Father, we've asked in this last song that the Holy Spirit would come and move within us and deeply within us.
Father, we continue to ask for that.
We, Father, are going to open your word, and your word is going to talk about very difficult things about the world,
and your word is going to talk about very difficult things about each one of us who are here.
So we ask, Father, you know how our minds turn from these things and comfort ourselves with fantasies and lies.
So we ask, Father, that the Holy Spirit would move in a deep and powerful way within each one of us and bring your word to our heart.
Bring your word to our heart.
And as your word is brought to our heart, fan in the flame within us a deep longing and yearning to have our confidence and our identity and our joy in the person and work of Jesus.
And all this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
Please be seated.
So I was young once, and back, I was 32 years old.
I've been ordained for three years already.
I was an assistant in a suburban church.
When I was 32, I got sent to my first church I was looking after.
It was four little churches up the valley in a place called Eganville, also Killaloo, Clontarf, and Tremor.
And I started in the church in June.
And in, I can't remember now if it was late August or maybe it was into middle September.
But out of the blue, I had a visit from an older minister.
I mean, he was probably younger than I am now, but an older minister.
He seemed really old to me then.
And he came just sort of unannounced.
I was dressed very, very, very casually.
I was young.
I said that before.
And he came to invite me to something that my predecessor, the minister who had been at the church before me, he went to all the time.
And what this was, was a gathering of ministers in Pembroke that happened once a month.
And as I said, my predecessor, the fellow who was a minister before me, he went to it all the time.
And so this ministry meets me.
You know, I don't look like I'm very conservative and all that.
And he starts, within like three minutes of inviting me, he starts to tell me how terrible evangelicals are and how terrible charismatics are,
how they're stupid and tells me funny stories about them.
And this particular man, they'd been studying a book by a man by the name of John Spong.
And John Spong basically doesn't believe anything in the Bible happened.
He didn't believe the incarnation happened.
He didn't believe the resurrection happened.
Like, basically nothing in the Bible actually happened.
And that's the book that they were going to study.
And my predecessor went there all the time.
And I guess because I was young and because my predecessor liked these things and because I was Anglican, he assumed I would like all of these things.
And so he thought he was winning me over by telling me all of these stories about the stupidity and foolishness of evangelicals and charismatics and traditional Catholics.
So I was polite.
Believe it or not, I didn't get into an argument with him or anything like that.
But I never went to the gathering.
Now, I mention all of this because it might help us to explain or understand a little bit or relate to something that's going to happen in the Bible text today,
which we talked about very briefly last week.
But I just, we're going to touch on it because it's important to this very horrible thing that happens in the rest of the text.
So if you turn, find your Bibles, it's Esther chapter 3, Esther chapter 3 verse 1.
If you're in your Bibles, you find the Psalms.
That's really easy to find.
Then just before the Psalms is Job.
And just before Job is the short book of Esther.
And we're going to begin at chapter 3 verse 1 again.
And if you're a guest here this week, what we've been doing is we're going through the book of Esther.
We're going to go through all of it from beginning to end.
And this is our fourth sermon on it.
In the first sermon, which was chapter 1, we met the king, King Xerxes, because this book is set in the reign of the king of Persia,
the same king who fought the Battle of Thermopylae, made famous in the movie 300 and other movies around that.
And that's in chapter 1.
And we discover that the king is very willful.
He gets drunk, asks his wife to do something.
She refuses to do it.
And not only does he banish his wife forever from being queen, but he punishes every woman in the empire at the same time.
And that's how we meet King Xerxes.
In second chapter and the second sermon, we discover that he gets sad afterwards because he misses her.
So he comes up with this brilliant plan that he's going to go ahead and use the powers of the state to round up anywhere between 400 to 1,500 young women,
forcibly take them from their homes, bring them to the capital where they would be spoiled for a year,
all so that he could spend one night in bed with them.
And then basically have them banished and childless and powerless for the rest of their lives.
And that's the king Xerxes that has done this.
And we're introduced at that time to a young woman by Esther, by the name of Esther, who's one of the people captured and brought to Susa.
But she ends up being the one who satisfies and delights the king the most, and she becomes queen.
And then last week, we looked at this story about how Esther's uncle Mordecai hears about a plot to assassinate the king.
And Mordecai lets the king know about it through Esther.
He gets the credit, and the assassination plot is foiled.
And then what happens is the most surprising thing in the world, and we talked about it last week.
I'm not going to talk about it this week, is that Mordecai has a conversion moment.
You see, Esther and Mordecai are Jewish people, but they're living as compromised Jews.
They're pretending that they're not Jewish.
In fact, it's more than just pretending.
They're acting completely and utterly as if they're Persian.
Mordecai doesn't use his Jewish name.
He uses Mordecai, which means worshiper of Marduk.
Esther doesn't use her Jewish name.
She uses Esther, which is named after the goddess Ishtar.
And Mordecai and Esther very specifically follow the policy of acting like Persians, looking like Persians,
and having nothing to do with their Jewish faith.
But as we're going to see, as we looked at last week, there's this surprising conversion moment that happens to Mordecai.
And it seems sort of a bit out of the blue, he announces that he's a Jew.
And that announcement that he's a Jew is going to set in motion a plan for genocide.
So let's just sort of catch up to where we are.
We're going to sort of read a little bit that we looked at last week, but for a different reason,
and see this horrendous evil which is launched by Mordecai's public declaration that he's a Jew.
So chapter 3, verse 1, here's how it goes.
After these things, remember we looked at this last week, but I want to bring out a different point because it's important.
After these things, King Xerxes, or Aehuserus, or King Headache, promoted Haman, the Agagite, the son of Hamadatha,
and advanced him and set his throne above all the officials who were with him.
Now just sort of pause there for a second.
One of the things, if you're trying to figure out how to read the Old Testament,
that's those books that are written before Jesus,
is that often a person's name when they're introduced is significant.
And it helps you to understand what's going on in the story.
And in this particular case, Haman is introduced for the first time,
and he's introduced as an Agagite.
And that's going to be very significant because Agagites were historic enemies of the Jewish people.
If you go back and you look in Exodus chapter 17,
after the Jewish people had been delivered from the land of slavery from Egypt,
and they cross the Red Sea, the very, very first nation that tries to destroy them are the Amalekites.
And it's very, very significant then that they sort of become almost like a bit of a symbol
in the Bible for those people who desire to destroy God's people.
And that's how Haman is introduced.
But what happens, well, let's just see what happens next.
Verse 2,
And all the king's servants who were at the king's gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman,
for the king had so commanded concerning them.
Haman is like the most powerful person in the empire right under King Xerxes.
Then the king, verse 3,
The king's servants who were at the king's gate said to Mordecai,
Why do you transgress the king's command?
Sorry, I missed a part there.
We'll say verse 2 again.
And all the king's servants who were at the king's gate bowed down and paid homage to Haman,
for the king had so commanded concerning him.
But Mordecai did not bow down or pay homage.
Then the king's servants who were at the king's gate said to Mordecai,
Why do you transgress the king's command?
And when they spoke to him day after day, and he would not listen to them,
they told Haman in order to see whether Mordecai's words, in other words, his actions, would stand.
Here's the kicker, for he had told them that he was a Jew.
I'm not going to go into it that much.
It's like a conversion moment.
Mordecai, in the weirdest way possible,
who's been hiding his Jewishness,
announced that he's a Jew.
Now, one of the reasons that he might have done that is,
well, remember I told you that when I first went to my first church in Eganville,
I followed a fellow who didn't believe that miracles happened,
didn't believe that the Bible is God's inspired word,
didn't believe that the resurrection happened,
didn't believe in the incarnation,
didn't believe any of these things.
And he was connected with other ministers who felt the same way.
And because I was following that minister,
and because I was young,
the leader of these other ministers just assumed that I was with them.
And he told jokes and everything about evangelicals
and told me about what they believed and what they did.
And I wonder if something similar happened to Haman and Mordecai,
because Mordecai would have been an official.
And maybe when Mordecai was with Haman at different times,
Haman would boast to people about the fact that he was an Agagite.
And what that means is that not only was he like the Amalekites
who attacked the Jewish people to try to destroy them,
the very, very first nation to attract the Jewish people
after they'd been delivered from bondage in Egypt,
but Agag was their king.
So it's as if, you know, Haman thinks,
I'm just with Persians,
I'm just with people who are like me,
because Mordecai goes by the name worshipper of Marduk,
and Mordecai looks like a Persian,
speaks like a Persian,
has nothing to do with Jewishness,
nothing Jewish,
there's nothing Jewish about him at all
that Haman can see,
and Mordecai is an official in the Persian Empire
under King Xerxes,
and so maybe when Haman was just hanging around
with guys like Mordecai,
he just assumed that Mordecai was with him.
And so he just said,
like, I'm a guy who,
I hate Jewish people,
I don't like them.
I'm opposed to them.
In fact, I'm like the king of those people opposed to him.
I'm going to do,
I just don't like them.
And Mordecai,
we don't know what went on in Mordecai's mind,
but maybe what went on in Mordecai's mind
to partially explain his surprising conversion
is that he remembered one of the stories
that was told in the book of Exodus,
because when the Amalekites are introduced
in the book of Exodus,
some of you are familiar with this story.
The Amalekites are attacking the Jewish people,
and Moses sends Joshua out to fight them.
But the Amalekites are winning.
And so Moses goes up onto the top of a mountain
over the battle,
and he raises the staff of God above his head.
And when he raises the staff of God above his head,
the Amalekites start to lose,
and Joshua and the Jewish people win.
But as Moses' hands get tired,
he starts to lower the staff,
and as soon as he lowers the staff,
the Amalekites begin to win,
and the Jewish people are losing.
And so Moses and Aaron and Hur,
who are with him,
realize that Moses has to keep the staff of the Lord
up above his head
if the Jewish people are going to survive this attack
by a superior military force
that's trying to destroy them.
And it's sort of a well-known story
in the Old Testament,
but the point of the Old Testament,
of this story,
is that the staff represents God's power
and his sovereignty.
And that's the function the staff serves
in all of the stories with Moses and the staff.
And so the lesson
that was to come from this story
is that when the Jewish people
depended upon God being sovereign and powerful
and submitted to it,
God won the battle.
But when they didn't have God
as their sovereign,
acknowledging his power,
but tried to work on their own power,
those who desired to kill the people of God
would win.
In other words,
the people of God were to depend
upon God's power and his sovereignty.
And maybe in some small way,
what went through Mordecai's mind
is he sees this man who hates the Jews
reaching the highest point of power
in the empire under the emperor.
Maybe that story told to him by his mother
or by his grandmother.
See, one of the reasons
why Sunday school is so important
is you never know the impact
of a story told to a young child
that it might have on their life later on.
It's why it's such an important ministry.
It's why parents,
if you're parents,
to read your children Bible stories,
is so important.
And maybe that story told by his mom
or his grandmom all those years ago,
and Mordecai has this moment
where he's pierced and realized
if he's going to survive this,
it's only if he acknowledges the Lord
as sovereign,
because only the Lord's power
is going to deliver his people.
And so Mordecai does this astounding thing
and says,
I'm a Jew.
And he says it,
and it gets back to the man
who in a sense boasts
that he is the king of those people
who kill,
who are prejudiced,
and hate the Jews.
So how does Haman react?
Verse 5.
And when Haman saw
that Mordecai
did not bow down
or pay homage to him,
Haman was filled with fury.
But Haman disdained
to lay hands on Mordecai alone.
So as they had made known to him
the people of Mordecai,
Haman sought to destroy
all the Jews,
the people of Mordecai,
throughout the whole empire
of Xerxes.
I'll just sort of pause here
in the story.
We have here in the Bible
a perfect illustration
of prejudice
and hatred and racism.
Most of us,
in fact,
I would bet
that every single one of us here
would say that we do not
have any prejudices
nor are we guilty of racism.
But let me give you
a little bit of a gut check
because this perfectly illustrates
an example,
something that we need to do
for the examination
of our conscience.
If you're driving along
in your car
and somebody cuts you off
and you can see
maybe that it's a woman,
this is an example for men,
and internally you say,
look at that stupid driver.
All women are like that.
That's prejudice.
You've just revealed
that you have prejudice.
prejudice.
If you're in a lineup
for something
and somebody who looks
like they're from the Middle East
bumps into the line
and you don't just say,
well, that's a goofball,
but you say,
look at that goofball.
That's what all Arabs are like.
You're prejudiced.
If you're in a Starbucks
and your barista,
who's gay,
gets a little bit mad
at something that's going on
and you don't just say,
well, that person's having a bad day
or they're just high strung,
but you say,
look at that guy.
That's what all gays are like.
They throw hissy fits.
You're prejudiced.
I'm prejudiced.
You see,
it's the very nature
of prejudice.
If you're not prejudiced
against somebody,
it's just an individual
doing something,
but if you're prejudiced,
it's everybody
who's like that
that's like that.
And the Bible here
is going to show you
that prejudice
is a great sin.
It's something
that we need to repent of.
You see,
Mordecai,
Haman doesn't say,
that goofball,
Mordecai,
why does he have it in for me?
I'm going to destroy
his career.
But Haman says,
all those Jews
are like that.
I got to kill them all.
You see,
all of a sudden,
this Bible story,
which seems to be so old
and so irrelevant,
all of a sudden,
it does something
which in a very,
very powerful way
illustrates the prejudices
of our own hearts.
So,
Haman decides
he's going to kill
all the Jews.
Now,
this next part here
is actually quite stunning.
If you look here
at the next verse,
verse 7,
in the first month,
which is the month
of Nisan,
in the 12th year
of King Xerxes,
they cast pur,
that is,
they cast lots,
before Haman
day after day
and they cast it
month after month
till the 12th month,
which is the month
of Adar.
Now,
I know,
if you're like me
and the first time
I read that,
I go,
Nisan,
Amar,
Adar,
day after day.
But this is actually
one of those things,
if the story is read
slowly and you meditate
upon,
it's a very,
very powerful story.
You see,
remember I said
that Mordecai
won't pay homage
to Haman
and Haman
decides he's going
to kill all the Jews.
And some of us
might think,
well,
okay,
so Haman's a bit
of a hothead,
maybe he's just
going to get over it.
If you go back,
they give a little
dating thing here,
which is very significant,
is that when Esther
is made queen,
which is chapter 2,
verse 16,
that is almost
five years
between now
and this.
So the implication
of the story
is that sometime,
very shortly
after Esther
becomes queen
and Mordecai
reveals this plot
to assassinate
the king
and the king's
life is saved
and then Haman
becomes the emperor,
it might have been
four whole years
between Haman
deciding he's going
to kill all the Jews
to what we see
right now.
Like,
this is settled
hatred.
This is persistent
evil.
And you see,
what Haman,
we're going to see it
more in a moment,
that what Haman
has done
is Haman,
it's going to be revealed
in the next verse,
Haman has not only
nurtured and nourished
his hatred
and his prejudice
and his murderous rage
for years,
he's come up
with a clever
institutional plan
to terrorize
and destroy
the Jews.
He spent the time
thinking this through,
planning it.
And now what he's doing
is he's seeking
to know
when the gods
are going to bless him.
That's why he's
casting
pur,
or the lots.
It's a method
back then
that they believed
that if they did this,
they were able
to figure out
when they should
do something
to get the full
blessing
of the gods
for his murderous
and evil plan.
And there's another
profound irony
about this
by the month
of Nisan.
Because you see,
for Jewish people,
the month of Nisan,
I don't know if I'm
pronouncing it correctly,
that's when they
prepared for the Passover.
So at the very,
very same time,
what happens
is the day comes
during this month
of Nisan,
Haman has been
nurturing his hatred
of the Jewish people,
but he's not just
a person who hates,
he's going to figure
out a plan.
He's going to figure
out a plan
to get the king
on board,
he's going to figure
out a plan
to get the king
actually desiring
to do this,
he's going to come
up with a plan
to involve
the bureaucracy
and the military
and all the resources
of the empire,
and he's going to
come up with a plan
that'll turn average
people against Jewish people
and he thinks
through this plan,
thinks through this plan,
he's ready to go
with his plan,
so he sits there
one day
and they cast the lots,
they cast the lots,
it's not good to do it
this month,
next month,
and then finally,
ah,
we have the time
when the gods
are going to grant me
favor to destroy
the Jewish people
and at the same time
that he's finishing
his plan
and seeking the favor
of the gods,
the Jewish people
are preparing
to remember
the Passover.
In other words,
they are preparing
to remember the time
when Moses
is raised up by God
to confront the Pharaoh
because the Jewish people
are in slavery
in Egypt
and there's a whole series
of power encounters
between Moses
announcing what God
is going to do
to dethrone
and de-idolize
the Pharaoh
to show that he's not a god
and that the gods
of the Egyptians
are not true gods
and that they should not
be keeping God's people
in slavery
nor should they keep
any people in slavery
and then the final
culminating miracle
that God does
to deliver the people
of Israel,
he says,
Pharaoh,
just before this,
Pharaoh says to Moses,
next time I see you,
you're going to die
and Moses says,
you're never going to
see my face again
and they go home
and Moses says
to the people of Israel,
you need to slaughter
a lamb
and after you've
slaughtered the lamb,
you need to put
some of the lamb
on the entranceway
to your door
and your family
needs to be gathered
because this night
God is going to do
a mighty act of deliverance
in the land of Egypt
and the angel of death
goes to the land of Egypt
and the firstborn
of every family dies
and it is only those people
who are in the house
eating the sacrificed lamb
where the entrance
to the house
is protected
by the blood of the lamb
those people
do not fall
under God's judgment.
It is God's profound
and mighty act
to deliver the Jews
and to make them
his own people.
By the way,
this is one of those stories
that show that both stories
can't be true.
There cannot be gods
that Haman
can manipulate
with his lots
and the God,
the Lord,
the creator of all things.
One of those stories,
I mean,
they both can be false
but both can't be true.
And I believe,
of course,
that the story in Exodus
is true.
And so at the very same time
that the Jewish people,
unbeknownst
that this huge evil
is about to fall,
they are preparing
and looking forward
to celebrating Passover.
Those observant Jews
are doing that.
Haman is trying to figure out
when the gods
will bless him
to kill all the Jews.
In verse 8,
he now has the date.
So then Haman said
to the king,
Xerxes,
verse 8,
there's a certain people
scattered abroad
and dispersed
among the peoples
in all the provinces
of your kingdom.
Their laws are different
from those
of every other people
and they do not keep
the king's laws,
your laws.
So,
it is not
to the king's profit
to tolerate them.
Actually,
in the original language,
it's to give them rest,
to have a place
where they can live.
If it please the king,
let it be decreed
that they be destroyed
and I will pay
ten thousand talents
of silver
into the hands
of those
who have charge
of the king's business
of your business
that they may put it
into the king's treasury,
your treasury.
Haman tells lies
and half-truths
and the king
listens to the lie,
listens to the half-truth.
And he's already
showed himself
that he doesn't mind
punishing all the women
in the empire
because of the act
of one woman.
He's already showed
that he doesn't mind
forcibly rounding up
young women
from all over the empire,
ruining their lives
and causing untold wounds
in families,
all to satisfy
one night of pleasure.
And he likes money.
So,
in verse 10,
the king took
his signet ring
from his hand
and gave it to Haman
the Agagite,
the son of Hamadatha,
the enemy of the Jews.
And the king said to Haman,
the money is given to you,
the people also,
to do with them
as it seems good to you.
So he gives him
his royal authority
and this is a literal
translation of an idiom.
Basically,
he says,
listen,
spend your own money,
do this,
but make sure
there's lots of money
left over for me
at the end.
Verse 12,
then the king's scribes
were summoned
on the 13th day
of the first month
and an edict
according to all
that Haman commanded
was written
to the king's satraps
and to the governors
over all the provinces
and to all the officials
of all the peoples,
to every province
in its own script
and every people
in its own language.
It was written
in the name
of King Xerxes
and sealed
with the king's
signet ring
and just pause.
Notice that Haman
sought it all through.
Every language,
every people group,
every official,
he sought it all through.
He has a list.
He has it all worked out.
And here's the thing
which is so,
so, so, so,
so fascinating
about this story.
The day that he's there,
just imagine I'm Haman
writing the edict out
and after the edict
is written out,
he takes the king's
signet ring,
puts the seal on it
and while he's doing that
and he's having
all the people copy it
and as each one
is copied,
he puts the king's
signature with
the signet ring
with the wax seal
and puts it on
every one of these
many messages.
The very day
that he is doing this
is the 13th day
of Nisan.
It is the day
that the Jewish people
are preparing
for Passover
which happens
because the Passover
sacrifice happens
the very next day,
3 o'clock in the afternoon
and the Passover meal,
the first Passover meal
is eaten
after sundown
because that's
a new Jewish day,
the 15th day
of Nisan.
So the very day
that Haman
is signing
this act
of profound evil
is the day
that the Jewish people
are preparing
to sacrifice
the Passover lamb
the next afternoon
and eat the first
Passover meal
after sundown.
And of course
for we as Christians
there's another
significance to this
as well
because
several,
quite a few centuries
after this
there would be
another Jewish man
by the name
of Jesus
and on the Wednesday
afternoon
the 13th day
of Nisan
the first day
of the Jewish calendar
he would be
talking to his disciples
to make the preparations
the next day
for him
to celebrate
the Passover
with his disciples.
and the Messiah
of the Jews
the next day
almost seven centuries
about seven centuries
later
sorry six centuries
later
sorry five
five centuries
I'm getting mixed up
with my math
he would be having
his disciples
prepare
for the sacrifice
of the Passover lamb
the next day
so he could have
that final Passover meal
with his disciples
that evening
where he instituted
the Lord's Supper
and on the 15th day
of Nisan
he would die
upon the cross
as the lamb of God
who takes away
the sin of the world
Haman doesn't know this
or if he does
he doesn't care
verse 13
so letters
were sent
by couriers
to all the king's
provinces
with instruction
to destroy
to kill
and to annihilate
see this is
bureaucratic language
you want to make sure
you cover all the bases
he consulted a lawyer
to get good legal language
to make sure
every Jew is killed
all of this
is legal language
look at it again
verse 13
to destroy
to kill
to annihilate
all Jews
Jews just men
no
young and old
women and children
in one day
the 13th day
of the 12th month
which is the month
of Edar
and to plunder
their goods
11 months hence
you see this is part
of the great evil
look at the next verse
and I'll come back
and talk about
how great this evil is
verse 14
a copy of the document
was to be issued
as a decree
in every province
by proclamation
to all the peoples
to be ready
for that day
you see
one of the things
which is so evil
about this
is that he's not
just going to use
the soldiers
and the equivalent
of the police
and the bureaucrats
to hunt down
and kill all the Jews
this edict means
that every Persian
on this particular day
has the full right
and authority
of the king
to kill their neighbors
every one of them
the youngest child
the oldest person
to kill them
and he does it
11 months down the road
imagine for a moment
if you and I knew
that in 11 months
the city of Ottawa
would turn on us
to kill us
the terror
the despair
would be hard enough
if it was going to be
next week
it is profoundly isolating
and profoundly terrifying
to have the weight
of doom
for 11 months
and to alienate you
from every single
one of your neighbors
it's not
you just
not only that you fear
the sight of soldiers
on that day
but every person
you see
you will fear
friends
this
is profoundly
deeply
evil
and then
the storyteller
just recording
what really happens
tells this spectacular
final ending
twist
not a twist
verse 15
the couriers
went out hurriedly
by order of the king
and the decree
was issued in Susa
the citadel
where Mordecai lives
and the king
and Haman
sat down
to drink
but the city
of Susa
was thrown
into confusion
isn't this just
the way evil works
Haman and the king
have just come up
with a profoundly
deeply evil plan
and after the last
signet ring
is done
Haman calls out
to the king
well
I finished it all
and the two of them
said
let's have a beer
yeah that's a good idea
let's have a beer
no no
I think I'm going to
have a wine
some wine
can we get some nachos
with that
or maybe some tabbouleh
or some hummus
let's just have a beer
like this is exactly
how evil works
isn't it
very powerful story
so what does this all mean
in closing
some
one of the things
that people often
think about this story
is that it's
one of the weaknesses
of the story
is that they don't
explain
why it is
that Haman
does all of this
there's no explanation
for his evil act
they sort of have
a bit of a sense
of the weakness
of the character
of Xerxes
and his believing
of the lie
but they still
don't really explain
why it is
that Xerxes
would believe this lie
why is he so
incurious
and it seems to many
that it's a weakness
in the story
that the evil of Haman
and the evil of the king
isn't explained
but it's actually
one of the things
in the story
which is so powerful
if you could put up
the first point
Andrew
you see the thing is
is that evil is real
and irreducible
see our culture
has a very very hard
time
with evil
my wife and I
it took us two nights
because we sort of
got tired the first night
but it's a very good movie
not that I'm recommending
you watch it
but we watched
the Paul Greengrass movie
last night
called 22nd of July
it's the story
of what happened
in July 22nd
2012
in Norway
where a lone man
first planted
a truck bomb
right beside
the prime minister's office
in an attempt
to kill the prime minister
and he blew up the bomb
and it killed
I believe it was
eight people
that it killed there
and after he'd set
he'd set a timer for it
and left the truck there
to kill the prime minister
didn't kill the prime minister
but it killed eight people
wounded several hundred
but he left there
and he drove
a little bit away
to an island
where there was
a youth retreat
going on
by members
of the same party
of the prime minister
the labor party
and many of you
are familiar with this
and he went on
the island
pretending it was
a police officer
to protect them
rounded the teenagers up
and he began
to shoot them
and he killed
69
69 teenagers
69
over 100
extra
were wounded
31 other people
who were shot
but did not die
31 people
were shot
one or more times
but didn't die
69 people died
and the movie
portrays this
and then the movie
it's not a spoiler alert
if that's
what the movie's about
and then part of
what happens
afterwards
is they
show the capture
of course
of the man
who does it
and they show
the pre-trial
and then the trial
and of course
you see
what they want
to try to do
is they want
to try to say
that the man
must have been insane
why do they want
to say that he's insane
because you see
they want to
they can't handle
the idea
that it's just
evil
it's evil
it's easier
if evil
can always be reduced
it can be reduced
to something else
it can be reduced
to mental illness
it can be reduced
to the fact
that he didn't have
a mom that loved him enough
or he didn't have a dad
that loved him enough
or that he'd been told
some bad stories
because you see
if it's mental illness
you can give him drugs
if it's a bad mom
or a bad dad
well you can
I don't know
give parents to moms
or dads
or put all your kids
in daycare
or you can
you can control
the things
that make them read
what they read
or the stories
that they think
or they make sure
they don't play video games
or they don't do this
or they don't do that
because you see
at the end of the day
liberal Norway
and liberal Canada
has a very hard time
with the fact
that some things
are just evil
they cannot be reduced
to social processes
or biological
or chemical processes
it is evil
it is irreducible
and it's real
and so you see
the very lack
of an explanation
of the story
just confronts you
with irreducible
real evil
and some people
might say
okay George
but that's very
very very problematic
like George
don't you think
that if you start
to think
that there's
like real evil
like that
then it just
doesn't
don't you think
that actually fuels
what that guy did
killing those people
because you see
then it means
like there's evil people
and good people
like isn't that
what Christianity does
it divides the world
into good people
and evil people
but not at all
that's not what
Christianity teaches
at all
if you could put up
the next point
that would be
very helpful
you see
what Christianity teaches
is that like
every other human being
every part of who you are
is touched by evil
Christians do not believe
the world is divided
between good people
and bad people
that is not a Christian idea
Christianity is the only religion
that explains the news
and explains why you can have
the most advanced
and progressive
and prosperous
and best education
and best parenting
and best all of those things
but the fact of the matter
is that the newspapers
are still filled
with crime
and bad things
not just bad things
but also good things
why because
the Bible doesn't teach
that human beings
are evil
it teaches that human beings
are made in the image
and likeness of God
but that every single part
of who I am
whether it's my mind
or my affections
or my will
whether it's my memories
whether it's my desires
whatever part of makes
a human being
has been touched
by evil
in some way
and is now bent
and slightly broken
and for some of us
we give ourselves to evil
and give ourselves to evil
and we're consumed by it
just as some people
give themselves to demons
and give themselves to demons
and are consumed by it
and those are free choices
and they have to be dealt with
in the case of people
who give themselves to evil
like to completely
like a Stalin
or a Hitler
they have to
you have to try to defeat them
but a church
is not the gathering
of the good
if you came here today
thinking the church
is the gathering
of the good
I have to tell you
you came to the wrong place
I mean
you might want to go
to the gathering
of the caucus
of the liberals
or the conservatives
or the NDP
in their own different ways
thinking that they're
the gathering of the good
or you might want to go
to a faculty club
or a faculty room
or a yoga studio
I don't know
you might want to go
somewhere else
but if any church
ever thinks
that it's the gathering
of the good
it has ceased to understand
what a church is
because the church
is a hospital
for sinners
I am a sinner
I come every Sunday
to the hospital
to be with you
because we need
to get better
but here's this
other thing about it
if you could put up
the next point
you see
one of the things
in a very odd way
in the movie
the 22nd of July
because they struggle
with this thing
as to whether or not
the man is insane
but interestingly enough
and this isn't giving away
anything in the movie
the man doesn't think
he's insane
in fact refuses
to be diagnosed
as insane
he believes
he is completely
and utterly sane
and he probably is
by no normal
definition of insanity
would he
no amount of
chemicals
it wasn't a matter
that he has
some brain
chemicals
a little bit
out of balance
causing this
he was sane
he was just
completely and utterly
given over to evil
but you see
in an odd way
the point
part of the thing
that goes on
in the movie
even though
it's wrong
to try to reduce
evil to something else
what the desire
shows is something
which is fundamentally
human
if you could put up
the
that's it right there
it is part of
human nature
to hope
that evil
will not have
the final word
that's part of
human nature
we hope
you know in fact
if you met a human
being
if you met somebody
later on this week
I mean
so I meet people
and they've become
despairing
that this might be
the case
I've talked to
lots of people
in St. Arbux
that have come
to despair
they just think
evil
it just
their life
sucks
the bad
people get
promoted
the hard workers
don't
their parents
will never love
them or care
for them
people who've
done wrong
to them
just go on
to success
and they get
stuck with
what's left
and there are
people who've
despaired
but despair
is just a way
of complimenting
of trying to
believe that
in their
heart of
heart
they just
hope
and they know
that it has
to be true
they don't know
what to ground
it or how to
but they just
know that it
must be the
case that evil
cannot have
the final word
if you ever
met somebody
who said
actually I'm
hoping that
evil has
the final word
if you actually
believed that
they were serious
you would want
to call the
police about
them
because it's
something
fundamental
in human
beings to
believe that
evil will not
have the final
word
only the Bible
accounts for
that
you see
the Bible
portrays
human beings
as originally
being made
good in Adam
and Eve
and human
beings choosing
evil
choosing to try
to be like
God
and it was
human beings
that we
bent the image
of God
we bent the
likeness of God
but God didn't
take the image
or likeness of God
out of us
we're still made
in the image
and likeness of God
only it's bent
or it's twisted
and so on one hand
every single part
of who I am
is touched by evil
it means that
there will be
times in life
where I just
do what is wrong
and it can't be
explained because
I didn't have
enough sleep
I didn't have
enough caffeine
I didn't have
enough food
that you know
that another person
hasn't been kind
or nice to me
I just sometimes
do evil
and so do you
I just do it
sometimes
and the Bible
explains that
but at the same
time our longing
and yearning
because we are
made in the image
of God
our longing
and yearning
that evil
will not have
the final word
it shows that
in some way
whether we're
conscious or not
we believe
and hope
that the God
who's described
in the Bible
actually exists
it is that image
of God
within us
and the fact
that the order
is made
all of creation
is made by God
that calls out
to the God
that really does exist
even though he is
an unknown God
to most Canadians
our hearts cry out
to the unknown God
that surely
the unknown God
must exist
and in such a world
if you could put up
the next point
here's what the gospel
has to say
the true end of evil
was inaugurated
by the birth
life
death
and resurrection
of the Lord Jesus Christ
the true end
of evil
was inaugurated
when Mary
said yes
to God
and God
did a miracle
to create
within the womb
of Mary
that man
that we know of
as Jesus
and he was born
and he lived
amongst us
God among us
and he died
on the cross
and he died
on the cross
where in a sense
the forces
and powers
of evil
do all they can
to actually
kill God
it's not enough
just to rage
against God
whom we cannot touch
so often people
who rage against God
whom we cannot touch
they rage
against his people
and so here we have
God among us
God in flesh
and so the evil
of the world
institutionalized
in religion
and Rome
with all of its power
and its glory
and its splendor
rage against God
and they kill
God among us
evil falling on him
but Jesus
that which they meant
for ill
God uses for good
because Jesus
dies in our place
in our stead
he takes the evil
that is in us
and the punishment
that we deserve
and he takes it
upon himself
and his perfect life
that we could not
live our own
he offers it to us
in
he offers that
to us
and his death
is not in fact
the defeat of God
but is the means
by which
the end of evil
is inaugurated
and God
has Jesus
experience
all there is
to experience
of death
and on the third day
he rises again
and brothers and sisters
he will return
and with the resurrection
of Jesus
the death and resurrection
of Jesus
the beginning
of the end
of evil
has begun
and we can be confident
that there will come a day
when all evil
will be done
will be finished
because Jesus
has triumphed
and we live
between the coming
of Jesus
when the end
of evil
is inaugurated
and that glorious day
when he will return
when evil
and death itself
goes
and is completely
and utterly destroyed
and we live
between
the beginning
of the end
and the end
of the end
and by faith
and trust
when we put our hands
in the hands
of Jesus
he takes us
as his own
and the final word
about each one
of us
will not be
rebel
or fighter
or one
who rages
against me
but when we put
our hands
in the hand
of Jesus
we share
in his victory
we share
in his triumph
and we can long
for the day
that he returns
Maranatha
come Lord
Jesus
come
please stand
if
if you haven't
given your life
to Jesus
there is no better
time than today
to just say
to Jesus
Jesus
be my savior
and be my lord
and never let me go
be my savior
be my lord
and never let me go
thank you for defeating evil
thank you for
dealing with the evil
that is in me
thank you that you will
one day
make me fit
to live in the new heaven
and the new earth
thank you that you did it all
and I want that to be mine
I want Jesus
to be my savior
and my lord
and in your own words
say that
and for each of us
who struggle with evil
in different ways
ask the father
to make the person
the work of Jesus
ever more deep
and real to us
so that we have
our identity
and who Jesus is
and as our identity
is formed by Jesus
we start to have
the security
to confront
those things
in our lives
that we do
that are evil
and know it's been
dealt with by Jesus
and we can say sorry
and we can ask
for help
to amend our lives
father
pour out the holy spirit
upon each one of us
make us disciples
of Jesus
who are gripped
by the gospel
learning to live
for your glory
father we thank you
for Jesus
and we thank you
father
that he is the end
of our longings
and yearnings
our human longings
and yearnings
that evil will not have
our final word
that unknown
way of solving
that we give you
thanks and praise
that you have revealed
this in Jesus
that you have really
defeated evil
and its end
is imminent
and its end
will be final
and eternal
and it's all
what you have done
not what we have done
and that father
help us to be gripped
by this
and put our trust
in this
and be formed
by this
and learn to live
in light
of this sure
and certain
truth and hope
father we ask
that you would do
this wonderful work
in our lives
and we ask this
in the precious name
of Jesus
and all God's people
said
amen
and all God's people