WEBVTT 00:00:00.239 --> 00:00:06.480 Well, if uh if you're just joining us for the last few weeks, we've been having a conversation about a conversation. 00:00:06.719 --> 00:00:11.199 It's a conversation that happened 2,000 years ago, late one night in the city of Jerusalem. 00:00:11.519 --> 00:00:15.199 Conversation between Jesus and a man named Nicodemus. 00:00:15.359 --> 00:00:20.879 I believe it's the most important conversation that has ever taken place in the history of our world. 00:00:21.440 --> 00:00:29.199 Because it's in this one conversation that Jesus explains in rich detail who he really is, why he came. 00:00:29.519 --> 00:00:30.800 He explains who God is. 00:00:30.879 --> 00:00:34.880 He explains what God actually values, what motivates God. 00:00:35.520 --> 00:00:43.280 This one conversation has shaped the way that humanity sees God like no conversation before. 00:00:44.159 --> 00:00:46.960 Nicodemus was a very important religious leader. 00:00:47.119 --> 00:00:49.200 He's a man who thought he had God figured out. 00:00:49.359 --> 00:00:54.560 It's amazing how easy it is for us to get that mindset where we think we've got God all figured out. 00:00:54.640 --> 00:01:03.520 He had God put in a box that he really liked, it made sense, he was comfortable with that box, and then Jesus showed up and totally broke his box. 00:01:04.079 --> 00:01:17.760 He was a little frustrated, he had a lot of questions, he was upset, but he made the decision to go to Jesus and deal with Jesus and learned that the box needed to go, that he needed to come to terms with who God really is. 00:01:17.920 --> 00:01:22.159 It's this one conversation that changed everything, not just for him, but for all humanity. 00:01:22.319 --> 00:01:25.439 It's this one conversation that we get the concept of being born again from. 00:01:25.599 --> 00:01:34.239 It's from this one conversation that the verse, John 3.16, probably the most famous verse that's come from any faith in history, for God so loved the world that he gave us his one and only son. 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:38.640 It's that conversation with Nicodemus that that came from. 00:01:38.879 --> 00:01:41.519 Nicodemus was the first person to hear those words. 00:01:42.000 --> 00:01:44.959 So this is definitely a conversation worth talking about. 00:01:45.040 --> 00:01:51.599 And that's what we're gonna spend the first part of our summer together doing, looking at this conversation because it speaks today. 00:01:52.400 --> 00:01:58.480 It's just as relevant for our lives today as it as it was for Nicodemus' life 2,000 years ago. 00:01:58.719 --> 00:02:03.760 I'm really excited about today because today we actually get to the point in the conversation when Jesus talks. 00:02:04.640 --> 00:02:10.479 We spent the last two weeks looking at two verses that just had to do with Nicodemus and who he was and why he came to Jesus. 00:02:10.639 --> 00:02:18.639 And I've been saying for the last few weeks that we're gonna pick the pace up, we're gonna start moving faster than one verse at a time or half a verse at a time, and we absolutely are gonna do that. 00:02:18.800 --> 00:02:24.960 Next week we're gonna pick the pace up big time, and so be here next week as we start going through more. 00:02:26.240 --> 00:02:34.560 But see, it's very important to me, I think it's very important for all of us that we spend time this morning focusing on the words Jesus chooses to lead off with. 00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:38.000 Because Jesus was not a man to waste words. 00:02:38.800 --> 00:02:40.159 I'm not like that, by the way. 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:41.599 I use a lot of words. 00:02:41.759 --> 00:02:45.439 Like I many of the words I use in a day are wasted words. 00:02:45.520 --> 00:02:46.719 They didn't need to be said. 00:02:46.960 --> 00:02:49.360 I chose a very wordy way to say something. 00:02:49.599 --> 00:02:57.120 I talk a lot, and so sometimes you have to sort of grab a hold of something good within the large volume of words that come out of my mouth. 00:02:57.280 --> 00:02:57.919 Jesus was different. 00:02:58.159 --> 00:03:02.479 He was not this talkative person that just talked and talked and talked and talked. 00:03:02.639 --> 00:03:04.080 Jesus was very careful with the words he used. 00:03:04.240 --> 00:03:10.240 In fact, many times in the Gospels, you'll see Jesus say something, and it looks like something has come out of his mouth wrong. 00:03:10.800 --> 00:03:16.400 It looks like he has said something that maybe he should have thought of a better way to say it because of the way that people react to it. 00:03:16.479 --> 00:03:23.360 And his disciples, you can see, even coming up to him, going, Hey Jesus, I don't know if you understand how that came across. 00:03:23.759 --> 00:03:26.560 And he said, No, I totally understand. 00:03:27.039 --> 00:03:28.479 He speaks with a purpose. 00:03:28.639 --> 00:03:31.039 The words he chooses, he chooses well. 00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:36.400 And see, Jesus knew this conversation would be talked about for generations upon generations. 00:03:36.479 --> 00:03:41.919 And the words Jesus chooses to use to begin this conversation are of utmost importance. 00:03:43.520 --> 00:03:47.039 And it's so good for us to listen to this because when Jesus speaks, we should always listen. 00:03:48.400 --> 00:03:51.439 Just hearing Jesus speak can change everything in your life. 00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:53.360 Just hearing him speak. 00:03:53.840 --> 00:03:58.879 There are people whose lives changed in Scripture because Jesus talked to them, and that's all that happened. 00:03:59.120 --> 00:04:06.159 There was a woman at a well, and Jesus spoke to her, had a conversation with her, totally changed the trajectory of her life. 00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:08.639 There was a man named Zacchaeus who was a criminal. 00:04:08.800 --> 00:04:10.400 He was selfish, he was corrupt. 00:04:10.560 --> 00:04:16.879 He had dinner with Jesus one time, talked with Jesus one time over a meal, and became an incredibly generous human being. 00:04:17.040 --> 00:04:20.639 Talking to Jesus, hearing from Jesus, is always powerful. 00:04:20.800 --> 00:04:22.879 Like we just sang, there was a storm. 00:04:24.079 --> 00:04:28.879 It was raging, and when Jesus spoke, that storm stopped because it wanted to hear Jesus. 00:04:29.040 --> 00:04:31.680 That's how powerful the words of Jesus are. 00:04:31.920 --> 00:04:35.759 And so I'm so, so excited to jump into these words. 00:04:35.920 --> 00:04:36.959 Why don't we do that? 00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:37.439 Okay. 00:04:37.839 --> 00:04:42.959 John 3 1, let's go ahead and go back to the beginning of John 3 because we haven't gotten very far anyway. 00:04:43.120 --> 00:04:46.480 There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. 00:04:46.639 --> 00:04:48.800 After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. 00:04:48.959 --> 00:04:54.639 Rabbi, he said, We all know that God has sent you to teach us your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you. 00:04:54.800 --> 00:05:00.639 And Jesus replied, I tell you the truth, unless you were born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God. 00:05:01.279 --> 00:05:12.639 Now, next week we're gonna explore this whole concept of being born again and what it means, because Nicodemus doesn't really know what to make of that statement, so he responds with some sarcasm, and he and Jesus have an exchange about what it means to be born again. 00:05:12.720 --> 00:05:13.519 It's a big concept. 00:05:13.680 --> 00:05:14.879 We're gonna cover that next week. 00:05:15.040 --> 00:05:19.040 Today, though, I want to focus on that first phrase that came out of Jesus' mouth. 00:05:19.199 --> 00:05:20.879 I tell you the truth. 00:05:22.160 --> 00:05:23.600 I tell you the truth. 00:05:25.120 --> 00:05:29.040 Do you know anyone who says something like over and over and over again? 00:05:30.160 --> 00:05:39.439 Do you have a friend or maybe someone you're related to that that has a certain phrase that they just use all the time, and maybe when they use it, you can roll your eyes because they say it so much? 00:05:40.959 --> 00:05:44.000 A few years ago, Megan made me aware that I had a phrase like that. 00:05:44.079 --> 00:05:50.160 I hope, I think I've I've broken this habit, but she said that I always said the phrase, no way, shape, or form, like every single day. 00:05:50.240 --> 00:05:53.839 There would be a reason where I would say, in no way, shape, or form should this happen. 00:05:54.079 --> 00:05:56.240 In no way, shape or form should we be doing this. 00:05:56.399 --> 00:05:59.839 Or in no way, shape, or form, and she would just be like, stop, stop saying that. 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:00.560 Stop it. 00:06:00.639 --> 00:06:03.759 Hypothetically, let's say I said something that came out wrong to Megan. 00:06:03.839 --> 00:06:06.399 Hypothetically, obviously, right? 00:06:07.439 --> 00:06:13.360 You know, hypothetically, I said something that came out in a way that could be taken the wrong way, especially by the person that you're married to. 00:06:13.439 --> 00:06:18.800 And hypothetically, Megan may have responded by saying, I cannot believe you said that, hypothetically. 00:06:18.879 --> 00:06:27.759 And then I would say, hypothetically, in no way, shape, or form did I imply this when I said that. 00:06:27.839 --> 00:06:30.639 You're just, you're hearing it wrong, you know? 00:06:31.680 --> 00:06:33.120 Hypothetically. 00:06:34.079 --> 00:06:40.480 I used to say that all the time, and so Megan kind of broke me of that because she would just roll her eyes and say, please stop saying that phrase. 00:06:40.720 --> 00:06:42.399 No one says that anymore. 00:06:42.720 --> 00:06:47.120 And Jesus, he was a person, he is a person, and so Jesus has a personality like you and me. 00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:49.279 And there were phrases that Jesus used all the time. 00:06:49.360 --> 00:06:57.360 And if you're gonna pick a catchphrase of Jesus, you might as well settle on the phrase, I tell you the truth, because he says it constantly. 00:06:57.680 --> 00:06:59.759 Matthew chapter 5, verse 18. 00:07:00.079 --> 00:07:01.920 Jesus says, I tell you the truth. 00:07:02.160 --> 00:07:07.839 Until heaven and earth disappear, not even the smallest detail of God's law will disappear until its purpose is achieved. 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:11.680 Matthew 6, 2, when you give to someone in need, don't do as the hypocrites do. 00:07:11.920 --> 00:07:15.839 Blowing trumpets in the synagogues, in the streets to call attention to their acts of charity. 00:07:16.079 --> 00:07:20.079 I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get. 00:07:20.480 --> 00:07:21.600 John 5 19. 00:07:21.759 --> 00:07:25.120 So Jesus explained, I tell you the truth. 00:07:25.360 --> 00:07:28.800 The Son can do nothing by himself, he does only what he sees the Father doing. 00:07:28.959 --> 00:07:31.439 Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. 00:07:31.759 --> 00:07:33.120 John 5 24. 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:35.199 I tell you the truth. 00:07:35.439 --> 00:07:36.800 Look there, he says it again. 00:07:36.959 --> 00:07:40.959 Those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. 00:07:41.120 --> 00:07:44.879 They will never be condemned for their sins, for they've already passed from death into life. 00:07:45.040 --> 00:07:46.959 Guess how John 13 20 begins? 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:48.160 Just take a guess. 00:07:48.800 --> 00:07:50.079 I tell you the truth. 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:56.079 Anyone who welcomes my messenger is welcoming me, and anyone who welcomes me is welcoming the Father who sent me. 00:07:56.240 --> 00:08:04.079 In the Gospels, those first four books of the New Testament that tell us the story of Jesus, Jesus says the phrase, I tell you the truth, 68 times. 00:08:05.120 --> 00:08:07.920 I'm sure his disciples rolled their eyes. 00:08:09.120 --> 00:08:10.319 Hypothetically. 00:08:10.560 --> 00:08:11.759 I'm sure that happened. 00:08:13.199 --> 00:08:19.439 See, this phrase reminds us of why to this day Jesus is the most relevant person in your life. 00:08:20.879 --> 00:08:26.000 That to this day, there is no person that you should pay as close attention to as you pay to Jesus. 00:08:26.079 --> 00:08:29.439 There's no person that you should listen to as intently as you listen to Jesus. 00:08:29.600 --> 00:08:33.679 There's no person you should seek to understand like you seek to understand Jesus. 00:08:33.919 --> 00:08:41.039 There is no person in your life today, not your spouse, not your best friend, not your children, not your employer. 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:47.519 There is no person in your life that is as relevant to you and to your life's success as Jesus Christ. 00:08:48.399 --> 00:08:52.480 Because Jesus always tells you the truth. 00:08:53.360 --> 00:08:56.720 He always tells the truth. 00:08:57.919 --> 00:09:00.720 Think about how rare that is for just a second. 00:09:01.279 --> 00:09:07.360 Think about how rare it is to actually hear someone tell the truth consistently. 00:09:07.919 --> 00:09:09.600 It's political season. 00:09:09.840 --> 00:09:12.480 And so we're gonna be having an election. 00:09:12.799 --> 00:09:15.919 A very interesting election. 00:09:16.399 --> 00:09:18.080 That's all I'm gonna say. 00:09:19.440 --> 00:09:20.720 And it's it's amazing, right? 00:09:20.799 --> 00:09:26.480 Because when you think about presidential candidates, do we even expect presidential candidates to tell us the truth anymore? 00:09:26.559 --> 00:09:28.399 Is that even an expectation that we have? 00:09:28.639 --> 00:09:29.600 I don't even think it is. 00:09:29.679 --> 00:09:33.519 I don't think we get even mad anymore when we find out someone's lied. 00:09:33.600 --> 00:09:35.440 It's just kind of like, yeah, that's how it goes. 00:09:35.679 --> 00:09:39.759 But imagine if a presidential candidate told you the truth before they were caught. 00:09:40.559 --> 00:09:44.559 Before some piece of investigative journalism made them tell the truth, made them fess up. 00:09:44.720 --> 00:09:47.279 Suppose a candidate comes out and says, hey, I'm running for president. 00:09:47.360 --> 00:09:51.440 And before we get started, I just need to put some things on the table. 00:09:51.759 --> 00:09:53.840 No one knows about this stuff, but I've made some mistakes. 00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:55.279 I just want you guys to know who I am. 00:09:55.360 --> 00:09:58.240 I want to begin with honesty and openness. 00:09:58.399 --> 00:09:59.360 That would make headlines. 00:09:59.440 --> 00:10:01.120 That would be political suicide. 00:10:01.360 --> 00:10:02.240 The truth. 00:10:02.559 --> 00:10:03.440 Come on. 00:10:04.240 --> 00:10:06.000 But not just in the public arena. 00:10:06.159 --> 00:10:07.360 Think about your own life personally. 00:10:07.440 --> 00:10:12.799 Think about how rare it is for the people in your life to be consistently honest with you. 00:10:13.279 --> 00:10:16.399 It's not your fault, it's not their fault. 00:10:16.960 --> 00:10:20.080 People struggle to be consistently honest because they don't really know the truth. 00:10:20.240 --> 00:10:31.759 How many times have you had someone come to you thinking they knew the truth about you, talking to you about what they perceived to be the truth, but if they would have just asked you a few questions, they would have realized that they were off. 00:10:32.399 --> 00:10:34.399 They made assumptions, they didn't know the truth. 00:10:34.480 --> 00:10:36.480 How can they speak the truth if they don't know the truth? 00:10:36.639 --> 00:10:38.799 Jesus always knows the truth. 00:10:39.279 --> 00:10:47.360 That woman at that well that we mentioned, whose life was changed, the game-changing moment was when Jesus showed her that he really knew who she was. 00:10:47.759 --> 00:10:51.519 He knew everything about her, and he loved her regardless. 00:10:51.840 --> 00:10:53.919 Jesus knows the truth. 00:10:55.279 --> 00:10:56.480 Not just the people in our lives. 00:10:56.559 --> 00:10:58.000 Think about our society as a whole. 00:10:58.159 --> 00:11:00.879 Can we trust our culture to be honest with us? 00:11:02.159 --> 00:11:05.120 Can we trust society to give us the truth? 00:11:05.279 --> 00:11:08.559 Our society doesn't even believe in the concept of truth anymore. 00:11:08.879 --> 00:11:09.840 Doesn't even believe in it. 00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:14.879 The most accepted idea of truth in our culture today is the statement there is no absolute truth. 00:11:14.960 --> 00:11:17.360 Raise your hand if you've heard that statement, there's no absolute truth. 00:11:17.600 --> 00:11:17.919 Okay. 00:11:18.399 --> 00:11:20.320 That's an absolute statement. 00:11:21.519 --> 00:11:24.720 That is an absolute statement saying that there are no absolutes. 00:11:25.679 --> 00:11:26.720 I mean, think about that. 00:11:26.879 --> 00:11:31.279 If the statement there is no absolute truth is true, it means that there is an absolute truth. 00:11:31.360 --> 00:11:38.000 It's just that that absolute truth is that there is no absolute truth, and that means there is absolute truth, it's just super confusing. 00:11:38.879 --> 00:11:41.840 But it's okay because our culture celebrates confusion. 00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:48.080 Our society can't tell us the truth if our society doesn't even acknowledge truth. 00:11:48.159 --> 00:11:51.440 So what our society does instead is elevate this concept of personal truth. 00:11:51.519 --> 00:11:52.799 And we've all experienced this. 00:11:52.960 --> 00:11:53.840 We live in this world. 00:11:54.080 --> 00:11:55.360 What's your truth? 00:11:56.559 --> 00:11:57.919 What's my truth? 00:11:59.440 --> 00:12:05.120 And our culture has told us that we get to decide what's true and what's not true within ourselves. 00:12:05.360 --> 00:12:06.799 We get to define that. 00:12:07.519 --> 00:12:11.679 And the results are mixed to disastrous. 00:12:13.120 --> 00:12:22.559 Because when I elevate my truth above the truth, I'm always at risk for getting way, way off track. 00:12:23.759 --> 00:12:26.799 Think about any controversial subject that we have in our culture today. 00:12:26.960 --> 00:12:27.679 Just pick one. 00:12:27.840 --> 00:12:34.399 And we're not going to get into these, we're not going to examine these, that's not the purpose of today, but it doesn't matter if you pick abortion or gender identity, it doesn't matter. 00:12:34.480 --> 00:12:39.120 Just ask yourself this question about that controversial topic, regardless of what your opinion is on it. 00:12:39.360 --> 00:12:50.000 Is the prevailing view of our culture on that issue based on facts, discernible, testable facts, or is it based on the my truth of a group of people? 00:12:50.559 --> 00:12:52.879 That's what our culture values. 00:12:55.759 --> 00:13:05.919 Years before we had GPS and sophisticated satellite technology that helped us navigate, sailors would rely on the stars to navigate at sea. 00:13:06.159 --> 00:13:10.720 And it's interesting because the stars aren't very reliable as a navigation tool because the earth rotates. 00:13:10.799 --> 00:13:12.320 We all know this, we all took science class, right? 00:13:12.399 --> 00:13:22.639 The earth rotates on an axis, and so if you look at a star in the night sky over the course of that night, especially over the course of several nights, that star is going to appear to move because the earth is rotating. 00:13:22.720 --> 00:13:24.559 That's the perspective that we have. 00:13:25.279 --> 00:13:35.360 So the stars aren't very reliable except for this one convenient fact that there is one star that happens to sit pretty much directly above the axis of the earth in terms of our line of sight. 00:13:35.519 --> 00:13:36.960 We call that the North Star. 00:13:37.600 --> 00:13:44.960 And so if you were to take a time-lapse picture of a night sky with a North Star in view, over the course of a day or so, this is what it would look like. 00:13:45.279 --> 00:13:51.120 All the stars become circles as the Earth rotates, but in the middle, you have the North Star, and it's reliable. 00:13:51.279 --> 00:14:03.200 And so sailors would follow that North Star, and they learned where other stars were in relation to that star, and that fixed point, that actual truth, is what guided them. 00:14:04.240 --> 00:14:11.759 What would have happened back then if a group of sailors, before they set out on a voyage, said, Hey, we reject the idea of the North Star. 00:14:12.879 --> 00:14:13.759 It's offensive. 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:19.519 We reject the idea that there's one star that's right, we're gonna choose the star we're gonna follow. 00:14:19.679 --> 00:14:20.720 I like that star. 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:23.440 I believe that star is the right star. 00:14:24.159 --> 00:14:25.600 They would have died. 00:14:26.080 --> 00:14:28.320 And it wouldn't have even taken very long. 00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:37.039 See, when we elevate personal truth above actual truth, we get way off track. 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:38.799 That's just what happens. 00:14:39.200 --> 00:14:41.840 I I don't have the ability to tell myself the truth. 00:14:42.080 --> 00:14:42.960 I really don't. 00:14:43.200 --> 00:14:48.240 I try, but I can't rely on my truth to tell me the truth about myself. 00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:50.799 I'm very subjective about myself. 00:14:51.039 --> 00:14:53.200 I have no ability to be objective about me. 00:14:53.279 --> 00:14:54.799 I'm very involved with me. 00:14:55.200 --> 00:14:55.840 Right? 00:14:57.200 --> 00:14:59.120 Me and me are very enmeshed. 00:14:59.600 --> 00:15:03.440 And so, how can I be the one that's responsible? 00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:07.360 How can I be the one that's reliable to tell myself the complete truth about myself? 00:15:07.519 --> 00:15:08.639 I can't. 00:15:10.159 --> 00:15:14.480 See, the truth, the truth is the most relevant thing in our lives. 00:15:16.240 --> 00:15:18.879 In part because it's oftentimes absent from life. 00:15:19.039 --> 00:15:21.600 When something valuable is absent, it's immediately relevant. 00:15:21.840 --> 00:15:25.919 If I haven't had anything to drink in days, water is extremely relevant to me. 00:15:26.159 --> 00:15:29.120 If I haven't had food for a week, food is very relevant to me. 00:15:29.200 --> 00:15:41.759 And in a world full of people, many of us can admit this about ourselves, full of people who are searching and grasping at straws, people who are desperate to find something in life to hold on to, something in life that's gonna give us what we actually need. 00:15:42.000 --> 00:15:46.799 In a world like that, the truth is the most relevant thing there is. 00:15:48.000 --> 00:15:56.720 And that makes Jesus the most relevant person in the world because he is the one person who knows the truth and always, always, always tells the truth. 00:15:58.159 --> 00:16:03.679 Jesus said, I tell you the truth all the time because Jesus tells the truth all the time. 00:16:04.000 --> 00:16:05.919 And here's where it's really great. 00:16:06.000 --> 00:16:08.159 This is what makes it even better. 00:16:08.480 --> 00:16:12.159 When Jesus tells you the truth, he tells you the truth because he loves you. 00:16:12.799 --> 00:16:16.559 Because he's crazy about you and he wants you to go far in life. 00:16:16.720 --> 00:16:18.080 He believes in you. 00:16:18.399 --> 00:16:23.759 He has dreams for your life that are greater than the dreams that you gave up because you thought they were too big for you. 00:16:24.080 --> 00:16:26.240 He has greater dreams than that for your life. 00:16:26.399 --> 00:16:32.159 He believes in you, he cares about you, and he loves you enough to tell you the truth so that you'll get there. 00:16:32.399 --> 00:16:34.159 It's how much he loves you. 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:38.960 You ever known someone that told you the truth, but they just told you the truth so you'd know it? 00:16:39.759 --> 00:16:42.000 So you'd realize how far you have to go. 00:16:42.960 --> 00:16:45.600 They didn't care that you actually improve, they didn't help you. 00:16:45.759 --> 00:16:47.519 That person's like a scale that tells your way. 00:16:47.600 --> 00:16:52.159 Like I step on a scale and it tells me the truth, but I'm not thankful to the scale. 00:16:53.360 --> 00:16:54.879 That scale's a jerk, right? 00:16:55.039 --> 00:16:57.279 I'm like, oh, thanks for the reminder. 00:16:57.440 --> 00:16:59.120 Why did I even step on you today? 00:16:59.279 --> 00:16:59.679 I knew. 00:16:59.840 --> 00:17:00.879 I knew before I stepped on. 00:17:00.960 --> 00:17:02.559 It's not like eating pizza yesterday, help me. 00:17:02.639 --> 00:17:03.600 I mean, come on. 00:17:04.880 --> 00:17:07.440 Sometimes we have people in our lives like that. 00:17:07.519 --> 00:17:12.640 They may have told us the truth, but they told us the truth simply to expose how far we have to go. 00:17:12.880 --> 00:17:15.119 With no desire to actually see us get there. 00:17:15.440 --> 00:17:17.359 Jesus is not like that. 00:17:17.519 --> 00:17:18.319 He's not like that at all. 00:17:18.480 --> 00:17:26.880 Have you ever had a friend, someone in your life that loved you so much they were willing to tell you the truth, even if it was hard to hear, because they wanted you to grow. 00:17:27.440 --> 00:17:29.119 Because they wanted you to succeed. 00:17:29.359 --> 00:17:33.599 Proverbs 27:6 puts it this way, and so true. 00:17:34.559 --> 00:17:38.720 Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy. 00:17:39.599 --> 00:17:45.519 When you have someone who loves you enough to just tell you the truth, it's valuable. 00:17:45.680 --> 00:17:47.039 I have a lot of people like that in my life. 00:17:47.200 --> 00:17:52.640 God has been so generous to send me so many people willing to tell me the truth. 00:17:52.880 --> 00:17:54.880 So many people committed to my growth. 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:56.319 It's wonderful. 00:17:57.359 --> 00:17:59.519 One of those people is Megan, my wife. 00:17:59.759 --> 00:18:02.480 Megan is passionate about being honest with me. 00:18:03.039 --> 00:18:04.400 So passionate. 00:18:04.720 --> 00:18:07.440 And there have been times in our marriage where I've gotten very frustrated at that. 00:18:07.519 --> 00:18:12.240 Like I'll have an idea, and I'll start to communicate it to Megan, and maybe it's a very early idea. 00:18:12.319 --> 00:18:18.319 I haven't thought through it, and I'll explain it, and I'm really excited about it, and she'll just kind of look at me and go, yeah, yes, that is an idea. 00:18:18.480 --> 00:18:19.359 That is an idea. 00:18:19.680 --> 00:18:21.039 That is what that is. 00:18:21.440 --> 00:18:24.960 And I'll be like, come on, you know, don't burst my bubble. 00:18:25.119 --> 00:18:26.319 Just make me feel awesome. 00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:27.359 That's what you're supposed to do. 00:18:27.440 --> 00:18:28.240 That's your role, right? 00:18:28.319 --> 00:18:30.000 Just make me feel good about me. 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:32.079 Don't help me. 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:33.599 Don't challenge me. 00:18:33.759 --> 00:18:34.960 Don't sharpen me. 00:18:35.680 --> 00:18:41.039 As time's gone on, I I've actually learned to be so grateful for that quality. 00:18:42.480 --> 00:18:45.839 See, when I get when I get nervous, for example, I talk a lot. 00:18:46.000 --> 00:18:48.799 Like, if you think I talk a lot now, no, no. 00:18:49.039 --> 00:18:52.160 I am not nervous standing on a stage in front of a lot of people. 00:18:52.400 --> 00:18:53.519 Never been nervous about that. 00:18:53.680 --> 00:18:55.759 Not since I did it the first time in third grade. 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:56.480 Just had fun. 00:18:56.640 --> 00:18:57.759 This is fun for me. 00:18:58.079 --> 00:19:05.920 Having dinner with someone and having to look them in the eye for like an hour, having to potentially listen to the noises that they make as they eat their food. 00:19:06.240 --> 00:19:08.960 Like, that that almost kills me. 00:19:09.119 --> 00:19:12.240 Like, if you ever want to go to dinner and hang out, I'm willing to. 00:19:12.319 --> 00:19:14.240 Uh, but you gotta pick a place with volume. 00:19:14.400 --> 00:19:20.319 I need a place with music playing, I need like a mariachi band, because I don't want to hear the sound that food makes when you chew it. 00:19:20.400 --> 00:19:21.279 I can't handle it. 00:19:21.359 --> 00:19:24.079 It's like, uh does anyone else have that issue? 00:19:24.240 --> 00:19:25.440 I can't handle it. 00:19:25.680 --> 00:19:28.480 I wanna I want to punch you so bad. 00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:31.279 And it's not fair to you. 00:19:31.359 --> 00:19:33.200 It's not your fault, it's my fault. 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:34.400 I don't know why. 00:19:34.480 --> 00:19:35.440 I'm broken. 00:19:35.839 --> 00:19:36.160 Okay? 00:19:36.480 --> 00:19:38.799 That's the kind of situations that make me nervous. 00:19:39.039 --> 00:19:42.640 That's when I get nervous, I just I talk and I ramble and I go on and I go on and I go on. 00:19:42.720 --> 00:19:47.519 In fact, when I first asked Megan out for the very first time, we were in high school, and I asked her to prom. 00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:49.839 That's how our relationship got started. 00:19:50.079 --> 00:19:52.000 And this is a true story, I'm not exaggerating. 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:52.640 This is how it went. 00:19:52.720 --> 00:19:54.559 I called Megan on the phone, like a landline. 00:19:54.799 --> 00:19:55.519 Remember those? 00:19:55.759 --> 00:19:59.119 And her mom answered, and I said, uh hi, Mrs. 00:19:59.200 --> 00:20:00.400 Richardson, is Megan there? 00:20:00.480 --> 00:20:02.480 This is Justin McTear from school. 00:20:02.640 --> 00:20:04.559 And she said, Oh, hold on, and she yelled for Megan. 00:20:04.720 --> 00:20:06.400 Megan picked up, said, Hi. 00:20:06.559 --> 00:20:07.759 I said, Hey, Megan, it's me. 00:20:07.839 --> 00:20:09.920 It's Justin, uh, Justin McTear from school. 00:20:10.079 --> 00:20:16.240 Um, hey, I want to talk to you because I was thinking about prom, you know, and prom's coming up, as you probably are aware. 00:20:16.400 --> 00:20:19.759 And, you know, I want to go to prom, but I haven't picked anyone, you know, to go to prom. 00:20:19.839 --> 00:20:22.640 Not that if I just pick someone, they'd immediately say yes or anything like that. 00:20:22.720 --> 00:20:24.319 You know, I don't think that about myself. 00:20:24.400 --> 00:20:26.880 And not, but not saying that like I couldn't get someone to go to prom with me. 00:20:26.960 --> 00:20:27.839 I totally could. 00:20:28.079 --> 00:20:32.559 But, you know, it's just, either way, I want to go to prom and I was thinking, like, who do I want to go to prom with? 00:20:32.640 --> 00:20:35.599 And I thought, wow, Megan Richardson's really cool, and we're friends, like, right? 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:37.440 Like, I'm friends with you, and you're friends with me. 00:20:37.519 --> 00:20:43.200 And I thought maybe it'd be good to go to prom as friends, and you could be my friend at prom and I'll be your friend, and we'll hang out as friends. 00:20:43.359 --> 00:20:47.359 And I told, I mean, it just went on and on, and she tried to cut me off like several times. 00:20:47.519 --> 00:20:51.039 And finally she just stopped me and said, Yes, yes, I'll go to prom with you. 00:20:51.200 --> 00:20:53.680 And I just went, thank you. 00:20:54.000 --> 00:20:55.279 That's all I said. 00:20:55.920 --> 00:20:56.640 Thank you. 00:20:56.880 --> 00:20:57.839 I hung up the phone. 00:20:57.920 --> 00:21:00.640 I have no game whatsoever. 00:21:00.960 --> 00:21:06.079 I'm so glad Megan and I connected in high school because I'd have been hopeless beyond. 00:21:06.400 --> 00:21:08.400 That's how I am when I'm nervous. 00:21:08.880 --> 00:21:15.039 And like I said, going to dinner with someone that I don't know very well and having to have like long conversations, that makes me really nervous. 00:21:15.119 --> 00:21:20.400 And so one of the times in my life that I was as nervous as I've ever been before is when I interviewed to work here. 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:24.400 As soon as I found out about this church, I wanted to be part of it. 00:21:24.799 --> 00:21:27.039 There's something really special about this place. 00:21:27.359 --> 00:21:29.200 There's something indefinable about this place. 00:21:29.279 --> 00:21:31.200 We haven't figured out a way to put it into words. 00:21:31.279 --> 00:21:38.640 I've never experienced the authenticity and the unforced passion that exists here. 00:21:38.880 --> 00:21:40.079 You guys are awesome. 00:21:40.319 --> 00:21:41.359 God is awesome. 00:21:41.599 --> 00:21:43.839 You can clap for that, absolutely. 00:21:46.079 --> 00:21:50.480 And so I was I was 23, and and I'm not I'm not in my 20s anymore. 00:21:50.559 --> 00:21:51.279 I'm 32. 00:21:51.359 --> 00:21:54.160 I'm a real life, actual adult. 00:21:54.319 --> 00:21:55.839 It's important that you know that, okay? 00:21:56.079 --> 00:21:57.200 I'm about to be 33. 00:21:57.279 --> 00:21:58.400 This is gonna happen. 00:21:58.799 --> 00:21:59.759 So at the time I'm 23. 00:22:00.319 --> 00:22:02.160 And I was interviewing to work with the students here. 00:22:02.319 --> 00:22:04.160 I was so excited, but I was so nervous. 00:22:04.319 --> 00:22:09.519 And so Steve and Susan, who started the church, asked Megan and I out to dinner for that initial interview. 00:22:09.599 --> 00:22:11.200 I've never met them in person at this point in time. 00:22:11.279 --> 00:22:12.799 I'd had a few phone calls. 00:22:13.039 --> 00:22:16.400 And so we we go to dinner, and I'm like, I'm a nervous wreck. 00:22:16.480 --> 00:22:17.119 I'm so nervous. 00:22:17.200 --> 00:22:19.119 I'm sweating in the car on the way there. 00:22:19.200 --> 00:22:28.400 And on the way to the restaurant, Megan says to me, Justin, when you get really nervous, you don't stop talking, and it's very off-putting. 00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:32.640 And where normally I would have been like, hey, hey, come on. 00:22:32.799 --> 00:22:34.000 Like, give me some credit. 00:22:34.400 --> 00:22:36.000 Be more sensitive. 00:22:36.400 --> 00:22:41.039 At that moment in time, I recognized what she was doing, and I wanted it so bad that I said, yes, you're right. 00:22:41.200 --> 00:22:42.160 She said, I'm gonna help you tonight. 00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:43.759 I said, okay, what are you gonna do? 00:22:44.079 --> 00:22:47.519 She said, every time I feel like you're just rambling, I'm gonna squeeze your leg. 00:22:47.599 --> 00:22:48.400 Don't get the wrong idea. 00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:51.920 I'm squeezing your leg to shut you up. 00:22:54.000 --> 00:22:57.200 And when you feel me squeeze your leg, that means stop talking. 00:22:58.240 --> 00:22:59.599 I said, okay. 00:22:59.839 --> 00:23:00.160 Okay. 00:23:00.400 --> 00:23:05.839 And we went to dinner that night, and Steve and Susan asked us a lot of questions, and Megan squeezed my leg like 27 times. 00:23:05.920 --> 00:23:06.960 I kid you not. 00:23:07.200 --> 00:23:10.319 It was it was almost a constant pressure on my leg. 00:23:10.880 --> 00:23:14.160 I had bruises when the night was over, like fingerprint-shaped bruises. 00:23:14.400 --> 00:23:16.240 I asked her in the car, did you have to squeeze so hard? 00:23:16.400 --> 00:23:18.640 And she said no, but she enjoyed it. 00:23:18.799 --> 00:23:21.279 And so it was. 00:23:22.240 --> 00:23:23.200 I was so thankful. 00:23:23.359 --> 00:23:25.200 I was so thankful. 00:23:26.559 --> 00:23:33.440 Because honestly, if had she not cared enough about me and loved me enough to be honest with me, I would have shot myself in the foot that night. 00:23:33.519 --> 00:23:34.559 I know I would have. 00:23:34.799 --> 00:23:38.000 I would have just kept talking and talking and talking. 00:23:38.559 --> 00:23:40.640 It would not have gone well for me. 00:23:40.960 --> 00:23:45.599 But she loved me enough to be honest, to challenge me. 00:23:46.880 --> 00:23:50.240 I want you to know this morning that God loves you so much. 00:23:51.119 --> 00:23:54.480 And when he speaks to you, you need to understand he's going to speak life into you. 00:23:54.640 --> 00:23:57.200 He's going to tell you who you actually are if you'll listen to him. 00:23:57.599 --> 00:23:58.960 This world has put labels on you. 00:23:59.119 --> 00:24:01.440 This world has told you that you are far less than you actually are. 00:24:01.519 --> 00:24:07.839 And if you'll listen to Jesus Christ, he will tell you who you really are, and who you really are is much greater than you've ever imagined you could be. 00:24:08.000 --> 00:24:13.680 He will speak life into you, he will encourage you, he will give you hope, he will urge you on, he will tell you to keep going. 00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:19.519 But there will absolutely be moments where him telling you the truth involves a challenge. 00:24:20.880 --> 00:24:34.000 Where him telling you the truth might be telling you something that you don't necessarily want to hear, but he's so committed to your growth, he's so committed to you growing and maturing and actually getting where you need to get that he's gonna be honest with you because he loves you. 00:24:34.160 --> 00:24:42.319 That's why Hebrews chapter 4, verse 12, says that the word of God is alive and powerful, it is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword. 00:24:42.559 --> 00:24:48.480 Cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow, it exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. 00:24:48.720 --> 00:24:50.559 What a lovely metaphor. 00:24:51.519 --> 00:24:54.160 The word of God is a sword that cuts into you. 00:24:54.400 --> 00:24:58.799 Someone who's in sales needs to talk to God and be like, God, you need to rethink your metaphors. 00:24:59.039 --> 00:25:03.359 Like, why doesn't this say the word of God is like a gentle massage? 00:25:04.559 --> 00:25:05.200