WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.260 We're continuing our series in Genesis 23. 00:00:02.960 --> 00:00:03.140 ! 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:34.179 Genesis 23. 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:06.040 Give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. 00:01:06.760 --> 00:01:08.180 The Hittites answered Abraham, 00:01:08.739 --> 00:01:11.519 Hear us, my lord, you are prince of God among us. 00:01:12.099 --> 00:01:14.719 Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. 00:01:15.299 --> 00:01:19.879 None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead. 00:01:20.719 --> 00:01:24.719 Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. 00:01:24.920 --> 00:01:26.039 He said to them, 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:33.120 If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron, the son of Zohar, 00:01:33.820 --> 00:01:37.660 that he may give the cave of Malchpia, which he owns. 00:01:37.820 --> 00:01:39.160 It is at the end of his field. 00:01:39.320 --> 00:01:45.140 For the full price, let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place. 00:01:45.620 --> 00:01:52.180 Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, 00:01:52.580 --> 00:01:55.180 of all who went in at the gate of his city. 00:01:55.180 --> 00:01:57.500 No, my lord, hear me. 00:01:57.660 --> 00:01:58.860 I give you the field. 00:01:59.140 --> 00:02:01.000 I give you the cave that is in it. 00:02:01.380 --> 00:02:04.340 In the sight of the sons of my people, I give it to you. 00:02:04.540 --> 00:02:05.300 Bury your dead. 00:02:06.020 --> 00:02:09.040 Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:12.200 And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, 00:02:12.560 --> 00:02:14.159 But if you will, hear me. 00:02:14.420 --> 00:02:16.159 I give the price of the field. 00:02:16.719 --> 00:02:19.360 Accept it from me that I may bury my dead there. 00:02:20.560 --> 00:02:21.939 Ephron answered Abraham, 00:02:21.939 --> 00:02:24.020 My lord, listen to me. 00:02:24.120 --> 00:02:27.400 A piece of land worth 400 shekels of silver. 00:02:27.819 --> 00:02:29.460 What is that between you and me? 00:02:29.759 --> 00:02:30.680 Bury your dead. 00:02:31.419 --> 00:02:32.840 Abraham listened to Ephron, 00:02:34.099 --> 00:02:40.520 and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, 00:02:40.960 --> 00:02:42.520 400 shekels of silver, 00:02:43.000 --> 00:02:45.879 according to the weights current among the merchants. 00:02:45.879 --> 00:02:48.780 So the field of Ephron and Malchpia, 00:02:49.219 --> 00:02:51.379 which was to the east of Mamre, 00:02:51.919 --> 00:02:55.199 the field with the cave that was in it, 00:02:55.280 --> 00:02:57.219 and all the trees that were in the field, 00:02:57.599 --> 00:02:58.659 throughout its whole area, 00:02:58.799 --> 00:03:03.460 was made over to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites 00:03:03.460 --> 00:03:06.400 before all who went in at the gate of his city. 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:09.860 After this, Abraham buried Sarah, his wife, 00:03:09.920 --> 00:03:12.420 in the cave of the field of Malchpia, 00:03:12.580 --> 00:03:13.439 east of Mamre, 00:03:13.659 --> 00:03:14.480 that is Hebron, 00:03:14.860 --> 00:03:15.980 in the land of Canaan. 00:03:16.520 --> 00:03:19.420 The field and the cave that is in it 00:03:19.420 --> 00:03:20.800 were made over to Abraham 00:03:20.800 --> 00:03:23.960 as property for burying place by the Hittites. 00:03:24.379 --> 00:03:25.020 Let's pray. 00:03:26.480 --> 00:03:28.159 Lord, we thank you for your word. 00:03:28.319 --> 00:03:29.920 May it speak to us this morning, 00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:32.920 and may you give us your spirit 00:03:32.919 --> 00:03:35.780 to show us Jesus. 00:03:36.719 --> 00:03:38.379 May we trust in you 00:03:38.379 --> 00:03:39.899 because of your word 00:03:39.899 --> 00:03:42.399 and the testimony that it gives to your son, 00:03:42.839 --> 00:03:43.859 that it gives to you. 00:03:44.359 --> 00:03:46.359 We ask this in Christ's name. 00:03:46.719 --> 00:03:46.939 Amen. 00:03:48.219 --> 00:03:50.579 It's not about the nail. 00:03:51.119 --> 00:03:52.539 It's not about the nail. 00:03:52.679 --> 00:03:55.060 I'm not sure if you've ever seen this video 00:03:55.060 --> 00:03:58.719 where this phrase is repeated over and over again. 00:03:58.779 --> 00:04:01.779 It made its round on the internet a couple years ago. 00:04:01.780 --> 00:04:04.500 I think it might have even been a TV commercial, 00:04:04.759 --> 00:04:06.699 but it's not about the nail. 00:04:07.560 --> 00:04:10.379 There's a woman that's sitting on the couch, 00:04:10.520 --> 00:04:12.900 and she's clearly agitated. 00:04:13.060 --> 00:04:13.939 She's uncomfortable. 00:04:14.280 --> 00:04:16.579 She's discussing her pain. 00:04:18.259 --> 00:04:20.220 She's discussing the effects 00:04:20.220 --> 00:04:22.379 that something is having on her, 00:04:22.500 --> 00:04:23.759 and she is in trouble. 00:04:25.079 --> 00:04:27.540 And then the camera pans over to her boyfriend, 00:04:27.939 --> 00:04:29.699 and he's gesticulating. 00:04:29.699 --> 00:04:31.120 He's waving his hands, 00:04:31.279 --> 00:04:33.459 and he's beside himself. 00:04:33.579 --> 00:04:34.439 He's so angry. 00:04:35.439 --> 00:04:36.699 He starts to talk, 00:04:36.740 --> 00:04:37.699 and then he stops. 00:04:38.479 --> 00:04:40.719 And then as the camera continues to rotate, 00:04:40.979 --> 00:04:43.019 you see this woman, 00:04:43.500 --> 00:04:44.300 his girlfriend, 00:04:44.620 --> 00:04:47.919 has a nail directly implanted in her forehead. 00:04:48.620 --> 00:04:51.219 And the man never gets the chance 00:04:51.219 --> 00:04:53.060 to address the nail. 00:04:53.060 --> 00:04:55.019 The woman is describing her headaches, 00:04:55.139 --> 00:04:55.720 her pain, 00:04:56.399 --> 00:04:59.680 but it's not about the nail. 00:05:00.879 --> 00:05:01.519 The video, 00:05:01.699 --> 00:05:03.560 I don't think it's produced for this purpose. 00:05:03.800 --> 00:05:04.399 If it is, 00:05:04.439 --> 00:05:05.060 it's genius. 00:05:05.720 --> 00:05:07.220 Psychologists and marriage therapists, 00:05:07.480 --> 00:05:08.819 and even pastors, 00:05:09.040 --> 00:05:10.500 use this video to talk about 00:05:10.500 --> 00:05:12.759 the differences between men and women. 00:05:13.340 --> 00:05:15.899 But I'm not here to talk about that this morning, 00:05:16.199 --> 00:05:18.120 how helpful or unhelpful 00:05:18.120 --> 00:05:19.779 that video might be in that arena. 00:05:19.779 --> 00:05:22.979 But sometimes in life, 00:05:23.119 --> 00:05:26.019 we might see something that's so obvious, 00:05:26.379 --> 00:05:27.819 a story like this, 00:05:28.579 --> 00:05:29.759 so obvious, 00:05:30.099 --> 00:05:33.619 but it's not about what we first think. 00:05:34.739 --> 00:05:35.859 On the surface, 00:05:36.119 --> 00:05:38.139 there's an obvious problem here, 00:05:38.619 --> 00:05:41.399 but there's a lot more going on. 00:05:41.839 --> 00:05:42.559 This morning, 00:05:42.659 --> 00:05:44.479 it's not about the burial plot. 00:05:45.299 --> 00:05:46.639 It's not that at all. 00:05:46.639 --> 00:05:48.740 It's not about the death of Sarah. 00:05:49.000 --> 00:05:51.639 It's so much more than that. 00:05:52.620 --> 00:05:53.360 Yeah, yeah, yeah. 00:05:53.419 --> 00:05:54.019 I get it. 00:05:54.060 --> 00:05:55.399 It's not about the nail. 00:05:55.519 --> 00:05:56.639 But what about the nail? 00:05:57.300 --> 00:05:58.060 After all, 00:05:58.500 --> 00:05:59.919 Sarah's death and burial 00:05:59.919 --> 00:06:02.060 is what it talks about most 00:06:02.060 --> 00:06:03.199 in this chapter. 00:06:03.339 --> 00:06:03.860 In fact, 00:06:04.360 --> 00:06:06.539 there's very little reference to God. 00:06:07.360 --> 00:06:09.060 Apart from his speaking, 00:06:09.539 --> 00:06:11.339 there's very little reference to Abraham. 00:06:11.979 --> 00:06:14.360 But it's not about the burial plot. 00:06:14.779 --> 00:06:16.500 It's not about Sarah's death. 00:06:16.639 --> 00:06:18.039 Or her faithfulness. 00:06:19.000 --> 00:06:20.539 It seems cut and dry, 00:06:20.639 --> 00:06:21.339 but this morning, 00:06:21.419 --> 00:06:23.779 we're reminded through this story 00:06:23.779 --> 00:06:25.919 of God's faithfulness 00:06:25.919 --> 00:06:27.219 to his covenant promises. 00:06:28.099 --> 00:06:29.399 Now, sometimes when we say that, 00:06:29.439 --> 00:06:31.219 that's a lot of Christian mumbo-jumbo. 00:06:31.319 --> 00:06:32.979 And we throw that out at a lot of things. 00:06:33.379 --> 00:06:35.479 But what I mean narrowly this morning 00:06:35.479 --> 00:06:37.479 is God is going to do 00:06:37.479 --> 00:06:40.019 what he said he's going to do. 00:06:40.019 --> 00:06:43.939 That's what this story is about. 00:06:44.899 --> 00:06:46.839 And that's something that we all struggle with 00:06:46.839 --> 00:06:47.699 if we're honest. 00:06:48.359 --> 00:06:50.519 We struggle thinking about, 00:06:50.680 --> 00:06:53.240 is God really hearing me when I pray? 00:06:54.060 --> 00:06:55.659 God, do you really care about me? 00:06:57.099 --> 00:06:59.000 Do you really care about my marriage? 00:07:00.479 --> 00:07:03.199 When you said you would never leave or forsake me, 00:07:03.240 --> 00:07:04.359 did you really mean it? 00:07:04.360 --> 00:07:06.400 We've all thought those things, 00:07:06.460 --> 00:07:08.000 if not this morning, 00:07:08.319 --> 00:07:09.680 but definitely this week, 00:07:10.639 --> 00:07:13.280 or definitely in this life. 00:07:14.420 --> 00:07:16.520 And yet we're left to navigate this world 00:07:16.520 --> 00:07:18.620 where we don't feel his presence. 00:07:18.620 --> 00:07:21.959 And that's what brings those questions about. 00:07:23.780 --> 00:07:24.759 I'm here, 00:07:25.420 --> 00:07:27.899 and I desperately want to be married. 00:07:28.879 --> 00:07:30.139 And I'm here alone. 00:07:30.879 --> 00:07:32.300 Or I'm so lonely 00:07:32.300 --> 00:07:35.579 because my wife has gone, 00:07:35.740 --> 00:07:37.560 or my husband has gone. 00:07:37.699 --> 00:07:39.480 Or you promised to bless me 00:07:39.480 --> 00:07:40.699 and take care of me, 00:07:41.040 --> 00:07:43.540 and it doesn't seem like it. 00:07:43.560 --> 00:07:45.220 In fact, it seems like a struggle 00:07:45.220 --> 00:07:49.160 where I will never get out of this spot. 00:07:49.780 --> 00:07:50.980 I read the Bible, 00:07:51.180 --> 00:07:53.620 and yet my kids have not come to faith, 00:07:53.840 --> 00:07:55.520 and they've walked away from you, 00:07:55.580 --> 00:07:58.220 and everything that I tried to do for them. 00:08:01.840 --> 00:08:03.920 My husband or wife 00:08:03.920 --> 00:08:07.160 is not the person that I want them to be, 00:08:07.260 --> 00:08:09.940 not the person that you have called them to be. 00:08:10.600 --> 00:08:12.960 And I don't know what to do with that. 00:08:13.040 --> 00:08:14.160 Or if I'm honest, 00:08:14.160 --> 00:08:16.160 I'm honest about myself. 00:08:17.180 --> 00:08:18.800 I say that I'm a Christian, 00:08:19.460 --> 00:08:20.380 and I don't pray. 00:08:21.280 --> 00:08:22.700 I barely follow you, 00:08:22.840 --> 00:08:23.600 if I'm honest. 00:08:24.640 --> 00:08:27.280 How are you blessing that, Lord? 00:08:28.260 --> 00:08:29.920 Those are all the questions 00:08:29.920 --> 00:08:31.960 that swirl about in our minds, 00:08:32.040 --> 00:08:34.700 and sometimes they even come out of our mouths. 00:08:35.860 --> 00:08:37.560 Those are the same kind of questions 00:08:37.560 --> 00:08:41.980 that the followers of God have always had. 00:08:41.980 --> 00:08:44.379 And yet God has promised 00:08:44.379 --> 00:08:48.240 to do what He said He was going to do. 00:08:48.639 --> 00:08:50.100 We have that question. 00:08:50.340 --> 00:08:51.779 Abraham has that question. 00:08:52.080 --> 00:08:54.139 We know that Sarah had that question. 00:08:54.500 --> 00:08:55.519 God, are you going to do 00:08:55.519 --> 00:08:56.879 what you said you were going to do? 00:08:57.659 --> 00:08:59.440 They laughed because they thought, 00:08:59.659 --> 00:09:01.220 surely it can't happen. 00:09:01.940 --> 00:09:03.180 We can't have a child. 00:09:03.179 --> 00:09:05.759 We can't have a home. 00:09:07.019 --> 00:09:08.879 They thought it would never come, 00:09:09.279 --> 00:09:11.939 and that is where we find ourselves this morning. 00:09:12.199 --> 00:09:15.399 The promise of a child has come to fruition. 00:09:16.259 --> 00:09:18.779 But what about the promise of the land? 00:09:19.359 --> 00:09:21.579 This morning, it's not about the nail. 00:09:21.879 --> 00:09:23.679 It's not about Sarah's death. 00:09:23.979 --> 00:09:27.379 It's about God being faithful to His promises. 00:09:27.379 --> 00:09:30.919 Even when it seems like all is lost, 00:09:31.439 --> 00:09:32.740 God is still faithful. 00:09:33.039 --> 00:09:34.620 When time has run out, 00:09:34.720 --> 00:09:36.000 when there's not an answer, 00:09:36.659 --> 00:09:39.679 God is still faithful to His word. 00:09:41.000 --> 00:09:43.379 This morning, the story has three kind of sections. 00:09:43.620 --> 00:09:45.120 One, Sarah dies. 00:09:46.259 --> 00:09:48.120 The second is the negotiation 00:09:48.120 --> 00:09:50.220 for Sarah's burial plot. 00:09:50.340 --> 00:09:53.220 And the third is the significance of all of this. 00:09:53.220 --> 00:09:57.440 It's like, what does it mean in Sarah's actual burial? 00:09:57.820 --> 00:09:58.960 First, let's turn our attention 00:09:58.960 --> 00:10:00.560 to Sarah's death this morning. 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:02.920 If you have your Bibles, your bulletin, 00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:04.720 let's look back at verse one. 00:10:05.080 --> 00:10:07.259 If you remember, before we get there, 00:10:07.580 --> 00:10:10.420 we stepped away from Romans momentarily. 00:10:10.660 --> 00:10:12.980 And we did so that we could zero in 00:10:12.980 --> 00:10:14.000 on the life of Abraham 00:10:14.000 --> 00:10:16.379 because there's so much in Romans 00:10:16.379 --> 00:10:17.500 that's about Abraham, 00:10:18.080 --> 00:10:19.519 which seems kind of odd, right? 00:10:19.980 --> 00:10:21.420 It's this ancient figure, 00:10:21.419 --> 00:10:24.279 and we're talking about faith and justification 00:10:24.279 --> 00:10:27.439 and all these big categories of sin and righteousness. 00:10:28.339 --> 00:10:30.740 And yet here we are with Abraham. 00:10:31.659 --> 00:10:32.839 Not so righteous 00:10:32.839 --> 00:10:35.919 if we really think about Abraham and Sarah's life. 00:10:36.259 --> 00:10:38.519 Think about all that Sarah has endured. 00:10:39.139 --> 00:10:41.679 And here is the chapter that we get. 00:10:42.199 --> 00:10:43.219 All that she's endured, 00:10:43.379 --> 00:10:44.799 even at the hands of Abraham. 00:10:45.799 --> 00:10:47.439 Or as another has put it, 00:10:47.440 --> 00:10:51.160 she is a woman in Genesis of heroic proportions 00:10:51.160 --> 00:10:53.500 who endured a hard life 00:10:53.500 --> 00:10:56.160 trapped by her husband's stupidity. 00:10:56.360 --> 00:10:57.760 I think if we're honest, 00:10:57.960 --> 00:11:01.160 that is a really good description of Abraham. 00:11:01.600 --> 00:11:03.700 And so when we think about righteous Abraham, 00:11:04.040 --> 00:11:05.380 we have to remember, 00:11:05.960 --> 00:11:08.100 Abraham, he's kind of a dummy. 00:11:09.380 --> 00:11:10.160 And yet, 00:11:10.900 --> 00:11:13.980 there's so much in common with Abraham and us. 00:11:13.980 --> 00:11:15.820 If you remember, 00:11:15.920 --> 00:11:17.440 the last time we talked about Sarah 00:11:17.440 --> 00:11:19.279 was at the beginning of chapter 21. 00:11:20.139 --> 00:11:21.139 And even there, 00:11:21.279 --> 00:11:22.100 she was silent. 00:11:22.740 --> 00:11:23.480 And here, 00:11:23.700 --> 00:11:25.759 she's the only wife of a patriarch 00:11:25.759 --> 00:11:27.500 who we know how old she was 00:11:27.500 --> 00:11:29.720 because she's that significant. 00:11:31.100 --> 00:11:33.480 And time is spent on Sarah 00:11:33.480 --> 00:11:35.460 because she's that important. 00:11:36.100 --> 00:11:37.960 Not just in the life of Abraham 00:11:37.960 --> 00:11:41.019 to correct all of his stupidity, 00:11:41.019 --> 00:11:43.199 but in the life of Israel. 00:11:43.779 --> 00:11:45.179 And our clue is in verse 1 00:11:45.179 --> 00:11:47.019 where it tells us how old she is. 00:11:48.019 --> 00:11:50.360 She's the only patriarch's wife 00:11:50.360 --> 00:11:51.720 that's named with age. 00:11:52.240 --> 00:11:52.939 Verse 2, 00:11:53.100 --> 00:11:54.360 and she dies not where? 00:11:54.480 --> 00:11:57.620 Not in the peaceful confines of her home, 00:11:58.000 --> 00:11:59.480 but in a foreign land, 00:11:59.659 --> 00:12:00.319 in Canaan. 00:12:00.779 --> 00:12:02.079 That's our first clue 00:12:02.079 --> 00:12:03.259 that something's up. 00:12:04.199 --> 00:12:04.639 Hebron, 00:12:04.759 --> 00:12:06.059 which is the name of the city 00:12:06.059 --> 00:12:08.179 that we know it as today, 00:12:08.460 --> 00:12:10.259 and even in Abraham's time, 00:12:10.259 --> 00:12:11.340 there's some interplay. 00:12:12.299 --> 00:12:13.139 Kirith Arba 00:12:13.139 --> 00:12:14.899 is the other name of that city. 00:12:15.620 --> 00:12:17.700 Hebron is the Jewish name, 00:12:18.059 --> 00:12:20.200 which we'll return to momentarily. 00:12:20.819 --> 00:12:22.819 Abraham's response to all this, 00:12:23.100 --> 00:12:23.799 of course, 00:12:23.980 --> 00:12:24.799 he's sad. 00:12:25.340 --> 00:12:27.700 And it's captured in verses 3 and following. 00:12:28.279 --> 00:12:28.840 He weeps, 00:12:28.939 --> 00:12:29.759 he mourns, 00:12:30.139 --> 00:12:32.039 and all those things that accompany it. 00:12:32.220 --> 00:12:34.360 We know very little, though, 00:12:34.399 --> 00:12:35.740 about what he actually does, 00:12:35.759 --> 00:12:36.519 but we can assume 00:12:36.519 --> 00:12:37.759 it looks like something like this. 00:12:38.120 --> 00:12:39.500 Him messing with his hair, 00:12:39.500 --> 00:12:41.139 ripping his clothes, 00:12:41.860 --> 00:12:44.700 cutting his beard, 00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:46.039 scattering dust, 00:12:46.600 --> 00:12:47.039 fasting, 00:12:47.279 --> 00:12:48.559 all the normal things. 00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:50.259 Abraham is undone 00:12:50.259 --> 00:12:52.480 because he has lost his wife. 00:12:53.539 --> 00:12:55.659 But there's a bigger problem at play. 00:12:56.100 --> 00:12:59.000 He has nowhere to bury his wife. 00:13:00.440 --> 00:13:01.919 He has no land. 00:13:02.559 --> 00:13:03.740 He has no home. 00:13:03.740 --> 00:13:04.940 If you remember, 00:13:05.139 --> 00:13:06.279 Abraham was the guy 00:13:06.279 --> 00:13:08.100 that was called out of his home 00:13:08.100 --> 00:13:10.019 to go into this new land, 00:13:10.180 --> 00:13:11.480 to follow God, 00:13:11.539 --> 00:13:12.919 and everything would be okay. 00:13:13.639 --> 00:13:14.500 Except for, 00:13:14.600 --> 00:13:15.539 we have a big problem. 00:13:16.159 --> 00:13:17.500 His wife's just died, 00:13:17.899 --> 00:13:19.340 and he has nowhere to bury her. 00:13:20.180 --> 00:13:21.299 What are you going to do, Lord? 00:13:22.299 --> 00:13:23.700 What are you going to do, Abraham? 00:13:24.500 --> 00:13:26.060 Look at verse 4 with me. 00:13:26.460 --> 00:13:27.299 What does he do? 00:13:27.960 --> 00:13:28.620 He says, 00:13:28.620 --> 00:13:31.259 I am a sojourner and foreigner among you. 00:13:31.779 --> 00:13:33.539 Give me property among you 00:13:33.539 --> 00:13:34.539 for a burying place 00:13:34.539 --> 00:13:35.899 that I might bury my dead 00:13:35.899 --> 00:13:37.179 out of my sight. 00:13:39.919 --> 00:13:41.259 He goes to the Hittites 00:13:41.259 --> 00:13:42.120 and asks them, 00:13:42.480 --> 00:13:45.000 I have nowhere to bury my wife. 00:13:45.879 --> 00:13:46.460 In fact, 00:13:46.519 --> 00:13:48.259 I have no rights to land. 00:13:48.399 --> 00:13:49.620 I can't do anything. 00:13:50.379 --> 00:13:51.519 I have no place, 00:13:51.659 --> 00:13:52.340 no home. 00:13:53.039 --> 00:13:54.039 What am I going to do? 00:13:54.039 --> 00:13:55.439 I can't take her 00:13:55.439 --> 00:13:56.759 to the local cemetery 00:13:56.759 --> 00:13:59.599 because I'm not even 00:13:59.599 --> 00:14:00.759 from this land. 00:14:01.480 --> 00:14:03.139 Abraham has no rights. 00:14:03.599 --> 00:14:04.620 He's a foreigner. 00:14:05.319 --> 00:14:06.740 Now often that thought, 00:14:07.339 --> 00:14:09.579 the problem is lost on us 00:14:09.579 --> 00:14:10.719 in modern society. 00:14:10.980 --> 00:14:12.719 I won't ask for a show of hands, 00:14:12.819 --> 00:14:13.919 but how many of us 00:14:13.919 --> 00:14:15.559 grew up in Colorado Springs? 00:14:15.719 --> 00:14:16.519 Not that many. 00:14:16.719 --> 00:14:18.179 Colorado, not that many. 00:14:19.179 --> 00:14:20.879 How many people live 00:14:20.879 --> 00:14:22.120 on the land 00:14:22.120 --> 00:14:23.799 on which they were born? 00:14:24.279 --> 00:14:24.799 I'm guessing 00:14:24.799 --> 00:14:25.899 there's even fewer. 00:14:26.620 --> 00:14:27.679 Maybe one or two. 00:14:29.079 --> 00:14:30.899 Even if that's the case, 00:14:31.980 --> 00:14:33.719 as we move away 00:14:33.719 --> 00:14:36.339 from this idea 00:14:36.339 --> 00:14:37.299 that we are locked 00:14:37.299 --> 00:14:38.240 into our land, 00:14:38.360 --> 00:14:39.000 that the land 00:14:39.000 --> 00:14:40.279 is where our home is, 00:14:40.459 --> 00:14:41.620 as we move about, 00:14:42.019 --> 00:14:43.860 as we take different jobs 00:14:43.860 --> 00:14:44.620 than our parents 00:14:44.620 --> 00:14:45.879 or grandparents did, 00:14:46.279 --> 00:14:48.039 we lose our connection 00:14:48.039 --> 00:14:49.279 to that land. 00:14:49.599 --> 00:14:52.039 We lose sight 00:14:52.039 --> 00:14:52.740 of the fact 00:14:52.740 --> 00:14:53.759 that we are tied 00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:54.560 to land. 00:14:54.680 --> 00:14:55.580 We're more mobile. 00:14:55.740 --> 00:14:56.779 We're more city-like. 00:14:57.200 --> 00:14:58.460 We work in factories, 00:14:58.659 --> 00:14:59.700 or maybe not factories, 00:14:59.960 --> 00:15:01.320 but we provide services 00:15:01.320 --> 00:15:02.000 to people. 00:15:02.460 --> 00:15:03.539 We're not tied 00:15:03.539 --> 00:15:04.180 to the land. 00:15:04.299 --> 00:15:05.039 And that's all 00:15:05.039 --> 00:15:05.860 well and good. 00:15:06.399 --> 00:15:07.279 But when we come 00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:08.600 to a passage like this, 00:15:08.600 --> 00:15:09.779 there can be a disconnect. 00:15:09.980 --> 00:15:10.620 And we think about, 00:15:11.120 --> 00:15:13.100 why is there such importance 00:15:13.100 --> 00:15:13.680 on the land? 00:15:14.200 --> 00:15:14.500 Abraham, 00:15:14.680 --> 00:15:15.360 why do you care 00:15:15.360 --> 00:15:16.820 so much about the land? 00:15:16.820 --> 00:15:18.760 It seems like 00:15:18.760 --> 00:15:19.800 an ancient idea. 00:15:20.680 --> 00:15:21.500 It's not as ancient 00:15:21.500 --> 00:15:22.440 as you think. 00:15:23.120 --> 00:15:24.000 When I was a kid, 00:15:24.080 --> 00:15:25.379 I would hear this story 00:15:25.379 --> 00:15:27.440 about this Presbyterian 00:15:27.440 --> 00:15:28.940 in the Carolinas. 00:15:29.060 --> 00:15:30.440 And it's a pretty famous story. 00:15:30.840 --> 00:15:31.580 And this man 00:15:31.580 --> 00:15:32.860 had gone off to war. 00:15:33.100 --> 00:15:33.760 And he had gone 00:15:33.760 --> 00:15:35.060 for many, many years. 00:15:35.480 --> 00:15:35.879 And he'd been 00:15:35.879 --> 00:15:37.000 a prisoner of war. 00:15:37.120 --> 00:15:38.220 And when he came home, 00:15:38.220 --> 00:15:39.060 and he was released 00:15:39.060 --> 00:15:40.040 after many years, 00:15:40.379 --> 00:15:41.560 he was coming home. 00:15:41.679 --> 00:15:42.639 And as he was crossing 00:15:42.639 --> 00:15:43.319 the border, 00:15:43.699 --> 00:15:45.419 he ordered the carriage 00:15:45.419 --> 00:15:46.339 to stop. 00:15:47.139 --> 00:15:48.059 And when he did, 00:15:48.259 --> 00:15:49.359 he got down, 00:15:49.459 --> 00:15:50.099 and he knelt 00:15:50.099 --> 00:15:51.339 on his knees, 00:15:51.739 --> 00:15:52.619 and he kissed 00:15:52.619 --> 00:15:53.559 the land. 00:15:54.179 --> 00:15:55.379 Not just because 00:15:55.379 --> 00:15:56.019 he liked dirt 00:15:56.019 --> 00:15:56.679 in his mouth 00:15:56.679 --> 00:15:57.539 or churred rock 00:15:57.539 --> 00:15:58.099 or asphalt 00:15:58.099 --> 00:15:59.339 in our day, 00:15:59.679 --> 00:16:00.759 but because 00:16:00.759 --> 00:16:02.179 he was connected 00:16:02.179 --> 00:16:02.919 to the land. 00:16:03.019 --> 00:16:03.659 And he thought 00:16:03.659 --> 00:16:04.479 he would never 00:16:04.479 --> 00:16:05.379 see it again. 00:16:06.619 --> 00:16:08.000 The problem of land 00:16:08.000 --> 00:16:09.019 is not as ancient 00:16:09.019 --> 00:16:10.000 as we think. 00:16:10.500 --> 00:16:10.859 But it 00:16:10.860 --> 00:16:12.639 compels us 00:16:12.639 --> 00:16:13.200 when we have 00:16:13.200 --> 00:16:14.419 a right understanding 00:16:14.419 --> 00:16:15.700 of how land 00:16:15.700 --> 00:16:16.600 forms us 00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:17.800 and shapes us 00:16:17.800 --> 00:16:19.259 to yell out, 00:16:19.980 --> 00:16:20.960 South Carolina, 00:16:21.680 --> 00:16:22.519 my mother. 00:16:23.960 --> 00:16:24.899 We might never 00:16:24.899 --> 00:16:25.440 do that, 00:16:25.519 --> 00:16:26.220 but we do things 00:16:26.220 --> 00:16:26.759 that are similar 00:16:26.759 --> 00:16:27.740 if you think about it. 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:29.019 Maybe you've gone 00:16:29.019 --> 00:16:29.919 off to college. 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:30.860 I had a friend 00:16:30.860 --> 00:16:31.519 in college 00:16:31.519 --> 00:16:32.320 that grew up 00:16:32.320 --> 00:16:33.000 on a farm 00:16:33.000 --> 00:16:34.320 in South Carolina. 00:16:34.740 --> 00:16:35.120 And he took 00:16:35.120 --> 00:16:36.000 a mason jar 00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:37.300 and he took land 00:16:37.300 --> 00:16:38.139 from the farm 00:16:38.139 --> 00:16:39.300 and he put it 00:16:39.299 --> 00:16:40.959 on his desk 00:16:40.959 --> 00:16:42.000 in his dorm room. 00:16:42.219 --> 00:16:43.000 So he brought 00:16:43.000 --> 00:16:43.639 the farm 00:16:43.639 --> 00:16:44.240 with him. 00:16:45.559 --> 00:16:46.159 We might not 00:16:46.159 --> 00:16:46.819 do that, 00:16:47.219 --> 00:16:47.579 but we might 00:16:47.579 --> 00:16:48.399 take dirt 00:16:48.399 --> 00:16:49.279 or sand 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:50.019 from the beach 00:16:50.019 --> 00:16:50.719 and put it 00:16:50.719 --> 00:16:51.639 in a glass jar 00:16:51.639 --> 00:16:53.039 to remember 00:16:53.039 --> 00:16:53.899 things that have 00:16:53.899 --> 00:16:54.299 happened. 00:16:54.959 --> 00:16:55.679 Or we might 00:16:55.679 --> 00:16:56.299 put dirt 00:16:56.299 --> 00:16:57.679 in a Ziploc baggie 00:16:57.679 --> 00:16:58.559 and put it 00:16:58.559 --> 00:16:59.459 in our rucksack 00:16:59.459 --> 00:17:00.259 and take it 00:17:00.259 --> 00:17:01.879 around the world. 00:17:03.259 --> 00:17:03.979 No family 00:17:03.979 --> 00:17:04.539 graveyard 00:17:04.539 --> 00:17:05.980 back on the farm 00:17:05.980 --> 00:17:07.000 to bury 00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:07.819 his wife. 00:17:08.740 --> 00:17:09.079 Abraham 00:17:09.079 --> 00:17:10.160 is a man 00:17:10.160 --> 00:17:11.740 without a home. 00:17:12.279 --> 00:17:13.140 He has nothing. 00:17:13.599 --> 00:17:15.000 He's a sojourner, 00:17:15.259 --> 00:17:15.920 a foreigner, 00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:17.019 a pilgrim, 00:17:17.519 --> 00:17:18.700 and Christian, 00:17:18.920 --> 00:17:19.299 oh yeah, 00:17:19.400 --> 00:17:20.039 by the way, 00:17:20.180 --> 00:17:21.640 you are no different 00:17:21.640 --> 00:17:22.640 than he is. 00:17:23.559 --> 00:17:24.640 You're marching 00:17:24.640 --> 00:17:25.420 on 00:17:25.420 --> 00:17:26.400 and yet 00:17:26.400 --> 00:17:27.500 this world 00:17:27.500 --> 00:17:28.720 is not your home. 00:17:29.480 --> 00:17:30.319 This world 00:17:30.319 --> 00:17:31.160 is not our home. 00:17:32.660 --> 00:17:33.660 In fact, 00:17:33.700 --> 00:17:34.319 we're going 00:17:34.319 --> 00:17:35.179 to a land, 00:17:35.659 --> 00:17:36.819 to a place 00:17:36.819 --> 00:17:37.759 that has been 00:17:37.759 --> 00:17:38.859 prepared for us 00:17:38.859 --> 00:17:39.839 that's greater 00:17:39.839 --> 00:17:40.919 than anything 00:17:40.919 --> 00:17:41.899 on this earth. 00:17:43.500 --> 00:17:44.179 John Bunyan 00:17:44.179 --> 00:17:45.099 in Pilgrim's Progress 00:17:45.099 --> 00:17:46.139 talks about 00:17:46.139 --> 00:17:46.799 the allegory 00:17:46.799 --> 00:17:47.720 of the Christian life 00:17:47.720 --> 00:17:49.000 and there's a character 00:17:49.000 --> 00:17:49.419 in there 00:17:49.419 --> 00:17:50.619 named Mr. Valiant 00:17:50.619 --> 00:17:51.559 and when he's 00:17:51.559 --> 00:17:52.659 introduced to the reader, 00:17:52.779 --> 00:17:53.519 Mr. Valiant 00:17:53.519 --> 00:17:54.379 says this, 00:17:56.960 --> 00:17:58.419 I'm a pilgrim 00:17:58.419 --> 00:17:59.519 and I'm going 00:17:59.519 --> 00:18:01.319 to the celestial city. 00:18:01.599 --> 00:18:02.619 Not to the land 00:18:02.619 --> 00:18:03.439 of this world, 00:18:03.440 --> 00:18:04.680 but the land 00:18:04.680 --> 00:18:05.720 that is to come 00:18:05.720 --> 00:18:07.160 and there's a tension 00:18:07.160 --> 00:18:08.240 as a Christian. 00:18:08.799 --> 00:18:09.759 If we're missing 00:18:09.759 --> 00:18:10.740 that tension, 00:18:10.960 --> 00:18:11.880 then there's a problem. 00:18:12.039 --> 00:18:12.779 The tension is 00:18:12.779 --> 00:18:14.559 we live in this world 00:18:14.559 --> 00:18:16.059 but we're going 00:18:16.059 --> 00:18:16.940 to a land 00:18:16.940 --> 00:18:17.799 that is not 00:18:17.799 --> 00:18:18.500 right here. 00:18:19.220 --> 00:18:20.779 We have to remember 00:18:20.779 --> 00:18:21.160 that 00:18:21.160 --> 00:18:22.180 and if there's 00:18:22.180 --> 00:18:22.980 no tension 00:18:22.980 --> 00:18:23.759 in that, 00:18:24.140 --> 00:18:24.539 then there's 00:18:24.539 --> 00:18:25.440 a big problem 00:18:25.440 --> 00:18:26.660 because we might 00:18:26.660 --> 00:18:27.519 love the things 00:18:27.519 --> 00:18:28.340 of this world, 00:18:29.080 --> 00:18:29.860 our family, 00:18:30.240 --> 00:18:31.000 our friends, 00:18:31.000 --> 00:18:32.700 our bank accounts, 00:18:33.299 --> 00:18:34.059 the ease 00:18:34.059 --> 00:18:35.819 that we have 00:18:35.819 --> 00:18:36.480 in this life, 00:18:37.079 --> 00:18:38.319 the joys 00:18:38.319 --> 00:18:38.920 that we have 00:18:38.920 --> 00:18:39.660 in this life 00:18:39.660 --> 00:18:40.819 and yet we're 00:18:40.819 --> 00:18:42.039 called to love 00:18:42.039 --> 00:18:43.240 where we're going 00:18:43.240 --> 00:18:44.660 more than this world. 00:18:46.200 --> 00:18:46.799 Christian, 00:18:47.579 --> 00:18:49.180 Abraham was a pilgrim 00:18:49.180 --> 00:18:50.700 and so are you. 00:18:51.779 --> 00:18:52.660 Remember that. 00:18:53.980 --> 00:18:54.339 Abraham, 00:18:54.559 --> 00:18:55.220 the sojourner, 00:18:55.599 --> 00:18:56.980 has made the ask 00:18:56.980 --> 00:18:58.240 though to the Hittites, 00:18:58.240 --> 00:18:59.460 give me land 00:18:59.460 --> 00:19:00.500 to bury my wife 00:19:00.500 --> 00:19:02.000 for I'm a pilgrim. 00:19:03.200 --> 00:19:04.000 Now let's turn 00:19:04.000 --> 00:19:05.099 our attention 00:19:05.099 --> 00:19:06.140 to the negotiations 00:19:06.140 --> 00:19:07.240 for that land. 00:19:08.599 --> 00:19:09.700 The line of argument 00:19:09.700 --> 00:19:10.319 here can be 00:19:10.319 --> 00:19:10.980 a little difficult 00:19:10.980 --> 00:19:11.680 to follow 00:19:11.680 --> 00:19:12.759 and it takes up 00:19:12.759 --> 00:19:14.000 most of the chapter 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:15.039 but we're going 00:19:15.039 --> 00:19:15.859 to spend some time 00:19:15.859 --> 00:19:16.660 trying to understand 00:19:16.660 --> 00:19:17.720 what's going on. 00:19:18.019 --> 00:19:18.799 Why is Abraham 00:19:18.799 --> 00:19:20.799 trying so hard 00:19:20.799 --> 00:19:21.839 to get this land? 00:19:21.940 --> 00:19:22.519 Look at verses 00:19:22.519 --> 00:19:23.380 five and six 00:19:23.380 --> 00:19:24.220 with me as I read. 00:19:24.859 --> 00:19:25.339 The Hittites 00:19:25.339 --> 00:19:26.759 answered Abraham's request 00:19:26.759 --> 00:19:27.519 and they said this, 00:19:27.519 --> 00:19:28.960 Hear us my lord, 00:19:29.099 --> 00:19:29.720 you are a prince 00:19:29.720 --> 00:19:30.700 of God among us. 00:19:30.819 --> 00:19:31.420 Bear your dead 00:19:31.420 --> 00:19:32.259 in the choicest 00:19:32.259 --> 00:19:32.980 of our tombs. 00:19:33.460 --> 00:19:34.279 None of us 00:19:34.279 --> 00:19:34.940 will withhold 00:19:34.940 --> 00:19:35.539 from you 00:19:35.539 --> 00:19:36.480 his tomb 00:19:36.480 --> 00:19:37.200 to hinder you 00:19:37.200 --> 00:19:38.299 from burying your dead. 00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:39.700 Seems really nice. 00:19:40.139 --> 00:19:40.559 The Hittites, 00:19:40.740 --> 00:19:41.619 they're good guys. 00:19:41.879 --> 00:19:42.539 They want to help 00:19:42.539 --> 00:19:43.579 a guy out in need. 00:19:43.900 --> 00:19:44.579 They recognize 00:19:44.579 --> 00:19:45.279 what Abraham 00:19:45.279 --> 00:19:46.779 has done to them. 00:19:46.839 --> 00:19:47.339 They seem like 00:19:47.339 --> 00:19:48.759 gracious businessmen. 00:19:49.420 --> 00:19:50.819 Hey, you're in distress. 00:19:51.119 --> 00:19:52.400 Let me help you out. 00:19:53.759 --> 00:19:54.400 They say take 00:19:54.400 --> 00:19:55.780 the nicest tomb 00:19:55.780 --> 00:19:56.460 that is, 00:19:57.340 --> 00:19:58.560 the nicest tomb 00:19:58.560 --> 00:19:59.560 that you can find. 00:20:00.660 --> 00:20:01.519 But really, 00:20:01.660 --> 00:20:02.460 are they that kind? 00:20:03.860 --> 00:20:04.960 Are they trying 00:20:04.960 --> 00:20:05.820 to help him out? 00:20:06.220 --> 00:20:07.060 They are 00:20:07.060 --> 00:20:07.720 and they're not. 00:20:07.940 --> 00:20:09.300 They want to help him out 00:20:09.300 --> 00:20:10.360 because they see him 00:20:10.360 --> 00:20:11.680 as an okay guy, 00:20:11.820 --> 00:20:13.060 but they don't want 00:20:13.060 --> 00:20:14.019 something to happen. 00:20:14.780 --> 00:20:15.980 They don't want Abraham 00:20:15.980 --> 00:20:17.840 to own one square inch 00:20:17.840 --> 00:20:18.900 of land in Canaan. 00:20:20.080 --> 00:20:20.580 Nothing. 00:20:20.579 --> 00:20:23.699 If he buries Sarah, 00:20:24.480 --> 00:20:25.960 he might come and visit, 00:20:26.159 --> 00:20:27.139 but he has no claim, 00:20:27.259 --> 00:20:28.339 no rightful inheritance, 00:20:28.919 --> 00:20:30.579 and the landless pilgrim 00:20:30.579 --> 00:20:31.939 now becomes 00:20:31.939 --> 00:20:33.000 a rightful citizen. 00:20:33.220 --> 00:20:34.319 You see the problem there. 00:20:34.359 --> 00:20:35.500 If they give him the land, 00:20:35.579 --> 00:20:36.639 if he buys it, 00:20:37.099 --> 00:20:39.339 then he will have a right 00:20:39.339 --> 00:20:41.019 to land in Canaan. 00:20:41.299 --> 00:20:42.699 Okay, round two starts. 00:20:43.159 --> 00:20:44.099 Abraham begins 00:20:44.099 --> 00:20:45.720 his second round 00:20:45.720 --> 00:20:46.519 with this. 00:20:46.799 --> 00:20:49.119 Not just an acknowledgement 00:20:49.119 --> 00:20:51.039 of their kindness to him, 00:20:51.159 --> 00:20:52.559 but really a match 00:20:52.559 --> 00:20:53.399 in their flattery. 00:20:53.479 --> 00:20:54.619 He bows before them 00:20:54.619 --> 00:20:55.119 and he says 00:20:55.119 --> 00:20:58.059 that he might bury Sarah 00:20:58.059 --> 00:20:58.859 in their land, 00:20:58.959 --> 00:20:59.779 but then Abraham 00:20:59.779 --> 00:21:00.979 asks specifically 00:21:00.979 --> 00:21:03.019 for this one piece of land 00:21:03.019 --> 00:21:04.039 from Ephron. 00:21:04.139 --> 00:21:05.059 Look at verse eight. 00:21:05.519 --> 00:21:07.979 He asks Ephron 00:21:07.979 --> 00:21:10.699 for the cave of Malchpia 00:21:10.699 --> 00:21:11.579 in verse nine, 00:21:11.679 --> 00:21:12.559 which he owns 00:21:12.559 --> 00:21:13.619 and is at the end 00:21:13.619 --> 00:21:14.299 of his field. 00:21:14.639 --> 00:21:15.759 He wants that cave 00:21:15.759 --> 00:21:16.779 at the end of the field, 00:21:16.919 --> 00:21:18.219 and the fascinating part 00:21:18.220 --> 00:21:19.380 about this is 00:21:19.380 --> 00:21:20.000 that we know 00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:21.000 where that cave is 00:21:21.000 --> 00:21:21.799 to this day. 00:21:21.980 --> 00:21:23.299 It's in Hebron, 00:21:23.480 --> 00:21:25.059 and you can go visit it, 00:21:25.180 --> 00:21:26.140 except there's a building 00:21:26.140 --> 00:21:26.980 built over it, 00:21:27.299 --> 00:21:29.039 but we know 00:21:29.039 --> 00:21:29.920 where that is. 00:21:30.420 --> 00:21:31.079 And Ephron, 00:21:31.240 --> 00:21:32.480 who is actually sitting 00:21:32.480 --> 00:21:33.620 with all the Hittites, 00:21:33.860 --> 00:21:34.660 answers him 00:21:34.660 --> 00:21:36.700 where all the other people 00:21:36.700 --> 00:21:37.279 could hear. 00:21:37.779 --> 00:21:39.120 Verse 10 tells us 00:21:39.120 --> 00:21:40.380 that they were sitting 00:21:40.380 --> 00:21:41.640 at the gate of the city. 00:21:41.819 --> 00:21:42.740 If you remember back 00:21:42.740 --> 00:21:43.440 to what we've read 00:21:43.440 --> 00:21:44.600 so often in Genesis, 00:21:45.220 --> 00:21:46.160 Abraham and Lot 00:21:46.160 --> 00:21:47.600 interact with all the leaders 00:21:47.600 --> 00:21:48.259 of the city 00:21:48.259 --> 00:21:49.500 at the gates. 00:21:49.940 --> 00:21:50.600 And he's sitting 00:21:50.600 --> 00:21:51.240 and he says, 00:21:51.400 --> 00:21:52.779 how about this? 00:21:52.920 --> 00:21:55.040 What about if I do this instead? 00:21:55.420 --> 00:21:56.100 Verse 11. 00:21:56.940 --> 00:21:58.120 No, my Lord, hear me. 00:21:58.220 --> 00:21:59.540 I give you the field. 00:21:59.960 --> 00:22:01.200 I want to give it to you instead. 00:22:01.620 --> 00:22:03.140 I'll give you the cave too. 00:22:03.840 --> 00:22:05.040 And when I do that, 00:22:05.519 --> 00:22:06.480 I give it to you 00:22:06.480 --> 00:22:07.759 to bury your dead. 00:22:08.060 --> 00:22:09.460 And he did all this 00:22:09.460 --> 00:22:11.580 in front of all these people. 00:22:12.120 --> 00:22:13.480 The text keeps repeating 00:22:13.480 --> 00:22:14.620 this over and over. 00:22:15.059 --> 00:22:16.180 Everyone can hear. 00:22:16.720 --> 00:22:18.279 Everyone is around. 00:22:18.900 --> 00:22:20.559 And then to the final round 00:22:20.559 --> 00:22:21.599 in verse 12. 00:22:23.539 --> 00:22:25.640 Abraham bowed down once again 00:22:25.640 --> 00:22:26.440 and says to them, 00:22:26.579 --> 00:22:27.980 before the people of the land, 00:22:28.200 --> 00:22:29.319 he said to Ephron 00:22:29.319 --> 00:22:29.880 in the hearing 00:22:29.880 --> 00:22:30.779 of the people of the land, 00:22:31.079 --> 00:22:32.400 but if you will hear me, 00:22:32.400 --> 00:22:34.700 I give the price of the field. 00:22:34.940 --> 00:22:36.160 Accept it from me 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:38.400 that I may bury my dead there. 00:22:39.400 --> 00:22:41.480 Abraham doesn't take this charity 00:22:41.480 --> 00:22:42.880 that's offered to him. 00:22:43.220 --> 00:22:43.720 He says, 00:22:43.920 --> 00:22:45.440 I want to pay for it. 00:22:45.940 --> 00:22:47.640 And what does Ephron respond with? 00:22:47.940 --> 00:22:49.440 Jump down to verse 15, 00:22:50.140 --> 00:22:51.279 or 14 and 15. 00:22:51.700 --> 00:22:53.539 He answers Abraham like this, 00:22:53.900 --> 00:22:55.200 my Lord, listen to me, 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:56.279 a piece of land 00:22:56.279 --> 00:22:59.120 worth 400 shekels of silver. 00:22:59.480 --> 00:23:01.039 What is that between you and me? 00:23:01.860 --> 00:23:02.779 Bury your dead. 00:23:03.940 --> 00:23:05.960 But Abraham doesn't take 00:23:05.960 --> 00:23:08.059 the offer of kindness. 00:23:08.059 --> 00:23:10.240 Instead, he keeps negotiating. 00:23:10.659 --> 00:23:12.679 A price has been named now. 00:23:13.099 --> 00:23:14.059 And be careful here. 00:23:14.179 --> 00:23:14.940 We might think 00:23:14.940 --> 00:23:16.679 in the American conception 00:23:16.679 --> 00:23:17.460 of bartering 00:23:17.460 --> 00:23:18.419 that he's starting 00:23:18.419 --> 00:23:19.639 with naming his price 00:23:19.639 --> 00:23:21.139 and they're going to keep going. 00:23:21.599 --> 00:23:22.500 I don't know if that's 00:23:22.500 --> 00:23:23.480 what's going on here. 00:23:23.639 --> 00:23:24.359 Ephron saying, 00:23:24.579 --> 00:23:26.700 it's worth this price. 00:23:27.599 --> 00:23:28.559 And Abraham, 00:23:29.079 --> 00:23:30.799 it is that important to Abraham 00:23:30.799 --> 00:23:32.279 to have a burial plot. 00:23:32.399 --> 00:23:34.079 He doesn't negotiate with her 00:23:34.079 --> 00:23:35.079 or with him 00:23:35.079 --> 00:23:37.079 for Sarah's burial place. 00:23:37.079 --> 00:23:37.819 He says, 00:23:37.939 --> 00:23:39.099 basically, I'll have it. 00:23:39.519 --> 00:23:40.539 He names the price 00:23:40.539 --> 00:23:42.119 and Abraham agrees to pay it. 00:23:42.379 --> 00:23:43.759 And then he's measured out. 00:23:44.460 --> 00:23:45.759 But that doesn't really answer 00:23:45.759 --> 00:23:46.500 the question of 00:23:46.500 --> 00:23:48.619 why is Ephron selling this land? 00:23:48.839 --> 00:23:50.240 It seems kind of weird. 00:23:50.419 --> 00:23:52.839 Like, why so much detail about this? 00:23:53.980 --> 00:23:56.240 Ephron offers the land 00:23:56.240 --> 00:23:58.159 for every reason 00:23:58.159 --> 00:24:00.019 that we do things 00:24:00.019 --> 00:24:01.480 in modern American life. 00:24:01.519 --> 00:24:03.559 We try to avoid taxes, after all. 00:24:03.799 --> 00:24:05.259 If I give him the land, 00:24:05.259 --> 00:24:07.039 then I don't have to pay taxes 00:24:07.039 --> 00:24:09.539 if I've already given him the cave. 00:24:09.700 --> 00:24:11.160 If I sell it to him, 00:24:11.319 --> 00:24:13.420 I don't have to pay taxes on the land. 00:24:13.839 --> 00:24:15.680 Abraham will pay taxes on the land. 00:24:15.900 --> 00:24:17.420 Of course, that's better for me. 00:24:17.759 --> 00:24:19.079 Nobody loves paying taxes. 00:24:20.599 --> 00:24:21.680 And Abraham says, 00:24:21.819 --> 00:24:22.839 you have yourself a deal. 00:24:24.099 --> 00:24:25.420 The real question is, 00:24:25.779 --> 00:24:26.839 why doesn't Abraham 00:24:26.839 --> 00:24:28.259 take the generosity? 00:24:28.619 --> 00:24:29.480 If they're offering 00:24:29.480 --> 00:24:31.039 to give it to him for free, 00:24:31.039 --> 00:24:33.659 why doesn't he take it? 00:24:34.539 --> 00:24:35.799 It's because there's no such thing 00:24:35.799 --> 00:24:36.659 as free lunch. 00:24:37.159 --> 00:24:39.839 They might offer him the land, 00:24:40.039 --> 00:24:41.779 but they're going to get it back one day. 00:24:41.899 --> 00:24:43.659 If he takes the land 00:24:43.659 --> 00:24:45.639 and he hasn't paid for it, 00:24:45.960 --> 00:24:47.859 then they can have it back one day. 00:24:48.019 --> 00:24:50.279 It would essentially be on loan to him. 00:24:51.159 --> 00:24:53.899 So he wants to have it as his own. 00:24:53.900 --> 00:24:57.060 And all along the way, 00:24:57.160 --> 00:24:58.800 we've had these curious hints 00:24:58.800 --> 00:25:00.420 of people that hear 00:25:00.420 --> 00:25:02.340 and the presence of these people 00:25:02.340 --> 00:25:04.340 or even the trees. 00:25:05.240 --> 00:25:05.580 Listen. 00:25:06.780 --> 00:25:08.160 The hearing of the people 00:25:08.160 --> 00:25:09.519 in verse 13. 00:25:09.920 --> 00:25:11.280 The hearing of the Hittites 00:25:11.280 --> 00:25:12.460 in verse 10. 00:25:12.820 --> 00:25:13.700 Verse 16. 00:25:13.820 --> 00:25:14.519 The hearing, 00:25:14.860 --> 00:25:16.560 the hearing again and again. 00:25:17.080 --> 00:25:18.860 It's this deal has been struck 00:25:18.860 --> 00:25:21.860 and it's absolutely certain 00:25:21.859 --> 00:25:23.279 because all these people 00:25:23.279 --> 00:25:24.679 have heard this deal. 00:25:25.459 --> 00:25:27.079 It's like they spit in their hands 00:25:27.079 --> 00:25:28.079 and shook on it. 00:25:28.659 --> 00:25:30.500 It's a certain thing. 00:25:31.579 --> 00:25:32.779 There's no question. 00:25:33.219 --> 00:25:34.439 There's no going back. 00:25:35.379 --> 00:25:37.579 Abraham is a full-fledged owner 00:25:37.579 --> 00:25:39.179 of a piece of Canaan. 00:25:40.119 --> 00:25:41.659 And that's significant. 00:25:42.879 --> 00:25:44.819 Abraham now has a place 00:25:44.819 --> 00:25:46.000 to bury his dead. 00:25:47.199 --> 00:25:48.819 The scene in chapter 23 00:25:48.819 --> 00:25:50.579 shifts from these negotiations 00:25:50.579 --> 00:25:53.339 to the actual burial of Sarah. 00:25:53.960 --> 00:25:55.859 Look with me at verse 19. 00:25:57.000 --> 00:25:57.779 After this, 00:25:57.939 --> 00:25:59.299 Abraham buried his wife 00:25:59.299 --> 00:26:01.039 in the cave of the field 00:26:01.039 --> 00:26:01.779 of Malchpia, 00:26:01.939 --> 00:26:02.839 east of Marmurim. 00:26:03.419 --> 00:26:04.240 That is Hebron, 00:26:04.359 --> 00:26:05.319 in the land of Canaan. 00:26:05.480 --> 00:26:06.179 And the field 00:26:06.179 --> 00:26:07.559 and the cave that is in it 00:26:07.559 --> 00:26:09.199 were made over to Abraham 00:26:09.199 --> 00:26:10.259 as property, 00:26:10.740 --> 00:26:11.879 as a burying place 00:26:11.879 --> 00:26:12.759 for the Hittites. 00:26:14.079 --> 00:26:16.079 Abraham has a resting place 00:26:16.079 --> 00:26:17.539 for his wife Sarah. 00:26:18.139 --> 00:26:19.599 But not just for her, 00:26:19.599 --> 00:26:22.299 but for him, 00:26:22.839 --> 00:26:23.759 his child, 00:26:24.240 --> 00:26:25.199 his grandchildren, 00:26:25.379 --> 00:26:26.379 as we'll be reminded. 00:26:27.179 --> 00:26:28.699 And as he buries her, 00:26:29.359 --> 00:26:31.359 we see this curious repetition 00:26:31.359 --> 00:26:32.759 of this theme 00:26:32.759 --> 00:26:34.399 that now, 00:26:34.639 --> 00:26:35.459 in verse 20, 00:26:35.579 --> 00:26:36.879 the field and cave 00:26:36.879 --> 00:26:37.559 that were in it 00:26:37.559 --> 00:26:39.000 belonged to Abraham. 00:26:40.000 --> 00:26:42.000 He owns a piece of Canaan. 00:26:42.799 --> 00:26:44.000 It's been ratified 00:26:44.000 --> 00:26:45.139 by the Hittites. 00:26:45.240 --> 00:26:46.579 It's not given to him, 00:26:46.579 --> 00:26:48.319 but he owns it. 00:26:49.599 --> 00:26:50.980 Sarah is not really 00:26:50.980 --> 00:26:52.619 the focus of this chapter. 00:26:53.319 --> 00:26:55.599 But Abraham having a piece 00:26:55.599 --> 00:26:56.980 of land in Canaan 00:26:56.980 --> 00:26:58.419 is the point. 00:26:59.799 --> 00:27:01.240 Yes, Abraham loved her. 00:27:01.359 --> 00:27:02.539 He mourned for her. 00:27:02.720 --> 00:27:03.699 He was sad. 00:27:05.199 --> 00:27:06.659 He lost her. 00:27:06.859 --> 00:27:08.199 But it's not about Sarah. 00:27:08.359 --> 00:27:09.480 It's about the land. 00:27:09.480 --> 00:27:12.440 It's a fact that Genesis 00:27:12.440 --> 00:27:14.539 returns to again and again. 00:27:14.960 --> 00:27:15.900 Chapter 25, 00:27:16.220 --> 00:27:17.059 chapter 49, 00:27:17.380 --> 00:27:18.099 chapter 50. 00:27:18.420 --> 00:27:20.019 They read something like this. 00:27:20.259 --> 00:27:21.640 They rehash everything 00:27:21.640 --> 00:27:22.299 and say, 00:27:22.960 --> 00:27:23.720 his sons, 00:27:23.900 --> 00:27:25.019 Abraham's family, 00:27:25.360 --> 00:27:26.120 his descendants 00:27:26.120 --> 00:27:26.900 were buried 00:27:26.900 --> 00:27:28.259 in the cave of Malchia 00:27:28.259 --> 00:27:30.059 in the field of Ephron, 00:27:30.180 --> 00:27:31.000 the son of Zoar, 00:27:31.079 --> 00:27:31.620 the Hittite. 00:27:32.160 --> 00:27:33.759 The field that Abraham 00:27:33.759 --> 00:27:35.360 bought from the Hittites. 00:27:37.099 --> 00:27:38.460 Abraham was buried there. 00:27:38.460 --> 00:27:40.079 Sarah was buried there 00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:41.759 again and again. 00:27:42.480 --> 00:27:43.160 The significance 00:27:43.160 --> 00:27:44.400 of this passage 00:27:44.400 --> 00:27:45.539 is that Abraham 00:27:45.539 --> 00:27:46.640 now owns 00:27:46.640 --> 00:27:47.740 a piece of land 00:27:47.740 --> 00:27:49.360 in fulfillment 00:27:49.360 --> 00:27:51.220 of God's covenant promise. 00:27:52.420 --> 00:27:53.400 God said 00:27:53.400 --> 00:27:55.340 he would give them Canaan 00:27:55.340 --> 00:27:56.680 and now 00:27:56.680 --> 00:27:57.680 God's people 00:27:57.680 --> 00:27:59.299 have a part of it. 00:28:00.160 --> 00:28:00.940 Remember Lot? 00:28:01.180 --> 00:28:02.140 Remember Abimelech? 00:28:02.319 --> 00:28:03.559 Remember Isaac? 00:28:03.559 --> 00:28:03.740 Isaac. 00:28:04.899 --> 00:28:06.440 All those things 00:28:06.440 --> 00:28:07.319 were centered on 00:28:07.319 --> 00:28:08.319 the business 00:28:08.319 --> 00:28:10.099 that God was doing 00:28:10.099 --> 00:28:11.720 in the lives 00:28:11.720 --> 00:28:12.419 of his people. 00:28:12.879 --> 00:28:14.500 And even before that, 00:28:14.799 --> 00:28:16.039 remember what he had said 00:28:16.039 --> 00:28:16.500 to them. 00:28:17.200 --> 00:28:18.079 I will establish 00:28:18.079 --> 00:28:18.940 my covenant 00:28:18.940 --> 00:28:19.899 between me 00:28:19.899 --> 00:28:20.480 and you 00:28:20.480 --> 00:28:21.259 and your offspring 00:28:21.259 --> 00:28:22.119 after you. 00:28:22.539 --> 00:28:23.379 And I 00:28:23.379 --> 00:28:24.519 will 00:28:24.519 --> 00:28:26.019 throughout the generations 00:28:26.019 --> 00:28:28.339 bring an everlasting 00:28:28.339 --> 00:28:28.899 covenant 00:28:28.899 --> 00:28:29.980 to be your God, 00:28:30.220 --> 00:28:30.659 to be, 00:28:31.359 --> 00:28:32.500 bring you offspring 00:28:32.500 --> 00:28:33.400 after you. 00:28:33.579 --> 00:28:34.279 And I will give it 00:28:34.279 --> 00:28:34.740 to you 00:28:34.740 --> 00:28:35.220 and you 00:28:35.220 --> 00:28:35.920 and your offspring 00:28:35.920 --> 00:28:37.319 after the land 00:28:37.319 --> 00:28:38.279 of your sojournings, 00:28:38.480 --> 00:28:39.539 all that land 00:28:39.539 --> 00:28:40.079 of Canaan 00:28:40.079 --> 00:28:41.440 for an everlasting 00:28:41.440 --> 00:28:42.319 possession 00:28:42.319 --> 00:28:44.000 and I will be 00:28:44.000 --> 00:28:44.799 their God. 00:28:45.039 --> 00:28:46.279 This promise 00:28:46.279 --> 00:28:47.500 that has 00:28:47.500 --> 00:28:48.119 this simple 00:28:48.119 --> 00:28:48.799 fulfillment 00:28:48.799 --> 00:28:49.619 in the life 00:28:49.619 --> 00:28:50.319 of Abraham 00:28:50.319 --> 00:28:52.920 in weird circumstances 00:28:52.920 --> 00:28:53.920 where he goes 00:28:53.920 --> 00:28:54.559 and buys 00:28:54.559 --> 00:28:55.180 a cave 00:28:55.180 --> 00:28:56.220 and then a field 00:28:56.220 --> 00:28:57.660 to avoid taxes 00:28:57.660 --> 00:28:59.440 is the fulfillment 00:28:59.440 --> 00:29:00.500 of what God 00:29:00.500 --> 00:29:01.100 had promised 00:29:01.100 --> 00:29:01.680 to do. 00:29:03.540 --> 00:29:04.580 He now 00:29:04.580 --> 00:29:05.240 owns 00:29:05.240 --> 00:29:05.860 a piece 00:29:05.860 --> 00:29:06.519 of Canaan. 00:29:07.000 --> 00:29:07.900 Not in the way 00:29:07.900 --> 00:29:08.320 that Abraham 00:29:08.320 --> 00:29:08.920 thought 00:29:08.920 --> 00:29:10.200 or not in the way 00:29:10.200 --> 00:29:10.680 that Sarah 00:29:10.680 --> 00:29:11.140 thought 00:29:11.140 --> 00:29:12.220 but God 00:29:12.220 --> 00:29:13.160 has moved 00:29:13.160 --> 00:29:15.660 and fulfilled 00:29:15.660 --> 00:29:16.440 his promises. 00:29:17.120 --> 00:29:18.100 If you think about that, 00:29:18.140 --> 00:29:18.880 that's the life 00:29:18.880 --> 00:29:19.440 of Sarah. 00:29:20.000 --> 00:29:20.740 Sarah never thought 00:29:20.740 --> 00:29:21.220 she would have 00:29:21.220 --> 00:29:21.680 children. 00:29:22.580 --> 00:29:23.519 Sarah never thought 00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:25.240 that she would have 00:29:25.240 --> 00:29:26.299 a nation 00:29:26.299 --> 00:29:27.660 out of her 00:29:27.660 --> 00:29:28.519 as numerous 00:29:28.519 --> 00:29:29.879 as the sands 00:29:29.879 --> 00:29:30.559 on the seashore. 00:29:30.660 --> 00:29:31.460 She never thought 00:29:31.460 --> 00:29:32.319 any of that would happen. 00:29:32.680 --> 00:29:33.539 She never thought 00:29:33.539 --> 00:29:34.720 that she would have land. 00:29:37.119 --> 00:29:38.099 But the end 00:29:38.099 --> 00:29:38.819 of that promise 00:29:38.819 --> 00:29:39.940 in Genesis 17 00:29:39.940 --> 00:29:41.299 that I will be 00:29:41.299 --> 00:29:41.900 their God, 00:29:42.039 --> 00:29:42.839 that God will be 00:29:42.839 --> 00:29:43.420 with them, 00:29:43.799 --> 00:29:44.720 that was the thing 00:29:44.720 --> 00:29:45.339 that she was 00:29:45.339 --> 00:29:46.639 to hold fast to, 00:29:46.839 --> 00:29:48.379 to cling tightly to. 00:29:49.619 --> 00:29:50.579 That's what God 00:29:50.579 --> 00:29:51.579 promised to do. 00:29:51.940 --> 00:29:53.339 That's the North Star 00:29:53.339 --> 00:29:54.339 as we navigate 00:29:54.339 --> 00:29:55.159 this life. 00:29:56.099 --> 00:29:56.740 That God 00:29:56.740 --> 00:29:57.619 will be there. 00:29:57.859 --> 00:29:59.099 That he will be 00:29:59.099 --> 00:30:00.299 your God. 00:30:00.939 --> 00:30:01.759 I will be 00:30:01.759 --> 00:30:02.339 your God. 00:30:02.419 --> 00:30:03.099 When we feel 00:30:03.099 --> 00:30:04.099 like he's distant 00:30:04.099 --> 00:30:05.740 or he doesn't hear us, 00:30:06.199 --> 00:30:06.980 I will be 00:30:06.980 --> 00:30:07.579 your God. 00:30:07.939 --> 00:30:08.720 When we feel 00:30:08.720 --> 00:30:09.639 like that he 00:30:09.639 --> 00:30:10.419 doesn't answer 00:30:10.419 --> 00:30:11.099 our prayer, 00:30:11.720 --> 00:30:12.399 I will be 00:30:12.399 --> 00:30:13.019 your God. 00:30:13.379 --> 00:30:14.259 When we struggle 00:30:14.259 --> 00:30:15.439 through if children 00:30:15.439 --> 00:30:16.299 are walking away 00:30:16.299 --> 00:30:16.980 from the Lord 00:30:16.980 --> 00:30:17.899 or a husband 00:30:17.899 --> 00:30:18.459 or a wife 00:30:18.459 --> 00:30:19.759 isn't as they should be 00:30:19.759 --> 00:30:21.799 or they've left us, 00:30:22.139 --> 00:30:22.980 I will be 00:30:22.980 --> 00:30:23.860 your God. 00:30:24.860 --> 00:30:26.259 God is faithful 00:30:26.259 --> 00:30:28.240 to all those promises 00:30:28.240 --> 00:30:30.640 despite what we can see, 00:30:31.799 --> 00:30:32.940 despite if we have 00:30:32.940 --> 00:30:34.140 a home or not. 00:30:34.860 --> 00:30:36.079 I will be 00:30:36.079 --> 00:30:36.839 your God. 00:30:38.140 --> 00:30:39.039 There's one 00:30:39.039 --> 00:30:40.000 nagging problem 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:40.880 in this text 00:30:40.880 --> 00:30:41.860 that we haven't dealt with. 00:30:42.420 --> 00:30:43.980 The promise about land 00:30:43.980 --> 00:30:45.120 might have fulfillment 00:30:45.120 --> 00:30:46.019 in Abraham's 00:30:46.019 --> 00:30:46.480 bartering 00:30:46.480 --> 00:30:47.620 and getting a good deal 00:30:47.620 --> 00:30:48.500 on a burial plot. 00:30:48.500 --> 00:30:50.240 However, 00:30:51.240 --> 00:30:52.039 he doesn't own 00:30:52.039 --> 00:30:53.019 all of Canaan, 00:30:53.160 --> 00:30:53.519 does he? 00:30:53.859 --> 00:30:55.079 He owns a small 00:30:55.079 --> 00:30:56.119 slice of it. 00:30:56.920 --> 00:30:57.720 The promise 00:30:57.720 --> 00:30:58.640 about land 00:30:58.640 --> 00:31:00.779 was for all of it, 00:31:01.059 --> 00:31:02.000 all of Canaan. 00:31:03.339 --> 00:31:04.240 But God 00:31:04.240 --> 00:31:05.539 is not done yet. 00:31:06.240 --> 00:31:06.960 At the end 00:31:06.960 --> 00:31:08.039 of the life 00:31:08.039 --> 00:31:08.720 of Sarah, 00:31:09.700 --> 00:31:10.920 God has work 00:31:10.920 --> 00:31:12.000 yet to do. 00:31:14.079 --> 00:31:15.079 At the end 00:31:15.079 --> 00:31:15.559 of the life 00:31:15.559 --> 00:31:16.240 of Abraham, 00:31:16.640 --> 00:31:17.519 the promise 00:31:17.519 --> 00:31:18.480 is that 00:31:18.500 --> 00:31:20.460 is not finished. 00:31:20.960 --> 00:31:21.420 God 00:31:21.420 --> 00:31:22.779 has work 00:31:22.779 --> 00:31:23.519 to do. 00:31:23.640 --> 00:31:24.160 The promise 00:31:24.160 --> 00:31:24.880 of descendants, 00:31:25.140 --> 00:31:25.660 the promise 00:31:25.660 --> 00:31:26.900 of an everlasting 00:31:26.900 --> 00:31:27.559 covenant, 00:31:28.720 --> 00:31:29.799 and even here 00:31:29.799 --> 00:31:30.559 with all 00:31:30.559 --> 00:31:31.119 of the land 00:31:31.119 --> 00:31:31.700 of Canaan 00:31:31.700 --> 00:31:33.000 is not 00:31:33.000 --> 00:31:34.220 yet finished. 00:31:34.799 --> 00:31:35.700 It's fulfilled 00:31:35.700 --> 00:31:36.380 partly 00:31:36.380 --> 00:31:38.480 in buying 00:31:38.480 --> 00:31:39.440 a burial plot. 00:31:39.880 --> 00:31:40.839 But one day, 00:31:41.140 --> 00:31:41.859 all of that 00:31:41.859 --> 00:31:42.660 land of Canaan 00:31:42.660 --> 00:31:43.500 will belong 00:31:43.500 --> 00:31:44.839 to Abraham's 00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:45.299 descendants. 00:31:45.579 --> 00:31:46.539 It points forward 00:31:46.539 --> 00:31:47.259 to a day 00:31:47.259 --> 00:31:49.019 when that land 00:31:49.019 --> 00:31:50.339 will all be theirs. 00:31:50.940 --> 00:31:51.539 But it's not 00:31:51.539 --> 00:31:52.099 really about 00:31:52.099 --> 00:31:52.819 that land. 00:31:53.279 --> 00:31:53.839 It's about 00:31:53.839 --> 00:31:54.980 the heavenly land 00:31:54.980 --> 00:31:56.059 to which 00:31:56.059 --> 00:31:57.720 all those people 00:31:57.720 --> 00:31:59.379 that follow Christ 00:31:59.379 --> 00:32:00.180 are marching 00:32:00.180 --> 00:32:00.920 towards. 00:32:01.720 --> 00:32:02.839 And even now, 00:32:02.960 --> 00:32:03.859 we're sojourners 00:32:03.859 --> 00:32:04.599 and foreigners 00:32:04.599 --> 00:32:05.819 in this land. 00:32:06.220 --> 00:32:07.420 But we are longing 00:32:07.420 --> 00:32:08.379 for that day 00:32:08.379 --> 00:32:10.079 when we will rest 00:32:10.079 --> 00:32:11.039 in that land. 00:32:11.379 --> 00:32:12.720 Not on a burial 00:32:12.720 --> 00:32:13.259 plot, 00:32:13.259 --> 00:32:15.680 but in the land 00:32:15.680 --> 00:32:17.240 fully and finally. 00:32:17.819 --> 00:32:18.599 And our ticket 00:32:18.599 --> 00:32:19.940 is punched. 00:32:20.720 --> 00:32:20.859 Our 00:32:20.859 --> 00:32:23.960 certain hope 00:32:23.960 --> 00:32:24.900 that we have 00:32:24.900 --> 00:32:26.339 is bought 00:32:26.339 --> 00:32:27.220 and secured 00:32:27.220 --> 00:32:27.940 by the blood 00:32:27.940 --> 00:32:28.559 of Christ. 00:32:29.059 --> 00:32:30.539 That promise 00:32:30.539 --> 00:32:31.960 that was made 00:32:31.960 --> 00:32:32.980 all the way back 00:32:32.980 --> 00:32:33.740 in all those 00:32:33.740 --> 00:32:34.920 pages before 00:32:34.920 --> 00:32:36.480 is Jesus. 00:32:36.480 --> 00:32:36.660 Jesus. 00:32:37.660 --> 00:32:39.200 And that land 00:32:39.200 --> 00:32:40.559 is the hope. 00:32:41.259 --> 00:32:42.000 That land 00:32:42.000 --> 00:32:43.920 is really heaven. 00:32:44.720 --> 00:32:45.779 So it matters 00:32:45.779 --> 00:32:46.460 not 00:32:46.460 --> 00:32:48.640 whether we walk 00:32:48.640 --> 00:32:51.019 and we don't see 00:32:51.019 --> 00:32:51.599 the effects 00:32:51.599 --> 00:32:52.360 or don't feel 00:32:52.360 --> 00:32:53.120 his presence, 00:32:53.440 --> 00:32:54.360 but the sure 00:32:54.360 --> 00:32:55.220 certain hope 00:32:55.220 --> 00:32:55.819 that we have 00:32:55.819 --> 00:32:56.539 in Christ 00:32:56.539 --> 00:32:57.839 as we march 00:32:57.839 --> 00:32:58.740 on to that 00:32:58.740 --> 00:33:00.000 celestial city, 00:33:00.380 --> 00:33:01.299 to the land 00:33:01.299 --> 00:33:01.860 that we were 00:33:01.860 --> 00:33:02.400 promised. 00:33:02.740 --> 00:33:03.839 And all of it, 00:33:03.839 --> 00:33:05.059 not in part, 00:33:06.059 --> 00:33:07.379 but all of it. 00:33:08.240 --> 00:33:08.759 Christian, 00:33:09.159 --> 00:33:09.859 you are not 00:33:09.859 --> 00:33:11.139 made for this world. 00:33:12.359 --> 00:33:13.679 You are a sojourner 00:33:13.679 --> 00:33:14.779 and you are a foreigner 00:33:14.779 --> 00:33:15.679 in this land. 00:33:17.159 --> 00:33:17.819 May we be 00:33:17.819 --> 00:33:18.419 reminded 00:33:18.419 --> 00:33:19.619 of that. 00:33:20.399 --> 00:33:21.119 May we have 00:33:21.119 --> 00:33:21.679 relief 00:33:21.679 --> 00:33:22.599 in this life 00:33:22.599 --> 00:33:23.459 from our sin. 00:33:23.959 --> 00:33:24.599 May we 00:33:24.599 --> 00:33:25.740 escape 00:33:25.740 --> 00:33:26.459 punishment 00:33:26.459 --> 00:33:27.539 from that 00:33:27.539 --> 00:33:28.480 as we dwell 00:33:28.480 --> 00:33:29.220 in the land 00:33:29.220 --> 00:33:30.459 for all eternity. 00:33:31.480 --> 00:33:32.259 Will you come 00:33:32.259 --> 00:33:32.819 to him 00:33:32.819 --> 00:33:33.819 even now? 00:33:34.240 --> 00:33:34.699 Let's pray. 00:33:36.279 --> 00:33:36.839 Lord, 00:33:36.879 --> 00:33:37.319 we thank you 00:33:37.319 --> 00:33:37.939 for the reminder 00:33:37.939 --> 00:33:38.599 that we have 00:33:38.599 --> 00:33:39.199 this morning 00:33:39.199 --> 00:33:41.199 that we march 00:33:41.199 --> 00:33:42.439 on to a certain 00:33:42.439 --> 00:33:42.919 hope, 00:33:43.559 --> 00:33:44.500 a sure hope, 00:33:44.799 --> 00:33:46.679 that we march 00:33:46.679 --> 00:33:47.799 on to a land 00:33:47.799 --> 00:33:48.939 not in part 00:33:48.939 --> 00:33:49.639 but in whole. 00:33:50.519 --> 00:33:50.939 And Father, 00:33:51.059 --> 00:33:51.679 may we look 00:33:51.679 --> 00:33:52.159 back 00:33:52.159 --> 00:33:53.639 to a person 00:33:53.639 --> 00:33:54.299 like Sarah 00:33:54.299 --> 00:33:55.500 and think 00:33:55.500 --> 00:33:56.839 of her sure 00:33:56.839 --> 00:33:57.500 and present 00:33:57.500 --> 00:33:57.939 hope 00:33:57.939 --> 00:33:59.379 in your promises, 00:33:59.659 --> 00:34:00.439 in your fulfillment 00:34:00.439 --> 00:34:01.399 of those promises. 00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:02.579 And may we 00:34:02.579 --> 00:34:03.439 lift up 00:34:03.439 --> 00:34:04.559 our praise 00:34:04.559 --> 00:34:05.099 to you 00:34:05.099 --> 00:34:06.099 that you are 00:34:06.099 --> 00:34:07.220 covenant-keeping, 00:34:07.480 --> 00:34:09.019 a promise-fulfilling God. 00:34:09.539 --> 00:34:10.440 We ask this 00:34:10.440 --> 00:34:11.380 in Jesus' name. 00:34:11.759 --> 00:34:12.000 Amen.