WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.520 Good morning church family, my name's Bec if I haven't met you yet and this morning I'm going to bring the Bible reading. 00:00:06.520 --> 00:00:09.679 So we're going to open up to Romans chapter 5. 00:00:09.679 --> 00:00:16.379 So we're going to read a short passage from there and then chapter 8 for a bit of context for Romans 9 later in the sermon. 00:00:17.179 --> 00:00:21.800 So Romans chapter 5 starting at verse 6 if you've got your Bibles open or your devices. 00:00:24.379 --> 00:00:29.359 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:36.539 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die. 00:00:36.799 --> 00:00:44.380 But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 00:00:45.539 --> 00:00:53.640 Since therefore we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 00:00:53.640 --> 00:01:06.140 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 00:01:07.040 --> 00:01:15.079 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation. 00:01:15.079 --> 00:01:20.739 And then now if you turn over to chapter 8 and we're going to start from verse 31. 00:01:20.739 --> 00:01:26.119 What then shall we say to these things? 00:01:26.599 --> 00:01:29.719 If God is for us, who can be against us? 00:01:30.419 --> 00:01:39.879 He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 00:01:40.679 --> 00:01:43.419 Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? 00:01:44.079 --> 00:01:46.179 It is God who justifies. 00:01:47.079 --> 00:01:48.199 Who is to condemn? 00:01:48.200 --> 00:01:51.380 Christ Jesus is the one who died. 00:01:51.740 --> 00:01:54.000 More than that, who was raised. 00:01:54.460 --> 00:01:59.320 Who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 00:02:00.200 --> 00:02:03.180 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? 00:02:03.900 --> 00:02:12.500 Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 00:02:12.500 --> 00:02:18.840 As it is written, for your sake we are being killed all the day long. 00:02:19.680 --> 00:02:22.360 We are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered. 00:02:23.419 --> 00:02:30.840 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 00:02:30.840 --> 00:02:47.439 For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, 00:02:48.280 --> 00:02:53.680 will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 00:02:53.680 --> 00:02:55.340 This is the word of the Lord. 00:02:59.219 --> 00:03:00.920 That was a blast from the past. 00:03:02.319 --> 00:03:04.200 I don't know when I last sang that song. 00:03:04.420 --> 00:03:05.219 Thanks, music team. 00:03:09.260 --> 00:03:10.200 My name's Martin. 00:03:10.360 --> 00:03:11.640 I'm one of the pastors here. 00:03:12.060 --> 00:03:15.040 And thank you for that introduction, Alan. 00:03:16.620 --> 00:03:17.480 But I... 00:03:17.480 --> 00:03:18.640 Where's Alan? 00:03:18.639 --> 00:03:19.679 Where are you saying? 00:03:19.759 --> 00:03:27.359 Yeah, yeah, just so you know, we have allocated the hardest parts of Romans 9 to 11 to Dave. 00:03:27.799 --> 00:03:31.519 So, yeah, that was good planning on my part. 00:03:34.539 --> 00:03:40.439 Well, as Catherine shared in the kids' talk, there is nothing better than Jesus. 00:03:40.919 --> 00:03:46.299 There is nothing better than the grace and love of God that are found in Jesus Christ. 00:03:46.300 --> 00:03:55.560 If it came down to a choice between any of the other things I love or Jesus, it really is no choice. 00:03:56.060 --> 00:03:57.439 It would always be Jesus. 00:03:59.120 --> 00:04:01.180 Running or Jesus. 00:04:04.300 --> 00:04:07.220 Music or the love of God. 00:04:08.680 --> 00:04:12.500 Reading history books or eternal life. 00:04:12.500 --> 00:04:15.199 My job. 00:04:15.199 --> 00:04:15.199 00:04:16.040 --> 00:04:17.759 Or the grace of God. 00:04:19.040 --> 00:04:22.000 A house with a serene, leafy outlook. 00:04:22.759 --> 00:04:24.680 Or peace with God. 00:04:26.779 --> 00:04:28.060 My family. 00:04:29.060 --> 00:04:31.079 Or being a child of God. 00:04:33.779 --> 00:04:38.000 Jesus is better than all of those things, other things. 00:04:38.000 --> 00:04:43.579 Mostly, though, it doesn't come down to a choice, does it? 00:04:44.660 --> 00:04:49.779 Jesus doesn't take away the good gifts of creation which we enjoy. 00:04:50.540 --> 00:04:51.439 He enriches them. 00:04:51.540 --> 00:04:53.920 He transforms how we engage with them. 00:04:54.459 --> 00:04:57.000 He gives us a greater appreciation for those things. 00:04:57.839 --> 00:04:59.040 He makes us more thankful. 00:04:59.040 --> 00:05:08.100 But there are times when Jesus will call on me or call on you to say no to one of those other things we love. 00:05:08.300 --> 00:05:12.180 So that we, to remind us that he comes first and he's always worth it. 00:05:14.520 --> 00:05:15.740 I'm speaking about myself. 00:05:15.840 --> 00:05:16.740 I'm speaking about all of us. 00:05:16.780 --> 00:05:19.120 If you love Jesus, this is, I'm sure, your experience too. 00:05:19.200 --> 00:05:24.280 You know he, he and the blessings that are found in Jesus are better than anything else. 00:05:24.279 --> 00:05:35.779 And if you're looking for anywhere in the Bible to bathe in and savour and marvel at, at Jesus and the love of God, 00:05:36.599 --> 00:05:40.259 I doubt you could do better than Romans chapters 1 to 8. 00:05:40.259 --> 00:05:46.659 I wrote down a list of verses that I could read out at this point to show you. 00:05:46.800 --> 00:05:51.560 But there's probably about a dozen verses there and it would tire you if I read through all of them, 00:05:51.599 --> 00:05:56.779 which is why I asked Beck to read some parts of chapters 5 and chapter 8 for us this morning. 00:05:56.839 --> 00:05:57.860 But let me just read a few. 00:05:57.980 --> 00:06:02.180 Romans 3, 23 and 24. 00:06:02.180 --> 00:06:20.840 Romans 5 verse 1. 00:06:20.840 --> 00:06:28.160 Therefore, since we've been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:06:29.319 --> 00:06:31.300 Romans 6 verse 23. 00:06:31.300 --> 00:07:01.280 Romans 8 verse 13. 00:07:01.300 --> 00:07:02.800 Romans 8 and 39. 00:07:02.800 --> 00:07:08.460 I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, 00:07:08.560 --> 00:07:15.139 nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us 00:07:15.139 --> 00:07:20.080 from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 00:07:20.079 --> 00:07:27.899 If you've never taken the time to memorize any parts of Scripture and you want to start, 00:07:28.599 --> 00:07:32.399 why not pick some verses from Romans chapters 1 to 8? 00:07:32.399 --> 00:07:33.899 You couldn't do better than these chapters. 00:07:33.899 --> 00:07:36.299 I mean, you couldn't do better than these chapters. 00:07:37.299 --> 00:07:42.239 To bathe in Jesus and his grace and the goodness and love of God. 00:07:44.519 --> 00:07:48.179 You want to remind yourself of how good it is to be saved by Christ? 00:07:48.399 --> 00:07:50.219 Go back to this part of God's Word. 00:07:50.220 --> 00:07:53.460 There's nothing better than Jesus. 00:07:53.460 --> 00:07:53.480 There's nothing better than Jesus. 00:07:57.480 --> 00:08:06.900 But there is one thing that is hard about faith in Jesus. 00:08:06.899 --> 00:08:16.519 I might even venture to suggest that it is the only thing that is hard about faith in Jesus. 00:08:18.599 --> 00:08:19.919 Is it repentance? 00:08:19.920 --> 00:08:20.319 Repentance? 00:08:21.520 --> 00:08:23.759 I mean, repentance is difficult. 00:08:24.819 --> 00:08:26.540 Turning away from sin is difficult. 00:08:28.240 --> 00:08:31.620 But it's not hard in the sense I'm talking about. 00:08:32.360 --> 00:08:35.440 I mean, when you turn from some cherished sin, 00:08:37.159 --> 00:08:42.340 some long practiced habit to which you've been enslaved, 00:08:42.879 --> 00:08:47.220 you turn from that sin, you'll discover actually that godliness is better. 00:08:47.220 --> 00:08:54.480 That there's more joy in turning from sin than in indulging in sin. 00:08:55.379 --> 00:09:00.019 That there's more joy in selflessness than in selfishness. 00:09:01.220 --> 00:09:05.700 That as Jesus said, it is more blessed to give than to receive. 00:09:06.180 --> 00:09:10.360 Repentance is difficult, but it's not hard. 00:09:12.360 --> 00:09:13.420 Is it suffering? 00:09:13.519 --> 00:09:14.340 Is it persecution? 00:09:14.340 --> 00:09:14.540 Persecution. 00:09:15.820 --> 00:09:20.879 Paul writes elsewhere, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. 00:09:21.879 --> 00:09:24.360 Now, I've got to admit, I haven't faced much persecution, 00:09:24.600 --> 00:09:27.480 so I'm not speaking so much from my own personal experience. 00:09:28.500 --> 00:09:34.379 But I do note that in the New Testament, persecution is not simply endured. 00:09:35.800 --> 00:09:40.620 Persecution is actually celebrated, if I might use that word. 00:09:40.620 --> 00:09:46.480 Jesus said, rejoice when people persecute you, for your reward in heaven is great. 00:09:48.039 --> 00:09:53.740 James said, count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 00:09:53.820 --> 00:09:58.080 all kinds of suffering, not just persecution that's confined to, but any suffering. 00:09:58.080 --> 00:10:06.740 Paul speaks in 2 Corinthians chapter 1, he says, the God of all comfort comforts us in all our affliction. 00:10:07.960 --> 00:10:15.200 So persecution and suffering may be difficult, but they're not hard. 00:10:15.200 --> 00:10:18.580 There's only one thing that's hard. 00:10:20.820 --> 00:10:26.980 If it's bothering you that I'm kind of distinguishing between synonyms here, difficult and hard, 00:10:27.100 --> 00:10:28.600 let me say this another way. 00:10:29.820 --> 00:10:32.300 Repentance, you might say, is hard, but good. 00:10:33.680 --> 00:10:35.879 Suffering and persecution are hard, but good. 00:10:35.879 --> 00:10:39.220 There's one thing that's just hard. 00:10:40.840 --> 00:10:42.019 And it's this. 00:10:44.259 --> 00:10:46.279 Not everyone will be saved. 00:10:53.379 --> 00:10:55.120 Not everyone will be saved. 00:10:55.220 --> 00:10:58.100 Or to put it in the words of Romans 2, there are people who, 00:10:58.100 --> 00:11:03.320 instead of receiving glory and honour and immortality and peace, 00:11:03.759 --> 00:11:09.440 are facing wrath and fury and tribulation and distress. 00:11:13.060 --> 00:11:14.740 And not just a few people. 00:11:16.139 --> 00:11:16.779 Many. 00:11:18.259 --> 00:11:19.279 Many people. 00:11:21.080 --> 00:11:24.120 Remember Jesus said, enter through the narrow gate, 00:11:24.120 --> 00:11:29.080 for wide is the gate that leads to destruction. 00:11:32.200 --> 00:11:35.919 How do we, who believe in Jesus, 00:11:37.120 --> 00:11:41.940 and there may be some here who aren't believers in Jesus, 00:11:42.039 --> 00:11:43.259 I'm glad you're here this morning. 00:11:44.279 --> 00:11:46.860 But I'm speaking to those who already believe in Jesus. 00:11:46.860 --> 00:11:50.159 How do we, as Christians, deal with the fact 00:11:50.159 --> 00:11:52.659 that not everyone will be saved? 00:11:55.120 --> 00:11:57.940 That's one of the questions addressed in this part of the Bible, 00:11:58.700 --> 00:12:01.519 Romans chapters 9 to 11, that we're embarking on this morning. 00:12:01.639 --> 00:12:04.519 We're going to have six talks in Romans 9 to 11, 00:12:04.639 --> 00:12:07.060 then a short break for a three-week series and something else, 00:12:07.100 --> 00:12:09.960 and then we're going to come and finish off the book of Romans 00:12:09.960 --> 00:12:11.659 in chapters 12 to 16. 00:12:13.679 --> 00:12:15.500 And chapters 12 to 16, 00:12:15.820 --> 00:12:20.860 Paul will unpack the implications of the gospel of grace for our life, 00:12:20.860 --> 00:12:23.159 each of our lives and for our life together. 00:12:24.399 --> 00:12:26.279 That's what we're coming to later in Romans. 00:12:26.279 --> 00:12:28.399 But the question we're starting with today is, 00:12:28.539 --> 00:12:31.919 how do we, as Christians, deal with what is, in my view, 00:12:31.980 --> 00:12:33.740 the hardest thing about being a Christian, 00:12:33.980 --> 00:12:36.220 which is the fact that not everyone will be saved? 00:12:37.639 --> 00:12:43.220 We find two answers to that question in Romans 9, verses 1 to 13. 00:12:43.220 --> 00:12:46.540 The first answer in Romans 1 to 5 is this, 00:12:46.860 --> 00:12:52.019 not all are saved and we should weep. 00:12:53.800 --> 00:12:57.279 Look at verses 1 and 2 with me, Romans chapter 9, verses 1 and 2. 00:12:57.980 --> 00:12:58.700 Paul writes, 00:12:58.700 --> 00:13:17.259 These are verses of lament. 00:13:18.700 --> 00:13:20.379 What Paul pours out here, 00:13:21.379 --> 00:13:23.500 and it's clear from the verses that follow, 00:13:23.620 --> 00:13:26.240 what he's lamenting is he's lamenting the lost. 00:13:26.240 --> 00:13:34.120 In verse 1, notice how emphatic Paul is that he's telling the truth. 00:13:35.320 --> 00:13:37.279 I mean, he drives it home. 00:13:37.399 --> 00:13:38.299 He's not lying. 00:13:38.320 --> 00:13:39.379 He's telling the truth. 00:13:40.279 --> 00:13:44.620 This is part of his experience of being a follower of Christ. 00:13:46.259 --> 00:13:51.240 Verse 2, notice the two adjectives he uses to describe his grief. 00:13:51.240 --> 00:13:52.120 He says, 00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:56.060 His sorrow is great and his anguish is unceasing. 00:13:56.240 --> 00:13:58.539 The first speaks of its magnitude. 00:13:59.919 --> 00:14:03.980 The second of its extent, that it's ever-present, that it's constant, 00:14:04.980 --> 00:14:09.039 that it is anguish without reprieve or relief. 00:14:09.039 --> 00:14:18.719 When I became a Christian at age 12, I was convicted of my sin. 00:14:19.120 --> 00:14:20.439 I was excited. 00:14:21.000 --> 00:14:27.559 I was relieved, thankful, overjoyed at God's grace. 00:14:27.559 --> 00:14:32.899 I don't think at the time I became a Christian, 00:14:33.139 --> 00:14:37.719 I was aware that I was opting into, along with those things, 00:14:38.219 --> 00:14:38.919 which are real, 00:14:39.459 --> 00:14:44.879 but I don't think I was aware at the time that I was opting into also sorrow, 00:14:45.639 --> 00:14:47.859 great sorrow, and unceasing anguish. 00:14:47.860 --> 00:14:55.680 That those were things that I would then carry with me for the rest of my life. 00:14:58.539 --> 00:15:03.700 Now, I don't think it's any wonder that one of the biggest objections to Christianity 00:15:03.700 --> 00:15:07.080 is that, simply that, that not all are saved. 00:15:07.080 --> 00:15:11.860 Some will be lost, eternally. 00:15:13.980 --> 00:15:16.420 Our society balks against this. 00:15:16.620 --> 00:15:17.860 We balk against it. 00:15:19.740 --> 00:15:24.480 A faith that might result in you feeling that way 00:15:24.480 --> 00:15:28.080 is offensive to us. 00:15:28.080 --> 00:15:32.000 Our society teaches, 00:15:33.480 --> 00:15:35.360 only do what makes you feel happy. 00:15:37.300 --> 00:15:39.800 Actually, in the 21st century, we've perfected that saying 00:15:39.800 --> 00:15:40.639 and turned it into, 00:15:41.200 --> 00:15:44.120 only believe what makes you feel happy. 00:15:45.100 --> 00:15:48.020 And so people force themselves to believe 00:15:48.020 --> 00:15:51.660 all sorts of irrational and illogical and unscientific things 00:15:51.660 --> 00:15:54.580 just because they find it comforting to believe those things. 00:15:54.580 --> 00:15:59.240 If our society lives by the creed, 00:15:59.320 --> 00:16:01.620 only do and believe what makes you happy, 00:16:02.680 --> 00:16:07.500 then they can't grasp how anyone could believe 00:16:07.500 --> 00:16:11.220 that some people are eternally damned. 00:16:15.120 --> 00:16:16.800 Christians find it hard too. 00:16:18.040 --> 00:16:21.720 The belief that not all are saved is a heavy load to bear. 00:16:22.840 --> 00:16:24.379 What do we do with it? 00:16:24.580 --> 00:16:31.139 I'm taking my car to the mechanic tomorrow. 00:16:32.780 --> 00:16:36.259 Now, I have no idea whether the mechanic at my car, 00:16:36.440 --> 00:16:39.520 Green Hills Shopping Centre, is a Christian or not. 00:16:41.879 --> 00:16:45.320 I kind of just want him to be the guy who fixes my car. 00:16:47.820 --> 00:16:49.920 Not the guy who fixes my car, 00:16:50.400 --> 00:16:53.400 who may also be facing eternal damnation 00:16:53.399 --> 00:16:54.600 if he doesn't believe in Jesus. 00:16:56.059 --> 00:16:57.319 What do I do with that? 00:17:01.159 --> 00:17:03.139 Well, there are two things I mustn't do. 00:17:03.959 --> 00:17:08.440 There are two errors that these verses absolutely rule out. 00:17:08.440 --> 00:17:13.700 The first error I'd call sentimental universalism. 00:17:15.880 --> 00:17:18.880 Universalism is the belief that everyone is saved in the end. 00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:24.440 Maybe because God accepts all different religions as equally valid paths, 00:17:24.539 --> 00:17:26.640 just pick the one that suits you, that's fine. 00:17:26.900 --> 00:17:30.320 Or maybe it's because God wants to give everyone a second chance after death. 00:17:30.319 --> 00:17:34.480 Whatever the mechanism, universalism teaches that everyone is saved in the end. 00:17:36.879 --> 00:17:40.879 It's the kind of sentimentality we encounter at funerals 00:17:40.879 --> 00:17:43.500 of people who never gave a second thought to God 00:17:43.500 --> 00:17:44.460 when someone says, 00:17:44.559 --> 00:17:47.099 I know that somewhere up there Bill's looking down with us 00:17:47.099 --> 00:17:48.619 and he's having a beer with his mates. 00:17:50.059 --> 00:17:51.439 You know, based on nothing. 00:17:51.440 --> 00:17:55.759 No basis in reality, just wishful thinking. 00:17:58.320 --> 00:18:01.460 If all were saved in the end, 00:18:02.420 --> 00:18:03.799 Paul wouldn't weep like this. 00:18:04.779 --> 00:18:06.600 Paul wouldn't lament like this. 00:18:07.980 --> 00:18:12.759 The true doctrine of salvation leads to grief over the lost, 00:18:13.320 --> 00:18:14.960 not sentimental complacency. 00:18:14.960 --> 00:18:19.120 So that's the first error these verses rule out. 00:18:19.160 --> 00:18:20.600 There's a second error these verses rule out 00:18:20.600 --> 00:18:23.720 and that's what I'd call callous Calvinism. 00:18:25.100 --> 00:18:26.579 Calvinism teaches, yes, 00:18:27.700 --> 00:18:30.200 only some are saved. 00:18:32.100 --> 00:18:33.720 But God's sovereign in salvation. 00:18:33.880 --> 00:18:35.920 He'll save whomever he wants. 00:18:36.660 --> 00:18:38.059 So don't worry about the lost. 00:18:38.160 --> 00:18:39.660 Don't worry about those who aren't saved. 00:18:39.740 --> 00:18:41.519 I mean, just enjoy your salvation. 00:18:41.519 --> 00:18:44.579 If some people are lost eternally, don't worry. 00:18:44.839 --> 00:18:47.599 That'll all work out for God's glory in the end. 00:18:47.740 --> 00:18:49.139 It's for the best in the end. 00:18:50.419 --> 00:18:52.339 That's what I'd call callous Calvinism. 00:18:52.500 --> 00:18:53.939 Now, of course, these two errors are different. 00:18:55.259 --> 00:18:56.359 They're different in nature. 00:18:56.460 --> 00:18:58.699 The problem with the first error is in the noun. 00:18:58.799 --> 00:19:00.619 The problem with the second error is in the adjective. 00:19:01.619 --> 00:19:04.839 The problem with sentimental universalism is the universalism. 00:19:06.179 --> 00:19:09.460 The problem with callous Calvinism is not the Calvinism, 00:19:09.460 --> 00:19:10.519 it's the callousness. 00:19:10.519 --> 00:19:16.879 But either way, if your understanding of the gospel doesn't lead you 00:19:16.879 --> 00:19:21.180 to have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in your heart, 00:19:21.579 --> 00:19:24.740 then something is out of place. 00:19:26.359 --> 00:19:30.539 Not all are saved and that ought to prompt us to weep. 00:19:32.240 --> 00:19:33.220 Jesus wept. 00:19:33.220 --> 00:19:36.819 The apostle Paul wept. 00:19:38.200 --> 00:19:39.059 We should weep. 00:19:42.600 --> 00:19:48.240 Now, just to clarify, we all, we vary, you know, 00:19:48.279 --> 00:19:53.720 we range in the level of our outward emotional display. 00:19:53.720 --> 00:20:00.380 We even vary in the intensity with which we experience emotions generally. 00:20:02.039 --> 00:20:04.259 Some people will cry at a TV commercial. 00:20:05.900 --> 00:20:08.059 Others are a bit more like Mr. Spock. 00:20:10.680 --> 00:20:18.380 Understand, the real issue here is not how overt our emotional display is, 00:20:18.380 --> 00:20:24.080 but, I mean, this has to, this truth has to move you somehow. 00:20:25.740 --> 00:20:27.440 It must affect you. 00:20:28.460 --> 00:20:29.600 How could it not? 00:20:32.320 --> 00:20:33.920 Now, hold that thought. 00:20:35.840 --> 00:20:37.340 We're going to come back to that soon. 00:20:38.860 --> 00:20:43.880 But first, there's something else you need to see here as what's going on for Paul 00:20:43.880 --> 00:20:46.580 as he poured out his lament. 00:20:46.900 --> 00:20:48.220 Look at verses 3 to 5. 00:20:49.160 --> 00:20:50.000 Verses 3 to 5. 00:20:50.700 --> 00:20:51.120 Paul says, 00:20:51.420 --> 00:20:56.080 For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ 00:20:56.080 --> 00:20:59.880 for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race, 00:21:00.800 --> 00:21:01.960 the people of Israel. 00:21:03.280 --> 00:21:05.000 Theirs is the adoption of sons. 00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:09.240 Theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, 00:21:09.340 --> 00:21:11.040 the temple worship and the promises. 00:21:12.000 --> 00:21:17.660 Theirs are the patriarchs and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ. 00:21:17.660 --> 00:21:21.680 Who is God over all, forever praised. 00:21:22.320 --> 00:21:22.759 Amen. 00:21:28.360 --> 00:21:33.480 Can you see that Paul's grief had both personal and theological dimensions? 00:21:33.480 --> 00:21:34.220 Personal. 00:21:34.220 --> 00:21:34.220 00:21:34.220 --> 00:21:36.420 Personal. 00:21:36.620 --> 00:21:39.640 He says, for the sake of my brothers. 00:21:39.640 --> 00:21:43.180 My kinsmen according to the flesh. 00:21:43.180 --> 00:21:49.200 Now, mostly when Paul speaks of his brothers about 139 times in his letters, 00:21:49.500 --> 00:21:50.360 he means Christians. 00:21:52.740 --> 00:21:56.320 But here he clarifies whom he means by brothers by adding, 00:21:56.319 --> 00:21:59.240 my kinsmen according to the flesh. 00:21:59.240 --> 00:22:00.939 He's speaking about his fellow Jews. 00:22:00.940 --> 00:22:04.860 See, it's just natural. 00:22:06.600 --> 00:22:07.580 Natural for Paul. 00:22:07.759 --> 00:22:08.460 Natural for us. 00:22:08.640 --> 00:22:12.039 It's just natural that our grief is especially pronounced 00:22:12.039 --> 00:22:15.160 when you consider those who are closest to you. 00:22:16.240 --> 00:22:20.240 Family members, friends, colleagues. 00:22:20.240 --> 00:22:27.960 It's just natural that those for whom we feel strong bonds and affection, 00:22:28.319 --> 00:22:30.599 that our grief is more pronounced there. 00:22:32.140 --> 00:22:37.299 I mean, even parasocial relationships can trigger this, you know, 00:22:37.299 --> 00:22:38.359 a more intense grief. 00:22:38.579 --> 00:22:40.339 You know what I mean by parasocial relationships? 00:22:40.339 --> 00:22:41.799 Like with a celebrity or something. 00:22:41.799 --> 00:22:47.899 I remember a friend of mine who was an avid In Excess fan crying 00:22:47.899 --> 00:22:53.480 when Michael Hutchence died because it just hit her in that moment, right, 00:22:53.519 --> 00:22:57.879 that the realisation that in all likelihood he died outside of Christ. 00:23:02.200 --> 00:23:05.539 So there's this personal dimension to Paul's grief as he grieves 00:23:05.539 --> 00:23:07.859 over his fellow Jews. 00:23:08.539 --> 00:23:10.819 But there's also a theological dimension. 00:23:11.599 --> 00:23:15.899 Paul's grief was amplified by the privileges his fellow Jews enjoyed 00:23:15.899 --> 00:23:17.700 as God's Old Testament people. 00:23:17.899 --> 00:23:20.319 And so he gives us this list in verse 4. 00:23:20.419 --> 00:23:20.919 They're Israelites. 00:23:21.079 --> 00:23:22.279 They're of the nation of Israel. 00:23:23.359 --> 00:23:23.839 Adoption. 00:23:23.919 --> 00:23:26.579 They're the ones of whom God had said in the Old Testament, 00:23:26.779 --> 00:23:28.619 Israel is my firstborn son. 00:23:29.720 --> 00:23:30.200 Glory. 00:23:30.500 --> 00:23:32.539 God's presence had been with them. 00:23:32.899 --> 00:23:36.299 This visible manifestation of God's glory in the tabernacle, 00:23:36.399 --> 00:23:37.000 in the temple. 00:23:38.019 --> 00:23:38.500 Covenants. 00:23:38.500 --> 00:23:42.339 The covenants with Abraham and with Israel at Mount Sinai and with David. 00:23:42.660 --> 00:23:45.099 These were all part of Israel's heritage. 00:23:45.920 --> 00:23:48.359 The giving of the law through Moses at Sinai. 00:23:48.500 --> 00:23:48.839 Worship. 00:23:48.960 --> 00:23:49.519 The temple. 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:50.759 The sacrificial system. 00:23:51.480 --> 00:23:52.019 The promises. 00:23:52.160 --> 00:23:55.740 All of God's promises sort of brought to us through the nation of Israel. 00:23:55.740 --> 00:23:58.759 Verse 5. 00:23:58.759 --> 00:24:00.759 There's are the patriarchs. 00:24:01.160 --> 00:24:02.879 And Abraham, Isaac, Jacob. 00:24:03.799 --> 00:24:06.160 We've been hearing about in the book of Genesis. 00:24:07.640 --> 00:24:11.079 There's are the patriarchs and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ. 00:24:11.180 --> 00:24:15.099 Notice how in verse 5 Paul brings together the beginning of God's plan of salvation, 00:24:15.240 --> 00:24:16.400 the patriarchs, and its end. 00:24:17.799 --> 00:24:19.180 The coming of Christ. 00:24:19.180 --> 00:24:24.759 The one who fulfills the promises, who brings blessing. 00:24:24.900 --> 00:24:26.180 And notice what's said about Christ. 00:24:26.299 --> 00:24:28.440 Christ who is God over all. 00:24:29.360 --> 00:24:30.500 Forever praised. 00:24:31.480 --> 00:24:32.039 Amen. 00:24:34.640 --> 00:24:36.960 I mean, how could they have all these things? 00:24:36.960 --> 00:24:47.700 How could they have all these privileges that pointed to and promised and foreshadowed and led up to Christ 00:24:47.700 --> 00:24:51.980 and yet not have Jesus Christ himself? 00:24:55.400 --> 00:24:59.759 Now, Paul was writing from around about the year AD 56. 00:25:00.120 --> 00:25:03.079 He's writing from Corinth to the Christians in Rome. 00:25:03.180 --> 00:25:04.400 He hasn't visited Rome yet. 00:25:04.400 --> 00:25:08.880 He knows some of them from other things, but he hasn't been there personally yet to visit them. 00:25:08.940 --> 00:25:10.680 He's writing around 56 AD. 00:25:11.000 --> 00:25:16.600 We know from the book of Acts that the first and the gospels, the first believers in Jesus were all Jews. 00:25:19.080 --> 00:25:21.800 By the time Paul wrote to Rome, he's writing to this group. 00:25:22.080 --> 00:25:23.460 It's a mixed church in Rome. 00:25:23.580 --> 00:25:24.940 There are Jews, Jewish Christians. 00:25:25.060 --> 00:25:26.060 There are Gentile Christians. 00:25:26.860 --> 00:25:33.980 But by this stage, by AD 56, it was clear that the majority of Jews had not believed in Jesus. 00:25:34.400 --> 00:25:41.680 And that raised some specific questions which will come through as we step through Romans chapters 9 to 11. 00:25:42.820 --> 00:25:47.300 But leaving aside the particular question of Israel and the Jewish people, 00:25:47.759 --> 00:25:52.759 realise that there can be both personal and theological reasons for grief over the lost. 00:25:53.940 --> 00:25:57.980 Israel had its particular privileges which amplified Paul's grief. 00:25:57.980 --> 00:26:07.880 But it's also true that every single human being is made in the image of God. 00:26:08.680 --> 00:26:11.380 Every single human being created in God's image. 00:26:12.099 --> 00:26:13.960 Created for a relationship with God. 00:26:14.059 --> 00:26:15.900 Created to rule over the world he's made. 00:26:16.940 --> 00:26:18.019 Created for life. 00:26:18.180 --> 00:26:19.079 Created for glory. 00:26:19.259 --> 00:26:21.380 Every single human being in God's image. 00:26:21.380 --> 00:26:22.520 Created for life. 00:26:22.520 --> 00:26:22.520 00:26:22.520 --> 00:26:22.840 Created for life. 00:26:22.840 --> 00:26:23.780 Created for life. 00:26:23.780 --> 00:26:24.600 Created for life. 00:26:24.600 --> 00:26:27.720 When you recognise the image of God in people, you will value them. 00:26:29.340 --> 00:26:33.100 You'll feel a sense of connection with them. 00:26:33.940 --> 00:26:35.540 And you'll cherish them. 00:26:36.360 --> 00:26:39.040 No matter how different they may be to you on the surface. 00:26:40.500 --> 00:26:46.140 Now we've all had the experience of seeing something precious, damaged or destroyed. 00:26:46.140 --> 00:26:53.000 The more precious the object, the greater the grief at its loss. 00:26:55.360 --> 00:26:56.900 You know, losing a wedding ring. 00:27:00.220 --> 00:27:04.020 My wife and I, we lost the negatives of our wedding photos. 00:27:07.140 --> 00:27:14.000 Maybe it was watching in 2019 as Notre Dame Cathedral burned in a fire. 00:27:14.000 --> 00:27:15.800 It caused so much destruction. 00:27:16.140 --> 00:27:23.240 Or reading about an animal that's become extinct, a species that's become extinct. 00:27:23.480 --> 00:27:27.640 I mean, when something precious is destroyed, there is grief associated with it. 00:27:28.960 --> 00:27:33.300 But none of those things is remotely comparable to a single human being. 00:27:35.060 --> 00:27:36.780 A single human being. 00:27:36.779 --> 00:27:42.099 It's tough. 00:27:42.220 --> 00:27:42.980 It's gruelling. 00:27:42.980 --> 00:28:00.700 Watching the steady decay, erasure of humanity or disintegration of humanity in someone who's suffering from dementia or motor neurone disease or Parkinson's or a similar degenerative disease. 00:28:00.700 --> 00:28:06.620 To watch that steady undoing of their humanity. 00:28:06.619 --> 00:28:14.259 The image of God being defaced in that way. 00:28:14.319 --> 00:28:14.899 It's tough. 00:28:14.959 --> 00:28:15.539 It's hard. 00:28:15.539 --> 00:28:25.359 But to be eternally cast out from God, from Christ, to face the wrath and fury of the Lord. 00:28:30.759 --> 00:28:32.619 That's not what people are made for. 00:28:32.619 --> 00:28:39.619 What do we do with all this? 00:28:40.959 --> 00:28:42.339 How do we live with this? 00:28:42.399 --> 00:28:43.439 How do we live it out? 00:28:43.440 --> 00:29:13.420 How do we live with this? 00:29:13.440 --> 00:29:14.900 From verse 6. 00:29:14.900 --> 00:29:18.220 But it's not as though the word of God has failed. 00:29:19.600 --> 00:29:22.940 For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel. 00:29:23.320 --> 00:29:27.059 And not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring. 00:29:28.360 --> 00:29:32.100 But through Isaac shall your offspring be named. 00:29:33.299 --> 00:29:40.460 This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring. 00:29:40.460 --> 00:29:42.799 But this is what the promise said. 00:29:42.799 --> 00:29:46.480 About this time next year I will return and Sarah will have a son. 00:29:46.480 --> 00:29:53.440 And not only so, but also when Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, 00:29:53.940 --> 00:29:57.299 though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad, 00:29:57.440 --> 00:30:00.779 in order that God's purpose of election might continue, 00:30:01.620 --> 00:30:04.860 not because of works but because of him who calls, 00:30:05.599 --> 00:30:07.799 she was told the older will serve the younger. 00:30:07.799 --> 00:30:12.099 As it's written, Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. 00:30:13.259 --> 00:30:16.879 Now the point Paul is making is this. 00:30:17.079 --> 00:30:25.519 The fact that at present many Jews do not believe in Jesus is not contrary to God's word, 00:30:25.519 --> 00:30:29.200 but is consistent with God's word. 00:30:30.720 --> 00:30:32.519 This is just the beginning of his argument. 00:30:33.420 --> 00:30:36.559 There's two and a half more chapters to go, chapters 9 to 11. 00:30:37.019 --> 00:30:43.339 In chapter 9 Paul begins a sort of fly through, fly over of the Old Testament to make his point. 00:30:43.839 --> 00:30:48.400 He kind of starts at the beginning in Genesis and quotes bits on the way through to make this point. 00:30:48.400 --> 00:30:57.980 In fact, Romans chapters 9 to 11 as a whole contain almost one third of Paul's total number of Old Testament quotations in all of his writings. 00:30:59.100 --> 00:31:01.380 So this is a big part of what he's doing in these chapters. 00:31:01.780 --> 00:31:09.420 He's showing that God hasn't failed, that the present state of things is in line with the word of God, not contrary to it. 00:31:10.700 --> 00:31:12.240 But he starts in the book of Genesis. 00:31:12.480 --> 00:31:17.300 And now that's handy for us because we've just been reading, studying Genesis as a church. 00:31:17.299 --> 00:31:22.440 And so the parts of Genesis he quotes in verses 6 to 9 are likely fresh in our minds. 00:31:24.240 --> 00:31:28.259 Genesis tells the story of four generations of Abraham's father. 00:31:28.399 --> 00:31:29.799 There's Abraham's family. 00:31:30.440 --> 00:31:32.180 There's Abraham and Sarah, generation one. 00:31:32.440 --> 00:31:33.879 Then Isaac and his wife Rebecca. 00:31:34.139 --> 00:31:35.899 Then Jacob and his brother Esau. 00:31:36.019 --> 00:31:38.639 And then the twelve sons of Jacob, Joseph and his brothers. 00:31:38.640 --> 00:31:51.460 Now, God gave the name Israel to Jacob so that the twelve sons of Jacob are the twelve tribes of Israel. 00:31:52.120 --> 00:31:55.180 Collectively, they are the sons of Israel, the Israelites. 00:31:55.180 --> 00:32:08.900 The point Paul is making, as he states in verse 6, is that not all who are descended from Israel, not every physical descendant of Jacob, of Israel, not all the sons of Israel actually belong to Israel. 00:32:09.160 --> 00:32:16.779 That is, he's distinguishing between physical Israel and spiritual Israel, between physical descent and spiritual belonging. 00:32:16.779 --> 00:32:23.200 It's possible to be physically descended from Israel and yet not truly belong. 00:32:24.579 --> 00:32:31.180 And he supports that argument initially by pointing to the pattern from the generations before the sons of Israel. 00:32:32.480 --> 00:32:38.920 So, for example, initially Abraham's offspring, he says, Abraham's offspring were named through Isaac. 00:32:41.799 --> 00:32:43.920 In verse 7. 00:32:46.779 --> 00:32:50.839 Ishmael was Abraham's son according to the flesh. 00:32:52.019 --> 00:32:54.879 But Isaac was Abraham's son according to the promise. 00:32:55.879 --> 00:33:02.139 And it was the children of God's promise who were counted as Abraham's offspring. 00:33:02.799 --> 00:33:07.680 Likewise, with the next generation, Jacob and Esau were twins born to Isaac. 00:33:08.319 --> 00:33:11.240 With Esau born, the first of the two twins. 00:33:12.240 --> 00:33:16.700 But God said the line of promise would continue through Jacob, not through Esau. 00:33:17.500 --> 00:33:18.960 The older will serve the younger. 00:33:20.019 --> 00:33:23.440 The second quote he gives there, Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated. 00:33:23.639 --> 00:33:31.720 That comes from the late Old Testament book of Malachi, which contains at its beginning a discussion about God's electing love. 00:33:31.720 --> 00:33:45.940 But Paul's point is that even at the beginning, in these early chapters of Genesis, with the patriarchs, God establishes a pattern from the very beginning of the plan of salvation. 00:33:46.079 --> 00:33:49.980 A pattern of choosing some and not others. 00:33:49.980 --> 00:33:58.400 He'll go on to show throughout the rest of this chapter that that pattern continued to apply throughout Israel's generation. 00:33:58.599 --> 00:34:02.339 So down at Romans 9 verse 27. 00:34:02.339 --> 00:34:14.159 When Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, though the number of the sons of Israel will be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them will be saved. 00:34:14.799 --> 00:34:17.659 Physical descent does not guarantee spiritual belonging. 00:34:18.799 --> 00:34:19.579 Verse 6 again. 00:34:19.579 --> 00:34:22.940 Not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel. 00:34:22.940 --> 00:34:37.440 I mean, you could push this back even further to Noah and the flood, where we see that God's pattern in salvation is of saving some, but not all. 00:34:37.440 --> 00:34:41.260 That's God's consistent way of working. 00:34:42.139 --> 00:34:44.420 Saving some, but not all. 00:34:44.960 --> 00:34:48.179 Now, on what basis did God choose to save some and not others? 00:34:48.280 --> 00:34:50.960 Well, that's what the example from Jacob and Esau shows clearly. 00:34:51.280 --> 00:34:54.099 Verses 10 to 13 again in Romans 9. 00:34:55.980 --> 00:35:00.720 When Rebecca had conceived children by one man, our forefather Isaac, verse 11. 00:35:00.719 --> 00:35:22.559 See what Paul's saying here? 00:35:22.559 --> 00:35:29.439 The reason why some are saved and others are not ultimately lies with God himself. 00:35:30.719 --> 00:35:34.599 And not with anything about the people God chooses to save. 00:35:36.259 --> 00:35:42.359 Those he saves are not better than the ones he doesn't save, and those he doesn't save are not worse than the ones he does save. 00:35:43.459 --> 00:35:45.299 It's not because of works. 00:35:46.699 --> 00:35:49.539 Not because of works, but because of him who calls. 00:35:50.000 --> 00:35:53.199 It's in order that God's purpose of election might continue. 00:35:53.199 --> 00:36:02.059 So you can't point to anyone and say, I know why God saved this person, or I know why God didn't save that person. 00:36:04.059 --> 00:36:05.779 He doesn't need any of us. 00:36:06.599 --> 00:36:08.779 He doesn't need to save any of us. 00:36:08.780 --> 00:36:16.660 He freely and of his own will, his own sovereign love, chooses to save some. 00:36:19.360 --> 00:36:21.420 But he's not chosen to save all. 00:36:22.420 --> 00:36:25.280 And that is the consistent pattern of scripture. 00:36:25.940 --> 00:36:29.140 From the book of Genesis all the way through. 00:36:29.139 --> 00:36:42.339 In God's plan of salvation, the fact that not all are saved is a feature, not a bug. 00:36:45.839 --> 00:36:46.319 Why? 00:36:48.960 --> 00:36:50.460 Why doesn't God save all? 00:36:50.460 --> 00:36:55.360 Well, I don't think we can say much more than Paul says in verse 11. 00:36:55.840 --> 00:36:58.320 It's in order that God's purpose of election might remain. 00:37:01.159 --> 00:37:05.059 Now, if you're feeling what I've said so far raises more questions, 00:37:05.960 --> 00:37:09.539 that's probably a good sign. 00:37:10.579 --> 00:37:14.980 If what I've said so far is, you know, you've got more questions buzzing around in your head. 00:37:15.460 --> 00:37:16.480 Hang on, what about this? 00:37:16.539 --> 00:37:17.059 What about that? 00:37:17.059 --> 00:37:21.960 That's probably a good sign because the very next thing Paul does in verse 14 is ask a question. 00:37:22.420 --> 00:37:24.900 But we're not going to read it and I'm not going to answer it because that's next week. 00:37:25.320 --> 00:37:27.539 And then again in verse 19, there are more questions. 00:37:27.659 --> 00:37:29.840 So what Paul is saying, he should raise questions. 00:37:32.360 --> 00:37:36.179 There are questions that naturally arise from what we've been seeing this morning. 00:37:38.619 --> 00:37:44.940 But what we've seen this morning is the fact that not all are saved is ultimately not an objection to Christianity. 00:37:44.940 --> 00:37:47.860 It is consistent with Christianity. 00:37:47.860 --> 00:37:50.519 It is consistent with the word of God. 00:37:50.880 --> 00:37:54.260 Not all are saved, but God has not failed. 00:37:56.920 --> 00:37:58.559 But where does that leave us? 00:38:00.579 --> 00:38:02.579 How do we actually live this out? 00:38:02.579 --> 00:38:14.239 This sense of grief over the lost, while at the same time not abandoning our confidence in God. 00:38:15.139 --> 00:38:19.059 You know, grief, but retaining confidence in God. 00:38:19.079 --> 00:38:20.139 How do we live this out? 00:38:21.699 --> 00:38:25.860 Let me offer three suggestions, and this is by way of closing my remarks this morning. 00:38:26.440 --> 00:38:27.699 Let me offer three suggestions. 00:38:27.699 --> 00:38:35.839 First suggestion, don't try to evade the reality of eternity. 00:38:37.399 --> 00:38:39.639 Don't try to evade the reality of eternity. 00:38:40.359 --> 00:38:45.919 You see, you can attempt to evade the reality of eternity by burying yourself in things that are temporary. 00:38:45.920 --> 00:38:54.860 By becoming consumed with the day-to-day, with the material, with the fleeting worries and pursuits of this life. 00:38:54.940 --> 00:38:58.700 I mean, there is more than enough in the day-to-day to absorb our attention. 00:38:58.860 --> 00:39:04.039 And you can become so consumed in that, that you just kind of push off any thought of the eternal. 00:39:06.200 --> 00:39:09.200 But the result of that is just a more superficial life. 00:39:10.559 --> 00:39:11.420 Don't do that. 00:39:11.420 --> 00:39:19.320 There's a superb treatment of this in an essay by C.S. Lewis called The Weight of Glory. 00:39:20.119 --> 00:39:22.579 A weight in the sense of something substantial, heavy. 00:39:23.920 --> 00:39:25.019 The weight of glory. 00:39:26.880 --> 00:39:28.639 Recognise the weight of glory. 00:39:29.599 --> 00:39:31.440 Let me quote a few words from C.S. Lewis. 00:39:31.539 --> 00:39:36.680 I'm tempted to give a longer quotation, but that doesn't make for good preaching, so I've had to limit myself. 00:39:37.119 --> 00:39:39.079 But you can go and read more of it later if you want to. 00:39:39.079 --> 00:39:40.119 All right. 00:39:41.059 --> 00:39:42.219 Here's what Lewis writes. 00:39:43.440 --> 00:39:46.460 It's in the light of these overwhelming possibilities. 00:39:47.779 --> 00:39:55.920 It's with the awe and the circumspection proper to them that we should conduct all our dealings with one another. 00:39:56.239 --> 00:40:00.659 All friendships, all loves, all play, all politics. 00:40:02.019 --> 00:40:05.119 There are no ordinary people. 00:40:05.119 --> 00:40:08.519 You have never talked to a mere mortal. 00:40:09.480 --> 00:40:17.460 Nations, cultures, arts, civilisations, these are mortal and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. 00:40:18.539 --> 00:40:26.000 But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub and exploit. 00:40:27.440 --> 00:40:31.139 Immortal horrors or everlasting splendours. 00:40:31.139 --> 00:40:35.539 There's a seriousness to life. 00:40:36.960 --> 00:40:38.619 Don't try to evade it. 00:40:43.619 --> 00:40:44.719 Second suggestion. 00:40:46.719 --> 00:40:51.799 Realise that God has designed us for emotional complexity. 00:40:51.800 --> 00:40:55.580 Realise that God has actually designed us. 00:40:55.620 --> 00:40:57.420 He's wired us for emotional complexity. 00:40:58.780 --> 00:41:05.560 The same Paul who says here, I have unceasing anguish in my heart, also says multiple times, rejoice always. 00:41:06.760 --> 00:41:07.700 Rejoice continually. 00:41:10.220 --> 00:41:13.980 Our emotional lives are complex because reality is complex. 00:41:13.980 --> 00:41:24.240 We're designed to be able to hold within ourselves grief and rejoicing at the same time. 00:41:26.579 --> 00:41:28.760 Sometimes it's true one will dominate. 00:41:30.579 --> 00:41:33.260 But it'll never entirely eclipse the other. 00:41:33.260 --> 00:41:39.840 For a moment, the clouds will obscure the sun, bringing darkness into your life. 00:41:40.520 --> 00:41:43.460 But the sun's still there behind the clouds. 00:41:44.800 --> 00:41:48.820 Or the sun will come out in full brightness of day. 00:41:50.560 --> 00:41:52.020 But there are still shadows. 00:41:52.019 --> 00:41:58.800 The last tear will only be wiped away on the final day. 00:42:00.440 --> 00:42:04.699 And so the Christian lives now at this point of emotional tension. 00:42:07.179 --> 00:42:09.320 This is how we exist. 00:42:09.320 --> 00:42:20.580 But, and C.S. Lewis is also brilliant on this point, not only in The Weight of Glory, but also in his book, The Great Divorce. 00:42:21.940 --> 00:42:25.039 The darkness will not eclipse the light. 00:42:26.280 --> 00:42:28.500 Hell will not hold heaven to ransom. 00:42:29.140 --> 00:42:31.620 In glory, sorrow will be no more. 00:42:31.620 --> 00:42:35.340 And the misery of the lost will not dim the joy of the redeemed. 00:42:35.340 --> 00:42:40.480 Now, how this will be, I do not know. 00:42:42.880 --> 00:42:46.940 In fact, how that will be, I don't think I'm supposed to know. 00:42:49.019 --> 00:42:56.140 Because now, before the last day, I am supposed to live at a point of emotional tension. 00:42:58.260 --> 00:43:01.559 Now, I am supposed to weep and laugh. 00:43:01.559 --> 00:43:05.400 Then, there will be only laughter. 00:43:08.840 --> 00:43:13.320 But even now, our tears must not extinguish our joy in Christ. 00:43:15.699 --> 00:43:17.940 Let me quote Lewis again from The Weight of Glory. 00:43:18.079 --> 00:43:18.420 He says, 00:43:18.420 --> 00:43:21.039 We do not need to be perpetually solemn. 00:43:22.980 --> 00:43:35.280 But our merriment must be of the kind, and it is in fact the merriest kind, which exists between people who have, from the outset, taken each other seriously. 00:43:36.639 --> 00:43:37.340 No flippancy. 00:43:37.800 --> 00:43:38.519 No superiority. 00:43:39.079 --> 00:43:39.800 No presumption. 00:43:39.800 --> 00:43:47.600 And our charity must be a real and costly love, with deep feeling for the sins in spite of which we love the sinner. 00:43:47.960 --> 00:43:53.940 No mere tolerance or indulgence, which parodies love, as flippancy parodies merriment. 00:43:57.240 --> 00:44:00.300 So, don't avoid eternity. 00:44:02.180 --> 00:44:08.580 Recognise God has designed you for emotional complexity to exist at this, we can exist at this point of tension. 00:44:08.579 --> 00:44:16.500 Third thing I want to say, in terms of what we do with this, is let grief for the lost spur us to action. 00:44:18.279 --> 00:44:21.299 Let's let grief for the lost ought to spur us to action. 00:44:22.480 --> 00:44:23.779 Verse 3, Paul says, 00:44:23.779 --> 00:44:34.139 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen, according to the flesh. 00:44:34.139 --> 00:44:46.259 Now, Paul, the desire he's expressing here, and it's, you know, I could wish, there's something hyperbolic about this, but, I mean, he's following the example of Moses. 00:44:46.599 --> 00:44:57.619 Moses, when he interceded for Israel after the incident, the sin with the golden calf, you know, Moses prayed that prayer that God would cast him off instead of Israel. 00:44:57.619 --> 00:45:04.139 He's following the example of Christ, isn't he, who was cut off for our sake. 00:45:05.639 --> 00:45:08.339 I mean, Paul's desire here is a very Christ-like desire. 00:45:10.139 --> 00:45:18.039 So great is Paul's grief that he says, if it were possible, he would offer himself in the place of those he calls his brothers. 00:45:18.039 --> 00:45:23.800 He would forfeit his own salvation so that they might be saved. 00:45:26.960 --> 00:45:33.500 See, really, there's nothing that wouldn't be worth sacrificing for the sake of the lost. 00:45:36.300 --> 00:45:38.239 Have you seen the movie Schindler's List? 00:45:39.460 --> 00:45:43.119 I mean, it's a bit old now, but maybe, some of you will have seen it, many of you will have seen it. 00:45:43.119 --> 00:45:52.920 It tells the story of Oscar Schindler, who was an industrialist during World War II, 00:45:53.179 --> 00:46:02.579 who protected Jews from being deported to concentration camps by employing them in his factory as essential workers. 00:46:03.900 --> 00:46:11.159 Whether or not they were actually competent, he just found excuses to employ Jews in his factory to bring them under his wing so they'd be protected, 00:46:11.440 --> 00:46:12.699 so they couldn't be discarded. 00:46:12.699 --> 00:46:18.019 And then eventually bribing officials to overlook what he was doing. 00:46:20.559 --> 00:46:24.079 There's a scene towards the end of the movie Schindler's List when the war is over. 00:46:25.079 --> 00:46:31.699 The Allies have come in and defeated the Nazis and liberated the oppressed. 00:46:31.699 --> 00:46:32.699 The war is over. 00:46:32.699 --> 00:46:32.859 The war is over. 00:46:33.219 --> 00:46:40.460 And it's a scene in the factory floor of one of his factory. 00:46:40.460 --> 00:46:51.340 And the Jews are gathered around him, this crowd of Jews that he had saved from being killed by the Nazis. 00:46:51.340 --> 00:46:57.579 And he looks around at those he saved and he says, 00:46:58.660 --> 00:47:03.780 he says, I threw so much money away. 00:47:03.780 --> 00:47:07.160 I could have done more. 00:47:07.160 --> 00:47:10.720 And then he sees his car and he says, this car. 00:47:11.360 --> 00:47:12.960 Why did I keep this car? 00:47:14.060 --> 00:47:15.360 That's 10 people. 00:47:15.360 --> 00:47:15.519 And then he sees this car. 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:15.519 00:47:15.519 --> 00:47:20.300 and then he sees this gold lapel pin 00:47:20.300 --> 00:47:22.639 and he says, this pin, it's gold. 00:47:23.679 --> 00:47:26.619 That's two people, two people, at least one. 00:47:27.440 --> 00:47:28.559 One more person. 00:47:29.940 --> 00:47:31.659 I could have saved more. 00:47:31.659 --> 00:47:31.699 More. 00:47:36.280 --> 00:47:39.699 When you consider the value of just one human life 00:47:39.699 --> 00:47:43.599 and the magnitude of eternity, 00:47:43.599 --> 00:47:48.659 is there any sacrifice that's not worth making 00:47:48.659 --> 00:47:51.460 to save one more? 00:47:54.900 --> 00:47:59.980 God gives us our grief to spur us to prayer 00:47:59.980 --> 00:48:03.019 and to spur us to action. 00:48:06.699 --> 00:48:10.219 Because among those who do not yet believe in Jesus, 00:48:10.219 --> 00:48:14.799 there are many who will believe in Jesus 00:48:14.799 --> 00:48:17.399 if only someone tells them. 00:48:19.879 --> 00:48:21.719 The end has not yet come. 00:48:23.079 --> 00:48:26.379 What we see now is not yet what will be. 00:48:27.959 --> 00:48:30.719 This is not the time to enjoy eternity. 00:48:31.879 --> 00:48:34.899 This is the time to prepare people for eternity. 00:48:34.900 --> 00:48:38.760 So don't try to evade the reality. 00:48:40.980 --> 00:48:44.059 Embrace the emotional complexity of the present time 00:48:44.059 --> 00:48:48.360 and let grief over the lost spur us to action. 00:48:51.539 --> 00:48:52.740 Will you join with me in prayer? 00:48:52.739 --> 00:49:06.579 Heavenly Father, 00:49:07.799 --> 00:49:15.359 we thank you for our saviour, Jesus Christ. 00:49:17.319 --> 00:49:19.279 We do rejoice in our Lord. 00:49:19.280 --> 00:49:22.720 There is nothing better than knowing Jesus 00:49:22.720 --> 00:49:27.300 and your grace and your love 00:49:27.300 --> 00:49:29.280 and all the blessings found in him. 00:49:30.140 --> 00:49:31.180 And we thank you. 00:49:33.880 --> 00:49:36.640 This morning, Lord, our hearts are also heavy 00:49:36.640 --> 00:49:40.900 as we remember that there are so many 00:49:40.900 --> 00:49:42.680 who are outside of Christ 00:49:42.680 --> 00:49:46.900 and facing an eternity separated from your love. 00:49:46.900 --> 00:49:50.900 a future not of blessing and glory 00:49:50.900 --> 00:49:52.519 but of wrath and fury. 00:49:56.019 --> 00:49:58.900 Father, we pray that that weight, 00:49:59.680 --> 00:50:03.440 that grief would always be present 00:50:03.440 --> 00:50:04.579 in our hearts somewhere. 00:50:05.680 --> 00:50:07.880 Save us from callousness, Lord. 00:50:09.760 --> 00:50:13.039 And spur us on that we might make every effort 00:50:13.039 --> 00:50:15.179 and use everything at our disposal, 00:50:15.340 --> 00:50:16.579 whatever you've given us, 00:50:17.039 --> 00:50:20.779 to bring Christ to the lost. 00:50:24.059 --> 00:50:27.840 We pray for this city, 00:50:28.480 --> 00:50:29.880 this nation, 00:50:31.000 --> 00:50:32.159 the world, 00:50:32.159 --> 00:50:35.420 the 1.8 billion 00:50:35.420 --> 00:50:38.039 people in the world 00:50:38.039 --> 00:50:39.359 who are lost in 00:50:39.359 --> 00:50:41.219 Islam. 00:50:44.799 --> 00:50:45.679 Billions in other 00:50:45.679 --> 00:50:47.659 false ideologies and beliefs. 00:50:49.759 --> 00:50:51.480 People made in your image. 00:50:53.699 --> 00:50:55.519 Give us compassion for them, Lord. 00:50:55.839 --> 00:50:57.659 Drive us out to share the gospel with them. 00:50:57.779 --> 00:50:59.379 Send us to those who are close to us, 00:50:59.460 --> 00:50:59.980 near to us, 00:51:00.039 --> 00:51:00.539 our family, 00:51:00.659 --> 00:51:01.039 our friends, 00:51:01.039 --> 00:51:01.639 our neighbours. 00:51:03.179 --> 00:51:04.279 Keep us from being 00:51:04.279 --> 00:51:06.480 distracted 00:51:06.480 --> 00:51:10.059 by good things 00:51:10.059 --> 00:51:12.460 but temporary things. 00:51:13.759 --> 00:51:16.320 We want to be used by you, Lord, 00:51:16.480 --> 00:51:18.340 for eternity 00:51:18.340 --> 00:51:21.239 and we pray that for each one of us here. 00:51:21.340 --> 00:51:22.719 We pray that for us as a church 00:51:22.719 --> 00:51:25.420 and we pray for an outpouring of your mercy 00:51:25.420 --> 00:51:27.340 in this place. 00:51:27.719 --> 00:51:28.519 In Jesus' name. 00:51:28.900 --> 00:51:29.179 Amen. 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:51:31.199 00:51:31.199 --> 00:52:01.179 Thank you.