WEBVTT

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 Please turn to Jeremiah.

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 You're going to need a Bible tonight.

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 So if you haven't got a Bible, greeters are there.

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!

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 And it's grown.

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 I think there are probably about 50-odd, 60-odd there this morning.

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 So I'm lots to be thankful for.

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 Thank you for your prayers.

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 This week, Jeremiah 7 to 10.

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 And next week, Jeremiah 11 to 15.

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 So that's your homework.

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 Jeremiah chapter 11 to 15.

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 I've had to prepare this sermon and slave over it and work hard at it.

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 Jeremiah, on the other hand, is given a sermon.

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 God dictates it to him.

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 And it is an absolute belter, as you'd expect.

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 Interestingly, the sermon is not preached straight away.

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 We're going to have to wait until chapter 26 until he delivers it.

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 But in Jeremiah's collected works, really, it's included to back up the impact of chapters 2 to 6.

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 Because Jeremiah wants to convince his initial hearers and the hearers that are in Babylon in exile,

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 and to convince us of this very simple truth.

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 That religion kills, but God gives life.

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 And that is the message of Jeremiah 7 to 10, really.

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 Religion kills, but God gives life.

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 Chapter 7, verse 1 to 8, verse 3 revolves around that first part.

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 Religion kills.

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 And one of the interesting things about Jeremiah, especially in these early chapters,

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 is how poetry and prose is mixed up.

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 There's the roller coaster of really intense poetry, of chapter 2 to 6.

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 But in chapter 7, you get gentle prose in order to kind of calm us all down.

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 And look at how it begins.

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 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord.

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 Stand in the gate of the Lord's house and proclaim there this word,

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 and say, hear the word of the Lord, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the Lord.

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 And God gives Jeremiah the sermon to preach.

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 He says, go to the turnstiles of the temple, where you'll have maximum impact.

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 Go to the welcoming door, and where people mill around, where people go in and people leave.

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 And the message of this sermon is, verse 3, religion kills.

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 Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place.

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 Do not trust in these deceptive words.

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 This is the temple of the Lord.

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 The temple of the Lord.

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 The temple of the Lord.

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 That was the religious mantra of the day.

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 That the temple is indestructible, inviolable.

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 And therefore, we're secure.

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 And Jeremiah says, it's deadly.

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 Anyway, back in the days of Hezekiah, when the Assyrians had threatened God,

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 threatened God's people, God had said this to them.

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 He said, thus says the Lord concerning the king of Syria,

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 he shall not come into the city, nor shoot an arrow there,

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 or come before it with a shield, or cast a siege mount against it.

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 By the way that he came, by the same he shall return.

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 And he will not come into the city, declares the Lord,

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 for I will defend the city to save it for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.

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 And that promise had been turned into a national slogan.

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 God has always defended the temple, and he always will.

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 Except he won't.

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 And no amount of repeating that slogan will make any difference.

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 According to verse 8, they are deceptive words, and they need to amend their ways.

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 And if they don't, their religion will kill them.

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 It's one of the things that's most surprising about the Bible,

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 that it is so anti-religion.

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 From the beginning to the end, the Bible exposes human religious activity,

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 whether they're talking about doing the right thing, or going to the right place,

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 or saying the right words without reference to God.

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 He says it is toxic to people like you and I.

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 And in this case, the focus falls on treasuring the temple as the symbol of God's sponsorship of his people.

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 Their underlying attitude was, we've got the temple, we are the people of God,

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 so we can live any way we like, but God says, think again.

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 Now, I should warn you that Jeremiah's sermon is not a happy sermon.

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 And the logic of the chapter is that spiritual hypocrisy,

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 which flows out of spiritual deafness, will lead to spiritual death.

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 Chapter 7, verse 5, God addresses their spiritual hypocrisy head on.

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 He says,

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 And it seems that they are showing up to the temple like model Jews,

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 but at home they're deceiving each other.

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 They exploit the vulnerable.

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 They worship other gods.

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 In other words, they are hypocrites.

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 Now, there is a sense, isn't there, that we're all hypocrites.

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 And we'll never escape that.

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 There's always going to be some disconnect between what we say and what we do.

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 And we need to face that truth about ourselves and be quick to admit it.

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 The fact that we have been joined to the Lord Jesus,

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 and yet are still sinful,

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 means that we never quite manage to live up to what we say.

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 But there's another sense in which we need to take very, very seriously

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 the fact that hypocrisy is ultimately fatal.

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 We can never just dismiss hypocrisy as an unfortunate part of the human condition

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 between now and the new creation.

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 Hypocrisy in the Bible, particularly spiritual hypocrisy,

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 is the ultimate sign that all is not well with our walk with the Lord.

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 And what the Lord tells Jeremiah to say to his people,

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 look with me at verse 8,

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 Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail.

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 Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely?

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 Make offerings to Baal.

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 Will you go after other gods that you've not known?

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 And then you come and you stand before me in this house,

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 which is called by my name,

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 and you say,

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 we are delivered.

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 Only you go on doing those abominations.

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 Has this house,

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 which is called by my name,

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 become a den of robbers in your eyes?

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 Behold, I myself have seen it,

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 declares the Lord.

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 Your lives give you away.

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 You're living a double life.

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 You've made the temple a hideout for criminals.

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 Can't you see that?

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 And that's the problem, isn't it, with spiritual hypocrisy.

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 It's always painfully obvious to other people,

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 but it's so difficult to spot in ourselves.

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 Why is that?

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 Think about that.

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 It's because spiritual hypocrisy is caused by spiritual deafness,

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 which is what makes it so difficult to hear,

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 when other people,

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 and even God himself,

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 are shouting hypocrite at us.

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 There's nothing subtle about Jeremiah.

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 Look at verse 13.

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 Now,

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 because you've done all these things,

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 declares the Lord,

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 when I spoke to you persistently,

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 you did not listen,

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 and when I called you,

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 you did not answer.

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 Therefore,

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 I will do to the house that is called by my name,

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 and in which you trust,

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 and to the place I gave to you and your fathers,

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 as I did to Shiloh.

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 And I will cast you out of my sight,

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 as I cast all your kinsmen,

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 all the offspring of Ephraim.

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 He's saying,

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 just as

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 God's chosen place in Shiloh,

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 it was closed down,

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 because of the corruption of Eli's sons,

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 and just as the land of Israel fell to the Assyrians,

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 now the temple of the Lord is going to go the same way.

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 Ignoring God leads to pretense,

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 which leads to judgment.

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 And that is just the way it is.

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 Back in the beginning,

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 God had freely given,

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 and graciously given,

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 and chosen Israel as his people,

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 as his son.

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 Not because of any goodness in them,

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 but because he loved them.

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 He said he would come,

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 and make his presence obvious,

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 that he would live right at the center of their national life.

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 He spelled out for them,

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 do you remember in great detail,

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 how they would live a beautiful life with him.

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 And all Israel had to do was listen,

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 and obey,

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 and they would be blessed.

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 And they would delight in life with God himself.

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 But they wouldn't listen.

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 And instead,

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 they got religious.

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 Chapter 7, verse 22,

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 For in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt,

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 I did not speak to your fathers,

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 or command them,

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 considering burnt offerings or sacrifices,

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 but this command I gave them,

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 listen to my voice.

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 And I will be your God,

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 and you shall be my people,

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 and walk in all the ways that I command you,

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 that it may be well with you.

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 But verse 24,

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 they didn't obey,

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 they didn't incline their ear,

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 it's the same word, listen,

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 but they walked in their own counsel,

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 the stubbornness of their heart.

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 And they went backwards, not forward.

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 From the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt to this day,

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 I persistently sent all my servants,

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 the prophets, to them day after day,

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 yet you did not listen to me,

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 or incline your ear.

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 Verse 27,

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 So you shall speak all these words to them,

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 but they will not listen to you.

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 Verse 28,

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 And you shall say to them,

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 this is the nation that did not listen to the voice of the Lord their God,

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 and did not accept discipline.

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 Truth has perished,

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 it's cut off from their lips.

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 God says to them,

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 you need to read your Bible in the right order.

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 You need to go to Exodus 20,

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 Deuteronomy 4,

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 because the basic model of following me is listening.

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 Listening to God's word,

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 and everything else flows from that.

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 We listen,

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 and then we obey.

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 In every detail of life,

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 and that includes sacrifice,

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 but religion just does not listen.

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 It runs straight to the empty conveniences of religious ritual.

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 I hope you can see the issue here.

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 Spiritual deafness leads inevitably to spiritual hypocrisy,

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 and then it will lead to spiritual death.

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 And that explains chapter 7,

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 verse 16,

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 and following where Jeremiah says these awful words.

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 Look at verse 16,

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 As for you,

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 do not pray for this people,

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 or lift up a cry or prayer for them,

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 and do not intercede for me,

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 for I will not hear you.

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 Do you not see what you're doing

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 in the cities of Judah

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 and in the streets of Jerusalem?

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 The children gather wood,

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 the fathers kindle fire,

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 the women need dough

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 to make cakes for the queen of heaven,

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 the queen of heaven.

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 And they pour out drink offerings to other gods

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 to provoke me to anger.

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 Is it I they provoke,

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 declares the Lord?

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 Is it not themselves to their own shame?

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 Therefore,

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 thus says the Lord God,

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 behold,

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 my anger and my wrath

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 will be poured out on this place.

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 God says,

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 there's no point praying now.

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 The die is cast.

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 And God has promised blessing

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 if you will listen,

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 but if you refuse to listen,

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 he promises curse.

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 And God is doing what he promised.

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 So do not pray to me

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 asking me to do what I've not promised to do,

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 God says.

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 Spiritual deafness

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 leads to spiritual hypocrisy,

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 which in turn leads to spiritual death.

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 And God tells Jeremiah,

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 make the point with brutal force

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 in what is left of this little sermon.

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 They're to call in,

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 verse 29,

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 the bald, mourning woman.

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 Cut off your hair,

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 cast it away,

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 raise a lamentation on the bare heights,

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 for the Lord has rejected and forsaken

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 this generation of his wrath.

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 Psalm verse 30,

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 the spiritual death of exile is on the way.

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 They've set their detestable things

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 in the house that's called by my name

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 to defile it.

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 They've built the high places in Topheth,

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 which is a fire pit,

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 which is in the valley of the son of Hortinum,

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 to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire,

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 which I did not command,

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 nor did it even come into my mind.

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 There's dead bodies everywhere,

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 verses 32 and 33.

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 But worse is to come.

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 Chapter 8 is one of the darkest passages

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 in the whole of the Bible.

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 Judah's fate is sealed.

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 The bones of the kings of Judah,

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 the bones of its officials,

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 the bones of the priests,

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 the bones of the prophets,

00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:10.199
 and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem

00:13:10.199 --> 00:13:11.500
 shall be brought out of their tombs.

00:13:12.679 --> 00:13:14.299
 And they shall be spread before the sun and the moon

00:13:14.299 --> 00:13:15.099
 and all the hosts of heaven,

00:13:15.159 --> 00:13:16.259
 which they've loved and served,

00:13:16.599 --> 00:13:17.399
 which they've gone after,

00:13:17.500 --> 00:13:18.559
 and which they've sought and worshipped.

00:13:18.719 --> 00:13:20.139
 And they shall be gathered or burned.

00:13:20.479 --> 00:13:21.620
 They shall not be gathered or burned,

00:13:21.659 --> 00:13:23.639
 and they shall be as dung on the surface of the ground.

00:13:23.639 --> 00:13:27.759
 Death shall be preferred to life

00:13:27.759 --> 00:13:30.779
 by all the remnant that remains of this evil family

00:13:30.779 --> 00:13:32.240
 in all the places where I've driven them,

00:13:32.480 --> 00:13:33.360
 declares the Lord of hosts.

00:13:33.559 --> 00:13:34.059
 Do you get the point?

00:13:35.299 --> 00:13:36.319
 It's really simple.

00:13:36.539 --> 00:13:40.039
 Spiritual hypocrisy begins with spiritual deafness,

00:13:40.620 --> 00:13:42.840
 and in the end it leads to spiritual death.

00:13:44.279 --> 00:13:46.279
 And that's God's sermon outline to Jeremiah.

00:13:47.700 --> 00:13:49.759
 We're going to find out how it played out

00:13:49.759 --> 00:13:50.860
 when he preached it.

00:13:50.860 --> 00:13:52.340
 You can probably guess how it played out.

00:13:55.120 --> 00:13:56.480
 I wonder how it played out

00:13:56.480 --> 00:13:57.899
 to those who were actually in exile,

00:13:58.840 --> 00:14:01.220
 to those who are reflecting on their experience

00:14:01.220 --> 00:14:02.539
 a generation and a half later.

00:14:02.919 --> 00:14:05.120
 But what has it got to do with us today?

00:14:08.120 --> 00:14:10.120
 So the first application is really obvious, isn't it?

00:14:10.220 --> 00:14:11.800
 Are you spiritually deaf?

00:14:14.200 --> 00:14:16.399
 Because spiritual deafness is a condition

00:14:16.399 --> 00:14:18.759
 that persists this side of Jesus' coming.

00:14:20.860 --> 00:14:22.320
 You don't need to tell me,

00:14:23.220 --> 00:14:24.440
 you don't need me to tell you

00:14:24.440 --> 00:14:26.060
 that it's more than possible

00:14:26.060 --> 00:14:27.200
 to be a follower of the Lord Jesus

00:14:27.200 --> 00:14:30.139
 and to be exposed to the Word of God

00:14:30.139 --> 00:14:33.419
 and not pay the blindest bit of attention to it.

00:14:35.700 --> 00:14:37.379
 It's possible to get out of the bed in the morning

00:14:37.379 --> 00:14:38.659
 to congratulate yourself

00:14:38.659 --> 00:14:39.879
 that you've opened up your Bible

00:14:39.879 --> 00:14:43.500
 and to allow your eye to range over the page

00:14:43.500 --> 00:14:45.180
 without hearing and believing the Word of God.

00:14:45.179 --> 00:14:48.159
 It's possible to sit through church,

00:14:49.299 --> 00:14:51.779
 allowing God speaking into our lives

00:14:51.779 --> 00:14:53.879
 without realizing that it's actually God

00:14:53.879 --> 00:14:54.979
 who speaks to us

00:14:54.979 --> 00:14:57.199
 and about us.

00:14:59.279 --> 00:15:01.299
 And then we have a spiritual hearing problem.

00:15:02.739 --> 00:15:04.039
 And if we don't address

00:15:04.039 --> 00:15:05.299
 our spiritual hearing problem,

00:15:05.379 --> 00:15:06.139
 in the end,

00:15:06.239 --> 00:15:08.779
 it will lead into full-blown spiritual deafness,

00:15:08.779 --> 00:15:10.019
 which in turn

00:15:10.019 --> 00:15:13.199
 will produce all kinds of complications.

00:15:15.980 --> 00:15:17.079
 And is this the pressing need

00:15:17.079 --> 00:15:18.459
 that you and I need to address?

00:15:18.620 --> 00:15:20.279
 Because act quickly.

00:15:21.679 --> 00:15:23.139
 Because spiritual deafness

00:15:23.139 --> 00:15:24.039
 will inevitably,

00:15:24.319 --> 00:15:25.559
 and it will quickly lead

00:15:25.559 --> 00:15:26.759
 to spiritual hypocrisy

00:15:26.759 --> 00:15:27.620
 if you don't do anything about it.

00:15:29.620 --> 00:15:31.240
 It's spiritual deafness

00:15:31.240 --> 00:15:32.399
 which allows you and I

00:15:32.399 --> 00:15:34.360
 to have an inflated view of ourselves.

00:15:34.360 --> 00:15:38.259
 It's spiritual deafness

00:15:38.259 --> 00:15:39.580
 that creates the context

00:15:39.580 --> 00:15:41.259
 where we can start to deceive ourselves.

00:15:42.860 --> 00:15:43.500
 And see,

00:15:43.639 --> 00:15:46.139
 if we aren't hearing God speak,

00:15:47.399 --> 00:15:48.720
 what does God do when he speaks?

00:15:48.779 --> 00:15:49.360
 He corrects,

00:15:49.399 --> 00:15:51.820
 he shapes us,

00:15:52.120 --> 00:15:53.100
 he exposes us,

00:15:53.539 --> 00:15:54.419
 he humbles us,

00:15:55.080 --> 00:15:56.460
 he straightens out our thinking.

00:15:57.700 --> 00:15:59.639
 And if we refuse to hear him,

00:15:59.879 --> 00:16:00.560
 sooner or later,

00:16:00.620 --> 00:16:01.960
 we start to believe our own publicity

00:16:01.960 --> 00:16:02.659
 about ourselves.

00:16:02.659 --> 00:16:05.100
 We start thinking about ourselves

00:16:05.100 --> 00:16:06.019
 more highly than we ought

00:16:06.019 --> 00:16:08.379
 and gradually we start judging other people

00:16:08.379 --> 00:16:11.179
 by the measure of our own

00:16:11.179 --> 00:16:13.879
 incredibly high standard.

00:16:15.179 --> 00:16:17.719
 And we become smug and pharisaical

00:16:17.719 --> 00:16:19.659
 and high-handed and hard-hearted.

00:16:21.500 --> 00:16:24.259
 And our antenna becomes finely tuned

00:16:24.259 --> 00:16:26.579
 to detect the sins of others,

00:16:26.639 --> 00:16:28.459
 but it's oblivious for our own.

00:16:28.879 --> 00:16:30.319
 And it stinks.

00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:34.320
 And so I hope you know

00:16:34.320 --> 00:16:36.300
 that nothing does more damage

00:16:36.300 --> 00:16:37.140
 to the church

00:16:37.140 --> 00:16:39.960
 than the corrosive stench of hypocrisy.

00:16:41.600 --> 00:16:42.160
 You see,

00:16:42.220 --> 00:16:43.540
 the problem with spiritual deafness

00:16:43.540 --> 00:16:43.900
 is this,

00:16:43.960 --> 00:16:44.660
 it's progressive.

00:16:46.980 --> 00:16:48.300
 You don't wake up one day

00:16:48.300 --> 00:16:49.460
 and suddenly you're spiritually deaf.

00:16:49.600 --> 00:16:51.400
 It gradually happens,

00:16:51.500 --> 00:16:51.940
 doesn't it?

00:16:51.940 --> 00:16:54.440
 And the thing is this,

00:16:54.500 --> 00:16:56.000
 as we stop listening,

00:16:56.100 --> 00:16:57.500
 it becomes harder and harder to listen.

00:16:58.780 --> 00:17:00.900
 And so it becomes easier and easier

00:17:00.900 --> 00:17:02.260
 to continue in our hypocrisy.

00:17:03.260 --> 00:17:05.160
 The more that we ignore God,

00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:06.920
 the easier it is to ignore God

00:17:06.920 --> 00:17:08.440
 and we do damage to ourselves.

00:17:09.840 --> 00:17:11.740
 And the easier it becomes to dissipate.

00:17:11.799 --> 00:17:12.779
 It's not rocket science.

00:17:12.779 --> 00:17:15.759
 And so,

00:17:16.279 --> 00:17:16.779
 children,

00:17:16.920 --> 00:17:17.599
 your parents,

00:17:18.139 --> 00:17:19.180
 they tell you this,

00:17:19.240 --> 00:17:19.480
 I hope,

00:17:19.559 --> 00:17:21.059
 that the more that you sin,

00:17:21.700 --> 00:17:23.759
 the easier it becomes to sin.

00:17:25.279 --> 00:17:26.480
 It's why mum and dad,

00:17:26.559 --> 00:17:27.879
 they want to correct you,

00:17:27.940 --> 00:17:29.420
 they want to stop you in your tracks

00:17:29.420 --> 00:17:32.379
 while it's beginning,

00:17:32.599 --> 00:17:33.980
 because the more you sin,

00:17:35.259 --> 00:17:36.799
 the easier it becomes to sin.

00:17:36.799 --> 00:17:40.440
 And so,

00:17:40.559 --> 00:17:41.059
 children and young people,

00:17:41.139 --> 00:17:41.619
 you need to know

00:17:41.619 --> 00:17:43.680
 that it's not just for you,

00:17:43.779 --> 00:17:44.659
 it's for us as well.

00:17:46.980 --> 00:17:48.680
 The pastor who calls his people

00:17:48.680 --> 00:17:49.899
 to repentance and faith,

00:17:49.980 --> 00:17:51.319
 but he refuses to apologise

00:17:51.319 --> 00:17:52.460
 to his family for anything.

00:17:53.779 --> 00:17:54.680
 The youth group leader

00:17:54.680 --> 00:17:55.899
 who desperately wants

00:17:55.899 --> 00:17:56.899
 to disciple the young people

00:17:56.899 --> 00:17:57.440
 and yet he thinks

00:17:57.440 --> 00:17:58.460
 he's got nothing to learn.

00:18:00.299 --> 00:18:03.079
 The husband who insists

00:18:03.079 --> 00:18:05.019
 that his wife submit to him,

00:18:05.119 --> 00:18:06.559
 but he's actually got no,

00:18:06.799 --> 00:18:07.859
 interest in submitting

00:18:07.859 --> 00:18:08.559
 to the Lord Jesus.

00:18:09.559 --> 00:18:11.119
 The elder who rails

00:18:11.119 --> 00:18:13.139
 against the immorality of society,

00:18:13.359 --> 00:18:15.740
 but secretly is addicted to porn.

00:18:16.139 --> 00:18:17.899
 The friend who prides herself

00:18:17.899 --> 00:18:18.619
 on loyalty,

00:18:18.779 --> 00:18:20.460
 but she'll use any confidence

00:18:20.460 --> 00:18:21.419
 for her own interests.

00:18:22.819 --> 00:18:24.619
 The young person who prays

00:18:24.619 --> 00:18:25.559
 that her friends

00:18:25.559 --> 00:18:26.440
 will come to know

00:18:26.440 --> 00:18:27.079
 the Lord Jesus,

00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:28.460
 but she indulges in gossip

00:18:28.460 --> 00:18:29.220
 about others.

00:18:31.220 --> 00:18:32.940
 Hypocrisy comes in many forms

00:18:32.940 --> 00:18:33.919
 and many guises,

00:18:33.920 --> 00:18:36.820
 but it's dangerous

00:18:36.820 --> 00:18:38.660
 and we may have slipped

00:18:38.660 --> 00:18:39.220
 into that.

00:18:40.519 --> 00:18:41.320
 And so many of us

00:18:41.320 --> 00:18:42.820
 are really skilled manipulators,

00:18:42.940 --> 00:18:43.120
 aren't they?

00:18:43.140 --> 00:18:44.200
 You know what to say to me,

00:18:44.259 --> 00:18:45.160
 I know what to say to you,

00:18:45.220 --> 00:18:46.860
 and we can hide the reality

00:18:46.860 --> 00:18:47.860
 of our hearts really easily.

00:18:49.360 --> 00:18:50.420
 And so tonight

00:18:50.420 --> 00:18:51.600
 would be a great time

00:18:51.600 --> 00:18:53.019
 to come clean before God.

00:18:54.259 --> 00:18:55.420
 Because let me tell you this,

00:18:55.480 --> 00:18:56.259
 spiritual hypocrisy

00:18:56.259 --> 00:18:58.360
 will end up in only one place,

00:18:58.359 --> 00:19:00.539
 and you are dicing

00:19:00.539 --> 00:19:02.139
 with spiritual death tonight,

00:19:02.659 --> 00:19:03.199
 if that's you.

00:19:04.859 --> 00:19:05.859
 And so these issues,

00:19:06.000 --> 00:19:06.859
 according to the Lord Jesus,

00:19:07.000 --> 00:19:07.899
 they're not small issues,

00:19:07.939 --> 00:19:08.259
 are they?

00:19:09.919 --> 00:19:11.419
 This kind of pretense

00:19:11.419 --> 00:19:14.539
 imperils your very soul.

00:19:16.179 --> 00:19:16.959
 And I don't think

00:19:16.959 --> 00:19:18.119
 it's wrong to say this,

00:19:18.199 --> 00:19:19.859
 that actually this is,

00:19:20.079 --> 00:19:20.879
 in many ways,

00:19:20.939 --> 00:19:21.979
 the dominant note

00:19:21.979 --> 00:19:22.819
 of Jesus' ministry,

00:19:22.919 --> 00:19:23.179
 isn't it?

00:19:23.180 --> 00:19:26.940
 Nowhere does this note

00:19:26.940 --> 00:19:28.500
 of the danger of hypocrisy

00:19:28.500 --> 00:19:29.220
 sound more clearly

00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:30.080
 than in Luke 18.

00:19:32.060 --> 00:19:33.240
 Jesus told this parable

00:19:33.240 --> 00:19:35.340
 to some who trusted in themselves

00:19:35.340 --> 00:19:37.380
 and that they were righteous

00:19:37.380 --> 00:19:38.220
 and they treated others

00:19:38.220 --> 00:19:38.660
 with contempt.

00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:39.380
 There's two men

00:19:39.380 --> 00:19:40.259
 who went up to the temple

00:19:40.259 --> 00:19:41.200
 to pray.

00:19:41.360 --> 00:19:42.500
 One was a Pharisee

00:19:42.500 --> 00:19:43.620
 and the other a tax collector.

00:19:44.700 --> 00:19:46.299
 And the Pharisee stood by himself

00:19:46.299 --> 00:19:46.779
 and he prayed,

00:19:46.940 --> 00:19:47.620
 God, I thank you

00:19:47.620 --> 00:19:48.740
 that I'm not like other men.

00:19:50.340 --> 00:19:51.519
 I'm pretty decent.

00:19:51.700 --> 00:19:52.980
 I'm not an extortioner.

00:19:53.420 --> 00:19:54.900
 I'm not unjust and adulterer.

00:19:55.160 --> 00:19:56.680
 I'm not like this tax collector.

00:19:57.660 --> 00:19:58.700
 I fast twice a week.

00:19:58.779 --> 00:19:59.940
 I give a tithe of all I get.

00:20:01.140 --> 00:20:02.039
 But the tax collector,

00:20:02.039 --> 00:20:03.519
 he stood at a far off

00:20:03.519 --> 00:20:04.039
 in a distance

00:20:04.039 --> 00:20:05.200
 and he wouldn't even lift up

00:20:05.200 --> 00:20:05.880
 his eyes to heaven.

00:20:07.100 --> 00:20:08.440
 And he beat his breast

00:20:08.440 --> 00:20:08.820
 and he said,

00:20:08.940 --> 00:20:10.200
 God, be merciful to me,

00:20:10.259 --> 00:20:10.720
 a sinner.

00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:12.620
 And Jesus says,

00:20:12.660 --> 00:20:13.960
 I tell you that this man

00:20:13.960 --> 00:20:16.480
 went home to his house

00:20:16.480 --> 00:20:17.720
 justified right with God

00:20:17.720 --> 00:20:18.400
 rather than the other.

00:20:19.500 --> 00:20:21.019
 For everyone who exalts himself

00:20:21.019 --> 00:20:21.720
 will be humbled

00:20:21.720 --> 00:20:23.480
 and the one who humbles himself

00:20:23.480 --> 00:20:24.039
 will be exalted.

00:20:24.319 --> 00:20:25.559
 Religion kills.

00:20:27.039 --> 00:20:28.140
 And spiritual deafness

00:20:28.140 --> 00:20:29.519
 leads to spiritual hypocrisy,

00:20:29.900 --> 00:20:31.559
 which leads to spiritual death.

00:20:31.640 --> 00:20:32.779
 And this is a hard message

00:20:32.779 --> 00:20:33.259
 to preach

00:20:33.259 --> 00:20:34.120
 and it's a hard message

00:20:34.120 --> 00:20:34.600
 to hear.

00:20:36.380 --> 00:20:37.500
 And one of the effects

00:20:37.500 --> 00:20:38.220
 of religion

00:20:38.220 --> 00:20:39.660
 is the hardness

00:20:39.660 --> 00:20:40.920
 against anyone

00:20:40.920 --> 00:20:42.680
 who exposes

00:20:42.680 --> 00:20:43.680
 our pretense.

00:20:43.680 --> 00:20:47.360
 And so what happened

00:20:47.360 --> 00:20:47.860
 to Jeremiah

00:20:47.860 --> 00:20:48.880
 is what ultimately

00:20:48.880 --> 00:20:49.920
 happened to the Lord Jesus.

00:20:50.840 --> 00:20:52.539
 Why did the Pharisees

00:20:52.539 --> 00:20:53.480
 and the religious leaders

00:20:53.480 --> 00:20:54.500
 kill Jesus?

00:20:54.740 --> 00:20:55.660
 Because his message

00:20:55.660 --> 00:20:56.480
 was exactly the same

00:20:56.480 --> 00:20:56.920
 as Jeremiah.

00:20:58.560 --> 00:20:59.440
 Religion kills,

00:20:59.600 --> 00:21:00.140
 but secondly,

00:21:00.720 --> 00:21:01.920
 only God gives life.

00:21:03.220 --> 00:21:03.840
 And that takes us

00:21:03.840 --> 00:21:04.600
 to the second movement

00:21:04.600 --> 00:21:05.000
 of the section

00:21:05.000 --> 00:21:07.000
 from 8.4 to 10.25.

00:21:07.320 --> 00:21:08.460
 And the gentle prose

00:21:08.460 --> 00:21:09.380
 of the temple sermon

00:21:09.380 --> 00:21:10.500
 in 7.1 to 8.3,

00:21:11.019 --> 00:21:11.600
 well, you're back

00:21:11.600 --> 00:21:12.279
 to the poetry,

00:21:12.519 --> 00:21:13.400
 searing poetry.

00:21:13.400 --> 00:21:14.720
 of Jeremiah

00:21:14.720 --> 00:21:15.600
 in chapter 8 to 10.

00:21:16.880 --> 00:21:17.280
 Initially,

00:21:17.440 --> 00:21:18.019
 the focus

00:21:18.019 --> 00:21:19.460
 is on the fact

00:21:19.460 --> 00:21:20.400
 that,

00:21:20.400 --> 00:21:22.300
 well, let's look,

00:21:22.360 --> 00:21:23.080
 according to 8.4,

00:21:24.640 --> 00:21:25.759
 that people get up

00:21:25.759 --> 00:21:26.640
 when they fall down

00:21:26.640 --> 00:21:27.340
 and come back

00:21:27.340 --> 00:21:27.940
 when they go away,

00:21:28.000 --> 00:21:28.640
 but not Israel.

00:21:29.680 --> 00:21:30.240
 Verse 5.

00:21:30.700 --> 00:21:31.800
 Why then has this people

00:21:31.800 --> 00:21:32.320
 turned away

00:21:32.320 --> 00:21:32.980
 in perpetual,

00:21:33.160 --> 00:21:34.080
 continual backsliding?

00:21:34.740 --> 00:21:36.019
 They hold fast to deceit,

00:21:36.080 --> 00:21:36.880
 they refuse to return.

00:21:37.740 --> 00:21:38.880
 Even the stork in heaven,

00:21:39.000 --> 00:21:40.160
 the birds knows their times,

00:21:40.519 --> 00:21:41.019
 the turtle dove

00:21:41.019 --> 00:21:41.720
 that swallow the crane,

00:21:41.820 --> 00:21:42.320
 they keep the time

00:21:42.320 --> 00:21:42.620
 in their coming,

00:21:42.619 --> 00:21:43.179
 but my people

00:21:43.179 --> 00:21:43.739
 know not

00:21:43.739 --> 00:21:45.259
 the rules of the Lord.

00:21:45.699 --> 00:21:46.479
 Verse 8,

00:21:46.979 --> 00:21:47.599
 God's people say,

00:21:47.719 --> 00:21:48.279
 we're wise

00:21:48.279 --> 00:21:49.319
 and the law

00:21:49.319 --> 00:21:49.739
 of the Lord

00:21:49.739 --> 00:21:50.359
 is with us,

00:21:50.419 --> 00:21:50.979
 but verse 9,

00:21:51.059 --> 00:21:51.539
 they've rejected

00:21:51.539 --> 00:21:52.159
 the word of the Lord.

00:21:53.279 --> 00:21:53.979
 So what wisdom

00:21:53.979 --> 00:21:54.399
 is in them?

00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:56.619
 Disaster is approaching.

00:21:57.500 --> 00:21:58.399
 The leaders of Israel

00:21:58.399 --> 00:21:59.179
 are delusional.

00:21:59.279 --> 00:21:59.899
 Look at verse 11,

00:21:59.900 --> 00:22:00.880
 they've healed the wound

00:22:00.880 --> 00:22:01.759
 of my people lightly,

00:22:01.920 --> 00:22:02.440
 saying peace,

00:22:02.560 --> 00:22:02.759
 peace,

00:22:02.820 --> 00:22:03.660
 when there is no peace.

00:22:05.560 --> 00:22:06.259
 Were they ashamed

00:22:06.259 --> 00:22:06.759
 when they committed

00:22:06.759 --> 00:22:07.740
 abomination?

00:22:07.960 --> 00:22:08.040
 No,

00:22:08.060 --> 00:22:08.780
 they were not at all ashamed.

00:22:08.860 --> 00:22:09.360
 They didn't know

00:22:09.360 --> 00:22:10.519
 how to blush.

00:22:10.980 --> 00:22:11.840
 And when catastrophe

00:22:11.840 --> 00:22:12.900
 looms in chapter 8,

00:22:12.960 --> 00:22:13.519
 verse 14,

00:22:13.600 --> 00:22:14.460
 they're apparently

00:22:14.460 --> 00:22:15.400
 taken in their stride.

00:22:16.880 --> 00:22:17.980
 Why do we sit still?

00:22:18.340 --> 00:22:19.460
 Let us gather together.

00:22:19.540 --> 00:22:20.800
 Let us go down the pub.

00:22:21.640 --> 00:22:22.519
 Let's go into the

00:22:22.519 --> 00:22:23.400
 fortified cities

00:22:23.400 --> 00:22:25.000
 and perish there.

00:22:26.019 --> 00:22:26.600
 For the Lord,

00:22:26.720 --> 00:22:27.220
 our God,

00:22:27.259 --> 00:22:28.560
 has doomed us to perish

00:22:28.560 --> 00:22:29.500
 and he's given us

00:22:29.500 --> 00:22:30.540
 poison water to drink

00:22:30.540 --> 00:22:31.220
 because we've sinned

00:22:31.220 --> 00:22:31.860
 against the Lord.

00:22:32.160 --> 00:22:33.140
 Let's just die now.

00:22:34.720 --> 00:22:35.340
 And what effect

00:22:35.340 --> 00:22:35.960
 does this have

00:22:35.960 --> 00:22:36.460
 on Jeremiah,

00:22:36.620 --> 00:22:37.420
 verse 18?

00:22:37.860 --> 00:22:38.880
 My joy is gone.

00:22:40.440 --> 00:22:41.220
 Grief is upon me.

00:22:41.280 --> 00:22:42.400
 My heart is sick

00:22:42.400 --> 00:22:43.000
 within me.

00:22:43.100 --> 00:22:43.360
 Behold,

00:22:43.440 --> 00:22:44.259
 the cry of the daughter

00:22:44.259 --> 00:22:44.900
 of my people

00:22:44.900 --> 00:22:45.860
 from the length

00:22:45.860 --> 00:22:46.720
 and breadth of the land

00:22:46.720 --> 00:22:47.460
 is the Lord

00:22:47.460 --> 00:22:48.240
 not in Zion.

00:22:48.740 --> 00:22:49.540
 Is her king

00:22:49.540 --> 00:22:50.060
 not in her?

00:22:51.560 --> 00:22:52.240
 Don't worry.

00:22:52.560 --> 00:22:52.960
 It's okay.

00:22:53.400 --> 00:22:54.440
 God is on our side.

00:22:56.120 --> 00:22:56.580
 Why have you

00:22:56.580 --> 00:22:57.660
 provoked me to anger

00:22:57.660 --> 00:22:59.580
 with their carved image

00:22:59.580 --> 00:23:00.640
 and their foreign gods?

00:23:02.259 --> 00:23:03.500
 The harvest has passed.

00:23:04.380 --> 00:23:05.440
 The summer has ended

00:23:05.440 --> 00:23:07.700
 and we are not saved.

00:23:07.900 --> 00:23:08.960
 What is God doing?

00:23:11.100 --> 00:23:12.420
 But as the inevitable comes,

00:23:12.500 --> 00:23:13.620
 it breaks Jeremiah's heart.

00:23:14.880 --> 00:23:15.640
 For the wound

00:23:15.640 --> 00:23:16.120
 of the daughter

00:23:16.120 --> 00:23:16.700
 of my people

00:23:16.700 --> 00:23:17.920
 is my heart wounded.

00:23:19.259 --> 00:23:19.860
 I mourn

00:23:19.860 --> 00:23:20.320
 and dismay

00:23:20.320 --> 00:23:21.220
 has taken hold of me.

00:23:21.380 --> 00:23:21.720
 He says,

00:23:21.800 --> 00:23:22.519
 is there no balm

00:23:22.519 --> 00:23:23.080
 in Gilead?

00:23:23.079 --> 00:23:23.839
 Is there no physician

00:23:23.839 --> 00:23:24.139
 there?

00:23:25.299 --> 00:23:26.000
 Why then

00:23:26.000 --> 00:23:26.500
 is the health

00:23:26.500 --> 00:23:26.919
 of my people

00:23:26.919 --> 00:23:27.659
 not being restored?

00:23:28.439 --> 00:23:29.019
 The problem

00:23:29.019 --> 00:23:29.679
 isn't that healing

00:23:29.679 --> 00:23:30.519
 is unavailable

00:23:30.519 --> 00:23:31.419
 for the people

00:23:31.419 --> 00:23:31.720
 of Judah

00:23:31.720 --> 00:23:33.240
 and there's plentiful

00:23:33.240 --> 00:23:33.740
 supplies

00:23:33.740 --> 00:23:34.639
 in the ancient

00:23:34.639 --> 00:23:35.559
 chemist's warehouse.

00:23:37.379 --> 00:23:38.319
 That was filled

00:23:38.319 --> 00:23:39.059
 but Israel

00:23:39.059 --> 00:23:40.079
 refuses to ask

00:23:40.079 --> 00:23:40.419
 for help.

00:23:40.480 --> 00:23:40.919
 So Jeremiah

00:23:40.919 --> 00:23:41.439
 laments

00:23:41.439 --> 00:23:42.000
 chapter 9

00:23:42.000 --> 00:23:42.500
 verse 1.

00:23:42.500 --> 00:23:44.140
 I don't know

00:23:44.140 --> 00:24:09.519
 whether you notice

00:24:09.519 --> 00:24:10.259
 something strange

00:24:10.259 --> 00:24:10.519
 there.

00:24:10.259 --> 00:24:10.579
 there.

00:24:11.740 --> 00:24:12.319
 Chapter 8

00:24:12.319 --> 00:24:13.000
 and verse 18

00:24:13.000 --> 00:24:13.599
 it's really clear

00:24:13.599 --> 00:24:14.379
 that it's Jeremiah

00:24:14.379 --> 00:24:16.059
 that is bemoaning

00:24:16.059 --> 00:24:17.119
 the state of God's people.

00:24:17.460 --> 00:24:17.920
 He's preaching

00:24:17.920 --> 00:24:19.879
 and yet by the end

00:24:19.879 --> 00:24:20.579
 of his sermon

00:24:20.579 --> 00:24:21.539
 it is God's words.

00:24:22.819 --> 00:24:23.700
 It seems that

00:24:23.700 --> 00:24:24.579
 the words of the prophet

00:24:24.579 --> 00:24:26.639
 and the words of the Lord

00:24:26.639 --> 00:24:27.319
 have morphed.

00:24:29.099 --> 00:24:29.839
 Jeremiah's words

00:24:29.839 --> 00:24:31.000
 are Yahweh's words

00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:32.299
 and vice versa.

00:24:33.299 --> 00:24:34.480
 Jeremiah's pain

00:24:34.480 --> 00:24:35.839
 is the Lord's pain.

00:24:35.960 --> 00:24:36.980
 Jeremiah's longings

00:24:36.980 --> 00:24:38.180
 are the Lord's longings.

00:24:39.380 --> 00:24:39.880
 Both God

00:24:39.880 --> 00:24:40.579
 and his prophet

00:24:40.579 --> 00:24:41.860
 care for his people

00:24:41.860 --> 00:24:43.019
 to come back.

00:24:43.839 --> 00:24:44.079
 And so

00:24:44.079 --> 00:24:45.220
 if I say this reverently

00:24:45.220 --> 00:24:45.900
 we see God

00:24:45.900 --> 00:24:46.620
 up close

00:24:46.620 --> 00:24:47.240
 and personal

00:24:47.240 --> 00:24:47.759
 in the ministry

00:24:47.759 --> 00:24:48.220
 of Jeremiah.

00:24:49.900 --> 00:24:51.240
 The emotional temperature

00:24:51.240 --> 00:24:52.160
 continues to rise

00:24:52.160 --> 00:24:53.160
 and Yahweh

00:24:53.160 --> 00:24:53.819
 and his prophet

00:24:53.819 --> 00:24:54.680
 they expose

00:24:54.680 --> 00:24:55.299
 the sin

00:24:55.299 --> 00:24:57.200
 of the people

00:24:57.200 --> 00:24:58.059
 and the inevitable

00:24:58.059 --> 00:24:59.299
 response from God

00:24:59.299 --> 00:24:59.839
 chapter 9

00:24:59.839 --> 00:25:00.319
 verse 6

00:25:00.319 --> 00:25:01.140
 he being oppression

00:25:01.140 --> 00:25:01.839
 upon oppression

00:25:01.839 --> 00:25:02.819
 deceit upon deceit

00:25:02.819 --> 00:25:03.720
 they refuse to know

00:25:03.720 --> 00:25:04.480
 he declares the Lord.

00:25:05.660 --> 00:25:06.400
 Therefore thus says

00:25:06.400 --> 00:25:06.900
 the Lord of hosts

00:25:06.900 --> 00:25:07.519
 behold I will

00:25:07.519 --> 00:25:08.340
 refine them

00:25:08.340 --> 00:25:08.920
 and test them.

00:25:09.220 --> 00:25:09.600
 Verse 9

00:25:09.600 --> 00:25:10.380
 shall I not punish them?

00:25:10.840 --> 00:25:11.300
 Verse 11

00:25:11.300 --> 00:25:12.100
 I'll make Jerusalem

00:25:12.100 --> 00:25:13.000
 a heap of ruins

00:25:13.000 --> 00:25:14.200
 a lair of jackals

00:25:14.200 --> 00:25:15.160
 and I'll make the cities

00:25:15.160 --> 00:25:15.620
 of Judah

00:25:15.620 --> 00:25:16.140
 a destruction

00:25:16.140 --> 00:25:16.880
 without an inhabitant.

00:25:17.140 --> 00:25:17.840
 And then chapter 9

00:25:17.840 --> 00:25:18.480
 verse 12

00:25:18.480 --> 00:25:20.100
 well you've got another

00:25:20.100 --> 00:25:20.840
 calm and collected

00:25:20.840 --> 00:25:21.519
 prose section

00:25:21.519 --> 00:25:23.360
 and it sums up

00:25:23.360 --> 00:25:23.980
 the situation

00:25:23.980 --> 00:25:24.700
 who is the man

00:25:24.700 --> 00:25:25.200
 so wise

00:25:25.200 --> 00:25:26.180
 that he can understand this?

00:25:26.280 --> 00:25:26.940
 To whom has the mouth

00:25:26.940 --> 00:25:27.600
 of the Lord spoken

00:25:27.600 --> 00:25:28.440
 that he may declare it?

00:25:29.180 --> 00:25:30.340
 Why is the land ruined?

00:25:30.500 --> 00:25:31.019
 Well because

00:25:31.019 --> 00:25:31.660
 verse 13

00:25:31.660 --> 00:25:33.640
 because they forsaken

00:25:33.640 --> 00:25:34.100
 my law

00:25:34.100 --> 00:25:35.600
 that I've set before them

00:25:35.599 --> 00:25:36.559
 they've not obeyed by voice

00:25:36.559 --> 00:25:37.619
 or walked in accord with it

00:25:37.619 --> 00:25:38.259
 they've stubbornly

00:25:38.259 --> 00:25:39.139
 followed their own hearts

00:25:39.139 --> 00:25:40.219
 and have gone after the Baals

00:25:40.219 --> 00:25:41.059
 as their fathers taught.

00:25:41.939 --> 00:25:42.699
 Therefore thus says

00:25:42.699 --> 00:25:43.159
 the Lord of hosts

00:25:43.159 --> 00:25:43.619
 the God of Israel

00:25:43.619 --> 00:25:44.919
 behold I'll feed this people

00:25:44.919 --> 00:25:46.059
 with bitter food

00:25:46.059 --> 00:25:47.159
 and give them poisonous water

00:25:47.160 --> 00:25:48.180
 I'm going to scatter them

00:25:48.180 --> 00:25:48.820
 among the nations

00:25:48.820 --> 00:25:50.800
 and I'll set the sword

00:25:50.800 --> 00:25:51.320
 after them

00:25:51.320 --> 00:25:52.660
 until I've consumed them

00:25:52.660 --> 00:25:53.259
 and at this point

00:25:53.259 --> 00:25:54.000
 the mourning women

00:25:54.000 --> 00:25:54.580
 come again

00:25:54.580 --> 00:25:57.180
 verse 17 to 22

00:25:57.180 --> 00:25:59.259
 the sad ladies

00:25:59.259 --> 00:25:59.800
 have sung

00:25:59.800 --> 00:26:01.180
 and it looks like

00:26:01.180 --> 00:26:01.720
 it's all over.

00:26:03.259 --> 00:26:03.860
 And at this point

00:26:03.860 --> 00:26:04.560
 you can be forgiven

00:26:04.560 --> 00:26:04.940
 of thinking

00:26:04.940 --> 00:26:06.519
 I thought the second point

00:26:06.519 --> 00:26:07.420
 of this passage

00:26:07.420 --> 00:26:09.080
 was only God brings life

00:26:09.080 --> 00:26:10.160
 doesn't sound it.

00:26:13.060 --> 00:26:14.440
 I don't know what you feel

00:26:14.440 --> 00:26:15.440
 listening to these sermons

00:26:15.440 --> 00:26:16.380
 I can tell you what I feel

00:26:16.380 --> 00:26:17.340
 preparing them

00:26:17.340 --> 00:26:18.820
 it makes me

00:26:18.820 --> 00:26:20.160
 want to yell

00:26:20.160 --> 00:26:21.539
 okay

00:26:21.539 --> 00:26:22.380
 I get it

00:26:22.380 --> 00:26:23.420
 stop

00:26:23.420 --> 00:26:25.799
 enough

00:26:25.799 --> 00:26:27.940
 enough

00:26:27.940 --> 00:26:30.440
 there's no

00:26:30.440 --> 00:26:31.940
 new information here

00:26:31.940 --> 00:26:34.039
 it's the same thing

00:26:34.039 --> 00:26:35.059
 over and over

00:26:35.059 --> 00:26:36.100
 and over again

00:26:36.100 --> 00:26:37.559
 announce the spiritually deaf people

00:26:37.559 --> 00:26:38.700
 until we get to chapter 9

00:26:38.700 --> 00:26:39.799
 verses 23 and 24

00:26:39.799 --> 00:26:42.680
 you know these beautiful verses

00:26:42.680 --> 00:26:43.100
 I hope

00:26:43.100 --> 00:26:44.799
 look at them

00:26:44.799 --> 00:26:45.299
 chapter 9

00:26:45.299 --> 00:26:46.359
 verse 23 to 24

00:26:46.359 --> 00:26:47.619
 let not the wise man

00:26:47.619 --> 00:26:48.519
 boast in his wisdom

00:26:48.519 --> 00:26:50.259
 let not the mighty man

00:26:50.259 --> 00:26:50.940
 boast in his might

00:26:50.940 --> 00:26:51.799
 let not the rich man

00:26:51.799 --> 00:26:52.559
 boast in his riches

00:26:52.559 --> 00:26:53.579
 but let him who boasts

00:26:53.579 --> 00:26:54.279
 boast in this

00:26:54.279 --> 00:26:55.359
 that he understands

00:26:55.359 --> 00:26:56.379
 and knows me

00:26:56.379 --> 00:26:57.980
 that I am the Lord

00:26:57.980 --> 00:26:58.539
 who practices

00:26:58.539 --> 00:26:59.879
 steadfast covenant love

00:26:59.879 --> 00:27:00.740
 justice and righteousness

00:27:00.740 --> 00:27:01.159
 on the earth

00:27:01.159 --> 00:27:02.000
 for in these things

00:27:02.000 --> 00:27:02.519
 I delight to

00:27:02.519 --> 00:27:02.960
 praise the Lord

00:27:02.960 --> 00:27:04.740
 and at this point

00:27:04.740 --> 00:27:05.519
 God strides

00:27:05.519 --> 00:27:06.339
 like a colossus

00:27:06.339 --> 00:27:07.299
 onto the centre stage

00:27:07.299 --> 00:27:09.059
 and he dominates

00:27:09.059 --> 00:27:10.099
 the rest of this long section

00:27:10.099 --> 00:27:12.619
 Jeremiah urges his people

00:27:12.619 --> 00:27:13.399
 choose God

00:27:13.399 --> 00:27:14.359
 because no one

00:27:14.359 --> 00:27:15.139
 and nothing

00:27:15.139 --> 00:27:16.119
 compares to him

00:27:16.119 --> 00:27:17.799
 let him who boasts

00:27:17.799 --> 00:27:18.339
 boast in this

00:27:18.339 --> 00:27:19.099
 and he understands

00:27:19.099 --> 00:27:19.759
 and knows me

00:27:19.759 --> 00:27:21.459
 and so

00:27:21.459 --> 00:27:22.399
 you do know

00:27:22.399 --> 00:27:22.699
 don't you

00:27:22.699 --> 00:27:23.299
 I hope that

00:27:23.299 --> 00:27:24.799
 there's a sense

00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:26.039
 in which all our deficiencies

00:27:26.039 --> 00:27:27.399
 and all our struggles

00:27:27.399 --> 00:27:27.779
 in life

00:27:27.779 --> 00:27:28.480
 can be traced back

00:27:28.480 --> 00:27:29.759
 to this one question

00:27:29.759 --> 00:27:32.619
 all our issues

00:27:32.619 --> 00:27:33.659
 in life

00:27:33.659 --> 00:27:34.459
 boil down to this

00:27:34.459 --> 00:27:35.259
 one question

00:27:35.259 --> 00:27:36.099
 do we

00:27:36.099 --> 00:27:36.779
 know

00:27:36.779 --> 00:27:37.579
 God

00:27:37.579 --> 00:27:40.319
 because it's the knowledge

00:27:40.319 --> 00:27:40.619
 of God

00:27:40.619 --> 00:27:41.219
 that can stop us

00:27:41.219 --> 00:27:41.799
 in our tracks

00:27:41.799 --> 00:27:44.259
 it is God himself

00:27:44.259 --> 00:27:45.319
 who can wean us

00:27:45.319 --> 00:27:46.299
 off all

00:27:46.299 --> 00:27:47.379
 inferior pleasures

00:27:47.379 --> 00:27:48.839
 it's God himself

00:27:48.839 --> 00:27:50.059
 who shows us

00:27:50.059 --> 00:27:51.019
 the emptiness

00:27:51.019 --> 00:27:52.099
 of every other oath

00:27:52.099 --> 00:27:54.259
 it's the knowledge

00:27:54.259 --> 00:27:54.619
 of God

00:27:54.619 --> 00:27:55.339
 which draws us

00:27:55.339 --> 00:27:56.279
 to faith and repentance

00:27:56.279 --> 00:27:56.939
 it's the knowledge

00:27:56.939 --> 00:27:57.259
 of God

00:27:57.259 --> 00:27:58.439
 which softens our heart

00:27:58.439 --> 00:27:59.359
 and puts steel

00:27:59.359 --> 00:27:59.919
 in our backbone

00:27:59.919 --> 00:28:01.939
 and that is why

00:28:01.939 --> 00:28:02.459
 God himself

00:28:02.459 --> 00:28:03.719
 towers over these chapters

00:28:03.719 --> 00:28:04.679
 it's God

00:28:04.679 --> 00:28:05.679
 who will judge

00:28:05.680 --> 00:28:06.539
 every nation

00:28:06.539 --> 00:28:07.460
 that's uncircumcised

00:28:07.460 --> 00:28:07.940
 chapter 9

00:28:07.940 --> 00:28:08.880
 25 to 27

00:28:08.880 --> 00:28:10.960
 it's God

00:28:10.960 --> 00:28:11.779
 who in chapter 10

00:28:11.779 --> 00:28:13.160
 mocks all superstition

00:28:13.160 --> 00:28:13.600
 and their idols

00:28:13.600 --> 00:28:14.860
 it's an amazing

00:28:14.860 --> 00:28:15.539
 I don't know

00:28:15.539 --> 00:28:15.980
 whether he picked it up

00:28:15.980 --> 00:28:16.799
 look at chapter 10

00:28:16.799 --> 00:28:17.220
 verse 1

00:28:17.220 --> 00:28:18.340
 their idols

00:28:18.340 --> 00:28:19.140
 are like scarecrows

00:28:19.140 --> 00:28:20.100
 in a cucumber field

00:28:20.100 --> 00:28:22.019
 and they cannot speak

00:28:22.019 --> 00:28:22.860
 they're going to be carried

00:28:22.860 --> 00:28:24.980
 for they cannot walk

00:28:24.980 --> 00:28:25.900
 don't be afraid of them

00:28:25.900 --> 00:28:27.039
 they can't do evil

00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:27.759
 neither it's in them

00:28:27.759 --> 00:28:28.299
 to do good

00:28:28.299 --> 00:28:29.380
 at which point

00:28:29.380 --> 00:28:30.220
 Jeremiah warms

00:28:30.220 --> 00:28:30.860
 to his theme

00:28:30.860 --> 00:28:31.759
 he's a brilliant preacher

00:28:31.759 --> 00:28:33.100
 there's none like you

00:28:33.100 --> 00:28:33.420
 oh Lord

00:28:33.420 --> 00:28:34.039
 you are great

00:28:34.039 --> 00:28:35.140
 your name is great

00:28:35.140 --> 00:28:35.700
 in might

00:28:35.700 --> 00:28:37.240
 who would not fear

00:28:37.240 --> 00:28:38.180
 you oh king of the nations

00:28:38.180 --> 00:28:39.620
 for this is your due

00:28:39.620 --> 00:28:40.900
 for among all the wise

00:28:40.900 --> 00:28:41.860
 ones of the nations

00:28:41.860 --> 00:28:42.820
 and in all their kingdoms

00:28:42.820 --> 00:28:44.480
 there is none like you

00:28:44.480 --> 00:28:47.440
 and not to acknowledge you

00:28:47.440 --> 00:28:48.320
 and not to acknowledge God

00:28:48.320 --> 00:28:49.640
 is both stupid and foolish

00:28:49.640 --> 00:28:51.500
 verse 10

00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:52.480
 but the Lord is the true God

00:28:52.480 --> 00:28:54.060
 he's the living God

00:28:54.060 --> 00:28:55.200
 and the everlasting king

00:28:55.200 --> 00:28:56.540
 and his wrath

00:28:56.540 --> 00:28:57.360
 the earth quakes

00:28:57.360 --> 00:28:58.060
 and the nations

00:28:58.060 --> 00:28:58.800
 cannot endure

00:28:58.800 --> 00:28:59.640
 his indignation

00:28:59.640 --> 00:29:00.860
 verse 12

00:29:00.860 --> 00:29:01.840
 it is he who made the earth

00:29:01.840 --> 00:29:02.380
 by his power

00:29:02.380 --> 00:29:03.620
 verse 13

00:29:03.620 --> 00:29:04.360
 when he edits his voice

00:29:04.360 --> 00:29:05.280
 there's a tumult of waters

00:29:05.280 --> 00:29:05.800
 in the heavens

00:29:05.800 --> 00:29:07.400
 and he makes the mist rise

00:29:07.400 --> 00:29:08.140
 he makes lightning

00:29:08.140 --> 00:29:10.160
 it's not difficult

00:29:10.160 --> 00:29:12.900
 but it is relentless

00:29:12.900 --> 00:29:15.920
 and Jeremiah is driving home

00:29:15.920 --> 00:29:16.960
 this really simple truth

00:29:16.960 --> 00:29:17.740
 that God

00:29:17.740 --> 00:29:18.940
 is God

00:29:18.940 --> 00:29:20.320
 and you are not

00:29:20.320 --> 00:29:22.680
 verse 14

00:29:22.680 --> 00:29:23.900
 it's really

00:29:23.900 --> 00:29:25.320
 seeker sensitive language

00:29:25.320 --> 00:29:26.540
 every man is stupid

00:29:26.540 --> 00:29:27.260
 and without knowledge

00:29:27.259 --> 00:29:28.819
 every goldsmith

00:29:28.819 --> 00:29:29.379
 is put to shame

00:29:29.379 --> 00:29:30.099
 by their idols

00:29:30.099 --> 00:29:31.259
 verse 16

00:29:31.259 --> 00:29:32.599
 not like these

00:29:32.599 --> 00:29:33.559
 is he who is the portion

00:29:33.559 --> 00:29:33.879
 of Jacob

00:29:33.879 --> 00:29:34.460
 for he is the one

00:29:34.460 --> 00:29:35.119
 who formed all things

00:29:35.119 --> 00:29:35.759
 the Lord of hosts

00:29:35.759 --> 00:29:36.200
 is his name

00:29:36.200 --> 00:29:39.359
 only God can give Israel

00:29:39.359 --> 00:29:40.539
 hope and a future

00:29:40.539 --> 00:29:41.859
 and yes

00:29:41.859 --> 00:29:42.579
 chapter 10

00:29:42.579 --> 00:29:43.099
 verse 18

00:29:43.099 --> 00:29:43.779
 there is going to be

00:29:43.779 --> 00:29:44.900
 judgment in the short term

00:29:44.900 --> 00:29:45.519
 they're going to be

00:29:45.519 --> 00:29:46.279
 slung out the land

00:29:46.279 --> 00:29:46.819
 but it's not

00:29:46.819 --> 00:29:47.779
 a permanent reaction

00:29:47.779 --> 00:29:49.900
 it's a huge blow

00:29:49.900 --> 00:29:50.559
 but it's the wound

00:29:50.559 --> 00:29:51.000
 of a lover

00:29:51.000 --> 00:29:53.519
 Jeremiah cries out

00:29:53.519 --> 00:29:54.200
 in verse 19

00:29:54.200 --> 00:29:54.519
 again

00:29:54.519 --> 00:29:55.359
 woe is me

00:29:55.359 --> 00:29:56.180
 because my hurt

00:29:56.180 --> 00:29:57.220
 my wound is grievous

00:29:57.220 --> 00:29:58.259
 but I say truly

00:29:58.259 --> 00:29:59.200
 this is an affliction

00:29:59.200 --> 00:30:00.940
 and I must bear it

00:30:00.940 --> 00:30:03.320
 the invading forces

00:30:03.320 --> 00:30:04.180
 approach 1022

00:30:04.180 --> 00:30:05.080
 Jeremiah affirms

00:30:05.080 --> 00:30:05.920
 that it's in God alone

00:30:05.920 --> 00:30:06.560
 they can find hope

00:30:06.560 --> 00:30:07.860
 I know oh Lord

00:30:07.860 --> 00:30:09.600
 for the way of man

00:30:09.600 --> 00:30:10.320
 is not in himself

00:30:10.320 --> 00:30:11.480
 that it's not in man

00:30:11.480 --> 00:30:12.460
 who walks

00:30:12.460 --> 00:30:13.279
 the directest steps

00:30:13.279 --> 00:30:14.900
 correct me oh Lord

00:30:14.900 --> 00:30:15.900
 but in justice

00:30:15.900 --> 00:30:16.640
 not in your anger

00:30:16.640 --> 00:30:18.140
 lest you bring me

00:30:18.140 --> 00:30:18.460
 to nothing

00:30:18.460 --> 00:30:19.420
 pour out your wrath

00:30:19.420 --> 00:30:20.360
 but rescue me

00:30:20.360 --> 00:30:22.100
 and as passages

00:30:22.100 --> 00:30:23.000
 we read this

00:30:23.000 --> 00:30:23.940
 we find that they're moving

00:30:23.940 --> 00:30:24.700
 and they're compelling

00:30:24.700 --> 00:30:26.019
 they're heart wrenching

00:30:26.019 --> 00:30:26.460
 appeals

00:30:26.460 --> 00:30:27.940
 for people like

00:30:27.940 --> 00:30:28.539
 you and I

00:30:28.539 --> 00:30:29.460
 to come home to God

00:30:29.460 --> 00:30:31.920
 to come home to God

00:30:31.920 --> 00:30:32.720
 in repentance

00:30:32.720 --> 00:30:33.139
 and faith

00:30:33.139 --> 00:30:34.039
 so there is something

00:30:34.039 --> 00:30:34.440
 isn't there

00:30:34.440 --> 00:30:35.779
 absolutely exhausting

00:30:35.779 --> 00:30:36.480
 about Jeremiah

00:30:36.480 --> 00:30:38.519
 because in chapter

00:30:38.519 --> 00:30:39.440
 after chapter

00:30:39.440 --> 00:30:40.480
 it is hammered home

00:30:40.480 --> 00:30:41.119
 to people like you

00:30:41.119 --> 00:30:41.339
 and I

00:30:41.339 --> 00:30:42.539
 that religion kills

00:30:42.539 --> 00:30:43.920
 but only God

00:30:43.920 --> 00:30:44.460
 gives life

00:30:44.460 --> 00:30:47.460
 and the not listening

00:30:47.460 --> 00:30:47.960
 to God

00:30:47.960 --> 00:30:48.700
 can only end up

00:30:48.700 --> 00:30:49.259
 in one place

00:30:49.259 --> 00:30:50.019
 and so I hope

00:30:50.019 --> 00:30:50.639
 that this book

00:30:50.639 --> 00:30:51.599
 is growing on you

00:30:51.599 --> 00:30:52.460
 like it's grown on me

00:30:52.460 --> 00:30:55.920
 because in the fabric

00:30:55.920 --> 00:30:56.420
 of this book

00:30:56.420 --> 00:30:57.140
 we see God's

00:30:57.140 --> 00:30:58.440
 overarching purpose

00:30:58.440 --> 00:30:59.319
 the reason why

00:30:59.319 --> 00:30:59.920
 it's in the Bible

00:30:59.920 --> 00:31:00.920
 is to prepare us

00:31:00.920 --> 00:31:01.700
 for the arrival

00:31:01.700 --> 00:31:02.400
 of one

00:31:02.400 --> 00:31:04.480
 who came to a temple

00:31:04.480 --> 00:31:06.319
 and when he came

00:31:06.319 --> 00:31:06.900
 to a temple

00:31:06.900 --> 00:31:08.360
 he saw that it again

00:31:08.360 --> 00:31:08.960
 had become

00:31:08.960 --> 00:31:09.539
 do you remember

00:31:09.539 --> 00:31:10.559
 a den of thieves

00:31:10.559 --> 00:31:11.160
 and robbers

00:31:11.160 --> 00:31:13.059
 and one who came

00:31:13.059 --> 00:31:14.019
 to speak truth

00:31:14.019 --> 00:31:14.620
 to those who have

00:31:14.620 --> 00:31:15.380
 years to hear

00:31:15.380 --> 00:31:17.420
 and one who came

00:31:17.420 --> 00:31:17.920
 to confront

00:31:17.920 --> 00:31:19.059
 spiritual hypocrisy

00:31:19.059 --> 00:31:20.079
 in all its ugliness

00:31:20.079 --> 00:31:21.119
 and one who said

00:31:21.119 --> 00:31:21.639
 of Jerusalem

00:31:21.639 --> 00:31:22.379
 O Jerusalem

00:31:22.379 --> 00:31:22.819
 Jerusalem

00:31:22.819 --> 00:31:23.679
 the city

00:31:23.679 --> 00:31:24.159
 that kills

00:31:24.159 --> 00:31:24.679
 the prophet

00:31:24.679 --> 00:31:25.779
 and stones

00:31:25.779 --> 00:31:26.279
 those who are

00:31:26.279 --> 00:31:26.679
 sent to it

00:31:26.679 --> 00:31:27.279
 how often

00:31:27.279 --> 00:31:27.700
 I would have

00:31:27.700 --> 00:31:28.119
 gathered your

00:31:28.119 --> 00:31:28.819
 children together

00:31:28.819 --> 00:31:29.700
 as a hen

00:31:29.700 --> 00:31:30.639
 gathers her brood

00:31:30.639 --> 00:31:31.220
 under her wings

00:31:31.220 --> 00:31:32.079
 but you were not

00:31:32.079 --> 00:31:32.339
 willing

00:31:32.339 --> 00:31:32.960
 behold

00:31:32.960 --> 00:31:34.200
 your house

00:31:34.200 --> 00:31:34.819
 is forsaken

00:31:34.819 --> 00:31:37.399
 and I tell you

00:31:37.399 --> 00:31:38.440
 you will not see me

00:31:38.440 --> 00:31:39.339
 until you say

00:31:39.339 --> 00:31:40.039
 blessed is he

00:31:40.039 --> 00:31:40.500
 who comes

00:31:40.500 --> 00:31:40.919
 in the name

00:31:40.919 --> 00:31:41.399
 of the Lord

00:31:41.399 --> 00:31:41.740
 you see

00:31:41.740 --> 00:31:43.079
 Jeremiah's experience

00:31:43.079 --> 00:31:44.399
 is played out

00:31:44.399 --> 00:31:44.659
 for us

00:31:44.659 --> 00:31:45.399
 in overwhelming

00:31:45.399 --> 00:31:45.879
 detail

00:31:45.879 --> 00:31:46.720
 so that we might

00:31:46.720 --> 00:31:47.359
 hear the voice

00:31:47.359 --> 00:31:47.799
 of the one

00:31:47.799 --> 00:31:48.519
 who is to come

00:31:48.519 --> 00:31:50.079
 and says

00:31:50.079 --> 00:31:50.799
 all things

00:31:50.799 --> 00:31:51.400
 have been handed

00:31:51.400 --> 00:31:52.639
 over to me

00:31:52.639 --> 00:31:53.359
 by my father

00:31:53.359 --> 00:31:54.680
 and no one

00:31:54.680 --> 00:31:55.279
 knows the son

00:31:55.279 --> 00:31:56.000
 except the father

00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:56.680
 and no one

00:31:56.680 --> 00:31:57.319
 knows the father

00:31:57.319 --> 00:31:58.079
 except the son

00:31:58.079 --> 00:31:59.519
 and anyone

00:31:59.519 --> 00:32:00.279
 the son chooses

00:32:00.279 --> 00:32:01.019
 to reveal him to

00:32:01.019 --> 00:32:02.759
 who says

00:32:02.759 --> 00:32:03.460
 to you tonight

00:32:03.460 --> 00:32:04.619
 come to me

00:32:04.619 --> 00:32:05.619
 all you

00:32:05.619 --> 00:32:06.180
 who labor

00:32:06.180 --> 00:32:07.279
 and are heavy laden

00:32:07.279 --> 00:32:08.379
 and I will

00:32:08.379 --> 00:32:09.160
 give you rest

00:32:09.160 --> 00:32:11.119
 take my yoke

00:32:11.119 --> 00:32:11.700
 upon you

00:32:11.700 --> 00:32:12.420
 and learn from me

00:32:12.420 --> 00:32:12.980
 from gentle

00:32:12.980 --> 00:32:13.639
 and lowly

00:32:13.639 --> 00:32:14.339
 in heart

00:32:14.339 --> 00:32:14.839
 and you will

00:32:14.839 --> 00:32:15.339
 find rest

00:32:15.339 --> 00:32:15.940
 for yourselves

00:32:15.940 --> 00:32:17.559
 and my yoke

00:32:17.559 --> 00:32:18.180
 is easy

00:32:18.180 --> 00:32:19.840
 and my burden

00:32:19.840 --> 00:32:20.320
 is light

00:32:20.320 --> 00:32:22.140
 and one

00:32:22.140 --> 00:32:22.600
 who comes

00:32:22.600 --> 00:32:23.019
 and says

00:32:23.019 --> 00:32:23.320
 to you

00:32:23.320 --> 00:32:24.060
 I have come

00:32:24.060 --> 00:32:24.519
 that you may

00:32:24.519 --> 00:32:24.960
 have life

00:32:24.960 --> 00:32:25.299
 and you might

00:32:25.299 --> 00:32:25.840
 have it to the

00:32:25.840 --> 00:32:26.120
 full

00:32:26.120 --> 00:32:27.840
 and the message

00:32:27.840 --> 00:32:28.420
 of these chapters

00:32:28.420 --> 00:32:29.120
 is actually

00:32:29.120 --> 00:32:30.220
 relatively simple

00:32:30.220 --> 00:32:31.580
 religion kills

00:32:31.580 --> 00:32:32.920
 but God

00:32:32.920 --> 00:32:33.460
 gives life

00:32:33.460 --> 00:32:35.580
 and I wonder

00:32:35.580 --> 00:32:36.000
 tonight

00:32:36.000 --> 00:32:36.600
 as you sit

00:32:36.600 --> 00:32:36.940
 there

00:32:36.940 --> 00:32:38.600
 that your

00:32:38.600 --> 00:32:39.279
 greatest need

00:32:39.279 --> 00:32:39.740
 and my

00:32:39.740 --> 00:32:40.380
 greatest need

00:32:40.380 --> 00:32:40.960
 is to come

00:32:40.960 --> 00:32:41.340
 back

00:32:41.339 --> 00:32:43.619
 and to start

00:32:43.619 --> 00:32:44.019
 to boast

00:32:44.019 --> 00:32:44.519
 in him

00:32:44.519 --> 00:32:45.699
 once more

00:32:45.699 --> 00:32:47.799
 because let

00:32:47.799 --> 00:32:48.159
 not the

00:32:48.159 --> 00:32:48.740
 wise man

00:32:48.740 --> 00:32:49.240
 boast in

00:32:49.240 --> 00:32:49.659
 his wisdom

00:32:49.659 --> 00:32:51.559
 or the

00:32:51.559 --> 00:32:52.339
 mighty man

00:32:52.339 --> 00:32:52.659
 in his

00:32:52.659 --> 00:32:52.980
 might

00:32:52.980 --> 00:32:53.339
 and let

00:32:53.339 --> 00:32:53.699
 not the

00:32:53.699 --> 00:32:54.159
 rich man

00:32:54.159 --> 00:32:54.679
 boast in

00:32:54.679 --> 00:32:55.199
 his riches

00:32:55.199 --> 00:32:55.819
 but let

00:32:55.819 --> 00:32:56.359
 him who

00:32:56.359 --> 00:32:56.740
 boasts

00:32:56.740 --> 00:32:57.419
 boast in

00:32:57.419 --> 00:32:57.759
 this

00:32:57.759 --> 00:33:02.879
 that he

00:33:02.879 --> 00:33:03.500
 understands

00:33:03.500 --> 00:33:03.959
 and knows

00:33:03.959 --> 00:33:04.159
 me

00:33:04.160 --> 00:33:06.940
 and that

00:33:06.940 --> 00:33:07.160
 is the

00:33:07.160 --> 00:33:07.420
 word that

00:33:07.420 --> 00:33:07.800
 you need

00:33:07.800 --> 00:33:08.160
 to hear

00:33:08.160 --> 00:33:10.720
 and that

00:33:10.720 --> 00:33:10.920
 is the

00:33:10.920 --> 00:33:11.120
 word that

00:33:11.120 --> 00:33:11.400
 I need

00:33:11.400 --> 00:33:11.720
 to hear

00:33:11.720 --> 00:33:13.860
 let's pray