WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.760 And the core meaning of baptism. 00:00:02.540 --> 00:00:03.859 Because depending on where you come from, 00:00:03.919 --> 00:00:06.120 ! different people have different ways and associations 00:00:06.120 --> 00:00:09.620 and ways of making meaning or thinking about baptism. 00:00:10.460 --> 00:00:09.620 ! 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:33.039 I would say the question of identity is a universal one. 00:00:33.679 --> 00:00:36.159 Especially if you live in the postmodern West 00:00:36.159 --> 00:00:40.320 where we are veritably obsessed with the search for identity. 00:00:40.740 --> 00:00:43.079 And there is an inexhaustible supply of people 00:00:43.079 --> 00:00:45.240 with strong opinions about where we should look 00:00:45.240 --> 00:00:47.840 to figure out our identity. 00:00:48.740 --> 00:00:51.740 If you're from a more traditional or communal culture, 00:00:52.760 --> 00:00:54.400 most people would point you in the direction 00:00:54.400 --> 00:00:56.260 of the people around you. 00:00:56.260 --> 00:00:58.579 They would say, well, you're really meant to find your identity 00:00:58.579 --> 00:01:02.439 in your tribe or your family or your traditions, 00:01:03.019 --> 00:01:04.000 your people group. 00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:05.319 That's where you look. 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:08.120 If you've grown up in the West, 00:01:08.879 --> 00:01:11.239 you're pointed in the opposite direction. 00:01:12.099 --> 00:01:12.259 Right? 00:01:12.420 --> 00:01:15.299 In the postmodern West, the worst thing you could possibly do 00:01:15.299 --> 00:01:18.900 is to look to some outside source to tell you who you are. 00:01:19.000 --> 00:01:21.060 So if you let your family tell you who you are 00:01:21.060 --> 00:01:25.079 or some set of social norms or your religion, 00:01:25.640 --> 00:01:28.239 then you're a sellout, essentially. 00:01:29.019 --> 00:01:31.299 And the only way we can really know who we really are 00:01:31.299 --> 00:01:34.719 is to look inward and to analyze our feelings 00:01:34.719 --> 00:01:36.620 and our desires and our impulses. 00:01:37.120 --> 00:01:38.679 And that's really the source of identity. 00:01:39.019 --> 00:01:39.359 It's interesting. 00:01:39.480 --> 00:01:41.920 I was with some people from our church over this weekend 00:01:41.920 --> 00:01:44.259 and we were just sharing our stories. 00:01:44.859 --> 00:01:47.680 And one person in our church talked about what it was like 00:01:47.680 --> 00:01:51.579 to grow up part of her life in a more traditional communal culture 00:01:51.579 --> 00:01:54.519 and then to move to the highly individualistic culture 00:01:54.519 --> 00:01:57.000 of East Coast U.S. 00:01:57.000 --> 00:01:59.780 and the shift in identity for her. 00:02:00.719 --> 00:02:03.099 Going from a place where you found identity 00:02:03.099 --> 00:02:06.260 by kind of blending in and conforming to the people around you 00:02:06.260 --> 00:02:09.840 and moving to a place where you really needed to be individual 00:02:09.840 --> 00:02:12.020 and unique and make sure that you stand out. 00:02:12.819 --> 00:02:13.719 And that was profoundly disoriented. 00:02:13.719 --> 00:02:19.120 None of these ways of getting at identity actually deliver what they promise. 00:02:19.479 --> 00:02:21.060 And that's what we're going to look at this morning. 00:02:21.180 --> 00:02:23.939 The gospel offers something entirely different. 00:02:23.939 --> 00:02:28.259 An identity that is not found by conformity 00:02:28.259 --> 00:02:30.719 and it's not found by looking within. 00:02:31.120 --> 00:02:33.699 It's an identity that can only be received 00:02:33.699 --> 00:02:40.020 from Jesus Christ and sealed in baptism. 00:02:40.379 --> 00:02:41.419 So that's what we're looking at. 00:02:41.460 --> 00:02:45.460 We're looking at Matthew chapter 3, the story of Jesus' baptism. 00:02:46.280 --> 00:02:48.240 So we're going to see the crisis of identity, 00:02:48.419 --> 00:02:51.659 how Jesus restores identity, and what that means for us. 00:02:52.479 --> 00:02:52.939 Let's pray. 00:02:54.359 --> 00:02:57.099 Our Lord and Heavenly Father, we thank you this morning 00:02:57.099 --> 00:02:58.840 for the fact that you are here 00:02:58.840 --> 00:03:00.719 and you are doing your ministry in our midst. 00:03:01.419 --> 00:03:03.979 We thank you that you love us, you love Patrick, 00:03:04.120 --> 00:03:06.400 that what we're about to celebrate in this baptism 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:09.359 is all a response to your initiating love. 00:03:10.240 --> 00:03:11.400 And we pray that in that love, 00:03:11.479 --> 00:03:14.840 you would make your word understandable to us. 00:03:15.579 --> 00:03:16.419 And that more than that, 00:03:16.460 --> 00:03:18.240 you would do your work in us through your word. 00:03:18.319 --> 00:03:19.939 We pray this in Jesus' holy name. 00:03:20.360 --> 00:03:20.599 Amen. 00:03:21.819 --> 00:03:22.840 So first of all, friends, 00:03:22.840 --> 00:03:25.259 I want to talk a little bit about the crisis of identity. 00:03:25.599 --> 00:03:27.879 Why is there this search to begin with? 00:03:28.420 --> 00:03:31.140 In our passage, we meet a man named John. 00:03:31.620 --> 00:03:33.379 John is a renowned prophet. 00:03:34.500 --> 00:03:36.120 He lives in the desert. 00:03:36.620 --> 00:03:41.319 And John's message is essentially boiled down to one core soundbite 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:43.319 that he repeats again and again. 00:03:43.439 --> 00:03:45.360 He calls people to do two things, 00:03:45.360 --> 00:03:48.980 to repent and be baptized. 00:03:49.400 --> 00:03:51.300 Repent and be baptized. 00:03:52.140 --> 00:03:54.040 One of the problems with the word repent 00:03:54.040 --> 00:03:55.700 is I think when we hear the word repent, 00:03:55.840 --> 00:03:59.020 we often think only of behavioral change. 00:04:00.020 --> 00:04:01.560 What is John really preaching? 00:04:01.700 --> 00:04:03.920 He's saying, stop doing the bad things, 00:04:04.580 --> 00:04:05.980 get your act together, 00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:07.520 start doing good things. 00:04:07.900 --> 00:04:08.440 That's repent. 00:04:08.620 --> 00:04:09.600 Stop the bad things, 00:04:09.800 --> 00:04:10.720 start the good things. 00:04:10.719 --> 00:04:14.859 And that's honestly what you find in a lot of religions around the world, 00:04:14.979 --> 00:04:16.819 different versions of that message. 00:04:16.939 --> 00:04:17.740 These things are bad. 00:04:17.819 --> 00:04:18.519 These things are good. 00:04:18.600 --> 00:04:20.959 Stop doing these things and start doing these things. 00:04:21.620 --> 00:04:23.139 But John, we need to understand, 00:04:23.240 --> 00:04:25.920 isn't just talking about changing behavior. 00:04:27.079 --> 00:04:31.180 His message is really about changing our very identity. 00:04:31.180 --> 00:04:39.980 To repent is to stop living out of a false identity. 00:04:40.139 --> 00:04:43.400 It's to abandon your old way of life 00:04:43.400 --> 00:04:45.920 and the identity that it's rooted in. 00:04:46.000 --> 00:04:47.620 Because what the Bible would say 00:04:47.620 --> 00:04:51.379 is that all of our behavior is downstream from our identity. 00:04:53.060 --> 00:04:54.980 Whatever defines us, 00:04:55.879 --> 00:04:59.560 that is what leads to all the ways that we live, 00:04:59.660 --> 00:05:00.079 good or bad. 00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:03.139 So to repent is to abandon an old identity 00:05:03.139 --> 00:05:07.800 and then to be baptized is to put on a new identity, 00:05:07.959 --> 00:05:08.819 a true identity. 00:05:09.099 --> 00:05:10.419 This is why the Apostle Paul, 00:05:10.719 --> 00:05:11.819 regularly in his letters, 00:05:12.560 --> 00:05:14.279 refers to Christian conversion 00:05:14.279 --> 00:05:16.899 as a putting off of the old self 00:05:16.899 --> 00:05:20.379 and a putting on of the new self. 00:05:22.159 --> 00:05:24.579 So why would we need a new identity? 00:05:24.919 --> 00:05:25.959 What's the problem? 00:05:26.099 --> 00:05:27.479 Well, what is identity? 00:05:27.480 --> 00:05:27.600 Identity. 00:05:28.540 --> 00:05:29.900 I heard one person say, 00:05:29.960 --> 00:05:31.620 and I think this is a great way of thinking about it, 00:05:31.860 --> 00:05:34.319 identity is composed essentially of two things. 00:05:34.740 --> 00:05:37.240 Your identity, my identity, two things. 00:05:37.700 --> 00:05:38.840 A sense of self 00:05:38.840 --> 00:05:41.620 and a sense of worth. 00:05:43.259 --> 00:05:44.060 By sense of self, 00:05:44.120 --> 00:05:46.420 I mean what sits at the core of you, 00:05:47.700 --> 00:05:49.740 underneath all the hats that you wear, 00:05:50.700 --> 00:05:52.220 underneath all the roles that you play, 00:05:52.220 --> 00:05:54.860 and the various spheres that you operate in, 00:05:55.500 --> 00:05:58.220 what remains true about you 00:05:58.220 --> 00:06:00.940 and does not change no matter what? 00:06:01.020 --> 00:06:01.820 What's at your core? 00:06:01.900 --> 00:06:02.780 That's the sense of self. 00:06:03.200 --> 00:06:04.100 And then along with that, 00:06:04.240 --> 00:06:06.800 where does your sense of worth come from? 00:06:06.900 --> 00:06:08.280 What gives you significance? 00:06:08.920 --> 00:06:12.400 What makes you confident of your value as a human being? 00:06:12.399 --> 00:06:14.079 So those two things together, 00:06:14.179 --> 00:06:14.639 sense of self, 00:06:14.719 --> 00:06:15.159 sense of worth, 00:06:15.219 --> 00:06:15.959 that's your identity. 00:06:17.579 --> 00:06:19.539 And what Scripture teaches us 00:06:19.539 --> 00:06:24.799 is that we were made in the image of our creator, 00:06:24.959 --> 00:06:26.959 of a God who made us. 00:06:27.500 --> 00:06:28.739 And what that means is that 00:06:28.739 --> 00:06:30.759 we're meant to find our identity in Him. 00:06:31.759 --> 00:06:32.000 Right? 00:06:32.039 --> 00:06:33.339 We have His image. 00:06:33.479 --> 00:06:36.159 And so that's the thing that's meant to define us, 00:06:36.739 --> 00:06:38.479 is our relationship to Him. 00:06:38.480 --> 00:06:41.439 It raises the question, 00:06:41.540 --> 00:06:43.000 what happens when we stop doing that? 00:06:43.040 --> 00:06:44.340 What happens when, at some point, 00:06:44.400 --> 00:06:45.180 human beings said, 00:06:45.280 --> 00:06:46.860 we don't want to be defined by you, 00:06:46.920 --> 00:06:48.000 we don't want to live for you, 00:06:48.480 --> 00:06:49.500 we want to live for ourselves. 00:06:49.580 --> 00:06:51.780 In fact, we kind of want to be like our own gods. 00:06:51.879 --> 00:06:54.240 What happens when we cast off 00:06:54.240 --> 00:06:56.460 that source of identity that we're meant to have? 00:06:57.120 --> 00:06:59.040 Well, inevitably, 00:06:59.040 --> 00:07:01.900 we have to start looking for identity somewhere else. 00:07:02.420 --> 00:07:04.300 And that's exactly what we see happening 00:07:04.300 --> 00:07:07.000 all through history and all around the world. 00:07:07.000 --> 00:07:08.180 Because the truth is, 00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:09.259 as we have discovered, 00:07:09.899 --> 00:07:11.019 much to our chagrin, 00:07:11.560 --> 00:07:15.800 almost anything can become a source of identity 00:07:15.800 --> 00:07:16.459 if we let it. 00:07:17.519 --> 00:07:19.639 Almost anything can give us a sense of self 00:07:19.639 --> 00:07:22.279 and a sense of worth if we let it. 00:07:22.379 --> 00:07:25.680 So a lot of us look for areas 00:07:25.680 --> 00:07:28.220 in which we have to perform. 00:07:28.879 --> 00:07:29.019 Right? 00:07:29.100 --> 00:07:30.740 So identity can be very performative. 00:07:30.800 --> 00:07:31.959 So things that we do. 00:07:31.959 --> 00:07:35.239 Most people come to D.C. 00:07:35.279 --> 00:07:38.639 because they want to advance in their career somehow, 00:07:38.799 --> 00:07:39.799 whether it's through education, 00:07:40.239 --> 00:07:41.680 internship, fellowship, residency, 00:07:42.099 --> 00:07:44.579 or some sort of career path that we're on, 00:07:44.620 --> 00:07:45.219 which is great. 00:07:45.779 --> 00:07:48.099 And there's a lot of impressive people 00:07:48.099 --> 00:07:49.199 doing impressive things. 00:07:49.359 --> 00:07:50.899 But it's easy in a place like D.C. 00:07:50.939 --> 00:07:54.039 for career to become a sense of identity for us. 00:07:54.719 --> 00:07:55.859 I am what I do. 00:07:55.860 --> 00:07:57.340 I have value and significance 00:07:57.340 --> 00:07:58.660 because of what I do. 00:08:00.340 --> 00:08:01.120 Some people, 00:08:01.920 --> 00:08:03.400 myself not included, 00:08:03.540 --> 00:08:04.740 look to their athletic ability 00:08:04.740 --> 00:08:06.480 and say, you know, 00:08:06.520 --> 00:08:07.860 I was a college athlete. 00:08:08.100 --> 00:08:09.860 I thought about going pro. 00:08:10.319 --> 00:08:11.740 And for much of your life, 00:08:11.819 --> 00:08:13.000 that's all you focused on. 00:08:13.060 --> 00:08:14.480 Your friends were out playing and partying 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:16.199 and you were at practice all the, 00:08:16.259 --> 00:08:17.480 you know, 6 a.m. every day, 00:08:17.560 --> 00:08:17.939 you were up, 00:08:18.020 --> 00:08:19.120 you were practicing all the time. 00:08:19.360 --> 00:08:21.160 And it comes to define you. 00:08:21.340 --> 00:08:21.939 Who are you? 00:08:22.000 --> 00:08:23.980 Well, I'm a basketball player. 00:08:24.040 --> 00:08:24.740 I'm a football player. 00:08:24.740 --> 00:08:25.560 I'm a baseball player. 00:08:26.120 --> 00:08:26.860 That's what I am. 00:08:26.920 --> 00:08:28.040 That's what gives me value. 00:08:28.620 --> 00:08:30.199 Some people look to their intelligence. 00:08:31.759 --> 00:08:33.460 They're the smartest person in the room. 00:08:34.700 --> 00:08:34.799 Right? 00:08:35.519 --> 00:08:36.700 They're the one with the answer. 00:08:36.820 --> 00:08:38.340 Some people look to their competence. 00:08:40.580 --> 00:08:42.060 Some of us define ourselves 00:08:42.060 --> 00:08:44.220 according to the values that we hold. 00:08:44.320 --> 00:08:44.480 Right? 00:08:44.580 --> 00:08:46.740 So that's why our political views 00:08:46.740 --> 00:08:47.879 and affiliations can become 00:08:47.879 --> 00:08:49.539 such a powerful source of identity. 00:08:49.539 --> 00:08:53.139 I'm defined by the way I think 00:08:53.139 --> 00:08:54.620 and I'm connected to the, 00:08:54.899 --> 00:08:56.600 and validated by the other people 00:08:56.600 --> 00:08:57.500 who agree with me. 00:08:59.019 --> 00:09:00.519 Sometimes we're partially defined 00:09:00.519 --> 00:09:01.899 by the roles that we play. 00:09:02.019 --> 00:09:03.259 You know, we just came out of the holidays. 00:09:04.559 --> 00:09:06.019 I don't know if you've ever experienced this. 00:09:06.059 --> 00:09:06.740 When you go home 00:09:06.740 --> 00:09:08.379 and you visit your family of origin 00:09:08.379 --> 00:09:12.279 and maybe you've been living somewhere else 00:09:12.279 --> 00:09:14.699 as a grown-up adult for 20 years 00:09:14.699 --> 00:09:15.539 and you go back 00:09:15.539 --> 00:09:17.819 and you spend time with your family of origin 00:09:17.819 --> 00:09:18.559 and all of a sudden, 00:09:18.559 --> 00:09:20.459 it's like you were sucked back into that role 00:09:20.459 --> 00:09:23.619 that you haven't played for 15 or 20 years. 00:09:23.919 --> 00:09:26.119 None of your friends think of you as that person 00:09:26.119 --> 00:09:27.159 but you go back home 00:09:27.159 --> 00:09:27.819 and all of a sudden, 00:09:27.979 --> 00:09:29.159 you're that person again. 00:09:30.459 --> 00:09:32.559 You get pulled into that old family system 00:09:32.559 --> 00:09:34.539 and it's like they're forcing a hat on you 00:09:34.539 --> 00:09:36.219 that hasn't fit for a long time. 00:09:37.579 --> 00:09:39.059 But it's because the family system 00:09:39.059 --> 00:09:40.219 needs you to play that role 00:09:40.219 --> 00:09:41.599 and that's who you are. 00:09:41.679 --> 00:09:42.359 That's your identity. 00:09:42.479 --> 00:09:42.639 Right? 00:09:42.859 --> 00:09:44.279 And so we can play lots of roles 00:09:44.279 --> 00:09:46.539 as parents or as siblings or as kids. 00:09:46.539 --> 00:09:48.139 You know, we can be helpers. 00:09:48.240 --> 00:09:49.099 We can be rescuers. 00:09:49.199 --> 00:09:50.360 We can be the golden child. 00:09:50.500 --> 00:09:52.079 We can be the perpetual victim. 00:09:55.179 --> 00:09:56.199 What defines us? 00:09:56.240 --> 00:09:57.759 What gives us a sense of identity, 00:09:58.159 --> 00:09:59.599 meaning, value? 00:10:00.079 --> 00:10:02.240 It can be almost anything if we let it. 00:10:02.500 --> 00:10:03.240 Here's the question. 00:10:04.000 --> 00:10:05.899 I want you to think about your own life. 00:10:06.000 --> 00:10:07.419 What are the things that you look to 00:10:07.419 --> 00:10:08.199 and say, 00:10:08.699 --> 00:10:10.019 that tells me who I am 00:10:10.019 --> 00:10:11.379 and that tells me that I matter? 00:10:12.319 --> 00:10:13.500 Because I guarantee you, 00:10:13.620 --> 00:10:14.599 you're going to find stuff 00:10:14.599 --> 00:10:15.939 and it's not going to just be one thing. 00:10:15.940 --> 00:10:16.640 It's going to be probably 00:10:16.640 --> 00:10:17.480 some combination 00:10:17.480 --> 00:10:18.860 of everything I just said. 00:10:20.980 --> 00:10:22.840 The point for this morning, though, friends, 00:10:22.920 --> 00:10:25.060 is that anything we look to 00:10:25.060 --> 00:10:27.260 to give us a sense of self 00:10:27.260 --> 00:10:28.020 and a sense of worth 00:10:28.020 --> 00:10:29.280 other than God 00:10:29.280 --> 00:10:33.060 is doomed to failure. 00:10:33.760 --> 00:10:35.420 It is unsustainable. 00:10:36.040 --> 00:10:37.140 It will not last 00:10:37.140 --> 00:10:38.720 for at least two reasons. 00:10:39.920 --> 00:10:40.580 Number one, 00:10:41.680 --> 00:10:43.120 if we look to something 00:10:43.120 --> 00:10:44.500 other than God for identity, 00:10:44.500 --> 00:10:45.840 our sense of self 00:10:45.840 --> 00:10:47.879 will always be fragile. 00:10:49.200 --> 00:10:50.799 It will always be fragile. 00:10:52.080 --> 00:10:53.519 When we root our identity 00:10:53.519 --> 00:10:55.399 in anything other than God, 00:10:55.980 --> 00:10:56.879 then we end up 00:10:56.879 --> 00:10:58.600 basing our sense of self 00:10:58.600 --> 00:10:59.120 and worth 00:10:59.120 --> 00:10:59.980 on something 00:10:59.980 --> 00:11:02.120 that is impermanent. 00:11:02.500 --> 00:11:03.639 It means it will 00:11:03.639 --> 00:11:06.039 eventually be taken away from us. 00:11:06.799 --> 00:11:08.299 So we have to live 00:11:08.299 --> 00:11:09.500 with the perpetual insecurity 00:11:09.500 --> 00:11:11.159 of knowing 00:11:11.159 --> 00:11:12.360 that the things 00:11:12.360 --> 00:11:13.559 that we are relying on 00:11:13.559 --> 00:11:14.580 for our self 00:11:14.580 --> 00:11:15.179 and worth, 00:11:15.779 --> 00:11:16.899 we could lose them 00:11:16.899 --> 00:11:17.720 at any point. 00:11:18.779 --> 00:11:19.600 And that creates 00:11:19.600 --> 00:11:20.679 a profound sense 00:11:20.679 --> 00:11:21.419 of instability. 00:11:23.139 --> 00:11:24.019 So recently, 00:11:24.100 --> 00:11:24.500 we've gone through 00:11:24.500 --> 00:11:25.360 a couple of hard years 00:11:25.360 --> 00:11:25.919 with the government, 00:11:26.059 --> 00:11:26.600 people who work 00:11:26.600 --> 00:11:27.139 for the government, 00:11:27.259 --> 00:11:28.120 and all the changes 00:11:28.120 --> 00:11:28.639 in the government, 00:11:28.720 --> 00:11:29.580 which means a lot of people 00:11:29.580 --> 00:11:30.620 have lost their jobs. 00:11:31.580 --> 00:11:32.940 So many of us know, 00:11:33.120 --> 00:11:33.940 and at some point, 00:11:33.980 --> 00:11:34.700 even if it didn't happen 00:11:34.700 --> 00:11:35.620 even in the last year or two, 00:11:35.700 --> 00:11:36.779 it's happened to many of us 00:11:36.779 --> 00:11:37.459 at some point, 00:11:38.439 --> 00:11:39.139 you have a job 00:11:39.139 --> 00:11:39.519 that you think 00:11:39.519 --> 00:11:40.179 you can count on, 00:11:40.240 --> 00:11:40.720 that's stable, 00:11:40.819 --> 00:11:41.579 that you kind of like, 00:11:41.620 --> 00:11:42.439 and you're pretty good at, 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:43.079 and all of a sudden, 00:11:43.220 --> 00:11:44.259 for reasons outside 00:11:44.259 --> 00:11:44.759 of your control, 00:11:44.839 --> 00:11:45.459 you lose it. 00:11:45.519 --> 00:11:46.500 It's taken away from you. 00:11:47.679 --> 00:11:48.679 Now, some people 00:11:48.679 --> 00:11:49.819 can survive that. 00:11:49.899 --> 00:11:50.439 Other people, 00:11:50.539 --> 00:11:51.439 it just crushes them 00:11:51.439 --> 00:11:52.059 because you realize, 00:11:52.339 --> 00:11:54.059 I really came to look to that 00:11:54.059 --> 00:11:56.319 to give me a sense of self 00:11:56.319 --> 00:11:57.220 and a sense of worth. 00:11:58.000 --> 00:11:59.100 And without that, 00:11:59.139 --> 00:12:00.220 I don't know who I am anymore. 00:12:00.299 --> 00:12:01.039 It's one of the hardest things 00:12:01.039 --> 00:12:02.059 about losing your job 00:12:02.059 --> 00:12:02.579 unexpectedly 00:12:02.579 --> 00:12:03.679 is that you have to go 00:12:03.679 --> 00:12:04.360 through a whole period 00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:05.019 of asking, 00:12:05.159 --> 00:12:05.720 who am I? 00:12:06.779 --> 00:12:07.699 I don't know 00:12:07.699 --> 00:12:08.419 who I am anymore. 00:12:10.159 --> 00:12:11.459 If part of your identity 00:12:11.459 --> 00:12:12.159 is wrapped up 00:12:12.159 --> 00:12:13.259 in being attractive, 00:12:13.399 --> 00:12:13.939 what happens 00:12:13.939 --> 00:12:14.779 is we age 00:12:14.779 --> 00:12:16.939 and we no longer 00:12:16.939 --> 00:12:19.159 conform to the beauty standards 00:12:19.159 --> 00:12:19.939 of the culture 00:12:19.939 --> 00:12:20.879 that we live in, 00:12:21.539 --> 00:12:22.480 right? 00:12:22.539 --> 00:12:23.740 And you do a little Botox 00:12:23.740 --> 00:12:24.519 and you do a little work 00:12:24.519 --> 00:12:25.120 here and there 00:12:25.120 --> 00:12:25.959 and you start, 00:12:26.139 --> 00:12:26.299 you know, 00:12:26.319 --> 00:12:27.220 take a GLP 00:12:27.220 --> 00:12:27.799 and you kind of 00:12:27.799 --> 00:12:28.539 do what you can. 00:12:29.500 --> 00:12:30.220 But eventually, 00:12:30.379 --> 00:12:31.159 you have to realize, 00:12:31.299 --> 00:12:32.480 as the time passes, 00:12:32.620 --> 00:12:34.100 I conform less and less 00:12:34.100 --> 00:12:34.720 to the standards 00:12:34.720 --> 00:12:35.759 of my society. 00:12:35.759 --> 00:12:37.659 I'm trying to say it 00:12:37.659 --> 00:12:38.220 diplomatically. 00:12:39.379 --> 00:12:40.080 What happens? 00:12:40.120 --> 00:12:40.899 Like, for some people, 00:12:40.960 --> 00:12:41.139 it's like, 00:12:41.220 --> 00:12:42.340 okay, I'm going to embrace aging. 00:12:42.439 --> 00:12:43.179 I'm going to go gray. 00:12:43.259 --> 00:12:44.120 It's going to be fine. 00:12:45.120 --> 00:12:46.000 The muffin top, 00:12:46.059 --> 00:12:46.679 I'm not going to worry 00:12:46.679 --> 00:12:47.240 about that. 00:12:47.319 --> 00:12:47.960 Other people, 00:12:48.819 --> 00:12:49.460 there's a sense 00:12:49.460 --> 00:12:50.679 that my very worth 00:12:50.679 --> 00:12:51.740 as a human being 00:12:51.740 --> 00:12:53.340 is draining out of me. 00:12:55.059 --> 00:12:56.480 And I'm not actually knocking. 00:12:56.580 --> 00:12:57.939 That's really hard. 00:12:58.159 --> 00:12:59.480 If you feel that, 00:13:00.340 --> 00:13:00.700 it's like, 00:13:00.740 --> 00:13:01.399 who am I now 00:13:01.399 --> 00:13:02.439 that I'm not beautiful? 00:13:02.639 --> 00:13:03.200 Now that people, 00:13:03.399 --> 00:13:04.080 now that when I'm out 00:13:04.080 --> 00:13:04.560 in public, 00:13:04.639 --> 00:13:05.639 I'm not turning heads, 00:13:06.500 --> 00:13:07.100 who am I? 00:13:08.540 --> 00:13:09.600 If part of our identity 00:13:09.600 --> 00:13:10.180 and self-worth 00:13:10.180 --> 00:13:10.800 is tied up 00:13:10.800 --> 00:13:11.820 in our parents' approval, 00:13:12.980 --> 00:13:13.580 what happens 00:13:13.580 --> 00:13:14.379 when we get older 00:13:14.379 --> 00:13:16.220 and maybe we come 00:13:16.220 --> 00:13:17.000 to a different set 00:13:17.000 --> 00:13:17.540 of convictions 00:13:17.540 --> 00:13:19.240 politically or spiritually? 00:13:20.060 --> 00:13:20.280 You know, 00:13:20.300 --> 00:13:21.080 some of you grew up 00:13:21.080 --> 00:13:21.700 in homes 00:13:21.700 --> 00:13:22.340 and now you, 00:13:22.660 --> 00:13:23.160 your politics 00:13:23.160 --> 00:13:23.720 are very different 00:13:23.720 --> 00:13:24.500 from your parents 00:13:24.500 --> 00:13:26.800 or your family, right? 00:13:26.860 --> 00:13:28.020 That used to fit in 00:13:28.020 --> 00:13:28.680 because you agreed 00:13:28.680 --> 00:13:29.320 with their politics 00:13:29.320 --> 00:13:29.820 and now you're 00:13:29.820 --> 00:13:30.720 in a very different place. 00:13:31.480 --> 00:13:32.240 Some of you grew up 00:13:32.240 --> 00:13:33.080 in non-Christian homes 00:13:33.080 --> 00:13:33.720 and now you've come 00:13:33.720 --> 00:13:34.139 to faith 00:13:34.139 --> 00:13:34.879 and your family 00:13:34.879 --> 00:13:35.680 thinks you're crazy? 00:13:36.879 --> 00:13:37.519 And what happens 00:13:37.519 --> 00:13:38.019 when you start 00:13:38.019 --> 00:13:38.759 making decisions 00:13:38.759 --> 00:13:39.659 and those decisions 00:13:39.659 --> 00:13:40.560 don't line up 00:13:40.560 --> 00:13:41.659 with what your parents 00:13:41.659 --> 00:13:43.379 believe and value 00:13:43.379 --> 00:13:44.259 and affirm 00:13:44.259 --> 00:13:45.879 and you realize 00:13:45.879 --> 00:13:46.519 that they no longer 00:13:46.519 --> 00:13:47.500 approve of your choices? 00:13:47.659 --> 00:13:48.500 What happens then? 00:13:48.720 --> 00:13:49.440 But for you, 00:13:49.519 --> 00:13:50.299 your parents' approval 00:13:50.299 --> 00:13:51.180 is a huge source 00:13:51.180 --> 00:13:52.379 of value 00:13:52.379 --> 00:13:53.379 and meaning and worth 00:13:53.379 --> 00:13:55.580 and you have to navigate that. 00:13:55.639 --> 00:13:56.259 Who am I now? 00:13:56.340 --> 00:13:56.919 What am I now 00:13:56.919 --> 00:13:58.360 now that I don't have that, 00:13:58.480 --> 00:13:58.720 right? 00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:01.300 So if you are basing 00:14:01.300 --> 00:14:02.540 your sense of identity 00:14:02.540 --> 00:14:03.800 on anything other than God, 00:14:03.840 --> 00:14:05.200 it's going to be impermanent 00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:06.160 which is going to mean 00:14:06.160 --> 00:14:07.220 that your identity 00:14:07.220 --> 00:14:08.080 is very fragile. 00:14:09.620 --> 00:14:10.740 So identity then 00:14:10.740 --> 00:14:11.460 becomes something 00:14:11.460 --> 00:14:12.700 that we have to perform 00:14:12.700 --> 00:14:14.060 and we have to construct 00:14:14.060 --> 00:14:15.019 something that we have 00:14:15.019 --> 00:14:15.620 to achieve 00:14:15.620 --> 00:14:16.279 and something that we 00:14:16.279 --> 00:14:17.139 have to maintain 00:14:17.139 --> 00:14:18.120 all the time 00:14:18.120 --> 00:14:18.980 and it takes a lot 00:14:18.980 --> 00:14:19.779 of energy to do it. 00:14:22.660 --> 00:14:23.720 That's the first reason 00:14:23.720 --> 00:14:24.740 why it's not sustainable. 00:14:24.980 --> 00:14:25.720 Number two reason 00:14:25.720 --> 00:14:26.639 why it's not sustainable 00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:27.560 to search for identity 00:14:27.559 --> 00:14:28.239 anywhere else 00:14:28.239 --> 00:14:29.719 is that our sense of self 00:14:29.719 --> 00:14:30.979 will not only be fragile, 00:14:31.339 --> 00:14:32.619 it will be fragmented 00:14:32.619 --> 00:14:34.639 because when you start 00:14:34.639 --> 00:14:35.399 rooting your identity 00:14:35.399 --> 00:14:36.659 in anything other than God, 00:14:37.139 --> 00:14:38.000 very quickly 00:14:38.000 --> 00:14:39.119 you will find yourself 00:14:39.119 --> 00:14:40.199 pulled in lots 00:14:40.199 --> 00:14:41.000 of different directions. 00:14:42.159 --> 00:14:42.919 One of my favorite 00:14:42.919 --> 00:14:45.819 European cultural observers, 00:14:46.219 --> 00:14:46.859 Václav Havel, 00:14:46.959 --> 00:14:48.159 who I quote from time to time, 00:14:48.719 --> 00:14:49.559 former president 00:14:49.559 --> 00:14:50.299 of the Czech Republic, 00:14:51.119 --> 00:14:52.899 had this great analogy 00:14:52.899 --> 00:14:53.759 of saying it's like 00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:55.279 playing for a bunch 00:14:55.279 --> 00:14:56.279 of different sports teams 00:14:56.279 --> 00:14:58.259 and each has its own jersey, 00:14:58.740 --> 00:14:58.919 right, 00:14:58.959 --> 00:14:59.539 and you're constantly 00:14:59.539 --> 00:15:00.699 swapping jerseys 00:15:00.699 --> 00:15:01.720 and every team is saying 00:15:01.720 --> 00:15:04.139 we are really your team 00:15:04.139 --> 00:15:05.059 and all these other teams 00:15:05.059 --> 00:15:05.699 are not your team 00:15:05.699 --> 00:15:06.480 so you feel like 00:15:06.480 --> 00:15:07.059 you're getting pulled. 00:15:07.220 --> 00:15:07.939 Whose team do you 00:15:07.939 --> 00:15:08.600 really play for? 00:15:08.659 --> 00:15:09.319 Who are you really? 00:15:10.059 --> 00:15:11.600 And that's what it feels like. 00:15:12.459 --> 00:15:13.480 So you end up having 00:15:13.480 --> 00:15:14.620 a version of yourself 00:15:14.620 --> 00:15:15.600 that comes out at work. 00:15:16.899 --> 00:15:18.079 You have a version of yourself 00:15:18.079 --> 00:15:18.679 that comes out 00:15:18.679 --> 00:15:19.379 around your family, 00:15:19.519 --> 00:15:20.399 maybe a different version 00:15:20.399 --> 00:15:20.939 that comes out 00:15:20.939 --> 00:15:21.939 around your family of origin. 00:15:22.800 --> 00:15:24.240 You have a version of yourself 00:15:24.240 --> 00:15:25.280 that gets amplified 00:15:25.280 --> 00:15:26.540 around your DC friends, 00:15:26.620 --> 00:15:27.400 a version of yourself 00:15:27.400 --> 00:15:28.000 that comes out 00:15:28.000 --> 00:15:28.700 around your Christian 00:15:28.700 --> 00:15:29.400 church friends. 00:15:32.600 --> 00:15:33.240 It's weird 00:15:33.240 --> 00:15:34.080 when you have a gathering 00:15:34.080 --> 00:15:35.140 like a wedding 00:15:35.140 --> 00:15:35.740 or something 00:15:35.740 --> 00:15:36.560 where all those friends 00:15:36.560 --> 00:15:37.140 get together 00:15:37.140 --> 00:15:38.280 and all of a sudden 00:15:38.280 --> 00:15:38.720 you realize 00:15:38.720 --> 00:15:39.440 that different people 00:15:39.440 --> 00:15:40.420 see you very differently 00:15:40.420 --> 00:15:41.260 and who am I really? 00:15:43.900 --> 00:15:44.700 The point is 00:15:44.700 --> 00:15:45.500 none of these things 00:15:45.500 --> 00:15:46.360 can bear the weight 00:15:46.360 --> 00:15:47.020 of human identity. 00:15:47.120 --> 00:15:47.980 They were never designed to. 00:15:47.980 --> 00:15:51.960 How does Jesus 00:15:51.960 --> 00:15:53.120 restore our identity? 00:15:54.680 --> 00:15:55.580 How does Jesus 00:15:55.580 --> 00:15:56.420 offer us something 00:15:56.420 --> 00:15:57.039 better 00:15:57.039 --> 00:15:58.940 than the constant 00:15:58.940 --> 00:16:00.000 cobbling together 00:16:00.000 --> 00:16:01.659 of fragile sources 00:16:01.659 --> 00:16:02.659 of self and worth? 00:16:04.360 --> 00:16:05.320 Here's where we go 00:16:05.320 --> 00:16:06.139 with this passage. 00:16:06.300 --> 00:16:07.480 John, as we said, 00:16:07.740 --> 00:16:08.560 he's out preaching. 00:16:08.960 --> 00:16:10.399 He's also baptizing people. 00:16:11.720 --> 00:16:13.539 And then he sees Jesus. 00:16:13.759 --> 00:16:14.680 And Jesus does something 00:16:14.680 --> 00:16:15.500 totally unexpected. 00:16:15.500 --> 00:16:18.059 Jesus asks John 00:16:18.059 --> 00:16:19.879 to be baptized 00:16:19.879 --> 00:16:21.080 by John. 00:16:21.860 --> 00:16:22.639 And John's very 00:16:22.639 --> 00:16:23.500 obviously confused 00:16:23.500 --> 00:16:23.940 by this 00:16:23.940 --> 00:16:25.019 because Jesus is 00:16:25.019 --> 00:16:26.059 God's perfect 00:16:26.059 --> 00:16:28.000 sinless son. 00:16:28.299 --> 00:16:29.080 John's baptism 00:16:29.080 --> 00:16:29.700 is a baptism 00:16:29.700 --> 00:16:30.379 for sinners. 00:16:30.559 --> 00:16:31.240 This is for people 00:16:31.240 --> 00:16:32.360 who know they're sinful 00:16:32.360 --> 00:16:33.759 to go into the waters 00:16:33.759 --> 00:16:35.240 to renew their covenant 00:16:35.240 --> 00:16:35.860 with God, 00:16:36.740 --> 00:16:38.299 to be cleansed 00:16:38.299 --> 00:16:39.019 and to be made right 00:16:39.019 --> 00:16:39.320 with God, 00:16:39.379 --> 00:16:40.320 put right with God. 00:16:40.700 --> 00:16:41.820 And John is looking 00:16:41.820 --> 00:16:42.139 at Jesus. 00:16:42.259 --> 00:16:42.519 He's like, 00:16:42.919 --> 00:16:43.679 you don't need 00:16:43.679 --> 00:16:44.700 to be cleansed 00:16:44.700 --> 00:16:45.140 of anything. 00:16:45.940 --> 00:16:46.580 You don't need 00:16:46.580 --> 00:16:46.879 to repent 00:16:46.879 --> 00:16:47.460 of anything. 00:16:47.660 --> 00:16:48.080 If anything, 00:16:48.160 --> 00:16:48.500 he says, 00:16:48.580 --> 00:16:49.560 I should be baptized 00:16:49.560 --> 00:16:50.240 by you, 00:16:50.340 --> 00:16:50.580 Jesus. 00:16:51.900 --> 00:16:53.320 But Jesus insists, 00:16:53.379 --> 00:16:54.140 and what does he say? 00:16:54.259 --> 00:16:54.680 He says, 00:16:55.000 --> 00:16:57.200 let it be so now 00:16:57.200 --> 00:16:58.780 for thus it is fitting 00:16:58.780 --> 00:17:00.379 for us to fulfill 00:17:00.379 --> 00:17:02.080 all righteousness. 00:17:03.360 --> 00:17:04.000 Now, we know 00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:04.660 because I just said 00:17:04.660 --> 00:17:05.100 a minute ago 00:17:05.100 --> 00:17:06.340 he's not a sinner. 00:17:06.480 --> 00:17:07.319 There's no sin. 00:17:08.840 --> 00:17:09.620 That he doesn't mean 00:17:09.620 --> 00:17:10.819 by fulfill all righteousness, 00:17:10.980 --> 00:17:11.740 he doesn't mean 00:17:11.740 --> 00:17:13.080 I need to be made righteous. 00:17:13.079 --> 00:17:14.699 He means in order 00:17:14.699 --> 00:17:16.079 to fulfill righteousness. 00:17:16.279 --> 00:17:16.960 And this is a way 00:17:16.960 --> 00:17:17.699 of him saying, 00:17:18.299 --> 00:17:19.279 God has enacted 00:17:19.279 --> 00:17:19.960 a plan 00:17:19.960 --> 00:17:21.500 that has been unfolding 00:17:21.500 --> 00:17:22.699 for centuries 00:17:22.699 --> 00:17:25.480 to heal humanity 00:17:25.480 --> 00:17:26.619 and put the world right. 00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:28.439 And what I'm about 00:17:28.439 --> 00:17:28.919 to do, 00:17:29.119 --> 00:17:30.019 what I'm asking you 00:17:30.019 --> 00:17:30.740 to do for me 00:17:30.740 --> 00:17:32.119 is a crucial step 00:17:32.119 --> 00:17:32.759 in that plan. 00:17:33.019 --> 00:17:34.059 In order to fulfill 00:17:34.059 --> 00:17:34.799 that plan, 00:17:35.539 --> 00:17:35.759 John, 00:17:35.819 --> 00:17:36.279 I need you 00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:37.559 to baptize me. 00:17:37.559 --> 00:17:41.079 when Jesus 00:17:41.079 --> 00:17:41.779 is baptized, 00:17:42.720 --> 00:17:43.700 we begin to see 00:17:43.700 --> 00:17:44.639 the real reason 00:17:44.639 --> 00:17:45.480 that he came. 00:17:45.919 --> 00:17:46.980 Jesus did not come 00:17:46.980 --> 00:17:48.319 to judge humanity. 00:17:50.319 --> 00:17:52.159 Jesus came to identify 00:17:52.159 --> 00:17:53.500 with humanity. 00:17:54.500 --> 00:17:55.740 So instead of getting up 00:17:55.740 --> 00:17:56.200 on the hillside, 00:17:56.240 --> 00:17:57.159 so John's up here, 00:17:57.440 --> 00:17:58.200 you need to repent 00:17:58.200 --> 00:17:58.819 and be baptized, 00:17:59.059 --> 00:17:59.500 and the sinners 00:17:59.500 --> 00:18:00.259 are all down here. 00:18:00.500 --> 00:18:01.299 Everybody would expect 00:18:01.299 --> 00:18:02.039 somebody like Jesus 00:18:02.039 --> 00:18:03.220 to come up on the hillside, 00:18:03.559 --> 00:18:03.720 say, 00:18:03.799 --> 00:18:04.000 John, 00:18:04.059 --> 00:18:04.980 why don't you take a break 00:18:04.980 --> 00:18:05.859 and take over? 00:18:05.859 --> 00:18:07.419 Everybody needs to repent, 00:18:07.559 --> 00:18:08.299 come be baptized, 00:18:08.879 --> 00:18:09.119 right? 00:18:09.619 --> 00:18:10.619 But Jesus doesn't come 00:18:10.619 --> 00:18:11.179 up on the hill 00:18:11.179 --> 00:18:11.859 and start preaching 00:18:11.859 --> 00:18:12.399 to the sinners. 00:18:12.759 --> 00:18:13.779 Jesus goes down 00:18:13.779 --> 00:18:14.819 and takes his place 00:18:14.819 --> 00:18:15.740 among the sinners. 00:18:18.819 --> 00:18:19.939 What do we do with that? 00:18:24.219 --> 00:18:26.179 Jesus doesn't heal us 00:18:26.179 --> 00:18:28.219 by telling us 00:18:28.219 --> 00:18:29.000 to get our act together. 00:18:31.899 --> 00:18:33.099 Jesus heals us 00:18:33.099 --> 00:18:34.699 by trading places with us. 00:18:35.859 --> 00:18:38.939 He takes our old identity 00:18:38.939 --> 00:18:39.599 on himself, 00:18:41.819 --> 00:18:42.019 right? 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:43.500 So sinners who've rebelled 00:18:43.500 --> 00:18:44.279 against God, 00:18:45.479 --> 00:18:46.819 he takes that identity 00:18:46.819 --> 00:18:47.439 on himself 00:18:47.439 --> 00:18:49.939 and then he endures 00:18:49.939 --> 00:18:50.719 the punishment 00:18:50.719 --> 00:18:53.879 meant for us, 00:18:53.939 --> 00:18:54.199 right, 00:18:54.240 --> 00:18:54.879 on the cross. 00:18:56.259 --> 00:18:57.319 And then what he does 00:18:57.319 --> 00:18:58.079 is he offers 00:18:58.079 --> 00:18:59.559 his identity 00:18:59.559 --> 00:19:01.359 in exchange 00:19:01.359 --> 00:19:03.619 as God's only begotten 00:19:03.619 --> 00:19:04.719 righteous son. 00:19:07.039 --> 00:19:08.819 So here is the gospel 00:19:08.819 --> 00:19:09.459 in a nutshell. 00:19:09.819 --> 00:19:11.659 Jesus becomes like us 00:19:11.659 --> 00:19:13.740 so that we can become 00:19:13.740 --> 00:19:14.319 like him. 00:19:15.399 --> 00:19:16.519 It's a completely 00:19:16.519 --> 00:19:17.439 different way 00:19:17.439 --> 00:19:19.659 of offering hope 00:19:19.659 --> 00:19:20.259 and salvation 00:19:20.259 --> 00:19:20.919 to the world. 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:23.439 Jesus becomes like us 00:19:23.439 --> 00:19:24.639 so that we can become 00:19:24.639 --> 00:19:25.279 like him. 00:19:25.679 --> 00:19:26.079 And you say, 00:19:26.139 --> 00:19:26.219 well, 00:19:26.219 --> 00:19:26.740 what does it mean 00:19:26.740 --> 00:19:28.899 to become like Jesus? 00:19:29.480 --> 00:19:29.600 Well, 00:19:29.600 --> 00:19:30.360 we get a clue 00:19:30.360 --> 00:19:31.500 right after, 00:19:31.640 --> 00:19:33.320 as Jesus is being baptized, 00:19:33.880 --> 00:19:35.380 immediately after, 00:19:35.480 --> 00:19:35.900 it says, 00:19:36.220 --> 00:19:37.360 the heavens were opened 00:19:37.360 --> 00:19:37.840 to him 00:19:37.840 --> 00:19:39.200 and he saw the Spirit 00:19:39.200 --> 00:19:40.080 of God descending 00:19:40.080 --> 00:19:40.880 like a dove 00:19:40.880 --> 00:19:41.800 and coming to rest 00:19:41.800 --> 00:19:42.440 on him. 00:19:42.720 --> 00:19:43.320 And behold, 00:19:43.420 --> 00:19:44.080 a voice from heaven 00:19:44.080 --> 00:19:44.380 said, 00:19:44.660 --> 00:19:46.240 this is my beloved son 00:19:46.240 --> 00:19:47.360 with whom I am well 00:19:47.360 --> 00:19:48.440 pleased. 00:19:51.240 --> 00:19:52.820 To become like Jesus 00:19:52.819 --> 00:19:54.819 is to know 00:19:54.819 --> 00:19:57.819 that if you're 00:19:57.819 --> 00:19:58.839 a baptized follower 00:19:58.839 --> 00:19:59.460 of Jesus, 00:20:00.720 --> 00:20:02.319 God speaks those 00:20:02.319 --> 00:20:03.059 same words 00:20:03.059 --> 00:20:03.939 over you 00:20:03.939 --> 00:20:05.639 every moment 00:20:05.639 --> 00:20:06.839 of every day 00:20:06.839 --> 00:20:08.200 of your life. 00:20:09.259 --> 00:20:10.679 Everywhere you are, 00:20:10.980 --> 00:20:12.419 everything that you do, 00:20:12.639 --> 00:20:13.299 at the height 00:20:13.299 --> 00:20:14.359 of your greatest successes, 00:20:14.700 --> 00:20:15.279 at the depth 00:20:15.279 --> 00:20:15.899 of your worst, 00:20:16.000 --> 00:20:17.119 most shameful failures, 00:20:17.339 --> 00:20:18.500 the only words 00:20:18.500 --> 00:20:19.359 God is speaking 00:20:19.359 --> 00:20:19.939 to you 00:20:19.939 --> 00:20:21.519 are those words. 00:20:21.519 --> 00:20:23.779 This is my beloved child 00:20:23.779 --> 00:20:25.940 in whom I am well pleased. 00:20:26.700 --> 00:20:28.319 Over and over 00:20:28.319 --> 00:20:29.319 and over, 00:20:29.400 --> 00:20:29.839 Jesus says, 00:20:30.139 --> 00:20:31.379 here's that identity, 00:20:31.599 --> 00:20:32.420 this is the identity 00:20:32.420 --> 00:20:33.460 that I want you to have, 00:20:33.539 --> 00:20:34.200 this is the identity 00:20:34.200 --> 00:20:35.359 you were made to have. 00:20:42.879 --> 00:20:44.539 We said earlier 00:20:44.539 --> 00:20:45.279 that our identity 00:20:45.279 --> 00:20:46.000 is made up 00:20:46.000 --> 00:20:47.500 of both a sense of self 00:20:47.500 --> 00:20:48.839 and a sense of worth. 00:20:48.839 --> 00:20:51.220 I want you to understand 00:20:51.220 --> 00:20:51.939 that we find 00:20:51.939 --> 00:20:53.139 both of those things 00:20:53.139 --> 00:20:54.819 in the words 00:20:54.819 --> 00:20:56.559 of God the Father. 00:20:57.339 --> 00:20:58.439 Where can you find 00:20:58.439 --> 00:20:59.240 a sense of self 00:20:59.240 --> 00:21:00.299 that is so stable 00:21:00.299 --> 00:21:02.299 that you never have 00:21:02.299 --> 00:21:03.139 to worry about it 00:21:03.139 --> 00:21:04.699 slipping away? 00:21:05.500 --> 00:21:06.619 A sense of self 00:21:06.619 --> 00:21:07.819 that can remain 00:21:07.819 --> 00:21:08.859 regardless of what 00:21:08.859 --> 00:21:09.519 circumstances 00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:10.659 you find yourself in, 00:21:10.879 --> 00:21:11.859 what hats you wear, 00:21:11.980 --> 00:21:13.059 what roles you play. 00:21:13.059 --> 00:21:15.919 you have to receive it. 00:21:16.839 --> 00:21:18.000 You come to Jesus. 00:21:18.339 --> 00:21:19.720 You allow God 00:21:19.720 --> 00:21:20.480 to name you 00:21:20.480 --> 00:21:21.299 as His child. 00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:22.599 So if you're a Christian, 00:21:23.319 --> 00:21:24.139 you allow God 00:21:24.139 --> 00:21:24.799 to name you 00:21:24.799 --> 00:21:25.399 and then you know 00:21:25.399 --> 00:21:26.139 from that moment on 00:21:26.139 --> 00:21:27.119 you are a son 00:21:27.119 --> 00:21:27.720 or a daughter 00:21:27.720 --> 00:21:28.379 of the King. 00:21:28.879 --> 00:21:29.859 That's your identity. 00:21:31.279 --> 00:21:31.419 Right? 00:21:31.519 --> 00:21:32.940 And that remains true 00:21:32.940 --> 00:21:34.220 no matter what. 00:21:34.319 --> 00:21:35.119 That remains true 00:21:35.119 --> 00:21:36.559 regardless of how you feel. 00:21:37.980 --> 00:21:39.599 It may not feel true. 00:21:40.319 --> 00:21:40.879 Who cares? 00:21:40.880 --> 00:21:41.340 It is. 00:21:42.980 --> 00:21:43.900 It remains true 00:21:43.900 --> 00:21:44.600 no matter what role 00:21:44.600 --> 00:21:44.980 you play. 00:21:45.060 --> 00:21:46.260 So in all circumstances, 00:21:46.380 --> 00:21:47.000 no matter what else 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:48.360 might change in your life, 00:21:48.860 --> 00:21:49.460 the thing that is 00:21:49.460 --> 00:21:50.560 most true about you 00:21:50.560 --> 00:21:51.860 is that you are a son 00:21:51.860 --> 00:21:52.760 or daughter of the King. 00:21:54.320 --> 00:21:55.600 And then it gives us 00:21:55.600 --> 00:21:57.500 a profound sense of worth 00:21:57.500 --> 00:21:58.260 because we see 00:21:58.260 --> 00:21:58.840 in these words 00:21:58.840 --> 00:22:00.440 that God delights 00:22:00.440 --> 00:22:01.980 when He looks at you. 00:22:02.220 --> 00:22:03.260 God delights 00:22:03.260 --> 00:22:04.240 when He beholds 00:22:04.240 --> 00:22:04.940 His children. 00:22:06.660 --> 00:22:07.580 And the great thing 00:22:07.580 --> 00:22:08.400 about that delight 00:22:08.400 --> 00:22:08.940 and love 00:22:08.940 --> 00:22:09.780 is it's not the kind 00:22:09.780 --> 00:22:10.240 of love 00:22:10.240 --> 00:22:11.420 that you need to earn 00:22:11.420 --> 00:22:12.420 or maintain 00:22:12.420 --> 00:22:14.900 by holding on 00:22:14.900 --> 00:22:15.799 to God's approval. 00:22:17.299 --> 00:22:18.599 It's the kind of love 00:22:18.599 --> 00:22:19.960 that flows freely 00:22:19.960 --> 00:22:20.620 from God 00:22:20.620 --> 00:22:21.400 into your life 00:22:21.400 --> 00:22:22.099 as a gift. 00:22:23.059 --> 00:22:23.900 And because you 00:22:23.900 --> 00:22:24.700 didn't earn it 00:22:24.700 --> 00:22:25.900 and because you 00:22:25.900 --> 00:22:26.720 don't deserve it, 00:22:26.980 --> 00:22:28.039 you can't lose it. 00:22:28.500 --> 00:22:29.259 If you didn't do 00:22:29.259 --> 00:22:30.120 anything to get it, 00:22:30.359 --> 00:22:31.120 you can't do anything 00:22:31.120 --> 00:22:31.819 to lose it. 00:22:34.339 --> 00:22:35.180 When you know 00:22:35.180 --> 00:22:35.640 deep down 00:22:35.640 --> 00:22:36.440 that you are beloved 00:22:36.440 --> 00:22:37.039 by God, 00:22:37.120 --> 00:22:37.740 that gives you 00:22:37.740 --> 00:22:38.740 an unshakable 00:22:38.740 --> 00:22:39.920 and inexhaustible 00:22:39.920 --> 00:22:40.960 source of worth 00:22:40.960 --> 00:22:41.980 and value. 00:22:42.079 --> 00:22:43.019 And here's what that does. 00:22:43.120 --> 00:22:44.140 It protects you 00:22:44.140 --> 00:22:45.000 from the highs 00:22:45.000 --> 00:22:45.779 and the lows. 00:22:46.960 --> 00:22:47.120 Right? 00:22:47.299 --> 00:22:48.940 If your source of worth 00:22:48.940 --> 00:22:50.319 is based in God's 00:22:50.319 --> 00:22:51.380 free gift of love 00:22:51.380 --> 00:22:51.839 for you, 00:22:52.500 --> 00:22:53.460 then even if you 00:22:53.460 --> 00:22:55.059 are wildly successful, 00:22:56.059 --> 00:22:58.960 you're never going 00:22:58.960 --> 00:22:59.400 to be tempted 00:22:59.400 --> 00:23:00.660 to become smug 00:23:00.660 --> 00:23:01.599 or cocky 00:23:01.599 --> 00:23:03.019 or look down 00:23:03.019 --> 00:23:04.339 on those little people 00:23:04.339 --> 00:23:05.859 who never made it. 00:23:05.980 --> 00:23:06.199 Right? 00:23:07.639 --> 00:23:08.419 Because your worth 00:23:08.419 --> 00:23:09.220 isn't wrapped up 00:23:09.220 --> 00:23:09.819 in your success. 00:23:10.059 --> 00:23:10.919 It comes as a gift 00:23:10.919 --> 00:23:11.480 from God. 00:23:11.779 --> 00:23:12.599 And on the other hand, 00:23:12.659 --> 00:23:13.159 when you face 00:23:13.159 --> 00:23:14.299 your worst failures 00:23:14.299 --> 00:23:15.159 imaginable, 00:23:15.199 --> 00:23:15.679 it's not going 00:23:15.679 --> 00:23:16.339 to crush you 00:23:16.339 --> 00:23:17.980 because your worth 00:23:17.980 --> 00:23:18.839 is not wrapped up 00:23:18.839 --> 00:23:19.480 in your failure. 00:23:20.220 --> 00:23:21.359 It comes as a gift 00:23:21.359 --> 00:23:21.919 from God. 00:23:22.459 --> 00:23:23.319 So this is how 00:23:23.319 --> 00:23:24.199 Jesus heals 00:23:24.199 --> 00:23:25.000 our identity. 00:23:26.139 --> 00:23:26.799 Being a Christian 00:23:26.799 --> 00:23:27.579 is not about 00:23:27.579 --> 00:23:28.720 being a better person. 00:23:28.839 --> 00:23:29.779 It's allowing Jesus 00:23:29.779 --> 00:23:30.859 to trade places 00:23:30.859 --> 00:23:31.359 with you. 00:23:31.359 --> 00:23:34.219 It's taking on 00:23:34.219 --> 00:23:34.879 a new identity. 00:23:36.879 --> 00:23:37.899 So last question 00:23:37.899 --> 00:23:38.399 we want to ask 00:23:38.399 --> 00:23:38.740 this morning, 00:23:38.859 --> 00:23:39.879 what does this mean 00:23:39.879 --> 00:23:40.599 for us, 00:23:40.659 --> 00:23:41.859 those of us gathered here? 00:23:43.019 --> 00:23:43.699 At the end 00:23:43.699 --> 00:23:44.579 of Matthew's gospel, 00:23:44.679 --> 00:23:45.639 and this is kind 00:23:45.639 --> 00:23:46.339 of looking ahead 00:23:46.339 --> 00:23:47.339 past our passage 00:23:47.339 --> 00:23:47.859 to the end 00:23:47.859 --> 00:23:48.759 of Matthew's gospel, 00:23:49.319 --> 00:23:50.119 after his death 00:23:50.119 --> 00:23:50.619 and resurrection, 00:23:50.859 --> 00:23:51.899 Jesus sends out 00:23:51.899 --> 00:23:52.639 his disciples 00:23:52.639 --> 00:23:53.479 into the world 00:23:53.479 --> 00:23:54.240 and he tells them, 00:23:54.740 --> 00:23:55.759 go and make disciples 00:23:55.759 --> 00:23:56.839 of all nations, 00:23:57.039 --> 00:23:58.079 that means everybody, 00:23:59.319 --> 00:24:00.439 baptizing them 00:24:00.439 --> 00:24:00.979 in the name 00:24:00.980 --> 00:24:01.559 of the Father 00:24:01.559 --> 00:24:02.259 and of the Son 00:24:02.259 --> 00:24:03.279 and of the Holy Spirit. 00:24:03.339 --> 00:24:03.680 He's saying, 00:24:04.140 --> 00:24:04.940 go out into the world 00:24:04.940 --> 00:24:06.240 and tell everybody 00:24:06.240 --> 00:24:06.900 you meet 00:24:06.900 --> 00:24:08.180 that there is a way 00:24:08.180 --> 00:24:09.339 that is made open 00:24:09.339 --> 00:24:09.980 to the world. 00:24:10.120 --> 00:24:11.160 There is a way now 00:24:11.160 --> 00:24:12.620 to have your true 00:24:12.620 --> 00:24:13.700 identity restored. 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:16.019 There's a way 00:24:16.019 --> 00:24:16.779 for you to become 00:24:16.779 --> 00:24:18.240 who God created you to be. 00:24:18.440 --> 00:24:19.059 You no longer 00:24:19.059 --> 00:24:19.960 have to look for that. 00:24:20.819 --> 00:24:21.920 The way is open. 00:24:22.440 --> 00:24:23.720 The answer is here. 00:24:24.140 --> 00:24:24.920 All you have to do 00:24:24.920 --> 00:24:25.680 is receive it. 00:24:26.160 --> 00:24:26.880 And in many ways, 00:24:26.940 --> 00:24:27.579 I think that, friends, 00:24:27.640 --> 00:24:28.279 this captures 00:24:28.279 --> 00:24:29.200 the whole mission 00:24:29.200 --> 00:24:29.860 of the church. 00:24:29.859 --> 00:24:32.240 church, this is why 00:24:32.240 --> 00:24:32.959 we're here. 00:24:33.679 --> 00:24:35.099 This is why we're excited 00:24:35.099 --> 00:24:36.839 to have a permanent 00:24:36.839 --> 00:24:37.879 location in a neighborhood 00:24:37.879 --> 00:24:38.439 like Shaw. 00:24:38.559 --> 00:24:40.500 This is why we show up. 00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:42.879 It's because this 00:24:42.879 --> 00:24:44.079 proclamation is going 00:24:44.079 --> 00:24:44.659 out to the world 00:24:44.659 --> 00:24:45.399 and there are many, 00:24:45.459 --> 00:24:46.039 many, many people 00:24:46.039 --> 00:24:46.839 who need to hear it 00:24:46.839 --> 00:24:48.159 and many, many, many people 00:24:48.159 --> 00:24:49.479 who need to be reminded of it. 00:24:51.779 --> 00:24:52.939 Everything we do, 00:24:53.559 --> 00:24:54.199 and by we, 00:24:54.319 --> 00:24:54.919 I mean the church, 00:24:54.920 --> 00:24:57.039 everything we do 00:24:57.039 --> 00:24:58.460 is aimed at healing 00:24:58.460 --> 00:24:59.279 and restoring 00:24:59.279 --> 00:25:00.080 human identity. 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:02.900 Everything that we do 00:25:02.900 --> 00:25:03.800 is aimed at healing 00:25:03.800 --> 00:25:04.440 and restoring 00:25:04.440 --> 00:25:05.160 human identity. 00:25:06.039 --> 00:25:07.240 So it's about seeing 00:25:07.240 --> 00:25:08.140 men and women 00:25:08.140 --> 00:25:09.500 rehumanized 00:25:09.500 --> 00:25:10.700 by becoming 00:25:10.700 --> 00:25:11.700 what God created 00:25:11.700 --> 00:25:12.220 them to be, 00:25:12.300 --> 00:25:13.100 which is his children. 00:25:14.500 --> 00:25:15.320 And friends, 00:25:15.400 --> 00:25:16.160 this is especially 00:25:16.160 --> 00:25:17.480 true of baptism. 00:25:18.340 --> 00:25:19.880 When we see Patrick 00:25:19.880 --> 00:25:21.920 baptized this morning, 00:25:21.980 --> 00:25:22.720 who is going to go 00:25:22.720 --> 00:25:23.460 get ready right now 00:25:23.460 --> 00:25:24.420 for baptism, I think, 00:25:24.819 --> 00:25:26.299 when Patrick comes up 00:25:26.299 --> 00:25:26.980 here in a little while 00:25:26.980 --> 00:25:28.420 and we baptize Patrick, 00:25:28.980 --> 00:25:30.440 what we're really doing 00:25:30.440 --> 00:25:31.380 is we are speaking 00:25:31.380 --> 00:25:32.460 his true name 00:25:32.460 --> 00:25:33.000 over him. 00:25:33.680 --> 00:25:34.440 We're saying, 00:25:34.799 --> 00:25:36.140 this is who you are, son. 00:25:37.360 --> 00:25:38.440 You are God's 00:25:38.440 --> 00:25:39.160 beloved child. 00:25:40.039 --> 00:25:41.100 And that is the most 00:25:41.100 --> 00:25:42.120 true thing that anybody 00:25:42.120 --> 00:25:42.860 will ever say 00:25:42.860 --> 00:25:43.620 about that child 00:25:43.620 --> 00:25:45.059 is that you're 00:25:45.059 --> 00:25:45.900 a child of God 00:25:45.900 --> 00:25:46.840 and he delights him. 00:25:48.000 --> 00:25:48.940 We're declaring 00:25:48.940 --> 00:25:49.980 what is true about him. 00:25:51.120 --> 00:25:52.500 Now why is that important? 00:25:52.640 --> 00:25:53.259 Because remember, 00:25:53.259 --> 00:25:54.000 what happens 00:25:54.000 --> 00:25:55.259 just after Jesus 00:25:55.259 --> 00:25:56.279 is baptized? 00:25:57.000 --> 00:25:58.099 The very next verse 00:25:58.099 --> 00:25:59.240 says he goes out 00:25:59.240 --> 00:25:59.759 into the wilderness 00:25:59.759 --> 00:26:00.879 and what happens? 00:26:01.400 --> 00:26:01.839 Immediately, 00:26:02.319 --> 00:26:03.599 Satan begins to challenge 00:26:03.599 --> 00:26:04.879 and question his identity. 00:26:05.200 --> 00:26:06.059 And that continues 00:26:06.059 --> 00:26:06.559 to happen, 00:26:06.839 --> 00:26:07.619 not just in the wilderness, 00:26:07.879 --> 00:26:08.680 but for the rest 00:26:08.680 --> 00:26:09.740 of Jesus' ministry 00:26:09.740 --> 00:26:10.779 all the way up 00:26:10.779 --> 00:26:11.619 to when he is hanging 00:26:11.619 --> 00:26:12.319 on the cross 00:26:12.319 --> 00:26:13.279 and they're sneering 00:26:13.279 --> 00:26:13.839 and they're mocking 00:26:13.839 --> 00:26:14.240 and they're saying, 00:26:14.480 --> 00:26:14.980 if you're really 00:26:14.980 --> 00:26:15.740 the son of God, 00:26:15.900 --> 00:26:16.779 if you're really the king, 00:26:16.980 --> 00:26:18.059 come down off that cross. 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:20.859 The entire time 00:26:20.859 --> 00:26:21.819 Jesus is on earth, 00:26:21.819 --> 00:26:22.419 his identity 00:26:22.419 --> 00:26:24.659 is under constant attack. 00:26:24.759 --> 00:26:25.240 And friends, 00:26:25.480 --> 00:26:26.740 the same is true 00:26:26.740 --> 00:26:27.539 for us. 00:26:28.980 --> 00:26:29.799 From the moment 00:26:29.799 --> 00:26:30.859 that child is baptized, 00:26:31.740 --> 00:26:32.419 from the moment 00:26:32.419 --> 00:26:33.240 you are baptized, 00:26:33.779 --> 00:26:35.079 for the rest of your life, 00:26:35.200 --> 00:26:35.939 your identity 00:26:35.939 --> 00:26:36.500 will be under 00:26:36.500 --> 00:26:37.619 constant attack. 00:26:39.399 --> 00:26:40.279 Everybody wants 00:26:40.279 --> 00:26:40.960 a piece of you 00:26:40.960 --> 00:26:42.919 because if you can 00:26:42.919 --> 00:26:43.619 tell somebody 00:26:43.619 --> 00:26:44.399 who they are, 00:26:44.559 --> 00:26:45.939 you can control them. 00:26:45.940 --> 00:26:48.440 And whether you're 00:26:48.440 --> 00:26:50.180 a good advertising agency, 00:26:51.100 --> 00:26:53.860 a good political advocacy group, 00:26:54.500 --> 00:26:56.380 or Satan himself, 00:26:57.440 --> 00:26:58.820 everybody wants 00:26:58.820 --> 00:26:59.440 a piece of you. 00:27:00.440 --> 00:27:01.080 So they want 00:27:01.080 --> 00:27:01.740 to define you. 00:27:03.279 --> 00:27:04.240 This is why 00:27:04.240 --> 00:27:05.660 we need the church. 00:27:06.059 --> 00:27:07.140 It is not enough 00:27:07.140 --> 00:27:08.180 just to get baptized 00:27:08.180 --> 00:27:08.559 and say, 00:27:08.680 --> 00:27:09.480 well now we've checked 00:27:09.480 --> 00:27:10.000 that box, 00:27:10.360 --> 00:27:10.980 go do what you want, 00:27:11.039 --> 00:27:11.440 go to church. 00:27:11.880 --> 00:27:12.580 This is why 00:27:12.580 --> 00:27:13.840 when we baptize a child, 00:27:13.980 --> 00:27:14.779 we want to make sure 00:27:14.779 --> 00:27:16.039 the parents are followers 00:27:16.039 --> 00:27:16.500 of Jesus 00:27:16.500 --> 00:27:17.299 and we want to make sure 00:27:17.299 --> 00:27:18.059 that those parents 00:27:18.059 --> 00:27:19.680 are actively participating 00:27:19.680 --> 00:27:21.139 in our church 00:27:21.139 --> 00:27:22.059 or in a church 00:27:22.059 --> 00:27:23.299 if it's not our church. 00:27:24.559 --> 00:27:25.779 Because you need 00:27:25.779 --> 00:27:26.180 the church 00:27:26.180 --> 00:27:28.079 to constantly remind you 00:27:28.079 --> 00:27:29.440 who you truly are. 00:27:30.240 --> 00:27:31.259 And what do I mean by that? 00:27:31.359 --> 00:27:31.839 I mean this. 00:27:31.940 --> 00:27:32.660 I mean number one, 00:27:33.019 --> 00:27:34.319 we need the scriptures 00:27:34.319 --> 00:27:36.859 constantly preached 00:27:36.859 --> 00:27:38.220 and taught in our lives 00:27:38.220 --> 00:27:40.119 to tell us who we are. 00:27:40.480 --> 00:27:41.940 Here is where it says 00:27:41.940 --> 00:27:43.819 you're a beloved child of God. 00:27:44.779 --> 00:27:46.660 We need the sacraments, 00:27:47.559 --> 00:27:48.019 baptism, 00:27:48.240 --> 00:27:48.920 and the Eucharist. 00:27:48.980 --> 00:27:49.579 What do those do? 00:27:49.819 --> 00:27:50.920 Those give us ways 00:27:50.920 --> 00:27:52.559 of sharing in the identity 00:27:52.559 --> 00:27:54.379 and sharing in the life 00:27:54.379 --> 00:27:55.200 of Christ, 00:27:56.099 --> 00:27:57.599 strengthening our identity 00:27:57.599 --> 00:27:58.139 in Him. 00:27:59.039 --> 00:28:00.220 Every time you receive 00:28:00.220 --> 00:28:00.759 the Eucharist, 00:28:01.500 --> 00:28:02.899 Christ offers His life 00:28:02.899 --> 00:28:03.359 to you 00:28:03.359 --> 00:28:05.259 to build that identity 00:28:05.259 --> 00:28:06.099 up in you. 00:28:07.019 --> 00:28:08.119 We need ways 00:28:08.119 --> 00:28:09.000 of embodying 00:28:09.000 --> 00:28:09.960 the gospel story 00:28:09.960 --> 00:28:11.220 that shape our identity. 00:28:11.319 --> 00:28:12.160 How do we do that? 00:28:12.379 --> 00:28:13.319 That's the whole point 00:28:13.319 --> 00:28:14.019 of the liturgy. 00:28:14.980 --> 00:28:15.779 That's the whole point 00:28:15.779 --> 00:28:16.379 of the prayers 00:28:16.379 --> 00:28:17.079 and the singing. 00:28:17.079 --> 00:28:18.180 It's to enter into 00:28:18.180 --> 00:28:18.900 and embody 00:28:18.900 --> 00:28:20.099 the story of the gospel. 00:28:20.379 --> 00:28:21.059 So much of our sense 00:28:21.059 --> 00:28:21.579 of our identity 00:28:21.579 --> 00:28:22.819 comes from stories. 00:28:23.740 --> 00:28:24.680 So we come here 00:28:24.680 --> 00:28:25.440 to be restored 00:28:25.440 --> 00:28:27.299 by being re-storied. 00:28:28.119 --> 00:28:29.660 We are re-storied 00:28:29.660 --> 00:28:31.119 through the liturgy. 00:28:32.700 --> 00:28:33.879 As we hear of our sin, 00:28:33.940 --> 00:28:34.599 as we confess, 00:28:34.720 --> 00:28:35.720 as we hear absolution, 00:28:35.900 --> 00:28:37.059 as we receive Christ. 00:28:38.799 --> 00:28:39.639 And finally, 00:28:39.779 --> 00:28:40.759 we need a community 00:28:40.759 --> 00:28:44.099 people who have 00:28:44.099 --> 00:28:49.480 the good combination 00:28:49.480 --> 00:28:50.920 of love and guts 00:28:50.920 --> 00:28:53.599 who will push back 00:28:53.599 --> 00:28:54.259 and challenge 00:28:54.259 --> 00:28:54.819 and question 00:28:54.819 --> 00:28:55.819 if we start going 00:28:55.819 --> 00:28:56.619 off that path 00:28:56.619 --> 00:28:57.240 and veering into 00:28:57.240 --> 00:28:57.900 another identity. 00:28:58.759 --> 00:28:59.799 You need those people 00:28:59.799 --> 00:29:00.379 in your life. 00:29:01.240 --> 00:29:01.720 Unfortunately, 00:29:01.960 --> 00:29:02.819 in our culture, 00:29:03.000 --> 00:29:03.660 so many people 00:29:03.660 --> 00:29:05.000 are so thin-skinned. 00:29:05.859 --> 00:29:06.460 And so many people 00:29:06.460 --> 00:29:06.839 in the church, 00:29:06.920 --> 00:29:07.359 quite frankly, 00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:08.720 are so thin-skinned 00:29:08.720 --> 00:29:10.859 and so prone 00:29:10.859 --> 00:29:11.480 to take offense 00:29:11.480 --> 00:29:12.859 that we are so offended 00:29:12.859 --> 00:29:13.880 when people push back 00:29:13.880 --> 00:29:15.019 on our life choices. 00:29:15.819 --> 00:29:16.660 And I would say, 00:29:16.759 --> 00:29:17.539 if we're not doing that, 00:29:17.599 --> 00:29:18.519 we're really abdicating 00:29:18.519 --> 00:29:19.500 our responsibility 00:29:19.500 --> 00:29:22.460 and our spiritual friendships. 00:29:23.680 --> 00:29:23.880 You know, 00:29:24.099 --> 00:29:26.539 we live in this world 00:29:26.539 --> 00:29:27.880 where when somebody 00:29:27.880 --> 00:29:28.640 says who they are, 00:29:28.720 --> 00:29:30.119 that's like an unassailable thing 00:29:30.119 --> 00:29:30.759 that it's like 00:29:30.759 --> 00:29:31.660 an absolute truth. 00:29:31.660 --> 00:29:34.960 That is absolutely bogus. 00:29:35.620 --> 00:29:37.060 That is the worst possible way 00:29:37.060 --> 00:29:37.940 to live as a society. 00:29:38.620 --> 00:29:38.779 You know, 00:29:38.800 --> 00:29:39.600 a few years ago, 00:29:39.700 --> 00:29:40.580 the story came out, 00:29:40.620 --> 00:29:41.380 maybe some of you read it, 00:29:41.440 --> 00:29:42.740 about a woman 00:29:42.740 --> 00:29:43.720 named Kira Bell. 00:29:44.360 --> 00:29:45.080 And Kira Bell 00:29:45.080 --> 00:29:45.960 began identifying 00:29:45.960 --> 00:29:47.220 as a boy 00:29:47.220 --> 00:29:48.220 around age 14. 00:29:49.240 --> 00:29:50.580 And she was medically 00:29:50.580 --> 00:29:51.920 transitioned as a teenager, 00:29:52.600 --> 00:29:53.920 hormone treatment, 00:29:54.220 --> 00:29:54.940 puberty blockers, 00:29:55.000 --> 00:29:55.300 and later, 00:29:55.400 --> 00:29:56.140 double mastectomy. 00:29:57.540 --> 00:29:57.980 Later, 00:29:58.180 --> 00:29:59.480 she realized 00:29:59.480 --> 00:30:00.019 it had all been 00:30:00.019 --> 00:30:00.740 a huge mistake. 00:30:00.740 --> 00:30:01.859 She detransitioned, 00:30:01.880 --> 00:30:02.440 but her body 00:30:02.440 --> 00:30:04.019 has lasting permanent damage 00:30:04.019 --> 00:30:04.980 that's been done to it 00:30:04.980 --> 00:30:05.700 as a result 00:30:05.700 --> 00:30:06.559 of the medical interventions. 00:30:07.720 --> 00:30:08.900 But as she got older, 00:30:09.000 --> 00:30:09.480 she looked back 00:30:09.480 --> 00:30:10.079 and she realized 00:30:10.079 --> 00:30:10.680 that her distress 00:30:10.680 --> 00:30:12.019 actually came from the fact 00:30:12.019 --> 00:30:13.240 that she was depressed. 00:30:13.740 --> 00:30:14.519 She was anxious. 00:30:14.819 --> 00:30:15.680 She did not fit in 00:30:15.680 --> 00:30:16.279 with her friends. 00:30:16.400 --> 00:30:17.039 She didn't like 00:30:17.039 --> 00:30:18.519 stereotypically girly things. 00:30:18.980 --> 00:30:20.180 She was going through puberty, 00:30:20.220 --> 00:30:21.339 which was really hard for her, 00:30:21.400 --> 00:30:22.120 and she had no one 00:30:22.120 --> 00:30:22.559 to talk to 00:30:22.559 --> 00:30:23.460 to help her understand 00:30:23.460 --> 00:30:24.339 what was happening 00:30:24.339 --> 00:30:24.960 to her body. 00:30:26.420 --> 00:30:26.799 So, 00:30:26.980 --> 00:30:27.880 the reason I'm bringing it up 00:30:27.880 --> 00:30:28.740 is in 2020, 00:30:28.920 --> 00:30:30.620 she won a landmark lawsuit 00:30:30.619 --> 00:30:31.659 against the doctors 00:30:31.659 --> 00:30:33.019 who led her down that path. 00:30:34.039 --> 00:30:34.939 And what she said 00:30:34.939 --> 00:30:35.679 is essentially this. 00:30:35.739 --> 00:30:36.179 She said, 00:30:36.459 --> 00:30:37.679 I went to that clinic 00:30:37.679 --> 00:30:38.739 expecting for people 00:30:38.739 --> 00:30:39.619 to ask me questions 00:30:39.619 --> 00:30:40.599 and to challenge me 00:30:40.599 --> 00:30:41.839 and to help me make sure 00:30:41.839 --> 00:30:42.579 that this was the right 00:30:42.579 --> 00:30:43.299 decision for me. 00:30:43.539 --> 00:30:43.979 But she said, 00:30:44.019 --> 00:30:44.379 from the minute 00:30:44.379 --> 00:30:45.239 I walked in that clinic, 00:30:45.579 --> 00:30:46.659 nobody challenged me. 00:30:47.099 --> 00:30:47.979 Nobody questioned me. 00:30:48.259 --> 00:30:49.419 They uncritically, 00:30:49.619 --> 00:30:50.419 unquestioningly 00:30:50.419 --> 00:30:51.639 affirmed me as a boy 00:30:51.639 --> 00:30:52.219 from the moment 00:30:52.219 --> 00:30:53.079 I walked in the door. 00:30:53.439 --> 00:30:53.859 And she says, 00:30:53.939 --> 00:30:54.819 I couldn't find 00:30:54.819 --> 00:30:55.919 an institution 00:30:55.919 --> 00:30:56.839 or an organization 00:30:56.839 --> 00:30:57.459 anywhere 00:30:57.460 --> 00:30:58.519 where anyone 00:30:58.519 --> 00:30:59.819 would ask any questions. 00:31:00.799 --> 00:31:01.120 She said, 00:31:01.200 --> 00:31:01.980 everybody simply 00:31:01.980 --> 00:31:03.140 affirmed me as a boy 00:31:03.140 --> 00:31:04.039 and before I knew it, 00:31:04.079 --> 00:31:04.920 I was on the path. 00:31:06.220 --> 00:31:07.259 And it's heartbreaking 00:31:07.259 --> 00:31:08.220 if you read her story 00:31:08.220 --> 00:31:09.059 because she says, 00:31:09.519 --> 00:31:12.079 I wish that people 00:31:12.079 --> 00:31:13.180 had challenged me 00:31:13.180 --> 00:31:15.400 because if they had, 00:31:15.480 --> 00:31:16.539 I wouldn't have to live 00:31:16.539 --> 00:31:17.579 with the consequences 00:31:17.579 --> 00:31:19.860 of the choices I made. 00:31:20.660 --> 00:31:20.840 You know, 00:31:20.840 --> 00:31:21.120 the point, 00:31:21.119 --> 00:31:21.379 friends, 00:31:21.559 --> 00:31:25.399 is whatever it is 00:31:25.399 --> 00:31:26.779 that is pulling at us 00:31:26.779 --> 00:31:27.719 and trying to tell us 00:31:27.719 --> 00:31:28.319 who we are, 00:31:29.259 --> 00:31:30.879 it shouldn't be the case 00:31:30.879 --> 00:31:31.500 that there are no 00:31:31.500 --> 00:31:32.439 institutions out there 00:31:32.439 --> 00:31:32.979 where you will ever 00:31:32.979 --> 00:31:33.419 be challenged 00:31:33.419 --> 00:31:33.879 to their questions. 00:31:33.939 --> 00:31:34.839 That may be true 00:31:34.839 --> 00:31:35.339 elsewhere. 00:31:36.459 --> 00:31:37.259 But I just want 00:31:37.259 --> 00:31:37.739 to make clear, 00:31:37.899 --> 00:31:39.119 you should come to church 00:31:39.119 --> 00:31:40.500 expecting people 00:31:40.500 --> 00:31:42.279 to call you back 00:31:42.279 --> 00:31:43.839 to what is most true 00:31:43.839 --> 00:31:44.319 about you. 00:31:45.019 --> 00:31:46.019 You should expect 00:31:46.019 --> 00:31:46.839 to come to church 00:31:46.839 --> 00:31:48.019 and have people 00:31:48.019 --> 00:31:49.059 who are going to push back 00:31:49.059 --> 00:31:49.659 when you begin 00:31:49.659 --> 00:31:50.359 to be pulled away 00:31:50.359 --> 00:31:51.119 from that truth. 00:31:51.939 --> 00:31:52.159 Right? 00:31:52.219 --> 00:31:52.919 When you start getting 00:31:52.919 --> 00:31:53.579 too wrapped up 00:31:53.579 --> 00:31:54.179 in your career 00:31:54.179 --> 00:31:55.519 or too wrapped around 00:31:55.519 --> 00:31:56.819 the axle of your, 00:31:56.819 --> 00:31:58.399 you know, 00:31:58.479 --> 00:31:59.299 politics, 00:32:00.519 --> 00:32:00.759 right, 00:32:00.879 --> 00:32:01.740 you should come to church 00:32:01.740 --> 00:32:02.599 expecting that people 00:32:02.599 --> 00:32:02.959 are going to say, 00:32:03.059 --> 00:32:04.519 I think this has become 00:32:04.519 --> 00:32:05.959 too important for you. 00:32:06.879 --> 00:32:07.119 You know, 00:32:07.139 --> 00:32:07.740 you need to come back 00:32:07.740 --> 00:32:08.299 to Christ. 00:32:11.699 --> 00:32:13.099 You are not your career. 00:32:14.619 --> 00:32:16.079 You are not your accomplishments. 00:32:17.559 --> 00:32:18.859 You are not your failures. 00:32:18.859 --> 00:32:21.099 You are not your shame. 00:32:22.379 --> 00:32:24.079 You're a beloved child of God. 00:32:25.859 --> 00:32:27.479 You are not your feelings 00:32:27.479 --> 00:32:28.299 and desires. 00:32:29.059 --> 00:32:30.659 You're not the names 00:32:30.659 --> 00:32:32.099 that people have called you 00:32:32.099 --> 00:32:33.779 or the false accusations 00:32:33.779 --> 00:32:34.899 they've made about you. 00:32:36.219 --> 00:32:37.199 You're not a victim. 00:32:38.579 --> 00:32:39.599 You're not defined 00:32:39.599 --> 00:32:40.259 by the things 00:32:40.259 --> 00:32:40.899 that have been done 00:32:40.899 --> 00:32:42.799 to you 00:32:42.799 --> 00:32:43.319 or the harm 00:32:43.319 --> 00:32:44.079 that has been committed 00:32:44.079 --> 00:32:45.839 against you. 00:32:45.839 --> 00:32:48.019 You're a beloved child of God. 00:32:49.879 --> 00:32:51.519 Every time we gather together, 00:32:52.220 --> 00:32:53.599 that is the message 00:32:53.599 --> 00:32:56.279 I pray you take with you 00:32:56.279 --> 00:32:56.799 into the world. 00:32:57.799 --> 00:32:59.539 And every time you forget, 00:33:01.139 --> 00:33:01.839 come on back 00:33:01.839 --> 00:33:03.740 and you'll hear it again. 00:33:04.759 --> 00:33:05.399 Let's pray. 00:33:05.400 --> 00:33:09.160 Lord, we thank you 00:33:09.160 --> 00:33:09.720 for your goodness. 00:33:10.900 --> 00:33:11.920 We thank you 00:33:11.920 --> 00:33:15.320 that 00:33:15.320 --> 00:33:17.000 through 00:33:17.000 --> 00:33:18.660 an unfathomable mystery 00:33:18.660 --> 00:33:20.600 across thousands 00:33:20.600 --> 00:33:21.200 and thousands 00:33:21.200 --> 00:33:21.860 of years, 00:33:22.640 --> 00:33:24.180 you enacted a plan 00:33:24.180 --> 00:33:24.980 involving 00:33:24.980 --> 00:33:27.180 thousands of people, 00:33:28.340 --> 00:33:29.400 thousands of years, 00:33:30.500 --> 00:33:31.000 cultures 00:33:31.000 --> 00:33:32.340 near and far. 00:33:32.339 --> 00:33:34.859 and that plan 00:33:34.859 --> 00:33:35.599 unfolded 00:33:35.599 --> 00:33:36.679 leading all the way 00:33:36.679 --> 00:33:37.459 to this moment 00:33:37.459 --> 00:33:38.480 when we could simply 00:33:38.480 --> 00:33:39.359 open our mouths 00:33:39.359 --> 00:33:40.539 and call you 00:33:40.539 --> 00:33:40.939 Father. 00:33:42.480 --> 00:33:42.819 And Lord, 00:33:42.879 --> 00:33:43.579 we pray that 00:33:43.579 --> 00:33:44.639 whatever else 00:33:44.639 --> 00:33:45.339 may seem 00:33:45.339 --> 00:33:45.939 or feel 00:33:45.939 --> 00:33:46.480 to be true 00:33:46.480 --> 00:33:47.240 at any given moment, 00:33:47.319 --> 00:33:48.220 the thing that is most true 00:33:48.220 --> 00:33:48.859 for us here 00:33:48.859 --> 00:33:50.699 is that we would know 00:33:50.699 --> 00:33:51.919 beyond a shadow 00:33:51.919 --> 00:33:52.399 of a doubt 00:33:52.399 --> 00:33:53.939 that we are 00:33:53.939 --> 00:33:54.740 your beloved children. 00:33:56.279 --> 00:33:57.279 And we pray this 00:33:57.279 --> 00:33:58.439 that we might glorify you 00:33:58.439 --> 00:33:59.699 by living 00:33:59.699 --> 00:34:00.099 and being 00:34:00.099 --> 00:34:01.119 what we are created for. 00:34:01.119 --> 00:34:03.000 in Jesus' name. 00:34:03.459 --> 00:34:03.659 Amen.