WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:04.080 So we have a guest speaker here that will be bringing the word, Jack Kraus. 00:00:04.320 --> 00:00:09.359 Uh many of you probably already know who he is, but in case you don't, here's some info about Jack. 00:00:09.519 --> 00:00:12.000 Jack is married to his wife, Shirley. 00:00:12.160 --> 00:00:13.519 They have two grown children. 00:00:13.599 --> 00:00:13.839 Yeah. 00:00:14.000 --> 00:00:19.280 Uh ten grandchildren, and they have been members at NBC since the fall of 1985. 00:00:19.600 --> 00:00:26.879 Jack has taught math and Bible in schools in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as well as Sunday school at NBC. 00:00:27.039 --> 00:00:40.079 He earned an MDiv and a THM degree at Westminster Theological Seminary, has worked as a hospice chaplain for over 17 years, and pastored the Liberty Corner Bible Church for 13 years. 00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:42.960 And most importantly, Jack loves the Lord and loves the word. 00:00:43.200 --> 00:00:46.000 So thank you, Jack, for preaching this morning. 00:00:53.039 --> 00:00:53.679 Good morning. 00:00:53.840 --> 00:01:02.719 One one more little thing about the bio is that uh I'm a woodworker and I'm very skilled at making kindling wood and sawdust. 00:01:03.200 --> 00:01:08.159 So if any of you are in need of any of that stuff, uh come see me afterwards. 00:01:08.400 --> 00:01:10.159 I'm very skilled in that. 00:01:11.920 --> 00:01:15.439 Uh my word to the PowerPoint crew up there. 00:01:16.879 --> 00:01:19.280 Same as first service, te absolvo. 00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:29.519 Those of you who are not Catholic and remain uneducated, or you didn't take Latin in school, that means I absolve them of any errors because they're probably mine. 00:01:29.840 --> 00:01:31.840 Te absolvo mea culpa. 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:38.879 Uh if you don't understand that, ask Pastor Dave, he's studying Latin. 00:01:39.200 --> 00:01:40.640 He'll help you out. 00:01:41.439 --> 00:01:53.760 Have you ever known someone who was so bad off from their life situation that emotionally and spiritually there doesn't seem to be any way out for them. 00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:57.200 They have just seemed to hit rock bottom. 00:01:58.400 --> 00:02:02.239 Maybe somebody feels like they don't fit in with those around them. 00:02:02.480 --> 00:02:05.840 Maybe because someone told them that they don't fit in. 00:02:06.319 --> 00:02:21.280 It was a number of years ago I was at a Dunkin' Donuts in a city not too far from here, and as I walk in, I notice that I appear to be a minority, and as I'm making my order, which back in the day was a standard number three. 00:02:21.439 --> 00:02:29.120 Those of you who are Dunkin' Donuts historians know that that was a bagel, cream cheese, medium coffee. 00:02:29.599 --> 00:02:29.919 Amen. 00:02:30.479 --> 00:02:31.360 Thank you. 00:02:31.919 --> 00:02:33.120 Hallelujah. 00:02:34.400 --> 00:02:42.400 And as I'm standing there getting ready to make my order, I hear this voice behind me that says, You don't belong here, you better leave. 00:02:43.759 --> 00:02:47.680 And I turn around and I look, and everybody's looking at me. 00:02:48.879 --> 00:02:51.199 I went ahead and placed my order. 00:02:51.520 --> 00:02:53.360 I got my Dunkin' Donuts. 00:02:54.639 --> 00:02:55.759 Then I left. 00:02:56.000 --> 00:02:57.919 I am not leaving without my coffee. 00:02:58.080 --> 00:02:59.439 I came in here for coffee. 00:02:59.520 --> 00:03:00.879 I had to find a parking place. 00:03:00.960 --> 00:03:02.719 I'm not leaving without it. 00:03:02.960 --> 00:03:08.879 Well, you know, there's all kinds of reasons why a person may not fit in. 00:03:09.280 --> 00:03:17.199 Might be economic or social standing, might be skin color, might be ethnic background, might be an unplanned pregnancy. 00:03:17.520 --> 00:03:20.719 It could be getting fired from a job, laid off. 00:03:20.800 --> 00:03:22.319 That's humiliating. 00:03:22.719 --> 00:03:24.719 Might be you got kicked out of school. 00:03:25.120 --> 00:03:27.599 Anyone here go to Grove City or know Grove City? 00:03:29.280 --> 00:03:30.400 Any hands going up? 00:03:30.639 --> 00:03:31.199 All right. 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:37.280 I understand that the pool hall isn't there in town anymore. 00:03:38.000 --> 00:03:40.800 That's good for anybody who's a student there. 00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:49.439 It shouldn't have been there when I was there because it doesn't help you improve your skill in analytic geometry and calculus. 00:03:49.599 --> 00:03:52.719 It's great for regular geometry, but not for that. 00:03:53.599 --> 00:03:55.919 You can figure out how I found that out. 00:03:56.159 --> 00:03:57.439 They kicked me out twice. 00:03:57.520 --> 00:03:58.879 It's a great school. 00:04:00.639 --> 00:04:06.639 You might even say, first time, shame on me, second time, shame on them, because they made the mistake of taking me back. 00:04:06.800 --> 00:04:09.520 But story for another day. 00:04:10.319 --> 00:04:13.439 Maybe it's past criminal activity, maybe it's a failed marriage. 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:14.960 I mean, there's any number of things. 00:04:15.039 --> 00:04:23.680 It could be medical condition or disease, might even be a sight condition, anything that someone else would now look down on you, or maybe say you don't belong. 00:04:24.240 --> 00:04:35.040 Perhaps the affliction is really more that somebody else thinks exists and doesn't really exist, but you still wind up being on the outside, rightly or wrongly. 00:04:35.360 --> 00:04:44.319 And maybe nothing I mentioned fits, but maybe you know something that fits, and you're having a hard time and you're hurting. 00:04:44.959 --> 00:04:49.199 Number of things that occur in life, sometimes we cause them ourselves. 00:04:49.439 --> 00:04:51.600 I'm not going to blame the school for my flunking out. 00:04:51.680 --> 00:04:52.480 That was me. 00:04:53.199 --> 00:04:58.639 But there are other things that someone else has caused them, and you're bearing the brunt of it. 00:04:58.879 --> 00:05:07.839 Maybe the reason why you lost your job was not your fault, it was somebody else's bad planning or whatever, and you got downsized because somebody else makes a mistake. 00:05:08.319 --> 00:05:10.639 Maybe there's nowhere to lay the blame. 00:05:11.439 --> 00:05:23.040 And perhaps we even think that God agrees with our accusers, that you really don't belong, that you really are on the outside. 00:05:24.079 --> 00:05:31.839 If any of you have read the literature from CCEF, Christian Counseling and Education Foundation, I recommend their stuff. 00:05:32.959 --> 00:05:35.600 You'll run across a pair of questions. 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:41.120 Question number one is what's the biggest thing you're dealing with in life today? 00:05:42.560 --> 00:05:48.480 Question number two is what does the gospel have to do with it? 00:05:49.439 --> 00:05:57.120 See, our biggest struggles as Christians can be dealt with through an understanding and an application of the gospel. 00:05:58.240 --> 00:06:00.399 Two wrong ways to respond to the gospel. 00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:04.639 First is to say, I'm good enough the way I am. 00:06:05.120 --> 00:06:06.720 I'm okay with God. 00:06:07.360 --> 00:06:09.199 I don't need the gospel to be saved. 00:06:09.279 --> 00:06:11.680 I don't need the gospel to be renewed. 00:06:11.759 --> 00:06:13.360 I'm fine just the way I am. 00:06:13.519 --> 00:06:22.720 And of course, the implied message with that is if I'm okay, you're not, and I'm going to look down on you. 00:06:23.120 --> 00:06:24.800 You're on the outside. 00:06:25.120 --> 00:06:27.040 You're the one that has the problem. 00:06:27.680 --> 00:06:31.120 Which then leads to the second wrong way to respond to the gospel. 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:33.920 And that is, I'm too sinful. 00:06:34.240 --> 00:06:35.600 I'm too lost. 00:06:36.319 --> 00:06:38.000 I'm beyond help. 00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:39.439 I can't be saved. 00:06:39.519 --> 00:06:43.120 And the implied message is Jesus is a wonderful Savior. 00:06:43.360 --> 00:06:45.120 His love is terrific. 00:06:48.480 --> 00:06:51.279 But I've outrun it going downhill. 00:06:51.839 --> 00:06:53.439 I'm too far gone. 00:06:53.680 --> 00:06:55.040 I can't be helped. 00:06:55.279 --> 00:06:56.800 I can't be saved. 00:06:57.040 --> 00:07:01.439 And the believer might say, I can't be restored, I'm too far gone. 00:07:01.759 --> 00:07:13.040 Well, this morning I'd like for us to take a look at one individual described in Scripture who wanted to have a redemptive, saving relationship with Jesus Christ. 00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:14.079 Well, with God. 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:15.600 Start with there. 00:07:16.000 --> 00:07:18.000 And yet he couldn't. 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:20.399 He's damaged goods. 00:07:21.199 --> 00:07:24.079 He can't worship God with the community. 00:07:24.240 --> 00:07:25.920 He's on the outside. 00:07:26.560 --> 00:07:29.839 He was, you might say, too lost beyond help. 00:07:30.160 --> 00:07:33.360 Because that's what his fellow Jews would have said. 00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:38.720 The main issue for this morning's sermon is going to be looking at Acts chapter 8. 00:07:38.800 --> 00:07:40.160 That's our priority. 00:07:40.879 --> 00:07:43.040 Verses 26 to 40. 00:07:43.439 --> 00:07:49.920 Then we're going to look at the solution to the problem that's found in the Gospel, and in particular in the Gospel of Isaiah. 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:51.199 You're thinking, huh? 00:07:51.360 --> 00:07:52.319 Gospel of Isaiah? 00:07:52.399 --> 00:07:54.000 Yeah, Gospel of Isaiah. 00:07:54.240 --> 00:07:56.480 And then looking at three applications. 00:07:56.959 --> 00:08:00.000 So if you have your Bibles, turn with me to Acts chapter 8. 00:08:00.240 --> 00:08:04.160 My translation that you have that is supposed to be up on the screen. 00:08:04.240 --> 00:08:06.879 And if it's not, it's my fault, not theirs. 00:08:08.319 --> 00:08:09.759 It's probably different. 00:08:10.079 --> 00:08:11.600 Follow either one. 00:08:12.959 --> 00:08:19.839 Luke writes, Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, Rise, go at midday on the road. 00:08:20.079 --> 00:08:23.439 This is desolate, going from Jerusalem to Gaza. 00:08:23.600 --> 00:08:25.279 And rising, he went. 00:08:25.519 --> 00:08:40.960 And look, a man, an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a ruling official of Candace, queen of Ethiopia, who was over all her treasure, who had come to worship in Jerusalem, and was returning and sitting in his chariot and reading the prophet Isaiah. 00:08:41.519 --> 00:08:45.200 And the Spirit said to Philip, Go and be joined to this chariot. 00:08:45.440 --> 00:08:52.879 While running, Philip heard him reading the Isaiah the prophet and said, You don't know what you're reading, do you? 00:08:53.840 --> 00:08:55.360 Anybody ever tell you that? 00:08:56.879 --> 00:09:01.840 And so he said, How could I possibly be able unless someone will guide me? 00:09:02.080 --> 00:09:05.120 And so he urged Philip, coming up to sit with him. 00:09:05.360 --> 00:09:08.240 Now the passage of scripture he was reading was this. 00:09:09.279 --> 00:09:17.360 As a shepherd, or as a sheep was led to slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before his shearer, in this way he did not open his mouth. 00:09:17.600 --> 00:09:20.559 His justice was taken away in his humiliation. 00:09:21.120 --> 00:09:23.360 Who will relate his posterity? 00:09:23.840 --> 00:09:27.279 Because his life was taken up from the earth. 00:09:28.399 --> 00:09:33.600 Now the eunuch, replying to Philip, said, I ask you, concerning whom does the prophet say this? 00:09:33.840 --> 00:09:36.000 Concerning himself or someone else? 00:09:36.320 --> 00:09:42.879 Then Philip, opening his mouth, and beginning from this scripture, told him the good news about Jesus. 00:09:43.440 --> 00:09:53.279 And as they went along the way, they came to some water, and the eunuch says, Look, water, what prevents me from being baptized? 00:09:53.600 --> 00:09:55.679 And he commanded the chariot to be stopped. 00:09:55.840 --> 00:10:00.320 And they descended into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 00:10:00.799 --> 00:10:09.279 Now when they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no longer, for he was going on his way, rejoicing. 00:10:10.159 --> 00:10:17.360 Now Philip was found in Azotis, going through all the towns, and he was preaching the good news until he came to Caesarea. 00:10:18.399 --> 00:10:22.559 So as we open up this text, there are four characters that are involved. 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:23.759 First, the angel. 00:10:23.919 --> 00:10:30.000 He's the one who directs Philip to leave his ministry in Samaria, go down to Jerusalem. 00:10:30.159 --> 00:10:33.840 From Jerusalem, then get on this road that goes over to Gaza. 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:56.639 Second individual involved in this passage is the Holy Spirit himself, who tells Philip to join this particular chariot on that desolate road, and then, no play on words here, spirits him away to continue his ministry going up the Mediterranean Sea coast. 00:10:58.159 --> 00:11:09.120 And then, of course, there's Philip himself, who's one of the deacons from Acts chapter 6, who's involved in preaching and evangelizing. 00:11:09.679 --> 00:11:11.759 And then lastly, there's Fred. 00:11:13.840 --> 00:11:16.080 Now, here's Fred. 00:11:16.639 --> 00:11:23.440 You know, if you remember from the sermon series in 2 Timothy, there was Janice and Jambres. 00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:28.080 Those were the magicians in Genesis that challenged Moses. 00:11:29.279 --> 00:11:35.039 Now, you don't get those names back in Exodus, but they come along because they needed to have a name. 00:11:35.360 --> 00:11:37.919 Well, Fred needs a name. 00:11:38.080 --> 00:11:40.559 I mean, you can't just keep calling him the eunuch, the eunuch. 00:11:40.639 --> 00:11:42.559 Hey eunuch! No, you can't do that. 00:11:42.720 --> 00:11:44.320 Come on, that's that's not nice. 00:11:44.480 --> 00:11:46.480 Hey Fred, how's it going? 00:11:47.039 --> 00:11:48.559 And Fred would probably tell you. 00:11:48.720 --> 00:11:52.000 Those of you who are Doonesbury fans will know where I got the name. 00:11:53.440 --> 00:11:57.360 Fred is a ruling official for the Queen of the Ethiopians. 00:11:57.519 --> 00:12:01.039 He's the head of the treasury for Ethiopia. 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:04.960 He's wealthy enough on his own to own an Isaiah scroll. 00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:08.159 Keep in mind there's no printing presses back in these days. 00:12:08.559 --> 00:12:10.799 Nobody has this stuff on their tablet. 00:12:12.480 --> 00:12:23.440 You have to pay somebody to make a perfect copy of the scriptures, and you probably pay extra if this is on vellum and not on parchment. 00:12:23.679 --> 00:12:25.600 He spent a lot of money for this. 00:12:25.840 --> 00:12:27.919 He's wealthy enough to command a chariot. 00:12:28.000 --> 00:12:32.159 He probably has servants, certainly a driver. 00:12:32.960 --> 00:12:41.519 He probably even has security support, because he is he's a mock, he's a mocker to use the original Yiddish. 00:12:42.879 --> 00:12:53.840 He's wealthy enough to be able to make this journey from Ethiopia to Jerusalem back again, and yet, as far as Luke is concerned, his important role here is being a eunuch. 00:12:55.759 --> 00:12:59.120 Just a little thought on that journey that he's been making. 00:12:59.360 --> 00:13:02.799 From Jerusalem to Gaza, it's about 60 miles minimum. 00:13:03.279 --> 00:13:04.879 It's a desolate journey. 00:13:05.120 --> 00:13:13.919 If any of you get the chance to go to Israel and especially in the lower portion of Israel, when they talk about the Judean wilderness, it's exactly that. 00:13:14.080 --> 00:13:17.120 There are some sections that look like it's a moonscape. 00:13:17.519 --> 00:13:21.039 This is a barren, desolate road that they're traveling on. 00:13:21.440 --> 00:13:28.559 And then from Gaza to the land of Ethiopia, it's it's another approximately 700 miles minimum. 00:13:28.960 --> 00:13:33.360 So he's reading the scroll, and it's on a bumpy road. 00:13:33.519 --> 00:13:36.000 Keep in mind, he's not in the backseat of a limo. 00:13:37.919 --> 00:13:39.440 He's in a chariot. 00:13:41.039 --> 00:13:43.600 And lots of potholes on this road. 00:13:43.759 --> 00:13:46.480 We're not talking about a superhighway here. 00:13:46.879 --> 00:13:48.399 This is desolate. 00:13:49.039 --> 00:13:50.799 Not well paved at all. 00:13:51.200 --> 00:13:52.960 So that's not an easy read for him. 00:13:53.039 --> 00:13:58.240 And it's a good thing he's not driving, because he would definitely get lost. 00:13:59.759 --> 00:14:06.799 So he's traveled close to 800 miles to get from home to Jerusalem. 00:14:07.200 --> 00:14:17.919 No Lakinta inns, no waffles for breakfast, and that for me is a criteria, in addition to the dunk of donuts along the way. 00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:23.919 There's no wawa, no quick check, no 7-Eleven. 00:14:24.399 --> 00:14:26.320 This is a tough journey. 00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:27.919 What's he take the trip for? 00:14:28.080 --> 00:14:29.840 He wants to worship in Jerusalem. 00:14:30.000 --> 00:14:33.279 The problem is when he gets there, he can't. 00:14:33.600 --> 00:14:35.279 He's not allowed. 00:14:36.320 --> 00:14:41.120 The issue is not his nationality, it's not his skin color, it's his being a eunuch. 00:14:41.279 --> 00:14:46.480 Spiritually speaking, as far as the community is concerned, he's damaged goods. 00:14:46.799 --> 00:14:53.360 You can take a look at Deuteronomy chapter 23, verse 1, and see what I'm talking about. 00:14:53.840 --> 00:14:55.519 So, what's the issue? 00:14:55.759 --> 00:15:02.559 Well, for a Jew, a son of Abraham, he couldn't enter the temple to formally worship to offer his sacrifices. 00:15:03.279 --> 00:15:05.679 He wants to, he can't. 00:15:07.600 --> 00:15:09.919 How he becomes a eunuch is unknown. 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:11.440 Was it his parents' choice? 00:15:11.519 --> 00:15:17.360 Did they make that decision for him when he was very young so that he could get this plum government position? 00:15:17.919 --> 00:15:22.320 Did the government force it on him as he came into government service? 00:15:22.480 --> 00:15:24.799 Or did he make the decision himself? 00:15:25.039 --> 00:15:27.679 Oh, however, he got there, it really doesn't matter. 00:15:27.759 --> 00:15:29.519 It's not part of our text. 00:15:30.159 --> 00:15:31.440 He is who he is. 00:15:31.679 --> 00:15:33.279 He's damaged goods. 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:36.080 What's been done to him can't be undone. 00:15:36.320 --> 00:15:38.000 It's a permanent change. 00:15:38.720 --> 00:15:40.799 Think he might have been discouraged? 00:15:41.279 --> 00:15:43.759 I suspect he was pretty well bummed out. 00:15:44.879 --> 00:15:54.159 Yet, even though he's outside the covenant and its blessings, he's bought this Isaiah scroll and he's reading it. 00:15:56.799 --> 00:15:58.799 But there's one more thing. 00:15:59.039 --> 00:16:01.200 And that is God set his sights on him. 00:16:01.279 --> 00:16:02.320 How do we know? 00:16:02.799 --> 00:16:10.480 Well, because the angel sends Philip from Samaria to Jerusalem to this desolate road to minister just to him. 00:16:11.279 --> 00:16:14.639 He is the target of Philip's ministry. 00:16:14.879 --> 00:16:17.519 The Spirit directs Philip to that chariot. 00:16:17.759 --> 00:16:23.919 And Fred's heart is already prepared to hear because he's been reading through this Isaiah scroll. 00:16:24.879 --> 00:16:32.960 And by the time Philip catches up to that chariot, he is reading the fourth servant song in Isaiah. 00:16:33.919 --> 00:16:35.679 Little cultural nuance here. 00:16:36.080 --> 00:16:40.639 It was normal for people in the ancient world to read out loud. 00:16:40.960 --> 00:16:43.120 That's standard, that's normal. 00:16:44.399 --> 00:16:49.759 We probably tell somebody who's reading out loud to be quiet, I'm concentrating on something else. 00:16:50.159 --> 00:16:53.360 But in the ancient world, reading out loud did this for you. 00:16:53.600 --> 00:17:01.679 What you see with your eyes, you speak with your lips, you hear with your ears, you get it better than just reading with your eyes. 00:17:01.919 --> 00:17:05.920 It's less likely you'll be distracted while you're doing that. 00:17:06.160 --> 00:17:08.480 And so he's reading out loud. 00:17:09.119 --> 00:17:14.160 He gets to that fourth servant song and he doesn't understand what's going on. 00:17:14.400 --> 00:17:15.599 How do we know that? 00:17:15.920 --> 00:17:17.039 He says so. 00:17:17.440 --> 00:17:18.559 And so he has questions. 00:17:18.720 --> 00:17:20.240 Well, who's he gonna ask? 00:17:20.480 --> 00:17:23.680 Well, he's probably not gonna ask his servants what they think. 00:17:24.000 --> 00:17:24.880 They're servants. 00:17:25.039 --> 00:17:27.440 He's not gonna ask his security detail. 00:17:27.839 --> 00:17:30.960 They're watching out for the bad guys on the road. 00:17:32.160 --> 00:17:33.839 He doesn't have cell service. 00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:35.359 He can't go to Google. 00:17:35.599 --> 00:17:37.680 Oh, there wasn't Google. 00:17:38.160 --> 00:17:40.160 So who's he gonna ask? 00:17:40.960 --> 00:17:44.400 Well, let's use our holy imagination for a moment. 00:17:44.559 --> 00:17:47.519 That's kind of like reading between the lines of the text. 00:17:48.559 --> 00:17:53.519 Fred has been to Jerusalem not long after the death and resurrection of Christ. 00:17:53.920 --> 00:17:57.119 It's also after Pentecost. 00:17:58.160 --> 00:18:01.039 Do you suppose he heard about Jesus while he was there? 00:18:02.799 --> 00:18:04.079 I think so. 00:18:05.119 --> 00:18:13.519 Do you suppose he heard about that great number of people who were baptized on that day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2? 00:18:14.400 --> 00:18:22.400 Do you suppose he's learned anything while he's there, in addition to, no, you can't come into the temple proper and worship? 00:18:24.079 --> 00:18:29.039 So Philip, here's Fred reading Isaiah 53, figures he doesn't understand it. 00:18:29.200 --> 00:18:31.359 Philip admits he doesn't understand it. 00:18:31.519 --> 00:18:37.839 And so Philip's big question is, or Fred's big question, is who's the prophet writing about? 00:18:38.559 --> 00:18:42.000 Now, from our perspective, we know the answer. 00:18:42.960 --> 00:18:47.200 But you wouldn't have known that if you didn't know the New Testament. 00:18:48.240 --> 00:18:50.319 You wouldn't have that information. 00:18:51.200 --> 00:19:01.680 And so as Fred is reading through, and he gets to Isaiah 51, uh, excuse me, 41, 41, the servant is Israel. 00:19:02.799 --> 00:19:03.119 Okay. 00:19:03.680 --> 00:19:06.400 Then we get to the four servant songs. 00:19:07.279 --> 00:19:08.720 Is it Israel? 00:19:09.680 --> 00:19:11.200 Is it Isaiah? 00:19:12.480 --> 00:19:20.319 But I mean, get to the fourth song, Isaiah 52, verse 13, through all of chapter 53. 00:19:21.279 --> 00:19:24.799 You can't say it's Isaiah, so who is it? 00:19:25.279 --> 00:19:27.200 Who is this individual? 00:19:28.319 --> 00:19:34.240 And so when he asks that question, it's reasonable. 00:19:35.599 --> 00:19:39.119 It's at this point that Philip answers that question. 00:19:40.559 --> 00:19:48.880 And beginning with this passage and going forward, Philip proceeds to tell Fred about Jesus. 00:19:49.440 --> 00:19:51.039 He gives him the gospel. 00:19:51.279 --> 00:20:09.920 He talks about Jesus as the Savior of sinners, as the reconciler of enemies, as the perfect covenant keeper for covenant breakers, even for damaged people, especially for damaged people. 00:20:10.559 --> 00:20:12.000 Because you know something? 00:20:12.880 --> 00:20:15.119 Ain't none of us here aren't damaged. 00:20:15.759 --> 00:20:23.920 Everybody since Genesis chapter 3, with the exception of Jesus, has sinned, fallen short of the glory of God. 00:20:24.160 --> 00:20:30.079 Every single human being is in that damaged category one way or another. 00:20:30.240 --> 00:20:32.720 Nobody escapes that description. 00:20:33.039 --> 00:20:36.720 You may not be a eunuch, but you are damaged goods. 00:20:37.119 --> 00:20:38.880 And you are on the outs. 00:20:40.240 --> 00:20:42.559 So let's go back to that holy imagination. 00:20:42.720 --> 00:20:52.480 If Philip is showing Fred the good news about Jesus, starting in Isaiah 52-53, do you suppose he continues in the Gospel of Isaiah? 00:20:52.880 --> 00:20:54.160 I think so. 00:20:55.039 --> 00:20:58.240 Now, if we go three more chapters, where would we be? 00:20:58.480 --> 00:21:01.200 I'm gonna ask you to risk and do math in public. 00:21:03.359 --> 00:21:05.839 Starting 53, three more chapters. 00:21:05.920 --> 00:21:07.119 Where do we wind up? 00:21:09.519 --> 00:21:10.079 Thank you. 00:21:10.240 --> 00:21:10.960 Somebody's brave. 00:21:11.039 --> 00:21:12.880 First service, nobody was brave enough. 00:21:13.039 --> 00:21:14.799 Nobody wanted to risk. 00:21:15.680 --> 00:21:17.680 We wind up in chapter 56. 00:21:17.839 --> 00:21:20.640 Take a look with me with Isaiah 56. 00:21:20.960 --> 00:21:21.440 I'll read it. 00:21:21.519 --> 00:21:24.720 It's up on the board on the screen, I hope. 00:21:24.880 --> 00:21:27.359 Um verses 3 through 8. 00:21:30.079 --> 00:21:36.880 Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, The Lord will surely separate me from his people. 00:21:37.599 --> 00:21:41.680 And let not the eunuchs say, Behold, I'm a dry tree. 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:56.640 For thus says the Lord, to the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters. 00:21:57.279 --> 00:22:01.519 And I will give them an everlasting name that shall Shall not be cut off. 00:22:03.680 --> 00:22:07.359 Interesting play on words that he uses for the eunuchs. 00:22:08.240 --> 00:22:23.599 And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant, these I will bring to my holy mountain and make them joyful in my house of prayer. 00:22:23.839 --> 00:22:27.759 Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar. 00:22:28.000 --> 00:22:34.160 For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples. 00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:44.960 The Lord who gathers the outcasts of Israel declares, I will get, I will gather yet others to him besides those already gathered. 00:22:46.319 --> 00:22:49.680 Again, think about that holy imagination. 00:22:50.000 --> 00:22:55.920 Fred's a foreigner, at least in the sense that he's working for the Ethiopian government. 00:22:56.160 --> 00:22:57.680 He's the treasurer. 00:22:58.799 --> 00:23:00.640 But he's also a eunuch. 00:23:02.880 --> 00:23:04.640 And he's also a Jew. 00:23:05.359 --> 00:23:07.359 He's on the fringe of the community. 00:23:07.599 --> 00:23:10.720 You say, I don't see where he's called a Jew here. 00:23:11.200 --> 00:23:12.960 For a cup of coffee. 00:23:13.759 --> 00:23:15.839 I'll tell you how I can say that. 00:23:16.160 --> 00:23:21.279 But it's going to cost you because you want to go to lunch in a little while, and I won't take the time now. 00:23:23.039 --> 00:23:24.400 But he's a eunuch. 00:23:24.720 --> 00:23:26.720 Luke doesn't want us to forget that little detail. 00:23:26.799 --> 00:23:28.319 He says it five times. 00:23:28.559 --> 00:23:48.319 And so here in this chapter 56, God is speaking directly to people like Fred, who in this case are both foreigners and eunuchs, normally excluded from the community and yet not under the gospel. 00:23:50.559 --> 00:23:55.599 Outcasts like him on the fringe of community have a chance. 00:23:55.759 --> 00:24:00.799 Now, reading Isaiah 56, just reading it through once, it almost sounds like salvation by works. 00:24:01.039 --> 00:24:14.160 If you guys who are on the outside, keep my Sabbaths, you show up every Sabbath day, and you keep the covenant that I establish, you're going to make it. 00:24:14.960 --> 00:24:17.839 Problem is, nobody can do that. 00:24:18.400 --> 00:24:24.799 You know, the purpose of the law is not to bring us to salvation, except to show us that we need it. 00:24:25.839 --> 00:24:28.640 The law is descriptive of our sin. 00:24:28.720 --> 00:24:31.759 It is not prescriptive for the solution to our sin. 00:24:32.480 --> 00:24:38.480 The law just shows you how guilty you are, because we don't keep it, because we can't keep it. 00:24:38.960 --> 00:24:49.920 And I can imagine at this point Fred is telling Philip why he can't be covenant included, in spite of his belief in God, in spite of his desire to have this relationship. 00:24:50.480 --> 00:24:54.000 And that's why Philip is preaching the good news of Jesus. 00:24:54.400 --> 00:25:06.559 Because what Fred can't get under the old covenant, he can, by grace, in the new covenant, because of Jesus. 00:25:09.759 --> 00:25:13.119 No exclusions, no limitations. 00:25:13.599 --> 00:25:15.599 Well, how open is the gospel? 00:25:17.759 --> 00:25:23.759 Paul writes in Galatians chapter 3, verse 28, my error on the number two up there. 00:25:23.920 --> 00:25:27.039 You'd think I would know the difference between a two and a three by now. 00:25:29.200 --> 00:25:31.440 Here is neither Jew nor Greek. 00:25:31.599 --> 00:25:33.359 There is neither slave nor free. 00:25:33.440 --> 00:25:37.839 There is no male or female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 00:25:38.079 --> 00:25:40.960 Paul goes a little bit further in Colossians chapter 3. 00:25:41.279 --> 00:25:50.880 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian city, enslaved and free, but Christ is all and in all. 00:25:50.960 --> 00:25:56.720 In other words, it doesn't matter what your relationship is on a horizontal level with other people. 00:25:59.039 --> 00:26:00.000 Doesn't matter. 00:26:00.240 --> 00:26:03.519 Because in Christ, all of those distinctions are taken away. 00:26:04.079 --> 00:26:06.880 None of them exist in Christ. 00:26:10.400 --> 00:26:13.359 Do you remember that second wrong response to the gospel? 00:26:14.640 --> 00:26:15.759 I'm too sinful. 00:26:15.920 --> 00:26:17.200 I'm too lost. 00:26:18.160 --> 00:26:19.839 I'm beyond help. 00:26:20.319 --> 00:26:21.839 I can't be saved. 00:26:23.279 --> 00:26:25.359 Know anybody that thinks that? 00:26:25.920 --> 00:26:27.599 Maybe it's you this morning. 00:26:30.799 --> 00:26:36.640 Paul in Galatians and Colossians tells you that's not true. 00:26:38.400 --> 00:26:42.720 And maybe you think you've gone too far, that your sin is too great. 00:26:43.039 --> 00:26:45.279 Remember that first hymn we sang this morning? 00:26:45.599 --> 00:26:46.960 His mercy is more. 00:26:48.720 --> 00:26:59.359 Paul says in 1 Timothy chapter 1, the saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. 00:27:00.480 --> 00:27:02.799 In another place, he'll tell you why he's the foremost. 00:27:02.960 --> 00:27:04.799 He's persecuted the church. 00:27:05.519 --> 00:27:11.440 He's arrested people for believing in Jesus and for worshiping God. 00:27:12.720 --> 00:27:13.680 Jesus. 00:27:15.440 --> 00:27:25.920 But I received mercy for this reason that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example of those who were to believe in him for eternal life. 00:27:26.480 --> 00:27:35.599 What Paul is saying is that when you stack goodness in the world, I'm down here. 00:27:36.160 --> 00:27:38.400 I'm the foremost of sinners. 00:27:38.960 --> 00:27:40.799 I'm at the bottom of this pile. 00:27:40.880 --> 00:27:43.119 I'm the most damaged of goods. 00:27:44.319 --> 00:27:52.000 And if God can save me, and if God will save me, there's no limitations for you. 00:27:54.400 --> 00:28:02.559 What I think is special about this passage is that Fred has already read something in Isaiah 53. 00:28:03.759 --> 00:28:10.559 Surely he has borne our griefs, carried our sorrows, yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God and afflicted. 00:28:11.599 --> 00:28:15.200 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities. 00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:20.160 Upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 00:28:20.880 --> 00:28:24.480 We all, like sheep, have gone astray. 00:28:24.720 --> 00:28:30.799 We have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 00:28:31.839 --> 00:28:37.759 No wonder Fred wants to know who this is that Isaiah is writing about. 00:28:38.319 --> 00:28:39.839 Casual observation. 00:28:40.160 --> 00:28:46.319 Who is the our and the we that's being referred to in these three verses? 00:28:48.160 --> 00:28:58.000 I'll give you a hint, it's not Babylonians, it's not Assyrians, it's not Romans, it's not Greeks, it's Jews. 00:28:59.519 --> 00:29:04.160 We, God's people, still fall short. 00:29:05.759 --> 00:29:07.759 1 John chapter 1. 00:29:08.079 --> 00:29:12.079 John says, if anyone says he has no sin, he's a liar. 00:29:12.160 --> 00:29:13.519 The truth isn't in him. 00:29:14.960 --> 00:29:19.839 And of course, there's what Paul says about himself in Romans 7. 00:29:20.960 --> 00:29:22.720 The good I want to do, I don't do. 00:29:22.880 --> 00:29:24.880 The evil I don't want to do, I do. 00:29:25.200 --> 00:29:26.640 What a wretched man I am. 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:29.200 Now, the tense of the verb is important there. 00:29:29.440 --> 00:29:33.359 He's not saying this is what I was before the Damascus Road. 00:29:33.519 --> 00:29:36.000 He's saying this is what I am now. 00:29:37.599 --> 00:29:38.880 What, Paul? 00:29:39.279 --> 00:29:40.960 Pillar of the church? 00:29:41.279 --> 00:29:43.039 The great apostle? 00:29:43.519 --> 00:29:44.720 You have this problem? 00:29:44.960 --> 00:29:46.079 Paul says, yeah. 00:29:46.240 --> 00:29:47.519 What a wretched man I am. 00:29:47.680 --> 00:29:49.519 Who will deliver me from this body of death? 00:29:49.680 --> 00:29:50.720 I'm stuck in this. 00:29:50.880 --> 00:29:52.799 I can't escape sinning. 00:29:53.920 --> 00:29:56.559 I thank God through Jesus Christ, my Lord. 00:29:56.720 --> 00:30:00.720 There is therefore now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. 00:30:01.359 --> 00:30:07.279 There's gospel applied to believers as well as to unbelievers. 00:30:08.799 --> 00:30:11.200 Hold that thought for just a second. 00:30:11.680 --> 00:30:18.640 For our three applications, application number one is you may have just recognized your lostness. 00:30:19.039 --> 00:30:21.359 You came here this morning because somebody invited you. 00:30:21.519 --> 00:30:25.759 You came here because, well, the coffee downstairs isn't bad. 00:30:26.079 --> 00:30:27.440 I know because I already had some. 00:30:27.599 --> 00:30:29.599 It's not Dunkin' Donuts, but it's not bad. 00:30:29.759 --> 00:30:31.200 And the price is right. 00:30:31.920 --> 00:30:33.680 I'm all in favor of that. 00:30:34.720 --> 00:30:37.440 You've recognized your alienation from God. 00:30:38.559 --> 00:30:41.200 Jesus came to redeem sinners just like you. 00:30:42.480 --> 00:30:43.680 Just like you. 00:30:44.400 --> 00:30:48.240 Nobody too lost who can't be found by the great shepherd. 00:30:48.400 --> 00:30:55.039 Just like Fred on the Gaza Road, met by Philip, and this may be the exact reason why you're here this morning. 00:30:56.559 --> 00:31:02.480 Application number two, and this goes back to that reading in Isaiah 53, verses 4, 5, and 6. 00:31:02.720 --> 00:31:21.920 You may be a believer who's fallen so far from your ideals, from your understanding of how a Christian is supposed to be, from what you think others' ideals are, that you're not living up to those standards, and you think that there's no return, there's no way back. 00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:23.839 That's not true at all. 00:31:24.880 --> 00:31:33.200 And to illustrate that, think about that extended parable that Jesus gives in Luke chapter 15. 00:31:34.880 --> 00:31:36.240 Don't need to turn there. 00:31:36.480 --> 00:31:38.960 I think you already know the gist of the parable. 00:31:39.200 --> 00:31:40.559 It's got three parts. 00:31:40.799 --> 00:31:42.480 First off, there's a shepherd. 00:31:42.720 --> 00:31:44.240 He has a hundred sheep. 00:31:45.440 --> 00:31:47.759 They're not somebody else's sheep, they're his sheep. 00:31:48.000 --> 00:31:49.519 One of them wanders off. 00:31:51.440 --> 00:31:53.119 What's a shepherd do? 00:31:53.759 --> 00:31:55.119 I got a hundred sheep. 00:31:55.680 --> 00:31:56.720 I'm down to 99. 00:31:56.880 --> 00:32:00.559 A 1% loss, I can deal with a 1% loss. 00:32:01.119 --> 00:32:02.799 We'll be more careful tomorrow. 00:32:02.960 --> 00:32:05.279 No, he doesn't take the 1% loss. 00:32:05.440 --> 00:32:07.519 He leaves 99 in the open field. 00:32:07.759 --> 00:32:08.960 He goes and finds the one. 00:32:09.200 --> 00:32:11.599 When he finds the one, brings it back. 00:32:11.759 --> 00:32:15.359 When he gets home that night, he calls his friends and said, Rejoice with me. 00:32:15.519 --> 00:32:17.920 My sheep that was lost is now found. 00:32:19.359 --> 00:32:26.640 And then Jesus adds that little part there's more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than 99 that don't need repentance. 00:32:30.240 --> 00:32:31.519 Second part of that. 00:32:33.359 --> 00:32:37.279 It's probably her dowry, her life insurance policy. 00:32:37.599 --> 00:32:45.279 And in those coins, which she would probably have kept in a ring around her neck just for safekeeping. 00:32:45.440 --> 00:32:47.119 You leave it in the house, somebody's gonna steal it. 00:32:47.200 --> 00:32:48.559 Well, she's lost one. 00:32:49.119 --> 00:32:50.799 Ten percent loss. 00:32:53.119 --> 00:32:54.720 What's she gonna do? 00:32:55.200 --> 00:32:59.279 That's 10% of what I have to live on for the rest of my life. 00:32:59.759 --> 00:33:01.920 She scours that house. 00:33:04.240 --> 00:33:08.559 When she finds it, she calls her friends and she rejoices. 00:33:09.440 --> 00:33:10.559 Then there's the third part. 00:33:10.720 --> 00:33:12.160 A man has two sons. 00:33:12.799 --> 00:33:19.359 The younger son asks for his inheritance before the father dies. 00:33:20.559 --> 00:33:22.400 Dad, I can't wait for you to die. 00:33:22.559 --> 00:33:24.000 I want to party now. 00:33:24.960 --> 00:33:28.880 No delayed gratification with this guy, except for a couple of days. 00:33:29.039 --> 00:33:34.720 He takes the inheritance that his father graciously gives him, and he goes and he squanders it in Atlantic City. 00:33:36.480 --> 00:33:41.839 Or Reno, Nevada, or I don't know, Bahamas maybe. 00:33:42.160 --> 00:33:43.920 Takes cruises around the world. 00:33:44.079 --> 00:33:47.359 Pretty soon, all of that inheritance is gone. 00:33:48.640 --> 00:33:54.880 And he winds up feeding pigs and wishes that he could eat the stuff that he's feeding the pigs. 00:33:55.119 --> 00:33:57.839 Now that's pretty low for a good Jewish boy. 00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:01.759 And he knows he's done wrong. 00:34:02.000 --> 00:34:05.759 And so he plans his sermon that he's going to give. 00:34:06.240 --> 00:34:07.680 It's not much of a sermon. 00:34:08.159 --> 00:34:10.719 Father, I've sinned against heaven and before you. 00:34:10.960 --> 00:34:12.639 Take me back as one of your servants. 00:34:12.719 --> 00:34:25.119 And he goes home and he gives that sermon, and before he actually gets it done, his father calls for the robe, for the ring, for the sandals for his feet, and then says, Go kill the fatted calf. 00:34:25.280 --> 00:34:26.719 We're going to have a party. 00:34:26.960 --> 00:34:29.440 My son that was lost is now found. 00:34:32.079 --> 00:34:37.920 When we think about that, we realize that there's something going on in this parable. 00:34:39.280 --> 00:34:44.000 Is the shepherd looking for somebody else's sheep to add to his flock? 00:34:46.239 --> 00:34:46.559 No. 00:34:47.599 --> 00:34:49.760 He gets his own sheep back. 00:34:50.480 --> 00:34:55.199 The woman, is she out on the street scouring the roadway for lost coins? 00:34:55.760 --> 00:34:56.079 No. 00:34:56.719 --> 00:34:58.880 She's looking for her own coin. 00:35:00.320 --> 00:35:09.360 Is Papa standing at the gate looking out down the road, waiting for somebody else's kid to come to see him? 00:35:10.480 --> 00:35:10.800 No. 00:35:11.920 --> 00:35:17.679 In each of those cases, it's the shepherd's lost sheep. 00:35:17.920 --> 00:35:20.000 It's the woman's lost coin. 00:35:20.159 --> 00:35:22.480 It's the father's lost son. 00:35:23.840 --> 00:35:28.079 But as we think about that, we realize there's another son involved. 00:35:28.320 --> 00:35:38.079 Now, for those of you who who are mathematicians here and you think math, 100 to 1, okay, he's lost one. 00:35:38.400 --> 00:35:40.000 That's one out of a hundred. 00:35:40.480 --> 00:35:42.639 The next one, it's one out of ten. 00:35:43.599 --> 00:35:47.360 What would you expect in the next relationship? 00:35:48.639 --> 00:35:51.199 Not one out of two, would you? 00:35:52.719 --> 00:35:56.400 That's because there are two lost sons. 00:35:56.639 --> 00:35:58.000 It's two for two. 00:35:58.320 --> 00:36:02.800 Now, if you remember third-grade arithmetic, what are you supposed to do when you have two over two? 00:36:04.320 --> 00:36:05.679 Reduce the fraction. 00:36:05.840 --> 00:36:07.039 It's a one for one. 00:36:07.199 --> 00:36:08.320 Thank you very much. 00:36:08.639 --> 00:36:10.320 You get the star for the day. 00:36:10.559 --> 00:36:11.440 Very good. 00:36:11.840 --> 00:36:14.320 The second son is lost in a different way, though. 00:36:14.400 --> 00:36:16.960 He's off the reservation in a different way. 00:36:17.840 --> 00:36:19.840 He's off the reservation. 00:36:20.639 --> 00:36:26.079 By having the right actions on the outside and a bad heart on the inside. 00:36:26.639 --> 00:36:30.400 He will not come to the celebration for his older brother. 00:36:31.599 --> 00:36:35.360 He actually, when his father approaches him, says, Come on in, enjoy this. 00:36:35.519 --> 00:36:36.639 He says, Wait a minute. 00:36:36.800 --> 00:36:38.960 I've done everything you wanted me to do. 00:36:39.119 --> 00:36:42.639 I've played by the rules, I've obeyed all the rules. 00:36:42.960 --> 00:36:46.960 You didn't even let me have a goat for a celebration with my friends. 00:36:48.000 --> 00:36:58.320 But this son of yours, won't admit it's his brother, this son of yours, he comes back after he's squandered his wealth on prostitutes. 00:36:58.480 --> 00:36:59.760 How does he know that? 00:37:00.639 --> 00:37:02.239 Has he heard something? 00:37:02.639 --> 00:37:05.679 Or is he transferring his own thoughts and desires? 00:37:06.079 --> 00:37:07.920 Just asking the question. 00:37:12.239 --> 00:37:15.519 And he says, I'm not going to come in. 00:37:16.400 --> 00:37:17.920 He's worse than I am. 00:37:18.159 --> 00:37:20.719 See, this is the other wrong response of the gospel. 00:37:20.880 --> 00:37:22.239 Not I'm too lost. 00:37:22.480 --> 00:37:24.559 He says, He's too good to be lost. 00:37:24.719 --> 00:37:25.519 I'm good enough. 00:37:25.599 --> 00:37:26.719 I don't need the gospel. 00:37:26.960 --> 00:37:29.119 I'm better than my brother. 00:37:29.679 --> 00:37:32.000 Not my brother, your son. 00:37:32.159 --> 00:37:33.599 I'm better than him. 00:37:34.079 --> 00:37:37.840 And you know, when Jesus gives this parable, to whom is he giving it? 00:37:38.159 --> 00:37:39.280 To his disciples? 00:37:39.599 --> 00:37:39.920 No. 00:37:42.000 --> 00:37:43.840 To the general crowd? 00:37:44.159 --> 00:37:44.480 No. 00:37:45.360 --> 00:37:58.800 He's telling this to the scribes and Pharisees who are protesting to Jesus that these sinners, these tax collectors, other dregs of society are coming to Jesus to hear the gospel. 00:38:03.280 --> 00:38:09.119 Who are these scribes and Pharisees to hinder these other people to come for salvation? 00:38:09.519 --> 00:38:11.280 Who are coming to repent? 00:38:12.400 --> 00:38:17.599 Indeed, who is that older brother to protest his younger brother's return and restoration? 00:38:18.559 --> 00:38:19.760 Who indeed? 00:38:21.360 --> 00:38:35.679 Because it just demonstrates that those individuals are equally lost, just as damaged, but damaged in heart, not just in lifestyle. 00:38:36.800 --> 00:38:38.559 So one last question. 00:38:39.440 --> 00:38:45.039 Which one of these three people needs the gospel, needs grace, needs forgiveness? 00:38:45.280 --> 00:38:46.559 The lost sinner? 00:38:47.119 --> 00:38:54.800 The believer who's fallen and wants to come back, like the younger brother, or the older brother who thinks he's too good for all of this. 00:38:54.960 --> 00:38:56.960 Which one needs grace? 00:38:57.360 --> 00:38:59.599 Which one needs the gospel? 00:38:59.920 --> 00:39:02.079 Which one needs forgiveness? 00:39:05.840 --> 00:39:06.480 All of them. 00:39:06.639 --> 00:39:07.440 Thank you very much. 00:39:07.679 --> 00:39:09.039 A second gold star. 00:39:10.480 --> 00:39:11.679 All three. 00:39:12.800 --> 00:39:16.239 And so I come back to that CCEF question. 00:39:16.639 --> 00:39:19.360 What big thing is in your life right now? 00:39:20.880 --> 00:39:23.519 And what does the gospel have to do with it? 00:39:24.639 --> 00:39:31.039 What struggles are you going through that the gospel will help you with? 00:39:32.239 --> 00:39:37.039 Realizing how great a Savior Jesus is. 00:39:38.559 --> 00:39:42.400 The Father is waiting for sons and daughters to come home. 00:39:42.639 --> 00:39:45.440 The shepherd is out looking for sheep. 00:39:46.559 --> 00:39:52.159 The father is waiting for other sons and daughters to welcome the repentant and the restored. 00:39:53.519 --> 00:39:55.119 The door's open.