WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.140 Good morning, folks. Let's just pray. We're going to be looking at the Bible, Philippians 00:00:07.140 --> 00:00:12.640 chapter 1. We'll talk about that more in a moment, but let's begin by praying. Father, 00:00:12.980 --> 00:00:19.100 we ask that the Holy Spirit would fall with fresh power upon me as I speak and everyone 00:00:19.100 --> 00:00:25.100 who is listening and or watching. Father, we ask that you would work in our lives so 00:00:25.100 --> 00:00:31.580 that we have a deep confidence and a deep joy with our confidence and joy rooted in 00:00:31.580 --> 00:00:37.120 Jesus and what he did for us on the cross. And this we ask in Jesus's name. Amen. 00:00:39.500 --> 00:00:46.359 CBC on Wednesday had a very interesting piece about a different problem which has come up 00:00:46.359 --> 00:00:54.520 connected to COVID-19. And the problem that CBC documented was that there has been an increased 00:00:54.520 --> 00:01:00.620 demand for doctor-assisted suicide. And not only has there been a great, according to 00:01:00.620 --> 00:01:09.520 CBC, a great increase in demand for doctor-assisted suicide, but there's a shortage of supplies 00:01:09.520 --> 00:01:15.320 for it. There's problems with procedures and a shortage of supplies, and this is a problem 00:01:15.320 --> 00:01:21.400 that needs to be fixed. Part of the irony or the problem around the shortage of supplies 00:01:21.400 --> 00:01:30.800 is that some of the same drugs that are required to save people who have COVID-19 are the very same 00:01:30.800 --> 00:01:37.880 drugs that are needed for a doctor to kill a person. Like there's a real irony here. If you think about 00:01:37.880 --> 00:01:42.780 it for a second, imagine the situation where somebody is almost, they come and they're given an option. 00:01:42.880 --> 00:01:47.860 Well, listen, we have that limited number of this drug. We can use it to help you overcome COVID-19. 00:01:47.859 --> 00:01:55.400 We can use it to end your life. Or the irony of a person who goes and has treated for the COVID-19 00:01:55.400 --> 00:02:00.859 in a hospital. They successfully get over it. And then like a week later, they go to the same doctor 00:02:00.859 --> 00:02:06.920 and they said they'd like to have suicide using the same drugs. Like there's a, like there's something 00:02:06.920 --> 00:02:12.759 about that picture, which is just odd, isn't there? If you think about it. You know, 00:02:12.759 --> 00:02:21.519 the Hippocratic oath about doctors not killing isn't something which was invented by Christians. 00:02:21.679 --> 00:02:27.399 It was invented by a pagan some 400 years before the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus. 00:02:28.719 --> 00:02:34.799 It was, it wasn't, he was an outlier. It wasn't actually, it didn't take hold in ancient Greece. 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:39.919 There was also maybe a small number of doctors who would sort of adhere to it, but he was an outlier. 00:02:39.919 --> 00:02:46.639 This idea that if you came to see a doctor, they would only act to heal you or to try to heal you 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:53.739 or try to make you better. But it was rediscovered in the 1500s by Jewish and Christians in Europe. 00:02:54.079 --> 00:03:00.500 And then in the 1700s by Christians and Jews in Europe, it was translated into English and started 00:03:00.500 --> 00:03:07.319 to become a very key part of how doctors understood their role. And from that basis spread to the medical 00:03:07.319 --> 00:03:12.739 community more or less throughout the world. We all know cases from totalitarian governments and 00:03:12.739 --> 00:03:18.019 fascist governments where medicine has been corrupted. But generally speaking, it's been the 00:03:18.019 --> 00:03:25.060 case that when you go to see a doctor, the doctor might be very competent or not as competent as they, 00:03:25.319 --> 00:03:30.519 as you wish he or she was. They might make a mistake. Doctors are human, they make mistakes, 00:03:30.520 --> 00:03:37.080 but you can go in the full confidence that the doctor will seek to make you as well as you possibly 00:03:37.080 --> 00:03:42.660 can be, that they're not going to make a separate decision to put you to death. 00:03:44.219 --> 00:03:49.000 The fact of the matter is, and I'm not being alarmist about this, if you just go back and look 00:03:49.000 --> 00:03:54.320 at the different record of the different proposals that were being made when doctor-assisted suicide 00:03:54.319 --> 00:04:01.739 first came into Canada. And as you know, the government wants to change the laws concerning it. 00:04:01.840 --> 00:04:06.099 And if you were just to go and look at some of the expert testimony, in terms of the different 00:04:06.099 --> 00:04:12.180 directions that people want to go to change it, you'll see that the direction is to expand the power of 00:04:12.180 --> 00:04:16.980 doctors to be able to kill more people, not only those who request it, but those who don't 00:04:16.980 --> 00:04:20.860 necessarily request it. That's all part of it. I mean, this isn't me being alarmist. Just look 00:04:20.860 --> 00:04:26.879 at this. And these recommendations aren't coming from crackpots in the deep woods or, 00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:32.980 you know, some type of slobbering fool who lives in his basement and never sees the light of the day. 00:04:33.080 --> 00:04:38.720 This is, you know, when there's no pandemic. I mean, these are elite commentators. People at the 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:45.920 pinnacle of society are arguing for an extension of this. And it could actually create the type of, 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:50.800 you know, if you think about it, it could create the type of situation where literally you have 00:04:50.800 --> 00:04:55.860 to wonder when you go to the doctor, like if all of these things play out, if the door gets opened 00:04:55.860 --> 00:05:01.220 more and more and more, and all these things play out. If you go to see a doctor, like right now, 00:05:01.220 --> 00:05:07.060 I go to see a doctor and I know they're going to listen to me and try to do the best they can to 00:05:07.060 --> 00:05:14.860 make me better. But if this was to become, in fact, the case where more and more permission is 00:05:14.860 --> 00:05:20.480 granted to doctors and to the state, how do I know that when I go to the doctor, he's not sort of 00:05:20.480 --> 00:05:23.780 listening and thinking, you know, I know, I think George is a little bit depressed. I think really 00:05:23.780 --> 00:05:28.420 what he's doing is a bit of a cry for help that would be helped if I actually put him to death. 00:05:28.800 --> 00:05:35.259 Or if they're making decisions from the state, because there's a limit, you might need far more 00:05:35.259 --> 00:05:40.040 drugs to save a person on COVID-19 than you would to put a person to death. So it's actually far more 00:05:40.040 --> 00:05:45.660 cost effective to actually kill a wide range of people. And there you could even make the case, 00:05:45.660 --> 00:05:52.939 this is a wonderful idea. Just look, you know, we're preserving the drugs to save people's lives, 00:05:53.060 --> 00:05:59.000 healthy people's lives. And, you know, if you just one other thing, if you look at it, don't look at 00:05:59.000 --> 00:06:04.460 the slogans, ignore the slogans, okay, because the slogans are always about how, you know, death, 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:09.240 dignity, et cetera, et cetera. Ignore the slogans and look at what they actually want to do. 00:06:09.240 --> 00:06:17.000 And you could see a time could come when you don't know whether the doctor is listening to you to make 00:06:17.000 --> 00:06:23.579 an evaluation to heal you or to kill you. Now, in an odd way, and doctors have these almost godlike 00:06:23.579 --> 00:06:27.620 powers, right? If you think about it, I mean, this is the thing that Hippocrates understood way back 00:06:27.620 --> 00:06:32.780 400 years BC, that many of the things, same things that they would use to heal a person were the same 00:06:32.780 --> 00:06:37.960 things that they could use with a different dose to kill a person. And so doctors, in a sense, have this 00:06:37.959 --> 00:06:45.079 almost godlike power to either heal or to kill. And it's been a longstanding, you know, issue of 00:06:45.079 --> 00:06:51.659 doctors letting this type of power go to their head. It's well talked about. They're human. They're 00:06:51.659 --> 00:06:55.799 not worse than any other people. And they're not better than other people. They're human, 00:06:56.060 --> 00:07:03.759 fully human. And, you know, in an odd way, if that day ever comes where people are going to go to a 00:07:03.759 --> 00:07:07.939 doctor not knowing whether they're going to make a decision to harm you or to heal you, 00:07:07.959 --> 00:07:16.060 they will actually become how we view the gods. You see, because here's the thing about the gods, 00:07:16.579 --> 00:07:27.939 is the gods and all spirituality seem to demand at least diminishment or harm, but often death. 00:07:29.079 --> 00:07:34.620 I mean, this is not a particularly novel thing. I mean, it's been made very publicized by guys like 00:07:34.620 --> 00:07:38.800 Christopher Hitchens, but you could go to once where you're able to go to a bar or a coffee shop 00:07:38.800 --> 00:07:44.379 again, you'll hear this idea expressed anywhere. You'll see it in op-ed pages, that there's something 00:07:44.379 --> 00:07:48.740 about religion, there's something about spirituality that seems to delight in human diminishment, 00:07:49.139 --> 00:07:54.720 and seems to delight even in death and causing religious wars and causing all sorts of foolish 00:07:54.720 --> 00:08:00.439 practices that lead to death. And so, and that's why many people in our culture, they do, and with 00:08:00.439 --> 00:08:05.240 religion, they do one of two things. They either decide to go straight into the religion, trying 00:08:05.240 --> 00:08:10.180 to curry favor, in a sense, with the god or the gods, in the hope that the god or the gods will 00:08:10.180 --> 00:08:15.660 help them or spare them, or as has increasingly happened in places like Canada, United States, 00:08:15.740 --> 00:08:21.120 people say, to heck with the gods. Like, all they do is diminish and cause death. We're way better 00:08:21.120 --> 00:08:26.159 without them. It seems as if there's only these two options which are available to people. 00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:31.360 I'm talking about all of this because, in fact, the gospel presents a completely and utterly 00:08:31.360 --> 00:08:38.840 different option. It is definitely the case that much of Christianity forget, will often forget the 00:08:38.840 --> 00:08:43.920 gospel and slide into the same type of religion which either diminishes or seems to delight in 00:08:43.920 --> 00:08:49.560 death. But the heart of the Christian faith is the gospel, which is a very, very, very particular 00:08:49.559 --> 00:08:55.759 good news about who Jesus is and what he's accomplished for us on the cross. And if you 00:08:55.759 --> 00:08:59.439 don't understand this difference, then when we eventually come to look at the text, and we are 00:08:59.439 --> 00:09:04.599 going to look at the text, Philippians chapter 1 verses 19 to 26, it won't make any sense to you. 00:09:05.199 --> 00:09:13.000 So here's the thing. Spiritualities and religion, spiritualities and religions require the diminishment 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:20.059 and even the death of people. The good news is that the true and living God diminished himself 00:09:20.059 --> 00:09:27.000 and died for the good of people. Now, by the way, I have these little talking points. I think they're 00:09:27.000 --> 00:09:31.539 going to be on the little comment section on the side that you can look at. And if you're looking at 00:09:31.539 --> 00:09:36.940 this later on and you can't see the comment section, I think by the end of Monday afternoon or something, 00:09:36.940 --> 00:09:42.300 this is all going to be posted on the church webpage. You can see all the points if you're 00:09:42.300 --> 00:09:46.000 watching this later on. And we're going to be working over the next couple of weeks to be able 00:09:46.000 --> 00:09:49.160 to put the points on screen to make it a little bit easier for you to see it. Just give us a bit 00:09:49.160 --> 00:09:54.600 of patience as we sort that out. But here's the sort of the opening point that spiritualities and 00:09:54.600 --> 00:10:01.080 religions require the diminishment in even the death of people. This is something which the gospel 00:10:01.080 --> 00:10:06.660 tells us, by the way. We don't have to learn this just from Christopher Hitchens. The 00:10:06.659 --> 00:10:13.659 Bible is the most profound critique of religion, way more profound than anything you'll find from 00:10:13.659 --> 00:10:19.719 the new atheists or your best buddy at the bar. The good news is that the true and living God 00:10:19.719 --> 00:10:29.100 diminished himself and died for the good of people. So, you know, I mean, if you see the movie, 00:10:29.100 --> 00:10:34.860 the Netflix TV series Unorthodox, it's a very, very powerful presentation of how 00:10:34.860 --> 00:10:41.740 the woman is completely and utterly diminished time and time and time and time again by the 00:10:41.740 --> 00:10:48.680 religion and how she seeks release and freedom in abandoning religion. And religions and 00:10:48.680 --> 00:10:53.960 spiritualities, they diminish, they change how you use your time, they change how you eat, they 00:10:53.960 --> 00:10:59.500 change your sexual practices, they change how you spend money, usually to diminish you in some type of 00:10:59.500 --> 00:11:08.940 way. And that's, and they do seem to contribute to vast religious wars. But the good news of the 00:11:08.940 --> 00:11:14.559 gospel is that it's the complete opposite of religion and of spirituality. Because you see, at the heart of 00:11:14.559 --> 00:11:20.759 the gospel is this idea that God, the Son of God, seeing the great need of ordinary human beings like 00:11:20.759 --> 00:11:28.980 you and me, empties himself of his appearance as God, his divine prerogatives, his powers as God, but 00:11:28.980 --> 00:11:37.519 remaining fully God diminishes himself to the point of becoming an ovum, a fertilized egg in the womb of 00:11:37.519 --> 00:11:43.580 the Virgin Mary, and diminishes himself to living a normal human life, having to earn his own living, and 00:11:43.580 --> 00:11:50.460 diminishes himself even to dying a death upon the cross, a death which is for us, which I'll talk about 00:11:50.460 --> 00:11:58.420 in a moment. And so all of this diminishment and even death, is God, the Son of God, doing this for ordinary 00:11:58.420 --> 00:12:05.240 people like you and me? Now some of you may say, whoa, George, okay, that sounds all good. I'm just going to ask you 00:12:05.240 --> 00:12:13.160 two questions, George. Do you tithe? Actually, I do. So that means, George, you give away or try to give away 00:12:13.160 --> 00:12:19.940 10% of your income. Yes. George, isn't that diminishment? Well, I'm going to talk about that in a moment. 00:12:20.460 --> 00:12:24.080 And, you know, you could say, well, what about sex? What about a couple of other things? Like, you go to 00:12:24.080 --> 00:12:31.519 church, like, isn't that diminishing? Let me explain the profound difference that the gospel makes. 00:12:32.259 --> 00:12:37.540 And, you know, to understand what diminishment means, I'm not making an end run. You'll see what 00:12:37.540 --> 00:12:44.519 I mean. It's connected to what a human being is, and the world we live in, and our final end. So here's 00:12:44.519 --> 00:12:53.279 the next point. Try to understand why it is that the gospel is an entry into life because of the life 00:12:53.279 --> 00:12:59.919 which is given by Jesus. So here's the second thing. Every human being is fearfully and wonderfully made 00:12:59.919 --> 00:13:08.539 and bears an unsurpassed dignity and worth. Every human being, I'm not saying every person, 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:17.919 I'm saying every human being, is fearfully and wonderfully made and bears an unsurpassed dignity 00:13:17.919 --> 00:13:24.799 of and worth. And that means everything it means to be a human being. And human beings have only one 00:13:24.799 --> 00:13:31.059 way of being human. We begin as a fertilized egg attached to the membrane of our mother's womb, 00:13:31.559 --> 00:13:40.500 and we proceed until death. And every human being at every stage is fearfully and wonderfully made 00:13:40.500 --> 00:13:45.659 and bears an unsurpassed dignity and worth, at least in the created order. Obviously, God is of greater 00:13:45.659 --> 00:13:50.240 worth. But in the created order, this is the Christian teaching. That's how God originally created 00:13:50.240 --> 00:13:57.259 human beings to be. And if you think about it, this is the only really solid ground for all human 00:13:57.259 --> 00:14:02.680 rights. It's the protection of the individual versus the state, because the state, the country, 00:14:02.779 --> 00:14:10.080 the nation, CBC, Apple, they do not have that dignity. They are not fearfully and wonderfully made and bear 00:14:10.080 --> 00:14:16.000 an unsurpassed dignity and worth. But the lowest human being, the poorest human being, the most handicapped 00:14:16.000 --> 00:14:25.000 human being bears that. It's why it's wrong for a man to force himself upon a woman sexually. It's why 00:14:25.000 --> 00:14:31.919 slavery is wrong. It is the most remarkable and marvelous truth in the world that will transform 00:14:31.919 --> 00:14:38.399 human relationships and government. And it is only to the herd of society and personal relationships 00:14:38.620 --> 00:14:44.899 when it is lost. But you can push back and say, George, there's way more to human beings than this, 00:14:44.899 --> 00:14:50.319 isn't there? Like, look at the killing fields of Cambodia. Look at, just look at some of the 00:14:50.319 --> 00:14:54.319 horrendous things that are going on in the world today. Look at ethnic cleansing and genocide. 00:14:54.539 --> 00:14:58.240 George, look at those things. Well, that's why there's this next point, point number three. 00:14:58.879 --> 00:15:08.899 In seeking to become like God, with the true God under us, humans became bent, and death became the doom 00:15:08.899 --> 00:15:18.259 of every human being. This teaching isn't that humans are, I mean, what it really is saying is that 00:15:18.259 --> 00:15:23.299 now every human being is fearfully and wonderfully made and bears an unsurpassed dignity and worth and 00:15:23.299 --> 00:15:37.299 is bent, and death is our doom. You see, the humans attempt to be over God, to be like God, but you can't 00:15:37.299 --> 00:15:42.379 just be like God because if you're like God, you're not really God because he's equal to you, so he has 00:15:42.379 --> 00:15:49.019 to be underneath you. And that desire bent us in every aspect of who we are. It doesn't mean that 00:15:49.019 --> 00:15:53.559 we're evil. It doesn't mean that everything we do is evil. Everything we do is wrong. God in his common 00:15:53.559 --> 00:16:00.219 grace maintains this fearfully and wonderfully made and this unsurpassed dignity and value and worth. 00:16:00.779 --> 00:16:05.120 But everything is bent. You see, if you think about it for a second, only this double Christian 00:16:05.120 --> 00:16:10.060 teaching can explain what human beings are really like. Because the fact of the matter is, 00:16:10.240 --> 00:16:16.100 is that there is something God-like almost in the greatness of human beings. Something marvelous. 00:16:16.279 --> 00:16:23.799 You see Usain Bolt with his speed. You see a brilliant human being. You see a wonderful dancer. You see a 00:16:23.799 --> 00:16:28.779 musical performer. You see government when it's really working well. You see a community when it's 00:16:28.779 --> 00:16:34.379 really working well. And there's something just almost God-like and wonderful about it. 00:16:35.100 --> 00:16:42.620 But at the same time, there's a monstrosity to human beings. We do monstrous and terrible things 00:16:42.620 --> 00:16:48.939 to each other. And only the Christian story puts those two things together and makes sense. Because 00:16:48.939 --> 00:16:53.980 the fact of the matter is, is that the message of the gospel is that every human being, no matter how you 00:16:53.980 --> 00:17:00.700 feel today, no matter how broken or lonely you feel, you are vastly more important and vastly greater than 00:17:00.700 --> 00:17:07.759 you can even imagine. But you are vastly more broken and more in need of salvation than you can even 00:17:07.759 --> 00:17:15.680 experience in your worst dreams and nightmares about yourself. And this is all seen in the gospel. 00:17:16.019 --> 00:17:23.059 That because we're bent, we can't save or deliver ourselves. So God acts to deliver, to save. And he does it 00:17:23.059 --> 00:17:31.019 for you. And he does it by him experiencing the diminishment and death, which is needed so that 00:17:31.019 --> 00:17:36.259 diminishment and death does not have to be the final word about you. You see, here's the point. 00:17:36.819 --> 00:17:45.980 Jesus is the triune God's provision. Jesus is the triune God's provision for ordinary human beings. 00:17:45.980 --> 00:17:47.380 Jesus is the triune God's provision for ordinary human beings. And he does it by his grace. 00:17:47.380 --> 00:17:56.860 Life itself took flesh and lived and died so that the sin that dooms you to death and your life itself 00:17:56.860 --> 00:18:06.620 would be swallowed by eternal life. That's the good news of the gospel. That's the good news of the 00:18:06.620 --> 00:18:15.940 gospel, that God provides what we need. He does it out of his unmerited kindness and grace towards us. 00:18:15.980 --> 00:18:27.799 And he does it by life itself. Life itself. Taking flesh. Walking among us in history. 00:18:29.380 --> 00:18:37.039 The fact that Jesus existed cannot be denied. The fact that he died upon the cross cannot be denied. 00:18:37.039 --> 00:18:45.980 It all happens in history. And the evidence of his real defeat, triumph over death and the sin that 00:18:45.980 --> 00:18:54.259 causes death is very, very historic. There's lots of good historical reasons and others to believe it. 00:18:55.079 --> 00:19:00.819 This vindication of the message, this wonderful good news that the sin that dooms you to death and your 00:19:00.819 --> 00:19:08.460 life itself will be swallowed up by eternal life. This is the news at the heart of the good. This is the 00:19:08.460 --> 00:19:13.299 good news. And this, you see, the Christian faith is not about good advice, good rituals, good poetry, 00:19:13.299 --> 00:19:20.139 good philosophy, good yoga, good techniques, good diets, good figures. I don't know what's talking about 00:19:20.139 --> 00:19:27.759 any of those things. It's good news. And everything flows from being gripped and receiving this good news. 00:19:27.759 --> 00:19:38.059 Here's the point. By faith in Christ, the triune God invites you to Christ and you become regenerate, 00:19:38.700 --> 00:19:43.879 a new creation. I think I'm missing part of it there. I probably didn't copy it all down, right? 00:19:44.099 --> 00:19:50.859 It's probably better in your notes. When you put your faith and trust in Christ, the triune God 00:19:50.859 --> 00:19:59.019 unites you. That's the word. I can't read my printing. The triune God unites you to Christ 00:19:59.019 --> 00:20:07.359 and you become regenerate. You become a new creation. In a sense, you reach out with your mind, 00:20:07.439 --> 00:20:15.639 with your heart. You say to God, you know, I'm bent. I can't fix myself. I'm doomed to death. 00:20:15.640 --> 00:20:20.380 I don't want to just follow religion and spirituality. That will just lead to more death 00:20:20.380 --> 00:20:25.540 and more diminishment. And so I thank you, Father. I thank you, God, for what you provide 00:20:25.540 --> 00:20:31.380 in the person of Jesus and what he did for me. He lived the life I could not live. He dies the death 00:20:31.380 --> 00:20:39.580 I could not die. He is life itself entering history so that the real me, when I put my faith and trust in 00:20:39.579 --> 00:20:49.240 him, he and all that he's accomplished enters me and I enter into that and you, you give me a second 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:55.139 birth. You see, at the heart of Christianity is two births. You have to understand the significance of 00:20:55.139 --> 00:21:01.839 the first birth, that you are fearfully and wonderfully made and that you, that you bear an unsurpassed 00:21:01.839 --> 00:21:08.319 dignity and worth. But because you're bent, because death is now part of who you are, you need this 00:21:08.319 --> 00:21:16.139 second birth, which only God can do. He can make you regenerate, a new creation when you put your faith 00:21:16.139 --> 00:21:24.919 and trust in Jesus and you are united to him. And you see, that's all leading us up to my next point, 00:21:24.920 --> 00:21:32.100 which is if you turn in your Bibles to Philippians chapter 1, verses 19 to 26, you're going to see 00:21:32.100 --> 00:21:38.420 verse 21. We're going to start at verse 21. And verse 21, this very, very powerful maxim, if you 00:21:38.420 --> 00:21:44.440 haven't memorized it, memorize it. And this, along with what's happening in Philippians 2, 5 to 11, 00:21:44.519 --> 00:21:49.460 which we're going to spend two weeks on beginning next Sunday, this is the key to understanding 00:21:49.460 --> 00:21:53.800 everything in the book of Philippians and it's a key part to understanding the good news of the gospel 00:21:53.799 --> 00:22:00.159 and what it means to live a gospel-shaped, gospel-gripped life. And look what it says in 00:22:00.159 --> 00:22:09.940 verse 21, for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. 00:22:10.759 --> 00:22:19.079 This central Christian maxim, this central maxim of the gospel, that to live is Christ because there is 00:22:19.079 --> 00:22:27.259 this new life for Christ which is in you and to die is gain. For a Christian, to die is to be swallowed 00:22:27.259 --> 00:22:36.339 by eternal life. You see, when you put your faith and trust in Jesus, when you put your faith and trust 00:22:36.339 --> 00:22:44.759 in Jesus, you actually become a new creation. Like the eternal life that will eventually swallow you 00:22:44.759 --> 00:22:52.200 completely is now at the very center of who you are and will never leave you because God has put it there 00:22:52.200 --> 00:22:59.539 when you put your faith and trust in Jesus. And so what happens in death for a Christian 00:22:59.539 --> 00:23:06.599 is that that eternal life which is already present in you while you live in this created order, 00:23:06.599 --> 00:23:17.740 it swallows you. Like eternal life swallows you. The second birth is connected to the new creation. 00:23:20.480 --> 00:23:24.740 So let's look at this. And so this goes back to, remember you're asking me, George, do you tithe? 00:23:25.240 --> 00:23:31.139 And I said, yes, I do. Does that mean I have less money than before? It does. Could I afford a better 00:23:31.140 --> 00:23:39.220 car? Yeah. Could I afford a lot of other things? I could. So George, isn't the gospel leading you to 00:23:39.220 --> 00:23:43.940 diminishment? No. Think about it for a second. Look at this line. It's a very, very telling line. 00:23:44.180 --> 00:23:52.280 Evaluate every philosophy by it. To live is Christ, to die is gain. If you watch the movie Unorthodox, 00:23:52.380 --> 00:23:57.720 the series Unorthodox, which is very well written, you'll see that the choice is between living this 00:23:57.720 --> 00:24:02.380 unbelievably religious rule-bound thing where you have to touch an object going in and all these 00:24:02.380 --> 00:24:09.819 rules. And the opposite of it is to have, in a sense, sexual and artistic liberation. That's the 00:24:09.819 --> 00:24:17.299 choice. But use this as a bit of a way to try to understand it. Say to yourself, to live is sex. To die is 00:24:17.299 --> 00:24:27.279 losing everything. To live is art. To die is to lose everything. To live is power. 00:24:27.720 --> 00:24:36.059 To die is to lose everything. To live is choice. To die is to lose everything. To live is identity. To die 00:24:36.059 --> 00:24:43.279 is to lose everything. To live for the sake of your party or ideology. To die is to lose everything. 00:24:48.079 --> 00:24:54.319 There's this missionary who died trying to bring the gospel, the good news of eternal life 00:24:54.319 --> 00:25:02.359 to a people group that were very violent. And in his journal before he died, his name is Jim Elliott, 00:25:02.359 --> 00:25:11.720 he wrote this, he is no fool to give what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose. 00:25:11.720 --> 00:25:32.220 Right? To live is money. You die, you lose it all. But to live, for to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 00:25:32.220 --> 00:25:38.680 And you think about it for a second, at a very, very simple level. Just imagine for a moment that 00:25:38.680 --> 00:25:44.220 it's sort of like a Christmas carol, and you're able to go and overhear people at your funeral. What 00:25:44.220 --> 00:25:48.779 would you rather hear them say? Would you rather hear them say, the problem with George is he was 00:25:48.779 --> 00:25:53.839 way too generous. He gave away his money. Or would you rather have them say, you know, the problem with 00:25:53.839 --> 00:26:00.480 George is he was so cheap, he wouldn't even buy you a coffee. Would you rather have somebody about, 00:26:00.480 --> 00:26:05.140 say something about, you know, the thing about, about that, Bob, we'll call him Bob, or the thing 00:26:05.140 --> 00:26:10.279 about Sue, Bob or Sue, do you think, you know, the thing about Bob or Sue is, you know, they weren't 00:26:10.279 --> 00:26:14.640 controlled by money. They had a type of freedom around it. Or you rather say, you know, the thing 00:26:14.640 --> 00:26:20.759 about Bob and Sue is they were so driven by money, or they were so driven by looks, or they were so 00:26:20.759 --> 00:26:26.799 driven by power, or they were so driven by having their own way. Like, what would you rather have? 00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:35.000 What is it more like to be more fully human than to be known for forgiveness, to be known for 00:26:35.000 --> 00:26:42.700 patience, to be known for generosity, to be known for self-giving? And it's not a matter of me telling 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:47.639 you to do this so people will think well of you when you die. It's a matter of when you unite yourself 00:26:47.640 --> 00:26:56.960 to Christ, and he makes you a new creation. And the means by which he became a new creation was the 00:26:56.960 --> 00:27:03.780 diminishment and death of him for the sake of you. When that new life enters into you, the generosity 00:27:03.780 --> 00:27:10.520 of God, the love of God, the mercy of God, the forgiveness of God, the beauty of God, the care for 00:27:10.519 --> 00:27:16.819 creation of God, the concern for justice of God becomes part of that new creation for you. And 00:27:16.819 --> 00:27:20.819 it is not that you instantly become changed because I am a fallen human being as well, 00:27:21.039 --> 00:27:24.240 but that this becomes your story. 00:27:29.180 --> 00:27:32.460 Sorry. You know, one of the hard things about doing this is a little bit of an aside. 00:27:32.720 --> 00:27:36.700 There's four people in the room. And if they, if you watch anything about how to do these talks, 00:27:36.700 --> 00:27:41.819 I'm not supposed to look at them, but they're here. I'm supposed to look at you or occasionally 00:27:41.819 --> 00:27:46.759 stare off in the distance as a thoughtful person because it's overbearing if I spend the entire 00:27:46.759 --> 00:27:52.039 time staring at you. And sometimes they do things around here. Like you can't see them, 00:27:52.140 --> 00:27:59.460 but they do things. Anyway, we're live. That's why you watch it live. You get right in on the moment. 00:27:59.720 --> 00:28:06.660 Anyway, where was I in my point? I've sort of forgotten. So remember about money, 00:28:06.700 --> 00:28:11.360 all of these things. It's not, it's, but you understand not just for your life, but for 00:28:11.360 --> 00:28:18.120 everything. He is no fool to give up, to give what he cannot keep my life, my money, 00:28:19.620 --> 00:28:27.940 my identity to gain that, which I cannot lose because death is being swallowed up by life. 00:28:28.460 --> 00:28:33.680 So mindful of that, just let's look at the whole text and you'll see how the entire text 00:28:33.680 --> 00:28:38.820 pops out at you. If you just, for the rest of the time you go back and you read the Philippians 00:28:38.820 --> 00:28:42.600 from the beginning to the end, do that. It doesn't take that long. It's only four short chapters and 00:28:42.600 --> 00:28:48.900 read it always in mind of the maxim for me to live as Christ and to die as gain. And you'll see how that, 00:28:49.500 --> 00:28:52.160 the things it pops up. It's not talking about religion. 00:28:52.160 --> 00:29:00.480 For to me to live as Christ and to die as gain. Let's look at verse 19, just a few verses before 00:29:00.480 --> 00:29:08.360 it. Yes, and I will rejoice. For I know that through your prayers, and in my version it says 00:29:08.360 --> 00:29:15.080 the help. And help's a fine word, but the better word is supply. It's actually the more literal word 00:29:15.079 --> 00:29:21.099 here. There's a reason why the word help is there rather than supply. I won't bore you with it. 00:29:22.319 --> 00:29:27.179 For I know that, excuse me, verse 19 again, for I know that through your prayers and the help of 00:29:27.179 --> 00:29:33.319 the sword and the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ, this will turn out for my deliverance. 00:29:33.359 --> 00:29:40.659 That's him being in chains, in house arrest in Rome. I'll read it again. Just remember, 00:29:40.660 --> 00:29:46.900 he's in house arrest in Rome. Why is he in house arrest in Rome? He is proclaiming this outrageous 00:29:46.900 --> 00:29:53.420 idea that a man named Jesus died by crucifixion, as he predicted, and rose from the dead as he 00:29:53.420 --> 00:29:58.580 predicted, and that this vindicates that he is God's provision to save human beings, that the 00:29:58.580 --> 00:30:04.200 possibility of new life and new creation through union with Christ has entered into this world. 00:30:05.360 --> 00:30:10.500 That's why he's in chains. So read it again, verse 19. For I know that through your prayers and 00:30:10.500 --> 00:30:16.539 the supply of the spirit of Jesus Christ, this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager 00:30:16.539 --> 00:30:22.460 expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always, 00:30:22.619 --> 00:30:29.299 Christ will be honored in my flesh, in my body, whether by life or death. For to me to live is 00:30:29.299 --> 00:30:34.819 Christ and to die is gain. And we'll just pause there. Two really interesting things that fit with 00:30:34.819 --> 00:30:41.179 this notion. All to live is Christ, of union with Christ, and through union with Christ of being this 00:30:41.179 --> 00:30:46.960 new creation. And here's the first one, because Paul says here he's going to be delivered, right? 00:30:47.279 --> 00:30:53.279 And some of your versions will say saved, and both words are very, very, they're both the right word. 00:30:53.879 --> 00:30:58.679 Usually the word is translated as saved, but it can also be used as delivered. It intentionally has 00:30:58.680 --> 00:31:04.880 two meanings, which is probably why Paul used it. But here's what he's saying. You will be delivered 00:31:04.880 --> 00:31:13.860 naturally, supernaturally, or eternally. You will be delivered naturally, supernaturally, or eternally. 00:31:14.080 --> 00:31:20.200 This is for Christians. Now all Christians will eventually be delivered eternally, but in the here 00:31:20.200 --> 00:31:24.200 and now, this is what Paul's confidence is. He said people are praying for my release, and it might very 00:31:24.200 --> 00:31:29.360 well be that the Roman authorities release me. That's naturally. Or it might be, as has happened 00:31:29.360 --> 00:31:35.380 to me in the past, as it happened in Philippi, when I first came to Europe, and I shared the gospel, and I 00:31:35.380 --> 00:31:40.720 was thrown in jail, that I was delivered supernaturally. But you know what? Even if I die, 00:31:42.120 --> 00:31:54.140 well, if I die, I'm delivered eternally. How can I lose? How can I lose? It's the same thing when 00:31:54.140 --> 00:32:00.700 we're praying for people who are sick. Some other time, I can tell you about a man that I came to 00:32:00.700 --> 00:32:05.940 pray for. They wanted me to give him the last rites, and I prayed for his healing, and he woke up. 00:32:06.980 --> 00:32:11.980 True story. He woke up and thanked me. He lived another couple of years. And many Christians can 00:32:11.980 --> 00:32:16.720 tell you stories like that. But here's the thing. When I pray for a person who's sick, it's the same 00:32:16.720 --> 00:32:22.300 type of thing. I pray that they will get better. And for a Christian that I'm praying that for, 00:32:22.299 --> 00:32:27.579 they could either get better naturally through drugs and the care of the doctors, etc., or 00:32:27.579 --> 00:32:34.079 supernaturally by a divine healing. Or if they die, well, they're healed eternally, aren't they? 00:32:34.619 --> 00:32:40.639 If you're in Christ. Because death means to be swallowed up by life if you are in Christ. 00:32:41.879 --> 00:32:44.980 And notice this other wonderful thing here in verse 19. It says, 00:32:45.159 --> 00:32:49.000 For I know that through your prayers and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 00:32:49.000 --> 00:32:54.700 this will turn out for my deliverance. The other thing here is this word supply of the Holy Spirit. 00:32:54.839 --> 00:33:01.019 You see, when you put your faith and trust in Jesus, and you're united to him, and you're 00:33:01.019 --> 00:33:05.599 given this, you made this new creation. And the Bible also talks about how the Father, the Son, 00:33:05.640 --> 00:33:11.519 and the Holy Spirit themselves, through the Spirit, actually indwell you. But it's not inert. You see, 00:33:11.519 --> 00:33:18.920 here's the point. The Holy Spirit now flows in and through you for your good, the spread of the 00:33:18.920 --> 00:33:25.160 gospel, the good of people, and the glory of the triune God. The Holy Spirit now flows in and 00:33:25.160 --> 00:33:30.740 through you for your good, for the spread of the gospel, for the good of people, and the glory of 00:33:30.740 --> 00:33:36.039 the triune God. See, that's why you can pray for more of the Holy Spirit. You can pray for the Holy 00:33:36.039 --> 00:33:39.480 Spirit to fall and to move. Because it's not as if you sort of just have this, 00:33:39.480 --> 00:33:43.920 like, I don't know, like an inoculation. It's the Holy Spirit inoculation, and it's just sort of 00:33:43.920 --> 00:33:49.900 static and just sort of sits there. It's dynamic. It's dynamic, and you can pray for it. Pray for 00:33:49.900 --> 00:33:57.620 it. Pray for me as I open the word that the Holy Spirit will flow through me more and more and more 00:33:57.620 --> 00:34:02.839 and flow into you more and more and more. Just one more thing as we're trying to draw it to a close. 00:34:02.839 --> 00:34:10.119 Let's read the rest of the text. Begin at verse 21 again, because some people have used this text 00:34:10.119 --> 00:34:15.799 to say that Paul is recommending or considering suicide, and he's not at all. He's not at all. 00:34:16.400 --> 00:34:23.099 Look what it says, 21 to 26. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to live in the 00:34:23.099 --> 00:34:29.340 flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which shall I choose? I cannot tell. I am hard-pressed 00:34:29.340 --> 00:34:35.140 between the two, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Those are the two that he's hard-pressed for. 00:34:35.920 --> 00:34:42.200 My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more 00:34:42.200 --> 00:34:48.660 necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for 00:34:48.660 --> 00:34:56.980 your progress and joy in the faith. Right? He desires for them to progress in their joy in the faith. 00:34:56.980 --> 00:35:04.400 Verse 26, so that in me you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus because of my coming to 00:35:04.400 --> 00:35:11.039 you again. His desire is that they will progress and grow. Here's the final point. With new creation 00:35:11.039 --> 00:35:18.800 life, you can always go farther up and further in. With new creation life, you can always go farther up 00:35:18.800 --> 00:35:25.579 and further in. Both on this side of the grave and the rest of eternal life. Read the last battle in 00:35:25.579 --> 00:35:29.679 the Narnia Chronicles. Those of you who've read that, you can pick up farther up and further in, 00:35:29.799 --> 00:35:34.980 farther up and further in, farther up and further in. And the deeper in, it's like, you know, like, 00:35:35.099 --> 00:35:39.299 you know, in the incarnation, what was inside the womb of Mary was bigger than the universe. 00:35:40.639 --> 00:35:47.460 When Jesus was born in the stable, what was inside the stable was bigger than the entire universe. 00:35:47.460 --> 00:35:54.740 And when you enter into the new creation, and as you enter into God, the further in you go to God, 00:35:54.820 --> 00:35:59.480 the bigger it gets. The further in you go into the new heaven and the new earth, the bigger it gets. 00:36:01.820 --> 00:36:08.280 Just wrap this up. You know, some of you might have been a bit struck my talk about what it means 00:36:08.280 --> 00:36:15.280 to be a human being, my talk about assisted suicide. I hope you get from my manner, what we're talking about 00:36:15.280 --> 00:36:21.460 here is not condemnation, but invitation. What we're talking about here is not condemnation, but 00:36:21.460 --> 00:36:31.680 invitation. I urge you, even now, say to Jesus, Jesus, please be my savior and my Lord. Thank you 00:36:31.680 --> 00:36:37.620 for what you did for me on the cross. Thank you that even though I can't save myself, you've done 00:36:37.620 --> 00:36:43.260 what needed to be done for me to be delivered. Thank you that you know everything there is about me now, 00:36:43.260 --> 00:36:47.420 all the things that are shameful, all the things that are strong, and that you would actually want 00:36:47.420 --> 00:36:53.560 to unite yourself to me in such a way that I am a new creation, a new birth, a second birth 00:36:53.560 --> 00:37:03.120 that will survive death and go farther up and further in. And, you know, in terms of it, aspire to 00:37:03.119 --> 00:37:11.319 verse 21. For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain. You know, some of us have lots of extra time 00:37:11.319 --> 00:37:17.199 with this pandemic. And, you know, here's the wonderful thing about the gospel. I wish, I hope 00:37:17.199 --> 00:37:23.599 that this could become more and more my identity, for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. You know 00:37:23.599 --> 00:37:29.779 what I suggest for you who are in Christ? Spend some time meditating upon that and say, Lord, make this 00:37:29.780 --> 00:37:38.000 the maxim that shapes and governs my life. And help me to live out of this. And spend a couple of 00:37:38.000 --> 00:37:43.820 minutes a day or longer meditating upon that and saying, Lord, help me to live out of this is my 00:37:43.820 --> 00:37:50.019 identity. For me to live is Christ and to die is gain. And then have a little pad with you and note what 00:37:50.019 --> 00:37:58.200 the Holy Spirit prompts you to do. Because when you make that your focus, it might then be he get this 00:37:58.199 --> 00:38:03.719 prompt. You know what? Send an email to that person that you need to ask forgiveness for. Or why don't 00:38:03.719 --> 00:38:08.939 you go and drop a friendly note in your neighbor's things? Or why don't you send this? Or why don't 00:38:08.939 --> 00:38:13.239 you start this? Or why don't you do this? Or why don't you stop that? But you don't begin there. You 00:38:13.239 --> 00:38:19.719 begin by this as your new identity. And here's the final thing in light of my opening thing about the 00:38:19.719 --> 00:38:25.659 CBC. I just want to make a pledge to you. If those of you who don't know, we are in the process of 00:38:25.659 --> 00:38:32.059 starting a second congregation in Kanata. Please pray for that. If you live in Kanata and you don't 00:38:32.059 --> 00:38:38.420 have a church home, contact us. We'd love to have you included in our hope that in the year 2021 that 00:38:38.420 --> 00:38:44.480 we will, God is raising up a second Messiah congregation in Kanata. So I'm speaking about 00:38:44.480 --> 00:38:49.279 this. I'm speaking about Messiah Kanata. And if by the grace of God we start a church in Orleans or 00:38:49.279 --> 00:38:53.699 some other place, wherever it is, I make this commitment to you. And I know that everyone in my 00:38:53.699 --> 00:38:59.559 council and all of the staff would agree and the congregation agrees. In a world where there is 00:38:59.559 --> 00:39:10.299 increased desire for death, Messiah will be an island of life. In Ottawa, we will be an island of life. 00:39:11.139 --> 00:39:17.879 In Ontario and Quebec, we will be an island of life. In Canada, we will be an island of life. 00:39:17.880 --> 00:39:25.800 In this world, we will be an island of life. Let's pray. 00:39:27.880 --> 00:39:36.140 Father, please grip us with this truth, to live as Christ and to die as game. Grip us with this truth. 00:39:36.400 --> 00:39:44.180 Grip us with the gospel. And so gripped, help us to live for the good of people and for your great glory. 00:39:44.559 --> 00:39:46.720 And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:39:47.880 --> 00:39:48.780 Amen. 00:39:52.880 --> 00:39:53.340 Amen. 00:39:53.420 --> 00:39:53.559 Amen. 00:39:53.599 --> 00:39:53.720 Amen. 00:39:53.800 --> 00:39:53.900 Amen. 00:39:53.900 --> 00:39:54.140 Amen. 00:39:54.140 --> 00:39:54.300 Amen. 00:39:54.460 --> 00:39:54.660 Amen. 00:39:54.720 --> 00:39:55.440 Amen. 00:39:55.880 --> 00:39:56.180 Amen. 00:39:56.660 --> 00:39:56.940 Amen. 00:39:56.940 --> 00:39:57.000 Amen. 00:39:57.660 --> 00:39:57.820 Amen. 00:39:57.840 --> 00:39:58.039 Amen. 00:39:58.039 --> 00:39:58.220 Amen. 00:39:58.880 --> 00:39:58.900 Amen.