Work as Crucible

WEBVTT
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So we're talking about faith and work, this massive part of our lives.
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As Jaya said, our waking day, probably more than a half of our life in many ways.
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And we're seeing it's absolutely critical that we think about this really important part of our life
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in light of what does God say and how does God want us to think about this really important part of our life.
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For those of us that are Christians, how does our commitment to love and follow Jesus
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shape this really important part of our life.
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And so far what we've seen is that work is not just a necessary evil,
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something we've just got to grin and bear until we can one day retire or live for the weekend.
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No, it's actually part of what it means to be a human being made in God's image.
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And we've seen that God calls us to see our work as an opportunity to love, love our city,
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love our co-workers, love the world in which we live through our work.
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And I hope this has been encouraging and inspiring and uplifting.
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And yet, as we said two weeks ago, that isn't always our lived experience.
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Sometimes work is hard and frustrating and difficult.
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Sometimes it's degrading.
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And you have bosses and co-workers and markets and all sorts of things that go wrong.
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And why is that?
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Why is it that this thing that God gives us, which is good, can also be so hard and difficult?
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Well, this morning we're going to look at Genesis 3 and understand why it is that work is sometimes
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difficult and hard.
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And why it is that sometimes God calls us to difficult work.
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And so Celeste is going to come and read Genesis 3 for us.
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And so let's listen to that.
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And as she does that, I'm going to tell you, we've got two things to say.
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You can come on up, Celeste.
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This morning we're going to look at the curse, why work is hard.
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And secondly, the crucible, why God calls us to difficult work.
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So let's listen up.
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So this morning's scripture reading comes from Genesis 3.
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Please follow along in your bulletin or on the screen.
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There you go.
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Starting in verse 1, we read,
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Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made.
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He said to the woman,
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Did God actually say,
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You shall not eat of any tree in the garden?
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And the woman said to the serpent,
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We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden,
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but God said,
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You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden,
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neither shall you touch it lest you die.
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But the serpent said to the woman,
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You will not surely die,
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for God knows that when you eat of it,
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your eyes will be opened and you will be like God,
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knowing good and evil.
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So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food,
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and that it was a delight to the eyes,
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and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,
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she took of its fruit and ate,
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and she also gave some to her husband who was with her,
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and he ate.
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Then in verse 16,
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To the woman he said,
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I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing.
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In pain you shall bring forth children.
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Your desire shall be for your husband,
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and he shall rule over you.
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And to Adam he said,
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Because you have listened to the voice of your wife,
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and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you,
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you shall not eat of it.
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Cursed is the ground because of you.
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In pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life.
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Thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you,
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and you shall eat the plants of the field.
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By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,
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till you return to the ground,
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for out of it you were taken.
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For you are dust,
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and to dust you shall return.
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This is the word of God.
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Great.
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Thank you.
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Thank you, Celeste.
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Let's pray briefly as we come to look at this word.
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Heavenly Father,
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your word is always good.
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God, your word is life-giving.
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You are the true God,
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and your word speaks life to us.
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And so God,
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as we come to your word this morning,
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we want to understand your heart.
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We want to understand what it is
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that you have to say about our work.
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And God,
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we want to hear your commissioning
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and your calling
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to send us into our workplaces
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full of your spirit,
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alive to you,
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trusting and obeying you,
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and being a light and a blessing to this world.
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And so we pray, God,
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as we look at your word,
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won't you,
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by your spirit,
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speak to us.
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In your name we pray.
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Amen.
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Okay, so,
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like I said,
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we're going to look at two things this morning.
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The curse,
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why work is hard and difficult,
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and secondly,
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the crucible,
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why God calls us to difficult work.
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So firstly,
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the curse.
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Now,
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Genesis 1 and 2,
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we looked at it a few weeks ago,
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describe God's pattern and design for our world,
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the way that the world ought to be.
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But Genesis 3 describes the way the world actually is.
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And there's a big difference between the twos.
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And Genesis 3 tells us
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why the world is fractured and difficult and hard
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and is full of sickness and death
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and injustice
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and selfishness
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and chaos
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and tears and agony
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and frustration.
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And at the heart of the Bible's understanding
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of the world in which we live
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and the brokenness of our world
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is the concept of sin,
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which is mankind's rejection of God,
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rebellion of God,
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and as a consequence,
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our alienation from Him.
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Now,
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I know that we live in a world
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in which we're always told
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to think well of ourselves
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and positive thinking
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and, you know,
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don't think about such bad stuff.
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And I know it can feel like,
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oh boy,
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here we go again.
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The past is just trying to make me feel
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even worse about myself
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than I already do.
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But hear me out.
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Because the Bible says that
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unless we understand the roots of the problem,
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we'll never grasp the solution
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and the good news of the gospel.
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And so the Bible,
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like a good doctor,
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goes right to the root of the problem
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and tells us what's wrong with the world.
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And so Genesis 3,
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we see that in the midst of this
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garden paradise
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that God created,
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God tells Adam and Eve
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not to do something very specifically,
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not to eat the fruit of a certain tree.
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Now,
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what is so important about that tree in particular?
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Well,
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probably nothing.
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Very important.
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Wasn't that tree.
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The issue is the instruction.
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Will they listen to God
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and trust Him
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and obey Him?
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Will they trust that God knows what's best?
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Or will they go their own way?
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And so,
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Satan comes to Adam and Eve
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and he says three things.
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Firstly,
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he twists God's word
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and he says,
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has God really said this?
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And he puts a different spin on it.
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Secondly,
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he questions God's word
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by saying,
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you won't really die.
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God is lying to you.
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You can't really trust Him.
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But thirdly,
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he says,
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if you do what I tell you,
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you will be like God.
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And so Adam and Eve
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trust the Satan
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and they rebel against God.
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Now,
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on the one hand,
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what the Satan said
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was absolutely right.
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In a sense,
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Adam and Eve,
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mankind,
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humanity,
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did become like God.
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It didn't become divine in that sense,
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but we took on the status of God
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in our lives
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and in our world.
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We decided,
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we know what's best.
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We'll determine what's right and wrong.
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We will become our own authority.
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We will decide how we should live.
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And so,
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having dethroned God
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from the heart of humanity,
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having usurped His authority
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and put ourselves
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where God should be,
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we unleashed this catastrophe
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across the world.
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And because of our rebellion,
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it unleashed the root
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of all that's wrong
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and broken with our world.
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But,
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so on the one hand,
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what Satan said was right,
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but on the other hand,
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what he said was absolutely wrong
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because he says,
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you won't surely die.
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Nothing's going to happen to you.
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And yet,
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as a result of Adam and Eve's rebellion,
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absolutely death entered the world.
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Now,
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Adam and Eve didn't suddenly fall over
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and stop breathing,
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right?
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But,
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but in a sense,
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decay,
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deterioration,
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breakdown of society,
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death itself entered
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into the very kind of fabric
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of our entire world.
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So that every aspect of our world
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and our humanity,
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physically,
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spiritually,
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emotionally,
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psychologically,
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every aspect of this world
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is now tainted
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and affected
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by the deterioration
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and the death virus.
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Our world is broken.
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Nothing works
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as it should be.
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It's kind of like,
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I don't know if you've seen those
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before and after photos,
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right?
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You see them everywhere
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in the MTR station,
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right?
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Before you signed up
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for that dieting program
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and afterwards,
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right?
00:09:30.920 --> 00:09:32.300
Before you bought that
00:09:32.300 --> 00:09:35.340
million dollar hair treatment program,
00:09:35.639 --> 00:09:35.899
right?
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You look like me
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and afterwards,
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right?
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You look like Oscar,
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okay?
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Before and after photos,
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right?
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It's kind of like that
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except it's the other way around.
00:09:46.860 --> 00:09:47.279
Before,
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the world is full of beauty
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and joy
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and purpose
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and delight
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and meaning
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and significance
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and harmony
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and afterwards,
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the world is full of chaos
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and confusion
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and pain
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and agony
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and heartache
00:10:00.899 --> 00:10:01.659
and anxiety
00:10:01.659 --> 00:10:02.480
and stress
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and the death virus
00:10:04.980 --> 00:10:05.759
has come in.
00:10:07.100 --> 00:10:08.500
And Genesis 3 says,
00:10:08.500 --> 00:10:09.240
or Genesis says
00:10:09.240 --> 00:10:09.879
that this is true
00:10:09.879 --> 00:10:11.639
of every area of life
00:10:11.639 --> 00:10:13.139
but as Celeste read to us,
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one of the areas
00:10:14.240 --> 00:10:15.120
that this impacts
00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:16.620
is our work.
00:10:17.259 --> 00:10:17.720
Our work.
00:10:17.799 --> 00:10:18.019
And so,
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look at Genesis 3 with me
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if you've got in the bulletin.
00:10:21.720 --> 00:10:22.720
Verse 17,
00:10:23.460 --> 00:10:24.379
to Adam,
00:10:24.539 --> 00:10:25.299
God said,
00:10:25.799 --> 00:10:27.360
because you have eaten
00:10:27.360 --> 00:10:27.980
of the tree
00:10:27.980 --> 00:10:29.240
of which I commanded you
00:10:29.240 --> 00:10:30.720
saying you shall not eat of it,
00:10:31.419 --> 00:10:32.539
cursed is the ground
00:10:32.539 --> 00:10:33.340
because of you.
00:10:33.779 --> 00:10:34.399
In pain,
00:10:34.500 --> 00:10:35.279
you shall eat of it
00:10:35.279 --> 00:10:36.700
all the days of your life.
00:10:37.480 --> 00:10:38.480
Thorns and thistles
00:10:38.480 --> 00:10:39.860
it shall bring forth for you
00:10:39.860 --> 00:10:40.940
and you shall eat
00:10:40.940 --> 00:10:42.159
of the plants of the field.
00:10:42.639 --> 00:10:44.300
By the sweat of your face
00:10:44.300 --> 00:10:45.300
you shall eat bread
00:10:45.300 --> 00:10:47.320
until you return to the ground
00:10:47.320 --> 00:10:48.399
for out of it
00:10:48.399 --> 00:10:49.080
you were taken
00:10:49.080 --> 00:10:49.879
from,
00:10:50.139 --> 00:10:51.139
you are from dust
00:10:51.139 --> 00:10:51.779
and to dust
00:10:51.779 --> 00:10:53.340
you shall return.
00:10:54.399 --> 00:10:54.820
Now,
00:10:54.899 --> 00:10:55.360
this passage
00:10:55.360 --> 00:10:56.700
is rich and full
00:10:56.700 --> 00:10:57.360
and there's a lot
00:10:57.360 --> 00:10:58.420
we could explore in it
00:10:58.420 --> 00:10:58.960
but let me just
00:10:58.960 --> 00:11:00.320
pick up three things
00:11:00.320 --> 00:11:01.519
that relate to our work
00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:02.139
in this passage.
00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:03.539
The first is this.
00:11:03.860 --> 00:11:04.500
It tells us
00:11:04.500 --> 00:11:05.060
that our work
00:11:05.060 --> 00:11:05.860
is frustrating
00:11:05.860 --> 00:11:06.580
and difficult.
00:11:07.220 --> 00:11:07.360
Okay?
00:11:07.360 --> 00:11:08.279
Now,
00:11:08.399 --> 00:11:09.500
you probably don't need me
00:11:09.500 --> 00:11:10.480
to convince you of that.
00:11:10.560 --> 00:11:11.300
If you've worked
00:11:11.300 --> 00:11:12.259
more than one week
00:11:12.259 --> 00:11:13.220
in your life
00:11:13.220 --> 00:11:14.460
you will know that.
00:11:14.639 --> 00:11:14.800
Right?
00:11:15.300 --> 00:11:16.480
Work is hard.
00:11:16.680 --> 00:11:17.300
It's frustrating.
00:11:17.759 --> 00:11:19.060
Whether that's physical work
00:11:19.060 --> 00:11:19.960
or mental work
00:11:19.960 --> 00:11:21.100
whether it's paid work
00:11:21.100 --> 00:11:22.180
or unpaid work
00:11:22.180 --> 00:11:23.360
you're a student
00:11:23.360 --> 00:11:24.100
at university
00:11:24.100 --> 00:11:25.700
and you put in
00:11:25.700 --> 00:11:26.779
so many hours
00:11:26.779 --> 00:11:27.539
in that exam
00:11:27.539 --> 00:11:28.899
and you still
00:11:28.899 --> 00:11:30.519
only just pass
00:11:30.519 --> 00:11:32.100
or maybe you don't.
00:11:32.240 --> 00:11:32.399
Okay?
00:11:32.980 --> 00:11:33.180
You,
00:11:33.179 --> 00:11:35.639
it feels like
00:11:35.639 --> 00:11:36.699
you're pushing
00:11:36.699 --> 00:11:37.879
rocks up a hill.
00:11:38.699 --> 00:11:39.919
Look at what he says here.
00:11:40.239 --> 00:11:40.919
The ground
00:11:40.919 --> 00:11:41.639
is cursed of you.
00:11:41.699 --> 00:11:41.939
It means
00:11:41.939 --> 00:11:43.120
the resources
00:11:43.120 --> 00:11:43.779
that you're meant
00:11:43.779 --> 00:11:44.539
to work with
00:11:44.539 --> 00:11:45.379
time
00:11:45.379 --> 00:11:46.039
and people
00:11:46.039 --> 00:11:46.779
and energy
00:11:46.779 --> 00:11:47.659
and things
00:11:47.659 --> 00:11:49.459
they seem to conspire
00:11:49.459 --> 00:11:50.219
against you.
00:11:50.879 --> 00:11:51.679
You put hundreds
00:11:51.679 --> 00:11:52.179
of hours
00:11:52.179 --> 00:11:52.899
into something
00:11:52.899 --> 00:11:54.000
and you see
00:11:54.000 --> 00:11:55.219
mediocre results.
00:11:56.459 --> 00:11:56.679
Now,
00:11:56.759 --> 00:11:57.479
it's not that work
00:11:57.479 --> 00:11:58.959
itself is a curse.
00:11:59.500 --> 00:12:00.259
It's not that God
00:12:00.259 --> 00:12:00.559
says,
00:12:00.879 --> 00:12:01.120
okay,
00:12:01.240 --> 00:12:01.679
you sinned.
00:12:01.720 --> 00:12:01.840
Now,
00:12:01.879 --> 00:12:02.840
I'm going to make you work.
00:12:02.980 --> 00:12:03.480
Before that,
00:12:03.519 --> 00:12:04.080
you could just live
00:12:04.080 --> 00:12:04.539
on holiday.
00:12:05.240 --> 00:12:05.960
Work itself
00:12:05.960 --> 00:12:06.819
is not a curse
00:12:06.819 --> 00:12:08.620
but now our work
00:12:08.620 --> 00:12:10.059
operates under
00:12:10.059 --> 00:12:10.779
a cursed
00:12:10.779 --> 00:12:11.860
and fallen world
00:12:11.860 --> 00:12:13.279
and so our work
00:12:13.279 --> 00:12:14.259
becomes hard
00:12:14.259 --> 00:12:14.919
and difficult.
00:12:15.759 --> 00:12:17.100
Look at verse 19.
00:12:17.639 --> 00:12:18.279
By the sweat
00:12:18.279 --> 00:12:19.019
of your face
00:12:19.019 --> 00:12:20.279
you shall eat bread.
00:12:20.819 --> 00:12:21.000
Okay,
00:12:21.059 --> 00:12:22.279
that just feels like
00:12:22.279 --> 00:12:22.919
life in Hong Kong
00:12:22.919 --> 00:12:23.360
in the summer,
00:12:23.460 --> 00:12:23.720
right?
00:12:24.879 --> 00:12:25.539
That's just the way
00:12:25.539 --> 00:12:25.899
it is.
00:12:26.299 --> 00:12:26.819
In pain
00:12:26.819 --> 00:12:27.759
you shall eat of it
00:12:27.759 --> 00:12:28.559
all the days
00:12:28.559 --> 00:12:29.139
of your life.
00:12:29.799 --> 00:12:29.899
So,
00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:30.279
in other words,
00:12:30.299 --> 00:12:31.240
you'll be fruitful.
00:12:31.480 --> 00:12:32.139
It won't be that
00:12:32.139 --> 00:12:33.480
there'll be no fruit
00:12:33.480 --> 00:12:34.120
from your work
00:12:34.120 --> 00:12:35.500
but it'll come through
00:12:35.500 --> 00:12:36.519
difficult work.
00:12:37.000 --> 00:12:37.980
Rather than the environment
00:12:37.980 --> 00:12:39.299
working with you,
00:12:39.699 --> 00:12:40.480
now it seems like
00:12:40.480 --> 00:12:41.460
the system is stacked
00:12:41.460 --> 00:12:42.199
against you.
00:12:43.319 --> 00:12:44.120
Maybe you spend
00:12:44.120 --> 00:12:45.519
months developing
00:12:45.519 --> 00:12:46.539
this new product
00:12:46.539 --> 00:12:49.019
or this system
00:12:49.019 --> 00:12:49.699
and you're about
00:12:49.699 --> 00:12:50.620
to unleash it
00:12:50.620 --> 00:12:52.039
and you get a new boss
00:12:52.039 --> 00:12:53.000
and in one minute
00:12:53.000 --> 00:12:53.980
he pulls the plug.
00:12:54.460 --> 00:12:54.600
Okay,
00:12:54.659 --> 00:12:55.539
I'm sure many of us
00:12:55.539 --> 00:12:56.899
have experienced that.
00:12:57.340 --> 00:12:58.620
Or maybe you spent
00:12:58.620 --> 00:12:59.460
years developing
00:12:59.460 --> 00:12:59.980
this product,
00:13:00.159 --> 00:13:01.460
you sign this deal
00:13:01.460 --> 00:13:02.340
and you're about
00:13:02.340 --> 00:13:03.299
to go full steam ahead
00:13:03.299 --> 00:13:04.240
and the next day
00:13:04.240 --> 00:13:05.360
one of the key members
00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:06.039
of your team
00:13:06.039 --> 00:13:07.259
resigns,
00:13:07.360 --> 00:13:08.120
hands on their resignation.
00:13:09.139 --> 00:13:10.279
It just feels like,
00:13:10.480 --> 00:13:10.759
oh,
00:13:11.139 --> 00:13:12.259
can everything,
00:13:12.399 --> 00:13:13.039
just obstacle
00:13:13.039 --> 00:13:13.940
after obstacle
00:13:13.940 --> 00:13:14.820
after obstacle.
00:13:16.120 --> 00:13:16.879
And remember,
00:13:17.019 --> 00:13:17.919
God's mandate
00:13:17.919 --> 00:13:18.679
to Adam and Eve
00:13:18.679 --> 00:13:19.740
was to work the ground
00:13:19.740 --> 00:13:21.060
to cultivate the garden
00:13:21.060 --> 00:13:22.179
so it would flourish
00:13:22.179 --> 00:13:23.399
and fruit trees
00:13:23.399 --> 00:13:24.060
and blessing.
00:13:24.059 --> 00:13:25.559
And what do they get?
00:13:26.279 --> 00:13:27.439
Thorns and thistles.
00:13:28.479 --> 00:13:28.979
In other words,
00:13:29.219 --> 00:13:30.599
the garden of delight
00:13:30.599 --> 00:13:32.099
at times resembles
00:13:32.099 --> 00:13:32.919
more of a desert.
00:13:33.919 --> 00:13:35.179
It's hard work.
00:13:36.000 --> 00:13:36.619
Maybe you have
00:13:36.619 --> 00:13:37.719
this great vision
00:13:37.719 --> 00:13:38.719
for your industry
00:13:38.719 --> 00:13:40.179
or your company
00:13:40.179 --> 00:13:40.839
and you've got to
00:13:40.839 --> 00:13:41.739
introduce something
00:13:41.739 --> 00:13:42.399
that's going to bring
00:13:42.399 --> 00:13:43.799
safety for employees
00:13:43.799 --> 00:13:44.799
or change the way
00:13:44.799 --> 00:13:45.979
that the industry works
00:13:45.979 --> 00:13:47.619
or change business
00:13:47.619 --> 00:13:49.159
ethics in your company.
00:13:49.919 --> 00:13:50.859
And yet it just feels
00:13:50.860 --> 00:13:52.419
like the more you try,
00:13:52.820 --> 00:13:54.220
you come against obstacle
00:13:54.220 --> 00:13:55.460
and frustration
00:13:55.460 --> 00:13:56.460
and difficulty.
00:13:57.200 --> 00:13:58.740
It's just hard work.
00:14:00.019 --> 00:14:00.779
Now if you were here
00:14:00.779 --> 00:14:01.399
last year,
00:14:01.740 --> 00:14:02.399
we preached
00:14:02.399 --> 00:14:02.720
through the book
00:14:02.720 --> 00:14:03.560
of Ecclesiastes
00:14:03.560 --> 00:14:04.759
and one of the things
00:14:04.759 --> 00:14:05.580
that Koheleth,
00:14:05.659 --> 00:14:06.600
the teacher,
00:14:06.800 --> 00:14:07.460
says to us
00:14:07.460 --> 00:14:08.519
in chapter 2,
00:14:08.620 --> 00:14:09.500
he talks about work
00:14:09.500 --> 00:14:10.320
in the broken world.
00:14:10.440 --> 00:14:11.220
Look at what he says.
00:14:11.940 --> 00:14:12.220
He says,
00:14:12.300 --> 00:14:13.240
I gave my heart
00:14:13.240 --> 00:14:14.200
up to despair
00:14:14.200 --> 00:14:15.800
over all the toil
00:14:15.800 --> 00:14:16.740
of my labors
00:14:16.740 --> 00:14:17.940
under the sun.
00:14:18.460 --> 00:14:19.320
Because sometimes
00:14:19.320 --> 00:14:19.920
the person
00:14:19.919 --> 00:14:20.899
who has toiled
00:14:20.899 --> 00:14:21.559
with wisdom
00:14:21.559 --> 00:14:22.399
and knowledge
00:14:22.399 --> 00:14:23.299
and skill
00:14:23.299 --> 00:14:24.379
must leave it
00:14:24.379 --> 00:14:25.539
to be enjoyed
00:14:25.539 --> 00:14:26.099
by someone
00:14:26.099 --> 00:14:27.399
who did not work for it.
00:14:27.839 --> 00:14:28.620
What is a man
00:14:28.620 --> 00:14:29.439
from all the toil
00:14:29.439 --> 00:14:30.179
and striving
00:14:30.179 --> 00:14:31.500
with which he toils
00:14:31.500 --> 00:14:32.219
under the sun?
00:14:32.740 --> 00:14:33.839
For all his days
00:14:33.839 --> 00:14:34.459
are sorrow.
00:14:34.860 --> 00:14:35.459
His work
00:14:35.459 --> 00:14:36.319
is an irritation.
00:14:37.019 --> 00:14:38.099
Even in the night
00:14:38.099 --> 00:14:38.979
his heart
00:14:38.979 --> 00:14:40.099
does not rest.
00:14:41.219 --> 00:14:41.879
How many of us
00:14:41.879 --> 00:14:42.799
can resonate with that?
00:14:42.919 --> 00:14:43.860
You sign off
00:14:43.860 --> 00:14:44.699
on Friday afternoon,
00:14:44.860 --> 00:14:45.939
you should be at rest
00:14:45.939 --> 00:14:46.599
for the weekend,
00:14:46.919 --> 00:14:47.799
but the whole weekend
00:14:47.799 --> 00:14:48.980
your mind is thinking.
00:14:49.740 --> 00:14:50.460
Or you lie in bed
00:14:50.460 --> 00:14:50.820
at night
00:14:50.820 --> 00:14:51.440
and you're wondering,
00:14:51.680 --> 00:14:52.019
grappling.
00:14:52.340 --> 00:14:53.000
Even at night
00:14:53.000 --> 00:14:53.440
your heart
00:14:53.440 --> 00:14:54.240
does not rest.
00:14:55.060 --> 00:14:55.360
Now,
00:14:55.659 --> 00:14:56.680
what's the implication
00:14:56.680 --> 00:14:57.200
of this?
00:14:57.740 --> 00:14:57.960
Well,
00:14:58.060 --> 00:14:58.960
one of the implications
00:14:58.960 --> 00:14:59.720
is this.
00:15:00.279 --> 00:15:01.159
It doesn't mean
00:15:01.159 --> 00:15:01.899
that if work
00:15:01.899 --> 00:15:02.960
is hard or difficult,
00:15:03.360 --> 00:15:04.220
it doesn't mean
00:15:04.220 --> 00:15:05.259
you're in the wrong job
00:15:05.259 --> 00:15:06.460
or the wrong career
00:15:06.460 --> 00:15:07.279
and you need
00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:08.159
to jump ship,
00:15:08.399 --> 00:15:08.659
right?
00:15:09.100 --> 00:15:10.240
So sometimes people say,
00:15:10.360 --> 00:15:10.600
oh,
00:15:10.960 --> 00:15:12.220
I'm working so hard,
00:15:12.659 --> 00:15:13.860
50 hours a week,
00:15:13.980 --> 00:15:14.940
can you believe it?
00:15:15.580 --> 00:15:16.560
Maybe this is not
00:15:16.560 --> 00:15:17.100
my calling.
00:15:17.580 --> 00:15:19.080
I know my calling
00:15:19.080 --> 00:15:20.920
is to be a quality assurance
00:15:20.920 --> 00:15:21.840
control manager
00:15:21.840 --> 00:15:23.000
at Lindt Chocolate,
00:15:23.159 --> 00:15:23.399
right?
00:15:23.680 --> 00:15:25.040
That must be my calling
00:15:25.040 --> 00:15:25.519
in life.
00:15:26.080 --> 00:15:26.779
Or to,
00:15:27.420 --> 00:15:27.720
you know,
00:15:27.779 --> 00:15:29.320
be a snow ski instructor
00:15:29.320 --> 00:15:30.180
on the slopes
00:15:30.180 --> 00:15:30.980
of Japan.
00:15:31.159 --> 00:15:32.279
That must be what God
00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:32.899
has called me to do.
00:15:33.259 --> 00:15:33.720
Or maybe,
00:15:34.080 --> 00:15:34.659
my calling
00:15:34.659 --> 00:15:35.899
is to test
00:15:35.899 --> 00:15:37.100
the deck chairs
00:15:37.100 --> 00:15:37.960
in the Maldives,
00:15:38.040 --> 00:15:38.180
right?
00:15:38.240 --> 00:15:39.259
Somebody's got to do it.
00:15:39.700 --> 00:15:40.340
Okay, God,
00:15:40.580 --> 00:15:41.680
I will respond
00:15:41.680 --> 00:15:42.440
to that calling,
00:15:42.540 --> 00:15:42.759
right?
00:15:43.740 --> 00:15:44.039
No,
00:15:44.100 --> 00:15:44.639
but actually,
00:15:45.620 --> 00:15:46.480
just because work
00:15:46.480 --> 00:15:47.379
is hard,
00:15:47.960 --> 00:15:48.360
difficult,
00:15:48.600 --> 00:15:49.139
doesn't mean
00:15:49.139 --> 00:15:50.059
you're in the wrong place.
00:15:50.720 --> 00:15:51.919
Because all work
00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:52.679
in some sense
00:15:52.679 --> 00:15:53.539
is going to be hard.
00:15:53.960 --> 00:15:54.580
Because we live
00:15:54.580 --> 00:15:54.980
in a fallen
00:15:54.980 --> 00:15:55.919
and broken world.
00:15:56.559 --> 00:15:57.200
Every job
00:15:57.200 --> 00:15:57.720
is going to have
00:15:57.720 --> 00:15:58.279
difficulties.
00:15:58.419 --> 00:15:58.879
Every job
00:15:58.879 --> 00:15:59.419
is going to have
00:15:59.419 --> 00:16:00.080
its challenges.
00:16:00.919 --> 00:16:01.799
And many jobs,
00:16:01.799 --> 00:16:02.919
they look like
00:16:02.919 --> 00:16:03.799
the perfect job
00:16:03.799 --> 00:16:05.259
until you get inside.
00:16:06.080 --> 00:16:07.179
And then you find
00:16:07.179 --> 00:16:08.179
that actually
00:16:08.179 --> 00:16:09.299
your manager
00:16:09.299 --> 00:16:10.279
at Lindt Chocolate
00:16:10.279 --> 00:16:11.620
is the grumpiest
00:16:11.620 --> 00:16:12.879
person in the whole world.
00:16:13.319 --> 00:16:14.980
Or maybe you finally
00:16:14.980 --> 00:16:15.919
get that job
00:16:15.919 --> 00:16:16.600
at Lindt Chocolate
00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:18.039
and some batch
00:16:18.039 --> 00:16:18.699
is contaminated
00:16:18.699 --> 00:16:19.600
and a whole bunch
00:16:19.600 --> 00:16:20.360
of people in Brazil
00:16:20.360 --> 00:16:20.959
get sick
00:16:20.959 --> 00:16:22.220
and you are responsible,
00:16:22.379 --> 00:16:22.600
right?
00:16:23.259 --> 00:16:24.139
Every job
00:16:24.139 --> 00:16:24.600
in its world
00:16:24.600 --> 00:16:25.839
is going to be difficult.
00:16:26.779 --> 00:16:27.439
And just because
00:16:27.439 --> 00:16:28.399
we think this job
00:16:28.399 --> 00:16:29.459
doesn't spark joy
00:16:29.459 --> 00:16:30.100
in my life,
00:16:30.459 --> 00:16:31.299
doesn't mean it's time
00:16:31.299 --> 00:16:32.120
to change jobs
00:16:32.120 --> 00:16:32.519
so that you're
00:16:32.519 --> 00:16:33.220
in the wrong job.
00:16:34.039 --> 00:16:34.360
Actually,
00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:36.379
God's design
00:16:36.379 --> 00:16:36.879
and calling
00:16:36.879 --> 00:16:37.480
for our work
00:16:37.480 --> 00:16:38.939
is not to necessarily
00:16:38.940 --> 00:16:40.300
be the most wonderful
00:16:40.300 --> 00:16:41.300
place in the whole world.
00:16:41.860 --> 00:16:42.720
It's to love.
00:16:42.880 --> 00:16:43.600
It's to serve.
00:16:44.280 --> 00:16:45.340
It's to serve our society
00:16:45.340 --> 00:16:46.140
and God.
00:16:46.920 --> 00:16:47.160
So,
00:16:47.400 --> 00:16:47.960
first thing,
00:16:48.040 --> 00:16:48.780
work is difficult
00:16:48.780 --> 00:16:49.920
and challenging.
00:16:50.080 --> 00:16:50.940
Second thing is this.
00:16:52.020 --> 00:16:52.980
Our relationships
00:16:52.980 --> 00:16:53.980
at work
00:16:53.980 --> 00:16:54.540
are affected
00:16:54.540 --> 00:16:55.320
by the fall.
00:16:56.060 --> 00:16:56.260
Now,
00:16:56.320 --> 00:16:56.700
we're going to talk
00:16:56.700 --> 00:16:57.380
about this a little bit
00:16:57.380 --> 00:16:58.120
more next week.
00:16:58.820 --> 00:16:59.240
So,
00:16:59.360 --> 00:16:59.720
let me not say
00:16:59.720 --> 00:17:00.620
too much about this.
00:17:01.020 --> 00:17:01.900
But in verse 16
00:17:01.900 --> 00:17:03.000
that Celeste read to us,
00:17:03.360 --> 00:17:04.279
one of the things you see
00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:05.080
is the breakdown
00:17:05.080 --> 00:17:05.720
of relationship
00:17:05.720 --> 00:17:07.039
between Adam and Eve.
00:17:07.039 --> 00:17:08.799
And this is symbolic
00:17:08.799 --> 00:17:10.339
of all relationships
00:17:10.339 --> 00:17:11.359
in the world.
00:17:11.500 --> 00:17:12.539
That where God
00:17:12.539 --> 00:17:13.519
has put people together
00:17:13.519 --> 00:17:15.180
to partner together
00:17:15.180 --> 00:17:16.180
and work together
00:17:16.180 --> 00:17:17.619
and strengthen
00:17:17.619 --> 00:17:18.779
and encourage each other
00:17:18.779 --> 00:17:19.379
for the task
00:17:19.379 --> 00:17:20.200
that He's called us to,
00:17:20.639 --> 00:17:22.299
now often those relationships
00:17:22.299 --> 00:17:23.079
are marked by
00:17:23.079 --> 00:17:23.839
friction,
00:17:24.519 --> 00:17:25.039
frustration,
00:17:25.799 --> 00:17:26.339
difficulty,
00:17:26.819 --> 00:17:27.299
irritation.
00:17:27.940 --> 00:17:28.720
And we see this
00:17:28.720 --> 00:17:29.639
all the time, right?
00:17:30.000 --> 00:17:30.779
With our colleagues
00:17:30.779 --> 00:17:31.619
and our co-workers.
00:17:31.740 --> 00:17:32.799
Rather than celebrating
00:17:32.799 --> 00:17:34.059
and encouraging each other,
00:17:34.500 --> 00:17:35.599
strengthening each other,
00:17:35.980 --> 00:17:36.920
now there's aggression.
00:17:37.579 --> 00:17:38.299
There's competition
00:17:38.299 --> 00:17:39.159
from colleagues.
00:17:39.759 --> 00:17:41.359
There's managers
00:17:41.359 --> 00:17:43.099
degrading and abusing people.
00:17:43.440 --> 00:17:44.059
There's gossip.
00:17:44.180 --> 00:17:44.599
There's talking
00:17:44.599 --> 00:17:45.740
behind people's back.
00:17:46.240 --> 00:17:47.099
And our relationships
00:17:47.099 --> 00:17:48.779
get difficult and hard.
00:17:49.319 --> 00:17:49.720
And sometimes
00:17:49.720 --> 00:17:50.500
the work environment,
00:17:50.619 --> 00:17:51.500
Jaya spoke about it.
00:17:51.539 --> 00:17:52.559
It's not always easy.
00:17:53.480 --> 00:17:53.759
Now,
00:17:53.879 --> 00:17:54.440
we'll talk more
00:17:54.440 --> 00:17:55.259
about this next week.
00:17:55.359 --> 00:17:56.200
But what are the
00:17:56.200 --> 00:17:57.339
implications of this?
00:17:58.059 --> 00:17:58.319
Well,
00:17:58.420 --> 00:17:59.259
one of the implications
00:17:59.259 --> 00:17:59.899
is this.
00:18:00.940 --> 00:18:02.139
Develop the discipline
00:18:02.139 --> 00:18:03.000
of examining
00:18:03.000 --> 00:18:03.960
your own life
00:18:03.960 --> 00:18:04.779
and your own heart.
00:18:05.420 --> 00:18:06.339
What I mean by that
00:18:06.339 --> 00:18:06.740
is this.
00:18:07.500 --> 00:18:07.940
Sometimes
00:18:07.940 --> 00:18:08.659
at work people
00:18:08.659 --> 00:18:09.180
are difficult.
00:18:09.839 --> 00:18:10.220
Sometimes
00:18:10.220 --> 00:18:10.799
colleagues
00:18:10.799 --> 00:18:11.519
in particular
00:18:11.519 --> 00:18:12.279
can be difficult.
00:18:12.940 --> 00:18:13.619
And it's easy
00:18:13.619 --> 00:18:14.039
to think,
00:18:14.220 --> 00:18:14.359
oh,
00:18:14.399 --> 00:18:14.960
I can't believe
00:18:14.960 --> 00:18:15.659
I get to work
00:18:15.659 --> 00:18:16.460
with these people,
00:18:16.559 --> 00:18:16.799
right?
00:18:17.519 --> 00:18:18.500
But here's the thing.
00:18:19.000 --> 00:18:20.079
They might just
00:18:20.079 --> 00:18:20.639
be thinking
00:18:20.639 --> 00:18:21.339
the same thing
00:18:21.339 --> 00:18:21.980
about you.
00:18:22.920 --> 00:18:23.099
Okay?
00:18:23.599 --> 00:18:24.279
And maybe
00:18:24.279 --> 00:18:25.099
one of the reasons
00:18:25.099 --> 00:18:25.940
why there's friction
00:18:25.940 --> 00:18:26.579
in the team
00:18:26.579 --> 00:18:28.440
is because I'm selfish.
00:18:28.980 --> 00:18:30.079
And it's my issues
00:18:30.079 --> 00:18:30.819
with my heart.
00:18:30.819 --> 00:18:32.179
And so one of the
00:18:32.179 --> 00:18:32.599
best things
00:18:32.599 --> 00:18:33.159
we can do
00:18:33.159 --> 00:18:33.939
is to pray
00:18:33.939 --> 00:18:35.240
Psalm 139.
00:18:36.079 --> 00:18:36.740
Search me,
00:18:36.839 --> 00:18:37.240
oh God,
00:18:37.279 --> 00:18:38.439
and know my heart.
00:18:38.960 --> 00:18:39.599
Try me
00:18:39.599 --> 00:18:40.379
and know my thoughts.
00:18:40.759 --> 00:18:40.980
God,
00:18:41.139 --> 00:18:41.779
see if there's
00:18:41.779 --> 00:18:42.659
any grievous
00:18:42.659 --> 00:18:43.480
way in me
00:18:43.480 --> 00:18:44.720
and lead me
00:18:44.720 --> 00:18:45.099
in the way
00:18:45.099 --> 00:18:46.200
of everlasting life.
00:18:47.019 --> 00:18:47.740
And then secondly,
00:18:47.859 --> 00:18:48.559
make it your goal
00:18:48.559 --> 00:18:49.359
to be the best
00:18:49.359 --> 00:18:49.720
colleague,
00:18:49.859 --> 00:18:50.379
the best
00:18:50.379 --> 00:18:52.599
member of the team
00:18:52.599 --> 00:18:53.299
in your school,
00:18:53.419 --> 00:18:54.259
your company,
00:18:54.480 --> 00:18:54.919
et cetera.
00:18:55.360 --> 00:18:55.539
Okay?
00:18:56.180 --> 00:18:56.920
So the fall
00:18:56.920 --> 00:18:57.860
affects our work
00:18:57.860 --> 00:18:58.300
itself.
00:18:58.420 --> 00:18:58.960
It affects the
00:18:58.960 --> 00:18:59.560
relationships,
00:18:59.740 --> 00:19:00.620
the people at work.
00:19:01.100 --> 00:19:01.779
But here's the third
00:19:01.779 --> 00:19:02.580
thing that the fall,
00:19:02.720 --> 00:19:03.380
the curse of the
00:19:03.380 --> 00:19:04.340
broken world does,
00:19:04.779 --> 00:19:06.300
is that it makes
00:19:06.300 --> 00:19:07.460
work selfish
00:19:07.460 --> 00:19:08.960
and enslaving.
00:19:09.759 --> 00:19:10.140
Again,
00:19:10.240 --> 00:19:11.259
Jaya spoke about this.
00:19:11.920 --> 00:19:12.580
One of the main
00:19:12.580 --> 00:19:13.560
consequences of
00:19:13.560 --> 00:19:14.860
the fallen world
00:19:14.860 --> 00:19:15.700
in Genesis 3
00:19:15.700 --> 00:19:16.440
is the fact that
00:19:16.440 --> 00:19:17.060
our relationship
00:19:17.060 --> 00:19:18.000
with God,
00:19:18.460 --> 00:19:19.440
the life source
00:19:19.440 --> 00:19:20.080
of all hope
00:19:20.080 --> 00:19:20.580
and meaning
00:19:20.580 --> 00:19:21.120
and purpose
00:19:21.120 --> 00:19:21.600
in life,
00:19:22.039 --> 00:19:22.420
is now,
00:19:22.700 --> 00:19:23.519
that relationship
00:19:23.519 --> 00:19:24.200
is fractured.
00:19:24.300 --> 00:19:24.640
And there's an
00:19:24.640 --> 00:19:25.480
alienation that
00:19:25.480 --> 00:19:26.080
has come into
00:19:26.080 --> 00:19:27.020
the world.
00:19:27.880 --> 00:19:28.200
And so,
00:19:28.820 --> 00:19:30.360
what that means
00:19:30.360 --> 00:19:31.340
is that we now
00:19:31.340 --> 00:19:32.140
tend to look
00:19:32.140 --> 00:19:33.240
to things in our
00:19:33.240 --> 00:19:34.940
world to do
00:19:34.940 --> 00:19:35.920
what only God
00:19:35.920 --> 00:19:36.560
is meant to do.
00:19:37.140 --> 00:19:37.980
We tend to look
00:19:37.980 --> 00:19:39.020
to the things
00:19:39.020 --> 00:19:39.500
in our world,
00:19:39.580 --> 00:19:40.360
such as work
00:19:40.360 --> 00:19:40.900
and people
00:19:40.900 --> 00:19:41.440
and money,
00:19:42.020 --> 00:19:43.200
to provide
00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:43.840
the things that
00:19:43.840 --> 00:19:44.520
God is meant to
00:19:44.520 --> 00:19:45.140
or play the role
00:19:45.140 --> 00:19:45.820
that God is meant
00:19:45.820 --> 00:19:46.180
to play.
00:19:46.820 --> 00:19:47.580
And so we often
00:19:47.580 --> 00:19:48.280
tend to look
00:19:48.280 --> 00:19:49.080
to our work
00:19:49.080 --> 00:19:50.000
as a kind of
00:19:50.000 --> 00:19:51.100
God-like idol.
00:19:51.900 --> 00:19:52.700
What's an idol?
00:19:52.860 --> 00:19:53.600
An idol is something
00:19:53.599 --> 00:19:54.659
we look to
00:19:54.659 --> 00:19:55.679
or make sacrifices
00:19:55.679 --> 00:19:56.119
for,
00:19:56.759 --> 00:19:57.319
something we
00:19:57.319 --> 00:19:58.559
lay down our
00:19:58.559 --> 00:19:59.219
life to in some
00:19:59.219 --> 00:19:59.299
way,
00:19:59.359 --> 00:19:59.819
something we
00:19:59.819 --> 00:20:00.259
worship,
00:20:00.899 --> 00:20:01.500
trusting that
00:20:01.500 --> 00:20:02.179
in return,
00:20:02.399 --> 00:20:03.119
it will bless
00:20:03.119 --> 00:20:03.439
us,
00:20:03.819 --> 00:20:04.480
it will provide
00:20:04.480 --> 00:20:04.959
for us,
00:20:05.319 --> 00:20:05.819
it will keep
00:20:05.819 --> 00:20:06.419
us safe
00:20:06.419 --> 00:20:07.119
and secure,
00:20:07.639 --> 00:20:08.099
it will give
00:20:08.099 --> 00:20:08.899
us validation
00:20:08.899 --> 00:20:09.959
and identity.
00:20:10.539 --> 00:20:11.159
The things that
00:20:11.159 --> 00:20:11.619
God has meant
00:20:11.619 --> 00:20:12.259
to provide for
00:20:12.259 --> 00:20:12.399
us,
00:20:12.439 --> 00:20:12.899
we now look
00:20:12.899 --> 00:20:13.659
to work
00:20:13.659 --> 00:20:14.240
to do those
00:20:14.240 --> 00:20:14.659
things.
00:20:15.480 --> 00:20:16.179
And so we see
00:20:16.179 --> 00:20:16.959
this not long
00:20:16.959 --> 00:20:18.119
after Genesis 3
00:20:18.119 --> 00:20:19.679
in Genesis 11.
00:20:19.680 --> 00:20:21.200
it's a fascinating
00:20:21.200 --> 00:20:22.340
account of a
00:20:22.340 --> 00:20:22.860
bunch of men
00:20:22.860 --> 00:20:23.120
and women
00:20:23.120 --> 00:20:23.600
that come
00:20:23.600 --> 00:20:24.160
together,
00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:25.400
they've made
00:20:25.400 --> 00:20:26.259
some technological
00:20:26.259 --> 00:20:27.240
and engineering
00:20:27.240 --> 00:20:27.900
breakthroughs,
00:20:27.920 --> 00:20:28.580
they've learnt
00:20:28.580 --> 00:20:29.200
how to bake
00:20:29.200 --> 00:20:31.019
bricks rather
00:20:31.019 --> 00:20:31.560
than just relying
00:20:31.560 --> 00:20:32.140
on stones,
00:20:32.539 --> 00:20:33.200
and they come
00:20:33.200 --> 00:20:33.779
together and
00:20:33.779 --> 00:20:34.500
they say this,
00:20:34.840 --> 00:20:35.700
let us make a
00:20:35.700 --> 00:20:36.660
tower and a
00:20:36.660 --> 00:20:37.900
city and we
00:20:37.900 --> 00:20:38.580
will make a
00:20:38.580 --> 00:20:39.220
name for
00:20:39.220 --> 00:20:39.920
ourselves.
00:20:40.680 --> 00:20:41.080
And so they
00:20:41.080 --> 00:20:41.720
gather together
00:20:41.720 --> 00:20:42.500
to build the
00:20:42.500 --> 00:20:43.340
city, this
00:20:43.340 --> 00:20:43.960
tower, the
00:20:43.960 --> 00:20:44.460
tower of
00:20:44.460 --> 00:20:44.900
Babel.
00:20:46.299 --> 00:20:46.779
Tim Keller
00:20:46.779 --> 00:20:47.560
says that in
00:20:47.560 --> 00:20:48.100
the Bible,
00:20:48.099 --> 00:20:48.959
to make a
00:20:48.959 --> 00:20:49.500
name for
00:20:49.500 --> 00:20:50.039
yourself,
00:20:50.439 --> 00:20:51.679
always means
00:20:51.679 --> 00:20:52.959
to construct
00:20:52.959 --> 00:20:53.679
an identity,
00:20:54.339 --> 00:20:55.199
to build a
00:20:55.199 --> 00:20:55.719
sense of
00:20:55.719 --> 00:20:57.419
self-worth
00:20:57.419 --> 00:20:58.519
that proves
00:20:58.519 --> 00:20:58.919
to us that
00:20:58.919 --> 00:20:59.459
we're not a
00:20:59.459 --> 00:20:59.819
nobody.
00:21:00.500 --> 00:21:00.939
And that's
00:21:00.939 --> 00:21:01.619
what the
00:21:01.619 --> 00:21:02.099
people are
00:21:02.099 --> 00:21:02.500
trying to
00:21:02.500 --> 00:21:02.939
do, right?
00:21:03.319 --> 00:21:03.939
They come
00:21:03.939 --> 00:21:04.179
and they
00:21:04.179 --> 00:21:05.379
work together
00:21:05.379 --> 00:21:06.799
to construct
00:21:06.799 --> 00:21:07.480
an identity,
00:21:07.639 --> 00:21:08.059
a sense of
00:21:08.059 --> 00:21:08.519
self, to
00:21:08.519 --> 00:21:09.059
prove that
00:21:09.059 --> 00:21:09.740
I'm not a
00:21:09.740 --> 00:21:10.240
failure, I'm
00:21:10.240 --> 00:21:10.519
not a
00:21:10.519 --> 00:21:10.859
nobody.
00:21:12.199 --> 00:21:12.519
But friends,
00:21:12.599 --> 00:21:13.059
don't we do
00:21:13.059 --> 00:21:13.439
this with
00:21:13.439 --> 00:21:13.980
work all the
00:21:13.980 --> 00:21:14.299
time?
00:21:15.159 --> 00:21:15.599
Jai spoke
00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:16.119
about it.
00:21:16.679 --> 00:21:17.319
We look to
00:21:17.319 --> 00:21:18.039
our work
00:21:18.039 --> 00:21:19.019
to provide
00:21:19.019 --> 00:21:19.720
an identity
00:21:19.720 --> 00:21:21.259
to prove
00:21:21.259 --> 00:21:22.000
to ourselves
00:21:22.000 --> 00:21:22.440
at least
00:21:22.440 --> 00:21:22.920
that we're
00:21:22.920 --> 00:21:23.259
not a
00:21:23.259 --> 00:21:23.539
failure.
00:21:24.319 --> 00:21:24.940
We look to
00:21:24.940 --> 00:21:25.440
our work, we
00:21:25.440 --> 00:21:25.980
make great
00:21:25.980 --> 00:21:26.920
sacrifices to
00:21:26.920 --> 00:21:27.220
our work.
00:21:27.299 --> 00:21:27.759
We sacrifice
00:21:27.759 --> 00:21:28.440
our kids
00:21:28.440 --> 00:21:29.180
on the
00:21:29.180 --> 00:21:29.740
altar of
00:21:29.740 --> 00:21:30.059
work.
00:21:30.519 --> 00:21:31.200
We sacrifice
00:21:31.200 --> 00:21:32.359
our well-being
00:21:32.359 --> 00:21:32.720
and our
00:21:32.720 --> 00:21:33.700
health on
00:21:33.700 --> 00:21:34.159
the altar
00:21:34.159 --> 00:21:34.759
of work.
00:21:35.500 --> 00:21:36.099
So that
00:21:36.099 --> 00:21:36.559
work can
00:21:36.559 --> 00:21:37.279
provide for
00:21:37.279 --> 00:21:37.579
us what
00:21:37.579 --> 00:21:37.980
God has
00:21:37.980 --> 00:21:38.220
meant to
00:21:38.220 --> 00:21:38.599
provide.
00:21:39.319 --> 00:21:39.659
A sense
00:21:39.659 --> 00:21:40.240
of identity,
00:21:41.180 --> 00:21:41.500
a sense
00:21:41.500 --> 00:21:41.980
of hope,
00:21:42.740 --> 00:21:43.039
a sense
00:21:43.039 --> 00:21:43.720
of security,
00:21:44.759 --> 00:21:45.079
a sense
00:21:45.079 --> 00:21:46.099
of purpose.
00:21:46.099 --> 00:21:47.480
And what
00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:47.959
that does
00:21:47.959 --> 00:21:48.219
is it
00:21:48.219 --> 00:21:48.759
makes work
00:21:48.759 --> 00:21:49.839
selfish and
00:21:49.839 --> 00:21:50.579
it ultimately
00:21:50.579 --> 00:21:51.939
enslaves us.
00:21:53.240 --> 00:21:54.240
Richard Phillips
00:21:54.240 --> 00:21:55.079
said it like
00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:55.439
this,
00:21:56.119 --> 00:21:56.839
God never
00:21:56.839 --> 00:21:57.859
designed people
00:21:57.859 --> 00:21:58.539
to find their
00:21:58.539 --> 00:21:59.539
identities or
00:21:59.539 --> 00:22:00.079
their ultimate
00:22:00.079 --> 00:22:01.399
delight in the
00:22:01.399 --> 00:22:02.079
achievement of
00:22:02.079 --> 00:22:02.419
their own
00:22:02.419 --> 00:22:02.879
hands.
00:22:03.759 --> 00:22:04.559
God intended
00:22:04.559 --> 00:22:05.319
for our work
00:22:05.319 --> 00:22:05.919
to be a way
00:22:05.919 --> 00:22:06.859
of delighting
00:22:06.859 --> 00:22:07.279
in and
00:22:07.279 --> 00:22:07.879
worshiping
00:22:07.879 --> 00:22:08.240
him,
00:22:08.740 --> 00:22:09.619
not an act
00:22:09.619 --> 00:22:11.079
of self-actualization
00:22:11.079 --> 00:22:12.740
and self-glory.
00:22:13.500 --> 00:22:14.699
This is why
00:22:14.699 --> 00:22:15.359
one of the
00:22:15.359 --> 00:22:16.259
consequences for
00:22:16.259 --> 00:22:17.480
sin is not
00:22:17.480 --> 00:22:18.259
only that work
00:22:18.259 --> 00:22:18.899
is difficult,
00:22:19.319 --> 00:22:20.480
but that success
00:22:20.480 --> 00:22:21.359
is empty.
00:22:22.199 --> 00:22:22.740
That's a
00:22:22.740 --> 00:22:23.779
profound thought.
00:22:24.740 --> 00:22:25.119
One of the
00:22:25.119 --> 00:22:25.899
consequences of
00:22:25.899 --> 00:22:26.579
sin is not
00:22:26.579 --> 00:22:27.299
only that work
00:22:27.299 --> 00:22:27.899
is difficult,
00:22:28.379 --> 00:22:29.039
but even
00:22:29.039 --> 00:22:30.279
success is
00:22:30.279 --> 00:22:30.699
empty.
00:22:31.939 --> 00:22:32.439
Now,
00:22:32.500 --> 00:22:32.759
what are the
00:22:32.759 --> 00:22:33.579
implications of
00:22:33.579 --> 00:22:33.919
this?
00:22:34.859 --> 00:22:35.159
Well,
00:22:35.439 --> 00:22:36.159
for work to
00:22:36.159 --> 00:22:36.839
not become an
00:22:36.839 --> 00:22:37.240
idol,
00:22:38.099 --> 00:22:38.619
the thing that
00:22:38.619 --> 00:22:39.159
you look to
00:22:39.159 --> 00:22:39.919
to validate
00:22:39.919 --> 00:22:40.539
you or give
00:22:40.539 --> 00:22:41.059
you meaning
00:22:41.059 --> 00:22:41.839
or purpose
00:22:41.839 --> 00:22:43.359
or identity
00:22:43.359 --> 00:22:44.000
in life,
00:22:44.539 --> 00:22:45.419
you've got to
00:22:45.419 --> 00:22:46.500
encounter in a
00:22:46.500 --> 00:22:47.799
profoundly deep
00:22:47.799 --> 00:22:49.200
way the true
00:22:49.200 --> 00:22:50.019
and living God.
00:22:51.000 --> 00:22:51.599
In other words,
00:22:52.019 --> 00:22:52.799
unless you,
00:22:53.759 --> 00:22:54.659
God says this,
00:22:55.000 --> 00:22:55.799
the way to
00:22:55.799 --> 00:22:56.940
demolish the
00:22:56.940 --> 00:22:57.619
idols in our
00:22:57.619 --> 00:22:58.379
heart is not
00:22:58.379 --> 00:22:59.000
just to tell
00:22:59.000 --> 00:22:59.460
ourselves,
00:22:59.819 --> 00:23:00.379
don't worship
00:23:00.379 --> 00:23:00.720
work,
00:23:00.839 --> 00:23:01.359
don't worship
00:23:01.359 --> 00:23:01.759
work.
00:23:02.220 --> 00:23:02.919
You've got to
00:23:02.919 --> 00:23:03.740
encounter a
00:23:03.740 --> 00:23:04.399
better and
00:23:04.399 --> 00:23:05.220
more profound
00:23:05.220 --> 00:23:05.839
God, the
00:23:05.839 --> 00:23:06.419
living God,
00:23:06.500 --> 00:23:07.139
the true God
00:23:07.139 --> 00:23:07.579
himself.
00:23:08.419 --> 00:23:08.980
And you've
00:23:08.980 --> 00:23:09.740
got to encounter
00:23:09.740 --> 00:23:10.539
God in such a
00:23:10.539 --> 00:23:11.000
way that he
00:23:11.000 --> 00:23:12.059
disrupts your
00:23:12.059 --> 00:23:12.579
life,
00:23:13.220 --> 00:23:13.900
okay, by
00:23:13.900 --> 00:23:14.619
dismantling your
00:23:14.619 --> 00:23:15.799
idols, but at
00:23:15.799 --> 00:23:16.519
the same time
00:23:16.519 --> 00:23:17.359
gives you profound
00:23:17.359 --> 00:23:18.220
peace because
00:23:18.220 --> 00:23:18.960
you've encountered
00:23:18.960 --> 00:23:19.880
the true and
00:23:19.880 --> 00:23:20.400
living God.
00:23:20.960 --> 00:23:21.720
You've got to
00:23:21.720 --> 00:23:22.640
allow God to
00:23:22.640 --> 00:23:23.380
disrupt your
00:23:23.380 --> 00:23:23.799
life by
00:23:23.799 --> 00:23:24.779
dethroning the
00:23:24.779 --> 00:23:25.539
idols that you
00:23:25.539 --> 00:23:26.000
look to.
00:23:26.660 --> 00:23:27.660
And yet, as you
00:23:27.660 --> 00:23:28.559
do that, as you
00:23:28.559 --> 00:23:30.220
trust him, you'll
00:23:30.220 --> 00:23:31.559
find that in that
00:23:31.559 --> 00:23:32.920
disruption, actually
00:23:32.920 --> 00:23:33.579
he'll bring you
00:23:33.579 --> 00:23:33.980
peace.
00:23:34.900 --> 00:23:35.500
You see, one of the
00:23:35.500 --> 00:23:36.440
things with idols is
00:23:36.440 --> 00:23:37.220
that we look to them
00:23:37.220 --> 00:23:38.220
to give us security
00:23:38.220 --> 00:23:39.579
and peace, and all
00:23:39.579 --> 00:23:40.819
they give is us, they
00:23:40.819 --> 00:23:42.100
give us restlessness.
00:23:42.600 --> 00:23:43.460
They actually rob us
00:23:43.460 --> 00:23:43.920
of peace.
00:23:44.579 --> 00:23:45.839
And God says that if
00:23:45.839 --> 00:23:47.019
you allow him to
00:23:47.019 --> 00:23:48.720
dismantle the idol, to
00:23:48.720 --> 00:23:51.079
demolish the idol, if
00:23:51.079 --> 00:23:51.799
you allow him to
00:23:51.799 --> 00:23:52.799
actually disrupt your
00:23:52.799 --> 00:23:54.400
life, it will feel so
00:23:54.400 --> 00:23:54.839
scary.
00:23:55.339 --> 00:23:56.299
It'll feel like you're
00:23:56.299 --> 00:23:57.559
taking a step out of
00:23:57.559 --> 00:23:58.579
the boat onto water.
00:23:59.059 --> 00:24:00.279
It'll feel profoundly
00:24:00.279 --> 00:24:01.860
scary, and yet in that
00:24:01.860 --> 00:24:03.480
place, you will find
00:24:03.480 --> 00:24:03.980
peace.
00:24:03.980 --> 00:24:05.099
peace, the peace
00:24:05.099 --> 00:24:05.640
that your heart
00:24:05.640 --> 00:24:06.500
really longs for.
00:24:07.579 --> 00:24:08.220
Remember the words
00:24:08.220 --> 00:24:09.480
of Augustine, our
00:24:09.480 --> 00:24:10.440
hearts were made for
00:24:10.440 --> 00:24:11.740
you, O God, and
00:24:11.740 --> 00:24:12.779
we'll always be
00:24:12.779 --> 00:24:13.920
restless until we
00:24:13.920 --> 00:24:15.360
find our rest in
00:24:15.360 --> 00:24:15.660
you.
00:24:16.920 --> 00:24:17.920
And so that's what
00:24:17.920 --> 00:24:19.360
the gospel is all
00:24:19.360 --> 00:24:19.539
about.
00:24:19.700 --> 00:24:20.700
Jesus says he came
00:24:20.700 --> 00:24:21.839
to prove to you by
00:24:21.839 --> 00:24:22.660
going to the cross
00:24:22.660 --> 00:24:23.720
and dying and rising
00:24:23.720 --> 00:24:25.140
again, that he alone
00:24:25.140 --> 00:24:26.860
is God, but also
00:24:26.860 --> 00:24:28.099
that you can trust
00:24:28.099 --> 00:24:28.339
him.
00:24:30.880 --> 00:24:32.519
Okay, so work is
00:24:32.519 --> 00:24:32.980
difficult.
00:24:32.980 --> 00:24:33.099
difficult.
00:24:33.940 --> 00:24:34.720
Work itself is
00:24:34.720 --> 00:24:35.000
difficult.
00:24:35.140 --> 00:24:35.759
Our relationships
00:24:35.759 --> 00:24:36.299
are difficult.
00:24:36.880 --> 00:24:38.599
Work becomes ensnaring
00:24:38.599 --> 00:24:39.380
and selfish.
00:24:40.720 --> 00:24:41.720
But the other thing
00:24:41.720 --> 00:24:42.400
that we see in the
00:24:42.400 --> 00:24:43.339
Bible is work is not
00:24:43.339 --> 00:24:45.259
only operate under the
00:24:45.259 --> 00:24:46.279
curse and difficult
00:24:46.279 --> 00:24:46.880
and hard.
00:24:47.420 --> 00:24:48.860
Secondly, work is a
00:24:48.860 --> 00:24:49.380
crucible.
00:24:50.240 --> 00:24:51.680
Why God calls us to
00:24:51.680 --> 00:24:52.680
difficult work.
00:24:53.960 --> 00:24:55.000
So what I'm trying to
00:24:55.000 --> 00:24:56.640
argue here is that all
00:24:56.640 --> 00:24:57.559
work is hard and
00:24:57.559 --> 00:24:58.259
difficult because we
00:24:58.259 --> 00:24:59.079
live in a fall and a
00:24:59.079 --> 00:24:59.720
broken world.
00:25:00.759 --> 00:25:01.380
But here's the
00:25:01.380 --> 00:25:01.700
question.
00:25:01.700 --> 00:25:03.660
Sometimes God calls
00:25:03.660 --> 00:25:05.360
us specifically into
00:25:05.360 --> 00:25:06.259
difficult work.
00:25:06.799 --> 00:25:07.860
And why is that?
00:25:08.539 --> 00:25:09.279
Why doesn't God just
00:25:09.279 --> 00:25:10.200
call, you know, why
00:25:10.200 --> 00:25:10.880
doesn't God just say,
00:25:11.220 --> 00:25:11.819
listen, you're a
00:25:11.819 --> 00:25:12.460
Christian now.
00:25:12.620 --> 00:25:13.580
I love you.
00:25:13.920 --> 00:25:14.880
You should go and work
00:25:14.880 --> 00:25:15.779
in the Maldives, right?
00:25:16.220 --> 00:25:17.180
Let all the difficult
00:25:17.180 --> 00:25:18.279
work be done by those
00:25:18.279 --> 00:25:19.420
people out there, right?
00:25:20.140 --> 00:25:21.340
Why does God call us to
00:25:21.340 --> 00:25:22.059
difficult work?
00:25:22.819 --> 00:25:25.259
Well, one of the things
00:25:25.259 --> 00:25:26.539
that the Bible tells us
00:25:26.539 --> 00:25:28.559
is God doesn't just say,
00:25:29.200 --> 00:25:30.379
listen, you live in a
00:25:30.379 --> 00:25:31.319
fallen world, a broken
00:25:31.319 --> 00:25:32.639
world, suck it up, one
00:25:32.639 --> 00:25:33.460
day you'll get to heaven,
00:25:33.599 --> 00:25:33.859
okay?
00:25:34.519 --> 00:25:35.379
One of the things that
00:25:35.379 --> 00:25:36.980
God tells us is that you
00:25:36.980 --> 00:25:37.899
live in a fallen and a
00:25:37.899 --> 00:25:39.539
broken world, that's true,
00:25:39.899 --> 00:25:41.379
but the difficulties that
00:25:41.379 --> 00:25:43.059
come our way are not just
00:25:43.059 --> 00:25:45.420
bad luck, but are filtered
00:25:45.420 --> 00:25:46.859
through the hands of a
00:25:46.859 --> 00:25:48.740
loving Father, okay?
00:25:49.359 --> 00:25:51.120
In other words, to endure
00:25:51.120 --> 00:25:52.539
the difficulty of work is
00:25:52.539 --> 00:25:54.200
not just a fact of life.
00:25:54.599 --> 00:25:56.259
For many of us, in some
00:25:56.259 --> 00:25:57.599
way, it's part of God's
00:25:57.599 --> 00:25:59.120
divine call on our lives.
00:25:59.839 --> 00:26:00.799
It's actually that God
00:26:00.799 --> 00:26:02.599
calls us and leads us into
00:26:02.599 --> 00:26:03.460
difficult work.
00:26:05.120 --> 00:26:06.500
And that's because if you
00:26:06.500 --> 00:26:07.420
are a Christian this
00:26:07.420 --> 00:26:08.319
morning, and I know not
00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:09.279
all of us are Christians,
00:26:09.420 --> 00:26:10.180
but if you're a Christian
00:26:10.180 --> 00:26:11.940
this morning, part of God's
00:26:11.940 --> 00:26:13.579
call is to see your work
00:26:13.579 --> 00:26:14.559
as a crucible.
00:26:15.400 --> 00:26:16.640
Now, I don't know if you
00:26:16.640 --> 00:26:17.579
know what a crucible is.
00:26:17.579 --> 00:26:20.659
A crucible is this pot or
00:26:20.659 --> 00:26:23.059
a container that is put
00:26:23.059 --> 00:26:24.740
into an extremely hot
00:26:24.740 --> 00:26:27.359
furnace so that the thing
00:26:27.359 --> 00:26:28.539
that's inside of it, often
00:26:28.539 --> 00:26:30.179
precious metals or gold or
00:26:30.179 --> 00:26:31.539
silver or something, is
00:26:31.539 --> 00:26:32.799
able to be melted and
00:26:32.799 --> 00:26:34.899
refined and purified or
00:26:34.899 --> 00:26:35.939
shaped and molded.
00:26:36.319 --> 00:26:37.619
So they put some gold or
00:26:37.619 --> 00:26:38.619
some kind of metal in a
00:26:38.619 --> 00:26:39.819
crucible, they put the
00:26:39.819 --> 00:26:41.579
crucible in this insanely hot
00:26:41.579 --> 00:26:43.359
furnace, and it melts the
00:26:43.359 --> 00:26:44.339
thing inside so that it can
00:26:44.339 --> 00:26:45.139
be purified.
00:26:46.059 --> 00:26:47.559
What God is saying is this,
00:26:48.019 --> 00:26:49.119
throughout the Bible, God
00:26:49.119 --> 00:26:50.319
says again and again and
00:26:50.319 --> 00:26:52.559
again, that God calls us
00:26:52.559 --> 00:26:54.019
sometimes to difficult and
00:26:54.019 --> 00:26:55.679
extremely hard circumstances
00:26:55.679 --> 00:26:57.859
because God uses those
00:26:57.859 --> 00:27:00.000
circumstances as a crucible
00:27:00.000 --> 00:27:02.740
to shape us and to purify us
00:27:02.740 --> 00:27:04.799
and to mold us and to shape
00:27:04.799 --> 00:27:05.839
our characters to be the
00:27:05.839 --> 00:27:06.619
kind of people that he's
00:27:06.619 --> 00:27:07.279
called us to be.
00:27:08.199 --> 00:27:09.879
So for instance, Proverbs 17
00:27:09.879 --> 00:27:11.539
says, a crucible is for
00:27:11.539 --> 00:27:13.439
silver, a furnace is for gold,
00:27:13.440 --> 00:27:15.700
but the Lord tests the heart
00:27:15.700 --> 00:27:16.960
of his people.
00:27:18.180 --> 00:27:19.860
In other words, sometimes the
00:27:19.860 --> 00:27:21.220
struggle and the frustrations
00:27:21.220 --> 00:27:23.220
of our work is not only
00:27:23.220 --> 00:27:25.039
because of the curse, but
00:27:25.039 --> 00:27:26.420
because actually they are God's
00:27:26.420 --> 00:27:27.920
crucibles to shape us, to
00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:29.279
reveal what's inside of our
00:27:29.279 --> 00:27:29.680
hearts.
00:27:30.180 --> 00:27:31.740
What are we really trusting in?
00:27:32.240 --> 00:27:33.299
Where are we really finding
00:27:33.299 --> 00:27:35.039
our identity and our hope and
00:27:35.039 --> 00:27:35.600
our security?
00:27:36.360 --> 00:27:37.380
And for those of us who are
00:27:37.380 --> 00:27:39.340
Christians, we tend to think,
00:27:39.339 --> 00:27:40.799
okay, my identity is in Jesus,
00:27:40.980 --> 00:27:42.919
I know that, I'm secure in
00:27:42.919 --> 00:27:45.500
him, until you get to work and
00:27:45.500 --> 00:27:47.039
that deal falls flat, right?
00:27:47.379 --> 00:27:49.639
Or your boss scolds you or
00:27:49.639 --> 00:27:50.939
something goes wrong or you
00:27:50.939 --> 00:27:52.779
don't make that promotion and
00:27:52.779 --> 00:27:54.039
suddenly our whole world
00:27:54.039 --> 00:27:55.500
crumbles and falls apart.
00:27:56.059 --> 00:27:56.879
What's happening?
00:27:57.839 --> 00:27:59.559
The refiner is at work in your
00:27:59.559 --> 00:27:59.919
world.
00:28:01.039 --> 00:28:02.599
God is at work in your life and
00:28:02.599 --> 00:28:03.720
he's shaping you and he's
00:28:03.720 --> 00:28:04.359
molding you.
00:28:05.119 --> 00:28:06.119
And so sometimes the
00:28:06.119 --> 00:28:07.679
difficulty of work is meant to
00:28:07.679 --> 00:28:08.699
refine our characters.
00:28:09.339 --> 00:28:10.679
So God wants us to be
00:28:10.679 --> 00:28:11.839
patient, but how are you ever
00:28:11.839 --> 00:28:13.339
going to know how impatient you
00:28:13.339 --> 00:28:14.939
are until your patience is
00:28:14.939 --> 00:28:16.059
tested, right?
00:28:17.119 --> 00:28:18.459
Or how are you going to see
00:28:18.459 --> 00:28:19.240
that you've got an anger
00:28:19.240 --> 00:28:20.419
problem when life is always
00:28:20.419 --> 00:28:21.179
going your way?
00:28:22.139 --> 00:28:23.500
Sometimes God uses the
00:28:23.500 --> 00:28:25.179
difficulty of work to reveal
00:28:25.179 --> 00:28:26.759
what's really in our hearts
00:28:26.759 --> 00:28:29.039
and to show our need for him.
00:28:29.980 --> 00:28:31.039
I often think to myself, I
00:28:31.039 --> 00:28:33.459
used to, I kind of laugh at
00:28:33.459 --> 00:28:34.839
this, I used to think I was a
00:28:34.839 --> 00:28:35.779
very patient person.
00:28:36.779 --> 00:28:37.899
Until two things happened.
00:28:37.899 --> 00:28:38.899
One, I had kids.
00:28:40.039 --> 00:28:42.399
And two, a whole bunch of
00:28:42.399 --> 00:28:44.359
work situations arose where I
00:28:44.359 --> 00:28:46.019
got so impatient with people
00:28:46.019 --> 00:28:47.919
and I realized I am a very
00:28:47.919 --> 00:28:48.959
impatient person.
00:28:49.539 --> 00:28:51.299
But it took the difficulty of
00:28:51.299 --> 00:28:52.919
the crucible to reveal that,
00:28:53.019 --> 00:28:53.259
right?
00:28:54.379 --> 00:28:55.679
And so sometimes God allows
00:28:55.679 --> 00:28:57.139
difficulty to come our way,
00:28:57.579 --> 00:28:59.019
oftentimes in and through our
00:28:59.019 --> 00:29:00.959
work, so that we can see our
00:29:00.959 --> 00:29:01.740
need for him.
00:29:02.779 --> 00:29:03.659
Paul writes this in
00:29:03.659 --> 00:29:04.720
Corinthians, listen to what he
00:29:04.720 --> 00:29:05.139
says here.
00:29:05.140 --> 00:29:05.640
He says,
00:29:05.640 --> 00:29:07.020
we do not want you to be
00:29:07.020 --> 00:29:08.620
unaware, brothers and sisters,
00:29:08.620 --> 00:29:10.980
of the affliction we experienced
00:29:10.980 --> 00:29:11.960
when we were in Asia.
00:29:12.560 --> 00:29:14.040
Some of you might feel the
00:29:14.040 --> 00:29:14.540
same, right?
00:29:15.120 --> 00:29:16.259
In America, it was so easy.
00:29:16.340 --> 00:29:17.680
I came to Asia, deep
00:29:17.680 --> 00:29:18.120
affliction.
00:29:19.120 --> 00:29:20.800
For we were utterly burdened
00:29:20.800 --> 00:29:22.220
beyond our strength and we
00:29:22.220 --> 00:29:23.759
despaired of life itself.
00:29:24.560 --> 00:29:26.240
Indeed, we felt we had received
00:29:26.240 --> 00:29:27.440
the sentence of death.
00:29:27.920 --> 00:29:29.840
But that was to make us rely
00:29:29.840 --> 00:29:32.160
not on ourselves, but on the
00:29:32.160 --> 00:29:34.440
God who raises us from the
00:29:34.440 --> 00:29:34.759
dead.
00:29:35.620 --> 00:29:36.259
You see that?
00:29:37.080 --> 00:29:38.220
Again and again, the
00:29:38.220 --> 00:29:39.320
scriptures say that the
00:29:39.320 --> 00:29:40.880
hardship and the difficulty of
00:29:40.880 --> 00:29:42.560
work are meant to be like a
00:29:42.560 --> 00:29:44.300
shepherd's goad, a shepherd's
00:29:44.300 --> 00:29:45.340
staff that are actually meant
00:29:45.340 --> 00:29:47.860
to draw us back to God and
00:29:47.860 --> 00:29:49.060
lead us to the foot of the
00:29:49.060 --> 00:29:51.300
cross and say, God, I need
00:29:51.300 --> 00:29:51.620
you.
00:29:53.740 --> 00:29:54.860
They're meant to reveal the
00:29:54.860 --> 00:29:56.080
counterfeit gods that we are
00:29:56.080 --> 00:29:56.860
trusting in.
00:29:57.720 --> 00:29:58.960
And sometimes we may think,
00:29:59.120 --> 00:30:00.460
oh, work is difficult and the
00:30:00.460 --> 00:30:01.440
environment isn't that good,
00:30:01.440 --> 00:30:02.559
it must be time to leave.
00:30:02.799 --> 00:30:04.299
Maybe, but maybe not.
00:30:04.960 --> 00:30:06.460
Maybe that's exactly where God
00:30:06.460 --> 00:30:08.120
wants you because he wants to
00:30:08.120 --> 00:30:09.220
show you what you're trusting
00:30:09.220 --> 00:30:10.960
in and what's in your heart.
00:30:11.680 --> 00:30:13.299
Friends, again and again and
00:30:13.299 --> 00:30:14.980
again, the scriptures tell us
00:30:14.980 --> 00:30:17.880
that God is absolutely clear on
00:30:17.880 --> 00:30:19.220
this, that God is infinitely
00:30:19.220 --> 00:30:20.620
more concerned about our
00:30:20.620 --> 00:30:22.500
character than our comfort.
00:30:24.000 --> 00:30:25.240
And I know that in the 21st
00:30:25.240 --> 00:30:26.600
century, that's hard to believe
00:30:26.600 --> 00:30:28.400
because we think that the one
00:30:28.400 --> 00:30:29.539
thing we're entitled to is a
00:30:29.539 --> 00:30:30.259
comfortable life.
00:30:30.579 --> 00:30:32.119
But again and again and again,
00:30:32.259 --> 00:30:33.659
God says that he's infinitely
00:30:33.659 --> 00:30:34.839
more concerned with our
00:30:34.839 --> 00:30:36.799
character than our comfort.
00:30:38.039 --> 00:30:40.299
Just read almost any book in
00:30:40.299 --> 00:30:41.500
the Bible, any of the New
00:30:41.500 --> 00:30:43.500
Testament epistles, any of the
00:30:43.500 --> 00:30:44.159
gospels, right?
00:30:44.180 --> 00:30:45.139
You'll see again and again
00:30:45.139 --> 00:30:46.659
suffering and hardship,
00:30:47.099 --> 00:30:49.460
anxiety, difficulty, stress.
00:30:49.700 --> 00:30:51.180
This is a normal part of the
00:30:51.180 --> 00:30:51.799
Christian life.
00:30:52.440 --> 00:30:53.940
And sometimes God brings these
00:30:53.940 --> 00:30:54.899
things into our life because he
00:30:54.900 --> 00:30:55.940
wants us to see what's in our
00:30:55.940 --> 00:30:56.300
hearts.
00:30:57.880 --> 00:31:02.820
Now, last thing before we, last
00:31:02.820 --> 00:31:03.120
section.
00:31:03.900 --> 00:31:05.900
What about, what about if your
00:31:05.900 --> 00:31:07.759
job or you work in an environment
00:31:07.759 --> 00:31:10.900
or a company or for a boss that
00:31:10.900 --> 00:31:14.740
the values directly contradict your
00:31:14.740 --> 00:31:16.220
values as a follower of Jesus?
00:31:17.200 --> 00:31:19.200
Maybe your company is very vocal in
00:31:19.200 --> 00:31:21.540
supporting a cause or a movement
00:31:21.539 --> 00:31:22.899
that you as a follower of Jesus
00:31:22.899 --> 00:31:25.059
don't, can't support.
00:31:25.779 --> 00:31:27.319
Maybe you work for a company that
00:31:27.319 --> 00:31:29.339
invests in the industry or brokers
00:31:29.339 --> 00:31:32.659
deals for an industry that is doing
00:31:32.659 --> 00:31:35.759
harmful stuff to the environment or is
00:31:35.759 --> 00:31:37.420
contributing towards division in
00:31:37.420 --> 00:31:38.899
society and breakdown society.
00:31:39.460 --> 00:31:40.299
What do you do?
00:31:41.079 --> 00:31:42.619
What do you do if your boss treats
00:31:42.619 --> 00:31:44.839
people badly or sexist or racist or
00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:46.559
abuses people in the company?
00:31:47.259 --> 00:31:48.819
What do you do when your boss wants you
00:31:48.819 --> 00:31:50.480
to go out drinking with clients and
00:31:50.480 --> 00:31:51.839
binging on alcohol so that you can
00:31:51.839 --> 00:31:53.159
win business for the company?
00:31:54.679 --> 00:31:56.119
Should we leave our job?
00:31:56.679 --> 00:31:57.859
Go work for a Christian NGO?
00:31:58.779 --> 00:32:00.259
Go start a Christian investment
00:32:00.259 --> 00:32:00.700
company?
00:32:01.519 --> 00:32:02.919
Maybe go work for a church because,
00:32:03.099 --> 00:32:03.839
you know, we don't have any
00:32:03.839 --> 00:32:04.799
challenges at the church.
00:32:06.000 --> 00:32:06.359
Okay.
00:32:08.200 --> 00:32:09.839
Well, friends, the Bible doesn't give
00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:11.919
us answers to each and every
00:32:11.919 --> 00:32:13.299
situation, but let's just think about
00:32:13.299 --> 00:32:13.839
this briefly.
00:32:14.460 --> 00:32:15.759
And I want to say three things to us
00:32:15.759 --> 00:32:16.539
in that situation.
00:32:17.139 --> 00:32:17.679
Four things.
00:32:17.680 --> 00:32:20.920
One, it's really hard and there's no
00:32:20.920 --> 00:32:22.039
short, quick answers.
00:32:23.000 --> 00:32:25.519
Two, that book over there by Daniel
00:32:25.519 --> 00:32:27.560
Doriani is a really great book and
00:32:27.560 --> 00:32:28.759
he's got a great chapter on that
00:32:28.759 --> 00:32:30.160
called Work in Hard Places.
00:32:30.759 --> 00:32:31.740
I encourage you to read it.
00:32:32.519 --> 00:32:36.500
Three, no workplace in the earth is
00:32:36.500 --> 00:32:38.360
going to be purely good or purely easy
00:32:38.360 --> 00:32:39.799
or purely ethical.
00:32:40.160 --> 00:32:40.240
Okay.
00:32:41.039 --> 00:32:43.640
Every workplace is going to come face
00:32:43.640 --> 00:32:44.700
to face with these challenges.
00:32:44.700 --> 00:32:48.400
And every workplace, in fact, in some
00:32:48.400 --> 00:32:49.799
ways, the more corrupt the workplace,
00:32:49.960 --> 00:32:52.259
the more it needs God-centered people
00:32:52.259 --> 00:32:54.500
who have the wisdom of a God-fearing
00:32:54.500 --> 00:32:56.340
life and who's hard to shape our
00:32:56.340 --> 00:32:57.759
Christ to be in that place.
00:32:58.460 --> 00:33:00.279
And so if it's possible that you can
00:33:00.279 --> 00:33:01.519
still work in that place without
00:33:01.519 --> 00:33:03.940
contributing towards the evil, maybe
00:33:03.940 --> 00:33:05.620
God wants you to be in that place
00:33:05.620 --> 00:33:08.519
as specifically to bring some element
00:33:08.519 --> 00:33:11.840
of wisdom or light to that workplace.
00:33:11.839 --> 00:33:14.119
It may be that God wants us to stay
00:33:14.119 --> 00:33:16.220
there because our responsibility is to
00:33:16.220 --> 00:33:18.379
love others more than find a
00:33:18.379 --> 00:33:19.159
comfortable job.
00:33:19.919 --> 00:33:21.379
And when we think about it in the
00:33:21.379 --> 00:33:22.819
Bible, there's actually tons of
00:33:22.819 --> 00:33:24.639
examples of men and women that worked
00:33:24.639 --> 00:33:26.500
in really difficult work environments.
00:33:27.099 --> 00:33:28.319
So I think of Daniel, right?
00:33:28.500 --> 00:33:30.279
Daniel goes to Nebuchadnezzar and he
00:33:30.279 --> 00:33:32.799
works as an advisor to King Nebuchadnezzar,
00:33:33.179 --> 00:33:35.439
the king of Babylon, who was this
00:33:35.439 --> 00:33:36.879
pagan, ungodly man.
00:33:37.439 --> 00:33:39.119
And Daniel works in the palace for
00:33:39.119 --> 00:33:42.079
almost 70 years, his entire life for
00:33:42.079 --> 00:33:43.819
Nebuchadnezzar and his followers.
00:33:44.359 --> 00:33:45.759
Or think about Queen Esther.
00:33:46.259 --> 00:33:48.099
She's married to King Xerxes, the
00:33:48.099 --> 00:33:50.159
king of the Persian king.
00:33:50.539 --> 00:33:53.019
He was a terrible man, a misogynist.
00:33:53.379 --> 00:33:54.500
And she's in the palace.
00:33:55.059 --> 00:33:58.599
Or think of a man called Obadiah, who
00:33:58.599 --> 00:34:00.459
worked as a court official in the palace
00:34:00.459 --> 00:34:01.059
of Ahab.
00:34:01.500 --> 00:34:03.679
Ahab was a terrible king in Israel.
00:34:04.239 --> 00:34:05.699
Murders people, kills people.
00:34:05.700 --> 00:34:08.740
Obadiah works as a court official in
00:34:08.740 --> 00:34:09.300
his palace.
00:34:09.460 --> 00:34:11.240
And Obadiah, we're told, is a God-fearing,
00:34:11.420 --> 00:34:12.039
godly man.
00:34:13.000 --> 00:34:16.179
All these men and women worked for in
00:34:16.179 --> 00:34:17.900
the service of pretty wicked,
00:34:18.380 --> 00:34:19.460
egomaniac men.
00:34:20.000 --> 00:34:21.800
And yet, who did terrible things.
00:34:22.280 --> 00:34:23.559
And yet, they stayed there.
00:34:24.260 --> 00:34:25.860
And one of the reasons why they stayed
00:34:25.860 --> 00:34:27.920
there was because they saw that God had
00:34:27.920 --> 00:34:29.500
called them there and that their purpose
00:34:29.500 --> 00:34:32.519
there was to serve, and in many instances,
00:34:32.519 --> 00:34:36.480
save the lives of people that otherwise
00:34:36.480 --> 00:34:38.639
would have been severely impacted had
00:34:38.639 --> 00:34:39.440
they not been there.
00:34:40.079 --> 00:34:42.239
So, for instance, right, Esther saves
00:34:42.239 --> 00:34:44.300
almost the entire Jewish nation in
00:34:44.300 --> 00:34:46.940
Persia because she's in the palace and
00:34:46.940 --> 00:34:50.199
can speak up and stand up for the people
00:34:50.199 --> 00:34:51.800
who are going to be exterminated.
00:34:52.579 --> 00:34:55.159
Daniel saves the lives of other advisors
00:34:55.159 --> 00:34:57.280
to the king of Nebuchadnezzar and gets
00:34:57.280 --> 00:35:00.239
to tell Nebuchadnezzar about the God of
00:35:00.239 --> 00:35:01.639
Abraham and Israel and Isaac.
00:35:01.639 --> 00:35:06.440
Look, Obadiah gets to save a number of
00:35:06.440 --> 00:35:08.099
people, hundreds of people in Israel
00:35:08.099 --> 00:35:09.920
because he's in the palace and because
00:35:09.920 --> 00:35:10.879
of his influence there.
00:35:11.599 --> 00:35:13.679
And so, all these men and women
00:35:13.679 --> 00:35:16.359
saving get to save and do great good
00:35:16.359 --> 00:35:18.059
even though they work in extremely
00:35:18.059 --> 00:35:19.179
difficult circumstances.
00:35:20.139 --> 00:35:21.400
Imagine they had left and said,
00:35:21.759 --> 00:35:23.659
I think I'm going to go taste chocolate
00:35:23.659 --> 00:35:24.879
at the Lymph Factory, right?
00:35:25.500 --> 00:35:27.819
But God had a calling there, a purpose
00:35:27.819 --> 00:35:28.099
there.
00:35:28.859 --> 00:35:30.159
But here's the other thing that we
00:35:30.159 --> 00:35:31.039
really need to see.
00:35:31.779 --> 00:35:35.199
All of these men and women served in
00:35:35.199 --> 00:35:38.039
dangerous and difficult situations and
00:35:38.039 --> 00:35:39.980
yet all of them were willing to put
00:35:39.980 --> 00:35:43.199
their jobs and even their lives on the
00:35:43.199 --> 00:35:46.399
line because they knew who their true
00:35:46.399 --> 00:35:47.059
king was.
00:35:48.099 --> 00:35:49.799
And so, while they serve in the palace
00:35:49.799 --> 00:35:52.519
of the king, all of them ultimately know
00:35:52.519 --> 00:35:55.599
there is a higher king who has a higher
00:35:55.599 --> 00:35:58.539
authority whose voice I will listen to
00:35:58.539 --> 00:35:59.339
ultimately.
00:35:59.860 --> 00:36:01.920
All of them knew that there was a God
00:36:01.920 --> 00:36:03.819
in heaven who had the ultimate
00:36:03.819 --> 00:36:05.679
authority of their lives and who they
00:36:05.679 --> 00:36:07.360
had given their ultimate allegiance to.
00:36:08.360 --> 00:36:09.819
And so, do you remember Esther?
00:36:10.679 --> 00:36:12.000
She does a very dangerous thing.
00:36:12.099 --> 00:36:13.599
Mordecai says to her, if you keep
00:36:13.599 --> 00:36:15.400
silent at this time, God will bring
00:36:15.400 --> 00:36:17.279
deliverance through another means.
00:36:17.940 --> 00:36:20.219
And she says, I will speak up to the
00:36:20.219 --> 00:36:22.559
king even though it is against the law
00:36:22.559 --> 00:36:24.820
and if I perish, I will perish.
00:36:25.699 --> 00:36:27.179
Or do you remember Shadrach, Meshach and
00:36:27.179 --> 00:36:27.599
Abednego?
00:36:28.039 --> 00:36:30.420
They say to Nebuchadnezzar, you want to
00:36:30.420 --> 00:36:31.539
throw us in the fiery furnace?
00:36:31.820 --> 00:36:33.699
Our God is able to save us and deliver
00:36:33.699 --> 00:36:33.940
us.
00:36:34.099 --> 00:36:36.860
But even if he does not, we will not
00:36:36.860 --> 00:36:38.900
bow down to you, O great king.
00:36:39.860 --> 00:36:42.079
And so friends, these are difficult and
00:36:42.079 --> 00:36:43.799
challenging decisions and there's no quick
00:36:43.799 --> 00:36:44.219
answers.
00:36:44.799 --> 00:36:46.779
But ultimately, what's going to determine
00:36:46.779 --> 00:36:49.000
whether the hard and challenging
00:36:49.000 --> 00:36:51.900
environment corrupts you or whether it
00:36:51.900 --> 00:36:54.440
refines you is who is your king?
00:36:54.980 --> 00:36:56.559
Who have you sworn allegiance to?
00:36:57.019 --> 00:36:58.960
Who holds the ultimate voice in your
00:36:58.960 --> 00:36:59.380
life?
00:37:00.860 --> 00:37:02.180
Where does your allegiance lie?
00:37:03.559 --> 00:37:05.539
And so here's my final thought for us
00:37:05.539 --> 00:37:05.780
today.
00:37:06.519 --> 00:37:08.000
That working in hard and challenging
00:37:08.000 --> 00:37:10.119
environments, it may be that God has
00:37:10.119 --> 00:37:12.440
sent you to that environment because
00:37:12.440 --> 00:37:14.920
out of love for those people, he wants
00:37:14.920 --> 00:37:16.920
them to hear about the good news of
00:37:16.920 --> 00:37:17.200
Jesus.
00:37:18.099 --> 00:37:21.660
Friends, isn't that why Jonah went to
00:37:21.659 --> 00:37:22.019
Nineveh?
00:37:22.839 --> 00:37:24.480
Hundreds of thousands of people in
00:37:24.480 --> 00:37:26.159
Assyria did not know God.
00:37:26.619 --> 00:37:28.899
And so God sends Jonah into Nineveh,
00:37:29.000 --> 00:37:31.159
into Assyria, to tell them about God.
00:37:31.779 --> 00:37:33.420
Isn't that why God sent Joseph into
00:37:33.420 --> 00:37:35.279
Egypt to save people?
00:37:36.019 --> 00:37:38.239
Friends, is that not why God the Father
00:37:38.239 --> 00:37:41.000
sent the Lord Jesus Christ into a dark
00:37:41.000 --> 00:37:42.000
and crooked world?
00:37:42.399 --> 00:37:44.379
Because of his profound love for you
00:37:44.379 --> 00:37:47.219
and for me, that we could come to know
00:37:47.219 --> 00:37:49.039
the hope of the gospel.
00:37:49.980 --> 00:37:52.439
You see, we didn't read it, but in
00:37:52.439 --> 00:37:54.779
Genesis chapter 3, we go back to the
00:37:54.779 --> 00:37:55.099
curse.
00:37:55.659 --> 00:37:57.719
In verse 15, there's an amazing line.
00:37:58.459 --> 00:38:01.039
And God says to the snake, which is a
00:38:01.039 --> 00:38:03.139
symbol of the Satan, he says,
00:38:03.480 --> 00:38:06.179
there will come a descendant of the
00:38:06.179 --> 00:38:07.259
woman of Eve.
00:38:07.619 --> 00:38:10.980
A man will be born and you will make it
00:38:10.980 --> 00:38:13.139
your business to destroy him and to
00:38:13.139 --> 00:38:13.679
crush him.
00:38:14.259 --> 00:38:16.079
And you will try to kill him.
00:38:16.559 --> 00:38:20.859
And even as you kill him, actually he
00:38:20.859 --> 00:38:22.319
will be killing and crushing you.
00:38:23.139 --> 00:38:25.519
And so God says to the Satan, there will
00:38:25.519 --> 00:38:28.420
come a descendant of the woman who you
00:38:28.420 --> 00:38:31.299
will think that you have crushed him and
00:38:31.299 --> 00:38:33.500
yet, and you'll even think that you've
00:38:33.500 --> 00:38:33.940
succeeded.
00:38:34.159 --> 00:38:37.299
And yet in doing so, he will crush you and
00:38:37.299 --> 00:38:39.000
the rebellion that you've unleashed on the
00:38:39.000 --> 00:38:39.259
earth.
00:38:39.839 --> 00:38:41.440
There will come a man that you will think
00:38:41.440 --> 00:38:43.720
that you've put to death and yet his
00:38:43.720 --> 00:38:46.940
death will actually bring life because
00:38:46.940 --> 00:38:49.760
in his dying, he will take upon himself
00:38:49.760 --> 00:38:52.639
the curse of this broken world so that
00:38:52.639 --> 00:38:55.579
all those who trust in him will start to
00:38:55.579 --> 00:38:57.619
feel the curse of this world start to
00:38:57.619 --> 00:38:59.500
lift off of their shoulders.
00:39:00.260 --> 00:39:04.380
Friends, God tells to Satan that there
00:39:04.380 --> 00:39:07.300
will come a descendant who will in dying
00:39:07.300 --> 00:39:12.019
bring an end to death, who in dying will
00:39:12.019 --> 00:39:13.180
bring life.
00:39:14.100 --> 00:39:16.160
Kevin DeYoung summarizes the entire message
00:39:16.160 --> 00:39:18.760
of the Bible saying, the snake crusher has
00:39:18.760 --> 00:39:21.200
come to bring us back into the garden.
00:39:22.300 --> 00:39:23.140
And friends, isn't that true?
00:39:23.980 --> 00:39:26.900
Jesus Christ came, Satan did his best,
00:39:27.019 --> 00:39:28.519
tried to kill him and crush him.
00:39:28.940 --> 00:39:32.380
And yet in his dying on the cross, he crushed
00:39:32.380 --> 00:39:35.019
the curse of what Satan had did in the world.
00:39:35.019 --> 00:39:37.259
And on the cross, you remember what Jesus'
00:39:37.420 --> 00:39:38.199
final words are?
00:39:38.579 --> 00:39:40.619
Some of his very last words, he says,
00:39:41.239 --> 00:39:44.599
Father, it is finished.
00:39:45.219 --> 00:39:46.360
My work is done.
00:39:47.139 --> 00:39:48.900
Father, I've done the work that you called me
00:39:48.900 --> 00:39:49.280
to do.
00:39:49.980 --> 00:39:52.280
Friends, Genesis 3 is full of darkness and
00:39:52.280 --> 00:39:52.800
difficulty.
00:39:53.340 --> 00:39:55.300
It tells us about how the curse has come into
00:39:55.300 --> 00:39:56.920
the world because of our rebellion.
00:39:57.659 --> 00:39:59.840
And yet even there in the Bible's darkest
00:39:59.840 --> 00:40:03.440
moments, there's a ray of light, a ray of hope,
00:40:03.440 --> 00:40:05.920
because it tells us about how Jesus Christ
00:40:05.920 --> 00:40:08.800
will come and reverse the curse and take upon
00:40:08.800 --> 00:40:11.380
himself the curse of the world so that all
00:40:11.380 --> 00:40:14.220
those who hope in him and trust in him and
00:40:14.220 --> 00:40:17.440
believe in him and follow him will start to
00:40:17.440 --> 00:40:19.760
feel the curse lift off our shoulders as we
00:40:19.760 --> 00:40:22.019
start to feel the effects of the new world
00:40:22.019 --> 00:40:22.820
come in.
00:40:23.639 --> 00:40:25.960
Friends, work is hard and is full of frustration
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because of the curse of sin.
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But thank God almighty, that's not the final word
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in the Bible.
00:40:33.639 --> 00:40:35.420
The final word is that Jesus has come and Jesus
00:40:35.420 --> 00:40:36.299
is coming again.
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And he will take those who love him and trust him
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into the new heavens and the new earth where we
00:40:42.119 --> 00:40:46.099
will work with joy and dignity and delight and with
00:40:46.099 --> 00:40:49.279
pleasure and out of love and where the curse of this
00:40:49.279 --> 00:40:51.900
broken world will be no more.
00:40:52.579 --> 00:40:56.159
Friends, because if you trust him and love him and follow
00:40:56.159 --> 00:40:59.319
him and obey him, sometimes God will send you into the
00:40:59.320 --> 00:41:02.400
darkest and the hardest moments and places of our world
00:41:02.400 --> 00:41:06.660
full of his strength, full of his power, full of his
00:41:06.660 --> 00:41:10.220
light, full of his hope that you can bring hope into
00:41:10.220 --> 00:41:12.000
those places as well.
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Let's pray together.
00:41:15.400 --> 00:41:20.000
Maybe actually before we pray, I've got some questions on
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the screen.
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Maybe you can go there.
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Let's take a minute just to think and reflect about these
00:41:25.160 --> 00:41:28.559
scriptures and these questions and then I'll lead us in a
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time of prayer.
00:41:30.219 --> 00:41:33.279
Friends, in what ways God, in what ways have you experienced
00:41:33.279 --> 00:41:34.900
the frustration and difficulty of work?
00:41:35.980 --> 00:41:38.659
In what ways work a crucible to shape and grow you?
00:41:40.019 --> 00:41:43.000
How might God be calling you to trust him this week?
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Is there anything you need to pray, confess or celebrate?
00:41:48.940 --> 00:41:51.059
Let's take a few minutes just to think about that and then
00:41:51.059 --> 00:41:51.840
I'll lead us in prayer.
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Amen.
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Amen.
00:41:51.960 --> 00:41:52.019
Amen.
00:41:52.019 --> 00:41:52.039
Amen.
00:41:52.039 --> 00:41:52.079
Amen.
00:41:58.559 --> 00:41:58.980
Amen.
00:42:28.559 --> 00:42:43.900
Let's pray together.
00:42:44.739 --> 00:42:49.980
Heavenly Father, today we offer you our work with all its
00:42:49.980 --> 00:42:54.099
joys and frustrations, its delights and difficulties.
00:42:54.099 --> 00:42:58.880
Father, we pray through the power of your spirit, won't you
00:42:58.880 --> 00:43:03.960
help us to worship you in our work, to love and serve others
00:43:03.960 --> 00:43:08.500
through our work, to persevere amidst the frustrations of our
00:43:08.500 --> 00:43:13.799
work, to live out our distinct identity as we work.
00:43:15.079 --> 00:43:18.799
Father, won't you help us to surrender the idols that steal our
00:43:18.799 --> 00:43:23.679
work and to trust you in the challenges of our work, to be
00:43:23.679 --> 00:43:28.000
steadfast for you in the crucible of work and to be a light of
00:43:28.000 --> 00:43:29.739
transformation where we work.
00:43:30.899 --> 00:43:35.059
Father, as we worship you now and tomorrow, through songs at
00:43:35.059 --> 00:43:39.099
church and through our work, won't you give us the faith to know
00:43:39.099 --> 00:43:44.500
that you will refine us and use us in your ultimate work of creating
00:43:44.500 --> 00:43:47.440
a new heavens and a new earth.
00:43:48.159 --> 00:43:50.659
We pray this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:43:52.039 --> 00:43:52.379
Amen.
00:43:53.059 --> 00:43:53.399
Amen.
00:43:53.400 --> 00:43:53.440
Amen.
00:43:53.880 --> 00:43:54.200
Amen.
00:43:54.200 --> 00:43:58.700
Hodan II its начemed
00:44:01.019 --> 00:44:03.440
Awesome music
00:44:04.200 --> 00:44:06.639
That's Earlier
00:44:06.639 --> 00:44:17.440
Please
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See