Near The King - 2 Samuel 15

Guest Speaker: Pastor Hunter Sbisa

Thanks for listening to the Living Faith St. Louis podcast. This episode is part of our weekly sermon ministry from Pastor Blade Sbisa, with occasional guest speakers and special series.
 For more information, visit the LFSTL website.

Transcript

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Amen. Alright, you guys can take a seat. Good morning again. I'm Hunter. I'm Blade's older brother. If there's anything that you like about Blade, he learned it from me. If there's anything that you don't like about Blade, he picked it up somewhere else. I'm just letting you know. So, uh not again, I know there's some visitors, so I welcome if you've been coming here for a little bit or if you're part of the church plant. I'm gonna hope you guys are encouraged. That that last song is literally, should be the cr the the sole desire of every single Christian. It's the simpli the simplicity of the Christian walk, is not trying to accomplish a bunch of stuff. Like even Blade, I think of Blade and Gabby coming out here out here with their family, and even the team that's helping plant this church, and even the people that were, think of, think of you guys that were here before as well. It's like the goal is not to make a big work. The goal is not to just make some massive work. The goal is actually to have a closer walk with Christ and then to beckon other people into that same thing. And that literally is the should be the desire of every Christian, is just to worship the Lord daily walking closer with him. And uh that is the heart of this message. So I'm excited. It's very it's very fitting. So anyway, um I am uh I I do pastor, I'm an I'm an associate pastor at our church back home in Living Faith, Living Faith Least Summit. Uh so raise your hand if you're if you were on the team that came this with from Living Faith, just raise your hand. Cool. So we got we got a good sized team. And I I love these people. Uh I've known them for a while now, at least some of them more than others. But I'm I'm looking forward to what God does in this church as more people come in, as more people come in and get saved, as more people come in and get discipled, to see a family unit built at this church, in this local church here in here in St. Louis is really exciting to think about. Um So I lead the young adults' ministry at our church. So they have to put up with me and hear from me again this weekend. So sorry guys if you're in if you're in the College of Young Adult Ministry, but we recently finished a one-year-long series in the book of Philippians. Okay, we finished that maybe a month ago. But when most people think of the book of Philippians, one of the most common things that people would say is like a key theme is most people will think joy. Um, joy or joy and suffering, right? When we think of Philippians, if you've read the Bible or if you're familiar, that's kind of like the familiar theme. And I would say that is a uh one of the meet the main themes, but I would say it's actually a subset or a sub-theme to what I see as the main theme of the book, and it's the right mind. So really Paul gets at like how to think. What is the right mindset that you're to have as a Christian? Um that's kind of what we what we walk through. And so it was interesting, just towards, you know, we finished that ser or we were getting through that series, and then just kind of in some side devotional reading that I was doing, um, I was in the Old Testament in 2 Samuel, and I was reading in 2 Samuel 15, and that's where we're gonna base, uh that's where this message this morning is based out of is 2 Samuel 15. But I believe that that chapter really captures and encapsulates this mind that Paul gets at in the book of Philippians. So that's what we're gonna be talking about this morning. So there's just for a little bit more clarity, there's two minds that Paul repeatedly contrasts in the book of Philippians. And it's it's what I've termed, the easiest way I could define it is this. You've got one, the vain glory seeker. So you've got one mind that seeks vainglory. Uh it is a self-focus, this is a person who's self-focused, and it doesn't mean the person is necessarily just like off in sin, like blatantly in sin. It's just simply when you're focused on self. When your focus is on self, you you are inevitably seeking uh vainglory because self, we are, we are, we're vain in ourselves. Relative to who God is, uh we're vain. And so then you've got the got the God's glory seeker. So these are the two mindsets that I see contrast in the book of Philippians. And this person is simply concerned with nothing else other than seeing the name of Jesus Christ magnified. That's it. Name of if if Christ is magnified, that that person is content. And that is the mindset that Paul is really driving home that all of us should have as believers, if we're believers. So in 2 Samuel 15, I want to compare two different men, Absalom, who's the son of David, and Itai, the Gittite. And again, to Blade's point, this was not planned. Uh I didn't know what Bible study they were going to, I didn't know the Bible study that they were going to be going in this Wednesday, but literally there is only one passage that gives context, or one chapter in the entire Bible that gives context for Psalm 3, and that's where we're going to be this morning. So I praise the Lord for just his ability to work out details that are beyond uh you know, beyond us. So Absalom, in short, is a clear picture of the vain glory seeker, and the tie is a very clear picture of the, again, what I've called as the God's glory seeker. Okay, so quick, quickly, I mean, if you have your if you have your Bibles, uh, which you're in church, you know, you should bring it back, you know. Uh, and if you don't, I think actually Blade has a bunch of, there's a bunch of Bibles in the pews, too. So please feel free to grab a Bible, open up to 2 Samuel 15, and we'll we'll get into some verses here in a sec. But just for some backstory, and again, if you're going to be a Bible study, you should pay attention because a little bit of, this will give you some good context for kind of leading up what happens leading up to Psalm 3. Um, in 2 Samuel chapter 13, you've got a guy named Amnon, who actually he ends up raping his his half-sister uh Tamar. So Tamar's brother Absalom stewed on that for about two years and then eventually killed Amnon. Okay, stews on it, let it sit, didn't say anything, stews on it, and then kills him. Absalom then fled for three years, and but David longed for him uh longed to see him. So he was gone, he stays away for three years, but David, his father, still longed to see him. Uh because even David was full of wrath after his his sister or his daughter was was raped. And so the next chapter, 2 Samuel 14, Absalom did reluctantly come back, but David didn't allow him to see his face for two full years. So he's gone for three years, comes back to Jerusalem after a lot of beckoning, and then David didn't allow him to see his face for two years. So again, Absalom just kind of waiting, hoping to see his father, but but isn't able. Um He tried to see David, but nothing came out of it because Joab, who was David's military, like right-hand military leader, wasn't essentially bridging the gap. And so uh the only way that he could really get Joab's attention or David's attention was to burn Joab's fields, which were right next to Absalom's. Not the best way to get somebody's attention. Okay, don't do that if you're trying to get somebody's attention. So he burned his fields down. Um and Joab finally so Joab's like, okay, you got my attention. Uh so he finally grants his request, and him and David saw each other once again. But even though they reunited physically, there's no evidence in the passage that any kind of legit reconciliation was made, and it's very clear that that is the case when you as we keep moving forward. So, 2 Samuel chapter 15, and this is kind of where again this will really give you some context for Bible study if you're going this this Wednesday. Um, in retaliation, Absalom then conspired against his father. So in 2 Samuel 15, you can read along in verse 4 through 5. It says, Absalom said, moreover, Oh, that I were made judge in the land, that every man which hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice. And it was so that when any man came nigh to him to do him obeisance, or that is reverence, he put forth his hand and took him and kissed him. So it says that Absalom actually did this for forty years, and it was shady and behind the scenes, conspiring against his father. So ultimately in this process, he's actually drawing men to himself in order that he would capture the hearts of all the men and all the women in the city, at least the men, and drawing, doing it for forty years behind the scenes. Like it was shady, it was manipulative, he knew exactly what he was doing. And here's the point Absalom, he drew men to himself rather than drawing men to the king who he should have been pushing them towards. He was focused on drawing men to himself. Vainglory seeker. It's important to note that David was not aware of any of this. So for 40 years, this is going on. David's not aware of it. The people even aren't aware of it. It says that the conspiracy was strong, is how the Bible words it. So even the people were unaware, like, nobody's aware of what Absalom was doing because it was very subtle, behind the scenes, manipulative, but he set himself up in this place of prominence, and so he's just slowly but surely gathering the hearts, or you know, stealing the hearts of these men away from the rightful king, his father David. Through a series of events, and in 2 Samuel 15, Absalom set himself up as king, and David was forced to flee. This is Psalm 3. So David literally is fleeing for his life because it gets to the point where all the people are now convinced that Absalom is king after 40 years, and David knows that his life is at risk, and so now he has to flee from his own son. Okay, so he flees and he takes a group of people with him, about six hundred men from Gath who chose to follow David, and among them was a guy named Itai. This is Itai the Gittite. So read with read along with me in 2 Samuel 15, verse 19 through 22. Then said to the king to Itai the Gittite, Wherefore goest thou also with us? Return to thy place and abide with the king, for thou art a stranger and also an exile. Whereas thou cameest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go up and down with us? Seeing I go whither I may, return thou, and take back thy brethren, mercy and truth be with thee. And Itai answered to the king and said, As the Lord liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, referring to David himself, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be. And David said to Itai, Go and pass over, and Atti the Gitai passed over, and all his men, and all the little ones that were with him. So I do want to do uh a quick comparison. So and uh before I even do that, it is it says in the passage, but in case you didn't catch it, Itai had literally come to Jerusalem the day before. Like he had no working relationship or functional relationship with David. He didn't know David. David's not mad at him, but he's like, hey, I don't even know you. You're trying to follow me, but I don't even know where I'm going. So just stay here, mercy and truth be with you. Just be with be under King Absalom, and even David. I can't even imagine. It's like you're your your your authority was just usurped, and David's like, hey, it's okay, God will take care of you, just mercy and truth be with you. Just stay here. But that was Atai's response. Whether in death or life, I'm I'm coming with you. Because I know he knew who the rightful king was. So a really brief compare uh character comparison. Um these first three points I'm gonna go through a little bit quicker. The last point is really where I'm gonna land on. But as a little comparison of their of again, Absalom versus Ati. Absalom was the son of David, and Ati was not. Of all people who should have had a working, healthy relationship with the king, it should have been the son. And so just right out the gate, it's a very sober warning for me because it's Absalom becomes a really clear picture of the Christian who is a spiritual son of God who is usurping the authority of the king. And they are focused on drawing others to themselves rather than drawing others to the Lord. You guys with me? You guys see that comparison? He's it's a sober warning to every believer it should be. It's like the the son who should have known is the one that's drawing all men to himself rather than pushing them towards the king himself. And so we need to ask: are there any ways that I, as a spiritual son of God, am seeking glory for self like Absalom? Maybe it's not in every area of your life, but it's like, are there any areas of your life where you're worried about drawing the attention to yourself? And if all of us are being honest, myself included, the flesh is really good at doing that. Amen. It just we want the glory, we want the focus, we want to feel valued by other peoples, and all the while while we do that, we're actually inevitably when we draw people towards us, you know what we're doing by default? Drawing them away from the king. That's why it's that's why it's dangerous. So number two, Absalom got the king's attention by burning Joab's field, whereas it high simply drew near the king.

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Okay?

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He burned, he lashed out, he got the king's attention in a very unhealthy manner. And we know. Maybe it was you, but we know a lot of people, it's very clear when somebody is acting out for attention or acting like a fool to get the attention of other people. And I know I'm being redundant here, but it it's a cry for attention. Like when people act foolishly in relation to others, it whether they're doing it in like a light-hearted way or a really heavy, a heavy way, it's a cry for attention nonetheless. And this was Absalom. Oftentimes because they lack affection from their parents and especially their fathers. Side point. Blake can preach a whole series on that. Okay. But uh many believers, sadly, do this the very same thing with God Himself. A lot of believers, the only way that they know how to get attention from their Heavenly Father, is when they're in an unhealthy way. They have to wait until they're in sin, or wait until they're just on their face confessing, or act they have to act out of, like, act like a fool, and that's the only time that they know how to actually get attention from their from their Heavenly Father. Like, how how I mean how sad. Then you have a tie, the Gitai, who's an awesome example. What does he do? Just simply draws near to the king. Just a closer walk with thee. That's it. Simply drawing near to the king. Like every, every okay, think about it. Blade's about to get into, you know, on the series he's doing, the new identity that we have in Christ. And then the third one, how he accomplished, how God accomplished that. What we have now post-resurrection, the ability, the fact that we are spiritually in Christ, and we don't have to go through a priest, and we don't have to go through a temple, and we don't have to uphold a law. Literally, spiritually, God has immersed us. If you're born again, God has immersed you in Christ. There has never been a time in history where you had it, where man had the ability to at every single moment of every single day take his eyes off self and to, in his heart, draw near to the God of the universe. That is a tie that gets high. He is a God, a God's glory seeker. So we need to be like a tie. Point being, don't be like Absalom, be like a tie, draw near to the king. Alright, uh, third comparison study, or third character comparison. Out of anger, Absalom put himself in the king's place, and again, it tie simply just wanted to be with the king. Um, Absalom put his place or put himself in the place of prominence. Ittai was like Atai didn't care about that. He just wanted to be with him. And you see from a lot of passages, including passages like 2 Thessalonians 4, literally, when we put ourselves in the place of prominence, it literally is a satanic way of thinking. That's how Satan thinks, that's how the Antichrist thinks when you look at Scripture, it's actually satanic. Um, and it's just of the flesh. So really we don't uh we we don't ever want to put ourself in the place of the Lord himself. That's a it's a dangerous place to be. Um, so last point, this is kind of the main point I want to land on with this character comparison, is this Absalom drew others to himself, Atai drew near to the king. This is what I want I want us to wrestle with. Absalom drew others near to himself, Itai drew near to the king. So here's what Atai said in verse 21. I know we already read it, but let's read it again. And Ati answered the king and said, As the Lord liveth, and as my Lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be. And you guys remember I said we went through the book of Philippians. If you do a word, if you use like a concordance online, and you just type in the words death or life. Not in that specific order, but just those three words. There are only three times in all of Scripture where death, the words death or life appear in your Bible. One is in 2 Samuel 15, uh, the other one's in one of the Psalms, I'm forgetting, but the other one is Philippians chapter 1. So again, very fitting in the picture that we see with the tie. So I want to look at listen listen to what Paul says in Philippians 1, 20, verse 21. It should be up on the screen. I should have a slide. Paul says this, according to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. So in this section, Paul emphasizes in this verse how there is, and I I drove this home when we went through this series, I don't have time to do it this morning. But simply put, Paul's getting at the point that if you're if you are saved in this life, like sorry, if you're in this life and you're living, you're living now, and if you're born again, you've accepted what Jesus did for you as a free gift of salvation for your sin, if that's the case, then you and I actually have nothing to gain in this life. According to the Bible, there's nothing you or I can gain in this life if we are spiritually born again. I think that's a hard it's a hard thing for us to recognize, Braden. I think of you going through your where you're at, like you're putting in a lot of time and a lot of energy and a lot of resources to hopefully gain a career. But actually, other than drawing near the Lord, there's nothing to gain in that. Like you and so, and again, I know all of us have different examples, we think we're gaining things. Like, there's a lot of things we do. A lot of time, money, and investment goes into a lot of things in life. God says you can't gain if you are if you know Christ as your Savior, there's actually nothing you can gain. Which should give me a lot different perspective on the things I'm like all the pursuits that I think are are so valuable that I give so much time and energy and effort to. The Bible says that there's actually nothing to gain because, spiritually speaking, I have everything in Christ. Peter says that we have been given all things that pertain to life and to godliness. Because once this life is over, the Bible says it, this little everything, the earth itself will burn, the heavens, the earth, it will burn up. So cool, I get the career, I get the wife, I get the I get the money, I get the you know, whatever it is, the body you've always wanted, it's gonna burn. At some point, it's not going to exist. So literally, the only thing that actually matters if I have it is spiritually, like the spiritual things that God has promised. And God says if I'm saved, if I'm born again, I literally have everything I need. There's nothing to gain in this life. And so, Paul, to Paul's point, he says, regardless if Paul lived or died, Paul's only concern was that Christ was magnified. You already have all of Christ. You can't get more of Christ, so the only thing that matters is if Christ is magnified in your life. For to me to live is Christ. And to die is gain. Because when we die, that's actually that at the moment, when you die physically, that's actually when we'll gain. We gain nothing in this life, but when we die, we get to be with our Savior, and that is gain. Amen? I'm looking for like it's this life is hard. I think like our our team, even this weekend, uh, we've had a lot, like a lot of spiritual attack, even on our team, just with like physical ailments. This life is hard. When I die, there's nothing but gain. I'm looking forward to it. Amen? Right? I'm looking forward to dying. You know what I'm saying? You know what I'm saying. Hear what I'm saying, don't hear what I'm not saying. Come on now. So a tie and Paul, though, they had the same mindset. And here and in both of them, this is the simplicity of it. They were both content simply being with the king. That's it. That was our mindset. They were simply content being with the king. But like twelve is usually when Okay, I just want to make sure. Okay. But I grew when we grew up, Blade was the one. I was the organized, structured one. Blade was definitely the unorganized. Like his room was a creative. Yes. Organized chaos. So anyway. Um, sounds good. Okay, so I mentioned this earlier, but again, Itai wasn't close with David, but he but Itai knew that he was the rightful king, and so he's just like, I just want to be with the king. That's it. I want to be with the king. So that was his desire. That was his mindset. And and just simply from the passage, I actually see three main reasons for why It's this mindset of why he was content, or at least three main things that drove this. And so I want to I want to at least go through those real quick. I do want to preface it with this. The first two points I'm about to say are somewhat conjecture. I'm inferring it from the scripture, even though it's not explicitly stated. I am inferring it, but I believe they're very biblically defensible points. And so I think they're I think they're worth mentioning. Okay, so here's the first reason Atai wanted to just simply be near the king. And the thing that made him a God's glory seeker. So, one, the first one is that Atai likely understood the blessing of the God of Israel. Atai would should have been aware of the blessing of the God of Israel. So if you guys, back earlier in the in the Samuel, the Ark of God, if you guys remember the story, the Ark of God was recaptured from the Philistines after they had taken it. It was recaptured. David's bringing it back to Jerusalem, and Uzzah puts his hand, the cart's about to fall, so he puts his hand up to stop it. He was not supposed to do that. He knew that he was not supposed to do that, and God he died. God had to judge him and take his life at that point because uh of his presence coming near the ark. David panics. He's like, How can I bring this like okay, if this is gonna happen, how can I bring this to Jerusalem? And so he he leaves it, um he leaves it with a guy named Obid Edom. And in 2 Samuel, 2 Samuel chapter 6, verse 10 through 12, look at what it says. So David would not remove the ark of the Lord unto him into the city of David, this was Jerusalem, but David carried it aside into the house of Obad Edom the Gittite. Remember, you've got Itai the Gittite, Obed Edom the Gittite, and the ark of the Lord continued in the house of Obid Edom the Gittite three months, and the Lord blessed Obed Edom and all his household, and it was told King David, saying, The Lord hath blessed the houth house of Obed-Edom and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the Ark of God. So both Ittai and Obed Edom were were Gittites, and these events happened. I mean, it was within like within forty to fifty years. And so you can only imagine that Obid or you can only imagine that Ittai being from that area, you've peep you've people walking around, are like, remember that, remember, remember that time where the house of Obad Edom was blessed? That was crazy. You guys remember that? Yeah, like everything at that time is or you know, is being passed around via oral tradition. They're telling stories, like inevitably, the house of Obad-Edom, everybody would have known that, man, there was a time where the, you know, remember that time where, man, the Ark of God was with us for three months and they were just blessed. Everything that pertained to the house of Obad-Edom, they were just blessed. So Atai had some understanding of, man, when the Ark of God, like when you're in the presence of God, there's blessing. There's a supernatural blessing that comes with being in the presence of God. And so Obad-Edom knew that there is blessing that comes from the God of Israel. He would have been aware of that. Even if he didn't experience it personally, he would have been aware of it. Number two, again, again, these are not explicitly stated, these are inference, but again, very biblically defensible, and I think they're worth pointing out. But number two, Eti likely understood the power of the God of Israel. He understood the blessing of the God of Israel. He also likely understood the power of the God of Israel. So Itai was a Gittite, which means, and I this was new to me as I studied it, it means that he was from Gath. Does anybody else, does this ring a bell of any other main Bible characters that were from Gath? I heard it, was it? Huh? Goliath. Goliath of Gath. So this dude was very aware of David who killed Goliath of Gath. He knew who the king was. Ittai knew that this guy, David, as a boy, that God used David to kill the Philistine giant, Goliath of Gath. Again, not explicitly stated, but I guarantee you he knew that David was the rightful king. Guarantee it. So no doubt that he was he was familiar with King David, who had previously defeated him. And regardless of the first two, here's the third point that I want to that I want I wanted to uh want you to see, is Atai's very name him itself. So Atai himself was characterized by a personal desire to be with the king. So literally, Itai's name means near or nearness. That is his name. That's who Atai is, or that's who he was, was a man of nearness to the king. This is just who he was. Regardless of the previous experience that he'd even had of the blessing and the power of the God of Israel, he was just a man who desired to be near to the he at least near to the thing that he knew he needed to be near to. It's who he was. He wasn't focused on self. And so it his name defined who he was. Okay, so those are kind of the three, like three main reasons I I can see why Etai had this mindset. And it shows me re it shows me, based on, you know, again, Atai had just came to Jerusalem the day before, but he was willing to go with David, not knowing where they would end up. It tells me that he really was not concerned about the where he was located. Like the physical location. He wasn't concerned about the physical location of where he was at. That was not the issue. He simply wanted to be near the king. He was not concerned about the physical location of where he was. He was concerned about the proximity to whom he was by. That's it. He just wanted to be by the right person. And so here's my key question for you here. And this this is more geared for for anybody here, which I think is the majority, but I again I don't know everybody here. But especially if you if you have professed Christ as your savior. I'm especially thinking of Blake and Gabby, um Genie? Gene? Gene? Say it right? Gene? Uh the church planning team, you guys, Kelsey, anybody else that's part of the, like that's been here for a while and is like trusting the Lord to see a church planted here? Here's my question. Have you experienced the blessing and the power of being near the Lord Jesus, the only true King? Like, has there been a time in your life? I'm talking any time. It doesn't have to be recent. Has there been a time in your life where you have seen the blessing of being with the Lord and seeing God's power on display when you're with the Lord? Have you seen his blessing and have you seen his power? Have you actually experienced it? Have you seen it? And my encouragement to all of you would be if the answer is yes, then just like it tie, you just draw near to the king. And that should be enough. Like what else am I looking for? You know, in those, you know, those day, all the moments, all the days where life gets really hard, it starts beating you up, you start to get in your own head, you start to question why in the world am I doing what I'm doing? Is this really worth it? Am I wasting my time? Am I wasting my money? Am I dragging my family the wrong direction? It's like, okay, have you seen God's blessing and power on display when you've pursued him in the past? Are you convinced that he is real and that he is working, that he wants to use you, that he is working through your obedience and faith? If so, then just draw near. That's the only motivation that we need as Christians, man. If you've seen the Lord work in your life, that's the only motivation that you need, that you and I both need to say, okay, I'm going to keep drawing near to the Lord regardless of the cost. Because he's with me. He's all powerful. He's with me. I know he has uh my best in interest, best in mind, for his glory. So going back to 2 Samuel 15, look at what Absalom did again. Okay, 2 Samuel 15, verse 6. And on this manner did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for judgment. So Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel. So again, as men would come to see, Absalom then stole their affection, put affection, drew n drew them near near to himself, and in the process turned them away from the king, from King David at that time. So the vain, and so here's something to consider. The vainglory seeker is from Philippians 1 is not intentionally, most people aren't like, you know, most Christians aren't like, hey, put like focus on me, focus on me. Like I want you to, you know, focus on me. Most people are intentionally trying to do that. But when the believer is self-focused, it draws people away from the king onto you. Does anybody here want that? Like I I you know, I I don't obviously it's a rhetorical question. The flesh actually does want it, which is which sucks. Like, I wish it wasn't the case, but that's just the nature of our flesh. It's it's self-focused, it's it's self-seeking, that's just what it does. But I'm just letting you know, like, the warning to the Christian is that when we are self-focused, even if you don't want to be drawing people away from the Lord, if you're self-focused, you inevitably will. And like that's a petrifying thought to me. Like, I I don't want that. I want to learn how to just set my affection on the Lord Himself. So can you honestly say this morning that you have the same mindset as a tie? And again, this is what he said. Surely in what place my Lord the King shall be, whether in death or life, even there also will thy servant be. That's the question for all of us. Is do I have the same mindset as a tie? Are you am I content following Christ regardless of the cost? Regardless if it puts my life in uncomfortable circumstances, which it does. Am I okay with that? Like, is it still worth it to me to follow the Lord even if it puts me in an uncomfortable uncomfortable circumstances? Am I content following Christ, even if it costs me my health? Am I content following Christ even if it means that I don't get to enjoy all of the creature comforts that this life has to offer? And again, as Americans, we have every it's it's so easy for me to say that. I know it's so easy, like much easier said than done. I know it is. Okay, I say that knowing that the moment a creature comfort is taken from me, my flesh is like, give it back to me. Right? We all like our creature comforts. Um, but but again, I know, I know in uh in my mind and my heart that God owes it, God owes us none of those things. God doesn't owe me Amazon delivering something to my door the very next day. Like just dumb, dumb thing. I mean, the conveniences of this life are insane. The comforts of this life are insane. I mean, I just can't even get my head around it. We have we have no idea. So it's very easy for me to say that. I get it, but to myself, am I content following Christ, even if God says, okay, no creature comfort, no creature comfort, none of this, none of this. Am I content just, or am I content just being with being with Christ, being with the Lord? Am I content following Christ, regardless if it means not getting that thing that I've had my eye on for years? Maybe there's something you've been pursuing for a long time, or you've like, you're really hoping to get. It's on your bucket list. You're really wanting it. You're your whole you're like, you're like geared a lot of your life to getting that thing. What if God said no? Would you be content with the Lord still? I'm talking ears. I mean, there were you you guys know, like, whether and you that might be you, and if it's not you, then you definitely know people where like there's people who have geared their entire life to getting something that they want. But you remember, uh, in Philippians 1, Paul said, For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. There's nothing to gain in this life. Now, it doesn't mean you can't pursue things in this life. Like if there's things that, you know, that you desire, things that God's oh, just desires that you have, you can pursue those. Man, just make sure it's submitted to the Lord. Because if he does take it, like Paul says again in the book of Philippians, I count all in uh chapter three, I count all things as loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. So there's this thing I'm pursuing all the while. Okay, God, I still in my mind I've counted it as loss. If you say no, I'm gonna choose to follow you regardless. You count it as loss. Why? For the excellency of the knowledge of Christ. When we count things as loss in this life, we seek God's glory, not vainglory, God's glory, and I count it as loss. That's when I actually come to know the Lord intimately. And the more we hold on to the things that we've been pursuing, you actually forsake nearness to the king. You forsake your like a working, functional, healthy relationship with the God of the universe. And I don't want that. I want to be like a Tai. So both both Paul and a tie believed it was worth it. It's very clear. Both of them believed it was worth it. They weren't focused on self. And so, really, the question for you and I this morning is this what's keeping you and I from believing the same thing? We look at, you know, you look at Bible characters like like them, and a lot of times we're tempted to think, well, yeah, they're I mean, they're pretty awesome though. I don't, you know, that's that's different type, like that's a different level of holiness that that you know I could never attain to. Like I, yeah, that's just like that's an exceptional case. No, that's actually the that's actually the reasonable mindset that that God has called us to if we're born again, if we have accepted Christ as our Savior, understanding that this world has nothing to offer us, that's literally the mindset that God has called us to, is to seek his glory, not our not our own. And so here's the reality in closing. If you and I are not willing to follow the Lord, whether in death or life, just like just like a tie said, if we're not willing to follow the king in death or life, regardless of the cost, if we're not willing to do that, then by default, we will seek ways to preserve our own life. You guys see the connection? If I'm not willing to follow in in death, death or life, God, whatever you want for me, I'm willing to follow regardless. If I'm not willing to give up my whole life and count everything as loss for the sake of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, if I'm not willing to give to give it all up, then by default, what that means is I'm looking for ways to preserve my life. So it's one or the other. It's either Absalom or Itai. You can't be both. It's either I seek to follow the Lord and I'm willing to lay my life down and say, God, you're worth following, or it's Absalom to say, I know who the king is, I'm his son, but yet I actually would rather preserve self and stay self-focused. Focus on my things, focus on my how good, you know, what I have going on in my life. It's either death or self-preservation. The problem is one of them glorifies God, one of them, one of them God is pleased with, one of them does not. One of them brings God honor and glory, one of them does not. One of them draws other people towards the Lord, one of them draws other people away from the Lord. That's the issue. You know, people try to take a middle ground, and you you literally can't. It's impossible. And there is so much bless. Remember, when I tried to I tried to drive this home with the with the college and adult ministry, uh, you can hear a message like this sometimes and think, you can be tempted to think like, okay, I I get it, but it just sounds like a miserable life. Like it just sounds like, man, this just sucks. Like I just have to give God everything. And it's just like, this is just it's just gonna be hard, it's gonna be terrible, it's gonna be miserable. Okay, you remember what I said was a sub-theme of the book of Philippians? Joy. When you do what, when you and I have the mindset that a tie had, he gives you joy as a result. The reason most people lack joy, the reason why so many people are depressed and anxious and down and fearful is because they're actually like Absalom and they're focused on self and they're trying to preserve their own life. And when you and I do that, it's the most miserable way to live. As a lost person or as a or as a saved person. It's a miserable way. I've been there. I have lived that life, it's miserable. And I don't know if you guys can say if you guys ever have, but if you have not, I'm telling you, please don't live that way because it's not it's not a fun way to live. And that's how most of the world does live. But when you f when you and I follow the Lord and we count all things as loss and we seek his glory, just like at Ty, man, you actually get to be, you get to be with the king. I mean, again, like he could have stayed in Jerusalem and had all the comfort, like the comforts of Jerusalem, but he's he's under a false king who God never intended to be there. And he knew to be with the king. So this this is it. We must choose to be content simply being near our king, Christ himself. And if you don't, if you're here, again, I I I'm not going to assume anything, but if you're here and you you don't, you can't honestly say that yes, I have been born again, yes, I have been saved from my sin. Yes, I've accepted what Christ did on my behalf. If you haven't, if you haven't accepted that, or if you have no idea what salvation means, then you're not you're not a spiritual son, biblically speaking, you're not a spiritual son, and you actually don't have the ability to to draw near to the king. And so I would say if that's you this morning, uh, man, like talk to Blade, talk to somebody that brought you, um, get that right, because that's where it has to start. And then honestly, Blade will unpack a lot of that in detail in the following Sundays. But that's all I got for you guys.