WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.560 Well, good morning. 00:00:13.000 --> 00:00:16.300 My name, as has already been mentioned, is Luke Lillivigen. 00:00:16.660 --> 00:00:21.440 I got to talk to Jim Franks this morning, and he asked me, you know, he said, 00:00:21.539 --> 00:00:23.820 you've been here before, and I said, yes, I have. 00:00:23.820 --> 00:00:29.640 The last time that I was here in this room, I was being examined for ordination in this presbytery. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:35.340 And I'm glad that I'm feeling much less anxiety today than I was back then. 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:45.519 But certainly our prayers are with Andy and his recovery, with Matthew Capone and his much-deserved time off. 00:00:46.079 --> 00:00:51.780 And I am very thankful to all of you for the opportunity to come and to worship the Lord together with you. 00:00:51.939 --> 00:00:56.179 We're going to look at a passage today in the Gospel according to Luke. 00:00:56.879 --> 00:00:57.859 We're going to read together. 00:00:57.859 --> 00:01:00.320 It won't be in your worship guides. 00:01:00.859 --> 00:01:05.719 So if you have a Bible, you can open that up, or I've been told it will be up on the screen possibly. 00:01:05.980 --> 00:01:12.760 So we're going to look in Luke chapter 12, beginning in the 22nd verse. 00:01:12.760 --> 00:01:16.440 And Jesus said to his disciples, 00:01:16.439 --> 00:01:37.039 And yet God feeds them. 00:01:37.040 --> 00:02:05.120 And yet I tell you, even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these. 00:02:05.120 --> 00:02:12.200 But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, 00:02:12.480 --> 00:02:15.719 how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith? 00:02:16.759 --> 00:02:21.819 Do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 00:02:22.540 --> 00:02:28.360 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. 00:02:29.180 --> 00:02:32.580 Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. 00:02:32.580 --> 00:02:38.320 Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 00:02:39.360 --> 00:02:42.160 Sell your possessions and give to the needy. 00:02:42.939 --> 00:02:46.580 Provide yourselves with money bags that do not grow old, 00:02:47.040 --> 00:02:50.439 with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, 00:02:51.300 --> 00:02:54.220 where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 00:02:54.980 --> 00:02:58.340 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 00:02:58.820 --> 00:02:59.500 Let us pray. 00:02:59.500 --> 00:03:04.840 Heavenly Father, Lord God, we do thank you for the gift of your word, 00:03:05.919 --> 00:03:07.360 the assurances of your love, 00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:11.439 and the opportunity that we have to come and to hear them together, 00:03:11.560 --> 00:03:14.280 to be reminded by the power of your Spirit 00:03:14.280 --> 00:03:17.719 that we indeed are dependent upon you. 00:03:17.860 --> 00:03:20.900 And so, Lord, I pray that today, through all of this, 00:03:21.740 --> 00:03:24.879 that we would be conformed more and more to the image of your Son. 00:03:24.879 --> 00:03:24.960 Amen. 00:03:25.500 --> 00:03:26.780 It's in his name that we pray. 00:03:27.659 --> 00:03:27.960 Amen. 00:03:30.000 --> 00:03:32.340 So what is it that makes you anxious? 00:03:35.159 --> 00:03:38.819 Now, in my everyday life, I'm a hospice chaplain. 00:03:38.919 --> 00:03:42.780 I work in Pueblo, driving all around the city to people's homes, 00:03:42.859 --> 00:03:43.599 all over the place, 00:03:43.659 --> 00:03:47.219 to visit with people who have been diagnosed 00:03:47.219 --> 00:03:49.560 and given less than six months to live. 00:03:50.400 --> 00:03:52.400 And so, when I go to meet with them, 00:03:52.599 --> 00:03:55.000 oftentimes, it's just me and the patient, 00:03:55.240 --> 00:03:56.079 just the two of us. 00:03:56.280 --> 00:03:59.240 And so, I get to ask them really personal questions, 00:03:59.360 --> 00:04:01.300 like, what makes you anxious? 00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:03.060 What keeps you up at night? 00:04:04.240 --> 00:04:05.879 Now, in a place like this, 00:04:05.900 --> 00:04:08.060 I would love to walk out with a microphone 00:04:08.060 --> 00:04:09.659 and ask you, one by one, 00:04:09.860 --> 00:04:12.099 what is it that makes you anxious? 00:04:12.099 --> 00:04:15.299 But my wife warns me that this might make you more anxious. 00:04:15.819 --> 00:04:17.060 So I'm not going to do it. 00:04:17.740 --> 00:04:21.100 But instead, I want to recognize 00:04:21.100 --> 00:04:24.699 that many of us feel anxious. 00:04:25.560 --> 00:04:29.699 Jesus uses three words pretty interchangeably here. 00:04:29.779 --> 00:04:34.040 He talks about anxiety, fear, worry. 00:04:35.060 --> 00:04:37.860 All of these are things that we are familiar with 00:04:37.860 --> 00:04:39.360 at some point in our lives. 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:42.100 And if you're sitting there thinking to yourself, 00:04:42.340 --> 00:04:44.960 I'm not anxious, well, good. 00:04:45.600 --> 00:04:46.180 That's awesome. 00:04:46.319 --> 00:04:47.199 I'm so glad for you. 00:04:47.660 --> 00:04:49.360 Two things I want to check in with you, though, 00:04:49.980 --> 00:04:51.460 before you check out of this sermon. 00:04:52.580 --> 00:04:54.660 The first one is, why aren't you anxious? 00:04:56.980 --> 00:04:59.139 If you sit here and you think, I'm not anxious. 00:04:59.520 --> 00:05:01.900 I live in a wonderful house in a safe neighborhood. 00:05:02.080 --> 00:05:04.439 I've got a great job, well-behaved children. 00:05:04.759 --> 00:05:06.280 Everything's wonderful in my life. 00:05:06.279 --> 00:05:10.419 Then Jesus has very serious warnings for you. 00:05:11.839 --> 00:05:14.339 Because the phrase, do not be anxious, 00:05:14.939 --> 00:05:17.859 is one of those nice platitudes that we can throw out there, 00:05:17.919 --> 00:05:20.459 that we can embroider on a throw pillow, right? 00:05:20.679 --> 00:05:21.539 Do not be anxious. 00:05:21.679 --> 00:05:23.279 It's easy to remember. 00:05:23.419 --> 00:05:24.219 Do not be anxious. 00:05:24.699 --> 00:05:26.239 It's something you can tell your kids. 00:05:26.399 --> 00:05:27.379 Do not be anxious. 00:05:27.619 --> 00:05:28.799 It fits in a greeting card. 00:05:28.800 --> 00:05:34.720 But it comes in the context of a much larger passage 00:05:34.720 --> 00:05:36.579 where Jesus is teaching his disciples. 00:05:36.939 --> 00:05:42.139 And it comes immediately following a verse that warns us 00:05:42.139 --> 00:05:45.720 and a parable where Jesus warns his disciples 00:05:45.720 --> 00:05:49.480 that if you are like a rich man who builds for himself 00:05:49.480 --> 00:05:51.660 storehouses full of grain, 00:05:52.300 --> 00:05:55.060 that even that will be taken away from you. 00:05:55.060 --> 00:06:00.139 Because we have no power to provide for ourselves. 00:06:00.939 --> 00:06:03.860 So if you are sitting here this morning and saying, 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:06.680 I'm not anxious because everything in my life is fantastic. 00:06:06.839 --> 00:06:08.280 I have everything I need. 00:06:08.519 --> 00:06:09.340 Then listen up. 00:06:10.840 --> 00:06:13.399 And to see where it is that that should be. 00:06:13.399 --> 00:06:16.599 And if truly you sit here this morning 00:06:16.599 --> 00:06:20.500 with the true peace of Christ in your heart, 00:06:21.739 --> 00:06:23.939 also please don't check out, 00:06:24.159 --> 00:06:26.079 because the people around you, they're anxious. 00:06:27.019 --> 00:06:30.099 We live in a very, very anxious world. 00:06:30.239 --> 00:06:34.359 In fact, the psychologist Jonathan Haidt 00:06:34.359 --> 00:06:38.419 has labeled young kids today the anxious generation. 00:06:38.420 --> 00:06:43.640 It is the thing that defines so many young people in our culture. 00:06:43.960 --> 00:06:46.660 It is something that your family members, 00:06:47.220 --> 00:06:50.340 your co-workers are struggling with. 00:06:51.759 --> 00:06:54.900 And what could be better than hearing the good news of Jesus Christ 00:06:54.900 --> 00:06:58.100 that you can take out to them and apply into their lives? 00:06:58.360 --> 00:07:00.139 Because I promise you, if they're anxious, 00:07:00.420 --> 00:07:06.160 they are searching in vain for a relief from that anxiety. 00:07:06.160 --> 00:07:08.160 If they're not turning to Christ, 00:07:08.900 --> 00:07:10.600 then their anxiety is going to persist. 00:07:10.980 --> 00:07:16.100 And you have the only thing that can really address their anxiety. 00:07:17.000 --> 00:07:19.000 And isn't that good news? 00:07:20.120 --> 00:07:24.360 Isn't that worth tuning in to the words of Jesus to his disciples for? 00:07:25.540 --> 00:07:28.320 So when we look at these, Jesus starts off, 00:07:28.420 --> 00:07:29.860 and he begins right away. 00:07:30.160 --> 00:07:32.879 He says, do not be anxious. 00:07:32.879 --> 00:07:36.199 I want to put you at ease a little bit. 00:07:36.480 --> 00:07:38.500 This is not an 11th commandment. 00:07:39.379 --> 00:07:42.399 Jesus is not saying, thou shalt not be anxious. 00:07:42.579 --> 00:07:46.860 Sometimes when we worry, we can feel like we're being sinful. 00:07:48.560 --> 00:07:53.319 We can feel like we are failing to live up to God's standard. 00:07:53.579 --> 00:07:55.659 But that's not what Jesus is saying here. 00:07:57.399 --> 00:08:01.219 He's not warning them to not be anxious. 00:08:01.220 --> 00:08:02.700 He is encouraging them. 00:08:03.340 --> 00:08:08.960 Because he has just told them that you have no power to provide for yourself. 00:08:09.380 --> 00:08:14.800 You have no ability to protect your goods, 00:08:15.840 --> 00:08:18.860 your food on this planet. 00:08:19.440 --> 00:08:19.940 You don't. 00:08:21.560 --> 00:08:23.800 That's a hard truth for us sometimes. 00:08:24.180 --> 00:08:28.000 To recognize that we are not in control of our lives. 00:08:28.000 --> 00:08:30.420 We desperately want to be. 00:08:31.680 --> 00:08:34.139 But we are not in control of our lives. 00:08:34.519 --> 00:08:36.980 We are not self-sufficient. 00:08:38.440 --> 00:08:42.019 This is something that many of my patients wrestle with. 00:08:42.659 --> 00:08:45.820 If any of you have ever had to get to that point 00:08:45.820 --> 00:08:49.100 where you need to take the car keys away from your dear mother 00:08:49.100 --> 00:08:52.899 and say, no, it's not safe for you to be out there, 00:08:52.899 --> 00:08:59.519 you know how tightly we cling on to the idea of our independence. 00:09:00.519 --> 00:09:04.139 The idea that we should be able to go where we want 00:09:04.139 --> 00:09:06.379 and do what we want whenever we want. 00:09:07.120 --> 00:09:11.819 We are independent people who don't like to be dependent upon anyone, 00:09:12.939 --> 00:09:14.000 even God. 00:09:14.000 --> 00:09:21.820 But when Jesus tells us, fear not, little flock, 00:09:22.559 --> 00:09:24.480 he's speaking to you and to me. 00:09:25.519 --> 00:09:27.620 We are his little flock. 00:09:28.399 --> 00:09:31.440 We are the sheep that he loves and cares for, 00:09:31.519 --> 00:09:33.919 that he feeds out of his very own hand. 00:09:35.980 --> 00:09:40.759 And he is encouraging us to not be anxious 00:09:40.759 --> 00:09:43.879 because we live in a very anxious world. 00:09:45.700 --> 00:09:48.100 Now, what is it that makes us anxious? 00:09:48.299 --> 00:09:50.799 What is it that makes you anxious? 00:09:52.059 --> 00:09:52.939 Is it money? 00:09:54.620 --> 00:09:58.480 I got to tell you, I have my own monetary fears in this world. 00:09:58.819 --> 00:10:02.159 I was very, very blessed this Christmas break 00:10:02.159 --> 00:10:03.639 to have my daughter home from college. 00:10:03.740 --> 00:10:04.679 It's her freshman year. 00:10:05.120 --> 00:10:06.399 And we just sent her off. 00:10:06.439 --> 00:10:09.360 She's our oldest, the first one that we sent away. 00:10:09.360 --> 00:10:14.080 And there's a lot of concern on my part when she goes. 00:10:15.139 --> 00:10:16.960 There's safety concerns. 00:10:17.180 --> 00:10:18.379 There's financial concerns. 00:10:18.519 --> 00:10:19.720 College is not cheap. 00:10:25.580 --> 00:10:28.379 And so I wonder about things like, 00:10:28.759 --> 00:10:30.220 where's the money going to come from? 00:10:30.980 --> 00:10:33.060 How are we going to pay for these things? 00:10:33.720 --> 00:10:35.259 Is she going to take it seriously? 00:10:35.399 --> 00:10:36.620 Is she going to study hard? 00:10:36.620 --> 00:10:39.220 Or is she going to be like me and goof off? 00:10:40.259 --> 00:10:43.259 Fail classes, lose scholarships, all of those things, right? 00:10:43.539 --> 00:10:46.080 It's so real to me because I've done that. 00:10:47.639 --> 00:10:51.580 And at the same time that we're sending my daughter off to college, 00:10:51.820 --> 00:10:55.259 we're getting ready to welcome a new child into our home. 00:10:55.340 --> 00:10:57.580 My wife, who's, I'm 44 years old. 00:10:57.639 --> 00:10:59.320 I'm not going to tell you how old my wife is. 00:10:59.320 --> 00:11:02.140 But we're expecting a new baby. 00:11:02.280 --> 00:11:03.760 Our youngest right now is 11. 00:11:04.260 --> 00:11:05.840 This was a bit of a shock to us. 00:11:06.160 --> 00:11:10.940 As we were financially preparing, I was going back to work full time. 00:11:11.120 --> 00:11:14.140 I was getting ready to, and we made all of our plans. 00:11:14.240 --> 00:11:15.580 They were set in place. 00:11:16.580 --> 00:11:18.300 But God had different plans for us. 00:11:18.299 --> 00:11:22.740 And I'll admit that that brought me anxiety to say, 00:11:22.799 --> 00:11:24.059 how are we going to do this again? 00:11:25.599 --> 00:11:29.099 I have to say, I laughed a little bit because my wife and I, 00:11:29.120 --> 00:11:30.939 we got married very young. 00:11:30.940 --> 00:11:34.600 And I had children pretty much right away. 00:11:34.800 --> 00:11:39.900 And so I normally worship at Grace and Peace just up the road from here. 00:11:40.020 --> 00:11:45.320 And we have a lot of young children running around with parents who aren't quite as young. 00:11:45.980 --> 00:11:49.220 And I laughed over and over again thinking, 00:11:49.380 --> 00:11:53.080 I am so thankful that I was wise and had my children young. 00:11:53.300 --> 00:11:57.540 So that as they grow older, I still have the energy to do these things. 00:11:57.540 --> 00:11:59.960 And now, of course, God laughs back at me. 00:12:00.940 --> 00:12:05.940 And so we can be anxious about important things, right? 00:12:06.840 --> 00:12:11.640 We can be anxious about things that matter, like providing for our loved ones, 00:12:12.480 --> 00:12:14.960 raising them up in the fear and the admonition of the Lord, 00:12:16.280 --> 00:12:18.280 keeping ourselves safe. 00:12:20.300 --> 00:12:23.960 We can be concerned about the world that we live in, 00:12:24.020 --> 00:12:26.700 the society that we occupy, the government that we elect. 00:12:26.700 --> 00:12:29.280 These are all good and important things. 00:12:29.279 --> 00:12:32.459 And yet Jesus assures us not to be anxious. 00:12:33.559 --> 00:12:36.299 Because we're in a world that's telling us all the time, 00:12:36.339 --> 00:12:38.620 over and over again, to be anxious. 00:12:38.919 --> 00:12:41.939 Because it's such an effective marketing tool. 00:12:43.779 --> 00:12:48.399 We live in a world where everyone is trying to make us afraid of something 00:12:48.399 --> 00:12:50.339 so that they can sell us the solution. 00:12:50.340 --> 00:12:55.019 Do you not have as much money as your neighbor? 00:12:55.340 --> 00:12:56.960 Here's a get-rich-quick scheme. 00:12:58.800 --> 00:13:02.840 Are your children not as beautiful as you want them to be? 00:13:02.960 --> 00:13:05.000 Here are some braces that you can pay for. 00:13:06.639 --> 00:13:09.960 Have you run out of ways to compete with your neighbors? 00:13:10.200 --> 00:13:13.240 How about you put them into music, like my kids are, right? 00:13:13.240 --> 00:13:20.100 How about you are afraid of the other party and so you have to vote for us? 00:13:21.100 --> 00:13:25.399 Or you're afraid of the borders or the economy or whatever it is. 00:13:26.120 --> 00:13:28.600 I have a solution that I can sell to you. 00:13:28.600 --> 00:13:37.980 But none of those things are going to deal with the real anxiety that we feel. 00:13:40.100 --> 00:13:44.700 Because the real anxieties that we have can only be addressed by Jesus Christ himself. 00:13:47.300 --> 00:13:51.960 And so Jesus begins with the encouragement. 00:13:51.960 --> 00:13:54.720 Do not be anxious. 00:13:55.780 --> 00:13:59.840 And he gives us not one, but two parables back to back. 00:14:00.300 --> 00:14:04.120 You'll see in them a very nice parallel about the ravens. 00:14:05.480 --> 00:14:07.480 We all know what ravens look like, right? 00:14:07.580 --> 00:14:10.139 Those big old black birds that you see everywhere, right? 00:14:10.860 --> 00:14:14.040 Flying in the skies, eating out in the fields. 00:14:14.560 --> 00:14:16.060 They are beautiful. 00:14:17.060 --> 00:14:19.580 But they're not like squirrels. 00:14:19.580 --> 00:14:23.360 Squirrels, as they prepare for the winter, 00:14:23.580 --> 00:14:26.840 they will go around and they'll pick up all the nuts and they'll put them someplace, right? 00:14:27.259 --> 00:14:28.120 They'll hide them. 00:14:29.379 --> 00:14:34.280 Now, thankfully for oak trees, squirrels often forget where it is that they've hidden them, right? 00:14:34.340 --> 00:14:37.360 But the idea of the squirrel is, I'm going to get ready for winter. 00:14:37.740 --> 00:14:41.820 I'm going to be ready when there's no more abundance out there. 00:14:41.860 --> 00:14:43.940 I'm going to have it sitting here waiting for me. 00:14:44.379 --> 00:14:46.960 And what Jesus tells us is, don't look at the squirrel. 00:14:48.180 --> 00:14:49.500 Don't consider the ant. 00:14:49.580 --> 00:14:50.520 Look at the raven. 00:14:52.139 --> 00:14:57.740 The raven who doesn't do any of those things and yet somehow manages to survive. 00:15:01.340 --> 00:15:06.860 That raven is an example to us of how we should be. 00:15:06.860 --> 00:15:16.300 Or here in beautiful, colorful Colorado in the spring when all of those gorgeous wildflowers come out, right? 00:15:17.519 --> 00:15:25.200 That's something that we can all look forward to, driving up the road and seeing all of those colors and how beautiful they are. 00:15:25.200 --> 00:15:32.180 And Jesus tells us that not even Solomon was dressed as beautifully as a single columbine. 00:15:32.179 --> 00:15:40.319 And he says something really important to us. 00:15:40.399 --> 00:15:45.659 And you can tell it's important because, like I said, there's two parallel parables, right? 00:15:45.739 --> 00:15:46.759 Two parallel parables. 00:15:47.000 --> 00:15:47.539 Hard to say. 00:15:47.539 --> 00:15:52.279 And sandwiched right in the middle of those two parables is sort of the point. 00:15:53.620 --> 00:15:55.099 So Jesus says, 00:15:55.100 --> 00:16:02.980 And which of you, by being anxious, can add a single hour to his span of life? 00:16:04.259 --> 00:16:05.379 You can't. 00:16:05.379 --> 00:16:11.419 This is something that in hospice we are very, very much aware of. 00:16:13.539 --> 00:16:23.419 That we can care for you, relieve pain, give you love, help you deal with the leftover anxieties of this life. 00:16:23.820 --> 00:16:25.639 But we cannot extend your life. 00:16:28.919 --> 00:16:32.960 If there's a doctor who doesn't know that, then they should learn it really, really quickly. 00:16:32.960 --> 00:16:43.400 Because as wonderful a blessing as modern medicine is, it cannot extend our life one minute beyond what God has already ordained for us. 00:16:47.100 --> 00:16:51.120 And so when we live in that reality, that might make us uncomfortable. 00:16:52.860 --> 00:16:54.379 And I think it probably should. 00:16:56.720 --> 00:17:02.540 Because as much as we plan and scheme in this world, as much as we prepare ourselves for what is to come, 00:17:02.539 --> 00:17:03.779 we don't know what's going to come. 00:17:04.159 --> 00:17:04.899 We have no idea. 00:17:07.639 --> 00:17:12.079 This is a world where we can sort of make five, ten, twenty-year plans. 00:17:12.680 --> 00:17:14.740 But God's going to do what God's going to do. 00:17:16.440 --> 00:17:19.379 And that might be a terrifying thought to you, 00:17:19.500 --> 00:17:23.220 if you think of God as being distant from you. 00:17:24.339 --> 00:17:27.700 Some sort of force who's monkeying with your life, 00:17:27.700 --> 00:17:29.860 and you have no say in it. 00:17:31.220 --> 00:17:33.480 But that's not who God is. 00:17:35.920 --> 00:17:39.539 I think sometimes we, especially as good Calvinists, 00:17:39.980 --> 00:17:42.160 can look at people who are worrying, 00:17:42.480 --> 00:17:43.480 people who are in pain, 00:17:43.519 --> 00:17:43.960 and we can say, 00:17:44.039 --> 00:17:45.840 don't worry, God's in control. 00:17:46.319 --> 00:17:49.080 And that can come across as being truly hollow 00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:53.779 if that person doesn't know who God truly is, 00:17:53.879 --> 00:17:57.000 what his character, his nature is. 00:17:58.159 --> 00:18:00.939 Because so many people are taught to think of God 00:18:00.939 --> 00:18:03.500 as a disapproving father. 00:18:04.720 --> 00:18:07.059 Or some sort of distant bureaucrat 00:18:07.059 --> 00:18:08.139 who makes all of the laws, 00:18:08.199 --> 00:18:09.480 and it's our job to follow them. 00:18:11.319 --> 00:18:13.099 But that's not who God is. 00:18:13.099 --> 00:18:17.639 Because remember the raven. 00:18:18.939 --> 00:18:22.439 It's not that the raven is able to survive out there 00:18:22.439 --> 00:18:24.099 without storing up food. 00:18:24.359 --> 00:18:26.659 It's that God provides for the raven. 00:18:28.379 --> 00:18:30.659 God clothes the flowers. 00:18:31.659 --> 00:18:34.500 They are beautiful because he loves them. 00:18:36.379 --> 00:18:38.659 How much more does God love you 00:18:38.659 --> 00:18:40.639 than he loves a bird or a flower? 00:18:43.099 --> 00:18:51.339 The same God who sent his son to die for you 00:18:51.339 --> 00:18:55.319 is providing for you. 00:18:56.599 --> 00:18:58.679 He is the one who is caring for you. 00:18:59.019 --> 00:19:02.399 He is the one who is in control of all of those things 00:19:02.399 --> 00:19:04.319 that you can't control. 00:19:06.879 --> 00:19:09.679 And that, brothers and sisters, that is good news. 00:19:09.680 --> 00:19:13.019 And so when we look at it, 00:19:13.299 --> 00:19:16.080 we see that Jesus tells us 00:19:16.080 --> 00:19:19.820 that do not seek what you are to eat 00:19:19.820 --> 00:19:22.080 and what you are to drink, nor be worried. 00:19:22.779 --> 00:19:23.600 Because think about it. 00:19:23.880 --> 00:19:25.060 How sad would it be 00:19:25.060 --> 00:19:27.259 even if you could provide everything 00:19:27.259 --> 00:19:29.860 that you need to eat and to drink? 00:19:31.740 --> 00:19:34.620 If you could do those things, but nothing more. 00:19:35.500 --> 00:19:36.640 Imagine if that was it. 00:19:36.700 --> 00:19:37.960 You just had just enough. 00:19:37.960 --> 00:19:45.340 But God looks at us and he tells us through his son. 00:19:45.680 --> 00:19:46.039 He says, 00:19:46.860 --> 00:19:51.539 but God tells us that the same things 00:19:51.539 --> 00:19:54.120 that the nations are seeking after, 00:19:54.519 --> 00:19:56.160 he knows that we need them. 00:19:57.759 --> 00:19:59.039 We do need food. 00:19:59.120 --> 00:20:00.500 In this life, we need food. 00:20:01.039 --> 00:20:02.360 God designed us that way. 00:20:04.019 --> 00:20:05.759 In this life, we need clothing. 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:07.360 So God gave us clothing. 00:20:07.960 --> 00:20:11.240 In this life, we need security. 00:20:12.059 --> 00:20:13.000 We need hope. 00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:15.120 We need opportunity. 00:20:16.620 --> 00:20:18.400 There are things that we need 00:20:18.400 --> 00:20:20.900 that God knows that we need. 00:20:23.100 --> 00:20:24.759 And he doesn't forget that. 00:20:26.860 --> 00:20:28.120 Remember, this is the God who, 00:20:28.440 --> 00:20:31.579 if you come to him and you ask for a serpent, 00:20:31.720 --> 00:20:33.160 if you ask him for something bad, 00:20:33.360 --> 00:20:34.519 he's gonna give you bread. 00:20:34.620 --> 00:20:35.779 He's gonna give you something good, 00:20:35.779 --> 00:20:37.680 something that you actually need. 00:20:40.680 --> 00:20:42.299 This is the God that we worship. 00:20:42.740 --> 00:20:45.039 He knows much better than we do 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:47.019 what it is that we need. 00:20:49.059 --> 00:20:50.039 So God says, 00:20:50.339 --> 00:20:51.960 don't go seeking after those things 00:20:51.960 --> 00:20:52.980 that you think you need. 00:20:53.059 --> 00:20:53.420 Instead, 00:20:54.920 --> 00:20:55.660 seek his kingdom. 00:20:58.460 --> 00:20:59.440 Seek his kingdom. 00:20:59.440 --> 00:21:03.019 Now, what does that look like? 00:21:03.059 --> 00:21:03.779 What does it mean 00:21:03.779 --> 00:21:05.720 to seek God's kingdom? 00:21:07.259 --> 00:21:08.039 It's that I'm, 00:21:08.120 --> 00:21:10.380 I'm a PCA pastor. 00:21:11.940 --> 00:21:13.539 I've read a lot of books. 00:21:13.640 --> 00:21:14.840 I've studied a lot of scripture. 00:21:15.100 --> 00:21:16.980 I have been examined right here 00:21:16.980 --> 00:21:17.680 on this floor 00:21:17.680 --> 00:21:19.940 to do these things. 00:21:20.080 --> 00:21:21.820 And I want to tell you 00:21:21.820 --> 00:21:22.960 that the answer is 00:21:22.960 --> 00:21:23.920 go home and pray. 00:21:25.600 --> 00:21:26.820 Learn some theology 00:21:26.819 --> 00:21:28.179 that's seeking God's kingdom. 00:21:31.639 --> 00:21:33.659 I want to end the sermon right here. 00:21:33.759 --> 00:21:34.279 Go home. 00:21:34.839 --> 00:21:35.279 Farewell. 00:21:35.599 --> 00:21:36.539 Do not be anxious, 00:21:37.139 --> 00:21:38.759 but instead seek God's kingdom. 00:21:39.679 --> 00:21:41.639 But it's not immediately obvious, 00:21:41.779 --> 00:21:41.960 then, 00:21:42.200 --> 00:21:43.279 what should come next? 00:21:43.319 --> 00:21:44.139 What do we do with that? 00:21:45.139 --> 00:21:46.720 How should we apply this in our lives? 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:48.640 So Jesus tells us. 00:21:49.900 --> 00:21:50.980 He looks at us 00:21:50.980 --> 00:21:51.680 and he says, 00:21:52.259 --> 00:21:53.400 fear not, little flock. 00:21:55.579 --> 00:21:56.900 Fear not, little flock, 00:21:57.160 --> 00:21:59.420 for it is your father's good pleasure 00:21:59.420 --> 00:22:02.140 to give you the kingdom. 00:22:04.539 --> 00:22:06.620 There are a lot of people in this world 00:22:06.620 --> 00:22:08.160 who are building up barns. 00:22:09.160 --> 00:22:11.140 There are a lot of people in this world 00:22:11.140 --> 00:22:13.259 who are seeking after power 00:22:13.259 --> 00:22:14.420 and authority 00:22:14.420 --> 00:22:16.820 in order to protect themselves. 00:22:17.060 --> 00:22:17.860 There are a lot of people 00:22:17.860 --> 00:22:19.720 who are building their homes 00:22:19.720 --> 00:22:20.840 into fortresses 00:22:20.840 --> 00:22:22.259 to protect their loved ones. 00:22:22.500 --> 00:22:23.720 A lot of people 00:22:23.720 --> 00:22:26.360 who are building a lot of things. 00:22:28.000 --> 00:22:29.480 But it's not God's kingdom 00:22:29.480 --> 00:22:30.160 that they're building. 00:22:31.640 --> 00:22:33.300 Because we don't build God's kingdom. 00:22:35.580 --> 00:22:36.940 God's kingdom is the one 00:22:36.940 --> 00:22:38.360 that he gives to us. 00:22:38.780 --> 00:22:40.420 And not grudgingly either. 00:22:40.420 --> 00:22:42.980 I think sometimes 00:22:42.980 --> 00:22:45.100 when we look at the scriptures 00:22:45.100 --> 00:22:46.279 we can think of 00:22:46.279 --> 00:22:47.820 God of the Old Testament 00:22:47.820 --> 00:22:49.600 being the stingy God. 00:22:50.039 --> 00:22:51.800 The God who's always looking at us 00:22:51.800 --> 00:22:53.900 and waiting for us to mess up. 00:22:56.340 --> 00:22:59.019 But the God that Jesus shows us 00:22:59.019 --> 00:23:01.759 is a God who loves us 00:23:01.759 --> 00:23:04.300 and who provides for us. 00:23:05.380 --> 00:23:06.980 And that if we remember 00:23:06.980 --> 00:23:08.460 the story of God's people 00:23:08.460 --> 00:23:09.220 throughout history 00:23:09.220 --> 00:23:10.220 we'll see that too. 00:23:11.240 --> 00:23:12.440 If we remember 00:23:12.440 --> 00:23:14.920 that once we were slaves in Egypt 00:23:14.920 --> 00:23:17.740 we were slaves 00:23:17.740 --> 00:23:19.380 in a land of sin and death 00:23:19.380 --> 00:23:21.340 but God by his mighty right hand 00:23:21.340 --> 00:23:22.400 brought us out. 00:23:23.779 --> 00:23:25.340 He rescued us 00:23:25.340 --> 00:23:26.380 delivered us 00:23:26.380 --> 00:23:28.140 from slavery in Egypt 00:23:28.140 --> 00:23:30.259 and we went out into the desert. 00:23:32.000 --> 00:23:32.980 And immediately 00:23:32.980 --> 00:23:34.140 the first thing we did 00:23:34.140 --> 00:23:35.800 was to sing praises to God. 00:23:35.799 --> 00:23:37.119 The second thing we did 00:23:37.119 --> 00:23:37.899 was to complain. 00:23:40.440 --> 00:23:41.599 God's people come out 00:23:41.599 --> 00:23:42.379 and they sing 00:23:42.379 --> 00:23:43.559 led by Moses 00:23:43.559 --> 00:23:44.440 and then Miriam 00:23:44.440 --> 00:23:45.339 and then they say 00:23:45.339 --> 00:23:45.619 hey 00:23:45.619 --> 00:23:47.599 Moses we're in a desert 00:23:47.599 --> 00:23:48.819 and there's no water. 00:23:51.419 --> 00:23:52.639 And then they look at Moses 00:23:52.639 --> 00:23:53.240 and they say 00:23:53.240 --> 00:23:54.500 hey Moses we're in a desert 00:23:54.500 --> 00:23:55.399 and there's no food. 00:23:55.659 --> 00:23:56.500 What are we gonna do? 00:23:56.500 --> 00:24:00.880 And so God gave them water. 00:24:02.279 --> 00:24:03.920 God gave them food. 00:24:05.180 --> 00:24:06.819 He could have sustained them 00:24:06.819 --> 00:24:08.220 without food and water. 00:24:08.220 --> 00:24:12.400 But that's not how he chose to do it. 00:24:12.460 --> 00:24:13.180 He chose to do it 00:24:13.180 --> 00:24:14.720 by giving them food and water. 00:24:16.640 --> 00:24:18.200 And when he gave them that food 00:24:18.200 --> 00:24:18.940 that manna 00:24:18.940 --> 00:24:21.440 they were sent out every day 00:24:21.440 --> 00:24:22.460 to collect. 00:24:23.600 --> 00:24:24.900 And every single morning 00:24:24.900 --> 00:24:25.519 they went out 00:24:25.519 --> 00:24:27.140 and they picked up the manna 00:24:27.140 --> 00:24:29.160 and those who gathered a little bit 00:24:29.160 --> 00:24:30.660 they were satisfied. 00:24:30.819 --> 00:24:32.000 They had everything that they needed. 00:24:32.000 --> 00:24:35.420 And those who gathered much 00:24:35.420 --> 00:24:37.000 they had none left over. 00:24:38.500 --> 00:24:39.839 There was nothing more 00:24:39.839 --> 00:24:41.359 that God was gonna do with that. 00:24:41.440 --> 00:24:42.980 You couldn't keep the manna 00:24:42.980 --> 00:24:44.420 from one day till the next 00:24:44.420 --> 00:24:46.079 because it was filled 00:24:46.079 --> 00:24:48.039 it rotted and filled with worms 00:24:48.039 --> 00:24:48.599 overnight. 00:24:50.279 --> 00:24:51.380 God was telling them 00:24:51.380 --> 00:24:51.960 no, no, no. 00:24:53.519 --> 00:24:54.960 Each and every day 00:24:54.960 --> 00:24:56.940 you will depend on me. 00:25:00.259 --> 00:25:01.079 And then 00:25:01.079 --> 00:25:02.159 on the seventh day 00:25:02.159 --> 00:25:02.839 he told them 00:25:02.839 --> 00:25:04.439 sixth day 00:25:04.439 --> 00:25:06.480 go out and collect twice as much. 00:25:07.319 --> 00:25:08.960 And don't collect on the seventh day. 00:25:09.359 --> 00:25:10.559 So some of them go out 00:25:10.559 --> 00:25:11.599 on the sixth day 00:25:11.599 --> 00:25:12.559 and they collect all of that 00:25:12.559 --> 00:25:14.259 they collect twice as much 00:25:14.259 --> 00:25:15.500 and then it's left over 00:25:15.500 --> 00:25:16.159 on the seventh day 00:25:16.159 --> 00:25:17.159 it's still there for them. 00:25:18.319 --> 00:25:20.139 God is miraculously providing 00:25:20.139 --> 00:25:21.319 for his people. 00:25:22.759 --> 00:25:23.819 And some people thought 00:25:23.819 --> 00:25:24.480 this is great 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:25.839 God who's providing for me 00:25:25.839 --> 00:25:26.500 I'm gonna go out 00:25:26.500 --> 00:25:27.240 and get even more. 00:25:27.519 --> 00:25:28.679 I'll go out on the seventh day. 00:25:29.279 --> 00:25:29.939 And there was none. 00:25:31.079 --> 00:25:31.759 God 00:25:31.759 --> 00:25:32.419 because that's not 00:25:32.419 --> 00:25:33.279 how God works. 00:25:35.679 --> 00:25:36.599 It's hard. 00:25:37.799 --> 00:25:38.699 We want to plan. 00:25:38.819 --> 00:25:40.359 We want to control. 00:25:40.519 --> 00:25:41.879 We want to save up 00:25:41.879 --> 00:25:42.859 for the future. 00:25:43.720 --> 00:25:44.919 But God doesn't 00:25:44.919 --> 00:25:46.539 love us in that way. 00:25:46.639 --> 00:25:47.579 He loves us in the way 00:25:47.579 --> 00:25:48.699 that he knows 00:25:48.699 --> 00:25:49.599 is best for us. 00:25:50.480 --> 00:25:51.339 He loves us 00:25:51.339 --> 00:25:52.399 by each and every day 00:25:52.399 --> 00:25:54.139 praying for our daily bread 00:25:54.140 --> 00:25:57.160 so that we are dependent 00:25:57.160 --> 00:25:57.940 upon him. 00:25:59.580 --> 00:26:01.140 Because as much as we want 00:26:01.140 --> 00:26:02.320 to be independent 00:26:02.320 --> 00:26:03.240 that is rebellion 00:26:03.240 --> 00:26:04.240 against his goodness. 00:26:06.080 --> 00:26:07.440 As much as we want 00:26:07.440 --> 00:26:08.820 to provide for ourselves 00:26:08.820 --> 00:26:10.240 we can't. 00:26:12.420 --> 00:26:14.060 We can't add a single day 00:26:14.060 --> 00:26:14.759 to our lives. 00:26:16.160 --> 00:26:17.640 But he has the power 00:26:17.640 --> 00:26:18.900 to give us bread 00:26:18.900 --> 00:26:19.560 every day. 00:26:19.920 --> 00:26:20.800 He has the power 00:26:20.799 --> 00:26:21.419 to give us 00:26:21.419 --> 00:26:22.759 eternal life. 00:26:25.480 --> 00:26:27.240 And so he calls upon us 00:26:27.240 --> 00:26:28.200 and he says 00:26:28.200 --> 00:26:29.240 fear not little flock 00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:30.139 for it is your father's 00:26:30.139 --> 00:26:31.000 good pleasure 00:26:31.000 --> 00:26:31.899 to give you the kingdom. 00:26:32.480 --> 00:26:33.240 Because that's what 00:26:33.240 --> 00:26:34.079 he loves to do. 00:26:35.039 --> 00:26:35.859 He feeds us 00:26:35.859 --> 00:26:36.779 because we need it 00:26:36.779 --> 00:26:38.019 and because he loves 00:26:38.019 --> 00:26:38.799 to feed us. 00:26:38.799 --> 00:26:42.919 And again 00:26:42.919 --> 00:26:43.619 I'd love to just 00:26:43.619 --> 00:26:44.399 stop right there 00:26:44.399 --> 00:26:46.379 because I'm a good 00:26:46.379 --> 00:26:47.019 Presbyterian 00:26:47.019 --> 00:26:48.139 and I like to focus 00:26:48.139 --> 00:26:49.159 on God's sovereignty 00:26:49.159 --> 00:26:50.139 and God's goodness 00:26:50.139 --> 00:26:51.200 and God's character 00:26:51.200 --> 00:26:53.579 and maybe not so much 00:26:53.579 --> 00:26:54.379 on my response. 00:26:56.379 --> 00:26:57.500 But Jesus doesn't 00:26:57.500 --> 00:26:57.940 stop there 00:26:57.940 --> 00:26:58.819 so I'm not going to. 00:26:59.599 --> 00:27:00.740 He says sell your possessions 00:27:00.740 --> 00:27:03.519 and give to the needy. 00:27:06.500 --> 00:27:07.299 It's right there 00:27:07.299 --> 00:27:07.940 in black and white. 00:27:07.940 --> 00:27:08.840 Sell your possessions 00:27:08.840 --> 00:27:09.840 and give to the needy. 00:27:12.299 --> 00:27:13.539 The God who loves us 00:27:13.539 --> 00:27:14.519 the God who provides 00:27:14.519 --> 00:27:14.960 for us 00:27:14.960 --> 00:27:15.960 he's the one 00:27:15.960 --> 00:27:16.480 telling us 00:27:16.480 --> 00:27:17.500 to sell our possessions 00:27:17.500 --> 00:27:18.480 and give to the needy. 00:27:18.799 --> 00:27:19.620 Now does that mean 00:27:19.620 --> 00:27:20.720 you need to go home 00:27:20.720 --> 00:27:22.539 today and sell your house 00:27:22.539 --> 00:27:23.519 and live on the streets? 00:27:23.640 --> 00:27:23.860 No. 00:27:24.000 --> 00:27:24.660 I don't think that 00:27:24.660 --> 00:27:25.259 that's actually 00:27:25.259 --> 00:27:25.900 what it's saying. 00:27:26.480 --> 00:27:27.600 But take a moment 00:27:27.600 --> 00:27:30.500 to be confronted 00:27:30.500 --> 00:27:31.200 by scripture. 00:27:33.980 --> 00:27:34.779 And say that 00:27:34.779 --> 00:27:35.700 the way that we 00:27:35.700 --> 00:27:36.620 are supposed to live 00:27:36.619 --> 00:27:37.159 in this kingdom 00:27:37.159 --> 00:27:38.139 that God gives us 00:27:38.139 --> 00:27:40.539 is with radical generosity. 00:27:42.439 --> 00:27:43.879 The kind of generosity 00:27:43.879 --> 00:27:44.859 that surprises 00:27:44.859 --> 00:27:45.779 other people. 00:27:46.339 --> 00:27:47.399 The kind of generosity 00:27:47.399 --> 00:27:48.639 that when you go to work 00:27:48.639 --> 00:27:49.779 your co-workers 00:27:49.779 --> 00:27:50.759 will notice 00:27:50.759 --> 00:27:51.939 and they will ask you 00:27:51.939 --> 00:27:53.019 how can you be 00:27:53.019 --> 00:27:53.679 so generous? 00:27:54.359 --> 00:27:55.139 Aren't you afraid 00:27:55.139 --> 00:27:56.199 there won't be enough? 00:27:56.439 --> 00:27:57.500 And you can turn them 00:27:57.500 --> 00:27:58.019 and say 00:27:58.019 --> 00:27:59.099 I worship a God 00:27:59.099 --> 00:28:00.319 who will never 00:28:00.319 --> 00:28:01.919 let me go without. 00:28:01.920 --> 00:28:06.180 I worship a God 00:28:06.180 --> 00:28:07.519 not who has commanded me 00:28:07.519 --> 00:28:08.680 to sell my possessions 00:28:08.680 --> 00:28:09.759 or to tithe 00:28:09.759 --> 00:28:10.620 or whatever 00:28:10.620 --> 00:28:12.560 but who has freed me 00:28:12.560 --> 00:28:14.560 from worry. 00:28:17.340 --> 00:28:18.360 My anxieties 00:28:18.360 --> 00:28:19.019 are not like 00:28:19.019 --> 00:28:19.779 your anxieties 00:28:19.779 --> 00:28:20.880 because I worship 00:28:20.880 --> 00:28:21.560 a good God 00:28:21.560 --> 00:28:22.340 who loves me 00:28:22.340 --> 00:28:23.700 cares for me 00:28:23.700 --> 00:28:24.660 and provides for me. 00:28:26.080 --> 00:28:26.980 Isn't that good news 00:28:26.980 --> 00:28:27.880 that you can take out 00:28:27.880 --> 00:28:28.519 into the workplace 00:28:28.519 --> 00:28:29.140 this week? 00:28:29.140 --> 00:28:33.420 He says 00:28:33.420 --> 00:28:34.400 provide yourselves. 00:28:34.520 --> 00:28:35.520 I think what he's saying here 00:28:35.520 --> 00:28:37.120 is by doing so 00:28:37.120 --> 00:28:38.600 by giving to the needy 00:28:38.600 --> 00:28:40.400 you are providing yourselves 00:28:40.400 --> 00:28:41.360 with money bags 00:28:41.360 --> 00:28:42.920 that do not grow old 00:28:42.920 --> 00:28:45.060 with a treasure 00:28:45.060 --> 00:28:46.040 in the heavens 00:28:46.040 --> 00:28:47.220 that does not fail. 00:28:49.320 --> 00:28:50.860 And Jesus is intentionally 00:28:50.860 --> 00:28:51.880 juxtaposing 00:28:51.880 --> 00:28:54.720 his promises 00:28:54.720 --> 00:28:55.920 of verse 33 00:28:55.920 --> 00:28:58.600 with his warnings 00:28:58.599 --> 00:28:59.619 about 00:28:59.619 --> 00:29:01.579 those who lay up 00:29:01.579 --> 00:29:02.139 for themselves 00:29:02.139 --> 00:29:02.819 treasures 00:29:02.819 --> 00:29:04.439 on earth 00:29:04.439 --> 00:29:05.839 and are not rich 00:29:05.839 --> 00:29:06.399 towards God 00:29:06.399 --> 00:29:07.659 in verse 21. 00:29:09.980 --> 00:29:11.179 He is telling us 00:29:11.179 --> 00:29:12.219 that instead of being 00:29:12.219 --> 00:29:13.439 like everyone else 00:29:13.439 --> 00:29:15.099 who's selling us 00:29:15.099 --> 00:29:15.639 anxiety 00:29:15.639 --> 00:29:16.639 and its solution 00:29:16.639 --> 00:29:19.199 that we should be people 00:29:19.199 --> 00:29:20.480 of radical generosity 00:29:20.480 --> 00:29:24.059 and that by doing so 00:29:24.059 --> 00:29:25.359 we are storing up 00:29:25.359 --> 00:29:25.839 for ourselves 00:29:25.839 --> 00:29:26.759 treasures in heaven. 00:29:26.759 --> 00:29:29.759 And at Grace and Peace 00:29:29.759 --> 00:29:30.799 each and every week 00:29:30.799 --> 00:29:31.500 when we collect 00:29:31.500 --> 00:29:32.680 the tithes and offerings 00:29:32.680 --> 00:29:33.920 we use 00:29:33.920 --> 00:29:35.200 it's actually the text 00:29:35.200 --> 00:29:35.859 out of Matthew 00:29:35.859 --> 00:29:36.980 but we use this 00:29:36.980 --> 00:29:37.879 as a text 00:29:37.879 --> 00:29:38.720 as a liturgy 00:29:38.720 --> 00:29:40.220 to remind ourselves 00:29:40.220 --> 00:29:41.339 why it is that we give. 00:29:42.619 --> 00:29:43.319 To lay up 00:29:43.319 --> 00:29:44.240 for ourselves 00:29:44.240 --> 00:29:45.720 treasures in heaven 00:29:45.720 --> 00:29:46.640 for there your heart 00:29:46.640 --> 00:29:47.259 will be also. 00:29:47.440 --> 00:29:48.519 And I've always read 00:29:48.519 --> 00:29:49.220 this backwards. 00:29:50.700 --> 00:29:52.039 One of the most wonderful 00:29:52.039 --> 00:29:53.039 things about 00:29:53.039 --> 00:29:53.740 preaching 00:29:53.740 --> 00:29:55.640 is the opportunity 00:29:55.640 --> 00:29:56.660 to really meditate 00:29:56.660 --> 00:29:57.740 upon a passage. 00:29:58.460 --> 00:29:59.359 Maybe a passage 00:29:59.359 --> 00:29:59.859 that you know 00:29:59.859 --> 00:30:00.559 really well 00:30:00.559 --> 00:30:02.079 and to turn it 00:30:02.079 --> 00:30:02.620 inside out 00:30:02.620 --> 00:30:02.980 and say 00:30:02.980 --> 00:30:04.900 is it true 00:30:04.900 --> 00:30:05.319 the things 00:30:05.319 --> 00:30:06.099 I've always believed? 00:30:07.099 --> 00:30:08.140 And I have to say 00:30:08.140 --> 00:30:09.480 that coming to this passage 00:30:09.480 --> 00:30:10.200 for the first time 00:30:10.200 --> 00:30:11.880 I truly believed 00:30:11.880 --> 00:30:12.779 that 00:30:12.779 --> 00:30:14.279 if you lay up 00:30:14.279 --> 00:30:14.900 for yourselves 00:30:14.900 --> 00:30:16.180 treasures in heaven 00:30:16.180 --> 00:30:19.079 that that's your response 00:30:19.079 --> 00:30:20.559 to where your heart is. 00:30:20.559 --> 00:30:21.419 if your heart is 00:30:21.419 --> 00:30:23.159 truly transformed 00:30:23.159 --> 00:30:24.039 by the gospel 00:30:24.039 --> 00:30:25.399 then you will want 00:30:25.399 --> 00:30:26.639 to lay up for yourself 00:30:26.639 --> 00:30:27.819 treasures in heaven 00:30:27.819 --> 00:30:29.099 and not treasures on earth. 00:30:29.460 --> 00:30:29.960 But actually 00:30:29.960 --> 00:30:31.240 Jesus is saying it 00:30:31.240 --> 00:30:31.799 the other way around. 00:30:33.079 --> 00:30:34.279 And what he's saying is 00:30:34.279 --> 00:30:36.139 if you do this 00:30:36.139 --> 00:30:37.879 if you practice 00:30:37.879 --> 00:30:38.960 generosity 00:30:38.960 --> 00:30:41.559 if you practice 00:30:41.559 --> 00:30:43.179 Sabbath rest 00:30:43.179 --> 00:30:45.740 if you practice 00:30:45.740 --> 00:30:47.079 trust in God 00:30:47.079 --> 00:30:49.500 then your heart 00:30:49.500 --> 00:30:50.279 will move 00:30:50.279 --> 00:30:51.960 from this world 00:30:51.960 --> 00:30:54.159 to his world. 00:30:55.599 --> 00:30:56.899 From this kingdom 00:30:56.899 --> 00:30:57.639 of anxiety 00:30:57.639 --> 00:30:59.220 to his kingdom 00:30:59.220 --> 00:30:59.939 of provision. 00:31:01.839 --> 00:31:02.859 Because the things 00:31:02.859 --> 00:31:03.460 that we do 00:31:03.460 --> 00:31:04.359 with our bodies 00:31:04.359 --> 00:31:05.159 are important. 00:31:06.899 --> 00:31:07.939 It's not just 00:31:07.939 --> 00:31:08.500 in our mind 00:31:08.500 --> 00:31:09.559 hey I'm going to go home 00:31:09.559 --> 00:31:10.759 and trust in you. 00:31:11.079 --> 00:31:11.539 No, no, no. 00:31:11.679 --> 00:31:12.939 I'm going to actually 00:31:12.939 --> 00:31:13.859 do something. 00:31:14.000 --> 00:31:15.039 I'm going to take money 00:31:15.039 --> 00:31:16.059 out of my account. 00:31:16.059 --> 00:31:16.779 I'm going to put it 00:31:16.779 --> 00:31:17.720 in my hand 00:31:17.720 --> 00:31:18.759 and I'm going to give it 00:31:18.759 --> 00:31:20.419 to someone else. 00:31:23.220 --> 00:31:24.659 It changes us. 00:31:24.879 --> 00:31:26.139 It transforms us 00:31:26.139 --> 00:31:27.899 by doing that simple action. 00:31:28.079 --> 00:31:28.200 And so 00:31:28.200 --> 00:31:29.399 I encourage you 00:31:29.399 --> 00:31:30.200 this is the other 00:31:30.200 --> 00:31:31.000 opportunity I get 00:31:31.000 --> 00:31:31.700 when I get to go 00:31:31.700 --> 00:31:32.619 and preach 00:31:32.619 --> 00:31:33.200 in a congregation 00:31:33.200 --> 00:31:34.359 that's not my own. 00:31:34.559 --> 00:31:35.919 I get to encourage you 00:31:35.919 --> 00:31:36.879 in a couple of ways. 00:31:37.700 --> 00:31:38.639 Give to your church. 00:31:42.119 --> 00:31:43.460 But also importantly 00:31:43.460 --> 00:31:45.519 I haven't asked 00:31:45.519 --> 00:31:46.139 but I'm sure 00:31:46.139 --> 00:31:46.619 it is true 00:31:46.619 --> 00:31:47.420 and Jen will tell me 00:31:47.420 --> 00:31:47.940 if it's not. 00:31:48.539 --> 00:31:49.559 Your church has 00:31:49.559 --> 00:31:50.579 a benevolence fund. 00:31:52.139 --> 00:31:52.799 A fund 00:31:52.799 --> 00:31:53.940 that is not touched 00:31:53.940 --> 00:31:54.779 by your elders 00:31:54.779 --> 00:31:55.420 by the way. 00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:56.599 It is controlled 00:31:56.599 --> 00:31:57.539 by your deacons. 00:31:59.440 --> 00:32:00.220 Your deacons 00:32:00.220 --> 00:32:00.980 who have called 00:32:00.980 --> 00:32:01.859 to serve 00:32:01.859 --> 00:32:03.139 the needy among you 00:32:03.139 --> 00:32:03.940 to be friends 00:32:03.940 --> 00:32:04.680 to the friendless. 00:32:05.059 --> 00:32:05.960 Those deacons 00:32:05.960 --> 00:32:07.859 have a fund 00:32:07.859 --> 00:32:09.200 called the benevolence fund 00:32:09.200 --> 00:32:11.099 that you can give money to 00:32:11.099 --> 00:32:12.980 and they will distribute it 00:32:12.980 --> 00:32:14.419 on your behalf 00:32:14.419 --> 00:32:15.000 to the people 00:32:15.000 --> 00:32:16.000 who need it the most. 00:32:17.719 --> 00:32:18.559 These are men 00:32:18.559 --> 00:32:19.699 that you trust 00:32:19.699 --> 00:32:21.500 that you know 00:32:21.500 --> 00:32:23.579 that you will look 00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:24.139 in the eye 00:32:24.139 --> 00:32:24.779 next week 00:32:24.779 --> 00:32:25.559 after you've given 00:32:25.559 --> 00:32:26.099 that money 00:32:26.099 --> 00:32:27.740 and you will hear them 00:32:27.740 --> 00:32:28.959 occasionally come up 00:32:28.959 --> 00:32:29.319 and tell you 00:32:29.319 --> 00:32:30.240 the good things 00:32:30.240 --> 00:32:32.119 that the benevolence fund 00:32:32.119 --> 00:32:32.619 has done 00:32:32.619 --> 00:32:33.559 on your behalf. 00:32:35.139 --> 00:32:37.079 This is a radical generosity 00:32:37.079 --> 00:32:40.819 and it's incredibly ordinary. 00:32:43.039 --> 00:32:44.059 But this is the way 00:32:44.059 --> 00:32:44.919 of God, isn't it? 00:32:46.859 --> 00:32:48.079 That we don't need 00:32:48.079 --> 00:32:49.519 manna coming down 00:32:49.519 --> 00:32:50.119 from heaven 00:32:50.119 --> 00:32:51.240 each and every day. 00:32:51.559 --> 00:32:52.319 We know 00:32:52.319 --> 00:32:53.019 that the money 00:32:53.019 --> 00:32:53.980 in our bank accounts 00:32:53.980 --> 00:32:54.839 comes from God. 00:32:57.059 --> 00:32:57.819 We know 00:32:57.819 --> 00:32:58.439 that it's not 00:32:58.439 --> 00:33:00.000 because we are so smart 00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:00.919 that we have 00:33:00.919 --> 00:33:02.220 that fantastic job 00:33:02.220 --> 00:33:03.659 or because we're 00:33:03.659 --> 00:33:04.579 so hard working 00:33:04.579 --> 00:33:05.099 that we're going 00:33:05.099 --> 00:33:05.460 to be able 00:33:05.460 --> 00:33:06.079 to keep it. 00:33:07.079 --> 00:33:07.619 We know 00:33:07.619 --> 00:33:08.319 that's from God. 00:33:10.319 --> 00:33:10.740 And so because 00:33:10.740 --> 00:33:11.659 we know that 00:33:11.659 --> 00:33:13.159 we are free 00:33:13.159 --> 00:33:14.000 from anxiety. 00:33:15.139 --> 00:33:15.960 To know that 00:33:15.960 --> 00:33:16.559 if we ever 00:33:16.559 --> 00:33:17.659 lose those things 00:33:17.659 --> 00:33:18.799 it's not because 00:33:18.799 --> 00:33:20.099 God failed us. 00:33:20.179 --> 00:33:20.899 It's not because 00:33:20.899 --> 00:33:22.279 he turned his back 00:33:22.279 --> 00:33:22.720 on us. 00:33:22.819 --> 00:33:23.639 It's because 00:33:23.639 --> 00:33:24.779 it wasn't 00:33:24.779 --> 00:33:25.339 what was best 00:33:25.339 --> 00:33:25.839 for us. 00:33:27.259 --> 00:33:28.139 Because our 00:33:28.139 --> 00:33:29.299 loving Father 00:33:29.299 --> 00:33:31.399 is giving us 00:33:31.399 --> 00:33:32.879 his kingdom. 00:33:34.859 --> 00:33:36.139 And so in a few moments 00:33:36.139 --> 00:33:37.059 we're going to come together 00:33:37.059 --> 00:33:37.879 together and we're going 00:33:37.879 --> 00:33:38.720 to share the Lord's 00:33:38.720 --> 00:33:38.919 Supper. 00:33:40.740 --> 00:33:42.099 And this right here 00:33:42.099 --> 00:33:44.099 is the very best 00:33:44.099 --> 00:33:44.720 example 00:33:44.720 --> 00:33:46.980 of what it means 00:33:46.980 --> 00:33:47.559 to be 00:33:47.559 --> 00:33:48.799 his little flock. 00:33:50.799 --> 00:33:51.740 It's a very 00:33:51.740 --> 00:33:52.480 tangible 00:33:52.480 --> 00:33:54.039 physical way 00:33:54.039 --> 00:33:55.179 that we come together 00:33:55.179 --> 00:33:56.359 and are fed 00:33:56.359 --> 00:33:57.799 by God. 00:33:57.799 --> 00:34:00.659 we're going to 00:34:00.659 --> 00:34:00.879 we're going to 00:34:00.879 --> 00:34:01.980 prepare ourselves 00:34:01.980 --> 00:34:04.059 to feed upon 00:34:04.059 --> 00:34:04.940 Christ himself 00:34:04.940 --> 00:34:05.539 who gave 00:34:05.539 --> 00:34:06.539 himself 00:34:06.539 --> 00:34:08.219 for us. 00:34:08.279 --> 00:34:08.619 Because 00:34:08.619 --> 00:34:10.059 sometimes when we 00:34:10.059 --> 00:34:10.699 think about the 00:34:10.699 --> 00:34:11.420 powerful God 00:34:11.420 --> 00:34:12.380 who can give us 00:34:12.380 --> 00:34:13.519 a whole kingdom 00:34:13.519 --> 00:34:16.619 we can also 00:34:16.619 --> 00:34:17.639 forget the price 00:34:17.639 --> 00:34:18.199 that was paid 00:34:18.199 --> 00:34:18.960 for that kingdom. 00:34:20.400 --> 00:34:21.480 It didn't come 00:34:21.480 --> 00:34:22.039 cheaply. 00:34:22.039 --> 00:34:25.840 because our 00:34:25.840 --> 00:34:26.579 rebellion against 00:34:26.579 --> 00:34:27.059 him wasn't 00:34:27.059 --> 00:34:27.480 small. 00:34:29.199 --> 00:34:30.000 When we stood 00:34:30.000 --> 00:34:30.579 in that garden 00:34:30.579 --> 00:34:31.159 and we said 00:34:31.159 --> 00:34:31.920 the food that 00:34:31.920 --> 00:34:32.559 you've given us 00:34:32.559 --> 00:34:33.159 is not good 00:34:33.159 --> 00:34:33.739 enough food 00:34:33.739 --> 00:34:34.400 what we want 00:34:34.400 --> 00:34:35.039 is this food 00:34:35.039 --> 00:34:35.619 over here. 00:34:38.500 --> 00:34:39.460 But all of that 00:34:39.460 --> 00:34:40.199 has been reversed. 00:34:42.460 --> 00:34:43.300 All of that 00:34:43.300 --> 00:34:44.559 has been 00:34:44.559 --> 00:34:45.199 transformed 00:34:45.199 --> 00:34:47.579 so that you 00:34:47.579 --> 00:34:47.940 and I can 00:34:47.940 --> 00:34:48.519 come together 00:34:48.519 --> 00:34:49.259 at this table 00:34:49.260 --> 00:34:51.420 and we can 00:34:51.420 --> 00:34:51.900 be fed 00:34:51.900 --> 00:34:52.480 by heavenly 00:34:52.480 --> 00:34:52.900 food 00:34:52.900 --> 00:34:54.620 and we can 00:34:54.620 --> 00:34:55.620 reside together 00:34:55.620 --> 00:34:56.880 if just for a 00:34:56.880 --> 00:34:57.520 brief time 00:34:57.520 --> 00:34:58.180 before leaving 00:34:58.180 --> 00:34:58.480 here 00:34:58.480 --> 00:35:00.420 in his kingdom 00:35:00.420 --> 00:35:02.360 that he loves 00:35:02.360 --> 00:35:03.220 to give to us. 00:35:04.220 --> 00:35:05.180 So let us pray. 00:35:07.020 --> 00:35:07.960 Heavenly Father 00:35:07.960 --> 00:35:08.420 Lord God 00:35:08.420 --> 00:35:09.180 we thank you 00:35:09.180 --> 00:35:10.420 for the gift 00:35:10.420 --> 00:35:11.260 of your son 00:35:11.260 --> 00:35:13.380 for his work 00:35:13.380 --> 00:35:14.420 upon the cross 00:35:14.420 --> 00:35:16.300 and for his 00:35:16.300 --> 00:35:16.780 warnings 00:35:16.780 --> 00:35:18.920 but especially 00:35:18.920 --> 00:35:19.380 Lord God 00:35:19.380 --> 00:35:19.880 we thank you 00:35:19.880 --> 00:35:20.159 for the 00:35:20.159 --> 00:35:20.619 encouragement 00:35:20.619 --> 00:35:21.079 that you've 00:35:21.079 --> 00:35:21.480 given us 00:35:21.480 --> 00:35:22.019 this morning 00:35:22.019 --> 00:35:23.480 through the 00:35:23.480 --> 00:35:24.300 gospel according 00:35:24.300 --> 00:35:24.820 to Luke. 00:35:26.180 --> 00:35:27.260 This encouragement 00:35:27.260 --> 00:35:28.000 to not be 00:35:28.000 --> 00:35:28.380 anxious 00:35:28.380 --> 00:35:29.559 to not worry 00:35:29.559 --> 00:35:30.619 as the world 00:35:30.619 --> 00:35:31.059 worries 00:35:31.059 --> 00:35:32.700 but to live 00:35:32.700 --> 00:35:34.340 as your people 00:35:34.340 --> 00:35:36.240 as his little 00:35:36.240 --> 00:35:36.720 flock. 00:35:38.099 --> 00:35:38.720 Lord I pray 00:35:38.720 --> 00:35:39.820 that you would 00:35:39.820 --> 00:35:41.000 prepare our hearts 00:35:41.000 --> 00:35:42.460 to come into 00:35:42.460 --> 00:35:43.139 his presence 00:35:43.139 --> 00:35:44.320 and to feast 00:35:44.320 --> 00:35:45.180 upon his body. 00:35:45.980 --> 00:35:46.180 Amen.