WEBVTT 00:00:00.820 --> 00:00:04.740 Well, let me say welcome to you, those of you who I've not met, especially I'd like 00:00:04.740 --> 00:00:05.520 to welcome you. 00:00:05.639 --> 00:00:07.839 Hopefully we'll get a chance to do so after the service. 00:00:08.419 --> 00:00:12.060 We have a members meeting happening after the service, and anybody's welcome to come. 00:00:12.720 --> 00:00:16.240 And so that'll be a great time to shake some hands and maybe meet some people you haven't 00:00:16.240 --> 00:00:18.120 gotten a chance to know yet. 00:00:19.800 --> 00:00:25.019 I want to start tonight with a question, just kind of provoke some reflection, and that's 00:00:25.019 --> 00:00:32.359 this, if you think back over the course of your life, last several years, when's the 00:00:32.359 --> 00:00:38.019 last time that you can remember a span of time where you were content? 00:00:40.060 --> 00:00:45.879 And I don't just mean a moment here or there, that moment when you were sitting next to the 00:00:45.879 --> 00:00:50.760 pool, and the drink had just been set down and the ice was still on the outside of it, 00:00:50.760 --> 00:00:52.560 kind of running down the side of the glass. 00:00:52.560 --> 00:00:54.800 not the corona commercial moment. 00:00:56.380 --> 00:01:01.660 When's the last time you had an extended span of days, weeks, or even months where you were 00:01:01.660 --> 00:01:02.140 content? 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:06.579 If you're anything like me, it's probably been a while. 00:01:06.680 --> 00:01:14.060 I actually couldn't remember a single span of time in recent history, in ancient history, 00:01:14.439 --> 00:01:16.000 when that was true for me. 00:01:16.859 --> 00:01:22.240 And as I reflected on that, I began to realize that as I talk with people and meet with people 00:01:22.239 --> 00:01:28.000 and try to understand the various struggles that people are facing in their lives, much of the 00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:32.399 struggle is rooted some way in discontentment. 00:01:34.459 --> 00:01:37.439 It's people who struggle with contentment. 00:01:38.899 --> 00:01:45.599 Their jobs, their boyfriend, their girlfriend, the lack of a boyfriend or girlfriend, their 00:01:45.599 --> 00:01:51.619 husband, their wife, the lack of a husband or wife, where they live, where they want to 00:01:51.620 --> 00:02:00.420 live, their friends, their bodies, their faces, their weight, their clothing, their stuff, their 00:02:00.420 --> 00:02:03.120 roommates, their family situations. 00:02:03.240 --> 00:02:11.300 There's always drama and struggle and it's rooted in discontentment, meaning essentially, 00:02:11.560 --> 00:02:16.360 I want things to be different than they are in my life in one way or another. 00:02:16.360 --> 00:02:19.120 And we ask why? 00:02:19.200 --> 00:02:20.200 Why is that the case? 00:02:21.720 --> 00:02:25.580 Why do we say, I'm dying to get married and then I wish I had married somebody else and 00:02:25.580 --> 00:02:28.340 then I wish I could change my spouse and then I wish I could get out of my marriage? 00:02:29.160 --> 00:02:31.640 Why do we say that about our jobs and our homes? 00:02:31.740 --> 00:02:33.360 I would love to live in the city. 00:02:33.560 --> 00:02:34.640 It's hard to live in the city. 00:02:34.840 --> 00:02:36.200 We've decided we need to leave the city. 00:02:36.199 --> 00:02:43.739 Why do we constantly face a lack of contentment? 00:02:43.919 --> 00:02:47.519 You could blame the culture and say, well, we live in a culture that facilitates this. 00:02:47.759 --> 00:02:48.839 It's a culture of more. 00:02:48.939 --> 00:02:49.739 And you would be right. 00:02:50.759 --> 00:02:53.659 Our economy thrives off discontentment. 00:02:53.719 --> 00:02:58.299 It actually depends on us remaining discontented. 00:02:58.300 --> 00:03:06.360 And because economists know the less content we are, the more stuff we buy in search of contentment. 00:03:06.420 --> 00:03:08.180 But we can't put all the blame there. 00:03:08.360 --> 00:03:16.720 Philosophers have known for centuries that contentment can't be found and it can't be bought, 00:03:16.860 --> 00:03:19.100 that it's a part of human nature. 00:03:19.820 --> 00:03:25.800 Immanuel Kant said, give a man everything he wants and at that moment he will feel that everything 00:03:25.800 --> 00:03:27.760 is not everything. 00:03:28.300 --> 00:03:31.640 Oh, this is everything I wanted? 00:03:31.719 --> 00:03:32.360 What about that? 00:03:33.040 --> 00:03:34.120 That's human nature. 00:03:35.260 --> 00:03:43.240 So the problem is, contrary to virtually every advertisement ever made, you cannot buy or find contentment. 00:03:44.360 --> 00:03:48.860 So next time you see somebody's Instagram feed and there's a picture of just their feet 00:03:48.860 --> 00:03:55.520 and the ocean is in the backdrop and it says hashtag blessed, hashtag content, don't believe it. 00:03:56.380 --> 00:03:57.480 It's a lie. 00:03:58.300 --> 00:04:00.920 That's not true contentment. 00:04:00.919 --> 00:04:07.239 So Paul says in our passage today, contentment is something that has to be learned. 00:04:07.479 --> 00:04:09.219 It has to be habituated. 00:04:09.339 --> 00:04:10.779 It has to be cultivated. 00:04:11.079 --> 00:04:13.099 It's a habit of the heart. 00:04:15.019 --> 00:04:16.019 It's a discipline. 00:04:16.219 --> 00:04:17.060 It's an art. 00:04:17.060 --> 00:04:19.680 You might call it the art of contentment. 00:04:19.680 --> 00:04:21.259 The art of being content. 00:04:22.879 --> 00:04:24.280 And it doesn't come easy. 00:04:24.399 --> 00:04:30.459 So anybody that says here are five easy steps to being content, don't buy that book. 00:04:31.340 --> 00:04:32.280 It's a waste of money. 00:04:33.160 --> 00:04:33.840 It's hard. 00:04:33.839 --> 00:04:36.579 Paul makes snow bones about the fact that it's hard. 00:04:38.459 --> 00:04:39.839 It's a lifelong pursuit. 00:04:39.839 --> 00:04:47.299 But here in Philippians chapter 4 verses 10 to 13, Paul says the secret of lasting contentment 00:04:47.299 --> 00:04:53.319 is something that he's found over the course of his life of following Jesus. 00:04:53.539 --> 00:04:56.659 Now we hear secret and we think, okay, here's the five easy steps. 00:04:56.660 --> 00:05:05.520 He's playing off a common sort of gnostic idea of a mystery or a secret that you could attain. 00:05:05.640 --> 00:05:07.060 He's sort of doing a little wordplay here. 00:05:07.320 --> 00:05:09.260 He says, I've actually discovered the secret. 00:05:09.700 --> 00:05:10.620 And what is the secret? 00:05:10.780 --> 00:05:12.120 Well, it's rooted in trust. 00:05:13.820 --> 00:05:14.300 Trust. 00:05:15.860 --> 00:05:21.020 In other words, it comes through the daily, sometimes hourly, sometimes moment to moment 00:05:21.020 --> 00:05:25.860 decision to trust and to place God ways over our ways. 00:05:27.660 --> 00:05:31.640 Moment to moment to moment, deciding again and again and again to trust and to place God's 00:05:31.640 --> 00:05:33.380 ways over our ways. 00:05:34.040 --> 00:05:37.840 And we see this throughout the book of Philippians playing out in three ways. 00:05:37.960 --> 00:05:39.200 See, he doesn't list it. 00:05:39.780 --> 00:05:42.840 You have to read the whole letter to the Philippians and you'll understand. 00:05:42.960 --> 00:05:45.879 You'll be able to draw out what Paul's talking about here. 00:05:46.100 --> 00:05:48.000 And we see three things as we look at the letter. 00:05:48.680 --> 00:05:52.080 That it means trusting God's purposes over our priorities. 00:05:52.079 --> 00:05:57.680 It means trusting God's providence over our preferences. 00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:02.039 And then lastly, it means trusting God's character over our circumstances. 00:06:02.199 --> 00:06:04.839 And we're going to break each of those down a little more. 00:06:04.959 --> 00:06:06.519 So let's pray as we get into this together. 00:06:06.519 --> 00:06:15.079 Lord, we don't have to wonder about the relevance of this, whether we realize it or not. 00:06:15.199 --> 00:06:19.899 We have hearts that are perpetually full of discontentment. 00:06:20.560 --> 00:06:26.659 Lord, St. Augustine describes hearts that are restless until they find their rest in you. 00:06:26.779 --> 00:06:31.159 And so we pray that as we are gathered here this evening through your word, we would gain 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:35.560 a sense for how to find that rest and what that means, Lord. 00:06:36.120 --> 00:06:37.920 We pray this for our good and for your glory. 00:06:38.060 --> 00:06:39.520 In your son's name, amen. 00:06:40.860 --> 00:06:46.380 So first of all, we're talking about contentment coming from the daily or even moment-to-moment 00:06:46.380 --> 00:06:52.480 placing of trust in God's purposes over our priorities. 00:06:53.740 --> 00:06:55.060 So you have your priorities. 00:06:55.780 --> 00:06:56.720 God has his purposes. 00:06:57.040 --> 00:06:58.860 Which is going to be primary in your life? 00:06:58.860 --> 00:07:01.819 So let me read a couple of verses here. 00:07:02.199 --> 00:07:03.199 Philippians 4, verse 10. 00:07:04.620 --> 00:07:10.000 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you've revived your concern for me. 00:07:10.800 --> 00:07:13.160 It had been some time since he heard from the Philippians. 00:07:13.259 --> 00:07:14.900 He's saying, oh, you remembered me. 00:07:16.400 --> 00:07:19.819 You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. 00:07:20.080 --> 00:07:22.620 In other words, before now, they hadn't had a chance to send anything. 00:07:23.400 --> 00:07:27.939 Not that I'm speaking of being in need, he says, for I've learned in whatever situation 00:07:27.939 --> 00:07:29.360 I'm to be content. 00:07:30.600 --> 00:07:34.920 So we're dropping into the middle of a letter, actually at the end of a letter, written by 00:07:34.920 --> 00:07:37.000 Paul to Christians in Philippi. 00:07:37.779 --> 00:07:40.660 And so I want to give you a little context so you know what's happening because we don't 00:07:40.660 --> 00:07:42.319 want to just drop in with no context. 00:07:43.199 --> 00:07:47.279 Paul had visited Philippi earlier in his ministry on his second missionary journey. 00:07:48.459 --> 00:07:49.980 You may remember he had some converts. 00:07:50.120 --> 00:07:51.860 You can read about this in Acts chapter 16. 00:07:51.860 --> 00:07:53.819 Lydia, convert. 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:55.840 The Philippian jailer, a convert. 00:07:56.319 --> 00:07:57.720 Syrophoenician woman, a convert. 00:07:58.120 --> 00:08:02.819 And he began to have these converts to Christianity and built a church there. 00:08:03.840 --> 00:08:07.080 But it's been some time since he's been able to return. 00:08:08.420 --> 00:08:13.100 And so now he is writing this letter and he's sitting in prison. 00:08:13.939 --> 00:08:15.120 So he's not in Philippi. 00:08:15.220 --> 00:08:16.199 He's not anywhere near Philippi. 00:08:16.300 --> 00:08:18.300 He's most likely, scholars think, in Rome. 00:08:18.300 --> 00:08:21.939 And so he's writing this letter. 00:08:22.379 --> 00:08:26.720 It's been a while, maybe as much as 10 years since he's heard anything from them. 00:08:28.020 --> 00:08:30.340 And then they finally send Epaphroditus. 00:08:30.500 --> 00:08:35.200 And Epaphroditus has brought some money to help Paul live while he's in prison. 00:08:35.600 --> 00:08:38.100 And then Epaphroditus got really sick and he almost died. 00:08:38.460 --> 00:08:39.419 But then he got better. 00:08:39.519 --> 00:08:40.120 God healed him. 00:08:40.320 --> 00:08:45.159 And so now Paul is writing a thank you letter to send with Epaphroditus back to the people 00:08:45.159 --> 00:08:45.740 in Philippi. 00:08:45.820 --> 00:08:46.879 So that's what's going on here. 00:08:46.879 --> 00:08:51.679 And so Paul takes the opportunity as he's writing this thank you letter to teach them 00:08:51.679 --> 00:08:55.039 and us what he's learned about being content. 00:08:56.580 --> 00:09:00.259 And the secret to contentment that he refers to is something that we come to understand, 00:09:00.360 --> 00:09:01.860 as I said, by looking at the whole letter. 00:09:02.100 --> 00:09:06.480 And the first thing that jumps out when you read Philippians is that Paul is wholly committed 00:09:06.480 --> 00:09:08.139 to the purposes of God. 00:09:08.519 --> 00:09:14.220 He is fully committed to the purposes of God, regardless of what that means about his own 00:09:14.220 --> 00:09:16.639 priorities being dashed on the rocks. 00:09:16.879 --> 00:09:20.340 So take a moment to put yourself in Paul's shoes. 00:09:20.480 --> 00:09:23.159 Just think about him and his perspective. 00:09:24.039 --> 00:09:24.860 Here he is. 00:09:26.179 --> 00:09:27.759 He's languishing in prison. 00:09:29.200 --> 00:09:32.659 He hasn't heard from the Philippians in as many as 10 years. 00:09:32.659 --> 00:09:37.919 It would be very easy to become bitter. 00:09:38.919 --> 00:09:40.319 And that's a long time. 00:09:40.320 --> 00:09:44.200 All I did for those Philippians. 00:09:45.400 --> 00:09:47.480 All the sacrifices I made. 00:09:48.760 --> 00:09:51.360 All of the selfless love I poured out. 00:09:52.400 --> 00:09:55.120 And now I'm here in prison and they can't so much as send me a letter. 00:09:55.120 --> 00:09:58.460 It would be easy to be bitter at God. 00:09:58.539 --> 00:09:59.899 God, all that I've done for you. 00:09:59.960 --> 00:10:01.039 I've left everything. 00:10:01.299 --> 00:10:02.759 I've been mocked and ridiculed. 00:10:02.860 --> 00:10:06.659 I had an amazing promising career and I left it all behind to follow you. 00:10:06.860 --> 00:10:08.879 And here's what I get for all of that service. 00:10:09.379 --> 00:10:10.100 I'm in prison. 00:10:10.340 --> 00:10:11.440 I'm rotting in here. 00:10:11.580 --> 00:10:12.899 And nobody seems to care. 00:10:12.899 --> 00:10:19.000 And yet when you read the letter, the letter is the exact opposite of that attitude. 00:10:19.319 --> 00:10:20.659 It's full of joy. 00:10:21.500 --> 00:10:22.740 It's full of gratitude. 00:10:23.259 --> 00:10:24.720 It's full of praise. 00:10:25.139 --> 00:10:27.059 And so we have to ask, how in the world? 00:10:27.319 --> 00:10:31.799 Did he grow up in one of those kind of southern families where they say it's not okay to be mad and upset? 00:10:33.100 --> 00:10:37.980 Oh, Paul, well, however bad you think it is, there are children starving in Africa who are a lot worse. 00:10:38.899 --> 00:10:42.539 However bad you think it is, I'm sure there's somebody who's down the street who has it worse. 00:10:42.539 --> 00:10:43.860 What right do you have to be upset? 00:10:45.099 --> 00:10:46.819 No, this isn't emotional dishonesty. 00:10:48.179 --> 00:10:50.620 He's truly filled with joy and gratitude and peace. 00:10:50.699 --> 00:10:51.439 How is that possible? 00:10:53.579 --> 00:10:57.039 Drew Halston is the founder of Dropbox. 00:10:57.179 --> 00:10:58.279 You may have heard of that company. 00:10:59.559 --> 00:11:04.079 And he gave the commencement address at MIT back in 2013. 00:11:04.980 --> 00:11:08.519 And it's a decent talk, but one of the points that he makes I thought was kind of interesting. 00:11:09.519 --> 00:11:15.039 He says, you know, everybody, you know, his advice to graduates is, everybody needs to find their tennis ball. 00:11:16.659 --> 00:11:23.939 So if you have a dog, you know that you take a tennis ball and you go outside and you throw the tennis ball, and the dog is solely focused on the tennis ball. 00:11:24.699 --> 00:11:25.019 Right? 00:11:25.019 --> 00:11:32.139 And you can hurl that tennis ball, and the dog is just shoots off, you know, leash snaps off like a lightning bolt. 00:11:32.340 --> 00:11:39.379 And that dog will plow through snow, through mud, through water, through barbed wire, through anything to get to that ball. 00:11:39.460 --> 00:11:40.720 It's its sole aim. 00:11:40.799 --> 00:11:43.819 It's focused on, it's obsessed with getting the tennis ball. 00:11:45.100 --> 00:11:47.620 And he says, what is your tennis ball in life? 00:11:47.620 --> 00:11:52.299 What's that chief goal, that chief aim? 00:11:53.320 --> 00:12:05.519 So if your tennis ball is starting a new company, then you will work nights, you'll work weekends, you'll eat junk food, you'll neglect your family and friends. 00:12:05.620 --> 00:12:09.600 You'll do all of that joyfully as long as you see your company is growing. 00:12:09.600 --> 00:12:26.759 But, if your tennis ball is spending more time with your family, or eating well, or getting enough sleep, then a job like that is not going to be a source of joy, it's going to be what amounts to slave labor. 00:12:26.759 --> 00:12:31.840 The entire difference is made by your tennis ball. 00:12:33.059 --> 00:12:40.039 In other words, your entire perception of everything in your life, the circumstances, really hinges on what that tennis ball is for you. 00:12:41.519 --> 00:12:43.779 Whatever it is, it shapes how we perceive everything else. 00:12:43.840 --> 00:12:51.799 And so the point is, the reason that Paul can be so joyful, the reason that he can be so content in his life, is because he's found his tennis ball. 00:12:51.799 --> 00:12:57.120 And that shapes everything else in his life. 00:12:57.199 --> 00:12:59.599 And here's his tennis ball, it's in Philippians 3, verse 8. 00:13:00.919 --> 00:13:08.859 He says, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus Christ my Lord. 00:13:10.219 --> 00:13:14.919 I count everything as loss because I know the surpassing worth. 00:13:15.079 --> 00:13:18.000 In other words, surpassing, that's the tennis ball. 00:13:18.839 --> 00:13:20.879 It's worth more than anything else in my life. 00:13:20.879 --> 00:13:23.139 Knowing Jesus Christ my Lord. 00:13:23.439 --> 00:13:30.480 For his sake I've suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ. 00:13:31.700 --> 00:13:32.759 It's an amazing statement. 00:13:32.860 --> 00:13:33.379 What's he saying? 00:13:33.580 --> 00:13:34.779 I know Christ. 00:13:35.120 --> 00:13:36.320 I know I belong to Christ. 00:13:36.419 --> 00:13:40.539 And I want my whole life to be about knowing Christ more and more and more. 00:13:40.919 --> 00:13:45.179 Gaining more and more and more of a sense of the presence of Christ in my life. 00:13:45.399 --> 00:13:47.360 Becoming more and more and more like him. 00:13:47.360 --> 00:13:55.519 Because Paul knows that God's purpose for each one of us is that we would know Christ more deeply and become more like him. 00:13:56.320 --> 00:13:59.680 And God works tirelessly toward that end. 00:13:59.679 --> 00:14:07.219 If somebody said, you should consider becoming a Christian because you're going to be so much happier. 00:14:08.779 --> 00:14:10.479 They were deceiving you. 00:14:11.199 --> 00:14:15.079 If somebody said, hey, you should be a Christian because it's going to make your life so much more convenient. 00:14:15.919 --> 00:14:16.939 You were misled. 00:14:16.940 --> 00:14:25.140 If you thought that being a Christian would somehow solve the problems in your life, then you're really going down a rabbit trail. 00:14:28.340 --> 00:14:32.100 God's single purpose in our life is to make us more like Christ. 00:14:33.080 --> 00:14:36.920 And everything in our lives is geared toward that end. 00:14:36.919 --> 00:14:40.699 And Paul understands this. 00:14:41.319 --> 00:14:43.679 And that's why he's able to say in verse 12 of chapter 4, 00:14:43.919 --> 00:14:46.679 I know how to be brought low and how to abound. 00:14:47.439 --> 00:14:52.819 In any and every circumstance, I've learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 00:14:52.899 --> 00:14:57.399 See, he knows how to be brought low and how to abound because they both bring dangers. 00:14:58.299 --> 00:15:00.219 What's the danger of being brought low? 00:15:00.220 --> 00:15:08.279 Well, it's coming to believe that God, that Christ may have abandoned us. 00:15:09.139 --> 00:15:09.340 Right? 00:15:10.240 --> 00:15:16.720 And so he says, I know how to be brought low and not lose my sense of Christ's presence. 00:15:16.840 --> 00:15:17.100 How? 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:19.139 Well, he says this in verse 13. 00:15:19.779 --> 00:15:23.340 Because I remember that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. 00:15:24.259 --> 00:15:27.360 When I'm brought low, I rely on Christ because he strengthens me. 00:15:27.360 --> 00:15:32.480 But if that's the risk of being brought low, then what's the risk of the good times? 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:34.500 The great times? 00:15:34.600 --> 00:15:35.360 The times of celebration? 00:15:35.539 --> 00:15:38.019 Well, the risk isn't that we think God has abandoned us. 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:39.800 The risk is that we abandon God. 00:15:40.879 --> 00:15:41.560 I don't need you. 00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:43.879 Oh, I forgot you were even there. 00:15:45.300 --> 00:15:48.700 And so he says, I know how to do that too and not lose a sense of the presence of Christ. 00:15:49.300 --> 00:15:49.940 Verse 17. 00:15:50.300 --> 00:15:54.320 He remembers that Christ is the one who supplies all of our needs. 00:15:55.879 --> 00:15:57.139 So I know how to do both. 00:15:57.360 --> 00:16:00.100 And have both good and bad experiences in my life. 00:16:01.039 --> 00:16:05.139 Facilitate and encourage my gaining of Christ. 00:16:06.740 --> 00:16:12.060 So think about how this would apply as many of us are discontented with our jobs. 00:16:13.500 --> 00:16:16.240 You know, if you're sitting there and you're thinking right now, you know, I need a change. 00:16:17.120 --> 00:16:23.659 You know, if you kind of got your phone out and you're kind of like surfing the, you know, the kind of job postings. 00:16:24.360 --> 00:16:25.419 You're kind of fishing around. 00:16:26.360 --> 00:16:27.839 You know, it may be that you need to leave. 00:16:27.899 --> 00:16:29.559 It may be that that's exactly what you need to do. 00:16:29.679 --> 00:16:31.559 So I'm not challenging that on principle. 00:16:31.559 --> 00:16:35.000 But it's worth asking before you leave. 00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:37.080 What's your tennis ball? 00:16:38.740 --> 00:16:42.840 Is your tennis ball, when it comes to your job, is your tennis ball feeling important? 00:16:43.379 --> 00:16:44.519 Making a certain amount of money? 00:16:45.480 --> 00:16:46.320 Feeling appreciated? 00:16:46.320 --> 00:16:52.980 Or is your tennis ball, no matter what, is your tennis ball gaining Christ and becoming more like Christ? 00:16:53.040 --> 00:16:56.100 It's worth asking, how can God use these circumstances? 00:16:56.960 --> 00:16:58.680 A boss that doesn't appreciate me? 00:16:59.040 --> 00:17:00.840 Co-workers that seem against me? 00:17:00.840 --> 00:17:06.140 A glass ceiling that seems to prevent me from climbing the ladder that I want to climb? 00:17:07.640 --> 00:17:13.299 Now, those aren't necessarily good things, but it's worth asking, how can God use this to form Christ in me? 00:17:14.380 --> 00:17:16.960 Have I been open to that as a possibility or not? 00:17:16.960 --> 00:17:25.680 How can I bloom where God has planted me before I will so quickly uproot myself to go somewhere else? 00:17:25.740 --> 00:17:26.539 It's worth asking. 00:17:28.140 --> 00:17:30.559 Likewise, in marriage, some of you are really struggling. 00:17:33.160 --> 00:17:33.860 That's okay. 00:17:34.039 --> 00:17:34.600 That's marriage. 00:17:35.840 --> 00:17:40.360 If you're a tennis ball, or if you want to get married, whether you're married or you want to get married, 00:17:40.420 --> 00:17:44.440 if your tennis ball is getting married so that you won't be lonely anymore, 00:17:44.440 --> 00:17:48.059 so that you will be more fulfilled, so that you will be more satisfied, 00:17:48.600 --> 00:17:51.220 so that all of your sexual needs will be met, 00:17:52.080 --> 00:17:55.299 if that's your tennis ball, then marriage is not for you. 00:17:56.360 --> 00:17:57.600 You're not going to find any of those things. 00:17:57.640 --> 00:17:59.420 That's a recipe for discontentment. 00:18:00.720 --> 00:18:04.160 If your tennis ball is becoming more like Christ, then marriage is a great way to do that. 00:18:05.580 --> 00:18:08.160 Because then you see, if your tennis ball is happiness, 00:18:08.259 --> 00:18:10.840 and every time you fight, you're going to say, man, maybe I married the wrong person. 00:18:10.839 --> 00:18:17.859 If your tennis ball is holiness, then everything, sometimes especially the fights, 00:18:18.859 --> 00:18:21.079 are ways that we become more like Christ. 00:18:24.059 --> 00:18:31.699 So do we trust God's purposes in our life over and above whatever our priorities might be? 00:18:32.319 --> 00:18:33.220 What's your tennis ball? 00:18:33.439 --> 00:18:35.159 That's the first aspect of contentment. 00:18:35.160 --> 00:18:38.320 The second aspect pushes it a little more, 00:18:38.440 --> 00:18:43.560 that we need to trust God's providence over our preferences. 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:44.840 You know what God's providence is? 00:18:45.460 --> 00:18:47.580 When we talk about God's providence, his sovereignty, 00:18:48.240 --> 00:18:53.759 that's God's ability to work in and orchestrate and control the flow of events in history. 00:18:53.759 --> 00:18:59.660 So if you read Acts chapter 16, about Paul's time in Philippi, 00:18:59.740 --> 00:19:04.220 you know that not only were there miraculous conversions, 00:19:04.500 --> 00:19:06.859 but Paul actually got imprisoned in Philippi. 00:19:08.680 --> 00:19:09.980 And do you remember what happened? 00:19:11.339 --> 00:19:13.839 He's sitting there, they're singing around midnight. 00:19:14.900 --> 00:19:19.039 God sends an earthquake, rattles the prison, 00:19:19.039 --> 00:19:23.759 and all the doors fly open, the chains just drop off their arms. 00:19:24.700 --> 00:19:26.799 Incredible, miraculous liberation. 00:19:28.740 --> 00:19:30.559 So here Paul is, 10 years later, 00:19:31.519 --> 00:19:35.319 writing a letter to the Philippian church while he's in prison. 00:19:36.500 --> 00:19:37.519 Can you imagine what he's thinking? 00:19:38.420 --> 00:19:39.940 I don't want to put words in his mouth. 00:19:40.139 --> 00:19:41.059 I'll tell you what I'd be thinking. 00:19:41.819 --> 00:19:44.639 Hey God, I saw you do that in Philippi. 00:19:44.879 --> 00:19:46.480 I saw you liberate me. 00:19:46.500 --> 00:19:47.879 I saw the miracle happen. 00:19:47.880 --> 00:19:49.120 That was amazing. 00:19:49.420 --> 00:19:52.100 We gave thanks to you, and I've been thankful ever since. 00:19:52.360 --> 00:19:53.600 It meant a lot to me that you did that. 00:19:54.480 --> 00:19:55.500 Can you do it again? 00:19:55.920 --> 00:19:57.060 I saw you do it then. 00:19:57.160 --> 00:19:58.140 Why don't you do it again? 00:19:59.100 --> 00:20:00.300 Would you not be thinking that? 00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:02.040 Come on, God. 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:03.560 What did we do differently? 00:20:03.720 --> 00:20:04.600 Was it because we were singing? 00:20:05.400 --> 00:20:06.140 Do you want me to sing? 00:20:06.740 --> 00:20:07.360 I'll sing. 00:20:08.400 --> 00:20:09.220 Just send the earthquake. 00:20:10.600 --> 00:20:12.560 And you can imagine, this is how we think. 00:20:14.400 --> 00:20:15.240 This is how we think. 00:20:15.240 --> 00:20:17.660 It's funny, but I know a lot of these examples are not funny. 00:20:18.860 --> 00:20:21.740 You know, God, you miraculously heal all those people in the Bible. 00:20:22.200 --> 00:20:25.020 And I read all these stories of you miraculously healing other people. 00:20:25.280 --> 00:20:26.440 Why didn't you heal my family member? 00:20:27.460 --> 00:20:28.440 Why did you let him die? 00:20:29.900 --> 00:20:31.300 Why did you let her go on suffering? 00:20:32.680 --> 00:20:35.860 You know, God, you miraculously found spouses for all my friends. 00:20:35.859 --> 00:20:41.259 You know, Jacob got two spouses. 00:20:41.579 --> 00:20:42.339 And he met them in a well. 00:20:43.279 --> 00:20:43.539 You know? 00:20:44.039 --> 00:20:45.099 You can't send me one? 00:20:46.159 --> 00:20:46.919 Is that too much? 00:20:47.939 --> 00:20:52.519 God, the Bible is full of places where you miraculously make women pregnant. 00:20:53.319 --> 00:20:54.119 Why not us? 00:20:54.799 --> 00:20:56.439 Why are we going to the fertility clinic? 00:20:57.159 --> 00:20:58.139 Why can't it be miraculous? 00:20:58.140 --> 00:21:04.720 And yet, look at what Paul says in Philippians 1, verse 12. 00:21:04.800 --> 00:21:05.280 He says this, 00:21:05.500 --> 00:21:06.640 I want you to know, brothers, 00:21:07.120 --> 00:21:09.680 he's talking about his imprisonment here, 00:21:10.120 --> 00:21:11.900 I want you to know, brothers, 00:21:12.120 --> 00:21:16.080 that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, 00:21:16.600 --> 00:21:19.820 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard 00:21:19.820 --> 00:21:22.780 and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. 00:21:22.779 --> 00:21:24.759 What's he saying here? 00:21:24.799 --> 00:21:25.579 He's saying this, 00:21:26.059 --> 00:21:28.220 I assume that God is in control. 00:21:29.279 --> 00:21:33.259 I assume that the fact that I'm in prison is a part of God's plan. 00:21:33.359 --> 00:21:36.259 It's a part of his unfolding providence. 00:21:36.420 --> 00:21:39.200 I'm assuming, that's my ground level assumption. 00:21:40.019 --> 00:21:41.619 And because he assumes that, 00:21:41.779 --> 00:21:45.460 he's able to see how God is using this experience, 00:21:45.740 --> 00:21:47.819 even though it's nothing like what he would prefer. 00:21:48.079 --> 00:21:49.240 He doesn't want to be in prison. 00:21:49.440 --> 00:21:50.619 He's not excited about it. 00:21:50.619 --> 00:21:53.459 But because he assumes God's providence. 00:21:54.739 --> 00:21:58.059 He says, you know, I'm able to see that even though I'm suffering, 00:21:58.439 --> 00:21:59.539 God is using this. 00:22:00.099 --> 00:22:02.139 And I wouldn't prefer this, and I don't want it. 00:22:03.099 --> 00:22:07.339 But he has eyes to see the good that God is bringing from it. 00:22:07.519 --> 00:22:10.519 Because God is sovereign, he's in control, he's at work. 00:22:12.139 --> 00:22:15.679 And so knowing and trusting God's providence over his own preferences 00:22:15.679 --> 00:22:18.539 enables Paul to be content, even in prison. 00:22:18.539 --> 00:22:21.200 I'll put it another way. 00:22:22.659 --> 00:22:24.399 Whenever you're trying to make sense of your life 00:22:24.399 --> 00:22:26.759 and the circumstances that you're in, 00:22:28.059 --> 00:22:32.359 it is always God's providence, never God's negligence. 00:22:33.619 --> 00:22:35.279 It's always God's providence. 00:22:35.480 --> 00:22:37.940 It is never God's negligence. 00:22:37.940 --> 00:22:42.080 So you say, well, does this mean that God wants us to suffer? 00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:42.980 Is that what you're saying? 00:22:43.120 --> 00:22:44.380 That God says, hey, in my providence, 00:22:44.920 --> 00:22:46.519 you're going to have a really hard year. 00:22:48.980 --> 00:22:49.340 No. 00:22:51.860 --> 00:22:53.640 It doesn't delight God that we suffer. 00:22:54.779 --> 00:22:57.059 Why do you think it broke God's heart in Genesis 3 00:22:57.059 --> 00:22:58.559 when we rebelled against him? 00:22:58.559 --> 00:23:02.599 See, from God's perspective, that was like us dropping a giant, 00:23:02.940 --> 00:23:07.000 muddy stone into a perfectly still pond. 00:23:07.639 --> 00:23:11.779 And all of the ripples of suffering and death that came out of that 00:23:11.779 --> 00:23:13.440 broke God's heart. 00:23:13.500 --> 00:23:14.480 He says, what have you done? 00:23:15.259 --> 00:23:17.339 And yet, because he is sovereign, 00:23:17.919 --> 00:23:21.339 he's able to direct the flow of those ripples 00:23:21.339 --> 00:23:23.639 in some way that goes beyond our ability to understand. 00:23:23.640 --> 00:23:26.480 He's able to, in other words, redeem them 00:23:26.480 --> 00:23:30.740 so that they become a part of his good purposes. 00:23:31.000 --> 00:23:33.180 Don't ask me to explain how that happens. 00:23:33.660 --> 00:23:34.180 I don't know. 00:23:34.320 --> 00:23:34.960 Nobody knows. 00:23:36.440 --> 00:23:40.240 But he's able to direct the flow of all of those implications and ripples 00:23:40.240 --> 00:23:44.640 so that eventually they become a part of his good purposes. 00:23:45.840 --> 00:23:50.220 Ravi Zacharias shares this great Middle Eastern sort of proverb 00:23:50.220 --> 00:23:52.780 that tries to explore how God does this. 00:23:52.779 --> 00:23:55.500 He tells the story of a man who has a horse. 00:23:55.619 --> 00:23:57.180 You may have heard him talk about this, 00:23:57.519 --> 00:23:58.960 those of you who know Ravi Zacharias. 00:23:59.359 --> 00:24:04.039 A man who has a horse, and the horse runs away. 00:24:04.879 --> 00:24:07.339 And a neighbor comes and says, oh, it's such bad luck. 00:24:07.379 --> 00:24:08.139 Your horse ran away. 00:24:08.259 --> 00:24:10.539 And the man says, what do I know about these things? 00:24:10.599 --> 00:24:11.319 Good luck, bad luck. 00:24:12.119 --> 00:24:14.000 A few days later, the horse comes back 00:24:14.000 --> 00:24:16.259 and brings 20 wild horses with it. 00:24:17.039 --> 00:24:19.859 Same neighbor comes and says, what good luck? 00:24:19.859 --> 00:24:23.079 Look, your horse that ran away brought all these horses back. 00:24:23.519 --> 00:24:25.139 The man says, what do I know about these things? 00:24:25.219 --> 00:24:26.019 Good luck, bad luck. 00:24:26.679 --> 00:24:29.979 A few days later, the man's son tries to break one of these wild horses 00:24:29.979 --> 00:24:32.699 and gets his own leg broken, gets kicked by the horse. 00:24:33.579 --> 00:24:36.199 Neighbor comes by and says, wow, bad luck. 00:24:36.200 --> 00:24:39.660 If you didn't have those horses, that wouldn't happen to your son. 00:24:40.640 --> 00:24:42.319 The man says, what do I know about these things? 00:24:42.519 --> 00:24:43.500 Good luck, bad luck. 00:24:44.120 --> 00:24:46.660 A few days later, a band of thugs comes through the village 00:24:46.660 --> 00:24:50.220 recruiting able-bodied young men to come and be a part of their gang. 00:24:52.720 --> 00:24:54.960 They almost recruit this man's son, 00:24:55.019 --> 00:24:56.440 and they realize he has a broken leg, 00:24:56.460 --> 00:24:57.559 and they don't want the dead weight. 00:24:57.860 --> 00:24:58.819 So they pass him over. 00:24:59.740 --> 00:25:02.019 The neighbor comes and says, what good luck? 00:25:02.019 --> 00:25:05.779 Because his leg was broken, he didn't get kidnapped. 00:25:06.619 --> 00:25:08.279 The man says, what do I know about these things? 00:25:08.680 --> 00:25:09.700 The point is obvious. 00:25:09.859 --> 00:25:13.119 What do we know about good luck versus bad luck? 00:25:13.180 --> 00:25:16.160 Who are we to think that we can assign what is fortune 00:25:16.160 --> 00:25:19.960 and what is misfortune, what is blessing and what is curse? 00:25:20.039 --> 00:25:21.420 The point we tried to make on Ash Wednesday, 00:25:21.579 --> 00:25:22.440 for those of you who are here, 00:25:22.539 --> 00:25:25.440 is sometimes it is precisely the best, greatest, 00:25:25.579 --> 00:25:28.879 most celebratory things in our lives that are spiritual attack. 00:25:28.880 --> 00:25:31.240 And sometimes it is the hard things, the struggles, 00:25:31.620 --> 00:25:35.260 the times of dryness and tooth and nail existence, 00:25:35.420 --> 00:25:36.940 sometimes those are the greatest blessing. 00:25:37.280 --> 00:25:39.020 The point is, who are we to decide? 00:25:43.660 --> 00:25:45.180 It's certainly above my pay grade. 00:25:47.240 --> 00:25:51.960 One of the best examples of this is the story of Joseph in Genesis. 00:25:52.120 --> 00:25:53.220 Such an amazing story. 00:25:53.340 --> 00:25:54.420 Brothers are jealous of him. 00:25:54.500 --> 00:25:55.740 They sell him into slavery. 00:25:56.180 --> 00:25:57.960 They tell his father that he's dead. 00:25:58.880 --> 00:26:02.020 He gets mistreated. 00:26:02.140 --> 00:26:03.380 He gets sent off to Egypt. 00:26:03.980 --> 00:26:06.660 He gets falsely accused of rape. 00:26:06.920 --> 00:26:08.120 He gets thrown in prison. 00:26:10.560 --> 00:26:13.120 And yet, through it all, God's plan is unfolding. 00:26:13.740 --> 00:26:16.560 And eventually, he becomes the second most powerful man in Egypt, 00:26:16.720 --> 00:26:18.220 second only to the Pharaoh. 00:26:20.900 --> 00:26:22.020 And then what happens? 00:26:23.040 --> 00:26:23.980 A famine comes. 00:26:24.220 --> 00:26:27.160 Joseph's entire family is on the brink of death. 00:26:27.160 --> 00:26:28.300 So they all go to Egypt. 00:26:28.420 --> 00:26:30.080 They have no idea that Joseph is still alive. 00:26:30.680 --> 00:26:31.420 And they come. 00:26:31.500 --> 00:26:35.560 And who is the person in the position to make the decision about whether they live or die? 00:26:36.540 --> 00:26:37.400 It's Joseph. 00:26:38.380 --> 00:26:40.380 And so Joseph embraces them. 00:26:40.420 --> 00:26:42.940 And he says, as for you, you meant evil against me. 00:26:43.100 --> 00:26:44.180 But look what God did. 00:26:44.300 --> 00:26:45.279 God meant it for good. 00:26:45.420 --> 00:26:48.380 To bring it about that many people should be kept alive. 00:26:48.380 --> 00:26:54.300 Joseph is saying, who am I to say what is good luck and bad luck? 00:26:54.360 --> 00:26:55.680 But look what God has done! 00:27:00.940 --> 00:27:06.140 Cultivating contentment means trusting God's purposes over our priorities. 00:27:06.240 --> 00:27:09.440 And it means trusting his providence over our preferences. 00:27:09.440 --> 00:27:19.500 And listen, God is more concerned with his providential plan than he is with our preferences. 00:27:20.019 --> 00:27:23.640 And that is the best news we could possibly hear. 00:27:24.519 --> 00:27:28.400 Because there are times that God loves us so much that he says yes to what we ask him. 00:27:28.539 --> 00:27:30.900 There are times that God loves us so much that he says no. 00:27:30.900 --> 00:27:40.140 But all of this and the whole case that I'm trying to make sort of hinges on one final thing. 00:27:42.680 --> 00:27:44.700 We're not going to be convinced of any of this. 00:27:44.780 --> 00:27:45.780 You're not going to be convinced. 00:27:45.940 --> 00:27:48.720 I'm not going to be convinced unless we actually trust God's character. 00:27:50.420 --> 00:27:55.440 Unless you actually believe that this kind of providential, powerful God is actually trustworthy. 00:27:55.440 --> 00:28:06.559 So really the core of contentment means cultivating in our hearts the ability to trust God's character over our circumstances. 00:28:06.660 --> 00:28:14.059 What I mean is that you look at your life and your situation and then you look at God's character and you decide which one has more credence. 00:28:15.059 --> 00:28:18.460 Which one is going to be the lens through which you view your potential future? 00:28:18.920 --> 00:28:21.019 Is it this or is it this? 00:28:21.019 --> 00:28:26.960 Paul says in verse 13 when he says, 00:28:27.339 --> 00:28:30.079 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 00:28:31.519 --> 00:28:38.119 You know, I used to read this and I used to kind of interpret it like Jesus was some kind of like supernatural Red Bull. 00:28:39.079 --> 00:28:43.079 You know, that like I'm tired and Jesus kind of zaps me. 00:28:43.960 --> 00:28:46.660 And I was like, I always think that would be really cool, you know. 00:28:46.940 --> 00:28:49.879 At like 2 o'clock in the morning I'm exhausted, my kids won't go to sleep. 00:28:49.880 --> 00:28:52.340 And I say, Jesus, I need a hit. 00:28:52.600 --> 00:28:53.880 And Jesus is like, bam! 00:28:54.040 --> 00:28:56.820 And I'm like, you know, ready to go. 00:28:57.140 --> 00:28:58.800 And that's not what Paul's talking about. 00:28:59.980 --> 00:29:02.920 What Paul's actually talking about is he says, 00:29:02.980 --> 00:29:06.220 when I look at Jesus, when I consider who he is, what he's done, 00:29:06.580 --> 00:29:09.440 that strengthens my faith and trust in God. 00:29:10.760 --> 00:29:16.760 So throughout his life, Jesus continually put his Father's purposes over his own priorities. 00:29:16.759 --> 00:29:22.680 And throughout his life, Jesus trusted the providence of his Father over his own preferences. 00:29:22.839 --> 00:29:25.259 And you see all this come to a head in the Garden of Gethsemane, 00:29:25.700 --> 00:29:28.720 where Jesus literally sweats drops of blood, 00:29:29.000 --> 00:29:31.980 and he literally says, if there's any way that I don't have to do this, 00:29:32.619 --> 00:29:36.039 if there's any way that the crucifixion can be avoided, 00:29:37.039 --> 00:29:38.259 let it be so. 00:29:38.259 --> 00:29:46.559 So, he's saying my preferences and my priorities, anything but this. 00:29:47.700 --> 00:29:48.720 Anything but this. 00:29:49.140 --> 00:29:49.960 I'll do anything. 00:29:51.559 --> 00:29:52.819 But then what does he say? 00:29:53.619 --> 00:29:55.859 But not my will, but your will be done. 00:29:55.859 --> 00:30:04.919 That's the placing of God's ways, God the Father's ways, over his own. 00:30:05.000 --> 00:30:10.319 You forget the humanness of Jesus, the dread that he felt. 00:30:12.819 --> 00:30:16.219 And of course, if we really want to see the character of God on display, 00:30:16.519 --> 00:30:17.659 look at the cross itself. 00:30:17.660 --> 00:30:22.279 If we are ever tempted to doubt God's purposes, 00:30:23.060 --> 00:30:25.860 if we're ever tempted to doubt his providence, 00:30:26.740 --> 00:30:31.060 which is his ability and desire to redeem all things for our good, 00:30:31.220 --> 00:30:32.120 just look at the cross. 00:30:33.320 --> 00:30:38.140 Because the cross, Jesus' death, was simultaneously the most horrendous defeat 00:30:38.140 --> 00:30:41.019 and the most glorious victory that ever happened. 00:30:42.019 --> 00:30:43.640 It was an utter defeat. 00:30:43.779 --> 00:30:46.180 It was a seeming triumph of evil over Jesus. 00:30:46.180 --> 00:30:50.740 And yet, that very defeat was Jesus' means of gaining victory. 00:30:51.880 --> 00:30:54.420 By taking the sin of the world on himself and dying, 00:30:54.700 --> 00:30:57.759 Jesus actually liberates the world from sin and defeats death. 00:30:58.539 --> 00:31:00.360 This is the great mystery of the gospel. 00:31:00.500 --> 00:31:02.680 Jesus says, my victory is going to come 00:31:02.680 --> 00:31:04.820 when I let my enemies have their way with me. 00:31:05.840 --> 00:31:06.980 How amazing is that? 00:31:08.720 --> 00:31:11.840 So this is really the core of the secret of contentment, 00:31:11.980 --> 00:31:13.160 is the cross itself. 00:31:13.160 --> 00:31:20.580 Every time we're tempted to doubt or to demote God's ways, 00:31:21.860 --> 00:31:22.759 look at the cross. 00:31:24.840 --> 00:31:26.380 So every time we look at the cross, 00:31:26.460 --> 00:31:29.620 it reminds us why we can and should trust God's purposes 00:31:29.620 --> 00:31:32.800 and his priorities and ultimately his character 00:31:32.800 --> 00:31:34.640 over anything in our lives. 00:31:34.640 --> 00:31:39.060 So the point is this, if you are struggling, 00:31:39.160 --> 00:31:40.460 which I know many of us are right now, 00:31:40.520 --> 00:31:42.680 if you are struggling with discontentment, 00:31:42.720 --> 00:31:44.400 if you're massively unhappy in your life, 00:31:44.980 --> 00:31:46.940 if there are things that you would change in a heartbeat, 00:31:47.060 --> 00:31:49.000 the first thing we need to do is to look at the cross. 00:31:49.320 --> 00:31:50.900 That's what this season is all about, by the way, 00:31:50.920 --> 00:31:51.440 the season of Lent. 00:31:51.540 --> 00:31:53.620 It's about looking and contemplating the reality of the cross. 00:31:53.619 --> 00:31:59.759 If God's the kind of God who's able to interweave his purposes 00:31:59.759 --> 00:32:01.739 from the earliest days of humanity 00:32:01.739 --> 00:32:03.339 through countless generations, 00:32:03.759 --> 00:32:05.519 through centuries of history 00:32:05.519 --> 00:32:07.319 and nations converging, 00:32:07.559 --> 00:32:10.279 all leading to this magnificent triumph on the cross, 00:32:10.479 --> 00:32:11.919 if he's the kind of God who can do that 00:32:11.919 --> 00:32:13.519 through thousands of years of history, 00:32:15.019 --> 00:32:18.239 then surely he can be trusted to handle your life. 00:32:18.240 --> 00:32:22.799 If God is the kind of God whose providence 00:32:22.799 --> 00:32:24.460 is able to bring the greatest victory 00:32:24.460 --> 00:32:26.319 out of the greatest defeat, 00:32:26.740 --> 00:32:29.259 then surely he can redeem whatever suffering 00:32:29.259 --> 00:32:30.480 you're dealing with. 00:32:31.680 --> 00:32:33.220 And if God is the kind of God 00:32:33.220 --> 00:32:35.000 who would do all of this for us, 00:32:35.039 --> 00:32:36.200 even though we don't deserve it, 00:32:36.240 --> 00:32:37.839 but purely because he loves us, 00:32:38.099 --> 00:32:41.240 then surely his character is one that you can trust. 00:32:42.880 --> 00:32:44.339 Even if it doesn't make sense. 00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:47.440 Even if it won't make sense. 00:32:47.440 --> 00:32:50.860 Until the day comes when Jesus wipes away every tear. 00:32:51.940 --> 00:32:52.640 Let's pray. 00:32:55.039 --> 00:32:56.140 Our Lord in heaven, 00:32:56.259 --> 00:32:58.759 these are mysteries greatly beyond us. 00:33:00.140 --> 00:33:01.420 There is no formula, 00:33:01.680 --> 00:33:03.500 no way that we can make it all fit, 00:33:03.600 --> 00:33:05.640 no spreadsheet that will make sense 00:33:05.640 --> 00:33:07.480 of what we're talking about. 00:33:07.539 --> 00:33:10.740 It is the great mystery of a cosmic creator God 00:33:10.740 --> 00:33:12.140 who has entered into history. 00:33:14.799 --> 00:33:16.580 And Lord, we can only trust 00:33:16.579 --> 00:33:18.639 that what we see happening on the cross, 00:33:19.339 --> 00:33:24.139 that you is the God behind that master plan, 00:33:24.500 --> 00:33:25.500 that master work, 00:33:25.599 --> 00:33:26.240 that masterpiece, 00:33:27.919 --> 00:33:30.079 that that is the same God 00:33:30.079 --> 00:33:31.339 who is at work in our lives. 00:33:32.039 --> 00:33:33.539 We pray that we would, 00:33:33.639 --> 00:33:34.699 as Paul says, 00:33:35.079 --> 00:33:38.539 ever seek to gain Christ, 00:33:39.079 --> 00:33:40.599 to know the value 00:33:40.599 --> 00:33:43.139 of what it means to belong to him. 00:33:43.140 --> 00:33:44.720 We pray this in your son's holy name. 00:33:45.000 --> 00:33:45.240 Amen. 00:33:45.240 --> 00:33:45.340 Amen.