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I wanted to mention today something that the

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Lord's been putting on my heart regarding ambition.

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We can have a lot of different things

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that we want to do in this life,

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and it's good to ask what is our

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ambition as Christians.

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I'm going to turn to Mark chapter three.

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You can turn there with me.

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As you turn there, I'll just say I

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was reading an article.

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I feel you can learn a lot about

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someone by seeing what their family says about

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them.

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As an example, I was reading an article

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about a business person.

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Some of us may know this business person

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has a rocket company.

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They're trying to go into outer space.

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If you don't know anything about them, as

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I didn't, you can see that they're trying

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to go to outer space.

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You know what I think?

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I don't know about you, but what I

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think is midlife crisis or contest among billionaires

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or something like that.

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I don't know.

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I don't know.

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What do billionaires spend money on?

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I guess they buy rockets.

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Yet, I was struck because as I was

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reading this article with this person's family, one

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of the things that they mentioned was that

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it's not a new development actually for this

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person.

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It's a culmination of a lifelong dream.

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They actually told the story about how when

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this person was a valedictorian at their high

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school back when they're 18 years old, you

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know what their valedictorian speech was about when

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they're 18 years old, meet me in outer

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space.

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That really surprised me because if you think

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about it, you ask his family, hey, you

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know, this guy's on the news.

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He's just gone into outer space.

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Are you surprised?

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What does his family say?

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They go, wow, he's lost his mind.

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We have no idea where this came from.

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No, they say, yeah, he's always wanted to

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go to space.

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Since he was 15, he's been talking about

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he wanted to go to space.

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Even though for us, we might look at

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his life and imagine some reason, the truth

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is he's always wanted to do it.

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We can learn a lot about a person's

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dreams from what their families say.

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I've been thinking about Jesus.

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What was his dream?

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What did he long for?

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You could say, what was Jesus' ambition?

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I wanted to talk about ambition.

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What was Jesus' ambition?

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I got a little bit of a glimpse

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of what it wasn't in Mark 3.

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If you turn with me to Mark 3,

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it says in verse 20, it says that

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he and a crowd gathered.

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What we know from before is that a

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crowd, sorry, actually, if you want, look with

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me at verse 9, Mark 3, 9.

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He told his disciples that a boat should

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stand ready for him because of the crowd

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so that they would not crowd him.

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He had healed many with the result that

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all who had afflictions pressed around him in

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order to touch him.

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Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they would

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fall on the ground before him and shout,

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you're the son of God.

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He was earnestly warning them not to say

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who he was.

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Then in verse 20, it says he came

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home and again, a crowd gathered to such

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an extent, they couldn't even eat a meal.

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Pause there for a second.

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You can think about Jesus.

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What is he thinking at this point?

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Is he going, finally, you know, finally, the

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crowds are acknowledging who I am.

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I'm fulfilling my ministry.

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I'm fulfilling my purpose.

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I'm fulfilling my ambition.

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Is that his attitude?

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I can think maybe so, but it says

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verse 21, when his own people or his

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family, it says in the margin, when his

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family heard this, they went out to take

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custody of him because they were saying he's

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lost his senses.

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He's out of his mind.

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So what does it mean that Jesus lost

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his senses?

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As far as his family can tell, this

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isn't the person that we've always known.

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He was not fulfilling some lifelong dream.

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Unlike the billionaire whose family goes, yeah, that's

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exactly what he always wanted to do.

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When he does this thing that surprises us

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all.

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When we see Jesus doing this thing that

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surprises everybody, his family goes, this was not

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in the plan.

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It appeared to be a departure from his

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ambition for those who knew him best.

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And it really struck me to see his

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family's response, what it told me about Jesus.

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And it's something that we've, that we often

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talk about, but it's good to be aware

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when he was doing amazing things that caused

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crowds to gather, the people who knew him

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best basically said, this isn't what he's always

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wanted.

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What is he always wanted?

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If you turn with me, there's a verse,

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John chapter eight, verse 29, that, that the

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Lord put on my heart as I was

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thinking, if his family saw this wasn't what

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he had always wanted, what was it?

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And in John chapter eight, verse 29, Jesus

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says, he who sent me is with me

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and he hasn't left me alone because I

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always do the things that are pleasing to

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him.

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And I see here in John chapter eight,

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that Jesus's desire was always to make his

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father happy.

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That's all he wanted to do.

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It wasn't to gather crowds.

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It wasn't to heal people.

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It wasn't for demon eggs to fall on

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the ground and say, you're the son of

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God.

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He just wanted to make his father happy.

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And the amazing thing for us as disciples

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is we can have that same ambition too.

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And that's actually the word that the apostle

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Paul uses.

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If you turn to second Corinthians chapter five,

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Jesus said, I always want to do the

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things that are pleasing to my father.

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That's the one thing that I want more

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than anything.

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And Paul in second Corinthians chapter five and

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verse nine, he says the same thing.

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We also have as our ambition, whether we're

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at home or absent, to be pleasing to

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him.

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So just like Jesus's desire and ambition was

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to please his father, so also was the

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apostle Paul's.

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I just want to do what makes the

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Lord happy.

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And it's such an important question to know,

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how do we please God?

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If our ambition is not to do some

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great outward thing necessarily, like Jesus's wasn't, but

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is simply to please God, then the question

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is, how do we do it?

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Because we can have all sorts of ideas.

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Just like we have wrong ideas about Jesus.

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When we see the crowds gather, we think,

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oh, that must have been what he really

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wanted.

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And that's not true.

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We can, in our lives, we can have

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all sorts of wrong ideas.

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I've noticed, you know, we know we have

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a rotation among myself and Bobby and Sandeep.

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So you can kind of, you can kind

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of look in the calendar and you can

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know, okay, when am I going to be

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next?

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And you can think, okay, in the, you

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know, in the time before I'm up to

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show, I need more time to prepare.

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And I can begin to think, you know,

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what would please God is if I had

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a really good message on Sunday, that would

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be pleasing to God.

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And then I can get fixated on that.

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And the problem I've seen, and that seems

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like a good thing.

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It's like the crowds gathering and nothing wrong

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with Jesus healing people.

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Definitely.

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That was great.

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And I can see a good message.

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I can, I can get fixated on it

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wrongly as Jesus wasn't on healing.

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I can get wrongly fixated on, I want

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to have a good message.

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And one of the things I've noticed is

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I start to see everything else in my

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life as in the way.

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And looking at Jesus, life makes it so

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much more clear to see how do I

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please my father?

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If his ambition was to please his father,

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if Paul's ambition was to please the father,

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if our ambition is to please the father,

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is it having a good message?

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And if it's having a good message, then

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the barking dog and the interrupting kids and

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the late night phone call from my boss.

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And all of these things are in the

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way.

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And the reasons that I can't fulfill my

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mission, the reasons I can't fulfill my purpose.

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This is, this is my own.

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This is how those things can appear to

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me at times.

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But look with me at Mark chapter one.

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It's so helpful to look.

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We've, we've often heard Jesus is our dictionary.

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And what's amazing to see is in Mark

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chapter one, in verse, in verse nine, it

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says that Jesus came from Nazareth and Galilee,

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and he was baptized by John and immediately

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coming out of the water.

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Remember what chapter are we in in Mark

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children right now?

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If you're reading with me, we're in Mark

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chapter one.

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Is this after Jesus's miracles or before?

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It's before.

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Is it after his sermons or before?

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It's before.

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It's before any miracle, before any sermon, before

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anything that we think is worth noting.

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Yet what, listen to what the father in

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heaven said.

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It says in verse 10, that immediately coming

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up out of the water, Jesus saw the

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heavens opening in the spirit, like a dove

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descending upon him.

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And a voice, the voice of God came

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out of heaven saying to him, you are

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my beloved son.

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In you, I am well pleased.

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Think of what that means.

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How had Jesus pleased his father?

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It wasn't a Sunday message.

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It wasn't casting out demons or healing the

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sick or making sure he's in a boat

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so that he wasn't crowded.

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That's not how Jesus pleased his father.

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It was what?

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How did he do it?

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Does your heart long to know?

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My heart longs to know.

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And it's such an encouragement.

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Think about where Jesus had come from.

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Where had he been?

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I think of two places where Jesus had

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been.

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He had been at work and at home.

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Not in the ministry.

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And what was the testimony of his father

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in heaven after having spent 30 years at

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work and at home?

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You are my beloved son.

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With you, I am well pleased.

275
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He pleased his father at work.

276
00:10:12,310 --> 00:10:13,410
He pleased his father at home.

277
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Not in doing some things that we tend

278
00:10:16,110 --> 00:10:18,790
to fixate on as the really great thing.

279
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And I was just thinking about Jesus.

280
00:10:20,730 --> 00:10:23,210
I just kind of allowed my imagination.

281
00:10:23,570 --> 00:10:25,150
Brother Zac has said we've used our imagination

282
00:10:25,150 --> 00:10:27,630
for lots of bad things in the past.

283
00:10:28,110 --> 00:10:29,830
It's good to use our imagination for good

284
00:10:29,830 --> 00:10:31,270
things now if we're Christians.

285
00:10:31,970 --> 00:10:33,930
And I use my imagination to think about,

286
00:10:34,430 --> 00:10:36,670
you know, I said that a barking dog

287
00:10:36,670 --> 00:10:38,430
or, you know, a late night phone call

288
00:10:38,430 --> 00:10:39,890
at work or something like that can be

289
00:10:39,890 --> 00:10:40,370
in the way.

290
00:10:41,050 --> 00:10:42,690
Think about what Jesus had dealt with.

291
00:10:45,510 --> 00:10:47,290
Maybe people had to return things that he

292
00:10:47,290 --> 00:10:48,670
made at the carpentry shop.

293
00:10:51,110 --> 00:10:52,690
Maybe he had to go to the market

294
00:10:52,690 --> 00:10:54,930
for supplies to buy wood and buy lumber

295
00:10:54,930 --> 00:10:56,530
and buy nails and things like that.

296
00:10:57,090 --> 00:10:59,130
Maybe he had to deal with vendors or

297
00:10:59,130 --> 00:11:01,790
supply shortages like we're dealing with now.

298
00:11:02,370 --> 00:11:03,790
Maybe people canceled orders.

299
00:11:03,930 --> 00:11:05,350
Maybe he put things together and then someone

300
00:11:05,350 --> 00:11:06,370
canceled an order.

301
00:11:06,990 --> 00:11:10,330
Maybe he had to train apprentices who fumbled

302
00:11:10,330 --> 00:11:11,850
around and who made mistakes.

303
00:11:12,030 --> 00:11:13,190
He had little brothers we know.

304
00:11:13,690 --> 00:11:15,090
You think his little brothers were perfect?

305
00:11:16,710 --> 00:11:18,650
Maybe he had his thumb with a hand.

306
00:11:18,650 --> 00:11:20,510
You think Jesus ever hit his thumb with

307
00:11:20,510 --> 00:11:22,670
a hammer while he was working on wood?

308
00:11:23,370 --> 00:11:25,030
Yeah, people are saying, yeah, children know.

309
00:11:25,310 --> 00:11:27,270
Children or adults go, whoa, hang on.

310
00:11:27,450 --> 00:11:29,410
But children go, yeah, because they've hit thumbs

311
00:11:29,410 --> 00:11:30,090
too, of course.

312
00:11:31,730 --> 00:11:34,690
Maybe people were haggling with him over prices

313
00:11:35,210 --> 00:11:36,530
at his carpentry shop.

314
00:11:37,130 --> 00:11:39,390
Maybe he just had to sweat and work

315
00:11:39,390 --> 00:11:41,310
in the sun and he was sweating and

316
00:11:41,310 --> 00:11:41,970
exhausted.

317
00:11:43,070 --> 00:11:46,250
Imagine if Jesus saw all of these things

318
00:11:46,250 --> 00:11:49,570
as standing in the way to his purpose.

319
00:11:50,830 --> 00:11:52,750
We know that after all these things, the

320
00:11:52,750 --> 00:11:55,170
testimony of his father in heaven was, you

321
00:11:55,170 --> 00:11:56,710
are well pleasing to me.

322
00:11:57,210 --> 00:11:58,730
And I was just thinking, what a pity

323
00:11:58,730 --> 00:12:01,710
if all the normal stuff that Jesus had

324
00:12:01,710 --> 00:12:03,710
been going through, he had said, this is

325
00:12:03,710 --> 00:12:03,930
it.

326
00:12:04,110 --> 00:12:06,450
You know what my real purpose is, is

327
00:12:06,450 --> 00:12:08,190
to heal a bunch of sick people.

328
00:12:09,370 --> 00:12:11,990
I don't think it would have gone well

329
00:12:11,990 --> 00:12:12,390
with him.

330
00:12:13,050 --> 00:12:17,030
I think he was so concerned with being

331
00:12:17,030 --> 00:12:19,210
pleasing to his father in whatever the father

332
00:12:19,210 --> 00:12:23,090
appointed, whether it was a haggling customer or

333
00:12:23,090 --> 00:12:27,410
a clumsy apprentice or a supply shortage or

334
00:12:27,410 --> 00:12:29,950
a difficulty with a vendor at the marketplace.

335
00:12:30,430 --> 00:12:32,170
Jesus saw all of it, not as in

336
00:12:32,170 --> 00:12:34,570
the way, but as the appointed way.

337
00:12:35,290 --> 00:12:37,230
And that's the thing that brings comfort to

338
00:12:37,230 --> 00:12:37,550
my heart.

339
00:12:37,670 --> 00:12:39,210
It was the means, all of the ordinary

340
00:12:39,210 --> 00:12:41,010
things were the means by which the Lord

341
00:12:41,010 --> 00:12:42,490
prepared him for his ministry.

342
00:12:42,850 --> 00:12:45,670
But Jesus was pleasing to his father by

343
00:12:45,670 --> 00:12:47,810
being faithful in that preparation time.

344
00:12:48,050 --> 00:12:50,730
Not because he was faithful in his ministry,

345
00:12:50,850 --> 00:12:52,430
but because he was faithful in secret.

346
00:12:52,970 --> 00:12:55,210
What are the implications for all of us?

347
00:12:57,150 --> 00:12:59,070
If we say our ambition is to please

348
00:12:59,070 --> 00:13:01,210
the Lord, does that happen on Sunday morning

349
00:13:01,210 --> 00:13:03,750
when we're sharing a message, Sunday afternoon?

350
00:13:05,050 --> 00:13:05,390
No.

351
00:13:05,570 --> 00:13:06,290
When does it happen?

352
00:13:06,610 --> 00:13:09,530
When we're in the marketplace, when somebody's haggling,

353
00:13:09,810 --> 00:13:12,950
when the dog's barking, when the boss is

354
00:13:12,950 --> 00:13:13,310
calling.

355
00:13:13,710 --> 00:13:16,170
Those are the times they aren't in the

356
00:13:16,170 --> 00:13:17,310
way of pleasing God.

357
00:13:17,630 --> 00:13:19,550
They're the way God has appointed to please

358
00:13:19,550 --> 00:13:19,730
him.

359
00:13:20,890 --> 00:13:25,110
That is an incredible comfort and encouragement to

360
00:13:25,110 --> 00:13:27,270
me to see all of the stuff that

361
00:13:27,270 --> 00:13:30,790
I'm tempted to resent or be frustrated by.

362
00:13:30,910 --> 00:13:31,910
Because I go, if I could just get

363
00:13:31,910 --> 00:13:33,070
rid of it, then I can really do

364
00:13:33,070 --> 00:13:33,810
what God wants.

365
00:13:33,970 --> 00:13:34,750
And you know what God says?

366
00:13:35,330 --> 00:13:36,790
I want you to deal with the haggling

367
00:13:36,790 --> 00:13:39,010
customer in a way that honors me.

368
00:13:39,270 --> 00:13:41,090
And I want you to deal with the

369
00:13:41,090 --> 00:13:44,150
interruption in a way that honors me.

370
00:13:44,550 --> 00:13:46,490
This is not in the way, it is

371
00:13:46,490 --> 00:13:47,530
my appointed way.

372
00:13:48,930 --> 00:13:51,190
They don't keep me from pleasing God.

373
00:13:51,810 --> 00:13:53,270
That's the encouragement to my heart.

374
00:13:53,670 --> 00:13:55,210
None of the things that I think are

375
00:13:55,210 --> 00:13:57,010
in the way actually keep me from pleasing

376
00:13:57,010 --> 00:13:57,370
God.

377
00:13:57,590 --> 00:13:59,350
They are the way that God has appointed

378
00:13:59,350 --> 00:14:00,510
that I might please him.

379
00:14:01,490 --> 00:14:03,190
Which brings us to our memory verse.

380
00:14:03,290 --> 00:14:06,210
I was really blessed by what the memory

381
00:14:06,210 --> 00:14:06,670
verse says.

382
00:14:06,730 --> 00:14:09,510
If you turn there, Psalm 55, as we

383
00:14:09,510 --> 00:14:11,190
heard a moment ago from Stanley, there's one,

384
00:14:11,510 --> 00:14:13,490
he emphasized the second part of the verse.

385
00:14:13,550 --> 00:14:15,150
I just wanted to emphasize the first part.

386
00:14:15,610 --> 00:14:17,710
It says, cast your burden on the Lord

387
00:14:17,710 --> 00:14:19,010
and he will sustain you.

388
00:14:19,270 --> 00:14:22,670
And in my margin, your burden can also

389
00:14:22,670 --> 00:14:24,970
be translated what he's given you.

390
00:14:26,450 --> 00:14:29,610
Cast what he has given you on the

391
00:14:29,610 --> 00:14:32,370
Lord and he will sustain you.

392
00:14:32,590 --> 00:14:35,290
I can see my burden as this thing

393
00:14:35,290 --> 00:14:38,490
that keeps me from what God wants for

394
00:14:38,490 --> 00:14:38,770
me.

395
00:14:39,390 --> 00:14:41,990
And I love seeing here in Psalm 55,

396
00:14:42,190 --> 00:14:44,710
my burden is also what he's given me.

397
00:14:44,850 --> 00:14:46,850
The haggling customer, it's what he's given me.

398
00:14:46,910 --> 00:14:48,910
The barking dog, what he's given me.

399
00:14:49,030 --> 00:14:51,190
The late night phone call, what he's given

400
00:14:51,190 --> 00:14:52,210
me and what does he want me to

401
00:14:52,210 --> 00:14:52,370
do?

402
00:14:52,550 --> 00:14:54,590
He wants me to depend upon him, to

403
00:14:54,590 --> 00:14:57,490
lean upon him with what he has appointed.

404
00:14:58,130 --> 00:15:00,550
Trusting that what he's appointed isn't standing in

405
00:15:00,550 --> 00:15:01,970
the way, it's the way he's appointed.

406
00:15:03,970 --> 00:15:06,210
Cast what he has given you upon the

407
00:15:06,210 --> 00:15:07,730
Lord and he will sustain you.

408
00:15:08,970 --> 00:15:10,710
And here's what Jesus said.

409
00:15:11,670 --> 00:15:13,550
Jesus said, don't let your heart be troubled

410
00:15:13,550 --> 00:15:14,830
by these burdens that come.

411
00:15:16,490 --> 00:15:17,950
Don't let your heart be troubled.

412
00:15:19,610 --> 00:15:23,930
Jesus saw God's hand in everything that was

413
00:15:23,930 --> 00:15:24,430
in his life.

414
00:15:24,730 --> 00:15:26,470
What's the worst thing that we know that

415
00:15:26,470 --> 00:15:27,570
happened in Jesus' life?

416
00:15:28,110 --> 00:15:29,630
Children, what's the worst thing that happened in

417
00:15:29,630 --> 00:15:30,290
Jesus' life?

418
00:15:31,090 --> 00:15:33,470
It's in John chapter 18, if you want

419
00:15:33,470 --> 00:15:33,990
to turn there.

420
00:15:34,390 --> 00:15:35,350
But children, think about it.

421
00:15:35,530 --> 00:15:37,370
What's the worst thing that happened in Jesus'

422
00:15:37,590 --> 00:15:37,830
life?

423
00:15:39,090 --> 00:15:41,390
It was when he was arrested, when he

424
00:15:41,390 --> 00:15:42,750
was going to the cross.

425
00:15:43,770 --> 00:15:46,050
And in John chapter 18 in verse 11,

426
00:15:47,250 --> 00:15:49,690
when they come to arrest him, his friends

427
00:15:49,690 --> 00:15:50,790
want to defend him.

428
00:15:52,070 --> 00:15:54,290
Simon Peter, it says in verse 10, John

429
00:15:54,290 --> 00:15:56,590
18 verse 10, Simon Peter took out a

430
00:15:56,590 --> 00:15:59,170
sword and he cut off someone's ear.

431
00:15:59,610 --> 00:16:01,870
But Jesus said, put the sword into the

432
00:16:01,870 --> 00:16:02,250
sheath.

433
00:16:02,910 --> 00:16:05,110
This terrible thing, this worst thing that's ever

434
00:16:05,110 --> 00:16:05,490
happened to me.

435
00:16:05,570 --> 00:16:06,090
You know what he says?

436
00:16:06,350 --> 00:16:08,430
The cup which my father has given me,

437
00:16:08,550 --> 00:16:09,470
shall I not drink it?

438
00:16:10,830 --> 00:16:12,110
Cast your burden on the Lord.

439
00:16:12,250 --> 00:16:14,390
Cast what he has given you upon him.

440
00:16:14,830 --> 00:16:16,590
And Jesus didn't see a betrayer.

441
00:16:16,690 --> 00:16:18,270
He didn't see a haggling customer.

442
00:16:18,810 --> 00:16:20,190
He didn't see an interruption.

443
00:16:20,570 --> 00:16:22,070
He saw his father's hand.

444
00:16:24,250 --> 00:16:26,190
How did he see his father's hand in

445
00:16:26,190 --> 00:16:27,670
that moment, in that worst moment?

446
00:16:28,110 --> 00:16:30,690
Because he had been faithfully looking for his

447
00:16:30,690 --> 00:16:32,430
father's hand in all of the time of

448
00:16:32,430 --> 00:16:32,930
preparation.

449
00:16:34,490 --> 00:16:37,150
In the sweating in the sun, when he

450
00:16:37,150 --> 00:16:39,670
banged his thumb with a hammer, when he

451
00:16:39,670 --> 00:16:42,150
had a customer haggle over price, he saw

452
00:16:42,150 --> 00:16:43,530
his father's hand in everything.

453
00:16:44,130 --> 00:16:46,110
And when the guards came to arrest him,

454
00:16:46,610 --> 00:16:48,150
he says, this is the cup my father

455
00:16:48,150 --> 00:16:49,030
has given me to drink.

456
00:16:51,380 --> 00:16:52,560
That's what we have to do.

457
00:16:52,620 --> 00:16:53,120
We have to see.

458
00:16:53,240 --> 00:16:55,100
And what Jesus says in John chapter 14,

459
00:16:55,180 --> 00:16:56,860
when he was going to depart from his

460
00:16:56,860 --> 00:16:59,060
disciples, he says to them, don't let your

461
00:16:59,060 --> 00:16:59,800
heart be troubled.

462
00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:00,860
Don't let it.

463
00:17:00,980 --> 00:17:02,080
And I like that word let.

464
00:17:02,620 --> 00:17:04,480
You know, I've got a lot of dog

465
00:17:04,480 --> 00:17:05,619
stories right now because we just got a

466
00:17:05,619 --> 00:17:06,020
new puppy.

467
00:17:06,800 --> 00:17:08,780
But when, when somebody says, don't let the

468
00:17:08,780 --> 00:17:10,640
dog in the house, as I say, find

469
00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:11,960
myself saying like 10 times a day right

470
00:17:11,960 --> 00:17:13,300
now, don't let the dog in the house.

471
00:17:13,380 --> 00:17:14,460
What are we saying about the dog?

472
00:17:14,920 --> 00:17:18,530
He wants in, right?

473
00:17:19,270 --> 00:17:19,829
Don't let it.

474
00:17:19,829 --> 00:17:20,349
And what do you have to do?

475
00:17:20,369 --> 00:17:20,970
You have to fight.

476
00:17:21,369 --> 00:17:22,930
When Jesus says, don't let your heart be

477
00:17:22,930 --> 00:17:23,210
troubled.

478
00:17:23,310 --> 00:17:24,569
What is that telling us about our heart?

479
00:17:25,010 --> 00:17:26,190
It wants to be troubled.

480
00:17:28,370 --> 00:17:30,470
Do we need any, do we, do we

481
00:17:30,470 --> 00:17:32,590
need anything else in the world for our

482
00:17:32,590 --> 00:17:34,250
hearts to be troubled with all the things

483
00:17:34,250 --> 00:17:34,830
that are already happening?

484
00:17:34,890 --> 00:17:36,930
Our hearts naturally gravitate towards being troubled.

485
00:17:37,170 --> 00:17:39,430
And Jesus said, don't let it fight it.

486
00:17:39,930 --> 00:17:41,990
Look for the father's hand in all these

487
00:17:41,990 --> 00:17:45,050
things and fight the temptation towards trouble.

488
00:17:45,150 --> 00:17:47,990
And I found for myself that my heart

489
00:17:47,990 --> 00:17:49,810
has a tendency towards troubledness.

490
00:17:49,890 --> 00:17:50,810
And the Lord has just been saying to

491
00:17:50,810 --> 00:17:51,890
me, don't go there.

492
00:17:54,370 --> 00:17:55,190
Don't go there.

493
00:17:55,950 --> 00:17:59,370
This thing that is, that is tempting you

494
00:17:59,370 --> 00:18:01,830
towards being troubled doesn't stand in the way

495
00:18:01,830 --> 00:18:02,670
of your pleasing me.

496
00:18:04,390 --> 00:18:06,590
This thing that I have appointed that is

497
00:18:06,590 --> 00:18:08,770
tempting you to being troubled is the means

498
00:18:08,770 --> 00:18:10,390
by which I want you to please me.

499
00:18:11,610 --> 00:18:14,810
And just like Jesus arrived at the waters

500
00:18:14,810 --> 00:18:16,750
of baptism and the father could say, before

501
00:18:16,750 --> 00:18:18,610
he'd ever done anything noteworthy, before he ever

502
00:18:18,610 --> 00:18:19,770
got to the thing that he thought he's

503
00:18:19,770 --> 00:18:20,870
supposed to be doing, or that we thought

504
00:18:20,870 --> 00:18:23,210
he's supposed to be doing, his father says

505
00:18:23,210 --> 00:18:23,930
he's well-pleasing.

506
00:18:24,230 --> 00:18:25,730
And before we ever get to the thing

507
00:18:25,730 --> 00:18:27,230
that we have in our minds as the

508
00:18:27,230 --> 00:18:30,050
real, the great ambition to accomplish or perform,

509
00:18:30,910 --> 00:18:32,790
when we're dealing with the interruption, we have

510
00:18:32,790 --> 00:18:35,330
the opportunity to hear the father say, this

511
00:18:35,330 --> 00:18:35,930
is my son.

512
00:18:36,030 --> 00:18:36,690
This is my daughter.

513
00:18:36,830 --> 00:18:39,030
I'm pleased with, not with how you're doing

514
00:18:39,030 --> 00:18:40,250
the thing that you thought was the great

515
00:18:40,250 --> 00:18:41,910
thing, with how you're dealing with what I've

516
00:18:41,910 --> 00:18:42,290
appointed.

517
00:18:42,630 --> 00:18:43,810
I'm pleased with you.

518
00:18:44,710 --> 00:18:47,950
And the pressures that we experience are our

519
00:18:47,950 --> 00:18:51,050
preparation for whatever the Lord has.

520
00:18:51,250 --> 00:18:52,810
We don't need a lot more time.

521
00:18:52,930 --> 00:18:55,090
For example, I find myself pressed for time

522
00:18:55,090 --> 00:18:55,590
these days.

523
00:18:55,630 --> 00:18:57,150
And I find myself wishing, I think I

524
00:18:57,150 --> 00:18:59,010
mentioned that in men's Bible study the other

525
00:18:59,010 --> 00:18:59,190
night.

526
00:18:59,250 --> 00:19:00,930
I find myself wishing for more time, but

527
00:19:00,930 --> 00:19:02,750
the Lord doesn't, says you don't need more

528
00:19:02,750 --> 00:19:02,950
time.

529
00:19:02,990 --> 00:19:04,590
You need to yield to my dealings with

530
00:19:04,590 --> 00:19:04,810
you.

531
00:19:06,410 --> 00:19:07,270
That's what you need.

532
00:19:07,370 --> 00:19:08,890
You need to be faithful in what I

533
00:19:08,890 --> 00:19:09,390
have appointed.

534
00:19:09,710 --> 00:19:11,410
If you yield, you'll be prepared.

535
00:19:11,970 --> 00:19:13,090
You think what you need is time to

536
00:19:13,090 --> 00:19:13,410
prepare.

537
00:19:13,590 --> 00:19:15,230
What you don't realize is by removing your

538
00:19:15,230 --> 00:19:16,690
time is your preparation.

539
00:19:18,230 --> 00:19:19,950
What a blessing when we can really see

540
00:19:19,950 --> 00:19:21,350
the father's hand in everything.

541
00:19:21,810 --> 00:19:23,830
He's saying, as it were, let me prepare

542
00:19:23,830 --> 00:19:24,130
you.

543
00:19:25,550 --> 00:19:26,890
You think you need to get prepared.

544
00:19:27,030 --> 00:19:27,970
Let me prepare you.

545
00:19:28,450 --> 00:19:30,590
Will you trust me in what I've appointed?

546
00:19:30,730 --> 00:19:32,090
That if you will honor me in it,

547
00:19:32,110 --> 00:19:33,350
and if you will look for my hand

548
00:19:33,350 --> 00:19:36,390
in it, if you will cast what I've

549
00:19:36,390 --> 00:19:39,550
given you back upon me, I'll sustain you.

550
00:19:39,970 --> 00:19:41,930
And you'll be pleasing to me, whether you

551
00:19:41,930 --> 00:19:43,150
ever do the thing that you thought was

552
00:19:43,150 --> 00:19:44,210
going to be pleasing or not.

553
00:19:48,680 --> 00:19:50,820
Last thing I'll say, just because this has

554
00:19:50,820 --> 00:19:52,060
been a blessing to me.

555
00:19:52,460 --> 00:19:55,020
I've got a coworker who, you know, I

556
00:19:55,020 --> 00:19:57,760
don't think he's a Christian to my knowledge,

557
00:19:58,220 --> 00:20:00,620
but anytime I've just gotten in touch with

558
00:20:00,620 --> 00:20:02,840
him recently, and we've been coordinating on something,

559
00:20:02,940 --> 00:20:04,740
for whatever reason, every time he text messages

560
00:20:04,740 --> 00:20:07,180
me, he starts with, peace, Jeremy.

561
00:20:07,920 --> 00:20:10,000
And then, hey, are you using this computer

562
00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:10,500
right now?

563
00:20:10,580 --> 00:20:11,080
You know, or whatever.

564
00:20:11,460 --> 00:20:11,900
Peace, Jeremy.

565
00:20:12,200 --> 00:20:13,640
Hey, do you need a key to this

566
00:20:13,640 --> 00:20:13,920
room?

567
00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:14,760
Peace, Jeremy.

568
00:20:15,120 --> 00:20:16,480
And I thought at first, I just thought

569
00:20:16,480 --> 00:20:17,740
I was just kind of being a cool

570
00:20:17,740 --> 00:20:17,980
guy.

571
00:20:18,080 --> 00:20:19,160
But then I was, as I was thinking

572
00:20:19,160 --> 00:20:21,360
about this topic with the Lord and his

573
00:20:21,360 --> 00:20:23,100
appointment, I thought, I see that in my

574
00:20:23,100 --> 00:20:23,640
life too.

575
00:20:23,980 --> 00:20:26,340
The Lord comes in and in various circumstances,

576
00:20:26,420 --> 00:20:28,740
you know, the first thing he says, peace,

577
00:20:29,460 --> 00:20:30,200
peace, Jeremy.

578
00:20:30,600 --> 00:20:32,200
That's what he said to the disciples in

579
00:20:32,200 --> 00:20:33,540
John chapter 20.

580
00:20:33,700 --> 00:20:35,460
That's the last verse I wanted to mention.

581
00:20:36,760 --> 00:20:38,060
They're all concerned.

582
00:20:38,300 --> 00:20:40,120
Their Lord has left.

583
00:20:40,240 --> 00:20:41,300
They don't know what to do.

584
00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:44,880
And it says in John chapter 20, verse

585
00:20:44,880 --> 00:20:46,780
19, that when it was evening on that

586
00:20:46,780 --> 00:20:48,060
day, the first day of the week, the

587
00:20:48,060 --> 00:20:50,220
doors were shut and the disciples were, because

588
00:20:50,220 --> 00:20:52,860
of fear, they were shut.

589
00:20:53,120 --> 00:20:54,480
Jesus came and stood in their midst.

590
00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:55,160
And what did he say?

591
00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:56,660
Peace be with you.

592
00:20:57,420 --> 00:20:58,460
Peace be with you.

593
00:20:58,920 --> 00:21:00,220
And then look at verse 26.

594
00:21:00,960 --> 00:21:03,120
After eight days, the disciples were again inside,

595
00:21:03,260 --> 00:21:04,000
again afraid.

596
00:21:04,140 --> 00:21:05,100
And Thomas was with them.

597
00:21:05,160 --> 00:21:07,340
And Jesus came, the doors having been shut.

598
00:21:07,400 --> 00:21:08,320
And he stood in their midst and he

599
00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:10,040
said, peace be with you.

600
00:21:10,580 --> 00:21:10,960
Peace.

601
00:21:12,420 --> 00:21:14,560
And in the midst of these troubling times,

602
00:21:14,660 --> 00:21:16,240
in the midst of, you know, lots of

603
00:21:16,240 --> 00:21:18,960
demands and those two places where Jesus was

604
00:21:18,960 --> 00:21:22,100
prepared at work and at home, in those

605
00:21:22,100 --> 00:21:24,640
two places where Jesus was pleasing to the

606
00:21:24,640 --> 00:21:27,140
Lord at work and at home, when our

607
00:21:27,140 --> 00:21:30,080
hearts are tending towards trouble, what does the

608
00:21:30,080 --> 00:21:30,740
Lord want to say to us?

609
00:21:30,780 --> 00:21:31,560
He wants to say peace.

610
00:21:32,380 --> 00:21:34,040
I want to, I want to bring my

611
00:21:34,040 --> 00:21:35,160
peace into this situation.

612
00:21:35,500 --> 00:21:36,720
And I want you to be able to

613
00:21:36,720 --> 00:21:37,020
rest.

614
00:21:37,120 --> 00:21:38,040
I want you to be able to trust

615
00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:39,620
in me before it's worked out, before you

616
00:21:39,620 --> 00:21:40,940
get to whatever the good work you think

617
00:21:40,940 --> 00:21:41,880
you need to do is.

618
00:21:42,640 --> 00:21:43,420
Be at peace.

619
00:21:44,740 --> 00:21:46,340
And I've been hearing the Lord say that

620
00:21:46,340 --> 00:21:46,580
to me.

621
00:21:46,620 --> 00:21:47,780
I've been hearing him call me to that.

622
00:21:47,780 --> 00:21:50,300
I pray that, that, um, I want to,

623
00:21:50,400 --> 00:21:51,060
I want to be willing.

624
00:21:51,140 --> 00:21:51,680
I want to yield.

625
00:21:52,220 --> 00:21:53,780
I want to see everything that the Lord

626
00:21:53,780 --> 00:21:59,440
appoints as a blessed preparation, not as an

627
00:21:59,440 --> 00:22:01,300
inconvenience, not as in the way, but as

628
00:22:01,300 --> 00:22:03,080
the way he is appointed.

629
00:22:03,260 --> 00:22:04,340
I pray the Lord would help me, help

630
00:22:04,340 --> 00:22:04,720
us all.