WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:00.680 Good morning. 00:00:03.220 --> 00:00:12.140 We started this church back in 2008, and when we started the church, we did so in order 00:00:12.140 --> 00:00:14.439 to be able to make a long-term commitment to the city. 00:00:15.160 --> 00:00:20.219 The identity of our church has, from the very beginning, been tied into our understanding 00:00:20.219 --> 00:00:26.379 of the city, to our belief that Christians are called to commit to loving the city long-term. 00:00:26.379 --> 00:00:28.640 Commit to doing that because that's what God has called us to do. 00:00:28.640 --> 00:00:35.780 It glorifies God when we do that, and so our church exists to fulfill that calling and 00:00:35.780 --> 00:00:40.760 that mission, to serve and to seek the flourishing of this city by being a gospel-centered community 00:00:40.760 --> 00:00:44.340 in it and by building other gospel-centered communities in it. 00:00:45.079 --> 00:00:50.620 And so from time to time, it's important to come back to this question of how should Christians 00:00:50.620 --> 00:00:52.120 think about this city? 00:00:52.359 --> 00:00:54.780 How does God think about this city? 00:00:54.780 --> 00:00:59.460 And we've been doing this series in the book of Revelation, and we've come to this big 00:00:59.460 --> 00:01:06.640 section of Revelation, chapters 15 through 18, that show us something about God's heart 00:01:06.640 --> 00:01:12.000 for the city, that help us remember and get re-centered on what that is and how we should think about 00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:12.379 the city. 00:01:12.520 --> 00:01:17.219 And so we're going to look at this large section of Scripture, but all of these chapters are 00:01:17.219 --> 00:01:19.079 sort of telling us the same thing. 00:01:19.079 --> 00:01:22.480 They are all focused on the city, the earthly city. 00:01:22.920 --> 00:01:24.959 And what we see are three things about the city. 00:01:25.039 --> 00:01:31.200 We see the potential of the city, the brokenness of the city, and then ultimately the hope of 00:01:31.200 --> 00:01:31.560 the city. 00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:35.479 The potential of the city, the brokenness of the city, and the hope of the city. 00:01:35.799 --> 00:01:36.439 Let's pray. 00:01:36.439 --> 00:01:45.900 Lord, we thank you for your word, and we thank you that rather than us sitting down and parsing 00:01:45.900 --> 00:01:50.019 out and determining what we will accept and what we will reject and what we will attend 00:01:50.019 --> 00:01:58.759 to and what we will overlook, we pray that your word would attend to us and dissect us and 00:01:58.759 --> 00:02:04.879 open up our hearts, reveal to us things that we may have overlooked, reveal to us those deep 00:02:04.879 --> 00:02:08.579 places where we most need your love and your truth and your grace. 00:02:09.240 --> 00:02:14.060 We pray this, Lord, that we might glorify you in all that you've called us to do. 00:02:14.359 --> 00:02:15.620 In your Son's name, amen. 00:02:17.439 --> 00:02:19.939 So first of all, the potential of the city. 00:02:20.359 --> 00:02:24.800 I want to give you a little context because this is admittedly covering a lot of ground, 00:02:25.259 --> 00:02:27.819 but thematically it all holds together. 00:02:27.819 --> 00:02:35.459 If you look at and read chapter 15, it gives us this vision of all of God's people standing 00:02:35.459 --> 00:02:40.659 next to, as it says in verse 2, a sea of glass mingled with fire. 00:02:41.340 --> 00:02:47.740 So they're standing next to a sea, and they're singing what it says is the song of Moses and 00:02:47.740 --> 00:02:48.219 the Lamb. 00:02:49.219 --> 00:02:50.919 The song of Moses and the Lamb. 00:02:50.919 --> 00:02:58.879 And then as they sing, seven angels are preparing to bring plagues of judgment on the world. 00:02:59.739 --> 00:03:06.299 And then we look at chapters 16 and 17, and that describes the plagues in chapter 16, and 00:03:06.299 --> 00:03:09.339 then the judgment in chapter 17. 00:03:09.779 --> 00:03:13.779 And then chapter 18 is then a song about the judgment. 00:03:14.679 --> 00:03:16.379 So all of it holds together. 00:03:16.379 --> 00:03:22.900 And in terms of meaning and reference, one of the things that we've said in this series 00:03:22.900 --> 00:03:26.840 is that a lot of these images are drawn from the Old Testament, and this is no different. 00:03:27.120 --> 00:03:33.479 This is meant to remind us of the great story that defines the people of Israel and their 00:03:33.479 --> 00:03:34.960 identity, which is the story of the Exodus. 00:03:35.900 --> 00:03:42.939 You have God's people who are enslaved in Egypt under Pharaoh, and God sets out to liberate 00:03:42.939 --> 00:03:45.479 His people so that they can worship Him in the wilderness. 00:03:45.479 --> 00:03:46.859 That's what He says. 00:03:46.919 --> 00:03:49.479 That's the passage we read from Exodus 15. 00:03:50.060 --> 00:03:57.479 And in order to do that, God sends plagues on Egypt until Pharaoh finally relents and 00:03:57.479 --> 00:03:58.539 lets His people go. 00:03:59.039 --> 00:04:03.219 And then once they are finally liberated, they stand next to the Red Sea and they sing the 00:04:03.219 --> 00:04:03.799 song of Moses. 00:04:04.319 --> 00:04:10.039 And so all of these images are meant to conjure up that collective corporate memory of the 00:04:10.039 --> 00:04:10.319 Exodus. 00:04:10.319 --> 00:04:15.639 And so what this is telling us is, Revelation is depicting in these final chapters a kind 00:04:15.639 --> 00:04:17.060 of ultimate Exodus. 00:04:17.959 --> 00:04:19.719 This is the final Exodus. 00:04:20.139 --> 00:04:23.759 The Exodus to which all other Exodus accounts point. 00:04:24.339 --> 00:04:28.360 And it's telling us that God's people are still enslaved. 00:04:28.920 --> 00:04:30.500 We're enslaved in the world. 00:04:30.500 --> 00:04:37.699 And so God is bringing new plagues and a new final judgment to free His people so that they 00:04:37.699 --> 00:04:38.519 can worship Him. 00:04:39.000 --> 00:04:40.379 So that's what's going on here. 00:04:40.819 --> 00:04:44.240 And the object of God's judgment here is not Egypt. 00:04:45.360 --> 00:04:46.300 It's Babylon. 00:04:46.300 --> 00:04:52.420 Now, we read that and we might first think it's Babylon the city. 00:04:52.520 --> 00:04:55.079 And we say, well, wasn't Babylon a long time ago? 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:56.500 Why is God still angry at Babylon? 00:04:57.400 --> 00:05:02.180 But what we realize is that it's not actually the literal Babylon. 00:05:03.340 --> 00:05:05.259 John uses the name Babylon. 00:05:06.019 --> 00:05:13.220 But what he's describing is a city that could just as easily be Rome or Jerusalem or New York 00:05:13.220 --> 00:05:14.519 or D.C. 00:05:14.519 --> 00:05:20.039 And what we begin to realize as we unpack it is that God is not so much judging a place. 00:05:20.939 --> 00:05:23.000 This is not geographic judgment. 00:05:23.599 --> 00:05:25.560 So much as a way of life. 00:05:26.199 --> 00:05:30.719 So when Revelation talks about Babylon, it's talking about a way of life. 00:05:30.799 --> 00:05:37.519 It's talking about a spirit that has come to define the world. 00:05:38.060 --> 00:05:44.500 The spirit of Babylon, which enslaves people, which prevents them from worshiping, 00:05:44.519 --> 00:05:46.180 God as they were created to do. 00:05:46.979 --> 00:05:51.180 And so once we realize that, then we have to ask ourselves, well, what does God actually 00:05:51.180 --> 00:05:52.799 think about physical cities? 00:05:52.919 --> 00:05:56.139 And the truth is, God loves cities. 00:05:57.419 --> 00:05:59.379 God created cities. 00:06:00.240 --> 00:06:01.620 Cities were his idea. 00:06:01.620 --> 00:06:11.459 And all throughout history, cities have played a central role in human history and society. 00:06:12.100 --> 00:06:19.120 In fact, the entire story of Scripture is moving from a garden, the Garden of Eden, to a city, 00:06:19.480 --> 00:06:22.540 the New Jerusalem, which we will look at in a few weeks. 00:06:22.540 --> 00:06:24.900 So God's plan is a city. 00:06:25.060 --> 00:06:28.160 God's vision for the future of the world is a city. 00:06:29.060 --> 00:06:31.720 And so we've seen cities play a key role in human history. 00:06:31.879 --> 00:06:36.360 They've historically been places of refuge and safety. 00:06:36.360 --> 00:06:45.040 The wall provided enough protection and the combined resources provided enough provision to allow 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:48.720 people to move beyond subsistence living, subsistence farming. 00:06:49.120 --> 00:06:55.699 And so you have culture that begins to grow out of urban living. 00:06:57.100 --> 00:07:04.220 Cities have historically been places of tremendous diversity and thus collaboration and cross-pollination 00:07:04.220 --> 00:07:05.120 between cultures. 00:07:06.080 --> 00:07:11.320 Cities have been places of creativity and ingenuity and invention. 00:07:12.340 --> 00:07:18.600 And it's interesting, when you look in chapter 18, you know, all of chapter 18 is this lament 00:07:18.600 --> 00:07:20.280 over the destruction of Babylon. 00:07:21.320 --> 00:07:26.920 But what you see are, there are these places where there are, it's kind of sarcastic, and 00:07:26.920 --> 00:07:28.640 then there are these places where it's truly sad. 00:07:29.060 --> 00:07:33.680 And one of the places where it's truly sad is in chapter 18, beginning in verse 22, 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:38.740 the angel, according to John's writing, laments this, 00:07:39.439 --> 00:07:44.800 the sound of harpists and musicians, of flute players and trumpeters will be heard in you 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:45.280 no more. 00:07:46.579 --> 00:07:50.340 And a craftsman of any craft will be found in you no more. 00:07:51.960 --> 00:07:55.280 And the sound of the mill will be heard in you no more. 00:07:55.720 --> 00:07:58.540 The light of a lamp will shine in you no more. 00:07:58.540 --> 00:08:03.620 The voice of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no more. 00:08:04.100 --> 00:08:12.840 And this is this lament that all of the culture produced in the city will cease. 00:08:14.100 --> 00:08:19.600 And it shows us and it reminds us that cities are the birthplace of culture for the rest of 00:08:19.600 --> 00:08:20.060 the world. 00:08:20.060 --> 00:08:25.899 And if you think about DC, things that happen here in DC affect and touch every other part 00:08:25.899 --> 00:08:26.240 of the world. 00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:32.720 It's one of those international crossroads where the things that happen here touch lives 00:08:32.720 --> 00:08:33.879 all around the world. 00:08:35.059 --> 00:08:37.220 This is the function of the city in society. 00:08:37.879 --> 00:08:40.360 And so we have to understand that God loves cities. 00:08:40.539 --> 00:08:41.740 Cities were God's idea. 00:08:42.620 --> 00:08:47.200 And cities have amazing potential because they create the culture that shapes the rest of the 00:08:47.200 --> 00:08:47.480 world. 00:08:47.480 --> 00:08:49.940 But here's the thing. 00:08:50.779 --> 00:08:51.740 Here's the difference. 00:08:53.420 --> 00:09:01.379 If the heart of a city belongs to God, if the heart of a city belongs to God, then goodness 00:09:01.379 --> 00:09:10.259 and truth and beauty will flow into every other corner of the world from that city like a freshwater 00:09:10.259 --> 00:09:10.820 spring. 00:09:10.820 --> 00:09:23.300 If the heart of a city is rotten, is corrupt, then it will pollute and infect the rest of 00:09:23.300 --> 00:09:24.980 the world like a sewer pipe. 00:09:26.520 --> 00:09:28.120 And this is the difference. 00:09:28.920 --> 00:09:32.920 Cities can either be freshwater springs or they can be sewer pipes. 00:09:32.919 --> 00:09:38.039 And as the city goes, so goes the broader culture. 00:09:38.759 --> 00:09:45.319 And so as we look at Babylon, something in the city is rotten and it stinks and it's infected 00:09:45.319 --> 00:09:45.939 the world. 00:09:46.659 --> 00:09:49.019 And so this brings us to the brokenness of the city. 00:09:49.019 --> 00:09:55.519 Chapter 18, verse 11, it shows us the merchants of the earth. 00:09:56.079 --> 00:10:02.579 It says, and the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for Babylon since no one buys their 00:10:02.579 --> 00:10:03.579 cargo anymore. 00:10:04.240 --> 00:10:09.059 And I told you parts of the lament are genuine and parts of it are sarcastic. 00:10:09.059 --> 00:10:11.299 This is the sarcastic aspect of the lament. 00:10:12.339 --> 00:10:17.819 The angel is sort of sarcastically saying, you know, Babylon has such a voracious appetite 00:10:17.819 --> 00:10:24.379 for luxury goods and all of the merchants made so much money off of the Babylonian people 00:10:24.379 --> 00:10:29.079 that when Babylon falls, all of the merchants of the world are going to weep and cry because 00:10:29.079 --> 00:10:31.959 that was their, you know, that was their retirement plan. 00:10:32.919 --> 00:10:37.579 You know, that was the bedrock of their business was Babylonian voracious appetite. 00:10:37.580 --> 00:10:37.700 Right? 00:10:38.139 --> 00:10:41.400 This insatiable desire for things. 00:10:42.120 --> 00:10:45.540 A spirit of rampant, unbridled consumerism. 00:10:46.440 --> 00:10:53.360 So we see the spirit of Babylon is just sort of taken with this materialism and this consumerism. 00:10:54.460 --> 00:11:00.379 And so as a result of that, Babylon is a place where some people are growing rich and powerful 00:11:00.379 --> 00:11:03.780 and they're living luxury lifestyles. 00:11:03.779 --> 00:11:08.740 And other people are being exploited and even enslaved. 00:11:10.799 --> 00:11:14.399 Verse 13 is so striking in chapter 18, verse 13. 00:11:14.720 --> 00:11:18.879 Here's just, it's giving a list of the luxury goods that are bought and sold in Babylon. 00:11:19.019 --> 00:11:19.939 Just listen to this list. 00:11:21.220 --> 00:11:22.500 Cinnamon, great. 00:11:22.919 --> 00:11:23.860 Spice, mm-hmm. 00:11:23.860 --> 00:11:27.560 Incense, myrrh, frankincense, great. 00:11:27.820 --> 00:11:36.639 Wine, love wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle, sheep, horses, chariots, all sounds good. 00:11:36.720 --> 00:11:38.200 And then it says, and slaves. 00:11:38.200 --> 00:11:45.680 And then it clarifies, just in case we miss the shock of it, it says, slaves, that is human souls. 00:11:47.680 --> 00:11:48.780 It says it in the text. 00:11:48.980 --> 00:11:54.700 And it's John's way of making sure we don't miss the shock of the fact that right alongside cinnamon 00:11:54.700 --> 00:12:00.000 and fine flour and precious wood and wine, human souls are bought and sold. 00:12:00.000 --> 00:12:10.320 And this shows, this is sort of lifting the lid and the stench of Babylon beginning to strike our nostrils 00:12:10.320 --> 00:12:11.940 and it's an offensive odor. 00:12:12.559 --> 00:12:16.200 The spirit of Babylon, I think, is alive and well in D.C. 00:12:17.580 --> 00:12:21.960 The spirit of Babylon is alive and well in our city. 00:12:21.960 --> 00:12:28.460 And this is why when you look at D.C., you have some of the wealthiest, most powerful people 00:12:28.460 --> 00:12:34.840 living right next to some of the poorest and most powerless people. 00:12:35.600 --> 00:12:42.160 You have luxury condominiums that cater to young, elite, highly educated professionals 00:12:42.160 --> 00:12:45.700 right next to homeless shelters and subsidized housing. 00:12:45.700 --> 00:12:56.280 You have this tremendous disparity of great poverty and unimaginable wealth in the greater DMV area. 00:12:57.200 --> 00:13:03.540 If you, you know, we recognize that in our country, the slave trade was technically abolished 00:13:03.540 --> 00:13:12.360 and yet we still feel the effects of slavery in the pervasive economic injustice that exists 00:13:12.360 --> 00:13:13.900 that literally divides our city. 00:13:13.899 --> 00:13:23.459 In the ongoing reality of racial tension and division that is very core to the culture of D.C. 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:28.620 And we like to think we've ended slavery, but in fact, we still have slavery in the form 00:13:28.620 --> 00:13:32.079 of things like sex trafficking, which happens right here in the district. 00:13:33.079 --> 00:13:41.539 You know, there are routes that sex traffickers use that go through Richmond and D.C. and Baltimore. 00:13:41.539 --> 00:13:43.639 It's a reality right under our noses. 00:13:43.899 --> 00:13:48.539 People are still slaves to things like drugs and alcohol. 00:13:48.699 --> 00:13:52.319 This is the spirit of Babylon in all of this. 00:13:53.259 --> 00:13:55.399 And then it says in verse 3 of chapter 18, 00:13:55.639 --> 00:14:00.519 For all nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality. 00:14:00.860 --> 00:14:05.379 The spirit of Babylon is devoted to hedonism and indulgence. 00:14:05.919 --> 00:14:08.199 The city is a place where you can come and be anonymous. 00:14:08.200 --> 00:14:12.000 You can do what you want with whomever you want. 00:14:12.080 --> 00:14:13.300 There's no accountability. 00:14:13.720 --> 00:14:15.360 There's no one to answer to. 00:14:15.460 --> 00:14:17.000 This is the spirit of Babylon. 00:14:17.120 --> 00:14:21.160 And that trickles down into every other corner of society. 00:14:21.900 --> 00:14:23.400 Chapter 18, verse 24 says, 00:14:23.800 --> 00:14:25.980 The spirit of Babylon sheds innocent blood. 00:14:25.980 --> 00:14:30.460 In a city that is defined by the spirit of Babylon, 00:14:30.940 --> 00:14:32.139 innocent blood will be shed. 00:14:32.560 --> 00:14:33.340 That's what it's saying. 00:14:34.300 --> 00:14:35.779 I think of Maurice Scott. 00:14:36.740 --> 00:14:39.500 I don't know if you know about Maurice Scott or read about Maurice Scott. 00:14:39.779 --> 00:14:40.840 Fifteen-year-old boy, 00:14:41.259 --> 00:14:42.519 much loved by his community, 00:14:42.759 --> 00:14:43.360 his family, 00:14:43.740 --> 00:14:44.340 his school. 00:14:44.340 --> 00:14:48.060 He was mentored for years by my dear friend Phil, 00:14:48.240 --> 00:14:49.460 who used to go to Advent. 00:14:50.300 --> 00:14:51.879 And just a few weeks ago, 00:14:51.980 --> 00:14:54.800 he was shot dead outside a convenience store. 00:14:55.060 --> 00:14:56.200 Nobody has any idea why. 00:14:57.240 --> 00:15:00.740 And Babylon sheds the blood of innocence. 00:15:01.580 --> 00:15:01.700 You know, 00:15:01.740 --> 00:15:03.399 I think of the fact that D.C. 00:15:03.480 --> 00:15:06.960 has one of the highest abortion rates in the country, 00:15:06.960 --> 00:15:11.800 which is indicative of so many systemic problems, 00:15:11.799 --> 00:15:15.479 but all stemming from the spirit of Babylon. 00:15:15.659 --> 00:15:18.559 Most of these children that are aborted are African-American. 00:15:20.219 --> 00:15:22.679 And so as we look at all of these issues, 00:15:23.179 --> 00:15:24.979 I think the thing that we need to see 00:15:24.979 --> 00:15:28.120 is that they are all symptoms of something deeper. 00:15:28.679 --> 00:15:31.479 The spirit of Babylon is rotten at the core. 00:15:31.859 --> 00:15:32.779 Verse 7 says, 00:15:33.679 --> 00:15:34.659 of chapter 18, 00:15:35.059 --> 00:15:36.279 Underneath all of this, 00:15:37.339 --> 00:15:40.459 the spirit of Babylon glorifies herself. 00:15:41.799 --> 00:15:43.479 Chapter 17, 00:15:43.579 --> 00:15:44.240 verse 5, 00:15:44.379 --> 00:15:47.259 kind of puts an exclamation mark on that. 00:15:47.939 --> 00:15:50.939 It depicts Babylon as this prostitute. 00:15:52.000 --> 00:15:53.659 And the prostitute, 00:15:54.279 --> 00:15:55.479 the vision of the prostitute, 00:15:55.919 --> 00:15:58.019 she has her own name written on her forehead. 00:15:58.639 --> 00:15:59.779 Which is interesting, 00:15:59.879 --> 00:16:01.379 because as we've seen in Revelation, 00:16:02.120 --> 00:16:02.879 symbolically, 00:16:03.079 --> 00:16:05.039 when somebody has a name written on their forehead, 00:16:05.039 --> 00:16:06.719 that shows who they belong to, 00:16:06.859 --> 00:16:07.639 who they worship, 00:16:07.959 --> 00:16:09.079 who they seek to glorify, 00:16:09.240 --> 00:16:10.240 what defines them. 00:16:10.240 --> 00:16:11.639 And the spirit of Babylon, 00:16:11.899 --> 00:16:13.320 depicted as this prostitute, 00:16:13.539 --> 00:16:14.379 has her own name. 00:16:15.879 --> 00:16:18.519 She lives for no one beyond herself. 00:16:19.539 --> 00:16:22.240 And this goes all the way back to Genesis chapter 11, 00:16:22.440 --> 00:16:25.060 when human beings gathered together to build Babel. 00:16:25.919 --> 00:16:28.200 To build this great tower that reaches to the heavens. 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:29.720 And here's what it says in verse 4. 00:16:30.019 --> 00:16:31.779 Come, let us build ourselves a city 00:16:31.779 --> 00:16:33.820 and a tower with its top in the heavens, 00:16:34.019 --> 00:16:37.259 and let us make a name for ourselves. 00:16:37.259 --> 00:16:40.120 This is the core of the spirit of Babylon. 00:16:41.019 --> 00:16:42.159 It's a spirit that says, 00:16:42.319 --> 00:16:43.519 I want to glorify myself. 00:16:43.700 --> 00:16:45.740 I'm accountable to no one other than myself. 00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:47.819 I want to make a name for myself. 00:16:49.019 --> 00:16:51.480 And from this rotten core, 00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:55.039 flow all of these symptoms. 00:16:55.039 --> 00:16:57.559 So we ask, 00:16:57.679 --> 00:16:58.360 why is D.C. 00:16:58.360 --> 00:17:00.000 not the kind of beautiful, 00:17:00.099 --> 00:17:02.699 freshwater spring that it could be, 00:17:02.779 --> 00:17:04.319 with this international crossroads? 00:17:04.460 --> 00:17:07.940 Why is it not contributing life and goodness 00:17:07.940 --> 00:17:09.319 and beauty and health 00:17:09.319 --> 00:17:12.159 and flourishing into all the rest of the world? 00:17:12.279 --> 00:17:15.039 Well, the reason is because the city has a rotten heart. 00:17:16.519 --> 00:17:18.500 We seek to glorify ourselves. 00:17:18.720 --> 00:17:20.440 We answer to no one but ourselves. 00:17:20.659 --> 00:17:22.000 We want to make a name for ourselves. 00:17:22.000 --> 00:17:23.759 That's why people come to the city. 00:17:24.740 --> 00:17:25.680 That's why we come. 00:17:25.779 --> 00:17:26.799 That's why most of us came. 00:17:27.460 --> 00:17:28.599 Was in some way, shape, or form 00:17:28.599 --> 00:17:30.059 to get the education or the credential 00:17:30.059 --> 00:17:31.200 or the connections we need 00:17:31.200 --> 00:17:32.740 to make a name for ourselves. 00:17:33.920 --> 00:17:35.799 And so all of the power grabbing 00:17:35.799 --> 00:17:37.400 and backstabbing and bitterness 00:17:37.400 --> 00:17:40.240 and loneliness and racism and poverty 00:17:40.240 --> 00:17:42.160 and sexual brokenness and crime 00:17:42.160 --> 00:17:43.460 and meaninglessness, 00:17:43.700 --> 00:17:46.700 it's all symptoms of the spirit of Babylon. 00:17:47.619 --> 00:17:48.740 So that's the bad news. 00:17:48.859 --> 00:17:50.519 The good news, the final point is this. 00:17:50.519 --> 00:17:51.819 God has a plan. 00:17:53.079 --> 00:17:54.000 God has a plan. 00:17:54.740 --> 00:17:55.680 Our hope for the city. 00:17:57.480 --> 00:17:58.879 Some of you have renovated houses. 00:18:00.519 --> 00:18:02.460 Some of you are renovating houses right now. 00:18:04.440 --> 00:18:06.240 In this region over here specifically. 00:18:06.819 --> 00:18:08.579 And when you renovate a house, 00:18:08.660 --> 00:18:10.440 especially if it's some houses, 00:18:10.559 --> 00:18:11.819 and some of you work in real estate 00:18:11.819 --> 00:18:13.379 and you know this better than I do, 00:18:13.879 --> 00:18:16.940 some houses, in order to renovate the house, 00:18:17.019 --> 00:18:18.980 you first have to just gut the entire house. 00:18:18.980 --> 00:18:21.140 Because you go in and there's rot 00:18:21.140 --> 00:18:22.559 and there's mold 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:25.000 and there's massive termite damage. 00:18:25.200 --> 00:18:27.400 And you know that you could slap some wallpaper 00:18:27.400 --> 00:18:29.559 and new paint on top of that, 00:18:29.640 --> 00:18:31.180 but eventually it's just all going to crumble 00:18:31.180 --> 00:18:32.880 because there's a rotten core to the house. 00:18:33.099 --> 00:18:34.700 And so you have to gut the whole thing. 00:18:35.539 --> 00:18:35.720 Right? 00:18:35.720 --> 00:18:37.839 Or when you go to plant a garden 00:18:37.839 --> 00:18:40.180 as we did in the previous home we owned 00:18:40.180 --> 00:18:42.079 and I got really excited about planting a garden 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:44.759 and I realized you can't just plant in the soil that's there. 00:18:44.880 --> 00:18:46.240 You've got to till it all up. 00:18:46.279 --> 00:18:47.480 And when you start to till the soil, 00:18:47.759 --> 00:18:50.980 there are big rocks and old gnarly dead roots 00:18:50.980 --> 00:18:52.039 and garbage. 00:18:52.539 --> 00:18:54.460 You know, I pulled out an old rubber tire 00:18:54.460 --> 00:18:56.100 and some broken glass 00:18:56.100 --> 00:18:58.799 and some bricks and some old paint cans. 00:18:59.180 --> 00:19:00.440 You know, this is all what comes up 00:19:00.440 --> 00:19:03.279 when you till the soil in certain parts of Washington, D.C. 00:19:03.279 --> 00:19:05.059 And some of you know exactly what I'm talking about. 00:19:05.079 --> 00:19:06.259 You have to get all of that out 00:19:06.259 --> 00:19:08.279 and then you have to lay down fresh soil, 00:19:09.680 --> 00:19:11.599 fresh, healthy, nutritious soil, 00:19:11.680 --> 00:19:12.960 and then you begin to plant in that. 00:19:13.200 --> 00:19:13.299 Right? 00:19:14.039 --> 00:19:15.859 And so in the same way that you have to gut a house, 00:19:15.940 --> 00:19:17.899 in the same way that you have to tear out all the garbage, 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:20.680 God is saying in order to renovate the world, 00:19:21.839 --> 00:19:24.119 he has to do that kind of thing on a cosmic level. 00:19:24.740 --> 00:19:27.339 In other words, God's plan, as we see here in Revelation, 00:19:28.039 --> 00:19:32.180 is to rip out the spirit of Babylon root and stem 00:19:32.180 --> 00:19:35.560 and eradicate it so that it is no more. 00:19:37.100 --> 00:19:39.700 And in its place, God will plant, 00:19:40.820 --> 00:19:43.120 God will build a new city, 00:19:44.240 --> 00:19:45.140 the new Jerusalem, 00:19:45.580 --> 00:19:47.799 which is what we see when we get to the end of Revelation, 00:19:47.920 --> 00:19:49.019 which reminds us again and again, 00:19:49.240 --> 00:19:51.660 the hope of Christians is not to escape this awful place 00:19:51.660 --> 00:19:52.539 and go to a nice place. 00:19:52.539 --> 00:19:54.539 The hope is that this place will be renovated. 00:19:55.220 --> 00:19:56.160 It will be restored. 00:19:56.660 --> 00:19:58.039 The physical world will be renewed. 00:19:58.039 --> 00:20:02.659 And here's the clarion call from God to his people 00:20:02.659 --> 00:20:04.359 that you see in chapter 18, verse 4. 00:20:04.460 --> 00:20:04.700 It says, 00:20:05.079 --> 00:20:06.899 Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, 00:20:07.680 --> 00:20:08.899 Come out of her, my people, 00:20:09.539 --> 00:20:11.259 lest you take part in her sins, 00:20:11.559 --> 00:20:13.240 lest you share in her plagues. 00:20:14.920 --> 00:20:16.480 Now that does not mean 00:20:16.480 --> 00:20:18.180 come out of the city. 00:20:18.859 --> 00:20:21.399 Go live in walled-off communities. 00:20:21.859 --> 00:20:23.000 Now, there's a place for that, 00:20:23.399 --> 00:20:25.079 and some of you may be called to do that. 00:20:25.079 --> 00:20:27.220 But if all of the Christians leave the city, 00:20:27.299 --> 00:20:28.759 there is no hope for the city. 00:20:29.259 --> 00:20:31.359 And God's heart is for the city. 00:20:32.859 --> 00:20:34.639 And so this doesn't literally mean 00:20:34.639 --> 00:20:35.480 come out of the city. 00:20:35.579 --> 00:20:37.919 It means come out of the spirit of Babylon. 00:20:38.419 --> 00:20:41.179 Come out of the way of Babylon. 00:20:42.379 --> 00:20:43.619 This is showing us, 00:20:43.659 --> 00:20:44.819 as clearly as anything could, 00:20:45.899 --> 00:20:48.139 the way of Babylon is a dead-end street. 00:20:49.259 --> 00:20:51.159 There is no future 00:20:51.159 --> 00:20:54.220 for those who live in the way of Babylon. 00:20:55.220 --> 00:20:56.420 So the invitation, 00:20:56.640 --> 00:20:57.259 the command, 00:20:58.140 --> 00:20:59.259 is come out of that. 00:20:59.980 --> 00:21:01.460 Which means ground your life 00:21:01.460 --> 00:21:03.319 in something greater than Babylon. 00:21:04.380 --> 00:21:05.200 Ground your life, 00:21:05.319 --> 00:21:06.860 not in the earthly city, 00:21:07.160 --> 00:21:08.240 but in the city of God. 00:21:10.079 --> 00:21:11.319 And as we think about 00:21:11.319 --> 00:21:12.259 what this means for us, 00:21:12.339 --> 00:21:12.559 you know, 00:21:13.279 --> 00:21:14.960 one of the coolest things about D.C., 00:21:14.960 --> 00:21:16.960 and having been here for over a decade, 00:21:17.059 --> 00:21:18.400 one of the things that I love about D.C. 00:21:18.400 --> 00:21:21.660 is that D.C. draws the best and the brightest. 00:21:22.860 --> 00:21:26.040 I mean, D.C. draws the most amazing people to it. 00:21:27.120 --> 00:21:28.759 And as I look at the room, 00:21:29.060 --> 00:21:31.100 I mean, you all have tremendous gifts, 00:21:31.280 --> 00:21:32.720 and you have tremendous talents, 00:21:33.040 --> 00:21:35.560 and you have tremendous resources and connections. 00:21:36.220 --> 00:21:39.060 And every year that we do life together as a church, 00:21:39.220 --> 00:21:39.900 that grows. 00:21:40.200 --> 00:21:41.200 You get promoted. 00:21:41.400 --> 00:21:42.980 Your influence expands. 00:21:42.980 --> 00:21:46.920 You're building resources of all kinds. 00:21:47.539 --> 00:21:49.160 And as I look at our congregation, 00:21:49.279 --> 00:21:50.140 I was thinking about this week. 00:21:50.319 --> 00:21:51.559 We have people who work in art, 00:21:52.099 --> 00:21:52.759 and music, 00:21:53.079 --> 00:21:54.079 and finance, 00:21:54.279 --> 00:21:54.920 and business, 00:21:55.319 --> 00:21:56.160 and real estate, 00:21:56.360 --> 00:21:57.120 and hospitality, 00:21:57.660 --> 00:21:58.180 and government, 00:21:58.420 --> 00:21:59.120 and non-profit, 00:21:59.299 --> 00:22:00.380 and international development, 00:22:00.779 --> 00:22:01.759 and foreign policy. 00:22:02.079 --> 00:22:02.240 You know, 00:22:02.259 --> 00:22:03.279 we have people who are writers, 00:22:03.720 --> 00:22:04.839 and people who are thinkers, 00:22:05.220 --> 00:22:06.420 and people who are teachers, 00:22:06.799 --> 00:22:07.860 and people who are administrators, 00:22:07.859 --> 00:22:09.399 and policy advisors, 00:22:09.759 --> 00:22:11.439 and, you know, 00:22:11.500 --> 00:22:12.959 masters and doctoral students, 00:22:13.159 --> 00:22:14.379 and homemakers, 00:22:14.919 --> 00:22:16.240 and designers, 00:22:16.779 --> 00:22:17.740 and, you know, 00:22:17.779 --> 00:22:18.859 you could just go on and on and on. 00:22:19.579 --> 00:22:21.079 It's this embarrassment of riches. 00:22:22.659 --> 00:22:25.459 And if you take all of these gifts and talents, 00:22:25.559 --> 00:22:27.679 and if we think of all that God has given us, 00:22:29.059 --> 00:22:32.559 and if we think that life is about building a name for ourselves, 00:22:33.699 --> 00:22:35.439 if that's all this is, 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:38.299 then this should show us that's a dead-end street. 00:22:39.400 --> 00:22:40.240 And the good news is, 00:22:40.259 --> 00:22:42.900 is that most of us here are still young enough, 00:22:43.559 --> 00:22:45.240 that if that's the course that you're on, 00:22:45.299 --> 00:22:46.620 you can correct that course. 00:22:47.019 --> 00:22:49.160 You can start building a different kind of life. 00:22:50.360 --> 00:22:50.759 Right? 00:22:50.799 --> 00:22:52.799 So the invitation is to come out of Babylon, 00:22:53.200 --> 00:22:56.100 and to live a life that looks beyond Babylon, 00:22:56.380 --> 00:22:57.799 to the great city of God. 00:22:58.019 --> 00:23:01.140 To recognize that Jesus Christ set us free, 00:23:01.720 --> 00:23:02.759 through the cross, 00:23:02.759 --> 00:23:04.559 set us free, 00:23:04.700 --> 00:23:05.559 not just personally, 00:23:05.700 --> 00:23:07.099 not just to deal with our sin, 00:23:07.160 --> 00:23:08.240 the bad things that we've done, 00:23:08.619 --> 00:23:11.440 but he set us free from the things that enslave us, 00:23:11.859 --> 00:23:13.500 so that we could worship him. 00:23:14.379 --> 00:23:17.759 And so that we could rest in a new identity, 00:23:18.420 --> 00:23:21.400 that enables us to begin to live a different life. 00:23:22.059 --> 00:23:23.660 To live for God's glory. 00:23:24.839 --> 00:23:25.599 And then, you know, 00:23:25.660 --> 00:23:26.319 you can imagine, 00:23:26.519 --> 00:23:27.599 when that becomes your foundation, 00:23:27.740 --> 00:23:29.420 you begin to become part of the solution, 00:23:29.519 --> 00:23:30.680 rather than part of the problem. 00:23:30.680 --> 00:23:33.180 Because if you're just trying to make a name for yourself, 00:23:33.259 --> 00:23:34.000 you're part of the problem. 00:23:34.519 --> 00:23:36.259 You're part of what's wrong with the city and the world. 00:23:37.920 --> 00:23:39.660 To be part of the solution means, 00:23:40.440 --> 00:23:43.320 maybe you're a little less driven by the need to succeed. 00:23:44.120 --> 00:23:46.180 Or maybe you're a little less terrified, 00:23:46.360 --> 00:23:47.420 or crushed by failure. 00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:49.080 It means, 00:23:49.680 --> 00:23:52.340 maybe you're able to accept people that you once excluded. 00:23:53.120 --> 00:23:55.180 Maybe you're able to try to understand people, 00:23:55.680 --> 00:23:56.759 that you once rejected. 00:23:56.759 --> 00:24:00.799 It means we're able to break free from things, 00:24:00.799 --> 00:24:02.299 that used to have a hold on us. 00:24:02.420 --> 00:24:02.559 You know, 00:24:02.720 --> 00:24:04.220 most of those things are good things. 00:24:04.680 --> 00:24:06.400 DC is filled with luxury goods. 00:24:08.799 --> 00:24:11.400 It means using our gifts and talents and resources, 00:24:11.400 --> 00:24:13.279 to advance God's kingdom, 00:24:13.279 --> 00:24:15.400 rather than our own empire. 00:24:16.400 --> 00:24:16.819 Right? 00:24:16.879 --> 00:24:18.059 So all I can do here, 00:24:18.819 --> 00:24:21.579 is give you a kind of low resolution snapshot, 00:24:21.579 --> 00:24:22.799 of your vocation. 00:24:22.799 --> 00:24:27.700 The only one that can develop a high resolution view of your vocation, 00:24:27.779 --> 00:24:28.299 is you. 00:24:29.220 --> 00:24:31.279 Because you know your job better than anyone. 00:24:32.359 --> 00:24:34.500 And so you have to take this low res idea, 00:24:34.720 --> 00:24:36.460 and develop a high res vision, 00:24:36.779 --> 00:24:38.039 for your vocation, 00:24:38.319 --> 00:24:39.659 and what God is calling you to do. 00:24:41.299 --> 00:24:41.839 Are there, 00:24:42.099 --> 00:24:42.279 you know, 00:24:42.299 --> 00:24:43.180 think about your job. 00:24:43.399 --> 00:24:46.059 Think about the sphere that you live and work in. 00:24:46.059 --> 00:24:49.000 Are there prevailing attitudes, 00:24:49.659 --> 00:24:50.500 or policies, 00:24:50.879 --> 00:24:51.980 or practices, 00:24:51.980 --> 00:24:54.500 that reflect a spirit of Babylon? 00:24:57.059 --> 00:24:58.039 What are those? 00:24:58.559 --> 00:25:00.899 What's the kind of fallen edge of your vocation? 00:25:01.419 --> 00:25:04.000 And then what is the redemptive edge of your vocation? 00:25:04.960 --> 00:25:08.799 What would it look like to embrace a life, 00:25:08.879 --> 00:25:11.419 rooted in the city of God, 00:25:11.799 --> 00:25:12.480 here and now, 00:25:12.579 --> 00:25:13.399 in your vocation? 00:25:13.500 --> 00:25:15.259 Broken as the field may be. 00:25:15.259 --> 00:25:18.000 What would it look like to be a citizen of God's city, 00:25:18.240 --> 00:25:20.539 in your vocation? 00:25:20.700 --> 00:25:20.879 So, 00:25:21.180 --> 00:25:21.440 you know, 00:25:21.579 --> 00:25:22.680 maybe that means, 00:25:23.119 --> 00:25:26.180 to whatever extent you can influence your workplace culture, 00:25:26.539 --> 00:25:28.299 that you begin to foster a culture, 00:25:28.660 --> 00:25:29.299 of openness, 00:25:29.559 --> 00:25:29.980 and trust, 00:25:30.039 --> 00:25:30.839 and collaboration, 00:25:31.900 --> 00:25:33.460 instead of competition, 00:25:34.180 --> 00:25:34.960 and resentment. 00:25:35.960 --> 00:25:36.140 Right? 00:25:36.619 --> 00:25:37.960 Maybe it means that, 00:25:38.039 --> 00:25:39.099 you use your influence, 00:25:39.160 --> 00:25:40.259 and some of you are very influential, 00:25:40.700 --> 00:25:43.079 maybe instead of just trying to hire friends, 00:25:43.079 --> 00:25:45.879 you look beyond your immediate peer group, 00:25:46.019 --> 00:25:47.919 and you try to give an opportunity to somebody, 00:25:47.919 --> 00:25:49.819 who might otherwise not have that opportunity. 00:25:51.220 --> 00:25:51.539 Right? 00:25:52.019 --> 00:25:53.000 Maybe it means, 00:25:53.119 --> 00:25:54.059 you just reach out, 00:25:54.299 --> 00:25:56.480 and mentor somebody. 00:25:57.119 --> 00:25:58.639 Maybe it's somebody who lives on your street. 00:25:59.159 --> 00:26:00.480 Maybe it's somebody in this church. 00:26:00.960 --> 00:26:03.279 Maybe it's somebody who's just starting out in your field. 00:26:03.799 --> 00:26:03.960 You know, 00:26:04.000 --> 00:26:05.599 a lot of people ask me all the time, 00:26:06.019 --> 00:26:07.480 do you know anybody who could mentor me? 00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:09.200 And most of the time, 00:26:09.299 --> 00:26:10.279 I don't. 00:26:10.799 --> 00:26:11.720 But I often think, 00:26:11.779 --> 00:26:11.920 you know, 00:26:11.960 --> 00:26:13.559 but I know a lot of people that you could mentor. 00:26:15.259 --> 00:26:15.839 Maybe you reach, 00:26:15.900 --> 00:26:16.099 you know, 00:26:16.319 --> 00:26:17.839 maybe you reach out, 00:26:17.960 --> 00:26:18.500 and you say, 00:26:18.660 --> 00:26:18.880 hey, 00:26:19.059 --> 00:26:20.180 I'd love to spend some time with you. 00:26:20.220 --> 00:26:21.019 You're just getting started. 00:26:21.559 --> 00:26:23.180 I'd love to just invest in you, 00:26:23.259 --> 00:26:24.220 and see where this goes. 00:26:24.480 --> 00:26:24.680 Right? 00:26:25.819 --> 00:26:28.059 Maybe you plan a neighborhood cookout, 00:26:28.059 --> 00:26:30.380 so that people who live on the same block, 00:26:30.519 --> 00:26:32.319 can start actually getting to know each other. 00:26:32.519 --> 00:26:33.839 There's some people who've done that in the city. 00:26:33.900 --> 00:26:35.579 It's amazing when your neighbors know each other, 00:26:36.200 --> 00:26:37.339 how it changes the city. 00:26:37.480 --> 00:26:42.059 So when we talk about securing a long-term home in the city, 00:26:42.640 --> 00:26:45.299 all of the conversations that we're having about how to get there, 00:26:45.920 --> 00:26:49.779 all the conversations we're having about potentially moving to a transitional space, 00:26:49.900 --> 00:26:51.960 and all of the debate around that, 00:26:52.220 --> 00:26:54.980 I hope we never lose sight of the larger picture, 00:26:55.519 --> 00:26:57.400 which is the reason that we're here, 00:26:58.240 --> 00:27:03.860 which is to love the city by living in the city as citizens of the heavenly city. 00:27:05.099 --> 00:27:06.240 That's why we're here. 00:27:06.240 --> 00:27:12.400 It's because we believe that once the rotten core of this city has been torn out, 00:27:12.400 --> 00:27:16.579 that God's going to build something new and glorious in its place. 00:27:18.640 --> 00:27:21.620 And, you know, the difference is profound. 00:27:21.859 --> 00:27:26.440 In Babylon, everyone plays their own music because everyone wants to be a solo artist. 00:27:26.440 --> 00:27:29.500 But God's city is a symphony. 00:27:31.299 --> 00:27:32.559 Everybody playing in harmony, 00:27:33.019 --> 00:27:34.480 everybody looking to the same conductor, 00:27:35.120 --> 00:27:35.720 Jesus Christ. 00:27:35.820 --> 00:27:38.039 That's our vision for Washington, D.C. 00:27:38.059 --> 00:27:41.980 So I suppose here's the question for us to think about as we move on in our worship. 00:27:41.980 --> 00:27:45.160 If you came to D.C. to make a name for yourself, 00:27:45.660 --> 00:27:48.120 would you be willing to stay here to make a name for God? 00:27:48.120 --> 00:27:48.579 I don't know. 00:27:48.579 --> 00:27:49.140 I don't know. 00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:49.839 I don't know.