WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.600 Shh. We are going to continue on. Guys, if you don't mind, we're going to skip right past 00:00:07.600 --> 00:00:13.179 ! the video for sake of time. Normally I have a little intro video introducing the sermon, 00:00:13.900 --> 00:00:19.199 but we already had an awesome VBS video and I don't want to video you out today. So we're going to go 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:23.559 ahead and jump right into the sermon today. So if you would take the Word of God with me 00:00:23.559 --> 00:00:28.239 and go to Matthew chapter 20. Matthew chapter 20. 00:00:32.679 --> 00:00:38.600 We have been in this series called Stories of the Kingdom. It's all about the parables of Jesus. 00:00:40.299 --> 00:00:46.439 What were the parables? They were just stories to prove a point, to illustrate a bigger 00:00:46.439 --> 00:00:53.219 gospel truth that Jesus was revealing about the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God is very different 00:00:53.560 --> 00:01:00.560 than the kingdoms of this earth. So when we start thinking with our preconceived notions about what 00:01:00.560 --> 00:01:07.420 a kingdom is, God's kingdom, totally different. Totally different. And he illustrates that through 00:01:07.420 --> 00:01:18.700 these parables. So we are looking in Matthew chapter 20 verses 1 through 16. Before we get there, 00:01:18.700 --> 00:01:28.859 how many of you guys are familiar with income inequality? Anybody? The wage gap? What are we 00:01:28.859 --> 00:01:34.980 talking about? The unequal distribution of income throughout a population. There are different types 00:01:34.980 --> 00:01:42.780 of income inequality, different types of wage gaps. There are often very justified wage gaps based on 00:01:42.780 --> 00:01:51.680 experience, education, etc. If you're more qualified for a position, if you're more trained for a position, 00:01:52.120 --> 00:01:58.519 the idea is with the company, you're going to come in and do a very valuable job in that position. And so 00:01:58.519 --> 00:02:03.719 they're going to pay you accordingly to the training you've received, the experience you have, the degrees 00:02:03.719 --> 00:02:11.979 you've earned, etc. So you might be doing the same job as someone else, but the expectations are higher for 00:02:11.979 --> 00:02:18.639 you. They think coming in, they don't have to invest time training you. You're really just going to hit 00:02:18.639 --> 00:02:25.579 the ground running. And so you probably qualify for a higher pay scale than someone without those skins on 00:02:25.579 --> 00:02:32.919 the wall, so to speak. Then there are other wage gaps, which are often unjustified wage gaps based on 00:02:32.919 --> 00:02:40.159 gender, race, etc. And of course there are laws governing these sorts of things that employers 00:02:40.159 --> 00:02:49.099 often have to put into place to guard against bias, etc. in hiring processes. But still, income inequality 00:02:49.099 --> 00:02:55.479 can work its way through and worm its way through society. And sometimes a man and a woman doing the 00:02:55.479 --> 00:03:01.259 exact same job with basically the same level of experience, education, etc. The man might be paid higher 00:03:01.259 --> 00:03:07.780 than the woman just based on whatever. And that would be a wage gap. Or someone of a certain race might 00:03:07.780 --> 00:03:13.179 be paid higher than someone of a different race. And of course those would be unjustified wage gaps. 00:03:13.299 --> 00:03:20.979 But there are justified wage gaps. It all falls under this heading of income inequality. Why are we talking 00:03:20.979 --> 00:03:27.739 about this? Well, because Jesus was talking about it, but in a weird way. So let's look at Matthew 00:03:27.740 --> 00:03:32.939 chapter 20 and see what he had to say about income inequality. 00:03:36.860 --> 00:03:43.320 For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers 00:03:43.320 --> 00:03:50.180 for his vineyard. So we got this. This guy is a boss. He owns land. He needs to hire people 00:03:50.180 --> 00:03:57.980 to work his vineyard. He's got some grapes that are ready to pluck. Here they go. After agreeing with 00:03:57.980 --> 00:04:06.200 the workers on one denarius. Now if you switch over to the New Living Translation, it'll say he agreed 00:04:06.200 --> 00:04:14.760 to pay the normal daily wage and send them out to work. So the denarius, normal daily wage. All right? 00:04:14.759 --> 00:04:19.839 We got that? That's what he's saying. It's the daily wage. So he says, he goes out early in the morning, 00:04:19.980 --> 00:04:26.060 probably around 6 a.m. and says, I'm going to hire these guys and I'm going to pay them the standard 00:04:26.060 --> 00:04:32.199 daily rate to come out and work my vineyard. Verse 3, at 9 o'clock in the morning, he was passing 00:04:32.199 --> 00:04:38.420 through the marketplace. We're three hours later now, right? Normally back in those days, the workday 00:04:38.420 --> 00:04:44.240 started about 6 a.m. It wasn't a 9 to 5 thing, right? It wasn't an 8 a.m. They started early. 00:04:44.840 --> 00:04:52.439 6 to around 6 in the evening. About a 12-hour workday there. So 9 o'clock, he's passing through 00:04:52.439 --> 00:04:59.100 the marketplace again. He sees people standing around doing nothing. So what does he do? He hires them. 00:05:00.300 --> 00:05:04.280 Hey guys, you're not doing anything. I've got something for you to do and I'll pay you. 00:05:05.019 --> 00:05:12.340 Come work my vineyard. Telling them he would pay them whatever was right at the end of the day. 00:05:12.339 --> 00:05:21.899 So they went to work in the vineyard. And at noon, and again at 3 o'clock, he did the same thing. 00:05:22.239 --> 00:05:30.000 Every three hours, this landowner goes through the marketplace, hires whoever is standing around 00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:38.299 doing nothing to come back and work in his vineyard. Promising them all, I'll pay you a fair wage at the 00:05:38.300 --> 00:05:46.780 end of the day. 5 o'clock that afternoon. This is an hour before closing time, right? An hour before 00:05:46.780 --> 00:05:54.120 quitting time. There's an hour left in the workday. He's in town again. He saw some more people standing 00:05:54.120 --> 00:06:00.080 around. He asked them, why haven't you been working today? And verse 7, they replied, because no one hired 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:10.259 us. The landowner told them, then go out and join the others in my vineyard. Y'all remember how much 00:06:10.259 --> 00:06:18.419 time is left in the workday. That evening, 6 o'clock comes, an hour later, right? He told the foreman to 00:06:18.419 --> 00:06:28.019 call the workers in and pay them, beginning with the last workers first. When those hired at 5 o'clock 00:06:28.019 --> 00:06:39.779 were paid, each received a full day's wage. Income inequality. But flipped on its head, 00:06:40.939 --> 00:06:52.799 he wasn't paying them not enough, he was paying them all the same. When those hired first came to get 00:06:52.800 --> 00:07:03.939 their pay, they assumed they would receive more. But they too were paid a day's wage. Why? Just real 00:07:03.939 --> 00:07:11.680 quick, let's stop here. Why were those hired first, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.? Why were they paid a full day's 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:19.000 wage? It's what they agreed to, right? But they saw the guys who worked for an hour get paid a full day's 00:07:19.000 --> 00:07:24.819 wage. And they're like, oh boys, we just got a raise that we didn't even know was coming. There's no way 00:07:24.819 --> 00:07:31.459 he pays them the same as he's paying us. But what happened? They received the same. When they received 00:07:31.459 --> 00:07:38.079 their pay, they protested to the owner. Those people worked only one hour, and yet you've paid them just 00:07:38.079 --> 00:07:44.040 as much as you paid us who worked all day in the scorching heat. He answered one of them, 00:07:44.040 --> 00:07:54.060 friend, I haven't been unfair. Didn't you agree to work all day for the usual wage? Take your money 00:07:54.060 --> 00:08:02.240 and go. I wanted to pay this last worker the same as you. Is it against the law for me to do what I 00:08:02.240 --> 00:08:09.960 want with my money? Should you be jealous because I'm kind to others? So those who are last now 00:08:09.959 --> 00:08:20.159 will be first then, and those who are first will be what? Last. Let's pray together. God, teach us this 00:08:20.159 --> 00:08:25.939 principle. Get it through our heads, God. We get thick-headed sometimes, and we are convinced that 00:08:25.939 --> 00:08:37.220 we deserve what we think we deserve. But we know that in our sin, we deserve nothing but separation from 00:08:37.220 --> 00:08:45.920 you, torment, punishment. But in your standing, because of your love, because of your kindness, 00:08:46.620 --> 00:08:52.580 you have offered us so much more, so much better than we deserve. Remind us of that every day, 00:08:52.639 --> 00:08:59.200 God. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. So Jesus is teaching this principle of income inequality, 00:08:59.200 --> 00:09:09.360 and it's totally different than what we face here in society. Not only is he offering the guys who 00:09:09.360 --> 00:09:17.759 worked nine hours less, I'm sorry, nine hours instead of 12 hours, six hours instead of 12 hours, 00:09:18.220 --> 00:09:25.000 three hours instead of 12 hours, he's offering the guys who only worked one hour that day the same 00:09:25.000 --> 00:09:33.919 amount of payment. We would look at that and say, that's unequal. The pay is the same, but the work 00:09:33.919 --> 00:09:42.840 is not. Why didn't the guys who worked the longest get paid the most? And Jesus is coming back and 00:09:42.840 --> 00:09:50.720 saying, no, no, no. It's the same reward for everyone. Keep that in the back of your mind. It's the same reward 00:09:50.720 --> 00:09:58.100 for everyone. In the kingdom of God, everyone is in the same boat. So there's a biblical principle here. 00:09:58.840 --> 00:10:05.180 2 Thessalonians chapter 3 and verse 10. Anybody know what that says? What that teaches? 2 Thessalonians 00:10:05.180 --> 00:10:16.639 3 10. If you don't work, you don't, a little louder, eat. You don't eat. If you don't work, 00:10:16.639 --> 00:10:21.899 you don't eat. That comes from a principle taught in the Proverbs. Proverbs chapter 20 and verse 4. 00:10:22.399 --> 00:10:29.240 That if you don't work, you don't eat. There is a biblical principle there. So the guys who'd been 00:10:29.240 --> 00:10:37.860 standing around all day, they hadn't really earned much of anything. But Jesus says, if you stand around 00:10:37.860 --> 00:10:46.840 the rest of this day, you'll earn nothing from me, you've wasted so much of your day. But if you stop 00:10:46.840 --> 00:10:54.580 wasting now and you come work in my vineyard, I will pay you what I want to pay you. And do you know 00:10:54.580 --> 00:11:04.000 what he wanted to pay them? Everything he could. He wanted to pay them the full wage that they could 00:11:04.000 --> 00:11:11.600 have ever hope to receive if they had worked the full day. He wanted to pay them so much more than 00:11:11.600 --> 00:11:22.139 they deserved. So he's not abandoning the biblical principle taught in Proverbs and 2 Thessalonians, 00:11:22.320 --> 00:11:30.039 that if you don't work, you don't eat. But he's not doing it by our rules. He's doing it by his rules. 00:11:30.039 --> 00:11:40.139 So there's a biblical principle. You don't work. You don't eat. Look, you don't even have to read 00:11:40.139 --> 00:11:47.360 the Bible to figure that out. It's woven into the fabric of society, of the earth. If you don't go 00:11:47.360 --> 00:11:55.399 out and put forth labor, you're going to starve. Somehow you've got to go get food for yourself 00:11:55.399 --> 00:12:06.019 and water to drink or you will die. So we understand that principle. I think just about 00:12:06.019 --> 00:12:13.079 everybody in here has that down pretty well. But there's a divine secret that we may not be quite 00:12:13.079 --> 00:12:24.120 as familiar with. You don't work and you don't eat is not what God focuses on with us. 00:12:25.399 --> 00:12:33.819 Yes, that principle is there. Yes, we have to accept it. But I want to challenge your understanding 00:12:33.819 --> 00:12:44.639 of Jesus, his kingdom, his gospel. Because our understanding of what is equal and what is fair 00:12:44.639 --> 00:12:57.480 is not how God deals with us. And thank God for it. Because if we earned, if we receive what we earn, 00:12:58.159 --> 00:13:07.639 we're all in for it. We're all bound for eternal punishment and hellfire. If we receive 00:13:07.639 --> 00:13:14.580 the just reward of everything we have done in this life, then there's no hope for us. 00:13:15.519 --> 00:13:22.779 So thankfully, God turns that way of thinking on its head and says, I'm not going to give you what 00:13:22.779 --> 00:13:30.740 you owe. I'm going to give you what I want to pay you. And that is the payment that my son made 00:13:30.740 --> 00:13:35.980 on the cross for your sin. All right? That's where we're headed with this. So let's look at this 00:13:35.980 --> 00:13:46.080 transitional truth. First, Romans 6 23. Romans 6 23 reminds us what? The wages of sin is death. 00:13:46.159 --> 00:13:50.779 We got that down. If you're a guest here, maybe haven't been as familiar with church and you didn't 00:13:50.779 --> 00:13:56.620 know that, don't feel bad. But you've now learned the wages of sin is death. What is sin? It's anything 00:13:56.620 --> 00:14:01.899 that breaks God's law. It's anything that's not of God. That's sin. We all know what sin is. We've all 00:14:01.899 --> 00:14:07.220 been sinners in our lives from the moment we were born. We were born into sin. Nobody taught us how 00:14:07.220 --> 00:14:14.759 to do it. We just knew. It was there. It was baked into our DNA from the very fall of man, Adam and Eve, 00:14:14.840 --> 00:14:21.639 way back in the garden. Look at the opening lines of Genesis and you'll see how sin passed into all 00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:29.080 people. Death then passed into all people. Judgment for sin. All this was unlocked by sin. And so nobody 00:14:29.080 --> 00:14:33.879 has to teach us this. We're born with it. We start sinning and we don't really stop. 00:14:35.519 --> 00:14:42.819 We might learn certain sins we just can't do, but we find other sins to replace them with, 00:14:43.419 --> 00:14:48.139 right? We're not going to go out and kill somebody, but we might want to. 00:14:48.139 --> 00:14:56.500 We're not going to go steal something from somebody necessarily, but we might covet what they have. 00:14:57.580 --> 00:15:04.519 We have, we learn to make our sins more passive, more hidden. We hide jealousy in our hearts. 00:15:04.860 --> 00:15:09.939 We hide unbelief of God in our hearts. We hide doubt in our hearts. We hide fear. 00:15:09.940 --> 00:15:20.100 We hide all these sins inside us so we can put on a good face. So Romans 6 23 teaches us that even 00:15:20.100 --> 00:15:31.500 though we are all sinners, Christ loves us anyway. The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God 00:15:31.500 --> 00:15:37.220 is eternal life. What a wonderful message. That's the message I got to preach to those kids in missions 00:15:37.220 --> 00:15:45.340 class last Thursday. And I saw the light come on for some of those kids. And he offers that same free gift 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:57.200 to everyone. Why? Even the ones who've been sinning for 20 years, 10 years, five years, 50 years, 00:15:57.200 --> 00:16:07.160 the ones who their classification of sin seems worse than mine. He offers the same gift, the same reward to 00:16:07.160 --> 00:16:16.280 all. Yes, he does. Everyone who comes to him receives the same gift, unconditional forgiveness. 00:16:17.560 --> 00:16:25.240 Now that seems unjust in some of our minds. And we might be like the ones who went to him and said, 00:16:25.240 --> 00:16:32.820 went to the landowner and said, hey, this isn't fair. Why are they receiving the same gift that I am? 00:16:33.220 --> 00:16:38.940 Why are you forgiving all their sins? Their sins are so much worse. Do you know what she did? 00:16:40.220 --> 00:16:47.659 Do you know what he got in trouble for? Do you know what's in his past? Because I do, God. Okay. 00:16:47.659 --> 00:16:52.719 You may not be aware, but let me tell you about so-and-so. And you're just going to forgive them 00:16:52.719 --> 00:17:01.779 like that? Now me, I know I'm not perfect, but I haven't been as bad as she has. And this is the 00:17:01.779 --> 00:17:12.379 kind of attitude we get in our minds. Even after we're saved, we sometimes go back and hold on to that 00:17:12.380 --> 00:17:21.440 attitude. God, do you know what that person did? You can't bless them. Why aren't they suffering? 00:17:22.860 --> 00:17:31.620 And we look at each other and we see each other as unequal. Meanwhile, God looks at us and sees all 00:17:31.619 --> 00:17:42.319 forgiven sinners. If we are his children, if we have invited him in, then he sees forgiven sinners, 00:17:43.319 --> 00:17:54.000 not good little Lucy or bad little Mary. Whatever my name came to mind there. I'm trying not to pick 00:17:54.000 --> 00:18:01.880 anybody who's sitting in the room right now. He doesn't look at us and see us how we see each other. 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:10.440 He sees us all as forgiven sinners continually in need of his cleansing, his forgiveness. 00:18:11.519 --> 00:18:18.420 So we then get a new identity. There's a new identity as his child. So today we're talking about 00:18:18.420 --> 00:18:24.320 workers and wages, workers and wages. We're going to dive into this and I pray that God 00:18:24.320 --> 00:18:32.380 reveals something to you as he has to me through this. There's a pastor and slash writer name, 00:18:32.420 --> 00:18:36.660 we already went to Matthew 20. There's a pastor and writer named Brian Zahn who said this, 00:18:36.660 --> 00:18:43.019 the kingdom of heaven is not a meritocracy, but an economy of grace. There's some big words there, 00:18:43.080 --> 00:18:48.320 the whole meritocracy thing. What do we mean by that? You merit something, you earn something, 00:18:48.420 --> 00:18:55.940 right? So the kingdom of God is not based on what you earn. That's not the kind of economy it works 00:18:55.940 --> 00:19:03.100 on. The economy it works on is grace. Let's say it together. Ready? Grace. Just trying to keep y'all 00:19:03.100 --> 00:19:10.300 with me through this. The kingdom of heaven does not hinge on how much you and I earn. Now, if you've 00:19:10.300 --> 00:19:14.480 been coming to a Baptist church for a while, you probably know that. If you've been coming to another 00:19:14.480 --> 00:19:20.779 church that teaches the correct gospel of Jesus, then you probably know you can't earn God's forgiveness. 00:19:21.140 --> 00:19:29.640 But something happens in our brains after we understand that and we believe like those kids 00:19:29.640 --> 00:19:35.240 did last week, like we pray, maybe some young people will this week at camp. We make that decision. We say, 00:19:35.360 --> 00:19:39.620 I choose Jesus. I believe it. I want to follow him for the rest of my days. 00:19:39.619 --> 00:19:47.539 And then sometime after that, something shifts and we begin to convince ourselves 00:19:47.539 --> 00:19:56.139 that all of a sudden now we can start earning God's favor. Like grace goes out the window somehow. 00:19:57.099 --> 00:20:05.179 What changed? We understood that there is nothing I can do to earn God's forgiveness of my sin, 00:20:05.180 --> 00:20:17.400 but then somehow we convince ourselves that now God works with us on a meritocracy based on what we can earn 00:20:17.400 --> 00:20:24.000 instead of continuing to operate with us based on grace. 00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:36.079 So then the next step, if we see God that way, guess who else we see that way? Ourselves and each other. 00:20:37.599 --> 00:20:44.099 So then we hold ourselves to this standard of I've got to earn who I think I am. 00:20:44.099 --> 00:20:50.959 And we hold each other to this standard. You've got to live up to who I think you ought to be. 00:20:51.959 --> 00:20:54.779 And grace is nowhere to be found. 00:20:57.099 --> 00:21:03.279 And that, I think, is where a lot of us find ourselves, whether we want to admit it or not. 00:21:04.079 --> 00:21:11.659 We've forgotten that the kingdom of God, from start to finish, is an economy of grace. 00:21:11.660 --> 00:21:24.320 God forgives us and he offers us all of himself, no matter who we are, what we've done, 00:21:25.660 --> 00:21:33.279 or what we think we have earned or not earned. That's not how God operates. 00:21:34.160 --> 00:21:37.560 So, let's look back at this text and we'll be done in just a few minutes. 00:21:37.559 --> 00:21:45.659 What happened when the guys found out that those who hadn't worked as long were going to be paid as much 00:21:45.659 --> 00:21:48.519 as the ones who had been working all day? 00:21:48.799 --> 00:21:53.039 How did those long-standing workers feel? 00:21:53.240 --> 00:21:56.299 The ones who had put in the full day, how did they feel? 00:21:56.599 --> 00:21:57.799 They were upset, right? 00:21:57.799 --> 00:22:05.180 They said, those people worked only one hour, yet you've paid them just as much as you paid us 00:22:05.180 --> 00:22:07.899 who worked all day in the scorching heat. 00:22:08.019 --> 00:22:10.339 Do you know what they were doing in that moment? 00:22:11.440 --> 00:22:13.919 They were changing the terms of agreement. 00:22:15.899 --> 00:22:17.440 Y'all called it out earlier. 00:22:18.319 --> 00:22:20.480 We said, why were they angry about this? 00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:50.460 Y'all called it out earlier. 00:22:50.480 --> 00:22:53.160 In their mind, change the agreement. 00:22:53.980 --> 00:23:00.360 And that's what happens, I think, between us and God, is we change the terms of agreement. 00:23:01.779 --> 00:23:04.039 We change the terms of agreement. 00:23:05.500 --> 00:23:07.680 Ephesians chapter 2, verse 8 and 9 says, 00:23:07.860 --> 00:23:10.900 God saved you by his grace when you believed. 00:23:11.140 --> 00:23:13.299 And you can't take credit for this. 00:23:13.640 --> 00:23:15.400 This is a gift from God. 00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:18.319 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we've done, 00:23:18.319 --> 00:23:20.379 so none of us can boast about it. 00:23:20.480 --> 00:23:22.240 What those guys didn't understand 00:23:22.240 --> 00:23:29.439 is this landowner was going to give them that wage no matter how long they worked in his vineyard. 00:23:29.859 --> 00:23:33.220 Because the wage was the reward itself. 00:23:33.779 --> 00:23:36.599 Now far greater than any landowner's payment 00:23:36.599 --> 00:23:40.439 is the payment that Jesus made on the cross for your sin and for mine. 00:23:40.440 --> 00:23:46.279 That is the reward for the good things we've done. 00:23:47.799 --> 00:23:50.420 Not some special privilege in God's eyes. 00:23:50.559 --> 00:23:54.240 Not, well, he's been a Christian for a whole lot longer than this one has, 00:23:54.440 --> 00:23:55.700 so he's my favorite. 00:23:56.820 --> 00:23:59.160 But sometimes we get that in our minds, right? 00:23:59.160 --> 00:24:01.620 I've been walking with God so long, 00:24:01.800 --> 00:24:07.200 I must be a little bit higher up on the scale than this guy who just became a Christian. 00:24:08.720 --> 00:24:10.320 That's not how God sees it. 00:24:10.900 --> 00:24:12.840 He is the reward himself. 00:24:13.800 --> 00:24:16.259 We get to now have access to God. 00:24:16.460 --> 00:24:17.960 We have access to Jesus. 00:24:19.040 --> 00:24:19.980 That is the reward. 00:24:20.120 --> 00:24:21.720 Romans chapter 11 and verse 6, 00:24:21.720 --> 00:24:24.360 All this is through God's kindness. 00:24:25.160 --> 00:24:26.779 And it's not by good works. 00:24:27.180 --> 00:24:30.640 For in that case, God's grace would not be what it really is, 00:24:30.920 --> 00:24:32.640 free and undeserved. 00:24:33.180 --> 00:24:34.740 Had the landowner said, 00:24:35.220 --> 00:24:38.120 if you are not going to work the full day, 00:24:38.200 --> 00:24:40.120 then you're not going to make the full wage, 00:24:40.299 --> 00:24:42.299 that would make sense in our mind, 00:24:42.559 --> 00:24:46.799 but that would change what that reward was. 00:24:47.200 --> 00:24:49.700 It would no longer be just a reward. 00:24:49.700 --> 00:24:54.120 A free gift. 00:24:54.559 --> 00:24:57.000 Now it would be a fair wage. 00:24:57.980 --> 00:25:00.000 Now we're coming down to human thinking. 00:25:00.620 --> 00:25:02.080 You didn't work the full day. 00:25:02.519 --> 00:25:03.880 You don't make the full wage. 00:25:05.259 --> 00:25:07.500 That's how we operate in our kingdom. 00:25:07.920 --> 00:25:09.200 But in God's kingdom, 00:25:09.819 --> 00:25:10.600 he says, no, no, no. 00:25:10.900 --> 00:25:14.660 I'm not giving you the rewards of what you've done. 00:25:15.019 --> 00:25:17.900 I'm giving you a free gift. 00:25:17.900 --> 00:25:22.080 I'm giving you something that you don't deserve. 00:25:22.800 --> 00:25:24.420 So if I want to give it to you, 00:25:24.560 --> 00:25:26.860 and you've been a Christian for 40 years, 00:25:27.100 --> 00:25:29.220 you'll get the same reward 00:25:29.220 --> 00:25:33.560 as the guy who gets saved right before he dies and goes to heaven. 00:25:33.559 --> 00:25:38.399 And we think, how is that fair? 00:25:39.399 --> 00:25:42.440 But it's all fair because it's God's kingdom. 00:25:44.259 --> 00:25:48.819 And I think we don't understand how bad sin really is. 00:25:50.019 --> 00:25:54.879 I think we don't understand how separated we are from God. 00:25:54.880 --> 00:26:01.420 How unable we are to earn God's favor ourselves. 00:26:01.940 --> 00:26:04.800 How unable we are, incapable we are, 00:26:04.900 --> 00:26:07.440 of having a relationship with God on our own. 00:26:08.140 --> 00:26:09.920 He's got to give that to us. 00:26:10.740 --> 00:26:12.020 We can't earn it. 00:26:12.019 --> 00:26:18.500 If you think that you've been coming to church for a while, 00:26:18.980 --> 00:26:20.259 or you've been a good person, 00:26:21.079 --> 00:26:22.379 you know a lot about the Bible, 00:26:22.940 --> 00:26:26.700 and you think that's going to get you anywhere with God, 00:26:28.059 --> 00:26:30.740 that's what you're basing your relationship with him on. 00:26:30.740 --> 00:26:35.460 Then I promise you, you don't have a relationship with him. 00:26:37.200 --> 00:26:40.380 The relationship must be on his terms. 00:26:41.140 --> 00:26:45.220 And he's laid his terms out very clearly in the word of God. 00:26:45.279 --> 00:26:46.000 We just saw them. 00:26:46.359 --> 00:26:49.620 God saved you by his grace when you believed. 00:26:49.880 --> 00:26:53.819 You have to make the decision that I believe that I am a sinner, 00:26:54.140 --> 00:26:56.019 and I can't get to God on my own. 00:26:56.299 --> 00:26:58.980 It was only by Jesus' death on the cross, 00:26:58.980 --> 00:27:00.400 and payment for my sin, 00:27:00.400 --> 00:27:03.560 and then that God raised him back to life, 00:27:03.600 --> 00:27:06.000 and I know he's God, he's proven he's God, 00:27:06.140 --> 00:27:07.120 and I believe. 00:27:07.259 --> 00:27:08.400 I put my faith in him. 00:27:08.660 --> 00:27:10.460 I want to follow him for the rest of my days. 00:27:10.780 --> 00:27:13.040 That gives you a relationship with God. 00:27:13.320 --> 00:27:14.180 Nothing else. 00:27:15.200 --> 00:27:15.940 You know what I've found? 00:27:17.200 --> 00:27:19.880 A lot of churches, well-meaning churches, 00:27:20.580 --> 00:27:25.360 have made it a habit to teach children all about the Bible, 00:27:25.500 --> 00:27:26.660 teach children all about God. 00:27:26.660 --> 00:27:32.259 But they never give them an opportunity to make the decision for themselves. 00:27:34.100 --> 00:27:36.800 That's why I wanted to make sure last week we gave them that opportunity, 00:27:36.920 --> 00:27:38.220 those kids who came through VBS. 00:27:38.220 --> 00:27:41.759 And so year after year, 00:27:41.759 --> 00:27:43.039 they learn more, 00:27:43.759 --> 00:27:47.839 but they're never given the opportunity to respond. 00:27:48.440 --> 00:27:49.799 They're never called and said, 00:27:49.920 --> 00:27:51.819 now, what are you going to do with Jesus? 00:27:52.620 --> 00:27:54.720 What are you going to do with what you've learned? 00:27:55.720 --> 00:27:57.019 Are you going to follow him? 00:27:57.700 --> 00:27:59.259 Are you going to become his child? 00:28:00.299 --> 00:28:02.980 Or are you going to stay in your sin, 00:28:03.139 --> 00:28:06.339 just learning more and more about who God is, 00:28:06.799 --> 00:28:08.539 about what he is, about what he's done, 00:28:09.160 --> 00:28:10.900 coming to church year after year, 00:28:10.940 --> 00:28:11.980 and they go through the youth group. 00:28:12.039 --> 00:28:12.740 And then what happens? 00:28:12.920 --> 00:28:15.200 Statistics say they graduate from high school, 00:28:15.240 --> 00:28:17.099 and they stop coming to church. 00:28:18.680 --> 00:28:20.240 And they get married, and they start a family, 00:28:20.319 --> 00:28:20.980 and at some point, 00:28:21.079 --> 00:28:22.779 oh, well, when I was a kid, I went to church. 00:28:22.779 --> 00:28:24.420 I should probably get my kids back in church. 00:28:24.519 --> 00:28:25.700 And they start coming again. 00:28:25.700 --> 00:28:27.740 And everybody thinks, 00:28:27.840 --> 00:28:29.080 oh, yeah, man, they're Christian people. 00:28:29.940 --> 00:28:30.799 They were raised in church. 00:28:30.880 --> 00:28:32.299 I remember being in the youth group with them. 00:28:32.720 --> 00:28:34.120 I remember going to VBS with them. 00:28:34.680 --> 00:28:36.319 We're sitting in church together now. 00:28:36.539 --> 00:28:37.799 We're going to Sunday school together, 00:28:37.799 --> 00:28:41.340 and they just assume that they're children of God, 00:28:41.539 --> 00:28:44.420 and they've never actually repented of their sin 00:28:44.420 --> 00:28:45.180 and turned to Jesus. 00:28:47.160 --> 00:28:49.880 And so I think it falls to the church to say, 00:28:49.960 --> 00:28:51.900 hey, we're going to teach you about God, 00:28:52.440 --> 00:28:54.519 but we're also going to call you to respond. 00:28:55.700 --> 00:28:57.720 And today might be that day for some of you. 00:28:58.319 --> 00:28:59.819 It might be someone in the room that says, 00:28:59.940 --> 00:29:01.640 yeah, I need to do that. 00:29:02.620 --> 00:29:04.259 I've known about him my whole life, 00:29:04.680 --> 00:29:09.019 but I've never actually started the relationship with him myself. 00:29:10.519 --> 00:29:11.460 I've got to believe. 00:29:12.180 --> 00:29:17.000 So the agreement is not on our terms. 00:29:17.299 --> 00:29:18.000 It's on his. 00:29:19.100 --> 00:29:21.140 Whenever you try to lock God into an agreement, 00:29:21.600 --> 00:29:22.600 you're going to lose. 00:29:22.599 --> 00:29:25.000 I heard a pastor say that one time, and I wrote it down. 00:29:25.359 --> 00:29:27.519 Whatever you're going to try to lock God into an agreement, 00:29:27.799 --> 00:29:28.899 you're going to lose. 00:29:29.399 --> 00:29:31.139 We see people try to do that in the Bible, 00:29:31.279 --> 00:29:32.339 in the Old Testament especially, 00:29:32.959 --> 00:29:35.559 and God always changes the terms of agreement 00:29:35.559 --> 00:29:37.559 to what he wants them to be. 00:29:41.000 --> 00:29:43.939 Bargaining with God will never get us 00:29:43.939 --> 00:29:47.019 where we think it will. 00:29:48.279 --> 00:29:51.379 Ephesians, I'm sorry, Galatians chapter 2 and verse 21. 00:29:51.380 --> 00:29:55.320 I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless, 00:29:55.780 --> 00:29:58.840 for if keeping the law could make us right with God, 00:29:59.020 --> 00:30:01.340 then there was no need for Christ to die. 00:30:01.600 --> 00:30:02.800 Do you see what it's doing 00:30:02.800 --> 00:30:05.700 when we try to change the terms of agreement with God? 00:30:06.080 --> 00:30:08.460 When we try to make our relationship with God 00:30:08.460 --> 00:30:10.020 based on what we do, 00:30:10.180 --> 00:30:11.900 not on his grace, 00:30:12.120 --> 00:30:15.120 it actually treats his grace as meaningless. 00:30:16.280 --> 00:30:18.480 There was no reason for him to die 00:30:18.480 --> 00:30:20.500 if we could earn it ourselves. 00:30:21.160 --> 00:30:23.819 If this could be done without him, 00:30:24.220 --> 00:30:26.120 then why did he need to die? 00:30:27.460 --> 00:30:28.599 Well, he did need to die 00:30:28.599 --> 00:30:30.500 because it can't be done apart from him. 00:30:31.319 --> 00:30:33.640 This relationship can never be mended. 00:30:34.019 --> 00:30:36.740 It will always be broken between God and man, 00:30:37.000 --> 00:30:38.400 between God and us, 00:30:38.940 --> 00:30:41.559 unless Jesus built the bridge, 00:30:42.220 --> 00:30:43.960 unless Jesus made it possible. 00:30:43.960 --> 00:30:46.200 And he did. 00:30:46.420 --> 00:30:47.380 Thank God he did. 00:30:48.400 --> 00:30:48.680 So, 00:30:49.640 --> 00:30:52.100 don't bargain with God. 00:30:53.039 --> 00:30:54.019 But we do, right? 00:30:54.240 --> 00:30:55.660 God, if you'll do what I want, 00:30:55.900 --> 00:30:57.600 I let you be God. 00:30:57.960 --> 00:31:00.700 That's what our bargaining ultimately comes down to. 00:31:01.660 --> 00:31:04.700 God, I'll let you be God in my life 00:31:04.700 --> 00:31:06.600 if you do what I want. 00:31:09.240 --> 00:31:10.220 Think about it. 00:31:10.220 --> 00:31:13.019 Any times that you've argued with God, 00:31:13.100 --> 00:31:14.039 that you've bargained with God. 00:31:14.100 --> 00:31:14.500 Now listen, 00:31:14.920 --> 00:31:15.960 these things will happen. 00:31:16.079 --> 00:31:16.900 We are fallen, 00:31:17.579 --> 00:31:18.539 fleshly people. 00:31:19.220 --> 00:31:20.839 We are imperfect people. 00:31:21.079 --> 00:31:22.400 There are going to be times in our life 00:31:22.400 --> 00:31:23.000 where we doubt, 00:31:23.100 --> 00:31:23.720 where we struggle. 00:31:23.860 --> 00:31:25.200 God, why are you doing this? 00:31:25.720 --> 00:31:27.740 But we've got to come out of that 00:31:27.740 --> 00:31:28.720 and say, 00:31:28.799 --> 00:31:29.039 okay, 00:31:29.120 --> 00:31:30.740 I'm going to let God be God 00:31:30.740 --> 00:31:32.140 just because he's God. 00:31:32.440 --> 00:31:33.880 Somebody told me recently, 00:31:34.640 --> 00:31:35.579 they were, 00:31:35.920 --> 00:31:37.319 they texted out a question 00:31:37.319 --> 00:31:38.680 and they said, 00:31:38.779 --> 00:31:39.240 it was Bill, 00:31:39.240 --> 00:31:41.059 I think Bill texted out a question 00:31:41.059 --> 00:31:42.359 and he said, 00:31:42.579 --> 00:31:44.299 what does God mean to you? 00:31:44.339 --> 00:31:45.720 Why is God God in your life? 00:31:45.819 --> 00:31:48.279 And one of the responses he got back was, 00:31:49.640 --> 00:31:50.059 how's that? 00:31:50.099 --> 00:31:50.359 He said, 00:31:50.400 --> 00:31:51.500 why do you follow Jesus? 00:31:51.640 --> 00:31:51.980 He said, 00:31:52.059 --> 00:31:54.400 I follow Jesus because he's Jesus, 00:31:54.779 --> 00:31:55.819 because he's God. 00:31:56.579 --> 00:31:57.440 That was it. 00:31:58.120 --> 00:32:00.339 And he got some other long theological answers 00:32:00.339 --> 00:32:01.720 with all kinds of biblical support 00:32:01.720 --> 00:32:02.900 and those were good things. 00:32:03.339 --> 00:32:04.200 But Bill said, 00:32:04.259 --> 00:32:04.380 man, 00:32:04.420 --> 00:32:05.660 I think the one I liked the most 00:32:05.660 --> 00:32:06.160 was just, 00:32:06.160 --> 00:32:08.220 I follow Jesus because he's God. 00:32:08.220 --> 00:32:10.000 Because he's Jesus. 00:32:10.259 --> 00:32:10.980 Why wouldn't I? 00:32:11.220 --> 00:32:11.960 He's in charge. 00:32:12.920 --> 00:32:13.920 He's the top of the heap. 00:32:14.420 --> 00:32:15.440 Who else am I going to follow? 00:32:16.100 --> 00:32:16.900 Somebody lesser. 00:32:19.440 --> 00:32:22.299 So when we leave God as God, 00:32:23.299 --> 00:32:28.600 we're letting him do what he wants, 00:32:28.880 --> 00:32:31.039 not asking him to do what we want. 00:32:31.839 --> 00:32:32.059 Bill, 00:32:32.100 --> 00:32:33.000 I was just talking about you. 00:32:33.000 --> 00:32:38.980 So we automatically assume 00:32:38.980 --> 00:32:42.720 that we're in a position to bargain with God. 00:32:43.339 --> 00:32:43.900 Isn't that interesting? 00:32:44.480 --> 00:32:47.440 I've read this story many times in my life. 00:32:48.039 --> 00:32:49.599 Do you know the group of people, 00:32:49.700 --> 00:32:50.420 the group of workers 00:32:50.420 --> 00:32:52.119 that I've always lumped myself in with? 00:32:53.660 --> 00:32:55.000 The guys who worked all day. 00:32:56.619 --> 00:32:58.279 Is it just me or is anybody else? 00:32:58.640 --> 00:32:59.599 When you read this story, 00:32:59.599 --> 00:33:01.680 you automatically put yourself with the group 00:33:01.680 --> 00:33:02.560 that worked all day. 00:33:02.680 --> 00:33:03.200 Anybody else? 00:33:03.980 --> 00:33:04.200 Yeah. 00:33:04.340 --> 00:33:04.720 Thank you. 00:33:05.100 --> 00:33:06.120 Thank you for being honest. 00:33:06.420 --> 00:33:07.640 I would have felt very alone. 00:33:08.759 --> 00:33:10.060 How about the nine hours 00:33:10.060 --> 00:33:11.100 instead of the 12 hours? 00:33:11.200 --> 00:33:12.360 You're a nine-hour worker. 00:33:13.360 --> 00:33:14.640 Maybe a six-hour worker. 00:33:15.600 --> 00:33:16.460 Three-hour worker. 00:33:16.560 --> 00:33:18.320 Do we have a bunch of one-hour workers in here? 00:33:18.440 --> 00:33:19.380 Is that what y'all are? 00:33:19.380 --> 00:33:25.440 I just assume I'm the one, you know. 00:33:25.520 --> 00:33:27.580 I got saved when I was seven years old, man. 00:33:27.960 --> 00:33:29.560 And I've been with Jesus ever since. 00:33:29.680 --> 00:33:30.640 Now, it hadn't been perfect. 00:33:31.120 --> 00:33:32.400 I've had my ups and downs. 00:33:33.160 --> 00:33:34.920 But it's been a long time, you know. 00:33:36.420 --> 00:33:40.240 I assume that I'm the 12-hour all-day worker. 00:33:40.240 --> 00:33:49.079 The truth is, for the 33 years that I've been a child of God, 00:33:49.640 --> 00:33:51.880 I haven't been working for Him all that time. 00:33:53.259 --> 00:33:55.319 I don't know about you, but you probably haven't either. 00:33:56.819 --> 00:34:00.299 We assume immediately, many of us, 00:34:00.400 --> 00:34:02.000 that we're the ones who worked all day. 00:34:02.680 --> 00:34:04.960 But how much more likely is it that God sees us 00:34:04.960 --> 00:34:07.019 as in that group that's only worked partial days? 00:34:07.019 --> 00:34:09.679 Probably just about all of us. 00:34:10.199 --> 00:34:12.699 How much have we actually worked for Him? 00:34:12.719 --> 00:34:14.679 And that leads us to the final point before we're gone. 00:34:15.559 --> 00:34:16.840 We don't actually work. 00:34:19.420 --> 00:34:21.920 There are two problems with God's workforce. 00:34:22.079 --> 00:34:23.059 The first one is, 00:34:24.940 --> 00:34:27.039 His workers change the terms of agreement. 00:34:28.199 --> 00:34:29.320 The second one is, 00:34:30.199 --> 00:34:32.199 His workers don't actually work. 00:34:34.079 --> 00:34:36.360 Now, they might do busy work. 00:34:37.019 --> 00:34:38.719 They might do things, 00:34:39.340 --> 00:34:41.940 but they don't actually do the work 00:34:41.940 --> 00:34:45.239 He called them to do. 00:34:46.519 --> 00:34:48.239 Matthew 21 and verse 28. 00:34:48.940 --> 00:34:52.880 Would you go over one chapter to Matthew 21 and verse 28? 00:34:52.980 --> 00:34:54.320 We're going to read a few verses there 00:34:54.320 --> 00:34:55.940 before we close. 00:34:57.719 --> 00:34:59.420 Matthew 21 and verse 28. 00:34:59.420 --> 00:34:59.420 00:34:59.420 --> 00:34:59.500 Matthew 21 and verse 28. 00:35:07.019 --> 00:35:07.820 All right, here we go, y'all. 00:35:08.940 --> 00:35:10.300 Is it a little warm in here? 00:35:10.480 --> 00:35:10.980 A little stuffy? 00:35:11.179 --> 00:35:11.340 Anybody? 00:35:11.599 --> 00:35:12.099 Everybody's good? 00:35:12.320 --> 00:35:13.739 All right, just making sure you're not falling asleep on me. 00:35:13.739 --> 00:35:14.099 Here we go. 00:35:14.559 --> 00:35:17.460 For even the Son of Man came not to be served, 00:35:17.579 --> 00:35:19.519 but to serve others, 00:35:20.519 --> 00:35:24.719 and to give His life as a ransom for many. 00:35:24.840 --> 00:35:26.119 That is verse 20. 00:35:26.619 --> 00:35:27.539 It's chapter 20. 00:35:27.619 --> 00:35:28.719 That is not chapter 21. 00:35:28.900 --> 00:35:29.360 I apologize. 00:35:29.739 --> 00:35:31.420 It's a great verse, outstanding verse, 00:35:31.500 --> 00:35:32.960 but it's not the one I wanted to read right now. 00:35:33.340 --> 00:35:34.480 Let's get to verse 28. 00:35:34.539 --> 00:35:34.940 Here we go. 00:35:35.740 --> 00:35:37.300 What do you think about this? 00:35:38.400 --> 00:35:40.940 A man with two sons told the older boy, 00:35:41.119 --> 00:35:43.860 son, go out and work in the vineyard today. 00:35:44.019 --> 00:35:44.800 I love this. 00:35:45.199 --> 00:35:47.699 Pairing this parable with the one that we just read earlier. 00:35:48.559 --> 00:35:49.639 Guy's got two sons. 00:35:49.719 --> 00:35:50.699 He tells the oldest one, 00:35:50.780 --> 00:35:52.360 son, go out and work in my vineyard. 00:35:52.460 --> 00:35:54.099 A lot of vineyards going on back then, right? 00:35:54.480 --> 00:35:55.920 The son answers, no. 00:35:55.920 --> 00:35:58.960 Can you imagine telling your dad that? 00:36:00.460 --> 00:36:01.699 Man, something would have happened to me, 00:36:01.760 --> 00:36:02.780 and it would not have felt good 00:36:02.780 --> 00:36:05.280 if I had said, no, I won't go. 00:36:05.780 --> 00:36:07.480 But that's literally what the guy said. 00:36:08.280 --> 00:36:08.620 Uh-uh. 00:36:08.980 --> 00:36:09.800 Ain't doing it. 00:36:11.460 --> 00:36:15.040 But later, he changed his mind. 00:36:15.240 --> 00:36:16.019 Yeah, I bet he did. 00:36:17.840 --> 00:36:20.320 We don't know exactly what happened or why. 00:36:20.400 --> 00:36:21.760 I know what happened in my house. 00:36:21.760 --> 00:36:25.280 But later, he changed his mind and went anyway. 00:36:25.280 --> 00:36:29.800 Then the father told the other son, you go. 00:36:30.720 --> 00:36:33.940 And he said, yes, sir, I will. 00:36:35.980 --> 00:36:37.420 But he didn't go. 00:36:39.160 --> 00:36:43.080 He was the kid who's like, oh, yeah, dad, I got you. 00:36:44.680 --> 00:36:45.780 Don't worry about it, man. 00:36:45.800 --> 00:36:46.860 I will get it done. 00:36:47.140 --> 00:36:49.280 And then an hour later, he's sitting on the same couch 00:36:49.280 --> 00:36:50.760 playing the same video games, right? 00:36:50.760 --> 00:36:55.120 Which of the two obeyed his father? 00:36:57.340 --> 00:36:58.220 The first one. 00:36:59.920 --> 00:37:01.280 The one who said yes. 00:37:01.440 --> 00:37:04.560 Well, unfortunately, he's not the one who obeyed. 00:37:04.820 --> 00:37:07.640 He said he would, but he didn't do it, right? 00:37:07.640 --> 00:37:11.260 Why would the bad son change his mind later? 00:37:11.960 --> 00:37:14.900 Is it because he remembered how much his father actually loves him? 00:37:15.500 --> 00:37:17.300 Is it because his father corrected him? 00:37:17.300 --> 00:37:22.700 We don't know exactly, but we know that he said no, he resisted, 00:37:22.780 --> 00:37:24.900 but then he changed his mind later. 00:37:25.460 --> 00:37:31.460 Why would the good son, quote, quote, quote, good son, never follow through? 00:37:32.900 --> 00:37:34.860 Is it because his love had grown cold? 00:37:37.039 --> 00:37:39.340 He was the kid who probably didn't give problems. 00:37:40.140 --> 00:37:44.200 He was the kid who didn't push back, didn't resist, didn't rebel. 00:37:44.199 --> 00:37:48.519 Well, sure, whatever you guys want, you got it. 00:37:49.480 --> 00:37:51.960 But he would never actually follow through. 00:37:54.299 --> 00:38:01.159 My fear is so many of God's children who have been with him most of their lives 00:38:01.159 --> 00:38:07.099 have repeatedly told him, yes, I'll go and I'll work in your vineyard, Lord. 00:38:08.299 --> 00:38:10.679 I'll make disciples for your kingdom. 00:38:10.679 --> 00:38:16.639 I'll make other followers of Jesus, but we don't actually go. 00:38:18.599 --> 00:38:25.379 Meanwhile, there are often latecomers who maybe rejected him at first, 00:38:25.960 --> 00:38:29.480 and then later they obeyed the Spirit's voice, 00:38:29.899 --> 00:38:37.699 and they are now greater witnesses for him than those of us who should be. 00:38:37.699 --> 00:38:43.559 Us old-timers, often we're not as great a witnesses for him, 00:38:44.179 --> 00:38:45.539 workers in his vineyard, 00:38:46.159 --> 00:38:52.659 than those who just turned around and said, yes, now I'll obey. 00:38:53.039 --> 00:38:54.000 Now I'll listen. 00:38:55.599 --> 00:38:59.039 Maybe that's what Jesus meant when he said, 00:38:59.219 --> 00:39:01.639 the last shall be first. 00:39:01.639 --> 00:39:06.460 They receive that blessing of obedience. 00:39:08.699 --> 00:39:12.500 Remember a few weeks ago, we talked about the wedding with the king. 00:39:13.039 --> 00:39:16.940 He sent out the invitation to those on the list, and what did they do? 00:39:17.599 --> 00:39:18.699 They rejected him. 00:39:19.039 --> 00:39:19.819 They turned it down. 00:39:20.219 --> 00:39:22.119 The ones who should have said yes, 00:39:23.119 --> 00:39:24.400 the ones who were chosen, 00:39:24.519 --> 00:39:26.119 the ones the invitation went out to, 00:39:26.119 --> 00:39:29.599 they had the least care for it, 00:39:29.639 --> 00:39:30.940 the least respect for it. 00:39:31.139 --> 00:39:32.420 They were the least grateful. 00:39:32.659 --> 00:39:34.239 But those who got it late, 00:39:34.639 --> 00:39:35.559 the latecomers, 00:39:35.799 --> 00:39:36.980 they were the most grateful. 00:39:39.219 --> 00:39:40.960 So what is all this leading us to? 00:39:45.059 --> 00:39:47.559 There's a problem that we have to understand. 00:39:47.559 --> 00:39:53.139 We don't do what Jesus wants 00:39:53.139 --> 00:39:55.519 because he has our souls, 00:39:55.799 --> 00:39:57.039 but not our hearts. 00:39:59.340 --> 00:40:02.199 We don't do what Jesus wants 00:40:02.199 --> 00:40:04.239 because he has our souls, 00:40:04.519 --> 00:40:05.639 but not our hearts. 00:40:07.940 --> 00:40:10.039 We trusted him with salvation. 00:40:10.880 --> 00:40:12.699 So many in this room would say that. 00:40:14.440 --> 00:40:16.759 But he's never gotten your heart after that. 00:40:17.559 --> 00:40:19.400 You've held onto your heart and said, 00:40:19.539 --> 00:40:21.759 no, I've got other things 00:40:21.759 --> 00:40:24.559 that are more important to me 00:40:24.559 --> 00:40:29.639 than the work that the one who gave it all for me 00:40:29.639 --> 00:40:30.900 has called me to do. 00:40:33.860 --> 00:40:35.539 Mike Donahue was a Christian singer, 00:40:35.679 --> 00:40:37.259 and he said this, 00:40:37.599 --> 00:40:38.239 and I loved it, 00:40:38.259 --> 00:40:39.159 and I wanted to share it with you. 00:40:39.500 --> 00:40:41.860 I've come to believe that God is much less interested 00:40:41.860 --> 00:40:44.619 in what we do with our lives 00:40:44.619 --> 00:40:47.339 and much more concerned or interested 00:40:47.339 --> 00:40:50.099 with how and why we live our lives. 00:40:50.139 --> 00:40:51.460 Do you understand what that means, 00:40:51.539 --> 00:40:52.460 the difference there? 00:40:53.699 --> 00:40:55.960 God's not as concerned with the outward 00:40:55.960 --> 00:40:58.239 of what you're spending your time doing. 00:40:58.599 --> 00:41:00.699 He's more concerned with the inward 00:41:00.699 --> 00:41:03.299 of how and why you're doing it. 00:41:04.259 --> 00:41:07.000 Do you understand that reflects the heart? 00:41:07.000 --> 00:41:09.340 That's the posture of your heart. 00:41:09.519 --> 00:41:11.159 Where is your heart positioned? 00:41:14.559 --> 00:41:16.139 That's what matters to Jesus. 00:41:16.920 --> 00:41:19.280 That's what matters to him about me. 00:41:19.860 --> 00:41:21.300 I can be a pastor for years. 00:41:21.559 --> 00:41:22.920 I can be in ministry for years. 00:41:23.000 --> 00:41:23.440 I have. 00:41:24.579 --> 00:41:25.539 Counted it up the other day. 00:41:25.579 --> 00:41:27.099 I don't remember exactly what it was. 00:41:27.260 --> 00:41:27.900 I think I told Jared. 00:41:28.820 --> 00:41:30.320 I don't forget the things I've told you. 00:41:30.519 --> 00:41:31.840 Yeah, something like that. 00:41:31.840 --> 00:41:33.980 A lot of years. 00:41:34.440 --> 00:41:36.380 I think it was 17 full-time 00:41:36.380 --> 00:41:39.180 and 20 including part-time 00:41:39.180 --> 00:41:39.780 or something like that. 00:41:39.860 --> 00:41:43.280 Anyway, I've been serving Jesus a long time, right? 00:41:43.800 --> 00:41:45.880 I would love to say that my heart 00:41:45.880 --> 00:41:47.579 has been positioned and postured 00:41:47.579 --> 00:41:48.900 toward God all that time, 00:41:48.980 --> 00:41:50.079 but it hasn't. 00:41:50.780 --> 00:41:52.539 But that's what God's after. 00:41:53.180 --> 00:41:54.420 So how much of that time, 00:41:54.519 --> 00:41:55.680 how many of those years 00:41:55.680 --> 00:41:58.079 did God really have my heart? 00:41:59.200 --> 00:42:00.660 That's what we got to ask ourselves. 00:42:01.840 --> 00:42:03.400 That's what God's concerned with. 00:42:04.400 --> 00:42:05.880 He didn't save us 00:42:05.880 --> 00:42:07.700 just so we would turn into worker bees 00:42:07.700 --> 00:42:09.280 to go out and do a bunch of stuff for him. 00:42:09.620 --> 00:42:12.019 He saved us to do the work 00:42:12.019 --> 00:42:14.840 he called us to do from the heart. 00:42:15.579 --> 00:42:17.019 That's what God wants. 00:42:18.240 --> 00:42:20.260 So the posture of my heart 00:42:20.260 --> 00:42:21.880 is the most important part. 00:42:22.400 --> 00:42:23.180 I made it rhyme. 00:42:23.280 --> 00:42:23.920 It's easy to say. 00:42:24.000 --> 00:42:24.480 Let's say it. 00:42:24.500 --> 00:42:24.640 Ready? 00:42:24.640 --> 00:42:26.640 The posture of my heart 00:42:26.640 --> 00:42:28.500 is the most important part. 00:42:29.059 --> 00:42:30.640 If you can read the scriptures 00:42:30.639 --> 00:42:32.000 and not come away 00:42:32.000 --> 00:42:33.379 with understanding that, 00:42:33.679 --> 00:42:34.859 then you're not getting it. 00:42:35.359 --> 00:42:36.879 That is what Jesus wants. 00:42:37.139 --> 00:42:38.400 The posture of your heart 00:42:38.400 --> 00:42:40.099 is the most important part. 00:42:40.199 --> 00:42:41.799 So what does a healthy posture look like? 00:42:42.199 --> 00:42:43.659 Humility, not pride. 00:42:45.059 --> 00:42:46.900 Repentance, not defiance. 00:42:47.739 --> 00:42:49.179 Compassion, not cruelty. 00:42:49.980 --> 00:42:51.339 Mercy, not mockery. 00:42:51.799 --> 00:42:54.279 Patience, not rejection of truth. 00:42:54.280 --> 00:42:57.320 The heart posture 00:42:57.320 --> 00:42:58.900 is what God is all about. 00:42:59.980 --> 00:43:01.160 That's what the workers 00:43:01.160 --> 00:43:02.060 didn't understand 00:43:02.060 --> 00:43:03.160 in the vineyard that day. 00:43:05.519 --> 00:43:06.720 It wasn't about 00:43:06.720 --> 00:43:08.400 is everybody getting 00:43:08.400 --> 00:43:09.620 the amount of money 00:43:09.620 --> 00:43:10.620 that they should have earned 00:43:10.620 --> 00:43:11.900 for the hours they put in. 00:43:13.300 --> 00:43:14.900 You don't want what you've earned 00:43:14.900 --> 00:43:16.180 with the hours you've put in. 00:43:17.540 --> 00:43:19.260 You want the free gift 00:43:19.260 --> 00:43:20.400 that God has for you. 00:43:20.600 --> 00:43:23.000 And you want to give him your heart. 00:43:23.000 --> 00:43:24.699 If you've received that free gift, 00:43:24.780 --> 00:43:25.619 if you're his child, 00:43:26.079 --> 00:43:28.039 then what is your heart posture 00:43:28.039 --> 00:43:28.699 toward God? 00:43:28.860 --> 00:43:30.159 That's our takeaway this morning 00:43:30.159 --> 00:43:30.820 as we close. 00:43:31.219 --> 00:43:32.519 What is your heart posture 00:43:32.519 --> 00:43:33.519 toward God? 00:43:34.079 --> 00:43:34.820 Jared's going to come. 00:43:34.880 --> 00:43:35.460 He's going to play. 00:43:35.920 --> 00:43:36.860 Would you ask yourself 00:43:36.860 --> 00:43:37.840 that question right now? 00:43:37.880 --> 00:43:38.739 Would you bow your head? 00:43:39.300 --> 00:43:40.480 Would you focus on God, 00:43:40.539 --> 00:43:41.820 not the person next to you? 00:43:42.139 --> 00:43:42.719 You don't have to worry 00:43:42.719 --> 00:43:44.119 about closing your Bible right now 00:43:44.119 --> 00:43:44.619 or getting up 00:43:44.619 --> 00:43:45.340 and going to the bathroom. 00:43:45.860 --> 00:43:47.239 We'll deal with all that stuff 00:43:47.239 --> 00:43:47.639 in a minute. 00:43:48.019 --> 00:43:50.079 Right now, bow your head. 00:43:50.340 --> 00:43:51.380 Lock in on Jesus. 00:43:51.380 --> 00:43:53.539 If the Holy Spirit is with you, 00:43:53.640 --> 00:43:55.300 then listen to his voice right now, 00:43:55.380 --> 00:43:58.079 that still, small voice. 00:43:59.200 --> 00:44:01.039 What is your heart posture 00:44:01.039 --> 00:44:02.300 toward him? 00:44:06.460 --> 00:44:07.760 When I was growing up, 00:44:08.119 --> 00:44:10.220 my mom was always on me 00:44:10.220 --> 00:44:11.019 about my posture. 00:44:12.440 --> 00:44:13.539 Sitting in a chair, 00:44:13.660 --> 00:44:14.260 I'd slump. 00:44:15.420 --> 00:44:16.619 Sitting on a couch, 00:44:17.240 --> 00:44:18.420 I'd want to lay down 00:44:18.420 --> 00:44:19.320 and relax. 00:44:20.119 --> 00:44:20.440 Saying, 00:44:20.559 --> 00:44:20.720 son, 00:44:20.780 --> 00:44:21.740 you don't have good posture. 00:44:23.800 --> 00:44:25.480 You and I might not have 00:44:25.480 --> 00:44:26.519 the best heart posture 00:44:26.519 --> 00:44:27.639 toward God right now. 00:44:30.240 --> 00:44:32.619 It might be relaxed. 00:44:32.820 --> 00:44:34.159 It might be focused 00:44:34.159 --> 00:44:35.200 on other things. 00:44:35.300 --> 00:44:36.059 It might be focused 00:44:36.059 --> 00:44:36.940 on our comfort, 00:44:37.599 --> 00:44:38.980 our pleasure, 00:44:39.659 --> 00:44:41.559 our priorities. 00:44:41.559 --> 00:44:44.920 might not be focused 00:44:44.920 --> 00:44:47.719 on what God 00:44:47.719 --> 00:44:48.799 has it focused on. 00:44:49.860 --> 00:44:50.639 What does God 00:44:50.639 --> 00:44:51.820 want my heart focused on? 00:44:51.900 --> 00:44:52.699 Well, open his book 00:44:52.699 --> 00:44:53.179 and read it. 00:44:56.199 --> 00:44:57.320 He's got a whole kingdom 00:44:57.320 --> 00:44:57.860 he's building. 00:44:59.119 --> 00:45:00.119 He wants to build it 00:45:00.119 --> 00:45:00.719 through us. 00:45:01.820 --> 00:45:02.900 But he needs access 00:45:02.900 --> 00:45:03.579 to our hearts. 00:45:04.119 --> 00:45:05.039 Would you open your heart 00:45:05.039 --> 00:45:05.799 to Jesus today? 00:45:06.039 --> 00:45:07.340 Maybe for the very first time. 00:45:08.039 --> 00:45:08.619 If there's somebody 00:45:08.619 --> 00:45:09.420 in the room that says, 00:45:09.519 --> 00:45:10.460 I need to finally open 00:45:10.460 --> 00:45:11.280 my heart to Jesus. 00:45:11.860 --> 00:45:12.400 Say, God, 00:45:12.440 --> 00:45:13.360 I want to be your child. 00:45:14.780 --> 00:45:15.539 I want to turn 00:45:15.539 --> 00:45:16.099 from my sin 00:45:16.099 --> 00:45:16.780 and turn to Jesus. 00:45:16.900 --> 00:45:17.740 Would you slip your hand up 00:45:17.740 --> 00:45:18.440 and I'll pray for you? 00:45:19.840 --> 00:45:20.659 We have it happen 00:45:20.659 --> 00:45:21.539 all throughout the year. 00:45:22.699 --> 00:45:23.880 I'll pray for you right now. 00:45:24.539 --> 00:45:25.000 If that's you. 00:45:26.360 --> 00:45:26.820 Thank you. 00:45:26.880 --> 00:45:27.860 What about the rest of you? 00:45:29.900 --> 00:45:31.059 Would you open your heart 00:45:31.059 --> 00:45:32.480 to Jesus again today? 00:45:33.579 --> 00:45:34.260 Say, God, 00:45:34.320 --> 00:45:35.000 I'm going to give you 00:45:35.000 --> 00:45:37.260 as much of my heart 00:45:37.260 --> 00:45:38.440 as I can right now. 00:45:38.440 --> 00:45:39.820 And then please work 00:45:39.820 --> 00:45:40.539 on the rest. 00:45:41.539 --> 00:45:42.599 There might be more 00:45:42.599 --> 00:45:43.720 that I'm holding on to 00:45:43.720 --> 00:45:45.720 and I need you to help me 00:45:45.720 --> 00:45:46.360 wear it down. 00:45:47.500 --> 00:45:48.440 Take my heart, 00:45:48.659 --> 00:45:49.119 Lord Jesus. 00:45:49.700 --> 00:45:50.679 Would you slip your hand up 00:45:50.679 --> 00:45:51.420 if that's your prayer 00:45:51.420 --> 00:45:51.940 and say, God, 00:45:52.000 --> 00:45:52.720 help me right now. 00:45:53.220 --> 00:45:54.200 Open up more of my heart. 00:45:54.300 --> 00:45:54.639 Thank you. 00:45:54.760 --> 00:45:55.179 Thank you. 00:45:55.320 --> 00:45:55.700 Thank you. 00:45:56.079 --> 00:45:56.599 Thank you. 00:45:56.940 --> 00:45:58.000 Thank you for your honesty. 00:46:00.880 --> 00:46:01.840 If you want to extend 00:46:01.840 --> 00:46:02.559 your hands forward, 00:46:02.679 --> 00:46:03.860 if you just want to stay seated 00:46:03.860 --> 00:46:05.320 in an attitude of prayer, 00:46:05.639 --> 00:46:06.599 if you'd like to stand, 00:46:06.679 --> 00:46:07.579 whatever you'd like to do, 00:46:07.659 --> 00:46:08.480 let's sing right now. 00:46:08.559 --> 00:46:09.460 Jared's going to lead us 00:46:09.460 --> 00:46:10.579 and we'll be dismissed 00:46:10.579 --> 00:46:11.059 in a moment, 00:46:11.159 --> 00:46:12.199 but let's give our hearts, 00:46:12.639 --> 00:46:13.360 all of them, 00:46:13.920 --> 00:46:14.380 to Jesus. 00:46:14.380 --> 00:46:14.839 Amen.