WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:13.820 Good morning, church. Turn with me in your Bibles. And there are now Bibles in the pews if you'd like to use them, although we'll keep the words on the screen, I think. Or maybe not. Either way, John 14, starting at verse 25. 00:00:14.880 --> 00:00:29.699 And before we read the scripture, let me just give you a few updates, as Jeff mentioned, about the format of our worship services going forward. We'll continue, as we did today, having open seating on the floor of the sanctuary, so you don't need to RSVP anymore, and just show up as you did today. 00:00:30.320 --> 00:00:45.439 Sit anywhere you like. Also, starting next Sunday, we will follow the new CDC and Connecticut mask guidelines. So that means if you are fully vaccinated, masks will be optional, indoors and outdoors. You can still wear a mask if you want to, but you don't have to. 00:00:45.439 --> 00:01:02.640 If you're not fully vaccinated, please continue to wear a mask indoors, but you can take it off when we go outdoors. If you're feeling a bit more cautious, but you would like to come to in-person services, we will have some socially distanced seating zones in the balcony and in the overflow seating area. 00:01:02.640 --> 00:01:09.379 And in those areas, everybody will continue to wear masks, and the seats will be separated apart. 00:01:09.540 --> 00:01:13.599 So if you would like to sit in one of those areas, RSVP to the office during the week. 00:01:13.599 --> 00:01:22.579 If that would help you to be able to come in person, but to feel comfortable at this point, you can RSVP during the week or talk to an usher when you arrive. 00:01:23.179 --> 00:01:31.819 As we adjust to these changes, let's continue to love and honor one another to, as the scripture says, make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit and the bond of peace, 00:01:31.819 --> 00:01:36.519 as well as Hebrews encourages us not to give up meeting together, right? 00:01:36.579 --> 00:01:44.659 As much as possible, meeting together in person is how God designed the church to work, and we've tried to make the best of a difficult season. 00:01:44.780 --> 00:01:50.679 And again, we know that that season is sort of ending in different ways for different people or continuing in different ways for different people. 00:01:50.679 --> 00:01:59.099 But we have, as the elders, just tried to do our best to offer a variety of ways through the live stream, through the indoor and outdoor services for people to stay connected. 00:01:59.099 --> 00:02:06.479 And so we just want to encourage you, continue to find ways to stay connected even as we adjust to the new guidelines. 00:02:06.659 --> 00:02:11.359 If you have questions or concerns, please talk to any of the elders. 00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:22.959 So if you're sort of struggling maybe with some of the, just either the new guidelines or just questions about what does it look like for you or for your family to participate well in the life of the church, 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:32.180 we'd love to talk with you about it so we can know your concerns and understand where people are better in our congregation as well as so we can pray for you and encourage you. 00:02:33.260 --> 00:02:35.600 So having said that, let's read the scripture. 00:02:35.800 --> 00:02:40.800 These are Jesus' words to his disciples in John 14, beginning at verse 25. 00:02:41.580 --> 00:02:43.980 Hear God's word today. 00:02:44.100 --> 00:02:48.319 These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 00:02:48.319 --> 00:02:59.019 But the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 00:02:59.199 --> 00:03:01.340 Peace I leave with you. 00:03:02.099 --> 00:03:03.859 My peace I give to you. 00:03:04.479 --> 00:03:07.280 Not as the world gives do I give to you. 00:03:07.379 --> 00:03:11.379 Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 00:03:12.340 --> 00:03:15.479 You heard me say to you, I am going away and I will come to you. 00:03:15.479 --> 00:03:21.579 If you loved me, you would have rejoiced because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 00:03:22.419 --> 00:03:26.579 And now I have told you before it takes place so that when it does take place, you may believe. 00:03:27.419 --> 00:03:31.039 I will no longer talk much with you for the ruler of this world is coming. 00:03:31.839 --> 00:03:38.319 He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me so that the world may know that I love the Father. 00:03:39.039 --> 00:03:41.719 Rise, let us go from here. 00:03:41.719 --> 00:03:49.879 So I want you to imagine yourself as one of the 11 remaining disciples sitting in the upper room. 00:03:50.939 --> 00:03:52.199 The supper has ended. 00:03:52.979 --> 00:03:53.879 Night has fallen. 00:03:54.699 --> 00:03:55.840 Judas has left. 00:03:56.680 --> 00:04:00.659 You don't quite understand why he left, but it all felt somewhat ominous. 00:04:01.300 --> 00:04:07.840 And you're all sitting around the room, looking at each other and listening to Jesus. 00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:16.639 And you hear Jesus say things like, these things I've spoken to you while I'm still with you, but I'm going away. 00:04:17.660 --> 00:04:18.959 I'm going to the Father. 00:04:19.879 --> 00:04:24.199 I won't talk much more with you because the ruler of this world is coming. 00:04:25.899 --> 00:04:31.920 What thoughts would be running through your mind as you heard Jesus say these things? 00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:38.180 What emotions would you be feeling as you hear Jesus tell you that he would soon be gone? 00:04:39.800 --> 00:04:44.180 For the last three years, if you were one of Jesus' 12 disciples, he had been your teacher. 00:04:45.160 --> 00:04:51.280 And he has been a teacher unlike any other teacher that you have ever heard or known about. 00:04:52.840 --> 00:04:56.980 You know, throughout the Gospels, it says over and over that Jesus taught with authority. 00:04:56.980 --> 00:05:04.580 In other words, he didn't just sort of summarize all the interpretations of other religious scholars that had come before him. 00:05:04.680 --> 00:05:09.280 He wasn't tentative or wavering or hazy in his words. 00:05:09.520 --> 00:05:15.500 He interpreted the Scriptures with confidence and clarity as if he had written those words himself. 00:05:17.360 --> 00:05:20.020 But Jesus wasn't only authoritative in his teaching. 00:05:20.120 --> 00:05:22.160 He was also amazingly accessible. 00:05:22.160 --> 00:05:30.600 In the New Testament Gospels, there are 61 occasions when Jesus answered somebody's question. 00:05:30.700 --> 00:05:36.060 Either a disciple's question or a curious onlurker's question or even a hostile opponent's question. 00:05:36.200 --> 00:05:40.840 There's 61 occasions recorded for us where Jesus answered people's questions. 00:05:42.200 --> 00:05:48.320 And as one of his students, you had the freedom to walk up to him and ask him any question that was on your mind. 00:05:48.319 --> 00:05:57.659 Anytime you had forgotten something, anytime you were perplexed or confused or wanted to know more, he had been there as your teacher. 00:05:58.920 --> 00:06:02.740 But Jesus hadn't only been your teacher, he had also been your friend. 00:06:04.180 --> 00:06:06.219 Jesus has been an ever-present companion. 00:06:07.240 --> 00:06:10.100 A steady shepherd faithfully leading his sheep. 00:06:11.139 --> 00:06:16.560 Now, as a disciple of Jesus, you have experienced a range of reactions from the outside world. 00:06:16.560 --> 00:06:18.500 Sometimes people have been hostile. 00:06:18.980 --> 00:06:20.579 At other times, they've been indifferent. 00:06:21.300 --> 00:06:22.720 At other times, they've been curious. 00:06:22.959 --> 00:06:25.060 At other times, they've been surprisingly receptive. 00:06:26.220 --> 00:06:33.660 But the one constant amidst all the changing reactions of the world around you is that Jesus has always been there with you. 00:06:35.500 --> 00:06:40.480 Now, there are only a couple of times in the Gospels when Jesus left his disciples alone. 00:06:40.480 --> 00:06:46.640 One of the few times when he did so is recorded in John chapter 6, beginning at verse 16. 00:06:46.759 --> 00:06:52.580 And this story comes right after Jesus had taught and fed the 5,000 on the hillside. 00:06:53.240 --> 00:06:57.060 And it says that evening, Jesus went up on a mountain to pray. 00:06:58.200 --> 00:07:02.379 And his disciples got into a boat to row across the lake to the other side. 00:07:02.379 --> 00:07:14.360 And it says that before the disciples made it to their destination, they were rowing across the Sea of Galilee, the Lake of Galilee, which was a large body of water. 00:07:15.199 --> 00:07:19.439 The sun went down, the wind picked up, and the sea got rough. 00:07:20.579 --> 00:07:23.540 And by this time, they had been rowing three or four miles. 00:07:23.699 --> 00:07:27.519 Now, normally, if you've rowed three or four miles, that's a good workout, right? 00:07:27.519 --> 00:07:30.899 An hour, hour and a half on calm waters. 00:07:31.599 --> 00:07:33.259 And it's a good workout. 00:07:33.439 --> 00:07:40.859 But after dark, on choppy waters, facing a headwind, and you're still not at your destination. 00:07:41.259 --> 00:07:51.079 And, by the way, what the disciples had done all day is they had distributed the food and cleaned up afterwards when Jesus fed these thousands of people. 00:07:51.079 --> 00:07:57.359 So imagine you've, you know, if you've ever worked waiting tables at a restaurant, imagine you just did a 12-hour shift. 00:07:57.819 --> 00:08:02.859 Serving people, cleaning up after them, and then you got in a boat and rowed three or four miles against the wind. 00:08:03.019 --> 00:08:04.099 And how are you feeling now? 00:08:04.180 --> 00:08:05.539 And it's the middle of the night, by the way. 00:08:07.539 --> 00:08:11.060 Well, what did Jesus do to his disciples when they found themselves in that situation? 00:08:11.599 --> 00:08:15.879 Alone, afraid, overwhelmed, exhausted, he took the initiative to come to them. 00:08:16.939 --> 00:08:17.899 Walking on the water. 00:08:17.899 --> 00:08:21.819 Of course, when they first saw him walking on the water, that freaked them out even more. 00:08:22.779 --> 00:08:24.439 But then he said to them, it is I. 00:08:25.339 --> 00:08:27.239 Don't be afraid. 00:08:29.500 --> 00:08:32.059 You see, that's who Jesus had been for them all along. 00:08:32.159 --> 00:08:38.980 He had been their friend who spoke to them, who spoke peace to them, who said to them, I'm here with you. 00:08:39.579 --> 00:08:40.519 Don't be afraid. 00:08:41.539 --> 00:08:45.600 And yet now, he's saying to his disciples, I'm going to leave. 00:08:45.600 --> 00:08:53.440 And they're thinking, are we going to be left out on the boat in the middle of the lake again and he won't come? 00:08:54.960 --> 00:08:57.159 And we'll just be left to fend for ourselves. 00:08:58.899 --> 00:08:59.840 Figuratively, at least. 00:09:01.600 --> 00:09:05.120 Jesus had been their teacher and he had been their friend, but soon he would be gone. 00:09:05.120 --> 00:09:12.379 Now, maybe you can identify in one way or another with what Jesus' first disciples might have been thinking or feeling. 00:09:13.659 --> 00:09:16.860 Maybe you're feeling anxiety and facing an uncertain future. 00:09:17.820 --> 00:09:21.620 Or some fear of being left alone to fend for yourself. 00:09:22.960 --> 00:09:25.279 Confusion or weariness in the face of opposition. 00:09:26.659 --> 00:09:31.000 Last week, Pastor Matt spoke about the gift of the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised. 00:09:31.000 --> 00:09:38.240 And Jesus described the Holy Spirit, he named the Holy Spirit as the helper, or that word could be translated, the advocate. 00:09:38.740 --> 00:09:41.679 The one who comes alongside to strengthen and encourage. 00:09:42.600 --> 00:09:53.899 In the Holy Spirit, we have one who is like Jesus himself, just as personal and just as powerful and just as authoritative and just as accessible as Jesus was to his disciples when he was on earth with them. 00:09:53.899 --> 00:10:00.480 Now, today Jesus expands on that promise of the Holy Spirit by focusing on these two themes. 00:10:01.079 --> 00:10:02.840 First, the Holy Spirit will be your teacher. 00:10:03.659 --> 00:10:05.720 And second, the Holy Spirit will be your friend. 00:10:07.079 --> 00:10:08.759 Jesus had been their teacher and their friend. 00:10:08.879 --> 00:10:14.079 Now Jesus is saying, I will be gone, but the Holy Spirit will be your teacher and the Holy Spirit will be your friend. 00:10:14.139 --> 00:10:18.379 So I want to sit with these two promises about the work of the Holy Spirit. 00:10:18.379 --> 00:10:25.059 And I want us to consider what they would have meant for Jesus' disciples back then, as well as what they mean for us today. 00:10:26.379 --> 00:10:28.860 So first promise, the Holy Spirit will be your teacher. 00:10:29.200 --> 00:10:31.259 We see this in verses 25 and 26. 00:10:32.279 --> 00:10:37.500 He will teach you all things, Jesus says, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 00:10:38.460 --> 00:10:46.360 So Jesus was promising the Holy Spirit would continue the ministry of teaching that Jesus had engaged in with his disciples throughout his earthly ministry. 00:10:46.360 --> 00:10:52.740 So Jesus' disciples wouldn't be left without any instruction or without any correction or without the word and wisdom of God. 00:10:52.840 --> 00:10:53.060 No. 00:10:53.519 --> 00:11:00.200 Jesus says, the Father will send the Holy Spirit in my name, that is, as my representative, in my place. 00:11:00.300 --> 00:11:07.139 You might even say the Holy Spirit is Jesus' successor on earth in carrying out the mission of God the Father. 00:11:08.779 --> 00:11:12.120 Now Jesus had taught his disciples many things during his earthly ministry. 00:11:12.240 --> 00:11:14.399 You can read them in any of the four gospels. 00:11:14.399 --> 00:11:24.399 But before Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection and ascension to glory and sending of the Spirit, his disciples failed to understand much of what he taught. 00:11:24.939 --> 00:11:27.120 And you can see this in all four of the gospels. 00:11:27.240 --> 00:11:32.000 It's perhaps a theme that's most prominent in Mark's gospel, the obtuseness of the disciples. 00:11:32.500 --> 00:11:36.480 But I'll just give you a few examples just from John's gospel, just from the gospel we're reading here. 00:11:36.480 --> 00:11:40.960 Chapter 2, Jesus cleared out the money changers from the temple. 00:11:41.500 --> 00:11:44.560 And he said, destroy this temple and I'll raise it again in three days. 00:11:45.240 --> 00:11:47.519 And nobody quite understood what he was saying. 00:11:47.659 --> 00:11:54.320 And John says, only after Jesus' resurrection did his disciples remember that word and believe what he had said. 00:11:55.460 --> 00:11:59.060 Going on, chapter 4, Jesus was talking with the Samaritan woman at the well. 00:11:59.059 --> 00:12:01.539 Well, his disciples came back with some lunch. 00:12:02.179 --> 00:12:04.739 And Jesus says, I have food to eat that you don't know anything about. 00:12:05.659 --> 00:12:09.319 And his disciples sort of looked at each other strangely and said, did somebody else bring him lunch? 00:12:09.679 --> 00:12:10.339 Ahead of us? 00:12:10.699 --> 00:12:12.539 And he said, no, no, that's not it. 00:12:13.279 --> 00:12:14.639 Talking about spiritual food. 00:12:16.039 --> 00:12:16.279 Right? 00:12:16.379 --> 00:12:18.359 They didn't get what he meant there either. 00:12:18.360 --> 00:12:26.899 Then in chapter 10, Jesus used the metaphor of sheep who can distinguish a shepherd's voice from a stranger's voice. 00:12:28.080 --> 00:12:34.600 And it says, chapter 10, verse 6, this figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 00:12:35.080 --> 00:12:40.700 Chapter 11, Jesus told his disciples, let's go to Judea because our friend Lazarus has died. 00:12:40.899 --> 00:12:45.360 And his disciples couldn't understand why he'd want to go back to Judea because people wanted to kill him there. 00:12:46.100 --> 00:12:48.120 Then chapter 12, he wrote into Jerusalem. 00:12:48.360 --> 00:12:49.000 On a donkey. 00:12:49.139 --> 00:12:52.680 And John says, his disciples didn't understand these things at first. 00:12:53.700 --> 00:12:55.840 And chapter 13, he washed their feet at supper. 00:12:56.080 --> 00:12:59.759 And he said, you don't understand why I'm doing this now, but later on you will. 00:13:01.759 --> 00:13:02.159 Right? 00:13:02.220 --> 00:13:04.300 Over and over in the Gospels, you see this pattern. 00:13:04.620 --> 00:13:12.300 Jesus is teaching them, but they only understand a limited part of what he's saying. 00:13:13.159 --> 00:13:17.080 There's a lot more that just isn't clear to them in the moment. 00:13:17.080 --> 00:13:21.460 They might have remembered the words, but they didn't get the meaning. 00:13:21.460 --> 00:13:25.019 And why didn't they get it? 00:13:25.019 --> 00:13:38.740 Because they didn't yet see the big picture of who Jesus was and why he had come into the world and how his coming was the long-awaited fulfillment of what God had promised to Israel for hundreds and thousands of years. 00:13:38.740 --> 00:13:50.460 You see, only after Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection and ascension into glory, only after those things happened, would the big picture come into clearer view in hindsight. 00:13:50.460 --> 00:13:50.740 Hindsight. 00:13:51.940 --> 00:13:52.300 Right? 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:54.259 We experience that sometimes in our own lives. 00:13:54.360 --> 00:13:55.100 And we can, right? 00:13:55.180 --> 00:13:57.540 Sometimes we look back and we say, hindsight's 20-20. 00:13:58.420 --> 00:13:59.600 Well, I'd say not quite. 00:13:59.860 --> 00:14:00.040 Right? 00:14:00.100 --> 00:14:01.700 Sometimes we look back on things in hindsight. 00:14:01.879 --> 00:14:03.080 Our memories can become distorted. 00:14:03.560 --> 00:14:05.100 So it's not always 20-20. 00:14:05.220 --> 00:14:10.100 But still, sometimes there are things that become clearer to us in hindsight rather than in the moment. 00:14:10.259 --> 00:14:12.060 And that was true with Jesus' disciples. 00:14:12.200 --> 00:14:15.440 In the moment when he was there, they didn't understand the whole picture. 00:14:15.740 --> 00:14:16.860 Only Jesus saw that. 00:14:16.860 --> 00:14:20.800 But afterwards, with the help of the Holy Spirit, they would. 00:14:22.180 --> 00:14:24.940 And really, this is what the entire New Testament is about. 00:14:25.860 --> 00:14:26.320 Right? 00:14:26.379 --> 00:14:34.680 The New Testament is a collection of 27 books written by about 10 different followers of Jesus over the course of a few decades during the first century. 00:14:35.980 --> 00:14:40.100 Some of the authors were eyewitnesses of Jesus himself, like Peter, John, and James. 00:14:40.580 --> 00:14:45.759 Others, like Mark and Luke, were closely connected to that original group of Jesus' disciples. 00:14:45.759 --> 00:14:55.200 But each of these books, in its own way, sort of looks back on the facts and the meaning of Jesus. 00:14:55.500 --> 00:14:58.899 His life, his death, his resurrection, and his ascension. 00:14:59.819 --> 00:15:05.419 So in some ways, the whole New Testament is doing what Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would help his disciples to do. 00:15:05.419 --> 00:15:16.019 That is, to remember what he said and understand its meaning and apply it in a whole bunch of new situations that they would face as they proclaim the message of Jesus throughout the world. 00:15:17.479 --> 00:15:20.099 So just a little bit about how the New Testament does this. 00:15:20.559 --> 00:15:24.579 The four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, focus on the historical events. 00:15:24.580 --> 00:15:35.580 They tell the story of how Jesus' life and ministry unfolded, where it happened, what Jesus actually said to his disciples and to the crowds in some detail. 00:15:35.740 --> 00:15:37.220 They name the places. 00:15:37.440 --> 00:15:39.280 They tell us who was there on the scene. 00:15:39.879 --> 00:15:52.879 A lot of the people who are named in the Gospels are named because they were known individuals who could have been consulted during the time that the books were written because they were witnesses to the truth of the events. 00:15:52.879 --> 00:15:56.779 So the people who are named in the Gospels are not just named randomly. 00:15:57.320 --> 00:16:01.980 They're named because they were people that if you were living in that time and place, you could go and talk to. 00:16:02.059 --> 00:16:03.139 You could go and talk to Mary. 00:16:03.639 --> 00:16:04.779 You could go and talk to Peter. 00:16:05.120 --> 00:16:06.019 You could talk to John. 00:16:06.139 --> 00:16:08.039 And they would say, yes, it happened like that. 00:16:09.539 --> 00:16:19.179 Now, the epistles or letters, which are sort of most of the bulk of the rest of the New Testament, written by Paul and Peter, James and John and Jude, and an unknown author who wrote Hebrews, 00:16:19.179 --> 00:16:26.239 is these books don't give us as much historical detail about the facts, but they focus on the meaning and the application. 00:16:27.439 --> 00:16:28.719 Why did Jesus come? 00:16:28.859 --> 00:16:29.819 Why did he die? 00:16:30.139 --> 00:16:31.459 Why did he rise again? 00:16:32.019 --> 00:16:39.019 What does it mean for Christians to follow Jesus after he's gone with the power of the Holy Spirit? 00:16:40.039 --> 00:16:40.959 So here's the point. 00:16:40.960 --> 00:16:52.420 Now, one way that, in fact, perhaps the primary way that Jesus promised in verse 26 has been fulfilled is in the writing and the compilation and the preservation of the New Testament. 00:16:52.419 --> 00:16:58.719 Jesus says, the Holy Spirit will bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 00:16:58.779 --> 00:17:04.139 And that's part of a large part of what the New Testament contains, especially the Gospels, Jesus' own words. 00:17:04.960 --> 00:17:08.019 And Jesus says, the Holy Spirit will teach you all things. 00:17:08.279 --> 00:17:10.639 In other words, all that you need to know. 00:17:11.399 --> 00:17:14.259 He'll help you figure it out. 00:17:14.259 --> 00:17:27.839 So one writer put it this way, the Holy Spirit's teaching is neither wholly innovative, it's not sort of radically new, coming out of nowhere, nor is it simply repetitive of Jesus' teaching. 00:17:28.559 --> 00:17:28.940 Right? 00:17:28.980 --> 00:17:35.720 So it's not like Jesus led his disciples down one path, and then the Holy Spirit took over and leads the disciples down a different path. 00:17:36.039 --> 00:17:36.279 No. 00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:40.779 The Holy Spirit and Jesus and God the Father are all on the same page. 00:17:40.779 --> 00:17:43.559 They're completely united in their purpose and mission. 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:50.779 And so the Holy Spirit will never lead us in a different direction than Jesus does. 00:17:51.599 --> 00:17:57.419 He will never lead us in a different direction than the words that he inspired in the New Testament. 00:17:59.339 --> 00:18:06.200 At the same time, the Holy Spirit's teaching, what Jesus promises to his disciples, is more than mere repetition. 00:18:06.539 --> 00:18:06.659 Right? 00:18:06.700 --> 00:18:11.879 The Holy Spirit is more than, I would say, a tape recorder, but that dates me way back. 00:18:12.460 --> 00:18:12.980 Right? 00:18:12.980 --> 00:18:20.180 Or it's more than, right, an MP3 player that records what Jesus said and just replays, replays, replays. 00:18:20.839 --> 00:18:21.140 Right? 00:18:21.700 --> 00:18:23.500 No, the Holy Spirit is a person. 00:18:24.120 --> 00:18:24.400 Right? 00:18:24.460 --> 00:18:25.720 Just as personal as Jesus. 00:18:26.960 --> 00:18:35.740 And so the Holy Spirit equips us as Jesus' disciples to face new challenges, new opportunities, and new situations. 00:18:35.740 --> 00:18:37.480 Right? 00:18:37.480 --> 00:18:42.120 When Jesus was on earth, his disciples were living in one place at one time. 00:18:42.120 --> 00:18:46.880 In the Middle East, in the first few decades of the first century. 00:18:46.880 --> 00:18:54.220 But the Holy Spirit has taught and led the church for the last 2,000 years to the ends of the earth. 00:18:55.280 --> 00:18:55.840 Right? 00:18:55.839 --> 00:19:02.980 And there are all kinds of new challenges and new opportunities and new situations that God's people find ourselves in. 00:19:04.039 --> 00:19:09.299 And yet the Holy Spirit takes what he inspired in the first century in the words of Scripture 00:19:09.299 --> 00:19:20.220 and helps us through that and through his presence with us to figure out the next steps in the place wherever God's put us. 00:19:20.759 --> 00:19:21.319 Right? 00:19:21.379 --> 00:19:26.159 He never leaves us on a limb without anything else. 00:19:26.160 --> 00:19:33.580 You know, even this year, right, the church throughout the world has had to grapple with a worldwide pandemic. 00:19:34.340 --> 00:19:35.040 And guess what? 00:19:35.480 --> 00:19:37.220 Almost none of us were prepared for it. 00:19:37.580 --> 00:19:42.160 In all my seminary classes, we never discussed how to lead a church through a pandemic. 00:19:42.720 --> 00:19:45.200 So we've tried to build the flame as we were flying. 00:19:45.779 --> 00:19:46.880 We've done the best we could. 00:19:47.279 --> 00:19:48.800 I'm sure we could learn lots of things. 00:19:48.799 --> 00:19:57.259 But, you know, what has been so encouraging is that I cannot count the number of conversations I have had with many of you 00:19:57.259 --> 00:20:01.079 asking, what has God been teaching you over this past year? 00:20:01.960 --> 00:20:08.839 And so many people are like, this Scripture passage has come alive in a new and fresh way. 00:20:09.960 --> 00:20:10.159 Right? 00:20:10.159 --> 00:20:18.159 This, God has shown a spotlight on an area of my life that I hadn't really examined for a while. 00:20:18.799 --> 00:20:26.960 God has helped me to treasure the gift of gathering together in person with people when it's been so challenging in the last year. 00:20:27.879 --> 00:20:28.119 Right? 00:20:28.180 --> 00:20:32.500 There's all kinds of ways that the truths of Scripture have come alive to us in fresh ways. 00:20:32.639 --> 00:20:35.799 And that's a way that the Holy Spirit continues to teach us. 00:20:36.359 --> 00:20:38.259 The Holy Spirit will give us what we need. 00:20:38.680 --> 00:20:46.019 So if you're facing a really challenging situation, then the Holy Spirit can come through in really powerful and amazing and even miraculous ways. 00:20:47.039 --> 00:20:47.480 Right? 00:20:47.539 --> 00:20:48.639 There's nothing that's too big. 00:20:48.799 --> 00:20:49.859 For God to handle. 00:20:51.039 --> 00:20:57.279 And so just as he equipped the disciples in the first century, he can equip us for whatever we're dealing with today. 00:20:57.559 --> 00:20:59.240 The Holy Spirit is our teacher. 00:20:59.980 --> 00:21:01.019 So that's the first point. 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:05.859 But second, Jesus also says that the Holy Spirit is our friend. 00:21:07.039 --> 00:21:08.339 Verse 27, he says, 00:21:08.339 --> 00:21:10.079 Peace, peace I leave with you. 00:21:10.579 --> 00:21:12.659 My peace I give to you. 00:21:13.399 --> 00:21:15.859 Not as the world gives do I give to you. 00:21:16.819 --> 00:21:19.359 Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 00:21:19.359 --> 00:21:27.539 In chapter 15, Jesus is going to say, I'm going to give you my joy and I'm going to give you my love. 00:21:27.740 --> 00:21:28.819 Abide in my love. 00:21:29.299 --> 00:21:30.179 Abide in my joy. 00:21:30.180 --> 00:21:32.880 Love, joy and peace. 00:21:33.380 --> 00:21:38.320 And when the Apostle Paul talks about the fruits of the Holy Spirit in Galatians, guess what heads the list? 00:21:38.539 --> 00:21:40.519 Love, joy and peace. 00:21:41.480 --> 00:21:44.299 Jesus says, I'm going to give you my love, my joy, my peace. 00:21:44.480 --> 00:21:47.599 And so we experience these things through the power of the Holy Spirit. 00:21:48.720 --> 00:21:52.319 The Holy Spirit is our friend who brings us peace. 00:21:52.319 --> 00:21:55.240 Just as Jesus brought peace to his disciples. 00:21:55.240 --> 00:21:56.240 Right? 00:21:58.160 --> 00:22:05.279 Jesus, for Jesus' disciples back in the upper room, Jesus had been the one who comforted them in their sorrows, 00:22:05.400 --> 00:22:11.700 who calmed their fears, who mediated their conflicts, who redirected their frustrations and ambitions. 00:22:13.160 --> 00:22:16.019 And Jesus would no longer be there to say, it is I. 00:22:16.279 --> 00:22:17.099 Don't be afraid. 00:22:18.039 --> 00:22:19.140 But he says, guess what? 00:22:19.920 --> 00:22:21.220 The Holy Spirit will. 00:22:21.220 --> 00:22:26.299 He'll be there to keep on doing those things that you've seen me doing. 00:22:27.920 --> 00:22:31.259 The Holy Spirit is just as real and personal as Jesus. 00:22:31.539 --> 00:22:37.259 He's just as real as the flesh and blood guy who prayed for his disciples on the hillside for half the night 00:22:37.259 --> 00:22:42.900 and then walked out to them on the water in the middle of the night when they were overwhelmed and exhausted and afraid. 00:22:45.519 --> 00:22:50.039 And throughout the rest of the New Testament, we see that when Jesus' disciples are exhausted and overwhelmed 00:22:50.039 --> 00:22:54.420 or fearful and anxious, the Holy Spirit comes alongside us and says, take courage. 00:22:55.159 --> 00:22:55.879 It is I. 00:22:56.480 --> 00:22:57.399 Don't be afraid. 00:22:58.920 --> 00:23:02.420 Just a few examples of where we see this happening in the New Testament. 00:23:02.579 --> 00:23:05.859 In Acts chapter 18, the apostle Paul goes to Corinth. 00:23:06.920 --> 00:23:10.759 And it says certain people in Corinth opposed and reviled him. 00:23:10.859 --> 00:23:14.519 That is, they talked badly about him and slandered him. 00:23:14.519 --> 00:23:18.139 And in chapter 18, verse 9, it says, 00:23:18.240 --> 00:23:20.160 The Lord said to Paul one night in a vision, 00:23:20.960 --> 00:23:23.019 Do not be afraid. 00:23:23.940 --> 00:23:25.420 But go on speaking. 00:23:26.440 --> 00:23:27.779 And do not be silent. 00:23:28.599 --> 00:23:29.759 For I am with you. 00:23:30.519 --> 00:23:32.319 No one will attack you to harm you. 00:23:32.420 --> 00:23:34.619 For I have many in this city who are my people. 00:23:34.619 --> 00:23:38.559 Or later on in Acts, Acts 27, 00:23:39.099 --> 00:23:42.919 Paul was a passenger on a ship that got caught in a bad storm. 00:23:43.779 --> 00:23:44.739 It was a larger ship. 00:23:44.839 --> 00:23:46.659 There were 200-something passengers aboard. 00:23:47.000 --> 00:23:48.739 It was traveling across the Mediterranean. 00:23:49.119 --> 00:23:51.039 It was during the wrong season of the year 00:23:51.039 --> 00:23:53.159 that you really shouldn't be sailing across the Mediterranean. 00:23:53.599 --> 00:23:56.079 And the ship was caught in a storm for many days. 00:23:57.019 --> 00:23:58.459 It says they, for several days, 00:23:58.539 --> 00:24:00.000 they saw neither sun nor stars, 00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:01.539 and they gave up all hope of being rescued. 00:24:01.539 --> 00:24:05.339 But Paul stood up and said, 00:24:05.579 --> 00:24:07.319 This very night there stood before me 00:24:07.319 --> 00:24:09.379 an angel of the God to whom I belong 00:24:09.379 --> 00:24:10.180 and whom I worship. 00:24:10.299 --> 00:24:12.359 And he said, Do not be afraid, Paul. 00:24:12.960 --> 00:24:14.519 You must stand before Caesar. 00:24:14.920 --> 00:24:16.480 And behold, God has granted you 00:24:16.480 --> 00:24:18.180 all those who sail with you. 00:24:18.220 --> 00:24:19.579 So he said, Take heart, men. 00:24:20.259 --> 00:24:21.500 Don't be afraid. 00:24:23.319 --> 00:24:25.079 Or Revelation 2, 10, 00:24:25.200 --> 00:24:26.940 the Holy Spirit's message to the church 00:24:26.940 --> 00:24:28.359 in the city of Smyrna. 00:24:29.319 --> 00:24:30.099 It begins, 00:24:30.099 --> 00:24:32.519 Do not fear what you are about to suffer. 00:24:33.779 --> 00:24:36.480 Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison 00:24:36.480 --> 00:24:37.779 that you may be tested, 00:24:38.199 --> 00:24:40.299 and for ten days you will have tribulation. 00:24:40.699 --> 00:24:41.839 Be faithful unto death, 00:24:41.879 --> 00:24:43.740 and I will give you the crown of life. 00:24:45.079 --> 00:24:47.039 Now, what's the common thread 00:24:47.039 --> 00:24:49.839 in these instances where the Holy Spirit 00:24:49.839 --> 00:24:52.159 gives peace and assurance to God's people? 00:24:53.659 --> 00:24:55.139 The common thread is 00:24:55.139 --> 00:24:57.199 they're facing trials, 00:24:57.980 --> 00:24:58.439 storms, 00:24:58.440 --> 00:24:59.640 and persecution. 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:03.940 And that's one of the main differences 00:25:03.940 --> 00:25:06.420 between the peace Jesus gives 00:25:06.420 --> 00:25:09.100 and the peace that the world gives. 00:25:09.840 --> 00:25:10.519 Jesus says, 00:25:10.820 --> 00:25:13.080 Not as the world gives do I give to you. 00:25:14.840 --> 00:25:16.200 All right, what does the world say? 00:25:16.259 --> 00:25:17.960 The world says peace is found 00:25:17.960 --> 00:25:19.220 in escaping 00:25:19.220 --> 00:25:20.279 from 00:25:20.279 --> 00:25:21.340 conflict, 00:25:21.660 --> 00:25:22.000 trial, 00:25:22.120 --> 00:25:23.000 or difficulty. 00:25:24.220 --> 00:25:25.600 Peace is found in 00:25:25.599 --> 00:25:27.500 getting away on vacation 00:25:27.500 --> 00:25:29.980 to a secluded place, 00:25:29.980 --> 00:25:32.059 or moving to a quieter neighborhood, 00:25:32.059 --> 00:25:34.639 or maybe distancing ourselves 00:25:34.639 --> 00:25:36.559 from people who are difficult to deal with, 00:25:36.659 --> 00:25:37.959 or putting on our 00:25:37.959 --> 00:25:39.519 noise-canceling headphones 00:25:39.519 --> 00:25:41.439 and losing ourselves 00:25:41.439 --> 00:25:42.579 in a TV show. 00:25:43.659 --> 00:25:44.159 Right? 00:25:44.219 --> 00:25:45.159 In one way or another, 00:25:45.259 --> 00:25:45.819 the world says, 00:25:45.939 --> 00:25:47.519 You can find peace by putting 00:25:47.519 --> 00:25:48.959 the Do Not Disturb sign 00:25:48.959 --> 00:25:50.119 on your front door. 00:25:50.119 --> 00:25:52.639 That's the kind of peace 00:25:52.639 --> 00:25:53.459 the world offers. 00:25:53.599 --> 00:25:54.419 Leave me alone, 00:25:55.159 --> 00:25:57.099 let me do whatever I want to do 00:25:57.099 --> 00:25:58.699 without side interference, 00:25:59.259 --> 00:26:00.719 and that's how 00:26:00.719 --> 00:26:01.819 you'll find 00:26:01.819 --> 00:26:02.579 peace. 00:26:03.879 --> 00:26:04.199 Now, 00:26:04.579 --> 00:26:06.399 now many of these things 00:26:06.399 --> 00:26:07.359 that the world offers 00:26:07.359 --> 00:26:09.299 are not inherently bad. 00:26:10.579 --> 00:26:11.099 Vacations, 00:26:11.839 --> 00:26:12.639 quiet neighborhoods, 00:26:12.899 --> 00:26:13.739 appropriate boundaries 00:26:13.739 --> 00:26:14.439 and relationships, 00:26:14.619 --> 00:26:15.239 none of those things 00:26:15.239 --> 00:26:16.379 are not inherently bad. 00:26:16.380 --> 00:26:18.880 But there are two problems 00:26:18.880 --> 00:26:20.620 with the world's promise 00:26:20.620 --> 00:26:21.440 of peace. 00:26:21.780 --> 00:26:22.600 First of all, 00:26:22.680 --> 00:26:24.180 it's completely self-centered. 00:26:25.480 --> 00:26:26.720 The world's version of peace 00:26:26.720 --> 00:26:28.060 has nothing to do with God 00:26:28.060 --> 00:26:28.580 at all. 00:26:29.600 --> 00:26:30.580 It's only about 00:26:30.580 --> 00:26:31.240 finding peace 00:26:31.240 --> 00:26:32.060 within ourselves 00:26:32.060 --> 00:26:33.020 or at best 00:26:33.020 --> 00:26:34.400 within a limited circle 00:26:34.400 --> 00:26:35.480 of other human beings. 00:26:36.520 --> 00:26:37.760 The second problem 00:26:37.760 --> 00:26:38.680 with the world's promise 00:26:38.680 --> 00:26:39.040 of peace 00:26:39.040 --> 00:26:40.240 is that it's not sustainable 00:26:40.240 --> 00:26:41.180 or realistic 00:26:41.180 --> 00:26:42.760 in a fallen world. 00:26:43.520 --> 00:26:43.940 Right? 00:26:43.980 --> 00:26:44.860 The world is full 00:26:44.860 --> 00:26:45.500 of turmoil 00:26:45.500 --> 00:26:46.359 and conflict. 00:26:47.160 --> 00:26:48.180 All our attempts 00:26:48.180 --> 00:26:49.099 at finding peace 00:26:49.099 --> 00:26:50.000 on the world's terms 00:26:50.000 --> 00:26:50.900 will eventually, 00:26:51.319 --> 00:26:51.779 inevitably, 00:26:52.000 --> 00:26:53.180 be rudely interrupted 00:26:53.180 --> 00:26:54.640 unless we continue 00:26:54.640 --> 00:26:55.859 to distance ourselves 00:26:55.859 --> 00:26:56.579 more and more 00:26:56.579 --> 00:26:57.440 and more and more 00:26:57.440 --> 00:26:59.259 and go into the middle 00:26:59.259 --> 00:26:59.740 of nowhere 00:26:59.740 --> 00:27:02.140 and even then 00:27:02.140 --> 00:27:02.700 we'll have to deal 00:27:02.700 --> 00:27:04.339 with the unrest 00:27:04.339 --> 00:27:05.140 in our own heart, 00:27:05.579 --> 00:27:07.460 which sometimes 00:27:07.460 --> 00:27:08.000 is enough 00:27:08.000 --> 00:27:09.839 to leave any of us 00:27:09.839 --> 00:27:10.400 in turmoil 00:27:10.400 --> 00:27:11.539 just dealing 00:27:11.539 --> 00:27:12.259 with ourselves. 00:27:12.259 --> 00:27:16.339 D.A. Carson writes, 00:27:16.400 --> 00:27:17.640 the world is powerless 00:27:17.640 --> 00:27:19.980 to give lasting peace. 00:27:20.799 --> 00:27:22.000 There is sufficient hatred, 00:27:22.539 --> 00:27:23.200 selfishness, 00:27:23.579 --> 00:27:23.839 bitterness, 00:27:24.559 --> 00:27:25.019 malice, 00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:25.960 anxiety, 00:27:26.319 --> 00:27:26.920 and fear 00:27:26.920 --> 00:27:28.059 that every attempt 00:27:28.059 --> 00:27:28.420 at peace 00:27:28.420 --> 00:27:29.859 is rapidly swamped. 00:27:30.859 --> 00:27:32.220 But Jesus displays 00:27:32.220 --> 00:27:33.539 transcendent peace. 00:27:34.480 --> 00:27:35.680 His own peace 00:27:35.680 --> 00:27:37.359 throughout his perilous hour 00:27:37.359 --> 00:27:38.400 of suffering 00:27:38.400 --> 00:27:39.420 and death. 00:27:39.420 --> 00:27:39.500 death. 00:27:41.300 --> 00:27:42.560 And by that death 00:27:42.560 --> 00:27:43.700 he absorbs in himself 00:27:43.700 --> 00:27:44.779 the malice of others, 00:27:45.220 --> 00:27:46.039 the sin of the world, 00:27:46.140 --> 00:27:46.680 and introduces 00:27:46.680 --> 00:27:47.759 the promised peace 00:27:47.759 --> 00:27:48.660 from God 00:27:48.660 --> 00:27:49.100 in a way 00:27:49.100 --> 00:27:51.380 no one had envisaged. 00:27:52.840 --> 00:27:53.500 You see, 00:27:53.539 --> 00:27:54.460 if you read the rest 00:27:54.460 --> 00:27:55.660 of the Gospel of John 00:27:55.660 --> 00:27:56.800 and you notice 00:27:56.800 --> 00:27:57.840 the character of Jesus 00:27:57.840 --> 00:27:58.759 leading up to 00:27:58.759 --> 00:28:00.380 his own crucifixion, 00:28:00.759 --> 00:28:02.400 which was brutal 00:28:02.400 --> 00:28:03.440 and shameful, 00:28:05.480 --> 00:28:06.560 Jesus is at peace. 00:28:06.559 --> 00:28:10.019 He knows that God 00:28:10.019 --> 00:28:10.839 is carrying out 00:28:10.839 --> 00:28:11.399 his plan. 00:28:12.460 --> 00:28:12.599 Now, 00:28:12.659 --> 00:28:14.119 Jesus also felt anguish. 00:28:15.119 --> 00:28:15.919 At some point, 00:28:15.960 --> 00:28:17.039 it says Jesus was troubled. 00:28:19.159 --> 00:28:19.559 Right? 00:28:19.879 --> 00:28:20.779 Or in Matthew and Mark, 00:28:20.839 --> 00:28:21.599 record Jesus saying 00:28:21.599 --> 00:28:22.099 from the cross, 00:28:22.200 --> 00:28:22.539 my God, 00:28:22.599 --> 00:28:22.940 my God, 00:28:22.980 --> 00:28:24.079 why have you forsaken me? 00:28:25.139 --> 00:28:25.940 Which is a quote 00:28:25.940 --> 00:28:27.079 from a larger psalm 00:28:27.079 --> 00:28:27.879 and should be interpreted 00:28:27.879 --> 00:28:28.419 in the context 00:28:28.419 --> 00:28:29.259 of the whole psalm. 00:28:30.639 --> 00:28:32.720 But Jesus felt anguish 00:28:32.720 --> 00:28:34.419 in the Garden of Gethsemane. 00:28:34.519 --> 00:28:36.440 He sweated drops of blood. 00:28:37.519 --> 00:28:39.079 But Jesus was also at peace 00:28:39.079 --> 00:28:40.379 the whole way along. 00:28:40.440 --> 00:28:41.000 And if you read 00:28:41.000 --> 00:28:41.559 John's account 00:28:41.559 --> 00:28:42.339 of the crucifixion, 00:28:42.419 --> 00:28:43.779 John sort of emphasizes that. 00:28:45.220 --> 00:28:46.339 At the end of the day, 00:28:46.399 --> 00:28:46.980 Jesus says, 00:28:47.139 --> 00:28:48.039 it is finished. 00:28:49.839 --> 00:28:50.559 It's done. 00:28:51.279 --> 00:28:52.240 It's accomplished. 00:28:54.079 --> 00:28:54.960 Jesus is at peace 00:28:54.960 --> 00:28:55.799 because he knows 00:28:55.799 --> 00:28:57.480 that God is carrying out 00:28:57.480 --> 00:28:58.099 his plan 00:28:58.099 --> 00:28:59.000 and his Father 00:28:59.000 --> 00:29:00.119 will not ultimately 00:29:00.119 --> 00:29:00.940 abandon him. 00:29:05.179 --> 00:29:06.159 Earlier in the service, 00:29:06.160 --> 00:29:08.140 we read from Isaiah 54, 00:29:08.620 --> 00:29:10.400 which is God's promise 00:29:10.400 --> 00:29:11.060 of peace 00:29:11.060 --> 00:29:12.940 to an afflicted 00:29:12.940 --> 00:29:14.680 and storm-tossed people. 00:29:16.840 --> 00:29:17.380 You know, 00:29:17.420 --> 00:29:18.080 if you read the book 00:29:18.080 --> 00:29:18.680 of Isaiah, 00:29:19.980 --> 00:29:20.940 Isaiah 54 00:29:20.940 --> 00:29:22.660 comes right after 00:29:22.660 --> 00:29:23.740 Isaiah 53. 00:29:24.900 --> 00:29:25.600 And you know what 00:29:25.600 --> 00:29:26.360 Isaiah 53 00:29:26.360 --> 00:29:27.279 talks about? 00:29:27.940 --> 00:29:28.740 It's a prophecy 00:29:28.740 --> 00:29:30.500 of the atoning death 00:29:30.500 --> 00:29:32.360 of a suffering servant. 00:29:32.359 --> 00:29:35.019 Isaiah 53 says, 00:29:35.819 --> 00:29:36.659 he was pierced 00:29:36.659 --> 00:29:38.099 for our transgressions. 00:29:38.199 --> 00:29:39.000 He was crushed 00:29:39.000 --> 00:29:40.059 for our iniquities. 00:29:40.179 --> 00:29:40.799 Upon him 00:29:40.799 --> 00:29:42.099 was the chastisement 00:29:42.099 --> 00:29:42.759 that brought 00:29:42.759 --> 00:29:44.539 us peace. 00:29:45.299 --> 00:29:46.379 By his wounds, 00:29:46.459 --> 00:29:47.000 we are healed. 00:29:49.679 --> 00:29:50.819 And chapter 54 00:29:50.819 --> 00:29:51.939 comes after 00:29:51.939 --> 00:29:53.500 the work 00:29:53.500 --> 00:29:54.159 of that 00:29:54.159 --> 00:29:55.279 suffering servant 00:29:55.279 --> 00:29:56.599 who died 00:29:56.599 --> 00:29:57.139 in the place 00:29:57.139 --> 00:29:57.579 of others, 00:29:57.639 --> 00:29:58.099 who died 00:29:58.099 --> 00:29:58.899 so that others 00:29:58.899 --> 00:29:59.919 who were not 00:29:59.920 --> 00:30:00.279 at peace 00:30:00.279 --> 00:30:00.840 with God 00:30:00.840 --> 00:30:02.620 might have 00:30:02.620 --> 00:30:03.720 peace with God 00:30:03.720 --> 00:30:04.800 and the forgiveness 00:30:04.800 --> 00:30:05.700 of their sins. 00:30:07.980 --> 00:30:08.800 So you see, 00:30:09.060 --> 00:30:10.460 Jesus is promising 00:30:10.460 --> 00:30:11.640 his peace 00:30:11.640 --> 00:30:14.180 and he's promising 00:30:14.180 --> 00:30:14.900 that the Holy Spirit 00:30:14.900 --> 00:30:15.620 will be their teacher. 00:30:15.759 --> 00:30:16.039 In fact, 00:30:17.100 --> 00:30:17.700 chapter 54, 00:30:17.700 --> 00:30:18.340 Isaiah 54, 00:30:18.460 --> 00:30:19.220 13 brings 00:30:19.220 --> 00:30:20.220 these themes together. 00:30:20.380 --> 00:30:20.660 It says, 00:30:20.900 --> 00:30:21.420 all your children 00:30:21.420 --> 00:30:22.100 will be taught 00:30:22.100 --> 00:30:22.640 by the Lord 00:30:22.640 --> 00:30:23.500 and great shall be 00:30:23.500 --> 00:30:23.940 the peace 00:30:23.940 --> 00:30:24.640 of your children. 00:30:24.640 --> 00:30:29.280 So the promise 00:30:29.280 --> 00:30:29.900 of the Holy Spirit 00:30:29.900 --> 00:30:30.640 being our teacher 00:30:30.640 --> 00:30:31.500 and the promise 00:30:31.500 --> 00:30:32.140 of the Holy Spirit 00:30:32.140 --> 00:30:33.040 bringing us peace, 00:30:33.460 --> 00:30:35.220 all is rooted 00:30:35.220 --> 00:30:37.080 in the work 00:30:37.080 --> 00:30:37.900 that Jesus would do 00:30:37.900 --> 00:30:39.020 in dying for us 00:30:39.020 --> 00:30:39.620 on the cross. 00:30:46.960 --> 00:30:48.000 When Jesus promised 00:30:48.000 --> 00:30:49.040 his disciples peace, 00:30:49.560 --> 00:30:50.720 he wasn't promising 00:30:50.720 --> 00:30:51.120 them 00:30:51.120 --> 00:30:53.020 an easy life. 00:30:53.019 --> 00:30:55.079 He wasn't promising 00:30:55.079 --> 00:30:55.920 them vacations 00:30:55.920 --> 00:30:56.920 or quiet neighborhoods 00:30:56.920 --> 00:30:57.960 or a way 00:30:57.960 --> 00:30:59.299 to avoid difficult people, 00:31:00.039 --> 00:31:01.819 but he was promising 00:31:01.819 --> 00:31:03.279 God's very own presence 00:31:03.279 --> 00:31:04.500 to sustain us 00:31:04.500 --> 00:31:05.720 through conflict 00:31:05.720 --> 00:31:06.960 and storms 00:31:06.960 --> 00:31:08.139 and opposition. 00:31:16.779 --> 00:31:17.680 Is everything, 00:31:18.119 --> 00:31:18.619 should we, 00:31:18.759 --> 00:31:19.539 everything going okay 00:31:19.539 --> 00:31:19.960 back there? 00:31:20.299 --> 00:31:21.039 Should we stop 00:31:21.039 --> 00:31:21.339 and pray 00:31:21.339 --> 00:31:22.779 or should we keep going? 00:31:23.019 --> 00:31:23.200 Okay. 00:31:24.279 --> 00:31:24.920 Thank you, 00:31:25.059 --> 00:31:25.400 those of you 00:31:25.400 --> 00:31:26.240 who are caring 00:31:26.240 --> 00:31:28.139 for our brother 00:31:28.139 --> 00:31:28.519 or sister. 00:31:31.599 --> 00:31:32.559 Jesus promises 00:31:32.559 --> 00:31:33.779 his disciples peace. 00:31:35.740 --> 00:31:36.799 And in his 00:31:36.799 --> 00:31:37.779 systematic theology, 00:31:37.920 --> 00:31:38.519 Wayne Grudem 00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:39.900 defines peace 00:31:39.900 --> 00:31:41.200 as the orderly 00:31:41.200 --> 00:31:42.900 activity of God. 00:31:44.180 --> 00:31:44.839 And that's 00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:45.779 an interesting definition. 00:31:46.019 --> 00:31:47.079 That's not the definition 00:31:47.079 --> 00:31:48.160 that would have come 00:31:48.160 --> 00:31:49.180 first to my mind. 00:31:49.599 --> 00:31:50.379 But he connects 00:31:50.379 --> 00:31:51.400 these peace 00:31:51.400 --> 00:31:52.400 and order. 00:31:52.400 --> 00:31:52.720 Right? 00:31:52.720 --> 00:31:55.320 God is not a God 00:31:55.320 --> 00:31:56.019 of confusion 00:31:56.019 --> 00:31:56.980 or disorder, 00:31:56.980 --> 00:31:58.080 but of peace. 00:31:58.880 --> 00:31:59.420 Right? 00:31:59.519 --> 00:32:00.420 God is steadily 00:32:00.420 --> 00:32:01.380 working out, 00:32:01.500 --> 00:32:02.519 intentionally working out 00:32:02.519 --> 00:32:03.080 his plan 00:32:03.080 --> 00:32:03.660 and purposes 00:32:03.660 --> 00:32:04.600 in the world. 00:32:04.599 --> 00:32:07.059 And so we can be 00:32:07.059 --> 00:32:07.480 at peace 00:32:07.480 --> 00:32:08.719 because God 00:32:08.719 --> 00:32:10.079 has peace 00:32:10.079 --> 00:32:10.859 within himself. 00:32:11.859 --> 00:32:12.240 Right? 00:32:12.319 --> 00:32:12.980 God is not 00:32:12.980 --> 00:32:13.899 anxiously fretting 00:32:13.899 --> 00:32:14.500 over the future 00:32:14.500 --> 00:32:15.099 of the world. 00:32:16.980 --> 00:32:17.599 And so 00:32:17.599 --> 00:32:18.939 we can know 00:32:18.939 --> 00:32:19.399 this peace 00:32:19.399 --> 00:32:20.059 that Jesus gives 00:32:20.059 --> 00:32:20.679 because God 00:32:20.679 --> 00:32:21.740 is carrying 00:32:21.740 --> 00:32:22.899 out his purposes 00:32:22.899 --> 00:32:24.719 providentially. 00:32:25.839 --> 00:32:26.459 And I think 00:32:26.459 --> 00:32:27.259 sometimes we think 00:32:27.259 --> 00:32:27.639 of peace 00:32:27.639 --> 00:32:28.099 and we think 00:32:28.099 --> 00:32:29.139 of the peace 00:32:29.139 --> 00:32:30.139 that I can feel 00:32:30.139 --> 00:32:31.859 on my own terms. 00:32:31.859 --> 00:32:32.759 a subjective 00:32:32.759 --> 00:32:33.299 feeling. 00:32:34.299 --> 00:32:35.179 But when the 00:32:35.179 --> 00:32:35.839 Bible talks 00:32:35.839 --> 00:32:36.559 about the peace 00:32:36.559 --> 00:32:37.179 of God, 00:32:37.819 --> 00:32:39.119 it is talking 00:32:39.119 --> 00:32:39.659 about something 00:32:39.659 --> 00:32:40.419 we can experience, 00:32:40.539 --> 00:32:41.059 but it's actually 00:32:41.059 --> 00:32:41.939 talking about something 00:32:41.939 --> 00:32:42.759 that's an objective 00:32:42.759 --> 00:32:43.439 reality. 00:32:44.240 --> 00:32:44.779 Right? 00:32:44.839 --> 00:32:45.259 The peace 00:32:45.259 --> 00:32:45.799 that comes 00:32:45.799 --> 00:32:46.839 from God, 00:32:47.359 --> 00:32:47.939 that God 00:32:47.939 --> 00:32:49.119 has within himself 00:32:49.119 --> 00:32:49.979 that he bestows 00:32:49.979 --> 00:32:50.779 upon us, 00:32:51.019 --> 00:32:52.179 that even in the 00:32:52.179 --> 00:32:52.959 midst of all the 00:32:52.959 --> 00:32:53.779 turmoil and all 00:32:53.779 --> 00:32:55.039 the uprisings 00:32:55.039 --> 00:32:55.719 in the world, 00:32:56.299 --> 00:32:56.899 that God 00:32:56.899 --> 00:32:57.679 is steadily 00:32:57.679 --> 00:32:58.740 carrying out 00:32:58.740 --> 00:32:59.379 his plan. 00:32:59.380 --> 00:33:01.200 And so we can 00:33:01.200 --> 00:33:01.800 have peace 00:33:01.800 --> 00:33:03.340 in resting 00:33:03.340 --> 00:33:04.600 in his sovereignty. 00:33:08.860 --> 00:33:09.420 You know, 00:33:09.500 --> 00:33:10.520 sometimes 00:33:10.520 --> 00:33:12.240 the peace 00:33:12.240 --> 00:33:12.640 of God 00:33:12.640 --> 00:33:13.360 enables us 00:33:13.360 --> 00:33:14.760 to lay 00:33:14.760 --> 00:33:15.040 our head 00:33:15.040 --> 00:33:15.480 down on the 00:33:15.480 --> 00:33:15.720 pillow 00:33:15.720 --> 00:33:17.220 and go right 00:33:17.220 --> 00:33:17.720 to sleep 00:33:17.720 --> 00:33:18.820 and wake up 00:33:18.820 --> 00:33:19.540 rested and refreshed 00:33:19.540 --> 00:33:20.220 the next morning. 00:33:21.220 --> 00:33:21.880 And some psalms 00:33:21.880 --> 00:33:22.580 talk about that. 00:33:22.740 --> 00:33:23.300 Psalm 4 says, 00:33:23.420 --> 00:33:24.000 In peace I will 00:33:24.000 --> 00:33:24.880 lie down and sleep 00:33:24.880 --> 00:33:25.740 for you alone, 00:33:25.800 --> 00:33:26.140 O Lord, 00:33:26.200 --> 00:33:26.800 make me to dwell 00:33:26.800 --> 00:33:27.260 in safety. 00:33:27.360 --> 00:33:27.720 But you know, 00:33:28.000 --> 00:33:28.900 God is still 00:33:28.900 --> 00:33:29.400 working out 00:33:29.400 --> 00:33:29.940 his purposes 00:33:29.940 --> 00:33:31.800 even if we're 00:33:31.800 --> 00:33:33.140 awake in the 00:33:33.140 --> 00:33:33.600 middle of the 00:33:33.600 --> 00:33:35.040 night and wish 00:33:35.040 --> 00:33:35.460 we could go 00:33:35.460 --> 00:33:36.180 back to sleep. 00:33:36.840 --> 00:33:36.860 But, 00:33:38.100 --> 00:33:40.040 and there's 00:33:40.040 --> 00:33:40.560 other psalms 00:33:40.560 --> 00:33:41.080 that talk about 00:33:41.080 --> 00:33:41.280 this. 00:33:41.380 --> 00:33:41.900 Psalm 77 00:33:41.900 --> 00:33:42.500 was written 00:33:42.500 --> 00:33:43.180 by a man 00:33:43.180 --> 00:33:43.560 who couldn't 00:33:43.560 --> 00:33:44.880 sleep and 00:33:44.880 --> 00:33:45.120 who was 00:33:45.120 --> 00:33:45.620 troubled in 00:33:45.620 --> 00:33:45.860 the middle 00:33:45.860 --> 00:33:46.420 of the night, 00:33:46.840 --> 00:33:47.420 wide awake. 00:33:47.500 --> 00:33:47.800 And so he 00:33:47.800 --> 00:33:48.320 wrote this 00:33:48.320 --> 00:33:48.660 prayer, 00:33:48.759 --> 00:33:49.040 he wrote 00:33:49.040 --> 00:33:49.560 this psalm 00:33:49.560 --> 00:33:49.980 to help 00:33:49.980 --> 00:33:50.560 his heart 00:33:50.560 --> 00:33:51.180 turn to 00:33:51.180 --> 00:33:51.540 the Lord 00:33:51.540 --> 00:33:51.920 and find 00:33:51.920 --> 00:33:52.660 peace in 00:33:52.660 --> 00:33:53.040 the Lord, 00:33:53.259 --> 00:33:54.000 even in 00:33:54.000 --> 00:33:54.340 the middle 00:33:54.340 --> 00:33:55.180 of a troubled 00:33:55.180 --> 00:33:55.560 night. 00:33:57.280 --> 00:33:57.720 When 00:33:57.720 --> 00:33:58.220 pastor put 00:33:58.220 --> 00:33:58.660 it this way, 00:33:58.740 --> 00:33:59.200 God's peace 00:33:59.200 --> 00:33:59.799 is not like 00:33:59.799 --> 00:34:01.339 anesthesia that 00:34:01.339 --> 00:34:02.299 temporarily numbs 00:34:02.299 --> 00:34:02.519 us. 00:34:02.600 --> 00:34:03.319 God's peace is a 00:34:03.319 --> 00:34:03.980 gift that helps 00:34:03.980 --> 00:34:05.000 us to keep 00:34:05.000 --> 00:34:05.380 going. 00:34:06.720 --> 00:34:07.700 Peace I leave 00:34:07.700 --> 00:34:08.059 with you, 00:34:08.139 --> 00:34:08.940 my peace I give 00:34:08.940 --> 00:34:09.340 to you. 00:34:10.019 --> 00:34:10.780 I do not give 00:34:10.780 --> 00:34:11.240 as the world 00:34:11.240 --> 00:34:11.699 gives. 00:34:12.599 --> 00:34:13.220 Do not let your 00:34:13.220 --> 00:34:13.960 hearts be troubled, 00:34:14.780 --> 00:34:15.579 neither let them 00:34:15.579 --> 00:34:17.019 be afraid. 00:34:18.539 --> 00:34:18.940 See, 00:34:19.019 --> 00:34:19.460 the Holy Spirit 00:34:19.460 --> 00:34:20.139 is our teacher 00:34:20.139 --> 00:34:21.980 and the Holy Spirit 00:34:21.980 --> 00:34:22.599 is our friend. 00:34:22.599 --> 00:34:22.699 God, 00:34:23.299 --> 00:34:25.639 let's close 00:34:25.639 --> 00:34:26.480 in a word 00:34:26.480 --> 00:34:26.900 of prayer. 00:34:32.980 --> 00:34:33.599 Father God, 00:34:33.639 --> 00:34:34.059 we pray, 00:34:34.519 --> 00:34:35.039 we thank you 00:34:35.039 --> 00:34:35.839 for this promise 00:34:35.839 --> 00:34:37.179 of the Lord 00:34:37.179 --> 00:34:37.500 Jesus, 00:34:38.139 --> 00:34:38.619 that the Holy 00:34:38.619 --> 00:34:39.079 Spirit would be 00:34:39.079 --> 00:34:39.500 our teacher 00:34:39.500 --> 00:34:40.139 and our friend. 00:34:41.079 --> 00:34:41.880 We pray that 00:34:41.880 --> 00:34:43.019 we would be 00:34:43.019 --> 00:34:44.059 taught by you 00:34:44.059 --> 00:34:44.480 through your 00:34:44.480 --> 00:34:45.119 word and by 00:34:45.119 --> 00:34:45.900 your Holy Spirit, 00:34:46.259 --> 00:34:46.920 bringing that to 00:34:46.920 --> 00:34:47.519 life within our 00:34:47.519 --> 00:34:47.759 heart. 00:34:48.699 --> 00:34:49.239 We pray that 00:34:49.239 --> 00:34:49.679 we would know 00:34:49.679 --> 00:34:50.259 your peace, 00:34:50.260 --> 00:34:51.160 even in the 00:34:51.160 --> 00:34:53.180 midst of turmoil 00:34:53.180 --> 00:34:54.780 and storms. 00:34:56.500 --> 00:34:57.240 We pray that 00:34:57.240 --> 00:34:57.640 we would know 00:34:57.640 --> 00:34:58.040 that you are 00:34:58.040 --> 00:34:58.540 carrying out 00:34:58.540 --> 00:34:59.020 your purposes 00:34:59.020 --> 00:34:59.720 for good in 00:34:59.720 --> 00:35:00.300 our lives 00:35:00.300 --> 00:35:01.040 and in this 00:35:01.040 --> 00:35:01.340 world. 00:35:02.540 --> 00:35:03.240 Thank you for 00:35:03.240 --> 00:35:03.800 that gift. 00:35:04.160 --> 00:35:04.600 In Jesus' 00:35:04.780 --> 00:35:04.980 name, 00:35:05.900 --> 00:35:06.200 amen.