1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:07,540 And over these last two months, we have identified seven different varieties of doubt, each distinct, 2 00:00:07,540 –> 00:00:12,380 and each with a particular prescription in the form of a spiritual discipline which, 3 00:00:12,380 –> 00:00:16,360 if practiced regularly, will address the problem. 4 00:00:16,360 –> 00:00:22,260 We began by thinking about defective memory, doubts that arise because we simply forget 5 00:00:22,260 –> 00:00:28,639 the goodness of God, and we saw that the discipline that addresses that particular issue is the 6 00:00:28,680 –> 00:00:30,719 discipline of thanksgiving. 7 00:00:30,719 –> 00:00:37,799 We thought about distorted pictures, how we can get doubts that arise from a misconception 8 00:00:37,799 –> 00:00:44,279 of what God is like, and that we are to address that by the practice of biblical meditation, 9 00:00:44,279 –> 00:00:50,380 by filling our minds and our hearts with what God says about Himself. 10 00:00:50,380 –> 00:00:56,099 We thought about defective foundations, doubts that arise because we’re simply not clear 11 00:00:56,099 –> 00:00:59,540 about the evidence that God has given us for the Christian faith. 12 00:00:59,540 –> 00:01:05,680 We looked at Thomas as a model of someone who wanted to be absolutely clear about the 13 00:01:05,680 –> 00:01:10,779 evidence on which faiths should be based, and we have seen that God has given us that 14 00:01:10,779 –> 00:01:15,940 evidence in the Scriptures, and therefore, that the discipline we must pursue is the 15 00:01:15,940 –> 00:01:17,639 discipline of study. 16 00:01:17,639 –> 00:01:22,279 You must study at the level of your questions. 17 00:01:22,279 –> 00:01:28,120 Don’t try and address university-level questions with Sunday School faith. 18 00:01:28,120 –> 00:01:34,919 Think through the evidence that God has given at the level of your questioning. 19 00:01:34,919 –> 00:01:40,279 And then we saw that there are other kinds of doubts that come from divided commitment, 20 00:01:40,279 –> 00:01:46,400 simply from being undecided, never having drawn a clear line in the sand, so that I’m 21 00:01:46,400 –> 00:01:49,620 one thing today and another thing tomorrow. 22 00:01:49,699 –> 00:01:56,959 We heard Joshua’s challenge, choose today who you will serve, and we saw that the spiritual 23 00:01:56,980 –> 00:02:04,019 discipline of obedience by which we draw a line in the sand, a first step of baptism 24 00:02:04,019 –> 00:02:11,419 itself as obedience to Christ and affirming who we are, that we are his, and that we are 25 00:02:11,419 –> 00:02:15,259 his alone, and that we are his forever. 26 00:02:15,259 –> 00:02:19,600 And then we saw there’s another kind of doubt that arises from diminished growth. 27 00:02:19,600 –> 00:02:23,559 This is the kind of doubt that comes from a faith that is rarely used. 28 00:02:23,559 –> 00:02:29,240 It’s like a muscle that, because it’s never used, begins to atrophy and it loses 29 00:02:29,240 –> 00:02:30,820 its strength. 30 00:02:30,820 –> 00:02:34,440 We heard Jesus’ question, where is your faith? 31 00:02:34,440 –> 00:02:38,860 And we saw that faith is not something that clicks in automatically, but it has to be 32 00:02:38,860 –> 00:02:41,899 applied to the difficult situations of our lives. 33 00:02:41,899 –> 00:02:49,100 We have to launch out, and we saw that God calls us to the spiritual discipline of service. 34 00:02:49,139 –> 00:02:55,059 And we considered disappointed hopes, doubts that arise from shattered dreams and from 35 00:02:55,059 –> 00:02:56,860 a broken heart. 36 00:02:56,860 –> 00:03:03,220 And we identified with Jeremiah as he struggled with the fact that his life and his ministry 37 00:03:03,220 –> 00:03:08,860 was not as he would have wanted it to be, and he poured out his soul before God, and 38 00:03:08,860 –> 00:03:13,399 we identified the spiritual discipline of honest confession. 39 00:03:13,500 –> 00:03:14,699 And then, just last week, we looked 40 00:03:14,699 –> 00:03:21,080 at doubts that come from destructive fears, the what-if’s of life. 41 00:03:21,080 –> 00:03:27,080 And we saw that the more we look at the problems, the larger they become, and that the prescription 42 00:03:27,080 –> 00:03:33,720 for this particular condition is that we focus our view on Jesus Christ, and that all boils 43 00:03:33,720 –> 00:03:37,380 down to this spiritual discipline of worship. 44 00:03:37,380 –> 00:03:43,220 Now, put all these together, and one of the most important things that we learned is that 45 00:03:43,220 –> 00:03:46,600 doubt itself is a very confusing business. 46 00:03:46,600 –> 00:03:50,600 It comes from a lot of different sources. 47 00:03:50,600 –> 00:03:54,720 And one of the reasons why many people never make progress in dealing effectively with 48 00:03:54,720 –> 00:04:01,039 their doubts is they never really manage to work out where the doubt is coming from. 49 00:04:01,039 –> 00:04:07,139 Doubt is like fog, and our enemy wants to keep us confused so that we don’t even know 50 00:04:07,139 –> 00:04:08,160 the source. 51 00:04:08,240 –> 00:04:13,679 And if we don’t know the source, we probably won’t pursue the discipline that is the prescription 52 00:04:13,679 –> 00:04:15,479 to address it. 53 00:04:15,479 –> 00:04:21,799 And so, before we come to our final theme this morning, I want just to make three observations 54 00:04:21,799 –> 00:04:24,459 that arise from the series as a whole. 55 00:04:24,459 –> 00:04:30,160 And the first is it’s so important in dealing with doubt that you begin with this whole 56 00:04:30,160 –> 00:04:32,679 business of diagnosis. 57 00:04:32,679 –> 00:04:38,779 If you are trying to help someone who is struggling with doubt, the first question you need to 58 00:04:38,779 –> 00:04:45,440 be asking in your mind and probing in your conversation is what is the root cause of 59 00:04:45,440 –> 00:04:47,399 this doubt? 60 00:04:47,399 –> 00:04:51,559 Because if you don’t know that, you won’t know how to counsel this person as to how 61 00:04:51,559 –> 00:04:53,880 best to address it. 62 00:04:53,880 –> 00:04:57,720 If you’re struggling with doubt in your own mind, this is the first point at which you 63 00:04:57,720 –> 00:04:58,720 need help. 64 00:04:58,720 –> 00:05:01,440 Where is this coming from? 65 00:05:01,579 –> 00:05:09,179 From which of the families of doubt does my particular perplexity arise? 66 00:05:09,179 –> 00:05:15,339 And remember that because we are complex individuals, the doubts often arise from more than one 67 00:05:15,339 –> 00:05:23,040 cause – a person can be unsure about the evidence of faith and have a broken heart 68 00:05:23,040 –> 00:05:25,519 at the same time. 69 00:05:25,519 –> 00:05:33,820 And if we only identify half of the problem, we will only be pursuing half of the solution. 70 00:05:33,820 –> 00:05:39,079 So the first issue – and it’s so important – is to identify the issue at its source. 71 00:05:39,079 –> 00:05:44,000 Secondly, persevere with the prescription. 72 00:05:44,000 –> 00:05:52,179 The spiritual disciplines that we have identified are not instant painkillers. 73 00:05:52,179 –> 00:05:58,799 They have a gradual and an increasing effect over a long period of time. 74 00:05:58,799 –> 00:06:05,179 So if you establish a pattern of meditating on the Word of God, and you give ten minutes 75 00:06:05,179 –> 00:06:11,619 each day to reflecting on what God says about Himself, and you continue to do that, then 76 00:06:11,619 –> 00:06:20,420 over time, you will have within your mind a clearer grasp of who God is in all His glory. 77 00:06:20,420 –> 00:06:23,519 But you need to persevere with the prescription. 78 00:06:23,519 –> 00:06:30,140 The spiritual disciplines are to become patterns of our life, patterns of worship, of obedience, 79 00:06:30,140 –> 00:06:37,040 of Biblical meditation, of thanksgiving, they need to be woven into the very fabric of who 80 00:06:37,040 –> 00:06:39,959 we are. 81 00:06:39,959 –> 00:06:49,140 And you will find that as you pursue the disciplines that God has given to us that resolution of 82 00:06:49,299 –> 00:06:56,859 some of the great questions almost seems to sneak up on you and you find that you’ve moved 83 00:06:56,859 –> 00:07:01,579 forward and you have a new level of assurance. 84 00:07:01,579 –> 00:07:06,140 And the third thing is this, anticipate new challenges. 85 00:07:06,140 –> 00:07:11,260 You see doubt is not something that we deal with once at a certain point in the Christian 86 00:07:11,260 –> 00:07:15,420 life and then say goodbye to it forever after. 87 00:07:15,420 –> 00:07:19,820 Remember the Christian journey is a journey upstream. 88 00:07:19,820 –> 00:07:25,760 We are always swimming, as it were, against the currents of the world and the flesh and 89 00:07:25,760 –> 00:07:26,760 the devil. 90 00:07:26,760 –> 00:07:32,380 And because I know that to be the pattern of the Christian life, I know that if God 91 00:07:32,380 –> 00:07:39,119 gives me another ten years, that in these ten years, there will be new fears to face. 92 00:07:39,119 –> 00:07:42,380 There will be new disappointments to navigate. 93 00:07:42,480 –> 00:07:48,839 There will be new distortions to address, and there will be new commitments to be made. 94 00:07:48,839 –> 00:07:54,000 And in all these situations, I will face new challenges to my faith. 95 00:07:54,000 –> 00:07:59,019 So I might as well anticipate them and not be surprised by them. 96 00:07:59,019 –> 00:08:06,239 The Bible is full of witness to this ongoing pattern of the struggle of the Christian life 97 00:08:06,239 –> 00:08:07,239 with many questions. 98 00:08:08,000 –> 00:08:10,640 Psalm 73 is a great example. 99 00:08:10,640 –> 00:08:16,420 Asaph, who was the worship leader of the Old Testament on the platform every Sunday, as 100 00:08:16,420 –> 00:08:22,420 it were, leading the choirs and proclaiming the Word of God. 101 00:08:22,420 –> 00:08:27,839 He says in Psalm 73, My foot almost slipped. 102 00:08:27,839 –> 00:08:33,099 His problem was he saw that God blesses bad people and he couldn’t understand it. 103 00:08:33,099 –> 00:08:36,219 It created a doubt within his mind, and it lingered for a long time. 104 00:08:36,260 –> 00:08:37,780 It was a struggle. 105 00:08:38,859 –> 00:08:42,239 And he says, you know, if I had spoken out loud about some of the things that were going 106 00:08:42,239 –> 00:08:46,359 on in my mind, if everybody knew some of the struggles I was going on with, I would have 107 00:08:46,359 –> 00:08:49,059 betrayed a generation of God’s people. 108 00:08:49,059 –> 00:08:53,599 People would have said, fancy a leader of worship having questions like that. 109 00:08:53,599 –> 00:08:59,859 And then Asaph, identifying his struggle, says, But then I came into the sanctuary and 110 00:08:59,859 –> 00:09:04,619 I realized the end of the wicked. 111 00:09:04,619 –> 00:09:07,700 And I regained my foothold. 112 00:09:08,440 –> 00:09:14,039 You can come to a mature Christian leader, a real struggle, with a question like that. 113 00:09:14,039 –> 00:09:23,739 John Bunyan, the great Christian leader, for 11 years from 1661 to 1762, imprisoned simply 114 00:09:23,739 –> 00:09:26,559 for preaching the gospel. 115 00:09:26,559 –> 00:09:30,559 And when he was locked up in Bedfordshire in England, that was where he wrote the Christian 116 00:09:30,559 –> 00:09:33,900 classic book, Pilgrim’s Progress. 117 00:09:33,900 –> 00:09:40,419 He was a mature Christian believer, and he wrote this story in images about a man called 118 00:09:40,419 –> 00:09:45,299 Christian who walks on a pathway that has all kinds of difficulties, and he has companions 119 00:09:45,299 –> 00:09:48,260 who are faithful and hopeful. 120 00:09:48,260 –> 00:09:54,659 And it’s well down the line in the journey that he finds that he’s attacked by a giant 121 00:09:54,659 –> 00:09:57,640 called Giant Despair. 122 00:09:58,020 –> 00:10:03,280 And he’s locked up in Giant Despair’s home, which is called Doubting Castle. 123 00:10:03,280 –> 00:10:08,119 It’s very interesting that Bunyan did not put that as an experience at the beginning 124 00:10:08,119 –> 00:10:14,179 of the Christian life, but as one that is well-advanced in the path of Christian progress, 125 00:10:14,179 –> 00:10:19,239 and I’m sure that the reason for that is that it was reflecting some of the questions 126 00:10:19,239 –> 00:10:24,500 that he was facing while he was locked up at that very time of writing in prison. 127 00:10:24,979 –> 00:10:31,460 And he could’ve gone home any day to his wife and to his four children if only he would 128 00:10:31,460 –> 00:10:34,760 promise never to preach the gospel again. 129 00:10:34,760 –> 00:10:40,119 And he was thrown into this great struggle and he discovered in his own experience and 130 00:10:40,119 –> 00:10:45,780 wrote it out in The Pilgrim’s Progress, what it was to hold on to the key of God’s 131 00:10:45,780 –> 00:10:54,440 promise when you’re thrown into a situation of doubt even in your mature Christian years. 132 00:10:54,460 –> 00:10:59,520 One Calvin, the great theologian of the church said, while we teach that faith ought to be 133 00:10:59,520 –> 00:11:05,799 certain and sure, we cannot imagine any certainty that is not tinged with doubt or an assurance 134 00:11:05,799 –> 00:11:10,219 that is not assailed by some anxiety. 135 00:11:10,219 –> 00:11:17,599 His picture was that faith is like a command post in the castle of your heart. 136 00:11:17,599 –> 00:11:20,520 But outside of the castle there is always an assault. 137 00:11:20,520 –> 00:11:22,919 There are arrows that are being fired. 138 00:11:22,919 –> 00:11:26,940 This castle of faith is always under attack. 139 00:11:26,940 –> 00:11:28,679 It is always besieged. 140 00:11:28,679 –> 00:11:32,080 It is always embattled. 141 00:11:32,080 –> 00:11:35,099 And we must not be afraid of this struggle. 142 00:11:35,099 –> 00:11:38,159 We must not. 143 00:11:38,159 –> 00:11:42,359 This is a good time for planting bulbs. 144 00:11:42,359 –> 00:11:44,799 And you know that very simple practice. 145 00:11:44,799 –> 00:11:54,320 You take a bulb and you put it in the ground and you cover it over with dirt and with mulch. 146 00:11:54,320 –> 00:12:00,200 Now you imagine a bulb’s eye view of that process. 147 00:12:00,200 –> 00:12:05,979 The little bulb sits there, six inches down, and looks up. 148 00:12:05,979 –> 00:12:10,799 And it says, I’ve been dumped on. 149 00:12:10,799 –> 00:12:14,359 I cannot see the light of day. 150 00:12:14,400 –> 00:12:17,140 I’m surrounded by dirt. 151 00:12:17,140 –> 00:12:20,520 I’m smothered. 152 00:12:20,520 –> 00:12:24,679 But the bulb has life in it. 153 00:12:24,679 –> 00:12:28,440 If it was a stone it would simply be buried. 154 00:12:28,440 –> 00:12:30,780 But it’s not a stone, it is a bulb. 155 00:12:30,780 –> 00:12:33,500 It has life in it. 156 00:12:33,500 –> 00:12:38,200 And because it has life in it, that life presses up. 157 00:12:38,200 –> 00:12:42,500 It presses up through the dirt, towards the light. 158 00:12:42,539 –> 00:12:46,099 And that’s a marvelous, marvelous picture of faith. 159 00:12:46,099 –> 00:12:48,599 So the Bible says you were born again 160 00:12:48,599 –> 00:12:52,599 by the living seed of the word of God. 161 00:12:52,599 –> 00:12:56,700 Your faith will be assaulted, your faith will be dumped on. 162 00:12:57,460 –> 00:12:59,460 And if you did not have the life of God in you, 163 00:12:59,460 –> 00:13:02,659 that would be the end of your Christian experience. 164 00:13:02,659 –> 00:13:06,099 But living faith pushes on upwards. 165 00:13:06,099 –> 00:13:07,739 And the extraordinary thing, 166 00:13:07,739 –> 00:13:10,119 think about this from the analogy of the bulb, 167 00:13:10,159 –> 00:13:13,760 is that the very thing that buried it 168 00:13:13,760 –> 00:13:17,380 becomes part of the process of its growth. 169 00:13:18,719 –> 00:13:22,599 That’s why James says that the testing of your faith 170 00:13:22,599 –> 00:13:26,520 develops perseverance and that must finish its work 171 00:13:26,520 –> 00:13:30,020 so that you may become mature and complete 172 00:13:30,020 –> 00:13:31,840 and not lacking in anything. 173 00:13:31,840 –> 00:13:34,239 So when the dirt comes over, as it were, 174 00:13:34,239 –> 00:13:37,919 and you can’t see the light, don’t be scared of that. 175 00:13:38,039 –> 00:13:42,500 The life of God is within you, Christian. 176 00:13:44,140 –> 00:13:46,400 Now, God has given us a wonderful window 177 00:13:46,400 –> 00:13:50,960 into the struggle of faith and this battle with doubt 178 00:13:50,960 –> 00:13:55,440 in the story of the very, very first disciples of Jesus. 179 00:13:55,440 –> 00:13:58,799 The Gospels tell it exactly as it is. 180 00:13:58,799 –> 00:14:01,280 And this is one of the wonderful things about the Bible. 181 00:14:01,280 –> 00:14:04,599 You don’t get any varnishing of heroes, 182 00:14:04,599 –> 00:14:08,440 nor revising the story with the benefit of hindsight. 183 00:14:08,440 –> 00:14:12,299 What we have here is the plain unvarnished truth 184 00:14:12,299 –> 00:14:16,020 about the struggle between faith and doubt 185 00:14:16,020 –> 00:14:20,859 in the experience of the very earliest believers. 186 00:14:20,859 –> 00:14:22,599 Remember that the disciples of Jesus 187 00:14:22,599 –> 00:14:26,599 had made a decisive commitment to Jesus Christ. 188 00:14:26,599 –> 00:14:28,799 They’d left everything to follow Him. 189 00:14:28,799 –> 00:14:30,919 So, that wasn’t their problem. 190 00:14:30,919 –> 00:14:33,640 They had the clearest possible revelation 191 00:14:33,640 –> 00:14:36,239 of the living God, so distorted pictures 192 00:14:36,239 –> 00:14:37,599 wasn’t their problem. 193 00:14:39,080 –> 00:14:40,799 But even after the Resurrection, 194 00:14:40,799 –> 00:14:45,599 they still had to deal with the assault of doubt, 195 00:14:45,599 –> 00:14:48,760 the dumping of doubt on the faith 196 00:14:48,760 –> 00:14:52,320 that was there in their hearts and in their minds. 197 00:14:52,320 –> 00:14:53,760 Now, I want to trace that story with you 198 00:14:53,760 –> 00:14:55,919 very briefly this morning from Luke 24. 199 00:14:55,919 –> 00:14:58,479 So, please have your Bibles open there. 200 00:14:58,479 –> 00:15:03,400 It’s the first Easter Morning and the women go to the tomb 201 00:15:04,119 –> 00:15:06,099 and they find that it is empty. 202 00:15:07,080 –> 00:15:09,380 Angels appear to them and they announce 203 00:15:09,380 –> 00:15:11,700 that Jesus Christ is risen. 204 00:15:12,640 –> 00:15:15,979 The women come back and they tell the disciples 205 00:15:15,979 –> 00:15:19,200 these things, but verse 11 of Luke 24, 206 00:15:19,200 –> 00:15:21,080 they did not believe the women 207 00:15:21,080 –> 00:15:25,760 because the words seemed to them like nonsense. 208 00:15:25,760 –> 00:15:29,440 So, Peter, a very disparaging way, 209 00:15:29,440 –> 00:15:32,400 says he cannot trust this witness 210 00:15:32,400 –> 00:15:34,200 that has been given to him. 211 00:15:34,200 –> 00:15:37,239 It then goes to see himself, verse 12. 212 00:15:37,239 –> 00:15:38,719 We know from John’s Gospel, 213 00:15:38,719 –> 00:15:41,260 that John went with him and that John went into the tomb 214 00:15:41,260 –> 00:15:44,119 and he saw and believed, but here we’re told 215 00:15:44,119 –> 00:15:46,880 particularly that with Peter it was different. 216 00:15:46,880 –> 00:15:49,840 He went to the tomb, even after he had heard 217 00:15:49,840 –> 00:15:52,080 the witness of the women, and when he saw 218 00:15:52,080 –> 00:15:53,820 that the tomb was empty, verse 12, 219 00:15:53,820 –> 00:15:58,820 he went away wondering to himself what had happened. 220 00:16:00,000 –> 00:16:01,820 So, they have not yet come to believe 221 00:16:01,820 –> 00:16:04,299 that Jesus is risen from the dead. 222 00:16:04,299 –> 00:16:08,559 Peter is still puzzling over a mystery. 223 00:16:09,820 –> 00:16:11,140 Then we have the marvelous story 224 00:16:11,140 –> 00:16:13,500 of how Christ appeared to two disciples 225 00:16:13,500 –> 00:16:16,679 on the road to Emmaus, and in verse 33, 226 00:16:16,679 –> 00:16:20,059 these two return to Jerusalem, and they find the 11, 227 00:16:20,059 –> 00:16:21,859 and when they get there, the 11 228 00:16:21,859 –> 00:16:23,979 are already convinced about the resurrection 229 00:16:23,979 –> 00:16:27,099 because they say, verse 33, it’s true. 230 00:16:27,099 –> 00:16:31,780 The Lord has risen, and he has appeared to Simon Peter. 231 00:16:31,840 –> 00:16:33,359 So in the course of this time, 232 00:16:33,359 –> 00:16:35,659 there was another appearance 233 00:16:35,659 –> 00:16:39,000 that Paul also refers to in 1 Corinthians 15 234 00:16:39,000 –> 00:16:42,760 that was made particularly to Simon Peter. 235 00:16:42,760 –> 00:16:44,440 So now faith is established. 236 00:16:44,440 –> 00:16:46,919 The 11 do now believe. 237 00:16:46,919 –> 00:16:49,320 You can’t get a clearer statement of faith 238 00:16:49,320 –> 00:16:51,380 than this in verse 33. 239 00:16:51,380 –> 00:16:56,380 It is true, the Lord has risen. 240 00:16:57,099 –> 00:16:59,460 So we’re at the point of faith now, aren’t we? 241 00:16:59,460 –> 00:17:01,299 All doubts are put behind us. 242 00:17:01,299 –> 00:17:06,099 We believe that Jesus is risen from the dead. 243 00:17:08,020 –> 00:17:09,579 Now look at verse 36. 244 00:17:10,540 –> 00:17:12,180 While they were still talking about this, 245 00:17:12,180 –> 00:17:15,979 Jesus comes and he appears to them again. 246 00:17:15,979 –> 00:17:18,380 And he says to them, peace be with you. 247 00:17:19,619 –> 00:17:22,160 And they are startled and they are frightened 248 00:17:22,160 –> 00:17:24,800 because they thought they saw a ghost. 249 00:17:24,800 –> 00:17:26,819 And he said to them, why are you troubled 250 00:17:26,819 –> 00:17:31,819 and why do doubts rise in your mind? 251 00:17:33,500 –> 00:17:35,939 You see, they’ve come to the position of faith 252 00:17:35,939 –> 00:17:38,380 but now doubt is coming back 253 00:17:38,380 –> 00:17:41,619 like the arrows assaulting the castle of faith, 254 00:17:41,619 –> 00:17:46,219 like the earth dumping on the bulb that has been planted. 255 00:17:46,219 –> 00:17:48,920 And the newfound faith of the disciples 256 00:17:48,920 –> 00:17:52,319 is already under attack from doubt. 257 00:17:52,319 –> 00:17:54,640 They believe that Jesus is risen, 258 00:17:54,640 –> 00:17:56,660 but no sooner have they come to the point of saying, 259 00:17:56,660 –> 00:17:59,400 I believe, that they begin to say, 260 00:17:59,400 –> 00:18:03,479 well, could it just be that my mind is playing a trick? 261 00:18:04,900 –> 00:18:09,280 Now some of you may have had exactly this experience. 262 00:18:09,280 –> 00:18:12,020 You’ve been born again. 263 00:18:12,020 –> 00:18:15,959 You’ve come to faith in Jesus Christ. 264 00:18:15,959 –> 00:18:19,979 But very, very soon after that event in your life, 265 00:18:19,979 –> 00:18:22,400 there’s a nagging question that seems to come 266 00:18:22,400 –> 00:18:24,520 from outside of you, and it says, 267 00:18:24,520 –> 00:18:25,560 well, was that real? 268 00:18:27,079 –> 00:18:30,339 Did anything actually happen? 269 00:18:30,339 –> 00:18:33,819 Was it maybe just in your mind? 270 00:18:33,819 –> 00:18:38,099 How do I know that this is really God? 271 00:18:38,099 –> 00:18:39,599 Well, when that happens to you, 272 00:18:39,599 –> 00:18:41,079 rest assured, you are not alone, 273 00:18:41,079 –> 00:18:46,079 this is precisely what happened to the first disciples. 274 00:18:46,619 –> 00:18:49,900 There is this assault on the castle of faith. 275 00:18:49,900 –> 00:18:52,859 There is this dumping of doubt 276 00:18:52,880 –> 00:18:56,579 on the planted seed of faith. 277 00:18:57,900 –> 00:19:01,939 So Christ shows them his hands and his feet. 278 00:19:01,939 –> 00:19:05,859 And then we come to a fascinating statement in verse 41. 279 00:19:05,859 –> 00:19:06,819 Look at it with me. 280 00:19:08,459 –> 00:19:10,619 They still did not believe 281 00:19:12,459 –> 00:19:17,359 because of joy and amazement. 282 00:19:17,420 –> 00:19:18,260 Amazement. 283 00:19:19,719 –> 00:19:21,400 They still did not believe 284 00:19:22,800 –> 00:19:27,439 because of joy and amazement. 285 00:19:29,459 –> 00:19:32,180 Now, think about what had happened to them 286 00:19:32,180 –> 00:19:33,959 that brought them to this position. 287 00:19:34,959 –> 00:19:36,640 They’ve left everything to follow Jesus. 288 00:19:36,640 –> 00:19:38,839 He’s become the center of their whole world. 289 00:19:39,819 –> 00:19:41,699 He’s opened up horizons for them 290 00:19:41,699 –> 00:19:43,920 that are beyond anything they had ever imagined 291 00:19:43,920 –> 00:19:45,619 in their little lives as fishermen. 292 00:19:46,619 –> 00:19:50,160 They have walked with the Son of God. 293 00:19:51,560 –> 00:19:55,119 They have been given the gift of everlasting life. 294 00:19:55,119 –> 00:19:57,579 They’ve discovered grace and mercy and purpose 295 00:19:57,579 –> 00:19:59,660 and all of it flows from Jesus. 296 00:20:00,979 –> 00:20:02,640 Then everything fell apart. 297 00:20:03,699 –> 00:20:05,540 Judas defected. 298 00:20:05,540 –> 00:20:07,280 The disciples ran for their lives 299 00:20:07,280 –> 00:20:08,680 in the Garden of Gethsemane. 300 00:20:09,579 –> 00:20:13,040 Jesus was taken out to Calvary and crucified. 301 00:20:13,880 –> 00:20:17,160 Perhaps the disciples were looking for a miracle to happen 302 00:20:17,160 –> 00:20:19,280 even while he was hanging on the cross 303 00:20:19,280 –> 00:20:22,319 for God to intervene in some way and deliver him. 304 00:20:22,319 –> 00:20:23,839 But it never happened. 305 00:20:24,979 –> 00:20:27,920 And they had to stand there while in the middle of the day 306 00:20:27,920 –> 00:20:29,699 darkness covered the land. 307 00:20:29,699 –> 00:20:33,540 Not light from heaven, darkness. 308 00:20:34,560 –> 00:20:36,479 Then they had to hear the one 309 00:20:36,479 –> 00:20:39,439 in whom they had put their trust say, 310 00:20:40,319 –> 00:20:44,380 my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? 311 00:20:44,380 –> 00:20:45,920 Can you imagine hearing the one 312 00:20:45,920 –> 00:20:47,900 in whom you’ve put your trust say that? 313 00:20:49,380 –> 00:20:52,119 If God’s forsaken Him, where does that leave me? 314 00:20:54,640 –> 00:20:57,660 Then they hear him say, I thirst. 315 00:20:59,180 –> 00:21:01,319 I mean, this is the one who has said 316 00:21:01,319 –> 00:21:03,699 to the woman at the well, anyone who drinks 317 00:21:03,699 –> 00:21:07,199 of the water that I can give will never thirst again, 318 00:21:07,300 –> 00:21:11,459 that’s what he said, and now he says, I thirst. 319 00:21:14,479 –> 00:21:16,500 Then he says, it is finished 320 00:21:20,119 –> 00:21:22,699 and we know that to be a great cry of triumph, 321 00:21:22,699 –> 00:21:24,739 but if you had been one of the disciples standing 322 00:21:24,739 –> 00:21:27,400 at the bottom of the cross and looking up to Jesus, 323 00:21:27,400 –> 00:21:28,680 you wouldn’t have heard it that way, 324 00:21:28,680 –> 00:21:31,119 you would have said that’s right, it’s finished. 325 00:21:32,020 –> 00:21:37,180 The here, him turned to John and, 326 00:21:38,260 –> 00:21:42,420 and commend the care of his mother to John and 327 00:21:45,380 –> 00:21:49,979 says to his mother that John’s going to be like a son to her 328 00:21:49,979 –> 00:21:52,900 he’s bowing out, he’s gone. 329 00:21:55,800 –> 00:21:59,180 Then he says, Father, into your hand, I commit my spirit. 330 00:22:01,119 –> 00:22:05,140 He breathed his last, then his lifeless body is taken down 331 00:22:05,140 –> 00:22:09,599 from the cross, the corpse becomes cold, 332 00:22:09,599 –> 00:22:14,439 rigor mortis sits in, the body is laid in a tomb 333 00:22:14,439 –> 00:22:18,280 and everything they had lived for is utterly destroyed. 334 00:22:18,280 –> 00:22:22,239 Every word of Jesus seems to have fallen to the floor. 335 00:22:22,239 –> 00:22:24,560 Everything in which they had put the whole trust 336 00:22:24,560 –> 00:22:28,099 and center of their lives, has imploded on them. 337 00:22:29,079 –> 00:22:32,459 And that was two days ago. 338 00:22:32,459 –> 00:22:36,900 And now Jesus is standing right in front of them 339 00:22:36,900 –> 00:22:40,660 and he’s showing them his hands and his feet. 340 00:22:40,660 –> 00:22:45,140 And Luke tells us that they did not believe 341 00:22:45,140 –> 00:22:49,920 because of joy and amazement. 342 00:22:51,160 –> 00:22:56,180 After all the devastation of seeing him on the cross, 343 00:22:56,839 –> 00:23:01,839 they hardly dared to believe that this incredible miracle, 344 00:23:03,380 –> 00:23:04,599 which if it were true, 345 00:23:04,599 –> 00:23:07,239 would transform everything for them, 346 00:23:08,660 –> 00:23:10,099 could actually have happened. 347 00:23:11,959 –> 00:23:13,479 Some years ago, 348 00:23:13,479 –> 00:23:17,119 I had a most unfortunate experience 349 00:23:17,119 –> 00:23:18,459 with a dentist. 350 00:23:19,520 –> 00:23:22,479 It was in England so I don’t want you to worry. 351 00:23:22,920 –> 00:23:27,920 But he was working a way towards the back of my mouth 352 00:23:29,319 –> 00:23:31,020 and his drill slipped, 353 00:23:32,199 –> 00:23:36,180 and he drilled a hole in my tongue. 354 00:23:39,719 –> 00:23:42,439 And it’s a painful experience for a preacher 355 00:23:42,439 –> 00:23:43,939 to have a stitched tongue, 356 00:23:43,939 –> 00:23:48,119 but that was how it was. 357 00:23:48,119 –> 00:23:49,719 Shortly after that, we came over here. 358 00:23:49,719 –> 00:23:50,560 Do you know? 359 00:23:53,400 –> 00:23:54,640 No, that wasn’t the reason. 360 00:23:58,040 –> 00:24:00,160 Do you know it took me a long time 361 00:24:00,160 –> 00:24:02,040 to go and visit the dentist 362 00:24:02,040 –> 00:24:03,900 for the first time after we came here. 363 00:24:04,839 –> 00:24:05,660 And Karen said to me, 364 00:24:05,660 –> 00:24:07,000 you really ought to go and see the dentist. 365 00:24:07,000 –> 00:24:08,640 He’s very good. 366 00:24:08,640 –> 00:24:10,459 I said, oh, I’ll maybe go next month. 367 00:24:13,439 –> 00:24:18,180 Painful experiences make it very, very hard to trust. 368 00:24:19,280 –> 00:24:21,119 Once bitten… 369 00:24:21,119 –> 00:24:22,280 Twice… 370 00:24:22,359 –> 00:24:23,180 Shy. 371 00:24:24,359 –> 00:24:26,900 Oh, let’s take a more serious example. 372 00:24:26,900 –> 00:24:27,800 Consider a woman. 373 00:24:27,800 –> 00:24:29,040 Let’s call her Katherine. 374 00:24:29,040 –> 00:24:30,079 She’s very attractive. 375 00:24:30,079 –> 00:24:31,939 She has a gentle personality. 376 00:24:31,939 –> 00:24:34,160 A guy called Steve calls her for a date. 377 00:24:34,160 –> 00:24:35,400 Over a period of three months, 378 00:24:35,400 –> 00:24:36,660 they become very close. 379 00:24:36,660 –> 00:24:38,239 He loves her, he says. 380 00:24:38,239 –> 00:24:39,439 He’s very kind to her. 381 00:24:39,439 –> 00:24:40,739 He wins her trust. 382 00:24:40,739 –> 00:24:44,119 And gradually, he begins to change. 383 00:24:45,040 –> 00:24:46,680 He undermines her confidence. 384 00:24:46,680 –> 00:24:49,660 He abuses Katherine’s trust. 385 00:24:49,660 –> 00:24:50,920 And she feels trapped 386 00:24:51,560 –> 00:24:52,900 because Steve is a powerful person 387 00:24:52,900 –> 00:24:55,339 and she does not feel that she can get free from him. 388 00:24:55,339 –> 00:24:57,579 Besides, their lives have become interlocked 389 00:24:57,579 –> 00:24:59,380 and so, she wonders if, maybe, 390 00:24:59,380 –> 00:25:01,400 the problems are all her fault anyway. 391 00:25:01,400 –> 00:25:04,060 Finally, she gets free from him 392 00:25:04,060 –> 00:25:05,699 and it’s an enormous relief. 393 00:25:05,699 –> 00:25:06,939 And she looks back and she says, 394 00:25:06,939 –> 00:25:08,079 Oh, that was oppressive. 395 00:25:08,079 –> 00:25:09,900 That was a terrible, terrible thing. 396 00:25:11,619 –> 00:25:13,760 That was five years ago. 397 00:25:15,099 –> 00:25:19,040 Now there is another man who is truly in love with her. 398 00:25:19,819 –> 00:25:22,800 He is everything that she would look for in a man 399 00:25:22,800 –> 00:25:25,760 but, after her last experience, she holds back. 400 00:25:26,819 –> 00:25:31,819 The offer of his love seems too good to be true. 401 00:25:34,180 –> 00:25:36,959 Won’t work for me, she says. 402 00:25:38,079 –> 00:25:40,380 Painful experiences make it hard to trust. 403 00:25:41,739 –> 00:25:43,739 Imagine yourself at the edge of a river 404 00:25:43,739 –> 00:25:46,119 that you have to cross. 405 00:25:46,119 –> 00:25:47,680 You can’t cross it in one step 406 00:25:47,699 –> 00:25:51,020 but, above, there is a bow of a tree 407 00:25:51,020 –> 00:25:52,939 that you can easily grasp. 408 00:25:52,939 –> 00:25:54,420 There’s only one problem. 409 00:25:54,420 –> 00:25:57,959 You have a great painful gash in your hand. 410 00:25:59,339 –> 00:26:02,140 The problem is not in the strength of the tree. 411 00:26:02,140 –> 00:26:04,819 The problem in you laying hold of it 412 00:26:04,819 –> 00:26:06,599 lies in the pain that has been 413 00:26:06,599 –> 00:26:08,900 previously inflicted on your hand. 414 00:26:08,900 –> 00:26:11,060 You say, I can’t grasp it, I can’t grasp it. 415 00:26:11,060 –> 00:26:12,459 Someone says you must… 416 00:26:13,420 –> 00:26:14,540 You say, I can’t. 417 00:26:18,680 –> 00:26:20,839 That’s where the disciples were. 418 00:26:23,400 –> 00:26:25,920 They saw Jesus and, for him to be alive 419 00:26:25,920 –> 00:26:27,599 was the one thing they wanted more 420 00:26:27,599 –> 00:26:29,880 than anything else in all the world. 421 00:26:29,880 –> 00:26:31,520 But the pain that they had been through 422 00:26:31,520 –> 00:26:35,680 in these last few days was so deep within them 423 00:26:35,680 –> 00:26:37,900 and they wanted it to be true so badly 424 00:26:37,900 –> 00:26:42,900 that they didn’t, didn’t, didn’t let go and believe. 425 00:26:43,439 –> 00:26:46,000 The defense mechanisms kick in. 426 00:26:47,000 –> 00:26:49,020 Don’t set yourself up for more pain. 427 00:26:49,020 –> 00:26:51,439 You’ve been disappointed before. 428 00:26:51,439 –> 00:26:54,920 They did not believe because of joy and amazement. 429 00:26:54,920 –> 00:26:59,719 It just seemed too good to be true. 430 00:27:01,839 –> 00:27:03,939 Now, I’m convinced that the pain of life 431 00:27:05,599 –> 00:27:09,239 and perhaps in some cases the disappointment of religion 432 00:27:10,660 –> 00:27:14,619 has led many to conclude that the gospel 433 00:27:14,619 –> 00:27:16,640 is simply too good to be true. 434 00:27:18,239 –> 00:27:19,939 And so we hear it from the pulpits 435 00:27:19,939 –> 00:27:21,140 and we become used to it, 436 00:27:21,140 –> 00:27:24,260 but we hear it like we hear the adverts 437 00:27:24,260 –> 00:27:25,420 with great caution. 438 00:27:26,760 –> 00:27:30,660 And the joy of the gospel remains beyond our grasp 439 00:27:30,660 –> 00:27:35,660 because our wounded hands are too tender to grasp it. 440 00:27:37,739 –> 00:27:39,599 Now, that’s where the disciples were. 441 00:27:40,739 –> 00:27:42,339 They’d loved to think it was true, 442 00:27:42,339 –> 00:27:45,400 but they said, we daren’t believe it, 443 00:27:46,619 –> 00:27:47,699 too good to be true. 444 00:27:52,099 –> 00:27:54,140 Now what can you do about that position? 445 00:27:57,119 –> 00:27:59,020 So you get to this point in a message 446 00:27:59,020 –> 00:28:01,359 when you’re preparing it and you start searching 447 00:28:01,359 –> 00:28:03,920 the passage and say, well, what did they do about it? 448 00:28:05,199 –> 00:28:08,160 Because what they did about it is what you can do about it. 449 00:28:09,439 –> 00:28:10,660 And you see what they did about, 450 00:28:10,660 –> 00:28:12,280 I can’t find anything that they did about it. 451 00:28:13,239 –> 00:28:14,900 I can’t find an idea, 452 00:28:14,900 –> 00:28:18,459 but I find something that Jesus did about it. 453 00:28:20,560 –> 00:28:21,859 Look at it there. 454 00:28:21,859 –> 00:28:26,900 Verse 45, he opened their minds 455 00:28:27,839 –> 00:28:32,239 so that they could understand the Scriptures. 456 00:28:32,239 –> 00:28:34,040 See with these good folks had a Bible. 457 00:28:34,040 –> 00:28:35,199 They understood many things. 458 00:28:35,199 –> 00:28:37,699 They knew the ten commandments and all that stuff, 459 00:28:39,160 –> 00:28:41,180 but they had never really grasped 460 00:28:42,500 –> 00:28:44,420 the thunder and the glory of what it was 461 00:28:44,420 –> 00:28:47,400 that God was doing for them in Jesus Christ. 462 00:28:49,300 –> 00:28:51,180 That’s why I’ve called our proscription today, 463 00:28:51,180 –> 00:28:52,619 Waiting on God. 464 00:28:52,619 –> 00:28:56,939 Because the courage to believe is a gift from God. 465 00:28:56,939 –> 00:29:00,160 Faith is not forced from within. 466 00:29:00,160 –> 00:29:02,800 You come and you ask God for it, 467 00:29:02,800 –> 00:29:04,239 and he gives it to you. 468 00:29:04,239 –> 00:29:06,199 And the way he gives it to you is 469 00:29:06,199 –> 00:29:09,619 as he opens your eyes to understand 470 00:29:09,619 –> 00:29:11,839 what he’s already revealed in the Scripture. 471 00:29:11,839 –> 00:29:13,300 You can come to him today, 472 00:29:13,300 –> 00:29:14,680 you can come to him right now, 473 00:29:14,680 –> 00:29:17,239 you can say, oh, Lord, open my eyes. 474 00:29:17,239 –> 00:29:18,920 I’m one of these folks who stands back 475 00:29:18,920 –> 00:29:21,219 because I feel like it’s too good to be true. 476 00:29:22,400 –> 00:29:26,400 Open my eyes and help me to believe. 477 00:29:27,280 –> 00:29:30,319 Put me in the position where I could say, 478 00:29:30,319 –> 00:29:32,099 amazing grace, how sweet the sound 479 00:29:32,099 –> 00:29:33,959 that saved a wretch like me. 480 00:29:33,959 –> 00:29:35,839 I once was lost, but now I’m found. 481 00:29:35,839 –> 00:29:39,680 I was blind, but now I see. 482 00:29:40,540 –> 00:29:43,599 Jesus opened their minds 483 00:29:43,599 –> 00:29:48,599 so that they understood the heart of the gospel 484 00:29:49,140 –> 00:29:51,439 for the very first time. 485 00:29:51,439 –> 00:29:54,219 And my prayer is that in the very last moments now 486 00:29:54,219 –> 00:29:59,219 of this series, that God would do precisely that 487 00:29:59,219 –> 00:30:02,140 as we look at what Jesus said 488 00:30:02,140 –> 00:30:04,660 in just a few brief moments together. 489 00:30:05,579 –> 00:30:08,479 He told them, verse 46, this is what is written, 490 00:30:08,479 –> 00:30:10,660 the Christ will suffer and rise from the dead 491 00:30:10,660 –> 00:30:11,579 on the third day, 492 00:30:11,579 –> 00:30:15,660 and then he goes on to spell out what it means for tem. 493 00:30:15,660 –> 00:30:19,959 He speaks, first verse 47, about repentance. 494 00:30:19,959 –> 00:30:23,280 That means real change from the inside. 495 00:30:24,459 –> 00:30:27,380 If Jesus is alive, 496 00:30:27,380 –> 00:30:31,979 then it really is possible for you to change. 497 00:30:31,979 –> 00:30:36,219 He changed a mean, selfish, twisted tax collector 498 00:30:36,219 –> 00:30:37,939 and made him a generous giver. 499 00:30:37,939 –> 00:30:39,500 That’s a miracle. 500 00:30:39,500 –> 00:30:41,239 He did that. 501 00:30:41,239 –> 00:30:43,420 He took a man who’d been religious all his life, 502 00:30:43,420 –> 00:30:46,319 but never entered into a personal relationship with God 503 00:30:46,319 –> 00:30:49,099 and brought him into a new birth. 504 00:30:49,099 –> 00:30:50,459 It’s a miracle. 505 00:30:50,459 –> 00:30:51,780 Jesus did that. 506 00:30:52,819 –> 00:30:55,339 He would take shortly after this, 507 00:30:55,339 –> 00:30:59,660 a man who was a violent religious extremist 508 00:31:01,079 –> 00:31:02,640 and changed him to become 509 00:31:02,640 –> 00:31:05,619 the apostle to the Gentiles, 510 00:31:05,619 –> 00:31:07,579 the Apostle Paul. 511 00:31:07,579 –> 00:31:09,260 Jesus did that. 512 00:31:09,260 –> 00:31:10,920 Now if Jesus is dead, 513 00:31:10,920 –> 00:31:12,500 none of that is possible, 514 00:31:12,500 –> 00:31:13,939 but if Jesus is alive, 515 00:31:13,939 –> 00:31:16,699 then this inner change that the Bible calls repentance 516 00:31:16,699 –> 00:31:18,180 is possible for you 517 00:31:18,180 –> 00:31:19,699 if anyone is in Christ. 518 00:31:19,699 –> 00:31:21,180 He is a new creation. 519 00:31:21,180 –> 00:31:22,300 The old has gone, 520 00:31:22,300 –> 00:31:23,599 and the new has come. 521 00:31:23,599 –> 00:31:28,300 That means that you by the power of Jesus 522 00:31:29,300 –> 00:31:33,979 can break free from the ingrained patterns of sin 523 00:31:33,979 –> 00:31:35,819 that hold you. 524 00:31:35,859 –> 00:31:37,760 And some of us right now are saying, 525 00:31:37,760 –> 00:31:40,579 that’s too good to be true, 526 00:31:40,579 –> 00:31:42,619 I didn’t believe it. 527 00:31:42,619 –> 00:31:45,339 I’ve been longing for that all my life. 528 00:31:46,339 –> 00:31:48,020 Well, you’re right where the disciples were 529 00:31:48,020 –> 00:31:50,300 until he opened their eyes. 530 00:31:50,300 –> 00:31:52,099 It’s me, I’m alive, 531 00:31:52,099 –> 00:31:53,839 and what I’ve done in the Gospels, 532 00:31:53,839 –> 00:31:55,280 I can do for you. 533 00:31:56,140 –> 00:31:58,180 That’s why repentance is to be preached. 534 00:31:58,180 –> 00:32:02,439 Because you can change by the power of Jesus Christ. 535 00:32:03,319 –> 00:32:07,180 Not only repentance, but forgiveness. 536 00:32:07,180 –> 00:32:09,500 There’s no greater expression of love 537 00:32:09,500 –> 00:32:12,339 than the readiness to forgive. 538 00:32:12,339 –> 00:32:14,819 Right at the beginning of the ministry of Jesus, 539 00:32:14,819 –> 00:32:15,640 he says, 540 00:32:15,640 –> 00:32:17,180 the Spirit of God is upon me 541 00:32:17,180 –> 00:32:19,719 to proclaim the year of God’s favor, 542 00:32:19,719 –> 00:32:23,319 God’s going to wipe out people’s debts. 543 00:32:23,319 –> 00:32:25,459 He’s going to wipe the slate clean 544 00:32:25,459 –> 00:32:28,099 of every offense against him. 545 00:32:28,099 –> 00:32:30,660 Forgiveness isn’t a legal thing here, 546 00:32:30,699 –> 00:32:33,219 it is a relational thing. 547 00:32:33,219 –> 00:32:36,680 It is God saying, I love you, 548 00:32:36,680 –> 00:32:40,719 and I want things to be right between us. 549 00:32:40,719 –> 00:32:43,619 I want to end the alienation. 550 00:32:43,619 –> 00:32:46,579 I want you to spend eternity with me. 551 00:32:46,579 –> 00:32:48,979 And so, I’m going to go through 552 00:32:48,979 –> 00:32:51,300 all the pain that is involved 553 00:32:51,300 –> 00:32:55,239 in remitting what has been done against me. 554 00:32:55,239 –> 00:32:57,619 Because what matters most to me 555 00:32:58,099 –> 00:33:01,400 is that you should be reconciled, 556 00:33:02,359 –> 00:33:05,140 that we should be at one together. 557 00:33:06,060 –> 00:33:08,439 Have you ever known what it is to be forgiven? 558 00:33:09,979 –> 00:33:12,599 For someone you’ve hurt to love you 559 00:33:12,599 –> 00:33:15,560 more than the power of the hurt, 560 00:33:16,560 –> 00:33:19,000 to reach out through the pain of the hurt 561 00:33:19,000 –> 00:33:20,199 to embrace you. 562 00:33:20,199 –> 00:33:23,359 That is what God has done in Jesus Christ. 563 00:33:23,400 –> 00:33:27,640 That is what the pain of the cross is all about. 564 00:33:28,880 –> 00:33:30,979 And someone may be saying right now, 565 00:33:30,979 –> 00:33:35,819 the idea that God loves me just seems too good to be true. 566 00:33:38,199 –> 00:33:41,420 I’ve been looking for that kind of love all my life. 567 00:33:43,219 –> 00:33:44,260 I didn’t believe it. 568 00:33:44,260 –> 00:33:46,459 You’re right where the disciples were 569 00:33:46,459 –> 00:33:49,719 until Jesus opened their eyes. 570 00:33:51,020 –> 00:33:52,280 Do you see in the scriptures 571 00:33:52,280 –> 00:33:54,520 that God is reaching out to you, 572 00:33:54,520 –> 00:33:57,660 in Jesus Christ opening the possibility 573 00:33:57,660 –> 00:33:59,699 of change by His power 574 00:33:59,699 –> 00:34:01,459 and forgiveness that will bring you 575 00:34:01,459 –> 00:34:03,560 into a relationship with Him? 576 00:34:05,260 –> 00:34:08,320 And notice that it is in and through Jesus Christ, 577 00:34:08,320 –> 00:34:12,919 verse 47 in His name, the power comes from Him. 578 00:34:12,919 –> 00:34:14,919 God’s forgiveness flows to you 579 00:34:14,919 –> 00:34:18,600 through His death and His resurrection. 580 00:34:18,600 –> 00:34:20,639 Forgiveness is not just God saying, 581 00:34:20,719 –> 00:34:22,679 oh well we’ll forget about your sins, 582 00:34:22,679 –> 00:34:24,800 they don’t really matter. 583 00:34:24,800 –> 00:34:28,479 No, it comes out of the real wounds of Jesus. 584 00:34:29,360 –> 00:34:32,120 It’s a reconciliation of real alienation, 585 00:34:32,120 –> 00:34:34,919 it’s the removal of real guilt. 586 00:34:34,919 –> 00:34:38,000 And it comes out of the agony of the cross 587 00:34:38,000 –> 00:34:40,520 and it would not come apart from Him, 588 00:34:40,520 –> 00:34:43,239 but it does come to you through Him 589 00:34:43,239 –> 00:34:45,219 if you will put your faith in His name. 590 00:34:46,199 –> 00:34:48,679 And it’s for all nations. 591 00:34:48,679 –> 00:34:50,479 Repentance and forgiveness of sins 592 00:34:51,000 –> 00:34:55,840 will be preached in His name for all nations verse 47. 593 00:34:57,520 –> 00:34:59,120 And you know the greatest deception 594 00:34:59,120 –> 00:35:01,540 I think that Satan ever works among us 595 00:35:02,820 –> 00:35:05,760 is this idea that the good news of Jesus 596 00:35:05,760 –> 00:35:09,639 is just for certain types of people. 597 00:35:09,639 –> 00:35:13,199 You notice how easy it is for us always 598 00:35:13,199 –> 00:35:16,199 to see this as relevant to someone else? 599 00:35:17,120 –> 00:35:20,919 So the poor in the city think it’s for the middle class 600 00:35:20,919 –> 00:35:25,159 in the suburbs, and the middle class in the suburbs 601 00:35:25,159 –> 00:35:28,280 who feel very well-off think that it’s what the poor 602 00:35:28,280 –> 00:35:29,719 in the city really need. 603 00:35:30,659 –> 00:35:34,520 The Muslim in the East says Jesus is not for me. 604 00:35:34,520 –> 00:35:37,679 I already have my religion, and the secularist 605 00:35:37,679 –> 00:35:39,840 in the West says Jesus is not for me 606 00:35:39,840 –> 00:35:42,959 because I am not religious. 607 00:35:42,959 –> 00:35:46,120 Folks who are young say I’ll get to it when I’m old. 608 00:35:46,120 –> 00:35:48,719 Folks who are old characteristically say 609 00:35:48,719 –> 00:35:51,280 it’s really good for the young. 610 00:35:51,280 –> 00:35:54,159 When your life is in a mess, you think this is for people 611 00:35:54,159 –> 00:35:55,379 who are sorted out. 612 00:35:55,379 –> 00:35:57,600 When you’re sorted out, you say to yourself, 613 00:35:57,600 –> 00:35:58,580 I don’t need this. 614 00:35:58,580 –> 00:36:01,500 This is for people whose lives are in a mess. 615 00:36:01,500 –> 00:36:03,540 Satan’s greatest deception is to say 616 00:36:03,540 –> 00:36:07,899 it’s not for you, you’re not the type. 617 00:36:07,899 –> 00:36:12,540 And that’s how it is until Christ opens your eyes. 618 00:36:13,280 –> 00:36:17,719 The good news of repentance and new life 619 00:36:17,719 –> 00:36:22,719 and forgiveness in Jesus name is for all people. 620 00:36:25,699 –> 00:36:30,179 Can you take this in and can you received this today? 621 00:36:31,379 –> 00:36:34,239 Christ came to change you. 622 00:36:36,060 –> 00:36:38,879 Christ reaches out in love to you. 623 00:36:39,580 –> 00:36:43,060 God sent his son into the world for you. 624 00:36:44,060 –> 00:36:47,719 Christ died to bring you to God. 625 00:36:47,719 –> 00:36:49,760 Jesus lives for you. 626 00:36:50,760 –> 00:36:54,639 And he wants to fill you with his spirit 627 00:36:54,639 –> 00:36:58,199 and to lead you into a new life in his name. 628 00:36:59,560 –> 00:37:01,919 The wonder of it is beyond what 629 00:37:01,919 –> 00:37:04,919 a human mind can fully comprehend. 630 00:37:05,879 –> 00:37:11,199 But don’t let the wonder of it hold you back. 631 00:37:12,439 –> 00:37:18,540 Let the wonder of it lead you to Jesus. 632 00:37:21,040 –> 00:37:22,100 Will you come to him?