WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.320 Good evening to everybody. 00:00:06.700 --> 00:00:08.419 So glad that we can be here together. 00:00:09.380 --> 00:00:10.439 My name is Tommy. 00:00:10.540 --> 00:00:12.040 If we haven't met, I'm a pastor here. 00:00:13.220 --> 00:00:20.199 And especially this weekend, I think, for obvious reasons, I've been so looking forward 00:00:20.199 --> 00:00:23.839 to being together in a setting like this. 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:28.460 I can think of no better cap to a weekend that had, I think, a lot of emotional ups 00:00:28.460 --> 00:00:30.780 and some downs as well. 00:00:31.400 --> 00:00:40.660 I was excited and proud to see so many pictures of people from the Advent community participating 00:00:40.660 --> 00:00:47.140 yesterday in what amounted to be a very epic experience, I think a historic experience 00:00:47.140 --> 00:00:48.060 in our nation's history. 00:00:48.480 --> 00:00:50.200 So glad that many of you were there. 00:00:50.200 --> 00:00:54.340 I have to be honest, I think for Laura and I, a lot of what we felt over the course of 00:00:54.340 --> 00:01:00.860 the weekend, essentially can be summed up with the phrase political homelessness. 00:01:02.000 --> 00:01:07.219 You know, we've just been feeling alienated from the country that we love in many ways. 00:01:07.859 --> 00:01:15.159 And in wrestling with that, the passage that I've been reflecting on this week very unexpectedly 00:01:15.159 --> 00:01:16.439 offered some comfort. 00:01:16.439 --> 00:01:21.579 I mean, Matthew chapter 2, these verses that we just read, are not typically thought of 00:01:21.579 --> 00:01:24.719 as comforting verses, not a comforting story. 00:01:25.140 --> 00:01:28.219 But there are things in here, realities in here that are very comforting. 00:01:29.000 --> 00:01:35.340 It's interesting to note that in the childhood of our Savior Jesus, that he and his family 00:01:35.340 --> 00:01:36.219 lived as refugees. 00:01:37.299 --> 00:01:41.700 That they very much knew what it meant to be homeless, living in a land that was not their 00:01:41.700 --> 00:01:41.979 home. 00:01:41.980 --> 00:01:48.180 And we've been looking at these snapshots from Jesus' childhood the last few weeks, the childhood 00:01:48.180 --> 00:01:48.600 of Jesus. 00:01:48.719 --> 00:01:50.500 We don't have many of them, but we do have a few. 00:01:51.240 --> 00:01:55.040 And what we're seeing again and again every week is that the gospel writers included these 00:01:55.040 --> 00:01:56.079 stories for a reason. 00:01:56.480 --> 00:02:00.280 They're trying to tell us something about Jesus through each of these snapshots. 00:02:00.920 --> 00:02:04.100 So this week we come to this snapshot in Matthew chapter 2. 00:02:04.800 --> 00:02:10.540 It's a story that is often skipped over during the Christmas season for, I think, pretty obvious 00:02:10.539 --> 00:02:10.979 reason. 00:02:12.299 --> 00:02:18.340 After the Magi, the three kings who were not actually kings, nor were there only three of 00:02:18.340 --> 00:02:18.519 them. 00:02:18.840 --> 00:02:21.840 The Magi come to visit the child Jesus. 00:02:22.199 --> 00:02:23.859 They're told by Herod. 00:02:24.539 --> 00:02:28.280 Herod says, I want you to tell me where Jesus is because I want to go and worship him too. 00:02:28.379 --> 00:02:31.099 And in reality we know that he intends to kill Jesus. 00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:36.219 And when they refuse to do that and they go home by a different route and Herod learns this, 00:02:36.219 --> 00:02:37.080 he grows angry. 00:02:37.599 --> 00:02:43.759 And so he has all of the male children under the age of two killed in the region. 00:02:44.020 --> 00:02:48.219 And so this is why this is sometimes referred to as the slaughter of the innocents. 00:02:48.280 --> 00:02:52.300 And in most kind of Christmas celebration lineups, this doesn't make the cut. 00:02:52.919 --> 00:02:54.500 But we're going to look at it tonight. 00:02:55.460 --> 00:02:59.979 And it shows us, as all of these passages do, it shows us two things. 00:02:59.979 --> 00:03:04.780 It shows us first the paradox of the human condition. 00:03:05.500 --> 00:03:07.139 The paradox of the human condition. 00:03:07.899 --> 00:03:10.819 And then it shows us the promise of the gospel. 00:03:11.280 --> 00:03:16.780 Why is the gospel uniquely suited to address the paradox in the human heart? 00:03:17.500 --> 00:03:18.679 So this is Matthew chapter 2. 00:03:18.759 --> 00:03:19.939 Let's pray as we get started. 00:03:19.939 --> 00:03:29.740 Heavenly Father, we've heard a lot of promises, a lot of hope, a lot of, we've heard visions 00:03:29.740 --> 00:03:31.199 of what our future might be. 00:03:31.659 --> 00:03:36.539 We've heard many, many, many words, many speeches this weekend. 00:03:37.099 --> 00:03:41.259 But we know that the one word we most need to hear is your word. 00:03:41.919 --> 00:03:45.620 And we need your promise and your willingness to be true to your promise. 00:03:46.020 --> 00:03:49.159 And we desire ultimately your vision for our future. 00:03:49.939 --> 00:03:57.840 And Lord, that is something that you are intending to do in us tonight, Lord, to speak your word 00:03:57.840 --> 00:04:00.300 to us and to lay your vision out in our hearts. 00:04:00.919 --> 00:04:05.979 We long for our imaginations to be captivated by you, Lord. 00:04:06.079 --> 00:04:10.759 And so we pray tonight as we gather around your word that you would speak to us. 00:04:11.159 --> 00:04:14.419 And that through these written words, you would reveal to us your living word, Jesus Christ. 00:04:14.699 --> 00:04:16.139 And it's in his name that we pray. 00:04:16.420 --> 00:04:16.639 Amen. 00:04:16.639 --> 00:04:16.740 Amen. 00:04:18.339 --> 00:04:22.139 So the paradox of the human condition. 00:04:22.300 --> 00:04:29.459 In other words, we have two countervailing forces or longings or desires in our hearts. 00:04:29.719 --> 00:04:37.279 And we see this represented by two people or two figures in this story. 00:04:38.099 --> 00:04:40.639 You have the Magi and you have Herod. 00:04:40.639 --> 00:04:45.599 And they each are, in many ways, representatives of the human race. 00:04:45.939 --> 00:04:46.939 So I want to look at each. 00:04:47.500 --> 00:04:49.899 The first we want to look at is the Magi. 00:04:49.979 --> 00:04:51.139 What do the Magi represent? 00:04:52.039 --> 00:04:55.659 And if you know, if you remember us looking at this a couple of weeks ago, if you were here, 00:04:56.120 --> 00:04:58.680 the Magi are pagan astrologers. 00:04:59.439 --> 00:05:04.120 And they come from a completely different cultural, ethnic, religious background. 00:05:04.120 --> 00:05:11.240 And yet, even though they have nothing to do with the culture in which Jesus was born, 00:05:12.240 --> 00:05:19.360 they nevertheless are willing to travel roughly 900 miles at great risk and expense to find Jesus. 00:05:19.759 --> 00:05:27.600 And it shows us that people from the other side of the world will stop at nothing to find Jesus. 00:05:27.600 --> 00:05:36.340 And what that shows us is the first longing, which is a deep and desperate desire to know God. 00:05:37.439 --> 00:05:40.400 And we drew this out a couple of weeks ago, but I want to come back to it and say, 00:05:40.480 --> 00:05:45.260 that's the real thing that the Magi show us, is that there are people within the human heart, 00:05:45.760 --> 00:05:53.379 there is a desire, a desperation to know God, to connect with the transcendent, 00:05:53.500 --> 00:05:56.960 to commune with the divine, a longing for something more. 00:05:56.959 --> 00:06:01.039 And you see examples of this all throughout our culture. 00:06:01.159 --> 00:06:03.239 At any given time, there are all kinds of examples of this, 00:06:03.279 --> 00:06:06.859 and I think we experience it in different ways in each of our lives. 00:06:07.259 --> 00:06:09.459 Just to give a couple of current examples, 00:06:10.319 --> 00:06:13.319 Martin Scorsese, who has just come out with the movie Silence, 00:06:14.639 --> 00:06:17.319 he spent 20 years on this film. 00:06:17.959 --> 00:06:18.679 20 years. 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:21.279 It's a long time, even in the film world. 00:06:21.279 --> 00:06:27.539 And Silence is a rather obscure story, probably by most people's standards. 00:06:27.699 --> 00:06:29.819 It's an amazing story, an amazing book, 00:06:30.059 --> 00:06:35.359 about Jesuit priests who travel to Japan in search of one of their brothers. 00:06:35.559 --> 00:06:40.619 And it wrestles with the silence of God, and suffering, and waiting, and faith, 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:42.439 and all of these deep questions. 00:06:43.199 --> 00:06:47.419 But people ask, Scorsese, who has this incredible filmography, right? 00:06:47.420 --> 00:06:50.540 Why spend 20 years on this project? 00:06:51.259 --> 00:06:52.720 Why did it matter so much to you? 00:06:53.660 --> 00:06:56.500 And in the interview, this is part of his response. 00:06:57.879 --> 00:07:02.480 He says, yeah, the cinema and the people in my life and my family are most important, 00:07:03.000 --> 00:07:06.620 but ultimately, as you get older, there's got to be more. 00:07:07.580 --> 00:07:08.720 Much, much more. 00:07:09.560 --> 00:07:13.160 He says, the very nature of secularism right now is really fascinating to me, 00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:17.860 but at the same time, do you wipe away what could be more enriching in your life, 00:07:18.660 --> 00:07:24.700 which is an appreciation or some sort of search for that which is spiritual and transcends. 00:07:25.680 --> 00:07:26.580 And I love that. 00:07:26.680 --> 00:07:31.660 Martin, why do you spend 20 years of your life on this project when you have so much going for you? 00:07:31.680 --> 00:07:34.680 And he says, you know, I have a great career. 00:07:34.820 --> 00:07:35.580 I have a great family. 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:39.120 I know that's great, and I know I have, you know, essentially what most people want. 00:07:39.180 --> 00:07:42.040 But as I'm getting older, I'm wondering, is this all there is? 00:07:42.040 --> 00:07:44.100 There's got to be more. 00:07:45.180 --> 00:07:51.420 And as fascinating as secularism is and as, you know, and as potentially liberating as people may feel it to be 00:07:51.420 --> 00:07:57.300 to live in an increasingly secular culture, he says, I wonder if, as we go in this direction, 00:07:57.460 --> 00:08:01.220 that we're missing something very profound and more valuable. 00:08:03.300 --> 00:08:08.560 What do we give up when we give up the search or the longing for that which transcends, right? 00:08:08.560 --> 00:08:11.120 And this drove him to make this film. 00:08:11.379 --> 00:08:17.680 Making this film was in many ways a part of him enacting or responding to the longing in his heart. 00:08:19.459 --> 00:08:23.540 And, you know, you may hear this and think, well, you know, I don't really resonate with that, 00:08:23.579 --> 00:08:26.939 and I'm just not a religious person, and I don't really think about this stuff. 00:08:27.079 --> 00:08:28.560 And I would say, okay, fair enough. 00:08:28.620 --> 00:08:30.480 You don't think about religious things, and that's fine. 00:08:30.620 --> 00:08:33.519 But I would wonder, what are the things that you love? 00:08:33.519 --> 00:08:37.179 And then what is it like to love the things that you love? 00:08:37.939 --> 00:08:39.960 What does it feel like to love those things? 00:08:40.699 --> 00:08:45.340 You know, you talk to somebody who loves music, and you get them to play one of their favorite songs, 00:08:45.419 --> 00:08:47.100 and you ask them why they love it so much. 00:08:47.519 --> 00:08:53.399 And many times music evokes in us a kind of longing, a hunger, 00:08:53.620 --> 00:08:59.519 and it's almost as though you're wanting something behind or beneath or under or in between the notes. 00:08:59.519 --> 00:09:08.179 There's something that is awakened in you within the beauty of the music, right? 00:09:08.759 --> 00:09:11.539 If you're familiar with the Writer's Almanac, Garrison Keillor, 00:09:12.779 --> 00:09:18.299 they featured a poem by a woman named Ann Porter, and it's called Music. 00:09:18.919 --> 00:09:20.779 And I just want to read this poem to you. 00:09:24.039 --> 00:09:28.840 When I was a child, I once sat sobbing on the floor beside my mother's piano. 00:09:29.519 --> 00:09:31.379 As she played and sang. 00:09:32.799 --> 00:09:39.100 For there was in her singing a shy yet solemn glory my smallness could not hold. 00:09:41.199 --> 00:09:45.000 And when I was asked why I was crying, I had no words for it. 00:09:45.779 --> 00:09:48.059 I only shook my head and went on crying. 00:09:49.360 --> 00:09:54.980 Why is it that music, at its most beautiful, opens a wound in us? 00:09:54.980 --> 00:09:56.300 An ache. 00:09:57.300 --> 00:09:58.659 A desolation. 00:10:00.180 --> 00:10:04.120 Deep as a homesickness for some far off and half forgotten country. 00:10:05.019 --> 00:10:07.120 I've never understood why this is so. 00:10:07.120 --> 00:10:15.980 But there's an ancient legend from the other side of the world that gives away the secret of this mysterious sorrow. 00:10:17.580 --> 00:10:22.980 For centuries on centuries we've been wandering, but we were made for paradise. 00:10:23.659 --> 00:10:25.200 As deer for the forest. 00:10:25.200 --> 00:10:31.020 And when music comes to us with its heavenly beauty, it brings us desolation. 00:10:31.320 --> 00:10:35.300 For when we hear it, we half remember that lost native country. 00:10:35.680 --> 00:10:41.940 We dimly remember the fields, their fragrant windswept clover, the bird songs in the orchards, 00:10:42.060 --> 00:10:46.360 the wild white violets in the moss by the transparent streams. 00:10:46.360 --> 00:10:54.960 And shining at the heart of it is the longed for beauty of the one who waits for us. 00:10:55.639 --> 00:10:59.060 Who will always wait for us. 00:10:59.720 --> 00:11:01.360 In those radiant meadows. 00:11:02.440 --> 00:11:06.060 Yet also came to live with us and wanders where we wander. 00:11:06.059 --> 00:11:14.079 And you read this and Porter is pointing to that longing in our hearts. 00:11:14.159 --> 00:11:21.059 In every heart there is the desperation for the one who waits for us. 00:11:22.000 --> 00:11:24.559 The one who always waits for us. 00:11:24.639 --> 00:11:27.859 The one who on some deep level we know is out there. 00:11:28.439 --> 00:11:31.559 When we say there's got to be more, what we're really saying is, 00:11:31.899 --> 00:11:33.939 where is the one who waits for us? 00:11:33.940 --> 00:11:36.680 How do I know that being, right? 00:11:37.920 --> 00:11:45.120 So this is the first longing in our hearts reflected in the Magi and their long journey, right? 00:11:45.280 --> 00:11:49.560 But there's also another longing in our hearts that runs against it. 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:55.660 A countervailing force with equal ferocity that rages against the first. 00:11:55.920 --> 00:11:59.920 And this is what we see represented in the person of Herod. 00:11:59.919 --> 00:12:05.679 And essentially it is this, that on the one hand we are desperate to know God. 00:12:05.759 --> 00:12:10.219 But on the other hand we are determined to stay in control. 00:12:11.939 --> 00:12:13.120 To stay in control. 00:12:13.579 --> 00:12:17.959 And I think that on some deep level we know that if we were to ever come face to face, 00:12:18.120 --> 00:12:22.159 not with the God of our own imagination, but with the real God of the heavens and the earth, 00:12:22.379 --> 00:12:26.519 that we would recognize not only that we are not in control, but that we never had control. 00:12:26.519 --> 00:12:38.340 And that longing rages against the idea of such a God who would rob us of the throne. 00:12:39.600 --> 00:12:44.000 And you see here, Herod, he gets word from the Magi that Jesus is going to be born 00:12:44.000 --> 00:12:45.519 and they call him the King of the Jews. 00:12:45.919 --> 00:12:51.079 And his heart rages against the kind of being who would threaten his throne. 00:12:51.080 --> 00:12:56.100 And he recognizes that he would do anything to stay in the throne. 00:12:56.520 --> 00:13:02.379 And so he stops at nothing to put an end to the claims about Jesus. 00:13:03.580 --> 00:13:10.240 And it says that he is willing to put all of the male children, ages 2 and under, to death 00:13:10.240 --> 00:13:12.560 in order to protect his power. 00:13:12.700 --> 00:13:16.400 Now, we might imagine that that's, we don't know how many that is. 00:13:16.399 --> 00:13:21.379 In fact, Bethlehem was a small region, and so it was probably somewhere in the neighborhood 00:13:21.379 --> 00:13:22.939 of 30 children, right? 00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:27.720 Now, I'm not saying that to minimize the death of 30 kids, but what I am doing is addressing 00:13:27.720 --> 00:13:31.639 the fact that some people say, well, if there was this mass murder, then why don't we read 00:13:31.639 --> 00:13:34.959 about this in history when we read about other things that Herod did? 00:13:35.220 --> 00:13:40.120 And the reason is because Herod did other things that we do know about that were much, much, 00:13:40.220 --> 00:13:43.559 much more likely to be included in the history books. 00:13:43.559 --> 00:13:50.619 In other words, he wiped out at one time 300 leaders and nobles because he saw them as 00:13:50.619 --> 00:13:52.079 potentially a threat to his throne. 00:13:52.879 --> 00:13:57.959 So Herod wiping out 30 kids would have been a blip on the radar at most. 00:13:59.179 --> 00:14:04.459 So Herod does this, and what he's really saying is, I'm willing to sacrifice these children 00:14:04.459 --> 00:14:06.559 in order to stay in control. 00:14:07.719 --> 00:14:12.979 I'm willing to sacrifice their lives in order to benefit myself, right? 00:14:14.519 --> 00:14:17.339 Now, it may sound extreme as I've kind of framed this. 00:14:17.379 --> 00:14:20.719 It may sound extreme to you to say, and we have the same kind of heart. 00:14:21.899 --> 00:14:23.559 And you may be taken aback by that. 00:14:25.379 --> 00:14:30.379 And so I want to consider a bit whether or not this is a true claim to make about the 00:14:30.379 --> 00:14:30.919 human heart. 00:14:31.079 --> 00:14:36.779 Are there not ways in which we are more than willing to sacrifice others to get what we 00:14:36.779 --> 00:14:39.279 want or to preserve our autonomy or to stay in control? 00:14:39.279 --> 00:14:43.360 So I want to just walk through a few examples, see if any of these resonate. 00:14:44.559 --> 00:14:48.799 The first example that we address, we do so for a couple of reasons. 00:14:48.980 --> 00:14:55.559 One, it's because most Christians, when they read this passage, the first thing they think 00:14:55.559 --> 00:14:56.299 about is abortion. 00:14:57.419 --> 00:15:00.139 And so I feel compelled to address it for that reason. 00:15:01.639 --> 00:15:05.139 Another reason I think that it's relevant is because I think, given some of the controversy 00:15:05.139 --> 00:15:07.080 around the march, it's maybe on some of our minds. 00:15:07.439 --> 00:15:10.019 But this comes up a lot when Christians look at this passage. 00:15:11.019 --> 00:15:12.220 And I want to say a few things. 00:15:13.100 --> 00:15:20.259 In our church, when we've addressed this, we've at least endeavored to be as sensitive 00:15:20.259 --> 00:15:23.360 as we can be to the fact that this is an incredibly complex issue. 00:15:23.360 --> 00:15:27.940 And I know that this actually personally directly affects a number of people. 00:15:28.000 --> 00:15:30.039 There are a number of people in our congregation who have had abortions. 00:15:30.600 --> 00:15:32.940 There are a number of people in our congregation who are very passionate about this. 00:15:33.000 --> 00:15:36.180 And so this is not about to become an angry pro-life rant. 00:15:36.600 --> 00:15:41.759 So if you're tempted to tune out or turn away, that's not what's about to happen. 00:15:42.600 --> 00:15:48.220 We recognize, I think, that there's enormous complexity and many facets to this issue, right? 00:15:48.220 --> 00:15:53.980 You have to take into consideration all of the hard cases of rape and incest and the health 00:15:53.980 --> 00:15:54.440 of the mother. 00:15:54.779 --> 00:16:00.960 You have to take into consideration the impact of unwanted pregnancy on single-parent households, 00:16:01.160 --> 00:16:01.399 right? 00:16:01.600 --> 00:16:05.379 You have to take into consideration the reason for all of the single-parent households and 00:16:05.379 --> 00:16:12.740 how this enables men to be absolved of any responsibility for their actions in many cases, right? 00:16:13.240 --> 00:16:18.040 That they're able to have what I think most men want, which is sex without responsibility. 00:16:18.660 --> 00:16:19.879 And that's a huge part of this. 00:16:20.600 --> 00:16:24.060 Whereas women, no matter what choice they make, are saddled with the responsibility of that 00:16:24.060 --> 00:16:25.899 choice regardless, right? 00:16:26.100 --> 00:16:32.300 It's also something that we have to consider from the impact of an unwanted pregnancy, an 00:16:32.300 --> 00:16:37.460 additional child on an already impoverished household, and the impact on the mother and 00:16:37.460 --> 00:16:40.320 the ability to raise the other children well, right? 00:16:40.360 --> 00:16:44.279 So all of these are factors that we have to take into consideration, and I would never want 00:16:44.279 --> 00:16:47.259 to oversimplify this or be reductionistic about it. 00:16:48.220 --> 00:16:55.660 But for reasons of our consideration in the realities that exist within our hearts, I 00:16:55.660 --> 00:16:58.399 think that this is still a worthwhile example to consider. 00:16:58.800 --> 00:17:01.180 I think some of the statistics may be surprising to you. 00:17:01.220 --> 00:17:02.220 I know that they were to me. 00:17:03.220 --> 00:17:07.579 The World Health Organization and the Guttmacher Institute, which is essentially a research 00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:14.660 policy pro-abortion rights group, they did a big study last year, global study of abortion. 00:17:14.660 --> 00:17:21.279 And one of their more surprising statistics, they found that 73% of women around the world 00:17:21.279 --> 00:17:22.600 who have abortions are married. 00:17:23.480 --> 00:17:28.200 So not the kind of single mother that you might sometimes think is the case. 00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:30.980 That is sometimes true, but they said 73% are married. 00:17:31.500 --> 00:17:35.860 And as to why, Guttmacher's done a bunch of research on the why behind this. 00:17:35.859 --> 00:17:38.219 And I'll just read the end of their study. 00:17:38.319 --> 00:17:38.959 They say this. 00:17:40.439 --> 00:17:46.519 It is clear that the hard cases, rape, incest, life or health of the mother or baby, are a 00:17:46.519 --> 00:17:48.419 very small fraction of cases. 00:17:48.639 --> 00:17:49.539 It's around 1%. 00:17:49.539 --> 00:17:56.439 At the other extreme, AGI's surveys suggest that a significant fraction of abortions are 00:17:56.439 --> 00:18:02.240 obtained by mothers who have the means to care for a child, but do not want their lives 00:18:02.240 --> 00:18:03.179 inconvenienced. 00:18:03.180 --> 00:18:10.539 So a significant number of people seeking abortions throughout the world have a spouse and they 00:18:10.539 --> 00:18:14.360 have the financial means to care for the child, and it is more a matter of convenience. 00:18:14.539 --> 00:18:16.400 I think that that's something worth considering. 00:18:16.900 --> 00:18:21.180 There's an article written a few years ago by Mary Elizabeth Williams called, and just the 00:18:21.180 --> 00:18:24.940 title alone, So What If Abortion Ends Life? 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:26.320 And here's what she says. 00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:32.139 Throughout my own pregnancies, I never wavered for a moment in the belief that I was carrying 00:18:32.139 --> 00:18:33.419 a human life inside of me. 00:18:34.279 --> 00:18:36.720 I believe that's what a fetus is, a human life. 00:18:37.299 --> 00:18:40.740 And that doesn't make me one iota less solidly pro-choice. 00:18:41.679 --> 00:18:45.980 The fetus is indeed a life, a life worth sacrificing. 00:18:45.980 --> 00:18:52.039 And you know, I read that, and I realized that this is a growing way of thinking. 00:18:52.299 --> 00:18:56.180 And I do think that as Christians, that's something that we need to take into consideration. 00:18:56.519 --> 00:19:02.960 What does this tell us about the human heart when there are a subset of people, there's a 00:19:02.960 --> 00:19:08.400 subset of people who would say that sacrificing a human life for the sake of convenience is a 00:19:08.400 --> 00:19:09.160 worthwhile sacrifice? 00:19:09.160 --> 00:19:09.720 Right? 00:19:10.080 --> 00:19:16.019 This isn't meant to shame anybody or to call anybody out, but this is a reality that I 00:19:16.019 --> 00:19:17.960 think that we need to struggle with here. 00:19:18.460 --> 00:19:21.920 It is worth sacrificing the lives of children for the convenience of adults. 00:19:23.160 --> 00:19:29.440 Now, if you think that I'm getting too one-sided, let's come to the other side, and we'll hammer 00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:31.320 liberals and conservatives alike, right? 00:19:31.940 --> 00:19:33.540 Think about the environment. 00:19:34.640 --> 00:19:36.040 Think about the environment, right? 00:19:36.039 --> 00:19:39.879 Think about things like coal or plastic, right? 00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:41.259 Two amazing inventions. 00:19:41.559 --> 00:19:46.440 When we realized that we had packaged energy in coal, when we realized that we could make 00:19:46.440 --> 00:19:47.460 things out of plastic, right? 00:19:47.700 --> 00:19:50.399 Massive technological advancements enabled by those things. 00:19:52.279 --> 00:19:57.519 But think of the enormous impact that coal and plastic have had on our environment. 00:19:58.500 --> 00:20:00.399 Enormously negative impact, right? 00:20:01.099 --> 00:20:05.960 Think about the phone in your pocket right now, or the laptop in your bag, right? 00:20:06.740 --> 00:20:11.220 So, you know, AT&T has this program now where you can subscribe and you can get a new phone 00:20:11.220 --> 00:20:11.700 every year. 00:20:11.839 --> 00:20:12.319 And that's great. 00:20:12.379 --> 00:20:13.099 It keeps you up to date. 00:20:13.200 --> 00:20:15.559 Latest iPhone or whatever every single year. 00:20:15.759 --> 00:20:17.139 But what happens to the old phone? 00:20:17.240 --> 00:20:18.940 What happens to your laptop when you throw it out? 00:20:20.019 --> 00:20:20.859 Well, it goes somewhere. 00:20:21.799 --> 00:20:26.980 And chances are it's going to end up in a giant e-waste pile somewhere on the other side 00:20:26.980 --> 00:20:27.899 of the world, right? 00:20:27.900 --> 00:20:32.720 I think there was a big study done recently on 12 different countries in Asia, right? 00:20:32.800 --> 00:20:35.500 Where e-waste goes to be processed. 00:20:36.519 --> 00:20:40.400 There's an enormous amount of regulation around this, but a lot of times people don't follow 00:20:40.400 --> 00:20:41.340 it or they do it illegally. 00:20:41.339 --> 00:20:47.319 And you know what happens is you have the poorest of the poor who realize that they could make 00:20:47.319 --> 00:20:53.000 ten times the amount of money that they make waiting tables going and processing e-waste. 00:20:53.119 --> 00:20:55.480 And so they take the e-waste and they break it down and they sort it. 00:20:55.500 --> 00:20:57.480 In a lot of cases, they burn it, right? 00:20:57.480 --> 00:21:02.180 And these chemicals like lithium leak into the soil and they damage the soil and the water, 00:21:02.259 --> 00:21:06.039 but they also leak into the systems of the people who are processing it. 00:21:06.079 --> 00:21:10.620 And so they get everything from all kinds of severe illnesses to it causes mental illness, 00:21:10.700 --> 00:21:14.299 it causes genetic conditions that are passed on to children, right? 00:21:14.819 --> 00:21:20.059 And so what you have is you have rich, wealthy countries and societies producing an enormous 00:21:20.059 --> 00:21:24.039 amount of e-waste and then you have the poorest of the poor who are saddled with processing 00:21:24.039 --> 00:21:29.559 the e-waste and they're getting sick and they're dying and entire cities are being poisoned as a result. 00:21:30.779 --> 00:21:31.000 Right? 00:21:31.059 --> 00:21:36.700 This is a classic example of a system that says it is worth it to sacrifice these lives 00:21:36.700 --> 00:21:39.500 to make these lives better and more convenient. 00:21:40.259 --> 00:21:41.799 I mean, it's a classic example of that. 00:21:42.039 --> 00:21:47.680 And really, climate change as a whole, the human role that has been played in climate change 00:21:47.680 --> 00:21:51.519 is a beautiful and horrible example of human beings saying, 00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:56.220 I want my life to be convenient and I'm willing to sacrifice future generations, right? 00:21:57.420 --> 00:21:59.420 And so you have Herod who kills 30 kids. 00:21:59.539 --> 00:22:04.079 Well, listen, there are 15 abortions every day in D.C. right now. 00:22:04.379 --> 00:22:04.960 Every single day. 00:22:05.059 --> 00:22:06.079 Just in D.C., right? 00:22:06.940 --> 00:22:09.500 And we say, you know, Herod sacrificed 30 kids, but at the same time, 00:22:09.559 --> 00:22:11.879 there are a lot of people who refuse to acknowledge, 00:22:12.299 --> 00:22:18.420 who refuse to engage with the very real environmental crisis that exists right now. 00:22:18.420 --> 00:22:21.519 And that's a way of saying, I don't want my life to be inconvenienced 00:22:21.519 --> 00:22:24.160 and it's worth sacrificing future generations. 00:22:26.360 --> 00:22:28.320 I'm not trying to make anybody feel guilty. 00:22:29.220 --> 00:22:32.360 I mean, you're like, man, I needed something uplifting and this is not uplifting. 00:22:33.580 --> 00:22:34.500 Just hang with me. 00:22:35.120 --> 00:22:37.060 I'm trying to make a point, right? 00:22:37.340 --> 00:22:39.600 Now, you can go and you can say, I'm going to keep this phone forever 00:22:39.600 --> 00:22:40.460 and I'm never throwing anything out. 00:22:40.460 --> 00:22:41.640 That's not what I'm trying to get you to do. 00:22:41.700 --> 00:22:46.560 What I'm trying to help you see is that this tendency is not just in some people, 00:22:46.559 --> 00:22:51.220 extra bad people, that it's actually built in at every layer of our society. 00:22:51.419 --> 00:22:55.200 It's actually so built into the way we operate in the world 00:22:55.200 --> 00:22:57.299 that it's almost impossible to change it. 00:22:58.159 --> 00:23:00.740 There are so many layers upon layers upon layers 00:23:00.740 --> 00:23:02.679 that are built on the foundational assumption 00:23:02.679 --> 00:23:06.119 that some lives are worth sacrificing other lives for. 00:23:06.119 --> 00:23:10.339 That some conveniences or benefits are worth the cost 00:23:10.339 --> 00:23:12.579 that they might bring to other people. 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:14.319 Me over you. 00:23:14.659 --> 00:23:15.539 I come first. 00:23:15.539 --> 00:23:17.240 It's built in at every level, right? 00:23:18.059 --> 00:23:19.960 So think about the entire election. 00:23:20.059 --> 00:23:22.579 The entire election and the culture that we live in 00:23:22.579 --> 00:23:26.960 shows the extent that people will go to to get their message across 00:23:26.960 --> 00:23:29.839 or to gain power or to gain influence, 00:23:30.379 --> 00:23:33.720 blatantly lying if necessary in order to do it, right? 00:23:35.700 --> 00:23:38.039 Gentrification is another complicated issue, right? 00:23:38.119 --> 00:23:39.859 A lot of complexity around that. 00:23:39.940 --> 00:23:40.759 It's market-driven. 00:23:41.119 --> 00:23:42.720 It's driven by economics, right? 00:23:42.740 --> 00:23:43.960 It's driven by changing trends. 00:23:43.960 --> 00:23:47.259 And yet, ultimately, you have people who say, 00:23:47.420 --> 00:23:50.539 it is worth it to me to have these people relocated 00:23:50.539 --> 00:23:52.480 or this small business go out of business 00:23:52.480 --> 00:23:54.799 in order to live in the kind of neighborhood I want to live in. 00:23:56.319 --> 00:23:56.680 Right? 00:23:56.759 --> 00:23:58.880 Even down to, and this will be the last example, 00:24:00.240 --> 00:24:02.259 even down to the way we treat people we love. 00:24:02.259 --> 00:24:09.440 You can say, you know, I'm aware of all these other issues, 00:24:09.640 --> 00:24:12.259 but when it comes to my life, I do my absolute best. 00:24:12.299 --> 00:24:12.960 And I would say, glad. 00:24:13.000 --> 00:24:13.980 I'm glad you're doing your best. 00:24:14.099 --> 00:24:17.519 But think about for a second the ways that we treat people we love. 00:24:18.359 --> 00:24:20.279 Think about marriage, right? 00:24:20.319 --> 00:24:20.839 Some of you married. 00:24:20.920 --> 00:24:22.779 Some of you hopefully want to get married one day. 00:24:22.779 --> 00:24:28.779 Those of you who are likely to get angry and have angry outbursts, 00:24:30.160 --> 00:24:31.299 why do you do that? 00:24:33.099 --> 00:24:34.279 I can tell you why I do it. 00:24:35.599 --> 00:24:38.740 Why do I say things that are hurtful to the people I love? 00:24:40.240 --> 00:24:41.779 It's because it feels good. 00:24:42.940 --> 00:24:46.259 I mean, we don't like to admit that, but that's why you do it. 00:24:46.799 --> 00:24:49.720 You're angry, and it's all building up and building up and building up, 00:24:49.720 --> 00:24:52.200 and you just say, and when you're hurting like that and you're angry, 00:24:52.400 --> 00:24:55.140 there's a part of you that wants to hurt somebody as a result, 00:24:55.360 --> 00:24:57.600 even if it's just a microsecond of relief, 00:24:58.140 --> 00:25:01.019 even if for just that half a second you say it and you say, 00:25:01.360 --> 00:25:04.700 ah, and for that moment you feel good, and then the regret kicks in. 00:25:05.220 --> 00:25:07.200 But for that moment you're saying, 00:25:07.299 --> 00:25:11.339 it is worth it to me to hurt you in order to make myself feel better, 00:25:11.380 --> 00:25:12.160 to feel that relief. 00:25:14.480 --> 00:25:16.240 Microsecond of relief, right? 00:25:16.559 --> 00:25:19.180 If you're prone to criticizing the person that you're with, 00:25:19.180 --> 00:25:21.980 dating, and if you're kind of constantly criticizing, 00:25:22.560 --> 00:25:23.420 what's going on there? 00:25:24.620 --> 00:25:24.759 Right? 00:25:24.940 --> 00:25:26.779 To some extent, isn't that you saying, 00:25:26.880 --> 00:25:29.440 you know, it's worth it to coerce you, 00:25:29.519 --> 00:25:31.640 it's worth it to coerce you 00:25:31.640 --> 00:25:34.640 into being the person I want you to be 00:25:34.640 --> 00:25:36.660 rather than doing the hard work 00:25:36.660 --> 00:25:38.600 of loving and accepting you 00:25:38.600 --> 00:25:40.019 as the person you actually are. 00:25:40.820 --> 00:25:40.980 Right? 00:25:41.019 --> 00:25:42.960 It's much easier to just try to force you to be 00:25:42.960 --> 00:25:43.640 who I want you to be. 00:25:43.640 --> 00:25:45.180 It's a lot harder to love somebody 00:25:45.180 --> 00:25:46.980 who may not always play by our rules. 00:25:46.980 --> 00:25:50.220 But we do this stuff because we have these hearts 00:25:50.220 --> 00:25:52.220 that's wired into us. 00:25:52.720 --> 00:25:53.740 So every human being, 00:25:53.799 --> 00:25:54.980 if you take a step back and look at this, 00:25:55.259 --> 00:25:57.120 every human being is a paradox. 00:25:57.360 --> 00:25:58.079 On the one hand we say, 00:25:58.480 --> 00:26:00.339 I desperately want to know God. 00:26:00.400 --> 00:26:01.299 On the other hand we say, 00:26:01.519 --> 00:26:03.579 I desperately want to stay in control 00:26:03.579 --> 00:26:06.099 and make sure that I come first. 00:26:08.940 --> 00:26:10.480 Simplified, you could say it this way. 00:26:10.480 --> 00:26:13.500 At the same time we both want to be with God 00:26:13.500 --> 00:26:15.339 and we want to be God. 00:26:16.700 --> 00:26:18.140 I want to be with God 00:26:18.140 --> 00:26:20.299 and I want to be like God. 00:26:21.720 --> 00:26:23.240 And this exists in our heart. 00:26:23.380 --> 00:26:24.579 And so that begs the question, 00:26:24.720 --> 00:26:26.019 what hope is there then 00:26:26.019 --> 00:26:28.140 for hearts like ours? 00:26:28.279 --> 00:26:31.880 And that's where we get to the promise of the gospel. 00:26:32.460 --> 00:26:33.920 When you look at this passage 00:26:33.920 --> 00:26:34.860 and you look at Jesus, 00:26:35.019 --> 00:26:37.380 even though Jesus is just a child in this story, 00:26:37.380 --> 00:26:39.800 there's already such a powerful contrast 00:26:39.800 --> 00:26:41.020 between Jesus and Herod. 00:26:42.780 --> 00:26:44.280 And if you just go down the list, 00:26:44.680 --> 00:26:46.260 Herod is not actually a king, 00:26:46.380 --> 00:26:48.320 but he's doing everything he can to act like a king. 00:26:49.160 --> 00:26:51.080 Not a king, but he's acting like a king. 00:26:51.200 --> 00:26:52.260 He's playing king. 00:26:53.740 --> 00:26:55.580 Jesus is a king 00:26:55.580 --> 00:26:57.580 by virtue of his birth. 00:26:58.560 --> 00:27:00.820 And yet there's nothing kingly about his life. 00:27:01.720 --> 00:27:03.300 And here he's actually, as I said before, 00:27:03.380 --> 00:27:04.300 living as a refugee. 00:27:05.500 --> 00:27:05.660 Right? 00:27:06.360 --> 00:27:07.120 Another difference, 00:27:07.380 --> 00:27:09.600 Herod is doing exactly as he chooses 00:27:09.600 --> 00:27:10.660 no matter who it hurts. 00:27:11.180 --> 00:27:12.080 It's going to be my way 00:27:12.080 --> 00:27:13.760 or off with their heads, right? 00:27:14.200 --> 00:27:16.500 But Jesus, from the very beginning of his life, 00:27:16.700 --> 00:27:18.440 is not living as he chooses. 00:27:19.700 --> 00:27:21.380 He's not living as he chooses. 00:27:23.060 --> 00:27:25.400 He's doing exactly what his heavenly father 00:27:25.400 --> 00:27:27.200 had planned for him to do. 00:27:27.360 --> 00:27:28.200 Throughout the passage, 00:27:28.320 --> 00:27:29.200 it says again and again, 00:27:29.500 --> 00:27:31.760 this was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophets. 00:27:31.940 --> 00:27:34.300 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophets. 00:27:34.580 --> 00:27:36.000 And the writers put that in there 00:27:36.000 --> 00:27:37.160 to show us that Jesus, 00:27:37.339 --> 00:27:39.000 this isn't just happenstance. 00:27:39.279 --> 00:27:40.700 Jesus is actually following, 00:27:40.859 --> 00:27:41.740 very meticulously, 00:27:42.160 --> 00:27:44.160 a plan that had been laid out 00:27:44.160 --> 00:27:46.900 before the foundations of the earth were laid. 00:27:46.980 --> 00:27:48.420 He's following that plan. 00:27:50.339 --> 00:27:51.559 And in that plan, 00:27:51.700 --> 00:27:53.500 he is becoming a representative. 00:27:54.680 --> 00:27:54.920 Right? 00:27:54.980 --> 00:27:56.180 He's becoming a representative. 00:27:56.180 --> 00:27:58.120 Originally, 00:27:58.460 --> 00:28:01.580 Israel had grown up in Egypt in slavery. 00:28:01.840 --> 00:28:02.779 And then through the Exodus, 00:28:03.220 --> 00:28:04.519 they had been freed 00:28:04.519 --> 00:28:06.600 and they had been sent out into the world. 00:28:06.720 --> 00:28:08.400 And God called them to be a light 00:28:08.400 --> 00:28:11.400 and a way of salvation to the Gentiles. 00:28:12.240 --> 00:28:14.200 But they failed in that calling. 00:28:14.340 --> 00:28:16.740 They became too much like the nations. 00:28:18.160 --> 00:28:18.380 Right? 00:28:18.420 --> 00:28:20.120 They began to worship the gods of the nations 00:28:20.120 --> 00:28:22.860 and to live like the people of the other nations. 00:28:22.859 --> 00:28:27.559 And so God sent Jesus to be what Israel never could have been. 00:28:27.719 --> 00:28:31.759 And so it says this was to fulfill Jesus' calling 00:28:31.759 --> 00:28:33.019 to be the true Israel. 00:28:33.139 --> 00:28:34.359 Jesus, like Israel, 00:28:34.479 --> 00:28:35.979 coming out of Egypt. 00:28:36.399 --> 00:28:36.879 Right? 00:28:37.079 --> 00:28:39.799 To be a light and salvation for the whole world. 00:28:40.559 --> 00:28:42.259 So he becomes the true Israel. 00:28:42.379 --> 00:28:43.079 And then more than that, 00:28:43.119 --> 00:28:44.459 if you continue to read the story, 00:28:44.759 --> 00:28:47.399 you recognize that it's not just Israel he came to represent, 00:28:47.639 --> 00:28:48.919 but all human beings everywhere. 00:28:48.920 --> 00:28:51.180 And you say, 00:28:51.300 --> 00:28:53.740 well, why is he wanting to represent all human beings? 00:28:54.060 --> 00:28:56.220 Well, in preparation for his inauguration. 00:28:57.539 --> 00:28:57.980 Right? 00:28:58.620 --> 00:29:01.700 But Jesus' inauguration wasn't anything like the inauguration 00:29:01.700 --> 00:29:02.720 that we saw on Friday. 00:29:03.580 --> 00:29:05.640 His took place on a wooden cross. 00:29:05.820 --> 00:29:06.019 Right? 00:29:06.160 --> 00:29:08.060 His inauguration was his crucifixion. 00:29:11.360 --> 00:29:11.800 Right? 00:29:11.880 --> 00:29:14.039 And on the cross is where we see the real difference 00:29:14.039 --> 00:29:15.779 between Jesus and the rest of humanity. 00:29:15.779 --> 00:29:19.139 And you can put the difference this way. 00:29:20.480 --> 00:29:25.399 We sacrifice others in order to get what we want. 00:29:26.779 --> 00:29:30.819 And Jesus sacrifices himself in order to give us what we need. 00:29:31.819 --> 00:29:33.319 And that's the real difference. 00:29:34.160 --> 00:29:36.279 I'm the kind of person who will, at the end of the day, 00:29:36.339 --> 00:29:38.180 I will sacrifice others to get what I want. 00:29:38.319 --> 00:29:40.700 Even if it's just to feel slightly better about myself. 00:29:40.700 --> 00:29:45.700 But Jesus came to sacrifice himself in order to give us what we need. 00:29:46.539 --> 00:29:50.920 And what we need, the hope that exists for people like us, 00:29:51.700 --> 00:29:53.100 what we need is this. 00:29:53.819 --> 00:29:56.279 If sin is us trying to take God's place, 00:29:56.620 --> 00:29:59.900 then salvation is God being willing to take our place. 00:30:00.100 --> 00:30:01.519 And that's exactly what happens. 00:30:01.620 --> 00:30:01.819 Right? 00:30:01.819 --> 00:30:06.980 And when you recognize that Jesus came to represent me, 00:30:07.079 --> 00:30:07.980 to take my place, 00:30:08.259 --> 00:30:11.960 to die in a way that would atone for all of the damage that I've done 00:30:11.960 --> 00:30:13.139 because of my heart. 00:30:14.339 --> 00:30:15.899 When you recognize that, 00:30:15.939 --> 00:30:17.720 and you stare that truth in the face, 00:30:18.519 --> 00:30:22.619 what you're seeing is the only thing that can convince a heart like mine 00:30:22.619 --> 00:30:24.099 to give up control. 00:30:24.099 --> 00:30:27.559 When I look at the cross, 00:30:27.679 --> 00:30:28.319 what I see, 00:30:28.439 --> 00:30:29.659 what we see is, 00:30:30.779 --> 00:30:31.539 as I look, 00:30:33.279 --> 00:30:36.159 as I struggle to give up the throne of my life, 00:30:36.939 --> 00:30:41.659 I recognize that here's a God who gave up the throne for me. 00:30:42.339 --> 00:30:43.639 And when that hits you, 00:30:44.179 --> 00:30:45.719 and it really hits you, 00:30:46.439 --> 00:30:49.019 you begin to look at your hold on the throne of your life, 00:30:49.059 --> 00:30:50.199 and you begin to realize, 00:30:50.200 --> 00:30:54.480 I would rather he be in control than me. 00:30:55.180 --> 00:30:58.759 I would rather a God who was willing to give up the throne for me, 00:30:58.900 --> 00:31:02.420 that's the kind of person I want in control of my life. 00:31:02.580 --> 00:31:05.539 He will actually do a better job than I will 00:31:05.539 --> 00:31:09.059 because he actually treats me better than I treat myself. 00:31:10.039 --> 00:31:10.180 Right? 00:31:10.519 --> 00:31:13.059 He actually loves me more than anyone else, 00:31:13.299 --> 00:31:13.940 even me. 00:31:15.160 --> 00:31:16.420 And when you realize that, 00:31:16.460 --> 00:31:20.000 it begins to loosen your hold on the throne of your life. 00:31:20.000 --> 00:31:22.200 You begin to be willing to give it over. 00:31:22.339 --> 00:31:24.539 It's this act of incomprehensible love. 00:31:27.599 --> 00:31:28.200 And you know, 00:31:28.259 --> 00:31:31.420 we believe as Christians that this love can, 00:31:31.920 --> 00:31:32.319 is, 00:31:32.380 --> 00:31:33.839 and will change the world. 00:31:34.380 --> 00:31:35.779 We think that this love, 00:31:36.019 --> 00:31:36.559 that says, 00:31:36.960 --> 00:31:38.400 I will sacrifice myself 00:31:38.400 --> 00:31:40.880 to give you what you need, 00:31:41.099 --> 00:31:42.279 to see you grow and flourish, 00:31:42.519 --> 00:31:43.980 that that's the kind of love 00:31:43.980 --> 00:31:47.359 that will ultimately save and restore and renew all of this. 00:31:47.359 --> 00:31:50.339 As we long for our country to get back on track, 00:31:50.539 --> 00:31:53.319 as we long for the world to become a safer place, 00:31:53.379 --> 00:31:54.439 a more unified place, 00:31:54.679 --> 00:31:55.699 a more just place, 00:31:55.740 --> 00:31:56.699 a more peaceful place, 00:31:56.779 --> 00:32:00.019 all of these things that I know that we have been praying all weekend, 00:32:00.459 --> 00:32:01.919 and for as long as we can remember, 00:32:02.619 --> 00:32:04.979 that the way there is this love. 00:32:06.240 --> 00:32:07.719 And so we actually believe as Christians 00:32:07.719 --> 00:32:11.019 that we are now called to love in that same way, 00:32:11.019 --> 00:32:13.180 that we are to be known for our willingness 00:32:13.180 --> 00:32:15.079 to sacrifice our own convenience 00:32:15.079 --> 00:32:17.339 and our own benefit 00:32:17.339 --> 00:32:19.139 and our own privilege 00:32:19.139 --> 00:32:21.700 to see others benefit, right? 00:32:22.839 --> 00:32:24.740 So in the way that we care for 00:32:24.740 --> 00:32:26.680 not only unwanted pregnancies and children, 00:32:26.799 --> 00:32:29.440 but also moms and families, right? 00:32:30.000 --> 00:32:31.539 In the ways that we engage 00:32:31.539 --> 00:32:33.519 and care for the environment, right? 00:32:33.559 --> 00:32:35.200 In ways that we pursue justice 00:32:35.200 --> 00:32:37.779 in our ever-changing neighborhood landscapes, 00:32:37.779 --> 00:32:42.259 and simply in the ways that we love one another, right? 00:32:42.299 --> 00:32:43.559 In these and many other ways, 00:32:43.680 --> 00:32:46.180 we're not alone able to fix what's wrong with the world, 00:32:46.220 --> 00:32:48.059 but we are able to stand as witnesses. 00:32:49.099 --> 00:32:50.200 There is a better way, 00:32:50.680 --> 00:32:53.420 and it starts with Jesus on the cross. 00:32:55.019 --> 00:32:57.899 Right, so to all those who are desperate for God, 00:32:58.160 --> 00:33:00.819 but to all those who are determined 00:33:00.819 --> 00:33:02.559 to stay in control of their own lives, 00:33:02.559 --> 00:33:04.579 this invitation remains, 00:33:05.240 --> 00:33:07.259 and that is to lay our crowns 00:33:07.259 --> 00:33:08.720 at the feet of the God 00:33:08.720 --> 00:33:11.700 who laid his crown down for us. 00:33:12.179 --> 00:33:12.980 So let's pray. 00:33:12.980 --> 00:33:13.039 Amen. 00:33:13.039 --> 00:33:13.079 Amen. 00:33:13.079 --> 00:33:13.139 Amen. 00:33:13.139 --> 00:33:13.179 Amen. 00:33:13.179 --> 00:33:15.139 Amen. 00:33:15.139 --> 00:33:15.179 Amen. 00:33:15.179 --> 00:33:17.139 Amen. 00:33:17.139 --> 00:33:17.179 Amen. 00:33:17.179 --> 00:33:17.220 Amen. 00:33:17.220 --> 00:33:17.240 Amen.