I'm wearing, it'll become obvious in a bit why I'm wearing, I put on two extra layers of clothing before I started to preach.
So, you know, when I teach people how to speak, one of the things I tell them is that they have to have a nice snappy opening.
And this week on one level it's easy, we're going to talk about sex, amongst other things.
So that gets everybody's attention almost instantly.
And as we all know, the biblical teaching on sexuality is unbelievably popular in Canada and is completely and utterly uncontroversial.
So it's a very easy topic for me to address.
And it's all part of a vice list, by the way.
Those of you who might be watching online or one of our guests here this Sunday, we preach through books of the Bible.
And one of the really good things, if you are a spiritual seeker, we're just curious about tuning into our churches.
We don't hide the fine print since we go through a book from the beginning to the end.
Everything which is in there, including stuff which is very awkward and difficult, we're going to look at.
In fact, if you're curious, in a couple of weeks' time we're going to talk about the biblical advice to husbands and wives.
Once again, another easily understood and highly popular topic in Canada.
And we're also going to talk about slavery because this Bible text deals with slavery.
So no controversial topics.
Just all vanilla and Teflon Sunday in and Sunday out.
No, I'm joking.
And it's a very serious issue.
And I really don't mean to joke because, of course, for some of the things that we're going to be talking about today,
it's deeply, deeply, deeply personal and strikes at the very heart of some of our identities.
So let's begin by looking at the text again.
And I'm going to read through the text so you see it.
What it is is that we're looking at what the Bible would call a sin list or a vice list is another way to understand it.
And there's 11 sins or vices which are mentioned in the text of Scripture.
And that's what we're going to look at.
And so it's Colossians chapter 3, verses 5 to 11.
And really, the vice list is chapter 3, verses 5 to 9.
But verses 10 and 11, which we're going to read next week as well,
a couple of weeks ago I think I shared how sometimes in the Bible and in literary devices in general,
you have what's called a Janus text.
It's a text that looks in two directions at the same time.
And that's what verses 10 and 11 are.
It's a bit of a bridge text, or it helps on one hand to look back at what's just been talked about,
and it opens the door looking to the next bit.
So we'll read verses 10 and 11.
And here's how it goes.
Put to death, therefore, what is earthly in you.
And just before I go anything further with that,
this text isn't saying that the earth is bad,
and it's not saying that physical stuff is bad.
Far from it.
What it's doing, the verse which was just before this,
is talking about the fact that when we see Jesus,
and we're going to return to this in a couple of moments,
when we see Jesus, we will be changed.
We will become like him,
fit to inhabit the new heaven and the new earth,
where there is no evil, no prejudice, no racism,
no sin, no death.
And so what this is talking about here isn't physical stuff,
because we're going to have bodies in the new heaven and the new earth.
But it's, in a sense, all the stuff you leave behind
when you go into the new heaven and the new earth.
All the stuff that's left behind.
And there's lots of stuff that's going to be left behind.
Thanks be to God.
And that's what it's referring to here.
Okay, so put to death everything that's going to be left behind.
If you think about the fact that from the Christian story,
the Christian gospel is that when you put your faith and trust in Jesus,
you change your story.
You enter into a true and better story.
And that true and better story has a far better end.
The end isn't death.
The end in Jesus is to see Jesus face to face
and to become like him,
to dwell in a new heaven and a new earth.
So that's what the earth,
we'll read verse 5 again.
But put to death,
put to death therefore what is earthly in you.
Sexual immorality.
And just to be clear here,
before we go further,
sexual immorality,
it means,
it's the pornea word group in the original language.
And basically,
the Bible teaches that sexual knowing
and sexual stimulation
is reserved
for a biological male
married to a biological female
in marriage.
And that that's what,
anything apart from that
is what pornea or sexual immorality
is referring to.
Just to be clear.
So put to death therefore what is earthly in you,
sexual immorality,
impurity,
passion,
evil desire,
and covetousness.
Which is idolatry.
On account of these things,
the wrath of God is coming.
And just pause there for a second in verse 6.
This is a really important verse in the vice list
because what it's telling us
is that these aren't just boundary markers
to separate Christians from non-Christians.
So for instance,
baptism is a boundary marker
separating a Christian from a non-Christian.
The fact that I'm wearing a collar
is a bit of a boundary marker.
But it's said that I've been ordained,
set aside for the service of God in the church.
And so what the Bible is saying here
is that this isn't just a,
you know,
in a sense,
the Sabbath keeping on one level
is a boundary marker.
Coming to church is a boundary marker.
So the Bible here is saying that
these things which he's just mentioned,
the five sins which he's just mentioned,
and the six sins which are going to come
aren't boundary markers,
that there's something
which is objectively wrong in God's sight.
I know for those Canadians
who are present and those watching,
I'm making the matter harder
rather than easier,
but it's just,
it's far better to just understand
what the text is actually saying.
And so that's the significance of verse 6.
And then verse 7,
this is also very, very, very important
in hearing the vice list.
Let's look at what it says.
It says,
in these two,
you once walked
when you were living in them.
So the reason this is very significant
is that this is not an us versus them text.
Quite a few years ago now,
or 10 years or something like that,
on my summer holidays,
we went to a large evangelical church.
And by coincidence,
the large evangelical church,
the sermon that Sunday was on
Christian marriage and divorce,
mainly about Christian marriage.
And as the sermon went on,
I became more and more and more astounded,
but not in a good way.
Because, I don't know,
there might have been like
four or five, six hundred people in the room,
and he talked as if not a single person
in the room
was ever divorced.
And as the sermon went on,
I thought,
how on earth could anybody in Canada
talk to a room full of people,
like 500 people,
as if none of them
had been touched by divorce
or living together.
Like, it was just,
it gobsmacked me.
You see,
what it reflected
was his understanding
that,
you know,
on purpose,
I'm putting the Bible down
because that's what they do.
We are the pure.
We are the sinless.
We live by all of God's words.
We know you all do.
But when you go through that door,
there's bad, sinful people.
I'm using,
this text
knocks that completely out from under it.
Paul isn't talking about
the group of the pure
in the midst of an impure world.
he's saying,
people here,
these types of things,
that's us.
It's what we lived out of
and what we're still tempted
to live out of.
That's why I'm talking about
these particular things.
So it's not us versus them.
It's us.
Read that again.
Verse 7.
In these two you once walked
when you were living in them.
But now,
you must put them all away.
Verse 8.
Now here's a new list.
Anger, wrath, malice,
slander,
and obscene talk
from your mouth.
Do not lie to one another,
seeing that you have put off
the old self,
and that could also be translated
as the old man
or the old humanity,
with its practices,
and have put on the new self
or the new man
or the new humanity.
Those are different ways
you could validly translate
this particular text,
which is being renewed.
So the new self,
the new man,
the new humanity,
is being renewed
in knowledge
after the image
of its creator.
Here,
there is not
Greek and Jew,
circumcised and uncircumcised,
barbarian,
Scythian,
slave,
free,
but Christ
is all in all.
And what Paul is doing
here at the end
is he's saying
how the gospel
has relativized
all of these different
distinctions
that human beings think
are very,
very important.
And he's used
the ones which have been
very common back then,
in other words,
part of the Roman Empire,
but not Jewish,
that's Greek,
Jewish,
circumcised and uncircumcised,
it has to do with
religious background,
barbarian,
Scythian,
and Scythians,
actually,
Scythian,
United States and England
aren't in the Bible,
but Russia is.
Scythian
was the area
we now call Russia.
And it was
where they considered
to be the most barbaric
of the barbaric barbarians.
That's where they lived.
In other words,
the full extreme
of barbarism,
slave,
free,
but Christ
is all in all.
So all of the distinctions
that we make
that are very,
very important
to Canadians
are all completely
and utterly
relativized
by the gospel
because
when you receive Jesus,
you become in Christ
and Christ is in you
and it means
you get a new identity.
It doesn't mean
that you stop,
in a sense,
living in Scythia
or, in fact,
technically being a barbarian
or Greek or Jewish,
but it means
it's relativized
because you have
a fundamental
new identity
based on a new destiny.
So that's
the particular list.
Now,
some of you,
it's,
for some people
when you're looking
at the list,
it seems as if
it focuses on sex
an awful lot.
I'm going to,
here's the thing
about this particular list
which is really important
for us to understand.
For the average Canadian,
this first list,
this first sin,
sexual immorality
is very,
very hard.
And it's not just hard
for those who identify
as LGBTQ+,
or those who would
consider themselves
to be very friendly
and inclusive
of LGBTQ+,
LGBTQ+.
But it's also
just very,
very hard
for people
who wouldn't
necessarily say
that they're,
I mean,
they're not hostile
but not necessarily
friendly to that,
just living a
heterosexual life.
It's a very,
very,
very hard text
and very controversial
in Canada today.
One of the things
for us to understand
is that
in a sense
that this list
isn't focused
on sex.
It's really focused
on God
and how he designed
human beings to be.
And it means
that if you were
to go to different cultures,
parts of this text
might be very problematic.
So for instance,
if I went to a Muslim country,
a Muslim majority country,
and I happen to be able
to preach to a bunch
of Muslims,
obviously there is
some significant differences
between the Christian
sexual ethic
and the Muslim sexual ethic.
Depending on the
Muslim majority country,
I might have to say
that the Bible
doesn't allow polygamy.
And I might have to say
something about
how some Muslim countries
use the Muslim practice
of divorce,
Islamic practice
of divorce,
to allow prostitution
to exist
without being considered
prostitution.
I might have to do that,
but fundamentally,
if I just explained
what the biblical teaching is,
like,
they would view it
as fundamentally
not very controversial.
But,
if not in the vice list,
when it comes
to the virtue list,
when it comes
to some other things,
they might find it
very, very,
very, very problematic.
In fact,
it might be that
I'd spend the majority
of my sermon
dealing with some other
type of issue in it.
You know,
maybe it's around
the biblical teaching
of forgiveness
which comes up,
or maybe it's about
the whole biblical teaching
of anger
which is in this text,
which could be
a very problematic thing
for some Islamic cultures
that would really go
against the grain
of how they understand
the world to be.
So,
in one level,
and in fact,
if I was to,
if we were all to go back
in a time machine
and I was to preach
this text
in a Canadian congregation
in 1950,
I would maybe spend
no time at all
on sexual immorality
because it's not even
viewed as a problematic thing.
They would just expect
that it's completely
and utterly true.
And once again,
there'd be other things
where the text
goes against the grain.
But,
but for us,
it is an issue.
And I'm going to return to it,
but I want to look
at least briefly
at each of the particular
sins
which is on the list.
Let's look
and let's look
at the verses five
and following again.
But to put to death,
therefore,
what is earthly
and new sexual immorality,
impurity.
Now,
just before I start
to try to help us
to understand
what these are,
a few years ago,
I had the great privilege
to be able to go to Angola
and with SIM
and I got to speak
in a variety of locations
and one of the places
I got to speak
was at a church
designed
to reach out
to a semi-nomadic
people group
who had just
within the last few years
started to have contact
with Christians.
And I got to preach
a sermon
to these semi-nomadic
tribes people
in Angola
on the edge
of the Kalahari Desert.
And it was
one of the
really interesting
experience
because the colonial language
was Portuguese.
I would say
a few words,
like I tried to
discipline myself
to speak
seven or eight words
and then there were
two translators
beside me
and so I would
da-da-da
and then the Portuguese
speaker would
da-da-da
and then the person
who spoke
the semi-nomadic
tribal language
would go
da-da-da-da
and there was
a couple of times
when I would go
da-da-da-da
Portuguese
da-da-da-da
and then there'd be
this conversation
amongst Portuguese
speakers who also
knew the native language
as to what on earth
they were going to say
and one of the things
which caught them
is that I used
the word
the Holy Spirit
and that tribal language
had,
I might be slightly
wrong on this
but you get
the basic ballpark,
I think they had
27 different words
for spirit
because in that
tribal group
like there's
the spirit
of the tree,
there's the spirit
of this location,
there's the spirit
of a different plant,
there's,
you know,
there's,
but they had no
general word for it.
Like they literally
they just didn't have
one word
like we did
and I can't remember
how they ended up
solving it.
They also didn't have
a word for ice
or snow actually
which was another
one of the funny things
that caused this
five minute breakup
in the sermon.
Anyway,
the reason I'm sharing this
is that for those of you
who know several languages
you know that there's
sometimes,
there's just not a simple
way to translate
one word into another
language.
So here's what
these different vice lists
to try to get you
a bit of a sense
as to what they're
talking about.
Impurity.
This could mean
anything that makes
you religiously
or ceremonially impure.
It could be,
of course,
referring to sexual
impurity.
But it also could be
referring to
desperate housewives
and the Kardashians
to luxurious living.
It could be describing
how many of us
want to live
like rock stars,
just profligate,
no concern with money,
just way,
way,
way overspending.
And it also can refer
to not having
pure motives,
having duplicitous
motives.
In other words,
what some people do
in terms of how
they advance
in business
or how they advance
in politics
or how they advance
in the public service
is they act like
they,
you know,
there's that old line,
if you can fake sincerity,
you've got it made,
you know?
And so they can fake
sincerity,
they can fake
that they care,
but they really don't.
They're just trying
to manipulate you.
Their motives
are impure.
That's what's covered
under the word
impurity.
And the next word
is passion.
And really,
to understand
the range of meaning
there,
it's depraved passion.
And of course,
within that,
it could refer
to something sexual,
but as you know,
if you think about it
as an aspect
of depravity
and passion for it,
it can also be,
we would describe
anything that wants
to hurt,
a passion to hurt,
a passion to belittle,
that would also be
considered under
this particular sin.
Evil desire
or also evil passion.
In particular,
this once again
could refer,
in the range of meaning
for the word,
it can refer to
sexual practices,
but its fundamental idea
is desiring
what is forbidden.
And here,
all of a sudden,
you realize
it touches on something
very, very profound
for Canadian culture
and for science.
Because in fact,
there's large groups
within Canadian society
that they'd like
to operate on.
They'd like to take
aborted fetuses
and be able to
do experiments on them.
They'd like to try
to develop things
in biological warfare.
They'd like to try
to figure out
if there's ways
to splice animal genes
into human genes
to create new types
of human beings.
In other words,
there's this profound desire
for forbidden knowledge.
And that's what's being
talked about here as well.
The desire to figure out
different ways
to manipulate germs
to create biological warfare,
something that most cultures
would view as,
it's a type of forbidden knowledge,
but there's a hunger
and a thirst
and a passion for it.
That is what is being
described here
as evil desire.
Covetousness or greed,
that sort of obvious,
desiring what other people have,
desiring to have too much,
just being completely consumed
with worldly possessions
and idolatry,
replacing,
making something other
than the triune God
as God,
that's what's covered under it.
Anger,
in verse 8,
that here,
and anger and wrath
sound like they're similar
and there's a big overlap
between the two of them,
but the difference is this.
Anger is a settled part
of the personality,
a settled type of anger
that's just there.
I mean,
this is actually
a very, very, very
important sin right now
if you just think
of how hard it is
to try to have
a civil conversation
about the U.S. election.
In fact,
if you think about it,
just to think of
how big a problem
this is in Canada,
try having
a civil conversation
about lockdowns
and masks
with a large percentage
of the conversation.
And you might think
that these are not angry people.
They've been your neighbors
for years.
You know,
you give them your key
when you go on holiday
so they can come in
and water your plants
or feed your cat
and yet they seem
like they're not,
but all of a sudden
you talk about something
and you discover
there is a settled anger
which is very powerful there.
And it might not be
just a general angry disposition.
It might be an anger
towards a particular person
or a particular set of beliefs
or, you know,
in a sense,
this and the next one
is also where things
like racism and prejudice
start to be revealed.
Where in fact,
they seem normal
until you get into
that right type of topic
and you realize
there's actually
an anger issue
in that person's life.
And as we know,
anger is a gateway sin.
All of these are gateway sins,
by the way,
but it's a very powerful
gateway sin
towards hatred,
towards violence.
And this is specifically condemned
racism.
It's all there.
And wrath is the anger explosions,
the explosions of anger.
Once again,
I was just watching a video
about a two or three year old video
with Jonathan Haidt,
an atheist Jew
who's written a couple
of really important books
trying to analyze the culture,
the righteous mind,
and I can't remember
what the other one is right now,
NYU professor.
And in that time,
he's just very open.
He can't say a whole,
he censors himself
all of the time
because of Twitter mobs
and social media
and Facebook mobs.
That's the explosion of anger,
which is a profound problem
in Canada,
United States right now.
Profound,
profound,
profound problem.
And the Bible calls it out
as a sin.
Malice is,
of course,
basically always having
harmful motives
towards other people.
slander,
of course,
is telling lies
about the other
or yourself.
Obscene talk
is also to be understood
as abusive talk.
And it could just be everything
from just being very
far too loud,
far too assertive
when you talk.
It can be obscene,
it can just be abusive.
The type of talk
that we might not realize
is really abusive talk
if we're with our buddies
in our silo
or our echo chamber,
but you realize
how abusive it would seem
if all of a sudden
you had to say that
in front of the other.
And you realize
it would come across
as very, very abusive,
just far, far too aggressive
as a type of talking.
And then the last one
on the list is lies.
So, for some,
people in our culture,
when you see that
these are the types of things
that are being talked about,
it actually makes it
even a little bit harder
for some people
to see sexual immorality
on the list.
They say,
George,
what's so wrong
about a man
who loves a man?
Isn't that just natural?
How could that be
on a list like this?
George,
everything you've said
have made it harder.
Not easier.
Like, what's...
Isn't it just natural?
Like, why...
Why would the Bible
put that
with all those other things
that you're just talking about?
And that
is a really good question.
So here's
how we have to understand
both the hard things
in the list
and the others.
The list is part of a book
that we've been looking at
that begins with chapter 1,
verse 1,
and goes through
to the end of chapter 4.
And one of the things
which is very important
at the very...
to understand
why this list
would even be there at all
and how it's connected
to anything else
is how the Bible
describes what it is
that Jesus does for us.
That what the Bible
is talking about
is that God,
the Son of God,
would set aside
His glory and prerogative
and divine splendor
and His appearance
as God
and that He would
empty Himself
and He would come
and walk amongst us
and He does this
so that human beings
can be reconciled to Him
and that out of God's...
the Son...
out of God the Father,
God the Son,
God the Holy Spirit,
out of their profound
and deep love
for human beings
that are being bent
out of shape
and can't fix themselves,
they can't leave themselves
to fix themselves,
that out of their great love
Jesus comes
and suffers
the trials and temptations
that we do
only without sin
and His life
of unbroken fellowship
with God
and resisting temptation
and not being anger-driven,
not giving in
to these sins
even though He's tempted
by them,
in a sense,
His perfect record
and then His death
upon the cross
in our place
that when we put
our faith and trust
in Jesus,
then what happens is
like we say,
Jesus,
I need you to be my Savior,
I need you to be my Lord.
What the Bible
has just described
prior to this
is that it's as if
when you take
the hands of Jesus,
it's as if you're
almost drowned in Him.
You are completely
immersed in Him
and entering Him.
You're immersed
in His life
that you could never live.
You are immersed
in His death
on your behalf
and because human beings
are in a sense
like a little bit
of a sponge,
to be immersed
in Him
is also to mean
that He becomes
immersed in you.
That it isn't so much,
although it's a very important
part of conversion,
it isn't so much
that Jesus came
so that you could
be forgiven,
but that Jesus came
so that you could
have communion
with the Triune God.
And the only way
for that to happen
was for Him
to live the life
He did
and die the death
He did
and for you to be
immersed in Him.
And part of the
being immersed
in Him
is being forgiven
and is being given
new life,
but you are
immersed in Him
and He is immersed
in you
all for the purpose,
all for the purpose
of being able
to have,
begin to have now
a new communion
with the Triune God,
the living God
that will go on
into all eternity.
And that's why
He did what He did
and that's what
the Christian life is.
And so the part,
this is,
Andrew,
if you could put up
the little chart
of the six-fold aspect
of how the gospel
grows you,
this is in a sense
just one step
or one aspect
of this whole process
by which,
if this is true,
if God,
the Son of God,
the Creator
and Sustainer
and Sovereign
over all of the universe
actually entered
into His universe
out of love,
out of pure,
unrequited,
gift love
entered into His world
so that He
could do
what we could not do
for ourselves
which is redeem
His fallen creatures.
Like,
behind this text,
if you understand this,
that from before
anything existed
there was love,
the love of the Father
for the Son
and the Son
for the Father
and the Holy Spirit,
before anything existed
there was love
and everything
that came into existence
was created
by love
and we were made
to be in communion
and at home
living and breathing in
and inhabiting
and participating
and responding
and adding
to that love
and that is why
we were made
and if you understand
that this means
that no matter
how lonely
you are today
or how much
you might think
that you have
that there's no one
who loves you,
the fact of the matter
is,
is that for every human being
there has never been
a time that you
have been unloved.
Even right now
there has never been
a time that you
have been unloved
and it was purely
and utterly
out of love
that God,
the Son of God
would come and do this
and so you receive
Christ Jesus as Lord
and then there's the question
well how do we live?
How do we live?
And the Bible here
from chapter 2 verse 16
right through
till the chapter 3 verse 17
and beyond that
just describes
how we live.
Twice now
I've talked a little bit
about how
the Bible talks about
Colossians talks about
how you're dead
in your sins
how you're dead
apart from Christ
you're dead
it's as if you're a cadaver
you're a corpse
you're a body
in a funeral home
and how does the Bible
understand that
when it doesn't seem
like it's true
and the analogy
I used a couple of weeks ago
is I had vases up front
with cut roses in them
and that's a way
to understand
what we are
apart from Christ
that we're a cut rose
cut rose is dead
isn't it on one level
and it's decaying
but it looks beautiful
and that's what a human being
is on one level
every human being
is like a cut rose
and what the Bible does
is the Bible says
is that when you
become united with Christ
when you have union with Christ
and Christ has union with you
you now have
in a sense
his life
that death
doesn't have the same sting
that death did before
because Jesus has already
taken all of the sting
of death for you
when he died upon the cross
and that in effect
you have actually
the eternal life
the life of the Trinity
the life of eternity
already within you
when you put your faith
and trust in Jesus
and so that dying
is actually in a sense
an opening of the door
to that time
when we're fully alive
that eternal life
in a sense
becomes full
and so the question is
then
will I grow me
or will the Lord grow me
and that's the first question up here
will I grow me
or will the Lord grow me
and last week
we looked at this
this remarkable text
about that
just before this
that when you put
your faith and trust in Jesus
at some point in time
you're going to see Jesus
face to face
and when you see Jesus
face to face
you will become like him
and so the way
I tried to put it last week
which is all under
will I let the grow
will I grow me
or will the Lord grow me
is
in a sense
spiritual disciplines
and a lot of the
and a lot of
and I'm not saying anything
against worldly practical advice
it's very very important
but basically
a lot of spiritual discipline talk
and a lot of talk
about how to get better
is really just a cut rose project
and a cut rose project
means is
you learn how to
to maybe have the rose last longer
you learn how to make
the light or whatever
bring out the red of the rose
a little bit better
and there's all these different ways
that we make the cut rose better
but as long as we look at
everything from our earthly perspective
the stuff that's left behind
all we're really involved in
is a cut rose project
but if you understand
that what happens
when you see Jesus face to face
is that you will be like him
then you understand
that God doesn't have
a cut rose project for you
he wants to turn you
into a giant sequoia
and there's no way
that all of the disciplines
of a cut rose
could ever do something
that could turn a cut rose
into a giant sequoia
that's a miracle
that only God can do
and when the Bible
calls us to holiness
when it calls us
to become more like Christ
when it calls us
to become more
to you know
in a sense
filled with the Holy Spirit
it's all part of God's project
to prepare us
to take those steps
whereby we will one day
be like a giant sequoia
not like a cut rose
and so that's why
this fundamental first question
will I grow me
or will I let the Lord grow me
is very very important
because if I realize
that I can't grow me
all I'll do
is try to make myself
into a better cut rose
and I don't even know
how to begin
to turn myself
into a giant sequoia
like that's a complete
and utter mystery
I have to put myself
in a posture of obedience
in those places
where God has told me
to be obedient
so that he does
that work within me
it's a matter of
a posture of obedience
to let God do
what only God can do
because only God
can turn a cut rose
into a giant sequoia
and nobody else can do it
can't ever happen
and so these are
some of the postures
it doesn't give all of them
and then the very first one
is set your mind on Christ
Andrew if you could
just maybe flip
to the way I expressed
it last week
in light of his death
upon the cross
for you
set your mind
on Christ
in all his risen
sovereign
trinitarian glory
so in a sense
what we understand
with these six steps
is that you wake up
you had your coffee
you're going to go
to your day
and you say
Lord I know I have a choice
as I go through my day
will I follow a cut rose project
or will I let you do
what you want to do
that I might become
that you might turn me
into a giant sequoia
the beginnings of that
right now
and so Lord
I want to go through
this day
letting you grow me
not me
and then God says
okay so one of the things
I want you to do George
is I want you to
set your mind on Christ
in light of his death
upon the cross
set your mind on Christ
in all his risen
sovereign
trinitarian glory
and as we talked
about last week
you can go look
at last week's sermon
you know there's all
sorts of things
we set our minds on
and I say
Lord help me today
or Lord help me
in this meeting
Lord help me
in this conversation
Lord help me
in this project
help me in this week
to set my mind
on Christ
in all his risen
sovereign
trinitarian glory
help me not
to set my mind
on winning
or on revenge
or on lust
or on anger
or on hatred
but to set my mind
on Christ
in all his risen
sovereign
trinitarian glory
and then the next
thing he says
is okay George
next you got to
put off
and it's literally
analogies for clothing
I got to put off
the anger
and the rivalry
that is really
deep in my heart
into this instance
and Lord help me
to put off
my love
for sexual immorality
or my greed
or my love
of slander
because I'm going
to talk to somebody
and we both
have the same
echo chamber
and we're going
to get talking
about this group
or whatever
and it's easy
for the slander
to find
and Lord
I'm going
to go into it
I have to
throw that away
and for those
of you
who are very
visually minded
that might just
be a very
important exercise
for you
just to imagine
Lord I want
you to grow me
so I can't
grow myself
into a giant
sequoia
and Lord
I got to
put off
some of these
things
these are the
first things
I understand
I got to
put off
and Lord
help me
to put them
off
in a sense
Andrew
if you could
just jump ahead
to the point
and then go
back to this
this is what
the main thing
about this
putting off
given your
destiny in
Christ
put off
sin
sin is
defined by
the Bible
not the world
given your
destiny in
Christ
put off
sin
as defined
by the Bible
not the
world
see one of
the primary
means of
grace actually
is reading
the Bible
and that's
going to be
talked about
if you sort
of flip back
so you know
who's going
to grow me
set my mind
on Christ
I put off
but it's not as if
God just wants me
to become more
and more naked
he wants me
to be clothed
next week
I'll maybe
bring something
that I'll put
on at this
point in time
and we'll look
at that next
week
put on tender
hearted mercy
put on
compassion
put on
love
put on
truth
there's things
you got to
put on
and then
next
let
we're going
to have a
sermon about
that
the last
two ones
let
Christ
rule in
your heart
get out of
the way
and let him
rule
and let him
speak deeply
into your
heart
and then the
final one is
do
everything you
do
whether it's
cleaning toilets
whether it's
negotiating on
behalf of the
federal government
a major
international
treaty
whether it's
negotiating with
a three-year-old
to wear this
piece of clothing
not the other
whether it's
negotiating a
business deal
whether it's
writing a
symphony
whether it's
taking out the
garbage
do everything
in the name
of the Lord
Jesus Christ
giving thanks
to God
and these
are some
of the
means by
which God
grows us
so just
in
sort of
in
conclusion
is this
hard
yes
this is
hard
and some
of you
might say
George
I still
don't quite
know
why it
is
the
sexual
thing
is on
that list
George
it doesn't
sound
very
Canadian
and it
doesn't
really
make a
lot
just those
days of
marrying
are maybe
far behind
and George
were
you know
or you're
in a
marriage
and it's
sort of
loveless
and your
husband
doesn't
get you
or your
wife
doesn't
get you
like what
like what's
what's wrong
with you know
pornography
and you know
other things
like that
like George
what's so
wrong
like why
is the
Bible
like what's
so wrong
about that
you know
like it
it just
gives you
some pleasure
it gives
you a
fantasy
time
to maybe
think
that things
are going
to be
better
and George
if you're
you know
same-sex
attracted
it seems
as if
this whole
teaching
and you're
telling us
to put
all of
that off
it just
George
seems to
go against
the grain
and it
seems just
very very
very hard
what we
have to
say is
you're
right
it is
very very
hard
like it's
very hard
and from
the outside
it sounds
completely
and utterly
impossible
and I
can't tell
you how
it's going
to work
out
but understand
what's going
on here
in this
particular
claim
the fact
of the
matter
is
is that
your deepest
longings
and yearnings
are for
in fact
things like
intimacy
and things
like love
and at the
very very
heart
and the
very very
center
of this
text
is this
story
which is
very different
than the
stories in
the world
are going
to give
you
I have
a friend
who a
couple
of years
ago
he told
me
that when
he gets
to this
point
in time
he's
been to
the
Grand
Canyon
he loves
the Grand
Canyon
and when
things have
gotten to
a particular
point in
time
he's going
to find
somebody
to take
him to
the Grand
Canyon
he's going
to tell
them to
go away
and come
back in a
couple of
hours
but once
they've
gone
he's going
to stand
by the
edge
because there's
no guard
rails for
lots of
he's going
to admire
the view
and then
after he's
admired
the view
for a few
minutes
he's going
to step
off the
edge
so he dies
so he
doesn't have
to deal
with aging
and for a
lot of people
in our culture
we think
there's ways
the aging
process
but the
end of
all of
this
all there
is is
death
but I
want to
tell people
that the
Christian story
tells us a
far truer
the true
story
that death
does not
have to be
the end
it does not
have to be
the final
word about
you
that diminishment
is not the
final word
about you
that the
true God
that does
exist
that who
has created
all things
is love
it's the
Father loving
the Son
and the Son
loving the Holy
the Son
loving the
Father
and the Holy
Spirit
it's love
it's beauty
it's goodness
it's truth
that is the
that is what
created all
things
and the evil
and the death
that's come
into the world
is not because
of God
but because
of what
we've done
that's what's
brought evil
into the world
and the final
end of the story
doesn't have to be
any of these
things
is that when
you understand
what Jesus
has done
for you
it's to
understand
that he is
going to begin
to not just
make you
into a giant
sequoia
but that only
is true
because
you can
enter into
and grow
into a deeper
communion
with love
itself
at your best
moments
when you sense
that the heart
of all things
there must be
something like
the strong
beating heart
of love
which doesn't
seem to make
any sense
given the way
the world
is
but sometimes
you have that
sense that
that has to be
the truest
and deepest
thing
and the Bible
is telling you
that when you
have that
sense
you are actually
sensing something
as true
and the only
one who makes
that clear
and can meet
the longings
and the yearnings
the deepest
longings
and yearnings
of your heart
is the one
who came
and died
for you
on the cross
and that when
you put your
faith and trust
in him
no matter
how faltering
it is
no matter
how hard
you think
it might
end up
being
that the
fact
the matter
is
is that
when you
put your
hands
in him
it doesn't
mean that
there's not
going to be
hard times
there's going
to be
hard times
but he
dies
for you
to have
communion
with the
true and
living God
with the
source of
all love
and the
end of
all love
that's
what is
the burning
heart
behind all
of these
things
that when
you see
the death
of Jesus
on the
cross
you are
seeing the
death
of death
upon the
cross
and you
are seeing
the death
of alienation
upon the
cross
and when
you see
the tomb
empty
and him
having
risen
you are
seeing
that those
longings
that you
have
that there
is a new
and better
hope
a new
and better
end
a true
and authentic
you
all of these
longings
and yearnings
find their
completion
and wholeness
in Christ
and it's
from within
that story
that it
starts to
make sense
and you
can begin
to have
the courage
to say
I'm going
to put
off
those things
that are not
part of
God's
design
for me
I am
going to
put off
the malice
the slander
the sexual
sin
the greed
my lust
for promotions
all my
cut rose
projects
I will
put off
in obedience
and trust
to the one
who loved
me
this plan
and the end
of the story
for me
isn't death
and diminishment
and decay
but well
done my
good and
faithful servant
I have
loved you
from before
you were
born
and have
longed and
looked forward
to this day
when you were
before me
face to face
in the new
creation
I have
looked forward
and longed
for that
welcome
and we
will look
at our
friends
and loved
ones
and laugh
and cry
with amazement
and joy
at how
they are
both the
same
and yet
completely
and utterly
transfigured
and transformed
and they
will look
at us
and laugh
and cry
with amazement
at what we
have become
in Christ
all by
God's grace
all by
God's mercy
nothing of
our deserving
and nothing
of our
accomplishment
that is the
end of the
story
invite you
to stand
let's just
bow our heads
in prayer
oh yeah
I forgot
the general
thanksgiving
didn't I
Andrew
well you know
we're just
going to leave
the general
thanksgiving
we're just
going to pray
Father
we ask
that
if there's
any who
are present
here who
have never
put their
trust in
Christ
that at
this point
in time
they turn
to him
they turn
to Jesus
and say
Jesus be my
savior and
my lord
take me
and
let me
enter into
your life
I thank you
that you
will say
yes
and come
into my
life
with nothing
held back
or barred
and for
those of
us who
have put
our faith
and trust
in Christ
Father
there are
things in
this text
for some
it's nothing
to do with
the sex
stuff
that's an
easy thing
for us
we're bent
or broken
in that area
of our lives
but it's
not a big
thing
but Father
for others
of us
anger is a
very powerful
thing
or believing
lies is a
very powerful
thing
false motives
to get what
we want
is a very
very powerful
thing
lack of
forgiveness
is a
powerful
thing
and Father
you know
the struggles
that we
have
and so
we ask
Father
that the
Holy Spirit
would do
a marvelous
and wonderful
work in
each of our
lives
that as we
have trusted
Christ to be
our Savior
that we
will trust
him to be
the one
who will
grow us
this day
that he
will help
us to set
our minds
on him
in all his
risen sovereign
Trinitarian
glory
and that you
Father will
help us
to take off
those things
and put them
away
and put on
those things
of compassion
and love
and tenderness
and mercy
justice
and of goodness
that are all
part of that
great
grand
giant
sequoia
project
that we
are launched
in when we
put our
faith and
trust in
Jesus
we ask all
these things
in the name
of Jesus
and all
God's people
said
Amen