WEBVTT 00:00:09.740 --> 00:00:13.320 Hello, and welcome to the Kalamazoo church of Christ podcast. 00:00:13.539 --> 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. 00:00:23.559 --> 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. 00:00:32.539 --> 00:00:36.439 You can visit kalamazoo.church in order to do that. 00:00:36.920 --> 00:00:40.399 We pray that you are inspired by what you hear today. 00:00:40.759 --> 00:00:49.960 This morning, this, this sermon series is God's world created today. 00:00:50.079 --> 00:00:52.820 We're really talking about the beauty in God's creation. 00:00:55.460 --> 00:01:03.439 You know, as we, as we're going to take a moment to read all of Genesis one, and then just the beginning part of Genesis two in a minute. 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:16.659 And what I would say is that the way that, you know, we can read Genesis and, and miss a lot of the value from it by asking questions that, uh, that, that take away from, from the meaning. 00:01:16.700 --> 00:01:17.859 And what do I, what am I saying? 00:01:18.140 --> 00:01:22.400 Well, we don't have to throw the baby out with the bath water and really people use Genesis. 00:01:22.659 --> 00:01:30.900 Is it, does that, Oh, that means it's, this is why the Bible can't be true because I believe in an old earth or people will read it and say, well, this is exactly what the Bible says. 00:01:31.000 --> 00:01:32.040 So it's exactly what it means. 00:01:32.819 --> 00:01:43.420 And, uh, and in all of this, if we get into debates like that, what we do is we actually lose a lot of the meaning and the value that's put in God's word in the book of, in, in Genesis one. 00:01:43.840 --> 00:01:54.659 Um, these are the questions that I want to, I want to challenge you to ask yourself, certainly as you read the Bible, but maybe more specifically as you read a parts of the Bible that seem to be a bit confusing. 00:01:54.659 --> 00:01:56.299 What does that mean for us today? 00:01:56.299 --> 00:02:02.459 But in order to get there, we have to ask ourselves, what is this text communicate about the character of God? 00:02:03.599 --> 00:02:07.439 What is this text communicate about humanity in general? 00:02:07.879 --> 00:02:12.219 And then, and then more specifically, what does this text say about you? 00:02:12.860 --> 00:02:25.340 And if we, if we go on our journey and if we are constantly asking ourselves, what does this communicate about, about God, about the God who's big and expansive, but very intricate and cares about us deeply, what does it communicate about him? 00:02:25.719 --> 00:02:28.740 We're going to grow in our relationship and our appreciation for God. 00:02:28.919 --> 00:02:32.840 If we ask ourselves, what does this text communicate about humanity? 00:02:32.939 --> 00:02:37.460 What we're going to do is grow in our awareness of how to help people, right? 00:02:37.719 --> 00:02:48.580 Because we understand there's, there's differences in, you know, we were different in so many, in so many ways, but the heart of humanity is, is the same. 00:02:48.599 --> 00:02:51.699 And the Bible is able to identify that. 00:02:52.520 --> 00:03:02.280 And then, and then looking specifically in your life and asking, what does this text communicate about, about you personally is going to help us have this dynamic relationship with God. 00:03:02.400 --> 00:03:02.639 Amen. 00:03:03.599 --> 00:03:16.219 So I'm, I'm challenging you guys this morning to, this is where, where I don't even know if I want to say it this way, but I'm telling you guys to leave what you know about God at the door just for a moment, then pick it up before you leave. 00:03:16.539 --> 00:03:19.000 But, but leave what you know about God for a moment. 00:03:19.000 --> 00:03:34.939 And I want to, uh, if we're talking about creation and if we're talking about beauty and it's stuff that's a little bit whimsical, I want to even challenge you right now to close your eyes and just imagine what's occurring right now as I read in Genesis one. 00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:35.479 Okay. 00:03:36.400 --> 00:03:42.259 It says in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:47.699 Now the earth was formless and empty. 00:03:48.259 --> 00:03:58.759 Darkness was over the surface of the deep and the spirit of God was hovering over the waters and God said, let there be light. 00:03:58.939 --> 00:03:59.960 And there was light. 00:04:00.439 --> 00:04:04.900 God saw that the light was good and he separated the light from the darkness. 00:04:05.479 --> 00:04:13.280 God called the light day and the darkness he called night and there was evening and there was morning the first day. 00:04:14.659 --> 00:04:21.300 And God said, let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water. 00:04:21.920 --> 00:04:27.100 So he made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. 00:04:27.199 --> 00:04:33.360 And it was so God called the vault sky and there was evening and there was morning the second day. 00:04:34.319 --> 00:04:40.360 And God said, let the water under the sky be gathered to one place and let dry ground appear. 00:04:41.040 --> 00:04:49.600 And it was so God called the dry ground land and the gathered waters he called seas and God saw that it was good. 00:04:51.279 --> 00:04:59.660 Then God said, let the land produce vegetation, seed bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it according to their various kinds. 00:04:59.939 --> 00:05:10.839 And it was so the land produced vegetation, plants, plants bearing seed according to their kind and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. 00:05:11.279 --> 00:05:12.980 And God saw that it was good. 00:05:13.639 --> 00:05:16.560 And there was evening and there was morning the third day. 00:05:18.139 --> 00:05:30.060 And God said, let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times and days and years. 00:05:31.430 --> 00:05:36.800 And let them be lights and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth. 00:05:37.079 --> 00:05:43.920 And it was so God made two great lights, the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. 00:05:44.060 --> 00:05:53.959 He also made the stars and God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on earth and to govern the day and night and to separate light from darkness. 00:05:54.160 --> 00:05:58.800 And God saw that it was good and there was evening and there was morning the fourth day. 00:05:59.220 --> 00:06:05.939 And God said, let the waters team with living creatures and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky. 00:06:06.060 --> 00:06:19.579 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing from with which the water teams and that moves about in it according to their kinds and every winged bird according to its kind and God saw that it was good. 00:06:21.300 --> 00:06:30.060 God blessed them and said, be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas and let the birds increase on the earth. 00:06:30.060 --> 00:06:33.680 And there was evening and there was morning the fifth day. 00:06:34.639 --> 00:06:43.980 And God said, let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds, the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground and the wild animals each according to its kind. 00:06:44.040 --> 00:06:52.699 And it was so God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds and all the creatures that moved along the ground according to their kinds. 00:06:52.800 --> 00:06:54.220 And God saw that it was good. 00:06:55.160 --> 00:07:11.899 Then God said, let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky over the livestock and all the wild animals and over all the creatures that move along the ground. 00:07:12.439 --> 00:07:17.740 So God created mankind in his own image and the image of God, he created them male and female. 00:07:17.860 --> 00:07:18.579 He created them. 00:07:19.339 --> 00:07:22.959 God blessed them and said to them, be fruitful and increase in number. 00:07:23.579 --> 00:07:31.879 Fill the earth and subdue it, rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground. 00:07:32.379 --> 00:07:41.639 Then God said, I give you every seed bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it, they will be yours for food. 00:07:42.560 --> 00:07:53.779 And to all the beasts of the earth and the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground, everything that has the breath of life in it, I give every green plant for food. 00:07:53.980 --> 00:07:54.579 And it was so. 00:07:55.740 --> 00:07:57.399 God saw all that he had made. 00:07:57.819 --> 00:07:58.939 And it was very good. 00:07:59.519 --> 00:08:07.079 And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day, thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. 00:08:07.319 --> 00:08:11.019 By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing. 00:08:11.139 --> 00:08:13.740 So on the seventh day, he rested from all his work. 00:08:14.199 --> 00:08:22.360 Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. 00:08:26.699 --> 00:08:31.298 This is the creation narrative. 00:08:31.500 --> 00:08:34.100 This is what we're going to look at this morning. 00:08:34.658 --> 00:08:38.200 And as we look at it, we're going to ask ourselves these three questions. 00:08:38.298 --> 00:08:39.700 What does this communicate about God? 00:08:39.759 --> 00:08:41.279 What does it communicate about humanity? 00:08:41.820 --> 00:08:43.779 And then what does it say about us personally? 00:08:44.299 --> 00:08:49.559 We're going to look at three different things that I believe this text communicates about God. 00:08:49.919 --> 00:08:53.299 And then we're going to look at what that means for us. 00:08:53.320 --> 00:09:01.519 If we are made in the image of God, then what God determines is valuable and is very good is what we should determine as valuable and very good as well. 00:09:01.600 --> 00:09:01.720 Amen? 00:09:01.980 --> 00:09:02.299 Amen. 00:09:07.879 --> 00:09:12.679 God takes something that is formless and empty and he gives it structure. 00:09:12.679 --> 00:09:17.940 And so the first thing we're going to look at is that God gives structure to our world. 00:09:19.399 --> 00:09:23.700 This first picture, it starts with chaos though, right? 00:09:24.120 --> 00:09:31.259 It says there's chaos going on and it says the spirit of God hovers over the waters. 00:09:32.639 --> 00:09:44.460 So, the Hebrew people, they weren't seafarers, they didn't view the sea as something that they could take control of. 00:09:44.600 --> 00:09:47.340 The sea was something that they were scared of. 00:09:47.460 --> 00:09:49.940 It was reckless and it was chaotic. 00:09:50.940 --> 00:09:52.679 It was formless and empty. 00:09:52.779 --> 00:09:55.000 There's this wild, this wasteland basically. 00:09:55.389 --> 00:10:01.139 So God takes this formless and empty thing and he makes it into something that has structure. 00:10:04.080 --> 00:10:05.860 We see the structure all over, right? 00:10:05.919 --> 00:10:11.480 First it says, you see this pattern in what's written, that there's day and then there's night. 00:10:11.879 --> 00:10:14.279 Then he creates the sea and the sky and the land. 00:10:14.460 --> 00:10:18.200 He creates the vegetation, but he doesn't just say that he creates the vegetation. 00:10:18.519 --> 00:10:21.679 He says this is what the vegetation are going to do. 00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:23.759 They're going to have seeds that then make more. 00:10:26.490 --> 00:10:35.289 From all of the, you know, if you took, I know Spencer and Maya, these guys love looking at all these different documentaries and stuff like that. 00:10:36.110 --> 00:10:37.389 I think they're amazing. 00:10:37.509 --> 00:10:43.309 I love to get the spark notes from them, the cliff notes from them, I guess either way, either website. 00:10:43.610 --> 00:10:47.330 I love to get it from them as opposed to watching them a lot of times. 00:10:47.669 --> 00:10:56.289 But there are a number of, if you just looked up on YouTube, you just looked up how big the universe is, you would be blown away. 00:10:56.529 --> 00:11:01.190 You would feel like, I'm just not, I can't even understand it. 00:11:01.330 --> 00:11:13.990 And if you were to look at how small this tiny micron atom, I don't even know the right words, maybe a scientist does or someone who just is in science class, yeah, Grace knows all that stuff. 00:11:14.750 --> 00:11:19.009 You would be overwhelmed because it's so, it doesn't mean anything to us. 00:11:19.070 --> 00:11:20.570 It's so big and yet it's so small. 00:11:20.570 --> 00:11:21.269 For sure. 00:11:22.370 --> 00:11:23.230 God created all of that. 00:11:23.929 --> 00:11:24.169 Yeah. 00:11:24.529 --> 00:11:24.730 Yeah. 00:11:25.470 --> 00:11:31.909 He created the structure, the sun and the moon to give us years and months and how to order our days. 00:11:33.210 --> 00:11:41.669 Finally, he then he creates the plants and then he creates the people or rather the animals and he tells them to do something. 00:11:41.789 --> 00:11:43.389 He says, go ahead and multiply them. 00:11:43.409 --> 00:11:47.529 And then he leaves a bunch of instruction for us, right? 00:11:48.769 --> 00:11:53.750 He says, here, I'm creating you and I'm not just creating you, then go do your thing. 00:11:53.789 --> 00:11:54.809 And we can read the Bible. 00:11:55.230 --> 00:12:03.529 Some people might think this, that God just wished it into motion, spoken into motion, then took a step back and now he lets us do our thing. 00:12:03.629 --> 00:12:06.509 And the reality is God gives us a bunch of instruction. 00:12:06.950 --> 00:12:08.750 This is, this is how to order your days. 00:12:08.809 --> 00:12:09.470 This is what to do. 00:12:09.529 --> 00:12:11.389 This is what to spend your time doing. 00:12:11.509 --> 00:12:12.870 This is how you are. 00:12:12.929 --> 00:12:15.370 You know, this is what I'm giving you to take control of. 00:12:15.370 --> 00:12:18.830 And then later we learn, this is what he says, don't, don't do this thing. 00:12:19.950 --> 00:12:25.750 Our week then is structured, even in the way that, that, that this, this is structured as well, right? 00:12:25.769 --> 00:12:28.870 There's six days and then the seventh day of rest. 00:12:29.169 --> 00:12:33.990 Some of us are better at taking rest than others, but it's the direction. 00:12:35.309 --> 00:12:36.970 So what does this say about God then? 00:12:37.070 --> 00:12:39.549 What is, what is this text communicating to us about God? 00:12:39.629 --> 00:12:44.490 Well, a few things, I think he created this world that, that was chaotic. 00:12:44.990 --> 00:12:50.769 He created it with the intention of structure and he created it with the intention of structure so that we could thrive. 00:12:51.970 --> 00:12:55.830 There's an insecurity that is, that is bred through uncertainty. 00:12:55.830 --> 00:12:56.870 What do we do next? 00:12:57.210 --> 00:12:58.350 I don't know what we do next. 00:12:58.669 --> 00:12:59.850 That creates some insecurity. 00:13:00.409 --> 00:13:05.870 It's something you, you, you learn as, if you're as a parent, it's something you learn as a coach. 00:13:05.889 --> 00:13:11.269 If you tell somebody, this is what a success is for you, certainly on a, in a team aspect. 00:13:11.269 --> 00:13:14.210 Well, the success is winning, but how do you even get to a win? 00:13:14.850 --> 00:13:16.370 There's a lot of ways to get there. 00:13:16.429 --> 00:13:17.289 It's really difficult. 00:13:17.590 --> 00:13:31.190 And if, you know, Spencer understands this, I, you know, anyone who's been a coach specifically of young kids understands this, that especially with basketball, everyone thinks my job is to score and you have to teach them. 00:13:31.250 --> 00:13:36.789 Well, no, the success in your role is you're just going to be the one that passes to everybody else. 00:13:36.830 --> 00:13:38.009 That's, that's your success. 00:13:38.610 --> 00:13:45.610 The success in your role is you're going to be the one who gets all of the rebounds, the balls, plays really good defense and grabs it. 00:13:45.830 --> 00:13:47.049 That's going to be your success. 00:13:47.190 --> 00:13:57.210 And it creates one, it's, it's a check for even young kids pride, but, but it, it gives people an opportunity to understand this is what, how I know if I did a good job or not. 00:13:59.029 --> 00:13:59.429 Yeah. 00:13:59.490 --> 00:13:59.970 It makes sense. 00:14:00.169 --> 00:14:00.509 It makes sense. 00:14:00.549 --> 00:14:07.330 You know, there, there's, there's a podcast I was just listening to, Festus told me to listen to it just yesterday. 00:14:07.330 --> 00:14:11.870 And it was about the importance of structure for, for children. 00:14:12.389 --> 00:14:13.490 And they found a few things. 00:14:13.590 --> 00:14:21.669 They found that the children that were most successful were the ones that had a basic structure to their lives. 00:14:21.690 --> 00:14:26.450 And they understood a basic structure in terms of discipline, in terms of meals. 00:14:26.649 --> 00:14:29.690 And then in terms of, if I do this, this is what occurs. 00:14:30.090 --> 00:14:44.110 And so they, you'd understand that what, what happens though, is children learn delayed gratification through this structure, that if you do your homework, then there's something waiting for you at the end, you, you, you can go play with your friends. 00:14:45.450 --> 00:14:46.629 Children without structure. 00:14:46.710 --> 00:14:56.169 And this is, I, you know, I, I'm not, I'm, I'm sharing this and I'm, I'm feeling you know, I feel convicted by it and stuff that we want to learn a bunch, but children learn structure and they're able to thrive. 00:14:56.429 --> 00:15:04.929 And what we would think would make the most sense is that children who would thrive in chaos, you know, in the world, the world is chaotic. 00:15:05.110 --> 00:15:11.970 And so if I provide so much structure for my children, then as soon as they go out in the world, they're going to, they're going to really struggle is what would make sense. 00:15:12.090 --> 00:15:24.429 But what they found is that the children who are most successful at taking proper risks and understanding the value of taking a risk versus following the status quo are the ones who are given structure from the time they're young. 00:15:27.600 --> 00:15:33.139 You know, I, we, we, we, I think we're made to, to like structure. 00:15:33.799 --> 00:15:38.460 I don't know about you, but over the course of my life, I don't know that I really liked structure all that much. 00:15:38.519 --> 00:15:48.600 You know, I, I, that's one of the, that was one of the reasons why I just was so excited about doing ministry was that you kind of get to order your day how you want it. 00:15:48.620 --> 00:15:52.559 And sometimes somebody orders your day for you and says, let's meet and it's really important. 00:15:52.659 --> 00:15:53.419 Okay, I'll do that. 00:15:53.419 --> 00:15:57.220 And, and all of my days are just a little bit different. 00:15:57.639 --> 00:16:02.580 Um, but, but I believe we're made to, to like structure because God, God likes structure. 00:16:02.899 --> 00:16:04.440 You can take it to a far extent. 00:16:04.519 --> 00:16:09.179 And so if you are hearing everything that's being communicated and you're like, yeah, I'm telling people to do that. 00:16:09.460 --> 00:16:11.080 Maybe you're taking it to a far extent. 00:16:11.500 --> 00:16:15.600 Uh, but all I know is that our daughter, Jordan, she's four. 00:16:15.659 --> 00:16:20.100 And if you were to ask her what happens on Monday, she would tell you Monday's family day. 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:24.500 Um, if you said what happens on Tuesday, she knows Tuesday is a school day. 00:16:25.179 --> 00:16:26.539 Wednesday is Laura day. 00:16:26.700 --> 00:16:29.360 That's the day Laura comes over and, and, and plays with her. 00:16:29.399 --> 00:16:31.500 Usually Thursday is another school day. 00:16:31.679 --> 00:16:34.759 And Friday, if you said what happens on Friday, that's Ponglama day. 00:16:35.480 --> 00:16:38.879 Uh, and, and, and it was, it was interesting. 00:16:38.980 --> 00:16:41.580 I, I, I don't, I don't know where it, where it fits exactly. 00:16:41.659 --> 00:16:50.340 I just, it was something that even from the time, I mean, she's four, she just turned four, but even when she was three, she couldn't understand fully like what day is today, what's happening next. 00:16:50.659 --> 00:16:52.360 But she would wake up and ask, what is it? 00:16:52.539 --> 00:16:53.299 Is it church day? 00:16:53.440 --> 00:16:54.379 No, it's not church day. 00:16:54.960 --> 00:16:56.059 Oh, is it? 00:16:56.179 --> 00:16:57.320 Oh, is it school day? 00:16:58.159 --> 00:16:58.519 Yes. 00:16:58.799 --> 00:16:59.799 I don't feel good. 00:16:59.899 --> 00:17:05.900 You know, like, and she would, she would kind of understood, she understood, she's trying to order. 00:17:05.980 --> 00:17:07.578 She's trying to order like, what is coming next? 00:17:07.618 --> 00:17:17.279 I believe, I believe us to be similar though, you know, we ought to examine our lives and see where is there chaos that doesn't have to be, that doesn't have to be there. 00:17:17.279 --> 00:17:17.818 That's good. 00:17:20.460 --> 00:17:25.838 And if we're, if we're designed in God's image, uh, then, then what we are is we're also creators. 00:17:25.838 --> 00:17:27.380 We're, we're in charge of our lives. 00:17:27.400 --> 00:17:28.059 You have the ability. 00:17:28.140 --> 00:17:29.720 What I'm not saying is do this. 00:17:29.799 --> 00:17:31.019 This is the exact right structure. 00:17:31.039 --> 00:17:35.700 That's not what anyone's communicating, but it's worth asking, where does your life lack structure? 00:17:35.700 --> 00:17:38.859 And even in this podcast that I was listening to it, you know, it's a secular podcast. 00:17:38.859 --> 00:17:43.339 It wasn't about Christianity, but they, they said something that was pretty insightful. 00:17:43.359 --> 00:17:51.140 They said, you know, if you ask anybody to, if they should create a routine in their life, they are what their tendency would be to say no. 00:17:51.299 --> 00:17:55.400 And yet if somebody comes to them and says, my life is chaos, what should I do? 00:17:55.740 --> 00:17:58.559 They would probably give them a routine to follow. 00:17:58.640 --> 00:18:05.400 Will you wake up at wake up for 30 minutes earlier and do this a little bit or have packed the kids lunch before, you know, whatever, whatever they would tell you. 00:18:05.619 --> 00:18:16.880 And so a question for us to ask a question that I want to ask you is if, if you were a friend to yourself, where would you create more structure in your life? 00:18:16.880 --> 00:18:21.279 If you were, if you were a friend to yourself, no, you're so you're not, you've got to take yourself out. 00:18:22.359 --> 00:18:31.619 But if you just saw your, your friend's life and it looked exactly like yours, what would you say, honey, or bro, we got to change some stuff. 00:18:33.579 --> 00:18:33.980 Mercy. 00:18:35.700 --> 00:18:37.000 It was on purpose. 00:18:37.200 --> 00:18:37.339 Yeah. 00:18:37.359 --> 00:18:37.599 Right. 00:18:37.680 --> 00:18:39.759 Don't, we're not that church. 00:18:40.539 --> 00:18:41.180 All right. 00:18:41.380 --> 00:18:43.799 The other thing is that God fills our world. 00:18:43.799 --> 00:18:46.059 The first God creates structure. 00:18:46.339 --> 00:18:48.160 Second God fills our world. 00:18:48.500 --> 00:18:51.259 It's amazing that God tells us to do, to do the same. 00:18:53.140 --> 00:18:54.779 He fills the world with light. 00:18:55.460 --> 00:19:08.680 This barren ground becomes vegetation, the sun and the stars, they don't just shine, but it says he gives them the opportunity to fill and then to rule the day and the night. 00:19:09.079 --> 00:19:12.140 The waters are in one specific area. 00:19:12.140 --> 00:19:19.859 The birds fly across the expanse of the heavens and then God tells us to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. 00:19:22.279 --> 00:19:24.140 What is, what does this, what does this mean then? 00:19:24.180 --> 00:19:25.400 What does this tell us about God? 00:19:26.019 --> 00:19:28.579 It communicates he wants us to live a full life. 00:19:29.859 --> 00:19:36.200 He doesn't want us to, to feel empty and to feel like nothing and to feel inconsequential. 00:19:36.839 --> 00:19:43.359 This is, it's a, it's a struggle because we're trying to communicate how big God is while also saying, well, we have a lot of value as well. 00:19:43.359 --> 00:19:59.680 And that's something that's not an easy, it's not easy that God is so big and that in some regard we are expendable, but God wants us to live a full life and he wants to be near to us and he wants us to live a life that is worshiping him, which is a full life. 00:20:00.180 --> 00:20:02.259 Jesus says the same thing. 00:20:02.299 --> 00:20:07.700 He says, he's talking about, he's talking about evil, basically people who are deceivers. 00:20:08.220 --> 00:20:13.339 And he says, you guys, they have a voice and, you know, but then he says, listen to my voice. 00:20:13.339 --> 00:20:16.940 He says, I have come that they may have life and have it to the full. 00:20:17.079 --> 00:20:17.980 Yeah, for sure. 00:20:18.180 --> 00:20:18.519 For sure. 00:20:22.630 --> 00:20:25.089 He wants us overflowing and filled up. 00:20:25.170 --> 00:20:28.410 Well, how can we be overflowing and filled up and not chaotic? 00:20:28.630 --> 00:20:32.289 I, I don't know exactly, like there's structure that has to be created. 00:20:32.390 --> 00:20:34.250 I think there's wisdom in all of this. 00:20:36.569 --> 00:20:40.230 But I want to ask, what are, what are we filling our lives with? 00:20:44.730 --> 00:20:46.349 Again, be your friend for a second. 00:20:47.309 --> 00:20:52.480 And just, just consider you're your friend, so you're not yourself. 00:20:52.599 --> 00:20:53.700 You can give yourself every out. 00:20:53.799 --> 00:20:58.319 You know, people say that, that we judge ourselves on our motives and we judge others based on their actions. 00:20:58.339 --> 00:20:58.619 Okay. 00:20:58.680 --> 00:21:01.059 So, so if you're your friend, you're kind of judging based on actions. 00:21:03.380 --> 00:21:07.799 Does your daily, weekly life, does it reflect the heart of God? 00:21:12.079 --> 00:21:22.519 Are you, are you overflowing with good as we think about what's the difference between being we're filled with something, what's the difference being, being filled with chaos versus being filled according to God? 00:21:22.519 --> 00:21:28.259 Are we filled with good that, that out of the overflow, there's so much good fruit that's being born. 00:21:34.089 --> 00:21:42.349 Think about for your life, what is this week, this, this next week, if you just said, I'm going to live an abundant life, what would you do different? 00:21:50.779 --> 00:21:59.980 The last thing that, that we see is that God sees the good that we get. 00:22:00.079 --> 00:22:00.759 You get the image. 00:22:00.819 --> 00:22:08.680 I don't know if you, when I, when I'm reading it, I'm reading it out, even just reading it out loud, but I probably read, probably read it three, uh, three to four times this week. 00:22:08.900 --> 00:22:11.579 Um, maybe more probably reliably three or four times. 00:22:11.619 --> 00:22:19.680 I read this, just Genesis one, uh, this week in straight through and I felt like, wow, there's so many times where he just says, it's good. 00:22:19.799 --> 00:22:20.220 It's good. 00:22:20.299 --> 00:22:29.480 Couldn't you have just said at one time, it would have been fine if he just says, does everything it says, it's very good and it calls it a day and yet God looks at every day and he says, you know what? 00:22:29.500 --> 00:22:30.039 This is good. 00:22:32.190 --> 00:22:37.369 And then, and then he doubles down at the end of, uh, at the end of it and he, you know, humanities created. 00:22:37.450 --> 00:22:39.089 He says, it's very good, right? 00:22:40.750 --> 00:22:42.230 God, what does it say about God? 00:22:42.250 --> 00:22:42.910 He's not hurried. 00:22:42.950 --> 00:22:43.670 He's not frenetic. 00:22:43.710 --> 00:22:45.829 He's not going place to place to place. 00:22:45.869 --> 00:22:47.450 I got to do this and then I'll be done. 00:22:47.470 --> 00:22:59.289 I'm going to get to this place so fast, you know, and the idea I'm, I'm guilty of this, but I'm, when I'm, when I'm speeding, I, there's times when I drive and I'm like, I'm not really, why do I want to get somewhere faster? 00:22:59.430 --> 00:23:00.829 Well, it's not really for any reason. 00:23:00.829 --> 00:23:02.890 I'm like, I'm not, I'm already early or late. 00:23:03.049 --> 00:23:03.730 One of the two. 00:23:04.170 --> 00:23:06.210 Uh, I'm generally not on time. 00:23:06.450 --> 00:23:07.769 Why am I going to this place so fast? 00:23:07.829 --> 00:23:10.890 Well, to get there, to sit, you know, or we're going someplace. 00:23:11.369 --> 00:23:12.309 God's not that way though. 00:23:12.410 --> 00:23:15.170 He's not running someplace and then stopping. 00:23:15.269 --> 00:23:19.869 He's, he's, he's, he's calm and he's relaxed and he's not hurried. 00:23:19.910 --> 00:23:21.230 He's not going from thing to thing. 00:23:21.470 --> 00:23:22.630 He paces himself. 00:23:22.710 --> 00:23:23.329 He's calm. 00:23:23.430 --> 00:23:24.009 He's wise. 00:23:24.069 --> 00:23:24.750 He's intentional. 00:23:25.349 --> 00:23:27.069 He appreciates what's going on around him. 00:23:27.069 --> 00:23:27.930 Yeah, for sure. 00:23:28.769 --> 00:23:38.869 He takes time to step back and look at, this is what I've created and I, I get the image again, we'll know in heaven of him even, even just sighing, just great relief. 00:23:39.470 --> 00:23:39.869 Wow. 00:23:40.150 --> 00:23:41.190 You know, it's good. 00:23:46.349 --> 00:23:51.430 It doesn't look, uh, if you've ever, uh, I don't know if you're anything that, that we do. 00:23:51.509 --> 00:24:11.369 You know, I, I feel this, uh, I feel this with when I speak, I feel this, uh, like with lessons or sometimes when I'm playing basketball once in a while and people come watch me, which is almost never now, but, but it used to be, it used to be more and, uh, or, or, you know, if I'm after I rep a game, especially if Spencer is there, I might ask, Hey, was that okay? 00:24:11.369 --> 00:24:13.710 Or did I kind of, you know, what did I mess up? 00:24:13.849 --> 00:24:15.069 And there's this insecurity. 00:24:15.069 --> 00:24:17.049 Like we think like, is this good? 00:24:17.069 --> 00:24:24.230 And maybe if you, if you do art or if you're at work or you, you put yourself out there, you might wonder like, is this good? 00:24:25.029 --> 00:24:28.910 God doesn't feel that there's, there's no insecurity inside of him. 00:24:28.910 --> 00:24:31.630 I mean, he does something and he just says, this is good. 00:24:32.210 --> 00:24:32.369 Wow. 00:24:37.529 --> 00:24:38.089 What is this? 00:24:38.089 --> 00:24:38.509 What is this? 00:24:39.230 --> 00:24:41.049 What does this tell us then about ourselves? 00:24:42.049 --> 00:24:55.710 I think we got to be intentional about the times we step back and look at God's creation and we ought to look for the, for the good inside of it in our day-to-day speech with one another and our day-to-day speech, uh, with, with the world around us. 00:24:55.750 --> 00:24:58.009 There are so many things that we can complain about. 00:24:58.069 --> 00:25:02.950 There's not a shortage of them, of things that are going wrong in our lives, things that are frustrating. 00:25:03.130 --> 00:25:05.089 And we don't, we don't paint them as complaints. 00:25:05.269 --> 00:25:08.650 We paint them as realities, but we keep talking about them. 00:25:08.910 --> 00:25:09.029 Yeah. 00:25:10.349 --> 00:25:10.710 Yeah. 00:25:11.509 --> 00:25:11.869 Yeah. 00:25:12.450 --> 00:25:13.750 We're not looking for the good. 00:25:13.809 --> 00:25:16.950 We're just, we're bringing up everything that, ah, it's not bad. 00:25:17.309 --> 00:25:18.910 It's just part of life. 00:25:19.349 --> 00:25:19.710 Yeah. 00:25:19.730 --> 00:25:21.089 But, but what are you talking about? 00:25:21.109 --> 00:25:22.329 That's the good part about life. 00:25:22.349 --> 00:25:24.130 God, God does stuff and says, this is good. 00:25:24.150 --> 00:25:24.869 It's very good. 00:25:24.910 --> 00:25:29.470 I believe if God were to look at your life, he would be able to identify a bunch of good in it. 00:25:29.509 --> 00:25:29.710 Right. 00:25:29.710 --> 00:25:29.849 Yeah. 00:25:30.150 --> 00:25:30.250 Yeah. 00:25:30.569 --> 00:25:33.970 That he, and he would look and say, wow, I've done, I've done this and this and this. 00:25:33.990 --> 00:25:34.589 And it's amazing. 00:25:34.869 --> 00:25:39.670 The, the bad stuff is only what we've done to ourselves or that somebody has done to us. 00:25:40.130 --> 00:25:43.750 Uh, he would say, no, I've got the, there's so much good in your life. 00:25:43.930 --> 00:25:44.250 Yeah. 00:25:44.289 --> 00:25:45.210 Have you thought about this? 00:25:45.269 --> 00:25:46.390 It's not that big of a deal. 00:25:46.670 --> 00:25:46.990 Really? 00:25:47.170 --> 00:25:48.170 Have you thought about this? 00:25:48.289 --> 00:25:48.609 Yeah. 00:25:48.930 --> 00:25:50.049 Somebody always has it worse. 00:25:50.109 --> 00:25:50.369 Certainly. 00:25:50.450 --> 00:25:55.569 But even when we're saying somebody always has it worse, generally, generally we're looking at somebody's bad, right? 00:25:55.630 --> 00:25:57.950 That, oh man, just look at yourself, man. 00:25:57.970 --> 00:25:59.190 What is good in your life? 00:25:59.190 --> 00:26:06.930 God would, God would be able to go and have, if you've got to sit down, have a coffee with God, he would go down the list of all the good things in your life. 00:26:07.089 --> 00:26:07.250 Wow. 00:26:07.369 --> 00:26:07.569 Yeah. 00:26:08.210 --> 00:26:08.390 Okay. 00:26:12.900 --> 00:26:13.519 What's that? 00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:14.880 The best. 00:26:14.980 --> 00:26:15.099 Yeah. 00:26:15.140 --> 00:26:17.859 That'd be, uh, coffee in heaven is going to be crazy, right? 00:26:18.220 --> 00:26:20.680 If coffee on earth is good, man, coffee in heaven. 00:26:22.339 --> 00:26:23.059 Next level. 00:26:23.180 --> 00:26:23.960 Oh my gosh. 00:26:24.359 --> 00:26:26.000 And we're not going to get tired either. 00:26:26.000 --> 00:26:27.099 So we don't even need the cafe. 00:26:27.180 --> 00:26:28.140 We'll just be charged up. 00:26:30.880 --> 00:26:32.559 Man, it's going to be that good. 00:26:33.519 --> 00:26:37.880 Man, uh, we're, we're, we're a part of it, right? 00:26:37.900 --> 00:26:40.359 We're a part of God's amazing creation. 00:26:40.700 --> 00:26:41.720 And it's good. 00:26:41.720 --> 00:26:44.339 And he looks at us, he says, it's very good. 00:26:44.480 --> 00:26:47.460 God looking at your life, he'd say, your life is very good. 00:26:47.980 --> 00:26:50.279 I don't know how much money you have. 00:26:50.319 --> 00:26:52.539 I don't know what you've been struggling with. 00:26:52.599 --> 00:26:55.079 I don't know where you're at in your career. 00:26:55.079 --> 00:26:58.200 As you look at somebody else, you might say they're better off than I am. 00:26:58.720 --> 00:27:00.400 God would look at your life and say, you're very good. 00:27:00.740 --> 00:27:02.200 You've got it very good. 00:27:09.319 --> 00:27:25.680 I want to, I want to ask us, uh, there, there's going to be a time this week, uh, in the, there's a time this week as part of the, our quiet time, um, series to just identify, but look at the good that God has done in your life and, but then look at what's going good in your life right now. 00:27:26.319 --> 00:27:26.720 Yeah. 00:27:27.859 --> 00:27:42.240 You know, as, as we bring this lesson in for a landing, the, the Bible starts in a garden, the Bible ends in the garden as well. 00:27:44.359 --> 00:27:47.240 We're going to read, uh, Revelation 21. 00:27:48.680 --> 00:27:57.480 It says, uh, then I saw a new heaven and a new earth for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and there was no longer any sea. 00:27:58.640 --> 00:28:08.839 I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride, beautifully dressed for her husband. 00:28:09.339 --> 00:28:22.839 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, look, God's dwelling place is now among the people and he will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will be with them and be their God. 00:28:23.140 --> 00:28:25.859 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. 00:28:25.859 --> 00:28:34.500 There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain for the old order of things has passed away. 00:28:39.539 --> 00:28:42.859 This is the new creation that we're hoping for. 00:28:42.960 --> 00:28:45.559 This is what we are looking forward to. 00:28:46.180 --> 00:28:52.720 This is what anyone who has said Jesus is Lord and is following God wholeheartedly is looking to. 00:28:53.079 --> 00:28:54.859 I want to get there one day. 00:28:54.880 --> 00:28:56.559 I want to see it one day. 00:28:59.940 --> 00:29:01.500 You know what it says though? 00:29:02.240 --> 00:29:04.380 We might say, what does this, what does it mean? 00:29:04.440 --> 00:29:09.000 It says at the end of verse one, it says there's no, there's, there's a lot of things, but there's no sea. 00:29:11.420 --> 00:29:17.640 Realize that the view of sea in the Hebrew understanding is it's just, it's chaos. 00:29:17.839 --> 00:29:18.779 Sea is chaos. 00:29:19.400 --> 00:29:20.200 It's disorder. 00:29:20.400 --> 00:29:21.480 It's untamable. 00:29:22.259 --> 00:29:25.940 This is why it's so powerful when Jesus calms the storm, right? 00:29:25.940 --> 00:29:29.400 And he just, he just says, and they're like, Oh my gosh, who can do that? 00:29:29.519 --> 00:29:31.880 Even, even the wind and the waves obey him. 00:29:32.039 --> 00:29:40.319 And then he walks on water and he, and at every, at every step of the way, Jesus is showing I'm able to calm the things you have no idea how to come. 00:29:42.799 --> 00:29:46.539 And, and, and, and here God says, there's no chaos anymore. 00:29:46.720 --> 00:29:49.559 You're full, but you're full of only the good stuff. 00:29:50.480 --> 00:30:04.279 You know, as we look at our week, certainly make, make, make points, take time, make energy to create structure, to be filled with good things, and then to focus on the good. 00:30:04.440 --> 00:30:04.559 Amen. 00:30:05.140 --> 00:30:09.839 Thank you so much for listening to the Kalamazoo church of Christ podcast. 00:30:10.099 --> 00:30:13.519 If you're in the Kalamazoo area, we'd love to get connected. 00:30:13.740 --> 00:30:21.140 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. 00:30:21.279 --> 00:30:23.740 In any case, you'll be hearing from us next week.