WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:00.880 Do you be seated. 00:00:06.679 --> 00:00:18.260 One of the real joys of having Ruben and Andrew and of them being such good preachers is it gives me a little bit more freedom, a little bit more space to think. 00:00:18.260 --> 00:00:31.580 And what I want to do tonight and this morning and tonight and the next two Sunday nights is to really take a theme which we don't often do. 00:00:31.740 --> 00:00:33.939 And so I want to preach to you on stories. 00:00:36.040 --> 00:00:39.160 We live in a world of stories. 00:00:40.620 --> 00:00:46.439 Stories are both powerful for good and for bad, aren't they? 00:00:46.439 --> 00:00:50.399 So some stories are really heartwarming. 00:00:50.739 --> 00:00:52.320 You know certain films you go to. 00:00:53.019 --> 00:00:53.879 They warm your heart. 00:00:54.140 --> 00:00:54.879 They bring you joy. 00:00:54.959 --> 00:00:55.599 They're life-giving. 00:00:56.320 --> 00:00:57.379 They change our mood. 00:00:58.320 --> 00:00:59.619 They bring enormous comfort. 00:01:00.500 --> 00:01:01.379 They stir memories. 00:01:02.019 --> 00:01:04.060 Certain stories are inspirational. 00:01:05.019 --> 00:01:06.120 They stir us to do better. 00:01:06.939 --> 00:01:08.920 Might be books that you can think of as I think of that. 00:01:10.599 --> 00:01:12.340 Some stories are powerful for bad. 00:01:13.200 --> 00:01:15.640 I expect you've had this experience like I've had. 00:01:15.640 --> 00:01:20.340 You're watching a TV show and you get caught up in the story. 00:01:21.560 --> 00:01:28.620 And you get moved in a way that's counter to your own conscience or morality or the things that you believe. 00:01:28.900 --> 00:01:33.740 You find yourself hoping for something to happen in the story which you'd never want to happen in real life. 00:01:34.700 --> 00:01:36.439 So you've watched those romantic films. 00:01:37.480 --> 00:01:38.659 There's a gorgeous woman. 00:01:38.659 --> 00:01:41.459 She's so pretty and attractive. 00:01:42.039 --> 00:01:45.200 And she's married to a very simple, dull, ordinary guy. 00:01:46.179 --> 00:01:47.579 He's non-communicative. 00:01:48.579 --> 00:01:50.299 He doesn't take an interest in her. 00:01:50.299 --> 00:01:55.640 And then a Brad Pitt type figure appears in the office. 00:01:55.759 --> 00:01:56.319 You know that? 00:01:57.219 --> 00:01:57.939 He's gorgeous. 00:01:58.280 --> 00:01:59.000 He's kind. 00:01:59.439 --> 00:02:00.019 He's generous. 00:02:00.179 --> 00:02:01.679 He takes an interest in her. 00:02:02.219 --> 00:02:03.420 He captures her attention. 00:02:04.099 --> 00:02:07.939 And isn't it true that as we're watching we almost will the affair to happen? 00:02:07.939 --> 00:02:10.340 And we want them to get together. 00:02:11.479 --> 00:02:13.780 And we think they should have got together in the first place. 00:02:14.120 --> 00:02:15.819 It's the power of a story. 00:02:16.639 --> 00:02:18.759 It's a double-edged sword. 00:02:18.759 --> 00:02:24.280 And our culture is full of stories and storytellers. 00:02:25.759 --> 00:02:26.659 Harry Potter. 00:02:27.620 --> 00:02:28.399 Lord of the Rings. 00:02:29.859 --> 00:02:31.199 The Chronicles of Narnia. 00:02:32.139 --> 00:02:32.699 The Gruffalo. 00:02:33.879 --> 00:02:35.479 The Diary of a Wimpy Kid. 00:02:37.519 --> 00:02:39.039 Authors like Julia Donaldson. 00:02:39.399 --> 00:02:40.019 P.D. James. 00:02:40.159 --> 00:02:40.699 Agatha Christie. 00:02:41.340 --> 00:02:44.560 We live in a world of storytellers. 00:02:45.919 --> 00:02:48.419 This week I've been away with old friends. 00:02:49.259 --> 00:02:51.179 Friends who I've known for decades. 00:02:52.399 --> 00:02:55.280 And when you're together with friends that you've known for decades. 00:02:55.799 --> 00:02:56.679 What do you do? 00:02:57.699 --> 00:02:58.639 As you sit around. 00:03:00.259 --> 00:03:01.599 You tell stories, don't you? 00:03:02.599 --> 00:03:05.199 You tell the same old stories. 00:03:05.340 --> 00:03:06.659 Over and over again. 00:03:06.859 --> 00:03:07.939 And you don't get bored of them. 00:03:09.439 --> 00:03:11.379 Maybe you go out and something happens. 00:03:11.539 --> 00:03:12.840 There's a standoff on the bus. 00:03:12.939 --> 00:03:13.639 Or there's an accident. 00:03:15.019 --> 00:03:16.780 And when you come back home. 00:03:16.780 --> 00:03:18.079 You tell the people about it. 00:03:18.080 --> 00:03:20.060 And they say, give me the story. 00:03:21.719 --> 00:03:23.219 You're watching a TV programme. 00:03:23.540 --> 00:03:30.060 And a news reporter breaks in and says, we have a breaking news story. 00:03:30.060 --> 00:03:35.120 When someone is new and you meet them. 00:03:36.199 --> 00:03:38.379 You say to them, tell me your story. 00:03:40.259 --> 00:03:44.180 The writer Daniel Taylor has written, our stories tell us who we are. 00:03:44.920 --> 00:03:45.819 Why we're here. 00:03:47.300 --> 00:03:48.319 And what we are to do. 00:03:49.800 --> 00:03:53.520 Our stories give the best answers to life's big questions. 00:03:53.520 --> 00:03:55.580 And to most of the small ones too. 00:03:57.860 --> 00:03:58.900 We all have a story. 00:04:00.660 --> 00:04:05.660 But we live in a world, and particularly in this city, where people have lost their stories. 00:04:05.659 --> 00:04:12.979 Life can feel like you've arrived 45 minutes late to a film. 00:04:13.139 --> 00:04:13.780 Do you know what that's like? 00:04:15.379 --> 00:04:19.500 You sit down in the cinema or at home to watch a film, but you're 45 minutes late. 00:04:20.060 --> 00:04:22.899 And you know there's something going on, but you can't work out what. 00:04:25.060 --> 00:04:25.800 And life is like that. 00:04:25.860 --> 00:04:26.759 It's like good things happen. 00:04:27.000 --> 00:04:28.540 Beautiful things happen. 00:04:28.620 --> 00:04:29.659 But tragic things too. 00:04:29.660 --> 00:04:32.500 Sad and painful things. 00:04:34.840 --> 00:04:37.480 Your life and my life can seem like an endless routine. 00:04:38.400 --> 00:04:39.480 Same old, same old. 00:04:41.040 --> 00:04:43.360 But life can also feel totally random, can't it? 00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:48.460 And we find ourselves in the middle of a story that's sometimes wonderful and sometimes awful. 00:04:48.720 --> 00:04:50.680 And often it's a confusing mix of both. 00:04:51.900 --> 00:04:53.660 And we don't know how to make sense of it all. 00:04:55.320 --> 00:04:58.900 It's like finding fragments of a book and trying to read it. 00:05:00.100 --> 00:05:03.439 It's like trying to get a few pages but not having the whole volume. 00:05:05.740 --> 00:05:09.340 And as I begin to think about this, we see that there's a shape to our stories. 00:05:11.439 --> 00:05:13.320 In fact, there's a man called Christopher Booker. 00:05:14.660 --> 00:05:15.840 Christopher Booker is not a Christian. 00:05:15.960 --> 00:05:16.940 He wouldn't profess to be a Christian. 00:05:17.400 --> 00:05:20.400 He spent 35 years researching stories. 00:05:21.760 --> 00:05:26.420 And in his book, he tells us that there are seven different types of stories. 00:05:26.420 --> 00:05:33.300 All the stories in the world could be characterized by seven plots. 00:05:34.360 --> 00:05:35.259 I'm going to go through them. 00:05:35.439 --> 00:05:37.540 And we at some point will get to the Bible. 00:05:37.900 --> 00:05:38.180 All right? 00:05:38.420 --> 00:05:39.040 I promise you. 00:05:39.040 --> 00:05:45.480 But actually, I think what we find by this guy Christopher Booker, even though he's not a Christian, is he shows us something about our world. 00:05:45.480 --> 00:05:50.560 So the first plot that he shows us is this, overcoming the monster. 00:05:51.840 --> 00:05:53.439 That's the first plot, if you put it up there. 00:05:54.340 --> 00:05:55.480 Overcoming the monster. 00:05:56.740 --> 00:05:58.939 That is, defeating a force that threatens. 00:05:58.939 --> 00:06:04.319 So if you think of films, James Bond, overcoming the monster. 00:06:05.420 --> 00:06:06.600 Defeating a force that threatens. 00:06:06.800 --> 00:06:08.019 Lots of Hollywood films are about this. 00:06:08.060 --> 00:06:08.620 Star Wars. 00:06:08.800 --> 00:06:10.120 If you're into Star Wars, it's about this. 00:06:11.420 --> 00:06:16.579 But in the Bible also, we see this overcoming the monster, defeating the threat. 00:06:16.839 --> 00:06:17.920 So think of David and Goliath. 00:06:18.040 --> 00:06:19.379 Goliath is a great threat. 00:06:19.899 --> 00:06:21.740 And the boy David defeats him. 00:06:22.699 --> 00:06:24.759 Goliath is the force that needs to be overcome. 00:06:25.420 --> 00:06:26.720 Somebody needs to be the hero. 00:06:27.139 --> 00:06:28.600 Think of Moses and the Red Sea. 00:06:29.540 --> 00:06:32.800 And Moses and the children of Israel, they're at the Red Sea. 00:06:33.000 --> 00:06:34.300 And the Egyptians are behind them. 00:06:34.900 --> 00:06:36.300 The Red Sea's in front of them. 00:06:37.060 --> 00:06:38.800 And there's climax and there's build-up. 00:06:39.260 --> 00:06:41.060 Defeating, overcoming the monster. 00:06:41.340 --> 00:06:42.500 Secondly, there's the quest. 00:06:44.180 --> 00:06:46.040 So think of the film, Indiana Jones. 00:06:46.180 --> 00:06:47.760 Or the book, Pilgrim's Progress. 00:06:48.100 --> 00:06:49.439 It's about a quest, isn't it? 00:06:50.820 --> 00:06:53.840 Think of the wise men at Jesus' birth. 00:06:55.340 --> 00:06:58.500 I think of the 12 spies in numbers. 00:06:58.980 --> 00:07:00.640 Think, in fact, of the Exodus journey. 00:07:00.760 --> 00:07:02.800 It's got a start point and it's got an end point. 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:07.819 Number three, think of the voyage and return. 00:07:08.900 --> 00:07:10.900 So the obvious one is Lord of the Rings, isn't it? 00:07:11.500 --> 00:07:12.740 Or back to the future. 00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:15.560 They go back to the past and then into the future. 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:19.879 They've gone somewhere and then they've returned. 00:07:20.280 --> 00:07:21.519 Something has changed. 00:07:22.620 --> 00:07:23.939 So in the Bible, think of Naaman. 00:07:25.060 --> 00:07:26.740 Or think of Naomi and Ruth. 00:07:27.060 --> 00:07:28.860 She goes out full, doesn't she? 00:07:28.899 --> 00:07:31.959 She leaves Israel full, but she comes back bitter. 00:07:31.959 --> 00:07:37.259 Think of the 12 disciples that Jesus sends out and they're casting out demons. 00:07:39.819 --> 00:07:41.579 But they find that they can't do some things. 00:07:41.879 --> 00:07:43.699 There is this voyage and return. 00:07:43.699 --> 00:07:47.139 Plot number four, the comedy. 00:07:48.420 --> 00:07:53.759 It's not kind of ha-ha, but it's a misunderstanding that keeps people apart. 00:07:53.759 --> 00:07:55.699 And then they're brought back together. 00:07:56.899 --> 00:08:01.480 Think of those endless watching of Pride and Prejudice that people do. 00:08:02.939 --> 00:08:04.199 Think of Notting Hill. 00:08:04.539 --> 00:08:06.420 Long-suffering films. 00:08:08.000 --> 00:08:10.000 In the Bible, think of Balaam's donkey. 00:08:11.519 --> 00:08:13.839 He goes up a mountain to curse and it doesn't work. 00:08:13.920 --> 00:08:18.539 And then he goes up another mountain and he's trying to curse God's people, but he can't. 00:08:18.540 --> 00:08:21.720 Think of the tragedy, number six. 00:08:22.240 --> 00:08:22.760 Number five. 00:08:23.960 --> 00:08:24.379 Hamlet. 00:08:26.040 --> 00:08:27.379 It starts well. 00:08:28.260 --> 00:08:29.480 It ends very badly. 00:08:30.700 --> 00:08:32.420 In the Bible, you've got the character of Saul. 00:08:33.100 --> 00:08:34.220 He starts very well. 00:08:34.659 --> 00:08:35.519 He ends very badly. 00:08:35.840 --> 00:08:36.600 Think of Samson. 00:08:38.259 --> 00:08:38.879 Starts well. 00:08:38.960 --> 00:08:39.340 Ends badly. 00:08:39.620 --> 00:08:41.100 Think of the Book of Judges as a whole. 00:08:41.259 --> 00:08:41.820 It's a tragedy. 00:08:43.240 --> 00:08:45.560 Think of rebirth narratives, number six. 00:08:46.680 --> 00:08:47.340 Snow White. 00:08:47.340 --> 00:08:48.940 Die hard. 00:08:50.420 --> 00:08:52.660 They end much better than they started. 00:08:54.080 --> 00:08:56.420 Think of the story of the sacrifice of Isaac in the Bible. 00:08:57.180 --> 00:09:01.240 Where Isaac is taken up a mountain and things end up much better, don't they? 00:09:02.160 --> 00:09:02.680 In the start. 00:09:03.160 --> 00:09:03.680 And number seven. 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:05.120 Think of rags to riches. 00:09:06.580 --> 00:09:06.920 Rocky. 00:09:08.300 --> 00:09:08.920 Willy Wonka. 00:09:09.759 --> 00:09:10.820 And the chocolate factory. 00:09:11.200 --> 00:09:11.560 Ruth. 00:09:11.879 --> 00:09:13.300 The story of her in the Bible. 00:09:13.560 --> 00:09:14.460 She's a Moabitess. 00:09:14.700 --> 00:09:15.400 She's a nobody. 00:09:15.879 --> 00:09:16.500 She's a widow. 00:09:17.340 --> 00:09:19.899 And as she ends up in the people of God. 00:09:19.960 --> 00:09:21.379 Think of David, the shepherd boy. 00:09:22.060 --> 00:09:24.240 He rises to fame and he becomes king. 00:09:24.639 --> 00:09:26.820 Think of the demoniac in Mark chapter five. 00:09:27.580 --> 00:09:28.899 He's a hopeless case. 00:09:29.480 --> 00:09:30.639 He's bound by chains. 00:09:30.759 --> 00:09:31.259 He's naked. 00:09:31.360 --> 00:09:32.420 And yet he meets Jesus. 00:09:32.879 --> 00:09:33.980 And he is reborn. 00:09:34.100 --> 00:09:35.560 It's a rags to riches story. 00:09:35.559 --> 00:09:47.219 And so what I think this guy teaches us, this Christopher Booker, is that when you go to the Bible, you see all these kind of stories, these seven stories. 00:09:47.220 --> 00:09:53.820 And yet, when you come to the scriptures, there is a magnificent coherence about them. 00:09:55.139 --> 00:09:57.920 The Bible is one big story. 00:09:58.779 --> 00:10:00.220 It is one big story. 00:10:00.440 --> 00:10:03.580 It starts in a garden and it ends in a city. 00:10:03.580 --> 00:10:06.460 It is the story of a hero. 00:10:07.020 --> 00:10:10.620 Someone who comes and kills the dragon and gets the girl. 00:10:11.840 --> 00:10:13.020 He kills the dragon. 00:10:13.220 --> 00:10:14.100 He defeats Satan. 00:10:14.540 --> 00:10:16.160 And he gets the bride of Christ. 00:10:17.139 --> 00:10:27.120 And the internal integrity of the Bible and all the little stories that we find in it fit in with the one big story of God's plan. 00:10:27.120 --> 00:10:31.639 It is one of the great arguments for the truthfulness of the Bible. 00:10:31.980 --> 00:10:41.360 It's written over thousands of years by so many authors to so many different contexts, so many different languages, different cultures. 00:10:41.580 --> 00:10:44.539 And the internal integrity of the Bible is astounding. 00:10:45.620 --> 00:10:47.860 There's no religious writing like it. 00:10:49.039 --> 00:10:50.919 I don't know if you've ever read the Koran. 00:10:52.539 --> 00:10:53.960 The Koran is not coherent. 00:10:53.960 --> 00:10:57.400 There's no one big story. 00:10:58.060 --> 00:11:00.019 The Koran can't hold a candle to the Bible. 00:11:00.340 --> 00:11:02.580 Muhammad arrives in 650 AD. 00:11:02.960 --> 00:11:07.040 And if you've ever read the Koran, there's no coherence to it at all. 00:11:08.040 --> 00:11:14.080 The closest thing to one big story is the story of Joseph, which Muhammad got from the Bible. 00:11:14.160 --> 00:11:15.400 And even that he gets wrong. 00:11:17.080 --> 00:11:21.060 And so I want to focus in these four sermons on the big story of the Bible. 00:11:21.059 --> 00:11:27.519 Now, children, we did this at Sunday school, but how do fairy stories begin? 00:11:29.779 --> 00:11:30.219 Anybody? 00:11:31.479 --> 00:11:32.739 How do fairy stories begin? 00:11:34.179 --> 00:11:34.599 Juan. 00:11:36.079 --> 00:11:37.079 Once upon a time. 00:11:37.719 --> 00:11:38.979 Once upon a time. 00:11:39.699 --> 00:11:41.299 And then what happens in a fairy story? 00:11:41.879 --> 00:11:43.959 Once upon a time, it's all calm, it's all good. 00:11:44.139 --> 00:11:45.199 And then what happens in the story? 00:11:46.559 --> 00:11:47.000 Simeon. 00:11:47.000 --> 00:11:47.079 Simeon. 00:11:47.079 --> 00:11:47.079 00:11:51.059 --> 00:11:51.959 It goes bad. 00:11:52.459 --> 00:11:53.579 An enemy comes, doesn't it? 00:11:53.879 --> 00:11:54.979 And something goes wrong. 00:11:56.219 --> 00:11:58.119 And then what's the next part of the story about? 00:11:59.079 --> 00:11:59.479 Florence. 00:12:01.859 --> 00:12:03.359 A rescuer comes, doesn't he? 00:12:03.479 --> 00:12:04.559 A dragon slayer. 00:12:04.919 --> 00:12:08.079 Or somebody comes to rescue the princess in the tower. 00:12:08.399 --> 00:12:09.179 A rescuer comes. 00:12:09.179 --> 00:12:12.500 And then how does fairy stories finish? 00:12:13.639 --> 00:12:14.959 How do they always end? 00:12:15.659 --> 00:12:16.000 Yes. 00:12:17.579 --> 00:12:18.019 Brilliant. 00:12:18.259 --> 00:12:19.319 Happily ever after. 00:12:20.599 --> 00:12:29.819 And what I think we see there is we see something of, that was fairy stories telling, echoing a greater story. 00:12:31.059 --> 00:12:31.919 A greater story. 00:12:31.919 --> 00:12:35.959 Because right at the beginning, do you remember? 00:12:37.599 --> 00:12:42.679 Not once upon a time, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 00:12:43.659 --> 00:12:46.019 It's not never, never land, it's in the beginning. 00:12:48.719 --> 00:12:50.799 It's a perfect scene, Genesis 1 and 2. 00:12:51.000 --> 00:12:51.679 So beautiful. 00:12:52.959 --> 00:12:55.759 And then in Genesis 3, do you remember, there's a fall. 00:12:58.360 --> 00:13:01.159 I think fall is, have you ever seen an old person fall? 00:13:01.959 --> 00:13:04.039 It's a horrible, horrible thing, isn't it? 00:13:04.639 --> 00:13:06.159 They trip over a paving stone. 00:13:07.659 --> 00:13:09.839 It's a horrible thing to watch someone fall. 00:13:10.079 --> 00:13:11.139 And we should feel that. 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:14.179 An enemy comes and the fall happens. 00:13:14.299 --> 00:13:14.980 It goes wrong. 00:13:15.399 --> 00:13:18.939 And then we have the long story of the rescuer, don't we? 00:13:19.719 --> 00:13:21.419 The dragon slayer, the serpent crusher. 00:13:22.379 --> 00:13:25.740 Jesus Christ who comes to rescue his bride. 00:13:25.899 --> 00:13:27.720 Who kills the dragon and gets the girl. 00:13:29.319 --> 00:13:30.959 And the end of the story is what? 00:13:31.759 --> 00:13:32.819 Happily ever after. 00:13:34.199 --> 00:13:35.899 We could put it into four questions, couldn't we? 00:13:35.939 --> 00:13:37.719 We could say, how did I get here? 00:13:39.279 --> 00:13:40.179 What's gone wrong? 00:13:41.600 --> 00:13:42.559 How am I rescued? 00:13:43.779 --> 00:13:44.480 Where am I going? 00:13:46.279 --> 00:13:47.759 I wonder, you might be new to church today. 00:13:47.839 --> 00:13:49.779 I wonder what your answer is to those four questions. 00:13:50.279 --> 00:13:51.100 How did I get here? 00:13:51.100 --> 00:13:53.440 What's gone wrong? 00:13:53.480 --> 00:13:54.540 Because something has gone wrong. 00:13:55.180 --> 00:13:56.220 How am I rescued? 00:13:56.860 --> 00:13:57.700 And where am I going? 00:13:58.740 --> 00:14:04.820 And I want in four sermons to take these four stages so that you and I can find our place 00:14:04.820 --> 00:14:05.379 in the story. 00:14:05.379 --> 00:14:11.639 And I want you to feel the echo that all those little stories tell of the greatest story. 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:17.259 There's one verse that summarized what I want to say this morning. 00:14:17.439 --> 00:14:19.600 It's Ecclesiastes chapter 3 and verse 11. 00:14:19.600 --> 00:14:20.600 Let me read it to you. 00:14:22.120 --> 00:14:22.600 Where it says, 00:14:22.600 --> 00:14:44.379 First point. 00:14:44.379 --> 00:14:48.100 Before the beginning, God. 00:14:49.980 --> 00:14:52.820 Before the beginning, God. 00:14:53.639 --> 00:14:54.919 How does the Bible start? 00:14:55.820 --> 00:14:56.419 It starts, 00:14:56.980 --> 00:14:58.519 In the beginning, God. 00:15:00.159 --> 00:15:02.960 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 00:15:03.159 --> 00:15:04.820 The very first words in the Bible, 00:15:05.019 --> 00:15:06.439 In the beginning, God. 00:15:06.440 --> 00:15:11.460 But there's an echo of those words later on in the Bible in John's Gospel. 00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:13.120 Where it says, 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:13.920 In the beginning, 00:15:14.620 --> 00:15:16.240 was the Word. 00:15:17.720 --> 00:15:19.440 And the Word was with God. 00:15:20.140 --> 00:15:21.960 And the Word was God. 00:15:23.480 --> 00:15:26.060 He, the Word, was with God in the beginning. 00:15:26.540 --> 00:15:28.700 And through him, all things were made. 00:15:28.980 --> 00:15:31.760 And without him, nothing was made that has been made. 00:15:34.420 --> 00:15:35.960 When you take those two verses together, 00:15:35.960 --> 00:15:39.720 what they show us is that when you go back to the beginning, 00:15:40.580 --> 00:15:42.639 there is something before the beginning. 00:15:45.120 --> 00:15:48.100 The writers of the Bible peer back into eternity. 00:15:49.740 --> 00:15:52.700 Into the mysteries of God and his life. 00:15:54.280 --> 00:15:56.980 Before anything and anyone else existed. 00:15:58.720 --> 00:16:00.900 In the beginning, God. 00:16:04.320 --> 00:16:05.639 Before the dawn of time, 00:16:05.960 --> 00:16:08.200 there was something immortal. 00:16:09.500 --> 00:16:10.460 Someone eternal. 00:16:12.200 --> 00:16:13.759 I wonder how you think of God. 00:16:15.900 --> 00:16:17.540 When somebody says the word God, 00:16:17.759 --> 00:16:19.100 what's the first thing that comes into your mind? 00:16:21.340 --> 00:16:22.620 Some kind of force? 00:16:24.860 --> 00:16:27.240 Some benevolent, white-bearded man on a throne? 00:16:27.240 --> 00:16:33.039 We often think of God alone in eternity. 00:16:33.039 --> 00:16:37.299 but God was not lonely in eternity. 00:16:39.219 --> 00:16:43.099 God has always been in fellowship. 00:16:44.599 --> 00:16:49.799 The Christian God is one God in three persons, 00:16:50.439 --> 00:16:52.939 Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 00:16:53.839 --> 00:16:55.500 One God in three persons. 00:16:55.500 --> 00:16:57.779 The Father loves the Son, 00:16:58.919 --> 00:17:00.939 and the Son loves the Father, 00:17:00.940 --> 00:17:04.259 and the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father to the Son. 00:17:05.700 --> 00:17:09.900 He is the eternal love which flows between the Father and the Son 00:17:09.900 --> 00:17:11.440 as they delight in each other. 00:17:12.299 --> 00:17:16.220 There is one God, and he exists in three persons. 00:17:18.039 --> 00:17:19.460 And what this means for us is this, 00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:23.340 that the whole story, the great story, 00:17:23.480 --> 00:17:26.500 begins in something relational. 00:17:28.900 --> 00:17:30.799 One God in three persons. 00:17:30.940 --> 00:17:37.779 This earth and this world has all the marks of a master's hand. 00:17:38.740 --> 00:17:40.860 The world is relational. 00:17:42.180 --> 00:17:44.100 You are relational. 00:17:45.700 --> 00:17:46.779 So think with me for a moment. 00:17:46.880 --> 00:17:48.539 What are your greatest joys in life? 00:17:50.259 --> 00:17:52.160 What are your greatest joys in life? 00:17:54.180 --> 00:17:55.600 It's your family, isn't it? 00:17:55.599 --> 00:17:59.519 Or it's your friendship that you have with people. 00:18:00.859 --> 00:18:02.819 Or it's falling in love. 00:18:04.639 --> 00:18:06.159 And what are your deepest wounds? 00:18:06.339 --> 00:18:08.299 What are the times when you've been hurt the most? 00:18:10.740 --> 00:18:11.839 Well, it will be, won't it? 00:18:11.859 --> 00:18:14.959 Some breakdown or a failure in a relationship. 00:18:15.659 --> 00:18:16.859 That's what hurts the most. 00:18:16.859 --> 00:18:20.979 That you were loved, but you're no longer loved. 00:18:22.199 --> 00:18:23.779 Or that you've never been chosen. 00:18:23.779 --> 00:18:30.899 And so one of the deepest longings that human beings have is to belong, isn't it? 00:18:32.180 --> 00:18:33.519 To be part of things. 00:18:35.259 --> 00:18:37.139 To be invited in. 00:18:38.259 --> 00:18:40.700 Because we want to be part of a fellowship. 00:18:40.700 --> 00:18:44.299 Where did that come from? 00:18:46.100 --> 00:18:47.880 We are relational accord. 00:18:48.860 --> 00:18:52.819 Why else would we come up with solitary confinement as a punishment? 00:18:54.900 --> 00:18:57.960 We are made, it says in Genesis, in the image of God. 00:18:58.759 --> 00:19:03.600 He says, let us make man in our image. 00:19:03.600 --> 00:19:08.759 You were made, and I was made, to know and to be known. 00:19:08.759 --> 00:19:12.519 To love and to be loved. 00:19:13.680 --> 00:19:20.039 The longings that you experience for this reality are because God has put them there. 00:19:21.799 --> 00:19:24.319 The world that we live in is not a lonely universe. 00:19:25.240 --> 00:19:26.740 But it is one born out of love. 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:31.700 And it's wise that the self-centered life doesn't work. 00:19:33.119 --> 00:19:35.819 The world is rigged in such a way 00:19:35.819 --> 00:19:39.159 that life does not work when you make it all about you. 00:19:41.059 --> 00:19:44.740 If you put yourself at the centre of your life, 00:19:44.939 --> 00:19:46.439 it will not work. 00:19:48.419 --> 00:19:51.399 If you put your work at the centre of your life, 00:19:51.599 --> 00:19:52.539 it will not work. 00:19:52.679 --> 00:19:55.919 If you put your family at the centre of your life, 00:19:56.000 --> 00:19:56.619 it will not work. 00:19:56.679 --> 00:19:58.899 If you put your marriage at the centre of your life, 00:19:59.200 --> 00:19:59.779 it will not work. 00:19:59.859 --> 00:20:00.220 Why? 00:20:00.220 --> 00:20:00.279 Why? 00:20:00.279 --> 00:20:03.899 Because God has put eternity in your heart. 00:20:05.700 --> 00:20:13.799 There is a personal God who cares personally for his people. 00:20:15.720 --> 00:20:20.180 So firstly, before the beginning was God. 00:20:21.480 --> 00:20:26.960 Secondly, in the beginning, God made man and woman. 00:20:26.960 --> 00:20:30.620 Let me read to you from Genesis chapter 1. 00:20:30.980 --> 00:20:31.720 Why don't you turn there? 00:20:32.640 --> 00:20:34.259 Genesis chapter 1 is right at the start of the Bible. 00:20:34.700 --> 00:20:36.039 Verses 26 and 27. 00:20:39.700 --> 00:20:40.720 And it says this. 00:20:41.539 --> 00:20:42.340 Then God said, 00:20:43.759 --> 00:20:49.799 Let us make man in our image after our likeness. 00:20:50.980 --> 00:20:54.240 Do you remember God is one God in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 00:20:54.240 --> 00:21:01.220 And let them, human beings, have dominion over the fish, of the sea, of the birds, of the heavens, over the livestock and over all the earth. 00:21:01.420 --> 00:21:03.440 And over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. 00:21:03.980 --> 00:21:06.720 So God created man in his own image. 00:21:07.539 --> 00:21:09.059 In the image of God, he created them. 00:21:09.460 --> 00:21:11.539 Male and female, he created them. 00:21:11.779 --> 00:21:13.779 So this story begins, doesn't it? 00:21:13.980 --> 00:21:16.279 Human beings are made in the image of God. 00:21:16.279 --> 00:21:24.299 There is a clear distinction in how human beings are made from the rest of creation. 00:21:26.339 --> 00:21:27.740 Let me speak to you dog owners. 00:21:29.980 --> 00:21:31.099 You love your dog. 00:21:32.539 --> 00:21:34.660 Your dog, you think, is lovely. 00:21:35.079 --> 00:21:35.319 All right? 00:21:37.319 --> 00:21:39.879 And your dog is precious to you. 00:21:41.059 --> 00:21:41.539 Great. 00:21:41.539 --> 00:21:46.359 But your dog is not made in the image of God. 00:21:48.119 --> 00:21:49.799 Your animals are valuable. 00:21:50.819 --> 00:21:52.019 And we should care for them. 00:21:52.159 --> 00:21:53.019 They are God's creation. 00:21:55.139 --> 00:21:56.399 But they are not the same. 00:21:58.819 --> 00:22:01.960 Your dog is on a completely different level. 00:22:03.720 --> 00:22:06.240 Because you and I are made in the image of God. 00:22:07.859 --> 00:22:10.000 Let me read you Psalm 8, how the poet puts it. 00:22:10.000 --> 00:22:12.539 He says this, what is man that you are mindful of him? 00:22:12.599 --> 00:22:14.579 The son of man that you care for him. 00:22:16.140 --> 00:22:18.619 You've made him a little lower than the heavenly beings. 00:22:18.859 --> 00:22:20.099 And crowned him with glory and honor. 00:22:21.119 --> 00:22:23.359 You've given him dominion over the work of your hands. 00:22:24.240 --> 00:22:25.559 You've put all things under his feet. 00:22:25.799 --> 00:22:27.660 All sheep and oxen and the beasts of the field. 00:22:27.799 --> 00:22:28.480 And dogs too. 00:22:29.400 --> 00:22:31.000 The birds of the heaven and the fish of the sea. 00:22:31.420 --> 00:22:33.759 Whatever passes along the paths of the sea. 00:22:37.019 --> 00:22:39.079 Adam and Eve were made in the image of God. 00:22:39.079 --> 00:22:40.819 Crowned with glory and honor. 00:22:41.819 --> 00:22:45.720 And they were made like God in the way that he was. 00:22:46.419 --> 00:22:48.059 And what he did. 00:22:49.259 --> 00:22:50.759 And they were made like God in his being. 00:22:51.819 --> 00:22:52.619 And in his doing. 00:22:54.259 --> 00:22:55.339 What this means is this. 00:22:55.460 --> 00:22:56.759 There is not a human being. 00:22:57.879 --> 00:22:59.579 That you and I will ever meet. 00:22:59.579 --> 00:23:02.319 Who has not been made in the image of God. 00:23:04.819 --> 00:23:06.779 And there's not a person living in this city. 00:23:08.159 --> 00:23:10.319 Who has not been made in the image of God. 00:23:10.319 --> 00:23:13.480 And no matter how fallen. 00:23:15.480 --> 00:23:16.759 No matter how broken. 00:23:18.119 --> 00:23:19.839 No matter how unbelieving. 00:23:21.460 --> 00:23:25.659 Each and every one of us has God's image stamped upon us. 00:23:25.660 --> 00:23:28.860 The sceptical. 00:23:30.040 --> 00:23:30.440 Agnostic. 00:23:31.220 --> 00:23:32.040 The hardened. 00:23:32.400 --> 00:23:33.000 Atheist. 00:23:33.900 --> 00:23:35.540 Whether they like it or not. 00:23:35.640 --> 00:23:37.240 Have been made by God. 00:23:37.519 --> 00:23:38.519 And in the image of God. 00:23:38.600 --> 00:23:38.960 That's you. 00:23:41.360 --> 00:23:42.480 People might deny it. 00:23:42.580 --> 00:23:43.740 They might suppress it. 00:23:43.820 --> 00:23:45.040 But they cannot erase it. 00:23:45.039 --> 00:23:48.539 What do we do with this knowledge. 00:23:48.639 --> 00:23:49.680 That we've been made in the image of God. 00:23:49.759 --> 00:23:50.799 Well Romans chapter 1. 00:23:51.099 --> 00:23:53.279 Tells us that humanity tries to push it down. 00:23:54.980 --> 00:23:56.119 They try to deny it. 00:23:57.899 --> 00:23:58.339 And Paul says. 00:23:58.480 --> 00:24:00.059 For what can be known about God is plain to them. 00:24:00.119 --> 00:24:01.319 Because God has shown it to them. 00:24:01.539 --> 00:24:03.139 For his invisible attributes. 00:24:04.480 --> 00:24:05.740 Namely his eternal power. 00:24:05.740 --> 00:24:07.079 That God made this whole world. 00:24:07.159 --> 00:24:08.019 That can be clearly seen. 00:24:08.379 --> 00:24:09.599 And his divine nature. 00:24:09.700 --> 00:24:10.599 That there is a God. 00:24:10.980 --> 00:24:12.200 They've been clearly perceived. 00:24:13.220 --> 00:24:14.759 Ever since the creation of the world. 00:24:15.039 --> 00:24:16.359 In the things that have been made. 00:24:17.359 --> 00:24:19.639 So that human beings are without excuse. 00:24:19.799 --> 00:24:21.099 For although they knew God. 00:24:21.779 --> 00:24:23.220 They did not honour him as God. 00:24:23.379 --> 00:24:24.740 Nor did they give thanks to him. 00:24:24.779 --> 00:24:25.899 But they became futile. 00:24:26.039 --> 00:24:27.000 Foolish in their thinking. 00:24:27.319 --> 00:24:29.059 And their foolish hearts were darkened. 00:24:30.839 --> 00:24:32.700 But they know in their hearts. 00:24:34.639 --> 00:24:35.579 Listen to what Paul says. 00:24:35.579 --> 00:24:35.980 Again. 00:24:36.240 --> 00:24:37.759 For although they knew God. 00:24:38.960 --> 00:24:40.259 The knowledge he's speaking there. 00:24:40.339 --> 00:24:41.819 It's not saving knowledge. 00:24:41.940 --> 00:24:42.859 It's not the knowledge. 00:24:42.859 --> 00:24:45.740 That leads you to become a Christian. 00:24:46.359 --> 00:24:47.279 But humanity. 00:24:48.500 --> 00:24:50.179 Every human being through creation. 00:24:51.179 --> 00:24:52.319 And through their conscience. 00:24:52.759 --> 00:24:54.219 Knows that there is a divine being. 00:24:54.319 --> 00:24:54.879 There is a God. 00:24:56.019 --> 00:24:57.240 And they can't escape it. 00:24:58.419 --> 00:24:59.919 It's like when you go to the swimming pool. 00:25:00.179 --> 00:25:01.259 And you get a beach ball. 00:25:01.899 --> 00:25:03.799 And you try to put the beach ball under the water. 00:25:03.899 --> 00:25:04.179 Do you remember? 00:25:04.399 --> 00:25:05.319 And you press it down. 00:25:05.379 --> 00:25:06.039 And you sit in it. 00:25:06.779 --> 00:25:07.619 And what happens? 00:25:07.619 --> 00:25:09.279 As soon as you let it go. 00:25:09.379 --> 00:25:11.279 The beach ball flies back up into the air. 00:25:13.559 --> 00:25:14.899 In the words of Ecclesiastes. 00:25:15.779 --> 00:25:18.099 God has put eternity in their hearts. 00:25:20.039 --> 00:25:21.179 And the fact that men and women. 00:25:21.219 --> 00:25:21.859 And boys and girls. 00:25:22.079 --> 00:25:23.019 Are made in the image of God. 00:25:23.119 --> 00:25:25.239 Should give to us massive encouragement. 00:25:27.619 --> 00:25:29.359 The people who you pray for. 00:25:29.439 --> 00:25:30.079 As a church. 00:25:30.519 --> 00:25:31.799 And the people who you are seeking to. 00:25:31.959 --> 00:25:33.359 Speak to about the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:25:33.479 --> 00:25:34.699 They know that there's a God. 00:25:34.700 --> 00:25:37.640 And when you tell them. 00:25:37.779 --> 00:25:39.039 The good news about the Lord Jesus. 00:25:39.960 --> 00:25:41.039 That there is a God. 00:25:41.120 --> 00:25:42.660 Who has lovingly sent his son. 00:25:42.720 --> 00:25:43.580 Into this world for them. 00:25:43.759 --> 00:25:45.019 There is something in them. 00:25:45.100 --> 00:25:46.500 That chimes with that message. 00:25:47.620 --> 00:25:48.400 And it's that. 00:25:48.519 --> 00:25:49.420 Which often produces. 00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:51.000 The antagonism. 00:25:51.220 --> 00:25:52.500 And the antipathy to it. 00:25:54.019 --> 00:25:55.799 And so we must go after. 00:25:55.980 --> 00:25:56.660 People's consciences. 00:25:56.840 --> 00:25:57.880 Preachers must go after. 00:25:58.059 --> 00:25:58.819 People's consciences. 00:26:00.480 --> 00:26:01.500 That we recognize. 00:26:01.640 --> 00:26:02.819 That the people that we're speaking to. 00:26:03.000 --> 00:26:04.519 Have an intrinsic worth. 00:26:05.700 --> 00:26:07.019 But more than that. 00:26:07.440 --> 00:26:08.880 They are not only made in the image of God. 00:26:08.960 --> 00:26:10.380 But they know that within them. 00:26:10.860 --> 00:26:12.920 There is a recognition that there is a God. 00:26:14.920 --> 00:26:15.819 No one. 00:26:16.420 --> 00:26:17.720 No one lives. 00:26:18.620 --> 00:26:19.740 As if we are. 00:26:20.220 --> 00:26:21.400 Bags of random DNA. 00:26:23.279 --> 00:26:25.259 Let's say a child runs into the road. 00:26:25.480 --> 00:26:26.980 And is knocked over by a car. 00:26:28.920 --> 00:26:30.819 No one comes in and says. 00:26:31.080 --> 00:26:32.920 Oh there's some random DNA. 00:26:33.120 --> 00:26:34.160 Lying on the road outside. 00:26:34.160 --> 00:26:35.940 No one does that. 00:26:35.980 --> 00:26:36.180 Do they? 00:26:39.019 --> 00:26:40.680 They recognize there is something. 00:26:40.840 --> 00:26:41.800 In that little child. 00:26:43.200 --> 00:26:45.120 Truth and reality are on our side. 00:26:47.400 --> 00:26:48.279 I've told you this before. 00:26:48.340 --> 00:26:49.840 But in the story of Peter Pan. 00:26:51.120 --> 00:26:52.480 We are told that every time. 00:26:53.900 --> 00:26:56.120 Someone says they don't believe in fairies. 00:26:56.200 --> 00:26:56.740 What happens? 00:26:56.740 --> 00:26:59.140 What happens? 00:27:00.740 --> 00:27:02.660 Every time someone says they don't believe in fairies. 00:27:02.700 --> 00:27:03.680 What happens in Peter Pan? 00:27:05.579 --> 00:27:06.519 A fairy dies. 00:27:07.960 --> 00:27:09.799 So boys in school playgrounds. 00:27:09.799 --> 00:27:10.700 Have terrorized girls. 00:27:10.779 --> 00:27:11.339 And they by shouting. 00:27:11.460 --> 00:27:12.740 I don't believe in fairies. 00:27:13.059 --> 00:27:13.859 But with God. 00:27:14.339 --> 00:27:15.359 The fact that people. 00:27:16.059 --> 00:27:17.519 Don't believe that he exists. 00:27:18.380 --> 00:27:20.000 Has no bearing on the reality. 00:27:20.000 --> 00:27:21.019 Of his existence. 00:27:21.279 --> 00:27:22.400 His existence. 00:27:24.140 --> 00:27:25.380 God doesn't go away. 00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:25.920 Just because. 00:27:26.420 --> 00:27:27.319 You say you don't believe in him. 00:27:28.660 --> 00:27:29.319 In fact. 00:27:29.400 --> 00:27:30.380 The very breath. 00:27:31.039 --> 00:27:32.319 That you use to say. 00:27:32.460 --> 00:27:33.539 That you don't believe in God. 00:27:33.660 --> 00:27:35.119 Has actually been given to you by God. 00:27:35.119 --> 00:27:40.519 And in a strange paradoxical way. 00:27:41.059 --> 00:27:42.479 The very capacity. 00:27:42.639 --> 00:27:44.439 That people have to formulate the statement. 00:27:44.739 --> 00:27:45.739 Declares his greatness. 00:27:46.099 --> 00:27:46.699 And his glory. 00:27:48.079 --> 00:27:49.379 Even as you say. 00:27:49.539 --> 00:27:50.979 I don't believe in God. 00:27:51.079 --> 00:27:52.099 You're declaring his praises. 00:27:54.119 --> 00:27:54.639 Because. 00:27:55.699 --> 00:27:56.859 You are fearfully. 00:27:56.859 --> 00:27:58.279 And wonderfully made by him. 00:28:00.099 --> 00:28:01.079 You may be talking. 00:28:01.079 --> 00:28:02.079 Talking total rubbish. 00:28:02.799 --> 00:28:03.819 But the very fact. 00:28:03.939 --> 00:28:04.819 You're able to talk at all. 00:28:05.119 --> 00:28:05.439 Is. 00:28:05.759 --> 00:28:06.559 To his praise and glory. 00:28:08.619 --> 00:28:09.339 So to say. 00:28:09.459 --> 00:28:10.479 I don't believe in God. 00:28:10.539 --> 00:28:11.479 Doesn't make him go away. 00:28:13.399 --> 00:28:14.479 It's like the little child. 00:28:14.539 --> 00:28:14.839 Isn't it? 00:28:14.919 --> 00:28:15.459 That you know. 00:28:15.500 --> 00:28:15.919 Little children. 00:28:15.919 --> 00:28:16.839 When you play hide and seek. 00:28:18.139 --> 00:28:19.099 And little children. 00:28:19.359 --> 00:28:19.859 They think. 00:28:19.979 --> 00:28:20.939 Because they've got their hands. 00:28:20.939 --> 00:28:21.799 Over their face. 00:28:22.099 --> 00:28:23.000 That you can't see them. 00:28:25.219 --> 00:28:25.959 The little child. 00:28:26.039 --> 00:28:26.879 Thinks you've gone away. 00:28:27.979 --> 00:28:28.619 That's silly isn't it? 00:28:28.679 --> 00:28:29.439 But you can't treat God. 00:28:29.439 --> 00:28:30.000 In the same way. 00:28:31.500 --> 00:28:32.319 Try it with the police. 00:28:33.879 --> 00:28:34.259 And next time. 00:28:34.299 --> 00:28:34.739 You're driving along. 00:28:34.740 --> 00:28:35.039 The car. 00:28:35.099 --> 00:28:35.859 And the police pull you over. 00:28:37.059 --> 00:28:37.819 And you see the blue light. 00:28:37.940 --> 00:28:39.259 You pull over to the hard shoulder. 00:28:39.799 --> 00:28:41.099 And you wind down the window. 00:28:41.180 --> 00:28:41.740 And as the. 00:28:42.859 --> 00:28:43.579 Traffic policeman. 00:28:43.720 --> 00:28:44.120 Comes to you. 00:28:44.180 --> 00:28:44.400 You say. 00:28:44.460 --> 00:28:44.599 Well. 00:28:44.799 --> 00:28:45.079 Actually. 00:28:45.079 --> 00:28:45.880 I don't believe in policeman. 00:28:45.880 --> 00:28:47.920 I don't believe in policeman. 00:28:49.920 --> 00:28:50.700 There's a lovely. 00:28:50.940 --> 00:28:51.340 Humorous story. 00:28:51.440 --> 00:28:52.080 About Kroishev. 00:28:53.200 --> 00:28:54.260 And the communist leader. 00:28:54.480 --> 00:28:55.400 The Soviet leader. 00:28:56.600 --> 00:28:58.400 And the Chinese communists. 00:28:58.760 --> 00:28:59.940 Hated Kroishev. 00:29:00.180 --> 00:29:00.800 The Russian. 00:29:01.280 --> 00:29:01.840 Prime Minister. 00:29:02.720 --> 00:29:03.980 And they called Kroishev. 00:29:04.080 --> 00:29:05.580 A bible quoting clown. 00:29:06.720 --> 00:29:07.860 And he didn't mind. 00:29:07.860 --> 00:29:08.760 Being called a clown. 00:29:09.340 --> 00:29:10.320 But he didn't like. 00:29:10.420 --> 00:29:11.740 Being called a bible quoting clown. 00:29:12.740 --> 00:29:13.140 So. 00:29:13.259 --> 00:29:14.359 Kroishev calls a press conference. 00:29:14.420 --> 00:29:15.160 And at the press conference. 00:29:15.160 --> 00:29:16.400 He announced to the world's press. 00:29:16.480 --> 00:29:17.680 I want to assure you. 00:29:17.799 --> 00:29:18.799 I am an atheist. 00:29:20.740 --> 00:29:21.640 I am an atheist. 00:29:23.200 --> 00:29:24.440 An English journalist said. 00:29:24.660 --> 00:29:26.240 You do talk a lot about the almighty. 00:29:26.400 --> 00:29:27.240 For an atheist sir. 00:29:28.279 --> 00:29:29.220 To which he replied. 00:29:29.460 --> 00:29:30.460 Do I have to tell you twice. 00:29:30.579 --> 00:29:31.700 I am the chairman of the council. 00:29:31.700 --> 00:29:32.539 Of Soviet ministers. 00:29:32.539 --> 00:29:33.539 Of the Soviet Union. 00:29:33.779 --> 00:29:35.039 And I am an atheist. 00:29:35.039 --> 00:29:37.980 A French journalist. 00:29:37.980 --> 00:29:38.759 Piped up and said. 00:29:39.220 --> 00:29:39.799 How do we know. 00:29:39.920 --> 00:29:41.000 That you are not a secret believer. 00:29:42.680 --> 00:29:43.839 Kroishev exploded. 00:29:44.059 --> 00:29:44.579 Into the microphone. 00:29:44.740 --> 00:29:45.519 Will you listen to me. 00:29:45.579 --> 00:29:46.220 God knows. 00:29:46.299 --> 00:29:46.779 I am an atheist. 00:29:51.099 --> 00:29:51.920 As a church. 00:29:52.079 --> 00:29:52.319 Today. 00:29:52.460 --> 00:29:53.539 We must not lose. 00:29:53.539 --> 00:29:54.240 Our confidence. 00:29:55.099 --> 00:29:56.259 In what God has told us. 00:29:56.299 --> 00:29:56.839 About humanity. 00:29:58.440 --> 00:29:58.799 North. 00:29:58.960 --> 00:29:59.680 Is north. 00:30:01.079 --> 00:30:01.720 Regardless of whether. 00:30:01.819 --> 00:30:02.519 People like it or not. 00:30:02.519 --> 00:30:05.480 And they might protest it. 00:30:05.539 --> 00:30:06.180 They might deny it. 00:30:06.259 --> 00:30:07.160 But north is still north. 00:30:07.200 --> 00:30:07.519 Isn't it? 00:30:09.400 --> 00:30:10.559 And holding to this truth. 00:30:10.639 --> 00:30:11.500 That people are made. 00:30:11.579 --> 00:30:12.160 In God's image. 00:30:12.259 --> 00:30:12.879 And have a sense. 00:30:12.920 --> 00:30:13.940 Of the reality of God. 00:30:14.000 --> 00:30:14.619 Doesn't change. 00:30:14.660 --> 00:30:15.259 No matter how much. 00:30:15.339 --> 00:30:15.819 People present. 00:30:17.779 --> 00:30:18.339 Act 17. 00:30:18.579 --> 00:30:19.539 In him we live. 00:30:19.539 --> 00:30:19.920 And move. 00:30:20.000 --> 00:30:20.539 And have our being. 00:30:22.240 --> 00:30:23.960 So finding our place. 00:30:24.160 --> 00:30:24.740 In this story. 00:30:24.940 --> 00:30:25.559 Is recognizing. 00:30:25.799 --> 00:30:26.819 That God has put eternity. 00:30:27.000 --> 00:30:27.519 Into our hearts. 00:30:28.980 --> 00:30:30.139 Augustine expressed it best. 00:30:30.180 --> 00:30:30.400 Didn't he? 00:30:30.460 --> 00:30:30.639 He said. 00:30:30.879 --> 00:30:32.200 You have made us for thyself. 00:30:33.019 --> 00:30:34.059 And our hearts are restless. 00:30:35.059 --> 00:30:35.980 Until they find. 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:37.019 Their rest in me. 00:30:38.539 --> 00:30:39.579 You were made. 00:30:40.759 --> 00:30:41.859 For something greater. 00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:44.099 You were made. 00:30:44.160 --> 00:30:44.900 For something better. 00:30:46.779 --> 00:30:47.619 Before the beginning. 00:30:47.879 --> 00:30:48.160 God. 00:30:49.440 --> 00:30:50.160 In the beginning. 00:30:50.259 --> 00:30:50.740 God made man. 00:30:50.779 --> 00:30:51.680 Now let me try to play this. 00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:55.700 Can you see the coherence. 00:30:56.539 --> 00:30:57.700 Of the Christian story. 00:30:57.700 --> 00:31:00.480 Can you see. 00:31:00.559 --> 00:31:01.360 How the Bible's message. 00:31:01.360 --> 00:31:02.100 Makes sense. 00:31:02.100 --> 00:31:02.620 Of the world. 00:31:02.660 --> 00:31:03.200 In which you live. 00:31:05.000 --> 00:31:06.059 Of how it makes sense. 00:31:06.100 --> 00:31:06.600 Of you. 00:31:07.759 --> 00:31:08.900 And your longings. 00:31:10.400 --> 00:31:11.519 How it makes sense. 00:31:11.660 --> 00:31:12.539 Of your stories. 00:31:14.200 --> 00:31:15.420 The personal God. 00:31:15.559 --> 00:31:15.819 Father. 00:31:15.960 --> 00:31:16.220 Son. 00:31:16.340 --> 00:31:17.059 And Holy Spirit. 00:31:17.140 --> 00:31:17.840 Has made you. 00:31:17.920 --> 00:31:19.019 So that you can know him. 00:31:19.240 --> 00:31:20.220 And enjoy him. 00:31:20.480 --> 00:31:21.480 And glorify him. 00:31:21.480 --> 00:31:24.860 The relational God. 00:31:26.559 --> 00:31:27.559 This relational God. 00:31:27.559 --> 00:31:28.579 Is the God of our salvation. 00:31:31.160 --> 00:31:31.980 Jesus said. 00:31:32.120 --> 00:31:32.720 In John 17. 00:31:32.799 --> 00:31:33.460 Verse 24. 00:31:33.640 --> 00:31:34.200 He prays. 00:31:34.240 --> 00:31:34.720 And he says this. 00:31:34.799 --> 00:31:35.019 He says. 00:31:35.019 --> 00:31:35.420 Father. 00:31:36.619 --> 00:31:37.379 I desire. 00:31:38.160 --> 00:31:39.240 That they also. 00:31:40.019 --> 00:31:41.119 Whom you have given me. 00:31:41.839 --> 00:31:42.660 May be with me. 00:31:42.740 --> 00:31:43.299 Where I am. 00:31:44.359 --> 00:31:45.480 To see my glory. 00:31:45.579 --> 00:31:46.460 That you have given me. 00:31:46.539 --> 00:31:47.839 Because you loved me. 00:31:48.220 --> 00:31:49.119 Before the foundation. 00:31:49.200 --> 00:31:49.579 Of the world. 00:31:52.700 --> 00:31:53.619 Becoming a Christian. 00:31:54.400 --> 00:31:55.460 And living as a Christian. 00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:57.039 Is being brought. 00:31:57.220 --> 00:31:58.160 Into a relationship. 00:31:59.420 --> 00:32:00.259 Into union. 00:32:01.299 --> 00:32:02.079 And communion. 00:32:03.660 --> 00:32:04.619 With this God. 00:32:05.019 --> 00:32:09.440 The coming into this world. 00:32:10.359 --> 00:32:11.139 The life. 00:32:11.279 --> 00:32:11.720 And the death. 00:32:11.859 --> 00:32:12.420 And the resurrection. 00:32:12.559 --> 00:32:13.160 Of Jesus Christ. 00:32:13.259 --> 00:32:14.759 Were all part of God's. 00:32:14.940 --> 00:32:15.759 Great plan. 00:32:15.900 --> 00:32:16.359 To bring. 00:32:17.359 --> 00:32:17.759 Salvation. 00:32:18.000 --> 00:32:18.420 And rescue. 00:32:18.539 --> 00:32:19.079 To men and women. 00:32:19.299 --> 00:32:19.900 Boys and girls. 00:32:20.960 --> 00:32:21.339 Like me. 00:32:21.379 --> 00:32:21.859 And like you. 00:32:22.039 --> 00:32:22.879 Who are made in his image. 00:32:25.420 --> 00:32:26.779 It's why when people say that. 00:32:26.940 --> 00:32:27.920 Christians and Muslims. 00:32:28.139 --> 00:32:29.000 Believe in the same God. 00:32:29.079 --> 00:32:29.519 We cannot. 00:32:30.319 --> 00:32:31.099 And we will not. 00:32:31.200 --> 00:32:32.319 And we must not agree to it. 00:32:35.299 --> 00:32:36.379 Because the Christian God. 00:32:36.460 --> 00:32:37.000 Is one God. 00:32:37.079 --> 00:32:37.720 In three persons. 00:32:37.839 --> 00:32:38.019 Father. 00:32:38.139 --> 00:32:38.279 Son. 00:32:38.319 --> 00:32:38.779 And Holy Spirit. 00:32:41.359 --> 00:32:42.099 This story. 00:32:42.180 --> 00:32:42.639 Makes sense. 00:32:42.680 --> 00:32:43.359 Of every other story. 00:32:44.839 --> 00:32:45.680 And we need to. 00:32:45.839 --> 00:32:46.799 Learn to read. 00:32:47.160 --> 00:32:47.940 The stories. 00:32:48.039 --> 00:32:48.639 That we tell. 00:32:48.759 --> 00:32:49.680 The stories of the world. 00:32:49.759 --> 00:32:50.059 In the light. 00:32:50.099 --> 00:32:50.819 Of this great story. 00:32:52.500 --> 00:32:53.279 Psalm 36. 00:32:53.319 --> 00:32:53.700 Verse 9. 00:32:53.799 --> 00:32:54.599 In your light. 00:32:55.059 --> 00:32:55.700 We see light. 00:32:55.700 --> 00:32:58.019 The coherence. 00:32:58.539 --> 00:32:58.980 Coherence. 00:32:59.059 --> 00:32:59.660 Of God's story. 00:33:00.680 --> 00:33:01.140 Secondly. 00:33:01.240 --> 00:33:01.779 It means this. 00:33:02.000 --> 00:33:03.120 That every life. 00:33:03.900 --> 00:33:04.600 Is precious. 00:33:06.519 --> 00:33:07.880 If every human being. 00:33:08.039 --> 00:33:08.500 Has been made. 00:33:08.580 --> 00:33:09.440 In the image of God. 00:33:10.279 --> 00:33:11.059 Every life. 00:33:11.180 --> 00:33:11.580 Is precious. 00:33:13.220 --> 00:33:13.960 And so those. 00:33:14.059 --> 00:33:15.019 With additional needs. 00:33:17.799 --> 00:33:19.000 Those with disabilities. 00:33:20.380 --> 00:33:21.080 Are made. 00:33:21.180 --> 00:33:21.799 In the image of God. 00:33:21.799 --> 00:33:24.740 And as a church. 00:33:24.819 --> 00:33:25.579 We must be a place. 00:33:25.919 --> 00:33:26.559 That welcomes. 00:33:26.779 --> 00:33:27.279 And cares. 00:33:27.720 --> 00:33:28.339 And values. 00:33:29.419 --> 00:33:30.039 All who are made. 00:33:30.079 --> 00:33:30.680 In the image of God. 00:33:32.399 --> 00:33:33.059 The church. 00:33:33.099 --> 00:33:33.639 Of Jesus Christ. 00:33:33.700 --> 00:33:34.779 Has always been a place. 00:33:35.139 --> 00:33:35.639 Where the vulnerable. 00:33:35.720 --> 00:33:36.180 Are cared for. 00:33:37.599 --> 00:33:38.480 And we must love. 00:33:38.539 --> 00:33:39.440 Those who are not lovable. 00:33:42.000 --> 00:33:42.619 It's why. 00:33:43.019 --> 00:33:43.339 Abortion. 00:33:43.480 --> 00:33:44.440 Is such a terrible thing. 00:33:45.879 --> 00:33:46.740 It is the taking. 00:33:46.819 --> 00:33:47.200 Of a life. 00:33:47.319 --> 00:33:47.899 That God has given. 00:33:49.599 --> 00:33:50.639 It's why we must pray. 00:33:50.740 --> 00:33:51.539 That assisted suicide. 00:33:51.539 --> 00:33:52.440 Cannot become law. 00:33:52.500 --> 00:33:53.139 Because it is. 00:33:53.139 --> 00:33:53.759 God alone. 00:33:53.899 --> 00:33:55.119 Who gives life. 00:33:55.220 --> 00:33:56.059 And God who ends life. 00:33:57.759 --> 00:33:58.159 It is why. 00:33:58.259 --> 00:33:58.659 As Christians. 00:33:58.899 --> 00:33:59.940 More than any other time. 00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:01.159 We must speak up. 00:34:01.359 --> 00:34:01.819 For life. 00:34:05.279 --> 00:34:06.519 It means that life. 00:34:06.639 --> 00:34:07.079 Is precious. 00:34:08.980 --> 00:34:09.880 But more than that. 00:34:09.960 --> 00:34:11.039 It means that your life. 00:34:11.119 --> 00:34:11.519 Is precious. 00:34:13.440 --> 00:34:14.980 It means that you matter. 00:34:17.420 --> 00:34:18.779 You are not a machine. 00:34:18.780 --> 00:34:22.100 You are not a cog in a wheel. 00:34:23.400 --> 00:34:24.820 You are not random DNA. 00:34:26.840 --> 00:34:28.460 You may have been treated terribly. 00:34:29.160 --> 00:34:30.800 You may be broken hearted. 00:34:30.960 --> 00:34:32.760 You might feel terribly alone. 00:34:33.019 --> 00:34:33.480 But this. 00:34:34.240 --> 00:34:35.040 Is a message. 00:34:35.340 --> 00:34:36.019 That tells you. 00:34:37.600 --> 00:34:38.580 That you have been made. 00:34:38.660 --> 00:34:39.320 In the image of God. 00:34:39.400 --> 00:34:40.060 And you are precious. 00:34:41.360 --> 00:34:43.100 And this is a personal universe. 00:34:43.099 --> 00:34:45.279 And the God who made you. 00:34:45.380 --> 00:34:45.799 Can be known. 00:34:45.960 --> 00:34:46.319 Through his son. 00:34:46.400 --> 00:34:46.900 Jesus Christ. 00:34:48.880 --> 00:34:50.619 And so stop suppressing the truth. 00:34:51.759 --> 00:34:53.619 Stop trying to keep the beach ball. 00:34:53.839 --> 00:34:54.719 Below the water. 00:34:55.199 --> 00:34:56.259 Recognize the reality. 00:34:56.259 --> 00:34:57.420 Of the world in which you live. 00:34:58.699 --> 00:35:00.380 Go where this world. 00:35:00.380 --> 00:35:01.159 Is pointing you. 00:35:01.259 --> 00:35:02.079 And where your conscience. 00:35:02.440 --> 00:35:03.019 Is pointing you. 00:35:03.019 --> 00:35:05.400 God has made you. 00:35:05.639 --> 00:35:06.259 For himself. 00:35:07.380 --> 00:35:08.259 And your heart. 00:35:08.380 --> 00:35:09.340 Is going to be restless. 00:35:09.659 --> 00:35:10.860 Until it finds its rest. 00:35:10.980 --> 00:35:11.360 In him. 00:35:17.780 --> 00:35:18.900 And thirdly and lastly. 00:35:19.860 --> 00:35:20.679 Let me tell you. 00:35:20.739 --> 00:35:21.759 Of a God who can be known. 00:35:24.000 --> 00:35:25.219 This is a spoiler really. 00:35:25.300 --> 00:35:26.259 For the rest of the series. 00:35:26.440 --> 00:35:28.059 But when we talk about being made. 00:35:28.119 --> 00:35:29.039 In the image of God. 00:35:30.360 --> 00:35:31.840 As we read our Bibles. 00:35:31.840 --> 00:35:34.039 We cannot but think of him. 00:35:34.180 --> 00:35:35.620 Who is the image. 00:35:35.820 --> 00:35:36.640 Of the invisible God. 00:35:36.780 --> 00:35:37.620 The Lord Jesus Christ. 00:35:39.780 --> 00:35:40.620 I read to you earlier. 00:35:40.700 --> 00:35:41.640 In the beginning was the word. 00:35:43.280 --> 00:35:44.640 And the word was with God. 00:35:44.660 --> 00:35:45.400 And the word was God. 00:35:46.920 --> 00:35:48.680 He was in the beginning with God. 00:35:48.920 --> 00:35:50.180 And all things were made through him. 00:35:50.240 --> 00:35:50.760 And without him. 00:35:50.820 --> 00:35:51.740 Not anything was made. 00:35:51.940 --> 00:35:52.519 That was made. 00:35:52.840 --> 00:35:53.840 And in him was life. 00:35:54.579 --> 00:35:56.019 And the life was the light of men. 00:35:56.920 --> 00:35:57.820 And the light. 00:35:58.280 --> 00:35:59.200 Shines in the darkness. 00:35:59.420 --> 00:36:00.860 But the darkness has not overcome it. 00:36:01.840 --> 00:36:03.559 And then just a few verses later. 00:36:03.640 --> 00:36:04.720 We're told that this word. 00:36:05.500 --> 00:36:06.280 Became flesh. 00:36:09.480 --> 00:36:11.019 He entered into humanity. 00:36:12.280 --> 00:36:14.720 The Lord Jesus came to undo. 00:36:16.120 --> 00:36:17.100 What we have done. 00:36:18.440 --> 00:36:20.559 He came as part of God's great plan. 00:36:20.820 --> 00:36:22.059 To rescue and to save. 00:36:22.420 --> 00:36:23.059 To bring us back. 00:36:24.500 --> 00:36:25.600 The creator. 00:36:26.579 --> 00:36:27.620 Entered into creation. 00:36:27.619 --> 00:36:29.380 The author. 00:36:29.380 --> 00:36:30.940 Entered into the story. 00:36:32.219 --> 00:36:33.679 And why did he do that? 00:36:35.199 --> 00:36:36.679 He came to remake. 00:36:37.639 --> 00:36:38.679 To renew. 00:36:39.799 --> 00:36:40.719 And to rescue. 00:36:42.299 --> 00:36:43.839 He came to seek. 00:36:44.199 --> 00:36:44.880 And to save. 00:36:46.359 --> 00:36:47.500 That which was lost. 00:36:49.279 --> 00:36:51.319 And that is how you enter into the story. 00:36:51.320 --> 00:36:54.200 You recognize this morning. 00:36:55.460 --> 00:36:56.059 You're lost. 00:36:57.700 --> 00:36:59.080 And you don't know the way home. 00:37:00.340 --> 00:37:02.640 And you don't know the way back to the God who made you. 00:37:04.280 --> 00:37:05.300 And yet you don't have to. 00:37:05.360 --> 00:37:06.400 Because God has come. 00:37:06.460 --> 00:37:07.220 In the person of his son. 00:37:07.280 --> 00:37:08.120 The Lord Jesus Christ. 00:37:09.360 --> 00:37:10.720 To seek and to save. 00:37:11.420 --> 00:37:12.019 The lost. 00:37:13.300 --> 00:37:14.260 You can call on him now. 00:37:15.480 --> 00:37:16.680 You can ask him to save you. 00:37:16.740 --> 00:37:17.740 You can ask him to rescue you. 00:37:18.539 --> 00:37:19.779 You can come tomorrow night. 00:37:21.619 --> 00:37:22.739 To Christendon to explore. 00:37:22.839 --> 00:37:24.039 Do you maybe got lots of questions? 00:37:25.259 --> 00:37:28.199 Come and explore this greatest of all stories. 00:37:28.419 --> 00:37:29.479 We would love to welcome you. 00:37:29.659 --> 00:37:30.599 You can come with questions. 00:37:30.699 --> 00:37:31.619 Or you can come and sit and listen. 00:37:31.959 --> 00:37:32.939 We'd love you to be there. 00:37:35.239 --> 00:37:37.919 But go where your conscience is telling you to go. 00:37:38.879 --> 00:37:40.299 Stop suppressing the truth. 00:37:41.439 --> 00:37:43.079 And realize that in the beginning. 00:37:43.259 --> 00:37:44.519 Before the beginning was God. 00:37:44.579 --> 00:37:45.959 And in the beginning God made you. 00:37:45.960 --> 00:37:47.980 And he made you to know him. 00:37:48.579 --> 00:37:49.460 And to enjoy him. 00:37:50.480 --> 00:37:51.000 Let's pray.