all right hello everybody hope your<\/p>\n
weeks have been well<\/p>\n
we are currently in a series where we're<\/p>\n
looking about looking at what the Bible<\/p>\n
says about the church<\/p>\n
so what is the church<\/p>\n
is the church the Christian version of<\/p>\n
what which is Temple what is the purpose<\/p>\n
of the church<\/p>\n
some of us may have been coming to<\/p>\n
church for a long time because we think<\/p>\n
this is what Christians do we come to<\/p>\n
church<\/p>\n
this series The study on the church is<\/p>\n
meant to help us all come to terms with<\/p>\n
the incredible resources that God has<\/p>\n
given us<\/p>\n
in order to live and transform the city<\/p>\n
so today one of the questions we're<\/p>\n
looking at is what is the place of the<\/p>\n
church in our society<\/p>\n
so our text for today comes from First<\/p>\n
Peter chapter 2.<\/p>\n
and I'll read to us<\/p>\n
the text<\/p>\n
all right First Peter chapter two as you<\/p>\n
come to him the living Stone rejected by<\/p>\n
humans but chosen by God and precious to<\/p>\n
him you also like living stones are<\/p>\n
being built into a spiritual house to be<\/p>\n
a holy priesthood offering spiritual<\/p>\n
sacrifices acceptable to God through<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
for in Scripture it says see I lay a<\/p>\n
stone in Zion a Chosen and precious<\/p>\n
Cornerstone and the one who trusts in<\/p>\n
him will never be put to shame<\/p>\n
now to you who believe the stone is<\/p>\n
precious but to those who don't believe<\/p>\n
the stone the Builder is rejected has<\/p>\n
become the Cornerstone<\/p>\n
and the stone that causes people to<\/p>\n
stumble in a rock that makes them fall<\/p>\n
they stumble because they disobey the<\/p>\n
message which is also what they were<\/p>\n
destined for but you are a chosen people<\/p>\n
a royal priesthood a holy nation God's<\/p>\n
special possession that you may declare<\/p>\n
the Praises of him who called you out of<\/p>\n
Darkness into his wonderful life<\/p>\n
once you are not a people but now you<\/p>\n
are the people of God once you had not<\/p>\n
received Mercy but now you have received<\/p>\n
Mercy<\/p>\n
dear friends I urge you as foreigners<\/p>\n
and Exiles to abstain from sinful<\/p>\n
desires which wage war against your soul<\/p>\n
live such good lives among the pagans<\/p>\n
that though they accuse you of doing<\/p>\n
wrong they may see your good deeds and<\/p>\n
glorify God on the day he visits us this<\/p>\n
is the word of God<\/p>\n
so first Peter is a letter addressed to<\/p>\n
a group of people who have seen<\/p>\n
tremendous suffering<\/p>\n
much worse than any of us in this room<\/p>\n
they are people living in a hostile<\/p>\n
environment and in this section of First<\/p>\n
Peter we're being told how Christians<\/p>\n
are to live in a world that's hostile<\/p>\n
how do people who believe one thing<\/p>\n
are to live in a culture<\/p>\n
who has a very different view of things<\/p>\n
how do we live when everyone around us<\/p>\n
believes something different<\/p>\n
how do we handle pressures in the<\/p>\n
workplace and from society<\/p>\n
does this sound familiar<\/p>\n
these are the exact kinds of questions<\/p>\n
we ask or should be asking here in<\/p>\n
Bangkok too<\/p>\n
and so from this text we learn three<\/p>\n
things about the church<\/p>\n
one we learn about what the church is<\/p>\n
two we learn about our relationship as<\/p>\n
the church to the world<\/p>\n
and three we learn about where to get<\/p>\n
the power to live in this world<\/p>\n
so one of the images that Peter gives us<\/p>\n
for the church<\/p>\n
is here in verses four and five<\/p>\n
we are like living stones being built<\/p>\n
into a spiritual house to be a holy<\/p>\n
priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices<\/p>\n
acceptable to God through Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
so we like living stones<\/p>\n
are being built into a spiritual house<\/p>\n
a spiritual house means the Temple of<\/p>\n
the holy spirit this comes across more<\/p>\n
clearly in Thai where it says<\/p>\n
Temple of the holy spirit so when we<\/p>\n
become Christians we are indwelled with<\/p>\n
the Holy Spirit<\/p>\n
God's presence comes down and lives<\/p>\n
inside of us<\/p>\n
now one Theologian makes an observation<\/p>\n
that<\/p>\n
almost every place where the Bible says<\/p>\n
we are a temple of the Holy Spirit<\/p>\n
we are addressed collectively<\/p>\n
it's plural it's not individual<\/p>\n
so when it says you also like living<\/p>\n
stones are being built into a spiritual<\/p>\n
house it's referring to us as community<\/p>\n
it's also referring to the present tense<\/p>\n
we are being built<\/p>\n
we haven't been completely built yet<\/p>\n
but we are being built into a spiritual<\/p>\n
house<\/p>\n
so think about this image<\/p>\n
every brick in a wall<\/p>\n
has Stones both above and below it<\/p>\n
the stones that are above the brick<\/p>\n
depend on the brick<\/p>\n
if the brick is moved or taken out<\/p>\n
the whole structure becomes shaky and<\/p>\n
collapses<\/p>\n
and the stones that are below the brick<\/p>\n
support the brick<\/p>\n
so you the brick<\/p>\n
have many stones that you depend on<\/p>\n
if those bricks shake you shake<\/p>\n
think of the game Jenga what happens<\/p>\n
when you remove one of the pieces<\/p>\n
the whole structure becomes unstable and<\/p>\n
eventually it collapses<\/p>\n
this is the image of the church<\/p>\n
interdependence Community is so strong<\/p>\n
that we're built into the lives of<\/p>\n
others it's Fellowship<\/p>\n
but most people will come to church on<\/p>\n
Sundays<\/p>\n
listen to the sermon<\/p>\n
stay for Fellowship time or for Sunday<\/p>\n
school and then go home<\/p>\n
the question is are we built into the<\/p>\n
lives of others<\/p>\n
are we part of a body<\/p>\n
a church where we are so built in that<\/p>\n
if we stop coming things would collapse<\/p>\n
being interdependent means that we don't<\/p>\n
just see each other once a week<\/p>\n
but it means we share our lives together<\/p>\n
it means we share decisions together we<\/p>\n
don't just make our own decisions we<\/p>\n
share struggles we share emotions we<\/p>\n
share money we share homes we share help<\/p>\n
we share everything<\/p>\n
and this text is telling us that when we<\/p>\n
are being built together<\/p>\n
that is how the power of the Holy Spirit<\/p>\n
increasingly comes into our lives it is<\/p>\n
as we are being built together<\/p>\n
the Christian faith is not just me and<\/p>\n
God<\/p>\n
we can't live like that<\/p>\n
separated from everyone and only<\/p>\n
prioritizing having a quiet time with<\/p>\n
we can't expect God to be working in our<\/p>\n
lives<\/p>\n
to the full extent<\/p>\n
if we are really not built into a body a<\/p>\n
community like this<\/p>\n
we find the Lord mainly in community<\/p>\n
so someone may say well how does that<\/p>\n
work how come<\/p>\n
the CS Lewis in his book The Four loves<\/p>\n
he brings out this point<\/p>\n
C.S Lewis was part of a close group of<\/p>\n
friends and one of them Charles Williams<\/p>\n
died<\/p>\n
and so when when his friend died C.S<\/p>\n
Lewis realized something very<\/p>\n
interesting<\/p>\n
he says when Charles died I didn't just<\/p>\n
lose Charles<\/p>\n
I lost the part of Ronald his other<\/p>\n
friend that only Charles brought out<\/p>\n
another way of putting it is<\/p>\n
I don't know Ronald like I used to<\/p>\n
because Charles is no longer here to<\/p>\n
help me know Ronald<\/p>\n
he says in each of my friends there is<\/p>\n
something that only some other friend<\/p>\n
can fully bring out<\/p>\n
now that Charles is dead I actually have<\/p>\n
less of Ronald too<\/p>\n
he's saying the human personality<\/p>\n
is so rich<\/p>\n
that one person doesn't bring it all out<\/p>\n
you actually get to know an individual<\/p>\n
far better in a group than you would one<\/p>\n
on one because only a group brings out<\/p>\n
the whole person<\/p>\n
and if that's true of a human being<\/p>\n
how much more true is that of God with<\/p>\n
we can't know God as deeply unless we<\/p>\n
are in deep community<\/p>\n
we can't know God as deeply by ourselves<\/p>\n
our brothers and sisters see aspects of<\/p>\n
God that<\/p>\n
You Don't See<\/p>\n
and it's only together that we will see<\/p>\n
God more and more truly<\/p>\n
we can't know God by ourselves we can<\/p>\n
only know a peace of God by ourselves<\/p>\n
and conversely the part of God that we<\/p>\n
see if we're not in a community that's<\/p>\n
something that we're holding back from<\/p>\n
other people that they need<\/p>\n
and they see something that we need<\/p>\n
see interdependence<\/p>\n
many people may think that we can live a<\/p>\n
flourishing Christian Life by reading<\/p>\n
the Bible and praying to God by<\/p>\n
ourselves without going to church at all<\/p>\n
but that just isn't true<\/p>\n
God does not act like that we are being<\/p>\n
built together like living stones<\/p>\n
see so we see that the church is a<\/p>\n
community<\/p>\n
now if that's the case if the church is<\/p>\n
a community it brings up the question<\/p>\n
that all communities face<\/p>\n
what is our relationship to the world<\/p>\n
outside<\/p>\n
what's the relationship of the church to<\/p>\n
society<\/p>\n
so<\/p>\n
Peter tells us something about how the<\/p>\n
church ought to relate to the world and<\/p>\n
it's a radically different way of<\/p>\n
relating to the world than how other<\/p>\n
religions do<\/p>\n
because other religions and people<\/p>\n
groups just people groups in general<\/p>\n
relate to the culture by one of two ways<\/p>\n
one separating from society<\/p>\n
two becoming a part of society<\/p>\n
they're both two extremes<\/p>\n
separating from society or completely<\/p>\n
integrating with society that you lose<\/p>\n
your identity you lose what makes you<\/p>\n
different<\/p>\n
so the groups that separate from society<\/p>\n
tend to have very rigid beliefs you have<\/p>\n
to believe x y z and you can't interact<\/p>\n
with Society you need a separate<\/p>\n
we've seen these kinds of groups in<\/p>\n
recent times it is US versus them<\/p>\n
and these kinds of groups view society<\/p>\n
as evil they'll say Society is corrupt<\/p>\n
and we want nothing to do with them<\/p>\n
throughout history different Christian<\/p>\n
groups have adopted this approach<\/p>\n
they've separated completely from<\/p>\n
now on the other hand<\/p>\n
the groups that integrate with Society<\/p>\n
tend to say things like just come we're<\/p>\n
inclusive we'll accept everybody it<\/p>\n
doesn't matter what you believe we'll<\/p>\n
just be good people we'll love everybody<\/p>\n
we'll accept everybody<\/p>\n
this on the surface this sounds<\/p>\n
attractive right<\/p>\n
but at its root<\/p>\n
even though these groups Express<\/p>\n
themselves differently<\/p>\n
the root is the same<\/p>\n
it's about power<\/p>\n
so here's how one way to get power is to<\/p>\n
assimilate assimilate right you say<\/p>\n
we're no different than anyone else we<\/p>\n
welcome everybody and so by doing that<\/p>\n
what we end up doing is reflecting the<\/p>\n
cultural values of society we reflect<\/p>\n
the cultural values of the elite leaders<\/p>\n
and this happens on the micro level too<\/p>\n
doesn't it<\/p>\n
we may have a boss or a supervisor that<\/p>\n
we don't like<\/p>\n
but we want to stay on their good side<\/p>\n
so what do we do we laugh at their jokes<\/p>\n
we don't outright disagree with them<\/p>\n
even if we don't think the same way we<\/p>\n
don't disagree them because we want to<\/p>\n
stay on their good side we want to stay<\/p>\n
in power<\/p>\n
and we see this happening in all of<\/p>\n
wanting to avoid getting on the bad<\/p>\n
sides of people in power and so we stay<\/p>\n
silent when we should be speaking up<\/p>\n
we completely assimilate we give in to<\/p>\n
the values of society<\/p>\n
but another way to get power<\/p>\n
is to separate your demonized Society so<\/p>\n
we tell people how different we are we<\/p>\n
speak up and we cause Conflict at every<\/p>\n
chance possible<\/p>\n
we tell people how bad the world is and<\/p>\n
how we are the only ones who stand for<\/p>\n
truth we are the only lights in this<\/p>\n
corrupt Society this is also about power<\/p>\n
it only looks different<\/p>\n
it's not characterized by love for our<\/p>\n
neighbors or love for our society or<\/p>\n
love for our city we demonize society<\/p>\n
and so we separate<\/p>\n
now the Bible tells us<\/p>\n
that we are actually<\/p>\n
supposed to be neither<\/p>\n
we are not supposed to separate from<\/p>\n
society and hate Society<\/p>\n
and we're not supposed to assimilate and<\/p>\n
lose our identity<\/p>\n
so in John John 17 for example Jesus<\/p>\n
tells us that we are to be in the world<\/p>\n
but not of it<\/p>\n
and here Peter tells us in verses 11 and<\/p>\n
12 it tells us dear friends I urge you<\/p>\n
as foreigners and Exiles to abstain from<\/p>\n
sinful desires which wage war against<\/p>\n
your soul<\/p>\n
glorify God on the day he visits us<\/p>\n
so what Peter is doing here<\/p>\n
is he's telling us that we are<\/p>\n
foreigners and exiles<\/p>\n
what does that mean<\/p>\n
well a lot of you may know when you go<\/p>\n
to another country<\/p>\n
um welcome y'all interns when you go to<\/p>\n
another country you immediately know<\/p>\n
that there is something different about<\/p>\n
you<\/p>\n
you don't share the same culture the<\/p>\n
same language perhaps even the same<\/p>\n
values<\/p>\n
you may share a similar appearance but<\/p>\n
when you start to talk to them and<\/p>\n
investigate you realize you're different<\/p>\n
how many of us have had someone come up<\/p>\n
to us<\/p>\n
or how many of us have gone up to<\/p>\n
someone speaking Thai to them expecting<\/p>\n
them to be able to speak Thai back but<\/p>\n
then they end up speaking Chinese to us<\/p>\n
what's interesting<\/p>\n
is about how Peter uses the term here<\/p>\n
Peter is speaking to people of the same<\/p>\n
nationality the same ethnicity<\/p>\n
he's speaking to Romans in Rome<\/p>\n
he's speaking the Greeks in Greece<\/p>\n
people who have lived there all their<\/p>\n
lives people who have families who have<\/p>\n
lived there all their lives<\/p>\n
so how are they<\/p>\n
Peter is speaking about the kind of<\/p>\n
relationship that we as the church have<\/p>\n
with Society<\/p>\n
see he says as as foreigners and Exiles<\/p>\n
he's talking about status he's telling<\/p>\n
us that we may not assimilate we may not<\/p>\n
conform to the societal values<\/p>\n
Peter is saying when you become a<\/p>\n
Christian you become a foreigner you<\/p>\n
become an alien<\/p>\n
how does this work<\/p>\n
well one reason that this works is<\/p>\n
because Christians did not keep their<\/p>\n
faith private it actually shaped how<\/p>\n
they live so people in public could see<\/p>\n
they could see that there was something<\/p>\n
different about them<\/p>\n
their face shaped how they lived<\/p>\n
their decision their decisions in the<\/p>\n
public sphere in the workplace and how<\/p>\n
they choose to spend their time and<\/p>\n
money it was shaped by their faith and<\/p>\n
people could see it<\/p>\n
they didn't try to hide that they were<\/p>\n
Christian in fact they couldn't hide it<\/p>\n
because they were counter-cultural<\/p>\n
so something about some of the things we<\/p>\n
know about the early church the earlier<\/p>\n
Christians is one they didn't go to<\/p>\n
bloodthirsty entertainment so they did<\/p>\n
not go and watch Gladiators fight to the<\/p>\n
death<\/p>\n
so they were considered anti-social<\/p>\n
secondly they didn't serve in the<\/p>\n
military they didn't support Conquest<\/p>\n
three they were against abortion in that<\/p>\n
culture if a family had a baby<\/p>\n
and it was not the gender that they<\/p>\n
wanted generally if it was a girl it was<\/p>\n
acceptable to kill the baby<\/p>\n
so they didn't support abortion they<\/p>\n
also empowered women in leadership in<\/p>\n
ways that was different to society<\/p>\n
they were also against sex outside of<\/p>\n
marriage they were against same-sex<\/p>\n
practice so they were considered weird<\/p>\n
by Society<\/p>\n
they were also radically for the poor<\/p>\n
and in their Gatherings they mixed the<\/p>\n
classes together in ways that were<\/p>\n
considered unacceptable so when they<\/p>\n
gathered there was no such thing as high<\/p>\n
or low class for the early Christians<\/p>\n
and they believed that Jesus was the<\/p>\n
only way to Salvation<\/p>\n
see they were aliens they weren't like<\/p>\n
the Greeks they weren't like the Romans<\/p>\n
they weren't like the Jews<\/p>\n
they weren't like anybody<\/p>\n
they were aliens they did not fit into<\/p>\n
any major cultural group<\/p>\n
and that's true of us too whenever<\/p>\n
Christians whenever we pick up the<\/p>\n
values of the gospel and we start living<\/p>\n
it out we're aliens<\/p>\n
where foreigners<\/p>\n
we don't fit in with Society<\/p>\n
but we don't separate from the culture<\/p>\n
either<\/p>\n
so the Greek word for foreigners here<\/p>\n
speaks of someone who has committed to<\/p>\n
stay there<\/p>\n
they're not tourists<\/p>\n
they're not just passing by briefly<\/p>\n
but they have come and they are<\/p>\n
permanent residents they live there<\/p>\n
they are committed to the city<\/p>\n
they're different but they're not going<\/p>\n
anywhere<\/p>\n
in verse 12. verse 12 says live such<\/p>\n
good lives among the pagans that though<\/p>\n
they accuse you of doing wrong they may<\/p>\n
see your good deeds and glorify God on<\/p>\n
the day he visits us so this is the same<\/p>\n
idea<\/p>\n
where Jesus says that we are to be Salt<\/p>\n
and Light of the Earth<\/p>\n
so let our light shine in such a way<\/p>\n
that people see our good deeds and<\/p>\n
glorify God<\/p>\n
in first Thessalonians 1 Paul writes<\/p>\n
your faith in God has become known<\/p>\n
everywhere they tell how you turn to God<\/p>\n
from Idols to serve the living and true<\/p>\n
so good deeds in the New Testament does<\/p>\n
not mean good behavior<\/p>\n
it actually means doing good it means<\/p>\n
serving<\/p>\n
and this this right here is the amazing<\/p>\n
posture to which Peter calls us as the<\/p>\n
we're not supposed to separate from<\/p>\n
we're not supposed to confirm conform<\/p>\n
and assimilate to society<\/p>\n
there is an amazing balance here<\/p>\n
so if we assimilate we don't suffer we<\/p>\n
get on the good side of power and<\/p>\n
everybody thinks we're normal everyone<\/p>\n
thinks we're okay<\/p>\n
but if we separate we don't suffer<\/p>\n
either because we just separate<\/p>\n
and everybody thinks we're weird<\/p>\n
everybody thinks there's something wrong<\/p>\n
with us but what happens if we are very<\/p>\n
we maintain our Biblical values we live<\/p>\n
differently but instead of separating we<\/p>\n
engage<\/p>\n
we engage with our society we serve we<\/p>\n
come close we love our neighbors we give<\/p>\n
ourselves to our city<\/p>\n
then what<\/p>\n
see it doesn't say the faith community<\/p>\n
is good the city is bad Peter is not<\/p>\n
saying that<\/p>\n
Peter's saying they will accuse us of<\/p>\n
wrongdoing they will think we're<\/p>\n
different they will accuse us they have<\/p>\n
to because our World Views are so<\/p>\n
different if we are faithful to Jesus<\/p>\n
and we live our faith not publicly then<\/p>\n
of course there will be<\/p>\n
misunderstandings of course they will<\/p>\n
accuse us because we have a completely<\/p>\n
different logic system<\/p>\n
and yet Peter's saying there will always<\/p>\n
be some sort of common ground<\/p>\n
Peter says they will accuse you of<\/p>\n
wrongdoing and see your good deeds<\/p>\n
Peter says they will recognize our Good<\/p>\n
Deeds what does that mean<\/p>\n
that means every culture has common<\/p>\n
Grace in it<\/p>\n
every person is made in God's image<\/p>\n
every person has worth value dignity<\/p>\n
wisdom Insight the image of God is<\/p>\n
stamped on every person Christian or not<\/p>\n
so every culture in some place will have<\/p>\n
overlap with Biblical values they will<\/p>\n
recognize some beauty<\/p>\n
in what Christians are doing<\/p>\n
so one example of this is the human<\/p>\n
rights movement<\/p>\n
so many many people who aren't Christian<\/p>\n
today believe in human rights that every<\/p>\n
human has value significance and worth<\/p>\n
but this was not always the case<\/p>\n
so slavery the selling and trading of<\/p>\n
humans has been a practice for thousands<\/p>\n
and thousands of years<\/p>\n
and philosophers such as Aristotle<\/p>\n
actually argued for slavery Aristotle<\/p>\n
said that some people are born to be<\/p>\n
slaves naturally because they're not<\/p>\n
able to be able to be rational<\/p>\n
so for these people<\/p>\n
who did not have the capacity to use<\/p>\n
their minds and be rational maybe<\/p>\n
they're not as smart it was justified<\/p>\n
that they were slaves<\/p>\n
but it was the Christians that fought<\/p>\n
against slavery<\/p>\n
so Gregory of Nissa for example he was<\/p>\n
the Theologian and Pastor in the 4th<\/p>\n
Century he began to criticize slavery<\/p>\n
and it's it's very likely that he was<\/p>\n
the first person to speak out against<\/p>\n
slavery in the ancient world because we<\/p>\n
don't have any documents of anyone else<\/p>\n
who opposed slavery we only have his<\/p>\n
critique against slavery and what he<\/p>\n
argued is that since everyone is created<\/p>\n
in God's image no one could be given a<\/p>\n
man-made price<\/p>\n
everyone was free<\/p>\n
and treating a human made in God's image<\/p>\n
like transferable property was a sin<\/p>\n
That's the basis of human rights that<\/p>\n
were all made in God's image and<\/p>\n
therefore we have the right to life to<\/p>\n
dignity to respect and this is something<\/p>\n
that our society today values<\/p>\n
which is an outworking of the Gospel<\/p>\n
however<\/p>\n
do you take the idea of not having sex<\/p>\n
outside a marriage and you talk to<\/p>\n
someone on the street of Bangkok what<\/p>\n
would they think<\/p>\n
you're crazy<\/p>\n
they won't like that at all<\/p>\n
they'd like the idea of Human Rights but<\/p>\n
ridicule the idea of not having sex<\/p>\n
before marriage see we're aliens and<\/p>\n
strangers there's a tension that we have<\/p>\n
were not assimilated but we're not<\/p>\n
separated either we're loving them we're<\/p>\n
loving our city we're serving people<\/p>\n
that's the posture and when we do this<\/p>\n
we will be accused of wrongdoing<\/p>\n
we will suffer<\/p>\n
expected<\/p>\n
be gracious<\/p>\n
don't be surprised when it happens be<\/p>\n
different and gentle<\/p>\n
this is how we witness<\/p>\n
think about someone in your community<\/p>\n
pray for them<\/p>\n
think about ways to engage with them in<\/p>\n
a way that's gentle<\/p>\n
we are to be non-defensively different<\/p>\n
how do we engage Society<\/p>\n
here's a good question if Grace city was<\/p>\n
no longer here would our community would<\/p>\n
would assault would Bangkok would anyone<\/p>\n
notice<\/p>\n
now the question<\/p>\n
comes up is how how do we engage with<\/p>\n
Society in a way that's gentle and<\/p>\n
non-defensively different<\/p>\n
well Tim killer makes the very<\/p>\n
interesting observation about people<\/p>\n
he says<\/p>\n
a lot of Christians go out into the<\/p>\n
world and find it very tough to navigate<\/p>\n
he says I think it's because they don't<\/p>\n
understand the gospel not because they<\/p>\n
can't answer all the theological<\/p>\n
questions<\/p>\n
the way we get the power to do this to<\/p>\n
engage with our society is the gospel<\/p>\n
we see this in verse 4. Peter says as<\/p>\n
you come to him the living Stone<\/p>\n
we need to come to him the living Stone<\/p>\n
we need to come to Jesus well how do we<\/p>\n
do that firstly we need to recognize<\/p>\n
that we're building our lives on<\/p>\n
something<\/p>\n
verses 6 and 7 it says see the the stone<\/p>\n
the Builder is rejected has become the<\/p>\n
Cornerstone<\/p>\n
the Bible says we should be building on<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ the Cornerstone<\/p>\n
and it says the stone the builders<\/p>\n
rejected has become the Cornerstone what<\/p>\n
does this mean<\/p>\n
we're the builders we're all building<\/p>\n
our lives on something<\/p>\n
and the way to find out what you're<\/p>\n
building your life on what we're<\/p>\n
building our life on what our foundation<\/p>\n
is the way to find out<\/p>\n
is by asking the question what is my<\/p>\n
greatest nightmare<\/p>\n
what is it<\/p>\n
it was taken from me<\/p>\n
will make me lose the will to live<\/p>\n
when everything falls apart<\/p>\n
what do you look to<\/p>\n
what are you hoping<\/p>\n
do you say I'm still a good person when<\/p>\n
everything falls apart do you say I'm<\/p>\n
still a good person or I've succeeded<\/p>\n
I'm a successful business person<\/p>\n
or at least this person or that person<\/p>\n
or at least my family still loves me<\/p>\n
I'll be okay<\/p>\n
what what is it if taken away from us<\/p>\n
will make us lose the will to live what<\/p>\n
is our greatest nightmare<\/p>\n
many athletes when they're playing their<\/p>\n
sport<\/p>\n
everything goes well<\/p>\n
but once they get injured or retire<\/p>\n
oftentimes they lose themselves they<\/p>\n
struggle a lot<\/p>\n
why is that<\/p>\n
because for many people their sport was<\/p>\n
their identity<\/p>\n
they built their life on it and now that<\/p>\n
it's taken away with retirement<\/p>\n
they don't know what to do<\/p>\n
and anything we build our lives on other<\/p>\n
than Jesus Christ will let us down<\/p>\n
it cannot hold up to the entire weight<\/p>\n
of Our Lives<\/p>\n
it will let us down<\/p>\n
how well we'll never feel as if we're<\/p>\n
doing enough we'll never feel like we're<\/p>\n
enough<\/p>\n
if business if success and business is<\/p>\n
our life<\/p>\n
we will feel like a failure unless we're<\/p>\n
making profit<\/p>\n
and when we are making profit we'll want<\/p>\n
more<\/p>\n
well there's there'll never be enough<\/p>\n
we'll feel like we don't have a self<\/p>\n
we'll feel like we can't control<\/p>\n
ourselves<\/p>\n
if we're making a lot of money if our<\/p>\n
career is working out we feel great we<\/p>\n
feel on top of the world<\/p>\n
but as soon as things start to go bad we<\/p>\n
feel ashamed<\/p>\n
we feel like a failure<\/p>\n
anything we build our lives on other<\/p>\n
than Jesus Christ will put us to shame<\/p>\n
but it says here in verse 6 see I lay a<\/p>\n
it's only Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
on whom if we build we will never be put<\/p>\n
to shame<\/p>\n
now this this goes beyond believing that<\/p>\n
Jesus is God<\/p>\n
or believing Jesus died for my sins this<\/p>\n
goes beyond that it's not just believing<\/p>\n
with our heads<\/p>\n
see it says to you who believe this<\/p>\n
stone is precious<\/p>\n
he's precious<\/p>\n
he has to become precious to you what<\/p>\n
well imagine a doctor<\/p>\n
comes to you<\/p>\n
and tells you that you only have a week<\/p>\n
to live<\/p>\n
and then you'll die<\/p>\n
and the one thing that can save you is<\/p>\n
this medicine<\/p>\n
what would you say<\/p>\n
sure hand it over I'll take it yeah give<\/p>\n
it to me the doctor continues wait a<\/p>\n
minute<\/p>\n
this medicine is really expensive it'll<\/p>\n
cost you your car<\/p>\n
your house<\/p>\n
all your savings<\/p>\n
you'll have to live in a much smaller<\/p>\n
home<\/p>\n
so I'm not sure if you still want it<\/p>\n
what do you say that's okay I'll do it<\/p>\n
give it to me I need the medicine what<\/p>\n
good is my car or my house if I'm dead I<\/p>\n
can't take those things with me I'll<\/p>\n
sell it all for the medicine I'll give<\/p>\n
up everything for this medicine<\/p>\n
what's going on here the medicine has<\/p>\n
become precious to you you recognize how<\/p>\n
much you need it and you're willing to<\/p>\n
give up everything for this medicine<\/p>\n
everything else that used to be valuable<\/p>\n
are now things that you're willing to<\/p>\n
give up for the medicine why because<\/p>\n
it's become precious to you<\/p>\n
is Jesus precious to us<\/p>\n
until Jesus is precious to us until he<\/p>\n
is that beautiful that lovely<\/p>\n
so that everything else becomes things<\/p>\n
that we are willing to give up<\/p>\n
the only way Jesus Christ can be our<\/p>\n
Cornerstone the only way we can never be<\/p>\n
shaken<\/p>\n
is if Jesus is precious to us<\/p>\n
is he<\/p>\n
someone may ask how how does Jesus<\/p>\n
become this precious to me<\/p>\n
and Peter tells us<\/p>\n
him<\/p>\n
come see why Jesus was rejected<\/p>\n
Jesus Christ came and his people<\/p>\n
rejected him his family rejected him at<\/p>\n
the end of his life his disciples<\/p>\n
rejected him and on the cross Jesus<\/p>\n
Christ cried out my God my God why have<\/p>\n
you forsaken me<\/p>\n
everyone rejected Jesus<\/p>\n
he's the ultimate Foreigner<\/p>\n
he's the ultimate one who's in Exile<\/p>\n
but what does he do when he's rejected<\/p>\n
he doesn't separate<\/p>\n
he doesn't give in and assimilate<\/p>\n
what does he do<\/p>\n
what was it say verses 23 24 it says<\/p>\n
when they hurled insults at him he did<\/p>\n
not retaliate when he suffered he made<\/p>\n
no threats instead he entrusted himself<\/p>\n
to him who judges justly<\/p>\n
he himself bore our sins in his body on<\/p>\n
the cross so that we might die to sins<\/p>\n
and live for righteousness<\/p>\n
what does he do he suffers he doesn't<\/p>\n
attack back he stayed and he stayed<\/p>\n
until the end why why did he do it<\/p>\n
because we were precious to him<\/p>\n
and when we see how precious we are to<\/p>\n
Jesus<\/p>\n
that he<\/p>\n
the Son of God God himself would go to<\/p>\n
the cross and die to pay the penalty for<\/p>\n
our sins and give his life so that we<\/p>\n
could be set free<\/p>\n
from the powers of sin<\/p>\n
when we see how precious we are to Jesus<\/p>\n
then he becomes precious to us<\/p>\n
and that's how we can come to Jesus that<\/p>\n
this is what it means to be a Christian<\/p>\n
the moment we unite to God and Jesus<\/p>\n
Christ because of what Jesus has done<\/p>\n
were accepted if Jesus is beautiful to<\/p>\n
the father then we are beautiful to the<\/p>\n
father<\/p>\n
if God says about Jesus this is my<\/p>\n
beloved Son with whom I'm well pleased<\/p>\n
when we unite to Jesus God says that<\/p>\n
about us too<\/p>\n
and if we know that we are loved like<\/p>\n
if we know deep down that we are<\/p>\n
accepted by God and loved by God and<\/p>\n
more precious than all the stones in the<\/p>\n
Earth<\/p>\n
it's only then that we could go out into<\/p>\n
the world and instead of saying<\/p>\n
who if I hang out with them with them<\/p>\n
will make me feel good about myself<\/p>\n
instead of saying that we can say<\/p>\n
who looks like they just need someone to<\/p>\n
hang out with<\/p>\n
who looks like they just need a friend<\/p>\n
we go out not looking to be accepted but<\/p>\n
we go out looking to be loving<\/p>\n
because it's no longer about us<\/p>\n
because the value of the love the<\/p>\n
significance the worth that we've been<\/p>\n
looking for we find it in Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
and because we know how Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
suffered for us<\/p>\n
we are so secure<\/p>\n
that we can interact with people<\/p>\n
who see the world differently from we do<\/p>\n
that we do<\/p>\n
people who even accuse us of wrongdoing<\/p>\n
we can interact with them and not get<\/p>\n
defensive not get insecure not try to<\/p>\n
defend ourselves when somebody says your<\/p>\n
views on sexuality are very weird and<\/p>\n
unkind or you don't have sex before<\/p>\n
marriage you are so old-fashioned when<\/p>\n
someone says that<\/p>\n
we don't get defensive<\/p>\n
we don't lash out<\/p>\n
we're kind<\/p>\n
because we know how much Jesus Christ<\/p>\n
suffered for us and loves us that we can<\/p>\n
be patient with people who misunderstand<\/p>\n
us we can be kind we can be gentle we<\/p>\n
can be non-defensively different<\/p>\n
because we have the love of the king<\/p>\n
we can move out into the world<\/p>\n
and be a salt and light of the Earth<\/p>\n
let's pray<\/p>\n
Lord we father we come to you and we<\/p>\n
pray<\/p>\n
Lord through your spirit that you would<\/p>\n
make these truths very real to us today<\/p>\n
Lord we pray that you would help us to<\/p>\n
meditate<\/p>\n
on the fact that you Jesus suffered for<\/p>\n
us<\/p>\n
learn that we are completely secure in<\/p>\n
you Lord give us the assurance that we<\/p>\n
need Lord help us as a community as the<\/p>\n
to be Salt and Light of the city Jesus<\/p>\n
name amen<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20230614","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=rRXb2OGp1P0","video_id":"rRXb2OGp1P0","video_duration":"34:11","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=631"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":632,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631\/revisions\/632"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/630"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}