Welcome to
3ABN's Fall Camp Meeting
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Homecoming 2018,
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featuring inspired
messages from your 3ABN family,
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and featured speaker, Ty Gibson
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all to prepare your heart
for the coming of the Lord.
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Hello, friends, and welcome back
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to the final evening
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of the 3ABN Fall
Camp Meeting here,
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right here in 2018, can
you guys believe it's 2018?
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That's incredible.
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We have been so blessed
here at this camp meeting
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with all of the wonderful music,
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and the wonderful messages.
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Do you guys agree with that?
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And then we are so thankful
for each and every one of you
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who have joined us here
at the Worship Center here
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at the 3ABN headquarters,
and all of you at home
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who are joining us around
the world live and tuning in,
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we are so blessed,
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and I know we are going
to be continued to be blessed
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'cause it's not over yet,
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we still have a wonderful song
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that's going to be brought to us
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by Ms. Yvonne Lewis
and the title of that song
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is, "Remember Me."
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And as soon as Ms. Yvonne
is finished with her song,
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then the next
person you will see
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is Brother Ty Gibson, and
the title of his sermon is,
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"Our Covenant
Identity in Christ."
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So, thank you. Ms. Yvonne.
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The thief lay dying on the cross
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And he knew all along
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That he had done wrong
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And for his sins, he must die.
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And so he turned
and saw the Christ
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With his blood flowing down
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He knew he had found the One
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Who could save his soul
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And so he cried
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Remember me when You come
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Into Your kingdom, oh, Lord
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Remember me when You talk
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To your Father
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And tell Him that
I know I've not been
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All he wants me to be
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But in mercy now I plead
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Remember
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Me
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Jesus said have
no fear, my child
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You shall be with Me eternally
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It is for you that I die
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Oh, now I know
Christ lives again
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And He stands all alone
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Before the white throne
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With his own righteous life
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He covers mine
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So now I cry
Remember me when You come
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Into Your kingdom, oh, Lord
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Remember me when You talk
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To your Father
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And tell Him that
I know I've not been
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All He wants me to be
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But in mercy now I plead
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Remember me
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Remember me when you come
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Into Your kingdom, oh, Lord,
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Remember me when
You talk To your Father
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And tell Him that
I know I've not been
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All He wants me to be
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But in mercy now I plead
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But in mercy now I plead
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But in mercy now I plead
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Remember
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Me
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Thank you.
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Beautiful.
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Well, good evening, everybody.
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This is our final time together.
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And the message tonight
is best served by the ladies
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helping me out
here for a moment.
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Women, I want you to imagine
that you and I have never met,
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you don't know who I am,
you've never seen my face.
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You come home,
you open your door,
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you walk in, and you see me
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sitting on your
sofa eating a sandwich.
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Now something
immediately happens
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inside of you.
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The first thing
you think of course is,
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why is this strange man
in my house, on my sofa,
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eating my sandwich material.
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Those avocados were for later.
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But the next thing you think is,
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and maybe you don't
wrap words around it,
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but you have a sense
that you have been trespassed,
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that you have been violated
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because this
space on planet earth,
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your home is your
domicile, your domain.
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It's a territory that
you hold in the world.
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It belongs to you.
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The door locks.
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You come in and you have
a perfect right to be there.
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I come in, I do not have
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a perfect right to be there.
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You, your domicile,
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your territory
has been breached,
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it has been violated.
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And just as you
are about to tell me
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to get out of your house,
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your husband emerges
from a back room and says,
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"Oh, hey, sweetie.
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This is my new friend, Ty.
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He likes
sandwiches, I invited him over.
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So he is having a
sandwich with me."
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Did anything
changed in the scenario?
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Did anything
changed inside of you?
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Of course, it did
because you and your husband
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hold this domain,
this territory together.
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It is jointly held, is it not?
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And I was invited
legitimately into your space,
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into your domain by someone
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who has a perfect
right to invite someone in.
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Suddenly everything is fine,
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and you have a seat
on the sofa next to me,
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and have a sandwich as well.
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Everything is fine now.
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I'm going to
suggest you this evening
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that whether we ever explain
it to ourselves in detail,
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we have an intuitive sense
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about this thing
we call "territory."
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Because we are
free moral agents,
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we sense that we exist
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in a shared world,
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and that there are
legitimate boundaries.
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We also sense
that those boundaries
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can only be
crossed by permission
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because we are
free moral agents.
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Now I want to
bring to you this angle
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on the plan of salvation
by calling your attention
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first of all to
a remarkable book
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that I need on the
screen in front of me.
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A remarkable book
by William Barrett.
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William Barrett
was a philosopher
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and probably one of the
best thinkers in philosophy
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over the last 50 to 100 years.
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And Barrett
summarizes in his book,
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this amazing
treatment, "The Irrational Man,"
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he summarizes that
there are only two ways
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really of processing reality,
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two ways of
thinking as human beings.
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Two ways of thinking,
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Hebraism, and Hellenism,
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between these two points
of influence moves the world
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or the world moves.
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He's saying, there's
the Hebrew way of thinking
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and there's the
Greek way of thinking,
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Greek referred to
here as Hellenism.
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There are only two ways
of processing information.
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It doesn't matter who you are,
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whether you ever sat down
and really thought it through,
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you think in a Hebrew
manner or in a Greek manner,
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or maybe a mixture of the
two that needs to be sorted out.
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The Bible is a Hebrew
book, it's not a Greek book.
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The New Testament was
written in Greek by Hebrews.
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Jesus was and is
a Jewish Messiah,
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He was a Hebrew.
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And Jesus came into the
world through a Hebrew narrative
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so that
everything that is occurring
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in the New Testament
00:11:03.56\00:11:04.89
is occurring
against the backdrop
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and upon the stage
of that Hebrew narrative
00:11:07.06\00:11:11.23
that we call the Old Testament,
the Hebrew Scriptures.
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Now the Greek way of
thinking is centered on power.
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God is conceived of
in terms of sheer power.
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Doesn't matter if
you like Him or not,
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He's in-charge.
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The Hebrew way of
thinking is that God is love
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and that
actually God's character
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either solicits
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or repels our engagement.
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The Hebrew way of thinking says,
00:11:43.43\00:11:45.57
God is a particular kind of God
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who is to be
worshipped and praised
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because of the
attributes of His character.
00:11:51.84\00:11:54.68
The Greek way of thinking says,
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"It doesn't
matter what you think
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or what God is like.
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You had better
get with His program
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because He has power over you."
00:12:01.88\00:12:04.82
Christianity
down through the ages
00:12:04.85\00:12:06.86
has been
infiltrated by Greek thinking
00:12:06.89\00:12:10.43
so much so that many
believers in Christ, in name,
00:12:10.46\00:12:16.20
have lost track of the fact
that we as believers in Christ
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are living out a Hebrew
narrative, not a Greek one.
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So within our framework
for our purposes this evening,
00:12:24.37\00:12:29.54
I want to peel back a
piece of the Hebrew story
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that is vital to
understand who Jesus is
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and why He came to the world.
00:12:38.49\00:12:40.76
So we go back to the
beginning of the story
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as we have every
previous message.
00:12:42.49\00:12:45.56
Genesis 1:26, 27,
00:12:45.59\00:12:49.60
tells us something
that we are familiar with
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but we are going to
re-familiarize ourselves
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with this passage
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and we are going
to notice something
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that we don't
normally take into account.
00:12:57.27\00:12:59.64
The scripture
says, "Then God said,
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'Let Us make man in Our image,
according to Our likeness,
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and let them have
00:13:08.62\00:13:13.42
dominion over all the earth.'"
00:13:13.46\00:13:16.79
Now the image part
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of the text we quote frequently.
00:13:18.43\00:13:20.23
"God made man in His own image."
00:13:20.26\00:13:22.26
The dominion
part we lost track of
00:13:22.30\00:13:25.23
and it is
distinctly territorial idea
00:13:25.27\00:13:28.64
like your home that was breached
00:13:28.67\00:13:31.31
by the guy who loved sandwiches.
00:13:31.34\00:13:33.98
So here what we have
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is we have a
presentation of the fact
00:13:35.88\00:13:38.45
that God created human
beings in His own image.
00:13:38.48\00:13:41.45
Now we normally think that
00:13:41.48\00:13:42.82
that text is saying
something to us like,
00:13:42.85\00:13:44.89
"God made man in His own
image, that means He made us
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with characters
like His character."
00:13:48.42\00:13:51.99
That's true.
00:13:52.03\00:13:53.80
But the context
widens our perspective.
00:13:53.83\00:13:57.83
We were made in the image
of God not only character wise,
00:13:57.87\00:14:02.40
we were made in the image of God
00:14:02.44\00:14:05.24
functionally, vocationally.
00:14:05.27\00:14:08.54
Do you hear me?
00:14:08.58\00:14:09.91
Functionally and vocationally.
00:14:09.94\00:14:12.41
God operates in such a
manner as to have a universe
00:14:12.45\00:14:18.15
over which He presides as God.
00:14:18.19\00:14:21.19
He creates a world,
00:14:21.22\00:14:22.56
and he creates
the man and the woman,
00:14:22.59\00:14:24.23
and rather than
micromanaging them
00:14:24.26\00:14:28.06
setting up His
own throne on earth,
00:14:28.10\00:14:31.83
God says, "Let's
create them on our image,"
00:14:31.87\00:14:34.40
and what is His image?
00:14:34.44\00:14:35.77
Character, yes, but also,
"Let's give them dominion."
00:14:35.80\00:14:38.84
That's the context.
00:14:38.87\00:14:40.21
"Let's give them autonomy.
00:14:40.24\00:14:42.08
Let them operate with
freedom over this domain.
00:14:42.11\00:14:47.32
Let's give them a domicile."
00:14:47.35\00:14:49.68
Are you still with
me, have I lost you?
00:14:49.72\00:14:51.12
Okay.
00:14:51.15\00:14:52.49
So if you fast
forward in the story,
00:14:52.52\00:14:53.86
this is the way
Hebrew prophets think.
00:14:53.89\00:14:57.16
According to Psalm 115:16,
00:14:57.19\00:14:59.73
listen to this
language very carefully.
00:14:59.76\00:15:03.47
"The heavens
00:15:03.50\00:15:04.83
are the Lord's heavens, but,"
00:15:04.87\00:15:09.97
qualifier, the word,
00:15:10.01\00:15:12.17
"but," here is a
grammatical qualifier,
00:15:12.21\00:15:14.71
"The heavens are
the Lord's heavens,
00:15:14.74\00:15:16.21
but the earth He has given
00:15:16.24\00:15:20.38
to human beings."
00:15:20.42\00:15:22.72
This is delegation language.
00:15:22.75\00:15:26.02
God is not like the Greek gods.
00:15:26.05\00:15:30.06
The one and only
true God isn't like Zeus.
00:15:30.09\00:15:32.13
He is not a power
mongering kind of God.
00:15:32.16\00:15:35.66
He doesn't
operate by sheer control.
00:15:35.70\00:15:38.73
God in fact,
the God of Scripture
00:15:38.77\00:15:40.54
is not a
micromanaging control freak.
00:15:40.57\00:15:44.11
He is a delegator.
00:15:44.14\00:15:46.31
God is the kind of
God who gives autonomy
00:15:46.34\00:15:49.88
and delegates authority.
00:15:49.91\00:15:52.68
He says, "We are
going to create the world
00:15:52.71\00:15:54.98
and we are going to
give them dominion."
00:15:55.02\00:15:56.35
This is fascinating.
00:15:56.38\00:15:58.05
When you read
the Genesis account,
00:15:58.09\00:16:00.86
God sets up Eden.
00:16:00.89\00:16:04.56
Eden is one piece of
ground, a small piece of ground,
00:16:04.59\00:16:08.80
we don't know how many acres
it was, of ground on the earth,
00:16:08.83\00:16:12.33
and God says, "Okay,
this is what things look like
00:16:12.37\00:16:15.40
when they are beautiful
and wonderful and incredible."
00:16:15.44\00:16:18.74
But I'm just giving
you a little example
00:16:18.77\00:16:21.38
of the kind of stuff that you
00:16:21.41\00:16:23.35
with your God
given creativity can do.
00:16:23.38\00:16:27.22
So now what I want you to
do is I want you to look around
00:16:27.25\00:16:29.95
in this little piece of ground
00:16:29.98\00:16:31.45
that I have myself
cultivated for you,
00:16:31.49\00:16:34.39
and now I want you
to expand the beauty,
00:16:34.42\00:16:36.73
I want you to
beautify the whole earth,
00:16:36.76\00:16:38.89
I want you to go out from
this central point called Eden,
00:16:38.93\00:16:43.26
and turn the whole
world into a garden
00:16:43.30\00:16:47.74
exercising your
autonomy, your authority.
00:16:47.77\00:16:50.71
Make it however
you want to make it.
00:16:50.74\00:16:52.84
Do whatever you want to
do within the parameters
00:16:52.87\00:16:56.38
of goodness and love,
and covenant or faithfulness.
00:16:56.41\00:17:01.35
So God gives autonomy
and delegates authority
00:17:01.38\00:17:04.79
at the beginning of
the story of Scripture.
00:17:04.82\00:17:08.32
This is fascinating.
00:17:08.36\00:17:09.92
Now in the
Greek way of thinking,
00:17:09.96\00:17:12.19
God never delegates authority,
God exercises authority.
00:17:12.23\00:17:16.03
According to
Plato and Aristotle,
00:17:16.06\00:17:18.73
God is sheer being and power.
00:17:18.77\00:17:22.54
In fact, there's a
term you've probably heard
00:17:22.57\00:17:25.27
that came to us out
of Greek philosophy,
00:17:25.31\00:17:27.48
specifically a term
that was coined by Aristotle
00:17:27.51\00:17:30.75
and that term was that God is,
00:17:30.78\00:17:33.11
in Aristotle's thinking,
God is the unmoved mover.
00:17:33.15\00:17:38.79
Have you heard the term?
00:17:38.82\00:17:40.29
Now think about it for a minute.
00:17:40.32\00:17:41.66
"The unmoved mover."
00:17:41.69\00:17:44.03
That is to say that
God Himself is static,
00:17:44.06\00:17:48.30
He's impassible,
or without passion.
00:17:48.33\00:17:50.67
He never experiences
anybody acting upon Him.
00:17:50.70\00:17:55.37
God only Himself
moves all others.
00:17:55.40\00:17:57.81
We are puppets on strings,
we are characters in a novel,
00:17:57.84\00:18:01.71
a story that's already told.
00:18:01.74\00:18:03.71
You didn't decide to
have Cheerios this morning
00:18:03.75\00:18:06.38
even though you
are under the illusion
00:18:06.41\00:18:07.98
that you made a free
choice to have Cheerios.
00:18:08.02\00:18:11.62
You were predetermined to
have Cheerios this morning
00:18:11.65\00:18:15.82
because God is
sovereign overall.
00:18:15.86\00:18:18.76
This theology
comes into Christianity
00:18:18.79\00:18:21.66
in what's called determinism
or chauvinistic predestination
00:18:21.70\00:18:25.40
in which the idea is
expanded to take on the form
00:18:25.43\00:18:29.70
that nobody ever
chooses to be saved or lost
00:18:29.74\00:18:32.97
but that God predetermines
who's saved, who's lost.
00:18:33.01\00:18:37.15
This is where you
get the doctrine of,
00:18:37.18\00:18:39.31
"Once saved, always
saved," because God unilaterally
00:18:39.35\00:18:42.62
makes all the
decisions in His universe.
00:18:42.65\00:18:44.92
God is in fact
according to chauvinism,
00:18:44.95\00:18:47.89
a micromanaging
controlling kind of God.
00:18:47.92\00:18:51.39
Nothing happens
unless God makes it happen.
00:18:51.43\00:18:55.26
So it doesn't matter if
you get a cancer diagnosis,
00:18:55.30\00:18:58.47
or you are violated
00:18:58.50\00:18:59.83
as a little boy or a little girl
00:18:59.87\00:19:01.20
by an uncle or a
brother or a daddy,
00:19:01.24\00:19:03.64
the message is always the same.
00:19:03.67\00:19:05.87
God had a plan in
that horrific thing
00:19:05.91\00:19:08.01
that happened to you.
00:19:08.04\00:19:10.21
The fact is that God stands
against what was done to you,
00:19:10.25\00:19:15.68
and God condemns
all violating actions
00:19:15.72\00:19:19.49
that are contrary
to covenantal love,
00:19:19.52\00:19:22.29
and the only way that
any of us can process God
00:19:22.32\00:19:26.56
in a way that we
would come to love Him
00:19:26.59\00:19:28.56
rather than to
grovelingly fear Him
00:19:28.60\00:19:31.00
and serve Him as slaves is to be
00:19:31.03\00:19:34.44
from the Greek way of
processing God in reality
00:19:34.47\00:19:38.07
and be delivered
into the messianic
00:19:38.11\00:19:40.88
or Hebrew way of thinking
00:19:40.91\00:19:42.78
in which a human
being was created
00:19:42.81\00:19:45.31
in the image of
God with free will,
00:19:45.35\00:19:48.12
God is love
therefore God created creatures
00:19:48.15\00:19:51.42
capable of love which means
00:19:51.45\00:19:53.56
we are also
capable of not loving.
00:19:53.59\00:19:56.56
All the bad stuff
going down in human history,
00:19:56.59\00:20:01.50
all of it is
traceable to violations
00:20:01.53\00:20:06.50
of the covenant of love.
00:20:06.53\00:20:09.37
God is not
ultimately responsible
00:20:09.40\00:20:13.11
for any horrible thing
00:20:13.14\00:20:14.48
that has ever
happened to anybody.
00:20:14.51\00:20:16.58
And the Great Controversy
unfolds in such a way
00:20:16.61\00:20:19.35
that when all is said and
done, when all is said and done,
00:20:19.38\00:20:23.28
the character of God
is completely exonerated,
00:20:23.32\00:20:27.02
vindicated, from all
00:20:27.06\00:20:29.19
confusing Babylonian
theological paradigms
00:20:29.22\00:20:32.29
that lies sin
at the door of God.
00:20:32.33\00:20:36.10
So what's happening in
the biblical narrative,
00:20:36.13\00:20:39.17
in the Hebrew flow of thinking
is that God gives autonomy
00:20:39.20\00:20:42.27
and delegates authority.
00:20:42.30\00:20:44.31
So we are not surprised then
when Jesus comes to the messiah
00:20:44.34\00:20:47.24
and he says, "Let me
tell you how to pray."
00:20:47.28\00:20:50.11
Our Father who is in heaven,
00:20:50.15\00:20:53.25
hallowed be Your name,
your character is amazing.
00:20:53.28\00:20:57.52
Your kingdom come,
00:20:57.55\00:21:00.89
Your will be done on earth
00:21:00.92\00:21:05.06
the way it's done in heaven.
00:21:05.09\00:21:06.43
Apparently,
God's will is not done
00:21:06.46\00:21:09.26
in all instances on earth.
00:21:09.30\00:21:11.93
Your will be done on
earth as it in heaven.
00:21:11.97\00:21:14.94
Give us this
day, our daily bread,
00:21:14.97\00:21:17.31
etcetera, etcetera and
then there's this part.
00:21:17.34\00:21:19.87
"And deliver us from
evil," or Luke's gospel says,
00:21:19.91\00:21:24.55
"Deliver us from the evil one."
00:21:24.58\00:21:28.92
Our territory has been breached.
00:21:28.95\00:21:31.75
A foreign Lord has taken control
00:21:31.79\00:21:35.62
of planet earth.
00:21:35.66\00:21:37.06
Planet earth is a
territory held hostage
00:21:37.09\00:21:41.73
by a power that is
contrary to the will of God.
00:21:41.76\00:21:47.70
And so believers pray in
a great controversy sense.
00:21:47.74\00:21:51.87
Let me just tell you
something about prayer.
00:21:51.91\00:21:53.94
Prayer in a Calvinistic
sense, in a Greek sense,
00:21:53.98\00:21:57.18
is trying to get God do
things He is not willing to do.
00:21:57.21\00:22:02.02
Prayer in a Hebrew sense
00:22:02.05\00:22:05.89
is an act of war in
the Great Controversy.
00:22:05.92\00:22:09.19
It is me leveraging my
free will as a child of God
00:22:09.22\00:22:13.56
against the kingdom of
darkness by inviting people,
00:22:13.60\00:22:17.43
by inviting God
and his angelic forces
00:22:17.47\00:22:20.17
into people's
lives and situations
00:22:20.20\00:22:22.80
where they are
not giving permission.
00:22:22.84\00:22:25.17
I'm the husband in the
house that's inviting God
00:22:25.21\00:22:29.44
to have influence
in my children's lives
00:22:29.48\00:22:32.75
when they are not inviting
God in to have influence.
00:22:32.78\00:22:36.25
Prayer is an act of war
in the Great Controversy.
00:22:36.28\00:22:41.19
It's not trying to get
God to be better than He is,
00:22:41.22\00:22:44.06
God is always
doing all the good He can
00:22:44.09\00:22:47.86
to the degree that He can,
00:22:47.90\00:22:49.76
in every circumstance
that He can barring one factor,
00:22:49.80\00:22:54.30
one variable, one line
that God will never cross,
00:22:54.34\00:22:59.37
and that is the autonomy,
the free will of human beings.
00:22:59.41\00:23:05.35
God isn't made better than
He already is through prayer.
00:23:05.38\00:23:08.98
God has given
permission to access situations
00:23:09.02\00:23:13.36
that He has
barred from accessing
00:23:13.39\00:23:15.42
because we are
free moral agents.
00:23:15.46\00:23:17.56
He'll never kick the
door down, He knocks.
00:23:17.59\00:23:21.20
And prayer is the
means by which we say,
00:23:21.23\00:23:23.77
"Come on in, Lord, to my house.
00:23:23.80\00:23:25.60
Have a sandwich if You'd
like, do whatever You want.
00:23:25.63\00:23:28.27
You are welcome in my house.
00:23:28.30\00:23:30.67
You are welcome in my town.
00:23:30.71\00:23:32.57
You are welcome in my nation.
00:23:32.61\00:23:34.98
You are welcome in my world."
00:23:35.01\00:23:38.28
So our voices are
united in intercessory prayer
00:23:38.31\00:23:42.82
to give God increased access.
00:23:42.85\00:23:45.05
This is what Jesus
means when He says,
00:23:45.09\00:23:47.36
"Hey, if two or
three of you get together,
00:23:47.39\00:23:50.19
I'll do whatever you
say because I want to.
00:23:50.23\00:23:54.23
But I need for
two or three of you
00:23:54.26\00:23:57.03
to leverage your free
will in the Great Controversy
00:23:57.07\00:23:59.70
to give me access."
00:23:59.73\00:24:01.64
That's what's happening
in the Great Controversy.
00:24:01.67\00:24:04.07
So check this out.
00:24:04.11\00:24:06.47
In this context,
the Old Testament,
00:24:06.51\00:24:09.38
that is the Hebrew story assumes
00:24:09.41\00:24:13.45
this
territorial view of reality.
00:24:13.48\00:24:18.42
When we come to the
Book of Job, for example,
00:24:18.45\00:24:20.36
now there was a day,
00:24:20.39\00:24:21.72
there is a chapter 1
starting with verse 6,
00:24:21.76\00:24:23.39
"Now there was a
day when the sons of God
00:24:23.43\00:24:25.76
came to present
themselves before the Lord,
00:24:25.79\00:24:27.80
and Satan came also among them."
00:24:27.83\00:24:31.20
Now it's logical
at this point to ask,
00:24:31.23\00:24:33.10
"What is he doing here?"
00:24:33.13\00:24:37.31
But listen.
00:24:37.34\00:24:38.84
Satan shows up in some
kind of heavenly conclave.
00:24:38.87\00:24:42.04
There's a congress
going on, there's a meeting.
00:24:42.08\00:24:44.81
And you'll notice
that in the Scripture
00:24:44.85\00:24:47.05
there was a day
when the sons of God
00:24:47.08\00:24:50.35
came to present
themselves before the Lord.
00:24:50.39\00:24:52.29
They were summoned,
00:24:52.32\00:24:53.66
they were brought
together before the Lord.
00:24:53.69\00:24:55.69
There's some kind of
meeting taking place,
00:24:55.72\00:24:57.63
and Satan just kind of shows up.
00:24:57.66\00:25:00.43
But watch how the
conversation ensues.
00:25:00.46\00:25:03.47
"And the Lord said to Satan,"
00:25:03.50\00:25:05.63
not what you and I just
asked, but something different.
00:25:05.67\00:25:09.00
Not what are you doing here,
but, "Where do you come from?"
00:25:09.04\00:25:12.81
It's a territorial question.
00:25:12.84\00:25:15.91
God doesn't say,
"What are you doing here?
00:25:15.94\00:25:18.08
What is your justification?"
00:25:18.11\00:25:20.15
He says, "What is
your point of origin?"
00:25:20.18\00:25:23.42
Because the sons of God are here
00:25:23.45\00:25:25.09
and they are
representing various territories
00:25:25.12\00:25:28.89
in God's vast universe.
00:25:28.92\00:25:31.63
Satan comes and
he's there and God says,
00:25:31.66\00:25:35.86
"What part of My universe
00:25:35.90\00:25:37.60
are you purporting to represent?
00:25:37.63\00:25:40.67
From where exactly do you come?
00:25:40.70\00:25:44.27
What part of My
universe are you here
00:25:44.31\00:25:46.64
to supposedly
speak on behalf of?"
00:25:46.68\00:25:51.38
Check this out.
00:25:51.41\00:25:52.75
"So Satan
answered the Lord and said,
00:25:52.78\00:25:54.35
'From going to
and fro on the earth,
00:25:54.38\00:25:58.29
and from walking
back and forth on it.'"
00:25:58.32\00:26:02.46
Have you ever
brought a piece of property?
00:26:02.49\00:26:05.19
What's one of the
first things you do,
00:26:05.23\00:26:06.56
if not the first thing you do
00:26:06.59\00:26:07.93
when you buy a
piece of property?
00:26:07.96\00:26:09.30
You walk the property line.
00:26:09.33\00:26:10.77
You stake it
out. You figure out.
00:26:10.80\00:26:12.30
You walk to and
fro all over your piece
00:26:12.33\00:26:14.67
and you figure
out, and you put stakes,
00:26:14.70\00:26:16.71
"Okay, this is it,
this is my territory,
00:26:16.74\00:26:18.71
this is my domain,
00:26:18.74\00:26:20.08
this is my plot of
ground on planet earth."
00:26:20.11\00:26:25.51
The devil is telling God, "Hey,
00:26:25.55\00:26:27.75
I'm here to
represent planet earth
00:26:27.78\00:26:30.75
and the human race."
00:26:30.79\00:26:33.19
Now this is a very bold claim.
00:26:33.22\00:26:36.83
But God doesn't throw him out.
00:26:36.86\00:26:39.76
There is a
legitimacy to his claim
00:26:39.79\00:26:43.10
that we are about
to see in a minute.
00:26:43.13\00:26:45.80
It is a claim
that has been taken
00:26:45.83\00:26:50.87
in a dastardly manner,
00:26:50.91\00:26:53.91
but it's a claim nonetheless
that has been given teeth,
00:26:53.94\00:26:58.05
and we'll see who
is given teeth by.
00:26:58.08\00:26:59.58
So God responds and doesn't say,
00:26:59.61\00:27:00.95
"Oh, fine, have a seat.
00:27:00.98\00:27:03.72
I like you."
00:27:03.75\00:27:05.65
God says, "Then
the Lord said to Satan,
00:27:05.69\00:27:08.79
'Have you
considered My servant Job,
00:27:08.82\00:27:12.46
that there is none like him
00:27:12.49\00:27:14.20
on the earth,
00:27:14.23\00:27:18.83
a blameless and upright man,"
00:27:18.87\00:27:22.34
that's a moral evaluation,
00:27:22.37\00:27:26.71
a moral evaluation.
00:27:26.74\00:27:28.64
Watch this.
00:27:28.68\00:27:30.21
"And he fears God
and he shuns evil?'"
00:27:30.25\00:27:33.82
Well, evil has
its source in Satan
00:27:33.85\00:27:36.25
who is in this heavenly congress
00:27:36.28\00:27:38.45
purporting to
represent planet earth.
00:27:38.49\00:27:40.26
So in that context, what
is God essentially saying?
00:27:40.29\00:27:42.96
God is saying,
"Okay, you are here
00:27:42.99\00:27:44.63
claiming to represent earth
00:27:44.66\00:27:48.03
but I have a counter claim,
00:27:48.06\00:27:50.67
and his name is Job.
00:27:50.70\00:27:53.23
You think you have
control of the earth,
00:27:53.27\00:27:55.77
but I have a
beachhead in that territory.
00:27:55.80\00:27:59.01
I haven't given it up.
00:27:59.04\00:28:00.54
And I plan on
taking it back from you,"
00:28:00.58\00:28:03.35
this is between the lines
00:28:03.38\00:28:04.71
that we'll see in just a moment.
00:28:04.75\00:28:07.38
The war between good and
evil is a territorial dispute.
00:28:07.42\00:28:11.42
This is why when Jesus
comes, one of the things He says
00:28:11.45\00:28:15.39
to those who are
listening to His teachings.
00:28:15.42\00:28:17.96
He says, "When this
is all said and done,
00:28:17.99\00:28:21.56
the meek will inherit the earth.
00:28:21.60\00:28:26.03
It's coming back to you.
00:28:26.07\00:28:27.77
I'm here to take the earth back
00:28:27.80\00:28:33.01
and put it back in your hands."
00:28:33.04\00:28:34.94
This is where
Jesus says things like,
00:28:34.98\00:28:36.78
"Fear not little children,
00:28:36.81\00:28:39.88
it is your
Father's good pleasure
00:28:39.91\00:28:41.28
to give you the kingdom."
00:28:41.32\00:28:45.02
The war between good and evil
00:28:45.05\00:28:46.99
on one level is a
territorial dispute.
00:28:47.02\00:28:49.99
C.S. Lewis
articulates it like this.
00:28:50.03\00:28:52.99
"There is no neutral
ground in the universe."
00:28:53.03\00:28:57.77
Just let that
sink in for a minute.
00:28:57.80\00:28:59.73
"There is no neutral
ground in the universe.
00:28:59.77\00:29:01.84
Every square
inch, every split second
00:29:01.87\00:29:05.57
is claimed by God, and
counterclaimed by Satan,"
00:29:05.61\00:29:10.28
including your
frontal lobe and mine,
00:29:10.31\00:29:14.78
including the
space between our ears
00:29:14.82\00:29:16.72
as well as the terra
firma under our feet.
00:29:16.75\00:29:20.09
Every square inch, every second,
00:29:20.12\00:29:23.06
claimed, counterclaimed.
00:29:23.09\00:29:24.43
There is a great
controversy going on that traces
00:29:24.46\00:29:26.46
all the way back to
the beginning of the war
00:29:26.49\00:29:28.00
between good and evil.
00:29:28.03\00:29:29.36
So then we come
to the New Testament.
00:29:29.40\00:29:31.93
We are crossing the bridge now,
00:29:31.97\00:29:33.30
from the Old Testament narrative
00:29:33.34\00:29:34.67
to the New Testament,
00:29:34.70\00:29:36.04
from the Hebrew
story that's being told
00:29:36.07\00:29:37.41
to the Hebrew Messiah
00:29:37.44\00:29:39.67
who is bringing
it to a conclusion.
00:29:39.71\00:29:44.01
So Jesus comes into the world
00:29:44.05\00:29:46.31
and He is somehow
00:29:46.35\00:29:51.59
put in a
position, well, not somehow,
00:29:51.62\00:29:54.59
He's lead by the spirit
00:29:54.62\00:29:56.59
into a war with Satan.
00:29:56.62\00:30:02.43
Luke 4:5-7, watch
this, don't miss this.
00:30:02.46\00:30:07.37
"Then the devil,
00:30:07.40\00:30:09.44
taking Him up
on a high mountain,
00:30:09.47\00:30:11.31
showed Him all the kingdoms
of the world in a moment."
00:30:11.34\00:30:15.24
Now just pause right
there and just imagine this.
00:30:15.28\00:30:19.41
So Jesus is now in the world
00:30:19.45\00:30:24.42
and at the
beginning of His ministry,
00:30:24.45\00:30:26.52
a conflict occurs.
00:30:26.55\00:30:28.29
And the conflict that
occurs between Him and the devil
00:30:28.32\00:30:30.73
is not a physical conflict.
00:30:30.76\00:30:33.70
It's not an arm wrestling match,
00:30:33.73\00:30:35.06
it's not a dual,
it's not a sword fight,
00:30:35.10\00:30:38.27
there are no bombs.
00:30:38.30\00:30:41.47
It is a political engagement.
00:30:41.50\00:30:45.91
It is a dispute over territory.
00:30:45.94\00:30:51.31
The devil takes
Him to a high mountain
00:30:51.35\00:30:52.71
and he shows
Him all the kingdoms
00:30:52.75\00:30:54.48
of the world in an instant.
00:30:54.52\00:30:56.15
Now watch this, the next verse.
00:30:56.18\00:30:58.09
"And the devil said
to Him, to the Messiah,
00:30:58.12\00:31:02.16
'All this
authority I will give You,
00:31:02.19\00:31:06.96
and their glory,
00:31:07.00\00:31:09.06
for this has
been delivered to me,
00:31:09.10\00:31:12.53
and I can give it
to whomever I wish.'"
00:31:12.57\00:31:18.04
What a claim, huh?
00:31:18.07\00:31:19.87
Now if you know
the Hebrew story,
00:31:19.91\00:31:22.11
if somebody hand you
New Testament in Psalms,
00:31:22.14\00:31:25.81
but you actually
have the Old Testament
00:31:25.85\00:31:27.45
between your covers,
00:31:27.48\00:31:29.45
and if you've taken
the entire narrative,
00:31:29.48\00:31:31.75
you know exactly
what's going on here,
00:31:31.79\00:31:34.02
there's a backdrop.
00:31:34.06\00:31:35.39
When the devil says,
00:31:35.42\00:31:38.26
"If you bow down and worship me,
00:31:38.29\00:31:40.43
I'll give you all the
kingdoms of this world
00:31:40.46\00:31:43.13
and the authority," and he says,
00:31:43.16\00:31:44.97
"because it was all given to me,
00:31:45.00\00:31:46.90
and I can give it
to whoever I want."
00:31:46.94\00:31:49.54
He's referring
back to what event
00:31:49.57\00:31:52.94
in the biblical story?
00:31:52.97\00:31:55.61
The fall in Genesis.
00:31:55.64\00:31:58.58
So when he says,
"It was given to me,"
00:31:58.61\00:32:00.62
who gave the world to Satan?
00:32:00.65\00:32:03.28
Did God give the world to Satan?
00:32:03.32\00:32:05.19
No.
00:32:05.22\00:32:06.55
Adam gave the world to Satan.
00:32:06.59\00:32:08.29
How did he give
the world to Satan?
00:32:08.32\00:32:10.83
Was it his to give?
00:32:10.86\00:32:12.29
Yes, because we had noted
00:32:12.33\00:32:14.26
that God gave him dominion.
00:32:14.30\00:32:19.93
And because he had dominion,
00:32:19.97\00:32:22.60
the fall of mankind involved
an abdication of authority.
00:32:22.64\00:32:27.98
And this is why it
is a legitimate title
00:32:28.01\00:32:30.55
that Satan
bears at this juncture
00:32:30.58\00:32:32.81
of the great controversy
00:32:32.85\00:32:34.18
that scripture
is describing here,
00:32:34.22\00:32:35.55
in John 12:31,
00:32:35.58\00:32:36.99
Jesus Himself says that Satan
00:32:37.02\00:32:40.12
is the ruler of this world.
00:32:40.16\00:32:43.19
He just is.
00:32:43.22\00:32:44.89
So when he shows up
in the heavenly meeting,
00:32:44.93\00:32:49.30
and God doesn't
just throw him out,
00:32:49.33\00:32:52.90
it's because
00:32:52.93\00:32:54.27
there's a
legitimacy to the claim,
00:32:54.30\00:32:56.47
because the ones
who had authority
00:32:56.50\00:33:00.44
gave it to him.
00:33:00.48\00:33:02.74
So he's the ruler of this world.
00:33:02.78\00:33:04.11
2 Corinthians 4:4,
00:33:04.15\00:33:05.71
he's called the god of this age.
00:33:05.75\00:33:07.88
And Ephesians 2:2 says that
00:33:07.92\00:33:10.12
he is the prince of
the power of the air.
00:33:10.15\00:33:13.89
That doesn't mean by the way
00:33:13.92\00:33:15.26
that he is the ruler
of the oxygen supply.
00:33:15.29\00:33:18.73
That's not what the
word air means there.
00:33:18.76\00:33:20.36
Oxygen is not the issue here.
00:33:20.40\00:33:23.30
It's more like the idea,
he's the prince of the power
00:33:23.33\00:33:25.83
of the popular trends
and society and in the world.
00:33:25.87\00:33:31.04
He's the one who
presides over pop culture.
00:33:31.07\00:33:33.98
He's the one who
is pushing the buttons
00:33:34.01\00:33:39.11
for the general
moral trends of society.
00:33:39.15\00:33:43.75
This is what the
Germans called the Zeitgeist,
00:33:43.79\00:33:46.32
the spirit of the age.
00:33:46.35\00:33:47.69
He is the one who is presiding
over the trends in society.
00:33:47.72\00:33:53.36
So John was saying,
00:33:53.40\00:33:55.86
"The whole world
lies under the sway
00:33:55.90\00:33:58.40
of the wicked ones."
00:33:58.43\00:33:59.77
Sway means there is a current,
00:33:59.80\00:34:02.40
there is a moral
current to society,
00:34:02.44\00:34:05.01
and the devil is the one
who is presiding over it.
00:34:05.04\00:34:09.41
So he is the god of this age.
00:34:09.44\00:34:11.21
He is the prince of this world.
00:34:11.25\00:34:14.22
So let's draw conclusion
00:34:14.25\00:34:16.95
from where
we've come from so far
00:34:16.99\00:34:18.85
in order to launch
forward with clarity now.
00:34:18.89\00:34:21.66
Essentially what we've said
00:34:21.69\00:34:23.02
to this point in
our time together
00:34:23.06\00:34:24.86
is that the fall of humanity
was, yes, it was a moral fall.
00:34:24.89\00:34:29.03
That's the part we're
generally familiar with.
00:34:29.06\00:34:31.33
Adam and Eve sinned
and we take that to mean,
00:34:31.37\00:34:34.10
and rightly so,
00:34:34.14\00:34:35.57
that they fell on a moral level.
00:34:35.60\00:34:38.21
Yes, there was a moral fall.
00:34:38.24\00:34:39.84
But the fall of
humanity was a moral fall,
00:34:39.87\00:34:42.61
and as a result, it
was a governmental fall,
00:34:42.64\00:34:46.21
a political coup occurred.
00:34:46.25\00:34:48.92
The fact is that a
foreign invading force,
00:34:48.95\00:34:54.59
a fallen angel took the world
00:34:54.62\00:34:58.56
from humanity through
deception and temptation.
00:34:58.59\00:35:03.97
So a moral fall gave
way to a governmental fall.
00:35:04.00\00:35:09.50
Or we could say it this way,
00:35:09.54\00:35:10.87
if you like
this language better.
00:35:10.91\00:35:12.77
The go with language
is simply to understand.
00:35:12.81\00:35:15.54
So if this helps,
essentially, the fall of mankind
00:35:15.58\00:35:20.08
constitutes a
transfer of dominion.
00:35:20.12\00:35:24.95
A transfer of dominion occurred.
00:35:24.99\00:35:29.02
Now this transfer of dominion
00:35:29.06\00:35:31.16
happened by the free
choice of Adam and Eve.
00:35:31.19\00:35:35.10
Adam and Eve abdicated
their dominion over the earth.
00:35:35.13\00:35:37.67
Now in order to make the point,
00:35:37.70\00:35:39.03
I want you to just reason
with me here for a minute.
00:35:39.07\00:35:42.47
I want you to
hypothetically imagine
00:35:42.50\00:35:44.67
that the fall
had never occurred.
00:35:44.71\00:35:46.31
What if Adam and Eve had
said no to the deceptions
00:35:46.34\00:35:50.41
and temptations of Satan?
00:35:50.45\00:35:52.35
What if the sin problem
had never entered the world,
00:35:52.38\00:35:55.82
hypothetically, question,
00:35:55.85\00:35:57.79
would Adam and Eve
still be alive today?
00:35:57.82\00:36:00.62
How old would they be?
00:36:00.66\00:36:01.99
Just take a wild guess.
00:36:02.02\00:36:03.83
Approximately 6,000 years old.
00:36:03.86\00:36:07.93
Where would they live?
00:36:07.96\00:36:09.30
In Iraq.
00:36:09.33\00:36:11.90
Would it be beautiful there?
00:36:11.93\00:36:13.64
Oh, it would be gorgeous.
00:36:13.67\00:36:15.37
But not only would
it be beautiful there,
00:36:15.40\00:36:17.67
the whole world by
this point would just be,
00:36:17.71\00:36:20.54
what did Isaiah say?
00:36:20.58\00:36:21.91
Blossoming like a
rose, the whole world.
00:36:21.94\00:36:25.58
So Adam and Eve
would still be alive,
00:36:25.61\00:36:26.95
they would live somewhere
over near Babylon, no doubt,
00:36:26.98\00:36:29.82
and listen,
00:36:29.85\00:36:33.05
who would they be to us?
00:36:33.09\00:36:36.46
Oh, they'd be great, great,
great, great, great, great,
00:36:36.49\00:36:39.49
great, great, great, great,
00:36:39.53\00:36:40.86
great, great,
great, great, great,
00:36:40.90\00:36:42.73
totally great
grandma and grandpa.
00:36:42.76\00:36:45.50
And they'd be really young.
00:36:45.53\00:36:48.37
Adam and Eve would look like,
00:36:48.40\00:36:49.77
if they did that
whole guess my age thing,
00:36:49.80\00:36:51.94
if Adam and Eve were
still alive right now
00:36:51.97\00:36:53.38
and they said, "Hey,
hey, guess how old we are."
00:36:53.41\00:36:55.74
Just by appearances
we'd say, "I don't know, 22?"
00:36:55.78\00:37:00.12
Because intrepid
would have never happened,
00:37:00.15\00:37:02.12
the aging process
would have never kicked in,
00:37:02.15\00:37:05.65
the sin problem would
have never tarnished creation.
00:37:05.69\00:37:09.59
They would be young
and old simultaneously.
00:37:09.62\00:37:13.86
And who would they be to us?
00:37:13.90\00:37:16.06
They would be the
representative heads
00:37:16.10\00:37:18.63
of the human race.
00:37:18.67\00:37:20.30
And any time God,
what did he say in Job,
00:37:20.34\00:37:23.24
"There was a day
when the sons of God
00:37:23.27\00:37:25.11
came to present
themselves before the Lord."
00:37:25.14\00:37:27.14
Who would go to represent us?
00:37:27.18\00:37:28.71
Adam and Eve.
00:37:28.74\00:37:30.08
Yeah, we would have
our representatives.
00:37:30.11\00:37:33.25
But what is the devil
saying when he tempts Jesus?
00:37:33.28\00:37:36.35
He is saying to
Jesus, "Hey, I took it.
00:37:36.38\00:37:40.96
It's mine.
00:37:40.99\00:37:42.79
And if you bow
down and worship me,
00:37:42.82\00:37:46.23
then I'll give you the authority
00:37:46.26\00:37:48.56
of the whole world
00:37:48.60\00:37:50.37
as long as I'm above you
00:37:50.40\00:37:53.10
as ultimate Lord of earth.
00:37:53.13\00:37:56.57
I'll let you
run the whole thing.
00:37:56.60\00:37:59.57
I'll delegate it all to you
00:37:59.61\00:38:01.41
right under me
if you worship me."
00:38:01.44\00:38:04.41
This is amazing.
00:38:04.45\00:38:06.08
So now look back to
the beginning of the story.
00:38:06.11\00:38:09.05
Back to Genesis
3:15 which we've read
00:38:09.08\00:38:10.89
in every single time
that we've been together
00:38:10.92\00:38:12.95
and that's not accidental
00:38:12.99\00:38:14.79
because this is the
mother of all prophecies,
00:38:14.82\00:38:16.79
this is the
point from whence comes
00:38:16.83\00:38:18.79
the entire great controversy
00:38:18.83\00:38:21.40
and messianic
prophetic world view.
00:38:21.43\00:38:24.93
If you want to
think like a Hebrew,
00:38:24.97\00:38:27.54
you need to begin with Genesis.
00:38:27.57\00:38:29.70
And Genesis 3:15 tells us,
00:38:29.74\00:38:32.24
God speaking to the
serpent who took the earth
00:38:32.27\00:38:36.01
from Adam and Eve and
is now the Lord, the ruler,
00:38:36.04\00:38:39.01
the god of this
world in this age.
00:38:39.05\00:38:41.45
God says, "I will put enmity,
hostility between you, Satan,
00:38:41.48\00:38:45.45
and the woman,
00:38:45.49\00:38:46.82
between your offspring and hers,
00:38:46.86\00:38:48.72
he will crush your head,
00:38:48.76\00:38:50.86
he singular
will crush your head,
00:38:50.89\00:38:53.50
and you will strike or bruise,
00:38:53.53\00:38:55.56
one version says his heel."
00:38:55.60\00:38:59.73
I'm going to suggest to you
something that I haven't said
00:38:59.77\00:39:02.04
in the three
previous presentations
00:39:02.07\00:39:04.54
where we've quoted this text.
00:39:04.57\00:39:06.21
I'm going to suggest to you that
00:39:06.24\00:39:07.58
if you look at
the passage carefully
00:39:07.61\00:39:09.14
that Genesis 3 constitutes
a declaration of war.
00:39:09.18\00:39:13.98
God is saying to Satan
who has taken the world.
00:39:14.02\00:39:16.38
He's saying,
"This isn't over yet.
00:39:16.42\00:39:21.26
You took it by deception.
00:39:21.29\00:39:24.86
I'm going to take
it back by truth."
00:39:24.89\00:39:28.56
Misrepresented My character
00:39:28.60\00:39:31.30
and drawn them away from Me
00:39:31.33\00:39:34.20
on the premise of a lie.
00:39:34.24\00:39:37.81
But I'm going to
draw them back to Myself
00:39:37.84\00:39:41.84
on the premise of the
truth of who I really am.
00:39:41.88\00:39:46.68
The lie that Satan
told our first parents,
00:39:46.72\00:39:50.05
it was a three pronged
lie, but the essence of that lie
00:39:50.09\00:39:53.69
collectively was simply
00:39:53.72\00:39:56.69
that God is only looking out
00:39:56.73\00:39:59.83
for His own best
interest, God doesn't love you,
00:39:59.86\00:40:04.40
so you better live for yourself.
00:40:04.43\00:40:06.50
That's Genesis 3:1-5.
00:40:06.53\00:40:08.10
Jesus comes into the
world in order to demonstrate
00:40:11.47\00:40:14.51
unequivocally and beyond
00:40:14.54\00:40:15.94
all question that God is love,
00:40:15.98\00:40:21.65
and it is that
revelation that constitutes
00:40:21.68\00:40:25.99
the fatal blow
to Satan's kingdom.
00:40:26.02\00:40:31.19
So Genesis is a
declaration of war.
00:40:31.23\00:40:34.06
So now that we have
this Hebrew background,
00:40:34.10\00:40:36.46
we come to the New Testament
and we encountered Jesus
00:40:36.50\00:40:39.30
and we are not
surprised when He tells us
00:40:39.33\00:40:40.94
this little
parable, this little story.
00:40:40.97\00:40:43.44
He says in Luke 11:21, 22.
00:40:43.47\00:40:47.51
He says, to the disciples
00:40:47.54\00:40:49.14
and those who are
around Him listening.
00:40:49.18\00:40:52.18
He says, "When a strong man,"
00:40:52.21\00:40:55.28
what?
00:40:55.32\00:40:56.65
"A strong men fully
armed, guards his own palace,
00:40:56.69\00:41:02.02
his goods are in peace."
00:41:02.06\00:41:05.39
So the first part
of this little parable.
00:41:05.43\00:41:06.83
There's a strong man,
his strength is acknowledged,
00:41:06.86\00:41:10.63
and this strong
man has a palace,
00:41:10.67\00:41:12.07
he has a
territory, he has a domain,
00:41:12.10\00:41:14.40
and he has goods,
he has possessions.
00:41:14.44\00:41:18.94
And then Jesus says this,
"But when a stronger than he,"
00:41:18.97\00:41:24.81
there's a strong
man, and now Jesus says,
00:41:24.85\00:41:27.88
"But when a stronger
than he comes upon him"
00:41:27.92\00:41:32.62
the strong man,
00:41:32.65\00:41:33.99
"when a stronger
than he comes upon him,
00:41:34.02\00:41:35.92
and overcome sin,
00:41:35.96\00:41:37.43
he takes from him all his armor
00:41:37.46\00:41:40.33
in which he trusted,
and divides his spoils."
00:41:40.36\00:41:44.90
What is Jesus saying here?
00:41:44.93\00:41:47.77
Jesus in this
context had just sent out
00:41:47.80\00:41:50.14
the 12 and the 70.
00:41:50.17\00:41:52.37
And they've come back rejoicing,
00:41:52.41\00:41:54.58
"Hey, even demons
flee at your name."
00:41:54.61\00:41:59.31
And Jesus is
simply explaining to them
00:41:59.35\00:42:01.78
why the demons are fleeing.
00:42:01.82\00:42:03.92
As the 12 and the 70
our proclaiming the gospel,
00:42:03.95\00:42:07.56
the devil is trembling
00:42:07.59\00:42:08.92
and demons are running for cover
00:42:08.96\00:42:11.96
and Jesus in this little parable
00:42:11.99\00:42:13.33
is explaining why.
00:42:13.36\00:42:14.70
He's saying,
"Okay, I'll tell you
00:42:14.73\00:42:16.06
what's going on here.
00:42:16.10\00:42:17.43
The devil is the strong
man and he took the world,
00:42:17.47\00:42:19.23
but I'm here now
to take it back."
00:42:19.27\00:42:23.84
He's telling the disciples
that Satan has taken the world
00:42:23.87\00:42:29.54
and he's guarding his
palace, and his goods.
00:42:29.58\00:42:33.75
And Jesus says,
"But a stronger than he
00:42:33.78\00:42:35.35
is here now.
00:42:35.38\00:42:36.72
And that's me.
00:42:36.75\00:42:38.09
And you are my emissaries,
00:42:38.12\00:42:39.82
and you are going out
not with force and deception
00:42:39.85\00:42:42.19
but with the proclamation
of the good news of God's love,
00:42:42.22\00:42:45.69
and the kingdom
of Satan is falling
00:42:45.73\00:42:49.26
proportional to the
revelation of God's love.
00:42:49.30\00:42:52.27
The devil knows
that his gig is up
00:42:52.30\00:42:56.94
and I'm here now
to take away from him
00:42:56.97\00:43:00.71
all the armor in
which he trusted."
00:43:00.74\00:43:03.71
That is his lies,
00:43:03.75\00:43:05.81
his deceptions
regarding the character of God.
00:43:05.85\00:43:10.02
And his kingdom
is going to fall now
00:43:10.05\00:43:12.35
and he knows it.
00:43:12.39\00:43:14.72
And then Jesus says,
"And when I take it back,
00:43:14.76\00:43:18.13
when I regain the
world, when I take it back,
00:43:18.16\00:43:21.26
I'm going to divide the
spoils among my followers."
00:43:21.30\00:43:25.57
The earth is coming
back into human lordship.
00:43:25.60\00:43:29.20
We will again become
the stewards of our planet
00:43:29.24\00:43:32.97
and the devil will be
expelled from the world.
00:43:33.01\00:43:38.18
So then, having
told us what's going on
00:43:38.21\00:43:41.48
out of His Hebrew narrative,
00:43:41.52\00:43:45.52
Jesus' explaining
that he is here to fulfill
00:43:45.55\00:43:47.29
Genesis 3:15.
00:43:47.32\00:43:50.13
He then, as He comes to
the close of His ministry,
00:43:50.16\00:43:54.16
He tells us,
00:43:54.20\00:43:55.53
"Something is going
to happen at Calvary,"
00:43:55.56\00:43:58.23
that again, in a Greek paradigm,
00:43:58.27\00:44:02.07
we don't notice.
00:44:02.10\00:44:03.44
We read it, we don't
know what to do with it.
00:44:03.47\00:44:05.84
Doesn't make any sense to us.
00:44:05.87\00:44:08.11
We opt for the more Greek
way of thinking that Jesus died,
00:44:08.14\00:44:13.62
so I don't have to,
00:44:13.65\00:44:15.92
so I can go to
heaven when I die.
00:44:15.95\00:44:18.42
Well, Jesus
doesn't know anything about
00:44:18.45\00:44:19.79
this way of thinking.
00:44:19.82\00:44:21.16
Jesus knows that
you're going to go to heaven
00:44:21.19\00:44:23.76
for a short period of
time in the millennium
00:44:23.79\00:44:25.69
but that the earth is your home,
00:44:25.73\00:44:29.00
new heavens, new
earth, we're coming back here.
00:44:29.03\00:44:31.93
In fact, we could
hypothetically have a reunion
00:44:31.97\00:44:34.60
about a million years from now.
00:44:34.64\00:44:35.97
If you want, we schedule it.
00:44:36.00\00:44:37.71
We could have a reunion
right here on this very spot.
00:44:37.74\00:44:40.28
This very earth
itself under our feet
00:44:40.31\00:44:42.91
is under the
process of being redeemed
00:44:42.94\00:44:44.95
by the Messiah.
00:44:44.98\00:44:46.31
And He's going to
give it back to us.
00:44:46.35\00:44:48.12
Now yes, Jesus
died for our sins,
00:44:48.15\00:44:51.79
but what about this dimension
00:44:51.82\00:44:55.39
of the death of
Jesus at the cross.
00:44:55.42\00:44:57.19
Jesus explains what's
going to happen when He dies.
00:44:57.23\00:45:00.06
Now He says,
00:45:00.10\00:45:01.50
"Now is the
judgment of this world,
00:45:01.53\00:45:04.33
now the ruler of this
world will be cast out."
00:45:04.37\00:45:10.27
Satan at the cross of
Calvary will be cast out.
00:45:10.31\00:45:13.54
Cast out of what, where, how?
00:45:13.58\00:45:16.08
Well, in the large sense,
00:45:16.11\00:45:17.91
he's going to be cast out
of having any more credibility
00:45:17.95\00:45:21.12
or authority
with the human race.
00:45:21.15\00:45:25.09
In a more detailed sense,
00:45:25.12\00:45:26.45
he's going to be
cast out of the affections
00:45:26.49\00:45:29.72
and the
perceptions of human beings
00:45:29.76\00:45:32.93
so that the true knowledge
of one and only true God
00:45:32.96\00:45:36.23
takes up
residence in our thinking
00:45:36.26\00:45:38.03
and we fall
back in love with God
00:45:38.07\00:45:42.37
on the premise
of His love for us.
00:45:42.40\00:45:45.04
How do we know
that's what Jesus means?
00:45:45.07\00:45:46.61
Well, because He
says so in the next verse.
00:45:46.64\00:45:48.21
"And I, if I am
lifted up from the earth,"
00:45:48.24\00:45:50.98
he's referring to
the Calvary, right?
00:45:51.01\00:45:52.65
When I'm lifted
up from the cross,
00:45:52.68\00:45:54.32
when the devil
marshals his force against me,
00:45:54.35\00:45:59.19
when the devil
in all of his demons
00:45:59.22\00:46:03.83
come against Jesus at the cross,
00:46:03.86\00:46:07.20
there is a poetic
justice that occurs,
00:46:07.23\00:46:11.83
and the devil
doesn't see it coming.
00:46:11.87\00:46:13.87
The devil thinks that
through deception and force
00:46:13.90\00:46:16.64
he can win the war.
00:46:16.67\00:46:18.47
He doesn't understand
that there is a deeper power
00:46:18.51\00:46:22.38
at work in the universe
that's foreign to him now.
00:46:22.41\00:46:26.38
He once knew it.
00:46:26.41\00:46:28.28
He once knew that God is love,
00:46:28.32\00:46:31.52
and he once knew
what it felt like
00:46:31.55\00:46:33.76
to be loyal to God out of love,
00:46:33.79\00:46:37.49
but he deceived himself
00:46:37.53\00:46:38.86
into believing
that God is self-serving
00:46:38.89\00:46:41.10
in order to justify
his own selfish interests.
00:46:41.13\00:46:45.70
This is what Freud
would later call projection.
00:46:45.73\00:46:50.51
Viewing somebody as
guilty of what you are guilty of
00:46:50.54\00:46:53.38
so that you let
yourself off the hook.
00:46:53.41\00:46:55.24
The devil is deeply entrenched
in selfishness to the point
00:46:55.28\00:47:00.12
where love is
now foreign to him.
00:47:00.15\00:47:03.02
He doesn't even know
what it feels like to love
00:47:03.05\00:47:05.75
and he doesn't know
what love looks like,
00:47:05.79\00:47:07.79
and he doesn't see it coming.
00:47:07.82\00:47:09.39
He can't even remember
00:47:09.42\00:47:11.76
what it felt like to worship God
00:47:11.79\00:47:14.70
with adoration.
00:47:14.73\00:47:16.30
All of that's gone from him now.
00:47:16.33\00:47:20.37
And Jesus comes, and he says,
00:47:20.40\00:47:22.74
"When I die on the cross,
something is going to occur
00:47:22.77\00:47:26.64
that is going to
produce two effects.
00:47:26.68\00:47:29.54
It will bring the
kingdom of Satan down,
00:47:29.58\00:47:33.21
and I,
00:47:33.25\00:47:37.25
if I am lifted
up from the earth,"
00:47:37.29\00:47:38.62
well, here's the key word, draw,
00:47:38.65\00:47:41.69
"I'll draw,
attract, allure, all to me.
00:47:41.72\00:47:46.33
There will be such a revelation
00:47:46.36\00:47:51.00
of My love that it will topple
00:47:51.03\00:47:56.04
the lies that Satan has
spun regarding My character."
00:47:56.07\00:48:00.41
The great controversy is won
00:48:00.44\00:48:02.61
on the premise of the revelation
00:48:02.64\00:48:05.51
of who God really is in Christ,
00:48:05.55\00:48:08.52
and most
specifically, at the cross,
00:48:08.55\00:48:10.65
so that Paul says it like this.
00:48:10.69\00:48:14.69
Colossians 2:15,
00:48:14.72\00:48:16.89
Paul says that
something happened at Calvary.
00:48:16.93\00:48:21.16
"Having disarmed the
powers and authorities,"
00:48:21.20\00:48:25.77
he's referring
specifically here to Satan
00:48:25.80\00:48:28.30
and all his demonic hosts
00:48:28.34\00:48:30.51
who preside over
various territories
00:48:30.54\00:48:33.21
on the earth.
00:48:33.24\00:48:36.14
But he's referring
also to human regimes,
00:48:36.18\00:48:38.91
human kingdoms,
human political engines,
00:48:38.95\00:48:43.02
human political
machines that operate
00:48:43.05\00:48:46.25
by principles of deception,
00:48:46.29\00:48:50.16
that operate by
principles of force.
00:48:50.19\00:48:52.73
Every kingdom of the
world that operates by deception
00:48:52.76\00:48:56.46
and force is coming down.
00:48:56.50\00:49:00.34
It's not wise for
followers of Jesus
00:49:00.37\00:49:05.31
to be deeply tied to
any political system.
00:49:05.34\00:49:08.48
I won't say
much more about that,
00:49:08.51\00:49:10.75
but I think you
know what I mean.
00:49:10.78\00:49:14.02
We are captive to
the kingdom of Christ,
00:49:14.05\00:49:19.62
and we are just passing
through this world to heaven,
00:49:19.65\00:49:23.73
so we can look back and
rule it by covenantal love.
00:49:23.76\00:49:28.60
So every kingdom of this world,
00:49:28.63\00:49:32.03
and the entire psycho edifice
00:49:32.07\00:49:35.74
of Satan's
kingdom is coming down
00:49:35.77\00:49:37.87
because Jesus having disarmed
the powers and authorities,
00:49:37.91\00:49:41.68
"he made a public
spectacle of them," at Calvary,
00:49:41.71\00:49:45.61
"triumphing over
them by the cross."
00:49:45.65\00:49:48.78
Now this is so counterintuitive
00:49:48.82\00:49:50.49
that we hardly
know what it means.
00:49:50.52\00:49:53.19
You have to pause, you
have to take a deep breath,
00:49:53.22\00:49:55.26
you really have to process this,
00:49:55.29\00:49:57.63
because this
scripture as well as
00:49:57.66\00:50:00.53
the rest of the New
Testament is essentially saying
00:50:00.56\00:50:04.37
that God has won
the great controversy
00:50:04.40\00:50:07.60
in precisely the way
that nobody expected Him to.
00:50:07.64\00:50:11.77
Even the disciples themselves
right up until the resurrection
00:50:11.81\00:50:16.85
and ascension and
the testimony of Jesus
00:50:16.88\00:50:20.75
after His resurrection itself
00:50:20.78\00:50:23.08
and on the walk on
the road to Emmaus.
00:50:23.12\00:50:27.02
The disciples
themselves the whole time
00:50:27.06\00:50:29.62
were expecting
a military Messiah
00:50:29.66\00:50:32.99
that would take the Roman Empire
00:50:33.03\00:50:36.60
down by force of arms,
00:50:36.63\00:50:39.87
that the
Messiah by force of arms
00:50:39.90\00:50:42.54
would be seated
upon an earthly throne,
00:50:42.57\00:50:46.24
that James and John
would be his right hand thugs,
00:50:46.27\00:50:49.94
according to
their mothers' request,
00:50:49.98\00:50:53.35
and that God would, listen,
00:50:53.38\00:50:55.78
basically operate
by the same principles
00:50:55.82\00:50:59.12
as the kingdom of Satan
just with greater power.
00:50:59.15\00:51:04.16
This is what is
called, in history,
00:51:04.19\00:51:07.33
the myth of redemptive violence.
00:51:07.36\00:51:11.10
This is the idea
00:51:11.13\00:51:12.47
that is articulated in scripture
00:51:12.50\00:51:14.24
when the Bible
says, "Be warned,"
00:51:14.27\00:51:17.37
the Bible says two times
in the teachings of Jesus,
00:51:17.41\00:51:20.31
and then it's
repeated in Revelation 13,
00:51:20.34\00:51:23.14
"He who kills with the sword
will be killed with the sword."
00:51:23.18\00:51:27.88
Don't operate by principles
of force and coercion,
00:51:27.92\00:51:31.75
don't force the conscience,
leave people free, why?
00:51:31.79\00:51:36.39
Because freedom is the
only way that it is possible
00:51:36.42\00:51:40.93
for human being to love God.
00:51:40.96\00:51:43.80
The moment force is
entered into the equation,
00:51:43.83\00:51:46.94
whether it's emotional
force, or physical force,
00:51:46.97\00:51:51.04
or theological
force in doctrines like
00:51:51.07\00:51:53.04
"eternal torment,"
it's a form of force.
00:51:53.07\00:51:56.08
All of these
doctrines constitute
00:51:56.11\00:51:59.15
theological and
emotional coercion
00:51:59.18\00:52:03.49
and that's the principle
that Satan is operating on.
00:52:03.52\00:52:05.75
But what's happening in Christ
00:52:05.79\00:52:08.06
is that He is toppling
the kingdom of darkness
00:52:08.09\00:52:11.36
not by force of arms
00:52:11.39\00:52:14.73
but by subjecting Himself
00:52:14.76\00:52:18.73
to the violence of
humanity and responding
00:52:18.77\00:52:23.87
to their hatred and violence
with love and forgiveness.
00:52:23.91\00:52:27.48
Father, forgive them, for
they know not what they do.
00:52:27.51\00:52:30.68
You can just
picture Satan at this point,
00:52:30.71\00:52:33.98
chomping at the bit...
00:52:34.02\00:52:35.35
No, no, not
forgive them, retaliate.
00:52:35.38\00:52:40.22
"Save yourself,"
the Roman soldiers said,
00:52:40.26\00:52:43.29
"save yourself,"
00:52:43.32\00:52:45.89
the two thieves beside him said,
00:52:45.93\00:52:47.76
"save yourself," the mob cried.
00:52:47.80\00:52:53.57
If you are the Son of God,
00:52:53.60\00:52:58.21
save yourself.
00:52:58.24\00:53:01.48
That was the temptation.
00:53:01.51\00:53:03.35
If Jesus
would've crossed the line
00:53:03.38\00:53:08.22
to exert force or coercion
00:53:08.25\00:53:10.75
in any form to save Himself,
00:53:10.79\00:53:15.62
the kingdom would
have been forfeited
00:53:15.66\00:53:20.00
to Satan's control.
00:53:20.03\00:53:23.20
The devil is mad,
00:53:23.23\00:53:27.50
as in insane,
00:53:27.54\00:53:31.11
with an insatiable desire
00:53:31.14\00:53:34.78
to through violence push Jesus
00:53:34.81\00:53:37.78
over the line to
stop loving you and me
00:53:37.81\00:53:42.92
because of what
we are doing to Him.
00:53:42.95\00:53:45.59
But when Jesus dies
00:53:45.62\00:53:48.86
with a covenantal
faithfulness of God intact
00:53:48.89\00:53:53.60
in His heart,
00:53:53.63\00:53:55.76
the kingdom of Satan is defeated
00:53:55.80\00:53:58.53
in his expiring breath.
00:53:58.57\00:54:02.57
Jesus comes forth from the grave
00:54:02.60\00:54:06.44
not by some kind of
00:54:06.47\00:54:09.11
arbitrary active God,
00:54:09.14\00:54:12.71
Jesus comes forth from the grave
00:54:12.75\00:54:14.55
by virtue of the
victory that He gained
00:54:14.58\00:54:18.59
by loving us to the end.
00:54:18.62\00:54:24.13
Our savior,
00:54:24.16\00:54:26.36
our brother, our Lord,
00:54:26.39\00:54:30.83
is one who has conquered
the kingdom of darkness
00:54:30.87\00:54:34.80
by truth and love rather
than deception and force.
00:54:34.84\00:54:39.17
The gospel commission
therefore is a call of God
00:54:39.21\00:54:44.51
upon us as human
beings to spread the good news
00:54:44.55\00:54:49.92
of who God is and
what He is really like
00:54:49.95\00:54:51.89
as displayed in Christ.
00:54:51.92\00:54:54.86
The point of the biblical story
00:54:54.89\00:54:58.93
is not that God as God
00:54:58.96\00:55:03.13
would regain
control of the world.
00:55:03.16\00:55:05.93
That wouldn't
have taken 6,000 years.
00:55:05.97\00:55:07.90
If it were merely a
matter of sheer power,
00:55:07.94\00:55:10.41
God has the sheer power.
00:55:10.44\00:55:13.94
If it were merely a matter
of force, God has the force.
00:55:13.98\00:55:18.25
He could snap his fingers
00:55:18.28\00:55:21.52
and by sheer force
destroy all His enemies.
00:55:21.55\00:55:26.92
But the point of
the biblical story
00:55:26.96\00:55:28.56
is not that God as God
00:55:28.59\00:55:30.93
would regain
control of the world
00:55:30.96\00:55:32.46
but the God as
man, the second Adam.
00:55:32.49\00:55:37.13
The Son of God would
regain control of the world
00:55:37.17\00:55:40.67
by truth and love.
00:55:40.70\00:55:42.64
The whole thing came
back into human control,
00:55:42.67\00:55:45.17
and according to
the Gospel of John,
00:55:45.21\00:55:48.88
as many has
received this Messiah
00:55:48.91\00:55:52.28
in the display of His love,
00:55:52.31\00:55:55.68
as many has received
Him, He gave the right,
00:55:55.72\00:56:00.52
the authority to
become sons of God,
00:56:00.56\00:56:06.03
even to those who believe
on His name, His character,
00:56:06.06\00:56:08.90
the display of God's love
that is manifested in Him.
00:56:08.93\00:56:11.90
So that finally when we
come to end of John Chapter 1,
00:56:11.93\00:56:17.07
the narrative very clearly
tells us that the one who is
00:56:17.11\00:56:19.97
the Son of God, John 1:49,
00:56:20.01\00:56:23.95
is the Son of God
in the Davidic sense
00:56:23.98\00:56:27.42
of the Hebrew narrative.
00:56:27.45\00:56:28.78
He is the Son of
God in the sense that
00:56:28.82\00:56:31.59
He is the King of Israel.
00:56:31.62\00:56:34.19
He is now here the
rightful ruler of world.
00:56:34.22\00:56:37.89
And now John 3:16
finally makes sense
00:56:37.93\00:56:42.30
in this very trajectory,
00:56:42.33\00:56:43.77
in this very narrative form.
00:56:43.80\00:56:48.74
"For God so loved the world,"
00:56:48.77\00:56:53.27
with the covenantal
love that the Hebrew prophets
00:56:53.31\00:56:56.48
articulated and foretold,
00:56:56.51\00:56:59.48
"God so loved the
world," Jews and Gentiles alike,
00:56:59.51\00:57:04.45
"that He gave," out of
covenantal faithfulness,
00:57:04.49\00:57:08.19
"His only
begotten, covenantal Son,
00:57:08.22\00:57:13.63
that whoever believes,"
00:57:13.66\00:57:15.50
that he is in fact the new Adam,
00:57:15.53\00:57:17.80
the new head of the human
race, "should not perish,"
00:57:17.83\00:57:22.20
under the covenant
curses articulated by Moses,
00:57:22.24\00:57:25.24
"but have everlasting life,"
under the covenant blessings
00:57:25.27\00:57:28.68
articulated by Moses.
00:57:28.71\00:57:31.51
John 3:16
00:57:31.55\00:57:33.72
is not trying to
communicate anything to us
00:57:33.75\00:57:36.22
like we have generally thought.
00:57:36.25\00:57:39.82
John 3:16 is telling us
00:57:39.85\00:57:42.92
that the Son of God
and the Savior of the world
00:57:42.96\00:57:46.39
is the one in whom
planet earth has been regained
00:57:46.43\00:57:52.37
for human
regency and stewardship.
00:57:52.40\00:57:56.34
We are sons and daughters of God
00:57:56.37\00:57:59.34
by virtue of the victory
00:57:59.37\00:58:00.71
that Jesus gained on our behalf.
00:58:00.74\00:58:02.08
Thank you for your time.
00:58:02.11\00:58:03.45