1 00:00:00,560 –> 00:00:04,360 Well, I am delighted to be here with you today. 2 00:00:04,360 –> 00:00:07,140 I’ve heard some great things about this congregation 3 00:00:07,140 –> 00:00:09,920 from some of the friends who visited you 4 00:00:09,920 –> 00:00:12,120 in past years before. 5 00:00:12,120 –> 00:00:14,380 I tell you, you’ve had some remarkable guests 6 00:00:14,380 –> 00:00:19,139 over recent years, as you’ve celebrated Christmas here, 7 00:00:19,139 –> 00:00:22,840 John the apostle and old man, Simeon, 8 00:00:22,840 –> 00:00:25,500 and then you had my pal, Abraham, last time, 9 00:00:25,500 –> 00:00:27,580 and he was telling me about it. 10 00:00:27,680 –> 00:00:29,680 Of course, when he comes to speak, 11 00:00:29,680 –> 00:00:33,160 he always goes on about how he lived 12 00:00:33,160 –> 00:00:37,340 4,000 years before you and 2,000 years before Christ. 13 00:00:37,340 –> 00:00:39,939 Let me tell you that’s nothing. 14 00:00:41,900 –> 00:00:45,520 He likes to talk about how he lived to be 175, 15 00:00:47,340 –> 00:00:49,139 and you might be impressed by that. 16 00:00:49,139 –> 00:00:50,459 I’m not. 17 00:00:50,459 –> 00:00:55,459 I lived to the grandiose age of 930, 18 00:00:56,020 –> 00:00:59,560 though I have to admit I did have the distinct advantage 19 00:00:59,560 –> 00:01:02,180 of living before the flood. 20 00:01:03,660 –> 00:01:06,699 Now before we get into my story, 21 00:01:06,699 –> 00:01:08,959 let’s get one thing straight. 22 00:01:10,339 –> 00:01:14,419 A lot of people have been blaming me for a lot of things, 23 00:01:15,199 –> 00:01:18,760 like sin and death. 24 00:01:18,760 –> 00:01:20,860 So let’s be clear. 25 00:01:21,760 –> 00:01:26,519 I didn’t do anything that you haven’t done as well. 26 00:01:27,940 –> 00:01:30,500 So I’ll take my share of the blame 27 00:01:32,080 –> 00:01:33,919 but you need to do the same 28 00:01:35,260 –> 00:01:37,699 so don’t be picking on me after the service. 29 00:01:38,820 –> 00:01:40,760 Anyway, here’s my story. 30 00:01:40,760 –> 00:01:43,959 All of you were born but for me it was different. 31 00:01:45,260 –> 00:01:46,879 You grew up as children 32 00:01:46,879 –> 00:01:49,260 but don’t know if you ever thought about this, 33 00:01:49,260 –> 00:01:50,800 I never had a childhood. 34 00:01:51,279 –> 00:01:53,839 I missed out on all the fun of growing up 35 00:01:53,839 –> 00:01:56,300 and I guess I missed out on some 36 00:01:56,300 –> 00:01:58,540 of the problems of growing up too. 37 00:02:00,279 –> 00:02:03,300 God gave you life through your father 38 00:02:03,300 –> 00:02:04,580 and through your mother 39 00:02:05,699 –> 00:02:08,559 but God gave me life by forming me 40 00:02:08,559 –> 00:02:10,360 from the dust of the ground 41 00:02:10,360 –> 00:02:15,360 and then he breathed his life into me. 42 00:02:15,720 –> 00:02:18,259 Try to imagine what this was like for me. 43 00:02:18,320 –> 00:02:21,460 If you think about waking up 44 00:02:21,460 –> 00:02:26,419 and try to imagine that for the very first time 45 00:02:26,419 –> 00:02:29,539 I guess that was something of what it was like for me. 46 00:02:29,539 –> 00:02:34,179 God breathed into me and I was alive 47 00:02:35,039 –> 00:02:37,679 and in that very first moment of life 48 00:02:37,679 –> 00:02:39,619 as I took my first breath 49 00:02:39,619 –> 00:02:43,000 I was looking up into the face of God 50 00:02:43,960 –> 00:02:46,339 and I knew that my life had come from him 51 00:02:46,380 –> 00:02:49,679 and I knew that my life is for him. 52 00:02:51,419 –> 00:02:54,500 Of course God is invisible 53 00:02:54,500 –> 00:02:58,139 but he wanted me to know him 54 00:02:58,139 –> 00:03:00,580 and so he took in those days 55 00:03:00,580 –> 00:03:03,979 a form in which I could see him. 56 00:03:04,899 –> 00:03:07,619 Now I heard by the way that your pastor’s 57 00:03:07,619 –> 00:03:11,660 been using excessively long words 58 00:03:11,979 –> 00:03:15,419 and talking about anthropomorphism, 59 00:03:17,000 –> 00:03:20,979 you know where God is described in human terms, 60 00:03:20,979 –> 00:03:23,699 hands and feet and shoulders and arms. 61 00:03:23,699 –> 00:03:27,440 Well I experienced something even better 62 00:03:27,440 –> 00:03:32,440 because God appeared to me in the garden in human form. 63 00:03:34,020 –> 00:03:36,740 That’s called a theophany. 64 00:03:36,740 –> 00:03:39,940 God appearing in a human form. 65 00:03:39,940 –> 00:03:42,559 So you’ve got God described in a human form, 66 00:03:42,559 –> 00:03:46,440 God, I experienced him appearing in a human form, 67 00:03:46,440 –> 00:03:49,899 but of course all of this was only preparing 68 00:03:49,899 –> 00:03:53,220 for what you’re celebrating now at Christmas, 69 00:03:53,220 –> 00:03:58,220 the incarnation where God assumed a human form 70 00:03:59,720 –> 00:04:04,720 and God became man forever in Jesus Christ. 71 00:04:05,460 –> 00:04:07,399 Well anyway I’m getting ahead of myself. 72 00:04:07,399 –> 00:04:08,860 Let me get back to the story. 73 00:04:10,020 –> 00:04:12,020 God breathed life into me 74 00:04:12,020 –> 00:04:16,519 and then he brought me into a beautiful garden. 75 00:04:16,519 –> 00:04:19,420 Trees laden with fruit, 76 00:04:19,420 –> 00:04:23,519 rivers flowing with crystal clear water. 77 00:04:23,519 –> 00:04:27,579 I tell you that garden was a paradise 78 00:04:27,579 –> 00:04:30,059 and when God put me in charge of caring for it, 79 00:04:30,059 –> 00:04:32,959 I could not have been more delighted. 80 00:04:34,540 –> 00:04:38,459 Then one day God put me into a deep sleep. 81 00:04:38,519 –> 00:04:41,200 When I woke up, I knew something was different. 82 00:04:41,200 –> 00:04:42,920 I felt round my rib cage 83 00:04:42,920 –> 00:04:45,019 and it seemed like something was missing. 84 00:04:46,679 –> 00:04:50,220 I heard the voice of God calling me and I went running. 85 00:04:50,220 –> 00:04:53,799 Adam, he said, I want you to meet Eve. 86 00:04:53,799 –> 00:04:55,480 I was speechless. 87 00:04:56,600 –> 00:05:01,600 She was the most marvelous gift in all of paradise 88 00:05:02,140 –> 00:05:06,040 and God joined our hands together 89 00:05:06,040 –> 00:05:09,739 and he said to us the words that you 90 00:05:09,739 –> 00:05:13,459 still use in a wedding service I hear today. 91 00:05:14,380 –> 00:05:16,899 For this reason, the man shall leave 92 00:05:16,899 –> 00:05:19,019 his father and mother and be united 93 00:05:19,019 –> 00:05:23,320 to his wife and they will become one flesh. 94 00:05:24,459 –> 00:05:28,019 Friends, one thing I can tell you for sure today 95 00:05:28,459 –> 00:05:31,799 is that God is abundantly good. 96 00:05:33,420 –> 00:05:36,239 Now most of you know what happened next. 97 00:05:36,239 –> 00:05:39,220 The serpent, that dark enemy of God 98 00:05:39,220 –> 00:05:40,579 came into the garden. 99 00:05:40,579 –> 00:05:45,200 He found Eve and he told her all kinds of lies. 100 00:05:45,200 –> 00:05:47,940 He tempted her to disobey God and that is 101 00:05:47,940 –> 00:05:51,059 what she did and then I did the same. 102 00:05:51,059 –> 00:05:53,100 Both of us were involved. 103 00:05:53,100 –> 00:05:55,239 We sinned. 104 00:05:56,200 –> 00:06:01,200 Satan turned us against God and paradise was lost. 105 00:06:02,320 –> 00:06:06,140 God came into the garden to confront the old serpent. 106 00:06:06,140 –> 00:06:09,160 Cursed are you, he said to the serpent 107 00:06:09,160 –> 00:06:12,559 and then God said to me, dust you are Adam 108 00:06:12,559 –> 00:06:14,760 and to dust you will return. 109 00:06:14,760 –> 00:06:17,799 I felt sure at that moment that my life would end 110 00:06:17,799 –> 00:06:18,839 but it didn’t. 111 00:06:18,839 –> 00:06:22,380 Death from that moment was at work in me 112 00:06:23,200 –> 00:06:28,200 but I was still alive and while there’s life there’s hope. 113 00:06:31,339 –> 00:06:34,739 Sinners don’t belong in the paradise of God 114 00:06:35,739 –> 00:06:39,480 and so God banished us from the garden. 115 00:06:40,440 –> 00:06:44,700 I have to tell you my loss was incalculable. 116 00:06:44,700 –> 00:06:46,899 I missed that garden. 117 00:06:47,660 –> 00:06:52,660 Nothing in this world can come close to what it was 118 00:06:54,220 –> 00:06:59,220 and oh how I missed seeing the face of God. 119 00:07:00,820 –> 00:07:05,100 See, outside of the garden, when I no longer saw his face, 120 00:07:05,100 –> 00:07:09,299 I had to walk by faith, not by sight, 121 00:07:10,660 –> 00:07:12,600 just like you do, really. 122 00:07:13,519 –> 00:07:16,940 but something God said gave me hope. 123 00:07:16,940 –> 00:07:21,519 He spoke about the offspring of the woman 124 00:07:21,519 –> 00:07:24,500 who would crush the head of the serpent 125 00:07:24,500 –> 00:07:28,899 and so outside of the garden I worshiped, I prayed 126 00:07:28,899 –> 00:07:33,899 and I held onto the hope of the promise of God. 127 00:07:34,619 –> 00:07:35,899 Course, you have to understand, 128 00:07:35,899 –> 00:07:37,880 you know this from experience, 129 00:07:37,880 –> 00:07:41,519 outside the garden, everything is very, very different. 130 00:07:42,399 –> 00:07:45,440 The earth I discovered was now hard to work 131 00:07:45,440 –> 00:07:47,640 and full of thorns and thistles. 132 00:07:47,640 –> 00:07:50,799 I found that the joys of life in paradise 133 00:07:50,799 –> 00:07:54,260 were replaced by the disciplines of toil, 134 00:07:54,260 –> 00:07:56,440 you know all about that. 135 00:07:57,899 –> 00:08:02,899 But I found that something had changed inside me as well. 136 00:08:03,160 –> 00:08:06,959 See, when Eve and I were in the garden, 137 00:08:07,859 –> 00:08:10,880 temptation came from outside me. 138 00:08:12,299 –> 00:08:14,600 But after the garden, 139 00:08:14,600 –> 00:08:16,940 I found something very different. 140 00:08:16,940 –> 00:08:21,859 I found that temptation was arising from inside of me. 141 00:08:21,859 –> 00:08:23,779 See, this is the discovery I made. 142 00:08:23,779 –> 00:08:28,779 Back then I thought that sin was simply a choice. 143 00:08:29,239 –> 00:08:33,919 What I discovered was that sin is actually a power. 144 00:08:34,919 –> 00:08:37,820 And friends, that is why I need a savior. 145 00:08:38,760 –> 00:08:41,299 That is why I rejoice in the Savior 146 00:08:41,299 –> 00:08:44,320 as all of you who know Him do also. 147 00:08:44,320 –> 00:08:46,659 That is why you need a savior too. 148 00:08:46,659 –> 00:08:49,799 Hey, here’s the news that you don’t want to hear today. 149 00:08:49,799 –> 00:08:52,000 There’s a bit of me in all of you. 150 00:08:54,239 –> 00:08:55,799 The whole human family, 151 00:08:55,799 –> 00:08:58,739 all of its branches is descended from me. 152 00:08:59,500 –> 00:09:04,500 I passed my nature on to you 153 00:09:04,979 –> 00:09:07,919 and to all who flow from me. 154 00:09:07,919 –> 00:09:12,919 And not only do we share sin’s guilt together, friends, 155 00:09:14,340 –> 00:09:19,340 but we are by nature under sin’s power together. 156 00:09:20,780 –> 00:09:23,159 We need the Savior. 157 00:09:23,200 –> 00:09:28,159 Now, I have to tell you, as the years went on, 158 00:09:28,479 –> 00:09:32,880 I saw the destructive power of sin in my own family. 159 00:09:33,719 –> 00:09:36,219 Eve gave birth to a little boy. 160 00:09:36,219 –> 00:09:38,580 What a joy he was when he was born. 161 00:09:38,580 –> 00:09:41,299 We remembered God’s promise, of course, 162 00:09:41,299 –> 00:09:43,320 about the offspring who would 163 00:09:43,320 –> 00:09:45,799 crush the head of the serpent. 164 00:09:45,799 –> 00:09:48,619 And Eve said, as she held the little fellow, 165 00:09:48,619 –> 00:09:50,239 maybe he’s the one, Adam. 166 00:09:50,299 –> 00:09:53,359 Maybe he’s gonna get us back into the garden. 167 00:09:55,159 –> 00:09:57,460 How wrong we were in that thought. 168 00:09:57,460 –> 00:09:58,320 How naive. 169 00:09:59,739 –> 00:10:01,619 We give him the name, Cain. 170 00:10:03,400 –> 00:10:07,479 And soon afterwards, a little brother was born to him, 171 00:10:08,460 –> 00:10:11,020 Abel, those two never got along. 172 00:10:11,020 –> 00:10:13,020 Fought like cats and dogs, I’ll tell you. 173 00:10:14,619 –> 00:10:19,280 And then that tragic day, Cain murdered his brother, Abel. 174 00:10:19,299 –> 00:10:21,080 Oh, we buried Abel. 175 00:10:22,039 –> 00:10:23,119 Cain was not there. 176 00:10:23,119 –> 00:10:26,500 He fled and we never saw him again. 177 00:10:27,919 –> 00:10:30,340 And so there we were, the two of us now 178 00:10:30,340 –> 00:10:34,659 alone and outside of the paradise of God. 179 00:10:36,460 –> 00:10:37,960 Eve was inconsolable. 180 00:10:39,500 –> 00:10:40,979 I didn’t know what to do. 181 00:10:43,900 –> 00:10:45,700 Do you know, here’s the thing. 182 00:10:45,700 –> 00:10:47,940 I find this so hard to live with. 183 00:10:48,859 –> 00:10:52,080 What’s in you, you pass onto your children. 184 00:10:53,479 –> 00:10:55,099 I rebelled against God. 185 00:10:56,380 –> 00:10:58,659 Cain rebelled against me. 186 00:11:00,340 –> 00:11:03,900 We were beginning to see that God was right 187 00:11:03,900 –> 00:11:06,599 to banish us from His garden. 188 00:11:08,820 –> 00:11:11,359 But, God did not leave us in our misery. 189 00:11:12,780 –> 00:11:14,940 He gave to us another son. 190 00:11:14,960 –> 00:11:17,380 We called Him Seth. 191 00:11:17,380 –> 00:11:21,340 And after that, He gave to us other sons and daughters. 192 00:11:21,340 –> 00:11:24,679 And when Seth was born, I said to Eve, 193 00:11:24,679 –> 00:11:28,320 maybe God’s blessing will come through Him. 194 00:11:30,460 –> 00:11:33,960 Of course, our children had never known paradise. 195 00:11:33,960 –> 00:11:37,200 I tried to tell them what it was like, 196 00:11:37,200 –> 00:11:40,299 but it was beyond anything that they could imagine, 197 00:11:40,299 –> 00:11:43,000 just as it’s beyond anything that you can imagine. 198 00:11:43,840 –> 00:11:46,679 I told them what a fool I’d been. 199 00:11:46,679 –> 00:11:51,559 I tried to persuade them that sin is our greatest enemy. 200 00:11:51,559 –> 00:11:55,200 I spoke to them often about our hope being in a redeemer. 201 00:11:55,200 –> 00:11:57,640 I don’t know if they were listening to me at all. 202 00:12:00,059 –> 00:12:04,520 But I must hasten on because I’m here today 203 00:12:05,520 –> 00:12:07,460 to speak to you about the redeemer. 204 00:12:07,460 –> 00:12:09,979 By the way, as I came in I saw your pastor 205 00:12:09,979 –> 00:12:12,739 had left a little note for me in his office. 206 00:12:13,280 –> 00:12:14,140 I thought I’d read it to you. 207 00:12:14,140 –> 00:12:15,580 Here’s what it says. 208 00:12:15,580 –> 00:12:19,359 Dear Adam, welcome to the orchard. 209 00:12:19,359 –> 00:12:20,940 Our people are very kind 210 00:12:20,940 –> 00:12:23,179 and they won’t blame you for everything. 211 00:12:23,179 –> 00:12:24,340 I like that. 212 00:12:26,200 –> 00:12:27,739 We don’t like preachers 213 00:12:27,739 –> 00:12:30,119 who talk too much about themselves 214 00:12:31,020 –> 00:12:32,900 so please talk about the one 215 00:12:32,900 –> 00:12:34,840 who is greater than you. 216 00:12:36,099 –> 00:12:39,500 PS, don’t speak as long as I do. 217 00:12:39,500 –> 00:12:41,460 Remember it’s Christmas. 218 00:12:41,539 –> 00:12:45,479 We’ll let me tell you about the one 219 00:12:45,479 –> 00:12:48,940 who is greater than me by far. 220 00:12:48,940 –> 00:12:51,840 I got three things to say about him today. 221 00:12:51,840 –> 00:12:56,840 Number one, Christ was born into my line. 222 00:12:58,640 –> 00:13:01,719 Now you might remember if you have 223 00:13:01,719 –> 00:13:05,940 a very good memory that when Abraham was here 224 00:13:05,940 –> 00:13:09,080 he would’ve talked about Matthew’s gospel. 225 00:13:09,080 –> 00:13:12,679 Abraham’s always going on about Matthew’s gospel 226 00:13:12,679 –> 00:13:16,440 because Matthew traces the line of Jesus Christ 227 00:13:16,440 –> 00:13:19,919 back to Abraham, and Matthew does that, of course, 228 00:13:19,919 –> 00:13:23,679 because Matthew presents Jesus as the king of the Jews. 229 00:13:23,679 –> 00:13:26,760 So Abraham’s always on about Matthew, 230 00:13:26,760 –> 00:13:29,419 but I like the gospel of Luke 231 00:13:30,440 –> 00:13:32,719 because Luke traces the line of Jesus 232 00:13:32,719 –> 00:13:34,619 all the way back to me. 233 00:13:36,039 –> 00:13:38,719 He does that because Luke presents Jesus 234 00:13:38,760 –> 00:13:42,239 not only as the messiah for the Jews 235 00:13:42,239 –> 00:13:46,239 but as the savior for the world. 236 00:13:46,239 –> 00:13:48,159 The angel said at his birth 237 00:13:48,159 –> 00:13:51,359 that it is good news of great joy for all people. 238 00:13:52,400 –> 00:13:55,200 Christ has come as the savior 239 00:13:55,200 –> 00:13:59,380 for all branches of the human family. 240 00:14:01,739 –> 00:14:03,460 Now I hope you’re listening carefully 241 00:14:03,460 –> 00:14:08,460 because I said that Christ was born into my line, 242 00:14:09,679 –> 00:14:13,380 I did not say that he was born from my line, 243 00:14:15,219 –> 00:14:18,460 you see the savior came to us, 244 00:14:19,320 –> 00:14:22,039 he did not come from us. 245 00:14:24,200 –> 00:14:27,260 Everyone ever descended from me failed like I did. 246 00:14:28,460 –> 00:14:32,739 He did not come from me, he came to me. 247 00:14:33,719 –> 00:14:37,859 See, here is the beauty and the significance 248 00:14:37,859 –> 00:14:39,419 of the virgin birth. 249 00:14:39,419 –> 00:14:43,700 This is why God spoke about the offspring of the woman. 250 00:14:45,380 –> 00:14:48,260 If he had come from my seed, 251 00:14:49,099 –> 00:14:53,780 he would have carried with him my sinful nature, 252 00:14:53,780 –> 00:14:55,260 just like all of you. 253 00:14:56,960 –> 00:14:58,840 But he was born of a the virgin, 254 00:14:59,619 –> 00:15:02,820 which means that he was fully man 255 00:15:03,960 –> 00:15:06,559 and yet he was without sin. 256 00:15:07,840 –> 00:15:12,760 Only God could accomplish something so glorious. 257 00:15:14,020 –> 00:15:16,900 Christ was born into my line. 258 00:15:18,260 –> 00:15:20,840 The Savior did not come from us, 259 00:15:22,520 –> 00:15:24,159 but he did come to us. 260 00:15:25,440 –> 00:15:28,179 And then, here’s the second thing that strikes me 261 00:15:28,219 –> 00:15:29,960 as I think about him, 262 00:15:29,960 –> 00:15:34,679 that this Lord, Jesus Christ, triumphed where I failed. 263 00:15:35,799 –> 00:15:38,099 You see, the gospels tell us 264 00:15:38,099 –> 00:15:41,659 that Jesus was tempted just as I was, 265 00:15:41,659 –> 00:15:45,440 but the outcome was totally different. 266 00:15:45,440 –> 00:15:47,599 I faced the tempter in the garden, 267 00:15:47,599 –> 00:15:50,700 he faced the tempter in the desert. 268 00:15:50,700 –> 00:15:52,280 When I faced the tempter, 269 00:15:52,280 –> 00:15:54,960 food was all around me, hanging off the trees. 270 00:15:54,960 –> 00:15:56,659 When he faced the tempter, 271 00:15:56,679 –> 00:16:01,059 he was hungry after days of fasting. 272 00:16:01,059 –> 00:16:02,979 In the garden, it was the tempter 273 00:16:02,979 –> 00:16:05,299 who came looking for Eve and for me, 274 00:16:05,299 –> 00:16:06,500 but in the desert, 275 00:16:06,500 –> 00:16:09,859 it was Jesus who stopped the tempter, 276 00:16:10,979 –> 00:16:13,580 but here’s the thing to get hold of. 277 00:16:14,580 –> 00:16:16,260 In the garden, I failed. 278 00:16:17,260 –> 00:16:18,979 In the desert, he triumphed. 279 00:16:18,979 –> 00:16:23,340 For the first time, a man stuck it to the devil. 280 00:16:24,320 –> 00:16:27,059 Someone has said it in these words 281 00:16:27,059 –> 00:16:29,099 that I rather like. 282 00:16:29,099 –> 00:16:33,340 Oh, loving wisdom of our God. 283 00:16:33,340 –> 00:16:35,859 When all was sin and shame, 284 00:16:35,859 –> 00:16:38,820 a second Adam to the fight 285 00:16:38,820 –> 00:16:40,940 and to the rescue came. 286 00:16:41,820 –> 00:16:44,500 O, wisest love, that flesh and blood, 287 00:16:44,500 –> 00:16:47,419 which did in Adam fail, 288 00:16:47,419 –> 00:16:50,280 should strive again against the foe, 289 00:16:50,400 –> 00:16:53,039 should strive and should prevail. 290 00:16:53,039 –> 00:16:55,559 Folks, here is good news today 291 00:16:55,559 –> 00:16:58,960 that Jesus Christ triumphed where I failed, 292 00:16:58,960 –> 00:17:00,760 where all of us have failed. 293 00:17:00,760 –> 00:17:04,959 Here now is a man over whom Satan has no hold. 294 00:17:05,959 –> 00:17:10,479 And he went on from there to live a perfect life. 295 00:17:10,479 –> 00:17:13,219 And then he went to the cross 296 00:17:13,219 –> 00:17:15,219 and he laid down that life 297 00:17:15,219 –> 00:17:19,079 as a sacrifice for all of our sins. 298 00:17:19,239 –> 00:17:21,280 On the third day, he rose again. 299 00:17:21,280 –> 00:17:23,140 And today he is exalted 300 00:17:23,140 –> 00:17:25,959 at the right hand of the Father in heaven. 301 00:17:27,560 –> 00:17:29,760 Now, friends, most of you know that. 302 00:17:31,020 –> 00:17:34,079 But some of you might have wondered, 303 00:17:34,079 –> 00:17:37,260 how is it that the death and the resurrection 304 00:17:37,260 –> 00:17:40,760 of Jesus Christ can actually make a difference 305 00:17:40,760 –> 00:17:42,839 in my life today? 306 00:17:42,839 –> 00:17:44,719 And if you have asked that question, 307 00:17:44,719 –> 00:17:49,020 I think that I can help you with the answer. 308 00:17:50,239 –> 00:17:53,439 See, we read a few moments ago, 309 00:17:53,439 –> 00:17:55,199 this marvelous statement, 310 00:17:55,199 –> 00:17:59,800 As in Adam, all die. 311 00:17:59,800 –> 00:18:03,400 See, because you carry my nature, 312 00:18:04,439 –> 00:18:09,439 you carry with you the consequence of my and your actions. 313 00:18:10,640 –> 00:18:13,160 As in Adam, all die. 314 00:18:13,160 –> 00:18:17,239 We’re all lumped together in this 315 00:18:19,439 –> 00:18:23,119 but the Scripture says even so in Christ 316 00:18:24,000 –> 00:18:25,640 all will be made alive. 317 00:18:27,839 –> 00:18:30,920 Folks, you can’t get out of your connection with me. 318 00:18:30,920 –> 00:18:32,400 It’s yours by birth. 319 00:18:33,560 –> 00:18:34,699 The issue for you 320 00:18:34,699 –> 00:18:37,760 is whether you can have a connection with him 321 00:18:38,920 –> 00:18:42,359 because the Bible is saying that just as death flows to you 322 00:18:42,359 –> 00:18:43,439 because of me 323 00:18:44,680 –> 00:18:47,119 so life can flow to you 324 00:18:49,040 –> 00:18:49,880 because of him. 325 00:18:52,119 –> 00:18:54,500 Now I want you to see this in the Bible. 326 00:18:54,500 –> 00:18:56,079 I don’t know if you knew this 327 00:18:56,079 –> 00:18:59,439 but some of the richest theology 328 00:18:59,439 –> 00:19:01,000 in all of the new Testament 329 00:19:02,719 –> 00:19:06,920 involves the wonderful comparison 330 00:19:06,920 –> 00:19:09,319 of me and what I did 331 00:19:09,319 –> 00:19:11,479 and Christ and what He did. 332 00:19:11,479 –> 00:19:12,319 Did you know that? 333 00:19:13,119 –> 00:19:15,300 Turn with me in your Bible 334 00:19:15,300 –> 00:19:17,000 just to one place today 335 00:19:17,000 –> 00:19:20,199 and that is Romans chapter 5 336 00:19:20,199 –> 00:19:23,760 because I want you to see this clearly. 337 00:19:23,760 –> 00:19:25,959 It’s wonderful. 338 00:19:25,959 –> 00:19:28,079 Romans and chapter 5. 339 00:19:30,199 –> 00:19:32,119 And if you look there 340 00:19:32,119 –> 00:19:34,939 at the end of verse 14, 341 00:19:36,119 –> 00:19:37,800 Romans chapter 5 342 00:19:37,800 –> 00:19:40,599 and at the end of verse 14 343 00:19:40,599 –> 00:19:42,319 you’ll see that Paul mentions me 344 00:19:42,319 –> 00:19:43,819 by name and he says 345 00:19:43,819 –> 00:19:46,260 something absolutely remarkable. 346 00:19:47,680 –> 00:19:49,880 The end of verse 14, Romans 5, 347 00:19:49,880 –> 00:19:51,959 he speaks about Adam 348 00:19:53,000 –> 00:19:56,339 who was a pattern 349 00:19:56,339 –> 00:19:59,800 of the one to come that is Christ. 350 00:19:59,800 –> 00:20:03,479 Paul says, I was a pattern 351 00:20:04,500 –> 00:20:06,640 of Jesus, 352 00:20:06,640 –> 00:20:08,760 a pattern of Jesus. 353 00:20:10,000 –> 00:20:11,359 In other words, he’s saying 354 00:20:11,359 –> 00:20:13,680 there’s a similarity 355 00:20:13,680 –> 00:20:17,660 between what I did and the effects of it 356 00:20:17,660 –> 00:20:19,640 and what Jesus did 357 00:20:19,640 –> 00:20:22,660 and the effects of all that he has accomplished. 358 00:20:23,939 –> 00:20:25,060 In other words, he’s saying 359 00:20:25,060 –> 00:20:28,739 the way that I messed everything up 360 00:20:29,839 –> 00:20:33,599 and the way that Jesus puts everything right 361 00:20:33,599 –> 00:20:36,479 works on the same pattern 362 00:20:37,719 –> 00:20:40,319 in the same way as my actions 363 00:20:40,359 –> 00:20:43,060 as a single man changed everything 364 00:20:43,060 –> 00:20:45,199 for everyone descended from me. 365 00:20:45,199 –> 00:20:48,599 He’s saying, the action of Jesus Christ 366 00:20:48,599 –> 00:20:50,979 as a single man, the God man 367 00:20:50,979 –> 00:20:54,099 can change everything for everyone who’s related to him. 368 00:20:54,099 –> 00:20:55,959 It’s the same pattern. 369 00:20:55,959 –> 00:20:57,119 You see what he’s saying? 370 00:20:57,119 –> 00:20:59,160 I can hardly believe that this is said about me, 371 00:20:59,160 –> 00:21:01,520 that I was, in that sense, a pattern 372 00:21:02,560 –> 00:21:05,319 of Jesus who was to come. 373 00:21:06,560 –> 00:21:07,719 Now, look at verse 18 374 00:21:07,760 –> 00:21:10,479 because he explains it even more clearly there. 375 00:21:10,479 –> 00:21:11,880 Look at what he says. 376 00:21:11,880 –> 00:21:16,540 Just as the result of the one trespass, 377 00:21:16,540 –> 00:21:18,400 that’s what I did, 378 00:21:18,400 –> 00:21:20,160 just as the result of what I did 379 00:21:20,160 –> 00:21:23,000 was condemnation for all men, 380 00:21:23,920 –> 00:21:27,680 so the result of one act of righteousness, 381 00:21:27,680 –> 00:21:29,819 verse 18, that’s what Christ did 382 00:21:29,819 –> 00:21:32,560 in his life and his death and his resurrection, 383 00:21:32,560 –> 00:21:34,680 the result of that one act of righteousness 384 00:21:34,680 –> 00:21:39,680 was justification that brings life for all men. 385 00:21:40,400 –> 00:21:41,760 You see what he’s saying, 386 00:21:41,760 –> 00:21:44,979 my sin brought condemnation for everybody, 387 00:21:46,160 –> 00:21:50,579 Jesus’ righteousness brings life. 388 00:21:52,000 –> 00:21:56,199 My sin brings death for all who are in me. 389 00:21:57,359 –> 00:22:02,359 Jesus’ righteousness brings life for all who are in him. 390 00:22:03,339 –> 00:22:06,560 Condemnation is yours, friends, 391 00:22:06,560 –> 00:22:10,739 because you are in me and I am in you. 392 00:22:10,739 –> 00:22:14,439 Justification can be yours if you are in Christ 393 00:22:14,439 –> 00:22:16,540 and Christ is in you. 394 00:22:19,380 –> 00:22:20,739 And just in case we haven’t got it, 395 00:22:20,739 –> 00:22:23,380 do you see he says exactly the same thing again 396 00:22:23,380 –> 00:22:26,819 in verse 19, he just says it in a different way. 397 00:22:26,819 –> 00:22:31,459 Verse 19, just as through the disobedience 398 00:22:31,479 –> 00:22:34,839 of the one man, that’s me, 399 00:22:34,839 –> 00:22:36,400 so through my disobedience, 400 00:22:36,400 –> 00:22:39,719 notice what he says, many were made sinners. 401 00:22:41,300 –> 00:22:43,900 I’ve gotta just make the point again here. 402 00:22:44,959 –> 00:22:47,439 Don’t run away with the idea that you can blame me 403 00:22:47,439 –> 00:22:48,800 for everything that’s wrong. 404 00:22:50,040 –> 00:22:51,439 You’re a sinner too. 405 00:22:52,640 –> 00:22:53,880 You may say you’re a sinner 406 00:22:53,880 –> 00:22:56,079 because you’ve got what was in me in you, 407 00:22:56,079 –> 00:22:59,839 but you’ve done plenty to merit the title 408 00:22:59,839 –> 00:23:00,979 on your own account. 409 00:23:02,400 –> 00:23:05,219 Through the disobedience of one man, 410 00:23:05,219 –> 00:23:07,420 many were made sinners. 411 00:23:08,479 –> 00:23:12,660 So also through the obedience of the one man, 412 00:23:12,660 –> 00:23:17,660 that’s Jesus Christ, the many will be made righteous. 413 00:23:20,119 –> 00:23:22,140 You see what he’s saying? 414 00:23:22,140 –> 00:23:23,760 It’s the same pattern. 415 00:23:24,739 –> 00:23:28,219 You’ve got me in you and that makes you a sinner. 416 00:23:28,219 –> 00:23:32,040 You need Christ in you and he will make you righteous. 417 00:23:33,699 –> 00:23:38,280 So hope hangs for every one of us 418 00:23:39,219 –> 00:23:43,939 on having a connection made between you and Christ. 419 00:23:44,900 –> 00:23:46,359 And the obvious question is then, 420 00:23:46,359 –> 00:23:49,060 well I see how I’m bonded to Adam. 421 00:23:49,060 –> 00:23:52,780 We’re all of the same stuff in human nature here, 422 00:23:52,780 –> 00:23:55,140 but how do I get bonded to Christ? 423 00:23:55,140 –> 00:23:58,540 Listen, you have me in you by nature. 424 00:23:59,839 –> 00:24:03,880 You can have Christ in you, by faith. 425 00:24:05,060 –> 00:24:07,260 The flesh binds you to me. 426 00:24:08,199 –> 00:24:11,900 Faith will bind you to Jesus Christ. 427 00:24:11,900 –> 00:24:15,420 Faith is the bond of a living union with Christ 428 00:24:15,420 –> 00:24:17,380 by which all that he is 429 00:24:17,380 –> 00:24:21,520 and all that he has accomplished becomes yours. 430 00:24:21,520 –> 00:24:25,479 So that even as death is at work within you, 431 00:24:25,479 –> 00:24:30,479 so life is yours through Jesus Christ for all eternity. 432 00:24:33,359 –> 00:24:34,420 You see the pattern? 433 00:24:35,800 –> 00:24:39,079 The sin that is in me became yours by nature. 434 00:24:40,099 –> 00:24:43,780 The righteousness that is in Jesus 435 00:24:43,780 –> 00:24:47,420 can become yours by faith. 436 00:24:49,420 –> 00:24:50,540 It’s not in you. 437 00:24:51,520 –> 00:24:53,339 You receive it from him. 438 00:24:55,339 –> 00:24:57,520 And if you’ll look with me at just one more verse 439 00:24:57,520 –> 00:24:59,540 in this wonderful passage, verse 17, 440 00:24:59,540 –> 00:25:03,880 he talks about how you have to receive this gift. 441 00:25:03,880 –> 00:25:05,420 Look at verse 17. 442 00:25:05,420 –> 00:25:08,319 If by the trespass of one man, that’s me again, 443 00:25:08,319 –> 00:25:10,660 death reigned through that one man, 444 00:25:12,319 –> 00:25:15,660 how much more will those who receive God’s 445 00:25:15,660 –> 00:25:20,020 abundant provision of grace 446 00:25:20,040 –> 00:25:21,959 and the gift of righteousness, 447 00:25:21,959 –> 00:25:24,260 how much more will they reign in life 448 00:25:24,260 –> 00:25:27,300 through this man Christ Jesus? 449 00:25:27,300 –> 00:25:28,500 You see what he’s saying? 450 00:25:30,339 –> 00:25:32,160 Those who receive, 451 00:25:33,540 –> 00:25:36,560 oh, death comes to you through me by nature, 452 00:25:37,800 –> 00:25:42,800 but life can come to you by grace through faith. 453 00:25:45,060 –> 00:25:48,359 You have to receive God’s abundant provision of grace. 454 00:25:48,359 –> 00:25:49,479 He says it right there. 455 00:25:49,540 –> 00:25:51,660 You have to receive it. 456 00:25:51,660 –> 00:25:54,000 It’s offered to you as a gift, 457 00:25:54,000 –> 00:25:56,619 this abundant provision of grace 458 00:25:56,619 –> 00:25:59,119 and this gift of righteousness, 459 00:25:59,119 –> 00:26:01,219 but you have to receive it. 460 00:26:02,300 –> 00:26:05,719 And nothing matters more than this, friends. 461 00:26:05,719 –> 00:26:08,819 You have me in you by nature. 462 00:26:08,819 –> 00:26:10,719 You need it to be one with Him 463 00:26:10,719 –> 00:26:13,819 and have Him in you by faith. 464 00:26:14,780 –> 00:26:18,020 You must receive the gift of God’s abundant provision. 465 00:26:18,060 –> 00:26:22,680 You must receive this gift of righteousness 466 00:26:23,760 –> 00:26:26,180 and this gift becomes yours by faith 467 00:26:26,180 –> 00:26:28,719 in His Son, Jesus Christ. 468 00:26:28,719 –> 00:26:33,020 That is why Paul says, at its simplest, 469 00:26:33,020 –> 00:26:36,380 believe on the Lord Jesus Christ 470 00:26:36,380 –> 00:26:38,280 and you will be saved. 471 00:26:38,280 –> 00:26:39,119 Why? 472 00:26:39,900 –> 00:26:43,660 Because believing unites you to Jesus Christ. 473 00:26:43,660 –> 00:26:45,900 That’s what faith does. 474 00:26:46,000 –> 00:26:48,380 And when you have that union with Him, 475 00:26:49,300 –> 00:26:51,800 all His righteousness becomes yours, 476 00:26:51,800 –> 00:26:55,199 it is counted as yours in Him. 477 00:26:56,060 –> 00:26:59,260 And that’s why when you’re in Christ, friends, 478 00:26:59,260 –> 00:27:03,500 you have the most marvelous, marvelous future. 479 00:27:03,500 –> 00:27:05,260 I can’t begin to tell you 480 00:27:05,260 –> 00:27:09,060 about the joys of life in the paradise of God. 481 00:27:09,060 –> 00:27:11,280 But I can tell you this, 482 00:27:11,280 –> 00:27:13,939 that if you are in Christ, 483 00:27:13,939 –> 00:27:16,079 He will all be yours. 484 00:27:17,020 –> 00:27:19,920 As in Adam all die, 485 00:27:21,020 –> 00:27:23,180 even so in Christ. 486 00:27:23,180 –> 00:27:27,160 All those in Christ will be made alive. 487 00:27:29,459 –> 00:27:32,760 So I am so grateful that I am a man in Christ, 488 00:27:34,300 –> 00:27:36,760 that I was able to hold onto that promise 489 00:27:36,760 –> 00:27:39,060 that was given right back at the beginning of time 490 00:27:39,060 –> 00:27:41,859 and looked forward to the Savior who came for me 491 00:27:41,900 –> 00:27:43,400 and all before Him 492 00:27:43,400 –> 00:27:46,339 who believed and looked for the mercy of God through Him. 493 00:27:47,739 –> 00:27:50,380 Now, here you are 2,000 years after His coming. 494 00:27:50,380 –> 00:27:53,699 I hope that you, too, will embrace the Savior 495 00:27:53,699 –> 00:27:55,819 and receive his righteousness 496 00:27:55,819 –> 00:27:57,719 because you don’t get it from me. 497 00:27:59,839 –> 00:28:01,819 You can only get it from Him. 498 00:28:04,599 –> 00:28:05,819 You know, there’s one last thing 499 00:28:05,819 –> 00:28:10,819 that I want to say before I go, 500 00:28:12,859 –> 00:28:16,119 people sometimes ask me, 501 00:28:16,119 –> 00:28:21,099 Adam, how do you deal with the regret? 502 00:28:23,140 –> 00:28:23,959 Hm. 503 00:28:26,500 –> 00:28:27,800 It’s a good question. 504 00:28:30,839 –> 00:28:35,859 Course, I have experienced throughout my life, 505 00:28:35,959 –> 00:28:38,160 930 years it was, 506 00:28:39,800 –> 00:28:41,699 I experienced repentance. 507 00:28:42,699 –> 00:28:45,040 You never have faith without repentance. 508 00:28:45,040 –> 00:28:47,699 You never have repentance without faith. 509 00:28:49,599 –> 00:28:52,699 The longer the years went on the more clearly actually 510 00:28:52,699 –> 00:28:55,400 I saw the devastating effects of what I had done 511 00:28:55,400 –> 00:28:58,359 not only on myself but on other people, 512 00:28:58,359 –> 00:29:00,640 especially people I loved. 513 00:29:03,280 –> 00:29:06,400 If you experience regret because of a great failure 514 00:29:06,400 –> 00:29:10,959 in your life let me tell you I know about that. 515 00:29:11,060 –> 00:29:12,000 I know about that. 516 00:29:15,420 –> 00:29:17,119 But I’ve come to see something else 517 00:29:17,119 –> 00:29:19,160 that I want you to hold onto today. 518 00:29:21,199 –> 00:29:26,199 Jesus said the one who has been forgiven much 519 00:29:28,339 –> 00:29:29,800 loves much. 520 00:29:31,500 –> 00:29:34,219 And I’ll tell you that has gone very, very deep in me. 521 00:29:34,219 –> 00:29:38,060 I’ve come to see this from the perspective of Heaven now. 522 00:29:39,040 –> 00:29:44,040 That I love Jesus Christ in a way that 523 00:29:44,920 –> 00:29:49,560 I never could if I had remained innocent all of my life. 524 00:29:51,199 –> 00:29:53,880 I have experienced mercy. 525 00:29:55,560 –> 00:29:58,020 I have discovered grace. 526 00:30:00,099 –> 00:30:02,359 And friends, just looking at the big picture, 527 00:30:02,359 –> 00:30:04,380 I’ve begun to see this 528 00:30:04,380 –> 00:30:07,380 and it’s a thought that staggers my mind. 529 00:30:09,060 –> 00:30:11,060 A redeemed creation 530 00:30:12,260 –> 00:30:15,339 will glorify God forever 531 00:30:15,339 –> 00:30:19,619 more than an innocent one ever could. 532 00:30:20,739 –> 00:30:25,180 I think that’s why the Bible says that the angels 533 00:30:25,180 –> 00:30:30,180 long to look into the mystery of our salvation. 534 00:30:32,859 –> 00:30:35,979 That God would have taken our flesh. 535 00:30:36,939 –> 00:30:40,180 That mercy and grace and justice 536 00:30:40,180 –> 00:30:45,180 should have been revealed in an incomparable way 537 00:30:45,500 –> 00:30:48,540 on the cross and through his resurrection 538 00:30:50,500 –> 00:30:52,780 so that forever and forever 539 00:30:52,780 –> 00:30:56,380 as God wipes all tears from our eyes, 540 00:30:58,260 –> 00:31:01,680 the redeemed creation will sing in wonder. 541 00:31:02,599 –> 00:31:05,180 Worthy is the lamb 542 00:31:05,180 –> 00:31:10,180 who was slain for you and for me. 543 00:31:13,479 –> 00:31:15,680 Let the greatest failures of your life 544 00:31:15,680 –> 00:31:18,599 lead you to love him more 545 00:31:19,800 –> 00:31:24,540 and to save our mercy and to save our grace 546 00:31:26,500 –> 00:31:28,260 and may God bless you. 547 00:31:29,239 –> 00:31:34,239 Father, we bow before you as those who are in Adam. 548 00:31:38,739 –> 00:31:41,540 So grateful that you sent your son 549 00:31:43,640 –> 00:31:47,020 so that receiving the abundant provision of your grace 550 00:31:47,020 –> 00:31:48,979 and the gift of your righteousness 551 00:31:51,520 –> 00:31:55,020 we may also say that we are by faith in Christ 552 00:31:55,420 –> 00:32:00,420 and the what Adam lost is more than restored 553 00:32:02,760 –> 00:32:06,160 in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 554 00:32:08,060 –> 00:32:12,800 Thank you that we can say that we die yet shall we live. 555 00:32:15,060 –> 00:32:17,839 Though we are sinners your mercy prevails 556 00:32:20,439 –> 00:32:21,939 though we are in Adam. 557 00:32:25,160 –> 00:32:27,660 We are in Christ 558 00:32:29,060 –> 00:32:31,300 and for this we give you our thanks 559 00:32:31,300 –> 00:32:33,219 and our praise beginning now 560 00:32:34,459 –> 00:32:37,739 and so on forever and forever 561 00:32:38,699 –> 00:32:42,459 through Jesus Christ our Lord and everyone said, 562 00:32:42,459 –> 00:32:43,300 amen.