1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:06,860 Well, this is the last week in our series running throughout April – The Art of Contentment. 2 00:00:06,860 –> 00:00:11,340 We began by seeing that discontent is a hellish sin. 3 00:00:11,340 –> 00:00:16,139 That its roots lie in pride and in rebellion and in unbelief towards God, 4 00:00:16,139 –> 00:00:20,440 and that its effect is that we become our own termentors. 5 00:00:20,440 –> 00:00:24,240 And we set a goal for this month that we would undertake a journey from 6 00:00:24,280 –> 00:00:30,139 anger to peace, from frustration to satisfaction, and from anxiety to trust, 7 00:00:30,139 –> 00:00:36,580 that we would grow in all that is involved in this whole matter of contentment. 8 00:00:36,580 –> 00:00:40,660 Last week we looked at these marvelous words from Philippians, of the Apostle Paul. 9 00:00:40,660 –> 00:00:41,040 He says, 10 00:00:48,279 –> 00:00:53,160 And we saw that this was something that he clearly grew into over a period of time. 11 00:00:53,160 –> 00:00:54,360 It didn’t come immediately. 12 00:00:54,360 –> 00:00:55,919 It didn’t come easily. 13 00:00:55,919 –> 00:00:56,959 I have learned it. 14 00:00:56,959 –> 00:01:00,560 And then even more, he says there is a secret to this. 15 00:01:00,560 –> 00:01:01,119 He says, 16 00:01:09,440 –> 00:01:11,760 So I mean whenever you read a statement like that you say, 17 00:01:11,760 –> 00:01:14,559 Please, please, Paul are you going to tell us the secret? 18 00:01:14,559 –> 00:01:15,239 And he does. 19 00:01:15,239 –> 00:01:17,000 It’s in Philippians 4 20 00:01:23,559 –> 00:01:25,839 That’s what I’ve found, he says, I’ve proved it 21 00:01:25,839 –> 00:01:29,239 in my experience that Jesus Christ gives me 22 00:01:29,239 –> 00:01:33,720 strength for whatever I face at precisely the time 23 00:01:33,720 –> 00:01:35,639 that I needed it. 24 00:01:35,639 –> 00:01:38,500 That strength was infused into me. 25 00:01:38,500 –> 00:01:40,379 Jesus Christ strengthens me. 26 00:01:40,379 –> 00:01:43,760 That’s how I can face the different circumstances of life 27 00:01:43,760 –> 00:01:46,139 And what I’ve found is that the strength 28 00:01:46,139 –> 00:01:47,879 I have in Him is enough. 29 00:01:47,879 –> 00:01:52,919 That his grace is sufficient for me. 30 00:01:53,040 –> 00:01:55,379 And it has just struck me, thinking around 31 00:01:55,379 –> 00:02:00,379 the congregation, situations that folks have faced 32 00:02:00,379 –> 00:02:03,820 that many of you would never have imagined 33 00:02:03,820 –> 00:02:07,000 that you would face in your lifetime. 34 00:02:08,199 –> 00:02:11,320 If God had said, you know, five years ago 35 00:02:11,320 –> 00:02:13,220 this is what you’re going to face, 36 00:02:13,220 –> 00:02:15,399 how is it going to be with you if you face that? 37 00:02:15,399 –> 00:02:17,500 You would have said I couldn’t possibly cope. 38 00:02:17,500 –> 00:02:20,479 What in the world would I do. 39 00:02:20,479 –> 00:02:22,779 Around the congregation there is testimony 40 00:02:23,059 –> 00:02:27,020 after testimony that when we came to a circumstance 41 00:02:27,020 –> 00:02:29,639 that stretched us in ways we’d never been stretched before 42 00:02:29,639 –> 00:02:32,440 and we would never have thought that we would have 43 00:02:32,440 –> 00:02:34,059 been able to survive it at all, 44 00:02:34,059 –> 00:02:36,479 that God somehow infused grace into us 45 00:02:36,479 –> 00:02:39,160 and gave to us sufficient unto our need. 46 00:02:39,160 –> 00:02:42,240 And Paul says, this is how I’ve learned contentment. 47 00:02:42,240 –> 00:02:44,259 I’ve proved this over and again so many times 48 00:02:44,259 –> 00:02:47,320 that I’ve come to rely on it, I’ve come to count on it 49 00:02:47,320 –> 00:02:50,860 that God is there for me, that he does not forsake me, 50 00:02:50,899 –> 00:02:52,820 that although I may face some 51 00:02:52,820 –> 00:02:55,240 extremely difficult things in life, 52 00:02:55,240 –> 00:02:56,520 whatever they’re going to be, 53 00:02:56,520 –> 00:03:01,080 I have found that his grace is sufficient for me 54 00:03:02,479 –> 00:03:05,580 and we have proved that in our experience 55 00:03:05,580 –> 00:03:10,580 and Paul says it is at the very heart of being content. 56 00:03:10,679 –> 00:03:14,039 Now I want to turn in this last reflection 57 00:03:14,039 –> 00:03:16,440 on this great subject today to Hebrews 58 00:03:16,440 –> 00:03:18,240 and chapter 13. 59 00:03:18,240 –> 00:03:20,179 I think perhaps the most wonderful passage 60 00:03:20,320 –> 00:03:21,979 of all on the subject. 61 00:03:21,979 –> 00:03:24,500 It’s certainly very, very special. 62 00:03:24,500 –> 00:03:27,220 Hebrews 13, verses one to six, 63 00:03:27,220 –> 00:03:29,740 very special for Karin and myself. 64 00:03:29,740 –> 00:03:31,059 This was the passage of scripture 65 00:03:31,059 –> 00:03:34,020 that was read at our wedding 66 00:03:34,020 –> 00:03:36,679 and so it’s very special in our lives 67 00:03:36,679 –> 00:03:39,399 and particularly notice verse five and six. 68 00:03:39,399 –> 00:03:41,820 After all the themes that it touches, 69 00:03:41,820 –> 00:03:44,059 it comes to this theme of contentment. 70 00:03:44,059 –> 00:03:46,460 Keep your life, verse five, 71 00:03:46,460 –> 00:03:49,300 free from the love of money 72 00:03:49,300 –> 00:03:53,460 and be content with what you have, 73 00:03:54,460 –> 00:03:56,899 for God has said, he has said, 74 00:03:56,899 –> 00:04:01,220 I will never leave you nor forsake you 75 00:04:02,139 –> 00:04:07,139 so we can confidently say the Lord is my helper. 76 00:04:09,619 –> 00:04:11,740 I will not fear. 77 00:04:12,699 –> 00:04:16,079 What can man do to me? 78 00:04:16,739 –> 00:04:21,739 Very simply today, there’s obviously a command here, 79 00:04:22,339 –> 00:04:25,220 there’s wonderfully a promise here, 80 00:04:25,220 –> 00:04:26,940 and then very, very briefly at the end, 81 00:04:26,940 –> 00:04:28,260 just in a few sentences, 82 00:04:28,260 –> 00:04:31,339 we’ll see that there is a response here. 83 00:04:31,339 –> 00:04:32,899 First of all then, the command. 84 00:04:32,899 –> 00:04:34,380 Verse five. 85 00:04:34,380 –> 00:04:39,380 Keep your life free from the love of money 86 00:04:39,399 –> 00:04:44,399 from the love of money and be content 87 00:04:45,359 –> 00:04:46,959 with what you have. 88 00:04:48,320 –> 00:04:50,920 Now notice, friends, that this is a direct 89 00:04:50,920 –> 00:04:53,279 command from the mouth of God. 90 00:04:53,279 –> 00:04:56,079 He does not say you know, once in a while, 91 00:04:56,079 –> 00:04:57,519 you might like to have a series 92 00:04:57,519 –> 00:04:59,359 and think about this matter of contentment, 93 00:04:59,359 –> 00:05:01,640 you know, at least it should be on your radar screen. 94 00:05:01,640 –> 00:05:02,480 No. 95 00:05:02,480 –> 00:05:06,200 Discontent, we learned, is a hellish sin, 96 00:05:07,100 –> 00:05:11,100 and God calls every one of us to be done with it. 97 00:05:11,100 –> 00:05:14,299 The love of money is the root of all evil, 98 00:05:14,299 –> 00:05:15,779 a root of all evil, 99 00:05:15,779 –> 00:05:18,980 and that God calls us very specifically 100 00:05:18,980 –> 00:05:20,980 here in Hebrews in Chapter 13. 101 00:05:20,980 –> 00:05:25,799 Keep your life free from it. 102 00:05:25,799 –> 00:05:29,320 And so with good reason, we have set our minds 103 00:05:29,320 –> 00:05:33,160 and we have set our hearts to pursue this clear calling, 104 00:05:33,160 –> 00:05:34,739 this commandment of God, 105 00:05:34,739 –> 00:05:36,600 and it comes to every one of us. 106 00:05:36,600 –> 00:05:41,079 Keep your life free from the love of money 107 00:05:42,100 –> 00:05:44,619 and be content with what you have. 108 00:05:44,619 –> 00:05:48,839 It is personalized to each and to every one of us 109 00:05:48,839 –> 00:05:53,100 in the very different circumstances of our lives. 110 00:05:54,200 –> 00:05:55,440 Now I want you to notice today 111 00:05:55,440 –> 00:05:57,299 that there is a very strange enigma 112 00:05:57,299 –> 00:05:59,700 about Christian contentment. 113 00:06:00,660 –> 00:06:05,660 Jesus Christ means more than all the world to a Christian, 114 00:06:06,160 –> 00:06:11,160 and so for that reason, a Christian is a person 115 00:06:11,399 –> 00:06:14,019 who would not be satisfied 116 00:06:14,019 –> 00:06:18,779 even if he or she had the whole world. 117 00:06:18,779 –> 00:06:20,380 Listen one more time to Burroughs, 118 00:06:20,380 –> 00:06:22,779 from whom we’ve learned so much in this series. 119 00:06:22,779 –> 00:06:23,739 He says this. 120 00:06:23,739 –> 00:06:27,100 Men of the world seek after wealth 121 00:06:27,119 –> 00:06:30,739 and think that if they had this much or that much, 122 00:06:30,739 –> 00:06:32,540 then they would be content. 123 00:06:32,540 –> 00:06:33,660 I quote him. 124 00:06:33,660 –> 00:06:36,899 If I had, perhaps, some man thinks, 125 00:06:36,899 –> 00:06:41,660 only two or 300 a year, I would be well enough. 126 00:06:41,660 –> 00:06:43,720 You know, he’s writing in the 17th century 127 00:06:43,720 –> 00:06:46,779 when he said I’d be happy with two or 300 a year, 128 00:06:46,779 –> 00:06:48,260 but then he says, another man says, 129 00:06:48,260 –> 00:06:50,579 if I had a thousand a year, 130 00:06:50,579 –> 00:06:52,700 then I would then be satisfied. 131 00:06:53,779 –> 00:06:56,500 But a godly heart says, 132 00:06:56,500 –> 00:07:01,500 if I had 10 hundred thousand times as much every year, 133 00:07:01,859 –> 00:07:03,959 it would not satisfy me. 134 00:07:05,739 –> 00:07:07,839 To borrow a phrase from James Bond, 135 00:07:07,839 –> 00:07:09,920 who doesn’t often get on the pulpit here. 136 00:07:09,920 –> 00:07:14,920 For the Christian, the world is not enough. 137 00:07:16,260 –> 00:07:18,019 That’s an amen moment. 138 00:07:18,019 –> 00:07:20,899 For a Christian, the world is not enough. 139 00:07:20,899 –> 00:07:23,559 You could gain the whole world, Jesus says. 140 00:07:23,559 –> 00:07:25,839 If you lose that which matters most, 141 00:07:25,859 –> 00:07:27,179 if you do not have God, 142 00:07:27,179 –> 00:07:29,619 you could not possibly be satisfied with it. 143 00:07:29,619 –> 00:07:32,179 All of this world could not satisfy you 144 00:07:32,179 –> 00:07:34,260 if you’re a Christian, and you know that. 145 00:07:34,260 –> 00:07:38,420 You know it in your heart of hearts. 146 00:07:38,420 –> 00:07:41,700 The Christian therefor can say I would not be satisfied 147 00:07:41,700 –> 00:07:45,420 with all the world, and yet, I am content with what I have. 148 00:07:45,420 –> 00:07:47,239 Isn’t that a strange enigma? 149 00:07:47,239 –> 00:07:49,260 There’s a mystery in that. 150 00:07:49,260 –> 00:07:52,420 I would not be satisfied with all the world, 151 00:07:52,480 –> 00:07:56,600 and yet, I am content with what I have. 152 00:07:58,299 –> 00:08:02,339 We live in a culture that says to us love the world. 153 00:08:02,339 –> 00:08:03,859 Love the world with all your heart, 154 00:08:03,859 –> 00:08:05,899 all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. 155 00:08:05,899 –> 00:08:07,739 Love life. 156 00:08:07,739 –> 00:08:09,799 Love life with all your heart, with all your soul, 157 00:08:09,799 –> 00:08:11,839 with all your mind, with all your strength. 158 00:08:11,839 –> 00:08:15,179 If you follow that path, you will never be content. 159 00:08:15,179 –> 00:08:17,000 You cannot be. 160 00:08:17,000 –> 00:08:17,839 Why? 161 00:08:17,839 –> 00:08:21,980 Because you were made by God, and you were made for God, 162 00:08:22,100 –> 00:08:24,540 and that is why by definition, 163 00:08:24,540 –> 00:08:27,000 for creatures made by God and for God, 164 00:08:27,000 –> 00:08:29,660 this world can never be enough. 165 00:08:29,660 –> 00:08:32,719 And that is why the life that we as Christians follow 166 00:08:32,719 –> 00:08:35,460 flows from a very different love. 167 00:08:35,460 –> 00:08:37,700 We are called to love the Lord our God 168 00:08:37,700 –> 00:08:40,799 with all of our heart and soul and mind and strength. 169 00:08:40,799 –> 00:08:44,059 That is why Paul says, for me, to live is Christ, 170 00:08:44,059 –> 00:08:46,059 and Christ gives me strength. 171 00:08:46,059 –> 00:08:48,200 With Him I have found that I can face 172 00:08:48,200 –> 00:08:51,559 any and every circumstance of life in this world, 173 00:08:51,559 –> 00:08:53,419 and that is why I am content, 174 00:08:53,419 –> 00:08:56,280 because I know that if I had God 175 00:08:56,280 –> 00:09:00,020 and nothing else, I would have all that I need. 176 00:09:00,020 –> 00:09:02,039 And if I was to have everything else 177 00:09:02,039 –> 00:09:03,460 but not to have God, 178 00:09:03,460 –> 00:09:06,659 then I could not possibly be satisfied. 179 00:09:06,659 –> 00:09:07,739 Here’s the wonderful thing. 180 00:09:07,739 –> 00:09:09,780 God gives us Himself, 181 00:09:10,780 –> 00:09:15,659 the gift of infinite and indescribable value, 182 00:09:15,659 –> 00:09:18,119 the gift to which no other gift in this world 183 00:09:18,119 –> 00:09:21,059 could ever be compared. 184 00:09:21,080 –> 00:09:22,880 Your love, says the psalmist, 185 00:09:22,880 –> 00:09:25,500 is better than life itself. 186 00:09:25,500 –> 00:09:26,859 Whatever life throws at me, 187 00:09:26,859 –> 00:09:29,799 what matters to me is that I have you, 188 00:09:29,799 –> 00:09:32,559 oh Lord, my God. 189 00:09:32,559 –> 00:09:34,039 Think about this. 190 00:09:35,159 –> 00:09:38,659 If God is not enough for you, 191 00:09:39,700 –> 00:09:43,299 nothing will ever be enough for you. 192 00:09:44,700 –> 00:09:47,380 If God is not enough for you, 193 00:09:47,700 –> 00:09:52,700 nothing and no one will ever be enough for you. 194 00:09:55,500 –> 00:09:58,320 If you are not content with him, 195 00:09:58,320 –> 00:10:01,700 you will not be content with anything 196 00:10:01,700 –> 00:10:03,559 or with anyone, 197 00:10:04,419 –> 00:10:08,320 which is why the great Saint Augustine said to God, 198 00:10:08,320 –> 00:10:13,320 thou hast made us for thyself and our hearts 199 00:10:13,900 –> 00:10:18,820 are restless until they find their rest in thee. 200 00:10:18,820 –> 00:10:21,719 That’s the only place that contentment is ever to be found. 201 00:10:24,159 –> 00:10:25,580 Be content with what you have. 202 00:10:25,580 –> 00:10:28,080 Let me offer two practical suggestions today 203 00:10:28,080 –> 00:10:30,460 for pursuing this contentment. 204 00:10:30,460 –> 00:10:32,880 First, enjoy what you have been given. 205 00:10:34,460 –> 00:10:36,880 Burroughs makes this point, I think, very helpfully, 206 00:10:36,880 –> 00:10:40,299 that contentment does not come by adding to what you have, 207 00:10:40,479 –> 00:10:42,979 but by subtracting from what you desire. 208 00:10:44,599 –> 00:10:46,880 The world says you will find contentment 209 00:10:46,880 –> 00:10:50,460 when your possessions rise to the level of your desires. 210 00:10:50,460 –> 00:10:51,619 This is what I want. 211 00:10:51,619 –> 00:10:55,000 When I can get my possessions up to the level of my desires, 212 00:10:55,000 –> 00:10:58,440 the world says, well, then you will be content. 213 00:10:58,440 –> 00:11:00,640 But the Christian knows and has found 214 00:11:00,640 –> 00:11:03,520 another way of contentment. 215 00:11:03,520 –> 00:11:07,380 It is not bringing possessions up to desires. 216 00:11:07,380 –> 00:11:12,380 It is bringing desires in line with possessions. 217 00:11:12,659 –> 00:11:15,260 Find joy in what God has given to you. 218 00:11:15,260 –> 00:11:18,380 So just out in the foyer the other week during this series, 219 00:11:18,380 –> 00:11:20,719 a lady in the congregation said, 220 00:11:20,719 –> 00:11:23,159 this is really a very, very wonderful thing. 221 00:11:23,159 –> 00:11:24,419 She said, what you were talking about 222 00:11:24,419 –> 00:11:27,179 I experienced just earlier today. 223 00:11:27,179 –> 00:11:28,679 She said I was at my friend’s house. 224 00:11:28,679 –> 00:11:30,580 It’s a huge house, a fantastic house, 225 00:11:30,580 –> 00:11:32,780 way grander than anything that we have. 226 00:11:32,780 –> 00:11:36,260 And she said, I came home and I went into my own house 227 00:11:36,299 –> 00:11:40,099 and I said I love the house that I have. 228 00:11:40,099 –> 00:11:41,440 That’s contentment. 229 00:11:42,260 –> 00:11:45,700 To find joy in what God has given you 230 00:11:46,580 –> 00:11:48,460 rather than to spend all of your time 231 00:11:48,460 –> 00:11:52,340 looking at what God has given to someone else. 232 00:11:52,340 –> 00:11:53,859 Enjoy what you have been given 233 00:11:53,859 –> 00:11:58,140 and remember to make the right comparisons. 234 00:11:58,140 –> 00:11:58,979 Now of course we all know 235 00:11:58,979 –> 00:12:00,559 that making the wrong comparisons 236 00:12:00,559 –> 00:12:03,799 is a major source of discontentment in life 237 00:12:03,940 –> 00:12:06,340 and we instinctively and often look at people 238 00:12:06,340 –> 00:12:08,919 who have more, people who enjoy blessings 239 00:12:08,919 –> 00:12:10,179 that were not given to us, 240 00:12:10,179 –> 00:12:11,559 and now why do they have that 241 00:12:11,559 –> 00:12:14,880 and why is that not being given to me? 242 00:12:14,880 –> 00:12:18,520 But a wise writer by the name of Thomas Watson 243 00:12:18,520 –> 00:12:20,320 is very helpful on this 244 00:12:20,320 –> 00:12:23,979 and says that if we make the right comparisons, 245 00:12:23,979 –> 00:12:26,599 it will actually help us in cultivating 246 00:12:26,599 –> 00:12:28,520 this art of contentment 247 00:12:28,520 –> 00:12:32,619 that we have set our minds and our hearts upon. 248 00:12:32,640 –> 00:12:34,659 You’ll pick up, as I just go through very briefly, 249 00:12:34,659 –> 00:12:36,679 some of his suggestions 250 00:12:36,679 –> 00:12:38,640 that he was writing, again, 251 00:12:38,640 –> 00:12:42,460 in a century when many Christian leaders in England 252 00:12:42,460 –> 00:12:46,400 were being imprisoned on account of their ministry, 253 00:12:46,400 –> 00:12:50,099 and so finding contentment in relation to being in prison 254 00:12:50,099 –> 00:12:51,780 was an issue for them, 255 00:12:51,780 –> 00:12:53,859 as it was for the apostle Paul, 256 00:12:53,859 –> 00:12:57,299 even when he wrote, The Letters of Philippians. 257 00:12:57,299 –> 00:12:59,679 Here are Watson’s suggestions, 258 00:12:59,960 –> 00:13:02,020 but he suggests five comparisons 259 00:13:02,020 –> 00:13:04,359 that help us to be content. 260 00:13:04,359 –> 00:13:08,460 He says compare your condition with what you deserve. 261 00:13:08,460 –> 00:13:10,739 There’s a good comparison. 262 00:13:10,739 –> 00:13:12,500 When it comes to kindness and mercy, 263 00:13:12,500 –> 00:13:16,260 God has given me far more than I ever deserved, 264 00:13:16,260 –> 00:13:18,619 and when it has come to trouble and hardship, 265 00:13:18,619 –> 00:13:22,460 he has given me far less than I have deserved. 266 00:13:23,580 –> 00:13:25,020 He says this. 267 00:13:25,020 –> 00:13:27,520 Has God taken away our estate? 268 00:13:28,299 –> 00:13:30,719 He might have taken away Christ. 269 00:13:31,619 –> 00:13:33,859 Has he thrown us into prison? 270 00:13:34,919 –> 00:13:37,659 He might have thrown us into hell. 271 00:13:37,659 –> 00:13:40,580 So compare your condition with what it is 272 00:13:40,580 –> 00:13:41,919 that you actually deserve, 273 00:13:41,919 –> 00:13:43,559 and when you know yourself to be a sinner, 274 00:13:43,559 –> 00:13:45,900 as every true Christian does, 275 00:13:45,900 –> 00:13:47,940 that actually greatly helps you 276 00:13:47,940 –> 00:13:49,340 in the pursuit of contentment. 277 00:13:49,340 –> 00:13:53,500 Second, compare your condition with others who have less, 278 00:13:53,500 –> 00:13:55,179 and his point here is simple. 279 00:13:55,200 –> 00:13:57,580 We easily look to those who have more 280 00:13:57,580 –> 00:13:59,739 and feel discontented. 281 00:13:59,739 –> 00:14:01,979 Instead, we should be very, very thankful 282 00:14:01,979 –> 00:14:03,840 for what God has given to us, 283 00:14:03,840 –> 00:14:06,320 and I love his comment on this. 284 00:14:06,320 –> 00:14:08,859 Speaking, no doubt, to believers in prison, 285 00:14:08,859 –> 00:14:12,020 he says, am I in prison? 286 00:14:12,859 –> 00:14:15,940 You just imagine a Christian pastor, 287 00:14:15,940 –> 00:14:17,780 and he’s saying, what in the world’s going on? 288 00:14:17,780 –> 00:14:20,299 I’m in prison and just for faithfully preaching 289 00:14:20,299 –> 00:14:21,460 the gospel in England. 290 00:14:21,460 –> 00:14:23,159 I mean, how can this possibly be? 291 00:14:23,260 –> 00:14:26,440 The temptation to be discontent, 292 00:14:26,440 –> 00:14:29,520 and here’s Thomas Watson’s exhortation. 293 00:14:29,520 –> 00:14:31,799 Am I in prison? 294 00:14:31,799 –> 00:14:35,619 Was Daniel not in a worse place in the lion’s den? 295 00:14:35,619 –> 00:14:37,020 I really like that. 296 00:14:37,020 –> 00:14:37,880 Oh, thank God. 297 00:14:37,880 –> 00:14:38,880 I’m only in prison. 298 00:14:38,880 –> 00:14:41,380 I’m not in the lion’s den. 299 00:14:41,380 –> 00:14:43,719 You get where he is going with this. 300 00:14:43,719 –> 00:14:46,000 I looked at the Internet a couple of times, 301 00:14:46,000 –> 00:14:47,559 only a couple of times in relation 302 00:14:47,559 –> 00:14:49,640 to contentment, all kinds of quotes, 303 00:14:49,640 –> 00:14:51,679 most of them completely useless. 304 00:14:51,840 –> 00:14:53,440 But I found one … 305 00:14:53,440 –> 00:14:56,700 I found one that had thousands of likes, 306 00:14:56,700 –> 00:14:58,820 but everything else seemed to have a dozen or so, 307 00:14:58,820 –> 00:15:01,719 and I can see why it was so popular. 308 00:15:01,719 –> 00:15:02,840 Someone has said this. 309 00:15:02,840 –> 00:15:07,159 I moaned because I had no shoes 310 00:15:07,159 –> 00:15:10,080 until I met a man who had no feet. 311 00:15:10,080 –> 00:15:12,739 Until I met a man who had no feet. 312 00:15:12,739 –> 00:15:13,580 It catches something. 313 00:15:13,580 –> 00:15:18,580 Number three, compare your condition with Christ’s on Earth. 314 00:15:18,679 –> 00:15:20,520 Are you unhappy with your home? 315 00:15:21,880 –> 00:15:24,179 Foxes have holes. 316 00:15:24,179 –> 00:15:26,640 Birds of the air have nests. 317 00:15:26,640 –> 00:15:30,520 The son of man had no place to lay his head. 318 00:15:30,520 –> 00:15:33,659 Are you unhappy about your appearance? 319 00:15:33,659 –> 00:15:37,440 He was disfigured, almost beyond recognition. 320 00:15:38,599 –> 00:15:41,380 Have your friends let you down? 321 00:15:41,380 –> 00:15:44,440 His disciples all forsook him and fled. 322 00:15:45,559 –> 00:15:47,500 Whenever you’re facing difficulty, 323 00:15:47,500 –> 00:15:52,059 it will help you to see how somewhere in his own experience 324 00:15:52,059 –> 00:15:55,280 your lord and saviour knew more about it 325 00:15:55,280 –> 00:15:57,979 than you will ever do. 326 00:15:57,979 –> 00:16:02,140 Number four, compare your condition with what it once was. 327 00:16:03,039 –> 00:16:05,619 Think about what your condition was 328 00:16:05,619 –> 00:16:08,020 when you were born into this world. 329 00:16:08,020 –> 00:16:12,460 Spiritually, we were heirs apparent of hell. 330 00:16:12,460 –> 00:16:14,520 That was the truth about me when I was born. 331 00:16:14,520 –> 00:16:16,900 It’s not the truth about me as a Christian now, 332 00:16:16,919 –> 00:16:18,559 but when I came into the world, 333 00:16:18,559 –> 00:16:20,580 that was what was true about me. 334 00:16:20,580 –> 00:16:22,979 That was my condition, it was desperate. 335 00:16:22,979 –> 00:16:24,679 But by the grace of Jesus Christ, 336 00:16:24,679 –> 00:16:26,119 that is not true of me now. 337 00:16:27,159 –> 00:16:29,059 And what about materially? 338 00:16:29,059 –> 00:16:30,859 How much did I bring into this world? 339 00:16:30,859 –> 00:16:32,299 Well, of course, Paul speaks about this 340 00:16:32,299 –> 00:16:34,119 in 1 Timothy 6, 341 00:16:34,119 –> 00:16:37,419 we brought nothing with us into this world. 342 00:16:37,419 –> 00:16:38,979 What did you have when you came into this world? 343 00:16:38,979 –> 00:16:40,380 Absolutely nothing. 344 00:16:40,380 –> 00:16:42,020 So however little you’ve got right now, 345 00:16:42,020 –> 00:16:43,059 you’ve got an awful lot more 346 00:16:43,059 –> 00:16:45,159 than you brought with you into this world. 347 00:16:46,159 –> 00:16:47,960 Number five, compare your condition 348 00:16:47,960 –> 00:16:49,260 with what it soon will be. 349 00:16:50,760 –> 00:16:52,659 There is a time coming very, very soon 350 00:16:54,159 –> 00:16:57,039 when everything that you have ever owned 351 00:16:57,039 –> 00:16:59,460 and everything that you ever have wanted in this world 352 00:16:59,460 –> 00:17:01,419 would be no use to you whatsoever. 353 00:17:02,520 –> 00:17:04,599 When we die, we must leave this world 354 00:17:04,599 –> 00:17:07,939 and all that is in it, behind. 355 00:17:07,939 –> 00:17:09,520 We brought nothing into this world 356 00:17:09,520 –> 00:17:11,359 and we will take nothing out of this world, 357 00:17:11,359 –> 00:17:13,439 1 Timothy chapter six, in verse seven. 358 00:17:13,439 –> 00:17:15,579 That is why the scripture says to us 359 00:17:15,579 –> 00:17:19,880 so, set your mind on things above where Christ is seated. 360 00:17:19,880 –> 00:17:23,060 Why, because your life, your real life, 361 00:17:23,060 –> 00:17:28,000 it’s hidden with Jesus Christ in God. 362 00:17:28,000 –> 00:17:30,859 So here’s this command and it’s really important. 363 00:17:30,859 –> 00:17:34,239 Let it be set in our minds and in our hearts 364 00:17:34,239 –> 00:17:37,760 from this month in which we focused on this together. 365 00:17:37,760 –> 00:17:42,739 Keep your life free, keep it free at all costs 366 00:17:42,800 –> 00:17:45,579 from the love of money 367 00:17:45,579 –> 00:17:50,579 and be content with what you have. 368 00:17:50,819 –> 00:17:51,819 There’s the command. 369 00:17:54,099 –> 00:17:57,500 Then secondly there’s a very very wonderful promise. 370 00:17:58,459 –> 00:18:01,260 Notice the word for that connects the two. 371 00:18:01,260 –> 00:18:03,420 Keep your life free from the love of money 372 00:18:04,359 –> 00:18:08,760 and be content with what you have for. 373 00:18:08,760 –> 00:18:11,780 So here’s a how statement, here’s a reason, 374 00:18:11,780 –> 00:18:16,699 here’s a motive, here’s a way in which you can fulfill 375 00:18:16,699 –> 00:18:19,060 what God has just commanded you to do. 376 00:18:19,060 –> 00:18:24,060 Here’s the how, for he has said, 377 00:18:24,380 –> 00:18:29,380 I will never leave you nor forsake you. 378 00:18:30,859 –> 00:18:35,180 Now this is a marvelous example 379 00:18:35,180 –> 00:18:38,579 of what we call gospel motivation 380 00:18:39,579 –> 00:18:43,280 that is peppered all the way through the scriptures 381 00:18:43,280 –> 00:18:45,459 Old Testament and New. 382 00:18:46,359 –> 00:18:50,040 Notice God does not say to us, 383 00:18:50,040 –> 00:18:52,459 he does not say to his children, 384 00:18:52,459 –> 00:18:55,660 keep your lives free from the love of money 385 00:18:55,660 –> 00:19:00,119 and be content with what you have or else, 386 00:19:00,119 –> 00:19:02,420 he doesn’t say, that’s not how he speaks. 387 00:19:03,300 –> 00:19:04,560 How does he speak? 388 00:19:05,500 –> 00:19:10,079 He gives a command and he follows it 389 00:19:10,079 –> 00:19:13,500 with a wonderful promise and to feel the power 390 00:19:13,500 –> 00:19:16,660 and the freedom and the life that is in this 391 00:19:16,660 –> 00:19:18,599 is life changing, 392 00:19:18,599 –> 00:19:21,160 keep your life free from the love of money 393 00:19:21,160 –> 00:19:23,900 and be content with what you have for, 394 00:19:23,900 –> 00:19:28,900 he has said I will never leave you nor forsake you. 395 00:19:29,699 –> 00:19:34,699 so the motive and the power for obeying the command 396 00:19:36,680 –> 00:19:39,900 lies in believing the promise, 397 00:19:39,900 –> 00:19:44,900 we obey God’s commands by believing his promises, 398 00:19:45,420 –> 00:19:49,000 that’s how you live the Christian life 399 00:19:49,000 –> 00:19:52,900 and friends what a marvelous, marvelous promise this is, 400 00:19:52,900 –> 00:19:56,339 I will never leave you. 401 00:19:57,160 –> 00:20:02,160 God says I will never forsake you. 402 00:20:04,579 –> 00:20:08,040 Now think about that, to be forsaken by God 403 00:20:08,040 –> 00:20:09,180 what would that be? 404 00:20:10,719 –> 00:20:12,680 To be forsaken by God 405 00:20:12,680 –> 00:20:15,880 would be the worst thing imaginable, 406 00:20:17,219 –> 00:20:22,219 a person forsaken by God would be completely alone, 407 00:20:22,420 –> 00:20:24,400 a person forsaken by God 408 00:20:24,459 –> 00:20:27,699 would be ultimately helpless, 409 00:20:27,699 –> 00:20:31,560 a person forsaken by God would be without hope 410 00:20:31,560 –> 00:20:32,979 in this world. 411 00:20:34,680 –> 00:20:37,680 To be forsaken by God 412 00:20:37,680 –> 00:20:42,300 would be the hell of hell itself. 413 00:20:43,939 –> 00:20:47,619 God says to his redeemed people in Jesus Christ 414 00:20:47,619 –> 00:20:51,619 that will never happen to you. 415 00:20:51,619 –> 00:20:52,479 It’s wonderful. 416 00:20:54,619 –> 00:20:56,239 You will never be alone. 417 00:20:57,920 –> 00:21:00,160 You will never be without help. 418 00:21:01,420 –> 00:21:03,199 You will never whatever you face 419 00:21:03,199 –> 00:21:06,640 and whatever you endure be without hope. 420 00:21:06,640 –> 00:21:10,920 Whatever happens, I will be with you God says, 421 00:21:10,920 –> 00:21:13,000 I will never leave you. 422 00:21:14,000 –> 00:21:18,439 I will never forsake you. 423 00:21:20,319 –> 00:21:22,560 Now, commentators point out, 424 00:21:22,560 –> 00:21:24,199 and almost all of them seem to refer 425 00:21:24,199 –> 00:21:26,160 to this that in the original language 426 00:21:26,160 –> 00:21:29,560 there are no less than five negatives 427 00:21:29,560 –> 00:21:32,160 in this statement from the mouth of God. 428 00:21:32,160 –> 00:21:35,760 In fact, you can’t translate it directly into English 429 00:21:35,760 –> 00:21:37,640 because of course in English, 430 00:21:37,640 –> 00:21:40,040 a double negative actually means a positive. 431 00:21:40,040 –> 00:21:41,400 So if you start heaping 432 00:21:41,400 –> 00:21:43,959 up negatives, it simply becomes confusing. 433 00:21:43,959 –> 00:21:45,800 But in Greek, a double negative 434 00:21:45,800 –> 00:21:48,020 or a triple negative or even more simply 435 00:21:48,020 –> 00:21:51,099 as a kind of double or triple underlining 436 00:21:51,099 –> 00:21:53,300 of the force of what is being said. 437 00:21:53,300 –> 00:21:54,920 And in this statement 438 00:21:54,920 –> 00:21:58,180 you have no less than five negatives 439 00:21:58,180 –> 00:22:02,560 all piled up one on top of another. 440 00:22:02,560 –> 00:22:04,199 So that one commentator says 441 00:22:04,199 –> 00:22:08,359 this is perhaps the strongest negation 442 00:22:08,359 –> 00:22:11,239 in all of the Bible. 443 00:22:11,239 –> 00:22:13,079 Perhaps the best way to phrase it 444 00:22:13,079 –> 00:22:15,040 would be just to put it like this. 445 00:22:15,040 –> 00:22:18,479 I will never, never leave you. 446 00:22:19,459 –> 00:22:24,459 I will never, never, never forsake you. 447 00:22:25,660 –> 00:22:28,819 In fact, when Spurgeon preached on this verse 448 00:22:28,819 –> 00:22:31,900 he chose a five word title. 449 00:22:32,739 –> 00:22:35,800 Never, never, never, never, never. 450 00:22:35,800 –> 00:22:37,260 That was the title of his sermon 451 00:22:37,260 –> 00:22:38,699 and that absolutely captures it. 452 00:22:38,699 –> 00:22:40,599 That’s what you have here. 453 00:22:40,599 –> 00:22:42,540 A five fold never 454 00:22:43,500 –> 00:22:45,900 so that the sheer strength of the promise 455 00:22:45,959 –> 00:22:50,880 should be underlying no less than five times 456 00:22:50,880 –> 00:22:54,420 for God’s own people. 457 00:22:54,420 –> 00:22:57,400 Now let me just make three simple comments 458 00:22:57,400 –> 00:23:00,099 from this wonderful, wonderful promise 459 00:23:00,099 –> 00:23:03,000 that we want to try and take into our souls today 460 00:23:03,000 –> 00:23:06,160 to believe the promise so that we may obey the command. 461 00:23:06,160 –> 00:23:09,520 This is a promise that you can trust. 462 00:23:09,520 –> 00:23:11,520 You really can trust this promise 463 00:23:11,520 –> 00:23:13,880 because it’s God himself who has made it 464 00:23:13,880 –> 00:23:15,380 and he has made it to you. 465 00:23:16,579 –> 00:23:19,420 Think who he is to you. 466 00:23:20,579 –> 00:23:23,180 He is the Father who loves you. 467 00:23:24,219 –> 00:23:28,260 He is the Savior who redeems you 468 00:23:28,260 –> 00:23:32,060 at the cost of laying down his own life on the cross. 469 00:23:32,060 –> 00:23:34,819 He is the Spirit who indwells you, 470 00:23:34,819 –> 00:23:36,280 who lives within you. 471 00:23:37,680 –> 00:23:41,979 So when God says to you brother, sister in Christ, 472 00:23:41,979 –> 00:23:45,459 when God says to you, I will never, never leave you 473 00:23:45,579 –> 00:23:48,300 and I will never, never, never forsake you. 474 00:23:49,260 –> 00:23:52,619 He is saying there will never be a time 475 00:23:52,619 –> 00:23:54,979 or circumstance in your life 476 00:23:54,979 –> 00:23:57,479 when you do not have a Father who loves you. 477 00:23:58,699 –> 00:24:01,140 There will never be anything that you will ever face 478 00:24:01,140 –> 00:24:04,459 where you do not have a Savior who will keep you. 479 00:24:05,420 –> 00:24:07,260 There will never be a time in your life 480 00:24:07,260 –> 00:24:09,900 or a circumstance that you will ever face 481 00:24:09,900 –> 00:24:11,839 that you will not have the presence 482 00:24:11,839 –> 00:24:15,260 and the power of the Holy Spirit to sustain you 483 00:24:15,859 –> 00:24:19,020 at that moment and in that time. 484 00:24:19,979 –> 00:24:24,859 Friends, Christian contentment is actually birthed here. 485 00:24:24,859 –> 00:24:29,859 Whatever happens, this remains true for you 486 00:24:30,020 –> 00:24:32,180 that God will never leave you. 487 00:24:32,180 –> 00:24:34,099 He will never forsake you, 488 00:24:34,099 –> 00:24:37,540 and a Christian who takes that into his or her soul 489 00:24:37,540 –> 00:24:42,219 will say, I can live on that. 490 00:24:42,300 –> 00:24:43,739 I can live on it. 491 00:24:43,739 –> 00:24:44,599 I can live on it. 492 00:24:45,579 –> 00:24:46,420 Whatever. 493 00:24:48,719 –> 00:24:52,219 And think about this not only from the angle 494 00:24:52,219 –> 00:24:53,400 of who God is to you, 495 00:24:53,400 –> 00:24:56,819 think about it from the angle of who you are to God. 496 00:24:57,880 –> 00:25:01,880 How does God describe his own people? 497 00:25:03,540 –> 00:25:07,680 Well, to God the father you are his child, 498 00:25:08,219 –> 00:25:12,739 and to God the son you are his brother. 499 00:25:12,739 –> 00:25:14,819 He has become a brother to us, 500 00:25:14,819 –> 00:25:17,880 our brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. 501 00:25:17,880 –> 00:25:20,219 To God the spirit who indwells you, 502 00:25:20,219 –> 00:25:22,020 you are his own home. 503 00:25:23,300 –> 00:25:26,180 So think about the intimate language 504 00:25:26,180 –> 00:25:29,260 that God deploys to communicate 505 00:25:29,260 –> 00:25:32,859 to his own children just what we are to him. 506 00:25:32,859 –> 00:25:35,280 You are his child, you are his brother, 507 00:25:35,280 –> 00:25:37,060 you are his home. 508 00:25:37,839 –> 00:25:41,520 So when he says I will never leave you, 509 00:25:41,520 –> 00:25:45,359 God the father is saying, I will never leave my child. 510 00:25:45,359 –> 00:25:48,560 God the son is saying I will never leave my brother. 511 00:25:48,560 –> 00:25:52,280 God the spirit is saying, I will never leave my home. 512 00:25:53,739 –> 00:25:55,000 He has made this promise, 513 00:25:55,000 –> 00:25:58,699 he has made it in the strongest possible language, 514 00:25:58,699 –> 00:26:00,680 underlined five times. 515 00:26:00,680 –> 00:26:03,719 He has made it to his own children 516 00:26:03,719 –> 00:26:04,920 and his own honor 517 00:26:05,920 –> 00:26:09,839 hangs on his keeping his word. 518 00:26:09,839 –> 00:26:13,680 You can depend on this promise, 519 00:26:13,680 –> 00:26:17,880 and life and death and for all eternity, marvelous. 520 00:26:19,040 –> 00:26:21,959 Second, never forget that this promise is ours 521 00:26:21,959 –> 00:26:23,719 because of Jesus Christ. 522 00:26:24,839 –> 00:26:27,000 You know the Bible says all of God’s promises, 523 00:26:27,000 –> 00:26:29,560 they’re all yes and amen and Christ, 524 00:26:29,560 –> 00:26:32,000 which simply means, that without Jesus Christ 525 00:26:32,000 –> 00:26:34,640 none of us would have any promises from God at all. 526 00:26:35,619 –> 00:26:37,099 They are all ours in him, 527 00:26:37,099 –> 00:26:39,199 they are all ours through faith in him 528 00:26:39,199 –> 00:26:41,479 and they are all ours because of him. 529 00:26:43,359 –> 00:26:47,160 People who have been through terrible experiences in life 530 00:26:48,079 –> 00:26:52,920 might sometimes say, I have been through hell. 531 00:26:54,219 –> 00:26:58,439 But you know, that is something that is not possible 532 00:26:58,439 –> 00:26:59,859 for a Christian. 533 00:27:00,560 –> 00:27:04,800 There is only one person in all of human history 534 00:27:05,880 –> 00:27:08,739 who has ever endured hell on earth 535 00:27:10,199 –> 00:27:12,260 and that is Jesus Christ. 536 00:27:12,260 –> 00:27:14,099 And you remember what was at the heart of it 537 00:27:14,099 –> 00:27:16,219 and at the depth of it in the darkness? 538 00:27:17,900 –> 00:27:22,900 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? 539 00:27:23,300 –> 00:27:26,040 Forsaken me. 540 00:27:28,180 –> 00:27:32,619 Christ entered into that forsakenness 541 00:27:32,619 –> 00:27:37,619 so that in him you would never know what that is like. 542 00:27:37,900 –> 00:27:41,500 Not in life, not in death, not ever. 543 00:27:43,479 –> 00:27:45,900 And it’s yours in Jesus Christ, 544 00:27:45,900 –> 00:27:47,599 could not possibly be without him. 545 00:27:48,859 –> 00:27:49,760 But because of him, 546 00:27:49,760 –> 00:27:52,160 God is able to say to all of us his children, 547 00:27:52,680 –> 00:27:56,619 I will never, never, never forsake you. 548 00:27:57,579 –> 00:27:58,839 That’s ours in Christ. 549 00:28:00,040 –> 00:28:02,119 And the last thing I wanted to say is simply this, 550 00:28:02,119 –> 00:28:04,079 that you can dra on this promise 551 00:28:04,079 –> 00:28:07,400 and we will need to keep drawing on this promise 552 00:28:07,400 –> 00:28:08,959 time and time and time again 553 00:28:08,959 –> 00:28:11,599 in the various experiences of our lives. 554 00:28:12,479 –> 00:28:14,560 And as I was just reflecting on the question, 555 00:28:14,560 –> 00:28:17,760 when do I most need to draw on this promise? 556 00:28:17,760 –> 00:28:20,699 I was actually helped by remembering 557 00:28:20,699 –> 00:28:24,479 this is not the first time that these words, 558 00:28:24,479 –> 00:28:26,380 I will never leave you, I will never forsake you, 559 00:28:26,380 –> 00:28:27,219 occur in the Bible. 560 00:28:27,219 –> 00:28:29,239 Anyone who’s studied the Bible at all, 561 00:28:29,239 –> 00:28:31,979 you know that that’s somewhere in the Old Testament 562 00:28:31,979 –> 00:28:34,920 more than once and these are not words 563 00:28:34,920 –> 00:28:37,040 that are being spoken by God for the first time. 564 00:28:37,040 –> 00:28:38,540 So I just ask the question, 565 00:28:38,540 –> 00:28:39,680 it’s helpful to ask the question, 566 00:28:39,680 –> 00:28:42,339 when did God give such a promise before? 567 00:28:42,339 –> 00:28:44,020 And it’s helped me just to think about 568 00:28:44,020 –> 00:28:46,140 when we most need to hear such words. 569 00:28:46,140 –> 00:28:48,380 Let me give you just these three suggestions. 570 00:28:49,180 –> 00:28:52,920 First, we will need to draw deeply on these words 571 00:28:52,920 –> 00:28:56,719 when you are facing an overwhelming challenge. 572 00:28:58,040 –> 00:29:00,160 And I got to that by reflecting on the fact 573 00:29:00,160 –> 00:29:04,119 that early on, God gave exactly this promise to Joshua 574 00:29:05,119 –> 00:29:08,660 when he was facing the overwhelming challenge 575 00:29:08,660 –> 00:29:11,459 of stepping into the shoes of Moses. 576 00:29:11,459 –> 00:29:14,260 I mean, can you imagine what that’s like? 577 00:29:14,260 –> 00:29:17,540 I mean, would you like that job, Moses’ successor? 578 00:29:17,540 –> 00:29:19,439 Who wants that job? 579 00:29:19,439 –> 00:29:22,579 And your starting place for ministry is the wilderness 580 00:29:22,579 –> 00:29:24,599 and the expectation is that you’ll lead 581 00:29:24,599 –> 00:29:26,939 through all of the conquest and into the promised land. 582 00:29:26,939 –> 00:29:28,160 You know, nothing too difficult. 583 00:29:28,160 –> 00:29:31,319 And how would you like to be Joshua? 584 00:29:31,319 –> 00:29:33,660 Overwhelming challenge. 585 00:29:34,719 –> 00:29:36,819 And Joshua chapter 1, verse 5 and six. 586 00:29:36,819 –> 00:29:37,939 Most of you know this well. 587 00:29:37,939 –> 00:29:39,479 What does God say to him? 588 00:29:39,479 –> 00:29:42,560 Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 589 00:29:42,560 –> 00:29:43,400 Here it is. 590 00:29:43,400 –> 00:29:46,359 I will not leave you or forsake you, 591 00:29:46,359 –> 00:29:49,079 so be strong and be courageous. 592 00:29:50,060 –> 00:29:52,959 And you know, this promise of God is given to his people 593 00:29:52,959 –> 00:29:56,939 time and again in circumstances of trouble. 594 00:29:56,939 –> 00:29:59,719 When you pass through the waters, 595 00:29:59,719 –> 00:30:02,239 I will be with you. 596 00:30:02,239 –> 00:30:06,000 We’re to draw on this promise whenever we are facing times 597 00:30:06,000 –> 00:30:09,599 of particular difficulty. 598 00:30:09,599 –> 00:30:12,719 The presence of Jesus Christ in trouble 599 00:30:12,719 –> 00:30:15,680 is the Christian answer to fear. 600 00:30:15,680 –> 00:30:18,800 When you know that God has said, I will never leave you, 601 00:30:18,800 –> 00:30:22,599 then you are able to say, I will not be afraid, 602 00:30:22,599 –> 00:30:24,219 what can man do to me? 603 00:30:25,160 –> 00:30:28,859 So, as some in the congregation today 604 00:30:28,859 –> 00:30:30,800 are in particular times of trouble, 605 00:30:30,800 –> 00:30:32,140 this is the promise for you. 606 00:30:32,140 –> 00:30:33,739 This is the time when you need 607 00:30:33,739 –> 00:30:36,040 to draw deeply on this promise. 608 00:30:36,040 –> 00:30:40,040 God, himself, says I’m with you and I will never leave you 609 00:30:40,040 –> 00:30:43,660 and I will never, never, never forsake you. 610 00:30:44,500 –> 00:30:48,660 Second, we may need to draw deep on this promise 611 00:30:49,619 –> 00:30:53,780 at times when we are being called to take a step of faith. 612 00:30:55,560 –> 00:30:57,739 I came to this by reflecting on the fact 613 00:30:57,739 –> 00:31:01,599 that God gave this promise to Solomon 614 00:31:01,599 –> 00:31:05,760 who was actually in the opposite position from Joshua. 615 00:31:07,020 –> 00:31:10,540 Solomon’s father had established a kingdom. 616 00:31:10,540 –> 00:31:12,339 David brought Israel, 617 00:31:13,920 –> 00:31:16,420 Israel to the very height, 618 00:31:16,420 –> 00:31:20,099 secured the borders, subdued the enemies, 619 00:31:20,099 –> 00:31:23,280 passed onto his son the most marvelous legacy 620 00:31:23,280 –> 00:31:26,859 of things in the best position imaginable. 621 00:31:28,420 –> 00:31:30,800 Of course, what happens when you are 622 00:31:30,800 –> 00:31:33,579 brought into a situation of great blessing? 623 00:31:33,579 –> 00:31:35,119 Put yourself in Solomon’s shoes. 624 00:31:35,119 –> 00:31:36,680 What’s your great temptation? 625 00:31:36,680 –> 00:31:39,880 It is to simply settle down and live on the legacy 626 00:31:39,880 –> 00:31:42,780 and settle into your comfort zone, 627 00:31:42,859 –> 00:31:45,540 to play it safe, to hold back. 628 00:31:45,540 –> 00:31:48,300 I mean, Solomon so easily could’ve said, 629 00:31:48,300 –> 00:31:52,160 look, even my father, David, didn’t do something 630 00:31:52,160 –> 00:31:55,339 so audacious as to try and build a temple 631 00:31:55,339 –> 00:31:58,680 that would be one of the wonders of the world for the Lord, 632 00:31:58,680 –> 00:32:01,800 so why should I, Solomon, try and engage 633 00:32:01,800 –> 00:32:04,160 in something so risky, so difficult, 634 00:32:04,160 –> 00:32:07,160 so demanding, and so costly as this? 635 00:32:09,180 –> 00:32:11,219 There are times when the greatest temptation 636 00:32:11,219 –> 00:32:13,380 is simply to play it safe. 637 00:32:15,619 –> 00:32:19,780 When God may be calling you to take a step of faith, 638 00:32:20,760 –> 00:32:22,719 and when you sense that you’re in that moment 639 00:32:22,719 –> 00:32:24,439 of your life, you’re gonna need to draw 640 00:32:24,439 –> 00:32:26,219 very, very deep on this promise. 641 00:32:26,219 –> 00:32:30,859 I will never leave you, and I will never forsake you. 642 00:32:30,859 –> 00:32:32,900 The Bible records David’s last words 643 00:32:32,900 –> 00:32:35,880 to Solomon, his son, it’s in 1 Chronicles 644 00:32:35,880 –> 00:32:39,199 chapter 28, it’s absolutely fascinating. 645 00:32:39,640 –> 00:32:41,540 Here is David, the old man, and he makes 646 00:32:41,540 –> 00:32:43,979 this long list of all that he’s done 647 00:32:43,979 –> 00:32:47,239 to gather the materials for building the temple. 648 00:32:47,239 –> 00:32:50,560 The detail is astonishing, he goes into it all. 649 00:32:50,560 –> 00:32:53,140 Solomon, I’m gonna give you the plans for the temple. 650 00:32:53,140 –> 00:32:55,300 I’m gonna give you the gold for the lamp stands, 651 00:32:55,300 –> 00:32:58,160 the forks, the cups, the table, and all the rest of it. 652 00:32:58,160 –> 00:33:01,339 Then it says this, 1 Chronicles 28 30, 653 00:33:01,339 –> 00:33:04,479 David said to Solomon, his son, 654 00:33:04,479 –> 00:33:06,479 be strong and courageous 655 00:33:06,800 –> 00:33:08,219 and do it, do it. 656 00:33:12,060 –> 00:33:14,500 Do not afraid and do not be dismayed 657 00:33:14,500 –> 00:33:17,479 for the Lord, your God, even my God, is with you. 658 00:33:17,479 –> 00:33:20,560 He will not leave you or forsake you 659 00:33:24,020 –> 00:33:25,540 until all the work for the service 660 00:33:25,540 –> 00:33:28,619 of the house of the Lord is finished. 661 00:33:29,540 –> 00:33:33,180 You see what David’s last words to his son are? 662 00:33:33,319 –> 00:33:37,079 Solomon, you have been put in a position 663 00:33:37,079 –> 00:33:41,079 of being trusted by me with marvelous resources. 664 00:33:43,219 –> 00:33:46,660 Make sure you use them for the building of God’s house. 665 00:33:46,660 –> 00:33:49,780 That’s what David says to Solomon. 666 00:33:49,780 –> 00:33:52,180 Don’t settle back into living in 667 00:33:52,180 –> 00:33:56,359 your own comfort zone and squander the lot in yourself. 668 00:33:57,880 –> 00:33:59,420 And here’s how you can have the confidence 669 00:33:59,500 –> 00:34:00,780 to take a step of faith. 670 00:34:00,780 –> 00:34:02,640 God has said, I will never leave you, 671 00:34:03,599 –> 00:34:07,099 and I will never forsake you. 672 00:34:08,899 –> 00:34:12,659 Third, draw deep on this promise 673 00:34:13,620 –> 00:34:18,620 when following Christ has really been costly. 674 00:34:21,179 –> 00:34:22,560 And here we come back to Hebrews, 675 00:34:22,560 –> 00:34:25,100 where God give the promise again in the New Testament. 676 00:34:25,100 –> 00:34:27,139 And what was the situation of these people 677 00:34:27,340 –> 00:34:30,379 when you first received that promise in this book? 678 00:34:30,379 –> 00:34:33,780 It was simply this, that following Jesus Christ 679 00:34:33,780 –> 00:34:37,459 had become very, very costly for them. 680 00:34:38,540 –> 00:34:40,540 In Hebrews chapter 10 in verse 34, 681 00:34:40,540 –> 00:34:43,959 we’re told this, that the Hebrews had compassion 682 00:34:43,959 –> 00:34:45,260 on those who were imprisoned. 683 00:34:45,260 –> 00:34:48,699 So some had been imprisoned on account of their faith. 684 00:34:48,699 –> 00:34:52,780 And you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property 685 00:34:52,780 –> 00:34:56,020 since you knew that you yourselves had better possessions. 686 00:34:56,020 –> 00:34:58,379 In other words, the authorities had come in. 687 00:34:58,379 –> 00:35:01,379 They had taken dictatorial control. 688 00:35:01,379 –> 00:35:04,020 They had simply confiscated the property 689 00:35:04,020 –> 00:35:06,719 of believers because they were believers. 690 00:35:07,699 –> 00:35:08,820 And here are these folks 691 00:35:08,820 –> 00:35:10,780 who have been trying to build up a livelihood, 692 00:35:10,780 –> 00:35:13,060 and now they’ve got so, so much less, 693 00:35:13,060 –> 00:35:15,459 and the only reason that they have suffered 694 00:35:15,459 –> 00:35:17,780 this particular persecution and this loss 695 00:35:17,780 –> 00:35:21,020 is that they were followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. 696 00:35:21,020 –> 00:35:23,139 And no doubt there were some of them 697 00:35:23,139 –> 00:35:25,979 who were just beginning to struggle with the question, 698 00:35:25,979 –> 00:35:28,020 is this really worth it when I look at all 699 00:35:28,020 –> 00:35:31,659 that it’s costing me to follow Jesus? 700 00:35:31,659 –> 00:35:34,600 And it seems that there’s this enormous hostility 701 00:35:34,600 –> 00:35:37,600 against me and many more people who are 702 00:35:37,600 –> 00:35:39,879 in a completely different place 703 00:35:39,879 –> 00:35:41,879 than those who are standing with me here. 704 00:35:41,879 –> 00:35:43,020 Is it really worth it? 705 00:35:43,020 –> 00:35:44,500 And that’s why the book of Hebrews 706 00:35:44,500 –> 00:35:49,139 has so much about persevering and about not turning back. 707 00:35:49,139 –> 00:35:53,879 And it comes to this in the very last chapter. 708 00:35:53,879 –> 00:35:57,739 Keep your life free from the love of money 709 00:35:57,739 –> 00:36:00,080 and be content with what you have, 710 00:36:00,080 –> 00:36:03,760 even if it’s a lot less than it used to be 711 00:36:03,760 –> 00:36:05,280 because you’ve been plundered 712 00:36:05,280 –> 00:36:06,760 and you’ve really suffered a great loss 713 00:36:06,760 –> 00:36:09,379 on account of your faith. 714 00:36:09,379 –> 00:36:11,820 And here’s how you can do it. 715 00:36:11,820 –> 00:36:13,639 Because God has said, 716 00:36:14,340 –> 00:36:16,540 I will never leave you 717 00:36:16,540 –> 00:36:18,959 and I will never forsake you. 718 00:36:20,040 –> 00:36:22,679 And as I’ve been praying and preparing the message, 719 00:36:22,679 –> 00:36:24,520 my mind has been going out 720 00:36:24,520 –> 00:36:28,219 to many, many folks in the congregation 721 00:36:28,219 –> 00:36:31,600 who in very, very different ways have found 722 00:36:31,600 –> 00:36:33,699 that following Jesus Christ 723 00:36:33,699 –> 00:36:36,179 has truly been costly for you. 724 00:36:38,340 –> 00:36:40,840 There is real, measurable loss 725 00:36:42,060 –> 00:36:45,020 because of your commitment to integrity, 726 00:36:45,020 –> 00:36:46,820 because you took a stand 727 00:36:46,860 –> 00:36:49,659 and were baptised as a Christian believer 728 00:36:49,659 –> 00:36:52,820 and then were disowned and will not inherit 729 00:36:52,820 –> 00:36:54,620 and all of this, 730 00:36:54,620 –> 00:36:57,939 and your life could have been much, much easier 731 00:36:57,939 –> 00:37:01,239 if you had chosen a different path 732 00:37:01,239 –> 00:37:03,979 but you chose to walk the path of Jesus 733 00:37:03,979 –> 00:37:05,899 and to take up the cross 734 00:37:06,879 –> 00:37:11,199 that He holds before you and to follow Him. 735 00:37:11,199 –> 00:37:12,899 And he says to you, 736 00:37:12,899 –> 00:37:14,959 and when you have felt the cost, 737 00:37:14,959 –> 00:37:17,739 the need to hear it, and to take it in, 738 00:37:17,739 –> 00:37:20,280 He say to you now, 739 00:37:21,100 –> 00:37:25,780 I will never, never, leave you. 740 00:37:27,100 –> 00:37:31,540 I will never, never, never, 741 00:37:32,659 –> 00:37:35,080 forsake you, never. 742 00:37:37,979 –> 00:37:41,820 Command that we are able to follow 743 00:37:41,820 –> 00:37:43,699 as we believe our promise 744 00:37:45,280 –> 00:37:49,320 that then brings us into a place of marvelous freedom 745 00:37:49,320 –> 00:37:51,459 in which we can make this response. 746 00:37:51,459 –> 00:37:52,300 Look at it. 747 00:37:52,300 –> 00:37:55,820 He has said, I will never leave you. 748 00:37:55,820 –> 00:37:58,219 I will never forsake you. 749 00:37:58,219 –> 00:38:02,620 So, we can confidently say 750 00:38:02,620 –> 00:38:04,479 this is what you have as a Christian. 751 00:38:06,000 –> 00:38:07,600 However costly it has been, 752 00:38:07,600 –> 00:38:10,439 this is the position that as a believer 753 00:38:10,439 –> 00:38:12,479 who is following after Jesus Christ 754 00:38:12,479 –> 00:38:13,659 that you are brought into. 755 00:38:13,739 –> 00:38:17,739 You’re brought into a place where you can confidently say, 756 00:38:19,300 –> 00:38:22,159 the Lord is my helper. 757 00:38:23,979 –> 00:38:25,399 I will not fear. 758 00:38:27,020 –> 00:38:28,560 What can man do to me? 759 00:38:30,360 –> 00:38:32,500 And when because you’re obeying the command 760 00:38:32,500 –> 00:38:35,100 by believing the promise you are brought to a place 761 00:38:35,100 –> 00:38:36,979 where you can say that, you know what? 762 00:38:38,520 –> 00:38:43,520 You have learned the secret of being content. 763 00:38:44,600 –> 00:38:46,159 Let’s pray together, shall we? 764 00:38:48,699 –> 00:38:53,699 Father, we’re asking that you would bring us 765 00:38:55,659 –> 00:39:00,659 truly to the place where Jesus Christ is more to us 766 00:39:00,699 –> 00:39:01,679 than all the world. 767 00:39:04,000 –> 00:39:08,899 And where we are able pursuing your command 768 00:39:08,899 –> 00:39:10,780 by believing in your promise 769 00:39:12,600 –> 00:39:17,600 to be the only people in the world, your children, 770 00:39:19,040 –> 00:39:23,780 who are able to say, the Lord is my helper. 771 00:39:24,919 –> 00:39:26,100 I am not afraid. 772 00:39:28,360 –> 00:39:29,719 What can man do to me? 773 00:39:32,080 –> 00:39:37,080 May this wonderful grace be birthed deeply in our hearts 774 00:39:37,699 –> 00:39:42,699 and in our minds, and may what we have sought to begin 775 00:39:42,959 –> 00:39:46,820 pursuing in a new way in this month be the beginning 776 00:39:46,820 –> 00:39:50,360 of a growing freedom, a growing joy, a growing contentment, 777 00:39:50,360 –> 00:39:55,360 a growing generosity, a growing peace within our own hearts 778 00:39:57,379 –> 00:40:00,699 and within our own minds because our lives are flowing 779 00:40:01,979 –> 00:40:06,260 from love of Christ, who first loved us. 780 00:40:07,179 –> 00:40:08,699 And gave himself for us. 781 00:40:08,699 –> 00:40:10,320 May your blessing be upon us 782 00:40:10,320 –> 00:40:12,120 therefore individually and together 783 00:40:13,399 –> 00:40:15,159 for we ask these things in Jesus name 784 00:40:15,159 –> 00:40:17,820 and everyone together said amen.