WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.980 Father, we thank you that we can open your word in peace and security. 00:00:04.440 --> 00:00:10.320 Lord, the danger for us isn't persecution from outside, but it is a cold and apathetic heart. 00:00:10.700 --> 00:00:16.100 ! Lord, we pray that by your Holy Spirit you will enliven our hearts, that we may hear with spiritual ears, 00:00:16.420 --> 00:00:20.620 that we would submit to your word with joy and gladness. 00:00:21.339 --> 00:00:26.000 Lord, please remind us afresh this morning that you are with us. 00:00:26.199 --> 00:00:27.379 You are the God that is close. 00:00:27.379 --> 00:00:31.619 You desire to make your home with your people, and you have done so in your Son. 00:00:32.219 --> 00:00:34.719 We pray all of this in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:00:35.700 --> 00:00:39.619 Every religion has its sacred places and holy cities. 00:00:40.759 --> 00:00:44.000 Islam requires followers to perform the Hajj in Mecca. 00:00:45.399 --> 00:00:51.340 The Hindu pilgrims visit Varanasi and the River Ganges. 00:00:52.679 --> 00:00:56.920 Buddhists travel to a location where the Buddha attained enlightenment. 00:00:57.720 --> 00:00:59.700 Golfers go to St. Andrews in Scotland. 00:01:01.940 --> 00:01:04.120 Why do people travel to these sites? 00:01:05.120 --> 00:01:08.120 Is there a heightened sense of spirituality involved? 00:01:08.379 --> 00:01:11.400 If you've been on a pilgrimage, I'd love to hear your story afterwards. 00:01:11.400 --> 00:01:13.340 Is there an aura that is felt? 00:01:14.080 --> 00:01:16.120 What's the significance of holy places? 00:01:17.560 --> 00:01:22.600 And what does there, what seems to be universality in the human tradition, 00:01:22.880 --> 00:01:28.360 reveal to us about our need to connect with the divine? 00:01:28.359 --> 00:01:32.060 We're continuing our series in the Psalms. 00:01:32.219 --> 00:01:34.439 This summer, we're looking at the Psalms of Ascent. 00:01:35.180 --> 00:01:38.159 And we'll be looking at Psalm 122 this morning, 00:01:38.319 --> 00:01:43.459 the psalm that celebrates the holy city of Jerusalem and the house of the Lord, 00:01:44.019 --> 00:01:44.879 which was at its center. 00:01:45.319 --> 00:01:49.019 It was the place of worship for God's people where they would gather. 00:01:49.019 --> 00:01:53.879 I mean, the Psalms of Ascent, they're a series of pilgrimage psalms 00:01:53.879 --> 00:01:59.000 where the people three times a year would travel to Jerusalem. 00:01:59.199 --> 00:02:03.459 It was the place where joy and gladness and peace were experienced. 00:02:04.199 --> 00:02:08.439 It was a place where God's glory and presence dwelt. 00:02:08.439 --> 00:02:18.460 However, the temple and much of Jerusalem was destroyed nearly 2,000 years ago in AD 70. 00:02:18.639 --> 00:02:24.639 What's interesting is today is on the Hebrew calendar the 17th of Tammuz. 00:02:26.020 --> 00:02:30.620 And it is recognized in the Jewish world as a day of mourning. 00:02:30.740 --> 00:02:30.960 Why? 00:02:31.479 --> 00:02:36.300 Because it is the day, among other catastrophes that happened to the Jewish nation, 00:02:36.300 --> 00:02:41.100 but it's the day that the walls of Jerusalem were breached by the Romans. 00:02:44.040 --> 00:02:45.719 The temple doesn't exist anymore. 00:02:46.740 --> 00:02:52.520 The history of Jerusalem has really seen that city lie in ruins. 00:02:53.180 --> 00:02:54.360 It's been a battleground. 00:02:54.520 --> 00:02:57.780 It has not been this city of peace, 00:02:58.220 --> 00:03:02.660 the city of safety, what we'll read about, what has been read. 00:03:03.439 --> 00:03:05.460 And yet, this psalm still remains God's word. 00:03:06.300 --> 00:03:11.580 With the destruction of Jerusalem, God's word didn't somehow get nullified. 00:03:11.820 --> 00:03:13.040 This is still God's word. 00:03:14.140 --> 00:03:15.379 So we need to ask the question, 00:03:15.500 --> 00:03:18.020 what is the significance of Jerusalem today for the Christian church? 00:03:19.020 --> 00:03:23.600 And does this psalm offer any insight into why pilgrimage to sacred sites 00:03:23.600 --> 00:03:28.100 is such a widespread human journey, 00:03:28.360 --> 00:03:29.860 a thing that humans practice? 00:03:29.860 --> 00:03:35.880 Put forward to you that the human heart seeks holy places. 00:03:36.040 --> 00:03:36.280 Why? 00:03:37.000 --> 00:03:41.360 Because we want to experience something of transcendence 00:03:41.360 --> 00:03:44.060 here in this temporal, earthly life. 00:03:44.260 --> 00:03:47.460 To find a place where the veil between heaven and earth 00:03:47.460 --> 00:03:49.140 is as thin as possible. 00:03:49.139 --> 00:03:55.339 A way that we can connect with the divine. 00:03:57.000 --> 00:04:01.779 But will one find the same transcendence in Mecca and the river Ganges, 00:04:02.399 --> 00:04:03.979 or St. Andrews for that matter, 00:04:04.979 --> 00:04:06.739 as they would in Jerusalem? 00:04:06.740 --> 00:04:11.659 The passage, Psalm 122, 00:04:11.719 --> 00:04:13.700 will help us understand that the proper way 00:04:13.700 --> 00:04:16.060 to connect with the divine, 00:04:16.660 --> 00:04:18.579 to connect with God, 00:04:18.680 --> 00:04:19.560 to seek Him out, 00:04:19.699 --> 00:04:20.920 so that He will be found, 00:04:21.340 --> 00:04:22.079 is through worship. 00:04:22.079 --> 00:04:23.539 And specifically, 00:04:24.219 --> 00:04:26.359 not any kind of worship that we engage in, 00:04:26.419 --> 00:04:27.219 that we see fit, 00:04:27.979 --> 00:04:29.939 but worship that God commands. 00:04:30.219 --> 00:04:30.899 And this worship 00:04:30.899 --> 00:04:35.860 has a necessity of God's presence involved, 00:04:36.259 --> 00:04:39.099 has the requirement of unity involved, 00:04:39.579 --> 00:04:42.979 and it has the longing for not just the earthly Jerusalem, 00:04:43.279 --> 00:04:44.699 but the new Jerusalem to come. 00:04:45.719 --> 00:04:47.399 So we'll jump right into the text this morning, 00:04:47.939 --> 00:04:49.099 verses 1 and 2. 00:04:49.100 --> 00:04:52.480 A song of a sense of David. 00:04:53.560 --> 00:04:55.080 I was glad when they said to me, 00:04:55.460 --> 00:04:57.980 Let us go to the house of the Lord. 00:04:58.600 --> 00:05:00.820 Our feet have been standing within your gates, 00:05:00.920 --> 00:05:01.480 O Jerusalem. 00:05:02.720 --> 00:05:04.200 These two opening verses, 00:05:05.200 --> 00:05:08.379 they're really almost like a love letter to the city. 00:05:08.540 --> 00:05:10.560 David, he loves Jerusalem. 00:05:11.080 --> 00:05:12.500 Not because it's beautiful, 00:05:12.980 --> 00:05:15.340 not because of its gates or walls or towers, 00:05:15.800 --> 00:05:18.879 but because he longs to be where God's presence dwells. 00:05:20.080 --> 00:05:22.400 The word here for gladness, 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:24.040 I was glad when they said to me, 00:05:24.040 --> 00:05:26.660 it's the same root word that is used 00:05:26.660 --> 00:05:29.840 to greet one another at a high holiday. 00:05:30.379 --> 00:05:34.400 It is a term that conveys a happiness, 00:05:34.939 --> 00:05:37.140 a joyous and merriment, 00:05:38.180 --> 00:05:42.480 a feeling of delight and of peace and of wholeness. 00:05:42.480 --> 00:05:44.480 And it's very fitting because, 00:05:44.640 --> 00:05:45.319 as I mentioned before, 00:05:45.420 --> 00:05:47.379 the psalm and the psalms of ascent, 00:05:47.720 --> 00:05:50.240 they were the hymns sung by the Israelites 00:05:50.240 --> 00:05:54.040 as they ascended up to Mount Zion, 00:05:54.200 --> 00:05:54.780 to Jerusalem, 00:05:54.960 --> 00:05:56.800 so that they could worship the Lord 00:05:56.800 --> 00:05:57.819 in the high holidays. 00:05:59.160 --> 00:06:00.620 But there's more at stake here 00:06:00.620 --> 00:06:02.439 than just a greeting during a holiday. 00:06:03.500 --> 00:06:07.000 It is a sincere response to the promises made by God 00:06:07.000 --> 00:06:10.060 that he has saved the people from slavery. 00:06:10.160 --> 00:06:11.420 And not just Egyptian slavery, 00:06:11.540 --> 00:06:12.800 but the slavery of death, 00:06:13.600 --> 00:06:14.920 the slavery of sin, 00:06:15.920 --> 00:06:18.199 so that they can dwell with him 00:06:18.199 --> 00:06:19.040 and he with them. 00:06:19.500 --> 00:06:21.860 So really what's at the heart of this 00:06:21.860 --> 00:06:23.420 is this faith 00:06:23.420 --> 00:06:26.259 that God is going to keep his promise. 00:06:26.360 --> 00:06:27.120 And what is the promise? 00:06:27.379 --> 00:06:28.579 Of his very presence. 00:06:28.939 --> 00:06:30.639 That he would dwell amongst his people. 00:06:30.980 --> 00:06:32.800 And that he would welcome his people 00:06:32.800 --> 00:06:34.379 into his presence when they worship. 00:06:37.360 --> 00:06:39.639 The temple and the tabernacle before it 00:06:39.639 --> 00:06:42.079 were the places where God made his presence known. 00:06:42.079 --> 00:06:43.960 And it's not to say that 00:06:43.960 --> 00:06:46.420 God is limited to a specific locale. 00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:49.420 God is everywhere. 00:06:49.639 --> 00:06:50.439 He has made everything. 00:06:51.100 --> 00:06:51.980 He is the creator, 00:06:52.160 --> 00:06:53.460 the uncreated creator. 00:06:54.019 --> 00:06:59.340 He is not limited to a spatial boundary like we are. 00:06:59.339 --> 00:07:02.939 Yet he has made his home with his people. 00:07:04.339 --> 00:07:05.439 He drew close. 00:07:06.399 --> 00:07:08.479 He initiated this relationship, 00:07:08.619 --> 00:07:09.399 this closeness. 00:07:10.279 --> 00:07:12.659 Jerusalem is the place where God dwells. 00:07:13.620 --> 00:07:17.079 And it is therefore the city of joy in worship. 00:07:18.379 --> 00:07:19.979 And we see these in these opening verses. 00:07:20.120 --> 00:07:21.219 It reflects this reality. 00:07:22.819 --> 00:07:24.359 It says something to us 00:07:24.359 --> 00:07:25.839 that is very important about worship. 00:07:26.879 --> 00:07:28.959 That God's presence is indispensable. 00:07:29.339 --> 00:07:30.719 To godly worship. 00:07:32.039 --> 00:07:33.899 And this isn't, by the way, of saying 00:07:33.899 --> 00:07:36.060 I need to feel goosebumps when I come to church. 00:07:36.919 --> 00:07:38.659 I need to feel something. 00:07:38.659 --> 00:07:43.599 Rather, it is this act of faith 00:07:43.599 --> 00:07:46.659 so that when God says that he dwells 00:07:47.659 --> 00:07:49.719 upon the praises of his people, 00:07:50.139 --> 00:07:53.599 that he actually dwells upon the praises of his people. 00:07:54.359 --> 00:07:57.799 Whether or not we have a spiritual experience or not. 00:07:57.800 --> 00:08:02.600 That God is present when we are worshiping him 00:08:02.600 --> 00:08:06.040 in the way in which he commanded us to worship. 00:08:06.180 --> 00:08:07.480 That he is with us. 00:08:07.480 --> 00:08:15.600 You know, I wonder if the pursuit of greatness in sport or in business, 00:08:16.220 --> 00:08:17.759 the amassing of power, 00:08:18.520 --> 00:08:19.640 the pursuit of pleasure, 00:08:19.860 --> 00:08:24.160 I wonder if this is simply a misguided impulse to connect with God. 00:08:24.540 --> 00:08:27.860 To be in his presence or something similar 00:08:27.860 --> 00:08:31.819 so that we make ourselves large as possible 00:08:31.819 --> 00:08:33.120 so that God would notice us. 00:08:34.240 --> 00:08:37.639 We get as much power as we can attain 00:08:37.639 --> 00:08:40.960 so that we would be worthy of being in his presence. 00:08:40.960 --> 00:08:47.660 significance, attractiveness, strength. 00:08:48.680 --> 00:08:50.100 The pursuit of this at, 00:08:51.460 --> 00:08:54.259 in a way that goes above and beyond a regular, 00:08:54.759 --> 00:08:57.820 good, healthy pursuit of good and godly gifts. 00:08:58.259 --> 00:09:01.840 I wonder if it is not this cry to be in God's presence, 00:09:02.220 --> 00:09:03.800 but in a very misguided way. 00:09:03.799 --> 00:09:07.819 And yet such a pursuit apart from God, 00:09:08.419 --> 00:09:11.000 it's a type of pilgrimage, 00:09:11.259 --> 00:09:13.759 but it is a false type of pilgrimage. 00:09:13.979 --> 00:09:17.639 It is not a pilgrimage up to Jerusalem where God's presence is, 00:09:17.759 --> 00:09:22.799 but it is a pilgrimage towards a false Jerusalem, 00:09:22.939 --> 00:09:23.779 a pseudo-Jerusalem, 00:09:24.259 --> 00:09:28.000 a Jerusalem that does not have God at its center, 00:09:28.479 --> 00:09:31.620 a Jerusalem that is not a holy city. 00:09:31.620 --> 00:09:36.340 We want the benefits of Jerusalem. 00:09:36.500 --> 00:09:39.279 We want the joy and the peace 00:09:39.279 --> 00:09:43.980 and the prosperity that comes with connecting with God, 00:09:44.519 --> 00:09:46.440 and yet we want to do so without him. 00:09:50.659 --> 00:09:52.679 At the core of that sentiment 00:09:52.679 --> 00:09:54.440 is what the Bible calls false worship. 00:09:54.980 --> 00:09:57.360 The worship of a God either fashioned in our own image 00:09:57.360 --> 00:09:58.460 and likeness, 00:09:58.620 --> 00:10:01.060 or the worship of the true God in a false way. 00:10:01.620 --> 00:10:05.360 The Bible is full of examples 00:10:05.360 --> 00:10:09.279 of both of these kinds of false worships. 00:10:10.960 --> 00:10:13.240 Friends, worship without God's presence 00:10:13.240 --> 00:10:15.299 will lead not to happiness and joy, 00:10:15.399 --> 00:10:16.720 but to emptiness and bitterness, 00:10:16.720 --> 00:10:19.039 because the joy that one seeks 00:10:19.039 --> 00:10:21.179 will not be found. 00:10:21.179 --> 00:10:25.559 There will be an absence of joy, 00:10:25.639 --> 00:10:26.979 an absence of peace, 00:10:27.399 --> 00:10:30.839 because we are separated from the source of such joy, 00:10:30.959 --> 00:10:31.939 such peace, such love. 00:10:32.779 --> 00:10:35.459 And will also lead us to a separation from each other, 00:10:36.000 --> 00:10:38.839 because worship is always this group activity. 00:10:39.179 --> 00:10:41.439 You'll notice in verses 1 and 2, 00:10:41.919 --> 00:10:44.459 there's a plurality of worshipers. 00:10:44.460 --> 00:10:45.460 They said, 00:10:45.460 --> 00:10:46.180 let us, 00:10:46.280 --> 00:10:47.019 our feet. 00:10:48.100 --> 00:10:50.540 The worship of God is a communal act 00:10:50.540 --> 00:10:52.460 that unites otherwise divided 00:10:52.980 --> 00:10:54.460 and even warring tribes. 00:10:55.460 --> 00:10:56.960 So lead us to the second point 00:10:56.960 --> 00:10:58.200 about what true worship is, 00:10:58.400 --> 00:11:00.780 that it requires unity. 00:11:01.920 --> 00:11:03.660 It requires God's people to come together. 00:11:04.820 --> 00:11:06.060 Let me read verses 3 to 5. 00:11:06.059 --> 00:11:10.059 Jerusalem, 00:11:10.579 --> 00:11:13.599 built as a city that is bound firmly together 00:11:13.599 --> 00:11:15.459 to which the tribes go up, 00:11:15.539 --> 00:11:16.619 the tribes of the Lord, 00:11:17.279 --> 00:11:18.859 as was decreed for Israel, 00:11:19.439 --> 00:11:21.239 to give thanks to the name of the Lord. 00:11:22.099 --> 00:11:25.239 Their thrones for judgment were set, 00:11:25.419 --> 00:11:27.159 the thrones of the house of David. 00:11:28.439 --> 00:11:32.159 Jerusalem is envisioned as a city that is secure, 00:11:32.479 --> 00:11:33.279 that is unified, 00:11:33.939 --> 00:11:34.839 and that is just. 00:11:34.840 --> 00:11:39.220 It's governed by a divine and just king. 00:11:40.660 --> 00:11:43.220 David's throne all throughout the Old Testament 00:11:43.220 --> 00:11:44.280 and into the New Testament, 00:11:44.399 --> 00:11:45.240 these themes are picked up, 00:11:45.300 --> 00:11:48.060 that this is not just a temporal earthly throne, 00:11:48.160 --> 00:11:49.800 but a throne that will never fade. 00:11:51.620 --> 00:11:57.720 It is also the place that is governed 00:11:57.720 --> 00:11:59.639 by devoted and godly priests. 00:12:00.080 --> 00:12:01.240 So in verse 4, 00:12:01.800 --> 00:12:03.019 the tribes go up, 00:12:03.019 --> 00:12:05.039 the tribes of the Lord go up, 00:12:05.159 --> 00:12:08.379 as was decreed for Israel to give thanks to the name of the Lord. 00:12:08.519 --> 00:12:10.439 They're entering into temple worship. 00:12:13.179 --> 00:12:15.960 It is a place where thanksgiving and worship can flourish, 00:12:16.079 --> 00:12:16.840 and as a result, 00:12:17.679 --> 00:12:19.340 a separated and warring people 00:12:19.340 --> 00:12:21.500 gather around the one true God, 00:12:21.559 --> 00:12:22.439 and they find unity. 00:12:22.440 --> 00:12:24.700 In worship, 00:12:24.840 --> 00:12:27.520 God's people begin moving towards unity, 00:12:27.520 --> 00:12:28.840 not away from it. 00:12:29.340 --> 00:12:32.740 We observe this in the progression of verse 4 and 5. 00:12:32.820 --> 00:12:33.860 If you look at 4 and 5, 00:12:34.500 --> 00:12:35.940 the tribes go up, 00:12:37.000 --> 00:12:38.920 the tribes of the Lord go up, 00:12:39.000 --> 00:12:41.940 now they're defined by the Lord in his covenantal name, 00:12:41.940 --> 00:12:45.740 and then finally the singular term Israel is used 00:12:45.740 --> 00:12:48.360 to describe the 12 tribes 00:12:48.360 --> 00:12:50.440 and almost certainly foreigners 00:12:50.440 --> 00:12:51.920 that have gone to Jerusalem to worship. 00:12:52.700 --> 00:12:54.440 There is a movement towards unity, 00:12:55.100 --> 00:12:57.200 towards connection to one another. 00:12:57.200 --> 00:13:05.520 This is a unity that is not just around some kind of an idea 00:13:05.520 --> 00:13:07.120 that isn't really defined, 00:13:07.300 --> 00:13:08.680 but rather around a person, 00:13:09.379 --> 00:13:11.300 a shared purpose and a shared citizenship. 00:13:12.160 --> 00:13:13.740 If you worship the Lord, 00:13:14.560 --> 00:13:17.000 if you are called according to his name, 00:13:17.060 --> 00:13:18.300 you respond by faith, 00:13:19.440 --> 00:13:20.680 then he calls you his own. 00:13:20.780 --> 00:13:24.360 You are part of the spiritual people of Israel. 00:13:24.360 --> 00:13:24.440 Israel. 00:13:26.759 --> 00:13:28.060 They become family 00:13:28.060 --> 00:13:30.580 because they share the same Father. 00:13:32.019 --> 00:13:33.980 So as we worship the Lord, 00:13:34.399 --> 00:13:36.399 we are gathered together 00:13:36.399 --> 00:13:39.220 and we are united as a body. 00:13:39.580 --> 00:13:40.659 And this doesn't mean, by the way, 00:13:40.720 --> 00:13:42.659 that there's uniformity in everything. 00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:44.960 There's space for style and tradition, 00:13:45.759 --> 00:13:46.919 customs, language 00:13:46.919 --> 00:13:50.000 that reflect regional and cultural expressions. 00:13:50.300 --> 00:13:51.820 I heard it said beautifully 00:13:51.820 --> 00:13:53.220 that at its best, 00:13:53.340 --> 00:13:54.139 denominations, 00:13:54.360 --> 00:13:59.580 they are like waves in the ocean. 00:13:59.840 --> 00:14:01.379 You can see them distinctly, 00:14:01.460 --> 00:14:03.360 but they are a part of the same body of water. 00:14:04.399 --> 00:14:05.539 It's a beautiful thing. 00:14:06.200 --> 00:14:06.580 However, 00:14:07.539 --> 00:14:07.960 however, 00:14:08.039 --> 00:14:09.480 it's problematic when the church 00:14:09.480 --> 00:14:13.980 engages in disputes among ourselves 00:14:13.980 --> 00:14:15.159 and even worse, 00:14:15.220 --> 00:14:17.100 when such issues remain unresolved. 00:14:17.460 --> 00:14:18.480 And all of a sudden, 00:14:18.580 --> 00:14:19.300 all of a sudden, 00:14:19.600 --> 00:14:21.320 there isn't one church of Christ, 00:14:21.320 --> 00:14:24.080 but there are many different churches of Christ. 00:14:25.200 --> 00:14:27.560 Which isn't a biblical concept at all. 00:14:27.740 --> 00:14:29.840 In fact, it's an affront to what Christ has done 00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:30.899 upon the cross. 00:14:31.419 --> 00:14:33.580 There wasn't multiple Israels. 00:14:34.399 --> 00:14:35.259 There was one Israel. 00:14:35.539 --> 00:14:36.580 There were many tribes. 00:14:36.580 --> 00:14:38.259 The tribes, 00:14:38.420 --> 00:14:38.980 the 12 tribes, 00:14:39.540 --> 00:14:40.660 they weren't dissolved. 00:14:41.280 --> 00:14:42.400 But there was one Israel, 00:14:42.740 --> 00:14:44.440 likewise for us in the church. 00:14:44.540 --> 00:14:45.340 But when that is, 00:14:46.080 --> 00:14:46.840 when that doesn't happen, 00:14:46.900 --> 00:14:48.060 it becomes very problematic. 00:14:49.700 --> 00:14:50.440 Quite possibly, 00:14:50.560 --> 00:14:52.940 the holiest site in the Christian tradition 00:14:52.940 --> 00:14:55.320 is the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. 00:14:55.460 --> 00:14:57.240 If you've been to Jerusalem on a walk 00:14:57.240 --> 00:14:59.019 or a Holy Land tour, 00:14:59.519 --> 00:15:00.580 you have for sure 00:15:00.580 --> 00:15:01.639 have gone to this church. 00:15:02.700 --> 00:15:05.560 It is the traditional site of Golgotha 00:15:05.560 --> 00:15:06.659 where Jesus was crucified, 00:15:06.840 --> 00:15:08.279 but also the place where he was buried. 00:15:09.279 --> 00:15:10.860 So there is an empty tomb there, 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:13.320 hewn out of rock, 00:15:14.000 --> 00:15:14.940 but it is empty. 00:15:15.899 --> 00:15:18.200 The church dates back to the 4th century 00:15:18.200 --> 00:15:20.000 and has been occupied 00:15:20.000 --> 00:15:21.779 by six different traditions. 00:15:22.620 --> 00:15:23.419 The Roman Catholics, 00:15:23.419 --> 00:15:24.240 the Greek Orthodox, 00:15:25.039 --> 00:15:26.019 the Armenian Orthodox, 00:15:26.279 --> 00:15:27.339 the Ethiopian Orthodox, 00:15:27.599 --> 00:15:28.539 the Coptic Orthodox, 00:15:29.000 --> 00:15:30.259 and the Syriac Orthodox. 00:15:31.719 --> 00:15:34.539 And these groups have rarely enjoyed peace. 00:15:35.740 --> 00:15:36.559 One church, 00:15:36.839 --> 00:15:38.000 literally one church, 00:15:38.879 --> 00:15:40.679 six different traditions 00:15:40.679 --> 00:15:43.419 and a ton of disagreement. 00:15:45.299 --> 00:15:46.479 Unresolved issues. 00:15:47.699 --> 00:15:49.699 To the shame of the church 00:15:49.699 --> 00:15:51.579 and because there is one church 00:15:51.579 --> 00:15:52.899 and they are a part of this church, 00:15:52.899 --> 00:15:54.679 it's a shame that rests on us 00:15:54.679 --> 00:15:56.699 so that the keys of the church 00:15:56.699 --> 00:15:57.740 of the Holy Sepulcher, 00:15:58.360 --> 00:16:00.959 they are held in trust 00:16:00.959 --> 00:16:02.659 by an Arab Muslim family. 00:16:03.419 --> 00:16:04.299 Not a Christian family, 00:16:04.399 --> 00:16:05.699 but an Arab Muslim family. 00:16:08.799 --> 00:16:11.120 There's also the infamous 00:16:11.120 --> 00:16:12.019 Immovable Ladder, 00:16:12.100 --> 00:16:13.379 if you've heard of the Immovable Ladder. 00:16:13.519 --> 00:16:15.299 Worth a quick Google search. 00:16:15.899 --> 00:16:17.000 It's a ladder that sits, 00:16:17.240 --> 00:16:18.860 if you go to the front entrance 00:16:18.860 --> 00:16:20.120 of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, 00:16:20.120 --> 00:16:22.220 right above the entrance 00:16:22.220 --> 00:16:23.500 of the second story, 00:16:23.860 --> 00:16:24.639 there's a ladder 00:16:24.639 --> 00:16:26.100 with like eight rungs, 00:16:26.220 --> 00:16:27.159 like it's an actual ladder 00:16:27.159 --> 00:16:29.360 that is tilted up against a window. 00:16:29.460 --> 00:16:31.360 It's been there for some 300 years. 00:16:32.940 --> 00:16:33.860 It can't be moved 00:16:33.860 --> 00:16:35.500 because there's no agreement 00:16:35.500 --> 00:16:37.120 on what to do with it, 00:16:37.220 --> 00:16:37.940 where to put it. 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:39.639 It's also become a bit of 00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:41.879 a tourist attraction. 00:16:43.100 --> 00:16:44.259 But during a pilgrimage 00:16:44.259 --> 00:16:45.860 to Jerusalem in the 60s, 00:16:45.860 --> 00:16:47.700 Pope Paul VI, 00:16:47.800 --> 00:16:49.379 I think very aptly described it 00:16:49.379 --> 00:16:50.480 as a viable symbol 00:16:50.480 --> 00:16:51.419 of Christian division. 00:16:54.379 --> 00:16:55.759 Why has the Christian Church 00:16:55.759 --> 00:16:57.019 struggled so mightily 00:16:57.019 --> 00:16:57.840 with unity? 00:16:59.080 --> 00:17:02.000 There's countless pages 00:17:02.000 --> 00:17:02.740 written about it, 00:17:02.879 --> 00:17:04.319 historical and political reasons, 00:17:04.420 --> 00:17:05.140 but I would argue 00:17:05.140 --> 00:17:06.240 that the Church 00:17:06.240 --> 00:17:07.559 consistently struggles 00:17:07.559 --> 00:17:08.279 with remembering 00:17:08.279 --> 00:17:09.279 their true purpose, 00:17:09.860 --> 00:17:11.920 that it is worship. 00:17:13.120 --> 00:17:14.240 It's to give thanks 00:17:14.240 --> 00:17:15.559 to the name of the Lord. 00:17:15.559 --> 00:17:16.700 It's not primarily, 00:17:16.839 --> 00:17:17.099 actually, 00:17:17.259 --> 00:17:18.759 to be unified, 00:17:19.099 --> 00:17:20.759 although that is clearly 00:17:20.759 --> 00:17:21.819 present in this text 00:17:21.819 --> 00:17:23.440 in an indispensable part 00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:24.000 of what it means 00:17:24.000 --> 00:17:24.839 to be a part of the Church 00:17:24.839 --> 00:17:26.779 as we worship the Lord. 00:17:28.460 --> 00:17:30.159 Nor is it to become prosperous, 00:17:30.460 --> 00:17:34.039 but the primary function 00:17:34.039 --> 00:17:35.099 of the Church 00:17:35.099 --> 00:17:38.859 is to worship the Lord, 00:17:39.019 --> 00:17:40.240 to lift up His name, 00:17:40.399 --> 00:17:41.339 to praise Him 00:17:41.339 --> 00:17:42.220 for who He is 00:17:42.220 --> 00:17:43.240 and what He has done. 00:17:43.240 --> 00:17:45.559 The primary goal 00:17:45.559 --> 00:17:48.400 of the Church 00:17:48.400 --> 00:17:49.180 is worship. 00:17:50.380 --> 00:17:52.380 And who is our prize? 00:17:52.579 --> 00:17:54.120 What is our ultimate goal? 00:17:54.259 --> 00:17:55.220 It is God Himself. 00:17:57.779 --> 00:17:59.599 When that fails to be 00:17:59.599 --> 00:18:00.339 the focus, 00:18:00.839 --> 00:18:02.960 we get an immovable ladder. 00:18:04.000 --> 00:18:05.440 We get disagreements, 00:18:05.859 --> 00:18:07.099 we get splintering, 00:18:07.160 --> 00:18:07.880 we get schism. 00:18:07.880 --> 00:18:10.180 And it's not an easy fix, 00:18:10.280 --> 00:18:10.420 okay? 00:18:10.440 --> 00:18:11.140 I'm not suggesting 00:18:11.140 --> 00:18:11.980 it's an easy fix. 00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:13.240 Centuries and centuries, 00:18:13.580 --> 00:18:14.480 very, very smart, 00:18:14.640 --> 00:18:15.160 godly people 00:18:15.160 --> 00:18:16.780 tried to navigate this. 00:18:17.180 --> 00:18:18.340 The Church is still divided, 00:18:18.460 --> 00:18:18.700 okay? 00:18:19.280 --> 00:18:20.140 I'm not suggesting 00:18:20.140 --> 00:18:21.160 it's a simple fix, 00:18:21.280 --> 00:18:22.880 but what it requires 00:18:22.880 --> 00:18:24.120 is this pursuit 00:18:24.120 --> 00:18:24.860 of worship 00:18:24.860 --> 00:18:25.980 where Christ 00:18:25.980 --> 00:18:27.040 is the prize. 00:18:27.700 --> 00:18:28.360 Not power, 00:18:28.460 --> 00:18:29.020 not money, 00:18:29.440 --> 00:18:30.180 not fame, 00:18:30.640 --> 00:18:31.180 not to say, 00:18:31.280 --> 00:18:31.440 hey, 00:18:31.440 --> 00:18:33.500 we are the true tradition. 00:18:36.180 --> 00:18:36.680 It's not that 00:18:36.680 --> 00:18:37.940 we're trying to find 00:18:37.940 --> 00:18:39.240 the lowest common denominator, 00:18:39.420 --> 00:18:39.620 okay? 00:18:39.880 --> 00:18:40.640 But it is about 00:18:40.640 --> 00:18:42.640 valuing Christ above all. 00:18:44.640 --> 00:18:46.360 This is an important part 00:18:46.360 --> 00:18:47.259 of our consideration, 00:18:47.860 --> 00:18:49.120 especially when we examine 00:18:49.120 --> 00:18:50.360 how the pagan world 00:18:50.360 --> 00:18:52.620 surrounding ancient Israel 00:18:52.620 --> 00:18:53.440 approached worship. 00:18:53.600 --> 00:18:53.700 See, 00:18:54.039 --> 00:18:55.759 if the godly, 00:18:56.080 --> 00:18:57.600 biblical vision 00:18:57.600 --> 00:18:58.259 of worship, 00:18:58.259 --> 00:19:00.319 what we see in Psalm 122 00:19:00.319 --> 00:19:03.079 is to pilgrim 00:19:03.079 --> 00:19:04.140 towards the holy city 00:19:04.140 --> 00:19:04.980 so that we can 00:19:04.980 --> 00:19:06.000 worship the Lord, 00:19:06.140 --> 00:19:07.480 so that we can gain Him, 00:19:09.099 --> 00:19:10.339 then pagan worship 00:19:10.339 --> 00:19:11.759 is the opposite. 00:19:11.960 --> 00:19:14.000 It is a type of worship 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:18.039 that means to secure prosperity, 00:19:18.900 --> 00:19:19.420 status, 00:19:19.759 --> 00:19:20.119 victory, 00:19:20.319 --> 00:19:20.740 fertility, 00:19:21.039 --> 00:19:21.519 crops. 00:19:22.359 --> 00:19:23.339 Worship served 00:19:23.339 --> 00:19:24.420 as the way to achieve 00:19:24.420 --> 00:19:25.460 one's desires 00:19:25.460 --> 00:19:26.440 and one's goals. 00:19:27.279 --> 00:19:28.039 Make a sacrifice, 00:19:28.879 --> 00:19:29.839 pour out libations, 00:19:30.319 --> 00:19:31.299 receive from the gods 00:19:31.299 --> 00:19:33.180 because now they owe you, 00:19:34.160 --> 00:19:34.359 okay? 00:19:34.400 --> 00:19:35.379 They're in your debt. 00:19:39.319 --> 00:19:41.359 Similar to the Jerusalem of old, 00:19:41.480 --> 00:19:43.039 this biblical vision 00:19:43.039 --> 00:19:44.099 of the church 00:19:44.099 --> 00:19:45.660 is not always fulfilled. 00:19:45.819 --> 00:19:47.240 Sometimes we find ourselves 00:19:47.240 --> 00:19:47.879 practicing 00:19:47.879 --> 00:19:49.500 the Christian faith 00:19:49.500 --> 00:19:50.400 in pagan ways, 00:19:52.879 --> 00:19:53.059 okay? 00:19:53.119 --> 00:19:55.700 We cry out to the Lord 00:19:55.700 --> 00:19:56.359 in worship 00:19:56.359 --> 00:19:57.619 and then when things 00:19:57.619 --> 00:19:59.919 fail to add up 00:19:59.919 --> 00:20:00.899 the way we want it to, 00:20:01.139 --> 00:20:01.619 we say, 00:20:02.079 --> 00:20:03.899 but I did all this for you. 00:20:05.179 --> 00:20:06.159 And it is fine 00:20:06.159 --> 00:20:06.899 to ask the Lord, 00:20:07.579 --> 00:20:08.159 of course, 00:20:08.319 --> 00:20:10.059 we bring our requests 00:20:10.059 --> 00:20:10.399 to Him, 00:20:10.959 --> 00:20:12.199 but when we fail 00:20:12.199 --> 00:20:13.099 to see that the prize 00:20:13.099 --> 00:20:13.479 is Him, 00:20:15.199 --> 00:20:15.519 okay, 00:20:15.699 --> 00:20:16.959 the prize is Him 00:20:16.959 --> 00:20:17.779 above all 00:20:17.779 --> 00:20:19.419 and we start to see 00:20:19.419 --> 00:20:20.159 that, 00:20:20.500 --> 00:20:20.919 in fact, 00:20:20.979 --> 00:20:21.319 no, no, no, 00:20:21.319 --> 00:20:22.619 we want His creation 00:20:22.619 --> 00:20:23.459 more than Him, 00:20:23.460 --> 00:20:23.960 the Creator, 00:20:24.420 --> 00:20:25.019 that's when things 00:20:25.019 --> 00:20:25.799 start to unravel. 00:20:28.140 --> 00:20:28.340 Therefore, 00:20:28.460 --> 00:20:29.380 we must constantly 00:20:29.380 --> 00:20:31.160 and continually pray 00:20:31.160 --> 00:20:31.819 for the peace 00:20:31.819 --> 00:20:32.400 of the church 00:20:32.400 --> 00:20:33.680 and look forward 00:20:33.680 --> 00:20:34.720 to the return of Christ 00:20:34.720 --> 00:20:35.819 when He will come 00:20:35.819 --> 00:20:36.740 to judge the living 00:20:36.740 --> 00:20:37.259 and the dead 00:20:37.259 --> 00:20:39.819 and the new Jerusalem 00:20:39.819 --> 00:20:41.039 will be realized. 00:20:42.059 --> 00:20:42.519 This will bring us 00:20:42.519 --> 00:20:43.000 to our third 00:20:43.000 --> 00:20:43.620 and final point, 00:20:43.680 --> 00:20:44.460 verses 6 to 9. 00:20:44.519 --> 00:20:44.980 Read with me. 00:20:47.120 --> 00:20:48.039 Pray for the peace 00:20:48.039 --> 00:20:48.559 of Jerusalem. 00:20:49.319 --> 00:20:50.400 May they be secure 00:20:50.400 --> 00:20:51.019 who love you. 00:20:51.819 --> 00:20:53.120 Peace be within your walls 00:20:53.119 --> 00:20:53.699 and security 00:20:53.699 --> 00:20:54.579 within your towers. 00:20:55.159 --> 00:20:55.939 For my brothers 00:20:55.939 --> 00:20:57.119 and companions' sake, 00:20:57.219 --> 00:20:58.000 I will say, 00:20:58.119 --> 00:20:59.000 peace be within you. 00:20:59.719 --> 00:21:00.319 For the sake 00:21:00.319 --> 00:21:00.899 of the house 00:21:00.899 --> 00:21:02.079 of the Lord our God, 00:21:02.159 --> 00:21:03.639 I will seek your good. 00:21:05.819 --> 00:21:07.279 If you have been 00:21:07.279 --> 00:21:08.219 at church for a while, 00:21:08.359 --> 00:21:08.959 a bit of a student 00:21:08.959 --> 00:21:09.500 of the Bible, 00:21:09.879 --> 00:21:10.519 it is difficult 00:21:10.519 --> 00:21:11.659 to read these four verses 00:21:11.659 --> 00:21:13.299 without thinking 00:21:13.299 --> 00:21:14.519 about the prayer 00:21:14.519 --> 00:21:16.039 of Christ over Jerusalem 00:21:16.039 --> 00:21:16.879 before His passion. 00:21:18.139 --> 00:21:18.759 This is what He says 00:21:18.759 --> 00:21:19.739 from Matthew 23, 00:21:19.919 --> 00:21:22.000 verses 37 to 39. 00:21:22.099 --> 00:21:22.319 He says, 00:21:22.439 --> 00:21:23.039 O Jerusalem, 00:21:23.119 --> 00:21:24.539 Jerusalem, 00:21:24.539 --> 00:21:24.619 Jerusalem, 00:21:24.939 --> 00:21:26.419 the city that kills 00:21:26.419 --> 00:21:26.979 the prophets 00:21:26.979 --> 00:21:27.979 and stones those 00:21:27.979 --> 00:21:28.859 who are sent to it. 00:21:29.859 --> 00:21:30.839 How often would I have 00:21:30.839 --> 00:21:31.799 gathered your children 00:21:31.799 --> 00:21:33.339 together as a hen 00:21:33.339 --> 00:21:34.339 gathers her brood 00:21:34.339 --> 00:21:35.139 under her wings? 00:21:35.739 --> 00:21:36.979 And you were not willing. 00:21:37.839 --> 00:21:38.159 See, 00:21:38.239 --> 00:21:39.059 your house is left 00:21:39.059 --> 00:21:39.899 to you desolate, 00:21:40.059 --> 00:21:40.699 for I tell you, 00:21:40.739 --> 00:21:42.099 you will not see me again 00:21:42.099 --> 00:21:42.879 until you say, 00:21:43.459 --> 00:21:44.099 Blessed is he 00:21:44.099 --> 00:21:45.119 who comes in the name 00:21:45.119 --> 00:21:46.179 of the Lord. 00:21:46.180 --> 00:21:52.299 Jerusalem has never fully 00:21:52.299 --> 00:21:53.519 fulfilled its calling. 00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:55.519 It ultimately rejected 00:21:55.519 --> 00:21:56.840 the Prince of Peace. 00:21:57.720 --> 00:21:58.039 Therefore, 00:21:58.299 --> 00:21:59.340 interpreting this solely 00:21:59.340 --> 00:22:00.120 as a call to pray 00:22:00.120 --> 00:22:02.120 for the physical city's peace, 00:22:02.220 --> 00:22:03.680 the city that exists today 00:22:03.680 --> 00:22:05.539 in the capital of Israel, 00:22:05.920 --> 00:22:06.720 the state of Israel, 00:22:07.560 --> 00:22:09.259 it misses the deeper point. 00:22:09.580 --> 00:22:10.259 And I'll just say, 00:22:10.480 --> 00:22:11.480 pray for Israel. 00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:13.420 Pray for Jerusalem. 00:22:13.420 --> 00:22:15.279 Pray for it. 00:22:15.480 --> 00:22:16.900 It's a contentious place. 00:22:17.560 --> 00:22:18.019 Pray for it. 00:22:18.140 --> 00:22:19.539 It's a good thing to do. 00:22:22.259 --> 00:22:23.360 But the call here 00:22:23.360 --> 00:22:25.100 is to pray for the peace 00:22:25.100 --> 00:22:25.740 of Jerusalem 00:22:25.740 --> 00:22:29.340 that fundamentally looks 00:22:29.340 --> 00:22:30.460 towards the Messiah, 00:22:31.340 --> 00:22:32.980 the one whom the ideal 00:22:32.980 --> 00:22:33.600 of Jerusalem 00:22:33.600 --> 00:22:34.759 and the temple foreshadows. 00:22:34.920 --> 00:22:35.400 In fact, 00:22:35.820 --> 00:22:36.840 all of the events 00:22:36.840 --> 00:22:37.480 and the rituals 00:22:37.480 --> 00:22:38.340 and the traditions 00:22:38.340 --> 00:22:39.180 and the ceremonies 00:22:39.180 --> 00:22:40.080 of the Old Testament, 00:22:41.279 --> 00:22:42.620 they are merely shadows 00:22:42.619 --> 00:22:43.619 of the shadows. 00:22:45.199 --> 00:22:46.319 And the thing with shadows, 00:22:46.439 --> 00:22:46.579 right, 00:22:46.679 --> 00:22:47.939 and you see this a lot 00:22:47.939 --> 00:22:48.459 in movies, 00:22:49.119 --> 00:22:50.319 the shadow, 00:22:50.479 --> 00:22:51.239 you see the shadow 00:22:51.239 --> 00:22:52.159 and you see the outline 00:22:52.159 --> 00:22:52.759 of the person, 00:22:53.639 --> 00:22:56.859 especially if they're scary, 00:22:57.379 --> 00:22:58.739 like Batman to the villain, 00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:01.199 you see his little ears 00:23:01.199 --> 00:23:02.179 or Darth Vader, 00:23:02.319 --> 00:23:03.419 you see kind of the shape 00:23:03.419 --> 00:23:04.979 of his mask, 00:23:05.459 --> 00:23:07.279 but you don't see the details. 00:23:07.839 --> 00:23:09.000 You know what it looks like, 00:23:09.139 --> 00:23:09.539 what it, 00:23:09.539 --> 00:23:11.079 the height, 00:23:11.359 --> 00:23:12.019 the size, 00:23:12.700 --> 00:23:13.619 but shadows, 00:23:14.619 --> 00:23:16.299 they are just to prepare us 00:23:16.299 --> 00:23:17.839 that something is coming, 00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:19.079 someone is coming. 00:23:22.159 --> 00:23:23.279 They are designed 00:23:23.279 --> 00:23:24.659 to prepare God's people 00:23:24.659 --> 00:23:25.500 to long for 00:23:25.500 --> 00:23:26.339 and recognize 00:23:26.339 --> 00:23:27.420 the Messiah 00:23:27.420 --> 00:23:28.399 when he comes. 00:23:29.740 --> 00:23:30.859 So as we pray 00:23:30.859 --> 00:23:32.139 for the peace of Jerusalem, 00:23:34.200 --> 00:23:36.019 pray that God's kingdom 00:23:36.019 --> 00:23:36.819 will come on earth 00:23:36.819 --> 00:23:37.579 as it is in heaven. 00:23:37.579 --> 00:23:40.359 Pray for Christ's return 00:23:40.359 --> 00:23:41.579 so that the new Jerusalem 00:23:41.579 --> 00:23:42.399 will come in glory. 00:23:43.099 --> 00:23:44.119 This new Jerusalem, 00:23:44.659 --> 00:23:45.559 that it is 00:23:45.559 --> 00:23:47.439 the culmination 00:23:47.439 --> 00:23:48.480 of our hopes 00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:49.139 and longings, 00:23:49.240 --> 00:23:49.879 a place where 00:23:49.879 --> 00:23:52.179 there is no tears 00:23:52.179 --> 00:23:52.960 of sadness, 00:23:53.460 --> 00:23:54.799 there is no cancer, 00:23:55.039 --> 00:23:55.720 there is no 00:23:55.720 --> 00:23:57.519 infant mortality, 00:23:58.460 --> 00:23:59.659 there is no heartache, 00:24:00.379 --> 00:24:01.240 there is no cheating 00:24:01.240 --> 00:24:01.899 or stealing, 00:24:02.039 --> 00:24:03.419 it is the place 00:24:03.419 --> 00:24:04.819 where God dwells 00:24:04.819 --> 00:24:05.799 amongst his people 00:24:05.799 --> 00:24:06.399 in perfection. 00:24:06.400 --> 00:24:07.960 Everything that 00:24:07.960 --> 00:24:10.640 the Jerusalem of Psalm 00:24:10.640 --> 00:24:11.920 122 points towards, 00:24:12.019 --> 00:24:12.580 this is it, 00:24:12.800 --> 00:24:15.780 but exponentially better. 00:24:19.220 --> 00:24:20.240 There's also a prayer 00:24:20.240 --> 00:24:21.080 that Christ's church 00:24:21.080 --> 00:24:21.780 will be a blessing, 00:24:22.880 --> 00:24:24.519 that Christ's church 00:24:24.519 --> 00:24:25.620 will be outward facing 00:24:25.620 --> 00:24:27.980 towards Christ in worship 00:24:27.980 --> 00:24:29.100 and towards the world 00:24:29.100 --> 00:24:29.700 in service. 00:24:30.259 --> 00:24:31.180 That's what we see here 00:24:31.180 --> 00:24:33.240 in chapter 22, 00:24:33.340 --> 00:24:34.860 verses 6 to 9, 00:24:35.019 --> 00:24:37.019 especially verses 8 to 9. 00:24:37.019 --> 00:24:37.880 For my brothers 00:24:37.880 --> 00:24:39.360 and companions' sake, 00:24:39.420 --> 00:24:39.820 I will say, 00:24:39.920 --> 00:24:41.160 peace be within you. 00:24:41.460 --> 00:24:42.160 For the sake 00:24:42.160 --> 00:24:42.620 of the house 00:24:42.620 --> 00:24:43.840 of our Lord, 00:24:43.960 --> 00:24:45.060 that is to say, 00:24:45.200 --> 00:24:45.880 worshiping God, 00:24:46.000 --> 00:24:47.200 I will seek your good. 00:24:47.200 --> 00:24:50.660 this is something 00:24:50.660 --> 00:24:51.319 we need to hear. 00:24:53.759 --> 00:24:55.140 The Jerusalem of the Bible 00:24:55.140 --> 00:24:56.200 murdered her prophets 00:24:56.200 --> 00:24:58.580 and crucified her Messiah 00:24:58.580 --> 00:25:00.059 and was raised to the ground 00:25:00.059 --> 00:25:00.759 because of it. 00:25:01.220 --> 00:25:01.840 And likewise, 00:25:02.080 --> 00:25:03.019 when a church turns 00:25:03.019 --> 00:25:04.299 from the Prince of Peace, 00:25:04.759 --> 00:25:06.019 it will cease 00:25:06.019 --> 00:25:06.900 to be a church. 00:25:07.259 --> 00:25:07.440 I mean, 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:08.500 God will have mercy 00:25:08.500 --> 00:25:09.660 upon his church, 00:25:09.660 --> 00:25:12.660 but for a time, 00:25:12.840 --> 00:25:13.740 think about 00:25:13.740 --> 00:25:15.240 Christ's words 00:25:15.240 --> 00:25:15.779 to the church 00:25:15.779 --> 00:25:16.240 in Ephesus 00:25:16.240 --> 00:25:17.800 in Revelation chapter 2. 00:25:19.420 --> 00:25:20.360 We can overlook 00:25:20.360 --> 00:25:21.640 our calling in many ways. 00:25:22.160 --> 00:25:23.019 We can get distracted, 00:25:23.180 --> 00:25:23.880 but let me share 00:25:23.880 --> 00:25:24.519 one example 00:25:24.519 --> 00:25:25.380 that I think resonates 00:25:25.380 --> 00:25:26.380 deeply with us today. 00:25:27.300 --> 00:25:28.380 How we have this 00:25:28.380 --> 00:25:29.580 problem with 00:25:29.580 --> 00:25:30.680 commodifying the holy. 00:25:32.500 --> 00:25:34.519 We live in 2025, 00:25:34.940 --> 00:25:35.920 80 years after 00:25:35.920 --> 00:25:36.560 the end of the 00:25:36.560 --> 00:25:37.320 Second World War. 00:25:37.700 --> 00:25:38.980 I was reflecting on this, 00:25:38.980 --> 00:25:41.259 how post-war 00:25:41.259 --> 00:25:42.799 technology has 00:25:42.799 --> 00:25:43.860 absolutely boomed 00:25:43.860 --> 00:25:45.259 consumerism. 00:25:45.700 --> 00:25:47.259 It has been developed. 00:25:47.720 --> 00:25:49.019 Legislation and regulations 00:25:49.019 --> 00:25:50.759 exist to promote 00:25:50.759 --> 00:25:52.200 consumerism. 00:25:52.759 --> 00:25:53.680 I was thinking about this 00:25:53.680 --> 00:25:55.440 because both sets 00:25:55.440 --> 00:25:56.140 of my grandparents 00:25:56.140 --> 00:25:58.319 were born before the war 00:25:58.319 --> 00:25:59.980 and both sets 00:25:59.980 --> 00:26:01.360 grew up without 00:26:01.360 --> 00:26:02.120 running water 00:26:02.120 --> 00:26:03.880 or toilets 00:26:03.880 --> 00:26:04.500 in their house. 00:26:04.700 --> 00:26:05.259 It's crazy. 00:26:06.000 --> 00:26:07.000 And then within a generation, 00:26:07.160 --> 00:26:07.960 they're driving cars 00:26:07.960 --> 00:26:09.140 and washing 00:26:09.140 --> 00:26:10.960 their clothes 00:26:10.960 --> 00:26:11.740 in a washing machine. 00:26:11.940 --> 00:26:12.880 It's wild, 00:26:13.500 --> 00:26:14.160 the change 00:26:14.160 --> 00:26:14.860 that has happened, 00:26:15.460 --> 00:26:16.480 especially post-war. 00:26:18.079 --> 00:26:18.660 But this is how to, 00:26:18.779 --> 00:26:19.100 by the way, 00:26:19.120 --> 00:26:19.840 I think it's great, 00:26:20.019 --> 00:26:20.340 okay, 00:26:20.920 --> 00:26:21.779 that it takes us 00:26:21.779 --> 00:26:22.640 like five minutes 00:26:22.640 --> 00:26:23.420 to do the laundry. 00:26:23.779 --> 00:26:24.400 Okay, wonderful. 00:26:24.779 --> 00:26:25.880 No hit against that. 00:26:25.880 --> 00:26:27.100 But what's happened 00:26:27.100 --> 00:26:28.020 is that we have developed 00:26:28.020 --> 00:26:29.440 a consumeristic mindset 00:26:29.440 --> 00:26:31.000 and we can't kind of 00:26:31.000 --> 00:26:32.180 partition different parts 00:26:32.180 --> 00:26:32.720 of our body 00:26:32.720 --> 00:26:34.000 and our experience. 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:35.020 We are whole people 00:26:35.020 --> 00:26:36.880 so that if we are consumers 00:26:36.880 --> 00:26:37.680 in one area, 00:26:37.820 --> 00:26:39.000 it's really hard not 00:26:39.000 --> 00:26:39.600 to be consumers 00:26:39.600 --> 00:26:40.420 in another area. 00:26:41.480 --> 00:26:42.500 And as such, 00:26:42.620 --> 00:26:43.100 the church 00:26:43.100 --> 00:26:44.940 has become something 00:26:44.940 --> 00:26:45.580 we consume. 00:26:47.040 --> 00:26:48.640 And this is very problematic 00:26:48.640 --> 00:26:51.180 because what do we do 00:26:51.180 --> 00:26:52.080 with things that we consume? 00:26:52.160 --> 00:26:53.040 We consume them 00:26:53.040 --> 00:26:54.420 and then we move on. 00:26:55.220 --> 00:26:56.340 We look for other things, 00:26:56.500 --> 00:26:57.160 tastier things, 00:26:57.320 --> 00:26:57.980 bigger things, 00:26:58.160 --> 00:26:58.720 nicer things, 00:26:58.880 --> 00:26:59.700 shinier things. 00:27:00.700 --> 00:27:01.540 But the church 00:27:01.540 --> 00:27:02.780 is not to be consumed. 00:27:03.840 --> 00:27:04.860 The church is a place, 00:27:05.620 --> 00:27:06.400 it was created 00:27:06.400 --> 00:27:08.240 by Christ Jesus himself 00:27:08.240 --> 00:27:09.020 because he spilt 00:27:09.020 --> 00:27:09.680 his blood 00:27:09.680 --> 00:27:11.040 for her. 00:27:11.720 --> 00:27:12.580 This is a privilege 00:27:12.580 --> 00:27:14.040 to be a part of the church, 00:27:14.039 --> 00:27:16.379 to serve the church. 00:27:17.579 --> 00:27:18.259 And that's not to say 00:27:18.259 --> 00:27:18.960 that there's not going to be 00:27:18.960 --> 00:27:20.039 issues and difficulties, 00:27:20.759 --> 00:27:21.960 but at its core, 00:27:22.099 --> 00:27:22.920 it is the place 00:27:22.920 --> 00:27:24.259 where God dwells. 00:27:24.319 --> 00:27:24.779 The church 00:27:24.779 --> 00:27:26.240 becomes a type 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:26.819 of the temple 00:27:26.819 --> 00:27:28.599 that God dwells 00:27:28.599 --> 00:27:29.639 amongst us. 00:27:30.139 --> 00:27:31.099 Right now, 00:27:31.599 --> 00:27:32.079 here, 00:27:32.559 --> 00:27:33.359 in this gym, 00:27:34.099 --> 00:27:35.399 that is a sacred space 00:27:35.399 --> 00:27:35.779 for us. 00:27:35.940 --> 00:27:37.680 Christ is amongst us. 00:27:38.680 --> 00:27:39.460 It'll be a part 00:27:39.460 --> 00:27:41.159 of our communion liturgy. 00:27:41.519 --> 00:27:42.839 Whether you feel it or not, 00:27:42.920 --> 00:27:44.019 this is our reality. 00:27:44.039 --> 00:27:48.279 This is not the mentality 00:27:48.279 --> 00:27:50.159 that we should have 00:27:50.159 --> 00:27:51.960 in treating the church 00:27:51.960 --> 00:27:53.480 in a consumeristic way. 00:27:54.960 --> 00:27:55.799 And when we do so, 00:27:55.879 --> 00:27:57.559 we fail to worship the Lord 00:27:57.559 --> 00:27:58.879 as he has asked us to, 00:27:59.259 --> 00:28:00.319 and we fail to bless 00:28:00.319 --> 00:28:01.440 those around us. 00:28:04.480 --> 00:28:05.000 There are people 00:28:05.000 --> 00:28:06.220 in the New Testament 00:28:06.220 --> 00:28:07.779 that they commodified 00:28:07.779 --> 00:28:09.180 the holy, 00:28:09.799 --> 00:28:11.279 and Jesus turned over 00:28:11.279 --> 00:28:12.960 their tables 00:28:12.960 --> 00:28:15.180 and he called them 00:28:15.180 --> 00:28:16.200 very, very mean 00:28:16.200 --> 00:28:17.299 but very true names. 00:28:18.620 --> 00:28:19.579 Let us take this 00:28:19.579 --> 00:28:20.100 as a warning. 00:28:20.980 --> 00:28:22.019 Let us not commodify 00:28:22.019 --> 00:28:22.440 the holy. 00:28:23.400 --> 00:28:24.240 I'll end with this. 00:28:25.519 --> 00:28:26.519 All of humanity 00:28:26.519 --> 00:28:27.279 is on a pilgrimage. 00:28:27.279 --> 00:28:30.399 We seek to reach 00:28:30.399 --> 00:28:31.960 a place of profound peace 00:28:31.960 --> 00:28:33.660 with green fields 00:28:33.660 --> 00:28:34.839 and gentle breezes. 00:28:35.399 --> 00:28:37.259 We desire satisfaction, 00:28:37.619 --> 00:28:38.039 belonging, 00:28:38.339 --> 00:28:38.619 joy, 00:28:38.779 --> 00:28:39.299 good order, 00:28:39.480 --> 00:28:39.720 laughter, 00:28:39.899 --> 00:28:40.139 delight, 00:28:40.299 --> 00:28:40.579 friendship, 00:28:40.680 --> 00:28:41.160 and connection. 00:28:41.879 --> 00:28:42.720 So in a sense, 00:28:42.859 --> 00:28:43.859 whether it's Elysium 00:28:43.859 --> 00:28:44.720 or Nirvana 00:28:44.720 --> 00:28:46.339 or Paradise, 00:28:46.819 --> 00:28:48.519 it's still that same 00:28:48.519 --> 00:28:49.660 human impulse, 00:28:50.200 --> 00:28:51.119 okay, 00:28:51.299 --> 00:28:52.940 to touch the divine. 00:28:52.940 --> 00:28:55.559 we want this 00:28:55.559 --> 00:28:56.620 not just for a moment 00:28:56.620 --> 00:28:57.259 but forever 00:28:57.259 --> 00:28:58.000 with the one 00:28:58.000 --> 00:28:59.259 who created it all. 00:28:59.620 --> 00:29:00.559 But here's the rub. 00:29:00.640 --> 00:29:01.140 We don't know 00:29:01.140 --> 00:29:02.680 where such a place is 00:29:02.680 --> 00:29:04.360 and so we have no idea 00:29:04.360 --> 00:29:06.420 where to travel towards 00:29:06.420 --> 00:29:07.539 or how to travel 00:29:07.539 --> 00:29:08.860 there to begin with. 00:29:09.820 --> 00:29:10.259 And still, 00:29:10.380 --> 00:29:10.920 we keep moving. 00:29:11.259 --> 00:29:11.980 We keep pursuing 00:29:11.980 --> 00:29:12.940 this ultimate goal, 00:29:13.400 --> 00:29:14.240 but because we are 00:29:14.240 --> 00:29:14.920 off course, 00:29:15.299 --> 00:29:17.220 we become confused pilgrims. 00:29:18.039 --> 00:29:19.320 Like I said before, 00:29:19.319 --> 00:29:20.299 we create 00:29:20.299 --> 00:29:22.099 and travel towards 00:29:22.099 --> 00:29:23.439 pseudo-Jerusalem's 00:29:23.439 --> 00:29:24.879 and false temples. 00:29:28.859 --> 00:29:30.299 We make sacrifices 00:29:30.299 --> 00:29:32.419 that at their core 00:29:32.419 --> 00:29:33.059 are selfish. 00:29:36.059 --> 00:29:37.500 Our souls are turbulent 00:29:37.500 --> 00:29:38.240 messes. 00:29:38.859 --> 00:29:39.799 We are left confused 00:29:39.799 --> 00:29:40.539 and bewildered 00:29:40.539 --> 00:29:41.879 and we become 00:29:41.879 --> 00:29:43.720 atomized, 00:29:44.779 --> 00:29:45.419 consumeristic, 00:29:45.519 --> 00:29:45.939 and tribal. 00:29:47.559 --> 00:29:48.700 But there is hope 00:29:48.700 --> 00:29:50.620 for Christ Jesus 00:29:50.620 --> 00:29:52.080 who pilgrimed 00:29:52.080 --> 00:29:53.740 himself to Jerusalem 00:29:53.740 --> 00:29:55.080 not to worship 00:29:55.080 --> 00:29:55.779 at the temple 00:29:55.779 --> 00:29:56.660 with a sacrifice 00:29:56.660 --> 00:29:57.279 to offer 00:29:57.279 --> 00:29:57.920 but rather 00:29:57.920 --> 00:29:59.380 to offer himself 00:29:59.380 --> 00:30:00.920 as the sacrifice, 00:30:01.059 --> 00:30:01.759 the true and living 00:30:01.759 --> 00:30:03.000 temple 00:30:03.000 --> 00:30:04.640 where God's presence 00:30:04.640 --> 00:30:06.799 dwelt amongst 00:30:06.799 --> 00:30:07.400 his people. 00:30:07.980 --> 00:30:09.319 John 1 says 00:30:09.319 --> 00:30:10.120 that Christ 00:30:10.120 --> 00:30:11.400 tabernacled 00:30:11.400 --> 00:30:12.180 amongst us 00:30:12.180 --> 00:30:13.340 the word made flesh. 00:30:13.900 --> 00:30:15.120 It's the same word 00:30:15.120 --> 00:30:15.920 that describes 00:30:15.920 --> 00:30:16.580 the temple 00:30:16.579 --> 00:30:18.819 that the Israelites 00:30:18.819 --> 00:30:19.619 sorry, 00:30:19.740 --> 00:30:20.579 the tent of meeting 00:30:20.579 --> 00:30:21.199 that the Israelites 00:30:21.199 --> 00:30:21.799 erected 00:30:21.799 --> 00:30:22.879 and brought with them 00:30:22.879 --> 00:30:24.039 throughout the desert. 00:30:24.159 --> 00:30:24.439 It is 00:30:24.439 --> 00:30:26.099 the picture 00:30:26.099 --> 00:30:26.899 of God's presence 00:30:26.899 --> 00:30:27.779 and that is 00:30:27.779 --> 00:30:28.720 who Christ is. 00:30:31.139 --> 00:30:31.799 And through him 00:30:31.799 --> 00:30:32.899 the church would be born, 00:30:33.359 --> 00:30:33.960 God's spirit 00:30:33.960 --> 00:30:34.460 would dwell 00:30:34.460 --> 00:30:35.099 with his people 00:30:35.099 --> 00:30:35.480 forever. 00:30:35.879 --> 00:30:36.679 It means we have 00:30:36.679 --> 00:30:37.740 a clear pathway 00:30:37.740 --> 00:30:39.720 to the new Jerusalem. 00:30:40.359 --> 00:30:41.639 That celestial city 00:30:41.639 --> 00:30:42.319 where the gates 00:30:42.319 --> 00:30:43.579 will forever be opened, 00:30:43.579 --> 00:30:44.059 and joys 00:30:44.059 --> 00:30:44.859 will last forever 00:30:44.859 --> 00:30:46.059 and where the sun 00:30:46.059 --> 00:30:46.799 will no longer 00:30:46.799 --> 00:30:47.859 be needed for light 00:30:47.859 --> 00:30:50.099 as the very light 00:30:50.099 --> 00:30:50.960 of God's presence 00:30:50.960 --> 00:30:52.319 will illuminate us all. 00:30:53.039 --> 00:30:54.039 This is the Christian hope. 00:30:55.019 --> 00:30:55.819 There's nothing else 00:30:55.819 --> 00:30:56.539 besides it. 00:30:57.379 --> 00:30:57.879 This marks 00:30:57.879 --> 00:30:58.639 Christ's kingdom 00:30:58.639 --> 00:31:00.519 coming on earth 00:31:00.519 --> 00:31:01.599 as it is in heaven. 00:31:02.259 --> 00:31:02.960 So let's close 00:31:02.960 --> 00:31:03.619 with the words 00:31:03.619 --> 00:31:04.419 from the author 00:31:04.419 --> 00:31:05.399 of the Hebrews 00:31:05.399 --> 00:31:06.159 chapter 12 00:31:06.159 --> 00:31:06.859 verse 22 00:31:06.859 --> 00:31:08.039 to 24. 00:31:09.439 --> 00:31:10.419 But you have come 00:31:10.419 --> 00:31:11.179 to Mount Zion 00:31:11.179 --> 00:31:11.939 and to the city 00:31:11.940 --> 00:31:12.840 of the living God, 00:31:13.500 --> 00:31:14.559 the heavenly Jerusalem, 00:31:15.240 --> 00:31:17.039 and to innumerable angels 00:31:17.039 --> 00:31:18.140 in festal gathering, 00:31:18.779 --> 00:31:19.580 and to the assembly 00:31:19.580 --> 00:31:20.519 of the firstborn 00:31:20.519 --> 00:31:21.299 who are enrolled 00:31:21.299 --> 00:31:21.720 in heaven, 00:31:21.799 --> 00:31:22.460 and to God, 00:31:23.019 --> 00:31:23.980 the judge of all, 00:31:24.059 --> 00:31:24.779 and to the spirits 00:31:24.779 --> 00:31:25.400 of the righteous 00:31:25.400 --> 00:31:26.140 made perfect, 00:31:26.480 --> 00:31:27.640 and to Jesus, 00:31:28.059 --> 00:31:28.880 the mediator 00:31:28.880 --> 00:31:29.960 of a new covenant, 00:31:30.799 --> 00:31:32.080 and to the sprinkled blood 00:31:32.080 --> 00:31:33.500 that speaks a better word 00:31:33.500 --> 00:31:35.059 than the blood of Abel. 00:31:36.059 --> 00:31:36.799 Let us pray. 00:31:39.299 --> 00:31:40.059 Heavenly Father, 00:31:40.059 --> 00:31:40.700 we thank you 00:31:40.700 --> 00:31:42.559 for Jerusalem. 00:31:42.679 --> 00:31:43.019 We thank you 00:31:43.019 --> 00:31:44.200 for the earthly Jerusalem 00:31:44.200 --> 00:31:45.259 that exists today, 00:31:45.960 --> 00:31:47.240 that so many cities 00:31:47.240 --> 00:31:48.720 have come 00:31:48.720 --> 00:31:49.480 and disappeared. 00:31:49.799 --> 00:31:50.299 The Jerusalem 00:31:50.299 --> 00:31:52.720 of the Bible 00:31:52.720 --> 00:31:53.419 still exists, 00:31:53.559 --> 00:31:53.899 but Lord, 00:31:53.960 --> 00:31:54.659 we thank you 00:31:54.659 --> 00:31:55.519 more so 00:31:55.519 --> 00:31:56.519 for your son, 00:31:57.679 --> 00:31:58.659 for he is 00:31:58.659 --> 00:31:59.379 our Jerusalem. 00:31:59.679 --> 00:32:00.299 He is 00:32:00.299 --> 00:32:01.759 the place 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:02.220 where he, 00:32:02.539 --> 00:32:03.679 the one we pilgrim 00:32:03.679 --> 00:32:04.079 towards. 00:32:04.240 --> 00:32:05.200 He is our prize. 00:32:06.399 --> 00:32:07.059 He is also 00:32:07.059 --> 00:32:07.559 the temple. 00:32:07.919 --> 00:32:08.019 Lord, 00:32:08.019 --> 00:32:08.619 we thank you 00:32:08.619 --> 00:32:10.220 that he has 00:32:10.220 --> 00:32:12.220 tabernacled amongst us, 00:32:12.299 --> 00:32:12.900 made his home 00:32:12.900 --> 00:32:13.539 with us. 00:32:14.240 --> 00:32:15.039 We thank you 00:32:15.039 --> 00:32:16.359 that we are 00:32:16.359 --> 00:32:17.900 also a type 00:32:17.900 --> 00:32:18.319 of temple, 00:32:18.920 --> 00:32:19.960 for your Holy Spirit 00:32:19.960 --> 00:32:21.900 dwells in your church, 00:32:21.940 --> 00:32:23.440 and you are with us 00:32:23.440 --> 00:32:23.960 even now. 00:32:24.900 --> 00:32:25.119 Lord, 00:32:25.160 --> 00:32:26.240 help us to worship you 00:32:26.240 --> 00:32:27.099 in spirit 00:32:27.099 --> 00:32:27.700 and in truth. 00:32:27.819 --> 00:32:29.180 Help us to pray 00:32:29.180 --> 00:32:29.960 for the peace 00:32:29.960 --> 00:32:30.779 of Jerusalem, 00:32:31.420 --> 00:32:32.519 that is to pray 00:32:32.519 --> 00:32:32.940 your kingdom 00:32:32.940 --> 00:32:33.819 come on earth 00:32:33.819 --> 00:32:34.619 as it is in heaven. 00:32:35.400 --> 00:32:35.700 And Lord, 00:32:35.759 --> 00:32:36.539 we pray that you 00:32:36.539 --> 00:32:37.000 would come 00:32:37.000 --> 00:32:37.319 and you would 00:32:37.319 --> 00:32:37.920 come swiftly 00:32:37.920 --> 00:32:39.539 and that the new 00:32:39.539 --> 00:32:40.279 Jerusalem would be 00:32:40.279 --> 00:32:41.200 everything we could 00:32:41.200 --> 00:32:42.000 ever hope for 00:32:42.000 --> 00:32:42.539 and then some. 00:32:43.480 --> 00:32:43.720 Lord, 00:32:43.759 --> 00:32:44.220 we thank you 00:32:44.220 --> 00:32:44.799 for the gift 00:32:44.799 --> 00:32:45.420 and privilege 00:32:45.420 --> 00:32:46.980 it is to be 00:32:46.980 --> 00:32:47.899 called by your name 00:32:47.899 --> 00:32:49.159 to worship you. 00:32:50.200 --> 00:32:51.159 We pray all of this 00:32:51.159 --> 00:32:52.319 in Christ's mighty name. 00:32:53.000 --> 00:32:53.240 Amen.