WEBVTT 00:00:00.860 --> 00:00:04.179 Before we get into it, let me pray and ask for the Lord's blessing. 00:00:04.299 --> 00:00:06.000 Lord, we ask for your blessing. 00:00:07.480 --> 00:00:13.140 Lord, your blessing looks different at different times to us different people. 00:00:14.019 --> 00:00:20.620 Lord, some of us will be greatly encouraged to continue on in a steadfast way 00:00:20.620 --> 00:00:26.640 after reading your word and this time together this morning. 00:00:26.640 --> 00:00:34.520 Other people will feel conviction in their soul and be so moved and strengthened 00:00:34.520 --> 00:00:39.359 to seek amendment of life and strength to obey. 00:00:40.100 --> 00:00:45.359 Still others, Lord, will feel a weight just lifted off. 00:00:46.820 --> 00:00:48.480 Maybe it's a combination of all three. 00:00:48.579 --> 00:00:49.359 Maybe there's other things. 00:00:49.439 --> 00:00:51.420 But Lord, we are your people. 00:00:51.920 --> 00:00:53.240 We come to you for blessing. 00:00:53.240 --> 00:01:00.140 And we trust you that you know what we need far greater than what we think we need. 00:01:00.600 --> 00:01:02.440 And we pray all of this in Christ's name. 00:01:03.100 --> 00:01:03.359 Amen. 00:01:04.799 --> 00:01:05.960 Truth matters. 00:01:06.159 --> 00:01:08.879 It's what we're about here at our church. 00:01:09.379 --> 00:01:11.060 Truth is a very important thing. 00:01:12.520 --> 00:01:19.340 Not truths, not a specific kind of truth, but truth, capital T, truth. 00:01:19.340 --> 00:01:24.620 Because truth produces good outcomes. 00:01:25.799 --> 00:01:33.240 And conversely, untrue things produce not just not good outcomes, but horrendous outcomes. 00:01:34.280 --> 00:01:39.920 So you see that consequences flow downstream from truth or a lack thereof. 00:01:41.180 --> 00:01:42.800 An example of this. 00:01:44.120 --> 00:01:48.500 Truth, when it is embraced and applied, results in good things. 00:01:48.500 --> 00:01:57.379 We think of the embrace that all people are made in God's image and have equal dignity before God. 00:01:57.780 --> 00:02:01.200 So something like the abolition of apartheid in South Africa. 00:02:01.780 --> 00:02:02.379 Beautiful thing. 00:02:02.920 --> 00:02:08.500 Truth applied produced a good, godly, righteous outcome. 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:17.360 Conversely, an untruth or an anti-truth or a deceptive lie has catastrophic consequences. 00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:25.120 A hundred and forty-ish years ago until maybe the 60s or 50s. 00:02:25.520 --> 00:02:28.600 For sure not, at least in the 40s. 00:02:29.320 --> 00:02:30.680 Eugenics was the rage. 00:02:31.680 --> 00:02:37.720 There was this idea that we could purify and perfect the human race. 00:02:37.719 --> 00:02:40.180 And we would do that in two ways. 00:02:40.379 --> 00:02:47.000 By breeding favorable ethnicities and qualities, but eliminating ones that were unfavorable. 00:02:47.079 --> 00:02:48.020 This was a lie. 00:02:48.659 --> 00:02:51.219 It produced evil things. 00:02:51.219 --> 00:02:55.699 So you see that truth matters greatly. 00:02:55.939 --> 00:03:00.460 And the application of that truth, it's a very important thing. 00:03:01.699 --> 00:03:07.219 We come to the scriptures expecting to hear truth and to know truth. 00:03:08.740 --> 00:03:09.419 Why? 00:03:09.560 --> 00:03:12.159 Because God has created all things. 00:03:12.960 --> 00:03:18.340 He is good and he has revealed himself to us in the words of scripture as truth. 00:03:18.340 --> 00:03:26.599 So as we approach Acts 17, we will see Paul travel to Thessalonica, the capital of Macedonia. 00:03:27.219 --> 00:03:29.960 Later he'll go to Berea, as Ken read. 00:03:30.539 --> 00:03:33.879 And he will attempt to convince people of the truth. 00:03:34.740 --> 00:03:35.819 The importance of it. 00:03:36.000 --> 00:03:41.460 And how, from the scriptures point of view, at the core of capital T truth, 00:03:41.460 --> 00:03:44.820 is that Christ is the Messiah. 00:03:44.960 --> 00:03:46.800 That Jesus is the Messiah. 00:03:46.960 --> 00:03:47.760 He is the Savior. 00:03:48.580 --> 00:03:52.819 And that at the core of that truth claim is the resurrection. 00:03:53.540 --> 00:03:56.659 And he proves it by appealing to the source of truth. 00:03:57.020 --> 00:03:58.219 That is, the scriptures. 00:04:02.080 --> 00:04:08.360 We'll also see that just because the truth is proclaimed doesn't mean the truth will be embraced. 00:04:08.360 --> 00:04:12.980 And therefore, there will be a cost associated with the truth. 00:04:14.900 --> 00:04:22.980 So, we'll break up our text, Acts 17, 1-15, in two big chunks and then one smaller chunk. 00:04:23.740 --> 00:04:28.199 The first big chunk is the primacy of the resurrection as the core of truth. 00:04:28.680 --> 00:04:35.120 The second is the clarity of scriptures as the source of truth and also the cost of believing the truth. 00:04:35.120 --> 00:04:41.480 And that little bit, I'll have a few different references, but we're going to primarily stick in the first two points. 00:04:41.639 --> 00:04:42.800 So, we'll jump into it. 00:04:42.840 --> 00:04:49.139 Again, if you have one of these scripture journals, Acts 17, starting in verse 1, it's on page 98. 00:04:49.939 --> 00:04:54.899 And we'll look first at the primacy of the resurrection as the very core of truth. 00:04:55.160 --> 00:04:57.759 So, Paul is on his second missionary journey. 00:04:57.980 --> 00:05:03.240 If you remember, he departed in the beginning of Acts 16 from Barnabas. 00:05:03.240 --> 00:05:04.879 He took Silas with him. 00:05:05.220 --> 00:05:07.379 He took Timothy with him. 00:05:07.780 --> 00:05:09.360 And he went to Philippi. 00:05:09.980 --> 00:05:17.120 He saw some wonderful fruit in being, as he shared the gospel, as he evangelized. 00:05:17.379 --> 00:05:18.660 And he was tossed in prison. 00:05:19.460 --> 00:05:25.360 And even still in that situation, the Lord did something miraculous. 00:05:25.360 --> 00:05:27.819 People continued to come to faith. 00:05:27.960 --> 00:05:36.080 And now, as Paul and company continue with the second missionary journey, they find themselves in Macedonia. 00:05:36.280 --> 00:05:38.280 And they're heading to the capital, Thessalonica. 00:05:39.420 --> 00:05:40.060 Interesting. 00:05:40.060 --> 00:05:47.819 The population historians figure, and it's anywhere from 50,000 to 200,000. 00:05:47.899 --> 00:05:49.100 I mean, that's a pretty big spread. 00:05:51.280 --> 00:05:55.720 Regardless if it's on the lower end or the higher end, it's a very significant city. 00:05:55.959 --> 00:06:00.100 It's a city that is self-governed. 00:06:00.139 --> 00:06:01.079 So, it's a free city. 00:06:01.379 --> 00:06:04.600 So, even though they have connections with Rome, they are self-governed. 00:06:05.120 --> 00:06:06.500 They're an economic hub. 00:06:06.500 --> 00:06:09.220 They are a cultural hub. 00:06:09.600 --> 00:06:14.500 If you're going to spread the gospel in Macedonia, in this region, it's a good spot to go to. 00:06:15.620 --> 00:06:19.759 There'll be the neighboring cities and towns and villages that will frequent there. 00:06:19.939 --> 00:06:20.899 Ideas will spread. 00:06:21.500 --> 00:06:26.240 It's a critical juncture for this missionary journey. 00:06:27.000 --> 00:06:31.000 And as Paul's normal practice, he goes to the local synagogue. 00:06:31.000 --> 00:06:36.660 He, it's a bit of a beachhead for him in a new city. 00:06:37.040 --> 00:06:39.879 So, he connects with the Jews that are there. 00:06:40.040 --> 00:06:41.819 He reasons from the scriptures. 00:06:42.540 --> 00:06:52.360 And in this specific case, he will lay out a case that, number one, the Messiah had to suffer. 00:06:52.920 --> 00:06:56.579 And number two, Jesus is that suffering Messiah. 00:06:56.579 --> 00:06:58.719 So, let's pick up in verse three. 00:06:58.839 --> 00:06:59.939 We'll read verse three and four. 00:07:00.419 --> 00:07:01.459 And then we'll continue on. 00:07:03.279 --> 00:07:04.019 Verse three. 00:07:05.339 --> 00:07:07.300 Actually, we'll skip back to verse two. 00:07:08.120 --> 00:07:11.120 And Paul went in, that is, the synagogue, as was his custom. 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:17.459 And on the Sabbath day, and on three Sabbath days, rather, he reasoned with them from the scriptures. 00:07:17.459 --> 00:07:40.479 So, Paul does two things. 00:07:40.480 --> 00:07:47.620 He explains and he proves from the scriptures that the prophesied Messiah had to suffer. 00:07:49.020 --> 00:07:55.480 Leading up to the first century, there was many different versions of what the Messiah would do. 00:07:55.600 --> 00:08:02.840 Some of them derived from the biblical case of the Messiah, but others, it was like extra biblical stuff. 00:08:03.420 --> 00:08:07.980 The Messiah would be somebody who would lead God's people against Rome. 00:08:07.980 --> 00:08:10.240 The Messiah would be a miracle worker. 00:08:10.819 --> 00:08:12.540 There's different views of the Messiah. 00:08:12.780 --> 00:08:16.540 Some of them, all of them, kind of maybe touch on some truths. 00:08:17.140 --> 00:08:19.060 But, by and large, there was no consensus. 00:08:19.860 --> 00:08:30.600 And this idea that the Messiah would suffer seemed to be fairly foreign from the Judaic understanding of the biblical Messiah. 00:08:30.600 --> 00:08:37.440 So, the Apostle Paul, likely he was there for longer than three weeks. 00:08:37.560 --> 00:08:39.220 But here it says that he was there for three weeks. 00:08:39.460 --> 00:08:43.480 We figure he was there for longer because in one of his letters to the Thessalonians, 00:08:43.600 --> 00:08:46.840 there's a reference that he was there much longer than three weeks. 00:08:46.940 --> 00:08:53.440 But from Luke, who records Acts in chapter 17 here, there's three weeks that he's covering. 00:08:53.440 --> 00:08:55.880 And he is reasoning from the scriptures. 00:08:56.160 --> 00:09:02.280 And almost certainly, Paul would have referenced Deuteronomy 21. 00:09:03.700 --> 00:09:09.240 He would have certainly referenced parts of the Psalter, like Psalm 2 or Psalm 16. 00:09:10.100 --> 00:09:11.100 Maybe Psalm 110. 00:09:11.420 --> 00:09:17.540 And of course, he would refer to the servant songs in Isaiah's prophecy, especially Isaiah 53. 00:09:17.539 --> 00:09:25.240 Very famous prophecy of the servant of God, who is the Messiah, who would suffer. 00:09:25.799 --> 00:09:29.199 If you've gone to Handel's Messiah, it will be referenced a whole bunch. 00:09:29.279 --> 00:09:29.740 It's beautiful. 00:09:30.360 --> 00:09:31.679 So, the scriptures are teaching this. 00:09:32.099 --> 00:09:35.399 And what's interesting here is that the scriptures aren't teaching it in just one spot, 00:09:35.959 --> 00:09:38.519 but all over what we know as the Old Testament. 00:09:38.819 --> 00:09:41.480 And not just in one portion of the Old Testament, 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:47.500 but the Old Testament, then as it is now, was understood to be broken up into three big sections. 00:09:48.019 --> 00:09:49.980 It would be the Torah, or the Law. 00:09:50.639 --> 00:09:56.580 It would be the Writings, or the Nevi'im, and something called the Ketuvim, 00:09:57.039 --> 00:09:59.840 the Prophets, or the Major Prophets. 00:10:00.360 --> 00:10:04.580 Three big sections that comprise the Old Testament. 00:10:04.779 --> 00:10:07.440 And almost certainly, Paul would have referenced all of them. 00:10:07.440 --> 00:10:16.440 All of the Bible, all of it, Paul says, he explains, and he proves, 00:10:16.940 --> 00:10:24.720 that, testify to the suffering of the Savior to die on the behalf of his people as God's servant. 00:10:26.920 --> 00:10:33.280 So, he establishes this very, very logical and rational way he's approaching it. 00:10:33.620 --> 00:10:34.740 This is who the Messiah is. 00:10:34.740 --> 00:10:40.139 So, listen, you've thought that he's this conquering, sword-drawn warrior 00:10:40.139 --> 00:10:45.320 that's going to lead us away from Rome to establish David's throne once again. 00:10:45.700 --> 00:10:46.340 It's not that. 00:10:47.159 --> 00:10:49.100 You think he's just going to be a miracle worker, 00:10:49.700 --> 00:10:53.639 doing wonderful signs and wonders. 00:10:54.080 --> 00:10:55.680 Okay, he did it, but it's not just that. 00:10:55.840 --> 00:10:58.039 At the core of what it means for the Messiah, 00:10:58.240 --> 00:11:00.200 to be the Messiah, is that he will suffer. 00:11:00.200 --> 00:11:07.540 Then he gets into this proof that Jesus is that. 00:11:08.720 --> 00:11:11.240 And this is a key bit in all of this. 00:11:12.020 --> 00:11:15.900 At the core of proving that Jesus truly was the Messiah, 00:11:16.600 --> 00:11:19.240 what is the linchpin in all of this? 00:11:19.340 --> 00:11:22.259 Is that Christ rose from the dead. 00:11:22.259 --> 00:11:26.100 So, if Jesus just died and suffered and he stayed dead, 00:11:26.200 --> 00:11:27.639 Paul could say, listen, this is the Messiah. 00:11:28.439 --> 00:11:29.919 He suffered on our behalf. 00:11:30.439 --> 00:11:33.340 But he'd say, well, there's other Messiahs that suffered on our behalf. 00:11:33.860 --> 00:11:34.419 So what? 00:11:35.019 --> 00:11:37.939 You say this guy, he says that guy, she says that guy. 00:11:38.340 --> 00:11:38.939 It doesn't matter. 00:11:38.940 --> 00:11:45.640 But at the core of what Paul is proving and explaining 00:11:45.640 --> 00:11:48.640 is that Jesus rose from the dead. 00:11:50.220 --> 00:11:53.280 Not the idea of Jesus rising from the dead, 00:11:53.820 --> 00:11:58.880 but that Jesus physically, really, in a specific location, 00:11:59.500 --> 00:12:01.420 at a real time and point in history, 00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:05.700 at the hands of real people, died and rose again afterwards. 00:12:05.700 --> 00:12:10.320 And certainly he would have referenced the crowds that witnessed 00:12:10.320 --> 00:12:15.900 both the ministry of Jesus, the passion of Jesus, 00:12:16.140 --> 00:12:18.140 and Jesus would have been scourged. 00:12:18.240 --> 00:12:20.780 He would have been beaten to a pulp. 00:12:21.400 --> 00:12:22.580 They would have seen that. 00:12:22.900 --> 00:12:25.780 And then they would have seen the resurrected Jesus 00:12:25.780 --> 00:12:28.720 who didn't have a blemish on him 00:12:28.720 --> 00:12:34.060 apart from the nails, the nail marks in his hands and feet in his side. 00:12:35.700 --> 00:12:37.160 And he testified to all of this. 00:12:37.220 --> 00:12:38.259 It's like he's saying, 00:12:38.640 --> 00:12:40.980 this is who the Messiah is, 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:44.200 this is who Jesus is, and I can prove it. 00:12:44.940 --> 00:12:45.640 It's true. 00:12:48.460 --> 00:12:54.600 And it's a big deal for Paul and his ministry 00:12:54.600 --> 00:12:58.300 because he is staking his life on the resurrection. 00:12:58.299 --> 00:13:01.759 And what he is doing also, 00:13:01.939 --> 00:13:03.439 and this is a huge point in all of this, 00:13:03.479 --> 00:13:06.319 is that Paul is connecting the Jesus of history 00:13:06.319 --> 00:13:07.740 to the Jesus of the scriptures. 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:12.819 And this greatly matters because Jesus was a real person. 00:13:14.359 --> 00:13:16.899 And like I said, he suffered at a real point in history, 00:13:17.139 --> 00:13:19.339 at a real location, at the hands of real people. 00:13:19.699 --> 00:13:22.819 And if that didn't happen, then it's all for nothing. 00:13:22.820 --> 00:13:29.060 Some of you are YouTube philosophy junkies. 00:13:29.900 --> 00:13:32.840 You know the different corners of the interwebs. 00:13:34.180 --> 00:13:37.180 Jordan Peterson had a debate with Richard Dawkins 00:13:37.180 --> 00:13:38.460 not too long ago. 00:13:40.160 --> 00:13:43.140 And Richard Dawkins being one of the world's, 00:13:43.140 --> 00:13:44.840 if not the world's most famous atheist, 00:13:45.040 --> 00:13:46.820 and Jordan Peterson being growingly, 00:13:47.680 --> 00:13:51.040 increasingly the most famous Canadian we have, 00:13:51.039 --> 00:13:52.259 or at least a Canadian intellectual. 00:13:53.459 --> 00:13:55.799 Anyways, I didn't watch the whole thing. 00:13:55.839 --> 00:13:56.719 I watched snippets of it. 00:13:57.879 --> 00:14:00.219 One of the bits of this debate 00:14:00.219 --> 00:14:03.259 had to do with Dawkins pressing Peterson 00:14:03.259 --> 00:14:05.659 on if the Bible, 00:14:05.879 --> 00:14:09.360 if he believed that the Bible characters literally existed. 00:14:09.679 --> 00:14:11.659 So he pushed him on, 00:14:12.019 --> 00:14:13.919 surely you don't believe in a literal Cain and Abel. 00:14:14.679 --> 00:14:15.899 And Peterson was, oh, maybe. 00:14:16.279 --> 00:14:17.120 Maybe there were, 00:14:17.419 --> 00:14:19.599 but it was the idea of a literal Cain and Abel 00:14:19.599 --> 00:14:20.779 he wanted to push. 00:14:21.819 --> 00:14:24.919 And then it got to the bit of the resurrection. 00:14:26.439 --> 00:14:27.500 Surely you don't believe 00:14:27.500 --> 00:14:30.379 that Jesus literally rose from the grave. 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:31.699 There was a man named Jesus, 00:14:32.199 --> 00:14:32.679 and he physically, 00:14:32.719 --> 00:14:33.959 like you get cameras there, 00:14:34.319 --> 00:14:36.659 and you'd see him rise from the grave. 00:14:36.719 --> 00:14:39.860 And Peterson had this kind of non-committal, 00:14:40.360 --> 00:14:41.259 I don't know, maybe. 00:14:41.659 --> 00:14:43.000 But the point of all of this was, 00:14:43.099 --> 00:14:44.240 it doesn't really matter. 00:14:44.240 --> 00:14:49.919 Because it is the idea that Jesus rose from the grave, 00:14:50.120 --> 00:14:51.759 it's the idea of the resurrection, 00:14:51.940 --> 00:14:53.159 it's what it represents, 00:14:54.159 --> 00:14:56.980 that that's what really matters in the end. 00:14:56.980 --> 00:15:02.879 And it's so remarkable how a man can be so close to the truth, 00:15:03.440 --> 00:15:04.700 but so far away. 00:15:05.440 --> 00:15:07.159 So close, yet so far away. 00:15:07.159 --> 00:15:10.579 And if you're honest, 00:15:10.899 --> 00:15:13.559 in your less faith-filled days, 00:15:14.240 --> 00:15:16.939 can you not relate to Jordan Peterson? 00:15:17.500 --> 00:15:19.879 I like the idea of the risen Christ, 00:15:19.879 --> 00:15:22.179 but if somebody pushes me, 00:15:23.000 --> 00:15:23.980 gun to my head, 00:15:24.240 --> 00:15:27.700 did he really physically rise from the grave? 00:15:30.419 --> 00:15:32.000 I don't know, yes, 00:15:32.399 --> 00:15:34.379 but maybe you say it sheepishly. 00:15:36.019 --> 00:15:37.519 You want to say yes, 00:15:37.639 --> 00:15:40.779 but you're afraid of what it would make you look like. 00:15:43.200 --> 00:15:44.500 I would say for myself, 00:15:44.779 --> 00:15:46.419 if I'm pressed on this, 00:15:46.539 --> 00:15:48.860 this is maybe one of the impediments 00:15:48.860 --> 00:15:51.639 for me not being brave enough to share my faith. 00:15:53.840 --> 00:15:55.159 I'm going to have to say, 00:15:55.340 --> 00:15:57.080 well, actually at the core of our faith 00:15:57.080 --> 00:15:58.519 is that a physical man, 00:15:58.680 --> 00:16:00.580 at a real point in history, 00:16:00.960 --> 00:16:02.879 physically rose from the grave. 00:16:03.820 --> 00:16:04.919 And he wasn't swooning, 00:16:05.500 --> 00:16:06.580 he wasn't in a coma, 00:16:06.580 --> 00:16:11.240 he wasn't, I don't know, 00:16:11.700 --> 00:16:13.600 having like one breath every two minutes. 00:16:13.700 --> 00:16:15.659 He was dead, and then he was alive. 00:16:15.659 --> 00:16:17.759 And I would, 00:16:17.980 --> 00:16:18.899 if I'm being honest, 00:16:19.639 --> 00:16:21.539 in my less faith-filled days, 00:16:21.819 --> 00:16:23.740 I don't really want to even talk about that. 00:16:23.799 --> 00:16:24.519 I don't want to go there, 00:16:24.759 --> 00:16:26.659 I want to feel like I'm a respectable person. 00:16:26.860 --> 00:16:28.139 Whether or not I look like one, 00:16:28.480 --> 00:16:29.799 I want to feel like one. 00:16:30.500 --> 00:16:31.699 And I think as a society, 00:16:31.819 --> 00:16:32.319 and as people, 00:16:32.399 --> 00:16:34.039 we struggle with this for two big reasons. 00:16:34.939 --> 00:16:35.860 I think the first one, 00:16:36.139 --> 00:16:37.439 I'm not going to dive into this, 00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:39.400 I think the first reason is 00:16:39.400 --> 00:16:42.880 we are fed a steady diet of a scientism, 00:16:43.520 --> 00:16:44.300 science is good, 00:16:44.380 --> 00:16:46.480 but a scientism and an empiricism 00:16:46.480 --> 00:16:47.700 and a materialism 00:16:47.700 --> 00:16:49.980 that says what we see is all there is, 00:16:50.060 --> 00:16:53.560 there's no such thing as a spiritual world, 00:16:54.340 --> 00:16:56.880 there is no such thing as the metaphysical, 00:16:57.460 --> 00:16:58.620 what we see is what we have. 00:16:59.480 --> 00:17:00.460 And the second thing, 00:17:00.500 --> 00:17:02.300 and this is what we'll spend a bit of time on, 00:17:02.780 --> 00:17:04.620 is that as, again, 00:17:04.619 --> 00:17:05.359 as a society, 00:17:05.359 --> 00:17:08.319 I'm painting with a large brush here, 00:17:08.500 --> 00:17:10.219 but we enjoy the boundary 00:17:10.219 --> 00:17:13.199 that separates myth from fact. 00:17:14.299 --> 00:17:15.259 Myth is great, 00:17:15.659 --> 00:17:17.179 for from it we can understand 00:17:17.179 --> 00:17:19.539 all sorts of wisdom and truth, 00:17:19.939 --> 00:17:21.279 lessons learned, morality, 00:17:21.979 --> 00:17:24.779 but we wouldn't affirm myth 00:17:24.779 --> 00:17:26.899 as anything other than fiction. 00:17:28.839 --> 00:17:31.039 We can learn a lot from the story 00:17:31.039 --> 00:17:33.719 of Icarus or Oedipus or Hercules 00:17:33.720 --> 00:17:36.660 but are we going to actually say 00:17:36.660 --> 00:17:39.019 that these characters are real? 00:17:39.259 --> 00:17:39.819 They're fictional. 00:17:40.799 --> 00:17:42.120 But it doesn't matter if they're real 00:17:42.120 --> 00:17:43.660 because for myth, 00:17:43.980 --> 00:17:45.160 what we gather from it 00:17:45.160 --> 00:17:49.100 is the enduring lessons to be learned. 00:17:49.380 --> 00:17:52.819 And I think that is why 00:17:52.819 --> 00:17:54.860 we can struggle with embracing 00:17:54.860 --> 00:17:56.539 the Christian faith, 00:17:56.700 --> 00:17:57.880 even as Christians, 00:17:58.180 --> 00:18:00.640 as it is proclaimed here 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:01.600 by the Apostle Paul. 00:18:01.599 --> 00:18:04.480 we like that boundary 00:18:04.480 --> 00:18:06.299 between myth and fact. 00:18:07.539 --> 00:18:08.339 So in this view, 00:18:09.439 --> 00:18:11.839 Jordan Peterson is spot on. 00:18:11.980 --> 00:18:13.240 I mean, he would even say 00:18:13.240 --> 00:18:15.480 that this is the myth, 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:16.619 the myth of myth, 00:18:16.659 --> 00:18:18.559 and he's not entirely wrong with that, 00:18:18.980 --> 00:18:19.819 but he would say 00:18:19.819 --> 00:18:22.439 this is the idea, 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:23.579 that it's the idea 00:18:23.579 --> 00:18:25.000 of the resurrection, 00:18:25.159 --> 00:18:26.919 the idea of Christ physically 00:18:26.920 --> 00:18:29.660 transcending all of the evil 00:18:29.660 --> 00:18:30.420 and death 00:18:30.420 --> 00:18:32.120 to incorruptibility. 00:18:32.200 --> 00:18:33.220 The idea of that 00:18:33.220 --> 00:18:33.820 is what we should 00:18:33.820 --> 00:18:35.820 mentally ascend to. 00:18:37.759 --> 00:18:38.680 But in the end, 00:18:38.800 --> 00:18:39.019 Jesus 00:18:39.019 --> 00:18:41.380 is not fact. 00:18:41.860 --> 00:18:42.800 The resurrected Jesus 00:18:42.800 --> 00:18:43.440 is not fact. 00:18:43.539 --> 00:18:44.039 He is myth. 00:18:45.980 --> 00:18:47.000 The Apostle Paul 00:18:47.000 --> 00:18:47.820 is not 00:18:47.820 --> 00:18:49.140 playing around 00:18:49.140 --> 00:18:49.840 with this. 00:18:49.920 --> 00:18:50.180 He is 00:18:50.180 --> 00:18:51.360 saying, 00:18:52.519 --> 00:18:52.640 no, 00:18:52.740 --> 00:18:53.480 this is fact. 00:18:54.100 --> 00:18:54.720 It's fact. 00:18:55.460 --> 00:18:56.140 He physically 00:18:56.140 --> 00:18:57.060 rose from the grave 00:18:57.060 --> 00:18:59.259 because everything else 00:18:59.259 --> 00:19:00.080 hinges on it. 00:19:02.340 --> 00:19:03.000 C.S. Lewis, 00:19:03.340 --> 00:19:05.279 he beautifully 00:19:05.279 --> 00:19:06.279 articulates this 00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:07.920 in one of his writings 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:08.980 called God in the Dock, 00:19:09.000 --> 00:19:10.000 and I'm just going to quote it 00:19:10.000 --> 00:19:11.720 rather than summarize it, 00:19:11.860 --> 00:19:12.580 because who am I 00:19:12.580 --> 00:19:13.519 to summarize, Lewis? 00:19:13.740 --> 00:19:14.460 This is what he says, 00:19:14.539 --> 00:19:14.740 quote, 00:19:14.740 --> 00:19:16.720 The heart of Christianity 00:19:16.720 --> 00:19:17.559 is a myth, 00:19:18.319 --> 00:19:19.480 which is also a fact. 00:19:21.099 --> 00:19:22.200 The old myth 00:19:22.200 --> 00:19:23.240 of the dying God 00:19:23.240 --> 00:19:24.059 without ceasing 00:19:24.059 --> 00:19:25.200 to be myth 00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:26.019 comes down 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:26.680 from the heaven 00:19:26.680 --> 00:19:27.740 of legend 00:19:27.740 --> 00:19:28.539 and imagination 00:19:28.539 --> 00:19:29.140 to the earth 00:19:29.140 --> 00:19:29.620 of history. 00:19:30.339 --> 00:19:31.039 It happens 00:19:31.039 --> 00:19:32.279 at a particular date, 00:19:32.680 --> 00:19:33.859 in a particular place, 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:34.519 followed by 00:19:34.519 --> 00:19:35.319 definable 00:19:35.319 --> 00:19:36.799 historical consequences. 00:19:37.980 --> 00:19:38.519 We pass 00:19:38.519 --> 00:19:39.319 from a balder 00:19:39.319 --> 00:19:41.599 or an Osiris, 00:19:42.220 --> 00:19:43.400 dying nobody knows 00:19:43.400 --> 00:19:43.819 where 00:19:43.819 --> 00:19:44.680 or when, 00:19:44.740 --> 00:19:46.120 to a historical 00:19:46.120 --> 00:19:47.279 person crucified 00:19:47.279 --> 00:19:49.019 under Pontius Pilate. 00:19:49.740 --> 00:19:50.759 By becoming fact, 00:19:50.819 --> 00:19:51.759 it does not cease 00:19:51.759 --> 00:19:52.440 to be myth. 00:19:53.120 --> 00:19:54.099 That is the miracle. 00:19:55.099 --> 00:19:56.180 For this is the marriage 00:19:56.180 --> 00:19:56.940 of heaven and earth, 00:19:57.099 --> 00:19:57.920 perfect myth 00:19:57.920 --> 00:19:59.319 and perfect fact, 00:19:59.880 --> 00:20:00.880 claiming not only 00:20:00.880 --> 00:20:01.460 our love 00:20:01.460 --> 00:20:02.180 and our obedience, 00:20:02.420 --> 00:20:03.380 but also our wonder 00:20:03.380 --> 00:20:04.240 and our delight. 00:20:06.519 --> 00:20:07.539 If we are to set 00:20:07.539 --> 00:20:08.039 our hope, 00:20:08.380 --> 00:20:08.799 and I mean 00:20:08.799 --> 00:20:10.500 our eternal hope, 00:20:11.380 --> 00:20:12.059 if we are to set 00:20:12.059 --> 00:20:12.680 our hope 00:20:12.680 --> 00:20:14.420 on the idea 00:20:14.420 --> 00:20:15.600 or the ideal 00:20:15.600 --> 00:20:16.600 of the resurrection 00:20:16.600 --> 00:20:18.840 of Christ, 00:20:19.340 --> 00:20:22.080 we are setting 00:20:22.080 --> 00:20:22.580 our hope 00:20:22.580 --> 00:20:24.460 on something 00:20:24.460 --> 00:20:25.460 that is flimsy 00:20:25.460 --> 00:20:26.600 and that will not 00:20:26.600 --> 00:20:27.400 stand up 00:20:27.400 --> 00:20:28.380 under the weight 00:20:28.380 --> 00:20:28.980 of our hope. 00:20:30.100 --> 00:20:31.680 There's a huge difference 00:20:31.680 --> 00:20:33.019 between putting our hope 00:20:33.019 --> 00:20:33.700 in the idea 00:20:33.700 --> 00:20:34.740 of the risen Christ 00:20:34.740 --> 00:20:37.160 and in the physical 00:20:37.160 --> 00:20:38.000 risen Christ. 00:20:38.100 --> 00:20:39.019 There's a huge difference. 00:20:39.019 --> 00:20:41.980 The Apostle Paul 00:20:41.980 --> 00:20:42.639 here is saying 00:20:42.639 --> 00:20:44.680 to put your faith 00:20:44.680 --> 00:20:47.639 in the risen Christ, 00:20:47.759 --> 00:20:48.379 the physically 00:20:48.379 --> 00:20:49.599 risen Christ. 00:20:49.759 --> 00:20:50.839 Everything in Christianity 00:20:50.839 --> 00:20:52.599 rises, 00:20:52.920 --> 00:20:53.740 no pun intended, 00:20:54.200 --> 00:20:55.059 and falls 00:20:55.059 --> 00:20:55.920 on the literal 00:20:55.920 --> 00:20:56.720 resurrection. 00:20:58.859 --> 00:20:59.579 And if this is 00:20:59.579 --> 00:21:00.559 the truth, 00:21:01.099 --> 00:21:02.940 if this true myth 00:21:02.940 --> 00:21:04.539 is also a true fact, 00:21:04.539 --> 00:21:06.720 it changes everything, 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:07.460 for it means 00:21:07.460 --> 00:21:08.379 that the sin, 00:21:09.440 --> 00:21:09.659 if we're, 00:21:09.799 --> 00:21:10.019 again, 00:21:10.139 --> 00:21:10.920 this is all under 00:21:10.920 --> 00:21:11.879 kind of like the umbrella 00:21:11.879 --> 00:21:14.039 of like extreme honesty, 00:21:14.399 --> 00:21:15.500 the sin that we cannot 00:21:15.500 --> 00:21:16.559 expunge 00:21:16.559 --> 00:21:17.539 out of our own 00:21:17.539 --> 00:21:18.599 lives, 00:21:18.680 --> 00:21:19.720 out of our own hearts, 00:21:19.720 --> 00:21:21.359 is forever dealt 00:21:21.359 --> 00:21:22.139 with on the cross. 00:21:23.839 --> 00:21:25.599 It means our deep desire, 00:21:26.099 --> 00:21:26.539 if again, 00:21:26.619 --> 00:21:27.779 we're being brutally 00:21:27.779 --> 00:21:28.279 honest, 00:21:28.279 --> 00:21:29.440 that we can never 00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:30.240 have fulfilled 00:21:30.240 --> 00:21:31.639 in the things, 00:21:31.640 --> 00:21:33.320 the experiences 00:21:33.320 --> 00:21:34.200 or the people 00:21:34.200 --> 00:21:35.320 that are in our lives 00:21:35.320 --> 00:21:36.580 or that we hope 00:21:36.580 --> 00:21:38.340 to enjoy one day, 00:21:39.340 --> 00:21:40.600 those deep desires 00:21:40.600 --> 00:21:42.160 for transcendence 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:42.940 and purpose 00:21:42.940 --> 00:21:45.680 won't just be found 00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:47.400 but will be never-ending 00:21:47.400 --> 00:21:48.340 in Christ. 00:21:51.560 --> 00:21:52.900 It means that 00:21:52.900 --> 00:21:54.240 our deep desire 00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:54.940 for friendship 00:21:54.940 --> 00:21:56.520 that seems to be elusive 00:21:56.520 --> 00:21:59.920 will be found 00:21:59.920 --> 00:22:01.380 forever in Christ. 00:22:01.640 --> 00:22:04.980 I'm telling you, 00:22:05.880 --> 00:22:06.960 those things can't happen 00:22:06.960 --> 00:22:07.880 if you just mentally 00:22:07.880 --> 00:22:09.560 ascend to this idea 00:22:09.560 --> 00:22:10.900 of Christ 00:22:10.900 --> 00:22:12.080 being resurrected. 00:22:12.500 --> 00:22:13.780 It has to be 00:22:13.780 --> 00:22:14.480 rooted in 00:22:14.480 --> 00:22:16.240 fact. 00:22:19.860 --> 00:22:21.000 The second point 00:22:21.000 --> 00:22:21.900 in this 00:22:21.900 --> 00:22:22.820 and it's connected 00:22:22.820 --> 00:22:24.800 to the first point 00:22:24.800 --> 00:22:25.700 is the clarity 00:22:25.700 --> 00:22:26.120 of scripture. 00:22:26.300 --> 00:22:27.940 So what Paul does here 00:22:27.940 --> 00:22:29.140 is that he appeals 00:22:29.140 --> 00:22:29.800 to truth 00:22:29.799 --> 00:22:30.779 in fact 00:22:30.779 --> 00:22:32.359 not from his 00:22:32.359 --> 00:22:33.799 vast knowledge 00:22:33.799 --> 00:22:34.319 and he would have 00:22:34.319 --> 00:22:35.159 had vast knowledge 00:22:35.159 --> 00:22:36.700 from rabbinical teachings 00:22:36.700 --> 00:22:37.440 or experiences 00:22:37.440 --> 00:22:38.159 but from scripture 00:22:38.159 --> 00:22:38.639 itself. 00:22:40.039 --> 00:22:40.200 So 00:22:40.200 --> 00:22:41.399 verses 00:22:41.399 --> 00:22:42.700 the second point 00:22:42.700 --> 00:22:43.960 verses 10 to 15 00:22:43.960 --> 00:22:44.879 we'll look at the 00:22:44.879 --> 00:22:45.700 clarity of scripture. 00:22:46.039 --> 00:22:46.680 I'll read this 00:22:46.680 --> 00:22:47.740 whole portion here 00:22:47.740 --> 00:22:49.039 and then we will 00:22:49.039 --> 00:22:49.899 take a look at it. 00:22:50.139 --> 00:22:50.639 It says this, 00:22:50.720 --> 00:22:51.139 verse 10, 00:22:51.140 --> 00:22:51.920 the brothers 00:22:51.920 --> 00:22:52.740 immediately sent 00:22:52.740 --> 00:22:53.580 Paul and Silas 00:22:53.580 --> 00:22:54.620 away by night 00:22:54.620 --> 00:22:55.220 to Berea 00:22:55.220 --> 00:22:56.200 and when they 00:22:56.200 --> 00:22:56.920 arrived they went 00:22:56.920 --> 00:22:57.480 into the Jewish 00:22:57.480 --> 00:22:57.840 synagogue. 00:22:58.060 --> 00:22:59.040 Now these Jews 00:22:59.040 --> 00:23:00.120 were more noble 00:23:00.120 --> 00:23:00.800 than those in 00:23:00.800 --> 00:23:01.220 Thessalonica. 00:23:01.280 --> 00:23:01.920 That's just to say 00:23:01.920 --> 00:23:02.820 that they were 00:23:02.820 --> 00:23:03.620 more open-minded, 00:23:03.759 --> 00:23:04.400 more open to 00:23:04.400 --> 00:23:04.800 reason, 00:23:05.200 --> 00:23:06.840 that they were 00:23:06.840 --> 00:23:07.600 more eager for 00:23:07.600 --> 00:23:07.980 truth. 00:23:07.980 --> 00:23:09.839 They received the 00:23:09.839 --> 00:23:10.339 word with all 00:23:10.339 --> 00:23:11.299 eagerness examining 00:23:11.299 --> 00:23:11.819 the scriptures 00:23:11.819 --> 00:23:12.700 daily to see 00:23:12.700 --> 00:23:13.420 if these things 00:23:13.420 --> 00:23:13.799 were so. 00:23:14.220 --> 00:23:14.960 Many of them 00:23:14.960 --> 00:23:15.660 therefore believed 00:23:15.660 --> 00:23:16.380 and not a few 00:23:16.380 --> 00:23:17.259 Greek women 00:23:17.259 --> 00:23:18.160 of high standing 00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:19.259 as well as men. 00:23:20.700 --> 00:23:21.140 I'll actually 00:23:21.140 --> 00:23:21.720 pause there 00:23:21.720 --> 00:23:23.000 and then we'll 00:23:23.000 --> 00:23:23.559 jump into that 00:23:23.559 --> 00:23:24.059 last bit 00:23:24.059 --> 00:23:25.099 later on. 00:23:25.180 --> 00:23:25.720 So the Bereans 00:23:25.720 --> 00:23:26.360 are rightly held 00:23:26.360 --> 00:23:26.940 up as an 00:23:26.940 --> 00:23:28.120 exemplary example 00:23:28.120 --> 00:23:28.519 of how to 00:23:28.519 --> 00:23:29.319 approach scripture 00:23:29.319 --> 00:23:30.380 and truth claims 00:23:30.380 --> 00:23:30.860 if you've been 00:23:30.860 --> 00:23:31.279 around church 00:23:31.279 --> 00:23:31.779 for a while 00:23:31.779 --> 00:23:33.259 especially a 00:23:33.259 --> 00:23:33.740 church that 00:23:33.740 --> 00:23:34.519 holds up 00:23:34.519 --> 00:23:34.980 scripture 00:23:34.980 --> 00:23:36.099 you will hear 00:23:36.099 --> 00:23:36.740 it being said 00:23:36.740 --> 00:23:38.339 we want to be 00:23:38.339 --> 00:23:39.279 a church like 00:23:39.279 --> 00:23:39.839 the Bereans. 00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:40.279 We want to 00:23:40.279 --> 00:23:41.220 dive into 00:23:41.220 --> 00:23:41.599 scripture. 00:23:41.779 --> 00:23:42.059 We want to 00:23:42.059 --> 00:23:42.599 know scripture, 00:23:42.740 --> 00:23:43.400 examine scripture 00:23:43.400 --> 00:23:43.799 and I would 00:23:43.799 --> 00:23:44.819 say that is 00:23:44.819 --> 00:23:46.099 wonderful and 00:23:46.099 --> 00:23:46.740 beautiful and 00:23:46.740 --> 00:23:47.160 that's what 00:23:47.160 --> 00:23:48.120 this church 00:23:48.120 --> 00:23:50.039 is, the hope 00:23:50.039 --> 00:23:50.579 for this church 00:23:50.579 --> 00:23:51.720 is as well. 00:23:52.660 --> 00:23:53.380 So there's hard 00:23:53.380 --> 00:23:53.720 work. 00:23:54.380 --> 00:23:55.160 It means not 00:23:55.160 --> 00:23:55.799 being gullible. 00:23:56.779 --> 00:23:58.359 It means being 00:23:58.359 --> 00:23:58.839 discerning. 00:23:58.980 --> 00:23:59.440 It means doing 00:23:59.440 --> 00:24:00.019 the hard work 00:24:00.019 --> 00:24:00.799 of reading well 00:24:00.799 --> 00:24:02.460 and having 00:24:02.460 --> 00:24:04.420 one's mind 00:24:04.420 --> 00:24:05.259 changed. 00:24:05.440 --> 00:24:06.299 If it needs 00:24:06.299 --> 00:24:06.839 changing. 00:24:08.039 --> 00:24:08.919 It means being 00:24:08.919 --> 00:24:09.799 committed to 00:24:09.799 --> 00:24:10.440 the authority 00:24:10.440 --> 00:24:12.079 and primacy 00:24:12.079 --> 00:24:12.799 of the scriptures 00:24:12.799 --> 00:24:13.759 above all 00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:14.180 else. 00:24:15.000 --> 00:24:16.099 It means to 00:24:16.099 --> 00:24:18.059 put into 00:24:18.059 --> 00:24:19.099 practice what 00:24:19.099 --> 00:24:20.500 you believe. 00:24:21.259 --> 00:24:21.680 To be a 00:24:21.680 --> 00:24:22.000 Berean. 00:24:22.119 --> 00:24:22.559 This is what it 00:24:22.559 --> 00:24:22.799 means. 00:24:22.980 --> 00:24:24.059 It's to live 00:24:24.059 --> 00:24:24.720 your life and 00:24:24.720 --> 00:24:25.339 to form your 00:24:25.339 --> 00:24:26.279 habits and 00:24:26.279 --> 00:24:26.899 thoughts around 00:24:26.899 --> 00:24:28.500 God's word. 00:24:30.599 --> 00:24:31.519 But here's the 00:24:31.519 --> 00:24:31.720 thing. 00:24:31.799 --> 00:24:32.960 We read about 00:24:32.960 --> 00:24:34.019 the Bereans 00:24:34.019 --> 00:24:35.799 and the 00:24:35.799 --> 00:24:36.259 importance of 00:24:36.259 --> 00:24:36.700 diving into 00:24:36.700 --> 00:24:37.240 God's word 00:24:37.240 --> 00:24:38.460 as if, and 00:24:38.460 --> 00:24:38.859 I'll touch on 00:24:38.859 --> 00:24:39.139 this a bit 00:24:39.139 --> 00:24:42.539 more, as if 00:24:42.539 --> 00:24:43.259 the Bereans 00:24:43.259 --> 00:24:45.339 all made 00:24:45.339 --> 00:24:47.059 individual order 00:24:47.059 --> 00:24:48.619 to Amazon or 00:24:48.619 --> 00:24:49.400 chapters and 00:24:49.400 --> 00:24:49.960 got their 00:24:49.960 --> 00:24:51.220 vegan leather 00:24:51.220 --> 00:24:51.680 Bible. 00:24:52.680 --> 00:24:53.200 Beautiful. 00:24:54.200 --> 00:24:55.220 And then went 00:24:55.220 --> 00:24:57.440 home 5 a.m., 00:24:57.440 --> 00:24:58.400 5.30 a.m. 00:24:58.639 --> 00:24:59.440 before the 00:24:59.440 --> 00:25:00.139 cock crowed, 00:25:00.559 --> 00:25:01.259 had a coffee, 00:25:01.759 --> 00:25:02.079 did their 00:25:02.079 --> 00:25:03.019 devos, dug 00:25:03.019 --> 00:25:03.439 into the word 00:25:03.439 --> 00:25:03.819 that way. 00:25:05.000 --> 00:25:05.339 But that's 00:25:05.339 --> 00:25:05.839 almost certainly 00:25:05.839 --> 00:25:06.500 not the case 00:25:06.500 --> 00:25:08.299 because Amazon 00:25:08.299 --> 00:25:09.319 didn't exist. 00:25:09.879 --> 00:25:10.199 No, but 00:25:10.199 --> 00:25:12.879 because nobody 00:25:12.879 --> 00:25:13.419 had a Bible 00:25:13.419 --> 00:25:15.039 in their home. 00:25:16.559 --> 00:25:17.539 So what this 00:25:17.539 --> 00:25:18.199 means is that 00:25:18.199 --> 00:25:19.179 the Bereans, 00:25:19.299 --> 00:25:20.079 they were 00:25:20.079 --> 00:25:21.079 Bereans together. 00:25:21.720 --> 00:25:22.279 It's a huge 00:25:22.279 --> 00:25:23.019 aspect to all 00:25:23.019 --> 00:25:23.359 of this. 00:25:24.819 --> 00:25:26.119 So we'll get 00:25:26.119 --> 00:25:26.639 into this in a 00:25:26.639 --> 00:25:26.839 moment. 00:25:26.960 --> 00:25:27.319 I just wanted 00:25:27.319 --> 00:25:27.779 to point that 00:25:27.779 --> 00:25:27.980 out. 00:25:28.359 --> 00:25:29.099 The passage 00:25:29.099 --> 00:25:29.879 here provides 00:25:29.879 --> 00:25:30.299 two very 00:25:30.299 --> 00:25:31.099 important principles 00:25:31.099 --> 00:25:32.039 or guardrails 00:25:32.039 --> 00:25:33.099 as we want 00:25:33.099 --> 00:25:33.700 to be Bereans 00:25:33.700 --> 00:25:34.099 ourselves. 00:25:35.139 --> 00:25:35.879 The first 00:25:35.879 --> 00:25:36.920 is this, 00:25:37.059 --> 00:25:37.579 and it's a 00:25:37.579 --> 00:25:39.559 combined doctrine, 00:25:40.059 --> 00:25:40.599 two combined 00:25:40.599 --> 00:25:41.359 doctrines from 00:25:41.359 --> 00:25:42.200 the Reformation. 00:25:42.740 --> 00:25:43.599 The first is 00:25:43.599 --> 00:25:44.420 the clarity of 00:25:44.420 --> 00:25:44.659 Scripture, 00:25:44.819 --> 00:25:45.339 or if you 00:25:45.339 --> 00:25:45.920 like fancy 00:25:45.920 --> 00:25:46.159 words, 00:25:46.319 --> 00:25:47.659 the perspicuity 00:25:47.659 --> 00:25:48.299 of Scripture. 00:25:49.379 --> 00:25:49.940 And then 00:25:49.940 --> 00:25:50.799 combined with 00:25:50.799 --> 00:25:51.940 that is the 00:25:51.940 --> 00:25:52.500 doctrine of 00:25:52.500 --> 00:25:53.339 sola scriptura, 00:25:53.460 --> 00:25:54.220 that Scripture 00:25:54.220 --> 00:25:55.200 alone is the 00:25:55.200 --> 00:25:56.180 ultimate and 00:25:56.180 --> 00:25:56.819 chief authority 00:25:56.819 --> 00:25:57.480 for faith and 00:25:57.480 --> 00:25:57.899 practice. 00:25:58.740 --> 00:26:00.119 So, we'll get 00:26:00.119 --> 00:26:00.599 into the second 00:26:00.599 --> 00:26:01.119 principle in a 00:26:01.119 --> 00:26:01.539 minute, but for 00:26:01.539 --> 00:26:01.839 the first 00:26:01.839 --> 00:26:02.379 principle, this 00:26:02.379 --> 00:26:02.940 idea of the 00:26:02.940 --> 00:26:03.359 clarity of 00:26:03.359 --> 00:26:04.339 Scripture with 00:26:04.339 --> 00:26:05.000 the authority 00:26:05.000 --> 00:26:05.559 of Scripture. 00:26:05.920 --> 00:26:06.539 The Reformation 00:26:06.539 --> 00:26:07.579 sweeps across 00:26:07.579 --> 00:26:08.119 Europe in the 00:26:08.119 --> 00:26:08.879 16th century. 00:26:11.680 --> 00:26:12.799 The Reformers 00:26:12.799 --> 00:26:13.440 were committed 00:26:13.440 --> 00:26:15.639 to not change 00:26:15.639 --> 00:26:16.059 for the sake 00:26:16.059 --> 00:26:16.599 of change, 00:26:16.700 --> 00:26:17.379 but to 00:26:17.379 --> 00:26:18.059 reform the 00:26:18.059 --> 00:26:18.539 church so 00:26:18.539 --> 00:26:18.819 that it 00:26:18.819 --> 00:26:19.180 would come 00:26:19.180 --> 00:26:20.599 back under 00:26:20.599 --> 00:26:21.500 the authority 00:26:21.500 --> 00:26:22.460 and practice 00:26:22.460 --> 00:26:22.960 of the 00:26:22.960 --> 00:26:23.299 biblical 00:26:23.299 --> 00:26:25.740 witness. 00:26:27.159 --> 00:26:27.619 No church 00:26:27.619 --> 00:26:28.159 doctrine or 00:26:28.159 --> 00:26:29.240 practice was 00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:30.180 exempted from 00:26:30.180 --> 00:26:31.100 being scrutinized. 00:26:32.600 --> 00:26:33.759 Scripture would 00:26:33.759 --> 00:26:35.140 be what would 00:26:35.140 --> 00:26:35.880 be applied to 00:26:35.880 --> 00:26:36.560 everything. 00:26:36.820 --> 00:26:37.539 So, as a result 00:26:37.539 --> 00:26:38.320 of reading Scripture 00:26:38.320 --> 00:26:38.960 in the proper 00:26:38.960 --> 00:26:39.880 authoritative place, 00:26:40.400 --> 00:26:41.019 the church was 00:26:41.019 --> 00:26:42.759 reformed and 00:26:42.759 --> 00:26:43.480 salvation was 00:26:43.480 --> 00:26:44.140 assured and 00:26:44.140 --> 00:26:44.900 Christ became 00:26:44.900 --> 00:26:45.900 central once again. 00:26:46.019 --> 00:26:46.460 The Scriptures 00:26:46.460 --> 00:26:48.360 were held to 00:26:48.360 --> 00:26:49.340 their rightful 00:26:49.340 --> 00:26:49.740 place. 00:26:51.100 --> 00:26:53.220 So, the 00:26:53.220 --> 00:26:53.440 English 00:26:53.440 --> 00:26:53.860 Reformation, 00:26:54.200 --> 00:26:55.160 this was included 00:26:55.160 --> 00:26:55.640 in the English 00:26:55.640 --> 00:26:56.100 Reformation. 00:26:56.099 --> 00:26:57.480 I'll read two 00:26:57.480 --> 00:26:58.859 of the 39 00:26:58.859 --> 00:26:59.799 articles of 00:26:59.799 --> 00:27:01.619 religion that 00:27:01.619 --> 00:27:03.359 defines English 00:27:03.359 --> 00:27:05.079 Reformed 00:27:05.079 --> 00:27:06.319 theology. 00:27:07.599 --> 00:27:08.519 This is like a 00:27:08.519 --> 00:27:09.099 key, key 00:27:09.099 --> 00:27:10.000 document for 00:27:10.000 --> 00:27:10.839 the English 00:27:10.839 --> 00:27:11.279 Reformation. 00:27:11.959 --> 00:27:12.579 This is what 00:27:12.579 --> 00:27:14.740 Article 6 says. 00:27:15.099 --> 00:27:15.879 Holy Scripture 00:27:15.879 --> 00:27:16.939 contains all things 00:27:16.939 --> 00:27:17.799 necessary for 00:27:17.799 --> 00:27:18.240 salvation. 00:27:19.199 --> 00:27:19.759 Consequently, 00:27:19.959 --> 00:27:20.519 whatever is not 00:27:20.519 --> 00:27:21.480 read in Scripture 00:27:21.480 --> 00:27:22.839 nor can be 00:27:22.839 --> 00:27:23.579 proved from 00:27:23.579 --> 00:27:24.259 Scripture cannot 00:27:24.259 --> 00:27:25.399 be demanded from 00:27:25.400 --> 00:27:26.740 any person to 00:27:26.740 --> 00:27:28.019 believe it as 00:27:28.019 --> 00:27:29.019 an article of 00:27:29.019 --> 00:27:29.640 the faith. 00:27:29.759 --> 00:27:30.460 Nor is any 00:27:30.460 --> 00:27:31.080 such thing to 00:27:31.080 --> 00:27:31.420 be thought 00:27:31.420 --> 00:27:32.220 necessary or 00:27:32.220 --> 00:27:32.780 required for 00:27:32.780 --> 00:27:33.220 salvation. 00:27:34.060 --> 00:27:34.460 By Holy 00:27:34.460 --> 00:27:35.000 Scripture is 00:27:35.000 --> 00:27:35.640 meant those 00:27:35.640 --> 00:27:36.360 canonical books 00:27:36.360 --> 00:27:36.800 of the Old 00:27:36.800 --> 00:27:37.040 and New 00:27:37.040 --> 00:27:38.259 Testament whose 00:27:38.259 --> 00:27:38.960 authority was 00:27:38.960 --> 00:27:40.300 never doubted 00:27:40.300 --> 00:27:40.860 within the 00:27:40.860 --> 00:27:41.140 church. 00:27:41.320 --> 00:27:42.400 In verse 20, 00:27:42.820 --> 00:27:43.640 Article 20 says 00:27:43.640 --> 00:27:43.860 this, 00:27:43.920 --> 00:27:44.460 the church has 00:27:44.460 --> 00:27:45.080 authority to 00:27:45.080 --> 00:27:45.980 decree forms of 00:27:45.980 --> 00:27:46.420 worship and 00:27:46.420 --> 00:27:47.660 ceremonies and 00:27:47.660 --> 00:27:48.320 to decide in 00:27:48.320 --> 00:27:49.000 controversies 00:27:49.000 --> 00:27:49.560 concerning the 00:27:49.560 --> 00:27:49.720 faith. 00:27:49.800 --> 00:27:51.080 However, it's 00:27:51.080 --> 00:27:52.100 not lawful for 00:27:52.100 --> 00:27:52.700 the church to 00:27:52.700 --> 00:27:53.480 order anything 00:27:53.480 --> 00:27:54.320 contrary to 00:27:54.320 --> 00:27:55.160 God's written 00:27:55.160 --> 00:27:55.540 word. 00:27:56.220 --> 00:27:56.759 Nor may it 00:27:56.759 --> 00:27:57.720 expound one 00:27:57.720 --> 00:27:58.500 passage of 00:27:58.500 --> 00:27:59.480 Scripture so 00:27:59.480 --> 00:27:59.860 that it 00:27:59.860 --> 00:28:00.540 contradicts 00:28:00.540 --> 00:28:01.660 another passage. 00:28:02.380 --> 00:28:02.900 So although 00:28:02.900 --> 00:28:03.700 the church is a 00:28:03.700 --> 00:28:04.220 witness and 00:28:04.220 --> 00:28:04.740 guardian to 00:28:04.740 --> 00:28:05.259 Holy Scripture, 00:28:05.400 --> 00:28:05.860 it must not 00:28:05.860 --> 00:28:06.800 decree anything 00:28:06.800 --> 00:28:08.720 contrary to 00:28:08.720 --> 00:28:09.060 Scripture, 00:28:09.680 --> 00:28:10.340 nor is it to 00:28:10.340 --> 00:28:11.880 enforce belief in 00:28:11.880 --> 00:28:12.779 anything additional 00:28:12.779 --> 00:28:14.740 to Scripture as 00:28:14.740 --> 00:28:15.519 essential to 00:28:15.519 --> 00:28:15.960 salvation. 00:28:17.100 --> 00:28:17.920 Too long, 00:28:18.019 --> 00:28:18.480 didn't read. 00:28:19.220 --> 00:28:20.360 Scripture is 00:28:20.360 --> 00:28:23.860 at the very 00:28:23.859 --> 00:28:24.199 top, 00:28:24.199 --> 00:28:25.419 ultimate authority. 00:28:26.240 --> 00:28:27.079 The church has 00:28:27.079 --> 00:28:27.559 a place, 00:28:28.099 --> 00:28:28.799 a very important 00:28:28.799 --> 00:28:29.240 place, 00:28:29.599 --> 00:28:30.319 but the church 00:28:30.319 --> 00:28:31.479 cannot overstep 00:28:31.479 --> 00:28:32.439 its bounds for 00:28:32.439 --> 00:28:32.879 authority. 00:28:33.519 --> 00:28:34.059 Scripture and 00:28:34.059 --> 00:28:34.839 Scripture alone is 00:28:34.839 --> 00:28:35.299 the ultimate 00:28:35.299 --> 00:28:37.219 guiding authority 00:28:37.219 --> 00:28:38.859 for practice and 00:28:38.859 --> 00:28:39.479 belief in the 00:28:39.479 --> 00:28:39.779 church. 00:28:40.879 --> 00:28:42.979 So we start with 00:28:42.979 --> 00:28:43.839 Scripture and go 00:28:43.839 --> 00:28:44.299 from there. 00:28:45.740 --> 00:28:46.799 A pope in 00:28:46.799 --> 00:28:48.919 Italy or France 00:28:48.919 --> 00:28:49.979 cannot speak 00:28:49.980 --> 00:28:52.440 doctrine into 00:28:52.440 --> 00:28:54.660 existence that 00:28:54.660 --> 00:28:55.880 must be believed 00:28:55.880 --> 00:28:57.019 no matter how 00:28:57.019 --> 00:28:57.740 much it goes 00:28:57.740 --> 00:28:59.000 against Scripture 00:28:59.000 --> 00:29:00.620 and if one 00:29:00.620 --> 00:29:01.220 doesn't believe 00:29:01.220 --> 00:29:03.480 it, damnation 00:29:03.480 --> 00:29:05.180 is, you're at 00:29:05.180 --> 00:29:05.819 risk of eternal 00:29:05.819 --> 00:29:06.360 damnation. 00:29:07.599 --> 00:29:08.019 No, no, no, 00:29:08.019 --> 00:29:08.220 no, no. 00:29:09.299 --> 00:29:10.480 Scripture itself 00:29:10.480 --> 00:29:11.960 is the ultimate 00:29:11.960 --> 00:29:12.420 authority. 00:29:13.099 --> 00:29:13.500 Therefore, it's 00:29:13.500 --> 00:29:14.140 been put back 00:29:14.140 --> 00:29:14.920 into its place. 00:29:15.000 --> 00:29:15.779 This is one of 00:29:15.779 --> 00:29:17.039 the gifts of the 00:29:17.039 --> 00:29:17.460 Reformation. 00:29:17.460 --> 00:29:20.200 However, and 00:29:20.200 --> 00:29:20.940 this is a big 00:29:20.940 --> 00:29:23.319 however, sola 00:29:23.319 --> 00:29:24.860 scriptura and 00:29:24.860 --> 00:29:25.480 this idea of 00:29:25.480 --> 00:29:26.519 the clarity of 00:29:26.519 --> 00:29:27.160 Scripture does 00:29:27.160 --> 00:29:27.840 not mean you 00:29:27.840 --> 00:29:28.840 or I get to 00:29:28.840 --> 00:29:30.360 determine whatever 00:29:30.360 --> 00:29:31.480 doctrine we 00:29:31.480 --> 00:29:32.660 believe based 00:29:32.660 --> 00:29:34.160 on our 00:29:34.160 --> 00:29:35.380 interpretation of 00:29:35.380 --> 00:29:35.980 the Bible. 00:29:36.759 --> 00:29:38.000 It's a very 00:29:38.000 --> 00:29:39.000 important aspect 00:29:39.000 --> 00:29:40.420 of what it 00:29:40.420 --> 00:29:41.980 means to be a 00:29:41.980 --> 00:29:43.819 good, godly, 00:29:44.160 --> 00:29:45.200 Bible-believing 00:29:45.200 --> 00:29:46.000 part of the 00:29:46.000 --> 00:29:46.700 church, member 00:29:46.700 --> 00:29:47.240 of the church. 00:29:48.180 --> 00:29:48.860 We don't 00:29:48.860 --> 00:29:50.039 trade one 00:29:50.039 --> 00:29:52.079 pope or 00:29:52.079 --> 00:29:52.960 papacy in 00:29:52.960 --> 00:29:55.059 Italy for a 00:29:55.059 --> 00:29:55.819 papacy within 00:29:55.819 --> 00:29:56.519 our own home, 00:29:57.000 --> 00:29:58.319 as if we are 00:29:58.319 --> 00:29:58.819 the ones who 00:29:58.819 --> 00:29:59.440 make judgments 00:29:59.440 --> 00:30:00.559 ex cathedra on 00:30:00.559 --> 00:30:01.500 doctrine or 00:30:01.500 --> 00:30:01.980 practice. 00:30:03.059 --> 00:30:04.460 So, it's 00:30:04.460 --> 00:30:05.079 very important 00:30:05.079 --> 00:30:06.319 that, and 00:30:06.319 --> 00:30:06.960 this is not 00:30:06.960 --> 00:30:07.600 my idea, 00:30:07.779 --> 00:30:08.240 this is from 00:30:08.240 --> 00:30:09.680 well, the 00:30:09.680 --> 00:30:10.460 reformers, but 00:30:10.460 --> 00:30:12.220 a theologian, a 00:30:12.220 --> 00:30:12.720 more recent 00:30:12.720 --> 00:30:13.319 theologian named 00:30:13.319 --> 00:30:14.079 Keith Matheson, 00:30:14.660 --> 00:30:15.539 sola scriptura 00:30:15.539 --> 00:30:16.160 does not mean 00:30:16.160 --> 00:30:17.340 solo scriptura, 00:30:17.460 --> 00:30:19.160 so it does 00:30:19.160 --> 00:30:21.039 mean that 00:30:21.039 --> 00:30:22.759 God's word is 00:30:22.759 --> 00:30:23.299 for God's 00:30:23.299 --> 00:30:24.720 people, which 00:30:24.720 --> 00:30:25.500 is to say that 00:30:25.500 --> 00:30:26.240 we ought to be 00:30:26.240 --> 00:30:27.240 reading and 00:30:27.240 --> 00:30:27.840 wrestling with 00:30:27.840 --> 00:30:28.279 God's word 00:30:28.279 --> 00:30:28.579 together. 00:30:28.740 --> 00:30:29.500 So, if you 00:30:29.500 --> 00:30:30.100 think of 00:30:30.100 --> 00:30:32.340 scripture as 00:30:32.340 --> 00:30:32.779 having two 00:30:32.779 --> 00:30:33.900 guardrails around 00:30:33.900 --> 00:30:34.279 it, number 00:30:34.279 --> 00:30:35.200 one, that 00:30:35.200 --> 00:30:36.160 scripture is 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:37.740 clear, any of 00:30:37.740 --> 00:30:38.680 us can read it 00:30:38.680 --> 00:30:39.539 if we are true 00:30:39.539 --> 00:30:40.680 believers and 00:30:40.680 --> 00:30:41.120 trust that the 00:30:41.120 --> 00:30:41.840 Holy Spirit is 00:30:41.840 --> 00:30:42.440 going to reveal 00:30:42.440 --> 00:30:43.640 to us essentials 00:30:43.640 --> 00:30:44.380 of the faith. 00:30:45.100 --> 00:30:45.620 So, on one 00:30:45.620 --> 00:30:46.240 side there's the 00:30:46.240 --> 00:30:46.680 clarity of 00:30:46.680 --> 00:30:48.280 scripture, and 00:30:48.280 --> 00:30:48.720 on the other 00:30:48.720 --> 00:30:49.840 side there is 00:30:49.840 --> 00:30:50.980 the guardrail to 00:30:50.980 --> 00:30:51.640 make sure that we 00:30:51.640 --> 00:30:52.660 don't become the 00:30:52.660 --> 00:30:54.060 arbiters or the 00:30:54.060 --> 00:30:56.320 main interpreters of 00:30:56.320 --> 00:30:56.620 scripture. 00:30:59.120 --> 00:31:01.980 The Bereans are 00:31:01.980 --> 00:31:03.100 meeting daily 00:31:03.100 --> 00:31:03.540 together. 00:31:04.120 --> 00:31:04.720 They're opening 00:31:04.720 --> 00:31:05.300 God's word 00:31:05.300 --> 00:31:05.680 together. 00:31:05.800 --> 00:31:06.480 They are wrestling 00:31:06.480 --> 00:31:07.040 with it together. 00:31:07.420 --> 00:31:08.100 Almost certainly 00:31:08.100 --> 00:31:08.940 they're not reading 00:31:08.940 --> 00:31:09.900 it inside their 00:31:09.900 --> 00:31:11.680 heads, but they're 00:31:11.680 --> 00:31:12.320 reading it aloud. 00:31:14.080 --> 00:31:14.820 They are coming 00:31:14.820 --> 00:31:15.860 together as God's 00:31:15.860 --> 00:31:16.320 people. 00:31:17.120 --> 00:31:18.200 I mean, I don't 00:31:18.200 --> 00:31:18.700 think they're God's 00:31:18.700 --> 00:31:19.580 people at this 00:31:19.580 --> 00:31:19.840 point. 00:31:19.920 --> 00:31:20.640 It says that then 00:31:20.640 --> 00:31:21.340 they came to faith, 00:31:21.440 --> 00:31:22.840 but nevertheless, as 00:31:22.840 --> 00:31:23.660 this group of 00:31:23.660 --> 00:31:25.759 people on the way 00:31:25.759 --> 00:31:27.140 to faith in Christ 00:31:27.140 --> 00:31:28.019 and they're wrestling 00:31:28.019 --> 00:31:29.060 and they're digging 00:31:29.060 --> 00:31:30.440 in, somebody has an 00:31:30.440 --> 00:31:31.519 idea, yeah, that 00:31:31.519 --> 00:31:32.360 sounds good, this is 00:31:32.360 --> 00:31:32.980 what it says, no, 00:31:33.019 --> 00:31:33.500 no, no, no, but 00:31:33.500 --> 00:31:34.299 what about this 00:31:34.299 --> 00:31:35.140 portion of scripture 00:31:35.140 --> 00:31:36.000 that contradicts what 00:31:36.000 --> 00:31:37.039 you just said, and 00:31:37.039 --> 00:31:37.779 all of a sudden you 00:31:37.779 --> 00:31:39.500 can just trust that 00:31:39.500 --> 00:31:41.660 with the proclamation 00:31:41.680 --> 00:31:43.080 and the reading of 00:31:43.080 --> 00:31:44.340 scripture together in 00:31:44.340 --> 00:31:45.180 the community of the 00:31:45.180 --> 00:31:47.620 church that truth 00:31:47.620 --> 00:31:48.160 prevails. 00:31:52.640 --> 00:31:55.360 It means also that 00:31:55.360 --> 00:31:57.120 for us, we need to, 00:31:57.259 --> 00:31:58.060 it's a corrective for 00:31:58.060 --> 00:31:58.940 us because we need to, 00:31:59.400 --> 00:32:01.100 of course, by the way, 00:32:01.180 --> 00:32:02.060 I'm not saying that we 00:32:02.060 --> 00:32:04.160 go home and we don't 00:32:04.160 --> 00:32:04.880 do our own personal 00:32:04.880 --> 00:32:06.279 Bible reading, but it 00:32:06.279 --> 00:32:07.440 means as a community of 00:32:07.440 --> 00:32:09.420 God's people, we are 00:32:09.420 --> 00:32:10.320 talking the scriptures 00:32:10.319 --> 00:32:10.799 scriptures to each 00:32:10.799 --> 00:32:10.980 other. 00:32:11.759 --> 00:32:13.659 We are debating and 00:32:13.659 --> 00:32:14.740 discussing, we are 00:32:14.740 --> 00:32:17.179 being honest that maybe 00:32:17.179 --> 00:32:18.139 we don't have as much 00:32:18.139 --> 00:32:19.220 Bible knowledge as we 00:32:19.220 --> 00:32:20.679 do, so we're saying, 00:32:20.759 --> 00:32:21.720 hey, listen, why don't 00:32:21.720 --> 00:32:22.639 you explain this to me? 00:32:22.720 --> 00:32:23.399 Why don't you teach us 00:32:23.399 --> 00:32:23.700 to me? 00:32:23.879 --> 00:32:24.779 Can we read this book 00:32:24.779 --> 00:32:26.099 together that might 00:32:26.099 --> 00:32:27.899 illuminate something about 00:32:27.899 --> 00:32:28.279 scripture? 00:32:28.759 --> 00:32:29.799 How do we wrestle through 00:32:29.799 --> 00:32:30.839 scripture together as a 00:32:30.839 --> 00:32:31.139 community? 00:32:32.559 --> 00:32:33.279 I mean, there's huge 00:32:33.279 --> 00:32:34.720 implications for the 00:32:34.720 --> 00:32:35.579 church itself. 00:32:36.539 --> 00:32:38.299 That can't just happen on 00:32:38.299 --> 00:32:39.419 an hour and a half on a 00:32:39.419 --> 00:32:39.839 Sunday morning. 00:32:39.919 --> 00:32:40.740 Mind you, what we're 00:32:40.740 --> 00:32:41.539 doing here is some of 00:32:41.539 --> 00:32:41.740 that. 00:32:44.079 --> 00:32:45.220 I think what it means to 00:32:45.220 --> 00:32:46.639 be a church that are, 00:32:47.279 --> 00:32:48.359 that take the example of 00:32:48.359 --> 00:32:49.500 the Bereans very seriously 00:32:49.500 --> 00:32:51.079 is a church that reads and 00:32:51.079 --> 00:32:51.980 wrestles with scripture 00:32:51.980 --> 00:32:52.519 together. 00:32:54.500 --> 00:32:57.480 It also means we can't be 00:32:57.480 --> 00:32:58.960 snooty about the past. 00:33:00.039 --> 00:33:01.559 We need to remember on 00:33:01.559 --> 00:33:02.799 All Saints Day, a great 00:33:02.799 --> 00:33:04.379 example, that there have 00:33:04.379 --> 00:33:05.500 been saints that have gone 00:33:05.500 --> 00:33:07.420 before us, that God in his 00:33:07.420 --> 00:33:08.859 goodness and wisdom and 00:33:08.859 --> 00:33:10.380 mercy and love for the 00:33:10.380 --> 00:33:11.740 church has given insights 00:33:11.740 --> 00:33:14.559 into the scriptures and 00:33:14.559 --> 00:33:16.339 that we have them at our 00:33:16.339 --> 00:33:18.700 fingertips so we can appeal 00:33:18.700 --> 00:33:20.259 to brothers and sisters of 00:33:20.259 --> 00:33:21.980 the past and grow together 00:33:21.980 --> 00:33:24.299 in faith, again, centered 00:33:24.299 --> 00:33:25.599 around God's word. 00:33:28.079 --> 00:33:29.460 Friends, this is the 00:33:29.460 --> 00:33:30.599 beginning of having a very 00:33:30.599 --> 00:33:32.859 high view of church and the 00:33:32.859 --> 00:33:34.319 place of church in our lives. 00:33:35.500 --> 00:33:38.599 So, the centrality of the 00:33:38.599 --> 00:33:40.539 resurrection to Jesus being 00:33:40.539 --> 00:33:42.900 the Christ, the centrality of 00:33:42.900 --> 00:33:45.420 the scriptures to the 00:33:45.420 --> 00:33:47.500 understanding of who Jesus 00:33:47.500 --> 00:33:49.160 is and what truth is and who 00:33:49.160 --> 00:33:51.559 God is, the guardrails around 00:33:51.559 --> 00:33:51.900 that. 00:33:53.000 --> 00:33:54.059 But we'll see in this next 00:33:54.059 --> 00:33:55.119 section, and this is portions 00:33:55.119 --> 00:33:57.779 from verses 5 to 9 and 13 to 5, 00:33:58.279 --> 00:34:01.880 that as God calls his community 00:34:01.880 --> 00:34:03.740 together out of darkness into 00:34:03.740 --> 00:34:06.019 the light, there will be another 00:34:06.019 --> 00:34:08.639 community that will despise the 00:34:08.639 --> 00:34:09.880 light and remain in the darkness 00:34:09.880 --> 00:34:12.820 and look to snuff out the 00:34:12.820 --> 00:34:13.880 light of Christ. 00:34:15.159 --> 00:34:16.900 Look with me at verses 5 to 9. 00:34:17.260 --> 00:34:19.119 By the way, this will cost us. 00:34:19.800 --> 00:34:21.559 So, to have belief will cost. 00:34:22.199 --> 00:34:24.800 Look with me first at verses 5 to 9 00:34:24.800 --> 00:34:27.099 and then verses 13 to 15. 00:34:27.199 --> 00:34:28.659 Verses, starting verse 5. 00:34:28.659 --> 00:34:31.719 But the Jews, that is the Jews that 00:34:31.719 --> 00:34:34.599 did not come to believe in Jesus as 00:34:34.599 --> 00:34:36.719 the Messiah, but the Jews were 00:34:36.719 --> 00:34:39.480 jealous and taking some wicked men 00:34:39.480 --> 00:34:41.119 of the rabble, they formed a mob, 00:34:41.219 --> 00:34:42.519 set the city in an uproar, 00:34:42.639 --> 00:34:43.779 attacked the house of Jason, 00:34:44.839 --> 00:34:46.399 seeking to bring them out to the 00:34:46.399 --> 00:34:46.699 crowd. 00:34:46.819 --> 00:34:48.099 And when they could not find them, 00:34:48.119 --> 00:34:49.460 they dragged Jason and some of the 00:34:49.460 --> 00:34:50.719 brothers before the city authorities, 00:34:50.839 --> 00:34:52.920 shouting, these men who have turned 00:34:52.920 --> 00:34:55.480 the world upside down have come here 00:34:55.480 --> 00:34:55.940 also. 00:34:55.940 --> 00:34:58.099 And Jason has received them and 00:34:58.099 --> 00:34:59.539 they are all acting against the 00:34:59.539 --> 00:35:01.500 decrees of Caesar, saying that there 00:35:01.500 --> 00:35:02.440 is another king, Jesus. 00:35:02.840 --> 00:35:04.019 And the people and the city 00:35:04.019 --> 00:35:05.460 authorities were disturbed when 00:35:05.460 --> 00:35:06.440 they heard these things. 00:35:07.159 --> 00:35:08.240 When they had taken money as 00:35:08.240 --> 00:35:10.000 security from Jason and the rest, 00:35:10.159 --> 00:35:10.840 they let them go. 00:35:11.220 --> 00:35:11.800 Verse 13. 00:35:12.460 --> 00:35:13.400 This is in Berea now. 00:35:14.059 --> 00:35:15.320 But when the Jews, again these 00:35:15.320 --> 00:35:17.579 unbelieving Jewish people, but when 00:35:17.579 --> 00:35:19.700 the Jews from Thessalonica heard that 00:35:19.700 --> 00:35:21.099 the word of God was proclaimed by 00:35:21.099 --> 00:35:24.059 Paul at Berea also, they came 00:35:24.059 --> 00:35:26.039 there too, agitating and stirring up 00:35:26.039 --> 00:35:26.619 the crowds. 00:35:27.579 --> 00:35:28.799 Then the brothers immediately sent 00:35:28.799 --> 00:35:30.880 Paul off on his way to the sea, 00:35:31.039 --> 00:35:33.259 but Silas and Timothy remained 00:35:33.259 --> 00:35:33.500 there. 00:35:34.139 --> 00:35:36.960 Those who conducted Paul brought him 00:35:36.960 --> 00:35:38.960 as far as Athens and after receiving 00:35:38.960 --> 00:35:40.900 a command for Silas and Timothy to 00:35:40.900 --> 00:35:43.279 come to him as soon as possible, 00:35:43.400 --> 00:35:44.059 they departed. 00:35:47.019 --> 00:35:49.400 Increasingly, following Christ in our 00:35:49.400 --> 00:35:51.960 day, and I say increasingly, 00:35:51.960 --> 00:35:54.780 maybe in the past, say two to three 00:35:54.780 --> 00:35:56.740 generations in our time, 00:35:57.539 --> 00:36:00.300 will seem upside down to the world 00:36:00.300 --> 00:36:00.780 we live in. 00:36:00.960 --> 00:36:02.220 I mean, it was upside down back here. 00:36:02.539 --> 00:36:05.099 It's more or less in any part of the 00:36:05.099 --> 00:36:07.760 world, following Christ looks upside 00:36:07.760 --> 00:36:09.699 down, but in the West we've enjoyed 00:36:09.699 --> 00:36:13.720 the benefits of Christianity and 00:36:13.720 --> 00:36:15.420 Christendom for a long time. 00:36:15.619 --> 00:36:16.579 Not so much anymore. 00:36:17.579 --> 00:36:20.619 But increasingly for us, following 00:36:20.619 --> 00:36:23.819 Jesus, again, as I laid out with 00:36:23.819 --> 00:36:26.920 believing that Jesus factually 00:36:26.920 --> 00:36:30.179 actually rose from the grave, will 00:36:30.179 --> 00:36:32.359 look upside down to those around us. 00:36:32.420 --> 00:36:34.059 And it might very well feel upside 00:36:34.059 --> 00:36:34.859 down for us. 00:36:36.119 --> 00:36:38.920 Again, we are people that have been 00:36:38.920 --> 00:36:43.920 force-fed, a steady diet all our 00:36:43.920 --> 00:36:47.679 lives of a modernity that denies this 00:36:47.679 --> 00:36:50.059 idea that Jesus could have truly risen 00:36:50.059 --> 00:36:52.159 from the grave, or denies this idea 00:36:52.159 --> 00:36:54.759 that there's an exclusivity claim to 00:36:54.759 --> 00:36:57.940 the Bible, or denies that the tenets of 00:36:57.940 --> 00:37:02.299 biblical morality is life-giving and is 00:37:02.299 --> 00:37:03.460 applied to all people. 00:37:03.460 --> 00:37:07.019 So we will feel upside down. 00:37:09.839 --> 00:37:11.879 Obedience and devotion will be 00:37:11.879 --> 00:37:12.339 difficult. 00:37:12.340 --> 00:37:19.460 But, friends, but, if we, by God's 00:37:19.460 --> 00:37:21.880 strength, as a community, commit to 00:37:21.880 --> 00:37:24.980 this, again, by God's strength, as a 00:37:24.980 --> 00:37:27.760 community, commit to this, the obedience 00:37:27.760 --> 00:37:30.280 and devotion that seems upside down will 00:37:30.280 --> 00:37:31.980 actually be right side up. 00:37:33.500 --> 00:37:36.840 And that our obedience and our devotion 00:37:36.840 --> 00:37:39.300 might still feel difficult, but it will 00:37:39.300 --> 00:37:42.420 feel less like a chore and more like a 00:37:42.420 --> 00:37:42.700 joy. 00:37:44.720 --> 00:37:47.560 And our loves and our affections and our 00:37:47.560 --> 00:37:49.539 priorities will begin to change. 00:37:51.320 --> 00:37:54.460 We will say no, not to the, to the, 00:37:55.140 --> 00:37:57.360 say no to things, not because they are 00:37:57.360 --> 00:37:59.680 necessarily bad, they're likely very 00:37:59.680 --> 00:38:02.820 good, but we'll say no to them because 00:38:02.820 --> 00:38:05.140 our society has said you have to 00:38:05.140 --> 00:38:06.100 prioritize them. 00:38:06.300 --> 00:38:08.200 And for us, we will say no, we are 00:38:08.199 --> 00:38:09.980 prioritizing a different way. 00:38:11.239 --> 00:38:13.059 So it will change our approach to our 00:38:13.059 --> 00:38:15.079 careers and our goals and our 00:38:15.079 --> 00:38:17.879 ambitions, the opportunities we take or 00:38:17.879 --> 00:38:19.259 the opportunities we want to give to 00:38:19.259 --> 00:38:22.759 our children, things we buy, the way we 00:38:22.759 --> 00:38:25.279 invest, the charities and organizations 00:38:25.279 --> 00:38:28.500 we donate to, or maybe we begin to 00:38:28.500 --> 00:38:31.099 donate to charities and organizations. 00:38:32.319 --> 00:38:34.399 How we spend our time, how we spend our 00:38:34.400 --> 00:38:38.539 money, money, in short, as we grow in our 00:38:38.539 --> 00:38:42.420 faith by God's strength together in him, 00:38:44.059 --> 00:38:47.639 we will have the gospel affect every 00:38:47.639 --> 00:38:49.280 aspect of our lives. 00:38:50.960 --> 00:38:55.139 It will feel upside down and until we get 00:38:55.139 --> 00:38:56.720 our balance and we'll realize, no, no, no, 00:38:56.720 --> 00:38:58.440 this is, this is right side up living. 00:38:58.440 --> 00:39:04.579 Jason is not talked about much in the 00:39:04.579 --> 00:39:06.820 Bible here and then in later on in 00:39:06.820 --> 00:39:09.280 Romans 16, there's a reference to him 00:39:09.280 --> 00:39:10.840 just in one of Paul's greetings. 00:39:12.619 --> 00:39:13.840 And it cost him a lot. 00:39:14.119 --> 00:39:16.679 He was, he was clearly a man of means, 00:39:16.880 --> 00:39:17.960 some degree of means. 00:39:18.079 --> 00:39:19.960 He was dragged and humiliated in front of 00:39:19.960 --> 00:39:20.460 the crowds. 00:39:21.119 --> 00:39:22.880 He was forced to give up money that he 00:39:22.880 --> 00:39:26.159 knew, he knew there was no chance he was, 00:39:26.280 --> 00:39:27.320 he was going to get it back. 00:39:27.320 --> 00:39:29.900 I mean, either, either they were going to 00:39:29.900 --> 00:39:32.760 hold it or take it, hold it for good or 00:39:32.760 --> 00:39:34.100 they were going to take it because 00:39:34.100 --> 00:39:37.019 there's no way that he could stop the 00:39:37.019 --> 00:39:41.280 crowds from inciting a mob against the 00:39:41.280 --> 00:39:43.160 Christians and especially Paul and company. 00:39:44.160 --> 00:39:48.400 He was unjustly treated, but you know, he 00:39:48.400 --> 00:39:50.600 was counted worthy of being associated with 00:39:50.600 --> 00:39:50.960 Christ. 00:39:51.340 --> 00:39:51.780 He was. 00:39:54.100 --> 00:39:57.039 In a lesser way, he got to participate in 00:39:57.039 --> 00:39:59.619 the sufferings of Christ and we are reading 00:39:59.619 --> 00:40:01.139 about him 2,000 years later. 00:40:06.079 --> 00:40:07.659 This man enjoyed a life of faith, 00:40:08.920 --> 00:40:10.639 participated in the community of hope, 00:40:11.420 --> 00:40:13.920 and enjoyed the promises of eternal and 00:40:13.920 --> 00:40:15.400 deep friendship with the triune God. 00:40:15.480 --> 00:40:18.119 I'm telling you, I promise you, I mean, 00:40:18.219 --> 00:40:19.400 this is what I'll promise. 00:40:19.639 --> 00:40:20.960 I'm not promising that it's going to be 00:40:20.960 --> 00:40:21.380 easy. 00:40:21.679 --> 00:40:23.440 I'm not necessarily even promising that it's 00:40:23.440 --> 00:40:25.260 going to be terribly, terribly, terribly hard. 00:40:25.300 --> 00:40:25.519 It might. 00:40:25.579 --> 00:40:26.000 It might not. 00:40:26.880 --> 00:40:29.599 But I will promise this, that as you commit 00:40:29.599 --> 00:40:32.480 to a life of devotion and obedience, 00:40:33.280 --> 00:40:37.920 as a product of the love, in response to 00:40:37.920 --> 00:40:40.920 the love that God has given you in Christ 00:40:40.920 --> 00:40:46.340 Jesus, in a community, life in him will start to 00:40:46.340 --> 00:40:48.740 seem right side up. 00:40:49.579 --> 00:40:52.220 And you'll want to tell people, hey, listen, 00:40:52.740 --> 00:40:56.860 I believe in the myth, but it's also a fact. 00:40:57.000 --> 00:40:59.659 And I'm telling you, if you embrace this Christ, 00:41:00.539 --> 00:41:01.960 it'll transform your life. 00:41:01.960 --> 00:41:05.860 It'll cost you your life, but it'll transform your 00:41:05.860 --> 00:41:06.179 life. 00:41:08.500 --> 00:41:11.300 Listen, friends, as God's holy people, 00:41:12.380 --> 00:41:14.240 let us search the scriptures diligently, 00:41:15.699 --> 00:41:17.300 individually, but also together. 00:41:18.019 --> 00:41:21.800 Let us revel in this myth-made fact of Christ 00:41:21.800 --> 00:41:24.679 rising from the grave, and let's do that together. 00:41:25.900 --> 00:41:28.740 And let us joyfully live right side up, 00:41:28.820 --> 00:41:31.099 bearing witness to the joy that we have in Christ, 00:41:31.099 --> 00:41:32.739 and let's do that also together. 00:41:34.579 --> 00:41:38.420 And friends, we will enjoy the right side up 00:41:38.420 --> 00:41:41.519 living, and we will see other people come to 00:41:41.519 --> 00:41:45.420 faith and be rescued from a backwards existence 00:41:45.420 --> 00:41:46.659 that is killing them. 00:41:48.239 --> 00:41:49.039 Let us pray. 00:41:50.279 --> 00:41:52.819 Father in heaven, we thank you for the great 00:41:52.819 --> 00:41:55.679 example of the Apostle Paul, the great courage 00:41:55.679 --> 00:42:00.779 that he had to suffer torture in Philippi, 00:42:00.780 --> 00:42:05.740 and then continue on to suffer in Thessalonica, 00:42:06.540 --> 00:42:10.200 and continue on, and in every stop, 00:42:10.340 --> 00:42:13.600 proclaiming and making a case for the risen Christ. 00:42:14.540 --> 00:42:17.700 Lord, proclaiming the upside-down kingdom, 00:42:17.940 --> 00:42:20.480 that is really the right-side-up kingdom. 00:42:21.320 --> 00:42:24.519 Lord, help us to take St. Paul's example, 00:42:24.519 --> 00:42:27.880 and by your strength that we would walk in like manner. 00:42:28.139 --> 00:42:30.460 And Father, we pray that you would give us courage 00:42:30.460 --> 00:42:31.900 to trust your word. 00:42:33.119 --> 00:42:36.960 Lord, to believe that you, by your Holy Spirit, 00:42:37.300 --> 00:42:39.460 use your word to transform our lives. 00:42:40.079 --> 00:42:42.000 And Lord, we pray that you'll do just that. 00:42:42.000 --> 00:42:45.739 Gently, we ask, Lord, but deeply. 00:42:47.900 --> 00:42:49.380 Lord, we want to grow in our faith. 00:42:49.559 --> 00:42:50.619 We don't want to be pretenders. 00:42:51.360 --> 00:42:55.340 We don't want to be people that have deep spiritual regrets 00:42:55.340 --> 00:42:58.579 as we come to the end of our days, 00:42:58.840 --> 00:42:59.659 whatever that may be. 00:43:00.159 --> 00:43:02.300 But instead, Lord, help us to have courage 00:43:02.300 --> 00:43:03.559 to trust in you. 00:43:04.480 --> 00:43:05.679 We pray all this in Christ's name. 00:43:06.059 --> 00:43:06.300 Amen. 00:43:06.300 --> 00:43:06.400 Amen. 00:43:06.400 --> 00:43:06.420 Amen. 00:43:06.420 --> 00:43:06.440 Amen. 00:43:06.440 --> 00:43:06.460 Amen. 00:43:06.460 --> 00:43:06.480 Amen. 00:43:06.480 --> 00:43:08.460 Amen. 00:43:08.460 --> 00:43:08.480 Amen. 00:43:08.480 --> 00:43:10.460 Amen.