WEBVTT

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 I remember when I was 27 years old, wow, sitting at my desk in my bedroom in Chicago, Illinois,

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 in an apartment I shared with two other guys, and I remember having one of those moments

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 of realization, a moment of clarity so stark, I can still remember the angle of my chair

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 I was sitting in and the wall that I was looking at.

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 The realization in that moment was that life suddenly felt very hard, and things were not

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 going the way that I had expected them to, and I felt powerless to do anything about it.

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 And although this sort of realization had been building for some time, the moment came kind

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 of like a shock because it had come on the back of several years leading up to this point

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 in which I had experienced my life as one kind of blessing and gift after another.

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 So after graduating from college, I went to seminary in Chicago, and that began a season of life

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 that was incredibly rich.

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 Prayers that I had been praying for for years were suddenly answered.

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 I joined this incredible church and became part of this rich community.

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 My spiritual life was absolutely transformed, and there was this sense of God's presence

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 like nothing I had ever experienced before.

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 This continued after seminary.

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 After seminary, I had moved to England to become an assistant pastor for the next two years,

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 and the sense of community and God's blessing and nearness only seemed to expand during that time.

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 It was kind of like this four-year honeymoon of gifts and blessing and ministry and friendship.

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 After seminary, two years in England, I moved back to Chicago to take on a new role,

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 and at this point, I assumed that what I had been experiencing was the new normal.

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 But just as I moved back, many of the friends who had been so central to my life started moving away.

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 I had begun dating a girl after moving back, but while many of my friends' relationships

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 were beginning to lead towards marriage, mine was not.

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 The church, which had been so central to my own transformation, was now filled with all of these new faces,

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 and it just seemed to lack the community and energy that I had experienced before.

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 And in my own walk with God, God seemed distant, and my attempts at prayer felt dry and lifeless.

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 And it was this sudden realization, sitting in my chair that day in Chicago,

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 that the things I believed to be true about my spiritual journey,

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 that what I had experienced in one season was just going to continue into the next,

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 that this was not, in fact, the case.

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 And what especially hit me was not simply that things were not going the way I wanted them to,

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 but that I felt powerless to do anything about it.

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 There was no snapping of my fingers to bring my friends back,

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 or for my dating life to flourish,

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 or for my church community to meet my needs in the way that it once had,

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 or for God to provide on demand the experiential closeness that I had felt before.

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 In our gospel reading this morning from Matthew chapter 16,

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 I think that we observe perhaps a similar kind of moment of realization

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 among Jesus' disciples.

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 Up until this point, the passage that we just heard,

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 in the first 15 and a half chapters,

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 Matthew's gospel has been filled with story after story

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 of Jesus powerfully intervening in people's lives.

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 He's healing lepers.

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 He's casting out demons.

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 He's making the lame walk.

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 He is telling stories that upend people's expectations.

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 And he's preaching sermons,

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 like the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 through 7,

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 in which he takes things that people thought they knew,

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 like the laws of Moses,

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 and he then interprets them in radical and revolutionary ways.

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 People's lives are being transformed.

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 In chapter after chapter,

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 people are having these staggering experiences of liberation

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 and freedom and blessing.

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 But then, in Matthew 16, beginning in verse 21,

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 something changes.

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 Moments earlier, Peter has just confessed that Jesus is the Messiah.

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 And it's a kind of high point and climax up until that point.

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 What had been wondered about and whispered about has now been confessed.

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 It's in the open.

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 But no sooner has Peter said this,

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 Jesus, you're the Messiah.

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 No sooner does he say this,

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 and Jesus pivots.

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 Matthew says this,

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 from that time on,

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 Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem

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 and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes

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 and be killed,

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 and on the third day be raised.

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 And Peter reacts to this new information

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 in the way that most of us react

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 when we sense that change is coming.

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 Peter tries to argue with Jesus about it.

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 And in verse 22,

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 it says that Peter took Jesus aside

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 and began to rebuke him and say,

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 this is not going to happen to you.

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 Remember, Peter is a card-carrying freedom fighter.

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 He's a zealot.

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 And he assumes that at some point,

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 Jesus is going to lead all of them

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 in a violent uprising against Rome.

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 And so Peter has some deeply embedded assumptions

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 about what life with Jesus is going to look like.

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 But Jesus tells Peter,

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 not only are you wrong about what's going to happen to me,

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 because I am, in fact, going up to Jerusalem

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 not to kill but to be killed,

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 but if you are going to continue following me,

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 you also are going to need to be prepared

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 for this to be your reality too.

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 Jesus says to everyone standing there,

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 if anyone would come after me,

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 let him deny himself

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 and take up his cross and follow me.

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 For whoever would save his life

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 will lose it.

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 But whoever loses his life

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 for my sake

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 will find it.

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 And here, I think,

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 we just have to pause

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 for a moment

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 because we find ourselves

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 confronted by one of the

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 deepest mysteries and paradoxes

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 at the heart of the gospel

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 and I would say even at the heart

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 of the universe.

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 We really do not start to live

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 until we start to lay down our lives.

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 We find our life

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 by losing it.

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 This is hard to grasp

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 and not only because it goes against

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 our deep instincts for self-preservation

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 and self-advancement.

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 It's also difficult to grasp

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 because just as it was

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 with Peter and the disciples,

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 in the earliest stages

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 of our journey with Jesus,

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 at the earliest stages,

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 we are usually not able to hear

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 this more difficult teaching.

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 Notice that in the gospels,

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 Jesus calls people to follow him

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 and then they observe

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 or experience for themselves

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 one moment after another

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 of freedom and blessing

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 and deliverance.

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 The blind receive their sight,

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 the lame walk,

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 the deaf hear,

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 outsiders become insiders,

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 the last become first.

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 People begin to taste

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 and experience the reality

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 of God's kingdom

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 breaking into their lives

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 and into the world.

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 And that's how their journey

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 with Jesus begins.

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 And just as it was

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 for the disciples

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 in the crowds

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 in Jesus' day,

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 it is easy to assume

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 that the way that

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 God works

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 in the earliest stages

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 of our life with him

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 is the way that he's going

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 to work

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 in the later stages

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 of our life with him.

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 And therefore,

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 along with Peter,

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 we are sometimes surprised

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 and sometimes put off

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 when we are confronted

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 by a deeper work

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 that God wants to do in us,

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 which requires embarking

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 on a more difficult stage

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 of the journey.

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 we heard the Old Testament

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 reading this morning

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 from Exodus 14

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 in which

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 the people of Israel

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 miraculously escape Egypt.

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 The Exodus is an important story

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 to keep in mind

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 when we're reading the Gospels

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 because in many ways

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 the Gospels narrate

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 the way in which

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 Jesus' life and ministry

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 is inaugurating

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 a new Exodus story.

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 Think about it.

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 After Jesus is born,

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 he's at risk

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 of being killed by Herod

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 and so to escape Herod,

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 Mary and Joseph

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 flee to where?

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 Egypt.

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 It's only later

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 after it is safe

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 that Joseph and Mary

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 leave Egypt

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 with Jesus

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 to return

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 to Galilee.

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 And the fact

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 that this happens

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 is not just some sort

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 of incidental detail

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 the Gospel writers

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 decide to include.

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 Rather,

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 it is to show

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 that Jesus himself

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 will leave Egypt

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 and from there

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 will enter

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 into the promised land

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 of Israel

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 just like Moses

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 and the Israelites did.

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 Jesus embodies Israel

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 and his life

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 is a reenactment

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 of Israel's journey

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 from Egypt

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 to the promised land.

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 And just as Moses

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 led Israel

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 out of bondage

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 and slavery

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 to Pharaoh,

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 so Jesus will lead

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 people out of bondage

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 to sickness

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 or demonic oppression

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 or ultimately

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 out of bondage

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 to sin.

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 But as we remember

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 from our psalm

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 this morning,

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 Psalm 78,

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 Israel's exodus

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 was not completed

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 simply by crossing

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 the Red Sea.

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 They didn't go straight

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 into the promised land.

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 There was a deeper freedom

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 that could only happen

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 by spending 40 years

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 in the desert.

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 one writer

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 put it,

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 it may have taken

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 40 days

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 to get Israel

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 out of Egypt,

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 but it took

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 40 years

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 to get Egypt

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 out of Israel.

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 But of course,

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 Israel didn't understand this.

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 They were shocked

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 by this prospect

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 of wandering

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 in the desert,

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 having observed

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 the powerful way

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 that God had worked

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 on their behalf

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 at the start

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 of their journey,

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 the 10 plagues

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 visiting the Egyptians

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 and then miraculously

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 walking on dry ground

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 across the Red Sea.

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 They thought this

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 was the new normal.

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 They didn't understand

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 that leaving Egypt

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 was just the beginning.

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 in today's gospel reading,

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 it's clear that Peter

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 and the disciples

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 did not realize

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 that they were just

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 beginning their journey

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 with Jesus.

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 They have observed

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 the works of deliverance

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 by Jesus thus far,

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 and they assumed

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 this is the new normal.

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 And so when Jesus

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 begins talking

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 about suffering

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 and carrying a cross,

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 they are perhaps

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 understandably confused.

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 They don't understand

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 that deeper journey

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 that Jesus wants

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 to take his disciples on.

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 Many of us here

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 will be able

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 to look back

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 on our lives

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 and be able

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 to identify

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 an exodus moment

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 or an exodus season.

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 There was a point

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 at which

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 we experienced

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 God's goodness,

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 God's mercy,

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 where he reached

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 into our lives

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 and rescued us.

00:14:15.539 --> 00:14:16.439
 Sometimes maybe

00:14:16.439 --> 00:14:17.279
 just rescuing us

00:14:17.279 --> 00:14:17.899
 from ourselves.

00:14:17.899 --> 00:14:21.220
 In some cases

00:14:21.220 --> 00:14:21.720
 it may have been

00:14:21.720 --> 00:14:22.539
 sudden and dramatic.

00:14:22.699 --> 00:14:23.299
 In other cases

00:14:23.299 --> 00:14:24.120
 it may have been

00:14:24.120 --> 00:14:25.819
 outwardly undramatic

00:14:25.819 --> 00:14:26.659
 and took place

00:14:26.659 --> 00:14:27.259
 over a longer

00:14:27.259 --> 00:14:28.079
 stretch of time.

00:14:29.279 --> 00:14:30.539
 But those moments

00:14:30.539 --> 00:14:31.299
 become part

00:14:31.299 --> 00:14:32.100
 of our story.

00:14:33.579 --> 00:14:34.959
 And just as Israel

00:14:34.959 --> 00:14:36.120
 would from that day

00:14:36.120 --> 00:14:37.179
 forward always

00:14:37.179 --> 00:14:38.860
 recount the exodus story,

00:14:39.259 --> 00:14:40.079
 the way that God

00:14:40.079 --> 00:14:40.779
 had dramatically

00:14:40.779 --> 00:14:41.759
 rescued them,

00:14:42.220 --> 00:14:43.620
 we too tell

00:14:43.620 --> 00:14:44.399
 of those moments

00:14:44.399 --> 00:14:45.379
 in our story

00:14:45.379 --> 00:14:46.740
 in which God

00:14:46.740 --> 00:14:48.700
 rescued us

00:14:48.700 --> 00:14:50.259
 and graciously

00:14:50.259 --> 00:14:51.180
 intervened

00:14:51.180 --> 00:14:51.820
 in our lives.

00:14:55.259 --> 00:14:56.500
 But the long

00:14:56.500 --> 00:14:57.240
 road

00:14:57.240 --> 00:14:58.460
 to ultimate

00:14:58.460 --> 00:14:59.180
 freedom

00:14:59.180 --> 00:15:00.299
 and deeper

00:15:00.299 --> 00:15:01.180
 transformation

00:15:01.180 --> 00:15:02.320
 is not

00:15:02.320 --> 00:15:03.200
 for the most

00:15:03.200 --> 00:15:03.940
 part

00:15:03.940 --> 00:15:05.299
 marked by

00:15:05.299 --> 00:15:06.360
 a series

00:15:06.360 --> 00:15:07.299
 of endless

00:15:07.299 --> 00:15:08.259
 dramatic

00:15:08.259 --> 00:15:09.100
 interventions

00:15:09.100 --> 00:15:09.799
 by God

00:15:09.799 --> 00:15:10.539
 on our behalf.

00:15:13.659 --> 00:15:15.220
 God does do that.

00:15:15.460 --> 00:15:16.060
 Thank God.

00:15:16.740 --> 00:15:20.560
 God does not

00:15:20.560 --> 00:15:20.899
 want us

00:15:20.899 --> 00:15:21.360
 to remain

00:15:21.360 --> 00:15:21.799
 children.

00:15:25.259 --> 00:15:26.220
 The path

00:15:26.220 --> 00:15:26.680
 to Christian

00:15:26.680 --> 00:15:27.139
 maturity

00:15:27.139 --> 00:15:28.240
 means that

00:15:28.240 --> 00:15:29.100
 just as Jesus

00:15:29.100 --> 00:15:30.000
 begins to

00:15:30.000 --> 00:15:30.779
 speak to

00:15:30.779 --> 00:15:31.580
 his disciples

00:15:31.580 --> 00:15:32.740
 in a different

00:15:32.740 --> 00:15:33.720
 way,

00:15:33.960 --> 00:15:34.860
 and I would say

00:15:34.860 --> 00:15:35.940
 even a more

00:15:35.940 --> 00:15:37.159
 collaborative way,

00:15:37.680 --> 00:15:39.399
 as he does

00:15:39.399 --> 00:15:40.480
 here in Matthew 16,

00:15:40.919 --> 00:15:42.019
 at some point

00:15:42.019 --> 00:15:43.120
 Jesus will

00:15:43.120 --> 00:15:43.799
 also begin

00:15:43.799 --> 00:15:44.299
 to speak

00:15:44.299 --> 00:15:44.979
 to us

00:15:44.979 --> 00:15:46.519
 more seriously

00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:48.039
 and collaboratively

00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:48.819
 about what

00:15:48.819 --> 00:15:49.759
 following him

00:15:49.759 --> 00:15:50.719
 looks like.

00:15:52.359 --> 00:15:53.419
 He will begin

00:15:53.419 --> 00:15:53.979
 to reveal

00:15:53.979 --> 00:15:54.379
 to us

00:15:54.379 --> 00:15:55.179
 more specifically

00:15:55.179 --> 00:15:56.379
 in the unique

00:15:56.379 --> 00:15:57.199
 circumstances

00:15:57.199 --> 00:15:58.120
 of our own

00:15:58.120 --> 00:15:58.539
 lives

00:15:58.539 --> 00:16:00.279
 what it means

00:16:00.279 --> 00:16:00.759
 to carry

00:16:00.759 --> 00:16:01.299
 our cross

00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:02.000
 and follow him.

00:16:05.240 --> 00:16:05.979
 It's worth

00:16:05.979 --> 00:16:06.639
 pausing briefly

00:16:06.639 --> 00:16:07.179
 to ask what

00:16:07.179 --> 00:16:07.799
 Jesus means

00:16:07.799 --> 00:16:08.240
 by this,

00:16:08.299 --> 00:16:08.639
 to carry

00:16:08.639 --> 00:16:09.139
 our cross.

00:16:10.240 --> 00:16:11.139
 Some commentators

00:16:11.139 --> 00:16:11.759
 suggest that

00:16:11.759 --> 00:16:12.959
 burying one's cross

00:16:12.960 --> 00:16:13.639
 simply means

00:16:13.639 --> 00:16:14.780
 to patiently

00:16:14.780 --> 00:16:15.379
 endure the

00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:15.960
 various trials

00:16:15.960 --> 00:16:16.360
 of everyday

00:16:16.360 --> 00:16:16.820
 life.

00:16:18.139 --> 00:16:18.639
 On the other

00:16:18.639 --> 00:16:18.840
 hand,

00:16:18.920 --> 00:16:19.440
 some scholars

00:16:19.440 --> 00:16:20.000
 argue that

00:16:20.000 --> 00:16:20.400
 taking up

00:16:20.400 --> 00:16:20.980
 one's cross

00:16:20.980 --> 00:16:22.160
 means nonviolent

00:16:22.160 --> 00:16:22.940
 resistance to

00:16:22.940 --> 00:16:23.320
 the political

00:16:23.320 --> 00:16:24.160
 order or to

00:16:24.160 --> 00:16:24.780
 different forms

00:16:24.780 --> 00:16:25.519
 of social

00:16:25.519 --> 00:16:26.019
 oppression,

00:16:26.940 --> 00:16:27.700
 and I think

00:16:27.700 --> 00:16:28.280
 it's possible

00:16:28.280 --> 00:16:28.920
 for both of

00:16:28.920 --> 00:16:29.620
 these ways

00:16:29.620 --> 00:16:30.519
 to be part

00:16:30.519 --> 00:16:30.820
 of what it

00:16:30.820 --> 00:16:31.160
 means to

00:16:31.160 --> 00:16:31.460
 take up

00:16:31.460 --> 00:16:31.940
 our cross.

00:16:33.200 --> 00:16:33.879
 But along

00:16:33.879 --> 00:16:34.440
 with most

00:16:34.440 --> 00:16:35.019
 commentators,

00:16:35.120 --> 00:16:35.740
 I think that

00:16:35.740 --> 00:16:36.759
 taking up

00:16:36.759 --> 00:16:37.540
 one's cross

00:16:37.540 --> 00:16:39.639
 is a way

00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:40.080
 of speaking

00:16:40.080 --> 00:16:40.940
 about simply

00:16:40.940 --> 00:16:41.680
 the call

00:16:41.680 --> 00:16:43.960
 to deny

00:16:43.960 --> 00:16:44.700
 ourselves

00:16:44.700 --> 00:16:45.420
 when we

00:16:45.420 --> 00:16:45.980
 are tempted

00:16:45.980 --> 00:16:47.500
 to hold

00:16:47.500 --> 00:16:48.000
 on to

00:16:48.000 --> 00:16:48.660
 something that

00:16:48.660 --> 00:16:49.600
 competes

00:16:49.600 --> 00:16:50.720
 with deeper

00:16:50.720 --> 00:16:51.940
 devotion to

00:16:51.940 --> 00:16:52.320
 Christ.

00:16:55.800 --> 00:16:56.580
 And to

00:16:56.580 --> 00:16:56.940
 help us

00:16:56.940 --> 00:16:57.440
 do that,

00:16:57.640 --> 00:16:58.600
 to help

00:16:58.600 --> 00:17:00.280
 us learn

00:17:00.280 --> 00:17:00.980
 to get

00:17:00.980 --> 00:17:01.880
 over ourselves

00:17:01.880 --> 00:17:02.640
 and to

00:17:02.640 --> 00:17:03.740
 wean us

00:17:03.740 --> 00:17:04.279
 off those

00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:05.080
 temporal things

00:17:05.080 --> 00:17:05.600
 that keep

00:17:05.600 --> 00:17:06.380
 us from

00:17:06.380 --> 00:17:06.720
 a more

00:17:06.720 --> 00:17:07.140
 radical

00:17:07.140 --> 00:17:07.660
 freedom,

00:17:09.539 --> 00:17:10.299
 the Lord

00:17:10.299 --> 00:17:11.519
 may lead

00:17:11.519 --> 00:17:12.099
 us into

00:17:12.099 --> 00:17:12.399
 some

00:17:12.399 --> 00:17:13.200
 deserts.

00:17:15.339 --> 00:17:16.019
 The Lord

00:17:16.019 --> 00:17:16.299
 may have

00:17:16.299 --> 00:17:16.879
 rescued us

00:17:16.879 --> 00:17:17.279
 dramatically

00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:17.680
 in the

00:17:17.680 --> 00:17:18.039
 past,

00:17:18.139 --> 00:17:18.379
 he may

00:17:18.379 --> 00:17:18.500
 have

00:17:18.500 --> 00:17:19.000
 taken us

00:17:19.000 --> 00:17:19.500
 out of

00:17:19.500 --> 00:17:19.899
 Egypt,

00:17:20.240 --> 00:17:21.919
 but he's

00:17:21.919 --> 00:17:22.220
 going to

00:17:22.220 --> 00:17:22.559
 spend the

00:17:22.559 --> 00:17:22.899
 rest of

00:17:22.899 --> 00:17:23.299
 our lives

00:17:23.299 --> 00:17:23.559
 getting

00:17:23.559 --> 00:17:23.960
 Egypt

00:17:23.960 --> 00:17:24.399
 out of

00:17:24.399 --> 00:17:24.680
 us.

00:17:28.519 --> 00:17:29.259
 And that's

00:17:29.259 --> 00:17:29.579
 harder

00:17:29.579 --> 00:17:30.379
 and takes

00:17:30.379 --> 00:17:30.700
 longer.

00:17:31.839 --> 00:17:32.240
 And therefore

00:17:32.240 --> 00:17:32.740
 one of the

00:17:32.740 --> 00:17:33.399
 questions that

00:17:33.399 --> 00:17:33.859
 we might

00:17:33.859 --> 00:17:35.279
 occasionally ask

00:17:35.279 --> 00:17:36.279
 in our own

00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:37.000
 lives with

00:17:37.000 --> 00:17:37.659
 God is,

00:17:37.660 --> 00:17:39.360
 in what

00:17:39.360 --> 00:17:39.840
 areas of

00:17:39.840 --> 00:17:40.300
 my life

00:17:40.300 --> 00:17:40.600
 am I

00:17:40.600 --> 00:17:41.279
 still bound

00:17:41.279 --> 00:17:41.500
 to

00:17:41.500 --> 00:17:41.900
 Egypt?

00:17:44.100 --> 00:17:44.900
 In what

00:17:44.900 --> 00:17:45.380
 areas of

00:17:45.380 --> 00:17:45.860
 my life

00:17:45.860 --> 00:17:46.640
 am I

00:17:46.640 --> 00:17:47.360
 not truly

00:17:47.360 --> 00:17:47.840
 free?

00:17:50.200 --> 00:17:50.759
 Where

00:17:50.759 --> 00:17:51.440
 might I

00:17:51.440 --> 00:17:52.040
 be bound

00:17:52.040 --> 00:17:53.340
 by anger

00:17:53.340 --> 00:17:54.120
 or resentment?

00:17:55.120 --> 00:17:55.560
 Where

00:17:55.560 --> 00:17:56.620
 might I

00:17:56.620 --> 00:17:57.100
 still be

00:17:57.100 --> 00:17:57.460
 trapped

00:17:57.460 --> 00:17:58.140
 by my

00:17:58.140 --> 00:17:58.540
 desires?

00:18:00.380 --> 00:18:00.940
 Where

00:18:00.940 --> 00:18:01.300
 does a

00:18:01.300 --> 00:18:02.120
 longing

00:18:02.120 --> 00:18:02.720
 for

00:18:02.720 --> 00:18:03.960
 admiration

00:18:03.960 --> 00:18:04.820
 still

00:18:04.820 --> 00:18:06.019
 drive my

00:18:06.019 --> 00:18:06.420
 choices?

00:18:07.660 --> 00:18:08.740
 Where

00:18:08.740 --> 00:18:09.200
 does the

00:18:09.200 --> 00:18:09.820
 allure of

00:18:09.820 --> 00:18:10.759
 safety and

00:18:10.759 --> 00:18:11.420
 predictability

00:18:11.420 --> 00:18:12.420
 keep me

00:18:12.420 --> 00:18:13.540
 from responding

00:18:13.540 --> 00:18:14.519
 to that

00:18:14.519 --> 00:18:15.840
 inner nudge

00:18:15.840 --> 00:18:16.700
 to live

00:18:16.700 --> 00:18:17.300
 more radically?

00:18:21.200 --> 00:18:21.860
 Here's

00:18:21.860 --> 00:18:22.180
 something we

00:18:22.180 --> 00:18:22.420
 need to

00:18:22.420 --> 00:18:22.740
 remember.

00:18:24.220 --> 00:18:25.180
 The call

00:18:25.180 --> 00:18:25.820
 to take

00:18:25.820 --> 00:18:26.080
 up our

00:18:26.080 --> 00:18:26.900
 cross is

00:18:26.900 --> 00:18:27.259
 not

00:18:27.259 --> 00:18:28.080
 masochism.

00:18:30.140 --> 00:18:30.960
 It is

00:18:30.960 --> 00:18:31.580
 not pain

00:18:31.580 --> 00:18:32.140
 and suffering

00:18:32.140 --> 00:18:33.100
 for its

00:18:33.100 --> 00:18:33.759
 own sake.

00:18:34.279 --> 00:18:34.600
 What

00:18:34.600 --> 00:18:35.240
 does Jesus

00:18:35.240 --> 00:18:35.720
 say?

00:18:36.080 --> 00:18:36.400
 Whoever

00:18:36.400 --> 00:18:37.380
 loses his

00:18:37.380 --> 00:18:38.160
 life for

00:18:38.160 --> 00:18:39.180
 my sake

00:18:39.180 --> 00:18:39.860
 will

00:18:39.860 --> 00:18:41.519
 find it.

00:18:42.980 --> 00:18:43.540
 Taking

00:18:43.540 --> 00:18:44.019
 up one's

00:18:44.019 --> 00:18:44.400
 cross

00:18:44.400 --> 00:18:46.060
 is the

00:18:46.060 --> 00:18:46.800
 way to

00:18:46.800 --> 00:18:47.040
 joy.

00:18:49.940 --> 00:18:50.500
 When

00:18:50.500 --> 00:18:50.800
 Jesus

00:18:50.800 --> 00:18:51.540
 inaugurates a

00:18:51.540 --> 00:18:52.060
 new Exodus

00:18:52.060 --> 00:18:52.620
 story in

00:18:52.620 --> 00:18:53.140
 his life and

00:18:53.140 --> 00:18:53.540
 ministry,

00:18:54.019 --> 00:18:55.100
 he brings to

00:18:55.100 --> 00:18:55.580
 the blind

00:18:55.580 --> 00:18:56.040
 and the

00:18:56.040 --> 00:18:56.600
 deaf and

00:18:56.600 --> 00:18:57.100
 the oppressed

00:18:57.100 --> 00:18:57.740
 liberation

00:18:57.740 --> 00:18:58.740
 and freedom

00:18:58.740 --> 00:18:59.700
 and blessing.

00:19:00.620 --> 00:19:01.460
 But that is

00:19:01.460 --> 00:19:02.040
 not the end

00:19:02.040 --> 00:19:02.620
 of the story.

00:19:02.619 --> 00:19:05.399
 what Jesus

00:19:05.399 --> 00:19:06.219
 has liberated

00:19:06.219 --> 00:19:06.679
 in their

00:19:06.679 --> 00:19:07.399
 bodies is

00:19:07.399 --> 00:19:08.099
 simply a

00:19:08.099 --> 00:19:08.959
 sign of

00:19:08.959 --> 00:19:09.359
 what he

00:19:09.359 --> 00:19:09.879
 wants to

00:19:09.879 --> 00:19:10.439
 liberate in

00:19:10.439 --> 00:19:11.000
 their hearts.

00:19:14.339 --> 00:19:15.239
 And so

00:19:15.239 --> 00:19:15.979
 with us,

00:19:16.119 --> 00:19:16.719
 when Jesus

00:19:16.719 --> 00:19:17.479
 calls us to

00:19:17.479 --> 00:19:18.039
 take up our

00:19:18.039 --> 00:19:18.739
 cross and to

00:19:18.739 --> 00:19:19.139
 follow him,

00:19:19.159 --> 00:19:19.599
 it's not a

00:19:19.599 --> 00:19:19.959
 detour.

00:19:20.419 --> 00:19:20.879
 It's not

00:19:20.879 --> 00:19:21.399
 something just

00:19:21.399 --> 00:19:22.079
 to endure

00:19:22.079 --> 00:19:22.579
 and get

00:19:22.579 --> 00:19:22.879
 through.

00:19:23.599 --> 00:19:24.519
 It is a

00:19:24.519 --> 00:19:26.019
 continuation of

00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:26.619
 the Exodus

00:19:26.619 --> 00:19:27.319
 that Jesus

00:19:27.319 --> 00:19:28.319
 started in our

00:19:28.319 --> 00:19:29.139
 lives years

00:19:29.139 --> 00:19:29.539
 earlier.

00:19:29.539 --> 00:19:31.799
 it is that

00:19:31.799 --> 00:19:32.619
 deeper call

00:19:32.619 --> 00:19:33.079
 which will

00:19:33.079 --> 00:19:33.839
 include some

00:19:33.839 --> 00:19:34.519
 years in the

00:19:34.519 --> 00:19:35.920
 desert to

00:19:35.920 --> 00:19:37.000
 bring us into

00:19:37.000 --> 00:19:37.960
 even deeper

00:19:37.960 --> 00:19:39.639
 liberation and

00:19:39.639 --> 00:19:40.519
 freedom and

00:19:40.519 --> 00:19:40.859
 blessing.

00:19:44.819 --> 00:19:45.619
 A number of

00:19:45.619 --> 00:19:46.039
 years ago,

00:19:46.099 --> 00:19:46.420
 the New York

00:19:46.420 --> 00:19:47.159
 Times ran a

00:19:47.159 --> 00:19:47.740
 story about a

00:19:47.740 --> 00:19:48.960
 woman named

00:19:48.960 --> 00:19:50.420
 Osceola McCarty

00:19:50.420 --> 00:19:52.200
 who gave a

00:19:52.200 --> 00:19:53.399
 large sum of

00:19:53.399 --> 00:19:54.099
 money to

00:19:54.099 --> 00:19:54.740
 endow

00:19:54.740 --> 00:19:56.500
 scholarships at

00:19:56.500 --> 00:19:56.879
 a local

00:19:56.879 --> 00:19:57.680
 college in

00:19:57.680 --> 00:19:58.700
 her hometown

00:19:58.700 --> 00:19:59.779
 Mississippi.

00:20:01.580 --> 00:20:02.539
 What is

00:20:02.539 --> 00:20:03.380
 remarkable is

00:20:03.380 --> 00:20:03.860
 that she did

00:20:03.860 --> 00:20:04.319
 this at the

00:20:04.319 --> 00:20:05.420
 age of 87

00:20:05.420 --> 00:20:07.460
 and she did

00:20:07.460 --> 00:20:08.620
 not come from

00:20:08.620 --> 00:20:09.000
 wealth.

00:20:09.660 --> 00:20:10.140
 In fact,

00:20:10.779 --> 00:20:11.700
 she washed

00:20:11.700 --> 00:20:12.539
 and mended

00:20:12.539 --> 00:20:13.900
 clothes for

00:20:13.900 --> 00:20:15.080
 her entire

00:20:15.080 --> 00:20:15.819
 life.

00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:17.740
 She had

00:20:17.740 --> 00:20:19.380
 quit school

00:20:19.380 --> 00:20:19.960
 in the sixth

00:20:19.960 --> 00:20:20.460
 grade to go

00:20:20.460 --> 00:20:20.779
 to work,

00:20:21.420 --> 00:20:21.980
 never married,

00:20:22.620 --> 00:20:23.019
 never had

00:20:23.019 --> 00:20:23.340
 children.

00:20:24.840 --> 00:20:25.819
 But over the

00:20:25.819 --> 00:20:26.559
 decades, she

00:20:26.559 --> 00:20:27.100
 had felt led

00:20:27.100 --> 00:20:27.720
 by the Lord

00:20:27.720 --> 00:20:28.480
 to live as

00:20:28.480 --> 00:20:29.220
 simply as

00:20:29.220 --> 00:20:29.960
 possible and

00:20:29.960 --> 00:20:30.640
 to sock

00:20:30.640 --> 00:20:31.620
 away her

00:20:31.620 --> 00:20:32.240
 pay, which

00:20:32.240 --> 00:20:33.140
 primarily came

00:20:33.140 --> 00:20:33.860
 in the form of

00:20:33.860 --> 00:20:34.720
 dollar bills and

00:20:34.720 --> 00:20:35.240
 change.

00:20:35.839 --> 00:20:36.339
 And this

00:20:36.339 --> 00:20:37.299
 savings eventually

00:20:37.299 --> 00:20:38.200
 grew to nearly

00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:39.559
 $150,000.

00:20:42.180 --> 00:20:43.019
 The New York

00:20:43.019 --> 00:20:43.600
 Times article

00:20:43.600 --> 00:20:44.259
 reported that

00:20:44.259 --> 00:20:45.259
 Osceola decided

00:20:45.259 --> 00:20:46.819
 to give away the

00:20:46.819 --> 00:20:47.420
 money she had

00:20:47.420 --> 00:20:48.259
 saved over her

00:20:48.259 --> 00:20:49.480
 life to finance

00:20:49.480 --> 00:20:50.559
 scholarships for

00:20:50.559 --> 00:20:51.500
 black students at

00:20:51.500 --> 00:20:52.400
 the University of

00:20:52.400 --> 00:20:53.259
 Southern Mississippi.

00:20:53.259 --> 00:20:53.339
 University.

00:20:55.019 --> 00:20:56.240
 I wanted to

00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:57.160
 share my wealth

00:20:57.160 --> 00:20:58.099
 with children,

00:20:58.240 --> 00:20:59.220
 she said, and

00:20:59.220 --> 00:21:00.440
 perhaps make it so

00:21:00.440 --> 00:21:00.980
 that they wouldn't

00:21:00.980 --> 00:21:01.819
 have to work like

00:21:01.819 --> 00:21:02.220
 I did.

00:21:05.519 --> 00:21:06.660
 Once this was

00:21:06.660 --> 00:21:07.519
 announced, people

00:21:07.519 --> 00:21:07.900
 around the

00:21:07.900 --> 00:21:08.539
 university were

00:21:08.539 --> 00:21:09.379
 shocked and began

00:21:09.379 --> 00:21:10.640
 referring to it as

00:21:10.640 --> 00:21:11.379
 the gift.

00:21:12.339 --> 00:21:13.119
 And eventually,

00:21:13.279 --> 00:21:14.559
 over 600 other

00:21:14.559 --> 00:21:15.940
 people heard about

00:21:15.940 --> 00:21:16.720
 her gift, came

00:21:16.720 --> 00:21:17.700
 along and matched

00:21:17.700 --> 00:21:18.440
 it and more.

00:21:18.559 --> 00:21:19.599
 And today, that

00:21:19.599 --> 00:21:20.839
 scholarship is so

00:21:20.839 --> 00:21:21.680
 large that

00:21:21.680 --> 00:21:22.820
 significant numbers

00:21:22.820 --> 00:21:24.160
 of first-generation

00:21:24.160 --> 00:21:25.480
 black students go

00:21:25.480 --> 00:21:27.420
 to college on an

00:21:27.420 --> 00:21:28.580
 Osceola McCarty

00:21:28.580 --> 00:21:29.039
 scholarship.

00:21:31.600 --> 00:21:32.900
 And while Osceola

00:21:32.900 --> 00:21:33.799
 refused to have a

00:21:33.799 --> 00:21:34.759
 building named after

00:21:34.759 --> 00:21:36.680
 her or a statue in

00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:37.820
 her honor, the one

00:21:37.820 --> 00:21:38.460
 thing she asked

00:21:38.460 --> 00:21:39.779
 before she died was

00:21:39.779 --> 00:21:40.440
 to attend the

00:21:40.440 --> 00:21:41.420
 graduation of a

00:21:41.420 --> 00:21:42.360
 student who made

00:21:42.360 --> 00:21:43.060
 it through college

00:21:43.060 --> 00:21:43.980
 because of her

00:21:43.980 --> 00:21:44.240
 gift.

00:21:49.539 --> 00:21:50.620
 Osceola McCarty

00:21:50.619 --> 00:21:51.619
 was a faithful

00:21:51.619 --> 00:21:53.559
 member of Friendship

00:21:53.559 --> 00:21:54.939
 Baptist Church for

00:21:54.939 --> 00:21:57.079
 over 70 years, and

00:21:57.079 --> 00:21:58.359
 she had heard many

00:21:58.359 --> 00:22:00.179
 sermons during that

00:22:00.179 --> 00:22:00.500
 time.

00:22:02.459 --> 00:22:05.239
 What is clear is

00:22:05.239 --> 00:22:06.299
 that at some point

00:22:06.299 --> 00:22:07.739
 along the way, she

00:22:07.739 --> 00:22:09.899
 had truly internalized

00:22:09.899 --> 00:22:11.819
 Jesus' paradoxical

00:22:11.819 --> 00:22:13.459
 words from Matthew

00:22:13.459 --> 00:22:15.500
 16 that laying

00:22:15.500 --> 00:22:17.039
 things down is the

00:22:17.039 --> 00:22:18.399
 path to joy.

00:22:18.400 --> 00:22:18.460
 family.

00:22:20.740 --> 00:22:21.680
 Because when a

00:22:21.680 --> 00:22:22.360
 journalist from

00:22:22.360 --> 00:22:23.600
 People magazine asked

00:22:23.600 --> 00:22:25.060
 her why she didn't

00:22:25.060 --> 00:22:27.320
 spend at least some

00:22:27.320 --> 00:22:28.420
 of this money she'd

00:22:28.420 --> 00:22:30.259
 saved on herself, she

00:22:30.259 --> 00:22:31.140
 answered with a

00:22:31.140 --> 00:22:33.720
 smile, I am spending

00:22:33.720 --> 00:22:34.519
 it on myself.

00:22:37.519 --> 00:22:38.080
 Amen.

00:22:38.080 --> 00:22:38.160
 Amen.

00:22:38.160 --> 00:22:38.180
 Amen.

00:22:38.180 --> 00:22:38.220
 Amen.

00:22:38.220 --> 00:22:38.240
 Amen.

00:22:38.240 --> 00:22:38.259
 Amen.

00:22:38.259 --> 00:22:38.280
 Amen.

00:22:38.280 --> 00:22:40.240
 Amen.

00:22:40.240 --> 00:22:40.280
 Amen.

00:22:40.280 --> 00:22:40.320
 Amen.

00:22:40.320 --> 00:22:40.380
 Amen.

00:22:40.380 --> 00:22:42.300
 Amen.

00:22:42.300 --> 00:22:42.340
 Amen.

00:22:42.340 --> 00:22:42.360
 Amen.

00:22:42.360 --> 00:22:42.400
 Amen.

00:22:42.400 --> 00:22:42.440
 Amen.

00:22:42.440 --> 00:22:42.460
 Amen.

00:22:42.460 --> 00:22:42.519
 Amen.

00:22:42.519 --> 00:22:42.580
 Amen.

00:22:42.580 --> 00:22:42.620
 Amen.

00:22:42.620 --> 00:22:42.740
 Amen.

00:22:42.740 --> 00:22:43.460
 Amen.

00:22:43.460 --> 00:22:44.040
 Amen.

00:22:44.040 --> 00:22:44.460
 Amen.

00:22:44.460 --> 00:22:44.519
 Amen.

00:22:44.519 --> 00:22:44.640
 Amen.

00:22:44.640 --> 00:22:44.700
 Amen.

00:22:44.700 --> 00:22:48.380
 Amen.