WEBVTT 00:00:09.779 --> 00:00:13.320 Hello, and welcome to the Kalamazoo church of Christ podcast. 00:00:13.519 --> 00:00:14.839 Thank you so much for listening. 00:00:15.300 --> 00:00:16.199 We're startup church. 00:00:16.280 --> 00:00:23.460 We just planted in September, 2020 and at the Kalamazoo church, we believe that Christianity is done best when it is done together. 00:00:23.579 --> 00:00:32.299 And so if you live in the Kalamazoo area, we would love to connect, be it coming to a Sunday service, one of our small groups, or even just grabbing coffee with a member to learn more. 00:00:32.500 --> 00:00:36.439 You can visit kalamazoo.church in order to do that. 00:00:36.979 --> 00:00:43.079 We pray that you are inspired by what you hear today, but what I do have, I have some jokes for you all. 00:00:43.219 --> 00:00:43.960 Some dad jokes. 00:00:44.359 --> 00:00:45.240 Uh, okay. 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:47.840 Here we go. 00:00:50.479 --> 00:00:56.380 You know, in the Bible, there was somebody who had a six pack, uh, which, which person in the Bible. 00:00:56.380 --> 00:00:57.500 Do you guys know who had a six pack? 00:00:59.179 --> 00:00:59.579 No. 00:01:00.740 --> 00:01:01.140 Absalom. 00:01:01.500 --> 00:01:01.719 Actually. 00:01:02.960 --> 00:01:03.359 Absalom. 00:01:03.579 --> 00:01:03.799 Yes. 00:01:03.920 --> 00:01:04.140 Yes. 00:01:04.180 --> 00:01:04.379 Yeah. 00:01:05.500 --> 00:01:07.099 Uh, here's one, you know, I don't know. 00:01:07.200 --> 00:01:07.980 I don't know the crowd. 00:01:08.260 --> 00:01:19.959 Uh, but I, I, I, I want, yeah, how do you, how do you know that Adams are Catholic Adams? 00:01:20.099 --> 00:01:22.200 Adams like the, that you make matter out of. 00:01:22.620 --> 00:01:23.840 Well, because they have mass. 00:01:28.060 --> 00:01:31.439 Who, who in the Bible knew the most people? 00:01:33.579 --> 00:01:34.140 I don't know. 00:01:34.159 --> 00:01:35.159 Abraham knew a lot. 00:01:35.340 --> 00:01:35.560 I don't know. 00:01:35.560 --> 00:01:35.819 I don't know. 00:01:39.400 --> 00:01:40.019 Here we go. 00:01:40.079 --> 00:01:40.359 Here we go. 00:01:40.659 --> 00:01:42.459 These, these get progressively better or worse. 00:01:42.540 --> 00:01:42.859 I don't know. 00:01:44.480 --> 00:01:50.420 You know, where's the first tennis match mentioned in the Bible? 00:01:50.420 --> 00:01:52.459 First tennis match. 00:01:52.599 --> 00:01:52.700 Yeah. 00:01:52.719 --> 00:01:55.599 Well, I, it was when Joseph served in Pharaoh's court, actually. 00:01:58.299 --> 00:01:59.019 All right. 00:01:59.040 --> 00:01:59.340 Here we go. 00:01:59.359 --> 00:01:59.560 Here we go. 00:01:59.599 --> 00:02:00.400 This is where they get good. 00:02:01.000 --> 00:02:02.019 In the Bible. 00:02:02.120 --> 00:02:02.939 This is biblical here. 00:02:03.540 --> 00:02:06.200 What kind of car does it say the disciples drove? 00:02:09.199 --> 00:02:14.659 Well, it has to be a Honda because in Acts 2 12, it says the apostles were all in one accord. 00:02:17.419 --> 00:02:17.780 Okay. 00:02:17.819 --> 00:02:18.060 Okay. 00:02:18.460 --> 00:02:19.139 Last one here. 00:02:19.159 --> 00:02:19.639 Last one here. 00:02:19.860 --> 00:02:21.979 Who was the most, I could have kept going. 00:02:21.979 --> 00:02:24.879 Who was the most business savvy woman in the Bible? 00:02:25.060 --> 00:02:25.639 Business savvy. 00:02:27.900 --> 00:02:30.219 But it had to be, it had to be Pharaoh's daughter, right? 00:02:30.360 --> 00:02:33.460 She went to the bank and pulled out a little profit. 00:02:35.419 --> 00:02:36.199 All right. 00:02:36.379 --> 00:02:38.039 You guys can go to first Peter three. 00:02:41.039 --> 00:02:41.979 They're kind of good. 00:02:45.360 --> 00:02:46.319 There we go. 00:02:46.379 --> 00:02:47.379 I didn't record. 00:02:47.500 --> 00:02:48.500 You guys can look them up. 00:02:49.180 --> 00:02:50.740 It's, it's first Peter three. 00:02:51.620 --> 00:02:52.900 Got a little lesson. 00:02:53.060 --> 00:02:54.860 Uh, it's, it's a, it's a fun text. 00:02:54.919 --> 00:02:55.280 Actually. 00:02:55.379 --> 00:02:59.560 It's probably a text that, uh, that you guys have read and maybe explained away. 00:02:59.659 --> 00:03:01.259 I don't want to do that this morning. 00:03:01.300 --> 00:03:02.259 We want to make sense of it. 00:03:02.259 --> 00:03:02.620 Actually. 00:03:02.939 --> 00:03:05.580 Uh, it's, it starts out, uh, for Kalamazoo church. 00:03:05.639 --> 00:03:05.919 Welcome. 00:03:06.219 --> 00:03:08.240 Uh, we're in the book of first Peter. 00:03:08.460 --> 00:03:09.419 You guys know that. 00:03:09.479 --> 00:03:10.199 So here we go. 00:03:10.240 --> 00:03:11.939 It starts out in first Peter three. 00:03:12.240 --> 00:03:17.939 I didn't organize it cause it was father's day, but at the first sentence, maybe some of the fathers will say, well, this is what I'm talking about. 00:03:17.939 --> 00:03:31.020 It says wives in the same way, submit yourselves to your own husbands so that if any of them do not believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives. 00:03:31.020 --> 00:03:44.639 When they see the purity and reverence of your lives, your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold or fine jewelry. 00:03:44.900 --> 00:03:47.400 Rather, it should be that of your inner self. 00:03:47.400 --> 00:04:02.500 The unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight for this is the way the holy women of the past put their hope in God, uh, who put their hope in God used to adorn themselves. 00:04:02.699 --> 00:04:08.719 They submitted themselves to their own husbands like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her Lord. 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:10.280 You are her daughters. 00:04:10.520 --> 00:04:15.819 If you do what is right and do not give way to fear, we're going to keep reading. 00:04:15.819 --> 00:04:26.439 And then so, so, uh, men in general husbands, uh, certainly, uh, you're not off the hook, but, uh, Peter, Peter starts and he's giving direction to Christian women. 00:04:26.579 --> 00:04:28.540 Uh, what amazing direction he gives. 00:04:28.540 --> 00:04:31.959 He says, you can win your spouse just based on how you live your life. 00:04:32.139 --> 00:04:33.819 Uh, that's, that's really cool. 00:04:33.920 --> 00:04:44.839 I bet you, you can look at people in your lives or maybe in the churches that you've been a part of, and you can understand that, that just by living your life in one certain way that people decide to follow. 00:04:44.839 --> 00:04:45.920 It's pretty powerful. 00:04:46.600 --> 00:04:54.060 Uh, but then the, the other direction that he gives is to what, how should you concern yourself or with what should you concern yourself with? 00:04:54.160 --> 00:05:02.839 It says, don't worry about, and don't concern yourself with outward adornment, uh, instead be focused on your inner self. 00:05:03.060 --> 00:05:13.240 And so the way that he communicates outward adornment, he says, elaborate hairstyles, gold jewelry, and fine clothes, uh, elaborate hairstyles. 00:05:13.240 --> 00:05:20.560 I bet you, maybe if you have a different version of the Bible, it even just says braided hair and, uh, don't wear any and don't wear any gold jewelry. 00:05:21.160 --> 00:05:24.420 We're not a church who says don't braid your hair. 00:05:24.660 --> 00:05:28.699 Uh, we're not a church that says don't wear gold jewelry, but what is he talking about? 00:05:29.079 --> 00:05:41.560 Uh, well, I think it's pretty, it's pretty interesting because even talking about this, this idea of outward adornment, as I was thinking about it, I tried to look up, uh, what would somebody who he's referring to, what would they look like in that time? 00:05:41.560 --> 00:05:43.379 And I didn't have an awful lot of success. 00:05:43.579 --> 00:05:49.060 Maybe you, maybe you have an idea in your mind or maybe you've seen what is outward adornment look like to them. 00:05:49.839 --> 00:06:00.620 Uh, but what I did realize and what I bet you, you could realize too, is that the idea of what's going on on the outside is very dependent on the culture that we live in. 00:06:00.620 --> 00:06:00.819 Right? 00:06:01.060 --> 00:06:06.040 Like if we were, if it's 2000 years later and we read this and we say, wow, elaborate hairstyles. 00:06:06.160 --> 00:06:06.939 Oh my goodness. 00:06:06.939 --> 00:06:08.360 That draws attention to ourselves. 00:06:08.519 --> 00:06:09.399 We shouldn't do that. 00:06:09.399 --> 00:06:12.819 And we said, oh, gold jewelry that draws attention to the out of ourselves. 00:06:12.980 --> 00:06:13.800 We shouldn't do that. 00:06:13.839 --> 00:06:28.720 And if it made sense to us without having to look at context, then, then you'd say, well, outward adornment is kind of, it's a, it's a normal thing that happened 2000 years ago that people focused on this specific group of things and we focus on the same specific group of things. 00:06:28.800 --> 00:06:33.480 And so I guess it's just the same for them as it is for us, but it's not, you know, outward adornment. 00:06:33.579 --> 00:06:35.540 So dependent on the culture that we live in, right? 00:06:35.540 --> 00:06:39.019 The jewelry is not exactly the same. 00:06:39.660 --> 00:06:46.459 Uh, the, you say diamonds are forever, but how you style them changes, uh, fine clothes then perhaps are not fine clothes now. 00:06:46.600 --> 00:06:57.279 Uh, and I, even, even our Bibles take liberty to, to make some of this direction applicable to us by just saying elaborate hairstyles instead of the exact translation braided hair. 00:06:57.779 --> 00:07:10.339 Uh, if you were to put a woman in Peter's day that he's, he's writing about, and if you threw her in the audience today, I think she would draw attention to herself based on how she looked probably. 00:07:10.920 --> 00:07:14.079 But it wouldn't be like, Oh wow, that's very cool. 00:07:14.220 --> 00:07:14.720 Or what are you like? 00:07:14.779 --> 00:07:20.019 She could be, you could put her down in the Kalamazoo mall and people would look at her like, what is she selling or what is going on? 00:07:20.100 --> 00:07:25.300 Maybe she wants us to buy a specific type of food or, but it wouldn't be like, wow, I, that's, that's elaborate. 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:26.120 That's beautiful. 00:07:26.120 --> 00:07:27.680 That's the signal of beauty. 00:07:27.920 --> 00:07:35.879 And yet to them, it was, I think what, what this communicates though, is that this outward adornment isn't lasting, right? 00:07:36.480 --> 00:07:43.120 It's not lasting because it was outward adornment to them or what's beauty according to them is a little bit different than what's beauty according to us. 00:07:43.439 --> 00:07:46.019 It's something that, that, that it doesn't, it doesn't live forever. 00:07:46.060 --> 00:07:46.560 It doesn't die. 00:07:46.639 --> 00:08:01.240 But, but listen to this then it says, focus then on your inner self, this unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, putting your value on what God sees and not making yourself the exception. 00:08:01.240 --> 00:08:04.879 He says, Hey, look at the evidence from the people in the past. 00:08:05.040 --> 00:08:06.300 Just, just follow what they did. 00:08:06.339 --> 00:08:07.180 You're not the exception. 00:08:09.339 --> 00:08:13.360 This, this inner self, this inner self is actually evident to everybody. 00:08:13.360 --> 00:08:17.980 And this is, this was evident then it was evident years before that. 00:08:18.040 --> 00:08:25.959 You can look in so many Proverbs, Proverbs 31 is a, is a great one that you can look at and it, and it echoes so many of the qualities that are talked about here. 00:08:26.019 --> 00:08:29.079 And then what you can do is you can think about right now. 00:08:29.079 --> 00:08:39.298 And if you were to describe what, uh, what somebody who, you know, when I, when I think about a woman like this, um, I think about someone who's just an easy person to talk to, right? 00:08:39.320 --> 00:08:41.620 Somebody who's a great friend to all around her. 00:08:41.860 --> 00:08:50.299 Uh, somebody who's not too proud, someone who loves to hear what other people have to say, who is secure in God and, and desires to be led. 00:08:50.379 --> 00:08:52.360 These qualities are all timeless. 00:08:53.080 --> 00:08:58.700 Peter is saying, focus on the timeless qualities and don't focus so much on what's going on on the outside. 00:09:00.360 --> 00:09:02.220 I, you know, it's, it's father's day. 00:09:02.220 --> 00:09:09.700 Uh, but I, but I, I was reading this and I have to imagine a father communicating this to his daughter, right? 00:09:10.600 --> 00:09:12.299 Say, Hey, it's, it's easy. 00:09:12.299 --> 00:09:18.940 Uh, the outward adornment in some ways is easy to, to look, to look a certain way or to draw attention this certain way. 00:09:19.200 --> 00:09:19.960 It's easy. 00:09:20.059 --> 00:09:24.220 Anybody can do it, but no daughter focus on the important things. 00:09:24.220 --> 00:09:28.960 Focus on the things that, that, that nobody, that, that people don't value right away. 00:09:29.059 --> 00:09:31.679 Focus on the things that are deeper, that, that really are your true character. 00:09:32.240 --> 00:09:36.379 Uh, I, I, I imagine that that's what he'd be communicating. 00:09:36.659 --> 00:09:41.080 Uh, I think, what does this mean for us or what, what, what, what can we take from it? 00:09:41.100 --> 00:09:41.220 Why? 00:09:41.320 --> 00:09:48.580 I think we have to ask ourselves, are we more focused on the outside or on the inside and are we focused for ourselves on what's going on on the outside? 00:09:48.639 --> 00:09:51.019 Are we focused on what's going on on the inside? 00:09:51.019 --> 00:09:56.659 If we're focused on the, the outside, uh, then our outside is going to look beautiful. 00:09:56.860 --> 00:09:57.799 I believe it. 00:09:58.179 --> 00:10:00.720 Uh, but if our inside is not, then it doesn't really matter. 00:10:00.779 --> 00:10:01.039 Right? 00:10:01.799 --> 00:10:04.000 Uh, the, the, the Bible keeps talking. 00:10:04.059 --> 00:10:17.419 He says, husbands in the same way, be considerate as you live with your wives and treat them with respect as the weaker part partner and as heirs with you in the gracious gift of life so that nothing will hinder your prayers. 00:10:18.940 --> 00:10:20.299 What is he telling? 00:10:20.519 --> 00:10:24.480 He tells husbands to treat weaker people as heirs. 00:10:24.659 --> 00:10:42.220 Uh, and then he says to notice this, he says, uh, in the same way, be considerate, but then as you live with your spouse, this, this live or dwell, it's to be present, to be attentive, to be there, not just physically, but then also mentally, emotionally, to just be present. 00:10:42.299 --> 00:10:43.259 It's so powerful. 00:10:43.340 --> 00:10:45.059 Again, we're not the exception, right? 00:10:45.059 --> 00:10:54.940 You, you, we just read Peter's talking to, to, to women and now he's talking to, to men and he just says, you got to be present at home, but that's a struggle of yours. 00:10:55.159 --> 00:10:58.320 He says, be attentive to be there, to be locked in. 00:10:58.360 --> 00:11:07.700 I bet you, if you'll be honest with yourself, it's a, it's a little bit of a struggle of yours when, when you come home from work to just let me, let me just have my, my me time. 00:11:07.799 --> 00:11:09.679 Let me just not, I don't want to have to worry about it. 00:11:09.700 --> 00:11:11.039 I want to breathe for a few minutes. 00:11:11.039 --> 00:11:15.279 This is, this is a struggle and Peter's saying, you got to live with your wife. 00:11:15.860 --> 00:11:21.620 And then he says, heir, to consider them heirs of the gracious gift of life. 00:11:22.159 --> 00:11:31.460 And it's to see people outside of their current circumstance and more closely see them how God made them as heirs, as somebody who's an equal to us. 00:11:31.879 --> 00:11:34.000 This is a quality that's timeless, isn't it? 00:11:34.320 --> 00:11:44.399 When you see somebody who has so much power and decides to stoop down and actually befriend the, the lower or the lesser or the less fortunate, these are things that we value in our society, right? 00:11:44.460 --> 00:11:46.740 These are things that are absolutely timeless. 00:11:48.320 --> 00:11:52.080 And as husbands, but even as men, this is our responsibility. 00:11:53.259 --> 00:12:02.279 Our responsibility, you know, is to live our lives in such a way that helps other people and treats them as heirs instead of competition. 00:12:03.159 --> 00:12:10.919 And so as I was, I was considering this and I wrote some things down here and, and I, I actually, I tried to delete it because I was like, I don't know. 00:12:11.179 --> 00:12:17.899 I don't want to say this out loud, but I'm going to, I'm going to say it and it's going to be on the screen as well, even if I don't say it correctly. 00:12:18.340 --> 00:12:24.600 But if you're a woman whose worth is found more in her appearance than her spirituality, you're being manipulated by the devil. 00:12:31.379 --> 00:12:41.440 And if you're a man who is competitive at everything, if you're not present at home, if you're not gracious with others, you're going to live a sad life being used by the devil. 00:12:42.940 --> 00:12:44.580 There's not, there's not two ways about it. 00:12:44.600 --> 00:12:46.240 We'd love to say, well, we're growing in it. 00:12:46.299 --> 00:12:47.059 We're working on it. 00:12:47.100 --> 00:12:48.080 We're going to get there one day. 00:12:48.120 --> 00:12:52.059 I want to stress the urgency with which we have to work on these things. 00:12:52.100 --> 00:12:56.440 Then it's not, it's not just for, it's not just for husbands. 00:12:56.620 --> 00:12:58.440 I think we can say men in general, right? 00:12:58.440 --> 00:13:03.059 We talked about being present is a difficulty for all men, not being competitive. 00:13:03.059 --> 00:13:04.559 That's a difficulty for all men. 00:13:04.600 --> 00:13:08.960 And you can communicate the same thing for women as well as wives. 00:13:10.500 --> 00:13:12.080 We ought to be people who live this out. 00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:14.320 It keeps going though. 00:13:14.379 --> 00:13:15.720 We're going to keep reading. 00:13:16.779 --> 00:13:22.879 Just finally, all of you be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble. 00:13:23.700 --> 00:13:28.159 Do not repay anyone evil for evil or insult with insult. 00:13:28.159 --> 00:13:33.340 On the contrary, repay evil with blessing because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 00:13:33.899 --> 00:13:39.940 For whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech. 00:13:40.039 --> 00:13:42.019 They must turn from evil and do good. 00:13:42.379 --> 00:13:48.360 They must seek peace and pursue it for the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their prayer. 00:13:48.759 --> 00:13:51.139 But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. 00:13:52.360 --> 00:13:56.740 So much of this, we covered, we covered a lot of this last week. 00:13:56.740 --> 00:14:02.860 And so I'm just going to I'm not going to make too many notes on it because we're going to read a little bit more text that communicates more. 00:14:03.360 --> 00:14:06.200 But if you if you're you know what what what is this communicating? 00:14:06.620 --> 00:14:10.960 Do good to people and let them look down on you for doing good is what is what the Bible is saying. 00:14:11.600 --> 00:14:13.059 But before that is really cool. 00:14:13.139 --> 00:14:15.840 This this just one one sentence. 00:14:16.059 --> 00:14:16.240 Right. 00:14:16.740 --> 00:14:23.039 If we were to live just verse eight out perfectly, I think we'd have some pretty harmonious relationships. 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:23.419 Right. 00:14:24.340 --> 00:14:26.639 Like minded that we're just not intent on conflict. 00:14:26.779 --> 00:14:28.960 We don't we don't need to create conflict where it's not there. 00:14:29.639 --> 00:14:33.799 Sympathetic, actually considerate of what other people are, what's what's happening with other people. 00:14:34.139 --> 00:14:39.279 If we had this this love for one another, this genuine concern, and I really want to connect with you. 00:14:39.500 --> 00:14:46.700 If we were compassionate and if we were humble, if we just lived out this sentence, I bet you our relationships would go pretty well for the most part. 00:14:47.500 --> 00:14:52.700 If you look at the breakdown in relationships, you might be able to point to one of these things, man. 00:14:52.740 --> 00:14:54.779 They always there's just always something with them. 00:14:54.799 --> 00:14:55.460 They always wanted to. 00:14:55.799 --> 00:14:57.039 I couldn't do anything right. 00:14:57.840 --> 00:14:58.799 Not like minded. 00:14:58.980 --> 00:15:00.539 And he doesn't know how I'm feeling. 00:15:01.000 --> 00:15:02.480 He doesn't want to listen, not sympathetic. 00:15:02.759 --> 00:15:02.899 Right. 00:15:02.919 --> 00:15:08.220 And we can go down the list and you see a lot of this breakdown happens just just from this sentence. 00:15:08.320 --> 00:15:09.039 We just followed it. 00:15:09.080 --> 00:15:12.399 I think we'd be well, we'd be closer to Jesus for sure. 00:15:14.259 --> 00:15:15.679 Let's let's keep going. 00:15:15.799 --> 00:15:18.820 There's a bit at the end that I want to I want to cover as well. 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:22.840 We will I will drop right to 15, actually. 00:15:26.220 --> 00:15:28.940 It says, but in your hearts, revere Christ as Lord. 00:15:29.500 --> 00:15:37.379 Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to keep to ask you to give the reason for the hope you have. 00:15:37.379 --> 00:15:46.480 But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander. 00:15:46.940 --> 00:15:51.179 For it is better if it is God's will to suffer for doing good than for doing evil. 00:15:51.480 --> 00:15:56.700 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous to bring you to God. 00:15:56.779 --> 00:15:59.779 He was put to death in the body, but made alive in the spirit. 00:16:03.039 --> 00:16:05.080 Verse 15 is it's a powerful one. 00:16:05.120 --> 00:16:06.059 It's quoted frequently. 00:16:06.259 --> 00:16:06.379 Right. 00:16:06.379 --> 00:16:08.059 Be prepared to give an answer. 00:16:08.220 --> 00:16:13.120 There's a there's a book even is it Gordon Ferguson that wrote it called Prepared to Answer. 00:16:13.320 --> 00:16:17.720 And the book is it communicates what's the answer for the hope that we have. 00:16:17.779 --> 00:16:29.620 And it shares a bunch of different doctrine and false doctrine and shares a bunch of different religions and where they they fall short or where they're mistaken about their understanding of who God is. 00:16:29.620 --> 00:16:32.820 But I would say that's that's good. 00:16:32.919 --> 00:16:37.840 We should give we should be able to give a technical answer for what we what we believe, what we hope for. 00:16:37.919 --> 00:16:40.179 We should be able to have scriptures to pull to. 00:16:40.360 --> 00:16:41.399 That's that is true. 00:16:42.860 --> 00:16:48.620 But probably more than that, what it's communicating is that you have to you have to give an answer for the hope that you have. 00:16:49.139 --> 00:16:50.340 And it's and it's tough. 00:16:50.620 --> 00:16:53.240 You can give a hundred sentences about hope. 00:16:53.240 --> 00:16:55.820 You can give all these different reasons for the hope you have. 00:16:56.320 --> 00:17:00.059 But if you don't share your life and if your life doesn't look different, you're not going to look very hopeful. 00:17:00.259 --> 00:17:00.879 You know what I'm saying? 00:17:01.559 --> 00:17:09.299 If you want to be prepared to answer, then we ought to live lives that are full of hope that we ought to live lives that are entirely different. 00:17:09.500 --> 00:17:17.259 This is certainly there's we need to be a group of people who understand the scriptures and can and can share them with people. 00:17:17.259 --> 00:17:18.759 That is absolutely true. 00:17:20.318 --> 00:17:32.019 But I think more than that, if you could choose between the two, if you could either be too technical or just be able to give a great testimony, let's choose to be able to give a great testimony of our life every single time. 00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:42.980 You know, I bet you you've I know I've gotten myself into trouble by by thinking I can just debate my way out of any I can prove to somebody that this doctrine is correct. 00:17:42.980 --> 00:17:46.460 I can show somebody how God has to be real based on this. 00:17:46.579 --> 00:17:48.180 I bet you I can win this argument. 00:17:49.460 --> 00:17:51.279 And I've left feeling like a dope. 00:17:51.440 --> 00:17:53.960 I've left feeling like I didn't convince anybody. 00:17:54.400 --> 00:17:55.880 I actually got more frustrated. 00:17:56.000 --> 00:17:58.759 I don't think I was a great example of who Jesus is. 00:17:58.920 --> 00:18:05.059 Maybe you've been in conversations like this where you speak too much. 00:18:05.059 --> 00:18:08.559 And isn't it the worst feeling when you say, hey, what scripture is this? 00:18:08.579 --> 00:18:10.940 And you say, I don't know what it says in the Bible somewhere. 00:18:11.559 --> 00:18:17.480 I know scripture says this and you can't point to it and you just it is it is one of the most difficult feelings. 00:18:18.339 --> 00:18:20.700 And then I felt it time and time again. 00:18:22.279 --> 00:18:27.460 And and now I do feel like I'm able to win arguments and debates, but I'm pretty. 00:18:27.619 --> 00:18:31.299 I also know that I don't think people are converted that way. 00:18:31.579 --> 00:18:32.740 I'm sure there's a place for it. 00:18:32.740 --> 00:18:38.640 I really I want to believe there's a place for it because very, very smart people, intelligent people, thoughtful people. 00:18:39.079 --> 00:18:44.799 Certainly, Paul was one who gave the you know, he was a great orator, but he gave he debated people. 00:18:44.920 --> 00:18:49.980 And the scripture shares that and he convinced people with his words and the scripture shares that as well. 00:18:50.119 --> 00:18:51.579 There's a place for it. 00:18:52.440 --> 00:18:55.299 But I don't know if it's at a grocery store. 00:18:55.420 --> 00:18:56.039 You know what I'm saying? 00:18:57.220 --> 00:19:00.720 I'm not I'm not sure if it's just a happenstance conversation on campus. 00:19:00.720 --> 00:19:01.420 Maybe it is. 00:19:02.480 --> 00:19:13.180 Generally, I found that when I debate with people, they end up leaving with a worse interpretation of who Jesus is, because I probably didn't give them a great interpretation of who Jesus is. 00:19:14.859 --> 00:19:17.299 So how are we going to combat that malicious talk? 00:19:17.500 --> 00:19:18.759 It's by sharing our testimony. 00:19:19.259 --> 00:19:21.900 And it's by living like people who are changed. 00:19:22.640 --> 00:19:23.660 Nobody can know you can't. 00:19:23.720 --> 00:19:24.539 How are you going to debate? 00:19:24.819 --> 00:19:28.619 I used to live this way, but now I don't live this way because Jesus changed my life. 00:19:28.619 --> 00:19:29.799 How are you going to debate that? 00:19:29.859 --> 00:19:30.839 I can't tell you. 00:19:30.859 --> 00:19:31.180 No, you don't. 00:19:31.279 --> 00:19:32.359 You didn't used to live that way. 00:19:32.440 --> 00:19:34.400 No, I guess you did used to live this way. 00:19:34.740 --> 00:19:36.099 Being comfortable to share. 00:19:36.319 --> 00:19:40.440 This is where I came from and this is what God has done in my life. 00:19:40.579 --> 00:19:41.660 That's not tacky. 00:19:41.740 --> 00:19:42.519 That's not corny. 00:19:42.619 --> 00:19:43.460 That's not played out. 00:19:43.680 --> 00:19:44.500 It's who you are. 00:19:44.579 --> 00:19:45.259 And it's beautiful. 00:19:49.339 --> 00:19:51.599 My I remember my my campus minister. 00:19:52.660 --> 00:19:59.539 This was he shared a story in Milwaukee and we were we were meeting and I figured out that his mom became a Christian. 00:19:59.539 --> 00:20:02.819 And so I just said, Dwayne, how did your mom become a Christian? 00:20:03.099 --> 00:20:06.920 Did she become a Christian first or was it you first or what happened? 00:20:07.059 --> 00:20:12.119 And he said that he grew up in a single parent household in a really tough upbringing. 00:20:13.519 --> 00:20:15.700 It just it wasn't wasn't a good situation. 00:20:15.839 --> 00:20:19.279 And he went down the list of the things that he did that he did. 00:20:19.339 --> 00:20:23.160 It's a miracle that he that he became a disciple, but he became a disciple. 00:20:23.160 --> 00:20:29.039 He was reached out to at Toys R Us by by by a disciple who was leading the church at the time. 00:20:29.480 --> 00:20:31.079 He was he was working at the Toys R Us. 00:20:31.799 --> 00:20:34.400 And then by the time this was a few years. 00:20:34.460 --> 00:20:38.880 And then by the time he he was leading the campus ministry, he got a degree. 00:20:39.460 --> 00:20:40.180 He was leading. 00:20:41.380 --> 00:20:44.859 And time and time again, he had communicated to his mom, Mom, you got to do this. 00:20:44.980 --> 00:20:46.160 Mom, you're wrong. 00:20:46.299 --> 00:20:48.059 Mom, this is how you raised us. 00:20:48.180 --> 00:20:49.720 I love you, but it was not the right way. 00:20:49.720 --> 00:20:53.380 And he tried to debate with her and tried to convince her with his words. 00:20:53.559 --> 00:20:56.160 And she didn't want to have anything to do with it. 00:20:57.599 --> 00:21:00.559 And then what he said, he said, I just started going over to her house. 00:21:00.920 --> 00:21:04.400 And I started cleaning her dishes, started sweeping her floor. 00:21:04.859 --> 00:21:10.460 I started doing everything I could to follow what the Bible teaches to honor my my my mother. 00:21:11.460 --> 00:21:14.920 And he said the first time he did it, she told him to get out of the house. 00:21:14.920 --> 00:21:15.920 She said, son, what are you doing? 00:21:15.920 --> 00:21:16.900 Get out, get out the house. 00:21:17.240 --> 00:21:19.740 You haven't done this ever when you lived here. 00:21:19.779 --> 00:21:20.640 Don't don't start now. 00:21:20.740 --> 00:21:22.599 And it was just just in this way. 00:21:22.660 --> 00:21:24.859 And he just communicated, Mom, I'm a changed person. 00:21:25.480 --> 00:21:28.680 I didn't do a good job of honoring you when I lived in your house. 00:21:28.900 --> 00:21:30.140 I'm going to do it now. 00:21:31.950 --> 00:21:36.490 Over the course of years, his mom studied the Bible and became a Christian. 00:21:39.960 --> 00:21:43.079 This is this is this is true for all of us, though. 00:21:43.079 --> 00:21:50.019 Our actions are going to play so much more of a factor in our friends and our family following God than our words ever could. 00:21:53.579 --> 00:21:56.839 You don't have to feel don't feel don't feel dumb if you don't know if you don't know a specific verse. 00:21:56.900 --> 00:21:57.279 It's OK. 00:21:57.900 --> 00:21:58.880 Let's figure it out together. 00:21:59.180 --> 00:22:01.059 I don't I feel like I know the answer. 00:22:01.160 --> 00:22:02.220 I want to give you a good answer. 00:22:02.640 --> 00:22:03.180 Let's sit down. 00:22:03.240 --> 00:22:04.380 Let's open it up. 00:22:04.779 --> 00:22:07.599 I don't have a great response for you right now, but let's talk about it later. 00:22:09.000 --> 00:22:09.559 That's OK. 00:22:09.779 --> 00:22:10.880 There's nothing wrong with that. 00:22:10.900 --> 00:22:11.279 It's OK. 00:22:11.660 --> 00:22:13.200 We're not supposed to have all of the answers. 00:22:13.200 --> 00:22:15.559 If we had all the answers, we wouldn't have to show up to church. 00:22:15.640 --> 00:22:17.319 We wouldn't have to read our Bible if we had all the answers. 00:22:17.480 --> 00:22:17.579 Right. 00:22:17.920 --> 00:22:22.099 We know that we're people that without God, we can't do anything good. 00:22:22.339 --> 00:22:22.480 Right. 00:22:25.880 --> 00:22:29.460 So as we as we as we as we read this, I certainly. 00:22:29.720 --> 00:22:29.819 Yeah. 00:22:29.839 --> 00:22:31.140 Let's get the technical answer. 00:22:31.240 --> 00:22:33.000 But more than that, be inspired by your testimony. 00:22:33.079 --> 00:22:37.200 If you've got a great testimony and everybody here who's a Christian has a great testimony. 00:22:37.599 --> 00:22:38.039 Go ahead. 00:22:38.140 --> 00:22:39.119 Hold it in. 00:22:39.180 --> 00:22:40.619 Make it make it powerful. 00:22:40.759 --> 00:22:41.859 Do whatever you've got to do. 00:22:43.240 --> 00:22:47.859 But but feel great about sharing that with people, how you are a different person. 00:22:48.640 --> 00:22:50.359 Let's keep reading here. 00:22:59.750 --> 00:23:00.430 That's fine. 00:23:00.509 --> 00:23:01.690 We'll go over here. 00:23:04.710 --> 00:23:07.509 So now it's talking about now it's talking about Jesus. 00:23:09.789 --> 00:23:11.869 And he's he's sharing something. 00:23:11.930 --> 00:23:17.549 He says after being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits. 00:23:17.549 --> 00:23:25.569 To those who were disobedient long ago, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built in it. 00:23:25.849 --> 00:23:28.329 Only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water. 00:23:30.049 --> 00:23:34.789 And this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also. 00:23:35.789 --> 00:23:40.490 Not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience towards God. 00:23:40.490 --> 00:23:50.970 It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God's right hand with angels, authorities and powers in submission to him. 00:23:53.569 --> 00:23:58.210 The beginning of this passage has been the topic of debate. 00:23:58.450 --> 00:24:00.430 I was I don't I you know what? 00:24:00.609 --> 00:24:02.750 First, who were the imprisoned spirits? 00:24:02.930 --> 00:24:06.789 And there's people that they're smart people at smart. 00:24:06.950 --> 00:24:08.650 The smartest people say we just don't know. 00:24:08.750 --> 00:24:09.569 We're not really sure. 00:24:11.089 --> 00:24:12.750 Yeah, that's a good answer. 00:24:12.910 --> 00:24:13.009 Right. 00:24:13.369 --> 00:24:19.789 But so in prison spirits, what he's preaching to this group of people, what did he say? 00:24:19.849 --> 00:24:20.990 Could they become saved? 00:24:21.390 --> 00:24:22.769 We don't really know. 00:24:23.349 --> 00:24:25.250 Some some theologians say yes. 00:24:25.410 --> 00:24:26.769 Some scholars say no. 00:24:27.630 --> 00:24:31.390 We don't we don't really know what was what was communicated or what was preached. 00:24:31.730 --> 00:24:36.509 I think perhaps perhaps some of it was to fulfill what this says, actually. 00:24:38.490 --> 00:24:49.869 Therefore, God exalted and this is Philippians to nine to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth. 00:24:50.309 --> 00:24:55.170 And every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God, the father. 00:24:55.849 --> 00:25:04.569 So so perhaps that this was that lived out perfectly where he's saying, I'm going to proclaim and give a message to the people. 00:25:04.569 --> 00:25:07.730 Even long ago when they were disobedient. 00:25:07.829 --> 00:25:09.190 Hey, you guys were wrong. 00:25:09.269 --> 00:25:11.329 I am victorious over sin. 00:25:12.430 --> 00:25:14.369 Perhaps they had an opportunity to follow. 00:25:14.630 --> 00:25:15.789 Perhaps they didn't. 00:25:17.970 --> 00:25:18.529 Nobody. 00:25:18.849 --> 00:25:20.329 We can't really. 00:25:20.470 --> 00:25:29.569 We can't really say what we can say is it would have been probably a pretty good comfort or really it would have provided great comfort to the readers of this letter. 00:25:29.569 --> 00:25:35.970 Remember, these are the people who are in small pockets of Christian groups in a nation that is that is not at all Christian. 00:25:36.509 --> 00:25:39.529 That can feel like, man, is justice ever going to be served? 00:25:39.809 --> 00:25:41.430 Is our good things ever going to happen? 00:25:41.509 --> 00:25:43.589 How come the bad keep being raised up? 00:25:43.690 --> 00:25:46.529 And Peter's pointing to he's like, hey, remember those guys? 00:25:46.630 --> 00:25:50.569 Even they got preached to even they were proved wrong by Jesus himself. 00:25:50.869 --> 00:25:54.910 And so probably they would feel some joy or some comfort with that. 00:25:56.450 --> 00:26:01.390 But then it says this other thing, and I really want to I want to talk about this just for a little bit. 00:26:01.509 --> 00:26:04.930 It's such a great such a great, great text. 00:26:05.170 --> 00:26:09.630 It says this water he's talking about, you know, the flood water. 00:26:09.730 --> 00:26:17.589 He says this water, it symbolizes baptism that saves you also not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience to God. 00:26:17.650 --> 00:26:21.710 It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 00:26:23.920 --> 00:26:28.740 And so what's what's going on right here is he's making this this beautiful appeal. 00:26:28.839 --> 00:26:31.220 And what I want to do is I want to make a similar appeal. 00:26:31.299 --> 00:26:36.759 I will say that we're all on our spiritual journeys and some people are at different spots. 00:26:36.859 --> 00:26:38.079 Some people are at other spots. 00:26:38.440 --> 00:26:43.799 Some people are at a spot right now where there's like this this thing missing. 00:26:43.920 --> 00:26:45.980 And you're in this thing is actually baptism. 00:26:46.200 --> 00:26:48.319 And what what is it? 00:26:48.400 --> 00:26:49.099 What's the point? 00:26:49.319 --> 00:26:49.599 Why? 00:26:49.759 --> 00:26:50.700 Why is it important? 00:26:51.599 --> 00:26:55.500 This is this is what the Bible is teaching, though. 00:26:55.619 --> 00:26:58.920 There are there are many, I believe, that have been coming around. 00:26:59.339 --> 00:27:02.440 And if you feel like you're in this camp, then I'm talking to you. 00:27:02.519 --> 00:27:07.319 If you feel like I'm not in this camp yet or I'm not in this camp anymore and I'm not talking to you, that's OK. 00:27:09.019 --> 00:27:16.759 But what I want to say is there's an there's an appeal that's being made of this pledge of a clear conscience to God as you enter the waters of baptism. 00:27:17.299 --> 00:27:23.119 And you have to ask yourself, if you were baptized before, did you do it with a clear conscience? 00:27:23.200 --> 00:27:23.740 What does that mean? 00:27:23.819 --> 00:27:26.720 Well, a clear conscience is without outside pressures. 00:27:26.960 --> 00:27:30.819 My parents really wanted me to become a disciple and my parents really wanted me to get baptized. 00:27:32.500 --> 00:27:34.539 My spouse really wanted me to get baptized. 00:27:34.759 --> 00:27:37.539 The preacher really wanted me to get baptized to be in a relationship. 00:27:37.940 --> 00:27:38.839 I had to get baptized. 00:27:39.079 --> 00:27:45.759 These are all things with outside pressure that if you if you did that, I would I would question my baptism if I were you. 00:27:46.359 --> 00:27:47.799 That's without a clear conscience. 00:27:48.000 --> 00:27:48.660 Another way. 00:27:49.200 --> 00:27:55.660 So for outside pressure, but then also some inside pressure that that there's there was unconfessed sin that knowing unconfessed sin. 00:27:55.759 --> 00:28:02.259 There's we can't confess everything, but there's stuff that I'm holding on to as I walked into baptism that I felt like I don't need to share it. 00:28:02.380 --> 00:28:03.380 Maybe I can just hold it. 00:28:04.839 --> 00:28:08.299 This is this is, you know, I'm going to be judged if I share this stuff. 00:28:08.400 --> 00:28:15.099 It's not going to be proved that the church isn't going to forgive me if I if I share this, whatever it is. 00:28:15.599 --> 00:28:25.799 These are these are things that if you were baptized and you had either of these outside pressure or unconfessed sin, I think I would question, did I do it with a clear conscience? 00:28:30.470 --> 00:28:33.430 And maybe you say, well, I haven't I haven't done it at all, and I'm still concerned. 00:28:33.549 --> 00:28:34.470 What is what is the point? 00:28:34.970 --> 00:28:35.329 Why? 00:28:35.990 --> 00:28:37.329 I don't I don't see it. 00:28:37.390 --> 00:28:43.930 I think, you know, what I want you to know is that the Bible teaches that it's not an outward sign of an inward faith or something like that. 00:28:43.930 --> 00:28:47.970 It's not like, oh, yeah, it's OK if you do or you don't. 00:28:48.170 --> 00:28:49.269 That's not what the Bible teaches. 00:28:49.390 --> 00:28:50.890 It's not something that's optional. 00:28:50.990 --> 00:28:58.309 You can read all over the book of Acts and you see there's somebody who is literally going through a desert, sees water and says, I've got to be baptized right now. 00:28:58.369 --> 00:29:01.230 If it wasn't that important, then he wouldn't really care to do it that way. 00:29:03.329 --> 00:29:03.990 It's not optional. 00:29:04.210 --> 00:29:11.809 It's it's it's the forfeiture of your life and a decision that's similar to marriage that just says, I don't know everything this entails. 00:29:11.809 --> 00:29:14.230 I'm not sure if I can. 00:29:14.910 --> 00:29:20.490 I believe I'm going to I'm going to but I'm going to give everything I possibly have to this relationship. 00:29:20.490 --> 00:29:28.930 And in that way, it's actually better than marriage, because if you give everything you can in your marriage, you know, it can still happen as your marriage can still fail. 00:29:29.890 --> 00:29:42.609 If you give everything you can to Jesus and if you pursue God with your whole heart and if you make this public declaration, certainly that has eternal consequences, then Jesus is never going to turn his back on you. 00:29:42.730 --> 00:29:46.470 He's never going to he's never going to be wrong. 00:29:46.609 --> 00:29:48.390 He's always going to be there for you. 00:29:48.829 --> 00:29:53.789 This is it is it's something certainly it's a cost to count because you're giving up your life. 00:29:53.950 --> 00:30:01.289 But it is the best cost to possibly count because the rewards are so much greater on this earth and then in heaven as well. 00:30:03.730 --> 00:30:12.430 But the Bible, the Bible is clear, though, I would say if you are in that camp where you're coming around, you're like, I don't this baptism thing. 00:30:12.509 --> 00:30:13.089 What's it all about? 00:30:13.190 --> 00:30:14.369 Why make a big deal out of it? 00:30:14.490 --> 00:30:16.450 Just talk to the person that you've been studying with. 00:30:16.589 --> 00:30:19.029 You know, this is one thing that we love to do that. 00:30:19.190 --> 00:30:21.250 You guys know Matthew 28. 00:30:21.630 --> 00:30:25.049 It says make disciples of all nations, says baptize them. 00:30:25.089 --> 00:30:26.690 And then it says teach them to obey everything. 00:30:26.690 --> 00:30:31.549 And I know there there can be a fear that once I get baptized, they're just going to let me go on my own way. 00:30:31.789 --> 00:30:33.089 And I'm just on my own. 00:30:33.150 --> 00:30:34.450 That's not what the Bible teaches, either. 00:30:34.529 --> 00:30:38.710 There's there's a teaching to obey everything that we want to be involved in people's lives. 00:30:38.710 --> 00:30:40.549 And we're committed to to it. 00:30:40.609 --> 00:30:40.849 Amen. 00:30:42.630 --> 00:30:46.650 The the we're going to prepare our hearts for communion right now. 00:30:47.630 --> 00:30:49.210 But I want you to know something else. 00:30:49.210 --> 00:30:51.930 And somebody might say that baptism. 00:30:51.930 --> 00:30:56.470 Oh, it is it's it's just a work and we're not saved by works. 00:30:56.869 --> 00:30:58.690 And I would say it is a work. 00:30:58.890 --> 00:30:59.849 But by who? 00:31:00.309 --> 00:31:05.309 It's a work by Jesus Christ, because it says it saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 00:31:05.349 --> 00:31:06.309 It's not about the water. 00:31:06.390 --> 00:31:10.250 It's this pledge of a clear conscience because Jesus died. 00:31:10.470 --> 00:31:10.930 Yes. 00:31:11.009 --> 00:31:12.349 But then he rose again. 00:31:12.490 --> 00:31:12.809 Amen. 00:31:13.589 --> 00:31:15.829 We are going to take communion. 00:31:15.829 --> 00:31:21.210 And I want to just welcome you to to go there with God. 00:31:21.329 --> 00:31:25.289 Go there with where your where your beauty lies. 00:31:25.569 --> 00:31:28.670 Go there with what you value in this world. 00:31:29.210 --> 00:31:35.569 Go there with your testimony and how you have totally transformed or how you are on the path to transformation. 00:31:35.970 --> 00:31:38.190 But then go there with your conversion as well. 00:31:38.230 --> 00:31:38.470 Amen. 00:31:39.150 --> 00:31:40.789 Let's pray right now. 00:31:45.140 --> 00:31:46.019 Dear God. 00:31:47.259 --> 00:31:51.579 Jesus, we have no we have no way to stand up before you. 00:31:51.640 --> 00:31:57.640 We're we're we connect with those words that say that that every knee is going to bow. 00:31:57.779 --> 00:32:06.039 Lord, I pray that we will be those who who who bow down now instead of being forced to bow down on the final day. 00:32:06.119 --> 00:32:09.839 But we realize that regardless, we are going to proclaim you as Lord. 00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:13.539 We want to do it on this earth, in this life, Lord. 00:32:13.700 --> 00:32:19.839 And I want to pray and thank you so much that you that you are worthy of our of our praise. 00:32:19.980 --> 00:32:23.279 I thank you so much that you did go on the cross. 00:32:23.400 --> 00:32:27.680 I thank you so much that you decided to take the punishment for sin. 00:32:27.740 --> 00:32:33.740 I thank you so much that we're where we said that whenever we turn to God, he never turns his back on us. 00:32:33.740 --> 00:32:45.099 That you were the only one ever who when you turn to God, he had to he had to turn his back on you in order to see you as sin. 00:32:45.579 --> 00:32:52.039 And in order for you to die, we are so we're so grateful that you decided to give yourself to death. 00:32:52.180 --> 00:32:56.160 Lord, everybody else and nobody else decides when to die. 00:32:56.599 --> 00:32:57.880 It just happens. 00:32:57.900 --> 00:33:01.119 And yet you decided to give yourself to death. 00:33:01.119 --> 00:33:04.480 You made yourself obedient to and we're grateful for that, Jesus. 00:33:04.660 --> 00:33:13.059 We're so grateful not only for your sacrifice, but we're grateful for your resurrection and your making us worthy to receive salvation. 00:33:13.259 --> 00:33:14.480 Lord, we love you so much. 00:33:15.119 --> 00:33:17.920 This is in this is in your name that we pray, Jesus. 00:33:18.339 --> 00:33:18.460 Amen. 00:33:21.130 --> 00:33:25.509 Thank you so much for listening to the Kalamazoo Church of Christ podcast. 00:33:26.049 --> 00:33:29.170 If you're in the Kalamazoo area, we'd love to get connected. 00:33:29.170 --> 00:33:36.809 Please go to Kalamazoo.Church and fill in your information to come to a Sunday service or any other event that we have going on. 00:33:37.029 --> 00:33:39.430 In any case, you'll be hearing from us next week.