> 00:02:24.939 Father, 00:02:30.900 --> 00:02:33.420 we thank you for these words 00:02:33.420 --> 00:02:35.800 that you placed on the pen 00:02:35.800 --> 00:02:38.240 and on the lips of your servant, Apostle Paul. 00:02:39.580 --> 00:02:41.960 Lord, we ask that you would place these words 00:02:41.960 --> 00:02:43.379 on our lips as well, 00:02:44.360 --> 00:02:46.020 but yet God, place them on our hearts, 00:02:46.159 --> 00:02:47.340 convince us, O Lord, 00:02:48.199 --> 00:02:50.719 that these are not words only to be uttered 00:02:50.719 --> 00:02:54.280 by once-in-a-generation super saints, 00:02:55.280 --> 00:02:57.860 that these are the words of all your children, 00:02:58.020 --> 00:02:59.939 of anyone who has ever seen your son Jesus 00:02:59.939 --> 00:03:02.360 for who he really is. 00:03:03.840 --> 00:03:05.539 O Lord, place these words on our lips 00:03:05.539 --> 00:03:07.939 as a people who have beheld the beauty 00:03:07.939 --> 00:03:09.340 and believed in the bounty 00:03:09.340 --> 00:03:11.360 that exists in Jesus Christ. 00:03:12.219 --> 00:03:14.060 Make us a people who are straining 00:03:14.060 --> 00:03:15.199 with all our might, 00:03:15.719 --> 00:03:17.099 pursuing just one thing, 00:03:18.240 --> 00:03:20.080 a deeper relationship with Christ. 00:03:21.500 --> 00:03:22.319 In so doing, Lord, 00:03:22.420 --> 00:03:23.400 bring about the revival 00:03:23.400 --> 00:03:25.800 that you so desire amongst us 00:03:25.800 --> 00:03:28.640 and in the bay and all the world, God. 00:03:29.400 --> 00:03:30.200 For our good 00:03:30.200 --> 00:03:32.180 and for your glory we pray. 00:03:32.819 --> 00:03:33.159 Amen. 00:03:34.939 --> 00:03:35.840 Good morning, everyone. 00:03:35.920 --> 00:03:36.580 My name's Andrew. 00:03:36.780 --> 00:03:37.980 I'm one of the pastors here. 00:03:38.560 --> 00:03:39.460 You'll have to forgive me. 00:03:39.580 --> 00:03:40.740 I have had a little bit of a cough, 00:03:40.840 --> 00:03:42.379 so I'm sucking on a cough drop. 00:03:42.819 --> 00:03:44.759 Hopefully that won't affect too much. 00:03:45.140 --> 00:03:47.259 In case you are new to Christ Church, 00:03:47.560 --> 00:03:48.280 what you need to know 00:03:48.280 --> 00:03:50.259 is that we are on the third Sunday 00:03:50.259 --> 00:03:51.579 of a new ministry year. 00:03:51.699 --> 00:03:53.379 It's also the third Sunday 00:03:53.379 --> 00:03:54.959 of our lead pastor, Jonathan, 00:03:55.419 --> 00:03:57.159 being back from his sabbatical. 00:03:58.000 --> 00:03:59.120 And yeah, yay. 00:04:00.060 --> 00:04:02.000 And one of the words, 00:04:02.399 --> 00:04:03.199 the word really, 00:04:03.679 --> 00:04:05.139 that has been on our lead pastor, 00:04:05.239 --> 00:04:05.919 Jonathan's heart, 00:04:06.079 --> 00:04:07.399 coming back from sabbatical, 00:04:07.599 --> 00:04:09.459 is the word revival. 00:04:10.019 --> 00:04:10.519 Revival. 00:04:10.620 --> 00:04:12.100 So that's what we will be preaching through 00:04:12.100 --> 00:04:14.120 in this fall season, 00:04:14.260 --> 00:04:16.340 and it's really what we're gonna be praying for 00:04:16.340 --> 00:04:18.460 for at least this whole ministry year. 00:04:18.579 --> 00:04:20.360 Lord, revive us. 00:04:21.259 --> 00:04:22.639 Revive our city. 00:04:23.740 --> 00:04:24.480 Revive our land. 00:04:24.620 --> 00:04:25.680 Revive this world. 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:26.519 And start with us. 00:04:26.620 --> 00:04:27.840 Revive your people. 00:04:28.540 --> 00:04:30.280 Revive your church, oh God. 00:04:31.259 --> 00:04:32.079 And you know, personally, 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:35.139 I feel very invested in this theme 00:04:35.139 --> 00:04:35.780 because in a way, 00:04:35.819 --> 00:04:37.360 I feel like I've been praying for revival 00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:38.780 for like over a decade. 00:04:39.840 --> 00:04:42.939 It all started actually 17 years ago. 00:04:43.060 --> 00:04:45.139 Well, actually, that's half of my life ago 00:04:45.139 --> 00:04:48.040 when I went to UC Irvine. 00:04:48.520 --> 00:04:49.900 And I had to find a church. 00:04:50.500 --> 00:04:51.520 I'm Chinese American, 00:04:51.639 --> 00:04:53.699 but I joined a Korean American church. 00:04:54.620 --> 00:04:55.759 And you know, at this church, 00:04:56.199 --> 00:04:59.240 like all we did was pray for revival. 00:04:59.780 --> 00:05:00.680 That's all we did. 00:05:01.460 --> 00:05:02.180 So I lived there, 00:05:02.220 --> 00:05:04.240 and I worshiped there for six years. 00:05:04.240 --> 00:05:06.060 Every Friday night, Bible study. 00:05:06.060 --> 00:05:07.879 Seven to nine. 00:05:08.160 --> 00:05:10.220 Prayer meeting, 9.30 to 11. 00:05:11.199 --> 00:05:13.399 And I can still smell that office 00:05:13.399 --> 00:05:15.720 in that business park where we used to pray. 00:05:15.819 --> 00:05:18.819 I can still feel the rough blue rug 00:05:18.819 --> 00:05:20.560 making an imprint on my knees 00:05:20.560 --> 00:05:22.279 because I always wore basketball shorts. 00:05:23.439 --> 00:05:26.000 And I can still hear the cries 00:05:26.000 --> 00:05:27.519 of my spiritual role models 00:05:27.519 --> 00:05:29.360 in that room on their knees as well. 00:05:30.079 --> 00:05:32.100 The ajashis of the church. 00:05:32.319 --> 00:05:33.199 If you don't know what that is, 00:05:33.259 --> 00:05:35.019 ask a Korean friend what an ajashi is. 00:05:35.019 --> 00:05:36.419 But these ajashis, 00:05:36.519 --> 00:05:38.339 they would cry out to God, 00:05:39.079 --> 00:05:40.659 Lord God, give me a passion. 00:05:40.799 --> 00:05:43.199 Give us a passion for your name. 00:05:43.879 --> 00:05:45.240 Give us a passion for your name. 00:05:46.339 --> 00:05:48.219 And I remember singing with them, 00:05:48.339 --> 00:05:49.319 crying out to God, 00:05:49.620 --> 00:05:52.180 create in me a clean heart, O God, 00:05:52.740 --> 00:05:55.000 and renew a right spirit within me. 00:05:55.779 --> 00:05:57.799 Cast me not away from your presence, 00:05:57.800 --> 00:06:01.079 and take not your Holy Spirit from me. 00:06:01.819 --> 00:06:04.639 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, 00:06:05.579 --> 00:06:08.280 and renew a right spirit within me. 00:06:09.120 --> 00:06:11.480 And we would remember the promises of God. 00:06:11.580 --> 00:06:13.819 If my people who are called by my name 00:06:13.819 --> 00:06:15.980 will humble themselves and pray, 00:06:16.740 --> 00:06:18.080 and seek my face, 00:06:18.620 --> 00:06:20.480 and turn from their wicked ways, 00:06:20.480 --> 00:06:23.400 then will I hear from heaven, 00:06:24.080 --> 00:06:25.819 and forgive their sins, 00:06:26.460 --> 00:06:28.020 and heal their land, 00:06:28.819 --> 00:06:31.060 if they humble themselves and pray. 00:06:31.900 --> 00:06:32.660 And honestly, 00:06:32.759 --> 00:06:37.220 these were probably the most spiritually formative years of my life. 00:06:37.879 --> 00:06:40.020 Praying on my knees with the Koreans. 00:06:40.019 --> 00:06:43.399 And like for about 10 years, 00:06:43.699 --> 00:06:47.599 between 2006 and 2015, 00:06:48.419 --> 00:06:51.439 from the beginning of college to the end of seminary, 00:06:51.500 --> 00:06:52.859 I would get up early, 00:06:52.939 --> 00:06:55.859 and I would pray this same prayer every single day. 00:06:56.459 --> 00:07:00.039 Lord, if one day you should give me a wife. 00:07:00.560 --> 00:07:02.439 Lord, if one day you should give me children. 00:07:02.639 --> 00:07:05.839 Lord, if one day you should allow me to pastor a church. 00:07:05.839 --> 00:07:10.919 Lord, make us a people who are zealous for your glory. 00:07:12.099 --> 00:07:14.859 Lord, make us a people who have a high regard 00:07:14.859 --> 00:07:16.959 for the scriptures, for your word. 00:07:18.079 --> 00:07:20.239 Lord, make us a people who have eyes to see 00:07:20.239 --> 00:07:21.899 the heights of our sin, 00:07:21.979 --> 00:07:24.579 and the depths of your overwhelming grace. 00:07:24.899 --> 00:07:28.319 Give us hearts that cherish and treasure Jesus Christ. 00:07:28.579 --> 00:07:31.639 Hearts that are broken for those who don't know Jesus Christ. 00:07:32.179 --> 00:07:33.319 And hearts of compassion 00:07:33.319 --> 00:07:36.620 for those who suffer in this world. 00:07:36.719 --> 00:07:37.740 I pray this every day 00:07:37.740 --> 00:07:39.540 for my future wife, 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:41.259 for my future children, 00:07:41.680 --> 00:07:43.420 and really for all of you 00:07:43.420 --> 00:07:45.379 at my future church. 00:07:47.399 --> 00:07:49.199 And I don't share this with you 00:07:49.199 --> 00:07:52.000 so you'll think I'm a super holy man. 00:07:52.300 --> 00:07:53.519 I am sure you I am not. 00:07:53.579 --> 00:07:54.939 You can ask my wife about that. 00:07:54.939 --> 00:07:57.519 But I share this with you 00:07:57.519 --> 00:07:58.660 because I want you to consider 00:07:58.660 --> 00:08:01.339 that our pursuit of revival 00:08:01.339 --> 00:08:03.300 here at Christ Church in this season 00:08:03.300 --> 00:08:04.420 is not some accident, 00:08:04.540 --> 00:08:07.019 not some phase that Jonathan's going through 00:08:07.019 --> 00:08:08.339 in his, what, mid-40s. 00:08:11.339 --> 00:08:12.659 But like, what if, 00:08:13.139 --> 00:08:14.159 at least in part, 00:08:14.879 --> 00:08:15.680 at least in part, 00:08:16.480 --> 00:08:17.500 what if it's an answer 00:08:17.500 --> 00:08:20.839 to a 17 years worth of prayer? 00:08:20.839 --> 00:08:23.179 What if it's an answer 00:08:23.179 --> 00:08:25.000 to 17 years worth of prayer? 00:08:25.060 --> 00:08:26.679 Prayers that interestingly began 00:08:26.679 --> 00:08:29.339 the year that Christ Church started. 00:08:30.459 --> 00:08:31.500 In 2006, 00:08:31.759 --> 00:08:33.500 before I even knew about Christ Church, 00:08:33.939 --> 00:08:34.899 I probably wouldn't have even wanted 00:08:34.899 --> 00:08:36.299 to come to this church back then, 00:08:36.319 --> 00:08:36.939 to be honest. 00:08:38.439 --> 00:08:39.439 But here we are. 00:08:40.439 --> 00:08:40.919 What if? 00:08:41.939 --> 00:08:43.159 What if, right? 00:08:43.860 --> 00:08:45.620 That's a question I hope you'll consider 00:08:45.620 --> 00:08:47.039 in this season of our church. 00:08:47.039 --> 00:08:48.719 Like, what if God wants to do 00:08:48.719 --> 00:08:50.639 a thing amongst us? 00:08:51.259 --> 00:08:52.980 Like, what if the pandemic 00:08:52.980 --> 00:08:53.759 we've just endured, 00:08:53.879 --> 00:08:55.059 the polarization we're seeing 00:08:55.059 --> 00:08:55.579 in our nation, 00:08:55.659 --> 00:08:57.419 what if our public and mental health 00:08:57.419 --> 00:09:01.039 crises and the mounting global instability 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:03.039 that all trouble us, 00:09:03.939 --> 00:09:06.199 what if these are just occasions 00:09:06.199 --> 00:09:09.219 for the power of God to be displayed? 00:09:10.120 --> 00:09:11.899 What if these were just occasions 00:09:11.899 --> 00:09:14.039 for our church to be a non-anxious presence, 00:09:14.779 --> 00:09:16.339 a community of compassion, 00:09:16.340 --> 00:09:17.800 light in the darkness, 00:09:18.200 --> 00:09:20.300 messengers of the best possible news, 00:09:20.399 --> 00:09:21.360 the only hope of the world, 00:09:21.500 --> 00:09:22.259 Jesus Christ? 00:09:23.480 --> 00:09:25.360 What if we've merely been enduring 00:09:25.360 --> 00:09:26.540 a season of pruning 00:09:26.540 --> 00:09:28.920 in order that the Spirit of God 00:09:28.920 --> 00:09:31.460 might produce an incredible crop 00:09:31.460 --> 00:09:32.420 of fruitfulness? 00:09:32.800 --> 00:09:33.560 What if what we thought 00:09:33.560 --> 00:09:34.560 was nothing but crap 00:09:34.560 --> 00:09:35.780 hitting the fan 00:09:35.780 --> 00:09:38.580 was God fertilizing the soil 00:09:38.580 --> 00:09:39.879 that we've been standing in 00:09:39.879 --> 00:09:42.660 for a season of revival? 00:09:42.659 --> 00:09:45.939 Now, I understand that for some of us 00:09:45.939 --> 00:09:46.759 in this room, revival 00:09:46.759 --> 00:09:48.459 doesn't exactly excite you 00:09:48.459 --> 00:09:49.679 as it does me. 00:09:50.379 --> 00:09:51.360 Maybe you're here 00:09:51.360 --> 00:09:52.179 and you're not even sure 00:09:52.179 --> 00:09:53.039 you believe in God, 00:09:53.199 --> 00:09:54.600 let alone that you need 00:09:54.600 --> 00:09:56.179 some kind of spiritual awakening 00:09:56.179 --> 00:09:58.579 in your life or in your community. 00:09:59.219 --> 00:09:59.899 Maybe you're thinking, 00:10:00.039 --> 00:10:02.079 isn't revival just for religious people? 00:10:03.139 --> 00:10:04.039 And if that's you, 00:10:04.299 --> 00:10:05.299 what I want to say to you today 00:10:05.299 --> 00:10:05.779 is that sure, 00:10:05.860 --> 00:10:07.959 we do long for spiritual renewal 00:10:07.959 --> 00:10:08.620 in our church 00:10:08.620 --> 00:10:09.559 and in our community 00:10:09.559 --> 00:10:11.479 and for you too individually. 00:10:12.559 --> 00:10:13.899 But make no mistake, 00:10:14.559 --> 00:10:16.019 when true revival happens, 00:10:16.119 --> 00:10:17.739 it isn't merely an inward, 00:10:18.099 --> 00:10:20.399 invisible, individualistic experience, 00:10:20.519 --> 00:10:21.899 but it always results 00:10:21.899 --> 00:10:23.479 in the good of the city. 00:10:24.459 --> 00:10:25.539 In the early church, 00:10:25.579 --> 00:10:27.279 when the Spirit came upon the apostles, 00:10:27.719 --> 00:10:28.519 the sick were healed, 00:10:28.759 --> 00:10:29.439 the lame walked, 00:10:29.599 --> 00:10:30.539 and as one witness wrote, 00:10:30.879 --> 00:10:32.619 God's grace was so powerfully 00:10:32.619 --> 00:10:33.979 at work in them all 00:10:33.979 --> 00:10:35.899 that there were no needy persons 00:10:35.899 --> 00:10:36.479 among them. 00:10:37.159 --> 00:10:38.059 For from time to time, 00:10:38.059 --> 00:10:40.239 those who owned land or houses 00:10:40.239 --> 00:10:41.159 sold them, 00:10:41.599 --> 00:10:42.919 brought the money from the sales 00:10:42.919 --> 00:10:44.739 and put it at the apostles' feet 00:10:44.739 --> 00:10:45.619 and it was distributed 00:10:45.619 --> 00:10:46.979 to anyone who had need. 00:10:47.539 --> 00:10:48.379 And even when the church 00:10:48.379 --> 00:10:49.119 was persecuted 00:10:49.119 --> 00:10:49.919 and scattered, 00:10:50.139 --> 00:10:50.799 the apostle Philip, 00:10:50.959 --> 00:10:52.139 he went out to another city 00:10:52.139 --> 00:10:53.559 and the same witness writes, 00:10:53.779 --> 00:10:54.859 when the crowds heard Philip 00:10:54.859 --> 00:10:56.739 and saw the signs he performed, 00:10:57.239 --> 00:10:58.419 they all paid close attention 00:10:58.419 --> 00:10:59.159 to what he said. 00:10:59.539 --> 00:11:00.319 For with shrieks, 00:11:00.639 --> 00:11:02.339 impure spirits came out of many 00:11:02.339 --> 00:11:03.739 and many who were paralyzed 00:11:03.739 --> 00:11:04.899 or lame were healed. 00:11:04.899 --> 00:11:06.759 So there was great joy 00:11:06.759 --> 00:11:07.819 in that city. 00:11:08.879 --> 00:11:10.120 So there was great joy 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:11.039 in that city. 00:11:11.100 --> 00:11:11.600 I love that, 00:11:11.639 --> 00:11:12.019 don't you? 00:11:14.039 --> 00:11:15.360 Or take the more recent example 00:11:15.360 --> 00:11:16.480 of the Second Great Awakening, 00:11:16.600 --> 00:11:16.759 right, 00:11:17.200 --> 00:11:18.460 which historians acknowledge 00:11:18.460 --> 00:11:20.240 as significantly serving, 00:11:20.500 --> 00:11:20.779 supporting, 00:11:20.899 --> 00:11:21.580 and inspiring 00:11:21.580 --> 00:11:23.659 the abolitionist movement 00:11:23.659 --> 00:11:25.679 and women's right movement 00:11:25.679 --> 00:11:27.039 in the 19th century. 00:11:27.159 --> 00:11:27.240 See, 00:11:27.299 --> 00:11:28.539 when the Spirit of God 00:11:28.539 --> 00:11:29.559 comes in power 00:11:29.559 --> 00:11:30.460 to bring revival, 00:11:31.059 --> 00:11:32.139 the result isn't just 00:11:32.139 --> 00:11:33.259 a spiritual renovation 00:11:33.259 --> 00:11:34.059 within the hearts 00:11:34.059 --> 00:11:35.559 of religious people. 00:11:36.339 --> 00:11:38.259 But it's a holistic renovation 00:11:38.259 --> 00:11:39.579 of whole communities. 00:11:41.299 --> 00:11:41.619 So like, 00:11:41.679 --> 00:11:42.479 even if you don't consider 00:11:42.479 --> 00:11:43.199 yourself religious, 00:11:44.319 --> 00:11:45.019 don't you want 00:11:45.019 --> 00:11:45.759 this revival 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:46.779 that we're searching for? 00:11:47.939 --> 00:11:49.019 We're not after 00:11:49.019 --> 00:11:50.419 something purely religious 00:11:50.419 --> 00:11:51.439 or spiritual, 00:11:51.559 --> 00:11:52.739 we're after a sign 00:11:52.739 --> 00:11:53.719 and a taste 00:11:53.719 --> 00:11:54.899 of the new creation 00:11:54.899 --> 00:11:56.139 that Jesus Christ 00:11:56.139 --> 00:11:57.319 has promised us. 00:11:58.759 --> 00:11:59.799 Now maybe you are 00:11:59.799 --> 00:12:00.279 a Christian, 00:12:00.279 --> 00:12:01.899 but you still 00:12:01.899 --> 00:12:03.360 hear this word revival 00:12:03.360 --> 00:12:04.059 and it just sounds 00:12:04.059 --> 00:12:05.860 like such a super churchy 00:12:05.860 --> 00:12:06.799 word to you. 00:12:07.480 --> 00:12:08.039 It reminds you 00:12:08.039 --> 00:12:09.279 of huge tent meetings, 00:12:09.459 --> 00:12:09.779 naive, 00:12:10.139 --> 00:12:11.199 mindless crowds, 00:12:11.419 --> 00:12:12.059 inauthentic, 00:12:12.299 --> 00:12:13.279 emotional outbursts, 00:12:13.279 --> 00:12:14.959 and just religious fanaticism. 00:12:15.720 --> 00:12:16.579 Maybe you hear us 00:12:16.579 --> 00:12:17.439 talking about revival 00:12:17.439 --> 00:12:18.139 and you want to put up 00:12:18.139 --> 00:12:18.879 your defenses 00:12:18.879 --> 00:12:19.620 against the threat 00:12:19.620 --> 00:12:20.459 of manipulation 00:12:20.459 --> 00:12:22.079 and peer pressure 00:12:22.079 --> 00:12:23.019 all under the guise 00:12:23.019 --> 00:12:24.019 of God's Spirit. 00:12:25.120 --> 00:12:25.319 You know, 00:12:25.360 --> 00:12:25.959 I would say 00:12:25.959 --> 00:12:26.579 that you're right. 00:12:26.699 --> 00:12:27.279 You're right to put up 00:12:27.279 --> 00:12:27.679 your defenses 00:12:27.679 --> 00:12:28.899 because in church history 00:12:28.899 --> 00:12:30.079 there have been 00:12:30.079 --> 00:12:31.279 Christians and churches 00:12:31.279 --> 00:12:32.139 who've tried to force 00:12:32.139 --> 00:12:32.860 the hand of God 00:12:32.860 --> 00:12:33.899 and conjure up His Spirit 00:12:33.899 --> 00:12:35.600 and harness His power 00:12:35.600 --> 00:12:36.360 and His presence 00:12:36.360 --> 00:12:37.139 by their own, 00:12:37.220 --> 00:12:37.579 you know, 00:12:37.879 --> 00:12:39.879 manipulative techniques. 00:12:40.919 --> 00:12:41.720 The sad reality 00:12:41.720 --> 00:12:43.220 is that a big temptation 00:12:43.220 --> 00:12:44.439 for those of us 00:12:44.439 --> 00:12:45.419 who seek revival 00:12:45.419 --> 00:12:46.299 has been to seek it 00:12:46.299 --> 00:12:47.720 by mere technique, 00:12:48.299 --> 00:12:49.439 as if we could reduce it 00:12:49.439 --> 00:12:50.399 to a formula. 00:12:51.639 --> 00:12:52.419 And we can see this 00:12:52.419 --> 00:12:52.939 in so much 00:12:52.939 --> 00:12:53.860 of the American church 00:12:53.860 --> 00:12:55.299 with its modern faith 00:12:55.299 --> 00:12:56.500 in technology 00:12:56.500 --> 00:12:58.439 and its modern conception 00:12:58.440 --> 00:12:59.440 of productivity. 00:13:00.240 --> 00:13:02.020 So much of the American church 00:13:02.020 --> 00:13:03.380 has become distracted, right? 00:13:03.860 --> 00:13:04.500 Groping around 00:13:04.500 --> 00:13:05.800 for the next new thing, 00:13:05.900 --> 00:13:06.580 whether it's the next 00:13:06.580 --> 00:13:08.100 church growth strategy 00:13:08.100 --> 00:13:08.940 or just some other 00:13:08.940 --> 00:13:09.880 yet-to-be-revealed 00:13:09.880 --> 00:13:10.760 silver bullet 00:13:10.760 --> 00:13:11.440 that will somehow 00:13:11.440 --> 00:13:13.260 catalyze a revival 00:13:13.260 --> 00:13:14.340 like never before. 00:13:15.520 --> 00:13:17.000 But I want to assure you 00:13:17.000 --> 00:13:18.400 today that that is not 00:13:18.400 --> 00:13:19.240 at all what we're after 00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:20.320 here at Christ Church. 00:13:20.960 --> 00:13:22.160 A new next thing 00:13:22.160 --> 00:13:23.120 that will generate 00:13:23.120 --> 00:13:24.600 some kind of desired outcome 00:13:24.600 --> 00:13:25.460 that we can call 00:13:25.460 --> 00:13:26.020 a revival 00:13:26.019 --> 00:13:26.879 and then pat ourselves 00:13:26.879 --> 00:13:27.439 on the back 00:13:27.439 --> 00:13:28.579 for stirring up. 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:30.019 Now churches 00:13:30.019 --> 00:13:31.019 that focus merely 00:13:31.019 --> 00:13:32.419 on new techniques 00:13:32.419 --> 00:13:33.620 only ever end up 00:13:33.620 --> 00:13:35.000 either looking like 00:13:35.000 --> 00:13:35.899 lame posers, 00:13:36.179 --> 00:13:37.120 always copying 00:13:37.120 --> 00:13:38.720 but never creating culture, 00:13:39.220 --> 00:13:40.059 always behind 00:13:40.059 --> 00:13:40.779 the most recent 00:13:40.779 --> 00:13:42.480 cultural trends 00:13:42.480 --> 00:13:43.360 and just trying to catch up 00:13:43.360 --> 00:13:44.600 but never really figuring out 00:13:44.600 --> 00:13:45.379 who they are 00:13:45.379 --> 00:13:46.100 and who God 00:13:46.100 --> 00:13:46.919 wants them to be, 00:13:47.159 --> 00:13:48.980 or we just end up 00:13:48.980 --> 00:13:49.860 looking no different 00:13:49.860 --> 00:13:51.600 from the world around us. 00:13:52.220 --> 00:13:53.559 A church that's in the world 00:13:53.559 --> 00:13:54.979 and of the world 00:13:54.979 --> 00:13:56.839 just uncritically adopting 00:13:56.839 --> 00:13:58.619 wholesale one ideology 00:13:58.619 --> 00:13:59.539 after another 00:13:59.539 --> 00:14:00.519 either on the left 00:14:00.519 --> 00:14:01.299 or the right. 00:14:02.459 --> 00:14:03.739 Now this is not to say 00:14:03.739 --> 00:14:04.839 that we should be 00:14:04.839 --> 00:14:05.679 anti-technique 00:14:05.679 --> 00:14:07.099 and anti-innovation. 00:14:07.319 --> 00:14:08.839 Can innovative technology 00:14:08.839 --> 00:14:10.379 serve the movement 00:14:10.379 --> 00:14:11.139 of revival? 00:14:11.659 --> 00:14:12.000 Yes. 00:14:12.239 --> 00:14:13.139 And please, 00:14:13.599 --> 00:14:14.699 think about the printing press. 00:14:15.359 --> 00:14:15.439 Right? 00:14:15.679 --> 00:14:16.899 Without the printing press 00:14:16.899 --> 00:14:17.619 will you have 00:14:17.619 --> 00:14:18.659 the Protestant Reformation 00:14:18.659 --> 00:14:19.419 as it was? 00:14:20.099 --> 00:14:21.299 The Bibles in the hands 00:14:21.299 --> 00:14:22.339 of common people, 00:14:22.419 --> 00:14:22.579 right? 00:14:22.639 --> 00:14:23.579 Feeding upon the very 00:14:23.579 --> 00:14:24.559 words of God 00:14:24.559 --> 00:14:25.679 for themselves. 00:14:26.439 --> 00:14:27.059 Blooming into 00:14:27.059 --> 00:14:27.799 a literate 00:14:27.799 --> 00:14:28.919 and increasingly 00:14:28.919 --> 00:14:30.279 democratized society. 00:14:30.659 --> 00:14:31.500 I'm not saying 00:14:31.500 --> 00:14:32.059 that we should be 00:14:32.059 --> 00:14:33.059 anti-technique 00:14:33.059 --> 00:14:33.959 and I even pray 00:14:33.959 --> 00:14:35.000 for innovation 00:14:35.000 --> 00:14:35.859 and creativity 00:14:35.859 --> 00:14:36.859 in our church 00:14:36.859 --> 00:14:37.859 as we seek revival. 00:14:38.979 --> 00:14:39.759 But what we need 00:14:39.759 --> 00:14:40.439 to understand 00:14:40.439 --> 00:14:42.059 is that revival 00:14:42.059 --> 00:14:43.959 can't be manufactured. 00:14:44.740 --> 00:14:45.759 It can't be manufactured 00:14:45.759 --> 00:14:47.479 by manipulation, 00:14:47.740 --> 00:14:48.419 by applying 00:14:48.419 --> 00:14:49.799 the fanciest, 00:14:49.919 --> 00:14:51.000 most sophisticated, 00:14:51.299 --> 00:14:52.759 innovative technique 00:14:52.759 --> 00:14:53.479 to stir up 00:14:53.479 --> 00:14:54.120 some kind of 00:14:54.120 --> 00:14:55.779 religious fervor. 00:14:56.819 --> 00:14:57.979 At Christ Church East Bay, 00:14:58.519 --> 00:14:59.500 we are not after 00:14:59.500 --> 00:15:00.379 the newest, 00:15:00.699 --> 00:15:01.379 next thing 00:15:01.379 --> 00:15:02.000 that will bring us 00:15:02.000 --> 00:15:02.699 to new heights. 00:15:03.639 --> 00:15:04.659 Now, in our pursuit 00:15:04.659 --> 00:15:05.199 of revival, 00:15:05.319 --> 00:15:05.959 we aren't primarily 00:15:05.959 --> 00:15:07.099 looking for something new. 00:15:07.740 --> 00:15:08.559 We're looking for 00:15:08.559 --> 00:15:09.339 something ancient. 00:15:10.579 --> 00:15:11.759 Not something fancy, 00:15:11.919 --> 00:15:12.979 something fundamental. 00:15:13.639 --> 00:15:14.779 Not something sophisticated, 00:15:15.259 --> 00:15:15.919 something simple, 00:15:16.000 --> 00:15:17.179 not necessarily posh, 00:15:17.620 --> 00:15:19.199 but definitely profound. 00:15:19.200 --> 00:15:21.600 Revival is not so much 00:15:21.600 --> 00:15:22.200 about newness, 00:15:22.259 --> 00:15:23.020 but I prefer to talk 00:15:23.020 --> 00:15:24.820 about it as freshness. 00:15:25.740 --> 00:15:26.560 Revival isn't about 00:15:26.560 --> 00:15:28.100 coming upon something 00:15:28.100 --> 00:15:29.160 that's brand spanking new. 00:15:29.240 --> 00:15:30.340 It's about experiencing 00:15:30.340 --> 00:15:32.280 a fresh, 00:15:32.660 --> 00:15:33.280 something which had 00:15:33.280 --> 00:15:34.300 previously become 00:15:34.300 --> 00:15:35.280 stale. 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:37.460 So you see, 00:15:37.520 --> 00:15:38.379 the secret sauce 00:15:38.379 --> 00:15:39.640 for revival 00:15:39.640 --> 00:15:40.240 isn't for us 00:15:40.240 --> 00:15:40.920 to figure out 00:15:40.920 --> 00:15:41.940 again and again 00:15:41.940 --> 00:15:42.320 and again. 00:15:42.420 --> 00:15:42.900 The recipe, 00:15:43.340 --> 00:15:44.400 it hasn't changed. 00:15:45.320 --> 00:15:46.600 Revival will only happen 00:15:46.600 --> 00:15:48.240 when people are brought 00:15:48.240 --> 00:15:49.460 back to the most basic, 00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:51.600 the most necessary truth 00:15:51.600 --> 00:15:52.700 that the world 00:15:52.700 --> 00:15:53.460 truly needs 00:15:53.460 --> 00:15:54.279 and that's the gospel. 00:15:55.019 --> 00:15:56.000 That Jesus Christ 00:15:56.000 --> 00:15:56.680 of Nazareth, 00:15:56.840 --> 00:15:57.840 crucified and risen, 00:15:58.480 --> 00:15:59.000 is Lord. 00:15:59.779 --> 00:16:00.440 At the center 00:16:00.440 --> 00:16:01.180 of revival 00:16:01.180 --> 00:16:02.420 is a white hot faith 00:16:02.420 --> 00:16:03.120 in this ancient 00:16:03.120 --> 00:16:04.240 and basic truth 00:16:04.240 --> 00:16:05.040 of Christianity, 00:16:05.519 --> 00:16:06.620 a fresh and burning 00:16:06.620 --> 00:16:07.820 passion concerning 00:16:07.820 --> 00:16:09.180 our most basic conviction, 00:16:09.820 --> 00:16:10.820 the deep, deep conviction 00:16:10.820 --> 00:16:12.160 that Jesus truly is Lord 00:16:12.160 --> 00:16:13.519 and that that is 00:16:13.519 --> 00:16:14.540 the best news 00:16:14.540 --> 00:16:15.980 for the world. 00:16:15.980 --> 00:16:16.940 and that there is 00:16:16.940 --> 00:16:17.920 no more basic, 00:16:18.060 --> 00:16:18.860 no more ultimate, 00:16:19.220 --> 00:16:20.180 no more all-controlling 00:16:20.180 --> 00:16:21.340 truth than that. 00:16:22.940 --> 00:16:24.279 Revival happens 00:16:24.279 --> 00:16:25.980 when people awaken 00:16:25.980 --> 00:16:27.720 to the surpassing worth 00:16:27.720 --> 00:16:29.159 of knowing Christ. 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:31.060 Christ Jesus 00:16:31.060 --> 00:16:31.960 as their Lord 00:16:31.960 --> 00:16:33.220 and strain forward 00:16:33.220 --> 00:16:34.879 to know Him more, 00:16:35.340 --> 00:16:36.820 to experience His presence 00:16:36.820 --> 00:16:37.600 and His power 00:16:37.600 --> 00:16:39.539 by any means possible, 00:16:39.620 --> 00:16:40.800 no matter the cost, 00:16:41.139 --> 00:16:41.759 even at the cost 00:16:41.759 --> 00:16:42.279 of suffering, 00:16:42.539 --> 00:16:43.200 even at the cost 00:16:43.200 --> 00:16:44.080 of their own lives. 00:16:44.539 --> 00:16:44.759 And see, 00:16:44.840 --> 00:16:45.659 that is why we are 00:16:45.659 --> 00:16:46.759 turning to chapter 3 00:16:46.759 --> 00:16:48.019 of Paul's letter 00:16:48.019 --> 00:16:49.279 to the Philippians today 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:51.899 because Paul understood this. 00:16:54.019 --> 00:16:54.620 Paul understood 00:16:54.620 --> 00:16:55.439 that Jesus, 00:16:55.839 --> 00:16:57.480 Jesus has to be 00:16:57.480 --> 00:16:58.939 everything to us. 00:16:59.620 --> 00:17:00.399 He has to be 00:17:00.399 --> 00:17:01.519 everything to us. 00:17:01.659 --> 00:17:01.740 Like, 00:17:02.379 --> 00:17:03.759 Jesus plus nothing 00:17:03.759 --> 00:17:05.159 equals everything. 00:17:06.159 --> 00:17:07.200 And everything 00:17:07.200 --> 00:17:08.359 minus Jesus 00:17:08.359 --> 00:17:09.720 equals nothing. 00:17:10.619 --> 00:17:12.159 Jesus plus nothing 00:17:12.159 --> 00:17:12.940 equals everything, 00:17:12.940 --> 00:17:13.660 and everything 00:17:13.660 --> 00:17:14.580 minus Jesus 00:17:14.580 --> 00:17:15.759 equals nothing. 00:17:16.720 --> 00:17:17.580 Now listen again 00:17:17.580 --> 00:17:19.539 to these divinely inspired words 00:17:19.539 --> 00:17:20.840 from the Apostle Paul. 00:17:20.840 --> 00:17:23.740 But whatever gain I had, 00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:25.500 I counted as loss 00:17:25.500 --> 00:17:26.620 for the sake of Christ. 00:17:27.400 --> 00:17:27.860 Indeed, 00:17:28.480 --> 00:17:29.640 I count everything 00:17:29.640 --> 00:17:30.600 as loss 00:17:30.600 --> 00:17:32.320 because of the surpassing worth 00:17:32.320 --> 00:17:33.820 of knowing Christ Jesus, 00:17:34.320 --> 00:17:34.900 my Lord. 00:17:34.900 --> 00:17:35.000 Lord, 00:17:35.640 --> 00:17:36.640 for his sake, 00:17:37.140 --> 00:17:37.620 I have suffered 00:17:37.620 --> 00:17:38.019 the loss 00:17:38.019 --> 00:17:39.460 of all things 00:17:39.460 --> 00:17:40.880 and count them 00:17:40.880 --> 00:17:41.640 as rubbish 00:17:41.640 --> 00:17:43.660 in order that I may gain 00:17:43.660 --> 00:17:44.560 Christ 00:17:44.560 --> 00:17:46.660 and be found in him. 00:17:47.160 --> 00:17:48.280 Not having a righteousness 00:17:48.280 --> 00:17:49.060 of my own 00:17:49.060 --> 00:17:50.180 that comes from the law, 00:17:50.860 --> 00:17:51.660 but the righteousness 00:17:51.660 --> 00:17:52.620 from God 00:17:52.620 --> 00:17:53.660 that depends 00:17:53.660 --> 00:17:54.680 on faith, 00:17:55.240 --> 00:17:56.720 that I may know him 00:17:56.720 --> 00:17:58.200 and the power 00:17:58.200 --> 00:17:59.200 of his resurrection 00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:01.759 and may share 00:18:01.759 --> 00:18:02.700 his sufferings, 00:18:02.700 --> 00:18:04.380 becoming like him 00:18:04.380 --> 00:18:05.200 in his death, 00:18:06.299 --> 00:18:08.340 that by any means possible, 00:18:09.160 --> 00:18:10.100 I may attain 00:18:10.100 --> 00:18:11.059 the resurrection 00:18:11.059 --> 00:18:12.080 from the dead. 00:18:12.180 --> 00:18:13.039 Not that I have already 00:18:13.039 --> 00:18:13.640 obtained it 00:18:13.640 --> 00:18:14.860 or am already perfect, 00:18:15.500 --> 00:18:16.580 but I press on 00:18:16.580 --> 00:18:18.160 to make it my own 00:18:18.160 --> 00:18:19.880 because Christ Jesus 00:18:19.880 --> 00:18:20.860 has made me 00:18:20.860 --> 00:18:21.740 his own. 00:18:22.960 --> 00:18:23.259 Brothers, 00:18:23.360 --> 00:18:24.259 I do not consider 00:18:24.259 --> 00:18:25.720 that I have already 00:18:25.720 --> 00:18:26.940 made it my own, 00:18:27.019 --> 00:18:28.380 but one thing, 00:18:28.960 --> 00:18:30.640 one thing I do, 00:18:31.460 --> 00:18:32.259 forgetting what lies 00:18:32.259 --> 00:18:32.740 behind 00:18:32.740 --> 00:18:34.299 and straining forward 00:18:34.299 --> 00:18:35.980 to what lies ahead, 00:18:36.779 --> 00:18:37.859 I press on 00:18:37.859 --> 00:18:40.299 for the goal, 00:18:41.279 --> 00:18:42.099 toward the goal, 00:18:42.220 --> 00:18:42.980 for the prize 00:18:42.980 --> 00:18:44.619 of the upward call 00:18:44.619 --> 00:18:45.160 of God 00:18:45.160 --> 00:18:46.940 in Christ Jesus. 00:18:48.539 --> 00:18:49.359 Wow, right. 00:18:50.759 --> 00:18:51.819 That is the word 00:18:51.819 --> 00:18:52.299 of God. 00:18:54.039 --> 00:18:54.940 If you are not 00:18:54.940 --> 00:18:55.420 a Christian, 00:18:56.220 --> 00:18:57.839 I have no expectation 00:18:57.839 --> 00:18:59.440 that you would even 00:18:59.440 --> 00:19:00.220 remotely consider 00:19:00.220 --> 00:19:01.360 to take such words 00:19:01.360 --> 00:19:02.680 upon your lips. 00:19:03.759 --> 00:19:04.700 But if you are 00:19:04.700 --> 00:19:05.579 a Christian today, 00:19:06.360 --> 00:19:07.600 even as scary 00:19:07.600 --> 00:19:08.259 and radical 00:19:08.259 --> 00:19:09.240 and extreme 00:19:09.240 --> 00:19:10.500 as this sounds, 00:19:12.579 --> 00:19:13.220 doesn't it also 00:19:13.220 --> 00:19:13.880 sound right? 00:19:15.160 --> 00:19:15.860 Doesn't it also 00:19:15.860 --> 00:19:17.000 sound good? 00:19:18.039 --> 00:19:19.240 And even as far 00:19:19.240 --> 00:19:20.319 away from this sentiment 00:19:20.319 --> 00:19:21.799 as you might feel, 00:19:23.120 --> 00:19:24.279 don't you want to feel 00:19:24.279 --> 00:19:25.200 what Paul feels 00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:26.400 for Christ? 00:19:27.840 --> 00:19:28.799 Even if you 00:19:28.799 --> 00:19:30.220 don't identify 00:19:30.220 --> 00:19:30.920 with Christ, 00:19:31.039 --> 00:19:31.660 don't you want to feel 00:19:31.660 --> 00:19:32.440 this way about 00:19:32.440 --> 00:19:33.340 something? 00:19:35.420 --> 00:19:36.299 Something that you 00:19:36.299 --> 00:19:37.200 believe will change 00:19:37.200 --> 00:19:37.980 the world? 00:19:39.720 --> 00:19:40.360 I mean, Christchurch, 00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:41.420 can you imagine 00:19:41.420 --> 00:19:43.160 if we took these words 00:19:43.160 --> 00:19:44.299 upon our own lips 00:19:44.299 --> 00:19:45.519 and upon our hearts, 00:19:46.180 --> 00:19:47.980 if this high-achieving, 00:19:48.240 --> 00:19:49.440 highly educated, 00:19:49.580 --> 00:19:50.360 highly successful 00:19:50.360 --> 00:19:51.000 community 00:19:51.000 --> 00:19:52.759 of Jesus' followers, 00:19:52.759 --> 00:19:53.980 just two blocks 00:19:53.980 --> 00:19:55.180 north of the number 00:19:55.180 --> 00:19:56.319 one public university 00:19:56.319 --> 00:19:57.379 in the nation, 00:19:57.579 --> 00:19:58.119 Go Bears. 00:19:59.319 --> 00:20:00.599 Can you imagine 00:20:00.599 --> 00:20:01.640 what God might do 00:20:01.640 --> 00:20:02.779 in a family of faith 00:20:02.779 --> 00:20:04.140 who believed 00:20:04.140 --> 00:20:05.160 what Paul believed 00:20:05.160 --> 00:20:06.879 about Jesus Christ? 00:20:08.000 --> 00:20:08.839 These words 00:20:08.839 --> 00:20:10.220 are not just 00:20:10.220 --> 00:20:10.720 the words 00:20:10.720 --> 00:20:11.660 of a super saint, 00:20:11.779 --> 00:20:12.799 holy man, apostle. 00:20:14.000 --> 00:20:14.619 They were meant 00:20:14.619 --> 00:20:15.619 for our lips, 00:20:16.039 --> 00:20:16.960 for our hearts 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:17.819 as well. 00:20:17.920 --> 00:20:18.900 This is the kindling 00:20:18.900 --> 00:20:19.940 of revival, 00:20:20.059 --> 00:20:21.099 the stuff revival 00:20:21.099 --> 00:20:22.180 is made of. 00:20:22.759 --> 00:20:24.160 Can you just 00:20:24.160 --> 00:20:25.140 imagine with me 00:20:25.140 --> 00:20:26.920 what a witness 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:27.400 to the world 00:20:27.400 --> 00:20:28.200 we might be 00:20:28.200 --> 00:20:30.259 if we really believed 00:20:30.259 --> 00:20:31.379 that Jesus 00:20:31.379 --> 00:20:32.319 plus nothing 00:20:32.319 --> 00:20:33.579 equals everything 00:20:33.579 --> 00:20:35.220 and that everything 00:20:35.220 --> 00:20:36.160 minus Jesus 00:20:36.160 --> 00:20:37.700 equals nothing? 00:20:39.619 --> 00:20:40.960 Now maybe you're here 00:20:40.960 --> 00:20:41.640 and you're hesitant 00:20:41.640 --> 00:20:43.319 because you feel like 00:20:43.319 --> 00:20:44.019 you have too much 00:20:44.019 --> 00:20:44.579 to lose, 00:20:45.220 --> 00:20:46.420 but take it from Paul. 00:20:47.200 --> 00:20:48.220 He had it all 00:20:48.220 --> 00:20:49.740 and yet to him, 00:20:50.279 --> 00:20:51.500 Jesus was more. 00:20:51.500 --> 00:20:53.119 Verse 7, 00:20:53.799 --> 00:20:55.059 but whatever gain, 00:20:55.140 --> 00:20:56.119 like whatever successes 00:20:56.119 --> 00:20:57.059 and achievements 00:20:57.059 --> 00:20:58.200 and merits and profits 00:20:58.200 --> 00:20:59.000 and advantages 00:20:59.000 --> 00:21:00.420 I had, he says, 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:01.799 I counted as loss 00:21:01.799 --> 00:21:03.380 for the sake of Christ. 00:21:04.240 --> 00:21:04.700 Verse 8, 00:21:04.759 --> 00:21:05.740 indeed, he says, 00:21:05.960 --> 00:21:06.960 he counted everything 00:21:06.960 --> 00:21:07.480 as loss 00:21:07.480 --> 00:21:09.000 because the surpassing worth 00:21:09.000 --> 00:21:10.980 of knowing Christ Jesus 00:21:10.980 --> 00:21:12.279 as his Lord. 00:21:13.079 --> 00:21:14.099 And you have to understand 00:21:14.099 --> 00:21:14.839 that this was a man 00:21:14.839 --> 00:21:16.180 who had major gains, 00:21:16.539 --> 00:21:17.319 major advantages. 00:21:17.900 --> 00:21:18.960 The word for gain here 00:21:18.960 --> 00:21:19.400 is plural, 00:21:19.640 --> 00:21:20.500 major achievements, 00:21:20.740 --> 00:21:21.559 major merits. 00:21:21.680 --> 00:21:22.740 This was one of the greatest minds, 00:21:22.799 --> 00:21:24.100 if not the greatest mind 00:21:24.100 --> 00:21:26.180 in the first century ancient world. 00:21:26.819 --> 00:21:28.640 Perhaps the greatest Jewish scholar 00:21:28.640 --> 00:21:30.460 and adherent of all time. 00:21:31.340 --> 00:21:32.579 Nobody knew the Jewish faith 00:21:32.579 --> 00:21:33.380 better than Paul. 00:21:33.640 --> 00:21:35.400 Nobody lived the Jewish faith 00:21:35.400 --> 00:21:36.480 better than Paul. 00:21:37.480 --> 00:21:38.440 According to the metrics 00:21:38.440 --> 00:21:39.160 and the standards 00:21:39.160 --> 00:21:40.220 of his community 00:21:40.220 --> 00:21:41.500 and in the highest courts 00:21:41.500 --> 00:21:42.500 of Jewish opinion, 00:21:42.799 --> 00:21:44.200 Paul was at the very top. 00:21:44.200 --> 00:21:45.420 in education, 00:21:45.840 --> 00:21:46.319 in knowledge, 00:21:46.519 --> 00:21:47.039 in lifestyle, 00:21:47.180 --> 00:21:47.740 in reputation, 00:21:48.120 --> 00:21:48.660 in status, 00:21:48.940 --> 00:21:49.400 and passion, 00:21:49.600 --> 00:21:50.140 and integrity. 00:21:50.319 --> 00:21:51.500 He literally made it 00:21:51.500 --> 00:21:52.600 to the top of the ladder. 00:21:53.380 --> 00:21:55.180 He had actually achieved 00:21:55.180 --> 00:21:57.220 his highest life's ambitions. 00:21:58.259 --> 00:21:58.940 He made it. 00:21:59.660 --> 00:22:00.819 He had finally made his parents 00:22:00.819 --> 00:22:02.059 as proud as possible. 00:22:02.819 --> 00:22:03.920 He had finally won 00:22:03.920 --> 00:22:04.700 the highest respect 00:22:04.700 --> 00:22:06.319 of the most esteemed colleagues 00:22:06.319 --> 00:22:07.600 and peers and mentors. 00:22:08.400 --> 00:22:10.039 There is no higher status 00:22:10.039 --> 00:22:10.900 for him to achieve 00:22:10.900 --> 00:22:11.819 in his career 00:22:11.819 --> 00:22:12.740 and in his community. 00:22:12.880 --> 00:22:13.720 Can you imagine that? 00:22:13.720 --> 00:22:15.240 Being the most highly educated, 00:22:15.400 --> 00:22:17.360 most professionally successful, 00:22:17.500 --> 00:22:18.519 most reputable person 00:22:18.519 --> 00:22:19.140 in your community, 00:22:19.220 --> 00:22:19.920 the best doctor, 00:22:20.059 --> 00:22:20.339 lawyer, 00:22:20.539 --> 00:22:21.000 entrepreneur, 00:22:21.880 --> 00:22:22.420 academic, 00:22:22.880 --> 00:22:23.500 investor, 00:22:24.140 --> 00:22:24.600 executive, 00:22:24.880 --> 00:22:25.839 maybe on the cover 00:22:25.839 --> 00:22:27.279 of Forbes or Time Magazine, 00:22:27.480 --> 00:22:28.980 the expert of your field. 00:22:29.600 --> 00:22:31.660 And the most upstanding, 00:22:32.120 --> 00:22:32.539 upright, 00:22:32.720 --> 00:22:34.000 and admirable person at that, 00:22:34.059 --> 00:22:34.980 living up to the highest, 00:22:35.380 --> 00:22:36.360 most rigorous, 00:22:36.559 --> 00:22:36.799 moral, 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:38.279 and ethical standards, 00:22:39.339 --> 00:22:39.880 blameless, 00:22:40.019 --> 00:22:41.660 under the most intense scrutiny. 00:22:41.660 --> 00:22:44.060 This is who Apostle Paul was. 00:22:45.420 --> 00:22:46.080 And yet, 00:22:46.180 --> 00:22:47.259 for the sake of Christ, 00:22:48.320 --> 00:22:49.160 all those gains, 00:22:49.279 --> 00:22:50.880 whatever gains he had, 00:22:51.960 --> 00:22:54.259 he counted them as loss. 00:22:54.759 --> 00:22:57.340 Even the best things he had, 00:22:58.019 --> 00:22:58.720 as loss. 00:22:59.080 --> 00:23:00.840 Even as disadvantages. 00:23:02.720 --> 00:23:04.220 This superstar who had come 00:23:04.220 --> 00:23:05.500 into a position and status 00:23:05.500 --> 00:23:07.200 that most of us can only dream 00:23:07.200 --> 00:23:08.340 of arriving at, 00:23:08.339 --> 00:23:09.319 in which anyone else 00:23:09.319 --> 00:23:10.000 in his position 00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:12.679 could justifiably lord themselves 00:23:12.679 --> 00:23:13.740 over all those 00:23:13.740 --> 00:23:15.419 they'd surpassed in merit, 00:23:16.319 --> 00:23:17.619 he had discovered something, 00:23:18.419 --> 00:23:18.799 someone, 00:23:19.899 --> 00:23:20.740 even higher. 00:23:21.379 --> 00:23:22.539 A higher lord, 00:23:22.639 --> 00:23:24.119 far surpassing himself, 00:23:24.500 --> 00:23:25.240 Jesus Christ. 00:23:25.879 --> 00:23:27.079 A lord so high, 00:23:27.339 --> 00:23:28.539 so preeminent, 00:23:28.740 --> 00:23:29.480 that in comparison, 00:23:29.639 --> 00:23:30.779 all he ever achieved 00:23:30.779 --> 00:23:32.819 was nothing but loss 00:23:32.819 --> 00:23:33.839 and disadvantage, 00:23:34.220 --> 00:23:35.339 and even rubbish, 00:23:35.439 --> 00:23:35.819 he says. 00:23:35.819 --> 00:23:36.399 In the Greek, 00:23:36.799 --> 00:23:37.299 skubala, 00:23:38.179 --> 00:23:39.299 literally trash, 00:23:39.480 --> 00:23:41.460 or even human excrement. 00:23:42.939 --> 00:23:43.799 For Apostle Paul, 00:23:43.939 --> 00:23:44.919 Jesus plus nothing 00:23:44.919 --> 00:23:45.879 equaled everything, 00:23:46.299 --> 00:23:47.819 and everything minus Jesus 00:23:47.819 --> 00:23:49.139 equaled nothing. 00:23:49.859 --> 00:23:50.819 For Apostle Paul, 00:23:50.939 --> 00:23:51.919 knowing Jesus, 00:23:52.679 --> 00:23:54.000 fundamentally changed 00:23:54.000 --> 00:23:55.179 how he counted 00:23:55.179 --> 00:23:57.159 and evaluated himself 00:23:57.159 --> 00:23:58.179 and everything else. 00:23:59.399 --> 00:23:59.599 You see, 00:23:59.659 --> 00:24:00.980 Paul's eyes were opened 00:24:00.980 --> 00:24:02.079 by the Spirit of God 00:24:02.079 --> 00:24:03.399 to revalue 00:24:03.399 --> 00:24:04.480 all that he had once 00:24:04.480 --> 00:24:05.259 considered good 00:24:05.259 --> 00:24:06.179 and profitable 00:24:06.179 --> 00:24:07.799 and advantageous. 00:24:08.559 --> 00:24:09.819 That's what he's getting at here 00:24:09.819 --> 00:24:10.259 in verse 10 00:24:10.259 --> 00:24:10.819 when he talks about 00:24:10.819 --> 00:24:12.179 these two different kinds 00:24:12.179 --> 00:24:12.859 of righteousness. 00:24:13.819 --> 00:24:14.679 He talks about these 00:24:14.679 --> 00:24:15.339 two different kinds 00:24:15.339 --> 00:24:16.079 of righteousness, right? 00:24:16.439 --> 00:24:17.439 Not the kind of righteousness 00:24:17.439 --> 00:24:18.240 that comes from the law, 00:24:18.319 --> 00:24:18.859 but the righteousness 00:24:18.859 --> 00:24:20.199 that comes through faith 00:24:20.199 --> 00:24:20.879 in Jesus. 00:24:21.019 --> 00:24:22.359 And if this righteousness language 00:24:22.359 --> 00:24:24.039 is kind of unfamiliar to you, 00:24:24.079 --> 00:24:24.859 I love how Tim Keller 00:24:24.859 --> 00:24:25.359 describes it. 00:24:25.399 --> 00:24:25.720 He says, 00:24:25.720 --> 00:24:27.480 everybody has a slightly 00:24:27.480 --> 00:24:28.559 different set of things, 00:24:29.000 --> 00:24:29.900 but fundamentally, 00:24:30.160 --> 00:24:30.799 all of us seek 00:24:30.799 --> 00:24:32.160 to earn our own righteousness. 00:24:32.759 --> 00:24:34.059 All of us use a resume 00:24:34.059 --> 00:24:35.039 by which we seek 00:24:35.039 --> 00:24:35.960 to face the world, 00:24:36.339 --> 00:24:37.460 ourselves, and God. 00:24:37.500 --> 00:24:38.299 It's how we get in. 00:24:38.819 --> 00:24:39.319 Paul says, 00:24:39.400 --> 00:24:40.259 everybody does it. 00:24:40.519 --> 00:24:41.880 It's your most fundamental need. 00:24:42.140 --> 00:24:42.920 You know you're naked 00:24:42.920 --> 00:24:43.460 and you're trying 00:24:43.460 --> 00:24:44.380 to clothe yourself 00:24:44.380 --> 00:24:45.380 with your righteousness. 00:24:46.100 --> 00:24:46.920 You know in yourself 00:24:46.920 --> 00:24:48.180 you have to find some way 00:24:48.180 --> 00:24:49.259 to recommend yourself, 00:24:49.920 --> 00:24:50.519 and so you're trying 00:24:50.519 --> 00:24:51.220 to cover yourself 00:24:51.220 --> 00:24:52.100 with your resume. 00:24:52.839 --> 00:24:53.500 Adam and Eve 00:24:53.500 --> 00:24:54.519 put fig leaves on, 00:24:54.519 --> 00:24:56.000 but what those were 00:24:56.000 --> 00:24:56.619 were resumes. 00:24:57.259 --> 00:24:57.859 They have to cover 00:24:57.859 --> 00:24:58.660 their nakedness. 00:24:58.920 --> 00:24:59.420 They want to say, 00:24:59.619 --> 00:25:00.879 this is why you should accept me. 00:25:01.119 --> 00:25:02.139 We say that to God. 00:25:02.359 --> 00:25:03.400 We say that to the world. 00:25:03.599 --> 00:25:04.740 We even say it to ourselves. 00:25:05.019 --> 00:25:06.379 We all have a set. 00:25:06.779 --> 00:25:08.420 It's the most fundamental need 00:25:08.420 --> 00:25:09.700 we have, he says. 00:25:10.680 --> 00:25:11.480 For Paul, 00:25:12.220 --> 00:25:12.920 his righteousness 00:25:12.920 --> 00:25:14.680 was previously wrapped up 00:25:14.680 --> 00:25:16.299 in just being super Jewish, right? 00:25:16.379 --> 00:25:18.160 The Hebrew of Hebrews. 00:25:18.900 --> 00:25:19.940 That's where he placed 00:25:19.940 --> 00:25:20.539 his confidence. 00:25:20.740 --> 00:25:21.779 That's where he understood 00:25:21.779 --> 00:25:23.079 his value to be. 00:25:23.079 --> 00:25:24.699 in his knowledgeable, 00:25:25.279 --> 00:25:25.679 obedient, 00:25:25.939 --> 00:25:27.059 and zealous posture 00:25:27.059 --> 00:25:28.299 toward the religious law 00:25:28.299 --> 00:25:29.740 of the Jewish faith. 00:25:30.500 --> 00:25:32.139 And his resume was nice 00:25:32.139 --> 00:25:32.779 and it was clean 00:25:32.779 --> 00:25:33.980 and it was impressive. 00:25:35.059 --> 00:25:35.980 But how long 00:25:35.980 --> 00:25:36.779 could he sustain it? 00:25:37.659 --> 00:25:38.699 Could he keep the pace? 00:25:39.159 --> 00:25:39.679 Could he climb 00:25:39.679 --> 00:25:40.899 that ladder forever? 00:25:41.980 --> 00:25:42.980 And also I want to ask, 00:25:43.579 --> 00:25:44.279 what kind of person 00:25:44.279 --> 00:25:45.339 did it make him? 00:25:46.619 --> 00:25:47.480 Well, the kind of person 00:25:47.480 --> 00:25:48.259 that looked down 00:25:48.259 --> 00:25:49.559 on those who weren't 00:25:49.559 --> 00:25:50.960 as far up on the ladder 00:25:50.960 --> 00:25:51.740 as he was, right? 00:25:52.180 --> 00:25:52.819 The kind of person 00:25:52.819 --> 00:25:54.200 who went and persecuted 00:25:54.200 --> 00:25:55.299 and sought to kill 00:25:55.299 --> 00:25:56.539 those who he believed 00:25:56.539 --> 00:25:58.480 threatened his Jewish identity. 00:25:58.680 --> 00:25:59.539 Those who threatened 00:25:59.539 --> 00:26:00.380 his understanding 00:26:00.380 --> 00:26:01.860 of his own righteousness. 00:26:03.819 --> 00:26:05.120 But then he met Jesus. 00:26:06.120 --> 00:26:07.220 But then when he met Jesus, 00:26:07.340 --> 00:26:07.559 right, 00:26:08.100 --> 00:26:09.420 the standard of his confidence 00:26:09.420 --> 00:26:10.000 and value 00:26:10.000 --> 00:26:10.620 was completely, 00:26:10.700 --> 00:26:12.240 it was turned upside down. 00:26:12.940 --> 00:26:14.039 No longer depending 00:26:14.039 --> 00:26:15.039 upon his achievements 00:26:15.039 --> 00:26:16.480 and his merits 00:26:16.480 --> 00:26:17.879 and his Jewish identity, 00:26:18.579 --> 00:26:20.180 but rather on Jesus alone. 00:26:20.279 --> 00:26:21.720 He boldly transferred 00:26:21.720 --> 00:26:22.859 his faith 00:26:22.859 --> 00:26:24.960 from dependence upon himself 00:26:24.960 --> 00:26:25.879 and his own righteousness 00:26:25.879 --> 00:26:28.119 to dependence on Jesus 00:26:28.119 --> 00:26:30.480 and Jesus' righteousness. 00:26:31.500 --> 00:26:31.700 And see, 00:26:31.759 --> 00:26:32.539 this is the stuff 00:26:32.539 --> 00:26:34.720 that revivals are made of. 00:26:35.500 --> 00:26:36.259 The gospel. 00:26:37.299 --> 00:26:37.899 The gospel. 00:26:39.220 --> 00:26:39.619 Because you see, 00:26:39.779 --> 00:26:41.019 you have to understand 00:26:41.019 --> 00:26:42.960 how liberating this must have been 00:26:42.960 --> 00:26:43.860 for Apostle Paul. 00:26:44.680 --> 00:26:45.180 Yeah, sure, 00:26:45.299 --> 00:26:46.519 maybe he was on the top 00:26:46.519 --> 00:26:47.640 of the ladder at one point, 00:26:47.720 --> 00:26:48.079 but still, 00:26:48.160 --> 00:26:48.920 he was always just 00:26:48.920 --> 00:26:51.039 one bad homily, 00:26:51.259 --> 00:26:51.960 one bad sermon, 00:26:52.140 --> 00:26:53.519 one moral failure, 00:26:54.019 --> 00:26:55.240 one newer, smarter, 00:26:55.420 --> 00:26:56.759 better-read Pharisee 00:26:56.759 --> 00:26:59.200 away from being knocked off 00:26:59.200 --> 00:27:00.860 from the top of the ladder, right? 00:27:01.900 --> 00:27:03.860 When Jesus came into his life 00:27:03.860 --> 00:27:05.579 and radically changed 00:27:05.579 --> 00:27:07.340 how he valued everything 00:27:07.340 --> 00:27:09.000 he'd once prized, 00:27:09.480 --> 00:27:10.539 you see what happened here? 00:27:11.360 --> 00:27:12.940 He was actually liberated 00:27:12.940 --> 00:27:14.559 when he repented 00:27:14.559 --> 00:27:16.039 of his righteousness. 00:27:17.059 --> 00:27:18.039 He was liberated 00:27:18.039 --> 00:27:18.799 when he repented 00:27:18.799 --> 00:27:19.440 of his righteousness, 00:27:19.559 --> 00:27:20.279 when he repented 00:27:20.279 --> 00:27:21.259 of all his dependence 00:27:21.259 --> 00:27:22.460 upon all his goodness 00:27:22.460 --> 00:27:23.200 and his smarts 00:27:23.200 --> 00:27:23.920 and his achievements. 00:27:24.759 --> 00:27:26.120 It was only when he changed 00:27:26.120 --> 00:27:26.700 the scales 00:27:26.700 --> 00:27:28.080 by which he once measured 00:27:28.080 --> 00:27:29.400 and evaluated all things 00:27:29.400 --> 00:27:31.380 and adopted God's scales 00:27:31.380 --> 00:27:32.259 instead of his own. 00:27:33.320 --> 00:27:34.299 It was only then 00:27:34.299 --> 00:27:35.180 that he could really come 00:27:35.180 --> 00:27:36.019 to know Christ 00:27:36.019 --> 00:27:37.900 for who he really was. 00:27:38.019 --> 00:27:39.080 And as it says in verse 11, 00:27:39.400 --> 00:27:40.860 the power of his resurrection. 00:27:40.859 --> 00:27:43.359 See, Paul had to die 00:27:43.359 --> 00:27:45.419 to the old value system 00:27:45.419 --> 00:27:46.719 he had given everything 00:27:46.719 --> 00:27:47.939 to win at. 00:27:48.899 --> 00:27:49.839 And yet it was precisely 00:27:49.839 --> 00:27:51.379 when Paul died to himself, 00:27:51.639 --> 00:27:52.379 putting to death 00:27:52.379 --> 00:27:54.099 all he had previously worked for, 00:27:55.139 --> 00:27:55.899 that he was able 00:27:55.899 --> 00:27:56.859 to experience 00:27:56.859 --> 00:27:59.199 the resurrection power 00:27:59.199 --> 00:28:00.619 of Jesus Christ. 00:28:01.619 --> 00:28:03.379 Gladly sharing in his sufferings, 00:28:03.879 --> 00:28:04.779 becoming like him 00:28:04.779 --> 00:28:05.579 in his death. 00:28:05.699 --> 00:28:06.179 So what? 00:28:06.899 --> 00:28:08.319 By any means possible, 00:28:08.319 --> 00:28:09.319 Paul attaining 00:28:09.319 --> 00:28:10.399 to the resurrection 00:28:10.399 --> 00:28:11.559 from the dead. 00:28:12.099 --> 00:28:13.179 And maybe you're here today 00:28:13.179 --> 00:28:14.279 and you can't make up your mind. 00:28:15.000 --> 00:28:16.039 You want to know Jesus 00:28:16.039 --> 00:28:16.919 a little bit more, 00:28:17.000 --> 00:28:17.679 but you don't want 00:28:17.679 --> 00:28:18.779 to go so deep, right? 00:28:18.819 --> 00:28:19.519 You're afraid 00:28:19.519 --> 00:28:20.480 that you'll lose everything 00:28:20.480 --> 00:28:21.700 just like Paul did. 00:28:22.279 --> 00:28:23.220 And you're not sure 00:28:23.220 --> 00:28:23.759 if you're ready 00:28:23.759 --> 00:28:24.700 to go that far. 00:28:25.220 --> 00:28:25.960 You've climbed up 00:28:25.960 --> 00:28:27.000 the ladder pretty far, 00:28:27.559 --> 00:28:28.799 invested too much 00:28:28.799 --> 00:28:29.779 in your own righteousness 00:28:29.779 --> 00:28:30.799 to throw it all away. 00:28:31.619 --> 00:28:32.700 You've done well 00:28:32.700 --> 00:28:33.179 for yourself. 00:28:33.279 --> 00:28:34.259 You played the game well 00:28:34.259 --> 00:28:35.240 and you're quite proud 00:28:35.240 --> 00:28:36.660 of your resume. 00:28:37.980 --> 00:28:38.579 But the question 00:28:38.579 --> 00:28:39.420 I want to ask you 00:28:39.420 --> 00:28:40.680 is how are you handling 00:28:40.680 --> 00:28:42.599 the anxiety 00:28:42.599 --> 00:28:43.759 of that one 00:28:43.759 --> 00:28:44.839 personal failure, 00:28:45.319 --> 00:28:46.299 that one accident 00:28:46.299 --> 00:28:47.900 on the surgery table, 00:28:48.000 --> 00:28:48.680 that one flawed 00:28:48.680 --> 00:28:49.420 legal argument, 00:28:49.579 --> 00:28:51.079 that one bad investment, 00:28:51.240 --> 00:28:52.960 that one bad business decision, 00:28:53.099 --> 00:28:54.480 that one bad exam score 00:28:54.480 --> 00:28:55.920 that haunts you? 00:28:57.079 --> 00:28:58.160 And another question, 00:28:58.700 --> 00:28:59.539 what are you going to do 00:28:59.539 --> 00:29:01.019 if and when 00:29:01.019 --> 00:29:02.500 you fall from the ladder? 00:29:02.500 --> 00:29:05.019 What guarantee do you have 00:29:05.019 --> 00:29:05.640 that you can 00:29:05.640 --> 00:29:07.759 and will rise again? 00:29:09.460 --> 00:29:10.579 I was actually reminded 00:29:10.579 --> 00:29:11.440 of this ladder image 00:29:11.440 --> 00:29:12.319 by one of my best friends 00:29:12.319 --> 00:29:12.960 in seminary. 00:29:13.420 --> 00:29:14.420 Her name is Esther Liu 00:29:14.420 --> 00:29:15.079 and she's coming out 00:29:15.079 --> 00:29:16.559 with a book next month 00:29:16.559 --> 00:29:17.460 that I have been able 00:29:17.460 --> 00:29:18.240 to read in advance. 00:29:18.339 --> 00:29:18.940 It's called Shame, 00:29:19.359 --> 00:29:20.339 Being Known and Loved 00:29:20.339 --> 00:29:21.380 and I highly recommend it. 00:29:21.420 --> 00:29:22.420 You can pre-order it now. 00:29:23.940 --> 00:29:25.119 But borrowing from 00:29:25.119 --> 00:29:26.339 our late great professor, 00:29:26.460 --> 00:29:27.079 David Pallison, 00:29:27.680 --> 00:29:28.480 she writes this, 00:29:28.480 --> 00:29:31.279 Each ladder represents 00:29:31.279 --> 00:29:32.819 a standard we live by, 00:29:33.360 --> 00:29:34.940 whether it be physical beauty, 00:29:35.559 --> 00:29:36.079 intelligence, 00:29:36.680 --> 00:29:37.599 ministry success, 00:29:37.839 --> 00:29:38.759 or something else. 00:29:39.279 --> 00:29:40.240 The higher you are 00:29:40.240 --> 00:29:40.779 on the ladder, 00:29:40.860 --> 00:29:41.460 the better you feel 00:29:41.460 --> 00:29:42.039 about yourself. 00:29:42.440 --> 00:29:43.380 The lower you are, 00:29:43.500 --> 00:29:44.559 the more you feel resigned 00:29:44.559 --> 00:29:45.480 to a lesser, 00:29:45.860 --> 00:29:46.740 shame-filled life. 00:29:47.240 --> 00:29:48.039 We tend to look 00:29:48.039 --> 00:29:49.240 at the people above us 00:29:49.240 --> 00:29:49.839 on our ladders 00:29:49.839 --> 00:29:51.420 and feel self-condemnation 00:29:51.420 --> 00:29:52.039 or envy. 00:29:52.640 --> 00:29:53.500 We look at the people 00:29:53.500 --> 00:29:54.380 far below us 00:29:54.380 --> 00:29:55.120 and feel superior, 00:29:55.279 --> 00:29:56.140 even judgmental. 00:29:56.660 --> 00:29:57.460 We look at the people 00:29:57.460 --> 00:29:58.380 right under us 00:29:58.380 --> 00:29:59.040 and worry that they 00:29:59.040 --> 00:30:00.160 might surpass us. 00:30:01.300 --> 00:30:02.120 And then she writes, 00:30:02.720 --> 00:30:03.440 Ladder climbing 00:30:03.440 --> 00:30:04.420 doesn't ultimately 00:30:04.420 --> 00:30:05.780 deliver on its promises. 00:30:06.660 --> 00:30:07.340 It doesn't provide 00:30:07.340 --> 00:30:08.660 true and abiding freedom, 00:30:09.040 --> 00:30:09.280 peace, 00:30:09.360 --> 00:30:10.080 and contentment, 00:30:10.320 --> 00:30:11.080 even if you reach 00:30:11.080 --> 00:30:11.740 the top. 00:30:12.240 --> 00:30:13.080 That's why Pallison 00:30:13.080 --> 00:30:13.780 calls these 00:30:13.780 --> 00:30:14.440 the ladders 00:30:14.440 --> 00:30:15.340 to nowhere. 00:30:16.260 --> 00:30:17.260 That's why I often 00:30:17.260 --> 00:30:18.140 call ladder climbing 00:30:18.140 --> 00:30:18.980 the ladder game 00:30:18.980 --> 00:30:19.600 of hell, 00:30:19.660 --> 00:30:20.200 because there is 00:30:20.200 --> 00:30:21.020 something hellish 00:30:21.020 --> 00:30:22.700 about this self-reliant, 00:30:23.020 --> 00:30:23.920 anxious striving 00:30:23.920 --> 00:30:24.480 that does not 00:30:24.480 --> 00:30:25.780 ultimately rescue you 00:30:25.780 --> 00:30:26.660 from shame. 00:30:26.660 --> 00:30:28.040 Some of us 00:30:28.040 --> 00:30:28.800 are working hard 00:30:28.800 --> 00:30:29.519 to climb ladders 00:30:29.519 --> 00:30:30.360 but are losing hope. 00:30:30.620 --> 00:30:31.040 Some of us 00:30:31.040 --> 00:30:31.700 have given up, 00:30:31.940 --> 00:30:32.880 resigned to our shame. 00:30:33.180 --> 00:30:33.759 Others of us 00:30:33.759 --> 00:30:34.480 may have made it 00:30:34.480 --> 00:30:35.279 relatively high 00:30:35.279 --> 00:30:35.840 on our ladders 00:30:35.840 --> 00:30:36.720 only to find 00:30:36.720 --> 00:30:37.940 our sense of insecurity 00:30:37.940 --> 00:30:39.279 isn't cured up there. 00:30:40.100 --> 00:30:40.320 But, 00:30:40.420 --> 00:30:40.960 she writes, 00:30:41.720 --> 00:30:42.660 but knowing God, 00:30:43.220 --> 00:30:44.220 being in relationship 00:30:44.220 --> 00:30:44.779 with Him, 00:30:45.300 --> 00:30:46.320 and praising Him 00:30:46.320 --> 00:30:47.040 help us 00:30:47.040 --> 00:30:47.900 to step off 00:30:47.900 --> 00:30:48.620 our ladders 00:30:48.620 --> 00:30:49.519 to nowhere. 00:30:49.519 --> 00:30:51.460 So, 00:30:51.559 --> 00:30:52.259 if you have ears 00:30:52.259 --> 00:30:52.700 to hear, 00:30:53.599 --> 00:30:54.440 God's word to us 00:30:54.440 --> 00:30:54.900 today is that 00:30:54.900 --> 00:30:55.839 we will only ever 00:30:55.839 --> 00:30:57.220 experience the 00:30:57.220 --> 00:30:58.039 imperishable 00:30:58.039 --> 00:30:59.299 resurrection life 00:30:59.299 --> 00:30:59.960 of Christ 00:30:59.960 --> 00:31:01.299 if we will die 00:31:01.299 --> 00:31:01.740 with Him 00:31:01.740 --> 00:31:02.940 to the faulty 00:31:02.940 --> 00:31:03.900 systems of this 00:31:03.900 --> 00:31:04.519 world that only 00:31:04.519 --> 00:31:05.299 oppress us 00:31:05.299 --> 00:31:06.339 and leave us 00:31:06.339 --> 00:31:07.660 eternally anxious. 00:31:08.879 --> 00:31:10.160 Jesus invites us 00:31:10.160 --> 00:31:11.000 to step off 00:31:11.000 --> 00:31:11.779 of our hellish 00:31:11.779 --> 00:31:12.900 ladders to nowhere 00:31:12.900 --> 00:31:13.539 and to receive 00:31:13.539 --> 00:31:14.139 the righteousness 00:31:14.139 --> 00:31:15.859 that comes from God, 00:31:16.440 --> 00:31:17.559 that depends on faith 00:31:17.559 --> 00:31:18.319 and not on ourselves, 00:31:18.319 --> 00:31:19.399 and this is 00:31:19.399 --> 00:31:20.240 the gospel. 00:31:21.399 --> 00:31:22.139 That Christ's 00:31:22.139 --> 00:31:22.500 resurrection 00:31:22.500 --> 00:31:23.319 can be for us 00:31:23.319 --> 00:31:24.059 because His death 00:31:24.059 --> 00:31:24.740 was for us. 00:31:24.879 --> 00:31:25.740 That by faith alone 00:31:25.740 --> 00:31:26.579 we can be united 00:31:26.579 --> 00:31:26.980 with Him 00:31:26.980 --> 00:31:28.119 in both His death 00:31:28.119 --> 00:31:29.519 and His resurrection. 00:31:31.299 --> 00:31:31.500 Now, 00:31:31.500 --> 00:31:32.500 I want to close 00:31:32.500 --> 00:31:33.000 by looking at 00:31:33.000 --> 00:31:33.819 the last three 00:31:33.819 --> 00:31:34.460 verses here. 00:31:35.279 --> 00:31:35.439 You know, 00:31:35.500 --> 00:31:36.700 a common misconception 00:31:36.700 --> 00:31:37.619 that our faith 00:31:37.619 --> 00:31:38.099 in Christ, 00:31:38.480 --> 00:31:39.419 a common misconception 00:31:39.419 --> 00:31:40.539 is that our faith 00:31:40.539 --> 00:31:41.279 in Christ 00:31:41.279 --> 00:31:42.259 is simply a passive 00:31:42.259 --> 00:31:42.619 thing. 00:31:43.220 --> 00:31:44.139 Like just hopping 00:31:44.139 --> 00:31:44.899 on a surfboard 00:31:44.899 --> 00:31:45.639 and riding the wave 00:31:45.639 --> 00:31:46.159 to the shore. 00:31:47.339 --> 00:31:47.839 But while our 00:31:47.839 --> 00:31:48.579 faithfulness could 00:31:48.579 --> 00:31:49.579 never earn 00:31:49.579 --> 00:31:50.359 or merit 00:31:50.359 --> 00:31:51.079 or put God 00:31:51.079 --> 00:31:52.039 into our debt, 00:31:52.419 --> 00:31:53.339 our faithfulness 00:31:53.339 --> 00:31:54.299 and our pressing 00:31:54.299 --> 00:31:54.899 onward, 00:31:55.000 --> 00:31:55.879 straining to go 00:31:55.879 --> 00:31:56.939 deeper with Christ, 00:31:57.720 --> 00:31:58.679 it's always assumed 00:31:58.679 --> 00:32:00.659 in a genuine faith. 00:32:01.399 --> 00:32:02.299 That's why Paul says 00:32:02.299 --> 00:32:02.879 in verse 12, 00:32:02.880 --> 00:32:04.160 even with His faith 00:32:04.160 --> 00:32:04.620 in Christ, 00:32:04.840 --> 00:32:05.580 not that I have 00:32:05.580 --> 00:32:06.580 already obtained it 00:32:06.580 --> 00:32:07.680 or am already perfect, 00:32:08.300 --> 00:32:09.300 but I press on 00:32:09.300 --> 00:32:10.780 to make it my own 00:32:10.780 --> 00:32:11.460 because Jesus 00:32:11.460 --> 00:32:13.160 has made me His own. 00:32:13.700 --> 00:32:13.940 Brothers, 00:32:14.040 --> 00:32:14.780 I do not consider 00:32:14.780 --> 00:32:15.780 that I have already 00:32:15.780 --> 00:32:17.140 made it my own, 00:32:17.460 --> 00:32:18.420 but one thing I do. 00:32:19.280 --> 00:32:19.720 One thing. 00:32:19.760 --> 00:32:20.320 I just love that. 00:32:20.440 --> 00:32:21.240 Just one thing. 00:32:21.340 --> 00:32:21.480 Again, 00:32:21.520 --> 00:32:22.240 it's so simple, 00:32:22.620 --> 00:32:23.460 but it's absolute 00:32:23.460 --> 00:32:24.540 and totalizing, right? 00:32:25.180 --> 00:32:26.780 Like what is our one thing, 00:32:27.020 --> 00:32:27.640 whether you claim 00:32:27.640 --> 00:32:28.800 to know Jesus or not? 00:32:28.840 --> 00:32:29.640 What is the one thing 00:32:29.640 --> 00:32:30.520 you resolve to do? 00:32:31.039 --> 00:32:31.859 The one goal, 00:32:31.940 --> 00:32:33.079 the one prize you're after. 00:32:33.180 --> 00:32:33.779 Here's what Paul, 00:32:34.160 --> 00:32:35.339 inspired by the Holy Spirit, 00:32:35.740 --> 00:32:36.539 commends to us. 00:32:37.079 --> 00:32:37.980 One thing I do, 00:32:38.079 --> 00:32:38.720 verse 13, 00:32:39.639 --> 00:32:41.039 forgetting what lies behind 00:32:41.039 --> 00:32:42.639 and straining forward 00:32:42.639 --> 00:32:44.279 to what lies ahead. 00:32:44.339 --> 00:32:45.139 I press on 00:32:45.139 --> 00:32:46.339 toward the goal 00:32:46.339 --> 00:32:47.259 for the prize 00:32:47.259 --> 00:32:48.920 of the upward call of God 00:32:48.920 --> 00:32:49.720 in Christ Jesus. 00:32:50.920 --> 00:32:51.579 So Christ Church, 00:32:51.680 --> 00:32:52.740 as we seek revival, 00:32:53.519 --> 00:32:54.900 it is absolutely true 00:32:54.900 --> 00:32:55.799 that we cannot force 00:32:55.799 --> 00:32:56.420 the hand of God. 00:32:56.420 --> 00:32:57.740 We cannot manufacture 00:32:57.740 --> 00:32:58.420 a revival 00:32:58.420 --> 00:32:59.460 by our manipulative 00:32:59.460 --> 00:33:01.079 techniques. 00:33:02.000 --> 00:33:03.180 And it is absolutely true 00:33:03.180 --> 00:33:05.140 that the resurrection life 00:33:05.140 --> 00:33:06.380 we long to enjoy 00:33:06.380 --> 00:33:07.440 and experience 00:33:07.440 --> 00:33:09.220 can only be received 00:33:09.220 --> 00:33:10.000 by faith. 00:33:11.120 --> 00:33:12.420 But while we depend 00:33:12.420 --> 00:33:13.759 fully on the work of God 00:33:13.759 --> 00:33:14.460 to bring about 00:33:14.460 --> 00:33:15.360 this revival 00:33:15.360 --> 00:33:16.259 and to draw us 00:33:16.259 --> 00:33:17.840 into his resurrection life, 00:33:18.440 --> 00:33:19.759 we don't just passively 00:33:19.759 --> 00:33:21.000 sit our butts 00:33:21.000 --> 00:33:22.100 on our surfboards 00:33:22.100 --> 00:33:23.279 bobbing up and down 00:33:23.279 --> 00:33:24.579 in the open waters 00:33:24.579 --> 00:33:25.180 of the ocean. 00:33:25.900 --> 00:33:26.420 No. 00:33:27.039 --> 00:33:28.360 We get on our bellies 00:33:28.359 --> 00:33:29.479 and we paddle 00:33:29.479 --> 00:33:31.259 along with the waves 00:33:31.259 --> 00:33:31.919 that are headed 00:33:31.919 --> 00:33:32.479 to the shore. 00:33:33.359 --> 00:33:34.319 And we take risks 00:33:34.319 --> 00:33:35.799 and we stand up, 00:33:36.219 --> 00:33:37.139 straining forward 00:33:37.139 --> 00:33:37.679 to enjoy 00:33:37.679 --> 00:33:39.199 the full experience 00:33:39.199 --> 00:33:40.759 of riding the wave 00:33:40.759 --> 00:33:42.179 of God's Spirit. 00:33:43.519 --> 00:33:44.799 Don't you want that? 00:33:45.799 --> 00:33:46.679 Don't you want that? 00:33:47.679 --> 00:33:48.579 The Lord Jesus 00:33:48.579 --> 00:33:49.959 has made us his own. 00:33:50.500 --> 00:33:51.579 So let's press on 00:33:51.579 --> 00:33:53.419 to make him our own, 00:33:53.740 --> 00:33:54.819 no matter the cost. 00:33:54.819 --> 00:33:56.359 For if Jesus 00:33:56.359 --> 00:33:57.359 has suffered the loss 00:33:57.359 --> 00:33:58.119 of all things 00:33:58.119 --> 00:33:58.799 unto death 00:33:58.799 --> 00:34:00.000 to secure for us 00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:00.939 an imperishable 00:34:00.939 --> 00:34:02.559 resurrection life, 00:34:02.899 --> 00:34:04.339 surely it is worth it 00:34:04.339 --> 00:34:04.899 for us 00:34:04.899 --> 00:34:06.579 to count all our gains 00:34:06.579 --> 00:34:07.159 as loss, 00:34:07.539 --> 00:34:08.940 everything as rubbish, 00:34:09.019 --> 00:34:10.059 to share in his sufferings, 00:34:10.259 --> 00:34:11.099 becoming like him 00:34:11.099 --> 00:34:11.960 in his death, 00:34:12.059 --> 00:34:13.179 that we may know him 00:34:13.179 --> 00:34:15.039 and by any means 00:34:15.039 --> 00:34:15.799 possible 00:34:15.799 --> 00:34:17.279 that we may know 00:34:17.279 --> 00:34:17.880 the power 00:34:17.880 --> 00:34:19.319 of his resurrection. 00:34:20.460 --> 00:34:20.759 Christchurch, 00:34:20.840 --> 00:34:21.460 this is a season 00:34:21.460 --> 00:34:22.460 to lean in, 00:34:23.059 --> 00:34:23.739 to lean in, 00:34:23.739 --> 00:34:24.239 to revival, 00:34:24.379 --> 00:34:25.359 to lean into the rhythms 00:34:25.359 --> 00:34:27.219 of the church together, 00:34:28.000 --> 00:34:29.559 to seek the face of God, 00:34:30.279 --> 00:34:31.559 that we may know him 00:34:31.559 --> 00:34:32.819 and the power 00:34:32.819 --> 00:34:34.079 of his resurrection. 00:34:35.239 --> 00:34:36.039 Will you pray with me? 00:34:39.919 --> 00:34:40.799 Lord God, 00:34:40.879 --> 00:34:42.000 make this our prayer 00:34:42.000 --> 00:34:43.159 that we may know you, 00:34:44.319 --> 00:34:44.899 that we may count 00:34:44.899 --> 00:34:45.959 everything as rubbish. 00:34:46.099 --> 00:34:46.839 Put these words 00:34:46.839 --> 00:34:47.799 upon our lips 00:34:47.799 --> 00:34:48.579 and our hearts. 00:34:48.699 --> 00:34:49.359 Give us a yearning 00:34:49.359 --> 00:34:50.199 to know Christ 00:34:50.199 --> 00:34:51.179 and the power 00:34:51.179 --> 00:34:51.979 of his resurrection. 00:34:51.980 --> 00:34:53.579 give us a willingness 00:34:53.579 --> 00:34:54.460 to count everything 00:34:54.460 --> 00:34:55.099 as rubbish 00:34:55.099 --> 00:34:56.519 compared to the surpassing 00:34:56.519 --> 00:34:57.579 worth of knowing him. 00:34:59.059 --> 00:34:59.400 God, 00:34:59.460 --> 00:35:00.059 some of us here 00:35:00.059 --> 00:35:01.219 do not yet know Christ. 00:35:01.400 --> 00:35:02.619 I pray that they would 00:35:02.619 --> 00:35:03.440 come to know him 00:35:03.440 --> 00:35:04.280 and the power 00:35:04.280 --> 00:35:05.079 of his resurrection. 00:35:06.240 --> 00:35:06.460 And God, 00:35:06.519 --> 00:35:07.099 some of us here 00:35:07.099 --> 00:35:08.280 may not even know 00:35:08.280 --> 00:35:09.579 we don't actually know 00:35:09.579 --> 00:35:10.240 Christ. 00:35:10.920 --> 00:35:11.420 Some of us here 00:35:11.420 --> 00:35:12.179 might be confusing 00:35:12.179 --> 00:35:13.559 knowledge about him 00:35:13.559 --> 00:35:15.019 with a personal relationship 00:35:15.019 --> 00:35:15.880 with him. 00:35:16.679 --> 00:35:17.300 And so I pray 00:35:17.300 --> 00:35:17.940 that you would reveal 00:35:17.940 --> 00:35:18.820 that to us today. 00:35:19.420 --> 00:35:20.460 That we would all heed 00:35:20.460 --> 00:35:21.119 your invitation 00:35:21.119 --> 00:35:22.340 to strain forward, 00:35:22.420 --> 00:35:23.079 to take hold 00:35:23.079 --> 00:35:23.559 of the one 00:35:23.559 --> 00:35:24.740 who has taken hold 00:35:24.740 --> 00:35:25.440 of us. 00:35:26.420 --> 00:35:26.599 Lord, 00:35:26.679 --> 00:35:27.760 I pray for those 00:35:27.760 --> 00:35:28.360 who need to hear 00:35:28.360 --> 00:35:29.000 your commands 00:35:29.000 --> 00:35:30.539 to forget what lies behind. 00:35:31.179 --> 00:35:31.699 Those of us 00:35:31.699 --> 00:35:32.420 who are depending 00:35:32.420 --> 00:35:33.519 on our own righteousness, 00:35:33.760 --> 00:35:35.139 confident in our own goodness, 00:35:35.240 --> 00:35:36.099 or maybe relying 00:35:36.099 --> 00:35:37.720 on some past experience 00:35:37.720 --> 00:35:38.139 with you, 00:35:38.199 --> 00:35:38.820 but not currently 00:35:38.820 --> 00:35:39.559 walking with you, 00:35:39.860 --> 00:35:40.420 straining forward 00:35:40.420 --> 00:35:41.460 to what lies ahead. 00:35:42.980 --> 00:35:43.320 Oh Lord, 00:35:43.460 --> 00:35:44.199 stir us up 00:35:44.199 --> 00:35:45.280 to strain forward, 00:35:45.380 --> 00:35:46.099 to press on 00:35:46.099 --> 00:35:47.260 for the precious prize 00:35:47.260 --> 00:35:48.880 of just being near to you, 00:35:48.880 --> 00:35:50.880 experiencing more 00:35:50.880 --> 00:35:51.460 of you. 00:35:53.160 --> 00:35:53.480 And God, 00:35:53.559 --> 00:35:53.820 lastly, 00:35:53.860 --> 00:35:54.280 I want to pray 00:35:54.280 --> 00:35:55.200 for those of us here 00:35:55.200 --> 00:35:56.460 who need to hear 00:35:56.460 --> 00:35:57.579 your permission. 00:35:58.440 --> 00:35:59.300 Your permission 00:35:59.300 --> 00:35:59.940 to forget 00:35:59.940 --> 00:36:00.860 what lies behind. 00:36:02.019 --> 00:36:02.720 Those of us 00:36:02.720 --> 00:36:03.880 who have fallen off 00:36:03.880 --> 00:36:04.500 of our ladders 00:36:04.500 --> 00:36:05.140 more times 00:36:05.140 --> 00:36:05.940 than we can count. 00:36:06.960 --> 00:36:07.460 Those of us 00:36:07.460 --> 00:36:08.380 who hear nothing 00:36:08.380 --> 00:36:09.160 but the lies 00:36:09.160 --> 00:36:09.980 of the evil one 00:36:09.980 --> 00:36:11.079 and our self-condemning 00:36:11.079 --> 00:36:11.900 hearts telling us 00:36:11.900 --> 00:36:12.840 that we can never 00:36:12.840 --> 00:36:14.119 take hold of this prize 00:36:14.119 --> 00:36:15.000 that is union 00:36:15.000 --> 00:36:15.539 and communion 00:36:15.539 --> 00:36:16.460 with Christ Jesus. 00:36:16.760 --> 00:36:17.280 Oh Lord, 00:36:17.280 --> 00:36:19.220 help us to forget 00:36:19.220 --> 00:36:19.900 all of that, 00:36:20.680 --> 00:36:21.600 to leave it all 00:36:21.600 --> 00:36:22.240 behind us 00:36:22.240 --> 00:36:22.900 and to jump 00:36:22.900 --> 00:36:23.860 off our ladders 00:36:23.860 --> 00:36:25.140 into your arms 00:36:25.140 --> 00:36:27.640 that we might experience 00:36:27.640 --> 00:36:29.620 how you have already 00:36:29.620 --> 00:36:30.680 taken hold of us 00:36:30.680 --> 00:36:32.560 and would that only 00:36:32.560 --> 00:36:33.320 drive us deeper 00:36:33.320 --> 00:36:34.240 into your embrace, 00:36:34.440 --> 00:36:34.580 Lord. 00:36:35.460 --> 00:36:36.180 We pray this 00:36:36.180 --> 00:36:36.860 in the mighty name 00:36:36.860 --> 00:36:37.280 of Jesus. 00:36:38.320 --> 00:36:38.580 Amen.