WEBVTT

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 I have been put under strict instructions not to sing, not to dance or even attempt

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 to air guitar this morning.

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 Much as it would bring no satisfaction to my family, I'm sure it would to you, I'm convinced.

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 It would be great if you could turn to your St Paul's app if you've got it in front of

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 you and get an outline for today's talk and to keep the Bibles open at John 6 and Ecclesiastes

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 2.

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 I think I mentioned before, there was an article in the Sydney Morning Herald a number of years

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 ago now.

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 In fact, it was 2015.

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 It was just before, this is pre-COVID, right?

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 And the article was titled Cheer Up Sydney.

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 Sydney.

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 The article suggested that Sydneysiders possessed a legendary preference for complaint.

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 Things like the cost of living, I mean, it was a lengthy article, cost of living, traffic,

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 housing affordability, the most pressing concerns.

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 That's, again, before COVID.

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 And for some, it was just the general frustration with the pace and the stress of life.

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 Now, ironically, this is also mentioned in the article, ironically, Sydney is regarded,

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 it was ranked, regularly ranked among the top 10 livable cities in the world by reputable

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 things like the Economist Intelligence Unit.

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 And so one of the conclusions in the article by psychologist Susie Green, who's the CEO of

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 the Sydney Positivity Institute, said that Sydneysiders have got plenty of reasons to cheer

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 up.

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 And so this is a quote from her.

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 We live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

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 We aren't living in a war-torn country.

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 In other words, cheer up, Sydney.

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 It's not Ukraine.

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 That's kind of the conclusion.

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 Sense of satisfaction is from the circumstances around us right now.

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 You should be happy.

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 You should be content.

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 You should be satisfied because the circumstances in which you live call for you to be happy.

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 So just cheer up.

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 So what happens if the circumstances aren't lining up?

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 Is there no place for contentment at that point?

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 Is it possible to have deep satisfaction in life that isn't based on circumstances?

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 Now, I want to say yes.

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 I want to say Jesus is all about satisfaction.

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 If you just joined us right now, if you're just connecting online for the first time or

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 you just joined us in the building for the first time, we are partway through our annual

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 vision series.

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 The first week of this series laid the foundation, if you like.

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 We saw that there is no 100% watertight argument for the existence of God.

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 You can't prove it as an experiment.

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 You can't stick it in a laboratory and prove it empirically.

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 But neither is there 100% watertight argument for the non-existence of God.

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 You can't prove that by experiment either.

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 So both the religious person and even the atheist views the world through a system of belief.

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 Every single person views the world through a system of belief.

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 So which belief system delivers the best solution to what every human being needs to flourish in life?

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 And today, I want to look briefly at is it possible to have a satisfaction in life that is so deep,

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 deep enough to endure even the most difficult circumstances in life?

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 So let's get going.

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 First of all, can't get no satisfaction.

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 I've had that song from 1965, Rolling Stones, can't get no satisfaction, rolling around in my head all week.

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 And I've tried, and I've tried, and I've tried, and I can't get it out.

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 In his book, The Happiness Hypothesis, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt looks at the history

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 of both Eastern and Western thought to see how people approach the issue of satisfaction in life.

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 So he scanned the centuries, if you like.

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 And he concluded that the consensus of the ancient philosophers and sages of time,

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 that even if all the deepest desires of success and love are fulfilled, it won't be enough.

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 Eastern and Western thought.

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 You get everything you possibly can, and it still won't be enough.

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 A person will still be deeply, deeply dissatisfied.

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 He even quotes from the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes chapter 2, which we just read out.

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 A person can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in all of their toil,

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 because that's it.

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 There's nothing else.

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 And yet that satisfaction that Ecclesiastes 2 is talking about will still elude you anyway.

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 A little earlier in the chapter, the writer describes a life of success,

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 a life of accomplishments and pleasure that very few in our world would ever experience.

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 I undertook great projects.

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 I built houses for myself and planted vineyards.

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 I amassed silver and gold for myself and the treasure of kings and provinces.

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 I acquired male and female singers and a harem as well, the delights of a man's heart.

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 I denied myself nothing that my eyes desired.

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 Very few can ever say that in life.

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 I denied myself nothing that my eyes desired.

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 Then in verse 17, we read, I hated life because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me.

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 And all of it is meaningless.

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 A chasing after wing.

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 Again, verse 20.

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 My heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun.

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 So the author of Ecclesiastes, and I think this is a real crucial point.

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 The author of Ecclesiastes wasn't just battling the fear of meaninglessness.

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 He was battling the disappointment of success.

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 There is a very weak correlation between wealth, fame, success, and satisfaction.

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 But this, of course, is not just an ancient problem.

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 It's a modern problem too.

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 Cynthia Heimel, a columnist for the Village Voice in New York, knew a few, three particularly, but probably a bit more than that, great celebrities in the 1980s.

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 Big celebrities who weren't big celebrities but became big celebrities.

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 And she knew them before they became big celebrities.

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 And this is what she wrote about the success and fame and what it did to them.

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 I pity celebrities.

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 No, I really do.

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 Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Barbara Streisand, she knew them all.

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 Were once perfectly pleasant human beings.

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 But now their wrath is awful.

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 I think when God wants to play a really rotten practical joke on you, he grants you your deepest wish and then laughs merrily when you realize that you want to kill yourself.

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 You see, Sly, Bruce, and Barbara wanted fame.

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 They worked.

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 They pushed.

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 That giant thing that they were striving for, that fame thing that was going to make everything okay, that was going to make their lives bearable, that was going to provide them with personal fulfillment and happiness, had happened to them and still, and they were still them.

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 The disillusionment turned them howling and insufferable.

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 Wealth, power, achievement, family, material comfort, security, the external goods of the world can only lead to a momentary satisfaction which fades away.

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 And later on in the article, in the words of Cynthia Hemel, fades away, leaving you emptier than if you had never tasted it in the first place.

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 Emptier.

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 C.S. Lewis sort of summarized the idea of the ancients in his BBC radio program during World War II.

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 Most people, if they really learn how to look into their own hearts, would know that they do want and want acutely something that cannot be had in this world.

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 There are all sorts of things in this world that offer to give it to you, but they never keep their promise.

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 The longings which arise in us when we first fall in love or first think of some foreign country or first take up some subject that excites us are longings which no marriage, no travel, no learning can really satisfy.

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 I'm not speaking of what would ordinarily be called unsuccessful marriages or trips or so on.

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 I'm speaking about the very best possible ones.

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 There is always something that we grasp at in that first moment of longing that just fades away into reality.

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 The spouse may be a good spouse.

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 The scenery may be excellent.

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 It has turned out to be a good job, but it, the it, still evades us.

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 So what happens when we discover the successes and desires in life don't give us the satisfaction that we hope for?

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 There are really two basic ways over history that people have sought to deal with their dissatisfaction.

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 The traditional way is to live with the conviction that there is no it out there to be got, and that is the sense that deep satisfaction is in fact not possible in life.

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 The modern way is to live with the modern way is to live life assuming that deep satisfaction is possible and it is out there and that it can be got.

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 And so the Sylvester Stallone's and the Barbra Streisand's, well, they just missed something.

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 The traditional ways to include that our expectations of the world are out of line and our desires need to be suppressed.

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 And so there are three ways to live if that's the case for you.

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 Firstly, it's altruism.

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 You start out in life seeking advancement, but this thing called a midlife crisis hits, and you discover it is all dissatisfying.

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 And so you turn away from it into social causes, basically seeking the advancement of others for their satisfaction.

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 Now, of course, I want to encourage those things, but problems can soon arise when people turn to benevolence, social activism, as a way to find more fulfillment for themselves.

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 The irony of that.

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 The poor and the vulnerable get exploited to improve my satisfaction in life.

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 It's about me, not about them.

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 Secondly, cynicism.

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 This is where a person just lowers their expectation of life.

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 But what makes us human beings is, in fact, that we want joy.

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 We want meaning.

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 We want fulfillment.

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 And if we decide that that's not possible, our hearts become hard and we dehumanize ourselves.

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 And thirdly is detachment.

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 This is the suggestion not to love anything or hope for anything too much.

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 Cynicism moves to detachment.

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 Cynicism moves to detachment.

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 The Greek philosopher Epictetus wrote,

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 What harm is there while you are kissing your child to murmur softly, tomorrow you will die?

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 See what he says there?

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 In other words, don't love too much and you won't experience dissatisfaction too much.

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 Keep everything, every love at an arm's length.

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 This ultimately hardens your heart and it dehumanizes you.

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 The modern way is the opposite.

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 We deal with our dissatisfaction by attempting to pursue satisfaction with everything we've got.

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 And there are four ways you do that.

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 If you're young, the normal way is to start the outer life thinking.

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 If I get the right love partner, if I get the right spouse, if I get the right career and I make some money, then I'll be satisfied.

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 That is, in our modern era, the pursuit of jobs, family, sex and so on are the usual distractions by which we hide from ourselves the emptiness of our modern life.

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 I spoke a while ago with someone who, in their own confession, had slept with more than a thousand women.

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 And he said it just got emptier and emptier and emptier and emptier and emptier.

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 We may be quite discontent in life, but we don't recognise it because we are so, so busy in the process of getting ready to be satisfied.

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 We think we've just got to get over this hill, just got to get around that bend and then things will be great.

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 Then you move from the young.

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 The next step is the resentful.

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 As time goes by, we begin to realise that we're getting, we are not getting it.

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 Yeah, sure, the mortgage is paid off, the kids are growing up, I've got a stable job and yet I am still restless.

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 One of the main reactions is to blame the obstacles that have kept us from achieving the things that we think will satisfy us.

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 We'll identify social structures or individuals who have blocked our progress or who have wronged us in some kind of way.

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 We blame them saying, I would be quite satisfied if it wasn't for religion or if it wasn't for this job or it wasn't for that relationship or it wasn't for the fact that I was dropped on my head as a baby or something.

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 And so when that happens, we need a third strategy.

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 And that is the driven.

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 What happens if we find we reach many of our material goals and we still find something is significant happens?

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 Missing, sorry.

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 What do we do?

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 Many people blame the things that they have, the things themselves, not other things, but the very things that they have.

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 We assume that if you've got a better spouse, we get a better job, if we get a better income, a better home, then we will feel much better.

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 Constantly renovating our places.

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 And if you take that path, we may become among society's most productive members,

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 the most driven members of society.

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 And for the driven, life is like running on a treadmill.

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 The change of speed does happen, but the location never does.

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 Go faster, you're still in the same spot.

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 And you run harder to maintain your position and eventually become too weary to keep on going.

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 And all that's left now is despair.

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 Rather than blaming other things, rather than blaming other people and other structures,

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 rather than blaming the things that are in front of me,

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 I start to blame myself.

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 I might be a deeply unsettling feeling that there is something wrong with me.

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 I haven't done well enough.

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 I haven't gone far enough up the career ladder.

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 I haven't attracted the best romantic partners.

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 I am the failure.

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 However, most people don't allow themselves to slow down long enough

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 so that they can hear that voice reverberating around in their hearts

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 and hear the cry of despair.

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 We just jump on the treadmill again and keep going harder and harder.

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 Oh, the crucial, crucial part of a day of rest and reflection

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 to assess life, to hear in the quietness of the heart what's going on.

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 Wow, that silence is amazing.

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 It's remarkable how deep this issue of dissatisfaction is.

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 When you scan the centuries,

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 you scan the centuries from the ancients until now,

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 how remarkable little progress we've made on this issue.

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 We have surpassed our ancestors in our accomplishments

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 in travel, science, medicine, communication.

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 We are unimaginably wealthier and more comfortable,

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 and yet not a single person is suggesting

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 that we are more content than what they were.

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 Not a single philosopher is saying that.

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 Well, let me go back to one ancient.

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 The great Christian philosopher, St. Augustine,

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 wrote that the reason our dissatisfaction is so deep in life

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 is because our loves are disordered.

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 Augustine taught that we are most fundamentally shaped

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 not by what we believe,

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 not by what we think,

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 not even by what we do,

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 but we are most fundamentally shaped by what we love.

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 Now, that is a very clear word

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 to us reformed evangelicals who love to think.

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 We are what we love.

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 The dissatisfaction of our lives

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 is caused by the disorder of loves.

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 We often love less important things more

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 and the more important things less.

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 And every cultural system does it differently,

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 but we all fail to order our loves correctly.

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 There is nothing wrong with loving your work,

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 but if you love it more than your family,

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 then your loves are out of order

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 and you may in fact ruin your family.

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 If you love money more than you love justice,

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 then you will exploit your employees.

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 But the ultimate disordered love

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 and the ultimate source of our discontent

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 discontent in life

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 is a failure to love the first thing first.

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 And that is a failure to love God supremely.

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 The Bible says that human beings

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 are made in the image of a tripersonal God,

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 Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

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 From all eternity,

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 these divine three persons of the Trinity

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 have been loving each other

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 in infinite degrees of joy and glory and contentment.

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 They are fully, completely satisfied

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 in and of themselves.

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 Human beings were created to know that joy

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 of being loved infinitely

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 and the joy of loving and glorifying God preeminently.

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 And since we were created for that love

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 and for that joy,

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 we will always look for the infinite joy

00:21:16.719 --> 00:21:18.359
 that we were designed by God

00:21:18.359 --> 00:21:20.819
 to enjoy elsewhere.

00:21:21.859 --> 00:21:25.219
 You don't stop becoming a worshipping being.

00:21:25.719 --> 00:21:29.439
 You just change the direction of your worship.

00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:31.400
 This is all Augustine.

00:21:33.100 --> 00:21:36.039
 If we reject God, which we all do,

00:21:36.519 --> 00:21:39.940
 then we will look elsewhere to fill that void.

00:21:42.519 --> 00:21:45.880
 And the reason even the best possible things

00:21:45.880 --> 00:21:47.580
 in this world will not satisfy

00:21:47.580 --> 00:21:50.799
 is because we were created for a degree

00:21:50.799 --> 00:21:52.440
 of delight and satisfaction

00:21:52.440 --> 00:21:53.840
 that this world cannot produce.

00:21:53.839 --> 00:22:02.279
 The most famous modern expression of Augustine's view

00:22:02.279 --> 00:22:07.619
 was the ending of C.S. Lewis's World War II radio talk.

00:22:08.899 --> 00:22:10.899
 Creatures are not born with desires

00:22:10.899 --> 00:22:13.679
 unless satisfaction for those desires exists.

00:22:14.480 --> 00:22:15.740
 A baby feels hunger.

00:22:16.279 --> 00:22:17.939
 Well, there is such a thing as food.

00:22:18.519 --> 00:22:19.759
 A duckling wants to swim.

00:22:20.079 --> 00:22:21.279
 Well, there's such a thing as water.

00:22:21.899 --> 00:22:23.559
 A man feels sexual desires.

00:22:23.559 --> 00:22:25.059
 Well, there's such a thing as sex.

00:22:25.879 --> 00:22:27.700
 If I find in myself a desire

00:22:27.700 --> 00:22:30.039
 which no experience in this world can satisfy,

00:22:30.519 --> 00:22:32.399
 the most probable explanation

00:22:32.399 --> 00:22:35.059
 is that I am made for another world.

00:22:39.619 --> 00:22:41.440
 Augustine also helps us to see

00:22:41.440 --> 00:22:43.720
 how it's possible to become deeply satisfied.

00:22:45.819 --> 00:22:48.079
 Don't harden your heart against love,

00:22:48.200 --> 00:22:49.079
 Augustine says,

00:22:50.299 --> 00:22:53.379
 but don't give your heart ultimately things

00:22:53.380 --> 00:22:54.380
 that you will lose.

00:22:54.380 --> 00:22:55.220
 That you will lose

00:22:55.220 --> 00:22:56.460
 and you can never,

00:22:56.940 --> 00:22:58.320
 that can never satisfy you.

00:23:00.160 --> 00:23:01.180
 Very simply,

00:23:02.480 --> 00:23:03.600
 even the best,

00:23:03.720 --> 00:23:05.820
 the very best marriages

00:23:05.820 --> 00:23:07.760
 in this world,

00:23:07.760 --> 00:23:10.020
 the very best marriages in this world,

00:23:10.560 --> 00:23:13.260
 always end badly.

00:23:13.259 --> 00:23:19.240
 They always do.

00:23:21.980 --> 00:23:24.019
 One is going to be left without the other.

00:23:26.099 --> 00:23:26.960
 Most of the time.

00:23:30.960 --> 00:23:34.079
 To the degree that we move towards loving God supremely

00:23:34.079 --> 00:23:35.940
 as the deepest source of our satisfaction

00:23:35.940 --> 00:23:39.799
 is the degree to which we can enjoy his gifts

00:23:39.799 --> 00:23:40.680
 for what they are.

00:23:41.480 --> 00:23:43.120
 Money and career, for example,

00:23:43.640 --> 00:23:46.039
 become just what they're supposed to be.

00:23:46.500 --> 00:23:47.519
 Work becomes work,

00:23:47.580 --> 00:23:49.000
 a great way to use your gifts

00:23:49.000 --> 00:23:49.960
 to be useful for others

00:23:49.960 --> 00:23:51.279
 for the advancement of society.

00:23:52.620 --> 00:23:53.860
 Money becomes just money,

00:23:53.920 --> 00:23:55.279
 a great way to support your family,

00:23:55.440 --> 00:23:56.000
 feed the poor,

00:23:56.160 --> 00:23:57.440
 advance the good news of the gospel

00:23:57.440 --> 00:23:58.220
 of Jesus Christ,

00:23:58.299 --> 00:23:59.000
 the ends of the earth.

00:23:59.000 --> 00:24:01.599
 Some have changed,

00:24:03.619 --> 00:24:04.019
 sorry,

00:24:04.119 --> 00:24:05.119
 some have charged

00:24:05.119 --> 00:24:07.339
 that religion itself

00:24:07.339 --> 00:24:09.359
 drains ordinary life

00:24:09.359 --> 00:24:11.640
 of its joy and satisfaction.

00:24:12.420 --> 00:24:14.259
 And it does it by devaluing

00:24:14.259 --> 00:24:15.339
 the things of this world.

00:24:15.700 --> 00:24:17.259
 So it's a straitjacket on you

00:24:17.259 --> 00:24:19.539
 that means you can't enjoy life.

00:24:20.099 --> 00:24:20.640
 For sure,

00:24:20.819 --> 00:24:22.420
 I think that there are some religions

00:24:22.420 --> 00:24:24.859
 that value detachment from the world.

00:24:25.579 --> 00:24:26.740
 Buddhism is one of those.

00:24:26.740 --> 00:24:31.120
 This is not true for Christianity.

00:24:32.019 --> 00:24:33.359
 It is not true for Christianity.

00:24:33.859 --> 00:24:34.359
 In fact,

00:24:34.460 --> 00:24:35.779
 Christianity does not say

00:24:35.779 --> 00:24:37.440
 that we merit blessing

00:24:37.440 --> 00:24:39.299
 through depriving ourselves

00:24:39.299 --> 00:24:40.940
 and turning our backs on the world

00:24:40.940 --> 00:24:42.099
 to earn heaven.

00:24:42.799 --> 00:24:43.819
 Christianity teaches

00:24:43.819 --> 00:24:45.460
 that we are saved

00:24:45.460 --> 00:24:47.440
 by God's free grace and pardon.

00:24:47.940 --> 00:24:49.259
 Christianity says,

00:24:49.519 --> 00:24:50.539
 against the ancients

00:24:50.539 --> 00:24:51.519
 and against the modern,

00:24:52.059 --> 00:24:52.859
 Christianity says,

00:24:53.180 --> 00:24:54.779
 don't love anything less

00:24:54.779 --> 00:24:58.200
 instead learn to love God more.

00:25:00.059 --> 00:25:01.819
 And you will love other things

00:25:01.819 --> 00:25:03.720
 with far more satisfaction.

00:25:05.440 --> 00:25:06.139
 That's it.

00:25:06.200 --> 00:25:07.440
 That's the unique contribution

00:25:07.440 --> 00:25:08.079
 of Christianity.

00:25:09.180 --> 00:25:11.039
 You won't over protect those things

00:25:11.039 --> 00:25:13.519
 and you won't over expect things from them.

00:25:13.519 --> 00:25:15.400
 You won't be constantly furious

00:25:15.400 --> 00:25:16.519
 at those things

00:25:16.519 --> 00:25:18.119
 for not being what you hoped

00:25:18.119 --> 00:25:19.039
 that they would be.

00:25:20.480 --> 00:25:23.059
 Redirect your greatest love towards God

00:25:23.059 --> 00:25:24.420
 by loving him with all your heart,

00:25:24.539 --> 00:25:25.759
 soul, mind and strength.

00:25:28.359 --> 00:25:30.400
 Not just for what he can give you,

00:25:30.980 --> 00:25:32.680
 but purely because of who he is.

00:25:32.680 --> 00:25:33.320
 He is.

00:25:33.820 --> 00:25:35.600
 And only then satisfaction

00:25:35.600 --> 00:25:36.480
 will start to come.

00:25:38.279 --> 00:25:38.640
 You see,

00:25:38.860 --> 00:25:40.000
 the Christian view,

00:25:40.299 --> 00:25:41.220
 the Christian worldview

00:25:41.220 --> 00:25:44.440
 avoids the pitfalls

00:25:44.440 --> 00:25:46.320
 of both the ancient strategy

00:25:46.320 --> 00:25:47.220
 of satisfaction

00:25:47.220 --> 00:25:48.500
 through detachment

00:25:48.500 --> 00:25:50.100
 from the world

00:25:50.100 --> 00:25:51.660
 and the modern strategy

00:25:51.660 --> 00:25:52.700
 of satisfaction

00:25:52.700 --> 00:25:54.080
 through acquisition.

00:25:54.079 --> 00:25:56.919
 because the fundamental

00:25:56.919 --> 00:25:57.779
 of the Christian gospel

00:25:57.779 --> 00:25:59.980
 is it's a gift.

00:26:01.339 --> 00:26:01.980
 It's not a,

00:26:02.059 --> 00:26:03.199
 you don't acquire it,

00:26:03.279 --> 00:26:04.059
 it's a gift.

00:26:04.659 --> 00:26:06.119
 It's where it all starts.

00:26:11.379 --> 00:26:12.939
 And when you see life as a gift

00:26:12.939 --> 00:26:14.359
 and the grace of God as a gift,

00:26:14.919 --> 00:26:16.279
 you see everything that flows

00:26:16.279 --> 00:26:17.279
 from his hand as a gift.

00:26:19.019 --> 00:26:19.859
 But they are gifts

00:26:19.859 --> 00:26:20.799
 from the good gift giver.

00:26:20.799 --> 00:26:24.039
 So how then do we love God?

00:26:25.180 --> 00:26:25.639
 Well,

00:26:25.879 --> 00:26:26.500
 in the same way

00:26:26.500 --> 00:26:27.740
 that children learn to speak.

00:26:28.639 --> 00:26:31.039
 Only by responding to speech.

00:26:32.399 --> 00:26:33.659
 And learning to love

00:26:33.659 --> 00:26:35.279
 only by reciprocating love.

00:26:38.180 --> 00:26:40.039
 We cannot love God

00:26:40.039 --> 00:26:42.039
 just by thinking

00:26:42.039 --> 00:26:44.039
 of an abstract deity

00:26:44.639 --> 00:26:47.779
 who is loving and kind in general.

00:26:47.779 --> 00:26:50.420
 We must grasp

00:26:50.420 --> 00:26:51.680
 and be gripped

00:26:51.680 --> 00:26:53.920
 by the true story

00:26:53.920 --> 00:26:55.799
 of God's actual sacrificial

00:26:55.799 --> 00:26:56.759
 saving love for us

00:26:56.759 --> 00:26:57.639
 in Jesus Christ.

00:26:58.079 --> 00:26:59.259
 In John chapter 6,

00:26:59.319 --> 00:27:00.399
 which Anne read out for us,

00:27:00.460 --> 00:27:01.119
 verse 35,

00:27:01.500 --> 00:27:03.119
 Jesus speaks to a crowd

00:27:03.119 --> 00:27:04.319
 about the bread of life

00:27:04.319 --> 00:27:06.379
 such that whoever eats it

00:27:06.379 --> 00:27:09.180
 will never go hungry.

00:27:10.619 --> 00:27:11.480
 Eat this bread

00:27:11.480 --> 00:27:12.779
 and you'll always be satisfied.

00:27:13.980 --> 00:27:15.160
 Drink from this well

00:27:15.160 --> 00:27:16.480
 and you'll never be thirsty.

00:27:16.480 --> 00:27:20.599
 He's talking metaphorically

00:27:20.599 --> 00:27:21.299
 about something

00:27:21.299 --> 00:27:22.740
 that gives both strength

00:27:22.740 --> 00:27:23.500
 and delight

00:27:23.500 --> 00:27:25.039
 an image of fulfillment

00:27:25.039 --> 00:27:25.480
 and satisfaction.

00:27:26.480 --> 00:27:27.500
 He also observes

00:27:27.500 --> 00:27:29.200
 that human beings

00:27:29.200 --> 00:27:30.440
 seek this

00:27:30.440 --> 00:27:31.880
 in all the wrong places.

00:27:32.240 --> 00:27:33.120
 He warns against

00:27:33.120 --> 00:27:34.620
 in verse 26,

00:27:34.779 --> 00:27:35.559
 sorry, 27,

00:27:35.940 --> 00:27:37.019
 working for food

00:27:37.019 --> 00:27:37.480
 that spoils.

00:27:38.940 --> 00:27:39.779
 In other words,

00:27:41.019 --> 00:27:42.259
 for trying to find satisfaction

00:27:42.259 --> 00:27:43.200
 from that stuff.

00:27:43.200 --> 00:27:46.580
 And then he says,

00:27:47.580 --> 00:27:49.580
 I am the bread of life.

00:27:52.080 --> 00:27:53.000
 And he holds out

00:27:53.000 --> 00:27:53.580
 a piece of bread

00:27:53.580 --> 00:27:54.700
 in Luke chapter 22.

00:27:55.700 --> 00:27:56.840
 This is my body

00:27:56.840 --> 00:27:58.700
 given for you.

00:28:02.140 --> 00:28:02.700
 You see,

00:28:02.759 --> 00:28:03.700
 the heart of the

00:28:03.700 --> 00:28:06.480
 Christian faith

00:28:06.480 --> 00:28:08.019
 is a simple gospel message

00:28:08.019 --> 00:28:09.559
 of sin and grace.

00:28:09.559 --> 00:28:13.299
 Sin and grace.

00:28:14.379 --> 00:28:15.359
 Because we fail

00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:16.720
 to love God supremely

00:28:16.720 --> 00:28:17.899
 and our neighbor

00:28:17.899 --> 00:28:18.720
 as ourselves,

00:28:18.879 --> 00:28:19.440
 we sin

00:28:19.440 --> 00:28:20.440
 and for God

00:28:20.440 --> 00:28:21.399
 to forgive our sin,

00:28:21.500 --> 00:28:22.200
 the Son of God

00:28:22.200 --> 00:28:23.079
 became human

00:28:23.079 --> 00:28:25.619
 and graciously died

00:28:25.619 --> 00:28:26.579
 in our place

00:28:26.579 --> 00:28:27.679
 on a cross.

00:28:30.099 --> 00:28:31.579
 And there are two ways

00:28:31.579 --> 00:28:32.339
 that this message

00:28:32.339 --> 00:28:33.099
 can bring about

00:28:33.099 --> 00:28:34.139
 the love relationship

00:28:34.139 --> 00:28:34.859
 with God

00:28:34.859 --> 00:28:36.019
 which solves

00:28:36.019 --> 00:28:37.419
 our satisfaction dilemma.

00:28:37.420 --> 00:28:39.060
 Firstly,

00:28:39.920 --> 00:28:40.560
 the knowledge

00:28:40.560 --> 00:28:41.220
 of sin

00:28:41.220 --> 00:28:42.779
 against our Creator

00:28:42.779 --> 00:28:44.380
 starts to soften

00:28:44.380 --> 00:28:45.259
 our hearts.

00:28:46.940 --> 00:28:48.300
 If there is a God

00:28:48.300 --> 00:28:49.500
 who created us

00:28:49.500 --> 00:28:51.640
 and keeps us

00:28:51.640 --> 00:28:52.620
 alive

00:28:52.620 --> 00:28:53.500
 every minute,

00:28:55.640 --> 00:28:56.960
 then the love

00:28:56.960 --> 00:28:57.620
 that we owe

00:28:57.620 --> 00:28:58.360
 this God

00:28:58.360 --> 00:29:00.060
 is infinitely great.

00:29:02.100 --> 00:29:03.480
 To not love

00:29:03.480 --> 00:29:04.500
 Him supremely

00:29:04.500 --> 00:29:06.060
 is infinitely wrong.

00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:08.700
 If you believe

00:29:08.700 --> 00:29:09.100
 that,

00:29:09.220 --> 00:29:10.060
 you begin to see

00:29:10.060 --> 00:29:10.820
 how much

00:29:10.820 --> 00:29:11.860
 you have wronged

00:29:11.860 --> 00:29:12.080
 Him

00:29:12.080 --> 00:29:13.060
 by loving

00:29:13.060 --> 00:29:13.880
 the gifts

00:29:13.880 --> 00:29:15.620
 He has made

00:29:15.620 --> 00:29:17.360
 rather than

00:29:17.360 --> 00:29:17.539
 Him,

00:29:17.620 --> 00:29:18.180
 the gift giver.

00:29:19.620 --> 00:29:20.640
 And it begins

00:29:20.640 --> 00:29:21.860
 to draw your heart

00:29:21.860 --> 00:29:22.940
 outward towards

00:29:22.940 --> 00:29:23.820
 Him in humility

00:29:23.820 --> 00:29:24.600
 and grief.

00:29:26.320 --> 00:29:27.200
 But then secondly,

00:29:27.600 --> 00:29:28.060
 the knowledge

00:29:28.060 --> 00:29:29.060
 of His grace

00:29:29.060 --> 00:29:31.140
 just ignites

00:29:31.140 --> 00:29:31.880
 your heart.

00:29:32.720 --> 00:29:33.480
 It ignites

00:29:33.480 --> 00:29:34.060
 your heart.

00:29:34.059 --> 00:29:34.899
 for God

00:29:34.899 --> 00:29:35.980
 to forgive us,

00:29:36.919 --> 00:29:37.899
 He had to pay

00:29:37.899 --> 00:29:38.419
 the debt

00:29:38.419 --> 00:29:39.179
 Himself

00:29:39.179 --> 00:29:40.519
 because we

00:29:40.519 --> 00:29:41.379
 can't do it.

00:29:44.220 --> 00:29:45.119
 Jesus Christ

00:29:45.119 --> 00:29:46.059
 pays it on the cross

00:29:46.059 --> 00:29:46.559
 for us.

00:29:49.200 --> 00:29:49.960
 I wonder

00:29:49.960 --> 00:29:50.740
 if it dawns

00:29:50.740 --> 00:29:51.259
 on you

00:29:51.259 --> 00:29:52.179
 at least

00:29:52.179 --> 00:29:52.779
 three times

00:29:52.779 --> 00:29:53.279
 a day

00:29:53.279 --> 00:29:58.960
 that outside

00:29:58.960 --> 00:29:59.559
 of salt

00:29:59.559 --> 00:29:59.960
 and a few

00:29:59.960 --> 00:30:00.460
 minerals,

00:30:01.200 --> 00:30:01.940
 everything that

00:30:01.940 --> 00:30:02.480
 goes in your

00:30:02.480 --> 00:30:03.519
 body has died

00:30:03.519 --> 00:30:05.099
 so that you

00:30:05.099 --> 00:30:05.640
 can live.

00:30:08.579 --> 00:30:09.279
 Ever thought

00:30:09.279 --> 00:30:09.680
 about that?

00:30:13.839 --> 00:30:14.500
 If you're

00:30:14.500 --> 00:30:15.220
 eating bread,

00:30:15.860 --> 00:30:16.500
 not only did

00:30:16.500 --> 00:30:17.360
 the grain die,

00:30:17.880 --> 00:30:18.759
 but the bread

00:30:18.759 --> 00:30:19.400
 must be broken

00:30:19.400 --> 00:30:20.220
 up into pieces.

00:30:20.819 --> 00:30:21.539
 If the bread

00:30:21.539 --> 00:30:22.420
 stays whole,

00:30:22.940 --> 00:30:23.700
 you starve.

00:30:26.980 --> 00:30:27.740
 If the bread

00:30:27.740 --> 00:30:28.160
 is broken

00:30:28.160 --> 00:30:28.779
 into pieces,

00:30:28.900 --> 00:30:29.420
 you take it

00:30:29.420 --> 00:30:29.620
 in,

00:30:29.660 --> 00:30:30.380
 then you live.

00:30:30.380 --> 00:30:32.120
 So when

00:30:32.120 --> 00:30:32.860
 Jesus Christ

00:30:32.860 --> 00:30:33.120
 says,

00:30:33.340 --> 00:30:33.760
 I'm the bread

00:30:33.760 --> 00:30:34.200
 of life

00:30:34.200 --> 00:30:35.220
 broken for you,

00:30:35.980 --> 00:30:36.680
 He is saying,

00:30:36.840 --> 00:30:37.740
 I'm your God

00:30:37.740 --> 00:30:39.000
 broken for you.

00:30:39.700 --> 00:30:40.520
 I die

00:30:40.520 --> 00:30:41.600
 so that you

00:30:41.600 --> 00:30:42.300
 might live.

00:30:45.240 --> 00:30:45.720
 Seeing

00:30:45.720 --> 00:30:46.600
 and savoring

00:30:46.600 --> 00:30:47.160
 what He has

00:30:47.160 --> 00:30:47.860
 done for us

00:30:47.860 --> 00:30:48.380
 begins to

00:30:48.380 --> 00:30:48.800
 change your

00:30:48.800 --> 00:30:49.220
 heart.

00:30:50.780 --> 00:30:51.800
 He suffered

00:30:51.800 --> 00:30:52.560
 and He died

00:30:52.560 --> 00:30:53.340
 for your sake.

00:30:54.560 --> 00:30:55.360
 At the very

00:30:55.360 --> 00:30:55.700
 least,

00:30:55.820 --> 00:30:56.040
 friends,

00:30:56.120 --> 00:30:56.420
 it's why

00:30:56.420 --> 00:30:56.800
 we just

00:30:56.800 --> 00:30:57.260
 prayed,

00:30:58.340 --> 00:30:59.120
 be today

00:30:59.120 --> 00:30:59.960
 my daily bread.

00:31:01.260 --> 00:31:01.900
 Not just

00:31:01.900 --> 00:31:02.560
 give it to me,

00:31:02.660 --> 00:31:03.280
 but be

00:31:03.280 --> 00:31:04.560
 my daily bread.

00:31:05.480 --> 00:31:05.980
 It's why

00:31:05.980 --> 00:31:06.580
 we keep

00:31:06.580 --> 00:31:07.220
 encouraging you

00:31:07.220 --> 00:31:07.540
 to have a

00:31:07.540 --> 00:31:08.320
 devotional life

00:31:08.320 --> 00:31:08.760
 four or more

00:31:08.760 --> 00:31:09.400
 times a week

00:31:09.400 --> 00:31:09.840
 to have that

00:31:09.840 --> 00:31:10.700
 gospel message

00:31:10.700 --> 00:31:11.380
 of God

00:31:11.380 --> 00:31:11.580
 and His

00:31:11.580 --> 00:31:11.900
 goodness

00:31:11.900 --> 00:31:12.800
 to you

00:31:12.800 --> 00:31:13.460
 hit you

00:31:13.460 --> 00:31:14.180
 again and

00:31:14.180 --> 00:31:14.740
 again and

00:31:14.740 --> 00:31:15.200
 again and

00:31:15.200 --> 00:31:15.780
 be reminded

00:31:15.780 --> 00:31:16.340
 of it because

00:31:16.340 --> 00:31:16.760
 you are

00:31:16.760 --> 00:31:17.320
 confronted

00:31:17.320 --> 00:31:18.720
 every single

00:31:18.720 --> 00:31:19.400
 day with

00:31:19.400 --> 00:31:20.140
 images and

00:31:20.140 --> 00:31:20.600
 words that

00:31:20.600 --> 00:31:21.000
 are saying,

00:31:21.140 --> 00:31:21.800
 be satisfied

00:31:21.800 --> 00:31:22.580
 with this,

00:31:22.720 --> 00:31:23.180
 with this,

00:31:23.300 --> 00:31:23.880
 with this.

00:31:23.880 --> 00:31:23.960
 face.

00:31:26.600 --> 00:31:27.220
 If you

00:31:27.220 --> 00:31:27.940
 don't have

00:31:27.940 --> 00:31:28.620
 your face

00:31:28.620 --> 00:31:29.140
 in the

00:31:29.140 --> 00:31:29.480
 Bible,

00:31:29.940 --> 00:31:30.420
 you are

00:31:30.420 --> 00:31:30.960
 already

00:31:30.960 --> 00:31:31.600
 losing the

00:31:31.600 --> 00:31:31.840
 battle.

00:31:38.140 --> 00:31:38.940
 You cannot

00:31:38.940 --> 00:31:39.580
 force your

00:31:39.580 --> 00:31:40.040
 heart to

00:31:40.040 --> 00:31:40.420
 love,

00:31:41.080 --> 00:31:42.560
 but it's

00:31:42.560 --> 00:31:42.880
 the good

00:31:42.880 --> 00:31:43.280
 news of

00:31:43.280 --> 00:31:43.920
 Jesus Christ

00:31:43.920 --> 00:31:44.220
 that will

00:31:44.220 --> 00:31:44.740
 change it.

00:31:45.380 --> 00:31:45.840
 The love

00:31:45.840 --> 00:31:46.280
 of Jesus

00:31:46.280 --> 00:31:46.700
 Christ

00:31:46.700 --> 00:31:47.800
 draws out

00:31:47.800 --> 00:31:48.500
 our hearts

00:31:48.500 --> 00:31:49.180
 and it

00:31:49.180 --> 00:31:49.620
 draws out

00:31:49.620 --> 00:31:50.060
 our hearts

00:31:50.060 --> 00:31:50.500
 and takes

00:31:50.500 --> 00:31:51.299
 them off

00:31:51.299 --> 00:31:52.859
 inordinate

00:31:52.859 --> 00:31:54.700
 attachments

00:31:54.700 --> 00:31:55.839
 to other

00:31:55.839 --> 00:31:56.500
 things,

00:31:57.500 --> 00:31:58.420
 good things

00:31:58.420 --> 00:31:59.779
 but not

00:31:59.779 --> 00:32:00.259
 ultimate

00:32:00.259 --> 00:32:00.880
 things.

00:32:02.700 --> 00:32:02.960
 And to

00:32:02.960 --> 00:32:03.599
 the degree

00:32:03.599 --> 00:32:04.680
 that we

00:32:04.680 --> 00:32:05.200
 find our

00:32:05.200 --> 00:32:05.859
 satisfaction

00:32:05.859 --> 00:32:06.480
 in Jesus

00:32:06.480 --> 00:32:07.900
 Christ is

00:32:07.900 --> 00:32:08.579
 the degree

00:32:08.579 --> 00:32:09.220
 to which

00:32:09.220 --> 00:32:09.779
 we will be

00:32:09.779 --> 00:32:10.440
 radically

00:32:10.440 --> 00:32:11.140
 generous

00:32:11.140 --> 00:32:12.220
 with our

00:32:12.220 --> 00:32:12.819
 time,

00:32:13.259 --> 00:32:14.039
 our talents,

00:32:14.220 --> 00:32:14.799
 our testimony

00:32:14.799 --> 00:32:15.339
 and our

00:32:15.339 --> 00:32:15.720
 treasures.

00:32:16.559 --> 00:32:16.839
 And so

00:32:16.839 --> 00:32:17.579
 once again,

00:32:17.799 --> 00:32:18.259
 I commend

00:32:18.259 --> 00:32:18.700
 to you the

00:32:18.700 --> 00:32:19.460
 project card.

00:32:20.500 --> 00:32:23.900
 the more

00:32:23.900 --> 00:32:24.680
 satisfied we

00:32:24.680 --> 00:32:25.099
 are in

00:32:25.099 --> 00:32:25.579
 Christ,

00:32:26.200 --> 00:32:26.740
 the more

00:32:26.740 --> 00:32:27.339
 free we

00:32:27.339 --> 00:32:28.579
 are with

00:32:28.579 --> 00:32:29.200
 all of our

00:32:29.200 --> 00:32:29.740
 possessions.

00:32:32.380 --> 00:32:33.160
 To the

00:32:33.160 --> 00:32:33.700
 degree that

00:32:33.700 --> 00:32:34.099
 we find

00:32:34.099 --> 00:32:34.279
 our

00:32:34.279 --> 00:32:35.019
 satisfaction

00:32:35.019 --> 00:32:35.740
 in Jesus

00:32:35.740 --> 00:32:37.559
 Christ is

00:32:37.559 --> 00:32:38.240
 the degree

00:32:38.240 --> 00:32:38.920
 to which we

00:32:38.920 --> 00:32:39.400
 can say

00:32:39.400 --> 00:32:39.759
 with the

00:32:39.759 --> 00:32:40.240
 psalmist,

00:32:40.740 --> 00:32:41.859
 because your

00:32:41.859 --> 00:32:42.579
 love is

00:32:42.579 --> 00:32:43.079
 better than

00:32:43.079 --> 00:32:43.539
 life,

00:32:44.180 --> 00:32:44.740
 I will be

00:32:44.740 --> 00:32:45.779
 fully satisfied

00:32:45.779 --> 00:32:46.880
 as with the

00:32:46.880 --> 00:32:47.700
 richest of

00:32:47.700 --> 00:32:48.099
 foods.

00:32:48.099 --> 00:32:50.399
 friends,

00:32:50.480 --> 00:32:50.639
 we're going

00:32:50.639 --> 00:32:51.079
 to pause

00:32:51.079 --> 00:32:51.480
 and then

00:32:51.480 --> 00:32:51.679
 we're going

00:32:51.679 --> 00:32:52.019
 to pray.

00:32:53.139 --> 00:32:53.579
 Just bow

00:32:53.579 --> 00:32:53.819
 your heads

00:32:53.819 --> 00:32:54.099
 for a

00:32:54.099 --> 00:32:55.000
 moment and

00:32:55.000 --> 00:32:55.459
 just take a

00:32:55.459 --> 00:32:55.879
 moment to

00:32:55.879 --> 00:32:56.459
 allow that to

00:32:56.459 --> 00:32:57.399
 sit and reflect

00:32:57.399 --> 00:32:57.899
 in your

00:32:57.899 --> 00:32:58.379
 hearts.

00:32:58.380 --> 00:32:59.120
 gentle

00:32:59.120 --> 00:32:59.620
 extent,

00:32:59.800 --> 00:33:01.640
 do you

00:33:01.640 --> 00:33:02.320
 love

00:33:02.320 --> 00:33:04.520
 teaspoon of

00:33:04.520 --> 00:33:04.860
 love

00:33:04.860 --> 00:33:05.560
 конечно,

00:33:05.980 --> 00:33:07.760
 you

00:33:07.760 --> 00:33:08.320
 can't

00:33:08.320 --> 00:33:08.820
 hvor

00:33:08.820 --> 00:33:09.440
 Maybe

00:33:09.440 --> 00:33:09.920
 perhaps

00:33:09.920 --> 00:33:10.700
 maybe

00:33:10.700 --> 00:33:11.820
 transmit

00:33:11.820 --> 00:33:12.320
 you

00:33:12.320 --> 00:33:12.660
 or

00:33:12.660 --> 00:33:13.200
 your

00:33:13.200 --> 00:33:13.760
 love

00:33:13.760 --> 00:33:13.900
 how

00:33:13.900 --> 00:33:14.540
 yourself

00:33:14.540 --> 00:33:15.140
 maybe

00:33:15.140 --> 00:33:15.640
 like