WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.940 This morning we're in the last of our series looking at the fruit of the Spirit. 00:00:07.700 --> 00:00:11.800 Let me read to you from Galatians chapter 5. 00:00:12.359 --> 00:00:23.300 The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. 00:00:24.300 --> 00:00:28.379 And it's self-control that we're thinking about this morning. 00:00:28.379 --> 00:00:37.460 There's a saying that you can't control the actions of others, but you can control your own actions. 00:00:38.679 --> 00:00:41.460 That's challenging and it's true. 00:00:43.060 --> 00:00:50.700 We need to ask ourselves the question, how easy is it, really, to control our own actions? 00:00:53.120 --> 00:00:54.579 Quick experiment. 00:00:54.579 --> 00:01:06.079 Remember, remain seated, but lift your right foot just a few inches above the ground and make circles in a clockwise direction. 00:01:07.459 --> 00:01:08.719 That's important. 00:01:09.219 --> 00:01:10.379 Clockwise direction. 00:01:11.340 --> 00:01:16.420 Now, I know a number of people are listening to this on the podcast and if that's you, you can do this at home. 00:01:17.180 --> 00:01:19.700 Please don't do it if you're driving right now. 00:01:19.700 --> 00:01:24.760 Okay, so you've got a clockwise direction with your right foot. 00:01:24.960 --> 00:01:31.060 Now, raise your right hand in the air and with it, I want you to draw a great big number six. 00:01:31.939 --> 00:01:33.500 What happens to your right foot? 00:01:33.500 --> 00:01:46.739 Now, I think if you practice that long enough, you probably could train your brain to coordinate that one. 00:01:46.840 --> 00:01:49.840 But, you know, it's that automatic response, isn't it? 00:01:49.840 --> 00:01:50.700 It changes direction. 00:01:50.920 --> 00:01:53.840 We think we have control. 00:01:54.219 --> 00:01:55.900 We'd love to have control. 00:01:55.900 --> 00:02:00.480 We live in an age where we feel that we can control just about anything. 00:02:00.640 --> 00:02:08.020 We can order anything we want anytime, wherever we are in the world and have it delivered to us as quickly as we can. 00:02:08.060 --> 00:02:17.680 We get very upset when we feel that we no longer have that kind of control that we feel that we have a legitimate claim to. 00:02:17.680 --> 00:02:24.099 Now, controlling the self is not that straightforward. 00:02:25.900 --> 00:02:34.640 And in order for us to think about that properly, we have to think more widely about the Christian understanding, 00:02:34.759 --> 00:02:38.259 the biblical understanding of the human condition. 00:02:38.480 --> 00:02:41.240 In other words, what it is to be a human being. 00:02:41.240 --> 00:02:49.620 A very, very old-fashioned word and a word that we probably don't use much in everyday language 00:02:49.620 --> 00:02:54.939 because it sounds unfashionable and out of date, but it's the word sin. 00:02:55.860 --> 00:03:06.600 And that word is so important if we are to understand properly what the Bible teaches us about what it is to be a human being. 00:03:06.599 --> 00:03:12.239 Forget notions of lists of things that we think are wrong. 00:03:12.239 --> 00:03:18.139 That's not really ultimately what that word sin refers to. 00:03:18.500 --> 00:03:30.859 Rather, it refers to that thing within us that continually moves us in the directions that lead to destruction 00:03:30.860 --> 00:03:35.240 and leads us in a direction that is not good. 00:03:36.120 --> 00:03:36.860 That's what it is. 00:03:36.900 --> 00:03:37.540 It's a power. 00:03:37.660 --> 00:03:39.920 It's a bias within the human heart. 00:03:40.000 --> 00:03:46.840 Every single one of us, every human being alive has some sense of right and wrong. 00:03:47.900 --> 00:03:52.200 No matter how we live that out, we all have some sort of sense of what's right and what's wrong. 00:03:52.540 --> 00:03:54.780 Sure, there are grey areas that we can discuss. 00:03:54.780 --> 00:04:03.719 We have disagreements among ourselves as Christians, but the point is, as human, it's fundamental to what it is to be a living human being, 00:04:03.800 --> 00:04:05.280 to have a kind of a moral compass. 00:04:06.000 --> 00:04:10.580 We might not always do what is right, but we have a sense of what is right. 00:04:10.840 --> 00:04:12.159 It's part of what defines us. 00:04:14.319 --> 00:04:16.980 And yet, no one's perfect. 00:04:16.980 --> 00:04:22.040 Now, that may sound like an obvious cliche, but why? 00:04:22.780 --> 00:04:24.040 Why are we not perfect? 00:04:26.680 --> 00:04:27.980 It's puzzling, isn't it? 00:04:28.660 --> 00:04:35.120 Why we should all have this instinct as to there being something called right and something that's wrong 00:04:35.120 --> 00:04:36.879 and all the difference between those two things. 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:41.879 And yet, we would really probably want to do what's right, but we don't. 00:04:41.879 --> 00:04:48.719 And no matter how hard we try and set out genuinely to do the right thing, we don't. 00:04:50.139 --> 00:04:54.319 It's a pattern that recurs in every time and place throughout human history. 00:04:55.240 --> 00:04:57.180 It unites all of us. 00:04:58.259 --> 00:04:59.120 We're not perfect. 00:04:59.120 --> 00:05:07.180 That, to me, is one of the most compelling things, one of the most compelling things, 00:05:07.699 --> 00:05:15.759 about the whole Christian faith, because of the way in which it understands the reality of what it is to be a human being. 00:05:16.360 --> 00:05:18.120 There's no pretending anything. 00:05:18.500 --> 00:05:20.620 There's no sweeping anything under the carpet. 00:05:20.620 --> 00:05:27.519 You know, we have this mysterious bias, this gravitation to do the wrong thing, 00:05:27.600 --> 00:05:31.399 even though we know what is right and even though we want to do what is right. 00:05:31.699 --> 00:05:35.780 Sometimes we can find even the harder that we try to do the right thing, 00:05:36.420 --> 00:05:38.780 we seem to get it wrong and trip up over and over again. 00:05:39.120 --> 00:05:43.280 An illustration that I've heard and have used many times is, 00:05:43.540 --> 00:05:47.000 imagine if you're going into the shopping, to do shopping in a supermarket, 00:05:47.000 --> 00:05:48.660 and you get one of those really big trolleys. 00:05:48.660 --> 00:05:51.960 Sometimes you put your pound or your little token in or whatever, 00:05:52.200 --> 00:05:54.020 you pull it away and then you walk through, 00:05:54.320 --> 00:05:58.480 and you soon notice that one of the wheels is stuck or bent or warped, 00:05:58.520 --> 00:06:02.660 and it starts a judder, and it's a strain to push it straight forward. 00:06:03.860 --> 00:06:07.460 So you're walking forward like this, and it keeps veering off to one direction. 00:06:07.580 --> 00:06:09.580 You want to go straight ahead, it wants to go right. 00:06:09.640 --> 00:06:11.660 So you have to push it. It takes effort. 00:06:12.300 --> 00:06:14.820 You really, really want to go to the fruit and veg, 00:06:14.819 --> 00:06:19.779 and yet it insists on heading for the real ale and the pastries. 00:06:20.159 --> 00:06:20.240 Yeah? 00:06:23.560 --> 00:06:25.060 So you've got to work at it. 00:06:25.240 --> 00:06:29.519 It's that bias that even though you've got in your mind the direction you wanted to take it in, 00:06:29.779 --> 00:06:31.399 it insists on veering off. 00:06:31.819 --> 00:06:36.360 That is a kind of an image as to what the power, the gravitational pull, 00:06:36.360 --> 00:06:41.139 the bias that we refer to when we use that word sin, is. 00:06:42.600 --> 00:06:46.800 And throughout the scriptures, we find this idea develops, 00:06:46.900 --> 00:06:50.420 that we live not in a spiritual vacuum, 00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:52.759 but everything has a spiritual dimension to it. 00:06:53.139 --> 00:06:56.120 And so the language that is deployed, particularly in the New Testament, 00:06:56.259 --> 00:07:00.060 is that of a battle, that we are fighting a spiritual battle. 00:07:00.060 --> 00:07:03.899 A lot of the time we forget that, we're not aware of it, 00:07:03.939 --> 00:07:05.620 we're not tuned into it, but that's the reality. 00:07:06.899 --> 00:07:10.040 So every choice, every decision comes loaded with that spirituality. 00:07:12.120 --> 00:07:14.000 Self-control then matters, 00:07:14.660 --> 00:07:17.019 because if we don't get a handle on ourselves, 00:07:17.160 --> 00:07:20.120 it's too easy just to veer off in the wrong direction. 00:07:20.459 --> 00:07:24.019 Even though we, inside ourselves, know what's right and wrong, 00:07:24.079 --> 00:07:25.800 and we want to do the right thing, 00:07:26.639 --> 00:07:28.040 we find that so hard. 00:07:28.040 --> 00:07:32.960 The other thing that we need to know about self-control, 00:07:33.220 --> 00:07:35.580 is that when we think about it, 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:39.379 we probably naturally think that it's all about avoiding doing bad stuff. 00:07:40.020 --> 00:07:41.460 That self-control is about, you know, 00:07:41.500 --> 00:07:42.660 don't do this and don't do that. 00:07:42.960 --> 00:07:46.960 But self-control applies as much to positive things 00:07:46.960 --> 00:07:48.300 that we should do, 00:07:48.340 --> 00:07:52.259 as much as it does to negative things that we want to avoid. 00:07:53.780 --> 00:07:55.379 For example, praying. 00:07:55.379 --> 00:07:58.379 How often do we find in our experience 00:07:58.980 --> 00:08:00.839 that we just don't feel like praying, 00:08:00.920 --> 00:08:02.420 or we struggle to get started? 00:08:03.420 --> 00:08:04.939 I think of loads of times 00:08:04.939 --> 00:08:07.060 when I find that it's a real effort 00:08:07.060 --> 00:08:09.219 to actually motivate myself 00:08:09.219 --> 00:08:11.800 to get down to doing some serious praying, 00:08:11.980 --> 00:08:13.420 or reading the Bible. 00:08:13.959 --> 00:08:15.920 I can find all sorts of reasons not to, 00:08:16.439 --> 00:08:19.600 and I find it's a real struggle to get there. 00:08:19.620 --> 00:08:21.579 So that, again, is a positive thing, 00:08:21.579 --> 00:08:24.620 but it requires self-control. 00:08:24.919 --> 00:08:26.699 Once it's got started, 00:08:27.039 --> 00:08:29.359 I often find, actually, it's great. 00:08:29.919 --> 00:08:30.439 Where do we go? 00:08:30.519 --> 00:08:32.919 But sometimes overcoming that initial hurdle, 00:08:33.439 --> 00:08:35.579 again, is a challenge for self-control. 00:08:36.759 --> 00:08:40.240 So, self-control applies not only to what we're trying to avoid doing, 00:08:40.360 --> 00:08:41.699 but also to the positive things 00:08:41.699 --> 00:08:42.899 that we're trying to embrace and to do. 00:08:42.899 --> 00:08:46.740 So, let's get down to the story, then. 00:08:47.179 --> 00:08:48.220 Let's be frank about this. 00:08:48.299 --> 00:08:50.019 It's a corker of a story. 00:08:50.279 --> 00:08:51.639 It's a juicy one. 00:08:53.879 --> 00:08:54.879 It's extreme. 00:08:56.340 --> 00:08:57.299 King David, 00:08:58.039 --> 00:08:59.579 the God's chosen one, 00:09:00.500 --> 00:09:01.059 hero 00:09:01.059 --> 00:09:03.679 of the people of Israel, 00:09:04.679 --> 00:09:05.779 is in his palace, 00:09:05.980 --> 00:09:06.779 and late one afternoon, 00:09:06.919 --> 00:09:07.399 he gets up, 00:09:07.439 --> 00:09:08.199 he looks out the window, 00:09:08.319 --> 00:09:08.960 and he clocks 00:09:08.960 --> 00:09:10.420 a beautiful-looking woman. 00:09:11.820 --> 00:09:13.379 He obviously watches her for a while, 00:09:13.660 --> 00:09:14.480 thinks about it, 00:09:14.900 --> 00:09:15.680 gives instruction 00:09:15.680 --> 00:09:17.379 for her to be brought to him. 00:09:17.820 --> 00:09:19.400 He's told that she's married 00:09:19.400 --> 00:09:20.320 to somebody. 00:09:21.340 --> 00:09:23.040 That doesn't stop him 00:09:23.040 --> 00:09:24.840 having sex with her 00:09:24.840 --> 00:09:26.420 and getting her pregnant. 00:09:27.400 --> 00:09:28.940 When he finds 00:09:28.940 --> 00:09:30.780 that she is pregnant, 00:09:30.940 --> 00:09:32.060 he tries to cover it up. 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:33.900 So he hatches this plan. 00:09:34.060 --> 00:09:34.160 He says, 00:09:34.160 --> 00:09:36.840 bring her husband back from battle, 00:09:36.840 --> 00:09:40.240 and I'll give him 00:09:40.240 --> 00:09:41.080 all the royal treatment 00:09:41.080 --> 00:09:42.139 and then send him off 00:09:42.139 --> 00:09:43.440 with his wife, 00:09:43.540 --> 00:09:44.160 and hopefully, 00:09:44.420 --> 00:09:45.580 in a few months' time, 00:09:45.660 --> 00:09:46.379 everyone will think 00:09:46.379 --> 00:09:47.879 that it's his child. 00:09:49.680 --> 00:09:51.300 Except that when the soldier, 00:09:51.420 --> 00:09:51.720 the husband, 00:09:51.820 --> 00:09:52.519 comes home, 00:09:54.200 --> 00:09:55.660 he's too much integrity 00:09:55.660 --> 00:09:56.160 to do that. 00:09:56.200 --> 00:09:56.379 He says, 00:09:56.460 --> 00:09:58.019 I'm not going to go home 00:09:58.019 --> 00:09:59.180 and live in luxury like that 00:09:59.180 --> 00:10:00.080 when all our soldiers 00:10:00.080 --> 00:10:00.620 are out there 00:10:00.620 --> 00:10:01.400 risking their life. 00:10:01.480 --> 00:10:01.639 No, 00:10:01.639 --> 00:10:02.660 I'm going to sleep 00:10:02.660 --> 00:10:04.460 with the rest of the servants 00:10:04.460 --> 00:10:05.040 this evening. 00:10:05.700 --> 00:10:06.200 So he does. 00:10:06.200 --> 00:10:06.920 Two nights, 00:10:07.280 --> 00:10:08.040 David tries this 00:10:08.040 --> 00:10:08.820 and it doesn't work. 00:10:08.960 --> 00:10:10.560 So off he goes back to battle 00:10:10.560 --> 00:10:12.780 and he gives instruction instead 00:10:12.780 --> 00:10:14.940 to put him on the front line 00:10:14.940 --> 00:10:15.420 of the battle 00:10:15.420 --> 00:10:16.460 where all the action is 00:10:16.460 --> 00:10:18.060 so that he'll get killed off 00:10:18.060 --> 00:10:19.080 and that's what happens. 00:10:20.320 --> 00:10:20.720 Now, 00:10:20.920 --> 00:10:22.580 when we listen to this story, 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:23.840 it's very easy for us 00:10:23.840 --> 00:10:24.140 to think, 00:10:24.240 --> 00:10:24.320 well, 00:10:24.360 --> 00:10:24.500 of course, 00:10:24.540 --> 00:10:25.940 that's really extreme. 00:10:27.220 --> 00:10:27.379 You know, 00:10:27.420 --> 00:10:29.540 and it seems such a huge gap 00:10:29.540 --> 00:10:32.020 between David's actions 00:10:32.020 --> 00:10:33.640 and the place where we are 00:10:33.640 --> 00:10:34.980 that it can be almost hard 00:10:34.980 --> 00:10:35.580 to relate to 00:10:35.580 --> 00:10:35.879 and think, 00:10:35.940 --> 00:10:36.019 yeah, 00:10:36.080 --> 00:10:37.759 that's one thing 00:10:37.759 --> 00:10:38.920 but if we're trying 00:10:38.920 --> 00:10:39.879 to get a gauge 00:10:39.879 --> 00:10:41.680 of what self-control means 00:10:41.680 --> 00:10:43.800 by learning from such extreme actions, 00:10:43.920 --> 00:10:44.120 well, 00:10:44.680 --> 00:10:45.620 it's too hard. 00:10:45.700 --> 00:10:46.320 We need to start 00:10:46.320 --> 00:10:46.740 with something 00:10:46.740 --> 00:10:47.300 that's closer 00:10:47.300 --> 00:10:48.860 to our own experience. 00:10:48.860 --> 00:10:53.980 let's not think that. 00:10:55.519 --> 00:10:56.899 It's a dangerous thing 00:10:56.899 --> 00:10:59.340 if we begin to think 00:10:59.340 --> 00:11:00.220 this actually 00:11:00.220 --> 00:11:03.000 isn't anywhere close 00:11:03.000 --> 00:11:04.139 to being on our radar 00:11:04.139 --> 00:11:05.539 because if we do so, 00:11:05.639 --> 00:11:06.240 we misunderstand 00:11:06.240 --> 00:11:08.120 the reality 00:11:08.120 --> 00:11:11.320 that what we have here 00:11:11.320 --> 00:11:13.420 is a universal principle. 00:11:13.419 --> 00:11:18.379 things start small 00:11:18.379 --> 00:11:20.959 and become big 00:11:20.959 --> 00:11:23.559 and they can do so 00:11:23.559 --> 00:11:24.939 without us actually 00:11:24.939 --> 00:11:26.479 being conscious 00:11:26.479 --> 00:11:27.519 that that is what 00:11:27.519 --> 00:11:28.519 is taking place. 00:11:31.199 --> 00:11:31.419 You see, 00:11:31.459 --> 00:11:33.000 this is how bad things 00:11:33.000 --> 00:11:33.919 can escalate 00:11:33.919 --> 00:11:35.479 into terrible things 00:11:35.479 --> 00:11:37.599 if we're not mindful 00:11:37.599 --> 00:11:38.699 of self-control. 00:11:39.819 --> 00:11:40.259 Remember, 00:11:40.419 --> 00:11:42.500 David was God's anointed. 00:11:42.500 --> 00:11:43.759 He had had some 00:11:43.759 --> 00:11:46.139 exceptionally 00:11:46.139 --> 00:11:47.419 profound 00:11:47.419 --> 00:11:48.500 spiritual experience 00:11:49.279 --> 00:11:49.860 of God. 00:11:50.879 --> 00:11:52.159 If you'd have asked him 00:11:52.159 --> 00:11:52.820 back then 00:11:52.820 --> 00:11:53.799 at an earlier point 00:11:53.799 --> 00:11:55.120 if he would ever 00:11:55.120 --> 00:11:55.919 end up doing 00:11:55.919 --> 00:11:56.440 what eventually 00:11:56.440 --> 00:11:57.480 he did end up doing, 00:11:57.659 --> 00:11:58.700 he would have not 00:11:58.700 --> 00:11:59.279 believed you. 00:12:01.039 --> 00:12:01.480 You see, 00:12:02.220 --> 00:12:03.600 sin escalates. 00:12:03.940 --> 00:12:05.720 Bad stuff escalates. 00:12:07.100 --> 00:12:07.500 It started 00:12:08.120 --> 00:12:09.860 with a thought 00:12:09.860 --> 00:12:11.259 when he clocked 00:12:11.259 --> 00:12:11.860 Bathsheba 00:12:11.860 --> 00:12:12.560 in the shower. 00:12:14.480 --> 00:12:15.259 But it didn't 00:12:15.259 --> 00:12:16.279 stay as a thought. 00:12:18.039 --> 00:12:19.139 Another illustration, 00:12:19.580 --> 00:12:20.019 and it's one 00:12:20.019 --> 00:12:20.779 that I have used 00:12:20.779 --> 00:12:21.240 before, 00:12:21.399 --> 00:12:22.060 but it's 00:12:22.060 --> 00:12:22.899 the best one 00:12:22.899 --> 00:12:23.279 I know 00:12:23.279 --> 00:12:23.600 for, 00:12:24.019 --> 00:12:24.820 I think, 00:12:25.060 --> 00:12:25.560 helping us 00:12:25.560 --> 00:12:26.560 to understand 00:12:26.560 --> 00:12:27.240 and engage 00:12:27.240 --> 00:12:27.620 what I'm trying 00:12:27.620 --> 00:12:28.240 to talk about here. 00:12:29.360 --> 00:12:30.220 There is a way 00:12:30.220 --> 00:12:31.320 in which Eskimos 00:12:31.320 --> 00:12:32.399 go about the business 00:12:32.399 --> 00:12:33.840 of catching wolves. 00:12:33.840 --> 00:12:37.660 they take a dagger 00:12:37.660 --> 00:12:38.639 and they get 00:12:38.639 --> 00:12:39.480 another animal 00:12:39.480 --> 00:12:40.139 that they've killed 00:12:40.139 --> 00:12:40.879 and they dip 00:12:40.879 --> 00:12:41.440 the dagger 00:12:41.440 --> 00:12:42.720 in the blood 00:12:42.720 --> 00:12:43.519 of that dead animal 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:44.300 and freeze it. 00:12:45.340 --> 00:12:45.920 And then they do it 00:12:45.920 --> 00:12:46.280 again, 00:12:46.460 --> 00:12:47.440 freezing another layer 00:12:47.440 --> 00:12:48.620 of animal's blood 00:12:48.620 --> 00:12:49.920 around that dagger. 00:12:50.460 --> 00:12:51.580 They repeat this process 00:12:51.580 --> 00:12:52.200 over and over 00:12:52.200 --> 00:12:52.780 and over again 00:12:52.780 --> 00:12:53.639 until they freeze 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:54.399 layer upon layer 00:12:54.399 --> 00:12:54.820 upon layer 00:12:54.820 --> 00:12:55.220 to eventually 00:12:55.220 --> 00:12:55.580 they've got 00:12:55.580 --> 00:12:57.180 a block of ice, 00:12:57.480 --> 00:12:58.000 red ice, 00:12:58.139 --> 00:12:59.180 frozen animal blood, 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:00.280 in the middle of which 00:13:00.280 --> 00:13:00.720 is a dagger. 00:13:00.720 --> 00:13:02.060 They put that thing 00:13:02.060 --> 00:13:02.920 in the middle of the snow 00:13:02.920 --> 00:13:03.660 and they walk away 00:13:03.660 --> 00:13:04.860 and they leave it overnight. 00:13:05.740 --> 00:13:06.480 Wolf comes along 00:13:06.480 --> 00:13:07.639 and catches a sniff 00:13:07.639 --> 00:13:08.879 of the blood. 00:13:09.540 --> 00:13:10.960 It likes the smell. 00:13:11.460 --> 00:13:12.160 So it begins 00:13:12.160 --> 00:13:12.759 to lick 00:13:12.759 --> 00:13:13.700 at the 00:13:13.700 --> 00:13:15.320 frozen blood. 00:13:16.060 --> 00:13:17.259 The more it gets, 00:13:17.379 --> 00:13:18.480 the more it craves. 00:13:19.660 --> 00:13:20.580 The more it craves, 00:13:20.680 --> 00:13:21.320 the more it gets, 00:13:21.420 --> 00:13:21.980 the more it gets, 00:13:22.080 --> 00:13:22.759 the more it craves. 00:13:22.860 --> 00:13:23.519 It cannot 00:13:23.519 --> 00:13:26.040 satisfy its craving 00:13:26.040 --> 00:13:27.060 until it licks 00:13:27.060 --> 00:13:27.920 away and away 00:13:27.920 --> 00:13:28.399 and away, 00:13:28.740 --> 00:13:29.460 licking layer 00:13:29.460 --> 00:13:30.100 upon layer 00:13:30.100 --> 00:13:30.660 away 00:13:30.659 --> 00:13:32.939 from this knife 00:13:32.939 --> 00:13:33.839 until eventually 00:13:33.839 --> 00:13:35.159 the ice 00:13:35.159 --> 00:13:35.980 has gone, 00:13:36.620 --> 00:13:38.759 the wolf 00:13:38.759 --> 00:13:39.500 has consumed 00:13:39.500 --> 00:13:40.079 all of that 00:13:40.079 --> 00:13:41.579 frozen animal blood 00:13:41.579 --> 00:13:42.559 yet it still 00:13:42.559 --> 00:13:43.480 cannot get enough 00:13:43.480 --> 00:13:43.759 of it 00:13:43.759 --> 00:13:44.839 and so it licks 00:13:44.839 --> 00:13:45.240 away, 00:13:45.339 --> 00:13:46.259 this time its tongue 00:13:46.259 --> 00:13:47.059 is lashing away 00:13:47.059 --> 00:13:47.620 on the edge 00:13:47.620 --> 00:13:49.959 of that bare knife. 00:13:51.079 --> 00:13:51.639 Eventually 00:13:51.639 --> 00:13:52.860 it drowns 00:13:52.860 --> 00:13:54.059 in its own blood. 00:13:56.819 --> 00:13:57.740 You're looking forward 00:13:57.740 --> 00:13:58.240 to your next 00:13:58.240 --> 00:13:58.980 strawberry split 00:13:58.980 --> 00:13:59.679 ice cream now, 00:13:59.759 --> 00:14:00.019 aren't you? 00:14:00.659 --> 00:14:04.579 That's the subtlety 00:14:04.579 --> 00:14:05.419 in which these 00:14:05.419 --> 00:14:06.459 things work. 00:14:07.019 --> 00:14:07.919 They get a hold 00:14:07.919 --> 00:14:08.500 of us 00:14:08.500 --> 00:14:10.199 at a very small 00:14:10.199 --> 00:14:10.500 level. 00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:12.039 Then, 00:14:12.500 --> 00:14:13.399 without us knowing, 00:14:13.579 --> 00:14:14.579 they escalate. 00:14:15.939 --> 00:14:17.259 This is why 00:14:17.259 --> 00:14:18.219 this story, 00:14:18.399 --> 00:14:18.919 as extreme 00:14:18.919 --> 00:14:19.799 as it may be, 00:14:20.059 --> 00:14:20.639 teaches us 00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:21.639 some universal 00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:22.939 human principles, 00:14:23.360 --> 00:14:24.539 spiritual realities 00:14:24.539 --> 00:14:25.379 from which 00:14:25.379 --> 00:14:26.039 none of us 00:14:26.039 --> 00:14:26.720 are immune. 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:28.560 you see, 00:14:28.600 --> 00:14:29.360 the human mind 00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:29.940 is something 00:14:29.940 --> 00:14:31.120 of a mental 00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:31.899 greenhouse. 00:14:33.639 --> 00:14:34.800 In verse 2, 00:14:35.300 --> 00:14:36.620 we see David 00:14:36.620 --> 00:14:37.560 walking around 00:14:37.560 --> 00:14:39.300 on his palace 00:14:39.300 --> 00:14:40.379 and he sees 00:14:40.379 --> 00:14:41.259 Bathsheba. 00:14:42.620 --> 00:14:43.600 A thought process 00:14:43.600 --> 00:14:44.600 is then set 00:14:44.600 --> 00:14:45.259 in motion. 00:14:46.460 --> 00:14:46.759 Somewhere 00:14:46.759 --> 00:14:47.519 between his 00:14:47.519 --> 00:14:48.340 observation 00:14:48.340 --> 00:14:49.680 and his 00:14:49.680 --> 00:14:50.660 actions 00:14:50.659 --> 00:14:51.659 things 00:14:51.659 --> 00:14:53.240 lie a decision. 00:14:54.579 --> 00:14:55.980 And it may not 00:14:55.980 --> 00:14:57.100 be easy to pinpoint 00:14:57.100 --> 00:14:58.639 exactly where that 00:14:58.639 --> 00:14:59.399 took place, 00:14:59.799 --> 00:15:01.120 but it took place. 00:15:02.620 --> 00:15:03.919 Somewhere between 00:15:03.919 --> 00:15:05.279 our thoughts 00:15:05.279 --> 00:15:07.120 and our actions, 00:15:07.379 --> 00:15:08.199 there lies that 00:15:08.199 --> 00:15:09.559 point of decision. 00:15:10.620 --> 00:15:11.819 And self-control 00:15:11.820 --> 00:15:13.340 is about 00:15:13.340 --> 00:15:14.320 learning to 00:15:14.320 --> 00:15:14.980 discern 00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:16.040 where those 00:15:16.040 --> 00:15:17.080 points are. 00:15:18.280 --> 00:15:19.020 St. Paul in 00:15:19.020 --> 00:15:19.520 the New Testament 00:15:19.520 --> 00:15:20.220 talks about 00:15:20.220 --> 00:15:20.960 the dynamic 00:15:20.960 --> 00:15:21.540 of taking 00:15:21.540 --> 00:15:22.520 every thought 00:15:22.520 --> 00:15:23.160 captive, 00:15:24.100 --> 00:15:24.840 being aware 00:15:24.840 --> 00:15:25.520 of the thought 00:15:25.520 --> 00:15:26.160 processes 00:15:26.160 --> 00:15:27.200 that are going 00:15:27.200 --> 00:15:28.060 on inside us 00:15:28.060 --> 00:15:28.800 and growing 00:15:28.800 --> 00:15:30.360 on inside us. 00:15:34.000 --> 00:15:35.220 But notice 00:15:35.220 --> 00:15:35.660 actually 00:15:35.660 --> 00:15:36.420 where 00:15:36.420 --> 00:15:37.440 all of this 00:15:37.440 --> 00:15:38.140 starts. 00:15:39.540 --> 00:15:40.740 It doesn't 00:15:40.740 --> 00:15:41.520 start 00:15:41.519 --> 00:15:42.960 at the 00:15:42.960 --> 00:15:43.379 point 00:15:43.379 --> 00:15:44.460 where 00:15:44.460 --> 00:15:45.019 Bathsheba 00:15:45.019 --> 00:15:45.500 is brought 00:15:45.500 --> 00:15:46.319 before David. 00:15:47.500 --> 00:15:48.079 It doesn't 00:15:48.079 --> 00:15:48.980 even start 00:15:48.980 --> 00:15:49.299 at the 00:15:49.299 --> 00:15:49.679 point 00:15:49.679 --> 00:15:50.399 where 00:15:50.399 --> 00:15:50.960 he 00:15:50.960 --> 00:15:52.740 tells 00:15:52.740 --> 00:15:53.659 his 00:15:53.659 --> 00:15:54.500 officials 00:15:54.500 --> 00:15:54.879 to 00:15:54.879 --> 00:15:55.860 bring her 00:15:55.860 --> 00:15:56.460 to him. 00:15:57.500 --> 00:15:58.159 It doesn't 00:15:58.159 --> 00:15:58.860 even start 00:15:58.860 --> 00:15:59.139 at the 00:15:59.139 --> 00:15:59.659 moment he 00:15:59.659 --> 00:16:00.279 sees her. 00:16:00.399 --> 00:16:01.299 It starts 00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:02.179 much earlier 00:16:02.179 --> 00:16:03.899 in verse 00:16:03.899 --> 00:16:04.299 one. 00:16:06.259 --> 00:16:06.720 In the 00:16:06.720 --> 00:16:07.279 spring of 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:07.779 the year, 00:16:08.620 --> 00:16:09.220 the time 00:16:09.220 --> 00:16:09.960 when kings 00:16:09.960 --> 00:16:10.480 go out 00:16:10.480 --> 00:16:11.079 to battle, 00:16:11.080 --> 00:16:12.240 David sent 00:16:12.240 --> 00:16:12.820 Joab with 00:16:12.820 --> 00:16:13.379 his officers 00:16:13.379 --> 00:16:13.820 and all 00:16:13.820 --> 00:16:14.580 Israel with 00:16:14.580 --> 00:16:14.780 him. 00:16:15.060 --> 00:16:15.720 They ravaged 00:16:15.720 --> 00:16:16.600 the Ammonites 00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:17.600 and besieged 00:16:17.600 --> 00:16:18.160 Rabbah. 00:16:19.720 --> 00:16:20.480 But David 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:21.180 remained in 00:16:21.180 --> 00:16:21.620 Jerusalem. 00:16:23.460 --> 00:16:24.300 It was the 00:16:24.300 --> 00:16:24.820 time of the 00:16:24.820 --> 00:16:25.300 year when 00:16:25.300 --> 00:16:26.040 kings would 00:16:26.040 --> 00:16:27.259 normally be 00:16:27.259 --> 00:16:28.220 expected to 00:16:28.220 --> 00:16:28.840 go out to 00:16:28.840 --> 00:16:29.139 battle. 00:16:29.700 --> 00:16:30.180 But David 00:16:30.180 --> 00:16:30.620 for some 00:16:30.620 --> 00:16:31.060 reason, and 00:16:31.060 --> 00:16:31.400 we're not 00:16:31.400 --> 00:16:31.980 told why, 00:16:32.980 --> 00:16:33.560 doesn't. 00:16:34.780 --> 00:16:35.700 He stays. 00:16:37.400 --> 00:16:38.259 He's in the 00:16:38.259 --> 00:16:39.039 wrong place. 00:16:40.439 --> 00:16:40.960 And had 00:16:40.960 --> 00:16:41.340 it actually 00:16:41.340 --> 00:16:41.860 been in the 00:16:41.860 --> 00:16:42.519 right place, 00:16:42.759 --> 00:16:43.059 then none 00:16:43.059 --> 00:16:43.360 of this 00:16:43.360 --> 00:16:43.700 could have 00:16:43.700 --> 00:16:44.240 even begun 00:16:44.240 --> 00:16:45.059 to emerge. 00:16:45.740 --> 00:16:45.960 And a 00:16:45.960 --> 00:16:46.919 question, and 00:16:46.919 --> 00:16:47.319 I want to 00:16:47.319 --> 00:16:47.679 suggest that 00:16:47.679 --> 00:16:48.179 this is the 00:16:48.179 --> 00:16:49.000 most universal 00:16:49.000 --> 00:16:49.759 question that 00:16:49.759 --> 00:16:50.200 we can put 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:50.779 to ourselves 00:16:50.779 --> 00:16:51.319 when we 00:16:51.319 --> 00:16:51.740 read this 00:16:51.740 --> 00:16:53.159 passage, is 00:16:53.159 --> 00:16:54.879 what is our 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:55.759 wrong place 00:16:55.759 --> 00:16:57.019 for whatever 00:16:57.019 --> 00:16:57.759 it is that 00:16:57.759 --> 00:16:58.139 we may 00:16:58.139 --> 00:16:59.080 struggle with 00:16:59.080 --> 00:16:59.559 when it 00:16:59.559 --> 00:17:00.080 comes to 00:17:00.080 --> 00:17:00.759 self-control? 00:17:00.759 --> 00:17:04.920 what's the 00:17:04.920 --> 00:17:05.559 wrong place? 00:17:12.379 --> 00:17:13.440 What places 00:17:13.440 --> 00:17:15.099 do we find 00:17:15.099 --> 00:17:15.920 ourselves most 00:17:15.920 --> 00:17:17.680 vulnerable when 00:17:17.680 --> 00:17:19.299 we're trying to 00:17:19.299 --> 00:17:19.940 control those 00:17:19.940 --> 00:17:20.559 things that will 00:17:20.559 --> 00:17:21.039 pull us in the 00:17:21.039 --> 00:17:21.660 wrong direction? 00:17:21.799 --> 00:17:22.180 Now for each 00:17:22.180 --> 00:17:22.599 of us that will 00:17:22.599 --> 00:17:23.019 be a different 00:17:23.019 --> 00:17:23.359 thing. 00:17:24.859 --> 00:17:25.200 I'm going to 00:17:25.200 --> 00:17:25.700 just describe 00:17:25.700 --> 00:17:26.440 just a few 00:17:26.440 --> 00:17:27.519 which give a 00:17:27.519 --> 00:17:27.900 hint of the 00:17:27.900 --> 00:17:28.660 sort of things 00:17:28.660 --> 00:17:30.440 that 20 00:17:30.440 --> 00:17:31.120 years as a 00:17:31.120 --> 00:17:31.759 minister now 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:32.980 I've listened 00:17:32.980 --> 00:17:33.600 to people's 00:17:33.600 --> 00:17:35.400 stories, things 00:17:35.400 --> 00:17:35.820 where things 00:17:35.820 --> 00:17:36.380 have gone wrong 00:17:36.380 --> 00:17:36.880 in people's 00:17:36.880 --> 00:17:37.620 lives and 00:17:37.620 --> 00:17:39.160 brokenness and 00:17:39.160 --> 00:17:40.799 the sort of 00:17:40.799 --> 00:17:42.279 picture I get 00:17:42.279 --> 00:17:42.900 as I think 00:17:42.900 --> 00:17:44.380 back over many 00:17:44.380 --> 00:17:45.660 conversations over 00:17:45.660 --> 00:17:46.100 the years that 00:17:46.100 --> 00:17:46.500 I've heard, and 00:17:46.500 --> 00:17:47.120 again if you're 00:17:47.120 --> 00:17:47.660 listening to this 00:17:47.660 --> 00:17:48.400 on the podcast, 00:17:49.360 --> 00:17:50.279 wherever you are 00:17:50.279 --> 00:17:51.559 right now, ask 00:17:51.559 --> 00:17:52.180 yourself the 00:17:52.180 --> 00:17:53.640 question, are 00:17:53.640 --> 00:17:54.200 you in the 00:17:54.200 --> 00:17:54.880 wrong place as 00:17:54.880 --> 00:17:55.380 you're listening? 00:17:58.660 --> 00:18:00.380 If a struggle 00:18:00.380 --> 00:18:01.520 area for us 00:18:01.520 --> 00:18:04.640 is gossiping. 00:18:05.980 --> 00:18:06.740 If it's 00:18:06.740 --> 00:18:07.200 something that 00:18:07.200 --> 00:18:07.900 actually, yeah, 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:09.580 we do but 00:18:09.580 --> 00:18:10.640 perhaps we only 00:18:10.640 --> 00:18:11.420 recognise it 00:18:11.420 --> 00:18:12.060 after we've 00:18:12.060 --> 00:18:12.540 done it and 00:18:12.540 --> 00:18:12.960 we've been 00:18:12.960 --> 00:18:13.560 talking with 00:18:13.560 --> 00:18:15.020 a group, make 00:18:15.020 --> 00:18:15.540 that an area 00:18:15.540 --> 00:18:16.180 of prayer and 00:18:16.180 --> 00:18:16.760 next time you're 00:18:16.760 --> 00:18:17.340 with others and 00:18:17.340 --> 00:18:17.960 the conversation 00:18:17.960 --> 00:18:18.760 begins to pick 00:18:18.760 --> 00:18:20.760 up on the 00:18:20.760 --> 00:18:21.220 subject of 00:18:21.220 --> 00:18:21.660 people who 00:18:21.660 --> 00:18:22.540 aren't with 00:18:22.540 --> 00:18:23.220 that group at 00:18:23.220 --> 00:18:23.820 that point in 00:18:23.820 --> 00:18:26.020 time, walk 00:18:26.020 --> 00:18:27.340 away, just 00:18:27.340 --> 00:18:27.780 get out of 00:18:27.779 --> 00:18:28.339 that place. 00:18:32.039 --> 00:18:32.720 If your 00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:34.099 wrong place is 00:18:34.099 --> 00:18:34.720 that you're 00:18:34.720 --> 00:18:35.220 just spending 00:18:35.220 --> 00:18:36.240 too much time 00:18:36.240 --> 00:18:36.700 on the 00:18:36.700 --> 00:18:38.420 internet, and 00:18:38.420 --> 00:18:38.799 this is so 00:18:38.799 --> 00:18:39.259 much harder 00:18:39.259 --> 00:18:39.660 now because 00:18:39.660 --> 00:18:40.039 there was a 00:18:40.039 --> 00:18:40.579 time not so 00:18:40.579 --> 00:18:41.220 long ago when 00:18:41.220 --> 00:18:41.839 to be on the 00:18:41.839 --> 00:18:42.480 internet then 00:18:42.480 --> 00:18:43.579 sat in front of 00:18:43.579 --> 00:18:44.139 a computer, it 00:18:44.139 --> 00:18:44.559 doesn't now 00:18:44.559 --> 00:18:45.139 because we have 00:18:45.139 --> 00:18:45.940 handheld devices, 00:18:46.119 --> 00:18:47.000 it's not quite as 00:18:47.000 --> 00:18:47.779 easy, it's more 00:18:47.779 --> 00:18:48.160 challenging. 00:18:49.519 --> 00:18:50.500 But if you 00:18:50.500 --> 00:18:51.759 find that you're 00:18:51.759 --> 00:18:52.399 spending too 00:18:52.399 --> 00:18:53.519 much time, that 00:18:53.519 --> 00:18:54.039 that's your 00:18:54.039 --> 00:18:54.680 wrong place, 00:18:54.680 --> 00:18:55.660 whether you're 00:18:55.660 --> 00:18:56.680 spending too 00:18:56.680 --> 00:18:57.400 much time or 00:18:57.400 --> 00:18:58.420 whether you're 00:18:58.420 --> 00:18:58.920 on the wrong 00:18:58.920 --> 00:18:59.640 kind of sites 00:18:59.640 --> 00:19:00.360 and engaged in 00:19:00.360 --> 00:19:01.060 the wrong kind 00:19:01.060 --> 00:19:01.740 of activities, 00:19:01.960 --> 00:19:03.320 then impose some 00:19:03.320 --> 00:19:04.120 kind of barrier 00:19:04.120 --> 00:19:04.740 on yourself. 00:19:05.360 --> 00:19:06.019 Switch off your 00:19:06.019 --> 00:19:06.840 device, put it 00:19:06.840 --> 00:19:07.380 away in the 00:19:07.380 --> 00:19:08.400 drawer, turn off 00:19:08.400 --> 00:19:08.759 your modem, 00:19:08.799 --> 00:19:09.420 whatever it may 00:19:09.420 --> 00:19:10.200 be, but get 00:19:10.200 --> 00:19:10.799 out of that 00:19:10.799 --> 00:19:11.680 wrong place 00:19:11.680 --> 00:19:13.140 before destruction 00:19:13.140 --> 00:19:13.920 begins. 00:19:15.720 --> 00:19:17.019 If you find that 00:19:17.019 --> 00:19:17.560 you're drinking 00:19:17.560 --> 00:19:18.299 too much of the 00:19:18.299 --> 00:19:19.160 wrong stuff too 00:19:19.160 --> 00:19:20.580 much, or eating 00:19:20.580 --> 00:19:21.299 too much of the 00:19:21.299 --> 00:19:22.259 wrong stuff too 00:19:22.259 --> 00:19:22.820 much, too 00:19:22.820 --> 00:19:23.920 frequently, the 00:19:23.920 --> 00:19:24.740 wrong place is 00:19:24.740 --> 00:19:25.580 not necessarily 00:19:25.580 --> 00:19:26.940 wherever that may 00:19:26.940 --> 00:19:27.660 be during the 00:19:27.660 --> 00:19:28.420 week, it might 00:19:28.420 --> 00:19:30.500 be far earlier 00:19:30.500 --> 00:19:31.019 than that. 00:19:31.880 --> 00:19:33.000 Maybe you need 00:19:33.000 --> 00:19:33.740 to keep less of 00:19:33.740 --> 00:19:36.380 it indoors, so 00:19:36.380 --> 00:19:37.019 that it's harder 00:19:37.019 --> 00:19:38.360 to access, so 00:19:38.360 --> 00:19:38.820 that you're not 00:19:38.820 --> 00:19:39.660 put in the wrong 00:19:39.660 --> 00:19:40.180 place. 00:19:41.680 --> 00:19:42.480 Maybe if you're 00:19:42.480 --> 00:19:43.259 spending too much 00:19:43.259 --> 00:19:43.759 and you're finding 00:19:43.759 --> 00:19:44.740 yourself in crippling 00:19:44.740 --> 00:19:47.200 debt, then perhaps 00:19:47.200 --> 00:19:48.019 being in the wrong 00:19:48.019 --> 00:19:49.039 place means being 00:19:49.039 --> 00:19:49.860 somewhere with a 00:19:49.860 --> 00:19:50.840 credit card on you, 00:19:51.140 --> 00:19:51.980 leave it at home 00:19:51.980 --> 00:19:52.720 and use cash 00:19:52.720 --> 00:19:53.220 instead. 00:19:53.920 --> 00:19:54.720 Get out of that 00:19:54.720 --> 00:19:55.500 wrong place. 00:19:56.720 --> 00:19:57.539 Maybe if you're 00:19:57.539 --> 00:19:58.240 getting into a 00:19:58.240 --> 00:19:59.519 relationship that 00:19:59.519 --> 00:20:00.580 actually is not a 00:20:00.580 --> 00:20:01.580 healthy one, it's an 00:20:01.580 --> 00:20:03.100 inappropriate one, then 00:20:03.100 --> 00:20:03.820 you need to ask 00:20:03.820 --> 00:20:04.960 yourself, at what 00:20:04.960 --> 00:20:06.220 point are you in the 00:20:06.220 --> 00:20:07.240 place where you're 00:20:07.240 --> 00:20:08.100 getting closer to that 00:20:08.100 --> 00:20:08.680 other person? 00:20:08.860 --> 00:20:09.680 Maybe if it's a 00:20:09.680 --> 00:20:10.440 situation where you 00:20:10.440 --> 00:20:11.900 work away from home 00:20:11.900 --> 00:20:12.880 lots, where you're 00:20:12.880 --> 00:20:13.720 staying away from 00:20:13.720 --> 00:20:15.180 home lots, only you 00:20:15.180 --> 00:20:15.860 will be able to answer 00:20:15.860 --> 00:20:16.620 that question. 00:20:17.880 --> 00:20:19.539 What is the wrong 00:20:19.539 --> 00:20:20.180 place? 00:20:20.960 --> 00:20:22.680 Name it and get out 00:20:22.680 --> 00:20:23.000 of it. 00:20:23.480 --> 00:20:24.200 Run without 00:20:24.200 --> 00:20:24.720 dignity. 00:20:29.220 --> 00:20:31.480 But also, just to 00:20:31.480 --> 00:20:32.220 go back to where we 00:20:32.220 --> 00:20:34.180 started, we're 00:20:34.180 --> 00:20:35.299 saying that self-control 00:20:35.299 --> 00:20:36.259 is not only about 00:20:36.259 --> 00:20:37.380 avoiding things that are 00:20:37.380 --> 00:20:38.240 destructive, about 00:20:38.240 --> 00:20:39.180 staying away from 00:20:39.180 --> 00:20:39.580 some things. 00:20:39.880 --> 00:20:40.900 Self-control is as 00:20:40.900 --> 00:20:42.360 much about embracing 00:20:42.360 --> 00:20:43.519 things positively. 00:20:43.519 --> 00:20:45.700 So if you're 00:20:45.700 --> 00:20:47.960 struggling to pray, if 00:20:47.960 --> 00:20:49.460 you're struggling to 00:20:49.460 --> 00:20:51.220 read scripture, if 00:20:51.220 --> 00:20:52.119 you're struggling to 00:20:52.119 --> 00:20:53.019 discipline yourself in 00:20:53.019 --> 00:20:54.059 that, look for a good 00:20:54.059 --> 00:20:55.379 place and a good time. 00:20:57.460 --> 00:20:58.180 Perhaps there's a 00:20:58.180 --> 00:20:59.700 particular place where 00:20:59.700 --> 00:21:00.619 you can go and walk 00:21:00.619 --> 00:21:01.200 and pray. 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:02.299 Perhaps there's a 00:21:02.299 --> 00:21:03.400 particular time in the 00:21:03.400 --> 00:21:04.259 day, perhaps there's a 00:21:04.259 --> 00:21:05.259 particular room in the 00:21:05.259 --> 00:21:06.019 house, a place where 00:21:06.019 --> 00:21:06.759 you can sit that will 00:21:06.759 --> 00:21:07.819 enable you to still 00:21:07.819 --> 00:21:09.339 yourself and to spend 00:21:09.339 --> 00:21:10.980 that time in focused 00:21:10.980 --> 00:21:11.400 prayer. 00:21:11.400 --> 00:21:15.400 But finally, as we 00:21:15.400 --> 00:21:21.300 come to pray now, I 00:21:21.300 --> 00:21:22.440 want to say that if 00:21:22.440 --> 00:21:23.100 anything I've said 00:21:23.100 --> 00:21:23.800 this morning is 00:21:23.800 --> 00:21:26.100 about, suggests any 00:21:26.100 --> 00:21:28.220 kind of guilt trip, it's 00:21:28.220 --> 00:21:28.440 not. 00:21:28.980 --> 00:21:30.380 Well, it kind of is in 00:21:30.380 --> 00:21:31.000 that there is such a 00:21:31.000 --> 00:21:32.320 thing as creative guilt. 00:21:32.720 --> 00:21:33.380 There's destructive 00:21:33.380 --> 00:21:34.120 guilt as well and 00:21:34.120 --> 00:21:34.400 there's all the 00:21:34.400 --> 00:21:35.000 difference between the 00:21:35.000 --> 00:21:35.220 two. 00:21:36.000 --> 00:21:36.759 This is not about 00:21:36.759 --> 00:21:37.759 destructive guilt, it 00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:39.340 is about creative guilt. 00:21:39.339 --> 00:21:41.779 Creative guilt is guilt 00:21:41.779 --> 00:21:42.859 that actually motivates 00:21:42.859 --> 00:21:44.720 us to change in a 00:21:44.720 --> 00:21:45.459 helpful way. 00:21:46.779 --> 00:21:47.419 And if we're in that 00:21:47.419 --> 00:21:48.279 place where we really 00:21:48.279 --> 00:21:49.319 do want that to happen, 00:21:49.459 --> 00:21:50.220 then that's great. 00:21:50.839 --> 00:21:51.699 Because we need to 00:21:51.699 --> 00:21:52.419 remember from this 00:21:52.419 --> 00:21:52.939 story, and I think 00:21:52.939 --> 00:21:53.500 this is perhaps the 00:21:53.500 --> 00:21:54.199 most powerful thing 00:21:54.199 --> 00:21:55.019 about this story of 00:21:55.019 --> 00:21:55.939 David and Bathsheba, 00:21:56.279 --> 00:21:57.179 that it teaches us, 00:21:57.399 --> 00:21:58.599 is that even not if, 00:21:58.720 --> 00:21:59.799 but when we mess up, 00:21:59.919 --> 00:22:00.740 when we get it wrong, 00:22:00.819 --> 00:22:01.319 when we've got 00:22:01.319 --> 00:22:02.000 ourselves into the 00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:02.919 wrong place and then 00:22:02.919 --> 00:22:05.679 some, we can always 00:22:05.679 --> 00:22:06.279 come back. 00:22:06.279 --> 00:22:08.720 Because God meets you 00:22:08.720 --> 00:22:10.319 in that place, and he 00:22:10.319 --> 00:22:11.119 doesn't leave you in 00:22:11.119 --> 00:22:12.299 that place, he brings 00:22:12.299 --> 00:22:13.240 you back to a fresh 00:22:13.240 --> 00:22:13.940 start and a new 00:22:13.940 --> 00:22:14.299 beginning. 00:22:15.160 --> 00:22:16.379 Because as horrendous, 00:22:16.460 --> 00:22:17.299 as horrific, as 00:22:17.299 --> 00:22:20.859 assorted as David's 00:22:20.859 --> 00:22:23.680 actions were, not only 00:22:23.680 --> 00:22:24.759 did he commit adultery, 00:22:24.879 --> 00:22:25.899 but he then tried to 00:22:25.899 --> 00:22:26.759 cover it up and then 00:22:26.759 --> 00:22:27.700 eventually got someone 00:22:27.700 --> 00:22:28.160 killed. 00:22:29.539 --> 00:22:30.420 Even he found 00:22:30.420 --> 00:22:31.099 redemption and 00:22:31.099 --> 00:22:31.460 forgiveness. 00:22:32.599 --> 00:22:33.899 And if he in that 00:22:33.899 --> 00:22:34.720 story can find 00:22:34.720 --> 00:22:36.059 redemption and 00:22:36.059 --> 00:22:36.639 forgiveness and a 00:22:36.639 --> 00:22:37.059 new beginning, 00:22:37.339 --> 00:22:38.319 then so can we. 00:22:40.899 --> 00:22:41.879 Because out of this 00:22:41.879 --> 00:22:43.200 experience, David came 00:22:43.200 --> 00:22:44.319 to write one of the 00:22:44.319 --> 00:22:45.579 most famous psalms, 00:22:46.399 --> 00:22:47.299 Psalm 51. 00:22:48.819 --> 00:22:49.519 And I'm going to read 00:22:49.519 --> 00:22:50.460 that psalm now, 00:22:51.119 --> 00:22:51.960 because it so 00:22:51.960 --> 00:22:53.159 powerfully expresses 00:22:53.159 --> 00:22:56.079 words of confession, 00:22:56.700 --> 00:22:59.059 words which express 00:22:59.059 --> 00:23:01.559 that, yes, we get it 00:23:01.559 --> 00:23:02.539 wrong, we're broken 00:23:02.539 --> 00:23:04.139 beings, but we depend 00:23:04.139 --> 00:23:05.139 on the grace of God. 00:23:06.059 --> 00:23:06.799 David did. 00:23:07.799 --> 00:23:09.460 David knew that he was 00:23:09.460 --> 00:23:10.519 forgiven and so can 00:23:10.519 --> 00:23:10.779 we. 00:23:12.179 --> 00:23:13.159 So I'm going to read to 00:23:13.159 --> 00:23:15.279 you from Psalm 51 00:23:15.279 --> 00:23:17.299 and it was written as a 00:23:17.299 --> 00:23:18.059 prayer, so I'm going to 00:23:18.059 --> 00:23:18.980 read it as a prayer. 00:23:21.339 --> 00:23:22.559 Let's take some time 00:23:22.559 --> 00:23:24.379 now just to bring 00:23:24.379 --> 00:23:26.039 ourselves before God. 00:23:26.039 --> 00:23:27.079 As we come to the end 00:23:27.079 --> 00:23:27.960 of this series, 00:23:28.399 --> 00:23:30.700 thinking about self-control, 00:23:30.700 --> 00:23:33.420 let's just bring ourselves 00:23:33.420 --> 00:23:35.759 before God as we are 00:23:35.759 --> 00:23:36.700 because we can come no 00:23:36.700 --> 00:23:38.559 other way and ask for 00:23:38.559 --> 00:23:42.019 him to help us where we 00:23:42.019 --> 00:23:43.220 struggle, wherever that 00:23:43.220 --> 00:23:44.340 may be and whatever that 00:23:44.340 --> 00:23:44.860 may mean. 00:23:46.600 --> 00:23:47.660 Psalm 51 says, 00:23:47.660 --> 00:23:50.080 have mercy on me, O God, 00:23:50.960 --> 00:23:53.120 according to your steadfast 00:23:53.120 --> 00:23:55.480 love, according to your 00:23:55.480 --> 00:23:57.160 abundant mercy, blot out my 00:23:57.160 --> 00:23:59.080 transgressions, wash me 00:23:59.080 --> 00:24:00.880 thoroughly from my iniquity and 00:24:00.880 --> 00:24:02.220 cleanse me from my sin. 00:24:03.720 --> 00:24:05.840 For I know my transgressions and 00:24:05.840 --> 00:24:07.860 my sin is ever before me. 00:24:08.960 --> 00:24:10.940 Against you, you alone have I 00:24:10.940 --> 00:24:12.680 sinned and have done what is 00:24:12.680 --> 00:24:13.880 evil in your sight. 00:24:16.039 --> 00:24:17.580 Indeed, I was born guilty, 00:24:19.560 --> 00:24:20.620 a sinner when my mother 00:24:20.620 --> 00:24:21.860 conceived me, even. 00:24:23.259 --> 00:24:24.980 You desire truth in the 00:24:24.980 --> 00:24:26.820 inward being, therefore teach 00:24:26.820 --> 00:24:28.620 me wisdom in my secret heart. 00:24:29.380 --> 00:24:30.480 Purge me and I shall be 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:32.000 clean, wash me and I shall be 00:24:32.000 --> 00:24:32.980 whiter than snow. 00:24:33.700 --> 00:24:35.620 Let me hear joy and gladness, 00:24:35.720 --> 00:24:37.000 let the bones that you have 00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:37.980 crushed rejoice. 00:24:38.660 --> 00:24:40.460 Hide your face from my sins 00:24:40.460 --> 00:24:42.539 and blot out all my iniquity. 00:24:42.680 --> 00:24:45.799 Please, create in me a clean 00:24:45.799 --> 00:24:49.140 heart, O God, and put a new 00:24:49.140 --> 00:24:51.340 and right spirit within me. 00:24:52.740 --> 00:24:55.000 Do not cast me away from your 00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:56.560 presence and do not take your 00:24:56.560 --> 00:24:57.860 Holy Spirit from me. 00:24:58.380 --> 00:25:00.160 Restore to me the joy of your 00:25:00.160 --> 00:25:02.420 salvation and sustain in me a 00:25:02.420 --> 00:25:03.200 willing spirit. 00:25:04.560 --> 00:25:06.539 Then I will teach transgressors 00:25:06.539 --> 00:25:07.820 your ways and sinners will 00:25:07.820 --> 00:25:08.680 return to you. 00:25:09.160 --> 00:25:10.900 Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, 00:25:11.180 --> 00:25:12.420 O God of my salvation. 00:25:12.420 --> 00:25:14.640 And my tongue will sing aloud of 00:25:14.640 --> 00:25:15.580 your deliverance. 00:25:16.860 --> 00:25:18.820 Lord, open my lips and my mouth 00:25:18.820 --> 00:25:20.240 will declare your praise. 00:25:20.539 --> 00:25:22.160 For you have no delight in 00:25:22.160 --> 00:25:22.779 sacrifice. 00:25:24.380 --> 00:25:26.060 If I were to give you a burnt 00:25:26.060 --> 00:25:27.220 offering, you would not be 00:25:27.220 --> 00:25:27.600 pleased. 00:25:28.279 --> 00:25:30.400 The sacrifice acceptable to God 00:25:30.400 --> 00:25:31.800 is a broken spirit. 00:25:31.799 --> 00:25:35.599 A broken and contrite heart, O God, 00:25:36.240 --> 00:25:37.980 you will not despise. 00:25:37.980 --> 00:25:38.380 Father...