100:00:00,000 –> 00:00:12,820If you will open the scriptures with a truly humble heart you will hear God’s200:00:12,820 –> 00:00:19,459voice and you will learn from him. Jesus says everyone, everyone who does300:00:19,459 –> 00:00:21,360this, everyone who is taught by God400:00:21,360 –> 00:00:26,379here’s the outcome. They come to me. Welcome to Open The Bible with pastor500:00:26,440 –> 00:00:30,600Colin Smith, I’m David Pick. Glad you could be with us today. And Colin, we’re600:00:30,600 –> 00:00:34,980going to continue the message today which is all about how to overcome evil700:00:34,980 –> 00:00:41,480with humility. Yeah, and the scripture is very direct here never be wise in your800:00:41,480 –> 00:00:42,520own sight.900:00:42,520 –> 00:00:47,139Never be wise in your own sight. That calls us to humility and that’s at the1000:00:47,139 –> 00:00:52,380very heart of repentance. We’re going to look at the story today. A very fascinating1100:00:52,660 –> 00:00:56,939story of a man by the name of Thomas Odin, who quite recently went to be with the1200:00:56,939 –> 00:01:05,099Lord was a well-known and influential writer, cutting-edge out there. What1300:01:05,099 –> 00:01:10,779he came to as a conclusion was that his own writing, his own teaching as a1400:01:10,779 –> 00:01:16,040professor of theology, was actually being wise in his own eyes. Everything was1500:01:16,040 –> 00:01:21,080novel and he came to realize that the calling of a faithful person is not to1600:01:21,080 –> 00:01:25,400be novel but to be faithful. And he switched from a place of saying1700:01:25,400 –> 00:01:29,500everything I say has got to be new and original, to you know what, I don’t want1800:01:29,500 –> 00:01:33,580to be new and original at all, I want to be faithful to what God has said and1900:01:33,580 –> 00:01:40,160what God has trusted. This is a marvelous story of repentance in the mind and in2000:01:40,160 –> 00:01:45,320the heart of a Christian leader who now is wonderfully with the Lord and it2100:01:45,320 –> 00:01:49,959speaks powerfully to every Christian today. So join us if you can in your2200:01:50,120 –> 00:01:55,199Bible wherein Romans chapter 12, as we continue the message Overcoming Evil2300:01:55,199 –> 00:02:01,919with Humility. Here’s Colin. Always remember that there is an intellectual2400:02:01,919 –> 00:02:08,820dimension to repentance, as well as a moral one. You have that in Isaiah2500:02:08,820 –> 00:02:18,279chapter 55 and verse 7. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man2600:02:18,279 –> 00:02:23,860his thought. So you see the two dimensions of repentance right there in2700:02:23,860 –> 00:02:29,639that verse. What I want to give you, and I’m going to take some time here on this, I2800:02:29,639 –> 00:02:35,800want to give you the testimony of a man who, for many years, was wise in his own2900:02:35,800 –> 00:02:43,520sight. And then experienced a remarkable change of heart. The man’s name is Thomas3000:02:44,059 –> 00:02:51,380Oden. A remarkable Christian leader and in his book a Change of heart, he gives3100:02:51,380 –> 00:03:01,320the very honest confession of a brilliant man who changed direction very3200:03:01,320 –> 00:03:08,000significantly at the midpoint of his life. Has written over 50 books and3300:03:08,139 –> 00:03:13,580articles has had massive influence but all of it in one direction in the first3400:03:13,580 –> 00:03:16,880half of his life and all of it in a completely opposite direction in the3500:03:16,880 –> 00:03:20,300second half of his life. So that he regrets what he has written for the3600:03:20,300 –> 00:03:28,119first 40 years. And telling his story today because I want you to see the3700:03:28,119 –> 00:03:35,880effects of being wise in your own eyes. If you are wise in your own sight here’s3800:03:36,059 –> 00:03:40,500what will happen. When you come to the Bible you will evaluate the Bible in the3900:03:40,500 –> 00:03:44,860light of your own wisdom. If you’re wise in your own eyes and you come to the4000:03:44,860 –> 00:03:49,119Bible what you’ll do is you’ll simply take what fits with what you already4100:03:49,119 –> 00:03:53,940believe and you’ll then discard everything else and therefore instead of4200:03:53,940 –> 00:03:57,619listening to the voice of God what you’re actually doing is merely4300:03:57,619 –> 00:04:00,979listening to an echo of your own voice you’re merely picking up what you4400:04:00,979 –> 00:04:05,520already agree with and shutting out anything that’s beyond the range of what4500:04:05,580 –> 00:04:12,220you’re already convinced of. It’s a formula for complete stagnation and4600:04:12,220 –> 00:04:16,679ultimately alienation from God because you’re not listening to Him at all.4700:04:16,679 –> 00:04:24,359So let me tell you the story. Thomas Oden was born in 1931, has had great4800:04:24,359 –> 00:04:30,440influence especially during the massive cultural changes that took place in the4900:04:30,559 –> 00:04:38,8391960s. Raised in rural Oklahoma, he grew up in a Methodist church and from early5000:04:38,839 –> 00:04:45,040on in his life professed Christian faith. He says and I’m quoting him here that he5100:04:45,040 –> 00:04:49,899had a passion for social justice. He said I was a marxist5200:04:49,899 –> 00:04:56,980utopian dreamer. I began to see the vision of a world where all weapons5300:04:57,019 –> 00:05:00,940would be banned opening the way for a world government that would seek social5400:05:00,940 –> 00:05:07,459justice and where peace and sanity would prevail. He describes his relationship5500:05:07,459 –> 00:05:14,660with the Scripture in this way that it was I quote a filtering process. A5600:05:14,660 –> 00:05:21,420filtering process which permitted the Bible to speak to me insofar as it could5700:05:21,420 –> 00:05:26,540meet my conditions, my worldview, and my assumptions as a modern person. You see5800:05:26,540 –> 00:05:31,660what he’s saying. I’ve filtered out everything that I didn’t already think.5900:05:31,660 –> 00:05:36,779Then with regard to prayer he says this, he’s referring to his college years, age6000:05:36,779 –> 00:05:45,64019. In college I lost the capacity for heartfelt prayer. Okay so 19 years old6100:05:45,640 –> 00:05:53,160brought up in the church, gets to college, starts filtering the Bible through his6200:05:53,899 –> 00:05:59,299utopian view so that he won’t receive anything that doesn’t fit in some way6300:05:59,299 –> 00:06:03,399with that. And what he finds at the same time is he loses his old capacity for6400:06:03,399 –> 00:06:09,399heartfelt prayer. Moving beyond his college years he says this, I went into6500:06:09,399 –> 00:06:13,179the ministry, he’s ordained as a Christian minister, I went into the6600:06:13,179 –> 00:06:18,959ministry to use the church to elicit political change. It’s such an honest6700:06:18,980 –> 00:06:23,660confession he then speaks about how he came under the influence of Sol6800:06:23,660 –> 00:06:28,940Alinsky and what he describes as the Chicago school of push-and-shove6900:06:28,940 –> 00:06:36,380politics. He says, Alinsky taught me that radicals precipitate social crises by7000:06:36,380 –> 00:06:42,179strategic deception, surprise attacks on vulnerabilities, direct action and7100:06:42,179 –> 00:06:49,500rhetorical cover-up. Sorry, learned in Chicago. Odin then describes himself in7200:06:49,500 –> 00:06:55,019these early years as, quote, a movement theologian. He says, I was continuously7300:06:55,019 –> 00:07:01,980shifting from movement to movement towards whatever new idea I thought7400:07:01,980 –> 00:07:06,019might seem to be an acceptable modernization of Christianity. He, was I7500:07:06,279 –> 00:07:16,279was, he says, floating on the wave of secularization, the trick was to learn to7600:07:16,279 –> 00:07:20,739sound Christian while undermining traditional Christianity. This is7700:07:20,739 –> 00:07:28,519remarkably candid. With regards to his relationship with God, he says this and7800:07:28,519 –> 00:07:33,540remember the word theology has the word theos at the front, which is Greek for7900:07:33,720 –> 00:07:39,279God, so theology, the study of God, that word theo or theos there, he says this8000:07:39,279 –> 00:07:47,760for me, the theo in theology had become little more than a question mark. I could8100:07:47,760 –> 00:07:52,559confidently discuss philosophy, psychology and social change, but God8200:07:52,559 –> 00:07:59,399made me uneasy. He continues, resurrection and atonement were words I8300:08:00,179 –> 00:08:06,279choked on. The Gospel was therefore not about an event of divine salvation, but8400:08:06,279 –> 00:08:10,820about a human psychological experience of trust and freedom from anxiety and8500:08:10,820 –> 00:08:15,600guilt and boredom. He was at the forefront of a vast number of popular8600:08:15,600 –> 00:08:24,239psychological innovations throughout the late sixties in that period. He says the8700:08:25,160 –> 00:08:29,839was to him at this time not about something that actually happened but was8800:08:29,839 –> 00:08:36,979quote a community’s memory of an unexplained event and though he does8900:08:36,979 –> 00:08:41,479add and this is a fascinating concession looking back from his later life he says9000:08:41,479 –> 00:08:47,400but even then I could not explain to myself or to others how Christianity9100:08:47,400 –> 00:08:52,460could have been founded on an event that never happened I couldn’t explain it9200:08:52,820 –> 00:09:01,179that I could not do then he makes this confession I did not examine my own9300:09:01,179 –> 00:09:10,039motives says a boy I was scrutinizing everyone else’s meetings but I did not9400:09:10,039 –> 00:09:17,880examine my own motives the biblical words for this art arrogance and moral9500:09:17,880 –> 00:09:27,640blindness I confess now that I became in trapped with the desire for upward9600:09:27,640 –> 00:09:35,320mobility in an academic environment gotta say something new to move up in9700:09:35,320 –> 00:09:42,280that world now everything that he wrote in those early years had significant9800:09:42,280 –> 00:09:47,840consequences and he says reflecting on it these words9900:09:48,179 –> 00:09:54,679my past visions of vast plans for social change had irreparably harmed many10000:09:54,679 –> 00:10:00,679innocents especially the unborn. Here was someone who had provided an effective10100:10:00,679 –> 00:10:06,239theological justification for all of these movements the sexually permissive10200:10:06,239 –> 00:10:11,320lifestyle which I had not joined but which I had failed to critique led to a10300:10:11,320 –> 00:10:17,280generation of fatherless children the political policies I had promoted were10400:10:17,280 –> 00:10:21,200intended to increase justice by political means but ended in diminishing10500:10:21,200 –> 00:10:27,479personal responsibility and freedom many of the seemingly humane psychological10600:10:27,479 –> 00:10:33,619therapies I had supported may have made people more miserable less able to10700:10:33,619 –> 00:10:39,039choose wisely or to seek the virtues that are required for happiness, so he10800:10:39,940 –> 00:10:48,419had to learn to repent and to see my own arrogance and to acknowledge my10900:10:48,419 –> 00:10:56,500limitations. Now what caused such a remarkable turn in this man’s life? The11000:10:56,500 –> 00:11:03,599turn in Thomas Oden’s life began in 1970 when at the age of 39 he was appointed11100:11:03,599 –> 00:11:09,979as a tenured professor at Drew University in New Jersey, and there he11200:11:09,979 –> 00:11:15,799met a Jewish scholar by the name of Will Herberg, and the two of them became very11300:11:15,799 –> 00:11:20,179very close friends. They must have been very close friends from the directness11400:11:20,179 –> 00:11:25,599with which Will Herberg spoke to him. How’s this for the directness of a11500:11:25,599 –> 00:11:35,760friend? My irascible, endearing Jewish friend leaned into my face and told me11600:11:35,760 –> 00:11:41,320that I was densely ignorant of Christianity, and that he simply couldn’t11700:11:41,320 –> 00:11:43,359permit me to throw my life away.11800:11:43,359 –> 00:11:48,280Now this is a Jewish scholar. Herberg’s not a Christian, but he is saying you11900:11:48,280 –> 00:11:50,640don’t even know what Christianity is.12000:11:51,380 –> 00:11:52,799I continue the quote.12100:11:52,799 –> 00:11:58,460Herberg says, if you are ever going to become a credible theologian instead of12200:11:58,460 –> 00:12:05,500a know-it-all pundit, you had better restart your life on firmer ground.12300:12:05,500 –> 00:12:09,880You are not a theologian, except in name only, even if you are paid to be one.12400:12:09,880 –> 00:12:13,739Wow, faithful are the wounds of a friend.12500:12:14,219 –> 00:12:22,099So Thomas Odin gave himself to reading the church fathers, and here’s what he discovered12600:12:22,099 –> 00:12:31,719that instead of always attempting to say something new, the church fathers were12700:12:31,719 –> 00:12:35,479committed to one thing and that was to be faithful to Scripture.12800:12:35,479 –> 00:12:40,820So look what is happening here, if I can encapsulate the stories so that we’re12900:12:40,820 –> 00:12:42,140seeing it in our world.13000:12:42,280 –> 00:12:50,099Here is a man with a brilliant mind, he feels that he has what he needs, the13100:12:50,099 –> 00:12:54,280wisdom that he needs in himself, so he doesn’t pray.13200:12:55,559 –> 00:13:00,880When he reads the Bible, he filters what it says through his already decided13300:13:00,880 –> 00:13:03,739view of the world, and he filters out everything else.13400:13:03,979 –> 00:13:09,520He is a professor of theology but by his own confession, God is little more than a13500:13:09,520 –> 00:13:11,219question mark to him.13600:13:13,080 –> 00:13:17,380The resurrection is a community memory of an unexplained event, the atonement is a13700:13:17,380 –> 00:13:19,659word that he chokes on.13800:13:20,340 –> 00:13:24,799Everything that he writes is cutting edge, it is new, it is innovative,13900:13:24,799 –> 00:13:29,340it is on the frontiers of cultural change and theological development.14000:13:29,460 –> 00:13:34,200His initials are stamped on it because nobody has ever said it before.14100:13:34,960 –> 00:13:36,159And why is he doing this?14200:13:36,159 –> 00:13:40,099By his own confession, because this is the way to upward mobility14300:13:40,119 –> 00:13:48,039in an academic environment, and then he discovers14400:13:48,599 –> 00:13:52,979that the church fathers were not the least bit interested in being new,14500:13:52,979 –> 00:13:55,700innovative, and cutting edge.14600:13:55,780 –> 00:13:59,260They were not the least bit interested in saying things that people have never said14700:13:59,260 –> 00:14:02,440before, they were interested in one thing.14800:14:03,539 –> 00:14:07,039And that was to be faithful to scripture.14900:14:07,960 –> 00:14:13,059So to complete the story, Auden’s change of heart was sealed15000:14:14,059 –> 00:14:17,719in 1971 when he had a dream.15100:14:19,099 –> 00:14:20,380Now picture this.15200:14:20,380 –> 00:14:26,320In this dream, he sees himself in a cemetery15300:14:27,179 –> 00:14:29,599and comes across his own tombstone.15400:14:29,599 –> 00:14:31,500Now this is a remarkable dream.15500:14:31,900 –> 00:14:34,940Imagine in a dream seeing your own tombstone and saying,15600:14:34,940 –> 00:14:36,880I wonder what’s written on my tombstone.15700:14:37,200 –> 00:14:41,679And he looks in the dream at this tombstone15800:14:41,679 –> 00:14:42,979that has his name on it.15900:14:42,979 –> 00:14:44,179Thomas Auden.16000:14:44,179 –> 00:14:47,299And here’s the epitoph that he saw in the dream.16100:14:47,719 –> 00:14:52,280He made no new contribution to theology.16200:14:53,520 –> 00:14:56,640And he says, I woke up relieved and I woke up refreshed.16300:14:56,640 –> 00:14:57,979In other words, he’s saying,16400:14:58,500 –> 00:15:00,020I thought that’s the life I want to live.16500:15:01,559 –> 00:15:04,059I spent half of my life trying to be so cutting edge,16600:15:04,059 –> 00:15:06,440saying things that nobody has ever said before16700:15:06,440 –> 00:15:09,919in order to justify endless innovations in a changing culture.16800:15:09,919 –> 00:15:11,900I want to go completely the other way.16900:15:11,900 –> 00:15:13,299I want to be like the fathers.17000:15:13,299 –> 00:15:16,820I want to say not a single thing that is not found in scripture.17100:15:18,479 –> 00:15:21,500So after that, he says, I set about trying scrupulously17200:15:21,500 –> 00:15:23,760to abstain from creating any new doctrine,17300:15:23,760 –> 00:15:26,580and it was the best decision that I ever made.17400:15:27,020 –> 00:15:30,960It took no small effort to resist the temptation to novelty.17500:15:31,719 –> 00:15:35,159Nothing at Yale was drummed into my head more steadily17600:15:35,260 –> 00:15:37,859than the aspiration that the theology I would seek17700:15:37,859 –> 00:15:41,299would be my own and would have my uniqueness imprinted on it.17800:15:41,299 –> 00:15:48,200But by 1972, I was pledged to present nothing new or original17900:15:48,200 –> 00:15:51,260in basic Christian teaching that would have my initials stamped on it18000:15:51,260 –> 00:15:52,340as if it were mine.18100:15:52,340 –> 00:15:56,320I have honored that pledge, and it has been deeply gratifying to me.18200:15:57,940 –> 00:16:00,859And to summarize his life now 85, he says this,18300:16:01,780 –> 00:16:06,820If the first 40 years were spent hungering for meaning in life,18400:16:06,820 –> 00:16:11,760the last 40 years have been spent in being fed.18500:16:11,760 –> 00:16:13,400Isn’t that beautiful?18600:16:13,400 –> 00:16:18,640I spent 40 years on the cutting edge trying to find the meaning of life,18700:16:18,640 –> 00:16:22,020and at the end of it all, I was hungry.18800:16:22,500 –> 00:16:25,299I spent the last 40 years drawing from the Word of God18900:16:25,299 –> 00:16:27,960since I have seen it has authority over my life,19000:16:27,960 –> 00:16:29,659and I am not the one who filters it.19100:16:29,700 –> 00:16:32,679It’s the One that actually filters me.19200:16:33,900 –> 00:16:36,820And what I’ve found for 40 years is that my life, my soul,19300:16:36,820 –> 00:16:40,780has been wonderfully nourished and fed.19400:16:41,179 –> 00:16:43,859You’re listening to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith19500:16:43,859 –> 00:16:47,359and the message, Overcoming evil with Humility.19600:16:47,359 –> 00:16:49,979It’s part of our series about overcoming evil,19700:16:49,979 –> 00:16:51,919and if you ever miss one of the series,19800:16:51,919 –> 00:16:55,320you can always catch up or go back and listen again online19900:16:55,320 –> 00:16:58,739at our website, openthebible.org.uk.20000:16:59,919 –> 00:17:01,179Back to the message now.20100:17:01,179 –> 00:17:02,200Here’s Colin.20200:17:02,979 –> 00:17:04,239No, here’s the application.20300:17:05,760 –> 00:17:09,780If you are wise in your own eyes,20400:17:09,780 –> 00:17:13,060God will be little more than a question mark to you.20500:17:14,359 –> 00:17:16,180You won’t have much desire to pray20600:17:16,180 –> 00:17:18,699because you’ll feel, hey, I got what I need already.20700:17:20,000 –> 00:17:21,219When you study the Bible,20800:17:21,219 –> 00:17:23,020you will filter what God says20900:17:23,020 –> 00:17:24,800through what you already believe.21000:17:24,800 –> 00:17:28,260This is what the Pharisees did, friends.21100:17:29,219 –> 00:17:31,599You remember what Jesus said to them?21200:17:31,599 –> 00:17:33,239You study the scriptures.21300:17:34,660 –> 00:17:37,560You think that by them, you have eternal life,21400:17:37,560 –> 00:17:40,780but it is they that bear witness about me,21500:17:40,780 –> 00:17:43,300yet you refuse to come to me.21600:17:43,300 –> 00:17:46,160Here you are, you’re studying the Bible every day,21700:17:46,160 –> 00:17:49,219but you’re filtering it through your own view of the world21800:17:49,219 –> 00:17:50,260and therefore you cannot see21900:17:50,260 –> 00:17:52,020the very thing about which it speaks.22000:17:52,020 –> 00:17:53,839These scriptures are all about me.22100:17:54,579 –> 00:17:58,040What a tragedy for a man or woman22200:17:58,040 –> 00:18:00,140to sit in the life group with an open Bible22300:18:00,140 –> 00:18:02,439and conversation around it and come to church22400:18:02,439 –> 00:18:04,780and filter everything so that at the end of the day22500:18:04,780 –> 00:18:08,199you merely end up reinforcing the particular prejudices22600:18:08,199 –> 00:18:09,680that you had at the beginning.22700:18:11,660 –> 00:18:16,660But, if you will come to God with a humble heart,22800:18:20,319 –> 00:18:21,520God will teach you.22900:18:22,339 –> 00:18:26,180Jesus said it is written in the prophets23000:18:26,180 –> 00:18:30,739and they will all be taught by God.23100:18:32,219 –> 00:18:34,780And everyone who has heard and learned23200:18:34,780 –> 00:18:37,060from the father comes to me.23300:18:37,060 –> 00:18:39,219See, if you will open the scriptures23400:18:39,219 –> 00:18:43,439with a truly humble heart,23500:18:45,060 –> 00:18:50,060you will hear God’s voice and you will learn from him23600:18:51,000 –> 00:18:53,599and Jesus says everyone, everyone who does this,23700:18:53,599 –> 00:18:55,199everyone who is taught by God,23800:18:55,199 –> 00:18:57,300here’s the outcome, they come to me.23900:18:59,339 –> 00:19:02,920Why, because you come to the conclusion24000:19:02,920 –> 00:19:04,140that all wisdom does not lie in me24100:19:04,140 –> 00:19:06,520and that I am desperately in need in the wisdom24200:19:06,520 –> 00:19:09,640that I can only find in God through his son Jesus Christ,24300:19:09,640 –> 00:19:10,560who has become for us,24400:19:10,560 –> 00:19:13,000not only wisdom but righteousness and redemption24500:19:13,000 –> 00:19:16,040and in him, not in me, is everything that we need.24600:19:16,859 –> 00:19:19,239So friends, thoughtful Christians24700:19:19,239 –> 00:19:23,599surely find ourselves wondering in these days24800:19:24,439 –> 00:19:26,199what in the world is God doing24900:19:26,199 –> 00:19:28,420in this troubling season of national life25000:19:28,420 –> 00:19:31,119and I for sure don’t have the answer to that question.25100:19:33,140 –> 00:19:35,020But one thing is surely clear,25200:19:36,560 –> 00:19:41,560when pride, haughty eyes and being wise in your own sight25300:19:41,739 –> 00:19:44,040are paraded before us on television25400:19:45,000 –> 00:19:46,579day after day after day25500:19:48,540 –> 00:19:51,359to the point where vast numbers of people25600:19:51,359 –> 00:19:53,760find themselves saying stick that television off,25700:19:53,760 –> 00:19:55,660I cannot stand one minute more of it.25800:19:57,119 –> 00:19:59,160Perhaps we are at a moment where God25900:19:59,160 –> 00:20:01,880is actually holding up as in a mirror26000:20:03,599 –> 00:20:05,760our own worst sins so that we truly26100:20:05,760 –> 00:20:06,959will become sick of them26200:20:08,380 –> 00:20:11,439and repent and humble ourselves.26300:20:12,420 –> 00:20:16,359Perhaps God will use these circumstances26400:20:16,359 –> 00:20:18,599and his own word today to very deeply26500:20:18,599 –> 00:20:20,300in our life say26600:20:21,760 –> 00:20:25,099Lord deliver me from ever having26700:20:25,099 –> 00:20:25,920haughty eyes,26800:20:27,280 –> 00:20:31,719Lord may I never be wise in my own sight,26900:20:33,819 –> 00:20:36,420the gospel cuts all pride to shred,27000:20:36,420 –> 00:20:37,260Doesn’t it?27100:20:38,359 –> 00:20:40,579Because it casts us upon the mercy of God.27200:20:40,579 –> 00:20:43,939That’s why Romans 12, in the light of God’s mercy,27300:20:45,420 –> 00:20:47,020in the light of the fact that you’re known better27400:20:47,020 –> 00:20:48,540than others because all have sinned27500:20:48,540 –> 00:20:50,400and fell short of the glory of God,27600:20:52,079 –> 00:20:54,500in the light of the fact that what you have27700:20:54,500 –> 00:20:56,020that you did not receive,27800:20:56,020 –> 00:20:58,520your salvation has come to you by grace27900:20:58,520 –> 00:21:01,599as a free gift in the light of that.28000:21:02,880 –> 00:21:04,459What have you got to be haughty about?28100:21:04,459 –> 00:21:06,280And why would you be wise in your own eyes28200:21:06,280 –> 00:21:09,099when everything that you have has been received seen?28300:21:09,099 –> 00:21:12,640The gospel brought the apostle Paul,28400:21:12,640 –> 00:21:13,780it’s all of Tarsus,28500:21:14,839 –> 00:21:16,839from thinking he was the cream of the crop28600:21:16,839 –> 00:21:18,859to confessing he was the chief of sinners.28700:21:18,859 –> 00:21:21,359Isn’t that a remarkable change?28800:21:21,359 –> 00:21:23,040I used to think I was the cream of the crop,28900:21:23,040 –> 00:21:24,640the school of Gamaliel,29000:21:25,560 –> 00:21:27,699and living this most moral life,29100:21:27,699 –> 00:21:31,459then the gospel came and what was my conclusion?29200:21:31,459 –> 00:21:33,339Jesus Christ came into the world29300:21:33,339 –> 00:21:37,319to save sinners, of whom I am the chief.29400:21:37,319 –> 00:21:39,380That’s how the gospel humbles us29500:21:39,380 –> 00:21:41,300and it brings us to a place29600:21:42,660 –> 00:21:45,040where if we’re really living in the light of God’s mercy,29700:21:45,040 –> 00:21:48,900it becomes possible for us to live in harmony29800:21:50,219 –> 00:21:51,300with one another.29900:21:52,780 –> 00:21:55,939So friends, do not be overtaken30000:21:57,219 –> 00:22:00,780by the pride and by the arrogance around us.30100:22:01,900 –> 00:22:02,920Do not be hottie,30200:22:03,859 –> 00:22:06,680never be wise in your own eyes,30300:22:07,619 –> 00:22:09,719don’t be overcome by that evil,30400:22:10,619 –> 00:22:13,339but rather overcome evil with good30500:22:14,300 –> 00:22:16,040in the light of God’s mercy.30600:22:17,260 –> 00:22:20,719Live in harmony with one another.30700:22:20,719 –> 00:22:22,219You’ve been listening to Open The Bible30800:22:22,219 –> 00:22:23,619with Pastor Colin Smith30900:22:23,619 –> 00:22:28,079and our message, Overcoming Evil With Humility.31000:22:28,079 –> 00:22:31,739It’s the sixth message in our series, Overcoming Evil.31100:22:31,739 –> 00:22:33,859And if you’ve missed any of the series to date31200:22:33,859 –> 00:22:35,839or if you want to go back and listen again,31300:22:35,839 –> 00:22:37,219do that by coming online31400:22:38,079 –> 00:22:40,780to our website, openthebible.org.uk.31500:22:40,780 –> 00:22:44,459There, you’ll find all the messages so far in the series.31600:22:44,459 –> 00:22:46,300You’ll also find them as a podcast31700:22:47,239 –> 00:22:49,439if you want to get Pastor Colin’s messages in that way.31800:22:49,439 –> 00:22:51,579And those are on all the main podcast sites.31900:22:51,579 –> 00:22:53,619Search for Open The Bible UK32000:22:53,619 –> 00:22:57,479and subscribe if you want to receive regular updates.32100:22:57,479 –> 00:22:59,979Also on our website and as a podcast,32200:22:59,979 –> 00:23:02,140you’ll find Open The Bible Daily32300:23:03,359 –> 00:23:06,160and that’s a series of short two to three minute32400:23:06,520 –> 00:23:08,660Q & A’s based on Pastor Colin’s teaching32500:23:08,660 –> 00:23:11,319and read in the UK by Sue McLeish.32600:23:11,319 –> 00:23:13,500Open The Bible depends on the generous support32700:23:13,500 –> 00:23:17,439of our listeners and if supporting Open The Bible32800:23:17,439 –> 00:23:20,099financially is something you’ve been thinking about,32900:23:20,099 –> 00:23:22,260we have an offer for you this month.33000:23:22,260 –> 00:23:24,560If you’re able to set up a new direct debit33100:23:24,560 –> 00:23:26,239to the work of Open The Bible33200:23:26,239 –> 00:23:29,160in the amount of five pounds per month or more33300:23:29,160 –> 00:23:31,780or a one-off gift or 50 pounds or more,33400:23:31,780 –> 00:23:34,959we’d love to say thank you by sending you three copies33500:23:34,959 –> 00:23:37,540of Pastor Colin Smith’s devotional,33600:23:37,540 –> 00:23:40,099Green Pastures, Still Waters.33700:23:40,099 –> 00:23:42,660Colin, why did you write this devotional?33800:23:42,660 –> 00:23:47,140This goes back to the pandemic and in these dark days,33900:23:47,140 –> 00:23:49,099I guess along with every other pastor,34000:23:49,099 –> 00:23:50,859I was asking the question,34100:23:50,859 –> 00:23:53,459what will help and encourage God’s people34200:23:53,459 –> 00:23:55,380to get through these difficult days?34300:23:55,380 –> 00:24:00,260And I turned to Psalm 23 and just found such joy34400:24:00,260 –> 00:24:04,219and help in mining the wonderful treasures34500:24:04,280 –> 00:24:07,780that are in this marvelous chapter of the Bible.34600:24:07,780 –> 00:24:09,939And my colleague, Tim Augustine,34700:24:09,939 –> 00:24:12,339has now arranged that material34800:24:12,339 –> 00:24:14,939in the form of a 31 day devotional.34900:24:14,939 –> 00:24:18,219And I’m just delighted that we’re able to offer this.35000:24:18,219 –> 00:24:22,619Looking at the Lord Jesus Christ through Psalm 2335100:24:22,619 –> 00:24:26,640will bring strength and encouragement and peace and joy.35200:24:26,640 –> 00:24:28,579And to do that for 31 days,35300:24:28,579 –> 00:24:30,260to meditate on one of the best known35400:24:30,260 –> 00:24:32,459and best loved chapters in all of the Bible35500:24:32,479 –> 00:24:35,560to get our eyes fixed on the Lord Jesus Christ.35600:24:35,560 –> 00:24:37,339So if you need some encouragement,35700:24:37,339 –> 00:24:39,380Green Pastures, Still Waters35800:24:39,380 –> 00:24:41,459is going to be a great help to you.35900:24:41,459 –> 00:24:43,560Well, we’d love to send you three copies36000:24:43,560 –> 00:24:45,400of Pastor Colin Smith’s devotional,36100:24:45,400 –> 00:24:47,380Green Pastures, Still Waters,36200:24:47,380 –> 00:24:51,300along with a special Open the Bible pen and bookmark36300:24:51,300 –> 00:24:54,020to say thank you for setting up a new direct debit36400:24:54,020 –> 00:24:55,760to the work of Open the Bible36500:24:55,760 –> 00:24:58,180in the amount of £5 per month or more36600:24:58,180 –> 00:25:01,119or a one-off gift of £50 or more.36700:25:01,119 –> 00:25:05,219Full details, terms and conditions are on our website.36800:25:05,219 –> 00:25:08,479openthebible.org.uk.36900:25:08,479 –> 00:25:11,160For Open the Bible and Pastor Colin Smith,37000:25:11,160 –> 00:25:14,199I’m David Pick, and I hope you’ll join us again next time.37100:25:14,199 –> 00:25:22,199If we lose our belief in God’s anger,37200:25:22,199 –> 00:25:26,040we end up further away from peace, not closer.37300:25:26,040 –> 00:25:28,859Find out why next time on Open the Bible.