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All right, Mars Hill,
we're in Luke 11:33-54:

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Jesus and Religion.

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As you find your place, yes,
we will whack it like a pinata.

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There is Jesus Christ, who
in the Bible is called

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the chief shepherd,
the good shepherd.

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Working under Jesus
are other shepherds,

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people who love Jesus and want
to take care of his people,

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called the sheep.

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In the Old Testament, this would
be prophets, priests, kings.

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This would include,
in the time of Jesus,

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the apostles and disciples
who followed him.

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In our day, this would be
elders, pastors, deacons,

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community and redemption
group leaders,

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people who love and follow Jesus
and want to help his sheep.

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So Christians individually
are referred to as sheep.

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Churches are referred
to as flocks.

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And so there is
the chief good shepherd,

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there are the shepherds working
under him to look after

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the sheep and the flocks and
protect them from the wolves.

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And the wolves love
to lead sheep astray,

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teach them false doctrine,
take their money, abuse them,

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enslave them through
religious rules, ideology,

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fear mechanisms, and control.

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This explains why, throughout
the course of Luke's gospel,

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one of the massive mega themes
is the conflict between

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Jesus and religious wolves.

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And I use those words
synonymously intentionally.

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They keep coming into the
presence of Jesus to pick

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a fight with him, and today
you're going to see them do it

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yet again, two groups,
the lawyers, or scribes,

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who are the teachers.

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So they've got my job
and they're not doing it well.

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Pray by God's grace
I would do my job well.

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And with them are the Pharisees.

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They're students and
those who learn from them

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and imitate them.

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So pray for yourself, that you
and I would not fall into this

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trap where I act like
the lawyers and you act

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like the Pharisees.

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And they come to argue
and to pick a fight with Jesus

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in the presence
of the shepherds and the sheep.

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And some of you may have been
confused reading the Bible

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because it says repeatedly
to be kind and loving

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and tenderhearted and merciful
and nice to people,

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and then we see the prophets

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saying very
confrontational things.

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We see Jesus often times in
an argument and in a fight.

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We see the same thing with the
apostles in the New Testament.

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And here's why.

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Shepherds are to be kind, tender
hearted, Ephesians 4:32 says,

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to one another.

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That is, Christians are supposed
to be nice to Christians.

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Christians are supposed
to be nice to non-Christians.

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But sometimes you've gotta be
real stern with the wolves,

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not because you don't love them,

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but because you
also love the sheep.

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That's why Martin Luther
says it this way,

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"With the wolves you
cannot be too severe.

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With the weak sheep you
cannot be too gentle."

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We'll see Jesus today very
gentle with the sheep,

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very firm and stern
with the wolves,

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beginning in Luke 11:33-36,
where he teaches us that one of

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the ways we fall into religion
is regarding how we respond

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to the light.

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Here's how Jesus says it, "No
one after lighting a lamp puts

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"it in a cellar or under
a basket, but on a stand,

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"so that those who enter
may see the light.

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"Your eye is
the lamp of your body.

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"When your eye is healthy, your
whole body is full of light,

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"but when it is bad, your
body is full of darkness.

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"Therefore be careful lest
the light in you be darkness.

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"If then your whole body is full
of light, having no part dark,

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"it will be wholly bright,
as when a lamp with its rays

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gives you light."

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Jesus is saying here that
religious people

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close their eyes.

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And here's where he begins.

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He begins by saying that light
should be at the center

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of our life, and Jesus is
the light of the world.

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And in a day when there was no
electricity and once it got dark

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you went home and there
was utter darkness,

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you would light a lamp and you
would put it in the center

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of your home to illuminate as
much of your home as possible.

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And so you wanted the light,
the lamp, to be central,

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to be preeminent,
to be prominent,

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so that you could see and that
darkness would be exposed

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so you could live in the light.

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And this is an analogy
of the Christian faith.

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Jesus is the light of the world
and we want the person of Jesus

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and everything connected to
him, the Bible, Bible teaching,

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study, church, community
groups, Christian friendships,

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to be at the center of our life.

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Our greatest treasure,
our highest priority,

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our preeminent joy, that Jesus
is at the center

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and that we want him
and his truth to illuminate

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all of our lives, right?

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Our friendships, our work,
our finances, our hobbies,

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recreation, we want the light
of Jesus illuminating

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all of our life and exposing
any of our sin.

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And what some people do,
and this is how you begin

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down the path of religion,

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they want to take
the light and cover it.

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He uses the analogy
of under a basket

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or put down
in the cellar basement.

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These are people who say,
"Well, I don't want Jesus

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"in charge of my life.

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"I don't want him in
the center of my life.

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"There are certain parts of my
life I don't want him

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"butting into, looking at,
exposing, confronting,

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or commanding that I repent of."

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So Jesus goes off to the side.

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For some of you, this means
you go to church rarely,

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read the Bible rarely, you
really don't want to hear it,

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you don't want to listen to it,
you're not really open to it,

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and you're trying to get
Jesus off in the corner.

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And Jesus remains Lord.

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That means he is
in control and command.

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And then he goes on to
say that, because of this,

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the light of God
still does come to us.

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He speaks to us through our
conscience, the Holy Spirit,

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Christian friends,
Bible teaching.

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The light still shines despite
our efforts to cover that light.

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And what some of us do
then is unconscionable.

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We close our eyes.

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We don't look at the light,
the truth, the person,

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the work of Jesus.

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"I don't want to see the truth.

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"I don't want to see my own sin.

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"I don't want to see
the parts of my life

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"that are not yielded to God.

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"I don't want to know the areas
that Jesus is asking me

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to repent, to change,
to learn, to grow."

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We intentionally close our eyes.

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Where in your life are you

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trying to get Jesus
removed from?

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How is Jesus revealing himself
in your life

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and how are you responding?

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Is it with eyes open, saying,
"Jesus, whatever you have.

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"Whatever you say, whatever
you want, that's true.

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"I want my life
to be illuminated.

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"I want my sin
to be known and revealed.

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"I want you to have
your way with me.

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My whole life belongs to you"?

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Or is it, "I close my eyes"?

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And see, this is not acceptable.

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This is not actually excusable.

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This is conscious rebellion.

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And this is what happens for
people who know what Jesus says

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and they just don't like it.

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They just don't like it.

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And so Jesus is teaching
this and religious people

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are present.

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People who are trying to
get him off into the corner.

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People who have,
spiritually speaking,

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closed their eyes to him.

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And so the conflict escalates,
and we then see that

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religious people proceed
forward to make rules for God.

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So, in closing their eyes to
God, they want to replace God,

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act like God, make rules
in addition to the rules

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that God made.

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The law of God
in the Old Testament contains

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613 laws and the religious
people decide, "We need more."

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Here's what happens.

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Luke 11:37-41, "While Jesus was
speaking, a Pharisee asked him

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to dine with him, so he went in
and reclined at table."

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Let me just say this.

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We've already seen in Luke's
gospel Jesus on occasion does

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hang out with sinners, people
with nefarious reputations,

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gals in clear heels, guys with
nine millimeters in their strap,

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people who just got done
being extras in hip-hop video.

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Those are the kinds of
friends that Jesus has, right?

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And people can't figure this
out because he rolls by in

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the Escalade, and, you know,
they hear the bass and Jesus is,

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you know, waving out the window
on the way to eat dinner

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with these people at the club.

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And the religious people
are, "Where is he going?

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"He said he was God.

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"What is he doing
in the entourage?

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Why are they going to the club?"

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And Jesus tells people,
"Yes, I am friends with sinners.

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"I have meals with sinners.

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"I don't approve of their sin.

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"I don't participate
in their sin.

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But I'm here to love
and to serve them."

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It's like looking
at a doctor saying,

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"What's wrong with that doctor?

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Why is he always
with sick people?"

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Because he's a doctor
and he's trying to help them

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and he's the only one who can.

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So Jesus is with sinners,

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and the religious people
just don't get it.

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Not only does Jesus
hang out with sinners,

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he hangs out with
religious people as well.

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So the religious people,
the Pharisees, they invite,

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"Would you like to come to our
party and have dinner

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with us and our team?"

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Here's what's shocking
to yours truly.

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Jesus goes.

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I totally get that,
"Hey, you want to hang out

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with these guys,
eat chicken wings, throw darts?"

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"Yeah."

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"You want to come to
our religious party?"

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"No.

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"I don't.

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"There will be no darts,
no chicken wings.

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"Somebody's going to pray in
King James for 27 minutes

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"before we can even eat whatever
slop you put in front of me.

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"Then we're going to argue about
all kinds of theological things

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"that probably don't matter.

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"And at some point, we're going
to get into head coverings.

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No!
I don't want to go."

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[congregation laughing]

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"I would rather take
a ball-peen hammer to my

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"frontal lobe than go to dinner
with the religious people.

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"I can't find my suit.

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It's not going
to be fun at all."

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Here's what's awesome about
Jesus and convicting to me.

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He hangs out with
religious people too.

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That's pretty fantastic.

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Jesus loves everybody.

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He's even nice to the
wolves for a little bit,

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and then it gets pretty intense.

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Let's keep reading.

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"The Pharisee," verse 38, "was
astonished to see that he

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did not first wash
before dinner."

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All of you
Purell fans, buckle up.

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Here we go!

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[congregation laughing]

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Verse 39,
"And the Lord said to him,

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"'Now you Pharisees cleanse
the outside of the cup

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"'and of the dish,
but inside you are

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"'full of greed and wickedness.

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You fools!'"

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That's a big statement.

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Jesus says elsewhere,
"Don't call someone a fool!"

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Apparently, unless
they're a fool.

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[congregation laughing]

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"'Did not he who made the
outside make the inside also?

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"'But give as alms those things
that are within, and behold,

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everything is clean for you.'"

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Where's Jesus?

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00:11:04,000 --> 00:11:06,292
The religious people's
home, having a party

244
00:11:06,375 --> 00:11:08,375
with all
of the religious people.

245
00:11:08,458 --> 00:11:12,417
And just so you know,
these guys are impossible.

246
00:11:12,500 --> 00:11:16,917
One commentator says, rightly,
"It's like having a Bible study

247
00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:19,375
with the Internal
Revenue Service."

248
00:11:19,458 --> 00:11:21,000
Right?

249
00:11:21,083 --> 00:11:23,542
These are the guys, when
it comes to the Bible,

250
00:11:23,625 --> 00:11:25,250
they make the rules
about the rules.

251
00:11:25,333 --> 00:11:26,708
They interpret the rules.

252
00:11:26,792 --> 00:11:28,250
They enforce the rules.

253
00:11:28,333 --> 00:11:31,167
And if you find a way
to work through the rules,

254
00:11:31,250 --> 00:11:32,417
they change the rules.

255
00:11:32,500 --> 00:11:34,375
These guys are impossible.

256
00:11:34,458 --> 00:11:35,792
They're impossible.

257
00:11:35,875 --> 00:11:37,708
And Jesus goes to
dinner with them.

258
00:11:37,792 --> 00:11:39,708
I think they want
him there, maybe,

259
00:11:39,792 --> 00:11:42,042
to elevate their social status,
but secondarily maybe

260
00:11:42,125 --> 00:11:45,125
to also argue with him
and show him a few things

261
00:11:45,208 --> 00:11:47,833
and teach him a few truths.

262
00:11:47,917 --> 00:11:50,333
Oh, it's going to
go bad for them.

263
00:11:50,417 --> 00:11:54,583
And the way it's set up with
religion is it's a shell game.

264
00:11:54,667 --> 00:11:56,667
They win, you lose.

265
00:11:56,750 --> 00:12:01,042
There is no way for it
to come out differently.

266
00:12:01,125 --> 00:12:02,917
And here's the problem.

267
00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:04,958
Religious people
make rules for God.

268
00:12:05,042 --> 00:12:08,542
If you're at Mars Hill, we love
Jesus, we believe the Bible.

269
00:12:08,625 --> 00:12:11,292
Everything the Bible
says, we believe.

270
00:12:11,375 --> 00:12:14,667
We also believe you
shouldn't add to it.

271
00:12:14,750 --> 00:12:16,875
That's what
Proverbs 30:5-6 says.

272
00:12:16,958 --> 00:12:19,333
"Do not add to his word
or he'll rebuke you

273
00:12:19,417 --> 00:12:21,333
and prove you to be a liar."

274
00:12:21,417 --> 00:12:22,542
Right?

275
00:12:22,625 --> 00:12:25,417
It's not like God wants
you to add to his laws,

276
00:12:25,500 --> 00:12:28,458
but that's what
religious people do.

277
00:12:28,542 --> 00:12:31,125
And one of the rules
they had made was this.

278
00:12:31,208 --> 00:12:33,875
You have to wash your
hands before dinner.

279
00:12:33,958 --> 00:12:35,292
Now the Bible never says,

280
00:12:35,375 --> 00:12:39,333
"Thou musteth washeth thine
hands."

281
00:12:39,417 --> 00:12:41,250
It never says that.

282
00:12:41,333 --> 00:12:43,417
But the religious guys got
together and said,

283
00:12:43,500 --> 00:12:45,875
"Well, you need to wash
your hands before dinner

284
00:12:45,958 --> 00:12:48,708
"and that's what the Lord
says, thus saith the Lord.

285
00:12:48,792 --> 00:12:50,375
"It's equal to the Bible.

286
00:12:50,458 --> 00:12:52,250
"We will enforce it as such.

287
00:12:52,333 --> 00:12:55,000
Jesus, welcome to our
house for dinner."

288
00:12:55,083 --> 00:12:56,708
They all sit down at dinner.

289
00:12:56,792 --> 00:12:59,500
All of the religious
people are looking.

290
00:12:59,583 --> 00:13:02,792
And Jesus is going to
break one of the rules.

291
00:13:02,875 --> 00:13:05,375
Awesome.

292
00:13:05,458 --> 00:13:08,708
Let's say, for example,
there's a big bowl

293
00:13:08,792 --> 00:13:11,083
of mashed potatoes.

294
00:13:11,167 --> 00:13:13,125
And there's
the Lord Jesus Christ,

295
00:13:13,208 --> 00:13:14,750
God in human flesh,

296
00:13:14,833 --> 00:13:19,625
and with his dirty, unclean
hand, he gives that look

297
00:13:19,708 --> 00:13:24,542
to all the Pharisees
and slowly moves his hand

298
00:13:24,625 --> 00:13:28,167
toward the bowl of taters
and puts his hand in the bowl

299
00:13:28,250 --> 00:13:32,750
of taters and takes the taters
to his divine mouth and consumes

300
00:13:32,833 --> 00:13:37,583
them to the glory of God
and the joy of all people.

301
00:13:37,667 --> 00:13:40,458
Oh, and the Lord Jesus would
have looked at them and said,

302
00:13:40,542 --> 00:13:42,042
"This is why I made taters.

303
00:13:42,125 --> 00:13:45,250
I knew I was coming and I
wanted to eat me some taters."

304
00:13:45,333 --> 00:13:47,500
[congregation laughing]

305
00:13:47,583 --> 00:13:50,458
"Mmm. Love me some taters."

306
00:13:50,542 --> 00:13:54,167
And all the religious
people are scandalized!

307
00:13:54,250 --> 00:13:56,333
Jesus put his hand
in the tater bowl.

308
00:13:56,417 --> 00:13:57,958
That's like a double dipper!

309
00:13:58,042 --> 00:14:00,250
"You can't do that, Lord!"

310
00:14:00,333 --> 00:14:01,708
Right?

311
00:14:01,792 --> 00:14:04,792
The double dipper is you put
the chip in, eat the dip,

312
00:14:04,875 --> 00:14:06,292
double dip the chip.

313
00:14:06,375 --> 00:14:09,375
Oh, no!
You cannot do that!

314
00:14:09,458 --> 00:14:12,458
So all of a sudden, the
religious people are mortified.

315
00:14:12,542 --> 00:14:14,458
"Oh, no!
He's defiled our taters!

316
00:14:14,542 --> 00:14:16,750
"What will we do
with the taters?

317
00:14:16,833 --> 00:14:18,708
"He's touched the taters.

318
00:14:18,792 --> 00:14:20,625
What will we do?"

319
00:14:20,708 --> 00:14:23,708
Jesus would have said to them,
"Would you like some taters?

320
00:14:23,792 --> 00:14:28,250
I will serve any of you
taters that you like."

321
00:14:28,333 --> 00:14:32,875
This would be like Jesus
getting invited to, let's say,

322
00:14:32,958 --> 00:14:35,333
a state dinner at
the White House.

323
00:14:35,417 --> 00:14:38,458
And he shows up in flip flops
and sits down and reaches

324
00:14:38,542 --> 00:14:42,083
into the salad bowl to get
himself some salad.

325
00:14:42,167 --> 00:14:44,333
Can you imagine the response?

326
00:14:44,417 --> 00:14:46,333
Can you imagine the security?

327
00:14:46,417 --> 00:14:49,708
"We have fingers in the bowl.

328
00:14:49,792 --> 00:14:52,583
"I think we're going to
need to Taser the Lord.

329
00:14:52,667 --> 00:14:56,500
He has touched the salad."

330
00:14:56,583 --> 00:14:59,208
Why does Jesus--is
he just being mean?

331
00:14:59,292 --> 00:15:00,458
Is he being rude?

332
00:15:00,542 --> 00:15:01,958
Is he being disrespectful?

333
00:15:02,042 --> 00:15:04,250
There's a serious theological
point behind all of this.

334
00:15:04,333 --> 00:15:05,500
What he's saying is this:

335
00:15:05,583 --> 00:15:07,458
"I don't acknowledge your rules.

336
00:15:07,542 --> 00:15:09,708
"Your rules are religious.

337
00:15:09,792 --> 00:15:11,875
"Religion is ridiculous.

338
00:15:11,958 --> 00:15:13,500
"No to your rules.

339
00:15:13,583 --> 00:15:15,000
"I wrote this book.

340
00:15:15,083 --> 00:15:16,250
"It has plenty of rules.

341
00:15:16,333 --> 00:15:19,542
"You don't get to write a book
and add it to my book

342
00:15:19,625 --> 00:15:22,042
and include your rules
alongside of mine."

343
00:15:22,125 --> 00:15:25,042
Now, had Jesus showed up
at the house and it went

344
00:15:25,125 --> 00:15:28,208
a little different, and they not
said, "Thus saith the Lord,"

345
00:15:28,292 --> 00:15:30,417
but they simply would
have asked him,

346
00:15:30,500 --> 00:15:32,417
"Jesus, welcome to our home.

347
00:15:32,500 --> 00:15:33,750
"My name is Hank.

348
00:15:33,833 --> 00:15:35,375
"This is my wife Harriet.

349
00:15:35,458 --> 00:15:37,583
"Harriet's a germaphobe.

350
00:15:37,667 --> 00:15:40,417
"She's really worked hard
to cook some taters.

351
00:15:40,500 --> 00:15:43,000
"We have this thing called
a spoon and we have this

352
00:15:43,083 --> 00:15:44,333
"other thing called a sink.

353
00:15:44,417 --> 00:15:47,042
"And Lord Jesus, we know
it's not necessary,

354
00:15:47,125 --> 00:15:50,375
"but out of love for my wife,
could you please wash your hands

355
00:15:50,458 --> 00:15:51,708
and use this spoon?"

356
00:15:51,792 --> 00:15:53,375
Do you think Jesus would have?

357
00:15:53,458 --> 00:15:56,375
Sure.
Sure.

358
00:15:56,458 --> 00:15:59,333
But as soon as the guy looks
Jesus in the eye and says,

359
00:15:59,417 --> 00:16:01,375
"The Lord wants you
to wash your hands."

360
00:16:01,458 --> 00:16:07,375
Jesus is like, "I kind of
know who the Lord is

361
00:16:07,458 --> 00:16:13,458
and since I'm here, I'll tell
you what he's thinking."

362
00:16:15,125 --> 00:16:17,625
And Jesus is confronting
their religious system because

363
00:16:17,708 --> 00:16:20,042
in their religious system what
they're saying is,

364
00:16:20,125 --> 00:16:22,458
"Jesus, you can't put your
fingers in the tater bowl

365
00:16:22,542 --> 00:16:25,500
because that
will make you unholy."

366
00:16:25,583 --> 00:16:29,458
Any religious system that causes
you to be more holy

367
00:16:29,542 --> 00:16:32,417
than Jesus is wrong.

368
00:16:32,500 --> 00:16:34,458
Right?

369
00:16:34,542 --> 00:16:37,083
These guys are trying
to be more holy than Jesus.

370
00:16:37,167 --> 00:16:39,708
That's the problem
with religious rules.

371
00:16:39,792 --> 00:16:42,417
And so what he says is
two things are wrong

372
00:16:42,500 --> 00:16:43,667
with religious rules.

373
00:16:43,750 --> 00:16:45,542
Number one, they're
all about the external,

374
00:16:45,625 --> 00:16:47,875
they're not about the internal.

375
00:16:47,958 --> 00:16:49,667
Here's the truth, friends.

376
00:16:49,750 --> 00:16:52,250
You really don't know if
somebody loves God unless

377
00:16:52,333 --> 00:16:54,417
you talk to them.

378
00:16:54,500 --> 00:16:56,875
You just don't know.

379
00:16:56,958 --> 00:16:58,875
And so, I would tell you this.

380
00:16:58,958 --> 00:17:00,708
Don't judge someone
by where they are,

381
00:17:00,792 --> 00:17:03,458
get to know them and judge
them by where they've come from.

382
00:17:03,542 --> 00:17:05,458
I had this recently
at Mars Hill.

383
00:17:05,542 --> 00:17:08,750
Somebody came up to me and, you
know, they're new to Seattle.

384
00:17:08,833 --> 00:17:12,042
They came from the deep south
and we love people in the deep

385
00:17:12,125 --> 00:17:14,708
south, but they came up to
here, the great left coast,

386
00:17:14,792 --> 00:17:16,375
right below
the Canadian atheists,

387
00:17:16,458 --> 00:17:19,042
where things are not exactly
the buckle on the Bible belt,

388
00:17:19,125 --> 00:17:20,417
and they were freaked out.

389
00:17:20,500 --> 00:17:22,250
They came in after
the service, like,

390
00:17:22,333 --> 00:17:24,417
"We kind of liked
the service, Pastor Mark,

391
00:17:24,500 --> 00:17:26,917
"but we were freaked out
because, before the service,

392
00:17:27,000 --> 00:17:30,542
people were out smoking and then
they came up and led worship."

393
00:17:30,625 --> 00:17:32,500
And that really
freaked them out.

394
00:17:32,583 --> 00:17:34,292
And I said, "What
were they smoking?"

395
00:17:34,375 --> 00:17:35,917
They said, "They were
smoking cigarettes."

396
00:17:36,000 --> 00:17:37,417
I said, "That's amazing.

397
00:17:37,500 --> 00:17:38,792
"That is such
tremendous progress.

398
00:17:38,875 --> 00:17:40,417
You should have seen--"

399
00:17:40,500 --> 00:17:44,500
[congregation laughing]

400
00:17:46,500 --> 00:17:48,250
"Before they were
on the worship team,

401
00:17:48,333 --> 00:17:49,500
"they were not
smoking cigarettes.

402
00:17:49,583 --> 00:17:51,708
"That's Mars Hill progress!

403
00:17:51,792 --> 00:17:54,500
"They're on
the sanctification trail.

404
00:17:54,583 --> 00:17:56,833
They're doing so good!"

405
00:17:56,917 --> 00:17:58,625
Right?

406
00:17:58,708 --> 00:18:01,333
"You get to know them
and where they came from,

407
00:18:01,417 --> 00:18:02,583
"you'd be encouraged.

408
00:18:02,667 --> 00:18:04,417
Hey, they're making progress."

409
00:18:04,500 --> 00:18:06,833
But see, if you only
look at the external,

410
00:18:06,917 --> 00:18:08,625
you don't get to know
the internal,

411
00:18:08,708 --> 00:18:10,042
you could misjudge someone.

412
00:18:10,125 --> 00:18:12,417
"Oh, guys have long hair
or they have a Mohawk,

413
00:18:12,500 --> 00:18:14,583
they have a brohawk,
they have a fauxhawk."

414
00:18:14,667 --> 00:18:16,208
I don't know.
Whatever, you know?

415
00:18:16,292 --> 00:18:17,458
"Oh, look at that gal.

416
00:18:17,542 --> 00:18:19,167
She shouldn't be
wearing those clothes."

417
00:18:19,250 --> 00:18:21,083
She has clothes!
It's a huge improvement.

418
00:18:21,167 --> 00:18:23,375
I mean, she's doing better.
You know?

419
00:18:23,458 --> 00:18:25,625
Pray for her, encourage
her, buy her a sweatshirt.

420
00:18:25,708 --> 00:18:29,250
She's doing better.
She's doing better.

421
00:18:29,333 --> 00:18:30,875
You can look at the external.

422
00:18:30,958 --> 00:18:33,875
Oh, and the big one too, is, you
know, "Christians, oh, tattoos,

423
00:18:33,958 --> 00:18:35,375
"they have tattoos.

424
00:18:35,458 --> 00:18:37,042
They have tattoos.
They shouldn't have tattoos."

425
00:18:37,125 --> 00:18:38,417
Why should they
not have tattoos?

426
00:18:38,500 --> 00:18:40,042
"Well, the Bible
says don't have--"

427
00:18:40,125 --> 00:18:41,792
The Bible says
in the Old Testament,

428
00:18:41,875 --> 00:18:44,208
if you're a priest,
from the line of Aaron,

429
00:18:44,292 --> 00:18:47,042
part of the sacred order
who's made it onto the team,

430
00:18:47,125 --> 00:18:49,875
you shouldn't get a tattoo that
identifies you as a member

431
00:18:49,958 --> 00:18:51,875
of another religion that
worships a false God.

432
00:18:51,958 --> 00:18:53,417
So if that's you, fine.

433
00:18:53,500 --> 00:18:54,667
Everybody else, pfft, whatever.

434
00:18:54,750 --> 00:18:56,417
Whatever.
Okay?

435
00:18:56,500 --> 00:18:59,792
But you can look at the external
and judge and Jesus says,

436
00:18:59,875 --> 00:19:01,542
"Get to know the heart."

437
00:19:01,625 --> 00:19:04,000
There are people who don't--you
know, tattoos, piercings,

438
00:19:04,083 --> 00:19:05,333
hair cut, whatever.

439
00:19:05,417 --> 00:19:07,958
You look at them, you
say, "Oh, they don't look

440
00:19:08,042 --> 00:19:09,292
like they should look."

441
00:19:09,375 --> 00:19:11,458
Get to know them.
What's going on inside?

442
00:19:11,542 --> 00:19:13,333
Have they met Jesus?
Do they love Jesus?

443
00:19:13,417 --> 00:19:15,417
Are they changing
and growing and maturing?

444
00:19:15,500 --> 00:19:17,958
Then we should be rejoicing.

445
00:19:18,042 --> 00:19:20,958
And, in 1 Samuel 16:7, this
is exactly what God says.

446
00:19:21,042 --> 00:19:22,708
He says, "People
look at the outside.

447
00:19:22,792 --> 00:19:24,333
"I look at the heart.

448
00:19:24,417 --> 00:19:26,333
"I get to know who somebody
really is

449
00:19:26,417 --> 00:19:27,583
and where they're really at."

450
00:19:27,667 --> 00:19:29,167
Religion can't judge the heart.

451
00:19:29,250 --> 00:19:31,250
It can only judge
the external appearances.

452
00:19:31,333 --> 00:19:33,958
And as a result,
it often judges wrongly.

453
00:19:34,042 --> 00:19:36,500
Often judges wrongly.

454
00:19:36,583 --> 00:19:39,000
Secondly, the problem with
religious rules is

455
00:19:39,083 --> 00:19:42,833
that religious people have
preferences that they raise

456
00:19:42,917 --> 00:19:45,208
to the level of God's laws.

457
00:19:45,292 --> 00:19:47,167
Is it a sin to have preferences?

458
00:19:47,250 --> 00:19:49,167
No.
It's not a sin at all.

459
00:19:49,250 --> 00:19:52,333
Mac, PC, Chevy, Ford, right?

460
00:19:52,417 --> 00:19:54,250
DH, no DH.

461
00:19:54,333 --> 00:19:55,958
Preferences.

462
00:19:56,042 --> 00:19:57,708
It's okay.
It's okay.

463
00:19:57,792 --> 00:20:01,417
But don't lift your preferences
up to the point of God's law.

464
00:20:01,500 --> 00:20:03,333
See, the Bible's here.

465
00:20:03,417 --> 00:20:06,292
Our preferences
are way down here.

466
00:20:06,375 --> 00:20:08,167
And what the
religious people do,

467
00:20:08,250 --> 00:20:09,792
they like to move
their preferences

468
00:20:09,875 --> 00:20:12,417
up to the level of God's law.

469
00:20:12,500 --> 00:20:14,958
So let's use a few examples.

470
00:20:15,042 --> 00:20:17,875
Alcohol, okay?

471
00:20:17,958 --> 00:20:20,958
You may say, "I don't drink
because I come from a family

472
00:20:21,042 --> 00:20:23,708
of alcoholics and I see
a lot of abuse of alcohol."

473
00:20:23,792 --> 00:20:25,250
Great!
That's your preference.

474
00:20:25,333 --> 00:20:29,000
When you lift it up and you say,
"Jesus turned water

475
00:20:29,083 --> 00:20:33,333
into grape juice," now you're
messing with the Bible.

476
00:20:33,417 --> 00:20:36,292
We say, "No, well don't say
that because that's not true."

477
00:20:36,375 --> 00:20:37,792
Jesus turned water into wine.

478
00:20:37,875 --> 00:20:39,458
Jesus didn't want
anybody to get drunk.

479
00:20:39,542 --> 00:20:41,375
Jesus didn't want
anybody to abuse alcohol.

480
00:20:41,458 --> 00:20:43,333
Jesus doesn't want anybody
to disobey the law.

481
00:20:43,417 --> 00:20:45,292
Jesus doesn't want anybody
to drink and drive.

482
00:20:45,375 --> 00:20:49,083
Jesus doesn't want anybody to
cause anyone else to stumble.

483
00:20:49,167 --> 00:20:51,333
But let's not take your
preference and lift it

484
00:20:51,417 --> 00:20:54,292
up to the point where you
are changing what the Bible says

485
00:20:54,375 --> 00:20:56,292
so that it works for you.

486
00:20:56,375 --> 00:20:57,833
How about cigarettes?

487
00:20:57,917 --> 00:20:59,292
You see, I'll tell you this.

488
00:20:59,375 --> 00:21:00,792
I don't like cigarettes.

489
00:21:00,875 --> 00:21:03,792
They're expensive, they give you
cancer, and they make me wheeze.

490
00:21:03,875 --> 00:21:06,667
I sound like an obscene phone
call if anyone smokes around me.

491
00:21:06,750 --> 00:21:08,167
I do.

492
00:21:08,250 --> 00:21:09,667
I'm like, "Gasp, gasp, gasp."

493
00:21:09,750 --> 00:21:11,167
"Pastor Mark, that's
unacceptable."

494
00:21:11,250 --> 00:21:12,708
"No, you need to stop smoking.

495
00:21:12,792 --> 00:21:14,333
"This is not flirtation.

496
00:21:14,417 --> 00:21:16,500
"I'm dying!

497
00:21:16,583 --> 00:21:19,417
All right?
I'm dying!"

498
00:21:19,500 --> 00:21:22,292
So, for me, my preference
is I don't like cigarettes.

499
00:21:22,375 --> 00:21:23,792
Okay?

500
00:21:23,875 --> 00:21:26,458
But I can't lift that
up to God's law and say,

501
00:21:26,542 --> 00:21:28,375
"Thou shalt not smoke."

502
00:21:28,458 --> 00:21:30,042
Because it's not in the Bible.

503
00:21:30,125 --> 00:21:32,625
And I can't even manipulate the
Bible and make weird arguments,

504
00:21:32,708 --> 00:21:35,667
like, "Well, hell is
a smoking section."

505
00:21:35,750 --> 00:21:37,292
You know?

506
00:21:37,375 --> 00:21:40,083
Well, it is.
See?

507
00:21:40,167 --> 00:21:43,083
You can make an argument but
it's not a very good one.

508
00:21:43,167 --> 00:21:45,250
What I can say is,
"I don't like cigarettes.

509
00:21:45,333 --> 00:21:46,750
"Feel free to smoke.

510
00:21:46,833 --> 00:21:48,833
"I don't think it's
real healthy for you.

511
00:21:48,917 --> 00:21:50,333
"Here's all my reasons.

512
00:21:50,417 --> 00:21:52,292
"Please don't smoke around me.
But it's not sin.

513
00:21:52,375 --> 00:21:55,292
"We're not going to kick you
out of the church for it.

514
00:21:55,375 --> 00:21:58,125
You're not up for discipline
because it's not in the Bible."

515
00:21:58,208 --> 00:21:59,583
See?
You see the difference?

516
00:21:59,667 --> 00:22:02,000
Okay, we'll do
another one: meat.

517
00:22:02,083 --> 00:22:03,667
Okay, some of you are
vegans, vegetarians.

518
00:22:03,750 --> 00:22:05,458
You say, "My
preference is no meat.

519
00:22:05,542 --> 00:22:07,000
No meat."

520
00:22:07,083 --> 00:22:08,333
And I would say, "Okay, great."

521
00:22:08,417 --> 00:22:10,000
And you could hold
your position.

522
00:22:10,083 --> 00:22:11,417
You can have
a passionate preference.

523
00:22:11,500 --> 00:22:13,708
You can articulate it.
Give us all your reasons.

524
00:22:13,792 --> 00:22:16,333
Maybe you'll even change our
mind and our preference will

525
00:22:16,417 --> 00:22:18,417
become your preference because
you have some really

526
00:22:18,500 --> 00:22:19,750
good reasons for it.

527
00:22:19,833 --> 00:22:21,542
But you can't say,
"No eating meat."

528
00:22:21,625 --> 00:22:23,667
You can't because
the Bible doesn't say that.

529
00:22:23,750 --> 00:22:28,625
You can't lift your preferences
to the point of God's law.

530
00:22:28,708 --> 00:22:30,792
And people tend to do this.

531
00:22:30,875 --> 00:22:34,333
We'll do another one because
we have nothing else to do,

532
00:22:34,417 --> 00:22:37,000
so we'll do this.

533
00:22:37,083 --> 00:22:38,292
You've got children.

534
00:22:38,375 --> 00:22:40,208
Like, I've got five kids,
all right?

535
00:22:40,292 --> 00:22:41,458
You need to educate them.

536
00:22:41,542 --> 00:22:43,500
Public school, private school,
home school, Christian school,

537
00:22:43,583 --> 00:22:45,333
what do you do?

538
00:22:45,417 --> 00:22:46,625
You can have a preference.

539
00:22:46,708 --> 00:22:48,458
You can have
a passionate preference.

540
00:22:48,542 --> 00:22:50,792
"For my kids, I believe
this is best and right."

541
00:22:50,875 --> 00:22:53,750
But you can't raise it up
to the level of the Bible

542
00:22:53,833 --> 00:22:55,250
and declare war over it.

543
00:22:55,333 --> 00:22:56,792
And sometimes, like
soccer moms do.

544
00:22:56,875 --> 00:22:58,375
Soccer moms sometimes
on this issue,

545
00:22:58,458 --> 00:22:59,958
they turn into cage fighters.

546
00:23:00,042 --> 00:23:03,042
They get you in the Muay Thai
clinch and they're like,

547
00:23:03,125 --> 00:23:05,333
"No, this is the best way
to educate the child.

548
00:23:05,417 --> 00:23:09,375
This is the best way
to educate the child."

549
00:23:09,458 --> 00:23:11,750
And you're like, "The Bible
says to educate the child,

550
00:23:11,833 --> 00:23:15,375
"but it doesn't say exactly what
method to do that by and I don't

551
00:23:15,458 --> 00:23:17,542
"care if you're reading from
1 and 2 Homeschoolalonians,

552
00:23:17,625 --> 00:23:20,375
it doesn't say that.
It just doesn't say that."

553
00:23:20,458 --> 00:23:22,167
It doesn't.

554
00:23:22,250 --> 00:23:24,500
Some of you are like, "Where
is 2 Homeschoolalonians?"

555
00:23:24,583 --> 00:23:29,000
Later, okay.

556
00:23:29,083 --> 00:23:34,417
But the big idea is that we
can't make rules for God.

557
00:23:34,500 --> 00:23:38,125
God makes the rules
and those are sufficient.

558
00:23:38,208 --> 00:23:39,583
And you can have
your preferences.

559
00:23:39,667 --> 00:23:41,125
You can hold them passionately.

560
00:23:41,208 --> 00:23:42,458
You can have good reasons.

561
00:23:42,542 --> 00:23:44,250
You can share those
reasons with others.

562
00:23:44,333 --> 00:23:47,708
But don't confuse God's
principles and your methods.

563
00:23:47,792 --> 00:23:49,875
Sometimes there's a couple
of different methods

564
00:23:49,958 --> 00:23:51,875
to obey God's principle.

565
00:23:51,958 --> 00:23:55,375
So I thought it would be fun
to post on Facebook and Twitter

566
00:23:55,458 --> 00:23:58,292
today, "Give me all the weird
religious rules that you

567
00:23:58,375 --> 00:23:59,542
have personally experienced."

568
00:23:59,625 --> 00:24:01,500
And people gave me something
like 300 responses.

569
00:24:01,583 --> 00:24:03,833
We'll see where
we're at right now.

570
00:24:03,917 --> 00:24:06,375
This'll be awesome.

571
00:24:06,458 --> 00:24:08,042
All right.

572
00:24:08,125 --> 00:24:10,292
You ready?

573
00:24:10,375 --> 00:24:12,417
Here's one.

574
00:24:12,500 --> 00:24:15,250
Ryan says, "My family was
in a nationwide school

575
00:24:15,333 --> 00:24:16,875
"and ministry group,
the leader of which

576
00:24:16,958 --> 00:24:18,917
believed that the wearing
of blue jeans

577
00:24:19,000 --> 00:24:21,458
gave the impression
of rebellion."

578
00:24:21,542 --> 00:24:24,750
Nothing says
rebellion like jeans.

579
00:24:24,833 --> 00:24:26,750
[congregation laughing]

580
00:24:26,833 --> 00:24:28,667
No, think about this.

581
00:24:28,750 --> 00:24:31,250
In the '60s, people started
wearing jeans

582
00:24:31,333 --> 00:24:35,042
and now we have terrorism.

583
00:24:35,125 --> 00:24:36,542
[congregation laughing]

584
00:24:36,625 --> 00:24:40,750
Cause, effect.

585
00:24:40,833 --> 00:24:45,250
It goes on to say that men
shouldn't have facial hair.

586
00:24:45,333 --> 00:24:50,292
For some of us, it's impossible.

587
00:24:50,375 --> 00:24:56,333
My mom was a Wookie,
my dad was a Chia Pet.

588
00:24:56,417 --> 00:24:58,750
I shave in the morning
and by dinner time

589
00:24:58,833 --> 00:25:02,333
I could be in ZZ Top.

590
00:25:04,208 --> 00:25:06,292
There's nothing
I can do about that.

591
00:25:06,375 --> 00:25:09,292
He goes on to say that women
shouldn't wear pants

592
00:25:09,375 --> 00:25:10,875
and it's interesting.

593
00:25:10,958 --> 00:25:12,667
One woman was posting on there.

594
00:25:12,750 --> 00:25:15,708
She walked into a church wearing
pants and the usher stopped her

595
00:25:15,792 --> 00:25:18,292
and said, "Women are not
supposed to wear pants."

596
00:25:18,375 --> 00:25:21,000
So, and for fun, she
grabbed--she's like, "Oh!"

597
00:25:21,083 --> 00:25:25,375
And he's like...

598
00:25:25,458 --> 00:25:28,083
He said, "Well, next time
you should wear a skirt."

599
00:25:28,167 --> 00:25:29,542
Okey dokey.

600
00:25:29,625 --> 00:25:31,000
All right.

601
00:25:31,083 --> 00:25:33,917
Adrian says, "I grew up in
a church that focused a lot

602
00:25:34,000 --> 00:25:35,458
"on what people looked like.

603
00:25:35,542 --> 00:25:37,292
"I actually remember my Sunday
school teacher bringing

604
00:25:37,375 --> 00:25:39,750
"a brown paper bag
to class one morning.

605
00:25:39,833 --> 00:25:42,500
"She pulled out an apple
and an orange and asked us

606
00:25:42,583 --> 00:25:44,833
"if we could tell the difference
between the two.

607
00:25:44,917 --> 00:25:46,417
"Of course, we said, 'Yes.'

608
00:25:46,500 --> 00:25:48,250
"She then proceeded to
tell us how, likewise,

609
00:25:48,333 --> 00:25:52,292
you could tell if someone is
a Christian in the same way."

610
00:25:52,375 --> 00:25:56,250
By what, pulling
them out of a bag?

611
00:25:56,333 --> 00:25:57,958
Here's an awesome one.

612
00:25:58,042 --> 00:26:00,417
Kara says, "We were not allowed
to wear black polos

613
00:26:00,500 --> 00:26:02,250
"at our private school.

614
00:26:02,333 --> 00:26:04,625
"Any other colors were okay,
but not black because,

615
00:26:04,708 --> 00:26:07,750
if you wear black,
you love the devil."

616
00:26:07,833 --> 00:26:11,750
All the black kids
were totally bummed.

617
00:26:18,958 --> 00:26:22,333
Rachel says, "I remember a
church that didn't let boys and

618
00:26:22,417 --> 00:26:28,333
girls swim together because
the girls could get pregnant."

619
00:26:28,417 --> 00:26:34,417
That's not how it happens.

620
00:26:37,000 --> 00:26:39,875
Jeff says, "A lady came to
a pastor friend of mine

621
00:26:39,958 --> 00:26:42,125
"and requested prayer
for another lady.

622
00:26:42,208 --> 00:26:44,917
"Upon hearing she needed prayer,
my surprised friend replied,

623
00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:47,708
"'Wow, I just spoke with her
and she seemed just fine.

624
00:26:47,792 --> 00:26:49,292
"'What's going on?'

625
00:26:49,375 --> 00:26:51,667
"'Well,' the lady said, 'I
don't think she is saved.'

626
00:26:51,750 --> 00:26:53,667
"My friend is now really
confused and asked,

627
00:26:53,750 --> 00:26:55,208
"'What makes you think that?

628
00:26:55,292 --> 00:26:57,792
"'She seems to show good fruit,
serving here at the church.'

629
00:26:57,875 --> 00:26:59,417
"The lady responded,
quote, 'Well,

630
00:26:59,500 --> 00:27:02,417
"'I just found out that she's a
registered Democrat and I don't

631
00:27:02,500 --> 00:27:08,500
see how you can be both a
Christian and a Democrat.'"

632
00:27:11,417 --> 00:27:13,167
Oh, boy.

633
00:27:13,250 --> 00:27:14,542
I'll just keep going.

634
00:27:14,625 --> 00:27:16,417
Hannah says--oh,
here's a good one.

635
00:27:16,500 --> 00:27:19,250
This one's awesome.

636
00:27:19,333 --> 00:27:22,458
Cassie says, "I have a friend
whose parents would not let her

637
00:27:22,542 --> 00:27:28,417
trick-or-treat because
it was Satan's birthday."

638
00:27:28,500 --> 00:27:31,250
I am not finished.

639
00:27:31,333 --> 00:27:34,542
"And then they had
a baby born on Halloween."

640
00:27:34,625 --> 00:27:39,792
[congregation laughing]

641
00:27:39,875 --> 00:27:42,292
You can see God in heaven
going, "No, seriously,

642
00:27:42,375 --> 00:27:44,125
"you got to come watch this.

643
00:27:44,208 --> 00:27:48,125
This is going
to be fantastic."

644
00:27:48,208 --> 00:27:51,417
You can see that
woman like, "Argh!"

645
00:27:51,500 --> 00:27:55,500
Trying not to have that baby.

646
00:27:58,667 --> 00:28:00,375
Here's one.

647
00:28:00,458 --> 00:28:02,708
Ashley says--this
one's actually sad.

648
00:28:02,792 --> 00:28:05,250
"My best friend's mother-in-law
wouldn't let my friend,

649
00:28:05,333 --> 00:28:09,333
"the bride, dance at her own
wedding reception because they

650
00:28:09,417 --> 00:28:13,208
"did not believe in dancing,
not even slow dancing.

651
00:28:13,292 --> 00:28:15,000
And it made the bride cry."

652
00:28:15,083 --> 00:28:16,792
This is the religious
mom coming up,

653
00:28:16,875 --> 00:28:18,417
"You cannot dance with my son.

654
00:28:18,500 --> 00:28:21,167
It could lead to--"

655
00:28:21,250 --> 00:28:22,458
"Duh.
We just got married.

656
00:28:22,542 --> 00:28:27,542
That's what we were hoping."

657
00:28:29,542 --> 00:28:31,250
Here's a kid, Josh.

658
00:28:31,333 --> 00:28:34,250
I think he's a high school
kid, like in a public school.

659
00:28:34,333 --> 00:28:37,042
He says, "There's this Seventh
Day Adventist kid at my school

660
00:28:37,125 --> 00:28:41,458
"who says he'll go to
hell if he eats shrimp.

661
00:28:41,542 --> 00:28:44,500
So when we have it for hot
lunch, he gives it away."

662
00:28:44,583 --> 00:28:49,208
Now, just think about that.

663
00:28:49,292 --> 00:28:52,875
Just think about that.

664
00:28:52,958 --> 00:28:57,958
"Apparently, he doesn't care
if other people go to hell."

665
00:29:01,375 --> 00:29:02,625
There are more.

666
00:29:02,708 --> 00:29:05,250
And if I read them, I
would need to fire myself.

667
00:29:05,333 --> 00:29:08,250
So, here's the big idea.

668
00:29:08,333 --> 00:29:11,042
And you say, "Why do you make
fun of religious people?"

669
00:29:11,125 --> 00:29:12,458
Because we love them!

670
00:29:12,542 --> 00:29:14,417
We love them!

671
00:29:14,500 --> 00:29:16,750
And they're hilarious.

672
00:29:16,833 --> 00:29:21,667
And they take themselves so
seriously that sometimes we have

673
00:29:21,750 --> 00:29:25,042
a little fun to invite them to
laugh at themselves and repent

674
00:29:25,125 --> 00:29:28,375
of their religion and let go
of their rules and let Jesus

675
00:29:28,458 --> 00:29:30,417
put his fingers in their taters.

676
00:29:30,500 --> 00:29:32,458
Amen?

677
00:29:32,542 --> 00:29:34,917
Well, they don't
respond very well.

678
00:29:35,000 --> 00:29:40,208
Jesus continues his conflict
with the wolves and he says

679
00:29:40,292 --> 00:29:41,958
that the real heart of the issue

680
00:29:42,042 --> 00:29:44,333
is that religious people
want praise.

681
00:29:44,417 --> 00:29:46,208
They don't want
God to be praised,

682
00:29:46,292 --> 00:29:48,250
they want to be praised.

683
00:29:48,333 --> 00:29:53,292
So he says this, Luke 11:42-44,
"But woe to you Pharisees!"

684
00:29:53,375 --> 00:29:56,042
Woe is a prophetic word.

685
00:29:56,125 --> 00:29:58,500
The Old Testament
prophets would say, "Woe!"

686
00:29:58,583 --> 00:30:03,542
They were pointing out sin,
calling people to repent.

687
00:30:03,625 --> 00:30:06,250
He's going to do this six times.

688
00:30:06,333 --> 00:30:09,333
"For you tithe mint and rue and
every herb, and neglect justice

689
00:30:09,417 --> 00:30:11,125
"and the love of God.

690
00:30:11,208 --> 00:30:13,542
"These you ought to have done,
without neglecting the others.

691
00:30:13,625 --> 00:30:15,083
"Woe to you Pharisees!

692
00:30:15,167 --> 00:30:17,000
"For you love the best seat
in the synagogues and

693
00:30:17,083 --> 00:30:18,458
"greetings in the marketplaces.

694
00:30:18,542 --> 00:30:19,958
"Woe to you!

695
00:30:20,042 --> 00:30:22,333
"For you are like unmarked
graves, and people walk over

696
00:30:22,417 --> 00:30:24,125
them without knowing it."

697
00:30:24,208 --> 00:30:26,375
He says, "Here's the problem
with you religious people.

698
00:30:26,458 --> 00:30:29,417
You're really committed
to the wrong things."

699
00:30:29,500 --> 00:30:31,333
You're really committed
to the wrong things.

700
00:30:31,417 --> 00:30:34,500
And I tell you this because
some of you are new Christians.

701
00:30:34,583 --> 00:30:37,542
Some of you are not all that
devoted and you'll be easily

702
00:30:37,625 --> 00:30:39,833
impressed by religious people.

703
00:30:39,917 --> 00:30:41,792
"Wow!
Look at how zealous they are!

704
00:30:41,875 --> 00:30:44,000
"They get up early!
They stay up late!

705
00:30:44,083 --> 00:30:45,458
"They memorize stuff!

706
00:30:45,542 --> 00:30:47,750
"They've got all kinds
of things to do.

707
00:30:47,833 --> 00:30:50,375
"They get down on their knees.
They face a certain direction.

708
00:30:50,458 --> 00:30:51,833
"They make pilgrimage.

709
00:30:51,917 --> 00:30:54,500
"They do all kinds of seemingly
holy, important things.

710
00:30:54,583 --> 00:30:56,583
"Some of them
even have uniforms.

711
00:30:56,667 --> 00:30:58,500
"The guy in charge
has got a hat.

712
00:30:58,583 --> 00:31:02,792
This seems like a really serious
system and I'm impressed by it."

713
00:31:02,875 --> 00:31:04,625
And Jesus says,
"No, let's unpack it.

714
00:31:04,708 --> 00:31:08,333
"Number one, they're prideful
and they want you to know

715
00:31:08,417 --> 00:31:09,917
what they tithe."

716
00:31:10,000 --> 00:31:12,708
See, what we don't do is we
don't tell everybody what

717
00:31:12,792 --> 00:31:14,208
everybody else tithes.

718
00:31:14,292 --> 00:31:16,375
Tithing's where you give your
finances generously to God

719
00:31:16,458 --> 00:31:17,792
and his people and purposes.

720
00:31:17,875 --> 00:31:20,042
Tithe literally means a tenth.

721
00:31:20,125 --> 00:31:23,875
The base tithe was 10%, the
total tithe in the Old Testament

722
00:31:23,958 --> 00:31:27,792
was more than 25%, and these
guys were so serious about

723
00:31:27,875 --> 00:31:31,458
the tithe, he says they tithed
out of their spice rack.

724
00:31:31,542 --> 00:31:33,083
All right?

725
00:31:33,167 --> 00:31:35,750
That's a religious person
with OCD and free time.

726
00:31:35,833 --> 00:31:37,333
All right?

727
00:31:37,417 --> 00:31:39,125
You go into your
spice rack, like,

728
00:31:39,208 --> 00:31:42,917
"I don't know if I gave the Lord
a tenth of all my dill leaves."

729
00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:46,125
Well, you're kind of being
a dill leaf when you do that.

730
00:31:46,208 --> 00:31:49,292
Right?
These guys are serious.

731
00:31:49,375 --> 00:31:51,458
They're really serious.

732
00:31:51,542 --> 00:31:53,417
And Jesus says,
"You know what though?

733
00:31:53,500 --> 00:31:55,208
"You tithe out of
your spice rack,

734
00:31:55,292 --> 00:31:57,583
but you don't love God
and you don't help people."

735
00:31:57,667 --> 00:31:59,375
And he says,
"It's okay to tithe.

736
00:31:59,458 --> 00:32:00,917
"Feel free to give.

737
00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:03,167
"But you're supposed to
love God and help people.

738
00:32:03,250 --> 00:32:05,583
"You don't do that, you
miss the whole big idea

739
00:32:05,667 --> 00:32:07,417
of what life is truly about."

740
00:32:07,500 --> 00:32:09,292
He says, "In addition, your
pride manifests itself

741
00:32:09,375 --> 00:32:11,042
"that you guys love the seats.

742
00:32:11,125 --> 00:32:12,458
You love the good seats."

743
00:32:12,542 --> 00:32:14,833
See, in some religions, some
organizations, some even,

744
00:32:14,917 --> 00:32:19,625
sadly, churches, you kind
of pay for your seat.

745
00:32:19,708 --> 00:32:21,458
There are actually
some religions

746
00:32:21,542 --> 00:32:23,250
where you buy season tickets.

747
00:32:23,333 --> 00:32:25,417
Kind of like a sporting event.

748
00:32:25,500 --> 00:32:27,417
And if you pay
a little bit, well,

749
00:32:27,500 --> 00:32:29,458
you got to sit in the back.

750
00:32:29,542 --> 00:32:31,833
You pay a little more,
you sit in the middle.

751
00:32:31,917 --> 00:32:33,833
You pay a lot,
you sit up front.

752
00:32:33,917 --> 00:32:37,250
If you're one of the big
donors, you get a seat up front,

753
00:32:37,333 --> 00:32:39,250
maybe on a big throne,
facing everybody else.

754
00:32:39,333 --> 00:32:42,042
You get to wear your best
clothes and look all religious

755
00:32:42,125 --> 00:32:43,333
and sit up front.

756
00:32:43,417 --> 00:32:44,917
"Here are the big givers."

757
00:32:45,000 --> 00:32:46,875
And in that day,
that's how it worked.

758
00:32:46,958 --> 00:32:49,167
The big givers sat up
front, facing the people.

759
00:32:49,250 --> 00:32:51,458
And the people could look
at them and say,

760
00:32:51,542 --> 00:32:53,417
"Oh, I wish I was a big giver.

761
00:32:53,500 --> 00:32:56,750
"I wish I could sit up front.
I wish they gave me a throne.

762
00:32:56,833 --> 00:32:58,708
Oh, I wish I was
important like that."

763
00:32:58,792 --> 00:33:00,667
And the religious people
just look all smug

764
00:33:00,750 --> 00:33:02,125
and self-righteous.

765
00:33:02,208 --> 00:33:04,250
And you need to know
this at Mars Hill.

766
00:33:04,333 --> 00:33:07,917
We want you to give, but whether
or not you give, the seats are

767
00:33:08,000 --> 00:33:11,417
open and the rich and the poor
and the young and the old and

768
00:33:11,500 --> 00:33:14,375
the black and the white and the
wise and the simple and those

769
00:33:14,458 --> 00:33:17,583
who give and those who take are
all welcome to just sit wherever

770
00:33:17,667 --> 00:33:20,083
they want because God
is a God of grace

771
00:33:20,167 --> 00:33:21,458
and we're a family of love.

772
00:33:21,542 --> 00:33:23,667
And Jesus says, "You know,
this whole religious system

773
00:33:23,750 --> 00:33:26,208
"and pecking order and depending
upon where you sit shows

774
00:33:26,292 --> 00:33:27,875
"where you fall
in the organizational chart,

775
00:33:27,958 --> 00:33:29,375
it's really nefarious."

776
00:33:29,458 --> 00:33:31,333
Thirdly, he says that pride
manifests itself with titles.

777
00:33:31,417 --> 00:33:33,250
They love their titles!
"We're the Pharisees."

778
00:33:33,333 --> 00:33:35,625
So they're more worried about
the name of the Pharisees

779
00:33:35,708 --> 00:33:37,125
than the name of God.

780
00:33:37,208 --> 00:33:39,042
They're more worried about
their team, their tribe.

781
00:33:39,125 --> 00:33:40,417
You know what?
Mars Hill's fine.

782
00:33:40,500 --> 00:33:42,292
Reformed theology's fine.

783
00:33:42,375 --> 00:33:44,875
Jesus is the only name
that really matters.

784
00:33:44,958 --> 00:33:48,083
That's the name we want to be
known for and that's the name

785
00:33:48,167 --> 00:33:49,250
want to make much of.

786
00:33:49,333 --> 00:33:52,083
Number four, he says, "You're
all in it for the fame."

787
00:33:52,167 --> 00:33:54,375
You love it when you're
at the marketplace,

788
00:33:54,458 --> 00:33:56,667
which was their equivalent
of the grocery store,

789
00:33:56,750 --> 00:33:59,500
and everybody walks up,
"Oh! Aren't you so and so?

790
00:33:59,583 --> 00:34:01,417
"Aren't you
the really religious one?

791
00:34:01,500 --> 00:34:02,708
"I saw you up front.

792
00:34:02,792 --> 00:34:05,125
"I heard that
you are giving 34%.

793
00:34:05,208 --> 00:34:07,292
Nice hat!"

794
00:34:07,375 --> 00:34:10,125
Religious people always got
a hat, and the bigger the hat,

795
00:34:10,208 --> 00:34:12,792
the bigger the guy.

796
00:34:12,875 --> 00:34:15,375
And Jesus says, "Everybody's
impressed by this,

797
00:34:15,458 --> 00:34:18,958
and you wolves, you're
hurting the sheep."

798
00:34:19,042 --> 00:34:20,375
See, some people think,

799
00:34:20,458 --> 00:34:22,583
"Religion, oh, why do
we get angry at religion?

800
00:34:22,667 --> 00:34:24,125
"Why do we oppose religion?

801
00:34:24,208 --> 00:34:25,917
"Why do we not
support religion?"

802
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:27,292
Because religion
doesn't help people.

803
00:34:27,375 --> 00:34:31,458
It builds a system that compels
them to be like one another

804
00:34:31,542 --> 00:34:36,875
rather than like Jesus.

805
00:34:36,958 --> 00:34:41,333
Jesus says this, it's an
amazing statement, "Woe to you,

806
00:34:41,417 --> 00:34:43,208
"for you are like
unmarked graves,

807
00:34:43,292 --> 00:34:45,250
and people walk over
them without knowing it."

808
00:34:45,333 --> 00:34:47,125
That's a big statement.

809
00:34:47,208 --> 00:34:49,208
Now, in the Bible,
Numbers 19:16,

810
00:34:49,292 --> 00:34:52,875
it gives us an account
where, when a body is buried,

811
00:34:52,958 --> 00:34:56,500
we're to honor that person
who is deceased and you're not

812
00:34:56,583 --> 00:34:58,958
supposed to walk on their grave.

813
00:34:59,042 --> 00:35:01,083
It's a respect thing.

814
00:35:01,167 --> 00:35:03,250
And if you do, you're
declared ceremonially,

815
00:35:03,333 --> 00:35:06,875
ritually unclean for a week.

816
00:35:06,958 --> 00:35:11,417
And you need to undergo
purification rituals and bathing

817
00:35:11,500 --> 00:35:15,292
to cleanse yourself, and so
you're basically quarantined.

818
00:35:15,375 --> 00:35:17,750
So you really don't
want to step on a grave.

819
00:35:17,833 --> 00:35:20,917
So they would put markers over
the tombs and they would wash

820
00:35:21,000 --> 00:35:23,292
them white so you could
see where the tombs were.

821
00:35:23,375 --> 00:35:26,250
And once in a while, people
wouldn't do that and you would

822
00:35:26,333 --> 00:35:29,625
step on a grave and you didn't
know it and it wasn't marked

823
00:35:29,708 --> 00:35:31,333
or the tombstone
wasn't appropriate,

824
00:35:31,417 --> 00:35:34,125
and then all of a sudden you're
defiled and you're quarantined

825
00:35:34,208 --> 00:35:36,708
and you got a big week of
work to cleanse yourself.

826
00:35:36,792 --> 00:35:38,375
Here's what Jesus is saying.

827
00:35:38,458 --> 00:35:41,292
Number one, religious
people are spiritually dead.

828
00:35:41,375 --> 00:35:44,917
Now, that's a very
big statement.

829
00:35:45,000 --> 00:35:48,042
They are spiritually dead.

830
00:35:48,125 --> 00:35:49,917
You say, "But they
are physically alive!

831
00:35:50,000 --> 00:35:52,750
Look at all the things they're
saying and doing and giving."

832
00:35:52,833 --> 00:35:55,000
But inwardly--see,
externally they're alive

833
00:35:55,083 --> 00:35:59,000
physically, but inwardly
they're dead spiritually.

834
00:35:59,083 --> 00:36:01,708
They don't know Jesus.
They don't love Jesus.

835
00:36:01,792 --> 00:36:05,333
They don't enjoy Jesus.

836
00:36:05,417 --> 00:36:08,625
And he says, in addition to
that, "Not only are you dead,

837
00:36:08,708 --> 00:36:11,417
"you're defiling other people.

838
00:36:11,500 --> 00:36:13,250
"You think you're
making them clean?

839
00:36:13,333 --> 00:36:14,750
"You're making them unclean.

840
00:36:14,833 --> 00:36:16,417
"You think you're
making them holy?

841
00:36:16,500 --> 00:36:17,875
"You're making them unholy.

842
00:36:17,958 --> 00:36:19,667
"You think you're
liberating them?

843
00:36:19,750 --> 00:36:21,333
"You're enslaving them.

844
00:36:21,417 --> 00:36:23,167
"You think you're
bringing them to God?

845
00:36:23,250 --> 00:36:25,333
You're bringing them to hell."

846
00:36:25,417 --> 00:36:29,167
I need you believe
that about religion.

847
00:36:29,250 --> 00:36:32,667
See, some of you see religion
and Jesus as almost synonymous.

848
00:36:32,750 --> 00:36:35,583
They're antithetical.

849
00:36:35,667 --> 00:36:38,292
Some of you would see
Jesus plus religion.

850
00:36:38,375 --> 00:36:42,292
No, see Jesus plus
anything ruins everything.

851
00:36:42,375 --> 00:36:44,375
It's just Jesus or religion.

852
00:36:44,458 --> 00:36:48,417
It's never Jesus plus religion.

853
00:36:48,500 --> 00:36:51,208
How will they respond?

854
00:36:51,292 --> 00:36:54,125
Now, I'm going to show you
in just a moment that people

855
00:36:54,208 --> 00:36:58,792
defend, particularly religious
people defend their idol.

856
00:36:58,875 --> 00:37:02,125
An idol is anyone or anything
that is the most important thing

857
00:37:02,208 --> 00:37:03,792
in our life.

858
00:37:03,875 --> 00:37:06,125
It's where we get our
joy, our identity.

859
00:37:06,208 --> 00:37:08,667
It's where our money and
our time and our talent

860
00:37:08,750 --> 00:37:10,333
and our treasure go.

861
00:37:10,417 --> 00:37:13,042
It is, to use the first analogy,
it's that which is

862
00:37:13,125 --> 00:37:15,667
in the center of our life.

863
00:37:15,750 --> 00:37:19,125
And if it's not Jesus,
I'll tell you what friends,

864
00:37:19,208 --> 00:37:20,917
it's going to be an idol.

865
00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:22,458
Everyone worships.

866
00:37:22,542 --> 00:37:25,250
The only difference is who
or what or how or when

867
00:37:25,333 --> 00:37:26,500
or why we worship.

868
00:37:26,583 --> 00:37:28,500
If you don't worship Jesus,
you'll worship someone

869
00:37:28,583 --> 00:37:30,125
or something else.

870
00:37:30,208 --> 00:37:34,083
For some, it's the idol
of religion.

871
00:37:34,167 --> 00:37:39,333
You ever wonder why people so
violently defend their idol?

872
00:37:39,417 --> 00:37:42,000
It's because they
worship it as a god.

873
00:37:42,083 --> 00:37:44,458
You're going to see this
is in just a moment.

874
00:37:44,542 --> 00:37:46,250
But religious people
defend their idol,

875
00:37:46,333 --> 00:37:49,792
and for religious people
their idol is religion.

876
00:37:49,875 --> 00:37:52,250
You ever wonder why certain
churches can't move

877
00:37:52,333 --> 00:37:54,083
to another building?

878
00:37:54,167 --> 00:37:56,208
Because people
worship the building.

879
00:37:56,292 --> 00:37:57,917
Why you can't change
service times?

880
00:37:58,000 --> 00:37:59,417
Because people
worship the time.

881
00:37:59,500 --> 00:38:01,333
Why you can't change
the musical style?

882
00:38:01,417 --> 00:38:03,500
Because people worship worship,
they don't worship God.

883
00:38:03,583 --> 00:38:06,833
Why if leaders leave or move
on or go do other things,

884
00:38:06,917 --> 00:38:09,292
the people cease even being
committed to the church?

885
00:38:09,375 --> 00:38:13,000
Why?
Because they worship the leader.

886
00:38:13,083 --> 00:38:16,917
And sometimes people
violently defend their idol.

887
00:38:17,000 --> 00:38:18,583
We see this
throughout the Bible.

888
00:38:18,667 --> 00:38:21,208
And this is true of those
who have hard religion,

889
00:38:21,292 --> 00:38:23,000
which is a formal
religious system,

890
00:38:23,083 --> 00:38:25,042
or sometimes soft religion,
which is the worship

891
00:38:25,125 --> 00:38:28,708
of spirituality or good works
or morality or a cause,

892
00:38:28,792 --> 00:38:32,292
and sometimes it's even the
worship of deadly things like

893
00:38:32,375 --> 00:38:35,000
substances, alcohol, drugs, sex.

894
00:38:35,083 --> 00:38:37,875
Have you ever tried to
take someone's idol away?

895
00:38:37,958 --> 00:38:40,375
You ever taken a bottle
away from an alcoholic?

896
00:38:40,458 --> 00:38:41,542
They defend it.

897
00:38:41,625 --> 00:38:43,042
Sometimes violently.

898
00:38:43,125 --> 00:38:46,375
Try to take drugs or gambling
or sexual addiction away

899
00:38:46,458 --> 00:38:51,125
from someone, they become very
passionate, very defensive.

900
00:38:51,208 --> 00:38:54,167
They'll shove you away and
they'll choose their idol

901
00:38:54,250 --> 00:38:58,250
because it is,
for them, like a god.

902
00:38:58,333 --> 00:39:00,375
And Jesus here, in love,

903
00:39:00,458 --> 00:39:02,500
is giving the religious people
a choice.

904
00:39:02,583 --> 00:39:06,333
He is saying, "You can
have me or religion.

905
00:39:06,417 --> 00:39:08,250
Which do you want?"

906
00:39:08,333 --> 00:39:10,125
Here's how they respond.

907
00:39:10,208 --> 00:39:12,500
And we see that religious
people defend their idol.

908
00:39:12,583 --> 00:39:15,375
It's a long section,
Luke 11:45-54,

909
00:39:15,458 --> 00:39:17,417
"One of the lawyers
answered him, 'Teacher,

910
00:39:17,500 --> 00:39:21,042
in saying these things
you insult us also.'"

911
00:39:21,125 --> 00:39:24,458
This is fascinating.

912
00:39:24,542 --> 00:39:28,042
These religious people have
been intimidating people,

913
00:39:28,125 --> 00:39:31,292
bullying people, making
rules, enslaving people,

914
00:39:31,375 --> 00:39:34,333
discouraging people,
insulting people.

915
00:39:34,417 --> 00:39:38,417
And Jesus comes around and he
puts his hand in the tater bowl

916
00:39:38,500 --> 00:39:41,250
and he breaks their rules
and he tells them they're wrong

917
00:39:41,333 --> 00:39:43,750
and they have a little
committee meeting.

918
00:39:43,833 --> 00:39:46,333
And one of the wolves
walks out and says, "Jesus,

919
00:39:46,417 --> 00:39:49,375
"on behalf of the committee,
I hate to inform you,

920
00:39:49,458 --> 00:39:52,833
"you've hurt our feelings.

921
00:39:52,917 --> 00:39:56,000
"You hurt our feelings, Jesus.

922
00:39:56,083 --> 00:40:00,250
"You've insulted us.
I mean, Tom's crying.

923
00:40:00,333 --> 00:40:03,042
"Tom is crying.
His feelings are hurt.

924
00:40:03,125 --> 00:40:06,583
"His dad was a Pharisee,
his granddad was a Pharisee,

925
00:40:06,667 --> 00:40:09,917
"his great-granddad
was a Pharisee.

926
00:40:10,000 --> 00:40:12,375
"He's really sad.

927
00:40:12,458 --> 00:40:15,375
"Now, Jesus, we know you
didn't mean to offend us.

928
00:40:15,458 --> 00:40:20,250
"Nobody's perfect.

929
00:40:20,333 --> 00:40:24,583
"We all say some
things we regret.

930
00:40:24,667 --> 00:40:28,250
"It would be really nice if you
would just say you're sorry.

931
00:40:28,333 --> 00:40:31,833
"Maybe post it on a blog,
send out a press release.

932
00:40:31,917 --> 00:40:34,417
"Write a book, talking about
how you're sorry the way

933
00:40:34,500 --> 00:40:37,167
"you've treated the Pharisees.

934
00:40:37,250 --> 00:40:39,833
"And because, you know,
we're the good people,

935
00:40:39,917 --> 00:40:42,292
"we would forgive you.

936
00:40:42,375 --> 00:40:45,250
"So, now's a good opportunity
for you to apologize

937
00:40:45,333 --> 00:40:49,333
for hurting our feelings."

938
00:40:49,417 --> 00:40:51,750
See, this is what
religious people do.

939
00:40:51,833 --> 00:40:54,292
They hurt people
and when they're confronted,

940
00:40:54,375 --> 00:40:56,875
they change the subject
from their religion

941
00:40:56,958 --> 00:40:59,333
to their feelings.

942
00:40:59,417 --> 00:41:02,292
And Jesus loves them enough
and those who are watching

943
00:41:02,375 --> 00:41:06,292
enough to not allow them
to change the subject.

944
00:41:06,375 --> 00:41:08,458
How many of you have
friends like that?

945
00:41:08,542 --> 00:41:11,167
They're overbearing, they're
bullying, they're intimidating,

946
00:41:11,250 --> 00:41:12,750
they're rule making,
they're religious,

947
00:41:12,833 --> 00:41:15,542
and when you confront them
and say, "This has to stop,

948
00:41:15,625 --> 00:41:18,583
it's unacceptable,"
"You are so rude."

949
00:41:18,667 --> 00:41:20,875
Really?

950
00:41:20,958 --> 00:41:25,375
See, a wolf who cries
is still a wolf.

951
00:41:25,458 --> 00:41:28,000
And sometimes wolves
want sympathy,

952
00:41:28,083 --> 00:41:32,042
but they need to repent.

953
00:41:32,125 --> 00:41:34,000
Don't you love Jesus?

954
00:41:34,083 --> 00:41:37,458
"You hurt our feelings.
Our feelings are supreme.

955
00:41:37,542 --> 00:41:40,292
"It's not the truth that's
supreme, it's our feelings.

956
00:41:40,375 --> 00:41:42,333
"No one ever talked
to us like that.

957
00:41:42,417 --> 00:41:45,042
"You seem to think we're wrong.

958
00:41:45,125 --> 00:41:47,583
Of course, that can't
be what you mean."

959
00:41:47,667 --> 00:41:50,375
How will they respond?
How will he respond?

960
00:41:50,458 --> 00:41:53,250
"And he said, 'Woe
to you lawyers also!'"

961
00:41:53,333 --> 00:41:55,333
What Jesus said was,
"Oh, I offended you?

962
00:41:55,417 --> 00:41:57,458
"Did I not offend everyone?

963
00:41:57,542 --> 00:41:59,833
Let me fix that."

964
00:41:59,917 --> 00:42:04,250
Oh! You've picked
a fight with Jesus.

965
00:42:04,333 --> 00:42:07,167
"'For you load people with
burdens too hard to bear,

966
00:42:07,250 --> 00:42:09,250
"'and you yourselves
do not touch the burdens

967
00:42:09,333 --> 00:42:10,792
with one of your fingers.'"

968
00:42:10,875 --> 00:42:12,708
He says,
"You don't get it, guys!

969
00:42:12,792 --> 00:42:15,625
"You've been making rules about
the rules and intimidating,

970
00:42:15,708 --> 00:42:17,375
"bullying, enslaving
people with your rules.

971
00:42:17,458 --> 00:42:19,083
"You've got everybody confused.

972
00:42:19,167 --> 00:42:22,208
"The sheep are absolutely
terrified and they're overworked

973
00:42:22,292 --> 00:42:25,625
"and they're overburdened and I
tell you that it's wrong

974
00:42:25,708 --> 00:42:27,292
"and you talk about
your feelings.

975
00:42:27,375 --> 00:42:29,375
"You don't love me.
You don't help people.

976
00:42:29,458 --> 00:42:32,125
"You're part of the problem,
not the solution.

977
00:42:32,208 --> 00:42:33,833
"You work for the enemy.

978
00:42:33,917 --> 00:42:36,375
You don't work for my Father."

979
00:42:36,458 --> 00:42:41,417
Imagine saying--and these are,
and there are decent religious

980
00:42:41,500 --> 00:42:43,292
people in all kinds of groups.

981
00:42:43,375 --> 00:42:45,917
Different religions and
different kinds of Christian,

982
00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:49,333
religious devotion that's
unhealthy and unbiblical.

983
00:42:49,417 --> 00:42:51,375
These guys are moral.
They're not drunk.

984
00:42:51,458 --> 00:42:53,458
They're not committing adultery.
They're not stealing.

985
00:42:53,542 --> 00:42:54,792
They're not murdering.

986
00:42:54,875 --> 00:42:59,708
These are decent, upstanding,
moral, religious people.

987
00:42:59,792 --> 00:43:02,917
And Jesus says that
they're very dangerous.

988
00:43:03,000 --> 00:43:06,292
"'Woe to you!'" verse 47,
"'For you build the tombs

989
00:43:06,375 --> 00:43:09,625
"'of the prophets whom your
fathers killed.

990
00:43:09,708 --> 00:43:12,708
"'So you are witnesses and you
consent to the deeds of your

991
00:43:12,792 --> 00:43:16,500
"'fathers, for they killed them,
and you build their tombs.

992
00:43:16,583 --> 00:43:19,375
"'Therefore also
the Wisdom of God said,

993
00:43:19,458 --> 00:43:21,333
"'"I will send them
prophets and apostles,

994
00:43:21,417 --> 00:43:24,000
some of whom they will
kill and persecute."'"

995
00:43:24,083 --> 00:43:25,458
Here's what he's saying:

996
00:43:25,542 --> 00:43:29,167
"Guys, this is a really
long-standing problem.

997
00:43:29,250 --> 00:43:32,083
"Physically and/or
spiritually speaking,

998
00:43:32,167 --> 00:43:35,875
"it has been one generation
after the next of religion,

999
00:43:35,958 --> 00:43:39,667
"adding rules to the rules
and control to the control

1000
00:43:39,750 --> 00:43:45,625
"and legalism to the legalism
and moralism to the moralism.

1001
00:43:45,708 --> 00:43:48,875
"And ultimately, it has to stop.

1002
00:43:48,958 --> 00:43:51,333
"And you guys will look
back and say, 'Well, yeah,

1003
00:43:51,417 --> 00:43:54,083
"'there was a day when
they hurt God's prophets,

1004
00:43:54,167 --> 00:43:55,792
"'but we built tombs
and monuments

1005
00:43:55,875 --> 00:43:57,917
and shrines to acknowledge
that.' "

1006
00:43:58,000 --> 00:44:01,250
He said, "All day you can
pretend that you acknowledge

1007
00:44:01,333 --> 00:44:03,167
"the sin of the past,

1008
00:44:03,250 --> 00:44:05,417
"but if you're still
the same in your heart,

1009
00:44:05,500 --> 00:44:08,458
"you're just going to manifest
the same fruit in your life.

1010
00:44:08,542 --> 00:44:12,125
"You're going to do the same
thing that was done in the past,

1011
00:44:12,208 --> 00:44:14,458
"where the religious
people would rise up

1012
00:44:14,542 --> 00:44:16,917
"and the prophets would come
and say, 'Repent,'

1013
00:44:17,000 --> 00:44:19,458
and the religious people
would murder them."

1014
00:44:19,542 --> 00:44:23,042
And here comes Jesus, calling
the religious people to repent,

1015
00:44:23,125 --> 00:44:25,917
and they are saying,
"We've learned our lesson."

1016
00:44:26,000 --> 00:44:28,083
And he is saying,
"No, you have not."

1017
00:44:28,167 --> 00:44:30,292
Because what will
they do to him?

1018
00:44:30,375 --> 00:44:34,167
They're going to kill Jesus,
just like their spiritual

1019
00:44:34,250 --> 00:44:38,833
fathers killed the prophets
that he sent before them.

1020
00:44:38,917 --> 00:44:41,917
Jesus continues, "'So that
the blood of all the prophets,

1021
00:44:42,000 --> 00:44:44,292
"'shed from the foundation
of the world, may be charged

1022
00:44:44,375 --> 00:44:46,833
"'against this generation,
from the blood of Abel

1023
00:44:46,917 --> 00:44:48,958
"'to the blood
of Zechariah,

1024
00:44:49,042 --> 00:44:51,583
"'who perished between
the altar and the sanctuary.

1025
00:44:51,667 --> 00:44:57,417
Yes, I tell you, it will be
required of this generation.'"

1026
00:44:57,500 --> 00:44:58,750
He goes to Cain.

1027
00:44:58,833 --> 00:45:00,250
This is fascinating.

1028
00:45:00,333 --> 00:45:02,417
Some of you know
the story of the Bible.

1029
00:45:02,500 --> 00:45:05,250
It opens with God creating
the heavens and the earth,

1030
00:45:05,333 --> 00:45:08,250
and then God creating the man
and the woman in his image

1031
00:45:08,333 --> 00:45:10,750
and likeness, and then Adam
and Eve being visited

1032
00:45:10,833 --> 00:45:12,875
by Satan, the serpent.

1033
00:45:12,958 --> 00:45:15,417
And he tempts them
to not worship God,

1034
00:45:15,500 --> 00:45:17,958
but to form their own religion.

1035
00:45:18,042 --> 00:45:20,958
Make no mistake about it, Satan
from the garden is seeking

1036
00:45:21,042 --> 00:45:23,333
to tempt our parents to
start their own religion,

1037
00:45:23,417 --> 00:45:26,250
a religion apart from God,
a religion where they don't

1038
00:45:26,333 --> 00:45:28,375
obey his rules,
they make their own.

1039
00:45:28,458 --> 00:45:31,292
They don't live for his glory,
they live for their glory.

1040
00:45:31,375 --> 00:45:35,458
They don't do what he says,
they do what they feel is best.

1041
00:45:35,542 --> 00:45:38,250
Satan is, in the garden,
tempting our first parents

1042
00:45:38,333 --> 00:45:42,000
to establish their own
religion apart from God.

1043
00:45:42,083 --> 00:45:45,375
They join Satan
in his rebellion.

1044
00:45:45,458 --> 00:45:49,083
They form, as it were, their own
religion, the man and the woman.

1045
00:45:49,167 --> 00:45:51,083
They then give
birth to two sons,

1046
00:45:51,167 --> 00:45:53,292
the first people born in
human history, two brothers,

1047
00:45:53,375 --> 00:45:55,417
Cain and Abel.

1048
00:45:55,500 --> 00:45:57,667
Jesus here speaks of Cain.

1049
00:45:57,750 --> 00:45:59,958
Cain and Abel are
the first two brothers.

1050
00:46:00,042 --> 00:46:02,250
One is a worshiper.
His name is Abel.

1051
00:46:02,333 --> 00:46:05,583
One is religious.
His name is Cain.

1052
00:46:05,667 --> 00:46:08,500
They both come to the Lord
with an offering in their hand.

1053
00:46:08,583 --> 00:46:10,667
Their offerings are different,
but their offerings are

1054
00:46:10,750 --> 00:46:14,375
acceptable insofar as what is in
their hands in the sight of God.

1055
00:46:14,458 --> 00:46:18,583
The New Testament reveals
really what was happening here,

1056
00:46:18,667 --> 00:46:20,958
but as we read the
account in Genesis,

1057
00:46:21,042 --> 00:46:23,417
God looks at Cain and he says,

1058
00:46:23,500 --> 00:46:26,625
"Your offering is not
acceptable to me.

1059
00:46:26,708 --> 00:46:29,625
And Abel's offering
is acceptable."

1060
00:46:29,708 --> 00:46:32,042
The difference being not
what is in their hands,

1061
00:46:32,125 --> 00:46:34,250
but what is in their heart.

1062
00:46:34,333 --> 00:46:36,917
Abel comes loving
God in his heart,

1063
00:46:37,000 --> 00:46:39,333
and bringing a worship
offering in his hands.

1064
00:46:39,417 --> 00:46:42,458
Cain comes not loving
God in his heart,

1065
00:46:42,542 --> 00:46:48,167
but religiously presenting his
worship offering in his hands.

1066
00:46:48,250 --> 00:46:49,958
And God basically tells Cain,

1067
00:46:50,042 --> 00:46:53,000
"Don't try to fool me
with religion.

1068
00:46:53,083 --> 00:46:55,958
"It's not just what
I see in your hands,

1069
00:46:56,042 --> 00:46:59,417
it's what I see in your heart."

1070
00:46:59,500 --> 00:47:02,500
See, some of you would come
here and you would say,

1071
00:47:02,583 --> 00:47:04,292
"I'm doing the religious thing."

1072
00:47:04,375 --> 00:47:07,167
And God would say, "You need
to do it with

1073
00:47:07,250 --> 00:47:09,458
"a worshipful, loving heart.

1074
00:47:09,542 --> 00:47:13,208
It's the internal and the
external that both count."

1075
00:47:13,292 --> 00:47:14,875
And so God warned
Cain, and said,

1076
00:47:14,958 --> 00:47:17,625
"Cain, sin is crouching
at your door.

1077
00:47:17,708 --> 00:47:19,500
"You've got a decision to make.

1078
00:47:19,583 --> 00:47:22,333
"Are you going to deal with
the sin in your heart,

1079
00:47:22,417 --> 00:47:24,250
"and jealousy and covetousness
against your brother,

1080
00:47:24,333 --> 00:47:26,417
"and a lack of love toward me?

1081
00:47:26,500 --> 00:47:28,542
"Or will you continue
to be religious,

1082
00:47:28,625 --> 00:47:32,125
doing good things out here,
but not loving me in there?"

1083
00:47:32,208 --> 00:47:33,792
What does Cain do to Abel?

1084
00:47:33,875 --> 00:47:36,333
What does the religious
brother do to the worshiper?

1085
00:47:36,417 --> 00:47:38,042
What does he do?

1086
00:47:38,125 --> 00:47:42,458
Cain kills Abel.

1087
00:47:42,542 --> 00:47:48,375
The religious brother murders
the worshiping brother.

1088
00:47:48,458 --> 00:47:52,708
This is why we do not accept
religion as a good thing.

1089
00:47:52,792 --> 00:47:56,833
Religious people outwardly
will have a piety,

1090
00:47:56,917 --> 00:47:59,417
but inwardly they're dead.

1091
00:47:59,500 --> 00:48:03,333
And the result is that they
work for the cause of death,

1092
00:48:03,417 --> 00:48:07,167
even sometimes violently
defending their religious idol,

1093
00:48:07,250 --> 00:48:09,708
killing people.

1094
00:48:09,792 --> 00:48:13,833
Murdering them,
like Cain did Abel.

1095
00:48:13,917 --> 00:48:17,250
Jesus goes on, verse 52,
"'Woe to you lawyers!

1096
00:48:17,333 --> 00:48:19,333
"'For you have taken away
the key of knowledge.

1097
00:48:19,417 --> 00:48:21,333
""You did not enter yourselves,

1098
00:48:21,417 --> 00:48:23,417
and you hindered those
who were entering.'"

1099
00:48:23,500 --> 00:48:25,000
He says, "You know what?

1100
00:48:25,083 --> 00:48:27,292
"I came to save sinners
and there are sinners

1101
00:48:27,375 --> 00:48:30,000
"who are looking to me
and may be inclined toward me,

1102
00:48:30,083 --> 00:48:32,500
"but they can't see me
because you're in the way.

1103
00:48:32,583 --> 00:48:35,292
"They can't get to me because
you're blocking the path.

1104
00:48:35,375 --> 00:48:38,375
And you're telling them the only
way to God is through religion."

1105
00:48:38,458 --> 00:48:41,333
And Jesus is saying, "I need to
get the religious people

1106
00:48:41,417 --> 00:48:44,250
out of the way so that
the sinners can come to me."

1107
00:48:44,333 --> 00:48:47,333
Religion gets
in the way of redemption.

1108
00:48:47,417 --> 00:48:51,667
Religion gets in the way
of redemption.

1109
00:48:51,750 --> 00:48:53,375
Now they have
an opportunity here.

1110
00:48:53,458 --> 00:48:55,167
At this point they can repent.

1111
00:48:55,250 --> 00:48:57,917
"Oh my goodness,
we're like Cain.

1112
00:48:58,000 --> 00:49:01,667
We're like the murderers
of the prophets."

1113
00:49:01,750 --> 00:49:04,667
Instead, verse 53, "As
he went away from there,

1114
00:49:04,750 --> 00:49:07,292
"the scribes and the Pharisees
began to press him hard

1115
00:49:07,375 --> 00:49:09,500
"and to provoke him to speak
about many things,

1116
00:49:09,583 --> 00:49:10,958
"lying in wait for him,

1117
00:49:11,042 --> 00:49:13,125
to catch him in
something he might say."

1118
00:49:13,208 --> 00:49:14,750
"Jesus, we demand you
answer our questions.

1119
00:49:14,833 --> 00:49:17,000
"Jesus, we demand that
you meet with us.

1120
00:49:17,083 --> 00:49:18,583
"Jesus, we've called
in the media.

1121
00:49:18,667 --> 00:49:20,375
"Jesus, we have a conference.

1122
00:49:20,458 --> 00:49:22,542
"Jesus, we order you.
We will set the agenda.

1123
00:49:22,625 --> 00:49:25,500
We will ask the questions.
You will answer to us."

1124
00:49:25,583 --> 00:49:27,792
And Jesus says,
"I'm out of here.

1125
00:49:27,875 --> 00:49:30,750
"I don't abide by your rules.
I don't play by your system.

1126
00:49:30,833 --> 00:49:32,583
I don't acknowledge
your authority."

1127
00:49:32,667 --> 00:49:35,292
And he leaves.

1128
00:49:35,375 --> 00:49:38,750
And the Bible says at that
moment they became critics.

1129
00:49:38,833 --> 00:49:40,917
"What is he saying?
Where is he going?

1130
00:49:41,000 --> 00:49:42,417
"Let's follow him.

1131
00:49:42,500 --> 00:49:44,792
"Let's see if we can
quote him out of context.

1132
00:49:44,875 --> 00:49:47,583
"Let's see if we can present
him as someone he's not.

1133
00:49:47,667 --> 00:49:50,375
"Let's see if we can
find a way to kill him.

1134
00:49:50,458 --> 00:49:52,000
"Then we'll get rid of him

1135
00:49:52,083 --> 00:49:57,375
and we'll have all
the sheep to ourselves."

1136
00:49:57,458 --> 00:50:00,375
This is very serious business.

1137
00:50:00,458 --> 00:50:02,458
Now let me explain this to you.

1138
00:50:02,542 --> 00:50:04,292
In that day,
the Pharisees were considered

1139
00:50:04,375 --> 00:50:06,500
the holiest men on earth.

1140
00:50:06,583 --> 00:50:09,292
I mean, this was as
holy as you could be.

1141
00:50:09,375 --> 00:50:11,875
These guys didn't do anything
on the Sabbath for fear

1142
00:50:11,958 --> 00:50:14,083
of disobeying one of
the Ten Commandments.

1143
00:50:14,167 --> 00:50:16,042
These guys tithed out
of their spice rack.

1144
00:50:16,125 --> 00:50:18,667
In an effort to not look
at a woman lustfully,

1145
00:50:18,750 --> 00:50:21,125
they would literally walk
around looking at the ground,

1146
00:50:21,208 --> 00:50:23,333
banging their head into things.

1147
00:50:23,417 --> 00:50:25,292
These guys were so committed.

1148
00:50:25,375 --> 00:50:27,000
They learned Hebrew.

1149
00:50:27,083 --> 00:50:29,375
They memorized whole chunks
of the Old Testament law.

1150
00:50:29,458 --> 00:50:32,667
I mean, they could tell
you not only what the 613 laws

1151
00:50:32,750 --> 00:50:35,417
were, they could probably
memorize for you most,

1152
00:50:35,500 --> 00:50:38,917
if not all, of the 613 laws.

1153
00:50:39,000 --> 00:50:42,250
These guys were as holy as it
gets as far as human religion,

1154
00:50:42,333 --> 00:50:44,667
works righteousness,
is concerned.

1155
00:50:44,750 --> 00:50:47,542
And Jesus says something that
is terrifying, fascinating,

1156
00:50:47,625 --> 00:50:50,333
and illuminating
in Matthew 5:20.

1157
00:50:50,417 --> 00:50:53,458
He says this, and this is what
sort of undergirds the ongoing

1158
00:50:53,542 --> 00:50:57,042
conflict with the Pharisees.

1159
00:50:57,125 --> 00:51:01,875
Jesus says, "Unless your
righteousness exceeds that

1160
00:51:01,958 --> 00:51:05,625
of the Pharisees, you will
not inherit eternal life."

1161
00:51:05,708 --> 00:51:09,583
How many of you are
shocked by that?

1162
00:51:09,667 --> 00:51:12,458
You're like--I mean,
how many of you, really,

1163
00:51:12,542 --> 00:51:14,500
you brought your dill?

1164
00:51:14,583 --> 00:51:16,667
How many of you
brought your dill?

1165
00:51:16,750 --> 00:51:18,500
You're like,
"No, I'm so committed,

1166
00:51:18,583 --> 00:51:21,333
"I went through my spice
rack and I'm waiting for you

1167
00:51:21,417 --> 00:51:23,583
"to pass the offering
opportunity so that I

1168
00:51:23,667 --> 00:51:26,208
can put my spice rack 10% in."

1169
00:51:26,292 --> 00:51:28,250
See, you guys didn't
even think about that.

1170
00:51:28,333 --> 00:51:30,125
You're like, "I'm
not that committed.

1171
00:51:30,208 --> 00:51:31,792
"Sabbath?
What is that?

1172
00:51:31,875 --> 00:51:33,708
"I don't even know
what that is.

1173
00:51:33,792 --> 00:51:36,458
"Memorize?
No, I don't.

1174
00:51:36,542 --> 00:51:38,417
I'm not that committed."

1175
00:51:38,500 --> 00:51:41,458
This is like going to a fair
and there's a ride

1176
00:51:41,542 --> 00:51:43,000
you really want to ride.

1177
00:51:43,083 --> 00:51:45,792
Let's call it the heaven ride,
for purposes of illustration.

1178
00:51:45,875 --> 00:51:49,125
And you go up to the guy
running the ride and you say,

1179
00:51:49,208 --> 00:51:51,375
"I'd like to ride
the heaven ride."

1180
00:51:51,458 --> 00:51:53,333
And he says, "Oh,
well that's fine.

1181
00:51:53,417 --> 00:51:54,625
"We have a height qualifier.

1182
00:51:54,708 --> 00:51:57,250
"You need to be over
a certain line of height,

1183
00:51:57,333 --> 00:52:00,250
and if you're over that line,
you get to ride the ride."

1184
00:52:00,333 --> 00:52:01,542
"Okay, great.

1185
00:52:01,625 --> 00:52:03,750
Where's the line?
I don't see the line."

1186
00:52:03,833 --> 00:52:05,250
"Oh, the line's up there.

1187
00:52:05,333 --> 00:52:07,833
You need to be 127 feet
tall to ride the ride."

1188
00:52:07,917 --> 00:52:09,500
You go, "Well, that's
taller than me.

1189
00:52:09,583 --> 00:52:12,042
"I don't know if I could
ride the heaven ride

1190
00:52:12,125 --> 00:52:14,458
"and I don't sense a 122-foot
growth spurt coming.

1191
00:52:14,542 --> 00:52:16,000
Has anyone ever
ridden the ride?"

1192
00:52:16,083 --> 00:52:20,292
"Just one guy named Jesus."

1193
00:52:20,375 --> 00:52:23,167
Nobody else gets
to ride the ride.

1194
00:52:23,250 --> 00:52:27,208
See, how many of you, you hear
this and it echoes the words

1195
00:52:27,292 --> 00:52:31,458
of Jesus who says
elsewhere, "Be," what?

1196
00:52:31,542 --> 00:52:36,667
"Perfect like your heavenly
Father is perfect."

1197
00:52:36,750 --> 00:52:39,667
See, some of you come here
today, you say, "You know what?

1198
00:52:39,750 --> 00:52:41,917
"That's it.
I want to ride the heaven ride.

1199
00:52:42,000 --> 00:52:43,625
"I want all of my sins forgiven.

1200
00:52:43,708 --> 00:52:45,292
"I want to spend
forever with God.

1201
00:52:45,375 --> 00:52:47,500
"I want him to help me
right now

1202
00:52:47,583 --> 00:52:49,917
"and I want him to be
with me forever.

1203
00:52:50,000 --> 00:52:51,292
What do I need to do?"

1204
00:52:51,375 --> 00:52:52,917
Easy.

1205
00:52:53,000 --> 00:52:54,917
Be perfect in thought,
word, deed, and motive.

1206
00:52:55,000 --> 00:52:56,292
In the future and the past.

1207
00:52:56,375 --> 00:52:57,917
That's all.
Go do it.

1208
00:52:58,000 --> 00:52:59,833
You say, "Too late.
It won't happen."

1209
00:52:59,917 --> 00:53:02,000
And see, the problem
with religion is this.

1210
00:53:02,083 --> 00:53:04,708
Religion sees that we're
sinners separated from God.

1211
00:53:04,792 --> 00:53:07,833
Religion sees that God is holy
and we're unacceptable

1212
00:53:07,917 --> 00:53:09,417
in his sight.

1213
00:53:09,500 --> 00:53:11,792
And so then, religion decides,
"We need to do something!

1214
00:53:11,875 --> 00:53:13,333
Something needs to be done!"

1215
00:53:13,417 --> 00:53:15,542
And then the religious
leaders rise up and say,

1216
00:53:15,625 --> 00:53:17,417
"We'll make a list of rules!

1217
00:53:17,500 --> 00:53:19,500
"And we'll keep score!
And we'll teach people!

1218
00:53:19,583 --> 00:53:22,500
"And we'll discipline them and
we'll teach them what to do!

1219
00:53:22,583 --> 00:53:24,708
"And they're going to
obey all of our rules!

1220
00:53:24,792 --> 00:53:26,917
"And then God will
look down and say,

1221
00:53:27,000 --> 00:53:29,500
"'These are the good guys
and these are the bad guys.

1222
00:53:29,583 --> 00:53:31,708
"'They kept the rules.
They didn't keep the rules.

1223
00:53:31,792 --> 00:53:33,333
I'll save the good guys!'"

1224
00:53:33,417 --> 00:53:34,583
That's religion.

1225
00:53:34,667 --> 00:53:36,083
And it's all about works.

1226
00:53:36,167 --> 00:53:40,333
It's all about somebody
doing something.

1227
00:53:40,417 --> 00:53:43,042
And it becomes an idol.

1228
00:53:43,125 --> 00:53:45,500
"God, you're obligated to me
because I'm religious,

1229
00:53:45,583 --> 00:53:47,167
"moral, pious, and good.

1230
00:53:47,250 --> 00:53:49,750
"God, you have to love me.
You have to save me.

1231
00:53:49,833 --> 00:53:52,167
"You have to forgive me.
I'm a good person.

1232
00:53:52,250 --> 00:53:53,542
"I did good things.

1233
00:53:53,625 --> 00:53:55,833
I'm better than those
guys, that's for sure."

1234
00:53:55,917 --> 00:53:58,375
There was a guy who
was much like this,

1235
00:53:58,458 --> 00:54:00,333
lived his life
out of this ideology.

1236
00:54:00,417 --> 00:54:02,042
His name was Saul.

1237
00:54:02,125 --> 00:54:04,042
He says in Philippians 3,
"I'm a Hebrew.

1238
00:54:04,125 --> 00:54:06,250
"I was born
from the tribe of Benjamin.

1239
00:54:06,333 --> 00:54:08,750
"I got a pure bloodline.

1240
00:54:08,833 --> 00:54:11,917
"I studied under Gamaliel,
one of the leading rabbis.

1241
00:54:12,000 --> 00:54:14,083
"I was at the top of my class.

1242
00:54:14,167 --> 00:54:16,542
"I know Hebrew and memorize
books of the Bible.

1243
00:54:16,625 --> 00:54:21,167
"I'm so devoted religiously and
zealously to my idol of religion

1244
00:54:21,250 --> 00:54:24,208
"and my performance, my works,
my righteousness, my goodness,

1245
00:54:24,292 --> 00:54:29,250
that I also murdered a deacon
named Stephen, who loved Jesus."

1246
00:54:29,333 --> 00:54:35,333
And then Saul, later his name is
changed to Paul, he met Jesus.

1247
00:54:36,000 --> 00:54:39,375
And here's what he says in
Philippians 3:8, "Indeed,

1248
00:54:39,458 --> 00:54:42,208
"I count everything as loss
because of the surpassing

1249
00:54:42,292 --> 00:54:44,000
"worth of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord.

1250
00:54:44,083 --> 00:54:47,167
"For his sake I have suffered
the loss of all things and count

1251
00:54:47,250 --> 00:54:52,000
them as rubbish," or dung, "in
order that I may gain Christ."

1252
00:54:52,083 --> 00:54:54,958
Paul says, "My whole life,
all my works, all my religion,

1253
00:54:55,042 --> 00:54:58,000
"all the rule keeping, rule
making, rule enforcing,

1254
00:54:58,083 --> 00:55:01,917
"rule interpreting, once I
met Jesus, I realized this:

1255
00:55:02,000 --> 00:55:05,583
It's just a steaming pile."

1256
00:55:05,667 --> 00:55:08,208
That's literally
what the Greek says.

1257
00:55:08,292 --> 00:55:10,250
Next time you're at
the park, the dog park,

1258
00:55:10,333 --> 00:55:14,000
you walk out into your yard, you
walk out of your condo, dorm,

1259
00:55:14,083 --> 00:55:16,792
apartment, and there's a
little strip of grass and a big

1260
00:55:16,875 --> 00:55:20,000
steaming pile that somebody's
dog left, just remind yourself,

1261
00:55:20,083 --> 00:55:24,208
"Ah, there lies religion.

1262
00:55:24,292 --> 00:55:26,458
There lies religion."

1263
00:55:26,542 --> 00:55:29,958
And some religious people, they
get all--I mean, it's amazing.

1264
00:55:30,042 --> 00:55:32,250
They'll be like, "Well, my pile
is more neatly stacked

1265
00:55:32,333 --> 00:55:33,875
than your pile."

1266
00:55:33,958 --> 00:55:37,083
So?
It's still a pile.

1267
00:55:37,167 --> 00:55:39,167
"Well, my pile's
bigger than your pile."

1268
00:55:39,250 --> 00:55:42,875
I'm not sure that's
a good thing.

1269
00:55:42,958 --> 00:55:45,250
"Well, I put sprinkles on
my pile and pretended

1270
00:55:45,333 --> 00:55:47,000
it was a cookie."

1271
00:55:47,083 --> 00:55:49,250
Well, it's still a pile.

1272
00:55:49,333 --> 00:55:53,833
And religion is
nothing but a pile.

1273
00:55:53,917 --> 00:55:55,458
You say, "One
religion's a green pile.

1274
00:55:55,542 --> 00:55:57,083
"One religion's a brown pile.

1275
00:55:57,167 --> 00:55:59,083
One religion's
a dark brown pile."

1276
00:55:59,167 --> 00:56:00,542
It's still a pile.

1277
00:56:00,625 --> 00:56:04,250
All a pile.
All a pile.

1278
00:56:04,333 --> 00:56:06,792
And Paul says, "I
realized, once I met Jesus,

1279
00:56:06,875 --> 00:56:11,375
my whole life was
just stacking a pile."

1280
00:56:11,458 --> 00:56:13,542
So what do you do?

1281
00:56:13,625 --> 00:56:18,000
Where do you
get righteousness?

1282
00:56:18,083 --> 00:56:19,917
It's Jesus.

1283
00:56:20,000 --> 00:56:23,292
This is why Jesus so
passionately opposes religion.

1284
00:56:23,375 --> 00:56:25,125
It's Jesus or religion.

1285
00:56:25,208 --> 00:56:27,333
That's all it is.

1286
00:56:27,417 --> 00:56:29,333
And religion says,
"We must work!

1287
00:56:29,417 --> 00:56:30,792
Something must be done!"

1288
00:56:30,875 --> 00:56:32,292
And here's the truth.

1289
00:56:32,375 --> 00:56:34,458
You and I, everyone
who will ever be saved,

1290
00:56:34,542 --> 00:56:40,250
is saved by works,
the works of Jesus.

1291
00:56:40,333 --> 00:56:43,500
Not our works, his works.

1292
00:56:43,583 --> 00:56:46,458
Not what we do, what he does.

1293
00:56:46,542 --> 00:56:50,083
Not the life we live,
the life he lives.

1294
00:56:50,167 --> 00:56:51,417
Religion is right,

1295
00:56:51,500 --> 00:56:53,958
somebody needs to do something!

1296
00:56:54,042 --> 00:56:57,125
Religious people come and
say, "Here's the list, do it!"

1297
00:56:57,208 --> 00:57:01,500
Jesus comes in from the
cross says, "It is finished."

1298
00:57:01,583 --> 00:57:04,417
All the work's done.

1299
00:57:04,500 --> 00:57:08,500
Jesus takes our sin, dies
on the cross in our place,

1300
00:57:08,583 --> 00:57:13,167
for our sins, as our
substitute, rises from death,

1301
00:57:13,250 --> 00:57:16,375
conquering Satan, sin,
and death, really,

1302
00:57:16,458 --> 00:57:19,250
truly redeeming
us from religion,

1303
00:57:19,333 --> 00:57:21,667
and he gives us
his righteousness.

1304
00:57:21,750 --> 00:57:23,375
We're perfect in Christ.

1305
00:57:23,458 --> 00:57:25,083
We're forgiven in Christ.

1306
00:57:25,167 --> 00:57:26,542
We're redeemed in Christ.

1307
00:57:26,625 --> 00:57:28,292
We're justified in Christ.

1308
00:57:28,375 --> 00:57:30,167
We're adopted in Christ.

1309
00:57:30,250 --> 00:57:32,917
It's all of Jesus'
work, none of our own.

1310
00:57:33,000 --> 00:57:34,500
We call this grace.

1311
00:57:34,583 --> 00:57:36,292
It's a gift.
You receive it.

1312
00:57:36,375 --> 00:57:39,125
And some of you say, "What,
you don't care about holiness?

1313
00:57:39,208 --> 00:57:40,375
You don't care
about discipline?"

1314
00:57:40,458 --> 00:57:41,875
Sure we do!

1315
00:57:41,958 --> 00:57:44,875
We want to be holy, not
so that God will love us,

1316
00:57:44,958 --> 00:57:46,250
but because in Christ he does.

1317
00:57:46,333 --> 00:57:50,125
Not so that God would accept us,
but because in Christ he does.

1318
00:57:50,208 --> 00:57:54,542
Not to earn God's merit, favor,
love, approval, and blessing,

1319
00:57:54,625 --> 00:57:58,333
but because in Christ he's
already given us all things.

1320
00:57:58,417 --> 00:58:01,500
So we want to be holy, not so
that God will be pleased

1321
00:58:01,583 --> 00:58:04,292
with us, but because God is
pleased with us in Christ,

1322
00:58:04,375 --> 00:58:06,542
and if Jesus loves
us, we love him,

1323
00:58:06,625 --> 00:58:09,458
he puts the Holy Spirit in
us, he gives a new heart,

1324
00:58:09,542 --> 00:58:11,333
new desires, new nature.

1325
00:58:11,417 --> 00:58:12,708
Now we want to obey him.

1326
00:58:12,792 --> 00:58:14,500
Not out of fear, out of joy.

1327
00:58:14,583 --> 00:58:16,417
Not so that God will embrace us,

1328
00:58:16,500 --> 00:58:19,292
but because we already feel
his affection.

1329
00:58:19,375 --> 00:58:22,792
The motivation is completely
different than religion.

1330
00:58:22,875 --> 00:58:25,125
And the result is joy.

1331
00:58:25,208 --> 00:58:28,375
And so, for those of you who are
here, some of you truly, deeply,

1332
00:58:28,458 --> 00:58:31,417
thoroughly need to
repent of your religion.

1333
00:58:31,500 --> 00:58:33,417
Enough with the religion.

1334
00:58:33,500 --> 00:58:34,833
Enough with the rule making.

1335
00:58:34,917 --> 00:58:36,292
Enough with the
self-righteousness.

1336
00:58:36,375 --> 00:58:37,917
Enough with the boasting.

1337
00:58:38,000 --> 00:58:39,417
Enough with the bragging.

1338
00:58:39,500 --> 00:58:41,875
Enough with the judging.

1339
00:58:41,958 --> 00:58:45,792
Repent of your religion
and come to Jesus.

1340
00:58:45,875 --> 00:58:48,375
And some of you,
you're sinners.

1341
00:58:48,458 --> 00:58:49,625
You know it.

1342
00:58:49,708 --> 00:58:51,125
Your thing isn't working.

1343
00:58:51,208 --> 00:58:52,375
Your life isn't working.

1344
00:58:52,458 --> 00:58:54,417
You know you're not
pleasing to God.

1345
00:58:54,500 --> 00:58:56,417
You know it's not
as it should be.

1346
00:58:56,500 --> 00:58:59,958
But between you and Jesus has
been a lot of religious people.

1347
00:59:00,042 --> 00:59:02,375
And they've blocked the way
and they've made it confusing.

1348
00:59:02,458 --> 00:59:04,250
And, "Do this and don't do that.

1349
00:59:04,333 --> 00:59:05,958
And stop this and start that."

1350
00:59:06,042 --> 00:59:07,250
And you're confused
and disoriented.

1351
00:59:07,333 --> 00:59:10,375
Or maybe you want to get
to Jesus, but your fear is,

1352
00:59:10,458 --> 00:59:13,375
"If I got to be religious,
is there a way to have

1353
00:59:13,458 --> 00:59:14,750
Jesus without religion?"

1354
00:59:14,833 --> 00:59:16,375
I have good news for you!

1355
00:59:16,458 --> 00:59:18,167
You can't have
Jesus and religion.

1356
00:59:18,250 --> 00:59:20,167
It's just Jesus.

1357
00:59:20,250 --> 00:59:22,458
And today, he removes for you
the religious people

1358
00:59:22,542 --> 00:59:24,875
and just opens himself to you.

1359
00:59:24,958 --> 00:59:27,250
He says, "Come to
me, all who are weary

1360
00:59:27,333 --> 00:59:28,917
"and burdened and heavy laden.

1361
00:59:29,000 --> 00:59:31,500
"Those of you who have been
carrying that yoke of religion,

1362
00:59:31,583 --> 00:59:34,375
I'll forgive your sin and
give rest to your soul."

1363
00:59:34,458 --> 00:59:37,583
So I invite the religious people
to repent of religion and get

1364
00:59:37,667 --> 00:59:40,500
to Jesus, and I encourage the
sinners to repent of sin

1365
00:59:40,583 --> 00:59:43,375
and not become religious,
but come to Jesus.

1366
00:59:43,458 --> 00:59:45,500
Amen?

1367
00:59:45,583 --> 00:59:47,208
Amen.

1368
00:59:47,292 --> 00:59:48,667
What good news this is.

1369
00:59:48,750 --> 00:59:51,083
Father God, I pray against
the enemy, his servants,

1370
00:59:51,167 --> 00:59:52,333
their works, and effects.

1371
00:59:52,417 --> 00:59:56,958
Father, I confess publicly, if I
had to choose in which direction

1372
00:59:57,042 --> 01:00:01,417
I would err, it would be the
direction of a Pharisee.

1373
01:00:01,500 --> 01:00:05,417
I would be bold and zealous and
disciplined and committed and

1374
01:00:05,500 --> 01:00:10,125
self-righteous and religious
and rule making and condemning.

1375
01:00:10,208 --> 01:00:12,917
God, at times I
know I have been.

1376
01:00:13,000 --> 01:00:16,042
I pray, Holy Spirit, that you
would save me from myself and

1377
01:00:16,125 --> 01:00:18,708
help me do a better job loving
and serving these people

1378
01:00:18,792 --> 01:00:20,333
that call Mars Hill home.

1379
01:00:20,417 --> 01:00:23,375
God, for those who are like me
and prone toward the default

1380
01:00:23,458 --> 01:00:26,750
mode of the human heart, what
Martin Luther calls religion,

1381
01:00:26,833 --> 01:00:31,833
I pray God you would convict us
of the sin of religion and allow

1382
01:00:31,917 --> 01:00:34,417
us to repent thoroughly,
wholeheartedly.

1383
01:00:34,500 --> 01:00:38,458
God, for those who they know
that they're sinners and they

1384
01:00:38,542 --> 01:00:41,958
have been turned off because of
religion and religious people,

1385
01:00:42,042 --> 01:00:44,958
I pray now that they would see
Jesus clearly and that religion

1386
01:00:45,042 --> 01:00:47,250
and religious people would
not be standing in their way,

1387
01:00:47,333 --> 01:00:50,375
and that they would come to
Jesus in whose name we pray.

1388
01:00:50,458 --> 01:00:51,625
Amen.